#danutriestoenglish

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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Juline Dizznee/Kesler Dizznee, Juline Dizznee & Kesler Dizznee Characters: Kesler Dizznee, Juline Dizznee Additional Tags: Blood and Injury, Slurps and Burps, Mild Hurt/Comfort, but like. physically, Kesline week 2022, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Graphic descriptions of injury, I rated it teen just in case but it's just. somewhat graphically described, no swearing suprisingly., One Shot, short fic, No beta we die like jolie Summary:

Sometimes, spouses kept secrets.

Kesler had his share.

While he didn't tell his wife everything about himself, he’d still like to pride himself about being a pretty honest and open person.

Especially when compared to the love of his life, who just so happened to stumble into the shop, clutching her side that was slick with blood.

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In which, Kesler discovers Juline is a member of the Black Swan in a slightly different way.

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three simple words.

it feels like they rip my chest open when i have to say them.

do people mean it? when they sing them in songs

do they mean it, when they smile and wave goodbye?

how then, do they mean it, so casually?

how then, do they mean it, when they say it so often?

my voice warbles and breaks when i utter these words i do not mean

because i know that when i say them they are a lie.

for i do not know how it feels to love like that.

i can't know because i can't love, can i?

so when you grip the sides of my face, and whisper i love you i love you i love you,

i do not stay silent because i wish to hurt you.

i simply can't bring myself to say it, not when i do not know if i can love at all.

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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sophie Foster/Keefe Sencen/Fitz Vacker Characters: Sophie Foster (Keeper of the Lost Cities), Keefe Sencen, Fitz Vacker, Biana Vacker Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bodyguard Sophie Foster, Prince Fitz Vacker, Assassin Keefe Sencen, Celebrations, Happy Birthday Izzy!!!

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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Biana Vacker, Tam Song, Marella Redek, Dex Dizznee, Linh Song, Keefe Sencen, Fitz Vacker, Sophie Foster (Keeper of the Lost Cities) Additional Tags: Scars, Reference to Injury, past trauma, Author Is Sleep Deprived, guys this is shit and we all know it but i wrote a thing!! Summary:

The scars are all but memories that haunt them as they live.

What is a story without the scar to prove it after all?

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Standing under the night sky (tomorrow means nothing)

Read it on Ao3

Word Count: 1.5k

TW: arson, minor character death, minor swearing, murder, gun violence

Summary:

They near the residence, thundering past a wooden sign with big loopy letters that read a name of a town. The group pays no mind however, leaving the sign to creak back and forth in the wind as they ride, sneers in the night doubling as they find their way closer, because to them, this place holds no name or meaning.

Galloping hooves fill the evening air as horses dash through the deserted plains, their riders’ clothing flailing behind as they kick at their horses’ sides, urging them to slow just the slightest bit.

For this, they could take their time.

Their leader, the one in the front of the pack sits straight, back arching as his figure stretches in the pale moonlight.

His bandana covers the lower half of his face, and his long messy hair is tucked away in a low brimmed hat. The outfit covers his whole face, but his charred clothing and his eyes shining in the dim light makes him look almost like a ghost, or a monster of sorts.

The latter seems to be more accurate, the way his menacing figure glides across the terrain with horrifying grace. Every single move he makes is precise, meaningful. Something about each one holds danger, like if one were to even blink, they’d be shot dead.

The group behind him acts almost like a pack of wolves, or even a flock of vultures, circling above their prey. Their existence announces demise immediately, and not even the night itself seems to want to challenge them, for the only sound roaring in their ears is the pounding of hooves.

A single building at first blends in with the dark sky, but then, another pops up, then another, and another. Soon an entire town of houses stands right on the edge of their eyeline. It’s almost what they seem to be expecting, because whoops of laughter and the flashing of bright white teeth shine in the starlight.

They almost approach the town, thundering past a wooden sign with big loopy letters that read a name of a town. The group pays no mind however, leaving the sign to creak back and forth in the wind as they ride, sneers in the night doubling as they find their way closer, because to them, this town had no name or meaning.

Just outside, they come to a sudden stop, the unsettling noise becoming horrifyingly absent as they stare at the peaceful town square only a wandering away. Their snickers fall short as they come to a halt, eyes all drawing near toward the center figure, who holds his hand up in the universal position to stay.

He dismounts quickly, landing to the ground with a soft crunch on the dirt floor. His crew of criminals does not follow, their eyes instead turning to the concrete buildings around them. Each and everyone of them is dark inside, not a stray light of candle to be seen.

It’s expected of course, but their gazes follow the lone leader as he strides ever so confidently forward, to a house that’s just a little bit taller than the other ones. His feet do not faulter as he knocks firmly upon the bright red door, the light bouncing off the cream building as he takes off his hat, holding it closely to his chest.

Blond hair falls to his upper back, the locks unruly and wiry as they snake off into different directions flooding out from his head and all the way past his neck. He shifts to one foot, sliding his hat under his arm as he reaches for something at his waist.

Not a moment later, the door swings open, revealing a blonde-haired woman who stands tall. Her icy blue eyes narrow at the man, like he’s uninvited company. That’s exactly what he is, with the way her whole body stiffens as she steps to the side of the door to begrudgingly let him through.

The figure lowers his bandana as he makes his way into the threshold of the house, twisting through the doorways until he plops himself down in a chair at the kitchen table, warm from where the woman must have been waiting for him.

She doesn’t say a word in response, following shortly afterward and sitting in her seat just across from him.

The man tosses his hat on the table, stretching his nimble limbs as he leans back in the chair, shoulders dipping down in a gesture of sorts, allowing the woman to speak.

“Why’re you here?” She asks, her voice holding bits of tremors in it as she speaks.

The man smiles slowly, as if quite satisfied by her fear.

“You know exactly why I’m here, darlin’, the question is if you’ll behave or not.”

He leans forward, pressing his hands on the table. “So, where is that bastard headin’ off to?”

The woman’s tone gives away nothing as she tells him, “I know nothin’ ‘bout the bastard you so speak of.”

The man lets out a hard laugh, leaning back and looking toward the ceiling as he strokes the stubble growing at his chin.

“That’s too bad,” he says after a minute. “Because your husband told me allll ‘bout your little venture, trying to outrun me.”

He pauses. “So, I’ll ask again, Redek, where is he?”

The woman, miss Caprise Redek, gulps, unflinching. “I don’t have a damn clue what you’re talking about,” she mutters, her breath just above a whisper.

The man sighs, his face shining with disappointment. His mouth opens to say something, but Miss Redek’s arms shake under the table, and he falls silent, the sparkle in his eyes dimming.

“Don’t do this to yourself, Caprise. You have a family to live for.”

Her eyes glaze over, and she seems to pause, chin tilting to the floor above her, where her family lay completely unaware of what’s happening as they sleep.

But then, her gaze snaps back to Fintan’s cold, sharp face, and something in her visibly snaps.

“If you get what you’re asking, I’ll never have that.”

She draws out a gun, the metal gleaming in the candlelight, the whites of her eyes flashing as she almost seems to snarl.

The barrel of her gun points toward his temple, but his face stays unbothered, his charm not interrupted in the slightest. In fact, he just picks off an invisible speck of dust from his tunic, looking up to find Caprise’s bewildered expression.

“Let me tell you give you a tip,” he says instead. “If you’re going to shoot someone…”

His eyes shine, and as quick as a flash of lightning, his arm reaches out, knocking the gun out of Caprise’s hold and spinning it into his own hand. Before she even has time to register what happened, he already fires the trigger, bullet landing straight into her skull.

“…Don’t hesitate.”

Fintan sets the revolver gently onto the table, his hand lingering for just a moment before he steps out of the room, knowing that he was running out of time for his plan to work.

As he tries to rush out the door, a small voice from the staircase makes him turn around.

“Where’s mama?”

The girl can’t be older than five, rubbing at her eyes as she wonders where her mother, the person who loved her most in this world could have gone. Fintan lets a sad smile slip onto his face, and he bends down to get eye-level with her.

“She’s gone, but don’t worry, she wants me to take care of you.”

The girl’s eyes widen, and her eyes well with unshed tears, but she doesn’t let them over. She just stands there, her breathing heavy, and her tiny little hands gripping in and out of fists. She blows out a breath.

“Unless you’d like to stay with your daddy, of course.”

Her nose wrinkles, and she shakes her head. “Daddy doesn’t like me very much.”

“Well, that’s his fault,” Fintan tells her, offering his hand.

She takes it.

Ushering her out of the house, Fintan shuts the door behind him, walking through the town square, which hadn’t seemed to have changed at all. Only…shinier, the walls and the rooves and the stones all reflecting in the moonlight.

He grins, hoisting girl up so she can cling to his neck, and with his free hand he reaches down at his waist, feeling cold metal against the pads of his fingers.

His long fingers click it into place, and he holds it up up up toward the sky, before dropping it down to the floor, reaching down and swiping by his feet with it. The lighter, despite all odds, catches on the invisible liquid that trails around the village, the trail setting ablaze as it spreads to every building.

Shielding the girl’s eyes from the heat, he strides toward his horse, mounting easily with her in his arms. She fell asleep easily, her small body leaning back against him as he nudged his stallion forward.

Within a few minutes, the town was reduced to a blazing beacon in the distance, nothing but a landmark now. Fintan’s crew whoops and hollows, louder than the coyotes yipping in the distance.

Even the moon coward away from their victory, flying through the barren terrain as their only source of real light hides away, the crew of criminals turn to simple silhouettes their details all blending in with the land and the sky around them.

It’s only the start of the never seen.

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#literally me writing them rn

(eyes)

"Alden Vacker."

Tiergan spits the words with such venom that Sophie takes a step back, she'd thought the elf to be mild-mannered, and he had been so far.

But now, all of that disappeared, his face twisting into the deepest scowl she's ever seen as he glares at Alden.

The well-groomed man stood just in front of them, talking to another elf in shining jewelry, their embroidered capes almost down to their ankles.

It was almost as if Tiergan's aura of hatred forced him to turn around, because when his vibrant teal eyes met Tiergan's face, Sophie's breath caught in her throat.

She'd heard the phrase "if looks could kill" but now all the times she heard it be used seemed so wrong compared to...this.

It was as if the world had faded away, and the two of them were locked in a staring contest of bitterness and acrimony.

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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sophie Foster/Biana Vacker, Sophie Foster & Biana Vacker, Dex Dizznee & Sophie Foster, Biana Vacker & Fitz Vacker, Livvy Sonden & Biana Vacker Characters: Sophie Foster, Biana Vacker, Dex Dizznee, Fitz Vacker, Keefe Sencen, Livvy Sonden, Edaline Ruewen, Grady Ruewen, Della Vacker (mentioned) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Confessions, First Kiss, Fluff, Misunderstandings, Not mentioned but Sophie Foster is Asexual, Not Beta Read, One Shot, Long Shot Summary:

Sophie Elizabeth Foster is officially an idiot.

Her friends would ask her what took her so long to realize, and Sophie would simply stick her tongue out while they laughed.

But as soon as Sophie takes a step into the shop that was supposedly hers now, she knows that she’s made the wrong decision. Not even two minutes after she’d gone behind the counter, she’d started sneezing.

or: A Sophiana Flower shop AU where wacky sapphic pining and shenanigans ensue

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What is that writing

tis a wip!!

“You don’t understand!” Jolie screams, shaking her shoulders. Her face twists in horror and her eyes are glazed over with a sickly sort of disinterest. One that Sophie’s only seen on dead bodies.

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a guide, I suppose

Ao3

Spotify

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Writing Masterpost

Current Ship Week (Marellinh Week -- Sept. 23rd-29th)

Ship Week Masterpost (Coming Soon)

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My tagging: I tag #____ tw. If there's anything that triggers you that I don't tag, feel free to ask me to tag it!

asks are #asks, and mutuals get mutual ask tags (my way of showing favoritism).

My drawing tag is #danucan'tdraw

My writing tag is #danutriestoenglish

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Send me a 🌻to get a peak at a WIP

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Only in my darkest moments (can I see the light)

Read it here on Ao3

Final Word Count: 5k

TW: Body and gender dysphoria, swearing

Summary:

Sophie Foster doesn't like how they feel.

So, they go to their boyfriends to help.

A.K.A Sophie Comes Out And Feels Very Gender

             Sophie’s eyes watered, and their fingers shook as they tried to button the back of their dress. Their ears were ringing, and the only thing they could feel was their hair on the back of their neck, hot and stifling.

            They wanted to cry, to scream, to shout, but they could do nothing but try to keep in the tears as they buttoned up their stupid fancy dress for this stupid fancy party. They knew—they goddamn knew—that they should just suck it up for Grady and Edaline this once, for all the times that their parents had sacrificed for them.

