#i just... i just love these guys so much. maybe i get the familial roland and angela crowd just a bit more. hokma roland dad bond real?

[smokewars]

no bc now im thinking of how both hokma and roland (tried to) have faith in angela choosing the right choice in the end and to not be selfish. how many opportunities both of them gave her and hokma stuck to his hope while roland faltered and felt like he couldn't have faith in her anymore. how angela both depends on hokma, who she sees as a fatherly figure, and roland, who she sees as her first ever friend. how she asks for advice from both of them and turns to them for guidance. how they both act as the first person she's ever trusted (benjamin being the first person she ever did so with and roland being the first person who wasn't a part of l corp)

[smrtnik07]

librarians redesigned!!! by me!!! :)

the designs are free to use, i used this as a character design exercise for myself while recovering from carpal tunnel issues! read more for all the individual designs + me ranting :*

first off roland!! i included an angelica in here, i designed her before him, shes very triangular to me.. maybe a bit more messed up than roland tells us about, he is a biased narrator afterall. anyways i wanted his design to match hers nicely, so hes like a rounded square type of guy... i think projmoon designed him to be Just A Guy intentionally, so i played into it. overall the least interesting design of the bunch imo. its on purpose :)

angela !!! my baby :) an important thing here is her bangs. i dont want her hair to be able to recover from however many years she spent with the hard middle part in lobcorp, i think its cute to incorporate it still. swoopy, fluffy hair for her! and the clothes are just a bit more casual idk the librarian uniforms were kinda boring and stiff to me, as much as it does go with her character.. if u wanna be human u gotta experience the joy of sweatpants or whatever. also i didnt add color but i dont want her to be fully white<3 or fully clear skinned.. give her sunspots on her face. she finally gets to experience sun. :)

guess ill go in order of appearance lol. malkuth! whats the headband for if it doesnt keep anything out of her face!! since shes a bit more active than some of her colleagues, i also gave her a ponytail(its also for the silhouette...) also gave her some chubbier thighs.. also maybe a butler-esque coat, at least to me; i just made it a bit more form fitting than the original. playing into her personality or whatever. shes cute.. remember to take deep breaths!!

yesod!! i want to play into the skin issues a bit more, i still removed his gloves but i gave him a poncho, not just for the square silhouette im trying to build but for more coverage. also emo hair over eyes was funny. also wide flare pants for you, boy. just very square and put together in general

hod! this ones my favorite (i even cared enough to give her a pattern on that skirt!!) it was kinda bugging me how in the artbook i couldnt tell who was writing because hod's, malkuth's, and tiphereth's colors are so similar. so hod is pink now, and malkuth a bit more orange. i kinda went for a romantic poet thing here, dunno how much that worked out, but i think out of everyone you can tell shes the literature girl. gave her pigtails !! theyre cute :> also since i removed the coat decoration off of angela, i gave part of it to hod in the bottom of her coat :). cute and round!

netzach is a very strange man to me.. ellipse shape and loose fitting clothes for u. if i saw him irl i wouldnt approach him. not to say i dont like him as a character, i love him, but i want him to look like a depressed guy who would pick up art as a hobby to distract himself and it works. bro is just surviving out there. also gave him comfy clothes to make the surviving easier, down to the shoes and wide, id assume non-denim pants - maybe cotton? maybe sweatpants that dont fit around the ankle? who knows.

tiphereth!! since she's like the teen girl of the group i gave her a skater dress, converse, and a tied coat around her waist.. like how i used to wear as a teen when i was being a hater and recovering from a death in the family that changed my entire life (im still a teen ... 9 more days till im 20 as of posting this). also gave her fishnets i think she would like that. i imagine she would get headaches bc of those dumb braids on her head<3 or maybe bc her coworkers are kinda dumb<3

gebura :) round face, reverse triangle shaped body.. like a true butch lesbian stereotype.. i decided a leather jacket, docs and pants i see metalheads wear would fit her! red leather jacket, of course. also gave her spiky hair just like projmoon did<3 my favorite detail here are the eyebrows, i think their shape is rlly neat! nvm i think its just that gebura is rlly neat. anyways the eyebrows fit her

chesed my boy.. idk i just saw him and hit him with the transmasc beam and gave him , as the kids say, wh0re eyes. i wanted him to have rounder hips and just be round in general. turtleneck and cardigan combo also, i think he would like wearing that. also somewhat curlier hair, or at least wavy would do him well! and a tote bag, i dont doubt that he would go out to read in coffee shops if he could - so he gets a tote bag to carry his sociology books. i want him to look like he would give the warmest, comfiest hugs and be friend shaped

binah!! this one was the most challenging, trying to find the right place for the colors - to not use too little or too much yellow. i still dont think i got it right but this is as close as im getting. long face, long nose, siren-ish eyes.. messed up in the head bird lady that speaks like hannibal! i also dont think a dress really suits her so i opted for wide pants and a fancy black button up .. maybe angela styled her, who knows. also black fingertips which is a trait i like to give the arbiters (including an oc).. just my own little consistency thing i like to do :)

hi grandpa! ok for hokma i dont think the changes are that big? i gave him O shaped legs and his sword thing i turned into a walking cane, gave him a vest (didnt want to opt for a corset but i think he would enjoy the back support for proper posture) . also gave him a mild gradient from darker gray to lighter gray, since he IS the gray part of the ABC trio. gave him salt and pepper hair and an older face. forgot to draw it, but i wanted to give him a silicone tip for the sword so it doesnt dull out, which he can take off when recieving guests

honorary mention to go along with the angelica i mentioned with roland, i mildly changed up her twin(k) brother. i gave argalia and angie the same hair but mirrored, his a bit more curly and hers a bit more spikey, his face a bit more edgy, hers a bit rounder and kinder. not much else to say here, i liked his design as is, but wanted to add him here :)

[enemyoflactose]

I Finished the Rest of Battle City

@lostsomewhereinthegarden wanted to be tagged

I was honestly getting a little tired of Marik and his problems by this point in the series which is why this took so long.

Voice acting:

Marik: THEY TOOK AWAY HIS SKELETOR VOICE

Characters:

Yami: He's pretty much the same, only he completely forgives normal Marik.

Yugi: pretty much the same only he forgives normal Marik.

Joey: he died and I started crying. He's pretty good as always and was absolutely robbed of that victory.

Téa: she kept getting possessed.

Tristan: nothing new

Duke: nothing new

Ryou: ate all the donuts

Yami Bakura: he giggled and did nothing.

Ishizu: she yells in lowercase and I think that's funny

Odion: Maybe it's just the dub, but he never says he wants Marik to be safe because he loves him. He just says it's his duty and it's how he'll be accepted into his family. Idk. It's a little weird that this may be his and Marik's final moments and he doesn't once say that he loves him.

Marik: I hate you. I hate you so much.

Yami Marik: hype wore off this guy sucks and can't duel without plot armor. He also talks way too much and it gets on my nerves.

Seto Kaiba: he's so angry that Yugi beat him in his own tournament it's kinda funny. He is my savior in these last episodes.

Mokuba: he's here

Serenity: she's also here

Mai: ded

Roland: the MVP

Duels:

Duel 1: Four Way Duel

In this duel Joey, Kaiba, Yami, and Yami Marik are all dueling each other at the same time. For a little bit, everyone is targeting Joey, but Yami keeps defending him so they move on to attacking Marik.

Every time Yami defends Joey, Kaiba says something snarky and that makes Joey go "Hey man, let me duel on my own for Mai."

And Yami just begrudgingly does it. Like this man does not want Joey dueling Marik.

Marik is just in his own little corner going "AHAHAHAAA I'm so evil" and everyone ignores him.

Kaiba is trying to knock out someone. I forgot who. He wants to get all three Egyptian God Cards and make his deck even brickier.

Yami Marik loses.

Duel 2: Joey vs Yami Marik

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥💪🪓💥PEAK💥🎉💯💯🔥💯💯❤️‍🔥⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡🦅🦅🦅

This duel is Yami Marik's only good duel, and by God is it Joey's second best (I like Joey vs Valon more).

In this duel, Yami Marik makes it a Shadow Game in which your energy gets drained if your monster is destroyed or loses attack points. Because Joey is a normal guy, he is weaker to this and therefore loses faster.

Some stuff happens and Joey was given Lava Golem. This makes him lose life points faster. Yami Marik is slowly burning him with other cards like nightmare wheel, but lava golem is cooler.

Yami Marik uses some worm things to make Joey lose more energy. Joey sacrifices them so he can summon Geilfried (idk how to spell it).

Yami Marik summons Ra Phoenix mode and destroys all of Joey's monsters. But my boy still stands.

Joey summons Gearfried and almost attacks, but then he dies.

Duel 3: Kaiba vs Yami

I kept dozing off during this duel because I was worried about Joey, soooooo I kinda have no clue what happened other than like a few things.

Kaiba and Yami are dueling in a coliseum because Kaiba is crazy.

Kaiba gives Yami Change of Heart sometime during this duel. Which makes me wonder if he always had that on hand, or if he yoinked it from Bakura. Did Bakura ever get it back?

Kaiba so summons his blue eyes at some point in this duel. And Yami summons red eyes. And that Dark Magician Paladin thing.

During this duel Kaiba and Yami attack each other with their god cards and it takes them to a vision of the past in which the gods are turned to stone and the two of them are fighting.

Yami Marik is stuck in a wall. One time I read a fic where Yami Bakura stopped time and butt fucked him there. Wild.

Yami wins by means I don't remember and Mokuba and Kaiba fight about something.

INTERMISSION

Téa gets possessed again and goes to fight Yami Marik.

Kaiba gets annoyed at Ishizu and then Joey.

Mokuba is annoyed at Kaiba.

Yami Marik and Marik are fighting during Kaiba and Joey's duel.

TéaMarik does some sick flips and then Ishizu and Yami intervene and make Yami Marik go away.

Turns out Marik is a little regretful about being the absolute worst and wants to make things right by doing not much at all because he sucks and can't do shit without help.

Téa is back.

Duel 4: Kaiba vs Joey

Joey was pissing off Kaiba and that convinced a duel for third place.

Kaiba is winning.

Joey summons Blue Eyes White Dragon from Kaiba's graveyard and this makes Kaiba so angry.

Uuuuhhhh.... Joey told Mokuba that Kaiba doesn't care about him and that made me really upset.

Some stuff happens idk I wasn't paying attention I don't really care about this rivalry.

Kaiba won and Joey got made fun of.

Final duel: Yami Marik vs Yami Yugi

Shadow game

I don't remember the first part of this duel other than Marik and Yugi are at risk of death and like I get caring about Yugi dying, but Marik kinda deserves it.

So um... Every time Yami loses life points Yugi's body starts to disappear. Same thing with Marik.

Yami summons his poker knights and then summons Slifer.

Marik Summons Ra.

Yami destroys Ra and then Summons Obelisk with A card Kaiba gave him.

Marik summons Egyptian God slime and Yami never asks what it does despite the fact that he can.

Some stuff happens and Yami uses Ragnarok and destroys everything and Marik surrenders.

HOW AND WHY MARIK SURRENDERED

While this duel is happening, Normal Marik is talking to Odion's dead body and says that everything that happened was his (Marik's) fault, and that he's sorry.

A while later, Odion wakes up and goes to save Marik. And by save I mean give him a pep talk.

He goes on and on about how Marik is good and can beat the darkness inside of him.

Marik is given a new found strength and tells Yami to attack him.

Yami attacks him and Marik has one life point left. Marik surrenders and Yami Marik dies while begging.

Marik is forgiven and I still don't think he did much to deserve it.

Afterwards

After that duel, Marik apologizes again, and then takes his shirt off to show Yami the scriptures on his back.

Yami can't read it tho so it was kinda pointless.

Marik then gives him the millennium rod and ring and Yami Bakura's lame ass who was playing spin the bottle with Dark Magician said "Thank you" because he's polite and we love him.

Kaiba says he's going to blow up the island.

Joey and the gang go check on Mai and Serenity says she ain't wake up yet, but then she wakes up because Joey juST GOT PRANKED LMAO

The Gang then find Bakura eating food because there isn't much to eat in the Shadow Realm. That makes me think that the Shadow Realm is biased towards the Bakurae because they always only get a slap on the wrist for losing.

We don't see Bakura or the Ishtar's for the rest of the episode so I'm choosing to believe they were busy adopting Bakura into their family as Marik's husband.

It takes the gang way too long to realize that they can just take the helicopter and don't have to ride in the broken aircraft.

The island explodes and the Kaibas come out in a Blue Eyes jet (there is a card of it).

This makes Joey upset.

The squad get back to Domino and Marik apologizes again, and his siblings thank Yugi and his friends for helping them.

The End

[blue-howlite]

Being their significant other, Pandora Hearts and Vanitas no Carte edition

Featuring Vanitas, Gilbert, Xerxes and Oswald.

Type: mostly fluff, a bit of angst though.

Warnings: spoilers for Pandora Hearts of course, men that need some therapy but they don't have it in their time period, mentions of hickeys and biting on Vanitas' part because he is a masochist, Oswald part is pretty sad but that's fine if you love him you love crying. Also writer that is bad at writing.

Yn = Your name

Author note: I wrote this because my best friend is having a rough time recently, so I thought I'd cheer her up with some headcanons that I will show her through screenshots because I can't allow anyone to find my Tumblr, it's bad enough my sister has it. Normal people encourage eachother, I give xReader content.

Vanitas

You're a real masochist to fall for him. But he's one too so...

He has commitment and attachment issues, how did you manage to get in a relationship with him? No seriously, how the fu-

On a second thought I'm not sure I want to know, but you did it and that's what matters.

You read it right. You did it.

Because I refuse to believe he would take the first step into seriously committing to something aside from his goal. But he can't really say no if you're the one bringing it up, you know what you're getting into after all.

What comes next?

Oh right, dating!

He knows the basics on how to act like he cares, the problem comes when he actually cares. He doesn't really know what to do with himself so he tries to go along with the traditional ways, but probably ends up with impostor syndrome because come on it's Vanitas we're talking about.

Please reassure him it's alright and that you are willing to talk about it.

Aside from this initial problems.

He isn't a cuddler. He doesn't really get what the point of cuddling is.

But please hold him when he's sleeping or resting.

He's the "I'm a knife!" person but he is actually the little spoon.

He likes nuzzling his face against your neck. Also he's like a cat, once he is resting on top of you you're obliged to stay still until he gets up.

Also bite him. Give him hickeys on his neck. It's alright if you hurt him, he likes it.

He'll probably bite you back.

Not big on pet names, maybe the classic "darling" here and there, but mostly he prefers to use your name.

Jealous? Him? The man that can't believe someone would love him? Yes dear, he is.

But he isn't possessive. He hates himself so much that even though he gets jealous as fuck he won't act on it. Maybe he'll sulk in a corner or press his face against your chest, kinda unaware he looks a bit possessive. Or is he?

He's a complicated guy and a relationship with him would require one hell of a effort.

Because he is a fucking rat (as in small and looks like he just came out of a sewer and doesn't really know what is going on but is just filled with chaotic energy).

But he is your rat.

And he loves you.

Little bonus: Vanitas is a package deal, if you get with him you also get his """family""" that will do everything in their power to protect you because they either want Vanitas to be happy (Roland and Noè) or they're worried as to what could Vanitas do if something ever happened to you (the Damps, also Roland and Noè).

Gilbert

He took the initiative to confess.

I mean, he tried.

No but I swear he wanted to say it first.

He just got really flustered and started stuttering and not making much sense.

But you got the message.

He doesn't know a thing about dating though. Please stop him from asking advice to Oz or Xerxes because those little shits (affectionately) will do everything they can to make fun of him.

It will be fun though because he will experiment a bit to understand what he likes and what he doesn't.

He likes cuddles (of course he does, such a touch starved mf).

He loves it when you play with his hair. Just laying down, his head on your lap and your hands in his hair. He can and will fall asleep like that.

Likes to hold you at night. Maybe is the fear of abandonment, but he really needs to feel you in some way when falling asleep and waking up. Even just having your hands touching is fine, but holding you is the best.

