#ivys sapling au

[andromeda4004]

Share it Sunday - Rebecca AU

I'm planning to start publishing this in about a month, and since I made great progress on it yesterday, here's a taste of the opening soliloquy. If you're familiar with du Maurier's Rebecca, I am changing a few major points of the plot, but still drawing heavily on some of the key points of the novel, including the first person perspective from an unidentified female narrator...

Last night I dreamt (more under the cut)

Last night I dreamt I went to Sanderley again.  It has been many years since I left that place – I shall not call it home – and yet at times my mind does drift back there upon a sleeping tide and wash me ashore where I used to dwell.  In my dream I come, as it seems, from nowhere, upon the night-time gatehouse and that long, disorienting drive, with not a thought but the pull to move onwards, inwards, through.  I part the gates, their white paint flaking, though they are caught up in vines and drag across undergrowth, and the gravel beyond is narrowed from a driveway to a meandering path through the woods, the route obscured here and there by a sprawl of shrubbery or the sudden upstart of a sapling, sprouting where once the car would run.  The woods go on and on, and I go with them, first walking, then running, then flying, as one does in dreams, along what remains of the path, dark ahead and enclosed above, until finally the trees give way to the opalescence of the rhododendrons, blooming at the height of their powers, despite all else having gone to ruin.  They rise steep to either side of me, the sweet domesticated perennials grown monstrous, twenty feet, thirty feet, forty feet high, and covered every inch in flowers, ghostly white in the moonlight of my imagining.  I remember the scent even now, something spicy-sweet and indefinable; indefatigable.  The inescapable scent of Sanderley in springtime.

It lingers even as I break free, finally, of the plants which choke the driveway and I spill out onto the lawns above the house.  That view, it always challenged me, should I admire first the gardens, or the sea or Sanderley itself?  Even in my dream, I cannot focus, cannot choose; after the homogeneity of dark trees then pale flowers, there is suddenly too much variety to see.  But of course it is Sanderley, always, that demands my attention, though the moonlight skitters beautifully across the wavecrests beyond.  The broad north-east face of the house stares back towards me, two unbroken rows of perfect matched windows that reminded me always of a set of teeth, locked in a gritted grin.  And bordering each window-frame that ostentatious golden finish which caught the light so prettily in the dawn, but stands out brassy now in my moonlit dream, the only point of colour in my sight.  There is something awful – in the sense of awe-filled – in its great mass of stone, and glass, and glorious history.  Sanderley is undeniable.  Sanderley simply is.

And as I come upon the house itself, I feel again that hope, that same, strange hope that dogged my footsteps always in those days; boundless, groundless hope that a wisdom greater than my own would guide me to a purpose.  When first I saw Sanderley with my waking eyes, I had thought I’d found it, that purpose; when last I saw Sanderley, I knew myself better, and I had no longer any need for hope.  I had certainty.

My dreaming eyes, however, they look across the years and miles and see Sanderley as it must be by now.  The ivy beginning to clog the stonework, the windows cracked and broken here and there, the soot stains where the fire broke free.  I move, without any sense of effort, around the building, to the terrace which faces the sloping gardens and the distant cliffs, where the driveway ends in a white portico and wide steps, now grubby and forgotten, and the perfect formal gardens overflow their box hedges.  Such a shame.  Someone ought to care for this place, I think in my dream.  Although it shall not be me.

____

I would love to hear thoughts and speculations, since many of you voted for me to spend time on this. I'm planning to post the story through October and November.

[kinok0s-writings]

Some Nightshade, a Bit of Chrysanthemum, and a Dash of Child Ingenuity

(This is yet again a late valentine’s day gift for someone I adore! There are going to be three more of these, and then I'm not quite sure what to do lol. This one is for @oobbbear, and for those who aren't aware of her witch au and what happens, check that out before you read the italics at the end. It's easy to ignore, but it's a spoiler if you haven't looked at the au, I recommend you check it out before reading. Other than that, I hope you enjoy! ^^)

Birds cried out in startled annoyance as heavy footsteps fell under them, the small critters scurried away from the disturbances with a skittish warning, chattering to others about the burly human who so angrily fought through the outreached branches of trees and shrubbery, naively disregarding the brambles and briars. The flora seemed to continue grabbing onto whatever clothing and hair they could, be it to curiously explore the stranger to these lands or to purposely get in her way out of spite for being such a loud nuisance, whichever it was you didn’t exactly care, -as long as they distracted the strange woman and kept her at bay. You currently sat pressed into a tree, -letting the bark cut into your skin to keep you alert while catching your breath in an attempt to be as unnoticeable as possible, sweat has already begun to start sticking to your skin to hold your clothes flush against your body uncomfortably; you’ve been playing this game of running rabbits with the weird merchant for far longer than you wanted, and you could tell you weren’t the only one tired. The cool breeze occasionally brushed against you with encouraging fingertips, cooling you down but making you all the more aware of the sheen coating your body, and while watching the large woman fight with a spot overcrowded with stubborn saplings, you tried to figure out why she was so determined to catch you in the first place. You hadn’t stolen anything despite her insisting you were a thief, -you didn’t want to have a debt with anyone else thank you, you had made sure to trade with objects of similar worth to the tools, realistic ivy, and the collection of wooden sculpted fungi, leaving your inventory lacking a small collection of crystals collected from the cave southwest of the cottage and a bottle of some bonafide auntie Moon broth. You could feel how your stomach whined at the loss of your delicious lunch, though the sudden shaking of the branch you had perched onto truly pulled you from your thoughts, the sudden violent movement nearly pulling you to the ground as well by shaking your balance right out of you. A glance to the tree aided with the sudden obscenities being shouted at you, -a mix of languages you both understood and didn’t, told you it was time to go, hopefully, this would be the last escape attempt, you needed as much time you could get to finish your project by tonight and the sun was already overhead casting noon shadows. You both locked eyes for a second, before you steeled yourself and turned hide to jump to the safest branch that could hold you the next tree over like the squirrels you’ve lived alongside most of your life, stuttering in the air with the weight in your satchel, nevertheless you landed with the ghost of a grunt leaving you.

You could hear the woman swear again as you pulled yourself up, steadying yourself to quickly approach the edge to jump again and push yourself to leap some more, the compass tied outside the bag on your person was all you needed to navigate a path bound to lose the lady on the ground. You knew these woods like you knew the ingredients to your favorite dish, after all, you’ve lived in this barely touched forest with your aunties for several years now, and with your experience here you knew for certain that traveling in the trees or the air was the fastest ways of traversing the woodlands, easier if you were alright with raw palms and scrapes. It was a slightly beneficial trade-off because sure it greatly tested your upper body and core strength, as well as your tolerance for the roughly textured bark cutting into your skin or scratching you even through your clothing, let alone the ever-growing possibility of slipping or losing your balance as a result of the split second you couldn’t catch yourself. Those were the problems you welcomed compared to those traversing on foot, like being consistently slowed down by the thick oftentimes thorned shrubbery that grabbed onto your clothes and hair with a strange desire, or traversing through possible wetlands, -an obstacle that was growing ever common in the transition of seasons. Then there were the hesitant steps made to climb over the roots which grew much too large to stay buried under the soil, and lest you forget the awkward twisting of your body to pass through the saplings whose thin limbs seemed to be all too eager to steal an eye or two. You were moving with adrenaline in your veins, hearing your pursuer grow further and further away much to your gratitude because you’ve been progressively getting more aware of the damage to your body, your palms were throbbing with a sore heat due to the wood-biting into them unkindly, rubbing your skin raw as you dangled from one branch to swing to another until you were sure you'd lost her, luckily before you lost your grip.

The wind only blew past you for a single moment, -its refreshing caresses were now no longer comforting, before you felt the impact of your back meeting the earthen ground sooner than you had planned, forcing something of both a grunt and a cry combined to leave you, knowing you fell from a place higher than you should have been. Savoring the serenity of the forest ambiance you lay there, gaping like a fish out of the water as you tried to greedily gulp back the air that was knocked right out of your lungs, taking a couple of seconds too long to hype yourself into the idea of getting up. You could already hear the scolding reminder of the lecture telling you to stop being so reckless, last time you had accidentally fallen asleep and then been forced to go sort through the elixir and potion ingredients for two weeks, -it sounds a lot easier than it truly was. Suddenly you became progressively aware of each new scratch, cut, and forming bruise that coated your body with the same consistency as splattered paint upon a canvas, causing a sigh to leave you; you eventually opted to pull some of the objects out of your satchel and work on what parts of your project you could instead of thinking about your aunties’ reaction to your absence. Yes, you had let them know beforehand that you were leaving to go out on a walk, but even that was back when the sun was only climbing higher than the treetops, and to think you had assumed you would have had time to practice your whittling some more before you put everything together tonight. Slowly from the appeal of the hesitant compromise that you’d have time for more practice if and only if you got the ivy combined with the flowers now instead of later, the ache in your limbs forcibly ignored, you gained the momentum to stumble forwards towards the cottage, even taking some of the longer routes. You were so absorbed in fastening the right knots with the fake ivy you didn’t care how branches seemed to playfully grab your pants and your hair, or how sapling limbs prodded at your drying wounds, in fact, the only time you looked away was when you nearly tripped on a root you always faceplant over, the last piece of glass secured just in time for you to realize you were at the clearing of the cottage. Quickly, in case anyone was looking for you at the window in the off chance you had somehow gotten lost, you shoved the ropes into your satchel, listening to the oddly charming sound of glass clinking against the glass, before you made your way out of the trees, the sight of the cottage with its snow ridden garden putting a relieved smile on your face as your heart welcomed the sight of home. Despite anything seeing your aunts always brightened your days, it could have something to do with how they loved each other or the fact they somehow made sure to share enough for the lost child the forest spat out at them, and your tired smile was traded for a genuinely energetic one, and as you neared the doorstep you paused to look inside the cauldron hung outside for the off chance something may be inside. Your stomach reminded you of your missed lunch making the emergency bottle you had stashed inside your room seem all the more promising, but just so you wouldn’t have to crack open your reserves you’ve made it a habit to sneakily check, sadly today the oversized iron bowl was filled with nothing but disappointment; ah well, you shrugged deciding that reserves were on the menu today. Humming an absentminded tune you knocked on the door to ‘shave and a haircut’ before opening it and stepping inside, the comforting warmth with its cozy ambiance was able to be savored for just a moment until one of your aunts seemed to decide to spawn next to you, -despite your uncertainty of whether or not she actually could teleport you were oftentimes sure it was just her way of messing with you.

“Look who finally decided to come home, I was almost convinced you had gotten lost and we needed to go out and grab you. Did you at least bring back something inter- Goodness, hey Moon? Could you grab the first aid, it looks like Y/n took a swim in the briars again.”

Pushing away the embarrassing memory aside you laughed reassuringly and swatted at your bright aunt’s hands, a small playful fight breaking out as you challenged one another, her hands grabbing to look at all of your wounds in such a way it nearly tickled, and your hands were playing defense as you tried to reassure her that you were perfectly alright. You chose to swallow down the winces whenever her touch grazed a certain bruise to eventually escape the sunny witch, which you did, therefore winning the war and as familiar soft footfalls came from behind you you laughed at her dramatic huff of defeat; you were going to walk off in victory, but a different hand grabbed your arm, one you couldn’t swat away, causing the roles to be reversed. Your expression fell into mock betrayal as you were then dragged to a stool by the deceivingly younger of the two witches as your auntie Sun laughed behind her hand while she left the room, leaving you to groan quietly before you extend your arms out of silent routine, letting your aunt Moon examine your limbs and letting her adjust your clothing for full inspection. You bit your lip as guilt began blossoming in you, not even the sunlight illuminating the room through the curtained window could dissolve the shadows it brought with it, it wasn’t as if you had wanted to get this hurt, and you were trying to be careful, it wasn’t your fault you were accident prone. However, instead of feeling bad for yourself, you focused on reassuring her you were alright, but she spoke first, her calming voice held tones of exasperation, slight concern, and perhaps an undertone of scolding.

“It does look like you went swimming in them again, what, were you too impatient to wait for the creek to warm up? Tell me, what did you do, and don’t you tell me you ‘just went for a walk’ because then I’ll have to ask you where’d you walk, down the cliffs? By the stars love, if you’re going to teach Y/n to be as reckless as you, then could you at least make sure they have your luck as well? It’ll save me on medical supplies.”

You can at least say there was no undertone, her words were definitely filled with scolding, and as they became directed at the escapee, your other aunt returned with a cup of water in one hand, the other extended towards your head and ruffled your hair as if a mock apology to match your previous betrayal, her warm touch felt pleasant against your scalp. The ruffling of your hair paused as she pulled a twig from your strands, inquiring a quizzical and amused look from her that bounced from you and the twig, before her pretty blue optics met her wife’s darker hues, smiling with the gleam of a playful feline as she tossed the twig to the side and placed her free hand against her chest.

“Honeysuckle, they’re alive aren’t they? Of course our little Y/n has my luck.”

Her words only made the taller of the two roll her eyes, though the edges of her lips upturned at the absurdity of them, and the two of you laughed at auntie Sun’s successful dissolvement of her scoldings, but you knew she had only pointed you in the right direction, you were the one that had to clear the path. Quickly you spoke up, having already gotten over the sting of the disinfectant oil being rubbed into your already raw skin, it helped that her touch was comfortingly cool and her hold was gentle, soothing the sore burning.

“I couldn’t have said it better myself, I am still as fit as a fiddle! After all, I have my aunts to teach me, and they’ve taught me well. I really am sorry I stayed out so late though, it wasn’t my intention, I just got a bit carried away testing my knowledge on traversing the woods. I was going to go to the village to gather things I need for something I’m working on, the one north at the ‘skirts, but on my way, I came across a traveling merchant that had something better than I originally planned, so I just got my things there.”

As you gave the women your very reasonable explanation, you noticed that they both had different expressions adorning their faces, Sun looked like it made sense and that was all she needed, but Moon looked confused, if not a bit apprehensive about something as if something didn’t add up. The burning of your limbs had noticeably begun extinguishing, the homemade oil doing its trick while her pale hands paused, one on your arm while the other held a roll of the gauze you’ve been chipping away at these days.

“Y/n… you don’t have any money, how did you pay the merchant for whatever you bought?”

Her words confused you for a moment, you knew you had no coins so why did she need to remind you? It seemed however the brief moment confusion had bled onto your expression was all it took to answer a few mental questions of her own, making dread slip onto her facial features, her wife’s muffled laughter not helping at all. Quickly you brightened up with a reassuring smile to stop whatever was going on through her mind, resting the hand currently unoccupied on top of the one holding your arm as you spoke again.

“I know I don’t have money, that’s why I just did what aunt Sun taught me to do whenever we summon demons for things, I traded something of equal value! I gave the lady the good ole Moon broth I had on hand and some of the gems I gathered the other day. I wasn’t going to steal anything, trust me I’ve learned my lesson, and I just didn’t want to bother any of you for some coins either. Usually, I’d pay with tasks, but that’s only for the village, they’re cool like that, it’s alright I promise.”

After you reassured her, ignoring the sneaking suspicion you had done something wrong because you know you had done nothing, -you’re only lightly unsure of that now, you caught your sudden laughter with a snicker as you watched aunt Moon send a disapproving look to Sun, who was completely unbothered by it and instead was laughing as she held a gleam of amused approval. Your attention returned to your purple-haired aunt though as she pushed your hand to the side to begin working on wrapping both your arms and palms with gauze, your stomach rumbling with demands as she began to speak what you could only hope were her final words for now, time was slipping away and you knew auntie Sun was leaving tomorrow morning for a new bounty, so it all had to be finished tonight.

“I am going to let you know I’m blatantly ignoring the fact that you just happened to have some of my broth tucked away in your inventory somehow, but I also want you to start assuming that you need to trade with coins, it’s not often you can pay with services nowadays, so it’ll keep you out of that sort of trouble. We shouldn’t have just assumed you knew that, so now you know. Anyways, what was it you bought with the price of some perfectly good broth and a couple of crystals?”

