#it's. pumpkin spice. not by my choice that's just what he gave me

[orcelito]

25 years old and making coffee for the VERY first time

[moxidi-fanarts-and-sketches]

Pumpkin picking

Sooo this is the fic ive been working on!! It's a silly lil huntlow/hexsquad fic that takes place the day before TTT!! Also it's my first fic posted here, so don't be too harsh pls

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"So, are we there yet?"

"Hunter, this is your third time asking", Amity sighed. "However, are we there yet?"

"Yeah, it's right over this hill!" Luz said. "But i wanna do a dramatic reveal, so you have to climb up the hill first, and i'll show you and you all will gasp!"

"Whatever makes you happy", Amity said. She hasn't seen Luz smiling much in the past couple of weeks, but this brought her so much joy, so Amity didn't mind some theatrics.

Luz stood on the top of the hill, covering most of the field beside it with her arms and body. She was wearing a red shirt with some bats, a black denim jacket, a pair of black shorts, her usual white boots and unmatched striped socks. It was pretty warm for Gracefield that autumn, so she took advantage of that. Luz watched her friends line up in front of her and took a good look at them - they all decide to wear halloweeny outfits for the ocasion.

Amity was wearing and orange turtleneck, a black skirt with buttons and black heeless shoes. She tucked her hair back with a headband, Sabrina Spellman-style, and looked determined(and extremely beautiful). Gus stood next to her, and he was practically shaking with excitement. He dressed up in an orange sweatshirt with a pumpkin face drawn on it, a pair of black jeans and black converse shoes. Hunter slightly calmed Gus by putting his hand on his shoulder. Hunter himself was wearing an orange shirt with another white long-sleeved shirt under it, light blue jeans and a pair of red crocks, which looked horrendous, but Luz was happy that Hunter was discovering his fashion sence(even if it's awful). Willow, who was standing beside him, was rocking a long black dress with many layers. She tied her hair into a small ponytail, and, for some reason, her footwear of choice was a pair of yellow rubber boots. Luz perfectly knew the energy that was sparking between Willow and Hunter - these two, for sure, wanted to hold hands, but couldn't bring themselves to do it. Vee was absent - she said something about dishes to wash, but Luz was pretty sure it was her strange secret fear of pumpkins.

"A-a-and, you can look!", Luz put her hands down, and the gang saw a field of pumpkins.

"This is not as exciting as i expected..." Hunter said.

"This is just as exciting as i expected!", Gus yelled.

"Okay, first we need to split! I'm going with Amity and Gus," Luz said with a sly smile. "And Hunter is going with Willow! Okaythatsitthelastonetogettothefieldisaloser!"

After blurting it out, she grabbed Amity's and Gus' hands and ran down the hill. Hunter and Willow rushed after them. They gave up almost immediately and decided to walk slowly and take their time.

The first minutes alone with Willow were awkward. Her eyes were so green, full of confusion and wonder. She had a beautiful smile on her face. All the orange around them highlighted her black dress. All Hunter could think about is how much he wanted to hold her hand. And all he did was trying to stare at pumpkins, not at her.

But then she said:

"Look, this pumpkin looks exactly like our abomination teacher did after we beat their team at flyer derby!"

That just made Hunter burst out laughing and broke the tension.

"Can we not choose this one then? That guy creeped me out. Maybe we should take that one that looks like a coffee cup."

"A cup of pumpkin spice latte!"

"Exactly!"

"I love pumpkin spice," Willow said, hiding her eyes away. "Maybe we should get some someday. Like, um, just the two of us..."

Hunter knew what that meant - Luz watched all those crappy romcoms all the time, and when one character wanted to date another character, this is exactly what they said. This meant a lot.

Willow wanted to date him.

Willow wanted to date him!

This thought filled Hunter's entire mind and heart. His face was so red he was sure it's actually on fire. Panic overtook him, and the best he could do is say:

"Yea...um...i need to go to...wash my flowers and...sorry..."

He walked away, slowly at first, but then just started running.

What was he running from? A girl he really, really likes liked him back... Maybe that actually was the reason. No one's ever looked at him like Willow. No one talked to him like her - like she knew everything about him, and accepted all of him. And that novelty was scary, even though Hunter knew that-

He tripped and fell on his face. Great. Absolutely what he needed right now.

"Oh my titan, dude, you found the best one!"

It was Gus' voice. Hunter turned around and saw Luz, Amity and Gus. The latter was holding the pumpkin Hunter tripped on.

"I totally agree!" Amity said. "It's big, and tough, and just the right color!"

Willow reached the group. "Does anyone want to ask Hunter if he's okay, guys?"

"I'm fine", Hunter replied. He looked at Willow, who was so worried about him, and still cared deeply about him even after he ran from her, and added: "And yes. I'd love to go with you very much."

"Go...Where?" Luz said, confused.

"It's a long story," Hunter said. He stood up. "Let's grap this pumpkin and head home."

Him and Willow were holding hands the entire trip back.

[rosemaidenvixen]

October Slumber Party

Ao3

“Sup Jimbo, you ready to party until dawn?”

“Hey Tobes,” Jim shot him a fanged smile, this late in the year he changed early, as he shut the door behind him “You’d be better believe I am,”

Ever since the disaster that was their first attempted group sleepover last May, one thing or another had gotten in the way of the five of them having a sleepover.

Until now at least.

One weekend in late October the stars had finally aligned for the five of them to get together and they sure as heck weren’t going to waste it.

“I brought the goods,” Toby hollered as he stepped into the kitchen “Oysters,” he slung a mesh bag into the sink “And as much candy as I can physically carry, plus a little something else for an extra spooky activity,” 

“You’re the best Tobes,”

Toby winked and shot him fingerguns “And don’t you forget it,”

Jim rolled up his sleeves and reached into the sink “I’ll shuk the oysters, you mind stirring the big pot on the stove?”

“Is that Chef Jimbo’s famous hot cocoa I smell?” Toby asked while stepping up to the stove.

Now it was Jim’s turn to flash him fingerguns “You know it,”

“I’ll take it from here if you want to focus on the oysters,”

“That’d be great, thanks,”

Toby might be the only other person on earth who both knew Jim’s recipe and Jim trusted enough to finish making it.

Grabbing the ladle, Toby gave the big pot a sniff, eyes flicking to the smaller saucepan simmering on the side as he did “What’s this other pot?”

“Oh, that’s not cocoa, that’s for…me,”

He’d been experimenting with making drinks for himself while he was blue, this particular concoction was one of his favorites, but he really didn’t want to explain to Toby that he was drinking apple cider vinegar mixed with garlic juice…among other things.

“Ah, want me to give it a stir every now and again?”

“Sure, thanks,”

Mercifully Toby didn’t ask questions and just stirred both pots.

Twenty minutes later, just after Jim finished the oysters and just before the cocoa reached perfection, there was another knock on the door.

Jim walked over, and after confirming it was Claire, Darci, and Mary at the door, opened it to let them in “Hey guys, come on in, cocoa’s almost done,”

Mary rushed in right away, making a beeline for the TV “Which movie do you want to watch first; Danger House IV, The Demon Queen, or Inheritance?”

“Danger House IV,” Claire said, stepping in after her “That one’s the goriest so we want to watch it before we get full,”

Mary gave a curt nod of acknowledgement and got to work putting the DVD in while Claire and Darci followed Jim into the kitchen.

“I brought sandwiches,” Darci said, patting the side of the cooler slung under her arm “Fresh from my favorite deli,”

“I brought sausage rolls, dipping sauce, and…” Claire pulled a carton out of her bag with a flourish “Pumpkin spice chai concentrate,”

Jim just stared, jaw gaping open, unable to keep the shock off his face.

“Oh my god,” Toby whispered, his expression one of pure horror “You’re one of them,”

Claire fixed him with a glare while to her side Darci let out a heavily disappointed sigh.

“Sorry guys, I tried to stop her, but once Pumpkin Spice hits the shelves it’s too late,” 

A turn of the head and Clair’s steely stare landed on her “Don’t you start.”

“Oh hey is that pumpkin chai?” Mary stepped into the kitchen “I’ll have some,”

“Well the milk’s in the fridge,” Jim said slowly “But you’ll be enjoying that on your own,”

Claire blew a raspberry at him while Darci and Toby laughed. Mary stared daggers at him, not breaking eye contact as she poured the chai and the milk into a glass measuring cup and popped it in the microwave “Well if you’re all finished judging our beverage choices, the movie’s ready so we can–”

“Actually,” Toby cut in “Before we start with the movies there’s a game I want to try,”

Mary arced an eyebrow “What kind of game?”

Ten minutes later they were all sitting on the floor of the upstairs bathroom holding mugs of chai, cocoa, and Jim’s own concoction. The lights were off, curtains shut tight, and every flat surface dotted with glowing candles, filling the room with eerie light.

“Is that…” Darci sniffed “Lavender?”

“Sorry,” Toby set the lighter aside and took a seat on the floor, completing the circle “All of Nana’s candles are scented,” 

Claire leaned forward, hands clasped around her mug “So tell us about this game,”

“I learned about this online, so how it works is we each take turns telling scary stories, and when we’re done we blow out a candle, and keep going until all the candles are out,”

“That’s it?” Mary said “That doesn’t sound too scary,”

“Well I think it sounds fun,” Jim cut in “Let’s give it a shot,”

“I’m game to,” Claire added “But let’s all agree on no phantom hitchhikers, hook hand killers, or ‘The call’s coming from inside the house’,”

“Agreed,”

“Done,”

“Definitely,”

“Hundred percent,”

“Great, I’ll start,” Claire set down her mug and picked up a candle from the counter.

“A long time ago, in a small village in Mexico there lived a young woman, who’s name was lost to time. She was poor but beautiful. Then one day a rich man came to town and saw her beauty, he wooed her with flattery and promises of riches, and the woman was so swept up she left with him. He took her back to his manor and gave her dresses and fine jewels, and in return she gave him two children, a boy and a girl. And for many years they were happy,”

Claire’s voice dropped, holding the candle directly under her chin, highlighting her face in shadow “Then one day the beautiful lady from Spain came to town. She was well cultured, her family old and wealthy, and as soon as the man saw her he forgot about all of his love for the young woman. He threw her and her children out on the streets, proclaiming he didn’t want a loose woman and her bastards tainting his home,”

Without even meaning to Jim found himself leaning forward.

“The young woman begged and pleaded but the man had his servants chase her and her children off. She ran to the edge of town, where the river ran past the road. Confused, terrified, and desperate; she saw her children as the only thing keeping her and the man apart. So in the depths of her despair, she grabbed each of them by the hand, led them along the path, and when they reached the deepest part of the river threw them in. Watching as they struggled and floundered in the cold water until the current swept them out of sight,”

Another pause, candle flames flicking in the silent room.

“Then the young woman made her way back to town,” Claire picked up again “Trying to seek out the man, only to walk in on his wedding to the lady from Spain. As soon as the man saw her he ordered his servants to throw her out again, chasing her out of town and threatening to beat her within an inch of her life if she ever returned. The young woman found herself standing back by the river, and as she stared down at the rushing water, she was hit by the true horror of what she had done. Letting out a wail of despair, the woman threw herself into the river and drowned,”

Claire clasped the candle with both hands “Legends say that the young woman’s restless spirit wanders the shores of all the rivers of the world, searching for her lost children. And if she sees you, she’ll confuse you for her children and drag you to the bottom of the river, forever trying to reclaim what she’s lost,”

With that Claire blew out her candle, setting the smoking wax stump behind her.

For a few beats there was silence, then a wide smile slowly cracked Darci’s face “Dang girl, when did you become such a good storyteller?”

Claire just shrugged, but gave a small pleased smile “Comes with the acting lessons,”

Jim found himself grinning as well. Sure he’d heard the story of La Llorona before, but something about Claire retelling it in a small candle lit room really upped the spook factor.

“I’ll go next,” Darci grabbed a candle and slid it across the tile until it was directly in front of her “A long time ago there was a man locked up in prison for murdering his wife and kids. He was in there for life, he was never going to be released, but he had a plan to escape,”

Darci flickered her gaze around at each of them and then continued “There was one prisoner who was allowed to go outside, old Ben, the oldest there. Every time a prisoner died, old Ben was tasked with going with the warden to take the horse and cart with their coffin out to the small graveyard. The warden would help him dig the hole and lower the coffin in it. Then the warden would head back and leave old Ben to fill in the hole and make his way back to the prison when he was done. The warden allowed old Ben so much freedom because he was well behaved and too old and frail to try to escape,”

“The murderer made friends with old Ben, and they came up with a plan. The next time there was a death the prisoner would sneak into the coffin. Then old Ben and the warden would take them out to the graveyard. Then once the warden left old Ben would let him out before he finished burying the coffin and the murderer would be home free,”

From the side Jim saw Toby edging closer, transfixed.

“Now all they had left to do was wait for a death. It took almost a year, but finally the prisoner heard the tolling of a church bell that let him know someone died. That night he pretended to be sick, and when the guard let him out of his cell he killed him, snuck into the morgue, and crept inside the coffin. It was uncomfortable being stuffed in their with a corpse, but the murderer consoled himself with knowledge of his imminent escape and settled in to wait,”

Darci’s voice was barely above a whisper but Jim had no issue hearing her in the silent bathroom.

“So he waited. Eventually he felt the coffin being moved and pulled along in a cart. Felt the steady clopping of the horse’s hooves. He had to hold himself back from laughing, his escape was so close. After a short ride the cart came to a stop, and the murderer heard the sound of shovels against dirt just outside the coffin. He could barely contain his excitement, freedom was so close he could taste it. Then when he felt the coffin being moved again he knew that any second now old Ben would open the lid and he’d be free he’d be free,”

“But that didn’t happen,” Darci’s voice abruptly jumped up, making Jim start a bit “What happened was the murderer heard and felt a shovelful of dirt being thrown on top of the coffin. At first he didn’t know what to do, but as more and more shovels of dirt were piled on with no one letting him out the murderer started to panic, screaming and shouting for old Ben to let him out. But if anyone could hear him through the layers of dirt they didn’t reply. Desperate, the prisoner pulled a match out of his pocket and lit it. And stared into the dead, gray face of old Ben smushed into the coffin next to him,”

Darci picked up the candle and blew it out with a near silent puff of breath.

No one said anything, the bathroom full of the reverent silence of bated breaths. Then before anyone could laugh or make a joke or do something to break the tension Toby picked up a candle beside him. 

“My turn,” Toby pulled in a deep breath and then began “A long time ago there was a couple that lived on a farm on the edge of a lake. The wife was a hard worker, but the husband was a lazy bastard who spent all his time drinking and gambling in town, and cheating on his wife like the bastard he was,”

A pause as Toby glanced around at them “But the wife was smart, constantly stashing away money so she could ditch her loser husband one day. Then one day the husband’s girlfriend started whispering in his ear about how he should get rid of his wife and steal her stash of money, then he and the girlfriend could live the high life,”

“So that night the husband waited behind the front door for his wife to come in from working, then when she stepped inside he killed her with a single blow with an ax. He threw her body in an old trunk then rowed out to the deepest part of the lake and threw it in,”

Jim stayed still and quiet, listening with rapt attention, all of them did.

“The next day the girlfriend moved in and they started looking for the wife’s stash but they couldn’t find it. As the days went on the farm started falling into disrepair. The wife might have been a hard worker, but the farmer and the girlfriend were lazyasses, and it wasn’t long until they were almost out of food. So then, two weeks after the murder, the husband’s sitting on the porch watching the sun go down, cursing himself for trading a hard working wife for a lazy girlfriend when he sees something out on the lake,”

Toby’s voice lowered to a whisper “He looked out and saw that it was his wife’s corpse, all bloated and rotting, walking along the surface of the lake towards him. So he’s shaking in fear, but when the wife gets up to him she just laughs,”

“‘Don’t worry I’m not after you’ she says ‘I just want that scarlet woman out of my house, poison her coffee tomorrow morning and get rid of her for me and I’ll even tell you where I hid my money’”

“The farmer of course, is scared shitless, but glad his dead wife isn’t after him, and he really wants that money. So the next morning he comes down and sees that the girlfriend has already made coffee and poured him a cup. The second her back is turned he pours rat poison in her cup and the two of them sit down to eat. After a few minutes the farmer feels a sharp pain in his guts, when he starts clutching stomach the girlfriend starts laughing. Saying that his wife came to her and promised to show her where the money was if she got rid of her cheating bastard husband,”

Jim could see Claire leaning closer as Toby continued the tale, transfixed.

“So the farmer totally freaks and says the wife did the same for him, and that her coffee’s poisoned to, and the girlfriend starts to panic along with him. The two of them are sitting there, freaking out and clutching their stomachs and spitting up blood, when the wife’s corpse walks in the doorway. Still bloated and rotten from being at the bottom of the lake, but this close they could both smell the sickly rot of her decaying flesh,”

“She grins at them and says ‘A deal’s a deal’ then the old trunk the farmer dumped her in slides in behind her, the lid pops open and the lining busts apart, revealing money stuffed inside ‘My money is yours to enjoy for the rest of your lives’ then the last thing the farmer and the girlfriend hear is the wife laughing and laughing,”

Toby blew out his candle and set it aside.

For a moment the four of them just stared at Toby in silence.

“Toby that was…” Mary struggled for words “Wow,”

“Thank you thank you, I pride myself on being a man of many talents,”

“So who–”

From out of nowhere bright light blazed through the room, sending all of them shrieking and scrambling around. Candles were knocked over, wax spilling on the tile, screams bounced in Jim’s ears, elbows prodded him and fingers dug into his shoulders as his heels scrabbled against the floor.