            But they just couldn’t. They couldn’t do it. Something about tonight felt so different, the way that their hair fell past their neck, the way that their dress pinched and prodded at their curves, the way their chest wasn’t flat, even after trying to layer the tightest bras they owned- it all made them feel sick.

            “Sophie?”

            Sophie blinked.

            Somehow the ringing had quieted, and they were now in front of their insufferable spectral mirror, who surprisingly had a concerned look painted on her face. They focused on the way Vertina’s eyebrows scrunched together, a strand of her shiny black hair in her face.

            She blew it out of the way, and Sophie suddenly realized that she was talking to them.

            “Are-are you crying?”

            Sophie immediately straightened and wiped any remaining tears from their eyes.

            “No.”

            Vertina rolled her eyes, clearly not believing them. “I get that you’re nervous, but you should be excited! It’s the first party that’s being held here since Jolie was alive.”

            Sophie looked down at their feet to avoid seeing their reflection. They were tempted to tell Vertina that they were not in fact excited to go and socialize with some stuffy nobles, but they knew that wouldn’t help the situation.

            “I know, I’m just- I’m not feeling…right.”

            “What do you mean?”

            Sophie shook their head, “Never mind, it’s stupid.”

            They turned, trying to think what else they might need for the event. Out of the corner of their peripheral vision, they could see Vertina frown. Right before they walked out of frame, Vertina said something that made them stop.

            “Jolie felt like that too sometimes. Going to see Brant always made her feel better. I don’t really know… a lot about this stuff, but Jolie did. So maybe you should go visit one of your boyfriends that you’re always talking my ear off about?”

            Sophie opened their mouth, ready to refuse, but stopped. They felt like total shit and going to see Keefe or Fitz wouldn’t hurt. They might even help. But they could be late to the party, or Edaline might worry, or maybe even-

            Vertina cleared her throat. “Whenever you’re done overthinking this, you can go. The sooner you leave the sooner you’ll be back. And,” she added when Sophie was about to interrupt,” I’ll let your parents know where you’ve gone if they ask.”

            Sophie smiled softly, truly appreciating the girl for one of the first times since she’d moved into their room. “Thanks, Vertina.”

            Vertina flipped her hair, rolling her eyes. “You got it. Now go get ‘em, Girl! Or- er… elf?”

            Sophie smiled softly, amused at Vertina’s correction. “I will.”

             “Would you like a hug?” Fitz asked, his crisp accent filled with concern.

            Sophie’s shoulders curved inward in a shrug. They’d leaped to Everglen since they didn’t want to bother with the chance of seeing Lord Cassius.

            As soon as Fitz had opened the door, he knew something was wrong. Sophie had almost started crying when he’d taken them up to his room. But they couldn’t even get a word out. Something was so scary about this. Because something was different this time when hanging out with their boyfriend. They knew that they’d have to tell Fitz, because the secret was at the tip of their tongue.

            But they just needed to wait a few more minutes. Until Keefe got here. Fitz had hailed him as soon as he’d gotten Sophie settled, and Sophie really didn’t have the strength to tell him not to. Their boyfriend was anxious about their obvious distress but didn’t know how to help.

            Sophie felt terrible for not pointing him in the right direction, but they couldn’t make the effort to talk, to tell him what was wrong without completely falling apart.

            Fitz seemed to understand though, just silently taking their hand, gently squeezing it to let them know he was there.

            They squeezed back.

            Finally, frantic footsteps broke them out of their peaceful trance, and Fitz squeezed their hand one more time before standing up, presumably to open the door for Keefe. But before he could, it slammed open, Keefe rushing in with Mrs. Stinkbottom and a package of Keebler elf cookies tucked in his arms.

            “I heard Foster’s not feeling well?”

            Fitz and Sophie both shook their heads.

            “Well,” Keefe said, smirking. “You have nothing to fear, the Keefster is here!”

            Sophie tried to smile, but it probably looked more like a grimace. Keefe turned to Fitz; his brow furrowed in confusion at Sophie's gloomy demeanor.

            Fitz shrugged; his eyes still glued to Sophie's face. It was as if he was trying to read them like a book, like the words would jump off the page and he could help fix the problem. But Sophie knew he couldn't read them, they'd perfected an emotionless stare even when they were dealing with the strongest emotions a person could handle. That’s what they’d had to do when they were the Moonlark.

            Finally, he turned to Keefe, sighing slightly, and running his hand through his hair. "I don't know, I don't think she really feels like talking right now."

Keefe's frown deepened as he saw Sophie flinch. He dropped down onto Fitz's bed beside them, gently wrapping his arms around their shoulders in a warm side hug. Sophie sank into it, welcoming the comfort.

            "Those are some wonky emotions you're feeling there, Foster," Keefe pointed out softly. Sophie buried their head into his chest, simply nodding. Tears finally leaked out of the corners of their eyes. How were they going to tell their amazing boyfriends this? This dark—and stupid—secret that they didn't even know how elves felt about. 

             They felt the bed shift as Fitz sat on their other side, wrapping his arms around their other side. Even with something so big weighing on their shoulders, Sophie's boyfriends made them feel much better. So much better in fact, that after a few minutes of trying to take deep, calming breaths, Sophie lifted their head. 

             "I love you guys," they managed to choke out.

             Sophie could see both of their shoulders relax in relief, and Fitz pressed a gentle kiss to their forehead. "We love you too," he reassured. 

             Keefe nodded in agreement.

             Sophie opened their mouth to apologize for being so dramatic, but Keefe put his finger on their lips before they could make a sound. 

             "I know what you're about to say, and I want you know that you should never apologize for us taking care of you. It's our job as the best boyfriends in history."

              Fitz smiled. "True. And you definitely don't have to tell us what's wrong, but if you want to, we'd love to help."

              Sophie nodded. "I-yeah that's why I um. Came over here."

              "So uh, that party that we have to be at in like two hours? I was getting ready for that, and I realized something. Something that I've kind of been wrapping my head around for a long time," They took a shaky breath.

             Sophie shut their eyes tight, not wanting to see their boyfriends' most likely repulsed reactions. "I don't like how I feel in my body."

            They waited a moment before continuing. "I hate dresses, and I hate my hair, and I hate my chest, and I hate my gender."

            Neither of the pairs of arms moved from Sophie's sides.

            "I-I feel disgusting."

             Silence.

             Just when Sophie was about to take it all back, Fitz's arms tightened around them.

            "I'm sorry," he said gently. "I had no idea you were feeling like that."

             Keefe pressed a kiss on top of Sophie's head. "Is there anything we can do?"

            Sophie felt a snotty laugh tear out of their throat. "Not unless you can make all of those things that I just listed suddenly disappear."     

            "I can work with that."

            Sophie turned to look at him. "How?"

            Keefe jumped up, his feet hitting the soft carpet as he started pacing, lost in thought. "Well..." His head snapped up. "Fitz you have some hairdressing scissors in your bathroom still, right?" 

            Fitz nodded, "Top right drawer."

            "Then, I know that Livvy has some old suits that are probably your size," Fitz said. "I'll look through the donation pile." He started to walk out of the room before he turned around again. "I think Biana might also have a binder from that one time ae tried it, if you want me to look for it," he told Sophie.

            They nodded hesitantly.

           So, the two boys rushed off, Fitz to find Sophie a wardrobe, and Keefe to go find some hair cutting scissors.

           Sophie wandered into the bathroom after Keefe, watching as he took out a variety of combs and brushes, along with some scissors.

           He glanced up. "We might be a little late, but I think we can pull this off."

            Sophie hugged Mrs. Stinkbottom tightly to their chest.

           Keefe had brushed out the layers, making Sophie's hair lay flat for the coming process. He hovered hesitantly with the scissors by Sophie's head. "Are you sure you wanna do this?"

           Sophie bobbed their head up and down in confirmation.

           They'd both snacked on cookies, discussing what haircut Sophie felt like, and after they were done, Sophie changed into one of Fitz's old T-shirts. It was way too big, and went down to their lower thighs, but they'd take that rather than a dress any day. Sophie had been slightly hesitant at first, seeing the way that inexperienced human haircuts looked, but now, they were sure. Simply being in the bathroom, knowing that they were free from the armpit length hair they detested brushing out every day?

           It felt good.

           So, so, good.

           Because of that, Sophie forced their shoulders to relax, hoping that Keefe knew what he was doing. They closed their eyes once again, strangling Keefe's stuffed animal tight as the sound of scissors filled the air.

            Snip.

            Snip.

            Snip.

            "Ok, I'm done," Keefe told them, turning to rinse his hands.

            Sitting in a kitchen chair and getting their haircut by their boyfriend who most definitely wasn't a hairdresser in Fitz's bathroom wasn't how Sophie thought their evening would go.

            But they weren't complaining.

           "Jeez, it looks like a hair tornado went off in here," Keefe stated, leaning back to look at his handiwork.

           "Yeah," Sophie said, brushing off some blond hair from their T-shirt. "We probably should've prepared better."

           Keefe shrugged. "I dunno, I feel like being unprepared is the best part."

           Sophie made a disapproving noise but didn't say anything else.

           "What do ya' think?"

            What did Sophie think? Well, a lot of things really, as they stared at their reflection. The fact that they could even do that meant it was a significant improvement from what Sophie's state had been only a few hours ago. But the haircut itself? It was fluffy and loose, and they ran their hand through it, just to see how it felt. Good. It felt really good.

            They nodded. "It's amazing, thank you so much." The words by themselves didn't really feel like enough, so to show how much they meant it, Sophie stood on their tiptoes and kissed Keefe on the cheek, wrapping their arms around his shoulders, even when he had to bend down to give them an adequate hug. They stood there, rocking back and forth a bit and enjoying each other's presence. Sophie knew that Keefe could feel their gratitude, one of the times she loved dating an empath.

            Interrupting the calm mood was Fitz, who barged into the bathroom, out of breath. "I love you both dearly, and I love when you're being cute like this, but we're gonna be late, and  have only around an hour to get ready before Grady will have Keefe and I's heads."

           While Grady had definitely softened to both boys, holding up his child from a party they were supposed to attend probably wouldn’t help his relationship with Keefe and Fitz. So, Sophie shakily stood up, swiping their messy blonde hair out of their eyes, and taking the bundle of clothes that Fitz handed them.

           “You look amazing,” Fitz said with a soft smile.

Sophie blushed, their shoulders pushing up toward their ears. “Thank you,” They whispered, giving him another smile back.

Keefe rolled his eyes playfully, taking Fitz’s hand and dragging him out of the bathroom to let Sophie get changed.

 Sophie took a deep breath finally looking at themself in the mirror. And- well, they looked great if they did say so themselves. Their short, fluffy hair was wild, but it gave it a sort of a stylish roughed-up look. They supposed that Keefe had done that on purpose, adding his own little flare to help Sophie out.

They weren’t going to admit how much they loved it.

And their suit was stunning. A deep royal blue suit with a white button up under it. Nothing special to most, but to Sophie it was incredible, especially when compared to a dress. After running their hand through their hand one more time, they opened the bathroom door, where Keefe and Fitz were waiting for them.

As soon as they walked out of the bathroom, both boys’ jaws dropped.

“What?”

Fitz blinked a couple times before shaking his head. “Uh, nothing.”

Keefe’s face was tinted with pink as he held up his hand. “I found this,” he said, gesturing to the tie he was holding.

Sophie nodded. “Perfect. Except- I don’t know how to tie a tie.”

Fitz instantly brightened. “I can help you!”

He took the tie from Keefe’s hand, and the three of them all migrated back into his bathroom. They all stood in front of the mirror, situated with their own accessories.

Sophie and Fitz both had their own neck ties, while Keefe fiddled with a bi-colored bow tie.

“Ok, so you’ll want this side to be slightly longer than the other, just so that when you tuck in the smaller one it won’t show through.”

Sophie nodded, sliding the tie through their collar, and doing as he said. Only then did they realize that their tie had little alicorns on it, each stitched on with care.

They looked up at Keefe, a goofy smile painted on their face. “Where’d you get this?”

“Oh,” Keefe said, “Elwin gave it to me as a midterm gift once. I just happened to leave it here, it’s perfect, isn’t it?”

Sophie nodded, their smile not dimming even as Fitz gave them confusing instructions on how to tie their tie. How did he make it look so easy?

After their third try, they sighed frustratingly.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Keefe said from behind them, as Fitz took Sophie’s tie and started doing it on himself.

“I still can’t tie a tie, and I’ve been trying for years. Knowing how smart that little head of yours is, I know that you’ll get it eventually.”

