#and then a lot of people were like: oh yeah he means that she taught him that this is more useful for shooting with a revolver :)

[langernameohnebedeutung]

Hey, I wanted to say I really love your takes on Borderlands, particularly with Nisha and her relationship with Jack. I wanted to get your thoughts on that particular line in the DLC where Jack said it's always me doing all the work and she goes I've said that before. I've noticed some fans tend to take that joke seriously and I thought of it as a light-hearted joke between those two. What are your thoughts?

hmm...I feel like there are several layers to this? Or at least, from what we know and don't know about their relationship, there are different possible interpretations of it.

(Like, I wrote one Nisha/Jack fic where this definitely was the case ...but in fairness that was also right after Jack got the vault-symbol punched in his face so-)

I think one very simple layer of this is that Nisha just very consistently likes to poke fun at Jack. We see a lot of that in Borderlands 2. Which is really an aspect of her personality - she likes to make jabs at other people. So yeah, obviously if he says something like that and she has a good comeback, she's not going to let that slide.

And on a deeper level of that: I think it's important to keep in mind that Jack and Nisha are both very dangerous people with extreme trust issues. Who somehow try to make a relationship work. And on the one hand, it makes sense that these two would get on like a house on fire. But on the other hand, it's kind of an undertaking that relies on a LOT of mutual understanding and trust. For that relationship to work, these two people, who are in the eyes of everyone else (except maybe Wilhelm who doesn't care) a duo of sadistic hypocrites, need to find a way to integrate each other into their very self-centred worldview. Their entire modus operandi is to apply rules to others that they don't apply to themselves - or to one another. And I think their banter is (on a subconscious level) one way of confirming "hey, things are good, we're having fun, I'm happy in this relationship, I still care about you" without ever being forced to be deep about this.

This is something that we also get a lot with Nisha: When Nisha says mean stuff about people, there is often a wide difference in quality. It makes a huge difference whether you are her friend that she wants to poke fun at, some idiot NPC that she considers below her notice, someone she just happens to dislike for her own reasons (like Moxxi in the beginning of TPS) or someone she has a sincere vendetta against (like Lilith and Moxxi at the end of TPS). What really sets all of these apart is the tone and the way in which she says those rude things. And whether she makes threats. That's why Nisha engaging in friendly banter with Jack is a pretty important aspect of their communication.

Another aspect I think is that Nisha and Jack are very performative people. Like, one of them puts up golden statues, and the other one larps as a western Sheriff. And while I think there are slightly different reasons for this (I think Jack buys more into his image or at least...depends more on it to feel good about his more monstrous side. While Nisha's more chill side seems a lot more authentic and more "two parts of the same coin" rather than "mask"), I also think that their relationship and especially THEIR ability to get along and THEIR ability to take criticism from one another and THEIR ability to understand each other's...pretty impenetrable moral code is something that they can have a lot of fun with. Because now they can project out at the world: "See how perfectly we reasonable we are? We are sure getting along. We don't understand why you all insist on not simply getting with the very evident and not-at-all-murderouly-hypocritical programme."

Now, I think the big question for a lot of people in the fandom is: How much (does it?) reflect on their actual sex life.

And ...without much contex about their actual relationship, I think there are several interpretations are possible:

Nisha literally just says it to be funny. As in, she just thought it was a funny moment to say that line. Like a "yo mama" joke.

The joke is that Nisha said it before in a different context that the Vault Hunters know about. e.g. the fact that Jack rarely accompanies them to their mission.

Or it is indeed a comment on their sex life. The thing is, I feel like the insinuation has always been that their sex life is pretty damn good. I think there is even a confirmation of that from Anthony Burch himself but I cannot be bothered to look for it - really, my reasoning is that Nisha is presented as a very sexual person and these two are often presented as very much on the same wavelength sexually. Quite frankly, I don't think Nisha would stay if she was genuinely unhappy with their sex life. A possible interpretation I do see is that they are both Nisha very canonically, Jack frequently implied, switches. So I think if we were to take the comment at face value and assume that a) she really "said that before and b) it was about sex - I would interpret it as "she has been playing the dominant part a lot lately"

[mrrcury]

SEPERATION ANXIETY ☆

written by mercury ٩(ˊᗜˋ)و✰

childe x gender neutral reader, they/them pronouns used like, once, otherwise no pronouns used

cw : anxiety, (obvi) blood, genshin spoilers, violence, drowning

authors note : wrote this based off a brainrot i posted a long time ago. this gives major undertale vibes btw have fun reading

You heard it.

A large splash, it echoed throughout the great walls and cliffs of the Abyss. It ringed in you ears, and caught your attention immediately. Who wouldn't wanna check out something as mysterious as that, right? So like the little child you were, you left.

Footsteps crunched under the hard ground, as you observed your dark surroundings. You never exactly went to this part of the Abyss, as your mother told you it would not be worth it. But, curiosity killed the cat.

When you approached the lake that was inside the vastly cavern that you live in, you saw the water glimmering and rippling, as if freshly touched. All you had to do was look a teensy bit closer. Was that,

A human?

You were surprised, to say the least. Humans haven't dared to come down here for a while, at least quite rarely. You could see the boy falling deeper into the water, his bright ginger hair flowing in the water.

So you jumped in, grabbed his hand, and dragged him out with your abyssal claws that were the tiniest bigger then his.

He was a little bit lighter then you expected, and you could see all his features while pulling him up. You could see the star-like freckles that adorned his face, similar to the ones in the sky. When you got him back onto the land, he didn't seem to be breathing. Oh no. Did you have to do that one technique where you put your mouth on-

cough cough

Oh, nevermind, good!

You stared at him with big eyes as the boy hacked up water from his lungs. He looked up at you, eyes with a deep blue likened to that of Enkanomiya. They were intriguing, beautiful even.

"Wh-who are you? Where am I!" The young boy shrieked with terror. He didn't seem the happiest to be here. I mean, you wouldn't either. Maybe.

"Oh, I'm [Name.]"

"Also, you're in the Abyss." You muttered, with a hushed voice. He got up from the ground to where you were crouching. "The abyss?" He said quietly. You nodded.

"I don't really know how you ended up here, but good luck, you're not getting out."

"Wait, what?"

He looked at you again, you could see the fear in his eyes, his pupils just slightly shrinking.

"Yeah, this place don't let people out freely. You have to make it out. Prove yourself, basically."

You could see his body to slightly shake, tearing his eyes off of you to observe where he was at. You looked with him, taking another glance at the dark cliffs you've grown to be so familiar with. It was home to you, but a soon to be nightmare for the boy.

"How would I, y'know, prove myself?"

"Eh, you gotta fight for it. Ever fought a hilichurl before?" You looked at him again.

He shook his head with slight hesitance.

"Okay, let me show you how to do it."

☆

It's been about a week since you found the boy. You decided to introduce him to your mother, Skirk, as he couldn't exactly be left alone with no shelter in a place like this.

You figured out his name was Ajax a little after you met him. He told you with a smile on his face, and how he was named after a great hero.

Skirk was a lot harder on him then you were. To you, he was just a boy. You treated him like a friend, someone equal to you. After a bit, you genuinely started to care for him.

Skirk however, was stricter. She treated him a only a little meaner then you, however it was mostly when he was getting trained to fight by her. He did kind of have little to no experience in this field.

You taught him the basics to fight, how to wield a sword correctly, proper stances, basically enough to be able to fend yourself from a couple slimes or a hilichurl. Skirk taught the more advanced stuff.

When he was down here, he felt like a best friend to you. He told you stories about him and his father ice fishing, and his siblings too. He had a new one on the way at the time he came down here.

He talked about his family and Snezhnaya with stars in his eyes, it made you admire him.

"Oh, I've been meaning to ask. What exactly are you? You don't look human, or really sound like it either" He said curiously.

"Im an Abyss Herald. In training, at least. I'm not fully grown yet."

"That sounds cool! Do you guys have magical powers or anything!"

"Ah, does abyssal magic count?"

"Yeah, yeah! Show me some!" He looked at you, about to burst with excitement.

You giggled, a toothy smile spreading across your face. "Okay, but i'm not showing you much."

"Awwh, why not?"

"You'll find out why later!" A smug look appeared on your face. He snickered in response.

☆

Its been a month, and you guys fucked up.

You ran around with Ajax a little too far around in the Abyss, and you ended up just entering a teensy bit too far into a beast's cavern. Both of you knew how to fight, but were no match for the beast you just had to have encountered:

This was a foreign feeling to you but, you were afraid. Afraid of what might happen to the both of you.

The two of you have opposing opinions on what you should do about this. You wanted to run, to just not get hurt and to get away, as you were smart enough to know you wouldn't be able to beat this monster.

However, Ajax had a different opinion. You noticed how the longer he's been here with you and Skirk, the more his, personality, has changed.

Just a month ago he was a timid boy, barely knew how to fight and only had a shortsword and a loaf of bread with him. Almost like a defenseless puppy.

But, now that he's gotten a point in training, he's become.. Violent, to say the least. Battle-hungry was a more accurate word for it.

He changed, and you knew it.

Back to the point, when you ran into this beast, Ajax acted recklessly. He pulled out his sword and charged head first into the beast while you tried to stop him. Clearly, his plan didn't work. He did get a couple of hits onto the beast, but in trade he was injured.

"Ajax!" You called out, arm stretched in failed attempt to stop him from killing the wretched beast. You knew this was a bad idea, yet you couldn't prevent it.

You heard that terrible scream, the one you dreaded ever since he became close to you. And you knew what you had to do.

☆

"What the hell were you thinking?"

Skirk scolded Ajax for the incident. For him just running straight in without any proper strategy or skill for the battle. She didn't let you off the hook either, as she was also angry at you for not stopping it.

Both of you were clearly ashamed of what happened back in the fight.

"Did you seriously think that was a good idea? You are only human, and [Name,] you know damn well better." Skirk hissed and seethed as she bandaged Ajax's wounds. Ajax looked at her, tight lipped.

Suprise to you, Ajax showed little to almost no remorse for charging into the fight. You could guess he didn't regret it, despite the gaping wound on his body. All you could tell was his deep, dark blue eyes, which no longer held so much light to them.

They used to sparkle, like that of the moon, shining above the rest. It was what you took note of the most.

But as of now, they lost their shine, slowly and carefully.

You wondered if they would ever shine again.

☆

It has been 3 months ever since you found the boy in the lake by the cliffs.

Ajax made significant progress in becoming a fighter, if you compared him now to the boy you first met, it was almost unbelievable, and impressive. However, you win some and ya lose some. With that fighting ability he gained, he also lost a part of him. A part that gave him humanity, you could say.

You wouldn't quite call it insanity, but that part of him changed and shifted, into something that wasn't really normal anymore. Something that almost scared you.

But, the time was coming. Ajax had to leave.

The long awaited day arrived, and as it seems, the Abyss has seen Ajax worthy of returning to the surface levels. He had a family to go back to, and even though you two made a great bond, you were filled with dread knowing this day would come. It made you upset.

Wait

what?

This has, really, never happened before.

You had never so much as been phased when friends of yours cane and went. Things worked differently in the Abyss, life was different. You couldn't expect people to stick around for too long.

So why were you affected by him?

Why were you affected by Ajax leaving?

He held a place in your heart, the memories you made together, how you and Skirk taught him his ability and even taught him a special tool, you called it Foul Legacy. A trick, which was used by you and your mother, you also gave to him.

But the only true thing you could do was wonder, on why a human teenage boy made you feel so much as even saddened by his leaving.

When the day came, you told him to follow the Northern Star, or Polaris. The star would lead him to the exit of the Abyss, should that it would let him leave.

But, you wont forget that looks in his eyes.

Ones that seemed to have lost their innocence, look at you with almost a sense of longing.

Or words that would ring in your head for the rest of your life.

"Ill see you again, [Name.] I love you."

[barcalover86]

Unreal nightmare - Gavi

Summary: "How can I learn to live without you when you taught me how to be alive"

"Your relationship was a private one, and we didn't really get to see you two a lot. How was she?" one of the reporters asked.

Pablo chuckled a bit.

"She was so fearless." he started. "Energetic and chaotic kind of girl, you know. Wherever she was, she would bring the light after her. You couldn't feel sad or hopeless around her."

"She seemed like a really nice person."

"Yes, because she was."

Pablo had to stop because he knew that if he would say one more word, he was going to cry. He hated the tight feeling inside his neck.

The older man comforted the boy, putting one of his hands on Gavi's shoulder, while massaging it.

After a few seconds, Pablo continued.

"Before I met her, I only found happiness in winning. But she taught me to enjoy the process, to be thankful that I am healthy and that I have a house where I can sleep and that I have a really loving family that supports me."

"That's so kind of her."

"Yes, she was really kind. To everyone."

He smiled sadly while thinking about you.

"So tell us, Gavi. What happened? One day, she was out there cheering your name, and the next one, we found out that she had passed away? How come?"

The boy started to tear up. His hands reached his face, not wanting to let the world see his pain.

Everyone felt so sorry for him. They all knew how much he loved you and how happy you had made him.

"Just one day, she started scratching all over her body. We were all really confused especially when her eyes got yellow."

"Oh.."

"Yeah.. such a bad memory. Well, then we got her quickly to the hospital, and we stayed there for about 5-6 hours to get her a doctor. She then started to be in so much pain."

"She was having some allergy?"

"I hoped so, but she was not. We found out that she had liver cancer."

"I'm really sorry, Gavi-"

"We took her to the best doctor, but it was all too much for her and after only 1 month of being in the hospital, they let her home for the 'she better dies home with her family, rather than alone' kinda reason".

"But.. After only 1 month, it was that crucial??"

"Liver cancer is extremely dangerous and painful. It expands incredibly fast."

"And she was staying at your house while you just had to pretend that everything was fine... to not worry the people around you."

"Something like that, yes. But our families were there to help me out with her. As I said before, everyone loved her."

"How did she die?"

"She lived more than any doctor said she would. But God.. she looked so different and drained. Even at her worst, she was asking for everyone's health" Gavi laughed a bit.

The reporter smiled.

"I don't know if it was bad or if I'm thankful that she died in my arms.."

"Oh, Gavi-"

"Don't start, please," he once again teared up. "I just don't understand why she had to suffer like that when she was the most angelic person that I've met. She was so, so young.."

"How old was she?"

"17."

A loud silence acapared the room.

No one knew what to say in these situations.

--------------‐---------------------‐---------------------‐------

"Gavi, go to sleep! Tomorrow you have a big game and you have to be rested."

"Pedri, please leave me alone."

"Then I'd be a bad friend. C'mon, brother, go have a nap. I know you're tired."

"I can't sleep, Pedri! Ok? If I close my eyes I only see her dead in front of me!"

"Pablo-"

"Everyone is dreaming about the healthy version of her, and I'm the only one that can't even imagine my girlfriend being.. normal and real and-"

"Gavi! Stop!" Pedri began. "You saw her at her worst. It's normal to have that imagine painted in your brain for a period of time. But that definitely doesn't mean that you are not able to also dream about her when she was all healthy."

"I'm afraid that she forgot me and only looks out for her family and not me, Pedri."

"Don't say that! You know that's not true at all."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because we both know that she loved you more than anyone. Now go to sleep and let's have a great game tomorrow so that you can win for her, alright?"

--------------‐---------------------‐---------------------‐------

"Gavira, do you want to play?" Xavi asked the footballer.

"Yes."

"Ok then, go change!"

Before the game, Pablo had promised himself to give his all for you.

And he did that.

He helped his team a lot.

He didn't see you along the crowd, but he somehow felt you in him. You made him stronger and he even scored. Just. For. You.

"She'd be so proud of you, boy."

And then Gavi looked into the sky and saw your shadow.

And then he smiled.

People were cheering his name, and he then promised himself that he would continue to fight for life, just like you did. You fought for every second of life because every moment matters. And by your absence, he learned to appreciate things more. He learned that to live is the most incredible gift that we, humans, have.

