#i could learn with him but it's just gonna be. bittersweet the whole time

[whateverisbeautiful]

♥️Reveling in Richonne - TOWL

#44: The Family Gifts (1.05)

I love that they have this scene take place in a souvenir shop. 😊 Rick already turns the whole world into a gift shop when it comes to finding things to gift to Michonne so it’s only fitting that he’d find the perfect thing to get her in this place.

But what's extra special is now Rick's history of getting Michonne gifts has expanded to thinking about gifts for the son she gave him too - with RJ being the ultimate gift for them both. And seeing these two converse as parents in this scene was super heartwarming 🥰...

The scene starts with Rick knocking on the shop's door and then they open it and have the cutest little look exchange before entering the shop. It’s so subtle but I love it. 😊 They’re in such a good, peaceful, lighthearted mood and I always love those moments where it’s so clear that on top of being husband and wife, Rick and Michonne really are best friends. And yes I got all that just from a quick playful look. 😋

They enter and when Michonne walks pass those touristy license plates she taps them with her stick and keeps walking. I love that when she hits the rack Rick immediately looks over at her wondering what that’s about. He looks like if the license plates did something to her then he's gonna have beef with them too lol.

gif cred: @nat111love

Michonne says, “Never did like those” and I love that Rick immediately knows why as he says, “No 'Michonnes,' huh?” Michonne says, “Not even once” and I like that in TOWL we’re even just getting these tiny insights into the characters from the world before.

I know so many with unique names could relate to this license plate moment. And 'Michonne' really is such a unique and pretty name and uncommon as Okafor noted. 'Michonne' is also Rick’s favorite word. I’m convinced. 😌 And ever since this scene, my headcanon is that Rick, RJ, and Judith definitely work together to create some type of 'Michonne' license plate and gift it to her. 

gif cred: @nerd4music

As Rick continues to look at the license plates he stops and sees one that says 'Junior.' And y’all, the second I saw the junior license plate my heart was already bursting knowing exactly where this was going.

I love that they make it a point to show that there are Rick and even Richard license plates available too but the one that catches his eye is 'Junior.' It just shows how Rick is already so proud that his son is his Junior. 🥲

And then my heart just does flips and leaps hearing Rick say RJ’s name for the first time as he so sweetly asks Michonne, “Is this a terrible gift to bring to RJ?” Y'all, I'm smiling and crying at the same time. 🫠 Like how precious is this. 😭

You just know on this road trip home Rick and Michonne have been talking a lot about their kids and I love that Rick is thinking about his son and wants to bring him a gift. Especially because, as I mentioned in an episode 4 breakdown, they have a book they're bringing to Judith so I'm sure Rick wants to make sure they have a gift for RJ too.

I knew after episode 4 we were going to be seeing Healthy & Alive Rick all through episode 5 and that was so clear in this scene. Cuz this is the real Rick right here. Being a whole father. Being his affectionate gift-giving self. I love to see it. 😌

gif cred: @kris-lulu

There’s also something so sweet about him wondering if it would be a 'bad' gift. It’s bittersweet because it’s a reminder that Rick hasn’t had a chance to know his son or what he'd like but it’s great knowing he soon will have the chance to learn it all. 

Michonne smiles and then informs Rick that “No one has ever once called him Junior.” I love that when so many of us heard that we immediately decided that this means Rick will be the only one to call RJ 'Junior' and it’ll be their father/son thing. 👌🏽

gif cred: @krislulu

Rick says, “Ah okay” and puts the license plate back, and then Michonne smiles at him clearly finding him so cute in this moment and knowing the father of her child is the best man on earth.

And then she has the warmest kindest tone as she tells Rick, “You’re bringing yourself back. That’s more than enough.” I love this so much. 😭

gif cred: @kris-lulu

It's so touching that Michonne wants Rick to know he’s the gift. The gift that’s more than enough too. 🥹 Like truly their family is going to be so much more whole with his return.

The wording of 'bringing yourself back' also always makes me think of how he’s literally coming back but also he’s been acting like himself again, so it’s like Rick is bringing his true self back rather than burying it. And that’s also more than enough.

I love that Michonne is always reminding Rick of how cherished he is. And it’s also this reminder that him being with them is the best thing he can do. Just like when she said I only feel safe with you, Rick is again getting this confirmation that his presence is as needed and valued as his protection. 👌🏽

Rick says, “The Brave Man, huh?” and I like how this shows that Rick has been thinking a lot about who he is to his kids.

This got me thinking about how when Rick decided to die he had to surrender the idea of ever seeing his wife and daughter again. He accepted that all he’d ever have is the fading memories and just the honor of having got to love and protect them at all, even if for far briefer a time than he’d hoped. So now, it has to be pretty surreal for him to know he really will be back with them and with the son he wanted but didn't know he had.

gif cred: @nat111love

And if he’s at all worried if he’ll live up to his kids' expectations of him being The Brave Man, Michonne so wonderfully quells those doubts when she again so sweetly and sincerely says, “You are. More than ever.” 🥹🥹🥹

I know I’ve said it 1000 times but I adore the way Michonne believes in and uplifts Rick and this line right here might be my favorite example of that.

gif cred: @nat111love

I love how Michonne can always sense Rick's subtext and underlying feelings and then address them in the perfect way. Because she can sense that Rick is nervous about meeting his son for the first time and maybe worried about how it’ll go just showing up in his life after all these years. But Michonne saying this is reminding Rick that by choosing to come home, especially when he had been so convinced prior that he couldn’t and shouldn’t, is a brave thing and very commendable and he really is the great man his kids think he is.

It’s so precious too that Rick gets to see that it’s not just his kids but his wife who truly views him as The Brave Man. Like even tho Rick said last ep that he’s not the brave man, Michonne wants him to know their babies got it right with that title. 💯

And by pushing through all the fear that was keeping him chained to the CRM, Michonne thinks he’s the bravest he’s ever been for doing that. 🥹 I appreciate how Michonne and Rick find so many ways to say 'I love you' even without saying the three words directly. And this was 100% that. They really breathe life into each other with every encouraging word and gesture.

gif cred: @nat111love

As Michonne turns around we get even more adorableness as Rick spots a name bracelet and thinks what he thinks when he sees most any item, “this could be turned into a gift for Michonne.”

gif cred: @coolpartytimefan

So being cute and sneaky trying to not get caught with the jewelry since he wants to surprise her with it later, he grabs the 'Michelle' bracelet and breaks it so that it becomes an M bracelet.

gif cred: @nat111love

Can my extra self break down all the reasons I adore this real quick? 😋

One; I absolutely love that because Rick notes every detail of Michonne he knows she’s missing her signature M necklace and so, as he’s always been so good at doing, he finds a way to essentially replace the one she lost.

Two; I love that Rick said if this place doesn’t have ‘michonne’ gifts he’ll find a way to make one.

Three; Something about him making the M bracelet on his prosthetic felt symbolic to me. He literally lost that hand because he’d choose being with Michonne over his own limbs. And now after doing everything he could to be with her, he has her and is still finding ways to give her every good thing he can.

Four; if I'm not mistaken, I believe it was said by Danai that the initial M necklace was from Michonne's mom and so I love that Michonne’s two M pieces of jewelry came from two of the people that love her most. 🥲

Five; After all those years of Michonne wearing that wedding ring with her necklace, I love that her husband is now with her and getting her new jewelry…and he’ll also be giving her some even more meaningful jewelry by the end of the ep. Amen. 😏

Six; It’s just so romantic and thoughtful. It’s so Rick to do this. And I love all these heartfelt gestures that add to Richonne’s epic love story. 

gif cred: @coolpartytimefan

Rick pockets the bracelet, waiting for the right moment to gift his wife. Michonne then says, “He might be ready for this” as Rick turns around and sees Michonne holding a hatchet, similar to one of Rick's signature weapons in TWD. I adore that she saw that weapon and was like this would be a good fitting gift for Rick’s mini-me. 😋

And then something I always appreciate so much is hearing Rick ask, “Is that who he is?” I think it’s so sweet and such a sign of what a good dad Rick is. Of course, he’d be flattered if his son followed in his footsteps but the question shows that he also wants to know who RJ is regardless of him. You just know he’s prepared to love RJ whether he’s like him or not and I just love that he wants to know all about what RJ is like. 

And then it’s great that Michonne gets to tell him just how much she meant it when she said their kids are some Richonne kids when she says, “Judith has a sword. They’re us.” Hearing her say their kids are her and Rick never fails to elate me. 🥰 It’s such a true statement.

I love imagining that now that they’ve reunited Rick has got to see firsthand that Judith doesn’t only have a sword, she’s a whole pro with the sword just like her mom. 😌

I love how proud Michonne is of her kids. She raised them to be survivors while still giving them a childhood. And seeing Rick and Michonne talk as RJ and Judith’s parents in this scene was everything. The best mom and dad. 💛

But they’re also the best husband and wife and I love how that got to take center stage in TOWL.

So after this lovely parents moment, Rick is back to reminding us why he’s Husband of the Year ever year when he spots the absolute perfect minty fresh gift to give his wife.

And y’all, I gotta do a part two because this next part has Rick saying one of my favorite things of all time and it needs its own post. 😇

But as for this moment, Rick and Michonne are such a gift to each other. And their kids are such a gift to them. And this scene is such a gift to me. 🥰 And honey, because we’re spoiled rotten with this miniseries, this gift of a scene just keeps on giving with what comes next. 👌🏽😌

[nolita-fairytale]

make my heart surrender | carmen berzatto x fem!reader | chapter seven: tuesday, again

pairing: carmen berzatto x fem!reader

warnings: lots of swearing, tooth-rotting fluff, use of she/her pronouns, friends to lovers, references to sex, no use of y/n, second person pov, happy ending

word count: 3.8k

summary: you left your heart in chicago, so the only logical conclusion you've come to, is that you have to go back.

a/n: ok this author's note may be a long one. WOW. can i just say 'wow' holy shit?! i wrote this story in a week because inspiration struck and i couldn't get these characters, or this story, out of my freaking head. i am beyond grateful to any and all that read, liked, reblogged, or commented. thank you for being cheerleaders for me, carmy, and this story. i am truly so in love with these characters it hurts, so thank you for encouraging me to continue this love affair.

that being said, i am not done with these two at all. i have a few companion pieces i'm working on right now: a playlist, a headcanon, and maybe even a oneshot (or a few but who's counting)? thank you again for reading. please enjoy.

read: part six | masterlist

Tuesday, again. 

It’s Tuesday again and your time in Chicago has come to an end. Carmy had stayed the night with you at your airbnb. But morning came, and he left early to start his morning at the restaurant. Truthfully, he just hadn’t wanted to watch you pack – couldn’t get out of there fast enough when you’d opened your suitcase. You noticed how much it bothered him, letting him know that you’d stop by the restaurant before heading to the airport. 

And that was that. You’d gone your separate ways before, and you’d go your separate ways again – just for a little bit. And it wouldn't be like last the last time. It’s bittersweet – leaving today – but you keep reminding yourself of the conversation you’d had yesterday about the future of your relationship. You wanted to be with him, and Carmy wanted to be with you. The rest, you’d figure out as you go.

Your boyfriend.

It felt strange – even if he’d basically already been your unofficial platonic boyfriend back in New York. Adding a title to it was a whole other ball game. 

New. 

Never did you think, as you were preparing for this trip, that you’d return back home with Carmy as yours. You thought maybe you’d talk about what happened -- smooth things over -- but that would be that, and you’d go back to being friends. After this week, you were starting to believe you were never supposed to be just friends. 

You had a feeling none of your friends would be surprised when you shared the news – not in the least. 

You finish packing up your things, double checking that you haven’t left anything behind before heading to the restaurant. It’s about thirty minutes to lunch service, and since they’re not open just yet, you enter through the back door one last time for what feels like could be a while. 

And there it is again: that bittersweet feeling. 

“Chef!” Tina says, her eyes lighting up as she sees you. “You headin’ out today?”

“Hey, T,” you reply. “Yeah, I’m heading to the airport after this. Just wanted to stop by before I go.”

“Well you better come back soon,” she says almost as if it’s a threat, and you laugh in response. 

“Of course.”

“There she is!” Marcus hollers across the kitchen, as soon as he spots you. “Damn. What am I gonna do with you?”

��Uh… keep doin’ what you’re doing and kill it?” you reply, eliciting a proud smile from him. 

“Seriously. This last week… I’ve learned so much from you. Thank you,” he says, his gratitude evident in his voice. 

“No, thank you, Marcus,” you answer, genuinely. “I haven’t felt this inspired in… well a while. I want to be kept up on all your new flavor pairings. Just remember. I’m only a text away.”

“Yes, chef,” he replies, moving in to give you a hug. 

He wraps his arms around you and you hug him back. Boy, is it bittersweet. How, in one week, have you gotten so attached?

“Hey! I want in!” another voice chimes in, as you and Marcus’ hug comes to an end. 

“Syd!”

You smile, greeting Sydney with a hug – a hello goodbye kind of hug.

“You better come visit me in New York,” you insist. You’re not sure how long you’ll be there, but you say it anyways, just in case it’s a while. 

You watch as Sydney and Marcus exchange glaces. 

“What?”

“Nothin’, chef,” Marcus answers, almost too quickly. 

Sydney shrugs, “I don’t know. Just uh, wondering how long you’ll be there for.” She’s prodding and she knows it. You decide not to ask what she means by it.

“Well, if it ends up being longer… than I expect, you better come up,” you clarify. 

“Okay, yes. I definitely will,” Sydney agrees with a nod, before pulling you in for one more hug. 

“Hey, cousin said you’re headin’ out so Ebra’s made you a sandwich for the trip, babe. We’ll see ya around soon,” Richie greets, interrupting your moment with Sydney and Marcus. 

Richie, whose affection seems to catch you off guard, slings an arm around you, handing you the sandwich that Ebraheim has so kindly wrapped up for you. 

“Cousin!” Richie shouts, in search of Carmy. 

“Jesus Christ, it’s ten in the morning. Are we already starting the yelling this early or-?” Carmy calls back to him. He bursts through the doors from where he’s been fixing something up in the front of house dining area. He stops as soon as he sees you. 

“Hey.”

“Hey yourself,” you reply, taking in the image of his unruly curls, white t-shirt, and blue apron you've gotten so used to over the last few days.

It’s almost as if everyone else but Richie tries to make themselves as busy as possible – to give you two a chance to say goodbye. You can hear Marcus and Sydney making themselves scarce as Angel and Manny turn the sink water back on. 

“I just uh-, wanted to stop by before heading to the airport,” you say, unsure of just how much everyone else knows about you and Carmy’s current relationship. “Say goodbye to everyone.”

It’s clear that they know something’s up, but you still have your reservations about kissing him in front of everyone. 

“What do you mean?" Richie asks, glaring at Carmy. "This asshat’s not takin’ you to the airport?”

Richies practically shouting for the entire kitchen to hear, causing you and Carmy both to take a breath. You exchange a ‘here we go again’ look as Richie continues on.

“What kind of-, I swear to god, cousin-.”

“Richie!” you hear Tina snap, looking up from her prep station. “Shut the fuck up and give them a minute, you old bitch.”

Richie throws his hands up, before bowing out of the conversation, leaving just you and Carmy in the middle of the walkway. You can hear Richie and Tina bickering in hushed tones over by the stove, earning a quiet laugh from you. 

Your heart aches in the best way as you commit this moment to memory.

God, you're going to miss this. 

“You wanna..?” Carmy asks, nodding his head in the direction of the back door. 

You nod in agreement, letting him lead you back out to the alley. 

And now it’s really just the two of you, and while it’s not the most romantic of backgrounds, you’re going to work with what you’ve got. Carmy seems nervous as he fidgets with the ties of his apron. 

“You uh, you sure you don’t want me to take you to the airport?” Carmy asks hesitantly, thinking back to Richie’s earlier comment. 

“Yeah, I’m sure,” you answer with confidence. “Besides, I’d never want to take you away from these guys. You open in a few anyway.”

He smiles, accepting your answer. It’s something he loves about you: that you get it. You understand that sometimes the food’s gotta come first. 

