#borrower incident

[kodared]

✰ Stanford & Borrower/Anomaly Reader ✰

fears not enough they have to tear him apart.

Chapter 1/?

Wordcount: 2,057

➤ Summary Based on the borrowers of many universes! I hope you enjoy it, and if you don't know about borrowers, let me be your guide into a world I've loved since I was young. ✰Written because I saw the severe lack of borrower content in Gravity Falls fanfic, i hope you enjoy <3 ✰ - ★Updates irregularly! I write when I want ★

★ - Also on AO3! - ★

https://archiveofourown.org/works/58879087/chapters/150070549

The cottage you moved into was poorly constructed and had many openings to various rooms because of the peeling wallpaper. It was partially why you chose to reside there after many weeks of venturing the forest once your parents kicked you out. 

You lived with your parents in a tree until they decided it was time for you to make your way in this world. Oh, how you could imagine the looks on their faces if you told them the mess you got yourself into this time. 

Your family chose the safety of trees and burrows rather than living in the walls of creatures that could kill you without so much as a flick of a wrist. 

You wouldn't call yourself one for adventure, quite the opposite. Humans terrified you to your very core. You’ve been a first-hand witness to what they are capable of. When the cottage was in the process of being built you watched many trees torn and splintered by their impossibly large machines. 

You rather despised humans. What you didn't despise however was routine and having access to food much easier than foraging. 

Life in the cottage was relatively peaceful, it was about as peaceful as you could get for being only a few inches tall. You swore your species was doomed to fail if it wasnt for humans influence. 

The scientist who lived in the cottage was paranoid, that much was obvious. Even when you first moved in after being kicked out he stayed up much too late and consumed too much coffee to be considered sane. You brushed it off because, after a few days of scoping out the walls of the cottage, you realized he had a very precise schedule that made borrowing easy. 

He would wake up early, and go to bed late. Usually uttering to himself before going down into his basement to do who knew what. It gave you a lot of time to yourself, and a human with a predictable schedule was hard to come by. Most had kids or animals, both very dangerous to someone like yourself. Fortunately, this human only seemed to have one friend who came around periodically, but they stayed downstairs. 

You had noticed that night you were running low on thread and crackers, and the human was in his basement. Of course, night turned into day much quicker than you predicted. 

The shock and horror of hearing the vending machine door open while you were in the middle of climbing up into his shelf literally by a thread still shuddered through your body even now. 

…So what if you screamed and ran off despite him shouting for you? So what if you have to move homes? It didn't even matter much to you that when you let go of the thread you landed on your foot and wrist wrong. 

The faint memory of his hand reaching for you did rattle you to your core, despite how much you insisted you could escape him even if he did grab you. 

The way his eyes bared into your very soul, the way even his shadow in the early dawn lighting engulfed your entire body. Your shaking hands as you pried the loose wood plank off the wall just as you could feel his body heat emitting from his hand radiating on your back. 

… 

 …You push the memories away lest you give yourself another panic attack. You tried to not let it bother you much, though you would miss the plentiful amounts of jellybeans and other snacks he kept on the shelves. 

No. What bothered you the MOST was the fact every little detail, every little move you made before you ran off into the wall, was now being documented. 

You looked down from the crack in the wall with a grimace. There was a foul taste in your mouth as you saw the human below taking vivid and rigorous notes while sitting at the kitchen table. His pen scratched the page so hard you believed it would rip. 

The red journal he carried with him was the bane of your existence. If any information about you or your species was going to become mainstream, it would doom your life as you knew it. Not to mention shatter any dreams you had of a normal life. 

You weren't in any position to do anything about it yet. The effects of the adrenaline pumping through your veins were slowly ebbing away. Leaving a dull ache in your head and a nasty sprain on your wrist and ankle. 

With a sigh, you pushed off the wall and made the long trek back to your room. Deciding that before leaving, you had to get rid of the page in his journal. He had to leave it unguarded at some point. 

Your room in the walls wasnt much, but you spent a lot of time working on it. You hollowed out a space inbetween a few support beams and insulation and put a few pieces of cloth on the walls. 

The pin cushion you called a bed practically screamed your name as you pushed your makeshift cloth ‘door’ open. You broke off a piece of a cracker you swiped a few days prior and shoveled it into your mouth before collapsing on the bed. 

Getting that journal was your only hope. Ignoring the chalky residue left in your mouth by the dry cracker sleep soon found you. 

… 

That man did not leave his journal for one moment. 

It's been two days since your last encounter with the human. You tried so hard to stay patient in the walls and bide your time until you could get ahold of the cursed page, but your rations were running short. 

So you threw on your satchel and stabbed a needle in your pants just in case he was out. You used to not carry it, but you weren't taking any chances. 

Pressing your hands to your eyes you tried to gather courage as you walked in the dark pathways of the walls. You tried not to think about what would happen if you were caught by the scientist. 

You’ve seen him take creatures like yourself down in his basement, and they never come back up. 

Despite this, you still for whatever reason chose to stay. You wished you never stayed. More than anything you wished you had just found a nice, abandoned burrow like your cousin had, and stayed in the woods. 

In your frustration you kicked a piece of rock, it hit a nearby pipe with a satisfying twang. 

There were more predators in the woods but atleast they would just kill you. There was no telling what the human would do if he caught you. 

Taking a deep breath you consoled yourself, if you played your cards right and stayed out of sight this would turn out like it usually did. 

You would take a few crackers and leave, that's all you had to do. 

As you pressed your hands against the wall and shakily pushed, you felt the loose wood disconnect with a satisfying crack while you poked your head out.

You squinted as the bright light from the kitchen flooded into the wall and onto your face.  

Everything seemed completely normal, which should have relaxed you, but it merely put you more on edge. 

This human wasnt normal. There was no reason everything on the countertop was tidied away. He usually left dishes in the sink, and from where you stood you saw none. 

You where about to slink back into the wall and go out a different time before you heard his voice. 

“...It was bipedal!- have you ever-” 

You were quick to pull yourself back into the wall, your hand slipping on the wood and giving yourself a splinter. You sucked in a breath and held your yelp as you heard footsteps coming closer. 

“I know, you haven't stopped talking about it for three hours..” 

The other human's voice sounded southern, you recognized it as the main resident's friend, or ‘associate’ he sometimes said. 

You could hear them picking up various glasses and cups, if you had to guess the humans were probably making more coffee. Your hypothesis was only confirmed as you heard the cursed machine whirr to a start. 

You finally let out the breath you were holding as you felt the splinter that now lodged itself in your palm. Wincing as you continued to listen. 

“I know, I just wish I was able to capture it! I could put a more accurate sketch, what if its the only one of its kind?” 

Predictable as always. 

“Ford, I'm sure you already went scarin’ the thing half to death. I wouldn't be shocked if it left,” 

Ford. The scientist was named Ford. As you picked at the splinter you internally berated the name, yours wasnt much better but atleast your parents loved you enough to not name you Ford. 

…Maybe you where being a bit mean. 

“I doubt it, more than likely I can catch it again early morning. It seemed shocked I was there, it more than likely has a schedule it keeps to.” 

Or maybe you weren't mean enough. Seriously who did this guy think he was? You had half a mind to march out of the wall and stab his stupid hand.

You didn't bother listening to the rest of their conversation, too preoccupied with picking at the splinter. Trying to pull it out with little to no light proved itself to be difficult. 

You could head back to your room, but the string lights in there had limited battery, and you tried to save it for only special occasions. 

To your relief, the pair left a few minutes later. Only when you heard the vending machine door clunk shut did you press against the wood plank. 

Using the small sliver of light provided you pulled the splinter out with your nails, flicking it away before turning and looking at the counter. 

…He left a dish. 

A dish in front of where he last saw you. A dish full of various snacks, ranging from two jellybeans to crackers and cheese. 

You weren't some domesticated house pet. You scowled at the dish as if it had personally scalded you before walking past it. 

You walked quietly despite there being no reason to. Wishing you had your fish hook and thread to get up on the higher shelf. 

You could manage without it though. You only made it a few months prior so you were skilled enough to find some scraps on the counter usually. 

To your dismay, though he seemed to have done a thorough cleaning, and without your hook you had no way to reach the shelves above to gather your food. 

You pressed on and walked over to the sink, careful to balance on the edge. You looked at the faucet and walked over to the handle. Gently and carefully push it just a smidge before taking out a small thimble you used for water. 

After drinking your fill and putting the thimble away, you turned the water off. 

…Not fully though, he could deal with a leaky faucet for a few hours. 

You where going to go back empty-handed until your stomach growled looking at the crackers he left out. 

Surely taking one wouldn't hurt, if you left a message. 

You picked up one and stuffed it into your bag, contemplating taking a jellybean but deciding against it. Right before you went into the wall you kicked the dish off of the counter. Shattering on the floor with a satisfying clatter. 

Snickering to yourself you slinked off into the walls. You’d check back on the human that night to see if he left his journal on his desk this time. 

… 

A few hours later Ford had finally gotten to a stopping point with his research. Thoughts of the little creature in his walls beckoned at his mind as he rode the elevator up. 

He sent Fiddleford home with a goodnight before practically sprinting into the kitchen, seeing the mess left by the mischievous thing. 

One thing on the counter caught his eye in particular. 

As he picked it up he examined it thoroughly. 

A small splinter of wood, ever so slightly tinged at the edge with red. 

“...Fascinating..” 

---

Thank you for reading!! Ill more than likely be updating this when i can, but be assured Chapter 2 is already being written with plans for three others!

Hope you Enjoyed!! My Askbox is always open if you want to hear me ramble more about borrowers! V●ᴥ●V

[mumblelard]

frogs from a hidden pond and a bunny in the graveyard

in this last week i have seen a dozen blue-tailed skinks sunning on a wall, a softshell turtle laying eggs on the side of the lake, a great blue heron feeding screeching nestlings high up in the trees

written on a picture of the moon with the last ink from a dying pen, lit by the twelve hour glow stick saved years in my pack for an emergency, hung at sunset

[kyistell]

Wow me, drawing Jersey? Craazzzyyyyy

Anyway, I had an original design for this type of look on the Ipad, ended up not looking at it once since I apparently have memory. Kinda glad I didn't since I could go just by memory and figure it out as I went along ya know. (ps, for those who don't normally read tags just like, please do, i put so many lil things in there lolz)

Okay SO, I have this lil headcanon, nothin big, that Jersey didn't used to wear shorts until like 2000 or something, maybe a bit before then. This is because he has some scars on his legs, just from over the years, and wearing shorts not only shows those but also make it easier for him to get scrapes and such.

He was fine wearing shorts around NY, Del, and Rhode, occasionally Mass as well if he happened to be around at the time. He couldn't wear them around anyone else for a long time, some scars had Memories(tm) attached to them, some good most bad, so he just never wore shorts.

He's gotten a lot more comfortable wearing them around the other states over the years, mainly because of Covid where Mass unfortunately wouldn't let him keep wearing the same two pairs of pants. So he's fine now, if still a lil uncomfortable around some states (the west mainly), you just won't see him wearing them until it's the first day over 60 in state.

