#as for Thea she already liked my first drawing of her but this one is far more decent so I hope she sees it and likes it 🫣

[synintheraven]

Unrelated to what I usually post but it's been 4 days since my bunch of Sihtrics drawing was posted and I'm, quite surprisingly, still getting likes and reblogs in it so THANK YOU SO MUCH!! My social skills suck but I appreciate every single comment I've gotten so far and really just every interaction with my silly drawings 🥺🥺

[tortillamastersblog]

⊱Drawing Stars Around Your Scars | Oliver Queen⊰

Pairing: Oliver Queen x reader

Warnings: injuries and mentions of blood

Summary: Oliver would do anything to regain your trust. . .

________________________________________________

“Good Night, Doctor Y/L/N.” Ella, one of the nurses at the nurses’ station waves me goodbye and I return the gesture with a tired smile.

I just got out of an eight hour surgery and I can’t wait to get home. I make my way through the busy halls of the hospital and down to the parking garage without changing out of my scrubs.

It’s freezing outside and when my fingers curl around the cold leather of my steering wheel I shiver.

I pull out of the underground parking garage and make my way home.

The streets of Starling City are busy, even at this time of day, which is why it doesn’t take long for me to be stuck in traffic.

I sigh and turn on the radio, humming along to the Christmas songs that are playing before my phone rings.

I glance at it and smile, answering the call on my car’s hands-free. “Speedy, what are you doing up this late? It’s a school night.” I tease, but my smile quickly vanishes and turns into a concerned frown when I hear the girl crying softly on the other end of the line.

“I’m sorry, Y/N. Are you still at work?” she say quietly.

“No, I’m not. Are you okay? What’s going on?” I ask, drumming my fingers on the steering wheel, worried.

When Oliver vanished at sea five years ago, Thea and I grew extremely close. While she grieved over her brother, I grieved over my best friend and partner in crime.

We grew so close in fact that she’s like a baby sister to me now and whenever she’s in trouble, or feeling down, I’m usually the one she calls since Moira and Walter are both emotionally unavailable.

Thea doesn’t answer right away, so I promt her softly. “Speedy? You still there?”

“I—Yeah, I’m still here. It’s just. . . Ollie. He not home, again! And he’s acting like a complete stranger. I don’t even recognize him anymore it’s just—“ she breaks down in tears and I make a u-turn the next chance I get, heading toward the Queen’s manor outside the city.

This isn’t the first time she’s broken down over Oliver’s return and how different he is compared to five years ago.

“C-Can you come over?” she hiccups and I tell her that I’m already on my way.

The traffic thins out once I’m out of the city, staying on the phone with Thea the entire time until I pull up outside of her family’s manor.

The security guard at the gate greets me with a polite smile and let’s me in without hesitation.

I get out of the car, the gravel beneath my feet crunching as I walk up to the front door, which swings open before I get the change to ring the doorbell.

Thea basically jumps on me, pulling me into a hug, and cries into my shoulder.

I hold her tight and waddle us inside, away from the cold and let the door close behind us with a gentle click.

“Thank you for coming,” Thea whispers, her grip around my shoulders not letting up.

“Of course. Anything for you, Speedy,” I reply just as quietly, rubbing my hands over her back.

We stay like that for a few minutes, enjoying each other’s company before she pulls back, her eyes roaming over my outfit.

“You just got off work, didn’t you?” she asks, guilt scrunching up her face. “You must be so tired. I’m sorry for making you come here.”

I wave her off and squeeze her shoulders. “Hey, no. Don’t be sorry. I am tired, yes, but you’re more important than sleep,” I joke softly which earns me a small smile.

Thea sighs and uses the sleeve of her sweatshirt to wipe away the remainder of her tears. Then, she eyes me hopefully before asking, “Have you had dinner yet?”

I shake my head and she pulls out her phone, waving it around for emphasis.

“Do you want to order some takeout then and watch a movie with me?”

Tomorrow is my day off, so I don’t mind staying with her, especially because she’s home alone and it seems like she could use some company right now.

“Sure,” I agree easily, “but I need a shower and some comfy clothes.”

Thea nods adamantly and pulls me upstairs and into her room.

“Use whatever you like in there. You know the drill,” she says gesturing at her en-suite bathroom. “I’ll go and find some clothes for you.”

I thank her and smile, going into the bathroom and stripping out of my scrubs before stepping into the enormous shower.

A knock on the door lets me know that Thea’s found me some clothes and she cracks it open just enough to reach inside, placing some clothes on the floor before closing the door again.

I finish quickly, shutting off the water before drying off and putting on the fresh clothes.

I frown when I pull on the pair of gray sweatpants, figuring that they can’t be Thea’s because she’s a head shorter than me and the sweatpants are oversized, even on me.

The same goes for the sweatshirt and when I pull it on and a familiar cologne surrounds wafts around me, I know why.

These are Oliver’s clothes.

I shiver involuntarily and can’t help but bury my nose in the fabric of the sweater, taking a deep breath.

I’ve missed this smell, I’ve missed Oliver, but I haven’t really admitted that to anyone since he came back.

We’ve always been best friends, but since we were teenagers I knew that my feelings for him weren’t solely platonic.

I never acted on them though because I knew we could never work. While he was a millionaire playboy, I was a nerd, passing all my classes in school with flying colors and getting into med school before even turning twenty.

I also hated how he hooked up with anyone he had a chance with, and I swore to myself a long time ago that I’d never let myself be just another one of his conquests.

Now though, things have changed. Oliver has changed and I have, too. We’re both grown up and it seems like he’s left behind his playboy lifestyle.

Every time I see him nowadays, he’s calm, well spoken, and a true gentleman. He no longer drinks or takes drugs, and I’ve caught him shamelessly staring at me quite a few times now.

It’s something he didn’t used to do, and it gets my hopes up that, maybe, he secretly feels the same way about me as I do about him, but then he goes and blows me off time and time again, without answering any of my texts or calls.

It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even agree to hanging out with him any more because I know he’ll leave me hanging anyway, but still, every time he asks me to dinner, or offers to buy some coffee my heart flutters and I feel my cheeks grow warm.

“So, what do you want to watch?” Thea asks when I exit the bedroom, throwing myself on the bed next to her.

“I don’t care,” I say honestly, checking my phone before leaning back against the headboard.

“Okayyy.” Thea hums in though. She scrolls through some movies on her TV before settling on Elf.

The opening credits start rolling and I get even more comfortable, patting Thea’s head playfully when she rests it on my shoulder.

Fifteen minutes into the movie, our food gets delivered and we eat on the bed in silence, continuing to watch the movie.

Thea eventually falls asleep and I sigh, turning off the TV.

I get off the bed and drape the comforter over her, chuckling softly when she frowns in her sleep.

“Nighty night, Speedy,” I whisper before leaving her room.

I make my way down the dark hallway toward the grand staircase, ready to go home, but the sound of breaking ceramic makes me stop in my tracks.

I squint in the darkness, straining to hear where it came from before deciding to investigate.

The sound most likely came from Oliver’s room and because he’s not supposed to be home, I’m curious to see what caused the slight commotion.

Maybe the Queens got a cat I don’t know about?

I highly doubt that, but then again, Thea’s done some crazy things over the last couple of years, lashing out every chance she got to mask her grief.

I slowly open the door to Oliver’s room and peek inside, freezing when I see a hunched over figure by one of the bedside tables.

They’re picking up what looks like shards of a vase, stacking them neatly before getting back to their feet.

A quiet grunt escapes them and once they’re upright with their back turned toward me, I recognize them, or should I say him?

It’s Oliver in his vigilante suit and when I take a closer look I notice he’s clutching at his side with one of his hands.

He’s hurt.

I turn on the light with an annoyed sigh and put my hand on my hip, watching him spin around with a dagger in his hand.

“What are you doing here?” he asks in his fake deep and gravelly voice and I just raise a challenging eyebrow in return.

“Drop the act, Ollie,” I say calmly, watching with mild amusement as his eyes widened.

“I— What are you—?” he stammers before his shoulders curl forward and he whispers, “How did you know?”

He takes off his hood and even though I know it’s him underneath, I still feel a chill run down my spine when his exhausted eyes meet mine.

I’ve known he’s the Green Arrow ever since he returned to Starling City. I mean, how could I not know?

All the sneaking around? His sudden interest in his family’s business? The constant bruises and cuts on his face?

And let’s not forget how he physically changed over the last five years. Where he used to be a thin, athletic kid he’s now a broad-shouldered hunk of a man and I’d be lying if I said it makes him less attractive.

“C’mon, Ollie,” I scoff, crossing the room to look at the injury on his side. “You do know who you’re talking to right now, don’t you?”

Oliver hangs his head and stays silent, allowing me to pull up his bloody clothes to get a better look at his side.

The wound isn’t too deep, but it will need stitches and judging by its frayed edges I’m guessing it’s a graze from a bullet.

“Do you have any medical supplies?” I ask. I have a small emergency kit in my car, but I’m too lazy to get it right now.

Luckily, Oliver nods and points at the bedside table where he was just crouching, picking up the shards of the shattered vase.

“Take off your shirt and lay on the bed,” I command without looking at him. In times like this, my doctor-ly instincts kick in and I don’t care who my patient is. All I’m focusing on is getting the wound cleaned and stitched up.

Oliver does as I say and once I’ve gotten everything I need from the bedside table, I turn to him, sucking in a breath when my eyes land on his exposed upper body.

It’s covered in scars and a tattoo I didn’t know he had and I can only imagine what he went through to look like this.

Thea did say that over twenty percent of his body was covered in scar tissue, but actually seeing it up close makes my stomach twist.

Watching me with a knowing look, Oliver gently wraps his fingers around one of my wrists which brings me back to reality.

He smiles reassuringly, silently telling me not to worry about what’s happened and I return the smile albeit a little weakly.

I take a deep breath and square my shoulders, getting to work on cleaning the wound and the area around it.

It continues to leak blood, no matter how many times I wipe at it and after a while I just give up, getting right to stitching it up.

“This might hurt,” I whisper as I press the needle against Oliver’s skin, but he not so much as twitches when the thin metal pierces his skin.

I work in silence, focusing on the work at hand before Oliver’s head rolls to the side to look at me directly as he says, “I’m sorry, Y/N.”

I hum, not taking my eyes off my hands and brush off his words, thinking he’s referring to right now, making me stitch him up and care for him, but then he continues.

“I’m sorry for blowing you off so many times over the last couple of weeks,” he says quietly. “And I’m sorry for cutting you out of my life right before getting on the Gambit with my dad.”

I clench my jaw and finish the last stitch. I stare at my hands and take a deep breath.

I tried to forget about that.

The days before getting onto that cursed yacht with his father, I called Oliver out on his hypocritical behavior and his playboy attitude which lead to him basically ending our friendship.

I cried for days, missing several important college classes, but then the news of the Queen’s Gambit sinking sobered me up and I forgot all about our falling out.

I cried some more then, this time for a different reason, but as time went on I grew numb to it and put all my energy into med school.

“It’s fine. . .” I whisper, moving to get back to work, but Oliver grabs my hand, making me look at him.

“No,” he says with furrowed eyebrows. “I was such an asshole and you were right. You’re always right and I’m really sorry it took me this long to apologize .”

I chuckle weakly, not liking the sudden tension between us and avert my eyes. “I’m not always right,” I argue,

Oliver squeezes my hand, getting me to look at him again. “Well, maybe not. . .” he says with a small smile. “But you were right about what you said and— again— I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to admit it. I felt backed into a corner when you called me out on my shit and I didn’t know what else to do other than lashing out at you.”

“Ollie—“ I try to stop him, but he cuts me off by squeezing my hand again and continuing.

“Y/N. I’ve been through. . . a lot. . . over the last five years, but I’ve also had a lot of time to think and—“he bites the inside of his cheek and scratches at his eyebrow nervously— “and you’re honestly the only constant in my life. The thought of you and sometime’s even Thea kept me going when I felt like giving up and I swore to myself that if I ever got the chance to, I’d make things right between us. . . I’d do what I should have done a long time ago.”

I gulp and try not to pull my hand from his. “What are you talking about, Ollie?”

He can’t be saying what I think he’s saying, can he?

Oliver sits up, grimacing slightly when the stitches on his waist strain against the movement, and swings his legs over the edge of the bed so he’s sitting next to me.

The heat radiating off his body makes me shiver involuntarily and when he places my hand against the scar on his chest I gasp softly.

“I don’t want to spend another day worrying about what ifs and maybes, so I’m asking you now, Y/N, would you do me the honor of going to dinner with me? As in like, a date, you know?” He stumbles a bit over the end of his sentence but his question takes my breath away nonetheless.

My brows furrow and I feel my heart clench at the conflicting feelings running through me at the moment.

“I don’t— I don’t know,” I admit.

Even though this is all I’ve been hoping for since we were kids, I can’t help but have doubts about his intentions.

What if he hasn’t changed as much as I think he has? What if he’s still a narcissistic playboy?

I don’t know if I could stand being used by him, so I shake my head and move to back away.

Seeing the doubt on my face, Oliver’s eyes soften and his hold on my hand tightens ever so slightly.

“Please, Y/N this is not— I’m not. . .” He trails off, biting his lip in thought.

Then instead of trying to explain himself, he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes briefly.

“This scar,” he says quietly, pressing my hand against the uneven patch of skin on his chest for emphasis, “is from a guy named Kovar. He. . . tried to stop me from leaving Lian Yu and pressed the hot tip of his gun against my skin, right here.”

My eyes widen, not only because no one knew he wasn’t alone on that island, but also because he’s actually telling me what happened.

Since he came back, he’s barely spoken of his time on Lian Yu and the fact that he’s willing to open up about what happened makes me trust his intentions.

He moves my hand down his chest, against a long, gnarly looking scar that follows the downward slope of his ribcage right over his stomach.

“This one is from when I first stranded on the island. There was this guy, William, or Billy, Winter—“

“No, Ollie, stop.” I cut him off, shaking my head. “You don’t have to tell me any of this just to prove yourself to me.”

It’s clear he’s struggling to put into words what happened if his overly tense muscles are anything to go by and I don’t want him to feel like he’s forced to share his trauma in order to get me to trust him again.

“But I want you to know,” he argues weakly, letting go of my hand.

I shake my head and move closer, tracing my fingers along the edge of the scar.

It makes Olive twitch slightly and I smile at the effect I have on him.

“And you can,” I assure him, skimming my fingers over his warm skin before brushing over the scar on his hip that looks suspiciously like a shark bite.

What the hell happened to him on that island. . .

“Just not now. Not all at once and not when you’re so obviously not ready to talk about it yet,” I continue, mesmerized by the way his muscles twitch beneath my touch.

I continue exploring his skin, raising an eyebrow at the tattoo on his chest before skipping over it and touching the scar on his shoulder.

They all look like they never healed properly and I get a chill, thinking about the possible infections that could have killed him, but then my train of thought is suddenly silenced when Oliver brushes his lips against my own.

Not realizing how close I’ve gotten while inspecting every little detail about him, I pull back with a surprised squeak and place a hand on his chest to stop him from closing the distance between us again.

“Shit,” he whispers, bringing a hand to his lips. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—“

“It’s okay,” I say with a soft chuckle. I take his hand away from his mouth and lace our fingers together. “Just. . . Take me to dinner first.”

Oliver’s cheeks turn red, a rare sight, and I squeeze his hand before straining to press a kiss to his forehead.

“Right. Sorry.” He meets my eyes shyly and I smile at him when he tries to suppress a yawn.

It makes me yawn as well and Oliver gets to his feet. He kisses my knuckles and lets go of my hand.

“I need a shower,” he explains before nervously scratching at his eyebrow again. “Will you still be here when I get out?”

I melt at how vulnerable he sounds and nod, slipping under the covers of his bed. “Only if you don’t take too long.”

Oliver’s eyes widen comically and he springs into action, gathering some clothes before rushing into the bathroom.

________________________________________________

God, the chokehold this man’s got me in. . .

[gimmie-a-sammich]

To Rule Them All | Chapter 1 | New World

Pairing: Idol!Ateez/???!Ateez x Fem!Original Characters

Summary: Alexis is about to have the summer of a lifetime traveling the country with some of her best friends following one of her favorite groups, Ateez. Little do they know, there is more to this group than meets the eye. Take a trip into the dark as they navigate a world unseen.

Genre: (18+ Minors DNI) smut, angst, fluff, supernatural vibes 

Chapter Warnings: (18+ Minors DNI) light drinking, hauntings, supernatural vibes, slight cursing

Word Count: 3.1k

read here on AO3

To Rule Them All masterlist

next chapter

**

Today was the day we had all been anxiously awaiting since we filled out the forms to enter KQ’s mega drawing for Ateez’s opening weekend of their upcoming World Tour. We had already purchased tickets for other shows, but as soon as the announcement for this exclusive prize dropped it was a no brainer to try and add another weekend to our already Ateez packed summer. 

“Alexis, what kind of wine did you want again?” Christie yelled at me from the kitchen. “Or, do you want me to make you one of my drinks?”

I sat the computer down on to the coffee table in the living room, pausing my original task and contemplating her question. Christie made some bomb drinks, but you never knew how heavy handed she was going to be. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to run the risk of being knocked on my ass after a drink or two. At least with wine, I knew what I would be getting into tonight.  “Uhh… the blueberry wine please and thank you!” I called back to her. 

I picked the computer back up from the table to open up discord, scooting Loki the cat out of the way as I waited for the other three goblins to join the video call. Christie came back into the living room with two skull shaped glasses, one filled with what I assumed was her soju and Sprite mixture based on the clear color, the other with the deep purple liquid of wine and sat down on the dove gray sectional beside me. After she sat down the glasses she picked up one of the pillows to cuddle as she tucked her legs to the side. Loki went and made his normal position between her legs, while Scout, my German Shepherd, laid on the floor beneath me between the coffee table and the couch.

I positioned the computer well enough back on the table so that Christie and I were both in frame. I crisscrossed my legs, grabbing my glass and taking a generous swig of the sweet liquid as I relaxed back into the couch cushion. The nerves and anticipation had finally set in. Nikki, Thea, Adam, Christie and I had all put in for the four ticket KQ raffle in hopes that one of us would be selected. The prize included tickets for Day 1 and Day 2 front row pit, both days of sound check, private meet and greet backstage, and photo opportunity. Even though Thea and Adam had other plans and would be unable to go, they were willing to do anything to help Nikki, Christie, and I have an opportunity to win.

The emails to announce the winners were set to go out at noon KST. The four of us, and Adam of course, had all agreed to check our inboxes together to either celebrate our success or curse at our loss. Regardless, we had three other cities and K-Con we had already bought tickets for, so it wasn’t like our hope for seeing Ateez live and in person was dependent on winning.