Really flustered if you give him hickeys. Will hide them out of embarrassment, also because Oz and Xerxes won't stop teasing him about them.

Gets jealous easily, and once you're in a relationship he will get mildly possessive.

When out together he will hold you hand and always stay by your side. If someone flirts with you Gil will give them a death glare and keep an arm around your waist, then ask you if that person is bothering you.

And will call you by pet names. He prefers your name, but when he feels like he should clarify your relationship status with others he'll call you "dear", "darling", maybe even "love". But he will get flustered about it afterwards, please don't tease him about it. Or do it, your choice.

He's just a bit insecure but he really loves you and wants things with you to work out, so he will put a big effort in this too.

Little bonus: with him, you also gain an enemy/friend, which is Vincent. He either adores you because you care for his big brother and love him, or he hates you because you're taking his big brother from him. Probably swings between the two, depending on the situation and his mood. He won't harm you though, he doesn't want to hurt Gilbert's feelings.

Xerxes

Oh dear you're in for a treat.

Yeah no he tells you right away that he likes you. Probably starts by joking around with you until he can't take it anymore and confesses in the most serious way possible for him.

He leads you through it. Does he have a lot of experience? Not really, but he can guess how things work and he learns quickly and so he takes the initiative in most of the fields.

Pet him. Like whenever he does something good just tell him "Well done" and give him head pats. He loves it and will come looking for you whenever he comes back from a mission or he does some paperwork just for the praises. It's not that he is touch starved and insecure (not as much as you might think because of this behaviour at least) but he likes this kind of "games" with you, where he plays the innocent and cute puppy.

Which he is not.

He kisses you a lot, especially when in public, just to make you flustered. Also teases you about everything.

If you have to walk somewhere together he'll just grab your arm or hand and run, dragging you with him. This mf (affectionately).

Gets easily jealous. Like very easily. If he catches you talking to other members of Pandora for too long he'll throw himself at you (like literally he'll jump at you and grab you like a baby koala) and ask if you still love him loud and clear in front of whoever you were talking to. He knows you do btw. He just likes the drama. Bonus if you're too small or weak to hold him up and so you both fall to the ground, he will keep you on top of him though so you don't get hurt.

He loves weird, unusual or very very sweet pet names in public. You see, half of the fun of this relationship with him is he teasing and annoying you. He will call you "Pudding" during a Pandora meeting, just know he will.

But when you two are alone he kinda melts. You know he wants some real quality time together when he starts calling you by your name.

Overall he's a menace. But... he is your menace (yes that is something he said more than once when anyone mentioned your relationship with him).

Oswald

Oh hell what the actual fuck.

I'm sorry.

He is a good guy don't get me wrong, but he is really focused on his work and his role.

He won't initiate a relationship with you unless you're very insisting. He knows that once he becomes "Glen" he might change and is afraid of hurting your feelings.

But let's be honest Lacie would totally be your wingman, she loves her brother and wants someone who loves him to look after him once she's sent to the Abyss.

So your relationship starts, and let me tell you this is an angsty one.

Because he cherishes every moment he has with you as himself.

He is very intense in every part of your relationship and every moment spent with him becomes a precious memory to the both of you.

He might not be very cuddly, but if you run your fingers through his hair... that might become one of his favourite things.

You can do it randomly during the day he's not shy.

Also he doesn't get jealous, ever. If you're willing to stay with him even though he is supposed to become the next Glen he figured that other people have zero chances with you.

Possessive? Not really either. The most possessive thing he might do is kissing you on the cheek when he greets you in front of others, and even then it's more about showing his love to you rather than showing others that you're his.

Not really a fan of pet names honestly. He likes your name. He might occasionally call you "love", but that's pretty much it. It's understandable for him to prefer people's actual names though :')

After becoming Glen and Lacie's death he will become more distant. Just know that. Everyone copes with pain on different ways, that's how he copes with his. But if you keep staying by his side he'll just warm up to you again, and this time he won't leave your side. Not intentionally that is.

Yes this relationship is the type that will leave you in tears but in the end it was worth it all and you both know it.

[sofoulandfairaday]

Hi! I love your Rodolphus HC. Do you have any Lestrange Snr HC?

Thank you for the ask, anon, and sorry for the late reply! More than you'd think, actually, so much so I had to put them below the cut.

It's canon that Lestrange Snr was part of Tom Riddle's Slytherin gang, although we don't know if they were in the same year. I headcanon that they were, the two of them shared a dormitory. Rodolphus and Rabastan are clearly both devoted to Voldemort (the two of them spend 14 years in Azkaban for LV too, lest we forget, and even Bellatrix says it - we alone were faithful, we alone tried to find him), and I like to think that their father played a key role in this.

So. Roland Lestrange, heir to the English branch of the Lestrange family, whose grandfather was Minister for Magic, who lives in a huge Cornish castle and whose Vault in Gringotts is amongst the best guarded meets Tom Riddle, dirt-poor son of a nobody with a cockney accent, who comes from East London and is more than rough around the edges on his first night at Hogwarts. And he knows that he will be eaten alive in Slytherin. This is the 1930s-1940s and I admit that I'm not an expert on all-boys boarding schools for rich kids at the time but I somehow don't think it'd be the easiest ride for someone like young Tom.

But boy, is he wrong.

Because by the end of Tom Riddle's stay at Hogwarts that boy is just a pale memory. I am firmly convinced that Tom MyFairLady-ed himself and made himself into one of them, just better. And one, all of his classmates fall in line. If he cannot charm them, he manipulates them; if that fails, he threatens them and when he still doesn't get his way he resorts to outright violence. He rules them with both love/admiration and fear. Voldemort's a natural leader. I headcanon Roland to be something of a right-hand-man while in Hogwarts. (That title is then snatched away by Antonin Dolohov, who accompanies Tom in some of his continental travels, and later on by Bellatrix herself.)

What's this man like?

Not as pretty as Rodolphus (but then again, few men are <3), but easy on the eyes, and he has an elegant bearing, hard features, and lots of money. He's also Tom Riddle's friend and all the ladies want a chance to at least sit next to him.

Generally a cold man. Dutiful. Tom found him easy to rely upon, and obedient enough, but without a true spark (that both Rodolphus and Rabastan do have, in different ways).

He marries Margot something (that's a headcanon I still have to figure out), who was a first/second year when he was in seventh, as soon as she finishes Hogwarts. He's known this was the case for his whole life and when the time comes he does what's expected of him. They do end up with a surprisingly successful marriage, based on duty that becomes companionship that becomes a sort of comfortable love. She's truly, honestly heartbroken when he dies.

And he does die. Before (or shortly after) he turns fifty.

The culprit?

Lord Voldemort himself.

It is a huge headcanon of mine that Voldemort is directly responsible for the deaths of several of his former classmates, the only people who would remember Tom Marvolo Riddle before he was Lord Voldemort. He poisons them, curses them, inflicts a pandemic of Dragon Pox on the country to get rid of them. Roland Lestrange was ill for some time before he died, so was Druella Black. Orion Black dies suspiciously early after his son's disappearance - many would have taken it as suicide. Alphard Black dies around that time as well- he wasn't old at all. An accident, they said. (This is one of the most callous things he does, in my personal headcanons, because he knew these people as a young man and has no (0) mercy in disposing of them.) After they are gone, no one except for Dumbledore (and maybe Borgin and Slughorn) remember who Tom Riddle was before.

His children.

He does love his children, but you guys know me. You know how much I love dysfunctional families and family systems, and The Crown and Succession etc etc. I've spoken at length about the Blacks.

Rodolphus is very much the golden child. The eldest son, the heir, the perfect one, bright and more powerful, the strong one. Rodolphus only ever made one mistake - marrying Bellatrix. He chose her, pleaded with his father to have her, got his wish. And the thing is, Roland likes Bellatrix (especially after discovering that the Dark Lord likes Bellatrix), he can understand the appeal. But he dislikes that she cannot (or will not) give his son children, that he dies without there being Lestrange heirs.

Rabastan is younger, and born after a difficult birth, and I imagine him as a sickly child. In my headcanons, he's bisexual with a preference for men. Now, he never confesses this to his father but Roland can pretty much sense that there is something queer about him and dislikes it immensely. He loves his son very much, but he doesn't like him. He mislikes that he refuses to marry, the way he conducts himself, the complete lack of duty, especially since his brother has no children. (Rabastan feels this deeply, this lack of love, of physical affection, hurts him. He's a mama's boy. He's a bit of a Roman Roy.)

There's a portrait of him in what was once his study (the recurring gag here is that everyone in Rodolphus' life will always refer to it as Roland's study) and he is cranky. Portraits aren't precise reflections of who the wizard/witch was when they were alive and Roland's portrait's personality is cheerless at best.)

[unsleepingtales]

About to start NSBU episode 3 and realized I never posted my reactions from the firt two episodes so here they are!

Woooo okay I had a training thing but we’re here it’s never stop blowing up time who’s excited I’m excited

I’m so excited to see Jacob in the dome I’ve never seen him play before

I love Ally’s fit

I also love first episodes. I love getting to know the world and the people and when applicable I love learning a new system

New monster flavor??? Expand on that please?

Oh I love this kid

A kind of solemnity usually reserved for a funeral 😭

Shoplifterrrrr <3

I love that there are strong dictionary opinions being thrown out

Usha is so immediately endearing

Rekha said Nasty Gizmo Guy and I immediately knew I would become attached to him.

Brennan desperately trying not to break half an hour into episode 1

Oooooohohoho I love a family dynamic at a table

Russell’s art is hot. We’re gonna talk about this right.

Oh god. Ohhhh god okay. Fun!

Oh that’s devastating

They’re so good at characters. They’re SO good.

This is coming straight from Brennan’s heart

YO HO HO MOTHERFUCKERS

Ok im still jet lagged and all so we’re gonna finish this tomorrow

Jacob might just be playing Austin Powers

I love Izzy Roland so much

She’s so on their side immediately

(Izzy moan laughs)

Ally Beardsley sleazeball hot guy save meeeee

I love their friendship so much

Ally Beardsley save meeeeeeee

A youthful, dainty, but powerful, period

Love the insane coworker energy here

Why would you volunteer your last name bestie

Izzy is so in love

Paulaaaaaa you’re better than this do not snitch do nottttt

Get his assssss

Ify is near tears

What is happening

Oh I love all the art for this season

We have PROPS???

That’s Cocaine 😀

Holy SHIT

I know it’s all improv and I’m not getting on Brennan’s case or anything but. A 50 foot tall building is Not a skyscraper. It’s like maybe five stories, six if the ceilings are really low.

I love the props

Rekha can break Brennan so easily

What the fuck!!!!!

Oh I love this so much

I love that they put Brennan in outfits

[rivilu]

Watched absolution because I saw a certain spoiler and was intrigued, loooonggg post of spoilers and thoughts under the cut

Are we are really surprised the supercop zealot is bioware's canon divine? lmao.

I generally liked the cast of characters quite a lot, Roland Lacklon and Qwydion most of all, Miriam is cool too, just not top spot for me. she's like. Number 4 on my list. Of surviving characters that is.

Rip Fairbanks. Made the rookie Ser Jory mistake of mentioning his loving wife more than once within the intro of the series. You will be missed.

The writers really said make them think we will finally switch up the Mage Is Always The 'Traitor' reveals (that aren't even true for games 1 and 2 but the joke is marketable so who cares for accuracy right) but then just do the same thing again. I have a feeling they think they are playing 4d chess when really it's just predictable.

The action was well executed and I liked the romance with Roland and Lacklon, it was cute :)

The show handled Tevinter better than I expected but my expectations were subterranean so that doesn't mean much.

Still don't care for the way bioware deals with blood magic. With Dorian we finally had a smart opinion on it [that the writers didn't try to stamp out or treat as stupid, sorry Merrill]- that it's simply a tool as long as there's no victims, but here we backpedal again into the narrative going 'anyone that even THINKS of blood magic is and always will be evil full stop'. Yes we're talking about a Magister here i'm not defending Rezaren in specific I'm just weary of how they'll treat it going forward.

Speaking of the guy, he was fine as a villain. pretty decent portrayal of a guy whose position of power deludes him into thinking his goal is noble and righteous no matter what, even to the detriment of the people he's supposedly trying to help, because well. He never saw them as people in the first place. 'Family' maybe, whatever that's supposed to mean to him, but still property. Things he gets to do whatever he wants to do with.

Miriam using his harrowing as an example of a moment he chose not to defend her or her brother though, is kinda meh. Bc girl, he was actively trying and failing not to get possessed, his mother's the one to blame for that specific instance and you KNOW it, I know we had to see that scene for exposition but i'm peeved jdshfjd I bet there were maaany more backstory examples of him being shit to choose from anyhow.

There was an Attempt at moral grayness at least two times in the show, with Tassia and Hira, and they are both... interesting.

Tassia imo does it better, as as the knight commander she can be safely [and firmly] put in the villain box, but the added levels of grey with her caring for her people's safety, opposing the venatori etc make her interesting to watch in a way where I may not be rooting for her but I don't want her to die either, yanno? She's a bit like if Aveline were an anti-villain, and actually decently well written at that. She gets spot 5 of my list.

Now Hira. Is a prisoner of that good ol Mage Betrayal Russian Roulette. I'd seen a small spoiler about her being up to no good before watching, but even without that, when Fairbanks stabbed her I could just SNIFF that red herring. Again, the writers may think they're playing 4d chess but I know not making a mage (or more) the villain, is to them what apples are to doctors. Then her motivation is just. Not convincing to me. Her family was influential tevinters that wanted to improve conditions for the oppressed, then they were killed and/or ran out the country by the venatori for it. so... she jumps right to ethnic cleansing as the solution?

(And I do mean right to it. She did go to the inquisition first but that's what she wanted to get out of it.)

Collateral damage is a funny way of referring to innocent people's lives queen!

Idk something about that feels familiar. Betrayal, a mage that jumps to genocide, yet said mage is somehow granted more lenience by the narrative than that stance should EVER allow? Because here's the thing. no matter HOW fucked a country is, how terrible the politics and power structures are, 'wiping the country out' IS NEVER A MORALLY GREY THING. IT'S AS BLACK AS IT GETS. it is the power structure itself that must be targeted. (you know, the thing Anders tried to do and gets eternally condemned for?) Wanting to massacre an entire population is not an opinion that's up for discussion, it is not worthy of redemption, and it should not be written as if it is. This pattern of character writing is just. Concerning to me. Some of the characters with the most morally bankrupt stances being passed off as grey. And I could get far deeper into it here, nearly did in fact, but It's a tad too late in the night for a 5 page essay on fantasy and real world politics intersection. I'll just leave it at ''bioware's centrism is doing what centrism does best and blinding them to their world's actual political power dynamics and I think it's going to bite them in the ass sooner or later''

But enough of that, let's try to get back to something funny shall we?

The cheese jokes. Bioware please, the horse, stop, stop it's already dead!

(i dont actually mind but that was my original reaction so here you go sdfhjs)

Dragon cool. Like that it stays alive.

ok, sorry that's all I got. We have to tackle the elephant in the room now folks and i'm afraid I am not optimistic.

So. Meredith motherfucking Stannard is still alive and kicking. And while I can completely understand why people are excited, AN ACTUALLY GOOD VILLAIN IS BACK, WOOHOO! -i just can't help but think. When? When will this plot thread be handled? Because as much as I wish the titular character of dreadwolf would drop dead by act one, I highly, highly doubt it hjsdfjf. And if she can't be the main villain, or at least what Howe was to Loghain, then I don't want her to be in da4. Because that game has SO MUCH SHIT to tackle, with Elven Gods and Titans, the egg and also Antiva and the Qunari now for some fucking reason? Frankly I don't think they can even do THIS sum of things justice in a single game, unless things with the gods take a different turn and they aren't what solas said/villains for us to fight (please I hate the slavery thing so fucking much just for once retcon something to the benefit of religious minorities bioware i'm fucking BEGGING) so adding Meredith to the mix is not something I can picture working out. I don't want to get excited for her to be back (She was the spoiler that got me to watch the series) only to have it be a repeat of the templar/mage war in inq where she's lukewarmly taken out by act 1.

