#btw is Arthur that good looking or is everyone just desperate???

[glendover]

I don’t care what Harlan says bc even if he didn’t intend for his character to be queer they are all fruity coded and it’s a fact

[makriiii]

Caught Ⅲ (Arthur Morgan × f!reader)

Word count: 3.1k

Authors notes: Sorry for the slow uploads. Btw, when I copy-paste this from my notes app, tumblr double spaces my paragraphs and I'm too lazy to change it. 😭

Warnings: 18+, angst, & cursing.

Pt1! Or pt4

Wattpad or Ao3

♡

Caught Ⅲ

The land around you briskly faced a blanket of darkness as the sun had just set, the colors had kept you busy for just a stint, longing for them as they faded into deep shades of gray and blue.

People were now rekindling their fires from the night previous, preparing for dinner, a preparation you didn't need to worry yourself with, as much as you wished you did.

Keiran was across from you, and despite being part of your gang, you hadn't exchanged many words. He never did seem too fond of the gang.

Neither of you conversed, not only due to the fact that he tried desperately to distance himself from being an O'Driscoll, but because everyone in camp would also be part of the conversation.

With Keiran ignoring you, and Dutch's gang shunning you, you may as well have been the naughty kid who sat in the corner with a dunce cap on.

The only thing that kept your sanity was finding out that, Arthur, so you came to know, had taken your horse with him that day.

With nothing to do but sit defeated, you zoned out, staring at your horse. The thoughts of escaping with her danced around in your head.

Revenge didn't even cross your mind, in fact, at this point you were willing to let it all go, so long as you had your horse.

Rival gang members came and went, gawking at both of you like zoo animals. At one point, a lady who seemed personally victimized by Keiran had come and dropped food on him.

You were slightly taken aback by her actions, you were hoping it wasn't just for the fact he's an O'Driscoll, otherwise you felt you'd be next.

It was clear you weren't welcome despite being forced to stay and by all means you were happy to leave if they'd allow it. You'd even take Keiran along as well, but they had no such plans.

Out of all the people who roamed before you, your eyes met with one, much to your despair.

You had had enough of the man over these past days when he would check on you, once or twice each day, occasionally giving you water but only teasing you with food.

He kept to asking you and Keiran both, where on earth Colm was, and on that earth, you couldn't give him the darndest of answers.

Each time threatening to rid of both of you right here and there every time you gave him the same answer.

He was no man to play games with, but you still played them. He threatened it but never did actually point the barrel of his gun at you again. You shivered as a small ache crept from your arm just thinking about it.

With the eye contact you regrettably made, Arthur finally decided he'd saunter over and have a friendly little chat with you.

You shifted your weight uncomfortably, your arms and shoulders hurting with every second you didn't stay still.

He seemed to have this look in his eye that you couldn't quite place.

"I reckon it's time to change that bandage of yours." He commented, half gesturing for your arm before looking down and reaching into his satchel.

You didn't want him to touch you, hell, you didn't even want that stinking man anywhere in your sights.

"No, please. I'd rather it get infected so god can take care of it instead." You dismissed, kicking out your leg in an attempt to wave him off since you couldn't use your arm to do so.

He snickered as he crouched down beside you, moving for his knife, and to your surprise, he started cutting at the ropes that kept you tethered to the tree.

"That'd be a good few weeks of worse pain before it finally took you, pain I can just save you from now."

"There's a lot you could've saved me from, not being a poor aim on the day you shot me would've been it." Jeering at him with sass.

Any relief you would have felt from the breakage of your bounds was cut short as you hissed out a gasp of pain.

His large, calloused hand wrapped and dug in just above your wound.

Your instinctual reaction had your right hand balled into a fist and swinging around into a hook that landed sweetly on the side of his face before you could do anything about it, or so that's what you claimed.

It caught him off-guard, taking him a second to react, by which he squeezed your arm even harder and reached for your other wrist in a tight, abrasive grasp.

You cried out while he manhandled you. "Fuck- quit grabbin' me like that, you big brute!" You stirred under him, but he kept you still in an almost a perfect manner.

The whole commotion caught everyone's attention, their turned heads held looks of confusion and surprise.

"Im tryna help your ass, woman." He snarled, keeping you from jerking around. "Hold damn still before I save myself the trouble instead."

You looked away, mumbling a curse under your breath. By no means did you relax, but you stopped fidgeting, he cautiously let go. His eyes burned holes through you as he did.

Suddenly, he reached for your buttoned shirt, you flinched back in befuddled surprise.

"Just what the hell do you think this is?" You demanded, fully desiring to line up another fist to his face, if it wasn't for the control he had over you with clasping your arm.

"Your sleeve doesn't roll up that far. Didn't I tell you to hold still?"

You felt overwhelmed with rage, and worst yet, you couldn't do anything about it.

"Don't look at me like that, how else do you think I took care of this for you before?" He adds, leaving you in silence.

A man undoing your shirt wasn't the problem. The man doing it, was.

"I was hoping you had left me in the care of one of the more dignified ladies here."

"You wandered off so far from where we camped, you would've died before then." He counters, shaking his head.

"And I would have thanked you, if you left it at that." You stayed arguing, but slighted your head up, giving him easier access to your buttons.

His eyes flickered from your face and to your shirt for a moment at your small gesture.

"Left it at that? Nah, I couldn't let you get away with all that money." He takes a moment, unbuttoning your shirt half way, exposing most of your bra.

It was enough to get your arm out but not leave much to the imagination.

"I was hopin you'd know more than your buddy, yet, neither of you annoying shits seem to recall jack all." He nagged, giving you a stern look before returning his gaze to your arm.

You couldn't say much in return when you felt him pinch and prod at your arm, needles running through your body.

You groaned your hurt, though he didn't seem to care much.

"Don't punch me again, y/n. I ain't beyond hittin' a lady like you."

You gave him a dismissive, smug look, shrugging your shoulder through the aching and burning he inflicted on you.

"I'll just skip that part and put a bullet through your other arm instead," he halts his medical measures and grabs your face, squeezing your cheeks in a firm grip. "You understand me?"

You shook your head away from his grasp, a small, childlike and petty desire to jab at him grew inside you.

"You sure feel me up a lot for someone who hates O'Driscolls so much." Your lips curl upward into a mischievous smile.

He raises a brow, leaning away from you, scoffing in disbelief.

"I'd prefer much anything over you, O'Driscoll." He gripes, returning back to your wound, unraveling the old bandage.

"Yeah, I can see that, considering you have me almost half undressed." You did your utmost to keep from looking at your wound, instead keeping your eyes on Arthur's face. His eyes kept strictly at your arm, never faltering as he lazily slathered on some sort of ointment.

"You're full of yourself. I wouldn't be doin' this if I didn't need to." He shakes his head.

As he finished with the fresh bandage, his hands finally had stopped poking you, leaving your arm in peace and an onset of relief.

"You know, I was thinkin' bout feedin you tonight," his words brought you back to how starving you were.

"Can't say I'm feelin' so kind now." His hand found the side of his face, his fingers inspecting the welt you had inflicted on his cheek.

Your stomach found his words utterly strangling, but begging him was out of the question.

"Dead people can't tell you where Colm is."

"So, the answer comes to you if you're fed?" His eyebrow shoots up, sarcasm plastered all over his freshly punched face.

"I can give you my best guess if you feed me." You explained, irritation being the entire undertone of your statement.

"You think guesses are gonna get you fed? Huh, girl?"

"That, or I simply wont have enough energy to think much on Colm." You cajoled, your smirk slowly returned.

"Careful with that mouth of yours, it's gettin' real tiresome." He sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Yours reached that point way long ago." You fired back, his face now full of frustration.

"Glad to hear you're not hungry, O'Driscoll." He griped, returning rope to your wrists.

You full well expected it, but having them back on so soon displeased you beyond words.

Once he tied you up good, he got back up without a word and promptly left back to camp, leaving you alone on your tree once more.

You leaned your head back, wondering just how much longer they'd leave you tied up before they acted on their word of killing you both.

Minutes passed as you felt your eyelids get heavy, you didn't want to sleep, not until at least everyone else, but being tired, starving and having been shot only a few days ago left you exhausted.

"Don't you fall asleep yet, y/n." That man's voice chimed. You grimaced at his return.

The front of him was shadowed in contrast to his backside, which faced the camps fire light. You couldn't quite see what he held as he made for you.

"Couldn't get enough of me, huh?" You teased with a straight face, irritation filling you once more.

"You would like if I couldn't, wouldn't you?" A shit eating grin spread across his face at his own comeback.

You scoffed in response, staring him up and down as he got closer and to your surprise - the smell of food wafted into your nose.

Your whole body jolted with excitement, though, you couldn't tell just why he decided on feeding you.

He unties your wound-free arm, but hesitates when handing you the bowl in his hand.

"What?" You ask, looking up at him, his large frame towering over you.

"Say please." He demands, an evil look on his face.

"You're crazy. Now hand it here."

You reach for it but he pulls it away.

"Just say please, O'Driscoll." He laughs, taking a step back to avoid your waving arm.

"Quite actin' a fool and just give it to me." Your voice tightened with anger, your hunger almost possessed you into fighting him for it.

"Didn't anyone teach you manners? Please aint that hard to say."

"It is when the man you're saying it to is the same one that shot you. Now-" You reach again, your hand finally collecting the soup filled bowl.

You glanced back up at him, almost in shock that he actually let you grab it.

"Alright, alright, but next time, I expect some manners, O'Driscoll." He grins, knowing this set you off.

Next time? Next time, really? Your face furrowed with disbelief. "I'm happy you're an optimistic man, Arthur, but next time'll be in your dreams."

"Don't get too cocksure, darlin'."

"You know, you look pretty good when your face has a big red mark on it from my fist." You commented, shuffling in bites as you spoke.

"Really? Well, I think you also looked pretty good tied up all these days." He countered, the smile he had on his face ever growing.

That smile, on that nasty man. You hated it.

"Leave me to finish my food in peace."

He hums in consideration. "As much as I'd like to, you aint tied back to the tree."

You glower at him, desiring to eat slower so you could spend more time to rest your rope burned wrists, but ridding yourself of his presence felt more important.

You stayed silent as you finished the rest of your food, which didn't take long, tossing the dish to his feet and laying back on the tree so he could re rope you.

"That's what I like to see from you, O'Driscoll." He nods with approval.

You ignore him, your pride hurt with every moment more you had to give into this man and his crook gang.

He ties you back up and returns to the heart of camp.

It wasnt long before you finally dozed off.

-

(Set after the scene when Keiran gets interrogated.)

You sat petrified, still as the tree behind you, gelding tongs. They pulled down his pants for it too, if Keiran hadn't spoken up, you feared you'd be subject to it as well.

Goosebumps had crept up your back just thinking about those searing hot metal peices anywhere near your barren skin.

Keiran had finally come up with something.

Six point cabin.

You recalled having been there a few times, but was Colm up there? Your guess was as good as Keirans unless he actually was sure of it.

Arthur finally released Keiran from the tree, pushing him to the direction of the horses, then he came to you.

"You get to join us too, O'Driscoll." A small sinister smile creeps on his face, cutting through your ropes. "You better hope he's not trickin' us."

"Either way, if I'm rid of you, it's fine with me." He finishes, pulling you to your feet, guiding you to his mount.

"I'll get the most joy out of that, I reckon." You affirmed, somewhat stumbling as he releases you.

"Whatever you say, princess." He chuckles, closely following you.

Arthur calls out to a John and Bill, telling them just what's about to happen.

Keiran and a man with a nasty scar on his face were mounting, if you had to assume, the name John seemed best to suit him.

The other - Bill who had to be the man that threatened to 'geld' Keiran, coincidentally the one who also ratted on you that not so faithful day.

As you reluctantly walked along, you passed your steed you so woefully desired to mount instead, your ticket out of here. But Arthur quickly dismissed the thought for you, pushing you to his horse instead.

You gave him a hard stare in return, frustrated with his shoving.

"We're gonna pay your buddies our respects." He announces, entirely unconcerned.

"They taking us to Colm?" Questions John, steering his horse away.

"That's what he says." Arthur attempted to lift you up but you wave away his hands and pull yourself up instead, as much as your arm protested in agony.

Keiran stuttered out his assumption on where the cabin and Colm was, they pushed their horses in the opposite direction of camp.

Arthur mounted on after you, and for the first few moments you chose to hang on to nothing, however as if he knew, he kicked his horse to a trot, prompting you to grab at his sides.

Even underneath his layer of clothing, you could feel his heavyset build that helped keep you steady. Looking him up and down, a shiny metal caught your eye.

You were captivated at the sight of your revolver, missing the feel of it at your side and in your palm whenever you saw fit.

He had taken your gun as if you weren't still alive to be the owner of it.

You clenched your jaw, angry at everything and now finally riding to your more likely than not demise, worse yet, possibly executed with your own gun.

He kicked his horse into a lope, leaving you clinging to his sides firmly.

He turned to look over his shoulder at you, clearly in response to your tightened grip.

A small smirk crossed his lips before peering back to the trail up ahead.

The rest of the entire ride consisted of Keiran condemning O'Driscolls, bickering and directions shouted from you and Keiran.

It didn't take very long at the speed in which you rode, though you feared slipping off everytime you didn't have a good hold on Arthur.

You approached a small hill, Keiran confirmed the destination upon arrival.

"Okay, off your horses." Arthur draws back the reins. "Let's go." His voice now low in tone.

He jumps off and you follow suit shortly after, sliding off the back of his horse.

