#like 2 years ago i spent new years eve with them and i ate the best fucking potatoes ive ever had

[pickled-flowers]

Btw yesterday I met a person named Bean who worked at a sex toys packaging factory and we ate risotto and pie

[weird-is-life]

When night falls, I am your escape #3

Summary: After avoiding her home town for a long time because of the boy who broke her heart. Y/N goes home to spend the longest time there in 15 years. The problem is that he is home, too. Daniel wants to reconnect with her, but she wants nothing more than to just avoid him.

Warnings: language

Chapters: 3/12

Words: 2.6k Masterlist

(English is not my first language so please excuse any grammar/spelling mistakes)

The week after Christmas went by really fast. I didn't even realise it until i saw that it was like 2 days to New Year. I guessed time goes fast when you are having fun and I had lots of fun. Two days after the Christmas Eve, me and my parents went on two days long road trip around Perth. It was a blast, we went to and saw so many beautiful places in Perth that i didn't even know existed. And i got to spent even more time with my parents so it was awesome.

When we got back home i spent most of the time surfing with my friend Mark. He was probably the only friend i had here, because most of my previous friends were also friends with Daniel so I kind of ignored them, too. So yeah,in conclusion he was definitely the only friend i had here.

I met him like five years ago in a surf shop. I just started getting into the surfing and i wanted to buy a surf. Mark was at the shop and helped me pick the best surf and we kind of hit it off. Later i learnt that he actually owned the shop. We've been very good mates ever since. I could swear that he was the most chilled person you'd ever meet on this planet and really fun to be around, too.

It was the last day of the year so what would be better than going surfing . I woke up later than usual so I just ate the lunch and then I went to surf. It was really good day for surfing because the weather was nice and the waves were great, too. But then as i was getting out of the water i saw a familiar face. Fuck, no no no. Best friend of Daniel, Michael, fuck. That meant that Daniel was also out of the quarantine then, shit. He was coming my way and i didn't know where to go or what to do. So I panicked and went back to the water. I think that the people that saw me get out of the water and then quickly go back in again must have thought i was crazy.

I paddled for a few minutes, for him to go farther away so I could go home. After Daniel he was the person i avoided the most . Not because i didn't like him or anything like that, but just because he was very close to Daniel and the chance i would meet him and Daniel together was very very high.

After i couldn't spot him anywhere i got out of the water. I started to walk very quickly to my car when somebody touched my shoulder.

"Hey, i was calling after you, didn't you hear me? " let me just say i almost screamed at first because i thought it was Michael. But it was in fact just Mark.

"Oh hey sorry, i just had too much stuff on my mind i guess" i replied.

"No worries i just wanted to tell you that me and a few of my mates are going out tonight. There will be music, good food and drinks . So I wanted to know if you'd like to come?" i was about to answer him when he added " you don't have to if you don't want to, but i would be fun to have you with us, so what do you say? " he had this stupid grin on his face and i couldn't say no to that.

"Alright yeah, i'll be there" i said .

"Sweet, i will pick you up and i'll text you the detail. Okay bye for now and by the way you were killing in out there" he hugged me goodbye and left. I had this weird feeling about going but i couldn't quite pinpoint why.

Daniel's pov

Finally home, sharing a few cries and hugs with my family felt like the best thing in the world. Ahh, i missed them so freaking much. I also missed the farm, the weather but that was nothing compared to how much i missed my fam.

And as my friend said getting back home needed a proper celebration. It was also the New Year's Eve so having a drink or two was very much appropriate. Me and my mates agreed on going to see some band playing in a pub and after the midnight would hit and we would go to my place and get absolutely wasted. I mean we could get drunk at the pub but i wasn't really feeling like going out but i wanted to hang out with them after such a long time so we agreed on that.

We decided to meet there. I went on my car and the guys on their own . I wasn't really excited about going out to a public space, but it was just for a few hours, so I could live with that.

When i got there the guys were already infront of the pub waiting for me. The hugs were instantly on before i could even get out of the car and after that we went in the pub.

There weren't too much people inside but not too little either.

We sat at the table at the back and ordered some drink, non alcoholic for me and my other friend of course, we couldn't drive with alcohol in our blood.

We still got a few minutes before the band started playing and it was like 2 hours till New Year so we talked about a lot of things, since i missed so much stuff.

When the band started playing i was so in the zone, that i wasn't paying attention to anything else. Until somebody slightly hit my arm.

"No fucking way" my friend said, as he nudged my side.

"What?" i said confused and took a sip from my drink.

"What? Look to your right and then you'll understand" so I did. The result of doing that, was me choking on my drink pretty badly. It was you. I mean Michelle told me you were here but i thought you'd be already gone before New Year like you always were. It was really you, sitting a few metres infront of us.

" No way" i said really really shocked.

"Shit, i haven't seen Y/N in a fucking decade. I gotta say she looks just as good as she did when we were younger, even more prettier " he was right, you did looked gorgeous.

Y/N's pov

When Mark picked me up i was rather excited about going. He let me play the music in the car and i thought he liked my songs.

At the pub i got introduced to all his friends, they seemed cool and i also learned that the band that was playing was the one from a few weeks ago. I got really excited about that. We picked a table and i ordered a beer, i wasn't really planning on getting drunk that night .

While chatting with Mark's friends i learned that they were all surfers. I would lie if i said i was suprised. They had the surfing vibe around them.

As i was looking around i noticed some people at the table far back starting at me, they looked very familiar. When i figured out who they were, I stopped dead in my tracks. Fuck. That was the only thing on my mind. Fuck fuck fuck that couldn't be happening, him of all people being there .

The first thing that came to my mind was to run away but i couldn't just bail on Mark and his friends. The only other option was to get drunk, if we'd bump into each other tonight i wouldn't be able to do it sober. Yeah, the plan was to get drunk.

"You look like you saw a ghost" Mark said jokingly.

"I kind of did" i said still slightly shocked.

"What?" he asked confused.

"Daniel's here" he knew i hated him but didn't know why " so I think i'm gonna get wasted " as i said it, i took his shot and drowned it. Everyone at our table cheered and next thing i knew, a lot of rounds of shots were being bought. I was definitely not getting out of there sober.

But before we started drinking, i needed to go to the toilet. On my way out of there i was stopped by a hand on my shoulder. I turned around to see who it was and it was freaking Daniel.

"Hey" he said. Foreal? You see somebody who avoided you like a plague and you say hey, what the fuck. I wasn't going to get in meaningless conversation with him.

So I just simply turned my back to him and went back to my table. But of course, he had something else to say.

" Wait, stop please, how've you been ?" i couldn't believe he just asked me that.

"Foreal? You are asking how i've been doing ? Just leave me alone yeah? We don't need to do this shit" the only thing i wanted at that moment was for him to just fuck off.

" Sorry i just... , could we talk?" no.

"No i think i will pass, please just leave me alone, i don't want to talk to you and you know that " with that said i left and honestly i think if i didn't leave at that moment i would probably crumble . He tried to protest but i just quickly got back to the table.

My hands were freaking shaking. I didn't think that meeting him would be so hard. I didn't have time to overthink it as i was immediately being handed a shot which i was grateful for. By the end of the show i was pretty much wasted.

Daniel's pov

Trying to talk with you didn't go as i thought it would. I mean you had every right to say what you said for what i did. It was stupid to just go up to you and try to start a conversation like nothing has ever happened. Stupid fucking stupid.

With these thoughts in my head i returned to the table. I didn't say anything to the guys, just sat down. But i watched you drown one shot after another. Great... I couldn't even pay attention to what were the guys saying.

The band was almost done playing and i could see that you and your friends were drunk as fuck. It was like 10 minutes till january 1st and the count down to New Year was followed by your whole table totally loosing it when the clock showed 0:00.

After the band ended the show, all of you left. I was little concerned because you and all of your friends drank so much alcohol. But before we even got up to leave you were gone.

And because I parked the car little farther from the pub we split up and agreed to meet up at the farm.

On my way to the car i saw you and the guy you were with laughing at something you found funny. I could see that he was holiding car keys and that you were on your way to some car. Hell no. I couldn't let you get in a car this fucking drunk with another drunk person, so I went up to you.

"Hey" i didn't want to scare you two so I just said hi.

"Oh hey duuude, do we know each other?" the guy said. He wasn't drunk but he definitely had a few drinks.

"No, but i know Y/N and i wanted to know if you needed a ride home i can see you've had a few drinks" a lot of drinks.

"No, thanks, Mark can drive us" you said still stubborn as fuck even when drunk.

" Yeah i can drive" right.

"Oh come on, you clearly can't, i'll take you both home i don't want you to get hurt" there was no way that i was gonna let you get in the car with Mark.

"Ah man, you're probably right" he surprisingly agreed with me but you just stayed silent.

"Alright c'mon, my car is there" i said.

"I'm not going with you" you said. Always so stubborn, damn it.

"Y/N please just get in the car and after that i'll leave you alone forever yeah? That's what you want right, so just let me get you safely home and then i'll leave you alone" you thought it through for a second and than said nothing, just went to the car and took the front seat. I guessed that was the most you would say to me.

Once we were all in the car i asked Mark where he lived. He didn't live far from there so I'd drop him of first. The whole ride to his house was silent, i didn't even try making conversation with you. I knew it would it pointless. You didn't even look at me once during the whole ride there. Understandable.

