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ericleo108 · 1 year

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CosmicLuve.com August 2023 - Orange

Necessary prerequisite posts:

Cosmic Luve August 2023 - Orange

108 The Story of Discovering Earth’s Consciousness (book)

Sentientism 2022

Cosmic Love 2021 - Selena Gomez

Cosmic Love April 2022: Cary Charlotte or Mary

Cosmic Luve July 2023 - The Main Thing

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Intro

This entry is coming on the heels of a pivotal post. To oversimplify, my book “108 The Story of Discovering Earth’s Consciousness” is a nonfiction autobiographical short story and philosophical breakdown of the evidence and reasoning as to why I think some planets and stars are conscious. I break down how the earth could be communicating in this blog on the Sentientism post(s) which is more about the belief and speculation about how Gaia could be communicating.

The basic theory is Gaia/Earth uses environmental semantics with telepathic randonauting and points of realization to highlight cognition to affect behavior. It’s my experience that Gaia does this through friends, good people, and especially romantic prospects to reach individuals internally with the feeling of love. This series catalogs the semantics I think Gaia is using by having entities/cosmic luves reflect my work and artistry. My main cosmic luves are Emma Watson, Taylor Swift, Hailee Seinfeld, and the main one we’ll talk about in this post is Selena Gomez.

As you can see from reading the past entries, I don’t make these up, the coincidences just come to me. I basically see semantic tropes and try to catalog and interpret them. With this one more than most, it’s obvious it’s external. I’m not making this stuff up, how could I? The only question is, is this just all coincidence or is it the best form of communication to the planetary entity we have right now?

Where we left off

Expanding upon last months July 2023 - The Main Thing post (and tweet with pictures). It’s worth mentioning that I was wrong about the otters thing. I’m sure somewhere I made a comment about how I like otters. Basically, I always think Gaia is using Emma Watson as a vessel strategically because the reflection to my life is so stark but would normally come by referencing things the public wouldn’t know about, hence it couldn’t be human and intentional. This time if Emma did a little search on my profile she could of intentionally picked horses and otters to “love me without possession” and reflect my sun poem, in her orange poem, which the color orange also highlights today’s theme.

The only real reflection that Emma would have to know me personally for, for her to be purposefully reflecting me would be kayaking. I didn’t say anything online about getting on the River. Otherwise, everything else you could probably find about me somewhere online. So hi Emma, if you’re here, I would love to know your perspective on this and take you on a date. But a better example of how I think Gaia uses semantics through vessels to communicate is Selena in this months cosmic luve because it involves multiple characters over a couple weeks.

Also leaving off from last post and the whole Jesus is based on the myth of the sun thing is I basically want Christians to realize is they worship the sun. I do too, i just think they do it wrong. First of all, I took a poll on X asking if people would straight up worship the sun and they voted they find it stupid.

But my point is Jesus is based on the myth of the sun, so like a lot of people worship the sun and don’t realize it. But it’s my experience and reasoning with Sentientism that the sun would want you to worship him in action developed through training your mind and intellect to better yourself and others. It’s like what JFK said, on earth, God’s work is truly our own.

“With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.” - JFK

So a quick recap. Although you think it’s stupid, you still worship the sun in a roundabout way. And to be clear, you think it’s good to worship Jesus and the sun is stupid to regard as a god whereas I think it’s stupid to worship Jesus and worship the sun (and Gaia) through action/behavior whic I think are like gods.

It’s just like how people pray to god. If you read 108 you’ll see why I think the planet is telepathic. Given these circumstances, planet Earth, the god Gaia, would be able to hear your prayers. This goes even further with the thought that god works in mysterious ways… because she would have to. Gaia would hear your prayer and even if she would want to help (which is in question if she would) she would be limited by her physical capability. She has no arms or eyes, her power is magnetism. The way I describe in these posts how I think Gaia infiltrates people's minds to help bring about progress is how she would answer your prayers. Remember I think these individuals are being manipulated by the planet's telepathic abilities that I talk about in my book “108.”

New coincidences

It all started when I noticed a trope progressing. First, I heard about how Swiss Beats made fun of his wife Alicia Keys for ordering carrots in the club. Then, immediately after on Instagram, I saw a new Conor Price video where he was playfully using a carrot as a flute to promote one of his songs. Next, I saw Selena in an orange dress. I made a tweet about it. Then I talked about it in my longform Youtube sunday update on August 13 2023. I was like “Selena is now my carrot.” Then on August 17 I open up instagram to find Selena in her orange dress on her profile picture and a post promoting her new song “Single soon.”

In the same way this developed, how Selena became my carrot, is how Emma and the semantic anchor to a cat developed that I talk about in my book “108,” but only Emma’s cat association was much more pervasive and consistent. Carrots are a root vegetable and basically live in Gaia’s blood/body/dirt

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Then on August 18th I uploaded “Our Love” for distribution. This is a song I wrote for a competition to get the guitarist RJ Pasin, who made the beats sample, on the official feature. The competition must have ended early but I still wanted to release the song while the sample was hot. The song is not personal. I basically wrote the hook first and then did everything else and at a certain point I decided to make it about breaking up and getting back together with your ex.

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This is interesting because both of our songs came out on the 25th and Selena’s song is about breaking up with her boyfriend. Just another coincidence right…. It goes even deeper because her song seemed impromptu and came out a month after I released my single “Vulnerable” which is a response to Selena’s song by the same name.

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Then I saw a Taco Bell advertisement on the 27th about how you could get a free Doritos locos taco from Taco Bell on “taco Tuesdays” in August. It’s important to understand the story, I basically had a depressing birthday. I did nothing and could not afford to treat myself. I talk about it in my August 27 2023 Sunday update.

I thought the orange semantics ended with the carrot and the dress but follow me here. My birthday falls on Tuesday, August 22nd this month. I actually went searching for free stuff on my birthday because I’m so broke but I couldn’t find anything. I didn’t know about the free taco that I could actually get on my birthday because of the promotion until after my birthday. Then, most coincidentally, I came to realize locos are orange. I went in and got a free one on the 29th. I took a picture of it, but it looks way more orange in person.

Like I said, I’ve been kind of depressed so it felt like a sad birthday. But then on the 26th I celebrated my birthday with my mom and she gave me a ps5 and I think it’s exactly what I need. She gave me a little spending money and made sure I had a good birthday.

I’ll be set on releases until 2024 in September. I should make music videos but they’re expensive. I’m still gonna try but honestly, I think what I need is time and to relax. Especially my Spotify is growing. I probably get about $50 from cdbaby every month which has been helping. The ryini beats team has been a good professional resource still.

It’s worth mentioning, I was also made aware of, through a tiktok this month, that the US quietly rejected the right to food at a UN vote recently. On November 9, 2021, nations in the UN voted on whether or not food is a human right. Over 180 countries participated in the vote, with an overwhelming majority voting in favor of food as a human right. America was the only country who voted “no.” (google search)

It’s almost as if Gaia brought it up to be in context. I feel like she’s really disappointed in the United States. If the voice in my head that claims to be Gaia has anything to say about it is “This is my land, this is my food, it belongs to me, it is me, and I decree it is for all life on this planet. And food is a right for all people.”

To further relate the coincidences Taco Bell’s solan is Live mas, and Selena’s music video for “Single Soon” has the same feel as a sexy Taco Bell commercial. It’s almost as if Gaia was like, look over here in the orange, I got you a song, a taco, and something for your purpose, baby calm down, happy birthday. So basically I feel like Gaia got me a song and a taco for my birthday

Keeping with the last post’s side quests about how when one door closes, another opens. Music closed for me basically (until the end of the year at least), and opened up an avenue to just live more/mas instead of work through playing my PS5. I’m still waiting for the door to open that was closed from not being able to go to Western for my master's in sociology. I’m actually hoping that door will be finding representation from a sync music boutique for my music that I have been trying to find for a couple of weeks now.

#rap #rapper #love #hiphop #new music #emma watson #selena gomez #selena marie gomez #Youtube

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asksquidbeakagents · 2 years

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Reminisce

Nine smirked, watching as Callie and Marie popped out of the manhole, Callie pointing at the stage and various other directions before dragging her cousin off. Looks like their patience had finally paid off.

Nine weaved through the crowd around the stage, trying to make it look like they were only trying to get a better view, before after a couple minutes slipping down the manhole the idols had popped out of.

Lana’s eyes narrowed as they saw the all-too familiar sanitized hybrid made their way towards the path to the crater, and to Alterna. Whatever Tartar could want down there, she doubted it was anything good. She glanced around, hoping she’d see one of the other agents somewhere. She’d even take Peony right now. But unluckily for her, there was no sign of any of them. Callie and Marie had already disappeared into the crowd, she was pretty sure Peony and a couple of giggling octolings had entered the lobby a bit ago, and she hadn’t seem Marigold and Lemon since the halftime announcement.

Lana took a deep breath before following after the ai. Looks like she was on her own for this one.

___________________

Nine looked around, eyes wide as they took in the area around them. It was like nothing they had seen in years. With wide eyes they looked up at the false sky above them, reflecting back an almost perfect image of a still starry night. If they didn’t know better, they’d have almost thought they were looking at the night sky itself, instead of a screen hundreds of feet beneath the ground.

They slowly made their way across the small island, taking a quick glance at the Squidbeak’s base camp, shaking their head while assuring themself that the only guard was a sleeping Cuttlefish.

Nine knelt down to study one of the kettles littering the island, trying to think about where this AI might be before they felt their phone start vibrating in their pocket, as well as an odd feeling deep at the base of their skull. It didn’t take long for Nine to realize it was something, or more likely someone, trying to connect to her programming to communicate.

Nine shut down the request, not wanting to risk ORCA getting any ideas, but did pull their phone out, glancing at the new image on the screen.

“I haven’t seen another AI since my creation. What are you doing here TARTAR?” A mechanical voice asked.

“I hear about another AI and I got curious. I was built with the capacity to learn after all. Were these kettles all you?”

“A combination of my own efforts and those of Bear #03. From what little I have learned of the creatures that now populate planet earth it seemed something they would enjoy.”

“You wanted them down here? What for?”

“I was created to record what occurs here in Alterna. There is nothing to record if there is no one down here. I merely wish to continue to perform my directive.”

“I see,” Nine said, cautiously running their own scan. They weren’t entirely sure it would work, but by some miracle it did. While ORCA did not latch onto it, it did give them a bit more information to work with. “Our programmings are... shockingly similar. Did...”

“Professor Alfred Kamabo was not among the humans who made it to Alterna. I was created by the combined efforts of Jackie Riley and Taylor Riley.”

“The professor’s lab assistants. They’re the whole reason the Professor had to give me a swear filter,” Nine mused, a small smile spreading across their face. They had almost forgotten those two.

“The other scientists did not view it as appropriate for them to teach me swear words,” ORCA stated. “They certainly tried though.”

“That sounds like them,” Nine laughed, before pausing. “You say the Professor didn’t make it to Alterna, but the twins did. Did they never think to find what became of me?”

“Shortly after the humans of Alterna arrived a blast was detected on the surface not far from Professor Kamabo’s lab. The twins assumed you would have been destroyed.” “I see. Thank you,” Nine said, frowning.

Before Nine could think more about what they had heard however, ORCA spoke again.

“Is the being approaching a friend of yours?”

Before Nine could ask what ORCA meant, or turn around to see for themself, they felt something pressed to the back of their head.

“Tartar.”

Nine signed, raising their hands before turning around. “Really, Lana, must we do this every time we meet?”

“What are you doing here?” Lana asked, continuing to aim the borrowed Heroshot at Nine’s head.

“I hear about another AI like myself and you expect me to not be curious?”

“How’d you know about ORCA?”

“I have my ways,” Nine said. “I’m not planning anything. I merely wanted to talk to them.”

“Why the shell should I believe you?! You tried to kill me and destroy the world!”

“I am aware. And I do feel remorse for-” “Remorse?! Remorse doesn’t fucking cut it!” Lana shouted, her aim not faltering despite her emotional state. “You killed thousands! You tried to kill millions! And you expect me to just accept that you ‘changed’ and treat you like some harmless cephalopod?!”

Nine hung their head, looking at the ground. “I know. You have every right to hate me. But I’m not trying to hurt anyone.”

“Leave.”

Nine looked up, cocking an eyebrow.

“You need to leave. Get out of Alterna. Whatever you’re after down here, I’m not letting you get your hands on it. Unless you wanna get splatted. We’ll see how well you come back if I throw your hard drive in the lake.”

Nine nodded, following along as Lana herded them back to Splatsville.

Once back in town, Nine sank to the ground in a nearby corner, watching as Lana and Marie had a very heated argument. They had managed to slip away in the crowd, probably the only think keeping them from being flung in a snow globe somewhere, but they doubted they’d be able to regain entrance to Alterna anytime soon.

“TARTAR?”

Nine’s eyes widened, fishing their phone from their pocket. “ORCA? How are you? What did you do?”

“I connected your device to my mainframe. It’s a part of me now. I did the same thing to the tablet Agent 3 was given to access various things, however she doesn’t take it outside the crater. I wish to be able to see the world. I was created to learn and record. I wish to be able to do so.”

“I see. Is there any limit to how far I can take this before you lose connection?”

“If I transfer my data here, no, though it is not a permanent solution. It is rather cramped in here, to use a metaphor.”

“Could you transfer your data from my phone to something else?” Nine asked, head already whirling with ideas.

“I could.”

“Brilliant. Well ORCA, I think I’ve got a couple things I could show you.”

#moments of the muse #nine #lana #story mode #Alterna arc wrapped up #woo #ohhh look plot

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brainbirdbrain · 1 year

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I told the Microsoft AI to write me a story about Barney Fife: Barney Fife was having a bad day. He had spilled coffee on his uniform, lost his bullet, and got scolded by Sheriff Andy Taylor for arresting Otis Campbell for the tenth time. He was feeling low and hungry, so he decided to stop by the diner for a slice of pie.

He walked into the diner and saw a sign that said "Today's Special: Aunt Bee's Apple Pie". Barney's eyes lit up. He loved Aunt Bee's apple pie. It was sweet, flaky, and delicious. He sat down at the counter and ordered a slice from the waitress.

"Sorry, Barney, we're all out of pie," she said.

"What? How can you be out of pie? It's the special of the day!" Barney exclaimed.

"Well, someone came in and bought the whole pie. Said it was for a special occasion."

"Who was it? Who bought the pie?" Barney asked.

"I don't know. I didn't get his name. He was wearing a hat and sunglasses. He paid with cash and left in a hurry."

Barney frowned. He had a suspicion that someone had stolen Aunt Bee's pie. He decided to investigate. He put on his hat and badge and went outside. He looked around for clues. He saw a trail of crumbs leading to the alley behind the diner. He followed the trail and found a half-eaten slice of pie on a trash can lid.

"Aha! The thief left some evidence behind," Barney said to himself. He picked up the slice of pie and sniffed it. It smelled like Aunt Bee's apple pie. He tasted it. It tasted like Aunt Bee's apple pie.

"Mmm, that's good pie," he said.

He looked around for more clues. He saw a footprint on the ground next to the trash can. He took out his notebook and pencil and traced the outline of the footprint.

"Size 10, wide toe, rubber sole. That narrows it down," he said.

He looked up and saw a man walking down the street wearing a hat and sunglasses. He had a bulge under his coat that looked like a pie tin.

"Hey, you! Stop right there!" Barney shouted.

The man looked back and saw Barney running towards him. He panicked and ran away.

"Stop, thief! Stop in the name of the law!" Barney yelled.

He chased the man through the streets of Mayberry, dodging cars, bikes, and pedestrians. The man ran into a park and tried to hide behind a tree. Barney followed him and cornered him.

"Alright, mister, you're under arrest for stealing Aunt Bee's apple pie," Barney said.

He reached for his handcuffs, but realized he had left them at the diner.

"Uh, hold on a second," he said.

He took off his hat and badge and threw them at the man.

"There, you're under arrest," he said.

The man looked at Barney and laughed.

"Barney, is that you?" he said.

He took off his hat and sunglasses and revealed his face.

It was Gomer Pyle.

