#i mean to do things and then i get a New piece of distressing information about the way my life is going

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

the desire to do comms vs my inability to remember that i got a message FIGHT-

[cozage]

A Journey of Two Cooks

Chapter 2: Fate is a Funny Thing

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AN: going to finish out the Sanji series before returning to Zoro's story! It's only four chapters and will be posted throughout the week :) Word Count: 2.3k CW: some family trauma/manipulation done to the reader Characters: female reader x Sanji ---

The fates would have your paths cross again, just like Sanji had said. 

A few islands later, you saw a blonde man at the marketplace, browsing the fish options. 

“Impossible,” you whispered. “Sanji?!”

His head quickly snapped around to find you. A wide smile broke across his face when he realized you were only a few feet away from him, and he dropped his baskets and took off toward you. 

You squealed with delight as he picked you up and spun you around, giggling the whole time. 

“How are you here?!” You had to blink away the tears. You had dreamt of this so many times, and yet this was a hundred times better than what you had imagined. 

“Looks like our crews chose the same path for the New World,” he said. “I told you I’d see you again.”

“You’re crew…” the pieces were starting to fall into place. “You’re a pirate too?!”

“Correct!” He tucked a piece of hair behind your ear, his fingers lingering on your cheek. “As your prize, you win one date! How’s that sound?”

God, you couldn’t stop smiling. He was here. In front of you. Taking you on another date. 

“I think I would like that,” you said, blush dusting your cheeks. 

“Give me two hours to prepare? Meet back here at this spot?”

“Sure!” You were already so giddy at the thought of going on a proper date with the man you thought you’d never see again. You had cried over him several nights, even though he was a complete stranger. You wished on every star and thought about him at every meal. 

“Wear something cute and comfortable!” Sanji shouted as you skipped away. “A dress!”

Oh, you had the perfect one. 

A blue dress, long and flowy. It matched Sanji’s eyes almost perfectly. It had been one of the few things you had brought from your home in the North Blue, and it paired nicely with the blue ribbon in your hair. It was perfect. Today was perfect already. Just seeing Sanji had made it infinitely better than any other day you had recently. 

Your captain stopped you on your way out, giving your body a full scan. “What are you doing?”

“I have a date!” you said, your face radiant.

He scowled. “A date?” He looked around the deck for another person, but the two of you were alone. 

“Yep!” you giggled. “Turns out that local from that island isn’t actually a local! He’s a pirate too!”

“A pirate?” Berk stepped in front of you to block your path off the ship. “I don’t like the idea of you going alone on a date with a pirate.”

You gave a nervous smile. “We’re pirates, Captain.”

“But we trust each other! We’re family.”

“I know!” You sighed, trying to calm your quickly-rising temper. “It’s just a date. I can handle myself.”

“Fine,” he scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Go. Don’t come crying for help if anything happens, though.”

“I won’t.” You quickly stepped around him and made a beeline for the dock.

“He’s just pulling a honey trap!” He called to you as you left. 

The honey trap was a common swindling move the crew forced you to be a part of. You would often bat your eyes a few times or play the damsel in distress card, and a captain would come running to your rescue. 

The rest of the crew would normally take that time to raid their ship and take everything they had while the captain was preoccupied with you, and then you would all disappear without a trace. 

Funnily enough, you had caught Sanji in an unintentional honey trap. He had rescued you. But you had no intention of robbing him blind. Besides, he wasn’t even the captain. He was just a chef, like you. 

But that didn’t mean he was trying to distract you or attempting to get information. A pit formed in your stomach…

No. You refused to let your captain ruin your mood with his paranoia. Sanji was here on this island, and you were going to go on a date with him. A proper date. 

Your nerves and excitement made you fidget restlessly as you looked around the marketplace, waiting to see his sparkling blue eyes again. 

“Mon amor.” Sanji’s smooth, silky voice came from behind you, and you twirled around to find him waiting for you, a basket in one hand and flowers in the other. 

Your brow furrowed in confusion. “Where are we going?”

“On a picnic,” he said. He held out the flowers: a beautiful arrangement of carnations, roses, and daisies. “These are for you.”

“For me?” you squeaked, breaking into a wide smile. “Sanji, they’re beautiful!”

Sanji held out an arm, smiling as he watched you admire your flowers. “Shall we?”

You smiled at him. You took a hold of his arm and let him lead you away from the crowd and down a beaten, worn path. It was a bit of a walk, but Sanji filled the silence by asking questions about your life and telling you about his own adventures. 

After a while, the two of you emerged onto a small, private beach. Your eyes scanned the unique layout, and you gasped in delight when you saw a grill and picnic table next to the water. 

“I’d like to cook for you, if that’s okay,” Sanji said. 

“Cook for me?” You didn’t quite understand his words. 

“The menu is a vinaigrette salad, seared steak, cooked asparagus, and an apple custard for dessert.” He gave a nervous smile. “If there’s anything you dislike, I can happily change the menu.”

“No!” you said quickly. You didn’t want to inconvenience him more. “Everything you said is perfect.”

A wave of relief washed over Sanji’s face. “Take a seat. Dinner will be ready shortly.”

Sanji lit up the grill and began cooking. “So, why’d you become a pirate?”

The question took you by surprise. You rarely talked about yourself on the ship. You were more of a listener. Plus, people rarely asked you about yourself. 

“I, uh-” you gave a nervous laugh. You hated talking about your past. “I got kicked out of an orphanage when I was 16. Couldn’t stay on the island, so I had to turn to the sea. The Buckaneer Pirates took me in as their chef.”

Sanji seemed to sense you were uncomfortable talking about your first home, so he moved onto the pirate life. 

“How long have you guys been on the Grand Line?”

“About five years,” you admitted. “We just recently came across the Red Line, actually. We spent a lot of time in Paradise. Got a little too comfortable, if you ask me.”

Sanji raised his eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Berk-my captain-basically ruled a part of the Grand Line. Spent a lot of our time raiding other pirate ships and taking their belongings. He got complacent. Finally decided he wanted to do that in the New World, but it’s not turning out as he planned. Things are more dangerous over here.”

“Tell me about it,” Sanji mumbled to himself, flipping over the steaks and beginning to toss the salad. “Pirates in the New World are on a whole other level.”

“I like Berk,” you quickly said, trying to backtrack some. “I don’t necessarily like how he handles some things as a captain, but he’s a good guy. He took me in when I needed a home. I can’t really talk bad about him.”

“My dear,” Sanji paused to look at you and smile. “You can talk however you want about him. I trust your word over anyone on this island or the sea.”

You rolled your eyes at his comment, but you could feel your stomach clench with giddiness. This man was smooth. You had only met him twice and he was already making you fall head over heels for him. If he was pulling a honey trap, you wouldn’t even be mad. 

“What about you, Sanji? How did you get on the Grand Line?”

He smiled softly; clearly it was a fond memory for him. 

“I used to work at a restaurant in the East Blue. Luffy came and demanded that I join his crew. I had nothing better to do, so I decided to set out on an adventure to find the All Blue.”

The All Blue. You had heard of it. You had dreamed of it. Long ago, you had even hoped to find it. But the Buckaneers had made you realize your dreams were childish and impossible. A small piece of you still wanted to find it, though. 

“You’re looking for the All Blue too?” you whispered, unable to stop yourself. 

His eyes instantly lit up. “You know the All Blue?!” 

“Of course I do!”

“And you’re searching for it?!”

“Who wouldn’t be!” you laughed. You couldn’t believe you had found another person with such a similar goal. 

“Idiots, mon amor. Idiots.” 

You giggled at his words, and he paced over to you with a smile on his face, setting your food down for you. He quickly returned with his own plate, sitting down across from you to eat. But he was watching you anxiously, refusing to take a bite until you had tried his food. 

It was probably the best thing you had ever eaten in your life. The heavenly blend of herbs and spices complimenting one of the best cuts of meat you’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting. It was the perfect combination of tender and chewy, somehow exploding in flavor the more you kept chewing. 

“Sanji,” you moaned, closing your eyes to bask in the beauty of his work. “I would die happy if this was my last meal.”

Sanji grinned a smile that made your heart melt. “I should take you back to the Sunny and cook for you in a real kitchen. I can’t have you dying on me though, so you’ll have to promise to stay alive.”

“I actually wouldn’t be surprised if this food made me immortal,” you said, smiling back at him. 

Oh, you were falling for this idiot chef. You couldn’t help it. Everytime you looked at him, your stomach exploded with butterflies and your heart felt like it was going to beat out of your chest. The way to your heart was food, and Sanji had made a direct shot. 

“Y/N!” A voice shouted, running down the path. “Y/N?!”

It was Kline, the second in command of the Buckaneers. He burst out onto the beach, startling both you and Sanji. 

“You!” he hissed, pointing his sword at Sanji as he stepped toward him. 

“Kline!” you screamed, placing yourself between Sanji and your crewmate. “Stop! We were just having dinner!”

“Just having dinner?!” He yelled, shaking his sword at you. “Yeah right. I’m sure all those Navy ships coming into port are just coincidence, seeing as we’re the only pirate crew here. It was a honey trap, idiot!”

“It wasn’t-” you trailed off, looking back at Sanji with hurt in your eyes. “Sanji?”

But Sanji was glaring at Kline, fixated on him. “Apologize to the lady.”

Kline's face contorted in confusion. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Bringing a weapon to a meal, turning that weapon against her, calling her an idiot!” Even when those men had tried to rob you, Sanji hadn’t been as angry as he was now, hatred clearly coursing through his veins. “I said apologize!”

“I aint apo-” Kline’s words were cut off by a swift kick to the head, and he fell to his knees, dazed and confused. 

“Kline!” you screamed, rushing to check on him. 

“Apologize!” Sanji growled, hovering over you and Kline. 

“Sanji, stop!” Tears were forming in your eyes. “Please, just go. We all have to leave. The Navy is coming.”

His eyes lightened when he looked back at you, and it dawned on him that you were scared of him in that moment. 

“I’m sorry, mon amour,” he whispered, dropping down to help Kline. “Let’s pick him up and take him back to your ship.”

“No!” you shouted, refusing to look at him. “Just go! I don’t want to see you!”

Your heart ached. Your words were a lie, but you needed him to get back to his ship. You knew he hadn’t called the Navy, but he was a pirate. He would be in danger. Even more danger when Berk found out what he had done. 

He tilted your chin up so you were forced to make eye contact with him. “I’m not leaving you, my dear. I caused this, and I’ll make sure you get back safe. Okay?”

You could tell he wasn’t going to take no for an answer, so you nodded. You slipped yourself under one of Kline’s arms, and Sanji grabbed his other side. Together, the two of you lifted him to his feet and walked back to the ship. 

You were almost back to the ship before Kline started to become fully coherent again. He began cursing and spitting at Sanji, but there wasn’t much he could do in terms of power. He was still struggling with motor functions, and you could only hope it wouldn’t be permanent. 

“You should leave now, Sanji.” You could see your ship, and you knew Sanji would be a primary target once Kline relayed what happened. 

“I don’t mind-”

“You’re just making this harder for me!” you screamed. He was too damn considerate. Willing to risk his life just so you wouldn’t be slightly inconvenienced.

“As you wish, my darling.” He slipped out from under Kline’s grasp. “I hope we see each other again.”

“Goodbye Sanji,” you mumbled, trying to keep the tears out of your voice. This wasn’t how you expected the date to end. You wanted more time with him. 

But you hardly ever got what you wanted. 

[obsessedelusional]

Oblivious

paring ✦ Bella Ramsey x fem!reader

summary ✦ Bella and you have been friends for a few years now. Didn’t take long for them to a form a crush on you. While visiting after not seeing you for a while, they decide it’s time to come clean about their feeling. Too afraid, they keep dropping hints. What happens when Bella finally finds the courage to tell you?

word count ✦ 2,000ish

authors note ✦ THANKS for all the love <33

masterlist

FEEDBACK AND REBLOGS APPRECIATED!!!

⊹ ꙳ ✦ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ ✦ ⊹

“So who’s your celebrity crush then?” Bella asks her best friend of years, intentionally after talking openly about their celebrity crush. You share a striking resemblance too, hoping maybe this information would spark something in you. Your too oblivious to connect the dots.

“Hmm…. Right now?” You pause in a attempt to shuffle through all the random celebrities you’ve found attractive.

“Probably Kristen Stewart.” Bella is surprised by you answer.

“Kristen Stewart?” They ask, slack jawed.

“Yeah I rewatched all the twilight movies last week. I used to be team Edward but now I think I’m team Bella. It’s actually absurd that we let those men get away with everything they did.” You explain, going off on a tangent about Twilight. Bella half listens, trying to understand if you said Kristen because you might be gay or because you liked twilight.

“She has a whole ass fiancé, I’m shit out of luck.” You sigh dramatically before going back to your phone. Bella forces a laugh, more confused than when they started this conversation.

“But doesn’t matter, I got my own Bella.” You tease with a wink unknowingly adding to Bella’s distress.

“Edward was a creep, a whole ass stalker. Imagine if she woke up when Edward broke in to bedroom to watch her sleep. If my boyfriend did that shit, he’d get kicked to the curb so quick.” Bella groans out loud on accident causing you to look up from your phone.

“Okay I know you don’t like him but-“ You speak quickly interrupted.

“Yeah cause he’s a dick. Way worse than Edward Cullen ever was.”

“First of all, you’ve never seen twilight. Second of all, I don’t think you’ve ever liked anyone I’ve ever dated.” You respond, your tone sassy. Bella doesn’t respond only because she cannot pretend why she’s never liked your new boyfriends. Your “love” for them never lasted long, moving onto the next one with ease. They wished desperately you’d forget about the male population as a whole.

“It’s because I like you.” Bella says, not entirely registering the words as they come out.

“I like care about you, you deserve someone better.” Nice save, Bella thinks. Internally screaming to themself you deserve them.

“Aww I like care about you,” you respond sarcasm heavy on your voice, eyes on your phone. Bella rolls her eyes in response. That’s one thing Bella loved so badly about you, you were just as sarcastic and could always banter with you. More often than not they couldn’t keep up with your attitude.

Bella was in town for a few weeks, break between their filming. She had missed you so much the l last few months, promising her self she was gonna do something about it this time. When it’s time for the two of you to part, Bella steals on you hoodies.

“Where the fuck are you going with that?” You ask mostly joking, when you notice.

“I want it,” Bella argues. Not wanting to admit that she’s been stealing from you on the low. Just taking little things, now and then. Nothing you’d ever miss but it means everything to Bella. To have a piece of you while she’s off on her job related adventures. Sometimes even using your shirt as a pillow case when they really miss you.