You didn’t know why it felt so weird – so challenging, awkward, strange – to say goodbye to him. Because it wasn’t really a goodbye. And it also was and you’re not sure if you have a name for this feeling yet. 

“Carm?”

“Yeah?”

Instead of answering with words, you just reach over, grabbing that beautiful head of hair of his, and you kiss him. He tastes of the cigarette he smoked on his walk to The Bear and the Altoid mint he had later in his office in anticipation of your arrival. You want to memorize each and every part of this: the way he smells, the way he tastes, the way his hands feel on you. He pulls you in, wrapping his arms around you as you continue your passionate make out – your passionate goodbye kiss – in the alleyway behind the restaurant. 

Your kisses begin to slow down, and before you know it, you’re pulling away from him. 

“Text me when you land, okay?” he asks, a hopeful look in his eyes. 

You nod, “Yes. Yeah. I will.”

And you want to turn to go, but you can’t yet, so you add, “Thanks for inviting me out here.”

He laughs dryly, leaving one more kiss on your lips for the road.

“Thanks for coming to see me. I’ll see you soon.”

A few Tuesdays later

It takes exactly five minutes of being back in New York to realize that Chicago is where you need to be. You don’t regret asking for time to think, but you almost felt silly to worry that you wouldn’t come to this conclusion. You have to go back: to the restaurant, to purpose, to Carmy.

You let yourself think through every little detail, and in each scenario, you know that Chicago is where you’re supposed to be. It had, afterall, been everything you’d felt you were missing. 

Your heart was there, and for once, you were going to let yourself follow it. 

You’d just needed some time to let your head and your heart catch up – get on the same page – and wrapping things up in New York gave you that time to get clear that this was your next step. 

Not that you mind letting the man you adored and some very hot sex cloud your judgment. 

It takes a few weeks, but you and Carmy text every day, even on the busy days. Some days you text a lot, and some it’s just a few exchanges: a ‘good morning’ text, a ‘thinking of you,’ and a ‘goodnight’ text when he’s wrapped up at the restaurant. But it doesn’t bother you. You know what it’s like. Other days, you’re able to sneak in a phone call… maybe even a FaceTime… and if you’re really lucky, you get to talk for hours before either of you realize it’s two in the morning and you should’ve been asleep a long time ago.

People are always coming and going in New York City. It’s why it’s not hard to find a sublet for your apartment, and once you’ve set the ball in motion, it feels impossible to backtrack. After you find the subletter, you tell the restaurant that you’re not coming back and they’re not happy with your decision. You tell them you’re moving to Chicago and only a few people left on staff understand why. Your friends who know you and Carmy aren’t surprised – just as you expected – and by the end of your happy hour catch up, they’re halfway to booking you a ticket to Chicago for that night.

Your parents on the other hand are less than ecstatic. They have more questions, more hesitations, and they want to make sure you’re thinking things through. You tell them that you have, that you’ve combed through every possible scenario, and each time you come to the conclusion that this is what you have to do. 

But they’re happy you’re happy. They say they’ve never seen you like this and you agree. You’ve never felt this way before either. 

You’ve got to stay just a little longer – make sure you can get all your shit sold or moved. Because you’re a responsible adult even when you hate being a responsible adult. It takes a few more days to get an available U-Haul, and you’re all packed up. You’d called Carmy earlier to tell him, but he’s not answering his phone. Sydney hadn’t been in touch either, so you figured they were slammed at the restaurant.

Holy shit. This is really happening, you think to yourself. 

With one foot over the ledge already, you’re off. 

Wednesday, again.

You’ve set him up so well that if he blows it, you’re gonna be pissed. All he has to do is be his normal, annoying, crass self. 

C’mon, Richie, you think to yourself, pleading with the gods that this goes the way you hope it will. 

As you’d told him your plan, he seemed more than happy to oblige. Just rile him up a little just to make the surprise that much better. Richie wouldn’t miss out on an opportunity like that, would he? You can hear shouting coming from the kitchen, and can tell your plan has been set in motion.

“Richie, what the fuck are you talking about? They said what? Who?” Carmy asks, frustratedly.

Yesterday’s dinner service was a shitshow. It’d been slower for lunch this afternoon, and he berates himself for being naive enough to think that he could catch his breath today. The last thing he needed after yesterday was some food critic coming into his restaurant to pick apart all of their hard work. 

“I don’t know, cousin,” Richie shouts back defensively, as if he has no other volume level than that one. “I don’t know if she’s a fuckin’ food critic or not but she sounded like one. Somethin’ about an overseasoned juice or whatever the fuck!” “Jus,” Carmy corrects. “It’s pronounced, ‘zjhoo,’ fucko. Not ‘juice.’ How many times do I have to tell you?”

“Yeah, yeah, fuck if I care,” Richie mutters. “All I’m saying is you should go out there and give the pompous jack hole a piece of your mind.”

“Alright, if it’s going to get you off my back, I’ll do it!” Carmy snaps, having had enough of Richie’s shouting. “Just tell me where she’s sitting so I know who to talk to.”

“At the bar. Christ,” Richie sighs, removing himself from the conversation entirely as he steps away from Carmy. 

Carmy sighs in frustration. He removes his apron before hanging it on one of the wall hooks, then makes his way through the swinging doors that lead to the dining area. It’s still slow, even after the small lunch peak they’d just experienced, and there’s only one woman sitting at the bar. 

You.

It’s then the Carmy realizes he’s been set up. This was all just an act to get him out here – out to the front of house. His breath catches in his throat as he sees you sitting at the bar of his restaurant. You lock eyes with him, and he’s suddenly feeling much more nervous than he previously was. 

“Surprise,” is all you manage to get out, half apologetically.

He makes his way to the open side of the bar, stepping around it so that he can stand on the same side as you. 

“Hey,” he says, even though he’s practically speechless. 

“So uh…” he stammers nervously. Out of all the things he could say to you all he can think of is, “What’s this I hear about an overseasoned jus?” 

You shrug, a devious smile on your face and a sense of mischief in your eyes, “Well I had to come up with something that’d get your attention.”

“It worked. Consider it gotten,” he nods, a blush running all the way down his neck. “Wh-, What’re you doing here?”

He doesn't mean for it to sound so abrupt, but what he really wants to ask is: what does this mean?

You wait, taking half of a beat. 

“I… heard you might be hiring another pastry chef to… you know… help out around here,” you reply, nodding towards the kitchen. Carmy has no idea how you’re playing it so cool, and you’re not sure how you are either. 

“I-, I’d have to talk to Marcus first,” he stammers, matter of factly. His head is spinning, and he can’t breathe, in a good way this time. He can’t believe you’re here and half expects to wake up and realize he’s only dreaming. 

“Of course,” you nod in agreement. 

You pause again, wondering if he’s surprised in a bad way.

“I uh… I called,” you offer up, almost as an apology. 

“We’ve been slammed,” Carmy replies, taking a step closer to you. “And I passed the fuck out last night after service. I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay! I-, I figured…” you chuckle, beginning to explain yourself. “I just wanted you to know that-, I mean the rental company had a last minute opening and it was gonna take a few more weeks to get another a U-Haul if I didn’t-. I didn’t intend on making this like… you know this big surprise or anything…”

“... but then I saw Richie first and uh, well, I couldn’t help fucking with you a little bit.”

He laughs, shaking his head at you, “So this was a set up?”

“Oh yeah.”

You stand up, out of the bar chair, taking a step towards him. You look around, noticing that the restaurant is mostly empty, save for a couple in a booth over by the window. 

“You never answered my question. About you. Being here,” Carmy starts, redirecting the conversation back to you. He doesn’t want to get his hopes up – needs you to say you’re here for good before he lets himself feel all of this excitement that’s bubbling up in his body.

“Right. I just came here to tell you that uh, I found someone to take over my lease in New York,” you start, seeing Carmy’s eyes light up. 

God, you’ve missed the way he looks at you. 

“And the urban garden I've been volunteering with… they got me connected with a spot here. Keep my head out of my ass,” you continue, eliciting another laugh from Carmy at your crude comment. 

“Natalie’s-, she and Pete are gonna help find a place too.”

You take another step towards him. 

“You talked to Natalie?” he asks, surprised. 

And he, towards you. 

You shrug, playfully teasing him, “She picks up her phone.”

“Right,” Carmy says shyly. 

If he had picked up his phone you would’ve told him that you were coming and he’s not sure what he would have liked more: knowing ahead of time, or this surprise. Fuck it. He doesn’t care how it happened. He’s just glad he gets to have you.

“I… had a lot of time to think on the drive and-,” you tell him.

“Uh oh,” he interjects, playfully. “That’s never good.”

You shake your head with a laugh, “Will you just shut up and let me get through this?”

He concedes to you, a soft smile on his face as he waits for what you’re going to say next, as you continue your whole boombox over head, throwing stones at the window love confession thing.

“I was thinking that maybe I’d stick around for a while… get a cat or something to keep me company on the days we just can’t stand each other,” you say. 

It’s not what he’s expecting to hear but he understands what you’re really saying. You want to be here. With him. You want to plant roots. 

With him. 

“A cat?” he questions.

“Well, yeah neither of us have time for a dog. We’re both gonna be too busy with the restaurant,” you answer, continuing this scenario you’ve got in your head.

“We?” 

“We.”

Another step. 

He waits for you to say more, but you both understand that anything else would be overcomplicating it. And suddenly you’re standing so close to each other that you’re grateful that there’s only two other people in this restaurant. 

“Does this mean-?” he begins to ask, trailing off toward the end. He looks down at the floor, wondering why he feels so shy. 

“That I packed all my shit up to move here? Yeah,” you reply, confirming his assumptions about where this was going. “When I got back, it took me about five minutes to realize that what I’ve been looking for-, I had it. For a week. Here.”

He looks back up from the floor, to you, his blue eyes staring into your soul. 

You take a pause once more, mustering up all the courage in your body to say what you need to say next. 

“I want to be here, Car. With you. If the offer still stands.” 

He looks at you, you speechless, because he can’t believe this is real. 

But this is real. You’re not dreaming, he reminds himself.

He opens his mouth to say something and all that comes out is, “You hungry?” And you’re shaking your head and laughing, hopelessly in love with the man standing mere inches away from you who can barely get out the words he needs to tell you how he feels. 

“Because I’m sure you’ve had a long trip and I can-,” he continues to ramble, his face inches away from yours.

“God, I fuckin’ love you,” you blurt out, impulsively closing the gap between the two of you. You press your lips to his, giving him the most passionate kiss you’ve perhaps given anyone, and he kisses you back.

Because he loves you too. 

And he never wants to let you go ever again. 

Your kiss is suddenly interrupted by the sounds of voices, cheers, and a few claps, splitting the two of you apart. You both turn to find the entire staff of The Bear, crowded around the door that leads to the kitchen, and peeking out. Tina’s got a proud smile on her face, while Richie is most certainly the one clapping. Marcus is saying an ‘oh shit’ to Sydney while she’s practically squealing at the two of you. 

You and Carmy exchange a look. He looks away, his face turning redder by the second, as you laugh. 

“I called it! What did I say? Did I say three weeks? I think I fuckin' said three weeks." Richie cries out in celebration, his fist pumping into the air in triumph, earning a groan of disappointment from Gary.

"Pay up, fuckos!"

“Wait, what?” Carmy asks, his brows knitted together in confusion. 

Sydney rolls her eyes, beginning to pull a few ten dollar bills out of her apron as Tina mutters an insult in Spanish

“You guys were-,” you start, searching the faces of your future colleagues.

“Betting on how long it would take for you to come back? Yes, chef. Yes we were,” Marcus answers, cheekily. “I said two weeks. Syd put her money on a month, but Richie said three.”

“I just meant that it’s not that easy to move! Not that you wouldn’t come back,” Sydney adds, justifying her guesstimate.

“I said she’d be back in a week,” Tina chimes in.  

“It was clear to us you’d be back. We just didn’t know when,” Gary informs, leaning up against the bar. 

“Well, that’s news to me,” you laugh, shooting Carmy a look that says ‘did you know about this?’

He shakes his head ‘no.’

“You two are also idiots. That was also clear to all of us,” Tina points out, earning a laugh from you and Sydney. 

“Never even cleared your work station, chef,” Marcus adds, nodding back towards the kitchen. “You can uh-, come join us when you’re ready.”

You watch as Marcus disappears, back into the kitchen, hearing the sound or Richie’s more than jovial chants that he was right. Tina’s yelling at him in Spanish and Sydney’s telling Richie to shut the fuck up. 

You’ve missed this. 

“I uh… gotta get back to work,” Carmy says, pulling you out of your head. The blush permeating his face has spread all the way down to his neck and he's not sure how he's supposed to continue the day like this. “Gotta wrap up lunch and prep for dinner.” But he gets to do it with you, so he's gonna figure it the fuck out.

He turns to you, holding out his hand. 

“You comin’ or what?”

You’re beaming as you take his hand, your heart pounding out of your chest. It feels like a beginning of something you don't have the words for, and you're very much okay with that. You're ready to throw caution to the wind and fearlessly dive in -- to take a leap -- as long as you get to do it with him too.

“I thought you’d never ask.”

the end.

taglist: @lazypeachsoul @bookwormvoyageuse @allthefandomstogether @gaysludge @sobshoney @harrysmatcha

[fantomette22]

GIRL HELP, now we are both in the club of people whose caring for Miquella reached its FULL form because of the DLC hfgfjgdbh I think what I've lacked this whole time was a coherent idea on what his imperfections and flaws were! Because "well you see Bewitching Branch is kinda fucked up concept" didn't give me enough. And I feel like I've struck gold with the whole thing of him not being able to accept Radahn's character development and nature as a warrior. It is soooooo wrong and reminded me of one of the ways to look at Gehrman.

It took me a few weeks but finally me 🤝 you at having the time of our fandom lives with Miquella now

I KNOW RIGHT?!?!?! Yeah it's quite crazy. We took our sweet time but here we are! 🤝

I mean maybe I wasn't way too much invest in elden ring because of the huge bloodborne brain rot taking all my time too 😂 But also Elden Ring is really a lot to digest! You and I really like details and to care about every lil guys! In Bloodborne even if there's lot of characters it stays limited while in Elden Ring it's just SO enormous O_O there's too much and yeah I didn't got that savage brain rot yet while just playing the game a year ago+

And I knew dlc was coming so I guess I didn't get too much invested either? Or at least it was inconsciently.

So yes during and after the dlc and after digesting everything I somehow really learn like Miquella! We know way more now and idk but it's even more interesting now!

Before dlc I saw him like : poor lil guy tried smt to become a god (pls don't it's gonna be bad) screw up really big time & he's dead now 😔 you tried your best... he was too good for this world rip

But now it's more develop! there's actually a following to that! he didn't just fail big time! for now😰

I said a few weeks ago I was gonna wait to finish the dlc and then speak about Miquella and what I think of everything. Well maybe I will do a separate post later but I think it's finally time.

So let's dive in (warning spoilers shadow of the Erdtree DLC)

I know it's a bit of mess between people thinking "I was right he's the ultimate evil!!! He's like Griffith!" (what 💀)"and people being very mad at other or distraught by it bc now this get shown into their face while they were just happy with Miquella being a kind lil guy, to good or pure for this world... I want to believe many people are actually very middle ground on this but hm yeah smt it's not good and quite extreme.

But if that can help (at least I will try here ) with everything we got I might have an interpretation that I hope, could help out a few people. I can't say I'm right, I'm probably far from it but I appreciate what I deduced and put together a lot! (in my head but still) It made me really like and invest more in Miquella character now! And it make me at peace with what the dlc brought to the table. I can accept that more well now. That made everything have more sense and made Miquella really have a bittersweet/tragic path & ending. And I am ok with that and I think others could be as well.

I like Miquella I think he was mostly good, the kindest between this darker lands. But he needed to changed, to grow to succeed in his goals right? Because he got stuck. But by growing up, discarding parts of himself to be a "better version" of himself that would succeed & become a god is what eventually doomed him in the end :

Miquella discarding part of himself tragedy.

