#and therefore those years he spent fighting for his and his siblings' lives

[dire-kumori]

Oh and i had a question about, like, logistics of the reaper au!

Assuming there's a possible ending where reaper Mike dies and young Mike manages to live... do you think it would change things? Would it matter, in the end?

Or is Evan still fated to die at Mike’s hands, is Liz still fated to die, too? Is young Mike still fated to grow up and get scooped before ultimately dying while trying to kill his younger self? (Which is just... very, very sad and horrific in so many ways)

Because if none of these things happen, it could create a paradox; where would reaper Mike have come from if Evan and Liz never die, and Mike never gets scooped?

...Very good question.

Okay, so I like to think that Reaper Mike's mission is ultimately doomed to fail. Obviously he's never going to successfully erase his past self. But after a while, it's stopped being about 'making things right' and 'protecting Evan' and more about 'hurting (kid) Mike as much as possible,' so that doesn't really matter to him. At a certain point he just kind of stops being 'Michael Afton' and just becomes 'the Reaper.'

But Reaper Mike isn't the only one who's changed by the repeated loops. Even with the memories fragmented, young Mike is living out... weeks? Months? Hell, maybe even years in this loop. He's growing up, essentially, but without aging. I mean, of course his emotional and mental maturity is skewed because - [vague gesture at the blood-soaked death parade he's trapped in] - but after a certain number of loops he isn't quite the same person who would have thoughtlessly shoved his brother's head into moving machine parts. Especially not when he still has the broken images of Evan sobbing hysterically and begging the somebody to stop hurting his brother (the Reaper turning its fury onto Evan for daring to get between him and his target, past Mike throwing himself over Evan's little body in a vain attempt to at the very least save Evan's life, if not his own) floating around in his brain.

Can you tell I'm just word vomiting at this point? I kind of lost track of the original question.

I'm not 100% what this would mean for the Reaper Mike because with past Mike growing and changing, the Reaper would inevitably change as well. I like throwing characters up against forces or circumstances beyond their control, but I don't like saying things are just fated to happen. If things play out the same way again, it's because factors leading to those events are still the same. It might actually be that so long as Reaper Mike is stuck outside of his own time, he's largely unaffected by changes made to his past aside from some ripples in his memories. He was pretty shocked when his past self made choices he was certain he never would have made, such as seeking vengeance for Evan's sake after the loop where the Reaper killed them both. So scratch what I said above, past Mike is growing, while Reaper Mike stagnates, wallowing in his self-loathing.

[mapliusoup]

some killjoys past headcanons (mostly venom siblings)

-Kobras and Poisons moms met when they were both wandering in the desert. Poison was like 3 years old, and Kobra was a newborn. Their moms started to live together (thats why Kobra and Poison are convinced theyre siblings. their moms never told them otherwise) but didnt really take care of the kids, because both of them were ex-baterry city citizens who escaped to the desert, and they hated it. They blamed their problems on the kids. Poison was the one to take care of Kobra

-When Party was 10 and Kobra was 6, their moms decided to sell them to BLI for some money (Party was going to be trained to be a model because of his slender constitution, and Kobra was going to be trained to be a scarecrow). Party somehow overheard the two women talking, and decided to escape with Kobra.

-the next two years, Party and Kobra roamed alone in the desert without anyone. in thoses years, Party's physical state started decaying. They gave almost all resources (food, water) to Kobra because they were really protective of him.

-in the end, when Party was 12 and Kobra was around 8, they casually stumbled across gravel gerties home for children, and even though Party didnt like the place, they decided the best thing for Kobra was to stay there. so they stayed.

-there, Party met Jet (who was 14 at the time), who lived in the place. and they both started to work as teachers there, because they were really shorthanded in staff. Party didnt like it at all because they already had trouble with kids, but Jet, who had worked there for a year already, helped them to manage the children.

-Kobra had a lot of trouble interacting with children there, because he (like Party) was autistic. of course, neither he or Party knew it. Jet and Party therefore spent a lot of time with Kobra, and thats when the three started to become really close.

-Poison was really protective of Kobra and didnt let him out alone at all. They were scared of anything happening to him- from drunk zoners to dracs, anything really- and Kobra felt like Party didnt trust him. And yes, it messed up with his self-esteem pretty well.

-So after a little fight with Party, he snapped and screamed at them that they didnt trust him, they didnt think he was capable of doing things on his own, and more things (Party still thinks about that day). and he runned away. and logically, like he never got out alone, he quickly got lost.

-Kobra roamed in the desert for a couple days. and thats when he met Ghoul.

-Ghoul's older sister, mother, and father had been killed by the BLI when he was 6 years old. and he had no one since then. He had spent so much time alone in the desert that he forgot how to interact with humans and just treated them as animals. He threw a can down the hill for Kobra to get it. And Kobra actually did. thats what convinced Ghoul he wasnt dangerous.

-Ghoul was 15 too when he met Kobra. and slowly, they got closer and closer, as Ghoul teached Kobra how to survive in the wide desert and Kobra explained to Ghoul how to correctly talk and act around other humans.

-At some point, Kobra accidentaly found his way back to gravel gerties. Three months had passed since he escaped it.

-Jet was to first to see him arrive. When he saw him, he whispered something to a children who runned away, and Jet smiled and told him "welcome back." -Party arrived running and panting a couple minutes later. When they saw him, they slapped him across the face. And then hugged him. and then slapped him again.

-Ghoul stood a couple meters away, nervous and not sure if it was safe to approach his friend. Jet saw him, asked Kobra about who it was, and he replied "my best friend" without hesitation.

-At first, Party and Jet werent sure it was a good idea to welcome Ghoul among them. but it was the first time Kobra spoke about someone else like they were a true friend. And Jet accepted.

-Party was nervous around Ghoul in the beginning, but then got to know them more and has been forever grateful for him to basically save Kobras life.

-Jet was the one to teach Ghoul how to read. because of course, he couldnt. it frustrated him a lot and he struggled badly with language, but was surprinsgly good at maths, science, and mostly, tech.

-Party trusted Kobra a lot to go out by himself (though it still made them really nervous), and because of that, Kobra started going to Crash Track. And started racing there. He quickly built himself a name among the bikers.

(okay so i made this very quickly and without editing, plus i havent put all the info i wanted on it. so pt 1?)

[conallblackbar]

♛ → THE REACH presents CONALL BLACKBAR, the LORD of BANDALLON when the dragons danced in the sky they thought the GREENS  would still fly, but in the blink of an eye, they would all die. the THIRTY-TWO year old MALE who was CHEERFUL & RESILIENT before they saw the first of the flames, is now DEFENSIVE & SELF-DESTRUCTIVE after seeing the last. they’re often associated with the smell of stale ale on the breath, old letters falling apart from age, bruised and bloodied knuckles with no memory of how they came to be that way ( josh o’connor. )

pinterest ☘ playlist ☘ wanted connections ☘ character building ☘ timeline ☘ tasks

tws: mentions of death, suspected murder, alcoholism, mention of suicide

history.

to live

from a young age, conall jon blackbar was incredibly gifted at making other people smile. mischievous, certainly, but not malicious, his sole purpose in life during his youth was making others laugh, spreading joy, and helping others.

a happy-go-lucky child, he spent his early years chasing his brother around, for wherever kieran blackbar was, conall was never far away. it would not be inaccurate to say he hero worshipped his older brother - a role model and sibling all in one. for as long as he can remember, conall has wanted to be like kieran, and flushes with pride when compared to him.

his good nature carried him to adulthood. In his younger years, it was rare to see conall without a smile on his face and full of cheer, the kind of person you’d want at every party. he had many friends, a loud laugh, and was reasonably well-liked.

during the dance, he did what he had done for most of his life thus far - he followed his brother, fighting at his side. he is an athletic and capable fighter, but perhaps not extraordinary enough to distinguish himself the way his brother was. still, he fought, he killed, and he survived, which is a feat in itself, and found that he quite enjoyed the camaraderie amongst men at war.

to die

his marriage to abigail wylde was born of love, their courtship beginning when they were both very young. the dance prolonged the engagement, but they did eventually wed in 136ac, eight years ago.

they both very much wanted to be married to one another, the dance was still ongoing, and conall was not around much. conall was unfaithful to her during his time away from home. she was not faithful to him either. things became very messy, very quickly.

by the third year of their marriage, things had dramatically fallen apart. whilst they were attempting to work on their issues, those close to either party at the time were aware the couple were in a bad way, arguing often and rarely sharing a bed. this came to a head the night of her death, when the couple attended a feast and ended up in a public spat. conall excused himself, and was not seen before the end of the night. abigail remained at the feast, and was still up when most of the guests retired.

when the guests awoke the next morning, they found abigail blackbar dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs. the death was investigated, and conall ruled out as a suspect, but mud sticks - there are still persistent rumours that he offed her by chucking her down some stairs. there are other theories swirling about what happened to her, from murder, to suicide, to a drunken fall, but nothing was ever confirmed.

conall believes that his wife's death was self-inflicted. he isn't sure abigail meant to die, but certainly that the fall down the stairs was perhaps a cry for attention or out of pure desperation. therefore, even though he did not murder her directly, he still harbours some guilt for her death and holds himself responsible. in the first year of her death, he used to obsess over what could have happened to her, but obsession gave way to despair. now, he's pretty sure it was suicide, and isn't looking for answers any more.

a note from dove: if you'd like to, feel free for your character to assume a connection to abigail blackbar (nee wylde), whether friendship, enmity or anything in between, or for them to have been present at the feast and experience the death first-hand.

to exist

in the aftermath of his wife's death, many pointed the finger at conall, including those he considered friends. he never forgot those who whispered about him, even those he trusted most, and it's left him struggling to trust the people he once knew best. suspicion clouds most of his interactions.

he still smiles and laughs, but now, there is something pathetic about it, and he has grown incredibly self-destructive. he drinks heavily and often, throws himself into dangerous situations head first, without any sort of fear for his own safety. ironically, this actually improved his prowess in battle dramatically as he takes far less caution now than he did before.

as well as drinking, he's a big gambler, and seeks drunken brawls when he's intoxicated just to feel something. if it's an unhealthy comping mechanism, he'll try it at least once.

in the years immediately following his wife's death, it was understandable that he would behave this way. the toll of losing a wife, coupled with the fact that many people he considered friends now look at him with suspicion. it was natural to fall apart. however, he did not put himself back together. any sympathy for his situation is long gone.

he’s not a complete waster now - when sober, he’s pretty functional, which is probably why he’s still trusted to get things done. however, it’s very obvious he’s going through the motions when it comes to his day-to-day responsibilities, and taking very little joy or pride in any of it beyond the fact it occupies his thoughts in the same way going off the rails does in his free time. it is important, i think, to note that he is not so much addicted to alcohol as he is to self-destructive behaviour. he had a complete apathy for his own life at the point and doesn't much care if he lives or dies.

his behaviour is only troubling to those who care for him personally, but luckily he has a fair amount to do between captaining the blackbar fleet, overseeing the shield isles for kieran, and the bandallon boys. he’s doing better than he could be (and has historically done when he had less on his plate), but it would not be accurate to say this man is well.

personality.

basics

in his happier years, conall had a great talent for making others laugh and a skill for mimicry and impressions. he was friendly and funny, with a large group of friends, and a bit flirtatious too. he enjoyed being the centre of attention and entertaining.

a glutton for punishment, most of conall's destructive behaviours are born of guilt and self-loathing as a result of what happened to abigail. whilst he did not kill her, he still holds himself responsible for her death, and hasn't let go or forgiven himself for that, instead punishing himself with harmful behaviour patterns. there's a very obvious aura of patheticness about him and he berates himself constantly.

despite his toxic behaviours, he is actually quite hard-working, and is determined not to let his brother down and fuck up some of the responsibilities he's been given. he takes what he does very seriously.

he's grown impulsive. he doesn't think before he acts, nor before he speaks. most of the time, he tries not to think at all.

rumours

the biggest and most obvious rumour is this: conall blackbar murdered his wife. it does not matter that he was ruled out as a suspect, it does not matter that she may not have been murdered at all. many people will see him as guilty, particularly if they witnessed him fighting with his wife on the night of her death.

i do not think his destructive habits are common knowledge, but certainly an open secret. he isn't actively hiding anything from anybody, but neither is he publicising it. maybe there are tentative whispers, but nothing widely spoken about.

goals

he is remarkably apathetic with regards to himself, his personal betterment and his future. when abigail died, so did any ambition or hope he may have once had. he does not dream of things anymore, and can't bring himself to want. he is actively blocking his own future by refusing to move on.

i would not say he is actively suicidal, but he does think about the concept of dying often. whilst he doesn't particularly seek death, he'd welcome it if it comes.

fears

conall's worst fears have already come to pass. there is little else that he is frightened of, save perhaps any misfortune falling upon kieran or his nieces.

other.

the old conall is only really evident when in the company of his brother and nieces. he loves being an uncle, and family is very important to him. king of giving piggyback rides.

he owns five wolfhounds and several setters, and training and breeding the dogs is one of the few constructive hobbies he still has. he has a naming theme where he gives them their name based on legendary or mythological figures, as before abigail's death he had an interest in such things.

he has a long, lanky figure, but he's strong underneath it. in battle, he favours weapons that utilise blunt force, such as maces or hammers, over blades. he is not a graceful fighter, but an effective one nonetheless. his aim is hopeless, however, and he's a terrible bowman.

he's desperate for forgiveness for what happened to abigail, but nobody can give it to him except himself. he hasn't got there yet, though, and instead looks for it in others. he wants to be redeemed, but doesn't think he deserves to be.

the thing he takes most seriously out of his various roles in life (captaining the fleet, overseeing the shield isles, etc.) is the bandallon boys. conall desperately needs to belong somewhere and to something, and the boys give him that.

he sleeps like the dead. as soon as his head hits his pillow, he's out like a light for hours. and he snores too.

[zorilleerrant]

it annoys me so much when people are like ‘oh all the members of the Batfamily grew up as only children’ like. no they didn’t

Dick explicitly had a brother in The Most Canonical Timeline, but even if he didn’t, a circus that’s going to have one kid around is going to have lots of kids around, there’s just no way he’s going to be the only kid around a bunch of adults the way the comics like to say. Either it’s a professionalized circus and Dick just wouldn’t be around practices/performances much at all, or it’s a generational circus full of families and he would be raised communally with all the other kids there treated like siblings by all the adults.

Jason spent a couple years homeless, and in that time relied on other kids and had them rely on him in order to survive, building familial dependencies and relationships he still cared about even after he came back as Red Hood. It was a massively interdependent network of everyone being the only one who really cared about the others, and all of them willing to do anything to defend each other. This is not even counting the number of foster homes he was in and out of and the other kids in them that he had to navigate as sibling relationships in order to figure out how to survive them.

Steph grew up in the kind of neighborhood where people are of necessity up in each other’s business, both because there’s no way to maintain real privacy and because they need to pay attention to warning signs of danger. Everyone knew her dad was Bad News, and everyone knew her mom couldn’t handle it on her own. Steph definitely had a neighbor with a similar aged kid who basically adopted her, and would always invite her over for a “playdate” and then straight up parent her whenever anything was too Much for her mom. Even though Steph doesn’t realize this happened until she’s an adult, well after they’ve fallen out of touch, eventually it occurs to her that the neighbor treated Steph and her legal child(ren) as siblings, and that’s why they never felt like friends.

Cass was raised by a man horrible enough to kidnap women and force them through pregnancy to breed his perfect assassin army, and had a whole passel of assassins around him at all times as part of this endeavor. How on earth can anyone expect he stopped at just one kid and didn’t constantly breed or kidnap more of them, forcing them all to live and learn and fight together? Even if he made specific provisions to separate them based on their genetics (plausible), he’s still the kind of guy who forcibly impregnated people, so he’d have a bunch of little baby hims around. Cass was just the most perfect soldier out of them.

Duke’s childhood involved him a) thinking it was on him to save his entire neighborhood and b) having the time to devote to that while no one else was paying attention and thinking that was the normal way to go about things. Which means that both his parents weren’t around much to guide him in learning because they were so busy, but that they socialized him with extremely strong community ties, in a community that trusted Duke back. Which means his parents left him all the time with a neighbor who was the hub of the community, a daycare essentially, but because the kids spent all day every day together basically, and the need to perform a united front was drilled into them as a young age, they thought of each other as family and therefore as siblings (for those in similar age bands).

Damian grew up with Mara being constantly pitted against each other, compared, taught together, and used against each other as punishment. They were each other’s worst enemies and only allies; they had no one to rely on but each other and they couldn’t rely on each other, but they couldn’t escape either because they were family. They were always around each other and that was the way it was going to be forever, until it wasn’t.

Babs’s brother was named JJ (James Gordon Jr.)

[wingxdsarcasm]

[ Harry Shum jr, male, he/him ] whatever you think you know about GABRIEL LANCE, the 28/UNKNOWN year old, pansexual, NEW COMER, it is likely time for you to start reconsidering. the rumored ANGEL (ARCHANGEL) is often described as PERSONABLE + COMPASSIONATE, but don’t let them fool you; they can also be FREETHINKING + CONFIDENT, which often has them regarded as the THE VAIN. they are a/an PHOTOGRAPHER at FREELANCE, but it’s also said they are a/an ARCHANGEL within the LEGION OF HEAVEN whatever you hear, you can’t deny there’s more to them that meets the eye, and it’s time we start uncovering the truth.

Gabriel in every sense is the baby of the archangels, while he might be stronger and older than most of his angel brethren, he is the youngest of the archangels and therefore has taken up the characteristics of any youngest child. When his older brothers Michael and Lucifer started to fight Gabriel found himself unwilling to be forced to take a side, rather putting himself in the middle as a messenger, his natural state. When push came to shove and the matter was pressed upon him Gabriel fled from his siblings offering his services to those caught in the middle of the war, the humans and supernatural as his nature would not allow him to turn his back on one while helping the other.

Over the eons since Lucifer had been locked away Gabriel has spent most of his time on earth, things in heaven haven’t been the same since the Great war and he much doubts it will get back to the old ways and maybe that’s for the best. Since leaving he always expected to hear his Father’s voice in his head summoning him back to Heaven where he belongs but it has been a long while since he has heard God’s word. Instead the only commands heard are that of Raphael, even Michael had turned his back on the order. 

In time the best thing Gabriel has learned is that sin can be terrible but everything can be forgiven if one repents. So that is how he lives his life on earth, doing his bare minimum in Heavenly duty, relying on his rank and the favor of his siblings while he does as he pleases within reason. Raphael in recent times has been pushing the younger archangel to the town of Creation Peaks, to keep the human group Spear from gaining too much power all while keeping an eye on lucifer’s vengeful bride. 

[harrysweasleys]

save a life // d.m

Summary: You know what I always thought would be so cute if the reader is a Weasley and dating Draco in secret and he gives her an amulet and if the person wearing it gets hurt instead of dying it turns into a sleeping spell and during the Battle of Hogwarts she saves Fred and ends up on the floor instead and Draco rushes over and just loses it and then he sees that you're still wearing necklace and kisses you and it's angsty but with a happy ending sorry I'm a sucker things like these

Warnings: violence, language, blood

Word Count: 5.1k

A/N: so i changed up the request a tad, sorry about that, but nonetheless it’s pretty much what the request wanted! my requests are still open but i’ve got a long list to get through so sorry for the wait. xxx (gif not mine)

-

“Draco, I can’t accept this, it’s far too expensive,” Y/N’s mouth was agape as she stared down at the necklace in the little black velvet box. The charm on the end, which Y/N immediately recognized as a Protective Amulet — which they had studied in DADA — was glistening brightly, showing off its worth.