"Gomer? What are you doing here? And why did you steal Aunt Bee's pie?" Barney asked.

"I didn't steal it, Barney. I bought it fair and square," Gomer said.

"You bought it? Why?"

"Well, it's my birthday today, Barney. And I wanted to surprise my girlfriend with a nice picnic in the park. And I know she loves Aunt Bee's apple pie, so I thought I'd get her one."

"Your girlfriend? Who's your girlfriend?"

Gomer pointed to a bench where a woman was sitting with a basket of food.

"That's her, Barney. Her name is Mary Lou."

Barney looked at the woman and gasped.

"Mary Lou? That's my cousin!"

"Your cousin? Well, golly, what a coincidence!"

Barney felt a surge of anger and jealousy.

"Gomer, how could you do this to me? How could you date my cousin without telling me? And how could you take her away from me?"

"Take her away from you? What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Gomer. You know I've always had a crush on Mary Lou ever since we were kids."

"You have? But I thought you liked Thelma Lou."

"I do like Thelma Lou, but I also like Mary Lou. And Juanita Beasley. And Hilda Mae."

"Gee, Barney, you sure have a lot of girlfriends."

"They're not my girlfriends, Gomer. They're my potential girlfriends. And you just ruined one of them."

"Oh, Barney, I'm sorry. I didn't know you felt that way about Mary Lou."

"Well, now you do. And I want you to break up with her right now."

"But, Barney, I can't do that. I love her."

"You love her? How can you love her? You barely know her."

"I know enough, Barney. I know she's sweet, smart, and beautiful. And she makes me happy."

"Well, she makes me happy too, Gomer. And I'm not going to let you have her."

Barney lunged at Gomer and tried to punch him. Gomer dodged and pushed Barney away.

"Barney, stop it! You're acting crazy!"

"I'm not crazy, Gomer. I'm in love. And I'm not going to let you take my cousin away from me."

Barney and Gomer started to fight, rolling on the ground and throwing punches. Mary Lou saw them and ran over to them.

"Hey, what's going on here? Stop fighting!" she shouted.

She pulled them apart and looked at them.

"Barney? Gomer? What are you doing?"

"Mary Lou, I'm sorry. I have to tell you something," Barney said.

"What is it, Barney?"

"Mary Lou, I love you."

"You love me?"

"Yes, Mary Lou. I love you. And I want you to be my girlfriend."

"Your girlfriend?"

"Yes, Mary Lou. My girlfriend."

"But, Barney, what about Thelma Lou?"

"Forget Thelma Lou. She's old news. You're the one for me, Mary Lou."

"But, Barney, what about Gomer?"

"Forget Gomer. He's a thief and a liar. He stole Aunt Bee's pie and he lied to you about his feelings for you."

"I did not!" Gomer protested.

"Yes, you did!" Barney insisted.

"No, I didn't!"

"Yes, you did!"

"No, I didn't!"

"Yes, you did!"

They started to argue again.

Mary Lou looked at them and shook her head.

"You two are ridiculous," she said.

She picked up the pie tin and threw it at them.

"Here, take your stupid pie. I don't want it anymore."

She walked away from them and left the park.

Barney and Gomer stopped arguing and looked at the pie tin.

They looked at each other and felt ashamed.

They realized they had acted foolishly and ruined their friendship over a girl and a pie.

They got up and dusted themselves off.

They hugged and apologized to each other.

They decided to forget about Mary Lou and focus on their friendship.

They walked back to the diner and returned the pie tin to the waitress.

They ordered two slices of pie and shared them.

They laughed and talked about old times.

They agreed that Aunt Bee's apple pie was the best pie in the world.

And they lived happily ever after.

The end.

I hope you enjoyed my story about Barney Fife.

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arty-shadow-morningstar · 3 years

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A Failed Betrothal (6)

Here is a new chapter for you guys. I am terrible at writing feelings and this is my best shot.😅 Tell me what you think.

[Masterlist]

(PART 1)(PART 5)

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(Words in bold is French)

“Tch, Drake is going to be busy trying to find Hawkmoth. He can’t go around Paris, being Dupain-Cheng’s boyfriend. Besides, he can’t be a proper boyfriend even in his most lucid moments. I will be her boyfriend instead.”

Tim was glad he didn’t take a sip of his coffee when Damian volunteered to be Marinette’s boyfriend. But he still choked on air. Jason with his limited knowledge of french was confused. Damian didn’t do what he heard, right?

“No, you can’t. Chloe already told them about Tim. If I come in with a different boyfriend, they would get suspicious. We can work on Hawkmoth while we go on those dates. Besides, I thought you don’t like me. That’s not going to sell the image of a loving couple.” Marinette pointed out. (She also doesn’t want to do this fake-date thing. Not because she likes Damian and she had always been a goner for green eyes and totally would be date him if it weren’t for some stupid curse dictating her feelings for him and fake-dating him might get her catch feelings for him and she would get her heart broken when this is all over and she would stay single forever and be a lonely old lady with hamsters and cats for company.)

“Actually, Mari-bug, I only told the class how romantic your boyfriend is. I never told them what he looked like. Just in case, Timothy couldn’t make it. I have back-up favors to cash in.” Chloe explained.

Marinette didn’t even know why she was surprised at that, this was Chloe after all.

“You have more than one American boy around our age in your debt who you intend to be my boyfriend? Sounds like you, Queenie. So that also means that Damian doesn’t have to do it if he doesn’t want to.”

“My offer still stands. I will be your ‘boyfriend’ before I have to go back. I will be more understanding than those other American boys when you have to rush out for an attack. That is to assume that they can come here or agree. In our initial meeting, I didn’t like that weak girl act you put up. Recent events have made me realize that you are a much stronger person. (Careful Damian, that sounds like a compliment.) You are a decent partner to date.(Shit. Shit. Shit. That wasn’t a compliment, right?)”

Damian couldn’t see why Dupain-Cheng would refuse such a good deal. He supposed her feelings might be still hurt from his first impression of her. He would give her an apology when they are alone and away from his brothers who would make a big deal of it.

“Fine. At least, the curse will at least make this fake couple thing more believable.” grumbled Marinette. The light pink blush on her face is not because he said she was someone he would date.

Oh right, the curse. He swore internally, it had possessed him to be Dupain-Cheng’s boyfriend. He now would have to endure the hand-holding, kissing and staring into each other’s eyes, and try to resist the curse which will be much harder now. Somehow, he didn’t regret it a little bit. It sounds more bearable with him doing those things with her than her with Drake. This was just a mutual agreement to ward off her suitors and prove to her classmates that she was off the market.

Chloe clapped her hands,“If we have everything sorted out, you can start being a good boyfriend by walking Marinette to school today. We want to be on time now.”

The others started packing up their stuff or finished what they were eating. Marinette was dragged out of the bakery by an impatient Damian. Chloe and Alix picked up what Marinette left behind and followed out. The rest soon left right after, leaving the two boys in the bakery.

“Hey, Replacement, tell me if I am wrong but did Demon Spawn willingly ask a girl out?” Jason asked, stealing a croissant from Tim.

“Try making himself the perfect candidate to be her fake boyfriend out of many choices, including me, and get her to agree to it. Now he has to go on a few romantic dates with Marinette in order to ward off this really pushy guy in her class. Demon Spawn also has a crush on her and he’s in denial of it. We are not hallucinating either. I’ve checked.” Tim replied, sipping his coffee.

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“Damian. Let go. Hey, Wayne, are you listening to me? Let me go. This is not how you treat your significant other. And you are not even going in the right direction.” Marinette all but yelled at him.

He released his grip on her. “My apologies for manhandling you but I wanted to tell you this away from everybody else.”

“What?” She asked, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes.

I- This is a little difficult to say for me,” Damian started. (Why were his palms sweaty? It’s just an apology. He had done it before although it was mostly because Grayson told him what he did wrong and made him do it.) “But I am sorry for calling you weak, pathetic and every other bad thing I have said about you when you have shown that you are anything but those. I was mad at myself for being caught and took it out on you.”

Her glare softened.

“Apologies accepted. The school is this way.” She said with a smile and went towards the school. Damian walked by her side, his hands in his pockets.

Marinette looked at where his hands were, “If we are going to do this fake dating thing, I suggest we hold hands.”

Damian grabbed her hand and continued walking in silence. Her hands were so small and fitted perfectly in his. Oh God, it’s the curse again. Turning him into a sap. Do not think about her hands. And the fact that she took down a man twice her size with them which was an amazing sight to watch.

“Why are you so stiff? Loosen up a little. You are with the love of your life. Smile a little.”

Damian plastered on a fake smile, “Happy?”

“It looks fake. Being a model he will be able to tell.” Marinette remarked, “Are you sure you want to do this? We can still go get Tim to be my boyfriend.”

“I can do this. Drake wouldn’t be a better choice. It doesn’t help that you are relentlessly nit-picking me. Or are you that bad of a girlfriend?” Damian couldn’t help but sniped back. “Maybe that’s why Chat Noir left you.”

He found himself back against the world and her elbow at his neck. (He would forever deny that he liked it.)

“Look here, Wayne. You know nothing about me and you shouldn’t assume that you do. Chat Noir was revoked of his status as a hero for his behaviour. If you don’t act the part properly, I am going to have my former partner, who has absolutely no sense of boundaries, harassing me in my civilian life and I have already dealt enough of his advances to last a lifetime. I have given you so many chances to get out of this which you refused and yet, you are half-assing it. So are you in this 100 percent or not? Because I am at the end of my patience right now.”

“The boy who is obsessed with you is the former Chat Noir?”

“Yes, I will explain about that later but what’s your answer?”

“I will give it my best shot but I have never pretended to be in love.”

“Were you not taught in the League?”

“There were seduction tactics shown to members when they were old enough and I left them when I was 10 but I am not sure if those skills can be applied here.”(Slamming your opponent against the wall wasn’t one of them but she was doing a great job of it so far. No. No. No. He is not his father. This is different from whatever he has with Kyle.)

She released her hold on him and grabbed his hand, leading him towards her school.

“Well then, here are the basics. Everytime you look at me, just think of your favourite things to make your smile a little more genuine. Maybe call me by a pet name if you want. Keep your touch on me like you can’t keep your hands off of me and act really reluctant when you have to let go. You will only keep them my shoulders, arms, hands and waist or I will break your hand. I will do the same. If you are going to have to kiss me, give me a warning.” He looked into her blue eyes and nodded.

“Alright.”

“Oh. I almost forgot. In case they try to question our relationship. My favourite colour is red. My favourite song is ‘Fearless’ by Jagged Stone.(I love Taylor. Sue me) And we met online a few months ago. You came all the way to Paris to see me a month ago and asked me out. We will talk more that later. Oh, I also love designing and have dreams of being a famous fashion designer.-”

Marinette rambled on which Damian found a little endearing. He looked forward to knowing more about her. He added a few comments here or there about himself (because it was only fair.) and ways to improve their cover story about their relationship.

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

“We are nearly at school. Let’s start the act, Romeo.” Marinette whispered at him and looked at him with a bright smile that brought a tiny smile to his face. Okay, maybe he liked Marinette a little bit but that doesn’t mean he’s in love with her.

He moved her hand holding his to the crook of his elbow.

“Is this acceptable, my lady?”

She wrinkled her nose, (Adorable. No. Don’t go there) “This is fine. But can you not call me that? And princess too? I may have erased his memories as Chat Noir but it could be a trigger to bring them back.”

“Understandable. What about Malak?”

She blushed. Marinette had learned Arabic a while back and was very fluent in the language.

“It’s okay.” She said in a soft voice. She put her other hand on his bicep and leaned on his shoulder.

“You don’t look like a touchy-feely person so is this fine?”

“Yes.”

“Cool, let me tell you more about the atrocious lies that had passed her mouth.”

They walked into the school courtyard, arm-in-arm, for the entire school, especially Marinette’s class, to see. The perfect picture of a loving couple. Marinette’s blush from earlier was evident on her face, leaving no room for doubt about her new relationship status. (Many guys, gals and pals were upset over it.) As they both walked up the stairs, whispering and laughing about who knows what (gulliable and idiotic classmates they have to suffer learning with), two pairs of green eyes followed them.

In this case, the saying ‘green-eyed monsters’ was true. One was envious of the boy who held the girl he wanted in his arms and the other was envious of the attention the couple was receiving.

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

Damian escorted Marinette to her class. He gave her a kiss on her cheek and said, loud enough for the class to hear, “Bye, Malak. I will pick you up after school for our date.”

“B-bye, Damian.”

He took her hand, gave a kiss to the back of it and departed, leaving a very red-faced Marinette behind. The rest of the class parted the way as Damian walked past.

She rushed into her seat where Chloe sat beside it, grinning like a Cheshire Cat.

“Sooooo, Mari-bug, how was your date? You two rushed out of there so quickly and left your stuff behind. So eager to spend time with your boyfriend, eh? You enjoyed it very much by the looks of it.”

“Sorry about that, Chloe. Did you bring my bag and the cheese danishes?” Marinette tried to change the topic. And she also wanted to make sure a god of destruction doesn’t go hungry and angsty during school. “Yep, here you go,” Chloe said, handing Marinette her bag and a box of cheese-flavoured snacks for Plagg, “Your mom packed some for you.”

“Marinette. Where have you been the last two days? And you came back with a boy. I am honestly worried about your behaviour.” Lila played the concerned classmate wonderfully.

“Yeah, Marinette. This is a new low, even for you.” Alya added.

Marinette readied herself to tell the cover story Damian and her worked out on the way here.

“Lila, I appreciate your ‘concern’. But the last four days have been a little hard on me so excuse me if I am a little snappy today. You see, Damian disappeared and didn’t return home after school on Friday. So when he didn’t pick up for our weekly video call, I panicked and called his family and they told me what happened. They sent me a plane to get out of Paris so I can’t get akumatized.”

“Was that why you were gone on Saturday?” Chloe asked, playing along although she already knew why Marinette wasn’t in Paris the last four days.

“Yeah. Sorry for not telling you guys. It was sorta last minute. Thankfully, he wasn’t kidnapped actually. His biological mother picked him up but never told his father that she was taking him. I just came back last night. Dami followed me to make sure I am okay.”

“What a bunch of bullcrap.” Alya said, “I don’t believe you.”

Oh. The irony... “Alya, I don’t care if you do. My life is my own business. So keep your nosy nose out of it. Your opinions don’t matter to me anymore, stranger.” Marinette internally was tired of this silly routine and wanted this to end already.

Alya wanted to pick a fight with her over the smallest things she did for the past months. She wondered why her former best friend hated her this much.

“Lila told me that you were skipping school and you paid an actor to be your pretend boyfriend.”

Pretending to not hear what Alya said, Marinette turned towards Chloe, “Hey, you never told me about how you met Tim. I can’t believe that you two are friends.”

“We met at one of those charity galas-”

“Hey, we were talking to you.” Alya cut her off. To which Chloe glared at the ombre-haired girl.

“I thought our conversation was done. What else am I supposed to say?”

Marinette was frustrated and hid that fact well, showing any reaction would give the game away. If she had reacted, it would further fuel the fire of Alya’s self-righteousness, making her believe that Marinette was somehow guilty of what Lila told her about. Lila managed to turn nearly the entire class against her by appealing to their ‘hero’ side and outbursts from Marinette and the others made them more sure of themselves of being in the right. It was so deep-rooted that nothing would sway them to logical reasoning. Maybe except Phase 2. Phase 1 was made a little easier when Talia kidnapped her and made her miss a few days of school.

Phase 2 was to not acknowledge the lies or just appear uninterested. It would illustrate the point that people don’t have to listen to them if they don’t want to. If possible, sow little seeds of doubt to the ones Lila had a looser grip on. The more people they can slowly get on their side, the better.

Alya was confused, usually Marinette would throw a ‘temper tantrum’ about how she didn’t do that and Lila lied.“I-, you should-, You should apologize to Lila.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow, “For what this time?”

“For saying that she was lying.”