"We are here Mark" i said.

"Ahh thanks dude, see ya, bye Y/N" he replied and slowly got out of the car.

I looked to your side and i saw you shiver . I got my hoodie off me and handed it to you.

"What?" you asked sternly.

"I can see you're cold, put this on. Come on, don't even try to say no. It's just a fucking hoodie so please put it on, i don't want you to freeze" i could see that you were really restraining yourself from being sarcastic but eventually you took the hoodie and put it on. I don't think sober you would ever even got in the car with me, let alone put my hoodie on.

You didn't say anything after that, so I just turned on the car again. I was so focused on the driving, that I didn't notice you falling asleep. When we got to your house, i woke you up. You were a little confused at first, but then you got clumsily out of the car. I waited until you got inside your house and left.

Hopefully it wasn't the last time i saw you. I left with intention to get wasted aswell.

Hiii, hope it was atleast a little good. I'll be very glad for any feedback so if you want to, you can send me an ask or something. Have a great day. Peace out :) part 4

[minahoeshi]

you were loved the most the most of all.

Ushijima Wakatoshi x Reader | breakup angst

Summary: You should've known that when Ushijima Wakatoshi found it easy to fall in love with you, it might be even easier for him to fall out of it. But who expects the worst when it comes to loving someone as seemingly perfect as him, anyway?

Chapter 1 of 2

Chapter 2 of 2

Middle schooler Ushijima Wakatoshi was already more special than the kids around him. This, he was made to believe. It’s not exactly like it was wrong either. When a child is raised the way he was, with so much support that it’s suffocating, one can only grow to be good at what they were told they were meant to be doing. Volleyball as a toddler was meant for the happier times, a memory locked away as nothing but a feeling of nostalgia, never to be completely remembered again. Volleyball as a middle school player was an endless beginning, the very first point of a journey with no real possible end. Volleyball as one of the best among kids of his age, proven by the strength his high school team was known for and the fact that he was already on the world stage as well, could only ever spur him on to keep the momentum. Keep climbing, he would be reminded. Never stop. That’s how you reach the peak. Whether he would break after all that or rise to the very top was never even a matter of discussion. The way to the top was the only one there was. Looking back down and allowing himself to just freefall until the top becomes a distance almost crossed but never reached wasn’t ever an option. Wakatoshi could only ever aim for the very peak.

So, Wakatoshi, how’s volleyball as a pro?

The feeling of a dream-come-true that never was a dream, he might say. But him and sentimental descriptions simply didn’t really mix much. You were the one filled to the brim with those kinds of words. Maybe flowers laced the walls of your chest, maybe when God kicked Adam and Eve out of Eden, he left the garden to grow and flourish within your lungs, maybe you unknowingly raised every single Godly creation and so you were blessed with the power to create as well. You were full of flowery words, that’s what he knows. He would listen to every single one of them, count every petal, water every plant, kiss every one of them in their full bloom, and watch as sunlight filtered orange sets on all that you are. He’s always liked plants. But yours were his favourite.

So he wonders why the point where he could no longer listen to your words had to come. Why he looked at you and only felt the kind of fondness that comes with familiarity but not exactly love. Why the way your hands entwined with his no longer fills his chest with warmth. Why the abyss he spent trying to fill before you arrived (and made him realise maybe empty spaces were never meant to be filled to feel full but instead filled to feel warm) now feels extremely cold again. So maybe things like love do end. And maybe he made promises too soon.

So maybe when you told him about your mother and father and about how they made promises too but couldn’t come through, and when Wakatoshi thought you won’t ever be the same, he was wrong. Maybe one of them realised letting go when love no longer feels the same is better than letting their hands stay entwined when there’s only numbing coldness left to be felt. So maybe it’d do you better for him to let things end. From this point onwards, whatever he does will only ever hurt you. Because you crave the kind of affection that won’t ever end, and how he wish he could keep giving that to you, but he just no longer can. And staying with him who, for whatever fucked up reason the cosmos came up with, can no longer find the love he spent years sharing with you, is something he would never wish upon you.

This fucking hurts. How he fucking wants to keep loving you. What the hell happened?

After you left, Wakatoshi skipped training. He felt bad for eating the omelette when you cooked it to wish him luck. But he ate it anyway, wondering if he will ever see you again. And if so, will he feel find himself feeling the way he used to? And if yes, would you want that?

How do feelings work anyway?

--

You get to work right away. Still feeling heavy and hurt, sobbing at times, you keep collecting Wakatoshi’s things from your apartment. There were a lot. You were both comfortable with sharing your spaces with each other anytime you both wanted. Sometimes leaving things behind caused problems like that time Wakatoshi left his jersey in your apartment and only realized on the day of a game. You had to head to the gym earlier than you usually do, thankfully having washed the clothing a few days before. It’s actually there again, you find. His Schweiden Adler jersey in your closet among the pile of his other shirts and pyjamas. You put all that and other things into a box and close it up. For now, you’ll clean your place and get some sleep. You slept late last night and you woke up too early. Dealing with lack of sleep and the taxing feelings of ache after a breakup was too much. You were exhausted.

The moment you lie on your bed, you feel yourself falling asleep. And then you do. World gone.

You wake up at around lunch and take a short shower. You dress up, carry the box of Wakatoshi’s stuff, head out, lock your door, and go on your away to Tendou’s chocolate shop. You weren’t friends with him before you met Wakatoshi. So, you guess, maybe this will be the last you see him too. When people lose others, they either prefer to keep remembering or completely forget. For your sake, you’d rather be the latter.

Tendou’s shop isn’t close enough to the train station. You have to walk a few more minutes before you reach it. The box you’re carrying isn’t exactly heavy but you still feel sluggish even after that nap. You stop by a café to gather your wits and rest a bit. When you meet Tendou, you know he’ll greet you brightly. Toshi wouldn’t have told him that you broke up just yet. You realised long ago that unless asked by people, Toshi would rather not say anything most of the time. His silence was one you grew used to. Now you have to get used to not being around it anymore.

When you enter the chocolate shop, you see his red hair behind the counter right away. Quite the opposite of Wakatoshi, he’s lively and loud when he wants to be. Like right now, as he’s talking to a costumer, excitedly helping them choose one of the products they’re looking for. You wait until he’s done, just sending him a wave when he sees you, smiling. When the costumer leaves, you head for the counter and place the box you’ve been holding on top pf it.

Loudly, as you expected, he says, “hello! What brings you here? Haven’t seen you in like, three days, I think? You need anything? Where’s Wakatoshi-san? He’s not with you? Why?”

His barrage of questions won’t be left unanswered. But first, you nudge the box toward him. “Uhm, yeah, haven’t seen you in days. I… uhm, I’m here to ask you to do something. Related to Toshi-kun, of course, and well, why he’s… not, uhm, here…? With me?”

You stutter a lot mainly because you don’t exactly feel like announcing that Wakatoshi broke up with you. Tendou simply seems extremely excited to see you and even hopeful to see his best friend too but right now, you just feel like crying all over again It’s like you just can’t run out of tears. You just know that after this, you’ll go home and sob the rest of the day away. Breaking up with Wakatoshi hurt you a lot.

The redhead urges you on, concern beginning to appear on his face. What with the way you’re stuttering and fidgeting when you’re usually so comfortable around him and other people, it’s easy to tell that you’re not feeling too well. Clearly, something must have happened between you and Wakatoshi.

“So… we… kind of broke up…?” the lack of certainty in your voice makes it seem as though you’re still unsure if things really did end between you and the pro-athlete you’ve spent years with. But with the way Wakatoshi told you his reasons for breaking up last night, and how he didn’t want to keep hurting you because you’ve already talked to him about two other people who met and fell in love and did many things and yet still fell out of it but tried to hold on for too long that they ended up tearing each other down until even their daughter started to break with them until it’s just one tiny family with sharp shards for hearts, only capable of hurting each other and nothing more (some daughters grow up wanting to be anything but their mothers and fathers). Of course, Wakatoshi never mentioned that story, but you both knew that when he said he knows he can only really hurt you even more if he lets things run as they always did, he meant, we’re not your parents. We won’t tear each other down. If you go now, you’ll be okay enough to not be the person you’ll come to hate.

The only thing you allow Tendou to know is that you and Wakatoshi are no longer dating and that you’re both okay with it. You leave it at that, and when Tendou gives you a hug, the pain in your chest runs up your throat and you start crying again but that’s alright because Tendou reminds you that you’re sad and hurt and crying makes sense and crying helps and crying is fine and maybe crying makes it hurt a little bit less. He pats your back and says nothing after that, simply letting you calm down.

Before you leave, you purchase a few sweets because Tendou told u it’ll help. Chocolates and sadness work too well with each other.

–

The last time Wakatoshi remembers talking to you was around a year after your breakup. He and his team known to be one of the bests of Japan lost against the bests of Argentina in the Olympics. The world stage wasn't a strange new world to him and neither was loss, but for the first time in many years, the man found himself burdened by the weight of too many regrets.

