#how hard it is to be in her fashion program

[dottable]

so sad i didn't get to properly say goodbye to my fashion queen, rebecca hall yoshida ✨

if she were present in the season, paxton would have made more sensible decisions earlier

[emacrow]

Danny has an aggressive secret admirer and that Admirer is Damian wayne.

How this all started was during the Gotham exchange program where Danny had accidentally enrolled in as a joke but didn't think he actually get picked.

Luckily his rogues decided to give him some peace for once since they didn't want to go anywhere near Gotham because she a scary lady, but she actually a very misunderstood lady who just want companion..

Just have a odd way of expressing.. but she allow him in her city until the program is over but has hinted very cryptic if he want to stay then Her Knights have ways.

On his first day of gotham high, everyone so far kept whispered about the new wayne bait?

He didn't really listen but he was mostly asleep in the classes because he already have the whole class homework down already and he using this entire program as a vacation to sleep for once since he first became a halfa.

How he met Damian was pure accident.. literally, as he had accidentally body flipped him so hard to the ground due to Damian grabbing his shoulder and he really didn't meant it but his body instinctly grab his hand.

Which lead to his now peaceful vacation becoming a bit problematic.. as Damian will not leave him alone..

Unknownly to danny. He had gained admirer..

His locker filled with letters that would make Dora blush with how old fashioned they were written in. The occasion and daily weapon gift giving left in his own dorm.( he thought it was skulker leaving him weapons to try out on their next fight) The chocolates he kept receiving thought it was from the other girls from the other class room. Some of his clothes were missing but he thought it was his roommate.

Meanwhile Damian is at his wits end to the point of nearly putting cameras in Danny's room if it weren't for Tim catching on rather quickly on his 'too far gone deep obsession' with the new kid. He had been benched several times because he had been caught on several occasions trying to sneak into Danny's apartment, his locker, his gym locker. To the point they now trying to distract him from approaching danny.

He is just doing the courting rituals that he had learned so far from Talia.. he didn't even get to try the kidnapped and held hostage ritual yet :(

[mothmanssweetsucculentass]

ZZZ Headcanons

Help this game has taken over my free time I love these characters sm <3 Billy Soukaku and Ellen my beloved

Nicole: has a not so secret hobby of bedazzling anything and everything. It’s a real problem in the Cunning Hares apartment, nothing is safe from pink rhinestones and stickers

Anby: cracked at rhythm games to an alarming degree. Can do a 2 person extremely hard DDR song all by herself

Billy: I don’t know how they did it but they programmed an android with autism. Has his own version of a skincare routine which is basically just maintenance on all of his tiny mechanical parts. Can also gain power multiple ways, including solar power. The apartment complex where the Cunning Hares live had a blackout once and everyone used Billy as a personal charging port. Nicole promised to pay him in Starlight Knight merch.

Nekomata: cuts her own hair and offers to do it for other people. DO NOT trust her when she says she’s good at it

Grace: did gymnastics as a kid which is why she’s able to pull off a ton of backflips and flexible maneuvers in battle

Anton: uses actual cement to keep his hair spikes in shape. Koleda caught him in the act once and instead of chewing him out, she decided to apply some to her own hair and now they’re cement combover gang

Ben: is completely vegan and loves chilling at hot springs a lot. Still sleeps with stuffed animals btw

Koleda: I’m making it canon right now Koleda is trans and you can’t do shit about it. Also has welding as a hobby and made most of her accessories from scratch

Corin: when not in Victoria Housekeeping Co uniform, is a Jfashion junkie. I’m talking super dedicated Lolita fits, menhera inspired clothing, the whole shebang. She ofc designs a lot of her own stuff like her bear backpack and is also responsible for a lot of the accessories Victoria Housekeeping Co wears (Rina’s bows, Ellen’s shark jaw head and neckpieces, Lycaon’s eyepatch and tail straps). She also has a massive crush on Ellen and is too scared to admit it

Rina: has a fur allergy and can’t keep animals around. Which also means she’s allergic to Lycaon. She has to take so much Zyrtec before clocking in but has such a good poker face that Lycaon has no idea. Ellen knows tho

Lycaon: specifically wears the heeled boots and has his odd posture because he’s self conscious about his digitigrade legs, he thinks they’re unsightly for a butler of his standing to have. He also tries to encourage Ellen to wear a long maid dress like Rina does to hide her tail.

Ellen: coincidentally falls into a lot of shark stereotypes. She loves seafood, has to constantly be fidgeting or she feels like she’ll go mad, and the kicker, she gets frenzied around blood, or if the thing she’s fighting puts up a struggle. Corin accidentally cut her hand while repairing her saw blade once and both Lycaon and Rina could barely hold Ellen back once Corin began bleeding. Ellen feels awful for scaring the already timid girl. Corin secretly thought it was hot and would die on the spot if anyone knew that

Soukaku: despite being a huge foodie this girl cannot cook for shit. Is also physically cold to the touch and during the summer her coworkers will ask her to hold their drinks because they’ll stay cold. Soukaku always secretly sneaks sips every time they do this to her.

Miyabi: has the worst sleep schedule known to man. Sometimes you’ll find her awake at 3AM and conked out by 4PM, other times she goes to bed at 8PM and wakes up at 4AM. It’s inconsistent and irregular and a gamble trying to contact her outside of work because she might not even be awake

Harumasa: GAY GAY HOMOSEXUAL GAY. Also pretty cracked at chess and other strategy games. Is also a major old fashioned guy and doesn’t own a lot of modern technology. He’s not into retro or old stuff, he just doesn’t like new stuff

Yanagi: her glasses are fake. When she was younger she needed them, but her vision had naturally gotten better over the years, so she now wears contacts, but for some reason still insists on wearing her glasses. Loses them constantly during battle.

Lucy: even though she was forced to play piano as a kid, she really wanted to be a sporty girl and play stuff like soccer and baseball. Now she has the freedom to take part in the sports she likes and watch them surrounded by the people she likes

Piper: insanely picky eater to the point it drives Lucy up a wall. Is also picky about a lot of other things, like how different fabrics feel, different comfort levels of chairs and beds, girl is a complainer and will always find something to complain about

Lighter: has a side gig as a tattoo artist, has really stable hands too

Soldier 11: has 5 younger brothers, a younger sister, and 2 older siblings who she doesn’t see super often. Has divorced parents who also liked to adopt, which is why she has such a huge family. Her younger brothers love it when she comes home and plays secret agent military with them

Seth: can’t drive. That’s it send tweet.

Qingyi: is outwardly dismissive of meditation tricks and hacks and tips but utilizes that shit in private ALL the time.

Zhu Yuan: shares the vegetables she grows in her garden with all her neighbors. Is also a REALLY good cook to the point people have encouraged her to potentially consider a different career path

Jane Doe: the rat girl has pet rats go figure. But in all seriousness she’d die for her little guys. She has a white one named Cocaine and a brown one named Tobacco and a gray one named Crystal Meth. She thinks the names are hilarious and every time she introduces the rats to other people their facial expressions are priceless

[buckysdollbarnes]

you are in love series - part one

one look, dark room

PAIRING: tfawts!bucky x grad student!reader

Summary: Moving to NYC to go to grad school, your friend's dad has a connection with the owner of a rental building in Brooklyn where you can live on your own, for cheaper than you could get anywhere else. On a student's budget, you strive to still make your place your own by thrifting as much decor as possible. Meeting your quiet and somewhat secretive neighbor, James, you gain some free labor to help you move the random stuff you buy, and with that he may be growing to love parts of the modern world he has been missing. With you in a big, new city feeling alone for the first time and Bucky wanting to make a connection with someone other than Sam and his therapist, maybe online marketplaces and a turntable will bring you both what you need most.

warnings: mild language

word count: 4.7k

a/n: this is my first time EVER writing fiction, usually I only ever write academic papers so this is fun. :) I read over and revised this chapter so many times, so I hope you enjoy it! Feedback is always welcomed and I'm excited to start on the next chapter.

a/n: also!! sorry for it being so long genuinely just so much had to happen in this chapter for it to be set up the way I wanted, which I think I did well enough. lmk what you think <3

Why did I think carrying this by myself was a good idea? It might be cute and a great deal, but I don’t think I'll be able to feel my arms tomorrow. I might need to hit the gym again before I find more bargains like this. Hell, maybe I'll even invest in a neck towel, because this heat is unbearable. I’ve been searching for some larger pieces to fill my apartment, and this vintage bar cart should fit perfectly. Just five more blocks to go.

Moving here alone has certainly come with its challenges: being on my own in such a big city, dealing with a lot of stress, and managing on a tight budget. But I’m determined to make it work though and prove everyone wrong. Growing up, you see so many romcoms where the heroine leaves everything behind to chase her dreams in NYC, landing a job at a magazine or fashion house, living in a gorgeous high-rise, and meeting the perfect guy. It’s a beautiful fantasy really, but the reality is much tougher. New York isn’t a movie set; it’s a real city with real people, and you have to work just as hard, if not harder, to be here. I know that, but it feels like a majority of my people back home DON’T know that I know that.

I came here for school. In about two months, I’ll be starting my Master’s program at NYU. I don’t think I’ve ever been as proud as when I received my acceptance email. I worked my ass off in undergrad to earn strong recommendations and good academic standing, and seeing it all come together was a huge relief—until the reality of the cost hit me.

Luckily, a friend's dad has a connection with a landlord in Brooklyn and got me a good deal on a place of my own. It’s incredible not to have a roommate in this market, especially in a place where your bed doesn���t touch your stove, though it can be a bit lonely.

Finally, reaching the stoop, out of breath, you set the cart down on the pavement. Wiping your brow, you notice the street is unusually quiet for this time of day. The city never truly sleeps, but the residential streets seem to take occasional naps. A little breath of air somewhere where it feels like oxygen is running out sometimes. Light filters through the trees, momentarily blinding you, and you turn back toward the building.

“How on earth am I going to get this up to my floor?”

Carrying it down the street was one thing, but hauling it up the stairs is a whole different challenge. Plus, who knows when the building's maintenance has last been here, the steps might not hold up under the cart’s weight. They usually feel like they could give away holding one person.

Deciding that falling to your death and being crushed isn’t really how you want to go, you open the double doors and drag the cart into the lobby, using the wheels on one side. Passing the main desk where the worker, who looks completely uninterested, engrossed in a crossword puzzle, you make your way to the end of the hall and start pulling the cart backwards up the incline of the stairwell.

“Nah, I can’t,” you say aloud, after struggling up two floors, letting the cart rest on the landing. There’s still three more floors to go, but your body is clearly telling you the cart belongs right here. Maybe the universe wants it to stay here—who knows, maybe the entire second floor needs a communal bar more than you do.

“Excuse me,” a quiet but rough male voice comes from behind me. You turn around to see him—a guy you’ve seen around your floor a few times, though you’ve never talked. One of the neighbors. You quickly realize you’re blocking the entire staircase.

“Sorry! Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I’ll move this um — just give me a second.”

You shove the cart closer to the wall to make some space for him to pass, but he stays put, his gloved hands in his pockets. He’s definitely handsome—tall and solid, but not intimidating. His furrowed brow and tight-lipped expression don’t exactly scream “welcome,” but he’s still got a certain charm.

He shifts a bit, clearly wanting to say something but hesitating. Feeling a bit awkward under his gaze, you decide to try talking to him again.

“You can just squeeze by if you want. It’s just really heavy, so I’m taking a quick break before I try lifting it up again.”

After a moment, he seems to make up his mind and asks, “Do you need help?”

Looking back at him, you consider saying no. You pride yourself on being independent and capable, and part of you wants to insist you can handle it. But then you think about the struggle of getting the cart up the last two flights of stairs—only this time, it's three—and decide against it.

“You wouldn’t mind? You’re headed down, I’m sure you’ve got somewhere else to be.”

He gives a little smirk that makes you feel a bit dizzy.

“Well, I’m already here so.”

You nod slowly, a small smile appearing on your face.

“Sure, you can take this end, and I’ll get this o—” you start to say, but before you can finish, he’s already in front of you, lifting the cart with ease and starting up the stairs without breaking a sweat.

“Hey! Be careful, uh—,” you pause, realizing you don’t know his name.

He picks up on your hesitation and hesitates himself, considering whether to give his name. He’s wary of how others might perceive him, potentially recognizing his name from past news broadcasts or papers, still dealing with the shadows of his past despite his efforts to make amends. Not wanting to be dishonest, he chooses the safe option.

“James.”

“Be careful, James. I don’t want you tripping and falling on my account.”

“Won’t happen, doll.”

“What-,” you start, caught off guard by the pet name, “what if it does?”

“It won’t, see?” With the last few steps, you and James arrive at your floor. “Already here.”

He must have seen you around before too, to know where you live.

He gives you a quick look and then carries the cart to your door.

“This is yours, right?” He turns and looks at you expectantly. You rush over, fumbling for your keys to unlock the door. If he’s willing to move it all the way, who are you to turn him down?

You lead James into your apartment, wondering if it looks anything like his. The layout can’t be that different; it’s not exactly a luxury building.

He strolls further into the room.

“You can set it right here,” you say quickly. “Thank you for bringing it up for me. I was honestly thinking about giving up when you showed up.”

Setting the cart where you indicated, he straightens up, rolls his shoulders back, and gives you a look that feels intense.

“It’s no problem.”

His gaze wanders around your apartment, taking in the mix of vintage furniture and eclectic decor. On a student’s budget, you’ve filled your space with secondhand finds. It’s more affordable and personal that way. The place might not be filled with new things, but it’s entirely curated by you. Finding beauty in the mix of old and new is something you do well, and now, thanks to James, you have one more piece to add.

James’s eyes land on your turntable setup. He seems intrigued by your collection of records but doesn’t say anything, turning his attention back to you.

“I have to go.”

Your eyebrows lift at his abruptness. Sensing your surprise, he quickly adds, “I’ve got an appointment.”

You nod vigorously, urging him to go and thanking him again for his kindness. Feeling a bit sad that this chance encounter with your new neighbor is ending so quickly, you call out as he heads for the door.

“I’ll see you around then? Since you live here too.”

He turns on his heel, giving you one last smirk.

“Yeah, you’ll see me.”

As he heads down the stairs, you shut your door and lock it behind you. Wandering over to where James’s gaze lingered, you pull an album from the shelf, lift the acrylic cover on your turntable, and set the record down. You close the cover, push play, and let the needle softly drop onto the vinyl. As the music starts, your mind drifts back to James.

Embarrassingly, you find yourself hoping this isn’t a one-time encounter. You don’t know much about him beyond his name, but there’s something about him that makes you want to see him again.

“Two hundred bucks for this is crazy,” you mutter to yourself, staring in disbelief at the sofa you’re eyeing on Facebook Marketplace.

“People are practically giving this stuff away.”

Not wanting to miss out on such a good deal, you message the seller to check if it’s still available.

Since you got the bar cart about a week and a half ago, you haven’t picked up anything else. With the July heat blasting, just thinking about moving a sofa in this weather makes you want to rip off your skin to cool down.

You can’t help but think of James, who you’ve seen briefly in the hallway since your last encounter. He just nodded as he passed by, and that was it.

Your phone dings, snapping you out of your thoughts. The seller confirms the sofa is still available and offers to deliver it since they have a truck.

Excited, you reply with a yes, and they let you know they’ll head your way soon.

You get up to rearrange your furniture, making space for the new sofa. You don’t have much to move since you’ve been slowly collecting things. As you shift the pieces around, your turntable stops, signaling it’s time to flip the record. After you do, you take a moment to picture how the sofa will fit in the space.

Then it hits you—moving a sofa is way heavier than the bar cart. If you struggled with that, how on earth will you manage this?

“Independent woman, my ass.”

With the delivery imminent, you decide on the only solution you can think of. Without hesitation, you head to the apartment across the hall and knock softly on the door. You wait, hoping James will answer. After a moment of shuffling and then silence, you start to wonder if you should just try something else.

Just then, the door cracks open, revealing half of James’s face. He looks curious but not annoyed—no one usually visits him.

“Hey! James! Great to see you again! I hope I’m not interrupting anything, but I was wondering if you could help me out a bit? I just bought a sofa from this marketplace deal, and the seller’s coming to drop it off right now. He said he’d deliver it, but didn’t offer to help get it up to my apartment. I realized a sofa is way heavier than a bar cart, and you saw me struggle with that, so I was kinda sorta hoping you could help me bring it up here?”

After your rambling, you offer him a hopeful smile, waiting for his response.

A few moments of silence later, that smirk you’ve been missing appears on his face. Opening the door wider, he comments with a grin.

“You bought another thing you knew you couldn’t get up the stairs?”

“I honestly didn’t think it through. The deal was too good to pass up. I’m really sorry for bothering you. I can try to find someone else if you’re busy.”

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t help, doll.”

The smile that blooms on your face is unavoidable.

As the delivery guy drives away, James shows you where to grab the sofa and effortlessly lifts the other end. He encourages you to take the lead, making sure the weight is on him as you both navigate the stairs. With minimal effort, you get the sofa up to your place.

After some awkward maneuvering, you finally get the sofa into your apartment through the thin door and set it down. You put your hands on your hips and exhale deeply, only to find James already looking at you with that same intense gaze from before. It makes you a little nervous.

You can’t help but feel grateful—there’s no way you would have managed this on your own.

“I could have handled the bar cart,” you say, nodding toward the cart now adorned with bottles in the corner, “but this? No chance. Thanks so much for your help.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he replies. “I wasn’t busy.”

As you look at him, you start to feel like you know him from somewhere beyond being just a neighbor. Maybe you’ve seen him around the city before you moved?

Brushing off the thought, you offer, “You’ve helped me out twice now, and it doesn’t feel right not to return the favor. If your whole evening consists of not being busy, why not stay for dinner? I promise I’ll cook something totally good and not poisonous.”

James looks surprised by your offer but quickly hides it.

“You don’t need to do that. You don’t owe me anything,” he says, not wanting you to feel obligated or uncomfortable. He worries that his presence might not be enjoyable.

He wishes he could be as charming as he was back in the 40s. Being friendly used to come easily, and if he were still the same person he was at 26, he wouldn’t have left so quickly after helping you on the stairs the first time. He wouldn’t have had a therapists appointment to go to and he wouldn’t have a hidden arm made of metal. He’d have asked you to dinner or for you to let him take you dancing instead in return for his brawn. Now, he struggles to make new connections beyond a few familiar faces, like Sam, and asking someone for a dance feels out of reach.

“No, no! Stay, I insist! It gets kind of lonely around here, doesn’t it? Why not have a friend dinner?” you press, hoping he’ll take you up on the offer.

Seeing your sincerity, though still feeling a bit miffed, he finally agrees.

“Yeah, sure. I can stay.”

James settles onto the sofa while you work in the kitchen. You’ve decided on making some stuffed ravioli and garlic bread—easy, delicious, hard to mess up.

Before getting into cooking, you switch out the record, letting new music drift softly through the space. Unbeknownst to you, James watches closely, paying attention to how you handle the records and the turntable. The care you take when putting a record back in its slip, taking a new one out of its dust cover, and gently putting it on.

Seeing you focused on cooking, James gets up and strolls over to your setup. He runs his fingers lightly across the spines of the record sleeves, feeling a surprising sense of comfort. He hadn’t realized people still used record players so often.

The setup looks quite familiar to him, with many aspects reminiscent of the record players he used back in his earlier days. In his life before this one.

As you finish preparing the pasta and pull the bread from the oven, you call out, “Hey, food’s ready!”

You glance back to see James hovering by the turntable. He quickly moves to the table and sits down.

Over dinner, the conversation flows comfortably. James seems to be relaxing a bit, his initial reserve fading. He’s still somewhat guarded, but what he does share is genuinely interesting. You sense that opening up is challenging for him, so you respect his pace and take whatever he is willing to give. Laughing with each other a few times and getting through some odd topics, he mentions that he hasn’t had a home-cooked meal in quite a while and thanks you with a smile.

After a pleasant dinner, you decide to bring up something you’d been curious about.

“You like records?”

Caught off guard by the question, James tries to answer without revealing too much about himself. It feels strange to be here, knowing you don’t really know who he is, but he worries that being too open might scare you away. He decides to keep his secrets for now, selfishly hoping to get to know you better before revealing more.

“Yeah, I used to have quite a few records as a kid. My ma would play them too, especially when she was cooking, just like you. I didn’t realize they were still so popular.”

Excited by this glimpse into his past, you push further.

“Oh, there’s definitely a huge market for vinyl. Lots of people who think it makes them superior, but also a lot who just love the physical aspect of it.”

“So which one are you?” he asks.

You laugh and reply, “Maybe a bit of both.”

You glance up at him from beneath your lashes, catching his rare smile.

“But really, I just like having it. There’s something different about the listening experience. It requires more effort than just hitting play on a playlist. It’s about choosing a full album and actually sitting down to listen. That feels more intentional to me, and that’s why I do it.”

James seems to ponder your answer, his expression softer than before. He then turns his gaze back to the turntable.

“So, since you mentioned you had records as a kid, do you not have any now?” you ask.

He shakes his head.

“Haven’t had any for a long time. Talking about it makes me miss them. Everything these days feels so complicated. I like simple things like that.”

Watching him as he looks away, you hesitate but notice the nostalgic shine in his eyes. You sense he might appreciate physical music even more than you do.

“If you ever get any and don’t have a place to play them, you’re welcome to use mine.”

He turns to face you, his expression unreadable.

“I mean, I know it’s not the most convenient offer, but it’s there. One record lover to another,” you add with a smile.

He returns your smile, saying, “Okay… thank you. I’ll keep that in mind, Doll.”

That night, Bucky lies on his makeshift bed on the floor, staring up at the ceiling and replaying the events of the day. You knocking on his door for help with the couch, inviting him over for dinner, and all the easygoing conversation you shared. It was such a stark contrast to his usual rigidity. He'd let his guard down just a little—letting himself smile or flirt ever so slightly.

He wishes he were better at this. It used to come so naturally. Hell, before he left for war, he’d gone dancing with both his own date and Steve’s at the same time. Now, he finds himself listening to you talk while struggling to share anything of his own.

He doesn’t want to pass up your invitation, especially since you’re inviting him into your space again. Clearly, his reserve hasn’t put you off too much.