Anyway I love NJ but this isn't surprising, I live here. I am NOT a simp for this bitch, he's my state, I have to like him, 'sides who else would I attach to? Pennsylvania? Florida? Or god forbid NEW YORK!? Absolutely not, that's sacrilegious that is.

[rainbowpufflez]

“So how’s the Kalos region going for you Bo?”

Oh yknow, great.

[dougielombax]

No he didn’t steal the moon.

He just borrowed it.

Well.

Borrowed without permission.

A small oversight

[folliesoftheforest]

Important note I'm realizing as I edit the next installation; unless things are specifically stated, it's safe to assume that there is a solid few weeks, if not months, between stories!

[last-flight-of-fancy]

The twins visit Hallima at their Island Sanctuary

“So, an Island, huh?”

Alisaie’s voice carries across the beach easily, muffled only by the gentle rolling tide, still low at this time of day. Birds call in the distance, and Alphinaud hefts his bag a little higher on his shoulder.

“So it seems. For being a hero to all the realm, or simply being on Tataru’s good side, I wonder?”

“Both.” Hallima strides down the rough stone walkway to greet them, grinning widely as they turn to face him. Both twins light up with equal delight, shucking their bags to wrap the former adventurer in tight simultaneous hugs. “Miss me?”

“Always!”

“Of course!”

The twin exclamations were tied in fervour, differing only slightly in tone. Hallima ruffles their hair and then bends down to return their hug with enthusiasm.

“You picked a great day to come,” Hallima says when they pull back. “It’s been raining all week, I was worried you might arrive to nothing but squalls.”

“As if we haven’t dealt with worse.” Alisaie snorts.

“Indeed.” Alphinaud nods. “Though I will admit that some nice weather shan’t go amiss either, after months of Garlemald's unending snows. And hearing all about your exploits in farming, I’m quite eager to see the fruits of your labours myself.”

“How has Island life been treating you?” Alisaie asks. “Your letters painted a fair glowing picture, but forgive me if I wish to hear it from the dragons mouth.”

Hallima chuckles.

“It’s no replacement for wandering the worlds, but it keeps my hands busy when the guilds tell me I’ve done enough for one week.” He says, gesturing them to follow as he turns back to the stone walkway.

“Oh yes, because you certainly haven’t been doing any wandering, have you.” Alisaie raises a delicate eyebrow at Hallima as she stoops to pick up her dropped bags. Hallima coughs and looks away.

“And defy chirurgeons orders? I wouldn’t dare.”

“Chocobo hock, you most certainly would.” Alisaie rightly scoffs.

“And any sightings of you at Radz-at-Han or Gridania are mere fictions, I’m sure.” Alphinaud is clearly just as convinced.

“Of course.” The truth is of course that they have a personal transport crystal in Gridania, and Radz-at-Han is set as their home point, so aetheric travel to those places are less strenuous than most others.

They still weren't supposed to be teleporting at all, but it was more of a gray area. Kind of.

“Hallima…” Alphinaud sighs, but his exasperation is short lived, too happy to see their friend and sibling again. “I don’t know what we expected, honestly. You never were one to let anything keep you down.”

“And glad are we for it, even if it can be infuriating at times.” Alisaie agrees. “Come, show us this Island Paradise you’ve been building these last few months.”

“With pleasure.”

-

"And this one? What's her name?" Alisaie hefts the karakul in both arms like one would a stuffed toy, beaming widely. Hallima grins despite himself- the typically ornery beast was being astoundingly docile at the treatment.

"Pibby."

"And this one?" Alphinaud crouches next to another one, which looks up from it's doze to sniff at his nose curiously.

"Foof."

"Has anyone told you that you are terrible at names?" Alisaie snorts.

"Yes, you. Repeatedly."

"To be fair… You are really terrible at it." Alphinaud says with a wry grin. "How about the Auroch on the far end?"

"Gigatusk. I name a baby couerl Kitten on time and I never hear the end of it."

"Once, sure, sure." Alisaie sets Pibby down and hefts a dodo nearly bigger than she is up to Hallima. "What's her name again?"

"…. Carl."

"How is Kitten doing?" Alphinaud asks, Foof whining and nudging his hand when he pauses scratching behind her ears. He resumes his task dutifully.

"Still growing, somehow. Might have to move it out here if it keeps going, it barely fits through doors anymore." Hallima grimaces. His retainers would not be happy with that, they were both just as attached to Kitten as he was. Minhe would probably just show up on the Island the next day with bags packed and his usual lazy grin, the red of his long Viera ears burning bright in the tropical sun, but T'ona would twist his ear for putting them through the trouble… regardless of whether he actually asked them to or not. But she would still come, all dark slitted glares matching her fur but gentle touches, in her usual manner of her actions and words never quite matching up completely.

"Is she still convinced she's a lap cat?" Alisaie releases Carl, who blinks blankly at the change in circumstances, squawks once, and then flutters off to join her mate, Numbnuts, further off in the pasture.

"Considering no one has told it to stop… Yes." Hallima takes no responsibility for that one. That was entirely Minhe's doing.

"Well, no one has come to harm over it, he can be a lap cat if he wants to." Alphinaud says primly. Alisaie glares at him. It was a long standing debate as to Kitten's actual sex, but early in their adventuring careers they hadn't the time or resources to find an animal expert willing to deal with the notoriously dangerous Couerl species, and though Hallima probably could now, this is far more entertaining.

Actually, chances were high one of the Island's resident mammets probably could do it, there are several tasked with the care of the pasture animals for that very reason, but Hallima decides not to enlighten either twin of this possibility.

"Oh now well aren't you a pretty beastie." Alisaie coo's, prompting Hallima to drag themself out of their thoughts and see Alisaie petting along the neck of their rare Gold Back. Before they can utter a word of warning Alisaie yelps as her arm is suddenly clamped in the creature's jaws, nestled between it's long teeth.

"Alisaie!" Alphinaud stands sharply, aether percolating in the air as he readies a spell, but Hallima gestures him to wait, and to his credit he does.

"You okay, Alisaie?" Hallima calls, and Alisaie pulls out of her instinctual shock to pull on her arm a little, finding it securely held but otherwise unharmed.

"I'm fine. Just.. Stuck. I guess."

"Yeah, she does that." Hallima jogs down the hill. "Sorry, she was on the far end and doesn't usually approach strangers, so I didn't think to warn you unless we went closer."

"Well, as long as she just wants to hold me and not eat me, I shan't complain." Alisaie grins ruefully. "Though It is rather… wet."

"Yeah." Hallima chuckles, petting the Gold Back's beak gently before reaching past it to her jaw, looking for a particular pressure point. "Talk to Creature Comforter on the way out, he keeps towels on hand because of exactly this."

"Ah, ow!" Alisaie yips, startling both Alphinaud and the Gold Back, the latter of which freezes entirely.

"Sorry, sorry." Hallima says, moving to get a better view of their work. "I'm more used to being the one pinned… And the mammets never say anything if I poke them by accident. Apparently."

"I don't remember your claws being that sharp." Alisaie flexes her pinned hand in an attempt to shake away the lingering pain.

"Forgot to file them down before you got here." Hallima says, a hint of chagrin in their voice. Alphinaud makes a thoughtful face.

"Why do you do that, anyroad? I've always meant to ask. The Au ra students we knew back at the Studium often did, being as they are involved in research and academics for the most part, but all those who led more dangerous lives such as those of the Steppe or Yugiri tend not to. I am aware that you are more than capable in the field, but surely even so small a natural advantage would be a boon?"

"'S a hassle. Ah!" The Gold Back's mouth opens and releases Alisaie's arm, which emerges sticky but unhurt. "There we go, that's a good Limestone. You don't mean no harm, do ya? You're just a mama at heart." Hallima coo's, petting the creature, and Limestone shakes her head and neck happily at the attention.

"That's right, Blue Back's carry their young in their mouths, don't they?" Alphinaud recalls. He's not entirely sure where he'd read that, animal husbandry wasn't something he had ever studied in truth, so it must be some tidbit of information he had picked up in passing.

"Yup." Hallima nods, giving Limestone another pat. "The teeth look long and dangerous, but they're more like handles for their babies to grip than any kind of offensive tool."

"What did you mean by it being a hassle?" Alisaie asks, curious, unconsciously rubbing at the thin red line that now crosses the bridge of her thumb. Hallima glances down at it pointedly.

"Scratching things I don't want to scratch."

"It's really not that bad," Alisaie waves her hand as if to demonstrate its veracity. "But I see your point. Now, where were those towels?"

She struts off without waiting for an answer, spotting the Creature Comforter by the gate quickly. Alphinaud looks up at Hallima, thoughtful, but whatever he's thinking he ultimately chooses to keep to himself, and the two follow her at a leisurely pace. Hallima is grateful, he hasn't thought about the last time he used his claws deliberately in a very long time, and would prefer to keep it that way.

The low thump-thump of heavy feet behind them tells them that Limestone has chosen to come along- at least so far as she is able. As they approach the gate she nudges and nuzzles at Alphinaud insistently, which he doesn't seem to know how to react to, shoulders stiff and gently pushing her beak away when it blocks his vision. Hallima chuckles, and reaches into a pocket for some greens.

"Catch." Is the only warning Alphinaud gets, and to his credit he does manage to catch the bundle, if ungracefully. Limestone trills in delight, feathers and webbed scaling alike flapping in excitement at the sight of it. "Go on, give her a treat."

"Ah, alright, um. Here?" Alphinaud turns and holds up the greens, which despite her obvious excitement Limestone only nibbles at the ends of. After a moment she nudges at his closed fist with her beak in frustration.

"Open your hand, let it rest in your palms." Hallima instructs. "She's trying not to get your fingers."

"Oh. Right." Alphinaud does so, and Limestone proceeds to gobble up the treat with abandon.

"Nicer than many animals, then." Alisaie approaches, still wiping down her arm with her newly acquired towel. "And good thing too, Alphinaud would definitely lose some appendages otherwise."

"Hey." Alphinaud scowls at her, but cannot find any true rebuttal to it. It was true after all, he generally fared much better with creatures capable of speech.

"Like I said, she may be shy- usually anyway- but she's a mama at heart."

"We're not that young." Alisaie is the one to protest this time. And there is some truth to that these days; the twins have yet to hit the majority of their growth, but the way their frames have filled out and necks lengthened indicates it's likely not far off.

"You're young enough." Hallima shrugs. "She does it to me too, remember?"

"Right." Alphinaud says, a smile crossing his face and his stance starting to relax. "'Mama at heart.' We know the sort."

-

It should by all rights have been a short tour. The Island, while big enough to sustain a small village, isn’t that large, but the three are continuously stopped by some anecdote or shenanigan and by the time they finish the sky has grown long dark and lanterns light the paths.

It’s for this reason that Alisaie doesn’t notice right away, hearing the faltering step more than seeing it, and the sound makes her pause in concern.

“Are you all right?" She asks, looking towards Hallima. "We can stop for a while if you need a break.”

"Huh?" Hallima pauses, confused, before a dawning realization crosses their face. “Oh, no I’m fine.”