He knew then that maybe it wasn't exactly losing against Argentina that made him feel this way. Maybe the emptiness he so desperately filled by pouring too much of his days into training and playing was finally there to break him. Maybe the whole time he was thinking he was getting there, not knowing where, only hoping to keep going because he just doesn't know where he can stop to lay his pieces down, he was only distracted enough to not miss the warmth you brought with you which you took with you when he broke your heart. And so when he lost that game, he questioned what could possibly keep him going. When does this journey end? Until when must he keep going? His parents never told him when he was younger. All this time, he only knew to keep forward. Now that he has won one too many games and finally lost one of the most important games he could play, he finds himself wondering if he should stop here now.

And because you knew him too much, you just had to, you know, be that rock that kept him steady even after he hurt you. He went and broke your heart for reasons he himself still cannot really explain, like how the fuck he knew he was no longer in love with you, and why the fuck is he still missing you, and is God playing with him right fucking now? So you just had to call him when he was all alone in his hotel room, mind messed up in so many ways. Your voice just to had to be there. To tell him, you did so well today. To be honest, I haven't watched much of your games recently but I felt like I just had to watch this one. And it was so awesome. It makes me wanna start watching you play again. You're amazing, Wakatoshi-kun. I'm so proud of you.

And then a year later, Wakatoshi finds out that you finally published the novel you’ve been working on since way before he met you. In the first message you sent him, you attached a picture of your book, saying, look at the name on the cover. are you proud of me yet? I am too<3. Better grab yourself a copy before there's none left, right? He couldn't say for sure why you decided to message him about it. It wasn't like you stayed in contact, both of you aware of how much you preferred not facing the past if you had the choice. That time after he lost against Tooru Oikawa's team in the Olympics and you gave him a call was because you're just that kind. You're just that amazing.

But like many things he'll never understand, he just lets this one be. So what if you told him about your book? He should be thankful enough that you even decided to tell him about it. So he goes and buys a copy and reads it as soon as he gets home. It's not like he's big on reading. But he just really likes your words.

Epilogue

...and if someday we find ourselves in a universe where soulmates are filled to the brim with not only stardust but also pure serendipity, I wonder what kind of mark we would have. I kinda wish it'd be that one where ink on my skin gets inked on yours too. Then maybe it'd be so much easier to tell you all the secrets I've been trying to keep. Like how I spent too many years regretting not succumbing in that green lake back home or how sometimes I bleed all over in red angry lines running down like red angry tears, and how much you made me just want to live because you just made me feel loved the most of all. Because maybe you were my finallyfinallyfinallyfinally before you were my whywhywhywhywhywhy.

The End

A/N

Hello. I deeply feel how flawed this fic is but that's fine. I'm still learning how to write stories because I've been writing prose more than anything else. So stories like this do kinda scare me. But I still hope you liked it and thank you so much for reading it!!!!

also, not proofread. it's p hard for me to reread my own works so im v sorry for any mistakes and stuff. if u find any mistakes and whatnot pls pls pls tell me. thats all i hope u enjoyed this v much shouldve stayed in the drafts fic. mwa!

taglist:

@lordmypantsaresocool

@annoyingpessimist

@ushijimacentral

[theasstour]

𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭.

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 𝟏𝟒𝐤 𝐍𝐁: 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐬𝐞𝐱𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭

A/N: Now that we’re at the end of year 1, there will be a lil pause in updates for the time being, just fyi! Next update will be on Sunday 23rd May and then every Sunday until the end of the second year again, which is a tag bit longer and MUCH more eventful than the first year aiajfiegj ✨ Anyway !!! Enjoy chapter 11, it’s a Lot 🏛️🦅

December 2013

Though Y/N was used to her sister doing things when she wanted to and not really having a care in the world for what anyone else would think, it still took her a little by surprise when she walked in the direction of the woods. The sisters had helped their parents carry all the luggage indoors, not doing so would result in Lottie scolding them for being lazy. Neither wanted the Christmas cabin trip to start on a bad note.

“You coming?!” Marcela called to her sister, stopping by a tree and resting her hand against it.

“Coming…” Y/N said to herself, looking over at the cabin door that still stood open before glancing in Marcela’s direction again. “Coming where?!”

“Let’s take a walk!”

It was just about to get dark, the sky above them white like a cotton blanket was draped lazily over the south of Wales, but greying with an oncoming storm. The last time Y/N had been to Newport was a weekend in October, but it had been raining constantly, so she had not taken the time to walk around the forest or stroll down to the ocean a mere 10-minute walk from the cabin. She had just been indoors, reading The Picture of Dorian Gray and not feeling any sort of need to leave the cabin’s four warm walls. Marcela had been in Manchester then, busy with uni work, and planning on spending the weekend studying in the library. She had an article that needed to be written for the UoM’s monthly academic journal, she said she wanted to finish it as quickly as possible, so Y/N had not asked her sister to drop it and come regardless. Though she had very much wanted to do just that.

“Y/N!”

Y/N walked over to her sister instantly, jogging a little to reach her before Marcela just turned around and started walking on before they were side by side. Though the trees around them weren’t many, they were big. Huge beech trunks rose up from the ground around them sporadically, their massive branches stretching out around them like the long, slithering limbs of many insects. Different coloured leaves covered most of the forest floor, though some brown and yellow still lingered in the dark, old trees. In summertime, most of the forest was left in shade, covered up by the thick layer of leaves that rose high above them, preventing actual sunbeams from touching the ground.

“Any idea what you’re gonna be wearing for New Year’s Eve?” Marcela asked once the two of them had walked a minute in silence.

New Year’s Eve was just a few days away, and the family planned on spending it alone in Newport. Marcela usually spent it with Kit and friends in Manchester, but it had been a while since she had celebrated a proper Brazilian New Year’s Eve. Though the Montes family usually spent it in Nottingham with the rest of their big family, Davi and Lottie wanted to try and spend this one with just the four of them. Neither one of the sisters were opposed to the idea, it just meant they wouldn’t have to watch their primos, Edgar at 7, Valentim at 5, and Raimundo at 2, while tia Gilma and tio Jaren ate their Véspera de Ano Novo dinner undisturbed. They loved their primos dearly, but it often left both of them massaging their temples to get rid of a throbbing headache afterwards.

“I brought a white tee shirt and some white joggers,” Y/N said, wrinkling her nose. “I hate wearing white.”

“Why, it doesn’t go with your gothic-black-clothing type of lifestyle?” Marcela laughed, reaching up and picking a yellow leaf off a branch.

Y/N did not feel like telling Marcela why she hated wearing white. And in turn therefore hated part of New Year’s Eve. Only that one part.

Davi always started off every Réveillon, or every new year, by knocking on his daughters’ doors and exclaiming, “Ano novo, vida nova!” New Year, new life. Brazilians are extremely superstitious when it comes to New Year’s Eve. What you do, eat, and wear on New Year’s Eve, will draw certain energies and wishes for the upcoming year. New Year’s Eve in Rio de Janeiro is a massive beach party from Copacabana Beach to Ipanema and beyond. Millions upon millions of people gather at their nearest beach to celebrate, starting early in the evening and going all night, Y/N had always dreamed of one day experiencing that herself. She had been to Brazil, but never on New Year’s Eve.

One of the Brazilian traditions for New Year’s is to wear all-white. Y/N was told by Davi years ago that the tradition came from African religions as an homage to the God Oxalá. It was then adopted by Roman Catholics and Evangelists alike, and though their family wasn’t religious, they practiced this regardless. Another tradition that you did alongside the all-white, was that you have to wear coloured underwear on New Year’s, and it all depended on what you want you want the new year to bring.

“I brought a white dress,” Marcela explained. “What colour?”

“Hmm, I brought a few colours. Think I might go with laranja.”

“Orange,” Marcela smiled. “Professional success. Good choice.”

“And you?”

“Amarelo.”

Y/N blinked. “Yellow.”

“Luck,” Marcela said. “What do you think everyone that sees us at the beach on New Year’s Eve are gonna think? They’ll see us jumping into the water and into seven ondas.” Marcela laughed. “Unless they know of Brazilian culture, they won’t understand what’s going on.”

Y/N smiled.

“Let’s confuse them.”

“Going into the ocean at midnight and jumping into seven waves for good luck, is nice.” Y/N wrinkled her nose. “If the water just hadn’t been so cold.”

“And we need to jump into the ice-cold waves head-on.”

“But you can make one wish for each wave.” She shrugged her shoulders. “It’s been a while since we got to do that, not a lot of ocean in Notts.”

Marcela smiled. “If only we were in Copacabana.”

“I want to watch the fireworks there so baaad!”

“Instead we’re stuck in Newport.”

“Well,” Y/N said, cocking her head to the side as she caressed a tree when they walked past it. “You decided to come here yourself, I was forced. I’m stuck, you can leave.”

Marcela only bumped Y/N’s shoulder with her own, shaking her head at her before she jogged a bit away. Y/N just continued on walking, thinking that her sister had just found a rock or something else that she wanted to pick up, but after a few metres, she was still not back. Turning around, she saw her sister hunched over something further away than she had seen her last, wiping at something on the ground as if to reveal something hidden beneath the layer of leaves and dirt there. Y/N walked over, feeling as if the forest around them had just gone deadly quiet. Marcela stood as Y/N approached, pointing at something on the ground.

