#finn the kite

[pacificwaternymph]

The mer stared up at the woman across from him.

She was standing stock still, her hands balled into fists at her side so tightly they were beginning to shake. She stared at him with unnaturally bright blue eyes, eyes that seemed to glow slightly. They were glossed over with a wet shine, and her breath was coming short and shaky.

The mer didn't understand. It didn't understand anything, not from the moment it'd been caught in the net. It didn't know these people, or what they wanted from it, or why they kept looking at it like that.

The way the leader of the group of humans that had captured him had looked at him, on their giant wooden structure he had only seen the empty husks of on the seafloor. The way this woman was looking at him now, standing not three feet from him. He didn't have a name for the emotion practically overflowing from their gazes, but he knew it. He knew it intimately.

The mer wasn't sure why it hadn't tried to escape yet. It wasn't sure it would get very far if it did, surrounded by so many humans, but every bone in its body had practically screamed at it for the past... however long it had been on this floating wood thing to get out as fast as possible.

But... he hadn't. Despite his initial fears, the humans hadn't hurt him yet. And there was something about their leader. Something that tugged at his chest every time he looked at them, and settled in his gut. Something that told him that they hadn't hurt him, and they weren't going to hurt him. He couldn't tell you why. It was odd. There was a part of him that was... curious.

The humans had brought it to an island full of their weird, colorful structures. They'd kept it in a tub, covering its tail in soft white wrappings to hide the wounds underneath. The leader had left with instructions for the rest of her crew to wait, and then she'd turned up with the woman, who'd looked unhealthily pale even before seeing it.

"Finneas..." she whispered. The mer blinked at her. That's what the other human had called him too. He didn't know why. That wasn't his name.

(What was its name?)

("Goodbye, Blackwood")

She probably thought he was someone else. They both did. He'd heard enough to know that they'd been searching for someone for a while. And that they thought he was that person. He didn't know how to tell them that he most certainly wasn't. He didn't have the faintest idea who they were.

It opened its mouth, but the only thing that came out was a gargled noise, the same as it had been every other time it had tried to speak. The woman flinched. She took a step forward. The mer leaned back, wary. She stopped.

She made a choked noise, and continued to stare for another long moment. Then she cracked a smile, though it looked more like a grimace.

"You really don't remember anything, do you?" she asked, though it didn't sound like a question. Her next breath hitched. The mer didn't answer. It was answer enough for her. She swallowed, and knelt down so she was eye level with him.

It blinked. Its breath caught in its throat. Between one moment and the next, her ears had been replaced by light green fins. Scales dotted her cheeks, underneath her eyes. Thin slits in her neck, gills, revealed themselves. It gaped at her. She was staring intently into its eyes, searching for something. The mer didn't know how to give it to her.

"Okay," she said, and it was thick, layered with that same emotion he couldn't quite put a finger on. "That's okay." She blinked, and water started to run down her cheeks. He watched it, observing the opalescent sheen of her tears. Mermaid tears.

The mer reached out to touch them, disbelieving. He didn't remember very far into the past, but he'd run into a couple siren pods by now. Enough to know that what he was wasn't the same as what they were. Enough to know that merfolk like him, like her, were rare.

"My name is Joanna," the other mermaid said. She reached up and grabbed ahold of its hand. For some reason, it let her. "I'm your friend." Her voice broke on the last word.

The mer found the word he was looking for, whispered to him by some forgotten voice.

Grief.

This woman, this Joanna, was utterly convinced that she knew it. She looked at it with such a profound sense of loss that it couldn't help but feel that it had lost something too. It swallowed, suddenly finding it much harder to breathe.

"J-Jo-" he croaked, and then started coughing into his elbow. Joanna half lunged forward, stabilizing his arms as his chest rattled. The name sent a flood of warmth through his body, a somehow pleasant shock to his system. It felt... right. He knew that name. He didn't know where. He didn't know how. But Jo was familiar to him. The same way the captain had been.

A single laugh burst from Joanna's lips, followed by a sharp gasp for air, and then she threw her arms around it, pulling it in closer. She sobbed into its shoulder, her entire body trembling with the force of her cries. Half on instinct, it raised its arms and returned the embrace. And something, somewhere deep within, whispered safe.

-

@finnified this is your fault.

Happy mermay everyone :')

[amostfoolishgold]

Lazuli cannot deny she's curious. A few days ago, a ship docked. This is not an unusual event. However, on that ship was someone who, according to Joanna and Inigo, Finneas was waiting for because they're friends. Joanna had been very insistent that the two of them be given time to reconnect and catch up which, ok fine sure Lazuli's fine with that, but it's been days and she's seen neither hide nor hair of this mystery friend. So she's heading into the Kite pub.

Desperate times.

In her defense, she did try the main pub first, it just didn't contain Finneas and whoever-the-fuck. Here, however, Finneas glances up at just the right time to see her heading right for it. Whatever face it makes is enough for the person sitting opposite to turn around. And Lazuli recognises that face.

"YOU!"

The pirate's eyes stop scanning the room and lock onto Lazuli. There's confusion as xe looks her up and down. Lazuli tuck her hair behind a pointed ear and recognition sparks.

"YOU!"

Xe scrambles to xer feet, hand immediately going to xer sword. Lazuli smiles and gets a suspicious look in return. She glances at Finneas who appears to be having every regret it's possible to have.

"This your mysterious friend, Finn? I approve."

"Oh well if you approve." Said mysterious friend loosens xer grip on the sword to turn a Look on Finneas. "You know this clown, Finn?"

"Yeah this is, that's Lazuli, she's a friend. Lazuli, this is Adalwulff, xe's also a friend. You...know each other?"

Adalwulff scoffs and Lazuli laughs before making her way over and flinging herself into a free chair.

"'Know' is a strong word, but we have met. Fucker decided that the best way to stop a siren hunt was to jump in the ocean and start throwing hands."

"You were trying to eat my crew!"

"And you stabbed me!"

"Blatantly self defense!"

The worry on Finneas's face has very much not been clearing up over the course of this. Lazuli waves a hand dismissively.

"Eh it was fine in the end, xe fought well."

"And her lot didn't actually get any of my crew."

"And I swam you back to your ship so they could fish you out because you'd jumped in the ocean."

Adalwulff rolls xer eyes.

"You were hardly going to crawl up onto the ship to get punched, I stand by my decision."

Lazuli laughs and the last of the tension seeps out of Finneas.

"So you two are...okay? With each other?"

Adalwulff shrugs and Lazuli laughs again.

"Why wouldn't I be? Gotta respect the tenacity! Hey Adalwulff wanna see the scar you gave me?"

Finneas is immediately distracted from any and all concerns about its friends getting along by preventing Lazuli from stripping in the middle of the pub. Which is good, because that's what she was aiming for.

