#fawn and hunter

[whumping-valentine]

🦌 WHUMP CONCEPT 🦌

Okay okay okay so I grew up/live in a rather rural, redneck town full of hunters and farmers, surrounded by woods and farmland. I mean, in school we literally had a "tractor day" where folks drove their tractor to school. There were multiple pages in my highschool yearbooks full of dead animals and dudes in camo holding guns. Well maybe not the gun part I dunno if they could do that, but you get the idea. (Nope, I went back and checked — guns are, in fact, present!)

So anyways, I was listening to Southern gothic inspired playlists while driving around town at night after work and I had an IDEA.

Whumpee is an animal/nature lover who enjoys hiking and camping and such. They're an animal rights activist and believe in protecting and respecting nature. They're vegan, pure of heart, and volunteer at shelters. Maybe they're even going to school to be a veterinarian. The woods are their happy place, and they're friends with the local deer. Wildlife just seems to trust them.

Meanwhile, whumper is a sadistic hunter who does it for every reason one would hunt — for food, for the trophy, and for the fun of the sport, for that thrill of killing, taking a life. They don't care how they capture their prey, whether it be by the trigger of a gun, elaborate traps, or illegal contraptions. Maybe they make clothes out of deer skin and craft necklaces from their bones. Maybe they're strictly carnivorous. Either way, the woods go dead quiet whenever they enter them, as nature can feel the threat they pose.

One day whumpee is taking a walk through the woods when they step into a bear trap. When whumper comes to check their traps the next day, whumpee is relieved to receive help and be rescued.

Unfortunately for them, that won't be happening. For whumpee is whumper's latest, most treasured prey.

Their sweet little Fawn.

:)

( Feel free to attach any of your own rural inspired ideas! I never realized how nice my hometown was for this kind of setting. Never noticed how creepy it was at night... )

[pencilofawesomeness]

Finally! My Color Wheel Challenge is complete!

I included the individual shots because why not. It was my first time drawing a few of these, and for some, it's been a loooooong time. It was quite fun I would say.

.

(Note: As per winning his special little poll, I drew "Uncle Tello" as my Donnie, which is from the Cass Apocalyptic Series by @somerandomdudelmao . High recommend.)

[sidesteppostinghours]

having a normal time this fine morning <- is making up an au for an au

[thetricktoholdingon]

I hope people start giffing the other characters in A Kind of Spark besides the witch hunter dude, I’d love to reblog some edits of the autistic characters and autism dialogue/discussion

[lollytea]

What would be your headcanon for how jealous would play out in a huntlow relationship cause they seem to healthy to do the whole make jealous thing, also I love your blog it’s a god send.

Neither Hunter nor Willow are especially prone to jealousy. Everybody gets jealous now and again so they both probably experience it occasionally but not to the extent that it affects their relationship.

Gotta remember that when Hunter first met Willow, she was very popular and well liked at Hexside, something he must have noticed before he even started developing a crush on her. His initial impression of her was a cool powerful witch that tons of people admired. So he's certainly not thrown off when that admiration from others starts making an appearance in a romantic sense.

It does not bother him. Not one bit. Because in his opinion, it's perfectly understandable. Like. What's he supposed to do? Confront them and demand they not have a big stupid crush on her? She's Willow fucking Park. It's a no-brainer. If somebody asked that of him a few months ago, he would be at a complete loss on how to go about it. He'd probably be more offended if somebody their age mentioned that they didn't have any interest in her whatsoever.

I like to believe that, while Hunter will probably still grapple with a lot of self-doubt post-series, his relationships are what he's most emotionally certain about. He doesn't question if the people who love him actually love him and that includes Willow. Huge growth from him. He's very secure in the fact that she's not going to suddenly meet somebody else and lose all interest in him. He knows he gets more love and attention from Willow than anyone else who's into her. So he's chill with half of Hexside fawning over her to their collective heart's content.

It's shit like

"I saw you flirting with Willow Park in the hallway. Aren't you worried her boyfriend is gonna get mad?"

"Dude I was talking to her boyfriend at lunch and he was giving me advice on how to impress her."

Willow on the other hand, is not an extremely jealous person but I like to believe that something about another person expressing an interest in Hunter tugs out a slightly petty and immature side of her. Emphasis on slightly.