“No, it wasn’t,” Draco replied, placing his hand on hers before gently kissing her knuckles, “Besides, this can save your life, therefore it’s priceless.”

She looked up at him, still stunned speechless. She knew that Protective Amulets were rare, nearly impossible to find as they were in such high demand at this time of crisis, and she had never in a million years expected to receive one.

“What about you? You need to be protected too,” Y/N raised an eyebrow, closing up the box and placing it in her pocket, keeping it safe and away from the prying eyes of passing students. Her and Draco, although public with their relationship, tried their best to keep it as private as possible. She hated the attention they always got for being together.

“Don’t worry about me,” he brushed her off, “You know I’m in a very different position than you are.” He tapped his left forearm as a reminder that he was, in fact, fighting a very different battle than she was. When he showed Y/N the Dark Mark for the first time, they had spent the entire night crying, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

She knew it was coming. Hell, anyone who knew about Draco’s situation knew it was coming. But it didn’t change the shock and heartbreak that Y/N felt looking down at the dark ink permanently etched into the pale skin of her boyfriend. She hated looking at it. It was a reminder that Draco had no control over his life, that his entire legacy was built for him, that this was the reason he didn’t sleep nights. He was just as terrified as she was.

“You’re still dealing with You Know Who,” she pressed on, tossing a strand of her ginger hair out of her face, “If anything, you’d need even more protection. You know I always worry about you, I hate not knowing if you’re okay.”

“Love, it’s okay,” he smiled softly, sadly even, placing a hand on her shoulder and gazing into her brown eyes, “Don’t you worry about me. I can handle my end of the fight.”

Y/N squinted her eyes at him, ready to keep pressing the subject, but decided against it, “Fine. Thank you, though. It’s beautiful.” It truly was beautiful. The red gem in the centre caught her attention right away, the way that it almost seemed to glow under the bright lights.

“I’m glad you like it,” Draco said softly, placing a light kiss on her forehead and interlacing his hand with hers, “Now, should we get a move on to dinner so we can make it in time for pudding?”

Y/N grinned, placing a light kiss to his lips — which he gladly reciprocated — before the two of them made their way into the Great Hall. Draco waved ‘bye’ before making his way over to the Slytherin table, and Y/N made her way over to the Gryffindor one, sitting between her siblings.

“What’d he give you?” Ginny asked, peering over to her sister with a pressing look on her face. She had clearly watched the encounter between the two of them outside the Great Hall, making Y/N’s cheeks flush a light pink.

“A necklace,” Y/N grinned shyly, helping herself to come potatoes, “Protective Amulet, actually.”

“A what?” Ron’s mouth was agape, “Where the bloody hell did he manage to find one of those?”

Y/N shrugged, placing her fork down and taking the little box out of her pocket, making sure no one else was looking, and opened it up. Ginny and Ron looked awestruck, while Fred and George seemed to be too busy paying attention to their food to notice the commotion. Y/N placed the necklace proudly around her neck, letting the Amulet dangle between her collarbones.

“Damn,” Ginny nodded approvingly, “That little squirt has some good taste.”

Y/N giggled, admiring the way the candle light reflected off of the gems. She wasn’t one for fancy jewellery, having even told Draco not to buy her any once they started dating, but this felt like more than a show-off gesture. Him giving her something that would save her life felt like the biggest gesture he could possibly give her, one that really showed how much he cared.

When they started dating about a year ago, it was as if a fire had spread throughout both of their lives. Y/N’s family — her father in particular — were in no means ‘fans’ of the Malfoy family. In fact, although Arthur Weasley denies it, his dislike towards Lucius Malfoy grows exponentially by the day. And Draco’s family on the other hand loved to call Y/N and her family ‘blood traitors’ and ‘disgraces’ as well as making sure the fact that they were poor was very much a topic of conversation.

Both their parents were still iffy about the entire concept of their kids being together, but Y/N’s siblings had learned to accept it, much to her gratitude. Ron took longer than the rest, having dealt with Draco’s bullying first hand for five years now, but he eventually came around as long as they didn’t ‘flaunt their love’ in front of him on a daily basis.

“I reckon he didn’t get one for the rest of us, then?” Ron asked, glaring at Draco on the opposite end of the Great Hall while picking at the chicken legs on his plate.

“If you were his girlfriend I’m sure he would, Ronald,” Ginny replied, chuckling at her brother’s reaction. Y/N laughed as well, her hand still playing with the jewel around her neck as the dinner plates vanished, filling the table with multiple assortments of puddings.

“Always the best part,” Ron shoved his fork in, filling his plate to the brim.

Y/N looked over to the Slytherin table, catching Draco’s eye, and smiled widely at him, pointing to the necklace she was now wearing. He smirked at her, winking and shooting a thumbs up, going unnoticed by everyone else, but causing her entire body to flutter.

— —

“What do you think life will be like after the war?” Y/N was twirling a strand of Draco’s hair, overlooking the grounds of Hogwarts as the two of them sat comfortably in the fresh air of the Astronomy tower. They had used this location for most of their private moments, using it to talk about anything and everything. And of course, it was a good makeout spot.

“Peaceful, I hope,” he replied, gazing up at her quickly before turning back to watch the setting sun. Their sixth year hasn’t exactly been a walk in the park. Voldemort had returned, Dumbledore was missing constantly, and with Snape as the new Defence professor, Y/N Weasley was worried their education wasn’t preparing them well enough for their eventual battle.

“Do you think we’ll win?” she asked, pulling her hand away from his hair and turning to face him with a more serious expression, “By ‘we’ I mean anti-Voldemort people. You know, the good guys.”

Draco, although his parents were forcing him to join the ‘dark side’, was still secretly fighting alongside Y/N. She had helped him overcome the urges that came with his newfound Dark Mark, and promised him she’d stick by his side no matter what. He was prepared to leave the Dark Lord’s orders if it meant keeping her safe.

“I do,” he said softly, sitting up, “I think that once the war happens, we’ll be prepared enough to take him down.”

Y/N smiled softly, brushing her hair out of her face, “Dad says he thinks it’ll happen soon. Everyone at the Ministry is in a frenzy. And Fred and George are basically the only open shop in Diagon Alley, no one wants to go out anymore. The entire Wizarding world is in a panic.”

Draco sighed, gently placing a hand on her cheek, his other hand twirling the Amulet necklace she was wearing, “Love, I can’t promise everything will end up being the way it was before, but no matter what happens, I am not leaving your side. And as long as you wear that—,” he pointed to her Amulet, “—you’ll be by mine as well. And that’s all I want. You.”

“I love you,” she grinned, pulling him in for a tender kiss, “We’ll get through this together, yeah?”

“Of course, my love.”

— —

The war had come.

As another wall came crumbling down mere meters from her, Y/N dodged out of the way, her wand still gripped tightly in her hand.

She had been preparing for this for two years now, ever since Harry had emerged from the Triwizard Maze with Cedric’s lifeless body. They had prepared for this when Dumbledore’s Army came to life, all of them training constantly to fight back against the dark forces that were bound to come.

But, as Y/N gazed around the crumbling Hogwarts, watching some of her friends die before her very eyes, she realized that nothing could have really prepared her for this.

“Petrificus Totalus!” she shouted, the Death Eater that was standing in front of her now tumbling down the staircase as stiff as a board. She watched him fall for a long while before deciding to take off down another hallway, gliding against the wall to avoid being seen. She had intelligently decide to wear all black clothing to believe she’d be well hidden, but completely ignored the fact that her bright red hair gave her away instantly. It wasn’t her best moment.

“Y/N!” Hermione and Harry came barreling around the corner, frightening her nearly half to death, followed by Ron, Percy and Fred shortly after.

“Oh, thank Merlin, it’s you guys,” she hugged her brothers quickly, noticing the deep cut on Ron’s cheek and the blood coming from Percy’s hairline. She herself had a few deep scrapes and bruises as well, the blood smeared across her face and hands. Some of it hers, some of it not.

“Why are you all alone?” Harry asked, eyes darting around the corridor with full alertness, “We should all have backup.”

“I lost Ginny after a chandelier came crashing down,” Y/N said, her voice shaky with adrenaline, “We took off in opposite directions.”

“Is she okay?” Harry’s eyes were wide, the panic evident in the way his head snapped violently towards her.

Y/N grinned softly, clutching her wand tightly, “She’s safe, Harry.” He let out a sigh of relief, nodding his head slightly.

“Snape’s dead,” his voice was quieter, almost regretful.

Y/N felt her heart drop. She was never fond of Snape — he hated her and her family to his very core — but he was still someone she had looked up to, “Oh, that’s awful. An awful way to go, in the middle of a war.”

“Where’s Malfoy?” Ron asked, looking out the window that was facing the grounds, green and red flashes blasting in countless different directions.

“I—I don’t know,” Y/N admitted. She had seen him not ten minutes ago, he had arrived with his parents looking very sunken and gloomy, but they hadn’t had a chance to speak two words to each other since the battle had begun. She was worried for his safety, but she figured no one was really after him. Students didn’t know he was a Death Eater and Narcissa would protect her son until her dying breath.

Her heart sunk thinking about him. Since the end of their sixth year, things had been weird. She didn’t blame him, he had insane pressure being thrust upon his shoulders. His parents wouldn’t let him leave their side and Y/N’s parents would let her leave the house or even send Owls. She had pretty much lost all contact with him.

After the summer holidays and after Y/N attended her older brother Bill’s wedding, she had not spoken a single word to him.

Were they even together anymore?

“He’s here, though,” she spoke up once realizing she had been silent for a while, “I saw him.”

Hermione nodded understandingly, placing a hand on Y/N’s shoulder. Hermione, who had been falling for Ron since third year, was the only person Y/N really confided in about her relationship. She didn’t even tell Ginny much. The only reason she confided in Hermione was because she knew about her feelings towards Ron. They often had late night chats about boys and their futures — those chats were some of the best moments in Y/N’s time at Hogwarts, really.

“Look out!” Ron shouted, but it was too late. Y/N was sent flying backwards, crashing into a stone pillar, violently hitting her skull and spine. She could feel the blood oozing out of the back of her head, her eyesight becoming insanely fuzzy, but she opened her eyes in time to see Fred hex the Death Eater, who went flying out a broken window.

Y/N’s eyes started to droop again, and that’s when she noticed the Amulet sitting on the ground in a tiny pile of rubble. It was no longer on her. Panicking slightly, she cleared her throat, blinking rapidly to regain her proper vision.

“Fred—,” she croaked out to the closest person, lifting her hand to point down at it, “Can you get it for me? The Amulet?”

Fred picked it up, rushing over to help his little sister stand up. After she was on her feet, still reasonably dizzy and lightheaded, a bright green flash had flown by, blinding them all for a good moment.

“Avada Kedavra!” Y/N ducked down, her heart skipping a beat. Someone was going to die. 

Fred’s hand — that had been linked with her own — was now gone. The spell had hit him right in the middle of his chest and he was sent flying back, his body lying limp on the floor in a heap of broken stone.

Y/N thought she was going to vomit. She rushed over, letting Percy and Harry deal with the Death Eater, and picked up Fred’s head, resting it in her lap. His hair was standing on end as if he had been electrocuted, and his skin felt hot to the touch, but it didn’t stop her from attempting to shake him awake.

“Freddie?” she asked, her voice still trembling but this time due to the fact that she was holding back tears, “Freddie, please wake up.”

Ron was slumped against a wall, his eyes red and his breathing irregular as he watched Y/N try to wake up their brother. Hermione was comforting him, leaning her head against his shoulder, also trying to keep her emotions in.

Y/N couldn’t take her eyes away from her dead brother, whose eyes were still open wide, a faint smile on his lips that had been there before he got his with the blinding green flash.

“Fred, please wake up,” Y/N cried softly, ignoring Percy leaning down next to her and holding Fred’s limp hand in his own. She shut her eyes, letting the tears flow freely. The feeling of loss was horrendous. She was never going to hear Fred talk, or hear another one of his stupid jokes—

“Reckon I better thank the Slytherin git.”

Y/N’s eyes shot open, looking down at Fred, whose face was now in a painful grimace. His eyes were still closed but he was breathing. His eyelids flickered open and he coughed violently, dust and bits of stone coming out of his mouth.

“Fred?” Y/N dropped his head, placing her hands over his chest to check for a heartbeat to make sure she wasn’t imagining things, and thankfully, there was one, “Fred, you’re alive...”

“Do I have Harry’s scar?” he asked, eyes opening slightly and his infamous grin making its way back onto his face as if he hadn’t just died, “On my forehead, do I have one now too?”

Y/N, too shocked to do anything, glanced up at his forehead, “No.”

“Damn,” Fred muttered, still coughing, “That’s rather unfortunate.” Y/N couldn’t believe he was still alive. But as she looked down to his hand, which was now open, she could see the bright glow of the Protective Amulet glistening brightly. Fred had it. 

“It saved him,” Ron muttered, his eyes wide as he leaned off of the wall, walking over to see his siblings, “Y/N, you had him pick it up for you and it saved him.”

Y/N was still speechless. Her own heart had regained its beat, but her head was still spinning, and the feeling of wanting to vomit was probably even stronger now than when she thought he was dead.

Fred carefully made his way to stand up assisted by Ron and Percy, while Y/N still crouched on the floor next to where he had been laying, her eyes glued to the floor in shock.

“You good, little sis?” Fred asked, sticking his hand out to help her up, “I’m the one who nearly died but you’re the one who seems to be on the verge of passing out.”

“I need to go see Malfoy,” she stood up hastily, rubbing the dirt from her hands onto her pants before pulling her brother into a bone-crushing hug, “Believe me, I’m thankful you’re alive. You have no idea. But I need to go see him.”

“What a roller coaster,” Ron ran his hand down his face, shaking his head before pulling Fred in for a hug as well, “George will have a laugh.”

“Yeah, I’m sure he’ll find his twin brother almost dying hilarious,” Hermione scoffed, crossing her arms, “Y/N, why do you need to go see Malfoy? Isn’t he, you know, not on our side?”

Y/N shook her head vigorously, eyes wide, “He’s always been on our side. He had a weird way of showing it, but he’s never been evil,” she leaned over to pick up her wand off the floor and proceeded to place it in her inside coat pocket, “He’s been forced by his parents to become dangerous. I need to go help him.”

“But why now?” Percy asked, eyeing his little sister with what could only be seen as suspicion. Percy had been the only vocal sibling about his dislike towards Malfoy. Working alongside the Ministry for so many years now, he had heard horrible tales of Lucius Malfoy and tried to keep his youngest sister away from that family the best he could. Unsuccessfully, of course.

“Because he saved Fred, Perc,” she replied, her voice firm, “Well, indirectly, but still. He helped me. I need to go help him.”

The rest of the gang was silent, no one wanting to argue with Y/N — the fire in her eyes was burning bright and there was no way they would attempt to put it out. She was determined, and no one stops a Weasley.

“Do you want backup?” Harry asked cautiously, “Just incase his parents are around, that is.”

“No,” she shook her head once more, “I need to go alone.”

And without another word, she bolted down the nearby staircase, careful not to step on bodies and trying her best to avoid tripping on large chunks of rubble. The school that she had been practically living in for seven years looked unrecognizable. Walls were blown away, blood was smeared on the floors, unfamiliar bodies littered the corridors, and the constant flash of spells reminded her of a violent thunderstorm.

She continued rushing downstairs, luckily avoiding any encounters, and barged into the Great Hall, where she did indeed find Draco. His hair was a mess, his eyes were bloodshot, and his lip was quivering. He was naturally very pale, but he looked even more ghostly under the faint light and the fact that he was surrounded by at least a dozen Death Eaters.

Her heart caught in her throat as she noticed all the eyes in the room now locked on her, Draco’s as well.

“Well, well,” Bellatrix Lestrange’s cackling voice reached her ears and she could feel her fingers begin to shake as they gripped her wand even tighter, “It’s another Weasley, is it not?”

Y/N locked eyes with Draco, who seemed even more panicked now that she was in the room. He nudged his head towards the door, silently telling her to leave, but she shook her head and stood her ground.

“Bella, don’t intimidate our guest,” Lucius Malfoy’s voice reached her ears and she grimaced. He had never liked her, and she doubted he would play saint right now.

“My name’s Y/N,” she said weakly, ignoring the laughs of the Death Eaters who were thrilled by her discomfort. She only recognized a few of them, having heard from Draco who they were, but some were unfamiliar, and the uncertainty of the situation she was in was starting to settle in her chest.

Lucius chucked, running a hand through his greasy blond hair, “Yes, yes, I am familiar with you. Draco, this is your little... girlfriend... is it not?”

Draco’s eyes were wide and he shook his head, tossing his hair back and forth aggressively, “No. We broke up.”

If Y/N wasn’t already devastated, she was now. Was he being honest, or was it just to get Lucius to leave her alone? The coldness in his eyes told her that it was true, but the way he was silently pleading her to leave the room also made her believe he was just trying to keep her safe.

“Ah,” Lucius nodded his head, holding his wand and twirling it through his fingers, “Then why are you here? You’re hardly Death Eater material.”

Y/N froze on the spot, having no idea what to say. Her eyes were wide, her mouth slightly open, and her entire body trembling in both fear and adrenaline.

“Isn’t it clear?” Narcissa Malfoy emerged from behind her husband, her face fierce but her eyes showing the same uneasiness as her son, “It doesn’t matter why she’s here. It matters what we do with her.”

Lucius’ smirk widened as he faced his son, “Ah, yes. Draco, would you do the honours?”

Y/N took a step backwards, wishing she could leave but knowing there was no chance of that now. Draco’s face fell and his lip opened to speak, until he was cut off by his mother once more.

“I highly doubt we should do this here. I’ll escort Draco and Miss Weasley out, we will do this privately,” Narcissa demanded, glaring at her husband, “This is a war, but have some respect for your son, Lucius.”

Narcissa approached Y/N, who was still standing rooted to the floor, face pale and hands balled up into fists so tightly that all colour had left her hands. She knew Narcissa was more fond of her than Lucius, but she didn’t think that she would be the one to force Draco to kill her.

“Come with me,” Narcissa whispered in Y/N’s ear, grabbing her wrist and pulling her out of the room. Y/N was being pulled around so quickly she didn’t have the chance to look at Draco, who was following in tow with tearful eyes.

“In here,” Narcissa pushed Y/N into a dark classroom, pulled Draco in behind her, and shut the door forcefully. Y/N was holding back hot tears, reaching into her jacket slowly to pull out her wand, prepared to defend herself if ever she was going to be attacked by one of the two people in the room with her.

“No need for that,” Narcissa snapped quietly, “I’m not going to make Draco kill you.”

Both Y/N and Draco’s heads snapped up to face her, their expressions nearly matched.

“I’m not a horrible person,” she scoffed, “I know you two need a moment. I will stand guard outside this door.”

With a swift movement, she was outside, the door shut behind her. Y/N and Draco were alone in the room, heavy breathing being the only sound either of them could hear. It felt strange being alone with him, they hadn’t really interacted or been together in such a long time. A lot had happened, and by the looks of it, Draco wasn’t exactly doing any better.

His hands were clenched around his wand, fingers white, and his eyes glued to the floor.

“The Amulet saved Fred,” Y/N spoke up first, wiping away the tears that had threatened to spill, “I wanted to say thank you for giving it to me.”

“You could have been killed,” Draco snapped, taking a seat on top of one of the desks, running his hands through his hair and then down his face, frustration laced into his features, “You know how dangerous this lot is.”

“Yes, I do know,” Y/N replied softly despite the bubbling frustration she was feeling, “But you helped me. I needed to come try and help you.”

He shook his head, locking his eyes with hers, “I gave that to you to save you. I don’t need you to return the favour.”

Y/N had gotten used to his insane stubbornness, but she was beginning to get irritated. They were in the middle of a war, this was hardly the time to get into an argument about a necklace.