—

Bella had a plan to tell you how they felt the next day. Before you spring going to a party’s with you. Bella was older than you, you just graduated high school. Still caught up in the high school bullshit. Thankfully they were visiting during your summer vacation before you headed off to university.

“These are for you.” Bella barley whispers, handing you the bouquet of flowers. Your favorite ones. After you sprung the party on them, they decided they’d just do it before. Maybe it would be enough to convince you to stay in with them instead.

“Thanks bestie,” you respond. Bestie? Bella groans internally, discouraged by your friendly pet name. Chickening out on their original plans, mentally throwing out the monologue they had planned for you.

“I saw them and thought of you.” Bella admits.

Once in Bella’s car, they purposefully play Jenny by Studio Killers. Signing along passionately, hoping maybe you’d hear the lyrics and they’d resonate with you. The songs about a girl having a crush on her best friend. You just nod along, never commenting on the subject of it. Bella doesn’t show it but they irritation is growing. Wanting nothing more than to spill their feelings for you, always coming up short when it’s time to do so.

—

“Do we really have to go?” Bella whines only to stop when you grab their hand and pull them closer to the door. Once at the door, you face Bella your back to the door.

“It’s just a little kickback, maybe 20 people tops. You’ll be okay! I’ll be by your side the whole time. I promise.” You reassure Bella and they let out a defeated sigh. A small laugh leaves your mouth bringing a smile to Bellas. The door swings open, some dude from your school attempting to leave. He pushes past the two of you, not saying a single word.

“Rude.” You mutter under you breath, leading Bella inside. Finding some of your friends, introducing them to Bella. Bella’s wondering what the fuck she’s doing here? Oh yeah because you asked and that’s all it took. They couldn’t say no especially when you start pouting, eyes staring directly into Bella’s.

“Sorry I really thought it’d be smaller.” You apologize to Bella some time later, the two of you sat in a group of friends and strangers. Bella doesn’t drink so you don’t either, watching everyone get drunk without the two of you.

“We should do something. Play a game.” Someone suggests, everyone agrees.

“We should play spin the bottle.” Some suggests, most people agree. You look over to Bella who’s shaking their head no.

“I think I’ll sit this one out.” Bella says, standing up going to sit out of the group. Still close enough to be part of the conversation but not in the immediate circle.

“You playing?” Some drunk dude asks you. You look over to Bella who just gives you a smile.

“I guess so.” You say, thinking it’ll be a funny story to tell someday.

“Fuck yeah,” he responds. You sit and wait as one of your friends finds a bottle lays in the center of the group all while explains the rules. A player spins the bottle, and must kiss the person to whom the bottle points when it stops spinning. You watch as people take turns, watching as people kiss. Most kisses only last a few seconds. It’s almost your turn, the girl before you spins the bottle. Landing on the boy next to you, she giggles before reaching over you to kiss him. Their kiss is more aggressive than the others, lasting much longer. People cheering them on as they continue.

“I don’t think I’m gonna live up to that performance.” You joke, as they pull away from each other. Nervously you spin the bottle, following it with your eyes as it spins in a circle. It lands on a girl, you barley know. Before you can say anything people are chanting for y’all to just do it.

“I mean if she’s down I’m down.” The girl shrugs her shoulders, looking at you for a response.

“Sure?” you say and for whatever reason it comes out as a question. She starts crawling towards you, when she’s only a few inches away from your face a voice interrupts the moment.

“What about your boyfriend?” It’s Bella speaking. She didn’t care about your boyfriend, using that as an excuse to make you not want to participate in this game anymore.

“What about him? Like you said he’s a dick.” You respond, looking back at the girl sat in front of you waiting for a kiss. Cheering resumes as you two get closer.

“Absolutely not.” Bella speaks over the loud noises, pulling you from the floor with a strength you didn’t know existed. Dragging you through the crowd, straight out the front door. Sounds of booing is all you can hear as you leave.

“What the fuck was that?” You ask, once Bella lets go of you hand. Bella paces back and forth, it’s obvious they want to say something but can’t get it out.

“You’re my best friend. I couldn’t let you do that.” Bella speaks, pacing coming to a stop to face you.

“Actually I don’t want to be your friend anymore.” Bella says, breaking your heart.

“All because I was going to kiss that girl?” You ask, arms crossed over your chest.

“Oh my fucking god. Do you listen like ever? How much more obvious do I have to be?” They ask, louder than before.

“What-“ Your cut off by Bella’s hands cupping your face in swift motion affectionately placing their lips on yours, you move your lips with theirs. Letting your arms fall to your sides. You’re the one to pull away, overwhelmed by all the feelings that came out in that moment.

“I understand if you’re mad at me. But I would of rather died than watch you have your first kiss with a woman not be me.” Bella says before you can fully process what just happened.

“I ruined our friendship.” They say, attempting to read your reaction but your speechless unable to comprehend.

“No you didn’t,” you respond.

“I want to ruin our friendship. I like you.” Bella speaks.

“I like you too.”

“No I like like like you.” Bella says, emphasizing on the last two likes.

“Do you listen like ever?” You ask, mocking their tone when they said that you moments ago.

“I like you.” You say again, emphasis on like. Bella’s eyes narrow on you, looking you in your eyes.

“So if I kissed you again? You wouldn’t stop?” They smirk.

“I don’t know, try me.” You tease, chewing on your lip. They do exactly that, pulling you into their embrace before kissing you for the second time.

—

After a heavy make out session, in the front lawn of that party you guys head back to Bella’s car. This time they open your door, something Bella has never done before. Stealing a kiss in the process then making their way to the drivers side. Once in there’s a silence between you two, sinking in what just happened. They make the drive home, no words are exchanged. Half way there, their hand rests on your thigh giving it a squeeze before going back to driving. You don’t even realize until it’s too late to turn back but Bella’s pulling into their apartment. This was not the original plan but plans change. Parking in their normal parking space.

“How long have you had feelings?” You ask as soon as the car shuts off.

“Oof,” they think out loud.

“Since forever basically.” They admit.

“Same.” You admit causing Bella’s jaw to drop.

“There’s absolutely no way that is possible.” Bella says, not believing you in the slightest.

“We met right before your career really started to take off. I didn’t think it was right to throw that on you while you were out there living your best life.” You explain.

“My best life would of been you by my side, I can’t believe we wasted so many years.” Bella sighs, frustrated.

“We’ll I guess we’re just gonna have to make up for lost time,” You smile, intertwining your fingers with theirs. Playing with the rings they always wore, something you loved about them.

“We better get started, only have two weeks and six days to make up for three years.” Bella grins before instructing you to get out of the car. You do so and Bella meets you outside of the passenger door. Pushing you softly into the side of the car, kissing you in the process. Hands waisting no time explore your body, taking you by surprise. You had never imagined Bella being so forward.

“Where’s this boldness coming from?” You ask when you pull away to breath.

“I wasn’t kidding when I said, we need to make up for all those lost years.” They grin, leading you towards their front door. Your excitement grows as they lead you toward their bedroom, ready to let Bella do whatever they want.

[mariaofdoranelle]