It's the same side of her that was eager to crash the Owl House into Blight Manor just to show Amity that their moonlight conjuring was better than hers. It's the same side of her that used to just sit there and silently seethe at her desk when Boscha and her friends would snatch her pens and hairclips and snacks without any consideration for the fact that they were hers and you can't just take her stuff.

Of course, Willow has matured a lot since then. She's in a better place mentally. She's tons more confident and understands that, as Captain of the Flyer Derby team, its almost impossible to bully her anymore.

She's not threatened when people flirt with Hunter. She trusts him. She's just astounded at the audacity. Because surely, you are not trying to snatch Captain Willow Park's boyfriend right from under her nose, right? You can't be that dumb, right?

Willow is excellent at hiding it. Her actions are subtle. But if this is ever happening, she just wanders over, friendly as ever, though suddenly a lot more affectionate with Hunter than she tends to publicly be. Getting a little clingier is all she does to establish that flirting with him just simply isn't going to fly. And it usually stops after that.

So yeah. It definitely irks her a bit. But she never really lets jealousy consume her.

[moldytaxidermy]

JIMMY BUTLER

Fall Out Boy - So Much (For) Stardust starring Jimmy Butler (Official Video)

[littlemissmanga]

Fancy a request? 🤓 How about #2 with Hunter? 🫦 Please and thank you and no pressure as always!

Send me one of the following for a 200 word clone drabble

Ya know, it's a slow Friday so far so I do fancy a request.

No 2 is "That is the most attractive thing I have ever seen in my life" with Hunter and 200 words. OK let's go!

The heat of a fight — the sounds, smells, sights — rarely overwhelmed Hunter. Rather, they focused him. Helped him keep his edge in tight situations.

He blamed that for how he could barely keep his eyes off you. You were a handy fighter and even better splicer with your own grudge against the Empire, and a solid asset to the team.

But none of that was running through his mind as he knocked out another Stormtrooper. All he could focus on was the fluidity of your movements, each turn, block, punch and kick smoothly running into the next. It looked like you were dancing, not fighting, and Hunter couldn’t understand how you could make violence look beautiful.

Another trooper stepped up to you, ready to swing at the side of your head. But before Hunter could call out to warn you, you pivoted, tossing your head and torso down and swinging your legs up to wrap around the man’s neck. Your momentum continued, allowing you to swing the trooper to the ground, landing with your knee on his throat for just a second before you stunned him.

“That is the most attractive thing I have ever seen in my life,” Hunter mumbled softly, unable to stop from imagining his head between your thighs in a much different setting.

a/n: I very much had Black Widow at the beginning of 2012 Avengers in mind here. I think that kinda capability and skill in hand-to-hand combat would be almost irresistibly attractive to Hunter.

Sorry this isn't too spicy, but this is what I think would really be a visual that stuck with Hunter that could fit into 200 words :)

[aquach]

Hollyfawn💘

[nordlichtkunst]

Aight one more and I'm done with the backlog of yesterday (well. Yesterday for this and Momo and "earlier this month" for the Art Summaries)!

You may have guessed, but, another OC mon! This fella will belong to Hunter, he's a bit of a rascal and very willing to start fights and take risks. A description that fits the Pokémon as well as the trainer!

[dragonnest-art]

Patreon Reward of Street Witch for Gatemaster!

Commission Type: Character art (Sketch)

-Commission Information -

[villainsidestep]

not to be insane but. thinking abt farmdog giving up their name…..

[whumping-valentine]

🦌 Fawn and Hunter - Part 7 🦌

"Ghosts and Dreams"

Content: Paranormal, ghosts, threats of future punishments, getting caught snooping, whumper comforts whumpee after a strange nightmare and everything is great but then everything goes wrong and worse and oops my hand slipped.

1,500 Words

Heyyy it's part 7! Do you like paranoid whumpees? Whumpees who get caught snooping through whumper's things? Whumpees who push a lenient whumper to their snapping point? Ghosts?! Then you'll like this part!

The first part of Fawn and Hunter is getting loads of attention all of a sudden, which is perfect timing as I've just finished this part! Make sure to leave a like so I know you want more ♡ thank you!

