#at which point she and her sister would both start drinking heavily and sort of stop speaking to each other

[yelenasdog]

rebel girl (vic de angelis x fem!singer!reader)

𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐘 REBEL GIRL  𝐁𝐘 BIKINI KILL

(listen while reading for best experience) 

𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: fluff with a sprinkle of angst for .0000002 seconds

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: a kiss during a shared performance turns into something more.

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬: 2.3k

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: cursing, kissing, drinking, my attempts at writing roman dialect and italian, and i believe that’s it.

𝐚/𝐧: ok so i know not a whole lot abt måneskin so if anything abt this in terms of the band or how they perform is inaccurate forgive me! but i think vic is hot and this song makes me think of her LOL. thanks for reading, and enjoy the fic!! <3

(all translations will be linked at the end of the fic)

♀~♀~♀

The cheers of the crowd were deafening, but it seemed the beating of her own heart was even louder. Lights flashed a plethora of neon colors, and those on the stage looked liked silhouettes moving about freely.

Ethan nodded at Thomas, quickly bringing down his stick to the tightly spread plastic.

Thomas bobbed his head, starting to play the opening riff.

Select members of those in attendance began to cheer, just the opening notes being enough to give away what was about to be performed.

“For our last song tonight, we’d like to bring out someone you all know and love.” Damiano spoke into his mic, wrapping an arm around Vic’s neck and allowing her to lean down into the microphone in his hand.

“She’s someone that everyone, including myself, heavily admire as an icon of the generation and a true Riot Grrrl.”


Her eyes closed, a deep breath inhaled and exhaled through her painted mouth. She jumped up and down in her heeled boots, face pointed towards the rickety ceiling of the venue as she did so. She ran a ring adorned hand over her earpieces and made a funny face, making sure they were adjusted to her liking.

A stagehand appeared to her right, handing her a microphone and wishing her good luck. She smiled, responding with a quick “thanks” and a smile.

Victoria looked over from her place on the stage with Damiano, a devilish glint in her eye.

“Here for one night only, London let us introduce” he yelled, leaning down to Vic’s level once more, allowing them to both speak at once, “Y/n Y/l/n!”

A roar erupted from everyone in the building as the aforementioned strutted on stage, lifting the mic to her lips.

“That girl thinks she’s the queen of the neighborhood, she’s got the hottest trike in town.” She started, finding her mark in the center of the stage.

“That girl, she holds her head up so high, I think I wanna be her best friend yeah.” Damiano’s raspy voice let out next, both of their voices mixing together like honey as they started the chorus.

“Rebel girl, rebel girl, rebel girl you are the queen of my world.

Rebel girl, rebel girl.”

“I think I wanna take you home” Y/n began, Damiano then taking over.

“I wanna try all your clothes.” He finished, both him and Y/n groaning in unison to the song.

Vic would be lying if she said she didn’t have to clear both her throat, and her mind. Thomas’ fingers worked skillfully and quickly on the neck of his guitar on the small transitional solo, his focus staying on the cool steel.

Damiano held up his tattooed hand, making a talking motion as he sang and rolled his eyes, “When she talks, I hear the revolution.”

Y/n came up behind Vic, one hand running across her hip, the other on her own as she chose to lean into Vic’s mic over her shoulder, “In her hips, there’s revolutions.”

The lead singer then strutted across the stage back to Ethan, propping a leg up on the base of his kit, and then walking back singing, “When she walks, the revolution’s coming.”

Knowing what line was coming up next, the bassist held her breath, and looked down. It was short lived, though, as Y/n picked up her chin with her pointer finger, forcing her to look her in the eyes. She moved his slowly to Victoria, their lips nearly brushing, her touch feather light.

“In…her…kiss…” she slowly sang, dragging it out longer than in the original song and than in rehearsal. She quickly turned her head, falling to her knees with one side to Vic and one to the audience, her hair cascading over her features.

“I taste the revolution!”

She smiled at Vic as she pushed herself up, a goofy grin plastered onto her face as she allowed Damiano to take the chorus. Victoria replied with only a small smirk, her dark eyeshadow glittering under the colorful lights, making her look like some kind of gothic angel, or celestial being.

Resuming singing, Y/n walked back to the front of the stage, her and Damiano switching every verse. She sat down on the edge, letting her legs dangle over the high surface, feeling fingertips barely touch her unclothed thigh.

“That girl thinks she’s the queen of the neighborhood.”

“I got news for you,”

They both pointed their mics into the audience as the screen behind them flashed “she is!” Allowing the crowd, as well as Thomas, Vic, and Ethan to all scream the two words loudly and in sync.

“I know she is,” her and Dami both sang, as he wrapped an arm around Vic’s neck,

“My best friend yeah”

The chorus continued for a final time, Victoria stomping her heavy platforms on the wooden stage, biting her lip as she performed.

Y/n made her way over to Thomas’ side, jumping to his left and swaying her hair, a knowing smile appearing on his face upon seeing Victoria’s gaze falling upon her movements.

Victoria made rounds to Ethan and then to Thomas, passing Y/n and lightly tapping her hip with her own.

Y/n skipped over to Damiano as he did to her, the pair meeting in the middle briefly for the “love you like a sister, always.”

Victoria returned to her spot from the start, and Damiano found his way to Thomas. Y/n continued on towards the ethereal bassist. The both of them were simultaneously singing to the aforementioned in harmony, nearing the end of the song.

“Soul sister, rebel girl,

Come and be my best friend,

Really, rebel girl.”

Y/n dragged a hand across Vic’s chiseled cheekbone, and in that moment Victoria had taken on the title of a muse for the woman standing in front of her.

“I really like you” she sang to her, lowering her mic as they looked into each other’s eyes, her chest heaving. It was like the music had been reduced down to a slight buzzing, and the thousands of peering eyes meant nothing. They were untouchable.

Y/n resumed for the last line, never breaking her eye contact.

“Be my rebel girl.”

It seemed like a question, a proposal of sorts from one to another, as Y/n’s hand dropped once more.

Victoria quirked a brow as if to ask “are we really doing this?” To which Y/n muttered “fuck it” with a laugh.

Victoria’s hands found either side of Y/n’s face, her calloused fingers rough, yet gentle. Y/n’s own hands found one lazily draped over waist, the other over her shoulder to pull her close.

And in what probably the entirety of the building could have guessed would happen (maybe just not on stage, in that exact moment) they closed the gap between themselves, their lips connecting in a sweet kiss.

Chants and yells of encouragement were whooped by the band and crowd alike, as Damiano raised the mic and the final notes played.

“Y/n Y/l/n everybody!”

They pulled apart, sweaty foreheads against each other’s sides as they turned towards everyone, waving. They were quickly joined by the rest of the group, and Y/n stepped away, leaning into the microphone still hooked on the stand in the center of the stage.

“Let’s hear a huge round of applause for the wonderfully mad Måneskin!” She shouted, the roar of the crowd even louder. She raised her hands in the air, then moving one to her ear, gesturing for them to be louder. They complied, and Y/n took out her earpiece for a moment, soaking in what the band had created.

Vic shouted to Y/n over the noise, waving her over.

“Come on, bow with us!”

Y/n shook her head, not wanting to intrude any further to which Thomas reached out an arm, pulling her over. A bright smile covered her face as Vic reached out, wrapping an arm around her waist only for a second.

Hands joined, they all leaned forward in a dramatic bow, coming back up and waving.

All in sync, they all yelled “thank you, London!”

They looked around for a small period of time afterwards, still having a hard time believing that this was their new reality.

Looking to her right, and seeing Y/n doing the same, Vic decided that Y/n was a specific part of said “new reality” she didn’t quite want to let go of.

So after saying one more goodbye and exiting the stage, the bassist remained silent. It slightly worried Y/n, who had noticed the girl’s lack of communication while she had been thanking the rest of the band members for allowing her to share the stage with them.

“Is Victoria alright?” She asked Damiano, to which he only chuckled before replying.

“She’s fine, trust me. Give her a little bit of time and she will be back to normal.”

Y/n just gave him a tight lipped smile, not completely convinced.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed as Victoria slipped into her dressing room, locking the door.

The rest of the group, already having had a few drinks, was out the door, waiting on a cab.

“Y/n? You and Vic coming?” Ethan questioned.

She nodded, though she was unsure if that was the case, doing her best to cast a reassuring smile in his direction.

Once she made sure they were gone, she knocked twice on the heavy door. Before she could even announce it was her, Vic’s voice rang out.

“Vattene, Damiano!”

“Victoria?” Y/n’s tone floated through the door to the other side, and Victoria face palmed and silently cursed herself. She quickly got up and unlocked the door, regretting her harsh tone.

“Y/n, hi.”

“Hi.” She responded, slight uneasiness about her. Victoria picked up on this immediately, her brows furrowing and her eyes softening.

“Are you alright, Y/n?”

The other girl scoffed and looked at her feet. Scared to break any boundaries now that they weren’t on stage, Victoria cautiously lifted a hand towards her chin, softly picking it up like Y/n had before.

Her voice sounded wavy as she spoke, her jaw slightly hanging slack.

“Actually, I came here to ask the same thing.”

Victoria tilted her head like a confused puppy, leaning up against the doorframe.

“Why? What happened?”

Struggling to find the right thing to say, Y/n began to trip over her words.

“Well, I just, you know, on stage and everything- we were super, y’a know, close and everything and I didn’t wanna, I don’t know. Make you uncomfortable or overstep any boundaries or anything, and if it was just a kiss I didn’t wanna overthink it or read into but, I mean, I really liked it but you seemed to go quiet so-“

Victoria cut off her painful rambling with another kiss, taking firm hold of her arms and moving her inside with her and closing the door with her foot.

“Wow.” Y/n said when they finally pulled apart, her eyes as wide as dinner plates and her pupils the size of the moon.

“Yes, wow.” Vic chuckled, moving a piece of Y/n’s stray hair behind her ear.

“You’re very different when you’re on stage, Y/n. You know that?” She asked, admiring how the fluorescent lights above illuminated Y/n’s features in the most wonderful way.

Victoria had decided she liked her most like this. Vulnerable, sweaty, and with the biggest heart eyes she’d ever seen.

“That’s what I was afraid of.” She laughed.

“No.” Vic frowned, taking her hands. “It’s not a bad thing. Not at all.” She brought her over to the velvet sofa in the corner of the room. “It’s admirable.”

“How?” She asked with a small smile.

“Easy. Because even though your stage persona is lovely,” she laughed, “I think I like this Y/n even better. She seems like she’s kind, and has a big heart with lots of love to give.”

Stunned, the other girl just smiled like an idiot, leaning forward and pecking Vic’s lips.

“Well, what about you?”

“What about me?” The bassist replied, enjoying the banter forming between the pair.

“Why’d you go all radio silent? I’d never heard of Victoria De Angelis from EuroVision winning band Måneskin to do such a thing.” She exclaimed in what was the worst accent Victoria had heard in her life.

(Though, it was endearing, she’d admit.)

“Truly? I was thinking about how to ask you out. If you even wanted me to ask you out, all of that.”

Y/n’s eyes somehow got even bigger, and she laughed, tucking her legs beneath her.

“How is that even a question?” She exclaimed.

“Like I said, you are different on stage from off it. I didn’t know if it was just a front, a performance.”

This time it was Y/n’s turn to roll her eyes and lean in, encapsulating Victoria’s lips with her own.

“It wasn’t just a show, I’d love to go out with you, Vic.”

They both giggled like school girls hidden under the bleachers, leaning in for another kiss. It was hot and heavy, yet slow and sweet. It was everything either girl had hoped for. 

And thanks to a certain Italian doofus, or 4, it would be momentarily put on pause. Mid-make out four loud knocks startled the girls, causing the two do them to pull away.

“Victoria! Daje! Perché non rispondi al telefono, eh? Stiamo aspettando- oh. This makes sense.“ Damiano burst through the door, Ethan and Thomas stood behind him with not-so-surprised looks painted on their faces.

“Realmente? Realmente, Damiano?” She scoffed. “Stai manzo!”

“Sorry, guys. Enjoy yourselves.” He turned over his shoulder to the rest, slowly shutting the door.

“Sicuro di dire che non verranno con noi.” He snickered, as did the others.

“Eccallà!” Ethan remarked, to which, not that Vic and Y/n knew, Thomas shoved him to the side.

Victoria sighed, returning to face Y/n.

“So. Where were we?”

♀~♀~♀

i hope yall liked that!! mwah make sure to reblog if u did <333 take care of urself!

translations 

[citydreamgrls]

a christmas treat

george weasley x fem!reader

words: 5,243

a/n: a very seasonal one for you,, hope you enjoy !! :)

warnings: swearing , smut , 18+ 

It had been a drunken mistake. A situation she should never have been in at all. But one final party before the summer break had caused that fateful moment she wished had never occurred. Y/n had been in the library all evening, in a lazy attempt to avoid the Gryffindor party altogether, but decided she would need to return to her dorm at some point.

She’d hoped that maybe they would have calmed a bit now that it was later in the night, but to her dismay the excited shouts sounded the second she reached the common room’s door. With one breath she slipped inside, wanting to pass by the group huddled by the fire unnoticed.

“Hey y/n?” A voice called out.. Her friend Angelina leant over the back of the sofa with a beer in hand and a smile on her face. “You joining us this time?”

“I’m pretty tired, but thanks.”

“Oh come on, you said that last time. It’s the end of term, just have one drink with us?” She pouted, but the girl held her ground and shook her head.

“I have to be up early tomorrow.”

“So do the rest of us!” Lee groaned, “Just stay for an hour then you can escape us again.” He joked. She took the bait, leaving her books on the table and slipping next to Angelina.

She noticed the twins, unfazed by their presence at any sort of party. But she’d never really paid much attention to them, at most times she could barely tell them apart. But with a few drinks in her system, and the need to sleep fading with each one, she noticed one of them in particular. George.

She studied his face subtly as it glowed beside the fire’s light. His was skinnier than Fred’s, with a slightly different jaw shape. His voice was deeper than his brother’s, and she noticed it more as he laughed with disregard for how loud it was and was always the one to start a joke. Then the mole, on the right side of his neck. That was the last thing she noticed before he caught her staring.

But he just did what he always would when someone looked too long, and winked carelessly. Then it was an internal battle not to blush like a child as she quickly looked anywhere but him.

He’d introduced himself not much later while she was pouring herself one last drink before heading up to bed. She’d almost choked at the sound of his voice, surprised that he was taking time to speak to her when he had a whole room of people at his command.

She was drunk, so was he. And she liked the way he smirked and leant down to her from his towering stance. Y/n let him take her ‘somewhere more private’ and fuck her.

That was it. But she reminded herself that he was drunk, so was she.

Nothing more.

So the next day she woke up earlier than the other’s and made her way down to the train alone, in case everyone knew what she’d let that tall redhead do to her the night before. But when they eventually joined her in the carriage, the only questions were about her rushing off so early.

Maybe he was embarrassed, she wondered as the castle went out of view and the lake came in. All that ran through her mind was him, everything she had done was fresh in her memories. So much so that she could barely remember herself being there, if it wasn’t for the hidden bruise he’d left on her shoulder she may have believed it was a dream.

He had felt like a dream.

But he was just drunk, maybe so much so that he had forgotten it all.

It seemed so when they returned after the summer, and he acted as though he’d never even met her that night. So her and the twins remained strangers.

At least until the Christmas break came around.

-

“I can’t believe they’re making you stay here,” Angelina huffed, often being the first to critique y/n’s muggle parents and their choices.

“It’s just a precaution, I’m fine with them. But when the rest of the family come round, all I want to do is hex them to oblivion.” She laughed.

“It’s wrong though, they’re scared of a witch who isn’t even permitted to do magic outside of the school!”

“It’s only a few weeks, plus I can start studying.”

“Oh good, get all the studying out of the way so we can actually have fun when I get back.” She grinned, snapping her case closed and looking round the room.

“Go, or you’ll miss the carriages.” The girl laughed and pushed her out the door.

“Please don’t spend the whole break alone? And write to me!” She called before rushing out of the common room.

Later that evening she finally did what Angelina had asked of her, both requests. But not quite by choice. She was sitting in the great hall having dinner, the handful of students that remained making it a very peaceful meal. Her hand alternated between eating, flicking the page of her book and writing to Angelina to tell her how boring it was going to be.

She wouldn’t have noticed the two boys in front of her if one of them hadn’t coughed to get her attention. Her eyes looked up, wide and caught off guard as they smiled back with the same face.

“Hello y/n” They said in unison, making it harder yet again to tell them apart.

“You've been left here too?” One of them spoke.

“I don’t mind it,” she said quietly, turning her head back to the book.

Her heart was racing, of course George would tell his brother about the party, she was dumb to think otherwise. But neither of them were letting on about it. Still, they knew her name. He must remember.

“I’m Fred,”

“And I’m George, the better looking one.” He winked, and she froze.

“You okay?” Fred asked, frowning at how she had stopped at the sight of George.

The girl just nodded, resuming her letter to Angelina.

Now it was confusing, she couldn’t tell whether they were pretending to be strangers. Or they actually believed they were. The twins stayed in front of y/n as she carried on her multiple tasks, they didn’t dare interrupt her until she finished her letter and sealed it in the envelope.

“You know we’re the only ones from our year staying here?” Fred told her.

“Oh right, how come you two are here?” She asked them.

“We were hungry,” George said, waving his fork in front of her.

“She means hogwarts you dimwit!” Fred slapped his brother on the head, making y/n giggle sweetly. She had always thought they were annoying, with their pranks and lack of care for anything. But seeing them tease one another, she realised they were in fact quite funny to be around.

“Mother said she’d had enough of cooking for us all, so we’re stuck here this christmas.” Fred explained, not seeming too bothered by his family’s neglect.

“Ron’s here too, and Ginny but I haven’t actually seen her yet.” George frowned, looking round to see if he could spot his little sister.

“Maybe she’s been eaten by that troll hagrid’s hiding in the woods,” Fred said calmly.

“That would be our luck, all mum told us to do was look after Ginny this year.” George groaned, rolling his eyes.

“Back up, a troll?” The girl asked, but both twins just nodded, as if this was known information. “Never mind.”

-

From then on they sat with her at every meal, always telling her about tricks they would play on the few remaining teachers at the castle. It was four days into the holidays when Fred and George asked her to hang out, a difference to the studying she’d been doing previously.

“We’re heading down to Hogsmeade later, you wanna come with us?”

“You know, seeing as there isn’t really anyone else for you to spend time with,” George had added. The girl still hadn’t figured out whether he remembered the summer party seeing as the only time she saw them was when they were together, but regardless she decided to take Angelina's advice and make some friends.

“Yeah sure,” She closed her book and finished her toast before standing up, “I’ll meet you guys in the common room then?”

-

It was snowing heavily and y/n was glad she’d put on an extra layer to walk to Hogsmeade, especially when the twins forced her to defend herself from an impromptu snowball fight. Even when she’d hit them both in the face they didn’t give up.

Being away from the castle felt much more fun, even more so with Fred and George taking turns to tease her. Which, surprisingly, she didn’t mind too much. It was never malicious with them, and if they gave it out it was only the rules that they took it too.

They spent the whole afternoon scouring the shops and drinking butterbeer until y/n’s legs felt like jelly and Fred had to give her a piggyback ride up the hill again. Not that he was very trustworthy after him and George raced to see who could drink a pint quicker, five rounds of it.

“Don’t fall asleep y/n,” George had warned as the girl’s head bounced lightly against his brother’s back. “Or Fred will dump you in the shrieking shack!” The girl pretended to be scared, but tried to reach out to push the boy away. Instead she fell off the side of her ride and brought him down with her.

All three of them burst into fits of laughter and spent the next 40 minutes drunkenly trying to complete the 15 minute walk back up to hogwarts. When they finally made it back to the common room, after dodging teachers in the hallway, they fell onto the sofa in front of the fire.

“Fuck, marry, kill…” George started, making y/n and Fred groan in fear of his next few words. “Snape, Lupin, Dumbledore.”

“I think this one might be for you y/n,” Fred laughed.

“Okay,” The girl thought for a second, “right, I would fuck Snape, Marry Lupin… I can’t kill dumbledore though. I’d be evil!”

“You’d FUCK SNAPE?” They cried out in unison, disgusted by her final decision.

“Yeah, I think he’d be a good fuck.” They nearly screamed at what she said. “What…” she laughed, “all that rage has to go somewhere,”

“Stop stop!” George begged, unable to listen any longer. But the girl liked how it bothered him.

“Anyway, I like a deep voice.” She, not really, joked.

Fred started up the hysterics, suddenly unable to stop picturing how Snape would look naked. Something he was not proud of.

“Oh don’t I know it,” George had said.

She hadn’t registered what he’d said, too busy laughing with them both still tipsy from their day in the village. But later on when she sobered up, y/n thought whether George was trying to hint that he did in fact remember everything.

Ron and Harry came down from their dorm room while the older three were still in fits.

“God what happened to you lot,” The twins’ younger brother had called out over the noise, “We can hear you from upstairs.”

“You’ll never guess what y/n said about Snape!” Fred had wheezed out, but was quickly muffled by the other two who decided that both Harry and Ron were too young to know about their game.

“What? I wanna know,” Ron had whined.

“Don’t be so nosy Ron.” George had teased.

“Fred was gonna tell me.” He pointed out, but George kept a tight cover on his twin’s mouth.

“He most definitely will not.”

The two of them left with slumped heads, admitting defeat, and Fred was freed from his temporary prison. He slapped both of his friend’s heads.

“What was that for?” y/n complained.

“I couldn’t breath you idiots.”

They couldn’t help but start laughing again, something which would recur throughout the day until they eventually sobered up before dinner.

-

Y/n came to terms with the twins and their drinking habits, as it was really the only thing to do to pass the time with so little people around. But when Fred and George were around they always had fun.

The girl watched them whizz about the empty quidditch pitch on their brooms, tossing a ball between themselves. She slipped the flask from her coat and took a sly sip of firewhiskey to keep herself warm. Normally she wouldn’t drink at all, not having done so since the dreaded party where she and George had- you know. But she decided she wanted to do whatever she felt like, it was a rarity.

George flew over, hovering in front of her as she hid the whiskey back in pocket.

“Sure you don’t want a ride?” He raised his eyebrows, he’d been trying to convince her to get on since she’d taken a seat on the stands.

“Not a chance, Weasley, neither you nor Fred are sober enough. I’m precious cargo.” She smiled. The boy’s hair was blown away from his face, held back by the amount of times he’d run his hand through it. She watched his brown eyes sparkle in the winter sun, and was reminded of why he had ever caught her attention in the first place.

“You wanna talk about sobriety eh? Empty your pockets then y/n.�� Her stomach filled with butterflies at the sound of his voice speaking her name, but she did as he asked.

“I’ll let you have some if you stop trying to get me on that deathtrap.” The girl sighed and he nodded, taking the flask when she offered it out.

“Nice doing business with you,” He winked and flew off.

-

The next week went by quickly, and y/n had pretty much forgotten about her worries with George. And now, sooner than any of them had realised, it was Christmas eve. Both twins had burst into the girl’s dorm to drag her out of bed, throwing her around the room until she threatened to vomit on both of them.

“Hurry and get dressed or we’ll miss breakfast.” They called, leaving her dizzy in the middle of the room.

Fred discussed their plans for the day while y/n drank endless cups of coffee, not having the stomach for any food. Not to mention, George had been staring at her for the past 10 minutes, making her too nervous to move much. She much preferred it when she had something stronger to drink.

“I heard from Harry that Ron fancies Hermione,” Fred spoke up, no longer interested in our day's activities. That was very him, he would make a decision then immediately change his mind.

“Well that’s obvious,” George scoffed, having yet another bowl of cereal. She wondered how he could burn off all that he ate. “He’s looks at her with stupid puppy eyes,”

“You have stupid puppy eyes,” The girl joked, earning a look from the twin.

“Oh really?” He laughed. “You practically pout whenever you want something from us?”

“At least it works for me,” I winked, making George choke a bit.

Fred laughed, rarely seeing his brother flustered. They’d discussed crushes before in the past, but y/n had never come up before. He watched the two of them tease one another over the table and thought that they suited each other in reality. Plus, he had never seen George pay as much attention to a girl as he had y/n, even ones that he’d admitted to liking.

-

That evening had proved Fred’s theory right as they once again sat in front of the fire, the three of them sharing a bottle of y/n’s muggle alcohol. It burnt like hell and tasted like shit, but they had never gotten drunk quicker so decided it was the logical choice.

George had made sure that y/n was warm enough, without expressing too much concern for her that she would notice. Fred had to hide his smug smile as he watched his brother start to flirt shamelessly with their newest friend.

“What do you mean Hogwarts is scary,” He had laughed, “We’re the only things to be feared.” Fred had added.

“And now you’re one of us!”

“As much as that is a very sweet sentiment,” The girl stroked their heads jokingly, like dogs. “But it’s when it’s quiet, like now. My dorm’s just me, and I had the silence. It feels like someone’s always watching.”

“Aww little y/n’s scared.” George had teased, reaching down to tickle the smaller girl. She kicked and wriggled but he was bigger and stronger and could hold her down.

Those hands, holding her arms in place. It almost threw her straight back into the memory of them in secret passageway, him gripping her as he kissed her neck. If it hadn’t been for the tickling, the boys probably would have noticed her shiver at the reminder. But it was lost in their laughter.

