#if you like oz books you should definitely check this one out

[patheticbatman]

At the end of @iowriteswords’s book, Shards of Glass, Gerda takes a picture of all her Fairy friends as proof of her time spent there. I decided to draw it!

Left to right is The Newspaper Princess, Cecelia, The Prince, Kai* and Gerda.

*his eyes are closed because he can’t see very well without his glasses.

[diamondheart22]

Bore, Bored, All boarded up.

There is a particular sadness about moving. I begrudgingly moved out of my first Los Angeles apartment over the weekend. Actually it was bittersweet. I discovered that I feel most home in California for whatever reason. Does everything have to have a reason, anyhow?There is a particular sadness about a lot of things really….babies with cancer, neglected dogs, dead grass, war… it is important to remember that sadness is not a visitor. It is always there. We are the visitors.

I think that human suffering is really not that complicated or interesting. It is sort of all the same. After Lori Laughlin’s daughter had that big college scandal she made a tik tok about drowning. Whether the weatha’ is you’re 30 feet under or 33,000 feet under.. it is all drowning. The human experience has not changed much ever really and the emotion wheel, like the color wheel.. spins static.

Wheels, wheels, the wheels on the bus go round and round and I have discovered the perfect sleepy time cocktail: 200mg of magnesium glycinate and 100-300mg of L-Theanine. This will not cause any funky dreams and it will not leave you feeling hungover in the morning. My English is so improper, but I am not in the habit of following the rules….. especially not syntax ones.

In other news, I am about to finish another “stupid,” “dumb or maybe just happy” romance novel. There is something about the hot sand and eternal Florida sunshine that makes me want to read books with cartoon character lover covers. The tropes are overdone and every book ends the same way.. they end up together. I am a sucker for the arc; the point of ritual death and inevitable resurrection is some sort of crack to me and Lord knows I definitely cannot and should not ever do crack.

I get so bored at night here. My room is always very neat and my to do list and gullet very to-done by around 7:30pm and I have to find ways to entertain myself until my eventual descent into play-dead time which is around 10:30-11pm. I have to write a 10 paragraph essay this week for my meditation teacher and I’ve yet to begin so I suppose I could work on that instead, but I have a lot of hang-ups with starting essays. I have to be in the right place at the right time with the right tools and the right amount of caffeine. It also helps if the flags are at mast-height of my choosing, the drift is perfect, and the smell of the air is crisper than Mizz. Granny Smith on my lips. Once I begin the words sort of just fall out of me, but I have a hard time with the whole business of beginning. Instead I am checking my email a lot and trying to not think about people who have me blocked on instagram. Are they ok? I am “literally harmless.” I am doing things like writing “drink 128 oz of water” on my to-do lists because it is fun to check boxes off a list. I am also making collages. I am not a scrapbooker.. I am a “mixed media artist.”

I got a new pen from the Paper Source in that one ritzy Marina Del Rey plaza with fountains. It has a smiling green cat on the top and it’s tail is the mechanism that retracts the ball point.. this is very adorable to me. I read something recently that said all writers sound the same now and that made me upset. Do all writers get as excited as I do about new adorable writing utensils? Do I sound like all writers? Whatever. I literally could not care less. That is something people often say incorrectly. “I could care less.” And they really mean they could NOT care less although I suppose they really always could care less.. so perhaps I am just wrong about everything and I do sound the same as “all writers.” Did any of that blabber make sense? What is making sense? What is sense? Eyes, ears, nose, mouth, fingers, toes.. in the sand and in my mouth yesterday please but only if I say so.

I am listening to a lot of indie music that all sounds vaguely similar. It is kind of sedating which is good for me and my beans right now. I like lyrics that do not mean anything or if they do you really cannot make it out. Like the sort of avant-grade fragmentary essays that get picked up by literary magazines… bonus points if accompanied by contemporary art that also makes no sense. Am I too basic and stupid to be into that sort of stuff? It all just feels like its trying so hard to look like it is not trying. I just know that someone slaved over it and it comes together looking like a mismatched, very overpriced sheet set… Egyptian thread count 6666. This here is actually Italian thread count 333… salmon colored (scary) and a little bit scratchy.. but endearing and like.. too delicate to put in a dryer…also… stained. I love a fudged up sentence with too many ellipsis. I just love dots omg.

I love you and I always mean it.

Best,

Jill

[kiruamon]

Teacher-AU Part 8!

So what else happened in the first half of the year?

There was this one time when a (completely normal) cat got lost on the school grounds.

One of the students had told Teach that he had seen a cat on the west side of campus.

Oz was quite worried about the little animal and whether something might happen to it, since Spooky High is simply not the safest place for a living creature.

Besides, Oz could hardly resist the temptation to get the chance to pet a real cat for the first time in ages. (Valerie or Juan were definitely out of the question, even if the latter didn't mind a few pats from classmates. But as a teacher, Oz could hardly do such a thing to a student without coming across as a total creep).

He searches for the animal by crawling through all kinds of bushes until he spots it on a lower tree, still inside the barrier.

So Oz tried to get the cat - that was definitely not a monster, nor otherwise magical or a student of the school - down from the said tree.

With a little difficulty, because climbing trees is not one of his strong points, he managed to reach the pet.

And just at that moment Damien walks by and sees his weird teacher stuck in a damn tree and calls for him because he wants to know what's going on.

Long story short, Oz falls out of the tree along with the cat when he hears Damien calling for him.

And lands softer than expected.

The demon prince has caught him together with the animal.

Which was more of a reflex than a planned action on Damien's part.

For Damien, in retrospect, it's surprising how light Teach actually was; he clearly would have estimated the larger monster to be heavier.

Oz, on the other hand, is a little embarrassed about it, both because he fell out of the tree while trying to help the cat and because Damien caught him.

Oz tries to lighten things up a bit with a joke: It looks like you just made quite a catch.

Both Damien and Oz are only more embarrassed after that line.

Which is why Damien simply drops Teach on the spot.

Luckily, shortly after, they come to talk about the cat in Teach's arms.

Damien also learns what a huge cat lover his teacher actually is.

Even if he doesn't understand what he likes so much about the fur ball, it's a little cute to see Teach so excited.

Later Teach asks Vicky, Amira and Brian for help in finding the owner of the animal.

Since he can't leave the school grounds, Amira and Vicky take the cat to the nearest vet to have it checked to see if it's chipped.

Meanwhile, Brian and Teach use the library computers to search for reports of missing cats in the area.

Brian asks what Teach plans to do if the cat doesn't have an owner or the owner doesn't respond.

Oz is not sure if he should keep the cat in such a case, but Spooky High is not the best place to keep such a fragile creature.

The decision is more or less taken from Oz in the end, as it turns out that the cat already has an owner and can be returned to him after half a day.

Oz is definitely happy to be able to give the cat back to the family that is looking for it, even if he has to admit to being a little sad about it.

At one point during a meeting between Vicky and Teach at the library, the following question also came up on Vicky's behalf:

"Do you have family?" Vicky couldn't remember Teach ever mentioning his parents or any siblings. Her teacher shook his head gently in response to her question as he placed a book back on one of the rarely used bookshelves. "No blood relatives, if that's what you mean," he said, glancing briefly at her and then back at the tightly huddled spines of books in front of him. "Oh." Vicky hesitated for a moment. Should she drop the subject? She gave herself a little push. Surely Teach would tell her if he didn't want to talk to her about it. Besides, she often felt she still knew far too little about Teach. So, go for it! "Then what about non-blood relatives?" "There are actually a few monsters I consider my family." So he did have some family after all! "Glad to hear that. I'm sure they're super nice. I mean, otherwise you wouldn't call them your family, would you?" Teach peeked over his shoulder at her and smiled a little. "Yes, they're the most warm hearted monsters I've ever met. I would do anything for them... " Although he smiled at her, his expression somehow seemed a bit sad now. She furrowed her eyebrows slightly in concern. Normally, Teach was much more cheerful. But... somewhere there seemed to be a catch in this story.

"Do they ever come here to visit?" She noticed Teach's hands tighten this time, and his smile faltered. He shook his head wordlessly and Vicky looked at him in concern. But... but if they were his family, why didn't they come here? She was already about to ask this question, which was burning on her tongue. Teach seemed to notice that his mood was dragging her down, because when he spoke again, he sounded calmer again and his face didn't let her guess so easily what was going on inside him. "I'm sure they would if they knew I was here. But just as it is not possible for me to reach them at the moment, it is not possible for them to find me the other way around." Again, a small pause. "... Please don't worry about that." But how could she not worry, when he said something so sad? She definitely couldn't leave it like that! There was no way! "Teach. You know, if there's anything we can do to help you, feel free to let us know." Vicky was sure that both Brian and Amira would be as willing as she was to help Teach. Like with the cat that had gotten lost on the school grounds just a month ago! They had all pulled on the same rope then, too. Gently, the white eyes looked at her. "Thank you. That's very sweet," for a moment her history teacher felt silent again, before adding more hesitantly: "I think... there might come a day when I could need someone to just listen to me like today. So if... I mean just in case... it's really alright if- " "No problem whatsoever! Anytime." Vicky interrupted him before he could even begin to take back his request. Teach almost looked a little ashamed. Maybe because he was embarrassed as someone older to ask someone younger if he be allowed to cry on her or the others' shoulder sometime. But Vicky understood. Everyone needed someone to talk to sometimes. No matter if adult or not.

And then there was a incident with a bear:

The color gang had made a trip to the nearby forest of the school. And let's say there's certainly a reason why normally no students go into the forest. Either you come across some weird characters who adore Scott from afar or, like this time, a real and extremely bad-tempered bear.

Oz had actually just taken a walk around campus to stretch his legs when he hears the loud screams of his old friends coming from the thicket of the forest. Already in a panic, he approaches the direction from which he hears the voices to the very edge of the barrier that holds him captive. His eyes are already restlessly searching the depths of the forest as the three familiar figures of his friends break through the undergrowth. Closely followed by what is probably the biggest bear Oz has ever seen. (And he has seen quite a few bears, both during summer camp and in his long life. And sometimes closer than he'd like). The color gang whooshes past him, calling out to him to get out of there as quickly as possible, too. For a split second, Oz even considers doing just that. However, a bear running amok, who is also still after his friends, is not something he necessarily needs to have at Spooky High either. So Oz puts himself in the middle between the giant beast and his friends. As the personification of fear and a with a body not necessarily submitted to the laws of physics, Oz makes sure that both his weight and his strength are increased and actually stops the bear with his bare hands. His phobias also did some support work during the fight. After all, they too felt his desire to help their friends.

The bear is downed quite quickly and the school authorities are informed about the incident. (The next day they served bear meat in the canteen).

The event left quite an impression on the three friends. And a certain demon who happened to be watching the incident from a good distance away. Oz was rather embarrassed afterwards to have acted in such a brute manner, when that is not usually his style.

But sometimes the simplest solution was just the best. Probably the years with Damien had rubbed off on him a bit.

Oz had to answer some questions from Vicky and Amira later on. Why his phobias suddenly formed in such a strange way. Whether he is always so strong. If he has already taken on a rhinoceros. Or a dragon. Oz is really uncomfortable being the center of attention because of this action. But he is glad that nothing worse happened and that everyone got away with just a little scare.

Other than that:

Oz spends December 21 (the birthday his friends set before the catastrophe for him when he told them that he didn't has one) like any other day, with classes and his usual routine. In the years before he became a teacher at Spooky High, he had almost forgotten when his birthday was. Coach was the first to ask him about it again and has reminded him every year since that 12/21 is Oz's special day. Oz is very thankful for the overwhelming congratulations his work colleague sends his way every year. Apart from Coach's annual congratulations and the homemade protein powder he gets from the gym teacher, Oz doesn't expect anything else to change. But this year he has probably made his bill without the cook. Vicky has finished her homework and found out about the birthdays of all her teachers. In addition, Coach might have slipped out some more private information as well.

_

"Vicky? Is it really necessary to blindfold me?" "Absolutely! Don't worry about it!" replied Vicky cheerfully, hoping that her teacher didn't suspect anything yet about the surprise that was waiting for him. She had even taken the trouble to make tiny blindfolds for Teach's little friends to wear so they could be surprised as well! "But I'm pretty sure this is the third time we've passed the northern staircase." Teach had noticed that? "You're just imagining it~," Vicky stated with an attempt to sound lighthearted. Oh dear, were Amira and Brian still not finished? It was getting harder and harder to keep Teach busy for much longer! Finally, the rescuing ring of her cell phone went off. She stopped in the middle of the hallway, which caused Teach, whom she was holding by the hand, to almost run into her from behind. "Hihi, sorry. I just need to check this real quick. Just a second!" Quickly, she glanced at her phone's screen. >> All set. Ready to go. << Finally! Vicky immediately put her cell phone away again. "We can go on. Now we are almost there!" she now assured her teacher with much more confidence. Oooooh, this was going to be so good! She was already looking forward to the face Teach would make!

Oz wasn't quite sure what game was being played here. Vicky had made him blindfold himself with some flimsy excuse and to follow her around the school in circles for a good half hour. It could be a joke, he mused. Whereby it would be a rather strange joke and not quite what he would normally expect from his friend. Maybe there was some reason Vicky, Brian and Amira wanted to keep him busy for some time? Maybe to be able to sneak into the teachers' room unnoticed? Oz could imagine that more easily. Even though it might be strange, Oz decided to continue playing this game. After all, he was quite sure that neither Vicky nor Amira nor Brian meant him any harm with their action. At least Oz believed that the three of them worked together on this one. "Very well. Then lead me on," he agreed lightly and a little bit curiously and let himself be pulled along behind the much smaller monster.

"She should be here any minute," Brian mumbled, taking one last look to see if everything was ready. "Then I'll turn off the lights now." No sooner had Amira said that than she walked over to the nearby light switch of the rearranged classroom Coach had provided them and glanced over to him once more. "Okay," Brian gave her a brief nod, positioned himself as planned, and gave Amira a thumbs-up to indicate that he was ready. The next moment it was pitch dark in the room. Or rather it should have been. It was dark except for the rather flashy and brightly blazing flame on Amira's head, which made his fiery friend curse under her breath as she also noticed the flaw in their plan. "Did you just laugh?" she asked him with a low but audible huff. "Not at all," Brian only replied, while trying not to laugh again and merely not to sound too amused as he watched the clearly visible flame illuminating Amira's outline, which she desperately tried to shield somehow with her hands. "Just stand a little more to the left. Yeah... there. That should do it." That way his friend wasn't quite so in the door's line of sight, and the light from her fire didn't give her away so easily. "Huff. I definitely should have switched with Vicky," he heard her mutter before she fell silent. Footsteps could be heard outside the door. That had to be Vicky and Teach.

"Two more steps forward," Vicky instructed Oz meanwhile, whereupon he promptly bumped his nose against the closed door. "Oops, only one and a half steps I guess. Sorry." "N-no harm done," Oz muttered, rubbing his nose a little and taking another half step back. He felt Vicky push past him and could hear a door open right in front of them. Again she took his hand and pulled him behind her. Apparently this time they were entering a room. Oz wasn't one hundred percent sure where they were, but guessed it was a classroom. Or one of the storage closets. There was a fifty-fifty chance of that. "You can take off the blindfold now!", Vicky let go of his hand and sounded so excited that it made Oz automatically smile, even though his small friend probably couldn't see that because of the blindfold. A bit excited, he lifted his hands and pushed the dark red piece of cloth upwards to finally be able to open his eyes.

His eyes had not yet adjusted to the darkness in the room when suddenly two shots with the sound of small explosions fell. In an instant his body moved all by itself and was about to make an attempt to protect his friend by putting himself between Vicky and the supposed projectiles. The light in the room abruptly came to life, blinding him for a second or two. But instead of the expected bullets, he saw colorful strips of paper and brightly colored confetti slowly trickling down over his head. It hadn't been gunshots. Oz stared in surprise at the familiar faces of Brian and Amira, who had ambushed him here in the classroom decorated with paper garlands and balloons. Another pop sounded behind him, coming from Vicky as she scattered the contents of a third party cracker over his head, making him look up at the girl that was bouncing up and down with a grin and beaming with joy. Oz blinked. He was having a hard time processing what he was seeing here. Even his phobias looked plenty perplexed under the colorful confetti and streamers, some of which had spread over them. With colorful chalk had been written next to some cheerful drawings in large and not to be overlooked letters Happy Birthday Teach! on the blackboard. How did they know that... today was his birthday? And... and why had they gone through such a hassle?