“Pray tell, when did in any of our conversations so far did I do that? I mean I don’t like the fact that she just accused me with little evidence of paying my someone to be my boyfriend but I am not going to fight with anyone over it. Maybe I did do that, Maybe I didn’t. Maybe there is a good reason I did those things. The thing is Lila should keep to her own business and I will keep to mine. And as should you. I know you are a reporter at heart but you should at the very least respect my privacy.”

Alya stayed silent, fuming. Everyone was looking at them now. She realized that the designer was right and if she pushed further, she would be the bad guy.

“I thought so. Now, go away. I have nothing else to say to you. Let Chloe finish her story of how she met Tim which you so rudely interrupted.”

“Who’s Tim?” Lila asked, wanting to know more about Marinette’s boyfriend to work on an angle to get him away from the ravenette.

“Mari-Bug’s boyfriend’s older brother. Now, shoo peasants, we are talking. Anyways, Mommy took me to when I was younger so I could mingle with all the other rich kids and get connections. Timothy was there and back then, he was still with the Drakes...”

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

Lila and Alya returned to their seats, both were visibly upset although Lila was seething inside. When Marinette was not at school for the last two days, the Italian thought that it was the last she had seen of her. Today, she showed up with a handsome boy on her arm and by the looks of his clothes, rich too. If she manages to get ‘Damian’ to break up with that pest and date her instead, then she would have a rich, handsome boyfriend devoted to her and that brat would be so heart-broken that an akuma so powerful would be made that even Ladybug won’t be able to defeat. A two for one deal. Lila started planning (scheming) to take her boyfriend away.

------

(Part 7)

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Edit: I am so sorry. I forget to add the taglist.

Tag list: @alysrose-starchild, @buginetye, @lookatthestars1, @blackroserelina, @macncheesemonster, @mochinek0, @myazael, @tonicxworld, @thewitchwhowaited, @t1dwarrior-of-earth, @kissa-chan, @iwantasecretidentity, @theymakeupfairies, @user00000003, @woe-is-me0, @kashlyn, @mochegato,@moonlightstar64 , @greatcatblaze, @moongoddesskiana, @tazanna-blythe. @tonicxworld, @toodaloo-kangaroo, @frieddonutsweets, @local-witch-of-mn, @lady-bee-fechin, @iglowinggemma28, @indecisive-mess-named-me, @k-tea-and-coffee, @jayjayspixiepop, @all-mights-asscheeks, @idk-j-go-with-it , @loysydark, @thenillabean, @lolieg, @zalladane, @silvergold-swirl, @henie04, @blueblossombliss, @khneltea, @mochegato, @itsmeevie01, @roguishredaxion, @alyssadeliv, @steph-hearthlight, @adrestar, @eliza-bich, @abrx2002, @hikari55ttva, @doglover82, @daminette5074, @moon5608,@justafanwarrior, @allis-sun, @animegirlweeb, @aespades, @corporeal-terrestrial, @mildlydeadly, @kanamexzeroyaoifangirl,

#damian x marinette #maribat #ml x dc #daminette #mlb x dc #a failed betrothal #betrothal au: take 2

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louweasleymalfoy · 4 years

Text

Summary: Based on the song “Mary’s Song” by Taylor Swift

Masterlist

•••

She said I was seven and you were nine, I looked at you like the stars that shined, In the sky, the pretty lights

“Draco! Hurry up will ya! Your parents are gonna wake up and realize that we’re out of bed before we even get outside and my parents won’t allow me to sleep over again if they found out!” Y/N whisper-shouted as she pulled Draco to the gardens

The garden is their favorite place to stay at because they get to see the stars clearly at night

“Wow” Y/N said as she and Draco plop down on the grass, looking at the stars

“Oh come on Y/N, don’t tell me that you’re surprised to see the stars when we literally go here every single night” Draco chuckled

“Oh shuddup….I know that we go here every night but….. I just can’t help but admire them every single time…I mean, look at them! Don’t you think they’re pretty” Y/N said with admiration lacing her tone, not looking away from the night sky

Draco got lost in thought before saying,

“You’re right…..but I think the word for it should be Stunning”

Unbeknownst to Y/N, Draco was looking at her when he said that

And our daddies used to joke about the two of us growing up and falling in love and our mamas smiled and rolled their eyes

Draco and Y/N were playing in the living room of Malfoy Manor when their parents came in to watch

“I wouldn’t even be surprised if Y/N and Draco were to date each other in the future” Lucius said, making the two kids in the room blush at the statement

“Oh Lucius! Don’t be like that” Mr. Y/L/N laughed at the two kids before continuing,

“But! You do make a good point there Lucius. Oh! Do you think we should start the wedding planning” Y/N’s father joked

“Oh yes! We should!” Lucius said

And as if they have some sort of telepathic powers, Lucius and Mr. Y/L/N suddenly exclaimed together,

“We should have it at the DI-”

“FATHER!!!!!!”

The children in the room cut them off and yelled at their father, who are now in a fit of laughter

In the kitchen, Narcissa and Mrs. Y/L/N heard the entire conversation going on in the living room and rolled their eyes, a smile plastered on their faces

I dared you to kiss me and ran when you tried, just two kids, You and I

It was Y/N’s third year and Draco’s fifth year at Hogwarts, they’re both sorted into Slytherin and now their friendship became stronger than ever

So here they are in the common room, cuddled up together, Draco was ranting something about Potter and the rest of the golden trio until the topic switched into their childhood memories

“Hey! Remember when you dared me to kiss you and you ran when I tried” Draco chuckled

“Oh yeah! I remember that” Y/N laughed before adding,

“The only thing on my mind that day was that I had to run away before I kiss an ugly git like you”

“Why you little-”

Y/N removed herself from him and started to run outside of the common room with Draco chasing after her. Both of them bumping into Blaise as they ran outside of the common room, chasing each other throughout the castle

“HEY! YOU TWO! SLOW DOWN AND WATCH WHERE YOU’RE GOING!” Blaise yelled after his two best friends, still upset at them for bumping into him

He looked outside to check if they heard what he said but instead saw his best friends still chasing and laughing at each other throughout the castle, not hearing a word he just said and ignoring the looks of the students from different houses

Blaise smiled at the sight, forgetting he was upset at them in the process

“Those two need to date….One day they’ll both realize they love each other” Blaise said to nobody in particular as he finally headed inside the common room

Well, I was sixteen when suddenly, I wasn’t that girl you used to see but your eyes still shined like pretty lights

Y/N was in her fifth year and Draco in his seventh when all of it happened

Draco avoided Y/N for three days straight and she had no idea of what she did wrong. Y/N asked Blaise about Draco’s strange behavior but he also had no idea about what happened. She tried to approach him but he just kept pushing her away and made up excuses of why he was so busy. One day, Y/N had enough.

Draco is walking in the halls headed to Potions class when Y/N, out of nowhere, suddenly grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into an old empty classroom despite his protests

“Y/N I need to get to class” Draco turned to walk away but she suddenly grabbed his wrist, stopping him

“NO! We need to talk and plus you’re Snape’s favorite student so you’ll probably get out of trouble for not attending his class for once…………

Look Draco……you’ve been avoiding and pushing me away lately a-and I don’t have any idea of what I’ve done w-wrong and I’m thinking t-that y-you probably hate me a-and-” She was cut off by her own sobs

Draco’s eyes widened at her crying form and pulled her into a tight hug. Draco was hurt at her own words. He was hurt that she actually thinks he hated her and immediately regretted his actions for the past three days. If there’s one thing he hated besides the golden trio, it’s seeing her cry.

“Look Y/N…you didn’t do anything wrong and I’m so sorry for pushing you away and avoiding you…I didn’t mean to make you feel this way….and please don’t ever think that I could hate you”

“Then why did you do it. Why did you avoid and pushed me away at any chance you got”

It’s now or never, Draco thought

“Because I love you more than a friend”

“W-what?”

He loves me?, Y/N thought

“Then why did you avoid me?”

“Because I’m scared Y/N….I’m scared that you’ll reject me and everything will just get weird between us and we’ll stop being friends and I would rather have you as just a friend than lose you for good” Draco sighed

“Look Y/N I know you don’t feel the same so let’s just move on and forget thus ever happe—”

Draco was cut off by Y/N's lips smashing against his. Their lips molded and moved in sync with each other. It was a passionate kiss filled with the love they have for each other. After a while they finally broke apart, breathing heavily as their foreheads touched. Y/N's eyes were closed and when she finally opened them, she was met by the most beautiful pair of eyes she had ever seen. They both smiled widely.

“I love you too you idiot” Y/N said and pecked Draco on the lips

Take me back to the time we had our very first fight the slamming of doors instead of kissing goodnight you stayed outside till the morning light

Y/N was eating dinner at the great hall when a paper landed on her lap. She examined the paper with neat and elegant writing, it was a note from Draco.

“Meet me in the astronomy tower—D”

Y/N felt excited and wanted to immediately finish her dinner. With one last gulp of her pumpkin juice, she stood up from her seat and made her way to the astronomy tower. As she got closer to the astronomy tower, she heard voices. The voices were familiar…one of them was Draco and the other one was….Pansy!? She decided to hide behind a pillar, she couldn’t hear the conversation so she decided to take a peek at them. The moment she looked, she felt herself crying.

It was Pansy and Draco kissing.

“Dra- Draco?” Y/N said with tears in her eyes

Draco pushed Pansy away and his eyes widened at Y/N

“Babe! This isn’t what it looks like”

“Ho-how could you Draco. I trusted you!” Y/N ran to her dorm ignoring Draco’s calls

“Finally, I thought she’d never leave us. Come on Draco we can always go back to my dorm” Pansy said, clinging on Draco’s arm, with a flirty smile on her face

“Shove off Pansy! How many times do I have to repeat myself to get the message through your thick skull!! I DON’T LIKE YOU!! NEVER HAVE AND NEVER WILL!! You ruined everything with me and Y/N”

“But…but the kiss—”

“I DIDN’T KISS YOU PARKINSON! YOU SAID YOU NEEDED HELP WITH POTIONS BUT THEN YOU BLOODY KISSED ME!! NOW STAY OUT OF MY LIFE” Draco said angrily, ignoring Pansy’s cries and begging for him to stay

Draco ran as fast as he could so he could talk to her. He saw her took a turn in the hallway and followed. He grabbed her wrist tightly, stopping her in her tracks.

“Y/N baby! I’m sorry please let me explain!”

“There’s nothing to explain Malfoy” She removed herself from him and ran to her dorm, Draco shouting her name as he followed her

Before Draco could reach her, she slammed the door of her dorm.

“Baby please let me in! I’m really sorry for what you saw but it’s not what it looks like” Draco pleaded, but no answer came

“Baby please” Draco tried again but still no answer

“I love you”

Y/N woke up to the sun hitting her face. She felt sick from all the crying she did last night. Luckily, it’s a Saturday so she don’t have any classes. She thought of Draco but decided to brush it off her mind and go to the great hall. She took a shower and changed in a new set of clothes. When she opened the door of her room, she saw something she didn’t expect. A sleeping Draco was found outside her dorm, his face was pale and his eyes were puffy, probably from crying. Draco woke up to the sound of the door and immediately stood up.

“Y/N”

Y/N tried getting away but Draco stopped her

“Y/N please let me explain”

“What’s there to explain! Are you gonna tell me that you aren’t kissing Parkinson! I saw you Draco! So get out of my way” She tried getting away again but to no avail, Draco stopped her again

“Baby I admit it. You saw it. But I didn’t kiss her. She kissed me! I was about to push her away but then you came and then ran and to make sure you believe me I’m gonna drink this Verisaterum potion I got from Snape”

Before she could even protest, Draco gulped the potion and started saying everything that happened. He told her about Pansy asking for help in Potions and then suddenly kissing him. After Draco explained, Y/N engulfed him in a bone-crushing hug.

“Thanks for telling me this Dray and I’m sorry for not giving you a chance to explain last night”

“It’s okay baby. You had every right to react like that when you saw us. I love you” and with that, they kissed

A few years had gone and come around We were sitting at our favorite spot in town And you looked at me, got down on one knee

It’s been a year since they graduated Hogwarts and it had been an amazing journey. She kind of missed school from time to time but she is still happy. Y/N was currently in a park, sitting under a large tree. The park was a secret place and nobody knew of its existence, it was charmed to be hidden from others. On her right was her boyfriend Draco, who was playing with the Malfoy ring on his finger and you swore he looked kind of… .nervous?

“Dray are you alright?”

“Huh? Um yeah everything’s good why would even ask me that?” Draco stood up from his position and looked anywhere but Y/N's eyes. Y/N stood up as well and grabbed his arm, rubbing it soothingly.

“Oh nothing it’s just… you look like something’s bothering you and I just wanna know” Draco sighed and cupped her face in his hands

Welp… Here goes nothing

“Y/N, aside from my mother, you are the most important person in my life. You have always been there for me during hard times and stayed with me even if I was a complete arse to everyone. When we were young, we would always sneak out to the garden to gaze at stars and you would always be amazed by its beauty. And you know what , you Y/N Y/L/N are my star. You gave meaning and color to my life and I never regretted the decision to ask you to be my girlfriend years ago. So here I am about to ask you a very important question…” Draco removed his hands from Y/N's face and knelt down in front of her. Y/N gasped clamped her hand in her mouth.

“Y/N Y/L/N, you have been my best friend and even better…my girlfriend for years and I am sure that I want to spend the rest of my life with you…so here’s the question…Will you marry me?” Draco said as he pulled out a velvet box with a gorgeous emerald ring inside of it

“YES!” Y/N squealed with happy tears in her eyes. Draco put the ring on her finger and stood up and kissed her. Both of them enjoying the moment.

Take me back to the time when we walked down the aisle Our whole town came and our mamas cried You said I do and I did too

This is it. THE BIG DAY! Draco was in front tapping his feet nervously when the large doors opened. The doors revealed Y/N in a beautiful wedding dress. Draco’s jaw dropped at the sight of her and instantly relaxed. She looked absolutely stunning. Y/N was escorted to Draco by her father and took a seat next to Mrs. Y/L/N, next to her was Narcissa and Lucius. Both women were crying hard, holding on to each other, happy that their children are finally getting married.

After the I do's the wedding was coming to an end

“You may now kiss the bride”

Draco wasted no time in kissing his wife. Y/N Malfoy

Take me home where we met so many years before We'll rock our babies on that very front porch After all this time, you and I

Y/N woke up from a nap and realized that her 5 month old son Scorpius was nowhere to be found. She started to panic and tried calling her husband

“DRACO! WHERE ARE YOU SCORPIUS ISN’T HERE”

She tried looking for them in every room of the mansion the Lucius and Narcissa bought as a wedding gift. She then decided to go to the garden.

“DRACO!”

“DRA—”

“Shhh keep it down love you don’t wanna wake little Scorpius up” It was Draco, with a sleeping Scorpius in his arms

“Oh sorry. I kinda panicked when Scorpius was gone. What happened anyways”

“Oh! I just got back from the ministry and found you asleep with Scorpius. It was really cute actually. I decided to not wake you up and went to my office to check some files instead. But then Scorpius cried and I decided to take him here so he won’t wake you up”

Hearing this, Y/N swore she felt her heart melt. She kissed him briefly on the lips and hugged him from behind as they rocked Scorpius.

I’ll be eighty-seven; you’ll be eighty-nine I’ll still look at you like the stars that shine In the sky, oh my my my

Y/N was in the library of the mansion, wanting to be alone. There was a family and friends gathering downstairs hosted by Scorpius for Y/N and Draco’s 68th anniversary. Y/N was staring at a bookshelf when she didn’t notice Draco come in. She felt two arms wrap around her waist and Draco placed his chin on her shoulder.