“What would I even bring?” he wonders aloud.

All he’s ever listened to is 40’s music and big band. He doubts that’s readily available these days.

Rolling onto his side, he grabs the cell phone Steve had insisted he get before he went back in time to live his real life, without Bucky.

“You can do anything on here, Buck!”

Scrolling through the three contacts he has, he taps on the name of the guy who’s been trying to reach him for weeks.

“So, is there a valid reason why you haven’t picked up my damn calls?” Sam’s voice comes through.

“Sam, hi.”

“Did you finally learn how to click the screen? Is that why I’m hearing from you now, old man?”

“Look, I’m sorry. I just don’t like the thing. Too confusing,” Bucky says, grimacing as he fiddles with the phone.

“Okay, okay, what’s going on, man? You doing alright?”

“I’m fine. I just have a question and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t harass me about it.”

“Is it about wizards?”

“What?”

“Wizards. Is the question about wizards?”

“No, what the hell. Look, I had dinner with one of my neighbors tonight—”

“Was it a girl?”

“Does it matter?”

“Hell yes, it matters. And from that response, I KNOW it was a girl, so—”

“It doesn’t matter. She has a record player, which I didn’t know people still used, and she offered to let me use it, but I don’t have anything to play on it.”

“I’m not getting the problem.”

“I only like the stuff from the 40’s and—”

“Did you listen to that Marvin Gaye playlist I sent you?”

“Not interested.”

“C’mon, man, it’s good stuff. Give it a listen.”

“Not feeling it.”

“Alright, your loss, I guess. Still not seeing the problem though.”

“What do I bring? I can’t just bring around the stuff I know because where would I even get it?”

“Whoa, man, what do you mean, where would you get it? Just go to a record store and hit up the vintage section or something.”

Bucky pauses, mulling over Sam’s words.

“They have that?”

“Duh. You know, you could answer these questions a lot easier if you just looked them up on your phone—”

“Thanks, Sam. Talk to you later.”

Lying back down, Bucky decides that the next time he’s out to see his therapist, he’ll first stop by a record store to find something to bring over to your place.

Your easygoing presence was so comforting, and he found himself longing for it as he drifted off to sleep. He’d see you again soon enough.

Later in the week, as you wind down from a busy day, you focus on making your space as calming as possible.

You light some candles and turn on an orange floor lamp, the soft glow wrapping around you and setting the perfect mood to sink into your sofa with the book you’ve been neglecting.

You’ve just started settling into your reading when you’re jolted out of your half-nap by the sound of someone knocking on your door.

You get up and peer through the peephole, and there’s your dinner guest from earlier in the week.

Opening the door with a smile, you greet him.

“Hey James, unexpected visit! What’s up?”

His eyes linger on you for a moment before he speaks. You glance down and realize your outfit—shorts that really lived up to their name and a tank top—might not be the most guest-appropriate.

Brushing off your embarrassment, you look back up at him.

“I’ve got something I’d like to play, if that’s alright?”

Bucky’s mind races. Standing at your door, he worries maybe you only offered your place to be nice, and now he’s making a fool of himself. Of course, you didn’t want him there—he could barely talk.

Just as he’s about to get lost in his own head, your bright smile pulls him out of it.

“Oh my gosh, please, come in. What do you have?”

His doubt fades away as he sees your genuine excitement.

“Brought some Sinatra. Not sure if you’re into that, but I used to like his stuff when I was younger.”

You spin around abruptly, staring at him in disbelief.

“There’s no way you think I don’t know who Frank Sinatra is…”

Bucky stumbles over his words.

“Well, I mean, it’s not exactly new stuff so—”

“You think I wouldn’t know ‘Fly Me to the Moon’? ‘Singin’ in the Rain’? ‘New York, New York’? I mean, I even moved to New York—I had to get the romanticism from somewhere.”

“What are those?”

You pause, confused.

“Like, the most iconic Frank Sinatra songs. You are talking about Frank Sinatra, right? Not some other Sinatra I’ve never heard of?”

“No, you’re right, it’s Frank.”

“Then what do you mean?”

“I guess I don’t know those ones.” He admits.

“So, what era are we talking about?” You ask, reaching for the record.

As you grasp the sleeve, you notice a glint of light catching James’s bare hand. Realizing he’s not wearing gloves, confusion sets in before it clicks. You HAD seen James before.

Looking up at him, he seems frozen, obviously panicking. He planned to tell you eventually, but not like this. Not when you weren’t close enough yet.

He thought there is no way you are going to want anything to do with him now.

You thought there is no way was there's an actual Avenger in your apartment right now.

You’re frozen, just like him, but more in shock rather than fear.

“Do you… usually go by James?” you ask cautiously.

Hesitating, he shakes his head.

“What do you usually go by then?”

Bucky feels anxiety creeping up his back. You’re both still holding the record, and he can’t tell if you’re scared or just surprised.

“Bucky.”

You stay silent for a moment while Bucky’s nerves are on edge.

“So… metal hand…”

Clenching his jaw, he replies, “Arm.”

“You’re that Bucky.”

“Yes.”

After a long pause, you start again.

“You’re an Avenger and you didn’t tell me?”

Bucky hesitates, his discomfort visible. “I’m— I’m not an Avenger.”

“What do you mean? You’re totally an Avenger! Why wouldn’t you tell me? How did I not recognize you before?” you ask, laughing in disbelief.

Bucky’s taken aback. You really thought he was an Avenger? You’re not scared of him at all, which surprises him. You must not know much about his past if you’re still standing this close.

“No wonder you don’t know ‘New York, New York,’” you say, almost to yourself. “It’s from after your time! This is crazy, I—”

You’re interrupted by his response.

“Are you not scared?”

“Of course not.”

Bucky closes in on himself, panic evident. “If you really knew me, you’d want nothing to do with me. I’ve—”

“I might not know the version of you you’re talking about, but I’ve met James, who helped me not once, but twice  carry stuff he definitely didn’t have to up the stairs, stayed for dinner, has been very polite to me, and has given me zero reasons to be scared of him.”

He looks at you, his piercing blue eyes revealing an internal struggle. That one look holds more weight than his words. You can see the battle within him, torn between his past and the present moment.

“Listen,” you say, finally letting go of the record, “if you don’t want to stay, you don’t have to. But I’m not scared of you, and I actually like your company. So, regardless of whether you’re James, Bucky, or whoever, you’re still welcome here.”

You pause, adding, “And we can still play this if you’d like.”

Bucky struggles with his inner turmoil. The idea that you know who he is but still want him around is foreign to him. He doesn’t feel worthy of the kindness you’re offering, but it’s been so long since he’s received such warmth that it’s almost impossible to turn it down.

He’s not comfortable with his identity or his past, but in this moment, he wants to push it aside. If you don’t care, maybe he can allow himself not to care, even if just for a bit. Maybe he can prove something to himself, or even his therapist.

Handing you the record, he relaxes his face slightly. You’ve always thought him handsome, but in the dim light of the dark room, he looks almost ethereal.

You’re hoping he believes you because your excitement for his company tonight feels more significant than it probably should, but you’re okay with that.

“I’m Bucky.”

You smile warmly at this change. “Alright, Bucky. What do you want to do?”

He gazes at you deeply, his look sending a shiver down your spine and warming your chest. “Play it.”

a/n: well, hope this was alright. as I mentioned before, ive never wrote fiction before, but ive definitely read enough to get the gist.

[odessa-2]

Titbits and analysis 🖖

As promised, some more titbits from the Con yesterday in Melbourne as well as my interpretations. Prior to attending yesterday, I told myself to keep an open mind and attempt to leave any biases behind (even after having seen the funeral pics). Clean slate. To try and view Sam, the event, questions, and subsequent behaviours objectively.

I'm the sort of person who feels energy and is affected by it and in some ways governed by it. The energy of people, both individually and collectively. The energy of a group. I tend to couple this with objective analysis, which forms the basis of my conclusions about people and situations.

I applied this method yesterday in attempting to understand and view Sam, the OL money 💰 machine and everything else. I also just wanted to go there and bask in the audience and enjoy myself....and....I did like it Jamie.

So first thing I noticed off the cuff was how experienced Sam was in handling questions, and the women, and tailoring his behaviour to suit their desires. He was charming, charismatic, approachable, a skilled professional. I saw the veneer. I felt the veneer. I also saw and felt that he is a pretty decent bloke under that veneer. A man with a solid work ethic, who is mild mannered and working with purpose in his life.

I observed that his handler or Convention agent or whatever he is, Steve, was in full control. He managed Sam's performance in a sense. He asked the questions and even set the directions for some answers. Sam is controlled. I didn't like Steve. I didn't get the best vibe off him. Infact, I got a bad vibe off him. I observed that everything was a performance. Scripted to a large degree. The Single Sam narrative was pushed by Steve. Hard. It was a performance. That much was clear to me.

So Sam chose to mention that he was in Austria skiing 2 weeks ago....blah blah...something about singing a Ronan Keating song. So the script tells everyone nice and early that he is NOT with Caitriona ✅️

Later on in the panel, he mentioned that he "was at the theatre in London the week earlier" watching a play. Huh? Getting his timeline confused? Interesting titbit, I thought. Who would he go to the theatre with whilst in London? Who else likes to go to the theatre? Who have we seen him go to the theatre with before? Ding ding ding!!

One of the first things he spoke about (umprompted) and imo was part of his speaking program, was that Caitriona is back home in Scotland doing prep work and will be directing this season. He said that he spoke to her recently and that she is cold and miserable back home. No one seemed to give a shit. The women were there for their Jamie. Sam read the crowd. He understood.

Sam tried to bring Cait into the conversation again saying something like "Where's Claire?....Caitriona isn't here". Again crickets from the audience.

He said that he auditioned with a lot of Claire's, but they couldn't find the right fit and that nobody was as brilliant as Caitriona.

It sounded like he genuinely missed her.

He spoke of his audition with Cait, saying they were very physical and were almost wrestling each other. He said he was sweating all over her and that his sweat was on her. The crowd still only wanted to hear about their Jamie. I think Sam relished in being cheeky in saying that she wore his sweat that day.

Someone asked about "how do you kiss and make out with a costar and then just carry-on. Isn't it awkward"? Sam responded generally initially, saying that there's lots of checking in with the person and apologising afterwards (in a joking fashion). Then that prompted him to start talking about Cait saying that he has also "snotted" all over Cait and exchanged many body fluids with her (in an acting context presumably)and that there's nothing really left to do together that they haven't already done. I was like "whoooaa wtf Sam?". Shooketh that he said that really. The silence from the crowd was palpable. They really didn't want to hear about Cait and Sam and their shared bodily fluids whilst 'acting'. He is THEIR fantasy man. Not Caitriona's. Silence from the audience. Sam already knew that the crowd were Sam onlies but he loved telling this story. Relished in it imo. He loved the double entendre. It was an unrehearsed, unscripted conversation as it resulted from an audience question. I concluded it was an act of defiance on his behalf. That's what it felt like to me.

Steve the convention agent guy, was always bringing it back to Single Sam. "I worry how are you going to get a date" said Steve. With Sam understanding the prompt ...."I worry too" says Sam. Bachelor narrative secured ✅️

Steve spruked the Bachelor narrative again to Sam's thirsty and adoring fans....."Sam you remind me of that old show where everyone has to guess which bachelor is going to come out of the mystery door". And that's when I knew with 100 percent certainty that the bachelor talk was a ruse. It was so contrived and performative. I smiled to myself. The women in the crowd were eating it up.

Another thing that stood out to me was when Sam was searching for the right terminology when talking about Cait. "My......co star" huge pause.

"I love you Claire" is the line he randomly chose to say when explaining his acting.

When asked how he has time to foster friendships and spend time with his family he talked around it. Avoided the question and kept it about his friendships saying that they are strong friendships that endure. He diverged and started talking about how he still has his core friendships that he had when he was bunking and sharing an apartment/house with them in London when he was younger. The veneer was up. Inpenetrable.

At another point in the panel Sam asked "How many Sheila's are there here"? LOL. I found that amusing.

Now this next part captured my attention the most. It had a weird feeling (energy) around it . Sam gave off a weird energy. Almost hostile. Again that's just what I felt.

Someome from the audience named Toni with an "I" was selected to ask a question. I can't remember what the question was but Sam made a really big deal about her being named Toni. "There's always a Tony have you noticed"? Why is there always a Tony"? He said. He didn't want to drop it. He placed a little too much emphasis on it. I was laughing silently but Sam's double entendre didn't go unnoticed by me. Everyone else was clueless or at least that's how it appeared to me. Was that an Easter egg dropped by Sammy?

Asked about what does he do for self care, he seemed to struggle answering that too. He talked in circles about his way points hike and how he's learning how to live in the moment. There's that wall again.

There were many other things discussed of course but I thought I'd focus on the things that shed light on his situation and that resonated with me.

So my closing Analysis? Sam is controlled. He peforms. He caters. He's intelligent and in tune with people and aims to please but is private. Sunday just reaffirmed and solidified my beliefs. Caitriona snatched up that hard working gem of a man quick smart!

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

What do you think about the "kill notice" about the new Catherine pic? I looked at the picture, there doesn't seem to be any distortion or manipulation. Some filters have been used but nothing is misaligned or photoshopped in or out. No dodgy shadows. Wtf is with the reporters agreeing with it?? Is this a shady attempt to force Catherine to be out in the public sooner than she would like to be? Apparently the controversy is about her left hand and somewhere along Charlotte's left sleeve. Part of me feels it's because reporters know she is now well and are angry she isn't back to work and giving them content. But, the picture agencies pulled the pic, so what's with that?? Such an unnecessary controversy.

I think it’s much ado about nothing. A lot of what people are point out as edited can be explained away, such as:

Kids are wiggly so of course they’d be blurry.

It’s a still from a video or a Live Photo.

Kate isn’t wearing her rings because maybe her fingers are still swollen from all the post-op meds and steroids, or maybe she just doesn’t want to wear them.

It's a program/app on William’s phone that stitches together the best parts in a sequence of photos to fix a squirming kid. (Like Google’s Best Take feature, in which case it’s AI, not photoshop.)

But wait, what about that pap pic last week of Kate with all weight in her face looking unrecognizable, and now in this photo she looks like herself? It’s about camera angles and body positions. There’s a pose - I call it the goose pose - where if you tilt your upper body forward just slightly and push your head/chin all the way forward, the extra weight in your midsection, neck, and face disappears from the camera if the photo is being taken from the front. (When you do this pose and the picture is taken from the side, you look like a goose.)

It’s great that the wires all have standards and that they take it seriously but the “kill” request illustrates a bigger problem: that in todays age of photo editing, filters, and AI, is any photo we see real and original? Once you permit minor edits like removing dust (which is an AP allowance), it opens the door for other edits and who’s the authority to say what’s right or wrong? So it’s a sticky line.

The reporters are writing about it because they have nothing else to write about. The media makes a ton of money off Kate and the children (more than they care to admit) so of course they’re going to pick up on this and write about it. They’re desperate for Kate content because she sells.

[[Interrupting now to say that I've just seen the update from KP of Kate (scroll to the end) acknowledging the edits and apologizing for any issues. It's bullshit she had to do this but I understand why she did it: she's proud of her photography, it's her own picture she edited and not one from anyone else, and it's overshadowing the Commonwealth Service coverage.]]

I mean, it's no coincidence that a prolific royal fashion blogger notorious for bashing Kate while simultaneously profiting from her appearances and photographs announced she's taking a break to Easter. Other royal events are still happening. Other royals are still working. Other royal families are still working. But that doesn't matter: she makes her money from Kate and when Kate doesn't work, she can't make money. So why bother keeping up the blog?

Anyway, believe what you want to believe about the photograph, but just be ready for all of this to backfire. And trust me, it will backfire.

If it's true that the Sussex Squad is behind this, well, Meghan may work hard but karma works harder. Harry and Meghan's own photoshopping and photo-editing may become equally under fire: Harry's Friar Tuck bald spot is world famous and everyone knows about it, no matter how much photoshop they do.

If it's true that the media and social media is making this a bigger issue than it actually is (which it sounds like, given Kate's newest message), then reap the consequences of your actions: fewer pictures from Kate and fewer pictures of the Wales family. The chances are extraordinarily high that they'll stop sharing pictures of their family now. It's already happened - back in ye olde days, it was custom for the royal family to have a photo call during a ski holiday so the press pack could get their pictures and leave them alone. William and Kate did this in 2016 on a skiing holiday, and boom - immediate criticism. Now no more vacation photos.

If it's true that the reporters picked up on this to force Kate to returning to work sooner than expected, well, I hope Kate retreats further into the cocoon of privacy and doesn't give you the satisfaction of new birthday pictures.

If it's true that this is a sign of how shambolic KP's communications office is, then hopefully the right people learn the right lessons and make more professional decisions. We know Kate will. She always learns from her missteps, even if it takes some time.

If it's true that the wires and the press associations need to revise their rules because everyone edits, I hope they do. Trust me, there are more worrying matters about photo editing and AI manipulation to write and "kill" than a touched-up family photo of the future king's family posted to social media. This is not the hill to stake your professional reputation on.

But I guarantee you that the same people who are making a fuss about these photo edits that EVERYONE does are the same people who are moaning about the dearth of content from the Waleses and they're the same people who scream and shout when the Waleses don't do what they want them to do.

But at the end of the day, it's a family photo taken by a proud husband and dad, who probably made stupid cheesy jokes to make his kids laugh like that, which his wife and their mother edited to make sure everyone looks their best. Everyone does this. It's fucking normal.

It's much ado about fucking nothing and I hope that everyone, most especially the reporters, who fed into the hysteria understand what they've done. They've just signed the execution notice for Waleses family photos.

Kate's apology:

[s7-evermore]

IDEA: Idia with a Science-y, girly pop gf

Okay so I was rereading one of my favorite romcoms “Love on the Brain” by Ali Hazelwood (one of my faves) and there’s this one side character there named Kaylee, the assistant of the ML who’s such a pink, girly pop character and she eventually falls for the FL’s assistant, who’s an emo girl.

And a thought occurred to me… what if Idia had a pink, girly pop prefect who loved science? Specifically astrophysics and engineering?

On top of being kind, earnest, and generous, she’s also fun, interesting to talk to, good with people, literally has the cutest smile, wears cute fashionable clothes, does her nails and just owns a lot of pink pink pink! Literally the definition of an it-girl but she’s ALSO intelligent, outspoken, witty, good at games, an AWESOME older sister (Ortho just LOVES her), and is just great at keeping up with Idia!

Idia’s initial thought when he first sees her would probably be “holy shit. It’s one of those extroverted sunshine mf who is the complete opposite of me so that’s another person on my list to avoid”

But then one day when he asks Azul to help him add updates to Ortho, Azul brings along Grim and the prefect and it takes everything in him not to PANIC because the PINK SUNSHINE GIRL IS THERE AND HE HATES IT

WHY is that living incarnation of SUNSHINE in Ignihyde where she’s NOT supposed to be?!

But suddenly she starts fawning over Ortho’s systems and asks him questions and eventually figures out how Ortho’s program works and Idia is suddenly swept up in a long ass conversation about engineering, and then they move on to games, and then Idia says his typical self-deprecating but also condescending stuff about her being a normie and she just DOESN’T get offended and even quips back with witty remarks and Idia just gets SO amused by her—

—that he suddenly realizes holy shit…. She’s actually… pretty cool……like…..I would….tolerate this human being……and she’s also hot……so…….

THE THOUGHT OF IT IS JUST SO CUTE?!! LIKE BRODIES IMAGINE:

Sunshine girlie pop prefect with her nail-art covered nails, twin-braided hair with cute tiny flower clips, white sleeveless crop top with the frilly pink skirt, a fuckin watermelon-shaped purse, pink flower earrings, and a pink flower necklace with the first letter of her name in the middle of it, holding a pink drink while she’s strongly going on about how standardized tests are institutional gatekeepers that graduate programs over-rely on for student admission and how expensive and outdated they are and that schools should focus more on a holistic approach for graduate admissions and blah blah blah…

And Idia is just…

Staring. At her. And he’s breathing quickly, lips parted, his cheeks are flushed, his hair is PINK like the flowers on her braids, and he clutches his tablet like he’s holding on for dear LIFE.

Despite her looks, she’s also realistic. She’s not needlessly naive nor is does she innocently believe that everyone is a good person.

She’s just who she is.

And holy shit. Idia is falling. HARD.

[magici-if]

Attention, viewers. The following program contains content suitable for mature audiences aged 16 and above. Viewer discretion is advised.

[DEMO COMING SOON][FAQ] [RO ASKS MASTERPOST]

MAGICI: WORLDSTAR INTRO POST

A flyer falls at your feet.

Ever wanted to become the best mage in the world? Ever wanted to become famous while at it?

Well, according to this flyer, by applying for this magic academy-turned-talent show, you can.

A chance to develop your magic affinities, get a free higher education from a renowned academy, meet people from all over the world, win the grand prize of 300 000 kubos , AND become mindblowingly famous?

Sign-me-up.

Friends, mentors, rivals, lovers? In the end, the top only has space for one.

Will you be the one standing there?

But more importantly, what will you do to get there?

Find the answers to these questions and more in the third season of:

Magici: Worldstar - Where dreams become Magic.

A ✧ Spellbound ✧ Entertainment© Production

APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED. CATCH US ON CHANNEL 4!

In a world where magic is alive and widespread, you're one of the few lucky ones who can say they have actual powers instead of the weak energy most people possess. That's because you've had your Awakening, the extraordinary event in which that fragile energy becomes magic.

Unfortunately, Magic Academies are expensive and hard to get into, so you've never had the resources to truly hone your powers.

That changes when you find out that one of the most famous and respected magic academies in the world, Magici Academy, is letting anyone* apply.

How? By joining the famous magic talent show, Magici: Worldstar, you get a free education at the Academy. The catch? Every week, you risk being eliminated**, effectively shattering the dream of a lifetime.

Will you excel, or will you be eliminated, perhaps by the viewers or because you weren't on par with your fellow contestants?

*(See full requirements at MagiciWorldstar.com)

**Continued enrolment subject to Academy approval.

KEEP READING FOR FEATURES AND ROS.