John reminded you and Keiran as you snuck forward, that he was keepijg his eye on you. Although you felt Arthur had beat him to it, he stared daggers at you as you crept along with the rest of them.

"I ain't gonna shop you now, come on." Keiran assures. "That'd be suicide."

"You'll die, boy. But you'll lose your balls first." Warned Bill, his gravelly voice blunt as could be.

Bill wasn't a man you wanted to be too close to with threats like that, so you kept closer to Arthur.

"Jesus christ…" Keiran murmured under his breath.

The lot of you kept low as you came to a ridge overlooking the cabin.

Keiran gave the rundown, confirming they were in fact armed, drunk and not fond of strangers.

Colm would be in the same way, just in the comfort of the cabin, which you agreed on.

Unlike Keiran's declared opposition, the O'Driscolls were a gang you rode with for a good while and despite Colm's nasty behavior, you felt a large sense of betrayal. Betrayal or your life, as it was now.

Your thoughts interrupted by three men emerging from the small cover of young trees, conversing about something miniscule and not far from earshot.

Suddenly Keiran was grabbed by John, a gun to his head and a hand over his mouth.

Arthur followed suit, pulling you into him, losing your balance with his sudden pull, your own gun held to your head and any potential cries for help blocked by his rough hand.

The now non existent barrier betwen your back and his chest was closed, you could feel each breath and each nervous heart beat agaisnt you.

[bitsandbobsofwriting]

How do you think everyone would react to Mordred aka the baby being badly injured

Btw I love your stuff you have so many great ideas ❤️🤠

(Headcanon Masterlist) (Full Masterlist)

Awwwwww cutie patootie

Riots. Riots all around.

It's a happy AU where everyone gets on and no one does anything silly like go evil or die🙃

Merlin is very good at being professional first, and terrified later. So bby Mordred gets injured and Merlin is jumping right to action sorting everything out and fixing him right up. It's not Mordred whose guts are in his hands. It's not Mordred's breaths he's counting. It's not Mordred he's stitching up, cleaning up, fighting infection off of, changing dressings on, etc. Afterwards, when Mordred is still bedbound and pale and passed out, but on the mend, Merlin freaks. Like full blown panic attack held back by strings (and maybe very tight hugs from Lance/Leon/Gwen) that he has to escape to get under control privately.

Morgana and Arthur are very similar in that they panic, but are fairly competent at keeping it under wraps. They hover and have to be repeatedly told to get out of the fucking way by an increasingly frustrated Merlin/Gaius, but they don't visibly freak out. Once Mordred is stabilised, they get angry. Like, really angry, and it's probably safer to just let them hunt down whoever's responsible because there isn't really any getting in their way. Not safely anyway.

Leon, Elyan and Percival do hover, but they stay out of the way and are always useful for fetching and carrying things (water, other physicians, supplies, etc). They want to be close by and feel like they’re helping but they do NOT want to interrupt or disturb, because they know the smallest mistake/distraction could kill their baby bro. They trust Merlin/Gaius to work their metaphorical (*hehem*) magic, but they’re still deeply worried until they’re reassured that he’ll be ok. Elyan especially struggles because Mordred is the only one around who’s really younger than him; before Mordred came along, Elyan was the baby of the group, and he takes looking after Mordred pretty seriously. Leon worries for near the same reason, he’s so much older than Mordred, he’s the oldest and Mordred is the youngest. Look, Leon is meant to look after all of them, but Mordred is just... so... young. He’s babey.

Gwaine is, surprisingly or not so, sulky and surly and quiet. He’ll sit in the corner, stock still, not making a sound, until the rush is over. He’ll help if asked, but he won’t get in the way and he won’t push himself to the forefront. Firstly, he knows that there’s nothing that Merlin and Gaius couldn’t do that he could actually help with, so best to just stay out of the way, and secondly, he’s busy planning a very vicious, very bloody, revenge. He’s more than happy to let the others join in on his plans, but once Mordred is stable it’s more than likely he’ll slip off into the night and come back in the morning covered in someone else’s blood. If he manages to get there before Arthur and Morgana, he is dismissed from morning duties with a respectful nod, and told to catch up on sleep without another word. Though the other two are annoyed they didn’t get the satisfaction of killing the arseholes themselves, all that matters in the end is that they’re dead, it doesn’t matter who’s responsible.

Gwen and Lancelot are very similar to Morgana and Arthur, except more competent, and they don’t get angry afterwards. They’ll panic and hover and be desperate to help, but stay out of the way, and when all is well, they’ll both sit by Mordred’s side with a goblet of water and a wet cloth for his feverish forehead.

Gaius is Gaius. Of course he’s upset that someone is hurt, and he’s more upset that it’s someone he knows, but he just gets on with things. He’s ineffectual if he allows his emotions to loud his judgement.

[randomsebs]

HAHA

An Annabelle supporter/BOW, aka the biggest Annabelle ass kisser, has seen my post. She uploaded it onto her stories as if everyone will look at it and go: “WHATT?!” Yeah, because that’s what Annabelle’s cult followers do. They share a hive mind, it’s practically all they do now if you don’t like her. They go: “😨🤯YOU DONT LIKE ANNABELLE?! SHE SHOULD —- YOU”, which is said by His fake ass lawyer on Twitter, and btw, no it isn’t a joke. This is serious.

Just because I don’t like Annabelle doesn’t make me “invalid”, “crazy”, “jealous”. Sebastian is my comfort actor, COMFORT. I do not see myself “fucking” him. I am in a RELATIONSHIP. A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP. Way healthier than with Seb and AW.

If this is a real relationship, it’s toxic as fuck. When they breakup , she’s not gonna be known more than as his “ex girlfriend”. Because tell me, the only things you know her from are from her PR boyfriends and Peaky blinders. Multiple articles have said it themselves, she’s a forgetful actress. Her role was mostly cut out of King Arthur because the director didn’t like her as Maggie.

I miss Sebastian’s ex girlfriends, do I think they were PR? No. Do I think after he signed up for CAA he’s been in PR? Yes.

It’s a very common thing within Hollywood, I hope you all know that. I mean him and his exes were always caught kissing, hugging, laughing, what not. With her it’s quite the opposite. We’ve heard from multiple of sebs co-workers the fact that seb is a good guy, but with Annabelle, it seems like her co-workers are uncomfortable with her or just dislike her. Which is the same with Tom cruise by the way.

You worship her, for what?? A high five from Seb? Oh PLEASE. Spare me the decency !! You have to be kidding, right? Seb does not give a single shit about what you say about their PR relationship.

It’s very obvious the PR is for HER gain, plus she is friends with her ex, has been seen hanging out with him while in a relationship with Chris pine, literally is SO CLOSE with her “bestie” Drew and all of a sudden is so close with her new “bestie”, James (the one who “congratulated” Sebastian in his story for more attention too)

It’s not a “rumor” that she’s an alcoholic. She literally posts photos of herself having wine in the back, every after party she has wine, on vacation she’ll have wine in her hand, dinner photos she’ll have wine in her hand, promoting a wine brand (previously), and etc. there’s PHOTO PROOF I have of her being problematic, not to mention I can just screen record it right now (if you still don’t believe me).

Sebastian doesn’t even carry her luggage, he only lets her hold a finger (he never did that before), and you mainly see them leaving each other behind or standing 4 to 6 feet away from each other. Seriously?? If that was any of his exes, he’d be practically doing anything he could to make them feel comfortable, there’s photos to prove that too.

The fact that people have different opinions is shocking, I know right??🤡🤡

CAA, aka the company Seb joined in 2020, is known for promoting PR relationships and putting their clients into them to promote their public figure. Seb doesn’t need it, Annabelle does. She hasn’t became this known since she even started dating famous men, starting all the way from James R.

Seb has NEVER been more baited in a relationship before. She baits everyone anyways, including her leech friends. When she was recording the “game” she purposefully slowed down when it got to Brady and Beckham, just to prove that she is sitting near Tom and David?? Not to mention she is purposely trying to get the cameras attention, looking into any camera she can see, trying to move closer to Tom and David, whatever. It’s annoying and desperate. She tries way too hard to stand out and be noticed, not to mention tries to be “funny” and pretend she’s “private” since getting with Seb in the first place.

Oh but what did she do before? Post her PR boyfriends 24/7 for more spotlight and attention. What a shocker!!! It’s getting tiring. Plus she also follows his fan accounts, stalks the fan pages, stalks tumblr blogs/posts, etc. she is a creepy stalker, there’s no denying it… she even looks into what people say about her and her fake relationship with Seb, it has been proven MULTIPLE times.🙄 When will you people open your eyes???

[sweeethinny]

The Duke - Chapter 9

well, it took a long time to happen, i know, but things have been happening and i stayed away from the document for weeks, because nothing felt good

I hope you like it, I loved writing this chapter, and was looking forward to posting <3

btw, thank you so much for the reviews, the theories, and even the comments saying that i was making it all too boring ahahahahahahah i love to see what you guys think about <3

AO3 | FF.NET | SIYE

| G.W |

'Daddy...' Ginny cried, running after her dad through the room he shared with Molly, watching him take the comb to fix his hair back, as he always did. ‘I’m great at duels.’

'I know dear, and I'm sure you would win against all those men easily,' he said, but Ginny already knew that a 'but' was coming next. 'But you are a woman, and as much as it pains me to say that, it is not respectable that a lady like you, duels men twenty years older.' Arthur kept the comb together with his other items, in the first drawer of the dresser. ‘Furthermore, this night will be the first party and I know that all women will spend the day getting dressed, taking care of their hair and choosing their dress, and I don’t want you to stay with the men in the quarry while you could be with your mum.’

'They hate me,' Ginny replied, exasperated, going after him when Arthur walked to the bedroom bathroom to get his cologne. 'They would be more than happy without me there. Please, let me just watch the duels, please, Henry will be with me, nothing can happen.’ She put her hands together, trying to make the best face to convince her dad, who seemed to believe nothing.

'Ginny, my dear, is not an appropriate place for women, not even with Henry by your side… And he will stay with me there.' That was the last straw for the despair that Ginny felt, and as if foreseeing this, her dad turned, placing his hands on her shoulders. 'You need to socialize with women, make friends, and Henry shouldn't be watching you when you're curling your hair... Be understanding, Ginny.’

'Comprehensive? Dad, none of them can look me in the eye, I- ’

'Enough,' said Arthur, as firm as ever, making her feel like a child. 'Now go, I want to see you beautiful tonight, I heard that there are some men wanting to take you out to dance.' Oh, of course, Ginny thought hurt, turning around and leaving the room her parents were in, furiously going to the living room, where she could hear other voices, looking for one of her brothers, wanting them to find a way to take her to the quarry, so that Ginny could see the duel.

She had never seen any, and Henry had trained her so well, she knew she was better than those men, but still, even if she couldn't duel, it would be fun to see them fight. Fascinating to say the least.

They were also not very kind to her, of course, they saw her as inferior and all those other things, and Ginny doubted that there were men, in the plural, wanting to dance with her. She had spoken to everyone, at least to introduce herself, and none of them took her hand as they did with the other girls, some of them seemed more frightened than the women, when they saw her approach.

Mr. Rosier greeted her, looking her in the eye at least, but something inside Ginny made her feel strange.

'Bill.' She intercepted her brother, if there was anyone who could take her to see the duels, it was Bill. ‘I’ve been thinking and-’

‘No.’ He denied it, looking sad to have to do this. 'I know what you're going to ask me, but I'm sorry, Gin, Dad was clear to all of us not to allow you to go to the quarry. And he is right. It is not a place for you.’

'Isn't it a place for me? I have been training for duels for two years. With a real auror. If anyone is supposed to duel it is me, don't you see that?' Ginny felt close to pleading, thinking that if Bill wouldn't do this then no one else would, he was the one who always pretended not to see her when Ginny ran to outside the protection of their house, just to pick the strawberries that were behind the lake. 'At least let me see the duel.'

'Stay with Fleur, she will entertain you, yes she will, Mom will be here too... Maybe some mum will see you and think that you are perfect for her son, who knows. Give them a chance.' Ginny denied, going after Bill when he started walking when being called by another Viscount's son.

'Bill, please,' she asked, just one more time, hoping he would realize that she was desperate. ‘Daddy will even take Henry, and I’ll be alone-’

'Which is even better.' He turned, sighing and running his hand through her hair as if she were a child. 'You will soon get married and Mr Figg will have to leave, it is about time you started to get used to it.' And with that, Bill was gone.

Ginny felt desperate, for the first time since she heard that they had been invited to The Duel Party. She looked around the room that was starting to get crowded, everyone talking and looking excited about the day's schedule, and Ginny felt suffocated. All those men and women seemed to have someone to have by their side, and she was there, standing in the center of the room, alone.

'Gin, honey, is everything okay?' Mrs. Potter's voice woke her up, preventing Ginny from panicking.

It was not just the fact that Ginny was not allowed to go to see the duel - women could watch, but only on the last day of the duel, when the finalists face off - but because the idea of ​​having to remain stuck in a place where no one liked of her, with no means of escape, suffocated her. Henry wouldn't be around if her magic got out of hand and she ended up destroying a mirror when all she wanted to do was make sure the flower in her hair didn't wilt.

'Oh, good morning, my Lady,' Ginny gave a brief salute, fingers trembling as she held the skirt. 'Everything is great, just ... just looking for my mum.' The woman didn't seem to have swallowed the lie, her hard green eyes analyzing Ginny like an eagle, and she wondered where else she had seen that expression.