Also before I do an all in all, we all got that Hira is getting Played right. Like I dont like her much(at all), as stated previously, but she's still a mage. working for Meredith motherfucking Stannard. Is it too early to call her eventually dying from that dumbass decision orrr..? Because yes girly, she also wants to genocide your home country, but she has VERY different reasons from you and you're almost guaranteed to be first on the chopping block the moment the red lyrium cracks. (i dont find this bullet point bad writing btw this is just razzing the characters for fun jhsdj)

ok so all in all. the show's alright. I highlighted more of the bad than the good here because anything past da2 has that effect on me sadly, but the characters do Carry as per usual. And i'd say it's worth a watch for the action shots alone. Some of my fears of Bioware's direction were confirmed, and i am still not at all enthused about da4, but if a season two comes out I'll probably watch it. unnecessarily long post over, adiós.

[smiletimeisrunningout]

7 & 9 for OUAT?

choose violence game under read more because this is legit character-hate (especially towards Regina). Her fans should not be reading this, it will just result in blocking me for an opinion we never need to discuss and being upset!

what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

I think I only hated Regina and the way she was written, and the way Rumple was written after season 3, and Neal whenever near Emma from the beginning, and the first two are the writers' fault, mostly, in different ways? But there was a small window in which I enjoyed watching Regina on screen even if I despised her as a person, and I could have liked her as grey-area character who not once thinks she's good nor people are meant to but keeps helping, around the beginning of s2? When she looked ready to keep trying to be better for Henry in the first half of the season even though it wouldn't erase Graham and the horrors she inflicted... And then, oh boy did the fandom overexaggerating how much it was never her fault, how she was overpunished for her crimes, how it was all her mother's fault, made that go away VERY fast

other than that I never HATED but had a neutral opinion on Gideon, but the fandom justifying everything he did to Emma and insisting Emma to fight to save him made that neutral go towards hostile fast!

(I far more easily LOVE characters because the fandom didn't, to be fair lol)

worst part of canon

I'm sorry, I'm gonna go with Regina's role again. At least after the beginning of season 4: the moment she finds out Marian has been rescued and she decides to blame Emma (!!!) for ruining her life while still demanding to be seen as good and redeemed (but still wanted Roland's mom dead so she could keep being with Robin Hood, which didn't even HAVE to be with Marian by force yet acted like a martyr) was the moment the show was supposed to say Regina was never good, she was just trying to get a reward, let's go back to her being the villain. Instead it wanted to keep Regina as one of the good guys but also edgy and mean and doing crimes and not regretting anything, and even had SNOW become her friend, on top of Emma acting like an abused kid with her cute little smile and 'hey maybe you'll forgive me for rescuing Marian if I bet enough' and that soiled half of every episode for me. By that time I wanted to solely focus on the real Charming family, Emma's true love, Emma's son, potentially on Emma making friends and other side-characters who could have been explored, no more Regina and her drama. Emma letting Regina berate her really took the cake as the worst moment, possibly, it made me sick.

[redfeatherdaemon]

The Beach

It didn’t take much deliberation for Izuku to make his choice. Rody wasn’t fond of spending a lot of money, so he found a lovely beach and decided that it would be the perfect spot. Izuku reserved a spot before sitting back in his chair with a soft smile on his face. As things stood, they could even bring Roro and Lala if they weren’t too busy with other things. Anyway, with that sorted out, Izuku was officially done for the day. Though he wasn’t as tired as he had been before, looking up popular beaches hadn’t taken too much out of him, thankfully. So, after completing his night routine, he sat in bed and pulled up a store’s website. What was he doing? He was buying beach toys for Roro and Lala! Maybe one for himself and Rody as well. After renting a few simple toys that would be fun to play with, he snuggled up into the unfamiliar hotel bed and tried his best to go to sleep.

The next morning he woke with a slow start. While he hadn’t felt as tired the night before, he had somehow completely passed out. It had been like days of being overworked suddenly caught up to him. With a few cups of coffee, he was able to shake himself of the feeling and energize himself for the fun ahead of them. After all, today, he was going to hang out with Rody, and that was a cause for celebration. He let out an involuntary yawn as he got himself dressed in swim trunks and a tank top, texting Rody to get ready to swim while he was at it; then, he packed a bag and was off.

He exited his hotel room and started down the hall, pulling out his phone one last time and texting his driver to pull to the front. Thankfully, one of the things he managed to remember to do the previous night was to tell his driver he had plans today. By the time he got down to the ground floor and out the door, the driver was outside waiting for him. He hopped in with a giddiness in his stride and gave Rody’s address to the driver. To fill in a few blanks, after Rody had gotten his pilot’s license, he and his siblings were able to move into a proper home and even afford to go to school.

Speaking of, the moment Izuku stepped out of the car to greet Rody, two energetic middle schoolers tackled him. Not that this was enough to startle him. Instead, he let out a playful roar and lifted both kids into the air as if they weighed nothing. “What are you two doing?” Izuku laughed. “You think you can take me on?” he questioned playfully before he finally let the kids go. “Hey, why aren’t you kids at school?” Izuku finally asked, knowing it was a Saturday.

“It’s Saturday, Uncle Zuku.” Laila laughed. “We don’t go to school on the weekends.”

Izuku pretended to be disappointed in himself even though he remembered that little fact. “I can’t believe I forgot,” he muttered, loud enough for the kids to hear. Of course, Roland had no trouble seeing through his facade; after all, he was about to be in high school while Laila had just gotten in. When Izuku looked up, there Rody was, watching them with a grin on his face. “You know what that means?” Izuku asked with a sly smile.

“Is it a family beach day?” Rody answered with a playful thinking face. Instantly Lala and Roro’s faces lit up.

“Well?” Izuku asked, raising his arms as if to ask, ‘Why aren’t you guys getting ready?’

Both middle schoolers took off running toward the house, leaving Izuku and Rody alone. “Sleep well?” Izuku asked.

“Better than I thought I would,” Rody responded. “Where exactly are we going to swim?” he asked after a second.

“I found a beautiful beach, service on the sand, fun toys to play with, everything,” Izuku stated proudly before two rampant kids came barreling out of the house. “Ready?” Izuku asked

“As ready as can be,” Rody responded, ushering his siblings toward the car that Izuku had arrived in.

Within thirty minutes, they were on the beach and setting up a blanket and rented umbrella. While Izuku had been doing that, Rody had gone to the beach vendor and bought some sunscreen to protect everyone. “Apply generously!” Izuku called from under the umbrella where Rody soon joined him.

“What fantastic activities do you have planned for us today?” Rody asked

Choose one of the following paths

Jetski!

Windsurfing class! Back to part 1

[m-o-o-n-thatspellsblog]

The Drawing of the Fool- Part 2/2

Summary: Years after renouncing the Dark Tower, the ka-tet of the 19, now living as a true family, comes across another door. Fearing a resurgence of Tower business, the group grows apprehensive. Roland Deschain, their Dinh--their father--grows excited. It seems renouncing the Tower in favor of love is not without reward, after all.

Word Count: 8,811

Relationships: Roland/Cuthbert, Eddie/Susannah, Jake/Benny

AO3 LINK

It was still mostly dark when Cuthbert decided to get up. He had lay awake for most of the night, unable to quiet his mind long enough to fully rest. He considered waking Roland, but only for a moment. He appeared to be deeply asleep and Cuthbert didn’t want to disturb him. After all, he wasn’t the only one who’d had trouble sleeping. He heard Roland groaning a while ago, almost as if he was in great pain. However, whatever nightmare he’d been having seemed to have passed, and Cuthbert would not be the one to deprive Roland of repose. 

On his way over, he heard some light scratching sounds. He turned and saw Eddie sitting on a log with his back to him. He was crouched over something and seemed to be in deep concentration. Cuthbert made his way over, intentionally stepping on some twigs to alert Eddie to his presence. He didn’t want to scare the shit out of him; he really wanted to be on good terms with these people. 

“If you cut a finger off, at least you’d be in fellowship with Roland and me,” Cuthbert said, holding up his right hand. “In fact, you should cut off two so you’ll be even with us.”

Instead, he decided to walk down to where the others were camped and see if any of them were awake. Although he didn’t know them very well, it was his nature to prefer company over solitude. And they seemed like nice company. Much nicer than he perhaps deserved.

“You’re going to strain your eyes doing that in the dark.”

“Maybe I should go for three. That way I can hold it over your heads: ‘You think you guys got it hard losing a mere two fingers? Try losing three!’”

“I should think I’d still have you beat, having lost an eye and all,” Cuthbert said with a laugh and then gestured at the log Eddie was sitting on. “Do you mind if I sit with you?”

“Go for it,” Eddie said with a shrug. He went back to his whittling and it was quiet for a moment. Of course, that couldn’t last long because a distaste for silence was in both of their natures. Once the quiet got to be too loud, Eddie spoke. “So,” he started, “have you decided what you’re going to do? Like, do you think you might stay with us for a while? Or are you still going after the Tower?”

Eddie looked up from his whittling and smiled. “Eh, it’s light enough.” 

Cuthbert thought for a moment. In truth, he hadn’t given it much consideration. He’d spent most of the night reflecting on the stories they told and trying to ignore the quandary over his own future. “Well, I can say I’ve lost my taste for the Tower. I don’t suppose I could persist knowing that anything I do would be pointless. Though, it’s just as difficult to imagine myself conceding.”

“Why so difficult?” Eddie kept his voice only mildly curious; he didn’t want Cuthbert to think he was prying. It was easy enough to understand why it might be difficult for Cuthbert to fathom giving up the Tower, but he wanted to keep him talking. A few thoughts had occurred to him since their palaver yesterday. 

“I’ve lost so much on this journey, say delah. Not only that, but I’ve changed. I’ve become cold, heartless, and I’ve crossed moral boundaries that I never thought I would. Boundaries that I never thought I’d even be capable of crossing.” He looked skyward and sighed. That sigh, paired with his look of anguish, told Eddie everything he needed to know about Cuthbert’s current perception of himself. He thought himself abhorrent for the things he’d done. Roland certainly hadn’t been proud of his own unethical actions, but Eddie didn’t think he’d ever seen a look quite like this on his face. Cuthbert continued, “It was one thing knowing that there was a purpose, that the outcome was well worth the sacrifices, but for it to all have been for nothing…” He trailed off, putting his face in his hands. “I sold my own soul. And what a bargain it was--I sold it for nothing.”

“That’s the thing, I don’t think it was for nothing. I might have a theory about that. Can I ask you a question?” Eddie asked, thinking of chickens, spiders, and a barn. For it was Cuthbert that Stephen King remembered from his childhood. He’d also recognized his savior as Eddie because of their twin-like similarities (mirrored souls--dig the concept), but it was Cuthbert he thought of first.

“Aye, as you will.” Cuthbert sounded resigned, as if he truly didn’t believe that any theory Eddie may have could justify what he’d done. Eddie hoped he could prove Cuthbert wrong.

“In your wanderings, did you ever come across a little boy in a barn?” Eddie asked, placing his current whittling project to the side. “Or perhaps, did you save this boy from a flood of red spiders? He would’ve been…ah, I want to say 7 years old, if my memory serves. Black hair, blue eyes, thick glasses. Any of this ring a bell?”

Cuthbert lifted his face from his hands, astonished. “That sounds exactly like a dream I once had. Just before finding Jake at the Way Station, that was.”

“That was no dream,” Eddie said. He had to stop himself from jumping up and down with excitement. If that happened right before he met Jake, then it was this specific version of Cuthbert who had saved Stephen King’s life when he was a boy. This meant that he’d had a part to play in their quest, and he had played it well. He was truly ka-tet, one from many. They had already unknowingly been bound together by the purpose of their quest. “That was todash, baby! You really saved that kid’s life. Didn’t you hear the chimes?”

“At the time, I thought I heard something… but nay, it couldn’t have been the kammen. I was in possession of nary a Bend o’ the Bow. Nor did I have a door or any intention of going todash.”

“You may not have had the glass, but the man you were following had the Black Thirteen. It must have reached out to you while you slept, like it did for Jake and me, and it sent you to Keystone Earth.”

“Alright, so I went todash and saved a little boy,” Cuthbert said indulgently. “What is the significance? I mean, I understand that saving a child is a good deed, but it certainly doesn’t make up for all of the atrocities I’ve committed in the name of the Tower.”

“That little boy was Stephen King, the writer whose life we saved in the year of 1999. If you hadn’t saved him, he would’ve become an agent of the Red King--his pet writer. Our quest would’ve been over before it even had a fair chance to begin. You helped save the Tower, that’s what it was all for.”

“Do you really say so?” Could it be true that he helped save the Tower without being aware of it? That all of his actions had led him to where he needed to be, that it wasn’t without purpose after all?

“I do and I say true. You’re one of us. And I don’t want to hear one word about how you don’t deserve it; ka wouldn’t have placed you here if it wasn’t where you belonged. Every single one of us has done things we’re not proud of. If you feel unworthy now, then this is your chance at redemption. Your chance to choose love over obsession.”

“I’d like to join up with ye, in fact, I’d like nothing more. I’d do well not to let Roland out of my sight again. But how can I look Jake in the eye knowing that the last time I saw him, I let him fall to his death?”

Eddie shrugged. “Yeah, that’s not exactly Jake’s favorite memory. But he forgave Roland, and in this world, Roland is the one who let him drop. Water under the bridge, I’d say. If you want to talk about it with him, he’d probably be willing. But it might be best to let sleeping dogs lie. He really doesn’t like to talk about it.”

"Doesn't like to talk about what?" Jake called as he emerged from the trees with Oy at his heels.

"Oh, hey Jake! I was just telling Cuthbert here how much you hate it when I mention your annoying habit of butting into my conversations."

Jake made his way over to where they were seated and showed Eddie his middle finger. Cuthbert had never seen this gesture before, but he guessed from Eddie's exaggerated offended gasp that it wasn't a gesture of good will. Good humor though, as it seemed they were both stifling laughter. "Johnathan Jake Chambers, I'm surprised at you!" Eddie exclaimed.

"That's not even my name, dumbass. My first name is just John. And if you call me that, I'll have no choice but to disown you," Jake said, pointing firmly at Eddie. "Anyway, I just came to see if you guys wanted to eat with us. We've still got some of the pokeberry muffins I brought back from the Calla." 

"Hell yeah," Eddie said, jumping up from his seat. “You heard 'em, Bert. Looks like it's just about gobble o'clock!" He exclaimed, squinting down at an imaginary watch on his wrist.

Although Cuthbert had never seen a wristwatch in his life, he kenned a joke when he saw one. He pulled Eddie's wrist toward him and squinted down at it, just as Eddie had done. "Why, I believe you're right!

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

There was some light talk while they ate, but nothing of importance. Eddie and Cuthbert were amusing themselves, feeding off of each other’s energy while the rest were quietly trying to come fully awake.

Once all meals were finished and sleepiness was shaken off, it was time to discuss what was next. 

“So,” Eddie said conversationally, “Any idea where to go from here?” Everyone looked to Roland, as they often did when guidance was needed. 

“We’ll go to the Calla,” Roland said decisively. “Jake was already going back there, so we’ll go with him. There, Cuthbert, you’ll be able to acquire anything you need, a new bedroll, clothing, what have you. We can stay there until you’ve decided what you want to do. I think we could all use a period of reprieve.” 

“That sounds just fine to me,” Cuthbert said after a moment of contemplation. “I have to ask though--we talked a great deal about what led you to renounce the Tower, but we didn’t speak much of the present. What exactly is it that ye do now?”

“Most of our time is spent traveling. When we pass through a town in need of help, we provide it. There hasn't been much in the last few years, but more than you might think. Ever since the Beams started rebuilding, civilization has been coming back.”

“Roaming gunslingers,” Cuthbert mused. “Just like the gunslingers of old. Before our time, even. Before the wars.”