Fully design your MC: pick your magic affinity, tv persona, gender identity, pronouns, sexuality, name, fashion style, personal goals, body mods, and many more!

Pick who gets eliminated by answering to polls!

Romance one of 6 ROs, or pursue casual flings

Will you focus on honing your magic, getting your grades up, winning the talent show, or simply charming the viewers?

Will you learn to control your powers, or succumb in this new and stressful environment?

Affect how the viewers, teachers, teammates, judges, and fellow students perceive you.

Affect how well your team does in the talent show, as well as the relationships between your teammates

Possibly win a talent show and get crazy rich and famous

Become the viewers' sweetheart... or a pain in the ass ^^

Play matchmaker with your class-/teammates ❤︎

❤︎ Romantic Options:

[RO appearances here] (not a rickroll this time I swear)

Martin: He comes from a long lineage of strong mages. Always the family's black sheep, he seeks to make his family proud and finally show them he's worthy of his last name. A gentle but intimidating giant, he doesn't want to get too close to his fellow contestants, can you break down his walls?

Tropes: Stoic, Slow-Burn, Forced Proximity, Roommates, Afraid to Commit, Idiots in Love

Demetra: This one is a mystery. Your brother's best friend, whom you've seen walking around your home since you were a teenager; however, she never made an effort to get to know you. When you see her at the Academy, you realise you know nothing about who she is. She says her only motivation to be on the show is knowledge, but will you show her she can find something other than that?

Tropes: Rivals to Lovers, Brother's Best Friend, Idiots in Love, Everyone Can See It

Evander: Evander is a gifted individual with a big talent for magic, but he's lazy. The definition of "He's smart but he doesn't apply himself", he could care less about being in the academy. Their family has managed to force convince them to be on the show, the fame and money a big incentive. What they secretly hope is that he'll come home as a new person and grow up. You won't fix them, but you can sure seduce them. ;)

Tropes: First Love, Fish Out of Water, Oblivious to Love, Pining

Harley: A social butterfly, it seems somehow she's already friends with everyone at the Academy. Growing up around musicians made her love for music grow, as well as awaken her powers. She joined the show to make important connections and to get her name out there both as a talented musician and a powerful mage. Will you be just another friend for her or will you become her muse? 𝄞

Tropes: Friends to Lovers, Soft Love, Roommates, Idiots In love, Mutual Pining

Echo: Echo is extremely shy and often lost in her own thoughts. Her unique powers make her an intimidating rival and a strong teammate. However, she joined the show for a specific reason: she seeks to learn more about her unusual affinities. Other than that she hasn't really been interested in getting to know anyone. Maybe you'll be the exception and get to know the real Echo. ❤︎

Tropes: Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Idiots In Love, Strangers to Lovers, Hesitant, Crush on MC

Dominic: He is one of the judges at Magici: Worldstar, as well as a professor at the Academy. He is just another judge, and you're just another contestant. Nothing to see here. :)

Tropes: Forbidden Love, Fell In Love with The Wrong Person, Lovers in Denial

possible flings 👀 Other contestants:

Bleon: They already have a reputation as a prankster around the Academy, having competed in Magici: Worldstar's first season. Loved by the student body, hated by the professors, but you'll be sure to like this menace.

Bruno: A shy but friendly presence in your team, he looks forward to getting to know you. After a quick conversation, you already know he aspires to become a respected landscape engineer by perfecting his ability to build and shape landscapes.

Brynn: She aspires to become a Nature Guardian, and to preserve harmony between humans and nature. It is slightly interesting then, that she seems to dislike you the moment she sets her eyes on you.

Chianti: He holds a little secret. Well, not anymore, 'cause I'm about to tell you. He's just had his Awakening, a mere few months before his admission to the show. Will you help him develop his affinities or turn the other way, until he gets eliminated?

Nora: After losing her father to a magic-related incident, she understands that even the strongest healers can't save themselves. She dreams of becoming a mage healer, but also a Guardian, thanks to her rare affinity combination.

Rahim: A disciplined and focused mage, no one in his family has had an Awakening. He hopes he'll be able to get far in the show or to at least stay long enough to develop his powers.

[DEMO COMING SOON... STAY TUNED]

ATTENTION VIEWERS: THE INFORMATION PROVIDED ABOVE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AS THE PROJECT "MAGICI: WORLDSTAR" IS A WORK IN PROGRESS.

✧ Magici: Worldstar is a contemporary fantasy romantic drama IF, a first part to the Magici series.✧ Reblogs/asks are crazy appreciated !!

[jtl-fics]

Fluent Freshman - Part 29

PREVIOUS

“Neil, why do you have Smith’s phone?” Andrew asks as the two of them are setting out plates for lunch. Neil startled and looked down at the phone that he had just sat at the table and furrowed his brow.

“What do you mean? This is mine?” Neil asks. He knows his phone even if he’s not really the best with them.

The one that Andrew had given him his Freshman year had died after it got run over by the Maserati when Neil left it on the roof of the car by accident. The second one Andrew had gotten him had been destroyed in rather spectacular fashion earlier in the year when he’d had a bit of a freak out on January 19th. The team knew better than to text him on that particular day now but Andrew had said that he’d take custody of his phone this year. Wymack had stepped in with a phone that same day before Andrew could buy him a new one and that phone had been launched at the Baseball captain that summer.

All this to say, Neil is now looking at the phone in concern because it is highly likely he swapped his with FF’s.

“No it’s not.” Andrew sighs and points to a corner, “You cracked yours up here.” He opens the phone and then the contacts and sure enough Neil doesn’t see his own contacts but the ones that Nicky had programmed into FF’s the day before.

“Oh, I guess I switched them at the hospital.” He says with an embarrassed blush. Maybe he should get a little accessory to differentiate his phone from the other ones that Wymack has gotten.

There’s a slight commotion in the kitchen, “Kevin, stop trying to add vanilla protein powder to Smithy’s soup!” Nicky shouts.

“He needs protein to heal properly! That nutritionist might just feed him a loaf of bread since he is using an outdated model!” Kevin argues back.

“Kevin the doctor said clear soup also do you want to make Smiths sick? Vanilla protein powder and chicken broth?” Aaron asks disgust evident.

“I’d use unflavored but this is all that’s in the house and I am not going shopping until this weekend is over.” Kevin argues back.

“Smiths went out shopping on Black Friday and came back unscathed. He even went out into the worst of it just to get some groceries for baking and breakfast.” Aaron says with a huff.

“He still got stabbed!” Kevin returns.

“Kevin, he was definitely not grocery shopping when he got stabbed.” Nicky shoots back.

“He needs-“

“Przywiążę cię do krzesła.” Neil hears Smith’s Grandma cut Kevin off. Her tone is so sweet just like it has been the last couple times she has interrupted an argument between them all. She really has warmed up to them since Andrew confessed.

Nicky lets out a loud bark of laughter.

“Are you okay?” Aaron asks.

“Yeah, cutting onions make me laugh.” Nicky returns quickly.

Kevin walks out of the Kitchen with the same gooey expression he’s gotten every time Smith’s Grandma has said something sweet to him but considering how often and how hard Nicky laughs at what she says he wonders if she’s just sassing him in a sweet tone.

He really needs to pick up a phrase book.

He might like her even more if his theory is correct.

“It shouldn’t be a big problem.” Neil says but he is a bit more careful as he moves FF’s phone away from where it could get damaged. “Smith is definitely asleep. He looked really tired.” Neil says and it twists his own stomach to think about how FF looked in his hospital bed. FF wouldn’t take anything more than the bare minimum when it came to pain medication.

Each “I’m fine.” He gave had him coming to a deeper and deeper understanding of how frustrating it is to have someone who is CLEARLY not fine say they are.

“I’m more concerned about who might text you.” Andrew says.

Neil shrugs, “Ichirou is more the type to just show up.” Because it’s true. Every time he’s met Ichirou there had been very little warning.

Andrew frowns but then Nicky is coming out with lunch. It was nothing fancy but a home cooked meal always made Neil feel warm. Smith’s grandma had just been using what was in their pantry so far but the two other meals (and her pie) had been amazing.

“Lunch is ready. We’ll head back to the hospital afterwards to see when Smithy can get discharged.” Nicky says putting a large bowl of pasta in the center of the table. Aaron came out a moment later with the Parmesan shaker and the protein powder bottle.

“Here you go Kevin, add as much as you want to your own meal.” Aaron says in a sweet tone just like Smith’s Grandma.

“Eat shit Aaron.” Kevin scowls now knocked out of his gooey expression as fills his plate with pasta and reaches for the Parmesan.

Neil can’t help but let out a puff of laughter at the interaction and lets the worry of being away from his phone slide away. FF was sleeping, he was safe, and Ichirou had not expressed any interest in talking to him.

“Pass that to me when you’re done.” Neil asks pointing at the Parmesan as he fills his and Andrew’s plates.

***

There had been a plan.

Nathaniel Wesninski was supposed to be at this hospital at least according to his cell phone location. His future investment was not the best at keeping that device on him though so he was willing to wait when there were no signs of the Wesninski. There would, of course, be a cost for his patience. He had his men go seek out the uninvolved civilian. If Wesninski came back and found his friend threatened due to his lackadaisical nature with his phone perhaps he’d remember to keep it on him.

Except now that very uninvolved civilian is sitting in front of him. The ’Smith’ that Wesninski had spoken of.

He sees Wesninski’s phone sat on the table and his eyes go back to the young man in front of him. He wonders if this was some ploy by Wesninski, some statement. This young man in front of him took out one of the Butcher’s top men on his own.

He’d confirmed it when he’d gone to see Jackson earlier that day. He went to remind them what would happen if they tried to turn over anything to the Federal agents and to see how two of his biggest headaches had been taken out so suddenly.

Jackson talked about how Wesninski’s friend hadn’t seemed surprised to find him in the alley, had seemed like he had been expecting it and how swiftly he had been taken out. Wesninski’s guard dog had gone out afterwards and they’d lead Romero into a trap that resulted in his arrest and this civilian swearing up and down that Romero was the one that stabbed him even though Romero asserts that he never had a firm grip on the knife.

A great way to ensure he was held by the police while they were fully investigated. They wouldn’t have much time to investigate either of the Butcher’s remnants. Ichirou was only offering the choice between something painful or something easy.

The young man in front of him offered nothing, waiting for Ichirou to begin the talks. His expression clearly showing that he’d happily wait Ichirou out as if he was long used to tense silences. There is no doubt that this man in front of him knows exactly who he is but he still has the audacity to wait him out.

“Where is Wesninski?” He tightens his fist at having to ask first.

“That’s not Captain Neil’s last name anymore.” FF returns with the first hint of expression on his face being a frown.

The first piece of information given. So, loyal to Nathaniel and not to the Wesninski line. Loyal to Captain Neil.

“Captain Neil is getting lunch.” He answers, “I’m the only one here for you to talk to right now.” He adds after a moment putting his hands on the table.

Ichirou can understand what isn’t being said.

“Does, Josten, realize you’re here?” He asks taking care to use Wesninski’s new last name knowing he wouldn’t get his answers otherwise. He has a hard time imagining the man who was so loyal to his friends purposefully leaving this one to act as defense for him.

Wesninski had been very clear during his brief phone conversation with him, “Smith was just caught up in all of this. He’s not a threat to you Lord Moriyama.” He had said voice steady and without a hint of a lie.

“In the hospital? Of course.” He returns, “Down here talking to you? He’ll probably be upset.” he says after a moment.

“And yet, you’re here.” He says mirroring the man’s own relaxed posture.

Loyal but willing to do something that might displease the one he is loyal to if it would keep them safe. Ichirou stops himself from looking to his left where his most loyal man stood. Connor had stepped in front of threats he hadn’t seen coming plenty of times, had questioned him even when Ichirou had threatened to cut out his tongue for it, and had always had the courage to look Ichirou in the eye when he explained himself no matter how injured he was or how irate Ichirou was.

It’s something rare and it seems like it is something Wesninski has found unknowingly.

“Yes, I’m here to talk about Friday night.” He says, “I assume you’ve already spoken with Romero and Jackson.” He says moving the conversation away from Wesninski. Bringing Ichirou’s attention and possible ire to himself.

A truly rare find in his world.

“Yes, let’s talk about Friday night.” He agrees.

***

What was it about the Smith family and making great food?

It was just a simple combination of canned tomatoes, butter, pasta, onions, cheese, spices and garlic but it had Neil going for a third serving. Smith’s Grandma had really made enough to feed an army and when he’d commented Nicky had just reached over and tried to pinch his cheek fat only for his fingers to find little to grab onto, “You’re too thin! Eat more!” He exclaimed before repeating it to Smith’s Grandma in Polish who nodded earnestly.

Wymack was at the table after he took a shower. Kevin was still trying to convince Aaron of all people that he should be allowed to put protein powder into the clear soup that was simmering on the stove top for FF. The dietary restrictions someone faced while they were healing from stomach surgery was no joke.

The other Dealer had dropped despite Wymack and Neil’s best attempts to get Lisa to stay. Seemed determined to head back to her small town and rejoin the family cult she had escaped from. He’d been worried about her going home but she had insisted she’d be back.

It was unfortunate but it was also Lisa’s choice.

His stomach twists wondering if FF is going to go back to Washington with his Grandma when he gets released. There had barely been a whisper of danger from Neil’s past since Ichirou had put that bullet in Riko’s head and now one of his few friends that had been entirely uninvolved in that nightmare was in the hospital because of him.

Andrew elbows him.

Neil turns to look and Andrew is carefully putting a penne pasta on each prong of his fork, “I can hear you worrying.” He says in Russian.

“What if Smith leaves?” He responds back in the same language.

“He has the right to.” Andrew shrugs and shoves the pasta into his mouth.

“I don’t want him to.” Neil admits, FF is a friend. A good friend.

“He still can leave even if you don’t want him to.” Andrew says as he proceeds to once again put a penne pasta on each of his fork’s prongs. “I don’t think he will though.” He adds before shoving his fork into his mouth again.

Neil blinks, “Why?” He asks.

FF isn’t like how Neil was his Freshman year, he’s steady and sure but Neil wouldn’t blame the Freshman if ‘possibly being killed off by remnants of my Captain’s crime family’ is a step too far for FF. Wouldn’t blame FF if he runs.

“He still calls you Captain Neil.” He says reaching over and squeezing Neil’s knee with his hand.

Neil blinks.

He thinks.

FF laid out on the concrete as Andrew worked to stem the blood from his stab wound, “It’s a weird sex alley Captain Neil! I don’t know WHAT to tell you!” He exclaims ready to make a joke even as he’s bleeding because of a situation Neil’s existence put him in.

FF still floating from the initial large amount of pain medication he was on pulling on Neil’s sleeve, “I’m glad you’re okay Captain Neil.” Before falling back into his drugged sleep.

FF’s eyes softening as Neil offered to get a nurse to give him more pain medication, “Really Captain Neil, I’m fine.” He says.

He lays his own hand over Andrew’s.

“I guess he does.” He offers a small tentative smile.

“Eat your pasta Junkie.” Andrew says in English now.

“You’re too thin!” Nicky reminds him and Smith’s Grandma must have picked up on the terminology since she nods earnestly in agreement as the two of them were packing up leftovers and the soup Smith’s Grandma had made for him so they could head back to the hospital to keep FF company.

***

“Why did you go out into the alley?” Ichirou asks.

“Isn’t it better that I was in the alley?” The man across from him asks with a raised brow, as if Ichirou was asking a strange question. “If I had stayed in the club, who knows what would have happened or how many people would have been hurt.” He explains without Ichirou needing to lower himself to asking.

There’s truth to that.

It’s been on the news that the remaining Wesninski inner-circle had been captured but since there’d only been one injury it had been largely overshadowed by news regarding the mass injury incidents surrounding Black Friday. If Romero had started had gotten the general public involved this would be much harder for him to silence the ones involved.

Still…

“This has caused me quite a bit of trouble. It does not look good that I am not the one who found them.” He says because there’d been talks from some of the old men he had yet to rid himself of from his Father’s time. They had wanted the remaining Wesninski men to be brought back into the fold but there was little chance of that happening now. Ichirou planned on disposing them after showing that they were worthless and using it as an excuse to start removing some of the dead weight from his father’s time.

Ichirou was not a man who tolerated incompetence.

“Isn’t it better that they were taken into custody like this?” The man across from him asks, “They were some of the Butcher’s best from what Captain Neil has told me. The fact that it only resulted in me going to the hospital and they were taken out by Andrew and I is one of the better outcomes.” He says.

Ichirou pauses and considers it.

The two men that those relics had wanted for their ‘competence’ and ‘ability’ had been taken out in a way that showcased what Ichirou had thought of them. They were sloppy, they were over-confident, and worst of all they were incompetent.

“Before I forget.” Smith says and his hand goes to the bulge in his jacket pocket.

Ichirou can feel Conner tense behind him and he wonders where this had gone wrong or how the conversation had broken down but he doesn’t have long to wonder about it as Smith pulled something out that was unmistakable as a toy with it’s bright yellow coloring. Smith sets it on the table between them and Ichirou cannot help the confusion that must show on his face despite his many years of training to keep his face blank.

“What is that?” Conner asks sounding utterly bewildered behind him.

“I used this to temporarily blind Jackson during our fight. I figure it would be useful evidence for you.” Smith says.

He hears a bark of laughter to his right as Michael reaches for the toy.

Useful evidence indeed.

It would be easy to show this as a sign that those relics could hardly be trusted to have an opinion in how he ran his empire. Those men they so prized taken out by a children’s toy.

This has gone to his benefit.

“So it would seem.” He finally says, “I will make sure to reward your assistance.” He says wanting a stronger hold over the man in front of him, a tie of some sort to the Moriyama family.

Smith shakes his head in the negative. “I didn’t do anything noteworthy. Whatever it is should go to Captain Neil.” He argues.

Rare find indeed.

“It will be done.” He says and figures with the additional cash flow eliminating the search for the Wesninski men, the removal of his father’s hanger-ons, and the blood he can squeeze from the family Romero and Jackson had intended to go to ( a supposedly allied family) he could more than afford to drop what his three Exy investments owed him as a percent.

His eyes shift over to Smith across from him and finds that he was even more willing to lower those percentages if he could not only drop the dead weight of his father’s empire but perhaps gain someone useful. “Still, I like to reward those who have directly benefitted me. We will take care of any and all hospital fees related to this incident.” He looks to his right and Michael nods.

Smith’s face doesn’t give much away, his pokerface was quite exceptional.

“Thank you." He accepts and says nothing else so Ichirou decides to make his offer.

“I have heard that you are studying languages.” He says.

“I am.” Smith says.

“Which ones do you know?” He asks.

Smith blinks, surprised by the question, “Fluently? French, German, Spanish, Polish, Dutch, Italian, R-“ he pauses and shakes his head, “Recently, I’ve been studying Japanese, Chinese, and some Korean.” He says strangely stumbling over a word for the first time this entire conversation.

A useful skill.

“If you ever find yourself looking for work,” Ichirou snaps his fingers and Conner had a card in his hand in an instant, consider reaching out.” He says before he offers it with both hands and is pleased when Smith accepts it with a slight bow before taking it with both hands. “I see you are also studying the etiquette.” He adds.

Smith looks up from the business card and he looks paler but Ichirou chalks it up to the fact that bowing slightly with his current stomach status likely hurt far more than he had let on. “If you don’t know the etiquette you only know half of the language.” He says and Ichirou quite likes the sentiment.

“Tell Josten that I no longer need to speak with him. Our conversation was satisfactory.” Ichirou says as he rises to his feet.

“I will do that…Lord Moriyama.” Smith says bowing his head politely.

***

The sight of Ichirou Moriyama was always going to be one that made Neil nervous.

The only good thing about seeing him right now was that Kevin had gone with Coach and Aaron in a separate car so that the two of them could continue their argument about protein powder in FF’s soup and Andrew had snagged a spot up front while Coach would have to park farther back.

“Lord Moriyama, I did not expect to see you here.” He greets head down and he almost goes to his knees if it wouldn’t have attracted the sort of attention that Ichirou hated from the public. He just hopes that Andrew isn’t scowling and that Nicky and Smith’s Grandma can keep quiet.

“Perhaps if you kept your phone with you then my appearance would not be such a surprise.” Ichirou comments idly, “Though I suppose I did have a very beneficial conversation with Smith. Quite a bright young man you have as a friend.” He compliments and Neil’s head shoots up in surprise at it.

Ichirou had spoken with FF.

FF who was fading in and out of consciousness.

“I have faith that he will not reveal anything.” Ichirou adds and Neil clenches his fist and wants desperately to ask what happened. Wants to know what state he’s going to find his friend in. “I have not done anything to harm him, you are lucky to have a…friend like that.” Ichirou says as if physical damage was the only thing that Ichirou Moriyama was capable of.

“Yes Lord Moriyama, he is a very talented and skilled defenseman.” He says hoping that if nothing else Ichirou’s desire for Neil and Kevin’s future profitability would have him reconsider doing anything in the future to FF to ensure they would have good showings for the professional teams.

“Yes, he was quite talented in your defense.” Ichirou nods, “I will reach out with details of our new deal once some affairs have settled. Take care of your friend, Josten.” Ichirou says before continuing out of the hospital.

New Deal?

Neil banished the thought from his head. They needed to get up to FF’s room and he needed to make sure his friend was okay and find out what exactly had happened.

Andrew’s hand came to the back of his neck and squeezed, “Calm down.” Andrew ordered voice soothingly blank even if Neil could feel the way his grip stuttered. “Let’s go.”

***

The Nurses were saying something about ‘aggravating stitches’ and ‘lucky nothing tore’ but it was all white noise to FF as he continues to think about the business card burning a hole in his pocket.

Ichirou Moriyama.

He’d just had an entire conversation with Ichirou Moriyama.

His stomach was already hurting from his ill advised walk but the moment he’d seen that name on the business card he had accepted his insides had been pure acid. He missed his Pepto Bismol more than anything right now, what he would give for just a single hit of the sweet pink relief.

He couldn’t figure out what was worse.

The fact that he had given over EVIDENCE to the head of a Yakuza group (was it a yakuza group or was it a mafia group?).