[the-froschamethyst4]

Reality Check

𖤐Pairing: Husband! Soap x Wife! Raeder

𖤐Pronouns: She/Her

𖤐Warnings: fluff, angst, harsh language, spoiled brat, married couple, slight comparing to siblings, arguing, happy ending,

𖤐Summary: Your young daughter hangs out with the wrong crowd and your oldest child gives her a bit of a reality check

————

————

Kiara was surrounded by her 'friends' at lunch. Kiara was a 7th grader in middle school. Her mom and dad were able to get her to the same school her older went to.

A high-end private school.

Her older brother Ryker held a good reputation in the school and everyone knew Kiara because of Ryker.

But Kiara was just making herself look stupid hanging out with these type of girls and not girls that actually wanna be her friends. What I mean is Kiara hangs out with the rich, spoiled brat, daddies money girls.

They pack around Louis Vuitton bags, Gucci belts holding up their skirts, end up makeup, and high end skin care that they don't need but yell at their parents for.

Kiara didn't have that, she'd be lucky if she even got the latest new phone. Her mom worked as an assistant to a Law Firm and her dad was in the Military and wasn't home a lot, so her mom was doing a lot of the work.

A mom working 40 hours a week, barely a husband that comes home. Ryker sometimes had to step in and be a parent a few times. But he doesn't blame his parents. They're just busy people and try to be there for their kids.

Kiara laughed with her 'friends' as they made fun of the group of girls who liked to play video games. Kiara deep down liked to play video games, but stopped to fit in with her friends.

"Oh, girls, I'm having a sleepover, tomorrow, for my birthday, don't forget to bring gifts," her friend Lily says. Lily was like...Regena George, popular and rich and everyone 'liked' her.

Not really

The girls giggled as Kiara just smiled at Lily.

"Bring expensive gifts," Lily emphasized on the word expensive.

Kiara didn't have any of her own money, and Y/n was strict on what to buy for a 12-13 year-old.

"Oh I already know what I'm bringing."

"Same."

"Yeah, you're going to LOVE it, Lily."

"Kiara?"

"Huh?"

"Are you coming?" Lily asked, placing her hand on her arm after she got done picking at her newly fresh nails.

"Yeah, I think so...I'd-"

"Have to ask your mom?" Lily mocked Kiara. Kiara used to say she'd have to ask her mom a lot and Lily was tired of it and 'taught' Kiara how to do whatever she wants without her mom knowing, but her mom was good, she knows almost everything that Kiara is up to.

"No," Kiara says. "Nah, fuck my mom, I'll come, I'll catch a ride," Kiara says.

"Good."

The girls kept talking as Kiara rubbed her arm.

---------

2:30PM

"MAMA! I'M HOME!!" Kiara yells from downstairs and kicked her shoes off at the front door.

"She's not home," Ryker came around the corner with an apple in his hands.

"Is she at work?"

"She was just called in, I got home an 1 hour ago and she was asked to come in," he says.

"Oh good, can you take me to the mall?"

"Why?" Ryker questioned her.

"Because it's Lily's birthday tomorrow and I want to get her a gift," Kiara says, placing her bag on a bar stool.

"Who cares, and mom won't let you go."

"She won't have to know, if you just take me."

"Hell no, I'm not taking you."

"WHY NOT!?" Kiara yells.

"Because mom hates Lily, you know this, but yet you still choose to be friends with her."

"Because Lily is nice to me."

"She treats you like a slave, Kiara," Ryker tells her.

"No, she doesn't."

"Did she say get an expensive gift?" Ryker raised his eyebrow.

"Yeah and?"

"With what money are you going to get her an expensive gift?"

"You can help me-"

"Fuck no, Kiara!"

"THIS IS SO UNFAIR!!"

"HOW IS IT UNFAIR!?"

"Because why do I bother going to some fancy private rich kid school if I can't even get expensive things?"

"You should be fucking lucky you even got into that school, Kiara. Mom and dad worked their asses off just to get you thought the fucking door," Ryker tells her.

"Kids?"

"Dad," both kids say at the same time.

"Where's your mom?"

"Work, she got called in-dad tell Kiara she can't go to Lily's house tomorrow."

"Lily?" Soap was confused.

"She's some girl that treats Kiara like a slave."

"SHE DOES NOT!! OH MY FUCKING GOD, RYKER!!"

"HEY!" Soap yells at his daughter. "What the hell did you just say?" Kiara knew she fucked up when the word slipped past her lips.

"Dad-"

"Room. now. When your mom comes home, we're having a discussion," Soap points to the stairs and Kiara had hot tears in her eyes and rushed upstairs and Soap heard her door slam shut. "What the hell was going on?" Soap asked, Ryker.

--------

9:00PM

Y/n had come home, taking her heels off at the front door and saw Soap coming towards her.

"Soap," she smiles at him, she placed her hands on his forearms kissing his lips.

"Hi, love," he says into the kiss. "We have a bit of an issue."

"What kind of issue?" She asked.

---------

Ryker had explained everything, Y/n and Soap went upstairs to their daughters bedroom. Y/n knocked and heard a low grumble. She opens the door and both parents walk in.

"Kiara?"

"I'm tired...leave me alone..."

"Sit up, Kiara," Soap says, a bit stern, Y/n placed her hand on his shoulder as a 'calm down.'

"Kiara, I want to know from you what happened?" Y/n asked.

"Fine," Kiara sits up. "I HAVE A RICH FRIEND, WHO WANTS AN EXPENSIVE BIRTHDAY GIFT BUT I CAN'T EVEN GET IT FOR HER BECAUSE I HAVE NO MONEY AND NONE OF YOU ARE GOING TO HELP ME GET IF FOR HER!"

"Is this rich friend, Lily? You know how I feel about Lily-"

"MOM! PLEASE! I DON'T CARE, SHE IS MY FRIEND!"

"Kiara if you don't stop yelling at your mother-" Y/n stops Soap.

"Kiara Amelia McTavish," Kiara knows the full name isn't a good sign. "You are a lucky girl, you wanna know why?"

"Why mom?" Kiara asked a bit annoyed.

"Because," Y/n walks into the bedroom and sat next to Kiara. "You have a mom and dad that loves you, an older brother that paved the way for you for middle school, but...I am tired of you coming home and asking for outrageous things...last week you asked for a Prada bag-"

"A month ago, you asked for a Gucci belt," Soap joins in.

"This isn't you asking for outrageous and expensive thing."

"Then what is the point of going to a rich kid school, if we're poor?"

"For an education, and we're not poor," Soap says. "We just don't think a 13-year-old needs such expensive things, your brother doesn't even have such expensive things..."

"Why do you think you want them, Kiara?" Y/n asked, placing her hand on Kiara's back.

"Because I want to fit in with my friends, they all have expensive things and carry the most expensive and luxury things, I want to fit in, I feel out of place when I sit with them at lunch," Kiara says.

"Kiara, you are an amazing and smart young girl, you shouldn't need expensive things to feel like you need to fit in...aren't there other girls at the school that don't have expensive things?"

"Yeah but...Lily hates them, she makes fun of them all the time, if I leave the friend group to have those girls as my friends, Lily won't speak or hang out with me."

"Who cares, Kiara."

"Ryker-"

"No mom, I'm sorry, but I am so tired of hearing, Kiara only talk about Lily and what Lily wants, she never thinks about her own feelings only Lily's. Kiara, she treats you like a slave. You are my little sister and I am tired of this Lily girl."

"I agree with Ryker," Soap says.

Kiara rolled her eyes at her family.

"Kiara," she looks at her mom. "I want you to do the right thing...okay?"

"Whatever."

"Till then, you're grounded," Soap says.

"WHAT WHY!?"

"Because of the yelling at your mother and cussing at me." She rolled her eyes again. "And for rolling your eyes at us," Soap and Ryker left her bedroom as Y/n moved her daughter dark brown hair from her face and kissing her temple.

"I know you'll do the right thing, Kiara," she says, getting off the bed and heading to her bedroom to change from her work clothes.

--------

Kiara was laying on her stomach on her phone and having her laptop play a random YouTube video. She was on Amazon looking at gifts for Lily, but she shuts her phone off and tossed it on her pillow.

She falls on her back and looked up at the ceiling.

"I'm not going tomorrow," Kiara says as she walked into the dinning room, Ryker was eating leftover spaghetti.

"Okay?" Ryker says as he was still eating.

"Where's mom and dad?"

"Eating out, tonight, date night," he says.

"Are they bring anything back?"

"Maybe, this is just to hold me over till they get back," he says picking at the leftovers. "So you made up your mind?"

"Yeah...you were right..." she hates to admit that to him, since Ryker has a 'big ego' as Kiara says. "Lily is a bitch."

"Aren't you grounded for cursing?"

"You gonna snitch to dad?"

"No," he smirks.

--------

Y/n and Soap came back kicking their shoes off at the front door and seeing Ryker on the couch watching TV and Kiara on her phone.

"We brought some food back," Y/n says, placing a plastic bag of food on the marble counter. Kiara and Ryker jump off the couch and started to open the bag and pulling out their food.

"Thanks," Ryker says for the both of them.

"Kiara," Soap opens his hand, letting her know she shouldn't have her phone. She groans and slaps her phone on his palm. "You'll get it back later."

"When's later?"

"Friday," he says. She tossed her head back knowing she'll have to wait a week to get her phone back.

Ryker smirks and Kiara punched his arm. Y/n just giggled at her kids.

After a while Soap and Y/n were snuggled against each other watching their favorite show as Ryker was in his room playing video games and Kiara was scrolling on her laptop.

She then saw in the bottom corner a notification from Lily to the group chat. She opened the message and read it.

Lily: The party is actually going to be at our Lake house Here's the address

Jade: OMG it's huge, I'm DEFINITLY coming

Angel: Oh yes! I'll so be there

Lily: Kiara, are you coming?

Kiara started to type and she knows everyone could see bubbles popping up letting them know she was typing, but she stops before she hits send and started to backspace it.

She left the group chat and started to watch her YouTube again.

Then the notifications started to pour in. Them asking her questions if she changed her mind, did she forget she was typing and then a personal message from Lily popped up making Kiara click it and see.

Lily: Hey, saw you were texting in the group chat, the location changed to my lake house, are you coming, if so can you bring snacks and soda?

Kiara: Actually Lily, I'm not Have someone else bring your snacks and soda, ask Angel or something, I'm not coming

Lily: Did you not ask your mom or something? Did your brother say no on the ride? I can send our butler out there to go get you

Kiara: Fuck no, keep your butler away from my house, I have made up my mind to not come to your lame ass birthday party

Lily: WHAT!? KIARA MCTAVISH WE ARE NO LONGER FRIENDS AND I DON'T WANT YOU SITTING WITH US AT LUNCH!!!

Kiara: Fine by me, bitch

Kiara blocked Lily's number along with the rest of the 'friends' numbers. She closed her laptop and got under the covers and fell asleep.

--------

Monday

Kiara saw her old friends eating and laughing and Lily was showing off her new gifts.

Kiara looked past the group and saw the girls that played video games just behind them playing on their switches and seeing like they were having fun together.

Kiara put on a brave face and walked past her old group of friends to the other girls.

Lily and the others all gave Kiara a nasty look as she passed them but she ignored their stares and glares and mentally imagined herself flipping off Jade, sticking her tongue out at Angel and slapping the shit out of Lily.

"Hi."

"Oh hi, Kiara."

"Can I sit with you?"

"Sure," the girl moved over letting Kiara sit next to her as Kiara placed her bag between her feet and placed her lunch on the metal table.

"Have you ever played this?" She asked Kiara.

"No," Kiara shakes her head.

"Here, try it," she gives Kiara her switch and showed Kiara how to play it. "Wow, you did that so easily."

"I use to play video games," she says.

"Here..." she writes down her number and gives it to Kiara. "We should play together sometime."

"I'd like that," Kiara gives her a soft smile and saved her number.

[unifox]

Sunset lover

~Pairing: gn!Reader x Mingyu

~Genre: fluff / angst / NonIdolAU

~Warnings: Mentions of food, beach, jealousy, feelings and confusion, overthinking (don't even know what should and shouldn't be a warning at this point)

~Words: 2,5 k 

~Summary: When your cousin decides to ruin family bonding time by bringing two friends to your shared beach house, you unexpectedly find a lover in his childhood friend

a/n: SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG. It's finally here!!! Wonwoo just became a background character who almost doesn't appear but yeah.

Also, regarding the boy's ages: Cheol, Mingyu and Wonwoo are the same age (one year younger than reader) and cousins May and Rina are like 4 and 7 years younger than reader, respectively.

Inpired by the songs Sunset Lover - Petit Biscuit, Fuck It- BoTalks and Bends - Carly Rae Jepsen

Taglist + anon list open! ~Foxy🦊

Read the intro! | Navigation | Masterlist

When the four of you reached the food trucks, the place was full. You all walked around trying to see what kind of food there was but ended up settling for hamburgers. Rina said she wanted a regular cheeseburger and stepped out of the line to look for an empty table.

You and your cousin May fell into a comfortable conversation, talking about whatever while Mingyu stood behind you two, just listening.

Every once in a while May would sneak glances at Mingyu who attentively listened to you talk. After ordering, May decided to stay with her sister and keep her company, leaving the two of you to wait at the pickup area.

"So... Mingyu, how's life abroad? Making many new friends? Are you living alone?" You bombarded the boy with questions. It's been around three years since you last saw each other and it was a pleasant surprise to see the skinny tall boy coming home all grown up, strong, mature... and really handsome

"It's been pretty good! I live with a roommate, his name is Jeonghan. He taught me a lot haha... My classes are also fine but I'm still trying to get used to using another language whenever I leave the house" He says proudly

"Got a girlfriend?" You thread carefully

But the man smirks

"No, I only got eyes for you"

You roll your eyes smiling. He's flirty now too

"As if" you both giggle together when you get called by the staff of the food truck

After eating Mingyu excuses himself and heads to the toilet. When he's out of earshot, both your cousins turn to you and smirk.

"He's totally crushing you"

"YES. He's totally like a puppy looking at its owner... Maybe you should own him..."

You choke on your drink, almost spitting it

"Girlie are you ok? Are you guys even hearing yourselves? Mingyu's just being nice" You try to recompose yourself

"Ugh blind. He's literally giving you heart eyes, and won't stop looking at you"

"Maybe he looks up to me? Cause I'm older" You try to reason "He's just flirty. Maybe he's like this to all girls"

"He wasn't flirty with us" Rina speaks while gathering the trash

"Maybe because you're six years younger than him?" You speak with a duh tone

"Wow y/n, you're really blind. He's into you, that's why he's flirting... Oh he's back"

If Mingyu notices the sudden silence between the three of you, he doesn't mention it. You all stand up and look for a place to get dessert but the only thing on your mind is what Rina said

He's into you

What about you? Are you also into him? I mean, he's cute but you never saw him as more than your little cousin's (even if only one year difference) friend. It felt kinda wrong to crush a younger guy when you were a teenager but now... In your twenties... Does it really matter?

Mingyu notices that you're lost in thoughts and every once in a while he links your pinkies in order to bring you back and get you to not lose yourself in the crowd of people

Add caring to the list of green flags in Mingyu.

After that night, things seem to have changed a bit

Mingyu seems to be getting closer to you and also seems to be spending more time with you than with his friend, who actually invited him to the house.

You're cooking. Mingyu is there to help

You're cleaning up the kitchen. Mingyu offers to do the dishes

You're going to the beach earlier. Mingyu is ready to make you company

Mingyu was everywhere you were. Maybe your cousins were right, maybe he's... a tiny bit into you? Let's find out

One afternoon, everyone decided to stay back in the house and just lounge by the pool, but not you. You decided to take a walk on the beach. And of course, so did Mingyu.

You were a bit skeptical regarding his (and your) feelings so you came up with an idea. See if he gets jealous.

"So, Mingyu... Tell me more about that roommate of yours... Jeonghan was his name?"

"Yeah, Jeonghan" Mingyu liked talking about his friend but you seemed too interested in him and it was making him feel weird

"What's he like? Is he older?"