Wedding Break

Masterlist

I really hope you’re in a modern royalty/runaway bride mood today

Warnings: only language I think

Word count: 2,1k

~~~~~~~~~~

“Which Whitethorn do you think is the hottest?” Aelin said a millisecond before shoving her phone on Aedion’s sight.

Her cousin playfully slapped her hand away. “Shouldn’t you be preparing for your speech?”

“It’s either this or hearing about carbon monoxide one more time for you.”

As beautiful as Queen Maeve’s castle was with its tiny streams and walls of pale stone, Aelin just wanted to fast-forward to when she actually got to do her first official task, or at least forget about it until it was time. For someone who have begged for a more active role in the government for years, she was feeling too much like a deer in the headlights.

Muttering something unintelligible to himself, Aedion zoomed in the picture with everyone from the House of Whitethorn and quickly assessed it.

“Tattooed Whitethorn.”

Aelin looked at the picture and bit her lip. “Agreed. I think his name is Ronan or something.”

“They could’ve picked this one for you to marry.”

Frowning, she asked, “What do you mean?” Aelin knew she’d have to marry someone eventually, but she didn’t even like to think about the nightmare it would be. Being crown princess, every formal step of her love life needed to be approved by her dad and the Royal Council, and she had enough battles of her own with them for now.

Aedion cackled, not sensing her distress or maybe because of it. “Didn’t you open Twitter today? The tabloids are saying you’re engaged with Prince Endymion.”

Gaping at her cousin, she was somewhere between laughing and frowning at this new piece of information. “Isn’t he gay? I know we both dated Dorian.”

“I’m pretty sure he is, too.” A beat. “God, I wonder how they came up with this one.”

They kept scrolling on their respective couches, sometimes chatting about things they saw online, but something about this rumor was bothering her. Aelin blocked her phone and rubbed the back of her neck, brows creased in thought. This wasn’t the first, neither would be the last false rumor about her love life. It was so common she didn’t mind anymore. What was irking Aelin was where their attention was. She was here to bring attention to carbon monoxide. Greenhouse effect. Global warming. Not to have her outfits and love life scrutinized by Doranelle’s tabloids.

Aelin cleared her throat, gathering Aedion’s attention.

“Don’t you think these rumors kinda undermine the real reason I’m here? It makes people forget the purpose of my trip and—“

“You know you’re only here because Rhoe’s boys’ club don’t give a fuck about the environment, right?”

Aelin flinched, hating how sometimes Aedion could see right through her. He straightened his posture and gave a long-suffering sigh.

“I’m sorry, Ace. It’s hard to get over this. You keep running around the castle, waiting for kernels like a damn pet—“

“I’m not a pet!” Aelin shouted, tired of having the same argument with Aedion for the millionth time.

He raised both hands in surrender and left, banging the ancient wooden door.

With a pounding heartbeat, Aelin got up and started pacing around the room. He would never get it. If she couldn’t get her voice heard in the council because of her position as crown princess, Aelin would work until she earned that spot. And it was already happening. Her dad put her in charge of Terrasen’s environmental policies as a 21st birthday gift, and there she was. Months later, only beginning to kick ass with her new task.

Aelin did a quick breathing exercise to calm herself down, too consumed by these thoughts, the gossip, her fight with Aedion and probably every single moment of the past months that led her to this. Aelin couldn’t post online without her PR’s approval, so she decided to ask Nox, the head of the team, to deny the rumors on social media. He saw her text almost immediately and left it on read, but Aelin’s shoulders still dropped in relief by the sight of it. He’d fix it soon.

~~

Doranelle’s weather was so hot Aelin took her first cold bath in months, and it was as refreshing as it could be. Honestly, she felt like a new woman, or at least in a new day. She had a tiny headache and her jaw felt sore, but it was fine. She was fine. If Aelin didn’t think about today’s previous events, she wouldn’t feel any kind of residual anger or bitterness. If she was still mad. Because she obviously wasn’t.

Choosing a pale blue dress for lunch, Aelin was finishing her makeup when her mom barged into the room.

“Why are you dressed up so early? Lunch is in more than an hour.”

Aelin sighed, feeling the weight of her shoulders quickly come back. “I needed the bath.”

Evalin smiled at her. “You look gorgeous, honey.”

Just like that, her mother’s words felt like sunshine making its way through dark clouds. Aelin beamed up at her mom, proud of herself because—

“But what happened to your hair? You can’t have lunch with the Whitethorns looking like this.”

Aelin’s cheeks burned, but she held her chin high to answer her mother. “I saw it on TikTok and decided to try. Everyone’s wearing it, it’s really no big deal.”

She gently caressed her daughter’s hair and held her chin for emphasis. “Not everyone is Terrasen’s heir, dear.” Evalin made a show of analyzing Aelin’s hairstyle before saying, “It looks interesting, just make sure the royal family doesn’t see you in it, okay?”

Nodding, she just let her mother talk her ears off until the endless reminders about that visit ended. When Evalin was about to leave, Aelin reminded of something.

“Mom?”

“Yes, dear?” Evalin asked from the threshold of Aelin’s assigned bedroom.

“Can you ask Nox to deny my engagement rumors? I asked him too long ago and maybe he forgot.” Both of them knew this was a nice way of putting that the PR team was busy, and Aelin’s requests weren’t a priority.

The sight of Evalin taking a deep breath and coming back in, closing the door, was enough to give Aelin heart palpitations. But nothing prepared her to what she’d hear next.

“Fireheart, I’m afraid your engagement rumors are true.”

Just like that, Aelin’s body, mind, her whole world came to a halt.

No, they weren’t. They couldn’t be. Aelin started feeling light-headed and leaned the palm against the wall. Her mom had promised that when the time came, they’d make the decision together. They’d let Aelin choose.

“You’re joking.”

“I know you’re upset now, but you know Terrasen’s going through a crisis, and Queen Maeve was kind enough to—“

“What about you letting me choose?” She shouted.

Evalin took a deep breath and plastered a forced smile on her face. “Like I was saying, we reached another countries too, to give you a choice, but Queen Maeve had a better offer, so—“

“So you sold me to the highest bidder! Is that it?”

Her mother’s silent confirmation made Aelin shut her eyes closed, a poor attempt to keep her tears at bay.

“When are we going back? I need to speak with dad,” Aelin said in a strained tone.

“We’re staying until the wedding, which will be in less than three months. He’ll come to the ceremony, though.” Evalin’s voice sounded more gentle now, but Aelin couldn’t see her expression because of the tears blurring her vision. She just heard her mother’s heeled footsteps and the sound of the door closing.

Aelin’s muscles went limp, so she collapsed on the floor, leaning against the wall, and didn’t bother doing any exercises to control her quick breathing.

It was hard to feel time moving when she was overwhelmed with so many questions running through her head. How could her family do this behind her back? Since when was this going on? Was her first assignment just a ruse to bring her to Doranelle?

With a caved-in chest, Aelin probably looked miserable crumbled on the floor like this. She felt too tired to do anything, but what got her up was the thought of what would her mother say if she saw Aelin’s tear-stained make up. Still, cleaning herself up sent a spark of something through her veins.

Maybe, if she talked to her father, they could figure out another way together. Aelin knew part of being queen was abdicating, but maybe they could meet halfway in this. Finishing her new makeup, Aelin held her chin high as she made her choice.

She was going back to Terrasen to talk with her father.

Leaving her bedroom, it was easy to get lost in this castle’s long halls. She had no idea how one place could be so open and look so much like a labyrinth at the same time. However, Aelin released a small breath in relief by the sight of what looked like a small gate.

The guard curtsied. “Your Highness. Good afternoon.”

And did nothing more.

After a few stretches of silence, she said, “Can you open this for me, please?”

His hand hovered over his earpiece as he asked, “Where to?”

“Out.” Aelin said through gritted teeth.

“I’m afraid you can’t leave this wing of the castle without an escort, ma’am.”

What the fuck? “Are you serious?”

Aelin didn’t bother hearing what he had to say, her ears were ringing as she stomped her way back to her bedroom. This had Evalin written all over it. So typical of her mother to treat Aelin like a ticking bomb whenever she got angry, like her own daughter was a situation that needed to be handled. She was so tired of this bullshit.

Aelin couldn’t cross a gate? Awesome. She’d make her own fucking gate to cross.

After getting back and slamming her bedroom’s door, Aelin quickly noted that her easiest way to the outside was a tree that was too short to jump from her balcony. She looked down, studying the sight. But if Aelin could get to the balcony underneath hers... She’d have perfect leverage to get to the tree.

Not thinking twice, Aelin ripped the mattress from her dull guest bedroom and wrapped it around her balcony’s ornate iron railing. Holding on the handrail for dear life, she crossed to the outer side of the barrier, and managed to find balance with half of her feet touching the rest of the balcony’s floor she had. She could feel the wind hitting her back and hear some hawks screeching far from her, but she couldn’t let fear paralyze her. Aelin took one last deep breath.

And then she jumped.

Aelin felt like her heart was free-falling, or maybe that was because she was free-falling herself. However, the gust of wind felt good for just one second, until her forehead hit the building, making her curse this city one more time. Why was this castle made of stone?

Noticing she was still depending on that short mattress to live, Aelin angled her body and swayed it enough to land inside the downstairs balcony.

Feeling every bone in her body ache from that crash, she only gave herself a few seconds to rest while analyzing that tree. She just needed to figure out the best angle to climb on that branch and—

“What the hell are you doing?”

A tall, green-eyed man was staring at her with furrowed eyebrows. He was dressed casually, with sweatpants and a black t-shirt that emphasized the ink that ran down his left arm. The same muscled, tattooed arm that gave her very improper thoughts earlier today. Somehow, the photos didn’t do Roman Whitethorn justice. Or something. God, why couldn’t she get his name right?

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” He insisted, and Aelin just realized she was staring blankly at him. Her scheming abilities let her come up with a plan in the seconds that took her to get up and straighten her posture.

She curtsied. “I’m so sorry for the disturbance, Your Highness. I’m working, and I need to retrieve something from this tree. Now if you’ll excuse me—“

“Wait. What’s your name?” As serious as he tried to school his expression, the prince’s eyes were twinkling with amusement, and Aelin wondered why.

“Celaena,” she let the lie slip through her lips not for the first time, but this situation specifically left her feeling her pulse go a mile a minute.

He hummed. “Whatever you say, Princess.”

A/N: I have some sequel ideas, let me know what you think!

Edit: Now I’m definitely continuing this and here’s a snippet of what’s to come

HERE’S PART 2 and I’ll make a masterlist soon I promise

TAG LIST

@autumnbabylon

@courtofjurdan

@elentiyawhitethorn

@leiawritesstories

@rowanaelinn

@thegreyj

[silverlining317]

The most evil wizard of all time

For @Hinnyfest, prompt #12: Valentine's Day

Her shadow vanished, leaving behind a thread of coppery sparkles. It was the third time so far that morning that Harry had witnessed a similar scene. He had first tried to say hello to Ginny over Valentine's Day breakfast. but before he could even say her name, she had vanished with a half-formed excuse about books and plants, and something else which Harry made no effort to listen for fear it would rhyme with Dean and Madame Puddifoot.

Only now Hermione was informing him that Parvati had overheard Romilda Vane in the bathroom telling to her friends about a fight between Ginny and Dean that had happened that same day immediately after Harry's second attempt to greet her on the stairs. Now without the nerves of having to hear the words tea room and cupid from her lips, Harry had to fight the urge to run after her. A urge he needed to control because Ron was walking right at his side, using him as a shield against Lavender, and because his best friend couldn't suspect at any cost about that dream he had had the night before about his little and innocent and not so little nor innocent sister.

Avoiding him after that dream would have been the sensible thing to do, but the alternative to serving as some kind of invisibility cloak for Ron was to sit next to Hermione in the library and endure her questioning him because he was suddenly interested in the rumors Parvati was starting. He didn't mind them in the least, they were just a distraction to avoid doing his Defense Against the Dark and Arts essay. After all, what better way was there to pass the time than to calculate how long it took an average woman to get over her ex and be ready to date someone new. Harry was by no means a relationship expert, but thirty minutes was more than enough for him.

But Ginny kept running terrified at each crossing in the corridors. His brown eyes drifted to the floor ignoring his questions. The real rudeness didn't happen until the afternoon, though, where after two minuscule exchanges about  the upcoming Quidditch practice, Ginny suddenly turned right out the door, leaving him standing in the middle of the Gryffindor common room with a joke cut in half. and a punchline unsaid  that  he had spent hours and hours  thinking about.

- ‘’Is something happening between you two ? ‘’-Ron asked him.

- ‘’Something?’’- Harry said sweaty- ‘’Something like what?’’

-"She seems angry"- Ron said.

-"I'm sure this has nothing to do with you, Harry, but with his fight with Dean."- Hermione turned her back on Ron, still ignoring him after his very public Valentine's Day display of affection with Lavender- "It's better to give her space, she must be very distressed."

But anguished, what is said anguished, was not a word he would you use to describe her. Although Harry was not so familiar with the world of emotions he could still distinguish laughter from tears, and her smile brighter than ever under the candles that lit the large dining room table, was not something someone could fake. A glowing aura surrounding her, while retelling Neville a story of the twins' early prototypes of the puking pastilles. Harry sat in front of her and as if she suddenly saw something worse than the Grim, her face darkened making her stumble with those last words.

"...in front of Bill's date" -Ginny muttered turning pale.

-"Are you okay?" -Neville asked.

"Yes"- Ginny hurried on -"but I forgot my essay at the… at the…

"What essay?" - Ron sat next to Harry and grabbed a piece of Turkey - "You were hiding all day playing with Arnold’’

-‘’Ginny!’’- Hermione reproached her taking the seat that Neville leave – ‘’You are supposed to study for your OWLS!’’

-‘’It's just that...’’- Ginny tried to say

-‘’Ron-Ron’’- Lavander arrived- ‘’Ron-Ron I have one last gift for you!’’

"I better go"- Hermione stood up.

-‘’It's a poem’’- ​​Lavender ignored her- ‘’Not as good as yours in first grade Ginny but..’’

-‘’Oh Merlin! I want to die!’’- Ginny let her head collapse on the table splashing a little food- ‘’It was obvious that it was going to happen, first Dean now her, why do they have to remind me?’’

"Gin…"- Harry said- "Are you okay?"

"Shh"- Ginny said- "Just give me two more minutes."

Her arms wrapped around her hair majestically strewn on the table mixed with potato scraps as she mumbled something Harry  couldn't understand.

"Ginny"- Harry said starting to worry.

-‘’I'm fine’’- Ginny straightened up taking a deep breath- ‘’I'm fine, I'm over it. Are we over it Harry? Are we over thar poem?’’

-‘’The poem I received on second year? The one that cupid sang?’’ - Harry said incredulously and at the same time immensely happy to hear her voice again.

"Yeah, how many poems do you receive in your life?" -Ginny rolled her eyes. Though Harry hoped it was due to the second part of the Valentine's show Ron and Lavender were starting and not because of his question. The truth was that several letters reached him at this time of year, more so now that he was label as the chosen one, something that Ginny seemed to notice as well at that very moment.

-‘'But the one you sent is my all-time favorite’’- said Harry aware of his experience with Cho last year.

-‘’I didn't send it’’- Ginny said in a red blush- ‘’Do you see now why I didn't want to talk to you today? It was obvious that everything was going to return to that damned poem. Every Valentine's Day it’s the same and someone has to remind me, and with someone I mean EVERYONE, about that childish and stupid poem. And on top of that I have to see you later at the face and pretend that I …oh I want to die.’’

"That's why you avoided me?’’- Harry couldn't help but laugh earning himself a murderous look. ‘’ I don’t even remember what it said, something about my eyes being green and the toads and the blackboard and…’’

-‘’I was possessed!’’- Ginny said – ‘’Uff, I can't believe they remind me every year of this and if it wasn’t enough I  have to see your green eyes right now to remind me more and more about….about toads’’

-‘’Hey, wait’’- Harry said suddenly remembering something- ‘’I had the diary on Valentine's Day, Tom coudnt send it’’

- ‘’Tom wrote it when he still had it!’’- Ginny said almost drifting the pudding- ‘’He wrote it!’’