Fitz bobbed his head in agreement, stepping in front of Sophie and sliding the tie over their head. “You’d also usually have more time, we’re just kind of crunched with time at the moment—tell me if this is too tight,” he said, straightening it out.

“It’s perfect,” Sophie told him, and he stepped away.

“See Foster, I told you we could help a bit,” Keefe said, squeezing their shoulder assuredly.

“Is there anything we’re missing?” Fitz asked.

Sophie shook their head—then stopped.

“Do you think…” They trailed off, trying to convince themself to say the words out loud.

“Do you think you guys could refer to me using they/them pronouns?”

“Absolutely,” they said at the same time, and Sophie’s heart lightened even more.

It was as if the weight that had been crushing them had slid off their back. They took their boyfriends’ hands in theirs, squeezing three times.

They squeezed back.

“How do you feel, Foster?” Keefe whispered.

Sophie considered the question, staring at the mirror, and the new person staring back at them. It wasn’t really a new person, they realized with a start. It was just Sophie Foster. The same Sophie Foster that they’d always been.

But this time they felt good. The name and the clothes and the look, and the people standing next to them.

For the first time, Sophie Foster felt right.

               "You ready?" Fitz asked, adjusting his necktie. As he did, Sophie got a glimpse of the rainbow hidden underneath. He’d gotten it when he was still in the closet, he’d explained, but had grown so attached to it that he couldn’t get rid of it.

           Sophie loved it as well. They could probably steal it now, the thought making them grin. Immediately, their smile fell, as they realized what they were about to do.

               They tore a hand through their hair, deciding they should probably answer Fitz’s question. "I don't know.”

"We don't have to go yet, if you don't want," a voice from behind them said.

           Sophie turned to look at Keefe over their shoulder. “I don’t want Grady and Edaline to worry any longer than they have to.”

           “I know,” Keefe said, bending down to kiss Fitz’s cheek, then Sophie’s. “But if you aren’t ready, we don’t have to leave yet—there’s no rushing perfection after all.”

           Sophie smiled. “Thanks, Keefe.”

           He slung an arm over their shoulder. “No problem, M-” He gasped. “Can I call you Mysterious Mx. Foster now?”

           Sophie groaned, burying their head in their hands. “…Fine.”

           Keefe pumped his fist in the air as Fitz rolled his eyes.

           “If you’re both ready,” he said pulling out a leaping crystal. “We should probably get going.”

Sophie’s hand tightened on both of theirs as the crystal hit the light, dragging the three away.

  The party was already packed full of guests, and Sophie's anxiety rose through the roof.

They met the gaze of Dex, and their cousin gave them a big grin and a thumbs up, gesturing to their hair and outfit. Sophie blushed and nodded their thanks. Even as they weaved through the people, and many gave them complements, Sophie couldn't help but be anxious. What would their parents think? They knew that Grady and Edaline had been mostly supportive of their decisions (even when sometimes they were life-threatening) but they were always their daughter. Would they be okay if they weren't?

               Finally, they saw Edaline's eyes searching over the crowd, even as she was stopped for small talk. After greeting some emissaries and having some small talk, her eyes once again scanned the people.

She looked beautiful as ever, her Auburn hair done up in a delicate half-up half-down style, small strands making their way to her face. She was dressed in a deep red gown, which Sophie was sure Grady was matching.

Their anxiety rose again as Edaline's eyes eventually meant theirs. They widened for a minute, but Edaline's mom senses seemed to understand what was happening immediately, and she broke out in a wide grin.

              Sophie and Edaline fought through the crowd to get to one another, and as soon as they got into arms reach, Edaline pulled Sophie into a hug.

"I love what you did with your hair," She whispered softly into Sophie's ear, her arms wrapping around their back.

Sophie breathed in deeply, smelling the perfume that moms always seemed to wear, immediately mirroring Edaline, and pulling their mom closer.

They buried their head into their mom’s chest and remembered why they loved their mother's hugs. Because everything felt so much farther away, so unimportant now that Edaline was holding them, and everything was okay. Even with the all chaos and noise that surrounded them, all that mattered was Sophie. Just for a brief moment.

              Then, Edaline pulled back, really taking Sophie in, and after a moment she adjusted the collar on their suit, smiling at the tiny alicorn prints. Sophie took a deep breath.

              "I'm so sorry I'm late. I was getting ready- and I just really didn't feel right, so then I went over to Fitz's and he and Keefe both helped me get ready and then we just lost track of time and I'm so, so, sorry."

               Edaline shook her head, smiling gently. "It's just fine, I really don't mind. As soon as Vertina told me you were at Everglen, I knew that you probably wouldn't be here on time." She looked up, sending a pointed look over Sophie's shoulder, presumably where Keefe and Fitz were.

              "But I'm glad you're feeling better now," she added. The statement itself seemed to be a question. Were they feeling better? Sophie nodded, a smiling lighting up their face. They were feeling better than they had in a while.

               The thought was interrupted by a hand ruffling their hair. Sophie whipped around to see Grady in a dark red tunic and cape. (They were right about their parents matching.)

"Hey, Kiddo." Their father said lightly, and Sophie's focus immediately shifted to what he was holding. They heard Edaline's amused chuckle as they excitedly took the piece of mallowmelt.

               "Thanks, Dad!"

               Grady smiled. "Of course, but if you want seconds you'll probably have go over right now. Otherwise, your friends might eat the rest." 

               Sophie followed his gaze to see what he was talking about. Biana, Dex, Keefe, and Fitz were all crowding the dessert table, chowing down on the sweets. Sophie smiled apologetically and Grady threw his head back and laughed. 

              "Go ahead, but save a piece for me," he put a hand over his mouth and stage-whispered, "Edaline said she won't let me have any afterward."

            Edaline rolled her eyes but smiled. "That's because you've already had six pieces of mallowmelt today."

            Sophie smiled, wondering why they were worried about their parents. They still hadn't had The Talk™ yet, but by the way they handled this, Sophie wasn't too anxious.

            But they still sighed, walking over to the table where their boyfriends plus Dex and Biana were eating way too much food.

             Hey Sophie, Fitz transmitted.

            What's up?

            Are you comfortable with using they/them pronouns in front of Dex and Biana? Keefe and I weren't sure, so we were using she/her for now.

            Sophie nodded, then realized he wasn't actually looking at them. I'm alright with it, thank you for asking though. I think the only immediate people I have in mind are Grady and Edaline, but hopefully that'll change by tonight.

            Before he could respond, Sophie walked up to the four of their friends. They seemed to have walked into a speed eating competition between Keefe and Biana, with Dex hyping the two up. Fitz was standing to the side, and walked beside them, watching the chaos.

            "Do you regret inviting us yet?"

            Sophie snorted. "Never." And they meant it.

            Their friends were one of the highlights of moving to the Lost Cities. Sure, they had their parents, but friends were something that Sophie had never had before. And well, even when they were shoving food in their faces in ways that would most definitely make them sick later, it was all worth it.

            Dex turned around, waved at Sophie, then quickly went back to announcing what was happening. "It seems the stakes have risen folks, as whoever wins this competition gets to have Sophie Foster piggyback them around for week," xe said, in a booming voice.

            Sophie made a disgruntled sound as Keefe and Biana somehow ate faster. 

            "It might have to be the other way around, since they're so short," Fitz added, putting an elbow on Sophie's shoulder to prove his point.

            They groaned as Dex relayed the message to the two dumbasses eating dessert.

            After what only had to be a minute more, Biana pumped aer fist in the air, signifying aer victory. Keefe crumpled to the ground in over-exaggerated defeat.

             Biana laughed, helping Keefe to his feet.

            "I'm gonna see if I can convince Magnate Leto to see how many classes I can get out of, then I can carry your girlfriend all around Foxfire."

            Keefe took the hand ae offered, standing all the way up. "I don't know how my partner would feel about that. I mean look at them, Foster's already pouting."

            Sophie's heart flipped at the use of their pronouns. They smiled at Keefe in gratitude. They were uncertain about how these pronouns would feel but, now they knew. This made them happy.

            Biana walked up to them, complimenting their suit. "You don't have to let me carry you around, I know those assholes do it all the time."

            They smiled at the offer but could also see just how excited Biana was at the prospect of carrying them around.

            "No, it's fine. Just as long as I don't have to miss any classes."

            Biana snorted and shook aer head. "You won't."

            Then, somehow, Sophie was on Biana's back, taller than they'd ever felt before as their friends paraded them around. The adults at the party seemed to be either unimpressed or amused at their immaturity. Sophie even got a high five from Livvy as they made their way outside. The crisp night air hit Sophie in the face as Biana carried them outside. For only the minor height difference between them, Biana was really strong, hefting Sophie around as if it were just a normal part of aer routine.

            The group made their way out to Calla's tree, as loud and obnoxious as they were inside, but the noise even louder as it filled the night air. Keefe and Fitz both sat at the trunk of the tree, and after a moment Biana gently plopped Sophie down in their laps, making all three of their faces turn bright red. Ae swept the bottom of aer dress to the side and sat gracefully to the left, clearly amused. Dex dropped down on xer back to the right, looking at the stars.

            "Hey Sophie?"

            They sat up, turning to look at Dex.

            "This homophobic elf came into the shop today; do you think you could point me to that illegal star that explodes?"

             The entire group laughed, and after a moment Sophie leaned forward, searching for Elementine from their memories.

             “Are you seriously considering it?” Fitz asked, somehow still flabbergasted at the idea of breaking the law.

            “I'd like to think that the tribunal would be worth it,” Sophie reasoned.

            “It totally would be.”

            “Yeah, I'd back you up.”

            “I mean, it seems reasonable to me.”

            Fitz groaned, putting his head in his hands. "I swear, you're all going to be the death of me."

            Keefe laughed, kissing his boyfriend's cheek. "We sure will be, Babe."

            The group fell back into silence once again. Sophie smiled, leaning their head back against the trunk of the tree, remembering chaotic pillow fights and days of just talking. No matter how down Sophie felt, their friends would always be there to cheer them up.

            And that was the knowledge that pushed them to clear their throat, getting their friend’s attention. Sophie sat up, flipping their hair out of their face, and reminiscing in the feeling. They stared at the bright lights coming from the inside of Havenfield, and after a quick moment of hesitation turned back toward Dex and Biana.

            "I'm...I'm using they/them pronouns."

            Biana smiled sweetly, and Dex grinned. "Welcome to the cool pronoun club!"

             Biana nodded aer agreement saying how much they fit Sophie, and Sophie smiled, trying not to cry. They’d cried enough today, they’d decided. They didn’t make a big deal out of it either, instead just lapsing back into normal conversation.

           In the middle of Dex’s complaint about Metaphysics, Keefe sat up, wiping his grassy hands on his pants. Fitz frowned up at him, as if offended that his cuddling partner had moved. Sophie stifled a chuckle at his expression.

           “Well, now that that’s settled,” Keefe said, turning to towards the path that led toward the ocean. “Race you to the beach!”

           “Last one there’s a gulon!” He called over his shoulder as he started running.

           The other four stared at each other before Dex bolted after him.

           Biana slid of aer shoes. “That asshole. I’m going to throw my shoes at him once I get down there.” And with that, ae were gone a well.

           Sophie and Fitz just stood there, watching the three of their friends tear toward Havenfield’s sandy beaches under the bright moonlight, weaving through the pastures and making their way toward the gravelly path.

           They turned to look at him, and he cocked his brow. “They both just ate a half-dish of mallowmelt, how are they not sick?”

           Sophie shrugged, slipping their shoes off and throwing them over their shoulder.

           “I dunno, but I’m sure as hell not a gulon.”

           They dashed away, laughing at Fitz’s indignant cries behind them.

           This is what Sophie loved. Their people, their home. And as their feet touched down on the soft sand, and they looked over at the reflection of their body, tie flying behind them as their short hair whipped in the air, Sophie realized that they loved themself.

           The sounds of cheerful yelling made them go faster, their feet splashing in the cold water as they neared where Keefe was standing, Biana throwing aer shoes at him, just as ae had promised.

           Soon, even after Fitz had joined them, heaving, and panting, Keefe picked Biana up and threw aer into the chilly water, obviously being dragged down with aer. Fitz jumped in as well, joining his sibling in tackling his boyfriend. The three of them bobbed up, spluttering water, and cursing each other out.

           Sophie let out a loud boisterous laugh, one that bounced off Havenfield’s cliffs above them. Because even with all of this gender shit, and what felt like the whole world against them, Sophie knew they were okay.

          More than okay, they realized, as Dex let out a loud squeal after Keefe splashed xem with water. They were happy.

          And their family would always have their back.

[archived-and-moving]

The scars along our skin (Paint our beauty like gold)

Final Word Count: 4.5k

TW: Scars, Bullying, Cursing

Summary:

Biana Vacker's soulmate is clumsy, and she's starting to resent them for it.