Let's go! 👻

       The next day, Hunter was skinning the deer on the kitchen table while Fawn sat in the living room, sitting on the old, dusty couch as they were instructed. They were crouched up, hugging their knees, wearing socks, sweatpants, and their sweater. They were better able to take in all the details of their surroundings now.

       The dusty floorboards, the dirty rugs, the broken clock on the wall that ticked, but the hands didn’t move. The bookcase of old, tattered books. The wooden walls, the dim lamp, the ceiling fan that looked ready to fall off its hinges. The place was ready to collapse, but still it stood.

       They listened to the floorboards that creaked under Hunter’s feet as they occasionally moved around in the kitchen. The sound of slicing flesh and sawing disturbed Fawn. They tried to focus in on the sound of the ticking clock, or the wind outside, listening in silent thought.

       They always felt tired, and now had a near constant headache. It was difficult to sleep, the pain distracted them, despite how sleepy they were. They didn’t want their head to hurt anymore. They didn’t want to feel tired and cold all the time. They felt about ready to cry from it all, burying their face into their legs. They just wanted it to stop.

       The next time they lifted their head, it was from a nudge on their shoulder. They turned their head and looked at Hunter.

       “Sleepy, hm?”

       Fawn nodded their head, holding back tears. They must’ve dozed off, but still felt just as tired and in pain as they were before.

       “Have you been getting enough sleep at night?”

       Fawn shook their head. How could they sleep in a place like this? When they were scared, and in so much pain? Not to mention Hunter’s recent paranoia made Fawn extremely on edge. Hunter tried their best to hide it, but Fawn could see it clear as day. Something unsettled them, and that unsettled Fawn.

       “Why not?” Hunter asked.

       “I'm in pain. And scared. This place is haunted.” Fawn answered, meekly.

       “What makes you say that?”

       “There are ghosts. I see ghosts. All the time. I— I thought it was my head. I think. I don't— I don't know. They watch me."

       Hunter chuckled, “You’re afraid of ghosts?”

       “I always have been.” They said quietly.

       “More than you are of me?”

       Fawn didn’t answer.

       “Oh, that’s so cute.” Hunter said, “You’re more scared of ghosts than me. Adorable.”

       Fawn grumbled and mumbled, “I have anxiety. I can’t help that I’m scared of ghosts.”

       “Ghosts that aren’t real and can’t hurt you, might I add. Though I’m very much real, and very much can hurt if I so please.”

       “I told you I can’t help it. I don’t decide what I’m scared of, my stupid fucking brain does. I just— ugh— just leave me alone.” They sighed in frustration, burying their face back into their knees, wanting nothing more than their head pains to go away. Maybe then they could actually think.

       Night came faster than usual, but it might be because their sense of time started to blur. Everyday felt foggy as they all seemed to blend together. They were all the same.

       Fawn curled up on themself as they tried to hide. They had no blankets to hide under, no lamp to turn on, no safe place to run away to.

       They couldn’t stand how much this place reminded them of home. All the worst parts of it. With no way out.

       Trapped again in the very place they tried so hard to escape.

       Though worst of all was the horrendous fact that Hunter was better than both their parents. A reality that was hard to stomach.

       It was extremely difficult to sleep. Every little sound made them want to cry. The rotten smell of the cabin felt different. It didn't smell like a dead deer anymore. Hunter never let them rot like that. No, this smell was vile. The putrid smell of death. Though Fawn had no idea where it was coming from.

       They held themself back from gagging, or throwing up. Their fear didn't help in the slightest. They felt their hands shake, and their headache started pounding as they clenched their jaw. They couldn’t hold back their tears any longer as they flowed from their eyes as they cried in the pitch darkness.

       Eventually through the turmoil, the tossing and turning, and the tears, they managed to fall asleep. Though it was far from a peaceful one. They repeatedly woke up throughout the night, their heart racing, sweating, cold, aching, it was terrible. But the worst of all was the eventual nightmare they had.

       In the nightmare, they saw a massive apocalypse. They saw zombies, aliens, mass murder, vampires, werewolves, and massive mutated beasts. The thing that finally woke them was a voice that sounded real, like it was spoken directly in their ear. Just the simple word, "Consequences."