- ‘’Gin, are you telling me that Voldemort wrote me a poem comparing my eyes to those of a toad and made everyone believe that a sweet girl had written it instead? It makes no sense’’

"Wake up, Harry!" -Ginny said snapping her fingers- "You don't realize he's the most evil wizard of all time! What have you been doing all these years? Don't you pay attention?’’

"Yes, yes," Harry said resisting a smile. "Poor Ginny making you write a poem for me, the meanest thing he's done so far, by far."

-‘’Exactly’’- Ginny said taking a deep breath- ‘’I'm glad we talked about it once and for all’’

"Making you knock the vase off the table that time you saw me go into the kitchen after playing Quidditch, making you stick your elbow in the butter…" Harry took a sip of pumpkin juice- "Making you blush every time you spoke to me, all of that was his work and everyone here thinking it was something else’’

"I have no idea what you're talking about" -Ginny imitated Harry and brought the glass to her lips.

"No, no"- Harry said- "me neither, we're over it, I think we're over the poem."

"Okay" -Ginny said.

-‘’Also the singing Get well card’’- added Harry with a big smile

"I hate you" -Ginny said.

"The time you fell down the stairs because I saw you in pink kitty pajamas…" -Harry continued to remember with an affection he hadn't known until now.

"I'm not going to talk to you anymore" -Ginny said, looking like she was fighting not to smile back.

"The collection of letters written to the boy who lived asking him his favorite color"-Harry said.

"Who told you about that?" -Ginny said leaning over the table- "Was it George?" Sure it was George

-‘’Do you know Ginny? I feel a little offended that you never asked me my favorite color in person." -Harry shook his head- "What about the other questions? All these years and you never took the opportunity to ask if I liked yellow iguanas or not, a waste of friendship if you want my opinion’’

- ‘’Harry, if you don't shut up, I swear I'm going to….’’- start Ginny

-‘’If you sent them by owl like the rest of my fans, I could even consider answering them-‘’ Harry said with the most serious face he got- ‘’But it has a price...’’

-‘’Ginny I've been looking for you all day’’- Dean came running to the table- ‘’Can we talk, please? I want to apologize for...

"Dean…" -Ginny said.

-‘’Harry, can you let me sit here?’’ – Dean asked Harry and hating himself Harry nodded feeling how the monster in his chest clawed at his chest. He didn't deserve to be in Gryffindor, he was a coward. So close to the summit and yet so far.

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

The next day at breakfast time Hedwig entered the sea of ​​gray and red owls with a parchmet attached to her leg.

To the boy who lived

I wanted to thank you for fighting for all of us and saving us from the evil ones who force us to act shamefully. I also wanted to ask you which is your favorite color for iguanas? Do you like yellow ones?

Cheers,

Ginny

[lcathia]

hey i'm doing PWYW icon commissions for a bit while i try t get peepo to the vet 🥲✌️

icons, bc i dont have much time t do more complex pieces for money (MIGHT accept them on a case by case basis, ask). Minimum is US$15, which would get ya smn like a transparent headshot. obviously the more you pay the more you get (ie. more complex BGs, shading, alts??? feel free tell me what ya want). I'm capping it at US$40

takin' p4ypal n v3nmo. dm me if inch rested and/or reblog t spread da word 😎

here's my ko-fi as well if that's more your thing ! I offer doodles

will/wont draw n TOS under the cut

I can draw pretty much anything (humans/humanoids, animals/furries, object heads, fan art/characters, robots/mechs, etc.). but here's my list of no's:

× Strong Violence/Gore

Heavy injuries I can do, I just can't do blood/gut baths, it's not my strong suit

× Depictions of birds, bugs, or children in distress/pain

Anthro birds/bugs are fine, feral ones no

× Real People Fiction (RPF) 

Real, established relationships are fine. Shit like Slushmello isn't

× Any sole piece with more than four characters

× Pedophilic/Incestual/Non-con relationships in any context

I don't care for your technicalities or whatever stupid arguments you have to justify these things. This is nonnegotiable.

× Overly complex subjects

I love drawing things like weaponry n mechs, however by overly complex I mean things with extensive color palettes and/or very intricate detail. If you're unsure if your design(s) is/are too complex, feel free to show it to me so I can gauge it myself

× Anything offensive or bigoted 

this include N*zis or characters that look like they're inspired by them. I can't believe I have to say this

× Anything political 

I don't consider LGBTQ+ stuff n human rights in general "political" so those are fine

× Fan art of certain fandoms/people as well as fan characters of said fandoms (ask)

This is not a fully comprehensive list, merely a list of exclusions based on topics that are popular or relevant to me. Just because something isn't on it doesn't mean I can't reject your commission. Please respect my boundaries.

× If you want to ask about something not specifically mentioned here or have other inquiries, don't hesitate to ask! ×

===

TERMS N’ STUFF

• If I approve your commission(s), communications will be done via DM or email; I'll give you the necessary information depending on your preferences.

• Payments will ONLY be accepted via P4yPal or V3nmo. Payments will be made via P4yPal invoice or V3nmo link*. You must pay everything upfront before any work can be done.

          □ I do not offer discounts of any kind, nor do I allow clients to haggle. All prices are firm unless otherwise stated.

          □ *I will admit that I am new to Venmo and am referencing an online guide on how to use it. Please excuse any goofs!

• I send WIPs in three to four stages: sketch, linework, color, and, if applicable, shading. You can request up to three changes in sketch or linework phases for free. After that, I will charge a 20% fee per change.

          □ If changes are requested due to my own mistake, that is forgetting/misinterpreting something shown on the references given, the fee will not apply.

• Major alterations will not be permitted after approving linework without a fee that is 20% of the commission's price including extras. Examples of major alterations include but are not limited to: drastic change in character's pose or expression, extras (you will be charged appropriately), and basically anything that will vastly change how the finished product looks.

          □ Slight tweaks such as altering colors, mild changes in position/expression, and minor anatomy/line art fixes will not require a fee unless they are constant in which case the 20% fee will also be applied.

• I will set up a separate document that details my commission queue; you will also see the status of your commission there.

• ETA should be no more than two weeks; of course, it can vary based on how life treats me. I have depression and hypotension, so that also affects how quickly I can work.

          □  I'm iffy about deadlines, but if it's reasonable, I'll do it. Note that commissions with deadlines may be subject to a rush fee depending on how quick you want it and how big my queue is.

• I will update everyone if a situation arises where commissions may be delayed. In extreme cases, you may be liable for a refund.

• If I am unable to complete a commission or you decide not to go with it before I send a sketch, you are entitled to a full refund. For any other circumstance, refunds will be partial, except in the case where the commission is complete, where which you will not be given one. This is non-negotiable.

□ You will not be allowed to use the art you ordered under any circumstance if you decide to go with the refund.

• ONLY THE CLIENT has the right to use the finished piece as they like non-commercially, but they must credit me. 

          □ If you wish to repost the full piece to personal accounts, it must be the watermarked version, and, of course, there must be credit somewhere in the image description. This is to deter potential art theft.

          □ We can discuss commercial usage if desired; note that this will come with a 100%-300% price increase depending on how you want to use it.

□ I do not permit the use of any art I make for the creation of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), regardless of whether or not credit or royalties are given to me.

• I reserve the right to deny a commission for any reason even if it may follow the guidelines. Note that I do not have to explain the exact reasons why I do not wish to do business with you, and any misconduct that arises from this can and will get you blacklisted.

• If I feel as though you have breached the terms in any way and/or have failed to cooperate with me in a professional manner, I reserve the right to blacklist you from further transactions.

By commissioning me, you hereby agree that you have read and comprehended the terms that were just listed. If you find an issue with any part of these terms, do not commission me.

[egipci]

hi there! what piece of later-seasons characterization of daddy winchester irks you the most? (i mean a scene, or some new information that you think is the worst addition/rewriting of the character)

Hello! You know, there's a number of incidents people talk about when it comes to inconsistent later-season John writing. Like, the boys camp story, or the "Dad used to send me away when I pissed him off" story. But I don't know, I think inconsistency and contradiction have been the hallmark of John Winchester characterization since the very beginning and to frame it as mainly a late-season issue is a little unfair. (See, "Dad never hit us" and then the revelation that he did hit Dean when Sam ran away. Or his hyper-protectiveness over Sam somehow leading to cutting him off(!) when he went to college. Or, consider all we hear about his tyranny as a parent before we actually spend some time with him--- he's just a lanky emo dude, and he's really emotionally vulnerable with his kids (or at least with Dean) and sure he's giving orders and arguing with Sam but when Dean pushes back, he just folds, or apologizes, or agrees --- there is never a threat of physical coercion when it comes to Dean, at least that we see) --- and all of that is within Kripke-era SPN, if not entirely during the first season. And I think we can sit around and wank about poor inconsistent writing all we want (and we should!)--- but it's also fun and interesting to think about all the ways real and fictional people can just be terribly wrong in their understanding of their own selves and their true motivations and the foreseeability of the outcomes of their actions, etc. This is to say, let John Winchester be fucked-up and inconsistent! And beyond that, the fact of the continuing (seemingly contradictory) revelations about John actually reveals so much about Sam and Dean's relationship. Dean only tells Sam about the boys camp incident some twenty-years later! He tells Sam about being sent away in his forties! Sam! The person closest to him in the whole world! I find that significant and worth thinking about, regardless of how that ultimately influences your understanding of their relationship (or their relationship to John).

All that aside, there is a moment in S15 (ep. 17, I think) where Sam is talking Dean out of making Jack suicide-bomb God and he says something like, "All my life you've protected me. From Dad, from Lucifer" --- and that was just so fucking insane to me that I simply do not know how to interpret it. For Sam to suggest that John caused him harm greater or even equal to Lucifer (or even posed an equal but unrealized threat) is absolutely bananas to me, as is the idea that Dean successfully prevented such harm --- I thought that was the whole drama of their childhood, that Dean could not, for various complicated reasons, advocate for Sam to the degree that he should have. The most generous, good-faith explanation of that comment is that Sam is speaking about the S2 command to kill him if all else fails, but of course even as they were living through it Sam had fully bought into the John Winchester contingency plan and was on board. So, I don't know, maybe I'm missing something vital to interpreting that line (and you know, people say weird shit in moments of great urgency or distress, so whatever).

Another thing is: the boys camp story does really throw me for a loop. Sending Dean away as punishment à la S14 reveal makes more sense to me because, I don't know --- John is presumably sending him to work cases somewhere or help this or that hunter, so there's an adult around who knows what's what, he's still training for the fight and doing his job and John knows where to check on him, etc. and I don't think John is the kind of person to outsource his parenting to the state (sending him to Bobby's is substantially different than leaving him with a bunch of randos). And don't get me wrong, the "you fucked up so bad that I don't even want to see you or be around you, you need to get the fuck out of here even as you're my co-parent and closest friend and partner and care-taker--- your failure in this moment has outweighed your utility to me" is awfully, terribly cruel, but it feels less like an afterthought than just leaving him behind somewhere does, and maybe less cruel for that reason. I don't think John Winchester's cruelty is ever intended for its own sake. Or rather, his cruelty is always tempered by his affection. Also just on a strategic level, leaving Dean in a state-run juvenile camp puts them on the government's radar to a degree that I think would be extremely undesirable if you're regularly committing felonies with help from your minor children.

(Of course if you're daddycestuously-inclined, as I am (in the this tickles my pickle sense or the holy shit all evidence leads me to believe this more-likely-than-not happened sense) --- there are all these interesting ways to harmonize these inconsistencies. Of course John would send his sixteen year old who may or may not be in love with him far away -- to set Dean straight, or so he wouldn't have to deal with the shame of having taken from Dean what he wanted, or to protect Dean from whatever the fuck that shit was, etc. So many possibilities!)

[iamhereinthebg]

If you havent done him, what are your thoughts on Mitsuba (No.3)? Aside from his whole plot line with Kou, i believe he's super interesting because this is one of the (only i think?) times where we actually get to see a supernatural advance from day 1!

Hey Anon! :DD Really sorry for the wait for this ask dshdjsk

Once again, number 3 is a mystery so I will automatically really love him :D Especially with how many informations about supernaturals we gain with his plotline!

As you said, Number 3 is the only one where we see in details one of the way on how a supernatural can exist :D (we saw it for Mei and Akane too but not as much as Mitsuba!)

What we know about this new mystery is that he is a creation of Tsukasa with a piece of soul of the human Mitsuba Sousuke who died around the age of 14. So Number 3 isn't Sousuke, but still has a really deep connection with him since he has a part of his soul (hence why Nene and kou went to see his mom in chapter 74)

What I love about Mitsuba is the fact that his wish of being human, is because he realized he never was one.

When we start the hell of the mirrors arc before Tsukasa appears he thinks that he is dead, because he has no memories and just think he forgot about his life. But really quickly several supernaturals come to tell him that he never was human in the first place and that he is a defect (as for number 6 :DD I love this) And that he exists only because of Mitsuba Sousuke's wish.

Number 3 is only coming after Nene not being bothered or interested in Mitsuba's presense at all unless he gets in his way.

He is viewed as an object or a defect by a lot of the others supernaturals. Tsukasa, Hanako, Number 3 etc... But definitely wants to know what he is and what he is supposed to do. No matter what is the price and no matter how selfish it is.

And this is what led us to the perfect picture arc :0 This is mostly coming from Mitsuba's (the number 3 now) wish in the first place.

Picture perfect arc is one of my fav arc of the manga because we get to see (Mei my beloved) how pathetic and desesperate supernaturals are when it comes to their wishes and want. Mitsuba wants to have a place somewhere and since the only thing he knows is what the human Mitsuba Sousuke went through when he was alive, this is what he wanna be. He knows becoming a human is impossible, so he will accept Tsukasa's plan even if it gets Kou and Nene involved in it. Because he doesn't care if others are hurt/involved in the first place (something that will change quickly let's be honest, he is the one who said what to do when he saw how distressed Kou and Nene were), he wants something and he will do anything stupid to get it. Even if it means giving up his real dreams and becoming just Tsukasa's pawn.

I love the mystery kids being Identity crisis gangs too tbh.

Mitsuba just want to be loved even if it means becoming something he isn't. I absolutely adore how complicated it is for him to know and understand that he can be his own person. Because he just wants Kou to aknowledge him and is jealous of the other Mitsuba. The perfect picture arc show us two different view on supernaturals inspired by previous human. On one hand we have Shijima-san who never wanted to become Mei, who doesn't want people to think she is Mei because she is not good enough to be her or to represent her, and on the other hand, we have Mitsuba who knows isn't good enough to be the human Mitsuba Sousuke so is going to pretend and to fake everything to trick people into believing he is. And I adore this, that we have two views on this matter and that they both have a problem with being 'related'/inspired by a previous human. And in the end they are both supernaturals, who just want things but don't know how to get them without being full crazy about it because their morals and views are way different than humans.

It's Kou who tells him he can be someone even if he isn't the Sousuke Mitsuba he used to know and that he will be happier if he doesn't pretend and live in a fake world. (and then Kou goes full Kou mode like 'I will make you human yayyy')