“Draco, please, let me help you,” she placed her hands on his, and thankfully, he didn’t pull away like she expected him too. His hands were hot, the feeling of his skin touching hers making her entire body relax.

“How? How can I just leave them?” his voice was no longer accusatory, but gentle and vulnerable, “I want to, believe me, but I can’t. It’s too dangerous. And they’ll know you were involved.”

Sitting next to him on the desk, Y/N wrapped her hand around his shoulders and pulled him in for a hug, not thinking twice. He relaxed against her touch, resting his head against her shoulder and letting his hands fall around her waist. It was an awkward hug, considering they were sitting down, but Y/N loved it nonetheless.

She leaned into him, running her hand through his matted hair and placing her forehead against his shoulder, “It’s going to be hard, I know, but I’ll be by your side. I just want to save you the way you saved me.”

She was extremely cautious of pressuring him too much. Draco had spent his enter life being pushed into things, ordered around. When they had started dating two years before, he was careful not to let her see too much of who he was. But when he opened up, Y/N jumped at the chance to make sure he knew she would always be there. She reminded him every second of the day that all she wanted to do was help him. Watching him become a Death Eater was the hardest thing she had ever gone through — she couldn’t imagine what it was like for him.

If she wasn’t currently giving Draco her undivided attention, she would have missed the way he nodded his head softly, mumbling a quiet ‘okay.’

“Okay, good,” she pulled away from him, flashing the best smile she could muster despite the weight on her shoulders, “Your mother is outside this door. She can help us. She can tell the others that you killed me or... performed the Cruciatus curse, no?”

“I guess she could,” Draco replied, standing off the desk and standing in front of Y/N, “She told me I could make up my own mind. And I’m doing just that.”

Y/N felt her heart swell. She hopped off the desk too, linking her hand with his. He smiled softly down at her. It didn’t reach his eyes, but she could tell he really did appreciate what she was doing for him. He had never been able to actually get help before, but now that she was standing here in front of him, he couldn’t leave her.

“Come on,” she started leading him towards the door, but as she tugged on his hand, he stayed still, “Draco, what—?”

“Are you wearing the necklace?” he asked softly, eyes scanning her neck.

“Yes,” she replied, reaching under her shirt and taking it out from where she had placed it back on while running down to the Great Hall. Despite the dark room and the tense atmosphere, the jewel still glowed brightly.

Draco looked at it, his eyes softening, and pulled Y/N to him, pressing his lips against hers like she was his life source. Their lips moulded perfectly, as if everything around them ceased to exist. The distant screams could no longer be heard, and the darkness in the room seemed comfortable.

They pulled away from each other hesitantly, both of them having new found determination in their eyes.

“I think I’m ready,” Draco presses his forehead up against hers, his hand reaching to fumble with the Amulet, rolling it between his fingers, “I love you so much. And I didn’t mean it when I said we were broken up, you know.”

“I know. And I love you just as much,” Y/N replied, placing a quick kiss on his cheek, her heart soaring, and pulled her wand out of her pocket. They laced their hands together once more, walking towards the heavy door and pulling it open, ready for what was to face them.

Narcissa, looking slightly more frazzled than before, looked between them, then down to their interlaced fingers.

“I have to go,” Draco’s face was set, all trace of vulnerability he showed in the room were now gone. Y/N squeezed his hand tighter, supporting him. He squeezed back as a silent thank you.

Narcissa nodded, “I understand. Be safe, Draco.”

Draco nodded, turning to face Y/N, and proceeded to run down the hall with her by his side. Not in the direction of the Great Hall, but towards the battle, where both of them could save the place and people they grew up with. As they reached the courtyard unscathed, Draco pulled out his wand.

“Together, yeah?” he asked, clenching his jaw and gripping the wand in his hand, his other one still linked with Y/N’s.

“Yeah, together,” Y/N replied, lifting his hand to kiss his knuckles, “Let’s go win a war.”

[addictedtomanga]

Shoujo manga recommendations - love triangle

1.     Ao Haru Ride

While most girls desire popularity among boys, Futaba Yoshioka wants the exact opposite. After attracting many admirers back in middle school which resulted in her being shunned by her female classmates, she decided that high school will be her chance to revamp her image. Therefore, she starts acting unfeminine and indifferent to boys, allowing her to make some “friends” along the way.

Little does Futaba know, her life will take another drastic turn when her first love, Kou Mabuchi, returns after his sudden disappearance years ago in middle school. Despite his extended absence, the fond memories they shared together still linger in her mind, and she wishes to return to those days. But she realizes that the sweet, gentle boy of the past has completely vanished, and in his place stands someone cold and pessimistic. While he admits that her feelings for him back then were mutual, he warns that they can never go back to the past, as everything, including him, has changed.

2.     Beauty Pop

Although a truly gifted hairstylist, Kiri Koshiba has no interest in using her talent to pursue fame and fortune, unlike the three popular boys in the "Scissors Project" at school. Determined to become the best makeover team in Japan, they give showy makeovers to handpicked girls. As much as Kiri tries to shy away from the Scissors Project spotlight, she finds herself responding to beauty's call...

3.      Blue Sky Playground

On a cold day, Mirita finds discovers a hidden room with a kotatsu (a table that keeps one warm) inside. The kotatsu belongs to two of the most popular and handsome twin brothers in school. Both immediately kick Mirita out. However, Mirita becomes even more determined to get back into that room. What love triangle will commence?

4.    Boku kara Kimi ga Kienai  

Hotaru managed to get in the same high school where Haruna-sensei teaches to see him again! However, on her first day there, she meets a very unpleasant guy who looks just like her beloved sensei...?

5.      Dear!

Rei, Kazuma and Banri are close childhood friends. Rei, who's better than any guy, the cool and smart Kazuma and Banri who's mischievous and bright have the perfect balance. It's normal for the three of them to be together all the time and without thinking of themselves as men and woman they're just together. But something happens after which Rei starts to think of Banri as a "man", so the relation of the three changes...?!

6.       Faster than a Kiss

After losing their parents, Fumino and her brother hop from one relative to another. Getting tired of all those moves, she finally decides to quit school and work to support her brother on her own. As they sat on a park bench, her teacher appears in front of her and agrees to her demands of marrying and supporting both her and her brother!! Is he serious or just playing around...?!

7.      Haru Matsu Bokura

The timid and reserved Mitsuki Haruno seeks her dream sociable life at high school. But despite her best efforts, her ineptitude to speak her mind impedes her from befriending anyone. Nonetheless, while working at a cafe one day, she has a fateful encounter with her school's four idolized basketball players—Towa Asakura, Rui Miyamotoi, Ryuuji Tada, and Kyousuke Wakamiya. At first glance, these four heartthrobs come off as arrogant individuals, responsible for invading her cafe's safe haven. Soon after though, as they uphold their promise of keeping her workplace a secret, Mitsuki starts to see them in a new light.

Hence begins an improbable friendship between Mitsuki and the boys, as her days of solitude finally comes to an end. However, things aren't always so simple—with her heart waning toward Asakura and the female students green with envy, is there a chance this friendship could blossom into something more?

8.      Hirunaka no Ryuusei 

Suzume Yosano has spent the entire 15 years of her life in the countryside, so when her parents decide to move overseas for work and leave her with her uncle in Tokyo, she finds herself in a whole new environment. On the way to her uncle's house, however, she gets lost and faints.

Waking up safely at her uncle's house, she learns that a strange man had carried her there and that he happens to be an acquaintance of her uncle. Moreover, when Suzume goes to her new school for the first time, she discovers that the weird man in question, named Satsuki Shishio, is actually her homeroom teacher! Now, Suzume must adapt to her new school and make friends, since her blossoming high school life in the city has just begun!

9.    Hoshi to Kuzu - Don't Worry, Be Happy   

Anzu is poor but very ambitious and aims for a bright future. Her first step is to be student council president but that chance is destroyed by the equally ambitious and egocentric Yamabuki. She just has to settle for being the vice-president.

10.  Iya da Nante Iwasenai 

Anzu currently works part-time at a beach house however when it comes to serving male customers, she can't help but be cold and shy. When she accidentally spills a drink on one of them, a male co-worker saves her who ends up being her childhood friend Rei. Anzu is happy to reconnect with Rei, however, Rei might be after a bit more...?

11.   Kaichou wa Maid-sama

Seika High School was an all-boys school, but it has since turned co-ed. Misaki Ayuzawa is the first female student council president of the school, eventually earning the nickname of the "Demon President" due to her mastery of Aikido and imposed iron rule.

However, Misaki harbors an embarrassing secret—she has to work at a maid café to support her family. If anybody from her school was to find out, her reputation would be utterly destroyed. And after Takumi Usui—the most popular boy at school—discovers her secret, that might just happen.

12.  Kaoru-kun to Hana no Mori 

Kaoru is as kind as a prince towards girls. She would love to met men stronger than her! And then, two men appeared in front of her...

13.  Katakoi no Tsuki

Kurumi likes Souta-kun, but what happens when Kurumi witnesses Souta-Kun hugging one of her friends? Could Souta-kun already have someone he likes or is Kurumi misunderstanding? What can she do if that girl is her friend, too!?

14.  Katakoi Triangle

Sekiya-san of the cultural library has an unrequited love for Yuuki-kun. The one who cares about Sekiya-san is the popular Kasai-kun, who is also Yuuki-kun's friend! And, what's this? Yuuki-kun is rooting for Kasai-kun?! It seems that everyone's feelings are one-sided...or are they?

15.  Kimi to Koi no Tochuu 

Just when I thought it'd start with you, you disappeared; I would've never thought this... Yuna has lost trust in love after her first boyfriend Takumi broke up with her. Shiina-kun from her class has already confessed to her twice and now finally she approached onto love another time. But Takumi appears in front of her!! What will the swaying Yuna do!?

16.   Kyoudai Gokko

Growing up, Takara Rio has always wanted siblings. So when her parents decide to move overseas without her and tells her she will be living with two people around her age, she's cautiously optimistic. But they turn out to be brothers who fight like cats and dogs. Is this what having siblings is like?

17.  Last Game 

Nothing is beyond Naoto Yanagi, heir to the Yanagi business conglomerate. Idolized for his athletic and intellectual competence, looks and wealth, Naoto lived like a king during his elementary school days—then entered Mikoto Kujou, a plain, gloomy-looking transfer student.

Due to her low financial status, Naoto was initially apathetic towards Mikoto. But despite having just arrived at his school, she completely eclipsed him in everything by consistently scoring top marks in exams and placing first in athletic events. After a brief confrontation with her that left him shocked, Naoto vowed to outdo her no matter the cost.

Ten years later, they are now students attending the same college. Having failed to defeat Mikoto throughout middle and high school, Naoto decides they will have one last game: if he can make Mikoto fall in love with him and then break her heart, it will be his victory. However, he finds himself falling in love with her instead...

18.  Last Notes 

Haru and Aki are the masters of the branch store - an old-looking and very unusual shop. It sells only one thing: a special kind of incense that, when burned, allows the user to see and speak with the spirit of the dead person that appears in the smoke. Every customer has a different reason for calling up the dead, and how they use this unusual opportunity is up to them...

19.  Love Berrish 

15 year-old Yuya Fukushima has always wanted to live on her own, in an inn next to her school. This new dorm of hers, the Strawberry Tree Dorm, turns out to be a place with weird people -- a girl that touches her chest out of the blue, a guy with one of the shortest tempers ever. BUT the good thing is, there's a really handsome and nice guy that she fell in love with instantly! Also, not to mention a crazy cat who adores him (looks can be deceiving...). Yuya's life has just became much more interesting...

20.   Mata Ashita

Towa's always been shy around guys, despite being a total tomboy. This has crushed her chances of ever having a boyfriend, but a perhaps fateful encounter on the first day of high school might lead to love? But will it be with the surprisingly kind "angelic" delinquent, or the popular yet secretly "devilish" prince?!

21.  Momo Raba 

Chieri (Cherry) was living an ordinary life, until her sister Ichigo (Strawberry) suddenly left her child Momo (Peach) on Chieri's doorstep. Momo is an infant; how is Chieri supposed to take care of a baby while still in high school!? To make matters even more frustrating, two guys are fighting for Chieri's love...!

22.   Monokuro Shounen Shoujo

Kureha Mimachi, a 15-year-old girl, has just transferred into Shiritsu Kenhono High School. However, there is something weird about this school, it is actually a school where the Princes and Princesses of the beast-kind go to! Even though Kureha is human, she is there as a way to help the students lead their lives peacefully with humans and has the role as the "rabbit". Will she be able survive without being eaten by the students? Only time and her hidden bodyguards will be able to answer that...

23.   Ouran High School Host Club

At Ouran High School, an academy where only the children of the rich and powerful attend, there exists a club consisting of the most elite of the student body: the legendary Host Club. Within the club's room, six beautiful, bored boys spend their time entertaining equally beautiful and bored girls.

Haruhi Fujioka, a poor scholarship student, has no interest in the Host Club—until she breaks a valuable vase in their clubroom. After being mistaken for a boy, Haruhi is forced by Kyouya Ootori to work for the Host Club to repay her debt. Tamaki Suou, the princely leader of the club, eagerly takes her under his wing to teach her the ways of the host. Things, however, are never quite so simple with the Host Club around. Even the most mundane events can turn into huge spectacles with the likes of prankster twins Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin, stoic Takashi Morinozuka, and sweet Mitsukuni "Hunny" Haninozuka. The crazy adventures of the Host Club are just beginning, and Haruhi must learn how to survive in the glitzy world of the hosts.

24.  Parfait Tic

Fuuko is a happy and cheerful girl. One day, two cousins, Daiya and Ichi, move into the apartment upstairs. Cold Ichi and mischievous Daiya gave a very bad first impression. All three are going to the same school as well. How will Fuuko's high school life turn out?

25.  Renren Zakari 

The day of her graduation, while she was lost and end up on the infirmary, a girl met by coincidence a good looking boy. But she was so panicked that the young man started to make fun of her...?

26.  Rockin Heaven 

Sawa applies to Heaven's Wing Academy, thinking she would look cute in the uniform. But she never expected the academy to be a previously all-boys' school! And the head honcho of the school, the class president himself doesn't seem to like her one bit and takes no pains to hide it. At first, adjusting to life at the academy is tough. Sawa is bullied and teased, and the boys in the class even throw her new shoes in the water. While attempting to retrieve her shoes, she falls into the water and is unexpectedly saved by Ran, who up until this point has made her life hell. The newfound gentleness in Ran intrigues her, and she finds herself falling for him. What will her days be like for the rest of her school life?

27. Saiouji Kyoudai ni Komarasareru no mo Warukunai  

Satou Fuuka is an orphan. Her aunt, who was her guardian, absconded in the night, leaving her with no money. Her parents wanted her to go to school, so she was looking for a job to cover her school expenses and rent (plus living expenses, though she didn't mention it). She goes to be interviewed for a part-time house helper job but is rejected before she can say anything, because the guy offering the job is the eldest for 4 brothers and it's an all-male household. She pours out her story, so he takes pity on her (even though he'd pointed out that she can't really take a part-time job if she doesn't have a guardian) and offers the job as a live-in position. However, he has one condition: she's supposed to disguise herself so his brothers don't take an interest in her. Her disguise: lots of towels around her body, so she looks fat; makeup so she looks old (39); plus her hair is all loose and she's wearing glasses.

28.   Sekirara ni Kiss

Chitose has always done well wearing her face like a mask: always smiling, always cute. She feels complete whenever she put it on because it's built to hide her unrefined self: no one hates her, and no one makes fun of her. But after meeting a cute boy who is instinctively more annoyed by her mask than her real self, can Chitose change and make people accept her for who she really is?

29.  Shiawase Kissa Sanchoume 

Uru is a very short girl and is constantly mistaken for an elementary school kid, but despite that, she is ridiculously strong and decides to live by herself after her mother gets remarried. She ends up working at a small cafe with two rather unique co-workers, Shindou, who acts gruff and intimidating, but who is really a nice guy who loves to make cakes and pies and the like, and Ichirou, who is really good-looking but who instantly falls asleep when he gets hungry and doesn't wake up again until he's force-fed something? What will the future bring to them?

30.  Stardust Wink 

I’m Anna. I’m 14 years old and I’ve just entered the ninth grade. Sou and Hinata, who live in the same apartment complex as me, are my childhood friends and we’re all the same age. I thought that from now on we’d become even closer friends, but then Sou suddenly did that to me…!!

31.  Strobe Edge 

Having no experience in romance, the vibrant Ninako curiously explores the meaning of what "love" really is, and is surprised to feel a colorful range of emotions as she grows closer to the school heartthrob, the quiet yet gentle Ren, who also happens to be involved in a longtime relationship. With every intention of keeping her head held high, Ninako prepares to face the mental pain of this one-sided love that she had allowed to take root, facing a series of trials that would either contribute to her growth as a headstrong woman, or break her as it did with other girls.

32.  Suki desu Suzuki-kun

Suzuki Hikaru, Hoshino Sayaka, Itou Chihiro and Suzuki Shinobu are all new students who have just entered the same middle school. Sayaka is a shy girl who secretly loves acting. Hikaru is an energetic boy who loves basketball. Incidentally, he shares the same last name with Shinobu, a popular rich boy who would be perfect if not for his rotten personality. Chihiro is Hikaru's childhood friend and has long had a crush on him. On the day of the opening ceremony, Hikaru happens to witness Sayaka acting out the lines of a drama on the rooftop and is instantly captivated. Upon seeing Hikaru getting along with Sayaka, Chihiro's chest begins to ache. When Shinobu sees this, he is overcome by a strange emotion and his heart starts beating faster... Unbeknownst to the four, this is the beginning of their magnificent love story; one that would last years to come.

33.  Taiyou no Ie 

After her mother abandoned her and her father remarried, high schooler Mao Motomiya is left feeling like she doesn't have a place where she belongs. One night, her childhood friend Hiro Nakamura finds her in a shrine eating cheap convenience store food and offers to take her to a restaurant. Their subsequent heart to heart leads to Hiro suggesting that Mao move in with him. To Hiro who has lived apart from his younger siblings all these years after their parents passed away, bringing his family back together in the once-lively Nakamura home begins with the first step of giving Mao a loving place to belong. When Mao reluctantly accepts his invitation, she is surprised at how easy it is to settle in with her longtime friend. Now she must deal not only with mending her relationship with her father and helping the oldest Nakamura brother attain his goal, but also her growing feelings for Hiro.

34.   The Maid at My House

Runako is studying hard to someday succeed as owner of her family's maid dispatching service company. One day, a request comes in from an entertainment production company and shockingly, it's for their super-popular star, Seirei Moroboshi! But could it be that the image he projects on the TV is far different than his true secret face...?!

35.  Tonari no Koigataki 

Hiro-kun and Icchan are both very important childhood friends to Akane. She thought they would always and forever be good friends, but...

36.  Tsubasa to Hotaru 

Tsubasa to Hotaru follows 15-year-old Tsubasa Sonokawa, a young student—and a renowned stalker? After one very romantic gesture by a popular upperclassman, she falls head over heels for who she believes to be her one true love. Unfortunately, love can be deceiving, as her feelings are soon proven to be one-sided; the upperclassman directly tells her that she's annoying and that she needs to stop bothering him. How's that for some tough love? Shortly after this horrific heartbreak, her good friend Yuri suffers from a sprained wrist, making it impossible for her to continue her position as the basketball team's manager. After some coaxing on Yuri's part, Tsubasa decides to take on the role in her place. This may be the perfect opportunity for Tsubasa to move on and forget about her unrequited love. On Tsubasa's first day as a manager, the team's shooting guard Aki Hidaka saves her from being hit by a ball. Is this another fateful encounter? Or just a random, meaningless event? One thing is for certain: Tsubasa's days will never be the same again.