It wasn’t long before Fred decided he would give his, slightly older, brother a chance to talk to y/n alone. So he overemphasised his drunken state and wobbled up to bed, leaving the pair by the fire.

-

They sat in silence for a while, George letting the girl curl into his side as they passed the bottle between them. She watched his hands play with the sofa’s arm nervously and giggled slightly.

“What?” He asked, feeling the need to whisper amongst the silence.

“Nothing,” She dismissed.

“I’ve had fun this holiday,” y/n admitted.

“We have too,” George told her, smiling down sweetly. His top lip curled up ever so slightly, making her blush again like she had done the first time he’d noticed her. “It’s been better than being at home really.” He laughed.

“My family are pretty boring,”

“Oh I can tell,” y/n glared up at him. “I’m kidding darling don’t worry.” Her stomach did multiple flips, not only at the nickname, but at the way he took the arm that was around her shoulder and stroked her cheek. In fact, he didn’t stop. It just became normal after a few seconds, as if he’d always shown her this kind of affection.

“Why didn’t you go home this year?” He asked y/n.

“My parents are muggles, as you know,” she raised the bottle with a gentle laugh “they don’t quite get magic.”

“Oh right,” he was truly invested in her as she spoke, taking in every word with genuine interest.

“They were worried I would let slip to the rest of the family when they came to stay, and well, they haven’t really told anyone else about me.” y/n felt ashamed to be telling George about her family in such a negative way.

“That’s a shame,”

“I don’t mind, they’re just careful people.”

“Still, they should be proud. Not everyone can be a witch,” He laughed.

“I’ve had more fun here anyways, so I won’t complain.” She leant her head on him for a few minutes, watching the flame from the fire disappear over time.

“Can I ask you something?” George suddenly said, making her stiffen up. She just nodded.

“Do you remember, before the summer break, there was a party here?” It was the moment she had been dreading ever since the night itself.

“Uh, yes I do actually.” she gave in, seeing no point in lying to him.

“And you can remember us going off to-”

“Yes George,” she cut him off, embarrassed that she had never mentioned it to him.

“I never told anyone about it,” He told her, making the girl relax ever so slightly. “I didn’t want to just in case you were embarrassed.”

“Thanks, I wasn’t embarrassed as such. Just more scared, that you’d think it was a mistake.” Admittedly she had felt the same, but only because she presumed he would’ve never gone for her had he been sober.

“Why would you think that?” He asked.

“Come on George, we’re different.” The boy had always appreciated how she said his name, and even now it made him giddy with happiness. “You’re friends with every Gryffindor, and they all adore you. I would much rather have my head in a book all day every day.”

“Unless me and Fred are involved.” He wasn’t wrong.

“Yeah well that’s different,”

“Different how?”

“You two are fun,” she admitted.

“And everyone else isn’t?” He smirked.

“You know what I mean, it’s just different.”

“Because of me and Fred? Or… just me?”

She watched his face as he studied hers, taking a deep breath as she rolled her eyes.

“You’re only saying all this because you’re drunk,” y/n scoffed, getting up to leave but he took her hand and kept her sat down.

“Maybe, but that doesn't mean I haven’t been thinking about it.”

His eyes were deep and made the girl’s heart tense as he spoke genuinely. “I thought you hated me after that party, so I just never bothered you. Until Fred decided to befriend you, and then I got to know you and realised why I introduced myself that night.”

“Because you wanted to fuck me?” She watched his face get closer but remained unfazed, refusing to move away from him.

“Of course, but also because you’re beautiful and quiet. Not to mention I’d had a thing for you ever since first year, but you were always in the library and I never got that chance to know you well enough.” He explained softly, their faces now dangerously close.

George glanced down at her lips and y/n couldn’t help but blush.

“I should go to bed,” She whispered, not moving closer or further away.

“Yes you should.” He pulled back with a smirk, seeing her finally let out a much needed breath of air. “Don’t get too creeped out tonight,” He teased as she stood up and walked round the back of the sofa leaning down to kiss the top of his head.

“Come keep me company then you fool,”

With that y/n left, her footsteps going up to her dorm and into the room. George waited exactly a minute after the door shut, counting the seconds one by one. It felt like a lifetime until he reached 60, but then he stood up and smiled to himself. He made his way up the tower, one step at a time to try and make her wait a tiny bit longer. Ignoring the fact that he had been wanting to have his way with y/n ever since that night all those months ago. Having her around had been a joy, but it made his desire grow every time she smiled at him with those lips he couldn’t forget the feeling of.

The lips he noticed first when he opened up the door, not bothering to knock. She was sitting on her bed, just a nightdress on, waiting for him.

“God you’re gorgeous.” He had groaned, promptly closing the door behind him and taking off his shirt.

Y/n struggled not to drag him down as he stood over her body, his abs completely mesmerising her. She knew quidditch was good for something.

“You gonna stand there all night?” She teased.

“No, I’m gonna fuck you like I’ve been wanting to all month.” This time she couldn’t help but gasp at how his words made her feel, her thighs clenching together as a reflex.

George pushed them apart as he climbed on top of her, pressing a leg between her own two. Making the girl moan out at his mercy.

“You’re desperate aren’t you?” She nodded, giving him those perfect eyes he’d been teasing her about only that morning. He dragged his fingers over her face, lifting her chin up so he could run them down her neck. This simple action antagonised the girl, who struggled not to beg for him with each finger slowly gripping her tighter.

Soon he was squeezing, making her moan out effortlessly.

“Hmmm, I love those noises baby.” She could barely hold herself back from pushing herself against his thigh, that remained propped between her legs. It felt like heaven to be touched by him again, and she kept her head held back in ecstasy.

“Please George,” she whispered to him, although there was no real need for them to stay quiet. He slowly moved his mouth to her ear, kissing below it and making her jolt with pleasure.

“What is it darling?”

“Please touch me,”

He took the hand from her neck and pushed her down flat onto the mattress.

“Strip” he demanded, watching her closely discard her nightdress and throw it to the ground. George let her eye him up as he took off his trousers, finally revealing the extent of his bulge as it pressed tight against his boxers.

Y/n could feel it against her pussy as he moved back on top of her, her neck being sucked hard by the boy. He loved the way she reacted to every touch, every finger that ghosted her body, and every kiss placed upon her. It all garnered a gentle moan. George wanted to hear it more and more, he felt entranced by her noises and internally begged for it to never stop.

He pushed himself against her pussy, rubbing slowly with no rhythm to catch her off guard, which god it did. Y/n was all his in that moment, letting herself be whatever George needed as he teased her to the edge. Her breath held as the boy took two fingers and ran them from her neck, freeing her from that euphoric feeling just to replace it with yet another as he slipped them between her folds. Y/n threw her head back, unable to control herself as he played around with her, slipping one finger in and out.

His other hand propped his body up, his biceps big and tensed near her head. She reached up and gripped his arm, moaning out as he pushed in yet another finger inside her, knuckle deep.

“You’re perfect darling,” He told her, “I would have given anything to hear these noises weeks ago.” His voice was deeper than usual, almost a growl as he removed himself from her completely. She whined slightly, making him smirk with how powerless she was.

George reached down to pull out his cock, causing the girl to yet again almost choke. She was amazed at how thick it was. She could feel it perfectly in her memory, but it had been a while and she’d never really gotten a chance to see it in all its glory.

But now there it was, thick and big and waiting to be thrusted inside her. She locked eyes with the boy towering over her body as he teased her with his tip.

“Please George,” She begged, “Please.” Her grip was back on his arm, tightening as he pushed inside. He was drunk on power as she begged for him, begged for him to fuck her even better than he had done months ago.

“Relax baby,” He whispered, pushing it all the way in. The sound that y/n made was nothing short of a scream, finally feeling him all the way in. Her pussy was dripping wet, and gripping onto George’s cock like it was going to be taken away.

The boy pounded into her like he’d been wanting to, ruthlessly and all the while he kept a hand tight around her neck. He thought about how good she made him feel, how small she was compared to him. He loved being able to throw her around and use her as he pleased. But most of all, he loved that she enjoyed it too.

“G-george, George I’m gonna-” Her pussy tightened, making George falter slightly but he didn’t dare stop when she was this tight. Instead he thrusted faster, an animalistic pace, making her scream so much louder than he’d ever heard. Then he felt himself get closer, just from the way her body reacted and he chased that high within her.

“Cum inside me, please.” She begged breathlessly, struggling to keep her eyes open. But when George finally let loose in her pussy, she couldn’t help but widen her eyes in the pleasure of it.

The boy fell to her side, his head resting on the pillow beside her as he caught his breath back slowly. She watched him brush his hair from his face and sigh happily.

“What are you looking at?” George asked, wrapping an arm around her naked body and rubbing his hand against her side.

“I just think you look very cute,” She giggled, high from the feeling of him.

“I fucked you like that, and you call me cute?” He huffed, half joking.

“I can do what I like now, you like me.” She teased him.

“Come on, I’m gonna get enough teasing from Fred when we tell him. I don’t need it from you too.” He groaned.

-

The next morning, Christmas day, the pair were rudely awoken from their pleasant sleep by Fred bursting into the room.

“I knew it! I could’ve bet good money on you two!” He shouted, shaking his brother as if he hadn’t already heard him come in.

Y/n groaned and rolled under the covers.

“Come on lazy get up,” Fred pulled George out of bed and onto the floor, groaning at his naked brother.

“Good thing you got George before me,” Y/n called out from beneath the covers.

“Get dressed you idiots, there’s presents downstairs let's go!” Fred ran off again, leaving his brother to pull on some clothes. He leant down to pull the covers from y/n’s face.

She felt him place a kiss on her cheek and she giggled at the cold air.

“You getting up?” He asked, passing her a jumper to pull on. She nodded silently, rubbing her head. “Hungover?”

“A little,” She blushed at his messy hair.

“I’ll carry you then,”

The girl put on some pajama shorts and held her arms out for George to lift her off the ground. He groaned happily and took her down to the common room to find Harry and Ron already opening gifts sent from Mrs Weasley. Ginny came racing down not long after, begging Fred to give over her presents.

“These ones are for you y/n,” Harry said when she was plonked on the sofa, warmed by the fire’s heat.

“Thanks Harry,” She looked down at the tag on the packages.

Hope you’ve had a good holiday darling, see you in the summer!

Y/n had spent the best holiday anyone could ask for with her two best friends, and couldn’t imagine having to leave them when the summer came around. She frowned, but the boy with his arm still on her waist saw the note before she could unwrap anything.

“You’ll have to come home with us next summer, not a chance am I letting your parents steal you away.” He joked, but his offer was sincere. She never had to worry about George hiding her away like her parents had done.

[ijustwant2write]

Bad Boy-John Shelby x Reader

(GIF credit to @markshade​)

Requested by anonymous: ‘Hi do you think u can do a John Shelby imagine where they are dating and y/n is a good innocent girl but freaky with John and her parents want to Him over for dinner John wants to piss off her dad cause he’s not a fan of the blinders and does subtle things to annoy him like touching y/n at the end of the night when they are saying goodbye at his car they have a heated make out sesh and John knows her dad is looking through the window so spices it up a bit . ❤️’

Characters: John Shelby x Reader

Meanings: (Y/N)=Your name

(Y/L/N)=Your last name

Warnings: Smut from the start (unsafe sex!), dirty talk, swearing, arguing, mentions of violence and death, fluff

(A/N: Amelia and Henry are made up characters)

                                        *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I clamped my hand over my mouth tightly, struggling to keep in the whimpers and moans as John continuously thrusted into me. However, the boxes I was perched on were full of bottles of beer, causing them to clang against each other.We were in the stock room of the Garrison, luckily having the music, singing and loud chatter drowning out the noise we were creating. John’s hands gripped at the skin around my hips, that cocky smirk on his face that I loved so much. For some reason, an idea popped into my head, and in the state of euphoria I was in just made me say it out loud.

“John...” was all I managed to breath out at first.

“Fuck, I love it when you say my name. Say it again.” he instructed.

“I want you to meet my parents.”

He suddenly stopped, making me realise it wasn’t the best time to bring that up.“You what?”

We were both heavily breathing.“Sorry, I don’t know why I said that just then.”

He scoffed, sighing as he slid out of me.“Well, that’s finished with.”

“I’m sorry! They want to meet you. They know who you are, but they want to try and treat this like they did with my sister.”

“You sure you want that? Remember what you told me when they first found out about us?”

I rolled my eyes, hitching up my stocking as he did up his trousers.“It was their idea, not mine.”

“You don’t want me meeting them?”

“Of course I do, I just-” I caught him trying to hide a laugh, he was winding me up.“You’re such a little shit.”

He stood in between my legs again, hands on my thighs before I could push my skirt down.“Well, if I have been summoned by the Lord (Y/L/N)-”

“Oh my god,” I threw my head back as I laughed in frustration,“would you stop calling him that! I’m the same class as you.”

“What have I always said?”

I shrugged my shoulders, but knew what he was referring to.

“You were always meant to be a fucking princess, Princess (Y/N) of Birmingham.”

I laughed at him.“Oh shut up! Are you coming to dinner or not?”

“If you ask me nicely.”

“And how do I do that?”

“By finishing what we started.”

John and I had been together for a few months now, much to my parents dismay. It had started as a drunk one night stand; we were both at the Garrison, and seemingly chose each other for the night. However, when you’re young, poor and living in Small Heath, there aren’t a lot of places to go out, so me and my friends went to the Garrison all the time. This meant I also saw John again....and again....and again, and again. We slept we each other maybe three more times before wondering if this could become a thing; from there onwards, we found out more about each other, and he brought out a side of me I had been hiding, also wanting to release.

On the day of the dinner, I wanted to see John before he arrived. I lied to my mum, saying we had no bread (which I had hidden away), and practically running out of the house to ‘buy’ some. I told John what time to be at mine, also lying to make him leave earlier so I could meet him halfway. In the bakery, I threw the money onto the counter after picking up a loaf of bread, speedily walking away as I prayed I would run into John. Luck was on my side as I spotted him, already heading in the direction of my home.

“John!” I shouted, the whole street now looking at me as I sprinted past them. 

He whipped around at the noise, hand hovering over where his gun would be. When he saw me, he didn’t relax, wondering why I was yelling his name and running like a mad man.

“I’m so glad I caught you.” I struggled to say, out of breath.

“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” he panicked.

“No, no I’m fine. I’m a terrible runner though.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Bread.” I said, holding up the loaf as evidence.“And also, to see you.”

“I was just leaving.”

“Yes, I can see that. I just wanted to go over some rules.”

“Rules? Oh come on (Y/N)-”

“No, listen to me.” I held up the bread instead of pointing my finger at him.“I love you. I always take your side for everything. We both know my parents don’t like this, but seeing as I am a grown woman, they don’t do anything to stop me. So just for today, we’re going to abide to their rules.”

He rolled his eyes.“Right, so I’ve got to be the uptight prat that your parents want you to be with?”

“They know what you’re like already, and even if they didn’t, they would be able to see through that act. Just let my dad be my dad.”

“If he says something fucking offensive, I’m not going to stay quiet!”

“Fine, then be political about it. Don’t shout at each other, try to make small talk, but no talking about guns, violence, killing-”

“Alright, are you going to go?”

“Sorry. I just want this to be easy. I hate seeing you stressed. I love you.”

He held my hand, starting to walk.“Yeah, yeah. Come on, I’ve got the car parked up in the garage.”

I hated that he hadn’t sent it back, but I understood why he was being like this. I was making him be someone he wasn’t. I loved John as a person, however, I couldn’t be dealing with a screaming match between him and my family.

“John, I do love you.” I said after a few minutes of walking.

“I know. I love you too.” he eventually smiled.“Just want you all to myself now, you know? We wouldn’t have to be dealing with this.”

“Soon darling. We’ll get that house soon enough. Oh, I’ve just remembered something else!”

“Rule number...I’ve lost count, maybe one hundred?”

“No inappropriate stuff. No touching, kissing, being sneaky, nothing!”

“That’s going to be incredibly hard. Especially with that dress.” 

Once we made it to my house, I gave him a quick kiss on the lips before getting out of the car. Opening the front door. I called out to my parents, hearing them reply from the front room. I told John to remove his coat whilst I rushed into the kitchen with the bread, carelessly chucking it on the side before getting back to him. I saw a hint of nerves in his eyes, though his pride covered it. Taking his hand in mine, I guided us to my family, surprised to see who was sitting with them.

“Amelia? What are you doing here? And with Henry?” I asked.

“Well, Henry would happen to be here with me because he’s my husband. I’m sure you remember being at the wedding.” she quipped.

“I don’t remember the boring days of my life. Not worth it.”

“(Y/N).” mum warned.

“Anyway,” I looked up at John,“I would like you to all meet John Shelby. We’ve been seeing each other for quite some time and-”

“We know who he is.” dad sighed, not even bothering to stand from his seat. 

“You’re the ones who invited him over. It would be nice of you to greet him properly.”

Dad stood slowly, making his way towards us, making me think he was getting up to shake John’s hand. Instead he just stopped, not looking either of us in the eye.

“I need a drink.”

He broke us apart by walking through us, mum timidly following. I felt like swearing and screaming. It was their idea. They wanted to meet him but then they were being like this. I sent an apologetic smile to John as we sat down.

“So,” I thought I would try and make conversation,“John, this is my sister Amelia and her husband Henry. She used to live here but she moved away a few years ago.”

“Had to find a better area, you know? Safer for the children we were planning for.” Amelia smugly smiled.

“Such a saint is my sister.”

“It’s like Mary and Joseph.” John chuckled, causing me to laugh.

“Well that would make you Judas and...and whoever he was with then, wouldn’t it?” Amelia desperately tried.

“Nice one Amelia. Don’t think too hard next time, yeah?”

Before she could snap back, mum called us to the dinner table. I realised we would all be squashed around it, seeing as only four people could usually fit there. I made sure John was sat beside me, Amelia and Henry opposite us and my parents at either head of the table. Our knees were almost touching we were that close. Dinner started silent, everyone tucking into the small meal. We were poor, we never had a lot to eat; which was why I was surprised that Amelia was here, there were now three more mouths to feed, not just John. But I knew why she was really here. Amelia had done what our parents wanted, found a good man who could provide her with the bare necessities and keep her out of trouble. They wanted me to reflect on who I was in love with, try to change my mind. Wasn’t going to happen.

“So what is it you actually do?” Henry asked. I was unsure if it was supposed to be malicious or whether he was actually curious.

“Work in the betting shop.” John answered.

“Yeah, but, you know, on the side.”

“Henry, we don’t want to get involved.” Amelia scolded him.

“Just because you’ve graced me with your presence, that doesn’t mean you’re on some sort of hit list.”

“No, but my sister is.”

“Amelia, shut up.” I snapped.

“No, she’s right.” John said, causing me to whip my head round to him. He went against my instructions, placing his hand on my thigh.“But I wouldn’t let anyone hurt my girl. They would be dead before they even thought about it.”

Although I had told him to not talk of such things or stoop to my families level, my heart melted at the (somewhat morbid) statement.

“Am I hearing this right?” mum laughed, but their was no humour behind it.

“Mum, try to not get upset.” Amelia held her hand.

Now it was my turn to laugh.“Oh my god.” Everyone looked at me, John was smirking whilst the others were frowning.“You’re such a hypocrite.”

“What?”

“You were sneaking out all the time, seeing different boys every weekend. What makes you so much better than me?”

“I’m not with a criminal.”

“All of you stop it!” dad exclaimed, slamming his fist down on the table.“And get your fucking hand off my daughter.”

Amelia tutted.“Henry would never-”

“You and Henry were fucking upstairs before dinner when he came round the first time!” I butted in.

“Sounds like a good time to me.” John mumbled under his breath.

“How dare you?!” mum was shocked.

“I knew this was a stupid idea. Get out, now!”

“With pleasure.” John stood, grabbing my hand.

I quickly left with him, grabbing the key off the counter and locking the door behind me. It made me laugh hearing their shouts of protest and banging on the door. We rushed to the car, scared that they would somehow break down the door. John leaned me back against it, hands sliding down the side of my body and gripping my arse. He knew what he was doing, especially since my family now had their faces pressed against the window.

“Well, that was...quick.” I giggled.

“Yeah, you’re not used to that.” John joked.

“You have to make it all about sex, don’t you?”

“(Y/N), I don’t give a fuck about what they think, and neither do you. As soon as I get this bit of business sorted with Tom and Arthur, I’m buying that house and you are moving in with me. Then we’ll get married straight away-”

“I hope this isn’t your proposal.”

“Don’t you worry, I’ve got something big planned for that.”

He leaned down to kiss me, gripping onto my arse firmly. As he deepened the kiss, adding tongues, he forced his knee between my legs, and I subconsciously started rubbing against it, only subtly. I made sure he stayed close by pulling him in by his coat. The neighbours would surely be watching, it was a small street, which would drive my parents insane. This only fuelled something in me, and I wanted to keep going. 

“I suggest we take this somewhere more private. Like, right now.” John breathlessly said.

I frantically nodded, and we both headed for opposite sides of the car, until I saw I still had the key in my hand. Hurriedly making my way back to the door, I ignored my family who had now managed to open the windows, screaming at me as I posted the key through the letter box. Running as fast as I could back to the car, I felt the adrenaline rush through me, giggling like a maniac at the thought of my parents catching me. Slamming the door shut as I jumped in the car, John floored it, and we looked like we escaped from an insane asylum as we laughed.

I stuck my head out of the car and screamed,“I fucking love you John Shelby!”

He pulled me back in by my dress, squeezing my thigh once I sat down.“I love you too, you fucking maniac.”

“I don’t think I’ll be allowed back there, you know.”

“Good thing you’re staying with me then.”

“You sure you’re ready for all of this?”

“I’ve been ready since I laid eyes on your face...and those tits, and that arse-”

“You make it seem like you’re only in it for my body.”

“Nah, that’s the ultimate bonus though. I already said it, but once you’re with me, I protect you and love you. You’re mine.��

“And you’re mine. Make sure to do your coat up before you get out the car, it’s a bit obvious down there.”

[somethinginrocknroll]

He's not my favorite in a normal sense. His crazy fucking lifestyle and death are. He knew Elvis, The Rolling Stones, and many others too. Here's a mini bio on him:

Ingram Cecil Connor III better known professionally as Gram Parsons. He was a musician and frontman. Parsons worked with The Byrds in 1968, before quitting and joining his own band, The Flying Burrito Brothers from 1969 through 1970. 

Gram was born in Winter Haven, Florida on November 5th, 1945 to Ingram Cecil Connor Parsons II and Avis Snively Connor. Avis returned to her hometown to give birth to her son. She was the daughter of citrus fruit magnate John A. Snively, who held extensive properties in Winter Haven and in Waycross. Gram's father, Ingram Connor II was a famous World War II flying ace, decorated with the Air Medal, who was present at the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

In 1956 when he was only nine-years-old, Gram saw Elvis Presley in concert and fell in love with music. That’s where his love of music came in. Two years later his father who went by “Coon Dog” took his own life two days before Christmas, Gram was only 11/12. Both him and his sister Avis (Jr) were both shattered after their father’s death.

Avis Sr remarried to Robert Parsons and the children took his name and were adopted by him once he married their mother.

Gram Parsons did briefly attend the prestigious Bolles School in Jacksonville, Florida. That was before transferring to the public Winter Haven High School. Which he did after failing his junior year. Gram returned to Bolles which had converted from a military to a liberal arts curriculum amid the incipient Vietnam War. 

For a time, the family found a stability of sorts. They were torn apart in early 1965, when Robert had an extramarital affair and Avis' heavy drinking led to her death from cirrhosis on June 5, 1965, the day of Gram's graduation from Bolles.

Barely in his teens, he played in rock and roll cover bands such as the Pacers and the Legends, headlining in clubs owned by his stepfather in the Winter Haven/Polk County area. By the age of 16, he graduated to folk music, and in 1963 he teamed up with his first professional outfit, the Shilohs, in Greenville, South Carolina. 

Gram was heavily influenced by The Kingston Trio and The Journeymen. The band played hootenannies, coffee houses and high school auditoriums. Parsons was still enrolled in prep school, he only performed with the group in select engagements. Forays into New York City (where Parsons briefly lived with a female folk singer in a loft on Houston Street)included a performance at Florida's exhibition in the 1964 New York World's Fair and regular appearances at the Café Rafio on Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village in the summer of 1964.

 Although John Phillips who is an acquaintance of Shiloh George Wrigley arranged an exploratory meeting with Albert Grossman, the impresario balked at booking the group for a Christmas engagement at The Bitter End when he discovered that the Shilohs were still high school students. Following a recording session at the radio station of Bob Jones University, the group reached a creative impasse amid the emergence of folk rock and dissolved in the spring of 1965 around the time of Gram’s mother’s passing.

Shockingly despite being poor in school and having bad test grades, Gram went to Harvard University in 1966 with the help of a strong essay he wrote. He only did one semester and that’s where he became more serious about country music. He heard Merle Haggard for the first time.

In 1966, he and other musicians from the Boston folk scene formed a group called the “International Submarine Band”. After briefly residing in the Kingsbridge section of the Bronx, they relocated to Los Angeles the following year. Following several lineup changes, the band signed to Lee Hazlewood's LHI Records, where they spent late 1967 recording Safe at Home. The album contains one of Parsons' best-known songs, "Luxury Liner", and an early version of "Do You Know How It Feels", which he revised later in his career. Safe at Home would remain unreleased until mid-1968, by which time the International Submarine Band had broken up.

