#i had to look up the character names from switched for christmas for you guys

[eunoiathewriter]

okie since christmas is coming up i was wondering if you can do a little fluffy imagine with xavier where maybe the nightshades are doing like a secret Santa and Xavier gets the reader and he gives her like the most thoughtful present ever and she’s just so overwhelmed that he knows her so well and maybe the confess their feelings for each other? thank you so much in advance and if not no worries :)

X. THORPE X F!READER

Sypnosis: Secret santa was a fun thing for the little secret society, they'd done it for a few years, but this year his gift have a bit more thought behind it as its for her.

Word count: 1.6k

She simply stared at him, her eyes asking if he was truly serious. This was not the reason she had thought he would ask her to come down there—well, to be frank, she had thought all Nightshades were called to their little hideout, not just herself, and not for this reason.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, she wondered if Xavier was for real. He was not supposed to give her the present personally, as it was tradition for the Nightshades to do a sort of "secret Santa" thing. Bianca had promised she would figure out who had y/ns present for her and give it to her the next day—without telling her who it was from, of course—before she went home for Christmas.

"You're not supposed to give it to me; have you not realised that in—? Three years?" y/n asked with a teasing tone while looking up at him.

"Of course I have; I just thought that you were going home so I could just give it to you." He shrugged his shoulders without really thinking much about it all, although his heart did most certainly beat faster and harder in his chest. He would never admit to that, though maybe in his head but not out loud.

"Bianca said she was going to find out which of you got me and get it for me so I could open it when I got home." She was not going to lie; it warmed her heart and cheeks that he wanted to personally give it to her.

"Well, now you have no choice but to open it here." Xavier held out the wrapped present for her to take and could see her suspiciously looking at it.

"Are you nervous I won't like it, Thorpe?" She narrowed her eyes at him, gently taking the present from his hands, and she waited for an answer.

"Me? No."

To be honest, he was terrified. That was because if he read a book for the entire month of November and added his own personal comments on things in it, and then spent another month adding his own take on how the characters looked, only for it all to go down the drain, he would melt like the wicked witch of the west when she got water on herself.

For two months, he had to put up with the teasing from the other guys in the neighbouring dormitories because whenever they decided to play games or something, Xavier would still be there but his nose would be deep into a book the entire time.

"Yeah, right," y/n mumbled as she started to fidget and try to find where to open the present. There was a light smile on her face as she focused on being careful, as always. The limited lighting in the Nightshades society was not the best, which made it even harder.

"Okay, so what if I am?" Xavier asked the question as if it were hypothetical. y/n almost felt like he should have just added hypothetically before, just for her own amusement.

"Relax, when you got me three years ago for this, you honestly got the best gif ever. I doubt you'll disappoint me this time; give your fourteen-year-old self some credit."

Yes, when they were fourteen and had just started this thing back up, doing secret Santa for the first time, Xavier had gotten her something she liked. The only thing different between then and now was that now he had a major crush on the girl before him, and this time he had switched with Ajax to actually get her this year.

He shouldn't have; Xavier knew that, but when he read the name on his note and it said Devina, he sneakily glanced over at Ajax's note, which said y/n. As soon as they got away from the others, he pretty much had to bribe Ajax to switch sides with him. It had cost him three weeks' worth of chores in the dormitories that were assigned to Ajax, but in a way, it was totally worth it.

Without saying another word, he watched expectantly as she finally unwrapped his gif. She tilted her head slightly as she looked down at it—a book. Not just any book, but her favorite. The black cover with simple white text was familiar, as she had an exact copy on her bookshelf in her dorm.

For a second, it looked as if she was about to say something; she opened her mouth but quickly shut it as she spotted something else. Holding the spine of the book, she turned it so she could see all six hundred and forty pages of it, only to see a familiar sight of sticky notes. It was as if her brain short-circuited, going dead as she blinked at the book with an obviously perplexed face.

"This is my favourite book." y/n stated the obvious, eyes still on the book in her hand, fingers brushing over the neatly placed sticky notes.

"Mhm," Xavier said, his heart racing.

Opening up the book to see what the notes were, she was met with a hand-drawn picture of what she assumed to be the characters. They were all lined up and identifiable by their distinct characteristics. The narrator of them all was easy to spot; he was drawn looking slightly nervous.

A smile tugged at Xaviers' lips as he could see she was appreciating the gift. He watched as she marvelled over the drawings he'd done of the six main characters.

"They're exactly like I imagined them in my head," y/n did not look up as she made the comment but instead flipped to her favourite page, earning a chuckle from the boy in front of her.

A bit flustered, he scratched his neck before saying anything, letting out a sigh of relief. "Good, I thought I had gotten them completely wrong."

"No, they're spot on; you even added his pince-nez glasses and the chain to them." She was referring to the character Francis.

She found what she was looking for after flipping to her favourite page of all and finding the line, "Cubitum eamus." The Latin question was underlined with an arrow to a written comment that made her snort a little.

I had to Google that.

"So?" Xavier pressed on, unsure of what to make of what she thought. Sure, she liked it, but did she love it?

"I love it!" y/n exclaimed. "How did you even know how to do all this, and how did you know this is my favourite book?"

"I had some help with learning." He told.

"This is the sweetest gift ever."

Her grip on the book was gentle so as not to destroy it, and she wanted to be extra careful now that she knew the inside of it was adorned with his own personal thoughts and drawings he had made. y/n could feel her cheeks heat up, seeing the way he let out a breath of relief and smiled while looking down at the floor. His hair covered his crimson-coloured cheeks.

Before he could say anything, he felt a hand on his left cheek, followed by a kiss on his right. It stunned him, seeing her still holding the book with a sweet smile. Xaviers' eyes darted over her face to search for her reason for doing what she did.

He felt her hand leave his cheek and reach down to his own, taking a gentle hold of it. "Maybe we can do something when I'm back after the new year."

"You mean like a date?" His eyes widened, and a smirk formed on his lips as he closed his own hand over hers, the two of them now holding hands.

"If you want it to be one." Her tone was teasingly amusing.

"Don't put words in my mouth; you want it to be one, but you just didn't say it."

"But you were still the one who asked." y/n pointed out to him, a grin replacing her sweet smile. With a roll of his eyes, he answered her.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

Xavier enjoyed the wide smile that he could clearly see her fighting, loving the way she looked off to the side while swinging their interlocked hands back and forth between them. He followed her every move and never let his eyes move from hers.

Then as she let out a sigh, y/n looked up at him. "I need to go and pack; I haven't even started."

"Go," His hand loosened around hers, missing the warmth it provided, as he motioned with his head for her to go and do exactly that. He was feeling completely content with how this had gone.

Sliding her hand from his, she held the book in one of her hands while walking towards the staircase. Her heart and brain were racing marathons inside her, while the butterflies in her stomach refused to stop. Before she could get too far, however, she stopped.

"I hope you understand that this means I like you, more than friends." She was about eight steps up the stairs when she turned toward him.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" Xavier playfully asked.

"Well, you're not the smartest, Xav." She leaned against the railing while looking down at him from the staircase; he still stood in the middle of the room the Nightshades occupied.

"I like you too, more than a friend."

"Good to know; call me."

"I certainly will."

"Merry Christmas." With that, she walked up the stairs, book in hand, with a gleeful feeling inside. Was she going to scream into her pillow out of pure happiness? Yes. Was she also going to rant at Ophelia? Yes.

"Merry Christmas."

Finally I have Christmas break and can now deliver you guys more with this guy.

Taglist

@getbillzoned @honeybubblepopp @mrskeery-mclaughlin @wonderlandco @alicews @l4venderia @navs-bhat @ariianelle @moose-ubi @lomllino @honey-with-tea @rayliz793 @moatsnow @s0ftdr1nks

[888sss]

All you had to do was knock

This is NOT proofread, because I'm lazy, and just thought of this so I sat down and typed away.

Theo nott x (Slytherin)reader

(I think I have a crush on all TV characters named Theo)

the title is related to something Theo says, idk if it even makes sense

It was Christmas time, and snow had just begun to fall, you were walking with Astoria, through the shops of Hogsmeade.

"Everyone knows what it means to ask a 'friend' to Hogsmeade," says Astoria. Her brown hair hung over the sides of her face and she looked down at the ground.

"I know! He might be an introvert, but Teddy isn't stupid that's why I'm upset. Pansy even thought Teddy liked me, and then he turned around and asked her on a date." I said.

Theo and I were really close, and jokes about our friendship were often made by our other friends, due to how close we were. I'd liked Teddy for ages, but recently he had started asking me to hang out individually, and sitting next to me at meals in the great hall. He even switched with Blaise to be my potions partner, and I suck at potions. Of course, I didn't mind the extra time spent with him, and I loved his company, but now I regretted it, I felt like I had let him lead me on.

"I'm sure he does like you, Y/N. I haven't seen Theo spend this much time with anyone since, well, never." Astoria reassured me. I'm not sure how she could say such a thing when Theo was literally on a date with another girl right now. We walked into Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and looked to see what new ideas the twins had come up with. Astoria wandered to a display table towards the left wall, "You could buy this, and Theo won't even remember Pansy's name." She held up a glass with a sparkly, heart-shaped label that read, "Love Potion". I smiled and gave her a look of disapproval.

"Too soon?" she asked.

I opened my mouth to say something, but I heard the door open, and a cold breeze made the hair stick up on my arms. I turned to the door and saw Pansy walking in, but rather than Theo behind her, it was Enzo. He scanned the store and waved at Astoria and I.

"Y/N, Astoria! Hey guys what are you doing here?" Enzo asked as he was on our side of the store in a few strides, Pansy following close behind him.

"Hey guys," Astoria gave them both a quick hug, "we're just shopping around, y'know?" Astoria holds up the love potion so that Enzo and Pansy can see it.

"What're you buying that for?" Pansy asks reaching for the glass.

"I'm not buying it, y/n is!" Astoria joked.

"I am not buying that, put it back!" I told Astoria, quickly taking it from Pansy and putting it back on the shelf we got it from.

"Trust me y/n if you're buying it for 'you-know-who' then you do not need it," Enzo said raising his eyebrows, exaggerating his tone on certain words. I punched Enzo in the arm,

"I'm not buying it," I said sternly, I knew they were all just joking, but now was a bad time, especially since Pansy was literally right next to me. "besides, Teddy and I already get along just fine, why would I need a love potion? We're just friends."

"So if me and Draco share a bed, you wouldn't think that was a little bit weird?" Enzo asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"Well, not if you guys were both cold, and one of your beds was all the way down the hall," I told them, understanding the message they were trying to send.

The topic of the discussion changed many times before we got back to the comfort of the fireplace, surrounded by green couches, and various books. I sat in an armchair closest to the fireplace, before getting up to use the restroom. When I walked down the hallway I could hear the laughter of my friends, and faintly hear their voices. When I finished up, I looked in the mirror and ran my fingers through my hair, the hat I had taken off messed it up, and no one had thought to tell me. I walked back into the common room and saw that Teddy had returned from wherever he had been, and taken the seat I was sitting in before I got up. Without much thought, I sat down on the arm of Theo's chair and ruffled his hair.

"Hi Teddy," I sang, and seeing him for the first time today, I had almost forgotten I was mad at him, "where have you been?"

The room had gone silent and our friends all watched our interaction. I quickly noticed our proximity and moved to an empty spot on a couch, near his chair so I could still listen for his answer.

"Just around," He spoke softly, "nowhere special."

I was surprised by his answer and looked over at Pansy to see if her expression would show that she knew anything more than he let on, but she had turned back around and was talking with Mattheo about who was the better quidditch player. Theo obviously didn't have much to say, and by the bags under his eyes I could tell wherever he had been, had left him exhausted, so I let him be, and decided that I should get some rest myself.

Morning came, and despite being under water I could tell the sun had risen by the dim rays shining through the windows. I showered, and got ready for breakfast, putting on a jumper and some trousers I'd pulled from a drawer. When I left my dorm and walked into the common room, I could see Draco and Astoria waiting on the couch, tossing a hair tie back and forth as they continued in conversation.

"Good Morning!" I said as I approached the couple.

"It's about time," Draco said as he pretended to be annoyed, "If you took any longer I might've died of hunger."

"I'm actually early today, Malfoy so maybe save your starvation for another day." I laughed.

We made our way down to the great hall, and the rest of our friends made space for us at the table. Pansy was in her normal seat between Blaise and Enzo, rather than next to Theo, which confused me since I thought they liked each other, but I didn't think much of it.

As I took my usual seat next to Theo, an owl flew above our heads and dropped a letter down right in front of me.

"Y/N, you have mail!" Mattheo yelled from a few seats down, as if I couldn't see the envelope land in front of me. Blaise hit him on his had and mocked him for stating the obvious.

"Open it." Theo nudged my arm urging me on.

I turned the paper over in my hands and didn't see a name, other than my own so I ripped open the envelope. A piece of parchment was folded inside it,

'Hogsmeade? 2:00 - Harry Potter'

"Harry Potter, as in the Chosen One, you've got to be kidding me, mate." Draco sighed as he shoved his face into his hands.

I laughed and looked across the room at Harry who was already looking at me, I nodded at him, and he smiled in return, turning back around and saying something to Hermione and Ron.

"You're going to go?" Theo said to me, shocked that i assented to the idea of a date with Harry.

"Yeah, why not? He's cute and popular, he probably just needs a favor anyway," I said "Plus, you can go on dates why can't I?"

Theo's jaw dropped, and then closed again, and he got up and left.

"He deserved that," said Pansy, "I told him no, by the way, I wouldn't go out with him because I know you like him."

I wanted to curse Pansy at this moment for announcing to everyone around us that I liked Theo but decided I would appreciate her rare kindness.

Time passed quickly, and before I knew it, I was dressed up to meet Harry. I zipped up my snow boots and heard a knock at my door, "Come in!" I called whoever it was.

I quickly kicked the clothes next to my bed, under it, in hopes whoever it was, wasn't a professor, or Harry. The door opened, and when I looked up it was Theo.

"Hey Teddy, what's up?" I asked, wondering what he was here for, I had barely seen him the past few days and assumed he was done with his attitude.

He didn't say anything, he took the chair from under my desk and sat down, looking at the ground. I stared at him waiting to see if he was going to say anything.

"You can't go on that date," he said finally meeting my eyes.

"Are you kidding me, Theo? That's what this is about because I'm going out with another guy, you want to show up in my dorm and act all possessive?" I shot at him. He had rarely talked to me in two days, and this is what he came to say.

"Please, you just- you can't go," he stood up, moving in front of me to hold my hands in his.

"So, let me get this straight, we've been just friends for months, and when you decide to ask Pansy on a date it's okay, but when I get asked out on a date you can just come to my dorm, demanding me not go?" I reiterated. I was hurt that Theo genuinely thought I would be okay with this.

"My door was unlocked," he whispered.

