#and my parents came over because they were in the city visiting my grandpa at the hospital.

[vriendenboekjes]

i need a new hobby i need to feel something i need to see a friend i need to sleep

[crybabylulu]

Grandpa

Sugar mama Lin Beifong x sugar baby reader

Summary: you tell Lin & Miyuki more about your home life

Lin and I went to get Miyuki a cat tree. We didn’t bring her because we knew she would scratch at them. I picked a pink tree because it had little sitting spots and a little hole for her to hide in. I bought it myself. I didn't let Lin buy it. When we got home Lin put the tree up in the living room and Miyuki was confused. “This is your tree.” I told her. She turned her head then looked at me. “It’s ok. Go play.” I said and patted the tree. Miyuki walked over to it and sniffed it. She jumped on to it.

The phone started ringing and I went to answer it. “Hello.” I said. I heard the voice on the other end. It was my grandpa. “Oh grandpa, hello! I’m doing good, how are you?” I asked. “Grandpa?” Lin asked. “Hmm. I don’t want to be bothered with her.” I told him. Miyuki meowed. “I’ll think about it. I’ll talk to you later. I love you.” I said then hung up. “Grandpa?” Lin asked and Miyuki meowed. “Yes grandpa. What’s the problem?” I asked. “You’ve just never mentioned him.” Lin said. “Oh. Well, where do you think I got the money to take care of myself before you?” I asked.

“I don’t know.” Lin said. “Well yeah my grandpa spoils his grandchildren because he knows our parents are shit so he spoils us to make up for it.” I said. “What did he want?” Lin asked. “He wants me to go visit my mom.” I said. “And you don’t want to?” Lin asked. “Not really.” I said. “Why?” Lin asked. “We already don’t talk much so it’s just weird.” I said. Lin nodded. “But like I said I’ll think about it but I don’t know.” I said. “I’ll come with you.” Lin said. “I don’t want you meeting my mother.” I said. “Why?” Lin asked.

“Her and I aren’t close so it just doesn’t feel right for her to meet someone so special to me.” I said. “I suppose that’s understandable.” Lin said. I nodded. “What about your grandparents?” Lin asked. “Hmm probably but that’s if grandpa invites us over.” I said. “Why wouldn’t he invite us over?” Lin asked. “Because grandpa has a hard time looking at his grandchildren.” I said. “What do you mean?” Lin asked. “Like I said he knows how our parents treat us so he struggles to look at us because he hates that he knows our treatment but does nothing about it.” I said.

“Why doesn’t he do anything?” Lin asked. I shrugged. “I wish I knew but like I said he makes up for it in money and treats us well as best as he can.” I said. “Even your brother?” Lin asked. “Oh fuck no.” I said. Lin chuckled. “He despises my brother. He knows how spoiled and fucked up he is.” I said. Lin nodded. “I’d run that fucker over with a truck if I could, but anyways yeah grandpa doesn’t take care of him.” I said. “You can’t run him over, you’ll go to jail.” Lin said. “I can hire a good lawyer.” I said. Lin sighed. “Honey please.” Lin said. “I said what I said. He deserves it.” I said.

Miyuki meowed. “Exactly Miyuki gets it.” I said. “Do you ever call your sister?” Lin asked. “No.” I said. “Why?” Lin asked. “We just don’t. I think it’s just hard for us to do.” I said. “That’s understandable.” Lin said. “Yeah, I always hope she’s ok and I did tell her before I left if she ever needs me come find me in Republic City.” I said. “Do you think she’ll ever find you?” Lin asked. “If dad makes her get married she will.” I said. “What if she’s afraid to leave?” Lin asked. “Not my sister. I didn’t raise her that way.” I said. “You didn’t raise her that way?” Lin asked.

“Yeah. I raised my sister her mother was fucking terrible when her son came around so I took care of her. I brushed her hair, I fed her, I dressed her, I made sure she was smart. I had to talk her through her first period! The girl thought she was dying. I mean I did too when I had my first period but it’s whatever.” I said. “How old were you?” Lin asked. “I was eight or nine taking care of her and myself.” I said. “You also say her mother.” Lin said. “We don’t share a mom, only a father.” I said. “Is that why you don’t want to see your mom because she wasn’t there for you?” Lin asked. “Kinda yeah.” I said.

“Why wasn’t she there?” Lin asked. “You’re asking a lot of questions.” I said. “I just wanna know you more.” Lin said. Miyuki meowed in agreement. “Fuck yall anyways her and I use to live together but once she found out I was a fire bender she thought it was best for me to live with my dad.” I said. “Your mom is a non bender?” Lin asked. I nodded. “Got anymore questions?” I asked. “What else can I ask?” Lin asked. “Whatever you want.” I said and sat down on the bed. “How did your mom react when you started fire bending?” Lin asked.

“Oh she was terrified but once she calmed down she said it was best to go live with dad who I hadn’t seen in forever because he can help me be a better fire bender.” I said. “Why was she terrified?” Lin asked. “Well when you live in the North Pole it isn’t great to be a fire bender.” I said and laughed. “You lived in the North Pole?” Lin asked. “Yup. My mom raised me there till I was eight. That's when I was shipped off to my dad and then I had to take care of my six year old sister that I didn’t even know I had.” I said. “You didn’t know about her?” Lin asked. “No. When she saw me she hated me because that made her the middle child and it also meant she was no longer the only girl.” I said.

“How old was your brother?” Lin asked. “He was four when I got there.” I said. “Did you have to take care of him?” Lin asked. “Oh fuck no his mother didn’t want us anywhere near him. That was her precious baby so she took care of him while I took care of myself and my sister.” I said. “Did you ever see your mom?” Lin asked and sat next to me. “Sometimes but I remember I usually would sit outside in the snow to be away from her because even when I would tell her how bad dad was she said that’s just fire bending training and that I’m exaggerating because I’m a child.” I said.

Lin scoffed. “I got to meet grandpa when I was sixteen and he loved his girls but despised my brother and I remember also around that age my father was in talks with my future husband.” I said. “He was gonna marry you off at sixteen?” Lin asked. “No no he was gonna marry me off at eighteen but he was just talking to the guy and planning out how this was gonna work, because grandpa was still not gonna give him any money. He noticed my father hadn’t changed and we girls were being mistreated so he didn’t give him shit but he gave us money. He set up money accounts for us that we couldn’t touch till we were adults. When I turned eighteen I was allowed to touch the money and it was a lot so I took it and ran and never looked back.” I said.

“So your sister must have touched her money and must be fine. She’s an adult now.” Lin said. “Maybe. I’m not sure I can only hope.” I said. “How do you think your brother is doing?” Lin asked. “He’s probably still thinking he’s hot shit.” I said and rolled my eyes.

[pondering-gales-left-orb]

hihi tell me a bit about ori :3

hiiii so sorry for the late late reply i wanted to wait till i got on my laptop at home so i can format it well (also it took me 3 hours to write this aaaaaaaah) so here it goes! first of all thank you so much for askingggggggggggggg !!

Ori was 29 when they moved to stardew valley , they feel like they wasted their teens and 20's working for Joja corp back at zuzu city which they regret immensely

Ori as a kid used to love going to the nearby small forest and explore all day but then the forest was cut down to make way for a joja warehouse building since then Ori didn't really go out except to the zuzu mall with friends ( Gwen from the zuzu city mod) their fav past time was to hangout around the video games merch and comics store to observe the Hot gamerz and nerdz that came in and out of that store ( yk typical teen stuff lol)

Ori's parents are divorced, they live with their mother,and ever since the divorce they stopped being the outgoing person they always were, they decided to take a part time job at a joja mart nearby and then just continued to work for them since then

they moved to stardew valley at the urging of their mom after they opened grandpa's letter because they almost didn't take the offer they thought it was too much work and too late for them to change careers but their mom believed they could do it and wanted them to leave Joja

i headcannon grandpa in this save to have been a very good adventurer along side being a farmer basically THE original Min/Max farmer before my farmer comes along lol and he is best freinds with both Lewis and Marlon

so when Ori moved to stardew valley and was greeted by everyone so enthusiastically it actually scared them and they spent all spring barely leaving their farm but once they needed to go to the mines they started running into Marlon

Marlon's gruffy attitude reminded Ori of their grandpa alot which made them very sad and nostalgic for their grandpa, by then they had started to want to become more like him so they went out to fight monsters like he did but of course Ori was not prepared so they had alot of near death experiences only to be saved by the town's residential doctor Harvey

Marlon took note of whats happening and offered Ori a sword and a place in the adventures guild, secretly they thought Ori reminded them of their grandpa trying to balance the whole world on their shoulders and thought he could atleast try to help so he trains them to use the sword at night at the adventures guild

since Ori leaves the adventure guild late at night and runs into Sebastian alot, they are slowly becoming good friends!

ever since Ori visited the wizard and drank that ...uh... essence of the forest potion they find themselves wandering the deep forest in stardew valley over and over again!

im gonna stop here because if i keep going imma need another 3 hours or so lol

once again thank you for asking !

[a-yarn-of-purple-prose]

I'm gonna tell you a story and I won't take the left turn to blorbo, but I know that some people might get what I was thinking about when I remembered this.

The thing is, both my father and my mother grew up with a revolving set of people that were being raised by their parents and were never their siblings. 

Now, I know I'm talking about things from over 50 years ago that are very specific to our culture and the place we live-- the largest small city around, the place with the technical schools and the jobs-- but it's so surprising to me to find out people don't even believe something like that is possible.

My grandparents were kind enough to take people in because that's what you do in a community. They had the means, so they did it. Those people were treated the same as their kids, raised alongside, and put into school with their names as legal guardians. But they were never adopted. They had parents back home, they had only been sent to our city to study, maybe find a decent job.

They had been sent to have a chance.

Is this so far from the modern usamerican world that people can't conceive of it existing? 

That you do things for the community or because you're kind?

That you can raise someone without adopting? Have a father without being a brother to his kids?

My maternal grandfather's funeral was so busy the cemetery groundskeeper asked us if he had been a politician. I remember my mom saying no, he was just a pharmacist. "He'd apply injections for free," she said like that was the extent of Grandpa's kindness. Like he hadn't supported his community so much that people to this day stop me on the street, recognizing him in me, and ask about him. 

I don't even know all the people my fraternal grandmother raised. I don't know all their names, much less consider them family. Whenever one came to visit I would call them aunties (they were all women) out of respect, but that's about it.

My fraternal grandmother wasn't a kind woman, nor was she beloved of her community. And she still found it in herself to help raise kids that weren't her own.

Is the culture I was raised in that alien to you?

[hoodievixen]

So my grandmother is toxic af. I've told my mom (her mother) this time and time again, but refuses to do anything about it. Mainly this is a big dump of how crazy this old lady is.

Now I didn't really pay attention to pretty much anyone or anything else until I was eighteen. This being due to me being a child, as well as shoty mental health. This is when I realized just how crazy most of my mom's siblings are. And by crazy I mean dumb, and of course it all comes front he source of it all, my grandmother.

We sorta ignored what we could, and avoided more. This was because my grandpa wasn't doing well. Most of my life he had been in and out of hospitals due to COPD he developed from smoking. We weren't sure when the last time you were going to see him was. I don't remember the occasion, but the last time I saw him was at my cousin's house. It was my siblings and parents playing card games with him. Sure I didn't play the game but I was there talking with him.

He passed away January 2020. He was ready to go. And should have taken grandma with him. Covid then shut everything down a few months later, and she was alone, which just added to the insanity.

I would love to skip to the whole Scamdrew incident, but first I would like to bring you to June of that year. In one week was both my grandparents anniversary, and father's day, both which would be tough for my grandmother who had recently lost her husband of over 50 years.

My mom found a cabin all with in a.ciuple hour drive forher siblings, and booked it for a week, being the master mind behind the whole vacation. Everyone was to be careful of Covid before coming, to be safe. Instead my mom's elder sister decided to fly down the Houston the week before to visit her daughter. (During a large spike of cases in said city) The aunt claimed to be safe she wouldn't come to the cabin though I'm pretty sure my mom told her how dumb she was. This aunt will become a huge problem later. Still all her kids are adults and could have come in their own, none did, not even for a day.

My family however was sure to be there. My brother's work was being audited so he needed to leave on Monday to deal with that, but he and his girlfriend were there Saturday and Sunday. My sister worked as a CNA and was required to work that weekend in the hospital, but she came out in Monday with plans to spend rest of the week there. Monday itself was my birthday. Not a huge milestone brithday or anything, but I would have enjoyed doing something with my friends. We also made plans for that day, baking cupbakes before going, and buy water balloons for a water balloon fight.

I don't know the details of exactly what happened, as I hate people and am an introvert, so I was taking a nap. I was awoken by my crying mother telling me to get my things because we were leaving.

"I feel like I don't belong in this family" my mom cried down to her family.

"You don't belong anywhere!" my grandmother, her own mother responded.

Obviously we left. I learned the fight had started because my mom spoke against what her siblings were saying, that they didn't get all the Black-Lives matter movements that had been happening resently. (My relatives are conservative, and some are even Trump supporters) They can't accept any other oppinion than their own, and one of my aunts can't take a single piece of criticism without crying and throwing a fit.

I told my mom to cut her out of her life then and there. I wrote what happened from my point of view, encouraging her to not try. Our family did so much for her, yet she was never greatful, showing obvious favoritism toward my mom's other siblings. I don't think my grandmother ever apologized, they talked about it, but she never apologized. Seeing how it's 2023, and I'm writting this more happened.

I don't exactly remeber when it started, but it's time for the Scamdrew incident. My grandma started online dating, though she was not ready for it. I don't think it had even been an entire year since grandpa passed away. Anyways she started talking to this guy Andrew. We let her do her thing. I didn't really know much about this until one night my parents were trying to find any information about this guy. I decided, to join in, finding it to be a fun thing to do. We could onky find an Indeed page for the guy, a sketchy Indeed page.

I just stayed out of this, having long since grown done with my grandmother, and not wanting to deal with her. But they had an intervention, telling he rjt might be a scam. Grandma said she was prepaired to move out to an entirely different state to be with him leaving behind her kids. She continued to keep this mentality as more evidence polled up to prove he was a scam. Even her bank told her it was a scam. It took her some of her kids to stop talking to her to give him an ultimatum that did not get fulfill to stop talking to the guy. Though I think she would if she wouldn't get scolded by her kids again.

Now my grandmother has always been religious. My grandfather had gone to school to become part of the clergy, obviously didn't happen. Still they went to curch every Sunday, celebrated the holy days, and prayed. I decided I was agnostic as a fresan in highschool, so sorta just ignore all her Christian stuff, she had plenty of other people to talk to about that stuff.