"Best wishes for your birthday Teach!" "Happy Birthday, Birthday Boy." "Congratulations Teach." The congratulations came a little out of sync. Vicky and Amira were the loudest, as one might expect. But there was no difference in the warmth and sincerity that each congratulation brought and which resonated in the voices of his old friends. Impossible. Was he dreaming? Had he fallen asleep at some point during the day, even though he had not been able to sleep since that gruesome day? "I... you... ", Oz didn't know what to say. He simply didn't have the words at the moment. And he clearly hadn't expected anything like this. How was he supposed to react now? "There was no way to stop the girls," Brian rumbled softly with the hint of a smile on his lips. "Come on~ You're acting like you didn't agree to Vicky's idea right away, too." "Never said otherwise," the zombie boy gave a simple shrug of his shoulders and a low, deep chuckle. Vicky scurried past him and over to Brian and Amira. There was still a happy and beaming smile on her face. "It's not much, but we really wanted to give you a little something," she started to explain, while he himself was still way too overwhelmed by the situation he just found himself in, which didn't seem quite real to him.

"After all, you pretty much saved our butts the other day," Amira added, likely hinting at the whole bear incident. "But it's not just because of that! We planned this surprise anyway," Vicky hastily admitted, while she pulled out a gift wrapped in yellow paper from under one of the tables and handed it to Teach with an look of expectation. Hopefully he would like it! "I mean, we know you can't leave this stupid barrier." After all, Teach had already demonstrated that to them once more than vividly enough. "And you had also mentioned that you can't meet your family at the moment... "

"We thought no one should have to spend their birthday alone," Brian helped his two friends out. Looking at their teacher's stunned face, he could pretty well imagine that Teach probably hadn't necessarily expected all this. Most likely, he would have spent the day like any other without their interference. Although Brian didn't tend to interfere much with the lives of his fellow humans or monsters, he felt it was okay to make an exception today at least. Teach just seemed to be the kind of guy who sometimes needed a little push to find happiness. In fact, he liked that Teach was usually so modest. But, today was really not the day for that.

"Besides, let’s be real. You're already kind of a part of us anyway," Amira grinned a little as she said out loud what everyone here was thinking. As often as they got to talk with Teach outside of class by now, their teacher, as weird as it was, could somehow already be considered a friend. "Who else are Vicky and Brian going to talk an ear off to about all their books and comics? If you don't handle it, I'll end up having to deal with it again!" teased Amira, half-jokingly.

He had not thought... he had not dared to hope that... oh... oh no. He didn't mean to cry. But the tears just ran freely. Which caused the three young monsters in front of him to look at him, first a little startled, then concerned. "Teach? Teach! Are you all right? Are you hurt anywhere?", Vicky immediately wanted to know and looked at him out of big blue eyes. And not just Vicky. Amira and Brian also exchanged a few worried glances with each other. But he couldn't stop it. He was far too happy for that. How could he not be, now that he heard what those three wonderful monsters thought about him? "No. No, it's not that," gently his fingers pressed into the yielding gift in his hands that he had not yet managed to unwrap. Truth be told, he was already feeling plenty gifted at this point. Simply because his friends had thought of him. Because they had thought of a birthday for someone they had known for less than half a year. Oz had not expected that they would celebrate together again. Carefully, he wiped the back of his hand across his eyes to shoo away the tears that took away his vision. "On the contrary. I... I thank you all. From the bottom of my heart. I... didn't imagined that you... that you would go so far because of me," he admitted honestly and a bit shy. His friends gave each other a quick glance before breathing a visible sigh of relief and smiles reappeared on their faces again. "Oh man! Don't scare us like that!", Amira scolded him gently. Oz's heart warmed to hear the courageous djinn talk to him in such a manner. "I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to," he affirmed with a sheepishly smile. "Whew! But Teach! You still have to open your present! You know, we all worked on it together! So hurry up and open it!", Vicky seemed like she couldn't wait. Better he didn't hold her off any longer. So instead of apologizing further, Oz nodded in agreement and gently removed first the cute bow and then, with extreme care, the wrapping paper. Even before that, he had somehow noticed that whatever it was felt soft and like something cloth-like. A scarf or something, perhaps?

Oz's eyes widened as he completely freed what he had thought was a scarf now from the paper. "It's probably not as good as a real one," Vicky added slowly. A homemade plush cat. "But you seemed to really really like cats. That's why we figured if you can't keep a real cat here, at least maybe something that can act as a bit of a replacement?" Oz let his fingers run almost fearfully over the plush, soft fabric of the stuffed animal. "Do you like it?" Oz looked up. Into three hopeful and so, so familiar faces. At that moment, he would have loved nothing more than to fall around the necks of these three wonderful monsters in front of him. Those dear friends of him that he also used to call family. But he stayed where he was, unable to move. "It is the most beautiful gift you could possibly give me." For once in a long time, he felt like he belonged. It wasn't like it used to be yet. Still far from it. But maybe someday... "Thank you so very much."

_

Oz is basically just happy that his friends had the wish to make him happy. This alone was the best present ever for him. And definitely the best birthday he's had in ages.

The color gang later told Teach how they got the information about his birthday.

As it turned out, Brian did the design and sewing pattern, Amira picked out the fabrics and also got the stuff for the decorations, and Vicky did the sewing together and stuffing of the plush animal.

Oz continued to hold and carry the plushie around for the rest of the day.

He often takes it out of his void during the night - when no one is at school - to look at it and hold it close to him. It definitely helps him relax.

His phobias also like to use it for cuddling and have taken a liking to the lovingly crafted plush cat just as he has.

Amira once asked Teach in half a joke if he had named the plush toy yet.

She was quite surprised when he replied in all seriousness that he had named it Clover. Oz thought the name was appropriate because it made him think of a four-leaf clover and the day he got Clover was a really lucky day for him.

I think with this part we also officially settled the question if Oz has a mouth in my stories or not./D

Therefore: Yes, he does, if he wants.

Usually he doesn't show it, since the sounds that come out of his mouth are not only extremely unpleasant to painful for most creatures, but also completely incomprehensible for most beings. It is also quite rare to see Oz so angry or upset that he shows it.

In the past before the catastrophe, it was probably Damien who motivated Oz the most to show his mouth more often as well. Especially when they were among themselves. Not that it bothers Damien much if Oz does have a mouth. No matter if Oz showed his mouth or not, Damien showered his darling with kisses.

As a little bonus: (Default-)Oz showing you a little smile with his mouth.

[lazarettta]

The Babysitter

Characters ( Ally Mayfair-Richards x Reader )

Rating (T) Word Count ( 2.9k) Warnings ( None, bad flirting, writing while intoxicated)

“For dinner! I'd love to come home with you for dinner.”

“Well what else would you be coming for?”

“Dessert.”

It was another late night studying on the living room floor of the Mayfair-Richards household. It wasn't uncommon for you to spend a majority of your nights here during the week and sometimes the weekend if you were needed and you usually weren't. Not that you would've minded anyway, your weekends weren't busy—mostly spent either dead asleep or trying to get out of plans you didn't want to be a part of anyway to get more sleep.

But it wasn't everyday that you were able to work for a Senator either, so even if you were busy, you weren't going to tell Ally Mayfair-Richards that. Not that she was a mean boss or anything, she was the Senator for crying out loud. And...okay yes, maybe you idolized the woman a little though it may be because you're studying law but honestly who wouldn't idolize this woman? She went through so much shit getting to this point in her life and career.

And she was hot. She was really hot but you kept it in your pants, but your eyeballs? Different story. You were just grateful that she chose you to watch her son when she was away, especially after you knocked over your entire cup of tea in her living room on the very carpet you were sitting on, and you were just a hot mess.

You thought you blew the whole thing, but the moment she produced the NDA to you a few days later when she called you back for a 'second interview' which included Ozzy this time, you'd been ecstatic and nearly knocked over another fucking cup but Ally was faster than you that time.

The giant TV was playing in front of you across the room but it was just the news channel but the volume was pretty low because Oz was asleep upstairs and you weren't really watching it anyway, you had your airpods in listening to Beyoncé and trying to create a decent scenario for one of the ten theories your professor assigned. It was due the next day so you thought picking the easiest one would work in your favor but it was turning out to be your worst nightmare—and you'd regretted choosing sleep over this, kind of.

You'd been so engrossed in your work, and music, you didn't hear the front door open and shut somewhere behind you or hear Ally quietly talking on the phone, her high heels click clacking on her polished wood floors as she came into the living room. Ally paused slightly at the sight of you and her coffee table, your books and yellow pads scattered everywhere, your head bopping slightly to whatever you were listening to as you scribbled away.

Ally smiled softly, and continued on her way upstairs to check on Ozzy knowing that she was going to find him safe, clean and fast asleep with a full belly. You'd been his nanny for four months now and you were such a blessing for Ally, she'd been reluctant to hire and trust another person with her baby boy but her career was too demanding and Ozzy was only ten. He could stay home alone for a few hours maybe, but not days or even a week or two.

After everything, Ally did have cameras around her home on the outside and she had one directly over the stairs because it overlooked the foyer and parts of the living room from an angle. She didn't want too many camera's inside of her home in case they were hacked but she wanted something at least.

Ozzy's room was dark except for his nightlight by the door and Ally quietly made her way inside, carefully sitting on the edge of the bed and pushing his curls from his face. She was ever thankful that he finally stopped having those horrible nightmares, it meant that she wasn't wasting her money on therapy sessions.

When Ally came back downstairs, you were predictably in the exact same spot you were in and Ally finally did away with her coat, placing it over the spine of the sofa and she stepped out of her heels before coming around and plopping herself down, careful not to knock over your stack of books.

The sudden movement startled you out of your skin and you quickly pulled out your airpods and looked at your boss, “Hey! Sorry, how long have you been home?”

Ally smiled down at you tiredly, practically sinking into the sofa and you could feel her exhaustion rolling off of her in waves, and you couldn't help but sympathize because damn, and you thought you were tired.

“I just got in, I'm sorry I didn't call earlier, things got busier than I expected and then everything went into chaos.”

You smirked when she threw her hands up half heartedly with a roll of her eyes, “Would a glass of wine help?”

“No, but it would definitely be a start if you join me for a glass?” she raised an eyebrow, and as much as you wanted to say yes you've already procrastinated enough and you really didn't need alcohol in your system around her lest you say something you absolutely shouldn't.

“I would but I have to finish this and it's getting late. Do you mind waiting up until my Uber gets here?”

“It's really late, you should just stay the night, (Y/n).” Ally sat up then, waving away your comment, though now she was closer and hovering over you a bit, “I'll take you home tomorrow after breakfast, that sound fair?”

It wouldn't be the first overnight stay but it would definitely be the first time that she'd be home too and you just couldn't say no to that even though you probably should have insisted more that you go home, but you accepted her offer without further debate. You'd gone back to your assignment, minus the airpods this time, and Ally got up to go to the kitchen and you could hear her fixing herself a glass of wine.

Ally set a bottle of water next to you on a coaster before settling back in her spot and finding something to watch on TV, and of course you noticed that she was a hell of a lot closer than she was before.

Your pen had paused on the yellow paper and your eyes glanced over the same sentence three times before your mind processed that you could practically feel the heat from her legs next to your arm through her slacks, and if you leaned just an inch you'd be touching her. You fought the urge to look back over your shoulder, but instead you looked up from beneath your lashes and saw that she was browsing the movie channels at a snail's pace.

Behind you, Ally was sipping her wine in one hand and flipping channels with the remote in the other but her eyes were nowhere on the TV screen. But she noticed the moment your pen stopped moving and your shoulders tensed more than usual, she'd been watching you closely and curiously.

“You okay, honey?”

You turned around to answer her with what you hoped was a calm smile and wished that you hadn't, really. Ally was going to kill you sitting the way she was sitting, her energy screaming big dick and the top three buttons of her shirt were undone and her hair was a little messy. Either she was going to give you a heart attack or your libido would.

“Sweetheart?”

You blinked, coming back to reality so fast you would’ve gotten whiplash, “Uh, yeah...maybe I guess I’m just tired too.” Yeah right.

You chuckled nervously, embarrassed really, and licked your lips again and Ally tracked the movement with rapt attention not that you would've caught it because you were busy being mortified being caught staring like a creep.

“Are you sure? You look flushed, drink some water,” you smiled at Ally, ever the mom.

“I’m not—” not what? Thirsty? Yeah you were but not for some water.

“You’re not what?” Ally pressed, still holding you hostage with her eyes alone.

“Not thirsty for water.”

Ally raised an eyebrow, the corner of her lips twitching and you hate that you noticed, “Oh? Then what would you like to drink if it’s not wine or water?”

Good question. One you didn’t have a good answer to. Not trusting yourself to formulate words into an appropriate sentence, you just nodded and turned back around and grabbed the water she brought you. You were determined to ignore until you were finished with your work—for the sake of your sanity and dignity.

Fuck.

Still watching you, Ally laughed quietly into her wine glass and finally settled on a movie, keeping the volume low as she got comfortable. Deciding to let you off the hook for not answering her question. (This time.)

~~

A few days later...

It was another late night for you but you weren't working for Ally tonight, so you went to the gym instead after studying. You were still wearing your tights and sports bra when you left, only throwing on a jacket because the night air and sweat weren't a great mix.

You didn't have anything at home to eat that wasn't expired or so frozen it came from the ice age...it all went in the trash so all you had left in your fridge was a case of water and cheese sticks. It wasn't surprising though, you spent a majority of your free time at Ally's home and you just ate lunch and dinner there usually. So you went straight to the grocery store after your workout with your trainer.

“Hey (Y/n)!” you looked up and internally groaned, rolled your eyes and threw a whole bitch fit.

You offered Sean a tight near sarcastic smile, “Sean. What is up.”

“Nothin',” he said, leaning against the counter he was standing behind with a cheesy smile, his eyes leering—and it made your skin crawl, “Just working...you?”

“Uh,” you were already over this conversation, “Same, anyway—”

“You still work for that crazy killer lesbian?”

You stopped, pivoting back around slowly to see if he was joking or not, of course it was hard to tell because he was looking at your ass, but the minute he turned around his eyes laser beamed to your chest. Specifically your pebbled nipples and the bars pierced in them. You moved the labels of your jacket to cover them fucking pig.

“Uh, my eyes are up here and two, that 'crazy killer lesbian' is your Senator.”

He shrugged, “I didn't vote for her.”

“I'm...okay, it was nice talking to you but I have things to do.”

“Well, wait,” he moved in front of you, stopping your escape, “That's not what I wanted to talk to you about actually, uh, but listen...do you maybe wanna go to dinner with me this weekend? My treat?”

You raised an eyebrow at him, completely unimpressed with his audacity, “You literally just called my boss a crazy killer lesbian and now you're expecting me to go to dinner with you?” as if, you wanted to add but held yourself in check—barely.

“I'm sorry about that,” Sean only shrugged but he was bashful about it but it only served to irritate you further because it was obvious that he didn't quite mean it and you were mentally slapping yourself for just not ordering that damn pizza.

“Whatever, goodnight Sean.”

you tried to move around him but he shifted, keeping you in place and you knew you could've just turned around, you should've but he would've just followed you, “Well wait, you never answered my question. About dinner?”

“No.”

“Well, wait a minute...why not? The lesbian thing? It was just a joke. You can take one, can’t you?”

“And I'm not laughing, get the fuck outta my way Sean—”

“You—”

“I believe she told you to fuck off.”

Sean's eyes snapped up over your head slightly, and you would've laughed at his stupid face had you not been pivoting around yourself, your eyes meeting a very familiar chin and you looked up, but Ally's eyes weren't on you but instead glaring daggers into Sean. He'd be ten feet under if she got her way with that look. You wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of it. (Maybe another version of it...)

“S-senator?”

“Oh, I'm not the crazy killer lesbian anymore? How disappointing.” when Sean could only stare at her like a fish out of the water, Ally stepped forward—a lot closer to you and you didn't have the strength to move or even look away, “I believe you were told to leave. Oh and if I even hear that you looked at or said anything to (Y/n) incorrectly, you're going to have a lot worse than a harassment complaint from a Senator to deal with.”

You didn't see him leave but you heard the squeaks of his sneaker and in seconds flat you and Ally were alone in the cereal aisle and you had absolutely no idea how to even breathe at the moment, much less process that she just saved you from...whatever that even was.

When Ally was satisfied that Sean was gone, she finally looked down at you—there was still a fire in them that you couldn't place but her brown eyes were softer than they were a few seconds ago, and you felt your shoulders relaxing slightly.

“Are you alright, (Y/n)?”

You cleared your throat, taking a small step back—but you still felt exposed under her unblinking stare though not in the same way you felt with Sean, it was the complete opposite, “Yeah thanks to you, so um thanks...a lot. Your timing is impeccable, but what are you doing here so late? Where's Oz? Is he okay?”