Barbara blinked at them with wide eyes from where she was standing in the door frame, finger still hovering above the light switch.

“I’m sorry kids, I didn’t mean to scare you, but what were you all doing in the bathroom with all the lights off?” she glanced around at all the candles, some spilled and some still burning “....and what are all these candles for?”

“We were…telling scary stories,” Toby spoke up.

Now that the adrenaline was fading Jim could regain his bearings. He could see he had shuffled back nearly all the way to the wall. Claire and Darci were pressed into either side of him, Toby was practically sitting in his lap and Mary was huddled behind him peeking over one of his shoulders.

His mom raised an eyebrow “But what do candles have to do with that?”

“It’s part of it,” Jim said “You tell a story and blow out a candle,”

Jim didn’t have the words to describe the expression his mom was making right now. The only other time he’d seen it on her face was when they’d had a really bad drought one summer and he and Toby had tried to use the slip and slide with mayonnaise.

Barbara made to speak again but then sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose “I’m sorry I interrupted your game, but I just got off a twelve hour shift and I need the bathroom. I'll give you guys five minutes to pick this up. You can leave the wax and I’ll help you clean it tomorrow,”

Toby bobbed his head “Perfectly reasonable, thanks Dr. Lake,”

She gave a nod back in acknowledgement then backed out of the bathroom.

The five of them alone again, Jim turned and peeked over his shoulder “Were you hiding behind me?”

Mary blinked back unashamed “I was watching your back,”

“Sure you were,”

“Well I’ll always protect you,” Toby stretched out languidly in his lap.

Jim grinned down at him “Thanks Tobes, but I do need to get up now,”

The five of them climbed to their feet, blowing out the remaining candles and wiping up the worst of the wax.

Darci set the smoking stump of a lavender candle down “What do you say we wind down with oysters and Danger House IV?”

“Sounds good to me,”

“Let’s do it,”

“I’m game,”

“Let’s go,”

Jim grinned, following the others out of the bathroom “Hey at this point I’m just glad things are going better than our last sleepover,”

They all laughed at that.

[comfy-whumpee]

The First Bird 3

Last part! CN: BBU.

@neuro-whump​, @rosesareviolentlyread​, @whumper-in-training​, @mylifeisonthebookshelf, @pumpkin-spice-whump, @whumpsday, @firewheeesky, @why-not-ask-me-a-better-question

-

Her anger was like a lump in her throat, molten glass, choking and burning. She threw her last shirt into the bag and pulled the drawstrings so hard they cut into her fingers. Incompetent fucking man.

 She stepped out and left the door open behind her. She'd stripped the bed, if only because she knew Bryony would do it otherwise. Ray wouldn't.

 She walked downstairs briskly and was at the front door a moment later. The house around her was taut with silence, as they all watched from the kitchen, the site of her kangaroo court. Ray with his earnest frown, and Bryony with her pursed lips, and poor Dinah, worried and watching and believing everything she was told.

 The indignity of fishing the spare key down from the hook over the door made her throat close in a fist and she couldn't help her mind spitting out curses. Lazy fucking moraliser. Too saintly to do good for people you don't like. Ignorant, egotistical idiot. Shallow arsehole. I was trying to make a fucking difference.

 She got the door unlocked and flung it wide.

 A hand touched the back of her coat, right between her shoulder blades, and she stilled. She turned.

 "You're starting a shelter," Paris told her, sanding in the middle of the hall as if they'd just materialised to answer her silent cry. "You said so."

 "That was the plan," Avis agreed bitterly, grinding out the words.

 Paris drew in a breath, and then said with quiet conviction, "Can I be your rescue?"

Avis hated that her first response was to look past Paris to the kitchen doorway, where Ray was already standing to intervene. Paris knew more than they let on, she was certain.

 "It's your decision completely," she said, even knowing Ray would never risk giving Paris such freedom to make terrible choices. "I won't have anyone else there for a while, and my house is quiet and old."

 Paris glanced over their shoulder and nodded. "I want to go with you."

 "Alright. Do you want to bring anything? You should bring…"

 They already had a bag in their hand. It looked like they'd taken it from the kitchen and packed it before things had even blown up. Seeing her look, they said, "All my things are in it."

 She could get into real trouble for this. But then, what did people have to go on? She'd been breaking the law from the start just by being around all this stolen 'property'.

 "Paris, you'll stay here," Ray said, crossing into the hall. "You can't go over the border, even if it was safe to let you go with a stranger. I know you like Avis, but I need you to look after yourself."

 Paris didn't look at him. Avis decided to follow their lead, and turned to the door.

 "Let her go," Ray said firmly. "It might feel wrong, but you'll be alright. She isn't your owner."

 "Nor are you," Paris said.

 Avis hid her grin, and stepped out into the humid suburban air. Paris followed, their shadow emerging under her feet. They were squinting in the light, but smiling faintly. Sunlight didn't hurt.

 Exposed to the neighbours, Ray was forced to lower his voice. "This isn't safe, Paris. She came and latched onto you immediately. She targeted you. I know you don't see it that way, but please trust me. I can't let you put yourself back into a dangerous situation."

 Paris was looking at the clouds.

 "She gave you special treatment. She found excuses to go into your bedroom or watch you. That isn't normal. She targeted you as soon as she heard you were a--"

 "Thanks, Uncle Ray!" Avis interrupted cheerfully, calling back over her shoulder, smiling brightly at a woman across the road. "See you at Thanksgiving!"

 He didn't follow. He couldn't risk the others. Face drawn with displeasure, he withdrew, closing the door behind him.

 Paris was walking beside her now, bag hanging from one hand, other dropped at their side.

 "Where do you live?" they asked her, looking around as if the house would be right in front of them.

 "We're getting on a plane first," Avis told them. "Or rather, first we're finding out how much money a border guard wants to let you into Canada."

 "Canada is America's France?" they asked, apparently having been told this before.

 "Not even slightly. But they don't have pets there, so you'll just be Paris."

 They stopped suddenly, in the middle of the pavement. Avis turned to see them frowning at their feet.

 She was about to ask if she'd said something wrong when they murmured, "Florence."

 "Florence? That's in--"

 "Italy. I liked it better than Paris." They looked at her and smiled faintly again. Was it a real smile? She couldn't quite tell, but it was different, and she liked it.

 "Okay, Florence," she said, and the name felt right, even to her. "Let's go home."

 -

 Several hundred dollars, an argument at an embassy and a lot of legal finagling later, the newly documented Florence Jacobitz was entitled to remain in the UK indefinitely. Avis had left in search of her son, and returned with a ward.

 During the journey, Florence had been a dream. They were quiet, discreet, and had coped surprisingly well with the exhausting and unclean conditions of travel. Avis hadn't budgeted for the first-class tickets and expensive hotels they were used to, which they explained Sir always got for them.

 Avis had said with tentative sincerity, "I'm sorry we don't have those."

 But Florence, as it turned out, had simply been informing her of a fact. "I don't mind."

 Their arrival at her old farmhouse was another sore point Avis foresaw. Even the shelter, for all its lack, was a modern-ish building and didn't come with a mile hike in any direction. But as with everything else so far, Florence took it in stride, sitting patiently in the car while Avis drove them to the door.

 "There are several bedrooms you can choose from. They all have furniture in. You can change your mind later, too. I'll let you know which room is mine, anywhere else you can go whenever you want. I only lock the doors to outside at night for safety."

 They pulled up. Florence was looking out the window, but they didn't crane their neck to take in the rambling stone exterior or the sash windows. There wasn't even a flicker of interest in the climbing ivy.

 "There's a good-sized town near here," Avis added. "We'll go there whenever you want. There's a small fund we get from a parent charity, that's all for spending on you."

 "I would like nice clothes," they opined.

 "That's a good place to start." They'd been in the same clothes, or same few clothes, for three days. "I'll take you in and turn the hot water on so we can clean up and rest. Later, we'll decide what to have for dinner."

 Florence waited for Avis to unbuckle their seatbelt, and then to open the door for them, which Avis did without comment. Clearly, they hadn't made much progress on their initiative. Not yet.

 She dug her keys out of her rucksack and jiggled the heavy old lock open. The smell of old carpet and encroaching dust greeted them as the door swung wide. She would have to get a regular cleaner, if other people were going to be here.

 Avis stepped into the hall, and Florence followed, leaving the door without any instinct to close it behind them. Avis leaned past them to do it instead.

 In a moment, Florence's back was against the door. Their eyes had focused on her.

 "Sorry," Avis said calmly, “I just wanted to close the door. We can leave it open if you want."

 Florence stayed where they were. Their head was tilted back, neck elongated, chin in the air as if they were about to accept a kiss from someone taller than them. Avis stepped away, watching them hold the position even after she had pulled free of Paris and their personal space.

 "Florence," she said softly, "where are you right now?"

 No motion whatsoever. Avis felt her heart sinking.

 "Take a breath," she tried next. "Just one breath."

 The command made it through. She watched their chest rise just slightly, before it fell again.

 "That's it. Another breath. You're safe."

 They were taking the breath before she finished. She hoped some part of them could hear her other words too, that they weren't just being filtered in terror.

 She kept talking in a low, steady voice. "Keep breathing, nice and deep. I'm not going to touch you. You're in England and you're free."

 She had seen shelter staff do similar affirmations at other times, and could only bargain that they would make a difference.

 Florence's breath moved in and out mechanically. They looked ready to be attacked. The thought made her stomach turn.

 "It's Avis, Florence. Just me. You're in the sheller, the new shelter. Do you remember driving here? We had chips for lunch, British chips. You told me you'd never had them before because they were greasy."

 Their lips moved in a faint mumble. She wouldn't have been able to decipher it if it wasn't an echo of their earlier phrase. "Makes bad skin."

 "That's right. And I asked you if you minded as much as you used to, and you said you didn't. You ate the chips and thought they were okay, but you didn't like the vinegar. Do you remember?"

 There was the slightest tensing of their upper lip, a hint of distaste. They remembered.

 "That's it. You're doing so well. I think I did something that alarmed you, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I surprised you and it got in the way of you being in the present."

 Florence's breathing was stronger now. Their eyes didn't focus, but that was normal. They did straighten, finally moving away from the door. Their head dropped. "I'm sorry," they repeated back to her.

 "That's alright. Later, I would like to know what I did so I can avoid doing it again and making you feel like that. But right now, I want to go through some things that might help you. Do you want more food or some water?"

 They shook their head, a lock of hair draping down their temple, escaping their immaculate updo. A sure sign that they were rattled, despite their lack of expression.

 "Would you like to use the bathroom?"

 They shook their head again.

 "Do you want to sleep or take a rest alone?"

 She knew to add the last word from experience. But Florence declined this too.

 She thought for a moment, at a loss. She wanted to establish something for self-care, now that they were in this new location. An idea occurred to her. "Do you want to go outside?"

 Florence's eyes lifted. They nodded.

 Avis nodded firmly back and led the way through the long living room to the back of the house, where the dining room was lit by glass sliding doors. She wiggled the key in the lock until it took, and slid the left door wide.

 Something about an open door seemed to change Florence's body from heavy weight to light as air. They drifted out as easily as if their feet weren't touching the ground. They didn't go further than the paving stones of the patio, wisely, as it was much colder here than they were used to. But they turned their face to the horizon and soaked up the daylight.

 Avis withdrew to just inside, taking a chair and deciding to unpack the bags then and there on the table. She could stay in the background and wait until she was needed. Like a good parent would.

 It was halfway through the first bag that Florence turned their head to her and said, "Your garden sounds different."

 Avis lifted her head from folding dirty laundry. She didn't know why she was doing that, but it kept her busy. "That makes sense. The animals are different."

 Florence's face was turned in her direction, but it looked like they were contemplating the bricks above the doorway, or the rest of the dining room behind her. "I've seen Europe animals. I didn't get to meet any."

 Avis wondered why that was significant before offering. "You can see some here, and you can help them survive with doing things like a bird feeder."

 "For the squirrel," Florence said sagely but absently.

 Avis laughed. "Not for them, I hope. But we'll see what turns up. We'll have to hang it in a window so we can keep watch without disturbing them."

 Two weeks later, she had the idea to take them to a birdwatching hide.

 -

 Avis still made dinner twice a week, when the cook took the weekend off. There was so much to do around the house, and Florence still didn't show any interest in self-sufficiency, so a few hires took the pressure off - especially the therapist she'd found. But on Saturday, a few months after Florence had arrived, she wanted to have a private dinner for her own reasons.

When Florence was sitting down with her and a bowl of pad Thai, Avis broached the topic. "Someone has got in touch about a rescue from America, like you. They wanted to know if they could send her here. They want her in a small shelter like we have."

Florence ate slowly with small bites, quickly able to reply. "What is she like?"

"I don't know a lot," Avis admitted. "They said she's a Domestic who fled her old home and someone helped her get here where she could be liberated. I told them I have you, but they thought it would be okay."

"If she's nice," Florence said philosophically, "then I don't mind."

And so, a second rescue came to the old farmhouse, delivered by a different faith network than the one who had delivered Florence to Ray.

The new rescue was mute at first, but she and Florence quickly became close, and she started to open up. She appeared to be from the Middle East, in heritage if not directly, but when Avis offered her some chances to narrow it down, she declined. Nevertheless, when Avis helped her find hobbies, she ended up drawn to comics. Then, to a character.

Soon, she had named herself Kamala.

After that came Boo, then Tenten, and finally Roman. Florence stayed. The way they had come was not ideal, and Avis sheltered her regrets carefully, but they were steady even if they didn’t improve.

Eventually, Avis discovered - or rather, Kamala discovered, to her eternal chagrin - that they hadn't ever been tested for glasses.

In the end, the glasses were the key.

 -

 "Avis," Florence said, looking at her directly. It was strange, after over two years, to finally see their eyes meet hers. "I'd like to learn to read now."

Avis decided not to ask questions. She simply nodded. "I'll find you a tutor."

Florence smiled. The smile was different too, these days. "I want to read like Kamala."

Avis decided she could spare one question. "Like her comics or the Quran?"

"…Both," Florence decided after a moment's thought. "And recipe books like Tenten. And music. Mrs Kaur said you can write down music."

"Neeta can teach you that. Do you want someone to help you with the Quran? Kamala has lessons about it." Kamala was also learning, or relearning, but Avis suspected for a different reason.

"Maybe. Not like Pastor Ray's lessons. I want to know about Kamala. And everyone. And stories."

"Then that's what we'll do."

Florence came over and hugged her. Hugs from Florence were rare things. Avis suspected the reason they'd run away wasn't because of their Sir, like they said, but because they couldn't bring themselves to be what they were made for.

"Thank you, Avis." Florence told her. Still in their same dreamy way, but no less sincere.

A lump in her throat, Avis could only pat their hands and nod, until Florence drifted back into the garden.

[sweetscenes]

 It was soon to be extermination, but Millie wasn’t too worried. She’d just do the same thing she did every year, leave Imp City in the Pride Ring and head on home to Wrath, where she’d spend the time hanging out with her folks and siblings. 

 A sound came from her phone, and she picked it up. Looking at the caller ID, getting excited when she saw it was her parents. They rarely called, not liking to use much technology, so when they did it was always a big deal. 

 Answering, she gave no time for them to give a greeting. “Hi Mama, Daddy!” She exclaimed, beginning to walk around the apartment, because who could just sit there while on the phone. 

 “Well if it ain’t my deadly little pumpkin spice, how ya been?” Her dad replied, and Millie was so caught up in the excitement, she didn’t notice his tone of voice. 

 “Oh I’ve been good! Just workin’ at the company and spendin’ time with Mox. A lot of things are happenin’ in Pride. Speaking of Pride, are y’all gonna pick us up at the Hellevator or are we driving?” Millie asked. It was important to arrange these things ahead of time, travel times filled up fast when all the imps and hellborn were leaving Pride to go to one of the other rings. Only a small fraction escaped, the rest had to stay in Pride due to the limited number of spots. 

 “Actually, Mills, that’s what we wanted to talk to you about...” Came her Dad’s tone, and Millie frowned. It sounded downtrodden, and instantly she was worried. Did they want her to come earlier? Did something happen? Were her and Moxxie needed? 

 “Is everythin’ okay Daddy? Was there another firestorm?” Millie asked, not wanting to waste any more time with pleasantries when there could be lives at stake. 

 “Oh no, everythin’ is fine, your mama and I just needed to talk to ya about somethin’” Her dad said, and she could tell he put the phone on speakerphone due to hearing her mom clear her throat. 

 Millie felt relieved, instantly calming down. Although she was still on edge, it wasn’t nearly as bad as before. 

 “Oh, then what’s happenin’?” 

 Millie heard shuffling around at the other end, and then she heard her mom talking. She must have taken over. 

 “Well, your Daddy and I have some... concerns.” She said, and Millie frowned. It was the same tone she often took right before she began critiquing her lifestyle or her choice in husband. 

 Giving an annoyed sigh, she ran a hand through her hair. 

“I already told ya Ma, freelance doesn’t mean workin’ for free and Mox is the love of my life. I thought you were gettin’ along better.” Millie said, not wanting to entertain it any further. 

 “Don’t take that tone with me missy!” Came the sharp rebuke of her mom, like she was a little kid again who was arguing about her bed time. “We’ve got some very real things we need to address, so cool your jets.” 