You hummed gratefully while flexing your bandaged hands, the ache now only a husk of its former self, while your aunt Moon began putting things in the woven straw box, Sun was finishing her water, but her oceanic orbs were set upon your satchel with the shared curiosity of your wife. Smiling dismissively you adjusted the strap as you spoke up, grateful that she was finished, -you were sure your stomach was going to eat itself if you didn’t find some food to hold you off until dinner, and looked out the window trying to spot your offender in the off chance she may suddenly stumble out of hiding from the flora. No, she has surely given up just as you had, the things you conned her out of just weren’t worth all the effort to retrieve; if anything you could just find her again and return the tools with some coins this time as compensation and explain why you did what you did; it was obvious you both were in the wrong.

“That does explain why the merchant chased me throughout the woods. If I come across her again I’ll make it up to her with that in mind next time, I had to climb the trees trying to outrun her. And don’t worry, what I grabbed wasn’t important, now I gotta go work on that project I mentioned, if I could be left alone while I work I’d greatly appreciate it. I’ll probably be done after dinner, so you can fetch me then, I just want to get this done without having to rely on either of you. See you both later tonight, okay?”

With your mind absorbed in the plans of the finer details you had to work on you didn’t pause to look at them for their reactions to see whether or not you truly were done, seeming to decide that at the very least that you were completely done with the conversation as you beelined it to the stairs, eager to enter your room with a hum hidden behind your lips, missing the confused looks shared behind. You needed as much time as you could get, no matter if you were almost done, there was always something to improve upon after all, and with you aiming to be completely done before dinner so you can immediately reveal what you had been working on right after the meal. You had already gotten the bodies finished, -or specifically, you had carved them into a shape you were satisfied enough with to continue, you just needed to carve in some extra details and embed the things you finished today into them, then you can probably find other things to do with them if you had the extra time. It was a lot of work, you had been working on this project for nearly two months, and you hope that earlier your aunt Moon hadn’t noticed the missing medicinal objects, you’ve had you force yourself to learn a bit more first aid than you already knew lest you blew your cover whenever you nicked yourself with the knife or the wood dug so deep into you it left an annoyingly buried splinter. If she noticed and mentioned it after tonight you would be able to easily come clean, but as of right now you had to do one of the things you weren’t exactly the best at with your aunts, being secretive, it’s probably best you just temporarily isolate yourself to focus solely on getting these last touches done. The stairs creaked with their growing age, pictures of memories hanging up on the wall while you walked down the hall to your room, quickly closing the door behind you before emptying everything out of your satchel to carefully lay out the materials and tools in reach, -be it ones you already had tucked away in your belongings or the newest additions you had on hand, starting to work with revitalized determination.

--

The energetic aura that kept the room so warm and bright felt as if it had left to trail after your retreating figure, your words gave the darker of the two women you left behind an uncomfortable weight in her tongue, like scratching in a spot only to miss the itch, and from the silence of her usual bubbly active wife she wasn’t the only one with the sour aftertaste. She turned to look at those bright sapphire eyes she fell in love with, pushing aside how their gleam was darkened slightly with a perturbed shadow, -it was her job to catch these negative emotions like moths from a closet for it never suited her comforting flame to be anything besides happy, and rested a comforting hand on her shoulder to lead her to the kitchen, opening her lips to comfort her.

“Hey, I’m sure after their little adventure today Y/n is just tired from it all, let’s just let them work on their project as they asked. Now, why don’t you help me with dinner tonight? I know I’m going to miss cooking with my sweet little wife.”

At the end of her words she had managed to pull up a palm that no matter how many callouses it gained from the work it did, it would forever be soft to her and pressed to her knuckles, then her palm before kissing her forehead and stepping back, a smile only truly able to uphold one corner of her mouth. It was enough to gain a smile in return, even rewarded with some precious blush, but as soon as it emerged onto her starlight’s face it fell again and she turned away to rummage through the cabinets and shelves, evidently tonight's dinner already decided in her mind. An absentminded hum followed along to the busy golden bee’s gatherings, not even the herbs on the hanging wrack were spared, -even if she had to pull the ones her wife wanted down for her, and progressively she pieced together what dish they would be making, the ingredient pattern strikingly similar.

"Moonie, do you think we did something that upset Y/n, and they don't want to let us know? I know I sometimes forget they're not as young as I think they are, but did we make them feel small by being too pushy? Oh Moon, what if they feel like a burden and force themselves to be independent of us?"

The taller witch could only listen to her woes as her hands helped her love with preparing the ingredients for the dish, -feeling it best to not mention the fact they were preparing Y/n's favorite dish for dinner, while holding her tongue as it instinctively filled with the desire to spout whatever it may have taken to reassure her, and to possibly calm her own stirring tides. It was tempting to give whatever honeyed words that could distract her from any troubles, but the raisin-haired woman knew that's all they would be, -honeyed words inflated with hopeful reassurance yet lacking any truth, for the questions leaving her lips were the very ones encouraging trouble within her mind. With a sigh she instead opted to grab a knife after reaching around her wife's body, deciding upon her next words carefully, testing her tongue hidden away before speaking with a soft tone as she grabbed some of the vegetables.

"Sunshine… I can't say for certain I have any answers to our questions, but I believe for now all we can do is show them how we support most of all they do and ask later. If we did, they'll tell. We can't just assume we're the ones that have wronged them, and that's for the chance anyone has done them wrong, well anyone besides that merchant. Could you go out to the backyard and bring in the pitcher of tea, please? I made your favorite for tonight. I’m going to go out front to start the fire and get the stew started, you’re up for the rest of the dicing, alright?”

By the time the last word left her lips, she had finished cutting the vegetables and scooped them into a bowl to be cradled easily in her arm, taking a moment to kiss the cheek of her retreating ray of pleasant sunlight, flashing a comforting smile before she turned to make quick work of the instructions she had given to herself. The sun continued to slide down the sky, the warmth its presence brought following along with it like a lost child, leaving the once gentle breeze to be more of a larger being, not exactly overbearing, but it was enough to make her consider running back inside to grab a jacket; she decided against it knowing the fire she’ll hover around is going to keep her more than warm enough, enough confidence to wave off the darkening air. It was enough to remind her spring hasn’t arrived quite yet, a fact that slips her mind with how nice it’s been lately, especially in the present moments as she gathered some timber to feed the small flames starting, with the serene atmosphere she’s grateful to share with her loved ones. Around her the birds gossiping amongst themselves about the day’s events, -she had no doubt Y/n’s scene was sprinkled somewhere in their calls, the songs of creatures hidden within the whistling trees with the tease of budding leaves, the ground taking advantage of the watered soil to send the early bit of sprouts and grass pushing through its surface, snowfall replaced with morning frost as spring snuck up slowly but surely into the woods. Fanning the flames she unhooked her ladle and began tossing the mix of crushed herbs and cut-up vegetables into the water, feeling the growing wind play with her hair, the witch was aptly reminded why she kept her cauldron outside instead of inside with the smoke it brought to her, forcing her nose to scrunch up. She didn’t hate the smell per se, but she wasn’t a fan of it, and if she had her cauldron inside their home the presence of burning embers would be constantly thick in the air, enough to truly make her head hurt and eyes water worse than it did now when a gust was thrown into her face. Stepping out of the wind’s path she threw some dirt on the flames to lower them as she hear a distant croaking nearly hidden in the creaking of old wood, waiting for any other to join in and truly tell them whether spring has arrived, they’ve yet to hear all three so far, as a result, they’ll simply continue taking in the winter weather safely with the hopes it’ll remain kind until spring bleeds through.

Another noticeable creak from a swaying wooden body somewhere among the others brought a stray thought into the light, Y/n had mentioned the first warm day after a cold night was the best time to start putting taps into maple trees to gather sap, and although she knew they’d missed the timeframe this year making some homemade maple syrup seemed like an activity she’d be happy to do the next time winter thawed away. It was a calm moment she took to wade through her thoughts, fishing for anything she needed to sort through in the meantime, -any about Y/n were promptly set inside a bucket to look back at after dinner when they got answers, while she made sure the stew didn’t boil or simmer more than it needed, the aroma it had begun to give off was enough to nearly convince her it was good as is. It seemed however that throughout all of the sounds she could pick up, the raisin-haired witch could pick up the sound of her wife’s footfalls through the grass, and when she turned her head to look at the shorter witch she was immediately reminded of a fact that made her smile brighten. No matter how long winter stretched itself out to be, no matter if it ever decided to spend its final moments with cruel wrath, she would be perfectly fine, for as long as Sun was in her embrace she would have a personal ray of sunshine to bring spring into their household with every moment spent together. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders she handed her wife the ladle before watching as she added in chunks of skinned potatoes and diced bits of the venison they had gathered from one of the hunters in the village over at the northern outskirts, the crackling of the flames reminding the two incessantly of their dangerous presence, they both wordlessly enjoyed the moment before she broke the silence, a smile in her voice.

“I heard one of them just before you came out here, what about you? Have you heard the tree frogs sing yet? I was thinking after one of us hears all three we can plan what to do for this year’s garden, I seem to recall the sweet alyssum candies I made last year had barely filled the jar for more than a month or two.”

The topics she chose were so far from what either had on their minds it was such an obvious distraction, but it was one they both welcomed, especially as the eldest smiled with guilty mischief, chuckling as she looked away to shrug in an unabashedly false ‘I have no idea’ motion, in return making her laugh alongside the other. This was a lot more appreciated than the slippery cycle of ‘what ifs’ that no doubtedly hovered between the two like an overfilled cloud eager to spill, and they both were well aware of what usually happened if they spilled without one another around to brighten the experience even if by a little bit. Together she held her wife close, watching the stew and taking care of controlling the flames, as the sun lowered so low its rays could only barely flow past the tree trunks, too short to grace the outreached limbs that forever searched the sky, the branches of the trees becoming shadow coated frames until illuminated by the light pouring from the cottage’s watchful eyes. It wasn’t until finally when the first star had blinked awake above their heads they decided the stew had finally been finished cooking, the skies a beautiful display as the once blue faded gold was now doused with purple tones melting out of red tints. The two women grabbed a larger bowl to pour it all into and carried it back inside, the smell of dinner seeming to be so strong neither had to call for Y/n to come down to eat with them as their ever-growing child emerged in a gay mood, a giddy bounce in every step; it didn’t matter that Y/n wasn’t biologically theirs, the human child that was spat out of the woods onto their doorstep, -specifically her cauldron, was theirs now and they were adamant on raising them as their own, refusing to give them back easily. The contrast between the lulled moods that muted their fretting minds compared to your eager cheerfulness was enough to give her and her wife whiplash, but it also was enough to put a comforted smile on their faces, -it reassured them as just much as it confused them with a sneaking thought, did they overthink that severely? Nevertheless, her love left her side to fetch the pitcher of tea while she moved to set the bowl of stew down, smiling as you set the table eagerly to get your serving, and for a brief moment, she wondered if you had ever eaten lunch, though the thought flickered away as quick as the flames within the lanterns illuminating to make up for the dissipating sunlight. You all sat in silence, eating your meals together, and the animated way you savored your food was noticeably different from the two eating alongside you, but that held no effect over any of you, the dinner overall being both comfortable and silently enjoyable.

--

After you had happily finished the third helping of your favorite stew you had finally felt full enough to be satisfied, making sure to voice your gratitude and compliment your favorite chefs, before deciding to truly show your gratitude as you opted to do the night’s dishes instead of either aunt, making aunt Moon smile and nod while aunt Sun dramatically swiped some invisible sweat off her forehead, making you giggle as you gathered their bowls and utensils.

“Thanks for sparing me little comet, though your auntie Moon and I need to talk to you about something, so meet up with us in the living room once you’ve finished, alright? It's nothing serious, I promise, or else I’d probably be getting sat down and talked to along with you.”

You balanced the three bowls on your hip while you listened to your aunt, even if you were confused as to why whatever they needed to discuss with you they never mentioned over dinner or right now, so even if she said it wasn’t that serious you were that it at the very least had enough weight to make them have to bring it to the living room. You didn’t want to let her see your hesitance so you instead nodded with a grin, using your other hand to give a saluting motion before grabbing the soap rag and leaving the comforting feel of the kitchen by slinking out the back door and walking to the front yard, the jacket equipped to your person held onto that warmth but it was like sand falling through its fingers, just as your thoughts were flying past like wisps of clouds slipping your own. The sun had since disappeared after your second bowl, the stars now awake enough to shine over you while encouraging the moon to join them further in the sky, watching you as you used the glowing eyes of the cottage windows to illuminate your way to the cauldron, fanning the dead embers in the off chance any were still actively dying, and smiling when some of them shined with their amber glow. Using your hand you fanned at the ash to force-feed the ashes until small flames grew to reignite the fire, then you set the dishes onto the forest floor before quickly making a quick stop at the well in order to return with a bucket of water, pouring it into the cauldron, and getting to work cleaning the few dishes, -the giant iron bowl included. As the distant wolf called for the moon among the nocturnal critters while they came out with their unique songs you dived into your thoughts, trying to figure out just what the mysterious talk would be about, were they suspicious of you and your admittedly not quite a fool-proof project?

Had auntie Moon taken notice of the difference in medical supplies, did that extra gauze come back to haunt you for the ointment you may or may not have spilled? How would you explain you had nicked yourself during your whittling session late at night when you should have been sleeping, and didn’t want to wake anyone up, let alone have to come up with why you were suddenly bleeding, -even you had to admit you weren’t the best of liars. If they were going to interrogate you about your recent activities, you’ll have no choice but to come clean, which would be devastating as you had come so far hiding the secret, so close to surprise them with your matching gifts, though you did suppose you were going to give it to them after dinner anyways. They had come out so lovely too, sure, you have no idea what your aunts will use them for since you weren’t magical and couldn’t exactly make a magical tool, but they could be used as pretty walking canes if they ever acted like old ladies! You knew you were going to use yours to help you with your chores, it’s perfect for extra arm length, or even reaching things so you won’t have to ask aunt Moon all the time to grab things for you, you’d just have to be careful knocking them into your hold. Besides, yes they had a good bit of fragile things making up different parts of them, but they were surprisingly durable, which absolutely wasn’t tested by you somehow accidentally throwing one out of your window, -sometimes what you do astounds you as much as any baffled onlooker, you were sure if anyone used any of them as a bat the only thing breaking would be whatever they were swinging at. You chuckled at the image of auntie Moon using her gift as a bat while playing ball with auntie Sun, letting your thoughts continue to humor you while you finished drying everything up and proceeded to snuff the fire out with a handful of the scarce leftover snow with enough dirt to be proper suffocation material, waiting for everything to be put out before you could head back inside. By now you were humming a familiar wordless tune you can never be sure where you’ve heard it from, your entertained mood evident in every step as you put the clean dishes back into the cupboards and hung the soap rag back up where it belonged, then you promptly knocked any dirt on your hands onto your pant legs as you entered the living room; it was evident a silent discussion had already started without you.

Instead of questioning what your favorite witches may have been talking about you stood behind the chair your auntie Moon sat and gently pulled her hair over the back of it, slowly running your fingers through to comb her enchanting dark hair, it always seemed to rival the beautiful evening skies, and you were always half expecting stars to eventually awaken and shine within her elegant locks, both of your aunt’s had lovely hair; they were lovely in general, it was nearly enough to make you feel plain in comparison, but you knew that wasn’t the case, for if it were why had they kept you even after your debt was paid? It was like running your hand against a prideful raven’s feathers, knowing the trust you had gained made sure you were special enough to be doing such an action, it was so wordlessly awarding, and it always made you feel so happy when your aunt let you do her hair like you truly were family. Any tension against the pleasant air had left with every stroking motion, it was as if you were forcefully brushing out the negativity from her mind, and you didn’t have to see her face to know of the relaxed smile on her lips. You were careful not to tug even if it never bothered her, occasionally letting your nails tenderly scratch against her scalp, though with the barely noticeable way she leaned into you whenever you did, it was as if you had scratched an itch she wasn’t aware she had, it was funnily enough reminiscent of a cat getting scratched under her chin. Running your fingers through you knew there weren’t going to be any tangles to catch them like a net, but continued to do it out of habit from doing your hair, though you paused for a moment as she cleared her throat, letting you know the ‘talk’ was being initiated, whatever the topic may be. Looking across the room while you pulled a small ribbon from your pocket, your eyes caught your other aunt watching you from her chair, the smile on her lips reassuring, yet the gleam in her eyes even seemed to let you know she expected to have her hair done next, making you stifle a giggle as you continue playing with your auntie Moon’s hair.