“Love what are you doing up here” Love , the nickname that still managed to give butterflies to her stomach even after so many years of Draco calling her that

“Oh nothing honey it’s just that I wanna spend time with you but it’s impossible with so many guests downstairs so I decided to come here to think”

“Well…we’re alone now aren’t we?” Draco grinned

She turned around to face him with a wide smile

“May I have this dance m'lady?” Draco offered his hand and Y/N took it with no hesitation. They slow danced to the music playing downstairs, foreheads touching and enjoyed their little moment

“We’ve come a long way haven’t we Mrs.Malfoy? So many years have passed and you’restill here in front of me, looking beautiful like the day I met you”

Y/N smiled at him and kissed his lips

“Yes we have Mr.Malfoy, and you still look dashing as always” They both smiled

“Happy Anniversary love, I love you”

“I love you too Dray”

“Forever and always”

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gone-series-orchid · 2 years

Note

the asoiaf au is really interesting! Can you tell us how the various characters know each other? like, maybe Sam knows Edilio from before Sam was a squire? I think it'd bring the au together a little more.

thank you, anon! i’m glad you like it! i’ve been rereading asoiaf the past few weeks (still on a game of thrones) and it’s been really inspiring. it’s really fun to think of how the gone kids would fare in westeros and what the fayz would look like in a fictionalized medieval setting, especially considering most of the asoiaf characters are (at least in the first book) below 15, and the age of majority in westeros is 16, but adolescence didn’t exist as a concept, really. it’s interesting! though in astrid’s case, it did make me realize how much asoiaf lacks for profoundly intellectual female characters—the female characters are all smart, of course, and educated, but it’s hard to see a character who’s a genius like astrid living up to her intellectual potential, even for a highborn lady. diana, with her feminine wiles and cynicism and snark, would fit in well.

yeah, i think it definitely would make sense for edilio and sam to know each other before sam is made a squire! maybe he and edilio used to be close, then sam befriended quinn and their friendship fell apart. or maybe edilio is employed as a stable boy and their friendship is allowed to continue. i don’t think quinn would have any qualms about befriending a stable boy or a bastard, as long as they appreciate his japes!

i think all the minor houses would be pretty close by—maybe they meet at a grand banquet for caine’s sixteenth nameday (i’d age the kids up a tiny bit just because i think that could lead to more story opportunities—the kids would technically be considered adults, but when the fayz happens and the chips are down, they know they’re really just children after all).

so all the minor houses are invited, and they basically have to play nice despite maybe caine’s house having a certain shady reputation (a la littlefinger). their revenues of course come too, so squires and stable boys are invited as well. so all the kids meet and mingle for the first time, and drama ensues from that. drake is a sadistic guy so he instantly tries to spar with quinn and the other minor male nobles in his age group—with real steel, not wooden swords, even though he’s not a man yet, being only 15. caine’s insulted and agrees, as he’s a man grown now.

meanwhile, the girls have been told that one of them might, if all goes well, be engaged to caine. they don’t know anything about him except rumors, so they might be extremely worried that he seems to be an aggressive weirdo. diana is especially angered because she always expected to marry into a minor dornish house, meanwhile the other noble ladies whisper about her because of her bastardy, which she also doesn’t like. she’s determined to prove her worth to the snobs who dislike her for the station of her birth, and to do that she must marry well, so she might scheme to curry the sorens’ favor in some cunning way. astrid doesn’t want to marry because she’s most concerned with taking care of little pete and learning as much as she can from the beautiful gilded tomes in house soren’s library, but she feels a strong duty to provide for lp, and to do that she must marry, so she’s sort of at an impasse.

meanwhile, mary, taylor, dahra, and lana are also there as eligible maidens (possibly three are handmaidens to one of them, but idk who should be which) but they flock together and eat pastries, like margaery tyrell’s little inner circle of ladies.

drama would inevitably ensue. i think caine would probably be challenged to a duel by drake at some point when all the parents and authorities were too in their cups to care about what their kids were doing. caine might unexpectedly win, which would make drake angry. quinn is helpless with a sword and so falls quickly, but sam takes it up to defend his friend. caine and drake both scoff at a bastard defending a craven like quinn, but lo! sam strikes the sword out of caine’s hand!

more drama ensues, probably. sam and diana could bond over their bastardy a little. astrid might spy orc and a few other boys making cruel japes about little pete and march over and yell at them or something, idk. she’d be like “i don’t think any son of house merriman should be insulting a member of a family with five times its money. don’t you?” and of course orc would be stunned and enraged, but also a little chastised. and extra angry because he was chastised. but he can’t do anything about it so he takes it out on one of his lackeys. probably through punching

sorry this got a little out of hand, but yeah! i imagine they all know of each other vaguely but meet formally at a grand party for caine’s nameday. if you have any suggestions, anon, i’d love to hear them!

#gone series #michael grant #the gone series #fayz #fayzian #the fayz

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stuckinapatriarchalbullshitland · 4 years

Text

🌹 - ɟ

Hiii babies and dear Anons 👋🏼🤗 You know how it works by now. These are the answers to the asks Mari/Stuck sent me. And happy Valentine’s Day to you all!! 🌹🌹 Enjoy 🙃

A lot of people have been interested in them, dear Anon. From managers, to publicists, to sponsors, partnerships, producers, etc., etc. and no, it was never a problem between them. That’s part of their job.

No, dear Anon. Camila and Ashlee are best friends. Ash ships/ped Camren. She has helped them a lot of times. I know why you thought this. Just as I know it may seem that Ash takes advantage of Camila because she created a lot of videos with her, made two songs about her, and brings her up at every opportunity, but it’s not what it seems. Do you have any idea how hard it is to try to emerge as an artist in that world? Do you have any idea how many artists there are out there that you’ll never hear about because they’ll never make it to the top? Why do you know Ashlee? Thanks to 5H. Without having been their guitarist, you wouldn’t even know she existed. The fans that Juno has, are Harmonizers/Camilizers and some that she managed to make herself afterwards.

Ash is a real friend to our Mila. She has helped her more times than we could ever know, even by leaving the tour to help her friend. And Camila’s the same for her. Did you know that on June 13, 2020, in the face of the Black Lives Matter Movement she helped Ashlee sponsor a free scholarship for 20 black students to participate in the JUNO’s Guitar Bootcamp to help them create more opportunities in that field in their future? [Diana Foster, who I believe is her girlfriend or a great friend of hers anyway, also helped] Why on earth would Camila willingly help someone who ‘presumably’ would be taking advantage of her friendship? May I suggest you go watch one of the last videos they have together in Camila’s backstage? It dates back to 2019. Go watch it, dear Anon, and tell me if you don’t get an automatic smile on your lips.

Forgive me, Anon, with all due respect speaking, but what are you saying? “Camila has made mistakes (she has not been the best girlfriend possible)?” Are you for real? What are you talking about? Camila made her mistakes, but so did Lauren. So why are you only pointing the finger at Camila? Did you pay attention to their story? Did you hear/see what Lauren said on the podcast? Have you ever listened to their songs WELL? Because apparently, you didn’t. A couple is made up of two people and mistakes are made by two, not just by one.

No, dear Anon. Closer was never a song of hers in the first place, let alone one she could sell. The Chainsmokers wanted her in the song. She recorded a rough demo for them and then turned it down. I know that when she turned it down and they passed it on to Halsey, she wrote and contributed to some of the lyrics (she appears as a songwriter in the credits), so I believe she wrote those in the place of the ones Mila wrote in her version, but I’m not sure. I don’t know if Camila had the time to write her part like Ashley (Halsey) did, or if she directly recorded the demo as she did with The Middle. Until it’s leaked, we won’t have an answer.

The fact is that Closer was simply a project that was proposed to her when she was still in 5H and that she turned down because 7/27 was about to come out. Just as she declined to participate in Taylor Swift’s Bad Blood music video for them (5H). And I still wonder how the haters still consider her a bitch 🙄🙄

Ligas, or hair bands, or también se dice colitas, verdad? Or hair ties as I like to call them, were originally Lauren’s. Lauren had two on her wrist at X-Factor and then, magically, one ended up on Camila’s wrist. I personally think that was their first symbol, but of friendship. And no, dear Anon, they didn’t replace the rings. The rings didn’t yet exist at that time. If the rings were one of their symbols of love, the hair ties were symbols of friendship, at least in the beginning.

P.S. dear Anon, I would like that as soon as you finish reading this post, you’d type ‘garters’ on Google and click directly on images 🤣 I really, REALLY, love you for this, believe me 😉❤️

I watched all the interviews held in Spain in 2015 and you can see the differences, dear Anon. The two interviews with Revista Bravo and the one with Vodafone Yu are more or less normal. There’s tension between all of them because the big mess had recently happened. But in Alyson’s one with NSP PROJECTS and the one with LOS40 in which Alyson is in as well… Gosh… Your second question is my answer, dear Anon. Yes, they broke up, but that was even before they went to Europe.

As for your last question, on the one hand, I think she was single, attracted to the interviewer, and that she didn’t have to be accountable to anyone because being single, she could do whatever she wanted. But on the other hand, I think it may have been done on purpose for revenge since they’ve always played these jealousy games. I don’t think she managed to control herself though. It shows in both of those interviews, although it’s much more evident in the one with NSP PROJECTS. I don’t think she really realized the gravity of what she was doing because she was too wrapped up in Alyson and too busy in impressed her than everything else. I don’t think she noticed, at least not during the interviews, how hurt Lauren was.

I don’t want to tell you yes or no if her behavior was correct or not, simply because I don’t know if she did it because as I said she was single and didn’t have to answer to anyone, or if she did it out of revenge because she wanted Laur to be jealous. My instinctive response would be that it wasn’t corrected because of the effect it had on Laur who was also going through the dark diary period, but I don’t really know why Mila did what she did. She may have had her reasons, and maybe knowing them, my answer would be different, or the same. I don’t know because I don’t know the reasons behind this. Lauren has done a lot of things in the past that have hurt Camila, and Camila has done a lot of things in the past that have hurt Lauren. They’ve hurt each other many times. Sometimes on purpose and sometimes not. So I prefer to abstain because, at least in this case, I don’t feel like judging something I don’t know. Much less point the finger.

Hi @ camilalauren0327 😄👋🏼 yeah, writing is therapeutic for them, as it is for many other people, myself included. Dancing was for me as well. Many people find it therapeutic to play sports, others find it in various forms of art, etc., etc.

I don’t know if Camren did couples therapy 🤷🏻‍♀‍ I think if they really did it, they did it after 5H.

Doctors of all kinds, and therefore also psychologists, consultants, therapists, psychiatrists, etc. are bound by the federal law HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). Many therapists themselves indeed, prefer to establish confidentiality limits even before starting therapy. For example, the fact that they’re required to maintain therapy content is established regardless, but with you, they can determine who they can contact with your written permission, or if they can’t contact anyone. If YOU client prefer it, you can also establish that outside those four walls, you’re not really in therapy and that therefore if you meet your therapist in a supermarket, for example, they’ll pretend not to know you and will not acknowledge you at all in order to protect your client-therapist confidentiality. So, at the end of the day, it really depends on you and what you establish with your therapist.

This, however, is sometimes not enough for celebrities. Those who really, but really care about privacy and don’t want to take risks, require their therapist to also sign an NDA as a backup and reinforcement plan, so that it covers everything, including sections that HIPAA doesn’t administer.

Both, dear @camilalauren0327, and hi again 👋🏼😊 In the Consequences video and on the day of Say You Won’t Let Go she was paying tribute to Lauren and to the old Camila. For Consequences, that was one of the many symbols we find in the video that served as a clue. For Say You Won’t Let Go it was yes a tribute to Lauren and to old Camila, but it was more of a message for her. The song was for her, the bow was for her, and the rose on her pants was for her. It was like: “Hey, I’m still here. I’m still me. See the bow? See the rose? The song? It’s all for you. The title of the song already speaks for itself. Let’s try again”. That was indeed still the period of rapprochement between them. As for the other times she wore it, and I remember that she even wore it around her neck on more than one occasion, it was for style.

Sure thing, dear Anon 🙃 Curious is a song discarded from the album Camila, and I don’t know if you’ll like my interpretation, dear Anon, because this song is not about Lauren (for me).

Verse 1

“I lose myself when you start talkin’

There’s something riveting about you, it’s got me confused”

Camila finds this girl so fascinating, that not only does she gets lost when she talks, but it also makes her confused. Confused because she didn’t think another girl could have this effect on her while her mind was always on Lauren. And yes, girl. It’s not the first time that Camila has had to mask this in her songs.

“If we went back to your apartment

Would you be a gentleman and a bad boy too?”

She’s provocative here. She’s literally provoking and teasing the girl: “Could you be sweet and at the same time rough enough to slamming me against the wall?” If you know what I mean…

Pre-Chorus

“I know you think, I’m innocent

Little do you know where my mind has been?”

When you see Camila in videos and interviews, you’re hit by her energy 80% of the time. She’s this cute and goofy and clumsy and dorky ball of bubbly energy that cracks a smile from you all the time. She’s funny with her lame jokes that however always make you laugh, and most of the time, you see her in this innocent light. And it’s true. She looks like this innocent little bean that must be protected at all costs. But we also know that she’s far from innocent. And here, that’s what she’s telling the girl: “If you knew what I’ve been thinking about you, about us, about what I want to happen, you’d understand that I’m not that innocent after all.”

“I don’t have much experience

Could you relieve me of my ignorance?”

The only sexual experience Camila had had up to that point, had been with Lauren. So unlike this girl, Camila had only had one partner, and she’s telling her just that: “I don’t have much experience as you do. Could you help me out?”

“It’s true (It’s true, it’s true)

Been wondering about you”

Here she’s basically questioning whether the expectation equals the reality.

Chorus

“I’m just cu—, I’m just curious

What you do, just got the two of us

Hit me down, take me up

Can you teach me how to love?

I’m just curious”

She’s telling her that what they do in private between them, will stay between the two of them. And then… Ahem-Ahem! *Throat clearing* I’m really trying to hold back as much as possible here guys… If I hadn’t received complaints in the past about some of the answers I gave in other posts, I wouldn’t have had any kind of problem explaining exactly what she says sentence by sentence, but I’ll just limit myself by saying that she’s asking her to teach her to be more expert on the subject matter.

Post-Chorus

“Dum, dum-dum-dum

You got me feeling

Dum, dum-dum-dum

You got me feeling”

This girl makes her feel in a certain type of way that Camila herself refrains from saying what she really wants to say. Still if you know what I mean…

Verse 2

“I’m kinda nervous but I like it (Yeah)”

Because it’s a good kind of nervous. An exciting kind of nervous.

“Will you live up to the image that I got of you?”

Again. As I said before, she’s basically asking if the expectation equals the reality.

“You’re not usually my type, yeah

I think that that might be the reason that I’m here with you (Oh, oh)”

And this, speaks for itself. Who’s Camila’s type? With whom is she making the comparison? Who does she have in mind to justify her actions? She’s there with this girl because her type is who?

Before I wrap up, I want to explain to you why this song has nothing of Lauren for me. So I’m going to rewrite some pieces of the song to debunk it’s about Lauren.

“If we went back to your apartment”

Lauren didn’t have an apartment yet. She wasn’t living alone yet. 5H had two apartments that they shared together in the months of recording, and for the rest, they lived constantly in hotels. This girl (older than her) had an apartment.

“I know you think, I’m innocent”

Lauren and Camila had already had sex. Hello? Since the Like Friends Do situation. So she’s not talking about Lauren because she already knew Camila wasn’t innocent.

“I don’t have much experience”

Again. Experience she’d precisely had with Laur.

“Been wondering about you”

She had to wonder about Lauren if she had already been with her sexually? What would have been the sense?

“What you do, just got the two of us”

If she was really talking about Lauren, this would’ve been a big bullshit because there were people who knew about them. The ones closest to them for sure. Like DNA. DNA knew about them right from the start and lived their story basically along with them. Not to mention that they heard them on more than one occasion. Hell, even we heard them thanks to that takeover.

“You’re not usually my type”

Definitely not Lauren! Isn’t Lauren Camila’s type? In which universe?

“I think that that might be the reason that I’m here with you”

Exactly! This girl, whether it was physically or of character, wasn’t like Lauren.

Aaand these are the reasons why I’m 100% sure this song is not about Lauren, dear Anon.

Of course I can, dear Anon 😄

Cleopatra is a song discarded from the album Camila, and created during The Hurting. The Healing. The Loving. era. C ended Something’s Gotta Give in mid-March 2017 and we know it was the last song of The Hurting. The Healing. The Loving. era before the album name changed to Camila, so Cleopatra was finished before that.

