#i want him to heal and grow a big sunflower garden

[wereh0gz]

I've seen people play around with the idea of Mecha succeeding in swapping bodies with Sonic (which honestly probably won't happen bc there's only one issue left and if it does it won't last long but it's still a cool au idea) and that got me thinking.

What if Mecha's doing what he's doing not just to get rid of Sonic, like his directives dictate, but to free himself? Free himself from his original purpose, from the rigidness of a robotic, programmed mind, and perhaps to replace his old, rusting and mismatched body with a healthy organic one in the process? What if he's planning to swap bodies with Sonic because he envies the freedom he has, envies the ability to think freely without something screaming at him in the back of his mind, telling him he's nothing more than trash because he can't fulfill his original purpose given to him by someone who no longer cares for him?

He was able to resist his programming for a bit, before having that breakdown that lead him to giving in. He may want freedom more than anything, but whatever semblance of free will or soul he has is warped, and his own desires ultimately circle back to following his directives. It's a horrifying existence, and he'll do anything to escape it, even if it means giving in to the very thing he was fighting against.

[mossnrocksnbogwater]

okay not bashing sunflower but,,, i don’t really understand it

i mean of course. alternate universe basil and sunny could be cute, ig. but in canon? as in after the canon events? i have a hard time even seeing them as friends! 

i mean,,, seeing each other would just be a constant reminder of past trauma (mari’s death, the Truth, the fact that Basil fucking took Sunny’s eye out with garden shears, etc etc,) and I think that would lead to a lot of tension and like,,, unhealthiness in a relationship

yes yes it’s fiction whatever it doesn’t have to be realistic-- but also its like. man basil doesn’t need a relationship he needs Help. Personally i ship with him going to a fucking mental hospital-- because i want him to process what he’s gone through and manage his unhealthy behaviors and maybe, perhaps, one day, reach out to his old friends. 

but d a t i n g? to me, it seems like it would only encourage Basil’s unhealthy codependence upon Sunny, especially after they trauma bonded and then Sunny went hikikomori for 4 years. Also, Sunny would probably also have like,,, many an issue, for previously mentioned reasons. I feel like it would stunt both of their abilities to grow and move on and heal. 

Personally, i think the only people Basil might be able to have a healthy consistent relationship with in the future are Kel and Hero-- and not romantically-- my reasoning is that Kel’s the one that reached out consistently and made sure that Basil was doing okay (even if Basil was not doing okay and Kel wasn’t able to do anything about that) and Hero wasn’t present at any of the Traumatizing incidents. And even then I think that Hero and Kel would have to process their own trauma before reaching out again. Just as they’d have to process Sunny’s actions in that situation. I don’t think Aubrey should talk to Basil much because hey uh. She was full on bullying him. She should apologize, yeah, but also like,,, how do you really recover from that? going from best friends to a bully and victim, to you fucking did w h a t with Mari’s body-- i think that their neuroses interact poorly. Maybe, with a lot of therapy on both parts? 

and of course this isn’t me saying no one can ship sunflower with good conscience-- sometimes you get attached to ships that would be unhealthy in a realistic setting, but its okay because alternate universe or Ignoring that stuff in favor of some cute flowery guys. 

personally, i’m a big fan of suntan and that whole dynamic, but that’s a whole nother rant

[arthurflecksgirl]

Hey, how is your day going so far? I hope it's splendid! Can I request an Arthur x reader where the reader is recovering from self harm and he is proud of them? You can choose it to be sfw or nsfw. Thanks in advance! :)

Hey Anon, Thank you for your ask. I 'm okay and I hope you are doing well,too?! I am soooo sorry this took me so long but I finally sat down today and wrote your request. I was thinking about that request since you first send it to me. It was a beautiful one but also a tough one. Itˋs a sensitive subject and I was struggeling with how I wanted to write it. I was afraid to write it in a way you wouldnt approve so I am a bit nervous posting this and I hope with all my heart that you will like the result. This request was close to my heart but a bit of a struggle until I finally sat down. I am sending love to anyone. Especially everyone who had to go through this or still does go through it.

Words: 1900

Trigger warning: Mentions of self harm

Arthur nervously chewed on his pencil ,while the blank page of his journal was staring at him like it expected something good to happen. More than one good thing happened in his life recently and he absolutely hated how difficult it was for him to put his emotions into words. Words worthy of how he truly felt about not being alone anymore. He felt like the emotion of it was a seed he didnt knew how to water properly ,to make it the flower that was a written page in his diary. One he would like to show to you , randomly in the middle of the night. To proof how he felt inside. Blooming.

He always felt like he wasnˋt good with words but so much better with showing his feelings off in a different way. A movement of his body when you were slow dancing across the bedroom, a piece of music hummed into your ear while he was pulling you closer, the touch of his thumb brushing your cheek before he leaned in to kiss you. Body language was his way to express what was growing deep inside of him. A love so immessurable, he was becoming a new man. And you were his garden he wanted to spent the rest of his life in. He wanted to build a cabin right in the middle of the gardens heart and plant roses and violets. Once he figured out how to water them and which flowers demend more sunlight or which ones prefered the shadows. He wanted to learn every aspect of your soul. Flower by flower. Petal by petal. To let his roots grow towards yours. Arthur touched the artificial flowers on his desk. They reminded him of who he used to be. Unreal and far from what he desired to be. No sunlight could have touched him  enough to let him grow.

Until there was you. His garden. He finally became what he was supposed to be. A sunflower. The flower of joy and happiness. But also the flower of the man who once drank yellow painting to commit suicide by putting happiness inside himself. At least that was the rumor Arthur heard on tv when he watched a documentary about Vincent Van Gogh. And he was quiet fascinated by it. Somehow the though was relateable to him. In a very abstact, sad, beautiful way.

„Last week“ he wrote , trying to draw a sunflower but it just didnt turned out the way he intented to. „She  finally felt comfortable enough to wear a short sleeve in front of me. I guess that means she really does feel save around me. Ah, it means the world!“  Arthur smiled to himself when he drew a tiney heart and filled it in. His heart was so full of you. Just thinking about the way you took off your comfort sweater for the first time to show him the scars of the past ,created a feeling in his heart he couldnˋt name. 

It has been a while since you let him know about your struggles with self harm. And Arthur could tell that it wasnˋt an easy thing to do. He would always remember the moment he first saw your naked arms. The pattern of hurt on your fragile skin. This moment of vulnerability and strengh. He wanted to kiss it. Arthur wanted to kiss along every single scar to show you how beautiful you were to him and how much he belived in the power of a gentle lip kissing where it hurts the most. But he didnˋt. Arthur wasnˋt sure if it was the right moment yet. He didnt wanted to do anything wrong. So he just sat there, thinking about placing kisses all over, while he picked his own eyebrow with his fingers.

„One day“ he wrote underneath the heart „I will kiss  her scars and she will feel what I felt when she was taking care of me“. Arthur put the pencil down and took a deep drag of his cigarette. Smoke filled his lungs but he wished it was your breath instead.

A familiar noise interrupted his daydream as he put the remains of the cig in his pink ashtray. „Hey darling, Iˋm home“. Your voice made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside. The way you called him darling was music in his ears. His favourite song he repeated in his head when he was at work or taking the bus. He sometimes hummed the words „Hey darling“ , as if it was a prayer. „Hey darling Iˋm home“. Home. That was never the word he would have used to  discribe the place he was living in. Never what he thought of when he felt the worn fabric of his couch underneath his naked skin or was lying in the bathtube, checking for how long he could handle to keep his head under water. This place with all itˋs heavyness wasnˋt home. But it transformed into a home eveytime you opened the door to wrap your arms around him. A genlte kiss upon his forehead. His noticlable frown  underneath your lips. Hey darling, Iˋm home. You are home, finally. We are. A home.

Arthur shifted his position ,so your lips immediately found their way to his forehead. „Forehead kisses“ he thought „Are her way to tell me how much she cares“. He closed his eyes for a moment. His dark lashes covering his piercing eyes like a curtain, to feel the moment with all itˋs gentleness. When Arthur opened his eyelids again he noticed something wrapped around your wrist. His heart stopped for a moment. The thought of you harming yorself again hit him so hard he forgot how to breathe. „Y/N…are you….okay? Oh my god…“ Arthurs index finger reached out for your wrist. He barely dared touching it. His tear filled eyes blurring his sight.

„Yeah, I am. How was your day, Arthur?“ you replied as you sat down on his lap to kiss the corner of his mouth. You noticed his lips trembling underneath your own. A tiney earthquake emerging from within. His day was okay while he was sittin on his desk thinking of all the beautiful things he could write to you. Until you came home with a hurt wrist. Now nothing remained okay. Seeing you hurt was worse than his own pain. Your wound was his wound. Arthur held your face between his hands, unable to responde with a kiss.

„Are you…. Are you hurt?“ he whispered, pointing at your bandage. He wanted to be here for you. Now more than ever. His mind was travelling back to the day you found him with a bleeding forehead after he hit his head against the wall. He recalled your hand resting on the spot that hurt so much and how it lead to the first forehead kiss he received in his life. Thatsˋs when he knew he wasnˋt all alone in this anymore. Thats when he knew that, yes there will be bad days , even together but he didnt had to face them on his own anymore. There was someone looking after him. Someone willing to ease the pain. To heal his wounds. Old or recent. He remembered how gently you held his hurting head, fingers brushing  back his hair to clean the wound. Heˋll never forget the first act of kindness and love from a loved one.

And now it was his turn to tell you itˋs going to be okay. His turn to take care of your wounds.

„No baby, Iˋm not hurt. Iˋve got a little suprise for you…“ Arthurˋs eyes glanced deeply into yours „A…. surprise? What do you mean?“

You lifted your arm smiling at him. Thats when he noticed your wrist wasnˋt bandaged but wrapped in some kinda foil. You slowly started to unwrap it, a big smile lingering on your face. „Darling, I hope you like it“.

Arthur couldnt belive his eyes. Were once was a scar six letters showed. Written on your wrist. Six letters so familar, he started sobbing.

„Oh Arthur….“ You touched his cheek „You like it?“

He covered his mouth with his right hand, mumbling.

„I thought about this  for a while now. Getting your name tattooed to cover my oldest scar“.

A single tear ran down his happy face „Thats…. Just…. Wow. I…. donˋt know what to say. Thatˋs my name. You got a tattoo of my name. „ Arthur couldnt stop staring at the letters. „Can I….touch it?“.

 You smiled „Not yet, itˋs still fresh and I need to put some cream on it.“

„Oh! Yeah…. Of course.“

Arthur tried to understand what was happpening right now. A minute ago he was afraid you hurt yourself again and now  he found himself looking at a tattoo that was his very own name. Part of you.

He felt your other hand touching his blushing cheek „I really wanted this to remind me of how beautiful things can happen after experiencing so much pain. There is this scar and itˋs still there but somehow it belongs to my past and it doesn´t define me. It never did. And now there is you. The light that came after the dark. The one who understands my scars and eases the pain by loving me for who I am. I love you, Arthur, I love you so much itˋs so demanding and beautiful and …..now youˋre always on my mind, in my heart and under my skin.“

Arthur gently lifted your hand, careful enough to not touch the tattoo. „I love you“ he whispered „Can I…. can I kiss your…“ goosebumps covered your skin as his upper lip found itˋs way to travel across your arm. Soft kisses, thoughtful and warm, scar after scar. You couldnt help but cry a little. Arthur froze „My god, Iˋm sorry I only wanted to…“

„Donˋt stop“ you whispered through the tears „Please….“

The light in Arthurs eyes came back when he realized it was happy tears running down your cheeks. Tears of relief and inner peace.

„Remember when you found me after….“

„I do, Arthur.“

„That was the first time I felt truly loved“ he breathed, while he continued kissing your skin.

„You found me at my worst. And loved me. Especially where it hurt the most“

You closed your eyes, concentrating on the softness of his lips. His presence was medicine. Calming and warm like a favourite sweater.

You remembered  very well. It was the day you knew that you would give the world to protect this man. The beautiful soul that Arthur was. You couldnt change his past but write his future. You and him together. Sitting in front of a blank page, where anything was possible.  Every yet unborn poem was demanding to be written. Every small moement of happiness. And when the pages get torn and some parts get blacked out, you would be here to put a sticker on it. Heart shaped. One thatˋs glowing in the dark. So when he openes his journal at night he couldnt see the scribbles and blacked out parts. Only the bandage that was love.

Just like the words written on your wrist.

Arthur.

 

„I wanna do the same for you“ he mumbled between the kisses „Loving you where it hurts the most…so...“ he lifted his face, looking at you „…where does it hurt?“

„Every inch untouched  by your loving hands“.

Only a heartbeat later Arthurs thumb gently brushed over your bottom lip as he whispered „Let me take care of that“.

[c-c-cherry]

OOH I GOT A GOOD REQUEST,,,, How about Jonathan’s reaction to each of the jojos, and their jobros?

*Jonathan looking down at his absolutely fucked family tree, a single tear running down his cheek*

Listen...I always say that *insert literally any character* is the best parental figure but it's Jonathan hours which legally means I can call Jonathan best dad in this post regardless of anything I’ve said in the past about any other best dads.

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Lemme just implement my soft Jonathan headcanons first: 

-Soft man. The king of manly tears. Tears down toxic masculinity like a fucking bulldozer

-Knits AND crochets. He never had a mother growing up so when Erina came in with all these lovely, traditionally feminine skills, he wanted to learn ALL OF IT

-Arguably gives the best hugs out of every Jojo (Josuke is a pretty close second, though)

-Since this post is just an impossible dimensional pocket where anything can happen, him and Erina live in one of those old grandma cottage-houses with a comfy, old couch and tacky curtains and a really cute little garden

-Again, if this is a pocket dimension he’s definitely hosting the Joestar family reunion there

-Just one of those houses where everyone feels comfortable

-Is impossible to piss off (except if you do anything to the people he loves)

-Always speaks in a very soft, understanding voice even when he’s mad/disappointed

-The father figure all the Jojos wish they had

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Part 2:

-You know that face you make when you watch someone you love do something insanely stupid but you’re still trying to keep positive because you know from experience that trying to stop them is futile?

-Just this constant, wincing smile?