       They jolted awake, jumping up with a gasp. The sound of their heaving breaths was the only thing in the silent air. They’d never had any kind of dream that was like that. They were on the brink of a panic attack, and ran up the stairs, pounding on the basement door, "Hunter! Hunter!"

       Hunter opened the basement door, and Fawn instantly wrapped their arms tightly around them, crying into their chest. They couldn’t hold it back anymore, they needed any kind of comfort, even if it came from Hunter. They didn’t care.

       “P-please. It’s scary. And I’m in pain. Please, I— I don’t want to be alone.” They cried.

       "Hm." They scoffed with a smile, "I've gotta say, Fawn, you're the strangest person I've ever held here. Come on, let's get you back to bed." They said, picking them up. Fawn simply whined as they were gently thrown over their shoulder, wrapping their arms around Hunter’s neck.

       They were carried to their room, and roughly placed down on a bed. "You're really pathetic, you know that?" Hunter said, looking down at them, "Pathetic ir stupid, I'm not sure which one. Calling out to me for help. Help from what, spirits?"

Fawn didn't respond, simply they rolled over on their side and curled in on themself. Hunter crawled on the bed with them, "You don't get to yell for my help and then ignore me." They grabbed onto their shoulder, laid down behind them, and put their arms around them. Fawn only made a small grumble in response, but neither said another word.