Sophie Foster has been in love with Biana since she could remember. If only Biana didn't hate her.

Notes:  So pretty much how this works is that when one soulmate gets injured, the other-instead of just getting scars-gets tattoos of flowers over the scars as well. You following? Me neither.

Biana’s soulmate was clumsy.

She could tell without even meeting them.

They got injured enough for the both of them.

But it wasn’t the little bumps and scrapes that scared her. Those faded eventually.

It was the scars.

The flowers that would bloom, their beautiful leaves and petals painting her body where the scars would settle on her skin.

As soon as the wound, and the sharp bit of pain would appear, a flower would blossom over the gash. Her body was littered with flowers, even when she was young.

A violet below her knee.

A pink hibiscus that covered the back of her hand.

Even a snap dragon stretched behind her ear and gently curved near the side of her head.

All from her soulmate.

Each time a flower appeared; Biana would grow worried.

So would her moms.

“Are you okay?” Livvy asked gently, as glanced at a marigold that had appeared on Biana’s forearm.

Biana nodded, a half-smile making its way up her face. “Yeah, I’m used to it.”

Livvy frowned. “Bi… that’s not something that should be normal, Hun. Is your soulmate—getting into trouble? Or maybe not from a good home?”

Biana shook her head quickly. “No, Mami, it’s not like that. They’re just really clumsy, that’s all.”

Livvy’s frown didn’t disappear even as ce pressed a kiss to Biana’s forehead.

“Okay. Now go wash up for dinner before your brothers hog up the sink.”

Biana’s nose crinkled as she ran towards the bathroom, all thoughts about her soulmates and scars forgotten behind her.

  Biana was twelve now, and soulmates were starting to take over.

Small flowers sprinkled her body, and as ashamed as she was, she hid them. Alvar was bullied for all of the flowers and burns that marked his skin. She remembered when he came home crying, and she really didn’t want that. Biana knew that it was probably different, that she was ‘popular’ or whatever.

But no matter how guilty she felt about it, she still found herself rolling down her sleeves, or keeping her hair down. Whatever Biana could do to hid the flowers that decorated her skin.

“Ugh. The flower thing is overrated.” Maruca said over lunch one day.

Biana felt her stomach drop a little, but she took a bite of her sandwich to hide it.

“I mean, they’re cool and all, but it’s a really flashy way to show off that you have a ‘soulmate’ or whatever.”

The rest of their friend group agreed.

She knew in her heart that Maruca didn’t mean that about her. She knew that Maruca had been crushing on a girl for a while, and she’d turned her down because of her soulmate.

But it still made Biana feel sick.

Because no one would want to be her soulmate. Not with the flowers covering her whole body. She kept her head high, pushing the feelings down as best she could, laughing with her friends as they left the cafeteria.

  It was hard not to be jealous.

Of course, Fitz the Golden Boy didn’t have a soulmate.

He could be with whoever he wanted, love as freely as he pleased without the reminder that he could be wrong.

And the people at school sure did love that about him.

If his good looks and his perfect grades weren’t good enough, kids flaunted over all his glory. That if you threw yourself in his arms, you’d have a chance.

Of course, that wasn’t true.

But the awe-filled whispers filled her with rage. The swooning girls, and the show-off jocks who would try to impress him.

It was all so tiring.

And it wasn’t Fitz’s fault. But he was placed on a pedestal, and Biana had to fight her way to the top, just like everyone else.

She trailed her way after him as they both entered the bustling hallways. She pushed her way past people, trying to get to her classroom with as little interaction as possible. The peeling walls and smell of sweat was already unappealing, but the eyes that rested on her shoulders as she made her way to her locker made the space unbearable.

Biana sighed, closing her eyes, and wishing she could be anywhere else.

Opening them again, she stopped at where her locker was. The door of the locker next to it was blocking hers, and her neighbor was putting their books in their locker. Preventing Biana from putting her stuff away was the one and only Sophie Elizabeth Foster.

Biana heaved a heavy sigh, pushing the strap of her backpack up on her shoulder. As if her day could get any worse.

Sophie was self-centered, oblivious, clumsy, and pined over her brother so much, she could produce an entire forest.

There was nothing about her that Biana liked. So instead, she just tried to avoid her. That was incredibly hard when they had lockers right next to each other. And when Sophie insisted on greeting her every time they met.

Biana cleared her throat, and Sophie jumped, whipping her head around to see where the noise originated from.

When she met Biana’s gaze, her face reddened.

“Oh, shoot! Sorry!”

Biana plastered a smile on her face. “It’s fine.”

Sophie closed her door a bit and Biana unlocked her locker, unzipping her backpack and grabbing her books. She could see Sophie watching her from the corner of her eye and ignored her, instead placing her backpack in her locker.

Closing her locker with more force than necessary, Biana made her way toward her classroom, trying to calm herself down. But before she could, a loud crash made her jump. She spun around, confused at what had just happened, to find Sophie on the ground, her books scattered, making it clear that she’d just tripped.

People stared as Sophie started to hurriedly pick up her books, scrambling in embarrassment to pick up as fast as possible.

Biana gritted her teeth and readjusted her hold on her textbooks. She walked over to where Sophie sat on the ground and stuck her hand out, not realizing what she was doing before it was too late.

The hand with the pink hibiscus was sticking out, its bright colors popping out against Biana’s dark complexion.

Sophie didn’t seem to notice however, reaching out to take Biana’s outstretched hand. Biana’s eyes widened in realization, and she saw the moment in slow motion.

Sophie’s eyes were pointed down in embarrassment, a light blush dusting her face. But that wasn’t important at the moment. By now it was too late to say anything, and when their hands met an electric spark jolted down Biana’s spine.

It was far from pleasant. In fact, both girls yelped as the zinging bolt shot through them both.

The silence was deafening. Pressing and prodding, the moment couldn’t have lasted for more than two seconds.

But it felt like an eternity. Because of the realization that flowed between them.

As her gaze locked on Sophie’s, Biana could feel an understanding dawn between them.

They were soulmates.

Biana wanted to laugh.

Instead, she just helped Sophie stand, then bolted the other direction, ignoring the blonde calling her name. Because Biana Amberly Vacker was soulmates with Sophie Elizabeth Foster.

The girl who loved her brother.

  Biana Vacker was sensational.

That’s the only word Sophie could think of to describe her as.

Her long dark hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, and her face was one of pure focus as she watched her teammates pass the ball back and forth.

They were on the soccer field, it was a hot Thursday evening, and something about watching Biana play soccer that made Sophie’s heart flutter a little too hard. Something about seeing someone in their element made Sophie swoon.

Which probably wasn’t good.

But she couldn’t help the way that made her face heat up. Not even Biana’s withering glares could melt the frozen awe that Sophie felt around her. It was almost embarrassing how hard Sophie had fallen for her.

That was before she found out they were soulmates.

She figured she didn’t have a soulmate.

Her skin stayed clear of any flowers, and the only scars that decorated her skin were her own. But she stood corrected, finding out through a shocking turn of events. Completed with an audience.

Sophie’s face flushed just thinking about the way that Biana’s eyes had narrowed in anger at the realization.

Someone bumped into her shoulder, making her squeak and almost drop the book she was carrying. She turned to find Dex watching her with an amused expression on his face. His eyes were making fun of her, and his dimples were ever so present.

“Not a word,” she warned as he opened his mouth to make what she was sure to be a smug comment.

He laughed, holding his hands up in a surrender. He leaned his elbow on her shoulder, a silent reminder of how much taller than her he’d grown to be. Sophie shrugged him off with a scowl as they started walking.

“Asshole.”

Dex rolled his eyes light heartedly. “No, ‘Hello’ or ‘How’re you, Dex, my favorite cousin?’ instead it’s this,” His gaze travelled over to where the soccer team was shooting.

“So that’s why you wanted to pick me up from Robotics,” he said, his eyes landing on Biana. “Maybe you should just buck up and tell her.”

Sophie shook her head frantically, “That’s a terrible idea.”

“Maybe I should tell her.”

“Don’t you fucking dare.”

Dex’s grin widened, and he cupped a hand over his mouth, as if about to yell. Sophie scrambled to try and cover his mouth with her hand, but Dex just pushed her away with one arm.

“Hey Biana! My cousin has had a lesbian crush on you since the third grade and she wants to fu—Ow!” Dex stopped, hopping on one foot. He gingerly rubbed where Sophie had kicked him in the shin.

“I was joking—she couldn’t even hear me. Holy shit. maybe you should have joined the soccer team, that hurt like a bitch.”

Sophie glance up once more to see that the soccer players were indeed, still focused on practicing. She whipped back around to look at Dex.

“Still, she could have,” she hissed, “she hates me enough already.”

Dex snorted. “You got that right.”

She rolled her eyes. She and Dex faded back into normal conversation as they made their way across the field. Every once in a while, Sophie would sneak a glance at Biana, before quickly looking away.

Dex was rambling about his robotics team, and something about his robot’s CPU. Although Sophie didn’t understand half of the words flying out of his mouth, she still listened intently. Dex knew how to tell a story.

She opened her mouth to say something when she saw Dex’s eyes widen, focusing on something behind her.

Vaguely, she heard someone yell, “watch out,” before something knocked against the back of her head.

  “She—she hit you in the back of the head with a-a soccer ball?” Grady’s question broke off into a wheeze of laughter as Sophie scowled.

“You aren’t supposed to laugh, this was a scaring experience, and we’re going to have to relocate to Australia and change our names.” Sophie said, readjusting her hold on her ice pack.

Dex had dropped her off at Havenfield Animal Clinic, laughing his ass off at her misfortune. Sophie had assumed that her parents would be better, but she was apparently mistaken.

“Woah, what about moving to Australia?” A voice said from the doorway, and Sophie turned to see Edaline walk into the back room, washing her hands as she had just finished up with the last patient. A golden retriever followed in her shadow, almost stepping on her ankles.

Sophie buried her face in her hands as Grady recounted the night to his wife. She finally worked up the courage to look up to find her adoptive mother fighting a smile. Sophie groaned.

“You guys are worse than Dex,” She complained, standing up to pet Iggy’s head, pointedly ignoring Grady’s snort.

This time Edaline smiled, wrapping her arms around Sophie’s shoulders. She planted a kiss on Sophie’s cheek, and Sophie felt her resolve melt a little, a small smile somehow finding its way to her face.

“Grady was really bad when we were your age,” She murmured into Sophie’s ear. “One time he accidentally set off the fire alarm trying to impress me.”

Sophie stifled a giggle.

Grady gasped in mock-offense. “I’d like to think I was very smooth in asking you out.”

Edaline let go of Sophie, smiling warmly at her husband. “Of course, you were.” She walked towards the door, mouthing ‘he wasn’t’ over her shoulder to her daughter.

“I’m gonna close up the clinic, so we eat before dark tonight.”

Sophie smiled.

Even with all of the teasing, she felt a lot better about the fact that her soulmate hated her. Grady said something about helping Edaline and Sophie nodded, already deep in thought.

She knew she couldn’t make Biana not hate her. But maybe they could be acquaintances. Her mind wandered to her friends at school. Keefe would have so much fun when he figured out what had happened.

Sophie almost rolled her eyes at the thought.

Marella would most definitely laugh at her. Tam probably would to. Linh would probably try to be polite, but ultimately fail, doing only a bit better than Edaline did.

She leaned on the counter, rolling up and down on the balls of her feet. She was so different than she’d been three years ago. She was older, had more friends, had gotten a job, and had even gotten on student council.

But the only thing that stayed the same was her perfect soulmate, whom she couldn’t bring herself to hate.

Sophie’s thoughts were cut off when a spiking pain split its way down her back. She gasped, gripping the table as fire licked its way up her back. Splinters and cracks felt their way from her biceps up to her shoulder blades, freezing and burning all at once.

A primal scream tore its way out of her throat as her back flared. The burning and freezing soon left, and she was left with one of the worst pains she’d ever felt. She slumped to the floor, groaning at the pain that wrapped her body. Vaguely, she could hear footsteps and panicked voices.

But her eyelids felt as though they were being pried shut, and before she knew it, Sophie’s conscious faded, leaving her with one question as she slipped away from reality.

What had happened?

-

Biana took a deep breath, pulling up the turtleneck she’d chosen to wear.

It was her first time back since… The Incident, as her family had dubbed it. She really didn’t want to be in school. But four weeks was long enough, and she was only delaying the inevitable now, wasn’t she?

Biana sighed, patting her backpack in her lap, as if that would make it any better. The way her mother would glance at her every few seconds really wasn’t helping. After the seventh time, she heaved a deep sigh, turning to look at Della.