-Yeah. That pretty much sums up Jonathan’s expression within any vicinity of Joseph Joestar

-He loves the man. He really does. But oh my god is he a dumbass

-Jonathan is the type of man to like,,,make bread and talk about his feelings but Joseph wants none of that shit and that’s ok,,,Jonathan can and will find another way to bond

-Regardless, he loves his Himbo grandson and the two of them end up talking about Erina and Speedwagon and a lil bit of Hamon too :3

-CAESAR on the other hand—Jonathan is so fucking happy to see a descendant of the Zeppeli’s continuing the whole Hamon thing and managing to be friends with Joseph

-Although Joseph never wants to talk about it outside of fighting, Jonathan and Caesar both share this tender love for the healing aspect of it :’)

-He teaches Caesar how to do stuff like grow/heal plants and flowers and Caesar ends up growing his own sunflowers in Jonathan’s backyard :)

-Smokey reminds him of Poco and he literally just wants to protect him with his whole heart hhhhhhhh

-Suzi Q also reminds him of Erina, but he still has no idea how she puts up with Joseph’s bullshit (and whenever she can’t decide what to wear, he always helps)

-He penalizes Lisa Lisa for being a fucking Hamon coach and also smoking cause like-

Part 3:

-Hgggghnn HEAR ME OUT but between him and Joseph, Jotaro arguably has more qualities of Jonathan including this wonderfully secret, sweet, sensitive side

-Jonathan grows flowers using Hamon and braids them into Star Plat’s hair (he has practice when doing it with Erina) :))))

-Joot claims to hate the bread that Jonathan bakes but if he DOES make it y’all know you’ll find him sitting there, eating it, and talking about his feelings like a good man should (but only if no one else is around)

-Arguably the only responsible father figure in his life and the only one who would scold him for literally going to jail

-Also apologizes profusely for not killing DIO the first time ;(

-Kakyoin is the kind of person you could just sit in silence with for hours doing shit like reading or painting or something and Father Jojo is loving the vibe

-YES JONATHAN WOULD HAVE A HOME GARDEN and every year he grows cherries for Kak >:)

-Pol is a bit extreme for him, but if he can handle Joseph then he can handle this man

-As rich, Victorian boys often did, he definitely studied french as a kid and can surprisingly hold a pretty good conversation

-Him and Avdol!!!! Feed his chickens together!! And engage in lovely, civil conversation :)))))

-Holy definitely inherited Jonathan and Erina’s sweet nature and she’s always down to compare knitting techniques with him :)

Part 4:

-Is it....is it safe to say that Jonathan just adopts all of Morioh?

-Ok but Josuke gets along with everybody (Rohan doesn’t count hgfjgh) so you already know he’d be up for some nice familial bonding (though he wouldn’t show it initially)

-I feel like he’d be hesitant at first because him and Joseph are already on weird terms and he doesn't wanna “intrude” on the Joestar family or anything like that

-But our man Jonathan is here to reassure him that he’s still a part of the family and his cute little grandma house door is always open for him when he needs it

-Jonathan would bake that bread and Josuke would be sittin’ on that couch pouring his heart out before that shit even comes out of the oven

-Josuke’s the biggest out of his friends so getting completely engulfed in a nice, warm, loving Jonathan hug is the best shit

-Like instant serotonin :)

-Crazy Diamond doesn’t have any hair so no stand braiding :( BuT Josuke will let his hair down sometimes and you already know master weaver Jonathan Joestar is braiding in some purple flowers and shit :)

-Okuyasu isn’t that smart academically, but our man has a big heart and that’s all Jonathan cares about

-Jonathan always makes soup for him whenever he’s down because Oku’s mama used to make him soup when he was sad too ;-;

-The two bond over losing a mother at a young age and never being close with their father and feeling unwanted growing up and its the sweetest shit

-Koichi would just,,,,stare in awe because between Jonathan, Joseph, and Jotaro he feels like a fucking ant (and is honestly kinda scared)

-The first time they meet, Jonathan tries to ruffle his hair and accidentally PUSHES THE BOY INTO THE CONCRETE and he feels so bad after, that he spends all night knitting him a new sweater

-He gives it to Koichi with apologetic tears in his eyes and Koichi fucking LOVES IT with all his heart

-Rohan is extremely intrigued by all of this shit and they two of them spend hours talking about Jonathan’s life

-Rohan ends up giving him a painting of Erina and now Jonathan sends him his favourite cookies on his birthday every year

-Also him and Tonio are real good buds and Tonio never yells at Jonathan for “eating impolitely” like George used to because he knows its just a sign that he loves his food :)

Part 5:

-What can I say? Both Jonathan and Giorno got a love for flowers and life, and that’s literally all they do together

-Like,,,their happiness is in one giant, contagious loop because when Jojo’s really happy, his Hamon will just make shit bloom everywhere and when Giogio is happy, his stand will go fucking bonkers and change shit into plants

-Ok but what if,,,they braided flowers into each other’s hair? :D

-Jonathan would bake the bread. Giorno would sit hesitantly on the couch. The moment this kid takes a bite with that GOOD jam he’s like “HAHA there goes my stoic front whoops-”

-Jonathan thought Giorno would get cold in the winter so he crocheted a heart the size of his tiddy window and gave it to him for Christmas

-As I said previously, him and Bruno would go fucking hard on tea parties and all that shit -Both are the obvious mom friend, it’s impossible for them not to get along

-Abba’s a little,,,iffy about him, but eventually grows on him the more Abbacchio actually starts warming up to Giorno (for whatever reason)

-Jonathan’s never really had to deal with teenagers that much (aside from when he was one himself,) so he really has no idea what the hell to do around Narancia and Mista because they’re so young and he feels like a fucking grandma around them

-But they’re always really sweet to him and ask if he wants to play COD but Jonathan has no idea why they could wanna play with a fish so he just smiles and laughs and hopes its a joke :’)

-When Trish wants her nails done, best jonadad is here to do it. She wants her hair done? Jonathan’s got that special brush that doesn’t hurt when you’re doing tangles. Hugs? Infinite hug supplier, babey. He’s really out here doing whatever it takes to keep best girl happy

-Fugo is,,,quiet,,,but he always comes over and eats the strawberries in his garden when they’re ready for harvest

-He even helps make them into jam :)

-He also teaches Fugo Hamon breathing techniques when he caught wind of his anger and it actually helps him a lot

-He considers everyone in that house his family too, and always invites them over for social events at his pocket dimension grandma house

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Jonathan Joestar lives in my head rent free...

If you’ve got a head canon idea, my ask box is always open!! <3

[sxnyarostova]

otp ask game for hadesephone!

TW//mentions of incest (but are we surprised, it’s greek mythology), alcoholism

What was their first impression of each other?

Hades: “Oh Gods, she’s beautiful even when she’s covered in dirt.”

Persephone: “Alright, this weird dude is trying to disturb my gardening routine but that’s okay. Wow, he’s buff.”

What is their ship name?

Hadesephone!

Describe their relationship dynamic.

Ooh. This is a hard one. Before their relationship started falling apart, the two of them had a healthy relationship. Communication was always slightly stunted, but they managed. They started having frequent arguments when Hades’ need for his underground empire started to grow; that’s when Persephone’s drinking habit started. Communication between them reached an all-time-low, and things were bitter between the couple for a while. They really start fixing/healing their relationship post-Hadestown, because they’re reminded of how powerful love can be when it’s expressed properly.

What was their relationship like before they got together?

The relationship was love at first sight, so... tentative ‘I-see-you-once-a-year-at-family-reunions-on-Mount-Olympus-but-I-don’t-really-know-you?’ In Greek myth Hades and Persephone are uncle and niece so...

How would they describe each other?

Hades: She’s perfect in every way. Seph loves it when I kiss her on her cheek; always blushes crazy when I do it. We’ve had out fights over the years, but Seph...she’s always come with me when I take the train up. She’s never rejected me, never told me no. She’s the most forgiving person I’ve ever met, that’s for sure. Persephone’s wild when she’s had more than enough to drink, though. She gets very, very wild. She’s also very outgoing; an extrovert. Seph is a bit of a rule-breaker; she’s spiked the punch at my brother’s parties many times.

Persephone: Most people think that he’s a stone-cold bastard, but I love him. He built a whole city just to keep me happy; I think that says something, doesn’t it? He’s willing to go to unimaginable lengths for me. He’s not as cruel as people think that he is; he’s antagonistic, but he ain’t the villain. Hades, he’s greedy for my love, for money, but mostly my love. Underneath all the steel and the suits, Hades is a big ol’ softie who works too hard.

What do they love about each other? (I’m going for the little details, not the huge huge things)

Hades: The way Persephone tilts her head back when she laughs, the rasp of her voice when she wakes up, the feel of Seph’s skin. He loves how Persephone talks to people; she’s gentle but firm, sweet but stern. Persephone’s sass; her outgoing personality that radiates more energy than the sun.

Persephone: Hades’ hair, his smile (his goofy one, not the one he uses when he’s luring people to eternal labour in Hadestown), the way he plays with Cerberus (Hades runs around the house with a Frisbee and he is very energetic when he does this, he has stretched multiple muscles in the past few years), and his eyes!

What do they have in common?

They both love each other :shrugs: Ooh and they are both NOT morning people! Contrary to popular belief, Persephone takes AGES to get ready in the morning; just because she’s the goddess of spring doesn’t mean that she’s automatically an early bird.

What are some differences between them?

Hades is a bit of a materialist. He thinks that Persephone is, too, but Seph is far from that. Persephone doesn’t need anything; all she wants is to simply be with her husband. Hades doesn’t understand this and it’s the root of most of their relationship problems.

What made them realize they were in love?

:strums guitar: HE FELL IN LOVEEEE WITH PERSEPHONE. WHO WAS GATHERING FLOWERRRS IN THE LIGHT OF THE SUNNNN

On a more serious note, Hades was making his biannual trip up top when he saw Persephone in a field of sunflowers. The way the light bronzed her skin immediately caught his attention. When Persephone looked up from the flowers, Hades’ heart was no longer his own.

Persephone spent a good hour bantering with him in the field, the two of them sprawled out amongst a beautiful bed of flowers. “You’re withering my buds,” Persephone had said, shooting Hades a playful glare. “Well, you’re making my heart blossom,” Hades had replied, and that was when Persephone’s heart sped up.

What are their love languages?

Hades needs reassurance all the time sometimes, so Persephone gives him that at the end of a long day. Persephone loves spooning, and all kinds of physical affection.

On another note, Persephone and Hades have a squeezing system. They squeeze each other’s hands when they’re uncomfortable or nervous, or simply wishing for that reassuring nod/kiss/hug. It’s a non-verbal way for them to communicate; it’s frequently used when they’re hanging out with the other gods of Olympus.

Do they get married? Who proposes and how?

It’s a very Orphydice-esque situation, but they take it down a notch. Hades proposes in a secluded spot at an Olympus party with a chromium ring, and Persephone accepts in a heartbeat.

What would happen if they never met?

It would stay warm and sunny forever. No seasons, it’s just straight up spring-to-summer all year round!

Who dies first? How does the other one react?

HAHAHA THEY’RE BOTH IMMORTAL SO NOOOOO I WILL NOT ANSWER THIS ANGST-FILLED PROMPT

Are there any love rivals?

Well in canon Greek myth there’s Minthe, who’s in love with Hades. Seph gets mad and turns her into a mint leaf; love rival sorted!

Describe your favorite moment of that ship!

Canonically, Epic III.

What do other characters think about this relationship?

Everyone’s fine with it; it is their love that makes the world go round. However, Demeter and the other Olympus gods are kind of iffy about it.

Talk about a headcanon you’ve never talked about before.

Hades has a secret park built for Cerberus and his wife in the Elysium fields. It’s disguised using the magic of his invisibility helmet, and only he and Persephone have access to it. They spend romantic afternoons there, just wandering through and kissing and doing Functional Couple Things. They also spend very energetic afternoons with their beloved puppy.

What does a typical date look like for them?

DOMINOES! Just kidding. They love playing board games together though, so a game night with an unlimited supply of wine and a large, comfortable bed within reach.

What’s a really significant moment in their relationship?

When the poet boy graces the Underworld with his presence and gives the old couple a little reminder.

[corancoranthemagicalman]

💜💜🌻💜💜🌻💜💜

Thank you so much 💜 my day was stressful and mentally taxing but overall it was fine :) i am so so flattered/flustered that you want to gift me something in return- i never expect anything when i'm penguin anon. And irl i'm trying to be better at accepting things from people. so if you really would like to gift me something here are some tropes i like: cas gardening (sorry i can't get away from flowers/plants!), dadstiel with baby or toddler jack, general domestic fluff, anything that explores cas & dean healing/character growth 💜 but i honestly don't expect anything in return for my hearts and flowers. They are freely given 💜💜🌻💜💜🌻💜💜

-🐧🌻

I’m sorry to hear it was stressful for you, dear. I’m glad that overall it wasn’t too bad for you, though. I hope this cheers you up? I’m a few hours later with it because I get distracted big time in research. Like figuring out that Dean was 22 when Shrek came out. Which had literally no bearing on this, but was fun to figure out. The hearts and flowers are more than appreciated. 💕🌺🌺💕

🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻

When Dean was four, he watched his mother hold his baby brother to the blooming sunflowers she kept in the backyard. Mom said they were called Sunriches. They were named that because they were like golden suns. Dean thought the sun was golden, but when he tried looking at it, the sun was just a bright, white color. Blinding. Dad said he couldn’t look at the sun without hurting himself, so he stopped trying.

What he could look at was Mom holding Sammy. He was only a couple of months old, but Mom was excitedly talking to him as if he could talk back. Dad said he wouldn’t be able to talk for a while. That didn’t seem to bother Mom. She was content to describe the flowers to Sammy. They were taller than Dean was. Mom said they wouldn’t get any bigger, but one day Dean would be tall enough to hold Sammy up to the flower petals. He looked forward to that.

Mom looked pretty in her dress, from Dean’s memory of the time. Her skirt swayed in the autumn wind in time with the petals dancing in the breeze. It was ethereal, like a princess talking to animals. Except instead of a squirrel on her shoulder there was a baby in her arms. Dean thought it looked like magic.

A few months later, when Dean was finally trusted with holding Sammy in his arms, he was running out of his burning home.

He didn’t think about the sunflowers they left behind.

Read more undercut or check it out on AO3!

Later in life, when Dean was flirting too close to a stable relationship with a reporter, he idly thumbed at the petals of the Suntastic Yellows. He remembered his mom telling him that they were the tiniest sunflowers. The type they used in bouquets. Cassie had a small pot resting on her windowsill.

Cassie’s hands drew around his waist from behind him. Humming into his neck, Cassie drew him backward with her. He thought about it in an absent sense, walking away from the sunflowers.

“You know,” she whispered against the shell of his ear, “they say that sunflowers track the sun all throughout the day.”

“Oh, really?” Dean smirked, taking her lips in his own. She was wonderful, really. Too wonderful. Wonderful enough that Dean thought about confessing everything to her. Cassie would understand. She was clever and understanding. Hell, maybe she’d even accept him.

It was too bad, then, that when Dean told her what he did—what he was—that she didn’t believe him. Dean wouldn’t have believed himself either. Walking away with his keys in his hand and his heart at his feet, Dean wondered if this is what it would always feel like. If he would always have to walk away from the place his heart was trying to make into a home. Maybe it was something about being a sunflower. Always tracking the sun throughout the day.