“Sure,” Jake said, “Because that’s all that’s needed nowadays. No more wars, just restoration and rebuilding.”

Cuthbert turned to Jake, reminded of his other question. “Roland said you were already going back to the Calla on your own. May I ask why? Do you often split up or do you generally travel together?” Jake, unsure of how much he should say, looked at Roland, willing him to answer for him. 

“We generally stay together, although sometimes we may split up if it serves,” Roland said. “However, Jake has his own purpose for going back and I will leave that up to him to decide if he’d like to share that with you.” He turned to Jake, grasping his shoulder and lowered his voice a little, “You don’t have to share anything with which you are uncomfortable.”

“No, that’s okay, I can tell him,” Jake said. He’d never tried to hide who he was since crossing over into this strange world, and he didn’t want to start now. If Cuthbert wasn’t okay with it, well, then that’s just too bad. Besides, he didn’t want this to be treated like some big deal; it wouldn’t be like that if Benny was a girl. “I’m going back to settle down with my partner. I guess you could say I’m retiring from being a gunslinger,” Jake looked down as he said this last part, for this was the part he was most regretful of speaking out loud. Even though the others have been supportive of his choice, part of him still feels as though he’s abandoning his family.

“You should feel no shame in that, Jake,” Roland said, gently rubbing Jake’s shoulder. “You’ve done more than enough. It’s time for you to enjoy your youth.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Eddie said. “I mean, jeez Jake, at your age I was… well, we don’t need to talk about what I was like back then.” Susannah smiled and wrapped her arm around her love. 

Cuthbert, still a turn behind them, asked, “Partner? Do you mean a marriage partner?”

“Well, we’re not exactly married--yet, anyway--but yeah, like a romantic partner. You remember Benny Slightman from our story yesterday? The one who I stayed with during our time there?” When Cuthbert nodded, he went on. “He’s my boyfriend. We came back around to the Callas so that I could reconnect with him and maybe tell him my feelings. I spent about a month there, while Roland, Susannah, and Eddie waited behind. And, well, he returned my feelings. So yeah, we’re together now.” Jake was blushing faintly, but there was a wide smile on his face. It was clear that this boy made him very happy.

“Oh, that’s wonderful, Jake. While you were speaking of saving the Calla, I got an idea that you cared greatly for him.”

“He does,” Roland said, clearly proud of his boy. “So it’s decided, we’ll go to Calla Bryn Sturgis to recompose. Any objections?”

There weren’t any.  

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

Two days later, the group of gunslingers made it to Calla Bryn Sturgis. Jake immediately took off for Vaughn Eisenhart's homestead, where Benny was now living. On their walk in, they passed several folken and it didn't take long for word to get around that the gunslingers were back. All of them this time, not just Jake, who they’d already welcomed enthusiastically.

They wandered into town, looking for someone they recognized. Roland, Eddie, and Susannah were hit with waves of nostalgia. When they first left this place, they never thought they’d be back. Places to go and Towers to see, ya ken. Much has changed since then. As they made their way in, someone called out to them, Roland specifically.

"Roland? Is it you?"

They all turned to see a woman walking over to where they stood. Most recognized her as Rosalita Munoz, Cuthbert however had no idea who she was. He only knew that she was an attractive woman who was excited to see Roland. Perhaps an old lover. He felt the old familiar flare of jealousy rise up and tried to shove it back down. He didn't want this to be like Mejis, when he had first allowed jealousy to get in the way of their friendship. That was kiddie stuff. He would just have to get used to seeing Roland be romantic with someone who wasn't him. All over again.

Roland smiled brightly and waved her over. "Rosalita!" He called. "Lovely as ever, so you are."

She blushed and Roland pulled her in for a brief hug. "It's wonderful to see you all back," She said as she pulled away. She regarded the rest of the group. Eddie and Susannah waved and gave greetings of their own. "Ye all look well, tell the Gods thankee.” She gestured to where Cuthbert stood, and added: “Ye even gained one it seems."

"So we have," Roland said and motioned for Cuthbert to come over. Cuthbert braced himself and walked over, trying not to show his uneasiness. Of course, he had a reliable way of masking his emotions that he could always fall back on.

“Cuthbert, this is Rosalita Munoz,” Roland said. “One who fought valiantly against the Wolves.”

“Hile, dear lady!” Cuthbert exclaimed, falling to one knee in front of Rosalita and taking her hand. “Excuse me if I seem a bit taken aback. I wasn’t apprised of such beauty in the Calla. I may need a moment to catch my breath, for you’ve taken it away.”

Rosalita couldn’t help but laugh at this unexpected display of dramatics. It seemed this man was the exact opposite of Roland, who was always so stoic.

“You’ll have to excuse him,” Roland said. “It seems he never developed the ability to be serious.” Although he clearly wanted to sound annoyed, Rosalita didn’t miss the tiny twitch on the left side of Roland’s mouth. Nay, she didn’t think he was annoyed at all.

“It’s true, and unfortunately Roland never developed a sense of humor,” Cuthbert said with a laugh. He stood up to greet her properly, putting his fist to his forehead. “Cuthbert Allgood of Gilead comes to you, sai.”

“Gilead,” she repeated questioningly and looked at Roland for confirmation. “Do ya truly say so?”

“Aye, he speaks true. He’s an old friend of mine.”

“Well,” she said, surprised. Another gunslinger out of Gilead? She didn’t see how it could be, but she let it go. There were many things she didn’t understand about Roland and his ka-tet. “We are well-met, Sai Allgood.”

“Let me be Cuthbert please, if it does ya,” Cuthbert said, flawlessly picking up the dialect of the Calla.

"Rosalita," Susannah broke in. "Do you know where I might find Zalia Jaffords? Or Tian?"

"Yar, Zalia's right over in the town square, having lunch with her kiddies.”

"Thankee-sai," Susannah said with a curtsy then took off in that direction. They'd already discussed that they would need to make sleeping arrangements, and the Jaffords' place seemed likely enough for her and Eddie. They had already been welcomed into their home once, and that was before they saved the town's children.

"Eddie, why don't you take Cuthbert over to Took's while I catch up with Rosalita here," Roland said.

"Sure thing." He turned to Cuthbert and clapped him on the shoulder. "I believe we've been dismissed, old pal."

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

“I see that the Pere isn't with you,” Rosalita said as she and Roland started walking together. The Pere’s church, Our Lady of Serenity, would eventually be in sight if they kept going in this direction. 

“No,” Roland said solemnly. “The Pere was brave and he stood true, but no, he didn’t make it, say sorry.”

“It's alright, I'm not surprised. The Manni, they told us he had gone to the clearing. But I guess I still held out a little hope. I suppose I could’ve asked yer boy when he came back on his own, but…” she trailed off, but Roland kenned what she was trying to say. She hadn’t asked because she wanted to hold onto her hope for just a bit longer.

“If it's any consolation, he died a hero. He was an honorable man. We all say thankee.”

“So, what are ye doing back here? Do you need a place to stay? I have the Pere's old place now. You could stay with me, just like old times.”

“We just needed a place to rest awhile. As for your gracious offer, I think I should stay somewhere else this time. You're a goodly woman, Rosa, but things between us can't be like last time.” He sounded as though he expected her to be upset, but in truth, she didn’t mind. She hadn’t expected anything from him. ‘Twas only an idea.

“Well that's just fine, Roland. Yer not breaking my heart any. No need to look so guilty.” 

“That's good to hear. For I'd like to be your friend if it would please ya.”

“Yar, of course. Might this have anything to do with the new man ye have brought along?” She hadn’t missed the man’s watchful glare thrown her way just before Roland called him over to be introduced.

“It might,” he allowed, keeping his face blank.

Rosalita decided to push her luck with another question. “Are you two together, like how Jake is with the Slightman boy?” This was currently the talk of the town. Young Benny Slightman and the boy gunslinger seemed to be in some kind of relationship, and were quite open about it. As puzzling as it was--them being two boys and all--none seemed bothered by it. They were mostly just curious.

“Nay, not together.”

“Ah, but you want to be, is that it?”

Roland said nothing but the way his face immediately flushed said enough. He had been doing his best to keep his emotions off of his face (something he was normally quite good at), but he hadn’t been expecting her to ask straight out like that.

“I won’t push the matter any further but know that I don't judge ye, Roland,” Rosalita said. “He seems like a fine man.” Then, changing the subject before Roland could get too embarrassed: “Did ye reach yer Tower? There hasn’t been another Beamquake, so ya must have done something, I beg.”

“We saved it, and that’s all that matters. The Tower and the Beams are no longer in imminent danger. I say thankee to my ka-tet, Father Callahan included. For without him, we never would have gotten as far as we did.

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

About a week later, Cuthbert found himself standing once again in Took’s General Store. The last time he had been here was when Eddie had initially walked him over. While on their way, Cuthbert inquired about Rosalita, keeping his voice only mildly curious; he didn’t need anybody finding out about his feelings. Eddie had not so delicately informed him that yes, when they were here the first time, she had been Roland’s lover. Cuthbert tried not to let that disappoint him.

He and Roland were currently staying in the guest house on Wayne Overholser’s homestead. Although he was the wealthiest landowner in the Calla, the guest house was quite small. It didn’t matter to either one of them, though, as they were used to sleeping on the ground. It was nice to sleep in a soft bed for a change. Well, for Cuthbert anyway; Roland had elected to sleep on the settee claiming that the bed would be too comfortable for him, having been long accustomed to sleeping on the ground.

The guesthouse was shaped like a T. The long end contained only the settee and a small wooden table. The cross arm housed a closet on one end and a decent sized bed. The bed was plenty big enough for them to share--Gods knew they’d shared smaller sleeping spaces in the past--but Roland said the settee would do him just fine.

Now, Roland had gone out to have lunch with Rosalita, leaving Cuthbert without much to do. He wanted to distract himself instead of just sitting around waiting for Roland to come back, and that was how he found himself back at Took’s. 

The distraction worked because he wasn’t thinking of Roland at all at that moment. No, he was staring at a hanging rack of blankets and thinking of his mother. Much like he had done in another store on a forgotten day, long ago. With all the years and all the losses, it seemed they shouldn’t hurt anymore but this wasn’t the case. They seemed to hit at the most unexpected moments. And they hit hard.

His mother, seeing the way things were going in Gilead had once tried to convince him to come away with her. To give up fighting and go somewhere they could find peace. He had been horrified at the time, taking it almost as blasphemy. But later, when she lay in her deathbed, he knew it was only because she loved him and wanted to protect her boy. Suddenly a cheerful voice spoke from his side, breaking him from his thoughts. He quickly blinked back the tears that had risen to his eyes.

“Hey, Cuthbert!” He looked to see Jake had snuck up next to him.

“Is that Jake Chambers? Why, I hardly recognize you without your other half next to you,” Cuthbert joked. Jake and Benny were quite inseparable. Cuthbert didn’t think he had seen one without the other since they arrived in town. Of course, he hadn’t seen much of Jake at all. 

Jake laughed gleefully. “Benny’s busy helping Eisenhart repair the trail fences today. Hey, Took’s got some pre-made popkins that aren’t too bad--as long as you grab the fresh ones, that is. You wanna have lunch with me? There’s a bench behind the building we could sit at.”

 “Aye, why not? But if these popkins poison me, I’m holding you personally responsible.” Cuthbert was actually pleasantly surprised by the idea. He had bonded with Roland’s family on their walk to the Calla and they had all gotten fairly close. At least Cuthbert thought so, but ever since they arrived it seemed the boy was avoiding him. Roland assured him that this wasn't the case, Jake was just attached to his boyfriend and wanted to spend all his time with him. But Cuthbert was sure there was something more to it and his guilty conscience attributed it to the fact that he let Jake drop in the mountains.

As it happens, Jake had been avoiding him but not for the reason he thinks. Jake had his own guilty conscience to deal with, for he had accidentally learned something about Cuthbert through the touch that he hadn't been meant to know. 

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

It had happened during their walk to the Calla, not too long before they had actually arrived. Cuthbert had inquired about how Jake had confessed his feelings for Benny, and Jake, always happy to have a chance to talk about Benny, told him. Cuthbert listened quietly while Jake cheerfully told him the story, which the others had already heard. As he spoke, he was a bit curious about what Cuthbert thought of all of this, but he didn’t pry.

 All of the sudden, the knowledge was just there in Jake’s head. 

Okay, so maybe that wasn’t entirely true. He had looked, but only a little. He only did it because he was still kind of worried that Cuthbert was homophobic. He certainly didn’t mean to find out that Cuthbert was in love with Roland. But it must have been on the very forefront of the man’s mind, because it was the first thing Jake touched. Upon discovering this, he felt tremendously guilty. He invaded Cuthbert's privacy within just days of meeting him. 

The shame he felt over this was why he had been avoiding him. But he realized now that that had been selfish. It wasn’t Cuthbert’s fault that Jake had dishonored his trust. But still, he didn’t know how to handle it. Does he owe it to Cuthbert to come clean with his knowledge? Or would it be better to just pretend like he never found out? He tried to think of what he would prefer if the situation were flipped, but it was just so complicated.

Now, sitting across from Cuthbert, sharing lunch on a nice, sunny day, he felt guiltier than ever. 

The look on Jake’s face once they sat down confirmed Cuthbert’s suspicions. Jake was trying his best to move past it, but there was something bothering him. “So,” Cuthbert said conversationally, “Will you tell me what I did to offend thee? For I have caught on to the fact that you’ve been avoiding me. As old as my brain is,” he gave his forehead a knock, “it does still work.” 

Jake looked stunned for a moment. There was a look of surprise on his face that would’ve been comic, if Cuthbert wasn’t so worried about what it meant. Whatever had been bothering Jake, he hadn’t been expecting to address it. Cuthbert was about to tell him that he didn’t have to talk about it when Jake spoke again. 

“No, you didn’t do anything. It’s me.” Jake took a deep breath, steeling himself for what he had to say next. “I cry your pardon, Cuthbert. I have betrayed your trust.”

This was not at all what Cuthbert was expecting. “No, Jake, you haven’t done anything--”

“I did, though,” Jake broke in, rushing to get it out before he lost his nerve. Now that he started, he supposed he no longer had a choice. He just hoped Cuthbert wouldn’t be too upset with him. “I used the touch and found something in your mind--on accident ya ken--but it was something you wouldn’t have wanted me to know and I’m sorry. It was when I was talking about Benny and I was just trying to see if you were homophobic or something. I didn’t mean to invade your privacy like that.”

Once Jake had gotten all of that out, Cuthbert felt pretty confident that he knew what Jake was referring to. When Jake had been talking about Benny, he couldn’t help but think of his feelings for Roland. Although he hadn’t been planning on telling anyone, it didn’t bother him too much that Jake knew. After all, he knew Jake wouldn’t judge him. There was no need for the boy to torture himself with shame.

“Alright Jake, it’s okay. I think I ken you. I don’t mind that you know. Although, if it’s okay with you, I’m not sure I’m ready to discuss it. It’s just hard for me, what with how I was raised. Perhaps you could just tell me some more about you and Benny? Might help me feel a little more comfortable, do it please ya.”

“I can do that,” Jake said and Cuthbert was happy to see a bright smile had returned to Jake’s face.

----------------  

Another week had gone by when Susannah decided to walk over to the little guest house on Overholser’s homestead where Roland and Cuthbert were currently dwelling. She was glad to find Roland by himself, Cuthbert having gone out into town. She had a couple of things she wanted to discuss with Roland alone. 

Roland let her in and offered her some tea. Susannah took it gratefully and then they both sat down on the couch. Roland turned to face her. “So, what is it you would like to talk to me about, Susannah? For I sense that you came to me with something on your mind.”

“Do you remember our talk by the stream a while back?” 

“I remember it very well, and I think I may know where you are going with this.” He had been waiting for this to come up. Ever since Cuthbert joined up with them, he knew Susannah would want to reopen that discussion.