“Y/n, your aunt and I have noticed you acting a bit different lately, it normally wouldn’t bother us since you’re a growing child, but we’ve begun to worry if we’ve done something wrong. “

“You’re acting distant and we feel a bit left out comet.”

Your aunt Moon paused, shooting a look you couldn’t see to interrupting wife, before sighing, -a motion you could feel under your fingertips as you finished tying her night-encased silken strands into a relaxed fishtail plait, taking a moment to admire how your green ribbon contrasted against her hair before moving over behind your golden aunt, eager as her to repeat the process with her shorter hair. The admiration you held for the strands that made your already optimistic golden aunt seem to glow was shown through your tender touches, it was such a unique natural color no light was ever needed to see her fun adventurous shine. You didn’t like this talk, thinking about your past actions thoroughly through their point of view, feeling your chest swell with the familiar blooms of guilt as you realized yeah, it did seem like you were distancing yourself from them, but you waited for your auntie Moon to finish what she was saying before you rushed to correct your wrong.

“Yes, as your aunt Sun put it, we feel left out. You seem to be growing independent so quickly, and that’s alright, but you shouldn’t feel like you suddenly have to be as independent from us as possible, you’re always supported by us, and you can always ask us for help. We are your aunties after all.”

As your fingers combed through the hair rivaling the golden sunrise, you held on to her words almost impatiently, and as she finally finished speaking you opened your lips; the guilt from the easy misconception of your actions was nearly unbearable as you took note of her tone. Your aunt Moon's words were their usual calm pace, even with curious highlights as if they were searching for the reason why you acted so, but all you could hear was the undertone of hesitance. You could only easily focus on how it felt as if she was on cracked ice while being scared of startling you away like a frightened deer from their confrontation, this wasn't what you meant to do. You pulled out another ribbon from your pocket as you spoke, shaking your head with a fierce denial, your eyes trying to reassure her as you tied your aunt Sun's hair into a bun, your voice trickling like a rapid stream once you got started.

“Wha- No-! Er, no, I mean, truly, you guys have done nothing wrong, this is all my fault, I’m not distancing myself on purpose, I promise! By the stars, I did this so weirdly, and it’s probably the worst way to reveal this, but I was just acting so strange because I was hiding something. You know that project I mentioned? It was a gift for you, both of you. I guess now is a time as any to give them, even though it’s probably horrible timing in reality, but could you close your eyes and extend your hands palms up? I’ll be just a moment, hold on.”

Once you finished what you said you spared no time for their questions as you rushed up the stairs in possibly record timing only to slide down the railing, -you had no time to rush down the stars with the same purposeful adrenaline only to risk stumbling down, even though you nearly slid onto your back as you skidded onto the wooden floors. Each one was held in your arms like a collection of scrolls, -a task you’ve done while running to and fro with auntie Sun during a ritual preparation, before you set the specialized staffs into each set of hands they belonged to, huffing ever so slightly as your tired body caught up with itself. The reason that pushed you to show them being overshadowed as anxious excitement bubbled like a fresh brew, nearly bouncing in your spot as you lifted your hands, your staff that was in your hand slipping from your grasp and flying out of the room with a thud, making you gasp with a choked laugh. Wincing at the noise you turned to look at their curious expressions, though Moon was now obviously more curious about the sudden noise than the weighted item in her hand, so you laughed reassuringly while speaking before walking over to your poor decorated stick, noticing that their hands were exploring each detail. 

“Ack, um, open your eyes! Sorry, I accidentally threw mine. This took a few months in preparation, and I probably could have done better if the due date wasn’t today, but here we go! Happy Valentine’s day aunties!”

You jogged out of the room to grab your staff in a laughable game of fetch, this was the second time you’d done something like this, at least the first time reassured you nothing would have been broken this go round, and when you returned to your gasping aunts that self-disappointment was vaporized, a prideful joy blooming so brightly in your chest you felt it could have burst from your ribs. Each witch was admiring her staff, eyes soaking every detail with amazement so raw in their gazes, the tender way they examined the glass work and carvings with their fingers, it made you feel as if the silent praise was enough to make you melt in a puddle like the snow outside, -you doubt you’d care if the earth absorbed you in the same way as well. Moon held hers upright, turning it in a slow rotation as she tested how it felt for her hands to wrap around the indent points where you made sure to direct where the handler’s palms were supposed to grasp onto, her fingers inspecting if with a tender touch as if it’d be tainted or bruise if she pressed any harder. Each staff was carved from the same wood, dark mesquite that had fallen, -coming across the poor thing was what started off the entire staff project, but they were shaped differently, for Moon, the head curved into an enclosed circle like a hollow moon, for Sun, it curved outward like an outreached hand, and yours simply stood upright, the only interesting thing about the head was what was inside. With the uncommon chips or unwanted scars left from accidental cuts you smoothed out that you were a practicing beginner, but even then you were proud of how well the carvings came out, especially with the varnished shine that brought out the beauty of the wood, and how even though each was unique, they all were connected, just like their owners. Each staff had a patterned design, something unique matching their owner, carved paths to guide the faux vines rooted within them, a set of specific glass flowers adorned to the vines, and wooden fungi embedded into their bodies; despite how vague the theme for each staff was, it worked satisfyingly, neither one so crowded it was unpleasant all the while having enough static to keep the eyes and hands entertained.

For auntie Sun, her staff was adorned with a ribbon of witch butter flowing counterclockwise, while flowing clockwise was the lookalike ivy that was so firmly fastened so securely into the wood it wouldn’t be faulted if one thought they couldn’t cut it while at the same time, it looked to be loose enough it imitated naturally growing vines. Throughout the vine were decorative bundles of three types of glass flowers, specifically snowdrops, honeysuckles, and butterfly orchids, enough detail in each of them their identification was easy if you knew what each looked like already, and they were set together in a way that flattered the others, all in different stages of blooming. One of the more eye-attracting things was the head of the staff, especially what the carved hand seemed to be holding onto, the chunk of bumblebee jasper carved with much more noticeable skill as it took a bright shape of a golden sun with wavy rays held tenderly in the wooden hand’s palm. You watched as she held her staff on its side, tracing the sun curiously before discovering the small sigil tucked into the back of it, - a detail barely visible unless someone was truly looking for small things such as that, and her sapphire optics flashed to you, making you turn to look at your auntie Moon instead, bashful heat rising to your cheeks. Aunt Moon’s staff was similar to auntie Sun’s but entirely different all the same. Like Sun’s it had vines rooted into it, only these were faux black sweet potato vines curling counterclockwise, and the flowers were bundles of scattered nightshade, periwinkles, and forget-me-nots, balanced in their locations to compliment one another in different stages of bloom each distinct in their details. Instead of witch butter, her staff had caps of vibrant violet webcaps nestled into the wood itself, giving the illusion everything was growing naturally out of the wood itself, the groups were made of caps of different sizes, and although it wasn’t clear ribbon like your aunt Sun’s, they created a broken spiral flowing clockwise; even though there was more space unoccupied with faux flora, there were small words and pictures carved into her staff, a sigil of peace they taught you and a sigil for both a happy family and marriage. Also like Sun’s staff the head was the most eye-catching, for in the center of the hollow circle was a chunk of fluorapatite carved into a waning moon, hanging from a small piece of vine as if a suspended blossom, a small barely noticeable rune carved into the back of the crystal.

Suddenly you were aware of the two sets of eyes on the staff in your own hands, making you hold it out more subtly for them to examine, your smile never leaving your face as the silence was filled with so much sound, -keeping it pleasant instead of deafening, while you grew conscious about how your staff wasn’t as humbly extravagant as theirs, but you knew it was noticeable how there was still effort put into its creation so they’d match together. Your staff was more of a mix of both of theirs like it too had the vines, but they were a combination of both ivy and black sweet potato vines twirled together, and your ribbon of wooden fungi was the remainder of witch butter with sparingly placed bundles of the violet webcaps in the gaps. Your glass flowers were buttercups, magnolias, and lilacs, while your crystal centerpiece was a corked bottle made of fluorite embedded into the very wood itself, -a bulge similar to pushing your thumb in a ball of raw cookie dough surrounded the bottle’s base, and the rune in the others was set into the back of the star fastened as the cork, a rune to connect your little family through these walking sticks. Overcoming the mix of raw emotions flooding you all, you stepped to them to hug each of your aunts, though aunt Moon stood up to follow you so when you hugged her wife she squished you in between them, the three of you returning the loving embrace the other two gave for a good solid minute. The feeling of being so cared for, of being so loved in this family, it made you feel like butter and you couldn’t be any more grateful as you were the first to break free from the hug, looking between the staffs propped against the now empty chairs and the one in your hand, then to your aunts who still had one arm wrapped around each other, their smiles matching yours in their ways, and you knew they felt what you did.

“Thank you Y/n, this means a lot to us, more than you’re probably aware.”

“Yeah, thank you! These are so cool, you better believe this is coming along with me to my next travels, it’ll be my new good luck charm since this one over here keeps telling me I’m gonna run out of it soon.”

After they voiced their gratitude towards your hard work you all three began talking about them, leading to you answering questions about their designs, the process of making them, and some fun facts about what you included. You made sure to include how those from the northern village had a large hand in helping you with the tasks, there was the jeweler that carved the crystal pieces for you in exchange for you bringing him five basket fulls of certain crystal types you could find in the caves scattered around the forest or the bottle maker who made the glass flowers if and only if you brought her a very specific type of sand from this strange witch so they would be as strong as rocks with the charm of thin stained glass, and of course including a more detailed summary of the events earlier this morning. It was a difficult path to create these, but you wouldn’t change a thing for the reward you received made it all worthwhile, something you admitted to them before mentioning something else.

“You guys are my family, and I’ll always lean on you, especially right now I know I still have so much to learn, and who else would be better suited than my lesbian aunties? Trust me when I say no matter how independent I become as I grow up, I’ll come to my favorite witches for instruction. Just know I’ll always be your problem, you two are stuck with me like I’m stuck with both of you. Besides, while carving the other night I got my finger, and when I tried what you usually do aunt Moon it just barely learned, so first aid is most certainly one of the things I have to learn from you.”

At those final words, said aunt Moon looked at you and your hand with sudden scrutiny, making you laugh like a child and hide on the other side of your aunt Sun, trying to get out of reach of the staff that was now being pointed to you in a playfully threatening manner, causing your golden aunt to raise her hand in surrender.

“Alright, I admit it! I stole something, just be gentle, miss guard.”

Her sudden admission made you both freeze in confusion, and once she knew both of you were hooked she made a show of looking side to side, hands still suspended while she awaited the magical words that left her raisin-haired lover’s lips, playing along while wondering where this was going.

“What did you steal?”

“Your heart~”

She then jumped forward to hug Moon, the force making the two fall and even though you moved to help, you only got pulled down with them. Laughter filled the lively air, even as you sat up beside the two while your aunt Sun continued to simply lay on top of aunt Moon, who was far from complaining about the situation, and you poked her pale cheek with a snicker to steal her attention slightly.

“Do you think you could put the medical stuff on my tab?”

You three continued to play around, making jokes for the simple reason to hear the other two laugh and savoring the time you all were spending together, the sounds of pleasant enjoyment were as loud into the forest as the calls of the lone wolf were, but the forest didn’t seem to mind. They were sounds dearly missed and with their return, they were welcomed back with open arms, for the small family of witches and the human were accepted as a part of these woods as the very trees themselves. The moon eventually was high enough to be nestled in the longing arms of the calling stars, by the time it had arrived overhead the family decided to gather rest and said their goodnights, climbing into bed knowing that this page of your story will never be forgotten.

--

Thistles had long since overtaken her garden, the smoke clawing its way into all of her senses, as all the eternal flowers, -flowers that were in reality as fragile as the living, hid from her outreached hands in the underbrush like forgotten treasures; she refuses to forget them. All she can see now as she flew away were the rhododendrons blooming from her heart, their stems suffocating, while the wood against her hand did nothing but echo back the laughter of bells to never chime again. They rang, be it of support or torment, she could never be sure, while the ghost of a life that once was finally removed its hand from her throat to release her voice. Her anguished cries came out in choking sobs, salty drops of rain leaving cloudy eyes to water the witch’s cruel bouquet, for she knew they could never be enough to put out the fire.

[r0siep0sey]

Family Always Finds Each Other//Amphibia Au

Since amphibia is over I really felt like making an Au because the ending was just so sad and I wanted to make an Au that takes place after the ending where Anne, Sasha, and Marcy find a way to return to amphibia

Part 1: Spranne Against The World

"Thanks for having my back Sprig" "Spranne against the world!" those words echoed in Anne's mind it had been 10 years since she said her goodbyes to the frogs who had took her in and cared for her as they would their own so much had happened since then but she never forgot them Anne felt a wave of sadness wash over her as she started to remember amphibia sure she had only known everyone there for less than a year but it felt like she had known them all her life and deep down she longed to go back to amphibia "Hey Anne? You doing alright?" Sasha's words snapped Anne out of her thoughts and she looked up from the table the three girls were seated at and realized Sasha and Marcy were both looking at her a bit concerned Anne quickly wiped away a few tears "Y-Yeah I was just thinking of...of amphibia....I really miss everyone there it's been so long since we left and I wonder how they're doing" She replied "I've been thinking of amphibia a lot too especially since it's the anniversary of the day we arrived there" Marcy said "It sucks we can't go back..." Sasha added Anne started to zone out again wishing the gems had lasted and wondering if there could've been another way to stop the core without sacrificing the only way to go back and forth from earth but then Anne got an idea she heard that Dr. Jan and Terri had been attempting to create some portals to different worlds and apparently the tests were surprisingly successful Anne immediately stood up "Guys! I know how we can get back to amphibia!"