37.   Uwasa no Midori-kun

Midori Yamate is a 15 year-old girl and is very much a tomboy. When she was young, Midori meets a boy called Tsukasa Hino, who came to the island she lives on for a holiday. He teaches her to play soccer and she falls in love with the sport. Midori is inspired by Tsukasa and continues to play soccer in hopes that they would meet again someday. When they do meet again Tsukasa does something unforgivable. Determined to defeat Tsukasa on the soccer field Midori enrolls in an all boy high school.

38.  Yagami-kun wa, Kyou mo Ijiwaru

 Just by talking to the famous Yagami-kun, Shizuku's high school life has become hard even from the start—!?

39.  Yumemiru Taiyou

While loitering in the park, Shimana Kameko, who intended to run away from home and skip school, meets a suspicious man in a kimono. This man, who had been locked out of his house, offers Shimana a place to stay. However, he requests she fulfill three conditions in exchange for her tenancy!?

[smallheathgangsters]

Second Youngest | S!S

A/N: I’m sorry, I really struggled with this one, but I hope it’s okay. Also, I had to make a few changes to the original request to boost my creativity and to me, it just made a little more sense this way. 

Request: a very long one by @amys-small-world

Shelby!Sister

Word Count: 1826

Type: angst, a little bit of fluff

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

Life had never been kind to Y/N, from the beginning on. Even her last name didn’t change any of that. Being a Shelby sounded like a privilege, something everyone wanted to be. Nobody daring to disrespect you and receiving everything you ever demanded, no questions asked. But when your own family doesn’t accept you as their own, the Shelby name transforms itself into a burden instead of a blessing. And that burden never went away for Y/N.

Being the second-youngest sibling and unfortunately not sharing the same mother as the others were features that were weighing heavily on her shoulders. Especially the fact that she had resulted out of an affair with a backstreet whore their father had been having behind his wife’s back, spoke for itself. She wasn’t a Shelby the family was proud of. She was the sibling nobody mentioned to anybody. The mistake none of them wanted to talk about. The reason for their mother’s worst heartbreak. Having a fling with a prostitute was one thing, but getting her pregnant? A whole other story.

That meant, that Y/N had to grow up by herself. Even though the Shelby’s took her in right after her birth and made sure to give her a bed to sleep in, food to eat and eventually work to do, they didn’t give her attention, even a second of their time or love at all.

To put it simply, Y/N had no idea what it meant to be loved.

As a child it had been easier, since she had friends to play with at school. But as she grew older, she lost those connections and Polly made sure to keep her inside to do housework instead of fooling around outside and getting into trouble with the other kids. So, Y/N spent most of her days cleaning and cooking for the Shelby household, instead of collecting memories like all the other teenagers.

Never receiving the brotherly protection like Ada had, she’d been forced to fend for herself since. Like the time, when she went grocery shopping by order of Polly and a group of kids her age started following her and calling her names and eventually tripping her, so she fell into a puddle on the street. She returned with her clothes soaked and dirty, making her get a horrible telling off by her aunt. If anything like that had happened to Ada when she’d been Y/N’s age, the boys would have made sure to beat the life out of those kids and that they never even dared to get near her again. But since she was the bastard child her brothers didn’t care about, nobody was there to defend her and keep her safe.

Therefore, the next time she came across the same group of kids, she punched the boy who had tripped her, right across the face, most likely breaking his nose by the cracking sound and his painful screams.

When she returned home, Polly asked her why there was blood on her dress. Y/N didn’t answer, keeping it a secret, like countless other things that would happen in the following years of her life.

At the age of twenty, Y/N was a wreck. Even those four years, when her three eldest brothers were fighting in the war, weren’t any different to the ones before. While Polly had taken over the brothers’ business together with Ada and some other women, Y/N had been tasked with the care of little Finn and the maintenance of the house. It had been acts like those, that made her feel so useless and so out of place. Would she ever be good enough for anything else?

Most nights she cried herself to sleep. She just couldn’t understand how she was still in this awful position. She waited twenty years for her family to hopefully one day change their ways, accept her as a family member and stop acting as if she wasn’t even present. It was horrible knowing that her family was expanding the business without including her even in the slightest way. Was she really that worthless? Why did everybody blame her for something she had no control over? Would this ever change?

It was the day before her twenty-first birthday. Y/N had had a terrible night, waking up multiple times and having awful nightmares, if she did fall asleep. Thoughts about her future had kept her from getting rest. Since the only thing she’d ever done was housekeeping at home and never got to broaden her horizon by finding a job outside, she felt like she could never escape this life she was living. She wanted to be a nurse or a teacher or seamstress. Anything but staying trapped in this state she was in.

Knowing it was still very early in the morning and the rest of the Shelby family was still sound asleep, Y/N rolled out of bed with a groan and put on some clean clothes. She decided that she needed to take a walk in the empty Birmingham streets before her unpleasant daily routine would start over again. She carefully padded down the stairs, making sure the old wood wouldn’t creak too loudly and grabbed her coat before stepping out into the cool, dewy air and closing the door quietly.

This kind of silence was rare. It was just before five o’clock, what meant that even the early risers weren’t awake yet and factories didn’t start their machines before six. Enough time for Y/N to clear her thoughts, to make sure she wouldn’t go crazy today. Because she felt like being at the verge of completely losing it.

She wandered along the cobble, passed little boutiques and bakeries and eventually ended up in front of the catholic church Polly often went to pray in. She wasn’t religious in any means, but she’d always found peace in the serenity inside the church walls. How her heels clicked on the marble floor and the people in the time-consuming paintings on the ceiling kept their eyes on her, giving her all of their attention, unlike her own family.

After entering, Y/N sat down in one of the rear rows, as though she’d be stepping too close to God if she’d gone any further. God, who most likely didn’t care for her or her existence. She sighed, propped up her elbows on her thighs and placed her head in her hands. Then, she let her eyelids close, realising just how tired she was. Lack of sleep being the least relevant one of all the reasons. Feeling the tiredness creeping up on her, consuming her entire body, she stretched herself out on the cold, hard church bench, her eyes not opening even a tiny bit.

She knew she’d fall asleep, but what she didn’t know, was that she’d eventually sleep through the entire morning. The loud bang of the heavy church door slamming against the wall, tore her from her uneasy sleep, making her sit up in panic.

“Y/N? Is that you?”

It was Finn’s voice. She knew immediately that she was in trouble. Although his tone didn’t actually sound very angry.

She wrapped her arms around her body, not answering his question and silently hoping that she’d be overlooked. But that clearly wasn’t going to happen, since she was the only one in the church and she’d stupidly shot up when hearing the alarming noise.

She heard his footsteps get closer and internally prepared herself to be yelled at, and if not from Finn, than from Polly later on. She tried her best to stay strong and hold back the tears forming in her eyes, but it was all too much to handle. She didn’t want to go back home. She wanted to run away or at least just stay here, by herself, as long as she could.

Surprisingly, Finn didn’t grab her by the arm and pull her with him or even tell her to get up. He didn’t say anything at all. He shuffled into the row and sat down next to her.

With her hand in front of her mouth, she muffled the sobs escaping. Then, she felt a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently.

“Family’s looking for you,” she heard Finn mumble.

Y/N took away her hand from her mouth and sniffled. “I– I know …”

Finn sighed. “I’m not going to tell them where you are.”

His unexpected statement made her sobs stop immediately. “W–What did you just say?”

Finn pulled back his hand and interlaced his fingers, resting his entangled hands on his thighs. “It’s not that I don’t see my family being very … unfair to you.”

Y/N almost scoffed, but wasn’t able to hold back her eye roll, which Finn noticed. “I totally understand that you’re angry.”

“Angry?”

That was the moment she suddenly couldn’t keep her thoughts from spilling over her lips. “You think I’m angry? Finn, I’m broken. I’m actually so fucking heartbroken. My own family made it their mission to make my life a living hell. I’m over being angry. I just want to leave!”

Her voice was laced with disappointment and hurt. This was the first time she’d ever told somebody the way she was truly feeling.

Finn gave her a sad look. “I’m sorry, Y/N …”

“It’s not your fault, Finn,” she sighed, scratching at the dried-up spots on her hands. “This started even before you were old enough to realise what was happening …”

Finn started chewing on his lip uncomfortably. “I never understood why they didn’t want to accept you. You’re my favourite sibling, you know that?”

Her head turned to her brother, a hint of shock in her face. “What?”

“You were the mother I never had. You took care of me when I was a kid, played with me, cooked for me. I didn’t know that you were forced to do all of that, but I really appreciated it, even at that age. I know I never showed it after I got older and I regret that.”

His words went straight to her heart, making it contract in a way it had never before. Y/N tried to respond something, but her breath just got stuck in her throat, making it unable for her to speak.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to reply anything to that. I just wanted to let you know. And I’d love to help you start a new life somewhere, if that’s really what you want.”

She shook her head. “All I ever wished for was to have a family. A family that loved me and involved me. But not even waiting for twenty-one years made a difference. It’s all still the same.”

He gulped, grabbing her hand. “Let me speak to them, okay? I want them to know that I care about you. And if they’re not willing to change, I’ll help you get out of here. You deserve better.”

Y/N started crying. “I deserve better …”

[rubysunnday]

This is really random but Shelby sis organising a scavenger hunt type thing to find her because the family had been arguing a lot recently so they all had to work together to collect clues to find her -the clues could be like important memories with each member So as well as getting along they find out about each other more

A/N: I sort of took this idea and ran with it. It’s kinda along the same lines but also slightly different so I hope that’s alright! 

Also, my hatred of small children appears to be fairly obvious in this one...

You were close to loosing your will to live.

No, scratch that, you had lost your will to live.

There was a lot going on with the family business at the moment. A lot of arguing, a lot of fighting and more drinking than usual - which was saying something - had led to the entire family being even more volatile than usual.

Because everyone had been too caught up with the business, they’d all forgotten it was easter.

And had all forgotten to make an Easter egg hunt for the children.

“Why the fuck have I got to do it?” You asked, frowning as you stood in the doorway of Tommy’s office.

“Because you’re the only one not involved with this,” Tommy replied, gesturing to the very full room of his office.

The ‘family’ meeting had been going on for several hours now and there’d been a lot of yelling coming from the office. You’d been evicted thirty minutes in when Tommy had realised that he didn’t really want you hearing what was going on.

“Only because you don’t want me involved,” you muttered.

“Y/N,” Tommy said, raising a hand,“just, please, do this one thing without complaint because I’m about to fucking loose it.”

You tutted but gave in. “Fine,” you replied, turning around and shutting the door again, leaving your family to continue their meeting.

That was how you ended up organising an Easter egg hunt for the numerous children you’d somehow become godmother to over the years.

Said Easter egg hunt was also the reason why you currently wanted to die.

You’d sat yourself in the lobby of the house, near enough to the office that you could occasionally hear what was going on and near enough to the front door that the children could find you.

And so that you could run away.

“Y/N!” Charlie whined and you closed your eyes, sighing.

“Yup?” You asked, turning to look at your nephew.

“Katie took my Easter egg,” Charlie whimpered, pointing at his cousin.

“Katie, give it back,” you said tiredly.

“Why?”

“Because there are enough Easter eggs for everyone to have at least five so give it back,” you replied.

“Fine,” Katie grumbled, taking the egg out of her basket and all but throwing it into Charlie’s.

The two ran off again and you relished the blessed peace that came with it.

“Y/N!”

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” you muttered as Karl came up to you. “Hi,” you said, leaning down to look at your nephew. You’d always had a soft spot for Karl. Well, you had a soft spot for Ada and therefor her son too.

“I can’t find anymore,” he said quietly and you glanced down into his basket, seeing only two eggs.

‘Those fucking animals’ you thought.

“Oh, don’t worry,” you said, lifting Karl onto your lap. “I’ve got a secret stash you can have some from.”

“Really?” Karl asked, looking up at you hopefully.

You nodded, smiling. “Yeah. Now, go see if you can find any in the library, I’m pretty sure there's some in there.”

Karl jumped off your lap and ran down the corridor.

Peace reigned once again.

Until yelling started up again from Tommy’s office.

“Right, I’ve had fucking enough,” you muttered, standing up and marching over to Tommy’s office.

You swung open the door, silencing the yelling match currently occurring between John and Tommy.

“You lot, shut the fuck up!” You exclaimed.

“Y/N,” Tommy began, a warning tone in his voice.

“No,” you said shaking your head, “I've had enough of this. I’ve spent all fucking day with your children and, quite frankly, it has put me off ever having children. So, here’s what’s going to happen. You lot are going to help your children with their Easter egg hunt whilst I go hide somewhere. I have also conveniently left clues to where I shall by hiding along with the eggs.

“Once you have figured out where I am hiding, you to find all of the shit you’ve taken from me over the years and bring it to me in my secret hiding place. When you bring it to me you are to not be twats or arseholes and are to act like my older siblings and, maybe, give me a hug. We clear? Good.”

You didn’t give them a chance to answer properly before you left the room, slamming the door behind you.

You looked up from the magazine you were reading as the wooden ladder up to the tree house creaked and groaned.

“Why the fuck are you up here?” Tommy asked, poking his head through the hatch.

“The children can’t follow me,” you replied, breaking off another bit of chocolate. “And it’s where my chocolate stash is.”

Tommy climbed in and sat down next to you.

You glanced down at what he was holding. “Is that the book you borrowed four years ago when you bored during Ada’s birthday and never gave back?”

Tommy chuckled, handing it to you. “Yes, thank you,” he replied. “Did you put those clues there just for us to give your shit back?”

“Oh, no, it was meant for the kids to come and get the final prize,” you explained, “except the final prizes no longer exists because I’ve eaten it.”

Tommy scoffed, shaking his head as you ate another bit of chocolate.

The tree house groaned again and Ada popped her head through the hatch.

“I hate you,” she said, climbing in, accepting Tommy’s hand of support.

“Ahuh,” you said, scooting over so that she could sit next to you. “My bracelet which you borrowed for a date with Freddie but never gave back?”

Ada handed you the bracelet as she sat down, taking a bit of chocolate at the same time. “Is this the treehouse?”

You nodded. “Yup. Tommy over there has sentimental issues apparently and moved it here for Charlie, except he never fucking uses it.”

Tommy rolled his eyes but said nothing.

“You get fed up of the arguing too?” Ada asked, accepting the chunk of chocolate you offered.

“Did I ever? I almost kicked a small child as well,” you muttered.

“Who’s?”

“John’s.” Ada nodded. “Feral children.”

“Thank you!” You exclaimed.

“I take great offence at that,” John said, wiggling his way through the wooden hatch. “Why the fuck we up here for our family reunion?”

“Because the children cannot climb,” you replied, scooting further around so that John could fit in. “And therefore I am safe from their terror.”

“They’re not that bad,” John said, sitting down on your right.

“Yes they fucking are,” you told him, “I think Karl learned about five new swear words today because of your fucking children harassing me.” You turned to face Ada. “Sorry, in advance.”

“Apology accepted,” your sister replied.

“Alright, where’s me mirror?” You asked John, holding your hand out.

John rummaged around in his pocket and pulled out a very battered but well loved silver mirror. “Forgot I had that.”

“Yeah, no shit,” you muttered, adding it to your collection. “You nicked it to give to Lizzie.”

“Don’t remind me,” John grumbled.

“Who the fuck decided to come up here?” Arthur grumbled as he climbed inside the cramped tree house.

“I’m hiding from your children,” you replied. “They’re evil and I never want one.”

Arthur rolled his eyes, throwing a hair clip at you. “Found it in an old drawer,” he said, sitting down next to Tommy.

“Yeah, you nicked it last year because I was being annoying and never gave it back,” you told him.

“Didn’t we build this?” Arthur asked, knocking on the slightly shabby wood wall behind him.

“Yeah, you and Tom,” you said. “When Finn and I were...eight, I think? I did wonder how it was still standing.”

“I am slightly concerned it’s about to collapse underneath us,” Ada muttered to you ad Tommy and Arthur complimented their work.

“No, so am I,” you muttered back as the tree house creaked and groaned.

“Y/N, those children are fucking feral and should be locked away,” Finn groaned, grunting as he squeezed himself into the house.

“I quite agree, Finn,” you replied, dragging him to sit in front of you so you could hug him. “Terrifying things.”

Finn put the ring he’d found on your finger. “Thanks, by the way,” he said, “even if I didn’t end up proposing.”

“Didn't think you would, to be honest,” you replied, resting your head against his back.

For a moment, the tree house was silent.

“You lot done fighting for the next ten minutes?” You asked quietly, suddenly acting like the youngest sibling instead of the oldest.

You didn’t admit it often but being left in charge of numerous children was terrifying. You didn't think yourself fit to be a mother - well, you knew you weren’t because you couldn't stand children - and it terrified you whenever your siblings left you alone with theirs.

The constant arguing for the past week had put you even more on edge. You weren’t sure that you could cope with your family falling apart in front of you. They were your main column of support and you knew you wouldn’t be able to function without them.

Before the war you rarely argued. There was the odd sibling fight but that was to be expected when six siblings lived in one tiny house. But, the tiny house had brought you all closer and the bond you had with your siblings was a unique one.

John shuffled closer to you, putting an arm around your shoulders. “Yeah,” he said, pressing a gentle kiss to your head. “Did we scare you?”

You nodded once. “Only because I was going to end up looking after your kids,” you covered quickly.

Arthur snorted. “Y/N, sweetheart, you’d end up murdering them all in the first day.”

You shrugged. “What can I say, I don’t do children.”

Ada laughed, entwining her hand with your hand and resting her head on top of yours.

For a single moment, you all felt like the kids who’d lived in Small Heath in a tiny house, sharing bedrooms because there wasn’t enough room.

“You know,” you said suddenly, “I really don’t think this tree house was built for six grown adults to sit in.”

“Yeah, I don't feel entirely safe,” Finn added.

“Are you insulting our craftsmanship?” Arthur asked, frowning.

“Yes,” you said as Finn nodded. “Now, leave me alone and go deal with your feral children.”

“They are not feral,” John said as he got up and began climbing down.

“KARL, THAT’S MINE!”

“Alright, maybe they are,” John admitted to himself as he climbed down the ladder to deal with his children.

You rolled your eyes as John started yelling. “Fucking children,” you muttered.

[chillyravenart]

Do you think the first Rhaenys could be described as a “good Targaryen” like Alysanne or Daeron? I mean yeah she took care of the smallfolk and loved music, poetry etc. But also she was rumored to be accused in adultery and her japes about “the yellow toad of Dorne” doesn’t makes her seem like a very nice person. Just wanna know your opinion, have a good day😊

Hi anon! Lmao I see a lot of Rhaenys hate (from a particular group lol) on here for some reason and I genuinely don’t understand it! Gosh, I really wish people would actually READ the texts properly before passing such sweeping judgements lmao but if that was the case, the asoiaf fandom wouldn’t be such a cesspool of self-righteousness right? So here’s my opinion: Rhaenys never did a thing wrong in her life and anyone who says otherwise is a wet blanket. Don't you think it's suspect when how the maesters portray Rhaenys as a wanton adulteress and Visenya as a stone-cold bitch? I certainly do!

Queen Rhaenys was a very instrumental figure in the Conquest, and exercised “soft power” which is the use of diplomatic and persuasive forms of politics, usually by the use of cultural or economic means. We know this because Fire and Blood spells it out for us:

Queen Rhaenys was a great patron to the bards and singers of the Seven Kingdoms,showering gold and gifts on those who pleased her. Though Queen Visenya thought her sister frivolous, there was a wisdom in this that went beyond a simple love of music. For the singers of the realm, in their eagerness to win the favor of the queen, composed many a song in praise of House Targaryen and King Aegon, and then went forth and sang those songs in every keep and castle and village green from the Dornish Marches to the Wall.