Verse

“Ridin’ ‘round town in the backseat

Looking like the real deal

Looking real, real, real

Spent so long cuttin’ my teeth

Thought you were the real deal

But it wasn’t real, real, real, uh”

Camila is in the back of a car and, you know how sometimes you find yourself spacing out and thinking about something in those moments? Maybe by looking out the window but not really looking because you’re thinking about that something? It can be something trivial or something important, and in Camila’s case, in this case specifically, she’s overthinking about her relationship with Lauren. They had clearly broken up, and Camila is thinking about how she believed L was the real deal.

With ‘cuttin’ my teeth’ she used a slang to indicate that she learned something early in her life. The slang of cut my/your/her/his/their teeth was born in reference to the exit of the teeth from a baby’s gums and consequently indicates a first experience. So, here she means that she spent too much time learning the ropes believing for real that Lauren was for her, and then realize that she wasn’t.

[Don’t be discouraged and keep in mind that in this case, they were passing thoughts because she was definitely angry, bitter, and sad. We all are after a fight or a breakup with a partner. Besides, we all know that L is the love of her life. Think of songs like Never Be the Same (It’s you, babe), All These Years ('Cause after all these years, I still feel everything when you are near), Taxy (The greatest love story that’s never been told), and many others up to one of the ‘most recent’ ones: Anyone (You are the only one I’ll ever love) 😉]

Pre-Chorus

“Every night it was a different fight

It was a different girl

It was a different lie, ooh-ooh

Every night it was a different fight

It was a different girl

It was a different lie, ooh”

Aaaand back at it again with their communication problems. Even if she has generalized a lot here, she still makes us understand the essence of the problem.

Chorus

“I think I kinda wanna cut my hair like I’m

I’m Cleopatra”

When people move on or try to move on after a breakup, what do they usually do? They look for a change. They want to separate themselves from their past selves, of the ones they were when they were in a relationship with the person they broke up with, and they seek a change, aka self-improvement. Most of the time visual, and therefore physical. This change is seen as a new beginning, a new chapter in their life where they want to feel good again. They want to feel attractive. And this is how self-innovation begins. Some go on a diet, others change their style and wardrobe, and then there’s what many see as a rite of passage: a new haircut.

Camila in this case used Cleopatra’s cut as a metaphor for the change she wanted to make about herself. Cleopatra is one of the most famous known queens in the world. Strong, intelligent, powerful, and that radiates charm in everyone since ever. But Camila isn’t talking about Cleopatra the person. She’s talking about her haircut. Cleopatra’s cut in this case is a symbol of power and freedom for Camila. Remember how I said earlier that Camila finished Something’s Gotta Give in mid-March and that she finished this song before that? Well, although this song talks about 2015, it was made in 2017. And guess what happened in that same period? Camila cut her hair by getting bangs. To be precise, it happened on March 31, 2017 (picture + caption: “joined the bang club now”). Coincidence? Yeah, sure, I don’t think so. Plus, although she used it as a metaphor, Camila has actually always wanted a Cleopatra cut, thing that, if you think about it, she now has for real. [Oh, oh and, rumor has it that Cleopatra was bisexual as was 100% Julius Caesar🤫🤭]

“Wanna dance on cars

And forget it all after

Skip these sad love songs cause I

Need something faster and now baby

Kinda think I’m ready”

The freedom I was saying before? (Cleopatra’s cut in this case is a symbol of power and freedom for Camila) She talks about it here. She used the wanting to dance on cars and the skipping sad love songs as figurative expressions of the freedom she wanted to feel, and that she wanted to feel fast because there was gonna be no crying in the club this time. 🤣🤣🤣 Sorry, dear Anon, I had to 😝 No but, seriously though. She just wanted to shed the past and move on right away because she was ready. And she was also ready for the power part I referred to earlier that she explains here:

Post-Chorus

“Needed to be all eyes on me

Baby all eyes on me, ooh

That’s what I want

Needed to be all eyes on me

Baby all eyes on me, ooh

That’s what I want, yeah”

Now. Now, now, now, now, now, now, now. We have a double interpretation here. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: Camila is a fucking genius. And being the fucking genius lyricist that she is, she used a double meaning here to let everyone interpret this part as they please. The double interpretation is so well hidden, that people who listen to this song without knowing the details, such as for example knowing something about Camila’s life or the year the song was made, would never know because they wouldn’t even notice.

The first interpretation ties into what she says about wanting to dance on cars in the chorus. That’s also a way of saying she just wants to dance thoughtlessly and have fun, but on cars? It’s a metaphor to say that she wants to do it by drawing everyone’s attention. I want you to picture something now, okay? Picture a party with a bunch of people dancing and drinking, and in the midst of the fun, someone climbs on the hood of a car or a counter or any other high surface to keep dancing. Can you picture what would happen at that moment? Can you picture how all the people there would turn to look at that person and shout, clap, and cheer them on? Now picture the same scenario with a person still climbing on something high, but to announce something. It’s the same thing. It’s the same purpose. Getting on top, getting on top of something, is to automatically draw attention. So the connection that leads us to the first interpretation is: Wanna dance on cars - Needed to be all eyes on me.

The second interpretation, on the other hand, is basically the same as regards wanting attention on her, but with another direction and another chorus sentence. Camila is a singer. She’s a performer. She LOVES to perform. She LOVES the excitement, the adrenaline rush, the anxiety, the nerves, the pressure, and the feeling of shitting herself before entering a stage. She LOVES the almost blinding stage lights, the screams, the cheers, the applause, and all the love from the fans. She LOVES mastering the stage, interacting with the audience, and delivering a show. She sings her heart out and LOVES it when the audience sings back to her. She has so much passion and she’s so fucking good at what she does. Why am I saying all this? Because with this hidden interpretation, Mila refers to her solo debut. Like I said, this song was made in 2017, remember? So the connection that leads us to the second interpretation is: Now baby, kinda think I’m ready - Needed to be all eyes on me. Ready for her debut.

Both indicate the attention and power (feeling of power) that I mentioned earlier that comes with it.

Bridge

“See, see

You right to be that

You bein’, you needin’

See, see

You right to be that

You bein’, you needin'”

This part is cryptic. Since they broke up here, I think she’s just saying that it’s okay. That it’s okay for Lauren to be the way she is and that it’s okay if they’re letting each other go (Yeah, sure, Jan 🤣). No hard feelings. Or at least, that’s my interpretation.

—

Before concluding this post, I’d like to make amends. My friend, the same one I ‘roasted’ in my last post (📄 - ɟ), hey, hi girl 😝 literally shoved her phone in my face a few days ago to show me an ask sent to @emisonme (hi to you too if you’re reading 👋🏼😄) in which I was mentioned. I’d like to apologize to all of you because I made a mistake, although not intentionally. I didn’t know Simon was no longer one of the directors of Simco Limited. I went to check it out and immediately understood why I didn’t know. Because it happened more or less recently (on September 17, 2020) and I hadn’t done a thorough research on the piece of shit since last summer (July) when Syco integrated into Sony.

I got really mad at myself for doing one of the things I hate: giving out wrong information. Camila and Lauren are ‘free’ from Simon, and I put that in quotes because one of the clauses that are in every Simmenthal Cow contract includes not being able to speak ill of him. I’m not kidding. This is a piece of an article from many years ago that is still on the internet today that talks about X Factor contracts: “The contract, which runs for 80 pages, also reportedly states that the rules are enforceable anywhere ‘in the world and solar system’ and that artists may not be critical of the company, ‘including its personnel and, in particular, Simon Cowell’. The contract makes clear no-one can speak badly of X Factor supremo Simon.”

Supremo… Supremo? Like what, the Supreme from American Horror Story (some fans of the series like me here)? Should I start calling him Cordelia? No, no, no, no, no, no, no. I could never. I’m sorry Sarah (Paulson) for even giving it the slightest thought, love. I’m deeply ashamed. Sooo, like what? A supremo Super Saiyan (Dragon Ball)? If he clenches his hands into fists and screams, does his hair turn blonde? No, huh? So like what exactly? The supremo asshole? You know what? It doesn’t matter. He’s ridiculous enough per se.

Anyway. Camren are free I hope completely from Simon, but we don’t know yet if the contract ended along with Simon’s exit or if it’s still standing. We’ll see as soon as one of them releases a new song.

Please accept my sincere apologies, guys 🙏🏼 And thank you @emisonme for giving me a great news, albeit indirectly. You’re a real one 😊

🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍🤸🏻‍♀‍

Aaand I’m done 🙈 I hope I was helpful in this case too. As usual, I’m always available for those who have questions, so feel free to ask 🙃 And as always, I thank Mari for giving me space in her blog and for making this exchange possible, and thanks to you Anons for your asks 🥰

Be kind, to others and to yourselves. Be a good example. Be patient. Be safe and take care of yourselves. Sending you virtual love and hugs 🤗🤗🤗 I love you, babies. Always with love, F ❤️

P.S. who wants to be my virtual Valentine? 🌹 🌹 🌹

____

I have to say sorry to F again because this submission should be posted last night and I couldn’t. Thanks for the long ass post F.

Another advice, I closed the inbox for anons as you know and I will open it again in a few days when I don’t be too busy. Save your asks for F anyway, anons!

#submission #f anon #long ass post #valentine answers #sorry for the late post #anon #ask #f answers

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mind-reader1 · 4 years

Text

All of Me (Jake x MC)

This is for @princesstopgunswife

A/N: The Jake and MC reunion that everyone wanted.

Find a link to my masterlist here

Warnings: angsty, fluffly.

Word Count: 2,743

Five years, none of them could believe it had been that long since they’d all been together in one place, since they’d all left the island...well almost all of them.

Everyone had mourned the loss of their friend, the person who brought them all together and of course the one who saved them all. Despite mourning her, they still moved forward with their lives, graduated college, got jobs, reconnected. Grace and Aleister got married, Sean and Michelle decided to give it another chance. Even Estela worked to move on, accepting that she could have a life without vengeance. That wasn’t the be all and end all of her existence.

Then there was Jake. He’d lost Mike, he’d lost his wife all in the course of 24 hours. Lundgren was dead, eliminating all his hopes of clearing his name; of going back to the states to see his family again. He stayed in Costa Rica after flying the newfound group of friends off La Huerta. The first few months he would drink himself into a stupor every night, replaying her voicemail until he fell asleep, desperate to hear her voice again.

They had all come to visit him at one point or another, worried about him and how he was coping. Especially Diego, he’d lost Varyyn, he understood Jake’s grief. Diego tried to convince Jake that Taylor would’ve wanted him to find happiness with someone else, but Jake never did, he couldn’t do that to her. Even if they didn’t get to spend their year and one day together, they’d had thousands of lives together on La Huerta and they would always be connected. No one would ever fill that hole in his heart and he didn’t want anyone too. Diego didn’t push, he felt the same way about Varyyn, connected forever.

The five year reunion was upon them now though, Jake leaned against Deliah trying to play it cool, but he was nervous to return to the island, unsure of what to expect. He’d thought so often about going back there himself, about trying to find any trace of her but he’d never been able to bring himself to do it.

“How does he get to look the same after all these years baking in the sun when he doesn’t even use moisturizer!” Jake cracked a smile, he’d recognize that voice anywhere.

“I think it’s the rum Maybelline, you should try it.” Michelle rolled her eyes.

“Good to see you Jake.”

“Cap.” Sean came up and dropped Michelle’s bags before clapping Jake on the back.

“Caught your last game. Talk about a hail mary, guess that’s why they pay you the big bucks though.”

“Chyeah! Only because I made it possible for him.” “Drax.” Sean and Craig had gone pro and been drafted together, the dynamic duo of the NFL.

“Don’t you nerds have anything to talk about besides football?”

“Skrillex. Hack any foreign governments recently?” Zahra smirked.

“Whenever you want that record cleared, you better have my money.” Jake smiled, Zahra had offered to hack the government and clear his record so he could return home to his family. He felt like he would only be a burden though, were Taylor still with him, things may have been different.

“...the laws of quantum physics clearly state-“

“Malfoy, brain trust! Heard y’all got married. Congratulations!” Grace beamed at Jake and pulled him into a tight hug.

“Thank you Jake!” Grace swiftly hit Aleister on the arm.

“Yes, thank you Jacob.”

“Let’s see, still missing Petey, Ariel, Julio Child and Katniss.”

“I’m right here.” Jake jumped and turned to see Estela staring at him, Diego walking up behind her.

“Dammit! You don’t need to sneak up on me like that.” Diego chuckled as Estela smirked and climbed onto the plane.

“What are you laughing at Petey?” Diego innocently held up his hands and boarded the plane.

He heard the laughter of the last two before he saw them, Raj was licking something off his fingertips, no doubt something that had come from the container Quinn was carrying.

“Jake, dude, you have to try one of these cupcakes.” Raj happily rubbed his belly.

“I’m sure they’re great Ariel, but I don’t want to get frosting all over the cockpit. Save one for me once we land?”

“Of course!” Quinn also wrapped him in a big hug and kissed his cheek before boarding the plane.

“All right. Well we’ve got the whole Brady Bunch now….so let’s do this.”

The plane was eerily silent as they flew over the water, their minds inevitably drifting back to the first plane ride they’d taken together. Diego made his way up to the cockpit and took a seat, Jake was rigid at the controls, a death grip on yoke.

“Jake...how are you?” Jake didn’t take his eyes off the horizon, his body trembling softly with adrenaline.

“I’m fine Petey. It’s an island. Been here probably a hundred times.”

“Jake, you know what I mean.” He hated being vulnerable, sharing his feelings, anyone he opened up to he inevitably lost. Diego was the closest connection he had to Taylor these days, he was the sole reason Taylor had even existed.

Talk to him Jake. He could hear her voice in his mind, encouraging him to keep making those connections.

“I miss her Diego. So damn much. I thought I could do this with you all but I’m not sure.” It was the first time Jake had ever called Diego by name.

“I miss her too. I think this will be good for us Jake, maybe we can leave the ghosts behind.”

“I don’t want to forget, I never want to forget.”

“You never could, I’m just saying...maybe it’s time to leave behind the guilt that keeps haunting us.” He had a point, Jake felt guilty still, like he hadn’t done everything he could’ve to make her stay. Deep down he knew that was wrong though, he knew it was her decision and she was a selfless person. She chose the world over herself, so that he could have a life to go back to, maybe it was time to stop feeling guilty about living that life.

“Thanks Petey. Now get back to your seat so I can land.” Diego smiled softly and returned to his seat as Jake made a smooth landing on La Huerta.

Since Rourke’s arrest, Aleister had taken over the Celestial resort. When the world had returned to normal, so had all the guests and the island had continued to operate as if nothing happened. For this weekend though, Aleister closed the entire resort to outside guests and staff. It would be the eleven of them alone.

They all collected their room keys, staying in the same rooms they’d had before, except for Jake. He stared for ages at the honeymoon suite key, it was the room where they’d spent their first night together, something he would never forget. He wasn’t sure he could face it again though. Taking a deep breath, he steeled his nerves and swiped the key, riding the elevator up to the room, it seemed to move at an agonizingly slow pace.

He entered the room and sucked in a breath, flooded with memories of that night.

Hey you.

Hey.

Jake wandered over to the large pane windows overlooking the island. He remembered every moment of that night, this is where they’d kissed each other, he’d pushed her back up against the glass, desperate to feel her body pressed against his for the first time, what he wouldn’t give to feel that just one more time.

“I’ve never wanted anything as badly as I want you.” He whispered in longing.

Then have me. She had said that back to him their first night together and that was the beginning of the end for him. He was hooked. They’d thrashed that room and didn’t give a damn, it was strange to see it put back together. He opened the window to get some fresh air but he could swear he smelled her perfume drifting to his nose over the ocean breeze.

He slammed the window shut and laid down on the bed still in his clothes, staring at the canopy. The bed felt cold and foreign to him, he tried turning on his sides but he couldn’t fall asleep, every time he closed his eyes he would see her beside him in bed only to reach over and find it empty. He slipped out of the room and went down to the beach, snagging a hotel towel on his way out. Maybe a night out under the stars with the ocean waves could help him clear his mind.