But she basically threw herself into religion. She claimed everything wa sin gods plan, and that even the scam guy was he soulmate from God. My mom pointed out my grandmother hadn't ever believed in predestination before, and called bs on it. Still she started pushing her religion down other people's throats. My uncle, her son, was going through a messy devorce at the time and told his now ex-wife that she needed to find God when picking up my cousin one time. For Christmas she gave Al of her children a holt water holder (?) and a crusifix. Grandchildren got a tacky nick-nack that basically boiled down to "Your grandma loves, and so dose God."

She likes to demand to go out with her grandkids for dinner or lunch at times. I usually am able to not go, but there are times I can't. My parents were on vacation at the time so I was home alone, and I worked weekends, so she knew I was available. I was prepaired for whatever was to come, just grin and bare it. She recommended I join a church to find friends, and that I'd find peace when I get closer to God. I just nodded and said nothing (I haven't gone to church since I was 7 and was a perfectly fine person without it) This also came after getting a letter in the mail saying she put me down as someone to pray for for her church's eadte prayer. Like she has some weird obsession with me, that I need help. I think it's from when my mental health was terrible in HS. But I'm better now, and one of her more well adjusted grandkids. I give it another two years before my cousin gets pregnant from her boyfriend.

More recently she told one of her neices that all she needed to do was find God. This neice has a drug addiction and tried committing suicide. My grandmother was claiming to get better she just needed to find God.

Back to her "love life", she met two guys in person. One was a guy who lived in the same building as her. The other went to the same church as her. There wa some weekend where she stayed over at one guys house, hated it and couldn't even stay the fill weekend. The next the other guy came to stay with her at her apertment, hated it. The next she was moving in with the first guy. Not to mention she never really like either of these guys yet brought them to famoly things. These guys have been to my house and I will never seen them again. When my uncle (recently decor e and in his own relationship drama) asked her about looking for more options, going to more places, she said "I am looking for more options" as she continues to bounce between the same two guys.

Recently, to keep her busy, they started up doing weekly family dinners. Due to driving distance and it being done on Tuesday, usually it is just my parents, uncle, and grandmother. If it's at my parents house, of course I'm there, cause I live there and like to eat dinner. Just in the last week she had met up with two of my aunts, the ones wrre still speaking two, and appeariently said they don't see her enough, claiming she gonna move to come live closer to my mom and uncle. Plz no

This was not even a month after she announced that she changed in her will that the medical power of attorney was changed from my eldest aunt (the one we don't speak to anymore) and my mom to my crybaby aunt and my other aunt as back up. She said it is because my mother is too emotional, which isnt exactly wrong, but also not right. However the aunt given this power can not make a decision for shit.

This came up because with in the last six months my grandmother lost both a sister and her mother. There's been a heafty a mount of drama from all that, mainly from my mom's relatives due to most of them needing the inheritency money. My mom and all her siblings are all well off, so we aren't much in the drama, just get to hear about it. Basically my grandmother is looking down on her nieces/nephews and siblings(?) about only crying about the money they'll get.

On one of the doomed lunches I had gone in with her she brought up how her sister's jewelery was now being decided up amongst first the siblings and then the nieces and nephews. There were documents emailed with pics of the jewelry and you wrre to let the executor of the will know what you'd like. She expressed her concern that if some arent claimed they wrre just going to be pawned off. Now she had already asked for the pieces she liked, so I offered the idea of reaching out to her nephew (the will executor) and say once everyone has gone through and gotten what they wanted that she'd like the rest.

Next I hear about this it had somehow turned into her wanting it all.

For her mother I am less aware of what all she got, however I knew she got some jewelry and walkers. All of which she sold for money, probably also her sister's jewelery. She was looking down on others for doing such, yet she goes and dose it herself.

Now this is sorta not picky, but there was family dinner just earlier this week, and she just can't let the spot light be taken off of her. Fist she reads letters from state government officials about my great grandma's death, due to the fact she worked in the governor's mansion for many years. Then needed to read out every detail about her mother's money though none of us would be getting anything, just her. She continued to go on about a vacation she wanted to take, which is all fine and well.

But this week my aunt (the only one I like) came over for dinner. Next week I start school were I'm going to get a technical degree in Baking. Everyone knows this, but not many of them know the details. I brought out my schedule just to go over classes, which seem like fun. One of these classes is cake decorating, obviously.

My grandmother than needed to proclaim she taken "that" class, and proceeded to go off on all the cakes she's made. One of which is that barbie doll cake dress kids make on tik tok. Which like if she was doing it to relate to me in someway of continue the conversation would have been fine but no she was returning it to herself.

I don't talk much, never really have. She came over to visit after I had surgery where the anesthetic was still wearing off which basically got rid of my anxiety and she claimed that it wad the most she had ever heard me talk. Yet I'm over here talking to one person about something I'm excited about, and she needs to take that away, to bring the attention back in herself.

I know she never had the chance to grow up, and learn how to be a person by herself. She graduated highschool, got married, and had a child. She as never her own person. But that shouldn't be my problem. I don't want to put up with this shit.

[autumn-sweet-fae]

Rambling Family Headcanons for my AU

(FYI, Ive never seen anime Iris, so just doing my own thing based on my interpretation of the games and fanon family ideas) 

So I’m now that I’m aware that Iris is in fact Hop and Leon’s cousin, and that means she’s also a descendant of Professor Laventon!

And, because I love the idea of Iris being Draydens granddaughter, and the idea of Ingo and Emmet being Draydens nephews, this most likely means that Ingo and Emmet could have met Leon and Hop before. Which gives me a few ideas

First off, Ingo has been in Hisui for over two years at the time of Akari’s arrival and then just over three years at the time that the two return to Sinnoh. This means that at the time of his return Iris will be 15, and since the events of Sw/Sh will have already happed, let’s put Hop at 16 and Leon at 24. This puts Hop and Iris very close in age and Ingo and Emmet at 5 years older then Leon.

Now, I could see Leon and Hop family coming out to visit Iris side of the family so the boys can meet their new cousin. At this family reunion lil 9 year old Leon meets and then follows around his twin 14 year old cousins. The two have just finished their Pokémon journey and are delighted to tell him all about it. They defeated each gym and the elite four individually, and then faced off against the Unovan champion together! They lost that last battle, but they both declare it to be the best battle of their lives and are excited to share every detail of it. Emmet also tells him how amazing double and multi battles are and how he wants find a battling career in them, which Ingo fully supports. (During the visit they also battle each other a couple times to Leon’s delight, and then show him their model train collection.)

Leon gets so inspired by the twins during that visit that he insists on setting out on his Pokémon journey the moment he’s old enough! Which is how, not even a year later, he became Galar’s youngest champion at only 10 years old. His Unovan relatives are all very proud of him and Ingo & Emmet really want to battle their little cousin next time they see him.

Unfoutunatly, due to the duties of being a champion and wanting to support his family, Leon never gets the chance to return to Unova and battle his cousins. Meanwhile Ingo and Emmet are working to achieve their dreams at getting jobs at the battle subway.

Iris and Hop do get to see each other a few more times in their early childhood, usually when Iris’s family came to visit. Occasionally Leon even made it home in time to see his little cousin too. But then after Iris parents died(?idk I found NOTHING on them) when she was 7 she moved in with their Grandpa in Opelucid City, the Dragon Gym leader Drayden. Then at age 10 she had her own journey and defeated their grandfather in battle, inheriting his gym title.

Her cousins were very proud when they learned this and Hop just got even more impatient with his folks for insisting he wait a few more years before going off on his own Journey. (His family wanted him to enjoy his childhood fully since Leon couldn’t)

Then, two years later, at age 12 Iris became Champion of her region just as her eldest cousin did in his own. This fed Hops growing  inferiority complex, doubling the pressure not only to live up to his brother legacy, but also to do as well as his younger cousin too.

As for Leon, since the two are the first cousin champions, the media insist on a photo op of them. Not trusting Leon to not get lost traveling to Unova, Iris came out to Galar, getting to see her cousin for the first time in years. She’s taken to see Leon in Wyndon and they do the media thing and get some pictures taken. Leon wants them to head back and see the Hop and the family together, reconnect and all that, but then Chairmen Rose steps in and insist that Leon needs to come with him instead. Leon assures Rose he’s coming but still makes sure to walk Iris out to the car waiting for her so he can tell his cousin goodbye. Iris tells him that if he can ever escape to Unova, she and him could do the Multi Train challenge together, give their cousins a battle to remember. Leon laughs and assures her that they will, someday. (Iris then spends the weekend with Hop & fam and is completely enamored with his Wooloo and the calm countryside)

(Additionally, Iris adores her ‘uncles’ Ingo and Emmet, she would often mtake the subway challenges and they would all have a blast battling each other. They would try to keep a tally of wins and losses between them. Some times Iris would bring along Drayden or Elesa to battle with her on the Multi-line. It’s family bonding at its finest among trainers as serious about battling as them.)

It’s not even a year later that the news reaches Galar the one of Unova’s Subway Masters has vanished. Hop knows that he has some kind of family relation with the twins but was too young to remember them himself. Leon meanwhile is floored. Because while he had only known the two for under a week when he was 9, he never forgot how supportive they were with him. How they took his battle ideas seriously and were excited to share their hobbies with him. They’re journey had been a big part what inspired him to take his own pokemon journey so soon. And now Ingo has gone missing… He wants to reach out to Emmet but also has no idea what to say.

It’s two years into Ingo’s disappearance, Leon has passed his title as Champion onto Hops friend, Gloria, changed the Rose Tower into the Battle Tower, and declined the offer to become the new chairmen (LET THE GUY HAVE A BREAK). And most importantly, he’s been spending more time with his younger brother again. This mostly includes popping up unexpectedly at Sonia‘s lab to ask what new thing they’re studying, but he loves how exasperated Hop now gets with him. 

MEANWHILE

Ingo meets Laventon and gets the oddest feeling that he’s met him before but also not at all. It’s too vague to ever attach a clear thought to but it’s there.

Then, the first time Akari calls him ‘uncle Ingo’ he swears he heard it in another girls voice. He pauses, trying to think of the voice again, recall a face to go with it, but there’s nothing. Akari snaps him out of it, asking if he’s alright and if he’d prefer she not call him that. Ingo rushes to assure her it’s alright, and that he’s honored that she’d want to address him as such. He just almost remembered someone, that’s all. Akari understands and hopes that perhaps she’ll remind him more of this person if they were as close to him as she is.

[darkandstormyart]

Xicheng fic recs

(figured i might make a list of my own)

(to be expanded as i dig out more treasure/remember stuff)

in no particular order:

Deep as the Yearning Night by FreckledStarKnight

“At first, it was pure chance. The second time was accidental. And the third time? Well, they say the third time’s the charm, after all. Lan Xichen discovers that Jiang Wanyin sings beautifully and is immediately enamored by it. His pursuit of Jiang Wanyin’s secret talent leads to a discovery and a series of events that he did not anticipate at all. Not that he’s complaining, of course. He got what he came for and more. Or, how two sect leaders get together through the song called love. CQL-verse.“

post-seclusion lxc

trying to get jc to sing

bonus lxc & jin ling feels i hadn’t considered before

cute

Always use protection by hesselives

“In which Lan Wangji attempts to hire a new bodyguard for his older brother, a well-known traveling exorcist. Jiang Wanyin doesn’t even make his carefully considered list of Top Ten Candidates, and yet here he is.

Lots of wandering in the countryside, distant yelling, and mildly inconvenient spirits.”

bodyguard au

honestly just really intersting worldbuilding

Rewrite the stars by Arashii

“Five great kingdoms have been fighting for years and when the kingdom of Yunmeng is destroyed, the Crown Prince Jiang Cheng vanishes.In Gusu, Lan Xichen makes an offer impossible for Jiang Cheng to refuse. His life or revenge? There’s only one option and Jiang Cheng swears loyalty to the man he hated the most his whole life, the Crown Prince of Gusu, Lan Xichen himself.Written for XiChengFest2020 - Day 4“

ROYALTY AU ROYALTY AU

enemies to lovers!

flashbacks! i love flashbacks so much ohmygod

No paths are bound by Arashii

“In seclusion, Lan Huan has the support of a ghost no one has seen since the massacre of Yunmeng Jiang. His feelings start changing with the often visits and conversations they share. Before Lan Huan can confess though, he ascends, leaving everything and everyone behind him.

Two hundred years later, back to the Human Realm and without powers, the Martial God Zewu-Jun has a mission to uphold. His Heavenly Calamity started. The clues are little and the support comes in the most unexpected form, the current Ghost King: Sandu Shengshou. Now they need to stick together to contain a menace that is slowly growing.“

TGCF AU TGCF AU

ghost king jiang cheng come on

doesn’t follow tgcf plot, just the setup so no spoilers

jiang cheng gets the dogs and the xichen he deserves

once upon a dream by cafedeolla

“Xicheng soulmate AU

An au where your dreams are small snippets of your soulmate’s day. They’d show small things like buying coffee, reading a book, or hanging out with people from their perspective.

The problem was that people always have expectations and Jiang Cheng knows he always falls short of them. Time and time again.“

soulmate au, but being soulmates is more a problem than a solution

misunderstandingssss all over the place

now with a squel (in progress?)

Lan Furen series by jagaimocchi

“Jiang Cheng leaves Lotus Pier before the Wen Internment Camp and before the destruction of his home. When he meets Lan Xichen on the run from the Wens after the burning of Cloud Recesses, his plan to live a peaceful life away from cultivation sects is quickly derailed. Now, free to make his own choices, he cannot find it in himself to leave the other man's side.

With love, patience and time, Jiang Cheng finds his own happiness and peace with his past.“

have you ever wanted a fic where jiang cheng peaces out from home in search for a better life, bc he’s Had Enough??? jags got you covered

adorable xicheng

good uncle-dad-figure Lan Qiren

ongoing <3

Just around the riverbend by JungleJelly

“One day.

Jiang Cheng just wanted one day of peace and quiet, away from home, away from his responsibilities, away from his idiot brother and his nutcases of a mother and father. Just a few hours alone — him and a boat and nothing else.

Clearly, that was too much to ask for.”

now with a new story in the series which is adorable too!!!

mermaid!lxc need i say more?

Bad ideas (where they lead) by JungleJelly

“Jiang Cheng is a busy man. Fortunately, he is also a huge pushover when it comes to his sister, so when she recommends that he start doing yoga, he agrees pretty easily.Featuring Lan Xichen in yoga pants, Jiang Cheng’s inability to handle a crush, and, perhaps most importantly, a big fluffy dog.“

done for 2020 MXTX MiniBang

yoga instructor Lan Xichen

Jiang Cheng is: struggling with a crush on the yoga guy from youtube & very angry about that

If there’s a price for rotten judgement by TheWanderingHeart

“All Jiang Cheng wants to do is, well... his job, really. Other than that? Keep the city safe, keep his nephew alive, keep his sanity intact (if possible).

So when his brother calls with unexpected news, he knows all of that is about to fly out of the window.