Rhaenys also took a "great interest in the smallfolk, and had a special love for women and children” and was responsible for incorporating the “rule of six/rule of thumb” into common law after a man had beaten his wife to death after being found abed with another man. This is also detailed in F&B but I shall add it below:

The right of a husband to chastise an erring wife was well established throughout the Seven Kingdoms (save in Dorne). The husband further pointed out that the rod he had used to beat his wife was no thicker than his thumb, and even produced the rod in evidence. When the queen asked him how many times he had struck his wife, however, the husband could not answer, but the dead woman’s brothers insisted there had been a hundred blows.

She consulted her maesters and her septons on the matter before passing her judgement on the man.

An adulterous wife gave offense to the Seven, who had created women to be faithful and obedient to their husbands, and therefore must be chastised. As god has but seven faces,however, the punishment should consist of only six blows (for the seventh blow would be for the Stranger, and the Stranger is the face of death). Thus the first six blows the man had struck had been lawful…but the remaining ninety-four had been an offense against gods and men, and must be punished in kind... (The husband was taken to the foot of the Hill of Rhaenys, where he was given ninety-four blows by the dead woman’s brothers, using rods of lawful size.)

Rhaenys and Visenya were both equals when it came to policy-making and ruling Westeros alongside Aegon. And they both DELIVERED. Aegon’s chief objective was to unite the Seven Kingdoms, and Rhaenys and Visenya had their own methods of doing so- but Rhaenys in particular used very effective methods whether it was passing rulings on the common law or spreading the Gospel of House Targaryen😂  Similarly, Rhaenys and Visenya both arranged betrothals and marriages between the Houses of Westeros to further knit the kingdoms together.

Save perhaps for Good Queen Alysanne, the wife of King Jaehaerys I, no other queen in the history of the Seven Kingdoms ever exercised as much influence over policy as the Dragon’s sisters.

As for the “rumours” and “whispers” of Rhaenys sleeping around with bards- GOOD for her if she did, and GOOD for her if she didn’t. She had her man Aegon wrapped around her little finger, he spent ten nights with her for every night he spent with Visenya and if the rumours want to call her a floozy then bully for them. Funny how everyone goes cuckoo over Dornish sexual practise and liberation but lord forbid someone else have a lil fun on the side😂 Speaking of, lets get onto Meria Martell now. This is the entire exchange between them:

Meria Martell was eighty years of age, the maesters tell us, and had ruled the Dornishmen for sixty of those years. She was very fat, blind, and almost bald, her skin sallow and sagging. Argilac the Arrogant had named her “the Yellow Toad of Dorne,” but neither age nor blindness had dulled her wits. “I will not fight you,” Princess Meria told Rhaenys, “nor will I kneel to you. Dorne has no king. Tell your brother that.” “I shall,” Rhaenys replied, “but we will come again, Princess, and the next time we shall come with fire and blood.” “Your words,” said Princess Meria. “Ours are Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken. You may burn us, my lady…but you will not bend us, break us, or make us bow. This is Dorne. You are not wanted here. Return at your peril.” Thus queen and princess parted, and Dorne remained unconquered.

Someone please show me where Rhaenys japed or jeered at Meria. She didn’t personally name her The Yellow Toad, Argilac gave her that epithet and it was in common use by then lol, nor did she parlay with her in an insulting manner. She was there as an envoy to accept her fealty and win Dorne to her side. Later on during the campaign, Rhaenys told Aegon, “The Yellow Toad has melted into the sands” lmao but at this point if people are more concerned about name-calling then idk what to say. Nicknames are commonly used amongst the highborn and lowborn in Westeros, some are pleasant and some not so much - even amongst Targaryens. Aegon the Unworthy, Theon Stark the Hungry Wolf, Kingslayer, Brienne the Beauty, The Imp, Littlefinger, Harma the Dogshead, Whoresbane, Crowfood, etc are all nicknames in common usage! Calling someone a nickname doesn’t make them a bad person, if that was the case, the majority of characters in asoiaf are too🤦‍♀️

Rhaenys died very young, and her loss was keenly felt by her siblings, that much is certain. If she had lived longer, the histories may have turned out very differently! She was an astute, capable and lovable queen and the ultimate matriarch of House Targaryen. I personally believe she would have continued to be very instrumental in law-making and the lives of the smallfolk in Westeros, travelling with Aegon on his progress throughout the lands, holding her own courts and granting her patronage to many a singer and mummer. Good thing we have Queen Alysanne following in her grandmother’s footsteps and doing it for the people!

Long story short, you may or may not agree with the Conquest or House Targaryen in general - and that’s fine. We have a series filled with murderers and rapists and all kinds of unsavoury folks, but it kills me when people say Rhaenys wasn't a "good person" lmfaoooo just stan your bland favourites and stay outta Targaryens’ business!😂😂😂 

Thanks for the question anon, hope you have a good day too!

[talpup]

Summary: Yami Sukehiro just wanted to join the Magic Knights and make his mentor proud.  He knew there would be trails.  He knew trouble would come his way.  Knew he would be faced with discrimination for being a foreigner and a peasant.  What he didn’t know.  Didn’t expect.  Was that literal Chaos would come his way.  That he and his mentor’s sister would be at the center of world ending trouble.  Or that he would fall in love with his mentor’s sister and face more than discrimination; but the jealously of Nozel Silva who loved the same woman he did.

Please remember this fic is rated mature and has warnings of violence, abuse, sexual tension, sexual behavior, and other possible triggers. For a full list of story tags please check the fics AO3 (link to that at the top of my tumblrs homepage).

***Unlike most chapters which are segmented into a days events, this one is a continuation of the same day as the previous chapter.

Chapter 99

Yami and Teris had spent the evening out at the Saber Wolf pens.  It had meant missing supper but neither had minded.  With the way Yami had been this last month or so, it was clear he needed space to breath.  And with events having Jax bar Yami from going out riding, cuddling after sharing what happened during each others morning had been the least and best Teris could offer.

In truth, Teris had needed the breather too.  Her reluctance to leave the space and return to the rest of the world and its never ending troubles leading her to tarry longer than she normally would have.  Yami hadn’t been happy about the reminder of this evenings meeting.  But his hope that Jax would finally tell them whatever it was he had been hiding for the past few weeks kept him from putting up much of a fight when Teris said they should head in.

Jax was coming up from the back hall when Yami and Teris entered the house.  “There you two are.  I was getting ready to send someone out to search for you.”  His eyes narrowed.  “You didn’t go out riding did you?”

“No.” Yami glowered.

Teris sighed heavily.  There went any release of tension their evening together had brought.

Jax huffed at Yami’s growling tone.  “I see you’re still in a temper.”

“Yami!” Bran dashed down the stairs.  Seeing Jax, he straightened and gave him a nod.  “Captain.”  Clearing his throat, he turned back to Yami.  “I need to talk with you.”

“It’ll have to wait, Bran.  I have a meeting with my Vice Captain's.”  Jax turned, expecting Yami and Teris to follow.

“It can’t wait!  It’s important.”  Bran blurted.

Jax turned back, brow raised.  Bran wasn’t the type to challenge.

Looking up at Yami, Bran told.  “It—it has to do with that thing we talked about at my family's farm on Vanessa’s birthday.”

Yami rubbed the back of his neck, muttering a curse.

“What’s he talking about?”  Teris asked Yami.

“You know what this meeting is for.  Is this really that important?” Jax asked, subtlety reminding Yami of the people waiting in his office.

“Yeah.” Yami told the Captain.  He looked down at Bran.  “It better be.”

“Fine. Teris.  With me.”  Jax pointed at Yami.  “My office, quick as you can.”

Yami gave Jax a nod.

Teris hesitated by Yami’s side.

Hand brushing down her arm, Yami tilted his head toward Jax, encouraging Teris to follow the Captain.  “I’ll be there in a bit.”

99.1.2

“Where’s Yami?”  Greywright asked when Jax entered with only Teris.

“Had something important to deal with.  He’ll be here shortly.”  Jax closed the office door.

“Well in that case.  If I may, I’d like to start by discussing the meeting I had with Teris this afternoon at Magic Investigations.” Marx said, not wanting to spend the evening repeating themselves to catch Yami up.  He looked at Teris.  “I am correct in figuring you already told Yami about that, yes?”

Sinking into a hard-backed chair, Teris nodded.

“You had a meeting with one of my Vice Captain's?”  Jax turned from Marx to Teris.  “Why didn’t I know of this?”

Teris opened her mouth to explain; but Marx spoke up first, telling Jax, Greywright, and Julius about the small painting Magic Investigations had unearth in the ruins of Yurist’s lab.  Marx stopped at the point where he had asked Teris to look at the portrait and ask the History of Chaos about it.

Julius turned to his sister.  “You had never thought to ask the History of Chaos about its author before?”

At his incredulous tone, Teris became defensive.  “It’s called the History of Chaos!  How was I to know it had any information about Yurist himself?”

“Because most authors put some kind of note or forward in their work.” Julius shot back.

“Enough.” Greywright ordered.

Caught between annoyed and humored, Jax complained.  “You two are such siblings.”

“I said, enough.”  Greywright rumbled.  He glanced at Julius, thinking the same as Jax and cursed the way of things.  Even if everything worked out to its best possible outcome, Julius and Teris would still face hardship and heartache.

A Wizard King gave up all family ties to serve the kingdom and its people.  On paper it sounded sensible.  It kept the Wizard King, and therefore the Magic Knights from focusing on the welfare of certain citizens.  Cutting ties and taking on a new last name also meant enemies couldn’t exploit a familial weakness, since there wasn’t any.  But in reality, many Magic Knights still focused on the welfare of certain citizens.  And while enemies might not be able to fully exploit a familial weakness; becoming Wizard King, cutting ties and changing your family name didn’t erase the love and experiences one had before those ties were cut.

Sighing, Greywright focused on Teris.  “What did the page of Chaos say when faced with this portrait Magic Investigations found?”

“It’d be easier if I just showed you.”  Teris unclasped the case that hung at the back of her waist and called forth her grimoire.  The tome landed in her hand, falling open to the page of Chaos.

Julius didn’t even try to tamp down his curiosity.  Getting to his feet, he moved to stand behind his sister eagerly looking over her shoulder.

“Who is this?”  Teris asked the page, thinking of the man and pregnant woman she had seen in the portrait.

“There’s a mental link?”  Jax uttered, unnerved.

“What’s that?”  Marx asked, turning to him.

“Since when could she think something and have the page pull an image from her head?”  Jax asked, wondering why no one else seemed distressed by this.

Marx blinked, eyes going wide at the disturbing realization.  He censured himself for missing such a thing when just this morning he had asked Teris if all Nova’s were guilty of ignoring the painfully obvious.

Too mesmerized by what looked like ink billowing on the page of Chaos, Julius didn’t even hear them.  The swirling dark liquid coalesced into letters, words, and finally full sentences.  He reached without thought, needing to get a better look at the magical sight.

Teris gladly let her brother take the spell-book, having read the answering message twice.  Once with Marx and then when she had shown Yami.

“My son is death.”  Julius read.  He looked up at Jax and Greywright, and clarified.  “Lower case ‘d’.”

Jax exhaled, relieved at the distinction.

Eyes lowering, Julius continued reading.  “He killed my beloved Celeste who died bringing him into this world.  A world dimmed of light and full of darkness now that she’s gone.”

“Little ‘l’ and ‘d’?”  Jax asked.

Julius nodded and went on.  “If I had seen it, I would have stopped it. Found some way to save my sweet, beautiful beloved.  What good is a Prophecy Mage who cannot see what will effect him most?  But the more connected I am to a happening, the harder it is for me to see.  I left my newborn son with a governess and threw myself into my work.  Years must’ve passed for he is now grown.  I didn’t even know Erin had left for the Spade Kingdom until this portrait had arrived.  He looks happy.  He and his bride, heavy with their child.  He and Mir—“ Julius faltered, looking up at the others, “Mira Spade.”

The Azure Deers Captain looked at Marx.  “Not the Mira Spade?”

“The time frame fits.  Though we have no images of her.  So even if we had a proper date, we wouldn’t be able to say for certain.”  Marx answered.

“Why? Who’s Mira Spade?”  Jax asked.

“The daughter of some long past Spade Kingdom King.”  Greywright said. “There’s not much we really know of her.  But the little we do has fed into some fantastical tales.  It was said she married a foreigner who took her name as a show of fealty to his new home and family.  Story says she was cursed for the marriage, and began to wither soon after becoming pregnant.  She supposedly didn’t last till term.  Weakening and dying.  It’s said the babe was cut out of her.  And despite being only seven months, that the child lived. That every nursemaid that came on to care for the child began to wither and weaken just like Mira had; all the while the child continued to get stronger.”

They all stared at the Magic Knights Commander.

“What? I know things too.”  Greywright said.

“Hear the story from Sabine?”  Julius teased, mentioning the Knights Commander’s ex who had once been an Investigations Mage.

Greywright colored slightly at being caught.  “It was a favorite tale of hers.”

“And tale is all it is.  For there is little we actually know about Mira Spade.”  Marx said.

“Well I guess you now know she married Yurist’s son.  Bet you and your fellows in Investigations will have a field day with that.”  Jax said.

Marx had to admit that confirmation of such a long held question many had wondered over would be a rather large deal in Magic Investigations. That was if he wrote up a report detailing the discovery.  “There will be no field days for Magic Investigations yet, Captain.  The meeting I had with Teris was off book for a reason.”

Greywright nodded, glad he wouldn’t have to tell Marx to keep quiet.  “He’s right.  So long as Ellara is running Magic Investigations, nothing about Yami, Teris, or what we learn about the Agents of Chaos can be reported over there.  That includes anything involving the History of Chaos, Yurist, or any of his other works.”  He looked at Julius. “What else does the page say?”

Teris shook her head even as Julius answered.  “That’s it.”

“But what does it even have to do with Yami, Teris, or the Agents of Chaos?  Other than that Yami and Teris have the History of Chaos and Yurist wrote it and had a son who married some Spade Kingdom Princess who died before their child was born?”  Jax asked.

Marx opened his mouth to answer.  But before he could speak, a knocked sounded.  Yami entered with Bran in tow.

Jax shot to his feet.  “What’s going on?”

“That important matter was even more important than I thought.”  Yami said, closing the door behind Bran.  Sighing, he told them of the task he gave Bran the day of Vanessa’s party.

Jax stared in disbelief.  “You ordered him to spy on members of his own squad?  My squad!”

“Asked.” Yami corrected.

Jax scoffed, anger bubbling.  “As if he’d tell you no, even if you weren’t his Vice Captain.  In case you haven’t noticed, Yami, the boy looks up to you.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, the kid’s grown up.”  Yami snapped back.  “Yeah, he’s a bit creepy with the way he looks up to me. But I made it clear this wasn’t an order but a personal and dangerous ask that could land him in trouble if caught.”

Bran colored slightly, embarrassed at being called creepy and being discussed so openly.

Jax shook his head, still upset.

“If he didn’t have the backbone to tell me no, I wouldn’t have asked.”  Yami said.

Though nervous, Bran took a step forward.  “I did it cause I wanted to help.”

Jax ignored Bran.  “What did you tell him?  Did you tell him about Ellara?  Yami.  What were you thinking!”

“I was thinking that we have an unwitting spy and a creepy ass bastard, who knows more than he’s saying, living under this roof and it would be nice to know what they were up to when they thought no one was watching.”  Yami said, his own anger rising.

“He has a point.”  Greywright said.  “While I trust that you, Yami, and Teris are careful about what you say around Olsen; this is one area we can be pro-active about.  None of us want to think Olsen is being used to spy but what if Ellara used him to plant something?”

Jax frowned.  “Plant what?”

Greywright shrugged.  “I don’t know.  That’s the point.  None of us know. Bran’s ability to listen in was invaluable during the Nine Day War. It would be a waste not to make use of him.”

Bran ducked his head, tinting at the praise.

“Make use of him against my own people?”  Jax challenged.  Before Greywright could speak, he sighed and turned to Bran.  “What did you overhear?”

Bran quickly told how he had been riding a Jay following Iban through the forest when Ellara appeared, and had then explained how he jumped into several bees to listen in.

Jax was barely able to keep silent and let Bran finish.  As soon as he was done, the Black Bulls Captain exclaimed.  “She’s married to him!”

Disturbing as that was.  As troubled as Teris was hearing Bran tell of the deal Iban had with Alowishus, the entire thing sounding as if the Blood Mage use to have some personal and not just ancestral connection to the Agents of Chaos; she was more concerned about Yami.

Settling down Jax a glanced at Julius, Greywright, and Marx.  Naturally, he had told them about Iban and the binding vow Alowishus forced Iban into.  Jax had been disappointed when Julius and Marx confirmed that such a binding blood vow couldn’t be broken without suffering the ill effects stipulated when the vow was made; but somewhat reassured that Iban hadn’t lied about it.

The Black Bulls Captain looked at Yami.  “Well I suppose that explains your temper.  Good to know, I guess.”

Teris didn’t see anything good about any of this.  The Darkness within Yami was affecting his temperament, and according to what Bran overheard would consume him if left to grow.

“What do they mean, ’more desirous of Teris’?” Julius questioned, protective brotherly instinct simmering to the surface.

Mildly chagrined, Yami rubbed the back of neck, avoiding his mentor’s gaze.  “Yeah.  I’ve been struggling a bit.  Feeling pent up and angry.  But the force inside me isn’t going to consume me.  I’m handling it.”  He shot Jax a brooding look.  “Though it’d help if Teris and I could go riding on our wolves.”

Jax’s eyes narrowed.

Yami looked at Teris asking the question he had wanted to ask but hadn’t because he didn’t want to worry her.  “Did you have the same problem in the year leading up to the Solstice?”

“Yeah, but not--”

Teris was cut off by Julius.  “If the ritual the Agents of Chaos did on the Summer Solstice released the building force inside Teris.  What happens to Yami when we stop them from doing the same to him for the Winter Solstice?”

Teris’ eyes widened, darting from Julius and back to Yami.

“Let’s table that disturbing thought and come back around to it.” Greywright said.  “Everyone take a seat.”

Jax sat back down, while Julius handed Teris back her grimoire and returned to his place on the sofa.  Yami pulled a hard-backed chair next to Teris’ and sat down beside her.

Bran looked about nervously.  He hadn’t been invited to this meeting. He hadn’t even known the Magic Knights Commander, Captain Julius, and a top ranking Investigations Mage had been in here.  Yami had merely brought him in to relay what he had overheard while riding the bees.

“Take a seat, Bran.  You’re a part of this now.”  Greywright said.

Even though the Commander outranked his Captain, Bran looked to Jax for confirmation.

Jax nodded.

Bran looked at Yami.  This clearly surrounded him and Teris.  If either Vice Captain told him to leave--

“Sit!” Yami barked.

Bran nearly sat on the floor in his rush to comply.  He managed to back up a step and sit on a chest near the door.

“There’s that temper again.”  Jax chastised.

“No. That’s just Yami.”  Julius said, hiding his humor in his sympathy for Bran.

Greywright rubbed his forehead and sighed, thinking he was surrounded by a bunch of children.  “Julius, even though Marx was the one to discover it, Shadow was once a Captain of your squad.  So why don’t you tell Teris.”

Instead of telling, Julius picked up a fabric bound book from the coffee table and handed it to his sister.

“What is it?”  Teris asked, taking the book.

“It’s the last journal of Captain Shadow Banashe.”  Julius saw the change in Teris’ expression, and gave her a reproving look.  “I see you recognize the name.”