 Millie, despite being an adult, felt properly chastised. She gave an apology, and listened. 

 “Millie, sweetheart, your thespian type husband is only one decision that we’ve been worried about. It wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t compounded with other things that have concerned us.” Her dad had taken over again, using more compassion than her mom, but still having a business tone to it. 

 Millie felt her blood begin to boil, but she pushed down her frustration to try and calm herself down so she wasn’t scolded again. “What are they? I thought we had everythin’ covered after the Harvest Jamboree?” Millie thought that they had a whole arc and everything. That it was over and done with. Apparently not. 

 “The Harvest Moon Festival opened our eyes. We got to thinkin’ and realized that you’ve been slippin’. You ain’t the girl we raised. We’re worried you’re losing your nerve, pumpkin.” Her dad said, as if that would soften the blow. 

 Millie’s eyes widened, not believing what she was hearing. How dare they say she was losing her touch? She was out there every day killing and maiming. 

 “I’m an assassin, I do more than y’all think. Why can’t y’all accept that?” Millie asked, sounding more hurt than she intended. 

 “If that’s true then why did Striker take ya down like that? He got rid of ya easy. He threatened ya partner and ya boss, and you couldn’t even gut him right! The Millie WE knew and raised would have killed him without breakin’ a sweat. You’ve changed.” Her mama critiqued, and Millie felt her heart begin to race. 

 Was that what this was all about? The Striker thing? He was difficult! She already said he was as slippery as they came. It took two highly skilled people to even get close to defeating him! 

 “We’ve been over this! He was a slippery little thing, no one would have been able to beat him in hand to hand! If I met him again I’d-” 

 “The Millie we raised wouldn’t have moved to Pride at all! She would have stayed in Wrath with her family just down the way, even if she married someone like that! She certainly wouldn’t be working for scraps, at the mercy of some feathered bitch!” Her mom yelled. 

 “Oh yeah? So I’m supposed to just be the same girl I was when I was younger? Is that what y’all would have preferred?” Millie yelled back, not afraid of being shut down this time. 

 “Millie, listen to me sweetie. We love you! We love you just the way you are. But the choices you’ve been makin’ just ain’t right! Frankly, you need to be taught a lesson, little lady. Remember your roots. You’ve been slippin’, there ain’t no other way to say this.” Her dad said, not yelling like her mom but his tone was firm. 

 Millie felt a pit open up in her stomach, knowing whatever was coming wasn’t good. 

 “What do ya want me to do? Have a timeout in my room? Ground me?” Millie asked sarcastically, not willing to show just how scared she was feeling. 

 “No. What you need is a refresher of exactly what and who you are. Which is why...” Her mama hesitated, and Millie held her breath, feeling her heart clench. 

 “You ain’t comin’ to Wrath for extermination. We won’t sponsor any trips to any other rings either. Ya wanted to move to Pride, ya wanted to make ya own choices, you gotta live with them sugarplum.” Her dad said bluntly, and Millie felt her entire world collapse. 

 She struggled to breathe, trying hard to speak. All she could do was let out a strangled, “Why?” 

 “Like we said, ya need a kick in the seat. You’ve gotten complacent, you lost your touch. If you remember all the things we’ve taught ya and returned to how you were before all this Moxxie and freelance things happened, you’ll survive just fine.” 

 Millie began to panic, not only worried for herself, but for Moxxie. How were they gonna survive? Imp City was notoriously shitty when it came to crime and security, it was a hotbed for exterminators and angels. Nobody opened up their safe havens for imps, as far as most sinners were concerned the more imps that were gone, the higher their chances were to survive. 

 “Mama, Daddy, these things ain’t like regular demons! They’re bloodthirsty killers who can take down overlords!” Millie got out, her voice uneven and her eyes brimmed with unshed tears. “Don’t ya love me? I’m gonna die!” Millie yelled, wanting to get the point across. 

 She heard her mother sniff, and her dad’s voice sounded like he was holding back his emotions. “Sweetie pie listen to me and listen good. It’s because we love you we are doin’ this. Once you survive this, you’ll survive anythin’. If you use all those skills you’ve left neglected, you’ll do just fine. We’ll have a big family dinner afterward, okay?” Her dad said, his voice breaking a little. 

 Millie didn’t want to hear it, she didn’t want to hear about how it’s for her own good. How she had this coming. How she was supposed to react. How can she when they knew damn well what they were doing? Millie couldn’t understand, she just couldn’t. How long has this been bubbling? 

 Millie’s tears finally came down, she began sobbing. She tried to control it, but she couldn’t help but let the tears come in thick streams. She felt the betrayal so deep, it made her sore. 

 She heard her family comforting her, but she ignored it. There was silence on the other end while she let it all out, but eventually she got herself to stop. 

 “Mama, Daddy.” Millie said, wiping off her still falling tears with the back of her hand. “I love y’all so much. But if ya can’t put your judgements aside about my choices to stop me from a death sentence, then I guess this is goodbye.” 

 Millie heard them try to reassure her more, but she ended the call. She threw her phone against the wall, hearing the crack. She didn’t really care, and instead sunk to her knees, curling up in a ball. 

 It wasn’t just the extermination that hurt. It was the fact that her parents still couldn’t respect her or her choices. They refused to see her growth, acknowledge she was happy. It broke her heart, that they didn’t seem to care about her. Only the idealized version of her they held. She was abandoned, let out to dry. They threw her into a survive or die situation, just because they thought they knew her better than she knew herself. It wasn’t just enough for her to not be invited home, they wouldn’t even add her name to the list of imps from Pride allowed in the Wrath ring. 

 And that’s where Millie stayed, curled up on the floor. Her tears still flowing as she eventually fell into a sorrow filled, uneasy slumber. 

[kim-poce]

Full House - Music Store

A treat.

WAY WAY IN THE FUTURE, like so much in the future.

Masterlist

CW: pet whump, recovery.

=====

"Are you sure you want to do that yourself?" Eri asked after stopping the car, his heart was tightened with worry, "I can go with you if you want."

Little One was looking down and taking a deep breath after another, opening and closing his hands to calm himself down, "I-I feel like I need to do this myself, you don't need to let me, sorry, I just..."

"It's okay," Eri gave him a smile, unlocking the car doors, "I'll be waiting while working on something," he pointed to his laptop, "so take your time," and be safe.

Little One nodded, taking a last deep breath before getting out of the car, he fixed the scarf covering the collar around his neck while walking into the music store.

There were some people talking a bit too loud, some instruments being played a bit too bad, but it was okay, he knew it would be like that, he just need to choose one and buy it.

"Can I help you?" an employee asked when Little One stared at the violin a bit too long, he forced his eyes up to meet hers, swallowing hard before opening his mouth.

"No, t-thank you," he said, closing and opening his fits again, the employee kept looking at him, and for desperate seconds he thought he had been caught, maybe she know he is a pet, maybe he will be beaten and thrown out, maybe he can't do that alone, maybe he can't do anything alone. Maybe–

"Okay, sir, my name is Carla, call me if you need anything," she said with a smile and walked to the next customer, allowing Little One enough room to breathe, to calm down, to keep going.

When he calmed down again he started to look at the instruments more closely, putting his hand in his pocket to be sure the money Eri gave him was still there.

It didn't take long for him to find what he wanted, he looked around before touching it as if he was doing something bad, he isn't, he had to remind himself of that.

Little One knew that was the right one as soon as he started playing, he took another deep breath, it's okay, just pay and get out, just pay and get out. It's simple, even if he doesn't feel like it is while looking at the queue and at the cashier whom he will have no choice but to talk to.

It'll be okay, he told himself, I can do this, I can, I know- I know I can.

-----

Later that day Eri picked up one of his journals and described the whole time of worry he spent alone in the car, he also described the overwhelming relief when Little One came back, hugging his new violin closer.

He was agitated and closed himself into the car as if running away, but he wasn't, Eri recognized it by now, nothing particular upset him, it was just too much, too fast.

"I'm proud of you," Eri said, and he meant it. For a few minutes, the two of them just sat there, calming down and doing nothing.

Eri made sure to note down how happily Little One smiled after that, showing what he brought, not talking yet, but he didn't need to talk to say that he was how proud of himself too.

There are bad days, he thought with himself, stopping writing when the music started in the next room, but there are good days too.

=====

Taglist: @cupcakes-and-pain, @whump-blog, @wolfeyedwitch, @octopus-reactivated, @sufferfictionalcharacters, @rat-father, @badluck990, @onlybadendings, @inpainandsuffering, @mazeish, @neuro-whump, @freefallingup13, @sideblogformindtrash, @extemporary-username, @jadeocean46910, @thingsthatgo-whump-inthenight, @melancholy-in-the-morning, @mylifeisonthebookshelf, @neverthelass, @pumpkin-spice-whump, @whumpfessional, @sinning-shipping-trash, @batfacedliar-yetagain, @scp-1296, @dont-touch-my-soup, @menkisser, @nicolepascaline, @rose-pinkie

[rikusoma]

This is in no way a hate ask- it's just kinda good to talk about it lol

I think a lot of the times another ship's fandom interacts with bkdks, it's always to be angry at us for "stealing moments" and not only is this confusing, but also??? Stealing how and what moment. But then i realized the moments they're talking about were either moments that went for bkdk or that had a connection to them in some way.

Ex: the kr///bk hand holding at Kamino, they didn't like the way we were talking of Deku and his insecurity over Bakugou taking his hand, or how Kirishima said that out of all the people in the room he was the one suffering the most. They really didn't like that.

(I dislike the kr//bk ship simply because of how some of the shippers are, but also, I understand the appeal of the ship. Please understand that this isn’t an anti kr//bk post, this is more plot and relationship analysis) So, I can kind of understand this, and I sympathize with it. They ship something and they want canon content, not just fics and fanart.

But then they get a crumb of something that makes them happy and then realize the purpose of it was something entirely different, and they see it as taking away the importance of something they latched on to (cause a moment only matters if it specifically furthers a ship, right?). When Kirishima was the one to reach out to Bakugou, it really was a great moment of showing that there was that level of trust and that Kirishima didn't threaten Bakugou's pride. But THE POINT of that moment, confirmed by Hori himself, was to showcase the pain of Deku deciding to pass up the chance to reach out to Bakugou himself, because at that point, either Bakugou wouldn't accept it (which would put him in more danger) or he would but it would push him even further away cause of his hurt pride. And chances are it would've been the first.

Deku gave up something his desperately wanted to ensure Bakugou's safety and it's very obvious that it's a painful moment for him. It wasn't a kr//bk moment like it seemed to have been at first and that kind of baiting is bound to make some people upset, and their feelings are valid. But they need to deal with those feelings and accept that their ship just doesn't have any chance at being canon. And that's ok! Your ship doesn't need to have canon evidence to be a valid one, even crackships deserve respect.

It just gets me when these people who ship something that has absolutely no canon evidence turn around on bkdk shippers and tell us we shouldn't ship it cause it's not gonna happen, as if kr//bk has any chance at all. And for some reason, some of them think jumping onto the post of another ship to try and debunk it is somehow going to give them the content and ending they want, as if the shippers who scream the loudest are heard by the author (Hori has been setting up bkdk since chapter 1, episode 1, literally the beginning. Bkdk wasn't a choice he made later cause he saw that people were shipping them and wanted to pander, and I reeeeeally need some people to get that through their heads.).

Shippers need to learn to respect other ships in general. I really don't want to make this any longer, but it makes me think of how this how ship war parallels the pumpkin spice latte discourse XD if you want to hear my thoughts on that, just let me know.

[chelleztjs18]

Lost in Assistance - Ch. 3

Elizabeth Olsen x Fem!Reader

GIF: I do not own this GIF. Found it on gifimage.net

Summary: Y/n is a professional celebrity's personal assistant in Hollywood got hired with two years contract to be the assistant of the famous and talented Elizabeth Olsen / Lizzie by her manager. Both Y/n and Lizzie hate each other since day one, and they have mutual friend. One is as stubborn as the other, will Y/n stay when Lizzie gives attitudes and tries her best to make her quit before the contract ends?

Warning: fluff, angst, smut (in future chapters), swearing words ( +18 only)

All chapters

It's the day before the meeting between Y/n, Mitchel with Jane Vernon and Lizzie. Lizzie has to come by to her manager's office. She's wondering why can't they just discuss it through the phone but it's her day off anyway so she doesn't mind having a quick meeting that she actually already has an idea what this meeting is about. After she parked her car at her special spot that's not easily found or noticeable by the paparazzi, she got into the elevator and went up to floor 48 where Jane's office is.

"Good morning Miss Olsen. Mrs. Vernon is in her office room. She's having a video conference but she said you can just go in and wait inside. Can I get you something to drink?" Jane’s assistant greeted her and his hand gestures gave Lizzie a sign to go in.

"Hi Aaron, yeah I have a quick meeting with Jane. I'll have a pumpkin spice latte from the coffee shop in the lobby please.Thanks." She smiled and went into the office room.

Lizzie walked in right on time as Jane just got done from the video conference.

"Lizzie! Good morning sweety! Thank you for coming by." The brown haired lady in her late 30's stood up and came to Lizzie to give her a hug. "Hi Jane. Morning. Yeah no problem." Lizzie answered as she hugged her back then both of them had a seat facing each other separated by a big mahogany colored office desk. Lizzie slid her sunglasses up and rested it on her head and put her purse aside on the other chair.

"So the reason I asked you to come here is to discuss getting you a personal assistant." Jane started the conversation but Lizzie pinched the bridge of her nose since she already knew this was the reason for the meeting.

"It was my mom wasn't it that asked you to talk to me again about this? I thought I already told you that I don't need one. I'm already comfortable with you. We work well together. You know me very well, and I know how you work too." Lizzie tries to explain her point again.

"Well, it wasn't really all your mom behind this meeting, I thought I needed to talk with you again in person about this. I love the way we work together too. I love to manage everything for you. I totally understand your point but.." 

A knock on the door interferes with the conversation. It's Aaron. "Excuse me, sorry but here's your coffee Miss Olsen, also your mom is here. She said she has an appointment with Mrs Vernon to join the meeting." Lizzie right away turns her head around in confusion and sees Jarnett come in. "Mom? What are you doing here?" Despite her confusion with why Jarnett is here, she still stands up to give her mom a hug.

"Hi honey, oh I'm just here to talk with you and Jane more about the personal assistant." Jarnett answered as she took a seat as soon as Lizzie moved her purse onto her lap from the other chair. "Mom, Jane, I already told you both I don't think I need one. I'm not comfortable adjusting with new people when we can actually solve the problem in different ways." Lizzie said with a little firm tone. 

"Liz, I understand but with your upcoming filmings for different movies in a row in the next few years and that means there'll be a lot more press, interviews, comic cons, shows and a lot more other stuff. It means I will be way busier than I am now with all the major stuff. If you have another personal assistant, all of your other minor needs and stuff will be handled, she can probably even help me so everything will go smoother and easier for you, for all of us." Jane explained her point enthusiastically that can be seen from her hand movements when she was talking. 

"Jane is right Liz. I mainly care about you getting everything you need when you are busy and help you manage/prepare the other minor things" Said Jarnett, helping Jane to prove her point.

"Let's say we don't get the new assistant, we can adapt it through online or phone. You can let me know way in advance whatever I need to know and vice versa. It's like how we have been doing but we do it way in advance. It's that simple. I meant, I'm an adult now, I can do this." Lizzie replied persistently. "I don't think it will work that way even though it does,it won't last that long." Jane said. 

"I think if you have your assistant that's only focused on you, it will help you. I know you don't feel comfortable and give you anxiety when you have to adapt or deal with new people but can you at least give it a try, hun? Trust me it will make your work and filming easier. At least if it works, this can add acquaintances or even maybe new friends in your circle. We never know until we try. Jane has a good friend who knows a professional assistant. She was even impressed when she briefly saw her resumé." Jarnett tries to persuade her daughter as smoothly as she possibly can , knowing it's the only way to handle her daughter's persistence. Jarnett knows how her daughter can sometimes be very pertinacious. 

"Yes Liz, please give it a try for some time. If it really doesn't work out then we'll go your way. I promise it will be only temporary." Jane pitched her last try to convince Lizzie.

"Wait wait wait! Her? So you guys actually already found someone even though I haven't agreed on anything yet about this matter? Did you hire her already?" Lizzie tilted her head, her eyes squinted and her mouth was slightly opened, making it clear that she is puzzled with what is going on.

"Weeeell, yes but not really. I meant, we will meet her tomorrow to finalize the contract and everything. I arranged your schedule and squeezed it in. I just want you to meet her to break the ice. My good friend who owns a Hollywood personal assistant agency said that she is the best one he got and you will love having her as your assistant. The meeting will take place here at 10 A.M. So, I'll see you tomorrow morning Liz?" 

Lizzie sighed in defeat knowing she won't get away with this. "How can I say no when you guys are ganging up on me like this? Alright, I guess I have no choice. I'll see you tomorrow. I gotta go now. Love you both." She pouted and stood up planning to leave for she has no other reason to stay longer in the meeting today. She gave Jarnett and Jane a hug goodbye.

Little do they know, in her mind, Lizzie is still trying to find a way to get what she wants.

"Hey, what are you up to? I need to talk with you. I need your help to figure out some stuff. Do you have time to meet me?" She texted her best friend as she left the office towards the elevator.

“ Yo, what’s up? Yeah sure. Tomorrow at noon? We can meet up for lunch. Everything okay?” Her best friend’s text popped up at the same time as the elevator’s ding.