Tha popped in first, of course looking at one of her many screens within her K-pop computer haven. Posters and albums lined the room that I had been accustomed to viewing on many nights. I could see her inbox reflected within the frames of her glasses, waiting for the rest to join so we could refresh at the same time. She looked at Christie and I, smiling as she greeted us both.

Adam was next to join, his freshly dyed periwinkle hair on full display. Christie and I immediately fangirled over the color, fawning him with compliments over the perfection of the overall look. While Adam was not coming to a majority of the concerts with us due to his hectic work schedule, he was planning on meeting up with us at K-Con and would be attending the Ateez North American finale with us in LA. 

At last, discord chimed once more and Nikki’s profile picture of Mingi with goggles on his head danced onto the screen. Her camera flipped on, but in typical Nikki fashion she was yelling at us to hold on as she bolted off screen. Like Christie and I had just recently done, Nikki was in the process of moving to join us in our new town of Derby, Vermont. She quickly sauntered back into view of the camera, clutching a giant Iced Americano, sweetened of course. 

“Is everybody ready for this?” I asked, breaking the silence as I glanced at the clock on the computer screen. It was 12:58am, meaning we had all but two minutes before we learned our fate. “Because I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

Christie shifted next to me, reaching for her glass and holding it against her chest while she pulled her phone out to get her email ready to go. The others followed suit, pulling up their accounts in one way or another, ready to hit refresh the second our clocks said 1am. 

“Ah, if we go we go… we can also just go to Fort Worth anyway and cause chaos,” Nikki said just before taking a long sip of her coffee. 

“It’s 1! Let’s see!” Thea squealed excitedly. 

I inhaled deeply, closing my eyes as I pulled down on the email tab to force refresh. The circle spun for what seemed like an eternity, before an email from KQ Entertainment sat at the top of the list. My heart fell as I tapped it open: Thank you for entering our contest! We regret to inform you that your name was not selected for the grand prize… I didn’t even bother to read the rest of the email.

I looked over at Christie. She shook her head without looking up at me, knowing exactly why I had turned to her. Her green eyes had the same disappointed look in them as my hazel ones did. I shifted my gaze back to the computer screen, ready to share our news as well as prepare myself to hear the same answer from the other three. 

“It’s a no go from us,” Christie said on behalf of us both. She took another sip of her drink before resuming her scrolling on her phone. 

“I’m sorry guys, same here,” Adam said solemnly. 

“‘We regret to inform you…’ blah blah blah,” Thea read off of her screen, having received the same email the rest of us had.

My eyes fixed on Nikki, who was unusually silent. Her eyes grew wide and a smile crept up her face, illuminated by the bright light coming off of her computer screens. “Biiiiiiiiiiittttchhhhhhh… WE WON!”

Sheer chaos erupted. I jumped up onto the couch, disturbing the sleeping animals around me as I danced and screamed like a mad woman. The biggest grin had spread on Christie’s face. Nikki was positively screeching with excitement. Thea and Adam were cheering along with us, even though they would not be reaping the benefits along with us. 

Once we had settled down, planning ensued. Nikki now had to enter Christie and I’s information… address, phone numbers, date of birth, everything, in order to validate the tickets and claim them. Of course, she already had all of our information from the numerous GOs that we had been a part of. Nikki had a friend in Texas who was going to take the fourth ticket, so she went ahead and input what she needed from her as well to get everything submitted as quickly as possible. 

Then began the fun part. We had 15 days between now and D1, and we needed to get the trip planned and lodging booked asap. Nikki would be moved into her new apartment in Derby within the next week, and she determined that instead of flying we should turn this into a huge road trip. It was immediately agreed upon by Christie and myself. The 27 hour trip would of course have to be done in spurts with stops along the way. One would obviously be in Lexington, Kentucky to see our dear Thea Poo along the way. Between Nikki, Christie, and I, along with some research and support from Adam and Thea, we had our entire trip outlined and booked within 30 minutes. 

I reached for the crystal skull glass once more, only to find that it was empty. The small buzz from the alcohol was starting to enter my head and the adrenaline crash from all the excitement was hitting me hard. It was also well beyond my bedtime. The faces on the computer screen were showing varying degrees of exhaustion, except for Nikki, of course, due to her insane caffeine intake this evening.

“I think this was enough excitement for one day,” I began, stifling a yawn as I raised my arms up to stretch. “I’m not going to speak for Christie, but I am going to go to bed.”

“No, I am actually going to force myself to sleep for once,” she said as she finished her last sip of soju. 

The other three agreed for various reasons. Thea had an early photography session in the morning. Adam was picking up everyone else’s slack at his job. Nikki obliged for the group’s sake, but we all knew she would be up for at least another two hours prowling around the internet or reading a fanfic of some sort. With that, I said goodbye to my favorite goblin beans for the evening. I closed the computer and stood up, grabbing the two empty glasses as I walked into the kitchen, taking extra care to avoid the 85 pound black blob laying on the floor. Christie stayed firmly planted on the couch. I figured with how cozy she was it would take her a few moments to make her way into her bedroom.

I rinsed the glasses out in the sink, lost in my own thoughts. Three months ago I broke up with my sorry excuse for a boyfriend of three years, Austin, and completely uprooted my life by moving across the country to get away from it all. Selfishly, I was thankful I didn’t have to do it alone. Christie also had made the decision to implode her own life, and we came up with the brilliant idea to rebuild the broken pieces together. The move to Derby was a no-brainer; it was close enough to Canada that we were close to Christie’s family, but far enough away from Iowa to provide all the separation I needed. Now, we were just waiting on Nikki to join us in our new little slice of paradise. 

“Alexis, I’m going into bed. I’ll let Scooty Jane into the backyard so she can potty on my way there,” Christie said from the living room. I heard Loki grumble in frustration from Christie’s movement to get up. Scout’s nails clicked faintly on the hardwood floor as Christie opened the sliding glass door in our living room that led into the backyard enclosed by a tall wooden privacy fence.

I smiled. It was such an easy transition living with Christie. We had thankfully found our adorable three bed, three and half bath, two story house quickly and snatched it up the second we laid eyes on it. There was plenty of room for the two of us and our two fur babies to run about, but not too big that we were overwhelmed with the amount of space we had. Scout absolutely adored Loki, something that I was initially slightly concerned of. Everything had thankfully fallen into place and living with one of my best friends was better than anything I could have imagined. Now, we just had to figure out how to get Thea and Adam here permanently…

Scout’s barking snapped me out of my own head. I turned off the running water to speed back into the living room. Scout stood alert on the back patio, but she wasn’t looking into the yard, she was glaring into the house through the glass door, head dipped low with the fur on her back flared up. 

I looked around the room as I let her back into the house. Not a thing looked out of place and I hadn’t heard any other sound besides Christie and Loki making their way upstairs to Christie’s bed room. The sage green and pastel pillows were strung across the gray sectional. The distressed wooden coffee table was positioned the exact way it always was in front of the couch. Not even the shoes or jackets on the built-in rack near the front door looked off. Scout typically didn’t get worked up over nothing, but it wasn’t to say that it never happened. 

I sighed at her, scratching between her large ears as I locked the sliding doors and pulled the patterned curtains closed. I glanced back over to the front door, making sure the doorknob lock, the deadbolt, and the chain were in their correct positions for the night to give myself a little more reassurance after Scout’s outburst.

I clicked off the lights in the living room and walked to the small hallway opposite the kitchen. Immediately to the left was the small powder room with a sink and toilet, a linen closet tucked in right next to it. Just a little ways further was my room, my personal little sanctuary. The walls were a sharp white, which I had chosen to keep to make other colors pop even more. I had a large window that overlooked the backyard. The curtains were a deeply toned purple, which perfectly complemented my plush purple, gray, and white comforter set. The bedframe, bookshelves, desk, and dresser were all matching cool toned gray, tying everything together more. Kpop albums lined the shelves, arranged perfectly by group and release. 

I had already changed into my pajamas, one of my typical matching two pieces, but still needed to finish up getting ready for bed. I continued to walk into my attached bathroom and took myself in through the large square mirror above the white countertop. I looked exhausted. The bags under my eyes had become increasingly darker with the events of the last few months. As settled as I had become into my new norm, sleep continued to elude me, at least on a consistent basis to feel caught up on anything. Starting over was hard. But I was thankful I wasn’t doing it alone

I haphazardly braided my long strawberry blonde hair back before washing my face and brushing my teeth. I rushed my typical nightly routine as exhaustion quickly took over me. Back in my room, Scout had already made herself comfortable on her dog bed resting at the foot of my own. I tossed the decorative pillows off the bed before pulling up the thick blanket to my chin and relaxing deep into my soft mattress. I rolled over to my side, counting silently to coax myself to sleep. Thankfully, my head listened and I was able to drift off easily into sweet darkness. 

***

“You guys know the rules,” Captain said sharply after the winners of the contest had been finalized. “No interacting, observing only. We have just over two weeks before the opening show… plenty of time for you to make your choices.” 

He and his group glanced down at the four names on the screen. They had become so accustomed to this new system. It was the best and most efficient way of keeping them all safe in this new life they had built over the last 5 years, even if it was a lonely one. But, it left for less room for mistakes, less guess work, at least for the first show. After that, it became easier. They could pick their subsequent victims from someone in the crowd based on the energy they felt from them. 

“Hyung, can we go tonight?” Jungho asked, eyes still fixed on the screen. 

Hongjoong rubbed his jaw in thought. Of course the Maknae was feeling antsy. Typically, he made the group wait until he had vetted them more thoroughly before letting the visits begin, but this evening he was feeling generous. 

“Only one per girl, for now. Keep it brief,” was all he said. 

Conversation amongst the members began to determine who was going on this first scouting event. It was decided in the best way they knew how: rock paper scissors. The winners were Seonghwa, Jungho, San, and Yeosang. The four of them, plus Hongjoong, looked over the names and information, realizing that two of the girls had the same address. Hongjoong wasn’t too keen on two members going to the same place immediately, but he wasn’t going to go back on what he originally said. 

Seonghwa was going to visit the one named Nichole, Jungho the one named Theadora, leaving Yeosang and San to visit the two who lived together, Christina-Leigh and Alexis. 

“Keep it brief,” reminded Captain as the four members sat down and closed their eyes, projecting themselves out into the world.

San and Yeosang stood inside the living room of the two women, sticking to the shadows even though they knew they could not be seen in this state. The room was clean and put together and they could hear the sound of a sink running out of sight. Yeosang made the first move towards what they assumed was the kitchen, San quickly following his footsteps. Their assumption was correct, and they saw one of the girls washing something within the stream of water. However, upon their approach, they failed to notice the large, black dog standing just outside the sliding glass door. 

They were not initially sensed, giving them some time to watch the girl standing within the kitchen. She was tall, her long hair falling straight past her shoulders, with legs for days peeking out from her matching short and crop combo. San felt like he could take her in for hours, feeling drawn to her almost instantly. His time was cut short by an abrupt growling, followed by an aggressive bark coming from the dog. The girl pivoted towards the sound, but the two of them had already abandoned their stake out. 

“You two are back quick, couldn't last more than 5 minutes?” Wooyoung asked sarcastically as the two bodies jerked back to consciousness. 

San and Yeosang were shaken up slightly, but it was nothing that they hadn’t experienced before. They knew they had not been spotted, however, animals had a way of sensing their presence.

“They had a dog,” San mumbled, looking over at their leader. 

Hongjoong was less than impressed. This was exactly why he took the time to dive into their chosen ones lives. They needed to be prepared for what they were walking in on when they began their spying. This was sloppy, and a mistake that Hongjoong refused to make twice.

[what-if-queen-camilla]

Chapter 16

June 1988,

Chatsworth House, Derbyshire

"Good girl, Thea, come here, come to daddy!", Charles exclaimed, happily cheering at his meanwhile 10 months old daughter as they were playing with a ball on the grass, both of them crawling on their knees. It was a rare picture but one that made Camilla incredibly happy - but also worried…

"He shouldn't say that anymore…", Deborah murmured and Camilla nodded. The two women were sitting on a bench under a tree a few metres away in the beautiful gardens of Chatsworth House, home to the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, who had so kindly invited the three of them to stay with them for a couple of days. Charles had always been close to the couple as well as their son and heir, Stoker, who was only just a few years older than Charles and herself, and the Duke and Duchess had meanwhile become some sort of her "in-laws in spirit" as they were amongst the very few people who knew about them as a couple - and Thea's real father. Camilla had never said anything herself but, being the incredibly empathic person she was, Deborah had been suspicious - and Charles had finally given in and told her. Thank goodness, the elderly Duchess had been neither shocked nor disapproving in any way; quite in contrast, she had been incredibly kind, compassionate and promised them both to do whatever she could to support them in any way. "My home is your home whenever it is needed.", she had so sweetly declared and Camilla hadn't even known what to say. She couldn't believe that people actually were so kind, when in fact they had nothing to give in return. "There's nothing needed, my dear.", the Duchess had assured her. "The two of you are suffering enough and if only we can do a tiny little bit to help or make it better for at least a few hours, we're more than happy to." Since then, they had spent numerous clandestine weekends at Chatsworth House, sometimes with, sometimes without Thea, and it had become their very own little piece of paradise where they could just be the couple they were without having to hide or people asking questions.

"She will soon remember things…", Deborah added and, again, Camilla nodded. "You're right. I'll talk to him later. But let's not ruin this moment for him. Look how happy he is." "Nothing you see very often these days, is it?", the Duchess asked quietly and, once more, Camilla agreed. The situation with his wife had only been worsening over the last couple of months and she was seriously worried about him more and more often. Sometimes, when he called her, he sounded so unhappy and frustrated that it simply broke her heart. The only thing that could still make him smile and give him the energy he needed so badly to perform his duties were Thea, in the first place, and herself. She tried to be there for him as best as possible and of course arranged for him to see the little one regularly, but they had to be very careful. Deborah was right, Thea would soon start to remember things and she had already started bubbling her first few words… not long and she'd be able to speak proper sentences, and even more dangerous, understand everything and they couldn't risk that.

"These weekends with you and our little angel really the light of my life, do you know that, darling?", Charles asked with his softest voice, gently stroking through her hair. After they'd put Thea to bed, just as any normal parents would do with their baby, they had gone to their own room early as well, cuddled up to each other, started to kiss and slowly but surely had become more passionate, until they had finally made love, just as any normal couple would, and it'd been heavenly. "It's the same for me, darling.", Camilla replied, her hand drawing little circles on his bare chest. God, he felt so good… he smelled so good… and he was so hot. She was still head over heels in love with him and a night like this had immediately brought back all of the butterflies. "If only we could stay here like this forever…", he sighed. "If only…", she agreed, desperately sighing, too. "Darling, listen, I… we need to talk about something…", she finally began, rolling half on top of him, tenderly locking his eyes with hers while keeping on stroking his body. "What is it, my beautiful darling?", he asked, sweetly smiling, and her heart ached as she knew exactly that this sweet smile she loved so much was going to fade the second she'd tell him. "You… um… I think you'd better stop referring to yourself… as daddy in front of Thea." Indeed, he looked at her in shock. "But… I am her daddy.", he said, frowning his forehead. "Darling…", Camilla whispered, softly kissing his chest. "We've been through it all. We've talked about it. I know it hurts but we have an agreement and we must stick with that. For our daughter. She's getting too old. She'll understand and remember soon… and.. we don't want to confuse her, do we? Andrew will be her daddy. And you will be -" "Sir, I know.", he interrupted her bitterly, turning his head away from her. He knew that she was right. They had talked about it and he also knew that there was no other option and they really had to stick with everything they had agreed to in order to protect their little darling. But it hurt so much. "Can't we just… stop time from going by and just… stay here, on this weekend, just like this, forever?" He looked at her with teary eyes, and seeing him so heartbroken broke Camilla’s heart as well. "For me, you will always be her daddy. Her real daddy. The best and loveliest and sweetest and just most wonderful daddy in the whole wide world.", she promised, softly kissing his tears away. "I love you so much, my darling.", she assured him, kissing him more passionately again. "I love you, too!", he replied, drawing her closer and joining her kiss, before tenderly turning her on her back, bending himself over her to make love to her once more…

[carrie-tate]

Oh, one of the stars of my blog, with whom I did a bunch of sketches in 2022

Thea!

Well, or Thea Shyen, I usually don’t use her last name… But I’m more than sure that some people remember this oc of mine (with the obvious tag #pokemon oc), when I was an active fan of Cilan from the Black and White seasons.

She is one of the most written (in terms of history) “self-inserts” that I have. I even tried to make a sketch comic about how she joined the company of Ash, Iris and Cilan, so… on my blog it is simply tagged #comic, so there you go.

Thea is a resident of the island of Unova, in particular, she grew up in a settlement near Castelia City, in the suburbs, roughly speaking. She has an older sister, Maya, who left to seek her fortune in the big city as a Pokémon trainer, leaving Thea with hers Lucario. Who does not perceive Thea at all as a worthy “trainer”, treating her with some disdain and demandingness. Still, Lucario is strong in spirit and strives for improvement, which is what they demand from their owners.

Actually, it is because of him and his desire to make the new owner a worthy trainer (drawing her into battles with other Pokemon owners) that Thea meets Ash and Co. Namely, Lucario simply dragged her by the hand to their company, realizing that for once a worthy opponent had appeared nearby. There he lost in a battle with Ash's Pikachu. Left outside the pokeball after the battle, he also heard in Thea’s conversation with Ash that their company was heading to Castelia City, where Maya was currently.

And because of his stubbornness and the fact that with his whole appearance he said “You (Thea) will go with them,” Thea reluctantly decides to join the journey until they get to Castelia City.

Here we can already mention Thea’s second important Pokemon - Minccino. This is a girl and she is definitely Thea’s closest friend, literally the first (and for a long time the only) Pokemon she caught. Although Thea received it more by accident. As a child and walking near the city with her sister, she noticed Minccino in the bushes.

So when she simply tried to get closer to look at the Pokemon, Thea (being very clumsy since childhood) successfully trips, raising clouds of dust and dropping her bag of Pokeballs. In fact, Thea did not dream of being a trainer, and she carried pokeballs with her simply because her sister constantly did not have enough space for them. Minccino, obviously, was scared at first and hid, but after that her natural habits of “cleaning up” got the better of her and she went out to Thea, just to clean the dust from her clothes. And from a bag too.

All this time, Thea was afraid to even move, simply watching the Pokemon, until Minccino herself pushed one of the dropped Pokeballs towards her, showing that the girl seemed good to the Pokemon. So Minccino voluntarily chose Thea as the trainer.

And so she tagged along with the girl when she went on a trip, although Thea tried to leave her at home, thinking that she would soon return. But in the end, in the Thea-Pokemon duel it came out 0:2 and Minccino went with her trainer.