Ally smiled at you, shaking her head disturbing her always perfect hairstyle, “Oz is fine, or at least he will be, he must've ate something today at school and it's not sitting well with his stomach,” Ally rolled her eyes but not at the fact that her son had food poisoning but that he had food poisoning from the school lunch. She could only imagine that other children—reforming school lunches was already on her agenda but now she was seriously considering moving ahead of schedule.

“Oh no, how bad?”

“Not too bad...he'll be okay, I'm just here for medicine to stock up on,” Ally reassured you, her eyes flickering over your shoulder for a second, “What are you doing out so late?” and wearing that? She mentally added, but held her tongue because she knew that it wasn't her place to comment on your attire—not that she was complaining about it, but Ally just didn't like the way Sean was leering at you either. She was a hair away from showing him how she earned her title.

Suddenly aware of how much skin you were showing, and that your jacket fell open again but unlike with Sean you didn't feel the need to really cover yourself (even though you knew that you should've). You appreciated her eyes more than his...and probably anyone else's.

“Oh, I went to the gym and since I don't have any food at home...”

Ally chuckled, “Is this your way of asking for a raise?”

“No! No, no you pay me plenty...I'm just too busy to cook is all and then I'm just too tired to eat sometimes. College life.”

“I was teasing, welcome to adulthood. It doesn't stop,” you laughed along with her but you both knew there was truth behind those words.

“I shouldn't keep you, I know you have things to do.”

“You know, I doubt you're going to get a decent nutrient meal here tonight, especially shopping while you’re hungry...” Ally hummed, seemingly thinking hard about something before opening her mouth to carefully speak those words, “You're more than welcome to come home with me for a late dinner if you have nowhere else to be. I'd be more than happy to feed you.”

Heh. Feed me what? You blinked, mildly surprised with how fast your mind went straight to the gutter and you felt your face heating up faster than a house fire, and you had no doubt in your mind that your boss knew exactly what she was doing to you.

But she didn't, Ally didn't have one clue to what was happening in your mind because her own mind was a pile of scrambled eggs while forcing her eyes to stay above your neck. You were both very much still in public.

And the last thing Ally wanted to do was make either you a cliché, especially with her being a public figure in a male dominant career field, both in politics and her restaurant.

“Unless you had your sights set on cereal?” Ally coughed lightly, suddenly nervous and you realized that you'd been standing there staring at her like a moron this whole time.

“No, I'd love to come home with you,” you said cheerfully, meaning every damn word for different reasons, and you smiled at her, before your eyes widened when realizing how forward you sounded, and suggestive as hell, “For dinner! I'd love to come home with you for dinner.”

“Well what else would you be coming for?”

“Dessert.”

Direct result after two blunts...sorry if it's kinda lame tho lmao I went in thinking I was writing smut and gave up somewhere

[did-i-do-this-write]

Find the Word

Finally getting around to some of these games today! Was tagged for this one by @sleepyowlwrites. Thank you so much for the tag :)

Book - Build What You Cannot Find

From that day on, Oscar and Penny used their favorite movies and shows to teach Oz all about different emotions.  Day by day, his emotional database grew.  He learned the physical cues and textbook definitions of every human emotion.  The stories being told also offered Ozpin great insight into how the human mind worked.  After all, art does tend to imitate life.

Button - Build What You Cannot Find

Oscar’s eyes lit up as he stepped up to the computer.  He listened carefully as Pietro instructed him on how to boot up the operating system.  Oscar double, triple, and quadruple checked the initiation command before slamming the “Enter” button.  Both mechanics turned around and watched their whole workshop become engulfed in green light.  The wires sticking out from the table emanated an almost blinding power.  

Borrow - You Shine Brighter Than the Stars

“Can I borrow you for a minute?” he asked.  “There’s a few people I’d like you to meet.”

Oz slowly put his glass down and glanced at Qrow.  The last thing he wanted to do was leave his partner and socialize with pretentious Atlesian bureaucrats.

I’ll be right back, he promised silently, but it was more for himself than it was for Qrow.

Being - Build What You Cannot Find

“Hel-lo, there. My name is Oz-pin,” he said slowly, his words came out stuttered and broken, as if every syllable was being spoken by a low-grade recording of a different person.

“Is he supposed to sound like that?” Penny wondered.

Oscar shook his head.  “No.  No he’s not…”

Tagging: @aalinaaaaaa, @galaxial-darktale, and @multi-lefaiye

Your words, should you choose to participate, are fair, feast, famine, and far.

[finalgirlbuffysummers]

okay here it is. The rest is below the cut.

You would think that living on a Hellmouth made the nightmares worse. That every night would be screaming torment, but really, the hollow earth below never really prowled the dreams of its lesser citizens. Sure, the vampires and their teeth made appearances, dead classmates, the prickling curent of the wind, but waking up and knowing your neighbor heard the same bump in the night, knowing you survived to see the sun: that’s your bitter reward. Your comfort. It’s normal here, perched on the lip above the sharpest tooth.  

No, the nightmares get worse ten years down the line. You’re out of highschool. You wake up alone. You wake up in a city that doesn't understand you, strangers who want to prescribe you medicine or tell you to mediate. So you end up alone, and you know alone is how they like you. You’re not sure if demons lurk in your new city. You thought once that a man standing on the corner lit his cigarette with massive purple claws, and you ran, your feet echoing like gunshots through the streets. 

You never did learn to shoot a gun. You keep it in your nightstand drawer, but you know it wouldn't stop anything that's followed you out of California, out of Sunnydale. Once, you had a girlfriend. Rummaging around for a hair tie she discovered your small handgun, your safety blanket. She picked it up with her forefinger and her thumb, like it was filthy, like she didn't understand. “Why do you keep one of these awful things?” You couldn't answer her.

There's no girlfriend now. No one to make you coffee in the morning, no one to rub your back when you wake up with the feeling of teeth in your throat, tight grips on your ankles. She got tired of you, you poor, novel thing from the west. 

So it's been weeks. So it's been grocery shopping at 3am, staring at the wilting vegetables, trying to stay out of your apartment. It's been staying longer at the museum you work at. No, you don’t work there just to read the old books for some kind of answer, you lie. At your highschool, there was a librarian who kept swords. You think about sending him an email: Hey, Mr. Giles, do you sleep at night? Does it get easier? Where might I acquire a sword such as yours? You draft hundreds before you realize you have no idea where to send them. 

Your classmates don't keep in touch. there is no Facebook group, there is no reunion. There can’t be: Sunnydale is no more. It collapsed in itself. This should be comforting: but all you can think of is the beasts who crawled out of the pit, who remember the stink of your fear. Some folks stayed local, moving just a town over, the low thrum from the throat of hell enough the lull them into a stupid haze of breakfast, lunch, and getting eaten for dinner. The rest left. There are two hundred, give or take, Sunnydale immigrants scattered around the country, waking up alone. Waking up with a gun in their hands. Waking up dead. Your school newspaper had an obituary page. The boy who ran it wrote well, you thought, if cynical. Who the hell can blame him? Mr. Giles, you write. How come it didn't get us? Why are we still left? Mr. Giles, can you tell me if it's following us?

Last week a friend of a friend called you to say Dennis had died. Dennis… you remember now. He was the lead singer in that band, what was it? Something about Dingoes. You ask how he died. Sunnydale habits: You keep an ear out for the signs. The friend says, puncture wounds, on the neck. Police suspect it was inflicted by a barbeque fork. You drop the phone. You sharpen stakes, get splinters in your palms. Buy crucifixes by the dozen. More than once, you’ve slept in a church pew, under the painted ceiling. At work, your boss asks with some concern about the dark circles under your eyes. Long night, you say. You are starting to hate this city. In this city, there’s no hero.

Yes, you remember her. You know everyone else does, too. Buffy. One time, you saw her sparring with the librarian. No swords, just fists. Another time, she crawled out of your biology classroom window at the arrival of a dark haired girl who blew her kisses. One time, she slammed the computer science teacher against her own desk. Wacky shit. You knew, though. That Sunnydale High had to be the safest place in town because of her. She killed things, probably. Definitely. Then she left. Sometimes, there are whispers: “I heard Buffy’s in Rome.” “I heard she lives in a castle.” “I heard she’s dead.” God, please, no. After every long night, you pray she still lives. That she hasn't let her guard down. It's midnight. You draft another email. Mr. Giles. Buffy’s still alive, right? Please tell me she’s okay. People keep dying, Mr. Giles, and we’re not even in Sunnydale anymore. Can you tell me what happened there? Why can't I stop dreaming about the destroyed graves of everyone who died? Can you tell me anything at all? Mr. Giles, Dennis is dead. Oz’s friend. I hope Oz is alive, too. I hope you’re alive. I hope you’re well. Take care. This time, you call a colleague in London. You track down Gile’s email through a stroke of luck, and you hit send. You don’t hear back at all. 

Three months later, you receive a response. You’d almost forgotten about the message you sent. Your museum opened a new and successful gallery You received a promotion. You’ve been successful. (Yes, you’re even sleeping more. Shh, don’t say it too loud). You open the email.

Greetings and glad to hear from you- it’s wonderful to hear from old students. I do hope you’re well.

There is no easy way to answer these emails. Yes, you're not the only one who’s managed to reach me. I won’t disclose my location, or hers, but I can tell you that Buffy is safe, and alive, and I think she’s happy. She’s been happy for a while. I’ll tell her you asked, she likes to know that old classmates are doing well. Yes, Oz is alive. He’s been in Tibet for some time, though we do hear from him on occasion. He heard about Denis’s passing. Truly a tragedy. 

I’m quite pleased to hear you’ve entered museum studies: a deeply satisfying and enriching work. I hope that you are finding enough answers with it. I know that living on- Well, where we lived is disorienting, confusing. I’ll try to answer you as best I can. 

The swords I kept in the library (do never tell anyone I did that) I received as a present form a collector friend, who is long dead and whose collection is long scattered. The rest of the blade I received from my employers. I do not recommend keeping swords in your home as a safety measure. Invest in a good lock. Invest in protection charms found in books of the dark arts. I checked: your museum has some in collection. (Since you are emailing me, I can only guess that you’ve accepted explanations beyond those from the metaphysical realm).

I do sleep at night, thank you for asking.  It gets easier. I don’t say this just because I’ve put an ocean between myself and Sunnydale, no: time does heal. It helps that I’m with people who understand. It helps to name the thing in the dark. I’ll put you in contact with a colleague of mine- he’s in your museum network- and you can begin to build yourself a circle, if you wish. 

There is no reason that we live, my friend. There's no reason why any of our friends died. Your life is not a curse, I can promise you that. This isn’t borrowed time.

If you were being followed it would have gotten you by now. I apologize for my bluntness.

Oh, the ageless question of what happened. All the time in the world and I couldn’t give you a satisfactory answer. What would I say? That vampires haunt the sunniest part of California? That hell is real, and it can speak? I believe you already know the outline. What I can comfort you on is that yes. There are people who find evil, and they stop it. They haven't gone away. But that's not the point: don’t worry about them. Sunnydale is gone, dear student. It’s up to you to name the thing in the dark, keep it at bay. Be watchful, be wise. The world is bigger than most people know. 

Sincerely,

Rupert Giles

You close your laptop. You stretch your legs. You go into the bedroom to retrieve the handgun, then place it on the kitchen counter.  You stare at it. It doesn't move. You stare. The apartment is still, like the city is holding it in its throat. The clock strikes 4 am. It’s just a clock. It's just a gun. In your apartment, you’re just you, waiting for the sun to rise.

END

[sfb123]

Sapere Aude - Part 5

Book: The Royal Heir

Pairing: King Liam Rys x Queen Riley Brooks

All characters belong to Pixelberry.

Catch Up Here

Series Description: I developed a theory of what I think will happen in TRH Book 4, and I was encouraged by some very lovely people to turn my theory into a fic, so here it is. Basically, Riley is recruited to join the Via Imperii, this series will follow her as she joins them to try and bring them down from the inside, and all of the drama and bombshells she learns along the way. Sapere Aude is Latin for “dare to know” it seemed like an appropriate title.

Rating: PG-13 Adult language, allusions to smut (but nothing graphic), discussions of death, conspiracy, blackmail, and other adult themes.

Warning: The Royal Heir Book 3 Spoilers all over the place.

Word Count: 3,189

Notes: This is kind of a transitional chapter, no major plot movement (but there is some major Uncle Drake time, if that helps). If I had combined it with the next chapter, it would have been way too long. I promise I’m going to make up for it in the next chapter. 

As always, one love to my pre-readers @texaskitten30​ & @txemrn​, I’m surprising you both with some extra content that was not in the preread (chapter 6 got way too long, so I took the opening fluff and added it to the end of this chapter). And thank you @twinkleallnight​ for my moodboard!

Tags: Everyone is tagged below, whether or not you get notified of said tag, I guess that’s in the hands of the Tumblr gods 🤷🏻‍♀️

Riley’s eyes slowly fluttered open as she took in her surroundings, she was in an ornate bedroom that she didn’t recognize. “Oh good, you’re awake.” Mara walked toward the bed from the corner of the room where she had been sitting. 

“Mara, what happened?” Riley asked.

“You passed out, you had me worried for a moment there.” Mara poured her a glass of water from the pitcher on the nightstand. 

Memories started coming back to Riley, she remembered being at the event and taking mental note of the members in attendance. Then she remembered the speaker approaching the podium, it was Liam’s mother. Nope, that can’t be right. I had already passed out at that point. That was a dream, some weird Wizard of Oz shit. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Riley watched as Mara rushed over to the door, opening it slightly and saying something to the person on the other side. Riley tried, but she was unable to hear what was being said.

“Who was that?” Riley asked as Mara closed the door and headed back to her bedside. 

“Just someone checking on you. Tell me what you remember about what happened?” 

“Nothing really, I remember being in the room and looking around, then everything went black. I had the weirdest dream while I was out though. Liam’s mother, she was up at the podium, giving a speech.” She took in Mara’s serious expression, and started feeling uneasy again. “Mara, that was a dream...right? Liam’s mother died a long time ago.”

Mara took a deep breath, “Actually, that was not a dream, Eleanor is the leader of the Via Imperii’s Cordonian chapter.”

“But why? How? She’s been alive this whole time?” Just when I thought this couldn’t get weirder. Maybe I’m still dreaming, I haven’t woken up yet. Yeah, that’s it. She pinched her arm and quickly flinched in pain. Nope, definitely real life. Liam’s mother is alive, she has been this whole time. Liam has spent most of his life mourning a woman that not only betrayed his family, but that wasn’t even dead. How is it possible that things are still getting worse? 

“I believe that is something she is more qualified to answer herself. She is outside waiting to speak with you. Should I let her in?”

“I don’t know. What do I say? How am I supposed to act? What does one say to their dead mother-in-law that isn’t actually dead?” There was a slight tremble in her voice. “Mara, I’m freaking the fuck out here. What am I supposed to do?”

Mara sat on the side of the bed and put a comforting hand on Riley’s shoulder. “It is entirely your decision, but I promise you, things will become much more clear once you speak with her. I know this is a shock, but just listen to her.”

Riley closed her eyes and took a couple of deep breaths, trying to center herself. “Ok, let her in.” 

Aside from a few creases along her mouth and eyes, you would have sworn that the woman entering the room had stepped right out of the many photographs Liam had shown Riley over the years. Damn, I guess faking your death is a pretty good anti-aging cure. As Eleanor approached, Riley sat up further on the bed and leaned her back against the headboard. 

“Riley, I can’t tell you how happy I am to finally be sitting down with you. We have so much to discuss.” Eleanor took the chair from the vanity and placed it next to the bed.

Understatement of the century. “I have so many questions, I don’t even know where to start.”

“I’m sure you do dear, and I will answer all of them, but you have already been through so much tonight. You need your rest.” She patted RIley’s hand soothingly. “I just wanted to make sure you were alright. I would like to come by Valtoria tomorrow for brunch, we can talk then.”

“Valtoria...my Valtoria? But you’re supposed to be dead, everyone will see you. Drake will see you, he’ll know who you are.” Riley started to panic. “Eleanor is there...I mean, my Eleanor...Eleanor the second?” 

“Shh, it’s alright Riley. As much as I would love to meet my granddaughter, you are absolutely right, she and Drake can’t know that I am there. Just tell them you have a meeting, and ask Drake to take her out for a bit. Knowing him, I’m sure he’d be more than happy to take her on a little nature walk. As far as being seen, I’ve managed this long without my secret getting out. Don’t worry, I have my ways of running under the radar.”