The fact that he’d been right in his thoughts from the abyss that the man in the cafeteria looked like a Yakuza member (was it a Yakuza or Mafia?).

The fact that he’d just seen a Japanese guy and thought ‘Oh, must be the Japanese FBI guy I’m supposed to talk to’ which means he’d still been kind of racist.

The fact that he just realized that he had Captain Neil’s phone and not his own meaning that Ichirou had been telling Captain Neil to come to the cafeteria and FF just showed up like a dipshit trying to pitch their lie about the alley.

Finally there was the fact that Ichirou Moriyama had apparently been impressed enough to offer him a spot within his Yakuza group (Yakuza or Mafia?)

Would it be weird to ask during the interview process? Is there an interview process to join organized crime? Do they have benefits? Wait a crime family is paying for his hospital stay right now. This is too much.

He considers asking the nurse to yes please crank up the pain killers and just let him slip into a nice not embarrassing coma but then Captain Neil and Andrew were rushing into his room. “Smith!” Captain Neil exclaims.

Well, too late to ask for that coma.

MASTERPOST FOR ALL PARTS OF FLUENT FRESHMAN AU

NEXT

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The  requests to be added to the tag list keep being spread out across a few  different areas. If I missed you please just ask again in the replies I  promise I just missed you.

As stated before if you’re up here and I spelled it right but you didn’t get a notification there might be  something switched around in your settings that won’t let me tag you properly?

If you didn’t get notified on the last part it’s probably because I used tumblr mobile to post and our most beloved garbage fire site just didn’t like that.

Polish in this chapter:

Przywiążę cię do krzesła = I will tie you to a chair

[yuriririnnie]

Is it love?

A/N: It’s literally 1:51 in the morning and I’m supposed to be studying my last few topics on Tax Law. I really should be focusing, but sometimes don’t you hate it when you have this idea in your head that you just need to let out otherwise you’ll go insane? Yup. So that’s today for me.

PAIRING | Park Jongseong (Jay) x reader

WC | 2.8k (wth Alice?!)

GENRE | angst, fluff

WARNINGS | mentions of drinking, explicit language, mentions of sex and pre-marital cohabitation 

SYNOPSIS | When you first met, he didn’t believe it was love. When you fight for the first time though, that’s when it hit him.

—

Maybe it was the alcohol that’s making your head throb so incredibly hard right now but you were sure that it wasn’t this painful when you came in here. You were having the worst week of your law school life because of upcoming midterm examinations, terrifying judges as professors, and mock trials so you actually allowed your friends to pull you out of your dorm, go to a bar, and loosen up. 

At least, that was the plan. 

“Why are you being so uptight even until now?” your best friend asks before sipping on her drink which mind you, was the exact same drink that made your head ache so bad tonight. God has it been a while since you went out. 

Trying not to throw up you say, “How are you guys holding your alcohol so well? We’ve been here for three hours.” 

“You just haven’t been drinking that’s all.” 

“I shouldn’t even be drinking tonight anyway. I’m swamped with things I’ve yet to read.”

She scoffed, ordered another drink for you, and left to go to the dance floor with some unknown guy you’ve seen around campus. 

Leaning onto the bar, you stared at your drink, hoping it would finish itself. 

“It’s not going to finish itself.” Did you just hear your thoughts out loud? You looked up to search for the unfamiliar voice.

And there he was. Tall, slender, platinum hair that’s carefully pushed back further accentuating his jawline that’s sure to be able to cut through paper with how freaking sharp it was. His features were extremely strong. He had fierce eyes, tall nose bridge, and a smirk that carefully crossed his thinly-lined lips. 

He sat next to you without making eye contact and gestured to the bar tender indicating that he was probably a regular around here.

Realizing that you were seconds too late in replying, you shook your head and muttered, “I’m not rushing. I’m here with my friends.”

“I take it you didn’t want to come in the first place.”

“Is it that obvious?”

He let out a small laugh at your response and you could have sworn that it was the most handsome laugh you have ever heard in your life. 

“I’m Jay.” he offered his hand, which you shook, of course. You weren’t a fan of talking to strangers but he was just that inviting. No bias, but he was so gorgeous you just couldn’t ignore him! You wanted to be careful, but you’re not crazy.

“I’m Y/N. You from campus?”

“Yeah. I’m taking the 2-year MBA program,” he took a sip, “and you studying fashion or…?” 

“God no. I could never.” you nearly spat your drink hearing his assumption, but flattered nonetheless, “second year, JD.” 

“Yikes, there’s no wonder you looked like you didn’t want to be here.” 

You scoffed, “what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, of course, I didn’t first think you were in law. You look way too pretty to be someone who’s swarmed with school work.” 

“Is that your way of talking into picking girls up at bars?” 

He put his drink down to face you. This time, the smugness on his face disappeared and was replaced with a slight pink on his cheeks. He was flustered, and you made him lose his cool. Even you surprised yourself. You just didn’t know you had it in you to flirt tonight.

“Believe it or not, I don’t normally talk to girls around here.” 

It was your turn to laugh, “Is that so?” 

“Yeah. I’m not like other guys.”

“That is such an other guy thing to say!” 

The conversation went on for about an hour and you didn’t even notice how many drinks you were both having. The topics went on from school, to work, to friends, and to plans after school, and finally came to the part where he asked you out. You were hesitant at first (or at least you pretended to be hesitant), and thought that maybe this was just going to be a one time thing. He was kind and smart, but he did look like your typical college fuckboy after all. However, it’s been a while since you actually went out on a proper date and he seemed like there was more to him than just his appearance. 

“Sure.” you say, offering your last cheers for the night. 

—

“You said you were having a study group session, not a one-on-one with someone you obviously know has the hots for you.”

You can’t believe you were having this conversation just five months after meeting your boyfriend at the bar. Fighting was never a common thing between you two because you rarely even had the time to argue about anything. Jay was patient, loving, caring, and often just supported you and your decision to work and study. He offered to have you quit your job and just move in with him but you always thought that it was way too early into your relationship to accept the idea of living together. However, you did sleep over a lot considering he lived alone. 

Tonight you were scheduled to sleep over once again because it was just convenient. He lived much closer to campus and had a car. His program wasn’t as heavy as yours so he had the time to pick you up and send you to work and school. Everything was just peachy until this happened. 

Taking a deep breath you responded, “Jake is just a classmate, and we got partnered up to form a legal opinion together. It takes a lot of time Jay, and I didn’t know that the others would finish up much earlier than us. It’s no big deal, it was only a few hours.”

“I bet he purposely slowed things down to spend more time with you that’s all.” 

“What do you want from me? I can’t just avoid him just because he makes you feel uncomfortable.”

He scoffed, “Does he even know you have a boyfriend?” 

“Jay, I don’t need to tell him that I have a boyfriend. Everyone knows you’ve been picking me up to and from school.”

“Yeah, but it’s different when you actually tell them.” 

Finally arriving in his dorm, you put your bag down on the couch and stormed into the bathroom. He placed your laptop on the coffee table and tossed his car keys on the kitchen counter. You can sense his anger because you could hear him slamming the fridge shut from across the room. You just cannot believe him right now.

Ignoring his tantrum, you washed your face, brushed your teeth, and tied your hair up. 

“What do you want to eat?” he asked from the other side of the door.

“I’m not hungry.” You stepped out of the bathroom and went straight to your bag to bring out some of the books you were scheduled to read tonight. There was just so much to do and you can’t be wasting your time dealing with Jay right now. 

He on the other hand was just laying on the couch mindlessly scrolling through Netflix. The silent treatment from him would have been fine for you but the TV was being awfully loud you just can’t get yourself to study. 

“Are you doing this on purpose?” you finally spoke. 

“Doing what on purpose?”

“Jay, you’re being ridiculous right now.”

“I’m not doing anything.” 

You slammed your book shut, heavy enough to be intensely audible. He jumped a bit from the vibration as you gave him the most piercing look you have ever given him your entire relationship. He was being difficult the entire time on the way here despite knowing how much you seriously did not need it tonight. He knows that you had a lot to study for tomorrow and yet he was still being a brat about practically nothing.  

You packed up your books and rushed to the bedroom to change. “I’m leaving. I can’t study here.” 

“Fine.” He still never made eye contact. 

And with that, you left. 

—

Jay got up from the couch with what felt like forever. He knew you couldn’t have gone too far since your dorm was just a short bus ride away, but still, it was 7pm, dark, and cold outside. He didn’t mean to sound harsh, nor did he mean to piss you off. He typically did try his best to be the most understanding boyfriend for you knowing how much you cared about your studies. 

He unlocked his phone to see no new notifications. No messages from you whatsoever. 

Alright. If she needs time off from me to study, then fine. He thought. 

But what if you weren’t fine? What if you didn’t get to your dorm safely? What if the entire time you were walking home you entertained thoughts about breaking up with him? 

Jay shook his head to snap out of his own thoughts. He had been so emotional about you getting way too close to this classmate of yours. It wasn’t like him to act so jealous, but lately he has been noticing that you’ve been hanging out with that guy a little too much for his liking. He tossed and turned from the couch thinking about how he would make this up to you or how he would respond if you did try to reach out to him after tonight. He was losing his cool because of you again but this time it was a mixture of jealousy, worry, and frustration. 

He stood up feeling a slight blood rush from all the shuffling. Maybe he was just being paranoid, but he has never been so worked up for some girl before. His past relationships consisted of summer flings and college hookups that didn’t last more than a month. He never really believed in love just yet because he was so careful in saving it for someone he would actually want to devote all his time and heart to. However with you, it’s been more than three months, but is it too soon to categorize this as love? Was this what love was supposed to feel like? Was it always coupled with an impending fear of losing someone you barely spent an entire year with?

It was his turn to use the bathroom this time. He stepped onto what he expected to be a cold floor but to his surprise, the tiles never sent a sudden chill at all. He looked down to see a small carpet carefully placed on the bathroom floor. It was probably your doing because you always said that it was dangerous to keep the bathroom free of any rugs. The lack of friction might cause a slip and you wanted to rid yourselves away from any accidents. 

He sighed at the thought of you being so concerned about him. Looking around the bathroom, it was always clean these days ever since you semi-moved in with him. The towels were always newly replaced, the mirror was spotless, and the drug cabinet was always stocked up with medicines Jay never thought he ever needed. All of this he could have done all on his own but with you being on top of everything all the time despite your busyness, he just couldn’t shake the thought of wifing you up. He never thought he needed anyone until he found you. 

There was one thing that really tugged his heartstrings though. Your toothbrush was carefully placed in a cup near the sink just close to his.

“Do you even ever change your toothbrush?! You’re such a slob!” 

“I do too change my toothbrush every month!” 

“That’s fucking gross Jay, do it at least every three weeks.”

Jay watched you as you threw his old toothbrush away and opened a fresh new box with two toothbrushes this time. You placed the pink and blue ones in the cup near the sink and turned to him with the most satisfied smile. 

That was three months in your relationship. 

Feeling a rush of adrenaline, he grabbed his phone from the couch and started texting you asking where you are. He ran to the coat rack, grabbed a jacket, and exited his apartment within minutes. 

—

You were on case 12 out of 30 for your assigned cases to read tonight and thankfully you had the entire dorm to yourself because this was practically cramming since these cases were set for tomorrow’s recitation. Even if you’ve already been studying all day, it felt like you still had loads to cover before you were done with tonight. It wasn’t like you weren’t thinking of Jay the entire time but the fight wasn’t really worth pausing and you really couldn’t afford to lose momentum. 

Knock knock. The sound of the door interrupted your concentration. 

“Y/N, it’s me.” you heard him from the other side.

Well of course who else would it be?

“Jay I—“ you couldn’t even open the door fully and finish your sentence because he barged right in and surrounded you in the tightest embrace. He was panting, caressing your hair, digging his face in the crook of your neck. 

You can feel his heart thump against your body. He was so cold from the outside weather, but his breath was hot, and he was shaking. 

“Oh my god, is everything okay?!” you hugged him back, “are you hurt? did something happen?!”

“Why are you like this? I was picking a fight, left you alone to go home by yourself, was a total brat, and still you’re asking me if I’m okay??” he was exasperated, but continued to wrap his arms around you like his life depended on it. 

“Are you crazy? I’m not the one who’s barging into his girlfriend’s dorm acting like he didn’t see her just a few hours ago!”

He loosened his grip and faced you. You were probably just tired but was he crying?

“So you’re still my girlfriend?” he squeaked. He was so cute and so not himself right now if it weren’t such a worrisome atmosphere, you would have laughed. 

Okay, so maybe you did laugh a little bit. 

“Of course, I am!” you chuckled, “why did you ever think that I wasn’t?!” 

“Because we fought,” he sniffed, “I thought I was going to lose you.” 

You were full on laughing at him right now. His eyebrows furrowed and gave the cutest, tiniest pout. 

“Jay,” you finally managed to say, “I was mad, and yes we did fight. But I’m not breaking up with you. I’m sorry if you felt that I was going to.” 

He hugged you again, but this time tackling you onto the couch putting his entire weight on top of your smaller frame. 

“Jay—“ you choked, “’Jay, if you don’t get off of me right now I might actually break up with you.”

“That’s not funny!” he backed away in an instant, “You can’t just sprinkle all this domesticity onto my life and just walk away.” He continued to rub his eyes, sniffling, and struggling to sit next to you on the couch. You caressed his back and waited for him to calm the eff down. 

“I’m not sure what your idea of romance is babe, but that’s how relationships are supposed to be,” you comforted him as he turned to face you, “we will fight, butt heads, disagree, get jealous, and even walk out on each other but that doesn’t mean we love each other any less.”

He sat up straight hearing the word and you notice his ears turn cherry red. 

“—and yes, I do love you, Jay.” 

“You love me?” he sounded like the word was so foreign, so uncommon, and so alien that the slight hesitation made you feel like you trespassed in some unfamiliar territory. 

With that, you just nodded. 

He buried his face into his hands. Is he going to say it? Is this finally the day he’s going to say it? He pictured that the first time he would ever say it to anyone would be special. He imagined it being on a hill, or by the ocean, or on top of the city lights, or somewhere more beautiful and deserving than this. But come to think of it, he never would have thought about saying it before, not to just anyone at least. 

He only really imagined saying it to you. 

There were nights where you two would just be eating, watching TV, brushing your teeth, he would watch you get up to study right after you just had sex, just doing the most mundane things, and he would just have this strong urge to tell you something. Something he has never ever felt with anyone else before. 

He tensed up, took a deep breath, and said:

“I love you.” 

He looked at you so intensely.

“I love you, so much.”

And you knew. He didn’t need to say it, but you knew. 

[mx-julien]

each ninja was a different kind of teacher (except Lloyd who basically went on a year long press tour) and it also explains why Rebooted and after they seem a bit more responsible than in season 1 and the pilot

Cole has my favorite teacher characterization because he's objectively an interesting person with cool hobbies but when he is responsible for a group of children he just becomes Dad Who Is Helping Out At The Summer Camp. we never see his classroom, but given his proficiency in the arts we can assume he's the English teacher

since he went to art schools, he's probably not used to kids who aren't actually interested in what's being taught. the louder kids seem to dislike him (ref: running gag of "Mr Cole is the worst"), but that doesn't mean he's necessarily a bad teacher- just not one to humor pranks

also his and Kai's teacher outfits belong in the 1970s. I like the touch of making their ties the same color as their gis

little bit of meta: most of the people who worked on this show went to school in the 80s/90s so to them "older/boring" teacher outfits would look like this. also, as someone who was in the intended age range and saw it at the time of release, this sort of clothing conveyed that the ninja were doing a stuffy adult job- juxtaposed with their colorful gis

Kai appears to be the history teacher? his teaching style is likely structured and straightforward. given his nontraditional childhood, his frustration with the kids likely comes from both his jealousy that they aren't aware of how valuable schooling is and that Nya was much easier to work with when she was their age. at the end of the day he's an older brother who's now in charge of a bunch of kids

he's using an old-fashioned projector with film, which I assume (1) shows how low-budget they are, (2) emphasizes that Kai is out of his element (pun not intended), and (3) juxtaposes them with New Ninjago City

Zane is the one who doesn't know what a vape pen looks like but will listen to you infodump for an hour after class, then drive/walk you home because you missed the bus. he probably doesn't get any of the classroom humor or notice if the kids make fun of him. I can't imagine him ever getting angry at the kids, and he probably is very good at keeping them to a routine and a schedule

in rebooted episode 1 he seems to be teaching science? and the use of catapults is actually quite endearing- he's probably explaining tension and going to get his kids to make little models, which shows that he both is a pretty good teacher and hasn't realized that giving elementary/middle/primary schoolers their own catapults will only lead to chaos

he and Jay have personality-based outfits, with the snowflakes being an obvious allusion to Zane's element and the zig zags on Jay's emulating lightning

the little bowtie on Zane reminds me of Bill Nye the Science Guy (program with a a host of the same name who taught kids about science in a fun and accessibly way- very nostalgic for kids who went to american public school)

Jay is the exhausted teacher who's more interested in his hobbies than class material, and if you get him talking about that hobby, he won't stop until the bell. as a jokester, I think he'd get along well with the kids and definitely encourage them to annoy the other ninja

we don't see his classroom, but given Jay's skills he's probably the math teacher. he'd have a difficult time explaining things in different ways- very gifted people who learn well on their own often find it hard to teach things to others, though he would make sure he doesn't leave anyone behind

Nya definitely teaches math classes, but she probably handles tutoring as well since she's well-balanced in most subjects. it would also give her an intelligence network- kids come to her room after class/during lunch to complain and gossip. she uses it in the noble pursuit to antagonize the others

i'm used this video and the ninjago wikia because I'm on mobile and finding other sources would've taken too long

extra group photo I found! love the detail that Zane blinked (Dr Julien probably took the photo)

[sgiandubh]

S on BBC 4's Saturday Live: 'anything but a quiet life'

As you all know, S was today on BBC Four's Saturday Live radio talk show, sharing the scene with people like super male model David Gandy, Catrin Finch - a Welsh harpist of international repute and the ever fascinating Lucy Worsley, a strong contender (along with Mary Beard) for the title of personal favorite (living) historian.

You can listen (as I dutifully did twice) to it here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001t96r. I don't know how to embed it on this page, but that shouldn't be a problem.

The show is always interesting and I strongly suggest to let it play along and not rely only on my summing up & comments. I particularly enjoyed Lucy Worsley's Medieval and Baroque musical selection (flawless!) - but enough said, we're here for S, who was live on show from BBC's London studios.

As usually, I am going to transcript it as much as I can, primarily for those reading this post and using Google Translate (@bat-cat-reader, you are served!). So, you will kindly excuse the length, thank you.

At the 07:40 mark, a half jocular mention when prompted by the host: not a cricketer and not a harpist either (you can say many things about S, but not that he's got no humor - always a big plus in my book). But then things quickly get emotional, when he immediately mentions his mother (the question generally asked was 'what did your parents sacrifice for you?'), who 'sacrificed a lot (...) [as] a single parent, (...) she gave us everything, I think'. And then he quickly gets emotional, mentioning Chrissie H. again:

'(...) can I give my mom a shoutout, it's her birthday, on Monday [Nikki Bedi, presenter: 'aww, of course you can!'], so happy birthday, Chrissie, and thank you so much and I wish... I'm glad you never got me a harp, because I would have never dedicated myself. I think that's why I became an actor, because I didn't have to work too hard at one thing.'

It's then David Gandy's turn to talk about his own rural childhood in Billericay (Essex), his close knit family and his parents' endeavor of building a business and the now incomprehensible need to use faxes, something he has now to 'explain to the younger ones'. Then Nikki Bedi turns to S (13:08): 'Sam's laughing at that. Do you remember faxes?' Answer: 'I do.. I mean, I remember faxes getting scripts through or couriers bringing you know, scripts to your door, it..it's just a completely different world, now, and I am sure the fashion world is completely different now, isn't it, David, I mean it's changed so much'.

Onwards to more questions asked by Mrs. Bedi. This one was interesting (19:16): 'Sam, do you fear that each job you do is an act that could be your last? Is that always in the back or front of your mind?' Answer: 'Yeah, I think.. David, I mean...um... earnestly, everything you're saying there kinda rings true for my career as well... I am sure for Catrin being, you know, being a musician, I think it's, you know [Nikki Bedi: is it true, Catrin? CF: yes, absolutely, yeah, many things David said... it's the same (...)'].

Huw Stevens mentions alternatives to 'gigs', the need to plan for the future and the fact 'you always have to remain busy', mentioning S's whisky. Gandy also mentions S ('you've got quite a few businesses [...] a man after my own heart, we'll then gonna have to go out'), immediately cued in by Nikki Bedi ('whisky, tequila, gin').

Just after Lucy Worsley's superb intervention (easily my favorite of the whole program!), cue in to the kilt on a glacier part of S's chit-chat I am sure we all dutifully 🙄, by now. I noted the slight hesitation in his voice, while mentioning 'my...my friend, Graham McTavish', so I will not - yeah, sue me-, I repeat: I will not transcript this verbatim, simply because it doesn't really bring anything new or important to what we all know, already. Sitting on a glacier 'in a kilt, in commando, yes, it's my claim to fame'. Disgruntled Tumblrettes, beware - he poked fun at himself (shall I sign this to you, or are you able to read my lips?) and that is something only very intelligent people are able to do without sounding pathetic. Another interesting thing is the way Nikki Bedi presented S ('the actor, award-winning liquor maker and writer'- 36:00), roughly midway of the whole broadcast.

His dedicated segment begins at the 49:10 mark and lasts until the end, about 10 minutes in all. He was introduced by Huw Stevens: "Sam Heughan, it seems, would like anything but a quiet life", plus some cursory bio elements, mentioning his mother's influence on his own creativity, his breakthrough as JAMMF, but also TCND (Nikki Bedi watches it and 'apparently the third episode is the most steamy' 🤦‍♀️). 'He is also a philanthropist, businessman and thrill seeker, and of course, as mentioned earlier, has his own whisky and is a best-selling author'. Mentions his 'parents, characterful people, hippies, in the Seventies, with a love for Tolkien'. S: 'my mum would probably kill me if I called her a hippie' - also, 'she is not the best singer, but there was always music around'. Stevens mentions the Gandalf's Garden Soho hippie community both his parents were a part of before he was born, but S doesn't develop it. The rest (difficult childhood, loner, using his imagination sparked his creativity, etc) we know from Waypoints. The very Scottish concept of 'stravaigin'' comes along in the conversation, which is not exactly a drifter and a bit more than a wanderer (if I understood correctly) - perhaps a good title for a second personal memoir, S? I'll leave this idea float in here for free, heh. OL comes along then, and by far the most interesting thing he mentioned about it is that "it is my life, it's taken over my life', hoping it would sparkle at least some conversation in the comments' thread. OL 'has also been hugely beneficial for Scotland, increased tourism by 200% in some locations (...), and it's all down to the magic of Scotland'.