In that same year Gram got the attention of The Byrds’ guitarist Chris Hillman thanks to business manager Larry Spector as a possible replacement member since David Crosby and Micheal Clarke left in late 1967. Parsons had already met Hillman at a bank in 1967. Gram had his only child, Polly, with Nancy Ross the girlfriend of David Crosby.

Gram passed the audition in February 1968. He was at first a jazz pianist but was switched to rhyme guitar and vocals. Gram left the band when asked why Gram responded with,

"Being with The Byrds confused me a little. I couldn't find my place. I didn't have enough say-so. I really wasn't one of The Byrds. I was originally hired because they wanted a keyboard player. But I had experience being a frontman and that came out immediately. And [Roger McGuinn] being a very perceptive fellow saw that it would help the act, and he started sticking me out front."

He was also friends with The Rolling Stones members Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. And they stayed close to each other until a fall out in the 70s. Before Parsons' departure from The Byrds, he had accompanied the two Rolling Stones to Stonehenge along with McGuinn and Hillman in the English county of Wiltshire.

 Immediately after leaving the band, Parsons stayed at Richards' house and the pair developed a close friendship over the next few years, with Parsons reintroducing the guitarist to country music. According to Stones' confidant and close friend of Parsons, Phil Kaufman, the two would sit around for hours playing obscure country records and trading off on various songs with their guitars.

Returning to Los Angeles in 1969, Parsons sought out Hillman, and the two formed The Flying Burrito Brothers with bassist Chris Ethridge and pedal steel player “Sneaky” Pete Kleinow. They did every genre of music possible from hard rock all the way to country and jazz gospel.  Around this time of The Flying Burrito Brothers, Gram started dabbling more and more into drugs.

Then Gram started a solo career in 1970 and toured with Emmylou Harris for a bit ; he may have been romantically involved with her as well. He then accompanied the Rolling Stones on their 1971 U.K. tour in the hope of being signed to the newly formed Rolling Stones Records.

Parsons and Keith Richards had mulled the possibility of recording a duo album. Moving into Villa Nellcôte with the guitarist during the sessions for Exile on Main Street that commenced thereafter, Parsons remained in a consistently incapacitated state and frequently quarreled with his girlfriend, aspiring actress Gretchen Burrell who later become his wife. 

Eventually, Parsons was asked to leave by Anita Pallenberg, Richards' longtime domestic partner. Decades later, Richards suggested in his memoir that Jagger may have been the impetus for Parsons' departure because Richards was spending so much time playing music with Parsons. Rumors have persisted that he appears somewhere on the legendary album, and while Richards concedes that it is very likely he is among the chorus of singers on "Sweet Virginia", this has never been substantiated. Parsons attempted to rekindle his relationship with the band on their 1972 American tour to no avail.

After leaving the Stones' camp, Parsons married Burrell in 1971 at his stepfather's New Orleans estate. Allegedly, the relationship was far from stable, with Burrell cutting a needy and jealous figure while Parsons quashed her burgeoning film career. Many of the singer's closest associates and friends claim that Parsons was preparing to commence divorce proceedings at the time of his death; the couple had already separated by this point.

In the summer of 1973, Parsons' Topanga Canyon home burned to the ground, the result of a stray cigarette. Nearly all of his possessions were destroyed with the exception of a guitar and a prized Jaguar automobile. The fire proved to be the last straw in the relationship between Burrell and Parsons, who moved into a spare room in Kaufman's house. While not recording, he frequently hung out and jammed with members of New Jersey–based country rockers Quacky Duck and His Barnyard Friends and the proto-punk Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers, who were represented by former Byrds manager Eddie Tickner.

Before formally breaking up with Burrell, Parsons already had a woman waiting in the wings. While recording, he saw a photo of a beautiful woman at a friend's home and was instantly smitten. The woman turned out to be Margaret Fisher, a high school sweetheart of the singer from his Waycross, Georgia, days. Like Parsons, Fisher had drifted west and became established in the Bay Area rock scene. A meeting was arranged and the two instantly rekindled their relationship, with Fisher dividing her weeks between Los Angeles and San Francisco at Parsons' expense.

Gram loved to visit Joshua Tree National Park. He would visit it often. Gram would frequently do psychedelic drugs and try to spot UFOs there. He told Phil Kauffman that he wanted his ashes spread there in Joshua National Tree Park since he loved that place and practically lived there when not in LA. 

So he, Dale, Micheal, Phil, Gram's girlfriend Margaret, and Dale's unnamed girlfriend all went to stay at JNTP Inn. Where Gram got morphine from an unknown woman.

He injected himself and OD. Margaret shoved ice cubes up his ass and put him in a cold shower which worked. He was up and talking. Dale was left in charge to watch over Gram and then Gram stopped breathing. Dale tried CPR but failed. Margaret and Dale both watched Gram die. Finally they call a fucking ambulance and he's pronounced dead on arrival.

Now Gram’s stepfather is a POS okay. He wanted Gram buried in Louisiana so he could take Gram's little wealth and the family estate which didn't belong to the stepfather since he wasn't blood.

Phil and Micheal couldn't allow this. Gram wanted to be cremated and his ashes spread. So with a shit ton of booze to make an elephant drunk they take a loaned hearse, because you know everyone has a hearse on loan. They were dressed as cowboys. For as suits were “too itchy” to wear.  The duo take his body back from the airport where he's meant to fly back to Louisiana back to Joshua National Tree Park.

 So the duo crash in JNTP and they pour five gallons of gasoline on Gram and his coffin. Causing a fireball. But cremation and gasoline are different. So instead of having Gram's ashes they had a cooked charred Gram instead. Police were of course called. The duo was fined $750 each and made to do community service.Gram was sadly buried in Louisiana against his wishes but his stepfather didn't get anything.

Gram's wealth and estate were split between his wife, girlfriend, sister, and his daughter. And the family denied the whole illegal cremation happening and won't talk about it.

The end.

Omg that is a really good summary, very sad life tho and how he died but wow

[catboycafe]

I Will Now Express Every Thought I Have About Pacific Rim: The Black 

⚠️ spoilers for the whole thing baby

I actually forgot Pacific Rim: The Black was premiering today until I saw it in an article this morning! When I first heard about it months ago, I was decidedly not sold on a Pacific Rim anime. Uprising burnt me the fuck out and I don’t have a lot of trust left in me for new entries to the franchise. But I had heard rumblings of Raleigh and Herc being referenced after going into #pacificrim and I decided I may as well check out to see what was up! I binged it in 4 hours and it sure was a whirlwind, I’ll tell ya

The Plot

I really enjoy the setting and initial concept! We’re so use to seeing Kaiju/Jaegar shenanigans play out within these major cities with helpless civilians everywhere that spending so much time in a lonesome desert and these destroyed civilizations was really cool and indicative of the changes Pacific Rim has undergone in the last few years. I also looooved the Desert Settlement from the beginning!! It seemed really homey and picturesque; I wish we’d spent more time with the other survivors and got to see more of their day to day aside from farming and sitting. 

I also found the first episode set up to be really tight and well written! I was hooked during the initial flashback, Hayley and Taylor’s fight was really poignant and well acted, and the reveal of Atlas Destroyer felt really huge and epic!!

But once we left the Desert Settlement and the plot started actually moving along, the pacing becomes suuuper rough. We spent way too long in Bogan with Shane and Mei; there’s only 7 episodes and we spent, like, 3? 4? within the confines of that camp and I felt it weighed the plot down. Boy is introduced in the 2nd episode and, because the narrative spends so much time on Shane’s evil machinations and Mei’s back story, we still don’t know anything concrete about his origins or purpose 3 episodes later! That felt frustrating to me

The story beats overall were very predictable. I was able to pick up on Mei’s backstory via her dynamic with Shane in their introductions, so her memories felt too built up and too hollow once they were revealed. The same with the reveal of Boy’s Kaiju form; he was in a big green test tube in a PPDC base - I assumed immediately he was a part-kaiju experiment and again his reveal felt hollow, especially after the glacial pace of it’s development. 

Even when events weren’t predictable, they lacked weight. The appearance of several Kaiju Breaches in “Boneyard” felt very cheap for some reason; I wasn’t scared and I didn’t feel tense about these odds mounting against the protagonists. This was just happening and I was just watching. 

The Art Direction and Animation

I’m very obsessed with all the new Kaiju we got from this; I love how Copperhead is rendered, they’re a joy to see on screen!! The Rippers are also very cute and deserve little plushies...i love these neat little dogs. Boy’s Kaiju Form is very intimidating with an interesting color palette and I loved seeing him next to Copperhead’s highly saturated design!

That’s unfortunately all that I liked however; All the human character design is unmemorable to me. Every character looks exactly like another easily identifiable anime character from a different property (Hayley looks exactly like Zero Suit Samus to me, for example. And Mei kept reminding me of both Bernadetta Fire Emblem and Motoko Kusanagi from GitS. The list goes on). 

I can sort of understand why they’re so bland? A franchise going from Live Action to something as heavily stylized as anime is probably a really difficult transition and these designs are probably meant to be more lowkey than more unique anime designs in order to help that transition. But realistically stylized designs can still be recognizable and unique! These feel uninspired and bare bones.

 I have no problem with the switch to CGI animation that modern anime is doing because I know it’s a lot cheaper to produce and it can still be really unique and striking! But The Black’s model animation felt very stilted and inconsistent. I don’t have a lot of knowledge about animating so I don’t think I can accurately describe what I disliked? Wooden is probably the best term. Character movements felt wooden and things like hair and clothes felt plastic. 

Impacts also had very little weight. The fight between Tayler/Mei and Copperhead reminded me of when you’re in a dream and trying to punch something, but you can’t punch hard. It was simply too floaty and too soft. The final showdown in “Showdown” was better, but not by much. It was very immersion breaking seeing these Giant Robots and Giant Monsters unable to throw a real solid hit!

Characters

My favorite character was unequivocally Joel Wyrick. We love Joel Wyrick in this house! Joel’s character has real charisma and charm. I love his flirtations with Loa, how his cocky disposition is juxtaposed with his drinking problem and later insecurities over his lost memories, and his genuine kindness shown to Mei, Taylor, and Boy. No one ever plays with Boy, they just run after him and drag him around...but Joel has this moment in “Escape from Bogan” where he kneels down to Boy and helps him collect rocks. It was sweet!

So of course, when Joel dies for absolutely no reason 5 minutes later - pissed! I was pissed! I yelled “COME ON” aloud in my studio apartment! I was genuinely so excited to see him interact more with the rest of cast then, poof. No More Joel.

His death felt like it was for shock value to me rather than actual narrative development. Why kill him when we still don’t fully understand his and Mei’s relationship? Why were they so close? Were they childhood friends, or just coworkers that happen to become friends? Why did he specifically know all the details of Shane’s abuse towards Mei before she did? 

What did his death accomplish? It made Mei sad...ok? She was already...very sad. Her running away from Shane already had consequences - the consequences of Shane coming after them for revenge in the future. Why did Joel have to become a causality? 

His death is ultimately tied to Mei’s character arc which is, unfortunately, my least favorite :c I find Mei to be a really one dimensional character with a personality, backstory, outlook, and motivation that I’ve seen done a million times before with a million other characters. She feels very out of place in the franchise as a whole - Pacific Rim is, at it’s core, a story about connecting with others. Her self-centric arc and lack of desire to connect outside of drifting really alienates her from the story at large and it frustrates me how long The Black’s narrative spends on her. 

Hayley and Taylor were otherwise very interesting in the pilot episode, but become similarly one dimensional at the story chugs on. Taylor’s unflinching (bordering on unhealthy) faith in their parents was really interesting next to Hayley’s complete acceptance of their parents’ death. But once the two of them make up their differences, they lack an interesting dynamic and become very passive protagonists.

 Taylor especially has no personality - how would you describe Taylor? He’s...brave. He’s the older brother. He’s a leader? He’s nice? There is nothing noteworthy about him at all, which is sad considering I think he has the potential to be a really interesting way to explore the original movie’s influence on The Black’s story.

Hayley’s grief and self-blame are more interesting than Taylor’s...nothingness, but she still falls into this one-note trope of being the naive, excitable little sister. I guess I feel abnormally frustrated about this flat character writing because Pacific Rim’s incredibly unique cast has always been an inspiration to me! It feels sad that this new iteration into the series is full of what feel like stock characters. 

Then we get to Boy. How come Boy can’t have a person name? It’s specifically written in a dialogue between Taylor and Hayley: “I’m not going to call him Chad or Barnaby or one of those names for a baby brother you wanted as a kid,”

Why?

He’s by all accounts a human child when they find him. Yes, he was found in a big green test tube - but he walks and acts just like a human child. The only difference, seemingly, is that he is non-verbal and engages in strange/annoying behavior (running off, eating bugs, etc). So he isn’t deserving of a name?? I don’t know why that makes me so mad, it just does. it’s like they refuse to treat him as a human even before they find out he’s a Kaiju  - it’s super weird! How can the story sell me on the three of them becoming found family (like they’re seemingly trying to do) if the protagonists won’t even treat this kid like a kid??

Misc. Thoughts

The callbacks to Stacker, Herc, and Raleigh were cool! I also like that Herc is a major plot point! We love Herc Hanson and it’s what he deserves. I also find Loa’s connection to Horizon Bravo very interesting...and the fact we’re getting Kaiju cultist lore! Love that! Love that!

Fucked up that the only two dark skinned characters were: 1) removed from the story 10 minutes in with no call back yet, 2) Killed after having 1 line of dialogue and fridged for the character development of the blonde white girl. I really need to know what the deal with those 4 characters leaving in the beginning was about - I absolutely thought we’d see them again by now, but no dice

I don’t know how to feel about Ajax and have no clue what their purpose in the story is. They’re cool, but whats the point? 

If Mei and Taylor are paired up together romantically, I’m putting Craig Kyle and Greg Johnson in the time out box. Very tired of seeing random hetero romance B plots in stories that can’t even get their A plots together

Overall, it’s kind of subpar! It has the foundations of a really interesting story, but the pacing and characters really took me out of it. I’m interested in Season 2! I know season 2 is already ordered and I’d love to see how things continue to develop, see if the character writing gets any better - but I’m not too hopeful unfortunately. I really really love Pacific Rim after all these years and I’m happy to still be getting content and world building! There’s just sooo much I would change about this however. At least fanfiction’s free! 

Thanks for reading all this, I have ADHD and just go on and on if u let me. hmu if You Too have thoughts about Pacific Rim: The Black and have no one to talk abt them with

[clandonnachaidh]

Remember Remember the Fifth of November

“D’ye think she’ll be warm enough?”

I looked down at our daughter and swallowed the urge to comment on the fact that he’d asked that very question at least ten times in almost as many minutes. His strong jaw was clenched in concentration as he wrestled a cosy knit hat onto her head, trying to be as delicate as he could so as to not wake her but having to go to war with her already abundant curls as they fought back against constriction. Brianna was in my favourite place, cocooned in a wrap that held her close to my chest with her head resting heavily on my shoulder as she slept. I even welcomed the drool that would no doubt be spilling from her parted lips as she dreamed.

Amongst all the other blessings that having a child of our own brought to us, the fact that she was such a good sleeper was not one to go unmentioned.

I smiled softly at the sight of my husband, huge and imposing in every way but somehow unbelievably gentle when it came to his daughter. Jamie was looking at her with the sheer adoration that appeared only when he was looking at Brianna.

“She’ll be fine. Besides, it’ll be warm beside the bonfire.”

“Aye but nae too close,” Jamie warned me, pointlessly.

“Don’t worry, lad, I don’t have any inclination to launch our daughter into the flames.”

He quietly muttered ‘dinna even joke’ under his breath as he put an arm around me and pressed a kiss to my temple, showing me that I was forgiven for my attempt at comedy.

Brianna shuffled slightly so I checked that she was comfortable, made sure that her little booties were firmly on her feet and saw that her hands were cradled in tight fists under her chin. Jamie retrieved his favourite Barbour jacket from the wardrobe and slipped into it, pulling his own beanie down around his ears before he caught sight of the three of us in the mirror.

Of course I was biased but the picture reflected in the glass was glorious. We looked like the perfect little family. Jamie towering over his two girls, ever the protector. I hadn’t been aware that I was beaming with pride but when I saw myself, my face was split into an open grin. Our little unit, all bundled up against what would be a cold autumn night, complete with matching wool jumpers that had been a gift to Jamie and myself from Jenny the previous Christmas with the promise of a smaller version being underway for Brianna to receive this year.

We could hear Ian and Murtagh having a loud discussion about where best to stick the Guy even through the thick walls of Lallybroch. With a chuckle, Jamie decided that it was time for him to wade into the discussion lest his godfather and brother-in-law decided to try and drown the other in the basin full of water that had been set up so the children could bob for apples. Just as we made it into the kitchen, Wee Jamie was caught red handed trying to stick a single finger into the treacle that was cooling around the toffee apples that were supposed to have been a surprise for later. A fact that wasn’t lost on my husband.

“Yer ma will tan yer hide and ye ken fine well.” Jamie grabbed his namesake around the waist with his free arm and lifted his giggling nephew out into the cold air, his other arm never dropping from the shield that he had created around Brianna and myself.

Lallybroch had come to be our home. It was beautiful in the spring with the first buds beginning to bloom and the small walk down to the burn was worth it for a dip in the midst of boiling hot summers. Of course, it was picturesque enough to be on a postcard when it was covered in soft, fluffy snow but my favourite had to be autumn. The trees that surrounded the land had all turned, greens deepening until they turned bright orange and red. It hadn’t been too windy so even though the ground was covered in a deep layer of leaves, the huge trees were anything but bare.

“Go and sort them out before I stuff one of them into the Guy’s outfit masel’,” Jenny’s voice came from behind us and Jamie snorted a laugh as he moved towards the two men who were still having words with each other over the correct placement of the effigy that had lovingly been made from potato sacks and straw with a somewhat terrifying hand-drawn face thanks to the efforts of Wee Jamie and his little sister Maggie.

“Mary, Michael and Bride, they’re worse than the weans sometimes,” Jenny sighed heavily, a sentiment I was not going to disagree with. We watched the three men bicker over this and that before finally coming to the conclusion that they would play rock, paper, scissors to determine the outcome of a very simple issue.

“Oh, for God’s sake,” I laughed as Murtagh clipped Ian around the head, clearly not happy with the result. Victorious, Ian pulled the physical representation of Guy Fawkes from the ground and placed him proudly on the bonfire, balancing him right in the middle of a particularly dense patch of branches to serve as a sort of throne.

I hadn’t noticed Jenny had gone until she reappeared with two mugs in her hands, spirals of steam rising and disappearing into the air.

“I slipped something special intae yer hot chocolate, mo phiuthar,” Jenny gave me a wink as she pressed the warm mug into my hand. I inquisitively stuck my nose close to the rim and felt a wry smile creep onto my face as I confirmed my suspicions with a look at my sister-in-law.

“That creme brûlée liqueur I got you?”

She nodded before taking a solid glug from her own cocktail, “The very same.”

From his place at his dad’s side, Wee Jamie bolted towards us and pulled at his mother’s arm, dragging her towards her husband as he begged the two of them for the bonfire to be lit.

With a look down at my own sleeping offspring, I took a sip of my hot chocolate and closed my eyes appreciatively, letting the warmth flow down my throat and into my chest.

“Christ alive, Claire.”

Jamie’s husky voice appeared from behind me and I smirked at him, knowing that only my husband could be one of the only men to see his wife enjoying a hot drink and make it a sexual thing.

“There’s booze in it. Here, try.”

I offered my mug to him but instead he closed the gap between us, careful to cradle Brianna’s head in one of his hands, and kissed the taste from my lips.

“Delicious.”

“Uncle Jamie, hurry! Da’s doin’ it!”

We all convened around the modest structure that had been built from old fence posts, planks from barn doors and old bits of timber from wooden pallets. I spied the leg of a kitchen chair that had met an explosive end the previous Hogmanay after a drunken Jamie and Murtagh had fallen into it during what had started as an eightsome reel and quickly descended into the two men trying to spin each other as hard as possible until they both lost their footing.

As if she knew that it was time for the festivities to start, Brianna started to make the little noises that meant she was beginning to wake.

“Ah, the wee snuffle pig is comin’ around, is she?” Jamie whispered soft words over her as his hands began to untangle his daughter from the folds of the wrap. I giggled at the nickname that he’d given her and stretched the tired muscles of the small of my back now that I didn’t have an extra 10kg of weight hanging off of me. Even though she was only a year old, Brianna was affectionately referred to within the family as ‘the long baby’ due to the Viking genes that had been passed down through her father.

As her sleepy eyes began to blink open, the first thing in her line of sight was her father which produced a rather spectacular smile.

“Daaaaaa,” she groaned with joy.

It was the only thing that she said, not yet having mastered any sort of name for me. She had, however, had given me the gift of a very specific, very shrill screech to know when it was mummy that was looking for. As much as I joked about him pipping me to the post, it was my favourite thing to see Jamie’s utterly radiant smile each and every time she said it.

“Did ye have a nice wee sleep, m’annsachd?” he asked as he kissed her head and then each cheek for good measure.

“Look, darling!” I put on my best excited face and pointed towards the bonfire where Murtagh held a torch and Ian held Maggie on his hip, Wee Jamie at dutifully at his side.

“Remember, remember, the 5th of November! Gunpowder, treason and plot! We see no reason why gunpowder treason should ever be forgot!”

With a round of applause for the two Murray children, Murtagh put the torch to the woodpile.

It went up with a whoosh causing Murtagh to stagger back slightly. He caught himself before subtly giving the finger to Ian who was doubled over laughing.

“Ye’ve got a bit less beard the noo!”

Shaking my head at the childish antics of the two eldest men in the family, I set my sights on the reflection of the flames dancing around in Brianna’s beautiful blue eyes. A lighter higher up, I saw the same vision replicated in the eyes of her father.

“D’ye like it, Bree? Can ye see the manny on the top there?”

“One year old might be a touch young to start explaining about why we burn a man on a bonfire, Fraser,” I said sardonically.

He made a face at me before bringing his mouth down to meet mine, Brianna’s pudgy hand caught somewhere between our bottom lips.

“She’ll be raised on stories of rebels, Sassenach. Guy Fawkes and Robert the Bruce and the like.”

I raised an eyebrow at him, “Any women in that list?”

“Aye, ‘course. Joan of Arc, Sophie Scholl. All the good ones.”

I nodded once with a smile to tell him that I was happy with his additions and we turned back to the bonfire, watching as the effigy burned in front of us. Jamie secured Brianna on his hip, burying his face into the riotous curls that had escaped from her hat and delighting in the resulting giggles. His other arm was wrapped around my side, sheltering me under his arm. Despite the cold, he was warm enough for all three of us.

We watched as the flames licked and crawled over the wood, bursts of air popping as the heat became too much. It was a beautiful clear night, even with the smoke from the bonfire billowing upwards and all at once, a huge explosion of white light lit up the night sky.

Brianna’s face at the sight of her first firework was something I knew that both Jamie and I would cherish forever. Her mouth hung open, eyes glittering with excitement as the colours burst in the sky. White and blue and green and red illuminated the pale skin on her face and it was one of the most beautiful things I’d ever seen.

She began to make breathy noises of awe, her little hand gently resting on Jamie’s cheek just to make sure that he was watching it all unfold with her. He quickly snuck a glance at me and smiled knowingly when he saw the tears in my eyes. A laugh snuck out of me, ready to dash my eyes and make a self-deprecating comment about being a silly, emotional mum but Jamie pulled me tighter against him and laid a kiss on the crown of my head.

“I am the luckiest man alive,” he announced. “Happy Bonfire Night, my beautiful lasses.”

[hibiscustea9]

10,000 views on “Fire Walk with Me”!

YOU GUYS. Late last night, “Fire Walk with Me” hit 10,000 views. I am beyond blown away by this. Nothing I have ever written has come anywhere close to the reception this story has gotten. To celebrate, I’m going to make the sort of post I don’t usually make and share one of my headcanons for each of the Stardew Valley villagers (excepting the few who don’t have any real impact on the story, like Gil and the Ginger Island villagers). Read on below the jump to see these (some of which have been shared already in “Fire Walk with Me”) and thank you, thank you for all of your support and reading this story. It’s made me so very happy.

Abigail secretly loves disco music. She hates the aesthetic and clothing of the era, but she will rock out to any of the great disco bands or divas when in her room and with her earbuds in. She would sooner die than have Sam and Sebastian find out about this.

Alex had offers to attend several universities on a full ride scholarship to play gridball, but turned them down out of fear of failing out of school. After high school, he was diagnosed as dyslexic. His teachers were encouraged to just pass him through without making him complete the work, which left him deeply insecure. He now has plans to go to trade school, which he feels might be his ticket out of Pelican Town.

Caroline is the wizard’s daughter, and a lay green witch. Her father was a sailor who was lost at sea and Rasmodius comforted her mother (which is the regret Rasmodius has that broke up his marriage). Caroline’s hair is naturally green. She is not aware of her magic, which manifests mostly as being able to grow any plants she wishes.

Clint left Pelican Town to go to college, only to have to come back when his father died to take care of his mother. He was a voice major and has a lovely singing voice, though he’s often too shy to show it off these days.

Demetrius is a skilled teacher and used to adjunct biology classes at Grampleton Community College to help support his family when Robin was getting her carpentry business off the ground. While he enjoyed teaching, the commute and long hours burnt him out after a year and he hasn’t felt the urge to teach since.