“You’re limping.” Alphinaud has noticed too, probably at near the same moment she had, she’d simply spoken first.

“It’s nothing, just a rock in my boot.” Hallima tries to turn away but only makes it a few steps before realizing neither twin is following them. When they meet the twins gazes, it is to one full of hurt anger and one of aggrieved betrayal.

“You’re really going to lie to us? Now?” Alisaie demands. “After everything we’ve-“ She cuts herself off, biting her tongue lest she say something she regrets.

Alphinaud approaches Hallima slowly, and inside something complicated and bitter writhes at how it’s like he would approach an injured animal.

“Sit down, let me see.” He says, a healer to his core. Hallima shakes his head.

“There’s nothing to see. I didn’t want to worry you.”

“Well congratulations, now we’re worried.” Alisaie crosses her arms. “So?”

Hallima looks away, and then lets themself lean against a nearby fencepost.

“There really is nothing to see.” They say again, as Alphinaud starts checking them over. “It’s been like that ever since…”

They trail off, but there’s no need to finish. They all know what events they’re referencing. Alphinaud’s hands drop, the pieces falling into place.

“Why try to hide it though?” Alisaie asks, frustrated. “It’s not like we haven’t all some lingering malady or other from our adventures. Alphinaud’s hands ache when it rains, Krile suffers from memory echoes, Y’shtola’s blind, and if I recall correctly even your dragoon mentor has a limp of his own!“

“None of whom are the Warrior of Light!” Hallima snaps, unthinking. Two stunned faces stare up at them in shock, and they turn their head away from the rush of shame that heats their cheeks.

"Hallima…" Alisaie says, the word strangled and unsure.

“I’m- sorry." Hallima pushes off the fence post and tries to meet their gazes but fails, scrubbing a rough palm through their hair in guilt and frustration.

Alphinaud casts his gaze downward, lips pursed in thought, before reaching out and taking Hallima’s comparatively massive hands in his.

“Too much has been put on you over these long years, hasn’t it my friend?” He says slowly. “It is something we have oft acknowledged but failed to address. I vowed never to view or wield you as a tool again, and though I have tried my utmost to hold to that it appears I have still failed. I am sorry, my friend.”

"You haven't failed." Hallima shakes their head sharply. They turn their hands so they can return Alphinaud's grip, mindful of their claws. "It's not you, and you don't deserve me taking it out on you. It's just… I've become the saviour of the realm, the universe itself, and I would do it all again if I had to, but there is always a part of me convinced that I'm.. Not worthy of it. That one day my weakness will become obvious to all."

"We all have weaknesses, Hallima." Alphinaud says, the soft quaver in his voice speaking to his understanding more than words ever could.

"I know. I do." Hallima says. "it's a bit absurd, isn't it? It would be easier were they to simply turn on me like the bloody banquet. It hurts but it's straightforward, I know how to handle a fight. It's the disappointment that scares me."

Alisaie’s anger and frustration melt away in understanding, and she stands next to Alphinaud, with wide, shining eyes.

“You are the Warrior of Light, yes.” She says, the effort to keep her voice from shaking. “But you are also a man. No more or less than the rest of us. I know you have been made a symbol to the masses but to us-“

She stops, biting her tongue again, this time to keep her composure than to restrain her anger.

“To us you are family.” Alphinaud finishes for her, and she nods, grateful. “You need not maintain a veneer of perfection with us. Please, we would gladly share your struggles as you have shared in ours.”

"Whatever may come, we will be there for you, as you have been for us." Alisaie continues. "So forget the disappointment of the masses. We have seen you with scissors stuck in your hair and your horns caught in your shirts, you won't be getting rid of us that easily."

“Heh.” Hallima lets a wry smile slip onto their lips, and when the twins look up there is a distinct shine to their already bright eyes, nearly glowing in the ambient dimness. “You’d think I would know better by now than to hide from you.”

“Clearly we’ve been away too long.” Alisaie teases gently, the tension slipping away. “We will have to check in more often.”

“I would like that.” Hallima admits. “You know me, I keep busy, but I have missed everyone.”

Even remodelling an entire Island could only keep their wanderlust at bay for so long.

“We will be sure to send the word out once we have adjourned here.” Alphinaud nods decisively, ever the planner. Alisaie knocks a fist to her palm in agreement.

“That we shall. But first, let us adjourn to the cabin before the bugs make meals of all of us.”

-

"It has a lovely view, doesn't it?" Alisaie comments, staring out across the tops of trees and listening to the waves lapping at the beach below. In the distance thunder rumbles, though not so much as a breeze yet disturbs the thick foliage.

"The lights along the path help." Alphinaud says, taking a seat on a bench next to where she stands. "Else I imagine you wouldn't see much of anything right now."

"The sunsets from here are incredible." Hallima chuckles, emerging from the stairwell with a tray of snacks in hand, courtesy of the workshop. "I had planned to show you once we finished our tour, but we got a bit distracted with everything else."

"As we always seem to." Alisaie laughs, taking some preserved meats from the tray when Hallima offers it. "Oh well, we're here for at least another day, perhaps tomorrow we will get to see it."

"Assuming it doesn't rain again." Hallima says, taking their own seat on the bench and setting the tray of snacks between them and Alphinaud. There is another rumble of distant thunder, and a brisk wind begins to wind its way through the plaza. "Which it might."

"A whole day spent indoors with people we love while a storm rages outside. However will we survive." Alisaie says drily, taking a bite from her jerky.

"We could teach you some of the games we've learned in Ilsabard!" Alphinaud lights up, always excited to impart new knowledge. He appears to have already forgotten about the slice of jerky he had taken from the tray. "Being in such inclement climes as they are, they have a veritable wealth of games and pastimes for the express purpose of wiling away the hours indoors, often with little to no power."

"Many of them serve as excellent bonding excersizes as well." Alisaie nods. "Particularly for the children who were more wary of us at first."

"They're doing so well, despite everything they've been through, truly." Alphinaud says. "There's one in particular who has taken to asking us for stories about you every time we see him. Perhaps when next you visit we could introduce you…"

He hesitates, recalling how just earlier the Warrior of Light had revealed lingering insecurities over their titles of heroism, but Hallima smiles.

"I'd love that."

"You better not just be saying that to be a people pleaser like always." Alisaie points at them, and they raise their hands defensively. Honestly, she could give Esteem a run for his money.

"Honest. Kids are different, they need hero's. Especially after everything they've been through." Hallima says. "And I don't really mind being the hero and saviour and etcetera. It's the whole… Being put on a pedestal thing that bothers me. Pedestals have a tendency to crumble."

"That's fair, I suppose." Alphinaud says, finally remembering his snack and nibbling on it.

Silence reigns for all of five seconds, mostly comfortably, and then-

"Is that why it took you and G'raha so long to sort yourselves out?"

"Alisaie!" Alphinaud reprimands, but she pays no heed. Hallima laughs.

"It's not the only reason, but it is one of them, yes." They say, taking one of the jerky slices for themself. They didn't mind the devotion, that's just how G'raha is really, devoted to a fault- whether it be to the Students, his scholarly work, or the people in his life. But he'd had centuries to build that pedestal to the Warrior of Light in his mind and Hallima needed to be sure that the destruction of the pedestal would not mean the destruction of G'raha's esteem.

Turns out, they needn't have worried. G'raha was well aware of the pedestal, and surprisingly adept at separating it from Hallima themself, even if dismantling it would likely remain a work in progress in perpetuity.

"Enough about me, we've spent all day talking about me." Hallima continues. "Tell me more about how things have been going in Garlemald."

-

scrtch-scrtch scrtch-scrtch

It's this sound that draws Alisaie back into the world of the waking, along with the persistent patter of rain on glass. She yawns fitfully, stretching and attempting futily to assuage the new crick in her neck. Next to her Alphinaud mutters something sleepily, disturbed by the loss of his impromptu pillow, eventually letting out a yawn of his own and rubbing at the crust that has gathered around his eyes.

"Hng… What time is it?" He says, words only slightly slurred.

"Not as late as it probably feels." Hallima says, putting the nail file- the source of the scratching noise earlier, aside. "It's only been maybe a half bell since you dozed off. Much longer and I was going to cart the two of you off to bed."

"Might be a good idea anyway." Alisaie yawns again. "Goodness, who knew a vacation tour could be so tiring?"

"It does rather- awuh- defy belief." Alphinaud concurs, Alisaie's yawn contagious. The two stand and it's hard to miss the way Alphinaud attempts to massage his palms.

"Would heat help?" Hallima asks, taking Alphinaud off guard.

"Huh?"

"Your hands. Alisaie mentioned they ache when it rains. Would heat help? Hot cocoa maybe?"

"That sounds incredible, truth be told, aches or no." Alphinaud smiles gratefully.

The kitchenette in the cabin is about as basic as it gets, the culinary arts being one of the few the Hallima hasn't explored in depth, but the ingredients are there- most fresh from the Island pastures and farmland- and it is a simple thing to make. Simpler still with two hangers on with all sorts of advice to give.

"Careful of the temperature! Don't let the milk bubble!"

"Make sure the cinnamon is finely ground now-"

"Do you have any mallow bits in here…?"

Or perhaps that made it much less simple. It was welcome all the same.

"Ahhhh, that's the stuff." Alisaie sighs in contentment as she takes the first sip of her cocoa. Alphinaud for his part holds off, holding his mug in both hands, blowing gently across its still steaming contents.

"Indeed." Alphinaud closes his eyes and takes a deep inhale, the picture of relaxed contentment.

Hallima just smiles, content, and picks up their file again. Alisaie watches, deep in thought, before something occurs to her.

"You know if you- hm. May I?" She sets aside her drink and holds out her hands to Hallima.

"Uh. Sure." Hallima gives her the file, confused as to what she intends to do but trusting her intent. Carefully she drags the file across Hallima's claws, and after only a few deft swipes it seems entirely changed; still sharp and pointed, but somehow less obtrusive.

"Where did you learn that?" Hallima asks, curious. Alisaie grows sombre for a brief moment before she shakes it off resolutely.

"At the Inn. Tesleen taught me, while we were taking care of Halric." She says, quiet but unfaltering. "One of the other carers had taught her I guess. It makes them easier to use day to day without blunting them entirely. Or so I was told. You'll have to tell me how well it works."

She files each claw quickly and efficiently as she talks, taking Hallima's other hand when she's done in a movement so smooth as to be muscle memory. Hallima flexes his fingers, forming a fist, and marvels a little at how much a difference the small changes in shape made.

"I'll have to test them out, but I like it already." Hallima smiles. "Thank you."

Alisaie grins at the praise, finishing the last claw with a perfunctory movement.

"Anytime." She says.

"So, Alphin- ah." Hallima stops mid-sentence. They'd thought the boy was being unusually quiet, and it turns out for good reason. Alphinaud is sound asleep, sitting upright and hands still cupped around the warm mug. "Right. It is late, isn't it?"

"A little." Alisaie gives in to the urge to giggle at the sight, reaching out to take the mug from her brother before it spills. Alphinaud murmurs in discontent but doesn't wake, nor does he when Hallima gently maneuvers him into a bridal carry… Though he does take the opportunity to dig his hands under Hallima's shirt, seeking the warmth beneath.