Too bad Dean couldn’t find the damn sunlight.

“Dude, look!” Dean grinned during another part of his life, pointing at some old lady’s front garden full of Taiyos. “It’s like Shrek.” He teased his brother, elbowing Sam who only rolled his eyes in return.

“Shrek? Really?” Sam scoffed. “How old were you when that even happened?”

Dean huffed a laugh. “What? You’re telling me you didn’t go watch the cinematic masterpiece known as Shrek with all of your college buddies?”

Sam rolled his eyes again, huffing with a shrug of his shoulders. “Sure, Dean. And then we watched Holiday in the Sun right after, too.”

“Never took you for a Mary-Kate and Ashley fan, Sammy.” Dean grinned, watching the sunflowers swaying in the breeze from the corner of his eye.

They looked peaceful in the witness’ front yard. Untouched by the grueling werewolf that was lurking through the small town. Dean could hear Sam’s sharp inhale from beside him.

“I always thought sunflowers were… homey,” Sam confessed, watching the sunflowers dance with a furrowed brow.

Shooting Sam a crooked grin, Dean stepped forward toward the sunflowers but he didn’t dare touch them. “I’m not surprised,” he began. “Mom used to grow them. She started taking you out into the garden as soon as you stopped crying all the time.”

Sam was silent for a moment, causing Dean to look at him with concern. It wasn’t often that Sam was quiet, but when he was it was always a contemplative silence. “I didn’t know that.” He spoke softly.

“You wouldn’t have remembered.” Dean shrugged, stepping onto the witness’ walkway to begin making their way up to the door. “These are a bit taller than hers were. But then again, everything seemed taller then.”

There was another moment of contemplative silence, but it seemed Sam had nothing left to say. He knocked on the witness’ door, taking care not to meet Dean’s eye. Dean wondered what that meant. Wondered if Sam felt the same way when he saw sunflowers.

Then again, Sam had always been larger than life. Tall and proud.

When Dean was on the aching side of forty, he watched Castiel hold their four-year-old son to the blooming sunflowers he kept in the backyard. Cas had been enchanted by the Little Beckas when he had seen them. While they might not have been the tallest—or the smallest—of sunflowers, he had thought they were lovely. Dean had made a quip about their halo and bought Cas seeds the same day.

Watching Cas and Jack reminded Dean of being four and trying to see what color the sun was. It was blinding, something he felt he should look away from lest it hurt him. But he found that he couldn’t look away. He didn’t want to. He just wanted to watch Cas answer every question Jack had.

He was beautiful, Dean often thought, but especially in moments like these. The cuffs of his jeans were muddied and his bare feet were buried in the soil where he sat with Jack in his lap. Dean hated how Cas refused to wear shoes outside, but he had claimed to like being closer to the Earth. Dean couldn’t argue with him. He wouldn’t argue with him; not for what made him happy.

Cas turned to look at him, catching his gaze and drawing him closer with just a look. Dean moved without hesitation, standing beside Cas and kicking at his knee with his booted foot. His approach drew Jack’s attention away from the flowers, who clapped excitedly the closer he got.

“Whaddya think, Jack? Do you like the colors?” Dean hummed, watching Jack’s gummy smile as the kid waved up at him.

“Daddy says that sunflowers face East!” He pointed enthusiastically, laughing and reaching for the blooms in front of him.

Dean frowned, looking from Cas to the flowers. “I thought sunflowers rotated with the sun or whatever.”

Cas hummed, tilting his head with a nod. “They do, in their youth.” He pressed a kiss to the top of Jack’s head. “But when they mature, the sunflowers learn that they get the most light during the morning hours when the sun has just risen from the East.” Bouncing Jack momentarily and causing the boy to giggle, Cas turned to face Dean. “They just learn what’s healthiest for them. It just takes time.”

Inhaling sharply, Dean wondered if this was it. If this was his East. Watching a smiling Jack and Cas whispering about sunflowers that—while not the tallest or the smallest—were a halo of colors. Two colors that came together, that never faded, that bloomed to life in this tiny garden he called home. He was a dark heart and a bright halo, smiling toward the bright, white sunlight of a gummy smile and clapping hands.

With a grunt, Dean lowered himself to the soil, sitting beside Cas and wrapping his arm around Cas’ shoulder. “These little guys are pollen-less,” he spoke to Jack. “That’s why we got the honeysuckles.”

“Honeysuckles stand for devotion.” Cas’ voice rumbled gently. “In the ancient Celtic alphabet, the symbol that the Ogham carved into stone to represent the honeysuckle stood for following one’s path.”

Dean snorted a laugh, shaking his head. “Sort of counterintuitive. Since, yanno, Free Will.” He quipped, raising a curious brow toward Cas.

Bowing his head in concession, Cas continued. “Yes, that is true. The Druids meant it more like… trusting one’s gut. Rather than sticking to the story.” He grinned, rocking with Jack in his arms for a moment. “But the honeysuckle is rather hard to kill. That is why it means everlasting devotion.”

“Deaths don’t stick, huh?” Dean hummed, squeezing Cas closer into his side. “Sounds like someone I know.”

Cas exhaled a laugh, resting his head atop Jack’s. “The Chinese valued the honeysuckle for its healing properties. It can be a cooling herb to remove toxins.”

Dean pressed a kiss to Cas’ cheek, keeping his lips there for a moment longer before pulling away. “Even if the honeysuckle can’t heal ‘em, the sunflowers like the company anyway.” He smiled softly, watching as Cas’ eyes turned dewy toward him. “And ‘sides, the honeysuckle brings all the bees to the yard.”

Snorting laughter that Jack joined in without knowing the cause, Cas shook his head. “I suppose so.” His attempt to suppress a smile made Dean’s own grin widen. “But the sunflower is more than enough company.”

“Damn straight,” Dean whispered against Cas’ lips, kissing him slowly and savoring the moment.

Between them, Jack made exaggerated kissy faces, causing them to pull apart and watch him with amusement. He grinned, reaching up and holding Dean and Cas’ cheeks in his palms.

“Daddy and Poppa sittin’ in a tree!” Jack sang, giggling as he smushed their heads together.

Mocking a frown, Dean held his other hand out behind Jack’s back. His palm felt so large in comparison to how small Jack was. “Did Uncle Sam teach you that?”

“Yup!” Jack nodded enthusiastically, head bobbing as he continued to hum the song under his breath.

Cas gave another chuckle under his breath, looking from Jack to Dean. “I suppose we should head inside. We're still expecting Sam and Eileen for lunch.”

Dean stood with a groan as his knees ached. He reached out a hand to help Cas and Jack up, standing tall with his family in their little garden. Keeping their fingers intertwined, Dean didn’t have to think about the sunflowers they left behind.

They would be there as long as the sun was in the East.

[retvenkos]

Drabble Harry Potter - A Luna Lovegood Story

✧ *:･ﾟ

after the war, everyone is made of scars and broken glass, one touch away from shattering, already broken and bruised and bleeding. luna looks at herself in the broken mirrors of a hogwarts bathroom and gingerly touches the dark circles that are forming around her eyes - blooming out of all of that pain and sorrow.

she goes to tend to the others, then, fingertips trailing over bruises and scars that won’t ever quite heal, and she wonders idly if one can ever move on when the story of who you once were is carved into your skin. she wipes away tears and listens the broken whispers and wonders what kind of flowers will bloom on the grounds of hogwarts, next spring, unaware of the blood that soaked those fields wet, allowing them to reach taller than before.

ginny is her first client, when the two of them are sitting on the floor of ginny’s room, morning sun peaking through the window and painting them in warm yellows and bright reds. ginny is complaining about having to start her seventh year at hogwarts - the castle’s almost remodeled, did you know? - and luna is humming in agreement, studying ginny’s scars carefully as she connects them with paint strokes, a vine littered with flowers and the occasional thorn, a simple drawing that connects the past in a way that makes ginny smile, her teeth glinting as they catch the sunlight.

“i should make this permanent.”

“do you think?”

and after that it’s harry. he sits at her kitchen table as she puts flowers on his skin where a string of words used to be, and they talk about what this world has become, after the dust settled. harry says he’s been fighting dark lords his whole life, and luna inks another petal, telling him that it’s time he put his wand down and let those callouses fade. he doesn’t need them anymore. when it’s time for harry to go, she mentions that neville is looking to get a job at hogwarts - they have so many open positions, these days. harry nods with a smile, but he’s still standing too stiffly and luna knows that rest will come to him slowly.

hermione comes, and luna covers a vile slur that was etched into her arm. the gryffindor looks at her with a tenderness that she rarely possessed and luna doesn’t mention it, only asking about what she had done, after the war. hermione is still made of big aspirations and luna smiles, welcoming the quiet that follows.

lavender brown comes next and luna covers the scar on her neck - a sort of choker made of flowers that makes lavender laugh from the tickling sensation. george weasley comes and luna inks carnations where an ear used to be. neville gets wallflowers and seamus gets sprigs of thyme. ron weasley comes, and he’s shy so luna carefully inks a vine of fern, simple and strong around his arms and shoulders.

it’s a warm day when luna is sitting in her garden, painting the horizon beyond her, when they come. luna turns to the newcomers, and she knows exactly what they want. without speaking she gets out her supplies and holds out a hand.

pansy parkinson accepts it and sits across from her, long legs crossed. luna is careful as she rolls up the sleeve, and when she touches her skin, pansy flinches. they don’t speak and theodore nott watches as luna covers a fading tattoo with something blooming and new - black and white pansies that crawl up the woman’s arm in their effort to grow. 

theodore thanks luna when they leave, and she smiles tells him she’ll be seeing him again, soon.

she covers the scars on parvati and inks sunflowers on blaise. she is visited by cho and marietta edgecombe, zacharias smith and hannah abbott, daphne greengrass and cormac mclaggen. percy weasley comes in with oliver wood and she hears all about their time at hogwarts, the war, and all that transpired afterward. others come in and are silent, their minds so loud as they watch flowers bloom over the remains of battles once waged that no words can escape their throats.

one day he comes, and it’s as though the war is already painted on his face. he’s hesitant to walk in, and there’s a moment where he doesn’t look like he will but he eventually knocks on the door and luna opens it for him, leading him inside.

theodore nott is with him, just as luna guessed, and she offers them both a chair at her kitchen table.

it takes him a minute to orient himself in this space, so different from that he has always known, and luna offers him a tea. he’s not going to be a talker, but he’s going to feel guilty if he doesn’t have something to do - malfoy’s don’t take charity, not even something like this.

luna studies draco for a minute, and she sees so many scars she doesn’t know where to begin. but he’s itching at his sleeve and she lets him roll it up, slowly, as though he’s afraid of what’s underneath.

and his scar is different than pansy’s - scaly and dry and burned; he had already tried to get of it, once. he had been burning with all of that rage for so long, but as he sits here, arm extended, grey eyes  cast away, luna knows his fire is gone. all that’s left is glass, tempered but moldable. hot but without something to keep them burning. luna mutters a spell, hoping it will calm the skin and give her a smoother canvas to work on.

it’s still burned when she starts, but it’s better than it was, before. and it’s a vine that starts to form, first - with thorns and leaves and eventually, flowers, roses of the darkest colors, with the brightest highlights. luna draws them until they cover his scar completely, and when she looks up at him, he is weeping.

“i’m sorry.”

and she wipes away his tears and listens to his broken whispers and wonders what kind of flowers will bloom on all of these war torn people, their scars deep enough to let her plant seeds within them, their futures bright enough to sustain a garden year round.

[ohhoneato]

So I've done posts on some of my OCs before, but I only did 2 generations and never got to the generation my girlfriend and i are fleshing out right now. I really like this gen because they started out as just us making characters for a soulmate/ soulmark AU. So I'll be introducing both my characters AND my girlfriend's because soulmates!

First character I want to introduce is Chance! Chance is my favorite and it's really obvious, but I also love his three boyfriends and their dynamic we've made for them! The Rinmaru picture I did for his doesn't do him justice, but it's the only reference I have and I've been trying to post pictures of the characters I have pictures for.

The lorax meme is something my girlfriend made (wonderful use of her graphic design degree) and you'll understand when I get more into depth why she made it.

Our soulmark AU is inspired by one of the Sanders Sides fanfics with the same premise, so we color coded all of our characters in the AU (which I actually made canon in my universe because I have a character that's powerful enough to do such a thing).

Chance's color is sunflower yellow and is actually the reason that's my favorite color.

He is a big, muscular, country man, coming in at almost 7 feet. He knows how to fight, but prefers not to. He lived an extremely sheltered life until he met his soul mates.

Here's what I typed for my girlfriend to introduce his background:

Chance is a lil cinnamon roll, with a sad background. He's an only child, but not for lack of trying. His parents had five kids before him, each of them ended up dead in some tragic way. The first two were born okay, everything fine in their first years of life, but as they grew older, one of them died due to a driver not watching the road and hitting them in their yard. And the other got kidnapped out of their home when left with a babysitter, then ended up a dead body in a shallow grave. The other three were miscarriages. His parents were wanting a child so bad, the stress and horror of everything getting to them, when his mother convinced his father to take one last chance with her. And he was born perfectly healthy! His parents thought it was a blessing that this last chance they'd taken was a success, so they named him Chance. The overprotected him growing up, making sure he knew why they did it, but as he got older and bigger and more able to protect himself, they allowed him to be let off the leash a bit. Nothing bad like what happened to his siblings ever happened to him. He somehow came out with a super enthusiastic view on life and is so pure, even a demon couldn't corrupt him. He loves his job, which is actually as a gardener, although one of his favorite pass times is going to the gym and exercising. Finding out how much he can push himself. He lives with his parents still, but is supporting them, as they had him pretty late in life and are pretty old.

As we tend to do, all of the characters live in the same universe as the others I posted about and these characters also have magic. Except, they live in the equivalent of modern day America and magic isn't very common. In fact, you could be killed for having magic! So they all hide their powers due to prejudice and fear. No one with powers has only one thing they can do, but what develops tends to be their speciality. What they're best at and what would be easiest to excel at.

Chance's powers are the ability to speak to plants and animals and healing!

That's all for now, I just had to go through so many messages to find the fact that he can heal and now I want to just post our incorrect quotes for our OCs. It should give y'all a better grasp of them all as i introduce them!