"Yes, he's really nice and caring but he's a menace sometimes. He's a year older than you"

"He's also from Korea?"

"Yeah..."

"Oh is he single?" You asked but this time looking deep into his eyes

Oh, how he could get lost in them. It took a lot of strength to not kiss you right now

"Hm why"

"Oh you know... weighing my options... When Cheol goes to visit you I could tag along and... meet some guys" you said looking at the beautiful sunset. Oh, he was jealous.

"Why not me?" Mingyu didn't miss a beat

"What?"

"Why not me? Go out with me. We're not kids anymore. I'm not a kid anymore" he emphasized stopping in his tracks to fully look at you

You stopped not expecting him to be so forward with his answer and feelings. Turning around he looked... ethereal

His light clothes swayed with the sea breeze and the pinks and oranges of the sunset complimented his tanned skin so well. You know Mingyu was good looking but you didn't realize he was THAT good looking

"I... You're..." You were caught off guard and didn't know how to respond.

Mingyu sighed loudly at your statement, or rather your lack of a response.

"Well, if you didn't like me that way you should just tell me. Please don't lie to make me feel better" he looked uncertain about what he said himself but turned around and walked back to the house.

Why did you say that?

When you returned to the house, the boys had gone to the market to buy more snacks and drinks

You couldn't even say sorry because he wasn't there

After getting in, you went straight to the room you shared with your cousins. They both stood in the living room and exchanged concerned looks since you didn't even spare them a glance.

Why did you say that? You didn't like him? That wasn't true and you knew it. What was it then? Afraid of being lonely? Were you being too sensitive?

Those thoughts made the tears start to flow

"y/n? Are you- oh my god" May immediately got inside after seeing you crying sitting on your bed "What happened?"

"Did something happen with Mingyu? When he came back he seemed upset as well..." Rina added and that made you cry harder

May hugged you and let you cry until you were too tired to do anymore. When you finally calmed down you told them everything, from the night you went to the food trucks to the moment he left you on the beach

Lonely am I being sensitive? You are the sensitive one Where are you tonight? Where's your home tonight?

Mingyu didn't mean it, but he couldn't help but put his walls up

He didn't want to be hurt anymore

When you guys were younger he saw that you looked at him the same way you looked at Seungcheol. Like a little brother, which he didn't really like. He desperately wished time would change the way you saw him and he left it up to fate

He went to uni abroad while you took yours in your home country and now it's his vacation and he's back home. Of course, he knew you met other people and he did as well, but sometimes he wished it was you there, in his arms

And now he knows that you don't want him, and it breaks him.

Of course, it crossed his mind that maybe you both could be together temporarily like some sort of summer love but he didn't think he could handle the aftermath when he left again.

He was upset but what could he do? He couldn't just stay away from you when you were living under the same roof for 2 weeks but he could distance himself a bit. Seeing you would definitely make his heart hurt more.

Mingyu didn't realize that he was being awfully quiet during the market trip, which was very unlike his upbeat puppy personality

"What happened to you?" Even quiet Wonwoo went to check on him

"Nothing"

"yeah sure" Wonwoo shrugged but Cheol turned around to put his hand on Mingyu's chest to stop him

"Are you messing around with my cousin?" Seungcheol asked skeptical

"What? No I-" Mingyu tried to defend himself

"Then what? Explain yourself. We got time" Cheol motioned for them to sit on the small bench at the market's exit. Popping open a can of beer and motioning for both friends to sit as well

"Well..."

"Well, I'm screwed. I guess I do find him endearing but at the moment I couldn't say anything. I do like him a lot but I never considered... dating him. I'm not opposed to the idea tho"

"Just go on a date with him. What could go wrong? Just go for it" May said

"What if things don't work out and we get awkward? I don't want to ruin things for Cheol-" You started to panic again

"Can you stop overthinking for one second? Just do it, the rest is the rest" Rina exclaimed "Gosh, I will charge next time for the therapy session" She smirked when you started giggling. At least you weren't crying anymore

"I guess you're right. Thanks. What would I do without you two" You said hugging them both. "Now let's go, you'll both help me with dinner"

"Oh no..."

You dragged both girls to the kitchen and gave them instructions to prep the tomatoes and arugula to make with pasta. You went to freshen up quickly, getting rid of your crying face and went back to help them and cook the pasta.

When dinner was almost done the boys arrived with more bags than anticipated.

"Sorry we took too long. We got some extra stuff because Mingyu said he was gonna prepare a special meal for us tomorrow" Cheol announced as he set the bags near the counter. The other two did the same and Mingyu started to put the ingredients away.

The girls moved to set up the table, asking Wonwoo to help by taking the heavy stack of plates to the dining area. Cheol gave you a soft smile and moved out of the kitchen as well.

"I'm-"

"I'm sorry I acted that way" Mingyu cut you off "Actually I wanted to talk to you about it" Oh no, he thought "You caught me off guard, I won't lie, but I wanted to give it a try. You and I"

Mingyu stopped what he was doing. Maybe he was imagining things

"We could go on a date tomorrow if you'd like it... I mean, if you're still willing to"

"Yes- I mean. Yeah, I would like that" He said without hesitation

"Oh, great" you have him a shy smile " Can you help me take this pan to the table?"

"Yeah, let's go" he moved to help you smiling brightly. Maybe things were starting to work out

The next day arrived and passed as normal. In the afternoon you all decided to go grab some ice cream and you and Mingyu decided to separate from the rest to go on your date.

"You didn't have to pay you know? I'm the one who has a job and not a part-time" you smirked as he passed you the waffle cone

"I'd be rude if I didn't pay on our first date" he retorted

"Well thank you, what a gentleman" you giggled as he sat opposite you. The ice cream parlor was daily empty, but it was good because it gave you some privacy.

"Mingyu" you started "I wanted to be honest with you. I think you're cute and overall a great person, but I would be lying if I said I ever thought about dating you. I don't see you as a kid anymore, you've grown into someone so admirable... you grew up so well. Your confession wasn't something I was expecting but I guess the idea of us became... surprisingly pleasant" you said looking at him

"Y/n, thank you. For being honest with me. I- I have liked you since we were teens and when you didn't respond I put my walls up. I didn't mean to be rude to you, I guess I was just scared that you would reject me. I shouldn't have acted that way I'm sorry... but I'm happy. I'm happy that you're willing to give us a chance" he smiled. A smile you could definitely get used to.

"Well lover boy, how about that special recipe Cheol said you were going to prepare?" You said and he smirked

"Get really to taste the best dish you've ever had. I'll sweep you off your feet and you'll definitely fall for me this time" he said proudly, taking a bite of his cone and having some ice cream on the corner of his mouth

"I'll be looking forward to it" you said while grabbing a napping and cleaning the corner of his mouth.

He could get used to that

Your days at the beach were ending and your dates with Mingyu were making your relationship become stronger.

"Mingyu what are your plans when we get back to the city?" Tina asked as you all were lying on beach towels under the sunshade.

"I'll go visit my family for a while, my grandma lives on the countryside" he answered and took a peek at the magazine you were reading. Your head rested on his stretched arm and he moved you to basically lay on his chest since his arm was starting to feel numb.

"Before you go back to uni, could you spare me some time?" You asked looking up at him. Even under the sunglasses, he could see your doe eyes

"Anything for you" he smiled

"Ew, don't say those things in front of us" Seungcheol made a face of disgust and gave Mingyu a slight slap. "Anyways, anybody wants to go take a dive? I'm melting"

"Yeah let's go" Wonwoo said standing up, as well as Rina. May also stood up but reached for her purse.

"Should I get us snacks? That tent is selling French fries"

"Oh yes, please get us two portions! The boys eat too much" you responded sitting up as your dousing just nodded and went on her way.

"Before I move back I'll take you on a really nice date. Maybe at your house? I could cook again since you liked it so much" Mingyu smirked as he resumed your previous conversation

"What are you implying Mr. Kim?" You side-eyed him but smiled after "That would be nice, I'm sad you'll have to leave me soon" you pouted

"Don't worry, I'll come back running for my girlfriend. You could also visit me you know..."

"Oh? Am I your girlfriend now? Since when?" You raised your eyebrows at him. It was amusing to poke fun at him, his cute pouting was a sight you loved

"You don't want to be my girlfriend?"

You pecked those pouty lips. You were both being really cliche, but with him, things were beginning to feel right.

You pecked those pouty lips. You were both being really cliche but with him, things were beginning to feel right.

"Yes, I would love that"

I'm sorry about this open ending! I got stuck on this one and had to extend it because I wasn't liking it at all. I hope you guys like it! Likes and reblogs are appreciated! Stay tuned for the Wonwoo version!!!

[avelera]

Oh GOD you, too, are an online lectures geek pls consider this your invitation to talk about favs--ones that stuck with you, current obsessions--the more the better! In trade, I'll tell you the two things I'm currently adoring: Yale's Open Course podcast on The Civil War to Reconstruction done by David Blight (man forgot more than ten other civil war historians know even if he mumbles *constantly*) and A History of Christianity by Diarmaid MacCulloch (so! worth the Prime BBC free trial <3)

Hiya! Don't mind if I do!

So 99% of the lectures I've watched lately are on the Great Courses Plus which was recently and stupidly renamed "Wondrium", which I find profoundly stupid because instead of just saying, "Hey, check out the Great Courses, yeah you can kinda guess what the streaming service offers," I have to instead explain what this nonsense term "Wondrium" means, ANYWAY, they've got lectures about basically everything.

Essentially, it's Netflix but for college lectures. YouTube has become so unreliable as far as what's actual information and what's completely made up or even racist conspiracy theory BS that I find it completely untrustworthy. Also, most documentaries are trying to prove something new, or offer a new angle on something, OR they're SO rudimentary and 101 that even for topics I know less about in history I tend to already know everything they're going to say.

So I pivoted to college lectures because 1) it's a whole series so like, dozens of hours I can just throw on in the background while doing something mindless and 2) I know it's going to be trustworthy, reliable, and provide me a baseline on a topic instead of some "new controversial spin" on it. Like, goddammit, sometimes I just want to better understand the history of Ancient Egypt, not your stupid theory about how they were secretly all space aliens or that we've got the carbon dating all wrong or whatever made up nonsense.

So, here's a list of some of my favorites!

Hannibal: The Military Genius Who Almost Conquered Rome - I consider myself about as near an expert as a non-academic can get on Rome and this lecture actually taught me some things, which is rare, so I recommend it as a fantastic deep dive!

How the Crusades Changed History is a pretty good short version that I recommend to anyone who enjoyed The Old Guard's Nicky and Joe BUT, for the best Crusades lecture, I'd recommend this History of the Crusades podcast. Sharyn Eastaugh is not just insanely informative, but her dry wit made me laugh out loud at least once an episode at the sheer hapless ineptitude of the Crusaders.

In the Wake of the Plague is a fantastic new lecture by Wondrium, the lecturer is amazing and it provides a lot of objective insights into how humans react to plagues that is VERY relevant to current events, BUT their lecture on **The Black Death in general is the one that got me obsessed with their lecture series. I watched it in the first week of Covid lockdown and let me tell you, having this super in-depth, objective look into how people behaved during the Black Death was incredibly valuable (and chilling) going into those years because it all played out with astonishing similarity. Also, anything by that lecturer, Dorsey Armstrong, is awesome. She's a Medievalist of the highest order. I also recommend her lecture on King Arthur.

**The Birth of the Modern Mind: The Intellectual History of the 17th and 18th Centuries - this one wins the award for "Lecture I thought most likely to bore me to tears that ended up being the single most fascinating I've heard in YEARS." Seriously, the way it explores the evolution of how we think in the modern era, through the philosophers who first conceived of these ideas, was jaw-droppingly fascinating. I also recommend it to writers of historical fiction and fantasy for a crash course, by proxy, of how to write people who think differently than you.

The Other Side of History: Daily Life in the Ancient World - I once had beef with a post here on Tumblr that claimed that academic Classicists don't care about slaves or normal people during the Roman Empire, which is just profoundly absurd. I pointed out this lecture to them if they actually wanted to learn more about the subject instead of complaining that an art history professor may not have been prepped for a lecture about the lives of enslaved people in Ancient Rome. If that is a subject of interest, this lecture is great.

The Real History of Pirates - a must-listen for OFMD fans who want to get an introduction to historical pirates and the history of pirates in literature, which "Our Flag Means Death" owes as much if not more to than the historical figures.

**Turning Points in Middle Eastern History - One of the first lectures I listened to and still one of my enduring favorites. It's the first one I picked up for writing my Old Guard fic, Lights Out, when I wanted to write Joe from a more informed angle and I learned so much.

Understanding Japan: A Cultural History - One of my favorite lectures based on format, the lecturer picks a literary work or cultural concept as the entry point to explore the timeline of Japanese history. It's a fantastic way to give a wider and more holistic look at each era, pairing it with a cultural touchstone.

Shout-out to "The Mysterious Etruscans" because I just think they're neat. The lecturer is also very good and I highly recommend his lecture on ancient cities as well which taught me a lot that I didn't know.

Also a shout out to, "Warriors, Queens, and Intellectuals: 36 Great Women before 1400" for its subject and the lecturer who is great and she also has a really fascinating talk about the history of Spain.

Ok, I THINK that's some of the top ones! ;D

[kinkymilfgal]

I kneeled naked, awaiting for my husband to return from my mom’s house.

I was not allowed to join this time.

I was certain they were having fun.

I thought about how I may well never know that they did that night.

If I ask I might get my mouth soaped.

So I would have to see if he chose to tell me.

I squirmed my thighs together rubbing my clit against my labia.

I was wet.

I knew he knew I would be.

I heard a car door and our dog barking.

He was home.

He walked in. At first he did not acknowledge me.

“Did you have a nice time being here denier, slut?” He asked.

“Yessir” I said subtly.

“I know that you sometimes get really in your head when you’re alone. Are you ok?” He asked.

He is thoughtful in his dominance, even when demolishing me.

“Yessir, I am ok. Thank you” I said.

“Do you have anything you want to ask me?” He said

My mind raced.

Yes. A million things.

What did you do?

How was it?

What was she wearing?

How many times?

Did I come up? Are there new plans for me in it?

Did you save some for me?

All I could say was, “Did you have a nice time?”.

Ugh.

“Haha yes. It was much needed. She sends her regards.” He said as he threw a sexy pair of panties at me. I could feel their wetness when they struck my face/neck.

I didn’t dare move.

“Hard to believe we are about to have an adult child around, eh?”

Why is he bringing this up? Maybe he’s excited to have the house back to ourselves when they move out so that I can burn all my clothes?

“Yeah, I like the privacy we get as they start to get older.” I said.

“You think he is kinky? You think he’s explored sexuality well?”

“I…don’t know…”

“I think is an important part of life. If he hasn’t discovered it on his own he may benefit from it being taught to him”

“Yeah haha too bad there isn’t a fetish class at that college he will be going to eh?” I said. Oblivious to what was really going on.

“I think he has had all the instruction he needed just a few walls away his whole life”

“Yeah. We really do have a lot of fun and play deeply”

“It would be a shame if he never does in life. I wonder what he would say to being taught this all through us?”

“Maybe we should ask him if he would like to, sir” I said half joking.

“That’s exactly what I was thinking!”

Huh? Really? My mind racing now.

“Oh?” I asked.

“Yeah. Leave it up to him. Offer to teach and show and allow him to participate. Offer to continue to keep him entirely in the dark also if he prefers. Of course, for your part I would need your consent”

I loved the idea and could feel myself becoming wet again. But how do I say this out loud?

“Uh…well….” I mustered.

“Maybe your pussy will help you here. Wetness check!”

I knew just what that meant.

I moved face down ass up.

Quickly.

He would be checking my pussy for arousal.

My mom’s panties fell off me as I did.

“Just as I suspected. You’re dripping. Is this from your mom or from this new idea with T (I will call him T through the stories)?”

“….Both” I said. Embarrassed by the truth and by my wetness check.

“Very well. We can tomorrow”

(The rest of that night in another story)

The next day, T came home early and nobody else was home other than T, my husband and I.