This is just so sad and tragic. But it might be oblivious. He wasn't "strong enough" in his current position/eternal childhood etc So he probably thought that make the sacrifice to become a god would succeed in the end. A necessary sacrifice...that he would be stronger able to finally obtain his goals... But by doing that he loose everything that made him himself... without realising it... he abandoned everything. And the more he abandoned, the more he didn't realised he was loosing himself what he cared about... and how it was a mistake. (I suppose that Marika might have gone through the same thing now...)

Trina realised it at some point. That it was wrong,t hat it wouldn't work anyway perhaps. Is it really worth it? Is it really gonna work? Probably not... But it's too late to go back now. She knew Miquella before everything would probably not approve of what he became... of the dangerosity of what he could be...

That just... sorry it's just so tragic I don't know how to express it sadden me so much...

Bewitching people :

We already knew that he somehow "bewitch people" but it wasn't very explained in base game and really up to interpretations. Now we know more. And it sparks a lot of things...

I completely agree that you know, half mind control people and changed people thoughts and individuality, personality etc hm it's bad. it's no good to control masses. BUT but, I can kinda understand why Miquella did it! And I'm gonna try to explain that now.

Ok, imagine you're Miquella. You're trying to get people to join your cause. Of course like for exemple the crab hunter or farmer have other things to do than join your cause so sure you let them be. But then imagine you talk with smn and then they just hate you and is going to say shit to everyone about you and then they're gonna try kick your ass. Wouldn't it be better, even if that's bad on paper, to bewitching them? make allies your enemies?

You can't reason with some people at time even if you try everything, sadly. You can either go away or fight or ask a competent authority to stop them. But if you had a way for them to magically stop wanting to harm you and become more friendly / on your side wouldn't you use it?

Like it's bad but I can understand why Miq did it. But of course forcing people who were neutral bc you think "you're better" is hm... not great too... but it's not clear how much it happened and what went though he's mind. He probably thought it was a good thing. But no but can we blame him for trying to have better world?

And it's still not clear how his mind age but I do think he still have lot of quality/default of what any child mind have. He probably didn't see the wrong of everyone becoming allies and use kindness not violence to it. A child mind (mostly) is innocence, optimistic etc I do think he lost a lot by discarding parts but it has it's backsides. An adult would be more incline to find solution and act accordingly to treat but loose a lot of "childhood good sides" as well. it's quite complicated but nothing is perfect in this. You wanna agin smt you loose another you can't have everything and life's not black & white.

Also about Mogh. Yes he's not fuck up like that! But I understand why Miq bewitching him. Hm Mohg, maybe would have just kill Miquella to get his amazing blood for whatever purpose with the formless mother anyway. So of course Miquella did that to try to gain a potential ally that in other case is very dangerous for him. But still I think Miquella had to improvise after Mogh took him and then when the cocoon didn't work. Yeah I still think Mogh has a LOT of issues. He's not a saint and I don't think it went well with Miquella's plan to have been taken by him.

Radahn thoughts:

I mean I'm still a bit like : wu wut what but why??!!?!? confusion

But it's a bit better now XD I swear if the devs originally had another idea I'm gonna be mad! But it can maybe made a bit of sense. I don't really have much thoughts bc I'm still confuse about it but I think understand the point.

Radahn, when younger, was probably all the noble qualities that had Godfrey.

And Miq was probably like : When Godfrey was Elden Lord it was the golden age everything was great! Nothing was wrong! The lands between had stability. Radahn have the potentiel to be like Godfrey!

Also Radahn : Let's conquer and make war like lord Godrey!!!!!!!!!!!

I mean yeah everything was great between stability and war 😅 so jkefjf help like I can understand ou need smn to fight of ennemies just in case but Miquella that's not gonna work. Like at some point there's pb. Like who you consider anomy.. should you reprimand everyone?? Like Marika and her cycle of violence?! dzbkdsfbhkbhkld

Also I wonder if the great runes didn't made many demigods "change" as well. It gave them more power and maybe it screw their mind too. (And when Miquella great runes break the bewitching spells stop so..... before he got the runes maybe he never used that. And maybe that's why Radahn changed so much too) Power really does change people hm?

So anyway sorry idk if I succeed to organise everything coherently XD I tried. So yes I think Miquella is nuanced but was mostly good because of many conditions and he tried to fix everything but loses everything in the end... by discarding who he really was... a necessary sacrifice, that would ultimately fail...

I got very emotional after beating the final boss and going one last time to Trina. I really cried a lot. Because it's freaking sad. All the sacrifices in vain... they deserved so much but the world was cruel.

And even if we did nothing. What change? Nothing. He never came back in the lands between if we finish the main game. Did you abandoned everything Miquella? Did it not work out? Or like should we blame the poor devs. Idk it's very confusing now. The lands between still a mess, the lands of shadow too. He never came back...

The only ray of hope is us, the tarnished to try to make a better world for everyone. The one they couldn't make themselves...

(Ok so hope make sense 😅 and maybe it will put everything in a new light for people and give them a hand! I got way more invested and happy! Even if that's sad. I started to imaging little story and headcanons about his childhood I would never have before... it's confusing but if I am right the devs succeed! good job)

[spinningbuster98]

Since yesterday we talked about my *favorite* story: I think what really confuses me about the NFCV fans who defend Hector's writing by praising his final action, letting Lenore go, as the rightful conclusion of his character arc... is that it only works if you completely memory hole S3.

Hector is introduced as someone who burned his own parents alive after a childhood of abuse, bitter enough to believe humanity needed to be culled. From this perspective, him learning to forgive Lenore, or at least granting her mercy and dignity, could be a good character development. But Hector through the show was not written to be bitter, vengeful and violent: that was Isaac.

Or alternatively, Hector's biggest flaw is that he needs to be loved, so much that his favorite spell is reanimating dead animals so that they could love him unconditionally. He forces those creatures to him. He keeps this behavior by clinging to Dracula, then Carmilla (he could have ran away, he chose to stay with her after Dracula's death), then Lenore (after Carmilla's death and Isaac making him live, Lenore became his only certainty in life). From this perspective, him not forcing Lenore to live an existence she didn't want to live, but accepting her decision, could be poignant. But Hector never actively sought anyone: he was swayed and lured in. Besides, his pets stopped being relevant after S2.

Hector's arc was one of passivity. You can't miss it: even Isaac points out that Hector lacked agency. Hector spent his entire arc being thrown around left and right, lied to, beaten, humiliated, dehumanized, and he simply... existed. He has no objective, he barely has any negative emotions. Hector in S3 was a blow up doll, and we audience were meant to laugh at his stupidity while jerking off over the submissive and breedable peggable guy being called "good boy". S4 pretends he grew, with his working behind the scenes to resurrect Dracula, but it's not enough, for all the reasons we know. That's why him letting Lenore go feels like the last spit in the face for him: not only Hector is the only character in the season who is left with a bittersweet ending at best, but... he didn't do anything to affirm himself. He didn't choose to leave Lenore: Lenore chose to leave him, and he simply nodded to that. He didn't talk to her about their problematic relationship, now that nothing was between them. He didn't take the chance to recognize his own self-worth in the same way Isaac did. We don't know what he plans to do with Isaac, we don't know if he plans to leave the castle at some point. The pattern of him going "sure why not" at everything thrown at him was not shaken.

(I don't need to tell you that as someone who loves the original Hector's story precisely for the way he seizes agency for himself, this pisses me off something fierce. More idealistic? Maybe, but also encouraging.)

I'll be honest: Hector as a character is so empty that I feel his fans simply project themselves into him, especially victims of abuse who see the way he crawled back to Lenore and think that it was an intentionally nuanced representation of the way abuse twists your mind and priorities. And if his story resonates with you, I can't take it away from you, but I can assure you that the guy who spent a whole episode writing his puppy fetish for no reason other than fanservice does not give a single shit about the realism of abuse, let alone the things he was accused of.

And I wonder if the same can be applied to other aspects of the show, like Trephacard's friendship that straight up doesn't exist on screen, or Isaac's "development" which might resonate with people similar to him. Just a lot of projecting and filling in the holes, of which the show has plenty because it would rather waste its time with pointless filibustering and people being mean and crass to each other or piss jokes.

This is gonna sound very cynical but the main reason for the show's success is, essentially, that it's superficially deep and insightful.

Superficial presentation can go a very, very long way in hiding very egregious writing flaws, stuff like great fight scenes, emotional music and dialogues that sounds very cool, philosophical and deep can easily convince people that what they're watching is far more than it really is. These are cases where, if you don't pay attention to the finer details, you would really be led to believe that it's exactly what the show is presenting itself as

As another example: Sonic fans, even after all of these years, still like to parade Mephiles around as the best written villain in the series, even though his plan makes less than zero sense. This is because he looks cool (?), has cool powers, has a cool voice and the game consistently presents him as a mastermind...so folks fall for it, it's all about the vibes and how they emotionally impact the viewers, who in turn don't tackle the material with actual critical thought. Some seem to do so, given the plethora of in-depth analysis of characters like Isaac, but, and I know this is really offensive of me to say, I think they are still being influenced by the emotional impact of the way the story likes to present itself, preventing them from truly being 100% objective

People see Hector's pseudo philosophical speech to Lenore, they see her killing herself with the beautiful cinematography and music, and they mistake it for actual art, because it makes them forget or reinterpret the likes of S3. The reason why so many undermine or even justify Lenore's treatment of Hector in S3 is not, I believe, out of genuine rape apologism, but rather becaus people have a subconscious need to have everything neatly fit into their view of events

The ending of S4 looks so beautiful and deep and meaningful, but their relationship in S3 is in direct contradiction of that, so instead of recognizing that they twist the facts in their own head in order for all of it to make sense, because if you admit the existence of S3 as it truly was to yourself, then S4 and it's "beautiful" emotional impact falls apart like a ton of bricks

This is sounding very arrogant if not downright misanthropic I know, as I'm essentially saying that people don't know how to consume the media they like and that they don't even truly know what it is that they like. I feel a bit ashamed in saying this because it's the type of reasoning that would anger me usually, especially if directed at me, so in a way I guess I'm being hypocritical...but I truly don't see any other way to explain this phenomenon

Isaac is, of course, another good example: it's "easy" for most people to forget his hypocrisy because the show puts such a laser focus on his "development" and emotions and philosophy etc. It's like dangling keys in front of a toddler in order to distract them from some other thing

Something like Other M could have had the same effect, but the difference I feel is that Other M is far more egregious in its superficial dialogue: Samus sounds boring and stupid even at a surface level, she can't fool the audience, and Adam's character doesn't feature nowhere close as many "distractions" from his shitty behavior, especially since the authorization mechanic is pervasive throughout the whole game, so people immediately see what a douchebag he is and how self contradicting the story is about him.

[the-blind-assassin-12]

HAPPY TWOSDAY! 🥳

It’s time for TWO more series, one shot and art recs! This week I went with three characters, two recs each for Joel, Ezra & Oberyn. And I loved them all to bits and pieces. 🤎💚💛

Two Series Recs:

LEAVE OFF YOUR WANDERING by @oonajaeadira

Joel Miller x F!Reader

Rugged because TLOU, Soft because Adira

I fell behind on this absolute stunner of a story, so I had the joy of catching up with the two most recent parts all in one go. And let me tell you, for as much TLOU typical tension and angst as there is in these latest two parts, they truly were a joy to read. Because one of Adira’s many strong suits is balancing soft with hard, safety with danger, joy with fear. Watching Joel slowly open up, watching Reader learn how to reach him, watching Ellie get to have more normalcy? It’s beautiful. It’s got my heartstrings all knitted up all warm and fuzzy like, and simultaneously has me ready to stab anyone who hurts a hair on any of their heads with a knitting needle. But Joel’s got that covered, doesn’t he?

OBERYN & HIS MERLING by @grogusmum

Oberyn Martell x GN!Merling Reader

A fairytale romance with a bittersweet touch

I recently treated myself to Hazel’s Seven Tears and absolutely loved every mythical second of it. So when I saw that she also had a story centered around a Merling Reader, I KNEW I’d love it just as much. And I was right. Everything from the visuals of Reader’s Yew Forest to their appearance was magical, and the lengths that Oberyn (and Ellaria) go to for his Merling to keep them safe and happy for so perfectly with what we know about him - that he’s a lover, a protector, an open mind and a full heart.

Two One Shot Recs:

TALK, REFINED by @ohforficsake

Ezra x F!Reader

Soulmates/ multiple lifetimes AU

This is one of those stories that is going to stick with me for a long time. I’m gonna be like that meme where it’s like hey you okay you’ve been quiet what are you thinking about? And in my brain it’s just “the warrior and the blacksmith and that iris charm” but I have to be like “I’m fine 👍🏻”. This story won my heart, broke my heart, and fixed my heart as I followed a pair of fated lovers finding each other through three different lifetimes, and it did so in truly beautiful fashion. The repetition of certain motifs, the way gorgeous lines are sprinkle throughout this whole piece like glitter, the bond between these characters, these souls… it’s perfect.

IN BLOOM by @maggiemayhemnj

Ezra x GN!Reader

Fluff + pup + blossoms

EZRA. AND. A DOG*!😀🥰 *A troublemaking little rascal who is just like his owner, as dogs tend to be. I love that Ezra has a companion to keep him company, and I love even more that this companion (Peanut! 🥹) seems determined to get his human a human companion …. By any (thieving) means necessary. Everything between Ezra and Reader falls so naturally into place and how could it not with him being so charming and Peanut being such a peanut? I also truly loved the thought of Ezra creating his own little Green haven in his backyard. Hope I get to spend some more time back there someday soon. 😌

Two Art Recs:

OBERYN + RED VIPERS by @rimermin

This is so freaking COOL! Surrounding the Red Viper with actual red vipers is such a striking visual. I love the colors and the expression he’s wearing here. Just stunning!

JOEL + SARAH SNAPSHOTS by @alyssamariag

Listen, I ADORE these. SO MUCH. Look at their SMILES! Look at Joel and his Dad Strength™️. The note from Sarah because let’s face it, he absolutely needs the reminder. The watch. Just… 🥹🥲🥰 perfection.

[zstargalaxy]

Heard you're new to Tumblr, welcome!

I love the Twst x Pokemon MC crossover so much.

So, take your time with this one. How would the Heartslabyul boys react to finding a Flabebe for a first time. As in they have no idea what it is and thought it was some kind of fairy?

I think plenty of cute moments could happen in that situation but I wanna know what you think.

Me too! I have a perfect few scenarios in mind, though i might make them short, i will try to make them pleasable and full of fluff! :)

TWISTED WONDERLAND x POKEMON

HEARTSLABYUL x Flabebe MC

♥️BEFORE MAIN STORY♥️

Believe it or not, Riddle was the first one who had found you.

You were still a young bloomer fairy type and was kinda hungry when you were wandering and admiring the lovely rose maze that had surrounded the Red Dorm.

You didnt know how you got there in the first place but you didnt seem to care for hunger had taken over your senses, which had lead you to the window of the kitchen in the Heartslabyul dorm.

At the time, Riddle wasnt Dorm Leader yet so he had meet you through he's time of duty to paint the roses according to the rules of the dorm.

The then first-year was taken back at your sudden appearance at the rose maze.

He had heard and are aware that there are fairies that roam around Night Raven College but dont exactly approach students directly.

So imagine he's suprise when he had saw you.

You didnt look like any fairy he had seen or heard.

He might probably think that your a some kind of garden fairy with how your so drawn to the roses.

But some how, one thing led to the next with you two becoming quite inseparable after you were curiously looking at him as he work.He couldnt stop himself from thinking how cute you are when you tried to copy him in painting the roses red.

Especially on trying to carry a paint brush that is to big for you.

Heck, you even follow him like how little ducklings would do with their mom.

Of course, Riddle wasnt very comfortable at first but he quickly gotten use to your presence which is kinda unlike him.

He already knew the consequences of slacking off on he's studies but...He couldnt force himself from being apart from for some reason.

Along with the rest of the members of the Heartslabyul Dorm.

Many were in shock to see the first year being followed by some kind of fairy, especially how fae can tend to act around humans but your cuteness is just to much to resist!