‘I haven’t seen her yet, I think maybe she’s in the gardens.’ She still didn’t look convinced, watching Ginny closely, as if she knew something was wrong. 'Are you looking forward to the ball tonight?' Lily smiled kindly, as if she suddenly realized that it seemed that everyone in the room was evaluating the two of them, having to think about what the two were talking about, and how one day, Lily imagined it would be the mother-in-law of the girl in front of her.

'Yes, I'm sure it will be an amazing night,' Ginny lied, with a skill she didn't even know she had, smiling and hiding the nervousness she felt every time she noticed someone turning their head towards her.

'That’s great,' she smiled. 'I know you wanted to go and watch the duel, but I'm sure our women's day will be a lot of fun too,' But Lily didn't seem to believe that, Ginny would realize later, when she remembered the shadow that persisted in her green eyes, as seem to understand the anguish that Ginny felt.

'I do too, my Lady.' Ginny was never more grateful for someone calling her name, even if it was Fleur, and she said goodbye to Lily to go after her sister-in-law, who seemed more excited than ever.

'Come on, let's go, your mum wants to talk to you, and I already tell you it's about men.' Fleur smiled from ear to ear, taking Ginny's hand and pulling her out into the garden, not even seeming to notice the male heads turning to face accompanying her. 'Bill told me about the duel, I'm sorry, and if it helps you a little, I would also love to see the duel. Don't tell your mom, but some of those women seem to hate us. ’

'It's because they do hate us,' she said, noticing when a woman who was supposed to be Molly's age, made a face at Ginny, turning her face and pinching her nose. ‘Actually, it’s more me than you guys.’

'Don't say ‘zat, it's too cruel,' Fleur's French accent was more apparent whenever she was happy, and this time was no different. 'They don't like us because... well, because they are all idiots, don't be moved by that, your mum and I will be with you and it will be better than being among those men. Do you really prefer to stay with muddy feet, close to those ogres who never seem to have seen a woman?' Fleur grimaced, tossing her long blond hair behind her shoulders, and Ginny really laughed at how affected she looked at it, Ginny didn't even if she bothered with it and thought that well, they didn't look at Ginny the way they looked at Fleur. 'Besides, if you want to get a good husband, my dear, let them think that you are a damsel in distress and that you need them to survive,' Her sister-in-law stopped, Molly seemed focused on the conversation with another woman to notice the two there.

'But I'm not a damsel in distress,' Ginny sayed, thinking of how many asses she could kick in that duel, without even pushing.

'Of course not, none of us are. But have you ever seen me having to do anything that might make me sweat? No, because men seem desperate to do it for me, and I just let it.' Ginny laughed, not even caring about the people looking. 'Let them, the guys and the women, say whatever they want about you, paint you like crazy or like a damsel in distress. Only you know that you are not that, and you are the only person who needs to know. ’

'Don't women look you in the eye, too?' Ginny asked, watching Fleur arrange the light pink scarf around her neck.

'Of course, they think that I am the reason why their marriage does not work, and that I am to blame for their husbands cheating on them. Do I need to go there and say that this is not true and that I am very well and happy with my man? No, I just ignore it, and let them speak. Do not give more reasons for these people to have your name on their lips, Gin, who really deserves you, is close to you without you having to deny what they invent out there.' Fleur started walking again, with the confident steps of someone who knew she could crush anyone in a few seconds, and Ginny smiled as she followed, trying to imitate her.

She couldn't help thinking about Henry while she heard Fleur speak, he never doubted her strength, and he didn't even seem to believe the lies that came out in the newspapers. Without thinking, she put her hand on her injured forearm, it didn't hurt anymore, but her skin was still a little red, and Ginny had to bite her cheeks to keep from smiling when the memory of him taking off her clothes came back to mind.

His calloused but soft hands on her skin, the touch like a feather, igniting each part touched, and making her need a lot of strength to not turn and kiss him.

In her dreams that night, they did much more than kiss, at least.

'Oh, Ginny dear, how good of you to come, I was even starting to worry about your delay.' Molly greeted her, and the woman beside her tried to get up, looking offended, and Fleur, who didn't even seem to mind, sat in the empty seat. 'Did your dad put a little bit of judgment on your head?'

'He tried.' Ginny shrugged. 'But I would still prefer to go to the Quarry.' Molly denied, seeming to find it almost blasphemous, and Ginny laughed with a disapproving grimace. 'Well, but that's what I have left. May I know who is the mysterious man who seems to want to go out with me today? It seems like everyone knows but me, and just maybe, I don't know, I should be the first to know. '

‘I didn’t want you to be anxious,’ Molly said, and Ginny thought there was no way she was going to be nervous about news like that, but she didn’t want to spoil her mother’s mood with her usual pessimism. 'It's Mr. Rosier, he and your dad had talked before and your dad and I think he will be a great company for you, and if the other men see you dancing with such an exquisite man, they will take you to dance too. '

'When you talk like that it makes me feel like a goat on display,' she said, and her mum's eyes widened, while Fleur laughed and seemed to agree.

'Don't say that, of course you are not a goat on display, it's just a way to get attention dear, you know how balls like this work.' Yes, she had watched enough parties to know how things worked, and how a girl's first dance was important to tell what the rest of the dance would be like for her.

Unfortunately for Ginny, there was rarely the first dance.

‘Mr. Rosier?' She had spoken to the man only a few times, only when they were introduced, and he seemed a little socially out of place, as if he had never attended a party like that, and had never dealt with mums desperate to get their daughters married with the first rich man to appear.

He was handsome, tall, muscular, with gray eyes and well-combed brown hair, Ginny had seen one or another girl sighing as he passed, and he seemed to be well mannered, since even her mother had liked him. Molly was also a reason for men to stay away from Ginny, she could be quite scary and demanding at times.

'Yes, yes, a great man,' Molly continued to speak, listing all the man's qualities and a few more things that Ginny didn't pay attention to, watching from afar one of Mr. Potter's friends, talking to another man she didn't recognize from afar, the shadow of the trees making the person stay hidden. She did not know why that interaction attracted her attention, since she did not remember the name of that man, she only knew that he was a great friend of the Duke.

As if warned, the man looked at her over his shoulder, and even from a distance, Ginny knew that whatever was going on there was not something she should be looking at, and it made her turn her face quickly, not wanting to get in trouble.

‘Where’s Henry?’ They haven’t seen each other yet, which was weird, because usually he was always by her side since the time Ginny got up. And Henry might be good at hiding among the others, but she always knew where he was.

'He said that he would need to resolve some issues before he came, something involving his mum. And it's Mr. Figg, Ginny, please.' Molly corrected her, but she didn't care much, thinking that she would never be able to call him Mr. Figg. They had already passed the formality phase, at least while she was with the family.

Henry saw her naked last night, by Merlin's beard, they had already crossed that line!

When they came in for breakfast, Ginny didn't see Henry anywhere, just like after breakfast, when Mr Potter announced what the day would be like today. At least Ron had the decency to look upset when the man said that the duel would be seen only by men, looking at his sister as if he were very sorry that she had been born with something different between her legs.

Ginny did not express any reaction, not even when she heard a young woman look scared to know that she would be together with everyone else.

'We'll have to keep the mirrors away from this one,' she said, laughing with her friend, who seemed to be amused by the memory of when Ginny lost control of her magic in the bathroom of a party, one of the first she had gone to, and one of the first times she felt ridiculously alone.

She was nervous, trying to fix her hair, her dress, her lipstick, trying to find whatever was wrong with her, thinking that maybe the idea of ​​having her hair tied up with real flowers hadn't been smart, since the stuffy place made them wilted and embarrassed. There were other women in the bathroom, which made her even more anxious, and when she tried to cast a spell on one of the sunflowers, her wand exploded in magic, hitting the mirror and bouncing off one of the pictures, which kept screaming for help and calling more attention from whoever was out there.

'Yes, or we will cut their throat,' Fleur whispered in her ear, tossing her hair back, and looking at Bill as if she expected him to defend Ginny.

It was a losing fight, Ginny would admit to her later, it was better that they all pretended not to listen than to risk being excluded from even more events. Her brothers did not need to lose their friends, and no longer be called to the pubs, because they defended her.

She can defend herself, and sometimes Ginny would rather be silent than fight.

'It will be a great day.' Molly clapped her hands, smiling at Ginny and Fleur, as the men dissipated across the room, chatting animatedly about what they expected from this first phase of the duel and anything else men said. Ginny noticed that Mrs. Potter took her husband by the arm, whispering something to him that he nodded and gave her a kiss on the forehead, then whispered something back.

Ginny felt a little embarrassed to have seen that display of affection that seemed so intimate.

‘I promise I’ll tell you everything later,’ Ron startled her, appearing in front of her and preventing her from seeing if it was Henry who had entered the room. 'These men are all weak, you would humiliate everyone, which is why dad forbade you to go.'

‘You know that it’s not true, but thanks for lying.’ She smiled. ‘I’ll tell you everything too, and don’t worry, I’ll be sure to do a good advertisement about you, for Miss. Granger.' Ron flushed like a tomato, his ears looking like they were on fire, while he laughed awkwardly and denied it.

'Don't be an idiot,' he said, before ruffling her hair and following the trail of men who headed out of the house through the doors leading to the garden, leaving her behind.

Looking around the room one last time, she saw him, standing in the corner, watching like an eagle, someone Ginny had not identified, since all the men were together and could be literally anyone. He grimaced and took a deep breath, looking at other people until he found her.

Henry nodded, slightly and almost imperceptibly.

He was beautiful, as always, Auror's clothes were well ironed and aligned as always, his hair continued to be the usual mess, and his green eyes looked even more vibrant now that the sunlight was coming in through the windows, the beam of light making her perceive some copper-colored wires in the middle of the black ones.

Something inside her stirred, that restlessness of now seemed to multiply in a thousand, remembering how his hand felt on her skin, how careful he was and how that whole care made her feel loved in such a new way and almost suffocating.

Not that she was complaining, she would give anything to feel that way again, but she wanted Henry to touch her beyond her back and arm, and she wanted to be able to touch him back.

Before she could do anything, walk up to him, call him, try to concentrate enough for them to exchange a few words for legilimency, Henry turned and followed the flow of men, reminding her that today, she would be alone.

He was the last man to leave the room, and Ginny hoped that sometime he would look back just for her to wave, and maybe he realized that she didn't want to stay there, that her hand was shaking with the panic she felt at just thinking about everything that could go wrong, anything.

But Henry didn't look back, the glass door closing behind him magically.

| H. F |

Henry stayed behind everyone, as he used to be, watching men talk about things they would probably never say near their wives and daughters, and he wanted to roll his eyes at that, imagining that many there would kill the first man who did or said those things about their own daughter.

He watched from afar as Mr Potter talked privately to one of his friends, Mr Black, if he was not mistaken, who shared the same worried countenance as the other, always looking sideways and backwards, but never seeming to find the person he wanted. Henry realized that unlike yesterday, the other two men who were always around were missing.

'How do you feel knowing that I'm going to kick your ass?' He heard a son of a Viscount say, his nose up, the scarf tied tightly around his neck, and that snobbish way of being. The other seemed to enjoy the threat, taller and stronger than his friend.

'You won't even know what hit you.' The other said, the wand in his hand, but Henry doubted that it was going to happen.

He had seen many men duel, for several reasons; women, money, training and being rivals, and he could tell very well when someone was just showing off, and those two, were that kind of guy.

When he joined the Aurors, Robards did not take it easy on him, much less when he knew that he had never attended a wizard school or something, and the man made Henry learn, one way or another, to identify several small details that could make you stay alive during a duel.

All the men he dueled with, other than his gym mates, ended up dead. And almost everyone looked very much like that man in front of him. Too pompous to know what it's really like to fight for something other than male pride.

When he turned his attention away from the two brats, Henry realized that Mr. Rosier was looking at him, as if he recognized him from somewhere, his gray eyes fixed on him, his wand in hand.

Henry nodded, ignoring the restlessness in his chest, trying not to think too much of where he recognized this man. Mr. Weasley had told him about Rosier, a good man, from a wealthy family - but who was starting to face some problems after the war - and who could provide Ginny with a safe place to stay.

Of course, he didn't think those were good requirements for you to find a husband for your only daughter, but Henry couldn't wait for Arthur to find a man for Ginny to love.

This is not how weddings work for people like them.

Love is for those like Henry, who have nothing more to offer.

When they finally reached the quarries, he thought Ginny would love to go there, and maybe he could try to sneak her out here, there would probably be some spare time when they could sneak out and Henry would bring her here.

There was a large, well-kept lawn, a few trees ahead, but what really drew attention was what was aside. A clear and calm river, with huge cliffs around it, where they would duel was where the vegetation of the land ended, as now all around was water. He felt tiny amidst all the fallen rocks nearby, the cliff, and the blue-green immensity that stretched to the infinity of his vision.

‘Who's going to want to start?’ Mr Potter asked, looking at all the men standing there, all looking a little shocked at the sight. Yes, it was a shame that women couldn't see that too.

‘I will,’ One of the men said. He was too chatty, looking too proud that everyone was looking at him.

‘One more.’ Mr. Potter continued to stare into each of their faces, until he stopped at Henry, a slightly mischievous smile playing on his lips. ‘Mr Figg? Do you want to show us if duel training is good in the academy?’

‘Hm…’ Henry mused, a little embarrassed at having to speak in the midst of all those men. Of course the academy training is good, he wouldn't survive a day as an Auror if it didn't. 'Sure..'