"What?" I asked. I felt like I had asked him so many things and hadn't gotten one response.

"I waited for you to see if you would try to talk me out of going, and ask me to stay with you instead." Theo said

"Teddy why would I talk you out of doing something that you obviously wanted to do, I want you to be happy," I told him. I was extremely confused by his intentions.

"Just please don't go y/n I'll take you to Hogsmeade myself, just don't go on a date with Harry Potter of all people." He begged me.

"But why, Theo?"

"You know why." Theo insisted.

"Say it."

"Because I love you y/n, I'm in love with you, and if you go on that date with Harry, you might start to like him, and then I'll have to move to be alone," he confessed.

I was speechless. Not because I didn't reciprocate his feelings, but because I didn't understand.

"So what about Pansy? You just asked her out to see if I would come knocking on your door?" I scoffed.

"It was her idea, I'd ask her to Hogsmeade, so you'd get jealous, but we didn't go by ourselves, Enzo and Blaise came along, that's why Astoria went with you, to make sure you didn't run into us as a group." He explained

Theo was standing so close to me that it felt like his tall figure was hovering. I could feel his breath on my face and looked up at him. He took my face in his hands and crashed his lips into mine. His hands moved down to my waist, and I kissed him back, moving my hands to his hair, pulling at the roots.

"You're really good at that," I said when we finally separated for air, moving my hands to the back of his neck.

Theo smiled down at me, "better than Potter?" he asked with a smirk. I jokingly pushed him away and sat down to write Harry a letter about how I'd be canceling our date last minute.

[dynamoe]

Billy Quizboy as the rabbit-toothed guitarist DAVE HILL of glam rock band SLADE— sporter of the worst bangs in rock n' roll history*— circa their 1973 Christmas #2 Merry Christmas Everybody**, which was covered as the annual Venture Bros holiday song this year by Pete White, Master Billy Quizboy, his mom and her lovers (the elderly superhero polycule).

→ hear the cover on KenPlume's youtube → go to the Billy Quizboy & Pete White index

(I know with the orange hair/eyepatch he looks like Ziggy Stardust— the Quizboy:Slade ratio is a delicate balance.)

Merriest Twelfth Day of Christmas to you, to Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer and to Slade and anyone else still reading who gives a shit.

Slade is more of a British thing, really. They had a ton of British hits in the 1970s as a glam rock band, but didn't break into the US until the 1980s (when they replaced Ozzy Osborne at the Reading Festival) with Cum on Feel the Noize, pivoting to be more hard rock/metal.

Noddy Holder was more of the “face” of Slade (head to toe plaid, mutton chops, tophat covered in mirrors). I suspect the all-plaid outfit on Col. Gentleman in the Vbros cover art is a take on Noddy's look... or he ignored the brief and dressed as one of Scotland's own Bay City Rollers. Slade suffered from a lesser case of Cheap Trick syndrome, where every member dressed like they were in a different band. Dave dressed full spaceman-- face glitter, every variety of metallic fabric available (lurex, glitter knit, vinyl, lamé) in shades of silver. The other guitarist whose name I won't look up wore a red lurex suit (I guess that would be Pete's outfit in their cover band) which he had to keep replacing because he sweated so much on stage the fibers literally melted (one of the suits was preserved by the V&A on an episode of Secrets of the Museum)... No one cares about the drummer. 

The only reason I know anything about Slade — I'm no rock trivia geek, I’m a comedy nerd — Slade was a constant punchline in 1990s Brit Comedy. Noddy appeared on Never Mind the Buzzcocks in the LaMar era. 1993 sketch show The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer had a recurring mini-sitcom “Slade in Residence” (the band living in a suburban home together, wearing their stage costumes, eating nothing but cup-of-soup, obsessing over monster truck rallies and­— the key to their appeal to Vic and Bob, I imagine­— whining in thick Black Country accents.)

Billy is my Covid muse and if he stars in the annual Christmas cover (he had only sung before on 2006's VentureAid; read poems on their take on the Beatles Fan Club records), it's not like I CAN'T draw something despite saying I was done with this shit. I promised you guys a *technically* Christmas Billy drawing and I *technically* delivered.

Now I'm gonna switch to drawing characters I own so I can finally make some money. Godblessuseveryone. ___

*Dave Hill was just being a futuristic spaceman, those micro-bangs were the hottness on all the skater girls of the late 1990s. I even had 'em.

**Having the #1 song at Christmas is a big deal in the UK (as you may remember from the Bill Nighy segments from Love Actually) and the 1973 slug match between Slade's Merry Christmas Everybody and the eventual winner Wizzard’s I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday looms large in music trivia, to the degree that I was sure Astrobot Go was going to release a cover a day later of some other (more fan-favored) characters doing their version of Wizzard to rain on Billy et. al’s parade.

→ Wizzard

So which character dons the beard and harlequin eye facepaint to be the guy from Wizzard? Probably Hank, right?

→ go to the Billy Quizboy & Pete White index → Nobody'sSweetheart on Instagram

[me-writes-prompts]

:-Christmas Short Story-:

By: @Me-writes-prompts

It was dark when Character A entered their house, eerie and chill. The dark that you would not expect on Christmas night. They had been gone on a business trip that took way longer than expected, and now they were, much too late to wish their partner a Merry Christmas who was nowhere in sight, at least from what they could see with the snow on their glasses, making it harder than ever to see. 

They took a step and carefully unwrapped the scarf from around their neck, making sure the snow on it didn’t fall on the floor. They had left their shoes just by the door, not even an inch away, knowing their partner wouldn’t want them anywhere near the living room. They cleared their throat before: “Hello? Is anyone here?” That was such a dumb question, and they cringed at themself. Either the lights had gone off because their partner was in their room(which they shouldn’t be because they were having their families over), or they had gone out which wasn’t a possibility, or in the least, it was because they had to get something. But then, where were the remaining people in their families who should have been over? Had they all gone out as well? They shook their head. They needed to find the lights. 

They sighed and took out their phone. It showed…no signal. Wait, what? They thought. Strange. They turned on the flashlight and walked to the kitchen, turning on the lights. No one. Not even their pet dog that usually ate treats when they were sleeping. They took a deep breath and turned around to walk to the living room. No one was there either. They went upstairs, opening and closing several doors and finding no one. They frowned to themself, the only place left was the basement. The whole family had to be there for sure. They must be sitting around the fireplace, and goofing off without them. 

They stumbled downstairs to the basement, silence echoed around them. Okay, now it was getting creepy. And scary, definitely scary. Surely, this must be a prank. They turned the switch on, and to say they were surprised to find no one would be an understatement. Where had everyone gone?! They frowned deeper, checking the one stale room and even the laundry room just out of the last bit of hope to see if they could find anyone. 

They went upstairs, feeling tired from the business trip but now more so, because they couldn’t find anyone in their own house. They checked their phone. Still no signal. Groaning, they lay down on the couch. Where could they even possibly look for their fam- a loud shattering noise and a curse from a person’s mouth? Their partner. They jolted up, looking frantically around. They couldn’t see anyone, they stood up. “[Name], is that you?” They asked, a hope igniting again. Several other people cursed and groaned as they all started coming out from the kitchen, upstairs. And inside, from the balcony just outside their house. 

“What is going on?” They asked, frantically looking around. Confused but relieved to find everyone. Their partner came from behind the Christmas tree. And, oh lord, they could not believe that they once did not look behind the Christmas tree. 

Their partner came up to them and laughed. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. We meant to surprise you but you look horrified.” 

“Well, of course I do! You guys scared the hell out of me. I was so scared because there was no signal and I didn’t know how to find you guys!” 

Their partner kissed them. “I know, and I’m sorry. We thought it would be a good idea to, you know, make you feel special -which you are- by surprising you as a whole family. Guess it didn’t go that well.” Their partner murmured, an apologetic smile on their face. 

They smiled. “It’s fine, but only because I love you and our families. Merry Christmas everyone!” 

Their families hollered around them, hugging each other while wishing Merry Christmas and laughing. It was nice to be back on Christmas eve, they thought to themself, eating a sugar cookie their partner made especially for them which they doubted because all the other cookies looked the same. They chuckled and kissed them.

(Merry christmas everyone and I hope you liked this!! 🎄🎅❄️)

[midknightwritings]

Hiii I’m the one who requested the Switch shimeji and the one currently trying to make a Ritsu shimeji

I have come again to deliver a request..(if that’s alright with you. If you don’t like it or I broke some of the rules then please ignore or delete this)

Can I please request a Leo or Mika x Reader?

(I’m not exactly sure who the best character for this is and I just went with Leo/Mika since I love them a lot)

My Christmas party is tomorrow and I was wondering if you could make a oneshot or something of the Reader accidentally loosing the wishlist they got

In my school we decided to do wishlists this year where you write a codename and put 3 things you want that fit in the budget

(Although we have a lot of guys who just forget to put their size/measures for clothes or they list things that are wayyy over the set budget)

After that, you give your paper to the teacher and they scramble it all up and you have to pick one paper. If you get your own paper you have to put it back and choose another one then once you do you will (obviously) have a very short list that you can choose from

Anyways..The Christmas party is just in a few hours and Reader accidentally forgot to buy a gift from the list. When they were trying to look for the paper they realize that they accidentally threw it out a few days ago late at night

And now they have to ask their co-worker/best friend (Leo/Mika) to help them buy a gift in the hopes that they remember what was written in the paper and that it fits the budget

I apologize for making this so long I wanted it to be short but I’m just really bad at summarizing or making things shorter 😭🥲

Santa Mayhem

Synopsis : Secret Santa is always a fun experience especially when you get to give gifts to your fellow friends and co-workers! Yet, due to a grave mistake on your part, you lost your giftee's wishlist! Just as you felt like you were at a dead end, a certain someone decided to help you out.

Era : Music !!

Warning/s : Swearing / Use of “Angel” & “Lifesaver” (For Mika) / Can be interpreted as platonic or romantic

Mentioned Character/s : G/N!Reader / Mika

[ C/N ] = Coworker Name

Word Count : 2k+

A/N : SHIMEJI ANON I AM SO SORRY FOR THE MEGA DELAY ON THIS ONE 😭 I had to deal with a bunch of irl stuff that randomly appeared out of nowhere ue ue ue

But I picked Mika for this one if that’s ok with you 🥺 I hope you still enjoy this even though it’s basically almost the end of January 😭

Again, I’m really really sorry for the delay orz I HOPE YOU ENJOYED YOUR CHRISTMAS PARTY THO 💕

•❅───✧❅✦❅✧───❅•

“Fuck…” you breathed out a long, exaggerated whisper as you stared at your computer screen with wide eyes filled with horror. A small notification appeared on the side of your screen with the message “Christmas party this evening!!” and it’s safe to say that you completely forgot to go shopping for your giftee. Frantically digging around your pockets, you quietly cursed to yourself because you knew you had the paper in here somewhere.

‘Where is it?!’ you thought to yourself as you reflected back on the past few days for any possible clue. A small, “Ah…” escaped your lips as you froze on the spot. ‘I did my laundry two days ago…’ you groaned, closing your laptop and shoving it into your bag, before standing up and leaving your office.

‘Think [ Y/N ] think! Try to remember… What did [ C/N ] write in their list?’ you pondered, racking your memory for any sort of lead to help you with this conundrum. Yet, just as you were about to exit the lobby, you accidentally bumped into someone. Earning a quiet yelp from them in the process.

“I am so sorry! I wasn’t looking where I was going.” you bowed and immediately apologized before you looked back up to meet a familiar pair of heterochromatic eyes. “It’s ok [ Y/N ] don’t worry ‘bout it.” Mika smiled, which immediately helped calm your nerves.

“Ya seem quite nervous, is somethin’ wrong?’ “Mika I’m doomed! I accidentally threw my giftee’s list when I did my laundry and I can’t remember what was on it… and now the party is in a few hours and I got nothing so I’m just freaking out and-” “Who did ya get?” “[ C/N ]...” “Ahhhh… Didn’t they say that they were gonna go on a vacation to the beach or somethin’? I remember them talkin’ about it-”

“MIKA YOU’RE AN ANGEL!” you exclaimed, making the black-haired idol jump from your sudden outburst before he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t do anythin’ though but I’m glad I was able to help ya.” You gave him a bright smile as you immediately took out your phone to check the time, sighing in defeat you furrowed your eyebrows in an attempt to come up with a plan.

“The closest shop that sells these things is around fifteen minutes away, then it’ll take me an hour or two to pick the right items… After that, the closest store that can wrap gifts is around ten minutes away which takes me to 5:00…” Mumbling to yourself, your shoulders slumped down as you couldn’t help but frown at your current predicament. Mika noticed this and felt a pang in his heart, laying a hand on your shoulder, you perked up and looked at him with a curious gaze.

“If ya need some help, I can go with ya! I know some shops that’re much closer n’ they sell stuff that’re all year ‘round!” Mika offered, making you look at him with worry. “But don’t you have practice? Valkyrie has a live coming up next week if I’m not mistaken?” you asked. You didn’t want to waste Mika’s time considering that you knew just how much time and effort both Mika and Shu put into their performances. Giving you a bright smile, Mika shook his head.

“It’ll be fine, Oshi-san and I finished practicin’ for today, so I got alotta free time now~” he explained, but noticing the worried glint in your eyes, Mika added, “I was actually just ‘boutta head back to my dorm before ya bumped into me. So don’t worry ‘bout it!”

A warm, comforting feeling enveloped you as you gave him a smile and hugged him. “Thank you so much Mika! You’re a lifesaver!” you exclaimed and, just before the black-haired male could react, you took his hand and pulled him towards the direction of the shopping district.

“Let's go!” “Nggah! [ Y/N ], slow down!”

──•~❉᯽❉~•──

After a while of dragging Mika around the sidewalks, you finally calmed down as the two of you were chatting about mundane topics, with your hands still linked to one another in a comfortable atmosphere. Just as you were telling a story, you suddenly got yanked as Mika stopped in his tracks.

Turning to face the idol, he gave you a smile and tilted his head towards the entrance of the store. “This was the store I was talkin’ about. Wanna take a look?” Nodding your head with a “Sure!” the two of you made your way into the store, and Mika was right!

Your view was immediately filled with various articles of clothing and products for every possible season. Spring, fall, winter… Hell, even summer?! This was perfect!

Silently thanking those who decided to not clear out the summer collection, you gently let go of Mika’s hand as you speed-ran towards a section that caught your eye, with Mika casually following you from behind. Looking through the racks of clothes, you hummed to yourself as you thought about the different scenarios your coworker might deal with in order to find the perfect gift.

‘If they’re going to the beach that means having something light-weight would be ideal…' you thought to yourself as your eyes immediately landed on a shawl. A small “Aha!” escaped your lips as you took it out of the rack, examining the cloth in the process.