---

Finneas and Adalwulff borrowed from the fantastic @finnified! I was thinking about how Lazuli would meet Adal on the Isles and my brain gifted me with the concept of "what if they already met" so here we are lmao

[finnified]

his parents stared at him bleakly from across the square, and finn dug his claws into the kite banner a little more fiercely, like his doubt might pull it away. none of them said anything, just stared for a long moment, until finn turned away to join a group of kites that were coalescing near the road to the tavern.

he knew where he belonged. —

a little p!finn backstory post for you! finn is a pirate who was born and raised in the faction isle lifestyle, except that his parents- arthur and mary blackwood- are both kestrels. they’ve cut off contact with him since he chose to join the kites instead of sticking with the kestrels, and his factioning experience was not a pleasant one. he’s fine now though! (< blatant lie)

(fun fact: this piece was where my “on the day of the factioning, each new recruit gets a banner with their faction’s colors and symbol on it (as seen in the info on the wiki)” headcanon was born!)

[eileenleahy]

im almost up to the quarterback.

[simp-ly-writes]

Betting on Hearts

Cross-over: Contemporary! Peaky Blinders x The Gentlemen (2024)

Pairing: Edward "Eddie" Horniman x afab!Shelby!Reader,

Summary: Being the main face to the (legal*) Shelby Business Empire, you too dabble with the less than legal side when prompted to (against your Brother's wishes). So when a certain Duke and Glass Family start stirring things up on your doorstep, you decide to seduce the duke into compliance but maybe, Eddie had the same idea for you too...

Warnings: 5000~ words, depictions of blood, overprotective siblings, emotional manipulation (seduction), reader is a bit... much. Probably some other tags that I am forgetting

A/N: more notes later.

Masterlist | Taglist Request | read-through and edited.

↳ The Shelby empire was dominant in many industries and with you being among the middle children, just behind your three older brother's, you mainly took to the newer parts of the business but you of course wrangled your way to the darker sides as well no matter how much your family protested (except for Polly, she openly cheered you on before her untimely passing)

↳ You were the Queen of import/export, the face to the Gin company and co-owner to your new digital sports betting app, your younger sister Ada had stepped in to help you manage it all. Using the earnings from the gambling you put it towards the branding and advertisements of your other departments and the greater Shelby corporation

↳ Arthur, the spirited yet your mentally-barley-afloat brother as he drank half the gin you supplied to his section of the business or found himself high as a kite while insisting on keeping your hands as clean as possible, coming with you on every assignment. Arthur maintained his "Garrison" bars across the country, moving on to establish high dining and was currently trying to stick the Shelby name into hotel management.

↳ John, a man that carried a huge heart with his irresistible charm and humor. He (while trying to convince the youngest, Finn to join him) managed the productions and manufacturing of each one of your industries. Supplying the parts, the bottles and ingredients, alongside the construction materials for every one of Arthur's expansions alongside supplying for your... darker dealings. The company, to a degree, was self-sustainable

↳ And of course, you had Thomas, the mastermind of the whole empire and the one you reported every minuscule detail to at the end of the day. You wouldn't call him kind, but he was considerate to a degree. You could always count on him to protect you where other's have failed but that also caused the greatest conflict between the two of you. It was hard, managing family verses business with him, lines always threatening to be crossed as your relationship was strained. Thomas respected you deeply, you had stuck with him when the rest of the family fell apart and offered him new perspectives to cultivating legal business. Yet he was too protective of you, he couldn't stand to lose you and openly admitted that you where his first choice if he needed to choose who would live

↳ In recent times, your family was playing chess against with a rising power called the Glass family who not so suitably started poking their fingers into your sectors, fixing your gambling sites with their newest expansions. You chuckled to yourself within Tommy's house. The men reported on the new business the Glass family had established, a boxing ring as you shoved Arthur in his chair with a teasing smile.

"Remember when you wanted to become a boxer, brother?" Arthur flips you the finger, a frown emerging from his moustache as he pours himself another drink, mumbling about you being a spoiled little brat yet you don't bother to catch the end of it.

The spy coughs, returning all of your attention back as Thomas glares at you both to hold yourselves, John's face has gone red trying to conceal his laughter at the childish faces you pull at him as Thomas throws his hand up, signalling for the man to continue.

"They have been having some difficulties in expanding their weed enterprise as well, we are still trying to get to the bottom of as to why this is as the documentation we have stolen shows nothing out of the sorts." A series of copied folders and photographs are then spread against the hardwood table as your painted nails sort through each stack, categorizing them in sequential order. Your green nail taps on top of a dead mans face thoughtfully stroking his cheek as you look at the bullet hole placed in between his eyes, "And what is the backstory to this incident exactly?" you comment.

The spy looks towards Thomas who already looks bored, there was nothing of significance to be said just yet but this newest bit of information had him raising as eyebrow. "Well, that kill was confirmed to be done by the new Duke of Halstead as I were one of the men stationed to dispose of it."

The spy throws another bundle on the table labelled, "The Duke." You excitedly snatch the manila folder quicker than anyone else at on the table as your eyes dart across every picture and piece of information you can grasp. Captain, Aristocrat, Medals... More Medals, Service, First Place, Honour Roll, Head Boy, Family Strain, oh... Your thoughts pause, cheeks heating when you flick up a stapled bundle of papers, a defined uniform, blue beret. The next page a Polo champion in college and deep black suit for the funeral. Slamming the folder shut, all eyes snap to the sudden noise.

"We are joining the upper echelon of society, brothers! Do let me meet up with him- I promise not to disappoint," you plead, already knowing that you are perfect for the mission. You and the Duke were both public-facing faces with one foot in reality and another in the pits. It would be a simple mission really, you convince yourself and your brothers as they immediately protest to the idea. Step in, seduce, convince him to sign-out and step out- as simple as that.

You look at Thomas, eyes strong, eyebrows furrowed as you level his stare. "You know I'm the only who can properly do this job, Thomas and if it does not work out, we can just kill them off just like the last, right?" The spy departs, bowing his head before speedily turning out of the room as tension only rises in the room, getting caught in your throat as you hitch your breath watching as Tommy's mouth moves into an echoing, "fine."

--

↳ So here you sat, in your covered box from the sun at the races. You clapped joyfully with a smile spreading your cheeks. You tip your hat down, seeing your bets adding up on your card as Ada cheered loudly beside you, leaning over the railing as she praises your chosen racer. Interviews for the sportsmen start as the Jockey casts a wink up at your sister. Ada throws down a business card the he clutches, placing it in his breast pocket with a tap to his chest before continuing to answer the post-race questions.

"Have yourself a date?" you tease out, picking up your spiked lemonade to hide your smile curving up into a knowing smirk. "Well you are one to talk sis, I heard down the grapevine that you had a certain duke chasing after you like Cinderella," Ada rebuttals, fixing herself a drink at the cart as you eye the three shots of vodka she stirs in, "isn't that a bit much for..." you look down at your wrist-watch, "...1PM? We do have dinner at Arthur's later tonight you know."