One of the thing I like about Mitsuba is that he is openly jealous too. Idk how to explain, I think it is really great to have this in a character. Of course supernaturals are jealous of humans because they don't have future and anything like them. They are trapped here only able to watch from afar time passing but never being able to move on. It just makes sense for Mitsuba who is a new supernatural to have those thoughts and to say it out loud.

Idk where to end this tbh. I just really like Mitsuba's progression and story line, because it parrallels with Mei too. And we see how lonely and desesperate supernaturals are, how little they understand what humans think and how crazy they can get to get what they want. And of course, always assume what humans want, and do stupid shit for them without getting their consents (hello Hanako).

Another thing I wanna point out about Mitsuba and that I find really funny is the fact that he is the character who is openly saying how cute he is, and the fact that his powers are related to mirrors. When we all know mirrors can be linked really quickly to being narcissistic (not gonna explain the myth of Narcissus I think everyone knows it)

Mirros are also something in a lot of myths/beliefs that are related to what we really are. Mirros don't lie, when you are in front of a mirror you have to face what you really are deep down and forced to see your flaws so you can accept yourself (this is why Hanako doesn't wanna go into number 3's boundary at first) Mirrors being linked to identity issues is pretty funny to me when we see how Mitsuba is (and the fact that the mirror broke when Tsukasa destroyed the previous number 3 is great too eheh). His boundary is also a reflection of what he wants, even the previous number 3 had a rumor similar to Mitsuba's storyline. Muppets who want to trade their places with the livings.

So yep I wonder where they will go with Mitsuba's arc now, especially since he doesn't seem too interested to become human again (at least less interested, he mostly wants to help Kou and becomes a good friend). Kou is the one focussing on this mostly. We also need to know what the Sakura gang has prepared for him (I do think there is a high chance his yorishiro is the same as the previous number 3 but honestly Idk that much). When we also can see that Tsukasa could have taken his yorishiro way before? He didn't need to create a new number 3 tbh Idk maybe he just wanted to mess with Kou (maybe he remembers him lol) and Amane. And we also don't know what happened really during chapter 65 so we probably didn't get the whole thing. And there is a lot of strange things going around the human Sousuke too, like why tf did he have a photo of the red house in the first place? So yep there are still things to resolve around him and since he is one of the last mysteries to have a yorishiro I hope we will see him there ^^ (we will see him again but I think it will be mostly for Kou's character development idk what they have planned for Mitsuba at all ahah x')

This got really long sorry anon :'D and it doesn't make that much sens, but yep I really like Mitsuba because of how flawned he is (but it makes sense) and how supernatural he is too ^^ I gotta agree that he is a really interesting character!

[j-a-nuary]

CARRIER

Re-introductions

<< first | < backward | masterlist | forward >

Stray Kids Urban fantasy AU (feat. Ateez from time to time) | A “carrier service” exists, seemingly only to get people (usually women) home safe after the trains stop running.

Heavy on bad boys with hearts of… some kind of shiny metal, probably.

Warnings: Affectionate use of the word whore, drinking, flirting, the concept of "dibs" being applied to a person (y'know, with free will?)

=====

"You're a real piece of shit Han Jisung," Tempawan clapped a hand on the back of her newly rediscovered friend.

"Shim Tempawan," Jisung turned, quickly wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug, "you absolute whore."

He was pretending to be surprised, and doing a damn good job of it. He had, of course, smelled her as soon as she entered the bar. Ripe mangosteen and something like liquor. A smell he hadn't recognized two days ago, but now was bewildered that he had ever forgotten.

"Do you ever wonder what people must think of us?" She asked him as he rocked back and forth, his hug dragging her along for the ride.

"Never," he finally stopped and turned, leaving one arm around her shoulders, "let me introduce you to my friends."

Tempawan hadn't noticed the few men standing with Jisung.

"This is Kim Hongjoong…"

A man with his hair tied back nodded, polite but seemingly uninterested in making friends.

"He, uh, owns a couple businesses around here. Song Mingi…"

Six feet if he was an inch, a slightly deeper nod, and a friendly smile.

"... works for him, but don't hold that against him. Park Seonghwa…"

A calculating head tilt, a sweep of the eyes. No nod.

"Is a lawyer? I believe…"

Seonghwa simply nodded.

"Oh perfect!" Jisung lit up a little bit as a surprisingly familiar head of golden curls approached. "This i-"

"Boots?!" Tempawan couldn't hold back from interrupting.

Felix stopped suddenly, nearly toppling the couple of glasses on the tray he held.

"Boots?" Hongjoong was suddenly very interested in the conversation. A grin split his face as he swept his eyes over Felix. For what must have been the first time, he noticed the heel on his shoes.

"You motherfucker! Call me short one more time you fucking liar!"

An interesting combination of concern and amusement spread across Seonghwa's features. He knew that Hongjoong was, mostly, joking around. Still, he could get a little sensitive at times; about the strangest things too.

For his part, Felix looked panicked. He shot Tempawan a harried kind of smile, then tugged at Jisung’s jacket.

"Hey, Sung, a word?"

Jisung, seemingly oblivious to his friend's distress, just tilted his head.

"Sure, what's up?"

"I mean, uh, could we maybe…"

Tempawan took action to disperse as much tension as she could.

"Hey, I'm going to grab a drink. Don't wait up for me," she teased Jisung. Offering the others a quick nod, she headed for the bar.

=====

Felix immediately tugged Jisung aside. Jisung tried, and failed, to grab one of the glasses from the tray that Felix had finally set down on the table.

"What the fuck is she doing here?"

"I don't know," Jisung shrugged, lifting the glass to his lips.

"You didn't invite her?" Felix pressed.

"Fuck no," Jisung huffed, "why would I invite her when I know that Chan and Changbiiaaaah fuck…"

Felix felt no little satisfaction at the way Jisung’s face went pale.

Jisung wasn't stupid. He was even brilliant when he actually put the work in. He just had a tendency towards forgetfulness and getting distracted.

"Exactly. You've got to find a way to get her out of here," Felix explained, "now."

"Alright, alright," Jisung waved his hand dismissively, "just let me think for a second, fuck."

"I don't mean to interrupt," Seonghwa interrupted, "but your friend there - is she single?"

Jisung blinked, trying to process the new information being insinuated.

"What? Yeah, I think so," he shook his head before fixing Seonghwa with a piercing look, "why?"

Seonghwa nodded towards the bar.

As one, Felix and Jisung turned.

Tempawan was laughing, leaning forward, playing with the straw in her drink. All fine and normal things to do while flirting at a bar. No problems there.

However, she was laughing with, leaning towards, and now reaching up to fix the collar of none other than one Jeong Yunho.

=====

Glad to be clear of the oddity of running into a carrier in the wild, Tempawan hopped up onto a seat by the corner of the bar. She figured she'd be out of the way enough to not interfere with the bartender's business.

"What can I get you, my friend?"

She smiled at the bartender, briefly looking over the taps on display.

"The sour please."

"And did you want to start a tab?"

"Sure," she pulled her bag forward, setting it on the bar, "just le-"

"You can put it on mine," a voice said somewhere to the right of, and slightly above her.

She looked up, seeing a kind enough looking man nodding his assurance to the bartender.

“You don’t have to-”

He raised a hand, waving her words aside. Turning to give her a somewhat childish smile, Yunho couldn’t help but wonder why he was being so forward. It wasn’t really his style. But for whatever reason, he had decided to go for it.

“No pressure,” he assured her, “you can walk away right now if you like.”

The seeping chill, and rising heat, had become something like background noise to Tempawan over the last few days. Relying once again on that highly contextual anecdotal evidence, she knew that there was really only one thing that would make it go away.

Besides, this guy wasn’t half bad looking.

“I think I’ll give you a chance to persuade me to stay.”

=====

"He's going to get murdered," Felix muttered under his breath.

"Who's getting murdered?" Hongjoong had now joined the three of them. He followed their gaze towards the bar, and cocked his head slightly.

"She seems into it. Besides," Hongjoong shrugged, "you all know he's a nice enough guy."

"No," Jisung barely breathed the word, "you don't get it."

"What's to get?" Seonghwa asked.

"They might not be dating," Jisung started.

"But that's Changbin’s girl," Felix finished.

The group of them silently watched the two chat. Jisung hated hearing her be described as Changbin’s girl. He hated it more than watching the way Yunho pretended that making way for another patron was the reason he had to move closer to her. He hated it more than the way she smiled and seemed to blush at the new closeness.

He actually hated it less than watching Yunho bend down and speak more directly into her ear.

Jisung took a step forward, but Felix grabbed his wrist.

"We have to come up with a way to make Changbin late," Felix suggested. "Tell him to pick something up at the store or something."

"Like what?" Jisung asked. He kept his eyes on Tempawan, an entire orchard of mangosteen trees seeming to have suddenly ripened in Jisung’s nostrils as Tempawan’s tongue peeked out to wet her lips. As if that weren't bad enough, he felt himself start to shake slightly when Yunho put a hand on her arm.

Felix felt it too.

"Focus."

"Why is it a big deal?" Hongjoong asked, "You said they aren't dating, right? Changbin’s not a totally unreasonable guy."

"No offense, Joong," Felix tried his best to sound both appeasing and assured, "but he's changed since he stopped working for you."

"Changed is…" Jisung sighed, finally tearing his eyes off of Tempawan, "putting it lightly."

"I didn't know him before," Seonghwa added, "but he definitely doesn't scream stability to me."

Mingi, who up until now had been content to watch and listen, pushed his way past the other four men.

=====

Yunho spotted his friend approaching, and tried to give him a subtle head shake. He didn’t know if Mingi hadn’t noticed it or was just ignoring it, but he did not halt his steps.

Mingi had noticed the gesture, but based on what he had heard from Felix and Jisung, he figured that he was doing Yunho a favor by interrupting.

“I think I’m about to be pulled away,” Yunho said.

Resting her chin on her palm, Tempawan pursed her lips, affecting a pseudo-pout to match the flirtation in her voice as she spoke.

“If you don’t want to talk to me anymore, you don’t need to make an excuse,” she made a conscious effort to run a thumb over her bottom lip in a way that might seem subconscious as she glanced at Yunho’s lips.

“No pressure,” she added.

Yunho was in. He knew he was in. The fact that he knew he was in was evidence of just how in he was. Yunho knew he was typically oblivious to advances from women. Or men. His friends constantly made fun of him for missing out because he just thought everyone was being nice.

“It’s not an excuse,” his eyes were glued to Tempawan’s now slightly smeared lipstick, “are you going to be here a while?”

“Depends,” she had now clocked Mingi’s approach, working out that he was probably who Yunho was talking about, “one of my friends is here so I might stick around.”

“Yu-”

“Mingi, right?” Tempawan cut him off, flashing him the wide eyed smile that she had learned was one of her better weapons for disarming men.

“Yes,” Mingi nodded once before turning his attention to Yunho, “they’re going to be here soon.”

Yunho groaned, letting his head fall forward for a second before straightening up.

“Fine,” he gave Tempawan a soft smile, “we’re kind of having a business thing. I’d like to talk more afterwards. No pressure.”

Barely twenty minutes, and they already had an inside joke. Tempawan was actually impressed.

“I’ll be around,” she nodded.

“Actually,” Felix cut in, a tense smile plastered across his face, “you won’t. We need to talk.”

Tempawan practically jumped, having had zero awareness of Boots’ approach. She pressed a hand against her chest, trying to settle her heart rate.

“Why?”

Felix glanced between Little Turtle and the two men. Mingi, having been present for the discussion about Changbin, seemed to be accepting what was happening. Yunho looked, for lack of a better word, curious.

Felix shot them an ingratiating smile before trying to impress upon Little Turtle the severity of the situation.

“Remember the conversation we had? About names?”

Mingi, having mastered the art of reading the room, started directing Yunho back towards their table.

Tempawan could see Boots visibly relax as they got further away.

“Yeah,” she shot a playful pout over his shoulder at Yunho when he glanced back. Turning her attention back to Boots, she tilted her head, “it’s dangerous or whatever.”

=====

“What did I miss out on?” Yunho asked Mingi as he was ushered away.

“Long story short…” Mingi sighed, “Changbin apparently has dibs.”

Yunho looked back, heart skipping a beat when he saw the look she gave him.

“Does she know that?”

“No idea.”

=====

“Right,” his voice was sharp, pressing into Tempawan’s ear like thorns, “so when I say that you should leave…”

He left the rest unsaid, offering her the opportunity to come to the natural conclusion.

She licked her lips, thinking over everything she knew about the carriers, Boots, and the new people she had been introduced to.

“Does Jisung work with you?”

He closed his eyes in frustration, then cleared his throat.

“I literally can not have that conversation with you.”

“So he does,” she nodded slowly. From everything she remembered about Jisung, he wasn’t the type to get involved in anything dangerous. Not on purpose anyway. But a lot could happen in a few years.

Her eyes scanned the group, finding Jisung’s familiar form easily enough.

Something occurred to her then, and she met his eyes again.

“So you both work with Bin.”

Felix could feel the situation unraveling much faster than he would have liked. He sighed, rubbing a hand over his chin.

“Okay,” he huffed, “listen: if you leave right now, I swear that I will find a way to get you some answers. But you absolutely can not be here when the others arrive.”

“How come you’re telling me all of this instead of Jisung?”

Felix took a deep breath, trying to control his patience.

“Again,” he smiled a smile of flower fields under bright sunshine, “answers later. Leaving now.”

Tempawan blinked, temporarily disarmed by the delightfully pastoral man in front of her.

“Fine,” she sighed, “you know the club Sonar?”

Felix nodded.

“Somebody from here better show up there once you’re done here.”

“Fine,” Felix agreed easily enough, “great even. Now you need to go.”

Tempawan threw back the remaining sour in her glass and nodded.

“Oh, uh, Boots,” she smiled at him, “if you and Jisung are busy, you could always send Yunho.”

“Absolutely not,” he smiled at her, “we don’t need any murders tonight. Exit is that way,” he pointed towards a side door.

“Fine,” she rolled her eyes and headed out.

=====

“I’m sure your…” Chan paused, for the slightest of seconds, flashing a look in Seonghwa’s direction, “lawyer has some questions.”

They had been dancing around each other for the duration of the meeting. Quick glances, barely resisted narrowing of eyes, and excessive care when choosing words had quickly become the standard for the, admittedly minimal, conversation between the two.

"Actually," Seonghwa shrugged, swirling the remaining dregs of his vieux carré, "the less I know, the better." He lifted the glass, staring Chan down as he emptied it between his lips.

Felix and Jisung exchanged a look. There was no doubt that they'd be sharing theories about the tension between the two men later on. Most likely in the group chat that conveniently excluded both their boss and their doctor.

Hongjoong, either ignorant to or disregarding the atmosphere, laughed off Seonghwa's comment. He slapped a hand against the tense man's shoulder as he spoke.

"You're so dramatic, Hwa."

Turning his attention back towards the man he had just entered into a gentleman's agreement with, he affected a stage whisper.

"He's not my lawyer if I'm not paying him, right?"

[reactivatedrockstar]

EYO! This post is pinned because I can't do pages on mobile! Therefore, it will contain all the information you need to know about my boundaries, this AU, and my portrayal of Bonnie! I know I said to read all of it before following, but HONESTLY you only really need to read the rules unless you plan to have threads. (My headcanon tag is Merchandise {Headcanons} if you want to read up, just don't reblog please.) All that you need is under the

Rules

I am on mobile, so my tags are very minimal.

Do not reblog threads you are not apart of.

I'm lenient about this, but do not reblog art or memes from here, as it clogs up my feed.

Don't poop on the floor

I am a mobile user. Maybe once in a while, I'll pop onto a computer at the library to fine tune posts like this, but it's hard, if not impossible for me to use the site to its full extent. As such, icons will not be used, tags will be scarce, and trimming posts will not be done the way I like.

Trimming posts are a strange area. I have adhd and autism, so the best way for a thread to be trimmed is with the last response still attached. This way I can remember what's going on in the thread, which will lead to an overall better rp experience.

RESPECT MY FUCKING BOUNDARIES. I've had some issues with one individual who sucked me into this Fandom, they refused to take no for an answer, and forced me to rp an incest ship. This has scared me away from the rpc for years. If I say no, it does not mean "convince me," it means no. I have a three strikes your out policy.