Vaanu had been made whole again and should have felt at peace, but there always seemed to be something keeping it from its eternal rest. Just a sliver that felt like it was missing, the feeling only grew the closer the 5 year anniversary of becoming whole came.

Why do I feel as though I am still broken? Vaanu bellowed in despair. Desperately searching for the beacon from its missing shard, it followed it to a well known place, La Huerta. Vaanu summoned the physical manifestation of Taylor that had been created by one of the shards, it could sense that she was the part of itself that was still missing a piece.

“Where am I?”

Why am I still broken? Memories came flooding back to Taylor like a tsunami, saying goodbye to Jake and the others, then it was all black until waking up here. She could hear its voice in her mind and feel exactly what it was talking about, she felt a sense of emptiness. It took her only a moment to realize why.

“Jake.” That feeling of emptiness only grew, she longed to see him again, to hear his voice. She could feel the ghost of his touch on her skin, lighting it on fire with pleasure, a feeling only he could give her. Something she couldn’t live without.

Jake?

“Jake and I fell in love over 1,000 times in different timelines. I promised him a year and a day, a part of my soul will forever be with him.” Taylor wondered how long it had been, wondered if he moved on, if she still felt this broken though she knew he hadn’t and that somehow hurt her more.

Broken.

“Let me be with Jake. If we’re together then the shard is together, you’ll be whole again.” She didn’t know how, but she could tell Vaanu was thinking. “Please, you know you won’t feel whole until he dies and that will be years. Years you could have spent being whole again if you just let me go to him.” She pleaded, desperate.

There was a bright flash and when Taylor opened her eyes she was on the familiar beach of La Huerta, there was a towel on the beach, void of an occupant. She needed to get her bearings, find a way to get in touch with Jake. She was back!

Jake had been unsuccessful trying to sleep on the beach as well, he’d turned to his last resort, alcohol. He’d found some rum but what he really wanted was the good stuff, some strong whiskey that would knock him right out.

Someone poked him in the shoulder and he turned to see who it was, it was Taylor, smiling at him in her blue tank top and khaki pants. He must’ve been hallucinating another memory again.

“Help ya with something Princess?” He turned away, his focus back on liquor, he didn’t notice her frown. She thought he’d be more excited to see her, like she was him. Maybe she’d been mistaken, maybe he had moved on.

“Just seeing what you’re up to.” She said deflated.

“Trying to see if we got any good whiskey left so I can stop reliving all these damn memories. Like this one of you asking me to come to your room. You?”

“Jake...this isn’t a memory.”

“Must be dreamin’ then. Guess I did find the good whiskey.”

“Jake look at me! I’m actually here!”

“You say that in all my dreams and then I wake up Princess.” He whispered heavily, sounding emotionally tired, it would go away if he’d just listen to her! She hit him in the arm and scowled at him until he looked at her.

“Ow!”

“Jake, please. It’s really me.” He shook his head, she could see the pain in his eyes.

“No. You went with Vaanu and that was it. My wife is dead!” He was fighting back tears.

“Jake, what do I have to do to prove to you I’m real, that I’m here?” He turned and grabbed both sides of her face, their lips meeting in a fiery kiss with years of longing poured into it. Taylor melted against Jake and he pulled away, breathing heavily his eyes still closed.

“If I open my eyes, are you still gonna be here Taylor?”

“Yes, Jake. Now please, open your eyes and look at me.” She whispered, cupping his cheek. Her touch felt so real, Jake didn’t want to risk it. He wanted to stay in this moment for just a little longer.

“I can’t Princess. I can’t.” Stubborn ass, she thought to herself.

“Come with me.” She had one last idea up her sleeve to convince him, dragging him to the elevator, she kept their hands laced together as she pulled him to their room.

“I’ve got to give myself credit, this is my most elaborate hallucination yet.”

“Jacob Lucas McKenzie. I am right here, right now, with you. Your wife. Your naked wife. So help me god if you don’t open your eyes to look at me I will go back to Vaanu.” Taylor had in fact stripped down to her red lacy bra and underwear set, she knew it was Jake’s favorite and if this didn’t convince him, nothing would. “Dammit Princess.” Jake opened his eyes and stared. There she was. Still there. In front of him. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He rubbed them and blinked a few times but she was always still there. He was overcome with emotion. He didn’t know if he should cry, kiss her or give into the desire coursing through him.

“I have never wanted anything as badly as I want you right now.”

“Then have me.”

They came together and years of pent up energy came pouring out. Sure they’d wrecked the room the first time, but this was 5 years of pent up sexual energy between newly-wed soulmates, it was a whole new level of destruction before they finally made it to the bed.

As they laid there after, Jake couldn’t stop staring at her, tracing every line of her body.

“I missed you so much Taylor.” He whispered.

“How long was I gone Jake?”

“5 years.” Her heart sank, imagining him alone for 5 years, they could’ve had kids by now.

“I’m sorry Jake, I’m so sorry. I'm never going to leave you again.” He pulled her close and pressed his forehead to hers, their noses gently brushing.

“I wouldn’t survive it if you did Princess. I don’t understand though, how are you back? I would’ve sold my soul if it meant getting you back but I didn’t think it was possible..”

“It’s because of you Jake.” His eyes shot open in confusion. “When we got handfasted, after spending all those timelines together and falling in love every time, a part of me is literally in your heart Jake.”

“I don’t follow.”

“Vaanu wanted me to return so it could be whole, but we’re soulmates Jake. A little shard broke off and resides in you. When we’re together, we’re whole, because we’re whole, so is Vaanu.”

“So you really are back for good? You’re staying forever?”

“Forever top gun.” Tears of joy began to stream down Jake’s face and Taylor wiped them away as Jake wiped hers.

“Good, because it’s going to take a long time to catch up on those five years of married life we missed.” Taylor let out a soft laugh.

“I guess it’s a good thing we don’t have to leave this bed until morning. Now, tell me everything.” Jake laid on his back and Taylor rested her head on his chest, looking up at him as he told her about everything she’d missed.

Finally, I am whole again.

@drakesroyalromance

#jake mckenzie x mc #Jake McKenzie #endless summer #choices endless summer #choices stories you play #playchoices fanfic #endless summer fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #choices fanfiction #reunion #all of me #angsty #fluffly

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lovelylogans · 4 years

Text

spring cleaning

there’s a pack rat in the family. who it is will not surprise you.

part of the wyliwf verse.

warnings: food mentions, alcohol mentions, general messiness, jokes about hoarding

pairings: patton/virgil, offscreen logan/roman

word count: 2,412

notes: hi! this is just a quick little fic as i beta and finish off the next chapter of debutante. this is based off the gilmore girls season three episode twelve “lorelai out of water” cold open. takes place the spring after the main storyline, after alliance but before debutante.

⁂

virgil’s phone buzzes at 10:13 am on a sunny spring sunday. he pauses just after he drops off the brunch plates for mrs. torres, babette, and east side tilly, digging around in his back pocket to squint at his recent texts.

logan sanders: Please help.

any other time, this kind of text would probably send anxiety flooding his veins like ice water. as he’s been warned, sure, he’s a little anxious that he’s misreading the situation, but he shakes that aside and snorts.

“called it,” he mutters under his breath, before he wipes his hands on his apron and types out christ, you’re folding easy this year. is that a new record?

a brief pause. then, No, the record was twenty-four minutes. To be fair, that took place when I was ten years old, we were moving into the house, and you were already going to be involved, so I perhaps I should propose that does not count against my spring cleaning record.

ah, that’s right. god, helping patton move had kind of been a nightmare. helping anyone move is a bit of a nightmare, but with patton there’s a whole new layer of shenanigans.

Another buzz. Also, I need this to be hastened along. I have a Socratic seminar in English tomorrow, and though we have settled on a tentative truce I refuse to let Dee achieve the highest grade in the class.

he shoots back i’ll be there asap.

“jean,” he calls to the counter, but jean, having been warned as well, waves him off.

“i got it, at least he waited till the we hit the between-masses lull.”

“you’re the best,” he says, hanging up his apron and ignoring mrs. torres’ hoots about his arms—he's like ninety percent sure she’s spiking her own orange juice so she can have a screwdriver with her pancakes but he hasn’t caught her with a flask in hand yet—and heads out the door.

the citizens of sideshire are fully soaking in the pleasure of a sunny spring day—it’s one of those days, where the weather’s warming up slowly, but there’s sure to be more cold snaps before they fully settle into spring, so lots of people are taking advantage of it. families are sprawled with picnic blankets in the grassy town square. the “long-haired freak” (taylor’s nickname, not his. virgil’s pretty sure his name is dave, but also, he’s not totally sure his name is dave, and as such usually avoids any complications by saying “hey, man,” whenever virgil sees him) is out hawking fruits and vegetables from his garden. lots of people are out on walks, some with earbuds or headphones on, some calling out jolly greetings to other people taking advantage of a blue sky and temperatures that are soaring above freezing.

“hey, virgil.”

“hey, felix,” virgil says, craning his neck to catch sight of—well, he guesses felix and riley are technically his tenants? but that always feels weird to say—his neighboring business owners. felix is busy making sure a promotional poster’s taped to the window. “how’re things?”

“ah, y’know, y’know,” felix says, waving their hands around. “weather’s warming up, so we’re getting into busy season. guess people want to be able to flaunt new ink in the warmer weather, y’know?”

“hey, speaking of—” virgil says.

“oh, yeah,” felix says, scratching at the half of their head that was once shaved bald but is now growing in stubbly. “you wanna have riley do one this time? they can draw up some sketches for you, if you want. or i can, if you want, but it might be a minute ‘cause i’m all hands on deck for this massive full-back piece.”

“nah, riley’ll be cool, it’s been a minute since they’ve done one for me,” virgil says. “i’ll drop by later with some reference photos, ideas and stuff.”

“i’ll make sure they’re refreshed on what your style is before the consultation,” felix says. “appreciate the business.”

“appreciate you and your spouse taking over this empty shop so taylor didn’t get a chance to,” virgil returns, as he usually does whenever felix or their riley thanks him for something. he’s really awkward about accepting gratitude, he’s working on that with emile and patton.

“god, could you imagine taylor next door,” felix says with a theatric shudder. “bad enough he runs half the town.”

“i’ll call tomorrow to make the appointment?”

felix flashes him a thumbs up, and virgil raises a hand in farewell as he continues on his way.

he ends up pushing his sleeves up to his elbows as he walks to the sanders’ house, occasionally saying hey to other residents of sideshire, or tilting his face up to the sun.

this winter’s been brutal, even worse than it usually is for the northeast, with absurd amounts of blizzards and ice. on the days where it wasn’t shoveling ridiculous amounts of snow on the whole town, the sky had been gray and overcast, and what little sun there was could barely stream weakly through the clouds.

but now, the sun sinks softly into his exposed skin, warming him without overheating him thanks to the breeze, carrying the sweet scent of tentatively blooming flowers planted by particularly audacious gardeners.

it is a perfect, lovely spring day.

by the time he gets to the cheerful yellow clapboard house, he’s taken enough deep, calming breaths to ensure that he is a calming presence. he ascends the stairs of the wraparound porch—oh, huh, looks like patton or logan’s making an attempt at being a gardener, that looks like mountain mint—and knocks lightly on the front door.

“please come in,” logan shouts, sounding exasperated, and virgil obligingly pushes the door open.

he toes off his shoes, even as he overhears patton’s voice, cajoling.

“hug-a-world! c’mon, you’ve gotta remember your hug-a-world!”

hug-a-world, virgil mouths to himself, before it comes back to him in sudden, vivid technicolor and he rounds the corner.

and, sure enough, surrounded by the detritus of the sanders home, patton and logan sit in a hastily-cleared space in the middle of their living room, patton holding a stuffed ball tight to his chest.

“of course i remember the hug-a-world,” logan says, still with that tone of exasperation, but lessened now at the sight of a beloved childhood toy.

“you can’t make me throw away your hug-a-world,” patton declares viciously, which would almost be believably threatening if he were not clutching a stuffed ball made to look like a globe to his chest, and if his curly hair was not sticking up in a configuration that virgil thinks of as chaotically unruly, and if he were not wearing a pink-and-blue sweater he usually busts out around easter, and if someone did not know patton as a person. “you learned all seven of your continents on hug-a-world!”

see, without fail, almost every year patton gets suckered into the whole concept of the spring clean. and, without fail, logan or virgil will try to point out that he does this every year, and patton insists no, really, this time for sure he’ll get rid of some of the clutter around this house, it’s about time!, and then he gets sidetracked getting attached to objects he finds that he suddenly cannot bear to get rid of, despite the fact that said objects have typically been buried away in a dark closet all the rest of the year.

which means that logan and virgil sit with him and try to point that out, and patton wavers, before he decides to keep or donate or trash it, and it seems like it’s going okay, until the next thing he touches turns out to be another thing that he suddenly cannot bear to give up.

it’s gotten a little better since that time they introduced the marie kondo method, but also, that much worse, because of course he insists that everything sparks joy!

but this is way more mess than usual. there are cardboard boxes and piles of clothes and bits and bobs that are in piles that come up to his ribs. virgil squints it at it suspiciously.

“attic,” logan says wearily, in explanation. “he got boxes out of the attic.”

oh, shit, the attic. god, that thing is stuffed to the brim with boxes, no wonder the living room looks like someone upended the odds-and-ends drawer for a giant into the house.

“but—c’mon,” patton says, in that same sweetly coaxing tone that usually makes them all throw up their hands and leave the rest of this spring cleaning mess for next year’s spring clean. he holds out the hug-a-world to logan. “hold it. marie says so.”

“marie does not realize that she has a special case with my hoarder of a father and therefore should customize the approach of sparks joy, because you have too wide a definition,” logan says, but he reaches out and takes the hug-a-world with both hands anyways.

virgil examines logan holding it, thinking suddenly of a much tinier logan with a gap in his front teeth holding the same toy in the same way, though the fabric had been much more vibrant shades of blue and green then. there had been a solid stretch of time that the hug-a-world had been the toy that logan had hugged falling asleep, back in the poolhouse. he’d taken the hug-a-world to the diner and to school and all around the inn and to the princes’ apartment and back again.

a side of logan’s mouth twitches up, and then, as if suddenly conscious of it, he forces the corners of his mouth to turn down as he stares at it.

“remember?” patton repeats, staring at logan and the hug-a-world fondly. “we used to take turns to squeeze it as tight as we could and then wherever our pinkies would end up, that’s where we were going to go together when you grew up.”

“yes,” logan says, and then loses the fight against his mouth, because it twitches up into a smile again. “many a trip to uzbekistan was planned that way.”

“look!” patton says, pointing and tilting his head. “that’s canada, then, where’d your other one get you?”

logan moves his other pinky in order to squint at the faded fabric. “i believe that’s cambodia. possibly vietnam, i was rather splitting the border.”

“why not both?” patton says pragmatically, or as pragmatically as he can sound planning a potential trip based off hugging a ball.

logan hesitates, holding the ball.

“look,” patton says. “hey, how about virgil helps clean it up, and the hug-a-world can live in your room?”

logan chews at the inside of his lip.

“if it sparks joy,” patton sing-songs.

logan heaves a sigh.

“the hug-a-world will live in my room, then,” he says, before looking to virgil. “we’ve started a pile for you right here,” and pats a pile of what mostly looks like clothes that can be either repaired, repurposed, or sneakily donated.

virgil takes a breath, and says, “i’ll crack open a window and put on some music, then. patton, you take your allergy medicine today?”

patton tilts his head to think about it.

“that’s a no,” virgil says. “i’ll grab it on the way. water, snacks? we’re gonna be here for a while.”

“are we?” logan says doubtfully, twisting to look at him.

“we are finishing spring clean this year!” patton insists. “i mean it this time!”

logan arches his eyebrows at virgil, and virgil mouths play along, and logan sighs before he turns back to the pile, pulling out an old jacket at random.

“i have never seen you wear this. it should be donated.”