"He deserves some rest." Alisaie says, falling into step with Hallima towards their guest rooms. "There's so much left to do in Garlemald, it feels nigh endless, but he's hardly let that stop him."

"Or you." Hallima adds. "You say that like you're not right there with him, carrying the reconstruction of a nation on your shoulders."

"Oh I am, make no mistake." Alisaie says. "And I won't say it hasn't been tiresome, gruelling work at times, but… It's good work."

Hallima nudges the door open with a heel and slips into the darkened room easily, setting Alphinaud onto the cot. Alphinaud has to be pried off Hallima's neck, and the Au Ra has to struggle to not laugh and wake the boy at how young he seems in his sleep haze.

"Stay with us?" Alisaie asks. Once that question would have been uncertain, or carried a certain shame at asking for something so juvenile, but now it is anything but. Her voice is quiet but confident; simply a question.

"Of course." Hallima nods. The bed was big enough, and they tended to sleep sitting up more often than not anyway. "Any reason?"

"Not really." Alisaie shakes her head, doffing her footwear and jacket. "Just nice to do it while we can. We certainly miss it during the colder nights, I'll tell you."

"I beleive that." Hallima chuckles. They reach down to remove Alphinaud's sandals- definitely not comfortable to sleep in, and nudges the boy until all three of them fit comfortably. "I'll have to visit once I'm cleared for Aetheryte travel again."

"Oh please, we all know how much you hate the cold." Alisaie says, laying her head against Hallima's thigh as a pillow. She already sounds half asleep. "Didn't mean to set up on one of the coldest places in Eorzea, honest."

"I know." Hallima chuckles. "It'll be worth it though."

Silence reigns, and Hallima doesn't need to look down to know that Alisaie's breathing has slowed into the soft snores of sleep. They smile.

"Goodnight Alisaie, Alphinaud."

[void-botanist]

for the sunset-themed ask game: saturn!

Thank you for the ask! This is an amusing one for TFA.

🪐Saturn: Who’s keeping a secret in your WIP? What is it?

Zel is keeping secrets that are spoilers. So are a number of people around her, though not Anni, who really wants to know what the secret is (it's not about her, I'll say that much).

Dez is keeping secrets that are about how his citizenship adventure is going. He's discovered that it's possible none of the islanders even want him to be there, and he fully believes that telling Anni about it means that she will come and whisk him back home. He also generally operates under the assumption that what everyone else doesn't know won't hurt them, so I suspect he's always keeping a lot of secrets.

Anni, meanwhile, is trying to keep a lid on the fact that she wishes she hadn't let Dez skip solstice, but she can't really take it back at this point.

Also, because I should talk about them more: Mizzat and Imjen are also in a constant state of keeping secrets, such as the fact that Mizzat can pick locks and occasionally "borrows" things from other professors' offices, and Imjen was the one who hacked every netsite in the comp sci department at Mizzat's university, a still-unsolved prank.

[aynut]

COMFORTING A PERSON FOR DUMMIES

[displayheartcode]

What’s the best prank you’re ever seen?

less of a prank and more of a wacky hinjink.

the time one of my uncles and his bff stole a hotel luggage cart, used it for a bar crawl, somehow brought it back to ohio, and promptly forgot about it for almost 40 years until the friend had to recently help his mother move and guess what was in the garage.

[ramonathinks]

gojo and geto would actually be the type to slowly coax you into a poly relationship and you wouldn’t even realize it. 

they are best friends and they’re just plain rich assholes who do what they want and flaunt their money all over the place and somehow you end up doing something minor like spilling coffee on gojo’s expensive ass pants or something and now you’re trying to repay the debt and he’s making you do just a bunch of stuff for him like his laundry, groceries, cleaning his apartment, etc.

he thinks it’s hilarious and cute.

geto convinces gojo to let him borrow you from time to time but instead of cleaning he just wants to talk to you, at first. he is asking you how you feel about gojo, implying that gojo likes you and you’re suprisied but doubtful. he tells you to try to be sweeter to gojo and the more you listen to him, the more you start to like him. he even wins you over by buying a few expensive gifts just so you’ll be nice to his friend.

one day geto comes over and try to get you to come to this party with him and gojo, which would lead him to adding that your arrangement and you’d just sigh and decide to go. getting tipsy isn’t the best and you’ll learn that soon when you end up dancing against both of them. grinding all over while you’re sandwiched between them and gojo is kissing the back of your neck and geto is now kissing your lips.

you wake up with a headache and in gojo’s bed in the middle of the both of them. you’re blushing and you see that you’re only barely clothed, you hurry to leave before they wake but before you’re even down the stairs they’re calling out to you.

you get a few text messages from them saying they need to talk to you and to meet with them. you don’t reply eventually they have to come to you. they confess that they’ve been trying for more than a few months to get you to see how much they wanted you and with the coffee incident it just helped more.

blah blah blah and then they just pitch the idea and you’re just like “i guess we can try.” nervous and such.

they wouldn’t even straight up get to having a threesome they’d ease it in by one on one sex then ease you into it by one of them starting to watch while you and the other are engaging and then after about a few months of taking turns then they’d finally get to it.

Like they’re kissing your neck and hands are just everywhere and all over. You’re losing your mind and at the same time everything is coming together.

no part two. no fic. don’t ask.

[obsessedwithceleste]

The Cat Chronicles

(Or five times Theodore Nott *accidentally* stole your cat)

Theodore Nott x reader

word count: 5.9k

©️ obsessedwithceleste. all works posted here belong to me and should not be reposted or copied in any way or form.

1

The first time your cat went missing, you didn’t think entirely too much of it. You knew many of the Hogwarts cats liked to gather behind the herbology greenhouse where a particularly plentiful patch of catnip grew. However, Gladys was never one to miss meal time, and when the time came to 30 minutes after her usual feeding time, you knew something was amiss. With a sigh, you made your way out to your common room where you saw Cho sitting by the fireplace with several other of your class mates.

“Has anyone seen Gladys wandering about? She missed feeding time and I haven’t seen her much today,” you say as you approach the group.

“I haven’t, sorry y/n. We’ll keep a look out for her though,” Cho tells you.

You let out a small sigh of disappointment.

“Thanks Cho,” you say before heading out to wander the halls of the castle, hoping to find your elusive, black cat.

You start out by the greenhouse where you see a whole gaggle of cats, but none with the sleek black coat that identified your furry friend. You then walked around the grounds a bit more with no luck, before moving on to the kitchens where several of the house elves promised to keep an eye out for the small black cat. You even checked several empty class rooms before coming to a stop outside the library. It wouldn’t hurt to check. Twenty minutes later, you were still completely out of luck. Tired and frustrated, you were about to call it a night when a loud chorus of voices turn down the hall. You look to see who it was and find a hoard of Slytherin boys making their way towards you. You recognized them of course, but didn’t exactly know them. What you did know however, was the mop of black fur one of the taller boys in the back of the group was holding.

“Gladys!” You exclaim, rushing towards the group of boys.

Their eyes all turn towards you and at the sound of her name, the fiesty black cat springs from the arms of the boy and runs towards you.

With a large grin of relief, you scoop the cat up into your arms, feeling her light purr as you scratch behind her ears. Feeling several pairs of eyes on you, you look up to see the group of boys still staring at you and your cat.

“Um, thanks, for finding my cat,” you say awkwardly, squeezing the cat to your chest lightly. The tall, brunette boy who had just been holding your cat only nods silently before turning and walking off, the rest of the group following, except one.

“Hey, sorry about Theo. He means well, really. Man really likes cats, but doesn’t have one of his own, so he sometimes makes friends with cats wandering the halls. We’ve all told him that he should probably stop, ah, borrowing, people’s cats, but he can’t seem to resist. Names Enzo by the way,” the boy says with a friendly smile, extending his hand out.

You take his hand, shaking it cautiously before a smile creeps it’s way onto your face.

“Thank you, Enzo.” You say, hesitating a moment before adding, “You know, Gladys is a picky bitch. Theo must be a pretty okay person if she let him carry her around.” You tell him before disappearing with your cat.

2

The second time your cat went missing, you honestly didn't realize she was missing at all. Theo had found his way down to the kitchens about a week after the original cat incident. That's how he thought of it anyway. The kitchens were one of his favorite places to lurk as not many students knew of the secret entrance behind one particular painting of a fruit bowl. The real attraction that often drew the brunette boy to the hidden sanctuary however, was the constant stream of cats that often visited the house elves who happily offered up dishes of cream and other treats. Plopping himself down on the floor next to a particularly populated bowl of milk, Theo's eyes were immediately drawn to a familiar set of glowing yellow orbs.

"Hello there, Gladys," he said hesitantly, decently sure that was the name called out by the pretty Ravenclaw girl who had stolen the cat from him a few nights ago.

Well, stolen in this case was rather relative, as the cat was technically hers, he supposed. Hearing her name however, the little black cat pranced over, nuzzling her head affectionately against his leg with a soft purr. Picking the sweet creature up into his arms, Theo stroked her soft fur, thinking back to his encounter with her owner, a grimace reaching his face.

He had been a downright bloody idiot. That was for certain. Theo was not usually one to be rendered incompetent by the mere presence of a pretty girl. No. That was meant more for Enzo. Or even Draco sometimes. But never Theodore. In fact, Theo had quite the reputation for his tendency to sleep around which made the idea of his mind completely blanking at the sight of this cat's owner all the more embarrassing. Matteo had made fun of him ruthlessly later that night. What had he said again? Right. Absolutely nothing. Just nodded like a right dunce.

The only solace Theo had gotten from that night was when Enzo pulled him aside quietly and told him what the pretty girl from earlier had said about him. "He must be pretty okay." It was hardly a compliment, but after the fool he'd made of himself, it really was the best Theo could hope for. Shaking the thoughts from his mind, Theo once again focused on the little beast snuggling contentedly in his arms, carefully scratching behind the ears, a spot he'd found the cat quite liked.

The sound of the entrance painting swinging open startled Theo; and he honestly wasn't sure if he was elated, or absolutely mortified that the very girl who had been previously plaguing his thoughts was stepping through into the kitchens.

You honestly weren't entirely surprised to see the boy from a few nights ago sitting on the floor, cradling your cat, when you entered the kitchens. After Enzo had admitted to you that the handsome brunette had a soft spot for the castle's feline population, you figured it was only a matter of time until you bumped into him here considering it was a hot spot for the four legged beasts.

"Hello. See you've managed to find my cat again," you say, offering a small smile to the boy in front of you. After your encounter with that particular group of Slytherins, you did a bit of asking around, finding that Theodore Nott, while a bit known for his escapades with the female population, was actually one of the more talented wizards of your year. And one of the more level headed. (But in comparison to Draco and Matteo, you weren't exactly sure how much credit to give him there.)

The boy blinks up at you once before seeming to find his voice.

"She's a sweet little thing," he says finally, clearing his throat and looking anywhere but you.

You cautiously move forward, more worried about spooking the boy in front of you than the cats. Sitting down, you allow a pretty little Siamese kitten to wander into your lap. Gladys hisses with jealousy, but remains snuggled in the arms of the boy.