We were in the dining room.

“Hey, T, this may seem totally out of the blue and I want you to know you have total control on the conversation. If you want it to stop it absolutely can and will.

I know we spoke about the birds and the bees forever ago.

You may already know, but there is much more to sexuality than just sex?”

“You mean like fetish? Like bdsn or whatever?” T said, looking at me.

“M, but yes. Like that. It really can be a beautiful part of people’s identities when done well. Have you explored it any?”

“No, not really” T said.

“Have you been curious?” My husband asked.

“Honestly, yeah. A lot” T said coyly.

“Your mother and I are very experienced in it. We’ve hidden it from you all, but now that you’re of age, we are happy to me more open about it with you if you would like?” He offered.

My mind started to race. What all would this lead to? I do some very degrading things….I started to picture myself in my different roles in front of them both. I started to tingle.

“Open?” He asked.

“Yeah, you could merely hear about it, ask questions, you could see, or you could participate if you wanted.” He said.

There was a pause.

“Or, you could know absolutely nothing about any of it. We respect that too” my husband added.

“No no!” T chimed in. “Maybe we start with talking and seeing and I can decide if I want to participate more from there?” He said

“Sure! We can do that.” My husband said, excitedly. “Are you ok with starting now?”

“I think so…” T said

“Lesson one: consent is very important. I think so is not firm consent to me. I’m not pressuring you. It’s your call. But make it either way. If you need to process this we can wait” my husband said.

“I consent to starting to see and know about it now.” T said firmly.

“Very well! Well, your mother is my submissive. She is obedient and does things that I demand. I do not abuse my power and she does have a safe word. What is your safe word, dear?”

My mind was going 50,000 places.

“Halt” I said, embarrassed.

“If I do things she is actually not ok with she may say halt and the play will stop” he explained.

“What kind of things do you make her do?” T asked, seeming to get more into it.

“Well, honestly, she’s overdressed. I do not allow her this modesty as my sub. Are you ok with her assuming her position now? Meaning she will be exposing herself.”

“I am” T said.

“Strip and assume your slave position”. My husband said.

I couldn’t believe it was happening. My pussy was so wet but I know I was trembling.

I reluctantly took off my shirt. I had a nice bra on expecting it may be shown.

I very slowly pulled down my pants.

“You’re taking too long. You want him to see you punished in the first 5 minutes of knowing you as a sub?” My husband said.

“No, sir” I said. I quickly unhooked my bra and removed it.

I could feel T’s eyes staring at my mommy milkers. My nipples couldn’t hide my enjoyment.

I had on a thong. A milf thong as I call them. Mature-ish. Neutral. Comfortable. But a thong.

I slid it off quickly.

I stood before him now, naked as could be. Pussy exposed. Ass exposed. Boobs exposed. I felt him looking everywhere.

I kneeled to my slave position. On the floor hands in my lap.

“Do you enjoy seeing her exposed like this?” My husband asked.

“I do.” T said. His voice a little shaky.

“Do you enjoy being exposed like this? Don’t lie. I will wetness check you” my husband said.

“Yes, sir” I admitted embarrassingly.

“Do you wish to see and know more?” My husband asked

“I do.” T said.

To be continued.

I do sell stories. And pics and videos. And chatting and sexting. HMU if you’re interested:)

[jadeylovesmarvelxo]

This Kiss

Reader has never been kissed and she's looking for candidates at a party but Eddie rejects them all and scares them off even before they're talking with the reader. After the party, he shyly announces his candidacy for her first kiss @saramelaniemoon 💖

Warnings; Reader is over 18, Fluff, protective Eddie, slightly jealous Eddie, friends to lovers.

I don't give anyone permission to copy my work.

If you enjoyed this then please consider giving it a reblog it is much appreciated 💖

💖

Telling Eddie her biggest secret was nerve-wracking. She knew he would never judge her, and he would be so supportive but she was still anxious.

"Sweetheart? What's the big secret? I'm thinking all sorts here" shit! now he looks worried so she just comes right out with it.

"I've never been kissed and I would like for it to happen" he states at her stunned.

"Never?" he gapes and she nods feeling flustered which he notices straight away.

"Never" she confirms.

"So you want to kiss the right guy, I'll help you find the right guy. He will have to be someone incredible though to be good enough for my princess"

His princess... she tries to ignore the butterflies in her stomach but it's hard because Eddie was so handsome and sweet to her.

They had just recently became really close friends and she didn't want to jeopardize anything by admitting she felt... more than friendly feelings for him.

What if he didn't feel the same and he was just being kind? She didn't want to take that risk, the embarrassment of being rejected, and then trying to pretend that it didn't hurt so she could still have Eddie in her life.

"Well, there's the party that Chrissy is throwing tomorrow. We could go to that? Scope up any candidates" she suggests and he nods.

"It's a date! Uh... I mean not a date like that" she stammers and inwardly curses herself for being so awkward around him.

He smiles though and squeezes her hand to let her know that he gets it.

"Tomorrow it is"

💖💖

Chrissy's party was one of the biggest of the year and since her parents, were away on a business trip everyone was attending.

It was also the party after graduation so it was anticipated by everyone and Chrissy had invited her and Eddie.

It was her first big party and she was excited.

At first, it was a little stifling, so many people crammed inside and out, the loud music blaring in her ears but she was determined to stick it out.

She had a reason for being here after all.

Operation First Kiss, yeah it was a kinda dorky name but this was just between her and Eddie who was staying close to her and handed her a beer.

"Okay, so candidates?" she prompted Eddie and tried to not notice how hot he looked in his leather jacket, black shirt, and black jeans.

Eddie wasn't very forthcoming so she looked around the room while sipping her beer.

"Okay, how about David, cute, nerdy guy? Standing over there beside Nancy. Think he works with her on the school paper" Eddie gives the guy a once over and shakes his head.

"Nope" she stares at him amused.

"Why not?" he shrugs and proceeds to drink his beer. Yeah, valid argument there Eddie.

She grins as she spots Jason and purely to wind Eddie up she points to him.

"I guess Carver is like a definite no then?" he almost chokes on the beer and glares at her and she looks back at him with a perfectly innocent expression.

"Oh ha ha" he murmurs sarcastically and she cuddles into him just for a second.

"I'm only teasing Eddie. I would never, he's a douchenozzle" Eddie snorts and whispers around his breath.

"Douchenozzle" he looks proud, he should be he's the one who taught her it.

They are so lost in their laughter that she doesn't notice one of the basketball players sidle up to her looking very interested.

"Hey?" he gets her attention and she smiles at him. His name was Danny and she knew he was very nice, Lucas liked him a lot.

"Hi"

"Are you enjoying the party?" he asks her and she shrugs.

"I'm not really one for parties but Chrissy invited us and she's really lovely so I thought why not?" at the mention of us he looks over to Eddie and pales.

She isn't sure why until she turns to Eddie and notices that his eyes are flashing dangerously and he does not look happy.

"Oh, I think I hear one of my friends calling me, got to go" Danny scurries off and she rounds on Eddie whose dark expression immediately soften. Now he's the one trying to look innocent.

"Eddie! What was that? We are trying to scope out potential candidates. Not scare them away. Danny is nice, Lucas likes him and says he's not a jerk like Jason"

Eddie gives her one of those heart-melting grins of his-all dimples and she sighs.

"Sorry sweetheart. You know how protective I am of you and I just want you to find a good guy"

Okay, she agrees and it was sweet of him to want her to find the perfect guy. Now it was on to the next one.

💖💖

Out of five other candidates she had found Eddie liked precisely none of them.

"He's far too into himself princess," he said about one of her picks.

The other was "A total butthead"

Even when she mentioned that maybe Gareth could be an option and worth considering as he was Eddie's best friend and all and was a great guy, Eddie swore and shook his head.

"No way, absolutely not princess" she is beyond exasperated by now.

"He's your best friend. You like him, what's wrong with him?"

"Nothing but it's still a no sweetheart" she huffs and Eddie offers to get her another beer when she sees Steve join the party with Robin and she has an eureka moment.

"I've got it," she says excitedly as Eddie comes back. He looks at her wary.

"What?"

"Steve, he is kind, handsome, sweet, and surely you have nothing against him right?" she implores and Eddie swallows and stakes his head.

"No, he's a great dude" he murmurs and fiddles with his rings, something she knows he does when he's anxious.

Almost immediately the idea disapatates quick.

"He's still crazy in love with Nancy though and I adore Nancy so that's not the best idea" is it her imagination or does Eddie relax after she says it?

Considering the party a failure she turns to Eddie and pouts.

"Did you make any more of that amazing mac and cheese Eds? This party is a bust and I'd rather be relaxing at yours" he brightens.

"Lead the way milady"

💖💖

Once they are back at his she is a little put out things never went how she thought they would.

"What a let down the party was. All those guys and every one was a fail" well mostly according to Eddie.

"There's still one guy left," Eddie tells her, and she feels her stomach fill with butterflies as his big brown eyes go all soft and he looks so shy which was a rarity.

"I'd like to put forth my candidacy"

Her jaw drops because she didn't expect this but then it suddenly clicks into place why he was so protective, how no one was good enough.

The only guy he wanted kissing her was himself. The butterflies intensify and she takes his hand.

"Eddie.. why didn't you say before?" she asks softly and he touches her cheek.

"I've always thought your were incredible. Beautiful. I like you a lot sweetheart, I've fallen for you hard"

"Oh, Eddie, I've been falling for you too. I wish you had said something sooner, would have saved us both a lot of pining" he grins.

"Yeah no shit" he teases and then he moves closer as does she and before she knows it they are kissing.

It's slow at first and very gentle. Tender, Eddie wraps his arms around her and holds her close.

They break away both grinning goofily. It was her first kiss and the first of millions more to come with Eddie.

💖💞

[ordinaryschmuck]

Full Family AU Part 16

"I'm not going to bed yet, am I...?" Luz asked, fully dressed in her jammies after taking a bath.

"You are soon," Camila said. "We're just getting you and Vee ready for now."

"Okay...Vee's fun, by the way," Luz said with a smile. "I taught her a lot of things. How to walk, draw, and...re...call...itate?"

Camila snorted, trying her best to hold back her laughter. "Do you mean "re-calibrate?"

"That's the word!" Luz exclaimed. "Papi likes to use too big of words."

"He sure does."

"But, yeah, I taught her that thing Papi taught me! Watch!"

Luz then started shaking herself all over, only stopping once she got dizzy. Camila had to stop her from falling on her butt.

"I wish he taught you something a little less...chaotic."

Luz giggled, her eyes still spinning. "Yeah..."

"This one's bath is done," Manny announced. He entered the room with Vee, still wearing her sundress. "This dress of hers really is like skin. Just washed her in the tub and the pizza sauce just went off her. Look: It doesn't even leave a stain."

"I'm sorry," Vee muttered.

"What are you sorry about?" Manny asked with a chuckle. "Not everything you do is bad. This is actually a great thing. Save us money for laundry."

"Assuming she can change shape into wearing different clothes," Camila pointed out. "Is that something you can do, sweetie?"

Vee played with her thumbs. "Shapeshifting requires magic. I only have a little left..."

Luz gasped. "Magic?!"

"Oh, right. Uh, forget that, Mija," Manny told Luz.

"Forget it?! She said magic! Magic's real?!"

Vee nodded, getting Luz to squee!

"Luz, not now," Camila said. "What do you think you're capable of doing?"

"...Maybe changing what I wear one more time?" Vee suggested. Camila hummed for a second, stroking her chin as she tried to think of something. Wordlessly, she went to Luz's closet, opened it up and do a bit of digging. While she was distracted, Luz ran up to Vee with her smile brighter and wider than ever before.

"What kind of magic is real?" She asked. "Is it something everyone can do? Can I do it? Is it something that comes from the heart? You also said something about storing it? What does that mean? Can you do magic? Ooh, is shapeshifting part of your magic?!"

"Luz." Both Luz's parents gently chastised the young girl, making her stop with the constant questions. And for good reason, because it was starting to make Vee hide behind Manny's leg due to all the attention on her.

"Sorry," Luz muttered, looking down in shame.

"It's okay, querrida," Manny said, "But you need to turn your excitement down a couple notches. Just for tonight."

"Okay, Papi..."

"Ah-ha!" Camila returned from the closet, holding up one of Luz's swimsuits, a pink sparkly one-piece with a star in the center. "Can you shapeshift into wearing something like this, Vee? Not the exact color or design, just...the suit."

"I...can try..." Vee closed her eyes and concentrated, the dress shrinking and changing into a one-piece, just like Luz's. But as the dress changed, so did other parts of Vee. Her ears, which were circle, started looking more like Vee's basilisk ears, which blended in with the rest of her hair. Vee's mouth started to become more curved like a cat's instead of the thin line it was before. And when she opened her eyes, her pupils were yellow and blue, just like in her basilisk form. "Did I do good...?"

Camila and Manny stared at her, not sure to respond.

"You...did good enough," Camila chose to see. "But..."

"Her face is different," Luz broke the news first.

"Yeah..."

"Oh..." Vee played with her thumbs some more. "I'm--"

"Don't say it," Manny interrupted. "It's fine. We can just...tell people you were born this way if they ask. I mean, it's not too weird, right? For someone to look this way."

"I guess not?" Camila said, unsure herself.

"But isn't that lying?" Luz asked.

"Lying is only good when it's for the people you love," Manny told her.

"Might want to revitalize that one," Camila said as she went to the closet. "Until then, we can't have Vee sleep in a swim suit. So..."

She pulled out another pair of Luz's jammies.

"Luz and Vee seem about the same size, right?" Camila asked.

"Only one way to find out," Manny agreed.

[evenmorefatallyobsessed]

Prof. Rose AU Concept

To be clear this isn't the only Au/ comic I'll put the model in but it is the one that comes to mind for me most often.

All of team RWBY are born into the previous generation.

Ruby would've never thought of herself as the teaching type of Huntress and yet here she was in Beacon showing students how to Huntress with the best of them.

So yeah she was a bit late to the classes she taught, and liked to dress... Um, a bit messily BUT THAT WAS HER METHOD GOSH DANGIT!

Besides she was a adult, and a awesome one at that. Heck Gynda barely ever scolded her... Anymore.

Today was no different either as she walked to the auditorium. Near the launch pad, watching as new students came flocking out looking around with stars in their eyes and hope in their hearts.

She remembered being like that back then... Okay, maybe not like that one blonde blowing chunks into the garbage can but still.

A bunch of Weiss's Dust packed, she was Enough reminiscing she had stuff to do like being a awesome partner, moving her friend's Dust to their room. Now she didn't need to pay extra for them to navigate Beacon and, and, ACHOO!!!

'Boom!'

What Was This Place Cursed!? Really? the same spot she blew up I on her first day her all those years ago!

At least she didn't have a fuming Weiss to deal with this time again... Right now.

She sat there sulking remembering back then to. That'd nearly broken her back in the day. But she knew better now, nobody would come to help he-

"You okay?" She blinked, looking up and meeting gazes with a boy.

"Aren't you the guy who blew chunks in the trash?" And like that she'd instantly insulted one of her students and a nice cute one too... Wait, cute?

"Hey I have motion sickness! It's a common problem that a lot of people have." They walked through the school, him quick to follow her lead. The boys name was Jaune, obviously he was a first year.

And he wielded a classic bastard sword with a mecha-shifting sheath/ shield. Nothing fancy but the metal was like freakishly durable and seemed immune to rust! She'd admit to drooling over the thought of what she could make with a alloy like that.

Oh And Jaune Was A Arc!

A Actual Arc! To most people that wouldn't mean much, heck to hear even just a few years ago it wouldn't mean much. But now that she and her team were Part of Ozpins super secret decret circle she knew better.

Jaune came from a long line of heroes, heroes who fought against Salem and in just about every war you could look up. Heck one of the two people exemplified on the statue were a Arc!

Yep Jaune was gonne do great, awesome things, she just had a gut feeling about these sorta things. He even got that she was older then him! And with her baby face that was saying something!