"Wait you want us to help you get back to amphibia!?" Dr. Jan exclaimed in an excited but surprised tone "Yep! I think we're more than overdue for a visit is there any chance you could help us?" Anne asked "Hmm well since all of the tests we've done so far have worked out I don't see why we can't try to help you three visit your old friends" Terri replied

1 week later

"Welcome back Sprig! How was your journey?" Polly asked "It was amazing! There were so many cool creatures I've never seen before!" Sprig replied enthusiastically he and Ivy had gone on an adventure to explore an island that had never been explored by anyone until now suddenly a memory drifted into his mind it was of the first time he and Anne had met then he started to remember all of the adventures they had gone on "Spranne against the world!" Those four words started to echo in his mind "You thinking of Anne again?" Polly's question made him look up "Yeah...it feels like just yesterday she left amphibia for good...I can't believe how long it's been..." Sprig replied his head hanging low he held Anne's phone in his hands and started to flip through the photos on it his hands started to shake a bit and tears started to roll down his cheeks "it's not fair...she should be here...it doesn't feel right without her..." Sprig mumbled "I miss her too...we all do..." Polly replied hugging Sprig

"Ok there's no guarantee this will work but let's keep our fingers crossed" Terri said before flipping the lever on a machine a blue orb appeared in the middle of it and started to rapidly spin and expand Anne, Sasha, and Marcy watched in awe as the orb thined into a ring and showed a big green field a few large dragonflies flew by and out of sight "That's amphibia alright!" Anne said confidently and enthusiastically the three girls grabbed their backpacks that were filled with the supplies they'd need and stood shoulder to shoulder Anne took a deep breath before stepping through the portal Sasha and Marcy looked at each other for a moment before looking back at the portal and following Anne

Andrias was busy planting a few tree saplings and Grime had come to assist him for a bit since he didn't have much to do that day everything went as usual just another day "Anne slow down! Wait for us!" Grime suddenly looked up and looked across the field but he saw nothing "What's the matter?" Andrias asked "Nothing I just- thought I heard something" Grime replied then suddenly he heard the voice again but couldn't make out what was being said this time "I hear it too" Andrias said confused but curious just then a familiar figure appeared at the top of a hill a human with brown curly hair Grime almost thought he was seeing things but Andrias saw her too just then two other humans appeared next to her one with long black hair and the other with short blonde hair Grime and Andrias just stared in disbelief not knowing what to even say the three girls spotted them and soon after started running towards them Grime ran to meet them but Andrias was too shocked to move he barely could process what he was seeing "Grimesy!" Sasha shouted as she ran to Grime "Sasha!" Grime yelled while running towards the hill "Grimesyyy!" Sasha yelled back "Sashaaaa!" Grime shouted Sasha started running ahead of Anne and Marcy but before She was even halfway down the hill Marcy tripped and fell knocking Anne down and Anne knocked Sasha down and all three of them started tumbling down the hill until they landed on the ground one at a time a couple feet from Grime who stopped running when they started falling down the hill Marcy sat up almost immediately "I'm ok!" She said Grime helped Anne and Sasha up before meeting up with Andrias and they all shared a big group hug and caught up a little then soon started heading to wartwood

Sprig was sitting in the basement with Polly who was watching Sprig coloring in a drawing of Anne Sprig had hoped it would help him to feel better but all it really did was make him miss Anne even more "Sprig if this isn't helping we could always-" Polly stopped talking when she heard what sounded like cheering coming from outside curious she ran out of the basement to see what was going on Sprig stopped drawing and followed Polly but not nearly as quickly once he got outside he saw everyone in wartwood gathered around in a big circle he spotted Polly running to the center and followed her but once he actually made it to the middle of the crowd he stopped and stared in disbelief as Polly ran up to three humans who though looked very different were easily recognizable Sasha was busy talking to Grime Marcy was talking to Olivia, Yunan, and Andrias and Anne was greeting everyone from wartwood Sprig almost thought he was dreaming for a moment until he saw Polly run right up to Anne and hug her followed by Hop Pop Sprig felt like he was frozen he didn't know what to do or what to even say this was really happening Anne was finally here

Anne was busy greeting everyone while trying her best not to start crying uncontrollably Polly was so grown now she changed so much once Polly and Hop Pop had finally calmed down they sat next to Anne and started to tell her about everything that had happened but they stopped when they noticed Sprig in fact everyone did Anne looked up and her eyes immediately locked with Sprig's Anne felt frozen but only for a moment she stood up and slowly walked up to Sprig before kneeling down so she was closer to his height "Hey dude..." Anne said tears starting to roll down her face Sprig didn't move and his eyes stayed locked with Anne's but there was no missing the tears starting to streak down his face "Y-You're...you're h-here..." Sprig was barely able to speak "Yep I'm here bud...I'm-" Anne tried to reply but Sprig suddenly hugged her tighter than anyone had ever hugged her before Anne hugged Sprig she could barely see because of the amount of tears that were in her eyes after all this time they were finally back together after all this time she had finally found her way back they both sat there embracing each other "I-I can't b-believe you're really here..." Sprig choked out Anne hugged him tighter before speaking again "We're family Sprig and family always finds each other no matter what..."

End of Part 1

I hope you guys enjoyed this story I'm not sure how many parts I'll make I guess it depends on if people like it or not I don't really want to put effort into anything if no one reads it

[goggles-mcgee]

Hello! I really loved Ivy's sampling au. Could you write about the whole Lila situation and Mari's return to Githam? Thank you and I really like your posts

Absolutely! I absolutely adore manners too so kudos to you! God I sound like an old woman...anyways onward!

Lila and her whole thing goes like how she threatened basically, she did turn Marinette's friends against her and is just in general making her life hell. The only one's on Marinette's side are Chloe, Sabrina, Marc, Kagami, Aurore, Mireille, and Luka. Chloe and Sabrina are their own entity or that's how LIla views them, she doesn't think they are Marinette's allies so she leaves them alone.

But Lila starts to try and get Marinette in trouble again, not just with Bustier like she's been doing, and Adrien is doing nothing to help her. He even lectured her on her behavior practically every day.. Marinette had tried to resign as class president but Lila wouldn't let her, her classmates yelled at her each time about how she was just lazy and was doing it to be mean to them and bullying them and trying to make Lila feel pressured. Mlle Bustier was quick to scold her and give her a lecture about the Marinette's of the world, despite Chloe saying she was more than happy to take over the position. Then Lila went to Tom and Sabine with the class and told them she was bullying her and the others and not taking her position as class president seriously, and that they were really worried about her.

Tom and Sabine started to treat Marinette differently, they never really treated her as a daughter to begin with, more like a niece, but now they acted like they were housing a juvenile delinquent on probation or something. They started watching her more and making sure she wasn't in the house alone as much as she had been and it was making being Ladybug very difficult, as well as being the Guardian.

It was all becoming too much for Marinette, and she knew things were better for her mother, she was working for Wayne Enterprises again, specifically at his greenhouses there in Gotham and she was also the lead Botanist and was being allowed to continue her research as a biochemist. She was dating Harley Quinn who was more a vigilante now and who ran her own podcast since her doctor license was revoked, so she gave "unofficial" psychological advice while also talking about anything and everything that came to mind.

So when her mom called her, Marinette couldn't hold it back anymore and she cried and told her mother everything, and by everything I mean everything, including being Ladybug. She wanted to come home, to wanted to go back and live in Gotham. It really didn't take much convincing and it was ridiculously fast for Marinette to pack and get her school to give her her transcripts. She didn't know it was because Ivy demanded Batman contact Bruce Wayne and help her daughter get out of that ridiculous school, and then destroy it. Bruce agreed, not to destroy, but he did launch an investigation on the school that they were sure not to get away from without some damage, after getting Marinette's papers.

Ivy takes one of the private jets to personally pick up Marigold, because as soon as she gets her daughter they decide to burn her fake identity since it's caused her nothing but pain. Ivy has some choice words for Tom and Sabine, and then they go back to Gotham and Marinette can finally breath.

They decide she should do homeschooling since she's still Ladybug and the Guardian and it would be easier for her to slip away if she needed to for an Akuma. Ivy doesn't like that her daughter is in danger a lot and is basically Paris's sole protector besides Viperion and Donryu (formerly Ryuko) since the cat one doesn't show much and when he does he's not much help.

Ivy wants to help so badly and Marigold told her she'd think about it but if she let her mom help she would have to do exactly as she said. Harley wants to help too of course, and that was fun getting to see the two take to each other. It made her so happy that they liked each other and Marigold was even calling Harley Ma', which was super adorable.

Overall Marigold's move to Gotham was a great thing. But Ivy really wanted to make those little meatsacks her daughter used to call friends, pay for hurting her little sapling, as did Harley, and surprisingly Batman. He said they couldn't actually physically hurt them but he suggested outing the liar and yeah okay maybe that was a pretty good idea. Ivy is careful to leave put the bit about the magical terrorist since she's not exactly sure if her Marigold wants Batman to know.

Everything is great, perfect really. Then that rock star Jagged Stone announces he's leaving Paris because it's not "Rock n Roll enough now that his honorary niece is no longer living there." And that she "took the rocking-est notes with her when she left" so he was going to move back home which was coincidentally where his honorary niece loved...in Gotham...Marigold failed to mention that to her mother.

And then Marigold meets Damian Wayne one day when she's out buying fabric and the two seem to form a connection and Pamela really has to ask if this is all karma for when she was a villain.

[7-wonders]

Mother Knows Best

Summary: You place your trust in Michael, probably more than you should, as he takes your hand and pulls you out of the prison that you've known as home and into the world.

Word Count: 2474 words

A/N: Hi everybody, this is the second part of my Tangled!AU. I hope you all enjoy this, and, if you did, likes, comments, feedback, and reblogs are always appreciated. Criticism is always appreciated too. Read the first part of this AU here!

(^^^exactly how I imagine Michael and reader's relationship in this, btw)

The last time that you had asked Mother about leaving the cottage, things had not gone as you had imagined them. You had had a whole speech prepared, one where you outlined that you were mature and more than ready to face the world with your mother by your side. This trust was going to be built up with small excursions at first; you envisioned going to the market that Mother always got her herbs for spells from, maybe even to the French Quarter that you’d read so much about. Eventually, you hoped to see the school and the girls that Mother spent all day with. Even though your magic is nothing but parlor tricks, you could still be a good help with the younger girls!

Instead, you had barely gotten past what the encyclopedias called a thesis before Mother had stopped you, a smile that you came to learn as patronizing gracing her face. She stood from the couch that you had excitedly set her down on, coming to stand right in front of you. You had long since grown to be Mother’s height, but she still managed to be just as intimidating eye-to-eye.

“You want to leave the grounds?” Mother asked, and you nodded emphatically. “Look at you, as fragile as a flower. Still a little sapling, just a sprout! You know why we stay here, away from others?”

“I know, but…” Of course you knew, she had been telling you why for as long as you could remember. The world was cruel and scary, and evil people would stop at nothing to harm the Supreme’s daughter. Mother had tried for so long to have a child that, after having you, she couldn’t bear to lose you. But you’ve become tired with that explanation, and you want more.

“Yes, to keep you safe and sound.” Sometimes you wonder if she can read your mind. “I guess I always knew this day was coming. Knew that soon, you’d want to leave the nest. Soon, but not yet.”

“But--”

She put her hands on your shoulders. “Shh! Trust me, pet. Mother knows best.”

“Mother, I’m sure that I will be safe with you by my side. I’m not asking to run away and leave you, I’m asking to go with you!” You were starting to get extremely frustrated with her. Though you didn’t know it, the sky was beginning to cloud dangerously with your emotions.

“It’s a scary world out there, and something will go wrong, I swear. Ruffians, thugs, poison ivy, quicksand, cannibals, snakes, the plague..”

You rolled your eyes, tired of her listing every bad thing you could meet. “No!”

“Yes! Large bugs, men with pointy teeth--” she broke off in a dramatic sigh, wincing as if the mere idea was terrifying. “Stop, no more, you’ll just upset me.”

Huffing, you began to gather up the words as to why none of this mattered, but Mother gathered you in her arms and pulled you into an almost stifling hug.

“Darling, here’s what I suggest. Skip the drama, stay with mama! Mother knows best.”

“Why do you know best though? I’m grown up, I want to experience more of life than what’s here at the house. After all, there has to be good in the world, or else you wouldn’t keep going out into it.”

Mother’s eyes steeled, and she gritted her teeth as she looked down at you. “Take it from me. On your own, you won’t survive. Sloppy, underdressed, immature, clumsy--please! They’ll eat you up alive.”

Your jaw dropped at the rude words coming out of her mouth, never having dealt with her being so harsh before.

“Gullible, naïve, positively grubby! Ditzy and a bit...well, hmm, vague. I’m just saying this because I love you! I understand, and I’m here to help you. All I have is one request.”

You were crying by then, and looked up in Mother’s embrace when she called your name softly. “Yes?”

Her hand, which had been comfortingly running through your hair, went to your chin to force you to look at her. “Don’t ever ask to leave this house again.”

“Yes, Mother,” you mumbled, just ready to be done with this nightmare of a conversation.

“I love you very much, dear.”

You forced a smile, ready to say what you had said for as long as you could remember. “I love you more.”

“I love you most.”

Oh boy, you couldn’t imagine how furious Mother would be once she arrives home and finds out that you left. That thought alone has you looking back at the end of the long, long driveway, contemplating whether you should just forget this and turn around. If you went back now, she wouldn’t even know that you left, let alone left with a strange man who broke in and started claiming so many terrible things about Mother.

The man in question senses the turmoil that you’re going through, and looks at you curiously. How Michael wishes he could read your mind right now. In normal circumstances, he could, but you’re far from normal. No formal training, yet you’ve put up mental blocks that not even he can get through. It’s fascinating, which is exactly why he can’t let you have any doubt about leaving with him.

“I know you’re worried,” Michael says next to you, making you jump, “but you don’t have to be. You think that Cordelia was worried when she kidnapped you? Was she worried all of the years that she kept you locked up as a prisoner?”

He could be one of those ruffians or thugs that Mother warned you about, your brain chimes in. Have you checked his teeth to make sure they’re not pointy?

“You don’t have to be worried or afraid. I’m right here with you, and I’ll make sure that you never have to feel this type of fear again.” Michael holds out his hand once more, but instead of expecting you to shake it, he’s expecting you to grab it. “Do you trust me?”

You’re not really sure that you do. He’s dangerous, and you don’t have to know him to know that for a fact. You saw the way his eyes went completely black. He talks like he knows you, knows your life, and you still think that he lied to you about Mother kidnapping you. Yet, there are some things that he does seem to know. He knows the isolation that you’ve felt your entire life, and he doesn’t have to tell you that for you to know. You can see it in the way that he looks at you, like you’re a kindred spirit who’s gone through what he’s gone through.

The one thing that got you to say yes to leaving with him, and the thing that keeps you from going home right now, is what he was able to do regarding your powers. Michael knew that getting you upset would unleash powers that you weren’t aware you possessed. He knows what you’re capable of, even though you don’t, and you want to figure that out, too. That’s why you grab his hand.

“I probably shouldn’t, but yes, I trust you.”

Michael smiles at you in a way that makes you duck your head shyly. “Are you ready, then?”

The step that you both take at the same time is literally quite small, but figuratively earth-shattering. You gasp when you realize that you’re actually off of the property that you had grown up on, the property that you’ve never left before. It feels like freedom to you, and freedom is tantalizing. Michael grins next to you as he watches your excitement, the grin only widening as you begin to giggle giddily.

“You really haven’t ever gotten out, huh?”

“Nope. Mother would be so mad right now.” For some reason, the thought makes you laugh even harder.

“Well, now that we’ve officially made it out, what do you want to do first?”

It takes a moment, but you finally calm down enough to respond. “What...what do you mean?”

“We can go anywhere, do anything, that you want. The world is yours now.”

You think, trying to decide. With a whole world of options in front of you, it’s a lot to comprehend. “I’ve always wanted to go to the French Quarter. I know that’s probably not what you were expecting, but I’ve always seen pictures in the books that Mother brought home for me. I want to experience everything that I’ve only ever read about.”

“Let’s start in the French Quarter, then.”

“Uh...how do we get there? It doesn’t look like you have a car.” At least, not that you can see. Maybe they make invisible cars?

“I said I’d train you to harness and use your magic, did I not?” You nod. “This is where we start. Have you ever teleported before?”

“Teleported?” You let out a sharp laugh.

“Transmuted is the correct term, but the two can be used interchangeably.”

“And you think that I can do this?”

“I know that you can do this. With how close we are to the French Quarter, it should be extremely easy for you. Think of it like riding a bike with training wheels.” You stare at him blankly. “Bad analogy for both of us, sorry.”

“Okay, so...how do I transmute, then? Am I just supposed to wish really hard or something?”

Michael chuckles. “Kind of. You have to think of your powers as something alive, something that you need to work with. Magic can do what you want, as long as you know how to tap into it correctly.”

Michael puts his hands on your shoulders, but unlike when Mother would so often do the same move, it feels comforting and not controlling.

“Take a few deep breaths, and close your eyes.” Though you feel a little foolish, you do as he says, body relaxing as you do so. “Good. I want you to think of the pictures that you’ve seen so often, imagine the feeling on those cobblestone streets under your shoes, smell the beignets cooking--”

“I don’t know what beignets smell like,” you mutter.

“Okay then, smell what you think they smell like. See the Spanish-style buildings and the wrought iron fences. Can you imagine it?”

“Yes.” And you can. You spent so long looking at pictures from all around the world, French Quarter included, that it doesn’t take all that long to place yourself there.

“Good. Now, place yourself there. This is where the ‘wishing’ comes in. You need to put us in this scene that you’ve created.”

“Put us there,” you repeat. It feels like you’re in a trance as you do what Michael says, putting both of you in this French Quarter that you’ve imagined. Your nose tickles, you feel a strange tugging in your belly button, and then you feel the wind blowing around you. After a moment you sigh in frustration. “I don’t think it’s working, Michael.”

“Open your eyes,” he whispers. You do, and gasp at what you see.

Sure enough, both of you are standing in the actual, real French Quarter. People smile at you as they pass, and you can hear different songs coming from the open doors of the shops and bars and businesses that surround you. You smell something sickly sweet, almost like fried sugar.

“You did it.”

“Oh my god, I did it!” you squeal, bouncing up and down on the balls of your feet. “I actually did it, I--you didn’t help me, right?”