“I’m sure you do. You opened up to me that night. First, you said that out of everyone in your life, Cuthbert was the one with whom you wished you could spend your life. You told me that you had been in love with him and that you regretted never having told him. And then a while after that, we found a door. One that led to the very man you longed for. Seems like a mighty coincidence to me, maybe even a little nineteen to tell you the truth. Perhaps ka is rewarding you for saving the Tower.”

“Ka gives no rewards, it is not a force of good or evil, it simply is what it is,” Roland said and although this was the undeniable truth, a part of him had thought the same as Susannah. Either way, reward or not, he was grateful to have Cuthbert back and felt no need to question it any further.

“Nevertheless, you said that Jake was given a chance at the life you gave up, and you wished it for him very much. Now you’re being given the same chance. Will you not take it?”

“I hear you very well Susannah and I say thankya, but this is not the same situation. I’m perfectly content just to have him back in my life. I need not try to push it beyond that. I wish not to scare him away.”

“Roland, how do you not see it? It is the exact same situation. Think about it: Jake developed feelings for Benny, the best friend he’d ever had, but he never got a chance to confess those feelings. He couldn’t because he was on a quest for the Tower and that took priority. Years later, having since renounced the Tower, he reunited with Benny, and even though a lot of time had gone by, Jake had an opportunity to confess his feelings.” She paused for a moment, letting Roland consider what she was saying. Roland said nothing so she continued. “If you replaced Jake and Benny with Roland and Cuthbert, it would describe your current situation to a T. You never got to tell Cuthbert your feelings because you were too focused on the Tower. Now, he’s back in your life, at a time where the Tower can’t stand in your way. Take a lesson from Jake, I’m sure he’d tell you how glad he is that he took his chance.”

“Aye, that would be because the Slightman boy returned his feelings. Had he not, Jake likely would have regretted it. I have no reason to believe Cuthbert would feel the same for me.”

“You told me before how much you’ve longed for a life with a loving partner, the romantic that you are. Now you may be able to have that, but you’re too scared to go for it. I’ve never known you to let fear stand in your way.”

“I am scared, Susannah. I don’t want to lose him again. He means too much to me.”  

"What arrives with the wind of ka may blow away just as easily. And just like that, the opportunity will be taken from you. Take your chance, Roland, before the ever blowing wind of change takes it for you."

“Now you sound like me,” Roland said with a small smile. “But you’re right. May it ease your mind to know that I will heed your advice. When the right moment comes, I’ll tell him.”

"Okay, now that we've settled that", she said, taking Roland's hand and giving it a little squeeze, "Can I tell you something?"

"Aye, dear heart. I'd hear anything thee wants to share."

Susannah took a deep breath and prepared herself to tell Roland what she and Eddie had decided. She wasn't sure how he would take this news. It was one thing for Jake to retire, but for all of them to up and quit on him? That might be too much. "Eddie and I have decided we want to stay here,” she said gently. “We think maybe it's time to give up the guns and start a family. Tian and Zalia have assured us that the folken would be happy to help us build a home."

"Susannah, that pleases me to hear. I wish you and Eddie every joy of a home with kiddies. I can think of no one who'd make better parents than the two of you."

"You're not mad?"

Roland gave a small chuckle. “Do you truly think so low of me--That I would be angry at my kids for going after the lives they have longed for?” He squeezed her hand as she had done, and continued softly. “In any case, how could I be angry when the thought of staying here myself has more than crossed my mind?” 

“Say true? You would retire from gunslinging?” This surprised Susannah, although mayhap she shouldn’t be so surprised. Roland had once told them that at fourteen years old, he already saw himself only a few years from retiring and settling down. This of course was before the Tower pervaded his mind.

“Why not? I think the world has progressed beyond the need for such as me. Our job is done. My ways are the old ways. I think it's about time to settle down somewhere, and this is a fine place. And now, with my children here, there is nowhere I'd rather be."

Susannah smiled and hugged Roland. She was suddenly overwhelmingly grateful that they had returned to Calla Bryn Sturgis. “Eddie and I can talk to Tian and Zalia about having the folken help you build a home as well, if you would like. You can't stay with Overholser forever.”

“Aye, do that if it pleases ya. But I think I should first take care of that other piece of business we discussed. Could be I'll need room for two.”

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

That night, Roland had the dream again.

It always starts the same, with their group hug on the streets of Algul Siento. They were celebrating their success, for even though there were still things to do, it was clear they won this battle. Everything was exactly as he remembered it, up to a point. Instead of shouting his renunciation, Roland simply pulled away from the embrace and they all went back to their business. Moments later, Pimli Prentiss, the boss of the show, shot Eddie, mortally wounding him before anyone had a chance to stop it. 

Flashes of Eddie slowly dying in a room in Corbett Hall. Roland and Jake finished their business as Eddie lay dying. With that taken care of, they waited around, overwhelmed with regret and grief, but determined to see Eddie through to the end. Once Eddie passed on to the clearing, where he had promised to wait for Susannah, Jake and Roland dejectedly set off to save the writer. Neither felt up for it, but it was their duty and they would not let Eddie’s death be in vain. 

Except, with all the time spent on the other side, waiting around for Eddie to die, they were running late. Too late. The events of ka had already been set in motion; to stop them would require a sacrifice. Roland promised himself that he would provide the sacrifice this time. Too many had died in his place so that he may go on.  Roland rolled out of the truck, but was betrayed by his bad hip. Jake never hesitated, he simply leaped over Roland and disappeared beneath the vehicle. 

Later, Roland went deep into the woods and buried his boy. He sent him on to the clearing with a prayer for the dead, one that he had heard from Cuthbert Allgood. He thought about Jake in the Calla, strong, bright, and seemingly infinite. How could this boy, who vivaciously jumped into a haypile with Benny Slightman, lay in his grave? This boy who stood up against incomprehensible terrors, but was still only a boy, wise beyond his years. 

It’s too much. My heart can’t handle it, Roland thought, but the horror of it was that he could handle it. He was able to persist, even after these detrimental losses.

He watched as Susannah grew to resent him, blaming him for Eddie and Jake’s deaths. In a way, this hurt the most, because she was right. Who else could be responsible? He saw Susannah walk through a door. One that looked suspiciously like the one from Doorway Cave near Calla Bryn Sturgis. He knew not where she would end up, only that she would no longer be with him. There was a possibility that she may end up todash space. Still she went. 

The finale to this parade of losses was Oy of course, the last member of his strange and wonderful ka-tet. He sees a vile creature, creeping through the darkness: Mordred, somehow still alive. In this alternate reality, it was Mordred who killed Walter, not the other way around. As Mordred closed in, Roland slept. He didn’t wake until he heard the furious, savage barking as Oy made his attack. Oy had sacrificed himself to save Roland, not the first to do so. And here was an image that was heartbreakingly familiar: Oy impaled on a cottonwood branch. This he had seen long ago in the Wizard’s Glass.

It’s the end of his ka-tet, the end of his family, the end of everything. All for the wretched Tower.

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

Roland suddenly sat up in the middle of night with tears streaming down his face. He tried to remind himself that those things didn’t happen, that it was just a dream. Only, he knew this was no dream. This was an insight to a future that he had narrowly avoided. Very narrowly. Had he not chosen to renounce, the events of his dream would've come to fruition. He mayn’t understand it all, but he knew that. 

He wiped his face frustratedly and tried to regulate his breathing, wishing not to wake Cuthbert. The first time he’d had this dream was the night after they renounced the Tower, and for a period after that, it was a recurring nightmare. However, it eventually stopped. Why, after all this time, had it come back? 

He thought hard. What was the key difference between this dream and the actual events? Eventually, it came to him. In the dream, he didn't have the Horn of Eld in his belt. It was the weight of the Horn which reminded Roland of Cuthbert Allgood, one of many killed on the way to the Tower. Reminded of all those he'd lost, he realized he decided that he wouldn’t stand to lose any more.

It all came back to Cuthbert lately. He thought of something Susannah said earlier, that it was all very nineteen.

But there was something else she said: "What arrives with the wind of ka may blow away just as easily."

He had an idea that this dream was trying to tell him the very same thing.

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

The next day, Roland and Cuthbert had dinner over the Eisenhart ranch with Jake, Benny, and Vaughn. Jake wanted to do a sort of ‘meet the parents’ sort of thing with his boyfriend. Ever since Benny’s dad died at the battle against the wolves, Vaughn had taken him in. They both bonded over their mutual losses and Benny regarded him as father. Jake, for his part, insisted on having both Roland and Cuthbert there. 

Afterwards, Roland sat down on the couch in their quarters with a heavy sigh. He started removing his boots, grunting with effort as he did so. 

Cuthbert watched this from where he was sitting on the bed. He couldn’t help but laugh at the sound of Roland’s grunts and sighs. "We're getting old Ro'."

“I know that very well. Some people are surprised by their age. They don’t feel as old as they are. Not me. My bones feel the weight of every year I've been alive. I feel my age. If anything, I feel older.”

“Well, I must say, you don't look a day over 900 to me,” Cuthbert said with faux sweetness, batting his eyes wildly. 

“Hm. Maybe you ought to guard your glass house, as Eddie would say” (this was not precisely the saying but it’s the spirit that counts, do it please ya). “You've been around as long as I have.” 

“Nay, I'm younger. Ye had a few years after renouncing the Tower before you grabbed me, still young and spry at only a few hundred years old, on the Western Sea.”

“Younger by…” Roland paused in thought. How long had it been between losing his fingers and finding the door that led to Cuthbert? It was hard to know for sure, time had gotten strange for a while. “Perhaps 6 years, more likely 5.” He stood up and stretched, exaggerating his little grunts and delighting in Cuthbert's laughter. “I'm not sure that makes a difference when one has been alive for hundreds, maybe even a thousand years.”

A thousand years, Cuthbert mused. And so much can change in that kind of time. This world was certainly a much different place than it had been when he and Roland were children, running around with sticks and knocking stuffy-guys over. Nearly unrecognizable. The world as he had known it ended with the Battle of Jericho Hill and a completely new one grew in its place.

Everything is different, but that isn’t always a bad thing. There were some changes that Cuthbert thought he could get used to.

“Roland, can I tell you something?”

“Aye, do ya,” Roland said, crossing the room and taking a seat next to Cuthbert on the bed.

“Well, I never saw myself admitting this out loud, not with our background. But your family and this community have made me feel accepted. And safe.” Cuthbert paused for a moment, thinking of how to go on. “So, I just want to tell you that I'm... well, I guess the word is gay? That's what Jake tells me anyway. The point is, I dream of love with men, hear me I beg.”

“I hear you very well, Bert, and it pleases me to hear you speak so,” Roland said, and how true it was. It pleased him to hear that his children helped Cuthbert feel comfortable with who he is, and he was glad that the community was accepting as well. But that wasn’t all. He was also pleased because…well, because mayhap Cuthbert could return his feelings. Would that be so selfish to hope? In any case, he had promised Susannah that he would tell Cuthbert of his feelings, and now seemed like the right time to pursue the subject.

Roland reached over to hug Cuthbert, who gladly returned the gesture. He felt immensely relieved. Part of him, however illogical it was, had still felt certain that Roland would be revolted at this information.

“You never told anyone?” Roland asked softly as he pulled away from their embrace. He was a little surprised by this--Cuthbert had many strengths, but holding onto secrets long-term had never been one of them.

“No. Jake knows, but other than that, the only people who have ever known are the men that I've been with. And it's not like we had to tell each other really, it was more of a... mutual understanding,” Cuthbert said. “Certain little signals you pick up on over time. That sort of thing. Well, them and one other person. But I didn't tell him either, he just knew.”

“Who?”

“‘Twas Alain. He sort of confronted me with it,” Cuthbert responded. Alain, who had always been earnest and caring toward his friends, but didn't have the most delicate way of handling drama. When forced into a mediator role, Alain tended toward bluntness. “He told me he knew because of the touch, but I don't think that’s all it was. At that point, I think I was just being very obvious about some feelings that I’d had. He was nice about me being queer. In fact, he didn't seem to care about that part of it at all. He was just mad because... Well, because I was sort of letting certain feelings get in the way of our duties."

Roland was confused. When would Cuthbert’s feelings have interfered with their duties, and why hadn’t he noticed? Maybe this had happened when Cuthbert and Alain had set off for their own mission, while he was in Debaria with Jamie. While there, he supposed it was possible that Cuthbert could have had a love affair of his own and Roland had never known.

Part of him hoped this was the case. After everything Roland had put him through in Mejis, Cuthbert deserved a romance of his own. Another part of him, however, was somehow bitterly jealous at the thought. As if this wasn't hundreds of years ago they were speaking of. 

“When was this?” Roland asked.

“Uhhh well,” Cuthbert started, realizing that to answer this question would reveal a little bit more than he had been planning to say. Oh well, he thought, may as well get it all out. “It was in Mejis”.

“Mejis?” Roland was quiet for a moment as he pondered this. Most of what went wrong in Mejis had been his own fault, distracted by love as he was. The only time Cuthbert’s feelings could have interfered with their duties were…oh. “The fight you and I had... When I accused you of being jealous of me for being with Susan, you weren't jealous of me were you?”

“No. I didn't want Susan, not at all. You were right about me being jealous, though. You just had it bass-ackwards” And now, he was nervous all over again. It was one thing to tell Roland that he was gay, but to imply that he had feelings for him, even if it was a long, long time ago, may be taking it too far. He didn’t try to take it back though. He wanted to see how he’d react because…well, because upon reconnecting with Roland, those feelings had come back.

“Aye, I think I ken ya,” Roland replied. Cuthbert was underwhelmed by the reaction. He didn’t exactly seem all that surprised.

"You already knew, didn't you?" Cuthbert asked. “Yar, I was a fool to think you would never have noticed, we were best friends, so we were.”

“I didn't know. How could I have known when you never told me? Much later, when we were adults, I thought it could be possible. Although maybe ‘hoped’ would be a more accurate word,” Roland said this almost offhandedly, but Cuthbert’s breath caught in his throat. “Aye, but it was a selfish hope. I realized my feelings for you, and naturally, I hoped you would return them. But I never would have done anything about it. For nothing in those days could have caused me to give up the Tower.” He paused for a moment and then went on: “Of course, a lot has changed since then.” As he spoke this last, he met Cuthbert’s eyes. 

“You say true, I say thankya,” Cuthbert said. It ever-pleased Roland to hear Calla speak come out of Cuthbert's mouth. He couldn’t say exactly what it was, but something about it made him feel sentimental. It gave him an almost familiar sense of comfort. It was the feeling of being at home. Not the home he had grown up with, but a new, equally congenial home.

“Cuthbert, I would like to be perfectly clear with you,” Roland said carefully. “I realized that I was in love with you back then, during the latter part of our initial quest for the Tower. And to this day I feel the same. After all of this time, my love for you persists.” 

Cuthbert was quiet for a moment. He was truly at a loss for words. Roland sounded as if he was just stating a casual fact, instead of dropping profound, life-altering information. Cuthbert had dreamed of a moment like this since he was little more than a child. Never once did he believe he would actually hear Roland utter words such as these. Not to him, anyway. 

“Ah shit, Roland, you kind of stole my thunder just now,” Cuthbert said with a light, teasing laugh. “You always have to be first, don’t you? I was working my way up to telling you my feelings, but nay, I forgot it was Roland of Gilead I was talking to. First to become a gunslinger, first in love-making, and now first in confessing queer feelings of affection for their best friend.”

Roland only looked at him, waiting for a serious response. He knew the humor was Cuthbert’s way of dealing with things, and he didn’t mind waiting. Once the humor was out, Cuthbert would speak true. 

“All of that, of course, is my long-winded way of saying that I’m also in love with you,” Cuthbert said. “Have been since Mejis. Mayhap even before that, I just wasn’t aware of it until Mejis.”

For the second time that day, Roland hugged Cuthbert. He was helpless not to. This embrace was closer to the one they shared when Roland had first come through the door. It had the same unrestrained energy, a pure expression of love. After a moment, Roland shifted a little, but didn’t pull away, staying in Cuthbert’s arms. Cuthbert saw his opportunity. He delicately placed a finger under Roland’s chin and lifted it so that they were making eye-contact. He took a second to appreciate the soft, lovestruck expression on Roland’s face, so unlike his normally guarded self. And then, with a glance toward Roland’s parted lips, he leaned in.