Though admittedly he did only think she was a senior, but still. Jaune was hitting every box to being her favorite student this year. She was so excited she was gushing about her new friend to Glynda and the rest of the staff that night.

Still if Jaune was gonna be her new favorite student she wanted to know everything about him she could. Some research was in order... And he cheated his way into Beacon...

Cool, and here she was expecting worse like him being a former terrorist or bandit like Blake or her uncle Qrow. He just never went to combat school.

That wasn't so bad, he probably had the basics down and could he taught the rest. Yep, everything would be A-Okay!

-0-0-0-

EVERYTHING WAS NOT A-OKAY!!! Heck It wasn't even C-Okay! It was F-Bad! Real Bad! Jaune Didn't Have Aura! Nope Nadda! HOW!?

What Kinda Parents Didn't Unlock Thier Kids Auras When They Wanted To Fight Grimm!

Thank God Pyrrha There... Touching his chest, unlocking his aura... One of the most intimate acts you could share with another person...

Huh? She, she didn't like that... At all. Though there were some hiccups Jaune and his team managed to pass, with Jaune leading it... Yeah she was getting flashbacks to her first year.

The party started and his team was the center of attention or to be more accurate Pyrrha and very very much not normal knees. Good thing Jaune seemed to catch on quick cuz he quickly took the lead and acted like a buffer between her adoring fans. And now Pyrrha was blushing as she looked to him.

Did she like him... No.

No no no no NO!

Okay, so maybe she had a few drinks, but she was a adult so it was fine... Besides the drinks just made Jaune look yummiest after all... Yummier?

She dragged him off for super secret team leaders advice that none of the other leaders needed. Why would they?

Nope Jaune was her friend and student, which meant she won, Pyrrha was just his partner.

So they talked, about how imitation went, about his family (And geez what a family) and what he wanted to be... Like her? Her?

"Yeah, I looked some videos up and figured out you were some kinda hero Craterfac-, I mean Ms. Rose.

Nope! She did not like that! And refused to let it stand. And when he dared to refuse her refusal she decided force was needed and tackled him down.

Pinning down her new friend/ student she threatened him to start calling her Ruby again like all her friends only to freeze up. Becaus something was pushing up against her. Something big and hard, and in Jaune's pants... Oh!

And like that he was off, rushing away with a absolutely tomato colored face. And she was left there, everything clicking in her head and tingling in her body... Oh, so she had a crush on Jaune...

And didn't that present a problem, Ruby Awesome Rose had butt tons of experience in a lot of stuff.

Fighting Grimm, Weapon Repair, Baking... But romance was very much not her field. And Weiss and Yang were nowhere in sight to ask for advice. Well, at least there was once source of study she had available on hand.

Thank Oum for Blake and her books, she was sure they'd make Great references material...

And great they did, especially with a drink or two... Yep Jaune could definitely be like these studs and... Heheh and do fun stuff to her.

Actually 'Hic' why did she never think about making babies? She was a grown woman, and Jaune she could chisel into a super hunky knight.

Yeah, the more she thought of it the better that idea got. And drinks made the plan all the sexier. utterly sloshed, she worked another orgasm off of watching a teacher student porno, and found herself quite annoyed.

Why was she using this? There was a cute dork who just passed Initiation AKA was totally and utterly legal.

Her mind made up she whipped out her Scroll and made her way down go JNPR's room. Knocking on it, waiting for someone to answer, for 'Him' to answer, the door opening her prize came half confused as and all flustered as he readied to speak. But she didn't let him, after all she wanted a taste really bad...

Lips smacking she pulled back and found him landing flat on him ass face red as a tomato and pitching a new tent.

Her drunk mind worked a lightbulb and she smiled. .

That was just the sorta reaction she wanted, she would pressed on, already getting ready to pull down her top but she could hear the familiar sound of Glynda's heels as she made her way there.

-0-0-0-

Jaune was flustered, not sure how he was gonna face Prof. Rose, yep, Professor, Ruby as it turned out wasn't just some quirky fourth year student. Nope, his dumb butt went and made buddies with his teacher... He could already hear the bullies cracking their knuckles. That team CRDL group had been bugging him ever since, but somehow that wasn’t even the worst of it. Nope, the worst was Ruby herself, well… What she did while drunk…

 His cheeks pinked, still vaguely recalling the taste of strawberries… He really needed to clear the air, he knew asses who tried to take advantage of his sisters when they were drunk and he had no intention of falling in with that lot.

All he could do was try to clear the air with miss Rose and hope she would be understanding, she might’ve kissed him but he did lean into it instead of rejecting it. So even if others would argue it he felt guilty… Still he was in his first class here and she was gonna teach it, fingers crossed she wouldn’t hate his… His. Sexy… Wha!? No he meant what was she wearing!?

-0-0-0-

One awesome thing about having a Drunkle Qrow was that Ruby Rose was a expert drinker, highly adapted and incredibly quick to bounce back. AKA no hang overs and a crystal clear memory… And oh did she make great memories last night!

Hehe, he tasted like honey, and his face got all red, she bit her lip thinking about it, okay so yep Ruby Rose had it bad. And usually she might hesitate, but Drunk Ruby had nailed the assist! And now Ruby knew Jaune was interested and that she wanted it!

Oh she panicked at first, but then looked up the rule book and yeppers it was all cool and legal! Heck her dating Jaune wasn’t nearly as bad as half the stuff her team got into back when they were students!

Maybe when she was a freshman she might’ve panicked, have second guessed herself… But that was then, she’d gone through to much, to many difficult experiences to be thwarted by romance… Mt. Glenn… Dr. Merlot and Salem’s sinister circle and the Hunters disappearing in Mistral. Ruby Rose had faced death and danger on scales most hunters would never know.

And from them she’d learned above all else the value in being decisive, and Ruby Decisive Rose had a new goal! And that goal was a blonde young knight husbando! Mark her words! Ruby Rose was Gonna get herself a man! And Jaune Arc didn’t stand a chance!

She would use all the knowledge and know how of Blake’s many smutty books, and years observing her big sis flirting to her full advantage! She was no longer a member of the itty bitty boobie club dangit, she had Ruboobies to match her Bubooty! And she was gonna use it to it’s full effect!

And Ozpin was all for her making some Silver Eyed Babies! Which meant Jaune Arc was as good as her’s! Ruby Rose had it going on and every student in the class had their eyes on her in her sexy dress including Jaune!

Operation Lancaster Start!

[mahs-dumpster]

"Happy 100th anniversary"

a/n: this is soooo self indulgent please. It's a vignette (written only in dialogue) for Daisy's (my Yuu) birthday jacket card that I just made! I'll be linking it here once I edit this post!

cw: oc x canon (Ruggie x Daisy; they're established to be in a relationship and Daisy has already made her decision to stay in twisted wonderland); dialogue heavy; poor attemps at making this look like a fake translation from a vignette bc I'm delulu

The template for the frames of the paintings can be found here.

Words: around 1k

Happy birthday, Daisy!!

Daisy: To think I'm able to visit a museum like this! I wonder what sort of paintings I'm going to see…

Daisy: I'm expecting to maybe recognize a few from the stories mom used to read to me… let's see if I actually can recognize them!

Daisy: I wonder… is she someone I'm aware of? A lady who constantly cleans her house…

???: That's the princess who inspired the glass slippers you always wear.

Daisy: Huh? Oh, Ruggie! I thought you were all the way on the other side of the museum! 

Ruggie: I was, but then I met Trey and we kinda ended up wandering around until I got here. 

Ruggie: What a coincidence that I found you looking at the painting of the lady who inspired your favorite shoes, shishishi~

Daisy: I guess it is a fun coincidence. Oh, right! Would you mind explaining more about her to me?

Ruggie: Fine! But don't go walking around telling people I've gone soft…

Daisy: No need to worry, I wouldn't even dream of it. 

Ruggie: *sigh* anyway… This lady is the princess that inspired your shoes, do you know the story behind it?

Daisy: Sam only explained to me that the princess who wore them danced with them until midnight… so I guess I don't know much more than that.

Ruggie: Right. Legend says she was an orphan who was forced by her stepmother to become basically a servant.

Ruggie: She cleaned the house all day everyday, was forced to hear awful things by her step family and when she wanted to go to a ball her stepsisters tore down her dress. 

Ruggie: A Fairy Godmother – well, her Fairy Godmother – decided to help her get to a ball, she gave her a gown, a carriage and everything! 

Ruggie: the Prince fell in love with her almost immediately and when she ran away and left her glass slipper fall, he tried it on every lady in the kingdom to find out who his beloved was. Then they got married and she never saw her family again.

Daisy: That’s basically the story of Cendrillon. 

Ruggie: What? Oh– one of the fairytales from your world?

Daisy: Yes. I’ve always admired her story, I reread it a lot growing up because I related to her. 

Ruggie: Ah… you did say your stepmother treated you horribly.

Daisy: She… treated me as best as she could.

Ruggie: Which wasn't anywhere near good enough. 

Daisy: Haha… I guess you're right. 

Daisy: What I mean is just… she treated me badly, but I don't hold grudges. 

Daisy: Whatever she's doing, I forgive her. And now that I'm somewhere better and living a happier life… I hope that her and her children manage to grow as people.

Daisy: That's what my mother taught me. 

Ruggie: …sometimes I really do wonder how I fell for such a goody-goody.

Daisy: W-what’s that supposed to mean?

Ruggie: I’m just saying, you're way too naive and nice to forgive someone like that.

Ruggie: if it were me, I’d never forgive them. No way someone's gonna step all over me and I'll forgive them.

Daisy: because that's exactly what you did to Leona-senpai, huh?

Ruggie: besides the point. 

Daisy: Ruggie, isn't this painting depicting that story you told me about? The ones about the dogs sharing spaghetti?

Ruggie: Oh, that one, yeah! I didn't know they actually painted the scene, who would've thought.

Daisy: They're so adorable, I see now how romantic this is.

Ruggie: I guess? It's still just spaghetti…not only that but it's outside in the middle of the night. I guess for dogs it would be cool but for people? I’d honestly just be excited because it's free food.

Daisy: Oh, come on now! This is super romantic! It's a candlelight dinner under the night sky! 

Daisy: If someone did that for me, I know I’d be pretty happy and satisfied.

Ruggie: You’re just trying to convince me to ask you on a date, aren't you?

Daisy: …

Ruggie: Should’ve figured, shishishi!

Daisy: You can't blame a girl for trying, I’ve been pretty lonely these past few weeks since you’ve been working more than usual.

Daisy: But jokes aside, this right here is already enough. I’m already way less lonely just by walking around this museum with you, it's practically a date!

Ruggie: I don't think a date would consist of everyone from our school coming with us…

Daisy: You get what I mean…

Ruggie: Tell you what, once we get back I’m cooking us both some spaghetti and lighting some candles if that's what you’d like.

Ruggie: If my flower is feeling lonely then I better give her a proper date so she can feel loved, right?

Daisy: You really don't have to… but thanks. I would love to. 

Ruggie: Ah, this one's actually a very famous painting, I’ve seen pictures of it around quite often.

Daisy: R-Really…?

Ruggie: What? You don't believe me?

Ruggie: It ties with Sunset Savannah’s history and with The King of Beasts’s story! 

Daisy: Well, forgive me for not understanding the historical significance of a monkey holding a lion cub…

Ruggie: *sigh* Alright. Lemme explain.

Ruggie: This is a ceremony often done by members of royalty when a new child from the royal family is born. 

Ruggie: It goes so far back even the lions from The King of Beasts’s story did that. They basically present the baby to everyone else in the kingdom… it's kinda hard to explain.

Daisy: Oh, I get it now!

Daisy: I see why it's so famous, seeing how it portrays an aspect of the royalty of Sunset Savannah. 

Ruggie: Eh… I never went to one, as you can imagine.

Daisy: Never? Is it not open to the common folk?

Ruggie: Well yeah, but back when there was one for who I now know is Leona-san's nephew, I was trying to survive.

Ruggie: I didn't have the time to go to a ceremony just to watch a new baby I didn't care about being presented to the whole kingdom.

Ruggie: I’d learn about him regardless, so I just didn't care much.

Daisy: I guess that makes sense.

Daisy: Still, it must be super interesting to see it happening. How cute would it be to see a baby cub being shown to the entire world just like that, hahah! 

Ruggie: Ah– sorry, before I got here I told Leona-san I’d go fetch something for him at the cafeteria in a few minutes… if I don't go now he’s gonna be pissed.

Daisy: Why didn't you tell me sooner?!

Ruggie: Well, ya know– it's impossible to resist spending time with you~

Daisy: Alright there, Romeo, enough! Go before he gets upset. I'll be looking around this area for a while more if you want to come back.

Ruggie: *sigh* ‘kay, I'll be off then! 

Daisy: Hm? Ah, this is another painting of Cendrillon.

Daisy: She looks so much free... I'm happy she got her happy ending.

[my-castles-crumbling]

Hi :) i hear you give advice and i very much need some. I’m 15 and I live in a pretty (very) conservative christian area.

My older sibling is 19, and came out as trans to me like a year ago. Ngl I didn’t really know what that meant, cause we don’t learn about that stuff (except for your classic, anything that isn’t “normal” is wrong). But he just told me that he’s happier with he/him and with his new name. But he hasn’t told our parents yet, so I have to use the old stuff in front of them when he comes back for visits (he’s as uni) which feels gross cause I know he feels uncomfortable but it’s fine. 

I sort of thought the he/him thing would be weird, since that’s not how i’ve addressed him my whole life, but after a couple of months it was actually super easy. We call each other like twice a week, and I was worried we’d drifted apart after he told me but actually were closer than ever, I feel like I know him a lot better now. 

Oh but his old name, the one parents gave him, SUCKS. And now I can’t mock him for it cause he picked a new one, which seems unfair to me but I can come up with new material, i’m creative.

Anyway, he told me that he’s been saving up and he’s gonna get top surgery. He’s had a pretty good job since  school so I guess he’s been saving since then. I hear it’s expensive. 

But it made him decide to tell our parents. So when he came up and visited, just before he left, he told them.

That was last week. They reacted terribly, as we knew they would. And they’ve both been yelling about it a bunch. Saying stuff like “He (okay no they’re actually using she but I won’t be doing that even in writing cause it feels wrong cause it’s my brother) is totally insane” or “He needs therapy, we failed him.” or “How dare *old name* do this” or “he’s delusional” and a bunch of other awful shit like that.

So I have two options. I can try and encourage them to do little things like use he/him for my brother. Or call him their son instead of daughter. Or actually look at photos of him now (he very much doesn’t look like a girl anymore- idk how they didn’t realise tbh). Or how he always did little things like cutting his hair and hating dresses and other stuff like that.

I’ve often been able to help my parents be nicer about stuff. Like my friend who’s a lesbian, they hated her at first but now they’re nicer about it.

But maybe if I do that they’ll start yelling about corrupting me (as they’ve done in the past) and harass my brother worse and be even worse about it all. 

It’s hard to know which direction it’ll go.

And look I still don’t really get it. But also it makes sense, you know? It’s like the final puzzle piece being slotted in, all those things he used to do make sense now. 

My parents say I can’t interact with lgbtq+ stuff cause they’ll corrupt me. But like- not to be rude but, aren’t they corrupting me? My brother HAPPY. I don’t see how that’s wrong. And they’re the ones telling me I should be actively encouraging him to be- what, sad again? Uncomfortable in himself. 

I don’t know, i’m not totally sure I understand my parents or my brother. I got tumblr in the first place since it’s the only thing I could think of that’s online (so I could hide it) and probably has lgbtq+ people on it so I could- idk get used to it I guess. 

And now i’m here. 

When it comes down to it, I want my brother to be happy, and if he’s happier as my brother than my sister then I don’t see why I should care about him switching pronouns or whatever. 

So I want to try and help my parents see it like that too. And they often do see new sides to things when I point them out. So maybe id be helping.

But there’s also the chance they’d get more mad at my brother for corrupting me and that’d make him upset and that’s not what I want. 