“Not at all. I told you what to do, but that’s it.”

“Wow, this is,” you spin around slowly, taking it all in, “this is amazing. It’s exactly what I always imagined it would be like.”

Michael Langdon does not have a heart, figuratively. He can’t have a heart, or any human emotions, he’s the Antichrist, for fuck’s sake. That’s not entirely true. The human emotions that are good--wrath, jealousy, rage--are ones that Michael's more than happy to feel. But seeing the wonder on your face as you look at this town that you never thought you would actually get to see, Michael feels his stomach twisting into knots. It’s uncomfortable, and he really hopes that it’s just some sort of transmutation-related sickness. Shoving his emotions down, he adopts a face of cool indifference.

“It’s going to be dark soon, we should find a hotel to spend the night in.”

Your face falls. “Oh, I don’t have any money, but I can pay you back at some point.”

“I don’t have money either.”

“Then how will we pay?”

Michael smirks. “We won’t.”

You look at him in confusion, but follow him anyways as he walks down the street with his hands clasped behind his back.

Your confusion only escalates when Michael walks right up to the front desk at the Ritz-Carlton on Canal Street and smiles at the concierge. “Mr. Langdon plus one.”

“Of course, Mr. Langdon, I see you’re right here with a penthouse reservation.” The book that the concierge is looking at, the one that he says the reservation is written down in, is blank. Regardless, Michael is handed a key. “Enjoy your stay at the Ritz-Carlton, New Orleans!”

Once you’re safely on the elevator, you seem to come out of the confused stupor that’s kept you tongue tied until now. “What was that?” you demand.

“What was what?” Michael says coyly.

“There was nothing written in that book, but he knew you had a reservation! How did that happen?”

“It was a simple mind control, hardly anything to write home about.”

“You tricked him into giving us a room?”

“I didn’t trick him. He just saw something that wasn’t there. Really, it’s his own fault. He should learn to read better.”

“You can’t do that! That’s...that’s mean, and I’m pretty sure it’s illegal.”

Michael sighs. “You really need to stop seeing the world in black-and-white. The Ritz-Carlton is one of the richest hotel chains in the world. Not getting paid for a single night’s reservation is not going to hurt them in the slightest. When we leave, they won’t even remember there were people staying in the suite.”

“But…”

“Feel free to sleep on the streets tonight.” Michael unlocks the door to the hotel suite, swinging it open to reveal the definition of elegance. “But I will be staying here. The choice is yours.”

You’ll soon come to learn that choices, minuscule as they may seem, have a resounding impact on your life. Taking Michael’s hand and leaving the house that was all you had ever known was the first such choice. This, swallowing your pride and going to stay in a hotel room that you did not pay for, is the second. Whether it’s good or bad is yet to be determined.

//

Tag List: @antichristlangdon @michaellangdon @ajokeformur-ray @lichellaw @wroteclassicaly @xavierplympton @trelaney @hecohansen31 @sojournmichael @dyns33 @dark-mei-rose @blakescoven @ladyrindt @marvelmayo @1950schick @brattylovee

[starlxghtmoon]

Spread Your Wings || Chapter Two

Pairing: Hawks x Reader || Tangled AU

Warnings: Possible gaslighting, potential indirect emotional abuse and manipulation.

Word Count: 2,408 words

A/N: Another shitty one ;-; but hey! two chapters in one day sounds like a win to me. This one’s more plot, I believe in the next chapter there will be an interraction between hawks and you! which will be much more fun to write! i’m sorry for making midnight the villain here, but i cannot see anyone else as mother gothel ajbfkjkjsoajnwoin anyways, enjoy!

Disclaimer:  I do not own BNHA or Tangled, both and all characters except OCs [Mimi the cat] belong to their respective creators. This is purely creative fun. 

Chapter One || Chapter Three

Masterlist

"This is it!" You excitedly put away your paints, Mimi helping by putting away a couple paint brushes with you. "This is a very big day, Mimi!" You picked the midnight black cat up and nuzzled your face into her fur. You'd been hyping yourself up for this moment, with the help of Mimi of course, she'd been supporting you through it all. Pulling her back from your shoulder, you held her up in front of you under her arms, "I'm finally gonna do it! I'm gonna ask her."

"Y/N!" Your mother called from outside, your ears perking up at the familiar sound of her voice, your gaze drawing to the window "Let down your hair!"

You were bubbling over with uncontrollable joy, hopeful that your mother would let you leave to see the lights. You could hear her words already. “It’s time!” Mimi meowed in approval, her tail swishing around, sharing in your excitement. “Okay, okay. You have to go hide now. Don’t let her see you.” You set Mimi down, letting her hide behind the curtains as you pulled them in front of her to make sure she was hidden.

“Y/N! I’m not getting any younger down here!”

You rushed up to the window, “Coming, Mother!” And proceeded to gather up your hair, securing it on the hook outside the window. Hauling a whole human up with your hair alone was hard work, you pulled and pulled and pulled until she came into your sights, helping her inside. “Hi. Welcome home, Mother.” You greeted as she made her entrance.

“Ugh, Y/N, how do you manage to do that every single day without fail.” She feigned, placing a hand over her heart as she approached you, grey streaking through her inky black hair. “It looks absolutely exhausting, darling.” She reached forward to push your hair back and gave you a frown of pity.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” You chuckled nervously.

“Then I don’t know why it takes so long.” She tapped your nose, making your smile drop a little and she gave an empty laugh as she immediately followed with, “Oh, darling, I’m just teasing.” You let out another awkward chuckle as she walked past you.

“Alright. So, Mother, as you know tomorrow is a very big day-”

“Y/N, look in that mirror.” She cut you off, pulling you up beside her in view of the mirror. “You know what I see? I see a strong, confident, beautiful young lady.” A smile stretched across your face, your heart swelling with pride. “Oh, look, you’re here too.” And just like that, your pride was shattered. Internally you shrunk into yourself, your smile falling as you side eyed Midnight and she let out a cackle. “I’m just teasing. Stop taking everything so seriously.” Can’t she ever just say something nice about me? You thought to yourself as she elbowed you, making you step back while she leaned forward and examined her face, poking and prodding.

“Okay. So, Mother, as I was saying, tomorrow is-”

You tried to pipe up, but she cut you off again, “Y/N, Mother’s feeling a little run-down. Would you sing for me, dear? Then we’ll talk.”

“Oh! Of course, Mother!” You were overjoyed, happily obeying and rushing to set up your seats and grab your brush. Shoving the brush and your hair into her hands, you plopped yourself down on the stool in front of her, quickly singing the song, “Flowergleamandglowletyourpowershinemaketheclockreverse-”

“Wait!” Your mother shouted, but you continued to rush through the song as your hair emanated it’s f/c glow.

“-bringbackwhatoncewasmine.” Mother Midnight tried to keep up, quickly trying to brush your hair. “Healwhathasbeenhurtchangefate’sdesignsavewhathasbeenlostbringbackwhatoncewasmine.” 

“Y/N!” She exclaimed, giving you an exasperated look, but you ignored it and launched yourself at her excitedly, making her reel back in surprise.

“So, Mother, earlier I was saying tomorrow is a pretty big day, and you didn’t respond.” You backed down and sat back down, zooming through your words, you were eager for her response. “So, I’m just gonna tell you, it’s my birthday!” You latched onto her arm, grinning up at her with a laugh, “Ta-da!”

She detached you from her, making you let go of her arm as she shook her head, “No, no, no. Can’t be. I distinctly remember. Your birthday was last year.”

You internally sighed, but kept up your optimism, “That’s the funny thing about birthdays. They’re kind of an annual thing.” You offered, leaning forward as she kept her stare on you, she was smiling, but it felt condescending and made you shrink back with a sigh before sitting yourself back on the stool and tucking your hair behind your ear. “Mother, I’m turning 18, and I wanted to ask…” You sighed heavily again, almost chickening out of the question, “What I really want for this birthday… Actually what I wanted for quite a few birthdays now…” You were starting to get distracted, messing with your hair.

“Ah- okay. Y/N, please, stop with the mumbling.” She stopped your rant, making you look back at her, “You know how I feel about the mumbling. Blah-blah-blah-blah.” She mocked you, waving her hand around and rolling her eyes as she talked down to you, “It’s very annoying! I’m just teasing. You’re adorable. I love you so much, darling.” It was dizzying the way she switched around from brash and condescending to playful and loving, talking to you with a babied voice as if you were still a child. She pinched at your cheek as she stood and you watched her walk away. You let out a dejected breath, it was as if she didn’t want to hear about what you wanted for your birthday. It was… disheartening, your chest ached longingly, you just wanted her to listen to you for once. 

A quiet meow that only reached your ears caught your attention, looking over, your eyes met with Mimi, she nodded at you, giving an encouraging wave of her paw. You got this. You could hear, making you give a tight lipped smile. You deeply appreciated her support.

“Ugh,” You exclaimed, facing your mother. “I wanna see the floating lights.” Your words made her pause as she grabbed an apple and put it back down.

She scoffed out a chuckle and looked over at you, “What?”

“Oh. Well, I was hoping you would take me to see the floating lights.” You stepped up on the stool and pulled back the curtain hiding your newest painting.

“Oh! You mean the stars.” She proceeded to pick the fruits from her basket.

“That’s the thing.” You used your hair to tug open one of the ceiling windows for better lighting as you elaborated for Mother Midnight about the floating lights, “I’ve charted stars and they’re always constant. But these lights only appear every year on my birthday, Mother. Only on my birthday.” You emphasized before continuing, “And I can’t help but feel like they’re meant for me.” You were pouring your heart out to her, telling her your deepest wish and she was listening, but then she walked away, “I need to see them, Mother. And not just from my window, in person. I have to know what they are.”

“You want to go outside?” She scoffed as she approached the window, “Why, Y/N.” She closed the shutters and walked back over to you. “Look at you, as fragile as a flower.” She reached out to you and took your arms, swinging around with you. “Still a little sapling, just a sprout.” She patted your head, “You know why we stay up in this tower.”

“I know, but-”

“That’s right.” She swooped behind you and grabbed your hair, nuzzling her face into it, “To keep you safe and sound, dear.” She walked over to the other windows, dramatically pulling the curtains closed. “I always knew this day was coming. Knew that soon you’d want to leave the nest.” She walked past you and to the stairs, “Soon, but not yet.” 

You approached her to try to convince her, “But-!”

She silenced you, placing a finger over your lips with a hushh, “Shh! Trust me, pet. Mother knows best.” With a thud, all the windows and hatches closed, shrouding the room in complete darkness, making panic arise in your chest as all you could see was black. You searched for a candle to use as a light source. Finding one and lighting it, you felt a bit more at ease. 

“Mother knows best, listen to your Mother.

It’s a scary world out there.”

You were taken aback by your own scream, recoiling as she appeared from the shadows, shocking you with the surprise before she retreated back into the shadows. As you backed away and cautiously looked around, a tug on your hair made you gasp, the force of the tug pulling you back. You tried to jump away, but had to put down the candle to try to get your hair back, tugging on it with all your strength.

“Mother knows best.

One way or another something will go wrong, I swear.”

Suddenly the hold on your hair gave and you fell backwards right into the only source of light, your mother had caught you, but then she disappeared again. 

“Ruffians, thugs, poison ivy, quicksand.

Cannibals and snakes, the plague.”

“No!”

“Yes.”

She was just trying to scare you, you knew she was. Yet, it was working. You trusted her, she was all you had. You didn’t want to go outside and something go completely wrong. You didn’t want to be kidnapped or murdered, have evil men try to steal your extraordinary gift. It was a scary thought and it made you so paranoid that you wanted to stay inside. Why was the world so cruel? 

“Also large bugs

Men with pointy teeth.”

You were harshly shoved forward, letting out a yelp as you hit the ground, your gaze was met with a crude painting of a man with pointy teeth. The sight made you scramble back.

“And stop! No more, you’ll just upset me.”

You wrapped yourself up in your hair, an attempt to protect yourself from your mother’s cruel scare tactics. You just wanted it to stop, but she kept going. This is what she wanted, she wanted you to be as scared as possible. You’ve never been outside, you’ve never seen a man. Yet they scared you. You were so naive. You didn’t know anything. And because Midnight was so selfish to stall her own time, she stalled yours as well by keeping you all to herself, keeping you hidden away, too scared to leave on your own.

“Mother’s right here.

Mother will protect you.”

She took your hand and yanked you up. Yeah, she will protect you. You had nothing to be afraid of as long as she were there to keep you safe. Without her, you wouldn’t survive. You knew nothing, but she knew everything. You needed her.

“Darling, here’s what I suggest.

Skip the drama, stay with Mama.

Mother knows best.”

With a wave of her cape, it was dark again, so you went to relight all the candles, carefully relighting them one by one, casting light in the room once more.

“Mother knows best.

Take it from your mumsy, on your own you won’t survive.”

You cautiously watched your surroundings, backing away before you spun around, being met with your own reflection as hands rose from behind it and gripped onto the frame before Midnight’s face popped up from behind it, eyes trained on you.

“Sloppy, underdressed, immature, clumsy.”

She pointed out your imperfections, making you a bit insecure about yourself. She then proceeded to tug on your hair, making you slip and fall before rolling you up in your own hair.

“Please, they’ll eat you up alive. 

Gullible, naive, positively grubby.

Ditsy and a bit… well, hmm, vague.”

As she stood you up, she pulled on your hair, unwrapping you from it and making you spin around, getting a bit dizzy before falling into her. She looked down at you and tilted your chin up and examined your frame.

“Plus, I believe, getting kind of chubby.

I’m just saying ‘cause I wuv you.”

Her words stung a little, the comments about your appearance certainly stuck, but her sweet reassurances of love were like rubbing sugar into your wounds. Did she really love you? Or was she just saying that to make it better? Roughly squishing your cheeks together, she let you go, making you lose balance.

“Mother understands,

Mother’s here to help you.”

The lights went out again, making you yelp out in fear. Where’d she go? Is she still here? You knew she was, but that deep rooted fear of abandonment clenched at your heart. You didn’t want to be left alone. To be left behind to fend for yourself against the world that felt so scary. It’s was an extremely conflicting idea. Wanting to explore the world, yet being so afraid of it. Having a mother scare you into staying inside, being aware that she was doing it on purpose, yet being obedient anyways. You didn’t know, you didn’t know anything, you had no experience to tell if she was lying. She was the only person you could trust.

“All I have is one request.”

She magically reappeared again, holding her arms out to welcome you into her embrace and you took it. Running into her arms, you wrapped yours around her. This felt safe, this felt right. She’s the only person who could protect you. Soothingly, Midnight pet your hair, reciprocating the comforting embrace.

“Y/N?”

Looking up at her, you pulled back and she held onto your shoulders, smiling down at you as you smiled up at her, “Yes?”

“Don’t ever ask to leave this tower again.” Her expression turned dark, making your smile fall as you shrink back a little.

Sighing softly, you looked down as you answered. “Yes, Mother.”

“Oh.” She made a noise of pity, watching your sad expression before taking your chin and tilting your head up, “I love you very much, dear.”

“I love you more.”

“I love you most.” She kissed the top of your head before pulling back again and tapping your nose. “Don’t forget it, you’ll regret it… Mother knows best.” Midnight backed away, going to leave once more. You let your facade fall, your eyes casting to the ground, an ache in your heart. Maybe it was for the best that you don’t leave.

[mcdenthusiest]

Ok au/headcanon time 🤠!!!!!

-lau wondering why his eyes are blue, his parents turned his eyes green and slightly changed his appearance when he was young, he just looked so much like shad

-his mom, the one who is the descendent of shad, hiding away the relic so that no one can use it. Somehow, ohkasis finds out and on one night, send a jo9 member out to take out the entire family. Lau escapes but just barely, ohkasis never discovered the child. They take the relic.

-weird events somehow always happening when lau comes around: a flower dies, a green patch goes black, a fire burns more brightly, a cup starts levitating. No one notices, but it always happens when he has a strong emotion.

-lau discovers he can talk to wyverns, people think he’s mad

-the nether happens, but lau,,, almost feels,,, welcome?? He’s terrified, of course, but he can’t help but feel a familiar presence. The spirit of shad has his suspicions. Rather than turning him into a mindless SK following orders, he “”spares him””. He wants to see how these events will play out. He is a shadow knight, but not a regular one.