***

[Every instinct is telling him don’t ask, you don’t want to know. By this point, Nie HuaiSang has scooted closer to listen. Jiang Cheng takes a steadying breath and pulls out his antacids. “What did you do?”]”

superhero au, come on

jc just trying to do his job in peace

(he can’t)

i love it so much oh my god *sobs*

The Form of Boneless Ice by TheWanderingHeart

“Mythical beasts have long ago been driven to extinction by the gentry — hunted for sport, but more importantly for their magical cores. Since then, there remains only one creature that has never been caught. The Jiang’s retreated a long time ago. Abandoning land altogether, they sought safety where the humans could not reach.It all comes to a head though, purely by chance. (Or is it by fate that a spontaneous decision allows for them to meet? If fate were a rock!) Jiang Cheng suddenly finds his whole life balanced on the head of a pin — on the flimsy promise of a human boy. In his opinion, things cannot possibly get worse!(But then they do when the Wens decide it’s finally time to search for the elusive merpeople, and suddenly nowhere is safe.)“

there she goes again, with another beautiful xicheng story full of awwww and mythology

actually one of the first xicheng fics i read

i chose it because there were mermaids

painfully accurate takes on Jiang family dynamics

kids! lots of kids!

Let me Slytherin to Your Heart by TheWanderingHeart

“Jiang Cheng never thought he'd return to Hogwarts, but in hindsight, he probably should have known that someday he would.With his nephew about to start school, he reluctantly takes his good friend's bad parenting? career? advice and ends up tumbling head-first back into the madness that he hoped he'd left behind... and rediscovering some feelings he thought he'd left behind too.“

Harry Potter au!

just really fecking cute

lots of snakes

[I am not going to link all of Jo’s fics, though I probably could, just my 3 favourites. UOSB is there by default]

Talent Hunt Crew Finds Angry Guy Shouting On College Campus, Recruits Him For Vocal Projection Abilities by oh_fudgecakes

“Jiang Cheng, resident Angry Guy and heir to a conglomerate empire, has never been the apple of his father’s eye. Quashed under the shadow of his brilliant brother, the music prodigy Wei Wuxian, Jiang Cheng sees his chance to turn things around when he is recruited by the All-Stars Lan Talent Hunt. One problem: he can’t sing to save his goddamn life.As he struggles to develop his nascent singing abilities, Jiang Cheng finds himself sucked into the whirlwind drama of reality TV, helped along by his adoring siblings, his irritable vocal coach Wen Qing, and strangely enough, the unfairly attractive host of the All-Stars Lan Talent Hunt, Lan Xichen. Somewhere in the glare of the stage lights and an unexpected first love, Jiang Cheng stumbles upon the thing he was searching for all along: the courage to dream — and to attempt the impossible.“

done for 2019 MXTX Big Bang

uuuuuuuuuuh i might have cried maybe

heartwarming? painful at times? lots of family love?

slowburn xicheng being lovely

The Provenence of Hope series by velithya

“A chance meeting on a night hunt sets a course of events into motion that will change everything. Featuring Xicheng getting together, recovery for Lan Xichen, healing for Jiang Cheng, and always, always, hope.“

got everything. feels. hope. love. ~~healing~~

A Small Measure of Peace by Sandstone112

“With his brother in seclusion, Lan Xichen finds himself in temporary custody of his nephew with little to no expertise in the child-raising department. Uncertain and alone, Zewu-Jun is willing to do everything to be the person Yuan needs—even if it means inviting Sandu Shengshou to a playdate.“

a loooot of adorable family times with jc and lxc taking care of their nephews

good grandpa lqr!

canon but fixed and less painful

🍋🍋🍋🍋🍋if you wish to avoid scurvy:🍋🍋🍋🍋🍋

Some day I’m gonna make you mine series by locketofyourhair

xicheng getting together through the years

friends with benefits but the real benefits are the friends we made along the way

Take me over (take me tonight) by velithya

jiang cheng has a tattoo and lan xichen doesn’t stand a chance

i'd be the sweet feeling of release (mankind now dreams of) by piyo13

two bros, chilling in a cave, no feet apart because they don’t want to lose their cultivation powers what are you gonna do

haven’t read yet and shame on me, but AM GONNA:

Upon Our Silver Bridge by TheWanderingHeart obviously

““When the path ignites a soul, there's no remaining in place. The foot touches ground, but not for long.” ― Hakim Sanai

**

Lan Xichen's sorrows have caught the attention of something. Unlike the adventures and foes they have faced before, there is no obvious enemy here to defeat. If this is the same thing they thought had taken Nie Mingjue's life, then he believes it is fated for him to die as well. Nothing can stop the black fire when it wants to burn.Jiang Cheng is sure his part in this is over. Wei Wuxian is back, his grand adventure concluded, and he'd never been at the centre of it anyway. So what does it matter what happens to him in the end? Slowly, he will come to realise that there will always be a battle to fight, a story to tell, a choice to make, and there is no such thing as an end to anything.“

it was difficult to do things in 2020 and few i regret not doing more than not reading uosb yet :’(

i will tho

Emergency Help Wanted by piyo13

“EMERGENCY HELP WANTED I lied when I got my job. I told them I had a kid so I could leave early from work to pick him up from daycare, take him to doctor's appointments, and occasionally miss a day when he's sick. Long story short, I'm in too deep. I didn't think it through. Looking to rent a kid for bring your child to work day. Must be a boy ages four to six, longish dark hair, likes soccer. Must also be artistic as the macaroni noodle paintings I made seem a little advanced for his age. Also, I will pay extra for someone willing to play the role of husband when dropping him off. He's a prosecuting attorney who often brings his work home. Message me for further details. Serious inquiries only.“

Running Our Hands Through Embers by MarvelousMar

“If asked, Jiang Cheng would compare falling in love with Lan Xichen to a moth inevitably drawn to a flame.It burned.***In which Jiang Cheng discovers that even death can't help him escape from his trauma, so he embarks on a quest to save the people he loves, fix what he can, make the love of his life fall for him, and maybe, somewhere along the way, do a little bit of healing.”

The Beginner’s Guide to Moving On by InvincibleMel

gone from ao3, but i think there’s a link with a pdf going around

[bearofohu]

random frankie (my farmer) and harvey hcs

- gay gay homosexual gay

- harvey learned he was gay from a young age but didn’t come out until after he had left zuzu city for stardew valley due to his homophobic parents

- frankie has two moms so he was out from a young age with barely any trouble, and homophobia is something he experienced very little of, so seeing any of it shocks him

- harvey’s parents forced him to become a doctor and they’re pretty terrible people

- frankie always wanted to go to stardew and be a farmer like his grandfather but his bio mom and his grandpa were estranged since his mom left the valley

- frankie never met his grandfather but his grandfather left him the farm on his deathbed out of guilt and pain of years of estrangement from his daughter and her son

- his grandfather’s spirit watches over frankie so closely because he missed out on seeing frankie grow up

- frankie’s moms love harvey. just adore him.

- harvey likes to knit

- frankie has asthma. harvey knows and is always worried about it and prepared

- harvey’s hair is curly and frankie loves to touch it

- harvey knit frankie a red scarf out of concern because frankie didn’t have enough thick clothes for winter. frankie wore it year round

- frankie (with the help of maru) made preserve jars and learned how to make pickles just because he knew harvey liked them

- harvey was always a cat person but frankie’s foxhound ned made him a dog person

- harvey and frankie are both incredibly skilled cooks

- frankie’s dog ned is a foxhound who was born in an abusive puppy mill in zuzu city. he escaped the facility and ran all the way to stardew when he was still a young puppy

- after ned fled the city, he hid under frankie’s house. frankie didn’t notice ned was there until he heard yipping under his floorboards and woke up to see puppy ned eating his parsnips

- frankie was originally going to name him parsnip but marnie convinced him to try to get more creative

- frankie is extremely smart (he worked as an incredibly skilled accountant for joja for many years) but still has himbo energy

- frankie was 33 when he moved to stardew and harvey was 34

- harvey is incredibly afraid of aging and feels older than he actually is out of anxiety and insecurity. the first time he told frankie he was old, frankie laughed and thought he was joking

- harvey, shane and frankie are in a clique for older bachelors. elliot was excluded because shane could barely tolerate his presence, even though frankie and harvey both like him (then again harvey likes everyone)

- frankie and harvey both have freckles though frankie’s are much easier to see

- frankie’s first injury-related visit to harvey was in mid-spring of the first year when he cut himself trying to build a fence. this was shortly after their first meet-cute

- 80% of times frankie visits the clinic are to just spend time with harvey. harvey is deathly afraid of the other 20%

- harvey considers ned a patient in spite of being a dog since ned had grown on him so much. usually marnie was the resident vet but harvey always asked frankie if he could also take a look at ned if any health issues came up

- frankie carries a satchel around. harvey wore a fanny pack for awhile but was teased relentlessly by everyone in the valley until he switched to a handbag

- harvey has that anxiety tic where you bounce your knee when you sit. when they were dating, frankie found out putting a hand on harvey’s knee while it was shaking helped his anxiety calm down

- frankie occasionally takes harvey to the mines with him to show him that it’s not that dangerous and harvey goes to make sure he’s there with frankie if he HAS to go in. harvey took one look at the first flying pink bug and screamed

[bexgikwang]

hello! this is soyi’s mun with my new muse gikwang, cha gikwang (get it?) i wanted to bring a new muse for a while and reading the main, i finally had an idea! below, you’ll find out more about gikwang and some plot ideas i have before i make the whole plots page and etc! read below for more and like to plot or msg if you see anything you like/have any ideas 

info

he was an affair baby but didn’t find out until he was around 16

he lived in busan with his ma until he was five and during that time, he only saw his father a hand full of times 

and his mom found her soulmate and got married when gikwang was 10

he loves his step-mom, she’s always been there for them and always encouraged his love for the arts 

he returned to korea when he was 16 to visit his grandparents (on his mom side) and fell in love with the idea of being an idol

he talked it over and chose to stay with his grandparents so he could audition and become a trainee

around this time, he met with his father, it was awkward and they haven’t spoken since and he learned he was born out of an affair! fun! 

he debuted when he was 18 under a small company in a group called imperial! (sounds like nu’est and 2am bc i’m trash for both of those groups ) sadly they disbanded by the time he turned 22 and yeah, his idol dreams are #over

he returned to the states for a year but moved back when his step-mom got a new job

he has two younger siblings a 16 year old lil bro and a five year old lil sis! adopted but they’re his FAMILY and he’s known the 16 year old since he was 10 while his little sister was adopted as a baby. he loves them, he fights for them. is worried about them being in a korea a little because they’re also proud of the fact they have two moms and he just gets it. it wasn’t perfect in the states but they lived in good city. 

everyone is in seoul, he’s an apartment but is often at his parents house. 

he also has a job as a vocal couch and a gym trainer as a personal hustle, he has something like an esty shop, he does stuffed animals, painting and wood-works ( hint hint) so fun connections!

he does want to debut again but is scared it won’t happen because of his age 

he’s a fun guy, pretty open, super protective when it comes to his family 

a gentle giant, he sometimes forgets how big he is? sometimes has a dark look but he’s deep in his thoughts 

we love cuddles :3 

has been in korea for a while but will default to english when he’s upset or struggling to explain himself 

trash for darling, quartz, yuna, lightspeed, starlie, prism, a.maze, wonderland & 4ours 

#daddyissue’s

plots 

low hanging fruit, anybody is weak in singing/rap and need’s lessons as he’s a vocal coach

but also! someone to help him out with dancing, he wasn’t a horrible dancer but that is the skill he’s neglected since disbandment 

annnnnnd people who knew of/were fans of imperial. they weren’t a huge group, their songs did fairly well for a small company but they just didn’t have that something, the group barely did variety shows but had some online content. just small and word of mouth and a disbandment that didn’t cause much buzz 

people who think’s he’s scary at first but soon realize, he’s sweet and friendly! and cute 

someone who bought a product from his shop is not happy! you want a new panting, he’ll show up to do in person, you want new stuffed animal, let’s customize it together, you want a new jewelry box! give him 7-10 business days, he has to head to busan 

i’d love some friends! he lived in busan until he was 5, came back when he was 16 and lived in seoul with his grandma (grandpa stayed in busan and he signed and debuted quickly, she moved back after), he was in korea until he was 22, left and returned...p much this year. he was able to find a job quick because of contacts kept!

he’s into training so a work out buddy or 7 

a blind date! it could end good or just as friends 

seemingly never gets upset (ha) and a muse who has known him for a while and always tries it 

that being said, you stumble across gikwang about to get into a fight and ten year old little girl crying outside some shop, you pick on things and try to calm it down (maybe an npc fills you in) and get him to realize he needs to focus on his sister and be chill (the fight will probs be about his moms) 

a muse who has a youtube channel and maybe they do duet’s and/or someone convincing him to open one 

muses who make music and need vocals!

maybe some ex’s, a little drama 

and thank you for the welcomes! i will be getting to them!

[ravenadottir]

Hear me out: headcannons about Bobby growing old with mc🥺 (I needed some fluff T-T)

no no no no no, you can’t just come in here and do this to me!! that’s so wholesome! i think i’m gonna have to divide this in decade marks, and maybe stop at the 30 year mark? i can do a part II later. 🤔

‘10 year mark’

the ‘mckenzie’ brand has expanded to restaurants, bars and bakeries all over the uk

the bars are considered a hot spots in the big cities. pictures of young ‘paisley cuddle’ are scattered on the walls, along with the pics from the villa’s parties, to set the theme

the restaurants have bobby and his experiences with famous chefs, like jake ‘sweetcheeks’ wilson, mary berry, gordon ramsey, wolfgang puck.

the bakeries however have the pictures from the time bobby went on the bake off show and won.

there’s small town models of the bakeries/restaurants that are seen as ‘family diners’

you and bobby already have two kids, 4 years apart from each other. in my head bobby is the type to have them earlier so they can live their best life together, have fun in the kitchen or in the backyard playing ball.

he loves throwing birthday parties every year, and of course, baking the cake. to which year is a different theme. “babe, you take care of the decorations and the details i’m definitely gonna forget, and me?” he puffs his chest holding a whisk. “i’m the cake guy.”

bobby is the reason why the kids love the parties so much. he’s the type of parent that goes on the slider with the kids, jumps with them in the bounce house, starts the water balloon wars…

the parents are so thankful for him since he’s pretty much the one who keeps an eye on them at all times.

usually, he’s waking up early every day because it became a habit since his hospital times. he never really shook that habit. so he prepared breakfast, takes the dog out, while you wake the kids up to eat and rush them to school

the dad that takes two different cameras and a phone to film and take pictures during his kids’ public presentations, games, recitals and science fairs “dad, one phone is enough” “yeah, but your dad needs backup! i’m from the 90′s darling. i can’t be any different” he says, shrugging with a grin.

you guys have a small house on the outskirts of glasgow or london, depending on who won the bet you had when you got married.

you’re pregnant again. entirely unplanned and now bobby can’t stop crying,. he always wanted three kids.