The Dwarf is a huge movie buff, but even more than the films, she enjoys turning around while sitting in the front row to look at the faces of the people watching the films.

Elliott is not a citizen of Ferngill but a foreign national. His posh accent and vocabulary rubbed some townsfolk the wrong way when he moved to Pelican Town. He managed to get on the good side of those same townsfolk when he accidentally knocked his bait bucket all over himself at his first Festival of Ice but continued fishing through it, coming in a respectable second to Willy that year.

Emily genuinely believes in the healing power of crystals and positive thinking, though she also has great respect for traditional medicine. She often asks Harvey medical questions when he’s at the bar. For his part, Harvey truly enjoys being able to talk about his discipline with anyone else, even a crunchy granola type like Emily.

Evelyn stopped believing in Yoba after her daughter was diagnosed with cancer and died young, leaving Alex in her care. She has never let on, given how George makes a point of attending weekly services. Seeing how much Clara suffered, first in an abusive marriage and then going through the failed treatment for her cancer, left Evelyn unable to believe in an all-powerful deity. Instead, she aims to spread as much kindness as she can, seeking salvation in other people instead of worship of Yoba.

George started watching so much television when Alex came to live with him and Evelyn. He didn’t like TV much before then, but got in the habit of letting Alex stay up late and watch reruns with him. While he claims to enjoy westerns the most, he has a not-so-secret love for classic game show reruns. The way the women dress reminds him of Evelyn when she was young, though he thinks none of them are quite as pretty as Evelyn.

Gus used to run a successful restaurant in the Zuzu City suburbs and is a classically-trained chef. The stress of running the restaurant and being in charge of both the front and back of the house took a toll on his health and his doctors recommended he step back and find something less strenuous to do. With his proceeds from selling the restaurant, he built the Stardrop Saloon and now is much happier with his life.

Gunther is a local son of Pelican Town who moved away to attend grad school in library science. He had a job in Zuzu City but moved back when he learned of the theft of the collection. He secretly resents returning to Pelican Town, which he was eager to leave, but feels it is his duty to stay and ensure the library is taken care of.

Haley’s ringtone on her phone is the National Geographic theme. When she was young, her parents took her and Emily all over the world and she grew fascinated with other cultures and other places. She has planned all the trips she wants to take. As much as she and Emily bicker, Emily is her favorite travel companion.

Harvey and his family were very poor when he was growing up. When he was fourteen, his sister contracted scarlet fever and they were unable to afford a doctor’s visit. A local doctor from a clinic came by and left medicine at her own expense. This led Harvey to pursue medicine as a career; he could make much more money in Grampleton or Zuzu City, but he stays on in Pelican Town because they really need a doctor. 

Jas helped Shane with his experiments in breeding the chickens. She has a natural head for science and once she got hold of Shane’s books, she plotted out how to look for recessive genes that would allow for chickens to be bred and emerge with blue feathers. She and Shane have a gentlemen’s agreement to not tell Marnie.

Jodi worked as a travel agent before she married Kent. She always envisioned the trips they would take as soon as they had the money, and then when Sam was grown, and then when Vincent was grown. She sometimes stays up late on the computer, looking at flight plans and planning the most affordable trips that would allow her to travel and see the places she most wants to see in the world.

Kent found comfort in another soldier when they were in the Gotoro prison camp. Though it became physical, it was more about finding something to hold onto than about the sex. His guilt over this relationship kept him distant from Jodi and his sons when he first returned. After confessing his indiscretion to Jodi, they attended relationship counseling. She has forgiven him, but he has yet to forgive himself.

Krobus is technically a liquid.

Leah earned an M.F.A. from Zuzu State, where she met and became friends with Elliott. Prior to attending her program, she interned as an apprentice carpenter in Grampleton. It was these same contacts who told her about Pelican Town and Robin, who let Leah stay at her home while she looked for a house to rent in town. Leah not so secretly has a crush of admiration on Robin.

Lewis, before becoming mayor of Pelican Town, owned a leatherworking business. He misses working with his hands, which is one of the reasons why he always visits the shopkeepers and is insistent on there being booths at the Stardew Valley Fair for the artisans in town to show off their wares.

Linus used to live in Pelican Town. He has a living relative in town. [REMAINDER REDACTED: SPOILERS FOR UPCOMING CHAPTERS OF “FIRE WALK WITH ME”]

Marlon saved George’s life the day of the mine cave-in. He was the only one willing to enter the caves and seek out the last missing miner. It was in the process of doing so that a falling rock blinded him in one eye. Despite his injury, Marlon managed to pull George to safety up through the mine shafts. Though his lost eye made him unable to be an active member of the Adventurer’s Guild, Marlon does not regret anything and would absolutely do it again.

Marnie wanted to be a veterinarian. She did very well in college, earning a degree in animal sciences from Zuzu State, and was on the verge of leaving Pelican Town permanently to pursue vet school when she interned at a vet’s office in Grampleton for a summer. She was so distraught the first time she had to assist with putting a dog to sleep that she gave up on the career and decided to open her ranch. She makes it a point to be present any time an animal has to be put to sleep to give it comfort, even though it wrecks her emotionally.

Maru got into science after Sebastian was completely uninterested in a chemistry set he got one year for the Feast of the Winter Star. She is still passionate about chemistry, despite her other interests in biology and robotics. She was briefly the most popular kid in town, despite being younger than most of the other young adults, when she learned how to make ice cream using ingredients found in any kitchen.

Morris was a child actor who had a small role in Junimo Forest, a nearly-forgotten children’s movie from more than forty years ago. He owns six of the known twenty surviving copies of the film.

Mr. Qi took Sandy on as his ward after her parents, who worked for him, died suddenly. He considers Sandy to be his own daughter and always looks out for her. It’s why the Oasis is still in business despite barely getting any customers.

Pam and Penny used to live above the library. Pam’s husband and Penny’s father was the former curator, who made off with the entire collection on a day when Pam took Penny to an academic competition her senior year of high school. The trailer was the only thing they could afford to move into. This was when Pam started drinking so heavily and Penny started longing so much to live in a house of her own.

Pierre holds a degree in economics that he wanted to use to help boost his family’s business. His secret stash is stock options that he has been investing in since taking over Pierre’s General Store from his father. Neither Caroline nor Abigail knows about this money that Pierre is sitting on.

(I am not the biggest fan of Pierre, in case you can’t guess.)

Rasmodius only built his tower after his daughter, Caroline, was born. He has looked over Caroline and her family ever since. Though his lifespan will last far beyond Caroline’s, he plans to watch over Abigail after she is gone, as well as any children Abigail has, or their descendants. His greatest regret is not being present in Caroline’s life as she was growing up.

Robin wanted to be a ballroom dancer, but at 5′11 was far too tall to actually enter the ballroom circuit. She met Demetrius at amateur ballroom dancing lessons and still knows how to perform any ballroom or Latin dances she learned. Her favorite dance is the tango because of the crisp precision required. After she retires, she and Demetrius have a plan to travel and dance the tango in all of the countries where it is taught.

Sam, despite a love of pranks, only ever really got in trouble once while in high school. He and Sebastian cut class and went to a local park, where Sam skateboarded and Sebastian smoked. A missed trick made Sam get so scraped up he had road rash for a month. After he got home, Jodi read him the riot act for once and grounded him from skateboarding until school was out. That was when Sam got into guitar and started thinking seriously about a career in music.

Sandy met Emily at a holistic retreat. She used to work for Mr. Qi, selling snake oil (literally - his iridium milk sells for a huge amount to those in the know), but was so energized by her encounter and conversation with Emily that she decided to go into running her own store.

Sebastian’s favorite adult in town (other than his mom) is Marnie, who recognizes in him a kindred spirit. Marnie taught Sebastian how to catch frogs when he was young and he still occasionally seeks her out to talk to and ask advice from. He vehemently dislikes Lewis because of his refusal to acknowledge his relationship with Marnie, and wants to see Marnie in a relationship with someone who will treat her right.

Shane was on track to be a major gridball star, and was the hope of Stardew Valley High, before getting in a car accident senior year. He almost lost a leg and had to spend six months relearning how to walk. He began drinking heavily afterward to cope with the constant physical pain. Marnie reached out to friends of his in Zuzu City, who had him come live with them and dry out. He remained sober until three months after he moved back to Pelican Town with Jas, his goddaughter. He started drinking again after working at JojaMart, much to Marnie’s dismay.

Vincent changes what he wants to be when he grows up on a weekly basis. Past desired jobs have included soldier (like his dad), musician (like his brother), teacher (like Miss Penny, but something fun like art, not yucky like spelling), game show host, Flower Queen, surfer, and astronaut. Jodi amuses herself by imagining what her son will wear to work on the weeks where he insists he’s going to be some combination of the above.

Willy is a veteran of the Ferngill Coast Guard. He is from the Fern Islands but vowed never to return after some of his siblings disputed his father’s will and caused a massive feud. He joined the Coast Guard as a way to stay on the water and get away from the islands. He was honorably discharged after suffering an injury on a rescue mission and decided to settle in the most peaceful seaside town in Ferngill that he could find, which led him to Pelican Town.

Once again, thank you all so, so, so much for reading “Fire Walk with Me”! I hope you enjoyed these headcanons and that they give you some insight into some of the way I’ve written characters in the story.

[siriuslyshewrote]

Eastside - F.S

Request - Hi please can I have a finn shelby imagine where I'm his bestfriend and i have a crush on him and me and esme (my sister),linda,gina,ada and polly have a few drinks and I end up getting drunk and finn is ignoring me so I flirt with a guy to get his attention and then finn ends up looking after me and I end up telling him I'm in love with him thanks xx @beth-winchester21

Y/N is Esme’s younger sister, and I envisage her living with Esme and John and their kids. Both Y/N and Finn are 17.

1925 - The Garrison Pub - 11:13 PM

“Where the bloody hell are our boys?” Esme, your sisters voice - a little slurred, a little louder than usual - exclaimed, slamming her glass back onto the table with more force than she intended.

Ada let out a laugh. “Cutting someone, no doubt. Boring. They could be here-“

She wildly gestured around with her hands, accidentally smacking you in the head, to which she apologised several times, placing a drunken kiss to your head, ruffling your already messy hair, as you giggled, a little more drunk that you had initially expected when you were practically dragged out of your home, Polly proclaiming that Finn could survive without you for one night. That sentence had stung a little at the time, but you could barely remember why now.

“Having fun!” She continued, lighting a cigarette, the smell of which tickled your nose with familiarity - the same ones Finn smoked.

“A bit too much fun.” Linda gently chastised, still sipping on her heavily diluted gin and tonic.

“Oh, loosen up, Linda-“ Your sister replied. “Live a little! Heaven knows your husband does!”

Even tipsy, you could tell that Linda had taken offence to that statement, her jaw set a little, focusing on stirring her drink. Ada sniggered a little, stumbling up from beside you, helpfully disrupting a potential argument.

“I’m going to order us some ... more drinks - Y/N, what do you want?”

You opened your mouth to say just something weak, because there was a distinct fuzzy feeling in your head that made you want to giggle an awful lot.

“She’ll have a whiskey. Me too, Ada.” Esme pulled you into a side hug, and you laughed a little at your older sister, leaning your head against her shoulder.

“Who do you reckon Polly’s chatting up at the bar?” Your sister grinned, guiding your glance to a rather tipsy Polly, who was laughing at something a much younger man had told her, a coy look in her eyes.

“He’s definitely a pilot.” You mused. “Or a chauffeur, something like that.”

“No, I think an accountant.” Linda chipped in, leaning towards the two of you. “He’s got that look about him.”

“The boring look.” Esme pointed out, and you all giggled.

“What are we chatting about?” Ada questioned, plopping back down beside you, spilling half the drinks on herself, before she handed them out, giving the fullest glass to you with a not so subtle wink.

“Pol’s new catch.” You informed her.

“Oh, him! He seems pretty boring-“

“That’s what we said!”

She laughed. “Moving on - when is my dear sort-of-sister-in-law going to find herself a catch?” She jabbed you with her elbow, eyebrows wiggling conspiratorially.

“I think she already has. To a certain younger brother of yours.” Esme grinned teasingly, as your cheeks reddened, as you drank a big gulp of your whiskey to avoid talking for a second.

They both laughed. “Well, a fucking blind man could figure that one out.” Ada grinned, as you blushed even further.

“How many times do I have to tell you two that Finn is just a friend-“ You protested, but it was impossible to hide your pink cheeks. Esme poked them gently.

“Your cheeks say different, Y/N/N.” She teased.

You snorted. “It’s hot in here-“

They both made disparaging noises with a laugh, and you were only distracted from your torment when the door swung open, and a group of men strolled into the pub - the Shelby brothers. Your eyes went immediately to Finn, who was joking around with John about something. His eyes flickered to yours for a few moments, and you shot him a wide smile, heart beating a little too fast. He shot you barely a half smile, a half hearted wave, before turning back to John, and your spirits fell.

“What was that about?” Ada questioned a little too loudly.

You shrugged, teeth pulling at your bottom lip. “He’s been like that a lot over the past few weeks. I don’t -“ Your voice cracked a little. “I don’t know what I’ve done.”

The men had only been at the bar for a few seconds, but they were already heading over to your table, Esme already distracted by the sight of her husband. Ada shot you a sympathetic look, mouth opening to speak, but you had already stood up, legs wobbling, before you steadied yourself, picking up your still half empty glass of whiskey.

“I’m going to sit at the bar.” You sniffed a little, blinking to get your emotions in check. “I can’t deal-“

Ada nodded, making as if to come with you, but you shook your head, murmuring about a need to be alone.

You didn’t even shoot Finn one glance as you walked past him, trying to be proud and not to wobble with the drink and the high heels.

You weren’t entirely sure how much time had passed, but what you were certain of was that you’d had several more glasses of whiskey, courtesy of the boy sat next to you, who was chatting to you, a suave smile on his face. At some point, his hand had ended up on your thigh, to which, unbeknownst to you, several people at the table you had left had taken notice of.

Ada had a rather proud smile on her face, knowing full well just why you were acting the way you were, even if you weren’t sure yourself. John was uncomfortable, making several comments to his wife about how he wanted to go and pull the ‘little scumbag’ off you, to which Esme had laughed. Ever since John and Esme had married, you had been close to your brother-in-law, to the point where most days it felt like he was a second father, especially since you moved in with them, so it was no surprise he was overprotective. Finn, though, was a different league. His jaw was tense, foot tapping on the floor, fist clenched around the cold rum glass, eyes flicking to you every few seconds, much to the teasing of his siblings. He, more than anyone, looked like he wanted to go and cut the boy a new smile.

You were blissfully unaware of all of this, however, dizzy on alcohol and the knowledge that this boy was interested in you - though it didn’t feel the same as it would if a certain other boy showed any interest. But for as long as you had liked him, he had only shown platonic love to you, and recently, none at all. Perhaps, your actions were a big middle finger to your best friend, even if you weren’t sure that he was even looking at you. You laughed louder, almost raucously, at a joke the boy made, even though it wasn’t all that funny. His hand slid further up your leg, and some part of you started to feel a little uncomfortable, though you didn’t say anything.

“You want to get out of here?” He breathed, faces inching closer together, your lips almost brushing. The smell of liquor on his breath wasn’t the same as it was with Finn. It didn’t make you feel comfortable, the opposite, really.

Your eyebrows scrunched together, drawing back, heart dropping. Of course that was all he wanted. Your jaw tensed, suddenly feeling a lot more sober.

“No.” You spoke, turning back to your drink as something to do.

He let out an annoyed exhale. “So you’re going to be a tease?”

“I wasn’t aware accepting a drink was being a tease.” You spat.

“You’ve been giving me those eyes all night and now you’re deciding you don’t want it?”

His eyes weren’t as soft as you previously thought - instead they were greedy, and angry, entitled.

“Yes.” You spoke a single word answer, making to grab your bag from the floor.

You didn’t know exactly what he thought he was doing by grabbing your wrist, but really, it was a stupid decision. Only a second before you smacked him in the face yourself, a voice sounded from beside you.

“Mate, piss off, will you?” Finn’s voice was controlled, even, but angry. You tensed at the feeling of his body brushing close to yours as he stood beside you.

“And-“ The boy began in a confrontational tone, before glancing up and seeing exactly who he was talking to, before swallowing. “Sorry, mate-“ He stood up quickly, turning away and moving into the crowd, presumably before Finn could start anything. Over the past months, the youngest Shelby brother wasn’t exactly known for his stellar temper.

You let out a simultaneous huff of anger and relief, finally managing to pick up your bag, and standing up just as swiftly as the guy had, shooting your friend a look, crossing your arms, before turning towards the exit of the pub.

“Esme, I’m going home!” You called, to which your sister, perched on Johns knee, made to get up, never willing to let you walk the streets of Small Heath alone.

“I’ll take her, Esme, no bother.” Finn spoke, and your jaw tensed even more as Esme nodded with a grin, promptly shooting a smiling conspiratorial look to your sister in law. You rolled your eyes at the two of them.

The cold air hit you as soon as you left the pub, and you immediately began to shiver slightly, though you refused to ask Finn for a jacket, merely out of principle, as you stormed a few metres in front him, which was a difficult feat, considering you were still very much tipsy, and the cobblestones weren’t exactly easy to navigate in stilettos.

“I didn’t need your help, Finn.” You snapped suddenly, turning round to shoot him a look. “I had it under my control.”

“Yeah, it really looked like it, with him grabbing onto your arm.”

“Do you think I’m incapable of defending myself? I know you fucking don’t. We’ve been friends for years. You know I can look after myself around shitty guys.”

“So you’d prefer it if I just left you?”

“Yes!”

“Fine. I will next time.” He snapped. His voice was hurt, and it incited a twinge of guilt within you.

“What is it with you recently? You fucking ignore me half the time, then develop a fucking saviour complex whenever you think I’m in trouble?”

“It’s called sticking up for a friend-“

“Friend? Friend? You can’t pick and choose when to be friends with me! Or when you magically want to ignore me for no absolute reason.” You scoffed.

“Come on, Y/N. We are friends.” His voice was quiet.

“No. No, I really don’t think we are.” You’d regret these words later, the tiny voice in your brain spoke, but the alcohol and adrenaline in your veins only spurred you on.

“You’re drunk. You don’t mean that.” He sounded more as if he was convincing himself of that fact than you.

“Don’t I?” You said more quietly, stopping your fast paced walk. “You can’t just.. choose when you want to be friends with me!”

“And you can’t just choose when you want to flirt with me and make me feel like maybe it’s me that you like, then go and do it with random other guys!” He exclaimed, and you were taken aback, almost sobering for a second.

“Finn-“

“No, you’re drunk. Let’s get you home.” He murmured, anger dissipating in defeat, walking on, lighting a cigarette in his lips.

“Finn.” Your hand gently wrapped around his wrist, pulling him closer to you, faces a breath apart, as your eyes scanned his own.

“I fucking like you, okay. Only you.” Your drunken mind was racing and you’d regret saying these things tomorrow, but say them you did. “I’ve fucking liked you since you threw me into the Cut when we were thirteen and then realised I couldn’t swim and jumped into save me. I’ve shown it, all this time. It’s you that hasn’t. I like you, Finn. Do whatever you want with that information.”

His eyes softened, his hands brushing your own.

“Tell me this when you’re sober, yeah?” He breathed.

“And what will you say?” You were unsure, unsure if you had just thrown away your whole friendship -

He paused for a moment, licked his lips nervously - a habit he’d always had.

“That I like you too.”

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[arigatouiris]

it’s not pathetic // kageyama tobio x reader

Author’s Note: Your comments on my previous story led me to write this. You can’t imagine how happy comments make me, honestly. It’s people telling me that I’m valid and my writing is valid especially when I can’t believe it myself. Thank you so, so much. And for @mitzwinchester​​ who wanted to be tagged in anything Haikyuu that I write! Thank you all so much and I hope you like this~

Word count: 4200

Pairing: Kageyama Tobio x Oikawa! Reader

Warnings: angst to fluff, unrequited love, slow burn

Having a crush is such a strange phenomenon. 

Sometimes, people did odd things because it all began with a crush. There were people who built fantastic tombs for the ones they loved, tombs now remarked as some of the wonders of the world. There were those who would kill for the ones they loved because love meant sacrifice and some bravely embraced it if it meant seeing their loved ones happy.

Despite a great many things that told you that you shouldn’t and must definitely not fall in love with Kageyama Tobio, you went ahead and fell head over heels for him during your middle school years. 

Your brother hated him, your friends despised him—especially since they were all in the Volleyball team with him, and you were there when your friends stood up against Kageyama and had him benched.

You, Oikawa (y/n), were not supposed to fall for Kageyama Tobio.

But, now that you had and it meant parting ways in high school because your darling brother was a great third year at Aobajosei. Hajime-nii even told you to not think twice. You weren’t an athlete like them, you were more inclined toward academics because that’s what you were good at. 

And even though sometimes you adored Iwaizumi-nii more than your idiot show-off of a brother, you did the grandest of all idiot things and followed your heart to Karasuno.

This was perhaps where your idiocy started to punish you. 

You couldn’t really name a reason why you declared going to Karasuno. Sure, Kageyama was the main reason—which sounded stupid to even you, but it wasn’t as if you were regretting it. You told your parents you didn’t want to be dubbed ‘Oikawa’s sister’ again, which was what had happened throughout your middle school years; your parents were supportive of your desire for independence, but little did they know, you were actually doing this to be closer to a boy you rarely ever spoke to. 

Kageyama often times avoided you because you were Toru’s little sister and you desperately wanted to change that. It wasn’t as if Toru was overprotective, sometimes, he barely noticed you around (which was definitely a good thing), but it was Kageyama we were talking about here and there was no way in hell Oikawa would let that dark haired tsundere anywhere near you.

You had been seated next to Kageyama in your second year of middle school. For an entire semester, the two of you shared little conversations, you’d make fun of some of the teachers, catch him drifting off to sleep during boring lectures, you’d help him with English and it had even gotten to a point where he’d personally ask you to help him out with something—you adored every little exchange with this awkward boy, and you enjoyed breaking down his walls, each made sense to you, each and every interaction had you falling deeper and deeper into this pit you had dug for yourself because Kageyama wasn’t even trying to be cool.

But all semesters come to an end and so did that beautiful, glorious one. Kageyama was seated at the far end and you were placed beside Kunimi and Kindaichi, your good friends. Kunimi knew of the affections you shared for the dark haired setter but in no way could see why someone like you could even like someone like Kageyama. 

You didn’t know either, really. Perhaps, it was his dedication. Maybe, it was the way he attacked what he wanted and made sure it stuck to him. In many ways, it was also his talent and how he didn’t stick to just leaving it to his talent. He honed his skills like a diamond sculptor, modelling the rock in a way that was fit only for the hardest rock in the world. Kageyama was relentless and it was this relentlessness embodied in an awkward and down-to-earth body did you fall for.

But, the thing about unrequited love was simple. There was a hidden joy to it because you didn’t know how it ended. Your mind could play countless scenarios on how it could end but none of those scenarios were real. It was like the time before the exam result, on an exam you knew you did badly, but the result hadn’t arrived yet so you were safe.

     “Oikawa.” 

Your heart picked up pace as your eyes widened at the familiar voice. You turned to your left and spotted Kageyama and his classmate, Hinata, staring at you. You were by the vending machine, buying a soda.

     “Kageyama.” You replied, before Hinata threw a fit.

     “O-OIKAWA? You mean.... t-the g-grand king—”

     “If you mean my dumbass of a brother, then yes.” You folded your arms with a lazy grin, causing Kageyama to grin back. He always adored your spunk, especially when it came to your brother. 

     “We were in the same middle school.” Kageyama said, almost introducing you to him.

Your heart could break right now at how happy you seemed. Kageyama was noticing you, and this strange event was making you dizzy. Hinata nodded before tilting his head.

     “But...” Ah, here comes the question. “Why are you in Karasuno and not in Aobajosei?”

You pursed your lips before your eyes shifted to the dark haired setter. He looked confident for a second before his eyes narrowed, turning to you for an answer. You knew he didn’t know why either, you knew Kageyama had no idea that you followed him to Karasuno. What an idiotic thing to do. There was no way he’d be impressed by something so idiotic.

     “I didn’t want to be labelled after Toru-nii. It got annoying in middle school.” You said, rubbing the back of your neck.

If this excuse worked with your parents, it’d work with anyone. Hinata’s eyes widened and you could see some weird admiration settle in Kageyama’s blue orbs, but your heart fell to the ground. 

     “How’s practice?” You asked Kageyama, who merely nodded.

     “It was nice seeing you again.” 

A goodbye. Masked in a greeting. You were seriously doomed. You bit your lower lip before nodding and making way for both of them to walk past you to the vending machine. This interaction lasted several seconds. You were only hoping when the next few seconds of your interaction with Kageyama would come.

*

     “Oikawa-chan, please go out with me!” You sighed.

Gulping once, you tried to subdue the growing nausea at the back of your throat before breathing heavily a few times and rejecting the boy in front of you. You hated doing this. He was from Kageyama’s class, and it was perhaps the fourth boy who had asked you out this semester. You secretly hoped it was Kageyama who called you out next time, but you knew deep in your heart that if any confessing was going to happen then it had to be from you.