“that was from raf, we can’t just toss it!” patton cries out in dismay, and virgil heads for the kitchen.

he fills up three glasses of water, chops up some celery and apples, fills up three mini ramekins with peanut butter, and sets it all on a tray, along with the round white pill that patton takes for his allergies.

he plugs in his phone and scrolls to a roman-made playlist, lowering the volume so that they’ll be able to hear each other, and proceeds to make his meandering way around the piles of Stuff as best he can without knocking anything over.

on his way, he moves to crack open the windows of the living room, allowing the floral-scented air to waft into the messy room, to hear the chirping of the birds under patton and logan’s debating.

he pushes aside a pile of old books on the coffee table and sets the tray down, mostly ignored as logan manages to triumph and tosses the jacket into a box labeled DONATE.

virgil settles down next to his pile, sitting in criss-cross-applesauce, and gosh all of the clutter of patton and logan’s lives looms over them like a mountain at this angle.

“okay,” virgil says encouragingly. “good, that’s good! raf’s old jacket will probably make some other teenager very happy to have it.”

patton sighs, staring after the jacket. “yeah, i guess.”

“this is good,” virgil says stubbornly, before tugging at a piece of fabric sticking out at random and unearthing a blanket.

“oh, i was wondering where that got off to!” patton says, delighted.

“i thought that got lost in the moving shuffle,” virgil agrees, because the last time he saw this he was pretty sure it was tossed over the back of their rented apartment couch.

“so this blanket has not been washed in at least six years,” logan says.

“well, that can be fixed!” patton points out. “i say keep.”

“we’re never going to finish,” logan groans.

“of course we’re gonna finish!” patton says.

“yeah, logan,” virgil says unconvincingly. “listen to your dad.”

patton beams at him, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek; logan rolls his eyes, before he turns his attention to the blanket.

“so, you claim keep for your room,” logan says. “you already have so many blankets.”

“well, we can always use more blankets!” patton points out. “worse comes to worse, we’ll put it in the linen closet.”

logan tilts his head, before he sighs, and places it in a pile of other fabrics that they seem to have decided to keep.

“all right, fine,” he says, then fishes out another piece of fabric. “next item—”

“look how fast we settled that!” patton says brightly.

“pretty fast,” virgil agrees dutifully.

“we’ll totally finish spring clean this year,” patton says confidently.

(they do not finish spring clean this year.)

#my post #text #my fic #my fanfiction #the sideshire files #sideshire files #sanders sides #sanders sides fanfiction #moxiety

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bananaofswifts · 4 years

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For Women's History Month 2021, GRAMMY.com is celebrating some of the women artists nominated at the 2021 GRAMMY Awards show. Today, we honor Taylor Swift, who's currently nominated for six GRAMMYs.

When we met Taylor Swift in 2006, it was immediately apparent that her songwriting approach was like ripping a page out of her diary.

"Just a boy in a Chevy truck/ That had a tendency of gettin' stuck/ On backroads at night/ And I was right there beside him all summer long/ And then the time we woke up to find that summer gone," she lamented in the first verse of her debut single, "Tim McGraw(opens in a new tab)." The way the then-16-year-old Swift could turn personal anecdotes into instantly memorable hooks mirrored the prowess of an industry veteran, appealing to more than just the teenage girls that could relate to a short-lived high school romance.

Now, nearly 15 years later, Swift has introduced another layer of intrigue with a foray into indie folk, unveiling a pair of albums, folklore and evermore, last year. Recorded entirely in isolation after the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, folklore has been widely acclaimed(opens in a new tab) as Swift's best album, touted for its intimate songwriting and cinematic dynamics; evermore has received similarly glowing reviews(opens in a new tab).

folklore was 2020's best-selling album(opens in a new tab) and earned Swift five GRAMMY nominations at the 2021 GRAMMY Awards show, including her fourth Album Of The Year nod. (evermore will be eligible for the 64th GRAMMY Awards in 2022.) As her 10 previous GRAMMY wins suggest, though, this new chapter isn't an abrupt departure for the star—it's a masterful continuation of her evolution as a singer/songwriter.

If there's one thing that Swift has proven throughout her career, it's that she refuses to be put in a box. Her ever-evolving sound took her from country darling to pop phenom to folk's newest raconteur—a transition that, on paper, seems arduous. But for Swift, it was seamless and resulted in perhaps her most defining work yet. And folklore’s radiance relies on three of Swift’s songwriting tools: heartfelt balladeering, autobiographical writing, and character-driven storytelling.

While there was always a crossover element to Swift's pop-leaning country tunes, her transition from country starlet to pop queen began with Red. The album’s lead single, the feisty breakup anthem "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together(opens in a new tab)," was Swift's first release to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 (and, ironically, scoffed "indie records much cooler than mine"). She declared a full pop makeover with 2014's 1989, but the response proved that her bold move was the right one: Along with spawning three more No. 1 hits, the project won Swift her second GRAMMY for Album of the Year.

From there, 2017’s Reputation, a response to media scrutiny, and 2019’s Lover, an often bubbly exploration of all facets of affection, followed. Although they shared similarly grandiose production, Lover featured a handful of poetic ballads, including "The Archer(opens in a new tab)," a self-reflective love song that teased Swift's folk sensibilities through storybook lyrics and ambient textures.

Swift’s ballads are key in understanding the full essence of folklore. They’ve regularly marked standout moments on each of her albums, both thanks to her poignant vulnerability and rich tone. Fearless standout "White Horse" earned Swift two GRAMMYs in 2009; Red's painstaking "All Too Well" was an instant fan favorite; 1989's "This Love" and Reputation's "New Years Day" provided tenderness amid otherwise synth-heavy sounds.

The raw emotion she puts into her downtempo songs comes alive on folklore, introducing a new wave of neo-classical sonics that elevate her fanciful penmanship to an ethereal level. Whether or not Swifties saw a full indie-pop record coming—at least not yet—the shift isn't all that surprising. Folklore’s romanticized lyrics and relatively lo-fi production are arguably what many fans have been patiently waiting on.

Lyrically, the super-personal nature of Swift’s music has always captivated fans and naysayers alike; diehards and critics dissected each of her albums for its real-life subjects and hidden meanings. While she played into those conspiracies at the time—whether she was revealing names in titles like "Hey Stephen(opens in a new tab)" and "Dear John(opens in a new tab)" or scathing the other girl on "Better Than Revenge(opens in a new tab)"—even Swift herself admits that her teenage method had an expiration date.

"There was a point that I got to as a writer who only wrote very diaristic songs that [it] felt unsustainable for my future moving forward," she told Apple Music's(opens in a new tab) Zane Lowe in December of 2020. "It felt like too hot of a microscope ... On my bad days, I would feel like I was loading a cannon of clickbait when that's not what I want for my life."

That realization is what helped make folklore so memorable: Swift stripped away the drama to let her artful storytelling shine. Sure, there are occasional callbacks to personal happenings ("invisible string(opens in a new tab)" references sending her exes baby gifts and "mad woman(opens in a new tab)" alludes to her legal battle with Scott Borchetta and Scooter Braun). Still, she largely shies away from her autobiographical narratives to make way for her imagination.

"I found myself not only writing my own stories, but also writing about or from the perspective of people I've never met, people I've known, or those I wish I hadn't," Swift wrote in a letter to fans(opens in a new tab) on social media the day folklore arrived. "The lines between fantasy and reality blur and the boundaries between truth and fiction become almost indiscernible."

folklore might be her first full project dedicated to creating characters and projecting storylines, but Swift has shown a knack for fantasy from the start. Tracks like "Mary's Song (Oh My My)(opens in a new tab)" on her self-titled debut and "Starlight(opens in a new tab)" on Red saw Swift craft stories for real-life muses ("Mary's Song" was inspired by an old couple who lived next door to Swift in her childhood; "Starlight" was sparked from seeing a picture of Ethel and Bobby Kennedy as teens). Even when songs did pertain to her real life, Swift often had a way of flipping memories into whimsical metaphors, like the clever clap-back to a critic on Speak Now's "Mean(opens in a new tab)" or the rebound relationship in Reputation's "Getaway Car(opens in a new tab)."

To think that we wouldn't have folklore without a pandemic is almost surreal; it's already become such a fundamental piece of Swift’s artistic puzzle. There was no telling what may have come after the glittering "love letter to love itself” that was Lover, but it seems isolation made the singer rethink any plans she may have had.

"I just thought there are no rules anymore because I used to put all these parameters on myself, like, 'How will this song sound in a stadium? How will this song sound on radio?' If you take away all the parameters, what do you make?" she told Paul McCartney in a November (opens in a new tab)Rolling Stone(opens in a new tab) interview(opens in a new tab). "And I guess the answer is folklore."

Even if she hasn’t been making indie music herself, Swift has shown an affinity for the genre over the years through curated digital playlists(opens in a new tab). Those included four songs by The National including "Dark Side of the Gym," which she references on folklore single "betty(opens in a new tab)," and "8 (Circle)" by Bon Iver, Swift's collaborator on folklore's gut-wrenching "exile(opens in a new tab)" as well as evermore’s title track. (“Exile” is one of folklore’s GRAMMY-nominated cuts, up for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.)

The National’s guitarist Aaron Dessner co-wrote nine and produced 11 of folklore's 16 tracks, soundtracking Swift's imaginative tales with sweeping orchestration and delicate piano. Their partnership started with "cardigan(opens in a new tab)," a melancholy take on teenage love(opens in a new tab) that's up for Best Pop Solo Performance and the coveted Song of the Year. The team-up was a dream come true for Swift, a self-proclaimed National superfan and a career highlight for Dessner, who shared in an Instagram post(opens in a new tab) about folklore that he's "rarely been so inspired by someone." He sees the album as a pivotal moment for both Swift's career and pop music.

"Taylor has opened the door for artists to not feel pressure to have 'the bop,'" Dessner shared with (opens in a new tab)Billboard(opens in a new tab) in September. "To make the record that she made, while running against what is programmed in radio at the highest levels of pop music—she has kind of made an anti-pop record. And to have it be one of the most, if not the most, successful commercial releases of the year that throws the playbook out.

"I hope it gives other artists, especially lesser-known or more independent artists, a chance at the mainstream," he continued. "Maybe radio will realize that music doesn't have to sound as pushed as it has. Nobody was trying to design anything to be a hit. Obviously, Taylor has the privilege of already having a very large and dedicated audience, but I do feel like it's having a resonance beyond that."

Swift's other primary folklore collaborator was Jack Antonoff. He has been her right-hand man since they first paired up on 2013's promotional single "Sweeter Than Fiction(opens in a new tab)" (Swift referred to him as "musical family" in her folklore announcement(opens in a new tab)). Even after years of creating stadium-ready pop smashes, Antonoff said in his own folklore Instagram post(opens in a new tab), "I've never heard Taylor sing better in my life / write better."

As Swift recognizes herself, folklore ushered in a new way of thinking for the superstar that not only brings out her best, but sets a promising precedent for what's to come. "What I felt after we put out folklore was, 'Oh wow, people are into this too, this thing that feels really good for my life and my creativity,'" Swift added in her interview with Lowe. "I saw a lane for my future that was a real breakthrough moment of excitement and happiness."

Her enthusiasm is tangible on both folklore and evermore. Dubbed folklore’s sister record, evermore further expands Swift’s newfound mystical atmosphere. Much to the delight of many Swifties, the follow-up also calls back to her country beginnings on tracks like the HAIM-assisted “no body, no crime(opens in a new tab),” as well as her pop expertise on more uptempo cuts like “long story short(opens in a new tab).”

Together, the albums are a momentous reminder that Swift is a singer/songwriter first. Her wordcraft is some of the most alluring of her generation, and that’s never been lost on her music, regardless of the genre she’s exploring. But now that Swift also feels she's at her best, it’s evident folklore was just the beginning of Taylor Swift in her finest form.

#taylor swift #folklore #Grammy #WOW

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bocadelicate · 3 years

Text

The Voice AU

Introduction 1 2 (you are here) 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Summary: Adrien and Marinette audition for The Voice UK.

Author: @bocadelicate

“So you’re saying a whole year after we started making music, your dad wants us to stop now?”

Adrien nodded slowly as he looked at his girlfriend’s face.

“...Why?”

He shrugged. “He thinks that it’s ‘detrimental’ to the brand and my education, or something.”

Marinette snorted. “He can’t be serious, right? If anything, your-”

“Our. ”

“Our careers have only helped the company! How is this negatively affecting him?”

“I really don’t know, he just doesn’t like me being happy.” Adrien sighed before arranging the sheet music. “He did give me an ultimatum though.”

Her eyebrows furrowed. “What is it?”

“Do you know what The Voice is?”

“Ariana Grande was on it, of course I know what it is.”

“He said that if we hypothetically won The Voice in the UK, then we could continue to make music. If not, I have to go back to business school.”

Marinette gasped before grasping his shoulders, shaking him. “Adrien, we have to do this!”

“What do you mean?”

“This is your dream, Adrien. If your father’s trying to take away something you love, you sure as hell know he needs some common sense.”

Adrien chuckled before resting his head on hers, exhaling loudly. “Do you really think we could win?”

Marinette’s eyes softened and she gently turned around, caressing his cheek. “With you? I’m sure we can do anything.”

He smiled before pressing their lips together. “And I feel the same way, Princess.”

“Wait—”

“Yes Mari?”

“You do realize that you’re going to have to sing , right?”

He flopped his hand. “No problem! I can do that.”

Adrien had a big problem.

He hadn’t realized that he’d have to sing. He thought he could play the piano and be okay!

Marinette was a beautiful singer. He couldn’t compare to her, no way in hell.

“There’s no way in hell, but there’s probably a way in heaven!”

He shook as his girlfriend appeared next to him on the piano, a bright smile on her face as she giggled. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough to know that you think you can’t compare-”

“I didn’t lie!”

Marinette groaned, shaking her head. “Adrien, your voice just needs time . You’re so used to only playing the piano and singing subtly on special occasions. You need to..” She gestured with her hands wildly. “.. let the music bring you to a flow, you know? Like with the piano!”

“Okay, I guess it’s worth a shot if we want to win this, right?”

She grinned widely before smacking a kiss onto his cheek. “That’s the spirit! I thought of a song for us to sing for the auditions too!”

“What is it?”

“Everything Has Changed by Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran. Since you’re still in the baby stages of being a singer, it shouldn’t be difficult, but still good enough to get us into the show!”

“I love Taylor Swift!”

Marinette smirked. “More than me?”

“Well-” He laughed at her dramatic pout.”Of course I love you more than her.”

She grinned before patting his shoulder. “Anyways, the song has to be one minute and thirty seconds long, with a verse and chorus, and I know you like Taylor Swift-”

“You chose it for me?” She nodded and Adrien’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Really. What do you think about this verse with the chorus?” Marinette’s eyes crinkled cutely as she squinted, pointing to each part of the paper. “I was thinking we could sing this part together? It’s pretty easy.”

Adrien squinted, rubbing the end of his shirt on his glasses before putting them on again.

'Cause all I know is we said, "Hello"

And your eyes look like comin' home

All I know is a simple name

And everything has changed

All I know is you held the door

You'll be mine and I'll be yours

All I know since yesterday

Is everything has changed

“This song kinda reminds me of us.”

“Yeah. Yeah, it does.” Adrien intertwined their fingers. ”When’s the audition?”

“...Next week?”

For arranging a piece that was originally four minutes long to a small one minute and a half snippet in seven days, they had to admit they did a pretty good job.

Adrien and Marinette had practiced for hours on end, and the end product…

The only word that could really describe the warm feeling in his chest was proud.

“Are you ready?”

He grinned before holding her hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “Whenever you are.”

Marinette lifted the lid of her MacBook, pressing her index finger to the Touch ID Sensor as it unlocked the Audition Room. “What was the username for the artist account again?”

“Adrinette.”

Marinette groaned as he laughed. “You could’ve chose anything-”

“I could’ve.”

“Adrinette?”

“Alya and Nino would be proud.”

She lightly thonked him on the head. “You dork.”

“Your dork.”

“My dork.” Marinette smiled before lightly puckering her lips and he smirked, leaning in as well when all of a sudden..

“Your 10 Second Countdown is beginning now. 10, 9, 8..”