‘15 year mark’

a third child came three years ago, which made you consider a much more peaceful place to buy a house. and a bigger one for that matter.

bigger bakyeard means more people and their kids playing around the lawn, as bobby and gary grill sausages, making stupid jokes about it, and you and the girls have drinks shaking your heads.

you and bobby are gary’s kids’ godparents

ibrahim can’t come, he’s to busy making mad money on brand deals. noah is calming the kids down, by reading something in the living room, while bobby shakes a cocktail for the tired parents.

gary gives you a new couple of puppies, because the dog you had has unfortunately passed away. (sorry!)

your first kid is just turning 13 and being a little pain in the ass. but they like their uncles and aunties so they will actually raise their heads from *inser new device that will replace phones*

you guys travel in your car, to spend a week in cabins, fishing, playing ball, having picnics close to the lake

bobby always throws at least one of the kids in the water, before jumping in and splashing everyone. “bet you can’t do better than that, babe…” he says to you, raising his brows suggestively. “watch me, mckenzie.”

summer time and the lake became a tradition since it was the first place you and him spent a holiday alone

the employees that attend to you in hotels refer to you as “the mckenzie’s”

in the city, you have a trustworthy babysitter that will spend the night so you and bobby can have some time alone

he surprises you with dates and flowers out of nowhere

early nights are made for you and bobby to help the kids with homework

at this point, bobby is invited to be a special guest in cooking/baking competitions in the uk

and to have a “masterclass” of hiw own, where he mostly credits you for the idea of expanding, the execution of the administrative plans and how to actually expand a business. “i only do the cooking. she’s the genius behind the money.” he laughs while crossing his legs during his online course.

‘20 year mark’

kids’ sad times. graduations are happening. the youngest is entering third grade, the other one is in uni, far from home. “did you have to choose something so far from your old man?” “dad… of course! how else would i have a ‘paisley cuddle’ phase?” they respond, laughing. “i should’ve never told you thats story! now you’re having ideas!” “relax dad. everything is gonna be fine!” the middle one is entering high school and their rebellious phase.

bobby follows through with his part of the deal when you got married, by wearing something ridiculous to embarrass your kid at their graduation. “dad, you look like a hawaiian drug dealer.” “ i know,” “oh, so it wasn’t dark when you got dressed? mom!” “what can i say, your dad doesn’t care for blacks and blues.” “yeah, right…”

professionaly, bobby has a renowned signature dish, plenty of new ideas for the future, like school and courses.

the house is the same you bought five years ago, but now, it’s mostly parents getting together for barbecues, cocktails, movies and game nights

the younger children stay in the tv room upstairs

‘25 year mark’

your second child didn’t go to uni, and decided to help out on the family business. they always felt like this was the life for them and couldn’t wait to finish school to start.

bobby wanted them to go to school to learn everything they could “but dad, you didn’t, and you know so much.” “oof, they got you there, babe.”

you have a second wedding ceremony and a second honeymoon

bobby has a few grey hairs popping through his dreads

he’s still wearing colorful shirts and girls on social media call him ‘daddy’

he’s been invited to cook for the queen (yes, she’s still alive)

you see your friends a few times more a year now.

your third child is going to uni, to follow a career path you never imagined they would, but you’re proud of them

you decided to sell the house, that’s so big now, and find a smaller one that still has an extra bedroom for when your oldest comes to stay with their partner

bobby cracks dad jokes now, and according to gary, he picked them up from him “sure, gary, ‘cause you’re the only man on the planet who tells dad jokes” “stop bickering! you’re like an old married couple.” you say, slapping their arms playfully

‘30 year mark’

your first child just had their first child

“you’re a grandpa, bobs!” gary slaps him on the back, picking up a box of cigars that they will share with noah and ibrahim.

“can’t believe i’m this old.” “if you’re old, what am i?” you ask him, folding your arms on your chest. “beautiful?” he responds with a clear guilty expression.

‘things that would happen at all times during this entire journey’

bobby would sing to the kids every night

you would read them bedtime stories, taking turns to do the voices

it’s a tradition to cook together on special occasions, no matter what happens. the three kids, you and bobby would always spend the day listening to music, talking about life, slicing, sauteeing, mixing, measuring. it’s a tradition that will never die

when your grandkids come around, they will be the the ones resposible for measuring

drawings that your kids do in school akways have extra colors on bobby’s outfits. his name also has more than three colored letters

bobby has taught your kids how to play the guitar

rainy afternoons were known as “dad’s baking afternoons”

you and bobby had a hard time to find a compromise between being friends and parents.

open conversations with your kids, about everything. they knew what to expect in the world.

bobby’s parents would visit, to spend a whole weekend and share stories of his childhood, as yours would too

family vacation always had a ‘car trip and singing along to the radio’ type of tradition as well

your oldest now takes their child for family vacation in the same spot you and bobby used to

twice a year you guys rent a place for the family to have some bonding, even after they get married (or not)

“your dad is the finest pillow fort architect in the uk”

camping in the backyard when you had to cancel a trip

you’re in charge of coaching and playing sports in the back of the house while bobby relaxes under the sunlight “i was never very athletic”. he’s the empire

*these are the ones on the top of my head. i must’ve left dozens behind :/

[hjh-ceilo-monster]

Who live next door? : Dragon next door (KSJ)

Author note : Finally, I’m back you guys. My uni decide to move my final exams schedule for the third time. Anyway, hope you enjoy my first os after break. 

Shout out : The plot belongs to Hybrid Prompts @Ungnyeo in wattpad. (I think you also have your blog here, but I forgot. Sorry.)

Summary : Your ancestor was a well known dragon hunter. However, now is 21st century and you decided not to continue training. You moved out from your hometown and started a new life in a city. What you didn’t expect was your handsome neighbor/love at first sight will turn out to be a dragon. Not to mention that he is a sassy one.

Author pov.

“Be safe, dear.”

“Don’t forget to visit us, y/n.” Those were the last sentence from your parents before you left the house. Inhaling the fresh air for the last time and mumbling a goodbye for the last time, you jumped onto the bus.

You tried to calm your nervous self down by plugin the earphone into your ear and listen to music. Gazing out the window, you sighed. Many thoughts ran in your head.

Is your decision correct?

Will you have friends there?

Will your neighbor like you?

Train of thought lost you from reality. You didn’t realize yourself until a voice calling you.

“Miss, can I sit here?” You just nodded and moved a little for that someone to take a seat.

“You seem nervous. Perhaps, are you from out of the city?” Now you looked up and find a guy sat beside you. The beauty of his face made you quickly looked down and flushed. What a handsome guy.

“Did I startle you? I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s..I...nervous.” Your stutter made him chuckle.

He seemed to use lots of effort to strike a conversation with you. However, thanks to your stutter, it made things awkward. Still, he continued talking to you and ensured that you were doing great.

“And here we are, our stop.” 

“Our?” 

“Oh, I forgot to mention it. Your address is next to mine.” He scratched his nape and glanced at your house. He then jogged toward his house and turned around.

“Welcome, new neighbor.” Giving you the last wave, he entered his house.

There my heart, shaking as if it wanted to come out. You think you have a crush on him.

A week later everything seemed to be good. You found a job at a local bookstore. The owner was so kind and gave you the job without any interview. Saying that it isn’t common for someone in the town to want a job here.

“Namjoon-ah where should I put this box?” You stood still at your spot. Waiting for the boy to give you an order. 

“Oh over here.” He ran toward you and picked the box out of your grip. 

This boy was the grandchild of the owner. He was as sweet as his grandpa. Having you as the employee, he didn’t let you work much. All you need to do was the cashier work. He became your friend here in no time besides.

Your neighbor, Seokjin, which you got to know his name three days after your first encounter, was great. He was really helpful and always walked with you downtown.

Despite his warmhearted persona and stunning face, you noticed some odd things about him. First, he always wore a beanie or a hat when he hanged out with you. Secondly, no matter how hot the weather was, he would always wear a jacket or some days layer it all. 

Finally, his body temperature seemed to be warmer than usual. You once joked around with him and clung around his arm. However, you felt hot so you suddenly ask whether he has a cold or not. He said that it was normal.

Another week later you guys plan to have a movie marathon and sleepover. Honestly, you tried to convince yourself to act normal and not to imagine that this was an indirect date. 

Ring... Ring...

“Oh you ar...rive” You glanced at pillows in his embrace. You didn’t mean to look as if you were judging him. Counting the number, he carried 4 pillows from his house.

“You don’t need to carry them here since I have mine.” Now Jin was panic. He forgot that you didn’t know his secret yet and it was the reason behind his weird act.

“Ummm I just don’t want to use your belong that much since I always see you do laundry 3-4 times a week.” 

‘Wow, he notices?’ You impressed and got distracted a bit.

“Can I go in?”

“Oh sure.”

Watching a movie wouldn’t be fun if there was no Jin. He could turn every serious moment into jokes, even if it was a scene in a horror movie. Both of you now cuddled on the sofa. The pillow he brought become useful since they all fluffy. It made the place fluffier and more comfortable.

“Tired?” Jin asked. Notice your body that busied cuddling with him and wiggled in his embrace to get sleep. Your eyes were half open and seemed to not focus on the screen anymore.

“hmmm,” You only hummed with a nod.

“Good night then, blossom.” He bent down and kissed your forehead to you who already drifted to dreamland.

Next morning

You woke up because you heard a growl and mumbled of someone. The realization then hit you. Looking around. you were in Jin’s embrace. All the growl and mumbled sounds came from him. 

“Mine...” Your eyes widen when you got to hear those sounds. Every question started answering on its own in your head. Connecting all dots, you got the final answer.

He is a dragon.

“No!” You got out of his embrace by pushing him. Seokjin was awake and looked at you with eyes full of confusion.

“What happen blossom? Did I do something wrong?” He asked with a sleepy voice.

“You...you are a dragon.” Now he was fully awake from his beauty sleep. All of sudden he felt his heartbeat drop.

“Uhhh I can explain i-”

“You tried to fool me, did you?”

“No, I di-”

“I am very disappointed in you, Kim Seokjin. I thought we were a friend and it turns out you fool me. Perhaps, you want to kill me? Why yo-”

“Stop! If you are going to accuse me then stop. Ok, I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you. I trust you, y/n, but I also know you were a hunter. What do you expect me to when I meet you the first time and find out that my mate is also the dragon hunter?”

Now it was your turn to be shocked. First, you fired your anger toward him. Second, you accused him without thinking straight. Now, knowing a piece of new info that you were his mate.

“Seokjin, I a-”

“Save it, I know this will happen. Sorry for bothering you all this time and I won’t do it again. Have a good day.”

And he left.

2 weeks later

“Namjoon I fuck up.” 

“For the hundred of time, when will you stop saying this to me? I suggest you go to his house and apologize to him.”

“No, it isn’t that easy. You know I...” You told Namjoon the full story without missing any detail. You trusted him when it comes to advise.

“Now I know. I’m not surprised that hyung feels upset. I will all feel upset if that happens to me as well. We only have one mate in a life time s-”

“Wait right there, what do you mean we?” Namjoon then chuckles with your reaction.

“I thought you know about this city.”

“I have no idea.”

“Y/N-ah This is a dragon city. Most people here aren’t just human. The ones who look like normal humans are mostly not human either. You are one of a few citizens here that are pure human.”

Namjoon then explained more about the town and promised to bring you and meet his friends. 

“Now go to him and apologize to your man.”

Ring... Ring...

“Who dares to interrupt my bea- huh?”

“Is Jin here?” You asked the guy who opens the door. You assumed that this must be one of his friends. He nodded and let you inside.

“Upstairs, turn right.” You bowed as a thank you before went to the room according to the direction.

You gathered all your courage together and knocked on the door. Waiting there for a while, there was no answer. You dropped all the manner and entered Seokjin’s room.

“Yoongi, I swear I’m not hu- oh it’s you. What brings a little missy here?”

“Jin, we need to talk.” You spoke and tried to be calm.

“And what do you want to talk about? How I will kill you? How you will kill me?”

“No Jin it is no-”

“So what is it then? I didn’t pay for the grocery bill last time that we hang out? Oh no, I brought some of my food too. Let me think again. I parked the car too close to your entrance?”

“Jin stop, I come here to apologize, ok? I fucked it up, yes. I will admit that. I just want to correct things between us. I know I said those words and you are upset. I want to apologize for that. I didn’t know why I got so angry when I found out you were a dragon. I shouldn’t do that. Hell, I should be happy because I am your mate and you are my crush from the first day I arrived here. You might not forgive me and that’s fine. At least, remember that I am sorry for everything.”

Jin froze in his place. He didn’t know how to act, what to say, or even what is his feeling right now. He felt the guilt eating him because of his attitude toward you minutes ago yet his heart full of delight when he heard that he was your crush.

The moment of silence made you upset little by little. His face showed no emotion. You assumed that you were too late.

“I’ll go now and sorry again.”

The moment you opened the door, it closed immediately. The door slammed shut and then your body toward it. Jin towered your body and stared deep into your eyes. You felt like he was searching for your soul.

“I love you blossom.”

“I...” You didn’t get the chance to reply when his lips connected with yours. The kiss was heat and rough yet passionate. He continued to savor the sweet taste of your lips without caring that you were now out of breathing. 

Your hand tried to push his check as a signal. His lips left yours with a string of saliva. Your face was flushed. Your heartbeat echoed in the room. Jin then grinned widely before carried you to his bed.

“Wh..what are you doing?”

“Cuddle.” He answered and placed you on the mattress. Kissing your forehead, he wrapped his arm tightly around your figure. Making you feel secure.

“I’ll make it up to you tomorrow then”

“Hmmm just sleep for now blossom, I’m tired. Besides, you have your whole life with me anyway.”

“Nah, you didn’t ask me out yet, Seokjin.”

“Very well, then be mine?” You turned around and faced him. You decided to tease him a little by peck him before answered.

“I’m yours.”

“Bold and eager are you?” He flipped then hovered you. 

Guess what? No nap time for both of you.

Author note 2.0 : I hope you enjoy this one. I’ll see you next story(not sure whether it’s going to be in this series, but will write something soon). Thanks a lot and take care of yourself.

[prismatales]

Through our lifetimes

Word Count: 2.7K

Bingo slot: Reincarnation

Pairings: Kirishima Eijiro x Reader

Tag/Warnings: Fluff, Slight Angst, Soulmates AU.

Synopsis: According to legends, when both soulmates turn eighteen, they start remembering their past lives together. You’ve known about that story ever since you were a small child. The question is....are you ready to meet your soulmate?

Another entry for the bingo event, hosted by the @bnhabookclub ! This time with the Reincarnation prompt! This is also a birthday present for my dear friend @pixxiesdust , who’s one of the most precious friends that I’ve ever had the chance to meet! Happy birthday Zeze! We love you! 