I have a full-time job as a daycare teacher. I am not always online. Do not pester me for replies.

I have kept up with the lore moderately well, but if I don't know something, or have forgotten something, do not bully me. I have zero tolerance for it. You respect me, and I respect you.

The AU

Prior to the events of security breach, Monty was a new animatronic that was incredibly jealous of Bonnie. He didn't understand why he got to be on the stage when he played the bass even better than he did!! This resentment eventually lead for Monty to do the unthinkable. He asked to talk to Bonnie, where he threw him against the wall, slashed his torso open, ripped out the wires, and smashed a bowling ball into his head. Once the deed was done, Monty then hid the body away where it was never found.

For a whole year, Bonnie lay there, desperately sending some sort of distress signal that was too weak to get through to most of the animatronics. However, the voiceless wetfloor signs began to act strange, making odd sounds and turning to face just about anyone, as a result of this distress signal.

Then, somehow, Freddy found him, and he begged the human staff to help fix him. While they didn't have the right parts to fix him completely, they were able to fix him enough to where he was functional again. Bonnie had absolute no memory of how he came to be in such a state due to data corruption, but he does remember some things, which will easily agitate him and make him aggressive.

Due to his state, Bonnie is unable to interact with guests and do shows, which he misses, so he tends to loiter around behind the scenes where nobody can see him during the day.

In this AU, Gregory waited for the doors to open at 6 in Freddy's room after seeing Vanny and Moondrop, because he was absolutely terrified, however I am willing to negotiate this upon request. (Well, I'm just about willing to negotiate anything lore-wise.)

Bonnie Bunny

First off, Bonnie is non-binary, and his pronouns are he/him. He honestly loves playing around with makeup and facepaint, and of course, playing music. Glamrock Bonnie was one to prioritize self expression to the kids, be it music, facepainting, drawing, makeup, or what have you, and he, obviously, absolutely loves bowling, and is unbeatable at it. Bonnie also has a sense of adventure, and loves doing something new.

However, he remembers bits and pieces of what happened to him, corrupted memories come and go, they make his head hurt, and he doesn't act like himself, and he can become aggressive if not de-escalated. He was also operating somewhat while he was hidden away, and remembers being "asleep," but active, and being so alone. So afraid. So angry. So sad. It's an awful, all-consuming feeling that he couldn't get rid of. He just knew he'd spend the rest of eternity rotting there, helpless. Unable to even speak out and beg for help.

Freddy is his best friend in the whole world. In his programmed backstory, Bonnie was bullied a lot until Freddy started hanging out with him. In turn, Freddy soon started being made fun of in his adolescent years, and Bonnie chased them off as well. According to their backstory, it was them against the world, and they've been an unstoppable duo from the beginning, forming a band and singing duets together. Bonnie could never imagine life without Freddy, and he doesn't want to.

One day, according to his programmed backstory, Freddy and Bonnie were performing, when a pizza-loving chicken had asked if she could take up the mic. They let her, and were absolutely blown away, and added Glamrock Chica to their band. Bonnie deeply cares about Chica, as all friends do, and while he doesn't judge her for her love of junkfood and exercise... he does judge her for eating it out of the garbage. He's pretty sure it's a programming glitch that can't be fixed, but he's gotten damaged prior to the incident trying to stop her in the past. Bonnie means no offense, and doesn't love Chica any less, but he can't stand to watch her eat trash. He and the girls would often do each other's hair, "nails" and make-up just for fun for special events, like Halloween, Christmas, and Saint Patrick's Day, to name a few.

Roxy and Bonnie are chaotic together, but they have some good laughs. Roxy was added as an animatronic in the Pizzaplex at a later time, so he has no programmed backstory pertaining to her, but he still accepts her as one of the band members, and is sometimes even compelled to impress her. He does, sometimes, get afraid of her when she's angry, but he knows that if she ever DID hurt him, it would only be an accident. He's seen the loving and caring side of her, and he loves her for it.

Bonnie has nothing but respect for Monty. He's a cool guy, and he was certain that he'd appeal to teenagers better than he would. He welcomed Monty into the group with open arms, accepting him almost as quickly as Freddy did. And yet... Bonnie gets so afraid of him when he's angry. He'll let him win if it means he won't be angry.... but he would never hurt him... right?

Mun

Honestly, I'm not too sure what I can say about myself. I'm 25+ years old, I work at a daycare, I'm bisexual, she/her pronouns. I am an extremely anxious individual who's terrified of stepping over boundaries or hurting feelings. Since this is a side blog, I can't like starters, so I'll send them to you via dms instead, and if you have anons turned off, I can't send asks either. I'm sory of trying to hide from that person who forced me to rp an incestual ship that made me really uncomfortable, so I'm not using my usual alias. Rest assured that I am following you if I'm sending asks or dming you, I'm always interested. If I'm following you but haven't reached out yet, its probably because I don't have any ideas for interactions. Call me Twoie, if you have to call me anything.

[konako]

Red Beauty AU where Belle wears sensible shoes. Though this may be pushing her into OC territory.

She twisted her ankle running from a boar.

She didn't want to tell anyone. It was embarrassing. Ugh, such a cliche. The damsel in distress, having to be rescued by Snow White of all people! — the Princess does have perfect aim, at least. One clean arrow to the boar's eye and it was down in a second, no sound, no struggle.

She felt... silly.

She had been running around trying to get the Thing They Needed before The Bad Guy could get to it and — while she did succeed in her little rebel adventure despite the main group protesting that she was to stay put — she found herself being ferociously chased by the Guy's trusted minions, who, apparently, were boars.

Ordinary boars. Not even big ones. Just... fast.

Ugh, embarrassing! Hurt while being chased by a pig! Wow, that was a low. Belle wanted to lie and say she had been captured and tortured for information and the guy had started by her ankle— but that would be just as silly.

So she confessed. Well... She had no choice but to confess. Snow had seen all of it. And Belle was sure Snow would graciously keep her secret. Just as Belle was sure Ruby would be the only person Snow would tell it to.

Ugh, these two...

There was no way around it, in any case. If Snow hadn't given Ruby that look of hers — that silent language of theirs, that tells her friend more than words can say —, Belle was certain Ruby would have pieced it together just by the erratic beating of Belle's heart, troubled and stumbling in pain.

If she couldn't escape a boar, she would never escape a wolf.

(Not that she wanted to...)

And so Belle accepted Ruby's help back to the Library.

At first she tried limping her way there, hopping pathetically on her uninjured foot (from which she refused to remove the shoe!), while she leaned on Ruby for support, one arm over her friend's shoulder as Ruby bent down to facilitate her reach.

But then she got tired of the ordeal (And Ruby warned her Belle was risking twisting the other ankle...). So Belle accepted help again.

And Ruby picked her up.

As easily as someone would pick up an empty bag.

Belle bit her lip so she wouldn't squeal. That would have been even more embarrassing. She must have gasped in surprise, though... And Ruby must have heard it. Surely. But Ruby didn't mention it and Belle certainly would mention it and so they (well, Ruby) walked the rest of the way to the library in comfortable (merciful!) silence.

Belle tried not to focus on how Ruby's arm felt around her body, carrying her so easily, holding her entire weight like it was nothing. She tried not to name every scent that escaped her long hair as it swung in her walk. And she tried extra hard not to lean back on Ruby's chest and exhale in the comfort of her warmth.

She really did try. She's not sure she succeeded.

But then they reached the library and Ruby carefully (so so carefully, risking being overly dramatic about it, the adorable goof) sat her down on the new couch Belle had bought.

And Belle finally exhaled.

And just as quickly, she sucked the air back in, as she felt Ruby's hands on her ankle, fingers soft as feathers, as they worked to take her high-heels off.

"Why do you wear something this tall? While running?" Ruby chuckled, kneeling on the carpet in front of Belle.

Belle shrugged and bit down on the sharp pain in her foot. "I like them. I like some of the fashion of this world"

Belle saw Ruby try not to roll her eyes. "You mean you like being tall"

"That too" Belle admitted. She was on the other line of embarrassment already, any added resistance was futile.

"Well, then I'm sorry," Ruby said, looking up at Belle at last. "But you'll have to sacrifice some of that height for a bit. You can't walk on those until your foot heals completely."

Belle opened her mouth to protest (one last bit of resistance, maybe) But Ruby turned her head down to stare at her.

"Don't. You'd be risking having pain that foot for life! You know how stubborn an ankle injury is to completely heal from?" Ruby asked and Belle knew she wasn't meant to answer.

Still, she did. "Do you?"

Ruby let her head fall as she laughed at Belle's provocation. "Fair," she said, "I wouldn't know. But I'm guessing you don't have wolf healing, do you?"

Belle pressed her lips into a tight line. "No..."

Ruby nodded, "So no heels for you. For, um.... a month? More? I don't know. You'll need to ask Whale about that. I'm not a doctor"

Belle smiled. "You are not, no."

"Still, I know it's no good to walk on those. So." Ruby shrugged. "Give up being tall for a while. It's overrated anyway."

Now it was Belle's turn to roll her eyes. "Says the tall person walking around on flats." She teased.

A second ticked, and Belle decided she was done feeling pain. Either that or she desperately wanted a shower to cleanse her of so many types of embarrassments.

She lifted her arms up towards Ruby, asking for her help to get up.

Without missing a beat, Ruby held her by the hips, hands always gentle, lending her shoulders so Belle could push up an stand.

Some grunts and sighs of discomfort and some worried looks from Ruby, and Belle was on her feet. Well... foot.

She had no real balance, so she kept her hands on Ruby's shoulders for support. Not that Ruby seemed to mind the added weight. And not that Belle minded the contact.

And then Ruby stood straight, as tall as she really was — and Belle was almost sure she could hear Ruby chuckle under her breath, as her head suddenly stood much taller, many many inches over Belle's.

Belle looked up, finding the stubborn strength inside herself to seem annoyed at how now Ruby casted a shadow over her.

Ugh.

... Right?

"I'll give the heels a break," Belle announced, after she lost count of the seconds that had passed between them and their new (real) height difference.

Ruby smiled a wide smile, eyebrows wiggling up victoriously.

With a pointed finger at her chest, Belle stopped her from celebrating. Being that effortlessly tall was enough gloating!

"One condition, though!" The short one said.

The tall one nodded. "What?"

"Not one height joke"

Ruby bit her lip, barely containing her giggle. "Sure, yeah. Okay"

[lunarifie]

Rewatching Ninjago

(With no context other than the episode)

Hands of Time 3-4

Jay: (wearing the snake samurai helmet)

Nya: It doesnt do anything?

Jay: Other than make me look cool ;)

Everyone:…

Jay: What! Ik how to accessorize 😒

OH OH OH IK WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE PERSON WHO MADE THE HELMET

ITS KAIS PARENTS

I REMEMBER THIS I REMEMBER THIS

Wus so old 😭

ZANE. HES STILL UNCONCIOUS?!?!?

Yes kai. Go ask Dr Saunder for help. Youll totally not find exactly what your looking for…..

Okay… so Krux BRED snakes and made a new species of serpentine????

Thats… something.

The funniest thing is Wu just randomly falling asleep when hes halfway giving wisdom/advice

Wus doing this on purpose istg 💀

I remember it being this exact season where I started to legitimately like Kai as a character

AAAAA ITS LITTLE KAI

HE HAD FRECKLESSS AHDHSHFBSH

Im never getting over this

I love little kid Kai so much I NEED to hold him.

Im never shutting up about this

Lmaoooo the time brothers put Kai at undeserving high standards 😭

Like no. He didnt figure out your plan. Hes just here for advice.

Cole: Acronix! But I thought- I thought he got finished off!

No. He didnt.

You guys didnt think for one MINUTE that he mightve escaped and were very willing to believe he just died then and there.

Nya, Jay, and Cole (after watching Zanes memory footage and seeing Dr Saunders and Acronix): DR SAUNDERS?!?!?!?

Jay: Oooooh I always knew there was something snakey about that guy!

Nya: No there wasnt! Dr Saunders was such a kind old man. Remember all those school field trips to the museum?

I forgot they were teachers once.

Jay: EXACTLY! And how boring were those!

Cole (quietly and shyly): I kinda liked them…

Im being fed so much mudshock content rn that its honestly shocking (no pun intended)

Kais so oblivious😭

At least the mudshock team is gonna save him

YES PIXAL WAKE ZANE UP!!!!

☹️ she wasnt able to

Kai (refusing to leave because he might find some interesting info but completely unaware of everything around him) But you never know what will open a door to secret information…

Kai: (sits on a chair and opens a secret passageway and doesnt notice AT ALL)

Kai (suddenly becomes intelligent and cracks a piece of the puzzle): The helmet is just like the time brothers! That means Krux must still be around somewhere!

Krux/Dr Saunders: Thats ridiculous! I told you- (mustache rips and falls off)

Kai:

Okay but Kai can actually be legitimately smart when he wants to be.

BROOOOOOO

KAIS COOL AS HELL

FUCK YEAH

Jay: Wish we had the others to help us fight these snake samurais.

Cole: Well, say hello to our newest members! (Uses lava punch hands)

Cole (looking at his fists): Lefty! And righty!

Cole (does the punch thing wrong and has both him and Jay fall back from the force): Woah! My bad!

Jay (addressing Coles fists): Lefty, Righty. Nice to meet you!

Jay: Also, DO BETTER.

HFJSNFBBSNFBR 💀💀💀

Theyre so goofy I love them

Okay but how does Coles magic hands actually work.

Im a huge fan of their Hands of Time ninja suits. I genuinely love how detailed every ninjas suit design is.

I dont like this ☹️

Kaaaaiiii

Hes sounds so distressed

I promise you Kai your parents helped the time brothers against their will

This is actually reminding me of The Tournament of Elements.

Why is Kai so easily manipulated.

That doesnt mean hes not smart tho.

Props to the writers tho, theyre very consistent with his character.

Kai: (about to get time punched)

Nya: (water surges Acronix)

Nya: awww gee, what a mess! And to think we just cleaned up the museum.

I love her so much

Im used to Kai calling Nya ‘sis’ but I physically recoiled when she said “back at ya BRO.”

HELL YEAH SIBLING FIGHT

THE WATER AND FIRE SIBLINGS AGAINST THE TIME BROTHERS

Kinda sucks to be in love with your brothers wife :/

This is directed at Wu btw

I kinda liked that scene, it showed that Wu doesnt know everything. That hes just as scared as the ninja sometimes.

ZANES BACK BABY!!!!!!!!

Aaand hes talking gibberish

Pixals so pissed at Nya that she can’t figure out whats wrong with Zane 😭

Nya: Maybe what you need issss…

Pixal: Please dont say a new binary cord….

Nya: A new binary cord!!!!

Pixal: NO.

WU.

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME

THIS IS WHY YOUR DYING.

BECAUSE YOU DONT TELL THE NINJA SHIT

Misako: Tell them, they might be able to help.

SEE, EVEN MISAKO KNOWS WHATS UP

Jay and Cole: (trying to figure out why the time brothers are taking citizens)

Kai: (trying to figure out how to kill his dad)

??????

WHAT?

KAI TELL THEM WHATS WRONG

Cole: Did acronix do something to you?

Kai: More like what he said…

Kai: Dont worry about it, im fine.

Cole: Good! Cause its time to start-

HFNSJNFNSJGBE

That was the most least convincing ‘im fine’ ever and Cole just straight up shrugged and took it

Cole: Its time to start fighting!

Kai (seriously): So your saying we should kidnap one of those snake warriors for Wu to interrogate?

Cole:… well, I just wanna fight something- but sure!

Imagine if your little sibling was given legit authority and power over you as a ‘master’

This is about Lloyd being given temporary power over the ninja

Theyre acting so weird about it too 😭 which is hilarious bc i would act the same way

The ninja are like: are you being fr right now 🤨

Cole: Okay! temporary master lloyd in training, we mere ninja await your answers 😌

Okay but WHY are the time brothers vermillion warriors stealing all the metal?????

Dareth: SOMEONE STOLE MY TROPHIES!!!!!!!

Ronin: I HAVE AN ALIBI-

Ronin: wait.

Ronin: Why would anyone steal your fake trophies?

Dareth: I know!!! They were irreplaceable. Thats why im here to buy replacements :)

Ronin: …

Ronin: You want world championships this time or just intercontinental?

They’re genuinely so cute 😭

My new fav ship dynamic might be incompetent x too competent

Jay looks so punchable right now. Hes always punchable but like, his punchable meter is flying off the charts right now.

Jay: (slurping extremely loudly)

Cole: What are you doing!?!?

Jay: Im bored so im messing with Lloyd 😌

Kai: Yeah, well, now hes gonna start his plan all over-

Ronin: Sorry to interrupt what looks to be the most boring party game ever but the cities being attacked!

The ninja: YES!!!!

Lloyds actually making sense. They should listen to him…

Lloyd: Im ordering you to stay!

Kai: And we’re ignoring that order.

Be nicer to him :((((

My favorite reoccurring battle move is probably Pixal rerouting all of Zanes eletrical surges to his chest so he can electrocute his opponents