Riley could only nod, her head still swimming with all of these thoughts and questions. Eleanor stood, giving Riley a kind goodbye and leaving the room. 

After a little more rest, and time to process the conversation she just had, Mara escorted Riley out of the estate and brought her back to Valtoria. Riley was looking forward to the comfort of being in her own home, and seeing her daughter. Eleanor was no doubt asleep already, but even just checking in on her and seeing that little face, was the most calm Riley could hope for at the moment. 

As she entered her daughter’s bedroom, she smiled to herself. Eleanor was asleep on her Uncle’s lap, while he also snored soundly, the book they were reading long forgotten on the floor in front of them. Riley gently lifted her daughter out of Drake’s arms, causing him to stir. 

“Hey Brooks. Sorry, she must have really worn me out.” He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he stood out of the oversized armchair. 

Riley gently laid her still sleeping daughter in the bed, and kissed her forehead as she tucked her in. “Trust me, if anyone understands it’s me.” She turned to her friend and gave him a hug. “Thank you so much for staying with her, Drake. I always feel better leaving her with a friend when Liam and I can’t be there.” 

The exhaustion and stress were evident in Riley’s voice. A concerned Drake nodded toward the door, signaling that they should leave Eleanor to sleep. “Are you alright? You’ve been acting weird, different, all day.” He asked as he gently shut the door behind them.

“Yea, I’m good, I promise.” Riley lied. “This event tonight, it was just one of those things that would have been so much easier with Liam. I mean, they all are, but you know what I mean.” Drake nodded as he put his arm around her shoulder and they walked toward her room. “Hey, do you mind taking Eleanor out for a bit tomorrow, like late morning-ish? I had someone tonight request a meeting, and it’s kind of time sensitive.”

“Of course, that’s what I came for. Maybe I’ll take her fishing. Would that be ok? I’d love to teach her.” 

Riley smiled at his enthusiasm, but the smile didn’t quite meet her eyes. Drake noticed. “I think that would be a great idea. I believe the gear you got her for her birthday is in the sporting shed.” 

“You know I’m not going to let this go, right? Something’s going on with you and Liam. You’re my best friends, I’m not going to just sit here and pretend something isn’t bothering you guys.”

Riley checked either side of the hallway before leading Drake into her room. As she shut the door with one hand, she raised the other to her face, signaling for Drake to be quiet. She grabbed her phone and opened the notepad app, typing a message to Drake.

Do you know how to check for bugs?

Drake furrowed his brows and nodded his head. 

Do it. 

Drake did a full sweep of the room and the balcony, and returned to Riley, who was now sitting on the bench at the end of her bed. “Alright, we’re good. Now what the hell is going on?”

She explained about the Via Imperii to Drake. She didn’t tell him everything, and she definitely didn’t tell him that Liam’s mother is alive, or that that was the meeting she was taking tomorrow. Drake listened intently to everything, his only interruption was a ‘fucking Neville’ when she was telling him about the other members. She told him that one of the higher ups from the organization wanted to meet with her tomorrow, not a lie, and that’s why she wanted him to take Eleanor out of the estate for a while. 

Everything that had happened since she and Liam stepped out of the palace doors that morning suddenly made sense to Drake. And it now made sense why Liam had asked him to go with them instead of Maxwell. He wanted protection for his family, not just someone to keep them company. 

“Ok, so who else knows? What can I do?”

“Liam wanted to wait until we had some more information to tell anyone else. I know I probably should have waited to talk to him first, but tonight was awful Drake, just so damn awful. And I can’t call Liam and tell him, because I don’t know if they’re listening to our calls, and I can’t keep it all to myself for another 48 hours.” She sighed deeply and ran a hand through her hair. “He just didn’t want us accidentally telling someone that was part of it. I’m so sorry we didn’t tell you. It’s not that we didn’t think we could trust you. It’s just, finding out his mother was involved, it hit him hard, Drake. I think he just feels so betrayed by her, it’s making him extra cautious of our inner circle.”

Drake pulled her into a hug and held her close. “Hey, it’s alright, I totally get it. If I found out something like that, I mean, I can’t even imagine.”

As they separated, Riley let out a yawn. “I should probably at least try to get some sleep. Thanks Drake, for everything.”

“Yea, of course. You guys are my family, I’ll always be here. You sure you’ll be alright?”

Riley nodded and walked him to the door. They said their good nights, and Drake headed down the hall to his room, while Riley shut the door and changed into her pajamas. She laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. She spent most of the night wondering what Eleanor would say to her tomorrow, and listing out all of the questions she was going to ask. She was grateful that she was given a chance to gather her thoughts before having to go too deep with her. She would finally be able to walk into a Via Imperii interaction prepared. Or so she hoped. 

Riley never got a good night's sleep when she and Liam were apart. She had grown accustomed to falling asleep in his arms, and no weighted blanket on the planet could replicate that feeling. The emptiness of her bed, combined with the events of the night before, and Riley wasn’t sure anything that happened over the last couple of hours could even be considered sleep. She nodded off a couple of times, but every time the REM cycle started to kick in, she would see Liam’s mother and be jolted awake. Finally, she couldn’t take the tossing and turning any longer, so she got out of bed and decided to work with Gladys to make preparations for their meeting. 

Before she did that, she wanted to go get Eleanor and make sure she was up and ready for her fishing date with Uncle Drake. As she entered her daughter’s bedroom, she saw Eleanor sitting at her table, with her back to the door, having a tea party with her stuffed animals. “Good morning, Princess.”

Eleanor turned and smiled, immediately running up to her and wrapping her arms around Riley. “Hi Mommy, come have tea with us!” She grabbed her mother’s hand and walked her to the small table. She moved one of the stuffed animals out of it’s chair, kissing it on the nose and placing it on the bed. “Sorry Woogie. Mommy, sit.” She pointed at the now empty chair. 

“Eleanor, remember our manners?” Riley raised an eyebrow at her. 

“Mommy sit...please?” She looked up with a questioning expression. 

“That’s my girl.”

They sat and ‘drank tea’, Eleanor explaining every moment of her evening with her uncle the night before with so much enthusiasm. Riley watched Eleanor’s arms gesture wildly as she talked about the game of hide and seek that they played. 

Eleanor stopped her story at the sound of Riley’s phone ringing, and squealed with excitement at the sight of her father’s face on the screen. “It’s Daddy, it’s Daddy!”

“Here, you answer it, he’ll be happy to see your face.” Riley swiped accept on the video call request, and handed the phone to Eleanor. 

Riley sat back and watched the two most important people in her life talking and laughing like there wasn’t a care in the world, when Riley knew that that world was actually in the process of crumbling. She made sure that Eleanor got the phone first so that she could take that time to compose herself before she talked to Liam. They would talk, but she couldn’t tell him anything about last night. Even if she could, a FaceTime call was not the way to deliver that news. She snapped out of her thought when she heard Liam from the other side of the phone.

“I love you too, princess. Can you please give the phone to Mommy?”

As Riley took the phone, she stood from her seat, giving Eleanor a kiss on the head. “I’m going to go talk to Daddy, Finish up your tea party, Uncle Drake is going to be taking you fishing soon.”

“YAY! Fishies!”

Riley exited the room and leaned against the wall, taking a deep breath before holding the phone up to her face. “Good morning, handsome.” She smiled softly at the sight of her husband on the other end.

“Hello, beautiful. How did you sleep?” 

“Do you really need to ask? You know you’ve spoiled me all these years, I can’t fall asleep without you.” She was determined to keep the conversation light. If it veered away from that at all, she wasn’t sure she would be able to hold back. Especially with the lack of sleep she was experiencing. 

“Trust me love, I understand. I’m already on my third cup of coffee, just one more night, and we will be together again.” His eyes said everything he wasn’t able to say in that call. They were having a silent conversation about how awful the previous night had been for Riley, and how sorry he was , how badly he wanted to be there to hold her and make it all go away. 

“It’s going to be the longest night of my life, just so you know.” She sighed, checking her watch briefly. “Liam, I have to go. I had a last minute meeting come up, and I have to go get everything ready.”

Liam nodded, knowing exactly what the meeting was in reference to, or so he thought. “Of course, I have to get ready for my day as well. I will call you later on to check in. I love you Riley, I will see you tomorrow.”

“I love you too, Liam.” She ended the call, and a single tear trailed down her cheek. She wiped it away and stood up straight. She didn’t have time to break down, she had a brunch to host. 

Riley worked with Gladys to prepare the solarium for her brunch meeting. Liam had told her how much his mother loved the gardens at the palace, so she thought that this would be an appropriate setting for their meeting. Sure, the circumstances were anything but pleasant, but this was still Eleanor Rys. This woman brought Liam, her Liam, into the world. No matter what happened in this meeting, or what became of this relationship, she would be eternally grateful to this woman for giving her the love of her life. 

She impressed on Gladys the importance of privacy for this meeting, all food and beverages were to be set out ahead of their guest’s arrival, chafing dishes and coffee carafes sat on one of the tables to ensure no servers needed to enter the room. Once the door was shut, nobody was to enter until the Queen said so. Eleanor had gone this long living under the radar, Riley certainly wasn’t going to be the one to ruin her life as a dead woman. 

Once the instructions had been laid out for the staff, Riley moved to the entryway of the estate to see Drake and Eleanor off on their fishing adventure. She walked in just as Drake was handing Eleanor her mini, hot pink, fishing rod. “Here you go, kiddo. Make sure you hold it up like this, so that you don’t poke anyone while you’re walking.”

She got a mischievous gleam in her eye. One that Drake instantly recognized from the countless times it flashed across Riley’s face, right before she’d do something that drove him crazy. Eleanor turned the rod, holding it horizontally, and jabbing it into Drake’s shins. “Poke poke poke!” 

Riley burst out laughing causing Drake to snap his head in her direction, and giving Eleanor the encouragement she needed to continue her assault on her Uncle. “To be fair, you kind of asked for it. You gave her step by step instructions.”

“Of what not to do! I guess I forgot who's kid I was talking to.” He gently took the rod out of Eleanor’s hand. “Here, I’ll carry it out to the car for you princess.”

“Thank you Uncle Drake!” She ran into her mother’s arms. “Bye Mommy!”

“Bye baby girl. Be a good princess, and make sure you do everything Uncle Drake says.” She gave Eleanor one more squeeze and let her go before approaching Drake. “Thanks for doing this, I know you didn’t expect to spend the whole weekend on babysitting duty.”

“Hey, it’s nothing. I wanted to get some fishing in while I was here anyway, always nice to have a little company.” He ruffled Eleanor’s hair as his face turned more serious. “You going to be ok?”

“The image of my daughter ramming a fishing rod into your shins should be enough to get me through it.” 

“She hangs out with you too much. She needs to spend more time with Liam so she can learn that stoicism shit.” They both laughed as he pulled her into a quick hug. “We’ll be back in a few hours.”

Riley waved as they exited the estate. Yup, that’s my daughter. Taught her everything she knows. She smiled to herself at the thought. She saw Mara approach out of the corner of her eye, and turned to face her. 

“Your appointment is here ma’am, she’s waiting for you in the solarium.”

Continue Reading

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[good-rwbyaus]

HAVE SOME OF LILAC’S OZPIN AND OZMA THEORYCRAFTING! sCREEEEECH

So this hot take is gonna be about Ozpin and his likely rocky relationship with his predecessor. And I think that this is something that will be explored in Season 8 either directly in the story or in a World of Remnant bit, especially since Oscar’s gonna be alone surrounded by people who don’t particular like the said soul in his body. 

Why do I think this?

People probably recall Ozpin’s speech on the first day of Beacon: “You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step.”

And with that brief bit, he walks off. Yang remarks that he seemed off while Ruby comments he didn’t seem like he was there. 

Nice bit of foreshadowing about the nature of Ozpin’s soul aside, I think Ozpin and his predecessor had only started to truly merge during the start of the school year which Oscar and Ozpin are still ways off from doing. And his predecessor had recently told him a very ugly truth - that Salem cannot be destroyed. Knowledge didn’t set Ozpin free here; it probably dashed the only hope he had for a normal life free of the reincarnation in his head just like his previous reincarnation wondering if their fight with Salem would end in his generation (Oscar doesn’t even know it until the Jinn reveal). 

Ozpin could’ve just given up - left everyone to fend for themselves. He doesn’t. Instead, he’s a professor, a teacher - and something to keep in mind when considering who the previous Oz spirit probably is. And he turns it into a lesson, a warning for his wide-eyed, naive students who haven’t realized the truth of the world they live in - that they have to find something worth fighting for because as they’ll learn, this isn’t a fairy tale. The fighting will never end. The loss will never end, regardless of what they learn or do. 

------

So why do I think they’ve only started to merge? Because Blake says something very interesting later during that very same episode, and given CRWBY’s love of playing the long game when it comes to reveals and Chekhov’s guns (Ren and Jaune’s fight in vol 8, Salem as the mysterious Narrator), I think it’s interesting to pay attention to. 

When Yang and Ruby pester Blake during the night before Initiation, Ruby asks what sort of book Blake is reading.

Blake replies with “Well... i-it's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body. “

And that’s why I think Ozpin’s relationship with his predecessor, likely the King of Vale as told by the World of Remnant episode, was probably somewhat rocky and that they were still not quite fused by the start of Ruby’s semester.

Because in the end, I think the like-mindedness characteristic that all Oz’s share is their desire for autonomy, the power to Choose. Ozma after all was robbed of his when he initially came back to life and then later became a piece on the board to hurt Salem, and given what the Lost Fable showed, the gods are petty. 

One could definitely make the argument that the God of Light tried to warn him that Salem wasn’t the same, but he didn’t really try that hard, did he?  

It felt like one large trap - because the God of Light never told Ozma the most important thing - that his wife was the reason why the gods didn’t think humanity could be redeemed and that granting Ozma his wish to return effectively puts him against Salem. So when the God of Light tells him “ you will reincarnate, but in a manner that ensures you are never alone,” that last bit is not meant as a consolation. It’s a punishment from a very petty god. And it’s only a realization that Ozma makes later, though initially doesn’t notice at first. 

Because now Ozma is the one who is robbing the choice of others, putting his reincarnations on a mission they never asked for - ripping apart families and friends for a fight that he soon learns is futile. But he has to fight because who else will? 

So the King of Vale, probably Ozpin’s predecessor given the timeline and introduction via World of Remnant, probably was a heroic and righteous man. And since he was a King, he was also used to having his commands listened to. So when he reincarnates and finds himself in a snotty nosed, kinda snarky young adult, who probably was on track on being a teacher (like Oscar being a farmer), he’s not happy. He’s probably less happy when his call to fighting the Grimm and preserving the kingdom is answered with “screw you. who are you to tell me what to do?” (this feels like the standard reaction for Oz’s; I think Oscar’s reaction to a voice in his head was a little tamer aha.). So you have a heroic guy that keeps trying to get this brat to answer the call and a young adult that’d rather enjoy the simpler things like hot chocolate, baking cookies, slapstick comedy (landing strategy, what’s that?) trying to do what they want to do. 

And since the King of Vale can occasionally take control to fulfill what he thinks is justice and good, this definitely does not endear Ozpin to the other man. And it probably took a long time for them to even have an inkling of trust for each other, but their conflict doesn’t resolve until later after latter parts of Vol 1 or beginning of volume 2 comes around.

Okay, that’s all I have for now, but yes I think vol 8 might reveal Ozpin’s relationship with his predecessor! 8)

------

Also tiny blurb on the subject of Ozpin and his predecessor. There’s an AU of a 14-year old chaotic troll Ozpin and the spirit that’s with him (King of Vale) which REALLY takes off with the idea of Ozpin being the youngest Headmaster of Beacon. I adore this AU so. 

It’s made by immortal-green-wizard, and you should check it out! You won’t regret it. 8) 

[prose-for-hire]

Headcanons for caring for a depressed s/o:

Request: I was wondering what would some the Buffyverse individuals do for a significant other with chronic depression Requested by: @shy-ginger-in-the-graveyard 

Characters: Spike; Giles; Angel: Buffy; Cordelia; Xander; Willow; Oz; Anya; Faith

Warning: Discussion of symptoms of depression (I didn’t describe in too much detail, mostly about the care/support the character would give). Mention of medication (If you do not take medication just ignore it). Hints at harm.