Beta readers: @todoscript & @etegomanere

Credits for the Kirishima cap goes to @eraserhead-transparents!

There’s an old myth about soulmates. One, that only a handful of people could tell you about. 

An old story your grandparents have always talked about ever since you were but a small child that was just starting to learn how to speak, let alone memorizing things.

According to the stories, when both soulmates become close to turning eighteen, they start to remember their past lives together. They’ll keep seeing glimpses of these moments in the past the closer they get to this age, and when the day finally arrives they will start to remember each and every single moment of their past lives.

How was it possible that an old couple that always showed their family nothing but unconditional love and support, was able to tell you about this old myth like it had been something that they had experienced themselves?

It was pretty simple...It was because they had experienced it themselves.

Every single summer, you’d spend it visiting that small, cozy home in the fields. It almost felt like you were living inside one of those fairytale books that your parents would always read to your younger self before going to bed. 

The days would go by listening to the stories about their past lives. You’d enjoy the nice breeze of summer, accompanied by an ice-cold pitch of sweet, tangy lemonade your grandfather would happily prepare for his two favorite ladies in the world.

It was a routine deeply engraved into your memories. Two tiny hands holding a glass way too big for them, filled to the brim with the sweet drink while you sat over your grandmother’s lap. Her wrinkly fingers would always caress the top of your head softly as she kept talking, and talking, and talking about the memories of her past lives with enthusiasm.

Despite being ridden to a wheelchair, your grandmother always made an effort to help her husband in their beloved fields. She would always help out by holding this huge basket over her lap, a way to help out the man standing in front of her, who was too busy choosing the best of their crops for their daily meals.

If there was something they took pride in, it was teaching you not to be a picky eater. There was something about their crops that made them so delicious, so different from the ones that your mother would always bring home from the supermarket.

It created some precious memories for everyone in the family when they saw the pictures of a small toddler, barely learning to walk, yet she already had her tiny, chubby face buried in a tomato.

As you grew up, it became a habit to come back during summer with the happiest smile on your face while helping out, carrying that huge basket filled to the brim with the delicious crops.

And many years later, once you finally started visiting them on your own, the habit of visiting the old couple every summer never died down. Some people your age would rather go to parties during the summer, or vacation to relax somewhere else.

But not you. 

Each summer break would be spent visiting that same house, enjoying the nice breeze with a glass of tangy lemonade, smiling at the old couple as they kept telling you about the stories of their past lives.

Sighing deeply, you stared at the sliced tomato in your fork. Its color is pale in comparison to the ones from your grandpa’s fields, but even if their taste doesn’t even come close, food must never go to waste, so quickly, you start eating the delicious meal.

It’s just a typical lunch; a plate of pasta laid before you, carefully served in the shape of a small spiral, covered with a fine portion of tomato sauce, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, and basil adorning the plate as the finishing touch. 

The dish came accompanied by two slices of bread, toasted to perfection with a nice touch of melted, garlic butter. 

Lastly, a nice portion of salad drizzled in balsamic vinegar as a side dish that, even though it was delicious, it couldn’t come even remotely close to those hand-picked crops back at those precious, grassy fields.

The taste of the salad may be bland in comparison, but it’s the company all around you that made the meal taste way better than what it was. 

After all, it’s your very first get together after graduating from UA a few months ago. And the best part? It’s all happening during your birthday.

Being surrounded by your former classmates was always a nice way to pass the day. After mentioning how this would be the first summer you’d be unable to visit your grandparents, all of your friends came up with a plan to cheer up the dejected, young woman patrolling the city with a melancholic smile.

It was expected that you would feel this way after spending years visiting the old couple in that lovely house, but you knew it was bound to happen the moment you chose to become a hero.

So the morning your birthday came up, everyone had quickly dragged you out for the day, barely giving you the chance to get ready before being taken to one of the longest outings you’ve ever experienced.  

From shopping sprees to a nice restaurant for lunch, and many other kinds of activities, the day literally flew by surrounded by those that could be considered a second family. 

But as much as you adored the effort they put to raise your spirits, nothing could distract you from the dreams that you kept having for the past days.

Like the one where a young woman kept sneaking out of her house at night. A beautiful dress, that judging by the intricate design and the puffiness of the skirt was from the victorian era, was carefully dragged around as she walked cautiously through the dark, empty streets. She just kept walking, occasionally turning into a different direction, until a hand shot out through an alleyway, dragging her yelping self with little effort. 

As terrifying as the gesture seemed, nothing but warm laughter came out of her lips when a pair of arms wrapped themselves around her, holding her body against a firm chest.

“You’re late!” A voice exclaimed from above, resting their jaw against her head lovingly, their bodies swayed together as they enjoyed the other’s presence in their little hiding spot. “Did you have a good day?”

Pulling her head back, she looked at her lover’s face with a tender smile, wrapping her own arms around the stranger’s waist. “Much better now that I am with you.” From the way she stared at this man, the love they shared was more than obvious before they shared a soft, tender kiss. 

But through your eyes, it was impossible to see what this stranger looked like because every time you had one of these dreams...there was a black blur over his face.

And of course...not all of these dreams had a happy ending.

Like that one couple, that despite trying their hardest to be together, their love became impossible the day she was betrothed to someone else in order to pay off her family’s debt. Her beloved, in a fit of heartbreak, went traveling overseas...and he was never seen again.

And then there were others, where the lovers never got a chance to meet, spending their whole lives waiting for the moment they could finally meet their special someone, just to realize, that in the end, faith had taken their loved one away before they could finally find each other.

“What do these dreams mean exactly, grandma…?” You asked this to your grandmother during a sunny day, pushing her wheelchair around the fields while she carried the same, worn-out basket in her wrinkly hands that were still full of strength. In the meantime, your grandfather was too busy picking some crops.

The moment you mentioned these strange dreams to the older woman, her face lit up with the same brilliance as that of a lighthouse in the middle of the darkest night. The basket fell out of her hands from the surprise, much to her husband’s surprise.

“Oh, my goddess! Honey! She has a soulmate! Our little girl has a soulmate!” She almost hopped out of her wheelchair from the joy. Seeing her being so excited that she almost stood up despite her legs being so frail, made the news even more exhilarating for the family.

You snapped out of the little trails of thoughts by a hand waved in front of your face. Blinking in surprise, you came face to face with a pair of red eyes and a slightly concerned face.

“Everything okay?” Kirishima asked, standing by your side while everyone else was engaged in their own conversation. “You’ve been spacing out for a while now.” 

Warmth began creeping up your whole face, embarrassed about spacing out on your friends. You smiled awkwardly at the red-headed guy at your right side before giggling softly as you looked up at the vast and clear orange sky, filled with some of the fluffiest clouds you’ve ever seen as they took different shapes, some of them being cuter than others. It was amazing how fast time would pass by when you were surrounded by good company; it was already starting to get dark.

“Sorry, I was thinking about my grandma. We usually sit in the garden at this time of the day while she tells me this story.”

In the middle of your little speech, you failed to notice the way Kirishima kept staring at you fondly, knowing from past conversations at high school just how much you adored the old couple.

“You really look up to them, don’t you?” 

“Yeah, I do.” Looking back as everyone kept walking in their own groups after today’s outing, your attention then shifted back to the guy walking alongside you.

Who just happened to be your high school crush, but after all the hardships that occurred three years ago; such as the constant fighting against groups like The League of Villains, The Shie Hassaikai, and others. Dating became the least of your worries. 

Especially now that you were on your way to become official pro-heroes, starting out first as sidekicks, of course. Your love life could probably wait...and hopefully, your future soulmate would understand…

“It’s getting pretty late, let me walk the birthday girl home!” He offered with that characteristic smile of his that could light up an entire room by itself.

“You really don’t have to!” 

“I insist! What kind of guy would let a girl walk alone at night?” 

Sighing in amusement, you gave in to his offer. Aftersaying goodbye to everyone else, both you and Kirishima began walking together in the direction of your small apartment.

The sky had already turned dark by the time you reached a small lake near the building.

“Hey, Kiri…Do you believe in past lives?” It was his turn to look back at the sky, stretching his hands behind his neck with eyes closing deep in thought and eyebrows half furrowed as well.

“Well...It’s not something I’d lose sleep over, but it could be interesting!” He opened a single eye and looked in your direction, the small grin together with those cheerful, red eyes could easily rival the beauty of the sunset itself. “You believe in them?”

“Well, yeah! I’ve heard so many stories about people who are able to remember their past lives, I think it would be amazing to know about ours!” He hummed quietly, nodding to himself in thought.

“What kind of stories have you heard?” He was genuinely curious. That, and seeing the joyful look on your face the moment he asked about it made it all worth it because seeing his crush happy was enough to make Kirishima equally joyful.

“Oh! This is my favorite one! According to the stories, when both soulmates turn eighteen, they see their past lives together!”

You kept explaining every detail to him, unaware of just how quiet he had become the moment you mentioned that once both soulmates turned this age, the hidden faces from their dreams, belonging to their lovers from a past life could finally be seen.

“What if they had an age difference? Say, five years?” He was starting to become more interested in the idea of these soulmates.

“Then they’ll start having the dreams once the youngest of the two also turns eighteen!”

“But what if one of them...dies before meeting each other?”

“Well...they’ll never know their soulmate...not all lives have a happy ending…”

“Oh, that’s...pretty sad.”

“Yeah, it is.” You looked back at the street, muttering softly to yourself. “Hope I can find mine, though…”

“Did you say something?”

“Ah! N-nothing important!”

After some slightly awkward silence, you finally came close to the building where you lived. 

“Well...Here we are!” You stood in front of the gates. A bright smile was directed to Kirishima, who stood a few feet away, but still close enough that if he lifted his hand, it could easily brush against yours. “Would you like to come in? I have some matcha cake waiting inside!” 

“You sure it’s okay?” 

“Of course, silly! I’m a firm believer that birthdays must always be celebrated with cake!” He couldn’t help laughing at your enthusiasm. 

But you didn’t get the chance to say another word before something flashed before your eyes. A burst of images began flashing at an overwhelming pace, different memories began coming all at once at an alarming rate that made you hunch, leaning on the gate and holding your aching head, throbbing painfully from the sudden wave of memories coming at all once.

Everything came so suddenly; all those dreams from your past lives came rushing like an avalanche.

That couple embracing each other in the darkness of the alleyway. The one that got separated because of a family dispute and the one that ran away together, everything just kept coming back. 

And when they finally stopped, the very first one that you remembered stayed still before your eyes. The couple from the victorian era were embracing each other tenderly before he grabbed his lover’s face by their chin to give them one of the sweetest kisses you could ever witness.

His face was no longer hidden by shadows, and it was like a burst of colors painted this seemingly dark room filled with nothing but black and white with the brightest of shades. Like the sun itself had stepped inside that room.

Because that smile, that bright smile that could easily rival the sun...it was Kirishima’s smile.

Turning your head back slowly with eyes wide open, the first thing you noticed was that your so-called friend was hunched over, holding his head painfully before slowly opening his eyes to look at you, with the same look of absolute shock in those bright red orbs that were always full of life, despite everything he had gone through.

Neither of you moved for a solid minute and just stayed in place looking at one another before a tearful smile began appearing on your face.

“It’s you…!” 

Carefully, your hands pushed against the wall for impulse, at the same time that he took a single step, before breaking into a short sprint until he reached you, taking you into a heartfelt embrace that was eagerly reciprocated.

“How did I ever get so lucky?” He whispered, voice nearly breaking from everything he felt in that moment. Neither of you had the willpower to let go, not caring about anything, or anyone else. 

“All this time...all this time, you were always right in front of me.” You whimpered. “We’ve been having the same dreams for a whole year and didn’t know it!”

“You’re not going to leave this time, are you?” You nuzzled closer to him, hugging him as tightly as possible and completely afraid of losing your soulmate all over again like in those past lives.

“Never, I could never do that to you!” He kissed your temple lovingly. “Nothing will tear us apart. I promise!”

@bnha-ra @bnhabookclub @gallickingun @godtieruwu @hanniejji @mysticalite @savagetrickster @shoobirino @songsforbnha @sugacookiies @unbreakableeiji @wesparklebitch @pixxiesdust @hawks-senseis @yikerb​ 

[sxveme-2]

blueberry pancakes // bucky barnes

MASTERLIST

Description: A single mother. Juggling being a mom, a full time pediatrician, and a difficult ex who believed now would be the best time to finally be a father. A soldier ripped out of time. Ex-assassin turned superhero. Learning how to balance a new domestic life with handling demons of his past, while facing the trials of the future. a love story began over something as simple as chocolate chip pancakes with hidden blueberries. 

Disclaimer: I do not own any original Marvel characters! All canon plots and canon characters belong to Marvel Comics and Marvel Studios. This is an original work. You may not publish it anywhere else

Status: Edited

Note: Takes place after endgame. I have elected to ignore Tony's death and Steve's leaving. Did not happen. Quick Reminder! My works are only published here, AO3 and on Wattpad, thank you.

Chapter One: The One Where it Starts

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 1615

Being an adult in general is a wild roller coaster. Whether it be balancing bills, expenses, keeping a proper career, all together it was a stressful period. Going to the bank or answering phone calls was difficult enough. Seriously, what is with people and constantly calling? It’s so much easier to just text. Not to mention it keeps the incredibly anxiety ridden people at bay, and leaves them in a sane state of mind without worrying about anything. 

     That brings us to the protagonist of our story. Lily Briar Osborne. The 33 year old child of Abel and Alicia Osborne. She was the sister to two younger siblings, Rose and Cedar. Can you sense a theme with the children's names? Even Lily herself seemed to carry on that legacy with her own son. While balancing her busy work and just life in general, Lily mothered a young boy named Hunter. Hunter Osborne-Harvey. The eleven year old boy that was the result of a much too early marriage of two young kids who believed this was it, they had found the one. Well, that was not exactly the ending of their fairy tale. It instead involved a mistress, many trips to Grandma and Grandpa's, and a few too many shots in order to handle one another.

     Lily was more-so a quiet girl. Definitely more of the silent type in comparison to the majority of people in her profession. She was a pediatrician, and the only time you really see her talk or even crack a smile, is when she was with the kids. She was always found making sure they felt comfortable. When the young ones were gone, she seemed to shut down. Giving straight and to the point answers. Not elaborating unless asked, and strictly sticking to just the facts.

     Lily and Hunter had found home in a small colonial home in the suburbs of Manhattan, New York. There, they can be found in the company of a German Shepard named Joey, after the beloved sitcom, Friends. You could always find the small family laying in Lily's bed with the comedy illuminating the room around them. Every other Sunday and Saturday before Hunter's father came to pick him up for the weekend, they'd lay in bed before going out for brunch at Lily's best friends cafe further into the city.