Henry was seldom in the center of a circle, he thought he was not born to receive all the attention for himself, an embarrassed boy who learned early on that being silent was always the best option when it came to large crowds.

Now, unlike when Robards pushed him to the center of the dueling wheel, Henry was anxious and felt his hands trembling. Of course, as someone who had trained for years, he knew very well how to disguise it, but still, his magic trembled inside his chest, in that anxiety he had felt sometimes during his life. The eyes of all those men on him didn't help at all.

It wouldn't be the first time he'd dueled in front of an audience, but there was a difference between dueling other Aurors at the Academy, and dueling with a rich man who hoped Henry would lose so his ego wouldn't be hurt.

‘Greet each other.’ James seemed to love that bread and circus, all the while looking curious about Henry's movements.

He bowed to the man as usual, trying to ignore the comments some made. It wasn't hard to see that he wasn't part of any wealthy family, and that wearing the Aurors badge was the highest rank Henry would ever achieve.

Unlike probably 70% of those men, going to the academy was his only chance, not just a formality.

‘We won't have godparents, as our goal is not to kill the other,’ Henry noticed that the man in front of him didn't seem satisfied with the rule. Perhaps he felt affronted for dueling him instead of a Marquis. ‘If one of the two falls and doesn't get up within three seconds, or loses his wand, he loses. Do we agree?' The two nodded, and Henry pressed his wand against his hand, feeling more and more challenged every time he heard a man laugh and/or make a joke about him.

He and the man, Henry no longer even remembered his name, faced each other, raised their wands, and Henry thought his chest would explode when his opponent smiled and looked at his friend, who was also laughing. They seemed to disbelieve that Henry would be able to win, or at least know what he was doing, and it seemed to disturb him far more than the other times he had been through it.

When the signal was given, before he even thought, Henry flung the man away like a sack of potatoes, his wand flying into his hand while his own trembled slightly. All chatting and giggles ceased immediately.

‘Your grace didn't say anything about nonverbal spells,’ Henry muttered to James, realizing he hadn't even said the Expelliarmus.

‘It's within the rules,’ he replied, also in a low tone, before looking at the man lying near one of the rocks, who looked stunned, his white skin now red. ‘My dear Finneas, you lost the first duel.’ Henry walked over to him, handing back his wand.

‘It was a good duel,’ Henry said, as he always said at the end of duels, even though his pride was screaming inside him.

‘Sure.’ Finneas took the wand from Henry's hands, marching back to his friend, his chest puffed out as if to give him back some self-love.

'Congratulations, Mr Figg.' Mr Potter smiled, that same curious look from before, as if Henry had suddenly become an interesting figure for a Duke to pay attention to.

Something inside him warmed and again, his wand trembled in his hand, as it used to do when he was a teenager who had no idea how to handle the magic in his chest that always seemed close to exploding. It had been a while since he'd felt this way the last time.

‘The rules are simple, as you've all seen, we'll have no godparents, nonverbal spells are allowed, and the first one who loses his wand loses.’ He was now looking at other faces, which still diverted their attention to Henry. 'Everyone will duel against everyone, as we are in twenty men, obviously the ten winners of today, will move on to the next round which will be two days from now, as we know we have some who are too old and need to recover,' Mr Weasley, who was beside Henry now, laughed and nodded, seeming to be amused by the idea of ​​dueling as a joke.

‘Hope you go easy on me when we face off,’ he said, watching Henry, who chuckled sheepishly and nodded.

'Of course sir, I will let you hit me first.' Arthur winked at him, looking back at Mr Potter, who continued to speak the basic rules.

Henry wondered if Arthur would rather trade places with Ginny, and spend a few hours sitting around doing nothing and talking about trivialities. He had already seen the man duel, and no, he didn't need Henry to take it easy, he probably needed to be on the alert even more than the others, since the two had already witnessed how the other fought in a real duel.

Arthur didn't seem to need help when he killed that Death Eater with just one spell, anger burning in his eyes.

‘Miss. Weasley would enjoy watching all of these duels. 'Henry whispered, watching the Duke split the pairs.

‘Yes,’ Arthur looked at him, before he looked away and his smile died, and Henry watched as the man looked at Mr. Rosier, who kept looking at them, trying futilely to disguise it. 'But this is not a place for her.'

Henry wondered if Mr. Rosier was aware of Ginny's entire trajectory, and of her strength, or if Arthur had preferred to keep these details from him so that he could find a husband. He knew some men didn't like it when a woman looked stronger than they were.

Perhaps that was why he forbade her to come to the duel, because then a man could see her as that damsel in distress who needed to be saved they were so fond of. He didn't think she would like this if she knew.

Henry didn't understand why men didn't look at her, he'd been attracted to her since the first time he'd seen her, and since then that silly attraction had grown into a much bigger and dangerous monster that he felt he had no control over. Knowing that she wouldn't come to the duel, almost made him break some social rules, and if he had stayed in the room a few more minutes, or looked back, he would have picked her up and bewitched her so that no one would see her.

He felt he could do anything for her, and even then, it wouldn't be enough.

How did other men not feel like him? How they weren't lining up to kiss her hand, when she was wearing that cream dress, her braided hair, and that hat that made her look like one of those porcelain dolls that rich girls had.

Ginny was everything he could have ever dreamed of, and more, how could those men not see what he saw?

‘Mr. Figg, you will duel Mr. Rosier.’ He was awakened from his reverie, looking at the man who now had reason to watch him, gray eyes measuring him up and down, a pompous smile on his face. ‘And so, it will be the first round, I think we all understand?’ James said.

‘It will be an interesting duel, Mr. Figg.’ Rosier stepped closer, hands in his pockets. 'We were never introduced properly.' He held out his hand, and Henry noticed a large scar that came out of his palm and went up into his arm, hidden by clothes. 'Louis.'

‘Henry.’ He squeezed the man's hand, even though his gray eyes didn't look so trustworthy and something inside him looked uncomfortable.

The other men had already started to disperse, so that the duels could really start, Henry walked up to a tree with Rosier, thinking that a silly jealousy would not hinder his performance in that fight.

‘Greetings,’ Mr. Potter said, in the center, and he and Mr. Black seemed willing to make sure everyone followed the imposed rules. Henry bent over, thinking of a million spells he could start. 'You all can start.'

| L. P |

Lily took a deep breath as the third woman looked at her pityingly, thinking that the idea of ​​asking about Mrs. Brown's pregnancy had been stupid. She should have known better that no one would ever let her forget about losing her child, as if forever, talking about children was a sad subject.

It was, but Lily wasn't a broken vase that had been mended with tape, and every time they tried to fill it with water, it broke again. She knew how to hide her emotions and her joy towards that young mother, it wasn't even close to envy or jealousy, she really was happy for her.

She could still be happy, even if she had lost her child over twenty years ago.

"Isn't it tiring?" Ginny asked quietly, hands steady in her lap, not even daring to touch the cup of tea in front of her. Her red hair, much more vivid and orange than Lily's, was being magically curled, like that of most of the other women there, all sitting together in the tea room.

"What, dear?" Lily asked, glad the girl had opened her mouth at least once.

“All those looks whenever someone talks about babies.” Her cheeks flushed, as if she suddenly realized this wasn't something to ask a Duchess.

Lily smiled. ‘Yes, but I’ve gotten used to it.’

"Oh, I'm so glad it didn't rain today, it's a beautiful day, don't you think?" Lady Jillian spoke, her voice loud and excited as always, but looking curiously at the interaction between Lily and Ginny. 'You have an amazing garden, it's understandable why you spend so much time here, Duchess.'

"Yes, flowers are just one more reason, but the calm here is priceless, I'm too old for turbulent London." She continued to smile as it sent the etiquette, her cheeks starting to ache. If she expressed any emotion other than pure happiness, it would get out in the papers that she was in a terrible depression and that maybe James was cheating on her with a younger, happier girl.

"Oh, of course you're not old!" Molly shook her head, sipping her tea and shrugging as if that was bullshit, before turning to the woman beside her. “How was the trip to Scotland, Lady Finnegan?” The side conversations took place again, the younger ones talking to each other, laughing and whispering to each other, the mothers talking about travel, high society gossip, the dances, the husbands, and the widows liked to tease the youngest, seeming to enjoy watching the girls blush when they spoke the name of some man who was handsome.

Lily watched everything, sipping her tea and thanking no one talking to her, letting her have a moment where she didn't have to smile and answer the same old questions; Yes, it's a great time to buy herbs. No, unfortunately I didn't go to that ball. Oh yes I heard she got married. No, we weren't in town when this happened.

Ginny, who was standing next to her, also seemed to be watching everything, but unlike her, she didn't seem comfortable with her own silence.

She was a beautiful woman, and it was hard to think that she was no longer that little girl that Lily heard Molly talk about. No more climbing trees, climbing on roofs, running from her parents to hide, now she could attend dances, afternoon tea, and drink wine. Time had passed too quickly.

Lily couldn't help but wonder how the girls, a year or two younger than her, didn't include her in the conversation. Nor how men didn't seem to want to include her in the moments when they talked to ladies and courted them either. She was always alone. And Lily wished the two of them didn't share the same knowledge of what it was like to feel that way.

Unlike her, Ginny wasn't excluded or treated with pity for having lost a baby, but somehow, the loss of Lily had affected her too, which was unfair.

'Drink your tea dear, it will get cold and I don't think it will taste good' She said, not only because she didn't want the girl to feel lonely, but because Lily wanted Ginny to know she wasn't alone, and that she understood what she was going through.

'Oh, thank you, my Lady, but I'm not thirsty.' Ginny smiled, and Lily realized that she pressed her fingers against her palm, as if she wanted to avoid something.

'Do you want me to order something for you? A cookie?'

"No need to worry, thanks."

"I insist, I'm starving." Lily called to Fye, ordering, and the elf nodded before apparating to the kitchen. ‘We have delicious chocolate chip cookies, great for calming your nerves. I always eat them when I feel like I need something to bring me back to earth, you know? When I want to feel hugged.

'Do you want to feel that way now?' Ginny seemed to stretch her shoulders, a slight smile on her face. A real smile.

"Isn't that what we all want?" Lily arched an eyebrow, watching her nod. "A tight hug from those who look like they're going to break our ribs."

"I don't know when I last got one of these." She didn't look sad though. "But I think chocolate is a great way to feel that way."

'Course is. And I also think, none of these women are going to want to hug us right now, so chocolate is our best choice.”

"Oh no no, some of them would prefer death to that." Ginny laughed, and so did Lily, glad to have someone other than James to play the pranks without getting a pitying look.

"Thank you Fye, you can rest now." Lily thanked the elf, who nodded and left, unnoticed by the other women. ‘Take one, dear… Yes, you will see, chocolate is able to cure any sadness or anxiety, it is better than any potion I have ever invented.'

"So it's true, you invent potions?" Ginny was looking at her curiously now. "I've heard some people say, but you know, you can't trust everything that's said."

"No, definitely not." Lily took a sip of tea. ‘I don’t invent, I study the ones that already exist, and I do tests with some changes on top of those studies, trying to find a new result. Some work, and some just explode or boil over and melt everything around.” The two laughed, like they were old friends.

'Have you done this for a long time?'

'Since when I learned how to make a colic potion that didn't make me want to throw up all my lunch. It's been a few years... Then, over time, I've been taking more and more tests and studying more, and when you spend a lot of time alone, you start discovering skills you never thought you'd have.'

"Do you intend to come up with any specific potions?" She looked even more curious now, one hand tucked under her chin, supporting her face as she was slightly crooked in her chair to get a look at Lily, the other holding a cookie.

"I do." Lily thought of that old Slughorn note, that it promised a potion she could test if these people shared the same DNA. Until now, the tests had been flawed. "But I still haven't got the results I want."

The two continued to talk for a long time, discussing Lily's trip to India, then Ginny's trainings, and even boys - she said Mr. Rosier would dance with her, but Ginny didn't even look by far excited about it, and when Lily asked her what she thought of it, she said it was weird that she was the last to know and that the man had talked to her father first before her.

It was nice to have someone to talk to, especially a younger girl, it made Lily feel less old, as much as James continued to insist that Lily was not old, she knew she was. The forty-five years had arrived in her life and made her think about the years that passed.

When all the women had their hair done and ready for lunch, Remus walked into the room, not even bothering not to attract attention.

"I need you to join me, my Lady," he asked, bending over in front of her as if they hadn't been friends since she was ten, and that triggered a sixth sense in Lily.

“Excuse me, my dears.” She got up, smiling at the women who watched her looking curious enough to be able to follow her wherever Remus took her. "I'll be back in a minute, you can go to lunch without me, I won't be long."

Lily followed Remus without losing her poise, shoulders back, chin up, not wanting to show that she was distressed by the interruption. Where was James? Did something happen to him? Why wasn't Remus at the quarry with all the other men? What was wrong? Has Voldemort found them?

'What happened, Moony, you're scaring me.' Lily allowed herself to look nervous, far enough away from the house that no one could see her through the windows. Remus was leading her into the woods, a worried look on her face, looking anxious.

"I decided to call you after I show you what I found."

‘Why aren't you with James? Is he okay?” Lily looked at him.

'James is fine, Sirius is with him, I was… Well, we thought there was something wrong last night, and I stayed behind to investigate, and that's when I found it.' Remus and she stopped in the middle of the forest, and on the floor in front of her, protected by a spell, lay Harry's blanket that Lily kept with all the care in the world, one of the few things that still contained small traces of his DNA that she would use in the potion to try to find out. It had been a few years, but it still contained enough for one potion.