And that left you so confused. Confused because you didn’t know if you had to confess or if confessing could lead to anywhere. While your heart hoped for Kageyama to give you a chance, you knew how things worked in his mind. He didn’t have time for relationships or crushes, he was focused on one thing and one thing only—volleyball, and you’d be damned if you even tried to take his mind off of what he loved.

You were confused half the time, and it left you tired. It was confusing because you were trying to convince your heart and spirit of something your mind knows is a lie. 

However, the boy you turned down entered his class and his friends exclaimed out loud, catching Hinata’s attention.

     “She turned you down, huh?”

     “Damn, that Oikawa sure is hard to get.”

Hinata blinked a couple of times before turning to Kageyama and violently grabbing the boy’s attention. Kageyama scowled at him before blinking and overhearing the words himself.

     “One of these days, Oikawa’s gonna wish she said yes to me.”

Kageyama didn’t know what to do with this information. He turned to Hinata, whose eyes were glowing bright.

     “Why don’t you go ask her if she’s okay? I’m sure this must be hard for her!”

     “Why will it be hard? She’s the one who said no.”

Hinata grumbled before rubbing his hands all over his head. Kageyama is definitely the sort of guy who’d without a second thought decline a chance to speak to a cute girl. If it was Hinata, no one would even had to tell him to do something like this—

     “Fine,” Kageyama stood up, thinking of going to the vending machine on the way, “I’ll go speak to her.”

Hinata didn’t know why he suddenly felt excited for Kageyama, despite knowing that the dark haired setter wouldn’t really know how to execute this said conversation. He nodded as Kageyama headed out of the classroom in search of you, wondering what could happen. Kageyama spotted you, beside the vending machine, sitting on the bench, drinking a soda. A soft smile fell on his lips when he saw you where exactly where he was headed, meaning he didn’t have to take any unnecessary detours.

He’d always liked you, more than your brother. Of course, he respected your brother for the amazing player that he was, but personality wise, he was certain that he preferred having you around. He remembered how kind you were and how funny you were—especially when making fun of the English teacher together back in that one semester you were seated beside him. You even helped him with his homework, which he was grateful for. His pace slowed when he thought of how your eyes would light up whenever he’d enter class, and to what lengths you’d sometimes go to just greet him. And now... 

...now, you were in Karasuno, despite your brother being somewhere else.

     “Oikawa,” Kageyama addressed you, shocking you out of your stupor. You weren’t expecting to see him right then, “Are you okay?”

Kageyama wasn’t sure if the thoughts swirling in his head made any sense, but unlike what several people berated him as, he was not blind or oblivious to something so blatantly obvious. You were looking up at him with surprise, red dusted across your cheeks at the mere sight of him. His stomach was turning inside and out, but he somehow, anyhow, had to get this out of you.

     “I’m fine, why?”

     “Some idiot from my class was complaining about how you’d turned him down.”

You scoffed before looking away, “He’s an idiot, all right.”

Kageyama was quiet. He wasn’t oblivious, but he was terrible at conversation. The boy only had a few skills.

     “Why did you come to Karasuno, Oikawa?”

He noticed how you paused. Funny, he thought, he’d never paid this much attention to you before. It surprised him because he’d always seen you, he’d always notice if you were in the room but he never once thought he’d ever actually paid attention to you. If he had, then it would have all made sense a long, long time ago. 

A long, long time ago... 

Kageyama’s eyes widened just as his heart constricted. 

     “You don’t really want to know, Kageyama.”

He did. He did want to know. No, actually, he knew it—he just wanted to confirm it.

     “Don’t I get a say in this?”

You frowned at your feet before looking up at him. So, this is it, you thought before sighing.

     “I came here for you, Kageyama. I came here because... Because I’m in love with you. I always have been.”

There was an ocean of silence between you and Kageyama just then and you felt yourself drown. You gulped before getting up, tears welling up in your eyes at your lack of an answer. 

     “I don’t need you to tell me how pathetic that is,” Kageyama’s eyes widened at your words, “I don’t need you to tell me that you don’t have time for anything like this. I planned on never telling you, really. I planned on keeping this to myself but turns out you’re really not that much of a dunce like my brother keeps saying.”

Kageyama desperately wanted you to meet his gaze, but you weren’t looking at him. 

     “(y/n)—”

     “I won’t bother you, don’t worry. I’ll stay out of your way.”

It was the last time he’d see you that semester.

*

When Toru saw you rush into your room that evening, he knew instantly that something was wrong. But, whenever you were in a mood, it was best when he didn’t approach you because you’d snap at him for saying the wrong thing and feel worse. You didn’t realize it when you did it, but it was rather easy for you to displace your anger at your brother from whatever it was that initially pissed you off.

However, Toru wasn’t alone right then. Iwaizumi was also there, but unlike Toru, Hajime had noticed you were crying. He turned to his best friend and sighed at how hesitant Oikawa was in approaching his own little sister.

     “You’re an idiot of a brother,” Hajime said, before sighing and walking over to your room. 

     “Go away, Toru-nii, I don’t want to—”

     “It’s me, Hajime.” 

When his response was followed by silence, he knew you’d open the door. Hajime stood still for a few minutes before noticing Oikawa peek from a distance. Toru burned with jealousy that his sister chose Iwaizumi rather than himself but a part of his heart burned with joy at how his best friend and sister were getting along. 

When the door opened, Hajime let himself inside and closed the door behind him, knowing full well that Toru would eavesdrop with no shame. He noticed you sitting on the chair beside your study table, wiping your tears away vigorously. Hajime chuckled before sitting down on your bed, watching you with an amused expression. He knew only one thing can make a girl cry the way you were at the moment. He didn’t like it, but it’s natural.

     “Who’s the guy?”

     “Why aren’t you in practice?”

     “It’s Monday. Now, who’s the guy?” 

You chuckled at how amused Iwaizumi sounded at the question. 

     “Kageyama.”

Hajime’s eyes widened a bit but more so because he only wondered how Oikawa would not react to hearing this. His sister and Kageyama? This is a tale set in stone! Hajime wanted to desperately burst out laughing at Toru’s fate, but there you were, sitting down with a bitter smile on your face. Hajime’s heart broke at the mere sight.

     “Did he... Did he hurt you—”

     “He turned me down, haha.”

Now, Iwaizumi was confused. Turned you down? Was Kageyama blind? You were everything that Toru wasn’t. You had Toru’s passion but for studies and literature, and you were kind and gentle where Toru wasn’t. You were funny, smart and adventurous, and not to mention, really, really pretty. Hajime didn’t need to be into you to know that you were a catch, though, admitting this to himself felt strange. 

     “(y/n), Tobio’s an idiot.”

     “That he sure is. But, I went to Karasuno for him so who’s the bigger idiot?”

Hajime couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

     “(y/n), you’re barely 15 years old. To make such decisions over a boy, I’d say that this love that you feel for that idiot isn’t even real.” Iwaizumi was always a rational person, but he tried his best to be kind when he called you out on this.

You chuckled bitterly.

     “Hajime-nii,” He loved it when you called him that, “It has to be real.”

     “What?”

     “It has to be real. What I feel for Kageyama. Because, if you could love someone, and keep loving them, without being loved back . . . then that love had to be real. It hurts too much to be anything else.” Your voice broke in the end, and Hajime stood up to ruffle your hair. 

The door opened and there was Toru. Hajime half expected the boy to make a scene—his sister loving his greatest enemy, but Toru’s eyes were ridden with a sorrow he had never seen on him before. The brown haired setter walked toward his sister, nodding at his best friend who merely smiled before leaving the room. Toru easily picked you up before cradling you in his grip, firmly placing you on the bed before sitting beside you. You could smell your brother’s sweet-smelling shampoo (which he had stolen from you, you were sure), and you cried harder at how kind he was being.

Toru’s rough hands brushed your hair out of your face and he just sat there, in silence. As much as your brother annoyed the heck out of you, you would never change him for anyone else.

     “Toru-nii...” 

Toru sighed. What could he say?

     “It’ll get easier.” He said, speaking with experience. 

He wasn’t mad that his sister liked a guy he knows she was too good for, but there was nothing on this planet that Toru loved more than you. Volleyball? Yes, sure. But you would never, ever let him pick one over the other. You were his blood. And seeing you cry devastated him.

     “Do you want me to talk to Tobio-chan? I’ll make him pay—”

     “NO!”

*

After Karasuno’s defeat to Aobajosei around the end of that semester, Kageyama noticed the angry glares Oikawa and Iwaizumi were both giving him after the match. It was something even the rest of the team noticed, but didn’t want to comment on. However, Hinata wasn’t as thoughtful.

     “Why does the Grand King and that other scary dude staring at you like you killed someone?” Hinata’s eyes widened, “(y/n)-chan!” He whispered.

Tobio frowned harder. Of course Oikawa knew. You were his sister. You must have told him and Iwaizumi and they were here to beat him up. But, you didn’t seem the type to do something so silly. But, then why were they staring at him like that?

     “Tobio-chan~” 

Kageyama froze when he noticed Iwaizumi and Oikawa approach him and Hinata when they were about to leave.

     “Oikawa-senpai,” Kageyama turned to Hajime, “Iwaizumi-senpai.”

Hajime sighed, grabbing Oikawa’s collar from the back.

     “Good game, kid.” 

Oikawa definitely looked like he wanted to say something more, but Kageyama was confused. His heart was racing. Didn’t you send them to threaten him? Didn’t you tell them that he had broken your heart?

When the realization dawned on him, his own heart broke.

     “Senpai,” Kageyama said, eyes widening, “(y/n)-san...” Oikawa blinked, “I haven’t seen her since... For a while.”

Hinata blinked at the setter’s sudden confession.

     “We seemed to have a misunderstanding. I need to speak to her, can you... Can you—”

     “If you want me to pass a message to my sister, then...” Oikawa made an ugly scowl, “Go tell her yourself, idiot!”

Kageyama could not believe that you were related to him.

Ever since you had confessed to him, ever since you had told him that you chose Karasuno for him, Kageyama’s been thrown for a toss. A part of him still felt like he was in midair, and only you could catch him. It was a strange thing, but he didn’t think he’d feel the need to see you so strongly. It was as if your confession had awoken his own feelings for you, and if this was a thing he wasn’t sure. He’d never been inclined toward anyone romantically, but then you came along, laughing and joking around—teaching him English and eyes glistening whenever he passed you by. The quiet waves, the way you stuck your tongue out when someone teased you, the way you’d stand up for yourself—gosh, you were honestly something else. He felt your absence like death—it was like missing teeth, you wouldn’t need a mirror to know that they were gone.

So, he was going to make the effort for you. It was going to be nothing compared to the effort you had made for him, but he was going to try. Because what was love if it wasn’t idiotic?

     “Hinata,” The first time Kageyama addressed him without an insult, “I need (y/n)’s number.”

Hinata’s eyes twinkled. 

     “I don’t have it, though!”

     “Idiot.”

Hinata growled, “Yamaguchi might! She’s in the same class!”

Kageyama turned toward his team approaching them, spotted Yamaguchi and Tsukishima at a distance and his scowl reappeared. He let out a sigh. He was going to do this. He was going to do this for you.

     “Yamaguchi,” Kageyama was fine till here. “I...” 

Yamaguchi blinked, while Tsukishima wondered what the fuck was going on. Turning to Hinata, who adorned a bright look in his eye, it looked like Kageyama was going to confess to Yamaguchi. Tsukishima could die laughing right then and there.

     “Ka...Kageyama, do you... do you need something?”

     “Oikawa (y/n),” Tsukishima blinked. “I need her number. She’s in your class. Do you—”

     “Oh,” Tsukishima couldn’t hold back, “Does the King have a crush on someone?”

Kageyama was quiet. Yamaguchi didn’t think what Tsukishima was doing was necessary, but it was funny to see Kageyama get flustered over a girl.

     “Sorry, I don’t have her number. But I think—”

     “I do.” Tsukishima said, and Kageyama’s world turned upside down.

     “Tsukishima,” His name slipped out of Kageyama’s mouth like bloody murder. “I need her—”

     “I heard you, I heard you. But, what can I get out of this?” Tsukishima mocked, “Can I hear you say something embarrassing? That you love her?”

Kageyama stared directly into Tsukishima’s eyes. 

     “I’ll gladly tell her I love her over the phone if you want to, but I think it’s better if I tell her in person.”

Yamaguchi, Tsukishima and Hinata were now thrown for a toss. The blond knew right then that there was no point teasing Kageyama now. His feelings for you were something he clearly wasn’t ashamed of.

     “Why do you have her number in the first place?”

     “She’s class rep. We exchange notes from time to time.”

Of course, Tsukishima was smart too. That made complete sense. Once Kageyama got your number, it took him less than three seconds to make the call.

*

     “Hello?”

     “(y/n)?”

You were not used to hearing Kageyama calling you by your first name, but for some reason, you couldn’t stop picturing it now that he had.

     “K-Kageyama? How do you—”

     “I need to talk to you.”

     “Don’t you have a game? With... With my brother’s team! What happened? Did you—”

     “We lost.”

Your heart fell, but strangely, you didn’t feel too bad. “Kageyama, I’m so sorry—”

     “(y/n),” He couldn’t believe how calm he felt right then, “I’m sorry.”

In an hour, you agreed to meet him outside your house. Oikawa and Hajime were no where around, and you hoped they wouldn’t barge in on whatever this conversation was going to be about. You stepped outside the gate and spotted Tobio in the distance. He was still wearing his sweats and jacket, and your heart skipped a beat.

     “Kageyama!”

Tobio noticed you and his face heated up. It was the first time he was seeing you without your uniform. He approached you and instantly bowed, as if to apologize.

But, what came out of his mouth was,

     “I love you, (y/n)! I think I’ve always had feelings for you, but I didn’t realize until you told me!”

Your eyes widened at his words, you almost couldn’t believe it. And why the heck was be bowing?

     “Stop bowing!” 

When Kageyama stood in front of you, you realized how tall he was. It was abnormal, but you were Toru Oikawa’s sister.

     “Why did you... Why did you turn me down then?”

Kageyama blinked, “I didn’t. You ran off before I said anything.”

You couldn’t believe what was happening. A hand went to your cheek and you pinched as hard as you could, but a second later, Tobio’s hand rushed to yours and pulled it down.

     “It’s not a dream...” His voice was soft, you never heard him whisper before.

While his hand was still in yours, you felt tears rush to your eyes. He stepped one step closer to you before smelling your hair. It reminded him of something but he couldn’t quite place his finger as to where it was from.

     “It’s not pathetic,” He said, confusing you. You look up at his soft smile and how his eyes were fixed to your form, “You coming to Karasuno for me.”

You blushed when he made it sound like that.

     “I’m so thankful that you did. It would have been tragic if I figured out I loved you and you were not near me.”

     “Well, that’s how it was for me.” You said, pouting.

Kageyama nodded.

     “I want to make up for all that time.”

Without another thought, you embraced him, his fingers still entwined in yours, as Kageyama slowly let go, only to wind his hands around your form. 

     “I love you.” He whispered again.

     “What was that? I didn’t hear you.”

     “Don’t push me.” 

     “I love you, too,” you say this time. “So much.”

A second later, Tobio finally understood where he smelled your hair from.

     “You smell like your brother.”

     “Why do you know what my brother smells like, Kageyama?”

[bellatrixobsessed1]

Icy Is The Avatar Of High School; The Essay

I would like to begin this essay with a song. While reading this essay keep in mind that Icy has the exact same energy as this song which (imo) embodies prep & jock with a touch of nerd. No goth tho, press f in the chat.

Wow I put way too much into this. I hope y’all love it.

Okay so lets get into this! We will begin with the obvious one, goth:

*Gestures to all of the snow*

Edit: that was supposed to say show but snow works too.

Next we will talk about Jock.

So think of your typical jock. A stereotypical jock has a few qualities; reckless bravery and determination, large ego, usually at least kind of an asshole, doesn’t know when to quit, craves them gainz, and makes impulse decisions. 

Icy is definitely a very brazen person. It takes balls (and a large ego) to get banned from your campus and then very boldly strut back onto said campus in the middle of dinner while the whole school is assembled. She looked at Lord Darkar, shadow phoenix of the underworld and was straight up like, “yeah, whatever dude.”  Dude is such a jock word. 

So onto determination! Okay look, we have like 7 whole seasons of her trying to take over the world. She was arrested, what? 5 times? She literally doesn’t know when to stop. Give up??? Who’s that??? 

I feel like the large ego thing also speaks for itself she is constantly talking about how she deserves to be Darkar & Valtor’s main witch. She is well aware that her plans are usually fantastic. She just exudes an I’m better than you energy. It’s in her posture, her gestures, her tone of voice. Icy is absolutely certain that she is the shit and in the 4kids version one of her demands to the professors was to stand before the student body and say, “Icy rules, Icy’s the greatest.” *Spoiler alert* she is. I promise that she is not holding me hostage. 

Which brings me to the next point, getting dem gainz! Your average jock is at the gym, drinking protine shakes, and building muscle! While Icy is not in a gym trying to get 6 pack abs, she 100% chases them magical gainz! The dragon fire is just a really hot protine shake.  

In the 4kids version, upon overrunning Cloud Tower, she addressed the student body by welcoming them to her pep assembly. Ya know who else likes pep assemblies? Football jocks. 

Also that whole scene in episode nine (Spelled) where she rallies up the witches and they all chase Musa. That’s like the goth equivalent of getting the entire football team to chase after the nerd (or a member of the rivaling team).

And let’s not forget the ‘nerd run’ from season two where she rode this dinosaur thing and chased Timmy, the stereotypical nerd type. (It’s funny because she doesn’t know that she’s a nerd too). 

Okay so now that we dug deep into jock, it is time to discuss Prep!

I tend to use prep & always wears pink, blonde, mean girl interchangeably. But wiki says; Characteristics of preps in the past include a particular subcultural speech, vocabulary, dress, mannerisms and etiquette, reflective of an upper-class upbringing. Both definitions hold up in my book. 

So we’ll start with wiki’s. Icy (depending on whether or not we’re going with the season 8 retcon) is from an upper-class upbringing. Tbh she’s like Stella but a witch.  Icy is Stella’s goth phase and that’s why Stella fears Icy because she knows that that’s what she could be. I feel like Icy also has the most preppy dress style of her sisters.  Also pretty sure preps are known for being over-achieving perfectionists. Icy was actually pretty good with her academics. 

As for the Regina Gorge type prep; Icy is totally your classic mean girl bully, but make it witchy. I really think that this speaks for itself. It sings for itself too in 4kids OST. One of the lyrics in the Mean Girls song is that they will steal your boyfriend and trash your makeup. If that doesn’t scream prep, Idk what does. 

She reads them magazines. I don’t remember which one but I do remember her mentioning that there was a question posed in said magazine about ‘what would you do if you took over the world’ and apparently she wrote, ‘you’ll find out soon enough, loser’ and sent it in. 

Loser, pixies, nerds, dweebs. Icy has a whole list of mean and petty insults to put in her burn book. Like bye girl. 

Literally all of the Miss Magix contest. That is peak mean girl shit. The Trix literally went to a beauty pageant for the sole sake of making everyone look stupid and to trash on everyone’s fashion and makeup. On top of all of that she did that just because Lucy agreed to do their homework for ???? amount of time. Let’s be real, it was a life sentence.  

Now, the moment you’ve been waiting for! Nerd!

Literally every time she calls anyone a nerd or a loser I wheeze because, girl, check yourself! Prior to getting kicked out (for being a dumb jock), it is heavily implied that Icy, Darcy, and Stormy were at the top of their classes. Like these three were Griffin’s best students. And I am inclined to believe that Icy was thee top student. This woman was an overachiever whether she wants to admit it or not. 

Icy is the plan person. She’s the one who keeps the Trix on task. Though Darcy exudes ‘group mom’ energy, Icy is usually the one to snap at them to stay focused. She’s the organized one  and the one who seems to do most of the scheming. That takes some deep thinking and brain power. She knows how to summon monitors, banish trolls into oblivion, astral project into virtual reality using voodoo dolls, summon nightmare monsters, and summon an army of rot. Like how does she know all of this?  Studying. I almost said that I have no proof except in the Winx comics (this one) she is seen venturing to the library to research dark magic and spells. 90% she has done some extensive research and reading into all of these things because I highly doubt that Cloud Tower teaches things like summoning the army of decay. That was all down time research because this nerd enjoys learning about dark magic. Ya know who else enjoys reading and learning? Nerds. I know, I’m a nerd who loves reading and learning. Just because she likes learning about ~cool~ thinks like dark armies, doesn’t mean it’s not a nerdy quest to know everything about the subject she knows. 

Speaking of which (lol get it, witch), Icy also knows about history. She was the one who told Bloom all about what happened to Sparks and all about the coven. Why? Because that knowledge is floating around in her brain and she chose to retain it. I have a feeling her knowledge of history goes beyond the coven and Sparks too because she also knew that the Ring Of Solaria had fragments of the dragon fire.  She knows too much about this shit. 

I think that her nerdiest moment though, had to be when she solved that riddle at Red Fountain to get the codex. Like you have to have brain power to solve a riddle with the added pressure of being surrounded by your foes on enemy territory. In general her nerdiness just bled through in that season because she was snatching those codexes left and right. 

Also lets get into the fact that she (especially in the comics) has a tendency to humiliate herself, whoops. She managed to get her own (and Darcy & Stormy’s) memories erased, she got them trapped in an avalanche (and then dated a fellow nerd for two seconds and pretended like she didn’t hate it), and she is constantly pulling ‘we’ll be back’ speeches every time she gets defeated. Like seriously this is the evil equivalent of ‘lol I meant to do that’ or ‘haha, that didn’t happen, you didn’t see anything.’ And then she will make her next attempt as if she had never gotten defeated at all. Because losing is for losers and Icy ‘totally isn’t’ a loser. 

And honestly what’s more nerdy then prattling off your entire evil plan? Like this is her trying to flex her intelligence. 

Let’s not forget how she had her nerdy fangirl moment. She simped for Darko for like two or three whole comics. Like full on simping over here. If she could have bought a T-shirt with Darko’s face on it, she would have. Bonus, he was her childhood crush.

And finally, I am also very  inclined to believe that Icy is the fake it until you make is sort. With her it’s all about presentation. The only thing that saves her from being an obvious nerd is confidence. I touched on this with the whole ‘you didn’t see anything’ bit. But legit, pretty much everything she does would be kinda nerdy if she didn’t make it look good. 

Please feel free to add if you think that you have more examples of Icy being a nerd. 

[atlafan]

Take it Slow - Part Twenty

a/n: okay this is my first shot at a harry:y/n fic, and it will be multiple parts. y/n had a bad experience with an ex over a year ago, and finally accepts her coworker and good friend Niall’s invitation to go on a blind date with his friend Harry.

(Fluffy part with some smut...Part Twenty-One gets really intense, so I wanted to leave this one on a good note.)

Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine Part Ten Part Eleven Part Twelve Part Thirteen Part Fourteen Part Fifteen Part Sixteen Part Seventeen Part Eighteen Part Nineteen

Masterpost

It only takes you a little over an hour to get back to your apartment. You were so thankful for Harry. He took his button up right off when he walked through the door, but kept everything else on. He sat down on the couch and turned the TV on. You sat next to him and snuggled up close.

“Thank you for everything today, you were such a good sport. I couldn’t believe how well behaved my family was! I hope the tattoos thing didn’t make you uncomfortable.”

“Not at all. It was kinda nice to show them off a bit. Can I ask a question?”

“Of course.”

“Where was your oldest sister, what’s her name? Bridget?”

“She goes to her friend’s house on Thanksgiving. She’s usually there at the beginning because she helps bring food over with my mom. We must’ve just missed her.” You shrug.

“Oh…I was just wondering because no one even mentioned her.”

“There’s nothing to mention.” You keep your eyes glued on the TV.

“Does she still live with your mum?” You sigh heavily. “Sorry, I’m prying aren’t I?”

“No, it’s okay. I just don’t really like talking about it. Her whole life style is just annoying and I hate giving it the time of day to even think about. At some point I’ll tell you all about it, but right now I just don’t feel like it.”

“Alright baby, that’s fine.” He rubs his hand along your arm. You loved the way he called you baby. One time he even called you baby girl and you thought you were going to melt into a puddle. It was a term a lot of people used to call their significant other, but coming from him it felt more special.

“I like when you say baby girl.” You say still watching the TV. He feels his cheeks heat up.

“You do?”

“Mhm.”

“Alright, baby girl it is.” You feel your eyes flutter closed. He looks down at you and sees your mouth parted. It had been a really long day. He was hoping to get lost in you, but he felt equally as tired. Maybe in the morning.

You were half asleep when you felt him lift you off the couch, and carry you into your bedroom. You wanted to see what he’d do, so you pretended to stay asleep. He stood you up and leaned you against his body to unzip your dress. He let it drop to the floor. Next he unhooked your bra and let that drop too. He picked you back and laid you on your side of the bed. He tugged your nylons and panties down your legs. He grabbed one of his t-shirts from your dresser. He sits you up for a moment to put it on you, then he lays you back down and puts the blanket over you. You hear him sigh, satisfied with how he’s taken care of you. Even if had told him you were awake, you wouldn’t have had the strength to get changed.

Harry took his clothes off, leaving his boxers on, and climbed into bed with you. He wrapped his arms around you so he could spoon you. You loved the way his body felt pressed against you, and the way he nuzzled into your hair. You quickly fell back asleep in his arms.