As they travel to Castelia City, Thea becomes somewhat accustomed to Ash's company, showing her humble and polite nature. I'm willing to bet that Iris will be the first to notice the "spark" between Cilan and Thea.

In Castelia City, they will separate briefly, as Thea and Lucario's goal was to find Maya in the first place. Lucario hoped that he could return to his old trainer, but in the end it turns out that Maya no longer needs him. She has a new Pokemon (I like to think it's Purloin) and Lucario is a thing of the past. Of course, this wasn't meant to be anything treacherous on Mai's part, but for Lucario it was a crisis.

I can see him possibly even escaping after this and Thea enlisting the help of Ash, Iris and Cilan to find him. And when they find him, when Thea decides to try becoming a trainer for Lucario. And it is because of this decision that she will continue to travel with Ash and the others.

There will obviously be hints of romantic feelings between Thea and Cilan that even Ash will be able to notice (Iris and Ash ship them, that's canon to me). But their relationship itself will begin much later. They will have time to part when Thea decides that she has gained enough experience and decides, like Ash, to try herself in coping with the trainers of various Unova gyms.

But then they will meet somewhere, and the first thing Thea will do is rush to hug Cilan, without thinking at all. And then it will be crystal clear to both of them that these two are in love~

And Thea was also afraid of subway trains (obviously, the first time she goes down there will be with Ash’s company, because this was not the case in her city), because they are noisy, there are a lot of people everywhere and in general it is discomfort. But thanks to Cilan's enthusiasm and his love for trains, this fear will gradually fade away

[solemn-marauders]

Hi there! I was inspired by your patronus post that I wrote a continuation with your MC. Hope you like it!

Thea only knew there could be one place where Sebastian could be hiding. She thanked Professor Hecat for her time, leaving the classroom with hurried steps. What she just learned was… enlightening and overwhelming at the same time, leaving Thea to draw her own conclusion. What happened earlier… It was Sebastian’s love confession exposed in front of the whole class to see. 

Which led the white haired Gryffindor down the stairs, and into that familiar grandfather’s clock. She took a deep breath and waved her wand, the clock revealing itself to the entrance to the Undercroft. Without any hesitation, Thea stepped in, her heart beating from out of her chest. 

Upon landing in front of the gate, she saw Ominis and Sebastian prancing around rather awkwardly, as if they made an uncomfortable revelation. Thea didn’t want to announce her arrival, but the loud noise of the gate shifting and opening to reveal her presence snapped the Slytherin boys back to reality, looking in her direction. Ominis gave a sigh as he took his cue to leave. 

“She’s here, Sebastian. I think I’ll take my leave.” 

Ominis made his way out, giving Thea a small smile as he left. Thea smiled back in return, then her eyes turned to look at Sebastian. He was shifting uncomfortably, avoiding her gaze. Once they heard the gates of the Undercroft close, Thea gulped as she approached Sebastian. 

“Sebastian… I…”

“I’m sorry, okay?”

“Sorry?” 

Thea was taken back at his words. Surely there was more to that. Thea got confused, then tried to read Sebastian’s face for any sort of sign. Whatever charm he had was gone, leaving behind one that fumbled about his words and uncertain on what to do. 

“Just… sorry. It wasn’t intentional.” 

Thea scoffed at that statement.

“It wasn’t? It looked extremely intentional to me.” 

“Just… leave it. None of that happened.” 

“Dismissing it already?” 

“I told you to leave it, Thea.”

Thea paused when Sebastian snarled those words at her. They always teased and shared a few jokes, but she knew this time Sebastian meant business. Sighing, she decided to change the conversation and get straight to the point. 

“All right. Then tell me… what was your happy thought?” 

Sebastian finally looked at her, giving a moment of silence as he composed himself. His hands clenched into fists that made his knuckle white, his breaths were heavy that Thea could see him heaving. It took all of Sebastian’s will to admit it. 

“When I first conjured a Patronus… I was thinking of the times I played Gobstones with Anne and Ominis. I tried to use it again but… after what happened last year it became corrupted. It was just sad and… I could no longer feel joy in it after knowing I had failed both of them. Then… I thought of your smile, our adventures, every single conversation I had with you…It gave a burst of happiness I never felt before. Merlin, Thea. Do you have any idea that since you walked into the Great Hall last year, you caught my eye? And have you ever seen me behave the way I do to you to any other girl?” 

Thea could only blink when Sebastian asked her those questions. Her whole body froze, leaving Sebastian to take her silence as rejection as he got up, looking defeated as he muttered to her. 

“I’ll see you around.” 

But Sebastian didn’t move. His body froze when he felt Thea’s hand holding his arm, as if begging for him to stay. Sebastian dared himself to look at her face, one of anguish and despair. She looked like she was about to cry when her voice, barely above a whisper, asked him a question in return. 

“Aren’t you going to ask me what I thought in return?” 

Sebastian paused, seeing her emotions about to spill as he nodded, leaving Thea to get herself together and muster whatever courage she had left. Wiping away any stray tears, Thea took a deep breath and spewed her confession.

“I wasn’t getting it right. Whatever memory I was thinking about wasn't strong enough. Then… you saw my sad sparks. Honestly… I was trying to get you out of my head until you pointed out that I was on the right path. I stopped fighting it…and… well you know the rest.” 

Sebastian’s jaw dropped at that confession. Thea…Thea was also thinking of him? Just as much he was thinking of her. Him… of all people she could have had at Hogwarts, Thea is in love with him. Sebastian’s stance relaxed, thinking he would never gain her love after seeing how far he went to cure Anne that it cost everything. Sebastian awkwardly closed the gap between them, but he leaned in as he felt Thea’s hand move from his arm to his shoulders, trailing on his neck and landing on his cheek, her other hand followed suit. He started to feel a little bold and wanting to take his chance, but his eyes widened with shock. 

Thea leaned in, giving Sebastian a passionate kiss. 

Overcoming what just happened, Sebastian swooned and gave into her kiss, hungrily responding to her lips as he held her waist, not intending to let go. He thought he lost everything that made life bearable for a moment. He never thought of himself worthy of her, but she chose him in the end. He wasn't going to let her go. No… he’ll court her, marry her to show he means it. He wants her by his side as they raise their own brood of Sallows, until his own hair turns gray to match the white in her hair. 

They parted their kiss when their breaths felt short, both of them looking at each other with wonder and glee. Thea and Sebastian gave each other a hug, inhaling each other’s scent and feeling warm despite the cold conditions of the Undercroft. 

It’s the start of a new adventure. And all it took was a Patronus.

THIS IS SO SWEET! 🥹

I can’t believe you felt inspired to write about Thea after reading one of my drabbles. I’m touched and honored. This was such a gift, thank you.

I’ll, hopefully, be posting my own continuation of my Patronus scene soon.

[shimenchus]

...I haven't seen a single toku blog receive any ask about a thea someone? And I follow quite a lot. So unless you're hanging out in some really weird circle of it... (after all, due to various reasons, toku tumblr is more like a bunch of bubbles instead of one monolith.)

What I HAVE seen are a lot of them still reblogging satoryuga's gifsets with positive tags, even to this day. From what I understand, most of them are pretty sure that she isn't a terf, and are against the re-uploader. However, they're not sure who is behind it. And judging by how this re-uploader has the means to doxx extremely personal info of random Tumblr users and create loads of sockpuppets, anything is possible. (For all we know, that person could be the re-uploader, or it could be some distraction to hide the real re-uploader's identity.)

This is also why--out of the fans I've spoken to--they've been trying to deal with the situation quietly (reporting hate comments, leaving supportive DMs to satoryuga, etc). We've already seen from the re-uploader's 2nd blog post (where they @ 'd a few people that were against the re-uploader for different reasons) that they're willing to threaten others too. If anything, I think the more accurate thing to do is ask why they would @ those users in particular (since by @ -ing them, they're turning those bloggers into targets). Clearly the re-uploader sees those people as either threats or easy targets to have beef with.

i'm not hanging out in any weird circles i promise you, everyone i follow in the fandom are just other girls who like sentai. yesterday i saw quite a few people getting told to "block and dni" with thea-nymo which is the real account of the reuploader if you didn't know that, there were even people outside of the fandom getting asks which makes no sense because people who don't know what sentai is definitely wouldn't know who satoryuga is lol

i get the fear around the doxxing, i don't think anybody should be forced to do anything they're uncomfortable with and if there's people in the fandom who aren't liking or making shady posts about satoryuga and have privately reached out to her because that's what they're comfortable with then that's great, more power to them.

i mean, i never in my life got so many grown adults telling me to get graphically and violently raped and murdered until i called them out on harassing satoryuga, i know most people would not have the stomach for that kind of stuff so i fully understand the ones who don't want to openly say anything.

but the ones who are leaning into the "i'm not looking at any evidence because someone told me satoryuga = bad = she should get raped and murdered because i can't think for myself" crowd can find a tall tree to get caught up in.

and most of the people that got @ by the reuploader weren't people who against him, it was people he was against lol considering neckspike got @ and that loser was the first person starting the "this is a hoax none of this is real it's a psychop" stuff against satoryuga.

i think stacaesar and diamondsketches are the only people who got @ that the reuploader was purposely trying to draw attention to, to get the cult to attack them too, because much like satoryuga, neither of them did anything wrong.

neckspike and whatever that artist's name was (they blocked me after calling me a crackhead so i don't remember lmao) are super anti-satoryuga and couldn't make a single argument against her/against the people supporting her without resorting to racism and misogyny, so if anybody sent those two even 1 threat... well, babygirl that's on them lol

thanks for the nice message though, i wasn't expecting someone else from the fandom to see it and give a response like this that wasn't another rape threat/"slit your wrists terf" type message.

[decoloraa]

Hello fellow person with fma Briggs ocs, do you want to tell me more about yours? (Believe it or not, but that moodboard with those images that remind you of Briggs got me curious about your ocs/Briggs headcanons :3)

YES OF COURSE, I'D LOVE TO!!

Okay first one is Casther. He's Captain at Briggs. We already have Buccaneer as Captain at Briggs but I like to think that he is head of the defense department while Casther is head of the attacking department.

His main responsibilities are leading a small squad in missions (often on Drachma territory), patrols and such.

One important thing to know about him: He's a white wolf chimera! He can't transform like Heinkel etc (for several reasons, no. 1 being that I can't draw animals), but he has some abilities (for example great smelling and hearing) and wolf-ish features (grey hair and fangs).

And to his personality: He's a goof who likes to take his job more or less seriously depending on the situation. For example he loves pulling pranks (mostly to annoy Miles). However he's deadly serious when it counts.

Second oc is Val: He's a doctor at Briggs. The two Briggs docs are specialized in automails and cold climate treatment. Val on the other hand is specialized on treating combat wounds and performing surgeries. He's quite the contrast to the other two docs (very chill and extrovert), being rather grumpy and not as talkative.

Fact about Val: Olivier and him are childhood friends! Being both the eldest of influential family in Central they grew up close and remained friends later on. Once Olivier got the command over Briggs she recruited him (and Casther).

Also important: Casther and Val are idiots in love who think they're being sneaky and secretive (but literally everyone at Briggs knows).

Some quick thoughts abt our Briggs favorites:

Olivier is self explanatory bc we see a lot about her character. I'm definitely team "she's gay af" tho.

Buccaneer is very serious most of the time but I think most is bc he wants strangers to see him as intimidating. But that man is a dork. He's definitely in for joking around a lot and helping out with pranks every now and then too.

Miles is kinda hard to read and this may seem ooc to some but I like to see him as the one who takes his job the most seriously. Which leads to him to regularly lose his mind bc some idiots (Casther) pull a lot of jokes. Give this man a break.

Next oc is Thea: Take the 'guy finds child and raises it as his own' trope and put it into Briggs (I'm a sucker for this trope and it basically was why I even created my Briggs ocs). She's from Drachma and a squad of Briggs soldiers found her completely on her own when they were on a mission. Long story short is that they took her back to Briggs and in the end Casther became her guardian (or: he and Val became her dads). She grows up to be a total badass, being on the field regularly.

These were my main ocs whom I constantly draw. Here are some others, all part of Casther's squad:

Silas: First Lieutenant, he's a tactician. Whenever he's not in the field with Casther, he assists Miles in planning out strategies. He's the nice and most responsible one out of the group.

Richard: He's a sniper and he once wanted to be a state alchemist. Dude can't draw a straight circle tho, so he's rather useless as an alchemist. Also he's a bastard.

Brooks: The heavy man in the squad and they're a pretty good mechanic too! Or to put it differently: every group needs a himbo and that is Brooks job.

Them and Richie are often involved with delevoping new weapons and technologies.

These were the most important things, but actually there's a lot more to it (especially Casther being a chimera, Val and Olivier's childhood friendship) so feel free to ask for details!

Some general things I like to hc about Briggs: They're really badass but also huge dorks. I mean they're at the fort most of the year, I don't think they'd have much free time?? So they'd definitely be a big family who loves doing stupid/silly things like pulling pranks on each others.

[wandsandwheezes]

Family Man | F. W

TW // mentions of prem kids, pregnancy, children but mostly pure fluff

Taglist ✨ @witch-and-a-half @weasleysflowr @hufflepuffgirly @theweasleysredhair @wand3ringr0s3

If you asked Fred Weasley what his pride and joy was, people would usually expect him to beam proudly about the success of the shop with his brother, nevertheless, when he smiles fondly and says 'Thea Weasley' people are more often than not surprised.

Fred loved his Daughter so much that words couldn't describe how much happiness filled his heart every time he saw her. The second she was born, she had him wrapped around her little finger, a father that would do anything for her.

When you and Fred married, you were quick to fall pregnant with your first child, a Daughter, named after your Mother but the absolute spitting image of her father, however her soft strawberry blonde locks curled into ringlets, a trait that seemed to sprout as soon as her hair was long enough.

"How're my girls doing?" Fred whispers, pulling off his jacket, having just walked in from a day at the shop. You're sat with your daughter nestled into your side, about an hour or so deep into a nap. Fred gently scoops her up, not before pressing a small kiss to your forehead with a sweet hello, her little arms instinctively wrapped around his neck, falling back asleep instantly.

He took her up to her bed, tucking her in underneath her covers before pressing a gentle kiss to her hair, "goodnight my sweet angel, sleep well"

"I wish she'd stop growing," He says, joining you on the sofa, allowing you to cuddle into his side, his hands moving to play with your hair as he kicks off his shoes. "one day I'll wake up and my little girl will be an adult."

Laughing gently, you trace circles on his chest, feeling relaxed against him, you reminice of the moments you'd had together as teenagers, talking like this about your futures, getting married, how many kids you'd wanted and how you'd both give anything to do all of that with each other.

"Unfortunately Freddie, all they do is grow," You move to press a kiss to his cheek, nuzzling your nose into his neck for warmth, causing him to wrap his arms even tighter around you.

Little did you know that day, you were already pregnant with your second & third weasley children - the twins, like their father but one boy and one girl, Lee and Winnie. Identical apart from the eyes, the girl like her fathers and the boy much like yours, both with signature weasley hair.

Not even a few months after the twins you found out you were having another son, Billy who looked much like his uncle Bill did as a child, as Molly had pointed out hence his name. You originally wanted to call him Jamie but when you met your little boy for thr first time, both you and Fred decided that Billy was definitely more fitting.

finally your youngest daughter, Arabella. She was a gift that none of you had expected, after some complications after having Billy, you didn't think that having another child would be on the cards again. You found out you were pregnant a week or so before Fred's Birthday you had taken test after test, and even a trip to St Mungos to make sure, but as your doctor assured you, Arabella was on her way.

The thing about little Bella was that she was a tiny baby, a premature birth. When she was born she was so fragile looking and hearing her cries broke Fred's heart. The doctors said that she was quite frankly a miracle, making her just another pillar of pride for your adoring husband.

Having five children with Fred was an interesting experience, the house grew louder and louder and soon became like a second Burrow, children in and out of the house, magic everywhere. It truly was reminiscent of both of your childhoods. Despite having all the children to look after, he loved all of them with his whole heart and nothing less.

Your kids loved loved going to see Fred's parents and getting to spend time with Uncle George and Uncle Ron it was heart-warming to watch your family love the people you chose to be your family. Winnie absolutely adored being around Ginny and Lee wanted nothing more than to be like his Uncle Harry.

When Thea's Hogwarts letter came, Fred genuinely thought he was going to have a heart attack, "Merlin, Y/N, my little girl isn't old enough to be going to Hogwarts!" he was sat across the table from you eating his lunch, The sounds of Lee and Winnie bickering as Billy quietly draws and Arabella sits in your lap, listening into the conversation. To you, you were watching your babies grow up right before your eyes but to Fred they were always his babies.

"Freddie, my love it'll be the twins next, Lee wont shut up about getting to see Uncle Harry at school." you laugh, playing with the little curls on Arabella's head, a trait inherited from her oldest sister, "give it four years and our Bella will be off on her first year at Hogwarts with all of her siblings."

"I don't even want to think about that, I really don't know how Mum did it, sending us off one by one." you laugh lightly looking at your husband with a small smirk, "From what i heard from Molly, she was all but kicking you onto the platform, apparently you and George were a nightmare"

"We so were not!" he defended, feigning fake offense, rolling his eyes and taking a bite from his sandwich. "I think we were absolute golden angels" you raise an eyebrow at him, shaking your head, "You can be a golden angel and take Thea with you to Diagon Alley tomorrow to get her supplies, I don't fancy a day trip to London with the whole weasley clan just yet!" you laugh, he nods finishing up his food, the plate finding it's way to the sink, being washed up magically like at the Burrow, he presses a kiss to your hair, heading quickly to step into his father shoes, only to break up the growing argument between the twins.

You sat, content in the family you created, praising your younger self for putting up with all of Fred's antics because really, you were the luckiest girl on earth, with the greatest man alive, a loving father and the best Husband.

The time came to send Thea off on the Hogwarts Express, Molly had agreed to look after the rest of the children as you sent off your oldest, you were crying with fred as you hugged your little girl goodbye before she got onto the train. "Remember, Thea, it doesn't matter what house you get put in, and if you need someone to help you, you find Ted or Uncle Harry and they'll help you out." she laughs, wrapping her arms around her father's neck giving him a long hug. "I'll be fine, Dad, after all, I've got the weasley name to live up to!" he smiles proudly at his daughter, i give her one last kiss, giving her a couple of galleons for the train, "I love you, Thea." she hugs me again, "Love you too, Mumma!"

"One down, Four to go." you joke, leaning into your husband's side as you wave the train off, "At least the twins will have each other and Thea next year, the poor girl is all on her own!" you shake your head, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I'm sure she's already made friends, she's much like you when it comes to being outgoing..." he smiles, calming down a little, "I can't believe we've just sent our first off to Hogwarts." you hug him gently. "Neither can I, Freddie, neither can I."