She floated the cover, her hands shaking.

No one had access to the dungeons where Harry's box of things was kept, protected from the weather, the dust and everything she and James could protect, trying to keep what was left of their son as immaculate as possible.

"Remus," Lily said, startled.

"Whoever took this knew how important it was to you," he whispered, and neither of them needed to say any more. Her heart broke.

‘Do you think… it's someone we know?' She asked, startled, carefully sending the cover back to the dungeons, making sure it was as discreet as possible.

'I've been thinking about it, and-' He was interrupted, a noise coming from the direction of the clearing that was nearby, the voice of someone cursing under his breath. Lily and Remus started walking, wands drawn, a bad feeling taking over her chest.

Each time they went deeper into the forest, it got darker, the tops of the trees covering the sky and preventing the light from entering, the ground a little damp due to this lack of sun soiled the hem of her dress and her sneakers, the wind icy very different from the heat she had been feeling before. She had never been so far into the Forest, James came here on full moon nights with Remus, but Lily kept her distance at all times, the feeling of claustrophobia that the place caused made her dizzy.

The noise kept coming from the highest part of the Forest, where James said it was the worst part, even darker, wetter and colder, in the opposite direction of the clearing she had told Ginny to visit last night.

Several crows flew over there, some stared at her from the branches of the trees, and Lily noticed that not far away there was some dead chick being devoured by vultures.

As they got closer to the noise, almost to the rock that bordered the end of where you could advance into the woods, they found a man, his back to them, his sleeves rolled up and looking annoyed at something. There were things in front of him on the floor, things that Lily didn't identify at first, but it didn't look good.

"Stopped." Remus clutched his wand in his hand, touching the back of his head with the tip, ready to react. Whatever that man was doing, it wasn't a good thing.

He froze in place, and when Remus was ready to cast some spell on him, something from his hand fell, and everything spun around her.

On his forearm was the Death Eater mark, Lily had seen several over the years, but that wasn't what shocked her, it wasn't what made her take a step back, it was the fact that that forearm belonged to Peter.

Peter, James' best friend, that boy Lily met at age 13 when they bumped into each other in the middle of a boring event. Peter, whom James treated as a brother, who took refuge with them the several times he saw death coming, during the Order's missions. Peter who was the first of the Marauders to arrive to see Harry, and who at his christening blessed him with several years to live.

This Peter had his arm marked by those who wanted her life, James, Remus, her son.

"Lily, it's not what you're thinking." He sobbed, dropping his wand to the ground and turning away. 'I can explain.'

‘What will you explain? What were you doing with my son's things?’ She wanted to scream when she realized what it was all about on the floor; Harry's things, things that Lily had ensured were kept without anyone touching a finger, were now strewn on that dirt floor and the remains of dead animals. "Peter, what the fuck is this?"

"He made me do, Lily, I swear." Peter looked increasingly desperate, keeping his face down as if he couldn't even look at her. "I did everything, Lily, I did everything for him to stay alive."

'He? He who, Peter?' Remus said, now assuming the position of Lily's defender and keeping his wand pointed at his friend- Peter. "What did you do, Peter?"

"Moony, you know me, Moony, you know I would never do this because I wanted to." He proceeded to plead with Remus, turning to him and clasping his hands together in prayer, leaving his scarred arm even more in evidence. Lily wanted to vomit. "He forced me, he told me that if I didn't, the boy would become a Lord of Death."

'The boy?' Lily seemed to have been awake, and in the next instant she was holding Peter by the collar of his suit, looking very, very close to killing him with her bare hands. ‘The boy, Peter? The boy was my son!” She pushed him with all her strength to the dirt floor, anger burning in her blood. "He was…Peter, he was a baby."

‘Lily you don't understand-’

"I don't understand?!" The crows nearby flew away at her scream, startled by her disturbance of her peace, as well as the noise of other running animals were heard as well. But Lily had blood pumping in her ears, blind with rage. 'What did you do with my son, Peter? I'll give you a chance to talk to me before I kill you.'

‘I needed to do this, he told me he would kill me if I didn't, so I… I did. Lily, forgive me, I tried to convince he not to, but-’

"I'm sure you tried," she said, the taste of blood in her mouth. 'What did you do? Tell me! Did you kill him as soon as you got him? Did you even bury him?” Lily didn't know if she really wanted to know that, but something inside her begged for answers, for an end. If she knew what had happened to Harry, she could finally say goodbye.

Lily didn't think she could take a few more years anyway, there was a very big hole inside her and having to face Peter, knowing that he who had made that hole in her made her relive that terrible pain and memories of days that seemed endless and tortuous, days when James needed to stay close to her at all hours so she just didn't end her own life.

That was a pain that no mother or father should ever experience, a pain that Lily wished she had never known about, because now, looking at the clothes, the teddy bears, Harry's pillow lying on the floor, she thought it was all useless. Useless and unfair.

All the memories she created to keep herself sane were now littered with dirt and the remains of dead animals. Lily figured Peter was probably about to set the whole thing on fire.

It would be too sad to have to tell James, and Lily was afraid her husband couldn't take it anymore.

A son killed by his own friend. What a tragedy. Newspapers would be supplied for more than a month with that story.

‘Lily I tried. I made sure he was fine, I made sure that the woman who found him was good, that she took care of him, Arabella believed in me as an idiot, so I knew she would be a good mom to him, I ... I swear.’ Peter stammered, eyes wide, looking like a scared rat. “Harry is alive, Lily, I didn't kill him. And he is here.’

[wuxiaphoenix]

Writing Fanfic: A Third Weird Trick

Yet another thing easier in fanfic than in canon: pick up your favorite characters, put them in a different setting, time, or planet, and see what happens. Yes, Hercules: TLJ pulled this one off too. The actors playing characters in the French Revolution will never not be funny. All hail the Chartreuse Fox!

Trick #3: Another Time, Another Place, Another Story.

Many, many ways there are to pull this off. Let’s see some of the classic subcategories.

The Fantasy AU. Exactly what it says on the tin; characters written into a classic fantasy world instead of the canon one. Dragons optional but definitely recommended. Knights, wizards, kitsune and shapeshifters common.

The SF AU. Ditto, but with space travel. Sometimes a generic space setting, sometimes a deliberate fusion with worlds like Star Wars, Star Trek, and the Firefly ‘verse. BTW I firmly hold that while Wei Wuxian may look like a disaster to anyone outside the Jedi Council, he’s actually one of the sanest and best they have. While Lan Wangji is one bad day away from being a Sith. All those attachment issues.... Escape Your Destiny is a good fic for that one.

The Superhero AU. Neither SF nor Fantasy, though it has elements of each. Superhero AUs are about characters having flashy powers, Fighting Crime, and otherwise being even more Dramatic than canon. BNHA and MCU fusion fics are common varieties; garden-variety superhero worlds abound as well.

The Time Travel AU. This is a particularly tricky one because it’s also often a Fix-It Fic. Nothing wrong with that, it’s just often a lot of plot is one character desperately trying to set right what in canon went wrong; sometimes with better results than others. This more than the other varieties relies on canon as a backdrop. The characters have to know what they’re trying to fix!

Some stories do mix it up with a side character who doesn’t know half of what really went wrong. Meaning you get the readers on the edge of their seats, trying to guess what will get fixed and what will be missed with horrible consequences....

Finally, you have various flavors of Modern AU. This can range from “characters in a completely normal life” (coffee-shop AUs, high school) to “characters think they’re in a normal life, but there’s actually going to be an unexpected genre shift to Urban Fantasy, Zombie Apocalypse, or Alien Invasion inside three pages”.

Canon provides a background for all these fanfic variants to play out, adding color and substance far beyond what your own wordcount would let you pull off. It lets everyone spin countless variants on a theme; much like the myriad King Arthur stories written centuries ago drew on the central “knights of the Round Table” concept everybody had heard of. Note, I’m not sure anyone beck then wrote King Arthur IN SPACE... but I wouldn’t be at all surprised!

[aspiring-wildfire]

OKAY LISTEN I KNOW ITS 2020 BUT

Merlin Witcher au. It only very VERY loosely resembles the actual Witcher plot but it basically looks roughly like this:

Arthur as Geralt, famed monster hunter and, unlike the real Geralt, charming and well spoken, making him widely beloved and generally a hero to everyone (there’s no blaviken and no anti-Witcher prejudice in this au bc I said so)

Merlin as Jaskier, Arthur’s trusted friend and traveling companion who’s been spreading Arthur’s story and making him even more beloved, and who is also lowkey technically a very powerful one of the monsters Arthur is supposed to hunt, which Merlin is desperately trying to keep secret (it’s not very hard tho, he hasn’t even aged for like 40 years??? And Arthur straight up hasn’t noticed????) (Arthur totally knows but he always kinda assumed Merlin knew that he knew and they just weren’t talking about it)

Morgana as Yennefer, a wildly powerful mage who’s very much on the side of good despite being just a little bit of a bitch to Arthur and Merlin when they see each other but hey, Arthur’s her brother!!! That’s her job!!! And she and merlin’s relationship is founded on mutual bitchiness it’s just their Dynamic (she and Arthur were both Uther’s kids before they ran away and were taken in by the Witchers and mages respectively) (there’s obviously no romantic subplot there bc ew)

Gwen as Ciri, the princess of Cintra who had to run away after her city was attacked and ransacked by Nilfgaard and who was told to find Arthur by the court mage (Im thinking Gaius?? Maybe??) which is what she’s been trying to do but she’s also had to evade the many many people who want her dead which is not super helpful even if it did reveal she lowkey might have some secret magic powers (she’s also had help from Lancelot, and elf she met while running away) (Gwen is still fully grown in this au) (nilfgaard, btw, is ruled by king cenred and his mage morgause)

Arthur Merlin Morgana and Gwen are all drawn together by destiny (no leaving Merlin out and no genie and no law of surprise just nebulous Destiny) and idk what happens from here but I think merthur and maybe morgwen are the end goal (or maybe Gwen and lance I’m not sure)

[atopearth]

Ikemen Vampire Part 6 - Isaac Newton Route

It was really nice of the heroine to be so concerned over Isaac's wellbeing considering how pale and sick he seemed, it was just bad luck that it had to be because he needed blood, and no one had explained anything to her yet lol. Poor Isaac too though, considering how much he restrains himself from human blood, I don't know what he would do if he actually took hers, he already seemed so shaken realising that he was about to bite her but was stopped by Leonardo... Btw, it was kinda cute how Isaac seemed happy that the heroine remembered his name haha. I feel so bad for Isaac though, he really wanted to apologise to the heroine but she was so scared🥺 Like, it's understandable, but seeing Isaac so hurt over her rejection and fear just kinda broke my heart🥺 Isaac's reason for becoming a vampire was so he could have time alone to think? Hmm~ I see, the heroine's sudden arrival made Sebastian more busy than usual and that held him up on giving the "blood" to Isaac in time... I wonder why Isaac seems to need more blood than others though? Lmao, I found it so adorable yet sad when the heroine and Isaac bumped into each other in the hallway, Isaac started running away and wouldn't stop even though she told him to wait haha. He's so considerate, it's sweet. I'm really happy that the heroine proactively went to apologise to him (by bringing him food since he's avoiding her) because she wanted to understand and get along with him. I thought it was really nice to hear her retort to him when he said he was a monster; her saying that monsters are what we fear, but if we come to know and understand them, then they're not necessarily what we deem as "monsters" kinda reminds me of Frankenstein tbh, the "monster" isn't the bad one🥺

I'm glad the heroine told him that she wanted them to talk about happier things such as science and architecture and not focus on her injury that's constantly making him feel guilty. He feels so bad all the time, I feel sorry for him. It's sweet that he was concerned about whether she might not like going on a tour of town with him, he's way too considerate! Anyway, seeing Isaac so passionately talk about science and teach those arguing students what their textbook really was about was rather cute. He's usually really reserved, so as the heroine said, it's nice to see him feel more "alive". But yeah, even though it's understandable, it's kinda sad that the heroine just kinda tunes out when Isaac really gets into his talks about physics etc. Like, it's probably easier to write the story if the heroine "tunes out" but I think it would have been nice to hear a bit of the stuff he rambles. I was kinda wondering the whole time they were on their tour like doesn't Isaac need to eat?? They've been gone for a while lol. So yeah, seeing him desperately go to the kitchen and eat so fast made much more sense to me afterwards lol. His consideration is too much though, I mean it's coming at the detriment of himself! It's really kind of him to not want to interrupt her excitement and everything, but Isaac really needs to think about himself more. But I guess he enjoyed seeing her happy, so I guess it was worth it to him. Aww it was so sweet how when the heroine got pricked trying to help Harry the hedgehog (Isaac's pet), she was more concerned for his vampiric tendencies that she was going to leave before he made himself feel bad again. I also liked how Isaac was (probably not hungry) more concerned over her safety and gave her a handkerchief to take care of the blood. Omgg it was so cute how Isaac could properly express himself and say that the heroine's cooking was delicious (since she's been cooking every meal of his for a week), he's so sweet and honest when he takes the time to put his feelings into words.