You drifted into a dream. You were running through a field of sunflowers. Harry was running on the other side towards you. You run into his arms, he picks you up and swings you around.

“Oh Harry, I love you so much.”

“I love you too.”

“Take me, here, now, in this field.”

“Are you sure?”

“More sure than anything.”

You felt something hard rubbing up against your butt, waking you up slightly. You realize you had been pushing yourself against Harry, clearly exciting him. You hear him grunt into your ear. You’re not sure if he’s awake. You decide to tease him a little, and continue to grind your butt into him. He pressed harder against you, making your head roll back.

“(y/n)?” He said with a sleepy voice.

“Mm?”

“What you doin’?”

“Grinding against you.”

“Right.”

His hand reaches around to your front, he sighs when he feels how wet you already are. He rubs your clit with his fingers while you continue to grind against him.

“Fuck.” You say through your teeth as he rubs you harder. You were turned on by so much, his hand, his hard dick pressed against your ass, and the way you two were just so comfortable with each other.

Harry’s teeth graze your shoulder, biting down and sucking your skin.

“Bite me harder, please.” You gasp out. You don’t have to tell him twice, as he sinks his teeth further into you. You moan out loudly.

“Can I rub myself against you?”

“You are.”

“No, against your wet pu-“

“Yes.” You turn over quickly, and pull himself on you. He keeps his thumb on your clit while he presses himself against you. His boxers were slightly wet with precome.

Your hips raise to his and he moans out your name. It felt so good just to rub against each other. You knew he wanted to just stick it in you, and you were getting closer to wanting that too. You imagined how it would feel to have him stretch out, pumping and throbbing in and out of you.

“Oh, Harry, Harry.” You moan over and over. You were literally fantasizing about him while he was right there with you. He rubs your clit harder, sending you over the edge. Your hands rake through his hair, and pull on him hard as you come undone.

“Can I come on your stomach?” He asks, panting.

“Please.”

He lifts his shirt, just under your breasts. He pulls his boxers down just enough for his dick to come out. Your eyes widen as he grips himself, and jerks off onto your stomach. Thick streams of come shoot out of him and onto your stomach. He flops onto his back next to you, admiring his jizz on your tummy.

“Fuck, I love you.” He says, trying to catch his breath.

“I love you too. You’re such a man, you know that?” He looks at you with a smirk.

“Is that so, baby girl?” You giggle at the words.

“Here, let me go get a towel to clean you up.” Harry rolls his eyes when he looks at the clock. “Jesus, it’s only four in the mornin’.” He grabs a towel from your bathroom, and wipes your stomach clean.

“Plenty of time to sleep still.” He gets back in next to you. “Sorry I woke you up.”

“You’re apologizing?” He smirks. “You can wake me up like that anytime.”

“Good to know.”

“Lemme lay my head on your chest.”

You smile and shift onto your back so Harry can rest on you. You play with his hair until you both drift back off into sleep. The sound of his light snores always help you sleep better.

//

Later that morning you woke up to the smell of toast and eggs. You stretched out in your bed, and got up. You didn’t bother putting any pants on, Harry’s shirt covered you just enough. You pad into the kitchen and smile immediately. Harry is in his boxers, cooking you breakfast. You know he doesn’t eat eggs, but he was making them because you eat them. He sees you out of the corner of his eye and smiles at you.

“Mornin’ beautiful.”

“You’re making me breakfast?” You yawn and rub your eyes like a little kid.

“Mhm.” He sets up a plate for you. “Avocado toast with eggs, your favorite.” You go around the island and nuzzle into him.

“Thank you baby.” You kiss him on the cheek, then take a bite of the toast. Harry eats some avocado with a little hot sauce and olive oil on top. “Mmm, so tasty.” You lick your lips. “You’re such a good cook, have I ever told you that?”

“You may have mentioned it once or twice, but by all means, keep the compliments comin’.” He winks at you.

“You make the best fried eggs I’ve ever had.”

“Go on.”

“And this toast.” You point to it. “Perfectly browned.” You both start giggling. “You know what, I need something to drink. Would you like some coffee?”

“Uh, yeah, please. Can’t believe I forgot about coffee.”

“S’okay, you were busy.” You reach up into your cabinet to grab two mugs. Harry starts choking on his food when he sees you pantieless. You never walked around like that. How did he not notice before? “You okay?” You say, starting up the Keurig.

“Yup, perfectly fine.” It’s not like he hadn’t seen you in the light of day before, but something about you just wearing his shirt, and being so comfortable around him for you to walk around like…it was starting to drive him wild.

You shrug it off, and make both of your coffees. You hand him his with a smile, and he happily takes it. You loved when Harry stayed over. It wasn’t just because it gave you more time to fool around, it was for moments like this. The domestic bliss that you craved as a child. Your home was not a happy one, and now you’ve created one for yourself. The thing is, you were starting to get greedy. You wanted him there more and more. You figured if you two ever decided to move in together, you would need to find a two bedroom apartment. You each would need a place to get work done at home, especially him. Maybe Niall knew of any open places in his building.

“Babe?” Harry breaks you from your day dream.

“Hm?”

“How ‘bout a shower?”

“Good idea.”

You bring your coffee into your bedroom with you and set it on the desk. You grab an elastic, flip your hair over, and put it up in a bun. While doing this Harry can’t keep his eyes off your butt. Without thinking he gave it taut smack. You jump and squeal, rubbing the spot that was sure to leave a bruise. You look up at him confused, and a little annoyed.

“What the hell was that?”

“M’so sorry, it was an accident.” He’s trying to stifle a laugh.

“That’s not funny! That really hurt Harry, Jesus.” You continue to rub your cheek which was still sort of stinging. “I mean you really smacked me, what came over you?”

“It was…there.” He shrugged. “You should really make sure you wear your knickers around me, or stuff like this will just happen.” He walks into your bathroom.

Not taking that for an answer, you watch him bend over to take his boxers off. You wind your hand up, and attempt to smack him as hard has he did you. The sound filled the room, but he didn’t make a noise. He simply stood up straight, and turned around to look at you.

“Sorry, it was just there.” You say in a mocking tone, almost in his accent.

“You know, if you had been bent over a bit more, I could’ve gotten ya right on that little clit of yours. Don’t think you’d be complainin’ then.” He reaches to turn the water on, and crosses his arms.

That was some serious dirty talk that just came from his mouth. He had never really spoken to you like that before. Which Harry was this? You try to wrack your brain around it. Was this another side to your daddy Harry? Or was this a darker Harry? One that wants to spank you until you come.

“So that didn’t even hurt?” You point to the pink spot on his butt.

“Not really, love. Did ya want it to hurt me?”

“I just wanted you to feel what you did to me.” He smirks.

“Didn’t mean to hit ya that hard, promise.” He kisses your nose, and steps into the shower. You strip yourself of his shirt, and climb in behind him.

“Do you like talking like that?” You ask while his head is submerged in the water. He turns to look at you.

“Hm? Like what?”

“What you said a minute ago.” He gives you a confused look, and then he’s struck with realization.

“I don’t really know why I said that. Sorry if it made you uncomfortable.”

“It didn’t…I was just taken off guard.”

“Sometimes it’s hard to stifle my inside thoughts.” He steps aside so you can step into the water. “You know I could get an attachment so this sprays differently, then we wouldn’t have to do this dance every time.” How could he just change the subject so easily?

“Sure, we could go to WalMart or something. Um, so, you think like that often?”

“Why are you so interested all of a sudden?” You weren’t sure exactly.

“Just curious I guess.” You try to shrug it off.

“You can tell me if it was, um, a bit much. It really did just slip out…”

“No, no, it was fine. I just, I don’t know, I didn’t realize you were so erotic?”

“Good word for it I suppose.”

“What word would you use for it?”

“I don’t know, flirting maybe?” You stop and realize that you and Harry never really flirted with each other. Even in the very beginning, it was mostly cute and kind conversations. Then it turned into more sexual moves, but never really flirting. He was also just way more comfortable with you at this point. He figured it would be okay to let it slip once in a while what he was actually thinking and feeling.

In your daze, he grabs a wash cloth and your body wash and starts to scrub himself. He starts wiping up your chest, which snaps you back into reality.

“Need to step into the water, love.” You move aside and watch as the soap falls down his body.

“How do you turn it on and off so easily?”

“What?”

“The way you talk. One second you’re incredibly sweet and thoughtful, another second you’re straight up charming, and another you’re…well saying those other things?” He smirks at you.

“When I saw you bend over to put your hair, and I saw this glorious rump in front of me.” He puts his hands on your butt and gives you a squeeze. “I think all the blood in my body rushed to my dick, and that’s why I said what I said. Plus the fact that you had given me a pretty good smack. It was hot actually, how you just took command of the situation.”

“You didn’t even flinch when I did it.”

“I told ya, it didn’t hurt.”

“How could that have not hurt?”

“Don’t know.” He shrugs. He leans down to your ear. “Didn’t I tell you once before, a while ago, that those little hands of yours wouldn’t be able to hurt me?” A shiver goes up your spine as you remember the first time you really gave his hair a good tug. He straightens himself back up. “All set?”

“Mhm.” He turns the water off. You grab both of your towels, and get out of the shower.

“I have some work to do today, but I brought my laptop with me so I can do it here.”

“Did you want to go back to your place so you can use your big monitor?”

“No, no it’s fine. Just touching up some pictures I took of this couple last week. They’re doing this pregnancy announcement.” You go to your dresser to put on a sports bra and leggings.

“Oh, how sweet!” Harry puts on his dark blue jeans and saunters into the living room, grabbing his laptop bag. You grab your laptop from your desk and join him on the couch. “I have some work I could get done too actually. Days like this are always great for catching up on email.”

“It’s nice that your company gives you the day after off.”

“Yeah, I like working there because of all the benefits we get. They even give us that week off between Christmas and New Year’s.”

“Really? That’s almost unheard of.”

“I think the CEO or whatever really values work-life balance. She really pays attention to the data that shows how to boost productivity and morale with employees. Everyone is happy to get their work done because they know they’ll have the time to relax. I also think she noticed that a lot of people took that week off anyways, so not much was getting done regardless.” You plug your headphones into your laptop, and pull up Spotify.

“What are you doing?”

“I like to listen to music while I work and I don’t want to distract you.” He looks you up and down.

“Not much that can help with that.”

“Says the shirtless guy sitting next to me.” He rolls his eyes at you playfully. “You don’t listen to music while you work?”

“Depends on what I’m working on.” He shrugs. “Do you want to see the photos?”

“Sure!” You lean over so you can see the beautiful pictures Harry took of the couple. It was two women, one of them had a small bump. They both looked overjoyed. The one that wasn’t pregnant was holding up a pumpkin to her belly to match the bump of her partner. “Oh, Harry these are beautiful.”

“Thanks.”

“They both look so happy.”

“They were over the moon.” He sighs. “They told me they felt lucky to find me. Some photographers turned them down because they were afraid of having a gay couple’s photos on their website or something. Can you believe that? In this day and age?”

“That’s so sad! How did they find you?”

“Honestly, I think it was Facebook. I made a page for myself that’s attached to my Instagram. I think one of them had a mutual friend with me or they happened to like my page or something. Either way they had seen photos of a previous shoot I did with these two guys, so they reached out.”

“Can I see those? With the guys?”

“Sure, this was actually really fun.” Harry pulls ups his Instagram page and scrolls down a bit. “They wanted to send out engagement announcements. It was pretty cute. I took them out to this trail that had a waterfall behind it.”

“These are stunning.”

“This was a fun day for sure. I think if someone wants their picture taken, they should have them taken.”

“Agreed.” You give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

You put your headphones in and get to work. You get through a dozen or so emails, and open up Adobe Premiere. You work on a video, marketing a website launch. Harry glances to how your hands move as you cut clips together. How you take a moment to close your eyes so you can concentrate on the sounds coming in, to make sure everything is lined up correctly. You finish up your video and set your laptop on the coffee table to let it render. You glance at Harry’s project. He’s making a digital photo book for the couple. He stops to rub his eyes, and sets his laptop on the coffee table.

“Alright, time for a break.” He sighs. He looks at you and smiles. “Get much done?”

“Oh yeah, I’m way ahead for next week. How’d your book come along?”

“I think it’s good. Just need to make some small changes. Almost done though.”

“When do they need it by?”

“Oh, well the pictures are all good to go. The book is just an extra touch from me. I’m going to email them everything tomorrow.” You stand up and stretch.

“Would you wanna go for a walk? Get some steps in?”

“Sure, lemme just throw some joggers on.”

Harry changes into sweatpants and a sweatshirt. You hand him his beanie before you lace up your sneakers.

“It’s a little cold out.” You smile at him as he puts it on.

“Thanks.”

You go for a nice, long walk. You giggle about the funny things Harry noticed about your family.

“We do not yell!” You laugh.

“Yes you do! It was so funny, you and your dad did it first, and then throughout your sister’s house.”

“It’s mostly just when we need each other’s attention. When you have a big house full of six people, it can be hard to get someone to listen to you. What was your house like?”

“Not the biggest, but not the smallest either.” He smiles. “My favorite thing was that we lived next door to this Chinese food place, and every day after school I’d come home, open my window, and take a big whiff.”

“What do you guys usually do for the holidays? Do you go home?”

“Yeah, usually. We just have a small gathering. I try to go home a couple days early so I have some extra time with my mum. I don’t stay there for New Year’s though.”

“That’s nice you’re able to go home. How often are you able to go back?”

“Typically for the holidays, and then I take about two weeks in the summer, sometimes three. My work lets me take pictures out there so I don’t have to use all my vacation time.”

“I feel like Niall does the same thing. Only he has to use his vacation time in the summer.”

“Yeah, he and I usually try to fly out together. When does Hanukkah start?”

“Couple of weeks. I think the week before Christmas this year.”

“How is it determined?”

“The Jewish calendar is lunar.”

“Ohhhh, okay. Does your family get together?”

“Yeah, my great uncle usually has this big party on one of the weekends it’ll fall on. It’s a lot of fun. As kids, we waited until Christmas to do all our presents, but now we just get together for Hanukkah. It’s just easier because now that my brother’s married, and Erica has Mike, no one has to run around on Christmas.”

“So what do you usually do on Christmas if your family doesn’t get together?”

“It’s just another day. One year I went on vacation with the girls, another year I went down to Florida to see Nannie.”

“Hm, interesting.”

He wanted to take the moment to ask you to go to England for Christmas. He wanted to show you around, see where he grew up. Drive you into London for a day, just completely sweep you off your feet. But he knew you wouldn’t let him pay for the ticket. He needed more time.

“What do you say we go out to a movie tonight?” He asks you.

“Sure! Do you want to go to that theater that has the dinner service?”

“Works for me.”

//

You both decide on going to see Knives Out.

“That was fun, it reminded me of Clue.” You say, walking out of the theater.

“I was going to say the same thing! That’s a movie we should watch sometime.”

“Yeah, maybe we could have the crew over for a movie night sometime.” There were a couple of things you just said that made Harry happy. You said we, as in your place was practically your place. The word crew also delighted him. Your friend groups were merging naturally.

“I think that’s a great idea.” He snakes his arm around you. “The night’s still young, feel like goin’ to have a drink?”

“I like the way you think.”

He drives you two to a bar near the theater. You grab a couple of open stools. You order your usual vodka-tonic, and Harry does the same.

“You look cute tonight, by the way.” He says warmly.

“It’s just jeans and a top. Nothing special, babe.”

“Maybe to you.” He winks. “I like when we get to spend this much time together.”

“Me too…you’re not bored or sick of my place?”

“Not at all. It was nice earlier when we were both just workin’, doin’ our own things, but in the same space.”

“I agree.”

“You don’t feel like suffocated with my stuff there, or me there a lot?”

“No way! I like it better when you’re around Harry.” He takes a sip of his drink.

“I wanna run somethin’ by ya, but I’ll be honest, I’ve been a little nervous to ask.” You give him a warm smile, and put your hand on his thigh.

“Don’t be nervous sweetie, what is it?”

“Well, remember earlier when we were talkin’ about holidays?”

“Mhm.”

“Um, well,” He runs a hand through his hair. “I don’t know why I’m having such a tough time with this.” He sighs. “I’d love for you to come to England with me for Christmas, (y/n). I want you to meet my mum and sister, I wanna show you around London. And I know that’s a lot to plan in just a few weeks, and you may not feel comfortable taking such a big trip with me yet, but I hope you’ll at least think about it.”

You get up from your stool, and wrap your arms around his neck. You give him a few quick kisses on the cheek and start giggling.

“Harry, I would love to go to England!” You squeal, and sit back down.

“Really?”

“Sure! I’ve always wanted to go, and I of course want to meet your family.”

“I want you to let me pay for the plane tickets.”

“Harry, you know I can’t let you do that.”

“I’m inviting you, so I want to do it. I travel enough that it really won’t cost a lot. I can use my miles.”

“I don’t want you wasting that on me though.”

“S’not a waste. Please, just let me take care of it. At least let me book everything, and then we can discuss the payment later.”

“You said the same thing when we stayed at the inn, and you refused to take my check.” You sigh. “I work, I have a good job, I can afford things. If I let you book these flights, you will let me pay for it. I mean it.” You try to be stern with him, assert yourself a little. He clears his throat.

“I never said that you don’t make any money. It’s not about that. This is about me inviting you somewhere.”

“I just feel like you never let me pay for anything. I appreciate you being a gentleman, but for this kind of trip…”

“Baby girl.” He said it. He knew if he called you that you would immediately give up. You weren’t sure what it was about him calling you that, that made you putty in his hands, but it did.

“I’ll drop it for now, but we’re not done discussing this.” You pout. He leans forward and gives you a soft kiss on the lips.

“How ‘bout another round?”

“Let’s drink at home.” Once again, instead of saying your place, you referred to it as home. Harry’s love for you grew deeper by the second.

“Deal.”

[rhosyn-du]

Never make a mess when a total catastrophe will do - Chapter Three

Pairings: Jimon, past Clace, background Clizzy, a bunch of other minor background pairings Rating: Explicit Art: @cor321​ Beta: @all-thestories-aretrue​ Tags:  Alternate Universe - College/University, fake dating, oh my god they were roommates, friends with benefits, idiots to lovers, pining, miscommunication, holidays, drinking games, mistletoe, symbolically significant Oreos, domestic fluff, brief mention of past character death, Jace’s self-worth issues deserve their own tag Summary: What do you do when you find out your sister is not only dating your ex and love-of-your-high-school-life but is also bringing her home for Christmas? Bring your annoying, hot, annoyingly-hot roommate as your fake boyfriend to show them you're totally fine with it, obviously! There's no possible way this could backfire. Link: AO3 , Tumblr Master Post

Chapter Three

Jace woke with the sun just barely beginning to filter through his bedroom window. He’d been half-afraid, half-hopeful that he’d wake to find he and Simon had gravitated toward each other in the night, but they each remained firmly on their sides of the bed, a scant few inches between them.

They had, however, shifted slightly. Simon had kicked the covers off in the night, or maybe Jace had stolen them, and Simon was curled toward the center of the bed, facing Jace, one hand tucked beneath his cheek. His curls stuck out at odd angles, and there was a faint damp patch of drool on the pillow beneath him. Jace thought it was oddly endearing. Either that, or he was completely losing his mind. Probably both. Either way, he needed to get the hell out of bed before he did something really stupid, like reaching out to straighten those curls, or just continuing to lie here staring like some love-struck supermarket romance novel heroine.

Making as little noise as possible, Jace made his way out of bed and pulled on some actual clothes, including the very silly, but very soft reindeer-adorned sweater Izzy had given him for Christmas last year.

“How is it morning already?” Simon’s voice was muffled, and Jace refused to look over and see him looking, no doubt, adorable and far too right in that bed.

“The inexorable march of time,” Jace told him. “I was just going to head down and see about starting some coffee if Iz hasn’t already.”

“Gimme just a second and I’ll come with you,” Simon said, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. “Clary swears your sister’s coffee is amazing and almost makes it worth getting up as early as she does.”

“Nothing is worth getting up when Izzy does,” Jace told him, folding his arms and looking pointedly away while Simon changed. “But she does make some damned good coffee. I’m not sure how she manages to do that when she’s such a disaster with everything else in the kitchen.”

“That’s like the opposite of my sister. Becky is a great cook, but she can never brew a pot of coffee without getting grounds in it. Which is kind of messed up considering how much of it she drinks.”

“Is that where you get your caffeine addiction from?” Jace asked, risking a glance over at Simon for the sake of treating him to a mocking raised eyebrow. He was just in time to catch the last sliver of toned abs disappearing beneath the hem of a Yoda sweatshirt.

“Pretty sure we both get it from Mom.” Simon grinned at him, offering his hand. “Ready when you are, sweetheart.”

“Then let’s get a move on, sugar bear.”

They were greeted with Izzy’s singsong “Good morning!” as they descended the stairs. Clary, feet tucked up beneath her on the couch and leaning heavily into her girlfriend as she sipped her coffee, offered them a sleepy wave.

“About time,” Max muttered from where he sat, engrossed in his phone at the end of the opposite couch.

Jace should have known something was up from the way Izzy watched them as they made their way downstairs, should have felt the telltale dread he always felt at her slowly growing Cheshire Cat grin. But he hadn’t had his first cup of coffee, and he hadn’t gotten nearly enough sleep, and he was still maybe just a little distracted by that tempting glimpse he’d gotten of Simon’s abs.

So, he was taken entirely surprised at Izzy’s half-shouted, “Stop!”

It was only after he’d obeyed on instinct that he saw the danger, saw a hint of Izzy’s manic smile reflected in the smirk Clary gave Simon.

“Look up,” Clary instructed.

Jace did, and then turned a flat stare on his sister. “Iz. Did you really get up before everyone else just so you could catch us under the mistletoe?”

“It’s not supposed to be for you,” Izzy said dismissively. “And Max was up before me, anyway.” Her grin grew. “But as long as you’re there.”

Jace glanced at Simon. They hadn’t actually talked about kissing since that brief, interrupted discussion in the cafe back in Boston, when Jace had promised to follow Simon’s lead. He hadn’t thought they’d end up under this kind of pressure, though, and the last thing he wanted was for Simon to feel like he didn’t have any other option than kissing Jace.

He turned back toward his sister. “Iz—”

His protest was interrupted by a pair of guitar-calloused hands cupping his face and drawing him into a gentle kiss. It barely lasted a second, not even long enough for Jace to really register it until it was already over, but Jace still missed the feel of Simon’s lips on his own as soon as it ended.

“All right,” Simon said. “We’ve satisfied your prurient interests, now tell me where to find coffee.”

“Big, brushed steel pot on the counter in the far right corner of the kitchen,” Izzy told him. “I’m glad at least you’re fun in the morning, even if Jace isn’t.”

“There’s still time for me to return your present, you know,” Jace told her.

“Nuh-uh. It’s Christmas, stores are all closed.”

“Are they always like this?” Simon asked Clary.

“Always,” she confirmed.

“No, they’re usually much worse,” Alec said as he and Magnus descended the stairs. “This is Iz and Jace on their best behavior.”

“Stick around long enough that they start thinking of you as family and the gloves will come off,” Magnus added with an exaggerated shudder.

Izzy didn’t even have a chance to point out the mistletoe before Alec was leaning in to give his fiancé a soft kiss. “You are family.”

Jace wasn’t sure they’d even noticed the mistletoe.

“Technically, not for another five months,” Magnus said. “Which reminds me, I need to call the florist back this week.”

“Already taken care of,” Alec assured him. “Even if I’m still not entirely clear on what a gladiolus is.”

“I only know that Scott Joplin wrote a rag named after them,” Simon said. “Which, I am realizing is completely beside the point. I’m going to go get that coffee.”

He turned to Jace. “You grab us some good seats, and I’ll bring you a cup.”

A few minutes later, everyone had a cup of coffee (even Max, although the cup Alec made for him was mostly milk and sugar), and Izzy had started a new pot brewing. Jace sipped his coffee contentedly as Simon gave an excited play-by-play of the winter concert to Clary, who apparently hadn’t heard the full story of the Great Harpsichord Mishap yet.

Jace, who had heard the story three times already, found his mind wandering back to that kiss. Which was stupid, because it wasn’t even that remarkable a kiss. Just a quick press of lips, really. Objectively speaking, he’d had better kisses. Many of them. It made no sense that he would be so hung up on this one, especially since it had clearly been no big deal to Simon. And yet, he couldn’t stop thinking about it, about the soft warmth of Simon’s lips, the way the callouses on Simon’s fingertips caught just slightly on the stubble along his jawline.

Luke joined them not long after the fresh pot of coffee finished brewing, bypassing the mistletoe trap by virtue of having stayed in the guest room on the first floor.

“Mom is taking too long,” Max announced as Luke returned to the living room with his own mug of coffee. “We should wake her up.”

“Max,” Alec chastised.

“What happened to being twelve now, buddy?” Jace teased.

“I want to open presents before I turn thirteen,” Max answered flatly.

“Your mother was up late getting things ready for today,” Luke said. “You should let her sleep.”

Max gave him a long look, then rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to his phone.

“And how exactly would you know Maryse was up late?” Clary asked with an obviously feigned innocent curiosity.

“Because I stayed up to help her,” Luke said, leveling his stepdaughter with a look that said that was the end of the conversation. Clary’s feigned innocence turned to a more obvious smirk, but she let it drop.