[obscure-sentimentalist]

flommy, “I have pillows, blankets, supreme comfort, and all that’s missing is you.”

[So this one’s been nagging at me for probably about a year now? It had been sitting half-started for ages, as I never really knew how to carry out the idea I had, but I did my best in coming back to it now. Bit lighter on the Flommy interactions this time, but in exchange we get Tommy and Thea siblingness and some Tommy thoughts.]

From the Comforting Cuddles starters list

“What do you think about ‘I have pillows, blankets, supreme comfort, and all that’s missing is you’?”

“Do you need me to take you to the ER?” Thea deadpans from her perch on the cushioned window seat in Tommy’s room of the hotel suite without looking up from her phone. “Because it sounds like you got one of those Hallmark cards from the airport gift shop lodged in your throat.”

Tommy slowly lowers his own phone and rolls his head towards his sister, expression settling into one of loving annoyance. “What I’m getting out of that is that I have a future in the greeting card industry.”

“The future you should be more concerned about is the one where I spin-kick you in the head before the emotional trauma of hearing my brother workshopping romantic texts to his girlfriend sets in.”

“Hey, I’m keeping it perfectly PG,” Tommy defends, pointing at Thea with his free hand for emphasis.

That finally gets her to set her phone aside and swivel in her seat to face Tommy, giving him a striking, raised-eyebrow look. “I think the subject matter automatically makes it PG-13.”

“It’s a hotel bed!” Any exasperation behind the words trips right out of the gate, stumbling into nervous laughter.

Thea just continues to stare, swinging her legs back-and-forth unevenly as her feet dangle above the floor.

“That’s… achieved the perfect ratio of softness to firmness for an excellent night’s sleep?” Tommy can feel his ears reddening as they disappear into his shoulders. “Also, those pillows. Heavenly. Remind me to check with management to find out who the supplier is, I’m going to place a personal bulk order once we get back to Starling.”

“Right,” Thea says slowly, legs finally stilling. “So the high-quality comfiness is the thing worth writing home about. No other reason why you’d express missing having a plus-one to enjoy it.”

Had his mouth not dropped open with a scandalized pop instead, Tommy might have swallowed his tongue. “Thea Dearden Queen, you’re going to stop right there before I also ask about the hotel’s highest-strength cleaning supplies and if they can be applied directly to my brain.”

“You asked for critique,” Thea reminds him, but backs off by raising her hands sarcastically in surrender. “Just pointing out insinuations you may or may not have intended. You’re welcome.”

Chagrined by both the acknowledgement that he’d asked for help and his sister’s frankness in delivering said feedback, Tommy turns his attention back to the blinking cursor in the half-filled message box. The wittiness of the greeting has dulled significantly since the lightbulb first flicked on, even without the suggestive commentary. It’s a grim admission that spurs Tommy’s thumb to find the delete key and hold, consuming the carefully-crafted words before his eyes until he’s greeted once again by blank space.

The fact that Thea’s sigh is louder than his own is what pries Tommy away from his seemingly insurmountable task with his eyebrows raised in curiosity.

“You really haven’t done this sort of thing before, have you?” Thea asks, waving a hand vaguely at the room as she sinks back against the window. “The out-of-town business trip.”

Admitting defeat (at least for the moment), Tommy tosses the phone onto the bed and crosses his arms, the corners of his mouth twitching. “I mean, if my business was pleasure...”

“So no, then,” Thea cuts in with a fond eye-roll. Her face goes soft a moment later, though, and she glances back at Tommy with a strange sort of knowingness. “Which means you especially haven’t done it when you’ve been in an actual relationship.”

Tommy offers up an entirely sheepish look. “I think that’s a given.”

Thea makes a little shrug-like expression with her lips, conceding that point. She pulls one foot up to rest on the cushion and hugs her knee to her chest, before giving Tommy another gently pointed stare. “It’s okay, you know.”

“Hmm?” Tommy rocks back on his heels as he lets the questioning hum slip, and rolls his lips under for a façade of innocence. These last few exchanges have been drawing them dangerously close to vulnerable topics—it’s still Tommy’s carefully-wired reflex to either clown about it or just play dumb.

Too bad Thea knows those moves when she sees them, and her narrowed eyes suggest that she’s still considering the earlier threat of a spin-kick in the head.

“It’s okay to miss her,” she says, stripping Tommy’s anxieties bare with a single statement.

For a split second, he thinks he might have preferred stewing in the awkward surrounding the Bed Text for just a bit longer. Incidental innuendoes are familiar territory, even if being called out for them by his younger sister adds a new layer of humiliation.

The notion doesn’t linger, though, but it’s due less to the embarrassment than it is to his brain bouncing from point to point like a pinball machine from hell. The mortification just ricochets back to the almost-slip in question, and—true to pattern as of late—propels his thoughts to a flare of fondness and Felicity. The thing that makes Tommy want to bury his face in one of the pillows that started it all, though, is the fact that the ball rebounds again to the current conversation, seemingly inescapable.

“It’s not weird?” The question comes hesitantly as he uncrosses his arms, immediately bringing one hand to rub the back of his neck. “I mean, it’s only two nights, and one already down—we’re back by tomorrow afternoon, no time at all. I feel like it’s too much, just me being unreasonably clingy.”

Experience seems to back up that impression, after all. Two years, five, more have created gulfs between Tommy and his loved ones, and even then, his longing and loneliness came off as exaggerated and one-sided.

But maybe that’s not entirely fair, he immediately scrambles to note. Oliver was working through his own problems at the time (in questionably-at-best healthy ways), caught up in a different storm of emotion and trauma that instinctively repelled Tommy—familiar magnets flipped to the same pole for the very first time. Perhaps it took more time and effort than either of them could have expected, and still never returned them to where they left off, but they did manage to establish a balance better suited to who they are now.

(Even Tommy’s being in this hotel room—as one of three co-owners of Verdant, joining Thea in exploring options for expanding the club outside of Starling—is evidence enough of that reconciliation and understanding.)

As for his father’s absence and return…

Well, any expression of emotion comes off as an overreaction when compared to Malcolm, and should not be counted.

Almost as if she senses Tommy’s once-solid evidence crumbling to dust, Thea pushes off the window seat, landing gracefully on her feet. “You’re overthinking this, especially with the texts. Just call her, all right? We don’t need to head out for at least another hour, so there’s plenty of time.”

Still lagging a little bit from trying to detangle his anxieties, Tommy nods absently in agreement as his eyes follow Thea’s movements towards the door. When she crosses the threshold to head back into the suite’s living area, though, his brain finally catches up. “Hey! How is it that you’re the one giving me relationship advice?”

Thea grips the doorframe and leans her full body back into the room, one eyebrow arched as she tilts her head to look at him.

“I mean, isn’t it supposed to be the other way around? You know, older brother’s prerogative and all?” Tommy defends weakly, wilting under the sharp stare.

“Seeing as I ended up with emotionally-constipated brothers on both sides, I think that privilege has been revoked,” Thea declares, smoothly propelling herself back upright and reaching for the doorknob. She pulls it behind her as she finally departs, but not before shooting Tommy a cheeky, “I’ll give you some privacy to relay the magical properties of a hotel bed.”

Tommy imagines his immediate response is the sound an ostrich would make if strangled. “Okay, look…”

The door closes firmly before he can get any more words out, but not fast enough that he doesn’t catch Thea’s laughter.

“Brat,” Tommy mutters affectionately under his breath, before teetering backwards to flop down on said bed. The impact bounces his phone an inch or two above the comforter, only to land face-down right next to his hip.

Tommy’s breath catches in his chest as his attention is drawn again to the device, a mere hand-twitch within reach. Hardly any effort at all to pick up, and selecting Felicity’s name from his recent call log to re-dial is no more complex a step. But his hand seems to be declining all calls from his brain, remaining unmoving at his side without even an itch in the fingertips.

He’s overreacting—he has to be, and for real this time. It’s been barely a day since his standard morning protest of Felicity’s alarm (involving an exaggerated yawn and an arm stretched across her stomach to secure her in place for just a bit longer) was met with a laugh and a set of ice-cold toes pressed to his shins in retaliation. Barely a day since Tommy lumbered past the bathroom door on his way to the kitchen and couldn’t (wouldn’t) fight the grin that bloomed upon overhearing Felicity’s murmur-singing of some earworm while getting ready. Barely a day since she’d swept into the kitchen, all color and curls, to accept the travel mug of coffee from Tommy’s hands in exchange for a soft, lingering kiss and wishes for a safe flight.

A one-day break from routine—one that’s still a few months fresh, at that—and certain comfort shouldn’t be this jarring, should it?

After all, it’s not like they’ve been completely out of contact for the last 24 hours. Tommy had passed along travel updates (and a couple pictures taken mid-flight of Thea, tuned out with her neck pillow, eye mask, and earbuds); in turn, Felicity had relayed the shift between her day and night jobs, and confirmed her safe return home following the latter. There may temporarily be a few hundred miles of physical distance between them, but Felicity is still firmly here in Tommy’s life.

And yet, he can’t help but linger on the memory of waking this morning: rolling onto his stomach and reaching across the bed, only for his arm to land flat atop a mattress completely devoid of another body’s warmth. How the confusion and pinprick of hurt struck faster than the recognition that said bed wasn’t his own and why, and the clarity only served to transform it into a yearning ache. Even brushing his teeth was a more solemn affair, with Tommy still half-listening for Felicity puttering around and starting her day.

Maybe Thea… has a point.

Before Tommy can tend to the gentle bruise to his ego from admitting his younger sister has relationship wisdom where he does not, his phone buzzes with an incoming call. Synapses finally firing as they should, his hand wraps around the device and lifts it to his face to glance at the screen.

His fingers nearly fumble and drop the phone directly onto his face when he sees Felicity’s contact photo (one he’d surreptitiously taken shortly after they’d moved in together, when he’d caught her pleasantly lost in thought at the kitchen table) and the banner requesting a video call.

Thankfully, Tommy manages to spare himself that painful landing by adjusting his grip and scooting back into a seated position against the headboard. He takes and releases a deep breath to compose himself, before his thumb finds the Accept button.

Within an instant of Felicity coming into focus, Tommy feels his lips tug into a broad smile to compliment her still-sleepy one.

“Morning,” she greets with a little finger-wiggling wave, before she pulls a steaming mug of coffee into view with her other hand. After a second, she curls her fingers into her palm and wrinkles her nose in thought. “Wow, that was weird.”

“What, saying ‘good morning’?” Tommy asks, raising an eyebrow teasingly.

Felicity mirrors the expression and throws in a shrug. “I rarely get to open with it, at least. It’s usually beat out by someone requesting that I ‘please keep hands and feet and body inside the bed at all times’.”

“Always best to take those safety messages seriously, you know,” Tommy notes sagely. He can feel the corners of his mouth twitching, threatening an even bigger smile, but the impulse immediately extinguishes once he sees Felicity worrying her lower lip between her teeth and averting her gaze in uncertainty.

“I missed it today,” she blurts, catching them both off-guard after a (seemingly agonizingly long) beat. A light flush comes to her cheeks at that, but she confidently lifts her eyes back to meet Tommy’s and amends, “I missed you. Waking up with only a tangle of blankets trying to keep me in bed, and then getting ready on my own… I mean, it’s not unusual or unfamiliar, I did get by for many years this way. But I guess going back now, after getting into new and shared habits, is stranger than I expected.”

Felicity takes a breath to duck her head a little and push a stray curl behind her ear with her free hand, before picking up steam. “It must be something about the distance that’s getting to me—for no real reason, because it’s only been the one day and you’re back tomorrow—but I wanted to call and say…”

“I have pillows, blankets, supreme comfort, and all that’s missing is you.”

Only once Felicity pauses, lips frozen in a little “O” and only a single surprised blink to prove that the connection isn’t buffering, does Tommy realize he’s landed himself right back where he started. This time, though, he’s backed by Felicity’s own testimony, and that changes the game.

The lights on the pinball machine of his thoughts are going wild, that’s for sure.

“What I mean by that,” he starts, punctuating mid-sentence by awkwardly clearing his throat, “is that I miss you too. That I was actually looking forward to cold feet on my legs this morning, and hoping to hear you singing in the bathroom, and…”

Tommy trails off, disguising a small wince. Thea’s going to be smug about this for the rest of the weekend, and almost certainly for a while after they return to Starling.

“And I think that, if we’re both feeling this way, maybe we’re not overreacting so much as we’re… on to something.”

It’s difficult to determine what that “something” is, beyond the sense that it feels right. That they—Felicity and Tommy, together—feel right, and even a temporary deviation from pattern (no matter how small or odd) is a shock to the system.

It’s okay to miss her.

Felicity remains silent on the other end—the stunned expression having melted off her face and into something more thoughtful, but much less readable. Even though their conversation up to this point made their alignment apparently clear and she’s likely just turning the implications over in her mind, Tommy can’t help but subtly squirm from the suspense.

“Yeah,” Felicity finally speaks up, lips spreading in a small, soft smile as she nods in agreement. “Maybe we are.”

Despite that being the very answer Tommy was hoping to hear, he has no immediate idea how to respond.

“Oh. Uh, good,” he fumbles. “Because I’m hoping you’ll feel the same way about these pillows if I manage to find out where they’re from and get my hands on a few.”

Something in Tommy’s chest swoops as Felicity cracks out a startled yet amused laugh. “You’re really stuck on those, huh?”

Tommy meets that with a casual shrug and pats the one next to him for emphasis. “I’m a connoisseur. These meet all the necessary criteria, and then some.”

“And I’m a tough sell,” Felicity retorts, settling back in her seat and bringing her mug to her lips. “I know what I like, and I’m seeing only one pillow here that I want for sure by the end of the weekend.” To drive the point home, she bobs her head sharply to give Tommy a once-over.

“Well, now that I will gladly arrange,” Tommy agrees, and lets the grin spread unrestrained across his face.

[harrysgloves]

Let Your Hair Down (chapter xxviii)

Get caught up with the Let Your Hair Down Masterlist!

word count: 1,764

story summary: Harry gets more than he bargains for when he falls not only for you but your little girl as well.

chapter summary: Harry’s in over his head.

warnings: Language // mentions of injuries

a/n: Remember the good times? Yeah, they’re over. xx

>>><<<

Harry stared after your car. Eyes filled with tears as Mitch walked up behind him. He didn't know what to say to Harry to make it better, to comfort him, so he just stood there along with Sarah. All three of them looking at the road you had just torn through.

"She'll be okay." Mitch sighed, hand coming up on Harry's shoulder.

"You didn't 'ave to see it. I don't think she'll ever be okay after that." Harry jerked away and started towards his own car. His hands fishing around for the keys in his pocket.

"Don't follow her." Sarah yelled after him, making him pause.

"How am I supposed to jus' let her go after that? Huh? I'm jus' supposed to let her leave? Not check on her?" Harry's voice was laced with anger and hurt. Eyes filled with tears, he didn't know what to do. Didn't want to push you but he had to check on you. Had to make sure you were okay.

He loved you too much to leave you now.

"He's right. We should go check on her." Mitch piped up making Sarah raise her eyebrows at him.

"This is a bad idea. If she wanted us to be involved she wouldn't have run away." She sighed, shaking her head at both of them. She knew you well enough to know you wouldn't want anyone barging in and forcing you to talk.

"Fuck that. I care too much 'bout her to let her go through this alone. I'm goin' to her apartment, if she doesn't want me there she can tell me herself." Harry turned back and started walking to his car, Mitch and Sarah running after him.

"I'm coming with you." Mitch yelled after him but Harry ignored him. He didn't care if Mitch tagged along. He just needed to make sure you two were okay and make sure you got to a hospital. There was no way you didn't need to go to a hospital.

"No, Mitch, she didn't even want you to touch her. She's not going to want us trying to force our way in." Sarah pulled on his arm to get him to stop walking.

"She has been my best friend since we were kids. I can't leave her. And what about Thea? She wasn't just crying like that cause she saw her mom roughed up and you know it." Mitch's words made Harry stop in his tracks. Eyes closing as he took in a deep breath to face them.

"He hit her too. She ran in front 'f me when we went t'go lookin' fo' her. I was only a few seconds behind her but…" He trailed off, eyes looking away from both his friends who looked shocked.

"Jesus." Sarah sighed, hands running through her hair. "Fine, but only Harry goes to the apartment. She'll close up if we all show up."

Harry sat in your apartment for hours. Pacing the floor as he tried to call and text you over a hundred times. His hands running nervously through his hair as his mind went wild with all the possibilities of what happened to you two.

He called every hospital in the area, none of them could give out any information to him about any patients. Every nurse he talked to suggested getting a hold of you directly but you weren't answering your phone.

He even stooped low enough to have Mitch call your parents, trying to see if maybe they had talked to you. He even stalked your Instagram account to find your sister and messaged her to see if she had heard from you.

She hadn't.

And as he sat on your coffee table in your empty apartment, his heart felt like it was in pieces. He ran out of options and he was starting to wonder if he'd ever see you again when the front door opened.

"Y/N?" He asked, his head shooting up but when he saw the man walking through the door his heart fell.

"You must be the boyfriend." Your dad sighed, closing the door behind him.

"Uh, yeh, I'm her boyfriend, Harry. Who are you?" Harry asked, getting up from the coffee table, hands nervously clenching by his side.

"I'm Leo, Y/N's dad." He said, walking into the kitchen, rummaging through your cabinets.

"Oh. Have y'heard from her? How are they?" Harry asked, eyebrows pinching together wondering what the hell your dad was doing going through your shit.

"Ah, should have known she keeps it where I keep mine. Like father, like daughter, I guess." He smiled softly as he pulled the whiskey from the cabinet above the refrigerator.

"Figured you'd need this before I told you how she was doing." He sat a glass in front of Harry, filling both of them up.

Harry's eyes darting from his glass to your dad. Wondering how bad it had to be in order to need alcohol to hear it.

"I'm serious." He nudged the drink closer to Harry before taking a swig from his own glass.

"Right." Harry took the glass drinking the whole thing down in one go. Cringing from the burning sensation.

"She has a concussion, mild, so that's not too bad but the broken nose is going to have to have surgery to fix and her fractured eye socket is making her left eye swell shut. They had to stitch up her eyebrow that he split open and her hands have to be bandaged up for a while." He rested his hands against your kitchen counter, sighing as he looked at his half full glass.

"Jesus..." Harry said, biting the inside of his cheek. "How's Thea? She's okay, right?"

"Thea's good. Just a bump on her head. The welt on her cheek looks terrible but it'll go away."

Silence filled the room as Harry took in all the information. You were at least alive and talking to your parents which made his anxiety calm down a little bit. Knowing you both were okay made him feel slightly better but he couldn't understand why you didn't shoot him a text or call, hell he'd settle for smoke signals or pigeon at this point.