"She really seems to like you. Bit surprising. She's really not much of a people person," you tell him.

Theo nods at you, an action you found yourself growing familiar with.

"Enzo told me." He replies curtly.

You open your mouth to respond, but don't quite know how, so you let an awkward silence roll over the two of you.

"Well, I find that Gladys is a very good judge of character," you say finally.

Theo lets out a small smile at this, continuing to stroke your cat's soft fur. After that, the two of you fall into a comfortable silence with Theodore continuing to shower your cat with affection while you distract the many other felines, crowding the kitchen floor.

"Theo?" you wonder finally, the question burning away at you. The boy looks up, and you find yourself getting lost in the surprisingly soft brown eyes staring back at you. Breaking from the trance with a small shiver, you ask, "If you like cats so much, why don't you have one of your own?"

Theo's eyes immediately fall, and his hand freezes mid pet, much to Gladys' dismay. A pang of guilt washes through you.

"My father isn't much of an animal person," He replies stiffly.

You give him a small nod in response before rising from the floor.

"It's getting pretty late, I should get going," you say softly. "Gladys can find her way back to the tower on her own just fine," you add when you see Theo make no move to release the cat.

Without another word, you move to open the portrait door. You enter the hall with a small smile gracing your lips as you hear his voice quietly as the door closes.

"Thank you, y/n."

He knew your name.

3

The next time Theo met Gladys was much sooner than he expected. He had left the kitchens several hours ago and was now laying in bed. The clock sitting on his bed side now read 1am. The deafening silence was about to finally lull him to sleep when an insistent scratching at the door caused his eyes to fly open. Sitting up, Theo glanced at the door warily before finally deciding to cross the room to find out what was causing the noise.

As soon as the door opened, a black shadow darted through, making a beeline for his bed. How it seemed to know exactly where it was going, Theo had no clue. Making his way silently back to his bed, careful not to wake either of his roommates, Theo was finally able to make out the dark shape of an ever familiar black cat.

"Hi there, principessa," he whispered, gently stroking the cat's ears before crawling into the bed next to it. Gladys seemed to take this as an invitation to curl up in the nook of his arm, and Theo wasn't about to object. The last thought he remembered before drifting off was how nice it would be if Gladys' pretty owner was there too.

"Theo, what the fuck."

Theo woke with a start, to the loud voice of Lorenzo Berkshire ringing out above him. His eyes opened to see the other boy hovering over his bed, a look of shocked confusion apparent on his face.

"Is that y/n's cat?" he asks, leaning down as if to get a closer look at the fluff ball still snuggled in Theo's arms.

"No way," Matteo laughs from the other side of the room. "You stole her cat again? What, is this some sick and twisted new way for you to lure girls into your bed?"

Theo launches a pillow at Matteo's head. He doesn't miss.

"You better go return that thing before y/n starts to worry," Enzo advises, going back to his own side of the room. "And maybe just ask her out while you're at it hmm?" He adds, quickly ducking behind his fourposter before Theo has the chance to send another pillow flying his way.

With a heavy sigh, Theo comes to a stop outside of what he's pretty sure is the Ravenclaw common room. He's about to raise his hand to knock, when the golden eagle head mounted to the door springs to life.

"What gets broken, without being held?" The eagle asks, blinking at him slowly.

Right. Theo knew about this. The most annoying of the common room doors because instead of a password, the bloody door required you to answer a riddle. Theo was about to turn on his heel to leave when he felt a light presence behind him.

"Hello Theo. Hello Gladys." The platinum blonde haired girl said, giving the two of them an airy nod, before turning her attention to the door. "Would it perhaps be, a promise?" she asks.

The door swings open and Theo quickly hurries after the girl, making his way up the staircase. He'd never actually been inside the Ravenclaw common room, and his breath hitched when they reached the top of the stairs. The main room really was magnificent, nothing like the dark, eerie dungeons of the Slytherin common room. Theo eyed the shelves of books lining the wall longingly.

"Her room is just there, up and to the left," the blonde girl he'd followed in says, breaking him from his thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Y/n? Her room is just there," the girl repeats, gesturing to a door at the top of another small flight of stairs.

"Oh. thanks," Theo makes out, giving the girl a nod of gratitude.

"Name's Luna by the way. Luna Lovegood." She says whimsically before floating off.

With a deep inhale to calm his nerves, Theo makes his way up the stairs and knocks gently on the door. Gladys lets out a meow of protest. Absolutely nothing could have prepared Theo for what was on the other side of the door. He felt his throat go completely dry as the door swung open and you stood in front of him in what was probably the shortest, skimpiest set of clothing that could possibly be considered pajamas. Theo tried not to stare, he really did, but he was only a man. A very weak and smitten man.

"Oh! There you are Gladys. I wondered where you wandered off to last night!" you say looking at your cat and then back up at Theo, and then again at your cat before looking back up at Theo expectantly. "Um. May I have my cat back?"

Theo jolts back to life, realizing he'd been staring and looks at you sheepishly.

"Sorry, don't know how this little one found me. Snuck her way into the Slytherin common room and then into my dorm. Didn't want to leave her in the halls alone, so I let her stay the night," he tells you.

You stare at the boy in shock, realizing that was the longest string of words you'd ever heard out of him.

"Wow Theodore, I'm impressed. I think that's the most I've ever heard you talk. And here I was thinking you were secretly illiterate," you say with a playful grin.

"Please," the boy scoffs. "I'm the picture of eloquence."

Interested in where this sudden burst of confidence that you didn't normally see from him had come from, you take a step back, inviting him into your room. He hesitantly accepts your invitation, bringing Gladys along with him.

"No roommates?" he asks, perching on the edge of your bed as Gladys purrs softly on his lap. At the moment, you found nothing more attractive than this man absolutely pampering your beloved pet.

"Not many Ravenclaw girls in our year, we had the option to share, but most of us opted for solo rooms. Wanted the extra privacy, I suppose," you tell him, leaning on one of the posts at the end of your bed.

Theo nods his head at this.

"I have two roommates," he shares.

"One of them happen to be Enzo Berkshire?"

Theo nods again. "And Matteo. Riddle" he adds.

You cock your head at that with a grin.

"Interesting pairing," you comment, imagining the chaos those two must bring with them.

"It never gets boring," Theo responds.

A moment of silence passes.

"I was wondering if you wanted to study together sometime. I hear you're exceptionally talented at potions. And Charms. And everything really." Theo lets out finally.

You raise an eyebrow at the boy, internally screaming.

Trying to keep your cool, you tilt your head, "I hear you are too."

It's like a switch flips inside Theo.

"Well, we're obviously perfect for each other than," He replies easily, a cocky grin beginning to spread across his face. "Meet you in the library tomorrow at 7? And bring the cat."

You let out a laugh as Theo rises from the bed, gently placing Gladys down on the pillow, before going to make his way out of your dorm.

"You only like me for my cat," you joke, shifting to watch as he crosses the room to the door.

"Not just for your cat," he assures you, "I love the outfit, wear it for me more often, hmm?" he says slyly before the door thuds shut behind him.

You look down at your outfit, jaw dropping open and heat rushing to your cheeks.

4

Theo's head was pounding. Music pumped through the Slytherin common room and Theo could barely see through the crowds of people around him as he pushed his way to the circle of sofas occupied by his friends. Collapsing into a spot next to Matteo, the boy offered him another shot of who-knew-what which he quickly knocked back.

"When's that pretty little thing that's been occupying all your time gonna join us at one of our little gathering?" Matteo slurs out, gesturing to the large crowd around them.

Over the past several weeks, you and Theo had grown significantly closer; your first study date quickly becoming a daily occurrence as you found that you each were able to easily keep up with one another. Something about having a partner who was actually able to challenge you was exhilarating. From there, you found yourselves often seeking each other out simply for the sake of good company, Gladys largely increasing the number of these meetings.

"Don't know that Gladys would like it. Cat's aren't supposed to ingest alcohol," Theo responded, not quite drunk enough to fall for his friend's taunting.

Enzo places another shot in his hand, and Theo raises a brow at him, before knocking that one back as well.

"Did you ever ask y/n why in Salazar's name, she choose to name her cat Gladys?" Matteo asks. "If my name were Gladys, I'd being running off constantly too."

Theo thumps Matteo on the back of the head.

"You leave our cat out of this, she ain't do nothin wrong," he says, glaring at his friend.

"So now she's our cat is she?" Enzo asks, a smirk growing on his face. "Didn't know you and y/n were so serious."

"It's our cat damnit! If marrying y/n is what it takes to finally have a cat of my own, so be it," Theo says decidedly.

Enzo snorts at his clearly, very drunk friend. "Careful, or one might think you're only into her for her cat. And not the cunty kind."

Theo scowls at this. "Y/n says that all the time, but have you seen that ass? And the way she mopped the floor with Draco in potions the other day? She's perfect."

"Yeah? Why don't you go tell her that then?" Matteo says, wanting nothing more than to see a drunk Theo try to make his way to Ravenclaw Tower.

"You know what? I will. And I'll pet Gladys too." Theo states. A look of pure, intoxicated determination set on his face.

Lorenzo eyes his friend warily. While not exactly sober himself, he didn’t particularly like the look his friend was giving them.

“Aw c’mon Enz, don’t you try and be the voice of reason now,” Matteo drawls, sensing the hesitation coming from his friend. “Don’t you want to meet the lil thing our beloved Theodore has been obsessing over for weeks now?”

“I’m not obsessing,” Theo snaps, taking a sip straight out of a random bottle he’d picked up from the table.

“Let’s go. I’m gonna steal her cat. For real this time.”

With a wide grin, Matteo jumps up, ready to follow his friend wherever the night took him. With a low groan, Enzo followed suit, knowing that his pair of roommates would need some sort of guidance to prevent them from walking themselves straight of the edge of the astronomy tower.

You didn’t have a lot of expectations for the quiet Friday night that you were spending curled up with a book and your cat. It was late, and after a long and stressful week, the time alone with Gladys was just what you needed to really recharge. You had spent most of your day lounging out on the lawn next to the Black Lake with Theodore, studying with and harassing the boy. A small smile crept onto your face, remembering the way his brown curls had floated about in the soft breeze.

You really hadn’t expected for the two of you to become so close, so quickly, but you weren’t complaining. You’d grown quite fond of the boy, especially once he started opening up a bit more. You’d initially thought that he was a man of very few words, but quickly learned he was in fact very sharp witted and even a bit snarky at times. Time spent with him had easily become your favorite part of the day and was something you were constantly looking forward to.

A sharp knock jolted you from your thoughts, causing you to jump a bit where you were sitting, Gladys letting out a yowl of protest.

You quickly cross the room and open the door to find a very miffed looking Cho, a frown imbedded on her face.

“Sorry to bother, but could you please come get your boy under control? He’s upsetting the portraits.” She says.

You blink once. Then again.

“Sorry?”

“Your Slytherin fellow? He’s out in the corridor with two of his friends harassing the door,” she explains, turning to lead you down the spiral staircase.

You’re not even halfway down when you begin to hear the voices.