"We all can use a pick-me-up every now and then," she comments as you hum out, eyeing up your singular shot drink before shifting further down the couch to create space for her as she removes a pillow, placing it on her lap as she kicks off her heels and sets her feet up upon the coffee table. "Now, you didn't answer my question, go on then," she sasses, setting her drink down and leaning closer to you with knowing eyes gleaming into your own.

You roll your eyes, face going red while pushing her face away from your own as she laughs, "So you do have the hots for him!"

"No, its just that a second sun is bursting in my face and plus, we could never work," you retort, now refusing to meet her chasing eyes as she grips your hand. "Oh, come on (name)! details, details! don't leave me hanging here, thats brothers work," Ada presses forward just as your resolve crumbles. You place a hand to the bride of your nose, pinching as you eyes squeeze shut. "I won't repeat myself so listen closely," you start recalling the first day you met Captain and Duke, Edward Horniman.

--

↳ Running around your house, asking various staff members of your estate as to where your old mail had been distributed you felt around the thin papers and pages till you felt weight and lifted out the invitation from the stack. Mr. Johnston's Estate invites you to his quarterly festivities, your fingers trace over the pressed letters and seal before looking towards your closet

↳ You had worn a tailored dress that perfectly accentuated your body for tonights assignment. Within a closer inspection, various hand stitched black branches and birds spread across the top sheer level of fabric set to a black backdrop. Your hair was pinned upwards, showcasing the glowing skin of your neck and upper chest that you spent way too much time blending in with your makeup.

↳ You suitably leaned against the bar-top, feet already sore from the high heels you wore to make your legs appear longer and by the looks around the room, your plan of seduction was already in the works as a woman ordered a drink for the two of you. Her red lipstick simmering brightly under the dim lights, beckoning you in closer yet you held your resolve. Thanking her for the drink while placing a hand on her own before walking towards the neighbouring room. Feeling her stare as you left, you offered her a floating kiss before turning the corner.

↳ The windows were open as you walked down the long hall towards the cheers as multiple guests played various card games within the billiards room, you pulled the sleeves of your dress down further as you dropped the drink on a floating tray- it's sickeningly sweet taste formed a headache as you pinched your temples.

↳ You strolled around the room, smiling at every face that met yours, shaking hands with others as you enjoyed watching every. single. face. fall in recognition to who they were just flirting with. Stuttering apologies, you grew disappointed when their eyes drifted cautiously around the room for a threat of a man, one of your brothers. You scoff at this, turning towards the next.

↳ With the most recent man that was trying to capitalize on the half-attention you were giving him, absent-mindlessly nodding along to his business proposition as you both strolled around the estate, you found yourselves back at the entrance as your eyes snapped over to the late party-goers just making their arrivals, one of them being just the man you were waiting for as he stumbles through the open doors.

His beauty stumps you in person, the blurry pictures you obtained from at the table do not do the man justice as he practically glows under the warm lighting above. His hair tussled in a wind-swept way as your hands itch to fix every strand. Chocolate eyes are all you want to drink in before your attention is being called back as you start to glare at the intrusion.

"So what do you think, Mademoiselle Shelby?" the man asks to you, hand starting to drift up your arm, another on your leg before your eyes snap back down to his face from over the crowd. You rip your arm away from his touch, sending him a cold smile as you fix the lapels of his jacket for him, gripping the suit closest to his neck as you pull him closer to you. Any outside looker would think your reaction to be a romantic display yet by the sweat starting to form at his hairline, you were receiving just the reaction you wanted.

"I have no interest in working with a boy who already starts to sweat at the mere touch of a woman," and with that you drop him, watching as he falls into a group of people who all glare down at him, stepping around as he scrambles out the backdoor. You fix your appearance in your phones camera before making your way towards your mission.

--

Edward Horniman's Perspective

Re-buttoning his suit jacket, he places his keys in the hands of a staff-member while making his way up the stairs. Susie had been waiting for him in the lobby rather impatiently, her foot tapping against the tiled floors as she dully looked at the floral decorations that hug around the vaulted space before her eyes snapped to Eddie form spinning around to face her.

"You look a bit shit," she says while eyeing him up and down, taking notice to the small amount of blood beginning to form at his side with distaste.

"Remind me why we're here?" Eddie states, taking the conversation reigns as he begins to glance around the room. Susie begins walking closer to him, making their way out of the foyer.

"We are here to learn why Uncle Sam wants in to your estate and subsequently our Business," Susan replies, a subtle shake of her head as if ringing out the terrible idea of it all. Her feet start to falter as she instantly notices you stepping into the room behind them both with a champagne flute delicately place in your hand.

"Then whats his business?" Eddie pushes forwards, moving them both through the sea of people as Susie snaps her head back forwards, doing her best to maintain composure and not cause a scene as she allows Eddie to guide her further into the estate.

"Meth. He's made billions from it."

"Then what are you, Susan, a drug dealer with a heart?" Eddie question's, raising a brow as he stops to pick them both up a drink. A small smile spreading across his lips as they chime together before Susie proceeds to down the rest of it.

"Everything alright?" concern now rising in his features as he looks around the room, his gaze stopping, breath intaking sharply at the sight of you. He is unable to tear his gaze away as you turn your head to face him, you offer a small smile. Eyeing the man from his shoes, the seam of his pants, his neck that swallow deeply as your hand rises from your side, up to your collarbones as you delicately play with the necklace you wear. You finally stop at his eyes as you mouth a cheeky hello before turning around back towards the bar.

Susie still remains looking at her now empty drink, unknowing to Eddie's distraction by the sound of the crowd as she continues conversation normally. "We like money just as the next man, but his gear comes with a rather violent price tag. We stay in our lane because comparatively, its a peaceful one. We let him in, carnage will follow."

Susie now looks up, noticing that Eddie had not replied to her speech as she follows his gaze to your back as your fingers play with the lip of your cup. You laugh at whatever the bartender had just said to you before your glass has been topped off once more, you turn around, flashing them both a smile before slowly making your way closer to them.

Eddie takes a step forwards, wishing to meet you halfway before Susie reigns him in, nails digging into the arm of his suit jacket as she pulls him back to her side.

"I don't think you are quite ready for the big leagues, Captain-" Susan warns, looking at the side of Eddies face before he turns back to her, a charming smile accentuating his features before he speaks.

"I just killed a man, Susie. I think I can handle speaking to a woman-"

"Hm, well thats just not any ordinary woman, Edward. That is Miss. Shelby- the possible saviour to every one of our problems if we did not already... push some buttons," Susie states, smile waning as you get progressively closer, many people still try and gain your attention as you hold up your hand, wishing not to be disturbed.

"And there's room to fix that I'm sure, but what exactly did WE do?" Before Susie could answer, your heels are in front of Eddies dress shoes as you extend a hand forwards in greeting. "Miss. Shelby," Susie greets you with a composed look, her smile dropped as she tries to stare through you.