       Though Hunter had to admit, it felt nice to hold something so tiny and scared. And for Fawn? It was nice to be held.

~~~

       Fawn refused to leave Hunter’s side all day. They followed them like a scared puppy, eyes wide, fidgeting with their own fingers as they kept their gaze towards the floor. Hunter found it cute, and almost pitiful. 

       The next night felt even worse than the last. Fawn felt like they were starting to lose their mind. All of the fear, the pain, and their own self-hatred at their reliance on their captor. Their hands shook as anxiety coursed through them, their heart rate spiking, their head starting to pound. They were angry, they were scared, they were sad, and they were in pain.

       Fawn clenched their fist as they dug their fingers into the mattress, angry tears falling from their tired eyes. They didn’t care anymore. They didn’t care.

       They got up and turned on the basement light, and immediately began rummaging through Hunter’s stuff more. They took a closer look at the collection of missing posters. They inspected their faces, some of them looking vaguely familiar, though they couldn't for the life of them think of where from. Their hands shook as their grip tightened on the old dusty paper. They were angry.

       Hunter could be as nice as they wanted to them. That doesn’t change the fact that they killed all of these innocent people. Innocent people who’s missing posters this monster kept as trophies. Well, fuck your trophies.

       It was an involuntary movement at first as Fawn tore the poster they were holding in half. But it felt good. So they destroyed more of them, ripping them to shreds.

       Suddenly they had a moment of realization and almost… comfort. The ghosts they felt they’ve been seeing… maybe they weren’t crazy, maybe it was the trapped spirits of Hunter’s victims. Maybe that’s why they felt familiar. Maybe ripping the posters is freeing them and the comfort is their thanks? Well, either that or they ARE completely insane, but either way, they finished ripping the posters with a smile on their face.

       They were so lost in their own thoughts, they didn’t even hear the basement door opening, nor the footsteps coming down the stairs…

       "Really, Fawn?" Hunter said sternly loud, almost in a yell. "After everything I do for you, this is how you repay me? By disobeying me? Snooping through my things?"

       "Hunter, I—"

       "No, I've had enough with you. I told you, you have no idea what I'm like when I'm mean. I can be your worst nightmare. I'll make the ones you've been having look like a fucking fairytale."

Taglist: @parasitebunny

Fawn's headache that I wouldn't shut up about this chapter was basically a vent from me. I have this occasional sharp stabbing pain on the left side of my head, and in my ear, and it's been really hindering my ability to focus as well as sleep. I'm not sure yet if I want to see a doctor. I'm hoping it's just something to do with my jaw, as I do clench my teeth from stress but idk.

Also sorry for how abrupt/sudden the ending was or any of the writing quality here. The aforementioned headache is to blame for that (or at least that's my excuse lol)

Lmk in the comments if you want added or removed for any future updates !

Thank you for reading ! 💕🦌

[psalmsofpsychosis]

Me: listen i want to do calboba that is so soft, so tender–

Also me, jolting awake at 3am and blacking out while i make WIP notes on my phone:

Cal's lips find his like a bullet with Boba's name on it, a heated halt before he carves into boba's lungs and becomes the smoke and the blood he breathes instead.

[fawnarchive]

HELLO silver wolf wont come home

[duckzz]

woooh they're brothers! 😌🙌

[halfawitch-willow]

Show A Little 'nitiative, Work Up Some Guts ❁ WSoH 5

With the hybrid growing faster every day and more people showing up in Swynlake from the Boiling Isles who know exactly who -- and what -- Willow is, she has to think about whether she's going to try and stick with her 'pretend to be a Mundus' plan or 'fess up before someone does it for her. And also Hunter's here. Takes place Oct 20th 1 // What Do You Want From Me, Blood? 2 // Someone Tell Lady Luck I’m Stuck Here 3 // Long As You Don’t Make A Habit Out Of It 4 // Does This Look Inanimate To You? @thegcldenguard tw: mentioned child abuse, Very Sad Soup

WILLOW

Willow wouldn’t say she was stress baking. Her baking had nothing to do with her stress. She was baking because it gave her a reason to be out of her dorm. 

(And a little bit because of stress. She was just ignoring the stress right now.)

Willow sat at the little island opposite the oven, her feet swinging back and forth. She had her tail tucked in her lap so she didn’t run the risk of someone stepping on it when they passed. Again. She’d already washed up the dishes from mixing up the brownies so now she just had to hurry up and wait for them to bake. The whole kitchen smelled like spiced chocolate, and she’d had a few curious students stop and investigate.

Sighing, Willow reclined back in her seat and let her head fall back. She needed to go to the Grove tonight to get some sleep, even if sleeping in the restricted greenhouse made her dreams all weird…

Willow opened her eyes a bit to look back into the main living hub and yelped in surprise when she realized she was no longer alone.

HUNTER

Hunter nearly jumped at the yelp.

He hadn’t even noticed Willow when he came into the common room. Actually, part of the reason he’d stepped into the common room now was because it was empty.