“Who in the bloody hell would want to be in Ravenclaw with this blast-ended skewt ass looking-“

“Matteo you can’t curse out the door.”

“I’ll curse at the bloody door if I want to bloody curse at it.”

You grimace, looking at Cho who looks back with a similarly displeased facial expression.

“Sorry bout them. I’ll take it from here,” you tell her when you reach the bottom.

With a slight nod, she turns to retreat back up the stairs. With a sigh, you push the door open, almost taking out Matteo who had been leaning on it for support.

“Hi amore, fancy seeing you here,” Theo slurs, a grin taking over his face at the sight of you.

Enzo leans against a pillar, face in hands, looking like he wanted to disappear. You could smell the alcohol on all of them.

“Hi Theodore. Are you sober?” You ask, already knowing the answer.

“I’m moderately functional,” he replies with a lopsided smile.

“I’m taking that as a no,” you say, glancing worriedly at Matteo who was currently laying spread eagle on the floor. “Let’s get you boys back to your common room.”

“I wouldn’t. Party’s not gonna end any time soon. They’ll just get more hammered and start wandering off again,” Enzo advises, head still in hands. “Like herding hippogriffs with those two.”

“And Theo hasn’t proclaimed his undying love for y/n yet!” Matteo adds.

You feel heat rise to your cheeks and Theo glowers at his friend.

“It’s okay Theo, I know he’s drunk,” you say, not certain if you were saying it more to comfort him or yourself.

Theo ignores you however, turning his attention back to the door.

“Let us in, I just want to pet the cat,” he tells the door, swaying ever so slightly.

For Salazar’s sake. Man gets absolutely wasted and just wants to pet your cat. You go to grab onto Theo to steady him, but he has other plans. Immediately, he wraps his arms around you, nuzzling his face into your hair.

“Hi,” he mumbles, picking you up just enough that your toes barely touch the ground. “I missed you. Can we see the cat now?”

Not knowing what else to do, you glance helplessly at Enzo.

“Would you be able to get Matteo up the stairs?” You ask.

“I can try. He’s a stubborn bastard though.”

You turn back to the door, knocking once. The eagle once again moves to life, glaring at the scene in front of it.

“If the day before yesterday was the 23rd, what is the day after tomorrow?” It asks crankily.

“We’re too fucking wasted for this bloody bullshit,” Matteo moans from the floor.

You try to ignore Theo’s tight grasp on your waist and Enzo prodding at Matteo with his foot before answering. “The 27th.”

The door swings open and you try your best to haul Theo through, Enzo following closely behind with a very disgruntled Matteo. Dragging the boys up the staircase feels like the most difficult task of your life as you constantly tell Matteo to lower his voice and mind his mouth while also trying to ignore the very minimal distance between yourself and Theodore. When you finally make it to the top, you rush to herd the boys into your room before slamming the door shut behind you with relief. Theo immediately stumbles over to your bed, collapsing face first in the middle and snatching Gladys into his arms.

“No roommates?” Enzo asks, looking around the room and seeing the single empty bed that you had pushed into the corner at the beginning of the year.

“No, thank Rowena. I would not want to have to explain whatever this is.” You reply, motioning to Theo and Matteo who was now wandering about the room.

“Room’s a mess. Coulda at least cleaned up a bit,” he says, poking at the various books and blank scrolls lying about.

“Had I known I would be having guests at,” you glance at the clock, “almost 2 in the morning, I’m sure I would have.” You say dryly.

Retrieving your wand from your desk, you point it at the spare bed. “Engorgio.” The wooden frame creaks as it expands until it can comfortably fit 2 people. You look at Enzo.

“Good luck with that one,” you say, almost feeling sorry for the boy as Matteo flops onto the bed with a groan.

“Looks like you’re gonna need it more than me,” he replies, gesturing to Theo who was out cold, Gladys trapped and bug eyed in his grasp. With a sigh you and Enzo each resign yourselves to your respective charge.

“Theodore,” you whisper, giving the boy a light shove. No sign of life. You give him a slightly harder shove, allowing Gladys is wriggle out of her prison. Frowning, you sit down on the edge of the bed, using most of your body weight to shove Theo to one side of the bed before sliding under the covers. Now deeming it safe, Gladys hops back into the bed, nestling into your arms happily. You’re about to close your eyes when you feel arms snaking around your waste, pulling you into the very warm chest of Theodore Nott. You freeze, holding your breath, not sure if the boy is asleep or not.

“Goodnight mi amore,” he whispers into your neck, causing the hairs to prickle.

Definitely not asleep.

“Goodnight Theodore.”

You hadn’t had any expectations for the night really, but you definitely had not expected to have multiple overnight guests who were trying to steal your cat. And you most certainly did not expect to drift off in the arms of Theodore Nott.

5

The next morning you wake up missing the usual lump of fur weighing down on your chest. Immediately you bolt upright, eyes shooting around for any sign of your furry companion before the events of last night wash over you. Enzo and Matteo are both still out cold and when you look down, your jaw drops open. Theo is fast asleep, back facing you, Gladys snoozing contentedly while cradled in his arms. Even in his sleep this absolute tosser had managed to steal your damn cat.

Careful not to wake the boys, or Gladys, you silently sneak across the room and disappear out the door. Once you’re safely out of hearing distance, you make your way quickly down the kitchens. A little known fact about the Hogwarts house elves was that many had once served in the homes of different wizarding families at one time or another. This meant that many of the elves were all too familiar with the valuable hangover potion that you sought.

Ducking in through the portrait hole, it wasn’t difficult to persuade the elves into handing over 3 glistening blue vials. You had always been kind to them, often chatting with them during your visits with the cats.

Your task complete, you made your way back to Ravenclaw tower, taking your time as you didn’t expect the boys to be up any time soon. They really had been plastered. Not even Enzo had been completely sober you recalled.

You’re just passing the entrance to the dungeons when a voice calls out.

“Hey! You!”

You’re ready to continue on your way before noticing that there was no one else in the corridor they could be referring to. You turn to see two girls you recognized as the Greengrass sisters hurrying towards you.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you,” the shorter blonde girl says when they get closer. You’re pretty sure that one is Astoria. “You’re the girl Theo has been seeing right?”

You nod your head cautiously. You knew Theo had a reputation for getting around, so if that’s what this was about, things were about to become quite awkward.

“You haven’t happened to see him or Matteo or Lorenzo, have you?” The other girl, Daphne, asks.

“Draco said he saw the three of them leave the party together last night, but no one saw them come back,” Astoria explains.

You feel yourself immediately relax. Good. At least this was something you could help with.

“You two are lucky you found me then I suppose,” you tell them, gesturing for them to follow. “The three of them tried breaking into Ravenclaw tower last night, so I let them crash in my dorm.”

“Oh Salazar. Were they trying to steal your cat? I’m so sorry. When Matteo gets drunk he has a tendency to try and egg Theo on,” Astoria frets.

You give the girls a strange look. “You know about my cat?” You ask, surprised.

“Oh sure,” Daphne replies. “Whole group does really. Boys came back one night going on about how Theo was just smitten with some Ravenclaw with a cute cat. And I can see why. You’re gorgeous by the way.”

You blush at her statement, diverting the subject away.

“The boys should probably still be asleep. I just ran down to the kitchens to get these,” you tell them, brandishing the potions you had gathered. “Once they’ve downed these, they’re all yours.”

Astoria eyes the potions with jealousy and you realize the two girls were probably decently hung over as well.

“Oh you can keep Theo, we were really just looking to collect Enzo and Matt,” Daphne laughs, giving you a sly look. You open your mouth to reply, but stop realizing you had reached your common room door.

After a few attempts, you’re finally able to solve the blasted riddle and the door swings open.

“I don’t think we’ve ever had this many Slytherins in our common room before,” you joke, leading the girls up to your room.

Pushing the door open, you’re unsurprised to see the boys still passed out.

“This must be the infamous Gladys,” Daphne whispers, quietly approaching Theo who was still clutching onto Gladys as if his life depended on it. Again you’re surprised that these girls apparently even knew the name of your cat.

The two coo at the sight of your cat, coming to the conclusion that she was indeed worthy of warranting cat theft before Astoria finally decided it was time for them to get the boys out of your hair. They migrated over to the other side of the room where Enzo and Matteo were sound asleep, leaving you to deal with Theo.

You decide the easiest route, may just be to lure Gladys away, so you fetch her food dish before accio-ing her kibble container. At the sound of her food, Gladys was up and running, darting over for her morning feast. At the sudden loss of fluffy heat, Theo groaned, rolling over, face down into the pillows. After giving Gladys her food, you move back to Theo, giving him a rough shake.

“Come back to bed principessa,” he grumbles, reaching out and flailing his arm in your general direction.

“It’s time to get up Theodore. Come on, I got you three hangover potions,” you say, waving one over his head.

“Did someone say hangover potion? Give,” Matteo demands from the other side of the room. You look over to see Daphne and Astoria sitting on the side of the bed while Matteo and Enzo were groggily waking up.

Pulling out her wand, Daphne gestured for you to toss her the potions which her magic catches easily, levitating the vials over to the other two boys. Matteo snatches one out of the air, quickly downing half before offering the other half to Astoria. Enzo does the same, giving the second half to Daphne who graciously accepts. After a moment, the four of them are looking much more awake.

“Thanks for making sure these three didn’t drown themselves in the lake,” Astoria says, once the potion had really kicked. “And sorry you’re not having more luck with that one. He’s always been a late riser.”

“You’ll be lucky to get him up in the next hour,” Enzo agrees, rising from the bed. “Thanks again y/n.”

The four of them shuffle out of your dorm, a chorus is thanks and apologies strung along until they reached the door. Even Matteo gave you a nod of gratitude. Once they were all gone, you collapse once more onto your bed.

“They finally gone?” You hear Theo ask, as he rolls over to look at you. You nod, faces so close that your noses are practically touching and you can feel small puffs of air as he exhales. “Thanks for last night. I’m sorry for trying to steal your cat.”

You let out a snort at that. “Did you know when I woke up this morning, you had turned away from me completely, and stolen my cat away from me in your sleep?” You ask with a laugh.

Theo at least has the decency to look embarrassed as Gladys joins the two of you once more.

“I should do this more often,” Theo says finally, reaching out to stroke Gladys’s fur.

“What? Get downright plastered and break into my room, or steal my cat?” You scoff.

“Sleep in your bed with you.”

You freeze, looking up to see if the boy was being serious. His eyes blink back at you unwavering.

“You can come back any time,” you tell him, snuggling your way into his chest, ready to fall back asleep in the boy’s arms.

“Will Gladys be here?”

“Oh my god, yes she will be here,” you say dramatically throwing your head back.

Theo grins down at you, leaning in and pressing his lips softly against yours.

“I’m only joking amore,” he says, pressing another kiss to the top of your nose.

“Of course Gladys would be here, she adores me.”

“Get out of my bed.”