     Which is where the story began. a sunny Saturday morning in September.

-----

     "If he doesn't like you, it's a moo point."

     The two Osborne's laughed softly at the comment made by their favourite sitcom character. Lily's fingers gently ran across the arm of her son, creating a soothing rhythm as they watched the sitcom, his head laid comfortably against the pillows. The large dog laid spread down at the edge of the duvet where his breathing radiated gently through the room.

     "Alright why don't you head in to get dressed and we'll go to Aunt Gen's cafe, hm? Sound like a plan kiddo?'' Lily's feather light voice cooed as her hazel eyes moved to glance over at her son.

     "But I wanna stay home all day and watch friends." Hunter whined as he nuzzled further into his mom's bed.

     "No love, I'm sure your dad has lots of things planned for the weekend. And we can watch more episodes when you're back tomorrow, okay? I promise." Lily sighed while lifting her pointer finger to her son.

     The pointer finger promise was Lily and Hunter’s signature thing. Instead of making a pinky promise, which was the weakest finger, they used one of the strongest. to make the strongest promises. That is exactly what they would do. And they'd know that if they broke it, trust would be something that had to be earned back. And luckily for Lily, she trusted her son with her whole being. He told her everything, as far as she knew. Seeing as she wasn't in his head, who knew? Though he was very vocal about his distaste for visiting his father, and it did hurt Lily to hear the pain he felt. The separation agreement allowed Scott Harvey, Hunter's father, to have the young boy every other weekend.

     Lily was lucky enough to have primary custody. Mostly because Scott was never a fully invested father before the divorce, so the court had no issue granting Lily the majority of the custody. But of course, Scott could come by whenever to see Hunter, as well as if he had something planned, he could pick up his son. But...Hunter wasn't the biggest fan of his father.

     Neither was Lily.

     Lily and Scott got divorced a few years ago when Hunter was a ripe 7 years old, and now he was 11, and still lacked the father figure he longed for. In those 7 years, Scott never really put an effort in. and hunter was a smart kid, and already harbored a distaste for the distant nature of his father. and it annoyed him, and Lily, that all of the sudden, after the divorce, Scott wished to be the great father he never was before. Despite his many attempts, it never worked out well for him.

     "Promise." Hunter smiled gently and wrapped his pointer finger around Lily's, before sliding out from underneath the white duvet that covered the two of them, startling the dog that laid at the end of the bed.

     As Hunter left the room, a small sigh escaped the blonde doctor's lips. She hated these days, when Hunter had to go visit his father. But she knew it was important for a child's psyche to have at least a relationship with their father. Picking herself up as well, Lily heaved herself into her closet. She picked out a white spring dress with blue baby's breath designs splayed across the entire piece of clothing. It was a tank top strap, and it was the end of summer and a small breeze danced through her window. She slid a blue jean jacket over her arms before stepping into her bathroom to complete her basic routine.

     After she pulled her hair into a pony, lily stepped out of her room after calling Joey out and down the wooden stairs to the main floor, where Hunter sat at the front door with his backpack and Converse on. Lily couldn't help but smile gently at her punctual son and felt proud of how she had raised him. And how he had grown to be a self-sufficient boy who was also able to ask for help when need be.

     "You gonna get the pancakes again today kiddo?" Lily wondered while stepping into her ballet flats and ruffling  the fur on Joey's back before opening the white door for her son.

     "Aunt Gen keeps putting secret blueberries in them and acting as though they're chocolate chips. I don't trust her anymore."

-----

     Lily and Hunter stepped out of the silver 2019 Honda passport, the two Osborne's took a deep breath of the muggy New York air. Hunter stood by Lily's side as she paid for the parking spot they were lucky enough to grab in the busy streets. She slid her arm around the boy's shoulders, before leading the two towards the fairly busy cafe her best friend owned.

     Genevive Fairchild. Lily's best friend for close to 20 years now. The two had met during their highschool orientation back in 2005. Gen was the extroverted hippy with conservative parents who disagreed with their child's decisions and mannerisms. She was always wearing what was to become her signature dreadlocks with golden decals littering her hair. Baggy shirts with fishnet cardigans and ripped jeans, the necessities to embody Gen. She entered the school loud and unbothered by others opinions or thoughts on how she acted or what she wore. But somehow, she was taken with the quiet blonde who kept her opinions to herself, hands tucked behind her back.

     Lily hadn't changed much in these twenty years, much to her parents dismay. Her parents were elated when their timid daughter brought home the boisterous and carefree Genevieve. Lily's parents were the same as Gen, unbothered and one with the Earth, no real care about people's opinions. Her father was a botanist and her mother a conversationalist. Plants and crystals littered the eco friendly home of Lily's childhood in the rural area of Long Island, New York. To see their studious, goody-good, daughter who wore knee length dresses everyday and cardigans, to bring home such a carefree spirit, was a breath of long needed fresh air for them.

     Ever since then, the two were inseparable. Lily even made her the godmother of Hunter. They both had keys to each others places, and nothing ever seemed to get in between the two of them. Other than those many years Scott wreaked havoc on their friendship. He kept Lily under some sort of spell, no matter how many times Gen attempted to convince her of the terrible manner of their relationship. Eventually, Gen gave up on the fight. until the young chocolate skin girl caught her best friend's husband getting it on with some girl at a party Gen was invited to.

     And that was the end of that marriage. Gen stayed with lily almost every night while everything was happening. And when her or Scott couldn't get Hunter up to Lily's parents, Gen would take him. Make sure he wasn't too focused on the broken state of his mother.

     As the two pushed open the door to the cafe, they were greeted with the fresh smell of coffee and pastries. That is, before they were practically being tackled by the woman earlier mentioned.

     "You two will NOT believe who is here right now."

[midnights-light]

Ladybug and the Hound

So before I begin I need to say a few things

This is my first attempt at writing a fanfic so it’s most likely going to suck and all that jazz

I do not own any characters in the DC or Miraculous universes (if i did everything would make little to no sense so yeah)

Can we all agree that  @ozmav is an amazing writer?

If you don’t like Daminette, don’t read it’s that simple

I am also going to use “Dogs are a Ladybug’s best friend” by @kelelamentia for some inspiration on this cuz I love that idea

All characters are going to be OOC so just be prepared

If ya’ll like it I might write more just let me know if I should write more or if I should never think about writing again (I have low self-esteem so if it look like I am hating on myself it’s because I am but I’ll get over someday but if you criticize me please at least try to be constructive criticism)

Now onto the terrible thing I decided needed to exist

LB-Ladybug

CN- Chat Noir

M-Marinette

Di-Dick

D-Damian

B-Bruce

T-Tim

J-Jason

A-Alfred

The Meeting

It was a normal Tuesday, ya know? Birds are singing, the sun is shining, the Eiffel Tower collapsed, ya know the usual. Well usual for Parisians who had to deal with this for 4 almost 5 years now but for those who just wanted a vacation like the Waynes... well let’s just say they were unprepared to see the Eiffel Tower come crashing down just a few blocks ahead of them as they were walking to get some pastries from Tom and Sabine Boulangerie patisserie for a afternoon snack and to walk Titus (they brought Titus because Damian refused to leave him alone in the mansion for two weeks while they are on vacation so Bruce reluctantly agreed to bring him with them). So them being them ran towards the fallen tower and see a few people dead and some injured. They help the injured, but just as they are about to get the remaining few out of the wreckage a girl in a clearly ladybug themed suit comes crashing to the ground creating a few cracks to form on the ground. She gets up with a groan just as a dog in a fox themed costume came running up to her and helps her steady herself. “Thanks, Hound.” says the spotted girl and as the batfam are about to check if she’s okay a... IS THAT A GIANT BABY?! Well the giant baby comes walking towards the girl and the dog when a voice shouts “If you go on a date with me Ladybug I will come help you just accept your feelings for me already!” 

Damian's POV

As soon as the spotted girl heard that she looked towards the owner of the voice and low and behold it’s a guy in a leather cat suit and on the outside I look indifferent to what is happening but on the inside the only thing I can think is ‘What is going on in this city!’ because I was just expecting a boring two weeks of ‘required’ vacation in the ‘city of love’ I hate the nickname of the city because as Father has shown love is a weakness. But apparently the city of love is not as boring as I thought it would be. The girl (ladybug I think is her name) now has a look of murder in her eyes and the dog (hound is what she called him) growled at him as ladybug said “Chat, you can’t be serious! You just caused the Eiffel Tower to fall and kill and injure people!” CN-“Yes because you can’t realize that we are meant to be together!” LB-”No we are not now either help or shut up so I can focus on gigantitan!” CN-”Fine then i’ll just sit here and enjoy the show” That one interaction makes me question if this is how it is everything something like this happens.

*Time skip because i can’t write smart plans or fight scenes*

Dick’s POV

After ladybug got his watch thing off his wrist she and hound tore it apart which released a black butterfly and the giant baby was now back to a normal sized baby. WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?1 I’M SO CONFUSED! After I stopped questioning reality I realized that ladybug was comforting the kid (HE COULDN’T BE OLDER THAN 4 YEARS OLD!) she picked him up and was about to throw her spotted thing up in the air for some reason but was interrupted by the cat boy saying ‘Pound it!’ and acting like he actually helped her and didn’t just sit there on a roof watching ladybug and hound do everything. What the heck? Ladybug walks over to me and asked if I could hold the kid for a sec and I said sure because she looks ready to murder. After she hands me the kid she walks over to cat boy and started yelling at him about how he can’t just be reckless like that but it seemed to just go over his head as he replied saying something about how she owed hit to him to date him but I quickly stopped listening when the kid started crying because of all the yelling going on so I started to talk and play with him to cheer him up until he pointed to ladybug as she yelled miraculous ladybug and tossed the spotted object into the sky. I was confused about what she was doing until I saw a swarm of ladybugs appear and start fixing the damage, healing the injured, and even bringing people back to life. Then she came back over and was about to ask something but then a shrill beeping noise came from her earrings causing her to ask if we could watch over the kid until his mom came and picked him up. Titus and Hound were playing until she called him over to her and then they jumped, yes JUMPED, up to the roof and left. “What the hell was all that and does anyone else want to kill a cat boy?”

Tim’s POV

“So that all really happened, huh? It wasn’t really just a coffee dream?” I say and then look at everyone else has a different reactions to what just happened: Jason is looking at where dead bodies had been but now they were alive, Bruce is trying to understand what just happened, Alfred looks concerned, Dick is keeping the kid happy, and Damian is trying to keep Titus from running after Hound. I notice other civilians just walking around like nothing just happened and I’m just thinking ‘How long has this been happening and how have we not noticed? WHAT IS LIFE!?’

Jason’s POV

I look at everybody that was dead just walk away like nothing happened and I am about to ask Bruce if he know what that was when I feel someone bump into me. I turn around to see a girl around Damian’s age on the ground picking up the stuff she dropped while rapidly apologizing while a dog, presumably hers, was sniffing her making sure she was ok and had what looked like a glare on his face when he looked at me. M-“I’m so so sorry Monsieur! I wasn’t looking where I was going.” J-”It’s alright little lady, but if you don’t mind me asking, what’s the rush?” M- “Well you see I’m supposed to be helping in my parents bakery after I finished walking Captain but we got caught up in the akuma attack so I’m running a bit late. My names Marinette by the way. I don’t think I’ve seen you before are you visiting?” What’s an akuma? I’ll file that away for later for replacement to look at but for now. J- ”Yeah we are here for a family vacation to take a break from work. Would you mind if me and my family follow you to your parent’s bakery? We were heading to one for a snack but it seems we got turned around during the attack.” M- “Sure just tell me your names first so I at least know you to some degree cause I’m not supposed to talk to people I don’t know. I hate life but I’m not ready to die just yet.” She laughs and I swear it feels like the world just got a whole lot brighter, J- “Of course where are my manners name’s Jason. I have a feeling my family is going to love you and your dog.” I say as I hold my hand out for Captain to sniff and after he does he stops giving me what I swear looks like a glare but he’s still standing near Marinette when I notice my family looking at me and Marinette and Alfred asks me, A- “Master Jason are you going to introduce us to the young miss?” J- “Oh right, guys this is Marinette, Marinette this is Alfred he’s our butler/ grandpa, the one who looks like he’s about to pass out is Tim, the one playing with the kid is Dick, the stern one is Bruce, and the  one with the dog is Damian.” I say.

Damian’s POV

I hear Todd talking to someone and introducing us and as soon as I turn to glare at Todd I see the most beautiful eyes in the whole world. they look like sapphires and her hair is like the midnight sky. She looks like an Angel... wait WHAT!?  I only zone back in as soon as Todd told the Angel my name so I did what not even I  was expecting, I took her hand, gave the back of it a kiss and said, D- “Nice to meet you Angel.” I was not smiling when I saw her blush and I for certain do not want to make her blush again... but if I have a chance to then I will take it. Then I hear a low growl and I then notice that she has a dog (yes she loves animals to!) that is looking at me like he’s going to rip me to shreds and I will forever deny that I was a little scared. M- “Sorry Damian, Captain’s just a little protective of me and doesn’t like strangers being around me.” D-”I understand.” I say then I hold out my hand for her dog (Captain I think it was) to sniff and after he does he still growls at me but doesn’t look ready to tear me to pieces so progress towards getting to know the Angel before me. And then my good mood is ruined by the sound of my idiot brothers and father, the traitor, snickering behind us. I turn and scowl at them but they don’t seem to care. Meanwhile Titus and Captain appear to have met and are now chasing each other around making me and the Angel laugh. Her laughter sounds amazing and her smile makes it feel like the world brightens up just a little. M- “So shall we start walking to the bakery?” A chorus of yes comes from my family and then we start walking. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.

BONUS

*Whispering* J- “Am I going crazy or did Demon Spawn just laugh and smile at Marinette?”

Di- “No I heard it to *gasp* do you think he has a crush?”

J- “Are we sure he’s capable of having a crush?”

T- “Well I’m sure she will be good for him, but what I’m confused about is how she doesn’t recognize who we are. I mean how does she not know us she didn’t even seem to recognize our faces.

A- “I think Miss Marinette will do Master Damian some good.”

And Bruce is just looking at his youngest son with pride. His first crush and he’s able to witness it.

So as I said in the beginning this is my first fanfic and It’s most likely terrible so let me know if I should never write again, if you want another chapter, or if I should just reevaluate my life choices.

Chapter 2

[enkelimagnus]

A Castle in the Forest

Percy x Vex’ahlia, Chapter 13, 3200 words,

A Modern AU, in which Vex is a park ranger taking over the Alabaster Sierras post, and finds much more than she bargained for.

Read on AO3

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Vex steps out of the temple, Vax by her side, and the light of the day feels wrong. It feels like decades have passed while they discussed what to do about Percival de Rolo, not merely a few hours.