Edward picks up your hand, pressing a kiss on to the back of it as you hold hands for longer than necessary before pulling away. "Your Grace, Miss. Glass," you greet, "a pleasure it is to see you both here tonight." Your voice is like honey, hanging in the air as you smile at them both.

"The pleasure is all mine, Miss. Shelby," Edward replies, noticing Susie's mock indifference as she shifts her weight slightly under your faux-gentle eyes; sharped to a cutting-stare as you strike her down. "You two make a rather charming couple, if I may ask, how recent is this development?" you question, hiding your growing smirk in your drink as Eddie's gaze falls to your lips and the print you leave against the glass, snapping back up to your eyes- yours crinkle in a second greeting.

"You have yourself mistaken, Myself and Miss. Glass are merely business associates," Eddie clarify as you set your glass gently on the bar-top, hand brushing against Eddies bicep in the movement. Your eyes continue to lock on to one another, a silent conversation being played as you lean a bit closer, taking a deeper look at his features as you notice Eddies gaze roam your's own. In that moment, Susie decides to step back into the conversation.

"What does your family want?" she deadpans, eyeing the closing distance between you and Eddie with hardened eyes as her hand threatens to crush the glass in her hand. "Well, by the looks of it, your business had became my business, thanks to your mingling," you charismatically charm, hand hovering on Eddies arm as you adore the jealous look brewing inside her.

"And if you two are merely just associates, I think this calls for a more... personal discussion with the Duke since our businesses are now becoming tied together, is that not tight Susie?" you finish with as Eddie looks between the two of you, undeceiving of who to follow alongside. But by the look of your eyes snapping to his lips once more as you tongue swipes across your own, parting them slightly- his decision is made.

"I will be back in a moment, Susie," Edward says, following in-step as you lead him out of the crowded space. Just as Eddie reaches the hall, he casts his head back, sending Susie a knowing look as if to say, I'm fixing it before disappearing. Susie glares at your lipstick stained glass sat on the counter with distaste before being led towards Mr. Johnston by his assistant.

--

Your Perspective

Success, you cheer to yourself, as you loop your arm around Eddies arm, leading him towards a nearby study you know to be empty. The door softly closes behind you both. In the next moment, you pull Eddies arm to his side, shoving him against the door as it rattles from the impact.

Eddie's eyes are blown wide as he hisses out slightly in pain, forgetting about the gun-shot wound before becoming distracted by the feeling of your soft lips against his own. Your heels make you tall enough to capture his lips into a delicate battle of heated touches, your skirt being bunched up by Eddies hands, your gentle caresses of the stubble of his cheeks as playful bite his lower lip, wishing to explore more.

Gasping for air as you pull away, you further taint his skin a deep red to match his lips you coated in your lipstick. Pressing a kiss at the side of his mouth as he whispers out a tease before you trail over to his cheek, paving a way to his chin and down his neck as his head raises, exposing more skin for your greedy lips. He grips your hips, keeping you in place as you suck a mark onto the base of his neck. A soft moan escaping between his lips before an equally greater hiss as blood continues to pour out of his side.

You take a step back, gently opening his jacket, your eyes cast upwards, through your lashes as you playfully pout. You place a palm at his inner thigh, watching as his eyes grow in size as your hand drifts just past the growing bulge in his pants- stopping slightly before the wound as you hum out thoughtfully while looking at it.

"My, my, your grace. Whatever do you have here?" You rhetorically ask before pressing your hand into the opening, listening as he hisses out, hands swiftly moving off your hips and onto your hand as they pull your touch off of him side.

"You little fucking temptress," Eddie curses out, eyes darkened as his tongue sweeps over his lips, you take a few steps back. The Duke presses himself off the wall, taking wide strides as your hands begin to sweat yet you do not break eye contact. Continuing to swiftly walk backwards as best you can in heels before tripping over a rug and falling against the back of a chair.

Eddie's arms cage you in against the chair, your breath hitching as he places his face within the crook of your neck. His facial hair tickling your skin, a soft burn forming with every word he speaks, "Now tell me, Miss. Shelby, what is it you want from me?"

You swallow. Hard. Knuckles turning white at the force you grip the chair with before trying to compose yourself, a shaky breath you exhale conceal in a moan. Pressing a kiss to the shell of his ear, "I want you to kiss me, Eddie," you murmur, hand fixing those curls you wanted to from the start. Your fingers curl around a few strands within an instant as Eddie sucks a bruise to your neck, licking the area afterwards. "What are you here for?" he questions once more as you shake your head, wondering how far you can truly push this.

"No. That was not a proper kiss, sir. Kiss me." You state again, taking a deep breath in as victory when Eddie pulls away, eyes boring into your own, blood now tainting the band of his pants as your eyes flicker down to it. Your chin is gripped as Eddie pulls you into that proper kiss you were begging for but he pulls away too quickly as you press your lips together to hide your frown. Your cheeks were warm, hair a mess, your chest raises up and down like you had just ran a mile.

Edward appears in the same state as he stumbles back, hand gripping his side, eyes tipping down to your chest before snapping back up with a cold look- you needed to answer, couldn't have your signature bleeding out before he could sign.

"I need you out of my bettings, your grace," you breathily state, hand placed on your chest as you feel your heart-rate still bumping fast. You take deeper intakes of air, feeling for your heart starting to slow as you watch Eddie crunch over, blood-loss starting to make him go dizzy.

You swiftly stand and hobble towards the desk, finding a first aid kit in one of the lower drawers as you unknowingly bend down in front of Eddie as he curses you out once more, you look back, murmuring an apology before standing up straight and beginning to make work of his clothes, jacket off, tie discarded and shirt unbuttoned, you pluck the remnants of the bullet out from his side.

Eddie grits his teeth together, hands curled into fists as he watches you work, your tweezers poking into his muscle. "If you would stop watching me so closely, maybe I could focus more and poke you less," you sass, looking up at his while blowing the hair out of your eye. Eddie fixes the stand behind your ear before raising his hand once more. "Well just a minute ago you were practically on your knees begging for me to look at you," Eddie responds with a smirk, you huff and maintain your work, gathering the last bits of metal before treating the area and wrapping his torso snuggly.

The Duke's blood stains your hands as you look down at them thoughtfully. The thick liquid cascades off your fingertips, falling onto your dress, marking a pair of birds. "You owe me a new dress," you say, wiping your hands with the small cloth the kit provided before taking a stand. You start to walk away before Eddie grasps your arm, you pause mid-step, feet now plated in wait.

"Thank you, Miss. Shelby. I will sign to never fix a game with your business if you promise to have a meeting with Miss. Glass and I," Edward compromises, letting go of your arm and watches as you walk towards the exit, "I don't think you are in any position to make compromises, nevertheless demands, Edward. But... I'll keep you updated on my decision," and with that you close the door softly behind yourself for him to get dressed. Pressing your forehead to the wooden surface, you grip your hands into fists before settling your head up high as you descend the stairs and move towards the coat room. You sneak your keys and coat before slipping out the side door and walk towards your car.