A small cellar hatch. Made out of old wood and painted a ghastly brown colour to blend in with the nature around it. In the 10 or so years the Montes family had owned the Newport cabin, never had Y/N stumbled upon this hatch. It looked aged, as if it had been there for way longer than the cabin had. Or maybe it had been made in a hurry and left just like this, with no one to care for it. Y/N looked over at Marcela who was studying the hatch, bending down again to check it out more closely.

“Do you think anyone lives here?” she asked. The question made Y/N feel oddly cold.

“Would hope not. It’s right next to our cabin.”

“Why would it be here otherwise?”

“Dunno.” Y/N looked around them, the forest looked darker now. “Mari, let’s go back.”

“Y/N, we can’t just leave. We need to check this out,” Marcela said, reaching for the metal handle. “I thought you liked exploring.”

“I do, but… this is creepy.”

“No, it’s not.”

Without warning, Marcela opened the hatch, flipping it over so it rested on the other side, leaving the contents of the cellar visible to them both. Y/N took a small step back, but then took one forward again, wanting to be quick to her sister’s aid in case someone or something jumped out at her. But nothing did.

Instead of seeing a cellar exposed to them right under the hatch, a rather narrow and long tunnel straight downwards showed itself to them instead. A metal ladder ran along one of the walls, reaching a long way down, but the destination was left completely in darkness, making it hard to make out anything but the rotting wooden panels around the ladder and the rusting metal of said ladder. Marcela got her phone out, turning on the flashlight and shining it down the tunnel.

“There’s a room down there,” she said, moving closer, squinting down at the cellar.

“Mari, let’s go.”

“Must be here from the second World War or something.”

Y/N looked around, anticipating someone running up on them.

“I’m going down.”

“What-“ Y/N’s head whipped in her sister’s direction, but before she could even try and stop her, Marcela’s feet were on the rusting ladder. “Marcela, what the fuck are you doing?!”

“I just want to see what’s down here.”

“Which is a terrible idea. Get up.”

However, Marcela had never been one to listen to anyone but herself. She merely rolled her eyes at Y/N before she started her descent, keeping her phone in her mouth so it would shine downward and onto whatever she was about to see. Y/N felt herself both worried stupid and curious. She too wanted to know what was down there as well, but her concern for her sister and what she was doing championed over any curiosity she might have felt.

“Mari, I don’t like this,” Y/N called down, sitting on her knees by the cellar opening, not caring that her trousers would get dirty.

Marcela said something, though Y/N could not hear properly through the phone in her sister’s mouth.

“What?!”

Marcela struggled to get her phone out of her mouth, gaze turned downward as she examined the room underneath her. “I’m down!”

“What is it?”

“A shelter room of sorts.” Marcela let go of the ladder, jumping down into the dirt floor. “There’s a bed, some cabinets.”

“Great, you’ve had a peek,” Y/N called down. “Now get up.”

Marcela stood still for a second, turning around 360 degrees to take in the whole room. She suddenly stopped, eyes landing on something at the other end of the room. She walked toward it, disappearing from Y/N’s view.

“Marcela!” Y/N shouted, but Marcela did not reply, not even when she shouted a second time. “Mari, where are you-“

“-Y/N, oh my days,” Marcela groaned. “Chill out.”

“What was I supposed to do?! You disappeared!”

“I was okay,” Marcela said, grinning up at her sister. Y/N could almost just make out her sister’s teeth. “This is the best hiding place by our cabin, I think.”

“Can you get up here now? I think it’s starting to rain.”

“Fine,” Marcela said, putting her phone back in her mouth as she reached for the lowest rung of the ladder. Wrapping her fingers around the rusting metal, she was ready to pull herself up when she yelped. Next thing Y/N knew, metal clanged against the soil of the cellar and Marcela gasped for air, the flashlight of her phone cast at the ground, drenching the cellar in an unremitting darkness.

“Mari?!”

The only thing Y/N heard was Marcela heaving for dry breaths and shuffling, as if she was trying to find her phone on the floor of the cellar. With shaking hands, Y/N reached for her own phone, and though she was unsure of how much her phone would help, she shone her own flashlight down in the cellar. It gave Marcela just enough light to finally find her phone and shine a light around her. The rusty rung had fallen completely off the ladder, now laying somewhere Y/N could not see.

Marcela stood back up, dusting the dirt off her black tights.

“You okay?!” Y/N shouted.

“Fine.”

But she did not sound fine, and she looked worse as she walked up the ladder, finally making it to the surface. Y/N took a grip of her sister’s jacket, helping her out the last metre.

“You’re fucking mad,” Y/N hissed. “Never do that again.”

“Calm down.” Marcela stood up, Y/N joining her not even a second later. “I’m fine.”

“That cellar is old, Marcela, what were you thinking?! It could’ve collapsed, it-“

“-But I’m fine. It didn’t collapse.” Marcela took a grip of Y/N’s shoulders. “I’ve seen that hatch before, but only when I was on walks alone, I didn’t dare open it up and check what was down there without someone here. Now you were, and I didn’t feel so afraid anymore.”

Y/N clenched her teeth, her heart still hammering awfully fast.

“You make me brave, meu docinho de côco.”

My coconut sweet. The pet name made Y/N halt a bit. It had been years since Marcela had called her that. It’s an old-fashioned Brazilian pet name, one Marcela had started calling Y/N when she was just a baby because she had overheard their avó calling someone that, and so she had adopted it herself. They had countless of home movies filmed on rubbish cameras where five-year-old Marcela sat with baby Y/N in her lap, giving her a kiss to the forehead and repeating “meu docinho de côco” over and over again.

“Let’s go back to the cabin,” Marcela said. “Mum is probably angry we haven’t made our beds yet,” Marcela laughed, but Y/N only managed to smile a tine bit. “Aw, Y/N, I’m fine, really,” she assured her. “If I had died down there, I would’ve let you kill me.”

“Good.”

Marcela only laughed before she turned around and closed the hatch.

Friday, 27 April 2018

Y/N didn’t like being in central London. Though there were people everywhere in the capital, there was something about the never-ending crowds of the City of London that made Y/N detest being there. Tourists would walk in and out of shops, clogging up the streets to look at Google Maps on their phones, and not have a single care in the world for those who lived there and just wanted to get to their final destination.

April was definitely not the worst month, there had been and probably would be far worse months with tourists everywhere, but London was a natural and easy weekend trip for anyone living in Europe, and a nice place to visit for anyone else in the world as well, which resulted in it being a busy city at all times. It was not enough that over 12 million lived in or close to the capital, it sometimes felt like there were just as many tourists visiting the city as there were inhabitants. Today, Y/N ended up walking behind a particularly slow group of Dutch people, she recognised it immediately as they spoke, having heard Annalise speak just like them before. Regardless of that, Y/N just wanted to enter a shop without mowing her way through them. It took her a few minutes until she was able to navigate her way around them, by sprinting past them on the street beside them, making it back onto the pavement in time for a double decker to zoom by.

Finally reaching New Look on Gracechurch Street, Y/N walked on inside, feeling in the humid air outside that it was just about to start raining. With Communion playing in her ears and the voice of Olly Alexander singing about being confused about whether to want love or desire from someone, Y/N took a right as she entered the massive New Look, excited to treat herself to some new clothes.

She had been sitting in the Mile End Library on campus all day. The three essays she needed to finish along with revision for her exam in May was all catching up to her, almost making it impossible to fall asleep at night. She would lay awake, thinking about what she had to do the next day, what she should’ve done today, and the five-hundred things that needed to be done at one time or another. It had been a while since she had spent her time overthinking as much as she was right now. Now that almost none of her mates were in London yet, she spent most of her time by herself, either sitting in the library or a café, always doing uni work and always zoning out when she remembered something else she needed to research or another argument to bring up in another one of her essays. She didn’t like studying all by herself in her room. It felt too quiet. She needed people around her, some kind of sounds, even if that was just a student coughing a few tables down from hers. Even though she was by herself in the flat, at least she wasn’t completely by herself all the time.

Her thinking about uni hadn’t been the only reason it had been hard for her to sleep at night. Even though part of her detested herself for it, she still felt relieved at the thought of Harry arriving later that day. Finally she wouldn’t be alone in the flat, someone else was there with her. Even though she had heard their neighbours talking and moving around in their own flats before, she always woke up or stopped whatever she was doing at the smallest sound, even though part of her knew it was just one of their neighbours. She had never slept in a house completely by herself before. Whenever her parents were away, Marcela would come stay with her, and if she couldn’t, then Nathan would sleep over. Y/N had never been so alone like she was now ever before. It scared her.

Even though she knew nothing would actually happen to her, she knew how to throw a punch and knee someone in the groin so it hurt a little extra, it still felt good knowing Harry would be there now.

Suddenly, she stumbled upon something that had her stopping rather abruptly. A white tee shirt with a black X on it, a pink dragon slithering its way in and around the letter. Y/N absolutely loved it. She could see it going super well with her black pleated skirt, some fishnets, and her Docs. She took it off the rack, studying it a bit closer, she turned the head and hung it over the rack again, pulling it out to check the size of it. It was rather small. She checked the sizing, seeing that it was a medium. Putting it back properly on the rack, Y/N started filtering through the different tee shirts, trying to find one large or X large. After all, she could not deal with it being a slim fit. But she found nothing, they only had it in 2X small, X small, or medium.