“Yeah but not really. You don’t have time to meet me today?” She replied while she is in the elevator that sometimes makes weird machine noises.

“Sorry babe, I’m really drowning with my errands. Have to get a lot done today. I promise I’ll see you tomorrow.” Lizzie groans in irritation after reading the reply. “Okay then. See you tomorrow.” She replied then got into her car. 

She sighed, part of her is upset with the situation and another part of her is having the anxiety to adjust with new people. She is definitely not happy and not looking forward to attending the meeting tomorrow morning.

Ch. 4

[zintranslations]

Kaleidoscope of Death, Ch. 120

Kaleidoscope of Death by Xi Zixu Link to Chinese / Novel Updates

Chapter 120: The Thirteenth Door

Right after the new year, it came about time for Gu Longming to enter his door.

Ruan Nanzhu selected a sixth door hint slip, and on it was a name familiar to all—Minotaur. A monster from ancient Greek mythology with a bull's head and a human's body that guarded a maze.

In the myth, it was a creature of an extremely violent temperament born of a human and a white bull. Shut away in the Labyrinth on the island of Crete, it ate seven pairs of boys and girls each year. Then it was killed by a bastard son of Athens, Theseus. Point was, there wasn't much intel to gain about the door from a hint like this. Only once they went in and encountered the actual situation could they connect it to the hint on the paper slip.

Lin Qiushi also showed this hint to Gu Longming ahead of time. After Gu Longming received it, he expressed his thorough gratitude for Lin Qiushi, and Lin Qiushi too was forthright with a vaccination—he said that in this door, he could not be responsible for Gu Longming's life, and Gu Longming ought to prepare himself accordingly.

Gu Longming agreed to every stipulation, and said he had already prepared himself for never coming out.

Their time of entry was roughly the tenth of the lunar new year, when celebrations were trailing off, leisurely vacations were coming to an end, and everybody grew busy again.

Lin Qiushi readied everything and began to wait for the door.

The tenth quickly came. It was a bright, sunny afternoon, and few people were in the mansion. There was only Lin Qiushi sitting in the living room eating Lu Yanxue's freshly cooked pumpkin seeds. Lu Yanxue's culinary skills were, as usual, the best; the pumpkin seeds she fried up were flavored with the five spices and fragrant as all hell. Lin Qiushi could pass an entire afternoon with just a handful of the stuff.

Ruan Nanzhu had already gotten changed and was waiting upstairs. Lin Qiushi saw that it was about time, and so hoisted his hefty backpack and headed upstairs to go look for him.

Due to their last door, Lin Qiushi intentionally stuffed his bag with a great number of food items. Daily necessities from outside could be brought inside, but weapons that were more against the spirit of the doors were not. Guns and other firearms, for example, could not be brought inside.

Once you'd entered the doors, of course, there might exist some special limitations, like in the sanitarium door when the NPC told them the rule where they could not eat food brought in from the outside. The reality was that these kinds of limitations were rare, but all Lin Qiushi wanted to achieve was the principle of Better Safe Than Sorry. At any rate, the condition from the tenth door where they had to open a chest if they wanted to eat had left quite the shadow on his psyche.

Lin Qiushi entered Ruan Nanzhu's bedroom and sat with him on the bed for a while. Then he felt the atmosphere around him change. It took only the time of a blink for Ruan Nanzhu, who had been sitting right beside him, to disappear without a trace. Lin Qiushi pushed open the bedroom door in front of him and saw that what had originally been the hallway was now a series of twelve black metal doors. What a familiar sight.

He walked to the sixth door and gave it a tug. The next moment, Lin Qiushi was sucked in by an immense force. The scenery around him was also altering dramatically, and by the time he opened his eyes again, he could feel a faint rocking beneath his feet.

Lin Qiushi took a closer look, and discovered that he'd appeared on a large old ship. It was just about sunset, and there were black clouds frighteningly low in the sky, as if they were going to smother the horizon at any moment. Inky seawater tossed before him, blown into violent waves by the winds.

Lin Qiushi smelled the gamy salt of the ocean, and because of the excessive waves, the ancient deck beneath his feet was ceaseless in its swaying. He saw that on the floorboards, there were seaweed-clung creatures clutching at the wood, making for an immensely uncomfortable sight.

Lin Qiushi took a few steps forward and saw in the ship cabin a dim-glowing light. He followed the corridor to the interior, and heard miserable wailing coming from inside.

"Uwaaaa, why am I here? What the hell did you all do to me?!" It had been a while since he last heard these cries of a newbie—Lin Qiushi was actually a bit surprised. He spotted the crying person immediately. It was a young woman, wiping at her tears with her hands. "You goddamn perverts, you guys must have kidnapped me. I'm going to call the cops and have you all arrested!!"

Most people were listening to her sob in silence. Newbies, after all, only ever reacted in so many ways: most cried; some tried to run; and some, of the truly psychologically frail sort, came in and pretty much had an immediate meltdown.

Lin Qiushi stood where he was. He noticed that around this girl were a few people who didn't look so good, who also seemed in various degrees of panic. They clearly weren't prepared to enter a door, and were likely newbies like the girl. But at least they weren't wailing endlessly like the young woman, and were still calm in comparison.

Lin Qiushi's gaze searched through the crowd and very quickly found its target—a woman seated in a corner and smiling at him.

The woman wore a long dress—the same outfit Ruan Nanzhu wore before they came in.

Lin Qiushi had the script in his head, and he took his time approaching the woman and holding out his hand: "Yu Linlin."

"Zhu Meng." The woman took his hand and smiled. "The red thread of destiny found us inside this door, let's cherish this meeting."

Lin Qiushi couldn't help but laugh.

"Indeed. Let's cherish this meeting."

Really, this little drama queen of his—putting on a show even when there was no stage to be had.

Just as the two were talking, a young man came tumbling in through the door. Though his face was unfamiliar, his clothes told Lin Qiushi his identity—it was Gu Longming, who'd agreed to meet with Lin Qiushi over the internet.

Gu Longming was entirely soaked. Once he came in he began to curse under his breath: "fuckers, throwing me on a lifeboat—why don't you just throw me into the ocean huh? Goddamn jealous of my beauty or what—"

Though he kept his voice down, Lin Qiushi's hearing was superb, and so could easily hear all the crap he was spewing. For a moment, Lin Qiushi himself didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Of course, he didn't laugh. He only cleared his throat once and covered his mouth with his hand, swallowing down the urge to smile. Gu Longming's eyes lapped the gathered people and very quickly fell upon Lin Qiushi and Ruan Nanzhu. He came over with a bright grin, greeting the two as if they'd just met completely by coincidence.

As a matter of act, this little trick where they faked a chance encounter was only useful for the earlier doors. Once in the later doors, that old fox-spirit manifested in everyone, and not having a partner actually made you the odd one out.

As for whether or not somebody would identify them as part of the same crew, Lin Qiushi used to worry about that. Now though, not so much.

The cabin of the old ship wasn't big, nor was it bright. The only lighting equipment was a handful of tiny kerosene lamps overhead, flickering periodically with the sway of the ship.

The sky grew darker outside, and the number of people kept increasing. Finally, it stopped at the count of fourteen.

Everybody assessed their surroundings as they met up with their own teammates. The crowd seemed to be very quickly divided up into teams, with the handful of newbies left out. Without much choice, they had to make up their own team.

Just as the crowd grew noisy with discussion, a middle-aged man came in from the outside. His get-up looked a bit like a medieval pirate, and he carried a swaying kerosene lamp in his hand.

"Welcome to the Black Skerry," the man spoke. His voice sounded quite raspy, like the effects of long-term drinking or smoking had brought about irreversible damage to his throat. "I hope you all have a good time here."

After he finished saying this, he laughed like a maniac, and his high-pitched laughter, like fingernails scoring a chalkboard, sent goosebumps rising along the skin.

"In ten days, the Black Skerry will reach harbor," the man said. "Our voyage will end then, so please enjoy our wonderful time together."

Just as he finished speaking, somebody rushed out of the cabin. Lin Qiushi first thought that this person had gotten scared, but not long after, there came from outside the sound of violent vomiting—it seemed that some unlucky bastard was seasick.

"Where in the world are we?" The sobbing young girl had also been scared by the man before her, and she spoke: "are we filming a show? I'm really, really scared, can I please quit? I don't want to play anymore, I'm begging you…"

The man completely ignored her. He merely went on watching the crowd with a cool gaze.

The girl seemed to want to go up and take hold of him, but when she got to his side she suddenly stopped, face draining of all color. She then backed up a few steps, as if she'd seen something truly terrifying.

Lin Qiushi's eyesight wasn't as good as Ruan Nanzhu's, and due to the dim lights he didn't see a thing. It was Ruan Nanzhu who quietly explained the situation to him:

"That person's covered in some sort of black insect."

Gu Longming shivered.

"Is he dead or alive then?"

"I don't know," Ruan Nanzhu said. "Doesn't look too good either way."

Under typical circumstances, only the NPC who provided them with the key information was somewhat normal. If even that NPC wasn't normal, then there really weren't any normal people to speak of.

Lin Qiushi hadn't imagined that their door this time would be an ancient ship. And by the looks of things, the time limit was ten days.

"Come along, I'll take to to where you'll sleep," the man said. "It'll be dark soon…and it'll rain."

After this, he began that manic laugh again, and the group was even more disturbed.

The man brought them to the guest cabins and began divvying up the rooms.

Most of the rooms here were doubles, with a rare triple here and there. At first, Lin Qiushi was assigned a double, but Gu Longming brazenly went and found a man to switch room numbers with, strong-arming them into a triple.

"You'll bargain for even this sort of thing?" Lin Qiushi shot Gu Longming a look of admiration.

"Well I'm scared of dying, aren't I…" Gu Longming said. He didn't want to sleep alone, and though it wasn't quite right to be a third wheel, being a third wheel was much better than being dead.

Ruan Nanzhu’s smile was inscrutable.

"That's fair."

They'd planned to inspect the entire ship, but because the night was already so dark, moving about outside would be too dangerous. They would rest first, and wait until tomorrow to make plans.

And so the three got their key and went to their room, getting into bed after quickly washing up.

When Ruan Nanzhu went to change, Gu Longming took the opportunity to poke at Lin Qiushi, whispering, "yo, not cool man, how come you didn't tell me you had such a pretty girlfriend?"

Lin Qiushi answered a vague: "…mh."

"Oh she's stunning," Gu Longming said with a sigh. "If I had a girlfriend like that I'd want to stick around her every day too."

As he spoke, he looked to Lin Qiushi with an expression that was both envy and admiration.

Lin Qiushi watched him back and wondered how he would react if he knew Ruan Nanzhu was drag queen. Of course, it wasn't something he could tell Gu Longming now. Gu Longming was not yet part of Obsidian, and the fact that Ruan Nanzhu wore drag was Obsidian's biggest most vital secret…

After Ruan Nanzhu got changed, he came back inside.

"What are you two talking about?"

"Nothing," Lin Qiushi answered in brief. "He said you were pretty."

Ruan Nanzhu replied with a meaningful oh.

Gu Longming: "…" Why did a chill suddenly go down his back?

The beds on the ship all emanated a damp smell—very uncomfortable for the people lying on top. At this point, the waves and wind were getting bigger, and even the sleeping quarters were beginning to rock. Lin Qiushi remembered that ridiculously seasick, endlessly vomiting pal of theirs from earlier and thought that that guy was pretty much done for.

The sky outside gradually darkened in entirety, leaving only the bellowing winds and the sound of waves beating against each other. With his eyes shut, Lin Qiushi grew drowsy—but before he could fall asleep, he was woken by a sudden crack of thunder. It was like lightning had struck right above their heads. With the loud boom, all three of them awoke in an instant.

After that, it was the pattering pour of rain. The rushing rain and the howling wind—they seemed on the verge of destroying everything.

Their quarters rocked even harder. Lin Qiushi sat up in his bed.

Through the window, he looked to the black evening outside. He saw, however, two illuminated lights. It seemed like the only light sources on deck were kerosene lamps, but how did these lamps stay so bright in the middle of a thunderstorm…? Just as Lin Qiushi wondered this, he suddenly felt that there was something off about those two lights, and Ruan Nanzhu, sitting behind him, spoke up quietly:

"Don't look anymore."

Lin Qiushi, "hm?"

"Those aren't lights," Ruan Nanzhu said. "Those are eyes."

A pair of yellow, inhuman eyes. The owner of the eyes spied through the darkness with malicious intent, as if a beast looking for its prey.

Lin Qiushi instantly looked away, and asked, "what is that thing?"

"I don't know, I can't tell," Ruan Nanzhu said. "The shape is humanoid, but it doesn't seem to be human."

Lin Qiushi's brows lightly furrowed, but by the time he looked out the window once more, the eyes were gone.

Thunder rumbled on and on, and that stench of ocean salt grew thicker and more cloying.

Ruan Nanzhu climbed into Lin Qiushi's bed, and holding each other, the two very quickly returned to sleep. However, the only bachelor present Gu Longming didn't have such luck. Lying beside Lin Qiushi, he stared with plaintive eyes, thinking that in the following days, he'd be fed enough dog food to bloat.

The rainstorm lasted until dawn, and though the rain let up, the weather did not turn any sunnier. Black storm clouds still hovered over the ship, and when the alarm rang, Lin Qiushi actually thought it was not yet morning. He checked the time, however, and saw that it was 8AM. It was just still dark outside.

"Good morning," Ruan Nanzhu greeted Lin Qiushi.

"Good morning. It's so dark outside today."

"It's probably going to keep raining," Ruan Nanzhu said. He walked out onto deck with Lin Qiushi and watched the black waters roil underneath the ship.

Looking up, they couldn't see any land, only the endless swath of sea. Only the old ship beneath their feet felt like any sort of reality.

This sort of isolating environment was easily taxing on the psyche. Even for Lin Qiushi, the scene before them was discomforting.

"Come on, let's go get breakfast," Gu Longming called to the two.

"He's pretty thick-skinned," Ruan Nanzhu commented after hearing Gu Longming's call.

"Yeah," Lin Qiushi said. "His nerves are petty good."

Inside the doors, you didn't have to be too smart, but you definitely had to be brave enough. Before terrifying situations, fright could make a person abandon a large part of their cognitive abilities. The smartest person could lack a strong heart and still do worse inside the door than the obtuse, oblivious Cheng Qianli.

The three went to the dining area and found there an atmosphere that could very well be called lifeless.

Lin Qiushi didn't know why at first. After he saw the menu, however, he couldn't help but also feel a touch of depression.

All the ship offered was fish. And it wasn't even fresh fish—Gu Longming poked at a dead-eyed staring head with his chopsticks and said, "is this thing even edible?"

It was disgusting just to look at.

"It looks gross," Lin Qiushi said. "Try a bit?"

Gu Longming took a bit of meat from the gills and gave it a taste. His expression twisted.

"Fuck, did they deduct the food budget for this door or what? It's disgusting. It's like they’ve had it outside for three days. You try it?"

Lin Qiushi, "oh no, no thank you."

Gu Longming: "…"

The breakfast served in the dining room was, for the most part, stale fish. Aside from that there was only flavorless noddles and peas. The environment had already been vicious enough, but the food in front of them now was salt on top of the wound.

But Lin Qiushi and Ruan Nanzhu didn't care at all. After seeing the inedible breakfast they snuck back to their room and fetched from their bags the food they'd prepared.

Gu Longming watched as they pulled out a bottle of chili sauce, eyes bulging out.

"You guys even brought Lao Gan Ma? Did you come here to picnic?"

"Want some?" Lin Qiushi drizzled the Lao Gan Ma over some noodles they'd brought out of the dining hall.

"Yeah yeah yeah. More please." Gu Longming's expression was shameless.

With breakfast finally done, they got ready to search the ship.

There were a total of three decks in the ship, constructed a bit like the sailing vessels of the great nautical era of the Middle Ages. It was extremely old, was all, covered in the marks and traces of times past.

Beside that NPC, they didn't see any other crew members on deck; there was likely only the one NPC on the entire ship. Wait for the ship's return was the mission the NPC left for them this time, but Lin Qiushi had thorough reason to believe that if they couldn't find the door in ten day's time, this voyage of theirs would cycle back and repeat—and they'd experience the ten days all over again.

When Lin Qiushi climbed onto the second deck, he heard a sort of thumping sound, and was uncertain if Ruan Nanzhu and Gu Longming had heard it as well. So he asked, "did you guys hear that?"

"What?" Gu Longming didn't seem to have heard.

Ruan Nanzhu said, "I think I did, but not very clearly."

"I think it came from the corner…" Lin Qiushi followed the sound forward. "Let's go see."

But before they could get close, Lin Qiushi was hit with a thick, fishy stench. It was disgusting and nauseating to smell; fortunately Cheng Yixie wasn't here, or he might have passed out immediately upon smelling it.

The source of the sound and smell was the same room, and they were close enough now that both Gu Longming and Ruan Nanzhu could hear the thumping noise as well.

The three of them slowed their steps, and through the window, looked into the room.

It was a kitchen with knives and other tools hanging inside. The most eye-catching thing, however, was the dense masses of dead fish hung up on hooks all over the sides.

A person in an apron stood in the center of the room with their back towards them and head down. They were chopping something. After some observation, Gu Longming almost gagged, and said, "don't tell me he's making our breakfast—"

Ruan Nanzhu was very calm.

"It's possible."

Gu Longming did gag. He'd even had a bite of that fish that morning.