A series of hastened footsteps against the gravel have you rolling down the window to your Range Rover, foot on the brake, hands on the wheel- ready to make haste. You do your best not to be surprised when the Duke's face greets you on the other side, a I know something you don't smile resting on his features as you raise a brow to it.

"We never exchanged contacts," he states to you casually, as if it were the weather. You hum out, analyzing his statement while look out the windshield before looking back at him. Light rain begins to fall as you press a lingering kiss to his cheek, "I will find you in due time, you and Miss. Glass. Have a good night, your grace." And with that, you roll up your window, and drive off underneath the moonlight.

--

You take a deep sip of your drink as Ada sits still, mouth open as you swear to be losing circulation to you hand. Pins and needles start to form at your fingertips form how tightly she holds onto your hand. "Fuck, sis. Sounds like you got him good," Ada says, barley able to conceal her smile.

Shaking your head you take a deep sip of your near melted lemonade before clearing your throat and checking for the time, it would be an hour's drive from here, you both had to leave soon. "Well even if I have managed to, 'get him good...'" you raise your hands in quotations, starting to mock even the idea of you two together yet your heart speaks otherwise, beating rapidly in your chest as you recount the feeling of his lips on yours. The small hickey on your neck still bruised as you wonder if his has healed since then.

Ada raises a brow, watching as you absent-mindedly reach up towards your mark, fingers circling around the mark as you continue to speak, "...Tommy would never allow it-"

"Fuck what Tommy thinks, he's not you. Do YOU want to see him again?" Ada cuts you off, a serious look taking over every feature, tightening into sharp lines- as if daring you to say else-wise.

You refuse to meet her eyes, looking outside to the near empty tracks, "I mean..."

↳ Taglist: @daffodilstark @leavemeslowly @iamasimpingh0e @kneelarmhstrung @surazim

↳ A/N: What did you all think? I am quite happy with this being a standalone but I am willing to write a pt.2. If you have any ideas as to where it could go- send an ask, DM, or comment and I'll see what can be done further :) (i'm also taking a break soon... maybe... probably).

[ssnowflowers]

Catching up to Krows Pirates POV is incredible because Kuervo (P!Krow) is genuinely savage.

"I was hoping you'd bump into your shipwreck and die" "Well I suppose I should find someone who doesn't care about money and actually does something with their existence. Have fun being a waste of space." "Well fuck you Finn. Find your own shit." "The Kites all laze around and get drunk, the Nightingales are embarrassing, the Kestrels are all rich assholes." "Fans quiet down you are so annoying with your pussy-ness." "You all sit down on your asses, complaining that I need to hurry up because you need to go watch the Barbie Movie." "You speak your truth. Which is a lie. Some peoples truths are just incorrect."

Like why aren't we talking about Kuervo more? He's awesome!

[o0ogalaxyroseo0o]

i love taking notes about the pirates smp npcs, because on one hand we have normal stuff like finn the gardener and cael the sun-worshipping kite, and on the other hand we have Marnie Gatlin, the leader of nightingale who’s also a kestrel who’s also a fan of mrmadspy who’s also a real person who’s also an ai chatbot.

[high-school-lit-tournament]

THE LIST IS OUT!

The 64 entries that will be competing in the bracket are, as follows, in no particular order:

Of Mice and Men

The Catcher in the Rye

To Kill A Mockingbird 

A Separate Peace

Macbeth

An Inspector Calls

Huckleberry Finn 

1984

Animal Farm

The Great Gatsby

The Invisible Man

Night 

The Outsiders

The Crucible

The Poisonwood Bible

Wuthering Heights

A Streetcar Named Desire

The Kite Runner

Pride and Prejudice

Fahrenheit 451

Hamlet

The Things They Carried

L'étranger (the Stranger)

Persepolis

The Bell Jar

Death of a Salesman

The Importance of Being Ernest 

The Color Purple

Lord of the Flies

A Doll’s House

The Stepford Wives

Beloved 

Frankenstein 

Brave New World

The House of the Spirits 

The Count of Monte Christo

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde 

War and Peace

Crime and Punishment 

Jane Eyre

Their Eyes Were Watching God

A Raisin in the Sun

The Sound and the Fury

Saragana

Triste Fim de Policarpo Quaresma

Catch-22

Kindred

Heart of Darkness

Metamorphosis 

Maus

Arcadia

Things Fall Apart

The Master and Margarita

We (Zamyatin)

I Am A Cat

The Grapes of Wrath

Madame Bovary

The Scarlet Letter

The Sun Also Rises

Never Let Me Go

Slaughterhouse 5

Noli Me Tángere

The Samurai’s Garden

Stay tuned for the bracket later this week!

[j-femmescoli]

books i read in 2023

my goal was to read a book a week and while the timeline wasn't perfectly even, i did manage to get it to add up (and then some!). this year i focused on religion and philosophy as well as classics (of which im counting both as traditional "ancient or pre-modern famous and outstanding" types of books, but also famous more modern books). i also bolded some books that were really good in my opinion that have really stuck with me so if you are interested in the genre i'd suggest those

st joan by bernard shaw (play)

mary and your everyday life by bernard haring (theology)

theology of liberation by gustavo gutierrez (theology)

magnificat by elizabeth ruth obbard (theology)

piedras labradas by victor montejo (poetry)

the boy who was raised as a dog by bruce perry and maia szalavitz (psychology)

4 great plays by ibsen - the dollhouse, ghosts, the wild duck, and an enemy of the people by henry ibsen (plays obvi)

the night of the iguanas by tennessee williams (play)

being logical by dq mcinerny (idk sociology maybe? it was about recognizing and avoiding bad-faith arguments and logical fallacies)

the alchemist by paolo coelho (classics)

frankenstein by mary shelly (classics)

an american tragedy by theodore dreiser (classics)

is this wifi organic? by dave farina (idk how to classify this one either but it was also about recognizing bad-faith arguments, specifically when it comes to pseudoscience)

the nicaraguan church and the revolution by joseph muligan (theology, history)

catholic social teaching: our best kept secret by peter henriot, edward deberri, and michael schultheis (theology)

beowulf (classics)

sapiens by yuval noah harari (anthropology)

the church and the second sex by mary daly (theology)

mary in the new testament edited by raymond brown, karl donfried, joseph fitzmyer, and john reumann (theology)

a catholic devotion to mary by oscar lukefahr (theology)