“Excuse me,” she said, walking up to someone who looked like they worked in New Look. The employee smiled at Y/N as she approached. “Do you by any chance have this one in extra-large?”

“I’ll go check,” the employee said, walking off rather quickly so she could check and get back as quickly as possible. A few minutes later, Y/N still stood where the employee had left her, but she came back, a little out of breath, shaking her head.

“I’m sorry, we only have it in large or anything under, not extra-large.”

Y/N felt her heart sink, she smiled at the employee anyway. “Thank you for checking.”

“No problem,” she smiled back. “Also… uhm-“ She pointed over her shoulder at the escalator. “-If you’re looking for plus sized items, they’ll be upstairs. We don’t have many extra-large alternatives downstairs.”

Not only had Y/N’s heart sunk to the very bottom of her stomach, now it had just fallen out of her arse and down to the bottom of the universe. Telling herself that the employee only meant well, Y/N nodded, thanking her, and put the tee shirt back on the rack. She walked to the escalator, taking it up and looking at the board for the overview of the different sections of the store. Downstairs was woman’s clothing, first storey was more women’s clothing, men’s clothing, and plus size, while the second storey was shoes, accessories, and changing rooms. That put Y/N off. How come there were more shoes and accessories being offered than plus sized clothing?

She started walking around the first storey, looking for the plus size section. It took a while for her to find it, but when she finally located it, she understood why and didn’t understand at the same time. The section was just as big, if not smaller, than the men’s clothing section, and how could she have not seen it when all the clothes looked the same? Everything looked at something her 50-year-old mother would wear, and though some of the items would look cute on her mother, nothing stood out to Y/N. None of the items were cute. In fact, they rather looked like bin bags with a bit of cleavage and zero tailoring to accentuate a woman’s figure. It just looked like clothes for the sake of wearing clothes, nothing that would stand out in a crowd or make the wearer look cute.

Y/N found a blouse that she was sure her mother would have loved, burgundy with blue flowers on it. However, she stopped dead in her tracks as she saw what was written at the very top of the blouse. Maternity. Quickly, Y/N put it back, looking around her to see if the maternity section was anywhere close to the plus size one. However, upon closer inspection, she realised that the maternity section was just combined with the plus size section. There was no difference. After all, it was all just bigger clothes. Plus size, maternity; did it matter.

Balling her hands into fists, Y/N left the store. She willed herself not to cry, not to lose it, until she reached a less crowded area. As she walked, it was hard for her to formulate how she was feeling. It was hard to put words to what she was going through. Even though she could’ve taken the tube or the bus, Y/N walked home. And in the 40 minutes it took her to reach the flat, she had not come to a conclusion to understand why she was so sad. The words were there, she could read them and see them, but as soon as she reached for them, to admit them to herself and to fully grasp them, they evaporated into grey vapour. She could not say it.

Sunday, 29 April 2018

“You’ve been quiet.”

Y/N tore her eyes away from the raindrops racing down one another on the window beside her. She glanced at Harry behind the steering wheel, his eyes on the road ahead of him, but he must have looked at her to understand that something was wrong. Or… well, he didn’t really have to. Y/N liked to talk, if she was quiet, then something was most likely wrong.

“Have I?” she asked, looking at her hands resting in her lap.

“Yeah, you alright?”

“No, I…” Y/N bit her lips together, feeling something in her throat clog up, as if the words refused to leave her mouth. She didn’t know what those words would even be if she were to speak them. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know what’s wrong?”

She leaned her head back against the headrest. “Still working on it.”

“Alright,” Harry said, shifting his grip on the wheel. “Wanna talk? To get your mind off whatever’s bothering you?”

Y/N could feel herself smiling a tad at that. “Yeah.”

“I got the dagger tattoo.”

She looked at Harry. “You did?”

“Yeah, did some of it myself, but some angles were hard to do properly, so Wes helped me out.”

If Harry had only told Y/N earlier, he could have shown her the tattoo while they were still at the flat. Now, instead, they were in Harry’s car, driving down a tiny road that led to the cabin on the outskirts of Newport, Wales. They had been quiet most of the way, Y/N suspected Harry had given her silence so she could think. After all, they were going back to the cabin where her sister had been murdered, if she wanted to stay silent and reflect upon that then she should be allowed to. So, Harry let her be, only occasionally asking questions and making conversation, but for the most part, he just kept quiet, thinking and knowing that was what she really needed.

“You’ll have to show me later,” she said, smiling over at him.

Harry kept his eyes on the road as it went from gravel to dirt, making the drive bumpier than it already had been. Those same big trees rose above them that Y/N remembered from her childhood, keeping the best hiding places and all the world’s secrets. Leaves occupied the trees now working like an impenetrable roof for the forest floor beneath, which explained why the grounds were so brown and not a lush green colour.

“Down here,” Y/N said, her voice sounding faraway. Distant, even.

Harry must have noticed too, but he did not say anything, instead keeping his eyes on the road as it grew narrower. It did not even take a minute for the wooden cabin to show itself. An old Swedish couple had built it in the late 1980s, making it look very Scandinavian and half finished with its brown colour and small square windows. Y/N had not brought a key, knowing that she did not have the guts to enter the cabin just yet. She just needed a look, just needed to check something.

Harry cut the engine as they reached the parking spot Y/N’s papai always used. It was less of a marked-up parking spot and more of a convenient place to park your car. The ground showed of where a car had once stood many times over, and so Harry did the same as Y/N’s papai did. The window into the living room was just to Y/N’s left, and though you could barely make anything out without coming up close to look through it, she kept her eyes trained on the forest in front of her, not daring to even look in the direction of the cabin.

She closed her eyes, finding something that could resemble courage, and let it take over her. As long as she just did this without thinking too much, then she could get through it. She could reflect on what had just happened at a later time. Now, she just needed to get out of the car, and do what she came here to do.

She opened the car door and stepped outside, walking away from the cabin right away to create as much distance between her and the darkest place on planet Earth. Y/N heard her panicked breathing, and realised that if she looked at the cabin one more time, then that courage she had found bottled up inside her would not be enough to keep her on her feet when a panic attack came over her. She heard footsteps behind her and felt Harry’s presence at her side seconds later, his hands in his coat pocket as he looked up at the grey sky above them. It had been hot enough for them to wear tee shirts only yesterday, but now they had to wear jackets in order not to freeze. That was the weather in the United Kingdom for you in a nutshell.

“You alright?” Harry asked, his voice reassuring, but the hand he put at her back eased her more.

She nodded her head.

Harry looked around them at the dark forest that stretched out in all different kinds of directions, then scanning the sky above again. “This looks just as creepy as I would’ve imagined.”

Y/N swallowed, closing her eyes as she tried to calm her racing heart. The mere fact that the cabin was behind her made her want to throw up right then and there. “You think?”

“Yeah,” Harry said. “You loved it here when you were little?”

“I did. It was a safe haven,” Y/N explained, opening her eyes again, facing the exact part of the forest that she wanted to walk down. “It wasn’t this dark before.”

Harry only looked at her, but the next second, Y/N walked away from the cabin, continuing down the path her sister had taken her all those years ago. Harry followed suit, studying the woods around them the trees they walked by, the thick layer of green leaves above them. A crease appeared between his brows, indicating that he was incredibly uncomfortable being here. Somehow, that comforted Y/N.

The two of them walked for a few minutes, Harry not once asking where they were headed or what Y/N wanted to do out here in the forest, only following and trusting that she knew what she was doing. These woods had been her playground when she was little, she knew parts of them as well as she knew the inside of her room home in Nottingham.

Finally, they reached what Y/N had wanted to come to Newport for. When she stopped and bent down, Harry almost fell over his own feet, for some reason not having seen this one coming. He only watched as she dusted dried and dead leaves off the forest floor, revealing the old and wooden hatch. Touching the handle felt strange, as if she were touching part of history. She slowly opened the hatch, revealing the ladder beyond and the darkness of the cellar. Seeing it again brought back the memory of her and Marcela being her together all those years ago, of seeing her sister lose grip of the last rung. Hearing her meet the floor of the cellar with a thud.

Y/N reached for the phone in her pocket, bringing it out and getting her flashlight out, pointing it down at the pitch-black hole. It was just as she remembered.

“What’s that?” Harry asked, taking a careful step towards the hole to get a closer look.

“A cellar of sorts,” Y/N said. “My sister once told me this was the best hiding place near our cabin.”

Harry glanced at Y/N then, knowing what was happening next. Y/N put her phone in her mouth like her sister had done, and then let her feet dangle off the edge of the hole. She gripped the topmost step and planted her feet on one further down.

“Y/N, that’s pure fucking madness,” Harry said. “Get up.”

She took her phone out of her mouth. “Harry, I need to check to see what’s down there. It might be nothing, but this has eaten me alive recently. I need to check.”

Harry sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Alright, but let me go down there first.”

Y/N blinked. However, she did not protest, merely removed her feet from where they were already firmly placed on a step, and let Harry get his own phone out.

“Fuck, it’s dark,” Harry mumbled as he shone a light down in the cellar. “Have you been down there before?”

“No,” Y/N said. “But Marcela has. I suspect she’s been there multiple times.”