They shared a kiss that was hundreds of years in the making.

[trashlord-007]

I'm glad you have a sense of humor or at least realized that the killed a man question was supposed to be funny.

Lemme preface this by saying some of your questions about me I'm happy to answer, but others I'd like to leave until after the reveal if you'd still like them then. Gotta try and make it hard to identify me if you let curiosity get the better you.

Jongdae is a sweet man and deserves the world, I'm so happy for him getting the family he's wanted. Hopefully, we'll get a new album from him eventually. Did you have a favourite of his songs? Or a favourite bit of his from an exo song?

I do game a bit, although I've never played mass effect or far cry, I stick with the final fantasy and legend of Zelda franchises. Though assassin creed did catch my eye during the ff15 crossover event and I briefly contemplated playing it. I get the finding some semblance of peace actually...final fantasy 15 has a fishing option too though I'm more likely to pop that in and follow the storyline as I wander the world rather than fish. Same goes for Zelda really, I'm more of a start the game over and revisit the world and actions through the story line sort of person.

Problems are a valid creation lol. But gif making? That's a labour of love as far as I'm concerned, I've seen what goes into making gifs and gif makers have all of my respect for the work they do. Same goes for fic writers, fanartists, etc theres so much that goes into producing fan content and its amazing what people do for the things they enjoy.

What sort of things do you write? I'm afraid I haven't familiarized myself with your work. Do you have a favourite genre to write for? What about reading while we're talking about it?

Speaking of reading I squealed so loudly when I read the words gunslinger!!! That is one of my most favorite series ever in the history of ever. Please tell me you've read all of them. Lie if you must lol. Really though, "The man in black fled west across the desert and the gunslinger followed" is an epic opening line and it gives me chills even just typing it out. And don't get me started on when Jake told Roland "Go then, there are other worlds than these." And then purposefully fell. One act that sent Roland on his path to further redemption. The whole series is a masterpiece truly.

You said horror and scifi....I'm not much for horror, but some sci-fi I can do. I generally stick with fantasy and comedy and dramas tbh when I consume media. But there are a few notable exceptions namely the three star franchises...Stargate, Star Trek, and Star Wars. Also Doctor Who...not that my brain equates the doctor with sci-fi lol. Though some are more familiar to me than others. What sort of sci-fi are you into?

Uh most watched YouTube? Well my go to channels are nate the hoof guy and north of the border. I tend to stick them on as background noise since they're easy to follow along with without having to actually pay attention. I do listen to music sometimes when I create though when i do its whatever helps me concentrate best at that moment. Sometimes it's something wordless so I can just immerse myself in whatever I'm working on, or it's a certain song on repeat that I can fade into if that makes sense.

Best part of fandom is its people tbh. As for what I like to create....edits, moodboards, fic, eventually I'd like to try my hand at videos and sound mixing there's a few mash-ups on YouTube that are so cool. I also like to create food, and I love to fingerpaint. I absolutely suck at it but it's fun and messy and a great way to relax, I highly recommend it!

Speaking of creating, I'm not sure what I'll have the time for gift creation wise so how about you give me a few suggestions for themes for the edits or the moodboards, ( I can also do icons/headers/lockscreens) and maybe what you'd be looking for in a fic? Au?, type(angst,fluff,slice of life etc)? member?, that sort of thing.

Now for a a few new questions.... do you have any blog recommendations on here? People you enjoy interacting with or content creators whose work you enjoy. How about exo fanarts or artists? Do you enjoy those? Do you have any favorites?

I like to think I have a sense of humour!

hehe, I can respect that. I promise I won't search for you prematurely but feel free to ignore any/all questions you don't wish to answer!

Jongdae does indeed deserve the world! he's so lucky, too, to be blessed with not just one child but two! My favourite song of his is definitely Good Night! So, so beautiful T_T and definitely one of my favourite songs of all time.

oh heck yeah!! FF and LOZ! I have a FF on my shelf to play but haven't gotten around to it (I have many brand new games on my shelf that still need to be unwrapped, I'm so behind >.<). I don't have a Switch so I haven't played BotW but it sure does look fantastic. I think my last LOZ game was... A Link to the Past on GBA... no, nevermind, I just checked and I had Phantom Hourglass too. But my favourite was Wind Waker on GameCube!!

I'm hoping they remaster the first AC! To me, in my personal opinion, not confirmed (I'm just hoping!!) they kinda hinted that maybe they would?? at Ubisoft Connect this year! so I'm really hoping!! because I never actually finished it T_T I got pretty much to the end, too. Le sigh. I'm so close! But I lost my original save files on one of my earlier consoles >.<

I'm hesitant to replay older games because everyone is doing remasters or remakes these days! I bought the DLC for the Mass Effect games a few months before the remaster was announced with all the DLC included lmfao

I started playing FC6 again the other night (never finished it, oops) and my first achievement of the night was for catching fish so I think it's safe to say I'm obsessed with that mechanic haaaa.

I get that! I like to replay games for the story, too. Sometimes I even lower the difficulty if I'm in a mood to experience the story rather than the gameplay. That way I can finish it quicker! And I won't do 100% completion runs (like checking every planet in ME).

Playing through your favourite games is self-care! -- me, who is spending all my time gaming lately instead of being on here and responding to you in a timely manner (sorry!!).

It really is! I always knew it was hard to do but my God, I didn't realise the true extent of it. GIF creators are amazing. And you're so write!! Anyone making fan content is perfect, talented, and lovely. So wonderful, truly.

That's fine and also please DO NOT feel like you have to! You needn't read any of my fics!

I mainly write... well, I was going to say smut and yandere but my fluff masterlist is the longest so I definitely sneak those in quite often. My favourite genres to write for are the same as the ones I read! I know some people don't like to mix business with pleasure, but I love writing horror and sci-fi! Though I will admit I haven't written space-based sci-fi yet. And if a book or fic is sci-fi or horror, I will try it out. If it's a sci-fi horror or just based in space?? I WILL read it there and then!

OH HELL YES!! Another Dark Tower fan!! Dude, it's freaking PERFECT! You even quoted my favourite line T_T While it does have one of the best opening lines in the history of ever, Jake's "Go then, there are other worlds than these" really just punches me in the gut every time I think about it!! King really outdid himself with that series, my God. The Gunslinger will probably always be my favourite but I'm enjoying every book so far!

But, ahem, I'm still on the fourth book! I miss Blaine the Train T_T he was so much fun! I'm currently finishing Paolini's To Sleep In A Sea of Stars and then I will be go back to listening to Wizard and Glass!

Yes, I love me so good horror! I used to be, hmm, opposed to horror films because every year my birthday was overshadowed with Halloween (lol, don't judge me, I'm opening up here), but now I love them (and Halloween) so much!! And sci-fi... to vaguely quote Markiplier, "I'd sign up on a mission to space even if I knew 100% I would die".

I also don't really think of Doctor Who as sci-fi even though it is! haha, funny. I love the original 6 Star Wars films! I named my kitty cat after Anakin! I haven't watched the new ones yet tho. And, haha, I watched the original Star Trek series after watching the new films. So great, so classic!! I named a kitty cat after Cumberbatch's Khan, too. I never watched much Stargate aside from the original film.

I enjoy any sci-fi that is based in space! Interstellar is my favourite film right now~ and it used to be Avatar which is getting its second film soon!! I told myself I don't even like Avatar that much anymore and then watched the trailer and BOOM obsessed once more haha!

I don't know Nate the Hoof Guy or North of the Border. What type of content do they make? If I had to pick individual channels I like then I would go with Slogo and Markiplier (gaming) and Nick Crowley and Watcher (horror/paranormal investigations/stories etc).

What kind of music do you listen to when you create? Do you have any specific songs/playlists rn? and yes, that makes perfect sense! I like to repeat / loop music when I write, too.

Wow! You're a jack of all trades! that's so cool T_T edits and moodboards require such skill and talent and an eye for design. I also want to try out audio mixing. I make youtube videos occasionally so it would be fun to learn! You cook?? omg, you really are so !!! you know??? I can't cook, like, at all. Finger painting...? I think I'd be too OCD to do it T_T I freak out a little when my hands get dirty haha. I've been better about it lately but I had an episode the other day--- why am I talking about this? lol, I always ramble T_T

No worries at all~ don't stress yourself out over the gift. It's not a big deal! For edits and moodboards, my go-to request is always Jongdae and thunderstorms! For fics... I don't read for Jongdae but if it's platonic then I would! or a Baekhyun fic~ Anything genre wise except angst and MCD.

Honestly, anything you come up with will be perfect! <3

Blog recommendations... I'm assuming EXO-Ls?

@merinaart does the most amazing artwork ever! my favourite artist on the site tbh! @mel-loves-all is one of the sweetest people ever and she used to host this event! @myeoning-call makes some really amazing content, too! and she was my first giftee <3 and @your-sophie18 is my new friend, oml, love her + she tags me in cool things about EXO <3 such a real one. Then I can't forget my lovely @achenlove who made me the cutest little Chen drawing last year T_T I still cherish it!

oh,.. I kinda included the CCs I like to interact with ^ up there. I don't really interact with people that aren't moots very often, and when I do it's just to reblog and leave feedback on fics. I'm not very outgoing like that! hmm... how about you tell me some CCs you like and I'll check them out? or blog recs in general!

Hope you're well and sorry again for the delay! sometimes I just... eh, it doesn't matter. Always have some kind of excuse.

Sending you love and wishing you the best! <3

[martianbugsbunny]

OUAT Thoughts Pt.54--Episodes 21-22

I have watched through S5E22; spoilers DNI. Also, spoiler warning for anyone further behind than I am.

—*obnoxious sing-song voice* CAPTAIN HOOK IS BA-ACK!!!! *intense screaming*

—The second Zeus told him he was going where he belonged, I just held my breath. And continued to hold it through the entire funeral. What can I say, hope springs eternal! And this time (just this once) my hope was rewarded. Hook is back where he belongs *squee!* at Emma’s side….

—Oh, wait. He’s trapped in a cage with the Charmings and Zelena. Well, at least he’s alive.

—Robin’s death was kinda hard, though. I liked him. He was a goshdarn good guy. And I really feel for Regina. And for Roland.

—When Zelena decided to name her baby Robin, I bawled my eyes out. It’s so sad that Robin Sr. didn’t live long enough to know what her name was.

—I have been waiting forever for Jekyll and Hyde to show up. I just adore that story, it’s absolutely bonkers, and I am beyond thrilled that it actually got into OUAT. My first instinct was, hey, this is totally Jekyll and Hyde, but I couldn’t remember whether or not he physically changed when he switched between the persons, so I was dubious that it would actually turn out. So cool!

—Also, can I mention how much I love Darth Maul? It tracks, I swear. He’s one of the best parts of Star Wars, imo. His story is so complex and he’s enthralling. Which is partially due to his beautiful, beautiful voice—and here’s the track! Sam Witwer is going to be what really sells Mr. Hyde, I can just feel it. So excited!

—Zeus basically looked like the total opposite of what I expected. Which is actually kind of interesting, now that I’ve thought about it. You would expect the ruler of the cosmos to be big and buff and intimidating, but what does it say about his character if he’s kind of small and ordinary-looking? The answer: he must have some kind of charisma or draw to keep people following him. He must have something other than brute strength going for him. Which is kind of interesting.

—*salty* how come Zeus got to wear Greek-style clothes and Hades didn’t?

—Hades’ death was exactly the right kind of anticlimactic. That story got precisely the amount of mileage it needed, no more, no less.

—Zelena killing Hades to protect her sister was poetic. Especially the part where they cried over their dead loves together. And the bit where Zelena realized it was Regina who loved her most? Lovely.

—I still don’t like Zelena, but seeing her and Regina being proper sisters is nice. I think it works so well because they started off with a bunch of animosity, so they’re not going to be the overly touchy-feely variety of siblings that really honk me off. Most of the time, your conversations with your siblings aren’t going to be like Elsa and Anna’s. You’re not gonna spend most of your time hugging your siblings. You’re more likely to just sit in silence or quote memes at each other. Maybe talk about your current fandom-ings. Of course, a lot of people take it too far the other way and have the shallowest possible relationship and takes the teasing and mock-fighting to an extreme. I think Regina and Zelena are going to hit the sweet spot.

—Henry is being stupid. Like, I get that he’s upset about how often his family’s lives get screwed up by magical means, but how did he not stop to wonder if maybe destroying magic would hurt his very magical moms?

—That part of the library in New York with the bunch of storybooks was awesome.

—Rumple being in a regular (if incredibly posh) hotel room is weird. (Just looking at the TV screen I can smell the hotel air. It freaks me way out.)

—I knew Belle’s father would decide to be an arse.

—Emma’s funeral outfit was gorgeous. Semi-masc looks good on her. Suit jacket, button-down…yes yes.

—What’s up with Jules Verne world? Why do Jekyll and Hyde live there? Aren’t those blimp-thingies just the coolest? The answer is yes, they are.

—Also, Dr. Jekyll—or at least I’m 80% sure it’s Dr. Jekyll—is v cute. Bit of similarity to Archie? Yeah. Appearance, not necessarily vibes, although…maybe a little bit of that, too. I want to spend time with Hyde for his voice, which let’s face it is stunning, but Jekyll is just so cute! It’s either ‘dang, I get both!’ Or ‘how can I choose?’ I’m going with the first option. Great voice, cute guy, always one or the other.

[linawritesocs]

Question number 1 for all of your ocs? :0

I'M SORRY I JUST GOT THE TIME TO ANSWER IT and i also needed some time to think!

and wow, music-related questions are sure popular with my ocs :O and i'm sorry, i will go with the songs i mentioned before (like in other ask game posts) for most of them djsdkskl

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

"do you have a song that represents your oc, if so why?"

avery: flowers by marina! NOT ONLY BECAUSE OF THE NAME, but it's just.. the lyrics.. they fit him so much and i think this song really shows avery's personality well ;w;

vance: OH THERE'S A LOT OF SONGS THAT COULD FIT HIM. but if i had to choose, i'd go with a song that i mention whenever i talk about him: digital girl by kira! it's basically about breaking a fourth wall and wanting to be real and it really has strong vance vibes!

merrill: hmm, i think i'd go with teen idle by marina (i am so sorry this is a second marina song already) for him! i think it describes merrill's personality and problems quite well, merrill can say whatever he wants, but he LOVES attention and he really wants to become more popular. it's not really a god complex, he just wants people to notice him more and look perfect in their eyes.

allen: like vance, there's a lot of songs that i associate with him, but i think i'd choose kill my boyfriend by natalia kills! i think you can tell that it fits allen just from the name alone, haha. i wanted to go with something that fits him not only because of the lyrics, but also because of the song's energy and YEAH THIS SONG SOUNDS A LOT LIKE ALLEN. like, if you ignore the lyrics, it actually sounds so fun and cute, and that's pretty much allen's whole character: as long as you ignore the darker aspects of his personality, he's so cute!

roland: it took me by surprise by maria mena! IT DESCRIBES HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS EX-GIRLFRIEND PERFECTLY.

fake!jay: shadow of mine by alec benjamin! i think it describes his relationship with real!jay well, yes, fake!jay can be better than him at everything but he will never truly be "free", even if his school life is more interesting than whatever real!jay has to deal with. he will still be only a clone of that boy and when other rsa students find out.. that would be his worst nightmare.

real!jay: silent scream by anna blue! that's exactly what his relationship with his family was like, jay didn't want to become a great scientist like his parents and he knew that he wasn't smart and talented enough. however, they weren't angry at him or anything, they just.. started ignoring him. and that's somehow even worse.

austin: i'll go with a song i chose for him when i made the "my ocs as vocaloid songs" post: hate it! hate it! huge ego! by kurage-p! it really fits him and this is literally how his personality is, he tries really hard to make people notice him, but when they ask him for help, he says no and makes them beg on their knees. but when people get tired of him, he starts crying and thinks that everyone is guilty except him.

minnie: what it means to be a girl by emeline! i feel like this song fits her well, considering that she doesn't really hate guys, she's just very scared of them and she can't trust them and this song pretty much describes some reasons why someone can be scared of them.

hayden: okay, this song is probably not about this at all BUT HEY THIS IS THE WAY I SEE IT. i feel like who do you know here by the home team is very haydencore? like it really sounds like something he says to his victims and what he thinks about them! "if there's anyone who knows how hard it can be out there, i'm the one" and "if you could tell me what you want from me, i could be what you want 'cause you've got what i need"? YEAH THAT'S HIM.

riley: don't save me by chxrlotte feels a lot like him! maybe it's because this song sounds a bit emotionless (IN A GOOD WAY) and calm but sad at the same time and also because the lyrics sound a lot like him? it's almost like he's calming someone down and telling them that he's fine, they don't have to worry about him, his emotionless behavior is not a problem to him. and yeah, riley hates when people worry about him because that's just more attention and he doesn't want that.

angel: the cure by lady gaga. I KNOW IT SOUNDS UNEXPECTED, but it does fit them SO MUCH, if you see it not as a "hurt/comfort" song, but rather as a "i will heal you against your will" song. it even has lyrics like that, "and if you say that you're okay, i'm gonna heal you anyway". and yes, this is exactly how angel sees hayden's situation and other characters' problems, like bunny, allen, etc.

bunny: hmm, maybe two birds by regina spektor? it's a perfect song to describe her relationship with angel! yes, bunny says that she still cares about angel and they're still friends, but deep inside, bunny hates them SO MUCH. and not just because angel is so chaotic and she can't keep up with them, she just genuinely can't understand them and she's tired of angel having so many secrets.

as for seth, i don't know that much about him yet, so i can't say what song would fit him, haha.