1001 nights / arabian nights trans. sir richard burton (classics)

a house on mango street by sandra cisneros (poetry)

primary source readings in catholic church history edited by robert feduccia and nick wagner (theology)

doing faithjustice by fred kammer, sj (theology)

winds of change by isaac asimov (sci-fi)

the sound and the fury by william faulkner (classics)

una ciudad de la españa cristiana hace mil años by claudio sanchez-albornoz (history)

the glass menajerie by tennessee williams (play)

reinventing the enemy's language by joy harjo and gloria bird (indigenous women writers anthology)

the great gatsby by f scott fitzgerald *reread* (classics)

the bell jar by sylvia plath (classics)

the kite runner by khaled hosseini (classics)

one nation, under gods by peter manseau (history)

development as freedom by amartya sen (economic / political philosophy)

women in ministry: four views edited by bonnidell and robert g clouse (practical theology)

mother of god: a history of the virgin mary by miri rubin (theology / history)

a study in scarlet and the sign of four by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

adventures of sherlock holmes by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

the casebook of sherlock holmes by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

the valley of fear by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

the memoirs of sherlock holmes by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

the return of sherlock holmes by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

the hound of the baskervilles by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

his last bow by sir arthur conan doyle (classics)

the fundamentals of ethics, fourth edition by russ shafer landau (philosophy)

dracula by bram stoker (classics) (yes i'm counting dracula daily)

desde mi silencio by carmen gomez (poetry)

happiness in this life, excerpts from the homilies of pope francis (theology)

the vigilante / the snake / the chrysanthemums by john steinbeck (classics)

quest for the living god by sister beth johnson *reread* (theology)

the adventures of tom sawyer by mark twain (classics)

the adventures of huckleberry finn by mark twain (classics)

the boys in the boat by daniel james brown (history)

and that's all folks, ending the year with some classics, plus my mom insisted i read the boys in the boat while im home for christmas because she wanted to see the movie lol. i got so many books for christmas so i'll be startin off strong next year too, and my goal is finishing my collection of john steinbeck, by which i mean obtaining as well as reading everything i can find by him. here's my list from 2022 and i'll see you next year

[pacificwaternymph]

The first night after Joanna sees Finn, she grieves.

She grieves for her friend. For the tragedy she couldn't prevent. For everything they'd lost in the span of just a few short months.

She grieves for the loss of his memories. Everything they'd ever been through together, gone, just like that. Like it never meant anything.

She hated the thought. Finneas wasn't dead, she reminded herself. It was still here. She could go visit it, if she really wanted to.

But then again, in a way, he was. The Finneas she knew was gone, probably forever. This new Finneas didn't remember all their time spent together. The late nights, singing and dancing and drinking and laughing. Holding him as he cried. Confessing to one another everything they never told anyone.

It's still better than if he were actually dead, she tried to reason. At least this way, you can make new memories together. You can rebuild. There will always be tomorrow.

But is it? the other part of her mind asked. Is it better? To know that it would never remember her, or what she meant to it. To know that it suffered, that it had probably been scared, and even after that, it hadn't been allowed to rest.

Had he thought of her as he was drowning? Or Lazuli? Had he begged for them to save him in his head? Had he hoped against hope that they would be there, miraculously, to pull him out of the water as they had so many times?

She couldn't remember if there had ever been a time she felt more broken.

When she finally grew tired of asking herself the same cruel questions, tearing at her heart, all desperate for a piece, she grieved for herself.

Finn was a mer now. The same as her. He didn't remember anything about his life before becoming a mer. He didn't even know that he had a past life.

Was she the same? Were all merfolk made that way? Had she existed before she could remember?

Did she have a family? Were they out there, mourning the death of their child, unaware that she lived on, blissfully ignorant of their very existence? What if she had siblings? Cousins? Parents?

She had only been a little girl when she first woke on the ocean floor. She didn't remember anything before that day, when she'd opened her eyes to find the wreck of a ship next to her.

The shipwreck...

Had she been on that ship? Had she known the people who sailed it? Had her family been among them? Had they died with the ship?

Why? Why her? Why should she have been revived when everyone else had been left to die? Why was she different from any other member of the crew?

It was all too much. For years and years and years, she'd longed to meet another one of her kind. She'd wished for someone else like her, someone who could relate to her and who would understand everything that she herself didn't.

The universe had a cruel way of granting wishes.

Inigo held her as she sobbed, rocking back and forth. The children, who were meant to be in bed, stood by the doorway. They were worried. No one had explained to them what was going on. No one had known how. How does one explain to a child that someone from their family is gone, and never coming back?

They would need her, she knew. Like she would have needed her own mother, assuming she'd had one. God, where was her mother now?

Would Finneas want his own mother? Presumably not. She knew how awful his parents had been to him. But perhaps the familiarity of blood would... no. It was wishful thinking.

She would have to teach it, Joanna realized. Every hard won lesson she'd been forced to learn on her own, growing up in the ocean. She would have to teach Finneas the very same. How to catch food. How to fend off or hide from predators. How to transform from tail to legs. How to walk. How to talk. How to be a person again.

The thought wrecked her. The ocean had taken Finneas, her friend, her family, the only family she'd ever known, and it had stripped him of everything. It had brought back an empty shell of who he used to be. But she would gladly do it. She had to.

Lazuli would gladly offer her help, if asked. But Joanna was the only other mermaid Finneas knew. For all the both of them knew, they were the only to merfolk in the world. This was her responsibility, and hers alone.

She would make this right.

-

Finneas belongs to @finnified

Lazuli belongs to @amostfoolishgold

I'll be honest, I think Joanna would start to go down something of a self destructive spiral in this au. She's just come to several very disturbing realizations about herself, and she's feels like she's just lost one of her closest friends.

She'd push down all her feelings and she wouldn't talk to anyone about it. She'd feel responsible for mer!Finn as the only other mermaid and she'd absolutely destroy herself over it.

This is like--worst case scenario territory lmao

[amostfoolishgold]

There are stories about mermaids. Some humans, apparently, believe that mermaids and sirens are one and the same. To be fair, to the uneducated the tail of a tropical siren and the tail of a mermaid are likely indistinguishable. But any siren could tell you that a mermaid is very different. Sirens may be the ocean's inhabitants, but mermaids are the ocean's children.

But even among sirens, mermaids are a mystery. They are of the ocean in a way that is blatant to those who simply live there. But they are so rare that they can go their whole lives without ever seeing another of their kind. There are stories, of course there are, of mermaids born from sea foam or unholy magic or even just from the union between sirens and humans.

It is as Lazuli stares at the half-feral thing that Finneas has become, that she remembers another story she has heard about mermaids. That mermaids are not born from the ocean, but claimed.

Finneas looks at her with hollow-eyed confusion and she needs to be gentle here. She needs to be Lazuli the beloved sister and friend. Finneas needs its pod.

Lazuli bites back the snarl that threatens to build in favour of a gentle trill, the kind of call for comfort after a nightmare. Finneas doesn't relax, per se, but the tension in its frame unwinds ever so slightly. Lazuli makes her cautious way over to Finneas's side. She wants to hold him, to feel that he is real and here, even in this new form. He flinches at the hand she reaches out and she snatches it back. For a second she thinks about using her lure, forcing him to relax, but that thought sends her skittering back across the room. Finneas stares at her with fearful eyes as she reaches for the door.