It's nice how initially, the heroine was super scared of Isaac, but now, she feels the safest with him haha. Awww, Isaac hiding his happiness and embarrassment by fidgeting with his hair is so cute, it's understandable though, if someone from the future told me that something I invented is still being used to this day, I would be pretty giddy! It's sweet how Isaac is teaching the kids calculus though, Isaac's awkward but he tries his best to do the things he can, and I think that's really cool. Lmaooo at the head of the Sorbonne tackling a running Isaac trying to recruit him as a maths professor hahaha. Just the image of a random old man appearing, Isaac running away, and then the old man tackling him to the ground makes me laugh hahaha. Lmao when Isaac said he's got the wrong guy and that he doesn't even like sandwiches🤣🤣 (since when he solved the puzzle that other professors couldn't figure out at the cafe, he was eating a sandwich hahaha). Ohh, so Isaac used to be a professor, but it wasn't as nice and simple as he thought it would be. His colleagues denied him, took his work, betrayed him etc enough that he seems traumatised over the whole idea of working with people. I'm glad that the heroine stayed beside him and told him that she won't betray him. I mean, it might not mean much when it comes from someone that he doesn't know too well, but I think the words and the thought counts haha. It's nice how the heroine drags Isaac into silly things like falling into a fountain though, I think it really helps to brighten him up and view things in a different light since she's rather different from him. Aww it's so cute how Isaac called her a friend!! I kinda feel sorry for Napoleon though, I'm sure he really wanted to be considered a friend too, but I guess this is progress so I'm sure he'll be happy for Isaac either way!

A vampire with a cold is pretty hilarious, especially since it was to the point of him practically fainting haha. Poor Isaac though, he felt so queasy. But omggg he was so cute and adorable sick. I loved it when he asked her to feed him soup🥰 and he even teased her lmao, touchy feely Isaac is so funny and cute~ He was like a baby lmao. I think what melted my heart the most was him really wanting the heroine to stay with him as he slept and feeling really comfortable with her hand on his forehead, like omgggg, how can Isaac be so adorable?! I guess the reason why Isaac became a vampire is because ever since he began his journey on discovering things about the world, he was pulled into stuff like politics and jealousy of his genius, so he never really got to do what he wanted to do without all these people causing problems around him. It's sad to know how lonely of a life he led ever since he was born though. He never had anyone he could truly trust or rely on, or even just someone he could talk to, because his family never cared about him and others would either bully or be jealous of him. He never got to experience the "normal" stuff the heroine provides on their outings. He's so stubborn about keeping everyone at a distance and yet he feels unbearably lonely and vulnerable when he's sick, it was so cute of him to hold on to the heroine's hand in his sleep wanting her to stay. It was sad to see a bit of his past though, all Isaac wanted was to meet the expectations of others and be a good professor, and yet whether it be his students or his colleagues, they all ended up disliking him because of his genius. It's terrible.

It's so cuteee how flustered Isaac gets when the heroine touches him now that he knows he held her hand the whole time he was asleep hahaha. He's so embarrassed, it's adorable. Aww, I find it so cute how Arthur and Dazai are the ones who tease him the most about apples and gravity, yet they're the ones who watch out for him and talk to him about his "love life" hahaha. It's honestly so adorable of Isaac to run away from the heroine, although I do feel sorry for her lol. I'm glad Napoleon approached Isaac to understand what's wrong with him these days lol, it was nice to see him tell Isaac that he was thinking too hard and that he should just follow his instincts rather than constantly thinking. It was also kinda cute to see him run to the heroine, I mean, seeing him so actively seek her was nice for a change. I found it so adorable how he actually said to her that he ran there because he found it intolerable seeing her with another guy, he's so honest and cuteee. I loved how after Isaac invited her to go out on the weekend, this time she was much more fussy over her outfit and everything. It's so cute how shy they are, yet how natural it all feels. HAHAHA, I was like, Isaac saving the heroine after she herself tries to save the children he teaches was so cliche, but then I loved it when he lit up some flour to cause an explosion and then run off successfully, that was fun~ it was cute how he bought her that ribbon she was eyeing and even put it on her hair🥰 I was sad when he couldn't bring himself to force her to answer whether she was going back to her time or not, to be fair though, it is a difficult decision for her, so I think she honestly needs more time, especially since she just kinda realised that she loves Isaac. Can, uh Shakespeare kindly...go away? I don't care about his interest in tragedies blah blah, leave the innocent Isaac alone and stop confusing him! Just let him confess to the heroine, seriously!

Aww, c'mon heroine! Isaac said stuff like instead of the stars that she called beautiful, he'd rather look at her which is prettier or something along the lines of that! Why are you still scared of ascertaining whether he likes you or not?!😭 Isaac has been pretty upfront already, it's time for the heroine to step up her game! Especially when he said he didn't want her to leave and then kinda took it back, like of course he's just trying to be considerate to her! She should know what kind of person he is by now! He'd sacrifice himself for her. Okay, that was unexpected. Right when I was cheering her on to talk to him properly, and she goes to his room, Isaac ends up caving to his bloodlust (due to how it's kinda out of control now since liking her makes the need for blood stronger or whatever) and actually bites her and can't stop! Omggg! Such a terrible situation, he's gonna kill himself with guilt and think that she needs to go home asap... Like, I understand that the heroine feeling groggy after getting bitten and stuff makes her say things that might not express her feelings properly, but I feel like the misunderstanding between Isaac and her was rather forced? It's like, with the amount of words she sputtered out, she could have just told him she was feeling dizzy and couldn't focus properly etc, instead of saying things that would aggravate him even more. Not to say that Isaac is completely right though, since he should have understood that she'd be kinda confused right after waking up, but I'd give him the benefit of doubt considering he's the one feeling the greatest guilt for biting her, breaking the promise that he would never bite her, having to wait for her to wake up in his murder scene of a room, not knowing whether she was dead or not, and just basically having to live with the fact that his love really might kill her one day. So yeah..definitely the heroine was the more careless one, especially with the giving him blanc before food, making his bloodlust get worse, but it's definitely Isaac's fault for knowing how his body is yet still not eating properly on time. Seeing Isaac cry really broke my heart😭😭 I'm so glad Napoleon was there to soothe him. I'm mad at the heroine though. She heard from le Comte that the reason Isaac bit her was because of his deep romantic feelings for her exciting his bloodlust and she still doesn't try to rectify the misunderstanding with Isaac! Sure, there's still other problems, but that's for them to decide and discuss with each other, why is the heroine wallowing in pain about it "being too late" when she hasn't gone back to her time yet? As long as they are still there in that mansion, she can still reach him and talk to him! I guess to be fair though, Isaac always tries to solve his problems by avoiding and ignoring the heroine, so it's probably difficult for her to not feel down about it all, rejection is tough to deal with. I'm glad Dazai kinda woke her up to realise that just parting like this isn't what she really wants though, like do they really want to end things like this when they're both in love with each other?! These silly people.

Hmmm, I see why Isaac hates people, the Royal Society took all his research as "their property" and expelled him when he refused to delve in enough details that they wanted, then they even made it seem like Robert was the one who accused him of plagiarism in order to kick Isaac out. Pretty despicable. And they knew Isaac would believe it because Robert always challenged his ideas. It's kinda interesting though, to see that even though Isaac didn't like Robert very much because he always seemed to reject all his ideas, Robert on the other hand really liked these debates with him because he felt like Isaac was a worthy rival he could intellectually explore so many ideas with. It kinda shows how much he "loves" Isaac by becoming a vampire just to have more debates with him lol. As usual though, he alike all the other "villains" in the routes somehow have their feelings go out of control and explode in negativity and violence, and then they get killed~ I feel sorry for Robert though, he seemed like a genuinely nice guy that just kinda misunderstood what Isaac really wanted. I think Isaac is right that he already spent his original life all on research, so it's about time he lived this life for the other things he wanted such as making bonds with others. Glad to see they've finally made up their minds and confessed their love to each other though~ Aww the romantic ending is pretty nice, I love how Isaac gained the courage to try out being a professor again, and he asked for tips from other teachers so that he would be able to teach his students better and not leave them behind. I think the sweetest thing is that he thinks what's most important is sharing this knowledge he has rather than keeping it all to himself, I think it's great! Btw, Isaac in his professor garb is pretty hot, I like it!! I love the CG of them kissing on the grass or whatever, it was cute~

Overall, I quite enjoyed Isaac's route. I think it fell off a bit at the end with how dramatic it kinda was and how they were acting, but it was understandable why they pushed each other away I guess. Well, mostly Isaac, the heroine was a bit eh for her reasons imo, but that's okay lol, she tries haha. Otherwise, Isaac is a really sweet guy, it's so cute and lovely how considerate of a person he is and how kind he is at the detriment of himself. He's like this hurt and betrayed little puppy that needed the heroine to soothe him and help him learn to trust others again and I'm happy to see that happen. Seeing him grow and open up to others again was really heartwarming and I'm glad to see him not so reserved anymore and instead being able to be more open and honest with everyone. It was nice to see that him choosing to have the life of a vampire really brought him a chance to live a life he never could before.

[caranfindel]

Recap/review 15.03: “The Rupture”

THEN: Ghost/spirits/whatever, blah blah blah. The only thing of note here is that they choose to remind us that Sam is fated to kill Rowena. But I'm sure that doesn't mean anything. There are tons of reasons to include this. Tons.

NOW: We're still in Whatever-this-place-is-called, Kansas. Ghosts/spirits/whatever are still flinging themselves against the barrier. Sam's still in charge of the hunter troops. Expanded Team Free Will is back in the graveyard and they've got a plan that Rowena insists will work. It's a powerful spell that will "patch those holes up" in time for tea. (Rowena is back in a dramatic gown today, but I don't like the casual jacket she's wearing with it.) All she needs is a ghost-free space, which happens to be the mausoleum the gang found in 15.01. No one's thrilled about that. We also see the opening to Hell itself, which is a giant hole in the ground. It doesn't seem to give anyone PTSD, though.

[[MORE]]

The gang salts the perimeter of the mausoleum while Rowena mixes up her spell, and right away something evil starts banging on the doors. She recites something not-English, her eyes glow purple, and we see the battered barrier glowing purple as well. But then she looks disturbed and the purple glow fades and she gets more and more upset and then collapses. "We're all going to die!" she says.

Title card!

Rowena asks for a drink and then has to clarify that she means "a real drink," and we have a cute wordless conversation where Sam requests Dean's flask, Dean says what, MY flask, Sam says yes, asshole, and Dean says sigh, okay. It's precious.

It is, unfortunately, impossible to screencap, but I'm sure someone will GIF it. In the meanwhile, let's enjoy concerned Winchesters.

Rowena says the spell can't work because the spirits are too wild, too desperate, too angry, and too numerous. No magic on earth can stop "those walls" from falling. Within hours. (Did we really explain the walls? I guess it's the walls between earth and Hell? And why plural?) Dean decides they're going to keep fighting as long as they can. He tells Rowena to make more of those soul collectors, but she says it's pointless. Probably because Sam's wearing the orange jacket, so she doesn't see any reason to prolong the agony. She says she may have been able to shore up the wall if she'd gotten there sooner, but now the wall is too damaged for her to save.

Belphagar leaves, ignoring Dean's "where the Hell are you going!" and Cas goes after him. Dean continues yelling that they're not going to give up, that's not who they are, and Sam silences him with a single hand motion because he knows how I feel about him being Chiefly. Sam crouches next to Rowena and puts a concerned hand on her shoulder and asks if she needs anything because he knows I also love him being soft and concerned.

Who DOESN'T know?

Hey, if you don't want to read some serious Sam fangirling, you're in the wrong place. You should realize this by now.

Belphagar and Cas are out in the cemetery, where no one is bothering them even though something was knocking pretty vigorously on the mausoleum door. Belphagar wanted to look at the giant hole into Hell. "Where it all began."

Meanwhile, Dean's loading up. He's not just going to wait for the world to end, he's going out fighting.

He's angry and backlit, and I love both of those things.

Sam sits next to him and they have a lovely dark conversation where Sam says he's out of ideas but acts like he thinks there still must be something they can do, and Dean says Chuck's "sloppy-ass ghostpocalypse" isn't going to be the last word and acts like he thinks there's nothing they can do but die fighting. And Rowena just sits sad and quiet and alone, paging through the Book of the Damned. I do like that she kept it and uses it in front of the Winchesters. But she says she hasn't found anything useful.

Back outside, Belphagor says the opening in the ground isn't a door or a gate, it's a tear. And he has a plan. "Lilith's Crook" is a horn that Lilith used to control her demons - it can corral all demons and bring them back home. (BTW, nobody reacts to the name Lilith either. It's like seasons three through five never happened.) It's in Lilith's chamber, which is unsealed now that every door in Hell is open. If Belphagor uses it in Hell, all the demons and spirits will be sucked into Hell, and then Rowena can close the door once they're not pushing against it.

Rowena confirms that she has "a spell of my own devising" that she could use to close the door. Well, she said earlier that there were any number of spells she could have tried earlier, so surely this is one of those spells. It's a healing spell - if the opening is a wound, not a door, this will allow it to heal and close up. Sounds reasonable.

It will require perfect timing, and she'll need some strangely easy-to-obtain ingredients (which seems to be a theme this season, doesn't it). And an assistant. "Dibs on Samuel. You're as close to a seasoned witch as we've got in this lot." (!!!)

She also needs someone to hang out at the edge of the hole and toss the figurative "bomb." And it will be dangerous, so Dean naturally decides that's his job. Belphagor drafts Cas to go with him, since he'll need help getting past all the pissed-off demons and ghosts who will be down there. "Yeah, Cas will go," Dean says coldly. "You've been to Hell before." Well, I mean, everyone in this room has been to Hell before (assuming we count Rowena's visit to Limbo as Hell), so. Cas glares at Dean, clearly thinking yes, I harrowed Hell to raise you, and I regret it every day.