He hadn’t really felt good all day. He’d slept through his alarm and only barely made it to classes. Then he came back and passed out. Other than the sheer exhaustion, he didn’t feel sick: no sore throat, no stuffy nose, no muscle aches. Nothing. He just felt… drained. 

It was his growling stomach that had woken up and prompted him to go to the common room to microwave some soup. But also, his hair was sticking up on one side and he was sure that the dark circles under his eyes had dark circles.

Willow’s yelp snapped him out of his daze, though. He yelped too — just as the dorm microwave started to beep.

“Titan!” gasped Hunter. “Sorry — you startled me.”

WILLOW

"Sorry," Willow said with a grimace, sitting up straight. Well, she was definitely awake now. 

She considered running, at least until he finished his food or her brownies were done. She was not in the right headspace to deal with people. But then she got a better look at Hunter and her eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"You feeling okay?" Willow asked softly. He looked like he'd just woken up from a coma.

HUNTER

“Yes!” Hunter said, very quickly. “Of course, I’m feeling okay. Just, you know… studying for midterms.” He waved his hand, then glanced at the timer on his phone to start counting down the allocated one minute that the can of soup had instructed him to wait.

“And yourself?” Maybe it was hypocritical to spin the question back on Willow, but looking at her now… well, she looked stressed. “Whatever you’re baking smells delicious, by the way,” he added, a bit shyly. 

WILLOW

"Yeah, I'm okay," Willow said with a small, tired smile of her own. "Just a little stressed with Flower still out of town."

And the rapidly-growing magic hybrid flower in the back of the restricted greenhouse. And the influx of people from the Isles who knew who she was and what was wrong with her. And the one person who knew the actual truth that she was still trying to decide if she trusted or not (it depended on the day). And the growing guilt from lying to people who seemed to genuinely care about her.

… Okay, so there was a lot more than the Flower thing, but Willow kept it to herself and shoved it down. Out of sight, out of mind.

At his compliment, her smile got a little easier. "Thanks," she said softly. "It's my dad's recipe. They uh… they should be done soon, if you want to try one?" Willow checked her own timer on her cheap phone, nodding when she saw she only had a few more minutes before she needed to take the pan of brownies out.

HUNTER

Hunter should say no, because eating a brownie would ruin his (admittedly pathetic) dinner.

But as he opened his mouth, his stomach growled, and he couldn’t deny the delicious smell of the brownies, or his sudden desire for some chocolatey goodness.

“Oh! Well, if you can spare a bite, I’d love to try,” he said. “A sugar rush might be a good thing for a study session.” And Titan knew he had to get studying. He’d wasted the whole damn day asleep. 

Hunter rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, then checked his timer again, before making his way to the microwave and removing the little bowl of soup. He blew on it gently and then stirred it, chunks of pale chicken floating to the top. 

“I have, uh, a paper for my magical ethics class due next week,” said Hunter, trying to both make small talk and also remind himself of his own schedule. 

WILLOW

Willow nodded. "Yeah, they should be cool enough to eat by the time you're done," she said, standing from her own seat and heading to the oven. She glanced at his bowl of soup and had the passing thought that if her dad saw it, Hunter would be the one getting a care package next. 

Maybe she should make something savory for the dorm to snack on for midterms…

She hummed at the mention of his paper, digging through the drawers for the potholders that had probably been left there by someone who graduated in the sixties. Willow thought they might have been blue at some point. "What's your topic?" she asked. With the potholders over her hands, Willow opened the oven door and the smell of spiced chocolate only intensified. It was still weird to use an oven that didn't start drooling whenever the baking was done. She pulled the brownies out and set them on top of the range to cool down.

HUNTER

“Oh, uh.” Hunter blanked for a moment. His brain still felt light and fuzzy and not entirely there. He rubbed his forehead. “It’s on what different cultures deem a “good” life — success, happiness, meaning — and also taking into account what the majority Magick population is. My professor told us to specifically choose cultures that we were unfamiliar with, which I think she directed at me, since I tend to lean on the Boiling Isles for all my examples.”

He chuckled and shrugged.

“So, I’m going with the United States, which is proving to be far more complicated than I thought. I think I might break it down into regions. Maybe I’ll ask Phineas for his input. Or interview some of the other Americans on our floor…” 

WILLOW

She giggled with him. “Take Professor Daemonne’s class, you’ll have the opposite problem,” Willow said with a wry grin. She opened her mouth to ask what the Head Witch was like back on the Isles, but stopped herself. Right. She wouldn’t know that Hunter knew Darius back on the Boiling Isles.

She still hadn’t told him that she was from the Isles.

Objectively, Willow knew she had to. There were too many people from the Isles in Swynlake now who either knew her or her parents personally, and the longer she put it off, the more likely he’d hear it from someone else first. She was putting too much trust in the belief that she was not important enough to be mentioned, no matter how well it had worked so far.