Adrien groaned before quickly adjusting his hair, rolling his chair back to the guitar. They had adjusted their practice room to have an area for them to record their audition, as there was a microphone with a stand for Marinette and a guitar stand for him. It was small, but cute and presentable, and that’s all that mattered to them.

“Your audition starts NOW!” The robotic voice played and they were met with a virtual room, with only them and a camera.

“Hi there,” Marinette said, her straightened hair moving as she spoke. “I’m Marinette, this is my boyfriend Adrien, and we’re from Paris, France!”

“We’ll be singing Everything Has Changed by Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran, so we hope you enjoy it.” Adrien smiled before clicking the Begin Audition button.

It was now or never.

Adrien began strumming his guitar as Marinette vocalized, harmonizing them perfectly.

“I just wanna know you better now..”

“I feel really good about that. I’m not gonna lie.”

“Yeah?” Adrien said, his voice muffled by the mouthful of salad he was chewing. “I feel really good about it too.”

“Do you... Do you think we’ll be in the running for the blinds?”

He put down his fork to rub his thumb against the back of her palm. “Of course I do, Mari. It’s you and me, and no matter what, we’ll get through it together. We always do.”

Marinette chuckled. “Yeah, we do, don't we? It’s us against the world.”

Adrien squinted. “How do you know about that phrase?”

“Well.. you know that one superhero anime thing you told me to watch but I was persistent not to?” She questioned, smirking at his shocked expression

“Don’t tell me you-”

“I may or may not have watched the first two seasons.”

“Mari!” Adrien whined as she giggled, “We should’ve watched it together!”

Marinette grinned. “We should’ve.”

“Can you at least watch seasons 3 and 4 with me?”

Marinette nodded eagerly and walked into his arms, letting him rub her back gently.

He loved her so much, and he was so happy she felt the same way.

It was 2:21 in the morning on a windy September day when Adrien heard an extremely loud swoosh notification.

Adrien groaned before gently turning away from his very comfortable cuddling position and grabbed his phone, raising it to unlock his phone with facial recognition, tapping on the rectangular blue sector to view the email.

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Congratulations!

Dear Adrien Agreste and Marinette Dupain-Cheng,

The casting team has found you suitable to be on the show. Congratulations on being selected to be considered during the Blinds! We have included some information on the London venue.

Adrien dropped his phone on his lap.

There was no way in hell.

He turned to his side and shook his girlfriend carefully. “Mari, we did it.”

“Did what?” she asked groggily.

“We did it. We’re going to be on The Voice. ”

#the voice au #no miraculous au #adrinette #miraculous ladybug #adrien agreste #marinette dupain-cheng #shri writes

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the-demelza-robins · 4 years

Text

american high school!jily (i)

hi! here’s the first chapter of my american high school au! it’s also on ao3 and ffnet!

LILY EVANS DOES NOT THINK OF JAMES POTTER. She does not think of him — loud, funny, arrogant — as she walks to the bus stop each morning (she does, however, regret the fact that she doesn’t have her driver’s license yet). She does not think of him as she gets her textbooks from her locker (she does think of Roger Davies, though). She does not think of him as she moves from classroom to classroom, notebook to notebook, assignment to assignment. She does not think of him as she takes yearbook photos and attends Feminists of Northwood High meetings. She does not think of his eyes (hazel) or his hair (dark brown, almost black, always ruffled does he even try) or his face (a mishmash of features that, admittedly, only he can pull off).

There are, however, plenty of other people — girls, especially — who do think of James. Girls who think of his eyes (captivating, intense) and his hair (perfectly messy) and his face (jawline, glasses). Girls who watch him sit at the best table in the cafeteria with Sirius and Remus and Peter, trading jokes back and forth and smiling easily, and wish, fervently, that they could be pulled into his vortex, into his charisma, into his confidence.

Lily doesn’t look down on these girls — no, that would be borderline misogynistic of her. She just doesn’t understand the appeal, because, to her, James Potter has always seemed a little too sharp around the edges, a disco ball made of jagged glass, to provoke any feelings of fondness or… more. Her impression of him is no doubt colored by Sev, who, despite now being the poster boy for fucking Brietbart, used to tell her things. Used to tell her what James would do, how his friends — “they call themselves the Marauders, Lil, how presumptuous is that” — would take a laugh at his expense. James Potter is smart, the thing is, and observant, and he knew just what to say — just what buttons to push — in order to get Sev where it really hurt.

Whatever. The point is, James Potter is sharp, and Lily doesn’t want to prick her finger.

So, when James walks over to Lily on the first day of October and asks her to go out with him, ignoring the fact that she’s fulfilling her very important duties as yearbook editor-in-chief by taking photos of the soccer team — Roger Davies is the “keeper,” which Lily has learned means goalie, and James is a striker, whatever the hell that means, and Lily thinks it’s unfair that James gets all the glory when Roger is the backbone of the team, but whenever she tries this argument on her friends, they dismiss it on the grounds that she has a not-so-tiny crush on Roger and therefore is biased — Lily says no.

“No?” James repeats, and for a second Lily feels almost bad for him, ruffled hair and eyes blinking at her from behind those glasses of his.

“No,” she affirms. “I’m sorry, but I’m not interested.”

He nods, and twists around to look at Sirius, Remus, and Peter, who are all laughing — at him or at her, Lily can’t be sure, but either way it makes her skin prickle — from the sidelines. “Hey, she said no!”

“Fuck,” Sirius says, his voice carrying in a way he must be aware of. “Sorry, Evans!”

Lily is a little surprised that Sirius knows her name. Surprised, perhaps, because she thinks of him only as Marlene’s fiercest crush, the reason why so much Taylor Swift leaks out of her friend’s aging Toyota. No, Sirius is not a person, not in Lily’s head. The collision of these two worlds — Marlene’s and reality’s — makes her very uncomfortable.

“For what?” Lily yells back, rolling her strained neck (that camera weighs heavier than she remembered — technically taking photos is below her paygrade, but fucking Lucius skimped out again because of a “family emergency” and she has to get them in in time, and besides… a plausible excuse to look at Roger is certainly not something she would ever pass up on.

“Sorry for unleashing James on you, it was a dare,” Sirius shouts, and one of the practicing soccer players tells them to either shut up or go somewhere else. Lily rolls her eyes and makes a decision. She could walk towards them, cross the social line, discover what “unleashing James” means.

She doesn’t. She shrugs and walks away.

“See you around, Evans?” James calls, voice strangely strangled-sounding. She thinks she imagined it.

***

The next time she sees him, he’s probably drunk, holding a red solo cup in his left hand and high fiving Sirius with his right. She watches him from across the room — it’s not intentional, she tells herself, but she does— as he chats with his friends.

“Lily. Lilylilylily,” a drunk Dorcas whines, tugging on Lily’s sleeve like a four year-old.

“What?” Lily asks, recalibrating and facing her friend.

“Mary. It’s Mary. Mary from P.E.”

Following her friend’s gaze, Lily confirms that Mary from P.E. is indeed also in Sirius’s house for this random party, chatting with Romilda Vane, a sophomore a year younger than her. “I see her.”

“Why is she talking to Romilda?” Dorcas asks, way too loud, and Lily drags her friend up the stairs and through the nearest door. The abundance of death metal memorabilia tells her that they’re in Sirius’s bedroom.

“I thought you were done with Mary.”

“I never started with Mary,” Dorcas says petulantly, plopping unceremoniously onto the unmade twin in the corner. “Mary is pretty. Mary is sweet. Why is Mary speaking to Romilda Vane?”

“Maybe Mary likes Romilda Vane,” Lily suggests gently, sitting down on the bed next to Dorcas.

“I thought Mary liked me.”

“I don’t —”

“I think that Romilda should go home. GO HOME, ROMILDA.”

“Don’t shout, someone might hear,” Lily replies, thinking of the cracked-open door.

“Then they can join me in telling Romilda to go home.”

Lily is about to formulate some response to this when the door swings open, and who but James Potter steps in, arm slung around Gretchen Prewett’s waist, hair messier than usual. He’s whispering to the girl, smile tugging at his face, and just as he’s about to lean in, he sees Lily.

Is it just the lighting, or does his face go slightly red? Lily knows hers did. James opens his mouth as if to say something, but nothing comes out.

Gretchen’s eyes shift from Lily to James and back. Lily grabs Dorcas’s hand and pulls her friend past them and down the stairs.

Around a half hour later, James and Gretchen follow.

***

“Evans!”

Lily slams her locker door shut and turns towards the voice. “What do you want, James?”

“Sounds like someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning,” he responds, that annoying, way-too-full-of-himself grin on his face.

“I’m betting you did, considering that your hair looks like that,” Lily shoots back, shouldering her backpack. She has plans to meet Sev, plans involving ice cream, and doesn’t want to be late because James Potter decided he wanted a verbal sparring partner.

James whistles. “Nice one. Listen, Lily…” he pauses, and for a second she sees something like vulnerability on his face. The halls are basically empty now — it is a Friday, after all, and no one lingers if they can help it — and for a second it feels like the air has compressed around her, around them, until the only sounds in the world are James’s intake of breath as he prepares to speak again.

“There’s — my mom has a garden that she’s working on, and I remember you saying that you like flowers, and — well — do you want to garden with me? Sometime?”

“Lil?” The air expands again.

Lily turns, and there’s Sev, standing with his too-long hair and his messenger bag, looking confused and angry and betrayed, most of all.

“Of course it’s Snivellus,” James mutters, and all of the vulnerability is gone, the mask of self-assurance pulled firmly back into place.

A lot has happened in the past five minutes, but those words are the only ones that Lily latches onto. “What do you mean, ‘of course it’s Snivellus’?” she snaps, turning back to face James in full, with all of the fiery self-righteousness only a seventh grader can possess.

James opens his mouth and closes it again, eyes shifting between Lily and Sev. “Of course,” he says, voice cool and measured, “it’s Snivellus. Your guard dog, huh, Evans? See the big bad James Potter and he’ll come running, because God forbid you talk to anyone — hang out with anyone — but him.”

“You’re out of line, James,” Lily says, feeling her cheeks coloring and hoping that Sev won’t notice. “I would never pick flowers with you.”

With that, she turns on her heel, towards Sev, towards ice cream, towards the planned banality of the afternoon.

When freshman year began, things shifted. Sev joined the Alternative Media Club and started spouting shit. People noticed James, and he stopped noticing Lily. Roger moved to their town from Seattle. Life seemed more pressing, more tangible, more present. And that was that.

***

Besides, Lily has other things — other boys — to worry about. She’s had a massive crush on Roger Davies since freshman year, and for good reason: he’s kind. Considerate. Talks to the frosh even though he’s a senior like her and has every reason to ignore them. Has a killer smile, the right height, and broad shoulders. Perfect.

If only — well. She and Roger are perfectly friendly, but she doubts he knows anything about her; she doubts he thinks anything about her. Logically, Lily has known this since freshman year, but, still, she stays within his sightline. She wore makeup tonight, more than usual. She hopes he’ll look up and see her, like the male love interest does in all of Marlene’s favorite movies; hopes he’ll realize that the one he’s been looking for has been right in front of him the entire time.

Lily knows how stupid she’s being. She also knows that, when he does (finally) make eye contact with her (once, but she swears he held it for a second longer than normal), her heart starts to race. So there’s that.

***

James joins yearbook, with means that Sirius, Remus, and Peter join yearbook. Lily was tempted, when they first showed up outside room 304, to tell them to leave — she knows their respect for authority is basically natch, and she needs order if the yearbook is going to be any good this year — but she bites her tongue. James ignores her, anyway, or at least he does until discussion of the theme comes up. Roger and Lily had already settled on Outer Space, and the rest of the staff were on track to agree — that is, until James stands up and makes an impassioned speech in favor of Animals, egged on by Sirius shouting “hear, hear!” every few minutes. Lily shuts it down and sends the so-called Marauders to take photos of the Bible Study club as punishment. James bounds out of the room, camera bouncing against his chest in a way that makes Lily want to tear her hair out because he’s gonna break it.

When the meeting’s over, Roger walks out of the building with her.

“You were good with them,” he says. “James and — the rest.”

“Oh,” Lily says, and she’s definitely blushing now. “Thanks.”

He smiles — an easy grin — and walks towards his car. Marlene honks from hers, and Lily hops in. Later, when Mar drops her off at her house, she has a text from an unknown number.

Potter broke the camera — Roger

Lily knows she should be mad about the camera, but she can’t quite summon the emotion. Instead, something glittering flutters through her.

Roger Davies’ number is now in her phone.

***

James doesn’t have an excuse at the next meeting. He just stares at the floor when Roger asks how the camera broke, and Lily can’t help but notice that it’s unlike James to be quiet. Ever.

She shrugs the thought off; she has work to do. Important work, like getting official pictures of every club, affinity group, and forensics team in her sprawling, one-thousand student high school. Later, walking down a back stairwell and marveling at her luck at being able to get the photos for both the presidents of Cheese Club and the cohort leaders of Girls Who Code in the same fifteen-minute time frame, Lily hears voices. Familiar ones.

“Why didn’t you just tell them?” the first one says. Lily immediately identifies the lazy drawl as Sirius’s.  

“What kind of friend do you think I am, idiot?” James’s voice — sharper, yet friendlier, even as he insults his friend — replies. Lily looks over the banister and sees that the pair is standing on the steps a flight down, (new) cameras around their necks.

“It’s just Peter,” Sirius snorts. “Not a big deal. His dad would’ve paid for it anyway.”

“You know how Roger is with Peter,” James says in a hushed tone that makes Lily lean even further over the bannister. “He’d tear him to pieces. Besides, it’s just a camera. Mom’ll be happy to reimburse the school when she hears why I said I did it.”

“Will she, though? You know how she gave us that whole speech about responsibility and digging our own graves and stuff like that.”

James stiffens slightly, the lines of his jaw and the straight of his back becoming slightly more pronounced as he fiddles with his hands. “I’ll talk to her.”

“But she said —”

“I know what she said, Sirius.”

“But soccer —”

“I’ll figure it out!” James says sharply. After a second, he buries his head in his hands. “Sorry. ‘M really tense. It’ll all work out.”

Sirius stands. “It better.”

Lily’s phone starts to vibrate, and she hurries back up the stairs before she’s discovered, mind reeling.

You know how Roger is with Peter. He’d tear him to pieces.

The Roger she knows — thinks she knows — would never hurt someone, and definitely not over a stupid camera. Right?

***

“I can’t believe — he’s insufferable — the camera —”

“We have insurance,” Lily says, watching Roger pacing the room.

“That we had to fight to get the school to sponsor! Ms. Rodriguez is going to freak the fuck out and… Jesus, Lily, why aren’t you more upset by this?”

“Because it’s not a big deal! We’ll get the new camera and chew James out, and he won’t go it again.”

At this, Roger stops pacing. “No. We need to kick them out.”

“What?”

He puts his hands on a desk between them, leaning in ever so slightly. “Lily. They broke a camera. They’ve cost this school — us — hundreds of dollars. And they’re not even good at yearbook! They only joined because —”

“Because what?” Lily asks, annoyed.

Roger purses his lips. “Not my secret to tell, but it’s so fucking obvious.”

“Then tell me.”

He shakes his head, runs a hand through his hair. “No. Can we at least… put them on probation?”

“Yearbook probation?” Lily says disbelievingly, trying to reconcile this version of Roger with the one in her head, puzzle pieces mashing against each other but not sliding into place. She doesn’t understand why Roger is so upset, but James’ words keep echoing in her head. He’d tear him to pieces. “I didn’t know that existed.”

“You’re right. It’s fine. I’ll email Ms. Rodriguez.”

Lily exhales. “Thank you.”

He shoulders his bag, takes a deep breath. “Okay. I have practice, but I’ll text you once I’ve sent the email.”

Lily knows she should be ecstatic at the promise of more communication with him, but, as she watches him go, she can’t quite summon the excitement. You know how Roger is. No, she doesn’t.

read part two here!

#jilytober #jilytober 2020 #jily #jily fic #my writing #mine #lily evans #james potter #harry potter fanfiction #jily au #james x lily #jily fanfiction #sirius black #marlene mckinnon

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