A/N

My biggest regret in life, is being highly allergic to cats </3

[scwheeler]

— how to get a girl’s attention

luke castellan x fem!daughter of demeter!reader

warnings: near-drowning experience…

summary: as the daughter of demeter, you’re the first person that everyone turns to when injuries need to be tended too, questions need to be asked, and any type of advice is required, however what’s going to happen when you’re the one in need?

a/n: this one’s quite lengthy guys! i really just got derailed like ten times and love adding details and the ending is kind of basic but whatever; don’t mind me making up random camper names btw lol 👼👼

waking up to the sound of constant bickering was just a normal tuesday morning as your younger half-siblings were already at each other’s throats about some stupid thing. yesterday it was borrowing boots and the day before it was who had to take the trash out.

you groaned, wishing that you could still sleep in peace and quiet but your cabin clearly suggested otherwise. so you gradually got up and put on your little slippers, approaching the main fighters who continued to argue with each other.

“hey hey hey, what’s going on now.” you had to physically get between the two children, separating them with your arms.

“he slipped paint all over my skirt and now it’s ruined!” the young girl cried, holding up her stained skirt to prove it. you took the clothing in your hands and knelt down to face her.

“why don’t i go to the river later today and try to get the stain out myself. it seems washable to me, what do you think?”

with a slight frown, she nodded her head to comply. you were relieved to say the least before turning to the boy, “how about you apologize and come with me to the river after breakfast?”

the boy stayed silent with his arms crossed, trying to avoid your insisting stare. but intimidated enough, he looked to the floor and whispered a small “fine, i’m sorry” with a glare.

you smiled as the situation was deescalated and told the rest of the kids surrounding the pair to hurry and make their beds in order to head to breakfast.

holding hands with the now puffy-faced girl, you tried to tell her about all the fun activities she could do today to forget about the unfortunate morning incident.

before reaching mess hall, the child already had a a bright smile just thinking about the bracelet making and embroidery you promised for the later evening. pleased with your peace-making skills, you sat with the rest of your campers and half-siblings that you were in charge of.

as the eldest sibling and one of the camp counselors, you took on the responsibility of looking after the young ones and caring for almost everyone at camp.

thus, when most of the camp half-blood children had troubles or dilemmas of any sort, they would disregard their own counselors and go straight to you. your kindhearted, yet sociable personality rooted from your mother: demeter.

you were often found laying around in the fruit fields or by the river listening to the water flow through the ground and hit the rocks. like your mother, nature was where you felt at peace, especially with the lack of quiet in your own cabin.

but you still loved your fellow campers and half-siblings, except for one boy who would not leave you alone.

luke castellan.

he liked to push your buttons and see how far he could take you until you’d explode. of course, you always kept your calm until either you just left the conversation or it would be interrupted by a camper in need who was like a knight in shining armor.

it wasn’t that you didn’t like the guy. you liked everyone at camp, including mr. d for gods sake! but something about luke was different. you occasionally saw him with his campers or his friends, he would joke around but never act like he does with you.

when you least expect it, he sneaks up behind you and gets close enough to whisper something in your ear. it could be just a random comment or sentence started but in an alluring voice as if you were friends or even more.

he knows what he’s doing. the moment he finishes, you flinch and get flustered, cheeks heating up and instantly standing up to avoid making eye contact. as you walk away, luke only watches and smiles to himself.

he knows how much power he holds over you, as with just a few words he can make you nervous.

“okay so once everyone’s done, we’ll first go to the archery range and you’ll stay there with counselor clarisse while damien and i go to the river to get that nasty stain out.” you explained and first looked at the boy who begrudgingly agreed to helping you earlier and then winked at the little girl you promised to help.

“counselor clarisse…!” one of the boys exclaimed.

“oh no she’s the mean one!” “yeah, she’s a bully!” your campers all started to agree and mutter remarks about their fear in staying with clarisse.

you couldn’t help but chuckle at their scared little faces, “clarisse? oh gods no! clarisse is not scary, she loves you guys and she’ll take good care of you.”

the children stared at you in disbelief while chowing down their eggs and bacon. “why can’t we just come with you to the river?!” one of the girls begged and began to pout alongside the other ten kids beside her.

you sighed and pursed your lips into a thin line, trying to come up with a compromise but you couldn’t.

“please it’s only for a couple of hours and then i’ll be back for the rock wall and some capture the flag!” you persuaded, trying to lighten up the mood.

but the kids still looked dissatisfied, now poking their breakfast around with their utensils in objection.

“well—” before you could plead another case why clarisse is a perfectly reasonable and responsible counselor and guardian, you were cut off by the one and only.

“aw don’t worry guys, you should listen to your counselor. plus i’ll be there too so if counselor clarisse gets even just a little too scary, you can come and hang with awesome counselor luke!” a voice announced from behind you.

you nearly choked on your food, startled in the surprise voice cutting you off. but the campers were overjoyed to see their second favorite counselor appear. there were an overwhelming amount of comments from the once so silent children, mostly regarding “luke!” and “yay!”

you whipped your head around to face the boy, standing right behind you with nothing but a smug grin on his face. then he leaned in just as he always does and whispered a quick, “you’re welcome” and turned to leave just as fast as he came.

“can we please hang out with counselor luke instead of clarisse?!” all the campers plead with their hands put together and lower lip puckered. left with no other choice by that damn castellan again, you inhaled deeply and slightly nodded which was shortly followed by an array of cheers and excitement.

after dropping off all of the campers in the hands of luke, you put a hand on damien’s back and led him to the river. but before leaving, you had to make sure luke would actually clock in as a responsible counselor.

“so i can count on you to keep them safe for the next couple of hours?”

“wow you sound like you doubt me!” luke said and took a step back with his hands up in fake surrender.

“enough with the games, castellan. are you going to make sure they don’t kill each other and stay unharmed until i return?” you asked again, ignoring his previous comment.

luke tried to hold back his smile after you called him by his last name. most of the time, his sparring partners or other counselors would use his last name rather his first. however, when the way you let the ‘n’ slightly my drag after saying it sent chills throughout his entire body.

to hide his delight, he lightly scoffed and crossed his arms at your hesitation. “i assure you that i will protect them with my life. i mean i am the best swordsman at camp,” he added as the corners of his lips just couldn’t help themselves to lift a little.

you rolled your eyes at his self-confidence and how he kept complimenting himself. luke only did it to impress you though, something that hasn’t been very successful.

“okay well alissa has a nut allergy, georgie has a bee allergy, and please keep thomas and will away from the poison ivy. i do not want to spend another summer knee deep in tomato juice.”

luke could only watch and admire as you kept expressing your deep concern for all the kids. he loved how much you cared. but a few more seconds and you would be driving yourself crazy over all the possibilities of something going wrong.

that’s when luke stepped in and softly grabbed your right arm.

“hey, it’s fine. go do whatever you have to do and i’ll come running down to the river if anything goes wrong but i doubt it, i’m pretty responsible y’know.” he reassured and stared straight into your eyes, indicating his sincerity. his smile wasn’t conceited or to drive his ego but rather held a tender emotion.

you looked up into his hazel eyes and suddenly the worries stopped and your nerves were calmed, other than the ones beginning to stir in your stomach. but this was far from the regard about the kids.

this feeling was something else. something new.

“are we going to go already?” the young boy you almost forgot about, whined and rugged on your orange camp t-shirt.

snapping out of your trance and back to reality you answered, “o-oh yeah, i think counselor luke’s got it from here.”

with that you turned away from luke and immediately headed for the river alongside damien but the paint-stained skirt was farthest from your mind now. you tried to shake the new feelings and thoughts out of your body and replace them with your past ones of the kids.

until, “is that guy your boyfriend?”

you quickly looked down to the boy asking the question, with such seriousness in his eyes.

“counselor luke? gods no! i wouldn’t even call him a friend!” you answered swiftly, picking up your pace and hurrying damien in front of you.

“geez…i was just asking!”

as soon as you two got to the river, settling on a few rocks by the edge, you started rubbing the blue-stained skirt with the clear water. damien sat next to you, fiddling his thumbs and staring at the water’s constant movement.

“so are you going to tell me why you did this or not?” you began, keeping your eyes on the skirt.

“i just wanted to.”

“damien.” you urged and this time, you stared directly at him with your eyebrows raised.

he sighed in defeat and gave up on lying to you.

“okay…well i just didn’t know how else to get clara’s attention,” the boy admitted and refused to look at you.

his response warned your heart and prompted your to smile to yourself.

“so you did this, just to get clara’s attention?”

you held up the now drenched skirt and demanded damien to look at you. for a moment, he did and nodded quickly before instantly going back to staring at the rock he was sitting on.

you stifled your laughter at how adorable the young boy you were with was being.

“damien…there are a lot of different and more efficient ways to get clara’s attention. may a suggest one that doesn’t destroy her belongings and ends up with her being angry?” you insisted and squeezed the excess water out of the skirt.

he looked up and nodded again but this time he continued.

“what should i do?”

“why don’t you make her a bracelet when we go back and sincerely apologize.” you suggested while laying out the wet skirt on the rock to dry.

he smiled at your suggestion as you went to sit closer by him. before speaking again, he pulled out a small daisy from his pant pocket and presented it to you.

your eyes focused on the blooming flower that lost a few of its petals due to being stuck in the boy’s pocket for a while now. but the remaining petals still standing were enough to maintain the flower’s beauty.

“when did you become such a gentlemen?” you nudged his shoulder and took the flower from his hands.

“oh, i’ve been giving him some lessons.”

alarmed, you turned to see the familiar face that had been surprising you all day.

“what are you doing here?! how about the kids—who’s watching them?!” you immediately stood up and marched towards the too calm figure standing amongst the trees. but he caught you with both arms, preventing you with ease.

“woah woah, take a breather, they’re with clarisse.” he said and stopped you before you ran back to the mess hall.

reading your expression, luke could tell you were not convinced nor pleased so he had to fix his answer.

“—and annabeth and chris.”

with that you stopped fighting against his grasp and stepped back, finally exhaling.

“you haven’t answered my first question.”

“oh! i just uh wanted to um come and tell you that they’re asking for damien back at camp. they were practically begging me to come over here and get him!”

you narrowed your eyes after he finished, easily indicating the lie.

“okay…you can go damien but remember what i said,” you smiled and patted his shoulder before sending him off back to camp.

the young boy ran off without a care and ready to make that bracelet with a formal apology. luke stood there, quite surprised that his lie that chris helped him think of in fact worked.

“soooo do you need help with whatever that is?” luke pointed at the skirt laid out on the rock.

“no.” you shortly responded and walked back to your rock but luke followed like a lost puppy.

“are you sure? i mean as head counselor for cabin 11, i can cook up a mean batch of laundry,” he insisted and trailed behind you.

unbeknownst to him, you rolled your eyes and cringed at his wording.

“your words don’t even make sense.”

caught in a lie, luke decided actions spoke louder than words and walked past you to the skirt. you furrowed your eyebrows in confusion as he picked it up and crouched down near the water before dunking it back into the water.

shocked and a little annoyed, you hurriedly ran to him.

“what the hell are you doing?! i just washed that! i’m waiting for it to dry dumbass!”