“She made no mention of Captain Shadow’s name in her report or debriefing of the geyser labyrinth.”  Jax said of Teris.

“I got it from you.”  Teris said, looking at Marx.

Eyebrows knitting together, Marx opened his mouth to refute ever telling her such a thing.

“Well not you directly.”  Teris went on.  “There were several files left open on the table during my debriefing that day.  I didn’t see her last name but I saw the first, and that she had been a Captain of the Azure Deers.”

Julius’ expression darkened, disapproval growing.

Marx bristled at the violating breach of classified files.  Julius never would've done such a thing.  Well, Marx amended in his head, Julius’ obsessive curiosity most definitely would’ve seen him do such a thing; but he never would’ve admitted to it without any sign of guilt or shame the way Teris just had.

Jax ran a hand over his face, both exasperated and impressed by his Vice Captain.

Thinking she would make one hell of a Magic Knights Commander one day, Greywright fought a smirk hoping Sir Jorah truly could find a way to keep Teris from being banished for her refusal to wed Nozel.

“Did you see anything else?”  Greywright asked.

“Nothing of use or that I’ve been able to piece together to make sense of.” Teris frowned, annoyed with herself.  Shadow had been the Clover Kingdoms last light magic user before her.  The mummified corpse had called herself the Light Bringer and Harbinger of Darkness.  She looked down at the long dead Captain's journal, the cover frayed and faded.  “When did you find this thing?”

“The day before Flic turned himself over to your comrades.”  Marx said.

Teris’ frown deepened.  She had held so much hope that Commander Greywright would learn something about the Agents of Chaos’ plans or whereabouts from Flic; but it seemed that even when something was dropped right in their lap, nothing of sizable use came from it.  It was frustrating.  They were always one step behind Alowishus and his followers.  No.  That was far too generous; they were no where near that close.  They were barely working on the same playing field.

“That was seven days ago.  You all keeping stuff from us again?”  Yami asked, eyes on Jax.

Jax stared back.  Even though he had listened to Commander Greywright and Julius despite his own wanting to tell Yami and Teris about the leather bound journal he found four weeks ago, he wasn’t about to be shamed by his Vice Captain for it.

“It wasn’t like we had much of a chance.  What with Nozel and Fuegoleon turning up missing the morning after Flic turned himself in.  You and Teris being taken later that evening.  Flic becoming gravely ill two days after you returned, and then him dying yesterday.”  Julius said, in defense of himself and his friend.  He glanced at Bran disturbed that what the young man overheard between Ellara and Iban all but confirmed his and Marx’s theory on how Flic was killed.  A part of him wanted to find Iban and force the man to tell everything he knew no matter how insignificant, and no matter the cost to the Blood Mages family.

“Julius only informed me about the late Captain's journal two days ago.  Marx telling him that same morning.”  Greywright said, thinking that they needed to come up with a better way to communicate.  But even communication crystals could be tapped into.  And according to what Yami had seen the morning of the Summer Solstice, the Agents of Chaos had hundreds of members.  Without knowing what type of magic those members had...

“A quarter of the journal is blank.”  Marx said.

“I’m guessing it’s more than just empty pages of an unfinished journal from a life cut short.”  Teris said, not seeing any other reason Marx would point out such a thing.

Marx nodded.  “While the blank pages are at the end and likely would have been thought of as empty, there are two sentences and a signature three pages later.”

“Three blank pages and then more writing?”  Teris looked between Marx and Julius figuring that even with everything going on they would've tried something to reveal what, if anything was written.

“You were able to sense what no one else did in the geyser labyrinth.  As if the remains of Captain Shadow had been calling to you.”  Julius said, disturbed and intrigued.

Teris darkened at the memory.  “She used me.”

Julius’ eyebrows furrowed in confusion.  “Used you?”

Teris picked at the threads of the frayed journal.  “She used me to get to Yami.  She called herself the Harbinger of Darkness.  Said she called to me to fulfill her destiny.  A destiny that was clearly to bring out the Darkness in Yami.”

Julius sighed.  “I can see how you might think that, but--”

“There’s no other way to think of it.  It’s what she did!”  Teris stormed.

Yami grabbed Teris’ hand and got to his feet, pulling her up with him. “Excuse us a moment.”

Jax and Julius blinked as Yami opened the office door, stepped out with Teris, and closed it behind.

“Well,” Greywright sighed, sitting back, “anyone want to relay to Bran the importance of keeping quiet about all this while we wait?”

Jax, Julius, and Marx turned to Bran.

Not knowing what to do, Bran smiled and waved.  Knowing that was the wrong thing to do but unable to stop, his other hand grabbed his waving hand and pulled it down.

An embarrassed blush tinted Bran’s cheeks.  “Sorry.  I’m just really nervous.”

99.1.3

Yami turned to Teris as soon as the door closed.  “You’re not some transformation mage pretending to be Teris, are you?”

“What?” Teris’ eyes furrowed.  “Yami, this is serious.”

“I know.  So why are you afraid to look at that thing?  It’s not like you.”

Teris bristled.  “You heard why.  She--”

“Whatever happened, happened cause I needed to get to you.”  Yami said, cutting her off.  He looked at her remembering the fear and anger he felt when she disappeared behind the rock wall.  He shook the memory away, telling himself as well as her.  “We’re not in some labyrinth where you can be locked away from me.”

“No we’re not.”  Teris agreed.  “We’re standing here after having just heard that the force inside you is growing so fast and strong that it might consume you.  That even the crazies who want to see that force grow are concerned.”

“Weren’t you listening?  I said I was handling it.”

“Yami. I’m worried.  I love you.”

Yami’s fingers clasped behind Teris’ neck, palms cupping her face in both hands.  His forehead pressed against hers, steel grey eyes staring into her dark bottomless ones.  “I love you too, Ikigai.” His nose bumped hers, breath fanning her face. “It’s why you have no reason to worry.  I’d never lose to anything, least of all some force inside me, so long as I have you.”

Head shaking in his hands, Teris opened her mouth.  Yami silenced her with a kiss.  It was meant to be a brief, reassuring kiss; but as soon as his lips touched hers his desire for her ignited like a broken jar of Wild Fire.

One hand dropped from her face, arm wrapping tightly around her waist. Yami pulled her close, leaning over her.  The words Bran overheard Iban tell Ellara replayed in his mind.  “The Darkness is already bleeding out and effecting him.  He has been more volatile.  Angrier than usually.  Possibly even more desirous of Teris and the Light that is inside her.”   That last sentence echoed as he kissed her.  “Possibly even more desirous of Teris and the Light that is inside her.”

Yami didn’t think anything could make him more desirous of Teris.  He certainly didn’t like the idea of anything effecting him that way. But as the kiss grew ever more heated, he thought he understood what Iban meant.  It had nothing to do with desire.  At least not his usual loving desire.  This desire was darker.  Consuming and unquenchable.  It wasn’t for Teris herself, but for what Teris was. What Teris could be.  A light and warmth that could fill a dark cold, bottomless hunger.

Yami pulled away leaving them both breathless.  “Read the damn pages.  I know you want to.”

Teris stared up at him.

Yami quirked a brow.  “Aren’t you the least bit curious?”

“Yeah. But…  The last time I gave into my curiosity where Captain Shadow was concerned bad things happened.”

Yami’s lips brushed hers as he spoke.  “You have no clue what you mean to me If you think some long dead woman could take me away from you.”

99.2

“A letter from Lady Ellara.”  Calen said, entering his Master’s office.

Alowishus frowned.  He wasn’t expecting anything from her.  Given the suspicions of Captain's Julius and Jax, coupled with the traitor Flic surrendering himself to the Magic Knights, Alowishus hadn’t imagined he would hear from Ellara for more than six months. Something had to have happened.

Alowishus opened the missive.  It was a brief message, straight to the point.  Typical of her communications.  But what wasn’t was that it didn’t bear her usual endearment at the end.  Curious.

Setting down the letter, Alowishus told Calen almost proudly.  “The Darkness in Yami is growing.”

“Already? Isn’t it far too soon?”  Calen asked.

Alowishus thought back to his latest dealing with Yami and Teris, three days ago. He supposed his eagerness and following anger over the Future of Chaos had something to do with his having missed the signs.  Still, that was hardly an excuse.  He was better than that. He had spent too much time and had too much riding on his plans to become sloppy and not notice every little thing.

“How do we tamp the force down?”  Calen asked.

“Tamp it down!  We will do no such thing.”  Alowishus said.

“But--”

“Yami is not the real concern here, his fix is an easy one.  What we need to worry about is Teris.  At this rate she will not survive the Ritual of Darkness.  If she doesn’t grow stronger, the Darkness within Yami will kill her and the Light inside her with it.”

“What are we going to do?”  Calen asked, worried for their hopes for the new existence.

“We will deal with Yami.  Contact King Morris.  I think it’s time I made good on my promise to let the Diamond Kingdom have Teris.”

  99.3

Back in Jax’s office, Teris took up Captain Shadow’s journal.  She hesitated, eyes lifting to Yami.

Yami gave her an encouraging nod.

Taking in a fortifying breath, Teris opened the journal to the marked page. Her eyebrows furrowed, wondering if the page marker had been put in the wrong place.  The pages weren’t blank.  Sure, that’s what Julius and Marx had been hoping for.  That as a light magic user like Shadow, she would be able to read the blank pages.  But surely it couldn’t be this easy.  Could it?

Teris began to read aloud, half expecting them to stop her and say that wasn’t the spot.  Only they never did.

“I was a fool.  I fell in love with him.  Everard Spade.”

Jax straightened in his seat.

Yami saw the looks the Knights Commander, two Captain's, and Marx shared. Was this about whatever secret Jax was keeping that the Captain had been going to tell him about before Greywright called in about Flic dying?

“But how could I not?” Teris continued reading.  “He was handsome and kind.  Powerful and strong.  More powerful than I could have ever imagined.  But we will get to that.  There was always something about him.  A melancholy.  Even when he smiled, it never fully reached his eyes.  He told of his mother's death.  And I thought that was why.  Who wouldn’t be forever marked by sadness when your own father said you caused your mothers death?  It broke my heart for him.  Opened me up to him.  Which I learned too late is what he had wanted.  He didn’t need to lie to gain my care and sympathy. His truth is that sad and broken.  He truly is a wounded, tormented soul. But the way he used that truth.  Sprinkled in just enough without telling the whole horrid tale…

I thought I was going to spend my life with him.  Little did I know.  It was my life he wanted.  The betrayal happened on the Summer Solstice.  He came to my base before dawn.  I thought it romantic.  Thought he couldn’t wait for our picnic that afternoon to see me.  He was ravenous.  Insatiable. The two of us making love as the sun rose on the longest day of the year.  Little did I know he was feeding on more than my lips.  He left me in bed weak.  Nearly dead and drained of mana.  My Vice Captain found me.  I was unconscious for days.  Stuck in Healer’s Hall for two weeks.  Confused. Heartbroken.  He had used me.  It was months later that I realized just much he had used me.  Had any of it been real?  I don’t know.  He never said.  Doubt I would have believed him if he had.

He was the Master of a group that called themselves the Agents of Chaos. The group apparently went back several hundred years.  Several say they were started by Yurist’s son.  Others that Yurist himself began the group.  All I know is that they were a group of zealots obsessed with ending it all to bring about some knew reality.  And that they were being led by the man I once loved and thought had loved me in return.

Everard Spade stole my heart to steal most of my mana.  Did he know I would survive?  Did he even care?  Was our accidental meeting even an accident?  Over the course our continued battles I would learn that Everard left nothing to chance.  Our meeting had been no accident.  Our love affair fully planned.  The man was patient.  Obsessed. While he might not have known I would survive having nearly all my mana taken the morning of that Summer Solstice, he had to have had a good idea that I would.  For his plans for me were far from over.

I don’t know how, but he began to enter my dreams.  Showing and telling me such haunting things that I wish I could have forgotten upon waking. One of the things he continually told me about were the primordial forces and the rise of Chaos.  That there would one day be a light magic user who was inhabited by a portion of Light; and a dark magic user inhabited by a portion of Darkness. That together their magic could end not just the world but existence itself. As time passed I came to dream of this Light and Darkness; but never when Everard visited me in my dreams which always happened on the night of the New Moon and the two nights before it.

It was during those dreams of Light and Darkness that I came to realize my destiny.  I am the Harbinger of Darkness.  I will call the Light and see the Darkness show itself, announcing the rise and growth of Darkness.  I don’t understand it or know why; but I am certain my fate as the Harbinger will be locked in place this day. Which is why I am writing to you, my fellow light magic user. Because those dreams have also told that I am the Light Bringer. I am the light magic user that comes before you, the one who is inhabited by a portion of Light.  It is to you that I write this warning.

Everard Spade is ancient and strong.  Older than any person has a right to be.  It is little wonder that he has gone mad.  Seeking out knowledge and making plans that will let him finally, truly, have the peace and rest he so desperately desires. But how does one kill Death?  Mana knows I have tried.  Tried to give him the death he wants and justly deserves. In the years following that Summer Solstice he has haunted and tormented my every step.  And I have tried and failed to rid the world of him and give him the eternal sleep he wants. I thought I had finally succeeded. That you and this dark magic user would be spared of his plans.  The world safe from his aims.  But I fear I was wrong. Though small and faint, I feel his presence once more. I fear I only succeeded in killing the body.  A body I know no soul could still reside in.  I saw that body burn to ash. I incinerated it with my magic.  But somehow the life force that had been within that body is growing and among us once more. Whether because of a curse.  A spell gone wrong.  Or a cruel twist of fate.  The man that calls himself Death lives on.”

Comments are VERY MUCH appreciated and really make my day.  Thank you to those who have left hearts.  And a special THANK YOU to those who have recently commented or re-blogged. It really means a lot.

Next chapter snippet:

Julius’ eyebrows pulled together.  He didn’t like Jax thinking he was right.  He didn’t want to be right.  It had been a crazy theory at the time.  It was still a crazy thought.  Just because what they had learned last night further pointed to such a possibility didn’t make the idea any less insane.  But given everything else; talk of Chaos and primordial forces, and crazy zealots who wanted to end everything to start a new beginning.  Was the notion that they were dealing with someone that old really that insane?

[namorres]

→ A MISSING PIECE.  ∞  E. MIKAELSON

wc | 4.5k

warnings | fluff, a lil bit of sadness but not too much, klaus being an ass

note: this is my first fic in this entire fandom, and i really do hope i do his amazing character justice. :)

masterlist

A marriage to a Mikaelson was unheard of. They did not love others, too concentrated on their own family to make it any bigger, and those unlucky enough to fall for one of them would surely find their demise rather quickly. 

Rebekah was never able to keep a man, her brother, Klaus, always making sure of such. No man was good enough for his sister, you see, so therefore the only option for them if they were to suddenly fall for her, was to die. He did not see a grey area, where they might love her, be with her because of her, no. He was a man of black and white – one either loved or hated someone, and rarely did he see love as an option. 

Klaus himself wasn’t one to love. He did not believe in such things, too selfish and arrogant to care for anyone more than he did for himself. It was a game of self-preservation, something he’d say when he tried to justify it, there was no time for such silly little matters. Family was the most important, anyway, and as far as family came for Klaus, they, too, were easily pushed out of the picture. If they bored him, got in his way one too many times, they were greeted with a dagger to the chest and a few decades in a box, carried wherever he went. He did not ever let them go, but he did not let them live alongside him, either. Truly, Klaus Mikaelson was the loneliest, most broken sibling of the family, and his case was a curious one. 

As for the eldest brother, Elijah, he was the one that rarely fell. He did not try to jeopardize his connection to his family with such matters of love, but truly, there were times he could not help himself. A woman of perfection, a woman that absolutely held his immortal heart in her hands, a woman he would give his life for, would be one such occasion. There was one woman, though, that could not keep him. She was a human, from when he was a much younger vampire who had not yet lived through a millenia of torture and sacrifice and bloodshed, and he had fallen harder for her than he could have imagined. However, his brother, Klaus, saw to it that her life was a living hell, being so involved with the Mikaelson’s and their horrible past. He was the reason she died – blamed for murder, accused of witchcraft which she had no part in, and therefore burned. She was burned, and along with her, Elijah Mikaelson’s heart. For centuries after, the eldest brother did not connect with anyone. He did not care for anyone in that certain way.

Then, came along another woman, three centuries later. Once again, a woman of perfection, someone Elijah could not even compare Aphrodite herself to. She was beautiful, she was intelligent, she was everything that Elijah had ever asked for in a woman. Above all, though, she was recklessly in love with the Original, regardless of his true self, regardless of the baggage he carried in the form of a little brother. Elijah claimed her as his own, and for ten years, the two were inseparable, completely and totally in love. The family had taken a liking to her, fallen for her as a sister. 

And then Klaus took that all away from him. A nasty fight, a blood-filled feed from the hybrid after she had touched a nerve. Elijah was unable to help, unable to do much to stop his brother because of his own ailments, and she was on the brink of death. Once Klaus had finished drinking from her, her body dropped, head falling hard against the ground. Elijah would not lose her to Klaus, would not lose another woman that he loved to his angry younger delinquent brother. He bit his own wrist, forced her to drink his blood. She would heal, he told himself, she would be able to get back up and he could take her away from all of this. But as soon as she was well, Klaus decided he was not finished. With no regard for his older brother’s begging to leave her be, to leave her out of his rage, he snapped her neck.

He solidified her fate, in only a moment. She awoke later that night, fed, and forever sealed the letter on who she was to become. Elijah mourned for her first, trying his best to calm her fear of becoming something like Klaus – a monster with barely any humanity left in the tiny, lifeless heart that beat in his chest. Another decade passed before she was finally okay with herself, another decade spent with the love of her life.

She proposed to him, one night under a dark, moonless sky, that they should marry, that she was tied to him and that his siblings saw her as family. He was… reluctant at first, for fear that she would be caught up in far worse, but she bargained, made him realize that she was already caught. So, on the twenty-second year of their eternal relationship, she took his last name. She became a Mikaelson. 

She and Elijah were like a King and Queen above the rest of the family, regardless of her humility, her humanity that ran thick through her veins. They fed, yes, but she was in control, standing by the side of her love with the most powerful feeling surging in her chest. Pride. Pride in what she had, pride in who she was, pride in who she loved.

And then he was gone. For forty years, the King and the Queen, quick to forgive, loving, and violent when challenged, ruled with and over the small family, and then just like that, the Queen was alone and her King was shoved in a box with a dagger in his chest. Klaus had taken from her everything – her family, her love, her lifeline. He took her humanity, her forgiveness. And he ran. 

Years were nothing when your life was eternal, this was true. Forty years were a mere four to a vampire. A century only a decade. For another century and a half, the lone Mikaelson stayed to herself, became nothing but a shadow. Her ring – a silver band with Elijah’s name engraved on the inside, with a blue gem in the center to allow it to be a daylight ring, was cold on her fingers, but never removed. She loved him. She would not leave him. She would be there the day he woke. 

She tailed Klaus, followed him wherever he went, but never in person, and only with a locater spell. Once he arrived in Mystic Falls, she caught word of the havoc he wreaked, heard of the times he woke his siblings and then put them back down as if they were nothing. Then, he fled to New Orleans. When he arrived, she heard of it rather quickly. She was furious. 

“What do you mean he’s back in New Orleans?” She yelled to Marcel, who stood against the railing of the upper level of the compound, a rather joyous party going on beneath them. 

“He’s back, Y/n,” he said lowly, “I don’t know why, I just know that he is.”

“He will not live to leave,” she growled, fingers gripping the railing so tightly her knuckles went white. She took a breath in, soothing the anger that ran through her chest and made her blood boil. There was a moment of silence, and then she looked down at her hands, her grip loosening, “If he’s back, that means so is…” Tears burned at the back of her eyes, her lip quivering.