The time brothers getting lost in the tunnels leading to their own lair is so funny to me 😭

Ronin knowing EXACTLY what to say to get Dareth to fight is great

Hot strong vermillion warrior woman my beloved 😍

Lloyd: You heard Master Wu, he wished I was there for him when he fought Acronix. I wont disappoint him again.

Wu: You did not disappoint me Lloyd…

Wu: When I said I wished you were there, I was speaking you- the team. If I had brought you all, maybe things would have been different.

AWWWWWWWWWWW

See, this is what they need to do. They need to reassure Lloyd bc just LOOK at everything he’s shouldering.

Misako: Can I tell you a secret? Wu makes mistakes, a lot of them.

Yeah. No shit.

Wu, I get that you want Lloyd to learn to make his own decisions but my guy, NOWS NOT THE TIME. Maybe, idk casually have him ease into independency. BUT RIGHT NOW THEY NEED SOME SORT OF ADVICE OR HELP. LITERALLY, ANYTHING.

Zane (still speaking gibberish): The treadmill was invented in 1818!

…. Im googling that.

HFJSBFJSJR 💀💀💀

HES RIGHT.

Is Zane gonna be either offline, rebooting, or speaking gibberish most of this season-

Give my boy his character back. Show him cooking, being intelligent or just enjoying his life. Anything.

Nya: ZANE WE NEED YOU!!!!!

Zane: HOG KNOCK!!!

… did they really just…

I CANNOT believe they used up Zanes electricity, making him unconscious again. WHEN JAY IS RIGHT THERE.

Not to mention. After Zane passed out, they asked Jay for help. WHY DIDNT YOU DO THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

Oh thank god Zanes FINALLY back fr now.

Zane: What have I missed?

Jay: Oh nothing much! Just missing people and snakes trying to steal your metal skin :D

Stop. No. Wheres Pixal. Why isnt she in his head. WHY IS THERE ALWAYS SOMETHING WRONG WITH HIS MECHANICAL BODY.

ED AND EDNAS METAL SCRAPYARD

Everyones going to save the people at the amusement park and Jays gonna be there all alone

Damn. Why cant villains leave Jays parents alone FOR ONE MINUTE.

Its as if other scrapyards don’t exist

[crazylil-lion]

Something that bothers me about getting diagnosed with bpd is how everyone leaves.

So many people post toxic ill-informed options about people with bpd without ever taking a second to understand.

They call us demons, evil, manipulators when statistically we are MORE likely to be manipulated and gaslit because of our emotions and never having a sense of self.

The shame and guilt we feel is CRUSHING for every action we do and people use that to break us down into taking their emotional and mental abuse because we feel either we deserve it or we idolize our partner and are unable to see the problems.

Because our emotions can flip in seconds multiple times a day people call us dramatic. They don't understand why we ask if they hate us or if we are awful multiple times because they don't know what its like to have these intense mood swings and the guilt and abandonment issues that PHYSICALLY hurt.

So we are seen as manipulative because of emotions they don't understand. Yes some people can act out on their rage if they aren't constantly aware of their emotions.

Just because we break down and cry over something you consider meaningless doesn't mean our emotions aren't valid. Doesn't mean we are just overreacting we are in actual distress. We genuinely feel that extreme of an emotion and when people start slapping labels such as overreacting and being childish or too emotional or even manipulative because of those emotions it makes everyone 100x worse.

When you invalidate someone with bpd you make us feel broken. Personally the shame and guilt after splitting even if I internalize it and don't act out towards anyone is so strong all I want to do is self harm. I feel I deserve it because of these intense emotions I know I shouldn't feel over something small.

The truth is we get gaslit so easily because we have no emotional permanence. So we feel one feeling say extremely depressed thats all it is thats all its ever been then within seconds multiple times a day we switch to a new feeling or just out right numb.

I just wish people realized we aren't a demon we are struggling daily with this mental illness that is literally a huge part of your life no matter the therapy and medication yes they help sooooo much by helping you recognize triggers and helping talk yourself through the emotions to handle your episodes but we still feel them. Its logically arguing against something illogical as emotions constantly.

Questioning who you are because most have no sense of self or a personality

We pick up pieces from people that are close we mirror those around us because personally I genuinely don't know a thing.

Everything is empty and pointless

But if my partner enjoys something I normally see their prospective and blend with their personality and enjoy it too.

Yes I have a few likes. Xbox femdom and romantic movies. Thats it I literally don't give a shit about anything else. Idk what I like myself to look like because I don't even feel connected to my body 90% of the time.

I feel so fucking unlovable all because people avoid you if you have bpd like you are a demon set on destroying the world.

There are plenty of people that do it without a personality disorder its extremely fucked up and albeist to group us all into this category of evil when everyone is different.

[sarah-dipitous]

Hellsite Nostalgia Tour 2023 Day 157

The Girl with the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo/The Doctor’s Wife

“The Girl with the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo”

Plot Description: an unsuspecting but hip hacker is hired by Dick Roman to break through Frank’s firewall and gain information in the Winchesters

Would I Survive the First Five Minutes??: No one died

Oh. The Leviathans are doing a “fun” little eugenics project before before just turning humans into breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Well, I guess Frank IS dead. Sorry Frank.

Awww I love Charlie 💖 she and I have similar looking work desk

Dick’s EXTREMELY THINLY veiled metaphors…they’re not even metaphors. He’s explicitly saying his plans, they just sound like hyperbole

Ooooo Bobby is gonna turn vengeful but I don’t think it’s gonna be Dick

Damn near choked on my lunch when Dick told Charlie’s boss that she was in the same league as Bruce Springsteen and Eli Manning as irreplaceable people…where he is absolutely replaceable like Tim Tebow…and Joe Biden. Just DYING here

I’m trying to get a better look at Charlie’s apartment decor…just looks cool. They’re making plans to break into Dick’s office

Dammit Bobby…DAMMIT BOBBY. You can’t just hitch a ride in Charlie’s bag via flask

I know it was fine and culturally relevant at the time this came out to reference [fandom redacted], but it does sour my mood

I can’t believe the writers pretended that even just the description of Charlie’s tattoo isn’t at all sexy…

The WAY Dean is so very good at walking Charlie through flirting with men

You know that vague sense of unease you get at the end of Blink because you have no idea which statues all over the place could be Weeping Angels? I’m getting that way with every background extra for Leviathans, and like…much more than I had with any demons

Oh. Except the background extras from the private airport were actually………Sam and Dean

No, Bobby. Stay focused.

God he’s so creepy. Which is good for a billionaire who’s also a biblical monster but damn. It does seem like a fun role to get to play

Don’t put what to do about Bobby on the back burner guyssssss

“The Doctor’s Wife”

Plot Description: The Doctor is lured to a sentient asteroid outside of the Universe by a Time Lord distress signal and soon realises his TARDIS is in grave danger.

I just…why would he trust that the distress call ACTUALLY can’t from “one of the good” Time Lords??

And that’s what you get for buying that lie

OMG I FORGOT NEIL WROTE THIS ONE!!! Mr Gaiman, I’m sorry for being incredulous, but god I hope he doesn’t ever see this

“Biting’s excellent! It’s like kissing only there’s a winner.” Did he write this from/for present day tumblr??

Like…I KNOW what “the little boxes will make you angry” means but it’s another thing to HEAR all those Time Lords that got lured there

Michael Sheen as House is just…..he HAS THE RANGE, DARLING

Omggggg his sad little “don’t we all?” when Amy tells him he wants to be forgiven for what he did to Gallifrey 😭😭😭

That’s not good…

I do have a much different reaction to the reveal of how House repairs Uncle and Auntie than I probably did when I first saw this episode. I’ll hold off on whether it’s at all their fault too til later

Not saying that the Doctor isn’t right to be angry at the situation, but can Uncle and Auntie REALLY be blames?

Oh, Idris/the TARDIS is such a Gaiman character (affectionate, absolutely affectionate) from my experience with his work

Oh noooo, House just abducted Amy and Rory. That…is gonna be the worst mistake it made

OMG 💀 Uncle and Auntie are literally just like

The TARDIS calls Amy the orange girl. Cute

Wait, is…is this the one where Amy and Rory have to face all sorts of horrors in the TARDIS??

BOLD of the Doctor to look at the TARDIS junkyard and not think at all about how HIS TARDIS will feel about piecing together a new TARDIS out of parts of old ones after his reaction to the repairs on Uncle and Auntie…..just sayin

Oh. It is…I think.

She always took him where he needed to go ❤️❤️

Nooooooo. There it is, Amy and Rory got separated…again and again. I hate the pain they go through in this one. She’s done nothing wrong but he’ll yell at her because she’s made him wait again after already waiting 2000 years

Like…did he think he could JUST BUILD a TARDIS without putting the soul of a TARDIS in it??

Look. I know House is messing with them and all, but if I found out there was ANY possibility that I could believe the person I was with could loathe me so much that they’d write “KILL [NAME] DIE [NAME] HATE [NAME]” over and over and over all over the corridor where they died??? I don’t think I could so easily and so quickly run into their arms even when I found out that was an illusion. Yeah, I’d still go with them, but…..

I’m also having a different reaction to the whole the name of the TARDIS thing…

Oh it’s nice to see Nine/Ten’s control room again, at least i think that’s what it was. Feels so long ago now

“She’s the TARDIS?!” “And a woman” “did you wish really hard?” “Shut up, not like that”

There are some REALLY good lines. Great job, Neil!!“Fear me, I’ve killed hundreds of Time Lords” “Fear me, I killed them all”

She just wanted to tell him hello. She stole him away from Gallifrey seven hundred years ago and only got to say hello this once after all that time

[moonchild-things]

Chapter Eleven: Rain Check

Summary: Delphia Odinsdottir is the Goddess of Virtue. While stopping petty fights between her brothers, sparing with her friends, and practicing with her mother, Delphia has visions of the future. However, her once boring, uneventful life as Princess is disrupted by one of the most disturbing visions she had ever seen. Which leads her to run into a patriotic captain in red, white and blue.

Word Count: 3835 

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Yay! An update! I actually got this chapter done and the next few within a short amount of time, which means more Delphia content ^-^ This poor poor woman, we all know what's coming, I almost felt bad having to write it. But it's gotta happen :( anyway, I hope ya'll like it!

---

EVERYONE GATHERED AROUND THE MAIN TABLE IN the underground bunkers. Plans had to be made about what to do going forward. Now that they had captured Zola, a larger move could be made against HYDRA. Add in the fact that Schmidt would probably also make a big move now that his lead scientist had been taken. 

“Johann Schmidt belongs in a bug house.” Colonel Phillips said, “He thinks he’s a God. He’s willing to blow up half the world to prove it, starting with the USA.”

“Schmidt’s working with powers beyond our capabilities.” Howard informed, “He gets across the Atlantic, he will wipe out the entire eastern seaboard in an hour.” 

Everyone swallowed thickly at the reminder of that. The tense atmosphere was near suffocating everyone in the room. The Howling Commandos, Peggy, Delphia, Howard, and a few other high ranking officers were sitting at the table. Other officers watched the brief from behind them, holding their breath at every piece of information that was being talked over.

“How much time we got?” Gabe Jones, a member of the Howling Commandos asked.

“According to my new best friend, under twenty four hours.” Colonel Phillips grunted.

Another member of the Commandos, Jaques Dernier then asked, “Where is he now?”

Phillips held up a photo, “Hydra’s last base is here. In the Alps. Five hundred feet below the surface.”

“So, what are we supposed to do?” Jim Morta, a third member of the howling commandos, asked, “I mean, it’s not like we can just knock on the front door.”

“Why not?” Steve asked, bringing the attention to him. From the way that his jaw was clenched and a determined expression was on his face, everyone could tell that he was ready to do anything to defeat Schmidt. With his hardened stare he said, ”That’s exactly what we’re gonna do.”

From his expression and tough tone in his voice, Delphia knew that there was going to be no way to get Steve to change his mind. Delphia wasn’t sure how things were going to go, but she was both anxious and ready to follow him in this battle.

As if Delphia was going to allow herself to be benched during this. It really was the last chance that the SSR most likely had to stop Schmidt. She would be a fool if she didn’t try to get herself involved in it. After all, she has a year worth of vengeance brewing within her that has to be served to the Red Skull. Delphia would usually scold her brothers not to be blinded by something like revenge, but she can’t help herself.

After being subjected to the torture that Schmidt had put her through, killing one of her frist Midgardian friends, and causing so much distress during this war, Delphia felt justified in her pursuit. The only thing was, she had to convince those around her to allow her to go. The most difficult person to convince would most likely be Steve.

So as everyone started to get their battle plans together, she made quick work to approach Phillips. “Colonel,” she started with a strong conviction in her tone.

The man looked up from his paperwork before handing it to someone else, “yes, Ms. Delphia.”

“I would like to help.” It wasn’t a question of whether she was helping or not. She made up her mind and that means she’s going to join them on their venture.

Phillips already knew what that meant and clicked his tongue at her with a critical eye, “I sure hope that you don’t mean to help us on the front lines.”

She tilted her head slightly, “That is exactly what I mean.”

He sighed heavily, “I understand that you want to join in on fighting these HYDRA bastards, but I’m not sure if I can allow you to come with.”

Having him already denying her claim to go with them caused her to purse her lips. This wasn’t something simple like running paperwork back and forth around the bunker like a messenger, she knew that. She also was far too aware of the fact that women were not on the front lines in this war, which she didn’t completely understand, and understood the standards. However, this was by far something different. This involved her torturer and an artifact from her own home. She would not allow herself to sit on the sidelines now of all times! “Have I not proven myself as an admirable fighter? I helped Steve retrieve the captured men of the 107th, I helped train your men in fighting techniques-”

“This is different.”

Delphia’s eyebrows twitched, “you will need all the soldiers you can get to fight this.”

“Are you a soldier?” He asked her simply.

“At times,” her answer just earned her a disbelieving scoff from Phillips. “Either way, I believe I know Schmidt more than any of your men. I can help on the ground any way they need.”

Phillips stared at her for a long moment, taking in her determined stature. “Don’t make this something I regret.” The last thing he wanted was for a young woman to get hurt on the front lines. However, she’s too stubborn to just let this go. He knows for a fact that if she would find a way to the battlefield behind his back. As she has done that previously. It was better to make sure that she was safe within their view than going behind their back to join. Even if she was a bit of a charity case in Phillips' eyes, he wouldn’t want to see her get caught up in this in the wrong way.

As he walked away, Delphia felt herself smile triumphantly. It surprisingly was much easier to talk her way into getting involved in this than she originally thought. She figured she would have to plead her case more to him about joining. Perhaps she had proven herself to him to an extent, or he just knew that she was going to join regardless of what he said. Either way, Delphia was more than happy.

“You’re coming on the mission?”

Delphia spun around at the sudden voice. It was Steve who stared at her with increasing worry growing on his face. She nodded, “Yes. Colonel Phillips agreed with my proposal.”

“Proposal?” He chuckled lightly, “I feel like it was more of a demand than anything.”

She just shrugged her shoulders bashfully, “Well, I suppose that I was going to join no matter what…”

Steve shook his head as a serious expression consumed his face. “Delphia, I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“I will stay safe,” She stated plainly, “I have done well enough to do that so far.”

He just shook his head in denial, “You weren’t on the field like this, Delphia. 

“I am not a fragile little girl, like you might think.”

“Delphia. I don’t think that you’re fragile.” Steve quickly explained. By no means did he think she was fragile, at least not in the sense that she might be thinking. She’s fragile to him in the way that she was precious to him. So of course he wouldn’t want to have her in any sort of danger. There was a short silence between them as Steve took a moment to build up the courage to say what he wanted. He placed a hand on her cheek, caressing it tenderly. The two stared into each other’s eyes, bright blue clashing with warm hazel. He made sure to portray the raw emotion that he was feeling in this moment to her through just his gaze. “I care for you. The last thing I want is to see you hurt.”