Lin Qiushi gave Gu Longming a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

This person in the kitchen, however, was the second living NPC they'd found on the ship.

The three of them stood watching in the kitchen doorway for a while, and saw that besides chopping fish, this person didn't do much of anything else. And so they decided to go see elsewhere first.

Very soon, they discovered a more peculiar room. This room was locked, and curtains were drawn over the window. It was quiet inside, but they could still smell that thick waft of stale fish. Lin Qiushi initially thought the smell had clung to them from the kitchen, but after a careful sniff, found that it was coming from inside the room.

"Do we go in?" Gu Longming was pressed against the window trying to look in, but he could see nothing.

Ruan Nanzhu gave this some thought, before saying, "let's try," and getting out a hairpin to pick the lock.

Watching his adept motions, Gu Longming's eyes widened. Then Gu Longming glanced at Lin Qiushi.

"Is this…is this a basic skillset that y'all come with?"

Lin Qiushi grinned as he joked, "yeah. You have to learn to pick locks if you want to join us."

As he said this, there was a click. Ruan Nanzhu really got the lock open. But oddly enough, after he unlocked the door and gave it a push, he found that though the door lock was undone, there was another lock hanging on the inside. The chain on that lock held the door closed, and they could at most manage a crack—it couldn't be opened at all.

"Wait," Lin Qiushi suddenly said, stopping Ruan Nanzhu from going up and pushing the door. "Stop for a second. There's movement inside."

Ruan Nanzhu halted, and just as he stopped mid-step, a hand, sharp-nailed and covered in scales, reached out of the door. And through that crack in the door, a pair of yellow eyes looked out, peering at the world outside with malicious intent.

Translator’s Note:

The name of the ship could more simply be translated as “Black Reef,” but “Black Skerry” sounds more like a ship name? Let me know if you think otherwise (or know if it’s a specific reference to something).

Lao Gan Ma is a brand of **hot sauce (edited: 7/26), as you can probably tell from context. The original next never uses “hot sauce” though, and just call it Lao Gan Ma in both the prose and the dialogue.

[Ch. 119] | [Ch. 121]

[zevlors-tail]

Hi I feel really bad for sending in an emergency request but bakugou, deku, or kaminari comforting and helping a reader who is going through a major depressive episode with suicidal thoughts. I’m so sorry I feel really bad for asking

A/N: I could not have gotten this at a more convenient time. I just want to say thank you for requesting this, and please don’t be sorry for asking about this. If you want to talk my dms are open, but I hope this helps! This was extremely cathartic for me to write. I only did Bakugou for the moment, but I fully plan on coming back at some point to at least add Denki (and also Deku eventually). Bakugou as a secret comfort character for me? It’s more likely than you think.

TW: Suicidal ideation, suicidal thoughts, suicidal reader, depression. PLEASE DO NOT READ if these things trigger you. It’s extremely descriptive and emotional!

Bakugou Katsuki

“Hey...are you okay?” 

You barely snapped out of your foggy trance as you slowly blinked, your coworker’s face coming into focus eventually as you gathered your surroundings you had long since forgotten about. Your response was immediate, familiar words strung together with little effort after saying them over and over again. No longer did they drag you down and taste like lies in your mouth; now they were just the ghost of a feeling you struggled to remember, an empty shell with hollowed out meaning. 

“Oh, yeah...just tired,” you drawled. And you were.

There weren’t too many days anymore that you didn’t feel drained, didn’t feel like the weight of the world was sitting on your shoulders. You felt heavy- both mentally and physically, like there were weights tethered to your arms and legs. It made you feel utterly exhausted at the end of every day and stole your motivation to get up in the morning. Your bed never seemed more comfortable, and your sheets never seemed so warm. If you had the choice, you would allow yourself to lie there forever, to skip work in favor of sleeping through the whole day, because what good was there in being awake, anyway? Lately it just seemed like everything was a waste.

“Are you sure? You just seem...down.” Your coworker gave you a concerned look, and you thought it ironic that the day you felt you might snap was the day everyone chose to finally ask if you were alright. Maybe she could see it on your face, or maybe you finally looked how you felt inside. Whatever the case, you didn’t care. In fact, you hardly cared about anything; it was hard to care about your life when you felt there was no value to it.

“I’m fine! Just really tired,” you repeated without hesitation.

“Okay, if you’re sure.” She seemed to take the explanation without any further question, shrugging and turning around to get back to what she had been doing before. “Just make sure management doesn’t catch you staring off like that; I think they’re in a bad mood today.”

Logically, you knew you were dealing with depression. Depression was not something new to you; this had happened before, and you had managed to dig yourself out of your own hole each time, but this time was...different. Logic didn’t stop the thoughts rampaging through your mind, didn’t quiet the voices that told you others would be better off without you. You felt like a burden to everyone, a walking problem that caused trouble everywhere you went. Just this morning at work you had dropped something accidentally, and it had spilled all over the floor and under the tables, the mess reaching into the cracks and crevices of the tiles where it would be harder to get to. You had done the best you could to clean it up, but in the end, the janitor had to step in and clean up the mess that you made. Maybe it was just an accident, and maybe you didn’t mean to spill your food, but you couldn’t see past the fact that you were always like this. Always spilling things, always causing problems for others, always inconveniencing everyone you came into contact with. Maybe...it would be better if you had stayed in bed all day instead of coming to work.

Maybe it would be better if you had never woke up in the first place.

...No!

You shook the thought from your head, doing your best to ignore it and focus on something else. Come on, you told yourself, focus on your job. But your mind remained hazy as you continued on with work, and it only served to cause more problems for you. By the end of the day, you had accidentally dropped a couple more items, slipped on some water and fell face first to the ground, and towards the end of your shift, just as you were clocking out, you bumped into an unruly customer who was clearly having none of it today. Hands reached out to shove you away and you stumbled, tripping over your own feet as you tried to get a grip and regain your balance.

“Watch where you’re going, god! Are you blind or something!? Jesus!”

For any other person, it might have just made them upset or angry, but it would have been passed off as a bad day, a bad moment in the grand scheme of things that would go away with time. But for you? For you it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Whatever motivation and will to live you had left, it was gone within the instant, replaced with a numb, empty feeling. What was the point in all of this? If this was life, if you were constantly going to cause problems and get in people’s way, what was your purpose here?

If nothing was enjoyable anymore...you just wanted it to end. It was too late for you anyways; you felt too far gone to be saved. And honestly...what was even left to save? You felt like a shell of your former self.

And that was how you left the store, feet dragging against the ground as you numbly walked to your car to go home. It took you a while to collect yourself, so you sat there for a few minutes in the parking lot, keys stuck in the ignition and hands resting loosely on the steering wheel. Finally, you worked up the will to actually start the car, and then you were on your way home. Home...where you would probably just lie through your teeth again and go lay in bed for the rest of the night.

Bakugou was in the kitchen making dinner when you padded through the foyer and announced your arrival, the smell of spices overwhelming rather than inviting or enticing. But then again, you didn’t have much of an appetite lately, and you found the thought of sleep to be more appealing than the thought of food anyways.

“I’m home.” Your voice was quieter than usual, your tone flat and monotonous. Bakugou didn’t respond for a minute, and you wondered if he had even heard you over the sound of something sizzling in a pan.

“Y/N, that you?” A head poked out from around the corner, red eyes meeting E/C. “How was work?”

“It was work.” You blinked and kicked your shoes off haphazardly, your body already caving in on itself as you made your way to the bedroom. If Bakugou noticed the change from your usual demeanor, he said nothing about it, only going back to what he was doing in the kitchen when you retreated to your sanctuary for the night.

Finally alone with your thoughts, you crawled under the soft sheets with your work clothes still on and curled up, eyes already shutting even before your head hit the pillow. At some point you must have managed to fall asleep, because the next thing you knew you were being shaken awake by Katsuki, a sweet and savory smell drifting through the air. Your stomach rumbled, and though it felt empty, you still didn’t feel like eating emotionally. The only thing you seemed to feel now was a heaviness settling on your soul.

“Y/N, come eat.” Either you were imagining things or Bakugou’s normally gruff voice was more gentle and relaxed as he woke you from your slumber.

You protested with a whine, your face scrunching up in annoyance from being woken up. “Tired...” you mumbled.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. But you haven’t had anything since you came home from work, babe.”

“That was only an hour ago...” you started, your voice still thick from sleep. But as you looked towards your alarm clock on the nightstand next to the bed, you were surprised to find that the little digital numbers read 11:58 pm. You’d slept for a little over five hours since you had arrived home. “Shit-!”

That seemed to do the trick, and you were scrambling up and out of bed in no time, panic and confusion washing over you from your prolonged nap. Had you really slept so long? You hadn’t meant to, but it did feel nice to have a small break from everything you felt when you were awake. And again, you caught yourself wondering if maybe the world would be better off if you never woke up. Eventually the haziness of your dream state faded, leaving you with the same reality you had been facing earlier in the day. You wanted nothing more than to go back to bed and curl up in your state of melancholy, but you were up now, and Katsuki would worry if you didn’t eat anything.

The two of you made your way to the dinning room table where a plate of reheated leftovers sat along with some silver cutlery, a cute little holiday napkin leftover from Halloween resting next to it. You stared at the pumpkin covered paper for a while before picking up your fork and stabbing at whatever dish Bakugou had decided on for dinner. Lately he seemed to be on a vegetable kick, though a healthy dose of fruits and meats were also thrown into the mix for balance. You mindlessly chewed, not really paying attention to the flavor if there was any at all. In fact, it felt like you were chewing cardboard. You didn’t enjoy the taste or feel; you only ate purely out of habit and need to.

“Do you not like it?” Bakugou pulled you from your reverie of thoughts, your head snapping up in his direction when he spoke.

“Huh?”

“The food. You’ve barely touched it in the last ten minutes.”

Ten minutes? Since when had that much time passed? Looking down at your plate, you realized he was correct. Over half of your food remained untouched, bits and pieces of it spread around from your fork and pushed to the side as if it was your least favorite meal. You hadn’t even noticed you were playing with it, and you wondered how long you had been just sitting there scooting food around with a blank look on your face.

“No, it was good.” Liar. You’d hardly been able to taste it. But it wasn’t just food that had lost it’s merit to you, if you really thought about it. The world just didn’t seem as lively; colors seemed washed out and faded, food held no taste, and music just didn’t sound the same. Nothing was enjoyable for you anymore.

“Y/N. You know you can tell me if there’s something going on, right?” Bakugou’s eyes bored into you while you just stared at the brightly colored napkin.

“Yeah, I know!” you chirped back, eyes briefly flickering up to meet his gaze before returning to orange pumpkins.

“Is there anything you want to talk about?” It sounded like a question, but really it was an invite. He knew there was something going on with you. Asking you was his way of giving you room to explain yourself before he decided to pry. Usually he was mindful of any boundaries you might have had, but Katsuki was never a fool, and you tended not to open up easily. Sometimes a little pushing and prodding on his part was necessary.

“Not really? Just work, but it was the usual. I’m just tired.” Even as you tried to pass your unusual behaviors off as a bad day at work and exhaustion, you couldn’t hide the sour note that slipped into your voice along with the visible scowl you made. But the emotions were short lived, and you were back to feeling defeated and down within mere seconds.

“Hey...” You felt compelled to look up at him when he softened his voice even more, but everything in you told you to hold back and keep staring at those damn balls of orange on the napkin. Why, you weren’t sure- maybe it was to keep from crying, or maybe it was to suppress the feelings that were slowly surfacing within you, or maybe it was just because you no longer cared. “Are you alright?”

You visibly winced when he asked. Suddenly everything hurt; everything was a mess, it was all wrong, all of it, and you just wanted it to stop. The pain, the numbness, the thoughts- everything. It felt like you hadn’t been able to catch a break since the day you were born. Day in and day out you lived like that, and no one would ever ask if you were okay. No one took the time to check on you properly; no one seemed to notice when you felt like you were at your worst. Well...no one except Bakugou. He’d been your rock for a long time now, but lately everything had gotten much worse, and you had kept certain things from him so as not to burden him with your troubles. In your eyes, he had enough of his own problems; hero work was already rough on him as it was, so you kept things to yourself so he wouldn’t feel overwhelmed. 

“Why does everyone always ask that when it’s already too late?”

The words tumbled uncontrollably from your mouth as your brows furrowed, a pained look clouding your dull eyes. Bakugou took a moment to process what you said before responding, eyes still locked onto you.

“What does that mean?” He already knew. You could hear it through the apprehensiveness in his voice, see it in the way he gritted his teeth anxiously. “Y/N, what does that mean?”

You glared at the blurry orange shape below you (were you crying...?), refusing to look Katsuki in the eyes. You were afraid of what might happen if you did. “I’m just...a waste of space.” There was a strange conviction to your voice, as if you’d made up your mind about something. Bakugou did not miss this. You, however, did miss the flash of fear in his ruby eyes as you spoke. “I cause problems for everyone I meet. I’m just a giant inconvenience to the world, and everyone would be better off without me. I don’t matter.”

“Y/N.”

“Would anybody even care if I was gone? I mean really, what difference am I making here?”

“Y/N, look at me.”

“It would be better that way. People wouldn’t have to deal with me anymore, and I don’t have to deal with all of...this.” You made some sort of gesture with your hands, your voice cracking as you held back hot tears. “Life. It’s just...it’s so exhausting. I’m so, so tired of having to wake up every day and drag myself out of bed and live. Nothing is fun anymore, and it’s hard just to breathe. I mean, seriously!? Come on, ya know? I didn’t ask for this, I don’t want to live like thi-!” You choked up, silent sobs wracking your shoulders as you buried your faced in your hands. 

Across the table, Bakugou slid from his chair and made his way to you, feet thudding against the floor as he quickly closed the distance and kneeled down to your level. “I knew something was wrong, but...” He gently cupped your face in his hands, palms warm against your tear stained cheeks. “How long have you been feeling like this?”

You struggled to remember when this all started. Minutes turned to hours, hours to days, and days to weeks that blurred into months eventually. Time blended together, and you couldn’t recall the last time you felt able to get up in the morning without feeling like it was a chore. “I don’t know...” you answered honestly.

Bakugou rubbed his thumbs against your face carefully, a soft sigh leaving his lips as he brought you into an embrace against his chest. You didn’t fight it, instead leaning into his touch while crying, and the two of you stayed there for quite some time before Katsuki spoke up about how he was feeling.

“You may think that you don’t make much of a difference here on this earth, but that’s just utter bullshit, Y/N. You make a hell of a big difference to me and everyone else around you, and you would be sorely missed and grieved over. Don’t you dare for one second think that you’re not important or loved, because you are; you are so, so loved.”

“It doesn’t feel that way,” you cried.

“I know, babe. It’s hard to see it right now, I know. Your mind is telling you the opposite. But believe me when I say you are the most loving and caring person I know. You’re always reaching out to others, maybe even a little too much, and you’re always checking on them. You’ve made a world of difference to everyone. Your friends need you, your family needs you, and I need you here. And I would be devastated if anything were to happen to you.” It was hard to believe anything he said. You wanted to, you wanted to so desperately. But you weren’t sure of anything anymore, and the most you could do was cling to him like a koala and hope that what he said was true. “Let me in. Let me be there for you. Trust me, please.” You’d never heard those words from Katsuki before. They sounded odd coming from his mouth, like they didn’t really belong on his tongue. But you listened because it was Bakugou, and you wanted to trust him. You wanted to be able to feel okay, and he’d always been there no matter how much you’d tried to push him away.

“Okay,” you murmured against his chest, your tired eyes drooping shut in exhaustion. Your shoulders followed suit as they slumped downwards, and you gave in and crumbled into his arms. 

“You’re not a waste of space. You’re extremely important to me, and I don’t tell you that enough. Every day when you leave for work, I miss you. I love when you come home and greet me, and I’m a better person because of you. Y/N, you’ve gotten me through shit I didn’t think I was going to make it out of. And you know what? We can do this. We can do it together, and it’s going to take a lot of work, but we will do it. You’re not getting rid of me that easy.” You couldn’t help but to smile at that. “And I know you feel like a burden, but you’re not. Your problems are never a bother. People are here for you, they want to help support you and listen to you. I want to support you. I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere. Everything’s gonna be okay. I love you.” 

You couldn’t stop the fresh tears from falling, quiet hiccups taking over you as you cried into his shirt. “I love you too,” you managed somehow.

Bakugou rubbed a hand over your back, his chin coming to rest on your head as he sighed. “I’m not going to let you give up on yourself, no matter what.”

[revenge-is-dead]

heres a req: please give me something kind and domestic of ur choice. like making dinner or catching up on a favorite tv show or going to the store or

Apper Cider Kisses (Brian/Tim Fluff)

The sun was setting already. The wind grabbing leaves from the trees and brushing them past the closed windows of their shared apartment. The moment was quiet and warm.

Him and Tim had gone to the pumpkin patch with Jay the other day. Getting pumpkins to put out on their small porch. Sharing some fudge and apple cider doughnuts before Tim had found where they had been storing the apple cider at Red Berry Barn. It was a little bit of a drive to get out there, but it was fun.

It was a couple days later now he and Tim were resting on the couch. Watching extreme pumpkin carving and enjoying their warmed apple cider (Tim had nervously tended to it, calling Jay to see if he should add anything to it. Jay had told him to hush and calm down and to put a cinnamon stick in to add some more spice). Leaning his head against his partner's shoulder. Nuzzling it and looking up at him.