As your fingers rubbed against the fabric, you furrowed your brows in contemplation. You weren’t necessarily that knowledgeable when it comes to fashion and clothes, so you were struggling to figure out if [ C/N ] would like this sort of texture.

You snapped out of your thoughts when a hand reached out and touched the fabric as well. “This fabric is a ‘lil bit too thin so it might rip easily. Is there anythin’ that’s a bit thicker?” Mika suggested, making you turn back to the rack and search.

“I’m not too sure… What about this one? Would this work?” “Nngh… That one’s too thick, they’re gonna get sweaty real quick. Plus black absorbs heat a lot more, so maybe try n’ find somethin’ lighter like white or pastels?”

“Ahhhh I see, I see… How about this?” Picking up another shawl, it was beige decorated with intricate geometric patterns across its edges. The colour of the shapes alternated between navy blue and hints of red and yellows which further compliments the overall design.

Running your fingers through the fabric, the texture was soft, smooth and thin which seemed to be exactly what you were looking for. Mika touched the cloth and hummed with content as he gave you a nod of approvement. “This is perfect!” he exclaimed, as a bright smile graced his features. His smile was contagious and you couldn’t help but smile back as you held the shawl close.

“Great! That’s one down! If my memory serves me right, I think they also wanted a beach towel... Do you remember them saying anything else about their vacation?” “Nnngh… Not so much, I just remember them talkin’ about the beach and… Oh! Actually, they said somethin’ about their dog ruinin’ their sandals!” “Alright, perfect! Let’s go get them a pair then! I was also thinking about getting them some office stationery in the bookstore before going to the gift-wrapping section!”

──•~❉᯽❉~•──

Time flies when you’re having fun, and that’s exactly what happened for the rest of your shopping spree! Having Mika by your side throughout this entire ordeal helped calm your nerves, and you swore you would’ve been much more stressed if you had to deal with this all alone. Not only that, but with Mika’s help, you were able to pick the right clothes and items that would not only match your coworker’s aesthetic, but also suit the destination they were going to visit.

With the bag of items in one hand, and swinging your other hand that held Mika’s, you both made your way towards the gift-wrapping section. “Ooo the wrappings are adorable!” you cooed, scanning through the colourful section of the store.

“Mika, think fast! Red, green, beige?” “Nngah?! Red!”

“Red it is~!” you happily exclaimed, grabbing a roll that was adorned with white and gold tree patterns before making your way towards the counter.

Mika chuckled at your cheerful demeanor as he couldn’t help but smile to himself. He was glad that you were finally feeling better because it pained him to see you stressed, and he was just glad that worked out in the end. Looking at his phone, his heterochromatic eyes widened in surprise.

“[ Y/N ]... We should really head back now…” Mika voiced, looking up towards you with nervousness laced in his tone. You turned your head and gave him a nod, seemingly oblivious to his nervous demeanor. “Yup! Give me two more minutes, they’re almost done~” you answered before turning back to watch the clerk.

You were seemingly entranced by the entire process, as the clerk continued to fold the paper cleanly and accurately and you didn’t notice Mika calling out to you, or that they were done, until the clerk’s voice snapped you out of it. Thanking the clerk with a smile, you carefully put the gift in your bag and glanced back at Mika.

“Ok, I’m all set~ How much time do we have left?” “Fifteen minutes…”

“FIFTEEN?!” you exclaimed, as Mika grabbed your wrist. Frantically nodding, you yelped as Mika pulled you towards the exit of the store before running at top speed back to the agency. You initially tripped over your steps the first few times as you struggled to match Mika’s speed, but the moment you were able to sync up with him, the dash back went a lot more smoothly.

──•~❉᯽❉~•──

Panting heavily, you placed your hands on your knees as you tried to compose yourself while Mika was seemingly not that tired. ‘Idols and their damn stamina…’ you playfully thought to yourself as you wiped the sweat off your forehead with the back of your hand.

The booming music accompanied by loud chatter escaped the open doors of the party room and echoed throughout the hallway. Through the drumming in your ears, you were able to make out the fact that the gift-giving session was just about to start. “At least we made it in time…” you muttered out in stuttered breaths.

As you were trying to recover, Mika carefully removed your gift from your bag and placed it on the gift table, and thankfully no one caught him in this act. Making his way back to you, you thanked him before a familiar coworker noticed your hunched over posture and immediately made their way towards you as well.

“Oh dear, [ Y/N ] are you alright?” they asked worryingly, but upon hearing their voice, you immediately perked up and stood straight. Surprisingly both [ C/N ] and Mika in the process.

“[ C/N ]~ It’s been a while, how are you?” you smiled, trying to sell a nonchalant attitude as if you didn’t just run a marathon two minutes ago. This little facade of yours made Mika quietly chuckle to himself while [ C/N ] didn’t seem to notice as the conversation continued like normal. That was, until it was finally time to open the gifts.

“Come on, the presents aren't gonna open themselves~” [ C/N ] joked, earning a giggle from you before you answered, “I’m fine for now! I wanna eat something before opening my present~ You can go ahead without me.” [ C/N ] nodded and looked at Mika, to which he replied with a similar reason. Nodding at the two of you, [ C/N ] made their way towards the gift table and began searching for their gift.

As you and Mika filled your plates with food, [ C/N ] immediately ran up towards you, their eyes shining with happiness as a wide smile was plastered on their features. “[ Y/N ] look at what my secret santa gave me! This is amazing! These are exactly what I wanted~” [ C/N ] exclaimed, as they carefully held all the items you bought.

A big smile formed on your lips as you breathed out a sigh of relief, “I’m so glad that you love them! I was actually your santa! Now you can go and enjoy your vacation~ Just don’t forget to send me some pictures.” you hummed, elbowing [ C/N ]’s side teasingly. Glancing at Mika, you gave him a soft smile as you mouthed “Thank you.” The smile he gave back told you that he got your message before he excused himself and made his way towards the gift table.

As you continued talking to [ C/N ], they eventually got caught up in another conversation with another co-worker, so you decided to excuse yourself and head towards an empty table to finish up your plate. As you ate, you felt a tap on your shoulder. Turning towards the source, you were greeted with a nervous Mika as he held a delicate, small wrapped box in his hands. Your eyes widened in surprise as you took the box from him.

“So you were my secret santa, hmmm~?” “Hehe yeah~ I hope ya like it!”

Mika watched as you unwrapped the gift and the moment your eyes landed on the items inside, you couldn’t help but let out an excited squeal.

“Thank you so much Mika! These are perfect!” you expressed, Mika chuckled happily as his eyes shone with excitement. “Yer still missin’ one more thing~ It’s inside over there.” Motioning to the box, you looked back down and removed the decorative paper before letting out the most excited cheer all day.

Placing all the other items on the table, you took the small teddy bear in your hands and held it high in the air like a child before hugging it close to your chest. “Mika this is the cutest, most precious lil’ buddy ever!” you gushed, admiring all the intricate details and sewing that you knew Mika worked so hard on.

Hearing him breathe a sigh of relief, you looked up at him as his golden and aqua eyes held a look of happiness and comfort within them.

“Merry Christmas [ Y/N ].”

[brucefromfamilyguy]

you're a man

Bruce is a major recurring character on Family Guy, known for his various jobs.

Bruce rarely appeared at all in the first three seasons of the show, but has become a recurring character since the show returned from cancellation.

He first appeared as the clerk of a horror novelty shop in "Chitty Chitty Death Bang". In "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire", he teaches a CPR course at the Quahog Community Center. His name was first revealed when he appeared as a member of the school board committee of James Woods Regional High School in "No Chris Left Behind". This position was implied when he heard the name change proposal to Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial High School sought by Shauna Parks and Brian Griffin in "Peter's Got Woods".

He appear as a Tetris piece in "Prick Up Your Ears" and as a medium in "Petergeist". He worked for Exotic Entertainment.

In "Road to the Multiverse", he performs "It’s A Wonderful Day for Pie" as a parody of Tinker Bell in the Disney-style universe.

He is Peter Griffin's lawyer for his trial in the accused murder of his wife Lois in "Stewie Kills Lois". He calls Jeffrey about Stewie in "Lois Kills Stewie", and about Peter's mustache in "McStroke".

In "Boys Do Cry", he offers communion wafers with wine. He explicitly warns Stewie not to drink the wine.

In "Baby Not On Board", he is a masseuse.

He appeared at O.J. Simpson's welcome party in "The Juice Is Loose", and joins the mob that chases him out of town.

In "Peter's Two Dads", he is the therapist who helps Peter realize that Francis Griffin is not his biological father.

He debates which groceries to leave behind while in the ten items or less line in "Brian Sings and Swings".

It has been hinted that he may be homosexual throughout the series, such as in "McStroke" when a mustachioed Peter walks by. He has a friend named Jeffrey and in "Road to the North Pole", he declares in "All I Really Want For Christmas" that he wants to marry Jeffrey. Seth MacFarlane confirmed Bruce's homosexuality in an interview with LGBT website The Backlot, citing him as an example of a positive gay character on the show.

In "The Splendid Source", it is revealed that he works at the bowling alley, selling rental shoes. He is one of the people to whom the dirty joke is traced. It s revealed he also has a pet rabbit named Steven.

He plays Greedo in Blue Harvest and Admiral Piett in Something, Something, Something, Dark Side.

In "Tales of a Third Grade Nothing", he seems to be the only one who enjoyed the performance of "Guys & Dolls". He also enjoys ginger ale.

He is the announcer of Lois Griffin's boxing match against Deirdre Jackson in "Baby, You Knock Me Out".

He is an alcoholic, participating in Alcoholics Anonymous meetings Peter attends in "Friends of Peter G".

Bruce can be seen as Stewie rides through town under Brian's car in "Family Guy Viewer Mail No. 2".

The uncensored version of "Ratings Guy" includes a scene of Peter getting a haircut from Bruce, who shaves a misshapen, deformed penis into the back of his head. When Peter questions it, Bruce runs out crying, noting that some people have had an accident.

Bruce is teamed up with Bonnie Swanson in the three-legged race in "He's Bla-ack!".

In the courtroom scene in "The Simpsons Guy", the openly gay Bruce is seated next to the closeted gay Waylon Smithers.

Throughout the series, Mike Henry has given certain anthropomorphic creatures such as Jaws and a Xenomorph the same voice as he's given Bruce.

Bruce is revealed to be 52 in "Underage Peter", having told Jeffrey that he was 39.

In "Married...With Cancer", Bruce officiates Brian's wedding and remarks that it's another wedding he has to watch. He makes his intentions of marriage known to Jeffrey who nervously looks away.

Bruce and the Kool-Aid Man swap bodies in "Switch the Flip". He also has a crowd scene cameo in "No Giggity, No Doubt".

Under pressure from his parents Phil & Candy Straight, Bruce proposes to Meg in "Meg's Wedding". She refuses to acknowledge that he's gay at first, but stops the ceremony and admits she's aware after finding pictures in his phone. He is forced to not only confront his parents, but proposes and marries his long-time boyfriend Jeffery.

Episode Appearances

FG103 "Chitty Chitty Death Bang"

FG207 "The King Is Dead"

FG309 "Mr. Saturday Knight"

FG405 "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire"

FG411 "Peter's Got Woods"

FG419 "Brian Sings and Swings"

FG423 "Deep Throats"

FG425 "You May Now Kiss the...Uh...Guy Who Receives"

FG426 "Petergeist"

FG427 "Untitled Griffin Family History" (as ancestor Tobi)

FG508 "Barely Legal"

FG510 "Peter's Two Dads"

FG515 "Boys Do Cry"

FG516 "No Chris Left Behind"

FG601 Blue Harvest (as Greedo)

FG604 "Stewie Kills Lois"

FG605 "Lois Kills Stewie"

FG608 "McStroke"

FG704 "Baby Not On Board"

FG706 "Tales of a Third Grade Nothing"

FG709 "The Juice Is Loose"

FG710 "FOX-y Lady"

FG714 "We Love You, Conrad" (uncensored version)

FG801 "Road to the Multiverse"

FG808 "Dog Gone"

FG812 "Extra Large Medium"

FG813 "Go, Stewie, Go!"

FG819 "The Splendid Source"

FG820 Something, Something, Something, Dark Side (as Captain/Admiral Piett)

FG905 "Baby, You Knock Me Out"

FG907 "Road to the North Pole"

FG909 "New Kidney in Town" (mentioned)

FG911 "Friends of Peter G"

FG913 "Trading Places"

FG1001 "Lottery Fever"

FG1012 "Livin' on a Prayer"

FG1017 "Forget-Me-Not"

FG1018 "You Can't Do That On Television, Peter"

FG1021 "Tea Peter"

FG1022 "Family Guy Viewer Mail No. 2"

FG1102 "Ratings Guy"

FG1108 "Jesus, Mary & Joseph" (as the Angel of the Lord)

FG1112 "Valentine's Day in Quahog"

FG1116 "12 and a Half Angry Men"

FG1119 "Save the Clam"

FG1201 "Finders Keepers"

FG1210 "Grimm Job" (in fairy tale)

FG1220 "He's Bla-ack!"

FG1221 "Chap Stewie"

FG1301 "The Simpsons Guy"

FG1316 "Roasted Guy"

FG1403 "Guy, Robot"

FG1404 "Peternormal Activity" (uncensored version)

FG1414 "Underage Peter"

FG1502 "Bookie of the Year"

FG1516 "Saturated Fat Guy"

FG1605 "Three Directors"

FG1613 "V is for Mystery"

FG1617 "Switch the Flip"

FG1701 "Married...With Cancer"

FG1702 "Dead Dog Walking"

FG1703 "Pal Stewie" (heard)

FG1712 "Bri, Robot" (mentioned

FG1715 "No Giggity, No Doubt"

FG1717 "Island Adventure"

FG1803 "Absolutely Babulous" (mentioned)

FG1805 "Cat Fight"

FG1807 "Heart Burn"

FG1816 "Start Me Up"

FG1818 "Better Off Meg"

FG1819 "Holly Bibble"

FG1902 "The Talented Mr. Stewie"

FG1903 "Boys & Squirrels"

FG1905 "La Famiglia Guy"

FG1906 "Meg's Wedding"

FG1907 "Wild Wild West"

FG1914 "The Marrying Kind"

FG2006 "Cootie & the Blowhard"

FG2007 "Peterschmidt Manor"

FG2008 "The Birthday Bootlegger"

FG2014 "HBO-No"

FG2015 "Hard Boiled Meg"

FG2016 "Prescription Heroine"

FG2101 "Oscars Guy"

FG2115 "Adoptation"

FG2117 "A Bottle Episode"

FG2201 "Fertilized Megg"

FG2203 "A 'Stache from the Past"

FG2209 "The Return of the King (of Queens)"

[barbiewritesstuff]

Delayed

-- To Steve Torrence, sorry for sullying your name like that, I’m sure you’re a decent guy but you’re the first one who came up when I googled racecar drivers from Texas soooo…. -- 

You were not sure how either of you were blind enough to run into each other like that but you did and you hated him.