[hilarychuff]

ok just for the heck of it some sansa/jonsa au casting ideas that are very much up for discussion bc i haven’t figured them out enough on my own to hoard privately to make into one of my au graphics or i just probably never will make it into an au graphic but think it’s a fun idea

just dumping A BUNCH of them under the break (like basically everyone except those i am hoarding for later/have more concrete ideas about that i might actually execute in some way) enjoy this peek into my google docs xoxoxox

13 going on 30 Jenna - sansa Matty - jon  Cat - margaery???? cersei???

Panic Heather - sansa (alayne) Lilly - robin Ray - jon Bishop - harry Natalie - myranda Dodge -

OR

Panic Heather - arya Ray - gendry? Bishop - gendry?   Natalie - sansa Dodge - jon Dodge’s sister - bran

Hocus pocus au max - jon Allison - sansa Dani - arya Thackery binx - aegon? (or brandon?) Emily binx - rhaenys? (or lyanna?) Winifred sanderson - cersei Mary sanderson - tyrion??? Lmao Sarah sanderson - jaime lmao

Big little lies Daenerys is Renata (or is Cersei Renata?? Would leave space for dany to be celeste) Margaery is Madeline Jeyne is Celeste?? Daenerys is Celeste?? Sansa is Jane?? Arya is bonnie??????

Timeless Sansa is the historian Jon is the military guy Ygritte is his dead ex Sam is the science guy Theon is the villain guy who later becomes the love interest

Dead to me Jen - arya (not cold but very firmly not warm, resting bitch face, might kill sansa but also might kill for sansa) Judy - sansa (bleeding heart, bad men, so much guilt, more than a little confessy when she’s wronged someone, potential to be kinda gay!) Ted - ???? Steve - harry hardyng? Littlefinger himself? Ramsay? Joffrey? Maybe joffrey works best? Ben - gendry (work if he’s joffrey’s “half-brother” or w/e)

Saved au Mary - sansa Cassandra - arya Roland - willas? Tyrion? Hilary Faye - Margaery? Cersei? Patrick - jon? Pastor skip - ned Mary-Louise Parker - catelyn Dean - loras? Theon? Mitch - renly? Robb? Tia - Veronica -

Don’t look under the bed Frances - sansa Darwin - bran after he falls/is pushed Albert - robb? Joann - jon with modifications so that he is a potential love interest at the end for sansa Larry - theon Zoe - margaery? Parents - ned and cat

Hunger games Katniss - jon tbh lmao Peeta - sansa Gale - ygritte? daenerys? Prim - arya? Or does it have to be bran/rickon since jon is a boy?? Maybe it’s not a boy/girl tribute thing maybe it’s just any two tributes Haymitch - tyrion? Dontos? Mance rayder? Wyman manderly? Thoughts to be thunk here with who would be in what district if we want to really get crazy Effie - varys lmfao???? Finnick - jaime lannister Johanna - daenerys? Ooooh but could be brienne if you leaned into it maybe President snow - mad king aerys? Beetee - tyrion? Rue - satin?

Grease Sandy - sansa Danny - jon Kenickie - tormund? Mance? Roger - sam Other greasers - pyp, grenn, etc Rizzo - ygritte Frenchy - gilly? Val? Idk ygritte for rizzo is really the only one that resonates i just love grease Fuck actually ygritte as the rizzo to sansa’s sandy is so good that this is worth giving some more thought The wall boys are such lil fucking nerds that they feel right for the delinquent greasers, too Although lbr jon is more of an alfalfa in the he-man woman haters’ club than he is a danny zucko Theon is more of a danny zucko but i don’t know if i want this for theonsa Anyway sansa’s whole family moved and robb is now doing athlete shit with whoever that athlete sandy briefly dates is (harry hardyng?) Is chacha val?????? Maybe arya falls in with the pink ladies first and then sansa gets sort of reluctantly dragged along Arya sings sandra dee at first and then when rizzo starts to join in she’s like wait only i get to make fun of sansa

Mama mia Meryl streep - sansa Pierce brosnan - jon Swedish guy - theon Colin firth - loras tyrell Christine baranski - margaery tyrell Other friend - jeyne poole LMFAO catelyn as cher i just cackled why is that so funny even though it doesn’t make sense

Harry Potter Sirius - jon James - Robb Lily - Jeyne westerling (except is she maybe more of a james figure politically) Petunia (but nice) - sansa Peter - theon Remus - samwell Tarly Vernon (but just dating) - Harry Hardyng Madame hooch - arya Weasleys - sam and gilly

New girl Jess - sansa Cece - margaery Nick - jon Schmidt - robb Winston - theon

10th kingdom Virginia - sansa The wolf - jon Jon larroquette - ned

Goodbye earl Maryanne - sansa Wanda - jeyne Earl - ramsay

Bring it on (for the gays) Torrance - sansa Torrance’s lil brother - arya Big red - margaery // cersei? The clovers - the sand snakes Missy - mya stone? // margaery? Cliff - gendry // willas/loras? Aaron - daenerys

Teenage bounty hunters Sterling - sansa Blair - arya Debbie - cat Dana - lysa Bowser - the hound?

Buffy the vampire slayer Buffy - arya Cordelia - sansa Willow - bran Xander - jon Angel - gendry Amy - jojen (or is jojen tara?) Dawn - rickon (robb is already away at college?)

[cedric-stories]

A Royal New Year Party

Word Count: Around 2,400

Plot: After getting done planning a New Year’s Eve party, Cedric meets a man that makes the sorcerer question his relationship with you.

Warnings: Angst and language

Author’s Note: This just came to me cause people used to be such jerks to my ex about us being a couple. So, kinda personal and kinda just I adore Cedric and want my baby to know he’s loved.

Author’s Note note: Okay, so I had another fic like this but I’m finally gonna address it; the world is set in our time so there are cell phones and stuff. I know I changed it from the show, but it was just easier for me. Also, this is gonna be the last fic for a few days. tbh, I haven’t even started the next ones, but I do have outlines. Hope you enjoy and happy New Year!!!

Reader pronouns: she/her

                                       A Royal New Year Party

Here it is, the greatest party of every year. The royal family’s enchanted New Year’s Eve party was only a few hours away.

           “Cedric, could you please conjure another bouquet of roses?”

“Cedric, can you please just conjure one more turkey? The chef ran out of bird, so he is begging you to make one; but please don’t tell the King!”

           “Cedric, can you put the floating plates over here?”

“Cedric, can you conjure a few more chairs?”

           “Cedric, where is god’s name is that turkey!?”

           Yes, these were the sounds the poor sorcerer had been listening to all day. Everyone and their chef have been pestering him. He was in the middle of all the bustling and rustling. Things at been nonstop for hours and he was getting sick of it. The past day, he had been conjuring plates, chairs, ovens, instruments, and everything in between to make this party amazing. King Roland expected the very best to wow his guests, so he wanted Cedric not only to create dozens of items, but to enchant everything.

The King wanted enchanted chairs that could sway with the music, enchanted instruments that could play on their own to give the orchestra a break, and enchanted silverware that could dazzle the guests with dancing and singing. It was quite complicated to cast spell after spell (especially enchanted ones) and it was beginning to tire the man.

           Cedric was finishing up one more spell when he heard footsteps behind him.

“Well done, Cedric!” The king boomed from behind the sorcerer, scaring him out of his wits.  

           “Thank you, your majesty. I am honored.” He said, turning and bowing his head.  

“You’re very welcome, things are coming along nicely. Now, since you’ve been working all day, have you given any thought to what you have planned tonight?”

           Cedric lifted his shoulder in a half shrug.

“No, I haven’t really thought of anything.”

           “Well then,” Roland paused, gesturing to all the gold and black decorations, “why don’t the two of you celebrate the new year with us? I’m sure y/n would love it.”  

“I-we would love to and I greatly appreciate the offer,” Cedric started, “but I think we are going to celebrate the new year just the two of us.”

           Roland gave Cedric a disappointed look.

“Alright, if you insist. We will all miss you and y/n. If you change your mind, you guys are welcome.”

           “Thank you, your highness.” He said, beginning to walk out of the ballroom through majestic, golden doors.

Cedric trudged through the halls of the castle. He came across the coffee shop on the corner of the ballroom and royal dining hall and scurried into line to get a cup.

           Workers of all types stood back to front. One man wearing a blue vest, top hat, and holding a scepter in his hands was in front of cedric.

           “Hello, sir. The name’s Jonathan” The man greeted the sorcerer. His eyes seemed warm and inviting enough to talk to.

“Oh, hello.” Cedric answered, barely shaking his head to try, and come to consciousness.

           “What do you do around here, fine man?”

“I’m the royal sorcerer for Enchantcia. You may know me by Cedric the Sensational?”

The man looked perplexed for a minute, then, as if realization came down from the gods, Jonathan’s face turned up and Cedric could see the lightbulb come on.

           “Oh yes! You are the one who tried taking over the kingdom a few years back!”

Cedric cringed.

           “Yes, I am.” He said, trying hard not to recall those memories but nevertheless, remembered them vividly.

           “My, I was sure good old Kind Roland would have you executed for that!”

“Oh yes, didn’t we all?” Cedric rolled his eyes.

           “And the way the towns folk talked about you, it musta been hard to show you face around them parts for a while, eh?”

“Eh.” Cedric sarcastically parroted back.

           “Why, never in my wildest dreams would old Winnie and Goodwin’s kiddy ever try a stunt like that.”                        

“Yes, quite,” Cedric paused, narrowing his eyes at the man, “foolish of me.”

“You know, your father saved old’ king Roland’s daddy from a few monsters like yourself!”

           “yes, yes, I know. Oh look, you’re at the counter, time to order now.” Cedric rushed.

“Oh, look at that. Hi, ma’am, I’ll have a…”

           Once the man had finished ordering, cedric got up to the counter and ordered a cold caramel frappe. After, he went to sit down and wait. The bustling of people became a background noise and Cedric finally got some peace. While he sat and tried to unwind-

           “There you are good buddy!” The same talkative man said, jostling over to Cedric.

“Here I am.”

           After a long talk about Cedric’s wrongs, the man began to inquire about Cedric’s personal life.

           “So, I doubt after your long, ungrateful journey back to civilized living hadn’t brought you company of any kind?”

           Cedric believed the man meant a significant other but wasn’t really sure.

           “Pardon?”

“A woman! Have you gotten yourself a woman?!”

           Cedric gave the man a blank stare and leaned away from his sudden enthusiasm. Why in god’s name does this man want to know so much about him? He thought about telling him or not. If I do, he’s going to go on how I don’t deserve someone, or not believe me entirely. And why does he just presume I have a woman? Has the man never heard of two men living happily together? Why does this man care so much about my life?

           “I do have a significant other.” Cedric finally let out.

“Well for heavens sakes, how the hell did you get one?”

           “Well, we met over a year ago and- “

“No one in her right mind would want you. You’re so unstable compared to others your age. Eh, she’s probably just waiting’ on someone better anyways.”

           Cedric was now completely offended and didn’t really know how to answer. Without saying another word, he rose to get his coffee from the counter and left.

On his walk home, Cedric began thinking.

I have been with Y/N for almost a year. I don’t deserve her. Does she even want to be with me? Maybe I’ve just fooled myself into thinking she really loves me when all this time she’s only stayed around cause there’s no one else. Maybe he’s right, maybe it was just weird I found her. She probably is just waiting for someone better to come along and leave…I’ve done so much wrong, maybe she doesn’t even want me?

           After his long debate, Cedric headed upstairs to his tower. The stone walls felt cold against cedric’s fingers as he guided himself up three floors of spiraled stairs. He looked out one of the windows to see the sun turning orange as it set over glistening red trees. It was beautiful in Enchantcia tonight. After looking for only a minute, he started back up the stairs.

Once he had made it to the door, he took a big breath and he walked in to find his girlfriend sitting crisscrossed on a table. You were wearing Black lacy shorts with flowers embroidered along with a spaghetti strapped top that matched. Trying to pick up your phone off the floor, you were dangling from the edge. You grabbed your phone and looked up to see your boyfriend.

           “Ceddy! You’re finally home.” You smiled, jumping off the table onto your sorcerer. Your hair was in a messy bun and fluffed up into his face when you grabbed onto him for a hug.

           “Hello, Angel.”

“I’ve been missing you all day.” You said, snuggling in tighter.

           “I have too. Oh, this is for you.” He said, giving you a hot mocha.

Your smile widened. “Thank you!”    After grabbing the hot beverage from him, you look a sip, and placed it on the table.

“You look tired.”

           “I am tired.” Cedric laughed, hugging you. He was happy to be home to you until he started remembering the conversation he had with Jonathan.

Noticing him grow somber, you asked him if he was okay.

           Cedric hesitated, “Yes, just tired I think.”

“Okay, why don’t you take a nap?” You asked, still having a questioning look on your face.

           “I may.”

You kissed him gently on the cheek and made sure he got to the bedroom. Closing the door behind you, you decided to grab a book and read until he woke.

                                                                       …

After a few hours, you decided to check on Cedric. You wanted to make sure he was okay after what happened earlier.

Walking into the bedroom, you found your boyfriend already awake on his phone.

           “Hello.” You greeted, walking along the side of the bed.

Cedric nodded at you.

           Carefully, you made you way to the upper part of the bed and sat down. Noticing his standoffish actions, you scooted closer to him.

           “Babe, what’s wrong? Please, tell me.” You quietly pleaded.

He looked over at you with glassy eyes. His face was full of pain, but you just couldn’t put a finger on what upset him.

           “Did I say or do something?”

“No.” He answered, shifting away from you slightly.

           “Cedric, tell me what’s wrong.” You grabbed his hand and put it on your lap.

He ran his other hand through his hair, and you noticed his shoulders tense.

           “Y/n,” he paused, his voice almost choking, “why-why do you stay here?”

You became confused.

           “What?”

“Why do you stay here…with me?”

           “I don’t u- “

“You have been with me for almost a year, and for merlin’s sake I have no idea why you stay.”

           “I love you.” You said, without thinking twice.

Cedric’s eyes met yours.

           “I love you, but I just don’t see how you could love me.”

You could feel the sting of tears in your eyes.

           “Cedric, how could you not see- “

“Do you know what I am?”

           You stared at him, “Do I know what you are?”

“Yes. Do you know what I am?”