It was just the moment she told Hunter, there was nothing keeping that secret from the rest of their friends. Especially if he took it poorly; either because she’d been lying to his face now for months, or because of her status on the Isles as a social pariah. She wanted so badly to think the best of Hunter -- he’d been nothing but kind to her since they’d met! -- but… well, experience was the greatest teacher, and she’d learned her lessons well.

“Regions sounds good,” Willow said instead, ducking to look through the cabinets under the counter. “Isn’t the United States massive?” 

When she popped back up, she had two energy drinks from her stash in hand, and held one up as if to ask if he wanted it.

HUNTER

At the mention of Darius, Hunter felt himself freeze a little. 

He was still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Darius was here. Not just Darius — but LIlith and the Blights and so many people who knew him. Darius was just the cherry on the top. 

It was a reminder that he had to be perfect. That he could not make another mistake. 

Hunter blinked, snapping back to the present when Willow offered him a can. He took it, popping open the top, and taking a small sip.

“Apparently New York isn’t New England — what’s up with that? It’s named after an English city! Wouldn’t it make sense to be part of new England?” 

WILLOW

Hunter tensed up a little, and Willow figured she had her answer to the question she didn't ask. 

Her eyebrows furrowed together at his explanation about New York. "Wait, seriously? Why would they even call it New York, then?" she asked, opening her own can. She took a sip and the carbonated drink and sharp taste hit like a punch to her system. She'd bought way more boxes of the stuff recently, thanks to her whackass sleeping schedule.

She shivered at the taste, and behind her, a wilting potted basil that someone had bought from Moon Market seemed to shudder a little as well.

HUNTER

The energy drink popped and fizzed and was sickly sweet on Hunter’s tongue.

It jolted him, though, and he took another sip, longer this time. 

“Wow — what is this?” he asked, looking it over. “It’s not an energy potion? It’s a Mundus creation? Fascinating! I wouldn’t have known. It has all the potency of a Lesser Energy Potion!” 

Add another Mundus marvel to Hunter’s ever-growing list! 

WILLOW 

Willow smiled because yeah, she got it. Aside from all the cultural differences that made Willow feel like she was constantly on the back foot, there were so many things in the Mundus world that made her life so much easier. If the lack of murderous bullies hadn’t already done the trick, then air fryers would have convinced Willow to stay down on Earth easily.

“It’s an energy drink,” she explained as she started to cut into the tray of brownies. Her tail was invisibly swaying back and forth in a content rhythm. “It has a lot of caffeine in it and is supposed to help you stay awake. Though, take it from me, not a good long term solution,” she said dryly, twisting so she could point at him and emphasize her point. “I drank like three in a row once and I was twitchy for four days.”

The part of her that was an apothecary’s daughter really wanted to dive into the Lesser Energy Potion vs Energy Drink debate, because she had Thoughts and Opinions, but Willow kept her mouth shut. Silently, she was delighted he noticed the same similarity she had.

“I keep a stash here and in my dorm, if you need some,” she offered. Willow pulled two mismatched tea plates out of the cabinet and plated one of the brownies for herself. They were still steaming a bit, but they smelled amazing and looked perfectly fudgy with red flecks of cayenne in the chocolate.

“Edge piece or center?” she asked.

HUNTER

Hunter mulled over the offer. He shouldn’t be taking to Mundus culture so quickly. In fact, it alarmed him how easily he’d embraced some of it. Like he was betraying Belos and everything that the Boiling Isles stood for. 

But at the same time, Lesser Energy Potions were expensive and it wasn’t like there was a local potions shop that Hunter could just pop into…

Willow’s question once again snapped him from meandering thoughts.

“Oh! The edge. I like the crispy parts,” he said. 

WILLOW

Willow nodded, plating one of the corner pieces for him and taking both plates back to the table. Her new job at the Court meant she was easily able to balance both plates on one hand and carry her drink in the other. She set Hunter’s plate down near him before taking her seat again and tucking her legs up close to herself.

She picked up the brownie and hissed a bit as the heat lightly stung her fingers. It didn’t stop her from taking a bite that immediately burned her tongue, but it was so delicious that she didn’t mind. She and Dad had the same bad habit of never letting their food cool, which drove her Papa half-crazy.

She hummed happily, fanning off her mouth with one hand. “Uh, maybe give it a second,” she said with an embarrassed grin. Her tail was curling happily, the curly fur on the end tickling her toes with each pass.

HUNTER

“Noted,” Hunter said, with a grave nod.

As tempting as the brownies smelled, he did not want to risk a burnt tongue. It was one of the worst sensory feelings in the world if you asked him. 

Actually, speaking of that… he should probably eat some real food before indulging in sweets. So he took a little sip of soup. It was fine. It tasted exactly like every other can of soup Hunter had made in this dorm room: a little too salty, the temperature slightly off, but it did the job. 

WILLOW