“Mom, I’ll be fine.”

Della nodded, blinking fast as if trying to keep her tears from flowing. “I know, I just—it’s hard.” Biana took her mother’s hand in hers, squeezing it lightly. Della squeezed back, and Biana felt her stomach drop just a little. They pulled into the school parking lot, and Biana half-expected Della not to let go of her hand.

But her mother gave it one last squeeze and cleared her throat. “You ready?”

Biana painted a smile on her face, trying not to let her nervousness show. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

Della glanced at her daughter, her eyes scanning her face for the truth.

“You’ll be okay.”

This time Biana’s smile was real. Moms. “I sure will.”

With that, she hopped out of the car, yelling an “I love you” over her shoulder and making her way into the building.

Biana strolled into the hallway, trying to look confident, but that was hard. It was so much worse than she imagined it to be. Everyone fell silent, watching her quietly as she made her way to her locker. The same routine felt so wrong. She emptied her backpack and gathered the books she needed, hundreds of pairs of eyes on her as she did. Quietly watching, waiting.

She made her way through each and every class, her confidence crumbling as the day went on. Every single teacher would say something. Whether they offer their condolences, or excitedly welcome her back, it made Biana sick. Because those stares and quiet?

They became whispers.

She could hear them as she rushed down the halls, no matter how much she tried to block them out.

           “Car crash…”

           “Brother…”

           “Stoner…”

           “…Dead.”

           “Scars.”

           That one hurt the most for some reason. It itched and burned, and it made Biana pull up her shirt. Invisible paranoia gripped her as she roamed the halls. She ate lunch in the bathroom and went out of her way to avoid everyone.

           It was awful.

           Soon, it was the next day, then the next, then the next, and soon, a week had passed, and nothing had gotten better. In fact, it’d gotten worse.

           The whispers turned to murmurs, when finally, someone confronted her about it.

           “What happened?” A girl asked, her snooty voice devoid of any empathy.

           “It’s none of your business,” Biana snapped.

           The girl’s eyes widened a little. “I was just asking, jeez.”

           People started avoiding her. A path was now cleared around her wherever she walked. People still watched, they whispered, they gossiped. And Biana wasn’t sure it would ever get better. Her life was ruined after this. That stupid wreck. Stupid life. Stupid scars.

           “I’d hate to be her soulmate,” A guy said loudly to who Biana assumed to be his partner. The girl nodded, and her nose wrinkled in disgust.

           “Yeah—I bet they have flowers all over their body. I wonder if they cover it up. I would if I were them.”

           Biana bit the inside of her cheek to stay quiet. She wanted to scream, to cry, to curl up in a ball and pretend to never exist. But she just stood there, her eyes cast down at the ground.

           “Hey, how ‘bout you shut the fuck up?”

           Biana’s head whipped to the sound of the voice.

           A familiar blonde stood, a few of what must’ve been her friends behind her.

           “Because Biana has a personality, and an amazing brain. Both of which seem to be something you’re lacking,” Sophie said, her eyes cold as she glared at the guy. “So, I’ll lay it down simply for your microscopic brain to understand.”

           “Biana Vacker,” She started, “is someone you wish you could be. Unfortunately for you, copying someone else isn’t cool. But the hoity toity stuck up spawn of Satan meeting is over there if you want to go where you belong.”

           Gasps could be heard from the crowd, but no one said a word. The two who Sophie called out left quite quickly, murmuring something under their breath as they bolted away. But the fact that Sophie had stuck up for her wasn’t the thing that left Biana speechless.

           It was what she was wearing.

           Hanging on her shoulders was a bright red tank top, with skinny straps that showed most of her shoulders. The fact that it was against the dress code was Un-Sophie enough. But it was what the shirt showed. Biana supposed she should have known that Sophie would get tattoos from her scars, but she hadn’t thought it’d be something so… dramatic. Weaving their way up her upper arms and making their way all the way up her neck were tattoos of flowers. Bright yellow sunflowers. The stems and flowers themselves were thick, winding all the way around her upper body.

           Biana stood in shock, waiting for Sophie to say something, but she just met Biana’s gaze and spun around, the crowd of students swallowing her and her friends as she left.

 “Why are you doing this?” Biana vehemently asked when they were alone.

Sophie turned halfway to look at her, still putting her books in her locker. “What?”

“Why are you showing off… that,” Biana said, the disgust prominent in her voice. Her hands self consciously flew up to her shoulders. She crossed her arms over her chest, as if her scars weren’t already covered.

Sophie stopped what she was doing, turning to look Biana dead in the eye. “Because they’re beautiful, and I think people should know that.”

It took Biana a moment to realize that she wasn’t just talking about the scars.

She shifted a bit, unsure of how to answer. Sophie’s expression softened, and her shoulders loosened.

“Do you wanna hang out after school?”

Biana blinked, caught off guard by the question. She opened her mouth to say No, she couldn’t just use this as an excuse to get close to Biana. But for the first time she looked at Sophie. She really looked at her. Her blonde hair fell just past her shoulders, and her brown eyes were filled with hope and… fear. A light blush covered her face, and Biana was starting to wonder if that was a permanent feature.

So, she tilted her head, and to the surprise of both of them said, “Yes.”

-

Biana strolled out to the soccer goal, where they’d agreed to meet. Sophie was already waiting for her, punctual as always. Biana had informed her family about the arrangement. Not going into many details, instead just saying she was going out with a friend.

She walked up to Sophie, who was still wearing that stupid tank top, showing off the flowers that covered her whole body. It hurt a little, but it also felt oddly good. That one of them was able to be brave. They weren’t Sophie’s scars, Biana supposed, but the sunflowers fit her.

Sophie cleared her throat nervously. “I was thinking we could walk downtown?”

Biana blinked, shaking her head a little. “Uh sure. What do you wanna do there?”

A nervous smile broke out on Sophie’s face. “You’ll see.”

Biana raised an eyebrow, and she had to admit, Sophie had peaked her interest.

She returned the smile, and Sophie’s eyes lit up with mischief. Abruptly, she took Biana’s wrist in her hand, grabbing her bag and dragging Biana after her.

So, behind a crazy blonde, Biana sprinted her way downtown, the early spring air burning her lungs and making her eyes water. Before she knew it, a laugh bubbled its way out of her mouth at the pure ridiculousness of it.

Finally, Sophie stopped just short of Main Street, and they both leaned over, panting. After catching her breath, Biana looked over at Sophie.

“I thought you said we were gonna walk?”

Sophie let out a breathy laugh. “This way’s faster.”

She sat up, her breathing still heavy. “Have you ever been to the Record Exchange?”

 The Record Exchange was what it sounded like. It was a record store. But before Biana could say a word, Sophie lead her to the back, where the weirdest little gift shop she’d ever seen stood. Next to it was a café, with a few tables scattered about. The shop itself was a sort of modern look, grey bricks and ivy growing on the ceiling. Neon signs pointed to pick up and pay lines to the café, and posters of all types of bands filled the walls.

Sophie and Biana wandered around the little gift shop, filled with funny graphic t-shirts, and silly socks. Jewelry, stuffed animals, notebooks, and even pride flags stocked the shelves. Biana even pulled out a lesbian one, wringing it up with her drink and coffee cake.

She felt herself relax a little, as they sat down. Sophie sipped on her hot chocolate, talking about small things like friends and school and her parents.

Biana listened politely, interjecting, and talking whenever the need came.

“Why do you hate me?”

Biana blinked slowly, her eyebrows furrowing at Sophie’s out of place question.

“What?”

“What did I do to make you hate me?” Sophie asked genuinely, her head tilting a little to the side as she did.

Biana bit her lip and looked away, thinking. They sat in silence for a moment, Sophie waiting patiently. Finally, Biana sighed, trying to prepare her words in a way that wouldn’t offend Sophie.

“I don’t hate you. I just… didn’t want to get in the way.”

“In the way?” Sophie echoed.

“With you and my brother,” Biana clarified, watching Sophie carefully.

But Sophie did something completely unexpected. She laughed. Not just a giggle, she wheezed, laughing until her eyes watered. Biana sat incredibly still, confused.

“Y-you thought I—with Fitz?” She said between fits of laughter.

Biana’s eyebrows furrowed. “Uh…yes?”

Sophie snorted. “Biana. I’ve had a crush on you since we were seven.”

Biana opened her mouth. Then closed it. Then opened it again. She quite honestly had no idea how to respond to that.

“Of course!” Sophie said, making Biana look at her again. “You definitely don’t have to feel the same way. I was just—I was curious why you didn’t—I’m gonna stop talking now.”

Biana laughed a little, and she couldn’t help the wide smile that crept its way up her face. For the first time in a while, Biana was happy.

Sophie rambled about a lot of different things as they walked out of the small store, and Biana soon found herself joining in on the things she enjoyed. She ended up explaining how soccer worked to Sophie, who, while still a little confused, listened intently. She was a good listener, Biana realized.

But even with hours of talking, Biana’s feet all too soon led her back to her house, and Sophie stood at the front door with her, both girls smiling widely.

The stars were out, and the only thing illuminating Sophie’s form was the house light, which Della must have left on for her daughter.

Sophie gave her a smile, and bid Biana a small goodbye, before turning and walking home. Watching Sophie’s retreating form, Biana felt a small part of her deflate a little. Before thinking through her decision, she called out.

“Sophie!”

The blonde turned around, facing Biana.

“Would you um… wanna do this again sometime?”

Sophie’s laugh rang in Biana’s ear, a melodic sound that she wished she could hear more.

“I’d love that!”

With that, Sophie left, disappearing into the night, leaving Biana standing at the front porch of her house, feeling like a fool. She could hear commotion inside the house, most likely one of her family members realized she was home. But Biana still didn’t move from her place on the porch. She felt her lips turn upward in a smile.

“Me too.”

[archived-and-moving]

Lil’ Dadwin Thing

@gay-otlc

(I figured this would be better than doing it in an ask.)

Final Word Count: 986

TW: I don’t think there’s much, just minor cursing.

Notes: I personally had a really shitty day, and I think we can all agree that dadwin always makes it better. 

“And you’re sure?”

“I don’t know Keefe; I haven’t been to the Forbidden Cities in years.”

Keefe rolled his eyes. “I’d be better of asking Dex. Oh, or Fitz.”

Sophie scowled on the imparter.

“Yeah? Well, you should’ve asked either of them. I’m busy with Team Valiant stuff anyway.”

Before Keefe could respond, Sophie hung up.

They sighed. He’d just have to hope she was right.

-

Keefe’s tongue stuck out like a five-year-old, and he smiled, just putting on some of the finishing touches to the painting. It was perfect. It had to be. Or—well. His smile fell as they lost themself in thought.

It wouldn’t really matter, they supposed. Elwin wouldn’t mind either way. But Keefe wanted it to be perfect, so that was what really mattered. The sound of footsteps made him freeze.

The uneven gate made him relax a little, but they still hurried to cover up their gift. Just as Keefe hid the painting, a knock sounded at the door.

“Keefe?” Elwin asked, poking his head in Keefe’s room.

Keefe struggled to look innocent. “Yeah?”

“It’s time for dinner,” He started, looking a little nervous. “I borrowed an old T.V. from Juline, and I was thinking we could watch some human movies together? Unless you don’t want to of course! I totally get that you mi-“

“That sounds great, actually,” Keefe interrupted.

Elwin’s face lit up with the dopiest grin. “Ok! I’ll set it up. And you can finish- whatever you were doing in here,” he said with a dubious look.

Keefe smiled sheepishly. “Okay.”

Elwin closed the door behind him, and Keefe uncovered the painting again. They took a deep breath; I can do this.

-

The two had a delicious dinner consisting of soupy broth and watched a hilarious human movie that they may have made fun of a little too relentlessly.

Keefe hadn’t laughed this much since, well, ever, really.

But the butterflies followed him relentlessly. Every time he turned to look at Elwin’s face, his heart stuttered. What if he didn’t like it?

Keefe shook his head. No. Elwin will love it. Or pretend to. Either way, it’ll be fine.

The thought by itself scared Keefe, so they instead excused themself up to their room. Elwin had simply smiled and nodded, thanking Keefe for spending time with him. That action alone puzzled Keefe as he climbed the stairs.

Opening his room door with a peak, he glanced at where his present was sitting. Should they wrap it? No. It would just delay the inevitable.

Keefe grabbed it and faced it toward him so Elwin wouldn’t see what it was.

Slowly and shakily, Keefe descended the stairs, wondering if he was really ready. But even before they had fully asked themself the question, he knew the answer was yes.

Elwin felt more like family than anyone else had. More than both of his parents, that was for sure.