“Did the police ever find this place?”

Y/N thought for a second before she raised a shoulder in a shrug. “Dunno. I’ll have to ask mum and pai.”

Harry nodded, putting his phone in his mouth like she had just done. He sat down by the hole and took a grip of the ladder, a curl falling into his forehead as he started on his descent. Y/N watched him as he climbed all the way down, jumping off the ladder and onto the cellar floor with ease. He looked around, scanning the room slowly with his flashlight while Y/N sat by the top, watching like she had watched Marcela.

“The last steps are gone,” Harry called up.

“I know,” Y/N called back before putting her phone in her mouth, telling herself to just fucking do this. She had to do this. For Marcela. Y/N gripped the ladder and started climbing down like she had just watched Harry do, like she had watched Marcela do four years ago. The ladder felt old and rusty under her fingers, making her entire body tense up. She was ready to fall to her death any second, to be the sole reason why her and Harry starved to death in a cellar no one but them knew existed.

Finally, with sweat dotting her forehead and cupid’s bow, she reached the last whole step. But as she was about to put her foot there, she met nothing put air. She squealed a little, holding a little tighter onto the ladder with her hands and other foot.

“Oi,” Harry said, moving closer and putting a hand up. “Easy. I told you the last few steps had fallen off.”

Y/N furrowed her brows.

“Just jump, I’m here,” he said, voice so reassuring and warm that everything felt okay for a single second.

She did as he said, jumping from where she stood. Her feet hit the ground a little to hard, making her wince, but Harry was right there, one hand gripping her arm while the other arm snaked around her waist, holding her upright.

“There we go,” he mumbled, only just then realising that his phone’s flashlight was shining into Y/N’s jacket, making it harder to see the cellar. He took a small step away, letting her regain her footing as she glanced around. It was emptier than she thought it was. A simple wooden bed stood there, but no mattress occupied it, and some cupboards were on the other side of the tiny cellar, though some of the doors hung off their hinges, others looked fine, and some were removed. The walls and floor consisted of compact dirt, and the whole place smelled of rusted iron. Y/N hated it.

“Cosy place, innit,” Harry said, sounding like he meant the quite opposite. “Throw in a disco ball and you could host a rave.”

Y/N almost chuckled, but then her eyes landed on something on the floor beside some of the cupboards. A blue dog bowl. Whether it had been used for water or food, Y/N did not know, but it looked very out of place in such an old and dirty cellar. It had some dirt on it, probably having fallen from the ceiling and down into it over time, but the rather modern, blue dog bowl looked completely out of place. Y/N was certain this had not been here when Marcela was down there, or she would have told Y/N about it right away, even picked it up to show her.

What kind of sick human being had left a dog down in this cellar to die? Though it was dirty, the bowl did not seem to have been used. Maybe the dog had been given a last bowl of water before the owner just left it there to rot.

“What’s that doing here?” Harry asked, looking at the bowl over Y/N’s shoulder. He took it from her hands to examine it further, turning it over in his hand. “Strathy.”

Y/N blinked. “What?”

“Strathy.” He turned the bowl, showing Y/N the name that was written on it in neat handwriting. “The dog’s name.”

“Strathy,” she mumbled under her breath, feeling an immense sort of sadness take over her. She might not like animals much, but even she saw how wrong this was.

Harry grimaced, clearly feeling absolutely disgusted with this as well. After all, his dad took care of dogs at a dog hotel in Buckinghamshire. He had a rather special bond with the animal, Y/N supposed.

“Who just leaves a dog bowl down here?” she asked aloud, not expecting Harry to answer.

He frowned at it, giving it back to her so she could look at it. “Doesn’t make sense.”

Y/N turned around, looking at the ladder. And it was as Harry had said, the last two steps were gone, laying in pieces on the floor beneath the hole. “No, it doesn’t.”

Harry glanced over at where Y/N was looking, furrowing his brows. “Your sister said this was the best hiding place by your cabin?”

“Yeah, in December before the year she was killed,” Y/N said. “No one would find you if you hid here.”

Harry looked at Y/N as she looked at him. “Then why did someone else, someone who clearly came here after you and your sister did in December, know about this cellar?”

Y/N felt sick. “They must have known the grounds pretty well to know this was here.”

Harry only nodded, eyes falling to the dog bowl in Y/N’s hand. She glanced at the ladder again, feeling confused and furious at the same time. Who had been here after her and her sister had?

Wednesday, 2 May 2018

Even though Y/N’s door was open, Harry still knocked on the doorframe, looking in through the small slit in the door to check if it was alright with her if he entered.

“Disturbing my peace and quiet,” she said jokingly, putting a few folded tops in her suitcase to bring with her home for the summer.

“Thought you would appreciate the sight of the biggest hunk on the British Isles,” Harry grinned, opening the door and leaning a shoulder against the doorframe. “Give you some inspiration. Some motivation, even.”

Y/N rolled her eyes, Harry chuckling at the sigh as she put some more clothes in her suitcase. The room fell back into silence as Harry gave her some breathing space, obviously thinking that she did not appreciate him blocking her in any way when she was packing. She was not packing her entire room, after all she was coming back in September, but most of her clothes were in London and she wanted to take them home with her so she could wear them there. They were of no use just laying in her dresser in Hackney.

“How’d the exam go?” Harry asked.

She looked up at him, taking in his simple outfit. A loose buttoned-up shirt in a nice cream colour was tucked into dark brown trousers, his feet bare and his skin already glowing with an oncoming tan. So, he had spent most of the day outside. The tan would look nice against his tattoos. Y/N’s eyes fell to Harry’s tattoos, the ones on his knuckles in Greek that she still did not know the meaning behind, and then the barbed wire, making him look more badass than Y/N knew him to be. He now had a fern just below the dagger he had taken in April and a leaf on his pinky finger just below the barbed wire. At this rate, Harry would be covered in tattoos by the end of the year.

“New ink,” Y/N noted.

The right side of his lips tipped upward as he looked down at his arms and hands. “Yes.”

“You’re just taking advantage of the fact that you know how to use a tattoo gun.”

Harry chuckled. “Someone should take it away from me.”

“Truly.”

“I’m scared that I’ll, like, come up with cooler tattoo ideas later on, but then I’ve already filled up the spot where it’d look best.”

Y/N tilted her head at him. “Then you should slow down the tattooing.”

“Nah, can’t do that, love.”

She only rolled her eyes again, sitting down on top of the suitcase so she could close it and pull the zipper shut properly.

“You didn’t answer me earlier,” Harry asked, walking inside and sitting down on Y/N’s bed. “How’d your exam go?”

Y/N sighed, resting her chin in her hand as she glanced over at him. “Alright. We had an hour to, like, answer the two questions, one short answer and then a short essay. I was about halfway through my essay when I realised I only had ten minutes left.”

Harry grimaced.

“So, I just had to write until my wrist and hand ached, and was about to start writing the conclusion when we had to hand the papers over. I think Isla wrote way more than I did, dunno how she managed that.”

“How many pages did you get in?”

“About 12.”

Harry just stared at her. “And Isla got more down?”

“I think closer to 20.”

“20 handwritten pages in an hour?!” Harry said, sounding absolutely bewildered.

“She’s a machine that one.”

“Obviously.”

Y/N nodded, getting up from her suitcase and walking across her bed to get to the windows. She closed them both firmly, pulling the white heart pointelle cami top further down her torso, though it was supposed to just reach her belly button. Thankfully, her black tights reached just a little bit further up, keeping any more of Y/N’s skin to be exposed than what she wanted.

“Okay,” she said, sitting down beside him in bed again. “I want to be sure you’ve actually gotten better.”

“Understandable,” Harry retorted, nodding slightly.

“So, I don’t want to do too much just yet.”

He stopped for a second. “What does that mean?”

“That I want to just make out and get a feel of where you’re at. I think sex comes when we’re both turning each other on to the point where it’s actually going to be enjoyable. When I’m wet enough and you’re hard enough.”

Harry tried not to smile, but Y/N could tell he wanted to flash her a smirk. “I can assure you, you can make me do anything, and I’d be hard on the fucking spot.”

Y/N’s chest felt warm, and within seconds, her cheeks were approximately around the same temperature as the sun’s surface. There was something so very sweet about that, yet incredibly hot. She looked away from him, trying to act unbothered as she tried to find her words again, but by the slight chuckle emanating from Harry’s lips, Y/N knew he saw right through her act.

“What I’m trying to say is that I just want us to get familiar with the other’s body. Foreplay isn’t just about touching someone; it’s about touching someone. Feel their crotch, slide your hand under their clothes, grinding against them to the point of torture sometimes. That’s when the best sex happens.”

Harry nodded. “Take it you’re a big fan of foreplay.”

“The biggest.”

“Feel like I’m in good hands, then.”

“Figuratively and literally.”

He smiled.

“If you matched me on Tinder, and we were about to shag-“

“-I actually don’t think I’ve ever been on Tinder.”

Y/N blinked. “That’s not a flex.”

“Have you?”

“Yes,” she said. “I’ve got the app on my phone.”

“Wicked, you’ve got to show me then.”