He had been holding scalding coffee, surely that should have been enough of a reason to look at where he was going, but no, he had to be on his phone too.

Naturally, when you collided it spilled all over you. Your brand new shirt was ruined. You were almost more upset by that than by the fact that your chest had turned red and painful.

"Watch where you're going!" He had the gall to say "You made me spill my coffee"

"I made -- I made you spill your coffee?! This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been on your phone, you ass"

You looked at the damage. The white fabric had turned an ugly shade of brown, forming a stain that likely wouldn’t come out of the fabric, especially since this was a silk, hand wash only shirt anyway.

“What kind of coffee?” You ask

“A Vanilla Café Mocha”

“Wonderful.” You replied dryly. Not only did it contain syrup, but it also contained milk. Great. So you would be sticky and stink. “I’m going to need to change now. Merry fucking Christmas to me”

At least he had the decency to look ashamed when you looked at him again. Maybe it was because he had ruined your expensive clothes, or because he was definitely making you late for your flight, but the fact that he was handsome was making you so much more irritated. What right did this jackass have to look this good? With his bright green eyes, chiselled face, toned muscles underneath a tight white shirt. How fucking dare he. 

You grabbed your carry on and left for the bathroom. You dialled up your sister’s number once you found a stall to tell her about your misfortune and rooted through your case to find something, anything to wear. The case was filled with things that hadn’t fit into your big suitcase, so the options were limited. Eventually though, you found a tank top and an off-the-shoulder jumper you could wear. Hoping it wouldn’t stain the rest of your clothes, you threw the ruined shirt into the case and shut it again. Infuriatingly, when you got back to the gate, the man had found himself another coffee. He looked at you, you looked at him and you rolled your eyes so hard you could practically see the inside of your head. 

“Passengers of Flight 684387. We regret to inform you that your flight to Austin, Texas had been delayed due to a storm. We thank you for your patience.”

Could this day get any worse?

You found yourself a seat by the back wall and opened your case again to fish out a book. A storm likely meant a long delay. Once the case was opened, you also switched from your heels to a comfortable pair of tennis shoes. 

The book you had picked had been reviewed as a ‘thrilling detective story’ and a ‘hair-raising thriller’ but as you read through the pages, you found yourself disagreeing with both. The plot was flimsy, the characters lacked any common sense and despite being set in Austin, it lacked anything that made it recognisable as Texas in any possible way. 

You tried to power through for an hour, but by the time you abandoned you had only read about fifty pages of annoying exposition. Unfortunately, the bored sigh you let out as you closed your book and tried to think of what to do was rudely interrupted by the mountain of a man you had run into earlier.

“Mind if I sit next to you?” 

“Yes” You replied. He sat down anyway.

“I’m sorry about the coffee. Are you hurt?”

“No, but you ruined my shirt”

“That’s what matters to you? Not the second degree burns?” He chuckled. You were irritated to find that aside from the gorgeous face, attractive body and low, soothing voice, the man also possessed a wonderful laugh.

“Yeah well it’s not like anyone was going to look at my tits anyway, so yes, I’m pissed about the shirt.” You snapped. Usually, you wouldn’t dream of being so crass. Especially to a stranger, but the pain in your chest wasn’t improving your mood, and neither was the fact that the man had apparently looked down your shirt for long enough that he could tell how bad the damage was. 

“I’ll pay for the dry cleaning” 

“It’s fine”

A silence settled over the two of you

“Are you from Texas”

“No. My boss works from there sometimes. This is a work trip”

“Ah, so that’s why you’re so crabby”

“No, I’m crabby because you spilled coffee on my expensive new shirt”

He chuckled

“Where are you from?”

“Why do you care?” You asked. He was looking at you with an indecipherable look in his eyes. It was half amused, half… something else. “New York”

“Thought I couldn’t hear an accent” He said, sitting straight “I’m on leave for Christmas.”

“That’s wonderful” 

He laughed

“You know, if you want me to stop chatting, you can just tell me. Because I like a girl that plays hard to get, and I will keep trying”

“Wow, so you enjoy annoying a girl into accepting your presence”

“I don’t hear you asking me to stop”

You turned away from him with a huff, crossing your arms over your chest and wincing from the pain as you did so. 

“We should get you an ice pack,” He said. Out of the corner of your eyes, you could see him looking straight at your chest. 

“You probably shouldn’t be wearing such a tight shirt on a burn” He said. Eager to change the subject to something other than shirts or burns, you scrambled to find something else to talk about. 

“What do you do for a living?” 

“I’m a navy pilot” 

“Is it nice?” 

“Can’t complain. I like the thrill, I don’t like the deployments. What about you?”

“I work as an assistant to Steve Torrence. The NHRA Top Fuel Dragster driver”

“Okay, you definitely have the cooler job” He turned in his seat to face you better, ignoring the pain he must have been feeling as he leaned against the metal arm rest of the gate’s uncomfortable chair. 

“Ha, I do not. I’m there for him to scream at when he loses and to fetch his coffees, his towels and call his wife when he can’t make it to date nights…He’s not half as nice as he seems like on tv”

“If I pay for the dry cleaning, will you let me meet him”

“Wow, and I thought you were growing on me”

“Damn, guess I ruined it” He smiled “How could I possibly make it up to you?”

“I’ll have a vanilla iced latte please” You said, leaning forwards with the most innocent smile you could muster. His face was too close for such a public setting, and yet, you didn’t mind.

“You’re lucky I was going to go anyway”

“Or what, flyboy?”

He froze for a second

“You’re lucky you’re cute, woman. I don’t usually allow people to call me that” He practically growled. 

“Go get my coffee” You said and pushed him towards the coffee stand

“I think you’re forgetting something” 

“Go. Get. My. Coffee. Flyboy” You said, standing tall so your faces were inched apart. He stood frozen in place for a second. His eyes glanced towards your lips and you instinctively licked them. You wished he would act on what he was thinking about. It was a strange situation to be in: two strangers in an airport waiting on a delayed flight, pushed together by a coffee and ruined shirt. There was an attraction, and you would likely never see each other again. Why not act on it?

“Iced vanilla latte, right?” He asked, a little breathlessly.

You nodded and watched him walk away. The airport intercom dinged, accidentally interrupting your thoughts. 

“Ladies and Gentlemen, this is gate information for Flight 684387. Boarding will start in half an hour, please ready your boarding passes and move closer to the gate. Thank you” 

Part of you wanted to thank the heavens but the pang of sadness you felt in your chest told you that a larger part of you wanted the flight to be cancelled, if only to get to know your flight companion better. 

He came back five minutes later, both coffees in hand. 

“I’m in seat B5” You announced

“Well, ain’t this a twist of fate” He chuckled “I’m in B6. You know, I’m starting to think this was meant to be”

“Guess you’re stuck with me for the next 11 hours. I’m warning you now, I’m sleeping the whole way through”

“Hey, I’m happy as long as you’re not one of those people who removes their shoes during flights” He looked at another group of people. They had all lost their shoes thirty minutes earlier, wafting the smell of their stale socks around the room with every movement they made. 

“Oh, baby, I am. And you know what? I clap when we land too” 

He clutched some imaginary pearls and looked at you with the best pretend outrage he could manage. You laughed

“I’m not joking, though. I do want to sleep” You grew serious for a second, pointing a manicured finger at his face. 

“What, you think I’ll keep you up?” He winked. The man stared into your eyes for a second, an easy smile on his face. You glanced at his lips and he looked away, suddenly shy “I like you, I don’t think I’ve ever hit it off with someone so fast before”

“Me neither… It’s a shame this is doomed from the start though”

“Is it?” He sounded disappointed 

“Honey, I don’t know your name, I don’t know your number. But I know I’m only here for a week and you’ll eventually have to go back to your planes. We lead different lives, in different places. It won’t work out” 

As much as you wanted something out of this, you had to be realistic. Navy pilots weren’t known for their wide open schedules and heaps of free time, and your job kept you travelling often, at the mercy of a boss who thought everyone could simply hop into a plane and live somewhere else every few weeks. Still, part of you hoped you might just get a kiss out of it, a sort of parting gift from the gorgeous man you felt attracted to. You turned on your seat to sit straight forward. 

“Can’t we pretend?” He asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see he was still facing you.

“What do you mean?”

“For a week. Just -- You and me, we give it a shot for a week.”

“There’s no point, Flyboy, I don’t think we’ll work out”

“Let me change your mind” He whispered “Please”

He moved impossibly closer to you, his hot breath fanning over the skin of your neck. You turned your head a little, subconsciously aligning your lips with his.

You sighed “Fine”

Almost as soon as the words had come out of your mouth, your lips were covered by his in a gentle kiss. It was almost dizzying and disturbing how addicting this felt.

[tgon]

Ghosts of Fear Street, Fright Christmas | Review

Title: Ghosts of Fear Street #15 – Fright Christmas Author: Stephen Roos (as by R.L. Stine) Cover Artist: John Youssi

INTRODUCTION

The cover artwork got my hopes up. Never before has Silent Night looked so loud loud loud! Unfortunately the plot is less interesting. The ghostwriter must have organized a White Elephant Plot Exchange, because the entire story is lifted from A Christmas Carol. It’s safe to assume R.L. Stine forgot this book exists, too, because he penned his own adaptation of the Dickens classic in 2017 entitled Young Scrooge.

I was fully prepared to skip this book. Bah humbug. But last night I was visited by The Ghost Of Christmas Past. The spectre said unto me, “Fright Christmas had an audiobook adaptation in 1997 starring Kieran Culkin. This wasn’t the most successful Christmas project for the Culkins, but skipping it could be seen as an insult. If they have the power to put a star in Hollywood Boulevard for Macaulay, think about how easily they could put you in the ground!”

Well, I’ve had a sudden change of heart. Let’s give this book a chance! One last toast to has-been ghosts, the review will be soon.

STORY REVIEW

Kenny Frobisher is less of a “peace on earth” guy and more of a “piece of work” guy. When his sister visits Santa in the mall, Kenny spoils the occasion by calling it all fake. He even rips Mall Santa’s beard off! Maybe Kenny is banking on the resale value of coal. Anyways, Kenny wisely dips out after the beard stunt sparks a child riot. He sneaks into a secret control room, pushing past a big sign that says DANGER! KEEP OUT! So maybe Kenny is also banking on the resale value of Darwin Awards.

Kenny decides to flip some random switches, which was quality entertainment in a pre-internet America. This great plan backfires when Kenny locks himself in. Kenny fears that the ghostwriter is copying another story from the 1840s ⁠— until the door mysteriously creaks open. He emerges to discover an abandoned mall. He must have stayed past closing time. Or maybe he timetraveled to the early 2020s.

Santa rises from the shadows, but this fella ain’t holly-jolly. He looks ticked. Truly chilling. If that doesn’t scare you, have you considered SANTA is an anagram for SATAN? Truly chilling. Kenny yanks down on Santa’s beard, but this one doesn’t detach. Uh oh. Santa reprimands Kenny for his naughtiness and warns that the boy will be visited by three spirits. Kenny flees to Dalby’s Department Store, which is a cute bit of continuity, as this store is an important location in the main Fear Street series. Kenny decides it’s a super good time to nap on one of the luxury beds. Yes he’s trapped in a mall and haunted by ghosts, but it’s 8:59 (PM!!) and he’s sleepy, dagnabbit.

Kenny wakes up to the revving of a motorcycle. He meets an intimidating biker named Night Watchman. The guy claims he’s been watching Kenny all the time, but I guess “All Hours Watchman” doesn’t sound cool. This dude shows Kenny a flashback, a day when Kenny bullied some kid named “Tiny Timmy” in front of the whole school. Of course, Kenny enjoys revisiting this memory. To keep his grip on the situation, Night Watchman simply rams Kenny with his bike. Truly an underrated rhetorical strategy.

Eyes snapping open, Kenny finds himself back in the department store. The bed has been torn to shreds. He meets a wintery ghost named Ice Man. This fixes a huge problem in the original Dickens story: the total lack of wrestler-style character names. Ice Man whisks Kenny away to show him how the Frobishers are handling Christmas Eve without their son. Kenny’s sister seems pretty upset, but Mr. Frobisher offers helpful advice such as

“These things happen, honey.”

Think that sounds cold? Turns out, the family is only sad because their dog is lost. They haven’t even noticed Kenny is gone. I guess if you live on Fear Street, you develop an Oregon Trail mindset. Sometimes we have two kids, sometimes we have one kid, oh well what can you do.

Kenny is woken once more, this time by techno lights and crazy music, and he finds himself in an open grave. After all, you can’t spell GRAVE without RAVE. There’s also an unknown figure skulking around above him. Kenny pleas for help, but the figure turns out to be a hooded ghost. The spooky dude points a skeleton-finger at Kenny, and a hoard of ghost kids descend on our protagonist. Oh my God, they killed Kenny!

Back in the mall again, an electrician shakes Kenny awake. The boy fell asleep in the control room. Feeling a sudden change of heart, he buys a gift for his sister. When Kenny gets home, the family dog has indeed gone missing, just like in his dream. Luckily, Tiny Timmy happened to catch the dog and returns it, upgrading him to Regular Timmy. But then Timmy reveals a spooky skeleton-finger, signifying that he was the mysterious ghost from Kenny’s dream. I made a visual aid to convey the terror.

THE VERDICT

If you’d like to create your own adaptation of A Christmas Carol, it might be beneficial to follow this simple set of rules: Don’t.

So concludes our third Biennial Holiday Special. Maybe by 2025, Elon Musk will buy this blog for billions of dollars and replace me with an AI. If you don’t want me replaced by a robot (or maybe you chuckled while reading this entry), feel free to leave a like or drop a message.

BEST QUOTE

“Sorry, Kenny,” Dad said softly. “We were reading A Christmas Carol. I know how you hate it.” “Not anymore, Dad,” I said, […] “I love it! It’s one of my favorite stories now!”

Why? At what point was that experience anything other than traumatizing?

[dragonbinx]

Secret Santa

Part of my Christmas series from last winter.  Posted on Ao3 here.

Series: Legacies

Ship: Hizzie, BenJed

Characters: Lizzie Saltzman, Ben, Jed Tien, Hope Mikaelson, MG, Kaleb Hawkins, Cleo Sowande, Finch Tarrayo

“We’re gonna do a Secret Santa!” MG exclaimed, looking very proud of himself.

There was a moment of silence as every face in the room turned dubious.

“Oh, come on, guys, we need a team building thing. Cleo’s been busy learning about being a fury, Jed doesn’t even live here anymore, we barely know Ben - no offense, man, you seem cool aside from betraying us that one time - and me and Lizzie are … well, we’re working on it.”

The rest of the Squad exchanged glances. It was two weeks until Christmas, and it was the first time they’d all been in a room together in weeks.