“That means so is Elijah,” Marcel finished for her, looking down at his hands. When he looked up again, she was staring out into the crowd, lost in her thoughts. A gentle hand fell on her shoulder and he gave a small squeeze, thumb rubbing against the bare skin of her collarbone. “You will find him again.”

She looked at Marcel and smiled, but it quickly faded. “Yes.”

A century and a half without her husband had left Y/n Mikaelson cold. She did not know love like she did with Elijah, did not know desire or want or passion. She knew happiness, yes, but it was a fleeting one that ran when she was alone to sleep in the bed she should have shared with her Elijah. 

A tear slipped from her eye, and she shook her head, “I will not be weak.” 

Marcel said nothing, looking over his trusted friend, something of a mother to him, gave her one last squeeze of the shoulder, and nodded. “I have to go speak with the reason this party is happening tonight,” he said, referring to the people who were very willing to deliver money into Marcel’s hands if they could have just a sample of what his empire held. “If you need anything, you come find me.”

She watched as Marcel walked into the party, blending well with the crowd. This was his element – had been since the first time Klaus had left New Orleans with his siblings, and was now. She smiled, briefly, at hearing his booming laughter, but it almost instantly faded whenever her focus shifted to who had just entered the party.

Elijah Mikaelson. 

His hair was shorter than she’d remembered – a haircut that was not at all offensive to her. He looked healthy, not a day over twenty-two, as he always had. Her heart surged at the thought of hearing his voice again, at holding him again, but something in her made her feel cold, with a white kind of ice sitting in the back of her mind. She saw him, standing there, looking around, likely for Marcel, and she panicked. Just as his eyes turned to where she was standing, she was gone, having raced off somewhere that he wasn’t going to even bother looking. She noticed the furrow in his brow, the slight wrinkle that formed just at the top of the bridge of his nose in confusion, and she smiled, sadly. 

He was gone by the end of the night, and Y/n had not been sure where, but she knew she could likely guess where Klaus would have gone if he did not have the compound to come back to. Marcel found her after the party was over, tears streaming down her cheeks as she stared herself down in the mirror, thinking, hoping, hurting. 

“You saw him tonight, didn’t you?” He asked, leaning against the doorframe of her bedroom.

“Yes,” she said quietly, rubbing the water from her face and sniffling. “He looks just as he did a century and a half ago. Handsome, but with a haircut.”

Marcel snickered, eyes falling down as he shook his head, “That is the perk of our curse, you know. The whole ‘never-aging’ thing.”

She laughed small, “Yes, I’m aware.” There was a beat of silence, “I’m… I’m afraid, Marcel.” 

His smile had faded, a look of worry and care in his eyes as his eyebrows creased, “I know, Y/n. But you know he still loves you–”

“How am I supposed to know that, Marcel?” She asked, her voice no louder than a whisper, water pooling in her eyes once more. “How am I supposed to know that I even matter anymore. This is not the first he’s been awake in the last three years, it’s highly likely he found another woman to catch his–”

“Hey, hey,” he walked over to her vanity, crouching down beside her and placing a warm hand on her thigh, “enougha that. You wanna know somethin’?”

“Hm?”

“He had his ring on– the wedding band you showed me. He was wearing it,” his eyes bounced between hers, and she let out a breath, a sob almost, and she began to cry. He stood, pulling her into his body and holding her to the best of his ability. His hands stroked through her hair, and he planted a soft kiss to the top of her head, “He still loves you, Y/n. You have time to see him. Take the opportunity when it presents itself. Go to him.”

She would heed his advice. But it would take time. After the first night of seeing him, for three or four nights after, she could not bring herself to even leave the compound, for fear of seeing him bouncing about in the French Quarter. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see him – no, God, never that. It was simply that she wasn’t sure he wanted to see her. What if he only wore the band because he’d forgotten to take it off, or perhaps it doubled as a daylight ring for him as well, and he was unable to locate the other one that usually resided on his middle finger. 

Perhaps the latter scenario was a bit ridiculous, in hindsight. But, nevertheless, she was terrified, yet she yearned to see him again. 

After a week, she finally found it in herself to leave, walking out onto the streets of the French Quarter. It was really to go to Rousseau’s, because she’d been craving one of Camille’s signature “secret” drinks, and she figured that it would be best if she owned up to the idea that she was going to have to face him at some point. 

As she entered the establishment, her eyes landed on a man sitting at the bar, stealing Cami’s attention. The bartender smiled, looking up at whoever the mysterious man was through her lashes, and Y/n wore a devious but adoring smile. Then the man turned to the side, for just a moment, but it would take nothing more than a second for her to recognize such a profile.

Klaus. 

Anger bubbled up again, thick in her veins and loud in her mind. She was going to hurt him, she was going to snap his neck and make him suffer for a second, even if it was just a minor inconvenience to him. And then Cami looked up over his shoulder at her, she waved, and Y/n was stuck. She was going to have to go to the bar and say something to her friend, and she was going to have to face Klaus.

Or she could act like she wasn’t Y/n, she could play coy, dumb. But it would never work. Klaus knew her too well. 

Taking the agonizing steps to the bar, she let out a sigh and gave her friend a small grin, “Hey, Camille.”

“Y/n, please, what did I tell you about calling me that?” She laughed, throwing her towel over her shoulder. Klaus’s head snapped to the right at hearing the name, and he wore a devilish grin when he saw her. 

Y/n pretended not to notice, continuing to smile and make small talk, “How’s it been?”

“Well, it’s been rather slow, to be honest. Customers in and out but only the regulars – must be something about the Quarter this time of year,” she laughed. 

Y/n nodded, agreeing before Cami said she would be right back with the drink Y/n liked most. Sighing, she sat down and stared at her hands. 

“Y/n Mikaelson,” Klaus muttered under his breath, accented words stabbing at her ears, “long time no see, sister.”

Her eyes flitted from her hands to the bottles lined on the wall in front of her, her jaw clenching tightly. She scoffed lightly, then turned to him with a sneer, “Spare me this conversation, Klaus. I do not wish to hear your dreaded voice.” 

“But you do wish to see Elijah, yes?” He prodded. He always prodded. 

“That is not your concern,” she said, voice flat. “Nothing I do is of your concern.” 

Camille came back with her drink, and Y/n thanked her, asking for a to-go cup instead of a glass. Cami pulled one from behind the bar, taking the glass and pouring the drink in for her. She thanked her again, sticking a straw through the top of the cup and pulling away from the bar aggressively. 

“I can take you to him, you know?” Klaus offered as she walked away, turning around in his seat. 

“Yes, I know you can. But I would rather take a stake to my heart than trust you,” she said, words spoken over her shoulder. 

“That can be arranged!” He called, standing from the barstool and following her to the door of the bar. “Y/n, you do want to see him don’t you?”

“Of course I do, Klaus!” She yelled, staring him directly in the eye and gripping her plastic cup, “But as I said – it does not concern you. Nothing about me concerns you. You made sure of that the minute you took the love of my life and shoved him in a goddamn box and ran,” she paused, her chest heaving from the words spat like venom to the blonde man in front of her, “like the coward you are.”

He scoffed, looking away from her, “I do apologize, sister, but I am sure Elijah would love to see you. He has missed you.” 

Her heart skipped a beat, and her brows furrowed, her lips parting. It took her a second, but then she whispered, “I will see him on my own terms. You will not have any part in it.” She turned over her shoulder and walked out of Rousseau’s, tears beginning to well in her eyes once more. She was frustrated, that was for sure – she just gave up a solid chance to see her husband again, but if Klaus was involved, she would give it up again and again until the hybrid decided he was too bored to be bothered.

Another few days passed before she saw any of the Originals. It almost made her forget there was even a chance of seeing her husband again. Almost.

The compound was full of vampires needing guidance, freshly turned and older alike, confused and hurt and alone. The Nightwalkers were her favorite to deal with, for no other reason than they were still kids at heart, still young and wanting to live the life that no longer existed for them. 

She had just sent them out to have their little soiree about the French Quarter, a once in a blue moon event, when she heard the whispers that were all too familiar. She did not see where he had gone, nor where he had stopped, but she knew he was there. She knew he was watching. Her heart leaped to her throat, and she thought of the ridiculousness of this meeting, but then she could not bring herself to keep the hopeful smile off of her face. Perhaps Marcel had had something to do with it, or Klaus – as much as she doubted the idea that he would help her in any way, shape or form. 

Sighing to herself, she leaned forward against the railing, hands as far out as they could reach, her eyes looking up to the windows in the roof. A smile traced her lips and she said, quietly, “You know I was never one for a game of hide and seek.” 

“And I have never been one to lose such a game,” he whispered in her ear, his hands ghosting over her hips. As she went to move back, he was gone again, and she laughed.

“Elijah,” she said, another giggle tumbling from her lips, “I am not good at this game! You know this!” 

“All the more reason to keep playing,” he called from a different corner of the room, making her attention snap to it. He was not there, of course, but one could hope that they would beat Elijah at a game like this. She could always hope. 

“My love,” she said, twisting the ring over her finger, “I have missed you.” 

The whispers echoed through her mind again, and when she turned away from the rest of the room, he was standing at the window, back to her. Tears stang at her eyes, just like every other time she thought of seeing him, touching him, and she said his name quietly. He turned over his shoulder, eyes focused on the ground before he looked at her.

A smirk, the smirk she had grown so fond of, was drawn on his lips and his brown eyes were soft, staring at her through his lashes. She stood for a moment, staring, breath caught between her mouth and her lungs. She could not begin to describe the fluttering feeling erupting in her chest and her stomach, could not begin to understand why seeing him after so long made her start to cry. She could only comprehend that she needed to make sure this was real, that this was no dream or spell or hex from a witch.

Her boot hit the ground softly, her best attempt at closing the gap between the two. Elijah’s eyes dropped to the ring on his finger, his thumb subconsciously twisting it around. A nervous tick he was never able to break, something she found an intimate familiarity in. He matched her steps, slow and careful before he was almost chest to chest with her, his brown eyes dancing between her own, his hand ghosting over her cheek and his fingertips just barely gracing her skin. She craved his touch, craved feeling any contact from him. 

“My love,” he said quietly, his voice deep and raw and vulnerable, “it has been… much too long.” 

Her hand came up to his, pressing it to her cheek as she cupped it with her own. A breath escaped her husband’s chest, his thumb caressing her cheekbone as he admired each of her features – wholly unchanged, but entirely foreign to him, almost. “Yes,” she said smally, “yes it has.”

She stepped impossibly closer, cupping his face with her delicate touch and pulling him to her lips. It was small at first, the kiss they shared. But it quickly escalated, a century and a half of built-up tension and sorrow and longing and love releasing itself as quickly as it could. Elijah’s hands fell to her hips, then kept traveling, one planting itself on her lower back, the other on her head. Her own palms ventured, taking in the fabric of the suit he wore, the prickly fuzz of the scruff that had begun to grow on the side of his neck. 

Her back hit the wall in a moment, her fingers in his hair and her legs hiked up on his waist. They did not say much – there was no need. Everything that needed to be said could be saved until later, until the matter at hand was resolved. 

Desire was a beautiful thing between a couple that had lasted for over two hundred years. 

It was not long before they found themselves in her bedroom, sweatied and naked in her bed, tangled in the sheets that were always meant for the two of them. Her head rested on his bare chest, his fingers tracing her skin in abstract patterns as he stared at the ceiling, and occasionally glanced at her beauty. 

“I like your hair, love,” she said quietly, a giggle attaching itself to the last word.

He let out a huff of a laugh, head falling to the side before he looked at her as she propped herself up on his chest, “Why… thank you. I figured it would be more than fitting for the times.”

She smiled, placing a kiss on his chest, then another, then another, all the way up until she reached his mouth. “You do not know what it has been like without you, Elijah.”

“I am,” he breathed out, looking over her features as best he could, trying to memorize something he’d seen time and time and time again, “terribly sorry. You know I would never leave you, I gave you my word and I do not break my promises.”

“Yes,” she smiled smally, “I know this. I am not angry with you, my love. I have never been. But a century and a half does weigh on a woman, if you’d believe me.”

He laughed again, a smile that was intimate, especially for her, gracing his lips, “I’m afraid I do.”

She scoffed, hand flying to her chest in mock offense, “Are you saying I look old, Elijah! That is– that is unforgivable Elijah Mikaelson.”

He let out a rather loud chuckle, hand rubbing up and down her arm, “My darling, you haven’t aged a day – your beauty is as timeless as vampires themselves. Though,” he sucked a breath through his teeth, “a few wrinkles have presented themselves where they–”

“That’s it!” She called, climbing on top of him, grabbing the pillow she had been laying on and threatening to hit him with it. He only gave her his smug grin, and she quirked a brow before smacking it off of his face with her feather-filled weapon. He let out a grunt, trying to defend himself to the best of his ability but unable to sit up. “You may be immortal, but no one can survive an onslaught of pillow, darling.”

“Oh yeah?” He challenged, grabbing the pillow and stopping her swing, looking at her just underneath it. She tried to push against him, but it was no use – he had the upper hand. She ceded, letting the pillow drop as she took in her husband for the millionth time that night. He gripped her around her waist, pulling her into his torso as best he could with how close they already were. His lips fell to her neck, sharp teeth grazing the skin lovingly. She sighed into his touch, body almost jelly in his hands. Planting a few soft kisses along her collarbone and shoulder, he lifted his head and looked her in the eye, pushing a few strands of her from her face, “I love you, Y/n.”

She pressed a kiss to his lips as softly as she could, a promise to make to him, “I love you, Elijah. I will always love you.”

He looked so vulnerable at that moment, mouth slightly agape and eyes darting over every inch of her they could see, “Always and forever,” he muttered. Then he looked up at her again, seeking the approval, the affirmation that only she could give him, that he only ever required from her. 

“Always and forever, my love.”

[cringeytwilightsideblog]

the cullens throw their long-suffering father the first birthday party he’s had in 300 years (also Jasper’s inner cowboy comes out STRONG)

Hey, thought Emmett as he peered around Edward’s doorframe. Whatcha doing?

“I am organizing my CD collection.” he said. “Why, may I ask, has half of my Mozart been replaced with ABBA?”

“Because ABBA is better than Mozart. Anyway, I need to talk to you.”

“Ok…” Edward said. “Well?”

“In private.”

“I can read minds, idiot.”

“Yeah, but I can’t. Come with me.”

Edward sighed and grabbed his khaki raincoat, his khaki rain boots, and his khaki hat and headed outside with Emmett into the forest. As they were running through the trees, Alice jumped down from one directly in front of Edward, who crashed into her so hard her arm came off.

Alice stuck the arm back on and said brightly, “So! What are we doing?”

“We’re going to have a birthday party for Carlisle!” Emmett announced.

“ Nobody knows his birthday.”

“Bella googled some old census records.”

“Hi!” said Bella, walking out of the woods dragging a deer behind her. “Do you guys mind if I eat lunch?”

“Remember to say grace, dearest one.” Edward reminded her. “The good lord smiles upon those who pray.”

‘Hold on.” Alice said. “You mean all these years Carlisle just could’ve googled his birthday and instead he has to be all dramatic and mysterious about it?”

“I guess it runs in the family,” Emmett said, looking at Edward in his all-khaki getup, reading from the Bible over Bella’s dead deer.

“What?” asked Edward. “My soul is in danger. I need God to reel it back in.”

“Your soul is a fish?” Bella wondered.

“No, love of my life. My soul is a void.”

“...Nice.” Bella took her hydroflask out of her backpack and started filling it with deer blood for later.

“So!” said Alice, trying to get everyone back on track. “Where’s Jasper and Rosalie?”

“Rosalie’s working on her car and Jasper wanted to make the party cowboy themed so he’s at the store picking out hats.”

“Great!” Alice said brightly. “The other outcome I saw was Emmett making it an 80s disco- nevermind.”

“Can we make the party God themed?” Edward wondered. His siblings shook their heads. Bella slurped her deer blood with her metal straw. “You need to get a life, Wardo.”

“I am dead on the outside as well as the inside, my beloved Bella,” he said, sighing. “Therefore I cannot ‘get a life,’ unless that is your way to tell me to kill someone.”

“No. That’s not what I- Oh no! I spilled blood on my khaki skirt!”

If Edward had still had blood circulating his body and therefore had the opportunity to faint, he would’ve passed out then and there. “Bella! No! I-it’s a tragedy!”

“Shut up Edward.” Alice told him. “She still has all the khaki skirts that you gave her for her birthday. And Christmas. And Halloween. And like every holiday on the calendar.”

She paused as she saw something. Edward frowned.

“Jasper’s coming back!”

A few seconds later Jasper came crashing through the forest with several Walmart bags full of cowboy hats. He plopped one on Emmett’s head and threw the bags at Alice, who somehow managed to catch them all.

“I’ve been runnin’ all over hell’s half acre roundin’ these bad boys up!” he proclaimed.

“Gimme one of those,” Bella said, snatched a few out of the Walmart bag, and properly cowboyed up herself and her husband.

“I SAY YEE, YOU SAY HAW!” Jasper yelled so loudly that a couple blue jays flew out of the fir tree they were vibing in. “YEE!”

“HAW!” screamed Bella, Emmett, and Alice.

Why did they respond to that and not the time I tried to pump them up before church with ‘I say Jesus, you say Christ’? Edward wondered. It was truly a mystery.

“Alright cowboys and cowgirls.” Jasper said, his southern accent coming out strong. “We’re throwin’ the rowdiest, most rootin and tootin party y’all have ever seen! Alice!”

“Yes!”

“You are in charge of the decorations! Emmett, you help me construct a rodeo in the woods! This, coincidentally, happens not to be my first rodeo! Edward, you’re in charge of the music! None of that gosh diddly darned Mozart, ya hear me? I’m talkin’ country music. You might wanna run down yonder to Tennessee and-”

“I will NOT!” Edward cried. “How DARE you insult Mozart like this! I am leaving!” He yanked the cowboy hat off his head and threw it on the ground.

“Don’t let the screen door hit ya where the good lord split ya!” Jasper called after his retreating figure. “Bless his rotten, Yankee heart. Alright. Bella, you’re now in charge of the music as well as your original job, which is arguably the most important one. You need to figure out how to make sweet tea that we can drink.”

“That’s easy!” she said. “Take the blood of a diabetic mountain lion!”

“Alright! Now we’re getting somewhere! Emmett, what is it?”

Emmett had raised his hand. “So you know how Carlisle spent like a week in a potato cellar?”

“Yeah.” Alice said. “What about it?”

“What if we make a ball pit… but with potatoes!”

Jasper, Alice, and Bella cheered. Edward, who was lurking in a bush 20 feet away decided that since none of them were using the collective brain cell today he should probably rejoin them. Little did he know that Rosalie actually had the collective Cullen brain cell today, shown by the fact that she was staying out of all this.

“Hello, family.” He announced, dramatically walking out of the bushes. “After some consideration, I have decided to come back.”

“Edward, you weren’t even gone for 2 minutes.’ Alice said, sighing. “Have you changed your mind about the music, at least?”

“ I suppose I’ll help,” he said begrudgingly. “Can Bella help me, though?”

“Yes!” Bella yelled. “I’m gonna play cotton eye joe for three hours straight! Whoever sticks it out till the end gets the diabetic mountain lion sweet tea!”

The two of them plopped down with Bella’s phone to assemble a playlist that contained such classics as Country Roads, Take Me Home, Cotton Eye Joe Gregorian Chant Techno Remix, and the Tennessee state song, Rocky Top. Edward sneaked Clair De Lune in when he thought nobody was looking. Bella promptly deleted it when he wasn’t looking.