Keefe cleared their throat, and Elwin turned from where he was doing dishes. The painting was still blocked by the kitchen island between them, so it didn’t look out of the ordinary. Keefe leaned it against the wall and took a deep breath.

Except for Keefe’s expression, which was clearly giving him away.

“Hey Kid, you doin’ okay?” Elwin asked, drying his hands, and looking back at Keefe.

“Uh yeah. So, Sophie mentioned this thing. In the Forbidden Cities that humans do,” Elwin raised his eyebrow, clearly curious.

“She said it was this holiday thing, that was actually today. I think,” He added, their brows furrowing. “I don’t know, she said something about different calendars and years but, uh. It’s called Family Day.”

Elwin’s eyes widened in surprise.

“And. You’re my family. The best family I’ve ever had, much better than either of my parents. Which is kind of a low bar, but you’ve jumped way over it, so mu-“ Keefe stopped, looking down at his feet.

“I’ll stop rambling but,” Keefe half-smiled, his eyes blurry as he looked at Elwin. “I love you, Dad.”

Elwin didn’t say anything for a second, and Keefe’s thoughts caught up with him. Shit. Had they gone too far?

But Elwin made a choked noise, and he scrambled to where Keefe was standing, throwing his arms around them.

Keefe froze. This. This was something he’d never experienced before. And it was so, so…

Nice?

Welcoming?

Loving?

Whatever word it was, he sank into the hug, wrapping their arms around Elwin and silently cursing themself for the tears that had made their way down his cheeks.

After a moment, Elwin cleared his throat and pulled back.

“I love you too, Keefe,” he said, letting out a choked laugh as he scrubbed at his face.

“I just- you’re such a good kid, you know that? I’m so glad that you’re my family.”

Keefe promised themself they wouldn’t cry again, but a few tears slipped free. He sniffled, glancing down at his feet, when their eyes caught the painting, leaning against the wall.

“Oh! I didn’t even give you the gift!” He exclaimed, turning the painting around so that Elwin could see it.

They placed it on the counter, taking a step back. The painting was of the two of them in Atlantis, both of their faces lit up with joy.

Keefe remembered that day really well. Elwin was showing him a small parade. Only about fifty elves attended, but it was where they got their genderfluid flag, which was now hanging in his room.

Elwin hooked his arm around Keefe’s shoulders. They looked up, and Elwin smiled, his eyes still misty.

“I’ll stop being so sappy,” He promised, his eyes crinkling a little. “Just give me a sec.”

They stood in a comfortable silence for a moment before Elwin ruffled Keefe’s hair.

Keefe gasped in mock-offense. “How dare you touch the hair.”

Elwin snorted. “C’mon you knucklehead, let’s go figure out where to hang this.”

[archived-and-moving]

Can I Borrow A Pencil?

Read it here on Ao3

TW: Minor Verbal Abuse and ableism, but I think that’s it.

Word Count: 1.7k

Summary: Biana Vacker is having a terrible, horrible, no good, day.Ae couldn’t tell what it is that makes it so- awful. But it fills aer with boiling annoyance at every moment that ae has to suffer through.

Notes: It’s Bianuca week, bitches. I pulled this one out last minute, so if it’s royally bad, that’s probably why.

Biana Vacker is having a terrible, horrible, no good, day.

Ae couldn’t tell what it is that makes it so- awful. But it fills aer with boiling annoyance at every moment that ae has to suffer through.

First, it’s aer teacher’s nasally voice that makes Biana want to deck him in the face.

The way his head tilts upwards, and the smug look on his face when ae gets a question wrong. And the way that he writes his notes, making his movements as dramatic as possible, just so that Biana knows what he’s doing.

He’s writing to aer father.

Because that’s what Alden had asked him to do after all, to tell him what he needed to teach his daughter. But all of them knew that wasn’t the case. Biana scowled at the thought of going home.

Aer father would yell at aer.

The pencil that ae had been holding against the table with a shaking fist snaps, the extra graphite chipping off and falling onto the floor. Aer professor snorts, tapping his hands to the desk as he scribbles down more of Biana’s failures.

Then it’s the noises of the hallway.

The bright bubbling laughter and the sound of conversation and the jostling of shoulders and the slam of lockers. It makes Biana’s head want to explode and ae hates it here. More than anything in the world. Ae would give up everything to trade positions with Fitz right now, wherever he is.

Ae’re not even to lunch yet, and everyone in aer immediate vicinity is giving aer a headache. Especially aer “friends” who chat away about something. Ae can’t afford to focus on what it is right now, or else ae might actually lose aer cool.

Biana also manages to bump into Marella, who gives aer a withering glare that makes the back of Biana’s neck burn in shame. Ae drop aer eyes to the ground, and all of the bubbling anger turns to heavy shame, that weighs aer down like a rock, deep within aer stomach.

Bad time to run into an ex, Biana realizes as ae rushes off to ability detecting. If today had started off as a bad day, then it had progressed into the worst day. Biana feels like absolute shit. Aer legs hurt from tackle bramble and ae don’t smell good because of gym and aer teacher hates them and aer friends don’t care and it’s aer fault that Marella’s mad and now they have a pop quiz in ability detecting of all classes and Biana just broke aer last fucking pencil.

Ae groan, gently plopping aer head down on aer desk to let the smooth wood cool aer down.

Biana gives aerself three deep breaths to completely break down. Ae can feel the tears burning at the corners of aer eyes, and aer breathing get shallower as ae fiddle with the bottom of aer cape, brushing aer fingers against the rough blue fabric.

Then suddenly it stops.

Not aer mental breakdown of course, that will have to wait until Biana can release it at home, but all signs of physical distress are gone, and Biana lifts aer head up from the desk, plastering a smile on aer face.

Nothing is wrong of course, because Biana is a Vacker, and Vackers are perfect.

The teacher is passing out the pop quizzes, and the world goes on as if nothing happened. As if Biana isn’t suffering, as if it doesn’t care. (It doesn’t.)

Before the teacher can get to their area, Biana pokes the person sitting in front of aer, waiting for them to turn around so that ae can ask them if ae can borrow a pencil.

After two taps, the girl turns around, her braided hair whipping behind her as she turns to look Biana in the eye.

As soon as they make eye contact, Biana freezes, looking down at aer hands.

Shit.

Ae cannot do people. Ae suck at talking and looking people in the eyes. This was a very bad idea.

           “Biana look at me while I’m talking. Chin up!” The ghost of a hand grabs aer chin, wrenching aer head up high.

           Vackers stand tall.

           “Spit it out! If you want something, you have to tell me.”

           “Speak up, child! I can’t hear anything when you mumble like that.”

           Vackers speak clearly.

           Biana focuses on the tone of aer voice, hoping it carries over the noise of the rest of the class. Ae try to make it smooth, like it’s nothing out of aer day to ask a simple question and receive and even simpler answer.

           “Can I borrow a pencil?”

           Biana stops breathing for the millisecond it takes the other girl to respond.

           “Sure.”

           She turns around in her seat and starts rummaging through her bag, looking for her pencil case presumably. Biana smiles, at least ae can do one thing right.

           After a moment, the girl turns back, her brows a little lower on her forehead as she hands the pencil off to Biana, giving it up with fragile fingers.

           Their hands touch while holding the pencil, and red alarm sirens go off in Biana’s little brain. Knock it off. Ae think to aerself as ae take the pencil, shifting it to aer left hand.

           “It’s a Raptors pencil, from one of their games. I hope you don’t mind.”

           Biana’s face lights up. “Really?”

           The girl nods enthusiastically, her braids bobbing up and down with her head. “Do you like ‘em?”

           Like them? The Raptors are Biana’s favorite bramble team of all time. Ae had been trying to beg aer parents to take aer to a match for years now. Ae could name all of the team and their positions in aer sleep.

           Ae open aer mouth but shut it again. “I-my brother. My brother really likes them.”

           The girl’s smile drops a bit. “Oh.”

           Biana feels aer stomach drop with it. Why were ae so bad at life?

           The girl turns around without another word, and Biana tries to focus on the test in front of aer, but how can ae think about the properties of being a froster when ae could be thinking about fast-paced bramble games?

           Ae had wanted to join Foxfire’s bramble team ever since ae first attended, but it was only there for level three and up. Biana’s parents would never let aer join anyway however, since Bramble was just a silly pastime to stay active.

           But Biana could dream.

           Ae rein aer thoughts back in toward the paper instead of aer future.

           Ae got this. Piece of cake.

           Ae stumble aer way through the quiz and finish the last question right as the bell rings, gathering up aer stuff and turning in aer paper at the door.

           Staring at a piece of paper for so long is starting to make aer eyes throb, and the florescent lighting really isn’t helping the pounding behind aer head. But just before ae make another turn, ae feel the weight of something in aer left hand.

           Ae look down, wondering why ae didn’t put the pencil in aer bag, when aer eye catches on the blue bird symbol.

           It wasn’t aer pencil.

           Biana’s head whips upward, aer gaze scanning over the mess of students excitedly heading to lunch. Even though ae’re in the First Level wing, the bustling activity makes it hard to pick out the one that ae’re looking for.

           Just as Biana’s about to give up, the bobbing of dark brown braids catches aer eye, and ae take off in the direction of the girl, weaving through the throng of students as ae run, going against the flow of foot traffic.

           Ae try to apologize to the strawberry blond ae bump, but instead decide to keep moving, forcing aer way through groups in the bustling hallways until ae finally make it to the girl’s locker, where she’s already started putting her stuff away.

           Her crest pops out against the dark color of her uniform, and she’s about to close her locker door.

           “Wait!”

           Biana rushes forward, aer hand outstretched toward the other girl, who’s just about to slam her locker shut.

           Her face reads that of confusion for a second, frozen by the half-desperate call in her direction. Biana holds out the pencil to her, and her face lights up with recognition.

           She takes the pencil, shoving it into her locker without another look over her shoulder.

           “Thanks, that would have sucked, having to open it again.”

           Biana nods. “Especially with it being Elwin’s choice today.”

           The girl’s nose crinkles as she thinks about it. Reekrod probably wouldn’t be pleasant to taste right before eating, Biana thinks to aerself.

           But ae don’t say anything out loud, for the fear of making something awkward.

           The girl smiles. “Uh… thanks for giving it back to me.” She turns, holding her lunch bag in her hands and starting to walk away.

           “Kora Logner,” Biana blurts.

           The girl stops.

           “Kora Logner is the best on the Raptors because of her speed and accuracy, which increases because of her ability to phase through walls. She’s not the most popular by any means but that give her a good advantage if you ask me.”

           By some miracle, the ramblings make the girl turn around, and Biana can’t believe it. No one has ever really… know that and listened. Fitz had known, but he didn’t listen, laughing and ruffling aer hair at what she thought, telling aer that bramble wasn’t aer thing.

           But the girl? She turns around, with a dazzling smile plastered onto her face.

           “Is that so?”

           Biana meekly nods, gulping as the girl takes one step closer.

           She throws her head back and laughs, and Biana’s scared for a second, thinking that she’ll make fun of aer.

           “I thought I was the only one that thought that.”

           The girl sticks out her hand, “Maruca Chebota.”

           Biana smiles, taking it. “Biana Vacker.”

           “Well, Biana, would you like to sit with me at lunch? I’d love to hear what your brother taught you about the Raptors.”

           Biana giggles at the way Maruca wiggles her eyebrows.

           Maybe today isn’t the worst, Biana thinks as Maruca excitedly tells aer about her tackle bramble strategy. Maybe ae just need someone to listen.

[archived-and-moving]

Take My Love (For My Love is Everlasting)

Read it on Ao3 here

Word Count: 4,110

TW: Just in case, there are a few minor swears here, but if there’s anything else let me know.

Notes: I just wanted more of this ship’s dynamic, so I wrote some myself.

Summary: Linh Song was perfectly content on her own... that is, until Marella Redek comes into her shop. She gets to have an experience of a lifetime, and find new feelings on the way.

Or Linh meets three cute idiots and falls in love with all of them.

Linh Song loved flowers.

That’s probably why one of the first things she did when she moved out was buy a flower shop. She loved helping the people who wandered into her shop. Some of them were looking for a specific message to convey with the flowers. Others couldn’t care less about what they meant and picked them for aesthetic purposes only.

Marella was one of those people. Linh remembered the first time she’d wandered into the little shop that Linh resided in. And she remembered how she was trimming the roses when the petite blonde had opened the door.

She’d been distracted by the way the sun reflected on the girl’s rosy face. She even stabbed herself with a thorn.

She hissed quietly before approaching the other girl. “How can I help you today?” She asked, gripping her hand.

The other girl looked up, her ice-blue eyes making Linh’s heart stop. “I’m just looking around.” She stated with a small smile.