Maybe it’s because the inside of the Lady’s Chamber is as barren as the Zenith is desolate. She gets the minimalist aesthetic that comes with the Lawbearer but she wishes there were some colorful tapestries to at least brighten up the room.

It’s midday, which is the only reason it’s this bright out. It’s Duscar 2nd, the shortest day of the year, and it means especially a lot so far North. There will only be a couple hours more of daylight and whatever work Vex had leftover for the day will have to wait until tomorrow.

Keeper Yennen is the only one of the group that stayed behind. Father Reynal is already halfway through the square, walking towards his temple and the cemetery. The rest of them gather a few feet from the door, looking at each other with the awkwardness of recently-introduced coworkers.

They form quite the motley crew. A cleric of an all-but-forgotten goddess, a barbarian, two half-elf twins, and the only remaining alive and safe member of the ruling family of the city. She’s barely counting in the two aging priests that provide mostly support and won’t be let anywhere near the fiend.

This feels doomed to fail. A small part of Vex tells her regularly that she should run away and leave these people to their own devices, that this doesn’t concern her. They should all be lucky her professional consciousness is stronger than that little survivalist voice.

“Vex?” Pike’s voice resounds, soft and light and Vex looks down at the other woman.

“Yes?”

Pike looks at her with an apologetic smile. “I wanted to apologize. I didn’t know at the time what was happening. I should probably have warned you once I was made aware of the situation…”

Vex shakes her head. “It’s okay, Pike, it wasn’t your responsibility. You have nothing to do with it.”

It was the priests’ responsibility. It should have been them who warned Vex of what the fiend was. But they’d covered it up. They potentially had lost precious time, because they hadn’t let her do her job.

Pike smiles at her. “I wasn’t lying about the… being sent by my goddess thing,” she points out. “I don’t think I would have left Westrunn if that wasn’t for her.”

Vex raises an eyebrow. “Really?”

“I have family there. My great-grandpa. And I’m trying to bring some sort of Sarenrae worship back, build a new temple. It’s not super easy, even with this guy,” she points at Grog. Grog smiles at Vex, a smile that would have been scary if Vex hadn’t already seen how soft he was around Pike. “Sarenrae was forgotten a long time ago.”

Vex doesn’t know much about Sarenrae, mostly only what Pike has told her. She nods. “I see. Well I hope either way that it will go well for you. It seems like a good goddess to have a congregation of.”

Pike chuckles. “Yeah, she’s no Betrayer,” she nods. “Alright then. I think Grog and I will go get lunch. Have a good day, and see you at the next meeting.”

Vex bids them goodbye before turning back to her brother, who seems in the middle of a conversation with Cassandra.

“It’s Barren Eve,” Vax is saying when Vex settles next to him. “Are you going to light candles for your family?”

Cassandra seems a little taken aback by that.  “Probably,” she replies after a small moment. “What happened here wasn’t really a war, but it’s close enough.”

Vex crosses her arms. “I understand you don’t want to relive what happened, but I’d really appreciate knowing the background of this entire story. It might give us some idea of where to start looking for the fiend your brother has elected to make a deal with.”

Cassandra observes her for a moment, eyes heavy with horrors Vex can’t even imagine. She feels a little guilty for bringing this up over and over again but she needs to know. She can’t go out of her way to save a De Rolo without knowing why he’s in this situation in the first place.

“I can tell you the story,” Cassandra nods. “However I’d like… some privacy?” She gestures at the open square around them. “And it will be more comfortable somewhere where we can all sit. I can bring you to my home if you’d like.”

That’s a sign of goodwill if Vex has ever seen any. Vax is already acquiescing before Vex opens her mouth to accept. He seems to like her. Maybe it’s that sibling thing. Cassandra isn’t a twin, but she’s a sister.

They quickly start making their way to Cassandra’s home. They are mostly silent while on the road. They don’t have a lot of things to talk about. There’s a lot of heaviness between them. Vex doesn’t really feel like dissipating it just yet, if she’s being honest with herself. It’s petty, but it feels good.

To Vex’s surprise, Cassandra guides them off into an alleyway and behind the Alcove, the shop Vex visited on her very first visit into town. She remembers meeting Keyleth there, with those strange clockwork machines that she now knows to be the work of Percival himself.

Cassandra opens a door at the back of the Alcove’s building. Behind it is a narrow stairwell. Vax closes the door behind himself as they walk up into Cassandra’s home.

It’s an apartment, Vex can only see the first room she steps in, all other doors are closed. It’s tidy, but lived in. There are many books lining shelves against the walls, a lot that looks like textbooks.

There’s a small clockwork machine on one of the shelves. There’s a picture framed on the wall, a family portrait. Vex counts two adults and seven children of various sizes. There are twins in there.

“You had a big family,” Vex points out.

Cassandra nods sadly. “It’s been strange to be alone,” she replies.

Vex feels like an asshole again.

They settle around the light wooden table in the middle of the room. Cassandra serves them some coffee and they let the silence settle around them, heavy and thick. Vex doesn’t know exactly how to start this, how to ask again, so she just sort of waits.

“So… my family,” Cassandra starts, shifting a little. She seems to be getting comfortable for a long tale. “The De Rolos founded Whitestone in the early seventh century. We came from Wildemount, wrecked our ship on the Shearing Channels. The Sun Tree was already there, glowing in the winter, and we settled around it. As time passed, we discovered the whitestone of the Alabaster Sierras had a few properties of interest to spellcasters. It allowed us to develop trade with the home continent.”

Vex didn’t expect the story to start this far back in the past. She expected a retelling of the last few years, perhaps, but this is much closer to a history lesson.

Cassandra pauses and takes a sip of coffee before continuing.

“Wildemount is not like Tal’Dorei or Issylra. Arcane magic is much more developed and studied there than it is here. They have very important arcane societies. One of those societies is called the Cerberus Assembly,” she explains. “They’re a group of mages, maybe the most influential political power on Wildemount. And they had great use for whitestone. That’s how my family eventually came in contact with Archmage Delilah Briarwood, one of the eight archmages of the Cerberus Assembly.”

She swallows hard, her eyes staring at the table. Vex already knows from this look that Delilah Briarwood is going to become one of the main players of this story. She thinks she’s heard the Briarwood name before… or maybe it was Cerberus Assembly. Perhaps her father has met with some of the members of that assembly before, or they’ve come to Syngorn. The elven society is filled with scholars of the arcane.

Cassandra starts talking again, with a voice sounding almost detached from the story.

“They had mostly business relations with her. She was deeply interested in Whitestone’s history, in the Sun Tree and the Alabaster Sierras’ tale of creation during the Calamity. They weren’t great friends, but they knew each other well enough. So when Lord Sylas and Lady Delilah Briarwood came knocking at the doors of the castle, looking for a place to stay as they had been unjustly driven out of the Assembly, my parents believed them.”

Her voice is clouded with bitterness. So that was probably a lie then. Vex swallows. She can feel the tension in the memories building, can feel the dread wrapping around those words. The longer Cassandra talks, the more she fears the climax of it.

“I don’t know what they said that made my parents believe all their stories. I was about 14 at the time, and I wasn’t allowed in the office when those conversations were held,” she swallows. “But the Briarwoods settled in our home with their personal doctor, Anna Ripley, and then their friends trickled into the city. The doctor took great interest in Percival’s studies, growing close to his tutor, Professor Anders. Unbeknownst to all of us, they were plotting to take over.”

Her hand around the cup tightens, the knuckles white with the tension.

“We held a feast for the anniversary of their arrival, exactly one year after they’d found us. They’d become part of the family. We toasted to them. And then, they started murdering us. Sylas Briarwood was actually not a man but an undead creature, and his strength and seeming taste for blood was the end of my mother and father. And then they hunted the rest of the family, as well as the staff. For some reason, they’d decided to keep the youngest of us alive. Percival, the twins, Ludwig and I. I’m guessing the doctor’s fondness for Percy was his saving grace.”  

Cassandra has a soft, bitter chuckle. Vex almost mirrors it. It is strange to think of saving graces when she has seen what Percival has become.

“The details are fuzzy, but somehow I managed to get Percy and I out. We ran through the secret tunnel, the one you probably were in, to freedom. Well… he did,” she looks down again. “They had archers on the wall and they caught me. Percy ran away as I was hit with arrows and… that’s the last time I saw him un-possessed. I think I died there, from being shot through with arrows. Yet, I awakened later on in my very own bed in the castle. They’d cleared out the bodies and styled themselves Lord and Lady of Whitestone, and took me in for… the Gods only know why…”

Pain is now obvious over her face. She’s struggled to keep it in the entire time, but the coldness and detachment she affected before are gone.

“For three years, I was theirs. Eventually, I stopped thinking myself a de Rolo, but rather a Briarwood. They called me their daughter,” she whispers. “The city tried fighting back, but I was playing a game with the rebellion, spying on them for information. I still don’t know if I was doing it of my own volition. But because of me, many of my people died… All their attempts at gaining freedom failed.”

There are tears in her eyes now, her voice is shaking and so are her hands. Vex doesn’t know what to do. She wishes she could comfort her but… She honestly doesn’t believe there is anything she can say that will make any of this better. Cassandra was used and abused by these Briarwoods.

“One day, Percy showed up, with a weapon of his own making, a demon riding his soul and he murdered them all. He murdered the Briarwoods, he murdered Ripley, that he’d loved so much. He murdered his teacher, and the Briarwoods’ friends, and then he turned his gun on me.”

Her breath itches and a sob wracks its way out of her throat.

“His eyes were black, there was this smoke around him, and he wasn’t my brother anymore,” Cassandra sobs. “But he still… he told me to run. He managed to fight the demon and tell me to run and I did. He tried to take a shot at me but missed.”

Run. Please. The man’s voice and his eyes are still carved in Vex’s memory. She can’t imagine what Cassandra must have felt when Vex told her what happened to her, how he let her go but still shot her.

“That’s the last time I saw him,” she leans back against the chair, a bit calmer, as if emptied out of the sorrow for a moment. “Keyleth is the only one who ever gets to go see him. And she can’t tell him where I am. Or he’ll come for me.”

It’s fucking tragic.

Vex’s mind seems to run empty for a long moment. No wonder no one will talk about the massacre. Or the massacres, plural, as it is. There are so many questions that suddenly press to the forefront. Lord Briarwood had been undead with a taste for blood? That’s… almost something out of scary stories for children.

“How long has it been?” Vax asks next to her. He seems to be managing this much better than Vex is.

“About two years?” Cassandra replies. “Something like that. I admit weeks and months seem to blend into each other lately.”

That makes sense. Vex can pretty much say the same about the months of her recovery before she moved to Whitestone. Trying to move on from traumatic events feels like trying to run through jelly. Days repeat themselves until it’s suddenly six months later and you feel just slightly better.

Vex herself isn’t completely out of it. Some days, she barely recognizes herself. She has Vax, and Trinket. What does Cassandra have? A memory, a shadow of the brother she can’t seem to help.

“He taught me all I know about constellations, you know? We’d sneak out onto the high balconies at night and he’d tell me all he’d learned about them in books, before I could read.” She smiles then, bitterness filling her eyes. “I’m never getting him back, am I?”

Vex feels a knot in her throat forming, and this time she can’t stay quiet. Even if the words that come up don’t feel like they fit. She can’t think of any other ones. But she has to say something right? Maybe nothing will ever exactly fit, and it’s either this… almost meaningless platitude or silence.

“We will do our best.” It rings empty, falling flat as Cassandra laughs. “I can’t promise him back, but… we will do what we can.”

“I suppose that has to be enough. If only I had…” She trails off, and it isn’t hard to see where her thoughts have gone.

“Staying wouldn’t have changed anything. You would simply be dead.” Vex doesn’t want to hurt the girl with her bluntness, but she sees her flinch regardless. “It wasn’t your fault. He wasn’t your brother anymore when he came back.”

She looks over at Vax for a half a second, his quiet sad smile that never really reaches his eyes, the comfort he’s so obviously trying to exude, draping his body in the least threatening way, open palms on the table, knowing how to exist in a way that won’t make someone like Cassandra or Vex run away.

He heard what Cassandra said about being trapped. And maybe even more than Vex, he recognized what it meant.

What would she be feeling if Vax had made a deal with a demon to help her get rid of Saundor?

She can’t quite imagine that black smoke around Vax’s golden skin instead of Percy’s much paler one. She can’t imagine it living inside of him. Forcing herself to imagine it makes feel a little nauseous.

“I… know what it’s like for your loved ones to get hurt when they come to save you,” Vex adds after a moment.

The bramble-like arrow shot by Fenthras going through Vax’s shoulder, his face growing paler from the pain of it. He had to get too close to Saundor to stab him but it made him vulnerable. He took the risk anyway. He always took the risks for her.

“If you looked through the file you had on me, then you know a lot about my past. You know I was involved with an Archfey,” Vex whispers. “And you know some of the story of how it ended. But…” She looks down for a second. “Vax had to come and get me. I wouldn’t have made it out by myself. I couldn’t even really think of escaping at the time.”

Vex looks up to meet Cassandra’s eyes. Hopefully she gets why Vex is telling that story. The parallel, if slightly distorted, between Percy and Vax in this situation are easy to see.

“I guess us big brothers tend to be a little reckless when it comes to our younger sisters,” Vax points out with a humorless chuckle.

Vex rolls her eyes. “I’m three minutes younger than you.”

Cassandra’s face cracks in a smile at that.

“Either way,” Vax shrugs. “We really are going to do what we can to make sure this has a happy ending for the both of you. As happy as possible.”

Cassandra takes a sip of her coffee. It’s probably cold now, but Vex understands the need to give oneself countenance. She straightens up a little. “I hope so,” she mutters. “I really do. I don’t want to be the sole heir to Whitestone.”

Vex thinks she can read between those lines. I don’t want to be alone. She gets it. She really does. The past few days have made sure the only person she has is Vax. She wouldn’t want to lose him either.

“If I bump into him again,” Vex starts slowly. “Do you want me to tell him something from you?”

Cassandra’s eyes widen. Vex understands that Percy’s not supposed to know where Cassandra is, but a simple message without location won’t do much harm. It might just help him fight the demon.

For as much as she empathizes with Cassandra and her loneliness, she can’t help but think of Percy too. Two years of nothing but a demon for company. Two years of knowing you might just kill everyone you love.

“Please… If you see him,” Cassandra whispers after a moment. “Tell him I still love him.”

“I can do that,” Vex nods.

Afterwards, it’s hard to find words to end that conversation but they somehow manage. They exchange numbers and Vex makes sure Cassandra’s calls will ring loud and clear no matter what happens or if her phone is on silent. They say goodbye and the twins start their way back to the car.

Vex extends her hand in between them and Vax doesn’t waste a second to take it.