A/N: I don’t have an insight into the way everyone’s depression works, so I can only write what I know. If you want something else just request! Sorry it took slightly longer than I anticipated! I hope this is okay !! 💖

Spike:

Spike’s mood is always in tune to yours

So when things are getting bad, he can feel it

If you can’t get out of bed, he’ll come to you

He’ll wheel the tv over, grab some blankets and try to comfort you as much as he can

you’ll be bundled up in so many blankets, it’ll be a little nest

He’ll join you in bed, wanting to have a lot of physical contact

He’ll be worried all of the time, he feels a lot. Especially when he cares for someone

He’ll sit with you for as long as is necessary

won’t ever be bored

If you want cuddles will silently hold you or tell you what’s going on on the tv if you’re not looking and nestling into his side

If you want leaving alone, he’ll try not to hover (but the man loves deep and the way he shows it is comfort)

He will every so often suggest an activity, one he knows will require less effort on your part to try and get you out of the crypt

Will look up ways to help or ask you a lot if he’s doing the right things

Won’t want to leave you on your own when it gets real bad but if he has to he’ll make sure you can contact him immediately wherever he is

He’ll ask what he can do to help a lot. hates to see you in pain.

literally hurts him. But he never wanted to leave your side.

Will promise to support you for as long as you need if it interferes with jobs/etc (he can get money)

Giles:

at first his concern might come across a bit sharp

But when he finds you crying over something insignificant he’ll come and cradle you and sit you down while he sorts it

He’ll be very practical but incredibly soft with you

Reminders to take meds, etc

Will check with you on what you want

A lot

(which may get annoying but try not to snap he’s really trying)

He’ll have read up on everything he can concerning depression and try his best to be someone you can talk through anything with

doesn’t want you to feel alone in anything (you’ll never feel a burden)

will do tasks around the house if you’re struggling and won’t like you to thank him

he’ll see it as the least he could be doing

he’ll often set up snacks and everything around you on the sofa if that’s where you’re set up

moves all of the piles of books from in front of the tv so you can watch

will sit and watch anything. But will give you a commentary on how much drivel is pouring from the screen if its particularly low-brow

If you can’t focus on the screen or get restless he’ll think of ways to help

He’ll take out a book, pull you into him and start to read in that soothing voice

Angel:

he’d get it

You wouldn’t have to explain

He’d be able to tell if things were getting worse

He might notice your sleep schedule was almost as nocturnal as his

Or that you’re smile isn’t quite reaching your eyes half of the time

Despite you at least making the effort

but he’ll ask you to always come to him and talk about it

If you can’t that’s okay, he gets that too

But he wants to be there

And he’ll tell you so

Will give very good reassuring hugs.

especially ones in the mornings when you both know you should be leaving bed

he doesn’t eat human food, but he will always cook an evening meal

wants to make sure you’re eating decent meals

sometimes you might forget or not have the energy

but he will always make sure he’s planned an evening meal

If you can’t sleep he’ll make warm drinks and watch over you

will hold you for as long as you need (especially on a restless night)

not being able to sleep sucks, but at least you know he’s right there

If you’re feeling very low, will make sure to stay with you to make sure you’re safe

It’ll be the most important thing to him

Buffy:

this girl knows depression

She’s been there and worn the T-shirt

She’ll know that sometimes there’s literally nothing she can do to turn your mood

But it doesn’t mean she won’t be there if that’s what you want

she’ll try to bring you on patrol as much as she can, it’s a distraction at least

but if you really can’t face leaving the house, she would ask the scoobies to start taking up the slack and stay in with you

I feel like she would do all the shopping (food and extras) so you’d have a bunch of fun snacks or random treats that she hoped you might like

knows the little things can go a long way

if you appear emotionless or low, she’ll kiss you softly on the forehead and will never take it personal

if you’re trying to avoid going out she’ll gently encourage you

if you really refuse to go out in the evenings, her solution will be movie nights. 

She’ll rent videos and set up the living room 

so many blankets and she’ll cuddle up to you

she’ll slowly invite one or two friends over too so that you’re not cutting yourself off from everyone you care about (there’s no chance she’ll let you cut her out)

eventually, there will be regular Scooby movie nights

Cordelia:

will chat to you about anything and everything

Won’t expect you to talk back, just wants you to know she’s there

can talk non-stop for days about all of the gossip she has accumulated

If you’re struggling to motivate yourself with everyday tasks she will do as much as she can

without even mentioning it

If you haven’t washed your hair in a while she will offer to wash your hair

Will run you a bath (or shower if that’s easier)

And will very soothingly massage your scalp and wash/condition your hair

She’d set out comfy clothes and definitely brush out your hair (or comb it/style it depending on your style)

read in a magazine that sunlight is supposed to help

trying to decide if the tanning bed would be the same thing

eventually opts for natural sunlight when told by one of the Scoobies that tanning booths probably aren’t the best way to go

will set up a beach day

or the closest thing she can get to a beach day (which might just be sitting in the back garden under the sun)

you tell her she didn’t have to but she will smile wide and insist that it was the best excuse to work on her tan

Very caring and will drop everything for the right person to meet their needs

Will fight anyone that says anything judgemental or rude about you

Willow:

She’ll be very practical but try to be lowkey about it

small suggestions to make sure you’re looking after yourself

you will never ever have any doubt she cares

forgetful? Sticky notes everywhere

adjusting to new meds? Will make a list of any side effects and monitor you to be sure you’re safe

(just cos she cares)

If the days are running into each other she will wake you up telling you the day with a little kiss

I feel like she’d like meal prepping

so she’d make meals for the week so you could have something in if you weren’t feeling up to cooking anything nutritious

she’d totally be doing it anyway, so just makes a little extra for you to share

she will also bake and encourage you to join in too. She’ll say its more fun when you’re around

she will try and inject a little bit of fun into everything

e.g. making a game out of tidying your living room/bedroom

Will offer to do a few spells to help with everyday tasks if they’re overwhelming you a bit

Won’t be too upset if you say no

But will try to convince you multiple times

Xander:

if you’ve been in a slump for a while he’ll try and shake up the routine

even if its just a little something

will crack a lot of jokes to try and cheer you up

“Laughter is the best medicine” (but he will definitely check in sporadically to make sure if u take meds that you are taking them)

won’t remember himself to check all the time but will remember randomly and he’ll ask even if you’re in the middle of a different conversation

But knows when to be serious, when you really need him to be there

Will want you to lean on him 24/7

Both literally and metaphorically

If there’s a day where you’re doing a lot of crying he will be the shoulder you cry on

Wouldn’t leave even if it looked like you were trying to push him away

Knows how to talk to you (especially if you were being self-deprecating)

would 100% be the type to make breakfast in bed on multiple occasions. Wants to make sure you feel special

because you’re usually pretty hard on yourself

might get frustrated that he can’t do more to help (but would never take it out on you)

would go and vent to Buffy or someone who would tell him what you would: that you love that he’s there as much as he can be. He makes it all worth it

Oz:

he’d be very chill about it 

He’d always worry, but be chill on the surface

not only because he’s literally always laid back but because he wants to show it doesn’t phase him

he loves you

he’ll just roll with whatever it is that you need

If you need to cancel plans he’d just nod and call up to cancel

Would try his best to make sure you were comfortable

He’s big on giving for a s/o so anything you needed he’d encourage you to ask

He’d probably check on you a lot, not always verbal just a gesture with his head

If you’re no longer able to enjoy stuff you’re into, he’ll try and slowly introduce small activities

bursts of fun that might or might not help

but you always appreciate the thought

Music.

Will play music as a way of distraction if your thoughts are getting heavy

Any genre. Any decade. Any mood

Will lie there with you, letting the songs wash over you both

Will want to hold your hand or something as a gesture of comfort

always wants you to know he’s there

Anya:

If you can’t move from bed or you’re unmotivated she will try her best to be understanding

Will set lots of alarms if it’s something important you need to get up for

Alarm clocks on every surface

But if you can’t face it she’ll make up a very unconvincing excuse but nobody will question her

At least her hearts in the right place

will tell you wild stories from her past to pass the time if you can’t face leaving the house

will insist you go to therapy and make sure you go

is very by the book because she has just learnt about everything

(thanks Google)

“it says here that counselling/therapy will help with your depression, so you have to go every week, y/n”

will not be open to discussion about it. 

she read it therefore it’s a fact so will always make sure you go. Same with meds if you take them. Same with making sure your diet is as balanced as possible

she’ll be very by the book because she’s just learning about it as she goes

and she’ll always want the best for you

Faith:

If you’re feeling particularly bad about yourself that day she wouldnt care about appearing vulnerable she’d whisper the softest things

you’d want to tease her but you just couldn’t

she’d make you feel so loved

you’d never be a burden with her

she’d love you so fiercely 

she might snap sometimes, but she knows when you’re more fragile

she’d hate seeing you cry

would make her cry

but she wouldn’t go anywhere or tell you to stop. She’d whisper and just let you cry against her

with her own tears threatening to spill

would be very protective

if anyone made you feel guilty or didn’t understand you physically couldn’t do stuff

she would not hesitate to use her slayer strength to back up her words

Will take you on trips in the car. Won’t tell you where she got the car from. Or if her license has expired or not

Mini roadtrips with no real destination

so that you can have some fresh air, some music

knows that you’ll need a change of scene if you’ve been staying in a lot

[heavenly-roman]

Sibling Culture™️

Plot: A series of events in which Roman and Remus enact peak Sibling Culture™️

Warnings: swearing, mild sexual references (aka remus being remus), a lil bit of insecurity and sibling rivalry, sympathetic remus

Pairing(s): creativitwins, mentioned/implied intruality, mentioned/implied roceit

Word Count: 1634

if you liked this, consider buying me a coffee?

Taglist: @emo-disaster @shitpost-sides @gattonero17

(ao3 link!!!)

+++

The incessant knocking on Roman’s door persists, despite Roman calling for whoever it is (Remus, definitely Remus), to come in.

After another forty-five seconds of knocking, of which Roman seriously contemplates jumping out the window, the door swings open. Remus stands there, not making a noise, until Roman groans and looks at him.

His brother is t-posing - Roman genuinely considers closing the door in his face.

“What are you doing?” Roman asks.

“Simple.” Remus responds, keeping his position. “I’m t-posing in your doorway to establish dominance as the better twin.”

“You’re not the better twin.”

Remus makes an offended noise, and Roman watches him carefully. Normally, the younger twin would make some sort of offended or crude gesture. Today, however, he is unmoving. “I am clearly the better twin, as I am currently t-posting and establishing my dominance. Try to keep up, Ro.”

“Is that all you wanted?” Roman sighs.

“Oh, dinner’s ready too,” Remus shrugs and walks away, leaving the door wide open. Bewildered, Roman follows.

+++

H. Duke (9:31pm): roman

H. Duke (9:31pm): roman

H. Duke (9:32pm): roman!!

H. Duke (9:34pm): romAN

H. Duke (9:34pm): ROMAN

   H. Chandler (9:35pm): WHAT DO YOU WANT REMUS

   H. Duke (9:37pm): i lost the game >:D

H. Chandler (9:38pm): i will END YOU

+++

Roman sighs and reluctantly knocks on Remus’ door, calling to him, “Remus, can you help me?”

“Depends,” Remus swings the door open, mischievous smirk gracing his lips. “What do you want, and what can you do for me?”

Holding out his notebook and textbook, Roman explains, “can you check that my answers are right? I can’t be in the musical if I fail math again.”

Remus gives him an expectant look, so he continues, “I’ll do your laundry for a week.”

“A month.”

“Two weeks.”

“Deal,” Remus nods and holds out his hand to shake. Roman shakes it, then hands the books to his brother, who promptly flops down into his desk chair. Roman stands anxiously as Remus compares their homework, hope growing in his stomach when Remus looks up at him with a soft smile and nods.

“They look good, Ro,” he stands, giving the books back to his twin. “You’re getting the hang of it, I’m proud of you.”

“Oh, uh, thank you, Re.”

“Don’t sweat it,” Remus shrugs. “Now get out of my room, I’m playing Minecraft.”

+++

H. Duke (11:37am): hey beefbrain are u going out for lunch?

   H. Chandler (11:38am): yes why?

   H. Duke (11:39am): bring me back a cheeseburger

   H. Chandler (11:41am): why would I do that??? you literally just called me beefbrain???

   H. Duke (11:42am): remember that time I proofread your math homework so you could audition for the wizard of oz?

    H. Chandler (11:43am): ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

H. Chandler (11:43am): extra onion right?

+++

Roman skips up the stairs, shrugging his backpack off as he opens his bedroom door. Flicking on the light, he holds back a scream as he notices Remus lounging on his bed.

“Ah, Roman King, so nice of you to join me.”

“What are you doing in my room, Remus?” Roman rolls his eyes and closes the door. He crosses his arms over his chest as Remus stands.

“Let me paint you a picture, dear brother,” Remus begins dramatically pacing around the room - it’s times like this Roman can truly see the resemblance. “You see, I entered your room in pursuit of one thing, and one thing only -  your white crop top with the skull on it.”

“In the hamper.”

“Thank you. But while looking in your closet, I found something. Any guesses?”

Roman sighs, “Your green army jacket?”

“My green army jacket!” Remus pulls the coat from behind his back and holds it up for the older twin to see. “Anything to say for yourself, thief?”

“Remus, you literally just admitted to coming in here to steal a shirt of mine. I think I’m allowed to borrow a jacket.”

“Nuh uh, I have a right as your younger sibling to steal your clothes.”

“You’re only twenty minutes younger than me?”

“Doesn’t matter, still my birth right.”

“Fine,” Roman slumps down onto his bed. “Take the shirt, and wash it before you give it back?”

“You’re doing my laundry for the next week and a half so i think you’ll be washing it.”

+++

H. Chandler (10:03am): hey

H. Chandler (10:03am): wizard of oz auditions are today at lunch

     H. Duke (10:05am): and? why should I care?

H. Duke (10:06am): wait wait I get it

H. Duke (10:06am): break a leg I guess

    H. Chandler (10:11am): not what I was getting at, but thank you

H. Chandler (10:12am): you should audition

H. Chandler (10:12am): I think you’d make a great wizard

   H. Duke (10:15am): ur hilarious

H. Duke (10:15am): absolutely not

   H. Chandler (10:17am): why not?

   H. Duke (10:17am): I have no talent

H. Duke (10:18am): you’re the one mom and dad are super proud of, remember?

  H. Chandler (10:21am): Remus, shut up. You’re one of the most talented people I’ve ever met

H. Chandler (10:22am): you’re related to me, afterall

H. Chandler (10:22am): mom and dad are proud of you too, by the way

      H. Duke (10:25am): fine

  H. Chandler (10:27am): fine????

  H. Duke (10:28am): fine, i’ll audition, but only to get you off my back

   H. Chandler (10:32am): love you too!!!

  H. Duke (10:33am): you’re also buying me lunch

+++

The auditorium door barely closes behind him before Roman is bombarding him with questions.

“How did it go? What did they say? How do you feel? What-”

“Roman.”

“Sorry.

Remus motions for them to walk as he begins speaking, “It went well, I guess. They said I was ‘very promising’, whatever that means.”

“Remus, that’s amazing!” Roman exclaims. He fishes his car keys from his pocket and unlocks the door, sliding into the driver’s seat. “This calls for celebratory milkshakes.”

“We only do that when you get the role, dumbass.”

“But I know that you’re going to!”

“Look, Ro, I-” Remus sighs, turning in the passenger seat to face his brother. “Don’t get my hopes up, okay? The audition… felt good, yeah, but that doesn’t mean anything. I’ve seen you study really hard for tests and feel good about them and then fail, you know? Feeling good does nothing, and I barely prepared for it.”

The silence in the car was thick, both of them sitting in the truth of Remus’ words, before Roman speaks up again.

“Well,” He says, starting the car. “I guess we really do need those shakes.”

+++

H. Chandler (4:46pm): stop talking to patton, he’s my friend not yours

  H. Duke (5:07pm): sorry what was that? I was busy getting my dick sucked by patton

   H. Chandler (5:08pm): OH MY GOD

H. Chandler (5:08pm): TMI??????????????

  H. Duke (5:10pm): kidding kidding

         H. Chandler (5:11pm): oh thank god

   H. Duke (5:13pm): i was sucking HIS dick

   H. Chandler (5:14pm): REMUS WHAT THE FUCK

     H. Duke (5:17pm): im kidding again

H. Duke (5:17pm): we’re studying, calm down

    H. Chandler (5:18pm): don’t you EVER do that to me again

   H. Duke (5:26pm): yeah whatever

H. Duke (5:26pm): i’ll stop hanging out with patton if you stop hanging out with dee

H. Duke (5:27pm): hE’s mY fRiEnD nOt YoUrS

    H. Chandler (5:31pm): bold of you to assume dee and I are just friends

H. Chandler (5:32pm): but alright, I concede, as long as you never try to tell me about your real or imaginary sex life again

    H. Duke (5:38pm): deal

+++

“They posted the cast list!” Roman jumps up and down in front of his brother. “Should we go check together?”