Next projects: exciting not to really know what is next, but 'I am also saying no to a lot, because I am in a place now where I think the next decision is really important (...). I enjoy being in control now (....), producing my own shows and you know, my own products. (...) once you take control of that creativity (....) there's a lot of freedom and yeah, we shall see'.

And then Huw Stevens makes a joke - but was it really a joke? it's the BBC, after all - and says that all four of the guests could contribute something to what 'could be the next generation of Bond', (S: 'the finest British production'). Cue in an anecdote about S being invited to present an event to Buckingham Palace and taking a cab to a pub, right afterwards. MPC and tomorrow's book signing at Saint Pancras station wrap off the show.

Quickly, my 50 cents on it: way, way better than expected and S always delivers when they ask no weird questions about his private life (hallelujah, maybe they listen to us, after all?). The question about the fear of each job being the last reminded me of one of his answers in a very early interview: 'your biggest fear? getting the sack'. This time, his answer, whatever he intended to say, got lost in the brouhaha, but I suspect not much has changed, essentially, even if the 'after OL' part of the show strives to tell a more optimistic story.

But the thing that impressed me the most and in a very good way is the attention he got from all the other people invited in that studio. Unlike the social nobodies of Tumblr, they did not find bizarre the fact that he created his own spirits business and is actively promoting it. They were far from judging him: in fact, I even think he made a new friend of David Gandy, who had quite positive and nice and honest things to say about him. S was articulate and graceful and very moving every single time he mentioned Chrissie. And I am also sure he would have loved to share more things, especially when David was lovingly talking about his wife and daughters. But he couldn't. And that is a shame. But this too, shall pass - The Boy is slowly learning to say no to a lot of things, as he just let us know. Probably the best news we've got from him in a good while.

And now, onwards to a particularly venomous Anon I am still pondering the answer to.

[mrfrogz]

Rubble (Genji x Reader)

Hey guys! This is my first ever oneshot on Tumblr so I'm nervous and excited lol. I'm used to Wattpad and Ao3(for people who know I actually started on Wit LOL) so I apologize if the formatting is a bit weird/off. I hope you enjoy! (Also I wrote this a long time ago before McCree's name was changed) This was first uploaded on my Ao3, so if you enjoy consider checking me out here

As the aircraft was slowly making its approach to the ground, you grew more and more nervous. Biting your fingernails, you glanced around at the heroes who you happened to befriend. There was Zenyatta, you and him didn't talk much but he seemed very calm and collected in battle. Then Mercy, or Angela as she was most commonly called, was always a wonderful person to talk to however whenever she was treating a patient you knew to never disturb her. Next there was McCree, he had a much more "rough n' tough" exterior but whenever you guys were off duty he was a bit of a charmer, though you never fell for it. Orisa followed you around a lot, mostly because she was programmed to protect others but she also genuinely enjoyed your company, or at least, you thought it was genuine. It's hard to tell with robots.

Now there was Sigma, a bit of a newer addition to the crew but he was a strong fighter and an interesting person to be around. Despite his seemingly split personalities, you two have managed to have very pleasant conversations when everyone else is asleep. Finally..Genji. Genji was the hero everyone strived to be, or that's how you saw him. He was fun and goofy whenever you guys were off the job yet calculated and passionate when in the midst of a fight, but one trait persisted on and off the battlefield: his flirty-ness. McCree was a charmer, more "old fashioned" in his wits but Genji was a lot more audacious and up-front in his advances. Unfortunately, time doesn't stop for your daydreams so by the time you got to thinking about Genji the aircraft came to a particularly rough landing, jostling you around where you so happen to fall onto none other than: the cyborg ninja himself. It took you a second to fully realize what happened, as you were so busy in thought you disconnected from the outside world. That was, until you heard Genji's robotic yet endearing voice emit from behind the mask.

"Y/N, I know you're falling for me but you don't have to be so literal about it~" He teased, holding you up so you wouldn't hit the floor. Your face went hot, you still haven't quite gotten used to his banter yet. You quickly stood up properly, removing your arms from his hands. He chuckled spotting your reaction, he had a habit of doing that. "Relax Y/N, you know I'm just teasing."

That was true, but you still couldn't help but wonder..'No, now is not the time Y/N, you're about to go into battle for f×cks sake.' You put on a smile, shaking your head lightly in a playful manner. "Really Genji? Do you ever stop?"

"No Y/N, no he does not." The cowboy spoke up, chuckling lightly as he flicked his cigar, sending light sparks on the floor. "He won't stop talking 'bout ya eithe-"

"Jesse! What did I tell you about the smoking?!" Angela spoke up, quite literally a guardian angel in this moment as she distracted McCree from spilling all of Genji's secrets. The two went on to bicker, however the aircraft broke out in silence when the doors started to open slowly. You took a deep breath, knowing that this could possibly be your last mission. Though this was the case with every mission. Hanamura…Where Genji grew up. It was truly beautiful. Y'know..despite the smoke and fire from a battle that seemingly had already begun. After another deep breath, you and your team jumped off the aircraft. As you jumped, you looked over and made eye contact with Genji. He seemed to smile, giving you a thumbs up for good luck.

You were grateful your team was victorious. You were terrified of what could go wrong, of the people they could harm. Luckily, everybody was safe. Well, everybody but you. Currently, you were buried underneath the rubble, a wound on your head and you were 90% sure you broke your foot or perhaps your whole leg. You had tried calling out for your teammates, but the oxygen was getting thin. You weren't even panicking, because you knew your team had won the battle. That's all that mattered. That everyone else was safe. You closed your eyes, blood dripping down from the wound in your head. You let out a sigh, and everything stopped. Things went black, you felt numb. You were sure this was it. Until you heard a voice that was all too familiar.

"Y/N!!" The cyborg ran towards you in full distress. Fighting the calming blackness that over took you, you opened your eyes.

After coughing, you called out. "Genji…I-I'm here.." It was soft, and you weren't even sure if he could hear you. Hearing how panicked Genji was, was enough reason for you to keep fighting. He ran over to you, his enhanced robot hearing helping him greatly.

"Y/N!" He called out once more. "Y/N I'm here." He kept muttering random words, thanking the heavens you were alive, saying how stupid you were to go on your own, and then scolding himself because he was just so happy you were still here. He did all that as he moved the rubble off of you with ease. Genji relaxed greatly when he finally saw your face. Gently, he picked you up. You shuddered a bit against the cold metallic suit but quickly relaxed, your strength being all gone. "You're safe, Y/N. I promise, nothing bad will happen to you again." You nodded your head gently before closing your eyes once more, grateful for your savior.

When you finally awoke, the hiss of metal disconnecting was the first thing you heard. You stirred a little as you slowly gained back all your senses. You were laying on some kind of bed, and you were holding someone's hand. You could immediately tell who's it was though, the metallic fingers gently caressing your knuckles. You couldn't help the smile that etched on your face. You also felt some tubes run through your arm. 'Must be an IV..' Regarding your leg, it already had a cast on it and was elevated. Angela must have cared for you. After a moment, slowly, you opened your eyes while turning to look at Genji. You were a bit surprised though, when you saw he had taken his mask off. His face was scar ridden, but that never made him less attractive to you. Really you only saw him like this when he was injured, or sleeping. He was looking down, tears in his eyes. You tried reaching your other hand out to cup his face but he was a bit too far away. "Genji..C'mere.." You said softly. He immediately shot up, looking at you. The tears finally fell and he squeezed your hand.

"Y/N!! You're okay!" He smiled, tears still coming down. He leaned forward, planting a gentle kiss to your hand that he was holding. The action made you flush, yet you continued to look at the ninja in front of you. You gently cupped his face in your other hand. You couldn't tell if it was because you were weak or if you had just grown more confident, but you weren't as shy as normal. "Y/N, I am so so so sorry for letting anything bad happen to you. I promise I'll protect you now, with all my being." You smiled sadly, you didn't like the fact that Genji blamed himself and yet you were grateful for his future protection.

"Genji, none of this is your fault. I wandered off on my own, it's alright. I'm safe now with you." You rubbed your thumb softly against his rough cheek. He kissed the side of your hand that was cupping his face, and yet again you flushed. He's never done anything like that; he's never kissed any part of you before. So, a part of you couldn't help but wonder why he did it. Was it just from a place of protectiveness? Or did he truly have feelings for you? "What's important is that everyone else is safe, we saved the city." You spoke up after a moment.

The cyborg merely chuckled weakly, giving your hand yet another kiss. "Y/N, I would let a thousand cities burn to the ground as long as you were safe." He smiled softly, looking at your flustered face. "Sure it's great that we saved everyone…But if you weren't okay, I couldn't live with myself." He explained, but it seemed like he was holding himself back from…what? His cold knuckles rubbed against yours, giving you butterflies.

You smiled as well, and squeezed Genji's hand softly. "Hey..Don't worry about that." You coughed, your torso raising from the bed with the movement. The cyborg's face immediately filled with worry. "I'm safe, you're safe..the people are safe." You reassured him, laying back against the slightly elevated hospital bed.

"Yes but-" He started, but then sooner than he had started, gave up. He shook his head, and with his free hand grabbed the missing part to his helmet. "Get some rest, Y/N. I'll be back, I have some paperwork Jack needs me to fill."

I roll my eyes at the mention, but understand regardless. "Go ahead, I know how strict he can be." You gave a weak chuckle and the ninja before you slowly let go of your hand, as if it pained him to do so. You closed your eyes, falling asleep to the soft hiss of Genji's metallic helmet connecting.

After an hour or so, you woke up to the sound of the door opening. "Genji? Is that you?" You called out quietly, head still feeling groggy from your nap. You heard a feminine laugh, and immediately recognized it as Angela's. You slowly opened your eyes and watched as she put her rubber gloves on.

"Sorry to disappoint, but no, it's not Genji. Just your resident doctor." She smiled, walking over the to monitor you were connected to, looking it over.

You blushed lightly and shook your head. "I didn't mean to look disappointed, he just…said he'll be back." You said, feeling a bit stupid for expecting him to be back this soon. "He's probably busy still.." You mumbled, trying to make yourself feel better.

Angela looked down on you and checked your head wound, smiling softly. "Don't worry Y/N, he'll be back. Jack is..upset that he ran off to find you." You tilted your head a bit. "No- No don't do that please, I need to make sure your wound isn't infected." You moved your head back, but still had many questions.

"I don't understand, why would Jack be upset at that? Doesn't he always want to save as many people as possible?" You asked, confused. You saw Angela take a deep breath out of the corner of your eye before she seemingly made up her mind.

"When we couldn't find you, we all assumed you were dead. We were given direct orders to report straight back, as there was word that there was an emergency somewhere else. Luckily some other agents were free so they got there in time, but Genji insisted on staying and looking for you. We were all heartbroken, really, but Genji…He really didn't seem like he'd live without you." She confessed, turning back to her counter with medical supplies. "Young love, right?" She joked, trying to lighten the mood.

You were stunned, and didn't say a word. 'Young love?' You thought. 'Does he..really care about me like that?' You asked yourself, thinking it was way too good to be true. But how could you ignore the obvious signs any longer? As you were overthinking your crush on the cyborg, Angela had some good news.

"You should be able to leave tomorrow. Of course you won't be able to walk, and you can't go on any missions with us, but you won't be confined to this 'hospital' for long." She smiled. "Genji has already volunteered to be your personal nurse, seems to think he can do a better job than me, but I'm sure you'll be fine on your own. We all know you're a fighter, Y/N."

You thanked her and appreciated the compliments, but you were obviously preoccupied. By mere coincidence, someone knocked on the door about five minutes after Angela knocked. "Come in!" You called, flicking through the channels of the T.V in the room. Genji emerged from the door, holding a small bouquet of flowers. You smiled seeing him, along with the nice gift. "Aww Genji, you didn't have to." You said.

His robotic chuckle emerged from the mask, and he closed the door behind him. "I've wanted to give them to you for a while, actually. So yes, it was very necessary." You couldn't see him, but from his tone of voice you can tell that he smiled. He sat back down on the chair next to your bed, putting the flowers on a nearby table. You two sat in silence for a bit before you spoke up.

"Genji..You've been really sweet to me today. First with saving me-" You started.

"Technically that was yesterday." He chimed in.

You rolled your eyes with a smile. "Oh hush, you know what I mean. What I'm trying to say- Or ask, rather is…Do you..have feelings for me? Maybe I'm reading this all wrong but you kept kissing my hands and got me flowers and-" You started going on a nervous ramble, hoping that something made sense and if you were wrong Genji didn't hate you. You were so nervous, in fact, that you didn't hear his helmet disconnect. In a moment's notice, Genji was mere inches from your face.

He smiled, and nodded his head. One of his hands grabbed your own, while the other tucked your hair behind your ear. "Of course I do, Y/N. How could I not? I really do care for you, and want to have a relationship with you." He kissed your forehead softly. "I'm sorry I waited this long to tell you, I just didn't want to ruin things. I thought maybe you had someone else.."

At that you chuckled, and shook your head. "No, Genji, nobody else. Nobody else but you." You leaned your face closer to the other, neither of you connecting your lips yet.

"May I kiss you?" Genji asked, voice a whisper as if he's scared that he'll ruin the mood.

"Of course you may." You answered, and just melted feeling Genji's lips on yours. There were a few scars around his mouth, but you knew that and it felt surprisingly nice. It was like a perfect moment, one that the two of you were dreaming about forever. After a moment you pulled away, wrapping your arms around Genji. "I love you, so much Genji." You admitted with the biggest smile on your face.

"I love you too, Y/N." He said, with an equally big smile on his face.

[deadbythemorning]

Project EVE (Harry Potter x reader) part 1

Synopsis: When accidentally sent back in time fifty years, Y/n turns to the most famous wizards for help

OR

Y/n must attend her final years of school fighting for her life at Hogwarts while trying not to fall in love with one of the most famous wizards in the world

Y/n sat up with a throbbing head and looked around her surroundings where am I?

She knew everything was still temperamental but everything had been successful so far, so why did it mess up with her?

Once she finally stood, she dusted off her hands and tried to find any sort of guide. Everything seems to be outdated here

Great

Y/n watched as the witches and wizards passed her on the busy street

Clearly no one in London knows what current fashion is

As if she were waiting for a browser to load, she scrunched her eyebrows in confusion

Somethings not right…

She quickly whipped around but bumped into a rather large figure

“Sorry bout that” she took a few steps back to get a good look at the figure and gawked

“Y-you’re Hagrid!”

“ ‘m sorry, I don’t recall ever meetin you”

Y/n then quickly shook her head “No, this has to be a polyjuice potion”

Now the giant was confused “You must’ve hit yer head pretty hard”

Her heart began to thump out of her chest “But you were in the Great War…”

“What Great War?”

Y/n looked at him as if he were stupid “The Great War against Voldemort”

Hagrid quickly hushed her while looking around “You shouldn’t say his name so carelessly, one of his followers might hear”

Followers? “I’m sorry” she takes another few steps back “What year is it?”

Hagrid slightly tilts his head to the side “Well it’s 1996”

♡

“I don’t know Albus, she sounds genuine” Hagrid whispered

“She sounds confused” Snape objected in his usual monotonous voice

“She speaks of a war” Hagrid countered which silenced them all “As if it’s no big deal” they all looked at each other nervously

“Well if she is from the future, we must send her back immediately” Mcgonagall sternly tells them “In any event that what she’s saying is true, she could change the course of history”

“So get a time turner and get on with it!” Flitwick urged

“It’s never that simple” Dumbledore finally spoke up which silenced their bickering “Whether we like it or not, she’s here for a reason. We should at least speak with her before we deem her a threat to our future or our students”

They all looked to one another before filing out of his office to meet the girl. Y/n on the other hand was too busy admiring the trinkets to notice they were all staring at her, it wasn’t until Hagrid cleared his throat that she finally snapped out of it and spun around.

“Oh..wow” she gently placed the lamp down and gawked at the group of teachers in front of her “You’re…you’re Severus Snape” she quickly bowed her head “Sir it’s an absolute honor to meet you, you were like, my biggest inspiration when I was a kid” she then looked over at the rest of them “Holy…I never thought I’d be in a room filled with the most famous witches and wizards in history”

“How did you get here miss…”

“L/n. Y/n L/n” she then paused to think “The last thing I remember is trying project EVE myself…and then waking up on some random street in London”

“Project EVE?” Flitwick asked while Y/n nodded

“It’s this thing my friend and I started to help people find their soulmate” Snape was quick to roll his eyes

“And what does EVE stand for?” Mcgonagall questioned

“Eve was the name of the woman who originally started the program” she told them “After she passed, my friend Fiona and I decided we were gonna finish what she started”

“And how does it work?” Dumbledore asked while Y/n twiddled her thumbs

“It’s actually quite complicated” she started “You’re supposed to cast a charm and then drink a potion” Y/n waved her hand in dismissal “It’s supposed to bring you to the location of your soul mate but clearly it faulted when I did it myself” she gives a bashful smile while looking down “You see, I specialize in potions. Spell casting has never been easy for me. Fiona wanted me to try it out since it was successful for her and a bunch of others, but I fear my spell casting ability is the reason I’ve been sent almost fifty years into the past”

“Simple fix then!” Flitwick smiled “We just preform everything correctly and she should be sent to her time!”

Although they all agreed, Dumbledore knew it could never be that simple and Mcgonagall knew just from taking one look at his face.

“Wow, this really has been an experience” she tells them while Snape hands her the potion “I mean to spend HOURS with the worlds most famous wizards, to drink a potion made from thee Severus Snape” she then scoffs “You know what? I’m not even mad that this happened”

“The faster you drink it, the faster you go home” Snape tells her while trying to get her to take the bottle from his hand

“Right” she opened the vial and put it to her lips but paused “What if it doesn’t work?”

“What?”

“What if it doesn’t work” she reiterated “I mean, you’re all brilliant but… if it doesn’t work, how will you know?”

They all looked between one another before Dumbledore spoke up “Do you know how to use the floo network?” Which earned another scoff

“Do I know how to use the floo network? That shit is ancient of course I-” she then quickly covered her mouth “I’m sorry”

Dumbledore lights the fireplace and everyone gets into positions “I can’t tell if she’s mad or an absolute genius” Hagrid muttered to himself while Flitwick nudged him

“Well, bottoms up” she chugged the disgusting liquid while Mcgonagall hit her with the charm, causing her to disappear.

“Well how do we know if it worked?” Flitwick asked and they all turned to Dumbledore

“Now we just wait”

They decided that an hour would be long enough for them to declare she was back home but it had only been ten minutes and the girl rolled out from the fire place “Well…” Y/n slowly stands up with a loud groan “I’m still here but now I’m covered in soot, so now what”

Disbelief was written all over their faces. They had enough problems at Hogwarts, they didn’t need to add to the pile.

“I suppose now we get you sorted” they all turned to Dumbledore and began arguing over his decision

“She can’t stay here at Hogwarts! She might disturb the course of history-”

“Sorted? We would have to make her a schedule and robes and-”

“Hogwarts doesn’t need to deal with more problems, we should simply hand her over to the ministry and let them-”

“This is a life changing event, I-I don’t think I should be attending class and studying. It’s bad for my mental-”

“SILENCE” everyone immediately stopped and turned to the older man “I will handle her finances along with her schedule but at the moment we’ve done all we can” they all turn to Y/n “We can’t let her wander around the halls without taking any classes, they might get suspicious. And as for sending her to the ministry, they might make her tell them what’s supposed to happen and they might alter history themselves”

Y/n then awkwardly raised her hand “History of magic was never my strongest subject, so I couldn’t tell them about the next fifty years even if I wanted to”

Snape scoffs “Was there a subject that you did specialize in?” He drawls and she gives him a cheeky smile

“Potions”

“I shall send everyone an owl explaining why miss L/n is here so everyone has the same story” Dumbledore tells them as he walks over to Y/n with the sorting hat “In the mean time”

♡

“Twenty five points from Hufflepuff” seriously, what’s with this point system? “And where might your tie be miss L/n?” Professor Umbridge asked

“Beats me professor” she replied nonchalantly while the older woman gave her a forced smile

“As a woman, you ought to dress more ladylike, you should care about your appearance” a tie quickly fastens its way around her neck “Another twenty points for unkempt appearance” Y/n rolled her eyes and waited for the book to gently land on her desk. None of it mattered though. OWLS, the tests, the studying. All she had to do was figure out what she did wrong and she’d be back home before no time “Miss L/n?” Y/n’s eyes quickly snapped up towards the front

“Yes?”

“Care to repeat what i just said? Verbatim?”

Y/n blew the hair out of her face while shaking her head “So sorry professor” she apologized while rubbing the stars into her left eye “I wasn’t listening to a word you said” the entire class laughed while Umbridge turned the same shade pink as her skirt

“Detention!”

Umbridge’s shrilly voice echoed through Y/n’s head as she wandered through the busy halls of Hogwarts. I guarantee she isn’t the reason Hogwarts is considered the best wizarding school in the world

Clumsily enough, Y/n didn’t realize there was a slight step in one of the corridors and fell right into someone “Watch it you oaf”

Y/n not so gracefully caught herself from falling and looked up at the boy “I’d say the same thing to you” she then tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear “There’s plenty of space in this hallway, consider yourself honored that I bumped into you of all people”

That certainly caught a few looks from passerby’s “Oi, do you know who you’re talking to?” One of his bigger friends asked

Of course she knew that was Draco Malfoy, but if she were to keep up this act, she had to be believable “No, should I?”