Over the next few hours, Emmett and Jasper constructed a small rodeo and then ran around the tri-state area looking for some bears to ride around.

“Look at him.” Jasper said fondly as Emmett wrestled a bear to the ground. “Grinnin’ like a possum eatin’ a sweet tater.”

Alice went to bi-mart for decorations, which for those of you unlucky enough not to live in the pacific northwest, is a cowboy walmart.

By 1 in the morning they had everything set up. Emmett was sitting on the bear in the middle of the rodeo and singing along to Edward and Bella’s playlist. Jasper was helping Alice hang the cowboy hat fairy lights at the last minute, seeing as she was too short to hang them herself.

“Alright, buckaroos!” Jasper cried. “It’s time to go get Carlisle!”

Bella, Edward, and Alice ran back to the house leaving Emmett and Jasper to supervise the bear and the sweet tea, respectively. They burst through Carlisle’s door to find him staring at his creepy vampire paintings.

“Carlisle!” Alice said. “Come with us! We need to show you something!”

Carlisle allowed Alice to drag him down the hall and Edward went to find Esme and Rosalie. A minute later, they were all assembled on the lawn and ready to go.

“Which way was it again?” Bella wondered, looking at the woods.

“Follow me!” said Alice, and ran through the trees until the rodeo came into sight.

“What is this?” Carlisle asked, hearing ‘Cotton Eye Joe’ blasting from Bella’s portable bluetooth speaker that they had put on the table with the sweet tea.

“Hi, Carlisle! Hi, Esme!” Emmett yelled.

“Why is he sitting on a bear?” Esme muttered to her husband.

“Honey, it’s not the weirdest thing he’s done. I’m more focused on the rodeo. And the fact that they’re all wearing cowboy hats.”

Alice plopped a cowboy hat on each of her parent’s heads. “On three! One! Two! Three!”

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR CARLISLE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOOOU!” everyone sang. Edward harmonized badly.

“Is it my birthday?” Carlisle asked. “How did you figure that out?”

“Google!” Bella said proudly.

“That- that’s quite interesting.” Carlisle said, wondering why he’d never googled himself. “How old am I?”

“377!” Bella announced proudly.

“Ah. And may I ask why Emmett is sitting on a bear?”

“This is Fernando, named after the best song in the world,” Emmett said, patting the bear’s head. Edward stared at them, aghast that he hadn’t named the bear Debussy as he had suggested.

“We set up a rodeo for ya, pop!” Jasper said. “Do ya like it?”

“I made sweet tea!” Bella said, grinning.

“I love it.” Carlisle said. “Are you going to wrestle the bear?”

“You bet!” Emmett yelled. “Come at me bro!” The bear growled at him. Emmett growled back.

After Emmett had successfully wrestled the bear, Bella put on ‘Cotton Eye Joe’ and had the entire family dance until the hour-long loop was over. Since nobody had won, they all shared the diabetic mountain lion sweet tea. Emmett pulled some potatoes out of his jacket and threw one at Alice. She threw it back and soon they were fighting each other with potatoes. At this point Esme noticed that the sun was rising and ordered them to clean up, go back to the house, and get ready for school.

[extremelyblackandwhite]

i wanna know what love is - 15

Pairing: rockstar! sebastian stan x writer!reader

Warnings: none.

A/N: for me the most romantic scene of all time is the pas de deux dance scene seen in the “dance at the gym” scene. west side story is such an important romantic movie for me that i decided to include it. i hyperlinked the pas de deux so you guys can have a good idea of what’s happening. also sebastian has said in an old interview that he did west side story so here we are. 💕💕

Last Chapter // Next Chapter

Sebastian spent the whole night awake, staring at the ceiling and thinking about Mary’s words. He’d always found it hard to argue with Mary, after all she was a graduate Yale Law student and he, well, the only experience he had with the law was when he got pulled over by driving under the influence and even then Mary came to fix it. However, he also knew Mary preferred Y/N over him, so if she was telling him to do something about it, he was supposed to do it. Nevertheless, he couldn’t come up with the courage to do anything and it wasn’t like Melody would leave him easily.

     - You alright, baby? - Melody asked as she got ready to go downstairs for a buffet breakfast. - You look awful, I’ll get you some sleeping pills tonight. 

    - Y/N knows why I’m leaving. - he just said it. Maybe she would see herself out if her blackmail disappeared from her arsenal. - She knows. 

    - Are you taunting me? - she turned on her heel, arms crossed across her chest. He was not taunting her because taunting her normally meant a fight and the amount of sleep he had gotten the two prior days did not gave him enough force to have an argument this early in the morning. - What do you think is gonna happen? You’re gonna go over her room, tell her you like her and she’ll fuck you and play happy couples? Girls like her marry prep school boys, not guys like you. You’re the guy she fucks before she marries a doctor.

     - I think I’m gonna stay in. - he laid against his pillow, ignoring her mumbles as she got ready to go to breakfast. She eventually left, and by the noise he could hear from his bedroom, so did everyone else which meant he had the whole house for himself. 

It wasn’t like he could sleep, not after what his mind had done to him when he felt asleep for a few minutes. Therefore, he decided to lift from the bed and grab his guitar. He’d had the same guitar ever since he signed his first contract, he remembered walking into a music store and picking the guitar he’d wanted to buy since he was a kid. He’d kept it all these years and sometimes would play it. Today was one of those days. 

He sat on the couch by the wall, guitar on his leg as he started to play something. What he didn’t know however was that someone else was at the hotel room and that someone else woke up very annoyed to the song reverberating through the walls. Y/N raised her torso, sleep still in her mind as she heard what she thought was Every Rose has its torn. She groaned, climbing out of bed and getting into her slippers as she made a bee-line to where the noise was coming. Sebastian’s room. Sometimes, she wondered if he lived just to annoy her. 

She was about to burst into his room asking him why he was destroying her beauty sleep but the softness of the guitar and his voice as he sang one of, in Y/N’s opinion, one of the saddest songs in rock. She slightly opened the door to see the scene, his head against the wall and guitar slightly leaning against his torso, eyes closed. She grabbed her phone behind her back, turning her voice memos on so she could get it on record, her head leaning against the door as she finally heard him sing something softly. However, nice things don’t last forever and the song was over pretty soon. 

   - That was lovely. - she said making him jump off his seat, heat shooting to look at the door where she stood. - I didn’t mean to frighten you.

  - Aren’t you supposed to be at breakfast? - he asked, trying not to sound rude. It wasn’t like he didn’t enjoy her company, he did, but not when he could still envision her face in his dreams. 

  - I’m not feeling very well. 

  - Everything alright? - he almost bolted off the coach, going to meet her at the door until he realised he was acting stupid. 

  - I just forgot to bring my hot water bottle and I’m having very cramps. - Y/N on the other hand did not know why she was being so comfortable with him. She didn’t know him that well to be telling him her uterus was shedding but here she was. However, what she did not expect was for him to give her an understanding smile, putting his hand in her lower back and accompanying her to the living room. - What are we doing?

  - I’ll get someone to get you a hot water bottle and some room service. Should make it better, right? - he said, a look of complete confusion in his face as he picked up the phone to call room service and the costumer service desk. Y/N couldn’t help it but smile at him. Mary couldn’t be right, he couldn’t have overdosed, she just didn’t see it. He put the phone down, noticing that she was staring at him more than usual. - Mary told me, Y/N. 

 - What did Mary told you? - her heart stopped. She wouldn’t dare tell him that without her express consent. 

 - I know you know why I’m leaving the band. - she felt herself calm down. It wasn’t as bad, I mean could be worse, Mary could’ve told him way personal stuff that she’d want to be locked in. - I can see you wanna ask about it, you’re a terrible pretender. 

 - Do you do drugs? - she asked as he took the spot in the coach next to her. 

 - No, Y/N. I don’t do drugs.

 - Did you ever do drugs? - Sebastian laughed at her questions. She looked so much like a kid, asking something she shouldn’t be asking and he couldn’t help but look at her with a grin. 

 - No, bunny, I never did drugs. - he pointed at the bunny ears headband that she was wearing to keep her hair out of her face. He wanted to point out it looked ridiculous but considering she was in a situation that would make her win every argument, he decided not to. - Do you have any more questions?

 - If you never did drugs and you don’t do drugs, how did you overdose? 

 - I was partying with some guys at the bar, took my eyes off my drink for a minute and they put something in my drink. Next thing, I know I’m awake in the hospital without the loose money I had on me. 

 - Why didn’t you tell the guys? - she wondered out loud, her head laying against the coach. 

 - I want out of this, Y/N. I never asked ... never wanted ... to be this. I wanted people to like and listen to my music, not me. But the limelights and the girls, the drinking ... they change you. I’m tired, Y/N. I destroyed my relationship with my family, with my friends ... I want out. 

 - You don’t destroy relationships with anyone. You just put a pause to it until you’re ready to restart it. - one employee came in holding a cart full of food and the hot water bottle. Sebastian thanked the employee as Y/N cuddled the hot water bottle against her stomach. He immediately left, leaving them alone again.

 - My mother told me not to dare to speak to her after a magazine ran an article about me and my supposed groupies. - he took one of the trays with some pancakes. - My stepfather passed away mad at me and all my step siblings went to ivy leagues and have picture perfect marriages. I didn’t even finish college.

   - Did you try talking to her? - she was soothing to speak with but Sebastian daren’t speak with his mother. She’d made it loud and clear, she didn’t want to speak with him and he’d made peace with it. - She’s your mum, she won’t hate you forever. 

   - Right ... what movie should we watch? - he turned the smart TV in front of them which was almost as big as the wall. The sound of Netflix, changing the subject as he scrolled through the movies. However, her eyes were set on the movie just below what he was looking at, West Side Story. 

    - West Side Story. - she said, an eyebrow raised at him. Y/N didn’t know if he would be into it but he just shrugged, putting the movie on. If there was a movie that made her go back to childhood, it was West Side Story. Whenever the whistle at the beginning of the movie started, it just brought back memories of her and her brother trying to do the dance routines around the living room table with her mother and father following them begging them to stop before someone got hurt.  

Sebastian had also watched the movie quite several times. He enjoyed a classical well written score and West Side Story’s score seemed to talk for itself without the aid of lyrics. 

They quickly reached the dance at the gym scene which was by far Y/N’s favourite scene, mostly because she could do the whole scene. She got up from the couch taking his hands with hers as she took her stance. He found it amusing as he took the same position she was in, moving from side to side with arms at shoulder length. He had to admit it he found it hard keeping up with her as she moved around, fingers snapping yet arms still perfectly up. Sebastian ended up by failing epically making her hit his chest, instead of the side. 

His eyes locked with her, a light flush from the heat of the room settling on his cheeks.

   - You value honesty above all, don’t you Y/N? 

   - In normal conditions, yes. 

  - My truth is that I really want to kiss you.

  - Well, we have a problem then ... - she looked at her feet before raising her head to stare at him. - Because I want to kiss you too. 

[meggtheegg]

Bucky

bucky my beloved 🥺

favorite thing about them

honestly, just how truly good he is. there's a lot of talk about the incorruptible pure pureness that is steve rogers, but bucky has been dealt the shittiest hand, like honestly he's endured several supervillains worth of origin stories and yet, he doesn't for a moment consider going in that direction. you could say he chooses to be good in spite of it all, but i don't think it's even a choice, because he doesn't consider anything else to be an option. it's just who he is, and it's something that, in order to temporarily change, hydra had to take him and his free will out of the equation, entirely, and even then, he managed to break free and fight back. he always rolls with the punches and then gets up and keeps going, and i feel like that part of his characterization is often overlooked between all the angst/tragedy and the shadows of steve and sam, who just happen to be two of the most overtly good characters in the mcu, if not in modern media. but there's a reason that both of them end up with bucky as their best friend. the guy may have gotten grumpy in his old age, but that core goodness is still there, and it's very telling that all of the villains in tfatws jump directly to appealing to that goodness, rather than the seemingly obvious (to an outsider) decision to use his past against him. (i know karli references it, but when it comes to direct action, her instinct is to "give him someone to rescue")

least favorite thing about them

this is less about him as a character and more about the way he's used, but i feel like the movies, especially since civil war, have used him almost entirely as motivation for steve, rather than a character in his own right. even after tfatws, it feels like there is so much that's gone unexplored, even though his story is, in my opinion, one of the most interesting in the entire mcu. tfatws was, ultimately, sam's story, and i wouldn't want that any other way, but i'm still waiting for something to give us character development and a plotline for bucky that doesn't happen 1: offscreen or 2: in the shadow of another character's arc.

favorite line

it would be very easy to go with either "who the hell is bucky?" or "i'm with you to the end of the line, pal," but those are very predictable, so probably:

Sam: Why didn’t you use the metal arm? Bucky: Well… I don’t always think of it immediately. I’m...right-handed...

i know it's a really simple line that doesn't carry a ton of weight, but it perfectly encapsulates who bucky is. his existence as an enhanced super-soldier isn't really at the front of his mind, because he didn't choose to be that way. when he's allowed to just relax and exist, he does so as a normal guy, and he still jumps to using his dominant hand when it comes to fixing the boat, because of course he does

brOTP

i would honestly love to see him building a friendship/sibling-relationship with wanda. i could just see them so easily sliding into those roles, him stepping in for the brother she lost and her taking the place of the sisters that lived and died while he was hydra's prisoner. both of them have been through so much trauma, both of them have relied on steve to deal with that trauma, at some point or another, and both are grappling with how much of themselves they still are, in the wake of gaining powers they didn't necessarily ask for similarly, marvel, please let this man become a mentor to peter parker instead of dr. strange. peter needs someone who can relate to him, not just another tony stark, and who better than another naïve kid from new york who got dragged into a fight way bigger than himself and is now dealing with overwhelming, crushing guilt and responsibility that he's too good to neglect but that he never asked for, in a world where most superheroes had the privilege of choosing to become that way??? like honestly it's such an obvious match, and with bucky's history with tony and howard, he could give peter some much-needed insight, while peter could give him equally-needed closure.

OTP

never did i expect to want sambucky to be a thing, but i desperately want it to be a thing. it just feels right?? like he fits so naturally into the wilson family, and while i'd be happy to see him with sarah, he and sam have such natural chemistry and pairing two natural caretakers together would mean lots of support for two characters who desperately need it. also, he just...looks at sam with such love in his eyes that my mom thought they were going to become a couple, and she is very much in the "two men should be allowed to just be friends" camp.

nOTP

bucky/tony. hate it. hate it so much. burn it with fire. these men do not like each other and their one meaningful interaction has been one repeatedly trying to...blast the other's head off. it's a nope from me.

random headcanon

honestly this is borderline canon, but this man is a nerd. he is a geek. a dork, if you will. he spent his childhood with his nose in a book, and would have gone to college (and a good one, too) to study some difficult subject and make a name for himself in some intellectual field, if steve's mom hadn't passed away that year. he was stuck with the opposite of steve's problem; rather than wanting to fight and physically being unable to, bucky was in peak physical condition and therefore expected to be tough and aggressive, when he'd much rather just use his head to get out of tough situations

unpopular opinion

while stucky sort of plays out like a grand romance and some of the fanfics are basically masterpieces, i'm really glad it didn't go canon and am honestly,,,,kind of glad for bucky's sake that steve is out of the picture??? bc as much as i love him, their relationship, especially towards the end, had a pretty serious power imbalance that was never really addressed. bucky would have let himself disappear in order to do whatever steve needed him to, basing his entire self-image and level of self-worth on steve's feelings about him. he and sam (whether their relationship is platonic or romantic) are much more like equals, and honestly more like pre-war bucky and steve, willing to poke fun at each other and have disagreements, because they deeply respect each other as full people, not idealized versions of someone who doesn't exist anymore. meanwhile, post ws bucky and steve often ranged anywhere from a hero/sidekick dynamic to a hero/damsel-in-distress one, and neither are particularly healthy for very long, no matter how much they love each other.

song i associate with them

known and loved - blue light bandits, joel ansett

favorite picture of them

nothing beats Cool Uncle BuckyTM

[dukethomas]

DC space au? Like everybody’s in space? (So sue me I like the stars) Or some sort of reverse or shuffled robins?

dc space au? so like green lanterns?

i’ll do both!

dc space au

okay so, i think i think i’d set this as one of those “humanity has expanded beyond earth and there’s a whole united planets system” and i’ll stick to the justice league for these headcanons because it’s just. easier

obviously the green lanterns, whichever one is your preferred one, are doing their thing

kal-el is still the refugee from krypton. while kryptonians were untrusting and the planet still exploded, kal's parents got in touch with a host family in a planet with a yellow sun. they only barely got to send the ship, along with kara zor-el, before the planet exploded. but because everything is so much more interconnected, kal is able to grow up learning about his heritage

diana of themyscira (the planet, thought unlivable by many but is secretly inhabited by women who repurpose their innate magic to shield themyscira from detection) is still clay given life. she grows up curious about the solar systems and galaxies beyond her reach, the people she is literal light years away from

bruce wayne, part of the relatively small population still living on a rapidly deteriorating earth, grows up in luxury. he goes on a yearly journey into space until his parents are murdered before his eyes. eight year old bruce hunts down joe chill, until he realizes there so many others like joe chill. forced into desperation, more humans becoming despicable, because the rich flee the planet and leave their factories to decimate the ozone layer and lets everyone else face the consequences. he can’t find joe chill because joe chill is one of many. so bruce vows to try to fix the planet

(he becomes very good friends with one dr. pamela isley later in life. when her metagene activates, she and bruce wield it to help out impoverished communities, because they can do that at the very least. bruce may not condone what pam does when he’s not around, but... he sees her. he gets it)

uhhhh this got less headcanon more plans and i still have to do the other one but! if someone wants to ask me for justice league part ii i will do it!

reverse batfam au

duke is the first. fight me. damian may be the oldest, but because logic, duke is the first batkid adopted. 

it’s very funny to me to imagine damian as the exasperated older sibling with duke as the second oldest who functionally takes dick’s place as the fun and light “golden child”

okay no, but seriously, duke and damian have helped each other through some shit. they’re really, really close. their rooms are right next to each other, so when damian gets nightmares, duke, with his gap-toothed smile, wriggles in to hug damian. when duke has nightmares, damian gently wakes him up and embraces him. it’s sweet.

cass is next to get adopted. she’s tiny. damian finds a kinship with her, especially when duke is out in bludhaven trying to fix that mess of a city a little bit at a time

steph (who moonlights as spoiler only a few months later) and cass are a pranking dream team. steph teaches cass, only a few years her younger, how to set up buckets of water on top of doors and because of how sneaky cass is, no one is ever safe

tim is actually babey. but very very intelligent! because we’re pretty far into the timeline now, his parents get killed when he’s younger. duke, who has definitely been over to “babysit” (re: keeping an eye on the actual baby why does the nanny only come three days a week-) and tim figures out their identities because duke, as the daytime bat, has wayne enterprises emergencies a lot, and he can seem to see things other people don’t. duke please hide your powers a little better

(am i spamming duke content? maybe. but reverse batfam aus almost never include my boy so)

on that note, damian and duke are out patrolling together when they find jason. duke thinks it’s funny. damian turns up his nose but sees a guardedness in jason that he’s drawn to

bruce returns to find his batmobile gone

“yeah, okay, but bruce we have another orphan! look at him!” bruce mentally signs the adoption papers when he sees jason’s scrappy little form through facetime, eating batburgers with duke and damian

and everyone is there the night dick’s parents fall. dick loses his family but gains another within the span of a night

he’s the youngest. they definitely coddle him and spoil him so much

(meanwhile, no one can decide if oldest child is damian or oldest in spirit is duke. therefore, they are both the oldest. everyone else has middle child solidarity)

sorry this took so long!!! i spent Some Time thinking about these