“Yes, Bri bear? Do you need anything?” Tim caught him looking. Curse the man for being overly observant, it made it hard to just look and enjoy the presence of his boyfriend with a comment being made.

“I'm just enjoying you Hun.” Smiling up at the man, “I’m so glad you’re here with me.”

“I’m glad I’m here with you as well my love” Tim leaned down, kissing his hair then his forehead before capturing his lips in a sweet apple cider kiss. Brian melting against his boyfriend, hazy and happy with love.

They leaned out of the kiss, pressing their foreheads together. Brian nuzzles Tim’s prominent nose and his cheeks before placing a soft kiss on it.

“So, are you excited for next weekend?” Brian hummed, curling back up against Tim, holding his warm cider cup in his hands. Mindlessly watching TV. Seeing the contestants finishing up their Demonic pumpkin carvings.

“What’s happening next weekend again?” Tim spoke, pulling the thick flannel blanket over. The cool air of the house making their feet cold.

“I was going to have Jay and Jessica come over and help us decorate for the Halloween party we were gonna have” Looking back up at his partner. Seeing his reaction.

“Ah yeah. I remember now, and I am excited. I got some miniature clowns to shove into Jay’s bag when he’s not looking” The shorter man gave a devilish grin, eyes stuck on the tv as Brian gasped. He slapped Tim’s arm lightly.

“He’s been through enough! Don’t scar the poor boy!” He relented to his partner. Him just rolling his eyes and chuckling. Here was Tim, having friends come over to help with his party just to throw in a scare for poor Jay Merrick. “God why do I put up with your antics.” Brian huffed before taking a sip of his drink.

“Because you love me” Another kiss was pressed into his hair. He Just chuckled at that, giving a ‘yeah I guess I do’. This was nice, it was warm and comfortable, safe from the horrors of Alabama. His partner and close friends are just a 10-minute drive from him. He was doing good.

[rosemaidenvixen]

Another Halloween prompt idea:

For the sunshine au, the kids get a sleepover redo (after stupid James crashed their last one) and they spend the night watching horror movies and/or scaring each other

Ao3

“Sup Jimbo, you ready to party until dawn?”

“Hey Tobes,” Jim shot him a fanged smile, this late in the year he changed early, as he shut the door behind him “You’d be better believe I am,”

Ever since the disaster that was their first attempted group sleepover last May, one thing or another had gotten in the way of the five of them having a sleepover.

Until now at least.

One weekend in late October the stars had finally aligned for the five of them to get together and they sure as heck weren’t going to waste it.

“I brought the goods,” Toby hollered as he stepped into the kitchen “Oysters,” he slung a mesh bag into the sink “And as much candy as I can physically carry, plus a little something else for an extra spooky activity,” 

“You’re the best Tobes,”

Toby winked and shot him fingerguns “And don’t you forget it,”

Jim rolled up his sleeves and reached into the sink “I’ll shuk the oysters, you mind stirring the big pot on the stove?”

“Is that Chef Jimbo’s famous hot cocoa I smell?” Toby asked while stepping up to the stove.

Now it was Jim’s turn to flash him fingerguns “You know it,”

“I’ll take it from here if you want to focus on the oysters,”

“That’d be great, thanks,”

Toby might be the only other person on earth who both knew Jim’s recipe and Jim trusted enough to finish making it.

Grabbing the ladle, Toby gave the big pot a sniff, eyes flicking to the smaller saucepan simmering on the side as he did “What’s this other pot?”

“Oh, that’s not cocoa, that’s for…me,”

He’d been experimenting with making drinks for himself while he was blue, this particular concoction was one of his favorites, but he really didn’t want to explain to Toby that he was drinking apple cider vinegar mixed with garlic juice…among other things.

“Ah, want me to give it a stir every now and again?”

“Sure, thanks,”

Mercifully Toby didn’t ask questions and just stirred both pots.

Twenty minutes later, just after Jim finished the oysters and just before the cocoa reached perfection, there was another knock on the door.

Jim walked over, and after confirming it was Claire, Darci, and Mary at the door, opened it to let them in “Hey guys, come on in, cocoa’s almost done,”

Mary rushed in right away, making a beeline for the TV “Which movie do you want to watch first; Danger House IV, The Demon Queen, or Inheritance?”

“Danger House IV,” Claire said, stepping in after her “That one’s the goriest so we want to watch it before we get full,”

Mary gave a curt nod of acknowledgement and got to work putting the DVD in while Claire and Darci followed Jim into the kitchen.

“I brought sandwiches,” Darci said, patting the side of the cooler slung under her arm “Fresh from my favorite deli,”

“I brought sausage rolls, dipping sauce, and…” Claire pulled a carton out of her bag with a flourish “Pumpkin spice chai concentrate,”

Jim just stared, jaw gaping open, unable to keep the shock off his face.

“Oh my god,” Toby whispered, his expression one of pure horror “You’re one of them,”

Claire fixed him with a glare while to her side Darci let out a heavily disappointed sigh.

“Sorry guys, I tried to stop her, but once Pumpkin Spice hits the shelves it’s too late,” 

A turn of the head and Clair’s steely stare landed on her “Don’t you start.”

“Oh hey is that pumpkin chai?” Mary stepped into the kitchen “I’ll have some,”

“Well the milk’s in the fridge,” Jim said slowly “But you’ll be enjoying that on your own,”

Claire blew a raspberry at him while Darci and Toby laughed. Mary stared daggers at him, not breaking eye contact as she poured the chai and the milk into a glass measuring cup and popped it in the microwave “Well if you’re all finished judging our beverage choices, the movie’s ready so we can–”

“Actually,” Toby cut in “Before we start with the movies there’s a game I want to try,”

Mary arced an eyebrow “What kind of game?”

Ten minutes later they were all sitting on the floor of the upstairs bathroom holding mugs of chai, cocoa, and Jim’s own concoction. The lights were off, curtains shut tight, and every flat surface dotted with glowing candles, filling the room with eerie light.

“Is that…” Darci sniffed “Lavender?”

“Sorry,” Toby set the lighter aside and took a seat on the floor, completing the circle “All of Nana’s candles are scented,” 

Claire leaned forward, hands clasped around her mug “So tell us about this game,”

“I learned about this online, so how it works is we each take turns telling scary stories, and when we’re done we blow out a candle, and keep going until all the candles are out,”

“That’s it?” Mary said “That doesn’t sound too scary,”

“Well I think it sounds fun,” Jim cut in “Let’s give it a shot,”

“I’m game to,” Claire added “But let’s all agree on no phantom hitchhikers, hook hand killers, or ‘The call’s coming from inside the house’,”

“Agreed,”

“Done,”

“Definitely,”

“Hundred percent,”

“Great, I’ll start,” Claire set down her mug and picked up a candle from the counter.

“A long time ago, in a small village in Mexico there lived a young woman, who’s name was lost to time. She was poor but beautiful. Then one day a rich man came to town and saw her beauty, he wooed her with flattery and promises of riches, and the woman was so swept up she left with him. He took her back to his manor and gave her dresses and fine jewels, and in return she gave him two children, a boy and a girl. And for many years they were happy,”

Claire’s voice dropped, holding the candle directly under her chin, highlighting her face in shadow “Then one day the beautiful lady from Spain came to town. She was well cultured, her family old and wealthy, and as soon as the man saw her he forgot about all of his love for the young woman. He threw her and her children out on the streets, proclaiming he didn’t want a loose woman and her bastards tainting his home,”

Without even meaning to Jim found himself leaning forward.

“The young woman begged and pleaded but the man had his servants chase her and her children off. She ran to the edge of town, where the river ran past the road. Confused, terrified, and desperate; she saw her children as the only thing keeping her and the man apart. So in the depths of her despair, she grabbed each of them by the hand, led them along the path, and when they reached the deepest part of the river threw them in. Watching as they struggled and floundered in the cold water until the current swept them out of sight,”

Another pause, candle flames flicking in the silent room.

“Then the young woman made her way back to town,” Claire picked up again “Trying to seek out the man, only to walk in on his wedding to the lady from Spain. As soon as the man saw her he ordered his servants to throw her out again, chasing her out of town and threatening to beat her within an inch of her life if she ever returned. The young woman found herself standing back by the river, and as she stared down at the rushing water, she was hit by the true horror of what she had done. Letting out a wail of despair, the woman threw herself into the river and drowned,”

Claire clasped the candle with both hands “Legends say that the young woman’s restless spirit wanders the shores of all the rivers of the world, searching for her lost children. And if she sees you, she’ll confuse you for her children and drag you to the bottom of the river, forever trying to reclaim what she’s lost,”

With that Claire blew out her candle, setting the smoking wax stump behind her.

For a few beats there was silence, then a wide smile slowly cracked Darci’s face “Dang girl, when did you become such a good storyteller?”

Claire just shrugged, but gave a small pleased smile “Comes with the acting lessons,”

Jim found himself grinning as well. Sure he’d heard the story of La Llorona before, but something about Claire retelling it in a small candle lit room really upped the spook factor.

“I’ll go next,” Darci grabbed a candle and slid it across the tile until it was directly in front of her “A long time ago there was a man locked up in prison for murdering his wife and kids. He was in there for life, he was never going to be released, but he had a plan to escape,”

Darci flickered her gaze around at each of them and then continued “There was one prisoner who was allowed to go outside, old Ben, the oldest there. Every time a prisoner died, old Ben was tasked with going with the warden to take the horse and cart with their coffin out to the small graveyard. The warden would help him dig the hole and lower the coffin in it. Then the warden would head back and leave old Ben to fill in the hole and make his way back to the prison when he was done. The warden allowed old Ben so much freedom because he was well behaved and too old and frail to try to escape,”

“The murderer made friends with old Ben, and they came up with a plan. The next time there was a death the prisoner would sneak into the coffin. Then old Ben and the warden would take them out to the graveyard. Then once the warden left old Ben would let him out before he finished burying the coffin and the murderer would be home free,”

From the side Jim saw Toby edging closer, transfixed.

“Now all they had left to do was wait for a death. It took almost a year, but finally the prisoner heard the tolling of a church bell that let him know someone died. That night he pretended to be sick, and when the guard let him out of his cell he killed him, snuck into the morgue, and crept inside the coffin. It was uncomfortable being stuffed in their with a corpse, but the murderer consoled himself with knowledge of his imminent escape and settled in to wait,”

Darci’s voice was barely above a whisper but Jim had no issue hearing her in the silent bathroom.

“So he waited. Eventually he felt the coffin being moved and pulled along in a cart. Felt the steady clopping of the horse’s hooves. He had to hold himself back from laughing, his escape was so close. After a short ride the cart came to a stop, and the murderer heard the sound of shovels against dirt just outside the coffin. He could barely contain his excitement, freedom was so close he could taste it. Then when he felt the coffin being moved again he knew that any second now old Ben would open the lid and he’d be free he’d be free,”

“But that didn’t happen,” Darci’s voice abruptly jumped up, making Jim start a bit “What happened was the murderer heard and felt a shovelful of dirt being thrown on top of the coffin. At first he didn’t know what to do, but as more and more shovels of dirt were piled on with no one letting him out the murderer started to panic, screaming and shouting for old Ben to let him out. But if anyone could hear him through the layers of dirt they didn’t reply. Desperate, the prisoner pulled a match out of his pocket and lit it. And stared into the dead, gray face of old Ben smushed into the coffin next to him,”

Darci picked up the candle and blew it out with a near silent puff of breath.

No one said anything, the bathroom full of the reverent silence of bated breaths. Then before anyone could laugh or make a joke or do something to break the tension Toby picked up a candle beside him. 

“My turn,” Toby pulled in a deep breath and then began “A long time ago there was a couple that lived on a farm on the edge of a lake. The wife was a hard worker, but the husband was a lazy bastard who spent all his time drinking and gambling in town, and cheating on his wife like the bastard he was,”

A pause as Toby glanced around at them “But the wife was smart, constantly stashing away money so she could ditch her loser husband one day. Then one day the husband’s girlfriend started whispering in his ear about how he should get rid of his wife and steal her stash of money, then he and the girlfriend could live the high life,”

“So that night the husband waited behind the front door for his wife to come in from working, then when she stepped inside he killed her with a single blow with an ax. He threw her body in an old trunk then rowed out to the deepest part of the lake and threw it in,”

Jim stayed still and quiet, listening with rapt attention, all of them did.

“The next day the girlfriend moved in and they started looking for the wife’s stash but they couldn’t find it. As the days went on the farm started falling into disrepair. The wife might have been a hard worker, but the farmer and the girlfriend were lazyasses, and it wasn’t long until they were almost out of food. So then, two weeks after the murder, the husband’s sitting on the porch watching the sun go down, cursing himself for trading a hard working wife for a lazy girlfriend when he sees something out on the lake,”

Toby’s voice lowered to a whisper “He looked out and saw that it was his wife’s corpse, all bloated and rotting, walking along the surface of the lake towards him. So he’s shaking in fear, but when the wife gets up to him she just laughs,”

“‘Don’t worry I’m not after you’ she says ‘I just want that scarlet woman out of my house, poison her coffee tomorrow morning and get rid of her for me and I’ll even tell you where I hid my money’”

“The farmer of course, is scared shitless, but glad his dead wife isn’t after him, and he really wants that money. So the next morning he comes down and sees that the girlfriend has already made coffee and poured him a cup. The second her back is turned he pours rat poison in her cup and the two of them sit down to eat. After a few minutes the farmer feels a sharp pain in his guts, when he starts clutching stomach the girlfriend starts laughing. Saying that his wife came to her and promised to show her where the money was if she got rid of her cheating bastard husband,”

Jim could see Claire leaning closer as Toby continued the tale, transfixed.

“So the farmer totally freaks and says the wife did the same for him, and that her coffee’s poisoned to, and the girlfriend starts to panic along with him. The two of them are sitting there, freaking out and clutching their stomachs and spitting up blood, when the wife’s corpse walks in the doorway. Still bloated and rotten from being at the bottom of the lake, but this close they could both smell the sickly rot of her decaying flesh,”

“She grins at them and says ‘A deal’s a deal’ then the old trunk the farmer dumped her in slides in behind her, the lid pops open and the lining busts apart, revealing money stuffed inside ‘My money is yours to enjoy for the rest of your lives’ then the last thing the farmer and the girlfriend hear is the wife laughing and laughing,”

Toby blew out his candle and set it aside.

For a moment the four of them just stared at Toby in silence.

“Toby that was…” Mary struggled for words “Wow,”

“Thank you thank you, I pride myself on being a man of many talents,”

“So who–”

From out of nowhere bright light blazed through the room, sending all of them shrieking and scrambling around. Candles were knocked over, wax spilling on the tile, screams bounced in Jim’s ears, elbows prodded him and fingers dug into his shoulders as his heels scrabbled against the floor.

Barbara blinked at them with wide eyes from where she was standing in the door frame, finger still hovering above the light switch.

“I’m sorry kids, I didn’t mean to scare you, but what were you all doing in the bathroom with all the lights off?” she glanced around at all the candles, some spilled and some still burning “....and what are all these candles for?”

“We were…telling scary stories,” Toby spoke up.

Now that the adrenaline was fading Jim could regain his bearings. He could see he had shuffled back nearly all the way to the wall. Claire and Darci were pressed into either side of him, Toby was practically sitting in his lap and Mary was huddled behind him peeking over one of his shoulders.

His mom raised an eyebrow “But what do candles have to do with that?”

“It’s part of it,” Jim said “You tell a story and blow out a candle,”

Jim didn’t have the words to describe the expression his mom was making right now. The only other time he’d seen it on her face was when they’d had a really bad drought one summer and he and Toby had tried to use the slip and slide with mayonnaise.

Barbara made to speak again but then sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose “I’m sorry I interrupted your game, but I just got off a twelve hour shift and I need the bathroom. I'll give you guys five minutes to pick this up. You can leave the wax and I’ll help you clean it tomorrow,”

Toby bobbed his head “Perfectly reasonable, thanks Dr. Lake,”

She gave a nod back in acknowledgement then backed out of the bathroom.

The five of them alone again, Jim turned and peeked over his shoulder “Were you hiding behind me?”

Mary blinked back unashamed “I was watching your back,”

“Sure you were,”

“Well I’ll always protect you,” Toby stretched out languidly in his lap.

Jim grinned down at him “Thanks Tobes, but I do need to get up now,”

The five of them climbed to their feet, blowing out the remaining candles and wiping up the worst of the wax.

Darci set the smoking stump of a lavender candle down “What do you say we wind down with oysters and Danger House IV?”

“Sounds good to me,”

“Let’s do it,”

“I’m game,”

“Let’s go,”

Jim grinned, following the others out of the bathroom “Hey at this point I’m just glad things are going better than our last sleepover,”

They all laughed at that.

[xaphrin]

Damian was fighting to keep his eyes on the road and his heart in his chest. Next to him sat Raven, looking so damn pretty it hurt to breathe, and he found himself wanting to stare at her the whole ride to the animal shelter. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye and saw a lock of hair had fallen from her bun, brushing against the curve of her cheek. His fingers itched to brush it away, but… right. They weren’t those kinds of friends. 

For the hundredth time that night, he silently promised himself he was doing to keep his heart intact. He might have been head-over-heels in love with her, but that didn’t mean she loved him back, and he wasn’t willing to risk his own feelings just yet. Damian cleared his throat and shifted in his seat, his hands gripping the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles turned white. 

“So.” He needed to talk, if only to fill the silence that was growing between them. Otherwise the rest of this night was going to be painfully awkward.