She tries to speak, to offer some assurances or make some new promise she can't fulfill or apologise. Instead her voice catches on the edge of a sob. She leaves.

It would perhaps be easier to sink into the grief she's been putting off. But Lazuli has never been one for grief, and this was no necessary loss.

The ocean took Finneas from her. Someone helped the ocean take her fucking family from her. It is perhaps unreasonable to be angry at a body of water, but if the ocean is person enough to have children, to take people, it is person enough for this. Lazuli doesn't know how just yet, but she has teeth and claws and she will have her revenge.

---

@finnified is a menace and has done horrible things to the little guy. Lazuli is. Not helping but she is going to kill someone once she figures out who to kill.

[powcreations]

"We've released new content on our Patreon this week! Including a free new datapack gamemode + all of the NPC concept art for the #PiratesSMP!

Here's 4 of the main NPC's for free, the rest can be found on our patreon below!"

"Additionally, here's a screenshot of all of the NPC's pronouns and ages for the wider community. Spread the word! o7

patreon.com/PowCreations"

Full images + list of npc below

Kestrel Faction:

Alison, Age: 36, she/her

Finnegan, 39, he/him

Ausbie, 25, he/him

Nightingale Faction:

Marnie Gatlin, 47, she/they

Me Rainforth, 63, he/him

Mrs Rainforth, 59, she/her

Heron Faction:

Christian, 29, he/they

Gabriel, 24, he/any

Kite Faction:

Mara, 64, she/her

Saffrie, 21, any

Cael, 62, he/him

Verity, ???, He/him

Townsfolk:

Digby, 18, he/him

Traveling merchant, ???, Any/all

Hook, 22, it/they

The Castaway, 58, any/all

Finn, 33, he/him

Missy, 31, she/her

Claud, 52, he/him

Madeleine, 25, she/her

Jeffery, 24, he/they

Flam, 26, he/they

[wearebackbagels]

Don’t imagine the SAS in highschool, dont do it, DON’T-! ........I did it.

The principal's son David Stirling who wants to live up to the family name but struggles in school.

And his rowdy crush Eve.

Paddy is flying in and out of juvie more frequently than he is shagging his long-haired boyfriend.

And Augustin is not too happy about either of those things.

This is the second time Dave gets busted while smoking weed by the dumpsters.

Reggie-best-in-the-football-team-Seekings.

Straight A-student Johnny.

Mike before puberty hit him like a fucking train. All the girls( and most boys) at school have a crush on him.

Jock Lewis is secretly making bombs with stuff he steals from the lab in the school cellar.

Pat Riley is good with a sewing machine and works part time as a police officer though there are some who claims they have seen him smoking weed with Dave Kershaw by the dumpsters, but those are just rumours ofc.

And what list of mine would be complete without my Trash prince Walter Essner aka Mr Real Thing having beef with someone in the mens-room( or something, I have no fucking clue what is about to go down here)

Actors, media and characters. Connor Swindells - Sex Education ( Adam Groff)

Sofia Boutella - Atomic Blonde (Delphine)

Jack O’Connell - Starred Up ( Eric Love)

César Domboy - The Walk          ( Jeff/Jean)

Bobby Schofield - The Walk-In   ( Matthew Hankinson)

Theo Barklem Biggs - The First Team( Petey Brooks)

Jacob McCarthy - The Drummer And the Keeper (Christopher)

Tom Glynn Carney -  The Last Post (Tony Armstrong)

Alfie Allen - How to Build A Girl (John Kite)

Jacob Ifan - Cuffs (Jake Vickers)

Paul Boche - Uns Geht es Gut( The blond)

I seriously couldn’t find anything with Donal Finn( Eoin) or Corin Silva( Almonds). They are basically in nothing outside of SAS. Same goes for Bill Fraser, sorry @adowbaldwin​

FUNNY STUFF IN THE COMMENTS

[longhairedboybracket]

Long Haired Boy Bracket All Contestants

The polls will start this tuesday the 2nd

Bracket A

1 - Ling Yao Fullmetal Alchemist vs Will Turner Pirates of the Caribbean

2 - Chigiri Hyoma Blue Lock vs Kasanoda Ritsu OHSHC

3 - Squidward Tentacles Sponge Bob Square Pants vs Link Legend of Zelda

4 - Heimdall Mcu vs Enoch Drebber Ace Attorney

5 - Izuru Kamukura Danganronpa vs Silver Pokémon

6 - Wei Wuxian Mo Dao Zu Shi vs Hua Cheng Heaven's Official Blessing

7 - Wataru Hibiki Ensemble Stars vs Akoya Gero Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-Bu Love

8 - Su Honkai Impact 3rd vs Reyson Fire Emblem

9 - Vanitas Vanitas no Carte vs Athos 3 musketeers

10 - Destruction The Sandman vs Eliot Stardew Valley

11 - Neightan Rot Monster High vs Haruka Hashida Blue Period

12 - Kian Stone Just Roll With It, Show vs Aion Show By Rock

13 - Shulk Xenoblade vs Antonio Identity V

14 - Beelzebub Granblue Fantasy vs Kiun Noragami

15 - Alex Harvey-Iniguez Magical Warrior Diamond Heart vs Fabian Blush Blush

16 - Lord Cedric W.I.T.C.H vs Eithan Aurelius Cradle Series

Bracket B

1 - Korekiyo Shinguji Danganronpa vs Hong Lu Limbus Company

2 - Alucard Castlevania vs Finn The Human Adventure Time

3 - Sakurayashiki Kaoru "Cherry" Sk8 Infinity vs Rosado Fire Emblem

4 - Geralt Of Rivia The Witcher vs Elrond Lord Of The Rings

5 - Inigo Montoya The Princess Bride vs Fire Lord Zuko Avatar The Last Airbender/Avatar The Legend Of Korra

6 - Natural Harmonia Gropius "N" Pokémon vs Loki Mcu

7 - Samsom The Old Testament vs Aramis 3 musketeers

8 - Interdimensional Prince Monster Prom vs Furanui Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-Bu Happy Kiss