Cold and yet HOT.

Hospital. Ketch wakes up just in time to get killed by the demon Ardat, who astutely notes that he's protecting his friends and won't give them up. There's your redemption arc, Arthur Ketch. I hope you enjoyed it. Moving on. (Also, doesn't Ardat look like a cross between Joanna Gaines and Meghan Markle?)

Cemetery. Belphagor asks Cas how he's going to get out of Hell before Rowena seals it up, and makes sure Cas realizes that his buddies don't care that he might not make it out. Cas pushes Belphagor into the hole and jumps in after him.

Mausoleum. A hunter shows up with supplies and Sam gives her directions on what to do "if this goes sideways," even though those directions should probably be "kiss your ass goodbye." Dean gets a text from "Ketch" and responds by laying out their plan and providing their location. Uh oh.

Hell. It's actually mostly empty. Belphagor claims he made Cas come because he just wanted company, and he wants to become best buds with Cas, having wormed his way into the Winchester's hearts. "Sam and Dean are just using you," Cas says. "Don't mistake that for caring about you, because I can assure you, they don't." OH, CAS, YOU WOULD KNOW, WOULDN'T YOU. Cas reminds Belphagor that he's an abomination, and then opens the door to Lilith's chamber, which is being looted by another demon. Belphagor's friendly with the guy, but Cas kills him. Awkward.

The crook is in a box marked up with Enochian symbols, which apparently couldn't be read by any residents of Hell other than Lilith. (Well, we can assume the residents of the cage could read it, but.) Good thing Cas is here! So convenient. The markings are actually a song of praise to Lucifer. Cas reads it, but nothing happens, and Belphagor says "They're verses, Cas. I think they need to be sung." We don't have to listen to Cas sing the whole thing, but we do get Belphagor mocking his angelic voice.

The demon then tells Cas to make his escape, which kind of surprises me - I was sure this set-up wasn't meant to end with Cas surviving. Cas tentatively holds the horn out to Belphagor, but then is flung across the room by none other than Ardat. She expositions for us that Lilith's Crook would have allowed Belphagor to rule Hell. She begins to smack Belphagor down, but Cas attacks, and holds her off long enough for Belphagor to stab her with his angel blade.

Cas asks him if it's true he wants to rule Hell, and he's all, no, I want to rule EVERYTHING. He'll suck the power of all of the souls into him, and he'll become a God. "I don't think so," says Cas, and runs toward him. But Belphagor blows the horn, and the ghosts/spirits/whatevers start flowing back into Hell, and into Belphagor.

Cemetery. Dean approaches the hole and wonders where Ketch is.

Mausoleum. Sam is anxious, and wants to be outside, fighting. Rowena makes him read the book as she prepares the spell. (What is he reading? He's not reading aloud. What's the point? Is he memorizing it?) When they hear Belphagor blow the horn, Rowena announces "it's time." She and Sam hold hands (d'aw) and recite the spell. I guess he was memorizing it after all. The spell bowl begins to glow purple, as does the "bomb" I didn't even realize Dean was holding. Dean tosses it into the hole without even wondering if Cas will make it out. So I guess he's still mad at Cas, if you were wondering.

Hell. Cas finally makes his way to Belphagor and tackles him, stopping the horn. As Cas punches the demon, his sunglasses fall off, and he looks up at Cas with his burned-out eyes and pleads for him to stop. "It's me, Jack." Gotta say, Alex does a good job here of playing someone trying to sound like Jack and not quite succeeding. I was afraid Cas would fall for it, but he doesn't. In fact, this inspires him to do the glowy hand thing and burn Belphagor - and Jack's corpse - to a crisp. Too bad you didn't wait until he sucked up all the souls, Cas.

Topside. Sam calls Dean and learns that something doesn't feel right, and the crack is closing up. Meanwhile, Rowena picks up a knife and plunges it into her own shoulder. As Sam watches in horror, she reaches in and pulls out "my last resurrection sachet - won't need that where I'm going." She tells him the Lilith's Crook plan may have been his only shot, but she still has an option. Because magic can contain anything. Even Hell, as long as she's willing to pay the price.

Horrified/confused Sam. Mmmmm.

She tells him "death is an infinite vessel" but he doesn't get it yet. All she needs for this spell are two ingredients. Sam's all, you have them here? Why didn't you tell us? "Because, dear, the first ingredient is my own still-coursing blood, and the last is my final breath." She'll absorb all the spirits and then throw herself Hell (!!!) and then, when her body eventually rots and the spirits are released, they'll be back in Hell. (So I guess she has to toss the wound-healing spell in there too, somehow, but that's just details.) Sam tries to stop her with the Single Upraised Finger of Reason, but not only does she ignore that finger, she tells Sam he has to be the one to kill her. Y'all, I always love the Single Upraised Finger of Reason.

I would obey this finger.

Topside. Cas made it out of the Hell. Wow, I was worried there for a minute.

Mausoleum. Rowena insists Sam has to be the one to kill her, because the spell requires her "real, permanent demise," and Sam's the only one who can do that. It's in the books. "You know what?" says Sam "Screw the books." YES SAM.

Topside. Cas tells Dean he killed Belphagor and the crook was destroyed.

Mausoleum. Sam tries to take the knife from Rowena, but she holds it against her body. "I don't care about anything enough to take my own life. Not you, your brother, not even the world. But I believe in prophecy, I believe in magic, and everything we need to end this is right in our hands." I don't know, Rowena. Those books you're so insistent on believing? They've been known to change. Sam rests the knife against her but he's still fighting it, even though she's shouting "kill me, Samuel!"

Then she clamps a hand on his shoulder and says "I know we've gotten quite fond of each other, haven't we? But will you let the world die? Let your brother die? Just so I can live?" Oh, well, that was the right thing to say, wasn't it? (Also, can we just appreciate Rowena admitting she's quite fond of Sam?)

Topside: Dean yells at Cas. "This was our only shot! What the hell were you thinking?" I like that Dean doesn't even consider that Cas may have had a very good reason for killing a demon.

Mausoleum. Sam says a shaky little "no" and I think he's saying no, I'm not going to kill you but I am so wrong, because he goes in for what looks like a hug but he's actually plunging the knife into her abdomen. He holds her close as he stabs her and then pulls back to look in horror at what he's done. Rowena PUTS HER HAND ON HIS FACE AND SAYS "THAT'S MY BOY" AND SHE'S NOT DEAD YET BUT I AM. Then she pushes the blade in further, because apparently Sam didn't do it hard enough, which brings up an interesting question - what if Sam's stab wasn't fatal? Does any of this still count?

SAAAAAAAAMMMMMMM!!!!!!

Topside. As Rowena walks to the Hell hole, all of the spirits are seen flowing into her wound. I want Sam to hug her again, without a knife (OMG IMAGINE IF SAM HAD TO ACTUALLY PUSH HER INTO THE HOLE) but instead they hang back. She turns and says "goodbye boys," just like her son did, stands at the edge, and then dramatically falls into the hole just before it closes. Sad MacLeod music! (which I rather like)

Goodbye, boys.

Aftermath! Sam's sitting sadly on his bed. Dean comes in wearing a single layer, and it's a henley, and Sam's entire shirt is unbuttoned, so thank you baby Jesus for this bit of comfort we surely need after all that hurt. He asks how Sam is holding up, and Sam doesn't answer that question. He just wipes his eyes and makes a how do you think noise and asks if there's any word from Stevie, who I guess is one of the other hunters. Yeah, and the word is that the town is good, but Ketch is dead. "Bad. Probably demon."

We did it though, man. It's over. God threw one last apocalypse at us, and we beat it.

...

Yep.

What you did. Rowena. You didn't have a choice.

...

I know.

Oh, Sam! His soft sad little "yep," his reaction to Ketch, the way his little face scrunches up when Dean says Rowena's name... And Dean's trying to hard to be supportive.

Oh boys.

Aftermath part 2. Dean's drinking whiskey when Cas comes in and asks how Sam is. Dean's very short with him, and asks why he didn't just follow the plan. Because sure, Belphagor was going to suck up all the power of every soul in Hell and become the worst Big Bad ever, but Dean thinks they just would have figured that out afterward. And Dean has a point, but I don't know if it's the one he thinks he has. Cas didn't know Rowena had a self-sacrificial Plan B in mind. The only information he had was that if Belphegor didn't trap all the spirits in Hell, they'd end up destroying the world. And he killed Belphegor anyway. So yeah, Dean's mad because Rowena is dead, but the issue IMHO isn't that Cas's actions forced Rowena to take extreme measures, it's that they would have destroyed the world had she not been able to do that.

The plan changed, Dean. Something went wrong. You know this. Something always goes wrong.

Yeah, why does that something always seem to be you?

You used to trust me, give me the benefit of the doubt. Now you can barely look at me. My powers are failing and I've tried to talk to you over and over and you just don't want to hear it. You don't care. I'm dead to you. You still blame me for Mary. I don't think there's anything left to say.

Where you going?

Jack's dead. Chuck's gone. You and Sam have each other. I think it's time for me to move on.

Sad Winchester music!

Oh. Wow. That was really cold, Dean. Now you're not trying to be supportive at all.

But we get your angry face, which I adore.

So! There's a lot packed into this episode, isn't there? So many deaths. I was surprised that both Belphegor and Ardat bit it, since I presumed one or both of them would be Big Bads this year. Are we down to just Chuck, then? There's also whatever Billie is cooking up with dead Jack; I guess that could be badness. Ketch is gone, which I'm honestly fine with. The only bad thing about Cas walking out is that it means we're going to have a separate Cas plot again, which I'm not thrilled about. And Rowena. I mean, I love her and will miss her, but I should be gutted, and I'm not. Is it because I know we're saying goodbye to all of them soon anyway? Is it because I've decided this is going to happen? Maybe.

But that's so many deaths for one episode. Is this the endgame? Just killing every supporting character we can think of?

And let me just point out that if any of this plot feels familiar - Rowena recognizes Sam as a witch and has him do a spell, secretly comes up with a world-saving spell that requires her death, and forces Sam to fulfill his prophecy by stabbing her, no matter how hard he protests - if any of this feels the slightest bit familiar, could it be because I ALREADY WROTE IT? Maybe.

(Waves to Robert Berens, who surely reads my LJ.)

Anyway. Please help me stay unspoiled, thanks!

[iraniq]

United

*inspired by the Justice League I watched last night*

It was almost the end of the world…. Weird creatures attacking our planet again … Nothing else to do, besides unite!

You weren’t allowed to go to battle with your husband, definitely not because you were pregnant. But simply because you don’t quite have superpowers besides sneaking and knowing secrets, oh boy the secrets you knew ... That was what you were trading with.

It has been 52 hours since they left. No internet, no news. You and another girl stood in the huge living room. You were peacefully reading a book and she was nervously pouting around.

-        Can you please stop! - she looked shocked at you. - Your first rodeo?

She really looked worried.

-        They will be fine. – you turn the other page. -        My boy … finance, already died once … -        Lucky you … - that came up completely wrong, well not that much, sometimes you wish yours was dead too, but only sometimes - I meant… You know, they will at least go back for him. - there was bitterness in your voice. Will they go back for yours too…

Another hour passed by.

-        Why aren’t you worried? -        I live with the thought my King may die any second, so we live like there will be no tomorrow. And instead of us doing it so now, I pursway him to go and help … - your eyes hot tearly. -        Oh, it’s ok … - she rushed to you - Don’t cry, it’s bad for the baby.

You brust in laughing.

-        It’s my 6-th one darling, I know how to handle babies.

Her eyes widened.

-        6? -        Yep, he said we will never have sex again after the twins, which was like 2 and half years ago, but he lasted only 3 days… - you both laughed - And I got him drunk 5 months ago, we had unprotected sex, and voala! - you pointed at your big belly. -        Wow… -        What about you, any kids, plans, something … Or you are waiting after the wedding. -        Well he was… - she paused for a second. -        Oh dear ... - you rubbed her back - I didn’t mention to strike a nerve here. -        No, he was in … coma, we weren’t sure if he was going to wake up. So we are keeping it slow, for now.

You smiled. An old man came in, holding a baby boy.

-        Simeone’s clingy. -        Come here. - you took your son. - Say “hello” Brandon. - the boy stopped crying as he saw you and waved at the girl. After he hugged you for a while. He took off and went to the old man. -        Looks like uncle Al got himself busy! - you joked after you saw the others creeping him from behind. -        Yes. - he answered calmly. But you could tell he was at the pick of his happiness. -        So… - she looked questioning. -        God, no! - you laughed.

Another hour went by.

You were dying on the inside, but didn’t let your kids see it. They had dinner and went to bed. You and the girl were yet again left alone; “uncle Al” was on duty to help the team United. As you could understand from your oldest daughter it wasn’t sunshine and rainbows there. It was very possible they may die wile saving the world. She just texted you this.

-        How old are they? -        The oldest girl is 12, the other is 6, the boy is 4 and the twins are 2 and a half. - you simply smiled and suddenly burst into tears. She came and hug you again. -        Please don’t cry, if it wasn’t for you, I’d be dead by worry right now. -        I am dead already … - you manage to sob, hugging your belly - this will be my last memory if him. -        Don’t talk like this. They will… -        No one will care, not to mention come back for the Clown Prince Of Crime! - you yelled. She froze, moving away at the couch. -        Yeah, Ms. Lane, they will come back for your alien, but no one will do for my King. - you wiped your tears and got up. - Now if you excuse me, I need to pee.