Remus grimaces, “I think I’m good, you can check it yourself.”

“Remus,” Roman frowns. “A wise man once told me to always receive news first hand, and that’s why he would never check cast lists for me.”

“You already know your news.” Remus picks at the olives in his salad.

“But you don’t know yours!” Roman insists.

“Roman.”

“Remus.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“Check it for me.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“ Please .”

“Fine.” Remus pushes his chair out and stands. “But only to shut you up.”

“And that’s how you win the game, folks.”

Remus rolls his eyes and pushes past Roman who makes an offended noise and follows him. His steps become smaller as he grows closer to the auditorium door where the cast list is posted. Nervously, he asks, “Check it first?”

Roman nods sympathetically and makes his way to the door. “Do you want me to read it out loud?” He asks.

“Please.”

“Scarecrow: Roman King. Tin Man: Dee Lyre. Cowardly Lion: Patton Hart. The Wizard-”

“Wait,” Remus interrupts. “Let me read this one.”

“By all means.”

Remus takes a deep breath and reads the list, “The Wizard: Remus King.”

Roman cheers, and Remus joins in too. They’re practically screaming by the time they reach the cafeteria again, but no one bothers to stop them.

+++

H. Chandler (1:56pm): so, celebratory milkshakes after school?

       H. Duke (1:59pm): you know it

H. Duke (2:00pm): oh and bring a mayo jar so I can put my shake in it and freak people out

       H. Chandler (2:03pm): absolutely not, plans cancelled

     H. Duke (2:04pm): :(

       H. Chandler (2:08pm): ugh okay fine plans uncancelled but i'm not bringing a mayo jar

       H. Duke (2:09pm): :D

H. Duke (2:09pm): and it’s fine i have my own

     H. Chandler (2:11pm): not even gonna ask

H. Chandler (2:14pm): oh and remus?

    H. Duke (2:15pm): yeah?

    H. Chandler (2:21pm): I lost the game

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

I was going to save this until tomorrow morning, but then I remembered I have stuff to do in the morning and I’ll be traveling again, soooo gonna finally get this fic officially rolling tonight.

*Originally I was going to call this fic ‘The Romancing of Ruby Rose,’ but I didn’t really like how it just focused on Ruby when it’s a Bright Eyes OT3 fic, so I decided to make a last minute change.

*this fic is based off a set of three asks sent to me by @misstrashchan, the first being:

Oscar's learnt how to pick up on Ruby's emotions better than most in a short time. So he doesn't fail to notice how hard Ruby- and it appears Penny as well- are crushing on one another. He tries to encourage Ruby to ask Penny on a date, but for some reason, they keep bringing him along.

and now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for!

.

How to Grow a Romance in 3 Easy Steps

Step 1: Planting Rose Seeds in the Garden

I fell in love with her the moment I saw her silver eyes.

A shiver runs up Oscar’s spine.  He stares at the last line of the story, as if the intensity of his gaze will make it change to something else entirely.  His stomach twists uncomfortably into knots.  Oscar can imagine, far too easily, what it feels like to fall in love with a silver-eyed person.  The way one’s heart skips a beat.  The rush of heady emotions.

He’d chosen to read this book of fairytales to forget about his problems for an hour or two (and maybe find a deeper understanding of Ozpin along the way, since it was Oz who collected the stories for the book once upon a time).  Not to be reminded of his woes.

Oscar sighs.  He closes the book with a light thump, tosses it to the side, lies on his back, and stares at the ceiling.  When they were first getting settled, Jaune had given him the choice of top or bottom bunk in their Atlas dorm room.  Oscar chose the top.  It gave him a little more privacy, distance, from his teammates.  Oscar likes Jaune, Nora, and Ren, they’ve become his friends, but they can be a bit much at times too.

There are times, like now, where Oscar enjoys being able to think without being asked what he’s thinking about.  He’s not quite sure how that conversation would go, and he’s not eager to find out.  There are far more important things they need to focus on than something as insignificant as a puppyish crush.  He never even considered romance an option before leaving his aunt’s farm.  He shouldn’t now.

Because, because it doesn’t matter how he feels about Ruby.  Not in the slightest.  Ruby doesn’t feel the same way about him.  He doesn’t make her heart race.  She doesn’t smile softly, tenderly at him.  Not like she does at…

Oscar rolls over and groans into his pillow.  It would be much easier to endure if it were literally anyone else who managed to gain Ruby’s affection.  Literally.  Anyone.  Else.  ANYONE.

Other than Penny Polendina.

Oscar hadn’t known her before, at Beacon, like everyone else had.  After talking to them, he found out Jaune, Nora, and Ren hadn’t known Penny too well either back then.  She’d been closer to Team RWBY, and especially Ruby.  Oscar had wondered, after witnessing how Penny and Ruby just looked at each other, if there’d been something more between them back at Beacon.  He’d asked.  His three teammates looked between themselves and admitted they didn’t actually know.

Although JNPR and RWBY were close in their academy days, some things still didn’t leave their respective teams, Jaune explained.  It wasn’t until after the Fall that they’d learned that Ruby had known Penny’s true nature for quite some time before the tragedy in the arena, for instance.  They kept their own secrets too.  Ren and Nora had revealed their past to Jaune, and their late teammate, Pyrrha, but not to RWBY.

(Pyrrha Nikos, for the record, remains an entirely separate topic Oscar isn’t sure how to think about.  He knows none of his friends consider him her replacement on Team JNPR.  Even though his name technically has a ‘P’ in it and Ironwood was more than willing to register him as the new fourth member of JNPR in Atlas’s databases, they’d instead insisted on calling themselves ORNJ.  It causes some confusion since Jaune is still the team leader, but, for them, it works.  Both to represent who they are now and keep the memory of who they were then in tact.)

Back to the point, if there were anyone (outside of Ruby), to choose to have a crush on, Oscar completely understands why Penny would be that choice.  She’s like no one else he’s ever met, and not just because of the robot thing.  Okay, yeah, the fact she can fly is pretty cool.  But, more than that, she’s sweet.  She’s one of the most kind-hearted souls he’s ever met.  

Most importantly, Penny doesn’t see Oscar as just the boy who’d tagged along with her actual friends because their old headmaster had taken up residence in his head.  She sees him as a potential new friend in his own right.  She’s gone out of her way to make him feel welcome in Atlas.  She didn’t really have to do that.  Especially not when she’s so busy herself being Protector of an entire city.

It makes it impossible to dislike her.  And really, it’s flat out unfair to dislike someone just because the person you happen to have a crush on has a crush on them anyway.

A part of Oscar wishes he did dislike Penny.  That part of him is convinced that, if he were just to channel all his heartbreak over not being the one to catch Ruby’s eye into negative emotions for her, it would be easier to cope.  Every other part of him knows it wouldn’t be.  Not truly.  Not in any way that counts.

Oscar’s scroll vibrates.  He sighs to himself, but reaches over to pick it up to read whatever message has been sent to him.

Text from Ruby Rose:

Hey Oscar, later me and Penny are gonna to go to that arcade that you told me FNKI told you to check out, wanna come?

Oscar stares at the text as one minute passes by, then another, and a third after that.  Yes, he’d told Ruby about the arcade.  Team FNKI had told his team about it after one of their training bouts.  It was apparently one of FNKI’s favorite places to unwind and destress.  He’d told Ruby about it because he knew how much she enjoyed video games.

(He figured it could probably be a great place for some kind of first date between her and Penny, as well.  At least, that’s where Oscar would have taken Ruby if he’d ever been able to ask her out.)

(Look, if Oscar is never going to get his chance to admit his true feelings, the least the two of them could do is just go out with each other already.  Ruby and Penny really have no subtlety whatsoever in masking their emotions and he wants them, both of them, to be happy.)

Oscar had even encouraged Ruby that maybe Penny would enjoy going to to the arcade with her, as gentle nudge in the right direction, when he told her about it.  She’d been receptive to the idea.  Oscar had been happy to see Ruby so excited (sure he couldn’t be her, or Penny’s, happiness, but he could bring them together so they could be that for each other).

But now they want him to come with them.  And third wheel their date.

Unless they don’t consider it a date?  Which, okay sure, knowing them, they probably don’t.  But still.

For the first time in his life, Oscar wishes he’d paid just the slightest bit more attention to his aunt’s gossip on the going-ons of the closest town to their farm.  None of it was particularly interesting, but a lot of it did seem to revolve around who should be in a relationship with who.  Maybe some random tidbit from back then may have now proven helpful in figuring out this current situation of his.

A quiet voice in Oscar’s mind (one that’s definitely his own and not Ozpin) reminds him its not his job to play matchmaker between his friends.

(Though, he does need to direct his restless crush emotions somewhere and ensuring Ruby and Penny’s future happiness seems a good a place as any.)

Oscar grumbles to himself.  He’s about to type out a reply saying, no, he’ll be busy, he can’t come.  Sure, he would like to, because he does enjoy spending time with them, but he’s not certain he should.

He gets another message before he can send his out.

Text from Penny Polendina:

Ruby said she already invited you to the arcade, but I just wanted to say I’d be excited if you come too!  More friends = more fun!!!

Oscar knows he can still say ‘no’.  He doesn’t have to go just because Penny has now asked him too.  But she’s his friend, and he cares about her (a lot), and she gets so little time off to spend with friends, any friends, including him.  If she and Ruby aren’t seeing this outing as a date anyway?  Well, then he can just let that be something he figures out how to push them toward later.

After taking a deep breath, Oscar messages back asking after details, like when exactly in the day they were planning on going.

[niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian]

Can I have a fanfic about sonic going to school?

Oh this one is cute! Due to him being confirmed to be 13 to 14 in the film, I’ll have him start in 6th grade for this prompt.

But we're gonna change it up a little...you'll see what I mean.

I apologize in advance to anyone i caused to cry while reading this, because I did while writing this.

Being small is way past cool.

=======

“Sonic!”

The hedgehog flinched at Tom’s loud voice cutting through the closed ladder door. “Sonic! Are you up yet?”

Groaning, he borrows deeper in his blanket and puts his pillow over his head.

‘God 6 is seriously too early to wake up on a Tuesday.’

Hearing the ladder door slide open, he kept still and held his breath as he heard heavy footsteps come into his room.

“Sonic?” He came closer to the bed, shaking Sonic’s shoulder.

“C’mon bud, you gotta get up now.”

“Nooo” his voice muffled underneath the pillow.

Tom rolled his eyes, whipping back the bed sheets off him.

Feeling the sudden cool air, his body tensed up and glared up at the human.

“Uh-uh Don’t look at me like that, you know you got to wake up now.”

Sonic closed his eyes, curled up his body and rolled over, his back facing Tom.

Tom let out a deep sigh. “Ok then.” he walks away and heads down the stairs.

'Maybe at this rate he'll let me stay home this time.' He sighed in relief as he started to go back to sleep.

That didn't last long before he heard Tom's footsteps come back into the room.

'Ugh spoke too soon.'

Hearing his steps get closer, he felt Tom’s hand wrap around his shoulder, pulling him up in a sitting position.

The hedgehog groaned and let his head fall forward.

‘I’m still not getting up, why is he trying so-AAAAH!’

Sonic let out a scream as he felt a rush of cold mask around his face.

Tom, with a washcloth soaked with cold water, rubbed the cloth around Sonic’s eyes and face. “You should have got up when I told you.”

Swatting his hands away, he rubbed his eyes, now miraculously feeling more awake.

“Wha- What was that?”

“An old trick my mom used on me when I wouldn’t get up, just take a washcloth, soak it in cold water and wipe your face with it.” He grinned as he twirled the cloth around. “Could never really escape from it.”

“Hpmh, you must’ve been a stubborn kid.”

“It worked on you too so you’re not off the hook either.” he flicked the cloth on top of his head. "Now please get yourself ready, I'm not telling you again."

"Fine." He huffed, moving the damp cloth off head and stretched as Tom walked back downstairs.

'He sounds serious this time, maybe he has to work a extra shift again.'

"Well I guess I have to get serious too." Using his speed, he made his bed and grabbed his toothbrush, zipping to the bathroom to get washed up.

Tom heard him zipping upstairs as he sat down at the table, letting out a deep sigh,

Maddie walked over to him, holding two cups of coffee. “Everything ok up there?”

“Teenagers.” He said bluntly as he took his cup from Maddie. “I always thought we got lucky from skipping the terrible two’s or that awkward preteen stage, but this-.”

He stopped to take a long sip from his mug. “I wonder how our parents felt when we went through this.”

“Tom, it’s probably because it’s the end of the first week of school for him and he doesn’t want to go due to how often he’s been home.”

"So he's becoming stagnant basically?"

"In a matter of speaking, yes."

"Oh god, he's becoming a basement baby."

"Pfft, that only counts once they're 18 and over Tom."

"Don't be so sure of that, he already lives in our attic. So he's kinda like a...attic toddler."

Maddie nearly dropped her plate from stifling her snorts of laughter, passing Tom his plate. "Yeah ok, don't him hear you call him that."

"Please with all the names he calls us, we should at least get to call him something." He huffed as he cut into his eggs.

"I thought he did have one? The Blue Devil?"

"Nope, it's Attic Toddler now." He waved his hand, mouth partially full.

Maddie let out a hum as she ate her eggs. "Hmm I don't think he likes that too much."

"Why'd you say-?"

"ATTIC TODDLER?!?"

Tom let out a yell and jumped nearly a foot into the air as he heard Sonic's voice shrill right behind him. Ozzie barked in response to his yell, only for Maddie to call him over and calm him down.

Grabbing his chest, Tom panted as he looked at the hedgehog, who was wearing a small red shirt with a picture Saturn on it, looking very offended.

"Dude! You know better than to sneak up behind people and scream like that!"

Ignoring Tom's remark, he carried on sounding more agitated. "'Attic toddler'? C'mon Tom I'm not that short!"

Catching his breath, he turned around in his chair to fully face him, slightly smiling. "I mean can you blame me, you're about the size of a toddler."

Sonic tightens his fists, cheeks blushes slightly. "NO I'M NOT!!"

His eyes flash blue for a split second and small sparks erupts from his quills as he panted from his outburst.

Ozzie whimpered and cowered underneath the table. Tom eyes widen while Maddie let out a gasp at the hedgehog's sudden outburst.

Tom was the first to break the dead silence. "Sonic?"

Still panting, he blinked before looking shocked and shaking his head, sparks disappearing and his eyes going back to emerald green.

"I....uh...I." he fiddled with his hands, looking down at the floor and taking a few steps back from the couple.

Tom went to stand up, Sonic backed away even more. “Hey-.”

“I’m sorry.” He murmured quickly before speeding up to his room, shutting the door behind him.

“Soni-.” He voice got cut off at the sound of the door closing.

Gripping his chair, he put his weight against the back, looking where Sonic disappeared.

“Tom?” He turned around to see his wife, both hands on the table as she looked at him, her face hardened. “What in the world was that?”

Choking on his words, he sat back down and leaned on the table, letting out a hard breath.

“I have no idea Mads.” Ozzie came out slowly from the table and approached Tom, putting his head on his knee.

He scratched his head in response. “I’ve never seen him like....that before, last time I saw him like this was months ago when he was fighting Robotnik.”

Maddie folded her hands and put them against her mouth. “I know and he’s never yelled in that way either." After a short pause she glances up.

"Do you think something happened at the school?"

"Hmm possibly, we haven't got any calls from them yet."

She reached across the table and grabbed his hand. "Oh Tom, do you think he may be getting picked on?"

He opened his mouth to speak only to close it, thinking about what she said. 'I mean it's not far fetched that he actually could be, it's pretty common around this age group.'

"Middle school kids can be pretty brutal, man it's only the first week for him too."

"He got pretty upset at the comment you made, maybe it something related to that."

"Yeah he did...." drumming his fingers against the table before snapping his fingers. "I got something."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"I'm gonna just take a page out of my dad's book for once, hopefully it works for him like it did for me".

=======

'Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!' He screamed mentally as paced around his room, trying to calm down.

"Why did I yell at them like that?!? They didn't know what was going on anyway, now they're definitely going to know that something's up! Way to go Sonic!" He threw his arms up in the air as he sat against his beanbag chair.

Taking a few breaths, he hugged his arms and stared at his feet. 'I...don't know what to do.'

Feeling his eyes sting, he sniffed and blinked away any incoming tears.

Looking up, the clock read 7:05. 'An hour and a half left huh? Maybe I'll take a walk instead of a run today.'