[natesfm]

❛ ✶ ( DYLAN O'BRIEN , CIS MALE , HE / HIM ) . who the hell is blasting SUNFLOWER by POST MALONE & SWAE LEE at one in the morning ? nevermind , that’s just NATHAN “NATE” CARPENTER from 1515 . apparently , they are a TWENTY - FOUR year old LITTLE LEAGUE COACH from QUEENS, NEW YORK , and they’ve been living at the complex for FIVE YEARS . i heard they can be a bit - FIXATING , but they make up for it by being so + STALWART — which makes sense , considering that they are a ARIES ! when i think of them , i imagine WELL - WORN BASEBALL EQUIPMENT , SHELVES OVERFLOWING WITH FIRST PLACE TROPHIES , & NIKE SWEATPANTS WITH LOOSE HANDFULS OF SUNFLOWER SEEDS SPILLING OUT OF THE POCKETS . and of course , don’t forget to follow them at ( @TWENTYNATE ) ! ooc . sam , 23 , est , she / her .

hello everyone!  i’m sam and i’m super excited to introduce my muse! he’s a temporarily sidelined baseball player who’s currently coaching his childhood little league team. cue the 🥺 emojis there’s some info about him under the cut. if you choose to read, then please enjoy and feel free to message me if you would like to plot! 

STATS

FULL NAME: nathan gage carpenter. NICKNAMES: nate, penny. GENDER + PRONOUNS: cis male + he / him DOB + AGE: march 31st, 1996 + twenty - four ZODIAC: aries HOMETOWN: queens, new york ( queens village ) OCCUPATION: mlb player ( shortstop for the new york yankees, #28 ) little league coach FUN FACTS: he’s ambidextrous and has a pet cat named benny

HISTORY

nathan gage “nate” carpenter  was born and raised in queens, new york. his mother is an nyu - educated botanist who runs a popular gardening blog and his father owns and operates a sports bar in their neighborhood. he’s the eldest of two children as he has one younger sister who was adopted. 

he’s the paternal grandson of drillin’ duvall carpenter, a notable power hitter and hall of fame inductee who won three consecutive world series titles while playing for the oakland a's in the 70s, and the son of joziah “joe” carpenter, who played for the new york yankees and won four world series titles with the team — the most notable of these being his first in 1996, as it was also the year that his eldest child and only son was born. ( nate was just a few days shy of seven months old when he witnessed the game 6 victory at yankee stadium. ) 

his father officially retired from baseball in the year 2000. with most of his final earnings put into purchasing the family home and funding his new business venture ( opening up a sports bar in their queens village neighborhood ), it was a comfortable, but modest life from then on. nate was five years old when his parents adopted his sister, who would be the fourth and final addition to the family.

he was being taught how to swing a bat before he could even walk, but nate officially started playing baseball when his father signed him up for little league at the age of four, and he took to it immediately. he was good at it, his natural talent soon enhanced by skills achieved through lots of practice. as he grew up, baseball would go from a beloved hobby to his main focus, as well as his favorite thing in the world.

nate’s dad is the quintessential overbearing sports parent, except for the fact that he was never necessarily trying to live vicariously through his child. four - time world series champion joe carpenter didn’t feel unfulfilled ; he was training his son to carry on the family legacy just as his father had done with him. he meant well. he wanted to see nate succeed, but as a child on the receiving end of the relentless and often harsh criticism, nate couldn’t see that. their relationship would grow more and more strained with each passing year. 

from winning the little league world series to the 18u baseball world cup with the united states national team, his impeccable record + stats were garnering a lot of attention before he was even in high school. he received several scholarship offers and wound up at a posh private school in the area where he made the varsity baseball team as a freshman and became team captain as a junior. ( fun fact : he was also running back on his high school football team but he wasn’t as good at that. ) credited with leading the team to two championship wins during his captaincy, rumors were swirling as his graduation approached : talk of him being drafted by the mlb right out of high school and he was.

he was chosen as the first round draft pick of the new york yankees in the 2014 mlb draft. he chose to sign with the team right away instead of accepting one of the many offers he had received from universities all over the country, entering the minor leagues where he would be named an all - american athlete and continue adding big numbers to his record. 

he was called up to the yankees in 2018 and he was doing great ( although he could do without the constant comparisons to the other carpenter men of baseball ) … until about six months ago, aka when he tore his right ucl ( his elbow ) during spring training. with the injury, surgery, and healing time he would require, it was predicted that he would have to miss most of the season, which has rung true so far. the last six months have been the longest he’s gone without playing baseball since the age of four. he was crushed when he first received the diagnosis, but recently he’s become a lot more impatient and, most prominently, bored.

he needed something that would keep him occupied, but where he wouldn’t be risking undoing any of his healing, so he’s currently coaching his childhood little league team! he should be cleared to return to training soon, and he’s really looking forward to that, but he’s also worried that he’s really gonna miss coaching. :/

nate is married to desirae “dizzy” kim, who lives in his apartment with him. they’ve known each other their entire lives, starting out as best friends who literally lived right next door to each other and then later on developing into high school sweethearts. they’ve been exclusively dating since they were teenagers and finally got married right before moving to astoria, so a about five years ago. despite all of the time that they’ve known each other and been together, most people still think of the pair as being stuck in the honeymoon phase because they’re just so mushy and in love. their friends probably roll their eyes at them all the time, but then they’re also the go - to couple for relationship advice even though they’re not even really good at it.

PERSONALITY

do no harm but take no shit

he’s the go - to call when one of his friends needs help moving furniture or a ride home at two in the morning because he’s the kind of person who’s happy to help and who always follows through when he says that he’s going to do something.

HOWEVER, mistaking his kindness for weakness would be a huge error. he’s a little bit of a pushover, but take it too far and he’ll notice and he won’t just accept it.

the type of person to wake up at 5am to go for a run and just pop a dislocated bone back into place all by himself. he’s tougher than he seems and tougher than he thinks, so this injury situation has been really difficult for him.

kiiiinda socially awkward : baseball is his entire life so it’s basically all he knows how to talk about. he’s naturally shy and doesn’t tend to initiate conversations anyway, although when he is approached he’s always polite. 

once he befriends someone, he tends to instinctively take on a slightly playful, protective older brother role with them. 

WANTED CONNECTIONS 

his adoptive sister * wc on the main!

cousins ( most likely from nyc / the east coast, but otherwise anything goes for this! )

friends ( from childhood, unlikely, protective, drifted apart, etc )

someone he’s a good influence on

someone who tries to be a bad influence on him

fans

frenemies / former friends / enemies

these are just some base ideas and i’m definitely open to brainstorming!

[yukippe]

flowers so very delicate

@pjofemslashweek day 2: au (soulmates) | read on ao3 | word count: 3.1k

new rome is a city of flowers. 

the myth says that people were once two sided. that they were whole. that zeus took them and tore them in half, full of jealousy. myths, of course, are all based in truth. 

all mortals might have other halves, but it is when the children and chosen of the gods share souls that are able to find their soulmates. when two soulmates touch; flowers bloom. in new rome, a city of the gods favoured, the streets are full of colour and petals.

 -

reyna grows up in a family blessed by bellona. her and her older sister are the goddesses children, but her family has always been favoured. flowers are not unheard of and prized, but they are also hidden. a soulmate could be a weakness, a soulmate is unheard of for mortals that do not know of the gods. when she and her sister escape and find themselves on circe’s island a scarce handful of the women have flowers. those that do keep them on display. 

when the men take over the island, reyna thinks very little of flowers and thinks much more of trying to escape. 

it’s in the after, when she finally settles in new rome, that she thinks of soulmates. 

not everyone in new rome has a soulmate, after all not everyone falls in love or stays in new rome. most people in new rome have a soulmate. 

reyna comes to new rome alone with flora free arms, and no one minds. she meets jason when they’re both twelve and she starts to know she’s in the right place as he laughs with her and fights with her and somehow they both know to very carefully avoid skin to skin contact. soulmates are something special. what she has with jason is special - he’s her best friend. and neither of them want to know if being best friends isn’t enough. 

they go to the movie theatre in the city and carefully separate the popcorn into the extra bag they asked for, they go to the cafe and they never grab the others drink first to pass it to them, when they spar the winner doesn’t pull the other onto their feet. reyna knows the legion and the city thinks the two of them are being silly, that they should just touch and the flowers will be there waiting. 

but reyna’s lost more than she should. and all jason knows is the legion. neither of them are ready to risk it. so they shove each other in the winter when they are bundled up in layers, and keep space between each other when they sit and watch the sunset. 

they make it two years. at fourteen reyna falls off scipio and jason saves her. it should’ve been a moment of relief, instead they both freeze at the sight of their still empty skin. jason finds reyna after the mess of it all. 

  “i don’t care if we aren’t soulmates,” jason says, sitting next to her on reyna’s bunk. 

  “i do,” reyna tells him. she hasn’t met his eyes since he held her and nothing showed on their skin. now, she turns her head to meet his gaze. “i care that we aren’t soulmates. but, you’re still my best friend. and you aren’t going to stop being my best friend just because we aren’t separate halves. your girlfriend can be your second half, or something.”

  jason opens his palm to her and she takes it. he smiles at her and she smiles back. “well,” jason says. “i can hug you now.” and then he throws his arms around her and they fall of reyna’s bed and reyna doesn’t even mind that much that their arms aren’t covered in flowers. instead, she laughs and laughs and squeezes jason tight. 

  after that, if they’re within two feet of each other some part of them is touching the other. when people ask reyna ignores them, jason smiles with his too sharp teeth and claims they’re making up for the two years of their friendship when they always kept apart. 

  they aren’t soulmates, their connection isn’t enough for vines to grow around their limbs, or for sunflowers to sneak across their faces, or for bluebells to be found hiding between their fingers as they hold hands. reyna cares, but only because she cares about jason. reyna doesn’t mourn a half she’s still going to find, instead she teases jason about who’ll be brave enough to come close to the wolf boy. 

  and then she meets venus in charleston and the words she hears swim around in her head, promising a life so barren no child of ceres could heal it. no demigod will heal your soul. she will never know her other half. reyna will never be blessed with the sight of her flowers on another’s skin. her touch will never cause life to bloom. she takes venus’s words and she buries them in the half of her soul she will never know how to fill. reyna might live her life without a soulmate, but no one else has to know that but her. 

-

reyna sees soulmates find each other more times that she can remember. new rome is a garden of souls finding their missing half. reyna tells herself half of a soul isn’t soulless. 

by the time they give her praetor there a few members of the legion her age that are never seen with flowers. reyna thinks of the women on circe’s island and she does not cover her arms. she is not lesser without a soulmate to be found. 

she drives the legion forward, she hugs her friends and doesn’t ache for petals she will never know. she rides scipio and from the sky she can’t see the gardens growing on skin. she takes care of those she loves and she is reyna avila ramirez arellano. no one mentions that she has not found anyone. she is 16 and she has time, in their eyes. more importantly, reyna makes herself into the perfect praetor. 

and then jason grace goes missing. 

-

even perfect praetor’s are not able to rule alone. she does her best. she does everything right. reyna dodges octavian's touch, even though she’s felt his slimy fingers on her arm before. he wants to fill a space that belongs to her best friend, the boy who could’ve been her soulmate. soulmate praetors are a dream in the eyes of many. reyna couldn’t care less. 

instead of wallowing she searches for jason. and after months of looking, percy jackson arrives as a saving grace. part of her would prefer the grace she knows, percy jackson comes with faded flowers he traces everytime his eyes catch them. he is a mystery and reyna has no idea how to solve him, nor the time to try. instead she watches him leave on a quest and breathes easier when he comes back. 

someone who has already met their soulmate taking the place of praetor eases reyna’s worries. reyna doesn’t need to feel bad about not being his soulmate if he already has one. 

except it can’t be that easy. 

-

there’s a war. there’s seven to answer the call, and only six to come home. reyna finds herself with a new praetor by her side and her best friend across the country on a semi-permanent basis and he doesn’t even remember her well. 

reyna’s been having a very bad year. but she lives with it. she adjusts. she hugs frank and laughs when he asks if it’s true that she and jason are secretly soulmates, and then he helps her set that rumour to rest. 

there are meetings with camp half blood and jason becomes a liaison, and when he visits camp jupiter again they watch the sunset. it’s another sunset of so, so many for reyna. but she watches jason’s face more than the sun as it drifts down through the sky, because it’s the first for him. 

reyna and frank raise the ages of when demigods start their service and lower the number of years needed significantly. she goes to a game of capture the flag and is thoroughly surprised when the greeks beat her team of romans. she shakes the hands of all of piper’s siblings as piper watches hopefully, she is patted on the back slightly aggressively by the children of ares and she gets pulled into a very awkward group hug by a cabin lead by two almost identical boys with mischievous smiles. 

flowers never sprout. reyna lets it go, she’s had time to learn to let it go and learn to not care and she’s gotten very, very good at it. 

what she cares about is being happy, now. and she has that. She’s had that since she first found camp jupiter and the son of the camp’s namesake welcomed her with a smile better fit for a wolf.

-

and then, reyna starts to grow up. at seventeen she surprises two camps and a hidden city and chooses to go to a university other than the university of new rome. she goes to fucking harvard. 

“harvard?” frank asks her as she slings her bag over her shoulder. 

 “yeah,” reyna says smirking. “fucking harvard. being the mayor of a small town looks really good on college apps, i think. and i’m getting the legion to bankroll it. imperial gold is a lot more in mortal currency.”

  “okay,” frank says. “but like, did you do high school? Because i haven’t really been doing high school since before i got here.”

  reyna laughs at that. she puts her bags back down and pulls out her phone to text frank some links he really should’ve had, “i do night school and online school. the entire legion should be? I guess you can go bother them all to start while i’m at harvard.”

  frank shakes his head, but then he pulls a hat out from behind his back and reyna starts laughing again. it’s maroon and in big lettering on the front it has the harvard logo. reyna asks him where he got it, but he pays her no mind.  he puts it on her head and pulls it down too far in front of her eyes. before jumping back out of her range. “well, i guess you’re going to harvard. stay away from frat parties!” he smiles at her and reyna rolls her eyes at him and pulls him in for a hug. flowers don’t grow, but reyna doesn’t need them to know that frank was the best co praetor she could’ve asked for. 

  and then he walks her to the bus and she sits at the back of a bus no one else gets onto. it stops in new rome and no one ever gets on or leaves, reyna doesn’t know why but she’s always like the idea of how confused the bus driver must be. she certainly startled him when she stepped on and paid her fare, and reyna smiles at the driver when he makes eye contact with her in his rearview mirror. he doesn’t make eye contact with her again for the rest of the trip, not even after other passengers filter on. 