You found this place very wierd to be honest but in a fun way!

You love how big the space is for you to fly around.

The garden outside with all it's red and white roses were beautiful.

And the tea parties and unbirthday parties were the best!

The previous prefect and vice even decided to secratly made you an honorary little garden fairy of the Heartslabyul dorm.

Even after Riddle became Prefect, he still let you kept your title seeing as it fits your helpfulness around the dorm.

Though, still young as you are, didnt understand what does that mean but you knew that you are gonna show them that you are a big girl!

You celebrated by letting out sparkles around Riddle and soon the whole tea part participants with smiles and laughter around the area.

Of course, Cater and Trey were also among the suprise Heartslabyul students.

You reminded Trey of he's little siblings back at home, especielly when you help him with the food for the tea parties and trying to sneakily eat a piece of dessert without him knowing.

He soon learn that you somehow like honey when he was using some for some pastries and when you gotten yourself coated in it when you try to open the jar.

But he also appreciates your determined helpfulness around the dorm despite your small stature.

Perhaps thats what makes you and Riddle relate.

Trey cant help but let out a bittersweet smile at the thought, but nonetheless, he is happy to see he's friend happy once more.

Cater found you so adorable! Instantly taking pics of ya in Magicam that soon have hundreds of views and likes from how cute you were in the shots.

He even taken videos of you using your "magic"/moves around the garden.

You love how cheerful Cater isn especially when the two of you play togather when painting the roses, he is one of your favorite best friends! (Along side Trey and Riddle).

Oh how he wish that you were he's little sister.

You view Riddle as your Mommy/Big brother.

You two are always togather and everyone in the dorm knows that.

Of course, Riddle will not neglect in teaching you the 810 rules of the Queen of Heart's dorm so that you wont broke them.

You didnt understand most of them nor remember all of them but you tried your very best to make Riddle happy.

And it paid off with some of the dorm residents calling you as the 2nd vice prefect with you are always by he's side and always report him about someone who is breaking the rules.

This was during he's first year so he wasnt exactly that hard core in the main story.

But you also didnt always tell him who had broken the rules.

You made sure to remind the person about the rule that they had or about to break by circling around them with some kind of sparkles or pollen since they cant understand you.

By doing this, they knew the message right away.

And whenever a Heartslabyul students are gonna brawl it out and that Riddle isnt gonna use he's UM on them, its you with your "magical" pollen that makes them instantly and made them calm and relax.

When summer came, you cried a river when Riddle told you that you had to stay.

It breaks both of your hearts but Riddle cant let he's mom knew of you, he cant lose you too.

Many of the residents let out bittersweet bye and you giving out a "Flabebe!" as a goodbye to them as they left for summer break.

Cater made one last pic before promising you with the other residents that you all will come back soon.

Trey even left a cake for you before he left for home.

As soon as they left, the dorm was empty.

Of course, you continue watching over the garden but it wasnt the same.

You always eat Trey's cake alone during late nights, even crying out a river with fat sad tears as you wonder why they didnt bring you.

You asked Arcerus above why they didnt bring you.

Soon, curioisty gotten the best of you as you pull your white fairy flower to go explore the campus that you barely got to see.

Due to this exploration of yours, you had meet the other fairies in NRC that were all doing their thing when you had approach them.

The fairies were suprise to see such a young of their kind in such place.

This place is too dangerous for someone as young as you.

But they cant help but wonder what type of fea are you.

They can feel that you are a fea but dont what kind.

Yet nonetheless, the fairies quickly took you in as they kept you company through out the summer.

Some even were disgusted and horrified that the studnets of your dorm had left you, a fea toddler, on her own.

They made a promise to lecture them about it.

♥️MAIN STORY♥️

Riddle, Trey and Cater happily beam at the sigh of you happily flying towards them in your flower as you joyfully dance around them and the new students with your pollen as to welcome them (back) to the dorm.

Riddle indulge himself, for once since he's return to him, to finally relax from such a tiring and troublesome day had during the ceremony earlier with a certain cat and magicless character.

The older dorm members smiled and greeted you as they had missed you during the summer break but the 1st years had expressions if shock and bewilderment at the sight of a fea-like creature greeting them upon entry at to their new dorm.

They had the same expressions and thoughts like Riddle and the other students like him had when they first see you for the first time last year.

During Riddle's introduction to the new members about Heartslabyul and that they should be obligated to the rules of the Queen of Hearts, he gastured towards you as he tell the 1st years that you are the dorm's personal garden fairy and that they shall treat you with respect aswell.

Many of the 1st years who are aware about the nature of feas were shock, considering how feas dont exactly approach or even like humans to the point of becoming their personal helper but the whispers were quickly shut with a single glare from the housewarden as they all were now disperse for now.

During that night ,when it was bedtime, Riddle rock you to sleep just like he did last year as he made sure to keep you comfortably cozy on the pillow that you always sleep on, with both of you content during your slumbers.

A soft smile grace your little mouth.

Oh how you had missed this and you hope he will never leave you alone again.

During one night, you had spotted a student with a heart on he's face light at night with a fridge wide open, allowing lighg through the dark late evening as he was about to eat one of the tarts that you helped Trey with for the upcoming Unbirthday party.

Alarmed, you quickly float towards him and made gastures to make him stop eating the tart before he would get into any trouble with Riddle.

Ace, the one who is eating the tart, was suprise like among he's fellow first years when he had first saw you but currently, he is hungry so he tried to shoo you away or tell you that he was hungry, in which you understand but Riddle would get mad!

Yet Riddle found out upon entering the kitchen and collared Ace right on the spot.

You let out a sighed at your failed attempts to stop him, feeling quite sad that you failed as you tried to follow the first year until Riddle had stop you, telling you that you no longer have to worry about Ace any longer and that it was he's problem and he's alone but Riddle quickly brighten your mood by offering some honey since you did caught Ace on the act.

He quickly pulled you and him back to bed as he did he's usually routine with you before going to sleep, but this time he allowed you to sleep on the same bed togather, cuddling away into the night.

You officially meet him, Deuce, Yuu and Grim was when you stubbornly follow Trey to the kitchen, considering that you wanted to go out of the dorm and finally take a small break from your little work.

And made sure to keep he's not gonna prank the noobies like he had done to ya with the oyster sauce.

Yuck.

Deuce had seen and heard about you so he was very excited to meet such a cute fea, especielly how you kinda act like small child or sibling that wants to help in doing big jobs like he had with he's mom.

He enjoy he's time of decorating the tart with you, especielly on the whip cream part where you have cream all over you as you lick it all up from your tiny hands with happy squeaks and giggles and when you helped in calming him down by spreading your pollen all over him to relax he's anger over the delinquents.

Grim were shock to see a fea, a baby/kid one nonetheless, but didnt think anything special about ya but did ended up having a small competition with you on the chestnuts.

Yuu thought you were adorable, liking how you helped around in making the apology tart for Ace to give.

Ace thought you were like Riddle, since he had seen you always by he's side but he cant deny the help (and reassurance) you gave for him to apologise to Riddle.

You had sent out Fairy wind when Trey had done the joke.

The sight of several collared students in the lounge area was horror to behold, as you tried to chear them up with some of your small party tricks and spread some pollen to help them relax abit...

But if only it had worked on you aswell.

When the day had finally come....lets just say it there were alot has happened and it was just the beginning.

You never had seen Riddle act like this before, never in your life have you had seen such rage and anger that he had displayed right before your eyes as you hide behind Trey and Cater in fear.

As the Adeuce and Ramshackle duo had been kicked out, you tried to follow them to only be stopped by Riddle to just let them be and after what you had seen him, you hesitantly oblifge but decided to stay abit away from him out of fear.

And soon after that, Riddle and you have been very distant with the former no fool to the situation yet didnt seem to try to explain to you as you two started to drift away more and more with you even started to sleep more with Trey to avoid him.

Your friendship with Riddle strained even more after he had insulted Ace and Deuce during their tournament for the Housewarden position and to overthrow him.

Was this the Riddle you know? Why was he acting like a meanie? Why was he so...so.... Was he just...pretending?

Despite the tears spilling out 9f your eyes, you quickly stood against him and used all your attacks against him.

Riddle was taken by surprise, along with everyone else, as he was knocked over and hit by your attacks but he was able to collar ya aswell after he had lift up he's pen through the attacks.

It was hurting.

Your prickled tears finally spilled into full on waterfalls as Riddle even insluted as to why he even let you be in the dorm with how you are acting like them aswell.

That was the final straw for Ace to hit a punch.

After the whole Overblot mess, Cater quickly had came to you with your still intact flower in hand as he soothed you through your frighten state as you hiccup here and there with tears.

Riddle quickly apologise to you after he had remembered of what he had said to you.

He apogise and apologise with tears at how he had insulted you, the first perso who had gave the same feeling that he had with Trey and Chenya in a long time.

You two hug it out in a tender embrace as Ace kept on rambling that he's crying wasnt enough for an apologise with the others watching you and Riddle but you both ignore it for now, enjoying the needed hug to your hearts contents.

{BONUS!}

"Catch him! CATCH HIM!!!"

Che'nya giggled as he carried you away to go off to RSA with very angry Heartslabyul students chasing you two down throughout the whole dorm.

"Nya~ Riddle need CATch up, hihihihihi~" the purple cat beastman chuckled, making you look up in confusion of what does he mean by that "What do you mean mister kitty???" You asked, floating your way up to he's face to level up againsg him. He only giggled as he hold you and your flower gently in he's hands to get both of you away even further to continue your little game of chase that he had started when he had "kidnapped" ya away from the revenge unbirthday party.

"You will learn soon, little Alice. You will learn soon~ ;3 "

Sorry that itvwas pretty long. I got carried away and had so much ideas that i wanted to put and limited into this work so I am sorry for the lengthy writing but I do hope that you enjoy it :)

[mikuthedragon]

Can you do a link x otherworldly char? Lol 😭

Hiii precious Loulu anon, I'm sorry I took so long I hope you enjoy 😭

"She was a fairy"

Link x Fem!Fairyreader

Sypnosis : A fairy got lost in another world. Little does she know, her world was gonna be rocked upside down by a young hylian knight.

Our story begins in a far far away land, called the Kingdom of Hyrule. You are a fairy, you came from another realm called the Enchantraverse. You were on your way to school when you got lost in your portals and have no way back home..

So you explore! You find there are other fairies in Hyrule, they aren't exactly like you but you start to live among them and you couldn't be happier.. It sucks to be away from your friends, family and home but the fairies in Hyrule prove to be warm and quickly become your family away from home.

Then one day, your friend Navi brings back a blonde Hylian boy in the fairy sanctuary. He's... charming ? He ate rocks during lunchtime and insisted he didn't mind the "crunchy" texture of it.. During the few days he stayed, your eyes couldn't help but wander to the blonde Hylian boy. On one of these days, you overheard him say his name was Link. Link.. One eavesdropping turned into three, which turned into 7? You don't know why you continued but you just had to hear more.

Despite his first impression of eating rocks, you quickly realised, he was actually really quiet. Oh no, you weren't gonna learn anything more about him at this rate.. In the midst of overthinking, it's interrupted by-

"Hello.. I saw you looking at me. Do I have something on my face ?"

You were a little surprised but you just chuckled and said you admired (his horse jk) how he could warm up to everyone so fast.

"Oh. Yeah.. So tell me about yourself" He said quietly. You noticed how he put his hand behind his head and tried to avoid looking you in the eye.. but the thing is you were also avoiding his gaze Tvt

You were stuttering a bit but you started talking about your favorite meals which turned into a talk about your family and later how much you love the fairies.. and oh it's time for everyone to go to bed already.. Link just smiled and nodded the whole time but somehow the day passed so fast and you said so much and and-

This occurrence happened a few times, during lunch, dinner.. during the strolls he took to gather more materials and the other walks you took in the forest to pick wild strawberries to make really sweet jam..

During one sunset, Link grabbed your hands, grabbed you by the waist and whispered in your ear "You're my best friend, thank you so much for being here with me"..

...

THAT'S IT ?

You were holding back tears as he waved goodbye and rode Epona. You don't know why you were about to cry but it felt more bittersweet the more time Link spent away from you. Until..

You noticed Link and how popular he was with the other fairies. The feelings of jealousy bubbling in you, you didn't want to acknowledge it but you have feelings for him.. You were biting back your laughter at the realization. How petty and stupid you were. So what did you do ? There's only one thing to do. Sigh

Just wait until he confesses his feelings to you. ;--;

You waited a few days which turned into a few weeks and at some point.. You did become closer to Link, you're now more precious to him than anything else in the world but he never uttered he loved you romantically..

You were dwelling on your feelings and sadness. In the background, Link was always there watching over you. He started getting more worried.. Were you homesick ? Would he have to fight until the ends of time or the universe or whoever had the power to bring you home ?

He wanted to see you smile, and he dreamed of holding you in his arms and growing old together in Hyrule. But he knows how selfish it is and decided to stay quiet.. In the end, to see you happy was what made him happy and since the day he met you he always spared his feelings for your happiness and livelihood.

A few weeks of seeing you like this and Link decides to go on a mission. He leaves without saying a word of where he's going in fear you follow him. He doesn't want you to get hurt.

You were sad when you weren't more than friends but to see Link leave without saying anything was even worse. While he was gone, you never left your house outside of work.. Your friends and Navi were especially worried..

.. Then one day, in the first rays of sunlight, you hear Epona and realise Link's back! You were leaping with joy, and you decide, you don't care what happens, if he rejects you or whatever! You just know to spend time without Link and without him knowing how you feel was just too much! If he doesn't like you, you'll just make him fall in love with you!

You fly out of the house at (1000% speed jk) an alarming speed. Link barely blinks before he realises you crashed right into him. He's surprised and is about to cry, during his trip he missed you so dearly and he finds it harder and harder not to keep you here with him in Hyrule. He hugs you tight, he's kinda squeezing your wings ouch!

"Y/N, why do you torture me so? How am I supposed to send you home if you keep tugging at the strings of my heart ? I was taught to serve other people before myself. It's my job as a knight, but you, who has me in the palm of your hand. How are you capable of making me both ready and happy to abandon my principles as a knight.. Y/N i'm sorry, I can't send you home even if I have the portal maker right here. I really love you from the depths of my heart. What am I to do" He sobbed

Hm.. what a funny coincidence, you hold back the urge to pinch his cheeks and say you don't love him back just because he left you alone to "make you happy" supposedly.

Instead of the tempting proposition of laughing at his pointless demise, you just bury your own head into his neck and smile. You look him in the eyes and mouth the words "I love you too" and proceed to kiss him on the lips whilst you both ride Epona..