So yeah, any advice? 

It’s kinda scary coming from my small town onto the giant internet of people i’ve been taught are weird. But you guys don’t seem that weird. I mean- you do but weird like i’m weird, not weird like ill. (Sorry if any of this seems rude btw, I might not get it but i’m trying really hard not to judge anyone, since it’s pretty clear to me that some of the things i’ve been taught aren’t correct). 

Also why do my parents think my brothers ill anyway? I know him, i’d know if he’s ill. Also i love history, and trans people are all over history. I mean they’re never said to be trans but watching my brother, it’s pretty obvious other people were like him. 

Anyway, thanks and have a good summer 💖

Hi hon!

I want to tell you, it sounds like you have a really good head on your shoulders and you're an amazing support to your brother. You should be so proud of yourself.

I think you need to think about what is best for you and your mental health. If speaking up to your parents about your brother could end in them getting mad at you, it might not be a good idea. You've been doing amazing at supporting him while staying quiet, and I know he knows you support him. It might be best for yout o quietly educate yourself online without making a fuss, until you aren't relying on your parents as much for money, food, and shelter- kind of like your brother did.

This also might be a good thing to talk to your brother about, too. Like you said, this could affect him, and he probably knows your parents well. He might have some good advice <3 But you don't HAVE to stand up to them if it's not good for you. It's okay to educate yourself, and be an ally in other ways <3

Naming you history anon <3

(also wish your brother luck on his top surgery for me!)

[lovingdabeessss]

No idea how this would come about but just imagining Summer seeing her daughters in Vacuo and stuff happens and Ruby just casually mentions, "Oh yeah Yang raised me." like not even too Summer but she hears it and is just like, "Um, what?"

Cue Yang trying to step in and be like, "Oh she just means I helped out cos you know, things were tough for a bit, not your fault-"

Ruby: No I mean Yang raised me, like dad was there I guess, he's, ya know... Dad?

Yang: See she calls Tai dad, I can't have been raising her if she does that.

Ruby: I used to call the teachers Yang.

Yang: U-

Summer: Sweetheart let your little sister speak.

Ruby: I just mean like, Yang fed me, taught me, got me to school, read to me, helped with my studying, shopping, and like... Everything?

Summer: And what did Tai do?

Ruby: he was... There? He said stuff sometimes?

Summer: I... See.... So you had to raise yourself and your little sister alone, Yang?

Yang:... Qrow was also there?

Summer: and what was that like?

Yang & Ruby (Flashing back to holding Qrow's hair as he throws up in the toiled)

Both: Uuuuuum

GOD that’s so Yang to go immediately into damage control mode

Yangs a chronic taiyang defender for many many reasons and it has several negative consequences but we don’t have time to get into all that cause I need to sleep soon even though I totally want to get into that

And that’s so Ruby to actually address the issue I never give ruby enough credit for being physically able to do that without needing to immediately fix it just address it

But this breaks my heart all the more because not only is it a damage control and her trying to make sure her mom doesn’t feel guilty but also because it’s summer it gives so much of the vibe of yang trying to get Ruby not to tell on her

Like Yang feeling guilty for having taken care of Ruby like she’s done something wrong because summer definitely isn’t going to be happy about it and she doesn’t want to upset summer the second she got back and she also probably has a lot of guilt over maybe not doing the most amazing job raising Ruby

Also Yang just refusing to acknowledge to people anything bad has ever happened to her is so very Yang

I love thinking about summer interacting with her kids again it’s always so good

[moonypears-blog]

Accidents happen.

Summary: Sofia accidentally breaks something in Cedric's workshop.

C*dfia shippers DNI.

Wordcount: 956

-

Oh no, oh no, oh no!

Sofia thought, staring at the broken glass on the floor and the green liquid spilt everywhere.

“Remind me, princess, I did bring some mugwort back from our last visit to the village?”

Sofia nodded, her eyes still on the green liquid. What if it took him ages to make and she just spilt it all over the floor? “Umm, yeah, I think so!” she put on the best voice she could. The last time she’d ruined something important in Roland’s office he was very upset, she didn’t want to upset Mr Cedric. He worked so hard on his potions. She stepped away as the green potion spilt closer towards her feet, she always knew his workshop was slanted!

“Are you alright, princess?”

Sofia braced herself as Cedric spun around on his stool. “I’m really sorry, Mr-”

“Sofia! Get away from that!”

Cedric rushed over to her, whisking her away from the magical goo. Paying no mind to the broken beaker, he grabbed her hands, checking over her. “It didn’t get on you, did it?”

“O-Only a little bit, I’ll clean it up!”

Sofia heard Cedric mumble some adult words before he knelt down to the broken glass, carefully picking up a shard with a label on it. He took a breath of relief, holding his hand to his chest. “Athena’s arena…”

“I’m so sorry, Mr Cedric, it wasn’t important was it?”

Cedric turned his attention back to his apprentice, petting her head with a level of care and sweetness Sofia had only ever seen him use with Calista. “No, no, It’s alright, love…Just go clean yourself up, it’s been known to stain. Bailywick will kill me if he finds out I let you stain another dress,” he stroked her hair gently, minding her tiara. Gods, had she scared him. This was why he tried to put his more dangerous potions and ingredients higher up. There were many things in his workshop she wasn’t allowed to handle, if he was working on a more dangerous spell or potion he'd practically push her out the door.

Sofia shook her head, running off to grab a broom from the other side of his workshop. “I’ll clean it, I don’t mind!”

Cedric rolled his eyes ever so slightly, snatching the broom from her small hands. Why was this child so sweet and who taught her to be such a people-pleaser? In what world does a child clean up glass? It’s an age-old situation, a little kid accidentally knocks over a glass, parent rushes over and yells at them to not go near it. “It’s glass, princess. I’ll sweep it up.”

“But that isn’t fair? I’m the one who broke it after all?”

“And I’m the one telling you to go change and let me clean up the very sharp sand on the floor because I’m the adult.”

Cedric watched Sofia’s face contort in confusion. “Glass is made of sand?” She was so cute. “How?”

Cedric smiled to himself, starting to sweep the glass into a little pile. He couldn’t have Sofia stepping on it. “It’s melted down into a liquid, then it becomes glass. Simple, really,” he explained, taking on a very soft, fatherly tone. He found himself speaking to Sofia like this a lot. It was quite odd, he didn't talk to anyone else like this, at least he’d never noticed it. “Now that that’s out of the way, won’t you go clean up? I’ll finish this.”

Sofia looked down at her purple dress, speckled with green potion. She really didn’t mind her dresses getting stained, it was only a dress, after all. If anything it was a reminder of a fun experience she got to endure. Even if Bailywick or Amber didn’t share her feelings.

“Do you have to remake the potion?”

Cedric shook his head. “It was defective, I’ve been meaning to throw it out. You beat me to it, princess,” he said, starting to rake up the goo. Sofia smiled a bit, she felt better knowing it would have been thrown out anyway. “I’m sorry I made a mess, Mr Cedric.”

“It’s alright, love. Accidents happen, I’ve broken an unruly amount of beakers in my time,” Cedric pulled his wand from his sleeve, pointing it at the small pile of liquid and glass and mumbled a quick spell, the floor becoming spotless once again. “See? No harm done.” Cedric put his wand back and patted Sofia on the head, making her giggle a bit. How was one princess so cute?

“You can’t go your whole life without a few mistakes, dear. Mistakes and accidents are inevitable, no matter how small,” the fatherly tone came back yet again, much stronger this time.

It was comforting to Sofia, it felt nostalgic in a way. Roland didn’t really speak to her in that tone, she vaguely remembers her biological father speaking to her in that way. A lot about Cedric reminded her of Birk, it was nice, considering she didn’t remember him all that much.

Sofia lept to hug Cedric’s waist, almost making him stumble backwards. That was a habit of hers, she was very enthusiastic with her hugs, sometimes a bit too enthusiastic. She just loved showing affection to the people she loved and cared about. Cedric very quickly caught on to the fact that she was a very sweet girl who wanted everyone to feel cared for, even if everyone else thought they weren’t worth the time of day.

“Thank you, Mr Cedric.”

Cedric smiled down at her, one hand on her shoulder, the other stroking her hair. He was growing to enjoy her hugs. A few years ago he would have pushed her off, but not anymore.

“It was only a glass, princess.”

[luimagines]

How would a female hero of courage interact with the chain?

Well- this is certainly a new type of Reader! I know I try to keep Reader as gender neutral as possible so this kinda defeats the purpose... but just once won’t hurt anyone. Consider it done anon!

It'll be in headcanon form. I hope that's ok.

Masterlist

Content under the cut!

Twilight

Weak

Drinks his respect women juice every morning like Uli taught him

And Ilia wouldn’t hear any complaints of it as they grew up

Midna made sure he kept up with his routine

And Zelda was the final nail on the coffin

Can’t say no to whatever she requests

Wild teases him a lot

And by teases, I mean secretly complains

“You let her get away it!”

“Yeah Cub, because I know she wouldn’t hesitate to throw me over her shoulder and call it a day. I’m not getting in her way.”

Doesn’t pay too much attention to it

Frankly, care less about that and more about her age

If she’s younger, she’s getting the same treatment as the rest of the youngins

If she’s older, then the more power to her

She can get away with much more

He’s soft

While others may forget, he tries to keep in mind her need for privacy and space from the boys

Especially since she’s the only girl

On her team, 98% of the time

Warrior

Oh no another one

It’s Linkle all over again

Or so he thinks

Protective to a fault, poor guy

But he’s just Like That TM

Reader would gather really quickly it’s because he cares and not because of anything else

He does the same to Wind and Twilight and Legend and even Time

Warrior is used to female fighters so this isn’t anything for him to blink at

Have you seen his game? It’s like three males total- him included, villains not included

How much do you want to bet that Warrior also knows someone from Reader’s adventure?

You know.... for flavor :D

Warrior is quick to make them feel a part of the team and respected

Warrior is the first one to ask for their opinion on matters and Reader always comes up with a point he (and others) were missing

“Thanks Girlie. I knew you were brought with us for a reason. Glad to know that you’re on our side.”

Big Brother Warrior adopts another one. A Saga

Legend

Is not above sacrificing her to do the work so that he can get out of it

Challenges her at nearly every turn

Even more so than Warrior

And it’s not because she’s female

It’s just that it’s activating his sibling behavior with a vengeance and he’s going to make it her problem

Reader found him annoying, pessimistic, dramatic and hard to get along with

It was like cats and dogs

Even if Legend actually likes her

However Reader gets talked down to in public and Legend goes off

Completely tearing the offender to shreds with his words alone- although he’s tempted to do so physically as well

Reader doesn’t think he’s so bad after that

They judge people outfits together, you honor

They are each other’s ride or die

Legend gets to the point where she’s the only one he listens to without question

The Chain try and get her to talk to Legend when they’re trying to prank him

Reader agrees more than half of the time

Hyrule

A bit of a lost cause...

Has no idea how to approach this

Hella awkward- poor guy

Ignores it on principle

Treats her like one of the guys, only be reminded that she’s not a guy

It’s like a slap in the face every time- he tries so hard to just be normal

Give him a break he’s not used to people as it is

At least the people he’s met so far are nice and she’s nice and different from any of them

Doesn’t want to treat her like glass

Doesn’t want to be too overbearing in a group full of guys

Doesn’t want to treat her as an outcast

Doesn’t want to intrude on her personal space

Is he over thinking it? Oh yeah defiantly

Another hero that means well but is in uncharted territory

However, he’s never been afraid of uncharted territory before and this is no different

He’ll figure it out

Just give him some time

Wind

Big sister?

Someone as cool and kick butt as Tetra?

But like him? With the courage and the whole... not being like the others for whatever reason?

Admiration and following like a puppy

He looks up to the older heroes and obviously tries to emulate them

But something about her hits different

And he wants to do the same

It’s a shame he doesn’t know what it is

Wind is going to talk her ear off

(I hope she has the patients for him XD)

As he can see that Reader is older, he wants to ask questions about his sister, like why girls do x? Or y? Or z?

You know, things that they have in common but for the life of him, he doesn’t know why

So he might as well ask right?

Besides, if he asked Aryll, she might give him a half answer or not even know herself

But Reader should know, he trusts Reader’s judgment

Tries to wrestle her

A lot

Loses

Wild

Younger sister?

Hello? My old heart? How have you been?

He’s going to project so much

He means well by the end of the day and frankly it doesn’t matter if this hero is older than him

He has vague memories of a younger sister and it’s going to eat him alliiivvee

Gives her the best portions of food obviously and naturally serves her first

Will want to go horse back riding with her whether she knows how to or not

He can teach her! He can do archery with her! And sword fighting and shield surfing and cooking and and and and-

So long as his weapons and equipment don’t break on him anyway

He’s going to badger her about keeping her hair in decent condition and offering to braid it or brush it or just put it up for her

Who cares if he still has twigs and junk in his hair? That’s not his point

Is he a hypocrite? ... Just a bit

Might show off from time to time by taking wild animals momentarily just so she can pet them

Cut to Wild riding into camp on a bear

“Sissy! Look what I found!”

“Cub! Put him back!” Said literally everyone in the group.

“He’ll go back home on his own soon enough. I gave him honey glazed salmon as a treat. He’s so soft. Come see!”

Four

Well he just found his new best friend

Second to Zelda, of course

Is the one to ask for help with pranking people (mostly Legend) 

Together, they nearly get away with it every time

Does she know blacksmithing? Is that a thing they teach the girls where she’s from?

It’s likely that she doesn’t

Oh well! Four is just going to have to make sure she’s taken care of

Very protective of her

Is going to get in her way multiple times

But in an accidentally on purpose sort of way

He gets stomped on, trampled and run over more times than he wishes to admit

He knows she can take care of herself, she’s just as much of a hero as all of them are

But Four sees her and sees Zelda and he gets this urge to keep her away from danger at all costs

It’s annoying

But they laugh and poke fun and he tries to tackle her for the hell of it and never succeeds

He means well, but that’s a conversation about to happen

It’s somewhere on the horizon

Time

Oh thank god, someone who knows what they’re doing

Do they? 

Who knows. But Time is going to use their ability to wrangle the boys to his advantage because honestly?

It’s like herding cats otherwise

Or cuccos- at least he has experience with that

Doesn’t think too much of it

Also takes to her on the spot

The change of energy is nice but he’s to reassure her when the case may be

Like when the boys are a bit much or when they’re teasing her

Time says near the beginning of the trip that if they bug her too much to tell him and he’ll set them straight

Not to say that she can’t do it herself but honestly- why should she have to?

Clearly she’s been through enough as it is

They both spend quiet time together

May have fallen asleep on each other at some point

Denies it but also has a picture hidden somewhere in his belongs

No one knows who he stole it from because at least three of them have a copy

And yet he never approached them for it

The mysteries add on with The Old Man

Sky

Literally no different

This guy could not care less

Forgets half of the time

It’s not something he would pay attention to

Has to be genuinely reminded at least once

He’s used to being the “mom friend” so if they help out in that regard Sky is going to give them brownie points

Because these boys don’t care about those things and Sky is tired of having to remind people to chew with their mouth closed-

Help him

He can’t do this alone

Has to be prepared for all things all the time

If Reader could just lighten the load a little bit he would be eternally grateful

He would tell her story for years to come

Granted, he was going to talk about his friends anyway but this one takes special precedence

Is the one she vents to without a second thought

If she can help carry his role in the group than he can be there as her support as well

There’s no difference between the lives of heroes

It’s hard on everyone

[jrob64]

Pet for Rent, Chapter 2/4 (The Idea)

A CS Modern AU Story

Thanks for joining me for chapter 2! Writing this story has been a bit therapeutic for me after losing my Zeke, and adopting Winston has been, too. I hope you'll stay with me for the rest of the story.

Shout out to @kmomof4 who sent Winston the ducky toy he has in the picture. His Aunt Krystal spoiled him with a welcome package the week we got him!

Thanks so much to @hookedmom. I'm lucky to have the best and most patient beta!