[pain-somnia]

Akatsuki Gift Exchange 2020

Title: a pack comes calling Rated: General Audiences Disclaimer Prompt: “Anything with Sarada and Itachi and or Madara would be lovely, like any interactions at all between them”; some fave genres: Family/Friendship, Fantasy Day’s Notes: here’s my fic for the @akatsuki-gift-exchange 😊 I was selected to be the secret santa for @lorna-likes-skittles I hope you like it a lot. I wrote the Uchiha family as a pack of wolf shifters and made this a modern fantasy au~ AO3 Link

a pack comes calling

The air was beginning to have the sharp quality that marked the change of the season. It bit at his skin when the wind blew, stinging his cheeks.

There had been many winters in his life, but they all blurred together as he got on in years. Madara sighed as he lifted his head in the direction of  the tree line of his pack’s territory. He could hear their breaths, smell their unique scents.

The burning sage of Fugaku.

The fresh balsam that blended with the cedarwood of Obito.

The lavender and vanilla of Izumi.

The smokey cloves and orange of Shisui.

The bergamot of Itachi.

The Uchiha clan had dwindled in numbers through the years. Some had been lost as they fought for their decreasing territory. Others had forgotten who they were and lost their way.

The floral notes of wisteria marked the approach of Mikoto. She dressed him in her comforting sweet scent as she wrapped him in a blanket. Unlike the others in his clan, he was more susceptible to the cold and it had gotten worse as he aged.

“Would you like your tea now?” Mikoto asked him as he felt her adjust the blanket around his body to block out the cold.

“I will wait until it’s closer to sundown.”

It was the night of the full moon and as an older wolf, the shift took more out of him. His bones could no longer take the transformation and a tea with monkshood as an ingredient had to be made to ease the pain. Running in the woods was a game for a younger man. He mostly spent the nights he was forced to shift curled up on the engawa, letting the breeze ruffle his silver streaked fur.

The rest of the clan members were in the forest, marking trees and getting rid of hidden dangers. It wasn’t the Wolf Moon, which was tradition, but tonight marked the first night that the new pup would join them as they frolicked in the forest and  learn the Uchiha land.

And there it was, the unmistakable stench of human mixed with apples and daffodils paired with the dewey grass and earthy green tea scent of the former youngest in the pack. Swirling between them was that same sharp human scent━although much more muted━blended with black tea and cinnamon.

“Madara-ojiisan,” chorused the pair of voices, one low and husky and the other sweet and soft as petals. He bowed his head slightly in response, waiting for the third voice.

“Hello, Madara-ojiisan,” came the clumsy trill of a toddler, followed by the uneven steps that children take, heavier on one part of the sole in a way that made them graceless.

Keeping his head bowed, Madara waited for the press of a tiny nose against his own. The contact was soft but carried the warmth of a fire that all of Izuna’s descendants carried in their blood.

“Sarada,” he murmured in greeting.

With his sight lost to him, Madara could not see the markings of the Uchiha in the pup, but it was there in the delicate note of dying embers that none of them could escape.

Madara once believed it was his duty to fan the flames and watch his clan rise, to strengthen the sparks. That it was his duty to make sure his family was strong enough to answer the call.

Little hands braced themselves on his knees and a small form settled into his lap. Madara wrapped the blanket around the both of them, trapping the warmth Sarada brought with her.

The marriage of her scent with his crisp mountain air and black pine scent brought memories of past winters during the few moments of peace. It was the scent of a time when he and Izuna were still children and taking in the comforts of their grandmother’s home when they took shelter from the snow.

It was the smell of family.

.

.

Flurries of snow stuck to his lashes. Itachi had been outside in the cold long enough for his body to be too cold for the snowflakes to melt when they touched his face. He closed his eyes and lifted his face to the sky, reveling in the peace the snowfall brought.

“Itachi-jisan!”

The peace had to come to an end, but the interruption wasn’t unwelcome. He turned his face back in the direction of his parents’ home and opened his eyes. Bundled up for the cold weather, his niece waddled toward him. If she heard the calling━which was likely━all of the layers would become unbearable in a few hours.

“It’s snowing!”

“Did you greet our uncle?”

“Yes!”

Sarada leaped into the air when she got closer to him. Itachi lowered himself in order to grab her from the air, lifting her up higher by the armpits. She squealed in delight, giggling as he lowered her so she could kiss her nose to his in the submissive gesture of pups.

“I missed you,” Sarada cooed in her high, child pitch. Itachi looked down at her with fondness. When the dark of night settled in, and the full moon there would be a forced shift and he could already hear the way she would yip in her wolf form.

“You should get your dad to bring you out to the country more often.” Itachi had raised his voice so his younger brother, Sasuke, could hear him from where he and his wife were walking on the edge of the forest.

Sasuke lifted his head towards him, mouth opened and ready to retort, when a red blur leaped from out of the woods, narrowly missing him and Sakura. Itachi sighed as he watched the russet wolf slipped from a crouch onto her back, presenting her stomach in a sign of submission towards Sasuke.

“Why are you already in wolf form, Karin?” Sasuke snapped, holding Sakura up by her elbows from behind her.

If the Uchiha pack was dwindling, the Uzumaki clan was practically nonexistent. Uzumaki Karin and her cousin Kushina were the last of the Uzumaki wolves. Kushina had one son and he never felt the call━a risk she had taken when she had decided to mate with a human. Karin had joined their pack a few years ago, not seeking to be part of a breeding pair, but the option was there whenever she and Itachi decided that was a path they wanted to take.

“Karin-neesan!” Sarada waved her arms around excitedly from Itachi’s hold.

“Karin-neesan?” Itachi frowned, cocking his head in confusion.

“Yup! Karin-neesan said she’s a big sister not an auntie.”

“Of course she did.”

Itachi followed the wildflower splashes that Karin released with her excitement. She bounced around Sakura, pressing her snout into Sakura’s midsection.

“Does your mother have something to tell us?” He whispered into Sarada’s ear, pressing his nose into her cheek and making her giggle. Karin had a much stronger sense of smell than he did so he wasn’t upset that she had made the discovery first.

Sarada cupped her hands around Itachi’s ear and attempted to whisper back to him. “Sarada is going to be a big sister.”

“That’s exciting.” Itachi adjusted his hold so the four year old was sitting on the cradle of his left arm. “You know what else is exciting?”

“I get to stay up past my bedtime tonight?” Sarada gasped excitedly, clapping her hands together.

“Yes, you do.” Itachi guided her into the woods, taking care not to trip over any raised roots. “And do you know why?”

“Hmm,”  Sarada hummed, rocking her head side to side with the sound. She raised her hands up and flexed her fingers. “Is it because of my nails?”

Itachi took one of her small hands in his own and rubbed his thumb along the small digits, tracing the curve of her sharp nails. “It’s because of your claws.”

There had been an incident in a playground where Sarada had accidentally scratched another child. The mother had been understanding and had actually offered Sasuke a pair of nail clippers to use. Sasuke apologized again and took Sarada home as quickly as possible.

Examining her hands when it was safe, he discovered that the top of Sarada’s pudgy toddler hands were covered with thick black hair and her nails elongated and sharp.

It demanded a call home. His real home.

“I like it here, Itachi-jisan.” Sarada sighed, lifting her head skyward and closing her eyes. “It smells so good.”

“It’s better than the city, that’s for sure.”

Itachi remembered his childhood. He remembered running through the woods and lying in clearings with Shisui and Izumi. He remembered playing tag with Sasuke to teach him how to shift from human to wolf and back.

It was all done here. This was home, this is where family should be together.

When he was younger, all Itachi wanted was to run away to the city. He wanted to live with the humans and never shift. He planned on taking the monkshood tea every full moon, and just sleep through the call that sang in his blood.

And for the first few years of adulthood he did just that. He went to university in the city and ignored the feeling of homesickness he figured was normal for all uni students. Visits home were rare, mostly done for holidays, and they were enough for him.

But there was a loneliness he could not shake in crowded places.

It wasn’t until he had to take a trip for work that had him in the mountains that he realized what had been missing.

“Mama said we might move here,” Sarada murmured out of habit. They never raised their voices in the woods, especially not during the day.

The two of them walked deeper into the forest. Itachi walked with Sarada as a guide as she sniffed the air and patted tree trunks and called out the names of different family members that had marked them.

“This is grandpa.” Sarada pressed her chubby cheek against the tree and drummed her fingers along the bark. “It smells like the gray-ish leaves Mama uses in tea sometimes.”

They continued walking, Shisui and Obito having joined them when they reached the creek that marked the boundary they had set up for Sarada’s first night in the woods. It was as the sun was setting lower that Sarada began to complain about feeling too hot.

“I don’t like it,” she whined, her hair sticking to her cheeks from all of her sweat. Her face flushed red from her fever despite the fact that Itachi had removed her coat.

“I know, I know,” Itachi attempted to soothe her, rubbing his hand on her back.

Despite the insistence from everyone that her facial features were just like her mother’s, Itachi was reminded of a time over two decades in the past where he was doing the same for his younger brother. With her tiny face scrunched up in discomfort, Sarada reminded him so much of Sasuke when he had first shifted. He had complained so much about the heat and stripped himself in their backyard long before the sun had set.

Sasuke had also been an early bloomer. He had heard the call before the Wolf Moon and had shifted three months earlier on the Harvest Moon. The Cold Moon was only a month early, but Sarada was proving to be her father’s daughter.

Brushing her wet bangs out of her face, Itachi smiled softly at his niece. “How about we get you some tea?”

His mother was ready with a pot of monkshood tea on the engawa when they made it back to the house. Madara was already drinking his first serving.

Sakura perked up from where she was bringing out another blanket for Great-Uncle Madara. She set it by him and placed his hand on the blanket before rushing towards them, arms outstretched.

“My poor girl.” Sakura took Sarada from Itachi’s hold and Sarada pressed her face into the crook of Sakura’s neck, grateful for the feel of her mother’s cool skin.

Itachi grabbed a second teacup from the tray his mother had brought out and filled it. The tea was an Uchiha family recipe that helped young pups and the elderly with the effects of the forced shift that came with the full moon. It also helped when they had to hide their shift in populated areas. A strong brew made one drowsy and sleep the night away so that they didn’t run the risk of falling victim to their instincts in a dangerous place.

“Some of the monkshood tea might help.”

Sakura eyed the teacup warily but took the offering regardless. Itachi had to resist rolling his eyes in annoyance. He was sure if it had been anyone else, she would have taken the cup without any hesitation. His relationship with his sister-in-law wasn’t the best━they were tolerant of each other, but she still hadn’t gotten over the way he had tried to drag Sasuke back home and away from the life he had built for himself in the city. Itachi wouldn’t have pushed the matter if he hadn’t believed it was what was best for Sasuke.

But tonight wasn’t about them or even Sasuke. It was about Sarada.

“Maybe,” Sasuke fell back on his butt and took a seat next to him, not caring for the snow, “you need a pup of your own?”

Itachi scoffed around the hair tie he held between his teeth. He had been in the middle of braiding Sarada’s hair so that it would be away from her face and neck. Sakura had placed a cold compress to her forehead, but there wasn’t much else they could do.

“If I was worried about my own pups, I wouldn’t have time for Sara-chan.” Itachi pinched at Sarada’s cheek and blew a raspberry against the other, making her giggle. “Right?”

“Right!” Sarada chirped, nodding her head seriously.

The temperature dropped with the sun and Sarada finally relaxed, the chill of the winter breeze a relief on her overheated flesh. The relief came but so did the excess energy building up within her. Itachi had to keep her from running off toward any rustling distraction.

Her excitement sent splashes of black tea and cinnamon into the air. Itachi always enjoyed how their scents related through tea, even if it was a loose connection.

“Will you show me how to hunt?” Sarada raised her hands up to mimic claws and pulled back her lips to show off her gums in a snarl. She growled playfully at him until he reached for her ribs and tickled her.

“Not tonight. You’re still too young.”

Sarada sighed in disappointment, her small shoulders drooping. Pouting, she fell back so she was seated in Itachi’s lap, her back to his chest. They enjoyed the silence and the snowfall for a moment until Sarada sat up, alert.

Itachi could feel the rise of his hair on his arms as his flesh rippled with goose pimples, but he kept his eyes on Sarada. He knew what this feeling was, had years of this feeling, but it was new to her. Sarada’s head moved from side to side as she searched for the source of what made her so jittery. It had been so long since Itachi had seen a new wolf pup feel the call.

Itachi had dealt with the forced shift for over twenty-seven years. That was over 324 moons of turning into what Madara called their true form. The heat that had once been too much to bear, he now embraced and let it settle inside of him.

There was high pitched whine and Itachi turned to the source and found a much larger black wolf than him nuzzling the curled up form of his niece. Sarada was trembling, the change a much slower process for her as she didn’t know what to expect and was fighting against it even with the sedation properties of the monkshood tea.

The large wolf━Sasuke━pressed his snout against Sarada’s cheek and made small, reassuring grunting sounds deep in his throat. Matching the sounds, Itachi pressed his own snout to the underside of Sarada’s jaw and licked. Slowly, Sarada’s whimpers ceased and her trembling settled to a few odd twitches. She was still in the half human, half wolf state but she was much calmer.

As much as she reminded Itachi of Sasuke, he needed to remember that Sarada was her own person. Sasuke took to being a wolf much easier and he had embraced his shift immediately. As excited as Sarada was to be with her family, the shift was frightening her.

“Pa...Papa…” Sarada’s voice was swallowed by canine whimpers as her snout and throat fully formed. Sasuke tore at her clothing as her limbs transformed into those of a wolf and she became entangled in the fabric. Itachi helped speed up the process by ripping at her leggings.

By the time they had freed Sarada of her human clothing, she had finished shifting. She shook her body, spraying snow everywhere and shaking off the remaining pieces of her clothes. Sarada spun in circles, chasing her own tail and when she tired of that she nipped at the air around Sasuke’s and his tails.

She ran around the yard, stumbling over her own legs, but righting herself up and running as if she never fell over to begin with. She circled around her father and Itachi before bounding up the engawa and rubbing against the sleepy form of Madara. Madara lifted his head and nipped at her ear in warning and then snuggled under his blankets when Sarada scooted away from him.

Sarada crawled towards her mother and threw herself at Sakura’s lap. Sakura cooed at her daughter, scratching at the space between her ears. Sarada enjoyed the affection until she no longer could stay still. She leaped off of the engawa and dashed towards her father and uncle, yipping excitedly.

A howl came from within the woods. The others had already made their way into the forest when they felt the call to shift. Howls soon followed from other members of their pack. Sarada looked towards the trees and back to Sasuke and then Itachi. She nodded towards the tree and bounced around them in excitement. Sasuke bowed his head in a nod and Sarada shuffled into a proper sitting stance. Raising her head towards the sky, she howled━high and at some pitches weak, but it was a howl.

From the forest, howls were returned.

Itachi nudged Sarada with his snout, pushing her towards the forest. She needed no more encouragement and raced towards the tree line where the howls carried on.

Family was beckoning her forward.