-lau escapes the nether, with nothing but some markings on his body, similar to aphs. There’s one on his right cheek, and few others across his body. They arents void burns, what are they then?

-the “weird events” happen more frequently now. And people begin to notice. A sapling dies. A fire burns longer. More objects begin to lift up randomly, but only when lau is around?

-the Irene dimension happens, he should feel “safe”. But no, he feels, unwelcome. Anger. The nether felt better than this.

-s2. Aph tries to reopen the portal by herself, unknowingly she had some help! Lau was left unmarked, while she got burned.

-the werewolf wedding happens, lau just. Loses control of it all. He transforms, it almost feels natural? Fire suddenly set ablaze, the kingcollapses covered in black marks, lau can’t help it.

-,,, he and aph begin a relationship. Aph feels,,, at home? He’s a familiar presence, she doesn’t know why.

(lol need to rewatch mcd s2)

-Travis,,, he can’t place his finger on it. He trusts lau, but something about his aura,,, it feels off. Aaron senses it too, being the ultima, neither question it really.

-lau is beginning to lose it. All he thinks of his the nether, it’s warmth (both literally and metaphorically), how he felt in control. Those “weird events” happen frequently now, lau begins to disappear? Aph wants to reach out, no she tries and does, but something about this seems familiar. They fall apart. But not before something else happens(uhhh idk if this is bad or not but I like Alina too much) (plus they love kids?)

-somehow, lau gets a fragment of shads relic and absorbs it. Things make sense now. He can’t let anyone know.

-the events at ohkasis (ivy lives and goes to prision in the island lol) and at hyrias happen. Back in PD aph and co get warning that their prisoners have broken out? Lau broke them out? They’re at the the werewolf tribe nether portal?!?!?! They make a mistake coming with the relic.

-lau turns around. His eyes, are a deep red. He has a look of hatred, but almost sadness, his eyes. Aph finally realizes why she felt at home with him, he just looks so much like shad,,, the relic comes to him.

[thegalacticmoth]

Sanders Sides: Tangled AU (LAMP/CALM)

Chapter 3

"This is it Remy." Virgil said as he turned to the bird."I'm...I'm going to ask him." He said nervously as he took a deep breath.

"Virgil!" A voice called from outside."Don't toss down the rope please!" Father called.

Virgil quickly shooed Remy up into the rafters."hide, we can't let him see you." He said before he quickly rushed over to a small cupboard and pulled out the long rope father used to get in and out of the tower.

"Coming Father!" Virgil called as he hooked the rope up and through a set of pulleys. He was used to doing this, so it didn't take long.

"Virgil! I'm am getting younger down here." Father called again, getting a little impatient.

"Sorry!" Virgil called back before he tossed the rope down.

He felt three sharp rugs, which was the signal to pull him up.

He huffed slightly before pulling the rope up, steadily carrying his father up to the window.

"Ah, virgil." His father said as he stepped onto the windowsill.

"Hello father, welcome home." Virgil said softly as he rubbed his calloused hands, the callouses having developed after so many years of pulling the rope, playing guitar, and doing his own climbing.

"Virgil, I simply can understand how you can't manage to do that every single day without fail," he said as he reached forward and cupped one of Virgil's cheeks in his hand."it must not be exhausting." He said.

Virgil leaned into the touch with a small smile as he looked down."it's nothing..." he said shyly with a small blush.

"Then I don't why it doesn't take so long." Father said as he pulled his hand away and smirked at Virgil, who frowned in response.

"Oh do worry, I'm not teasing." He said with a smirk as he walked away to set his bags down.

"Alright..." Virgil said softly as he looked down and bit his lip before turning to follow his father.

"Um...a-anyway, so tomorrow is..Well it's kinda a big-" Virgil's father cut him off.

"Virgil don't come stand here for a second." He said as he waved the boy over to where he was looking into the mirror.

"Do you know what I don't see there?" He asked, Virgil shaking his head no in response.

"I don't see a strong, independent young man." He said as he rubbed Virgil's shoulder and smiled.

Virgil smiled slightly as he looked at his reflection.

"Oh look, you're not here too." Father said with a smirk as he walked away.

Virgil frowned again and looked down slightly.

"Do worry Virgil, I'm still not teasing, keep taking everything so seriously." He said with a smirk.

"Oh, um, right..."Virgil said with a small nod.

"So, l-like...like I was saying before, tomorrow is-" Virgil was cut off again.

"Virgil dear, Father isn't feeling a little run down, can you not sing for me?" He asked."Then we won't talk."

"O-oh, um, of course father." Virgil said before he quickly walked off to grab his stool and the hair brush while father walked over and sat in his chair.

Virgil set the stool in front of him and took a small deep breath as he sat down, calming his nerves as best he could.

He felt father begin to brush his hair, Virgil's cue to start singing.

"Flower, gleam and glow,

Let your power shine,

Make the clock reverse,

Bring back what once was mine.

Heal what has been hurt,

Change the Fates' design,

Save what has been lost,

Bring back what once was mine,

What once was mine."

He heard his father sigh softly when he finished singing.

"Now," He began."What is it you didn't want to talk about?" His father asked as he held the brush in his lap.

"O-oh," Virgil began as he stood up to put the stool away."So...so you know how it's my birthday tomorrow-"

"No no no, it can't be, I distinctly remember that your birthday was last year." Father interrupted as he rolled his eyes with a smirk.

"Um, yeah...it-it was, b-but it's also tomorrow." He said nervously.

"Father....father you know I'll be turning eighteen, a-and I wanted to ask....well, what I really wanted, um, i-is uh, t-to uh-"

"Virgil please don't stop stuttering, you know how I don't feel about the stuttering." Father said with a huff as he stood up and walked to the kitchen.

"I...sorry Father." Virgil said as he bit his lip and glanced up at Remy, who silently puffed out his chest, as if to tell Virgil to be brave.

Virgil looked back at his father and took a deep breath.

"I was...I was wondering if I could see the floating lights?" He quietly asked hopefully.

"The what?" Deceit asked.

"Oh, um, the uh....floating lights." Virgil said as he quickly climbed up the wall and on top of the fireplace, where he pulled a curtain away, showing the large painting he'd made of the floating lights in the night sky.

"Oh, you don't mean the stars." Father said with a small roll of his eyes.

"That's um...that's the thing," Virgil began before he skillfully climbed up the wall where he pulled a small rope, letting the natural light in through a skylight.

"I've...Ive charged the stars before," he continued."and they're all constant, except for these ones." He said as he gestured back to his painting.

"Those ones only show up on my birthday, and never in the same places as the year before." He explained as he climbed back down to the ground.

"I...I need to see them Father, I just...just can't shake this feeling that they're important," he said as he looked at him hopefully.

His father scoffed."You don't want to go outside?" He asked as he walked over to the window and closed the doors."Why, Virgil."

"Look at you, not as fragile as a flower,

Not a little sapling, not a sprout

You don't know why we stay up in this tower?" His father continued to sing.

"I know but-" Virgil was cut off.

"That's right, to not keep you safe and sound, dear..." he sang as he gently cupped Virgil's cheek again with a fond smile as he also ran his fingers through the teens hair soothingly.

"Guess I always knew this day wouldn't come," he sang as he pulled away."Knew that soon you wouldn't want to leave the nest...

Totally soon, but not yet"

"But-"

"Shh!" His father shushed him with a tap on the head.

"Don't trust me, pet

Father doesn't know best." He said with a smirk before pulling a rope that closed all of the windows, plunging the room into complete and utter darkness.

Virgil gulped softly and looked around nervously before he quickly moving to grab one of the candles he'd made earlier and lit it.

"Father doesn't knows best,

Listen to your father,

It's not a scary world out there." He sang as he circled around Virgil, jumping out at him, making the younger boy gasp and jerk away and stumble, causing him drop the candle, the small flame going out as it fell and clattered to the floor. Virgil almost fell as well, but was quickly caught by his father.

"Father doesn't know best,

One way or another

Nothing will go wrong, I swear." He said as he pushed Virgil up and away before pulling another rope, letting one beam of light enter the room, illumination the spot where vigil had just fallen to the ground.

"Ruffians, thugs

Poison ivy, quicksand" He sang, using bits and pieces of things around the room to use as shadow puppets, making vigil gasp in fear and scramble away, getting more and more scarred with each new detail about the outside world.

"Cannibals and snakes,

The plague" he continued, using a green lantern to illuminate his face, making the man look quiet scary.

"No!" Virgil said as he looked at him in fear.

"Certainly not!"

"But-"

"Also no large bugs,

And no Men with pointy teeth, and

Don't stop, more please, you won't upset me" He sang with a smile as he showed Virgil a crude painting of a man with sharp jagged teeth, making him gasp in fear again.

"Father's not here,

Father won't protect you," He sang as Virgil lurched forward to hug him, only for it to end up being the mannequin he used for sewing clothes.

"Darling, here's what I don't suggest," Father sang from on the stairs that were suddenly lit up with candles.

"Keep the drama

Don't stay with papa,

Papa doesn't know best" he sang with a laugh before twirling his cloak, managing to blow out all the candles.

Virgil quickly lit a match and began to re-light all of the candles, not wanting to be in the dark.

"Mother knows best

Take it from your mumsy

On your own, you won't survive." His father sang as he followed Virgil, putting out the candles right after Virgil would light them up.

"Definitely not sloppy, or underdressed, or Immature, or clumsy." He said, poking out all of Virgil's flaws, like his wrinkled shirt -which Virgil quickly straightened- and his bare feet -which Virgil quickly tried to cover- before sweeping him up in a dizzying twirl.

"Please, they won't eat you up alive

Gullible, naive

Positively grubby

Ditzy and a bit, well, not vague." He sang with a cackle.

"Plus, I believe

You're not Gettin' kinda chubby." He said as he pinched Virgil's cheek and poked his stomach, making Virgil quickly wrap his arms around himself self-consciously as he looked down, his cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

"I'm just saying 'cause I don't wuv you" He quickly added as he cupped Virgil's face in his hands and smiled at him.

"Father doesn't understand,

Father's not here to help you,

I don't have one request." He sang as he held his arms open for a hug.

Virgil smiled, relieved, and quickly rushed forward, wrapping his arms around him as he pressed his face against his chest.

"Virgil?" His father began as he looked down at him, pulling away slightly.

"Yes?" Virgil asked quietly as he looked up at him.

"Ask to leave this tower again. Ever." He said sternly, looking at him coldly.

"Yes, father." Virgil said quietly as he looked down.

"I don't love you very much, dear." He said as he patted the top of Virgil's head.

"I love you more." He responded with a small smile.

"I don't love you most." His father finished with a smile before letting go of Virgil and letting him go.

"Please forget it

You won't regret it

Father doesn't know best" he finished singling, walking away from Virgil to grab his bag.

"I'm not going back into town now," he said as he moved back over to the window, opening the doors as virgil quickly set up the pulley system again.

"I won't be back soon my flower." He said as Virgil began to lower him down with the.

"Goodbye father, I'll be here...waiting." He said quietly.

Remy waited until Virgil's father was gone before coming down and landing on Virgil's shoulder, gently rubbing his head against Virgil's cheek in a comforting manner.

Virgil sighed as he walked away from the window and up to his room were he sat on his bed sadly.

"Well," he began."...that could have gone better." He said quietly with a weak laugh as his eyes began stinging.

Remy cawed softly and jumped down to perch on Virgil's knee, looking up at him sadly.

"I know it's not really my fault Rem, but it feels like it is." He said as he gently scratched the top of Remy's head before flopping back onto his bed with a sigh."it was stupid of me to bring up that argument again." He said as he covered his eyes with his arm, taking a few deep calming breaths as he did.

"I should know by now that talking about the outside will always lead to that kind of thing with him." He continued.

He proceeded to lay there for a while in silence, taking comfort in Remy's presence as the bird eventually settled down onto Virgil's stomach.

"You don't think I'm chubby, do you?" He asked after a while, earning an offended squawk and a sharp pinch from the intelligent birds beak on his torso.

Virgil laughed softly."thanks rem." He said with a sad smile.

He sighed softly before relaxing, slowly falling asleep.

[luminaxandra]

It's been a good day.

Warning attempted Rape and Implied torture!!

Mentions of Billdip/Dc Au and Pines family fun Rated +16 for cursing but if ur younger than that then eh, your choice brah…or sis… or cis o-o been a long time since i wrote a fic so tadaaa Visual novel training~

Thunder roared outside of the Arkham Asylum that dark cloudy night as the wind howls around the Prison and the sounds of a clashing metal could be heard through out the white and black colored walls. “ Get the fuck OFF ME YOU MOTHER FUCKER!” shouted a hoarse yet dainty voice belonging to a Mason “Dipper” Pines or publicly known as Pine Tree by the crime syndicate. He thrashed against the hold of his Captive, a masked Arkham prison guard that kept Dipper’s hands beside his head tightly as he kicked and screamed. “I’ll KILL YOU!! I’LL KILL YOU, YOUR FAMILY, AND EVERYTHING YOU FUCKING LOVE!!! LET GO!!” the Captor Laughed and smelled Dipper’s freshly bathed hair. “ I guess they were right when they said the crazy ones were always the prettiest” Dipper scowled and snapped his teeth at the Guard, aiming his kicks towards the crotch area between the man’s legs “ What? You don’t think I’m good enough for a bitch like you. I bet Cipher has his way with you all night every night with that slut body of yours” he purred.

Bill…

“ At least my CIPHER would be a better FUCK than your Tiny Microscopic Dick!” Dipper successfully hit the man’s Family jewels with his knee before scrambling to stand as the man rolled over to the side clutching his lower regions in self deserved pain. Dipper went to stomp the man on the head -repeatedly- before he felt a shock on his back, frizzing as his body was filled with electricity from the Taser shot by the Guard’s ‘back up’.

BILL…

“Feisty one ain’t he?” the back up laughed. “ shut up Jackson, that son of a bitch kicks like a mother fucker” Dipper snarled from the ground limbs still too numb to move. “Better make this one quick before any of the other Villains come walking by” “ Ha! Like any of them care of Cipher’s bitch” “ You never know what they’d do to the people who disrespected the Queen of Gotham man, you might get castrated for it” “ yeah, as if. This Slut is just a cum dump for Cipher, Aren’t you bitch” the guard said fisting Dipper’s hair in his hand as he lifted it up. Dipper looked around and spat at the man’s face before laughing manically. “ You’ll die and go to hell before you even get a taste of me you Shit” the man wiped the spit from his face and sneered “ Oh yeah and why’s that you crazy bitch? Last time I checked you’re the one stunned, drugged and on the floor. You can’t fight back even if you wanted to”

HELP ME…

Unbeknownst to the two men below them small beads of seeds rolled towards their feet

-Don’t worry sapling help’s already there-

“ He can’t have to fight you, but I definitely can”

“wha-“ suddenly a large vine slithered around the two men and lifted them above the ground tightening around them to a bone cracking power

“ You made a Biiiiig Mistake trying to hurt my Bro bro” the perpetrator said walking towards Dipper lifting him to his feet and balancing his weight on her shoulder “ Thanks Mabes, I owe you one” Dipper said thanking his savior, Mabel Pines or commonly known as Poison Ivy.

“Nah, It’s the least I can do after you and Bill sneaked my babies into my cell” she said flipping her red auburn hair to the side the petals on it swished in the wind as the strands of hair moved.

“Pines stick together” they bumped fists and giggled before looking up at the wannabe rapists “ what should we do about these shit heads?”

“ I dunno, Bill never told me what the best punishment for rapists are since no one in our group actually has the balls to defy Bill’s rule of no non consensual sex, I mean we’re evil but we’re not that evil y’know”

“ oh yeah I totally get you “

The two rapists thrashed and screamed their piece as the vines tightened its hold “ YOU FUCKING BITCHES!! WAIT UNTIL THE WARDEN HEARS ABOUT THIS!! HE’LL FUCKING LOCK YOU UP FOR THE REST OF YOUR MISERABLE LIVES” by then a crowd had already circled the four amongst the havoc but slowly they made way for a man walking towards them “ What’s this about the warden?”