Raven turned and looked at him, her lips pulling down into a frown. “What?”

“How’s your senior thesis coming along?” School seemed a safe topic, so he’d stick with that. “What was it on again? Emily Dickinson?”

Raven’s face fell and she turned to look at him, obviously insulted. “Do you think every female literature student does their senior thesis on Emily Dickinson?” 

“I don’t know. I’m not a literature student.” Damian tried to sound nonchalant, as if he didn’t really care, but mentally he was kicking himself. Honestly, he couldn’t remember what she said she was working on, because every time she started talking about it, her eyes lit up and she got this excited almost dreamy expression on her face, and Damian got lost in her. She was easy to get lost in. He bit the inside of his cheek and looked over at her, forcing his expression to remain neutral. “You’re applying to grad school, right?” 

“Yeah, actually.” She looked surprised that he remembered, and fidgeting with the strap on her purse, as if suddenly nervous. “I submitted my application last week. But, I have a few more weeks before I find out if I got into the program.” 

“You know you’ll get in.” Damian stared up at a red light, refusing to look at her. If he did, he knew he’d forget everything he was supposed to say to her. How in the world could she break him like this? “I don’t know why you’re so worried. You’re the smartest, most inspired student in the whole program.”

“Was that… a compliment, Damian Wayne?” Her voice was teasing, almost playful, and it made his stomach twist. Raven shifted and stared out the windshield, a small smile playing on her lips. “We’ve been fighting each other for the better part of four years, and you actually complimented me. Well, shit. I guess I owe Conner ten bucks.” 

At the sound of Conner’s name, Damian frowned. He remembered Conner’s soft touches and soft, lopsided smiles at Raven, and Damian shifted in his seat. Maybe there was more to their relationship. “Are you two… together?”

Raven snorted. “With Conner? No.” She glanced back at him, her dark eyes searching his face. “I mean sure, he’s fun and cute, and he almost out-bid you at the auction-”

Damian gave her a flat stare. Of course she was going to bring that up.

“-but no.” She paused, as if suddenly realizing that was a very personal question. Her eyebrows knitted together and she stared at him. “Why do you ask?”

He shrugged, hoping he looked unaffected by her or her suspicion. “No reason. I just noticed you were a bit more chummy with him over the last few parties.” Jealousy, thick and viscous spilled into his chest, and Damian forced himself to breathe just to ignore it. “I thought maybe you two had hooked up or something.”

“Oh, god no.” Raven shook her head, color leaving her face as she forced out a bark of laughter. “Trust me. I made the mistake of dating a frat boy once. Never again will I wander down that road.” 

Damian jerked and looked over at her, surprised. “What? Who did you date?” 

“Gar. For all of six weeks during freshman year.” She lifted an eyebrow. “Do you not remember? You teased us relentlessly. I think half the reason we broke up was to get you to shut up and leave up alone.”

Memories flooded his thoughts, and Damian felt heat crawl up his neck. Ah, no. He remembered. It was definitely not one of his finer moments, but it had been before he understood what his feelings really were towards Raven. He remembered being angry and jealous, and he didn’t want to see them together, he just didn’t understand why. It wasn’t until months later that he realized he liked Raven. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Yeah… I’m sorry about that.”

Raven seemed surprised by his apology, but she chose not to tease him about it. Instead, she shrugged and glanced away. “It’s fine. It never would have worked out between us anyway. That relationship was doomed from the start. Gar is still getting his life together, and I can’t wait for that. I don’t want to wait for that.” She paused as if realizing something, and looked back at Damian. “Why did you join the frat in the first place? I mean, you’re a legacy student, rich as all get out, and could have rented a swank apartment just off campus. You don’t need to join a fraternity.” 

Damian shrugged. “Father belonged to the same one when he was in college, and he thought it would be good for business connections and my… social skills.” He rolled his eyes. 

Raven laughed. “Social skills. Ah. So you’ve always had this stick up your ass? Good to know it’s not a recent development.” 

Damian glanced over at her and tried to glare, but her smile melted whatever annoyance filled him. He blinked and looked away, turning down a side street towards the animal shelter. He swallowed and felt the confession bubble up before he could stop it. “I’m going to grad school too.” 

Raven hummed, but the sound was playful. “Are you telling me I have at least three more years of you? Three more years of you harping on my reading choices?” 

“At least.” He smirked. “I’ll make sure to bother you whenever I get the chance.” 

“Are you going to stay in the frat house?”

“Probably not. I’m getting a little too old for that. The freshmen parties keep me up way too late.” 

“Careful, Dami. Otherwise I’m going to start thinking you’re an old man.” 

He gave her a flat stare, but tried not to crow at the playful nickname she offered. “What about you? Are you staying with Karen and Donna?”

“No.” Raven shook her head. “Karen is taking an internship in San Francisco, and Donna is going to Europe to work with her family’s company.” A pensive, sad expression filled her face. “If I get accepted, I’ll have to find somewhere to live before I start.”

The offer fell out of his mouth before he could stop it. “You could stay with me.” 

Oh god. No. Panic filled his chest and tried to think of a way to make it a joke, but nothing came to mind. Instead he sat there and watched as several expressions of confusion colored Raven’s face. 

Raven snorted. “As what? Your maid?”

“No.” Why did his mouth insist on talking? He couldn’t stop talking, and he needed to right now. “I mean… as roommates. I have the money and the space is easy to find. You need somewhere to stay. You’re clean and quiet, and you’d stay out of my business.” Damian finally breathed. Safe. “You’d be the perfect roommate. Like having a cat you never see.” 

She rolled her eyes. “Gee, when you put it like that, how can I refuse? Be still my beating heart.” 

He shrugged. “The offer stands. If you can’t find a place before fall, let me know.” 

Raven laughed. “You know. I’ll do it. I’ll be your roommate just to annoy you.” She smirked and looked over at him, finally tucking that stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Put flavored creamer in my coffee every morning.”

“How many times do I have to say that you don’t sully good coffee with cheap creamer?” He seethed and pulled into the parking lot, shoving the car into park. “It’s a waste of good coffee.” 

She laughed again and unbuckled her seatbelt. “I’ll make sure I have every single flavor in the fridge. Even down to the disgusting seasonal flavors. Pumpkin Spice. Egg Nog. Mint Chocolate.” 

“That’s it.” Damian flung open his car door and stepped out, glaring at her over the roof of his car. “The offer has been officially revoked. You are no longer allowed to be my roommate.” 

Raven laughed and followed him into the animal shelter, her steps uneven. Damian glanced down at her and realized her clothes didn’t fit quite right. Which meant she was probably wearing Donna’s shoes as well as Donna’s dress. His heart did something weird in his chest, and he realized that Raven had dressed up for him. Something like excitement and pride mixed together, and he found himself wanting to kiss her. Of course, he always wanted to kiss her, but right now… he was ready to throw caution to the wind and make out with her right on the animal shelter steps. 

“Kittens.” 

Her voice was soft and strained, as if she was trying to contain her excitement, and it pulled Damian deeper into his internal struggle to not fall in love with her any more. He glanced up to see Raven taking a shy step forward, looking through the window at the kitten and cat room. They lounged on trees and in beds, watching her with a curious expression. For a moment, he stood there and let this memory burn in his head. Raven’s eyes were wide and bright, and a soft smile played on her lips. She looked… cute. Too cute. His heart twisted even more in his chest and he guided her to the front door. 

He smirked and held open the door for her. “You can pet them, you know.”

Raven glanced up at him, and Damian was pretty sure his insides were now permanently mush. She looked so eager, and he wanted to get her whatever she wanted just to keep that expression on her face. 

“It’s gonna take me a bit to get the paperwork completed for the donation.” He was trying not to look completely and utterly enamored with her, but knew he was probably failing. “Go play with the cats.” 

Her eyes widened for a moment, before her face fell back into a stern expression, poking him in the chest. “This stays between us.”

“That you turn into a small child at the sight of a kitten?” He forced a sarcastic smile. “You think I’m not going to take a picture of you and put it all over the internet.” He wasn’t, but she didn’t know that. “I can see the headline now: Resident Hardass, Raven Roth, Actually has a Soft Side.”

Before he could blink, Raven reached into his pants pocket and yanked out his cell phone, holding it up in front of his face. “I’ll keep this until we leave. Consider it collateral.” Sticking out her tongue at him, she shoved his phone into her bra and out of his reach, before turning around and heading to play with the cats.

“Your girlfriend is cute.” 

Damian turned and looked at the office worker who had come out to meet him, and he didn’t bother correcting the assumption. Raven was cute, and he desperately wanted her as his girlfriend.

He finished up with the donation, writing out the check and posing for a few promotional photos with workers from the animal shelter. But his thoughts were thirty feet away, with Raven as she moved around the room, playing with cats. Damian stood there for a few minutes and watched her, all spread out on the floor, cats and kittens crawling over her and making her light up and smile so damned bright. Damian stared at her, his heart so heavy and so full that breathing hurt. He didn’t understand how he could protect his heart anymore. 

He was irrevocably in love with her, and it was only going to hurt him to keep denying it. 

Raven looked up and saw him standing there. She picked up a kitten that had been crawling up her back, and set it on the floor before stepping out of the room to meet him. She was covered in cat fur, and that somehow only made her cuter. He was so damn gone for her. 

“You’re a mess.” He said, shaking his head with a laugh. “And you desperately need a lint roller.”

Damian went and borrowed one from the front desk clerk, taking time to roll off the back of her dress and her skirt. The whole act felt strangely intimate, but Raven didn’t seem to mind. Instead she was laughing, twisting away when he found a ticklish spot near her side. Forgetting who he was, Damian wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her back to him, running the lint roller over her stomach and letting himself bathe in her joy. She felt like liquid sunshine in his arms, happy and honest, and so unlike the usual studious hardass she was. His world was shifting even more, and Raven was standing in the center like a beacon. 

“Careful, Dami.” Her voice was soft and breathy from laughter, and she smelled of lavender and vanilla. God. He could feel her heat spilling through his clothes and warming him in the best way possible. She turned in his arms and plucked the lint roller from his hand, tilting her face up to meet his own. Her lips shifted to the side, and she poked a finger in his chest. “People might get the wrong idea about us.” 

His mind was filled with one thought: Let them. 

[awed-frog]

What are some of your go-to recipes for satisfying meals? I’m trying to convince my husband that we should eat less meat, but he thinks meals without meat are not as filling.

Wow, that’s a great question, but I’m not sure I have a good answer for you because ‘satisfying’ really depends on your taste and habits. These are our favourite family meals, I hope something can inspire you:

Pasta and beans of some kind. There is a lot of variation here, so I don’t have a fixed recipe, but what I like to do is to prepare some vegetables (roasted or stir-fry), add some kind of bean (lentils, white beans, fava beans, green peas) and a portion of pasta (sounds stupid, but by changing the kind of pasta you immediately get a different meal). I make the sauce either red (with tomato and possibly a touch of Porto) or white (with soy cream or, if I’m feeling motivated, a blend of white beans and cooked mushrooms in stock). You can also add saffron to a white sauce, just make sure there are no overpowering spices, otherwise the saffron gets lost. If you eat cheese, you can obviously add it whenever you want: some Philadelphia-style fresh cheese, ricotta or gorgonzola can turn a dish into something completely different.

Risotto or orzotto with beans of some kind. Orzotto is like risotto, but it’s made with pearl barley instead of rice. The only problem one can have with this kind of dish is overcooking, so make sure you check before adding more broth. Many traditional recipes have them plain with some cheese, but I like to add a bean to get my proteins (green peas are the usual choice, but you can be creative) and some veggies for taste. Some people also enjoy risotto with stuff like strawberries, you can find many recipes online.

Minestrone is an end-of-week staple: I do it by just throwing all the wonky vegetables in my fridge into the pot and adding - guess! - some cereals and beans! You can have pasta instead of cereals, and the only trick here is to check how long everything has to cook (beans, for instance, are normally added pre-cooked). You can serve it with warm bruschette with butter, tapenade, dried tomatos, hummus or melted cheese.

If you’re looking for more elaborate meals, my go-to is lasagna (I normally make a vegan béchamel with soy milk and use lentils, mushrooms or seitan in the ragù), a hearty seitan stew (seitan is very easy to make at home if you can find a bag of gluten), or one of Isa Chandra Moskowitz’ recipes, like orange-glazed tempeh, tofu in pomegranate sauce, vegan spanakotiropita and stuff like that. If you eat cheese and eggs, quiches of any kind can also be irresistible. You’ll need two hours in the kitchen but the result is definitely worth it. 

If your husband doesn’t like the idea of eating less meat, my advice is to not press the point, and instead cook what you want and then be like ‘My friend Sarah gave me this recipe!’ or ‘I found pumpkins on sale so I wanted to make something with them’ or ‘How about trying an Ethiopian dish this evening?’. People don’t like to be lectured about health, and most people who don’t want to give up even a slice of ham are just afraid of the dreary, tasteless life that’s waiting for them now the wife wants to eat ‘rabbit food’. And I mean, it’s normal to be nervous about stuff you have the wrong idea about: in a lot of Western dishes, vegetables are the overboiled, awful side to the ‘real thing’ you’re eating, so the thought of skipping that ‘real thing’ and live the rest of your life on mushy carrots is not appealing. So imo if you want to make a change you have to show your husband vegan and vegetarian food can be amazingly tasty without pressing the point. It’s not ‘I want you to live longer so have this chewy cabbage’, it’s more ‘Let’s try something new! Isn’t gorgonzola great?’. Slowly, he’ll get used to the idea these dishes are actually good and satisfying and won’t notice meat is something missing from your menus.

(As a tip on recipe books: I usually leaf through them on Amazon, and if I see something I like I download the book from the z library. Then I try a few recipes, and if I like them, I buy the book from our local bookstore. There’s no point imo in buying a recipe book before tasting a few things first.)

[honey-andtea1889]

Cinnamon Rolls and Pumpkin Spice

AN: Hi babies! So I am obsessed with Fall and I want to do this with someone eventually because I’m v lonely and want to express my hopeless romantic side to literally everyone on the Internet lol and I chose the song because this is literally one of my favorite songs ever and I feel like it fits so well with this!! Please request things my lovelies! 

Summary: Matthew just wants to spend his one day off with Y/N

Song: I Remember You by Seth MacFarlane

Warnings: Extreme fluff, like might make you puke glitter kinda fluff

Word Count: 1974 (kinda small but still)

October is one of Matthew’s favorite months. He loved the smell of the fresh fall air, the crunchy leaves under his feet, Halloween, and just the overall aesthetic of the season. He also enjoyed the cooler temperatures only because that meant more snuggles from his girl. It’s been hard recently due to filming movies and working on his new book, but you were so understanding of it all. That’s what Matthew adored about you.

You knew that with dating an actor, he’d be away filming movies or tv shows, doing what he loves. That’s what you admired about Matthew. He was so passionate about his work and took pride in everything he did. You were so proud of him and everything he accomplished. Not to say he wasn’t proud of you either. You had been attending college and you’ve been working so hard with your course work. 

One of the props to days like this is that both you and Matthew had the day off together. You both had been working so hard and definitely deserved a break. It was also very rare that the two of you had days off together. Usually, it would alternate which made it hard to see each other throughout the day but you two always made time in the evening to catch up and talk about how the day went.

Matthew woke up to the warm feeling of the Fall sun beaming through the shared bedroom. He rubbed his eyes and yawned as he turned over to you. A smile graced his face as he saw you asleep next to him. He ran his fingers over your cheek as he admired your features. He noticed how your mouth was slightly opened as you breathed in and out. Your hair was a messy due to tossing and turning, dreaming sweet dreams. The blankets covered you comfortably, making you look like a cute little burrito.

Matthew could feel his heart expand and he studied you. Your eyes soon flutter open to be met with his chocolate brown eyes. You smile and snuggle closer to him, feeling his body heat take over you.

“Good morning, Darling.” Matthew whispered, kissing your head.

“Good morning, my love.” You smiled.

You glanced up at the man you are so lucky to call your boyfriend and begin to play with his hair. He chuckles as you continue to tamper with the growing locks that you’ve come to adore oh so much. 

You and Matthew have been dating for almost two years now, which was a huge accomplishment on your end because you weren’t really into the dating scene. He was actually the first person in a long time to have you even consider dating. It was almost love at first sight. the two of you have pretty much been inseparable since. 

Matthew kissed your lips sweetly as you snuggled into his neck. 

“So, what’re our plans today lovie? You choose.” You said as you ran your fingers up and down his chest. 

Matthew sighed contently and thought about the one thing he’d want to do. His smile began to break through as he looked down at you with gleaming eyes. You raised an eyebrow as he bit into his lip. 

“If you want my honest answer, I really just want to stay home with you. maybe we can bake up some stuff and watch a movie! We haven’t really had a day where we just stayed home and relaxed with each other, think we may be long overdue for that.” Matthew grinned. 

You beamed at the idea. 

He wasn’t wrong. The two of you never really had an at home day. Either you were at school or the library and Matthew was out doing actor stuff. It wasn’t easy and sometimes, it became very stressful on you both. An R&R (rest and relaxation) day is just what the Doctor ordered. 

“Okay! Do you want breakfast?” You asked as you shot out of bed. 

Matthew chuckled at your enthusiasm, moving over and planting his feet on the floor. 

“That doesn’t sound bad. But if I can be frank, we do have pancakes and eggs often, can I make a new suggestion?” He asked. 

“Of course baby, I never mind switching things up.” You winked. 