“Fine,” Lizzie conceded, because MG was right and because she still felt bad about the breakup. “Let’s get this over with.”

“That’s the spirit, kinda.” MG held out a Santa hat with little papers inside. “Everyone pick a name, no switches, and everything has to be under a hundred bucks.”

The hat was passed around without enthusiasm, but without complaints either. Lizzie looked down at her name and felt her lip curl without permission. Ben. Great. What to get the demigod who has nothing and also seems to want nothing? The only thing she really knew about him was he was obsessed with Jed, which wasn’t helpful. Maybe she could get him bigger shirts, he always seemed to be in ones a size too small.

“Okay, everybody have a name?” MG rubbed his hands enthusiastically. “Great! Deadline is the twenty-third before everybody has to travel, please make it personal, and have fun!”

The group dispersed, but Hope and Lizzie lingered, making matching faces of dread at one another. Lizzie held up her slip of paper. “I got Ben. You?”

“Uh, not telling. That would be cheating, Lizzie.”

She rolled her eyes. “Of course, we wouldn’t want to ruin Secret Santa. It’s definitely not a weird, forced socialization thing that will probably end with all of us giving gift cards.”

Hope stood up, shaking her head at Lizzie fondly. “I know you can do better than a gift card. And MG’s right, we could use the chance to bond, right?”

“I guess.”

She jumped a little when Hope pressed a warm hand to the skin of her shoulder when her sweatshirt dipped. “I think you should have some faith in this idea. After all, whoever is your Secret Santa might surprise you.”

Hope walked away before Lizzie could think of anything to say to that, let alone stop blushing. Having a potentially unrequited crush was truly inconvenient, she couldn’t imagine how MG had dealt with it for so many years.

Speaking of MG, she saw him through the window, looking like he was heading for Jed and Ben’s RV. She got up and hurried out the door after him, hoping to figure out one of her problems right then and there.

*

“Who’d you get?” Jed winced when Ben showed him Kaleb’s name, cementing his belief that this would be a less than ideal situation for him.

“He still doesn’t like me, does he?” He opened the RV door for Jed. While they had a room in the school, they often preferred to be alone here or at the Old Mill, Ben especially glad for the solitude at the moment.

“Well, he could’ve forgiven you for his car getting torched or the parking meter to the face, but both is probably going to take a while.”

“That’s probably fair. Do you think there’s a gift that will lessen his ire at all?”

“If you’ve got a lot of money lying around I don’t know about, his car. Otherwise,” Jed shrugged to indicate how hopeless Ben’s predicament was.

There was a knock on their RV door. They exchanged confused glances before Ben pulled it open to reveal Lizzie and MG.

“Hey, guys,” MG greeted. “We just wanted to check in with you guys. You haven’t been home very long and you keep hanging out here.”

Lizzie had already pushed her way in, letting MG trail in behind her, and perched on kitchen table, looking around the small space with a critical eye. “This is … cute.”

“It’s awesome, and why are you here?” Jed asked, crossing his arms.

“Like MG said, I’m trying to be a good friend, bring you two out of your isolation.” She wrinkled her nose at the sight of their garbage can. “That is a lot of styrofoam. How much takeout do you eat?”

“We are still learning to cook, given neither of us previously had much opportunity to learn,” Ben informed her with as much dignity as he could, crowded into the corner to allow everyone else room to fit comfortably and defending their clear reliance on takeout.

Lizzie still winced, probably at the reminder of his curse. “Right, of course. Sorry.”

“Hey Ben, are all these your books?” MG had found their small library, mostly stuck in clear containers under their bed.

“Some. Most are Jed’s. He’s been taking a few college classes over the internet,” Ben said proudly, making Jed smile shyly at him. Jed hadn’t really talked about it much because he’d been nervous that he wouldn’t be any better at college courses than he’d been at high school, but from what Ben understood, he was doing very well.

“Wait, really? I didn’t know you were going to collage, Jed!”

MG seemed to be genuinely happy about it, but Jed clearly had picked up the same surprise in his voice that Ben had, and he scowled. “It’s not that weird, I graduated high school.”

“Oh, right I didn’t mean … that’s great, Jed,” MG tried to recover with a big, awkward smile.

Lizzie, who had been poking around their refrigerator while this conversation had been going on, closed it and grabbed MG’s arm. “Okay, good talk. Jed, Ben, it was great to see you, come into the school next time. Let’s go!” Then she pulled MG out, closing the RV door behind them.”

Ben tilted his head. “They may have us for Secret Santa.”

“Y’think? And I thought I was crap at being subtle.”

*

“You think they figured out why we were there?”

“Who knows, it’s Jed. Although he’s taking college classes now, so who knows.”

“Right? But good for him, I think it’s great.” MG sighed. “I could’ve sounded less shocked, huh?”

“At least we got good ideas for gifts, right?”

When they were almost at the school, MG pulled Lizzie aside, a serious look on his face. “I’m not your Secret Santa but I thought I’d give you a gift anyway.”

“MG …” Lizzie sounded pained to her own ears. She’d had this kind of conversation a lot with MG when he was trying to win her over. Now that they’d given a relationship a try, she knew it only ended one way, and she didn’t want to have to hurt him. Again.

“Don’t worry, it’s a good thing.” MG took one of her hands in his. “It’s okay that you have a thing for Hope.”

Sharp panic sparked in her chest. “What are you talking about? Me and Hope? Please, I just moved her from ‘frenemy’ to ‘friend’ in my hierarchy of acquaintances, and now you think I’m romantically interested in her? Milton Greasley, your imagination can really run away from you.”

“Uh-huh, sure. I get it, you aren’t ready to talk about it, especially with me.” He looked at her with that earnest MG look, the one he got before he gave big speeches before they faced insurmountable odds together. “But I want you to be happy, Lizzie. No matter what’s going on with us, that’s all I’ve ever really wanted. So if there were someone you were into, and you did want to tell them at Christmas, you should know that I’d be okay. That we’d be okay.”

She looked down and blinked away any forming tears, before giving MG the best smile she could. “You know you’re probably the best friend I’ve ever had, MG.”

“Of course I am. I’m amazing.”

“You really are.”

*

On the twenty-third, things went were going well, at least as far as Ben could tell. Finch had gotten Cleo and gave her what were apparently very nice paint brushes. Finch was given a leather jacket with studs on it by Kaleb, while Cleo gifted MG a statue of him as his favorite superhero, making him hug her for a minute straight in excitement.

MG hesitantly handed Jed his present, an extensive compendium of world myths. “I saw the stuff you were studying, and I thought you might be into it,” he explained, probably hesitant after his initial reaction to Jed attending college.

Ben nudged Jed gently and Jed gave him a look that suggested he didn’t need the encouragement. “Thanks, MG. This is really nice.”

MG perked up, looking please he’d gotten it right. “Great, I’m glad you like it! Who’s next?”

To Ben’s complete lack of surprise, Lizzie stood up and handed her present to him, a thin envelope. “I got you five cooking lessons with the guy that runs the Grill while you’re here in January. The two of you need to eat things that aren’t takeout.”

He was taken aback. It was exactly what he wanted; a practical skill that could be used for both him and Jed. “That’s perfect, Lizzie. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. And you owe me a dinner when you’re good at it.” She looked around expectantly. “Okay, who’s got me?”

“I do,” Hope said, avoiding her eyes. “But it’s in another room, I’ll show you when everyone else is done.”

Lizzie seemed to want to protest, but MG plowed over her. “Okay then, the last one is Kaleb! Ben, since you’re the last one left, I’m guessing that’s you, so give him your gift. And Kaleb, remember it’s Christmas and be nice.”

Ben looked at Jed, who gave him a small nod and rubbed his thumb on the back of Ben’s hand comfortingly. He took a deep breath, and stood, rubbing his palms on his jeans. “My.present is outside.”

They all trooped out to the front of the school, where Kaleb’s car was now parked. Kaleb’s jaw dropped. “Wait, what did you do?”

“I improved it. Or, I tried to. My sister is skilled with automobiles, and she helped me. The engine will no longer stall out, the steering is better aligned, and she said the acceleration has a kick now, whatever that means. And I hope you like the new color.”

Kaleb walked down the stairs to his car slowly. He ran his hand over the candy red paint. “It’s not bad,” he allowed.

“I can’t give you back the car you burned trying to help me, but I hoped this might help mitigate the loss.” Ben swallowed heavily, leaning slightly back into Jed behind him.

Kaleb nodded thoughtfully, then looked at Ben for a minute, letting him fidget. Finally, he said, “Cleo and I were going to pick up something for lunch at the Grill. You and Jed wanna come with us, help me test this thing out?”

Jed knocked his shoulder into Ben’s and he gave Kaleb a lopsided smile, hopeful but still a little anxious. “We would enjoy that.”

“Awesome, let’s go!” Jed grabbed Ben’s hand, then looked over at MG. “I mean, we’re done here, right?”

“Well, I guess we did all the presents …”

“Cool, bye.” He pulled Ben down the stairs, Cleo following behind them, chuckling. “Merry Christmas everybody, text us if you want us to bring you anything back!”

He pushed Ben into the back of the car and clambered in after him. They were too big to fit very well but Jed leaned into him happily, and he wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer, feeling surprisingly optimistic. Maybe fitting in with Jed’s friends wasn’t going so badly after all.

*

After the station wagon drove away, the rest of the party broke up, except for the heretic and tribrid. Lizzie turned to Hope and gave her an expectant look. “Well?”

Hope smiled faintly before tipping her head. “Follow me.”

They wandered through the school, Lizzie getting more and more confused as they went. “Okay, seriously, where are we going? You better not be taking me outside, it’s like nineteen degrees.”

“It’s not outside and we’re almost there.”

“We’re almost where, what are you …”

Hope pushed open the doors to the kitchen, where there was a surprisingly cheery and almost childish display. There were big bright balloons, pastel wrapped presents, and a cute three-tiered caked in the middle of the counter.

“Its your eleventh birthday party. You remember, the birthday I ruined?” Hope explained when Lizzie just stood there, wide-eyed. “I made the cake, and I asked Caroline about some of the presents I messed up.” She held up a Leia action figure. “Apparently your mom got this for you.”

“Aw, I love it,” Lizzie crooned, taking the doll and admiring it, before noticing the amusement on Hope’s face, clearing her throat and putting it down on the counter. “I mean, I would have loved it, then. It was a good present.”

Hope was smiling widely now, clearly happy with Lizzie’s reaction. “So you like it?”

Lizzie stepped closer, shaking her head in wonder. “Hope Andrea Mikaelson,” she murmured, sighing as she came to a decision.

She bent down and kissed Hope softly, sweetly, and briefly. “Thank you for my present.”

Hope beamed up at her and laughed happily. “You’re welcome.

Lizzie looked over at the counter. “So do I finally get to eat my cake now?”

“In a minute.” Hope looped her arms around Lizzie’s neck, backed her up to the counter, and pulled her down to kiss her again, open-mouthed and lush.

Lizzie had to give MG credit. Secret Santa had been a great idea.

[housefashionblog24]

Year of the rabbit

How much are you enjoying the most recent Nick Johnson videos?

Senior year of high school, 2002-2003, my Outdoor School counselor name was Bunny, because my friend brought back a shirt from Thailand for me with a cute bunny cartoon on the front that said "where're my rabbit" or something like that. I don't know if that means anything, but she knew I enjoyed bad English on clothes from other countries. Outdoor School was a week long sleepover educational camp in the woods for local 6th grade classes. I was also a counselor Junior year and attended when I was in 6th grade. I remember in recent years, maybe I commented on youtube somewhere about the "wood cookie" round wood branch slice name tags that everyone decorated and wore around out necks at Outdoor School, I threw one in the trash and one was with donations, then later there were wood cookies in new ads. My boyfriend from Senior year stayed with me in the dorms sometimes after I went to college about 4 or 5 hour drive away, he had been an Outdoor school counselor when we were Seniors, he was from the other high school in town. Then, Fall of 2003, when I was in school, he got to be staff for Outdoor School and wasn't crammed in my dorm room, he got his own private cabin, so I drove from school one weekend (I think I didn't have class scheduled on Fridays, maybe I just went for Thursday night and provided him a ride back to town for the rest of the weekend or something, he didn't have a car for a while but borrowed mine usually while I was at school, we both had our first cars totaled in accidents Senior year and he didn't have a new used car yet) to visit him at Outdoor School, but imagine how this story could be twisted, I can't imagine. I wasn't doing well at school so I transferred to school here after the first quarter. High school wasn't great, and college wasn't going to be any better. I graduated when I was 28, but that didn't help me grow up and move on. What does anybody else do?

That guys older sister had the same first name as me and was about my size. They always talked about how crazy she was when she wasn't around, I got to meet her after she came here because of trouble working at a bikini bar in San Jose or somewhere like that in California. I didn't have any female friends or any friends besides my boyfriend, so I tried to hang out with her, but I think none of them could stand me after I got too skinny and ugly from eating disorder, school here wasn't going well. But she did show me Lancome Juicy Tubes and made me interested in department store makeup. I just think it's nice lip gloss, it doesn't mean anything else. Who knows what kind of confusion and conflating stories there was with me and her, having the same first name and being similar and around that guy. I got Juicy Tubes for Christmas this year, thanks for the memories.

I worked at a catering gig earlier this year, it was so weird there was a guy in the kitchen who looked exactly like that ex-boyfriend's best friend. There was a guest at the event with a Louis Vuitton backpack and a Jordan style Nike shoe who looked like she could have been his sister, but they weren't those people. It was an interesting idea for her to be a character at the professional field of the event related to the general area of my college degree, because she wasn't the student. But she had the same first name, and nobody respects or acknowledges my effort or accomplishment, which is fine, I wouldn't want to switch places with that woman attending the event. And I already had similar designer accessories.

After I transferred to college here during the 2003-2004 school year, I lived at home officially, but I spent a lot of the time at my boyfriend's place. I remember being there alone during the winter in the warm apartment, playing Dance Dance Revolution. Maybe once I went to the arcade on campus to play DDR alone, so pathetic. Then, earlier this year, when I was feeding stacks of napkins into the linen press, a mental and physical workout, the napkins staggered two at a time (many needed spot treatment and another wash, so usually speed not quality) so I could iron hundreds of them in one session, for some reason, Dance Dance Revolution from back then kept coming to mind. Do the people at work creeping around know about me playing DDR 20 years ago? Then, of course watching videos this Christmas season, The Wads got the Just Dance game and there was a dance pad like DDR had in the Montgomery Ward catalog.