9 - Ichirota Kazemaru Inazuma Eleven vs Lucas Rune Factory 5

10 - Helia Winx Club vs Gunpowder Tim The Mechanisms

11 - Shinjiro Nozomi Entropic Float vs Dia Akedia Court of Darkness

12 - Jareth The Goblin King Labyrinth vs Br'aad Vengolor Just Roll With It

13 - Little Creek Spirit vs Bigby Wolf Fables

14 - Terry Bogard Fatal Fury vs Prince Phobos W.I.T.C.H

15 - Dyuradyura Show By Rock vs Noah Kawaii Mansion

16 - Howell Wizard Bee and Puppycat vs Zero Megaman

Bracket C

1 - Inuyasha Inuyasha vs Lucius Fire Emblem

2 - Legolas Lord of the Rings vs Greg Universe Steven Universe

3 - Melli Pokémon vs Shatterstar Marvel

4 - Klavier Gavin Ace Attorney vs Lan Wangji Mo Dao Zu Shi

5 - Chewbacca Star Wars vs Cousin it The Addams Family

6 - Captain Hook Peter Pan vs Edward Elric Fullmetal Alchemist

7 - Tarzan Tarzan vs Razor Genshin Impact

8 - Gerard Keay The Magnus Archives vs Deidara Naruto

9 - Yan Qing Fate Grand Order vs Porthos 3 musketeers

10 - Yue Cardcaptor Sakura vs Headmaster Precure

11 - Kurama Yu Yu Hakusho vs Gillion Tidestrider Just Roll With It

12 - Sitka Brother Bear vs Lord Cob Tales Of Earthsea

13 - Kidou Yuuto Inazuma Eleven Go vs Takumi Ichinose Nana

14 - Peter Cook W.I.T.C.H vs Alec Swordspoint

15 - Peking Duck Food Fantasy vs Karurusu Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-Bu Happy Kiss

16 - Blue Knight Tokyo Mew Mew vs Yakari Yakari

Bracket D

1 - Asakura Hao Shaman King vs Soren Fire Emblem

2 - Sesshomaru Inuyasha vs Christopher Yugioh Zexal

3 - Lord Farquaad Shrek vs Katsura Kotaro Gintama

4 - Jesus The Bible vs Sephiroth Final Fantasy VII

5 - Aoba Seragaki Dramatical Murder vs Basil Hawkins One Piece

6 - Kamui Gakupo Vocaloid vs Nahyuta Sahdmadhi Ace Attorney

7 - Jon Snow Game of Thrones vs Grusha Pokémon

8 - Terumi Furo "Aphorodi" Inazuma Eleven vs Joseph Identity V

9 - Nahobino Shin Megami Tensei vs Kite Hunter x Hunter

10 - Ogron Winx Club vs Niklaus Just Roll With It

11 - D'artagnian 3 musketeers vs Monmon Show by Rock

12 - Xie Lian Heaven's Official Blessing vs Olivier Vanitas no Carte

13 - Xiao Yin Dislyte vs Thane Bauer Watashi no Oshi Wa Akuyaku Reijou

14 - Toki Wartooth Metalocalypse vs Madmartigan Willow

15 - DJ Grooves A Hat In Time vs Jae-ha Akatsuki no Yona

16 - Nezumi No.6 vs Ashe Bradley Witch's Heart

[finnified]

mermaids are, by and large, a phenomenon that no-pirate really understands. 

they’re not particularly known to be social creatures- in fact, depending on which circles you move in, some will say they don’t even exist, that reports of mermaids are just sirens mis-identified.

adalwulff isn’t sure if she buys it, either way, but she hadn’t guessed before this that it would be something she’d have to give real thought to.

it’s been two months since finneas’s disappearance. adalwulff has been out on the water since day one, searching for a clue of where he might’ve fled or been taken to. the only clue that’s been revealed to any of their motley crew- adalwullf and finneas’s friends, still on the isles- was his star-spangled seajacket, which someone- maybe it was the siren?- found washed up under the docks of one of the kestrel piers.

it had left a sick, metallic taste in everyone’s mouths. 

adalwulff is summoned out of their thoughts by a cry from the starboard side of the ship. “captain! there’s something caught in the line! maybe a dol- woah!”

“jay? speak, man!” adalwulff calls as they practically trip over themself to emerge from belowdecks. the sounds of a frantic struggle ring out from the starboard deck, proper cursing and all. 

the pirate captain’s saber is already drawn as she skids to a halt on the top deck, twisting about in a start to reorient herself as she catches a flash of something ruby-iridescent in the light. she blinks, and then- 

“fi- by jove, men! let him go!” adalwulff rushes over the roiling, flopping figure in the net as fast as ze can, but fae can’t move fast enough to beat the horrible, rotting feeling eating up jaer insides. 

she skids up to the side deck where heath, maryssa and jay are crouched in a loose semicircle around the flailing form caught in the wet mass of netting on the deck. locking xer jaw to keep xemself from crying out, adalwulff takes in dark red and purple scales on thin, pale arms and a huge semi-translucent purple tail-fin twitching under the weight of a heavy fishlike tail and- 

huge, dark brown eyes that seemed blue in their darkest depths, peering out from beneath dark wavy hair plastered to a pale, scaled face by the salt water crusted in the curls. 

adalwulff reaches out vaguely to their left side, and jay takes hyr arm as he hauls himself to standing. “captain?” 

after just a moment, adalwulff shakes off his arm and shakes hyr head, before stumbling over to the moon-white face peering out from the net. zie fumble zir belt for a switchblade and shakily reach out to start cutting the netting, ignoring the way the creature- the mermaid- starts twitching and thrashing when he sees the knife. 

“shh, shhhh, it’s okay… it’s okay-“ adalwulff mutters as she deftly works the net away from what is probably his very sensitive tail. as soon as he’s free enough he immediately begins to lash out, and it’s all adalwulff can do not to cut him. 

“dear seas, finneas-“ adalwulff lunges back as finn growled and snaps at her, releasing a guttural sound from its throat. adalwulff loosens her grip on the knife and allows it to go flying, glancing at it to make sure finn sees its go. 

finn opens its mouth and makes another deep gargling sound, and adalwulff holds up jaer hands in surrender. his name slips out of hyr mouth without her even realizing. “oh, finn- who did this to you?” 

finn vocalizes yet again, and the captain realizes that it’s not an angry sound, maybe- it sounds like he’s trying at her name, maybe- 

“finn, buddy, do you remember me? captain adalwulff?” 

he opens his mouth and his throat catches on the ad- sound at the beginning of hyr name. 

adalwulff sits back on their heels in shock, reeling from the reality of this situation that’s washing over xem like so many waves. the wiry little crafty kite she used to know is a seas-forsaken mermaid. he can’t speak. he’s so thin and battered, even this way. without intent, adalwulff feels their eyes begin to mist. 

“oh, finn.” she reaches out to him again, thoughts a million miles away, trying to craft the best plan on to inform his friends of his fate. “oh, finn, i’m sorry i couldn’t save you from this.”  

—————

if i speak, i am in trouble, so i am NOT going to speak! (To be abundantly clear this is for the MERMAY AU i have been cooking with the gang , finneas is not actually dead. i prommy)

[demonoflight]

Can't leave the Agents of the New Squidbeak Splatoon out of the Pride celebration! These are my headcanons for my agents. All LGBTQ NSS Agents are valid. ❤️

For reference:

Agent 3/Captain (Kite): Trans, agender (shirt reads ERROR: Gender Not Found)

Agent 4 (Finn): Bi (shirt reads 33% Bi, 33% Bi But Purple, 33% Bi But Blue)

Agent 8 (Eight): Lesbian

New Agent 3 (Riff): Nonbinary, rainbow flag

Smallfry (Buddy): Original rainbow flag (pants custom made with love by Neo 3!)