Getting up slowly, he put on his windbreaker and grabbed his backpack. He traced over the stitching of the owl that was sewn on the back before hugging the bag to his chest.

Pushing the ladder down, he slowly made his way to the main steps and pushed the ladder up, his ears picked up the sound of the shower turning on and faint singing coming from it.

'Maddie's still here, I wonder if she's mad at me? And Tom...'

He shook his head as he made his way to the front door, looking over to where Ozzie was laying, the dog's head was between his paws as he saw Sonic pass by.

"See you later Oz" he waved sheepishly at the dog.

Not moving an inch, Ozzie gave a small bark in reply.

He winced at the lack of energy the retriever gave. 'Oh man I guess he's mad at me too.'

He stepped onto the front porch, closing the door behind him. Adjusting his book bag zipping up his coat, he made his way down the stairs, his mind still going.

“Hey!”

The teen jumped and ducked slightly at the sound of a deep voice echoing in the yard. “Raise your hands where I can see them!”

Recognizing the voice, he let out a sigh as he walked towards the truck, the window rolled all the way down revealing that Tom was sitting inside.

Tom leaned his head out, his elbow out the window. “Hey bud.” He said softly.

“Hi.” He murmured, looking down at the ground.

A short pause. “Why so blue?”

Sonic huffed and glared up at the human, who held back a laugh before clearing his throat.

“No seriously though, how you feeling?”

“I’m.....fine.” Deep down he knew that he still wasn’t fine, but he didn’t want Tom to see that.

“Hmm-mmm.” He checked his watch before opening the door on the passenger side. “Well come on.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t have to be at the station until 9 so I’m taking you to school today.”

“O-oh, no that’s ok I was gonna just walk to school.”

Tom looks at him, straight faced.

“Sonic, I’m taking you to school.”

His voice was calm, but carried an eerie tone to it. As if saying, “you definitely have no other choice in the matter.”

Squirming under his gaze, he holds up his hands in surrender. “Ok whatever you say.”

He sighs as he makes his way into the passenger seat, closing the car door, putting his bag on the floor and folding his arms as he sat.

Putting the car in reverse, Tom backed the car out of the driveway.

“Put on your seatbelt.” He without looking back.

Sonic takes the seatbelt and straps it behind him rather than around him and clicks it in.

"Fasten it around your body please". He says, still not looking back.

Shocked, he complies while staring at him. ‘How does he do that? I swear grown ups have eyes in the back of their heads.’

=======

Tom continued to drive at a steady pace, one hand on the steering wheel, the other out the window.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Sonic looking out the window at the passing trees, face in his palm and face sullen.

Clearing his throat, his decides to break the silence. “So do you want to talk about it?”

“About what?”

“That big elephant you left in the room.”

“Elephant? There was no elephant anywhere.”

“No-what I mean is that something is obviously bothering you and it’s starting to worry me and Maddie.”

He clutched the strap of the seatbelt. “Nothing’s bothering me.”

“Really? Cause the way you acted back there says otherwise.”

“I just-, I just didn’t like the way you called me a toddler that’s all.” He squeezes the belt tighter.

“If you didn’t like that I called you a toddler, you would have just told me that instead of yelling at me like that.”

"I didn't mean to yell, it just came out that way."

"Then why are you upset that I called you that?"

Sonic just shrugged his shoulders while giving a noise that sounded like "I don't know".

"Yes you do, you just don't upset like that for no reason."

Sonic stayed silent, hugging himself and closed his eyes, kneeling his head against the door.

Tom sighed in defeat, putting his eyes back on the road. 'It must be tough on him if he just won't say it to me.'

Seeing the exit ramp towards the school come into view, he increased his speed and drove right past it.

Sonic snapped out of it and watched as they went past the ramp.

"I figure we take the long way around, since we have the time." Tom answered, sensing the teen's confusion.

Sonic closes his mouth and nods, leaning his back against the seat, his shoulders noticeably loosening up and his face relaxed.

Tom grinned as he drove down the road, passing underneath the trees and by individual houses.

He turned the car onto a wide dirt road and drove up a hill leading to a area surrounded by a small glade of trees.

'Are we at a camping ground?' Looking around, he sees a small number of picnic tables and wooden signs.

"Why are we here?" He asks Tom, who is looking around the area, seemingly looking for something.

"Change of scenery, Ah there it is!" Tom exclaimed as he pulls into a space and puts the car in park.

Looking over the dashboard, he sees a metal guard rail bordering where the flat ground ends and an open view of the sky and trees down below, clear of any trees from blocking it.

Tom gets out and stretches his arms, breathing out a loud sigh before walking away from the car.

Sonic gets out slowly and closes the door. He walks over to the guard rail, backing up slightly at the steep drop beyond it.

It was a rather quiet place, only hearing woodpeckers and birds chirping in the distance and the sounds of the pine needles crunching under his shoes.

He turned around as he heard Tom grunting and saw him climbing up on the hood of the car and putting his back against the windshield, his feet dangling in front of the muffler.

Seeing Sonic stare at him, he patted the spot on the hood next to him.

He sped over on top of the hood and sat down next to the human, crossing his legs.

The two sat in silence for a bit before Tom spoke. "You're probably still wondering why I took you here right before school."

"Yeah I still am actually."

Tom chuckled. "Well this place is pretty special to me. Me and Maddie would take walks up here when we got engaged, take Ozzie on walks, even have some barbecue parties with some of the neighbors." He paused before mouth became tight.

"This is also the same place my dad took me when I was about your age.

Sonic let out a small gasp and raising his head up. "Really?"

"Yeah, it was actually for the same reason you're going through right now. Middle school was getting rough for me and my parents knew right away that something was wrong." He smiled at the distant memory before continuing.

"So one random day he came up to my room and told me that he was driving me to school, I didn't think much of it so I went along with it."

"Then he drives up into these woods and pulls up in the same spot that we're in right now."

Sonic eyes widened as he leaned in with interest.

"We both sat on the hood of his old pickup and just stared at the sun rising, it made me feel...calm and relaxed, So much so I was able to him what was going on."

"What'd you tell him?"

"About how the kids were teasing me, calling me names behind the teachers back and no one wanted to be around me because I was the sheriff's son."

"And I'll never forget what he said to me, he said "Thomas, those kids are just jealous because they wish their fathers were as cool and handsome just like I am."" Tom said as he tried to imitate his father's voice, making Sonic giggle at the rough impression.

Letting out a laugh as well, he smiled before talking in his regular voice. "But what he also told me was "They think because of what family you were born into, you'll turn out just like them, good or bad. It's up to you to show them that you are unique in both mind and soul and eventually prove them wrong, you got what it takes, son.""

Tom beams as he finishes the story, looking down Sonic, who eyes were starting to water.

"Oh, hey buddy you ok?" He spoke softly as he puts a hand on Sonic's shoulder, who nods his head as he wipes away incoming tears.

"*sniff* Yeah I'm fi-." He stops realizing what he's about to say. 'No you're not.'

"No I'm not fine actually."

Hand still on his shoulder, he pulls him in closer. "Go ahead, I'm listening."

He took a deep breath before speaking. "Some of the kids at school have been....making fun of my height."

Tom stiffens up but listens as Sonic continues. "On the first day, it was kinda like a joke, the fact that I'm in 6th grade and I look like I should be in 1st grade. I didn't think much of it."

His fists resting on his knees clench up. "Then this one group of kids in my PE class, they really went at it and wouldn't stop. They didn't do things like push me in a locker or beat me up or anything because of my speed, but the things they said...." He stops as he feels his throat go tight.

"What things did they say to you?" He kept his voice steady.

His voice cracks. "They said that my speed was the reason my parents didn't want me anymore, my height was not normal for my age and then yesterday they told me that it was only reason I was taken in by the sheriff was because I'm "an abomination that no one else wanted and that he could use me for hunting practice". He finishes as his voice cuts off and a few tears run down his face.

Tom uses his thumb to wipe the tears from his face as he pulls him closer. Sonic lets out a small sob as he wraps his arms around Tom's waist and cries softly into his chest, with Tom holding a hand behind his head and back.

The two sit on the hood of the truck as Sonic quiet sobs fill the air with Tom rubbing his back and whispering words of comfort.

After a few minutes, Sonic pulls away from the embrace hiccuping slightly, wiping his eyes and sniffing loudly.

Tom pulls out a tissue while continuing to rub his back. "Here, blow your nose."

Sonic wipes his eyes before blowing his nose hard. He leans back against Tom's side, trying to control his breathing.

"Sonic, why didn't you say anything to us if those kids were picking so much?

He shook his head. "I didn't want to guys to worry about it, I thought if I just tough it out it would be fine."

"Is that why you yelled like that?" Seeing him nod his head slowly, he let out a deep sigh.

"Ok we got to agree on some things, first thing is next time something like this happens, please let us know right away, it's not good to hold in emotions like that."

He nods in agreement. 'Oh trust me I know.'

"Two, please don't raise your voice like that at us again. You're lucky I was taking you, Maddie wasn't too happy that you did that."

"O-ok, I think Ozzie was mad at me too."

"You probably just scared him a little."

"And three, don't let people like that get to you, they never know the full story of your life unless they are apart of it."

"Oh yeah, they don't." He wipes eyes again with his palm.

"Hey, they might even be jealous at the fact that your living with a sheriff that's so devilishly handsome." He clutches his chin and raises his eyebrows.

Sonic let out a wet laugh, pushing Tom's shoulder. "Pfft I know that's definitely not it."

"Wha- how dare you, I'm eligible to be on the Bachelor!" He let out a fake gasp as he poked Sonic in the sides.

The hedgehog shrieked as he shielded away, swatting away his hand.

Tom shook his head as he checked his watch.

"Whoa, it's 8:15 already? We better get going." He grunted as got off the hood.

"Oh right, school." Sonic said solemnly as he looked out at the view, the sun near the top of the trees. 'I kinda don't want to leave now.'

"Hey Tom? Is it ok if we come back here again?"

"Yeah that's a good idea, we can come back during the weekend."

"Sweet". He zipped into car and buckled his seatbelt.

"Oh yeah, you forgot something at home." Tom reached into his duffle bag and pulled out a small lunch box.

"Oh my god thank you! I didn't realize I left it." He hugged the bag to his chest before putting it on the floor.

"Been there before and trust me it's not fun. Oh and make sure you eat this before we get there." He tossed Sonic a banana from his bag.

The hedgehog looked down at the fruit in confusion. "Uhh why are you giving a banana? I already have my lunch."

"You didn't eat breakfast." He replies bluntly.

Right at that moment, his stomach lets out an audible growl. He blushes as he opens it and starts taking small bites.

'Can read him like a book.'

=======

The truck pulled up in front of the school, the students gathering from all over, from walking to being dropped off.

Tom put the car in park as he looked up at building then to Sonic, who was still looking out the window, face filled with uncertainty.

"Hey." He tapped his shoulder to get his attention. "Remember what I said, don't let those kids get to you."

"Yeah, I know."

"Good, cause I'm saying this not only as your friend, but also as your guardian, your size can be your greatest strength, other than that blue sparky thing you do sometimes."

His eyes widened at the word "guardian" before beaming widely, his tail wagging. "Really?"

"Yeah, do you know how many people's knees you can kick at your height?"

"Oh no I meant what you-......uh nevermind." He grabbed his bag and lunch box and went to open the door, before turning around and wrapping his arms around Tom's neck.

Startled, Tom froze at the sudden action before hugging him back.

"Thank you." He leaned back to look at Tom, smiling widely.

"Anytime, bud" he said warmly as he rubbed the teen's ears.

He drew back from the hug, jumped down from the seat and shut the car door.

"I'll see you later, Tom!" He yelled behind his back as he rushed towards the building, stopping to talk to 2 boys, giving them high fives before walking in with them.

"See you later...son."

[amwritesitall]

Sarah Paulson’s AHS Characters’ Best School Subjects

Masterlist

Fun story, so for the online AP exams, the College Board wants everyone to login 30 minutes early to register information. I did this because you know why not? Turns out the process takes significantly less than 30 minutes to complete so I’m left with 20 minutes for my mind to wander (instead of studying because why would I do that before a test). Here is the shit post that my mind wandered to.

This was deeeep in the drafts and I was going to include their extracurricular activities but it got thicc. I apologize if this sucks

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Billie Dean Howard

History

Billie Dean loves history

She likes to look into how things were in the past

This is also why she likes being a medium

She such an empathetic gal with a desire to learn about everything and everyone she can

She loves hearing people’s stories and history class helps her do that in a non medium way

Also she could totally fact check a teacher with her skills if she really wanted to

Lana Winters

English

It’s no secret that Lana loves to write. 

She uses it as a form of escapism. 

During her school years she dabbles in writing fiction, but find herself drawn to nonfiction.

She would also have a crush on her English teacher at least once

The reading side of English class appeals to her as well

She loves reading classic works

Has a pretty big personal library that she keeps with her through the years

I like to think that once Lana becomes a rich bitch she has a whole room dedicated to her books

Cordelia Goode

Science

Or whatever the equivalent is at Miss Robichaux’s 

She likes to spend lots of time perfecting concoctions in the greenhouse away from the other girls

She also enjoys tending to the plants

Science it just so soothing to her with the predictability to it all

Or the unpredictability of discovering something new

Notes all in her textbook

Notebook filled with new ways to do things and new things to make

Learns everything about every single plant in the greenhouse

Ultimately could teach the teacher

Bette and Dot Tattler

English

Bette loves a good story

Reading makes her so happy, but she dislikes reading things too depressing

She tends to go for fantasy books

But she also loves a romance book

Reading is one of the few things that both her and Dot enjoy

So this also adds to the appeal of the subject

Math

Dot is more of a math person

Numbers can’t lie

There’s a specific structure to every formula that leaves very little room for questioning

It’s straight forward and to the point just like she likes it

Bette finds the subject boring and lets Dot do all the work

Sally McKenna

Music

Sally isn’t big on school in general

Music is the only subject she actually tries in

Takes pretty much every music class offered

Passes music theory with flying colors (to the amazement of her peers)

If she’s not in a music class, she’s most likely sleeping in class

Music is Sally’s form of escapism like writing is to Lana

Music helps Sally express her feelings and annggssttt

Tries to learn nearly any instrument she can get her hands on

Audrey Tindall

English

This actress love to read poems and plays in English class

She always tries to be one of the leads whenever plays were being read out loud in class

She enjoys reading Shakespeare

I feel like Audrey would have been in a few Shakespeare plays

She’s not too found of writing, but the literary and overall cultural studies of the class is her niche

Would memorize a Shakespeare monologue for bonus points in class

A teacher’s pet to her English teacher

Ally Mayfair-Richards

Government

Ally is a politically minded gal

She likes learning the process of how our country runs (or at least should run)

It’s the blueprint for the country and she loves to study it (so she can better criticize the country)

This is also why she gets so pissed about what’s going on

Government class empowers her to want to fix the mess that is happening around us

Her love for government goes hand in hand with her love for and involvement in politics

She’s the type that would debate during class

And you wouldn’t want to debate her because she knows what she’s talking about

English was a close second because she literally named Oz after a poem

Wilhemina Venable 

Science

Wilhemina is a straight forward person and she likes structure. 

I feel like she would enjoy the structured natures of the scientific method. She also likes knowing how things work. 

You would definitely want Mina as your lab partner. 

She seems like the person who would have the periodic table memorized and likes to do experiments to learn more about a certain thing.

She is meticulous so lab work is perfect for her

Could spend hours upon hours working on the same thing so she can get it perfect

-

You might like:  How the Sarahs (AHS, Tammy, Alice) Act Around Bugs or  Sarah and Sarah’s Characters’ Relationship Names (plus Sarah and Alice Macray)

[kiingocreative]

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In his book Save The Cat, Blake Snyder posits that there are 10 primary movie genres (and thus story genres) into which most movies can be categorized. The genres include Monster in the House, Golden Fleece, Out of the Bottle, Dude with a Problem, Rites of Passage, Buddy Love, Whydunit, The Fool Triumphant, Institutionalized, and Superhero.

The Monster in the House genre is the classic horror genre. Snyder says, "It has two working parts: A monster. A house. And when you add people into that house, desperate to kill the monster, you've got a movie type so primal that it translates to everyone, everywhere." The goal of this type of movie is simple: don't get eaten. It's primal and it resonates with audiences. As examples Snyder offers Jaws, Tremors, Alien, The Exorcist, Fatal Attraction, and Panic Room.