SUMMARY: Emma Swan tries to cheer up her heartbroken son by 'renting' a dog from the local animal shelter. When she attempts to do it a second time, she makes a mistake, and realizes the dog has been rented by someone else the same day - a very handsome man named Killian Jones.

CHAPTER SUMMARY: Emma, Henry, Killian and Norman/Winston spend more time together. When Henry continues feeling sad about having to leave the dog at the animal shelter, Killian proposes an idea that might solve the problem.

RATING: M (for smut in the last chapter, which can easily be skipped if that's not your thing)

WORDS: 6821

ALSO POSTED TO Ao3 and FFN

Story begins under the cut

Emma didn’t think it was possible for four hours with a stranger to pass so quickly. Sooner than she expected, Killian was looking at his phone and announcing that it was time to return Norman to the shelter. It may have been her imagination, but it sounded like there was a note of wistfulness in his voice.

Henry took control of the dog on the walk back, giving the adults an opportunity to resume the conversation that had been ongoing throughout most of their time together. Emma watched her son handling Norman as he wandered from one side of the path to the other to explore in the tall grass and she commented, “Henry is gonna sleep good tonight.”

“I don’t doubt that. He told me he had his last game of the season this morning.”

“That, in addition to playing fetch and ‘keep away’ with Norman, and all of the running around he did with you, will have him zonking out early.” They walked on a few paces, before she added, “I want to thank you, Killian, for spending so much time with him. Since he doesn’t have a father, he doesn’t get a lot of one-on-one time with a man, so I really appreciate it.”

“It was my pleasure. He’s a good listener and a fast learner.”

“Yeah, I kinda wish he had more games left, so he could apply what you taught him. I’m afraid he’ll forget it by next season. You’re wonderful at teaching, and very patient.”

“Thank you, Emma. I truly did enjoy it.”

“The youth league is always begging for people to coach. Maybe you could do that next year.”

Killian looked thoughtful. “Perhaps I could, if I’m still here.”

“Any idea where would you go if you decide to leave?”

“Not really, but it wouldn’t be terribly far away. I want to stay close to Liam.”

When the shelter came into sight, Henry turned around and dragged Norman back to Emma and Killian. “I had fun today. Can we do this again?”

“I’ll have to check our schedule to see when we’ll have another chance to rent Norman,” Emma answered.

Henry shook his head. “No, I mean with Norman and Killian.”

“Oh, uh,” Emma stammered, glancing at Killian, who was scratching behind his ear. “I don’t know about that, kid. This was just an accident and Killian was nice enough to make the best of the situation.”

“But Mom, he had fun, too, didn’t you, Killian?”

“What did I tell you about putting him on the spot?”

“Sorry, Killian,” Henry apologized. “But it did seem like you were having fun.”

Killian reached forward to ruffle the boy’s hair. “It’s quite alright, lad, and you’re right - I had a very good time with you and your mother today. And Winston, of course.”

“You mean Norman,” Emma remarked.

“He still seems more like a Winston to me. Don’t you see the resemblance between him and England’s former Prime Minister?”

Emma took in the dog’s jutting lower jaw, drooping jowls and prominent forehead, and had to admit he did share some physical traits with Winston Churchill. “Yeah, now that you mention it, I do see it.”

“Anyway, at the risk of being too forward, it would be nice to have another day with you and your boy, if you’re amenable to that, Swan.”

Emma thought for a moment, then said, “Henry, why don’t you take Norman to the end of the path and give us a minute, okay?”

He started to protest, but seemed to think better of it. “Come on, Norman. Mom doesn’t want me to hear what she’s gonna say.”

Emma watched him go, her mouth agape over his comment. She heard Killian chuckle and turned to look at him.

“He’s quite a bright young man,” he laughed.

“Yeah, he’s getting too smart for his own good,” she agreed. “But he’s still a little boy and I’m a protective mom. I don’t want to promise him something that’s not going to happen, so if you’re not serious about doing this again…”

“I assure you, Emma,” he interrupted. “I wouldn’t dream of letting him down. If you’re willing to give me your contact information, I’ll send you some options and we can figure out a day that works.”

She eyed him critically for a few seconds, seeing nothing but sincerity in his expression. “I know Henry would really like that.”

“Only Henry?” he asked, quirking a brow.

She couldn’t help but smile. “I have to admit, I had a really good time today, too. So, um, to answer your question, I am, how did you say it, amenable to doing it again.”

His grin made her heart do a pleasant little flip. She made sure Henry and Norman were okay while waiting for Killian to pull out his phone and start a new contact. Once he did, he handed it to her so she could add her information.

After handing it back, they began walking again. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him checking the phone screen. “It’s not a fake number, by the way,” she said.

“That’s good to know,” he returned with a smirk, while typing out a text to her so she would have his info. “Is that something you’ve done before?”

“Maybe,” she replied cryptically.

“In that case, I feel honored that you gave me the real thing.”

She giggled in response, giving him a slight nudge with her elbow as they reached the end of the path.

“What did you say, Mom?” Henry asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

“Killian and I are going to look at our schedules to find a day that works.”

“Yay!” Henry shouted. “How about next Saturday?”

“Calm down, kid. I told you we’re going to figure it out.”

They arrived at the shelter and Killian opened the door and held it for them. David was sitting at a desk behind the counter, tapping away at the computer keyboard. He looked up with a broad smile when they entered. “How did it go?”

“Good,” Emma replied. “Thank you for allowing us to borrow Norman for the day.”

David looked between the two adults standing before him, obviously wanting more details. “Did you…all of you…get along okay?”

“Yes we did, Dave,” Killian said smugly.

There were several seconds when all they could hear was the barking of some of the dogs in the back. Finally, David sighed. “Alright, I guess I’ll just take Norman back to his cage, then.”

“Oh, uh,” Emma said, giving Killian a wink, “one of us will be in touch to schedule another day for us…all of us…to rent Norman again.”

David’s grin told them he knew exactly what that meant.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

“I hear you met my future brother-in-law,” Belle said. It was Monday, and Emma had stopped at the library to return a couple of books and choose some more before her shift at the sheriff’s station.

“News travels fast.”

“Killian always eats lunch with us after church. He told us about the mix-up at the animal shelter and said he had a great time with you and Henry.”

“He seems like a nice guy,” Emma said, moving to a shelf and studying the books more closely than necessary.

“He thinks very highly of you, too.”

Emma shot her a brief glance. “Oh, yeah? What did he say?”

“Well,” Belle began, clearly struggling to be non-chalant, “he said you were very easy to talk to and he enjoyed your sense of humor. He also said he had fun helping Henry with his soccer skills.”

“He was really good with Henry and I, um, I liked talking to him, too. He’s supposed to contact me to figure out another time to rent Norman together. Henry asked if we could.”

“I don’t suppose you protested too much, did you?”

Emma chose a book off of the shelf and studiously perused the summary on the back. “You know I want my kid to be happy.”

Belle crossed the space between them and laid her hand over the book, garnering Emma’s full attention. “To the best of my knowledge, you’ve never once introduced your son to a man you may be interested in dating in all the years I’ve known you.��

“Wait a second…first of all, I didn’t introduce him to Henry - we met accidentally, and secondly, who says I’m interested in dating him? We’re simply planning to rent Norman together again. It’s really not a big deal, Belle.”

“If you say so, but I have to tell you that I’ve never seen Killian so animated while talking about someone. You certainly made an impression on him.”

“I’m sure I did. Dressed in old sweatpants and a hoodie, no makeup, hair a complete disaster - I was a mess.”

“He didn’t mention that. He just talked about how he enjoyed the time he spent with you and how much he’s looking forward to seeing you again.”

Emma could feel her face heating and knew she must be as red as the leather jacket she was wearing. She wasn’t ready to admit that she was just as eager to see him again, too.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

That evening, Emma had just finished checking over Henry’s homework and shooed him off to the shower, when her phone dinged with an incoming text. Picking it up from the kitchen counter, she couldn’t help the smile that crossed her face upon seeing Killian’s name.

K: I’m hoping this message reaches Emma Swan. If I’ve reached someone else, you can blame it on her. It was followed by a smirking emoji.

She shook her head at his ridiculousness, and decided to play along.

E: I’m afraid you’ve been misled. This Emma Swan must be a horrible person. She added a winking emoji.

It took a few seconds for the three bubbles to pop up, then she laughed out loud when she read his reply.

  K: Oh, she is a terrible, awful person to give me a fake number.

E: She’s probably not used to giving out her number to random men who just happened to rent the same dog she did.

K: That seems to be a plausible excuse. Perhaps I should forgive her.

E: Oh, you most definitely should.

K: Very well. If I’m ever fortunate enough to see her again, I shall grant her my forgiveness.

E: That’s very gentlemanly of you.

K: I’m always a gentleman.

Emma heard the clothes hamper lid slam in the bathroom, signifying that Henry was finished with his shower.

E: I need to get Henry into bed. I’ll be back in twenty minutes or so, depending on how resistant he decides to be tonight.

K: Tell him I said goodnight.

E: That will probably get him all excited and it may be longer than twenty minutes.

K: I’m willing to wait.

Emma left her phone on the sofa and went to Henry’s bedroom, where he was getting settled under the covers. Sitting on the edge of his bed, she brushed his damp bangs away from his forehead.

“Did you brush your teeth?”

“You ask me that every night.”

“Yes, and half the time you’ve neglected to do it.”

“I just have to brush them again in the morning.”

Emma raised an eyebrow at him. “Did you, or didn’t you?”

He sighed dramatically. “I did. Wanna smell my breath to make sure?”

“Not particularly. I believe you. Ready to say your prayers?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Name three things of thanks,” she said, initiating their nightly tradition.

Henry tapped his chin in thought. “I scored two goals at recess.”

“That’s cool.”

“Yeah, I used what Killian taught me. Oh! That’s my second thing - meeting Killian.”

“Actually, he texted me while you were in the shower.”

“He did? Did he say when we can rent Norman together again?”

“We haven't had a chance to discuss it yet. He did say to tell you goodnight.”

“Tell him I said goodnight to him, too.”

“I will. What’s your third thing?”

“Umm…we changed seats in class and now I’m sitting beside Avery.”

“Just make sure the two of you don’t get into trouble for talking too much.”

“We won’t.”

“Good. Now, what three things do you want to ask of God?”

“To help me do good on my math test tomorrow, to send me another dog, and to let us see Killian again soon.”

They both folded their hands and closed their eyes while Henry said his prayers. When he finished, Emma read him a chapter of Fantastic Mr. Fox, kissed him goodnight and left his room, turning off the light on her way out.

Picking her phone up from her couch, she scrolled through the text conversation with Killian, smiling at the light banter they shared.

E: I’m back.

When a response didn’t come through for a couple of minutes, she went to her bedroom to change into her pajamas. Then she brushed her teeth, washed her face, and applied moisturizer.

When she went back into the living room, she saw a new message on her phone.

K: Is it okay if I call you? I’m not fond of texting.

She noticed that the time stamp was right after she put her phone down, over ten minutes ago. Instead of answering, she brought up his contact and hit the call button.

“Hello, Swan.”

“Hey, sorry if I kept you waiting.”

“I was hoping I didn’t upset you by asking to call.”

“No, nothing like that. I just decided to do my nighttime routine,” Emma explained. “Henry said to tell you goodnight, by the way. I always ask him to tell me three things he’s thankful for from his day, and you were involved in two of them.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. He scored two goals playing soccer today at recess, because of what you taught him, and he was thankful for meeting you. That’s the third night in a row he’s said that one.”

“That’s very kind of him to say.”

“Well, you made quite an impression on him and he’s eager to see you again. Speaking of which, what does your schedule look like for the next few weeks?”

“It’s wide open, actually. Do Saturdays work best for you?”

“Yeah, because Henry is in school during the week and I work until five every day. I also work one Saturday a month. This coming Saturday is the one I work this month.”

“How about the following week?”

She switched him to speaker and pulled up her calendar app. “That looks good. Henry gets a haircut that morning at nine, but we could meet after that. The weather is going to start getting too cold if we wait much longer.”

“Liam has been telling me to be prepared for a cold winter. He says Maine is quite a bit colder than England during the winter months,” he stated. “Shall we make plans for that day, then?”

“Sounds good to me. Want to meet at the shelter at ten-thirty?”

“Actually,” Killian began, then paused for a few moments before clearing his throat and continuing. “I was wondering if you would agree to me picking up the two of you to go to the shelter together.”

Emma bit her lip, considering his offer. Her gut instinct was to decline because it would seem too much like a date, but her practical side said it was logical for them to make the twenty minute drive together.

She knew he was waiting for her answer and was probably having second thoughts about asking, since she was taking so long. “Um, sure, that would be fine,” she finally said. “I’ll text my address to you.”

“Okay, good. Shall we say ten o’clock? Will that give you enough time for Henry’s haircut?”

“Yeah. It only takes about twenty minutes, if that long. His barber is Jefferson and he’s pretty fast.”

“Liam recommended him and I had an appointment there a couple of weeks ago. He is fast, if a little…quirky.”

“Oh, you mean because he wears the top hat? I guess he’s trying to live up to the name of his shop.”

“Just naming his shop the Mad Hatter of Hair makes him sound a bit eccentric.”

Emma laughed. “He’s harmless, though. His daughter Grace is in Henry’s class and she’s very sweet. Jefferson is raising her by himself. His wife passed away before Grace started kindergarten.”

“How sad. Now I feel bad for judging him.”

“I wouldn’t say you were judging him, just making an accurate observation. I knew him before his wife died and he was every bit as quirky as he is now.”

They continued talking for another twenty minutes. Just like the day they met, the conversation didn’t lag at all as they transitioned easily from one subject to another. Before they ended the call, Killian asked if it would be alright to call her again later in the week and she agreed without hesitation.

Lying in bed that night, Emma smiled dreamily as she replayed their conversation in her mind. She may be venturing into self-imposed forbidden territory ever since Henry’s father abandoned her, but Killian Jones intrigued her and she couldn’t find it within herself to care.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

Killian called Emma four more times over the next two weeks. Their conversations lasted longer each time, until they spent over an hour talking and laughing on Thursday, before their scheduled outing.

He suggested that they take Norman back to Storybrooke’s nature preserve after picking him up, which she thought was a great idea. She mentioned that she and Henry spent quite a bit of time there during the summer, hiking the trails and wading in the creek. Despite intending to visit, Killian hadn’t been able to get there yet and was happy to know his first time would be with Emma, Henry and Norman.

Saturday morning found him taking more time than usual to get ready. He chided himself for being a bit vain, but wanted to make the extra effort for the lovely lady Swan. If things went well, he was planning to ask her out on a proper date.

He had confided his intention to Belle, hoping she would give him advice about where to take Emma, should she agree. Not only did his future sister-in-law present him with recommendations, she also mentioned that she would be happy to watch Henry, and was sure Liam would, too.

Once Killian was satisfied with his appearance, he tried to occupy himself until it was time to drive to Emma and Henry’s house. After going online and paying some bills, washing the few dishes in the sink and sorting his laundry, he still had about twenty minutes left.

His heart sank when he heard the notification for an incoming text, thinking it might be Emma cancelling their plans. He was relieved, then a little apprehensive to see it was from his brother. Belle promised she wouldn’t say anything to Liam about his plans to ask Emma on a date, but they were an engaged couple and couples weren’t supposed to keep secrets from each other. Unfortunately, his former girlfriend hadn’t abided by that rule, since she kept one whopper of a secret from him.

L: Any plans for this afternoon, little brother?

Killian dropped his head back with a sigh. Not only did Liam insist on calling him that irritating moniker, now he had to explain that he did indeed have plans. He was sure he would have to answer questions about what they were and with whom, since he rarely did anything on the weekends.

K: Actually, I do.

L: Oh, really? What are you doing?

K: I’m renting Winston from the shelter again.

L: Great! Belle is working today. Would you mind if I came over to see the little guy?