"Why isn't she answering my calls?" He sighed, hands covering his face, trying to not go crazy with all the questions he was asking himself.

Why did you run from him?

He loves you. Why couldn't you let him help you?

"Y/N's good at pushing people away." Leo sighed walking around the counter and pulling up a seat next to Harry. His hands and eyes fixed on his glass of whiskey.

"Yeh, I know." Harry scoffed, pouring himself another glass. He had a feeling he'd need it if he had to talk about how much you seemed to want to push him away.

One second he felt like he was finally breaking through. The next you were literally running away from him.

"She gave you a key though. I can tell you she doesn't do that for just anyone. I don't think Mitch has a key and he's the only friend she's managed to not chase off." Your dad smiled slightly, thinking back to all the shit you and Mitch used to get up to when you were kids.

There wasn't a house in the neighborhood safe from your TPing days.

"I don't understand how I can be there for them when she's constantly running away." Harry sighed, staring a hole into his drink. Lips pursed as he debated how he could convince you he'd always be around if you let him.

"You know, her mom was like that too when I met her. She was in this really bad relationship before me. I think Y/N was a little bit older than Thea when I met them. Her biological father was exactly like Ryan. Except stuff that happened today well… that was their normal. It took her a long time to get over it." He paused, staring off at your refrigerator before taking the last drink from his glass.

"History has a fucked up way of repeating itself, I guess." He sighed, head hanging down.

"Wait, y'not her real dad?" Harry asked, turning to your dad. He'd never asked you much about your family. He knew the basics but beyond that, he never asked anything else. You just always said you had great parents and an annoying but pretty cool when she wanted to be, little sister.

"Oh no, I am her real dad. Maybe not her biological dad but I'm her dad." Leo smiled, looking over to Harry, turning on his chair to get a better look at him.

"Oh." Harry's eyebrows pinched together tightly. He didn't want to offend him but he was so confused. Why had you never told him about any of this?

"Being a dad is more than just genetics. Thea will figure that out just like Y/N did." Your dad smiled at Harry which just confused him more. His bright green eyes fixating on the glass in front of him.

"And Y/N, she runs away from people who love her. She'd rather be lonely than vulnerable but I got a feeling that she'd open up to you if you'd give her time."

"Y'think?" Harry asked as he finally looked up from his glass to your still smiling dad. He looked like someone who had something figured out way before everyone else, so pleased with himself.

"Yeah, I do. Pretty sure they already chose you. You just don't realize it yet." His hand clasped on Harry's shoulder, shaking him gently back and forth.

"Whaddya mean?" His brows seemed to be permanently knitted together, so confused about why your dad looked so pleased in the middle of a terrible situation.

"That's a nice picture on the fridge Thea drew." He gestured towards your refrigerator, Harry's eyes darting across the room landing on a picture Thea had drawn for you.

It was you, Thea, and Harry all holding hands. A big heart encapsulating all three of you.

"Notice how it has you instead of Ryan? And how that's on her fridge along with all those pictures of you three? But not a single photo or drawing of him?" Your dad asked, Harry's eyes widening like he finally was seeing for the first time.

You'd let him in all along, just in the only way you knew how.

"It's 'cause they've already picked you." Your dad hummed out, pleased with himself as he stood up from your kitchen counter, leaving Harry to stare at all memories you guys had made.

[kat-hawke]

Round 2

Stress and tension swelled as reports of Grimm began to dwindle, and the newfound funding opened more doors, which in turn brought their hurdles. Against Thea's wishes, the Director cut her day short and retired to the lower levels of the tram for the afternoon.

The scent of blood mixed with liquor and drugs in the brawl pub air, a calming and dangerous combination for the beast shackled within. Abstaining from the ring herself, Kat perched from a rented room above, trading the official attire for leathers and pulling the hair in tight braids to complete the façade of "Darah" that so many became accustomed to. 

The fight below offered moderate entertainment but ended too soon for her enjoyment. At the far edge of the pub, the glimpse of a familiar elf caught her eye, heading for the stairs to the upper level. Nostrils flared with a heated breath as she retreated to the crescent-shaped sofa with a drink in hand. The Ren'dorei stood her up in the original agreement, but now she returns. She signaled for the bouncer to allow entry just as the elven woman approached with a motion of one hand.

Serelia brushed past the massive bouncer, strutting into the room without cleaning from her last fight. Unceremoniously, she dropped a hefty leather-bound tome onto the coffee table beside Kat's feet. The covers dyed black as midnight, a large embossed 'H' the only image upon the face.

"So far, this seems to be useless to my situation. Not that I needed much more confirmation that my former employers were all bluster and no impact. I see you survived the Scourge incursion Darah?" A flicker of a smile touched the elf's lips, "rumors that you're hard to kill remain true."

"Ya' canno' kill that which does no' truly live," Kat scoffed before casting her gaze over the tome.

Her lips twisted in disgust at the embossed emblem, letting the hum of dissatisfaction roll in her throat before silencing it with a sip of whiskey.

"Yer former employers were always fluffers- show ponies. Like rotted apples painted red. Look real good from th' outside but real shite beneath the outer layer." She sucked her teeth in spite. "Wot do ya' expect when ya' ask a child playin' with mommy's toys t'perform a job fit for an experienced adult?"

Serelia drops onto the other part of the curved section of the couch, and her empty eyes turned towards Kat. "That all measures up. I thought I'd seen all the bluster nobility could muster in Silvermoon, but at least they backed it with power. Human nobility is an oxymoron the way it's used here." She puts feet up, crossing ankles on top of the book, hands folding in her lap. 

"Nobility," Kat mocked, "please. At best, these want-to-be imbeciles are glorified harems, no'-so-secret adultery, and the pompous new-bloods thinkin' they can demand respect. They wouldn' know noble if it bit 'em on the ass." 

"Needless to say," Serelia continues, "my other possible source didn't lead anywhere useful, and so once more I am before you, where I should've stayed from the start."

"Sometimes we have t'learn th' hard way that we were right the first time, luv'." Kat's statement comes with a sly grin, her arms stretching across the back of the cushion as she studied the adjacent elf. "Should have listened, could have saved yer self some precious time. Who knows how much more rooted or detrimental things 'ave become in that poor judgmen'."

"I hadn't planned for a scourge invasion to disrupt our schedule. The Void does seem to take at an increasing rate," the elf grunted, shuttering her gaze for a moment. "I'm ready to bargain. What cost is your help, and where do we start?"

Glancing out over the fight pit, Kat chuckled, amused at the situation. She felt less inclined to offer her assistance now.

"Remind me again wot it is I am to assist ya' with?" Masking the sarcasm, Kat toyed with the elf.

Serelia's expression doesn't betray her feelings on being asked that again. 

"My eyes were damaged by a Warlock's Felfire. The Void overtook my vision to...repair them. I now see the world like a storm of chaos, where every possible reality is overlaid atop one another. I wear glasses," a hand rises to slightly adjust them on her nose, "enchanted to help filter it to some degree, but I can only use it to adjust the things that I gain confidence are true."

Wagging a finger in the woman's direction, Kat clicked her tongue in an uncaring manner. "Ah, right. Right. And ya' don' know wot yer child truly looks like because of it all. Such a shame, really." 

"I do not," Serelia replies, expression and tone darkening a bit at the reminder.

Drawing a deep and sardonic breath, Kat sank into the plush cushion of the couch, shrugging faintly. 

"T'be quite honest, luv', things have changed since our last exchange. My needs and desires are a myriad of ever-shifting webs to suit the current situations of the world. T'bring my goals to fruition, of course." One thumb rand across the fingertips as another hollow hum rang out. 

"Here t'bargain ya' say? And pray tell, wot exactly do ya' have t'bargain with that is of interest t'me?"

"Service," Serelia replies. Exhaling a breath and feet returning to the floor as she sits forward, clasping hands together, elbows resting on the knees. "I am, perhaps not to your degree, but relatively proficient and moving between spaces in the Void. You've already seen me fight several times now." 

She paused to lock eyes with the Director.

"I don't want to work for the crown, but I'll work for you."

Deliberately, Kat yawned and waved a hand at the proposition. Everyone wanted to offer this, and after years of broken promises and missed deadlines, she found that people default to that which is easily untracked or collected upon. Her patience with the meeting began to wane.

"Did the bouncer let in the rabble again? I thought I was in th' company of one I granted an audience to." Sarcasm hung from every word, unimpressed by the offer. 

"Same offer I hear time 'n time again, luv'. 'bout fifty-fifty if they make good on th' word, but yer gonna need t'try harder than that. Ya've heard the stories. I can fight m'own battles."

Serelia's lips tighten into a flat line. "I've heard the stories," she agrees, "I'm offering what I have. If it's not enough, it's not enough. Spent my first dozen decades in the military; combat training was my life. I've nothing of monetary value. My skills are the thing I own to give."

Kat's eyes shut, and her head shook slowly. "Blind in more ways than one, I suppose." 

With a quiet breath, she looked to Serelia again. "We'll call it a favor owed, then. Maybe in time, ya'll find somethin' of value."

Serelia, visibly annoyed by the counter off, opened her mouth to speak but clamped it shut again. An irritated tone rumbled from behind the pressed lips before she conceded in a simple agreement, "A favor owed then."

"I knew ya'd be smart about it, luv'. Had ya' left and came back a third time, I may no' have been quite as generous. Simple economics; supply and demand." A wicked grin pulled across Kat's lips, the teeth poking through. "Ya' understand."

"Be easier to establish what I could supply if I had any idea what you demand." The elf retorted. "You're right. I'm blind. I come from a rigid structure that likely put me into a set way of thinking. I'm missing corners and other avenues. If you think I've got something you want, then let's hear it, but I don't know what your angle is right now, and games around wants are exhausting to play." 

"If it weren't for my daughter, maybe I would walk instead of play, but if games are what it takes, then that's where we are. So. A favor owed."

"Ya' don't play much poker, do ya'?" Kat muttered.

"There is no game t'play, luv'. Ya' agreed, and that's all I needed. Ya' want control over th'power, and I can give it to ya'. But remember; wot is given can also be taken away."

"It won't be," Serelia replies as if stating a fact. "Regardless, price has been agreed then. When and how do we start?"

"Depends," Kat answered as her fingers drummed upon the cushion. "Do ya' want control or freedom?"

Serelia's lips curved into a crooked smile at that. "What a question..." she hesitates only a moment before completing her answer. "Control."

Kat's head inclined and rolled to the side ever so slightly as she stared curiously at the elf. 

"Too many eyes and ears here. Need somewhere quiet. Secluded. Are ya' familiar with Elwynn?"

"I am," Serelia replies. Her posture eased slightly at the suggestion of resuming this conversation in a more quiet environs.

"Good. Wander in th' woods east of Goldshire after sundown." Kat instructed, keeping her eyes on the elf as the last of her drink was down.

"I'll find you."

"Deal." Serelia agreed with a throaty chuckle, standing to her feet and motioning to the tome. 

"You want to burn this useless book of 'shadowmancy' or whatever they called themselves, or shall I?" 

"I want that book." Alyssa chimed into the conversation before Kat could respond.

Kat ignored the dagger-bound soul, partially annoyed at the interruption and slightly concerned with how much environmental awareness she gained from within the blade.

"Shadowmancy? Fer fucks sake... There ain't no such thing. Buch of fuckin' wanna-be's." The Director spat, rolling her eyes at the tome before waving off the Ren'dorei.

"I'll do more than burn this amateur level bullshit. Trust me."

"Good riddance," Serelia nods as she turned to exit the rented room. "To the whole family."

[ @serelia-evensong​ ]

[heyyyharry]

Chapter 10: Truth or Truth

(from the My Girl Trilogy: Stay Mine)

…in which the truth comes out.

Word count: 6.6k

AU: actor!Harry, older!Harry, younger!Y/N, (4-year age gap).

Wattpad link (Thea as Y/N)

Well, this is one crazy chapter 👀 Let me know what you think because I’m thirsty for feedback. But also don’t be to harsh on me I’m fragile.

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The last Sunday of the month. Laura Hilfgard’s flat. Y/N’s book was almost finished and ready for submission, and she was at the top of her game. She’d been putting off everything else to write, and for the first time in her life, everything was happening according to plan. Last year’s Y/N would’ve spent every passing moment waiting for something to go wrong. The writer-to-be Y/N, however, was living her best life.

“Are you sure you want to omit the confrontation scene in chapter ten?” Laura asked once they’d stopped for a tea break.

Y/N stirred her tea slowly, still contemplating her handwritten notes. “You don’t need drama in every chapter. It’s not realistic.”

“It’s fiction,” said Laura. Y/N glanced up with an eyebrow lifted, and the agent exhaled as she raised her hands, palms out. “Sorry, ma’am. Your book.”

Blowing into her tea, Y/N closed her pink notebook and took a sip. “Sorry, it’s just the story is based on what happened to me.”

“Oh?” Laura blinked, sounding both surprised and intrigued.

“I changed a few things,” Y/N said. “But yeah, my boyfriend used to be my neighbour. We met in his treehouse twelve years ago.”

“Your boyfriend is Harry Styles, right?”

“You know him?”

“Everyone does.” Laura stopped stirring her tea to add more sugar with the same spoon. She’d been stirring and adding sugar for the last five minutes, which made Y/N wonder if she was going to drink at all. “I’ve heard so many stories about you two. You make a fine couple.”

“You’ve heard stories about us?” Y/N carefully set down her cup and smiled questioningly at the woman. “From whom?”

“Everyone,” Laura said and finally brought the cup to her red lips. Y/N watched Laura take the first sip of her overly sweet tea, and the only thing that came to Y/N’s mind was the likelihood of a connection between Laura and Harry.

Impossible. Harry would never have interfered. Not after their fight about John Conall. Besides, Blake had been the one who’d suggested her to Laura, not Harry. So how could Harry have possibly done anything?

Or could he?

What if he’d contacted Laura right after Blake had given the manuscript to her? No, Harry would never lie to Y/N. Harry, of all people, would understand how much this meant to her, that she’d accomplished everything on her own without his help. Harry, of all people, would believe in her.

Once she got back to her flat, she found herself pacing back and forth in her living room, clutching her phone to her chest as she tried to decide if she should just call and ask him. Him saying he had no connection to her literary agent would put Y/N out of her misery. But that would prove that she didn’t trust him, and he’d be so angry, and they would fight again. Things had been going so well recently she didn’t want to mess it up. Although there was a tiny part of her doubting everything, mostly herself…

Her phone rang, and she jumped. It was Harry. Biting her nail, she slid her thumb across the screen to answer and tried her best not to sound like she’d been overthinking. “Hey, baby.”

“Hey, are you working?”

“I just got back from Laura’s.”

“Is the book done?”

“Yup. We’ve submitted it to some publishers, and all we have to do now is wait.”

“That’s my girl.”

The question about Laura was on the tip of her tongue. She bit her nail instead and took a seat on the couch as he went on, “Don’t hate me for what I’m about to say, okay?”

“Okay.” She kept her tone light and neutral while unconsciously picking at a thread on her skirt.

“I forgot that I’d have dinner with my dad. I know I said I’d take you out tonight–”

“No, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it,” she said quickly and sat on her hand to stop her fidgeting. “You’ve been spending quite a lot of time with your dad.”

“Yeah,” he sighed contentedly. “Now that I don’t have to hide it from my mum or Gemma anymore, I can support Dad and Emi without feeling bad about it.”

“Support? As in...financially?” She hoped she didn’t sound too judgy.

He was quiet for a full second. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Harry…”

“No, hear me out. They owed the bank a lot of money because of the accident. I only helped them pay their debt. It’s not like I’m buying them a car or a house.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled. “You’ve been giving them so many expensive things, and Isaac told me you’ve also been helping Emi get back to acting.”

“ ‘Help’ as in I got her to castings. She still needs to audition like everyone else. I don’t ask directors to give her roles that she’s incompetent at, if that’s what you’re implying.”

“I’m not implying anything.” Maybe she was. “It’s just...you can’t live their lives for them, Harry.”

“I don’t. I’m only trying to help.”

“You can help, and you should. Just don’t overspend on them.”

“They’re family.”

She almost told him ‘not really’ and ‘I still don’t trust them’, but then let it go once he fell silent. “That wasn’t a fight, was it?” she asked.

“Of course not, kid.” His low laugh brought her a sense of relief. She straightened before leaning into the couch, staring at one of the cracks on her ceiling.

“I gotta go now. Talk to you later?” he said cautiously.

So she kept her tone light. “Sure. Have fun acting.”

“Have fun writing. Love you.”

She giggled as he kissed the phone.

“I love you, too.”

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Since Gemma ran an online business and therefore wasn’t tied to a desk and a chair, she had decided to stay in London for a couple of days. Those couple of days had turned into two weeks and felt like two freaking months. Time slowed down when she was with Isaac; not that she complained.

She’d been with him constantly since they’d left Holmes Chapel. She wasn’t sure what they were. Friends? Way past that. Lovers? Not quite there. Friends who kissed? Well, sure, that might be a suitable label for their ‘relationship’. Gemma hated labels anyway, so it didn’t matter.

“Have you spoken to him?” Isaac asked, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. They were at his house, curled up in his bed, watching Netflix. Almost like a happy couple.

“Harry?” Her eyebrows furrowed as one of the characters was being brutally murdered on the screen. Isaac leaned forward and pressed pause right before the dead body collapsed.

Gemma gasped, “Hey!”

“You’ve already watched this,” he chuckled and removed the laptop from her lap before she could resume the movie.

“Still, that’s the best scene!”

He shook his head, placed the laptop on the other side of him and turned around, facing her. “Have you spoken to Asher?”

“No. He’s probably forgotten about me.”

“Gem…”

“Can we not mention my ex at this moment?”

“He’s not your ex yet, and you don’t want to mention him at any moment.” Isaac took her hand and brought it to his lap. “You need to break up with him.”

“He already broke up with me.”

“He said it was a break.”

She groaned and hugged a pillow to her chest. “He said it so he could hook up with whoever he wanted. He’s done this before, disappeared for a week or two. I was pretty sure he was hooking up with his secretary at the time, then he came back and acted like nothing was wrong. I just...I was stupid and I was in love with him. But not anymore. I’ve had enough.”

“So you’re just gonna wait until he reaches out to you, and then break up with him?”

“Yes. I want it to hurt.”

Isaac screwed up his face. “Why?”

“What do you mean why? After all that he’s done to me?”

“Do you still have feelings for him?” He tried to sound unbothered but she could see right through him. “Is that the reason why you’re so determined to make him feel equally bad?”

“No!” She shook her head, squeezing his hand. “I just don’t want him to think he’s so important. I’m not gonna reach out first. Now can we please get back to the movie?”