-

  harvard, for the most part, is easier than being praetor and (probably being the only roman demigod) doing high school. her classmates are mostly awful and reyna would like to show some of her professors why monsters fear her name almost as much as percy jackson’s, but she shows restraint. all those years with octavian finally come in useful. 

  no one at harvard has flowers that came from their other halves' touch. reyna thinks there are one or two greek demigods also on campus, but she doesn’t see the telltale flowers anywhere. so either they’re very good at avoiding her gaze or the other demigods at harvard are also bloom free. 

  it’s nice. she gets to laugh at her own jokes and she goes on dates with girls that aren’t watching for petals as their fingers brush and none of the friends she makes try for touch too much or too little. reyna can’t remember the last time that skin contact didn’t mean something. she entertains getting a tattoo of a dead plant on her shoulder, but she lets her roommate talk her out of it pretty quickly. 

  when she goes back to new rome for the summer in the tiny apartment she gets for her service as praetor she teases her friends who are stuck in summer school because they never thought about high school until frank made a big fancy assembly after reyna left in september. frank and leila have grand plans for high school education - even though neither of them have finished high school yet - and reyna sees construction ongoing for a school behind one of her favourite parks. it makes her smile. 

  there’s a reunion for the seven and company when reyna’s in town, leo makes a crack about how she’s been missing longer than he was and reyna’s eyes soften as she she’s the red camellias and hyacinth jason’s touch leaves on leo as he puts his arm over leo’s shoulder. they weren’t there until after leo came back from death, but no one knows why. then, leo tugs piper close and reyna is properly surprised when she sees geraniums and asters grow on piper’s arm. (later she will find piper and get the story out of her. once she has the story she’ll go to hug jason and tell him how happy she is for them all)

  she’s forgotten the way it feels to be around soulmates. but there’s frank and hazel who are as free of flora as reyna remembers, like her. nico covers the flowers of the boy he’s been seeing he’s trying to keep a secret from her she thinks he’s worried she’ll threated the mystery boy. he’s not wrong) and percy and annabeth will never be found without each others jasmine, thyme and chrysanthemums. reyna finds it hurts less, even knowing that it’s likely one day frank and hazel will find flowers too. 

  reyna has a life where no one knows of souls that make their mark with blossoms. 

-

  reyna joins the harvard climbing team her second year for kicks and also out of spite. she goes to her program’s societies events and has been known to drop by the chess club to and make the members cry. she’s involved. but, as dakota had pointed it out with far too much glee, she’s not on any sort of athletic team or club. 

  so she picks up climbing. if she’s going to fucking harvard she might as well join the fucking harvard team. 

  later, dakota will say she owes him. reyna will offer to spar him for credit when he mentions it and he’ll back off. 

    in reyna’s second year when she joins the climbing team, a first year named zia rashid joins too. zia’s originally from egypt, but she did high school in brooklyn where she was staying with family friends. she’s majoring in history and has a minor in earth sciences and is planning to do her masters in archaeology. she’s a little addicted to smoothies and reyna is going to fall off the climbing wall one day because of her. 

  their friends, really, just friends. they spot each other on the wall and zia is one of reyna’s few friends at harvard that knows she was the “mayor” of a “small town”. reyna really, really wants to go out with her. 

 they’re getting lunch together after they leave the gym when reyna finally gets up the nerve to ask her out. she’d been teasing zia for ordering a smoothie even though she’d had one as they walked over to the cafe. 

  “uh,” reyna laughs as she watches zia’s mouth maybe a little too closely. “how many smoothies is that today?”

  zia sighs at her, “well i didn’t know we were coming here. the restaurant next door - i wouldn’t have ordered a smoothie there. but this place is my favourite.”

  reyna raises an eyebrow, “you didn’t give me a number.”

  zia pulls her straw out of her mouth and sighs. “here try this,” she says. “it’s the best thing you’ll ever taste. try it!” she starts waggling the drink at reyna and reyna grabs it when zia’s smile turns soft and teasing. 

  she tries it. “okay,” reyna says, still holding onto the drink. “maybe you have a point.”

  zia gives her a knowing look and then reaches for her drink back, but reyna moves it out of zia’s reach. zia’s mouth drops open, “i. you.”

  “i like it,” reyna says with a shrug. and then she steals herself and goes for it. “let me take you on a date and get you another one.”

  the hand zia had in the air that was trying to get her drink back freezes. for a moment, reyna worries she read their quiet moments and late night perfect grammar text chains wrong. the hand drops to her side, though, and zia’s face turns warm. “yeah,” zia says. she pushes her hair back behind her ear and reyna thinks she just got a hint at one of zia’s little gestures she’d been curious about. “yeah, that sounds good.”

  for a few moments they just smile at each other across the table. eventually, their hands find each other under the table and reyna gives zia her drink back. in those few moments though, reyna is reminded of sunsets with jason and nights with nico after shadow jumping across the ocean and horseback rides with hazel and calls with her sister.

  they don’t let go of each other’s hands until they have to pay. all reyna can see is zia’s eyes and they wander out from the cafe bumping into each others sides and reyna can’t remember the last time she was this close to someone. 

  zia pulls reyna down to a bench and reyna bumps into zia softly, her heartbeat faster than normal in her ears, but it doesn’t sound like it’s racing. nothing needs to be a race with zia. reyna brings their linked hands up to her mouth to kiss when she sees it. 

  she’s never seen roses bloom when soulmates touch before. she could’ve sworn she’d bumped into zia before in some way that would’ve had their skin touch, but reyna had grown used to being kept apart and carefully not getting close enough to be disappointed. 

  zia’s eyes are wide and reyna’s mostly confused as to how she didn’t know. 

  “i haven’t seen you in any nome, though,” zia says. 

  “um,” reyna says. and then she realizes what nome means as she remembers a story from percy and annabeth about magic and a different pantheon. “oh. that’s because i’m roman.”

  zia blinks, and then understanding flashes through her eyes, reyna giggles lightly and zia squeezes their still linked hands. “we both have long stories to tell, i think,” zia says. 

  they share them. soulmates are not unique to the children and blessed of the greek and roman gods, reyna finds. and as she listens to zia’s stories she knows she would’ve found zia with or without the roses on their palms. 

[ericsonclan]

A Crown of Gold

Summary: Clementine is left alone in the greenhouse and decides to make a flower crown for Louis.

Read on A03:

Clementine sat on the floor of the greenhouse peeling vegetables for dinner. A pile of Jerusalem artichokes lay at her feet. Ruby had mentioned the other names for the plant as they were digging the roots up: earth apple, sunroot, sunchoke… it was interesting how the same plant could have so many different titles, especially when the part they were eating simply looked like a particularly lumpy potato. The flowers that bloomed on the surface revealed the true source of the sun-based names. Their bright yellow petals and orange cores reminded her a little of the sunflowers her mother grew in the backyard. She quite liked them. It was a shame they had to uproot them in order to eat.

“Everything going alright in here?” Ruby asked as she dragged a tub of vegetable peels that had been composting outside back into the room. “Nothing happened while I was gone?” “

No, Ruby, nothing happened in the three minutes you were gone,” Clementine hoped her tone hadn’t been too sharp. She knew Ruby was just looking out for her, but after weeks of mandated bedrest with constant visitors and everyone hovering about her when she stepped outside, Clementine had appreciated the few minutes of peace and quiet. She couldn’t be afforded privacy for long though: not when her freshly healed stump meant a wandering walker could overpower her if they ever crossed paths.

Ruby’s eyebrows dropped as she offered a sympathetic smile. The annoyance had bled through Clem’s words after all. “Oh, Sug, I know you’re antsy. It’s no fun being cooped up when all ya want to do is roam around freely. But I promise you this isn’t what every day will look like. Eventually we’ll have you back up on your feet and raring to go,”

Clementine sighed. “I know, Ruby. And it’s not like I don’t enjoy spending time with you, it’s just… this is a big change for me. For all of us,”

They both looked down at her bandaged stump. The pain was still there, hovering beyond the limb almost as if it was only injured, not missing. Ruby called it phantom limb pain. After a few days, Clementine had stopped bothering to mention it. She was already on a regimen of the strongest medicine they had. There wasn’t much else that could be done.

Ruby tutted. “To think that I’m letting you sit on this dirty floor when I shoulda marched you right out to the picnic benches and brought the tubers to you…”

“Ruby, it’s fine. I wanted it this way,” Inside here, she didn’t have to worry about running into any of the other kids and making small talk. She didn’t have to keep one eye out for A.J. to plaster on a smile as soon as he skipped over to her side. It wasn’t that company wasn’t pleasant; she just needed a few minutes to herself where she could sit with her stump and not wonder what those around her were thinking.

Ruby looked unconvinced at Clementine’s words, but let her be. She pulled on her gardening gloves and began separating the compost and spreading it throughout the planters. It hadn’t even been a month since they’d reclaimed the greenhouse and already Ruby had breathed enough life into it for them to be harvesting and replanting their crops. She and Clementine settled into a peaceful silence as they resumed their work. Once the bin was empty, Ruby looked toward the door, worry etched on her face.

“I’m not going to break if you leave me alone for ten minutes, Ruby,”

“I know that… Louis would have my hide though if he found you in here alone,”

“Louis? C’mon Ruby, he’s a teddy bear! Besides, dusk’s not coming for another half hour at least. You’ve got time,”

“Well… alright. I’m steppin’ out for just a few minutes to fetch some more false Solomon’s seal I saw growing by the dormitories. Don’t move, y’hear?”

“Mhm,” Clementine mumbled noncommittally. Not like she had the energy to escape this room anyway. She’d probably go to sleep as soon as dinner was done. The door clapped shut behind Ruby as she stepped out and Clementine was left on her own.

Now what? She’d already finished peeling all the Jerusalem artichokes. There were still things to be done about the greenhouse, but Clementine wasn’t well-versed enough to take the lead without fearing she would mess up Ruby’s hard work. Should she just sit in silence till Ruby came back? It wasn’t the worst idea in the world. Clementine rested her head against the planter behind her, closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath. It smelled nice in here: earthy, like how the world was after a fresh rain. It was nice to just sit back and take it in.

She felt something poking her leg and opened her eyes to find one of the sunchoke stems had fallen nearby her. Clementine picked it up, twirling the stem around through her fingers. The flowers reminded her of a home long abandoned, but they also made her think of her new home here, the warmth and love she’d been given. They especially reminded her of one freckle-faced boy in particular and the mischievous smile he always threw her way. Clementine smiled to herself, tracing her finger along the outside of each individual petal.

This thing that she and Louis had was so new, yet so intense. Perhaps if they’d been living lives in the old normal ways things would have progressed more slowly. But every second of every day was a gift when death loomed around every corner. There wasn’t time to waste on pleasantries in the midst of utter chaos. To think that only a few weeks ago she hadn’t even met Louis… now here she was smiling like a fool because a flower reminded her of him.

She wanted to do something for Louis, something to thank him for all he’d done for her. How he’d carried her through the night, frantically trying to get her home as her blood seeped into the seams of his trench coat. How he’d kept watch at her bedside, unwilling to sleep until he saw her eyes open again. How he’d helped with the bloody bandages, the crutches, the nights when she couldn’t stop crying because of the pain that simply would not cease. Theirs was such a young relationship, but it had already been tested and tried with stakes far greater than most would willingly take on.

Clementine took another sunchoke in her hands, examining it carefully. The stems were thick, but if she was careful she bet she could slice through them successfully, just enough to interlock another stem without breaking the chain. She hadn’t made a flower crown since kindergarten. She wanted to try though, to give Louis some small gift to show her affection. Maybe it was a silly thought, but that certainly wouldn’t stop her. So she set forth on her task, pulling out her pocketknife and digging into the first stem.

The waning light coming through the greenhouse windows let Clementine trace the passage of time as she worked on her flower crown. Some stems broke, too frail to retain the needed shape. Others had flowers with mangled or missing petals. She wouldn’t have that. Clementine wanted perfection. As the crown began to take shape, Clementine tested it out on herself. It was a good fit, but would that hold true for Louis? How big did those dreadlocks make his head? She would simply have to give it her best shot. With a determined huff, Clementine got back to work.

By the time Clementine was about finished, the light outside was shifting from rich orange tones to the cool blue of night. She hadn’t really noticed, so absorbed in the task at hand. Some scuffling noises from outside captured her attention though.

“What the fuck, Ruby? You left her alone in there?”

“I didn’t mean to! I was only gonna be gone for a second. Then Molly broke out from her paddock and A.J. and I had to corral her back inside. I sent Willy to go sit with her, but then he got roped into some dinner prep by Omar-”

“I don’t want excuses! The greenhouse has been overrun before. What were you thinking leaving her in there instead of helping her sit out on the benches? Clem? Clem?” Louis busted through the greenhouse door, his brow furrowed. He immediately locked eyes with Clementine, crouching down and wrapping her in a tight hug. “Oh, thank god!”

Ruby popped up behind him, looking worried. “Thank goodness! Clem, I am so sorry! I swear I thought Willy was heading over to be with you over twenty minutes ago!”

“Don’t worry about it, Ruby. Nothing happened. The time alone was actually nice,” Clementine offered Ruby a reassuring smile. “I’m OK, really,”

Louis pulled away to examine her more closely, a hand cupping her face as he took in her every feature. “You’re sure? You don’t have any pain? When are you due for more medicine?”

“Not until bedtime. I’m alright, Louis, I swear,” She looked toward Ruby. 

“Seriously, I don’t need anything. You can go if you’re needed elsewhere,”

“OK… I’m gonna help Omar with dinner. But if anything and I mean anything happens and you need me, you just holler, OK? I won’t be far,”

“Thank you, Ruby,”

“Ruby,” Louis started, turning round slightly. “About what I said..”

Ruby lifted her hand to silence him. “Don’t think about it. You were right to be worried. I’dve been the same way in your boots. I’ll see y’all at dinner,” The door clacked shut behind Ruby again and the greenhouse fell silent.

Louis returned to his examination of Clementine. “I swear, I never should have let Aasim talk me into hunting today,” he muttered as he fiddled with a stray piece of her hair. “To think that on the first day I go out something like this happens-”

“Louis, seriously, stop. Everything is fine. There’s no point freaking out about something that didn’t even happen,” Clementine ran a hand along the lapel of his coat, straightening it. “Where’s that smile I love so much?”

The words clearly threw Louis off guard. He blushed, lowering his eyes before cautiously lifting them, a small smile playing across his lips.

“That’s it,” Clementine leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. “I made something for you,”

His eyes brightened. “Really? What?”

“It’s not much, but…” Clementine raised the flower crown between them. “I thought it would suit you,”

Louis gazed at the crown in wonder, his fingers following the braided pattern Clementine had weaved. “Holy shit, you made this?”

“Mhm. The flowers were left over from harvesting the Jerusalem artichokes and when I saw them, well, they made me think of you. May I?”

Louis nodded, inclining his head so she could place the crown on his head. 

“How do I look?” His face was shining with newfound excitement. “Damn, I wish there was a mirror in here,”

He looked beautiful. The way the softness of the yellow petals interplayed with the coarseness of his dreadlocks… there was something majestic there. Clementine smiled. “You look gorgeous,”

This time it was Louis’ turn to lean forward for a kiss. As their lips met, Clementine felt her heart pounding in the exhilaration of the moment. She wanted to stay here like this with Louis in this pure, distilled moment of happiness. A moment where nothing mattered but-

“Clem!” Willy burst through the door, eyes wide. “Do you have those Jerusalem artichokes? Omar needs them? Sorry I forgot about you earlier by the way,” His eyes fell on Louis’ flower crown. “What’s that?”