Fin~

[rollercoasterwords]

oookay. finished the secret history let’s go

so the book itself was split into two separate books, book I and book II. for clarity’s sake, im gonna further split it into 4 parts, part 1, 2, 3 and 4. 

so first quick summary 4 bg information (no spoilers, as promised!!)

so basically a group of sexually repressed 20-something gays push the first homophobe they see off a cliff

OR

we’re told of Bunny’s murder in the first 2 pages, separating the book from other crime novels in that most of it was less a whodunnit and more of a whydunnit. in part 1, we’re introduced to richard papen, the narrator, who applied to a college, Hampden, miles away from his home state bc the colours on the brochure were pretty. he falls in with a group of students who are studying ancient greek; henry, bunny, francis, and camilla and charles (twins). So for a while, things look awesome. richard’s at a good college, with a large and tight-knit group of friends. What could go wrong?

this part transitions into two after richard and bunny find out about something terrible the rest of the group did in the past.

in part 2, bunny starts to become hostile to his friends after learning of it, while richard is able to wrap his head around it quite quickly. It escalates to the point where bunny becomes a potential threat, in that he might spill the beans to someone else. here, henry begins to plan bunny’s murder, and the rest of group just sort of goes along with it. parts 1 and 2 were pleasant, and paced really quickly. i was hooked the entire time. part 3 gets a bit dull, but it picks up again after Bunny’s funeral and hits the ground running.

book one ends right before bunny dies, and book two starts right after.

part 3 opens into a police investigation for bunny, who is believed to be missing until they find his body. in this part, tensions within the group begin to escalate. most of p. 3 is spent at bunny’s family’s house, who have invited many people bunny knew to stay with them during the funeral proceedings.

part 4, i believe begins after bunny’s body is found. here everyone’s like REALLY on edge. I will say most of it was just richard and francis running around frantically together while charles slowly goes insane with paranoia that henry’s trying to kill him as well. yk what, some of charles’ dialogue in this part is unsettlingly reminiscent of a panicked letter written by bunny that was found only after his death. In the book, there was only one passage of it shown, but that was enough. reading it, one could practically hear the panic, the desperation in bunny’s voice, one later mirrored in charles. vv psychologically thrillery. Im having hannibal flashbacks actually

and ohhh my god the ending. It was the climax to end all climaxes rae. ill never get over it. It was bittersweet ig, like all the best endings are. 

one thing i noticed is that throughout the book, there are these like future reflections littered through. like ‘thinking back on it now, i wish i had. . .’  or ‘funny, that was the last time i ever saw him’, which have the story a sort of They Both Die at the End quality. yk, like a tragedy waiting to happen. I think i remember you doing something like that once, rae, in atydsp. I believe it was right in one of the summer 1977 chapters but i could be wrong. I think something like that really makes a story gut-wrenching, especially with the whole looming impermanence that the reader is all too aware of. the very last lines in the epilogue read, ‘I suppose at one time in my life I might have had any number of stories, but now there is no other. This is the only story I will ever be able to tell.’ see? whenever one of these bad boys is thrown in there, the scene changes from just a regular scene to something golden and significant. I think i once saw a post that read, ‘in movies time travellers are always scared of drastically changing their future by doing something small, but no one in the present ever things they can drastically change their future by doing something small’. thats what that reminds me of.

in the epilogue, richard refers to himself as a bystander, and he’s not wrong. he’s the narrator, of course, but in the end, the story’s not really about him. it’s about henry and bunny. I kind of get now, those lines at the end of the epilogue. Bunny’s death, and the events that subsequently followed, are so much more important than richard himself will ever be. 

TSH is famous for that one line henry has, when charles asks him how he could possibly justify cold blooded murder, and henry says, ‘I prefer to think of it … as a redistribution of matter.’ but the line that got to me the most personally was an unassuming one, camilla in the epilogue about her twin brother charles: ‘actually, charles and i dont really talk anymore. It’s broken my Nana’s heart.’ not that she and charles should ever be in the same room together ever (very fucked up things happened), but it’s just the impermanence of relationships. how two people who may be at one point inseparable just drift apart. it’s not any one big fight or falling out that snaps the thread of their connection, but that thread just wearing out and growing thinner and thinner until eventually nothing is left anymore. thats what gets to me.

andd also one thing that kept happening was that i’d accidentally (or on purpose) flip a few pages ahead and reading something really fucking deranged or unexpected and just be like ‘huh???? what??? how?????’ and i’d go back and read up to that point until it made sense. i’d love love LOVE to give examples but i’m not allowed spoilers :(( the book is just the right amount of deranged though it rlly tickles ur brain in just the right spots without being overly ick

I think someone said that it was a francis/richard/charles/camilla/henry love pentagon but its most like a love diamond. grab a pen and paper folks, it gets complicated. imagine charles at the top, francis on the left, richard at the bottom, and camilla on the right, with a line extending from camilla to henry. there thats tsh.

all in all 8/10!! if it’s on your reading list like you said it was, definitely move it to the top.

one day i WILL read tsh i promise!! unfortunately it cannot go to the top atm bc im working thru the books i already own 😔 love this review tho i honestly didn’t really know what the book was about & this actually sounds really good…

[sunwarmed-ash]

Sinful Sunday Preview

Separation Anxiety-Voters Choice

Man that was a CLOSE race, separation anxiety won by one vote! (Maybe 2, idk %'s are not my strong suit)

The fic itself has a lot of angsty parksborn interactions, so here’s a little bittersweet, spicy piece I think y’all will enjoy :D

Thanks again for voting!

Rating: Explicit 🔞😈🔥

Tags: parksborn smut, consensual domination, web bondage, cumming untouched, harry has a degradation kink, and a praise kink, slut kink, Andrew!Peter, Dane!Harry, top!Peter, bottom!Harry, TASM2

Let’s go back to the beginning one more time…

Earth-120703 (Webb Universe) Queens. May 2014

If you think you know everything that happened between Peter and Harry, you're wrong….

‘Complicated’ doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface.

“So. Gwen.”

Peter’s heart moved painfully in his chest at her name on his lips. Fuck, there was so much to unpack there.

“What about her?

“That whole thing still, ‘complicated?’”

Peter frowns before opening and taking an equal pull off the lip of his bottle. Complicated was a word for it alright. He lets out a resigned sigh. It’s not complicated. Its over. He’s fucked up with her too many times. He just can’t seem to figure out what he wants. She knows what she wants.

“More like, not gonna happen again even if I want it to,” he mutters, hating how much truth there is behind those words.

“Well good, because then I don't feel guilty doing this.”

Before Peter could even start to think of a response Harry is closing the distance between them with a hard press of his lips. Peter startles in his sudden, strong grasp, but it's equally as grounding as Harry moves his lips expertly against Peter’s.

It’s not long before Peter’s kissing back with equal force. He’s had a crush on Harry since he was 8 years old, and he was pretty sure the same went for Harry. Even if they absolutely never talked about it. Talking wasn't really their strong suit. They learned early on they responded better physically.

They kissed like they were making up for lost time, which in a lot of ways they were. Their traumatic childhoods, abusive fathers, school transfers, and other relationships had gotten in the way every time. But not now. Now it was just him and Harry, all alone in his penthouse suite.

Why was he here again?

Peter is the one directing things now, ignoring everything but the man in his arms.

Harry begins to paw against the raised edges of his suit, determined to get it off and Peter chuckles. He lifts Harry up and helps his legs around Peter’s hips so he can continue his ministrations.

By the time they crossed the threshold of the bedroom Peter could find in his sleep, Harry’s clothes were open and moments from falling off. Meanwhile, Peter was still very much in his suit.

Harry huffs in genuine frustration, poking at the reinforced material in annoyance.

“I no longer like the suit.”

Peter laughs genuinely before reaching under a small flap at the left side of his neck. From there he exposes a small zipper-pull that he drags down fluidly. The remainder of the suit falls down at his feet.

“Better?” He asks.

Harry didn't even try to hide his obvious ogling.

“Much.”

“Good,” Peter grins, returning his attention to Harry’s neck, sucking hickies into the unscaled side. It draws needy whimpers from the heir under him in no time. It makes Peter chuckle. Yeah, sure Harry might have known Peter’s tells enough to figure out his biggest secret, but Peter knew some of Harry’s secrets too.

“I missed you Peter.”

“I know baby,” he sighs, achingly vulnerable. They had missed so many opportunities. “I missed you too.” He reclaims Harry’s lips, hands moving to his open belt to pull down jeans that fit Harry about as snugly as his suit fit him. He didn't hate it, everything looked good on Harry. But he wanted them off, now.

A sharp pull down and Harry’s cock sprang free, angry, red and ready for more than he was currently getting. Peter grins knowingly. “Still dress like a slut huh?”

Harry shivers pleasantly under him, eyes searching, hungry for more.

“I was hoping you'd come back tonight.”

“So this is for me?” He asks, running his hand down Harry’s bare thigh, before gripping his leaking cock at the base.

Harry’s hips fly upward with a surprised gasp, but Peter’s extra strength grip on his hip keeps Harry right where he wants him. Harry lets out a frustrated growl. Only using a little bit of his newly acquired strength to continuously test Peter’s hold.

“What, you’re going to tease me to death? That’s just cruel.”

Peter chuckles to play along but the causal mention of Harry’s impending death takes another solid chunk of his heart with it.

“I’m going to give you everything you ask for Sweetheart,” he promises. Because this, he could actually promise. Unlike what he promised Uncle Ben.

And Captain Stacy.

Aunt May.

Gwen.

Harry’s hips arch and his voice breaks against Peter's unyielding hold, snapping the brunette out of his head and back to the present moment.

“Well, what I want is for you to touch me Peter. Preferably sooner rather than later.”

Peter squeezes his hand all the way up to the tip before twisting on the glide back down. Harry arches and gasps into the touch, huffing in frustration when Peter’s hand stops again.

“Is that all you want me to do?”

Harry tries to glare, but he’s too worked up to stay angry. Instead he flushes crimson.

“…No.”

As a reward, Peter pumps his hand again, spreading precum all over the head of Harry’s cock before gliding slickly back down.

“Fuck,” Harry chokes, his head digging into a nest of pillows.

Peter smirks.

“Is that an official request?” He pumps the man’s cock faster now, rubbing just long enough for Harry’s eyes to start to roll back into his head.

Harry still hadn’t answered though, so Peter releases his grip all together. Harry’s cock twitches helplessly against open air and he curses as he's denied friction again.

Frustrated, Harry’s hand shoots down to finish the work Peter started. But before his hand can reach its destination, an equally fast web catches his hand and secures it to one of the corners of the bed.

“Fuck.” Harry stares at his attached wrist with wide, shocked eyes before letting out an amused chuckle. “That’s hot Pete.”

Peter snorts. Harry being into bondage was not surprising in the slightest. He fires another web to Harry's other wrist, watching with a smirk as his eyes glaze over, proving Peter’s theory.

Peter can’t help but think Harry looks good like this, naked with his arms bound, his pathetic cock stiff and wet jutting up between wide open legs. Ready for anything Peter will give him.

Peter crawls further up the bed, straddling Harry’s chest. It puts his own hard cock perfectly in line with Harry’s mouth.

“You’re in the wrong spot if you’re going to fuck me,” Harry sasses, but Peter doesnt take the deflective bait.

“I’d really hate to web your mouth shut too, but I will if I have to.”

Harry licks his lips, eyeing Peter’s own heavy and proud standing erection.

“Then you’d lose the benefit of what my mouth can do.”

Peter grips the blonde's chin tight, inspecting Harry's open and waiting mouth for a tortuously long time. His cock bobs just breaths away from the blonde's mouth, and he counts three separate times Harry’s impatient tongue seeks out a taste. Instead of giving it to him, Peter drops the man’s chin and tsks,

“I suppose it'll do."

Peters' blatant dismissal tore a small, helpless moan out of Harry and Peter reveled in the knowledge he knew Harry’s kinks like the back of his hand. His first boy crush turned obsession was his best friend; 6 years apart felt like nothing the second they were together again.

He held Harry's mouth steady as he lined up his own cock with the slick entrance. Harry licks his lips once more, but Peter keeps everything right where he wants it. “Show me your safe word.”

Harry’s foot kicked the headboard three times rapidly. It echos loudly in the room and Peter feels satisfied in his ability to hear it once they got started.

“Good boy.”

“Please, Peter,” Harry begs, desperation clear.

Peter smiles, rubbing the outside of Harry’s cheek with the head of his cock. Precum glistens across the skin and Peter's eyes narrow on the way his thin pink tongue reaches desperately to get a taste.

“Slut,” he remarks and Harry nods.

“Please, let me show you how much.”

Peter doesn’t waste another second. He slides his cock into Harry’s mouth, gliding until he felt the wide head push against the tight muscles of his throat. The muffled groan that came out of Harry was nothing short of pornographic, and he wishes more than anything he had his camera right now.

He pulls back to give Harry a chance for air before sliding back in. He’s able to fit a little more this time.

Harry's eyes roll back into his head and his hips twitch into the open air above him.

Peter isn’t close enough for him to grind against on purpose.

“You're doing so good Harry,” he appropriately praises, because Peter had been in as deep as he could be for almost a minute now and Harry hasn't gagged, protested, or requested air. Harry Obsorn, living up to his playboy reputation.

When he eventually does need it, all it takes is a look. A gentle pleading with his glacial blue eyes and Peter was pulling out just enough for Harry to breathe through his nose.

“Since I'm feeling nice,” Peter starts, pushing Harry’s sweat-slick locks out of his eyes before sinking back into his mouth, “I’ll let you choose where I cum.”

Peter felt more than heard Harry’s muffled curse against his cock. He continues. “I personally want to see what this pretty face looks like, ruined with my cum.”

Harry's bound body shivered pleasurably once more, his needy whine causing vibrations to radiate up his cock. He felt Harry’s desperate empty attempt to fuck anything but air between his legs and smirked. Of course Harry likes that idea. “But, I also remember how much you like to be filled. And I’ve been dreaming about this ass since you came back to town.”

Harry jolted in the restraints like he had been electrocuted. It took Peter a second to realize it was him forcefully trying to pull from the webbed restraints.

Peter smirks proudly, motioning at his self-manufactured web shooter. “They're the real deal baby.”

Harry huffs in obvious frustration, yanking himself off Peter’s dick.

“Pete please! You know how much I hate it when you tease me!”

Peter laughs at his best friends expense because there was no way he was stopping now.

“Aw, is wittle Hwarry Osborn upset because he can't get something immediately?”

“Fuck You, Parker.”

Peter scratches the side of his head in sarcastic contemplative thought.

“I’m pretty sure you’ve confirmed twice now it’s you who wants to get fucked. But I get it. I mean, it's gotta be annoying, needing something so bad only to realize that not even your money can buy it.” To articulate his point, he reaches his hand back and rakes the tips of his nails up the length of Harry’s still hard, slick cock.

“Fuck!" Harry moans in the form of a bubbled sob, his hips jerking erratically in a way that signals he was nearing his final breaking point. This was as good as a submission Peter would get before Harry became either overstimulated, bored, or too frustrated to continue.

“Cum for me good boy,” Peter orders in his ear; quiet, secretive, intimate.

Harry cums with a loud strangled cry, his hips pumping desperately up in the open air as his orgasm rushes through him. Peter feels cum coat his ass and the back of his legs.

Afterwards he leans down and connects their lips, licking away the saltiness of his own preum from Harry’s tongue.

Harry fights to catch his breath after such a strong orgasm. But when he does, he’s back to spewing demands, as if he wasn’t the one on his back, tied up.

"I still want you to fuck me."

*check back Sunday for the full chapter*

[wario-speedwagon]

Dave and Old Sport Adopt a Kid: Chapter 13

Hello! Happy first birthday to this fic! I can't believe this fic has come this far. Thanks for all who have tagged along for the ride, and I hope you enjoy today's chapter! Full chapter below the cut! <3

Chapter 1 Chapter 12

Chapter 13

“So Scott sure wasn’t happy with us, huh!” Dave finally commented with fake cheerfulness to break the awkward silence that had hung in the air of that dingy car.

It only ended up making the following silence even more awkward than before when there was no reply beyond a deep breath. Jack didn’t have the spoons to start up such forced small talk, not with everything that was on his mind right now.

So seeing that Jack was still staunchly “focused on the road,” Dave went back to rubbing the shoulder of Pruny, who was leaned up against him in the back seat. He could practically feel her trembling.

Despite not really having one, his heart went out to her, as he could tell exactly how she was feeling based on her behavior, if only because it reminded him so much of his own during a “bad day” back in his Henry days.

Now that he thought about it, the way he himself was cradling his own injured eye with his other hand was also just as… nostalgic.

Dave figured it must be an Aubergine trait to keep up such a brave face in spite of it all, as despite being so shaken, there weren’t any more tears he could see. Dave petted her head out of bittersweet pride, to which she responded by readjusting herself more comfortably.

Dave would be content with this bittersweet peace, except unfortunately Pruny’s wellbeing wasn’t the only big concern of his. He couldn’t really take in all the confusion in the heat of the moment, but now that he could properly sit on his unanswered thoughts, the implications of the words exchanged today started to become… rather serious. But only if “Jack” could prove his fears were founded.

So after another couple minutes of sitting in all this uncomfortable nothing, Dave eventually took a shot:

“Hey, so we gonna talk about what happened or…?”

“...U-Uh—”

“...Because the other option would be to keep actin’ like it never happened, and I’m sure as hell not doin’ that.”