“O-oh okay. Just, uh, holler if you need me.” Linh responded.

The girl nodded and turned to look at some tiger lilies.

Linh turned around and bolted to the back room. She grabbed a paper towel to stop the bleeding on her hand and plopped down onto a stool with a heavy sigh. What was wrong with her?

She was never this caught off guard by a costumers, ever. Not even the rude, or frankly, good looking ones.

None of them compared to this girl.

She sighed again before dismissing those stupid thoughts with a shake of her head. She stood up and went out to the counter, where she saw the girl moving towards the register.

Perfect timing.

The girl was checking out with calla lilies, cornflower, and orchids. She started ringing the girl up and decided to start a light conversation.

“Just coming through this part of town?”

The girl nodded. “Yeah, a couple of my friends have a dress rehearsal downtown tonight, so I came down here to kill some time. A flower shop seemed like a perfect place to stop by.” She added with a small smile.

Linh’s stomach did a weird sort of fluttery thing.

She cleared her throat. “A dress rehearsal, like a play?”

“Actually, they’re doing a musical.”

Linh’s eyebrows shot up. “Really? Which one?”

“Les Mis.”

“Wow, I love that musical! That’s so cool that they’re talented enough to play parts in it.”

The girl smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Yeah, one of them even landed a lead role.”

Linh grinned. “That’s great!”

She was still cutting the flowers’ stems when the conversation faded. She was determined to keep her eyes focused on the flowers instead of the beautiful blonde.

“What made you want to open a flower shop?” Linh looked up to meet the other girl’s eyes.

Dammit. She promised herself she wouldn’t do that.

“I-I’ve always loved flowers. Even when I was younger. So, as soon as I graduated, I knew that I wanted to pursue that as a career.” Linh responded, her eyes darting back down to the stems she was trying to even out.

The other girl nodded before pulling out a piece of paper and a pen from her purse. She scribbled something down before handing it to Linh.

“My friends are in town for another couple nights, so if you maybe wanted to go to a show with me? I think I could get us backstage passes for opening night.” She added quickly, as Linh read the paper.

The Carolina Theatre

309 W Morgan St.

123-456-7890

Marella Redek

Linh looked up to see Marella looking at her feet with pink dusting her face. “Of course, only if you want to.”

Linh smiled. “I’d love to.”

And with that, she let Marella pay for her flowers and watched her leave, only one thought in her head.

What had just happened?

-

“She invited you to go on a date, dumbass.” Tam said, with a sip of his coffee.

The twins had met in a bustling café a few blocks away from Linh’s flower shop. She rolled her eyes.

“Tam, there’s no way she’s into girls. Especially a girl she just me-”

“Hold on,” He interrupted. “Let me get this straight, or, gay, not the point. A girl came into your shop, bought some flowers, gave you her number, and invited you to go hang out with her. Someone you’ve never met and have no established common interests that she’d befriend you over.”

Linh blushed and looked away. “Maybe I just got the events wrong. Because there was nothing -nothing-” She insisted when Tam gave her a look. “That could have been taken in more than a friendly manner.”

She took a sip of her tea, silently daring Tam to challenge her. He shrugged, seeming to drop the subject, which Linh was grateful for.

“Are you going to go?” He asked.

“What?”

“Are you going to go to the show?” He clarified, rolling his eyes.

She thought for a second. “Yeah. I think I will.”

He nodded. “Well, you better text her then. I have to go anyways, I can only trust Keefe with the shop for so long.”

He stood up, taking his coffee with him. “Good luck with your girl problems.”

She opened her mouth to protest, but he was gone before she could even say anything.

She sighed and took another sip of her drink before begrudgingly deciding to listen to him. She took out her phone and hovered over Marella’s number for a minute or so.

Linh steeled her nerves and clicked on the contact.

Linh: Hey, I’d love to take you up on that offer.

Her breath caught as she watched those dreaded three little dots on the screen.

Marella: Awesome! I had my friend talk to the director, and he was fine with it. So, do you want to meet at your shop before the show?

Linh: Sure! What time does the show start?

Marella: It starts at 6:30, but we have to be there at 4:15.

Linh: Okay, do you want to meet me at my shop at around 3:30? That should give me enough time to close up.

Marella: Sounds good.

Linh: Also, completely unrelated but, what’s your favorite animal?

Marella: Hmm… That’s hard, but I’d say a dolphin. Any reason why?

Linh clicked out of her messages and searched up pictures of dolphins, screenshotting one and saving it as Marella’s contact photo and sending her a picture.

Linh: Screenshot_2_35_32

Linh: I give everyone contacts of their favorite animals.

Marella: Aww, that’s really cute.

Linh: Well, I’ll see you tomorrow!

She quickly turned off her phone as her face heated up. Yeah, she was definitely regretting drinking tea. She slid out of the booth, recycling her cup on the way out.

She pushed her way outside, welcoming the brisk evening air. She shoved her hands in her pockets, lost in thought as she weaved her way through the busy streets.

Marella thought she was cute?

For some reason, her brain was stuck on that. She tried to shove the thought away with logic. No, she just thought that the dolphin, or the action itself was cute. But her stupid brain wouldn’t listen.

She thinks you’re cute. She thinks you’re cute. Shethinksyou’recute.Shethinksyou’recute.

She made a final turn into her apartment building and laughed to herself. She was seriously falling for a girl that she had just met.

Linh walked into the apartment, and unfortunately, Biana was waiting for her. She didn’t say that because she didn’t like Biana, quite the opposite really. They had been childhood best friends, and that meant that she knew Linh almost as well as she knew herself.

So, when Linh stumbled into their apartment, still starstruck and remnants of a blush on her face, Biana took her in, and with her hands on her hips, said one word,

“Spill.”  

-

“She invited you to go to a show with her?!” Biana squealed.

Linh nodded, the back of her neck prickling with embarrassment.

“Which one?”

“Uh, Les Mis.”

“What?!”

Linh closed her eyes for longer than a second. Biana was a huge Broadway nerd, and the only reason Linh knew anything about Les Mis was because Biana had pretty much forced her to listen to some of the songs. And to her singing some of the songs. And to her ranting about the songs.

She knew the whole plot but had never seen the whole musical before.

Biana flopped back on the bed with a groan. “I’ve been trying to drop Sophie hints for weeks now, and a literal stranger is taking you to the opening night of Les Mis.”

Linh chuckled, scratching the back of her neck. “She also got us backstage passes.”

“SHE WHAT?!” Biana yelled.

Linh couldn’t hold herself together anymore and started cracking up as Biana groaned louder.

Biana took one look at Linh, almost at the verge of crying, and started laughing too.

After a few minutes of the two of them losing their shit, they both finally calmed down.

“I’m expecting pictures, and autographs.” Biana demanded, poking Linh in the chest.

Linh nodded and mock-saluted. “Yes Ma’am.”

Biana sighed. “Well, you have an exciting day ahead of you. I’ll go and sulk in my bedroom.”

Linh laughed. “Goodnight, Bi.”

Biana smiled. “‘Night, Linh. You have to show me where you find your choice in women.”

Linh buried her face in her hands and uttered a muffled “Shut up.”

With that, Biana left, leaving Linh alone in the dark. She rolled over and let the lulling darkness pull her away. Dreams of ice-blue eyes welcomed her.

-

Linh paced back and forth, her anxiety growing as the clock ticked slowly closer to 3:30. She had closed the shop at 2:45 to prepare herself physically and mentally for a night with Marella.

She’d decided to wear dress clothes, nothing too overly formal, but not casual either. She also had a cardigan because Biana said that theatres get cold.

She’d thought about bringing Marella flowers, but decided against it, as she was pretty sure that Tam and Biana were just getting in her head. Finally, when she thought that she was going to die from anticipation, she heard the welcome bell ring and bolted into the main part of the store.

There Marella stood, small braids still woven in her hair with a confident expression and two backstage passes clutched in her hand. She flicked her hair over her shoulder, and Linh felt those stupid butterflies when her beautiful eyes locked with her own.

Marella strode forward to meet Linh halfway.

“I was thinking we could walk to the theater from here.” She stated as she handed Linh her pass.

Linh nodded. “That sounds good.”

“Oh, and those friends that I was talking about? We were planning on getting some food after the show’s over, and I was wondering if you wanted to come with us? If not that’s totally fine, I have my car parked over by the theater so I could drop you off afterwards.”

Linh blinked. “Where would we go?”

“This place a couple blocks away, uh, Black Swan Pizza, I think.”

A vague memory of Biana’s takeout with a swan logo filled her mind. She remembered that she had said they had really good pizza.

She bit her lip before deciding, screw it, she needed more human interaction. “Sure.”

“It’s totally fine if you aren’t comfortable or don’t want to. I’m sorry I kind of sprung it on you last minute, that was a total jerk move on my-”

“Marella, it’s fine.” Linh interrupted. Offering the girl a small smile. “I’d say no if I wasn’t comfortable, and I kind of want to meet these friends.”

Marella nodded and looked down at her feet. “We should probably get headed before the streets get too crowded.”

Linh grinned. “Lead the way.”

-

As it turns out, stages are much bigger than Linh thought they were. She, Marella, and a couple other people were getting a backstage tour of how everything worked, and soon they’d get to meet some of the actors. She noticed Marella’s eyes scanning the different parts of the stage, watching closely for her friends.

Linh watched as her eyes locked on a target, and noticeably softened. She had a strange feeling in her gut but pushed it away and followed Marella’s gaze. She felt a blush rise up her face. In front of her was one of the most beautiful women she had ever seen. Her dark, thick hair had been braided, and put into a neat bun on the top of her head. Her earthy brown skin shone in the spotlights and- Linh tore her gaze away from the actor. She tried to tune into the tour guide’s words.

“Les Misérables is one of the longest running musicals that still tours and was based on a novel-” The words were going in one ear and out another. She tried to listen no she didn’t, but her brain was too caught up in the fact that there was another pretty girl.

What was happening to her?

Don’t get her wrong, growing up she always found girls to be attractive, but had never truly fallen in love before. Was that what this was? Love?

It couldn’t be. You couldn’t love a person you’d barely met. Let alone two.

A soft nudge broke her out of her bubble of anxious thoughts.

“Hey,” Marella whispered. “Are you okay?” She pulled back and fixed Linh with a concerned look.

“You look like you’re trying to figure out how to solve world hunger over there.”

Linh cleared her throat. “Y-yeah. I’m fine.”

Marella looked unimpressed.

“I’ve just- I’ve never really been into a theater before, so being backstage is a little overwhelming.” She winced at the little half-truth. She couldn’t tell Marella what she was really thinking about.

“Sorry, I had no idea.”

“No-no it’s good! Well not that- the idea itself was great! I just, I get overwhelmed by being in public, but this is cool, hanging out with you. Or, doing cool things also with you, it’s not like I-” She closed her mouth.

“I’m going to stop talking now.”

Marella laughed. “It’s fine, I get it. Words are hard.”

Linh nodded. “Agreed.”

They both turned back to the tour guide, who was introducing a few of the actors. The one who Linh made a fool of herself looking at was one of them.

“This is Maruca Chebota,” The tour guide introduced. “She’ll be playing Cosette.”

The girl waved. “As Elwin was saying, I’m playing Cosette. It’s thrilling to be cast as her, since growing up and listening to Les Mis, she was my all-time favorite character.”

Marella raised her hand, and Maruca turned to call on her.

“Is it because she’s your type?” Marella asked lightly.

Maruca straightened. Luckily, the tour guide, or Elwin, as Maruca called him, had led most of the group away. However, the tech team was right next to them, so the question brought a bunch of snickers.

The girl raised her hand and made a particularly crude gesture at a specific strawberry blond.

“Shut up, Dex.”

She turned back to Marella. “I’m not the one who had a crush on Angelica Schuyler.”

Marella gasped and mockingly put a hand on her heart. “You dare expose me in this horrible way!”

Maruca opened her mouth to say something but before she could, Marella dragged Linh into the conversation.

“Maruca, this is Linh. Linh, Maruca.”

Linh felt her heartbeat quicken as the other girl’s honey gaze rested on her. She was able to choke out a “nice to meet you” before Maruca was dragged away by a brunette.

She silently thanked the universe.

They ran back up to where Elwin was telling everyone to go to their seats, and that the show was starting.

Marella, in all her glory, had gotten them some pretty damn good seats for opening night, and although they weren’t in the front row, they could see the stage perfectly.

There was a quiet buzz as the lights started to dim, but it quieted when a voice came on, telling everyone to quiet their cellphones.

She got herself comfortable, and out of the corner of her eye saw Marella do the same.

-

Linh was much more interested in a musical taking place during the French Revolution than she thought she would be. But she still couldn’t find Marella’s other friend.