It was around 3 in the morning. She hasn’t spoke to you since you told her who you are. Alfred didn’t call either with news.

-        So why are you here, as you are the bad guy? - she asked with visible hate in her tone. -        Who do you think made all the “ bad guys” - you made air quotes with you fingers - go and join the quest? I trade with secrets, and I am also very good at convincing people … As they had the guts, and found it their duty to rob a bank, it is their duty to save the world they live in, as there will be no banks to rob otherwise… - she stayed silent, she knew you were right, but refused to admit it. -        They are back! - Alfred informed on the com.

* At the Jet Plane*

-        Someone wake him up! -        Are you serious? -        Arthur, do as I say! -        Is he dead? -        No, Barry, he is not dead, but we will be, if he is not awake when we land. -        He is alive! -        You have that kind of system too, awesome. – Barry fangirled. -        Can you wake him up, Victor? -        I think yes, Barry will have to sting him a little, and he will be fine. -        No way man, that’s the Joker, I am not gonna touch him! -        Are you scared of him to? -        It’s not funny mermaid. -        Don’t call me mermaid, Tin man. -        Boys, calm down! -        Thank you, Diana. Why are you so quiet, Clark? -        I want to rest, that’s it. -        Guys, he is waking up, he is waking up … - Barry stepped away, next to Victor. Arthur was sitting between Clark and Diana. And all were staring at J, lying across them. -        Fuck… - he yelled, putting his hand on his head. -        You will live, it’s just a scratch, Victor said it won’t even leave a scar. -        But my hair is ruined, B! She is soo gonna kill you! -        We just won a … -        You haven’t met his Queen! - Bruce was fast enough to answer.

Mr. J just smiled and sit.

-        Do you want a pain killer? - Victor asked. -        I live for the pain! - he growled - Are you scared child? -        Nope, I am not, completely not … -        You should be. Btw who is keeping my wife company? -        Louis. -        You left my fiance with the maniac’s wife? - Clark stood up, and Diana follows, worried they will get in a fight again. -        Chill, the only think your chatty reporter can learn from my maniac wife is how to get you drunk and get herself pregnant.

And then it happened … Bruce brust into laughter. A thing no one had seen or heard before. He was laughing loudly. And it was a pure heart laughter.

-        Don’t laugh man. Just don’t … Not that I don’t love them, just … I am not sure if I am physically able to love them all ant not broke into pieces.

They were all again shattered by this simple and yet unexpected confession. And how close these two “arch enemies” seem to be.

-        It’s the 6-th one right? -        Yeah … I think she is planning on collection or something. - J said, fixing what’s left of his hair. He was having a big scratch on his right, and half of his hair was gone. -        Wait … - Diana started - you are enemies. -        Yes we are … - Bruce said. -        We kinda created each other … So … Why not go friends as well? -        You are friends? -        Jealous much, Superman? - J blinked at him. - I named one of my kids after him. - J lied back - Me and my wifey were on a romantic date, breakibg into Gotham First Bank, and the old rat, over there, took forever to come and catch us, that we manage to even had sex. It was awkward… -        Having sex in the vault? - Barry asked. -        It was awkward for me catching them… -        Doing it in the vault … - J started laughing. -        Because of people like this I live in the ocean. -        So your son is named after him? - Clark asked. -        No, Bruce is an ugly name, we picked Brandon instead. -        I am gonna finally see him. -        Well you would’ve done it earlier when they were born, my Queen send you an invitation. -        I was busy. -        Yeah, go and lie someone else… - J played it offended.

The plane landed.

-        How’s my hair? - J asked Diana. She stared at him, with no answer. -        You are fine. - Bruce tapped his shoulder. -        You know you are getting it, right. -        Yeah I know.

The plane door opened, Arthur was first followed by Diana and Clark, and Barry and Victor, J was fixing his hair in desperate attempt to hide the half that was missing.

You and Lois were standing there waiting. Clark come and hug her. You on the other hand were not that patient and went through, as you walk, Victor stood at your way.

-        Go away, overgrown toaster! – you yelled and he stepped away in surprise. -        Oh, boy! – Barry whispered, certain you will be in his “I am afraid of” list. As you saw J you screamed loudly, causing everyone to turn at you. -        Your eyes are red. A few tears for your long-lost boss? -        Tears of joy, I hate job hunting. -        Vacations over! – he said grinning. Quoting movie lines was indeed your thing.

You rushed and hug him. He was dirty and smelly, but it didn’t matter to you. You cover him in kissed while crying loudly. He just pet your hair, the long looks he so much love. As you stopped to take a breath you noticed his wound. You gasped and covered your mouth; tears were coming all over again.

-        Chill, Doll, it won’t even leave a scar, and … the hair will grow back again. – he started.

You looked at Batman.

-        Ma’am.

You smiled. And kissed your King’s lips gently.

-        Ugh … you stink… -        Like s superhero, I know! – he hugged you and started walking to the inside of the cave. -        It’s disgrosting! You can’t hug our kids like this. -        I know … Why are you shaking, are you cold? -        I forgot to pee. – you whined and he laughed, slapping your butt, and you rush inside. -        Run, Forrest, Run! – he yelled after you laughing. -        Do you know they have 5 kids? – Louis whispered to Clark. -        Did she told you how to get me drunk and get yourself pregnant? -        Yes, she insisted on me doing this, saying you are prefect gene material. -        Please don’t do this to me, I’ll volunteer. – they both laughed and walked in.

Only Barry, Victor, Bruce and Diana were left.

-        They are odd. – Barry started – but they are indeed couple goals … - the others stared at him – What, you know it’s true, just look at them. Like the Addams family but … in a homicide manic way … -        Yes, they are! – Bruce agreed. -        You may take some notes. – Diana teased. Alfred walked in. -        Master Wayne, your nephews are waiting. -        Are they all look like him?

Alfred chuckled.

-        Oh, man… - Bruce took his mask off. – And I thought the worst part was over.

They all got a shower and get prepared for dinner, or very early breakfast.

-        Why does the other kids have such big age difference from the first one? – Alfred asked as he was fixing Bruce’s shirt, who was still in huge pain to do it himself. -        The first one was Jack’s, before he turned into The Joker, they are a couple since kids, she was 14 when the girl was born. -        And he told you this, when you were … -        Yes. His father killed my parents and I pushed him into the chemicals … I guess we are even now. Why do you think they keep sending me invitations of baby showers and sonogram photos. -        So you check them? – Alfred smiled. -        Well … you can tell he is the only friend I have … in a way. -        You have more now. It’s not a bad thing. -        As long as they don’t turn into psychopaths, I guess it is.

In your room the kids were hugging and kissing their father.

-        So you are e hero now? – the oldest asked. -        Yep! Right in Batsy’s face.

They all laughed and cheered.

-        Come on, time for food. -        But you just ate mom. – the other girl said. -        Dunno, if it was for me or for him, so I have to eat again. -        Doll … - J grabbed your hand, letting you alone in the room, after the girls ran to meet uncle B. – You could’ve said you wanted another kid. It was a dick move! You laughed. -        I knew this will happen, and I suspect you will want to help, because if the children, and I … I was afraid, you won’t come back, so I wanted to have as much memories of you as I could.

He looked at his feet smiling.

-        Liar! You want a full collection don’t you! -        Fuck you, J! Can’t a girl dream. -        Anything my Queen wants! -        Baby wants, baby gets! – you smiled and kissed him gently. – I hope this hair will be fine soon, or I will be the end of the world. -        Yes, Ma’am!

______________________

@diyunho @rhina988 @nikkitasevoli @auntiemama1 @wolfgirl1074 @sookieblack12 @spillinginkwithlove @jayded-reality @cadeathens @fanalityfiction @lady-grinning-soul-k @lylabell2013 @larissaivanov @lostnorthofheaven @leto-madness @elliegrace139 @heavenlygaga @lovermrjoker @live-for-me-puddin @puddin-i-cant-swim

[fandoms-are-the-best-escape]

Hello! I love your work and I was wondering if I can request a Sherlock X Reader with the prompt 64 and 68? 💝 thank you so much!! ❤️

No, thank YOU- for liking what I do!

This btw is the playlist I almost always listen to while writing, it’s unbelievably relaxing and very poetic.

Prompts here X

You angrily sipped your prosecco and looked around the room.

Everyone seemed to be so happy around each other, celebrating the wedding of one of your cousins.

The only one not really able to enjoy this event seemed to be you.

You’d left London after having a fight with your kind-of boyfriend Sherlock, who had rejected to come to Italy with you for this wedding.

So you were just sitting there, internally complaining about how bad the prosecco and how damn uncomfortable your dress was.

You had bought it thinking of Sherlock, and thinking of how for once, you wanted him to see or say that you’re beautiful.

For the first time in ages you actually did feel beautiful, in a long, blue satin dress that perfectly hugged your curves and matched your eyes.

At least you had stolen Sherlock’s credit card to buy it, well deservedly.

Some time later you were still sitting at your table, the only difference being that now, you had some of the wedding cake and some good whiskey.

You were just watching the newly wed couple dancing as someone sat down next to you.

It was the groom’s best man, you’d already seen him a few times before this wedding.

He looked good in his tux, the bow tie matching the flower decorations.

“Hey, (Y/N).”

You turned your head to smile at him.

“Hi. Shouldn’t you be dancing with my cousin’s maid of honour?”

He chuckled and looked at Paola, your cousin’s best friend.

“I think I’d really like to dance with her, but-”

He grinned.

“I don’t speak a single word of Italian.”

You snorted out a laugh.

“Your best friend lives in Italy, has just married a half Italian woman, and you still don’t speak the language?”

The both of you laughed.

“Let me get the same desperate-wedding-emotions menu as you, I’ll be back in a minute.”

You watched him standing up and walking over to the bar to get some whiskey and additionally, a huge piece of cake.

“Why didn’t you just ask for the whole cake?”

You smirked at him before he could even sit down again.

Arthur faked a very startled expression.

“I could never do that!”

He gingerly placed his glass of whiskey and his cake on the table and took his seat next to you yet again.

You clicked glasses with each other and both took a big gulp of whiskey.

“So… this question probably is very inappropriate, regarding your mood, but… didn’t you have a boyfriend? That detective guy?”

You lifted an eyebrow and took another sip of whiskey.

“Yup.”

You let the ‘p’ plop from your lips.

“The very nuclear bomb of boyfriends. He refused to come here with me, please don’t ask me why. I’m better off without a cocky man child insulting relatives here anyway.”

Arthur softly nudged your shoulder.

“Sorry to hear that.”

You shrugged it off, trying to hide the impact Sherlock’s actions had actually made on you.

“Ah, never mind. I’m already used to him behaving like that. It’s just how he is. But deep down he’s a good guy, putting up with his bullshit is worth it most of the time. Once he’s let down his guards… god, he’s wonderful.”

After realising what you’d just said, you put your head in your hands and groaned in annoyance.

“I’m sorry, you shouldn’t have to hear that. You should be dancing with the maid of honour and hooking up with her right now, just how the tradition is.”

He closed his eyes and laughed quietly.

“You surely are, something, (Y/N).”

You almost frowned.

This just had sounded nothing like the usually so sassy and flirty Arthur.

Still, you managed a light smile.

“Thanks. I guess.”

“No problem. You just look like you could use some compliments right now and making them isn’t really hard to be honest. This dress suits you amazing.”

Now, you had to actually laugh, playfully punching his upper arm.

“Careful, you’re gonna make me blush.”

“Which, of course, would be a catastrophe. Wanna dance?”

The first song you danced to had been Come on Eyleen, after which you were completely out of breath. 

How convenient that the DJ chose to play a slow song now.

Can’t help falling in love with you.

Already the first notes made you feel all sappy, your anger over Sherlock seemed to have been replaced by sheer sadness.

You didn’t want this to be the end.

Arthur already wanted to place a hand on your waist as a very familiar voice behind you made shivers run down your spine.

“This is my favourite human. Don’t touch.”

You widened your eyes and turned around.

There he was, your idiotic, oblivious boyfriend, looking way too beautiful in the tux you’d bought for him.

The groom’s best man whispered a quick ‘good luck’ in your ear and discretely disappeared in the crowd of dancing people.

You wanted to scream at him, throw the words at his head, make him regret his words, but for some reason you couldn’t open your mouth.

So you were just standing there kind of awkwardly, giving the detective your best I’m-gonna-kill-you-gaze.

“Would you do me the honour of dancing with me, (Y/N) (Y/L/N)?”

You almost choked on your own saliva.

“What?”

Sherlock frowned.

“You. Me. Dance. That’t what people normally do on weddings, right?”

You closed your eyes and shook your head.

“You’re impossible, Sherlock.”

He smiled softly and actually looked kind of regretful.

“I know. I should’ve come with you from the start. Because without you, I’m a mess. Every time I’m not close to you I just feel so lost, and it took me a while to realise that this feeling wasn’t going to fade. If lying to myself any longer equals losing you, I don’t want to do it. So what do you think- you and I against the rest of the world once more?”

You blinked the tears away and lifted your head a bit.

“I think it’s time you start calling me babe.”

“What?”

You bit you lower lip and snaked your arms around the detective’s neck.

“Just kidding. That was my way of saying yes.”

He chuckled and looked at you in awe for a moment before connecting his lips to yours.

“You look very beautiful, by the way.”, Sherlock whispered after breaking away.

You literally felt your eyes lighting up.

You looked up to him and smirked happily.

“I know.”