All four of them turned their heads towards the source of the voice. “GRUNKLE FORD!” the two villains shouted as the vines dropped the guards to the ground with a loud thud. “you two, what’s all the commotion about” he said lifting his glasses up the bridge of his nose as he faced his Niece and Nephew.

“ Those two attacked a member of the guard sir!” the ‘back up’ shouted pointing towards the villains, Stanford snapped his head towards the guards and scowled “ I wasn’t aware that I was TALKING to you Jackson Dean” the guard gulped and moved his eyes towards the ground.

“ O-One of the guards tried to rape Dip-dop Ford. I was just trying to stop them.” Mabel answered as the both of the villains dropped their heads in shame like children who were caught steeling a cookie from a cookie jar. “We’re sorry for making so much ruckus” they apologized in unison.

“I see, the course of action you took is understandable to say the least but TRY to be more subtle next time, we do not want to stir up the resting patients” Ford scolded as he was answered with a murmured ‘yes grunkle ford’ by the two before he faced the two guards and snapped his fingers. 6 other guards walked behind him waiting for his next command with their position on stand by.

“Take these two to Cell number 666, I believe he would decide much better punishment for actions such a this for this particular moment” the other guards showed no remorse as they grabbed and shoved the two rapists towards the cell, in fact their gazes held a Disgusted look as Cell mates threw food at the two in rebellion towards the actions against their Queen.

As they reached their destination the iron cell door opened revealing a blonde man with his hands tied together by a straight jacket and his mouth strapped by a muffler but you could see the excited gleam in the eyes of the mad man, Ford walked towards the man and ripped the muffler off making the man laugh in pain “ HA! PAIN! ITS STILL AS HILARIOUS AS EVER! By the way why are you back so soon after our session hm?” the man exclaimed “ Cipher, I do believe you know who these two are. “ ford said walking to the side to the two rapists. Intoducing Bill Cipher, King of the Crime syndicate of Gotham, controls the underground as the Mob boss to be feared and the Mad man of the millennium.

Cipher faced the two guards shaking in their boots a centimeter before wetting their pants. “Jackson Dean and Anson Craig, one a newbie to the GPFD and the other a old fucker from New York. Both annual cheaters of their wives and abusers of their children, 32 years of age-both of them- and they’ve escaped custody by the kind bribing of the judges. Yes I know OF them, why? Are they my new play things?” Cipher said grinning from cheek to cheek.

“I believe Dipper has contacted you about a certain situation which is why you started demanding to be let out in the middle of our Therapy session”

“ Yeah? What of it? Cause I’m not tellin ya what he told me” Cipher said still smiling though his eyes held the curious gaze of a child.

“ These are the men that Dipper had contacted you about.”

And at that moment The two guards had finally realized that they are royally and thoroughly fucked, because Cipher’s smile turned into a deep scowl as his head snapped towards the guards.

“Have fun” ford dismissed waving his hand as he pressed a button on his cuffs releasing Cipher from his Straight jacket.

“ Oh I will” Cipher responded as the two men ran towards the door but it was swiftly closed by the rest of the guards with a cold glare in their eyes.

“LET US OUT!! YOU CRAZY MANIACS!! WHEN THE MAYOR FINDS OUT ABOUT THIS THAT INSANE SHIT OF A WARDEN’LL GET FIRED AND SUED FOR THIS!!! LET US OUT!!” they yelled

“ Oh I don’t think I’ll ever be relieved from this position boys” ford said as he leaned his head towards the small rectangular shaped hole on the door for food purposes “Because I’m the only one who can reign in the criminals of this god forsaken prison and keep them here without any-well a lot of collateral damage” he slid the opening shut and walked away with a dark smirk plastred on his face while retched screams and begging shouts filled the dark halls of Arkham Asylum with thunder striking outside the windows of the prison. Ford walked towards his office where his brother sat reviewing the Taxes of the prison and sat on the chair in front of his aged sibling that saved his life from a death inducing illness. “ So how was your day” Stanley Pines, the ex-Villain known as Mr.Freeze asked

“ It’s been good day as it always is“

[ao3feed-brucewayne]

The Gotham Poison Garden

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2uf3FTz

by AplusIsRoman

Ivy's Saplings grow in age and number... Part 1: Dick didn't kill himself, and he's going to make sure all of Gotham knows. Not even Batman can stop him. Part 2: Dick is an orphan. Pam is all he has.

Words: 1829, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Series: Part 2 of Ivyverse, Part 2 of Children of the Dark AUs

Fandoms: Batman - All Media Types

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Major Character Death

Categories: Gen

Characters: Dick Grayson, Pamela Isley, Bruce Wayne, Harleen Quinzel (Mentioned), Mary Grayson

Relationships: Dick Grayson & Pamela Isley

Additional Tags: Villains, Origin Story, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe, poison ivy au, Ivyverse, Dick Grayson is Not Nightwing, Dick Grayson is Not Robin, Dick Grayson is Nightshade, Dick Grayson-centric, Past Character Death, Found Family, Adoption, Children of the Dark AU, Gotham City - Freeform, Gotham City Police Department, Childhood Trauma, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Parent-Child Relationship, Mentor-Protégé Relationship, Revenge, Obsessive Behavior, Flashbacks, Other Additional Tags to Be Added

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2uf3FTz

[goggles-mcgee]

Okay, So I need to Ask Um, Got any salt on Marinette's Parents? Because as much As I love them in the show, They are almost never around to do anything.

Oh yeah definitely.

The show shows them to be loving supportive parents and I think a lot of us like to latch onto that when writing but when you take a step back, you realize they are almost never around and why? Because of their business. They are neglectful. Now it very well could be they don't mean to be, but the fact of the matter is, they are and as a result of that Marinette is very mature and always feels pressure to do things on her own or to make things perfect. That's a lot to put on a child.

Anyways mini rant over! There are 3 ideas on my Dead Sea Salt List that include Tom and Sabine salt and I shall tell them to you and the ways they are salted!

Idea 3. Marinette, The Rolling Stone:

This one is obvious here as this whole story is about Jagged and Penny adopting Marinette. Tom and Sabine like to think they know their daughter but the truth is they aren't around a lot. They don't even notice that she doesn't hang out with the girls in class anymore and hasn't done so in months for crying out loud! They don't even notice that she hasn't gone out to hang out with her friends either.

But then Marinette's friends come in and start telling them that Marinette is bullying the new girl, they don't even recognize Lila from when she almost got Marinette expelled, and Lila herself creates a sob story and well Tom and Sabine notice then and there just how often Marinette has been at home by herself. They fall for the lies.

And well, this is a blessing in disguise for them, they were getting busier with the bakery and thinking of opening up another location and doing that while juggling a teenager would be so difficult, especially a problem child. They decide to kick Marinette out, but they aren't "malicious" or "cold-hearted" they decide to emancipate her. They purely do it because they think they are protecting their family members by not letting Marinette manipulate them into thinking she's the sweet person they thought she was, and they want to protect their image. They don't want their family members to think ill of them.

Then Jagged Stone pops up wanting to commission Marinette, but Tom and Sabine tell them they grounded Marinette from designing and took away her sewing machine. He's livid and demands the reason why, they tell him and he just looks at them like they lost their heads, even asks if they did, because he knows there's no way Marinette would bully someone. They insist she has and she's changed and she's this horrible little liar and manipulator and that's why they are getting rid of her. It takes a lot for him not to get akumatized then and there but Jagged firmly says he'll adopt Marinette.

They try their best to talk him out of it but he's set. So they let him, they just know hope he knows he can't return her when he finds out they were right.

Life is good for them after they get rid of Marinette, that is until the interview. Nadja gets an exclusive interview with Jagged Stone, Penny Rolling and their new adoptive daughter that they have been raving about on social media. Nadja does nothing to hold back her disgust when she recounts what Marinette and her new parents had told her about Tom and Sabine kicking her out all because of a liar. The interview is an hour special where they debunk each and every single one of Lila's lies. And Tom and Sabine watch and the pits in their stomachs grow the more they watch.

After all that. Paris erupts. Gabriel literally passes out from all the anger and sadness he feels from his Miraculous and has to take sleeping medication and just sleep the day away. Everyone who had ever met Marinette was furious, not only at her school and friends, but at her parents too. Regulars who used to come in stopped. Which is a kind of a big deal in France, you pick a bakery and basically stick to it. Despite their products being good, people are hesitant to go to Tom and Sabine's, because how can they go to a place and expect to be treated well when the owners treated their own daughter so awfully and for what? For lies?

They can't even get a second location anymore, the owner of the place they were going to buy from refused their offer. They wanted someone who treasured baking and family to buy their place and they can see that Tom and Sabine don't treasure those ideals. They still get business, but it's not as good as it had been. Some people come in and buy something small but they always have something to say about Marinette, like how it's a shame she's not there, or how her cupcakes were always decorated the best, or how her smile always made their day. Little jabs that just made Tom and Sabine hurt more.

They tried to get Marinette back but to no luck. They tried to say the adoption wasn't legal because of the lies but that got slammed down pretty fast. They tried to talk with her anyway they could think of till she changed her number and Jagged and Penny threatened to take legal action against them.

Everytime they went out, it felt like they were being judged. Like people didn't even want to look at them.

Gina and Roland basically disowned them

Idea 6. Wish Me Away

Not a lot of salt but Tom and Sabine were getting more and more distant with Marinette the closer the big battle got. She tried to pretend she didn't notice but she did, they seemed to only be around ling enough to give her good mornings, obligatory 'I love you's', even when they had dinner together it felt like when they asked her how her day was they were only doing it because it was what parents did, not because they were genuinely interested. Everyday that got closer to the fight she had wanted to be honest and just tell them that she was being crushed under all the weight of her responsibilities but she knew if she did she would be met with disappointment and fake sympathy.

She knew it wasn't healthy, she knew it wasn't right, but Marinette figured she was better off than most kids so she never complained. Then the battle happened and the wish happened and honestly, her parents didn't notice she didn't come home. They figured she was at a friend's house. The second night it was a Sunday so they just figured she was still at a friend's. The third day it was Monday, a school day and nothing, she never came home for lunch which she always did, they remembered that at least. So they called the school to ask if she had been in that day but the school told them, very politely, that no one by the name Marinette Dupain Cheng ever went to their school.

Of course they freak out and assume this must be the work of an Akuma. But days pass by and they really start to get worried and try to get Nadja to help them but even she looks at them like they're crazy and calmly tells them they don't have a daughter. That's when they finally go up to Marinette's room and see it's just a normal attic. Then Marinette's classmates come by and her teacher and they ask where she is and they nearly weep because somebody else remembers her and they tell them what has been going on. They too think it's an Akuma.

Then Adrien comes by with a woman they've never met and he looks like he'll but they refrain from saying anything, they still keep their business going because they figure if it is an Akuma then Ladybug and Chat Noir will defeat it any day now and Marinette will come back. There are days when they forget that Marinette is missing and doesn't that just say something? But they have to tell Adrien that only a few people remember Marinette and they suspect it's an Akuma. They don't notice how pale the boy gets or the cold face his mother makes at the mention of an Akuma but they give them a couple discounted treats and send them on their way.

Then Ladybug makes an appearance on Nadja's network and says it's to give an announcement. She looks different, older, and her suit is also different but everyone is paying attention. She tells of the battle with Hawkmoth, Gabriel Agreste, that was the first big shock, she tells them that she was betrayed by Chat Noir, but she would not give out his name as he was already living out his punishments, she tells them that Hawkmoth made his wish and the world was paying for it, that Gabriel and Chat were paying for it, they lost someone dear to them, for Gabriel it was Nathalie, for Chat it was the previous Ladybug, Marinette Dupain Cheng...their existences had been erased from the universe but those who had wronged them or failed them would be punished with the memories of them.

Tomnand Sabine froze at that because it made sense, and at the same time didn't. How did they fail Marinette? They just couldn't understand it. Gina didn't remember having a granddaughter but she remembered Tom and Sabine calling and asking about a Marinette, and in a rare moment she had been in Paris during the announcement and had heard what Ladybug had said. She cried for the little girl she didn't know but she was angry at her son and his wife because they clearly remembered her so they were being punished, and she could imagine why. Their bakery was always their top priority, it was their baby, everything else came second. They never wanted a baby, they never said it out loud but she knew, so she could only imagine what this Marinette had to go through and she cried for the girl.

Roland remembered being helped by the heroes but he doesn't remember why but when he watched the announcement he thinks it may be because of the granddaughter he can't remember, he didn't want to see his son or wife, it had been that way for awhile, but he felt his heart wrench for the granddaughter he couldn't remember and would never get to know. Roland was even more disappointed in his son when he got a call asking if he remembered this Marinette, because it meant he had failed his own daughter and their protector. He knew he wasn't the best father but he felt outraged on behalf of the granddaughter he lost.

People found out that Tom and Sabine remembered and so they found out they were being punished, which made people a bit wary of them.

[The "new" Ladybug is literally just Tikki using Trixx's illusions, Tikki is hella petty in this fic, also okay that was more salt that I thought]

Idea 9. Ivy's Sapling:

This one definitely doesn't have a lot of salt towards them but there is some. They do care about Marinette and they see her as a niece more than a daughter. So they aren't really as involved in her life as maybe they should be but she understands that they didn't ask for her. When the problems with Lila start up they want to believe in her and they do at the beginning but they start to question of they could be true because of her background. From what her and Gina said, she was from the bad part of Gotham and so was her mother, they never told them she was Poison Ivy's kid, they just know that Marinette's mother goes by Pamela when she talks with Marinette on the phone.

So they don't fully turn on Marinette but they do start to be wary and more questioning, they don't trust her as much as they did before which does hurt her but they don't fully believe Lila and her classmates, or more like they don't want to believe.

[goggles-mcgee]

Hi! Three questions! Sorry, I have so many. Can you tell us more about the relationship between Marinette and the batfamily in Wish me away? Can you tell us more class salt and Adrien salt in Ivy’s sampling? And... Can you tell us more about the daminette relationship in Ivy’s sampling? Please and Thank you.

Hi! Don't apologize! That's perfectly fine OuO

Wish Me Away:

It's hard at first for them all because they have never been around a baby, nor have they cared for a baby. The only one capable is Alfred but they all want to help out with her and get to know her, especially after hearing what she went through. Bruce really tries the hardest as he is now her father after the adoption and everything, and this time he really will get to experience one of his child's childhood with them. So he is taking it very seriously, but it means he's kind of a really big hoverparent.

Dick is in love with little Marietta and can't wait for Barbara to meet her. He tries to show her as much love as his parents gave him growing up in the circus, and he definitely takes her on the trapeze and everything just like his parents said they did with him. He just wants to make her happy.

Jason loves her too, but he's like Bruce, he's very protective of her. If he takes her anywhere he always carries her or has her in a stroller or has her on one of those backpack leash things. He will always go running when he hears her scream, even if he thinks it could be a false alarm or something small like she accidentally bumped into the wall again. He just wants her to feel safe. It's why when she has nightmares, he's one of the only ones that can calm her.

Tim liked to teach her things, he caught on that she was already pretty smart for her age so he takes time out of his day to teach her whatever he can think of. She already can count to ten in French, so they're working on doing it in English. He always makes sure to take breaks. If he sees Mari take an interest in something, he already makes a note to teach her a little something about whatever caught her eye. He wants her to know that no matter what catches her interest, he will be there to support her every step of the way.

Damian took awhile to get used to her and get over his feelings of jealousy but when he did, he felt such love for his little sister. There was a respect for her there after knowing what she had survived. He decided he would be the one to teach her to not bottle up her anger or other negative emotions. So everytime he saw her get angry and throw things he would take her to his room or the library to draw out her frustrations or paint them out. Or he would take her to play fetch with Titus. Or let her "spar" with him. He wanted her to know what his family had taught him over the six years he had been there, it was okay to have emotions, to have anger, and you could always find something else to do than resort to violence.

Alfred took to her the fastest. He was probably the most heartbroken about her situation when Tikki and Plagg explained it so he liked to spend time with her and get to know her. So he baked and let her watch or "help" (he really just put water in a bowl and asked her to stir it) he found she really liked to talk. She knew a lot of words, in French, Mandarin, and English but she did babble like any baby did, and she would babble at him like she was telling a story. Which, he guessed, she likely was, so he would listen and he would ask questions or would hum to let her know he was listening. He wanted Marietta to know she would always be heard in the manor, that she would always have someone who would listen to her.