The Golden Fleece genre is the genre of myth. It may follow the Hero's Journey paradigm and it may have a meandering structure. Snyder says, "The quest myth has been one of the more winning tales told around the campfire since, well, forever. … The name comes from the myth of Jason and the Argonauts and yet it's always about the same thing: A hero goes "on the road" in search of one thing and winds up discovering something else — himself." As examples Snyder offers Star Wars, The Wizard of Oz, Back to the Future, and "heist movies".

The Out of the Bottle genre covers movies where a character discovers and must grapple with the implications of some type of "magic". Snyder says, "The name Out of the Bottle should evoke the image of a genie who is summoned out of the bottle to grant his master's wish, but it doesn't have to be magic to be part of this wish-fulfillment genre. … Whether it's by divine intervention or luck or a magic being who enters the scene, it's the same device. For some reason or other, usually because we like the guy or gal and think they deserve it, their wish is granted and their lives begin to change." As examples Snyder offers Liar Liar, Bruce Almighty, Love Potion, Freaky Friday, Flubber, and Blank Check.

The Dude with a Problem genre is about the everyday person who finds themselves up against forces that are larger than they could have imagined. Snyder says, "It's another of the most popular, most primal situations we can imagine for ourselves. All of us consider ourselves to be an ordinary guy or gal, and thus we are drawn into sympathetic alignment with the hero of this type of tale from the get-go. Into this 'just an ordinary day' beginning comes something extraordinary." As examples, Snyder offers Die Hard, Titanic, and Schindler's List.

The Rites of Passage genre is about a character going through a fundamentally new stage of life. Snyder says, "These painful examples of life transition resonate with us because we have all, to a greater or lesser degree, gone through them. And growing-pain stories register because they are the most sensitive times in our lives. It's what makes us human, and what makes for excellent, poignant, and even hilarious storytelling." As examples he offers Lost Weekend, Days of Wine and Roses, 28 Days, and When a Man Loves a Woman.

The Buddy Love genre is the buddy movie. It's dual protagonists on a journey. Snyder says, "My theory is that the buddy movie was invented by a screenwriter who realized that his hero had no one to react to. There was just this big, empty space where interior monologue and description is found in fiction. And the screenwriter suddenly thought 'what if' his hero had someone to debate important story issues with?" As examples Snyder offers cop buddy pictures, Dumb & Dumber, and Rain Man.

The Whydunit genre is the mystery genre. The key is that it's focused on human nature and why humans take particular action. Snyder says, "We all know that evil lurks in the hearts of men. Greed happens. Murder happens. And unseen evildoers are responsible for it all. But the 'who' is never as interesting as the 'why.' Unlike the Golden Fleece, a good Whydunit isn't about the hero changing, it's about the audience discovering something about human nature they did not think was possible before the 'crime' was committed and the 'case' began." As examples Snyder offers Chinatown, Citizen Kane, Mystic River, and The Insider.

The Fool Triumphant genre is about the unlikely hero and their unexpected victory. Snyder says, "The 'Fool' is an important character in myth and legend and has been forever. On the outside, he's just the Village Idiot, but further examination reveals him to be the wisest among us. Being such an underdog gives the Fool the advantage of anonymity, and also makes everyone underestimate his ability, allowing him or her the chance to ultimately shine. … The operating principal of 'The Fool Triumphant' is to set the underdog Fool against a bigger, more powerful, and often 'establishment' bad guy." As examples Snyder offers Being There, Forrest Gump, Dave, The Jerk, and Amadeus.

The Institutionalized genre follows a cast of characters in the face of one or more institutions. Snyder says, "Where would we be without each other? And when we band together as a group with a common cause, we reveal the ups and downs of sacrificing the goals of the few for those of the many. Thus, the genre I call 'Institutionalized' tells stories about groups, institutions, and 'families.' These stories are special because they both honor the institution and expose the problems of losing one's identity to it." As examples Snyder offers Animal House, M*A*S*H, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and The Godfather.

The Superhero genre is about a character with superhuman abilities. Snyder says, "The 'Superhero' genre is the exact opposite of Dude with a Problem and can best be defined by its opposite definition: An extraordinary person finds himself in an ordinary world. Like Gulliver tied to the beach by the Lilliputians, a Superhero tale asks us to lend human qualities, and our sympathy, to a super being, and identify with what it must be like to have to deal with the likes of us little people." As examples Snyder offers Superman, Batman, Dracula, Frankenstein, Gladiator, and A Beautiful Mind.

Consider whether your story fits into one or more of Blake Snyder's genre categories. Are there any insights you can gain from the common patterns in the genre?

[prokopetz]

Are there any good ttrpgs out there where the protagonists are kids/teenagers that you can recommend to me please? The only ones I've been able to find are little fears, kids on bikes and monsters and other childish things

Sure. I’m going to stick to games where the protagonists being kids is central to the premise, as opposed to games where it’s merely an option – we’d be here all day otherwise!

Bubblegumshoe - An adaptation of the GUMSHOE system (a tabletop RPG system designed for investigative procedurals) to the teen detective genre – think Nancy Drew and such. GUMSHOE’s central gimmick is the division of player characters’ skills into traditional roll-the-dice-to-do-the-thing general skills, and resource-based investigative skills that serve as point pools which can be expended to automatically uncover clues; the idea is that what clues you receive should depend on where you choose to focus your attention (and thus spend your points), not how well you rolled on your Perception check. If you haven’t played a GUMSHOE game before, this one’s a reasonably lightweight introduction.

Do: Pilgrims of the Flying Temple - A rules-light slapstick game about a group of wandering monks who respond to people’s letters asking their temple for help, and usually manage to cause even more problems in the process. As a young initiate of the eponymous Flying Temple, you have good intentions, the ability to fly (because flying is a martial art, obviously), and absolutely no useful life skills. By the book it wants you to resolve conflicts by drawing coloured stones from a bag, but just about any mechanism whose outcomes break down roughly 50/50 will get you close enough; you’re probably going to end up in some bizarre predicament either way!

Golden Sky Stories - We’re pushing the criteria a bit here – you don’t exactly play as children in this one, but as magical talking animals who have the ability to transform into human children. It’s set in and around small farming community and totally revolves around making friends with the townsfolk, to the point that it doesn’t even have a combat system; the worst you can do to another character is make them fall down. Has a variety of supplements that provide rules for playing as witches and fairies and chibified versions of D&D monsters and such, should you feel like branching out from the basic premise. (Note that this is a localised Japanese title, so expect the odd translation issue.)

Heroine - This one is built around a very specific premise: one player takes on the role of a young woman who’s just been transported to a magical otherworld whose trials an tribulations curiously reflect the difficulties of her everyday life, and the other players portray the various troublesome companions she encounters along the way. The mechanics are concerned less with success and failure than with whether the heroine manages to navigate the obstacles in front of her without acting like a big jerk in the process. Definitely favours the tone of sources like Labyrinth and MirrorMask, though you could probably twist it around to do The Wizard of Oz with a bit of tinkering.

Hero Kids - This one’s advertised as an introductory tabletop RPG for kids age 4–10, though in my experience the lower end of that range is a little optimistic; there’s enough tactical heft to the mechanics that if you try to introduce a kid much younger than six you’ll probably just end up playing the game for them. Still, it’s a neat little system that manages to boil Dungeons & Dragons’ multiplayer-chess-style combat and exploration mechanics down to a surprisingly light set of essentials. It probably isn’t going to hold an older group’s interest for an extended campaign, but the fact that it takes almost no time to learn makes it a decent choice for a pick-up-and-play oneshot.

Masks: A New Generation - Out of all the games on this list, this is probably the one where the protagonist skew the oldest, being in their late teens to early 20s by default. It’s an Apocalypse Engine based take on the “young superheroes” genre, running the gamut from Teen Titans and Runaways to the early chapters of Worm. (The later chapters are a touch too grimdark to really be within this game’s comfort zone.) The big idea here is that your stats represent various facets of your reputation and self-image, rather than concrete competencies, so they can vary a great deal over the course of a campaign – even over the course of a single scenario, if something life-shaping or traumatic goes down.

Tales From the Loop - Based on the art book collection of the same name, this one stands out among RPGs set in the 80s-that-never-was by going for full-on cassette futurism rather than settling for retro cyberpunk. The game takes place in a small town built around a massive particle accelerator, which is just as weird as it sounds. Focuses on preteen protagonists by default; if you’d prefer to play older kids, there’s also Things From the Flood, a standalone sequel that advances the timeline into the 1990s and explores a failed utopia where the grand promises of the previous game’s futurism never solidified, and now everything is slowly falling apart.

I’m also going to throw in off-the-main-list plugs for Double Cross (high school students who gain super powers after being infected by an alien virus – think Persona 3 meets Prototype) and Whispering Road (Ghibliesque road trip fantasy); the first doesn’t get a full writeup because the player characters’ age doesn’t really play a big role outside of character creation, and latter because it’s substantially similar to a couple of games already discussed.

[frumfrumfroo]

What are your favorite movies and TV shows outside of SW? I’m looking for new things to watch since SW was so disappointing

My tastes are pretty eclectic, so I will stick to just things that are either similar to sw or are in the reylo-esque romance wheelhouse and have happy endings:

Chuck. It is a goofy, light-hearted action-adventure show with extremely endearing characters and a very prominent central romance (seriously, heavy romance and there is a lot of payoff for it, you will be FED- it's kind of slow burn but also shockingly NOT slow burn, they are deep into it pretty much immediately). The main couple is the classic Stoic Badass gradually softened by an innocent they have to protect who is a liability in battle but full of the Power of Heart. Chuck is The Heart btw. He is of that vanishingly rare male Beauty (of B&tB) type. He's incredibly generous and open, Sarah is prickly and closed-off. It is Quality. Very much a gender-swap of your typical cliche anime couple lol. I would recommend stopping at the mid-season finale in season 4, because it's downhill from there. The beginning of season 3 is very rough, but it's definitely worth it to stay for the back half, imo. There are several great endings to choose from before things go to shit, so we don't need to talk about the finale. Probably the most tonally similar to SW thing possible without being high/space fantasy. More humour, more silly, but definitely has a spiritual kinship. Has the best THE BEST 'secret revealed' scenes I have ever seen in anything. If you're into that and were hoping for that in ep IX, you need to watch Chuck.

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940 romance/drama film. You've Got Mail is a remake of it. Jimmy Stewart being profoundly adorable, Frank Morgan (aka the Wizard of Oz), various amusing side characters, and an absolutely deathless double blind 'secretly in love with the workplace nemesis' plot that can and probably has been a great reylo AU.

Mirromask. Fantasy/coming-of-age film. Touted as a 'spiritual successor' to Labyrinth by the filmmakers (one of whom is Neil Gaiman) and let me tell you, that is extremely apt. Beautiful, magical, laden with symbolism and Mask Discourse, and has a great ship. I quote it regularly.

Speaking of which, I'm sure you've seen Labyrinth? If you haven't seen Labyrinth, drop everything and watch Labyrinth.

Legend (the Ridley Scott director's cut, not the theatrical cut). Sumptuous fairy tale, runs on proper fairy tale logic, stunning to look at and overall captivating. Tim Curry. Tim Curry as a lonely tragic lord of darkness who tries to seduce the heroine and has drippingly overwrought monologues.

Howl's Moving Castle. Fairy tale adventure/romance film. Beautifully animated, has the ending you want.

The Silence of the Lambs. Thriller/drama film. Actual masterpiece. Use it as a gateway drug to read the books and rejoice that Clannibal is canon and it is spectacular. Just SotL and Hannibal, you don't need to read the other two. Stan Clarice Starling and revel in that ending. Most triumphant 'villain'/heroine ship of all time (he is not technically a villain but for shorthand's sake).

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Terry Gilliam 1988 fantasy/adventure film. THE TRIUMPH OF IDEALISM OVER CYNICS I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH HOW HEALING IT WAS TO WATCH AFTER THE TROS BULLSHIT HIT. Jonathan Pryce's spiritual villain is basically Chris Terrio and it is cathartic to see imagination and sentiment conquer him.

Sabrina. 1995 romance film. Modern fairy tale with Harrison Ford. Rejecting what you thought you wanted all your life for the thing you actually need, growing up but still believing in magic, beautiful character development across all the leads. Could be (and is irrc) a fantastic reylo AU.

The Scarlet Pimpernel. 1934 adventure film. High romance, secret identities, play-acting, people who aren't at all what they appear to be, falling in love with your own spouse, Big Heroism, guile and wit and audacity. It makes me do little kicks like a happy baby. This is one of the 3-5 films constantly tied for my favourite film of all time. There is a good quality rip free on youtube. Watch it and fall in love with Leslie Howard (this is possibly my favourite acting performance of all time).

Oh, related note. Pygmalion 1938 or My Fair Lady. (The musical is based on this film and borrows from it heavily, including its much more romantic ending compared to the original play.)

The Mummy. 1999 action/adventure/romance film. Very tonally similar to sw. A fucking great time, A+ characters.

EVER AFTER. 1998 romance film. The flawless and perfect and best ever Cinderella adaptation. This is the most satisfying film in history, maybe, the ending is so good it is amazing it exists. Also, it has Richard O'Brien being slimy. Huge selling point. Grapples with identity and stewardship, is brilliant.

Fruits Basket. drama/romance anime. I haven't watched the new version yet, but it's following the manga so I know the story. The original anime didn't do the whole plot (because they caught up with the source material) but it's wonderful and I still recommend it. The central ship is (spoiler.........) a B&tB type where we eventually discover the main love interest both feels like a figurative monster and turns into a literal monster. He has an incredible speech about his relationship with people's fear, it makes me weep. I called the endgame from the first episode and always thought it was obvious, but there is a red herring love triangle dynamic. It's really not annoying, though, because it is a red herring. (I hate love triangles)

I am Dragon. Russian monster romance film. Beautiful, simple fable with a really great heroine.

Jane Eyre. 1943 Gothic Romance film. It's Jane Eyre, byronic hero x sensible heroine love story with much atmosphere and Gothic drama. I stan this version because I am an Orson Welles fangirl and I'm also not convinced it can be improved upon. Elizabeth Taylor's film debut btw.

Hellboy. 2004 action/adventure/romance film. Defying destiny, reconciling identity, monster romance. The complete package and a great time. Tonally similar to SW and probably thematically closest to it out of this whole list. Don't watch the sequel.

Beauty and the Beast 1987 tv series. Exactly what it says on the tin. Deals with the classic B&tB themes, but in a different way. He's not cursed and will never transform into an ordinary man. The first season is very episodic and 'case of the week', but the second season gets more into character drama. It's dated, but if you give it a chance you can get past some of the cheese factor and it's really a unique experience. Its concerns are SO atypical that it feels like something fandom would make rather than a mainstream network show. It was so massively, insanely popular with women at the time that a record of Vincent (the beast) reading poetry topped the album charts. Also Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton. Stop at season two. Point of interest: George RR Martin wrote for this show.

Stargate (the movie not the series) sci-fi fantasy about a nerdy guy who accidentally a hero.

Possession. 2009... mystery/supernatural/romance. Okay. This is a whole thing. Lee Pace and Sarah Michelle Gellar. It's based on a Korean film I've never been able to find for some reason, but being Hollywood they ruined the romanticism and nuance of the original in the theatrical cut to make a shitty punative ending. However. If you buy it on dvd and go to the alternate ending (which follows the original story) with around 20 minutes left (scene after Lee Pace's character wakes from a bad dream-go to deleted scenes and select the alternate ending), you will get a very, very interesting character study/thriller/redemption about sincerity within deception, compassion, and a major question about second chances with a positive answer. It's kind of dark and kind of astonishingly idealistic at the same time. The heroine makes a very powerful choice, twice over. It's fascinating. If you're into the conflicted and uncertain period in reylo, the part where he is most ambiguous, and you wanted more of that and much darker shades to it, you might be really into this. Also, it should be noted, there is a MASSIVE height difference and they show it off. The film is flawed (and the seams show on the Hollywood rewrite) but idk, it's fascinating. Shocking to me that they even got to shoot the original ending. It is pretty balls to the wall with its themes on forgiveness.

I would recommend getting into kdramas because there is a wealth of female-gaze tropey amazing content, but always check the ending before getting invested. My all-time fave is the 1st Shop of Coffee Prince, but it's not sw related at all lmao. It has a happy ending with all the elements you'd want, but it's not satisfying in execution, so that's it's major flaw and I find that pretty common with kdramas. One that is maybe more relevant is My Love from Another Star, which has a hero who is a little bit like Ben in personality. The heroine isn't my favourite, though. It does have a decent ending.

Oh yeah- brain fart. Kurosawa films and classic westerns were both very influential on SW. Or you can combine both and watch The Magnificent Seven.