The blonde scoffed “But let me guess, you know who Potter is?” The golden trio stopped and glared at the blonde

Y/n let out a loud sigh and shook her head “I honestly don’t know nor care for whoever Potter is” she swore she could hear a pen drop “I don’t care for popularity status’s, or wealth status, or blood status, I’m just here…until I’m not” she loosened the tie that strangled her “I’m glad you all enjoyed the show, but if you’ll all excuse me, I have to find my way to potions” it wasn’t until she took her dramatic bow that she noticed the golden trio

“Draco aren’t you going to do something?” Pansy questioned but the blonde stayed quiet. He was too stunned to speak, it wasn’t every day someone talked back to him

Great, now everyone thinks I’m crazy

Y/n let out a loud groan once she reached an empty staircase

I can’t leave soon enough

Just then, the staircase began moving, which made the girl quickly grip the railing

I can’t tell if this is brilliant or absolutely terrifying

She then took a sneak peak over the railing, immediately regretting it

Terrifying

♡

“Professor I’m so sorry I’m late” Y/n huffed as she barged into the potions classroom. Everyone stared at the girl whose robe hung off her one shoulder and her tie barely hung around her neck “The staircase kept moving on me” she chuckled while yanking the potions book out of her tote bag “I can’t lie, that’s pretty fucking cool”

“Ten points from Hufflepuff for your tardiness and fifteen for your foul use of language”

Y/n then scanned the area for an empty seat “Apologies” she told him while sliding over to her spot “This school is just so much bigger than what I thought and I need a map! And-”

“Another five points for interrupting my class” Snape interrupted her rambling

“I’m sorry professor I-”

“Another five points for back talking”

“I-” Snape held up his hand and Y/n slumped in her seat in defeat

“Don’t worry” her seat mate whispered “Snape’s always like that”

She then blew the hair from out of her face “Don’t meet your hero’s they say” she mumbled while flipping her book open

“Hero?” She slowly sat up in her spot “You really must not be from here”

She then turned to the boy next to her “Y/n L/n”

Her heart quickly sunk “Harry Potter” just my luck huh “Where are you from?”

“America” the boy looked up at the board before turning his attention back to her “You’re a long way from there”

Y/n let out a scoff “Yeah, you have no idea” she then covered her face with her hands “I’m sorry…about earlier”

“Sorry for what?” He asked “You’ve got guts for standing up to Malfoy”

“Yeah, but I sounded like a complete asshole” she moved a few of her fingers to take a peak at the green eyed boy “Sorryyyy”

Harry shook his head with a smile “Don’t be, it’s nice to finally have someone not point and stare at me”

She then moved her hands and tilted her head “You’re really famous around here huh?”

The boy let out a soft sigh “Not for the right reasons”

Being put on a pedestal your entire life must be exhausting, especially when the whole fate of the wizarding world rested on your shoulders “I’m sorry to hear”

Harry shook his head once again “Don’t be sorry, it’s not your burden to carry”

♡

“She’s only been here a day and she’s already costing us all our points!” A Hufflepuff whined

It had only been a day and nearly every fifth year began talking about her. Everyone (except the Hufflepuffs) admired her nonchalant attitude, they were impressed with how smart she was, and most importantly, she had a personality that drew you in.

Y/n was heavily under the impression that she was intimidating because no one dared speak with her at lunch, but they definitely talked about her.

“She’s arrogant” Ron tells Harry and Hermione “I mean causing a scene like that on your first day?”

“She’s probably stressed” Harry defends her “Moving to a new country, having everyone constantly stare at you”

“You should’ve heard the way she talked to Umbridge this morning” Neville added

“Why are you defending her?” Ron questioned “Do you fancy her or something?”

“I don’t see how” Hermione mindlessly added on “She speaks so highly of you” a loud gasp was heard and everyone turned to the Hufflepuff table

Pansy Parkinson had just dumped an entire pitcher of pumpkin juice on Y/n “Maybe now you’ll learn to respect Draco you dirty mutt”

Y/n slowly stood from her spot and calmly wiped the liquid off her face “Maybe I will when he doesn’t send his lap dog to fight his own battles” Pansy went to pounce on her but with the flick of her two fingers, Pansy quickly flew backwards “This day just gets better and better!” She mumbled sarcastically while grabbing her bag

♡

“Why don’t we try again”

“Why don’t you try hiring teachers that don’t resort to torturing students as punishment?” Y/n snapped back

It hadn’t even been a full week and yet, she was done with the Hogwarts experience. The constant stares, three detentions back to back, and harassment from Slytherins. One more minute and she might blow someone to smithereens.

“Maybe if you weren’t such a delinquent, you wouldn’t be punished” Snape drawls and Y/n rolls her eyes

“We’re not getting anywhere!” She pulls her hair in frustration “I’m not even going to London anymore! I’m just ending up somewhere around the school”

“That doesn’t mean we should give up” Mcgonagall tells her “Again” Y/n let’s out a groan in frustration “Like it or not miss L/n, this isn’t your time. You being here compromises our future, your future. And if we stop now, life as you know it might never exist”

With one last pout, Y/n takes the potion out of Snapes hands and chugs it “Ready when you are” she muttered in disgust

Flitwick casts the spell without a moment’s hesitation, sending Y/n into another whirlwind of absolute hell.

Y/n fell into a chair, notes flying everywhere, many weird looks and whispers were shared amongst other students. The library, great

Well that’s another failed trial and a waste of time

She slowly collected her notes that were sprawled out on the table

“Didn’t think you knew how to read” Y/n moved the hair out of her face to reveal a cocky Draco

“Here to dump more liquid over my head?” She asked without looking up from her notes “I thought that was your girlfriends job?”

Draco sneered “She’s not my girlfriend”

“Oh, so she’s another one of your brainless goons” Draco rolled his eyes

“They’re not my goons”

“So they’re your friends” Y/n shook her head “You choosing to be friends with them is…a very bold decision”

Draco crossed his arms“You have a smart mouth, you know that right?”

She shrugs her shoulders “I’ve been told on occasion or two”

He gently picks up her hand “Maybe if you learned to shut it, you wouldn’t have this”

Y/n quickly snatched it back “Or maybe that old toad shouldn’t be torturing students”

Draco looked around before leaning down towards her ear “You know if you were friends with me, this would never happen”

Y/n rolls her eyes “Oh you’re just that popular huh?” She asked sarcastically and he shrugs his shoulders with a smirk

“I’ve got quite the influence around here”

With one last raise of the eyebrows, Y/n stands from her spot “Dully noted”

“Wow Malfoy in a library?” They both turned their heads to see the golden trio

“Is studying an uncommon thing here?” Y/n muttered, making Harry quirk an eyebrow

“I’m sorry if some of us learned how to read weaslebe” Ron quickly frowned

“You don’t have your sidekicks Malfoy” Ron sneered “Are you sure you can fend for yourself?”

“Look” Y/n started “I don’t know what you guys have going on, but leave me out of it” she then left the group to figure out what she would do now.

♡

I would rather get hit with crucio than listen to her for another minute

Umbridge did absolutely everything in her power to make sure they didn’t actually learn spells, which seemed to irritate everyone. She could understand reading a few passages, but writing it three times afterwards to retain the information?

Suddenly a wad of paper hits the back of her head.

With an irritated sigh, she slowly turned around to see who looked guilty. There had only been one person looking at her, and she can’t say she was surprised.

“Open it” Draco mouthed and she slowly complied

Slytherin party tonight I’ll pick you up at eight

Y/n crinkled the paper back up and continued to stare out the window rather than do whatever assignment Umbridge assigned

Another note hit her head

Don’t ignore me

Being surrounded around a bunch of teenagers that didn’t like her honestly sounded like a blast, but getting home before she was stuck taking OWLS sounded like it was in her better interest

“Passing notes are we?” Y/n slowly looked up from her textbook to see Umbridge staring down at her “Fifty points from Hufflepuff for disrupting class”

Y/n quickly sat up with anger “But I didn’t do anything!”

“Another fifteen for raising your voice!” Y/n slowly deflated in her seat “You should know that you need to respect your elders” Y/n wished she could just slap that smug smile off her face. Y/n glared down at the note on her desk stupid parties, stupid Slytherins, stupid school, and stupid teachers. The note burst into flames, causing an uproar from the class “MISS L/N!”

“I didn’t do anything!” She lied

“To cause such disruption-”

“My wands not even out!”

“DETENTION!”

♡

Y/n rubbed her hand as she listened to Snape describe the newest potion they’d be learning. She was completely over it, she couldn’t get home soon enough.

“You’re doing that wrong” Y/n muttered once taking a glance at Harry’s potion

“How?” He questioned “I’m doing everything the book is telling me”

Y/n sat up to peer over into his cauldron “You can always tell if a potion is brewed correctly by its look and smell”

“Correct” Snape confirmed “Five points to Hufflepuff”

Harry looks down with a huff “So what did I do wrong?”

With a flick of her wand, Harry’s potion disappeared “Show me what you’re doing” Y/n lazily watched the boy brewed the potion until he goes to grab a handful of dragon scales “Wait” she grabs his wrist “It’s too early” she slowly lets go of his arm “Mix it until it turns green”

Harry eyes the potion before turning to her “Looks pretty green to me”

Y/n rolls her eyes “That’s a forest green, we’re looking for Granny Smith green” as Harry began to stir the potion, it grew lighter in color, making him smile with excitement “Adding the dragon scales before fully activating troll bogeys will cancel all effects of the potion” once it turned the desired shade of green, Y/n slid over the basket of dragon scales

“You’re really good at this” Y/n lazily shrugged her shoulders

“Potions is about the only thing I’m good at”

Harry let’s out a small yawn “I doubt that’s true” she watched as the boy rubbed his eyes and tilted her head in confusion

“Are you not getting any sleep?” She asked “This is probably the fifth time you’ve yawned in the past ten minutes”

The boy nods while meeting her eyes “I keep having these nightmares” he shakes his head in dismissal “I know, it’s pathetic-”

“Not at all” she tells him while laying her head down on the desk “I used to have frequent nightmares about my father” she admitted “He went mad when me mum left him, she moved to London to continue working on new spells she was creating. My father thought that if he could invent something better, it would win her over and she would come back home….but the more I wrote to her and the happier she sounded, the more it broke him. He was obsessed…and I was just a kid…jealous that he spent all his time on some spell. So I went to his study and burnt all of his work in hopes he’d realize that she wasn’t coming back, that he was the reason she didn’t want to come back. My father was outraged, so completely out of his mind that he tried using the killing curse on me. I mean I was lucky you know, the spell bounced off the mirror and hit him…but sometimes I dream about if it did hit me, or if he hit me with the cruciatis curse” Y/n slowly sat up “Since I clearly wasn’t getting any sleep, I just spent all my time brewing potions” she quickly jumped up “Harry don’t let the potion scorch! Keep stirring it!”

Harry did as he was told and nodded “Right, I’m sorry”

“Don’t be” she shrugged her shoulders “Snape already graded my potion”

“No I mean about your father”

Y/n sucks the back of her teeth “Don’t worry about it, I didn’t mean to spew my traumatic back story at you” she helps him bottle the potion and clean his mess “What I was trying to get at was I’m a master of crafting a dreamless potion and the draught of peace” the bell rung and everyone quickly filed out of the room “If you ever wanna give it a try for one night of peace, just let me know”

Once Y/n tossed her book in her bag, she shuffled out of the classroom along with the others, but it didn’t take Harry long to make up his mind “Y/n wait!” Right before Y/n was able to make it to the stairs out of the dungeon, Harry grabbed onto her hand “Do you think you could craft me a couple of those potions?”

Y/n looked around before taking a step down “These are powerful potions Harry” she warns him “Stripping away emotions for a good nights rest, it can be dangerous, trust me” Harry slowly lets go of her hand “That being said, I’ll make you one of each. One to soothe your anxiety and one to get you a full eight hours of rest”

“Anything is better than nothing” there was a lost look in Harry’s eyes that Y/n couldn’t help but feel bad for him. Sleepless nights, people telling you you’re crazy, isolating you, she’d probably go mad too

“Don’t tell me you’re hanging around Potter” an arm plops down around her shoulders “Trust me, that cry baby will hurt your social status” Harry gritted his teeth in annoyance while Draco and the others laughed

“Look Malfoy! He’s about to run off and cry in his pillow!” They continued to laugh while Harry stomped up the stairs

“Harry….” you go to chase after him but Draco stops you

“Leave him, I’d imagine he wouldn’t want a girl to see him cry” that’s when Y/n finally shoved his arm off of her

“You’re such a prick Draco” she pushed past the others and left the dungeons

♡

Y/n spent the rest of the week crafting said potions for Harry, completely disregarding the more important task at hand. Surprisingly enough, Harry was almost impossible to find these days.

I could just give it to him next week

Y/n huffed as she readjusted her scarf. Someone mentioned seeing Harry at hogsmead but she searched everywhere for the boy for hours, it began to feel like a wild goose chase. Her gloves began to feel useless along with the three pair of socks she wore, the crunchy snow slowly seeped into her boots and the misery hit her like a truck.

He’ll be fine getting it next week

“Y/n?” The girl whipped around to see the boy she frantically searched for

“Harry” she huffed out “Where have you been? I’ve been looking all over for you?”

A smile spread across his rosy cheeks “You have?”

She nodded while reaching into her pocket “I wanted to give you these” she hands him the small vials “I didn’t want to make it look suspicious to lingering eyes”

Harry’s heart swelled with adornment “Thank you Y/n” he looks back up at her “I really appreciate it”

Y/n shrugs her shoulders “It’s no biggie” she sniffled a bit “I would want the same, yknow?”

Harry couldn’t keep his eyes off the girl. The way the snow clung to her hair, the way the snowy background made her big soft eyes look even warmer, the way the color pink slightly dusted across her face “Do you fancy Malfoy?” He blurted out

Y/n scrunched up her nose “No, why would you say that?”

Harry felt rather embarrassed by the sudden outburst “You just…you’re always around him and you avoid me like the plague” The girl stood there stunned, not knowing what to say. She’d been trying to figure out a way home, studying for pointless tests (especially the OWLS), not to mention the constant detentions Umbridge kept giving her, she didn’t realize she was isolating herself from her friends “I’m sorry, it’s just with Umbridge and Voldemort returning and Dumbledore ignoring me, I’ve been stressed”

“That Umbridge is definitely something else huh?” Harry looked down with a smile “If I’m being honest, my hands are just as full as yours, sorry if it seemed like I was avoiding you” and with that, she shrugged her shoulders and left the boy standing there

“Y/n wait!” Harry called out while chasing after her

Y/n stopped in her tracks and turned around to face the boy “Oh, I uh needed to grab a few books from the library, but you’re welcome to join if you’d like”

Harry shakes his head “I think what we both need is a distraction” she quirked a brow and the green eyed boy grabbed her hand and dragged her away from the school.

“Harry” Y/n nervously watched as he grabbed his broom “Is now a bad time to mention I have a deathly fear of heights?”

Harry held his cheeky grin as he mounted the broom “I promise, you’ll love it” the very second Y/n climbed onto the broom, Harry took off which made the girl loudly scream in fear

“HARRY POTTER YOU PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!” The boy laughed and lifted them higher into the air “You’re MAD”

“Don’t you trust me?” He asked but frowned when she stayed silent. That’s when he got the brilliant idea to dive hundreds of feet out of the air

“HARRY!” She screamed while holding onto his waist for dear life

“You said to put you down” she could hear the cheeky grin in his voice

“I don’t want to die Harry!” She called out while squeezing her eyes shut and laying her head against his back

“Do you trust me?” He repeated and she nodded her head

“If putting my trust in you is the last thing I do, I’ll haunt you in the after life Potter”

Harry quickly pulled the broom back up “Sounds like Malfoy’s rubbing off on you” Harry sped off on the broom again, making Y/n squeal “Aw come on, you can’t tell me you aren’t having just a bit of fun”

Y/n shook her head “I’m sorry if my screams of terror made you think otherwise” she retorted, Harry couldn’t help but laugh.

Where have you been all my life?

“Alright alright” Harry finally lands onto the pier of the now icy black lake, smiling to himself as their legs finally touch ground.

“Oh my” Y/n peeled her eyes back open sighing with relief “Harry Potter, you’re absolutely mad” A bittersweet smile formed on Harry’s lips once her grasp on his torso loosened “You know, I think if we were supposed to be in the air, we’d be born as birds”

Harry shakes his head while turning around “I get it, you’re afraid of heights” he watched as she tries to straighten her hair out “But at least you were able to forget about everything for a few minutes”

“Yeah, because I was worried about falling to my death” but he’s right “Thanks Harry” she gave a sheepish smile while watching the snow fall even harder across the lake “We should probably head back though”

“Wait” Y/n gave a blank stare as Harry’s heart pounded out of his chest “I’m getting a bunch of students together and teaching them how to defend themselves since Umbridge won’t” Harry blurted out

“Oh that’s-”

“Would you like to join?” His heart thumped in his ears as he awaited her answer “We have a secret location that’s perfect for the spells we’d be practicing” Harry couldn’t explain it but he felt like he could tell her anything. The girl that didn’t care that he was the boy that lived and didn’t stare at him like he was some freak every year. The girl that wasn’t afraid to speak her mind or stand up for herself. The girl who he swore was just as smart as Hermione, if not smarter. The girl who always seemed to make him forget about the horrors of reality.

“Why not?” she replied while shrugging her shoulders “I prefer performing spells rather than reading about them” a giant smile formed on the boys face

♡

It was a simple spell and it frustrated her to no end that she couldn’t preform it. As Y/n’s hands shook in anger, she decided to put her wand away and grab her book, the last thing she needed was to throw a tantrum in front of everyone.

Snap your wrist to preform incantation

She read over the same page about a hundred times and yet, she had no luck

Maybe I really am only good at potions

A frown made its way onto her face as she paced back and forth in her small corner. The other spells seemed rather easy, but of course the one defensive spell they teach gave her the most trouble.

Maybe if I’m lucky I’ll be gone before Harry drags me to war

“Alright, that’s enough for today” Harry announced “Great job everyone, you’re making excellent progress”

“Same time next week” Ron tells them as they all file out

Unfortunately for Y/n, she was stopped before she could make her escape “What happened?” Harry asked her with a head tilt “You separated yourself from the group”

She rubs her eyes “I know” she then shook her head “Im just a very slow learner and I was getting extremely frustrated”

A small smile played on his lips “I thought you liked preforming spells rather than reading about them?”

She playfully rolls her eyes “Whatever Harold, I’ll just learn it next week”

“I could teach you” Harry quickly spat out to stop her from leaving “Show me what you’re doing”

With a slight moment to think about it, she dropped her bag onto the ground and pulled her wand out. Once Harry took a few steps back, she took her stance and aimed at the dummy “Reducto!” Not that she was surprised, but nothing happened.

Harry nodded once she turned around to face him with disappointment “I think it’s your hand movement” he walks over to stand in front of her “You’re jabbing your wand”

“No” she pouts “I’m flicking my wrist like it’s telling me”

Without thinking, Harry gently took her hand in his own “You’re flicking your wrist downwards” he moved her hand up and down “Try rolling your wrist in a scooping motion ” after showing her what to do, his grip loosened but his touch definitely lingered.

“Reducto!” The dummy exploded upon impact causing a big smile to make its way to Y/n’s face, a smile that Harry slowly grew to love “I guess you are a good teacher” she tells him while turning to face him

“You guess?”

She shrugged her shoulders with a cheeky grin “I guess”

♡

Y/n felt more confident now that she knew what she was doing, which was perfect since they were dueling this week.

Once everyone congratulated Hermione for absolutely humiliating Ron, a hand gently tapped Y/n’s shoulder “Why don’t you try?” Harry asked and she shook her head

“I just learned the spell” she turned to look at him “I don’t want to embarrass myself”

Their eyes locked onto each other’s, Harry’s green eyes were swimming with a devious glint “Hermione, Y/n would like to go next!” He called out, causing the girl to slap his shoulder

“Hermione?” She whisper shouted “Do you want people to laugh at me?”

Harry shook his head “I’m helping you prepare for the real deal” Y/n awkwardly walks over to the witch and everyone cleared way

“C’mon! You got this Hermione!”

Y/n anxiously readied her wand as everyone cheered the witch on. Sure she was good at studying, but actual spell casting was her downfall.

There was a determined look in Hermione’s eyes, like she had something to prove to Y/n.

“What are they waiting for?” A student whispered and Hermione used this distraction as her chance to attack

“Stupify!”

“Protego!” A light shield covered Y/n and blocks the attack

I didn’t think that would work

“When did we learn that?” Someone else asked upsetting the witch in front of her

“Stupify!”

“Protego!” Y/n’s heart thumped out of her chest from the last minute save. However, Hermione grew annoyed that every and any spell she threw at her, Y/n would block

“It’s not much of a duel if you don’t attack” she huffed while readying herself. Nothing life threatening, just throw something at her “Stupify!”

“Expelliarmus!”

A stream of red shot out of Y/n’s wand while a yellow one came from Hermione’s, forming loud gasps and awes from the crowd as each color fought for dominance. Y/n had no idea how she did it but knew that she couldn’t let go now. Hermione knew she couldn’t stop now, she couldn’t let one surprise stop her victory.

But it was too much for both of them to handle, this was new ground and it was almost terrifying. Hermione’s wand jerked to the left, which made the spell hit her full on. Not only did her spell send Hermione and her wand flying, but the Stupify Hermione casted hit someone else.

“Harry!” Y/n quickly whipped around to see the boy laying on the ground. She quickly pushed through the crowd and kneeled at his side

“Harry are you alright?” She inspected the boy as he held his shoulder “Where does it hurt?”

“Harry” Hermione huffed with regret “I’m so sorry” she apologized

“It’s alright” he told her as he sat up “I’m fine” that wince said otherwise “That was brilliant you two”

“Harry we need to get you to the hospital wing” Hermione urged but he shook his head

“We would have to explain how I got hurt to miss Pomfrey” he then stood up “Besides, I’m fine, really”

“If you’re worried about Pomfrey telling Umbridge, I can heal you” everyone turned to Y/n “It’ll be easy” one shrug of the shoulders was enough to win Harry over “I can brew a quick potion and put some ointment for the pain and bruising, he’ll be perfectly fine tomorrow”

“You barely know how to cast spells” Ron tells her “Why would we trust you with him?”