“This is a flower crown that Clementine made lovingly for me,” Louis answered pointing at his head. “And this was also a beautiful moment that we were sharing between ourselves before you so rudely-”

“Can’t talk! Omar needs these potatoes!” Willy exclaimed, leaping forward and seizing the bowl beside Clementine’s feet. “Thanks, guys!” And with that he was gone.

Louis and Clementine shared a look before chuckling to themselves.

“Well, on that note,” Louis stood up, grabbing the crutches that were resting by the door. “Ready to head out?”

She’d rather stay here with him, but Clementine’s stomach betrayed her, letting out a pronounced growl.

“That answers my question then,” Louis laughed, kneeling to pick Clementine up and set her on her feet. “Shall we, my lady?”

“But of course,” Clementine quipped, making her way out of the greenhouse. The crutches made her underarms ache and her stump had begun to dully throb. “Let’s get this over with, then it’s off to bed for me,”

“Off to bed for us, you mean,” Louis smiled at her, the flower crown slipping further down on one side. “Don’t worry. I won’t keep you up. I just want a few minutes seeing as we’ve been separated the entire day,”

“Who am I to say no to my flower prince?” Clementine paused to adjust the crown. “It really does suit you,”

“I’ll treasure it forever,”

“Better put it in some water then,”

“Once you’re asleep,” Louis strode forward. “I want you to be able to appreciate it in its full grandeur for as long as possible before I take it off,”

Clementine giggled. “Alright then,”

“I’m totally making one for you tomorrow,” Louis circled back around to her. “That way we’ll match,”

“Sounds fun,”

“I’ll teach A.J. to make one too,”

“He’d love that,” They paused in their walk to the tables. Louis leaned forward, barely a fraction of an inch away from Clementine’s lips.

“Guys, dinner’s getting cold!” Aasim called. “Hurry up!”

Louis rolled his eyes as he pulled away from her. “Well, Aasim will not be getting a flower crown tomorrow after that move,”

Clementine chuckled. “He’ll be heartbroken,”

“That’s the price he pays for ruining a perfectly good kiss,”

“Guys, c’mon!”

“Coming!” Louis shouted back in annoyance. “Your flower crown privileges for the next month are about to be revoked, buddy!”

“What does that even mean?”

“Oh, you know what it means!”

As Louis strode forward, Clementine followed easily behind him. Her smile refused to go away, and that was thanks to everyone around her. That and a certain golden crown.

[il-papa-patata]

his name above your heart

Mary Goore forgets he got a new, sentimental body mod, and Aether sees it.

Rated T for language, Mary Goore/Swiss, past!Aether/Dewdrop, Mary Goore is Special Ghoul AU, established long term relationship, referenced polyamory, body mods, babysitter Mary, Aether’s hobby is making food for everyone

Read below~

It's not Swiss who sees it first, although it should be. Instead it's Aether, who comes outside while Mary is helping them till a garden with an unexpected good nature, and sees it.

Aether knows he and Swiss have been together a long time. A frankly absurdly long time for how you might categorize them if you knew them just surface level – Swiss and Mary were undoubtedly, and without any umbrage, sluts. That was pretty simple. Mary was a fang-tooth, rabid little man who'd fuck anything and Swiss was a big, sweet, dumb party boy who loved sex. Swiss was good at handling a one night stand, Mary seemed too impatient for anything else.

But they'd been together – years, now. A long time. The first couple years were rougher, as the two of them got used to each other, learned each other. Swiss, for the first time, could tell someone he wanted them to stay. And Mary- well, Mary for the first time had someone who /cared/ if he stayed. It was awkward at times – there were fights, although nothing like the spitting ones he and Dew had gotten into when they were still together – but the two of them always looked better, somehow, afterwards.

But it's still a surprise when Mary's ragged-sleeved t-shirt comes off, and there's a stark, scar-white “S” cut into Mary's chest, right above his heart.

Wow, Aether thinks, the glass of lemonade in his hand not the only thing chilling him. That's...

It has to be new – not so very new since it was healed, but new enough that Aether hadn't seen it before. The blooming red rose on his shoulder blade? The city map tattooed on his forearm? Those had been there before, but this S had definitely not. And there's no way in hell that it was for anyone but Swiss.

“Hey, kid,” Aether says, in his usual way, trying to keep out the edge of disbelief from his voice. Some of the kids from the creche run about – the excitable girl Giulia is pulling Tino along by his arm, but slowly on account of Tino's legs, and Mary's favorite, Marietta, is dozing under the porch in a big sunhat, gripping her blanket to herself.

“Hey,” Mary greets, wiping his forehead with his arm and smearing some dirt there.

“Here, you look pretty thirsty.” Mary takes the cup gratefully, a little rough note from his throat as thanks, and drinks down the whole glass in one long chug, some of the lemonade dripping from the sides of his mouth and down his neck.

“Shit,” he says, catching himself and a couple of the droplets against his fingers, “More thirsty than I thought.”

“I have more,” Aether says, indicating the little refreshments stand he set up, “You should take a break, you've been out in the sun for a while.”

Mary steals a look back at the plot of land – nothing crazy, but a small plot of land inside the courtyard enclosed in chicken wire. They were going to plant things for the kids to grow and watch over – easy things like tomatoes and zucchini, and a sunflower house just outside the chicken wire. He's made good progress – despite his protestations he grew up in urban squalor and never touched a fresh vegetable before he came to Italy, there's something in Mary that makes him good at gardening. Certainly the kitchen garden usually took longer to get ready for planting, and that was with a group of maybe six of the clergy, usually Aether, a few sisters, and a deacon or two.

Mary screws up his mouth, clearly dissatisfied with his work. Aether thinks to tell him – don't worry about it, it looks good – but Mary comes away anyway, leaning his hoe against the fence and swinging his legs over.

Mary smiles a sharp smile at the little table laden with food – cut vegetables, an insulated cooler of lemonade, some sweet things, some salty things, some sour things. There's even cups of the limoncello custard Aether whips up during the summers, usually at either Dew or Papa Nihil's request.

“You two are so similar,” Mary comments, taking a few morsels of everything, “Fuckin' mama birds.”

“Similar to who?” Aether asks, genuinely confused.

“Swiss,” Mary says, with an additional look of obviously.

Well that- is not something he's really heard. Maybe on the grounds of size – although his softer, broader shape was way different than Swiss's cut, Renaissance-sculpture, ballet-dancer body – but not that many people drew connections other than that.

“It's a good thing,” says Mary, who grins and cocks his head in a way that is – surprisingly sweet, and surprisingly gentle. Any time Mary talks about Swiss, it's... gentle. “You're both big caring dudes,” he says, turning back to the buffet of foods, and the little cheesecakes with little animal faces drawn on in jam, “And you both like to cook to show how much you love people.”

“And you like that?”

“I like him,” Mary says, straightforward and simple, popping a cherry tomato into his mouth, “and I like you.”

...Oh. Huh.

It wasn't so much that Aether didn't like Mary – not at all, they had a natural camaraderie, got on thick as thieves, frequently fucked – but to hear it plain and simple from the man's mouth is... well, it's kind of surprising.

“Can't say I'm not one of those people either,” he continues, “I get banned from breakfast duty when it's Swiss's dance season. Just keep tryin' to make him ham and pancakes.”

“You love him a lot.” Aether says, without thinking. Mary stares up at him for a second, almost a challenge, almost a warning, but then his face relaxes into a soft grin, infinitely proud, and he says –

“You noticed?”

Aether laughs. “Yeah, I noticed. Got that S on your chest for him.”

“Oh shit,” he says, covering the S and flushing, looking around furtively, “He's not around, is he?”

Oh. That's- cute. Mary's mussed hair falls into his eyes and he brushes it back impatiently, a faint pink that might-be-sunburn-and-might-not across his nose and cheeks.

“No- you haven't shown it to him yet?”

“No,” he says, “It was still healing, and then they all went off on that trip-”

“Lucifer,” he cusses, “He's going to cry.”

Mary nods, laughing softly, “He's gonna cry for like, an hour.”

“You have to tell me all about it when he does,” Aether says, throwing a tentative fist into Mary's shoulder, “I'll make you something you like, we'll have coffee.”

“I'll take you up on that,” he says, “But hold this, I gotta put my shirt back on. No doubt if she sees Giulia will rat me out.”

“The trials of working with kids.”

“Tell me about it,” Mary says, when his shirt is back on and he's taken the plate back from Aether. “But they're sweethearts. Hey kids!” He calls to them, and they all perk to look at him, Marietta rousing from her nap, “Aether's made us all snacks, come have a break in the shade.”

Aether graciously welcomes them over when they come running.

-

A week later, Mary is at the kitchen table laughing incredulously that while he was on the trip, Swiss came back with a tattoo of him, and proudly drags Swiss in to show off a beautiful rose-haloed rendering of Mary from the back, his own rose tattoo carefully stenciled into Swiss's skin.

Lovebirds, Aether thinks, and offers cheers over their cups of coffee.

[pkmnclifford]

home. 4

(part 1) (part 2) (part 3)

summary: michael used to be a rockstar in his hometown. but somehow he blacked out, and now he’s in an unknown city. in this part, michael, luke, calum and ashton travel to the nearest big city, searching for michael’s home.

word count: 3k

taglist: @cliiffords​ @phantastic1daf​ @babyoria​ @twilightmomentswithyou​ @calumspeachy​ @lukeysdimples​

The pain in Michael’s chest woke him up, the sunlight coming through the curtains of Luke’s bedroom. He lifted his head up lightly and realized he had fallen asleep cuddled up against Luke, on his bed, just like this, not even under the sheets. Luke was still asleep next to him, his head resting in his hand, and one leg up against Michael’s thigh. The fringed boy was laying down on his belly, watching Luke’s pretty face, his right cheek resting on a blue pillow. Luke looked peaceful in the morning light. Michael quietly observed his face, his growing beard, his lips. He was breathing softly, his curls spread all over the sheets around his head, like a golden crown. Michael felt the urge to go back to sleep in his arms, to forget the pain. He reached his injured hand to Luke’s forehead and gently brushed away a curl with his fingertips to the back of his head. If only they could stay like this forever.

Luke suddenly opened his eyes, his lids flickering as the sunlight illuminated his baby blue eyes. The sight of Michael’s face close to his didn’t bother him, it was as if they had always belonged like this. He smiled.

“Good morning, rose boy. What time is it?”

Michael’s cheeks started to feel stiff; that’s how he noticed how hard he had been smiling since he woke up, since he saw Luke laying next to him.

“Good morning” he whispered. “I have no idea.”

Luke slowly sat up, brushing a hand through his curls, and reached his hand to his phone. 8am. He laid back down, taking his head in his hands.

“It’s too early to get up” Luke mumbled. “I’m sorry I didn’t get you a proper bed to sleep in last night. I guess we were both way too tired.”

“No worries” Michael breathed. “I slept well. No nightmares.”

Luke turned to him and smiled. “Good. That’s good. How’s your hand?”

Michael looked down, moving his fingers under the bandage. “It doesn’t hurt. I’m okay.” He didn’t mention the excruciating pain growing in his chest, as he didn’t want Luke to worry. Michael jumped as Luke took his hand to check if the bandage was still right in place. His careful touch and the sight of his own hand in Luke’s delicate ones made Michael’s heart flutter. He resisted the urge to hold his hand tighter.

“I don’t think we’ll need to renew your bandage before we go.”

Michael’s eyes widened. “Before we go?”

Luke’s eyes sparkled with a sleepy, but enthusiastic look.

“Yeah. To Montfort. That’s where you’re from, right?”

Michael sat up and tried to process what Luke was saying. Was the fact that Michael was a professional musician their only hint to go to another unknown city? Montfort didn’t ring a bell. He didn’t want to waste Luke’s time.

“Listen, Luke, I don’t even know if that’s my hometown, maybe we shouldn’t...”

“We won’t be able to know if we stay here!” Luke shouted. “Maybe your memories will come back if we go there. They have a concert hall in Montfort, a pretty big one. Maybe you’ve played there, on that stage, who knows?”

Michael watched Luke get up and slowly stretch his arms and back. He wasn’t convinced Montfort was the right destination, but Luke was right, staying in this small town, where no memories came back to him, wasn’t useful at all.

“Maybe you want to eat something, and take a shower? I’ll try to call Ashton. He has a car. We’ll need it to go to Montfort.”

Michael’s stomachache came back again at the mention of Ashton’s name. Will Luke’s friend agree to take a stranger in his car? But Luke’s enthusiasm was contagious. He showed him the bathroom and handed him fresh towels; he even gave him fresh clothes to wear. Michael was embarrassed, but Luke’s clothes smelled so amazingly good, he didn’t mind wearing them. Luke left to the kitchen to make some pancakes for breakfast.

Once he closed the bathroom door, Michael slowly undressed, his painful moves making him wince. Taking Luke’s soft hoodie off and throwing it on a chair behind him, his gaze fell on the mirror above the sink, and he jumped at what he saw, horrified. The bruises on his chest had gotten darker and bigger, the blackish stains under his skin almost reaching his shoulders. Suddenly in panic, Michael closed his eyes and tried to breathe, his hands holding each side of the sink. No need for a second panic attack. He tried to think. Luke didn’t need to know. The poor boy had already done so much for him, welcoming him in his home without even knowing him. He thought about Montfort. He wanted to leave on an adventure with Luke. He felt so right with Luke. Maybe the pain in his chest would go away. Maybe the bruises would fade away. The tattoo on his arm was also still there, less red than the day before, but still there. Michael breathed in slowly and stepped in the shower. The hot water on his sensitive skin soothed him. He quickly took off his bandage on his hand which got wet. The cuts were almost healed, or at least they weren’t bleeding anymore. It stung though, as Michael squeezed the bottle of shampoo in his hand and gently washed his blonde hair. When he stopped the water from running, he heard Luke’s voice from the kitchen, probably on the phone with Ashton. Michael grabbed one of the blue towels Luke gave him, the contact of the soft fabric on his bruised body mixed with Luke’s smell calming him down. He put on Luke’s clothes, grinding his teeth as he put the white printed tee over his head, and stepped in the black shorts.

When he got out of the steamy bathroom, a delicious pancake smell welcomed him. Luke was in the kitchen, wearing a cute flowery apron, a pan in one hand, his phone in the other. On the table, he had put plates and mugs, surrounded with jam, sugar, chocolate and fresh fruit.

“Come on, Ash” the blonde boy said with an annoyed tone. “I know you don’t see the point, but I really need to go.”