“Fine,” he huffed and brought the laptop back to his lap.

As she snuggled up to him and he draped his arm around her shoulders again, the buzzing of his phone on the nightstand interrupted them. She groaned when he withdrew himself from her.

“It could be Lee,” he said. Lee was his manager.

But it wasn’t Lee. She could see it on his face as he put down his phone as soon as he’d read the messages.

“Who’s that?”

“Your half-sister,” he said, drawing her back into his arms.

She lay her head on his chest, her eyebrows pulled together. “She’s still your model?”

“We had our last shoot yesterday. If you’d come, you could have met her.”

“It’s so weird that I haven’t.” She tilted her head up to look at his face. “Do you think she’s scared of me? Because I’m not as easy-going as Harry.”

“Probably.” A grin stretched his pink lips as she weakly hit his chest.

“Did you ever fancy her?” She arched an eyebrow so he mimicked her expression.

“Are you jealous of your own sister?”

“Half-sister.”

Her irritated tone got him laughing. “I mean, she is pretty.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, gazing at the ceiling. “Maybe a little.”

Gemma poked his side and he jerked away, doubling over and protecting his sensitive spots from her tickling. They nearly fell off the bed from laughing too hard. Somehow he ended up on his stomach and she on his back, their cheeks together.

He whispered, “Do you think Harry would like the idea of us?”

“Should we call and ask him?”

“Gemma.”

She giggled as his face turned serious. “Of course. You’re his best friend, right?”

“I don’t know about that. He didn’t talk to me until Y/N and I broke up.”

“That’s because she’s Y/N. He didn’t let me come to the treehouse because it was ‘their place’.” She rolled her eyes. “But it was mine first. Dad built it for me.” When she caught him gazing at her, she returned a look just as bemused. “What?”

“You said ‘Dad’. Not Winton.”

“Oh.” She rolled onto her back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Isaac flipped over to lie on his side, his head propped up on his hand. She waited for another question, but he didn’t ask, so she went on, “I still won’t visit him or even talk to him. But I guess there was a time when he was good, and I should give the old him some credits. It’s easier to do that, now that I no longer have to deal with the consequences of him leaving.” She turned to smile at him. “Now that I’ve found someone who really cares about me.”

“Who’s that? Is it me?” He acted shocked and she shoved him away, cackling.

“Come on.” She sat up, grabbed the laptop and beckoned him over. “We still have to finish this terrible movie.”

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A week later, Y/N came to Laura’s office after she’d finished two classes in the morning. Laura’s assistant told her Laura had taken a day off because she was sick. “She’s rescheduled the meeting with the publisher this afternoon,” said the assistant. “I was gonna call you but Ms Hilfgard said she’d tell you herself. She’s probably forgotten.”

Weird. Laura never forgot. She was like a machine when it came to business stuff, and Y/N had always wondered where that woman got all that energy. Laura must be very sick. Y/N normally would stay away from other people’s business, but she’d been inseparable from Laura recently, which gave her a sense of responsibility for her agent. She should probably check in on Laura.

“Is she at her flat today?” she asked the assistant, who seemed unsure.

“I think so. Would you like me to call her for you?”

“No, thank you. I’ll do it myself.”

Y/N adjusted her bag on her shoulder, wished the woman a good day and ambled out of the room. She tried calling Laura when she got into the lift, but Laura didn’t answer the phone. A throb in her stomach led her to believe something was wrong.

Everyone got sick once in a while so Laura couldn’t be an exception; she was human after all. But Y/N’s gut feelings were always correct. And if she chose to ignore them, it’d be her fault when something actually happened to Laura, who lived all by herself and had no close friend or family, none that Y/N knew of.

“Laura! It’s me, Y/N!” Y/N banged on the door after she’d rung the doorbell many times and there was no answer. “Laura! Your assistant told me you were sick. I came to check on you.”

Just as she imagined herself kicking down the door like those badass heroines in movies, she heard the sound of it being unlocked, the handle turned, and the door was opened. Her chest caved when Laura appeared, holding the door just wide enough to reveal half of her face. She was in her bathrobe without any makeup on, her skin marked with freckles, her lips dry, her eyes dark and weary, and her hair wasn’t pulled up into a neat bun like it always was. She looked like she’d gone through hell and back.

“Are you all right?” Y/N asked and immediately realised how stupid she’d sounded; of course, Laura wasn’t all right. Look at her.

“I’m very sorry, Y/N. You shouldn’t have come here.” Laura sounded spacey. The smell of alcohol on her breath was too strong. She held Y/N’s gaze, expecting Y/N to leave, but once she was sure Y/N wasn’t going anywhere, Laura stepped aside and opened the door a bit wider, just enough for Y/N to slip in.

The door was closed. They were standing in the semidarkness; there was still a bit of light coming through the dark blue curtain of the floor-to-ceiling windows. The evident of Laura’s despair was lying on the white carpet in the middle of the room – empty bottles after a wild alcohol-binge. She wasn’t sick. She was drunk.

Laura brushed past a bewildered Y/N and careened toward the sofa. The sofa legs creaked ominously under her weight.

“As you can see, I’m pretty much alive,” she said to the ceiling, an arm placed over her eyes. “You may leave now.”

Y/N wanted to leave. Whatever Laura was dealing with had nothing to do with her. She’d only come to make sure her agent was still alive, and Laura was just drunk for some unknown reason, but that was all Y/N should know. She should leave. Her brain told her to leave, but her guts told her Laura needed help.

She huffed and came to stand at one end of the sofa. “What’s going on? Did something happen?”

“It has nothing to do with you, Y/N.”

“You rescheduled a meeting with the publisher without asking me – your author, and then lied about being sick when you’ve been drinking your arse off. So yeah, it has a lot to do with me.”

As Laura didn’t answer, Y/N picked up the woman’s arm and tried to haul her out of the sofa. She resisted the effort, weakly pushing Y/N away.

“Fine. I’m leaving.” Y/N folded her arms over her chest. “Call me when you’ve sobered up.”

“I now see why he’s crazy about you.”

The words froze Y/N to the spot. She slowly turned around and backed away from the front door to return to her previous spot beside Laura. He? Who was he?

Laura’s eyelids fluttered like she was going to fall asleep, but then she continued, “He chose you over me because you’re young and beautiful and ambitious and kind…He chose you over me because...I’m the opposite…”

Y/N’s heart, head, and stomach pulsated at once. “Who...who are you talking about?”

“Blake.”

The name left her in shock. She blinked at Laura, feeling disoriented for a second. She hoped Laura was only messing with her. Laura and Blake? No fucking way.

“He ended it because of you,” Laura went on despite Y/N’s startlement. “We weren’t really together, but he made it clear that we’d never be anything.” She laughed loudly and mirthlessly, her thick dark hair bouncing on her slim shoulders. “You have a boyfriend, and he still chose you over me. I would call him stupid but what would it make me?” Then she glanced up, her glossy eyes filled with wondering and desperation.

Meanwhile, Y/N was stuck in rearranging her thoughts. Everything made sense – Blake had been their connection since the beginning, and Laura had heard so much about Y/N and Harry – but Y/N couldn’t bring herself to believe any of it. She clutched the strap of her handbag and took in the sight of Laura, trying to look for the badass woman hiding underneath.

“I think you should go,” Laura said to her feet and gestured toward the door. “I’ll call you once I’ve sobered up.”

“Do you have anyone else I can call–”

“I don’t need anyone, Y/N. Leave!”

“Okay,” Y/N murmured as she squared her shoulders, gripped the strap of her bag, and marched to the front door.

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Thud Thud Thud

“Blake! We need to talk, Blake!”

Blake opened the door and sprang back before Y/N accidentally hit his face with her fist. “Did you sleep with Laura?” she bellowed before he could question, and he blinked as if she was speaking alien language.

“Laura Hilfgard,” her voice dropped, “My fucking agent. For fuck’s sake! Did you sleep with her?”

He still didn’t answer but the look on his face said it all. He couldn’t admit something so horrible.

“Goddamn it, Blake! Fuck!” she roared into her hands, her chest growing hot. When he tried to touch her, she pushed him away and stabbed a finger at his face. “You lied to me!”

“I’m so sorry, Y/N. I’m so sorry–”

She held up a hand to stop him. “Oh, don’t fucking apologise to me. I’m not gonna accept it. Apologise to Laura.”

“We’re over.”

“Doesn’t fucking matter, Blake! It’s fucking sick that you slept with her so she would sign me! Fuck you!”

“Y/N!” He caught her wrist and she whipped around to fight him, but his fingers were quick to clasp her other wrist.

“Let me go!”

“Listen to me!” He shook her to get her to stop, and she did, panting and glowering at him. “I didn’t sleep with her so she’d sign you. Yes, I’d...I'd been sleeping with her before. That was how I knew her. I asked her to read your book and she loved it.”

“She only ‘loved’ it because she loved you, Blake!” Y/N yanked her hands back, tears welling up in her eyes. “You broke her and she cancelled the meeting with the publisher. She’s gonna drop me!”

“She won’t. I’ll talk to her–”

“I don’t fucking need your help, Blake. Just…” Y/N stepped back, holding up her hand to stop him from getting any closer. “Just don’t fucking talk to me again.”

“Y/N, please, hey.” He strode forward and got between her and her door, his desperate grey eyes begging her to hear him out. “I swear to you I didn’t do this on purpose. I just wanted to help. You were so desperate and I wanted you to be happy.”

“I was desperate but I wasn’t miserable,” she said through her gritted teeth. “You want me to be happy but what you did was awful, Blake. You made me feel like a talentless piece of shit, that if my boyfriend doesn’t get me a job, then my ex-boyfriend has to sleep with someone for it. God, what is wrong with you?”

“At least I gave your story to Laura and made her read it. Your boyfriend just fucking told John Conall to sign you. He doesn’t even care.”

“Don’t talk about Harry that way. He’s a thousand times better than you.” Then she froze. “How do you even know about Conall?”

“Laura knows him,” Blake said to his feet. “They talked.”

“Fuck this.”

She pulled out her keys and gestured him to get out of the way, but he refused to comply, shaking his head. She had never seen Blake Roman so despondent, and she didn’t like this side of him at all.

“I still love you, Y/N,” he said despite the fact that those were the last words she wanted to hear right now. “I’m sorry I left, but in the last three years, I couldn’t stop thinking about us, and how we could’ve figured out a way to be together instead of giving up. Then I met you here, and...and I–Listen, I’ve been trying to make it up to you–”

“Blake, please…” she breathed, her eyes tight.

“I know you still have feelings for me, Y/N. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have spent so much time with me. You rarely mentioned him when we were together. We have so much in common and we fit.”

“You’re wrong.” She stared dagger at him and unclenched her fists, taking a deep breath. “I rarely mentioned him because I didn’t want to hurt you. I knew you still had feelings for me. I guess I was wrong to want to keep you in my life as a friend when you don’t belong there anymore.”

“I do, Y/N. I do,” he fretted while she kept shaking her head.

“You don’t. You just...you just felt like childhood, which I can’t keep dwelling on anymore. Both of us need to grow up.” She inclined her head, arms wrapped around herself. “I’m sorry, Blake. I don’t think we can be friends anymore. Not after this.”

“Y/N.”

She didn’t look at him and rushed down the stairs, hoping he wouldn’t go after her. And he didn’t. She came dashing out of the building, her eyes prickling with tears. She couldn’t believe she’d doubted Harry and trusted Blake. She felt like such a fool. She hated herself.

Stopping on the side of the road, she fished her phone out of her handbag to call Harry. But then her screen flashed on with the notification of ‘11 missed calls from Laura H’. Her chest throbbed. She called Laura back.

Laura didn’t answer.

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When Gemma stepped out of the lift, fumbling around in her bag for her room key, she almost didn’t notice the man waiting for her in the hallway.

“Gem.”

His voice froze her to the spot. She shot her head up, her heart rate increasing as Asher walked up to her holding a rose bouquet. He was dressed in a fine ocean-blue suit, his dark hair pushed back, the strong scent of his cologne so unbearable. He looked like he was here for a photoshoot or a red carpet event. When he cracked a smile, she responded with a grimace.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, unable to take her eyes off the flowers. The last time he’d got her flowers had been their first Valentine’s Day together; things had gone downhill after that.

“I came to see you,” he said. “To apologise.”

He held the flowers toward her with both hands, and she pushed them right back to him, shaking her head.

“I don’t need your apology,” she said. “You made it clear that day on the phone that this was over and I’m thankful for it.”

“I said ‘a break’.”

“You don’t get to call a break and come back whenever you feel like it,” Gemma said in annoyance. “That’s not how a relationship works.”

She gently pushed right past him to unlock the door. Right as she opened it, he slipped straight into her room. She stared at him, speechless. “Asher, leave.”

“I want to talk, please.”

Frustrated and annoyed, she slammed the door behind her, stormed toward the bed and flung her bag on it. He stood by the door with that stupid bouquet, waiting for his chance to speak.

“I can offer you a deal,” he blurted as she turned around. “You don’t have to get back with me. We can go separate ways after this.”

“Or we can go separate ways now.” She gestured to the door.

He pretended like he hadn’t heard that. “My father really likes you,” he said. “He thinks you keep me grounded. So I think...if you ask him for the investment, he’ll most likely say yes. I'll pay you. Please help me, Gem.”

“No!” Gemma put her hands on her hips, her mouth quirked in annoyance. “You’ve got some nerves to ask me that. We are not getting back together. Go find someone else dumb enough to help you.”

Asher’s mouth fell open. He must have come here thinking she would burst into tears and run into his arms the moment she saw him and forgive him like she always had. If so, he was destined for disappointment.

“What’s wrong with you?” he asked. “Why are you like this all of a sudden?”

“Why do I have common sense all of a sudden?” She cocked her head. “Maybe I’ve finally found someone who appreciates me, and is not only with me because he can use me for his own benefit.”

Asher was shallow but he wasn’t stupid. Realization soon dawned on his face. “Have you been cheating on me?”

Before he’d come here, she’d imagined this moment to be extremely awkward, but now she was full of rage. “You and I are not together anymore, Asher,” she snapped. “But well, I did kiss him once when we were ‘together’.”

“You fucking bitch,” Asher bellowed as he threw himself at her. Everything happened so quickly her brain failed to catch on. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, gripping the edge of the table, her head in pain. She spotted the horror on her ex’s face before he broke into a run out of the room, so she reached for her head and looked at her own fingers.

Blood.

He’d pushed her.

Shocked and dizzy, she held the table for support to stand up and hobbled into the bathroom where she grabbed a hand towel, wetted it and tried to clean the wound on her forehead. That was when she heard the door open and close. She spun around, horrified. It was just Isaac.

“What happened?!” He rushed toward her, held her face between his cold palms.

“Asher came here…” was all she could say while shaking her head, feeling herself going unsteady.

“Did he fucking hit you?” Isaac ground his jaw, his eyes turning dark.

She shuddered at the thought and felt hot tears in the wells of her eyes. “I think he pushed me,” she mumbled.

“Fuck!”

She fisted his shirt, afraid that he might run after Asher, who must have been long gone by now. But Isaac didn’t bother to ask about the arsehole. He inspected the wound on her forehead and encircled his arms around her. “Come on,” he said. “I’ll take you to the hospital.”

.

.

.

“Can I see her?” Y/N asked.

“Not yet,” the nurse answered.

“Is she okay?”

“She will be,” the nurse told Y/N while scribbling something on the clipboard. She’d asked Y/N a bunch of questions about Laura, most of which Y/N had answered with “I don’t know”. She didn’t know if Laura was a regular drinker or if she often drank to drunkenness. Y/N only knew what she’d witnessed – Laura blacked out on her bedroom floor with empty bottles scattering all around.

Laura had been taken to the emergency room where they gave her fluids. The doctor had briefed Y/N, saying Laura had got alcohol poisoning from her alcohol binge, and if Y/N hadn’t found her – if she’d locked the door after Y/N had left – then something terrible could have happened tonight. Y/N wasn’t sure if Laura would be okay, but things could have gone worse and she was grateful it hadn’t.

“Is there any family member that we could call?” asked the nurse, who was finally making eye contact with Y/N.

“I-I don’t know. I’m just her client,” Y/N said, rubbing her palms together nervously. “Maybe uhm...maybe I can call her assistant.”

“It’s fine. She’s in a better condition now. We’ll just get information from her when she wakes up.”

Y/N thanked the nurse and sat in one of the chairs in the hallway. She thought of calling Harry but didn’t have any motivation to do it, so she sat with her head against the wall, watching the nurses’ station while she waited for better news.

She didn’t know what time it was. She was already fatigued. She felt herself drifting away when a voice pulled her right back.

“Y/N?”

She looked up. Isaac and Gemma were just as shocked to see her. Gemma didn’t look like herself; she was wearing an oversized black hoodie with the hood on, covering her forehead. Y/N didn’t want to assume the hoodie was Isaac’s, but something told her it wasn’t Gemma’s.

“What...are you guys doing here?” Y/N slowly rose from her seat, her eyes switching back and forth between Isaac and Gemma. “Together.”

Isaac worked his jaw, unable to get any word out as he looked over at Gemma imploringly, and she heaved a sigh. Y/N was losing patience with the suspense when Gemma pulled back the hood to reveal her bandaged forehead.

“Oh my God, what happened?” Y/N gasped, pushing past Isaac to grab Gemma’s shoulders. “Did you get into an accident?”

“Y-Yeah.” Gemma looked unconfident, her eyes searching for Isaac’s again. Something was wrong, and neither of them wanted to tell Y/N what it was. She would have been mad if she didn’t have her own problems to worry about. What a crazy day it had been.

She was going to ask Isaac why he’d been the one to take Gemma to the hospital, but he went first. “Why are you here?”

“A friend of mine got into trouble,” she said. It was only fair that she got to be ambiguous too.

“Alice?” Gemma looked concerned.

“No.”

Isaac grimaced. “Eddie?”

“No!” Y/N rolled her eyes at their surprised reactions. “You guys really assume I have only two friends in London?”

“You do have only two friends in London,” Isaac said, beaming, “Besides us.”

Y/N assumed he meant him, Niall, and Harry. He wasn’t entirely wrong, but she wasn’t going to give him that.

For the second time, she meant to ask why he’d taken Gemma here, but right as she opened her mouth, a nurse showed up with a clipboard.

“Miss Styles," she called.

“Yes?” Gemma whipped around as the nurse sauntered right past her like she wasn’t there.

Confused and surprised, they all watched the nurse head toward the end of the hallway, where sat a brunette with her headphones on. Her hair was covering her face as she was looking down at her phone. The nurse had to tap her on the shoulder to get her attention. She glanced up, eyes popping out the moment she saw them. Y/N, Isaac, and Gemma looked like they’d seen a ghost.