She smiled, inhaling slowly. “I will. But first, let’s-“

However, fantastically, Harry took Y/N’s face in his hands and brought her to him. Before Y/N managed to finish her statement, they were kissing. The familiar feeling of Harry’s lips on hers made her previously tense shoulders relax considerably, making her involuntarily moan onto his lips. Harry kissed her more fiercely at the sound, moving closer so it would be easier for him to wrap his arms around her. She fell back onto the bed, crawling backward, and Harry crawled after her, settling himself so easily between her legs that it felt like the most natural thing in the world.

The ease at which they were doing this felt reassuring, like a good hug after a stressful day. She trusted that Harry knew what he was supposed to do, that he remembered from last time. And oh, did he remember.

She felt his hand slide down her front, laying the smallest amount of pressure on her breast, and Y/N realised with a suddenness that almost made her gasp; Harry was trying to tease her. His fingers slid over her, never laying his entire palm down against besides that grip of her boob, but besides that, he was touching her as lightly as possible, leaving Y/N’s body aching in its waking.

“Where’d you learn that?” she asked between kisses.

“What?”

“The teasing.”

She felt him grin against her. “Do you really want me to tell you?”

“Surprisingly enough.”

He chuckled. “Well,” he trailed off, looking down at the duvet beside her face. “The internet.”

Y/N felt herself halt a bit, looking at Harry as he refused to still meet her eyes. “You’ve been searching around?”

“About sex, yes.”

The corners of her mouth lifted. “Really?”

“How many times do you want me to admit it?”

She giggled. “Harry, it’s not something to be embarrassed about.”

“I think it is.”

“No, it just shows how dedicated you are to this. Which is anything but embarrassing.” She tried to catch his eyes. “It’s actually rather sweet.”

He met her gaze then, staring at her for a long while as if he could not quite believe what she had just told him. “You think?”

“You think I would’ve said it if I thought otherwise?”

Harry chuckled. “True.”

She smiled, arching her back a little so her tits were pressed against his chest. Harry bit his bottom lip, looking down at her front as she lowered herself down onto the mattress again. Raising her eyebrows, she watched as Harry took in her tits again, looking over at her with anticipation etched into his irises.

“I’m trying to silently tell you to kiss me again,” she said.

“Oh!” Harry exclaimed, bending down over her again. “Right.”

“Other’s might not do that, they might tell you, or maybe even expect you to do so. So, try and decipher what that person needs, what they want.” She settled herself into her duvet cover, Harry sinking further in between her legs as she wriggled her hips ever so slightly. His lips parted, both plump and swollen from kissing.

“What do I do if they don’t say anything?” Harry asked, lips hovering above hers. God, how she just wanted him to kiss her.

“Communicate. You can’t expect someone to know you and your needs right off the bat, people are different.”

“Right,” Harry said, sliding his nose against hers.

“And now I would really like it if you kissed me,” Y/N whispered against Harry’s lips, making Harry grip onto the duvet cover above Y/N’s head. Fiercely, he pressed his lips against her, slowly sliding his tongue into her mouth, making all kinds of shivers run up and down her body. Even after just one time, Harry knew certain buttons of hers that he had to push in order to get a reaction out of her. She wondered how long Harry had gone out with his previous partners for them to give up on him so quickly. If they had just shown him what they liked, if they had just explored, then Harry would have been a decent lover. He was so incredibly willing to learn new things that it was almost ridiculous. How had they just broken things off like that? If they had just been a little more patient, then Harry would have genuinely surprised them.

On the other hand, he had not actually showed her how bad he was in bed, like he was making it out to be, which could truly be the game changer.

Regardless, in that second, Y/N did not care about Harry’s skills in bed, instead she focused on how they worked outside the context of sex. They were just making out now, just checking each other out, trying to think about various ways to touch the other in order to turn them on.

One of Harry’s hands rested at Y/N’s knee, bringing it further up her chest so he could get a bit better access. She moaned as she felt his already hardening erection against her, instant wetness pooling between her legs. Her grip on his shirt tightened and she felt her nails dig into his skin under his shirt, urging him to continue doing what he was doing. Just like she had shown him last time, Harry grinded against her, doing it slowly and rubbing himself very deliberately against her for his own pleasure, but also trying to make sure she enjoyed it. The desire that ran up her spine was undeniable, making all hair on her body stand on end. His hardness grinded against her wetness again, the both of them moaning at the same time, losing themselves completely in one another.

Harry’s hand ran down Y/N’s thigh, coming to rest at her belly, slowly making its way to her very centre. She felt a yearning so intense it had to radiate off of her, engulfing her and Harry. Halting a bit, Harry’s fingers seemed to retract a bit, unsure if this was somewhere Y/N did not want him to venture or it if was encouraged. Instead of asking her, like she emboldened him to do multiple times, he traced the same path back up her belly, going to grab her breast again.

Y/N made a noise of protest, taking Harry’s wrist in her hand. She could feel Harry’s eyelashes flutter open against her own, and she opened her own eyes, detaching their lips. Slowly, she slid his hand down the way it had just come, making him lay as little pressure on her as he slid his hand down in order to tease as much as possible. Personally, she hated when someone would tease her because it only made her want sex even more than she already did, making her hungrier and more desperate than she would like, but it also made for the best shags. Teasing and dragging out, being needy for one another, was what created the best action when you finally had sex.

As they were just above her centre, she led his hand to her inner thigh, urging his fingers to trace along the skin of one of her most delicate places. Harry looked down between them, eager to follow along with what she did in any way he could. With care and maybe a little too much roughness, she made him grab her, at once showing how he would cherish her but at the same time make her squirm for more when the time came. Though Y/N was doing it herself, it was Harry’s hand that touched her, that made her entire body vibrate with expectancy. She bit her bottom lip, eyes not wavering from his face.

Slowly, his pinky came into contact with her centre, then his ring finger, middle, index, and lastly, his thumb. Each felt like a firework, reverberating through Y/N’s body and lighting her core on fire. It had been a while since someone had touched her with so much consideration, so patiently. Harry’s eagerness to please her, even though she was the one that showed him how to touch her, made her even hotter for him, if that was possible. With ease, she put her hand over his, putting extra pressure on his hand now and a little extra on his middle finger, she dragged his hand over her covered up cunt. A small gasp left her lips, eyelashes fluttering slightly. Harry looked up at her instantly, lips parting as his eyes scanned her face, ready to take in each one of her features when she laid under him like this. She did it again, this time putting a little more pressure at the very top of her centre, making a spark flood from her clit and out to the very tips of her fingers. This made her moan, involuntarily arching her back just a little at the sudden flash.

“Now you go,” she whispered, their eyes not wavering from one another.

Harry nodded, looking down between them at where his hand rested in her like that and then her removing his hand, letting him either mimic her moves or do something different. He watched his hand at first as it slid over her, putting that extra amount of pressure at her bud, making her gasp for breath. His eyes landed on her face again, eyes intent on her as he did it again, this time inhaling sharply as she moaned under him, of his doing.

“Just like that,” she encouraged, voice half moan and half mumble.

Harry did it again, earning the same reaction from her, his breath coming out all shaky, as if he could not quite believe he had this effect on her.

“You look bewildered,” Y/N said, trying not to laugh.

“I always thought that touching someone like that would be a little much too soon. Would you not rather I touched your cunt when we’re naked and about to have sex?”

“Yes, of course,” Y/N said, regaining her breath. “But you’re showing me what you’ll do to me when we actually get naked. Teasing can be pure torture, but it’s what makes the reward so much better when we actually fuck.”

Harry nodded, his already red cheeks reddening considerably. “Alright.”

Y/N smiled. “What?”

“I guess I… I’m not used to being…” Harry sighed, looking away from her and at his hand fisted in the sheets. “It’s vulgar.”

“What?” She raised her eyebrows at him. “Touching me?”

“No, touching like that. Grabbing someone through their clothes, touching your cunt like that.”

Y/N smiled again. “I can tell by the way you’re whispering the word that you’re uncomfortable.”

“I’m not uncomfortable, it’s just a new way of having sex, I guess.” Harry blinked. “Also, what word do I whisper?”

“Cunt.”

“Oh.” Harry met her eyes again. “Yeah.”

“Why?”

“It’s… vulgar.”

“It’s dirty,” Y/N said. “Not my cunt,-“ Harry laughed at that. “-but the word. Saying it, especially in this setting, is hot.”

“You like dirty talk?”

“When it’s done right. When it’s not, it can really ruin whatever’s going on.”

“Oh, right,” Harry said, nodding slightly. “There’s a balance.”

“Exactly,” Y/N smiled. “Annalise told me about this time she had sex with an American, like proper southern American.”

Harry chuckled a little at just that.

“And they were in doggy, so she asked him to grab her hair, and-“

“-Do you like that?” Harry asked rather quickly, as if the question had occurred to him on the spot and he had been unable to stop himself from asking.

“What, having my hair pulled?”

Harry nodded.

“Dunno, haven’t really tried it.”

Harry smirked, and Y/N could already see what he was thinking. She only rolled her eyes and continued on with the story, the bulge of Harry’s trousers pressing against Y/N’s centre.

“Anyway, she asked him to pull her hair, and if you, like, grab it with one hand, that’s hot and feels good, but if you grab it with two, if feels more like you’re trying to ride a horse.”

Harry chuckled.