“...Later. When we get home.”

“Alright, fair enough I suppose.”

More silence settled in the air, though now with some of the tension broken at least. Dave found himself relishing in how Old Sport called it “going home.” And “going home” how it seemed to naturally include himself and Pruny now. Or maybe he was overthinking things again. Either way, for how much Sportsy played “hard-to-get,” he sure was falling easily into this new family dynamic.

It was good that his family was starting to form on its own, hopefully without further need for intervention. But after the shit that went down today… he couldn’t be too hopeful.

No, this stuff needs to be aired out now. Hiding secrets only ever led to more hurt later on. He learned that lesson from Henry a lot.

“How’s your eye doing?”

“Oh. Probably fine. It’s not the first time it’s been roughed up like this.” Although it was usually a blunt impact from a wrench rather than a scratch, but—

“We should probably take you to a doctor.”

“Hah! In this economy?”

“Okay then, coward, I hope you’re ready to be a pirate if it gets infected though, cuz I don’t have a first aid kit good enough for that.”

“You kiddin’? I’d look badass with an eyepatch!”

“...You might have to retire your kiddie strangling days though.”

…Well that came out of left field. Dave wasn’t comfortable with how serious he sounded either...

He’d never really put much thought into it yet since this all began… If they kept up this whole “family” schtick, then would it make sense to keep up their “kiddie strangling” schtick as well? He hated it, but Sportsy might have a point about that.

…But what if they made Pruny “Kiddie Strangler 3.0” and made a cute murder family? Now that'd be the best of both worlds—he was smiling just imagining it!

Eh, but something told him that Pruny wouldn’t be all that gung-ho about the idea. Even Dave himself hated the idea at first when Henry started with him. What if she warmed up to it though…?

From now on, this won’t be happening again.

Sportsy's earlier words cut through his thoughts. Was he really so willing to give up what they had that easily? Or maybe he didn't really mean it, or he meant something else… Fuck, it had him concerned though. Why was Sportsy such a doormat to that thing, anyway?

That whole scene today had so many questions to dive into.

And while Dave hadn’t quite pieced it together in the moment, he was sure now in hindsight that “Jack Kennedy” was what that thing—”Dee”?—was calling Old Sport. He’d never even considered until then that Old Sport had a name, but now he had to know.

“Jack?”

The orange guy's head tilted accordingly.

“That your name? Jack Kennedy? That’s what she was calling you. And you were callin’ her ‘Dee’—”

“I’ll explain when we get home, Dave, just—please, not right now.”

“Okay.”

“...But yeah, that is my name.”

“Huh…” Dave wasn’t sure if he’d be used to him having a real name.

But still: it seemed that the bright side of today would be that Old Sport was finally going to really open up to him about everything!

You don't even remember what you did to Jack Kennedy. And apparently neither does he.

…Okay, maybe he was feeling a just a little bit intimidated to unpack all that.

...Even more so now that he just remembered the name Dee Kennedy. And which of his victims it belonged to.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Violet, meanwhile, had been tuning out their occasional muffled conversation and reliving her experiences that day.

The puppet had been so nice and fun to her! Was it genuine, or was that thing really dangerous?

You were on your way out. Leave the kid alone, comprende?...

…Prune, get out of here.

The way Dave fiercely threatened that thing while Jack nervously negotiated with it, the way it tried to keep her from them and the way Jack pushed her to escape…

She didn’t know what conclusions to draw from all that except that they were not good, not at all. The puppet and them were clearly old enemies somehow. And right before she and the Phone Guy came back into the room, she barely yet certainly heard Jack shouting something inside, and Dave was on the ground covering his face like it was hurt once they entered. Dave was still nursing that injury right now next to her…

She wished she would have been able to tell what the puppet was apparently saying to them so she’d not be so hopelessly in the dark about what had just occurred.

Was this all her fault for running off with it? Did she cause this? Did she get Dave hurt? Is there something she could have done to make them not fight? Or would things have at least gone better if she’d just hurried up and spat out what she needed to say sooner to the Phone Guy—!

She realized she'd worked herself up again when she felt tears forming in her eyes again, so she tried to stop the what-ifs. But just after her breath hitched, she felt a giant hand pat her head again, knocking those tears loose down her face, before his hand returned to her shoulder again. She still tried to fight the urge to cry, but once her breath hitched a second time, she instead just let it all happen. And she heard Dave take notice as he softly cooed something in comfort to her (not that she could see what he said) while he hugged her tighter against him.

This... This was a new feeling. She'd never felt... good crying before... Was that even allowed?

...No. With them, she decided dumb rules like that didn't even matter.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The loud sound of the entrance doors closing reverberated through the dark and empty dining room, almost like some old, empty cathedral. Scott fumbled with his ring of jingling keys before finding the right one which he then inserted and turned to lock up the entrance, filling the haunting silence behind him with more echoing clicks.

And then he sighed loudly because no one could hear him but these walls. Well, in theory anyway. Because that puppet was still unaccounted for, and was frankly only the second greatest source of his stress right now.

First place of course went to the police investigation, the missing children scandal, the distraught parents he'd faced, all of it weighing heavily on his mind. It was unbearable, simultaneously hoping a solid lead came out of it for their sakes while actively fearing the fulfillment of that same exact hope for his own sake.

But then on top of that, there was the whole Jack, Dave and puppet fiasco, and it was putting so many extra thoughts on his mind, thoughts he just didn’t have the headspace to handle right now. Words replaying in his head repeatedly—

And you, Dee. I know you have no reason to believe me ever again— Save it, Jack. I’m not interested in what you have to say anymore. Dee, just listen to me— You listen to ME, Jack Kennedy! Dee— —Jack Kennedy! Dee—! —Kennedy!

The names especially kept repeating ad nauseum. For such few words he overheard, they haunted Scott incessantly. They agitated so many memories and images in his head that didn’t belong in his wiring—

His orange employee who recently knelt down comforting a purple child—except somehow that image felt like a much older memory than just a mere day ago… no, was it a different child maybe? But then why would Jack be there? Why would Jack be in his old memories? Or was it someone else he was being reminded of? ...Yeah, someone decidedly less orange, probably. But then why does he have the same last name as himself—a-as Peter? There’s simply no way that could…

...So does Jack know Peter? Is that the conclusion to draw? Does that puppet!? Because they clearly knew each other somehow with how they talked—Dee, that was its name? Dee?... Dee… Dee… Dee…Kennedy? Did that last name fit there too? Maybe it might but he couldn't be sure either way.

The puppet… is still out there hiding somewhere… Could he…

…ask it?

...Did he want to?

Either way, he had to find it to contain it and prevent Freddy’s from having any more reasons to shut down.

Knowing the puppet was maybe a person of some sort, though, that course of action felt kind of… wrong…

No, Scott didn't have time for such ethical quandries in these dire times. He reached for his flashlight and began his search. It was certainly daunting, both because that thing could be lurking anywhere, and depending on its mood, it could be any level of dangerous if he was caught unaware.

Then again, death by puppet was probably far more favorable than the “proper” way for a Phone Guy to go…

Scott decided he hadn’t checked the ballpit in a while today, so he made that his first search destination. As he approached the door for that room, though, a chilling whisper from behind him stopped him in his tracks:

“You’re looking for me, aren’t you?”

He immediately turned, and the flashlight beam revealed a damaged puppet standing amongst the dining tables just two rows away.

“I-I suppose I am, yes.”

“To put me back in my box, right?”

“I can't have you causing any more trouble for me.”

“Do I have to stay in there?

…I have no desire to hurt anyone you know.”

“Th-That’s not what I saw there in the Saferoom.”

“Those two were different. They’re murderers.”

Scott had suspected that a fair bit, actually, but it was still chilling to hear that seemingly confirmed. Dave was obvious, but perhaps after seeing how Jack was with that girl, he’d started to dismiss his previous doubts with him. He didn't remember Jack being like Dave—

“‘Dee,’ was it? Do you know Jack?”

“I do.”

“How so?”

“He was my brother.”

“Your brother?”

“I’m not a robot, Scott. I’m the soul of Dee Kennedy.”

Uncertainty was finally clearing up as things started clicking into place.

“And that makes him Jack Kennedy, then?”

“Naturally.”

But as addicting as the straightforward answers were, he still hesitated to get to the crux of his questions.

“... …Was there a Peter Kennedy as well?”

“Peter? He was our older brother. Why?”

That confirmed it. It was so obvious now that he knew for sure; Peter did have something like siblings, didn't he? Of course he did!

“Do you know Peter?”

“...Sort of? …This is going to sound strange because it is, but… I have several of his memories rattling around in my memory banks for some reason.”

“Memories? Like what?” she asked with sudden alert interest.

“It’s… Well, a lot of them involve a wife named Caroline. She’s in most of them. Her, and his job at Freddy’s before he died. Oh, and a kind of pinkish man, the guy that killed him. He and Peter both keep showing up in my nightmares lately…”

The puppet was perked up over something he said, though remained silent for a while. But then it eventually cut the silence, bursting with:

“Your ring, you have a wedding ring, right?”

“Y-Yeah, of course, I do have a wife besides Caroline…”

“Take it off! Is there any writing on the inside!?”

“U-Uh, hold on a sec…?” Scott did as told. After sliding it off, he carefully held the flashlight up to it at an angle where he could inspect the inside of it. After a few moments, he did notice some fancy etched calligraphy.

…

His heart skipped a beat.

“Does it say something like ‘Peter, lawful husband of Caroline’?”

“How do you know that!?”

“Because I was there when you picked it out! And you were so annoying when you made sure everyone saw it!”

Peter’s eyes were still glued to the golden ring he was holding, still in awe that such an answer had been on his finger this whole time, so he didn’t even notice her rapidly approaching—

“Woah—!”

—for a hug.

“It IS you! It’s you, Peter, isn’t it!?”

“...” He couldn't bring himself to reciprocate the hug.

“...Isn’t it?”

“... I don’t know. Just because I… have his ring… there's countless other ways I could end up with his ring. Because I-I’m Scott Cawthon. I have my own life, my own family, my own memories—”

“—But you have Peter’s memories!”

“It’s probably a programming fluke—”

“No way!” she whined.

“Puppet, it’s time you returned to your box,” he said coldly, unwrapping her rope-like limbs from their embrace.

“No! Not unless you tell me that you’re Peter!”

“...” He simply couldn't keep eye contact with her anymore.

“Please! Peter, I haven’t seen you in so long!”

“... Good night, Miss Puppet. Behave yourself, I’ll see you in the morning.”

“No!”

Scott turned to make his exit.

Stringy arms immediately wrapped around him from behind again, holding him back.

“Dee—”

“That’s right, I’m Dee! Your baby sister! You raised me yourself, you and Jack!”

“That’s enough, Dee, please let me go.”

“No! Please don’t leave me, not again!”

Peter’s heart shattered.

“Please!”

…No, he saw no other recourse than to just make a run for it, and with enough force that he broke free from her grasp.

“Don’t go! Please!” the child wailed behind him, abandoning her dignity. He wished this was only the first time he'd heard that wailing, because he couldn't help her this time—

His heart was racing—he fumbled through the keys again once he reached the locked entrance while the Puppet rapidly followed him; when she arrived—

“Dee, enough.” A different voice came out of him, and with enough desperate sternness that she stopped immediately in her tracks.

“Peter... that’s your voice…”

“Goodnight, Dee,” he firmly reiterated, switching back to the voicebox like nothing happened.

“No!” she protested one last time—

His cold, sweaty hands turned the key and quickly pushed the door open to leave as fast as he could— ...and then firmly pressing his back against the outside building wall which he started to slide down, he attempted to soothe a panic attack he didn't realize he was having until now.

At this rate, his brain was going to fry.

(Chapter 14)->

[throughtrialbyfire]

HEEHOO GET ⭐⭐⭐

HEHEHEHHEE OKAY since u sent three i'll pick three scenes bc i love. rambling. okay.

this one is going to be a slight continuation of the answer here, as this scene is from chapter 16 and relates directly back! this got long (like, REALLY long), so i'm gonna put it under a readmore. i'll be putting my notes between the paragraphs of the scene!

He narrowed his gaze down at them. Athenath shrunk back. Looked away. Every word that fled from the Bosmer's lips burned their ears. His voice, low, sturdy as an oak, varnished by years of what must have been an adventurous life, to have such a charisma to his words, to himself, no matter who he spoke to or where he went- It made Athenath realize just how small their own life was in comparison.

[Athenath is the youngest of the trio, and Emeros is the eldest. this creates an interesting dynamic between them when they get into spats like this one, over something fairly serious and fairly personal. athenath feels small in this moment because after the fight (and athenath was left to cool off a bit), emeros came to check on them and directly asked them what was wrong, and told them that he needs to know what set them off since they're gonna be traveling together. the fact someone he fought with sought him out after and checked in, was calm, considerate, and still stern… it's not something athenath is used to, to put it lightly.]

A beat passed, maybe two. People milled about in the market square, and Heimskr cawed on with his sermon, a bird hopping around a bear trap and daring it to snap shut on him. [you know. talos worship and the white-gold concordat and all that *waves hand*] "Maybe."

Emeros hesitated, leaning back against the bench, the sun-warmed wood meeting his spine through his clothes. "I suppose that's a fair answer. Perhaps I'm just surprised, is all." "You shouldn't be," Athenath snorted, the tinge of a sneer against their mouth, "one of the first things we did after that dragon bullshit is go up to those stones. I chose Thief, remember?" "Is that what you are, then? A thief?" If they said yes, then what would he think? And if they said no, then would it be worse to lie? Would it be easier to swallow the concept of a one-off impulse, or to see him and what he was? To lay bare the fact of their less honorable profession, Bravil's dirt-caked streets a bittersweet memory that gave them these quick hands, this sharp tongue? Athenath didn't look to the other Mer, instead drawing their focus somewhere on the horizon as they said, "yeah. Sort of."

[athenath has never mentioned having been to, or spent lots of time in, bravil. he's always told his friends he's from anvil and leyawiin, because they KNOW what reputation the city of bravil has, and that he spent a good few years there and learned how to be a better thief… it's a lot. and it would be a lot to admit to all of this, especially in the middle of this whole situation. also, not being able to stand looking directly at emeros. to face the fact they hid something they stole in his belongings. that they did something wrong and wronged someone he's starting to care about. AUGH………….]

Emeros pulled his ankle over his knee and drummed his fingers along the side of his boot. He sat a moment, eyes avoiding the other now, as well, his breaths slow. Steady. Controlled. "Well." "Well." Athenath repeated. "I'm going to presume that this isn't a recent development?" "Nope." "Then why," he leaned forward, worry etched into the lines of his mouth, dimpling at his cheeks, "why did you hide this? If we had known, we could… We could have-" "What, stopped me?" Athenath scrunched up their face. "It's not like this was some random urge. I did this 'cause I wanted to, y'know." The further admissions of guilt alarmed both of them, in a way. Emeros tugged his cowl from his head, letting it drape loosely over his strong shoulders. He set his jaw, as though he were struggling with a potion he'd only been taught once many years ago by a mentor he'd rather ignore than heed, the evident confusion melting into his features, the lowering of his brow and the tension in his jaw and the burden of concern in his eyes. He shifted his torso to face the bard further. "While not an impulse, it was still dreadfully impulsive, Athenath. And hiding it among my belongings, I assure you, will not earn you any favor with me. Quite the opposite, in fact."

[haha, the conse's are quencing.]

Athenath grit their own jaw and rolled their eyes in a wide arc. Emeros caught every inch of the expressions they made. The Altmer was on a ledge in their mind, balling their fists. The smallest fragments of places, people, actions long-taken, long-gone, all of it bled into him now, here, worn and tired from the tension. The bard bounced his leg, boot making tiny tapping noises against the stone as he avoided Emeros' gaze. Wouldn't even look him in the face. "He sold it to a Justiciar. If I can keep even one thing out of the Dominion's hands, I'll do it." "You didn't know who the customer was when you stole it, though." "And? Now that I know-" "Athenath." "Emeros." They shot each other's names out like darts. They sat, staring into one another's faces, both searching for an answer that wasn't there.