“Emilia Styles,” repeated the nurse since Emilia wasn’t looking at her. “You can see your mother now.”

Y/N glanced over at Isaac and Gemma, who looked as if they’d seen a ghost. The nurse said something else to Emilia and went into one of the rooms. Emilia told the nurse she’d be right back as she shoved her headphones into her tote bag, got up and made way toward Y/N, Isaac and Gemma.

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” she said with a pretentious smile; it was the same smile she always wore, but it was only until this moment that Y/N realized how pompous it was.

“Drop the act,” Y/N snapped. “Are you gonna fucking tell us why you’re here? Or should we go ask your mum who is still ALIVE?”

Isaac held her back by the arm before she could even consider doing something to Emilia. She didn’t want to get violent; she wasn’t that type of person. Not yet.

“Fine.” The fake smile disappeared as Emilia stood taller despite having been exposed. “My mum’s alive,” she calmly confessed. “She has cancer, and my dad doesn’t work anymore so I have to take care of them.”

“With Harry’s money?” Gemma snarled. Y/N believed if Gemma’s head wasn’t hurt, she would have already torn Emilia to pieces.

“I didn’t take anything Harry didn’t want to give.” Emilia crossed her arms and lifted her chin, which made Y/N more shocked than angry; she didn’t know it was possible to be this shameless.

“So everything was fake?” Y/N asked. “You made up a nice little story calling your mum crazy for burning down the house and–”

“It was my dad,” Emilia said with her eyes closed as she sucked in an unsteady breath and opened her eyes at the long exhalation. “He was drunk and he set the house on fire. That was after my mum had been diagnosed with cancer. He was very upset because we didn’t have enough money for the treatment. I had to drop out and use my college money for it.” Then she swallowed and looked over at Isaac, who’d been speechless the whole time. “I’m sorry, Isaac. But when we met I recognised you right away. I knew you were Harry’s friend, and I saw you as an opportunity. We had to lie because Harry didn’t trust us at first; he thought Dad was a terrible man–”

“No decent man would lie to his own son to steal his money!”

“We weren’t stealing!” Emilia half-shouted at Gemma then frantically looked around. A few nurses stared at them with concern but no one attempted to interfere. Emilia turned back to Gemma and lowered her voice, “We were gonna tell him everything.”

“When?” Y/N scoffed. “When your mum gets better? Or when you finally become a successful actress living off Harry’s fame?”

“I started with a lie and I had to go through it.” Emilia huffed, her forehead creased. “Things have got so much better since Harry came into our lives. He paid off our bank debt, for Dad’s medicines, for our food. We never asked him for more money. We simply sold the expensive stuff he bought for us as gifts to pay the hospital bills for Mum. I still have to go to work, but now I can also go to auditions. And Harry doesn’t lose anything. He loves Dad, and he’s rich anyway.”

“Harry worked for everything he owns now,” Gemma hissed. “Your dad doesn’t get to live on the money of the son he left and tried to steal from.”

Emilia’s lips quirked in a scornful manner. “You’re just bitter because Dad doesn’t love you.”

Y/N’s gaze jumped to Gemma, whose face was white with shock. She didn’t expect that. None of them expected that. It was so hurtful. Because it was the truth...

“It was my plan. Dad just went along with it,” Emilia went on despite Gemma’s fists shaking as she refrained herself from tackling Emilia to the floor. Emilia knew Y/N and Gemma couldn’t do anything to her in a hospital hallway, and Isaac would never lay hands on a woman. She considered Gemma’s face. “He just wanted my mum to get better. We knew Harry wouldn’t help us if he had to go behind yours and your mum’s back, so I had to reach out to you first. I had to gain your approval.”

“Sorry to disappoint,” Gemma sneered and waved her hand when Emilia gazed at her alarmedly. “Do go on. When will we get to the part where you’re forgivable?”

“Say anything you want, but I did it for a reason,” Emilia murmured, her eyes piercing at Gemma. “What are your reasons for cheating on your boyfriend and sleeping with your brother’s best friend?”

Gemma growled and launched herself at Emilia, who jumped right back as Isaac dragged Gemma away. A few nurses had gathered to watch them, unsure if it was necessary to call security. The four of them weren’t really fighting or being loud, but Y/N wasn’t sure how long they could maintain peace.

“Did I say something wrong?” Emilia looked at Isaac, whose eyes fastened on Y/N’s face at once.

“You two?” Y/N stared at him and Gemma in disbelief.

“Asher and I are over, Y/N,” Gemma said, reaching for Y/N’s hand. Y/N let her hold it, only because Y/N was too shocked to move.

“Does Harry know?” she asked quietly. Gemma and Isaac both shook their heads.

“Guess I’m not the only one who lied to Harry after all.”

Isaac shot Emilia a glare even though his features were incredibly calm. “Why haven’t you told him?”

“This isn’t a game of Truth or Dare,” she told him. “I’m not gonna blackmail you into doing something for me in return for my silence. I’m not a good person but I’m not that awful. I just wanted to help my mum. I don’t care what it takes.” Her voice suddenly dropped as she took a step further from them. “And I really liked you, Isaac. I’m sorry.”

Y/N could tell Isaac had a lot he wanted to say to Emilia, but he kept his lips tight because she wasn’t worth it. From the way Emilia was looking at him, she must regret lying to him the most. What about Harry? Harry didn’t deserve this. He’d been nothing but kind to her and Winton.

“Miss Y/L/N?” a nurse interjected. She was the one who’d spoken to Y/N about Laura. “Your friend is awake. Would you like to see her?” she told Y/N, who sighed in relief. At least this night didn’t go all the way down a pit of despair.

“I have to go,” she told Isaac and Gemma.

Isaac caught Y/N’s elbow before she could follow the nurse. “You’re not gonna tell Harry, are you?”

“I’m not gonna do the hard work for you three,” she said, giving all of them – even Emilia – a disappointed look. “You’re all going to tell him tomorrow. Not tonight. I don’t want his night to be ruined as well.” Then she fixed her eyes on Emilia, whose face was blank; either she hid her emotions really well, or she didn’t feel like any normal person would. Y/N stabbed a finger at Emilia, her voice rough, “You and your family better stay the fuck away from my boyfriend, or you’re gonna have to deal with his lawyer, and it won’t be pretty.”

The other nurses looked scared when Y/N caught them watching. She couldn’t even work up a smile as she mouthed the word “sorry” and marched right past them.

[raevenlywrites]

The Ties That Bind 1 of ???

They say the first of my kind was a woman named Alasdair, a human raised by hawks. She learned the language of the birds, and was gifted with their form. It is a pretty myth, I admit, but few actually believe it. No record remains of her life. No record except for the feathers in every avian’s hair, even when otherwise we appear human, and the wings I can grow when I choose--and of course the beautiful golden hawk’s form that is as natural to me as the legs and arms I wear normally. This myth is one of the stories we hear as children, but it says nothing of reality or the hard lessons we are taught later. Almost before a child learns to fly, she learns to hate. She learns of war. She learns of the race that calls itself the serpiente. She learns that they are untrustworthy, that they are liars and loyal to no one. She learns to fear the garnet eyes of their royal family even though she will probably never see them. Of course, I have. I have seen them look to me in fear and pain, a young prince’s final moments. I have seen them look at me in consideration, a new ruler sizing up the woman who would be his enemy. And I have seen them beneath me, cushioned on a pillow of down, soft as my own hair. They taught me how to hate those eyes. No one taught me how to read them.

Danica Shardae, Tuuli Thea

The Mistari Disa spoke to the entire hall as she concluded, “The best advice I can offer is this: Tie the two royal families. Make the two sides into one. If you are willing to trust each other, and willing to put aside your anger and your hatred, then Zane Cobriana, take Danica Shardae as your mate. Danica Shardae, have Zane Cobriana as your alistair.”

The Disa’s words rang in my head as I dressed for bed, numb and mechanical. The serpiente prince had cried out as vehemently as the rest, as I had sat in shocked silence. The rest had reacted; I had observed. I watched garnet eyes flash with temper, right alongside normally sedate avian gold. But I also watched Zane’s face crumple as the Disa kicked us out, his desperate hand reaching as if he could see the fleeting peace slipping through his fingers even as he struggled to grasp it.

Take Zane Cobriana as your alistair.

I still couldn’t process the idea. “Alistair” was a word that meant so many things to me, none of which matched the fiery cobra. My first alistair, Vasili, had been taken from me too young to truly remember him. And after that, alistair was a word most often followed by the ragged grief of a newly made widow.

It was not a word I could fathom associating with Zane Cobriana.

I realized my hands had been working the same button over and over. I shook myself, trying to return to reality, to keep moving through this latest shock. My composure was shot to hell, and I jumped when a knock sounded at my door.

“Shardae?”

The familiar voice of long-time personal guard--oh, hell, my best friend, sounded through the door. Rei had been the most outspoken at the Disa’s suggestion, and he hardly sounded calmer now, though at least he was hiding it better. Shaky, and craving the comfort of his familiar presence in this unfamiliar place, I bid him enter.

He paused in the doorway, and I watched his face as a thousand thoughts chased their way behind his eyes. Already I felt better, just seeing him as shaken as I. Rei had been my friend since childhood, and was the only person I ever truly relaxed around. I had seen him in his grief for his father, lost when he was but a boy of twelve. He had seen me cry over countless deaths, until I had grown up enough to no longer let the tears show. We knew the shape of each other’s grief; and we knew how important it was to have somewhere safe to let it out, to be weak. He was weak with me now, and I sank into that uncertainty gratefully.

“Dani,” he breathed, only after the door was closed firmly behind him. “I’m sorry I lost my temper in the hall today. It’s my fault we were banned from further discussion.”

I straightened my shoulders, gathering my strength as he fell apart. We did this in turns, my Rei and me, being rock and crash wave alike.

“I don’t believe you were the only one shouting,” I said lightly, fighting back the shiver that threatened at the memory of those flashing garnet eyes. Zane had been exquisite in his anger, a fine, shimmering thing. It had been beautiful, and terrifying, like a lightning strike. I wrapped my arms around myself, unable to stop my reaction.

Rei mistook the gesture for fear, and I suppose that was in there too, and placed his hands over mine. It was utterly too forward, unspeakably inappropriate, and far from the first time. Rei and I had always been each other’s exceptions, our refuge for strength and comfort. I leaned into him, resting my forehead against his chest. His arms encircled me, fitting around me perfectly through years of habit. I had grown since that first night we’d curled up together, frightened and alone and crying ourselves to sleep, and so had he. But we’d grown together, and his arms still fit around mine as I held myself and tried to keep from falling apart.

This. This was what an alistair should be. This feeling of warmth, of solidness, of safety.

Rei would be my alistair, and I would grow to love him in that way, in time. And even if I never did, friendship was still well worth protecting.

Alistair.

Protector.

Fighter.

My thoughts flashed on Zane Cobriana again, reaching out for the fleeting dream of piece. He was willing to fight for that dream. And I was cowering in the arms of a man I was too afraid to love, for fear of losing him.

Losing him to the war we were here to stop.

I must have tensed, because Rei pulled back, searching my face.

“Dani... You know I care for you, and I’ll always protect you. The thought of the snake coming anywhere near you...”

His hands flexed on mine, grip growing uncomfortably tight. I pulled away and he let me go, falling back into that careful soldier’s ready. The moment had passed. Time to put our weakness away.

“We’ll find a way, Shardae. I should go, let you sleep. Things will look brighter in the morning.”

I wished I had the courage to ask him to stay, to tell him that a night in his arms would bring me more comfort than the tossing and turning I knew was sure to come. I always slept better in Rei’s arms. But we hadn’t done that in years. And until I was ready to declare formally what the entire court already knew, he would keep his careful distance, expect in rare moments like this.

I closed my eyes, and I wished I could remember how to cry. - I began to undress again, but a flicker of movement caught my eye--

And suddenly I was face to face with garnet.

Zane Cobriana stood in my room, stepping elegantly from shadows and moonlight.

His hand was on my mouth before I could draw breath, the other cradling the back of my head.

“Please, I’m terribly sorry, but we need to talk, and so I need you not to scream.”

I stared at him wide-eyed, eyes lingering on impossible details--the stray strands of hair that fell across his face, the thick, sweeping curve of his stunningly dark lashes--as the world paused between one heartbeat and the next. I was utterly frozen, drowning deep in radiant red, the hypnotic gaze of the Cobriana garnet.

My people told stories of this gaze, the near-demonic power to enchant and posses. I forgot to breathe, drinking down those eyes, edges tight with pain. Pain... Zane Cobriana looked pained. It was barely there, just a tightness around the eyes, but his eyes were all I could see. We were not but a breath apart, and all I could do was gaze into those eyes, and nod.

Zane nodded to, head moving with mine as if uncertain of the motion’s meaning. Finally, he gave one certain shake, mind made up. He sprang away from me, leaping to the far side of the room as he released me, falling into a warrior’s ready. I just stared, mind refusing to process. Zane Cobriana had snuck into my room, and he was crouched and on guard against me.

“What.... what do you want?”

My mouth was cotton dry as I struggled to speak, tongue darting out to wet paper lips. They tingled with the memory of Zane’s fingers, soft and cool, so delicate, but so firm...

“To talk.”

He hedged his words, carefully controlled and guarded, just like his posture. But when I didn’t scream, or really react in any way, he relaxed, pulling himself up into a liquid, wary posture. Those elegant hands disappeared into pockets, but the underlying tension in his shoulder belied the casual gesture. He was a coiled spring, and no amount of leaning carelessly against the wall would disguise that.

I shook myself mentally, trying to come to grips with this fevered dream. No, no dream. In my dreams, I was often painfully aware I was dreaming, and able to pull together my careful avian reserve. Here, in this moonlit room, I was wide awake, and utterly lost.

“Won’t... won’t you sit down?”

Internally, I shrieked at myself. The mortal enemy of me and my kind had broken into my room for goddess knows what purpose, and I was observing social niceties. Won’t you sit down? What was the matter with me?

Zane smirked, a sardonic twist of his sculpted lips. My mind kept focusing on the most inane details--the perfect press of his cupid’s bow, the strong line of his jaw--as he folded himself elegantly onto a cushion. His long legs glittered in the moonlight and for a moment I thought he must have been in armoured form. But no, merely snakeskin pants. My gut filled with ice. The prince of the serpiente in snakeskin pants. Yikes.

“Why thank you, Danica. May I call you Danica?”

Mutely I nodded, sinking down onto my own sleeping pallet. I watched myself in bemused horror, like an out of body nightmare, as I sat and calmly waited for the prince of the serpiente to say his piece. Then again, compared to his dramatic entrance to my bedroom, this behavior was rather sedate. Formal even. The manners between us seemed almost absurd.

“Then you must call me Zane,” he insisted. I realized this casual chatter was his own nervousness, as my mute manners were mine. Neither of us really knew how to handle one another, and that somehow gave me courage. If he was shaken too, that somehow put us on more even foot.

“Alright... Zane. What did you come to talk about?”

He chuckled, the sound rolling through the dark like velvet. I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself, and madly, half expected Rei to wrap his hands around mind. Had only been moments ago that Rei had been in my room? If Zane had come any sooner--

“We were thrown out of the Mistari hall quite abruptly. And in all likelihood the same will happen tomorrow unless we have a chance to properly discuss their suggestion beforehand,” he said lightly, cutting through my thoughts. They scattered like early morning fog, as thin and ephemeral and impossible to hold onto. If he thought we were going to make any more progress here than we had in the hall, he was sorely mistaken. I couldn’t think my way out of an egg like this. If I’d been able to, I probably would have screamed for my guards by now. Really, it was only the utter bizarreness of the situation that had kept me from doing so already. We never trained for what I should do in the event of a security breach. In the Keep, it was unthinkable. And in the fields, I was quite literally surrounded at all times.

Zane had found my security’s one weak spot.

My blood ran cold.

“Are you here to kill me?”

Zane gave me a tired look and sighed.

“I just said I was here to discuss peace with you, Danica.” He shook his head. “What is even the point. How can they possibly expect us to entertain marriage when you’re too frightened to even talk to me?”

“I’m not--“

I snapped without thinking, pride pricked. He’d broken into my room, assaulted me--of course I was startled, I was also exhausted. At his chagrined look, I realized I’d actually spoken those thoughts aloud.

“Of course. It’s late. I apologize for any offense.”

I laughed. “Offense? Offense? Offensive was the way you acted so utterly repulsed at the mere thought of marrying me. This? I don’t believe there are words to cover what this is.”

Zane snorted. “I suppose that’s fair. If it was only a matter of your lovely body, well.” His eyes flicked up and down my frame, and I felt my cheeks turn scarlet. “And I’ve seen you have no trouble with mine, either.”

At that my face caught fire, enough that surely the room should have been ablaze with light. I clenched my fists in my lap and locked my gaze to the floor, counting slowly to ten. Shouting at him would bring my guards crashing in here for sure. And he had a point; we did need to talk. If we broke into a shouting match tomorrow, the Disa would simply kick us out again.

“Comments like that are also why we could never work,” I said hotly. “An avian alistair defends his pair bond’s virtue, not mocks it.”

“And is your pretty guard captain to be your pair bond, then?”

At that my eyes flew to his in complete shock. “Wha--“

“Oh don’t play coy, pretty Danica. I saw the way he held you. That is not a man unfamiliar with your body.”

I could only stare at him in open mouthed horror. Zane went on as if he didn’t notice.

“It’s not a deal breaker for me. I’m sure you don’t expect me to come to you as pure as the driven snow either. Keep him, for all I care. We both have heirs to produce, after all.”

Heirs?

Again, I must have spoken aloud, because Zane seemed to stop midthought, changing his words at the last moment.

“You’re the only Shardae left,” he said softly. “I at least have my sister and... her child.”

His gaze felt, soft and uncertain.

“Her announcement is what finally convinced me. I’ve already lost one sister with child to a soldier’s knife. I cannot bear to lose another. Irene was so frightened when she told me--“

His voice cut off with emotion. The strangled sound reminded me too much of Gregory.

I rose, not certain what I intended, but it was lost to Zane’s reaction anyways. The serpiente was off the wall and crouched almost before I’d finished standing, and his speed took my breath away. I cried out in spite of myself-- and the guards came pouring in.

Zane’s form flashed to lightning black, the shift to his cobra form nigh instantaneous. I threw myself forward, blocking Rei’s movement into the room, shielding him from Zane’s attack. It was utterly stupid, and pure instinct. I threw myself between the man that would be my protector, and the man who would pay lip service to the job in the name of peace. But Zane did not attack, rather doing on the evasive than the offensive. His liquid form shot between the soliders’ legs, gone and lost in the shadows before anyone could truly tell what had happened.

Rei stared into my eyes, lost in utter bewilderment. Neither of us knew what to make of my throwing myself before him, breaking every rule of our working relationship. I hadn’t acted as his queen. I’d acted as his dearest friend.