[neapolitantriangle]

Oh my gosh, is that really her? Candace Cameron Bure? Two time Hallmark Christmas movie lead and main character in that infamous Starkist Tuna commercial? The woman. The myth. The legend. Oh and she also played that little girl (DJ Tanner, I think her name is?) on that old, kooky family sitcom. You probably haven't heard about that one. It's kind of an archaic role. Anyway the way she portrayed Kate Lockhart and Chrs Dixon in "Switched for Christmas" was inspired. She is such a shining light in the acting community---

[talesofarcadia78]

Our Time || One shot

Summary: Douxie’s remembering the good old times. 

Warnings: angst, mention of character death, that's it I think?

Word count: 1,735

Everything was set. The lanterns were hung up on the trees nearby, providing light to Douxie for the night. The campfire was crackling just a couple of feet away from the round dining table and chairs that Douxie had set up not too long ago. The plates were also ready on the table, waiting to be filled with food.

Douxie magicked up a bouquet of roses, and placed them in the vase that was in the middle of the table.

Suddenly, he heard a twig snap behind him. He quickly spun around, staff and bracelet ready, only to see Archie looking up at him in his cat form.

"You seriously thought that I was danger?" Archie questioned with an eyebrow raised.

Douxie magicked his staff away and deactivated his bracelet, "Hehe… yes."

Archie rolled his eyes at his familiar's response, "Do you not remember that you put a ward around this whole area?"

Douxie just shrugged and went back to doing last minute preparations.

After a few minutes of silence, Archie cleared his throat to gain Douxie's attention.

"Yes, Arch?" Douxie asked, turning his gaze to the cat.

Archie pointed to the two figures in the distance heading towards them.

Douxie's eyes widened at how time flew by quickly. He didn't even have time to get changed!

He quickly got behind a tree and used a spell he had recently learned, and changed into a black dress shirt (sleeves rolled up of course), black pants and shoes, keeping his signature skull necklace.

He stepped out from the tree to see Archie fly away. His eyes wandered around until they landed on both you and Jim getting closer. You were wearing a stunning black A-line lace dress that went down to your knees with half laced sleeves and beige heels.

You were blindfolded as Douxie had requested Jim to do to you so you had a surprise.

Douxie could hear you complain to Jim how you didn't like being blindfolded. Jim just rolled his eyes at your antics and told you that all would be revealed in a matter of moments.

Douxie walked up to you two siblings and took you from Jim.

"Thank you, Jim. I'll take her from here," Douxie smiled and took your shoulders.

"No problem, Doux! Tell me the end result!" Jim waved and walked off.

"Douxie, where in the world am I?" you asked.

"Shhh. Be patient, love. All will be revealed," Douxie reassured.

After a few moments, the blindfold on your eyes was taken off.

You took in your surroundings. The trees were decorated with lanterns, a dining table was set and a campfire was already lit. Everything was beautiful.

You spun around to see Douxie holding out a rose for you to take, which you, without a doubt, accepted.

"Shall we, m'lady?" Douxie inquired, holding his arm out.

You nodded and you let him take you to the table.

~~~~~

Douxie had prepared f/f for dinner, and for dessert, an apple pie.

Now, the two of you were quietly sitting on a blanket at the campfire, leaning on each other.

"Love?" Douxie asked.

You hummed in response, letting him know he had your attention.

"Remember the first time we met? I had spilled a drink on the ground in the cafe and you rushed to help," Douxie remembered.

"Yeah," you nodded, memories flooding back.

~~~~~

You anxiously tapped your feet on the ground, waiting for your order to arrive.

You were in a big rush.

Mom had called to tell you that Jim was in the hospital. You knew that he was the Trollhunter, so he had gotten a lot of injuries, though, he didn't need to go to the hospital to get them treated, so you knew that this was serious.

Abruptly, you heard a crash from behind you. You turned around to see a drink had spilled all over the floor. The waiter was already on his knees, trying to clean it up.

You got up from your seat and ran over to help him. You kneeled in front of the guy to hear him faintly say, "Fuzzbuckets". You saw a faint sky blue spark come from his hand.

A wizard.

You placed a hand on his arm, making him look up into your e/c eyes. You mouthed ‘no’ and shook your head, telling him not to perform the spell. He stopped and sighed before cleaning up the mess the old fashioned way with your help.

After helping him, you returned to your seat.

Just when you were about to leave, getting fed up of the wait, the same waiter you had helped rushed up to you, order in hand.

"Hey! You were the one who helped me with the spill a couple of minutes ago, right?" he asked.

"Yeah," you nodded and then added quietly, "And the one who stopped you from using magic as a shortcut."

You smiled and took your order from him. You headed out but got stopped by the same guy.

"Hey, I never got your name. I'm Hisirdoux Casperan, but you can call me Douxie," Douxie winked and held out his hand for a handshake.

"Y/n, Y/n Lake," you replied, shaking his hand. "I'm really sorry, but I really need to go."

He nodded understandingly and waved goodbye.

As you walked to the hospital, you opened the bag that had your food in it, as well as a note. You took it out and read it:

Hey, stranger, who I probably got the name of!

I was wondering if you would grab a bite with me tomorrow at the cafe. 4 pm sharp.

Don't be late.

Yours truly,

Hisirdoux Casperan.

You smiled. You had finally found a fellow magic wielder.

~~~~~

"Then, the time when Jim got a bit overprotective of you when you were at the bookstore."

"A bit?"

"Okay, extremely overprotective of you."

~~~~~

The sun was shining high in the sky, your hair moving along with the gentle breeze, and a nice cup of coffee in your hands while you and Jim made your way to GDT Arcane Books.

Jim opened the door to reveal Archie, Douxie's familiar lying on the ground near the fireplace.

"Hey, Archie!" you greeted.

"Hello," Archie called.

You turned your attention away from the cat and to Jim, who was looking around in suspicion.

"Jim, what is it now?" you asked, placing your hand on your brother's shoulder.

"It's just… why does this store seem so… magical?" Jim inquired.

"Because a magical being owns the bookstore," you replied.

Jim nodded in response.

"Hello!" a new voice spoke.

You turned around to see Douxie coming out of the back. From the corner of your eye, you saw Jim's gaze harden at the sight of the wizard. He pulled you a bit closer to him.

Overprotective brother mode switched on.

"Hey, Doux. Did you call us in for some help?" you inquired.

"Yep! There's only so much a 900 year old wizard can do by himself," Douxie nodded.

Douxie told you and Jim what he needed help with.

Jim was sent off to get some supplies from around town, to his dismay. He wanted to keep an eye on you and Douxie, but alas, he had to go shopping.

Before Jim had left, you heard him send a death threat to Douxie.

"Don't do anything funny with my sister, Casperan. I won't hesitate to slice your head off with Daylight."

Your eyes widened. You knew Jim didn't like Douxie, but you didn't know that he hated him so much to actually threatened him.

Geez. He's way too overprotective.

You made your way over to Douxie as soon as Jim left the store.

"Don't mind him. He's just overprotective," you told Douxie.

"Uh-huh," Douxie nodded slowly.

~~~~~

"We know each other so well, made so many wonderful memories, we've spent so much time together," Douxie sighed. "And I want to spend more time with you."

You turned your head towards him, silently asking him to elaborate.

Douxie moved away and got up. He lent you his hand, which you accepted and followed suit. He took a deep breath and got down on one knee.

"Y/n, love, we've been through so much together. Good and bad. Sad and happy. And I'll continue to. You made me the most happiest man when you became my girlfriend and I thought I couldn't be any happier. But today may prove me wrong," Douxie expressed.

You gasped and clasped your hand over your mouth as Douxie took out a golden ring with embroidery and held it out.

"Y/n Lake… make me the happiest man in the world. Will you marry me?"

You had tears in your eyes at this point. Douxie looked at you with hope, love, admiration, and so much more as he waited for your answer.

"Yes."

Douxie's eyes lit up like a child on Christmas morning, and quickly got up. He grabbed your waist and brought you close. He leaned down and softly kissed you as he slipped the ring onto your finger.

~~~~~

Douxie stared at the photo of you two on your wedding day. You were wearing a short lace white dress and beige ankle strap heels and Douxie was wearing a white dress shirt, black tuxedo, black tie, black pants and a rose attached on the left as you two stood in front of each other, hand in hand while Douxie was kissing your forehead.

Douxie placed the photo back and glanced down at his wedding ring. It was simple, a silver band with swirl embroidery as you had the same, but gold. He remembered the feeling of your hand in his. Your giggling. Everything. But alas, ever since you had passed in battle, he couldn't seem to bring any of those memories back.

Tears formed in Douxie's eyes as he remembered the good times.

Suddenly, the door opened to reveal Jim and Claire.

"Hey, Teach. What were you--" Claire started before she noticed the tears streaming down his face.

Douxie wasn't going to cry but as soon as he saw the wedded couple, he couldn't help himself.

Jim and Claire rushed over to Douxie and enveloped the wizard in a hug, attempting to comfort him. He sobbed into Jim's chest as Jim ran his hand through his hair and Claire rubbing Douxie's back.

Nothing was going to be the same without you.

[zonerobotnik]

Alright, so as you all may have noticed lately in the Tangled fandom, there's been some major drama concerning discourse about whether Varian should be a Top or a Bottom and, specifically, about how Varigo (VarianxHugo) is portrayed. To put it simply, a lot of people put Varian in the girl role and Hugo in the guy role, especially in crossover AUs, regardless of if the role even suits them in that position or not. (Varian as Sally from "Nightmare Before Christmas"? Are you kidding me? Hugo as Chat Noir in "Miraculous Ladybug"? No, no. Guys, look at the characters! The characters!) Anyways, this post is actually me posting on behalf of a guest reader on AO3 that had some very interesting thoughts on the whole "Top vs Bottom" mess. It's a bit long, so I'm putting it under the cut. I personally think it's very insightful, and is worth the read.

[You know, now that everything calmed down a little bit, and after I read every link [redacted for privacy] has posted in the comment, I would really like to say something about this whole Hugo/Varian thing to sum it up a bit and also to put in my own two cents.

1: I think guys (I don’t know if those are man or woman or if it are two people or one person with different names) like “Dan” and “Anon” are more counterproductive than they realize. I think most authors at this point are more likely to write Varian as more submissive and effeminate than already just for spite's sake because of such people, and every author who would have written Hugo as a bottom will no longer do so because they are discouraged because of them. Also, there were some people who were actually interested in reading Varian in charge in a M/M ship who also had Ao3 accounts, who have completely quieted down by now because they don’t want to be associated with these creeps. The only thing they maybe achieved is that all Varigo stories are moderated or are only accessible for Archive-Users now. And the fact that they did that makes me a bit pissed off.

2: In these, well, less debates and more assaults, things such as gender-roles, stereotypes and homophobia, and I would like to say something about that. For this, I will just refer to western culture for simplicities sake, even though I of course could also talk about the Japanese nanshoku and wakashu relationships and the modern seme and uke concept all based on body type, age and social status, and of course I could also talk about Xochipilli, the mock-god who represented everything not considered “manly” and was attributed to conquered or antagonized tribes and cultures, but all of that would be rather complicated and make this more complicated anyway. So, most ideas of such gender based beliefs come from religions and cultures in which humans are divided into male and female as well as social and societal ranks, often attributed to some deities. In ancient Greece homosexuality was more or less common. There the concept of pederasty was very common. There the penetrated partner was a juvenile, usually in his teens, who was considered to be on his way to maturity, and the penetrative, and always insertive, partner was an adult. The concept of switching was uncommon and it was expected of the dominant male to be older, more mature, independent and more intelligent. On art usually represented by the penetrating partner wearing a beard and the penetrated not. Probably best shown on art of the (bearded) Patroclus and (smooth) Achilles. Also important was the social rank, best seen on the gods such as Zeus, Apollo or Poseidon who were always the penetrating partners. Being on top was considered masculine and on the bottom as socially lesser. The top in a relationship was expected to take care of his partner, take charge over his life and watch over him, things usually expected by a husband. The romans later kept most of these ideas of male and female roles and same-sex relationships. The social status became even more important and the financially and socially lesser person was expected to be the “woman”. Man could have sex with their male slaves or with male prostitutes as long as they were always penetrating. Being penetrated was something that was actually described as making one “lesser”. Emperor Elagabalus was mostly slandered not because of his murders, but because of him enjoying being a bottom. He was called too “womanly” often and was mostly criticized for that. Other emperors such as Nero or Hadrian also had male lovers or husbands, but were always on top. The male gender was supposed to be domineering and man were expected to show their dominance, being penetrated or enjoying that wasn’t accepted. The idea that man who enjoyed taking it up the ass were womanly kept being in peoples mind since that. The fact that the term “pederasty” was used synonymous for anal sex in general for the next 2000 years didn’t help either. That can still be seen in modern gay erotica with the older, hairier or stronger partner, referred to as a jock, daddy, bear, bull or stud being always the penetrative part who can domineer and control the life of the younger, referred to as twunk, twink or cub, who wants and enjoys being controlled and follows the penetrating’s orders. This can maybe be best seen on stories such as “Mr. Benson” (which I lovingly call the Fifty shades of Grey of gay erotica) where such things are explained as natural order of slaves and masters in which switching is considered revolting. All of such ideas or classifications won’t work anyway since everybody is an individual who enjoys different things and has different opinions and experiences.

3: I think it’s worth mentioning that some of these people also have a point. In a lot of fanart and fanfics Varian was described as frail, effeminate and was dumbed down quite a bit so that Hugo or Eugene or any other male character could be the hero and Varian the damsel in distress. It’s worth mentioning that two things can be simultaneously. Anonymous people in comment sections can be sexist assholes as well as artists and authors being just as stupid by changing characters so that they better fit erotic stereotypes. It’s true that on wedding pictures or in fics Varian is wearing the dress and Hugo wears the suit and is carrying the “bride”. And on crossover fanart where they are depicted as f/m couples, Varian always plays the female part. Who takes which position in bed isn’t sharpening the relationship dynamics and even less the personality, but a lot of artists and authors still think so just as much as idiots in the comments. Even though by now it got better, this was and is still the case. The idea that both identify themselves as man, that Varian doesn’t need to be a princess and can be strong both physically and mentally and that Varian maybe sometimes wants to take charge and his partner liking it seems not to sit too well with some people just as much as the opposite.

I just wanted to say that.]

[migilini]

Not So Secret Anymore - Charlie Gillespie

summary: It’s hard to hide a relationship from the public, particually when both work on the same show.

words: 2.5k

warnings: fluff

a/n: not my fave but i still somehow like it.

Requests are open :)

MASTERLIST

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

September

"When do we have our first interview?" you asked the boy whose head was in your lap. He looked up from his phone and your eyes locked with his green ones "Hmm, my calendar says in about 30 minutes."

You groaned at that and stopped playing with Charlie's hair which earned you a grunt and whine from him. "Sorry babe but I think I have to go, so I still have time to get ready and set up." You muttered and gave him a small kiss on his brown hair.