           You ran your hand up his arm gently, “You’re mine.”

“No. I mean, do you understand what I’ve done? I’ve tried overthrowing the kingdom, I plotted against the royal family for years. Everything had a terrible motive, everything I did was selfish, I dreamed of making others bow before me. I am not a good person.”

           “Cedric! Of course, I know that. I’ve always known all of that. I love you for you. You are a good person now, and I don’t care about your past, I love you for everything you are and once was.”

           Cedric looked down then he cocked his head.

“Once was?”

           You took a breath.

“Cedric, I’ve never admitted it, but I really don’t care you tried overthrowing the kingdom. It’s not healthy, I know, but sometimes I think my love for you is stronger than my morals.” You laughed nervously. “You are my person, my lobster, as some show would say, and no matter what, I love you. I’m not saying what you did was right, but because I love you, I overlook it easily.”

           He grabbed ahold of your hand and you wrapped your arm around him. He hugged you back tightly and you knew he felt better. You kissed the side of his cheek and laid you head on his chest.

           “What even made you think of that, love?”

“Nothing, I guess I just will never quite get used to you being mine.”

           The two of you sat in silence for a minute, then cedric turned towards you.

           “The royal family is having a party tonight to bring in the new year. I was wondering if you would want to go. The King invited us.”

           You beamed a smile.

“I’d love to!”

About an hour later, the two of you were walking down the hall towards the ballroom.

Once you arrived, you were greeted by a loud orchestra and babbling voices. The room was full of women in suits and dresses and men in the same attire. It was an extravagant gathering with gold and black streamers lining the walls and draping over the ceiling. At the front of the room sat the orchestra with its self-playing instruments and band members walking about. Some guests sat on floating chairs and plates that followed behind others walking. Workers hurried around, grabbing dirty, golden silverware.

           Cedric and you started over to the royal table when Sofia came running over.

“Mr. Cedric! Miss. Y/n! I’m so happy you guys could come.” She shouted over the music, running up and giving Cedric a hug followed by yours.

           “I’m glad we could. Please tell your father that we are very grateful.” You said to the young girl wearing the pink amulet.

           “I will. Are you guys going to sit down? There’s two chairs next to me.”

“Yes, we are. We’ll be over in a minute. Thanks again.”

           “No problem.” Sofia replied, running off to greet the other guests.

           You had almost made it over to the table when a loud voice practically yelled at Cedric.

“Cedric! There you are old buddy!”

           Cedric’s shoulders stiffened again.

“Hello, Jonathan.”

           “Who you got with you?”

“This is y/n, she’s my girlfriend.”

           The man looked you over and made you rather uncomfortable.

“Oh my god! She’s beautiful! What the hell did you have to bribe her to come with?”

           Your eyes flung wide open and you gasp.

“What?” You asked in a flat tone.

           “No offense to you ma’am, You’re beautiful! I’m just wondering’ how he got someone like you,” he glanced at Cedric, “with his past and all.”

You shot Jonathan an angry look.

           “For your information, I love this man with all my heart and want to be with him for who he is. If you can’t accept that then you can just kindly leave us alone!” You snapped.

           The man looked shocked.

           “Well, I guess if you’re happy- “

“I am happy. Thank you.”

           “It was nice seeing you again old buddy.”

“A pleasure really.” Cedric smiled, wrapping his arm around you.

           The two of you began walking away. You couldn’t believe how rude he had been. Before you had gotten too far, you were boiling over with anger and wanted that man to know you adored Cedric. Suddenly, you whipped around to make sure he was still watching. You grabbed Cedric by the collar and kissed him firmly on the lips.

           Jonathan looked horrified at you. You gave a sarcastic smile at him and turned back around.

           “Jackass.” You spat out under your breath.

“You have no idea.” Cedric agreed, placing his arm back around you tightly.

           “I truly do love you, y/n.”

“I love you too, Cedric.”

           Cedric and you made it to the table and joined the royal family. Later, the two of you along other couples shared a passionate kiss at 12am to welcome the new year.

[hauntedbythefanficsofmypast]

When you need a Superfriend

By Nach0Ava

On Archive of Our Own

Tumblr user: @nach0ava

So I have not really watched Supergirl however when I read the first chapter I had to share this with you all! This is the first chapter by Nach0Ava. (Second chapter is on its way as well!) Marinette gets sent away by her parents to America! Please go read Nach0Ava's story!

Summary:

When Tom and Sabine believe Lila's lies, they send Marinette off to live with an old family friend in National City. When living with a government agent and a physiologist, how long is it until she gets figured out?

Chapter 1:

“I don’t understand! Why are you sending me away?”

Marinette looked up at her parents in disbelief. They had just told her that she was going to be sent to live with a family friend. In America! Sure, she could speak fairly good English, but it still didn’t make sense!

“Your recent behaviour has led us to think that the change could be good for you. Kelly and her girlfriend Alex are lovely people, and they might be better equipped to deal with you than we are.”

As her mother spoke, Marinette felt a bitterness rise in her. Of course. Lila. She had made good on her threat, managing to turn even her parents against her. Claiming that she was involved in a gang, she had an older boyfriend, she did drugs, the list went on. And when Tom and Sabine had caught Marinette out past curfew one too many times, they took it as the truth. She couldn’t tell them that she was Ladybug, so all she had was half-hearted excuses. Still, she needed a way to stay in Paris, as she couldn’t be Ladybug somewhere else, and if there was no Ladybug, there was no-one to catch the akuma, and no-one to cast the cure, never mind all her guardian duties…

She was getting off track. She had a goal and she needed to accomplish it. Just like taking down an akuma. Except she couldn’t hit this problem really hard for it to go away.

“Is there any way I could stay in Paris? I’ll switch schools, I’ll go live with grandpa Roland, I’ll do anything!”

Tom and Sabine exchanged a look. They didn’t want to believe it, but they had to make sure.

“Honey, calm down, aren’t you worried about an akuma?”

Marinette started pacing as she rambled, mostly to herself.

“Right, I’ll get upset, then you guys will get mad at me, and then one or both of you will be akumatised and then I’ll have that whole mess to deal with.”

Tom reached out a hand to her shoulder to stop her pacing.

“You aren’t worried about you getting akumatised?”

Marinette shook her head.

“No no, I’ll be fine.”

A slight push from her bag and the looks from her parents made her backtrack.

“I mean, I’m really good at calming down before they get to me, I mean, it’s worked so far right?”

She let out a nervous chuckle while her parents stared at her.

“Marinette… Are you working with Hawkmoth?”

Marinette looked for the start of a smile from her mum, the laughter in her dad’s eyes, anything to say they were joking. When the just kept staring she burst into laughter.

“Haha, you guys… You guys really thought… Haha, that’s hilarious!”

Her parents failed to see the humour and gave her thatlook.

“Remember all those times I’ve been attacked? Reflekta, Horificator, pretty much any akuma that clones or traps people I’ve gotten tangled up in.”

Not technically a lie, she never said she got hitspecifically, but she definitely got attacked.

“Well, maybe you should get out of Paris anyway. It’s clearly not safe here, and maybe it’s best for you to leave. You’ll like it in National City, they even have their own superheros!”

Great. A reminder of what I have to give up because of Lila. She was about to keep protesting, but she felt three quick pushed on her side by Tikki. We need to talk.Her argument died on her tongue and she sighed.

“When am I meant to leave?”

Her parents exchanged relived looks.

“The plane is booked for next Friday. That gives you about a week to pack up. We could mail over a box with all of your sewing things once you get settled, if Kelly and Alex are ok with it of course.”

Marinette fought the eyebrow that was threating to raise. A week? I was hoping for some more time to test and train a new guardian, and a new holder for Tikki. It would be a rush, and there weren’t many people she trusted anymore. Still, there was work to be done, so she had to get started.

“I guess I’ll go start packing then. Can I be un-grounded so I can spend my final week saying goodbye and sorting things out?”

Her parents nodded, glad she was taking this so well.

“Of course honey, just not tonight ok? It’s getting rather late.”

Marinette nodded and ran up to her room, shutting the trapdoor quickly. She went up onto her bed and starting crying into her pillow, feeling the weight of all the kwami comforting her. Eventually she rolled on to her back, drying her tears.

“I’m sorry Tikki, you said you wanted to talk?”

She looked at her expectantly. Marinette already knew what Tikki wanted. She needed to find a new wielder and Guardian, and she shouldn’t have been putting it off, but sometimes it felt good to cry. Tikki came to settle on her lap and patted her leg comfortingly.

“Marinette I know what you’re thinking, and you don’t have to give up being Ladybug or being Guardian. So you better stop that train of thought right now missy.”

Marinette sat up, blinking. How could she… Oh.

“I’m an idiot.”

Tikki giggled while she flew up and booped her nose, while Kaalki sniffed from the corner.

“I can’t believe you forgot about me Guardian. You’ve given me out before!”

Marinette giggled at the kwami’s haughty attitude.

“Sorry Kaalki, I got a bit too emotional to think clearly.”

Kaalki just grabbed a sugar cube with a huff and flew off. Marinette climbed off her bed and grabbed her bright pink suitcase.

“So who wants to help me pack?”

~~<3~~

Chloe, Kagami, Luka and Marinette were all sitting at a table at a café during their lunch break. Luka had graduated already, so he was usually free to hang out. Chloe had come up to Marinette not too long after Lila’s takeover with an apology. Marinette had been wary at first, but Chloe was actually really nice when she wasn’t putting up an act. She had soon proven herself and had been given another chance at being a hero, under the new name Honeybee. Kagami had approached her after Adrien had asked for advice on the Lila situation. She had hated his passive approach, and when she had tried to talk to him about it, he just refused her help, ignoring the fact that he had asked for her help. Kagami had come to offer her help, and they become friends soon after. She had re-claimed the dragon, under the new name Tempête. Luka had heard Lila’s heart song and immediately knew that was someone that he didn’t want to hang around. He had tried warning Juleka and the rest of Kitty Section, but Lila had told them that having an older singer wasn’t a good look. He had been kicked out, and Marinette had been there to comfort him with pastries and musicals. After she had introduced everyone to each other, they had become a tightly knit group. So, as one could imagine, they weren’t taking this well.

“They gave you a week? That’s ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!”

Kagami made a noise of displeasure as well.

“Sending you to America seems a bit extreme, what reason did they give again?”

Marinette scoffed.

“My ‘recent behaviour’ or something like that. Also known as, Lila. Oh, that’s not even the best part.”

Marinette gave out a dry chuckle and everyone looked on in interest.

“Apparently, I’m working with Hawkmoth.”

Luka plucked a string on his guitar, sending out a loud note. Chloe just stared in disbelief, and Kagami made for her foil.

“I’m going to run them through with my sword.”

Kagami gripped it tightly, ready to get up and make good on her threat, but Marinette grabbed it from her, unbothered by the fencer’s unimpressed glare.

“No-one is stabbing anyone. I don’t really have a choice, so I just have to suck it up and deal with it. Besides, it could be good to get away from Lila.”

Chloe was the first to get up to give her a hug, followed by Luka, and then by Kagami, who Marinette wasn’t completely sure that she wasn’t just trying to get her sword back.

“It’ll be ok guys, we can still video chat through Skype or something. I won’t be able to text, because I’ll be on an American phone plan, but we can figure something out!”

Chloe pulled away and took out her phone, tapping away immediately.

“I’m going to get you an amazing phone plan, with unlimited overseas. Same for the rest of you. That way, we can all talk and not worry about the fact that there’ll be an ocean dividing us.”

Marinette slowly took the phone and added it to her slowly growing pile, pointedly ignoring the glare Chloe shot her.

“I’m sure there are other, free, ways to contact each other. I think there’s an online service, what’s the name in English? Chaos or something like that?”

Luka strummed at his guitar in thought before pulling up an app on his phone.

“Is this the one you were thinking of?”

He had opened Discord, in dark mode of course, and had his profile open.

“Yeah, that’s the one! We can talk on there, and it has the bonus of being accessible from computers! So, no reason to go overboard, ok Chloe?”

Chloe humped and opened up the app store, downloading Discord. Kagami noticed what she was doing and mirrored her. They all took a few minutes to make accounts and become friends, before Luka, the one with the most experience, had set up a server for them all. Quickly choosing nicknames, Marinette pocketed her phone with a grin.

“Now that that’s done, anyone want to come help me pick some things to take?”

~~<3~~

It felt like the week passed quickly, lessons passing by in a blur. She didn’t pay much attention, just enough to keep Mrs Bustier satisfied. She didn’t bother alerting anyone in the class (outside of Chloe) that she was leaving, ignoring their taunts and insults. Chloe and Kagami had been big helps in learning how to ignore them, so now they rolled off her like water on a duck. She made sure not to bring anything valuable, most of her stuff was in a suitcase anyway. On her final day, she only had her schoolbooks, the school assigned tablet, and three neatly wrapped gifts. As she was packing up to go meet her friends for a final goodbye, she was stopped by Alya.

“I need you to make a dress for the upcoming school dance.”

Marinette briefly noted that this was a demand, rather than a request, but she just started her usual commission speech with a sigh.

“Depending on the materials used and the time it takes to make, the dress could cost anywhere from €300 to €500. There will also be shipping costs, plus the fact I’m not taking commissions right now, so it will probably be a few weeks before I might be able to get started on it.”

Alya was staring at Marinette like she had grown another head.

“€300, what are you talking about? I’m not paying youfor a dress, and you make mine every year, so what’s the problem? I can’t wait a few weeks, the dance is next weekend!”

Marinette sighed and pushed past the taller girl.

“The problem is that I don’t have time, materials are expensive, and I made you those dresses when we were friends. But we’re not now. So, leave me alone. Goodbye Alya.”

She walked out to meet her friends, leaving Alya behind, too stunned to talk. When she snapped out of it, she grumbled to herself.

“She’ll see reason on Monday. She has no right to refuse after all she’s done to Lila! Maybe if she makes Lila’s dress too, she’ll forgive her! Lila’s nice like that, Marinette will come around after making up for everything she’s done!”

Alya walked away, satisfied, planning her new dress in her mind.

Marinette ran up to her friends, engulfing them in hugs. They all hugged right back, sad to see her go. Marinette suddenly pulled away from the hug, and grabbed three parcels out of her bag. She handed them all out, urging them to open them. Luka opened his first, finding a beanie that perfectly matched his hair, with a teal snake pattern around the rim. Chloe went next, her patience not holding any longer. She got a headband with tiny bees embroidered all along it. Kagami received a red handkerchief, with an elemental dragon on one side, and a storm cloud on the other, a lightning strike going all the way across. They all started to thank her at once, with Marinette just blushing sheepishly.

“I just took note of all your favourite heroes, and added them to a design. It’s not that big of a deal.”

They all hugged again, before the clock chimed behind them, making Marinette jump.

“I have to go! I’ll send you all a message when I land, but you better not stay up for it if it’s late here!”

A chorus of “No promises!” filled her ears as she ran home, taking in the sights one more time. She burst into the bakery to find her mum still working the counter, and her dad busy baking. Not thinking much of it, she went up to her room to grab her belongings. After some quick cuddles from the kwami, she had everything she needed. Most flew into the suitcase, comfy in the hidden area Marinette had made, lined with a soft faux fur. Only Tikki and Kaalki flew into her jacket, ready to transform if need be. They had assured her they wouldn’t show up on the x-ray, so she was fine with having them in there. As she lifted her suitcase and went downstairs, her strength from being Ladybug shining through, she was surprised to see her parents still busy at work.

“Maman, Papa, I thought we were going to the airport now?”

Her parent’s exchanged looks before Tom stopped his baking and walked over.

“Honey, we can’t afford to come with you, we need to keep the bakery open. There’s an Uber outside for you, but you’ll have to go on your own. I’m sorry.”

He pulled her into a hug, one she half-heartedly returned. She walked over to hug her mum as well, and went outside with her suitcase.

This was it.

She was really being sent away.

All because of some dumb liar.

With a comforting press coming from inside her jacket, she got in the Uber, prepared to start her new life.