Michael pulled a chair and awkwardly sat down at the kitchen’s table. When Luke saw him, he froze for a second and his gaze softened. Michael looked so cute with his confused green eyes, his wet hair falling on his forehead, his shoulders almost drowning in Luke’s white shirt, who was broader than him.

“It’s really really important for me” Luke said to Ashton on the phone, not taking his eyes off of Michael. There was a short silence on the phone, but even though the answer coming after that was inaudible, Luke’s smile said it all. Ashton said yes.

“Thank you so much Ash. You’re the best. See you then!”

Luke hung up, smiling so hard he almost forgot the pancake which was cooking; he gasped and quickly flipped it over. He then turned to Michael to serve a pancake on his plate.

“We can borrow Ashton’s car, but on one condition: he’ll be driving. And Calum’s coming too. He’ll be there in an hour.”

Michael eyes widened. He had to go with Ashton and Calum? Not that Calum’s presence bothered him, but the few remarks Ashton had given him the night before still stung in his mind. He was happy Luke wanted to help him, though.

“Thank you so much Luke, I... I don’t know what to say.”

“Thank Ashton” Luke said happily. “He really is a great friend, isn’t he?”

Michael silently nodded. They quietly ate their pancakes, enjoying each other’s company. Luke talked to Michael about his garden; he wanted to grow sunflowers but he needed to find the seeds first. He loved flowers; in fact he really wanted Michael to go in his garden and have a look, while he was going to shower.

Michael opened the front door which led to Luke’s porch, breathing in the fresh air, the morning sun warming up his pale face. He stood there for a while, quietly stretching, trying to relieve his sore chest, the pain now spreading to his arms. He winced again, holding back a moan. Thanks to Luke’s open bathroom window to his garden, Michael could hear Luke’s singing voice under the shower. The soft sound made Michael’s heart shake. A bright smile on his face, he decided to take a walk around Luke’s pretty garden. He walked down the stairs under the porch and saw, a few feet away, a small vegetable patch. He could definitely see how much Luke liked gardening. A cherry blossom tree hovered over several bushes of wonderful-smelling flowers. Michael’s hand brushed over the pastel colored petals, breathing in deeply, a soft breeze refreshing his damp hair.

He suddenly heard a car stopping nearby, on the street, two doors closing followed by the sound of someone’s laughter. Michael looked over to the little white gate opening to Luke’s house and saw Ashton standing there, holding the fence to let Calum in. The dark skinned boy immediatly noticed Michael standing in the backyard, his fingers still holding onto a lilac flower. He waved, and Michael waved back timidly. Ashton had seen him too, but he walked directly to Luke’s door. Michael hesitantly approached Luke’s friends.

“Hi Ashton, Luke is showering right now.” Michael said, trying to look confident in front of Ashton, even though he was slightly impressed by the snake tattoo on the lad’s arm.

“I still don’t trust you, you know” Ashton told him, his hazel eyes piercing through Michael’s. “I’m doing this for Luke.” He looked at his watch. “Tell him we’ll wait for him in the car.” He then turned around and disappeared behind the bushes, walking back to his car. Calum stood there, confused, his gaze following Ashton’s moves. He then turned to Michael, smiling.

“Alright then, he’s been this grumpy since last night, don’t worry about him, it’s just Ashton” he said jokingly. “How are you, Mike?” He looked at Michael’s exposed arm. “Nice tattoo you got there!”

Michael smiled back. He liked Calum, but he didn’t want to talk about his tattoo, and absent-mindedly covered it with his left hand.

“I’m good, actually-” He was interrupted by Luke’s head suddenly popping out of his doorframe.

“Hi Cal! Don’t come in, I’m naked right now. Tell Ash I’ll be there in a sec.”

Calum burst out laughing and pointed to the street. “You probably don’t have anything to bring with you” he told Michael. “Wanna wait in the car with us?”

Reluctant considering Ashton was there, and silently saying goodbye to Luke’s pretty house, Michael hesitantly followed Calum to Ashton’s car. They waited a few minutes, Calum discussing with him guitar related things, while Ashton stayed in the car, the radio loudly resonating outside. Michael really liked Calum’s company and happily talked about music with him. Luke soon appeared, a big sportsbag in his hand.

“Hey! I took clothes, and snacks. You never know.”

“You know Montfort is only 50 miles away, Luke, you don’t need to bring a survival kit” Calum joked, his eyes rolling, which made Michael giggle.

They all got in the car, Ashton driving with Calum next to him, and Michael and Luke in the backseat. Michael stayed silent during the first minutes of the ride, giving Ashton the time to get on the highway. Luke explained to them everything about why they were going to Montfort, and the fact that Michael remembered playing on a stage, but soon Calum and him were talking about their TV show again. Michael was almost falling asleep, his head against the window, when he suddenly noticed a sign.

Greenfield.

He swiftly turned his head to get a second look, but the car’s speed had already made it disappear.

“WAIT!” he suddenly yelled, making everyone in the car jump, including Ashton, who almost ran the car against a speed limit sign.

“Are you fucking kidding me? Don’t yell like that, I’m driving here!” Ashton screamed, angry.

“Greenfield” Michael said hastily, turning to Luke, who looked at him with wide eyes. “Where’s Greenfield?”

“I... uh” Luke hesitated. “Why do you ask?”

Michael got cut off by Ashton, who was looking at him through the inside mirror.

“Greenfield is on the other side of the country. At least a thousand miles from here.”

“Wait, I thought we were going to Montfort” Calum said, confused.

Michael’s breath sped up. Greenfield rang a bell. Montfort didn’t.

“I need to go there. I’m sure of it.”

“I’m not driving a thousand miles for a guy who can’t even remember his last name. I said I’d drive you to Montfort, not to fucking Antarctica” Ashton said grumpily. Luke ignored him and turned to Michael.

“Are you absolutely sure Greenfield is where you’re from? But Michael, how could you have ended up in a small town a thousand miles away from where you live?”

“I don’t know, Luke” Michael felt tears forming in his eyes. He needed Luke to believe him. “I don’t know what happened, but I know I need to go to Greenfield.”

Ashton eyes went from the road, to Michael, and then to Luke in the mirror. He caught Luke’s desperate expression, and sighed. Michael held his breath, the pain in his chest intensifying.

“Fine. I guess filling up the gas tank before we left was a good decision. You guys ready for a 10 hour ride?”

“Yeah! I fucking love long car rides. We can play car games!” Calum cheered.

Michael felt a sigh of relief and closed his eyes, mumbling “Thank you” to Ashton, who answered with an awkward smile. Michael knew he was now on the right way. He took Luke’s hand in his and squeezed it, bringing it up to his chest to thank him, too. He felt so thankful, so relieved, so excited. Luke’s smile looked like it could light up the whole car.

The ride was a long one. They played Calum’s stupid car games, which essentially consisted of guessing what Calum was thinking about, but quickly got bored of it. After an hour of silence, Ashton suddenly spoke up.

“You guys wanna talk about philosophical problems? It’s always deeper than Calum’s bullshit.”

Calum didn’t even look offended, only curious to know what Ashton’s game’s rules were.

“You choose a philosophical topic and then we debate about it. I’ll start. Luke, what do you think the purpose of life is?”

Calum laughed. “Is this philosophy class again?” But Luke liked this idea, and said “To be happy.” Ashton eyebrows lifted, his eyes focused on the road. “But what’s being happy, actually?”

Michael sat up and timidly said. “Finding love?” He met Luke’s amused look and blushed. “Some people are single but happy nonetheless” Calum replied.

“True. Then I’d say the purpose of life is... being nice to people. Cause... it will always positively get back to you.” Luke stated.

“Wow... deep” Calum laughed, a satisfied look on his face. “Your turn, Luke. Ask us about a topic.”

Luke tried to think, looking out the window, his head on his fist.

“What do you think about death, Michael?”

Michael’s eyes, which were turned to the road, widened, and he froze. He had no idea. He awkwardly twisted Luke’s shirt around his finger.

“Wh- What do I have to say about death?”

“Anything. Where do you think we go when we die, for example?” Luke said, encouraging him. Michael swallowed. His chest tightened. He didn’t like this game, but he wanted to try to answer anyway.

“I have no idea, but... I remember a legend I heard somewhere. It says that when you die, you go to heaven with your soulmate. Even... if you haven’t met him on earth, I mean” Michael explained, embarrassed, assuming it would answer Luke’s question.

“Interesting” Ashton chuckled. “I personally believe you just... black out, and that’s it.”

“That’s a sad way of thinking, Ash” Calum mocked. “What about becoming a ghost? That’s cool.”

Luke giggled. They stayed silent for a while, and Michael felt like he was falling asleep. Ashton’s game hadn’t lasted that long. He must have indeed fallen asleep, because when he opened his eyes, he noticed Ashton was now driving slower, as if he was trying to park the car, and it was dark outside. Michael had his head resting on Luke’s shoulder. Flashing lights coming from the road made his heart suddenly race. He had seen those same lights in his nightmare. He sat up, making Luke jump.

“Where are we?” Michael asked worringly.

“We’re two hundred miles away from Greenfield now” Ashton uttered. “I’m stopping at a hotel for the night, I’m too tired”. He stopped the car, the pink neon sign of the motel shining on Michael’s face. They got out of the car, slowly stretching after the long ride.

“Good evening, how may I help you?” The receptionist asked when they got to the counter. She was wearing a red uniform and a matching cap.

“Do you have four individual rooms left?” Ashton asked, taking out his credit card. Luke took his arm, as a way to say ‘you’re not paying for all of us’, but Ash just ignored him.

“I’m sorry, we don’t. I can give you two double rooms, they’re the only ones we have left.”

“Fine” Ashton sighed, immediatly paying and taking the keys. He was exhausted and didn’t mind sharing a room, apparently. Silently wishing he could get a room with Luke so that he wouldn’t spend an uncomfortable night, Michael followed them to their rooms. Luke, his sports bag on his shoulder, turned around and took his hand, leading him to the second room. Apparently, they were going to take a room together. Relieved he didn’t have to awkwardly share a room with Ashton, Michael let out a sigh of relief. They said goodnight to each other, Calum almost sleepwalking at that point, impatient to get some sleep after their long day.

Luke opened the door. The room was simple, no decoration, just a double bed and a small bathroom. Michael saw the parked cars outside, out of the tiny window next to the bed. Luke turned on the little lamp on the nightsand, and sat on the bed, lifting his head up to look at Michael.

“How’s your chest?”

Michael stared at him with a blank stare. He hadn’t mentioned his bruises since the day before, at Luke’s place.

“You think I didn’t notice how every move you make makes you wince?” Luke said, as he wasn’t getting any answer from the fringed boy. “You’re in pain, Michael. Please, talk to me.”

Michael felt a tear roll down his cheeks. He couldn’t take his eyes off of Luke, and just stood there, frozen. He was so cold. All he wanted was to sleep in Luke’s warmth, and forget. Luke opened his arms, showing him to come closer. Michael stepped slowly towards the bed and laid down, his head falling on Luke’s lap.

“I just want to go home” he said, his tears falling on Luke’s jeans.

“I know” Luke whispered, gently pushing away Michael’s fringe, wiping a tear away. “You’ll be there tomorrow, I promise.”

Somehow deep in his heart, Michael wanted to go home but felt some kind of apprehension. He felt like going home would be a new start, as he didn’t remember anything from his previous life. And that thought was scary to him. He squeezed Luke’s hand, hard. He just wanted to stay like this, Luke’s hand brushing through his hair. He felt himself fall asleep again. Luke slowly got up and properly placed him on the bed, pulling the sheets over his body, and then crawled in bed against him, placing his chin over the bruised boy’s head. Holding him tight, Luke sighed and lightly wiped one last tear off of Michael’s face, his breath slowing down until they both fell asleep.

[ebp-brain]

remus/sirius + the whole gang. in the garden.

this is for @shoulderpadfoot’s birthday! have a wonderful, blooming day <3

In the years following the Second War with Voldemort, a coalition of Hogwarts students and older veterans joined together to establish the Sprouts of Hope and Growth (or SHAG) Community Garden. Any member of the magical community, no matter the nature of their involvement in the war, was invited to tend an allotment. The founders hoped that the shared goal of cultivating new life would restore relationships and heal both individual and community trauma. As of 2007, the SHAG Community Garden had twenty-two allotments, tended by upwards of sixty gardeners.

--

Late afternoon sun turned the community gardens gold. A mix of magical and Muggle plants waved in the light breeze, bobbing their heads as a gust of cool fresh air blew through the allotments. Remus straightened himself up, wiping his forehead. He took a deep breath, the treasured smell of damp soil filling his lungs. After a moment, he frowned slightly. There was something in the air he didn’t recognize.

He turned to look, and—

“Sirius!” he called, heart leaping into his chest. “It’s happening!”

Sirius looked up and over and let out a whoop. He whipped out his wand and muttered a quick Amplifying Charm. Then his voice rang out across the gardens:

“It’s happening, everyone! Come and see!”

--

Neville was on his hands and knees in the dirt, coaxing a shy Shrivelfig plant back into health. Although the Hogwarts greenhouses were home to Professor Longbottom’s most exotic plants, his plot at the garden was overflowing with bright, beautiful fruits and flowers. A Flitterbloom reached curious tendrils out to Neville as he bent over the Shrivelfig, and even the Muggle marigolds seemed to turn toward him, vying for his attention. Neville was the first to realize what Sirius’ message meant, and he carefully but quickly righted the Shrivelfig and stood up, wiping his hands excitedly on his trousers. He hurried over to Remus and Sirius’ plot, plants reaching toward him as he passed.

--

Tonks was lazily charming some daffodils various colors when they heard Sirius’ call. “Merlin, he’s so dramatic,” they mumbled, and turned the flowers a violent shade of orange. “Coming!” they called back, and began to make their way on over.

--

Ginny and Luna were kissing under their Dirigible Plums, Ginny with a watering can in one hand and a fistful of Luna’s hair in the other. They both found that sometimes the only way they got things done in the garden was to multitask. Ginny had gotten surprisingly good at aiming fertilizer pellets without looking (probably all the Quidditch training) and Luna sometimes thought up fantastical new names for the hybrid plants she was cultivating with Neville’s help while she and Ginny were lazily making out amongst the weeds. They pulled back from their kiss when they heard Sirius’ voice.

“Oh!” said Luna, wide-eyed. “I think I can smell it!”

Ginny sniffed, and her eyes widened. “Oh yes,” she said. “I can too.”

--

Rubeus Hagrid was constructing a Bowtruckle habitat when he heard Sirius’ call. Strictly speaking, the garden was not meant as a home for magical creatures, but they looked the other way in Hagrid’s case. The large man rubbed his hands together excitedly, stuffed two salamanders and a slug into his capacious pockets, and hurried off.