"Uhh fine." The weight lifted from your legs, you stood up and before you knew it you were thrown over his shoulder. Laughing, you slapped his butt and back repeatedly. "Babe! I mean it" you tried to press out between giggles, "we both decided to keep us a secret." He sat you down on the kitchen isle and cornered your body in between his arms, standing right in front of you, you're back hitting the kitchen cabinet.

"I know... come back later?" he asked and tilted his head, looking at you with big puppy eyes. "You know it." After a swift kiss, or rather a little make out session, you were on your way back to your own appartement. Just in time to change your top and put on a lip-gloss before opening your laptop and joining the interview.

"Hello everybody! I'm here with the cast of Netflix' Julie and the Phantoms that came out on Thursday. How are you guys?" the interviewer asked and smiled into the camera of his laptop. The whole cast chirped in with a good, great, or amazing.

"That's fantastic!" he clapped his hands "Now, Jeremy, how would you describe your Character and the show in general?"

"It's a show about ghosts from 1995 who come back 25 years later and join a band with Julie who didn't sing a note after her mother died. Reggie, the character that I play, is one of those ghosts and he is a loveable himbo. Did I use that word correctly Maddie?"

Maddie smiled and the interviewer changed the topic "Madison and y/n, birds have told me that this was your first ever acting job is that right?"

You nodded and signaled Maddie to speak first "Yes, and it was both amazing and traumatizing! I was so nervous, but the crew really helped to calm me down, especially y/n who just was in the same position as me, so we freaked out together most of the time." She smiled and the interviewer waited for you to answer. "Except, Maddie had a least some acting training at school, that's why she is the best. I more or less walked into the whole situation." You said laughing.

"I love this story." Jeremy exclaimed, making you slightly blush at his words.

"Would you be so kind and tell us?" the interviewer questioned and smiled at your little nod.

"Yes, yes of course. Well, I was on vacation with one of my good friends from back home..."

"She means Germany." Owen interrupted with a smile on his lips. "Yes, Owen. Thank you for adding important details. Anyways, we saw that there was an Open Audition nearby and though why not? We don't have anything to lose or to do on that particular day. And here I am, my friend sadly didn't get in."

"That really is an amazing story, I can see why Jeremy likes it so much. So, Charlie how would you describe y/n's and Luke's characters, she wasn't supposed to be in the script and was later added in right?" Charlie quirked up at the mention of your name and stated proudly. "Indeed, she impressed Kenny so much that he wrote a character just for her. He thought that Sunset Curve, the band name before we died, needed a female to handle their chaos or well... at least tries to. Y/N plays Allie, who against common speculation isn't any of the boys' love interest which is a very nice turn of events. She and Luke bud head a lot because Luke only thinks about music and the band and she tries hard to make him take breaks every now and then." 

A lovesick smile sat on your face while you listened to your boyfriend of nearly a year, once you realized your expression you quickly shook it off. Hiding this relationship was definitely going to be harder than expected.

The Interviewer asked some more questions before the last and dreaded question was thrown your way. "So, most of your fans are wondering if any of you guys are in a relationship." You and Charlie had discussed a million times before what you guys would say in such a moment, the two of you shared a look.

Jeremy's eyes switched from Charlie's box on his screen to y/n's before answering "I have a lovely wife! The rest of us are happily single, right guys?"

"100%" Maddie added, while Owen only shrugged, his dog conveniently jumping into his lap.

"How about the other two?" he eyed up the last remaining.

"Very single" Charlie laughed, and you agreed "Totally."

As time went on it was harder and harder for the two of you to hide the relationship, as you two spent nearly every day together and therefore did the same activities. Particularly after your social media accounts have gained over a million followers and people started to ship actors and tv show characters. But you two loved the little secret bubble you've created, there was no pressure to take good pictures together, or to post stories, to be asked a thousand questions about your relationship and no hate towards any of you.

December

It has been 4 months since the show released and the hype it got definitely was way more than you ever expected. It blew your mind. Currently, you are on Charlie and yours one-year anniversary / Christmas / good deeds vacation. Charlie and you found a good mix, that made you both happy, between chilling and doing adventurous things.

It was Christmas eve and Maddie wanted to do a 'guess the song Christmas Edition' with the main cast. Eagerly you agreed and hurried from the beach, where Charlie currently took the quiz at the bar you both sat on just minutes before, to your shared bedroom. You shot Maddie a quick text that you were 'out of the relationship zone' and ready when she was ready.

"Helloooo. How did the others do?"

"Not the worst but I still have faith in you to win this. ARE YOU READY?" she screamed the last part.

“I’m going to read you the lyrics of a christmas song and you have to guess the next line. There are certain cards that give one point and others give two. Whoever has the most points at the end…”

“Hopefully get your earrings” you asked with a sly smile and your shoulders raised.

Maddie laughed but shook her head “Sadly, no. I haven't figured out the price yet, but I for sure will! I like your backdrop by the way.” she added and you quickly looked behind you. You sat crisscrossed on the hotel room floor, you used the coffee table and a water bottle as a phonestand and used a white checkered wall as a background to try and hide the fact that you didn't sit in your living room.

January

“This should be the last box.” you cheered into the empty hall and shut the front door with a light push from your hip. Charlie popped his head out of the bedroom and walked over to, dropping his head on your shoulder in exhaustion. Nothing was set up, boxes stood randomly all over the apartment, the fridge stood there still empty and a lonely mattress covered the bedroom floor.

“The walls look a bit bare don't you think?” you said about a week later, standing in the middle of the now a bit furnished living room. Strong arms sneaked their way around your waist and a head dropped on your shoulder.

“Hmm… you're right. What do you have in mind?” Charlie said and turned you around so you were facing him. He smiled at the spark in your eyes “I was thinking, a yellow akzent wall with random secondhand pictures and some pictures of us, all in frames of course. So it's gonna have this homey and creative atmosphere.” You rambled on for a while longer, telling him where you think his instruments could go, the pillows you saw online and thought they worked perfect with the colour of the couch. Charlie just stared at you, a dumb smile on his lips with his arms around you.

“Do you not like it?” you noticed that he hasn't talked for a while and got worried. “I love it. We could live in a dumpster for all I care, as long as I have you by my side.” You fake gaged at his romantic words and gave him a kiss.

The first time people got really suspicious was the time you accidentally walked in on a live he had on Instagram. He sat in front of his instruments, phone propped up before him. You thought that he was already finished but you were wrong.

“Do you think this…” you walked into the room, a shirt in your hand that you just took out of the dryer and lost your words the moment you saw him sitting in front of his phone. He looked at you with wide eyes, his brain clearly searching for a good excuse. 

“Is that y/n?” he read outloud from the chat, gesturing you do sit next to him. “Yes it's her! We’re hanging out and she helped me with my washing because I somehow still don't know how to do it.” he laughed nervously, his hand grabbing yours out of the frame.

“He promised me food and I live really close by, so I thought I'll help this poor man out.”

May

Looking back at this moment now, you and Charlie weren't sure why you just didn't come clean. You didn't mean to hide the relationship this long, it just kinda happened and at one point it just got too awkward to tell. It was fairly easy to hide most of the time, you didn't most that much on instagram and Charlie only showed parts of his daily life.

The easiest was the time you filmed JATP Season 2. You were expected to hang out and live together. Back in 2019 you already lived with Owen and Charlie. This time poor Owen had to live with a couple instead of just two friends. (You were already dating for a while back then but didn't tell the cast, to not make a fuss.)

It wasn't like the fans didn't suspect a thing, especially after Owen posted a video of you two fooling around. 

Everybody sat outside, enjoying the everwarming sun on their skin. Half of the cast was already in costume just waiting for the break to end. In typical Allie (your character) fashion you wore an overall with a tight tank top underneath, your makeup stood out from the others with the heavy blush, freckles and black eyeliner. 

Charlie, in his Luke wardrobe, thought that it was funny to stand in front of you to shield you from the sun.

"Stop that" you whined and tried to shove him away, which was harder than you thought considering he stood before you and you sat on a bench.

"Make me." He flirted and stood even wider before you, puffing out his chest. Raising an unimpressed eyebrow, you stole his beany with a swift motion. His expresion quickly changed from cocky to shocked, snickering was heard from Maddie who was used to this type of behaviour.

"Ups… heavy wind blows in the shadows." You explained nonchalantly and pulled the beany on your head, sticking your tongue out at your boyfriend.

"Oh it's on my lady" he growled "I'm giving you a three second advantage. One…" your eyes widened and your heart rate picked up. "Two…" you got up and scanned the place internally making a good running line. "Th-.." you began sprinting across the lot. You heard the laughing from your castmates behind you as you and Charlie ran in circles. 

Unfortunately, he was still fitter and faster than you and about a minute into the running he had you thrown over his shoulder.

"Surrender!" he screamed as you tried to wiggle out of his grip.

"Never!" You screamed back and wiggled even harder.

"Surrender or i'll have to tickle you" he warned and those were the last words Owen was able to film before a producer yelled that the break was finished.

February

“Baby, if I would believe this News Article, you have a secret girlfriend, but it's not me.” you showed him your phone screen.

“I’m not cheating on you. I would never, i'd die rather than…” his frantic expression made you snort. “I know. Oh my god! People saw you with Lia.” you held his hands comfortably.

“Lia as in your best friend Lia?”

“The one and only. People noticed the hickeys... At least they’re getting closer now. So are we still on for the masterplan? You by instruments and I'm gonna sit in the bedroom?" He nodded and smiled at the sight of your equally plastered neck. 

Eventually, before you even were able to execute the as you'd like to say 'masterplan' your relationship got outed. I mean it was time, the two of you getting lazier with the hiding as time went by. 

Fans noticed that you wore a lot of Charlie's things and that you and him always seemed to be at the same place at the same time. It was actually one of your lives that spilled the secret. 

"That's a really nice akzent wall" you read outloud from the chat "oh thank you! It was a long process to get all the pictures but it was actually Charlie's idea to not only have pictures but also plane tickets, date memories and so on hung up on that wall. It really makes it homey. I think to get that wall this crowded it took us...what? About well since we moved in…" you didn't even realise what you said you just babbled and then it was out.

"Charlie actually is home! I could call him. Babe! Come here for a sec- oh my god!" Your hands flew up to your mouth in realizion. 

From that moment on you were public and your social media exploded once again. However the two of you were happy to finally show each other off.

[whats-my-question]

Art and Love

Pairings: George Weasley x gn!reader

Warnings: implied depression, a few curse words, and not a warnings but fred’s alive

Summary: (Y/n) is unhappy without art and everyone can see that. George (& Fred) help them remember their passion.

Word count:  1894

A/N: hey everyone!! its been such a long time since i’ve written and posted and this one felt right to be the first to hopefully get me back into it. this story is very dear to my heart bc george is a huge comfort character for me. Also bc i know what it feels like to love something and question if 1. im good enough and 2. its worth doing. please let me know what you all think! THANK YOUUU :)

Fred and George Weasley have been your best friends ever since childhood. You three have been inseparable. For as long as you can remember you have always encouraged and supported their dream of opening a joke shop. Especially when others told them it was a silly dream; one that would never happen because the boys came from a family who had nothing. That never stopped them and after years of trial and error - as well as many detentions while attending Hogwarts - their dream became reality and soon the joke shop was the busiest and most popular store in all of Diagon Alley.

For all the support you provided, they always returned it. The boys knew how much art meant to you and how much joy it brought into your life. For them it was jokes, for you it was art. Your loved ones enjoyed getting gifts from you as they knew it was always handmade without the use of magic (well… most of the time). Like one year for Christmas you made Mrs. Weasley Molly a charmed ceramic teapot with all her children’s names, in their own handwriting and a cup for each one. It’s been years now and she still thanks you every time she uses it. She even had you add Harry, Hermione, Fleur, and yourself to it as she saw you four as her own.

Pottery, painting, sculpting, jewelry making, you were into it all. Of course you had your favorites and the ones you excelled at but just being able to try all the different means of art brought you immense joy. The boys were the only ones to know about your wish to open your own shop and gallery. They never let your dream die while you were kids and now as adults they try every means necessary to coax you into opening one up but you always hit them with the same response: ‘I don’t have time and if I did, no one would be interested and it would fail.’

So that wish of yours soon faded to the background as you were hit with the harsh reality of life while attending Hogwarts. You decided to buckle down and switched your focus towards herbology and potions. It was two subjects you were thankfully good at and after leaving school you could put it to use by being a healer as well as helping the guys with products.

Your goals weren’t the only things that changed during your time at Hogwarts. The way you carried yourself around each of the twins shifted drastically. With Fred you were more talkative and open because you loved him as nothing more than a brother. On the other hand, you grew shy and insecure around George because you realized one day as he talked to you before class started you not only liked him, you loved him. In fact you had loved him for many years prior but you buried those feelings deep because you could never admit to him or Fred in the chance of changing the dynamic of you three. Or far worse, lose them altogether. 

It was like that for months until Fred noticed how lovestruck you always looked especially around George and finally put two and two together. With that new piece of information and the knowledge he had of George liking you, he set his plan into motion with the help of the golden trio and Ginny.

You lot had plans to go to Hogsmeade and spend the day together but slowly they started to drop like flies. Ginny wasn’t feeling well so Harry took her back to her room; Ron somehow injured himself and begged Hermione to go with him to see Madam Pomfrey. Once they said their goodbyes it was just you and George, you six had lost Fred earlier on when Angelina and Katie passed by. 

Although there was a comfortable silence between yourselves, your thoughts were far from silent. You kept trying to think of something to say but nothing seemed good enough. When you finally decided you were just gonna bring up some homework you were supposed to help him with, George broke the silence.

“Do you ever think about our lives after Hogwarts?” He questioned barely glancing over

“I do, quite a lot actually. What about you?”

“What do you thi-

“(Y/N)!” turning around to find a tall, blonde Ravenclaw boy with a brown wrapped package under his arm jogging up to you and George, “(Y/N) I’m so glad I spotted you!” Ignoring the redhead at your side, “I wanted to give you this as a thank you for helping me with that essay for Sprout’s class. It’s not much but I hope you like it.”

You opened it to find a beautiful leaf embossed leather bound notebook.

“It’s gorgeous Will but there’s no way I can accept this!”

“No, please take it. That was the best paper I’ve ever written AND the best grade I’ve received in her class. You definitely deserve it. I was actually wondering if… umm… you wanted to go out with me sometime?” The boy scratched the back of his head while you heard George scoff just loud enough so only you could hear

Will was a nice guy and good looking too but he wasn’t who you wanted. Looking at the ground and then back at the blonde boy, you took a deep breath and intertwined your fingers with George’s, “I’m very sorry but I’m with George..”

“Oh Merlin, I had no idea! I’m the one who should be sorry! Don't even worry about it. It’s all good. ” Will laughed trying to break the tension that was suddenly suffocating, “Well uh thank you again for your help and I hope you enjoy the notebook! See ya around. Bye guys.” He walked away quickly leaving you and George behind

You two remained standing in silence with your fingers laced until the realization struck you that your hands were still connected.