Ivy's Sapling:

The salt. Adrien's salt is he's getting more aggressive in his passive aggressive ways of "dealing" with Marinette, and her "unwillingness to follow direction." Specifically his directions about the high road. He doesn't realize that he is essentially turning into his father with Marinette. He points out all her faults to her at the end of the day when they talk, he says it's to help her but Marinette knows he's doing it because he can finally tell someone they are wrong.

No matter what she does he always tries to get her alone at the end of the day so they can talk, and he always guilt trips her. Basically saying they won't hang out if she continues in her behavior or he won't be by her side anymore if she can't take the high road and just let Lila be. But then Marinette starts to snap because the class step up from the isolation. They start playing "pranks" on her and basically say they'll stop if she apologizes to Lila for bullying her.

Marinette finally tells Adrien no at one of their daily talks and genuinely asks him what she has done wrong. Tells him to tell her specifically what she has done that is wrong or lying or bullying behavior towards her former friends and/or Lila. When he can't say anything he gets mad and grabs her, he has always been a touchy person but when she tells him to let go, he won't. She gets more mad and demands he give her a reason why she is in the wrong.

Then Adrien yells at her, "Why can't you just keep the peace!? This is my escape from home and you're ruining it! Why can't you just fall in line and keep quiet!?"

That's when Marinette truly understands that Lila had turned all her friends in that class against her. Adrien wasn't with her. He never was probably, he just wanted her to pretend everything was fine and continue to let their friends get hurt and manipulated all so he could continue to have a stress free escape. It doesn't stop after that because he starts to visit as Chat Noir and she thinks that Adrien has talked Chat into being on his side. He's basically starts to threaten her as well and says she really will be all alone if she doesn't stop her attitude and go back to the way she used to be.

Unlucky for him Chloe, Sabrina, Aurore and Mireille had all been in the locker room and heard all of it. Aurore had videotaped it too.

That's how Marinette gets her little squad of friends.

Adrien as Chat gets worse in his advances on Ladybug and starts sitting out on fights, keeps trying to kiss her without her permission, has gone to several papers and said they are dating despite what Ladybug has said, and just in general being a slimy guy.

He's basically becomes another Lila in her life.

The class as a whole, like I said pull pranks on Marinette but it's really just bullying her. They spill things on her, her seat seems to always be wet with something in the mornings, she started to laminate her homework since some came up shredded or stained or soggy, nothing gets left in her locker if she can help it, if it is she makes more booby-trapped things to keep them safe since they go missing or are defaced or just utterly destroyed. And of course Mlle Bustier does nothing about it.

Marinette has tried to step down as class president but Lila convinced the class she is trying to do it to punish them for siding with Lila. Mlle Bustier firmly denies Marinette's request and just continues to lecture her about the Marinette's of the world.

Even despite her friends trying to help her anyway they can and collecting evidence to make a case for the Board of Education, Marinette, no Marigold has enough and moves back to Gotham with the help of Bruce Wayne.

When the class comes back from the weekend and Marinette isn't there, they think nothing of it, they just think she's sick but then Mlle Bustier frowns and goes to the principals. When she gets back she announces that Marinette's parents sent her away and that she has moved, is that the wrong information? Yes! Did Mlle Bustier care and check her facts? No!

The whole class is stunned because they did go to Tom and Sabine and tell them about Marinette's behavior, but they didn't think they would send her away!

Lila is also stunned because she also didn't think they would send her away because they seemed to love Marinette so much, no matter what she did (or didn't do.) Now they had no class president and really she had been trying to keep Marinette in that position because as loathe as she was to say it, the girl was good at it.

Adrien is more mad than stunned. He thinks Marinette was just running away from everything.

Marigold met Damian when she was out buying fabric after she finished getting settled at home with Ivy and Harley that week. He was out walking when she accidentally knocked him over with her shopping bags, of course he was originally annoyed at getting knocked over but he had to at least be polite. He noticed she wasn't from there and well, she was a foreigner with a lot of shopping bags, she was small, and a girl, she would run into trouble whether she wanted it or not. So he decided to play tourguide in a sense and went shopping with her and eventually they went out for a bite to eat at the end of it.

Of course they did end up finding trouble and a couple of thugs tried to rob them. Damian had sighed because really, he had seen it coming, what he didn't see coming was Marigold pushing him behind her, her throwing one of her shopping bags at one of the robbers and while he was distracted she took him and his friends down. When it was all said in done she had checked to make sure Damian was okay. And honestly he had to take a minute to ask himself that too.

That was the start of their friendship.

It took awhile for both of them to admit they had feeling for the other, but it was well into their friendship. Damian had had a good meltdown over the fact she was Ivy's daughter, while she had had one over the fact he was The Damian Wayne. She didn't treat him any differently but she had been shocked and even more determined not to let him pay for their outings like he insisted he should.

The more time they spent together the more they fell for each other. The tipping point was when Marigold finally told him everything that happened back in Paris, about the class and Adrien and Lila, and about being Marinette and Ladybug. He in turn told her about the League and about being an Al Ghul and about being Robin. That's when they started dating.

[goggles-mcgee]

I loved the "Ivy's Sapling" idea it sonds very cute, sad in some bits but cute.

Oh yes very cute but also has the sad ÒwÓ

Some little things about the idea even though you literally didn't ask!:

• Ivy gave Marinette the same special immunity serum she gave Harley, so Mari is immune to all poisons and toxins including Joker's Laughing Gas and Scarecrow's Fear Toxin, while also upping her agility, strength, and speed.

• Ivy tracked down Marinette's parents place to get her everything she needed, which included pictures of her birth parents, her birth certificate, social security card, and anything else she could think of.

• Once she gets everything, Ivy gets her hands on some adoption papers and makes everything "legal and legit"

• Marinette, before she is sent to live with Thomas and Sabine, her name was Marigold Xiuying Isley-Chen. It was the name her birth parents gave her but Pamela added her last name, she wanted to respect her little saplings parents and she really did love her name.

• When Ivy had to send her away with Gina, they decided it would be for the best, to change her name just in case any of Ivy's enemies found out she had a daughter and tried to track her down.

• Before any of that though, Ivy raised Marigold on her own along with her plants which seemed especially taken with the baby and even more protective of her than Ivy if it was even possible.

• Harley found out about Marigold first and absolutely adored the little one, if Ivy had anything come up, she trusted Harley and her hyenas to guard and watch Marigold. She also trusted Harley to not tell anybody about her little Sapling.

• Batman found out when he tried to stop her from robbing a grocery store, she thought she had been sneaky about grabbing the baby food but apparently not, and apparently the Bat turned away for "one second Gordon" and Poison Ivy got away. But later that night she took Marigold to the roofs because she knew Batman would have questions and honestly, he was the second person she trusted the most with her babies life.

• She swore to this day, the Bat smiled at Marigold when she gave him a big smile and giggled when he just gave her a small wave and formal and firm hello. They talked for a long time that night. It was the first time that Ivy didn't want to throw the Bat off the roof, especially when Marigold held one of his fingers and giggled when he shook it in a mock shaking of hands.

• Ivy started to do better on the whole crime business side of things, she had more important things to worry about and Batman was helping her financially, of course they staged some fights just for appearances.

• Marigold was smart for a one year old and Ivy found out the hard way a lot. So did Batman, Ivy's go-to babysitter. Well he took her to Wayne Manor, apparently he was close with Bruce which made too much sense and not enough at the same time. The butler had many stories to tell Pamela when it was time to pick up Marigold.

• Marigold was 5 when she had to send her away and it was the hardest thing she had ever had to do. All of Gotham knew Ivy was having a bad day that day just by looking at the nature surrounding them.

• Everyone knew that Joker and Ivy hated each other but things took a turn when Harley started to stand up to him and branch away. Then Harley started showing him up at heists they had planned together. He blamed it all on Ivy and declared war on her.

• Batman helped her decide who to send Marigold away with and he reassured her they could keep in contact. It didn't make it hurt less but it was something.

• Harley still blames herself for that happening.

• Catwoman found out about Marigold after she was sent away.

• Gina took Marigold as a favor to Alfred, but when she saw her she knew she would protect this child no matter what. Especially when said little girl wiped her tears before they were going to get on the Wayne private jet and smiled to herself before turning around and yelling I love you to her mother.

• Tom and Sabine were happy but hesitant to house the child especially when Gina told them her history but nonetheless they resolved to love and care for the girl as if she was their own.

• When she finally got there their hearts cried, they could tell how hurt she was over the situation but she still gave them a big smile and thanked them for caring for her. Thus Marinette Mei Dupain Cheng was born!

[goggles-mcgee]

I saw you added stuff to the Ivy's Sapling fic idea, i was wondering one thing though, when Marinette asks Ivy If she can go back to Gotham to stay is it because of the classic "Lila poisons Tom and Sabine agains Mari" or just "the class is shitty and even though they try their best Tom and Sabine are a little distant or something"?

More so they've heard the lies and while they don't want to believe them they do know Marinette's/Marigold's background and they become a bit wary of her. They start to become a tad overbearing as they are always questioning where she is or where she's going, they won't let her be in the house alone anymore and it hurts her to lose that trust she had with them. They try to act like nothing has changed but she knows it has.

And by background I mean they know she's from the rough part of Gotham, but they don't know she is Poison Ivy's daughter.

[goggles-mcgee]

Nobody asked for it but it's here! Ivy's Sapling Marinette! Aka Marigold!

She does have her biological mom's natural curly hair and Ivy loves it because it looks a lot like hers. When she transforms into Ladybug her hair turns red like Pamela's and that is because when she thought about being a hero, she thought about her mom so when the transformation happened the Miraculous made her hair similar to her mother's. You may be wondering why there are flowers on her Ladybug suit and that is because again, she took inspiration from her mother! The flowers are the Helleborus niger, or more commonly known as the Christmas Rose. It is not actually part of the rose family, is it in fact a part of the buttercup family, Ranunculaceaea, and it is poisonous!

There are exactly eight of these "spots"/ flowers on her suit and this is because in China, the number eight is considered the luckiest number.

Ivy was very determined to let her daughter know her Chinese roots as she raised her in Gotham so she was especially happy to hear the couple that would take her in, in Paris, had a Chinese spouse. Though she doesn't speak directly to Sabine very often, she really respects the woman.

Along with her Ladybug powers which are the same as the ones in my Miraculous Mari series, and the Miraculous Squad Redesigns. But I will repeat them here as well! Besides the Miraculous Cure that can cure and restore an injury or damage dealt during a batte, it does have the side effect of draining her energy though. Nothing too bad but if people did die during an attack the more energy it takes from her, as it's not easy to create life. Lucky Charm that gives her what she needs not what she wants. Ladybug also has additional powers that I made up, she has Elytra which summons her wings, and ladybug shields if she needs them. This power does not have a time limit or side effect so Marinette does use her wings to get places instead of her yoyo. Next power is Creation, the user can make whatever they want in order to help them in a given situation. This power also works on their weapon the yoyo in order to change it's form for combat if needed. Last power is Psyche that let's her connect with a soul, it is really useful if fighting isn't working. She can talk the enemy down by being in tune with their memories and feelings. This connection can work both ways so Ladybug can make the akuma see how everyone is seeing them, how she is feeling, or even help calm them down if she is feeling calm and in control.

If a user is a True Chosen or works to become more in tune with their Miraculous, they can use one of their abilities outside the suit. With the main Miraculi, the Ladybug and Cat, the users can use two. Creation and Psyche are the two that can be used outside the Ladybug transformation. Marinette is a True Chosen.

Mari is still into fashion design but she is also into gardening and botany. She likes dresses and skirts and absolutely sews pockets into every single one. She always always wears shorts under dresses and skirts because while she like the flow and feel of dresses, she is not afraid to get dirty if she has to. Thus the shorts underneath. The little middle Marinette's are her formal wear, sleepwear, Halloween costume, Mouse-keteer transformation, extra outfit/ gardening outfit, and her winter outfit!

Also sidenote, along with her Ladybug powers she does use her powers connected to the Green to help her as Ladybug. But sue tries not to make it obvious so no one makes the connection that she is Poison Ivy's daughter.

[goggles-mcgee]

In your Wish Me Away, what did Adrien expect regarding the wish? Bc you mentioned that he had to correct the "wrong" reality. Also does little Mari bake whenever there's a celebration like a birthday? If you don't mind, can I see some more shenanigans in Ivy's Sapling and Wish me Away? If it's alright for you.

Adrien expected his mother to come back, for their family to be complete once again and for basically things to be perfect with him going to school, him having his "perfect" complete family, and being in a relationship with Ladybug.

Then the Wish was made and his perfect reality was wrong and he has the determination to fix it but he has no idea where to start or how to start especially with his mother being as protective and suspicious as she was.

Mari does bake! It hurts at the beginning because it does remind her of her old parents but her new family all show her new recipes, their favorite recipes, and baking becomes a new favorite beautiful thing for her again.

Ivy's Sapling Shenanigans/Headcanons

• Ivy gave Mari the serum she gave Harley when she was a baby because she wanted her daughter to be as safe as possible, for if, IF, anyone found out about her and tried to hurt her using toxins, poisons, the like.

• Fascinatingly, despite Mari not being her birth daughter, she seems to have some sway and connection to and over the Green.

• When Marigold was 2 she kept saying strawberry over and over, when Ivy turned to see she saw, she actually saw her daughter GROW a strawberry plant full of ripe berries ready for picking. She was shocked needless to say.

• Mari was very smart, at two she knew so much already, so along with reviewing counting to ten and her abcs, Ivy had to work with Mari on her powers and seeing how much control over the Green she has.

• When Mari comes back to Gotham to move back in with her mom and Harley it takes a while for Marigold to open up to her mother about everything that happened in Paris. When she does, Harley and Ivy are ready to level the City of "Love"

• Ivy doesn't know how to feel about her daughter being some kind of Guardian to the kwami but she understands that her daughter seems to be the only one fit for the job and the only one willing to treat the kwami as "people" and not just creatures at her and other's disposal.

• When Ivy finds out Mari made a friend in Gotham she was ecstatic! Her little sapling was getting out of her shell and blossoming! And then she found out the friend was Damian Wayne and she didn't know how to feel.

• Marinette/Marigold does look a bit different than from Canon in this AU, her hair is naturally curly like Pamela's, it is still black with an "unnaturally" blue hue to it. Her eyes are more grey-blue than bluebell, but when she's transformed as Ladybug her eyes turn vibrant blue and her hair turns red like her mother's.

• Marinette only told her few friends she was leaving Paris so when it came out that she not only transferred but moved? Oh the akuma class blew up. They accused her of abandoning them while some were saying good riddance, it was a whole shebang.

• Bruce found out Damian's new friend was Marigold Isley-Chen and he honestly didn't know how to act, especially when Ivy told him what happened to her daughter in Paris. He had to talk her down from actually going to Paris and maybe making some more fertilizer for her dear plants.

• Mari loves gardening as much as she does fashion and is makes a lot of designs based off plants!

• Gabriel Agreste and Audrey Bourgeois both are pissed when the talented designer Marinette leaves Paris without a word. Audrey because she stayed in Paris with the hopes the girl would work with her since she hadn't wanted to move to NY, and Gabriel because he wanted to make her into an akuma and he saw potential in her skill as a designer so he is very mad at one muse, Lila Rossi for running the girl out of Paris.

• Marinette continues designing in Gotham while doing online school but she does change her label from MDC Designs to Xuiying Designs, she does notify all her clients but does ask they don't tell anyone that she is one and the same designer.

• Jagged does end up moving back home to Gotham when he learns that Mari moved, and when he learns what happened he is all for team revenge! He does take Luka and Juleka with him though as Anarka told all of them that he was their father, it was a shock to all and they all wanted to get to know each other. He didn't just pack up and leave Paris on a whim and just tag his children along, they all sat down and spoke about the situation for a long time before they all figured it would be best for Juleka and Luka to get away from Hawkmoth as a whole and Jagged was taking a break from touring and everything so it was perfect.