[i want to expand on this whole scene one day but for now this snippet gives a good overview of the situation - athenath made a mistake that is also a habit/profession. they did something wrong, and hid the evidence in the belongings of someone he's traveling with. who's to say the guards wouldn't have searched emeros' belongings? or wyndrelis'? who's to say if they hid it in wyndrelis' belongings, that the mage would even be mad? i mean, he wouldn't be happy, but he doesn't have the same hatred of the thalmor (on a deeper level than just thinking they suck) that emeros and athenath have, so it wasn't a random decision for me to make athenath hide stolen goods in emeros' bag.

now, emeros is confronting them on that mistake. he's setting boundaries and saying he won't tolerate that, and the fact that he's being stern but still trying to be friendly, trying to not let it show how betrayed he feels (he defended athenath from belethors accusations, after all) and still trying to make it all work even when athenath seems like he's pushing him away… it says a hell of a lot about emeros, i think. and it says a hell of a lot about athenath, too, that after this, he apologizes and makes a joke and finally looks emeros in the face. AUGH.]

oh that was a lot of typing im so sorry HAHAJKHGDFKJGHFDHG

i've focused a lot on these two, but we GOTTA give everyone's favorite anxious mage some love!! so i'm gonna focus on wyndrelis here >:3c this is from chapter 21!!

It bothered him, how much space this occupied. Not the image of someone bloodied and in need of help, that much he could handle. No, it was the nagging suspicion of something wrong. Someone pulling a trick, sleight of hand like a jester in the streets of the Imperial City, deceiving himself and his companions. That moment the scraggly Altmer had made the tiniest flick of a weakened wrist - the smallest thing that Wyndrelis seemed to be the only one to notice - the sour taste of metal latched to his tongue. Magic cast when someone was desperate. A spell from a mage without much left to give. And when he'd held a hand near the other, his own magicka had been met with a repelling force like the Dwemeri magnets he'd studied once with an old colleague. The ends opposing. A force meeting force, an uncomfortable sensation that pushed back against his hand. And what had he said about Illusion magic?

[this scene… ough. it's fair to say wyndrelis doesn't think highly of himself, which will show up later. but right now, let's focus on the magic: it's a tangible thing, it's an intangible thing. to me, magic is like the mycelium of energy - it extends outwards towards sources, it bumps into other sources, it changes course. when it's used, it can be felt by others proficient in the craft. hell, it can be tasted, smelled, and touched, depending on what the caster has done with it. and this scene is wyndrelis mulling over the events of chapter 19, the injured person they found off the road, and the fact that not all was what it seemed with that man. i think magicka can touch other magicka, and either be pulled in, muddled together, or repelled. and in this case, wyndrelis is wondering why there was such a strong, repelling force.]

The thick, dark clouds lowered into their slow graves in the hills, ground marshy and squelching under the boots of the farmers who checked now on their animals and their crops, returned to duties put off for the weather. Wyndrelis preferred to stay in the trio's room for the day, the sight of the hearth so near to him making his palms shake. He laid there in the dim, a book left behind by a former patron of the inn propped against a bent knee, reading silently as he struggled to distract from his unease. The sun sloped into the inn's high windows, or the half-alive vestiges of it, the light weak against the forces of the torches and hearthlight. Footsteps interrupted his thoughts, but he kept his eyes locked on the book, turning a page quietly.

[the trio had, only days prior, dealt with the fight at the western watchtower. and then wyndrelis and farengar's attempt at figuring out a staff in chapter 17 went wrong and caught the floor on fire. and of course, wyndrelis' personal history with fire is not a good one, so it's safe to say he's enjoying being away from the hearth and just… trying to relax.]

"You okay?" Athenath asked, leaning casually against the doorframe. Their arms folded over their chest and dark eyes locked on him, the Altmer gave the mage a quizzical look as he faced them momentarily before his gaze once more landed on the pages before him. "Yes." Athenath looked to be suppressing the momentary twitch of a frown. "You sure?" The Dunmer waited a moment before pushing himself up out of his recline, shoving his fingers through his dark hair until it was tousled and feathery. Explaining to the younger elf the situation seemed like an effort not worth taking. He doubted they would understand why he was concerned. The sights of the bodies, the putrid stench of death, all of it had jostled their nerves enough, no use telling them anything else, let alone that they may have sent something awful Whiteruns way with a handwritten note and a wave.

[this is a recurring theme of the other two elves underestimating athenath, frankly. it's both to do with their age - he's 24, which is still an adult to elves, but its also an age lacking a shitton of life experience among them - and their personality, where athenath tends to act very youthful, light-hearted, and cheery.

all of this congeals into the other two's underestimations of their bard friend. wyndrelis, being the middle of the trio, still falls into this trap himself despite not being that old compared to most elves. he's probably in his 50s-60s, chronologically. in a way, wyndrelis does want to protect both of his companions. he's actively healed them in dangerous situations before healing himself (bleak falls barrow, for example) and defended them with wards. but here, that protection also carries the weight of underestimation, which wyndrelis falls into subconsciously.]

He combed the strands into place with his hands. He couldn't find anything to occupy his attention other than the questions that burned holes in his ears no matter how hard he struggled. Could he even begin to explain the thoughts worming through his mind, burrowing deep into the subconscious parts, eating their fill on his suspicions? He couldn't. He rubbed at his shoulder. He shut his eyes and breathed in the warm air. His mind stagnated on the idea, how to explain, what to say. He wondered if Emeros held the same discomfort in his chest about the blond elf.

[a LOT of the imagery i use for wyndrelis has to do with things like death, decay, bones, ravens/crows, and etc. i love just pointing that out because it's a hell of a lot of fun. all three of them have their unique themes in imagery (emeros gets a lot of hawk/wolf imagery, and athenath gets a lot of cat imagery, for example), and this is a great example of it. and a continuation of his thoughts on the previous day, and his inability to just ask emeros or athenath if either of them have the same feeling. to say wyndrelis has low self-esteem is putting it lightly, and fears a negative response and a "what are you talking about? it's nothing" reply to his concerns.]

"It's a long story." He settled on his reply, words dripping out from his lips on the trail of a long exhale, Athenath traipsing easily over and plopping down into one of the creaking chairs in their room. Slinging their arms on the rests, he craned his posture lightly forward, intrigue in the knit of his brow. "Wanna get into it?" The offer could have been genuine, but the Dunmer had no faith in it. Mostly, he had no faith that they would even listen, or be interested. Wyndrelis shook his head. "No, no thank you."

[POINTS AT MY PRIOR POINT. wyndrelis' low self-esteem is a huge issue for him that he'll need to work through for the good of all three of them. he's an incredible mage, but that's all he feels competent with. and even when someone offers to hear him out, he rejects it, and even redirects the conversation after this.]

and now, this scene from chapter 6, which is hilarious and very telling, and relates back to the scenes i've commented on above in a way. its very light-hearted overall, so its a good piece to end on!

"I'm just glad we're not traveling during the Great War. Horrible time to be on the road, that was." "Really?" Wyndrelis arched a brow as he shut his bag and set it under his seat. "I wasn't traveling then." "You weren't?" The Dunmer shook his head again as Emeros leaned back in his chair, an arm slung over the back. "What were you doing during that time?" "I was still at home, working on my studies." Wyndrelis waved the admission away with an absent hand. "Gods, it was a mess. Every opportunistic bandit in all of Tamriel set upon some of those truly isolated roads. Not to mention, having to skirt battlefields and navigate around all of that… Well, I'm just glad that whole affair is done with." After a long pause, all eyes landed on Athenath, who shrunk back. "What were you doing during the Great War? Gallavanting about with your tambourine?" He teased, light-hearted in his tone.

[emeros spent most of his younger years traveling. he left home at 16, and traversed Valenwood until he decided his call to alchemy - difficult to practice with the green pact, y'know - was more important, and he went to cyrodiil for a while. then hammerfell, high rock, cyrodiil again, and now skyrim. he's got a hell of a lot of experience on the roads, and was actively traveling during the great war!

meanwhile, wyndrelis was working on his studies to join the synod one day. he is the only mage in his family for various reasons, and he was discouraged from pursuing magic. however, he still did, and he taught himself the basics at home. then he wound up in the college of whispers for other reasons, and there, he excelled. during the great war, he was studying, though.]

Athenath sat there, quiet. "Well, no, not exactly." The Altmer sat on the bed, the shaggy cut of their hair more apparent now that it was no longer neatly combed, curls running past their shoulders. His dark eyes were round and curious, but now, they tried not to look directly in the faces of either of his companions, flitting between the other two's hands or torsos, chin tucking to their neck. Emeros narrowed his gaze, his intrigue clearly piqued by the awkwardly mumbled statement. "What do you mean, 'no, not exactly'?" The alchemist questioned slowly. Athenath dragged their palms down their face, as though he'd been dreading this. Wyndrelis carefully observed as the bard heaved a loud, dramatic sigh, fiddling with a corner of their vest. He mumbled something the other two couldn't hear. "What?" Wyndrelis asked. Athenath looked up, frown creasing the edge of his lips. "I'm twenty-four. I was born a few years after the Great War." They uttered the admission with a level of embarrassment, and Wyndrelis understood why. An elven childhood lasted about the same length as any humans, the shortest period of their lifespans and often marked with celebrations, then their lives slowed, all things eased to a stroll as they grew older. This placed Athenath squarely in adulthood, but among other Mer, a young adult was treated as naive and lacking in the knowledge of their peers. Among humans or Khajiit or Argonians, this was grown out of quickly as responsibilities and families cropped up in those years, but among Mer, this was a particularly scathing presumption, treated less like capable adults and more like overgrown children, weeds among oaks.

[THIS okay this is what i was talking about earlier. okay. so the point made here is that while for non-elven people, these years would be marked by already having children, marriages, careers, or being in their studies and having sufficient experience in at least some fields (apprenticeships in early life, for example), among elves, this is seen as the time period where you're off to your studies/starting apprenticeships or getting out into the world. this is the time period where elves are expected to be quiet and learn their shit. athenath had a pretty rough start to being out on his own at 16, so they've had to figure things out and do their best, and he's encountered a lot of other elves who, upon learning they're not even in their 70s yet, discredit everything he says and brush away their opinions as those of a young lad who still has too much to learn to be taken seriously. and it gets to athenath a lot, and they don't like bringing up that he was born after the great war.]

"What?" Emeros' eyes widened, laughter brimming in his voice as he cupped his hands over his mouth. "My gods, I figured you looked a little young, but-" "Oh, shut up," Athenath plucked a coin from his own pocket and tossed it feebly at Emeros' shoulder, watching the glittering septim bounce off his form, the Bosmer laughing. Wyndrelis considered stepping in, but there was a humorous grin at the edge of the bard's mouth. Emeros picked the coin up off the floor, holding it between his thumb and forefinger. "Aw, is the infant feeling fussy?" He cooed in a mocking-sweet tone as he linked his fingers together, Wyndrelis stifling his own laughter. Athenath heaved a monumentally dramatic sigh, throwing their head against the mattress of the shared bed. Emeros chided, "none of that, now, you don't want to injure your soft spot." After the Altmer gave a strangled groan of frustration, Wyndrelis couldn't fight his urge to follow in the teasing. "Do you need a nap?" The Dunmer managed through his own tittering. Athenath's eyes locked on him and he plucked another coin in a slow, menacing manner. Wyndrelis held up his arms in defense, prepared for the gold to be tossed his way. Athenath plopped the coin back into his pocket with a sigh.

[this scene is so much fun for so many reasons. athenath expected the other two to treat them as lesser, but instead, they've taken that presumption all the way to its extreme for a joke. the trio JUST went through helgen and bleak falls barrow together, the respect for one another is already solidifying, and while this will have an impact that bites them all in the asses later, right now it's all jokes because how could they really see athenath as incapable of handling himself when they all JUST fought draugr and solved ancient puzzles together??]

"Come on, you don't even look much older than me. Weren't you a kid during the Great War, Wyndrelis?" Wyndrelis ticked his tongue. "I was in my twenties." Athenath pressed his face into their hands. The look he gave Wyndrelis through his fingers was a pouting plea for the other to help him out here, a little. "And I was already in my thirties when it ended," Emeros tutted, "so you can do the maths on that." Punctuating with a wink, he leaned back in his chair comfortably, the bard's grin sprawling wider.

[this scene still feels clumsy to me every time i read back, but i wanted to clearly establish all of this because it is important to how the trio react to events down the line. emeros will obviously, due to his own age and life experiences, have different reactions to situations than wyndrelis and athenath. the same can be said of the other two. and when those events happen, and when things get either hilarious or intense, they will have their own reasons for reacting the ways they do. after all, the experiences of someone on the road during the great war, vs someone studying at home, vs someone who wasnt born until like 6 years after are vastly different, and i felt the need to establish all of this. well, it still feels clumsy, but i'm not rewriting it again, damn it HAHJKHGJKF]

Linking their fingers together under his chin, he batted his lashes and put on a saccharine smile, coated in barely-concealed mischief. "Aw, then how was the Oblivion Crisis, pa?" Emeros sputtered and coughed, head jerked wildly at the question. "I'm not that o-"

[dont dish out what you cant take, emeros!! HAHAH]

"Terrible, Mannimarco was a nightmare for Mages' Guild recruitments," the mage replied dryly, pushing his glasses up his straight nose. The sound of Sven tuning his lute rummaged under the door, Orgnar making a droning comment somewhere in the middle of it all. Wyndrelis stood and stretched, the sound of the Altmer's laughter died out moments ago. "Let's have a look around town, then we can plan for tomorrow."

[i love throwing in a little mages guild reference. mannimarco my beloved <3 and its fun because, well, of course a mage would bring up the mages guild as a reference to the time of the oblivion crisis.]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK TEN MILLION YEARS. but i hope you did enjoy skimming through the commentary on these, i have a billion notes on all of these scenes and getting any chance to infodump about them will always leave me thinking things over for hours. thank you so much for sending the asks and i hope you enjoyed this absolute wiki article of an answer AAAAAAHKHDKJSHGF

director's commentary

[sparrowmoss]

acolyte episode eight (shaking in fear)

WHATS HAPPENING? IMMEDIATELY???

oshas way too chill about this

OH FUCKKKK MAE AT LEAST LET HIM FINISH THAT

oh the music this is not good. we are cooked

whats he going to even do to her if he catches her

everyone being like this to vernestra about her hyperspace sickness im crying

im so glad the creatures made another appearance before the end yippeeee

WHAT the HELL IS THAT THINGGGGG

EEWWWWWWWW

osha turning his copilots seat off help

seeing their home completely abandoned for decades is so sad

what the fuck is happening AGAINNN !!! WHERE DID HE GO!!!

that deflection was cool as hell. and right after that kick too!!!! MANNN the fight scenes in this show are SO good

mae and osha being in reverse black and white outfits from how they started in the beginning. this is crazyyyy

DAMN SOL!!!!!!!

womp womp womppppp osha was always gonna find out

OSHA??????????

THE KYBERRRRRR THIS IS CRAZYYYYYYYYY

THIS IS CRAZYYYYYYYYYYYY OH MY GODDDDDDDDD

VERNESTRA GO GO GO GO GET THERE IDK WHAT YOU COULD POSSIBLY DO AT THIS POINT BUT YOU SHOULD DO SOMETHING I THINK. STOP STANDING AROUNDDDD

all these jedis hairstyles are really cool like sorry but can we take a moment for that. absolutely stunning. also reminiscent of aniseya’s? with the long hair bunched down the back with multiple clasps. i wonder if this is just a popular style of the time

are mae and osha gonna fuse back together…

now vernestra knows what happened… at least some of it… very interesting. u wonder what shes saying to sol or doing to him. i wonder if shes trying to get his last moments?

are they going to fuse and UNMAKE themselves…

i wonder how this is gonna work out…

vernestra… court appearance? senate appearance? trial for mae?