“Oh gosh George I’m sor-

You were cut off by his lips on yours and they were gone as quickly as they were on. 

“Never be sorry for holding your boyfriend's hand.” his smirk dripping off his words

You looked at him with wide eyes just to be met with that famous George Weasley smile, the one that captured your heart years ago, “W-What?”

“I love you (y/n). I have for a while and I guess having someone ask you out right in front of me was the kick in the arse I needed.”

“I love you too George.” Placing your free hand on his cheek

Now here you two were, a few years later and the love you have for George seems to grow each day. Your life was everything you hoped it would be except one huge thing. You hated work. Straight from Hogwarts you were excited to see what the day may bring and welcomed each day with a smile. Anymore, you were bitter and groaned when you had to leave for work.

George saw first hand how your light was slowly fading, he knew of your problems at work and not to mention the fact that you didn’t have any motivation to do art. Which caused him to worry and not before long all his thoughts were on figuring out a way to help you. This change in attitude did not go unnoticed by Fred as he had stopped him on several occasions from eating some of their… deliciously, gross sweets. Today being one of those occasions; George was preparing the cash wrap before opening the shop and almost ate a couple of puking pastilles until Fred noticed and whacked his hand.

“What is going on with you mate? That’s like the hundredth time I’ve stopped you in the past week.”

“I know, I know. It’s just…” rubbing his hand on his freckled face, “It’s (y/n). They’re not doing well. I wish they would find another job or at least pick up art again.”

“I kn- Wait, they don’t do art anymore?!” Fred questioned

“No, for one they never have time with work and secondly they’re convinced they’re not good so why bother. I also know for a fact they gave up on owning their own shop years ago too.”

“That’s bloody insane.”

“Right?! They’re amazing at what they do and…” George trailed off as he was glancing around the shop until his eyes landed on a few empty shelves, “You know Fred, what if we let (y/n) hav-

“Yes, of course!”

“Really? You don’t even know what I was going to ask. What if I was going to suggest something ridiculous?”

“You want to give them those shelves over there to sell some of their work, right?” Fred didn’t wait for an answer before going on, “Literally anything for (y/n). Like you said they’re damn talented. Plus they’ve put up with all our bullshit for years, they deserve something for that!”

“Seriously? You’re cool with that?”

“Of course. Like I said they deserve it for putting up with us and it will finally get you to stop worrying all the time. Actually, why don’t you offer them a job here? That way they can focus on art again and they won’t be so…”

“Unhappy.” 

“(Y/N)?!” The pair said in unison

“Hey…” Waving awkwardly coming around the corner

“How much of that did you hear?” George’s face grew red as he questioned

“Since Fred agreed to your suggestion. I really don’t deserve you George Weasley. Thank you.” Kissing his cheek then looking over at Fred calling him over for a hug, “Both of you.” 

Not even three months later, you could hardly keep your shelves stocked and when you did; there wasn’t enough room. It was finally time you looked into your own shop which led you to today. George was by your side while looking at several spaces for you to call your own; little did he know you had already found it. It was the empty shop right next to Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes. You had signed the lease and been working on making it look more like you for a couple of weeks unbeknownst to George.

“Hey Georgie, I have a surprise. Will you put this on?” You asked while handing him a blindfold as you two walk back to the joke shop

“Mhm… Okay… Anything for you, love.” He kisses you before putting the blindfold on

“You can’t see anything right?”

“Right. What i-”

“Promise?”

“Promise (y/n/n).”

You lead him in front of your shop where your family and friends stand in anticipation. You quickly leave his side to stand in the middle of everyone, “Okay, you can look!”

You all scream surprise and in that moment you are hit with a sea of emotions as you see the look on the love of your life’s face.

“When? How? (Y/n)!” George runs and engulfs you in his arms, “It looks amazing and right next to us even better! I’m so proud of you darling, more than you know!”

“Oh Georgie, I don’t know where I’d be without you, thank you. For everything.” 

This store, your store, not only reflects your love for what you do but the love you have for everyone who supports you and especially for George Weasley.

[zecretsanta]

FIC: long rest

To: @merouses​

From: @grumpsterkitty​

Tried to include at least a little bit of all the prompts: Sigma finds a stray kitty / some of the characters playing DND / Luna & Diana’s first meeting / Luna & Lotus discussing computers/AI.

AO3

She smoothed down her skirt again, debated ironing it.  Even though they didn’t really have time.  She impulsively pulled her hair out of the ponytail, letting the red locks cascade over her shoulders.  Except she clearly had that indent one gets from the hair elastic, and if she didn’t have time to iron out the single, barely noticeable wrinkle from her skirt she didn’t have time to break out the straightener or the curling iron to fix that.

So she pulled her hair back up, securing it tightly and re-tying the ribbon around it, making sure the bow was even. Why am I so nervous? Staring at herself in the mirror, Diana’s insecurities crept in.  Green skirt, ivory shirt and bow, red sweater and shoes – did she look silly?  Everyone knew it was Christmas; it wasn’t like she needed to go with a full-blown color scheme.  And her brooch, a cat in a stocking, was it too childish? “I thought you were all set?” Her heart still skips a beat sometimes when she sees him.  Dark green pants with a white sweater, tight enough to show off his physique.  Dark hair peeking out from under a Santa hat.   And a silver ring on his finger that matched hers.  Why did she feel so unsettled? “Is the stuffing ready to go?” she deflected. “Phi has it packed up.”  Sigma tilted his head slightly, but didn’t say anything more. “We should head out then.”  Plastering a smile on her face, she went up to him and squeezed his arms gently.  He stopped her before she could walk past him, questioning her with his eyes. “You are anxious about this.” “I know it’s stupid,” she bristled.  “I just … I don’t understand why she’s here.” “Well, we’ll get to -” “If you guys don’t get down here right now, I’m leaving.” “We’re coming,” Diana shouted down to their daughter.  She swept through the kitchen before heading to the front door, grabbing a bottle of wine to add to the basket.  She tucked it in next to the carefully packaged, ready for the oven, homemade stuffing.  Phi was more simply dressed, in jeans, a t-shirt, and a hoodie.   Sigma looked worried as he came down the stairs, but said nothing as he threw on his jacket and grabbed his keys. “It’s a party, not a funeral, you guys,” Phi chided them.  Diana put on her best fake happy face as she hauled the picnic basket out to the car.  Once inside, she quickly switched to the Christmas station, humming along as Carol of the Bells came on. - “I hope the neighbors are okay with us parking here,” she mused as she got out of the car. “Should be fine,” Phi said.  “They don’t own the street.” With one last worried glance at the building - the Owens lived there, according to the sign - she turned to walk the few blocks to Lotus’s house.  It was just chilly enough to make her sweater comfortable.  Sigma took the hand that wasn’t holding the basket and squeezed it gently. It was so silly. Mamoru opened the door, looking frustrated for a second before his face burst into a huge grin.  Exclaiming her name, he embraced her in a giant bear hug.  She felt unbelievably small, even more so than when Sigma held her.  When he released her, she awkwardly held out the basket. “Stuffing is all ready to go; it just needs 30 minutes or so at 375.” “Uh…” He put his hand on the back of his head.  “The mac and cheese is in there now and I think it’s at 425… Nona, I might need some help with the oven!” “But I’m the dungeon master!” “It won’t take long.  Please?” There was a heavy sigh and then, “Two minutes or less.” He shuffled off towards the kitchen, belatedly shouting out behind him, “Oh yeah, coat closet is right there.” “We’ve been here before,” Phi said, already putting her hoodie away. “I hope I made enough stuffing.”  Diana glanced into the living room, seeing every sitting spot already full.  Lotus was on the sofa, talking to a woman with familiar red hair.  Her heart caught in her throat.  Lotus pointed at her and Diana wanted to just melt into the floor.  She heard her husband’s sharp intake of breath behind her as Luna turned to look at them. My god. She … she knew that Luna would resemble her.  And she wasn’t a perfect match.  The nose, the eyes … but … Luna looked almost as nervous as she felt.  The other woman got up off the couch, clasped her hands in front of her and peered out from under fallen bangs.  Diana moved across the floor and couldn’t stop herself as she blurted out, “Why are you here?” “To enjoy Christmas dinner with us,” Lotus said as she stood.  “Speaking of, I should make sure my boyfriend isn’t burning everything.” “That doesn’t count!”  Ennea’s voice carried over from the dining room. She heard Maria pipe up.  “What, just because it hit the floor?” “If it doesn’t stay on the table, it’s not real.” “If I had rolled a one, I bet you wouldn’t care.” “It’s the rules!” “A real rule, or a Kashiwabara rule?” “I don’t know if it’s a rule rule,” Phi interjected.  “But it’s a generally accepted principle.” “I’m totally getting killed by poison darts, aren’t I?” “Just re-roll,” Ennea said.  “You might get lucky.” The next thing she heard was dice hitting the table and a set of collective groans. “Um, Diana?” Her attention turned back to Luna, who looked even more anxious than before.  It should have comforted her, just like her husband’s hand on the small of her back, but it didn’t. “I’m also curious why you’re here, Luna,” Sigma said.  “Did you need to warn us about something?” “No, that’s not it at all.  I was just … I was lonely.” She blushed.  The android actually blushed. Diana frowned at her. “So you just decided to get in the transporter and come here because you’re lonely?  How do we know you’re not a spy?  Or assassin?” Sigma uttered something behind her that sounded like gibberish and Luna went limp immediately.  One of the other guests gasped from behind them.  He lurched forward to catch her and guide her onto the couch.  Lotus must have heard or seen something, as suddenly she was also back in the living room. “What the hell are you doing?” “It’s a kill code.  ‘Birthday’ in Russian followed by ‘happy’ in Chinese, since I can’t imagine anyone will ever say that normally.” Sigma pressed a spot on the back of Luna’s left ear and a panel opened up on her forehead.  He quickly tapped a few buttons and Luna came back to life.  Diana found herself breathing a sigh of relief.   “I see,” Luna said.  “You wanted to see if I had been altered.” Sigma sat down next to her on the couch.  “It’s not perfect, but I thought perhaps it would put my wife at ease.” Now Diana was surely the one with red cheeks.  It wasn’t an unreasonable question.  You’re making me sound paranoid.   Lotus placed herself on Luna’s other side, asking permission before touching the panel that was still open on her forehead.  “Not like I’ll really understand anything I’m seeing, I’m sure,” she muttered under her breath. There was a small ruckus from the dining room.  Diana couldn’t make out much, but she heard “flame trap” and “third damn time.” “Why did you decide to come here?” Sigma was asking his creation. “This timeline, I mean.” Before answering, she carefully closed her head panel; Diana found herself trying to look for the seams in the artificial skin that would show where it was.  But her skin was flawless. “It was a guess.” “How do you define a ‘guess’ in your mind?” Lotus said. Luna set her hands in her lap.  “The transporter map showed my current location in space time. Using that and Dr. Klim’s data, I made some conjectures on what directed the branches to fork off as they did and attempted to choose one that wasn’t headed down a disastrous path.  Obviously, the further away I got from my location, the less certainty I had.  I only had about a 15.67% chance that this would be a truly good timeline, but there was a 43.34% chance that it would at least be better than the one I was in.  In mine … everyone is gone.” “In the Rhizome?” Sigma interjected. “Everywhere.  Humanity is extinct.” They sat in silence for an uncomfortable amount of time, until excited eruptions from the other room broke it. “Don’t put it on before analyzing it,” Ennea warned. Maria snorted loudly.  “I’m not stupid.”  Then, after a moment, “Don’t give me that look.  You would have tried to steal that book too.” “Yeah,” Phi said.  “But I’m a thief.” “How exactly did humanity die out?” Sigma asked, bringing Diana’s attention back to Luna. “I’m not certain of all the details.  There was another outbreak.  Something worse this time.  Then war broke out.  The sky went black.  I hadn’t attempted to make much contact with Earth after Dr. Klim …” Lotus glanced around at the rest of them.  “Did you not tell them what year you came from?  I think you should have started with that.” Luna slumped slightly, staring down at her hands. The knot in Diana’s stomach grew. “2745,” she said finally. Diana couldn’t quite believe it, and from the expression on Sigma’s face, she could tell he felt the same.  That would have been, what, almost seven hundred years without Sigma?   Or even Akane.  Living alone, not knowing if your body would ever shut down naturally.  Not knowing if you could or would ever die. The silence was broken, this time not by the game, but by Mamoru shouting from the kitchen that dinner was almost ready and they better clear the table.  No one in the living room moved, even when the twins brought in the Dungeons & Dragons paraphernalia to place on the coffee table. “Nobody can possibly understand what she went through,” Lotus said softly as the girls left.  “She can’t go talk to a therapist about this and you guys are essentially her only family.  I get we’re hypervigilant and the timing seems strange.” “Come on guys!”  Mamoru poked his head out of the hall.  “Dinner’s gonna get cold.” Luna stood up.  “I don’t want to ruin your party.  We can talk later.  I can go back to the facility.” Sigma opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it as he turned towards Diana.  She knew he would defer to her if she protested.  And part of her still wanted to.  But the part of her that was a mother … “You should come eat dinner with us - if you eat, I guess - and then come back with us.  We have a spare room and I know Sigma has missed you.” Rather than wait for a response, Diana looped her arm through Luna’s and guided her to the dining room.  There were two tables set up, one very neatly done, the other more hastily thrown together, with dice still sitting out by the centerpiece.  She sat at the slightly sloppier table, with Luna on one side and her husband joining her on the other.  Mamoru and Lotus were hauling food out of the kitchen and placing it anywhere there was room.  A giant turkey, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, yams, green beans, with more coming out. “Sigma’s getting over his little cat tic,” Diana volunteered to her near-doppelganger.  “We found a sweet little stray kitten outside about a month ago.  I named her Fluffy.” She pulled out her phone and opened the cat picture folder. “You can scroll through if you want.” “Oh.  She’s so small and precious.”  For the first time since Diana had met her, Luna was smiling.  It … it was silly to be paranoid.  Or jealous.  Sometimes coincidences are just coincidences. Looking at the way Luna’s face lit up as she swiped through picture after picture of the little hairball, she couldn’t believe she had anything to do with … the incident. “Dig in everyone,” Lotus said.  “If we have leftovers, they’re not staying here.” “I am designed to be able to consume food,” Luna told her as she handed the phone back.  “I can even taste. Or at least I think I can.  I’m not really sure what human taste is like.” Lotus slid into the spot on the other side of Luna.  “I would love to have that discussion with you, if you’re okay with that?” “Of course.” Sigma placed his hand on her thigh and squeezed gently.  She covered his hand with hers and returned the gesture.   I’m fine, she thought in his direction.  It’s going to be okay.  But … if I keep getting a new child every year for Christmas, our house is going to get crowded. (fin)