--

Parvati Patil, Lavender Brown, and Pansy Parkinson glanced at each other—all three held turnips in their hands—and then, as one, said “Oh!”

“I’ll call Padma and Cho,” Parvati said. “They’ll want to be here for this.”

--

Hermione put down her checklist as soon as she heard Sirius call out, making sure not to get any soil on her carefully prepared list of instructions for growing native British herbs and flowers. Ron’s sunburned face lit up and he grinned at Hermione from under his floppy hat.

“This’ll be exciting!”

“You know it’ll take a whole day,” Hermione reminded him. “It won’t bloom fully for hours.” But she was smiling, too, and Ron took her hand as they left their plot.

--

“Harry!” Hermione called as they walked past the rows of beansprouts Harry had become very good at growing in the last eight years. “It’s happening!”

“Where is he?” Ron muttered, glancing past Harry’s big leafy cabbages and giant sunflowers.

Hermione caught a glimpse of movement behind a Flitterby bush. “Harry?”

Harry was indeed behind the bush, but not alone. He was talking in low voices with Draco Malfoy, across the fence that separated their allotments, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“You’re never going to get that rhubarb to grow if you don’t let me help,” he said.

Draco raised an eyebrow. “Since when are you the green thumb here?”

“You’ve seen my cabbages! They’re enormous!”

“Yes, Longbottom did a very good job with them.”

“Harry,” Hermione said again, and Harry and Draco whipped around to look at her, faint blushes rising to their cheeks. Hermione managed to suppress a smirk, though Ron fared less well.

“Come on,” he said, coughing to cover his smile. “Sirius says it’s happening.”

--

Remus and Sirius stood with their arms around each other while everyone arrived, watching the green tip of a massive plant just starting to push its way out of a bulbous base that looked a little like a tightly furled leaf of lettuce.

“Amorphophallus titanum,” Neville said admiringly. “Its very first bloom. Incredible.”

“I get why they call it the ‘corpse flower,’” Ginny said, wrinkling her nose. “God, it stinks.”

“I get why they call it amorphoPHALLUS,” Tonks added, eyeing the tip of the plant’s lumpy inner growth as it emerged from the leaflike outer shell.

“Blooms once every seven years, is it?” Hagrid asked Remus and Sirius.

“Seven to ten,” Remus replied.

“Good,” said Harry, making a face as he got a particularly potent whiff.

“It is putrid.”

“It’s amazing.”

“Amazing. And putrid.”

“Dad’ll want to see this—can you send him a message?”

Remus smiled at Sirius as the chatter continued around them. Sirius smiled back.

“We did it,” Remus murmured in his ear. “Our very first corpse baby.”

Sirius snorted. “I never thought I’d see the day.”

“No,” said Remus, pulling Sirius closer, arm tight around his waist. “Neither did I.”

And they stayed there for the next twenty-four hours, visitors coming and going, bringing food and drinks and more people, all of them sitting in the grass and laughing and talking and plugging their noses and watching the corpse flower bloom.

[babyspiderling]

Hearts Far From Home Part 2

Big ole time skip because I don’t want to retell the entirety of Infinity War and just add Reader into specific scenes. 

Part 1

Part 3

We all hide on the deserted planet. Dr. Strange being the only one visible. As the “Mad Titan” appears through a portal of some kind, I can’t help but whisper “He looks like a grape ass bitch to me.” to Peter who crouches down next to me. As we wait, I explore the pockets of my suit, finding seeds and pods from different plants. I use these to grow my garden, seeing no plant life here on this planet, only dust and metal surrounding us. They grow silently and quickly, placing roots deep in the ground. We hear “I think you’ll find our will equal to yours.” from Strange, that’s our que. Mr. Stark pushes a large structure on top of the thing,Thanos destroying it and throws it back at Tony. As Peter webs the grapes face, I sprint in, using the plant life around me to grow large. I throw my arms out and my garden charges forward. It wraps around his hand, growing thick and strong, keeping him from closing his fist. Peter flies through portals yelling “Magic!” “Magic with a kick-” Thanos grabs My Peter and slams him to the ground. “Insect” I throw more and more trees and plant life at him. “He’s an ARACHNID!” He throws Peter and goes after me. I throw up a wall of full grown trees, their roots deep and strong. He bulldozes through them, continuing his chase. I use my vines to stop pull me up and out of reach as Iron Man starts his fire attack on the Titan. 

We all secure Thanos to the ground, as Mantis uses her power to subdue him. My vines secure his free hand to the ground as Stark does his best to pry off the gauntlet. As it finally comes loose bit by bit, Peter Q interrogates the Titan we all struggle to hold. He hits Thanos with his gun, making Mantis lose her hold on the purple thing. As Thanos comes too, he kicks us all away. I scream as he brings down the moon onto Tony, still flying through the air. Peter webs Mantis to a structure, and then grabs me. “I’ve got ya.” From our perch, we all see the battle happening between Thanos and Tony. I curl into Peter, unable to watch, yet unable to tear my eyes away from the scene. 

Thanos stabs Mr. Stark with his own blade, I can’t help but release a blood curdling scream of “No!” I struggle against Peter, trying to get to him. “Peter, I can heal him, I can fix this! You’ve got to let me heal him! I have to help him!” He just grasps me tighter burying himself into my neck. I barely hear Strange make a deal with the devil. To spare Tony’s life in return for the time stone. “Peter, please, let me tell Strange about my powers, please, we can win this. I can’t let him get the stone, I can’t let Strange give away the stone.” “Y/N,” his voice cracks, “Y/N, we can’t get to Tony if Thanos is here. And you can’t heal him if he’s dead. Please Y/N, Strange has seen all of the scenarios and knows what has to happen in order to win.” Relenting, I slack against Peters suit. I sob into Peter, knowing this is what must be done. He is gone and for a few minutes we stand and look in shock. We, we lost, I can’t believe it’s over. I rush to Tony, my hair already beginning to glow and float as I ready my healing power. I rest my hands on his stomach and hum. It doesn’t activate my powers, but it helps me control them. As I feel my hair slowly drop back down to my shoulders, I know that it’s all done. “Anybody else hurt?” Mantis simply says, “Something’s happening.” We watch as she turns to dust in the wind. One by one our group starts to disappear. I look down at my hair, and notice it has started on me. “Peter! Peter, I’m going!” As my legs go out from under me, Peter catches me. “No, no no, Y/N. Not yet, I can’t lose you, I can’t lose my best friend.” Reaching up to touch his face, I smile up at him. “Peter, it’s ok. Don’t be sad, we’ll meet again. I love you.” Soon everything goes black. 

2023 

I opened my eyes, and I’m back on Titan. But I thought I died, or became dust? I look up at the sound of Peters voice and am tackled into a bone crushing hug from the spider-boy. “Peter! What happened? I thought I died?” He holds me tight for a minute, like he can’t believe I’m real. “Oh my god Y/N, I thought you were gone and then I feel something go wrong in me, and, and I was gone too. I can’t find Mr. Stark, or that blue lady. If they were gone too wouldn’t they be here?” At this Mr. Strange walks up to all of us. “Guys, it’s been five years since the battle here on Titan. But for us, it’s been only seconds.” We all line up behind Mr. Strange as he opens up a portal to the battlefield. I’m not sure if it’s Earth or not since it’s dark, and full of destruction. 

I use my vines to swing out of the portal and look at Peter, my “Iron Ivy” mask tucked into my suit, preferring my domino mask to the over the head mask. I fight the monsters around me, crushing them with vines and trees until I hear Peter saying that he couldn’t handle what was going on. I raced over to help him, but am beat there by a glowing woman with close cropped hair. “Hey Peter Parker, got something for me?” He hands over the gauntlet and we continue the fight, having each others backs and working in tandem. Soon everyone has their attention on Thanos and Mr. Stark. I see tony snap his fingers and Thanos disintegrates. But Tony is hurt too badly from the stones and the snap itself. I run to my mentor, “Mr. Stark, Tony. I can heal you, let me heal you. Don’t leave us, please. Peter, he needs you.” With a smile he shakes his head. “It’s time for me to go. I did what I had to and everything will be fine.” With that, I shakily let Ms. Potts and Peter say their peace. 

I am numb at the funeral. I am barely alive enough to grow a bundle of black and red roses, yellow carnations and a single sunflower to lay at Mr. Starks grave. I leave the funeral eventually though I can’t quite remember how I got home. I slid my domino mask on again. “Hey R.O.S.E, can you play all Tonys audio files?” I get nothing in response, I slide on the Iron Ivy mask and try again. This time I get broken audio. I keep trying, the audio is getting more and more distorted each time I request. I whip off the mask so I can cry without suffocating. I don’t know how long I stay like that, Peter eventually coming over to check on me, and holding me until it’s over. “Pete, I just, I just don’t understand. I could have healed him, I could have let him live. Why didn’t he let me let him LIVE?” Sniffling himself, Peter shakes his head, not sure why either. We hold each other, growing like the vines in my room, tangled together. 

[mydearestreaderfanfics]

Love is in Bloom (Satoshi Isshiki x Reader)

Warnings: injury

Word Count: 1,210

Prompt/Request: N/A

Summary: In a world where soulmates grow flowers from where there soulmate gets hurt, you find yourself trying to understand the floweres. Perhaps they might just lead you to your soulamte.

Author: Mod Alex

The first time you can remember truly experiencing your soulmark was in middle school. If you’d had one earlier you couldn’t remember it. It was 5th period and you were doodling as the teacher lectured when you felt it- a burning sensation like you’d never felt before began creeping from the back of your hand over to the side of your hand. A quick glance down assured you of the blood orange tinted begonias that had begun to spread. Tears had pricked at your eyes and you asked to be excused to the restroom in hopes that no one would notice. You’d been worried then, not because you didn't know what was going on, no you’d seen your parents bare each others scratches as flower buds before. No, what scared you was how big the wound seemed, and god, how much it hurt. How could your soulmate stand it? How did they get hurt? You wanted to clasp them close so they didn’t feel as alone as you did here in the cold bathroom stall with sunset colored flowers bursting from the back of your hand. You’d felt the pain they had, and as you later found out, the flowers had been trying to tell you what had happened to them.

The next memorable time your soulmark showed up was when they hurt their palm, the same hand as last time. It was a bright cheery Calendula this time. At first, you thought it was a daisy. The pain was different this time too, the burning feeling wasn’t there, instead, it felt like the time you’d landed on a rock and slashed open your knee. Had they been scared then? Did all of your blood translate to bright yellow flowers to them then? I sat brushing my fingers over the delicate petals, plucking one with curiosity. Nothing seemed to change. I wondered then something I’d never really cared to think about before- what did the flower even mean. Mayhaps it was just random?

You found yourself studying flowers as you got older. You studied them ruthlessly, begging them to share their secrets with you. After many years they did. That’s what got you here you suppose. In this strange school filled with strange people. They all had different things that they study with the same rigor you do. Some found themselves in spices, others gastronomy, but none of them studied the flowers, not like you anyways. You wanted to heal your soulmate back then but you hadn’t known how. Now you could heal everyone with your cooking, but still, your soulmate was just out of reach. Where could they be?

“(Y/N)-chan, I’ll show you your room.” “Oh, thank you Megumi.” She left you be so you could get settled into your new room. It wasn’t much, but you could already tell it would be home. No one else was here, Megumi had just waited up so she could be here to greet you. You could already tell you two would be fast friends. “Tadokoro, could you come out here for a second?” A warm voice called from outside and you padded over to the window to see who it had come from. “Wha-?! Is he naked?!” A giggle pulled you away from the window. “Don’t worry, (Y/N)-chan, that’s just Isshiki-senpai. His attire might be, um, a little odd, but I promise he’s actually really nice. You should come meet him.” “If you say so.” You trudged along behind her to the expertly kept garden in the backyard of the dorm. “Ah, Tadokoro there you are, could you help me- oh, hello! You must be the new student.” How was it that his smile seemed to be just as bright and warm as the sun overhead. You turned your head, blushing. “Yeah, that’s me.” Sensing your slight discomfort, Megumi stepped in, bless her and her kindness. As they talked, you crept away to inspect the garden. No flowers. How unfortunate. Ah, but there was a good deal of other plants. It really was quite impressive if you were being honest. Having noticed your absence, Isshiki came over to you. “I’m quite proud of it, I actually spend most of my time here. I have to skip class most of the time for that but...” “Wait, you just skip class?” He smiled that same melting smile at you and you couldn’t help but think he was a bit like a sunflower. Strong, bright, and cheery. “If I didn’t the garden wouldn’t be this well tended to.” “But what about your classes?” “Isshiki-senpai, watch out!” “Huh?” He turned just in time for the handle of the hoe to come into contact with his forehead, the force of which caused him to stumble backward and fall onto his bum with an ‘oof’. “Oh my gosh, I-I’m so sorry! I tripped! Are you okay, senpai?” You knelt next to him to assess the damage as Megumi fretted. “Megumi, if you’d please get the first aid kit.” “O-of course.” You pulled his head onto your lap so you could more easily help him, it also gave him a solid surface to rest against that wasn't the hard ground. His forehead was swelling quickly and there was a small trickle of blood. “I need to check if you have a concussion, do you feel dizzy?” “No.” “Nausea?” “No.” “Disoriented or fatigued?” “No and no.” “Any sort of a headache?” “Well it hurts, but no more than it should.” “That’s good if you’d stay still for a moment so I can check your eyes.” His eyes were a shockingly beautiful cyan, but thankfully his pupils were both the same undilated size. “I think you'll be okay, we just have to get the bleeding to stop and then try and get the swelling to go down. It could have been wor- why are you laughing?” Isshiki was indeed giggling gleefully. He raised his hand to gently brush the tangerine colored petals that had begun to form over the center of your forehead. “So you’re the one.” In your haste to help him, you hadn't even noticed the dull ache that had spread over your head. Your own hand flew up to your forehead and you smiled. “I guess I am.”

Bonus:

“And if you mix in just a little bit of water with the flower petals after you've dried them out you can make a poultice.” You applied the mixture to his wound. “Butterfly weed is excellent for bringing down swelling and aiding in the healing process.” “Hmm? You didn’t even have to look up what the plant was?” “Of course not. I learned the use behind basically every flower. I had a lot of hands-on practice, y’know since you seemed to get hurt so much.” You jutted your hip out to look more scolding than you really were. In all honesty, you were just glad you’d finally found him so you could help. He smiled apologetically at you. “I’m sorry you've had to deal with so many flowers.” You waved your hand dismissively and went to sit next to him. He pulled you into a side hug and you snuggled closer enjoying the newfound affection. “Don’t be, I’m just glad I finally found you.”

[Author's Note: Medical uses of flowers in the story are as follows- Begonia's help heal burns, Calendula's are antihemorrhagics, and Butterfly Weed helps ease swelling and help in the healing process.]