“oh she curses!” he exclaimed, finally getting a real response from you.

you reached for it until luke raised it a little higher, just out of your reach. using his height as an advantage, he held out the clothing as far as he could and to the river.

fed up and exhausted, you went on your tippy-toes and lunged for the skirt. swiftly, luke pulled it close to his body just as you reached leading you to accidentally lean too far.

with a splash, you fell straight into the freezing cold water, unknown to how deep the river was. luke’s eyes widened, he thought you falling in would be funny but once you hadn’t resurfaced within a few seconds he became worried.

without a second thought, he dropped the skirt, pulled off his camp shirt, and dove into the biting waves. as soon as he saw your bright orange t-shirt in contrast to the clear water, he put his arm around your waist and swim towards the surface.

pulling you out to the rocks and laying your body on the ground, he waited for you to gain consciousness. luckily, you started to gasp for air and spit out gulps of water as you sat up.

luke sighed in relief at once. you wiped your face of water and blinked repeatedly until your sight returned to normal. then your eyes were fixated on something else, rather someone. his bare chest stood directly in front of your face, it wasn’t like you were trying to stare!

“i’m sorry, y/n. I’m so sorry, i didn’t mean to do that and i’m really sorry.” luke recited.

“i-it’s okay.” you stuttered, the cold water chilling your body.

“here take off the wet one and take mine.”

luke grabbed his discarded camp shirt and handed it to you. if you weren’t on the verge of frostbite you would’ve refused, but without another word you agreed and luke turned to face the trees as you pulled the wet shirt over your head and put on luke’s.

“thanks. for saving me and the shirt.”

luke turned back to face you and smiled, “i mean i was the one to make you fall into the water in the first place, it’s the least i can do.”

“aren’t you cold?” you signaled to his bare chest.

“no, i’m okay don’t worry. but your jeans are still wet so let’s head back to camp.” he reassured and helped you get up.

you nodded and let him take the lead. with your wet shirt and skirt in one hand and the other grabbing onto luke’s arm, you two finally made it back to camp. before dropping you off at your cabin, you had to ask.

“why did you come to the river anyway?”

luke awkwardly put his hand on the back of his neck and looked away.

“oh. i just uh wanted to spend time with you.” he admitted, ultimately facing you.

you stopped attending to your dripping pants and looked up at him. he had a genuine smile, now with both hands shoved into his pockets.

how was it that you had never noticed the golden flecks in his deep brown eyes? or the way the orange hues of the sunset highlighted the amber shade his eyes would turn?

“y’know, there are a lot of other ways to get my attention in the first place, that doesn’t involve us falling into freezing cold water.”

luke laughed at your comment which eased the awkward air.

“i had this almost exact same conversation with a little boy of about seven years, and gave him some valuable advice.”

“what was the advice..?” he carefully asked.

“to make her a bracelet and apologize, one of…you’ve already done profusely.” you raised your eyebrow to imply his previous attempt in apologizing nonstop.

“ah, a bracelet you say, okay got it,” luke said and nodded his head.

with that, he bid you a good day and you asked to meet him later at the campfire to return his shirt.

“alright you two sit there, i don’t want to see anymore fighting over the dinosaurs, you can sit here with him, and you three over there—” guiding the campers for the campfire that was just about to begin, you made your way to an empty bench.

smiling to yourself, you watched as your campers finally calmed down and enjoyed the music, giving up on fighting and arguing with one another. someone jumped over the bench and leaned back to sit right next to you, and you had a feeling who it may be.

“luke?”

“yes ma’am.” he replied with a tilt towards you and two fingers from his head.

the campfire lit up his face and highlighted his sharp features that you had somehow missed until this moment. his charming smile urging his dimples alongside his dark curls freshly washed with a new scented shampoo was enough to make you realize you were hooked. damn.

“oh i have a little something for you, give me your arm and close your eyes,” he spoke up and put his hand in his pocket.

raised eyebrow, you reluctantly closed your eyes and gave him your right arm. suddenly in fear of some bug or scary animal on your hand, you slowly retracted it back to yourself until he gently got a hold of it.

he pulled your arm towards him slightly and slipped something on around your wrist. waiting for his approval, you sat questioning what the mystery item could be.

“okay, open.” luke did a little ‘ta-da’ motion once you flickered your eyes open, adjusting to the dark yet orangish lit surrounding.

you looked down at the intricate, handsome bracelet that appeared on your wrist. it was similar to the camp necklaces but the beads were translucent with flowers imbedded into them. except for one bead that was painted a heavenly green, your favorite color.

astonished and at a loss for words, you observed the bracelet, moving around the small beads on the string.

“i’m sorry.”

snapping out of your trance, you instantly stared up at luke after his words in confusion.

“what?”

“you said earlier, ‘there are a lot of other ways to spend time with you that don’t involve us falling into freezing cold water, for starters make a bracelet and apologize.’” he repeated your words from back by your cabin. he remembered.

“so you made me a bracelet and apologize just like i said?” double-checking, you glanced once at the bracelet and back to the dashing boy who looked as if he had stars in his eyes, waiting for your reaction.

“not only for you, i also helped damien make one for that girl he’s got a crush on,” he continued and looked over to the little boy doing the exact same hold-out-your-arm-and-close-your-eyes trick on the girl sobbing about her stained skirt earlier.

she opened her eyes to a freshly washed skirt and matching bracelet, along with a smiling boy who was apologizing and waiting for her reaction. she leapt into his arms with a bunch of ‘thank yous.’ the boy then briefly peered at luke who proceeded to wink and give an approving nod.

happily surprised, you sat gaping at the boy you thought was so infuriating just a couple of hours before. luke knew exactly what he was doing. he knew how much you cared for the campers and your half-siblings, how you would always chose their safety and happiness at the expense of your very own.

it was one of the traits he admired the most about you. even when in a bad mood or not feeling your best, you would put on a brave face and make sure to put their needs in front of you own.

he witnessed it first-hand last week when your campers wanted to go rock climbing but there were dozens of poison ivy already there. thus, to not disappoint the kids, you stayed up all night removing the dangerous plant and relocating them to another area deep in the forest for them to grow.

even with your plant manipulation abilities, with the large amount of the poisonous plant, it took you quite a while. afterwards, you went as far to replace them with lovely daisies you summoned from the gardens in front of your cabin.

during the move from the rock climbing course to the forest, luke had spotted you while some late-night sword practicing because he couldn’t sleep due to apollo cabin next door.

he debated approaching you and settled on only admiring you from afar after you almost finished anyway. he didn’t want to disturb you or aggravate you further than you already were. but leaving you here in the forest during midnight would be wrong.

what if a monster were to come? how were you to defend yourself if you were distracted! therefore, it was just common sense that luke had to keep watch, i mean he even had his sword with him after all.

but once the sun peeped from the tall mountains, he came to a realization that he had just sat and watched you for more than a couple hours. so in order to not get caught, he ran off back to his cabin before anyone would wake up.

only a little after luke headed to bed, morning arrived and you were the first one to break the happy news to your campers that today would be the day for rock climbing. greatly proud and feeling accomplished, you even invited other cabins to join and have a spin at it. including luke’s.

now he was the one to show you how much he cared for the campers as well, focusing on a feature you had great respects for. your shocked expression softened and now leapt into his arms.

“thank you, castellan. really.”

blood rushed to his cheeks and he tried to hide his excitement, but you felt his genuine smile on your shoulder. before pulling away, he stopped by your ear and whispered.

“do i have permission to kiss you, counselor?”

you could’ve giggled at his words and how close his lips were to your ear. without wasting another breath, you pulled his face closer to you and put your lips on his.

feeling the warmth of his breath, you could taste the sweet taste of strawberries he must’ve eaten earlier. only centimeters away, your bodies were attracted to each other almost pressing. the kiss wasn’t long but not short either, somewhat leaving a lasting impression on the other.

yet again you felt a small grin of his lips during the kiss, making you pull away for air. but your eyes were still glued to his, moments away from repeating the act but you both realized where you were and how irresponsible it would look as counselors. so instead he grabbed your hand, now giving you the absolute cutest puppy dog eyes before asking.

“do i have your attention now?”

[ddostoyevskyy]

The first time Bakugo Katsuki let you borrow one of his gauntlet was the time he realized he’s in love with you.

You share the same determination of being number one, and as much as he hates people who get out of his way, surprisingly — you never show the sign of negativity; you were supportively competitive in a way that it made his stomach churns vividly. As a result, his aggresion towards you backlashed the hidden feelings he felt.

Just as you thought; his gauntlet was heavy and overbearing on your arm — the gloves were thick and slightly bigger than your palm, the warm sensation of his quirk remains on the equipment as you tried to raise your arm. He watches you struggle, almost getting impatient by the way he put a hand on his hip as he stared at you with sharp eyes. Although, there is no denying the feeling when he watches you train with his weapon using the glycerin he stored.

Maybe he’ll keep that one extra weapon you always bring that almost weigh as much as the gauntlet in your arm.

𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄... edited. This was inspired with Izuku borrowing his gauntlet fighting with All Might on that episode in season 3.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

All Rights Reserved 2024 © ddostoyevskyy. Do not repost without permission or plagiarized.

[necromosss]

💡BG3 Companions in Cyberpunk 2077 //AU

just a fun lil personal HC i did at 3 am. Read each's quick stories below cut!

Aight here goes, sorry for the mess

💡Gale being a netrunner on a borrowed time since his cyberware is eating himself alive. His fixer (while also being his ex-lover) offered only one solution to his demise; sacrificing his corrupted virtu to temporarily cripple the Blackwall

💡Astarion, once was a big-hit lawyer and disappeared for a decade, re-emerges as one of the left hand for a big name in politic circles. Rumor is this politician used a few trusted of his people to 'house' an important experimental cyberwear to later be taken back and improved…

💡Wyll, son of Mayor Ravengard. While father wishes for him to continue down the politics, Wyll thinks it's more of a direct help to jump down on the streets directly, thus becoming an Edgerunner. Rumor has it he had dealings with people within Militech that granted him techs

💡Shadowheart, One of Arasaka's top agent. Her, being under Arasaka's teachings and guidance has little to none care for her selfish needs--that is until she was disconnected from their mainframe. Tasting the freedom and truth of her past, SH wanted to uncover all of it

💡Laezel was trained, Sponsored and backed by the Militech, she aimed to be the strongest living weapon of all times. Though, things didn't go smoothly once her implant was caught malfunctioned. She aim to regain control of her might, and refrains from being thrown away by the megacorp

💡Karla was a bodyguard of an NC political figure, then was betrayed and sold to a megacorp as a subject of experiment, and eventually broke out from there. The tech she gained DID enhance her abilities, but at the cost of it overheating and eventually gave her health problems

and a little bonus, my own Tav

💡Mira's family had been loyal to Arasaka for decades, she had also fell into the corporation hole. Until everything fell apart, Arasaka revoked everything and her family ruined by the megacorp, she sought other ways of survival and making her own name in Night City.

And of course, my durge Ian who's probably far mor familiar to some of you in cyberpunk than in BG3..

💡Ian, an Ex-Netwatch Netrunner. Retired from NW due to a lifethreatening incident involving a megacorp and now he only netrun for his small group (with Zil & Fiona) to quietly plan revenge