VERNESTRA YOU STUPID PIECE OF SHIT!!!! HAVE YOU JEDI NOT LEARNED YOUR LESSONS ABOUT LYING TO PROTECT SOMEONE!!!! THIS WILL NOT END WELL!!!!!!!!!

is this what tied the jedi order to the senate and the republic… to hold them accountable… for something sol DID NOT DO!!!

i knew he was vernestras padawan. i knew itttt

this is going to be yoda isnt it

predictable but good nonetheless!!!!

wow. i mean i dont really know how to feel yet about the osha and mae side switch, it makes sense and was also predictable and feels so right narratively but it is still bittersweet to see osha have to find out that way and lose herself to her hatred. and that all being said, yes that WAS predictable, but i have NO idea what will happen next. in a season 2. this is crazy and i cant wait to see what this situation causes that sticks around for the time of the clone wars…

like i really think now that this sets up a good reason for the jedi being kind of under the rule of the republic and the senate, one of their own (as far as the senate knows) went rogue and killed a whole clan of other non-jedi force users and then killed his accomplices and then himself, so i can see why the senate would be like okay you guys can no longer be trusted to self regulate. and i can see how this might also lead to the senate telling the jedi hey you guys cant be spread out all over the place all the time anymore because if we have to keep an eye on you so no one goes rogue, we cant be sending people out to all those temples too.

AUGHHHH to think that this started so small and the butterfly effect led to the jedi order being almost completely wiped out!!!!!! FUCK!!!!!! i know how it has to end but it STRESSES ME OUT!!!! this show is so fucking good this season was INSANELY good. thank you everyone who worked on this wowwww wow. great stuff

[benboulette]

Some of my Icemav headcanons frfr

Every friday they cook together and they choose which kind of cuisine they wanna eat every monday, they listen to music on an old vinyl player that they got from mavs parents and they got the vinyls from ice's parents as an anniversary present. All the vinyls are old cheesy 60s

love songs and they like to dance while cooking whenever one of their favourite songs comes on no matter what theyre doing. It doesnt matter if the foods about to burn if be my baby comes on theyre are grooving to it while singing off key.

Along with the songs, they memorized eachothers favourite songs just by observing how the other acts depending on what song comes on. Mav could tell that ice always liked slow songs more because whenever they came on ice would hum and bop his head more than the other songs (he also loves Frank Sinatra and The Ronettes)

Ice could tell Mav was more into bittersweet love songs that sounded more upbeat although it was harder for ice to figure that out since Mav seemed to sing along with his whole heart to every single song they ever listened to, but whenever his favourites came on Mav would move a lot more and genuinely just smile a lot mroe while singing.

The day that the ban on gay people in the navy was lifted (December 21, 1993) they slow danced in Ice's office while kinda just crying in eachothers arms because they were so happy that they didnt have to hide how much they loved eachother anymore (ofc they didnt immediately announce it infront of everyone but they def had to hide less and got to be more open about it even though everyone already had an idea)

Mav's ringtone for ice is literally the song "ice ice baby" and it has been since the song was released.

Sarah was Tom's lesbian friend and they would rant to eachother about the ppl they had crushes on bc they were the only queer ppl they were aware existed around them. (they were actually surrounded by gay ppl they just didnt know)

Mav and Ice used to try to make eachother listen to new artists atleast every month and in that tradition they discovered Joe Dassin which ended up being their favourite artist to listen to together and they always sing his songs in a really bad french. Their first dance at their marriage ended up even being to "Et si tu n'existais pas".

Ice tried to learn guitar with Goose (goose side headcanon: he plays almost every instrument in existence, like if he wasnt in the navy he would be a music teacher in highschool) but Nick didn't tell him that Mav already knew how to play after having played in a band with him and slider in highschool all together. Mav (voc. and guit.) Goose (bass and backup voc.) Slider (drums) and Ice learnt through Slider that Mav knew how to play guitar infinitely better than him after slider caught him trying to learn a love song he was gonna play when he wanted to ask Mav to officially be his boyfriend.

Every. single. time. one of them got deployed the night before they would ALWAYS spend the night together listening to music and dancing the whole time, they always made their last dance "Till Then" by The Mills Brothers and they always cried no matter what.

Mav is an ugly fucking crier and gets snot everywhere but since Ice started being there where ever he was he would always use his shirt as a kleenex so when Ice isnt around when Mav cries he is completely lost and just slimes everywhere.

Before they were official Mav caught Ice singing "If I Loved You" by Dick Haymes in his office once and when he heard him singing he literally felt his heart skip a beat and now he asks Ice to sing for him a lot more than Ice would like. (He likes the way Mav's eyes light up every time he sings for Mav) and before Ice lost his voice he recorded himself singing for Mav and it made Mav ugly cry when he found out abt it

Ice has a journal and he writes about Mav and Mav only in it. Mav found it and cried again.

Ice and Mav keep matching pictures of eachother in their helmets bc Ice refused to get those necklaces that can have pictures inside with Mav so they settled on that bc it was still risky to get caught. They eventually evolved to them just bringing a full sized picture of eachother in the plane anytime they went flying. They also keep pictures of eachother in their wallets and while he doesn't admit it Ice was the happiest he ever was when he could finally stop hiding the picture of them he kept in his office and being able to grow his collection of pictures of them as his office also got bigger was his biggest accomplishment in his own eyes

Wehenever they would fight or something, Mav did the cliche of showing up infront of ices house with a boombox to sing as an apology for Ice, Carol and Goose went with him as his backup vocalists and it always worked.

Once while Mav was on a mission, he got hit (he was fine in the end and someone called his parachute) and Ice was listening to the comms on the ship and as soon as he heard that Mav was hit he had to leave the room bc he had to throw up because his mind of course went to the worst possible conclusion. They both had to be in the hospital in the end bc Ice was breaking down (NOT. breakdancing) and couldnt move bc he was shaking so bad. While they were in the hospital, even though Mav was the one who got hit, he was the one taking care of Ice.

The first song they danced to was Be My Baby by The Ronettes and they both started singing to it at the same time when it came on and had a moment where they looked at eachother like "how tf do u know this song" but turns out its bc they're both hopeless romantics.

They lived together and said they had separate rooms so ppl wouldn't be suspicious, one time Nick and Carol needed them to babysit Bradley and Bradley slept in the room that they said was Ice's, and when he went to bed he asked "Why does Ice have his own bedrooms if he always sleeps with uncle Mav?" Of course they just avoided the question but he ended up asking Goose the same question and he just burst out laughing.

Ice and Mav are the reason that Bradley had a relatively easy time accepting he was bi, he attended their "wedding" when he was like 10 so he never thought bad of gay ppl. (I put wedding in quotes bc in 1992 gay marriage wasn't legalized so they technically only held a ceremony in secret and said they were married, but when gay marriage WAS legalized they immediately made it official)

[incognito-lionbeast]

@cum-villain​

Honestly, pretty much as soon as Liu Qingge made his decision during the initial confrontation? It was all over for Shen Jiu. True be it that Liu Qingge didn’t quite know what to make of things at first, and he sorta hoped that Shen Jiu would make an effort on his own after the initial offer of support? Well, he sort of gets that wish. Not quite in the way he’d wanted but damn if he’s letting that stop him.

Because the one thing Liu Qingge is very good at socially is being blunt. Something Yue Qingyuan has thus far somewhat failed with. Not that he hasn’t explained things to the best of his ability, but that’s precisely the problem! So, Shen Jiu later corrals Shang Qinghua (who suspiciously knows far too much) & Liu Qingge to Discuss™ Shen Qingqiu & other such happenings while he was away.

He’d really rather leave the relationship part of that mess alone, but he has. >:| Other Questions. And would like alternative perspectives, and no he can’t just ask Shen Qingqiu.

--but this leads into my response to that last tag. :3c

There are at least four people who are willing to support him existing, because Shen Jiu’s gonna find out that Shang Qinghua also counts! Not quite as enthusiastically as Yue Qingyuan or Liu-Shidi, but-! Shang Qinghua’s response to inquiry is that like? He never really hated Shen Jiu before either, so... Look, compared to a lotta other things he was going through at the time, Shen Jiu didn’t even place on his top ten list of People To Be Worried About.

Sorry?

Luo Binghe is torn, I think. He’s very happy that Liu Qingge is spending time with someone else. Unhappy that it’s Shen Jiu, whom he dislikes. Then Indifferent because Luo Binghe didn’t much like Liu Qingge to begin with. Yet, Unhappy again, because shizun does & is feeling rather bittersweet about the entire affair (happy for them, still concerned that his relationship with his dear shidi has been irreconcilably altered. Which is technically true, but only technically! Like everyone else, it’s more a matter of navigating the fact that Shen Qingqiu is actually someone else now?).

This is far too complicated for Binghe.

--on a somewhat related note, Binghe was a bit put-out that Shen Qingqiu admitted to being happy to see Shen Jiu, because hello??? Husband?? Why are you happy to see the man who made him miserable? He doesn’t understand & Shen Qingqiu has the damnedest time trying to explain, but he does manage to relay that he is Definitely Unhappy with that part. It’s just.. yknow.

Shen Qingqiu spent some time living with the fact that he’d involuntarily killed a man & taken his place-- a man that was important to his Shixiong. And that Sucked, because... well, he could tell. And, no matter how much he’d come to care for Yue Qingyuan, there was nothing he could do to remedy things.

Though I’m not sure how this would come up, I feel like asdfgh Somehow this is the least surprising thing he’s learned about Shen Qingqiu so far. After all, he’s married to Binghe, so being attracted to men is... a given?

--what would be more surprising is Liu Qingge's opinion of Shen Qingqiu. Because it’s Very Positive & it’s not impossible to determine that he is, perhaps, a bit Jealous Of and/or Irritated With the whole BingQiu situation. Though, for better or worse, they could definitely bond over being mutually mistrustful of Binghe. Oops.

He’s a very good shidi! And I honestly think that Liu Qingge still calls Shen Jiu “Shixiong” when there aren’t other disciples around. Or perhaps even sometimes when there are... >>;; deciding not to react to his mistake / correct himself, causing the both sets of disciples to look at them Very Oddly. Like it’s odd enough that Liu Qingge has singled out This One Disciple already, but calling him Shixiong, too........

On the other hand, I imagine it galls Shen Jiu somewhat when he’s forced to call him & the other Peak Lords “Shishu” -- in the same way that he’s hesitant to call Yue Qingyuan his Shizun. Thankfully, there’s a work-around for Yue Qingyuan, being sect leader n all. It’s perfectly appropriate to just call him that. >u<

But yeah!! There are, in fact, people who Like & Want You Around, sir. Maybe it’s complicated, messy, and even uncomfortable at times? Still true. Gonna have to learn how to accept that...

[vazaha-tya]

can i ask what you think about regulus? and jegulus/jegulily as well, if that's alright. i like reading your thoughts and interpretations of the marauders era characters

that's more than alright! fair warning, i'm gonna be all over the place because i have so many thoughts! some of it is interpretation based on what i remember from canon and the rest might be fanon i internalised from reading too many fics lol.

first up, i should say that regulus is my favourite slytherin and i'm endlessly fascinated by the relationship dynamics he and sirius would have had. it's obvious sirius loved him and we don't know if the reverse was true but there's definitely something raw and painful that suggests he did and that their estrangement was even more painful for it.

since regulus is a reserved boy (fanon or canon? not sure) who is pretty smart, brave and kind on top of being a seeker, he kind of feels like what harry could have been in slytherin.

more importantly, he's the only redeemed slytherin i can think of who is first described as "soft" before being described as "brave". regulus is someone who is only described by people who love him (sirius and kreacher) and despite the whole black family situation, the most important thing they can tell us about him is that he was gentle. i think that's a bit incredible, especially considering who his mother was.

and i'm not sure if it's canon or fanon that he researched voldemort's life? but if it's canon i think that's also really interesting and tells us a lot about his inquisitive personality. one thing that strikes me about the black brothers is that they were clearly both extremely sheltered before coming to hogwarts and it's only by being sorted gryffindor that sirius was able to meet people that were different from the ideal his parents were trying to force on him. regulus didn't have that chance yet he still managed to make friends with kreacher and see him as someone worth betraying voldemort for. it's because regulus watches and learns , i think. he observes people, what they value, how they treat each other and at first he probably tried to push it down so he could be the perfect pureblood his mother wanted but at some point he wasn't able to anymore and he made his choice. he weighed what he observed of kreacher's kindness and adoration for him against what he saw of voldemort's cruelty and decided the former was worth dying for.

beyond that, in a more pragmatic sense, regulus is the first time we are given any indication that purebloods have limits. because death eaters are so violent and cruel we feel like they have no boundaries but regulus found out about the horcrux and he, a black, was horrified. i'm not sure if this means that potentially more death eaters would have disapproved of horcruxes if they knew or if it's regulus particularly but i think that's also important to note.

about jegulus and jegulily, i am all for it! though jegulus means harry wouldn't be born so i don't like it as much haha. but there's so much to work with in those ships, especially because of the sirius-regulus reconciliation that would come with it and the idea of james finding value in slytherin qualities which would rid him of his own prejudice. i just like the idea of them acting as a bridge between the two houses in the middle of war. and lily finding a slytherin who doesn't wait for her to die to do better would be bittersweet but something i'd be curious about. i'm not sure i'd write those ships myself (mostly because i'm bad at writing romance) but i do find them really interesting

thanks for the question, i had a lot of fun thinking about it!

[readyandnot]

ready rambles~ sovereign state season one finale

part one thoughts

spoilers under the cut:

wow. just, wow.

i haven’t done one of these in a long time, but i wanted to say my thoughts on the finale because it’s a huge deal.

• first of all, the dreaming AGAIN. the meridian is not letting up! at this point starlight has to know that avior is telling the truth.

• then, the meeting. god damn this hurt. we are truly seeing avior fall apart, he’s known to be the collected intelligent inchoate, and keeps his composure, but after his confession we really are seeing him fall apart and lose himself. he’s not the same, and it’s heartbreaking.

• I LOVE THAT HES FIGURING OUT WHATS HAPPENING. i wanted him or starlight to for so long, and it’s nice to hear avior’s thought process and him eliminating possibilities and his theory on why him and starlight are still here. i’m so glad we’re seeing them finally figure this out.

• him losing it BROKE ME. his desperation to get out but also wanting to keep starlight safe no matter what is such a bittersweet contrast. but starlight is stubborn, and i’m so glad that avior accepts that he cannot and should not control starlight’s decisions.

• the whole existential talk got me too, as someone who hates talking about it, it’s fascinating seeing how avior asked questions like that when he first coalesced to how he feels about it now. with how daemons live forever compared to humans, the idea that him and starlight could live together forever in this hell, than have something temporary in the real world… wow.

• THE WALK THERE. GOD DAMMIT. I KNEW HE WAS GONNA SAY “for the person i love”, I KNEW IT. I HATE THAT I KNEW IT. he truly loves and cares for starlight, and the fact that he cannot do anything but be there for them is literally tearing him apart as he put it. the whole idea that he wants to fall apart but literally THE MERIDIAN IS KEEPING HIM THERE, hurts.

• THE HUGGGGG THEY BOTH NEEDED THAT.

i’d like to believe that starlight said to him, “I care for you too Avior, and I believe you.” IN MY OPINION AT LEAST BECAUSE IT MAKES SENSE TO HOW AVIOR RESPONDED.

• god i’m just imagining a shot of them facing away from each other, both in tears, fuck i wish i could draw so i could show that!!!!

• ID ALSO LIKE TO THINK THAT STARLIGHT SAID “Thank you, Avior.” UGHHHHH

• now iykyk but i hate cliffhangers lol but i knew it was gonna happen. BUT GOD IF IT DIDNT SCARE ME ON HOW IT ENDED.

• the voices that are in the dreams, and them being the same ones in the meridian, IT LITERALLY FELT LIKE A HORROR MOVIE. “be with me, us.” DIJDJSJKSKS

“child of land-“

overall, this was beautiful. heartbreakingly beautiful. it was a brilliant set up into the next two parts and i’m so excited (and terrified) for the next two parts. WE’LL FINALLY LEARN WTF THE MERIDIAN WANTS WITH THEM!!!!

redacted you’d done it again, you talented mf.

here’s to the believers for a happy ending o7