What have I done to get on Ron and Hermione’s bad side?

Y/n then looked over to Harry “Do you trust me?”

Harry didn’t hesitate to nod his head “I’ll meet you guys back at the common room” he reassured them “Continue on without me, I’ll be fine” Hermione gave Harry one last apologetic look before he turned to Y/n “Shall we?”

From the way Harry described the pain, it might’ve just been a dislocated shoulder, but that didn’t stop him from acting extra whiny.

“We just have to get to my room okay?” She told him as she knocked on the large barrels in front of the Hufflepuff entrance

“What happens if you knock on the wrong barrel?”

She turned to him as the door unlocked “You get sprayed with vinegar” she jerked her head towards the door

“That’s so-”

“Awful” she finished for him “I was in for a pleasant surprise my first day” she led him around the cozy room, earning weird glances from lingering Hufflepuffs “I had to have a ghost tell me which barrels to knock on because I was drenched”

She finally came across a single room on the first floor and opened the door for him “How did you get an entire room to yourself?”

She shrugged her shoulders while closing the door behind him “I think it’s because I started so late” or probably because they thought I’d be gone after the first week and didn’t want me interacting with too many students “Please, sit” she conjures a cauldron and a bunch of random ingredients begin floating in the air “Can you take off your shirt?” Harry’s face flashed a bright red “I just want to make sure there’s no broken bones” the boy goes to lift up his shirt but immediately winced in pain “Here” she sat down on the edge of the bed “Let me” her fingers gently hook underneath his vest and she’s able to remove it without causing much pain to his shoulder. Once removed, she then unbuttons most of the buttons on his shirt so it would just fall off his shoulder, revealing a giant dark purple bruise on his very pale skin “Let me know when it hurts okay?” She gently pads her fingers around his chest, arm, collarbone, and shoulder of course. Harry on the other hand couldn’t breathe, as if he were in a trance that he never wanted to wake up from.

That was until Y/n shoved his shoulder back into place, causing the boy to erupt in a painful groan “Blimey Y/n!”

“Did that hurt?” Her eyes finally flicked up to meet up with his

Those beautiful orbs of hers, he could swim in them all day “You were brilliant today” he whispered, afraid that speaking too loud would scare her away

“That was absolutely terrifying” she admits “You got hurt”

His eyes flicker down to her lips “Good thing I have a great doctor”

Y/n shook her head with a smile “How convenient for you” she then stands up to make her potion “I figured since I was slow reflex wise, I’d be better off as a healer. So I spent most of my time learning how to make medicines”

“I never taught anyone how to use Protego”

A small smile played on her lips as she mixed the ingredients together “I used to want to be an auroa” she answered “You can read about these spells all you want, but it’s completely different actually preforming them and using them on other people” once the potion turned the right shade of orange, she scooped a cup out for Harry to drink “And if I can’t immediately do it, I think I’ve done something wrong and no longer want to do it” she sits down next to him and hands him the pumpkin shaped cup

“Y/n I don’t think you realize how brilliant of a witch you are” Harry tells her softly

“Yeah yeah” she urged him to take the cup from her “If I had a bit of patience, I could thrive in one subject” Harry winced at the bitter taste but drinks it nonetheless “How bad would you say the pain is?” She asked while leaning over to grab a small jar of ointment

“7.5” he answers quickly “Maybe even an eight” with a nod, she unscrews the top and uses three fingers to scoop some out “Maybe you could teach me a few spells one day” his voice gets caught in his throat as her fingers spread the cool gel over his skin

“The student becomes the teacher” she smiled but grew concerned at his silence “Are you alright Harry?” the boy couldn’t speak so he opted on nodding “You don’t have to lie to me” she tells him “I haven’t made the potion in so long, if you feel funny, you need to tell me”

Oh he definitely felt funny… “How often did you make the potion?” He finally speaks up

“My friends were troublemakers, both witches and muggles” she answered while grabbing more ointment “However, my muggle friends did absolutely anything they could to be in harms way. I couldn’t exactly tell them I was giving them a healing potion or rubbing magical ointment to get rid of the pain, but when I was younger, I used to kiss their injury and tell them I did it to make it better. And the next day, they’d be completely fine” she then puts the lid back on the jar “They would joke and say my kisses had magical healing abilities but I would just say it was the “organic smoothie” I made them”

Harry couldn’t breathe, he swore she could hear his heart beating out of his chest but all he could do was blurt out eight words “Will you kiss it to make it better?” Y/n slowly looked up at the boy who burned red

“Honestly Harry” she playfully shook her head while leaning over to put the ointment back on the night stand “You’re such a baby” she then leans down to gently kiss his collarbone “And now my lips are gonna go numb” she wipes the ointment off her lips and stands up to finish cleaning “Come on, let’s get you out of here before someone tells Umbridge I have a boy in my room”

♡

It’s not that Harry purposefully hurt himself, but ever since he found out Y/n was good at healing, he’d been purposefully hurting himself.

It was all minor injuries, things that could easily be fixed at the hospital wing, or even a weeks worth of rest. However, why go to madam Pomfrey when he could get a kiss from Y/n?

It’s not that Harry wanted to be hit by the bludger, but it did work in his favor. He would go back to Y/n, where she would scold him while he marveled at how brilliant she was, and she would give him a kiss. Besides, he’d been “injured” almost every day for the past two weeks. If he came back with another small cut, she might catch on.

Harry was knocked off his broom and nearly fell to his death if it weren’t for Hermione’s quick thinking. A time out was called to address his injuries but Harry could only think of one thing.

“Harry!”

“Are you alright mate?”

Harry nods while slowly sitting up “It was worth it” he strained

“What? Being hit straight with a bludger and falling hundreds of feet out the air?” Harry gave the girl a look before opening his hand to reveal the snitch

“HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! GRYFINDOR WINS!!” The stadium goes into an uproar while a determined Harry picked himself up

“We really need to get you to the hospital wing” Hermione tries to put his arm around her shoulder but he shrugs her off

“The hospital wing will be full” he tells her “I’ll just go to Y/n, her dorm is closer than the hospital wing. Besides, the pain is manageable” he was in excruciating pain

Hermione gave Ron a look and the ginger shrugged his shoulders knowing exactly why he preferred seeing her “Alright” Hermione finally agreed “Do you need any help with anything?”

Harry nodded “Could you take my broom back for me?”

Y/n would’ve attended the game but Mcgonagall had been on her arse to find a way back home…not that she knew anything about quidditch anyway. I’m sure he’ll win

Her concentrated thoughts came to an end once a knock came from her door “Come in” she called out which revealed a beat up and bruised Harry “Oh my-” she quickly jumped out of bed and ran to his side “Harry what happened?”

The books and notes flew off her bed so she could gently lay him down “Bludger came after me” he tells her “Knocked me straight off my broom” he hissed

Y/n sucks her teeth “I don’t understand how quidditch is safe for students to play” she tried removing his armor but immediately stopped when he let out a loud groan “Harry, I think you should go to the hospital wing”

Harry quickly shook his head “It’s full at the moment” her hand stopped on his jersey “It’ll be okay, I trust you”

She knew the boy was stubborn and lugging him across the castle wasn’t the best idea, so she let out a soft sigh “Did you guys at least win?” Her eyes flicker up to his and he nods

“I caught the snitch” her hand gently makes its way to his face, which he gladly leans into

“I’m sure you did” she tells him in a baby voice before standing up “I have no clue what that or a bludger is but I’ll put the ointment on you so you’re not as miserable”

“I could never be miserable around you” Y/n stops and looks down at him with a quirked brow

“I can tell you’re in a lot of pain Harry” she gently sits next to him and unscrews the jar “Extra pale skin, excessive sweat, quickened heart rate, dilated eyes” she lifts his Jersey up and was completely mortified to see the black bruises dance along his chest “It’s unbelievable how reckless you men are” she nagged while scooping ointment out

“The bludger hit me” he defended but she still held her scowl “I’m fine Y/n” she didn’t say a word but continued frown “Hey, look at me” his hand stops her from rubbing the gel on him which quickly makes her look up “I’m fine”

She was first to look away, obviously still mad that he would play a sport so dangerous but she could feel his lingering eyes “Once the pain subsides, I’ll check to make sure there’s no broken bones” she explained while putting the ointment away “But with the chest plate, your ribs might just be bruised” if this is how hard it hit him with gear on, I’d hate to see what it could do without it

“Do you want me to take my shirt off?” Y/n’s eyes darted to his “So it’ll be easier…to access my chest” Harry wanted to punch himself for sounding like an idiot

“I mean…” she shrugged her shoulders “It’ll help but I don’t want to put you through anymore pain” Harry then goes to rip his clothes off but Y/n stops him with a laugh “It’s fine Harold” she gently takes his hands in her “I appreciate the consideration though” she then let’s go of his hands to inspect his chest again “Hmmm…” her fingers drew circles around his bruises “I think I have just the potion for this” she then jumps from her spot and searched her cupboard “I think…this might help” she tosses a bottle at Harry which he easily catches “Bottoms up”

The vile liquid poured down his throat and she gives him a cheeky smile “What on earth was that?” She then sits next to the boy and lifts up his jersey

“Well would you look at that” she smiled while putting the jersey down “No broken bones, bruised ribs” she looks up to meet his eyes “Just like I told you” a frown covered Harry’s face as he knew what would happen now “I ought to make you some of this ointment since you wind up hurt every other day…you might be a wee bit sore but that should subside in like three days” she tilts her head in confusion “What’s wrong? Does something else hurt?”

Harry shook his but lifted up his jersey “Can you kiss it to make it feel better?” Y/n gave him a small smile

“You truly are pathetic Harold, I hope you know that” she leans down towards his chest, inhaling his deep musky scent before finally letting her soft plump lips kiss him. Her hair tickled his bare skin but Harry didn’t mind, he couldn’t breathe, he didn’t dare to. But this time she did notice his breath hitch “Did I hurt you?” She quickly asked while looking up at him but he shakes his head

“You could never hurt me” y/n rolls her eyes

“You’re too cheesy”

♡

The happiest memory huh?

Y/n glumly watched as everyone conjured their patronus. Yes, it was a hard spell for some but she couldn’t even think of a happy memory to even try.

“Excellent work Ginny!” Harry congratulated with a smile

“That’s so cool!”

“Luna!”

The blonde girl stopped to think for a moment “Expecto Patronum!” Everyone awed at the rabbit that hopped around the room

“Y/n” Harry walked over to her

“Pass” she lazily replied and he frowns

“Reading about the spell is nowhere as beneficial as trying, just try”

Y/n looked around at the others “Can’t think of any happy memories, just come back to me later”

“You don’t need to cast a full body patronus” he tells her while grabbing her hand “Just think of the last time you were happy” Harry slowly let go of her hand as she pondered

The first thing she could think of was Harry flying her around on his broom, his contagious laugh echoed in her ears while she screamed loud enough that people in Hogsmead could hear her. A small smile played on the corners of her lips “Expecto patronum!”

A hazy light blue shot out of her wand and a small body began to form “Brilliant” Y/n turned to meet his gaze “You’re absolutely brilliant” but the moment they shared was cut short due to the room shaking. Y/n’s patronus completely disappeared once the room shook again.

Harry protectively stepped in front of Y/n as everyone cautiously looked around. Without a moments notice, a couple of students went flying along with debris.

Umbridge proudly stood at the hole in the wall while Draco dragged Cho to the front as a trophy. Y/n knew something like this was bound to happen, Umbridge couldn’t have been that dumb.

Everyone filed out of the room of requirement and into Umbridge’s classroom to endure two hours of torture. It angered Y/n, being disciplined, tortured because they wanted to learn how to protect themselves. If she didn’t know any better, she’d assume Umbridge was working for Voldemort.

Y/n was used to the pain, she’d been in detention at least twice a week for the entire school year. What did bother her however was hearing the kids sniffle and muffle their cries from the pain. They didn’t deserve it, hell, none of them did, all it did was add fuel to the flame.

“It hurts” a young blonde boy cried to the Weasley twins

He’s just a kid

Y/n reached into her robes and pulled out a familiar tub of ointment “Hey” she gently called out to the boy “I’ve got something that’ll make the pain go away” she knew she wasn’t the most liked, especially from Ron or Hermione’s friends, but attempting to offer comfort was better than nothing “I use it on Harry all the time, look” she opened the jar and grabbed a glob of the medicine “It works almost instantly” after a small not of approval, Y/n rubbed the ointment all over his hand “See”

The boy looked up with much gratitude “You’re right” he sniffled “I don’t feel anything anymore!”

“Hey” Fred peered over the boys shoulder “Do you think we could borrow some of that?”

Y/n quickly nods “Of course” she rubs the gel over their hands and the twins smile

“Bloody brilliant!” George exclaimed “Ron, Hermione, Y/n here has something to help with the pain!”

Soon, a small group began to huddle around her, curious to see what the chatter was about “You crafted this?” Hermione asked once she tried it

Y/n nods and the witch furrows her eyebrows “Then you’re a bloody genius” Ron interrupted while marveling at his now pain free hand

“There isn’t anything about this in any medical books” there isn’t now, but there will be in approximately fifteen years

“I…made it myself” Y/n lied, she had to lie, it might hurt the future more if she didn’t

“Here, try this” they all passed the can around and for once, Y/n felt like she wasn’t the black sheep

“Hey” Harry whispered

“Hey” the boy gently grabbed her hand

“You’re always fixing me up, why don’t I help you for once?” Her big orbs softened once they met his green ones

“Yeah…okay sure” her voice as equally soft, terrified to alert the others. Harry smoothed the gel over the scar etched onto her hand

“Thank you for this” he tells her “For keeping their hope”

Y/n shrugged her shoulders “They don’t deserve it, frog face will get what’s coming to her”

The group cleared out, leaving just the two of them alone in the hallway, which made Y/n grateful because Harry lifted her hand to his lips and gently kissed it

“All better” he whispered so softly that a mouse could barely hear it

“Thanks Harry” she could feel her cheeks heat up “We’d better get going before we get caught breaking one of Umbridge’s ridiculous rules”

♡

Luckily for Y/n, she was able to convince Mcgonagall and Snape to skip her OWLS, deeming it a use of her time that she could be using to figure out a way out of there. However, Mcgonagall wouldn’t let her get off that easy. Yes she got to sleep in while everyone took their exams, but she had to regroup with Snape to asses her progress later that evening.

“Harry!” Y/n whisper shouted “What are you doing here?”

Harry cautiously looked around the classroom “I’ve been looking all over for you”

“Snape agreed to help me with something” she tells him while frantically looking outside the potion’s classroom “He’ll be here any moment so you have to-”

“I broke my nose” Y/n stops and lets out an annoyed huff

She didn’t bother asking how he broke his nose or why he didn’t just go to the hospital wing, she just pulled out her wand and flicked it at his nose. Harry winced in pain but she just grabbed his arm to drag him out the room

“We can discuss how this happened later, but right now you need to leave” Harry frowned in disappointment, the only time he’s spoken with her was at their meeting, which Umbridge had to ruin “Oh” she held the sides of his face and placed a gentle kiss on his nose “There” she takes a step back “Will you leave now?” She eagerly asked with a smile but Harry just gave her a blank stare “Harold”

“Y-yes” as if all motor functions turned on all at once “Later” there was so much he wanted to tell her, so many things happening at once, but he didn’t want her to worry about him nor come with.

Harry stumbled out of the classroom to make his way to Umbridge’s office, bumping into Snape on the way

“Potter” he spat “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

Harry quickly shook his head “I was just on my way- I’m sorry” Snape frowned when the stuttering boy sped away. He knew something was going on, and he was determined to figure it out.

Snape entered his classroom to see Y/n reading over notes, and it was almost like he finally placed the last piece of the puzzle together “Is there any reason in particular that Potters a blushing fool down the hall?” Snape asked but Y/n quickly shook her head

“No idea” she then rips her notebook open “Now you said you made different variations of the potion, as did I so we could compare our results”

Snape walks over to his shelf of potion ingredients and stops “Would you be okay being stuck here?”

She tilts her head in confusion “What do you mean professor? I think we’re close to figuring this out”

Snape let’s out a sigh “In the events that we can’t figure out a way to send you back to your time, would you be completely disappointed?”

The thought never occurred to her that she might not go home “I mean professor Mcgonagall might be upset, I don’t think she likes me” she shrugs her shoulders “I mean I have no purpose here, no one really likes me, and I can’t do much because I don’t want to interfere with future events”

“I didn’t ask if Mcgonagall would be disappointed” he snapped “I asked if you would”

It was a tough hypothetical question. Magic was far more advanced where she’s from, everything was so much easier “ I might be a little disappointed but… I don’t really have anything in the future” she answered honestly “Both of my parents are dead and I can’t be stuck third wheeling my only friend, that was the whole reason of me taking the potion” images of Harry then flashed in her mind “However, I think I could manage being stuck here if I were around the right people”

Satisfied with your answer, Snape finally turns around “You may be dismissed”

Y/n’s eyebrows scrunch in confusion “But we didn’t-”

“Every variation of the potion I’ve made of the potion results the same, failure” Y/n looks down at her notes but he cuts her off before she could speak “It was very…obvious that they wouldn’t work, none of them turned a lilac color once finished”

“But we haven’t tried it”

Snape hits the top of her head with the notes “Would you rather be stuck in the stone ages where you’ll have absolutely no one?” Y/n pouts and Snape walks over to his office “If anything was wrong, it would be the incantation like you’ve said. Now you are dismissed” Y/n gets up from her stool with a huff but Snape stops in his tracks “And L/n”

She quickly looked over to him “Yes sir?”

“Stay away from Potter”

Her shoulders slumped “I know I know, don’t mess with the future”

“No, he’ll drag you into more trouble than you could imagine”

She never thought Snape was lying, but she figured it was easier said than done. As she walked back to the Hufflepuff dormitory, she thought about how this one school year had been more adventurous than the past three years of her life.

“Harry’s in trouble!” Ron yelled and Y/n quickly turned around

“That was faster than we thought” Neville told the others as Y/n jogged over

“What do you mean Harry’s in trouble?” She cautiously looked around and Ron attempted to hide his annoyance, but failed miserably

“Harry wants to go to the ministry to save his godfather” Luna tells her “But he needs our help”

Neville nodded “It’ll be sending him to his death if he goes alone”

Ron rolls his eyes “It was their idea to ask you to come” he then stubbornly crossed his arms “You don’t have to c-”

“Of course I’ll come!” The words Snape uttered a mere hour ago completely slipped her mind as the group ran to find Harry and Hermione

“How’d you get away?” Hermione asked as they ran into the group

“Puking pastilles” Ginny smiled “It wasn’t pretty”

“I told them I was hungry, wanted some sweets. We found Y/n along the way”

But something wasn’t right…

Y/n couldn’t figure out what’s supposed to happen or not, not everything was written down in the books. This seemed like an obvious trap, but none of them seemed to care. They only knew three defensive spells, one of which only three of them could properly preform.

“Hey” Harry whispered as the rest of the group walked off “Thanks for coming”

Y/n nodded while following the others “I wouldn’t be able so sleep if I just let you go alone” a small smile tugs on her lips “And so I know what kind of potions to brew when you inevitably get hurt”

Harry let’s out a small laugh “Are you going to be okay with flying?” Y/n quickly stopped in her tracks

“Flying?”

The green eyed boy nods “That’s how we decided we’d get to the ministry” Y/n’s eyes widened as she watched the others mount the beasts

She rips her eyes away to turn to Harry “I think I’ll take the floo network”

Harry let out a short laugh “How about you ride with me?” He asked while mounting his own thestrial “That way I can tell you all about how I broke my nose” she honestly couldn’t care less about his nose right now “Do you trust me?” He asks again while holding out his hand

“Oh come on” Ron calls out “We haven’t got all day, you’re either going or you’re not”

But Harry and Y/n couldn’t even hear how irritated Ron was, all they focus on was each other. How his green eyes swam with anticipation and hers flickered with worry.

Death eaters will probably kill me before I die from falling off

Y/n slowly grabbed his hand and jumped onto the creature. Once Y/n’s arms wrapped around his waist and her head leaned onto his shoulder, Harry nodded at the others with a determined nod and quickly took off into the air.

Y/n appreciated the small talk but was absolutely terrified and wanted nothing more than touch ground.

“How did you get out of taking your OWLS?” Harry asked the girl

“I told Snape I didn’t feel good so he told me I could take my exam after hours with him” she quickly spat out “But more importantly, how are you feeling? You passed out? Umbridge slapped you? She threatened to use the cruciatis curse on you?” Of course Harry told her all about it, making sure not to leave a single detail out

♡

“This is it” Harry tells the group as they run down the isles “It has to be here somewhere”

But a single prophecy stuck out to her, causing her to stop in her tracks

Y/n L/n

Why would I have a prophecy?

The curiosity got the best of her as she slowly grabbed the orb off the shelf “Harry?” They all turned to Neville “It has your name on it”

The boy nervously grabbed the orb and let them all listen to the prophecy “Wait…” something isn’t right “Harry!” They all looked up to see a lone death eater approaching them

“Where’s Sirius?” Harry asked with much determination

“You should learn the difference between dreams” he held his wand up to his face “And reality” Lucius Malfoy? “You only saw what the dark lord wanted you to see”

This isn’t good Y/n’s heart anxiously thumped, we need to get out of here

That’s when a sickening laugh echoed throughout the room “Bellatrix Lestrange” Neville muttered

“Harry” Y/n whispered “We need to go”

“Neville Longbottom, is it? How’s mum and dad?”

They all turned to the boy “Better now that they’re about to be revenged!” Harry was quick to hold back the boy

Lucius held his hands out “Now, let’s everyone…calm down”

So stupid…what’s supposed to happen now?

Are we supposed to be here?

Did I change the events of history?

“YOU FILTHY HALFBLOOD” Y/n jumped at the sudden loudness and snapped back to reality of the situation. They were surrounded by death eaters, all with the intent to kill. Seven students against fifteen (that she counted) wanted murderers, but despite it walking into her inevitable death, Y/n trusted Harry with her life. And if Harry wanted to fight, she’d fight for him with her very last breath.