By the time Maryse made her way down the stairs almost an hour later, Max was practically vibrating with impatience, although he was clearly trying not to show it.

And so was Izzy, although she was far less obvious about it. At least until she gasped in faux shock, “Oh no, Mom! Looks like you’re standing right underneath some mistletoe. Guess you’re going to have to kiss someone.”

She and Clary turned expectant smiles toward Luke, who returned a flat look and an equally flat, “Really?”

“Isabelle,” Maryse said in the tone of voice that usually preceded a lecture, “it’s impolite to make assumptions about people’s personal lives, or to try to trick them into revealing personal details they might not be ready to share.”

Izzy had the grace to look chagrined. “Sorry, Mama.”

“You’re forgiven,” Maryse said. “See that it doesn’t happen again.” She turned to Luke. “Lucian, are you just going to sit there or are you going to get over here and kiss me good morning.”

Izzy clapped a hand over her mouth to muffle her excited shriek as a laughing Luke walked over and let Maryse drag him into the sort of kiss Jace would never have expected her to give anyone in front of her children.

“Gross,” Max muttered. He had the sense not to say it loud enough for Maryse or Izzy to hear, but Jace kicked his foot and gave him a disapproving shake of his head.

“As you’ve probably gathered, and some of you clearly already guessed,” Maryse said, giving Izzy a pointed look, “Lucian and I have been seeing each other.” “

“We were planning to tell you after the holidays,” Luke added, “but I guess there’s no point in waiting now, is there?”

“We all kind of guessed,” Alec admitted. “And we couldn’t be happier for you.”

“You guys were pretty obvious,” Clary said.

“Super obvious,” Izzy agreed.