Of course, it was entirely possible that they had already been on stage, but Marella still seemed to be anticipating something. They were already most of the way through Act I.

Finally, after revealing that the main character was going to go pick up Cosette from her home, Linh felt her face flush.

What.

Was.

Going.

On?

Another girl walked out from the house with the other two foster parents, and Linh felt her heart leap. Her beautiful curly hair bounced on her shoulders as she strode across the stage. Admittedly, her character was a jerk to Maruca. But the two of them had this dynamic that she just couldn’t explain. The way that they played off one another’s lines with the seriousness that they did, it was enamoring to watch.

She settled down again to watch the play, but this time she wasn’t as relaxed. She could feel prickles down her back as she watched the show go on.

-

Finally, the whole cast came from backstage and bowed. Linh, along with the rest of the audience, jumped to her feet to give them a standing ovation. She had tears in her eyes at the bittersweet ending of the play and had thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing.

She was totally going to rub this in Biana’s face later.

At the moment however, she was too focused on following Marella backstage. The blonde girl turned around and realized that Linh was having trouble keeping up with her. So, she stopped until Linh caught up and grabbed her hand before half-dragging Linh through the now-dispersing crowd.

Before she knew it, the two were backstage, where all the actors were winding down from their performance. To Linh’s dismay, Marella let go of her hand and led the way to where Maruca and the curly-haired girl from before were waiting.

“Guys, that was amazing!” Marella gushed as soon as they were in earshot.

The two girls whipped their heads to the sound of Marella’s voice.

The curly-haired girl smirked. “I’m glad you liked it. Who’s this?” She asked, referring to Linh.

Marella rolled her eyes. “I’m getting there. Stina, this is Linh, she’s the one I bought the flowers from.”

Stina’s eyes lit up. “Oh, those calla lilies were beautiful.”

Linh blushed. “Yeah, they’re one of my favorites.”

Maruca nodded in agreement. “Listen, I really don’t mean to be rude in the slightest, but I am starving. Could we talk about this when we get food?”

Marella snorted.

Stina stood up and nudged her, grabbing a coat. “Yeah, you try to stand on stage in front of thousands of people for two hours. We’ll see how you feel.”

Linh smiled and followed the three out the backstage door, wondering what chaos was about to ensue.

-

Unfortunately, Linh was right about the chaos. Luckily, it was chaos she could get behind.

“I hate when people say that cats are better than dogs, or vise versa. They’re both great animals and I would take cuddles from both all of the time.” Marella noted.

Stina rolled her eyes. “Horses are the best animals ever. That’s why there’s so many mythical creatures based off them.”

Maruca and Linh were in the back of the car, watching as this argument escalated further. Maruca scooted over closer to Linh.

“Stina had a My Little Pony phase.” She stage whispered.

“You shut up Maruca! You’ve been a theatre nerd your whole life.” Stina huffed.

Marella laughed, her shoulders shaking as she turned into a small parking lot.

“Yeah, and look at where that got me.” Maruca shot back.

Marella pulled herself together, but still had a grin on her face. “That isn’t really a good comeback, since you just, you know, finished acting in a Broadway musical.”

Stina just shifted in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest.

“So, uh, where are you all from?” Linh worked up the courage to ask.

Marella finally found a good place to park, and as she was busy Maruca answered.

“Marella and I are both actually from Michigan. Stina’s not too far from Chapel Hill. We all went to Furman together.”

Linh nodded. “That’s cool. How are you guys doing with North Carolina weather conditions?”

Marella waited until she’d gotten out of the car, and matched Linh’s pace.

“It’s been a little different.” She admitted.

Maruca snorted.

They made their way to the restaurant, exchanging small talk on the way. When they rounded the last block Marella turned to Stina.

“C’mon, don’t be grumpy just because we made fun of your horse girl ways.”

Stina stayed silent.

Maruca leaned over to study Stina from Linh’s left side. “She’s just hangry, and honestly, I am too. Are we almost there yet?”

Marella sighed. “What are you, five?”

Linh smiled at her. “Yeah, that’s it, just up there.”

Maruca grinned. “Race you there, last one has to pay!”

She took off down the street with Stina right behind her. Marella and Linh shared a glance before simultaneously breaking into a sprint.

Linh managed to pull ahead of Marella and laughed when the other girl stuck her tongue out at her. When she made it into Black Swan Pizza, she realized something.

She hadn’t enjoyed herself this much in, well, ever.

Her childhood was a bust, and no offense to Biana or Tam, but these three had a certain, energy about them that Linh loved. More than she’d like to admit.

She held the door open for Marella, both of their faces were dusted pink, and they were both breathing heavily.

Stina and Maruca seemed to be in the same shape, but they were both focused on the menus in front of them. Marella and Linh joined them, sliding in on each bench, Linh next to Maruca, and Marella with Stina.

She opened her menu and looked over the options. After deciding on what she wanted, she closed her menu and waited.

By the time the waitress had come, they had all calmed down considerably and were making light conversation.

Linh gathered all of their menus and turned toward the waitress. “Could I get a- Sophie?” She asked, her brow creasing in confusion.

Sophie smiled. “Oh, hi Linh!”

Linh handed her the menus. “I had no idea you worked here.”

“Did Biana not mention it?”

No, she didn’t, but all of the takeout made a lot more sense.

“Well, what can I get you guys today?”

They all took turns ordering, and after the blonde walked away, she saw the rest of the table looking at her, clearly curious.

“Oh, she’s my roommate’s girlfriend.”

“That makes sense.”

“Yeah, she’s cute.”

Stina elbowed Marella. “Did you not just hear Linh say she had a girlfriend?”

“So? She’s pretty, what’s wrong with that?”

-

They spent the rest of the time laughing and joking around, and Linh felt like she had known these girls her whole life.

And soon, they were all piled into the car again, Linh giving Marella directions on how to get to her apartment. Either Linh wasn’t good at giving directions, or Marella was bad at following them. Either way, Marella was too prideful to use google maps, no matter how many times Maruca and Stina insisted.

It took a lot longer than it should’ve to find her apartment complex, but that was okay with Linh. She was dreading having to leave this group and pretend like nothing happened when, well, everything did.

Finally, it was time to go, but she hesitated before closing the door. “Would you guys want to, uh, hang out again before you all have to leave?”

“Yeah!”

“That’d be awesome!”

“We totally should.”

With that small promise, Linh got enough gumption to close the door and wave at the car before turning to head into her apartment.

She made her way into the living room to find Biana reading a book, clearly waiting for her to get back. She looked up when she noticed Linh hovering in the doorway.

“How was it?” She asked, gently laying her book down to meet her at the doorway.

“Better than anything I could have wished for.”

[archived-and-moving]

What a Wonderful World

Based off this ask

Word Count: 1,095

TW: Panic Attack

Warning: Major Unlocked Spoilers!! You have been warned!!

Notes: I don’t have the slightest clue why on earth I did this.

Summary: Sophie tries to comfort herself, now that he’s gone, but the memories come back too fast, and she can’t seem to get a grip.   

  The piece of paper slipped from Sophie’s hand. She felt a tear slip down her cheek.

     No.

     They were supposed to solve things together now.

     In the back of her mind she knew that he would do this. It was just his nature. But her mind was in a constant thrum of this isn’t happening.

     Sophie numbly felt her knees hit the ground, but she didn’t feel them. Not really. He mind was disconnected from her body. Stretching and pulling and pushing and spinning. Oh stars. So much spinning. The walls started closing in, faster and faster and faster. But Sophie couldn’t keep up.

    She needed to breath. That’s right. She hugged herself, as if trying to keep her broken pieces from falling all over the floor. She coughed as she let in a shuddering inhale. She could do this. In and out and- no, no. Slower. 

     In for 4.

     Hold for 7.

     Out for 8.

     She needed a distraction. That’s what she needed. Something to get her away from herself. After she got her breathing under control, she started humming a song that her parents used to sing along to when she was younger.

     “I see trees of green, red roses too.”

   She let go of Fitz’s hand and turned in a full circle. Her breath caught at the beauty of where he had just taken them with his “magic wand.” Babbling brooks and pretty trees and fragrant flowers surrounded them.

     “I see them bloom, for me and you.”

     “Are you lost?” Sophie turned to find a boy with styled blond hair and ice blue eyes smirking at her.

     “And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”

   Sophie sighed contently as she leaned on her friends, watching the lightshow brighten the sky.

     “I see skies of blue, and clouds of white.”

     Sophie laughed as Grady made a funny face at her from across Verdi’s pasture. She turned back to Edaline to see her giving Grady an amused look. She turned to Sophie and made the universal shh sign. She snapped, and a pile of Verdi’s feathers disappeared. 

     Sophie’s eyes widened in realization. Her mother snapped again and cries of outrage came from his direction. Edaline and Sophie made eye contact for a few seconds before bursting into laughter.

     “Bright blessed day,”

     “I call Foster for my team!”

     “Nuh-uh. She was on you’re team last time!” Biana argued. “We should do girls vs. boys.”

     Sophie and Fitz watched them like a tennis match. The morning sun was starting to climb more into the sky.

     “Yeah, well, we obviou-”

     “Sophie and I are on a team. We’ll start by questing. See? Easy.” Fitz interrupted, dragging Sophie with him. Biana and Keefe stared at them in surprise.

     The two of them watched Sophie and Fitz go before immediately turning back to argue about where base was. Sophie laughed. 

     Fitz smiled and rolled his eyes. “ I think they act more like siblings than Biana and I do.”

     She smiled. “I don’t doubt that.”

…

     “Dark, sacred night.”

     “No. No, not Kenric. H-he, No.” Sophie backed away from Alden’s outstretched hand. She shook her head, ignoring the tears that were already falling.

     “No. You guys aren’t supposed to die. It’s supposed to be different.”

     “And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”

     “Dad! Dad, please, Jolie, she-she wouldn’t have wanted this.”

     “The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky”

     Sophie rested her forehead on the tree’s braided bark.

     “Please come back.” She whispered.

     “And also on the faces, of the people going by,”

     She smiled softly at the slight blush on Keefe’s face. She leaned in and arched an eyebrow, enjoying that they boy in front of her.

     “I see friends shaking hands, saying how do you do?”

     “Come on, Foster.” He said, an adorably sweet smile plastered on his face, “Let’s go, together.”

     “What they’re really saying, is I love yo-”

     Love, Keefe.

     Love, Keefe

     Love, Keefe.

     Sophie let out a heart wrenching sob.

     No. He didn’t. Why’d he leave her? Why did he leave her? 

     Warm arms scooped her up and she let them, digging her head into the fabric of their shirt.

      “You have such a beautiful voice,” Edaline murmured, gently rubbing Sophie’s back. She let out a choked laugh. Amy would contradict that statement. She felt her heart get even heavier at the thought. 

     “Hey,” Edaline whispered, pulling Sophie closer to her. “would you keep singing to me?”

     Sophie sniffled but nodded. She knew that Edaline was just trying to distract her, but she kept going, her voice noticeably crackly as she started humming again.

     “I see babies cry,”

     Amy let out another wail as Sophie’s parents rushed to feed her. Sophie merely looked up from her coloring book. She wondered if this was what she was like as she tuned out the extra noise.

     “I watch them grow,”

     Sophie lifted her head as a soft knock sounded at her door. “Come in.”

     Amy cracked the door and shuffled into her room, holding Bun-bun in her hands. After a second, she whispered, “The thunder scared me. Can I- can I, uh, sleep with you?”

     Sophie inwardly sighed. But, she scooched over and patted the space beside her.

     “They’ll learn much more, than I’ll ever know.”

     Amy let out a squeal as the cold wind whipped their faces. Sophie’s eyes were watering, but she turned back to see her sister with a smile about a mile wide.

     “This puts all My Little Pony episodes to shame!” She shouted

     Sophie rolled her eyes but smiled. “Shut up! You watched it too!” 

     “Yeah, but not until the age of 10.”

      “I would punch you right now, if I could.” Sophie noted.

     “Yeah, well, we’re on the back of a sparkly unicorn right now, so, I think I’m safe.” Amy responded.

     “She’s an alicorn.”

     “Ok, you Brony.”

     “That’s not how that-” Sophie cut herself off and they both began to laugh. When they were finally done, her eyes were watering, and not just from the air rushing in her face.

     “And I think to myself,”

     Sophie paused as another pair of arms entangled themselves into the hug, squeezing tighter.

     “What a wonderful world.”

     She let out a shuddering breath and Grady leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

     They murmured assurances, telling her that she would be okay. But they didn’t know. They didn’t know that she would never be okay again.

     Because Keefe left.

     “Yes, I think to myself,”

     And he took a part of her with him.

     “What a wonderful world.”