Rei reacted as my guard, pushing me aside and scouring the room with his eyes. Checking to make sure the room was secure before checking to be certain I was unhurt. The guards scattered around the room and hall, people spilling out at the noise and ruckus. Zane appeared behind a wall of guards, Mistari standing firm between the avians and serpiente. The tigers ushered us all back into our rooms, effectively placing us all under arrest.

Locking me into the room with Rei.

The Ties That Bind Tag list: @thehellinsideyourhead @therecouldbecolorsandlove

Raev’s Gen Tag List (should I tag you guys in this? It IS a thing I wrote. I’m gonna say yes unless you guys are like “no of course not we’re sick of hearing about your stupid fic for a twenty year old book XD)

List is currently: @lordkingsmith  @writinglyra @drbibliophile @mperialscribe @adie-dee @lexiklecksi @writinginslowmotion 

[modern-fae-female]

Elorcan Modern AU Chapter 8

The next day Elide and Lorcan walked into school in the best moods that either of their friends had seen them in. As per usual Fenrys had to make some comment about it and the rest of the Cadre seemed very confused when he brought up a ‘little Lochan’. Lorcan quickly gave him one of his signature death stares and hurried onto history, his second favorite class as after debate with Elide. Just like before she was already there and gave him a big smile as he walked over to sit down, and to his surprise he immediately returned with one of the biggest smiles he had ever given someone. 

“ Well if it isn’t the knight.”

“ Well if it isn’t the princess.” 

“ So when do we want to meet again to work on the project.”

“ Um.. if you could make it in time I can meet at the library same time today.”

“ Sounds good, I just have to find if one of my friends could get me a ride.”

“ We could drive over together. I have practice but if you wanted to sit in the stands and get some other work done we can head over together. “

Lorcan immediately regretted it after saying it. I mean what if she didn’t want to be seen with him. That wouldn’t be surprising after he is basically enemies with all her friends. 

“ Sure, I think Manon as lacrosse practice today so I might go watch them and them meet up with you after you finish practice.”

“ Oh sounds good. We finish at 5 so if you just want to meet outside the locker rooms. We can pick up dinner again if you want and I can give you the info about the bookstore.” 

“ Sounds like a plan!”

Much to Elide’s surprise she couldn’t wait to get on the motorcycle again with Lorcan. She liked holding onto him and was excited for another night of working together and hanging out. She knew her friend group would be against it, but they had a project to work on so they had to meet up. Mr. Allsbrook walked into class and started the lesson, but throughout the whole lesson Manon and Aedion would look back to see Elide and Lorcan staring at one another, which of course the other person had no idea. 

Her first couple of periods went by quickly as she and Lysandra made their way to the lunch table and found everyone glaring at Elide. 

“ Did I do something wrong?” She has hesitantly. 

“ What's been going on with you and Salvetterre?” Aelin asked her as Elide sat down in her normal seat next to her.

“ What do you mean?”

“ I know he can seem charming but he’s bad news. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“ As much as I appreciate you looking out for me I’m fine. And Lorcan isn’t a bad person, he’s kind and friendly to me.”

Half of the table snorted or started chocking on something at Elide’s comment,

“ Lorcan Salvettere? Kind and friendly? Are we talking about two different people here.”  Lysandra said. 

“ Apparently so because he is not how you describe him. I mean we hung out a little bit after we did our work at the library and he was funny and sweet. He even mentioned a place where I might be able to get a job. “

“ He let you on his motorcycle?” Rowan asked.

“ Yeah, after his football practice were driving back over to the library.”

“ What are you planning on doing until his practice ends?” Manon asked know joining the conversation. 

“ Well I know you have lacrosse practice so I figured I could watch and get some work done then we were going to meet up outside the locker room.”

“ I guess that's fine,” Manon replied in her usual cold tone. 

“ Back to the motorcycle, he let you on it?” Rowan asked again.

“ Yeah, why is that a big deal?”

“ Well from when I was part of the Cadre Lorcan treated that motorcycle like it was his kid or something. He didn’t let anyone on it and I didn’t think he had until you last night.”

Elide’s heart skipped a beat. Lorcan really didn’t let anyone on it but her. 

“ Well he did, and it was fun so I’m going with him again today.”

“ Fine, just be safe.” Aelin said.

“ Of course.” 

Soon lunch ended at Manon, Rowan, Aelin, and Elide made their way to Elide’s least favorite class, PE. As they walked in Elide saw the Cadre, Maeve, and her friends already there. She just had to make eye contact with Lorcan and gave him a small smile which he surprisingly returned. 

“ Alright losers today we will be doing some partner stretches. I will be pairing you up by randomly drawing your names out of the bowl. The list of stretches is on the bored,” Mr. Arobyn said as the walked into class.

 Just great Elide thought, lets get paired up with some random person or worse Maeve or one of her friends. He went through a few names as Aelin got paired up with Connall, and Manon with Essar. He then drew Elide’s name and them he called out, “ Fenrys.” Elide looked over to him and he had a smirk on his face. Elide had never really looked at him before but now she noticed how attractive he was, not as attractive as Lorcan but still. Wait, when did she think Lorcan was attractive. Elide was lost in her own thought she didn’t noticed Fenrys was walking over to her and was now right in front of her. 

“Hey Lochan, ready to get started.”

“ Yeah lets go,” Elide replied hesitantly. 

“ As they made their way over to a spot in the gym Fenrys said, “ so your the girl who has made Lorcan in such a good mood lately.” 

Elide’s heart stopped. What was he talking about? Did she really make some sort of impact on him.

“ Uh, I don’t know about that.”

“ Well he has been in an exceptionally good mood lately and from what I can tell from his longing stares he does like you and he hasn’t denied it is you.”

Longing stares? What was he going on about?

“ Oh, uh ok.”

Fenrys and Elide went through the stretches and he was cautious about her ankle. They made small talk and some silly flirting as Elide realized he wasn’t bad either. They laughed and had fun until the bell rang, Fenrys picked up Elide’s hand and placed a kiss on it. 

“ Until we meet again,” he said.

Eide giggled at his silliness and bowed and responded the same. Out of the corner of her eye she could she Lorcan giving Fenrys a death stare, what was with him?

Elide made her way to debate where sadly she learned the class that Lorcan was in would not be joining them today and they went into a lesson about some famous debates in American history. Class seemed to go by extra slow as there was no Lorcan to banter with and talk to. Finally class ended and Elide got her stuff and made her way to the Lacrosse field to watch Manon’s practice. She sat down on the bleacher next to the field and a couple minutes later Manon and 12 other girls came out in their gear. Elide waved at Manon and Manon waved for her to come over. Confused Elide got up and walked over slowly as her ankle was sore after PE today. 

“ Elide this is the rest of the thirteen, Asterin, Sorrel, Vesta, Faline, Fallon, Edda, Briar, Thea, Kaya, Linnea, Ghislaine, and Imogen. Girls this is Elide,” Manon said pointed them out. Elide recognized a few from her classes. 

“ Nice to meet you.”

“ So your the girl Manon told us about that has made good old Lorcan gone soft,” the girl who she believed was Asterin said.

“ Uh, I don’t know about that but I’m working with him on the debate project.”

“ Hm.. well enjoy watching us practice, although I don’t think it is as fun as playing.” 

Elide nodded and made her way back to where she was sitting. She watched them practice some and noticed how well they all worked together and she got some of her homework done. Soon it was almost 5 and their practiced ended and Elide got up and made her way over to the locker rooms. She could hear voices in there, some she recognized as Dorian and Aedion. Soon the boys walked out and waved to Dorian, Aedion, and Rowan who gave her a smile and waved back. Soon Lorcan walked out and made his way over to her. 

“ Hey, ready to go?” He asked. 

“ Yeah, how was practice.”

“ Good, sweaty. Got to work on my tackling skills which might come in handy as your knight.”

“ Ah yes, you need to keep up if you are to keep up with me my dear knight.”

They made banter like that as the made their way over to his motorcycle. He gave her the spare helmet again and Elide took notice of the gaping stares of the others in the parking lot as she got on the bike. Maybe Rowan was right and she was a first to get on his bike. Soon he started it and Elide grabbed onto him again as he took off to the library. They made their way over to the same spot as the day before, went over their work and made their way to the bistro again. As Elide was getting out her card to pay Lorcan had already given the cashier his and paid for both of their meals once again. 

“ I could have paid you know, I do have some money,” Elide said.

Lorcan took note of the bitterness in her tone and said, “ Sorry, I just thought it would be easier if I pay. If it bugs you that much you cam pay me back at some point.” 

Elide agreed to that as they made their way outside and sat down at a table to eat. 

“ Oh, here is the application for the bookstore I mentioned,” Lorcan said handing her the papers. 

“ Thanks I will fill them out soon.” 

They soon went back to their small talk and playful banter and soon it was getting dark and Lorcan drove Elide home. They said their goodbyes and just like the night before they both went to bed with a big smile and both hoped it would be a reoccurring thing. 

@bri-loves-sunflowers

[audreyandherocs]

Thea's Cave: Chapter 6

<Previous Chapter>

“I’m so sorry” Wilbur groaned in his hands, his elbows resting against the table. Thea just snickered quietly while sliding Wilbur’s his plate of breakfast. Tommy and Tubbo already digging in without shame.

“It’s fineeee, next time I’ll put you in the blue bed” noted Thea and found it highly entertaining at hearing Wilbur groan once more. Thea snorted, pushing Wilbur’s plate towards him a bit more, a silent message for him to eat.

As soon the boys had finished eating, Wilbur immediately grabbed Tommy and Tubbo, quickly giving their goodbyes and thanks before rushing out of the door. Thea stared out the open door, listening to Tommy’s yelling fading.

Her wolves looked at her, cocking their heads as she hummed and finished off her breakfast.

Now they were gone, she could get back to her original plans.

After tending to her farm, Thea grabbed her materials before making her way out. She walked until she was a far distance away before making her fireworks, before loading into a crossbow. She took a few shots, her ears filled with the sound of explosions before popping into the distance.

Thea hummed, doing some more experimentation when she heard footsteps behind her just as the last firework went off. She turned, lowering her crossbow as she did, before noticing Fundy and Niki.

“Oh hello!” greeted Thea, “Don’t worry, I’m just experiencing fireworks for the first time and wanted to try them out.”

“Oh, oh” sighed out Niki before she gave a nervous smile. “We were looking for someone and heard it and thought-“

Thea let out an ‘ah’ and nodded. “Fair enough. My name is Thea.”

“Oh! You’re Thea?” said Niki as she and Fundy approached the girl, who put away her crossbow.

“That’s me” she nodded and smiled. “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too! My name is Niki and this is Fundy.”

Thea waved at them, “nice to meet you both….so who were you looking for? If it’s Wilbur or Tommy, they left a while ago.”

“Oh, we were looking for you!” said Fundy.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, we heard from Tommy and the others that someone new arrived and set up a place just outside of L’manburg. It was strange seeing Tommy being pulled away and he wasn’t exactly-“

“low-key?”

“Yeah”

Thea snorted but smiled, “Yeah, should’ve expected it. Placed a bed away in my home and everything.”

“You don’t mind that?” asked Niki, tentatively.

Thea shrugged, “Not particularly? Then again, I’m probably starved off anything so it’ll be a while before I go back to my introverted ways.”

“Uh…what do you mean by that?”

Thea let out a breath and nervously chuckled. “Probably should take this to my home before I unload my story.”

Niki and Fundy gave her a confused look before following her to her home. As they did and were served tea and snacks, The moment they took their first sip and bite, Thea waited until they had swallowed before she explained.

Like every other time, Niki and Fundy yelled in shock and stared at her in disbelief. Thea had a tired yet amused look on her face with the hint of exasperation.

“Wait, wait, so how much do you know? Like world-wise?” asked Fundy.

Thea sipped her tea. “Enough to know how to survive but man, so much has changed. It’s fun to learn but it’s like being a fish in a pond. You’ve spent your entire time there and then you’re suddenly released into the ocean and there’s so much to deal with. I’m just…swimming.”

“Oh, are you alright?” asked Niki, concerned.

Thea shrugged, thin forming with a stressed line. “I mean, I’m here? I haven’t exactly had time to take it all in yet. Now I have a place, I will but like…it’s just…hm I don’t how to say it.”

“Well, if you need anything, we’ll be happy to help!” said Niki cheerfully.

Thea smiled, “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“So, what are you going to do next?” asked Fundy.

“Long term or like today?”

“Uh, both?”

“Long term, try to see if I can understand more of my circumstances. Short term, uh, I guess get better gear and clothes in general?”

“Better gear?”

Thea gave a defeated laugh, “I’ve been using iron armor but like I really want diamond but I haven’t been able to not enough diamonds. Not sure if I should save it for armor or use it for tools.”

“HOW ARE YOU STILL ALIVE?”

Thea threw her hands in the air, “I WANT DIAMONDS, I NEVER HAD DIAMOND GEAR DAMNIT-”

“YOU DEFEATED A DRAGON!”

“WITH MY BROTHERS! EVEN THEN, now that I think about it we were all wearing iron armor mostly. We had some diamond gear but like we were sharing it.”

Fundy screamed and Niki just laughed as Thea looked utterly torn between laughing to exasperated at her own circumstances.

“What were you talking about, with the clothes?” asked Niki between giggles.

Thea pulled at her sleeve, “Oh, these are my only clothes.”

There was a hush silence that fell as Niki and Fundy jumped out of their seats and Thea just stared at them wide-eyed, “Ah.”

The day went on as Niki had taken Thea’s measurements and asked question after question on clothing items. Then Fundy dragged Thea to a mine and were looking for diamonds.

Fundy looked at his communicator as it pinged a message from Niki.

“Oh, Niki says she has some clothes for you to try out.”

“Oh nice!” grunted Thea as she broke another stone pickaxe and drew out another one, continuing to mine. They had managed to find some diamond, which Thea made Fundy to take half as payment.

“She also wanted to know your communicator cords-“

“Tommy did mention that but I don’t have one” commented Thea, yelling back.

She faintly heard Fundy let out a scream as it bounced off the tunnels. Thea snorted as she checked her inventory.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON’T HAVE A COMMUNICATOR?”

Thea peered out of the tunnel and rose an eyebrow, gesturing to her entire self.

“Oh right-“

“Anyways, I think we got enough diamond for the day, at least enough to make a chest plate or a couple of tools.”

“You can have it all you know? I’m fine taking just a few.”

“Nah, diamond armor is important.”

“I mean, diamonds yeah but nothing beat netherite.”

“….netherite?”

Fundy’s ears and tail were slowly lowered as the fox realized the implication of his words.

“You don’t know what netherite is.”

“Nooooo? Fundy, I discovered there were other types of wood existed. If that is not the an indication of my knowledge, then I don’t know-“

Fundy sighed before he slowly explained and watched Thea’s eyes bulge.

“WHAT?!”

“Thank you for having us for dinner” said Niki as the three were gathered at Thea’s table.

“Please, it’s the least I could do” replied back Thea, as she served some cooked mutton with honey glazed carrots with a bowl of mashed potatoes. “Besides, I can’t wait to try out the cookies!” referring to the cookies that Niki offered to teach.

“I can’t remember the last time I had a meal like that” said Fundy as he took a bite of the mutton, his tail wagging. “Or with other people either.”

“I find that concerning” Thea grimaced, sipping her soup.

“It’s nice! We should have this again!” cheered Niki as she scooped her mash potatoes.

Thea hummed, cutting her mutton. “Tommy, Wilbur, and Tubbo were here for last night’s dinner and breakfast. You two are like the 2nd group to share a meal with, at this rate I might be a social eater.”

“Wait, Wilbur was here?” asked Fundy, wide-eyed.

Thea hummed. “Passed out and everything a bit after dinner. Had to carry him up to bed and then the boys slept over, and of course, couldn’t let them leave without breakfast-“

“Oh, that’s good. He hasn’t been…himself lately.”

Thea’s eyes sharpened, noticing Fundy’s and Niki’s eyes shifting to look at each other; a knowledge that these two knew and one that Thea wasn’t privy to. She took a bite of her mutton. “I can see that. I did tell him he was welcome to come over if needed. Besides, I don’t think I’m going to give him the option either.”

Fundy and Niki gave her a bewildered look, the former’s ears drooping slightly in worry. “Uh, what do you mean by that?”

Thea smiled as she raised her glass, sipping it without a word.

“WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!”

Thea cackled and it shattered the incoming tense atmosphere. Dinner went off smoothly and with plates of cookies and milk for dessert. They gathered around Thea’s fireplace, the three getting to know each other while also Thea learned more around.

“So, there’s that many people here?”

Fundy nodded, chewing another cookie. “Yeah, but everyone is pretty much doing their own thing. The election is the only thing that has been drawing people together.”

“This election is starting to sound pretty serious” commented Thea, noting her stomach twisting at the idea of it. The need for order and harmony was good for the people, but based on what she was hearing about the election, it was starting to sound more for a reach for power.

“And you two are running?”

“Yup! Coconut 2020! Be sure to vote for us!”

Thea gave a polite smile, hiding the fact she wasn’t going to vote at all. She didn’t think she could anyway plus…

“I’ll think about it” she commented. Not fully elaborating that Wilbur and Tommy also asked her to vote for them and now there would be a conflict of interest based on people she knew; not on their policies.

Fundy’s ears drooped in disappointment but Niki nodded, seemingly understanding her choice. Thea looked outside and noted how late it was, hearing monsters hiding just outside of their perimeter.

“It’s late, you guys want to stay the night?” asked Thea, getting up to either escort the two out or set up the beds, depending their decision.

“Oh, I need to go! I have to open my bakery in the morning” said Niki as she got up. Fundy too, “I need to go and do some things too.”

Thea nodded as her wolves gathered at the door. “I’ll see you guys out.”

“You don’t have to!”

“You sure?” asked Thea, leaning against the doorway as the other two stood outside.

“We’ll be fine. Thank you though!”

Thea nodded and smiled. “Nice to meeting you two. Thanks for everything and the impromptu help…” she laughed nervously.

“It’s fine, it was fun!”

Thea squinted her eyes, humming under her breath at which part of fun was Fundy talking about but she didn’t comment on it. She watched the two walk back to their homes and Thea didn’t miss the white glint in the shadows. Her finger itched for the crossbow but didn’t as whatever was there disappeared.

Thinking it was a skeleton, Thea walked back into her home and went to the basement, moving onto her next order of business.

She grabbed her pickaxe and begun to hum as she mined and mined. As she dug, only coming up to deposit materials and for food. At some point, the deeper she got, she built a little room in the mines, creating a bed inside with furnaces and chests for materials, she didn’t know how useful it would be in the future.

<Next>