“Now can we open presents?” Max asked.

~~~

“Congratulations,” Jace said the next morning, as Simon was packing the last of his things back into his suitcase. “You survived an entire Lightwood Christmas celebration.”

“It was surprisingly less dramatic than I’d been led to believe it would be,” Simon said. “Except maybe the mistletoe thing. For a second there, I thought Luke was ready to strangle Clary.”

“Izzy’s the one he should be annoyed at,” Jace said. “I’m sure she talked Clary into helping her set that up.”

“Uh-uh, no way,” Simon insisted. “I know a Clary Fray plan when I see one, and that had her metaphorical fingerprints all over it.”

“Izzy’s too. I guess the rest of us will have to watch our backs with the two of them together.” He paused. “About the mistletoe thing. We’re okay, right?”

“Huh?” Simon threw him a confused glance. “Of course we are.” He frowned. “Unless... I didn’t overstep, did I? Oh my god, I’m so sorry. I know we never finished our discussion, and I didn’t even ask before I kissed you, I just thought—”

“Simon,” Jace interrupted. “It’s fine. I told you, I’m happy to follow your lead. I just wanted to make sure Iz and Clary didn’t pressure you into it. But as far as I’m concerned, you can kiss me whenever you want.”

For just an instant, Simon’s frown seemed to morph into something that was almost speculative, and Jace wondered if he’d given too much away. But it was gone so quickly he thought he might have imagined it, replaced by an easy smile.

“Cool. I’ll keep that in mind in case we get ambushed with any more mistletoe.”

It took Simon almost twenty minutes to get out the door once he made it downstairs. Clary wanted to nail down plans for getting together later in the week, and Max kept trying to convince Simon to stay a little longer and play the new video game they’d spent half the previous afternoon playing together.

“Max,” Jace said finally, “Simon needs to go spend time with his own family. If you want, I can play with you.”

Max considered him, then shook his head. “You haven’t got the combos down yet. You’re too easy to beat. But I guess I could teach you. If you want.”

“Sure,” Jace told him. “Why don’t you go get it set up while I help Simon take his stuff to the car.”

Max ran off without even bothering to say goodbye, and Jace shook his head. “I don’t know where that kid got his lack of manners.”

“I think I’ve got a pretty good idea,” Simon said, giving him a pointed look. “But I can be magnanimous about it, since he recognizes my clear video game superiority.”

“One day on a new game does not a champion make,” Jace told him. “We’ll see who’s got video game superiority when we get back home.”

“I’ve got an even better idea,” Clary interjected. “What about a game of Land Mines at Magnus’s New Year’s Eve party? Me and Simon against you and Izzy.”

“Oh,” Simon said, throwing an uncertain look at Jace. “Magnus’s party?”

They hadn’t talked about the New Year’s Eve party. Jace had thought about inviting Simon, had thought about inviting him even before they’d agreed to play each other’s boyfriends, but he figured Simon already had plans with his own friends and family. And now, it seemed too much to ask if it meant Simon spending New Year’s Eve having to pretend to be his boyfriend.

“You are coming, right?” Clary asked, looking between Simon and Jace with clear concern. “We always spend New Year’s Eve together. Unless you guys made other plans?”

“No!” Simon said quickly, avoiding looking at Jace. “No, of course I’ll be there. Obviously. I’m just, you know, not sure kicking Jace’s ass at Land Mines is worth the hangover.”

“The part where you’re worried about your hangover means we’ve already won,” Jace said, hating the way that Simon wouldn’t look at him. He’d have to find a way to make this up to him. “Not that you’ve ever beat me at a drinking game.”

“That’s only because I don’t play them,” Simon said, finally meeting his eyes with a forced smile. “I’ve watched Maia and Lily both drink you under the table, though, so I think I’ve got a pretty good shot, especially with Fray on my team.”

“You only say that because you’ve never seen Iz drink,” Jace told him. “I’ve definitely got the advantage when it comes to partners.”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that.” Simon’s smile was less forced now, falling back into their usual banter.

“Uh huh,” Jace said, unimpressed. “I’ll believe it when I see it. Now get going before your mom decides she hates me for making you late before I even get the chance to meet her.”

“You’re cute and occasionally charming. She’ll love you,” Simon told him, but he picked up his bag anyway and started to head toward his van. Then he stopped and threw a quick glance at Clary, who still stood beside Jace in the doorway, before dropping his bag and strode the three steps back up to Jace to pull him into a kiss.

This kiss wasn’t fleeting like their kiss under the mistletoe had been. Jace had plenty of time to register what was happening as Simon’s mouth moved against his, enough time to relax into it. Enough time to get just a little lost and pull Simon closer.

When Simon pulled back from the kiss, he left behind the warmth of a sharp exhale against Jace’s lips. Jace opened his eyes to find Simon watching him with an unreadable expression.

“I’ll text you later,” Simon said.

“Yeah,” Jace agreed, hoping Simon couldn’t hear the faint unsteadiness in his voice.

“And I’ll see you,” Simon pointed at Clary, who Jace had momentarily forgotten was even there, “day after tomorrow.”

Right. Clary. That’s why Simon had kissed him. Because it would have been weird for him to leave without kissing his boyfriend goodbye. Jace stepped back, putting some much-needed space between the two of them.

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Clary said.

Simon flashed Jace a quick smile before turning and taking his bag out to his van.

“Come on,” Clary said, linking her arm with Jace’s and tugging him back inside. “I need to go tell my girlfriend that I volunteered her to get trounced at Land Mines.”

“Please,” Jace said, doing his best to push everything that had just happened out of his mind. “You know you’re going to lose. Just admit it now and save yourself the embarrassment.”

[fuckingthefictional]

Being Ada’s best friend and falling for Tommy would include.

Becoming friends with her after the boys go off to fight

Some much older lad was trying to flirt with her and Ada looked uncomfortable. So...

“Oi you stupid cunt! Can you fuck off before a bullet gets put into your head by yours truly?”

The man scarpered off after being confronted and publically humiliated

Ada recognises you from the first aid church hall thing

“Thanks for saving me back there”

“no problem us small heath girls have to stick together”

“You’re Y/N right?”

“The one and only, And you’re Ada Shelby”

The old bloke returned with some of his friends I guess not liking the idea of being humiliated by a girl

You just took the pistol from your thigh holster and aimed it at them

“Are you bloody deaf? I told you to leave, so off you fuck!”

They didn’t move so you shot the cap off of one of their heads

“I’m giving you 3 seconds you fucking bastards and not a second more.”

They fled of course

“Christ almighty i need a whiskey.”

“I know just the place.”

After that you became fast friends and became super close.

You both go to the Garrison more than you care to admit.

Ada being surprised at how well you can hold your liquor

The only time you were both pissed out of your minds was on your 18th birthday and you just ended up walking around the streets giggling and singing at the top of your lungs.

You both couldn’t look at a bottle of vodka without gagging slightly

You’re the first person who Ada properly opens up to

She talks to you about her family and boy issues she has because she feels like nobody takes her problems seriously or would be willing to listen to her

“I get so worried about my brothers. I feel like there’s a part of me missing without them here. I’m worried that they might be killed over in France.”

“They won’t.”

“Howd you know”

“Because anyone who shares blood with you, Ada Shelby, would: a) never willingly leave someone they love alone and: b) would never go down without a bloody good fight.”

You always knew what to say to make her feel better again.

You both felt like you were each other’s sisters that they never had growing up.

Like you have sleepovers all the time

“If you expect the unexpected then doesn’t that technically mean that the unexpected is expected?”

“Y/N it’s 4am go to sleep!”

One time you’d woken up a bit earlier than Ada had and you were looking at her thinking

“Damn I’m so lucky to have her as my best friend!¡”

Then she rolled over in her sleep and smacked you in the face

The first time you met Polly you nearly shit yourself

Ada has gone to the bathroom, leaving you alone at the kitchen table

“And just who might you be?”

Polly was stood at the entry way, stern, cold look on her faceface, hand by her hip ready to grab a weapon if necessary.

“I’m- um, I’m”

“Bloody hell aunt pol put the gun down, if you must know this is Y/N she saved my arse from getting raped by an old bloke.”

“Let her speak for herself Ada”

“I’m Y/N, I scared an old guy off after he tried to feel her up in a back alley.”

“ScArEd hiM ofF, you shot the cap off of his head and they bolted.”

“Why did you do that, did you think if you scared a man off then the Shelby’s owed you a favour?”

“Nope my life is just a mess and I instinctively take care of other because I don’t know how to take care of myself.”

Polly was a lot more happy to have you around after she found out about what you risked to help her niece.

It started becoming a regular occurance to have you over for dinner or a cup of tea everyday.

You just sort of walked into the Shelby house now.

“Hey- Jesus, stop screaming for fucks sake. We’ve ran out of whiskey!”

You’re an honourary Shelby girl™️

Like you would willingly help out around the house.

Whether that’s cooking breakfast, tidying Finns room, or doing the laundry.

Always being there for Ada and being her biggest support

“Y/N I’ve done something bad. Really bad.”

“Put the corpse in ice, I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“WhaT nO?! WhY wOulD I HavE a CoRpsE?”

Obviously being close to Ada meant you got close to Finn and he became a younger brother figure.

He comes to you for advice when he’s too embarrassed to go to his aunt and sister.

This family dynamic yoooooo

You began to help the Shelby ladies to run the betting shop.

You did all the numbers and you could read and write.

You also started to teach Finn how to read.

“What does that say Finn?”

“hoo-agh”

“nO”

If you get that reference then ily

You’d get dating advice from Polly too.

“Remember as ladies it’s all about being A-B-C. Always-Be-Classy”

“And a little bit slutty!”

“Ada’s right be a little bit slutty too.”

You’d help Polly look after John’s children on Sundays when she went to church

They seriously love you. They call you Aunt Y/N/N and they look forward to seeing you every weekend.

When the boys come home from France they found the family dynamic had shifted

They obviously weren’t the same after the shit they went through.

But Ada, Polly and Finn we’re happier than they’d ever seen them be

They were having a family meeting around the kitchen table

And you walked into the house as you normally did. carrying groceries

And as you walked into the kitchen

“Who the fuck are you?”

The shelby lads are aiming their guns right at you, ready to blow your head off.

You just looked at Ada, rolling your eyes, “What is it with your family and trying to shoot me on site?”

“They like to shoot first and ask questions later.”

“Aye I can bloody see.”

You just walked around to the kitchen counter and plopped the bags of shopping down.

Polly casually gave you a glass of whiskey which you downed.

“I’m sorry but who the fuck is this random girl standing in the middle of our kitchen drinking our whiskey?”

“Y/N Y/L/N, pleasure to meet you- I assume your Arthur judging by the attitude you’re giving me.”

Polly and Ada full on snorted

“And you must be John, you look just like Katie. The kids have told be a lot about you.”

“All good things I should hope.”

“Shit there were meant to be good things?”

Polly and Ada crying with laughter

“Boys this Y/N, my best friend, the person who did all the numbers for the shop while you were away, John’s kids’ babysitter, Finn’s teacher and honourary Shelby girl.”

Tommy is just in awe even if he hides it

“Welcome to the family Miss Y/L/N”

“You can call me Y/N”

Sexual tension

“GEt a RoOm!”

“Shut it Arthur”

After a few weeks the boys got used to seeing you around the house more.

Whether it was you sat at the table with Finn giving him advice on his spelling.

Or cooking dinner for John’s little ones on a Sunday (which meant you usually had at least one child on your hip)

Or even just lounging on the sofa in a heap with Ada while you gossiped.

Your qualification in nursing often came handy when one of the Shelby men would turn up battered

“That fucking hurt”

“Aye- you should have thought about this before you got into a fistfight.”

Out of all the Shelby’s it was of course Tommy that took the longest to start a full conversation with you

When it happened it wasn’t under the best circumstances

You went to the pictures on a date with a guy you had fancied for ages and the guy in question was snogging someone else- leaving you in the rain for an hour

You banged on the Shelby’s door looking like an absolute mess.

And Tommy opened the door

He didn’t know what he was supposed to do

Ada was not there *cough* at Freddie’s *cough*

And the house was empty apart from Finn, John’s kids and Polly (who was putting the children to bed)

So you just pushed past Tommy who was stood in the doorway dumbfounded

At this point you were shivering from the cold rain and the tears had stopped.

“Now what’s got you knocking on our door this late ‘ey Y/N.”

“Date went wrong, fucker stood me up.”

You were downing whiskey.

Tommy as much as he didn’t want to admit it hated seeing you upset and he knew you deserved better

It took a while for you to notice that Tommy had draped a blanket around your shoulders and had lit the fire to try and get you warmed up

“Forget the fucker. He don’t deserve a gal like you.”

“Thanks Tommy.”

In the morning Polly came down the stairs to find you and Tommy curled up on the sofa together.

She lowkey rooted for yous to get together

Honestly you found yourself constantly covering for Ada saying she was staying at your house when actually she was with Freddie

Because ur a great friend

“has anyone seen our Ada today?”

“Aye she slept at mine last night and we were up most of the night so I let her sleep in.” Definitely not at Freddie’s

“Up all night, that sounds kin-OW”

“If you must know Johnny boy- we were chatting shit about people- mainly you.”

“Uncalled for.”

“Why there’s so much to talk about?”

You were always involved in covering for Ada

Because your cared about her happiness- which was heavily influenced by her love life.

But actually Ada and Polly paid close attention to your love life too with Tommy

When you Polly and Ada were sat in the kitchen having a catchup- they raised the question.

“When are you going to realise that my brother’s in love with you?”

*que tea being spat out* WHAT

Polly just rolled her eyes and smiled, “dear Y/N, its almost obvious that Thomas is falling for you.”

“What the fuck?”

I think you may have been in a constant state of shock after that.

“We broke Y/N.”

Like you couldn’t quite pinpoint when you started to fall for Tommy

But Tommy definitely remembered the time he knew he was in love with you

You were in the kitchen, with John’s youngest child on your hip- making dinner for all the kids.

While Finn was sat at the table trying to read out bits of a book you’d lended him.

Tommy was stood in the entryway watching as Finn struggled to pronounce some of the harder words and you’d just wander over and explain how to do it.

Like to Tommy family is the most important thing in his life.

You’re not blood related but you still gave up your spare time to look after John’s kids, teach Finn to read or even just comfort Ada after a fight with Freddie.

And Tommy admires you for that- you sacrificed a lot in order to care for his family.

So he’s just leant on the doorframe, cigarette between his lips, watching as you got everything ready for dinner.

And he just thought “she’s gonna be my wife and mother to my children someday”

[mercurryblack]

Chapter 6: Rudyard

Day six: the investigation fruitlessly continues.

❃❃❃

“Any luck today?” Yuen asked.

After six fruitless days of combing over Berilo’s house and garden, LLAC had once again returned to the usual meeting place. By that time, Yuen, Rudyard and Sardion were already waiting for them, and the sun was inching down past the horizon.

Lillian shook her head in disappointment. “Nothing. We searched the house from roof to basement as usual, but we didn’t find anything that wasn’t already marked or mentioned in the initial report.” She informed them.

“Yeah, same here.” Cait added. Under their breath, they grumbled; “This is so not cool at all.”

The search of the garden on the first day had been under pleasant weather, but that was the only upside that they recalled— most of that day had just consisted of crawling around underneath the plants and staring at every inch of grass and dirt for footprints. Consistently, the highlight of each passing day seemed to be their short lunch break.

Sardion sighed. “We’re in the same boat, then. Nothing turned up for us, either— I guess we’ve hit a dead end.” Yaara’s house, in comparison had been spick and span, just like how she organized it. Like Berilo’s, a blood spatter marked the area where she had died, but the house was in better shape than his— the door was still on its hinges, with no sign of lockpicking.

“So, what are we going to do next, Detective?” inquired Rudyard. Despite his annoyance at the lack of any new leads, he managed to keep his tone calm.

Yuen raised a hand to her temple, exhaling heavily. “For now, we should head back to my office. I’m sure the lot of you are hungry, I have some food stashed there. We can talk over a nice meal.” she answered.

Sardion raised an eyebrow. “You keep food in your office, too?”

“Ah, just some Dr. Piper and a few packs of Simple Wok instant noodles,” Yuen replied. “…Er, lots of Simple Wok instant noodles, to be honest.”

***

Yuen prepared some water for the instant noodles on a hot plate, as the group sat huddled in the small space.

“Sorry that this is all I have. Whenever us detectives need to stay for the night, cup ramen and soda become our nectar and ambrosia.” She said, sounding a bit embarrassed.

Rudyard laughed, giving Sardion a gentle nudge in the arm. “It’s alright, detective. Truth be told, it makes me remember when I was back in the academy. Sardion, Berilo and I used to sneak boxes of these from the cafeteria to our rooms every once in a while, so that we could have late-night snacks every time we needed to stay up to finish our written assignments.”

“Oh gods, yeah, I remember that.” Sardion said. “And you remember that time Yaara yelled at all of us because we pulled an all-nighter and made the entire room smell like broth? She said if we had just eaten enough at dinnertime like ‘normal people’, we wouldn’t be hungry and therefore wouldn’t stink up the dorm. She was right, of course, but that never stopped us from doing it again and again.” He started laughing along with Rudyard.

“Man, we should try that out, Hattie.” Cait suggested. “Knowing ol’ Branwen, there’s no way that he’ll let me off of that paper just for this assignment, so we might as well have something to eat.”

“Yeah!” Hattie agreed. “We can eat whenever we want!”

Sardion adopted a comically authoritative demeanor. “Hey, hey, bad idea. Don’t do it. And if you ignore me and get caught, don’t tell Lionheart we did it too at our time there. But, if you pull it off and don’t get caught, then you gotta tell us how you did it.”

Rudyard shook his head, grinning. “Man, we must’ve done it ‘til the day we graduated. That grouchy old lady who worked there would always wonder why some of their food was lost, but we never got the blame for it.” He clicked his fingers “Say, you remember the time Hidalgo and Gin found her stash of chocolate pudding and took as much as they could carry?”

“The Great Pudding Robbery of ‘56. How could I ever forget—?”

This time, it was Lillian’s turn to interject. “Wait, Hidalgo? As in Hidalgo Ferrante?”

Sardion turned to her, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah, he was one of our pals in the academy. You know him?”

“Sort of.” Lillian replied. “I mean, I’m dating his daughter right now.” She explained, her cheeks reddening slightly.

“Wait, no kidding?” Sardion’s eyes widened. Turning to Rudyard, he mouthed ’did you know?’

“Yeah, her name’s Rosario.” Rudyard continued. “Talks about her all the time. Showed me a picture of her once, too— she’s definitely her old man’s daughter, has his eyes.”

As he spoke, Yuen sat down with them, placing the pot of now-boiling water in the middle and gesturing to the box of cup ramen. “Okay, grab whatever flavor of noodles you want. And before we continue with the nostalgia and all that, we should first discuss what we want to do next.”

“But… we still haven’t really found anything. How are we supposed to know our next move?” Amaryllis asked.

“Well, it’s not like we can just sit here until something else happens.” answered Yuen.

“Actually, they could stand to do so.” Sardion suggested, indicating LLAC with a nod of his head. “Not for long, but just half a day should suffice. We need to have clear heads, and that goes double for you, Detective— you’ve been pulling all-nighters trying to connect the dots on that corkboard. We all deserve a moment’s rest before we try facing the problem head-on.” he suggested.

Rudyard pensively nodded. “Sardion and I can carry our own independent investigations during then. We’ll try and reconvene with you in the evening, Detective, and LLAC can join us the next morning. The last couple of days have been a whirlwind, and while I’ve no intention of stopping my search for the killer, I don’t want us to burn out— or you guys, for that matter.”

After a moment’s pause, Yuen nodded in agreement. “Alright, team, you kids get tomorrow off starting at noon, and you two get the morning to make your own inroads. But when we all get back, we immediately pick up from where we left off, agreed?” She remarked.

“Agreed!” LLAC responded in unison.

***

“You know, despite all the preservatives, this stuff isn’t half bad.” Lillian said, shoveling a hunk of chicken-flavored noodles into her mouth. “I can see why people would get addicted to it.”

Yuen laughed. “What, don’t tell me you never ate this growing up? Not even once?”

Amaryllis shook her head as she followed her sister’s example, holding up a cup of beef-flavored noodles. “Aunt Izzy was always pretty strict about what we ate. Sure, we had breakfast cereal and juice and the occasional sweets, but that was pretty much it. Said that we had to follow a good diet, and that taste was one of the first things Huntresses sacrificed in the field.” She slurped some of the broth. “Hope I never have to find out what she meant by that.”

“Mmmllpphh... uhh knww whuhh duhs’ lhhk,” Cait said through a mouthful of noodles. “Than’th fuhh th’ muhhll.”

Yuen nodded. “No problem, kid. Eat up, you need it.”

“RRURRRRRP!” Their conversation was interrupted by a loud burp from Hattie. “Ah, ‘scuse me.” She said sheepishly

“Hah! I’ll have whatever she’s having!” Sardion laughed, countering her with a slightly louder belch of his own.

He barely even finished before the petite girl grinningly returned the favor with an even louder eructation.

“Are you… perhaps challenging me, Miss Lazuli?” Sardion inquired, his face turning comically stony as he repressed the urge to snicker.

Hattie smirked, holding up an unopened soda can. “Mayb—b—buUUUURRRRUUUPPPP!”

“Oh, for the love of…” Lillian groaned at the childish antics of the two. “Okay, saying it right now; I’m not being the judge this time.”

***

“Okay, you two, you know the rules. Whoever burps the longest wins, brownie points for whoever starts the loudest,” Amaryllis recited, holding up the timer on her Scroll, her finger raised just above the screen. “Ready.”

Sardion and Hattie each snapped open a can of soda, looking each other dead in the eye as they did so.

“I must let you know, Miss Lazuli, that I was the burp-off champion of Haven Academy in my time.” boasted Sardion.

“That was a long time ago, old dude. Now, it’s my time to shine.” Hattie shot back.

“Set.”

Both of them raised the metal edges of the cans to their lips, still maintaining their locked gaze.

“Last chance to back out, kiddo.” Sardion said, in a taunting voice.

Hattie didn’t reply, but narrowed her eyes and gave Sardion a thumbs-down.

“Go, Sardion.” Rudyard cheered halfheartedly yet amusedly, who sat on the couch watching the game.

“Get him, Hattie!” Cait crowed.

“Begin!”

Glup, glup, glup, glup. Both Hattie and Sardion began swigging down their cans in one long draught, their eyes beginning to water against the drink’s stinging carbonation. Within the span of a few seconds, they had poured every last drop down their throats, only for their cheeks to pouch as the carbon dioxide came rushing back up their gullets.

“Aaaaaaand… go!”

(For the reader’s own sake, this ridiculous match has been abridged by the author, who apologizes for this shameless, childish, and blatantly filler chapter. If you wish for a much funnier burping match, please follow this link.)

“And… time!” Amaryllis turned off her Scroll’s timer as Hattie and Sardion’s burps died down at the same time. “Geez! Thirteen seconds, not bad.” She remarked, swiping on her CCCT browser. “Says here that the world record’s over forty, apparently.”

“Which one had that time?” Hattie asked, wiping her chin with the crook of her elbow.

“Both of you, actually. Tie.” Amaryllis said, lifting her gaze.

Without missing a beat, Hattie grabbed another can of Dr. Piper and thrust it at Sardion. “AGAIN!”

***

While they continued with their childish contest, Cait, Lillian, and Rudyard were busy talking about some of their older missions. Cait found the pair’s recollection of the Kumoyuri assignment far more interesting than the day’s work, and found the part where Lillian had gotten dunked in mud wildly funny.

Personally, they didn’t find their extracurricular Grimm-hunting work to be as interesting, but Rudyard still politely listened nonetheless. Lillian, having been there along with Cait, only half-listened to them as she poured water into another cup of noodles.

“Oh, man. So there we were, looking right in the eye the largest Boarbatusk I’ve ever seen in my whole life. It huffed, and it puffed, it almost blew us away, but we still weren’t scared!” Cait exclaimed, gesturing with their hands to the best of their ability. “Thing is, it was pretty simple once we got down its attack pattern. Charge, turn around, charge, turn around, snort, repeat. Fourth pass around, Hattie managed to chop off its tusks with Whirligig… uh, her saw-gun thingamabob.” They continued, snapping their fingers as they tried to recall the exact name.

“Whirling Dervish.” Lillian said.

“Yeah, that, thanks Lilly.” Cait said, nodding. “Well, as I was saying, she cut off its tusks and got its face pretty good, and I shouted, ‘Guess you’re just a “Boarba” now!’” They sniggered for a moment at their own joke. “You wanna know why I called it that?”

Rudyard chuckled, bracing for the terrible pun he knew was incoming. “No, I have no earthly idea. Why?”

“Because it lost its tusks. Gettit? Boarba? No ‘tusk’? Cut its tusks off?” Cait grinned, acting as if the wordplay had been anything resembling clever.

“Oooof.” Rudyard groaned, shaking his head despite the grin on his own face. “Bad one.”

“I know, right? I should get an award for my combat banter. S’not as easy as everyone thinks it is.”

“Ignore them.” Lillian said, rolling her eyes.

Rudyard leaned back, taking a helping of his own noodles. Despite his inner tension, the pain he still had in his heart, he felt relaxed and eased by LLAC’s company. It felt nice for all of them to gather like one big family, even facing the stark reality of the next day to come. It would take far more than one good night to heal, but watching his protégé and her team… it filled him with determination.

It gave him strength and determination, seeing the new generation take the reins the old had once held. More importantly, it gave him hope.

[yikeswtfmate]

Strange Times || Ch. 2

previous part // Strange Times Series Masterlist // next part

Summary: Now that Y/N Pearson is in town, Mickey wants to spend time with his little sister, or at least, you know, keep an eye on her. However, she has other plans and Ray is still not sure how he was convinced into helping her out.

Pairing:  Raymond (Charlie Hunnam - The Gentlemen, 2020) x Reader

Warnings: swearing; alcohol consumption; drug consumption; sexual themes

A/N: hello sweethearts, this has been sitting in my drafts for far too long while i’ve been going back and forth trying to decide whether i should keep posting this or not, but it’s too much fun to write and it seems there are some of you who seem to enjoy the story so here it is! 

The moment the car pulls in front of the entrance, Y/N bounds out of the door. She’s been quiet during the car ride, humming a vaguely familiar tune under her breath, while scribbling away in her planner. Raymond wondered what her plans might be in a country she’s only visited once more than a decade ago, but he took his phone out, deciding it’s better to tend to his own responsibilities, rather than try to taunt her again.

Now, he instructs David to bring the suitcases in the house, taking a deep breath before stepping in. He finds Y/N in Rosalind’s arms, as Mickey fusses around them, taking her coat and bag, and it shocks Ray into realising that for all of his boss’ might, he’s entirely wrapped around both of their fingers. Y/N just laughs at him, bumps their shoulders together and flicks his forehead, even though the man’s practically towering over her.

There’s a moment when he makes eye contact with Mickey, but Raymond’s had more than his share of Y/N by this point. Not to mention that he would rather avoid thinking about her bent over the back of the couch when her brother is standing right there. He raises his phone and ducks to the office with a nod from Mickey.

Four hours later, Raymond steps back down into the living room, having finished all his duties for the day. He hears Y/N’s laugh as he’s about to take the corner and into the living room, but the sound makes him stop in his tracks. He can’t help the smile that spreads across his face, shocked by the musical tones in it which plays in direct contrast to the snort that follows it. Shaking himself out of his trance, he enters the room where Mickey is laying in an armchair, whiskey tumbler in a hand, while Rosalind offers Y/N a glass of gin. He follows the curve of her bare thigh, splayed over the armrest of the recliner, now that her boots are thrown under the coffee table. He catches her gaze and the glint in her eye tells him that she’s seen him staring. There’s a barely noticeable wink, concealed as she takes a sip of her drink, but her other hand pulls the hem of her skirt an inch higher, seemingly unconsciously to the uninterested eye.

“Right, I’ll be heading out.” Raymond clears his throat, trying to shake the dangerous road his thoughts would like to take by turning his attention to his boss.

“Have a drink with us, Ray.” Mickey offers. “I wanted to talk to you about some things I need to be brought in from the apartment. I’m not sure when I’ll be back in London this week.”

“Wait a minute. We’re not staying in London? I thought the countryside was just for the weekend.” The expression on Y/N’s face turns from confused to dubious. Raymond’s starting to learn her tells and he wonders whether this might turn into a confrontation.

“The apartment’s being redecorated. We’ll be staying here for a couple of months.”

“Oh no. No, no, no. I’m not staying here in the middle of nowhere, I’m going to London.”

“It’s not the middle of nowhere, Y/N. Oxford is 10 minutes by car.” Mickey’s tone holds an edge of desperation, which might only mean he was fully prepared for this discussion and knew exactly how it would go.

“As I was saying, in the middle of nowhere.” She nods. “I’m going to stay in London and I’ll see you when you come to work.”

“I’m not paying for you to stay in a hotel for two months just because you’re throwing a tantrum and can’t sit still.” Mickey snaps harshly, slamming his tumbler on the glass table.

Rosalind lets out a long sigh, and with a shake of her head, she makes her way out of the living room, patting her husband on the shoulder just as a precaution. It seems she was well aware of how this conversation would unfold before it even started. As for Raymond, although he’s a man that has seen nearly it all in his line of work and doesn’t get uncomfortable easily, he’d rather have taken his leave a while ago. Instead, he just takes a sit on the couch facing his boss, close enough to Y/N that he can smell the faint cherry scent of her skin. There are arguments thrown around, a familial fight that he mostly tunes out, in favour of thinking about that whiskey he recently bought at an auction.

“Fine, then I’ll stay at Raymond’s.” Y/N’s voice sharply cuts through his thoughts, snapping him to attention. “I’m sure he won’t mind.” She adds, an inquiry that would sound more like a statement, save for the expectant eyebrow.

Mickey smacks his lips, and sighs heavily, but he does turn to look at Ray. There’s a silent exchange between the boss and his righthand man, and Y/N idly wonders whether her brother would give in just to get out of this fight; he never was one to argue, especially because, for all his protectiveness, he’d also give her anything she’d want. Would she take advantage of that? Of course, she would, if just to not be stuck in the countryside, she thinks. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that he won’t know every single thing that she’ll be up to, and she’s more than sure she can persuade Ray to keep quiet.

Her gaze shifts from her brother to Raymond, whose jaw is set and expression unreadable. She swings her feet on the floor, making sure to inch her skirt even higher. She’s more than aware that if she’d stand up her butt would nearly come out of the leather, but she doesn’t miss the almost imperceptible tick in his eye or how his hand slowly tightens on his glass.

“I have enough rooms. She can stay if she wants to.”

“See? Problem sorted.” That Cheshire smile she’s perfected makes another appearance, more than unsettling in the long shadows of the old mansion.

Raymond has the sense he’s either made the biggest mistake of his life, or just stepped into something he won’t be able to handle. Either way, judging by Mickey’s sigh, he would’ve preferred to have her under his own roof. However, they both know he can trust Raymond with her safety, if not with dampening her chaos a little.

“Don’t worry, Mickey.” She says, but she’s still looking at Ray. “I’m going to be a very good girl.” And with that promise, Raymond knows he’s in deep shit.

*

The heavy smoke that hangs in the air should be indication enough of what Y/N has been up to for the past half an hour while he was preparing the guest room and taking a quick shower. Raymond goes to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water while carefully inspecting her stance. She’s sitting cross-legged on the couch, her eyes glazed, yet fixed onto an unknown thought swirling through her mind. Her fingers unconsciously tap on the joint above the ashtray, before her head falls slowly on the backrest.

Raymond takes a sit next to her, ready to snap her out of it if need be, but she seems to have a quiet one, lazy and fuzzy, enough to mellow her out her typical vibrancy. He hands her the water and she takes it with her free hand, while the other one brings the joint to her lips once more. A slow inhale and then the release of smoke in one swift circle. She watches it expand, lose its tight form until it evaporates above them. She passes him the spliff without a word in his direction, without as much as a cursory glance. While he inhales, she takes a long sip of water and wets her lips, tongue darting out, pink in the dim light of the lamp in the corner.

“That’s some good shit.” She declares with evident satisfaction.

“Didn’t think you’d find it that fast.”

“Ray, Mickey is my brother. Do you really think I don’t have a sixth sense when it comes to it?” Her head lolls towards him and she blinks lazily at him. “Plus, the tea box? Really? I know we Americans don’t usually drink tea, but come on. I thought you’d put more effort in hiding that shit from me. I know it only took me 10 minutes to come back down, but still, are your expectations that low when it comes to me?”

“Oh, trust me, Y/N. You’ve exceeded any expectation I might have had of you.”

“Oh yeah?” Her smile spreads, turning into a smirk, but there isn’t much energy into it and it rather looks like a lopsided grin. “Care to elaborate on that?”

Raymond takes another puff, eyes narrowing in concentration. He can’t say whether it’s the relaxing effect taking a hold of his body, or just that she’s finally quiet, dimmed down somehow, less intimidating in a large t-shirt that looks suspiciously familiar, but he allows himself to stop trying to predict her responses.

“For some reason I thought you’d be a messy teenager who’s too shy to even make eye contact.”

“Which I was ten years ago.” She points out and he nods once in acknowledgement.

“But I was faced with this grown woman who wouldn’t take no for an answer. You’re still the spoiled prick I imagined though, just somehow differently.”

“You’re too sweet to me, babe.” Y/N smiles mockingly and with that, she closes her eyes.

“Are you going to tell me what that was all about or do I have to stroke your ego a little bit more?” Ray places his feet on the coffee table, inspecting his slippers this way and that, realising that this would be the first time a woman would spend more than one night in his house. He finds that oddly enough he doesn’t mind.

“Already demanding, huh?” Y/N takes back the joint, which gives him the opportunity to notice just how smooth her fingers are between his. “I have some meetings to attend to, and I’d rather my brother wouldn’t know. I was aware of the situation with the apartment and knew I’d get my way in the end, but I have to admit, bunking with you is an entirely added bonus.”

“Meetings?” Ray waits for more details, but she just hums. “Do you even know anyone in London?”

“Oh, Raymond, sweetheart.” Her eyes open and her head tilts to one side again so he can fully see the pout on her face. His train of thought is derailed for a second by his imagination that just offers him a flash of teeth biting into soft lips, erasing the mockery and delving into deeper depths. “I see your brother has kept you completely in the dark if you really don’t know what I’ve been up to. Truth be told, I’m not sure how much he knows.” She adds as an afterthought.

“And are you going to illuminate me?”

“I’m here to find him a new buyer. You all fucked up pretty badly last time, so I came to sort your shit out.”

Raymond smiles, although he can’t say he’s not intrigued. Here she is, an American woman who’s just graduated college, barely having stepped foot in this country, thinking she’ll do a better job than Mickey’s entire network system, combined with the entire expertise of their business.

“Big words coming from a little girl.”

“You think I’m joking?” It sounds more like a statement, than a question, and she looks at him, a tone of genuine surprise. “I’ve already warned you not to underestimate me, Ray.”

“Fine. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt then. But if you’ll fuck some shit up somehow, I’ll send you packing myself.”

“Aw, babe, you’re super cute when you’re acting all tough and mean.” Her hand finds his knee again, and he can feel the warmth through his joggers as she trails her fingers over his thigh. “I’d love it if you could show me what all those girls have been telling me you can do.”

“What girls?” He flexes his leg involuntarily, as a grunt escapes his lips, suddenly unable to form words.

“Raymond, I’ll tell you this one more time.” She stands up, stretching her arms and legs slowly like a cat, allowing Ray to see that that is indeed one of his t-shirts that she must’ve stolen when he let her wander through the house. A shiver runs down his spine at the thought that she was in his bedroom. “Don’t underestimate me. I know more than you think.”

And with that she scrunches his face in one of her hands and kisses him with a loud smack. Underneath the taste of weed, he can still smell the whiskey she’d nicked earlier, but most importantly one small part of his brain warns him that if he moves one inch there’ll be no coming back. So he clenches his jaw and closes his eyes, trying to get a hold of himself, trying with all his might not to throw his arms around her and pin her underneath him in an instant. 

One of his legs is trapped between hers, but to keep his hand from gripping the back of her bare thigh would be more likely a titan’s strength, than a mere mortal’s like him. His fingers trace the muscles under the silky skin and she pushes her tongue out, demanding entrance. He pulls his head back, hand tightening on her leg but she’s too distracted to notice the pressure.

“Y/N, no.”

“Buzzkill.” She rolls her eyes, but straightens up again, grabbing the water bottle on the way out of the living room. “You’ll come around eventually.” She yells over her shoulder as she climbs the stairs to her bedroom.

“I have a feeling you’re right.” He mutters and starts rolling another joint.

[werewolfdays]

Touch prompt 1 and 24 ???🥺🥺👉👈

here, have some Christmas time fluff!!! 

1. With love:

I was in the middle of brushing my teeth when I felt a pair of familiar arms wrap around my torso. Nadya leaned heavily into me, resting her head on the back of my shoulder, and I knew without asking that she was still mostly asleep. I was kind of surprised she was awake at all right now. Even planned to let her sleep in for as long as she liked today. 

I chuckled and spit out some toothpaste into the bathroom sink, “Didn’t think I would see you up and around for at least another few hours.” 

“It’s Christmas.” She mumbled drowsily, “I always get up early for Christmas.” 

“That’s good to know.” I mused and continued to brush my teeth while Nadya used my body to keep herself upright. 

Her hands worked their way under my sweater and the heat of my skin made her melt into me further. If she wasn’t careful, Nadya would become a puddle against me, but she kept herself busy with tracing some of the scars across my abdomen. Each gentle touch laced with her silent love. She hummed calmly, pressing her forehead to the back of my neck. I had to admit that her presence was drawing me in even more after each passing heartbeat. It was getting increasingly harder to remember what I was doing. 

“You’re so warm.” She murmured, swaying gently with me.

“So are you.” I said after I finished up and put my toothbrush aside. 

I carefully twisted myself around in her arms so I could face her. Nadya’s perfect brown eyes met mine and I wanted nothing more than to drown in them. She continued to lean against me, her hands wandering up and down my back and sides in lazy caresses. Unable to hold back from touching her too, I reached up to brush some of her messy hair behind her ear and rest my palm against her cheek. I saw, as well as felt, her face flush and she tilted her head into my touch while she looked at me adoringly.   

“Not as warm as you.” 

“There’s more than one way to be warm, my love.” 

We both leaned in at the same time, our lips meeting each other halfway. There wasn’t anything particularly deep about the way we were kissing right now, in fact, our cadence was more reserved than anything else, but the depth of passion I could always feel from her took me off guard every time. Our strokes were as soft as she was, as warm as our skin on skin contact underneath my sweater. Even if I was able to kiss her like this forever, it wouldn’t be enough. Nadya’s arms wrapping around me tighter made me think she felt the same way. 

When we inevitably broke away from each other, I rested my lips on the spot between her eyebrows, holding her to me for just a few moments longer. I felt her breathless sigh against my neck and wondered how I ever went without loving her as much as I do. 

No part of me wanted to, but I pulled away, “You want to go have some coffee by the fire in the Den?”

She nodded, her arms slowly disentangling from me, but not fully breaking contact yet. “Can I have this?” She asked while tugging at the bottom of my sweater. 

I gave her an amused eye roll and nodded with a crooked grin, “Go on, take it.” 

Nadya happily pulled the cozy sweater over my head and put it on with a grin that I never would have been able to refuse. After a grateful peck, she switched places with me at the sink and I went to retrieve something new to wear from the closet. 

The Lodge itself was at its most barren during the holidays as the least desperate wolves tried to be with their own packs, but there were still some permanent residents lingering around the cozy corners of the Den with what little companionship they had. Fresh blankets of snow outside, with frost clinging to the edges of the tall windows, and a big Christmas tree standing next to the fireplace gave the common space that special festive feeling. Nadya lit up when she saw it, which made me smile. 

Skye perked up from her spot on one of the couches when we approached, “Ugh, finally!” 

I watched her jump to her feet and practically skip over to the Christmas tree while Nadya and I got comfortable on our usual couch. Toby brought us fresh cups of coffee and Skye handed out gifts like an excited kid. A huge part of me was glad to see that she still had the same amount of excitement for the holiday as she did when we were little. 

Skye was immediately drawn to the fancy origami paper Nadya got for her and it didn’t take her long to start going wild with it on the coffee table. Soon it was like a mini paper zoo had taken over the table. All sorts of intricately folded animals surrounding her busy hands.

Nadya, on the other hand, was already several pages deep into a novel Toby had gifted her, one that they had talked about a couple weeks earlier. She was lying comfortably against me on the couch, her back resting on my chest, sitting in between my legs. I tried to track the words over her shoulder, but she read too fast for me. Still, I enjoyed her closeness more than anything, though I did eye the campfire cookbook she got for me. Ideas were already brewing in my brain for our next camping trip. 

Toby went straight for the bar when he saw he had some new fancy equipment to work with when making drinks. It was kind of funny to see him handing out cocktails to anyone that would take them this early in the morning. He only took a break to serve us some tamales his family made and delivered to him as a Christmas gift. Another year had gone by and I still couldn’t get the family recipe from his mother, though I refused to give up trying my own spin on the dish with Toby’s help. 

This was starting to be one of the best Christmases I’ve ever had. Definitely the best one I’ve had since before my parents died. I honestly didn’t think I would ever be able to achieve the kind of peace the holiday used to give me again, but having the love of my life happily in my arms, and my pack content, was more than I could have dreamed of. 

My eyes did keep traveling to the last little gift hidden under the tree, wondering if Nadya would eventually notice it. It was small and thin enough to be missed by Skye and her enthusiasm for presents, so I knew that Nadya, being as engrossed in her book as she was, probably wouldn’t realize it was there any time soon. 

I pressed a kiss to the side of her head to get her attention, “What’s that?” I asked into her hair while pointing to where the tiny present was waiting. 

Nadya followed the line of my finger until she finally saw it. Then she glanced back at me over her shoulder, “Is that for me?” 

“Mhm.” I confirmed. 

She hesitated, chewing on her lip as she eyed the gift. I was wondering what she was contemplating when she spoke to my sister, who was the closest to the tree, “Skye?”

“What?” Skye asked, slowly looking up from her work. She turned to where Nadya was pointing and we both realized that Nadya was just too comfortable to get up for her present. I smirked when Skye’s shoulders slumped as she returned her exasperated gaze to my girlfriend, “Seriously?”

“Please?” 

I fixed my little sister with a swift glare when her eyes met mine, urging her to do as Nadya requested. She sighed and stood up to retrieve what Nadya wanted before happily returning to her origami. 

Nadya thanked her and examined the skinny box in her hands that was wrapped in festive paper with a neatly tied bow. I must have wrapped the damn thing half a dozen times to get it to look right. After she took a moment to admire the work I put into it, she carefully unwrapped the gift. Once the sleek box was free of the paper, she flipped it open to reveal the necklace inside.

A small gasp left her lips as she held the chain up to get a better look at the pendant. The casted seal stamp glimmered in the firelight as it lightly swung in the air back and forth. The design had a small wolf standing atop a mountain and howling at the moon, and a small banner curved at the top, showcasing a Latin phrase in letters barely big enough to read. 

The pendant came to rest in her palm and I cradled her hand in mine, brushing my thumb over the words, “‘I Struggle and Emerge.’” I translated quietly, letting my thumb explore the rest of her palm, “This is a symbol of strength.” 

“It’s beautiful.” Nadya marveled. 

“I told you I would get you a necklace that wouldn’t burn me.” 

“You did.” She said with amusement while thumbing the pendant like I had. Then she placed it in my hand, “Will you put it on me?”

I smiled and accepted the pendant, using my other hand to brush her hair out of the way. My arms came around her and then I brought the separated clasps together at the back of her neck, hooking them and letting my hands come to rest on her shoulders. Nadya looked down at the necklace resting on her chest and took a moment to hold it like it was her most prized possession. My heart sang even more when she looked back at me again in gratitude. 

“Thank you, Jay.” She told me softly. 

I let the back of my finger brush her cheek, knowing that there’s no way a single touch or a single gift could ever convey how much I loved her, but I hoped she could sense it anyway, “Merry Christmas, Nadya.” 

“Merry Christmas.” She replied, resting back against me once more when I pressed a kiss to her temple.

24. To say hello:

My boots crunched into the fresh snow as it flurried all around me before coming to rest on the ground, culminating in mounds of pure white powder. All of the pines in sight looked like they had been dusted with sugar and my breath came out in visible puffs before me. There was something so magical about a forest during the winter time, something that even the biting cold couldn’t make me hate. 

I paused too many times to count to take dozens of photographs with all of the new film I received yesterday for Christmas. This was such a peaceful and perfect day. All I missed was Jayde, but she had to go back to her patrol duties today, no matter how hard I tried to convince her to take another day off with me. I would see her later though and that was enough for me. Plus, I wouldn’t bore her by dragging her around to take all of these pictures. 

A particularly cold breeze made me shiver. I adjusted the beanie on my head and wrapped my scarf tighter around my neck in an effort to conserve some body heat. While I was doing that, I heard a snap of a twig somewhere off to my right. My steps faltered as I listened for more, but the forest fell quiet, so my eyes searched for any movement that I couldn’t hear. There didn’t seem to be anything, even with me staring off into the misted woods for several long moments. 

Unsure whether or not I should be nervous, I continued onwards. It was probably only a deer or some small critter. Other werewolves usually stayed far away from me when they were in their wolf forms, not wanting to make me feel unsafe or face Jayde’s over protectiveness. Of course, that didn’t mean I would never accidentally come across someone’s path eventually. I kept my eyes and ears peeled just in case. 

My peaceful surroundings consumed me again, so many beautiful sights ranging from minute details on the side of the trail to grand landscape scenes that broke through some of the trees, showing miles and miles of snow-covered mountains. It made me think of the present Jayde gave me yesterday. I reached for the necklace, smiling when my fingers found it peeking through my scarf. The freezing air made the metal pendant cold to the touch, but I didn’t mind. I just wanted to be reminded of the best gift I’ve ever received. 

Another rustle in the woods behind me made my head snap around. This time, I was positive that whatever or whoever it was had to know I was here, and they weren’t trying to avoid me. I backed away from the sound, trying not to be alarmed by the presence. 

“I can hear you.” I called out, “Do you need something?” 

There wasn’t an answer. And there wasn’t any movement out there. 

I continued to back up while I searched my surroundings for any sign of someone. Just as I was starting to get uneasy, the back of my legs connected with something large and soft. I hopped forward with a startled yelp and flipped myself around to see Jayde in her wolf form standing there with her tail wagging and her tongue lolling out in a wolfish grin. She had been messing with me the whole time. 

“Are you serious?” I yelled at her through a laugh. 

Jayde sat on her haunches, looking proud of herself. The color of her fur blended so perfectly with the snow around her that she probably didn’t even have to try all that hard to be stealthy. There’s no way I would have been able to spot her from a distance. 

“You scared me, you know.” 

She gave me a teasing bark and leapt towards me. Her massive wolf body playfully tackled mine into the built up powder on the ground. I started laughing while her snout poked me in all of my ticklish spots, trying to wrestle her head away. A growl rumbled in her chest when I grabbed her muzzle and clamped it shut with my hands. 

“What are you gonna do now?” I challenged. 

I held on tighter when she tried to shake me off, forcing her to use one of her giant paws to pry my hands off of her. I took advantage of the fact that she had to be gentle with me, shrugging her claws away from my arms. Knowing that she was at a disadvantage, Jayde growled even more menacingly in my face, but I wasn’t deterred in the slightest. I simply raised one of my eyebrows and placed a quick kiss to her forehead. That shut her up fast. 

Once she shook it off, she snorted indignantly and plopped herself down right on top of me, effectively pinning me to the ground and further into the pile of freezing snow. It reminded me of the way large dogs sometimes don’t understand that they aren’t lap dogs. I lied there groaning for a few seconds before her weight was too much. 

“Alright, alright. Truce?” I suggested in a strained voice.

Jayde gave a single nod and stood up at the same time I released her muzzle. I sat up and shook my head at her with an exasperated grin. She stared right back at me with glowing amber eyes, her tail still wagging, and waited. 

“Well, hello.” I giggled and held my arms out. 

The white wolf immediately fell into my embrace, nuzzling against my head and knocking my beanie askew. I ran my hands through her fur, enjoying the softness and the insulated warmth of her wolf form. She was definitely built for this kind of weather. It made me want to find a spot and curl up with her because I could feel the melting snow begin to soak into my clothes. I shivered again, my teeth chattering, and pulled her closer, which resulted in a concerned grumble from her. 

“Maybe we should head home soon. I think I’m in the mood for a hot bath.” I said. 

Jayde leaned back to cock her head curiously at me. Then she stood up and gently bit my sleeve to pull me to my feet. I laughed at her sudden enthusiasm and gladly started to follow her back to the Lodge where we could get nice and cozy together for the rest of the day.