As much as she loved the sentiment from him of keeping her safe, Delphia had heard enough of it. She blinked slowly, “Even when I am away from the prying eyes of my family, I still am controlled. I would not argue with you, if I did not know what I was doing. However, with something like this. I’m not sitting by. I want to fight. I want to fight with you. You will not change my mind.” Ever since she had started to get her visions she had been constantly surveyed no matter what she did. In her home, on her trips(which were minimal), or even while she was in her own chambers. Just to make sure that she wasn’t in any sort of danger at all. Midgard wasn’t completely different, however, she appreciated it to an extent. This was a land that she did not know all too well, so she appreciated being monitored and kept safe. However, something like this was going to be different. Those around her might not like it but there was no changing her mind.

Steve shook his head at the determined expression on her face. He just knew that she wasn’t going to change her mind. Through the way that she was quite headstrong about something like fighting alongside them was something that Steve found quite… attractive. He couldn’t help himself but chuckle, “You’re quite the stubborn woman.”

“You would not have me any other way,” Delphia said, almost playfully despite her serious tone.

“That’s true.”

It was as if a spark was lit just in that moment. With the combination of the largest battle that they’ve had just on the horizon and their relationship developing into something more intimate, the moment seemed right. So the two leaned in slowly before their lips met. The kiss between them was soft and almost awkward, but perfect for them. Steve was slightly clumsy with how he pressed up against her as Delphia was unsure where to put her hands. However, it was still sweet in their eyes. Maybe it wasn’t the right moment for it to happen, as both of them would rather have this romantic moment without the impending fight looming over them. Though it was still wonderful. 

It’s been quite some time since Delphia had her last kiss, but this felt so much different from the ones in the past. Her brothers had scared off most suitors of hers when they were younger, and even now, so the secretive kisses she had gotten in were long ago and nothing too special. Though with Steve… It just felt so explosive, so right to her in that moment.

As they slowly pulled back from each other, neither knew what to say after such a mind numbing kiss. Truthfully, nothing else had to be said. They had explained all of their feelings in that kiss. After all, what else could they say to express their feelings at this moment. So this amazing moment allowed the two to bask in their peacefulness. The calm before the storm, and how splendid that was.

“You ready?” Peggy asked her friend as she primed her weapon.

“For a good fight?” Delphia asked as she smirked, “Always.” She also was given a weapon, as they couldn’t have her unarmed. A small pistol was given to her. Delphia isn’t one for guns or weapons in general, usually relying on her magic when on the battlefield. However, it wasn’t like she could use that here. Last thing she needs is people questioning her abilities.

Delphia waited alongside Phillips and Peggy as they watched from the treeline. Their plan was quite simple and most likely extremely effective. Using Steve as bait to get into the facility, taking out as many men as he could and creating an entry point for the forces outside was impressive. Of course, Steve seemed to make it as flashy as he could. Then again he couldn’t not be flashy in his Captain America attire.

“For a good fight?” Delphia asked as she smirked, “Always.”

The radio that Colonel Phillips had crackled to life, “We’re in, assault team go!”

Phillips nodded his head, “Move out!”

Finally the signal came, and everyone on the outside was ready to fight their way inward. The SSR soldiers all swarmed the base. They fired their guns against the HYDRA agents who retaliated with their own tesseract powered weapons. There were men who were falling on both sides.

“Cut off one head, two more shall…” The soldier started to say but was cut off when Phillips shot him.

“Let’s go find two more!” Phillips shouted out as they ran in. So all the men scattered around the base, finding HYDRA men and killing them. Storming the base seemed somewhat easy as their enemy was not expecting such a harsh ambush.

Just as she was rounding a corner with Peggy and the group of men she entered with, Delphia saw a line of actual fire being shot at Steve. Though Peggy made quick work of dealing with that soldier as she just gunned him down.

Steve blinked and turned to find the group “You’re late.”

“Maybe you were early.” Delphia shrugged before pointing towards the shield wedged in the doorway. “I believe you have to…”

Steve nodded his head, “Right.” He then took off after Schmidt with his impressive speed.

They all came running into the main hangar area. Chaos was everywhere, no matter where Delphia looked. Shots were being fired, bodies were disintegrated, and men were shouting. She knew that her brothers would just love to see such a battle. Well, more of Thor, he was always the more violent and battle-centric brother. 

“Delphia!” Peggy’s sudden voice called out drawing her attention. She turned to find that Peggy was in one of Schmidts cars, Phillips at the wheel, “In here!”

She made quick work of jumping into the vehicle next to Peggy in the backseat. The car then peeled away as soon as she set foot in the vehicle. They drove out towards the hangar to see a large aircraft trying to take off. Also in front of them was their very own Captain America.

Phillips pulled the car up right next to him, “Get in!”

So he jumped into the front passenger seat hastily. The car sped quickly across the hangar to try and catch up with the plane. Phillips then pushed a nitro button of the car, increasing the speed significantly. They then came close enough to the large wheel of the plane thanks to that speed boost. Steve stood up, ready to try his best to get onto that plane at any cost.

“Steven!” Delphia called out above the sound of the wind and engines around them. He turned to her quickly as she pulled him down, and planted a brief kiss on lips. Had he been in a less intense situation, that might have short circuited his mind. Though despite how amazing it might have felt for even the briefest of kisses with her, he had a duty. In his daze he glanced over at Phillips and Peggy. The colonel looked slightly uncomfortable while Peggy appeared smug, as if she had just won a bet.

“I’m not kissin’ you!” Phillips yelled over the wind.

Peggy flashed him a smile, “Good luck!”

With one last lingering look between Delphia and Steve, Captain America climbed his way onto the hood of the car. From there, he jumped just at the last second to grab onto the wheel of the plane. The final battle between him and Schmidt was about to happen, and he was going to make sure that this ended here and now.

As Steve climbed away. Delphia saw the end of the tarmac coming worryingly fast. So Delphia thought quickly. While she had thought she wouldn’t do this while on Midgard, the circumstances called for it. She conjured her seiðr to save the car before it flew off the edge and into the abyss below. She whipped around and allowed white tendrils of brightly white magic come out of her hands that made quick work of digging into the ground behind the car. It effectively slowed the car down and caused it to come to a skidding halt. It was barely just in time as the car nearly tattered off the edge of the cliff. A part of Delphia just hoped that neither Peggy or Phillips noticed her save. That was something that she did not want to have to explain. She told herself when she was first captured by Schmidt that she wouldn’t use her magic in fear that it would just fuel his manic personality and the experiments on her. 

Maybe they would chalk it up to a trick of the eye or their imagination acting up, perhaps. Though if either Phillips or Peggy actually noticed the tendrils that grabbed the ground to stop the car, they didn’t comment on it. That could have been due to the fact that their attention was aimed towards the plane as it flew away.

Delphia stared up and watched as the large plane started to fly away. She could barely spy Steve hanging onto the wheel as it was retracted back into the plane. So the end was starting to begin, and she couldn’t be happier about that.

“We’ve secured the base,” Peggy started to inform as she joined Delphia in the communications room along with Jim Morta. “Most HYDRA soldiers are either dead or surrendered and we’ve started looking over what other weapons that they have.” Delphia didn’t even seem to react much to Peggy’s words as she nodded her head absentmindedly. Her thoughts were obviously focused on other matters. Just by looking at the expression on Delphia’s face, Peggy knew how anxious she was. Though she couldn't say that she also wasn’t nervous about Steve. “He’s a strong man, he’ll come back.”

“I hope,” Delphia said through a shaky breath. A thoughtful expression was on her face for just a moment. She was contemplating on her next few words, but before she could filter herself correctly she just started speaking. “Even during my childhood when I joined my brothers in fighting, I never had the dread of losing someone in battle.” It was true. She knew that her brothers and friends were resilient enough to fight and were quite durable to many different things. However, Midgardians are far more fragile than them. The smallest of things could cause a Midgardian to die. She sighed heavily, “Perhaps that was the blissful ignorance of a young woman not knowing the true consequences of war. This… It fills me with dread.”

To be honest, Peggy didn’t completely know what Delphia was talking about. She had been in battle before? While Peggy would say that she also has while being a field agent, she didn’t think that Delphia was the type of woman to do so. Though some would say the same for her. Even still, childhood? That seemed far-fetched. However, even then she understood the idea of having to come to terms with having to come to terms with the thought of losing people. Peggy had to accept it after brother had passed due to fighting in the war. He was a wonderful man, an amazing brother, brave soldier, and a death that Peggy never knew she would have to experience.

Delphia paced back and forth with Peggy watching her. The two were anxious about Steve’s whereabouts, with Delphia starting to panic only slightly. She had seen in her vision what more or less happened on that plane. Schmidt would be consumed by the tesseract and disappear, leaving Steve the victor. However, why was it taking too long? What had she not seen the other night in her vision?

As she was growing more and more upset, the radio started to spark to life as a voice came through the static. “Come in. This is Captain Rogers. Do you read me?”

“Captain Rogers,” Jim, who was sitting at the radio controls, let out a sigh of relief, “what is your…” 

At the sound of his voice, Delphia rushed over to the microphone and took the man’s spot. “Steven? Are you alright?”

“Delphia!” The tension in his voice disappeared, obviously happy to know that she was safe. “Schmidt’s dead.”

A smile crawled onto her face at that piece of news, “Thank the Norns. What about you? Are you hurt?”

“I’m okay, but the plane…” He trailed off anxiously, “I’m gonna have to put her in the water.”

It was as if a bucket of ice cold water had been poured over Delphia. A crash landing? Even if certain Midgardian technology still confused her to a certain extent, she knew that planes would not survive a crash where he was. Delphia shook her head, “We can find a safe place for you to land. Howard can help, I am sure of it.”

“There’s not enough time.” Steve denied, “This thing’s moving too fast and it’s heading for New York.” 

“Steven…” Her heart started to tighten as the outlook of this situation became more bleak. “There must be something we can do.”

“Right now I’m in the middle of nowhere.” He explained, “If I wait any longer a lot of people are gonna die. Delphia, this is my choice.” Even if he were in the plane, oh so far away from her, he knew that she had to be close to tears, just like he was. The last thing he wanted to do was to die during this war after just having met Delphia not too long ago and admitting their feelings. However, he has no choice. He pulled out the compass with the photo of her. He wanted her vibrant smile to be the last thing he saw. The joy that she brought to him with just a simple look needed to be what would keep him calm enough during this. He called out one last time, “Delphia?”

“Yes?”

“I’m gonna need a rain check on that dance.”

“Of course, you name a time, a place,” Delphia let out a weak, watery chuckle, “I will be there.”

“You got it. You know, I still don’t know how to dance.”

She couldn’t help but smile at the statement, “I can teach you. Even if I am not the best either.” 

“We’ll have the band play somethin’ slow.” Steve said, ignoring his impending doom in that moment, “I’d hate to step on your-'' The abrupt end to his words brought dread into Delphia’s stomach. It felt like a rock weighing her down as the reality was slowly bleeding into her mind.

“Steven?” Delphia called out into the static, “Steven? Please?” Peggy placed a comforting hand on a shell-shock Delphia’s shoulder. She could do nothing but begin to cry. The man that she loved had sacrificed himself for the greater good. How she wished that did not have to happen. She hated this, with all her spirit. She hates being on Midgard, it’s brought her nothing but heartache. All she can do now is hang on to Peggy as the two begin to cry at their loss. The loss of a great man. The loss of Captain America. The loss of the Midgardian man that Delphia loved.

---

AHH we're almost there! Only two more chapters to go! After this, technically the next installment in this little 'Revival Universe' of mine will be 'A Change of Heart' which is the Iron Man 1 fanfic that's already got one chapter up. After that I'm thinking of just doing Iron Man 2 straight after and then Thor! Honestly, I have such a big idea of what I want to try and write when it comes to Marvel and these ocs I've created. Is it a little over my head? Perhaps, but that isn't gonna stop me. I love writing!!! Anyway, until the next chapter, my friends!

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[mollytatlisu]

Instagram Research

Now having selected the love cycled trend I have decided to carry out some primary research in order to gain a better understanding of the values and methodology behind Care Culture and Love cycled, and to potentially gain ideas for the narrative, key shapes, colours and fabrics for this trend.

Using the knowledge that I gained through the week 1 lectures I know that fashion trends can be influenced by a variety of different things; so I decided to carry out some primary research using the question feature on instagram. I asked my followers “What do you think are the most significant past/current events in our society/the rest of the world?” I chose to ask this question firstly because its broad, meaning my followers couldn’t know why I was asking and therefore wouldn’t try and link their responses directly to fashion, and secondly because one of the two STEPIC pillars relevant to this trend is “society”. Using this question means I can try and identify patterns or changes in previous events to current ones, and what those differences could potentially mean for future fashion. I can also identify the things people are most concerned about and therefore are more likely to be reflected in future trends.

As you can see most of the responses here relate to the mistreatment of people or the environment; which suggests to me that as peoples concerns are growing people will become more conscious of the descions they make; with people and the environment being considered more carefully within future fashion. As well as this the Care Culture Introduction states “The pandemic and the climate crisis have brought the importance of care into sharp focus”, combined with this research I think it’s safe to say that prioritising people and the environment in this trend is crucial; and means sustainability will be at its heart. Initially I think this could translate into using materials that aren’t harmful to the environment, and production processes that don’t put anyone at risk.

Moving forward I want to do some further research on the response “the climate change crisis” firstly because it’s one of the worst threats to our environment currently as explained in (unknown 2022) and the love cycled trend particularly “celebrates nature in its full form” as stated in the concept section for this trend, further emphasising the need for the environment to be carefully considered. I asked a group of people if they thought this generation would act differently to those previous because of the severe need for change, and what those changes could be, the responses are as follows:

“Because of the increased spread of information about climate change, our generation has started to be much more conscious of our carbon footprints: where we buy things from, how much we consume, etc.. second hand shops and apps like depop or vinted have increased in popularity as a result.”

“i think this generation is more inclined to change our behaviour because we’ve seen the detriment that’s been caused by older generations in real time and all around us. I think that behaviours such as thrifting will become more popular because of the climate and the economy to be honest.”

‘’I would hope this generation are more inclined to change their behaviours but I think there’s a huge lack of knowledge and options currently.”

The general consensus shown throughout these responses is that lots of people will begin to get their clothing second hand and a decreasing amount of people will buy their clothes from first hand retailers such as new look. I think this is already being proved as huge fashion retailers such as PrettyLittleThing and ASOS have both introduced marketplaces where you can get second hand pieces, so it’s inevitable other brands will eventually follow. Initially my thoughts are that this could result in a popularity for distressed looks; as clothes naturally become worn out overtime.