Matthew smirked back at you as he stood up and stretched out his lanky limbs. 

“How about Cinnamon Rolls? My mom could text me her recipe and we can make them ourselves!” he said as he made his way to you. 

You giggled as you took his hand and led the way downstairs into your shared kitchen. You and Matthew have been living together for about three months now and you couldn’t be happier. He had asked while you were having lunch together at a little Bistro down the block from your college. Your heart had filled with so much love that you squealed in the middle of the small café, causing customers to stare at you two. Since then, you’ve made his snug little home into yours. 

Matthew was awaiting the text from his mom while you began to make some pumpkin spice coffee. It was one of your favorite flavors, and with how the weather was, it only made sense to divulge into the sweet flavored coffee. Matthew chuckled at your choice of drink. He didn’t mind the flavor but it wasn’t his favorite. However, he knew how you felt about it, so he never even tried to poke fun at it. 

“Ya know what movie you wanna watch?” He asked, looking up from his phone. 

“I know it’s super corny, but The Nightmare Before Christmas. I haven’t seen it in a while.” You said as you finished making your coffee. 

You took a sip of the warm liquid and sighed happily. Matthew smiled. His phone soon binged, signaling that his mother had responded with the recipe for her famous Cinnamon Rolls. Matthew handed the phone to you. You looked at the recipe and began to grab the ingredients. You began to follow the steps to create the delicious pastry. Matthew watched with attentive, loving eyes. 

Matthew had been thinking about your futures together. He knew he wanted to be with you for the rest of his life, he just wasn’t sure how or when he should do it. All of his friends pushed him to ask, hell even his older sister was wanting them to tie the damn knot. He just wasn't sure when was the right time. 

You slipped the freshly twisted cinnamon rolls in the oven. You cleaned up a bit and went back to sipping your coffee. 

“Do you think they’ll be as good as your mom’s?” You asked. 

“Of course they will, darling. Your cooking is amazing!” Matthew boasted. 

“Well thank you, lovie. I greatly appreciate it.” You smiled. 

Matthew leaned over the counter and pecked your lips softly. You softly placed your hand on his cheek after he pulled away and studied his features. His deep brown eyes were something you could get lost in. He had the cutest little button nose, and his full lips were a dream that you so enjoyed on yours. In your eyes, he is the most perfect human, your perfect human. 

“You know what we need? Some music!” You squealed. 

You turned to your phone and searched for the song that you and Matthew immensely enjoyed. You typed in I Remember You sung by Seth Macfarlane. Matthew broke into a smile as the sweet song began to play through the speakers. 

Was it in Tahiti? Were we on the Nile? Long, long ago Say an hour or so I recall that I saw your smile

You grinned as you slowly swayed to the song. The warm feeling took over you as the song continued. 

I remember you You're the one who made My dreams come true A few kisses ago

Matthew made his way over to you, his arms wrapping around your waist and carefully taking your delicate hand in his. The two of you began to slow dance in your kitchen, the smell of cinnamon rolls and pumpkin spice engulfing the both of you and the sound of Jazz music taking control of the sweet moment. 

The song continued to play as you danced. 

I remember you You're the one who said "I love you, too," I do Didn't you know? 

 I remember, too A distant bell And stars that fell like rain Out of the blue 

You rested your head on Matthew’s shoulder, the smell of bergamot, mahogany, and patchouli taking over your sense. You loved the way he smelled. It was warm and welcoming. He kissed your head as he spun you around the tiled floor. 

When my life is through And the angels ask me to recall The thrill of them all Then I shall tell them I remember you

  Just as the song ended, the oven beeped for the cinnamon rolls, indicating that the pastries were done. You parted with Matthew, grabbing the oven mitt and pulling the cinnamon rolls out. As they cooled, you made the delicious frosting to top off the pastries. Once you were finished with it, you poured the frosting on the cinnamon rolls and quickly cleaned up. Matthew helped himself to one and moaned at the taste of it. 

“Oh my god babe. These are amazing!” Matthew complimented as he took another bite. 

You giggled and grabbed a cinnamon roll for yourself, taking a bite of the warm pastry. 

“Come on, let’s get the movie started.” You perked, taking his hand and leading him to the living room. 

Matthew grabbed the remote and got the movie started. The opening scene to the movie gave you goosebumps as you sang along. Matthew joined you, the two of you giggling once the song was over. 

The final scene came quicker than you thought it would’ve. This scene topped every other in the movie. You were singing along with Jack and Sally, a smile breaking out on your face 

 My dearest friend, If you don't mind I'd like to join you by your side

Matthew quietly joined in as he watched you. 

Where we could gaze into the stars And sit together now and forever For it is plain as anyone could see We're simply meant to be 

The scene ended with the famous Jack and Sally kiss. You looked over to see Matthew staring at you with slight tears in his eyes. 

“Lovie, what’s wrong?” You questioned, scooting closer to him. 

“I love you so much Y/N. I really, really do. I didn’t think I’d be able to love anyone as much as I love you and I think today solidified my thoughts and feelings.” He gazed as you played with his hair. 

Matthew then proceeded to get down on one knee and your breath got caught in your throat. 

“Y/N, I don’t have a ring right now but today with dancing with you and just being with you, I know that I want days like this for the rest of my life. I love you. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you, will you please do me the honor of becoming my wife?” Matthew smiled as he sniffled. 

Tears ran down your cheek as you nodded quickly. You kissed him passionately. Tears both staining your faces as you shared the kiss. He pulled away and looked into your eyes as he held yours hands. 

“Sorry, I didn’t really plan this out all that well. I just couldn’t wait.” He whispered. 

You sniffled and played with his hair. 

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” You smiled. 

Matthew grinned and kissed you again. 

From here on out, Matthew wasn’t your boyfriend, he was your fiancé. 

[blog4snape]

Boggey (1)

Pairing: Student! Severus Snape x F! Professor! Reader

Word Count: ~2.5K

Genre: Hurt/Comfort (no filth here)

Summary: Hogwarts student Snape (18) finds a boggart in the divination classroom one night and has a mental breakdown, divination professor (22)  comforts him. 

Warnings: character having a mental breakdown, sev being a qt, and fluff

Rating: Citrus (no filth here, this is a platonic fic)

Date written: 8/20/2020

~~~~~~

February 1978

“Thank you for volunteering to do this, Severus.” You grinned at your student, the two of you sitting at a table in the center of the room.

He quirked a corner of his lip and gave a quick nod.

“Normally I give these tasks to students in detention,” You sighed as you polished another shell, “But lately there just haven’t been any students misbehaving badly enough to warrant a detention, and I can’t postpone this lesson any longer.” 

He nodded silently and set down the smooth shell he was working on, grabbing a rough one from the crate. 

“I shouldn’t complain that my students haven’t been misbehaving, normally I dislike giving someone a reward for someone else’s punishment, but so be it-” You poured more polish into the cloth and continued the menial task of polishing turtle shells. ‘If only someone invented a spell to do this.’ You thought to yourself, scoffing at your reddened fingertips. “-Oh! Sorry I’m rambling-”

“It’s okay.” He answered quickly as he glanced with a quirk of his brow, as if he was offended you’d even apologize.

“Thank you again. You can forget about the essay due on Monday. Don’t tell anyone else.” You winked at him. “Twenty points to Slytherin.”

He raised his chin and gave you a conspiratory smirk, “Thank you, Professor.” 

You chuckled, “Not a problem, Severus.” 

The two of you working diligently through the first crate of bones and shells helped speed along the process; however, it was getting rather late, the candles surrounding you were steadily shrinking and the room was growing comfortably dim. 

“Let’s take a break.” You stood up and stretched out your back. “The second box is in that corner, could you bring it to the table? It shouldn’t be as heavy as the first. I’m going to go make some tea. Your choice today.” You spoke as you shuffled off, opposite the direction of the box.

“Green.” He announced, cracking each knuckle individually as he stood up to grab the box. 

You riffled through the cabinets and put the green tea canister on the make-shift counter. “Could you open it and see if it’s the right one, love?” You asked him. He hummed in response. You heard him shuffling through crates and boxes in the far corner. 

It happened nearly all at once. The whistle of the kettle set it off, and then soon after was the most gut-wrenching growl you could ever hear. It wasn’t the growl of an ordinary stray mutt that found itself on the grounds. Right after, you heard Severus scream bloody murder. 

You whipped your head around and saw a werewolf standing outside of the crate and Severus frozen in place. You rushed to him, bounding across the array of turtle shells and animal bones on the wooden floor. As soon as you pointed your wand to fight the werewolf, it took on an all-too-familiar form that made all of the blood in your body, just on fire a moment ago, turn cold as ice. Quickly putting two and two together you vanished the boggart, shouting “Riddikulus!” at the top of your lungs. It turned into an innocent stuffed animal, before vanishing altogether.

You finally let out a breath and closed your eyes. For a moment, everything was silent. You turned around to see Severus behind you. You closed your mouth as soon as you saw the tears streaming down his face. You reached out to touch his shoulder. 

“Sev-” You started, only to be cut off by a strangled sob as he grappled onto your shawl as if his life depended on it, collapsing onto the floor in a heap of robes. You followed shortly thereafter, kneeling and holding him.

“Severus, what’s wrong?” You asked softly, as you stroked his hair. He responded only in louder sobs as the tears soaked through your robes. ‘That was the wrong approach,’ You chided yourself in your head. You breathed in slowly and tried again, “Shhh, it’s alright. It’s gone now. You’ll never see it again.” You whispered into his hair, rubbing his back.

He was hiccuping and struggling for air, but made no move to let go and try to breath in. You grabbed his shoulders firmly and pushed him away slightly, so you could look at him. 

“Hey, hey- look at me-” You repeated softly until he stared at you. “Thank you, lovely. Follow my breathing.” You put a hand on his chest and one between his shoulder blades, and sat up on your knees, straightening your back self-consciously. You took a long, slow breath through your nose and waited for him to do the same. You held it for a moment, before exhaling through your mouth slowly. He did the same. “Excellent job, just like that. Breath with me.” You praised him. He gave a desperate nod, and you two continued the same breathing pattern before he finally managed to calm himself down. You smiled at him and stroked his cheek briefly before pulling him into a much less desperate hug this time. 

“You’re alright, you’re alright.” You cooed into his shoulder. “You did such a great job.” You praised, rubbing his shoulder blades. 

His tears returned, but this time without the hungry gulps of air. His hair tickled your nose and he held onto you tighter. 

Focusing on his now quiet breaths, you almost forgot about the kettle until you heard it bubble and boil over. You fought your natural urge to run over and take it off of the heat, as you didn’t want to startle Severus anymore than he already had been. You figured he was more important than some boiled water, right now. His grip on you loosened and he started furiously rubbing at his red eyes with the sleeve of his robes. You gently took his hands and shook your head. You summoned a handkerchief from your robes and handed it to him. He nodded his thanks, with a loud sniffle accompanied. Smiling in response, you gave his hair a quick stroke before standing from the floor and walking over to the mess of boiling water continuing to spit out of the kettle. 

With a quick flick of your wand, it was cleared up and the green tea was in the preferred cups. Last week you had seen a teacup in Diagon Alley that made you think of Severus, and since he often joined you after classes, you figured he should have a teacup that reminds him he is always welcome. The teacup was black, with several white roses and green snakes curling around the mug like vapor curls out of the steaming drink. Every day since then, you’ve served him tea in that cup, on a matching saucer. Turning around, you saw him sitting at the table again. Handing him his cup, full of the tea he chose, he gave a little smile and he thanked you quietly. 

He was shivering, even the hot tea did not help sate it. You took off your shawl and wrapped it around his shoulders. He curled into it immediately and covered it around himself like saran wrap. The two of you sat in silence, sipping tea.

“Let’s stop for tonight.” You said, as your tea was finished. You looked at the clock. “Oh, Severus, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to keep you after curfew.” 

Severus looked at the clock, also a bit surprised. He opened his mouth to say something but then shut it again.

“Here, I’ll walk you back in case Filch finds you.” You announced, standing up and putting the porcelain cups away. 

You turned around and expected Severus to follow you, only to see that he wasn’t. He was sitting at the table, covered in your shawl, hunched over, and trembling still. He was staring at you, brows knit. You walked back to the table. “Severus? What’s the matter?”

He shook his head softly. You focused on the strands of his hair peeking out of the shawl. “I-” He started, before closing his mouth. He looked down at his lap, biting his lips, and continuing to shake his head. The strands of hair caught outside of the shawl waved around with his head. “No.” He stated, plainly.

“No… to what?” You tilted your head. 

“I can’t go to my dorm… I can’t-” He bit his lip so hard it turned white. He got smaller, his shoulders rounded and he hid in the shawl. “I don’t-” He released his lip, the white faded quickly and turned into a deep sanguine. 

You kneeled before him, and held out of your hand. He tentatively released his grip on the shawl and gave you one of his hands. You took it in both of yours, rubbing his bruised and scarred knuckles with your thumbs. You sighed softly, “You don’t want to go back to your dorm?” 

He shook his head.

“Would you be against sleeping in my office?” 

He shook his head and let out a quiet ‘please.’

“Alright.” You gave a quick nod and patted his hand, releasing it. You stood up, and gave him your arm to stand. He quickly took it, but let it go as soon as he found balance and stood up.

After a relatively quiet walk to your office, you opened the door to the scent of the day: pumpkin spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. You held open the door for Snape. The candles lit up every corner and inch of the room as the both of you waltzed in and incense started to burn. The pit of pillows, blankets and cushions to the side of your office had to be the coziest spot in the entire castle, and it’s a little embarrassing to admit how many times you collapsed on the floor there instead of making it to your actual bed in your chambers. You closed the door with a bit too much force, startling Severus and the odds and ends - not all related to divination - that decorate your shelf, as both of the aforementioned victims jumped and shook slightly. Severus whipped around to face you, with wide eyes that resembled a doe.

“Oh, sorry darling, I didn’t mean to slam the door.” You apologized, scolding yourself in your head. He released a breath and nodded in reassurance, rolling his shoulders back.

You went around the room and picked up some extra quilts that were sprawled on the butterscotch-colored desk chair and the mulberry-colored couch behind it.

He had taken off his robe and folded it in his hands, but kept your shawl on.

“Here love, you can sleep in the pit. It’s more comfortable than that old couch anyways.” You took his robes from him and placed them on a seldom-bare spot on your cluttered desk. He was still in his school uniform and shoes. 

“Do you want to get some night clothes from your dorm? I can walk with you there.” 

He shook his head.

“Alright, whatever you prefer. I just want you to feel comfortable.”

He nodded his thanks and toed off his shoes before climbing into the pit, cocooning himself in your shawl amongst all of the other quilts, covers, pillows, and soft things. 

You waved your wand and started a fire in the hearth. You left for a moment and set a cup of tea and a glass of water down near the pit. Extinguishing the other candles around the room, you kneeled next to his head, barely poking out of the many blankets and stroked his hair for a moment. He wordlessly leaned into your touch.

“I’ll come back to wake you in the morning before breakfast. Need anything before I go?” You spoke softly. His head shot up out of the covers, pillows and cushions falling around him like if he emerged out of a pool of water. 

“Don’t go!” He latched onto your arm with strength rivaling a serpent’s maw. 

“You don’t want to be alone tonight?” You asked. 

He shook his head, cheeks flushed red. Your cheeks matched his. He relinquished his hold. A million thoughts ran a million miles per hour through your head. You desperately wanted to say ‘no this is too inappropriate-’ but you found yourself saying the word, “okay” before your mind even registered what was happening. 

You took a blanket from the pit and a pillow that had been kicked to the side and as you went to stand up and move to the couch, Severus saw where you were headed and moved with the speed of a striking viper and grabbed your ankle as you walked away. You let out a quick shriek and lost your balance for just a moment, before looking down and seeing Severus staring up at you with those dark, frantic doe eyes again. 

“What’s the matter, lovely?” You questioned, clutching at your racing heartbeat under your chest.

He licked his lips and blinked a few times. “Please,” His voice was so quiet, you could hardly hear it over the crackling from the fire. His eyes glittered before drowning in tears. “Hold me,” The tears ran down his face and he held your ankle even tighter. “Like how you,” He sniffled, “did in the classroom.” 

You sighed. “Alright, darling.” Your brain screamed at you for being an idiot.

 He finally let go of your ankle and held up the blankets for you to crawl in. You murmured a quick spell to lock the door, and then kicked off your boots and crawled into the cocoon, facing Severus. He immediately got closer and tucked his nose into your collarbone. He didn’t grab you, but he was still gripping the shawl that smelled strongly of you and wrapped around him snugly. You put an arm underneath him and held him closely, and he sighed in relief. You stroked his cheekbone, wiping his tears with your thumb.  

After his tears stopped falling, you focused on the crackling of the fire and moved to run your fingers through his hair instead. His hair was full of knots so you resorted to just scratching his scalp lightly instead. He sighed again, pushing his face as close as possible to your neck. 

“Thank you,” He breathed lightly, smiling softly against your neck.

“Of course, darling,” You murmured, sleepily. You stared at how the orange glow of the fire formed a halo around Severus’s black hair and felt him smile and breathe out softly against your skin. “Get some rest, lovely. I’ll be right here.” Without any second thought, you pressed a soft kiss to Severus’s forehead and fell asleep to the feeling of a giggle vibrating across on your neck and the sound of the fire crackling in front of you.

~~~

A/N: This one shot is a part of a greater story with a masterlist that I’ll post later

Read Part 2 Here!