Was it weird that his soup was making her sad? It was probably weird. She blamed a childhood of growing up with Harvey Park, who showed his love via food. She kept her mouth shut, not wanting to be weird or pushy. She had already given him a drink and a brownie, she shouldn't force anything else on him. They weren't really friends, after all. Not so long as she was lying to him.

She wanted to be, though.

It was a scary thought, and Willow took another bite of her brownie - this time a little cooler - to try and distract herself from it. It was a bad idea even being this close. Just because they both hung out with a lot of the same people didn't mean they had to hang out! She could just do the smart thing and keep her distance and keep her mouth shut. That way if the truth did come out, which felt more inevitable with every day, the fallout would be minimal.

But then she thought of the little stuffed bee in a place of honor on her desk, or the gloves he'd helped her save from being scattered to the wind, and she would want to stick around a little longer. Repay some of the kindness he has shown her. It was why she couldn't keep her distance from Eilonwy or Edward either; why she'd so happily accepted the job at the Court and why she gladly took on all the extra responsibility when Flower left to hide in their Hollow.

She opened her mouth, lips moving uselessly around words that wouldn't come.

'There's something I need to tell you.'

'I'm sorry I haven't been honest with you.'

'Thank you for being so kind to me.'

'We need to get you some better soup.'

Instead she just took another bite of her brownie and felt like a coward.

HUNTER

Hunter didn’t really miss the food in the Boiling Isles. 

Belos had been very strict about their diets. He prioritized health and wellness above all, which meant that they only really indulged during special events. Sweets, like chocolate and cookies and brownies, were incredibly rare.

Which is why these brownies smelled so good to Hunter now.

But it was also why he told himself he needed to finish his soup first. That’s what Belos would want, after all. Finish your vegetables and your designated protein intake. (Not that this little can of soup had a lot in the way of vegetables or protein).

It was then that Hunter realized that maybe he should say something.

It’s not like he hadn’t hung out with Willow alone before. It was just that usually there was something else to talk about, be it jello shots or carnival games. Now there was soup and there were brownies, which they had already talked about. There was Hunter’s essay that he should be working on, but they had also addressed that. 

“Er,” he ended up saying. “Do you like soup?”

WILLOW

Willow was starting to seriously regret not bailing when she could have when Hunter spoke up. She looked over at him curiously before glancing down at his soup and realizing he was probably feeling as awkward as she was now that they'd kind of exhausted the obvious topics of conversation. She smiled a little bit.

“Yeah,” she answered, wrapping her arms around the leg tucked up against her chest so she could rest her chin on her knee. “My Papa makes the best red pepper soup, it's my favorite.” 

She didn't mention that the red peppers were the ‘screaming’ variety from the Hips.

“Maybe that could be my next experiment,” she mused. “He'll send me the recipe if I ask, but he always adds like, six other ingredients that aren't written down so I have to do some trial and error. I don't think we have a pot big enough here, but maybe if I ask Eilonwy and Laurel, they'll let me use their kitchen.” Willow had brought plenty of baked goods both sweet and savory over to the Lightfoot house while Eilonwy was recovering from her broken ribs and arm.

Scrounging up her courage, Willow looked at Hunter and gave him a bright smile. “I’d probably need a taste tester again, if you'd want to,” she offered, trying not to look down at his sad canned soup again.

HUNTER

“Oh they definitely would.” Hunter brightened at the mention of Eilonwy. He knew that she’d be absolutely thrilled to let Willow use the Lightwood’s stove. Especially if it was because she wanted to try a family recipe that Willow didn’t know all the details about. He could practically see Eilonwy’s eyes growing wide as Willow poured over ingredients.

“I don’t know if I’d be much help, but I’m happy to taste test,” he said, feeling his cheeks flush a little. “I don’t know much about cooking. Which, uh, makes sense given this soup.” He nodded at the cup. 

“I’ve always wanted to learn how to make pancakes,” he added. “I tried them for the first time in Ingary. I never had them back home. My guardian… well, he wanted to make sure I had the healthiest food options possible. And pancakes are an indulgence. Especially with chocolate chips in them.” He nodded solemnly. 

WILLOW

Oh thank the Titan, he was self-aware about the soup. Willow tried to smother her laugh, grinning behind her hand.

She mirrored his solemn nod before reaching out to tap her hand against the counter near him and gave him a very serious look. “After midterms, we will make pancakes and they will be absurdly loaded with chocolate chips,” she swore, her lips curling as she tried not to grin.

“That way it's a reward for our hard work.”

(On top of the fridge, the basil plant looked fresh and healthy again.)

HUNTER

The corner of Hunter’s lip twitched up. Despite himself, he smiled. 

“Yes, that sounds like a plan,” he said. “With a lot of maple syrup!” 

He slurped up the rest of his soup in record time, then set the empty bowl on the counter.

“Alright, I think I’m ready for that brownie now.”