Killian’s thumbs hovered over his screen, trying to decide how to tell his brother no without sounding rude. Even though Liam was acquainted with Emma, he tended to be over protective, and Killian didn’t want him giving her the third degree or making her feel uncomfortable. Plus, he selfishly wanted to spend time alone with her and Henry.

Glancing at the clock, he saw it was almost time for him to leave. Quickly, he typed a message he was hoping would appease Liam.

K: Sorry, not this time. Emma, Henry and I made plans to spend another day together with him.

As he pulled on his jacket, he heard another notification. Closing his eyes momentarily, he opened them to read Liam’s message, then released a relieved breath.

L: I hope the four of you have a good time, so I can see that look of happiness on your face again.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

“Henry, Killian’s here!” Emma announced, dropping the curtain after seeing his car pull up to the curb.

“Coming!” she heard him yell in response.

She quickly ducked into the bathroom and inspected her appearance in the mirror one more time. She hoped to make a better impression on Killian by applying light makeup and pulling her hair back into a neat ponytail. Her outfit was simple - jeans, sneakers, her favorite light blue blouse, and red leather jacket.

The doorbell rang as she re-entered the living room, but before she could get to the door, Henry sped past her to pull it open. “Hey, Killian!” he said excitedly.

“Hello, lad,” Killian answered, then shifted his eyes from Henry to Emma. She saw him swallow before giving her one of his winning smiles. “Good morning, Emma.”

“Hi, Killian. You’re right on time.”

“Not being prompt is bad form, Swan.” Looking at Henry again, he stated, “Your haircut makes you look a bit older.”

Henry reached up to run both hands along the sides of his head. “Do you really think so?”

“Aye, at least a year or two.”

“Please don’t say that,” Emma said, handing Henry his jacket. “He’s growing up way too fast as it is.”

During the drive to the shelter, Henry talked about one thing after another. Emma wondered if Killian would tire of her son’s constant chatter, but his questions at regular intervals proved he was fully engaged in what Henry had to say.

Meanwhile, she spent the time admiring the man beside her. He was dressed in dark, stonewashed jeans, an army green button-down shirt, and the same black leather jacket he wore the first time they met. His scruff was neatly trimmed and his dark hair artfully combed. His rich laugh at some of Henry’s comments was a sound she was sure she would never get tired of hearing.

When they entered the shelter, David gave them a smug smile that Emma tried to ignore. She knew he was probably patting himself on the back for his matchmaking, but she really didn’t mind, because meeting Killian was, so far, a positive experience.

Norman was extremely excited to see them again, and after everyone got into the car, they were on their way back to Storybrooke. Henry was preoccupied with Norman in the back seat, so the adults finally had a chance to chat with each other. Their conversation was as free-flowing as it had been every other time they spoke in the past two weeks. Emma had never met anyone so easy to talk to, and wondered if it was because their backgrounds were so similar.

During their earlier phone conversations, she learned his father had abandoned his family when Killian and Liam were little, leaving their mother to raise them alone. She shared how she was abandoned at a fire station baby box when she was less than a week old, and had never been adopted. They both had been in situations where they were deceived and misled by the person they loved. Emma came to realize that being able to empathize with someone else made it easier to connect with them, just as she had with Killian.

The crisp autumn weather was perfect for hiking at the nature preserve. They explored all of the available paths and walked along the shores of the creek. The water was too chilly for wading, but Norman enjoyed splashing in now and then when he spotted a particularly intriguing leaf, bug or stick.

After hiking for a couple of hours, they took a break to drink Gatorade and snack on protein bars, thoughtfully packed by Killian. He also had treats for Norman, which Henry used to try and teach the dog again how to sit on command.

They stayed until the last possible minute before getting into the car for the drive back to the shelter. No one spoke for several miles, until Henry finally said, “I really wish we didn’t have to take Norman back there. He’s always so sad. Why can’t we just adopt him, Mom?”

Emma glanced over at Killian, who met her eyes for a second before directing his back to the road. “I wish we could, but it wouldn’t really be fair to Norman. We’re both gone all day and he would have to be penned up that whole time.”

“But he loves us and we love him!” Henry exclaimed. “Ernie didn’t have to be penned up and he was fine during the day.”

Emma turned to look at her son. “I know, kid, but it was easy with Ernie. He was with us for several years and was older. Norman is young and full of energy, so he’s going to need a lot more attention and training. I wouldn’t trust him being in the house all day by himself.”

Henry heaved a huge sigh. “Okay.”

They were all silent for the rest of the drive. Emma saw Killian look at her out of the corner of his eye once in a while, but they didn’t carry on a conversation. She spent the time thinking about the practicality of adopting Norman, but knew she would have to stick to her guns, because it just wouldn’t be fair to the rambunctious dog to be cooped up all day.

When they reached the shelter and exited the car, Killian slowed Emma down by placing a hand on her arm, while Henry entered the building with Norman. “Emma, I’ve been giving it some thought and I have an idea, if you’re open to it.”

She shrugged slightly. “Sure, let’s hear it.”

“Perhaps, if you adopted Win-, er, Norman, I could keep him during the day while you’re at work and school. I could pick him up in the morning before you leave and drop him off after you get home.”

“Sort of like shared custody or dog sitting?” she asked, turning to face him.

He chuckled. “Aye, something like that, I suppose.”

“I don’t know, Killian. That seems like a pretty big commitment between people who barely know each other. You’re not even sure you’re going to stay in Storybrooke.”

He scratched behind his ear. “If I move, it won’t be for a while, since I signed a six month lease on my apartment. That would give us time to train the dog. I know we’ve just met, but I…I’ve enjoyed getting to know you and your boy. I’m hoping this is just the beginning of our friendship.”

Emma stuck her hands in the back pocket of her jeans and rocked back on her heels. “I hope so, too, but I’m still not sure about the arrangement you’re suggesting.”

“I completely understand,” he said, then paused before asking, “Are you counting it out altogether, or will you consider it?”

She pulled her lip between her teeth in thought for a few seconds. “I’ll consider it,” she finally answered.

He gave her a small smile, then moved to open the door for her.

They went inside to see Henry sitting cross-legged on the floor with Norman, the dog’s head resting on his leg. David was listening to the boy give him a detailed description of their day at the nature preserve and looked up to give them a big grin. “Sounds like you had quite the adventure today.”

“Aye, we all had quite a workout,” Killian responded. “It’s quite a lovely place.”

“Yeah, we’re lucky to have it in Storybrooke,” David said. “Mary Margaret takes her class there on a field trip every year.”

Henry’s head whipped around. “Mrs. Nolan didn’t take our class!”

“It’s early in the school year,” Emma said. “I’m sure she’ll take you sometime.”

“They usually go in the spring,” David explained, as he walked around the end of the counter. “Are you ready for me to take Norman?”

“No,” Henry said, his voice muffled as he buried his face in the dog’s neck.

The three adults exchanged understanding looks. They gave the boy a couple more minutes, before Emma picked up the end of the leash and put her hand on Henry’s head. “It’s time to say goodbye to him, kid.”

Henry drew back to look at Norman. “Goodbye, boy. I’m gonna miss you.” He kissed the dog on top of the head and rubbed his ears.

Emma reached down to pet the dog, then handed the leash to David. Killian stood beside her to pat Norman, too, telling him to be a good boy.

David bid them all goodbye, then headed to the back with the dog reluctantly following him. Henry looked up at Emma from where he still sat on the floor. “Mom…”

“Henry, don’t say it. I already told you why it’s not a good idea to adopt him right now.”

“Right now? Does that mean we can adopt him later?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Emma replied, giving him her patented ‘don’t push it’ look. “Let’s go, kid.”

With a long-suffering sigh, Henry pushed himself to his feet and followed her out the door Killian was holding open. Once they were in the car and on their way to Storybrooke, Killian asked, “Would you, um, would the two of you like to get a late lunch at Granny’s, when we get back?”

“What do you think, Henry?” Emma threw over her shoulder.

He turned from where he had been glumly staring out the window. “Can I get a cheeseburger and fries?”

“Sure.”

“And a chocolate milkshake?” When his mom didn’t answer immediately, he added, “Please? It’ll make me less sad about Norman.”

Killian chuckled lowly as Emma rolled her eyes, muttering, “I’m raising a con artist.”

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

Killian mentally kicked himself the whole way back into town. What was he thinking, asking Emma to agree to what was basically a long term commitment? He probably ruined his chance for asking her out on a date, too. He was sure she would think he was coming on too strong, if he did.

At least she agreed to have lunch with him. Hopefully, she would also allow him to continue calling her. Those phone calls and the texts they shared were always the highlight of his week.

As much as he enjoyed his time with Emma, having Henry with them made it even better. Killian hadn’t had a lot of interaction with children, but it was easy being around Emma’s son. He was bright, articulate and funny - very much like his mother. He was also respectful and well-mannered.

On the day they met, Emma confided to him that she was afraid she was making a lot of mistakes as a single mom, who never had a mother of her own to set an example, but he strongly disagreed. She wasn’t perfect - no parent was, but Henry seemed to be well-adjusted and confident, so she was obviously doing many things right.

Killian saw how much Henry loved the dog and wished he could help make the boy’s desire to adopt him come true, which is why he made the offer. He had come to love the furry little rascal, too, and would seriously consider adopting Norman himself. He just didn’t know if he could take the dog with him if he decided to move away from Storybrooke.

He pulled up in front of Granny’s, cut the engine, unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door, as he heard Emma and Henry do the same. Typical of a young boy, Henry took off running and was already skipping up the steps to the front door by the time Killian reached Emma’s side.

“He’s pretty excited,” Emma explained. “Eating out is kind of a treat because we don’t do it very often.”

“I hope I wasn’t out of line for asking,” Killian said.

“No, not at all. It really perked him up.”

Killian halted at the bottom of the steps, causing Emma to stop and look at him. “I also hope I didn’t upset you by making the offer to watch Norman.”

“You didn’t,” she assured him. “I’m definitely going to think about it. I really miss having a dog around, too. I just have to weigh all the pros and cons.”

He smiled and nodded his understanding, then bounded up the steps to open the door. Henry was at the counter talking animatedly to Ruby, who looked up and gaped at Emma in surprise.

“Hey, girl! I didn’t realize you knew the very handsome new guy in town!”

Killian could feel his ears turning red, when Emma glanced at him before replying. “Hi, Ruby. Actually, we met by accident a couple of weeks ago.”

“By accident, huh? Did you hit him with your car or something?”

“Nothing like that. We were both renting the same dog at the animal shelter.”

“Was seeing him today another accident?”

Emma put her hands on her hips. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no. It was planned this time.”

Killian wasn’t sure he had ever seen such a wide grin on the waitress’s face. They all gave Ruby their drink order, then Emma ushered Henry to a booth and Killian slid in across from them.

“Are you getting lasagna?” she asked.

“I think I’m going to try the grilled cheese and onion rings. Someone recommended them to me,” he smirked.

“Very intelligent person,” Emma grinned.

“Aye, that she is.”

Ruby arrived at their table with their drinks and Henry’s milkshake. She gave Emma and Killian another broad smile when she took down their identical orders. “His and hers grilled cheeses, huh? Maybe there’s some truth to the saying that couples begin to eat alike.”

Emma sighed and rolled her eyes. “I think the saying is that couples start to look alike, and we aren’t a couple. We’re just friends.”

“I see,” Ruby said, glancing at Henry, who was busy spooning the thick milkshake into his mouth. “Well, they do say there are benefits to being friends.” She gave them an exaggerated wink, then turned and made her way to the kitchen.

“Ruby isn’t exactly the epitome of subtlety,” Emma said, a blush filling her cheeks with color.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

“It was nice of Killian to take us to Granny’s today,” Henry said, as he was climbing into bed that night.

“Yes, it was. I was very proud of you for remembering to thank him without needing a reminder.”

“Thanks for letting me get a milkshake, even if it didn’t make me stop feeling sad about not being able to adopt Norman.”

Emma tucked the covers around his shoulders. “I know, but try not to think about it.”

“I can’t,” Henry pouted. “He’s probably crying himself to sleep tonight.”

“I think he’s probably going to sleep remembering all of the fun we had today.”

Henry stubbornly shook his head. “Nuh-uh. He’s wondering why we didn’t bring him home with us.”

“Henry,” Emma sighed, “I know you’re sad, but we just can’t…”

“I know,” he interrupted, “you keep saying it wouldn’t be fair for him to be alone all day, but he’s already alone at the shelter all day, except for Mr. Nolan, and at night, there’s nobody there at all.”

“There’s other dogs and cats…”

“That’s not the same. They’re all in cages by themselves. If we adopted him, he could sleep on my bed, like Ernie did.”

Knowing she was going around in circles with him, Emma reached over and picked up the book from his nightstand. “How about if you say your prayers after I read to you tonight?”

Heaving a dramatic sigh, he said, “Fine, but it’s not gonna make me forget about Norman.”

After reading to him for fifteen minutes, hearing his prayers - which mentioned Norman and Killian several times - and kissing him goodnight, she left his room. Heading into her own bedroom, she went through her nightly routine automatically, lost in thought.

Once she was in her pajamas, free of make-up and teeth brushed, she peeked in on her son to find him sound asleep. She made sure the front door was deadbolted, turned off the lights in the kitchen and living room and went back into her room. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she stared at the phone in her hand, mind racing.

Finally, she pulled up Killian’s contact and hit the call button.

She was almost ready to hang up after it rang four times, not wanting it to go to voicemail, when he answered. “Hello, Swan. I wasn’t expecting to talk to you again so soon.”

“I hope I’m not calling too late.”

“Not at all. What’s on your mind?”

“Henry was still upset about Norman before he went to sleep. I feel like I’m being selfish by not allowing him to get a dog.”

“Why do you feel that way?”

“Because one of my excuses is that a dog is a lot of work and would need training, which it would. I’m making it seem like all the work would fall on me. Now, I know Henry is only eight, but I think he’s pretty responsible for his age.”

“From what I’ve seen, I would agree with that,” Killian cut in.

“Thank you. Anyway, I think he would be able to help train and take care of the dog, so that excuse is out the window. The other big concern I had is that the dog would have to be home by himself all day, which brings me to the reason I’m calling. I’ve been seriously considering your offer, if it’s still on the table.”

“It is.”

“Are you sure that’s not asking too much of you? I mean, you’re home during the day, but you’re working. How would you be able to take care of him?”

“I’ve had him here with me a few times already and he makes himself right at home. He’s housebroken and doesn’t demand too much attention. If he starts getting restless, I take him outside and play with him for a while. That works with my schedule because I have to take breaks now and then, when I’ve been staring at the computer screen for too long.”

She blew out a long breath. “What if it turns out to be too big of a commitment? We’ve spent some time together and have done a lot of talking to get to know each other, but we’re still basically strangers.”

“Well actually…” Killian began, then paused for several moments before continuing, “I was hoping to have an opportunity to ask you something today, but the right moment never presented itself.”

Emma’s heart began to beat faster in anticipation of what she suspected he might ask. “What did you want to ask?”

“Would you, um…would you consider going out with me?”

Standing up to pace back and forth between her bed and dresser, she chewed her lip in contemplation. She could literally count how many dates she’d had since Henry’s birth on one hand. She only went on those dates to appease Ruby, who was convinced Emma’s Mr. Right was out there somewhere, but she hadn’t been attracted to any of the men.

She couldn’t say the same about Killian. From the time she laid eyes on him, she felt an attraction that only got stronger the more she got to know him. He seemed to be the total package - kind, intelligent, considerate, and insanely hot.

“What happens if we adopt Norman, then go out with each other and realize we’re not compatible?”

“If you adopt him, I would keep my commitment to help take care of him, even if we decide dating doesn’t work for us. You have my word, Emma.”

She came to a halt at the end of her bed and turned to face the mirror above her dresser. For eight years, Henry had been her number one priority and always would be, but maybe it was time for her to do something for herself. Could that something be going out with Killian Jones?

She was so deep in thought, she didn’t realize how long she had been standing there considering her answer. When Killian finally spoke, his quiet voice startled her. “What do you say, Swan?”

“Yes, Killian. I will go out with you.”

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

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