“I’ve waited fourteen years” Harry finally tells them and Y/n takes this as her cue to get into a fighting stance

Lucius sucks his teeth and gives a ‘sincere’ sigh “I know”

“I guess I can wait a little longer” Harry turns to the girl “NOW!”

“Stupify!”

They all began to let spells fly while scattering like rats “Protego!” The spell deflected and Harry was fast to grab Y/n’s hand

“We have to go” she nodded at his determination and ran hand in hand with the boy. Death eaters were everywhere, and if it weren’t for the fact that they wanted the prophecy, they’d probably throw killing curses left and right.

“Levicorpus!” Y/n then bounced the man off the ground and against a shelf “this way” Harry followed her lead and was soon met with the others

“What now?” Neville asked while death eaters closed in on them

“REDUCTO!” The sudden explosion blew a big gust of wind towards them and Y/n turned to the group “I didn’t think that one all the way through” shelves began collapsing whilst prophecies shattered

“Quick!” Harry yelled “Towards the door” the boy yanked Y/n along as they truly ran from death. Being crushed to death didn’t cross Y/n’s mind at all, but it would probably be less painful than being captured.

The group barged through the door and one by one fell to what they believed was their death. Harry pulled Y/n close and wrapped his arms around her, using himself as a safety net. Y/n buried her head into his chest to hide from the horrors of their inevitable death.

But they stopped.

There was no sudden thud, there was no sound of agonizing screaming, the only thing that reminded her that they were alive was the fact that she could feel Harry’s heart beat out of his chest.

Then they hit the ground with a small thud. Y/n rips her eyes open and looks up at the boy “I almost feel as if I should yell at you for telling me I wouldn’t fall to my death”

Harry let out a small chuckle “But you didn’t”

The thought of death eaters being near didn’t bother either of them as they stared into each others eyes “The boy who lived was willing to die to keep me alive” she tilted her head to the left and smiled “I promise the fate of the entire wizarding world is much more important than me”

Harry shook his head “I told you I’d never let you fall to your death and you put your trust in me”

If Y/n could lay on top of Harry all night and just talk to him, she would, but she finally snapped back to reality and climbed off of him

“Well it’s not called the department of mystery’s for no reason” Ron commented while Harry spun around

“Do you hear that?”

Hermione was quick to shake her head “Hear what?”

“It sounds like voices”

She gave the boy a weird look “There’s no voices Harry”

But she was wrong “I can hear them too Harry” Y/n reassured while Luna nodded

“Everyone get behind me!” But it was too late, everyone except Harry was swept up by a death eater and taken hostage

“No one has to die Potter” Lucius told the boy as he jabbed his wand into Y/n’s neck “Just hand over the prophecy and we’ll let everyone go”

So I don’t get crushed to death, fall to my death, I just die by the hands of a Malfoy… maybe I should’ve befriended Draco after all

If the fate of the future lies in my hands, we’re all so screwed, I can’t recall any of these events in any history book

Just then, she was whisked away by an auroa

“Thank Merlin you’re here” she told the woman with purple hair

“Don’t thank us yet” she then zapped the wizard that dared attack them “You need to get to safety”

Y/n nodded

I need to get Harry and I to safety

Y/n ran around the room, watching as aurors and death eaters fight across the room

“Protego” she had no business fighting someone who wanted her dead, so she figured as long as she was able to get to Harry unscathed she could just use offense spells

“Where do ya think you’re goin?”

Barty crouch Jr? Y/n shook her head as the manic man stood before her “Don’t know who you are nor care, Aguamenti!” She sprayed a jet of water at the man, causing him to wipe his face in confusion “Alarte Ascendare!” The man flew into the air and she took this chance to make a run for it

“Avada Kedavra!” Y/n stopped in her tracks and her eyes widened as Sirius was struck by the killing curse oh Harry…

Y/n quickly ran over to Harry and wrapped her arms around the grieving boy. “Harry” she held onto the boy as he screamed “Harry come on we have to-” the boy pushed away from her and chased after the manic woman “HARRY!” She goes to chase after him but someone else holds her back

“I HAVE TO GO” she yelled as she struggled to escape their grasp

“We have to get you to safety” Lupin informed her, Y/n whips around with worry covering her face

“What about Harry?” She asked with teary eyes “He’ll die by himself out there”

“He’s not by himself” he comforted “Now we must hurry”

Y/n knew from that moment forward, she’d be intertwined in this mess and that there was only one way out. She knew she wouldn’t be able to go home without ending this once and for all, she would have to fight in the wizard war to protect her future.

[luvly-writer]

“XOXO”

Ch. 3 Part-Time lovers, full time problem

—•—

Tim Drake x reader

Fic + social media Au

warnings:

taglist: @w31rdg1rl @mxtokko @loonymoonystuff @grandstrangerphantom

Author’s note: One thing i love about Christmas is all the free time i have to write new stuff after finals 🤭 (she said as she still has a few finals to finish 😍). HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS CHAPTER!

For those wondering about “BOCM” i am having such a hard time finishing it. When my phone got changed the notes i had on that story got deleted and so i had to improvise a little cause i forgot its ending and it’s so frustrating cause i always want to give you guys quality content. I am scratching my head trying to finish it so i’ll continue this one and update slowly so that i can finish it correctly. Love you all and thank you for your patience.

Masterlist:

“Absolutely insufferable, she is,” said Tim to himself as he ran his hand through his hair. He had been begrudgingly cleaning his apartment. He was tempted to leave it dirty just to take a piss at Yn but he was sure that wouldn’t look good for his reputation so here he was. He would have hired someone to do it for him but recalling all the things he had regarding his alter ego, he knew he would have been fucked and he really couldn’t risk someone else knowing.

Finally, he finished ensuring everything looked great and sat back on his couch with his laptop. "There must be something about her that I can find. I refuse to be outdone and unprepared for this," he said, searching for any leverage he could hold over Y/n's head to bargain for his secret to remain so. Thirty minutes later he had found absolutely nothing. Unlike her two best friends, Clara Dupont and Satine Abbott, who were known to be found in scandal after scandal every week, Y/n had a clean slate. Satine was constantly partying during some fashion week or getting caught sleeping around with some governor's son or a married businessman. Clara has been known to pay off people to do her bidding, caught buying off police, lawyers, teachers, professors, judges and so, to run the city however she pleased. Yet, Y/n had nothing against her. Every article he found was about a charity she had worked on, a program she had opened, or an award she was given; and were all of them legit. She seemed like the angel in their group, but Tim knew better than to trust the all-too-shiny act. He has some recollection of them during high school though; he was a grade above them. They were known for their tight and exclusive group of three. He remembers how girls would do anything to become one of them. If it meant they had to step on someone else to appease one of the three, they would have done so. After all, having them as a connection moved mountains. Tim quickly grew frustrated. No psycho exes, no drug addiction, no jail time, no one dead, no bribes, nothing that could have stained the Vanderbilt name.

Throwing his head back, he heard his phone ring. Y/n was here. He sets his laptop on the coffee table and walks to the door, opening it and revealing a dazzling young woman in an outfit he thought someone as flashy as she never would wear. White Converse, comfortable mom jeans, a laid-back button-up up, and a cozy long brown coat. Her hair was loose and her face fresh with little makeup. Even after spending hours looking at pictures of her during his search, she still managed to take his breath away every time he was in her presence.

"I know I'm mesmerizing, but can you please let me inside? I'm freezing here," she said with her nose a little red.

He rolls his eyes with a laugh and lets her in. "I was gonna go more for repulsive but if that helps you sleep at night."

"Says the one that looks like sewer trampled rat" she quips back.

Tim couldn't help the snort that came out of him. She was an endless supply of good comebacks. He wonders how an interaction between his brothers and her would go, maybe he finally found someone to go head-to-head with Damian. She takes her coat off and lays it on the couch, together with her Burberry bag. He takes notice that her coat is also Burberry and decides to tease her a little. "And here I thought you were actually looking a little humble, but the coat and the bag ruin the look," he says as he scrunches his nose. He feels laughter bubbling as he catches the deadpan she gives him. "Whose less humble, me for wearing it and not saying a single thing or you for identifying it rather quickly and feeling the need to point it out?" she asks as she places a hand on her hip smirking at him.

"Touche"

She nods satisfied at his response and sits on the couch in front of him. "Ok. First order of business-"

"First order of business is giving me the reason as to why you are doing this." Tim interrupts her. She sighs and looks up, "God give me strength to not strangle him" she whispers and Tim tries to hold back a smirk.

"I wAS going to get to that before you so rudely interrupted me. The first order of business is giving you the context I am sure you are dying to hear." she pauses to look at him and he gestures for her to continue. He sees her look down and seem almost embarrassed. He can tell she is hesitating so he tries his best guess, "Are you trying to make someone jealous?"

"No, it's not that, it..." She takes a deep breath and spills it out. "My parents want me to marry a man who is very much too much older than me with the idea that it will help solidify the family lineage which I think is absurd because my sisters are right there AND THEY ARE MARRIED already to someone they love. But because Aurora and Charlisse keep on fighting to become the next CEO, my parents think it is only right to marry ME off to a very wrinkly and truly disturbing man who i am sure 20 years older than me because someone should continue the line whilst the other two are focused on their careers and making something out of their lives. SO, I needed to find a boyfriend who would be suitable for their standards whilst Aurora and Charlisse sort it out so that when they do, the attention and pressure of continuing the line will go back to them and not me." Y/n finishes breathing out. Tim was taken aback. Not only the normally composed girl he was used to seeing, spoke 7 words per second, but he was blown away by the information she had just given him.

"I need...a drink? Do you want one?" he said standing up and heading to the kitchen. No wonder she said this might take a while.

"Yes please" she said with a tense smile. "do you have wine?"

Tim made a sound of confirmation as he poured some scotch. He wasn't much of a drinker, but years of being part of the business world made him earn some appreciation for the drink. Especially on times like these. He poured some wine for her in a glass and walked back with both drinks. He gave her the glass and sat down. "Isn't that a little medieval?"

"Old money has habits that are tough to kill, unfortunately" she mutters dejectedly to her glass. "So, Timothy, any questions?"

"A few actually"

"Go ahead" she sad as she leaned back and got comfortable.

"Whose the old man?"

"Mr. Morris."

"You are fucking with me!" Tim reacted horrified, making Y/n laugh. If he hadn't been so shocked he would have delighted in her laughter but atlas, the situation did not give him the flexibility to do so. "Y/n say you are lying! That man is too old"

"I know, next question."

"Why me?"

"You are a good candidate and a lucky coincidence. I was going to ask Satine and Clara to help me but, that frankly would have ended in a disaster. I believe that as long as a plan stays between the parties involved who have something to lose, it will be successful. Satine would have chosen some random man who she's probably been involved with and Clara knows everything about everyone in the city-"

"Everything?"

"Except this of course, as I was saying she probably would have created a fake identity, assigned it to someone then, bribed them into playing the part."

"Much like you did?"

"I blackmailed you, not bribed you, get it right. Continuing, it was rather easy to choose you. You are Bruce Wayne's son, and even without that, you come from high society from your biological family, so you know the social cues and the ways of the people I am constantly surrounded by. You have proven to be quite ingenious as well as a good businessman. Knowing your "other me" proves you might as well be honorable too and what hero is not dammed with a savior complex can resist a damsel in distress? It is in your nature to want to influence things to be okay. My parents are friendly with Bruce therefore making things more appealing for the situation. I had the perfect leverage, the perfect candidate, and now I just need the perfect situation. So, lucky me when you bumped into me"

"You mean when you bumped into me?" he asked and she glared at him. "Careful, pretty boy," she said, and the way she said it caused chills to go down his spine.

"Any more questions, perhaps about my clean histoy and my best friend's not so clean image?"

Tim looked at her and she gestured to his laptop.

"What do you have to hide?" ha asked leaning foward.

"Wouldn't you like to know? Next question." she smiled as she also leaned forward in her seat. "What's our story?" he asked looking down at her lips, a little bit stained by the wine she had been drinking. Tempting

"Well, that's why I'm here huh, detective?" That nickname shouldn't have had the effect it did on him, but God, he wanted to hear those words from her again. "Show me why Red Robin is the world's greatest mind, second to Batman's only," she said leaning back and taking a sip of her glass once again.

"World's greatest detective, not mind, and some would say I have surpassed Batman, get it right," he said as he repeated her words in the end. "We need cero plotholes, so much so that it has to be so good that not even my family can find them. We are after all a family of detectives"

"Amazing" she said, sitting up straight, her entire focus solely on him.

"We both went to GA, so that's a starting point, we may not even have to lie. We met at Gotham Academy a few years back, you crushed on me for some time seeing as I was a year above you, and then forgot about me when I dropped out. Years later, we bump into each other on the street, and sparks fly or whatever the fuck will make the crowd fall in love with us, and then we start from there. Depending on how desperate are our odds, we will explain our timeline, but we have to agree on it before going public. How did you react when your parents told you the news?

"It waaaass..messy. A lot of screaming and crying"

"Then you will tell your parents of how heartbroken you were when they told you because you finally get the chance to be with your one true love and"

"Wait wait wait wait! Why do I have to be the lovesick puppy in this and you the prince charming" she said narrowing her eyes at him.

"Whose the one in dire need of escaping the situation?"

"Who's identity is in danger?"

"Who will be recreating the handmaid's tale?"

"You bitch!" She gasped at his insinuation

"Exactly so, puppy love for you it is. As I was saying, you finally got the chance to be with the love of your life, and the moment you are prepared to tell them, they spring this news onto you. So how dare they. We can coordinate public appearances, photos, family dinners, and posts so that everything will flow perfectly. Finally, once, you are liberated, we coordinate and stage a breakup and you hand me all the information you have on me cause I know you made copies of everything and I will eliminate all. of. it. We will just be another famous couple that got together and broke up and moved on." Tim was satisfied with his work. Y/n looked absolutely amazed by him.

"Wow...and you came up with all of that, that fast?" she said full of wonder. Tim felt a tug in his heart due to her reaction. It had been a long time since he had managed to make someone truly amazed by him in a really long time. He had been so used to being surrounded by skilled detectives, assassins, meta-humans, and aliens, that he forgot how great it felt to simply just be and have someone admire you for it. The little praise-seeking self in the back of his mind was thriving on her admiration. "Yes."

"Fuck...I think I couldn't have ever picked a better partner for this if I tried. Your reputation does you justice, Timothy, you are brilliant." she smiled. Y/n felt relieved. She was soon going to be free from her family's pressure. Another scheme has gone perfectly. She cleared her throat and masked her face once again. "We have to make a contract, establish some ground rules."

"By all means," said Tim. "I am serious. First rule, I get all evidence of my alter ego destroyed once it's over. I am doing this only if that is assured."

"Deal. Second rule, no one, absolutely NO ONE, knows except for the two of us." she said and he nodded, "I agree"

"Third rule, Kissing only happens if the situation requires it," she said. He hadn't noticed she had opened a doc in his laptop and was writing this entire thing down. He hummed in agreeance, too busy admiring her....admiring her...WOOP WOOP! EARTH TO TIM! This is a fake relationship and you are already getting fond of her?!?!??! WAKE UP

"Fourth rule, no feelings. This is strictly professional" he snapped, making her look at him strangely. "I think that was already implied but sure, if you want it written, I'll add it" and turned to his laptop again.

He felt a pit in his stomach. This was professional and besides, he just found her attractive, he can anyone attractive and it doesn't mean anything. Plus she is kind of an asshole. She is blackmailing him into a fake relationship...to save herself from being sold like cattle and forced to marry a creepy man which if he thinks of it maybe it is the best way she saw fit. AND AND she was very rude to him and has quite the attitude..although it is so attractive how she goes head to head with him. Tim was sweating' bullets.

"And done. I added a few things such as we have to have some sort of PDA, and how we might coordinate things. You know, some silly stuff that most people think isn't important but might end up being so. Do you have a printer?" She asked to which he nodded and gestured to his office. She sent the paper to print and went to look for it. Tim took a deep sigh, he just needed to calm down. He just found her attractive and interesting like a new case that needed to be cracked.

"Perfect, I printed two contracts; one for you and one for me. I also took one of your blue pens and signed on both papers, here, sign here and here." After it was done, she had noticed that a few hours had passed. "I should get going. I promised Satine and Clara that I would have dinner with them if they kept the paparazzi off me so that I could get here unbothered and we didn't have any issues." She said as she went for her coat and her purse. "Have a nice night, Timothy"

"Tim"

"Huh?"

"My friends and family call me Tim," he said looking at her.

She smiled softly, "Okay...Timmy, have a good night and get some rest." His heart melted at the fact that she took his nickname and altered it to make it hers. She heard her driver arrive outside and walked towards the door, Tim not so far behind. He noticed she faltered her step a little and looked at him hesitating. "Be....be careful tonight" she said but it was more like a whisper.

Tim nodded, "Thank you, enjoy dinner and get home safe," he told her as she went outside and went to her car. He stayed there until she got in the car and it began moving.

As she left, Y/n unfolded the contract from her purse and read the last rule...no feelings...

"you are going to be trouble.." she said fighting off a tiny smile and thinking of the handsome boy with the sharp quips, magnificent brain, and gorgeous blue eyes.

"What was that, miss Vanderbilt?" asked Donnie, her driver.

"Oh, it's nothing, Don. We are headed to L'amico, I'm meeting the girls for dinner," she said sweetly and her driver nodded.

Author's note: What do you think of their dynamic? Liking it so far? Feel free to give me any feedback you'd like.

[thatguywhodoesstuff]

Some Unsorted Thoughts Regarding Murder Drones Episode 7 & Episode 8

Hopping back online for a moment to post a bunch of unsorted thoughts & mini-theories about the upcoming episodes:

Nori and Yeva are well and truly dead, and didn’t fake their deaths like I’ve seen others theorize. Despite this, I can picture them directly being involved with the plot via some convoluted Absolute Solver related shenanigans.

Personally, I like to think all Drones can save, edit, & transfer copies of their memories in a manner akin to saving files onto a flash drive to transfer over to another computer to be modified. This isn’t all that far fetched given how V and N’s memories were altered and how Uzi managed to help recover them.

Going off of the above points and the fact that each episode lampoons a different horror genre, I feel that we are due a good ol’ fashioned psychological thriller. I can easily imagine the under depths of the labs being loaded with all sorts of Eldritch nonsense (like those decidedly organic hands that drag off N during the trailer) that will undoubtedly push everyone to their breaking point before episode 8 even happens.

I’ve always had the long-standing theory/belief that Khan actually knows more than he lets on. I know there isn’t a lot to back this up, but it’s just something I always thought would make sense given everything he’s managed to live through.

I am of the mind that Nori was not the one to cause the core collapse that wiped out the humans on Copper-9. If anything, I think it would be neat if the core collapse was a complete accident that actually prevented/delayed the Absolute Solver from destroying Copper-9, with the event simply happening to coincide with whatever hell Nori was undoubtedly raising at the time.

I’ve seen a number of people point out how Uzi seems to be in control of herself when she grips N’s hand, and while a number of people seem to interpret this as her being mad at him for keeping secrets, I’m not convinced that’s the case. My crackpot theory is that Uzi is going to learn some hard facts about her mother and she is not going to handle them well and, with everything else going on, needs N now more than ever for emotional support, probably at the expense of his own mental well-being.

The cathedral under Cabin Fever labs was either built by Drones already under the thrall of the AS or Drones like Alice who got trapped in the facility and went insane from the experience.

As for what purpose the cathedral actually serves, I feel it could’ve an actual place of worship for the Absolute Solver, just as easily as it could be a conduit to broaden the area of influence of the malevolent “program”. Then again, it could just as easily serve as both, sort of like a giant transmitter/receiver with a decidedly gothic style to it for added flair.

There is this weird feeling in the back of my head that we won’t get a proper confrontation between the gang and Doll and, in true subversive horror fashion, something will happen to her that takes her out of the plot, at least for the rest of the season.

Part of me wonders if the reason Tessa acted so strange during episode 6 is rooted in the trauma from CYN’s massacre. After witnessing that and implicitly having been seriously injured, it wouldn’t surprise me if Tessa is poorly coping with the situation at hand. I also can’t help but wonder if she’s got a touch of robophobia directed towards Solver infected Drones.

Out of everyone, I feel that N is the least likely to perma-die in the upcoming episodes. In pretty much every horror series I’ve ever watched the nice one (when they aren’t one of the first people to die) typically lives the longest so that the narrative can torment them, regardless of whether or not they eventually earn their happily ever after. I doubt that N is any different, and I fear that his suffering has yet to begin in earnest.

Doll also doesn’t seem likely to die just yet (but given how Liam doesn’t seem all that shy about killing off major characters when needed…), and I have a feeling that if given the chance she could become a valuable ally, even if the alliance itself would be pretty unstable at best.

Of the four, Tessa and Uzi have the highest number of death flags waving around them. One has to wonder which is worse, losing an old friend who didn’t dehumanize your every action, that you just recently remembered/reunited with or losing the first friend/love you have had in a long time, who has also helped you recognize your own self worth. Either way, N is going to be crushed by the loss, especially given the likelihood of it being at his own hands.

If Tessa dies, I imagine her final moments will involve her bemoaning how N has doomed everyone… only to impart words of encouragement to him and assure him that his loving nature isn’t a weakness and may be instrumental later down the line.

If Uzi dies (I wouldn’t put it past Liam to pull this), it will be in an intense heat of the moment situation that won’t immediately register to her or N. I also think that if Uzi does die, it will only happen in a physical sense. My logic being that since Uzi became N and V’s new Administrator in episode 5, she could continue existing as a voice inside N’s head (sort of like Zane and Pixel from Ninjago), which could also result in N developing Solver powers. Alternatively, Uzi just straight up dies and N has to live with the pain of losing two of his closest friends and his first and second loves… Not to mention the fact a dead Uzi gives the Absolute Solver the perfect ammunition to use against N in the future.

TLDR: That trailer gave me a lot of thoughts and with everything going on in real life, I haven’t been able to put them into text until now. Thank you for taking the time to read the inane ravings of a burnt out college student/part time shut-in. Likes and Reblogs are greatly appreciated…

…I really hope Uzi and N kiss in the season finale.