“And while this man was holding Annalise’s hair with both hands, he just said ‘Easy, girl’ and this southern accent, and it sounded fully like he was trying to calm a horse down.” Y/N suspected that Harry was laughing more at Y/N’s attempt at a southern American accent than the actual story, but seeing him howling on top of her, burying his face in her neck to laugh some more there, made it impossible for her to even finish the story. They laid like that for a little while, just laughing and bathing in each other’s presence. It took a while for them to look at one another again, smiling when they remembered how ridiculous Y/N had sounded and how this all happened in the middle of a rather heated moment.

“Okay, let’s move on,” she said, making Harry chuckle some more.

“Right, what’s next?”

Y/N pushed him off her and down onto the bed beside her, quickly straddling him. She leaned down, kissing him hard, having missed the feel of his lips in the few seconds they hadn’t been touching hers. Harry’s hands fell to her bum, pushing her down onto his hard cock, Y/N instantly reacting by letting go of a small groan. He knew what to do now, how to handle her with care, but also make sure to let her know who was in control. Well, kind of, anyway. She was certainly the one with the most control out of the two of them.

She started grinding against him, sliding her hot core over his erection, a shock of pleasure running up to her chest, heating up her entire body. Harry must have felt something similar because he moaned into her mouth, his grip on her arse hardening along with his cock. She did just that again and again, feeling him become more desperate under her, grabbing onto her thighs and arse, one hand holding onto her neck to keep her lips on him. She felt herself get more needy as well, suddenly wanting to feel that release she had told the both of them that they would not be chasing today. However, when she was this wet and he was this hard, both of them clawing, gripping, and moaning at each other, it was very hard to remember what they had agreed upon earlier.

“Do you want to be in control?” she mumbled against his lips, a shaky breath leaving Harry’s lips.

“Show me how,” he said, panting just like she was.

She took his hands, putting them above Harry’s head. “Keep them there,” she said. “Don’t move.”

“What happens if I do?”

“I’ll have to punish you.”

A breath left Harry’s lips; his eyes filled with lust as he looked up at her. He only nodded, looking absolutely entranced by her. Y/N pressed a kiss to Harry’s jaw, then another one to his neck, then the front of his collarbone, feeling him squirm beneath her as she did. The need to have his hands on her, to make her grind against him to feel something, was clearly an instinct that was hard for him to fight.

“Lay still,” she urged him as her hands found the collar of his shirt, fingers sliding over his exposed skin until they came into contact with the button that kept his beautiful chest from being bare.

Slowly, she unbuttoned his shirt. She kissed down his now exposed chest, making her way down his torso until she was by his navel. Untucking the shirt, she undid the last button before pushing the fabric to each side, baring his chest to her. The red dragon on his right back and the black on his left were finally right there. The tattoos she had been thinking about for so long now, finally right in front of her. She made her way up to them, tracing her finger from the head of the red dragon that almost reached Harry’s collarbone and down in a circle and some waves before reaching the tail that ended up right beside his nipple. The black one did only slither to create one wave along its long and slim figure, but its wings were bigger, almost reaching Harry’s left shoulder, while the pointy tail came to rest just beside his nipple. Y/N could not explain how attractive she found his tattoos, especially these ones. Harry must have the exact same taste in tattoos as her, something that made her very happy about their little deal.

When she settled over his crotch again, his erection was even more prominent than before, the hardness feeling absolutely fantastic against her warm cunt. She put her hands on his knees behind her, slowly beginning to grind against Harry again. He craned his neck, lips parting as some slight release washed over the both of them. Dutifully, his hands still laid above his head where she had left them, where she hard ordered him to keep them. The sight of him displayed like that, all hers and trembling underneath her while she teased him, was maybe one of the hottest sights she had ever laid her eyes upon.

He looked up at her, eyes wild and bottom lip all dark pink from him having bitten it so hard while she had kissed her way down his chest. Their eyes locked, and Y/N could tell Harry wanted to grab her, to hold her to some extent. She recognised now that Harry liked holding her when they were like this. If they were getting things going, it seemed out of the question if he was not touching her to some extent.

Which must have been why he finally snapped, sitting up and taking a grip of her waist. Y/N exhaled sharply when Harry turned them around, making her back come into contact with the mattress again. Harry held onto her knee again before letting his hand trail up her side, the other one taking her hand in his, resting their intwined fingers above Y/N’s head as they started kissing again. Finally between her legs again, Harry started sliding over her again, this time his movements had a little more force behind them. She felt it in her toes, the heat in her core growing with each stroke. Bloody hell, she just wanted to fuck him right then. Harry had truly proven to her that he knew how foreplay worked, how incredibly important it was. Though he was the most impatient person she knew, he truly seemed to be enjoying himself when they teased each other like this.

Maybe, like her, he enjoyed the power it brought. You truly felt so powerful, so potent, so paramount, when you could make someone tremble at your touch.

Harry’s movements grew more frantic, his hands grabbing at her harder, and she felt her own nails dig into his flesh, begging him for more. Suddenly, without much warning, Harry got up from between her legs, and then made her turn over so she was on her stomach. This took Y/N completely off guard, but she welcomed the change, welcomed him trying something new and taking control. After all, that was what he wanted to learn how to do, how to become confident enough to order someone around in bed without thinking he was disrespecting them and their bodies.

Harry came to rest on top of her, his hand sliding from the rolls at her sides and up to her shoulder where he slowly traced his way to her neck. There, he took a light grip of her, bending down so that they could both feel his erection between her arse cheeks. Y/N closed her eyes at the sensation, feeling a very welcome chill run up her spine out of pure excitement. He stayed there, kissing her shoulder, her neck, breathing against her skin and making Y/N hyper aware of each one of his movements.

Because he remained immobile, she arched her back and lifted her bum ever so slightly off the bed. She pushed herself against him, then move her arse against him, wanting to feel some kind of friction even though it was barely existent on her part. Harry drew in a sharp breath and moaned instantly, holding onto Y/N’s neck with one hand while the other held him upright on the mattress. She continued to move over him and Harry grinded against her. Harry’s breaths came out quicker, slight whimpers leaving his swollen lips, vibrating against Y/N’s skin. It had certainly not been the point, but as Y/N understood what was going to happen, she just continued to rub herself against him, and Harry did the same.

His grip on her loosened and he put his hands on either side of her hips, moaning and panting and whimpering as he grinded against her. Suddenly, he jerked, and he gripped Y/N’s hips tight, trying to move against her, but he only managed to move in jagged motions. He came as Y/N slid her bum over him, feeling his cock move with each squirt inside his boxer, pulsating against the fabric; against her. Harry stayed like that over Y/N, and when she looked over her shoulder, it looked like he did not know what has just happened. After all, they weren’t supposed to do anything, really. They were just supposed to make out. And yet…

“In an ideal situation,” Y/N said. “You start having sex before that happens.”

Harry met her eyes, laughing loudly along with her. He fell down onto the bed beside her and she turned to lay on her back as well, both just looking up at the ceiling of Y/N’s bedroom.

“Note to self,” Harry said, still coming down from what had just happened, panting slightly. “Don’t come during foreplay.”

Y/N laughed, and Harry looked at her with the biggest grin on his face. “Add that to the list of everything else I’ve taught you, and you’ll be good for when we have sex.”

Harry chuckled, looking up at the ceiling again. “Tattoo appointment when we get back in September, then?”

She nodded, sitting up in bed. “Yeah, it’ll give me enough time to think about what I want tattooed.”

Harry sat up as well. “Imagine I’ll have a few more tattoos as well.”

“You’ll be working at Asgard this summer?”

“Yeah,” Harry said. “I’ll just either live here or at my mum’s, visit my dad a bit.” He shrugged. “But I have a tattoo gun so I’ll just do it at home, don’t need to be there unless I want some ink a place I can’t reach properly myself.”

Y/N’s heart stopped a little. “You have a tattoo machine here?”

Harry studied her face, a small grin appearing over his face. “Yeah. Your fanny fluttering at the thought?”

She slapped him across his still exposed chest; Harry laughed. “You know what, just leave. I need to finish packing.”

Harry grinned, getting up from the bed as he started buttoning up his shirt again, looking around Y/N’s room as he made his way for the door. “Will you miss London while you’re away?”

Y/N glanced around at her room, taking in the four walls she had spent so much time within during her first year of University. It did not seem real that she would be in Nottingham over the next four months, that she would go back to living with her parents for the time being until uni started back up again in September. Her first year had gone by so quickly, it did not seem real that it was coming to a close. She could not believe that it had almost been a year since she moved to London, since she med Chloe, Thian, Hayden, and Annalise, since she started working at Domino’s. It at once felt like ages ago, yet it also felt like it all happened last month. She remembered everything in vivid detail, and knew she would probably remember her uni years that clearly for eternity. So far, it had been the best time of her life.

She nodded her head, looking back over at Harry again. “I’ll miss it. But I’ll be back in September to pester you another year.”

Harry grinned. “Good, almost thought you would stop bullying me by the time we get back.”

“No, don’t you worry,” she said, smiling. “The bullying won’t stop for the world.”

Harry tucked his hands into his trouser pockets, whipping a curl out of his face as he said, “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Friday, 17 May 2018

“Happy birthday!” Hayden screamed when Y/N answered their FaceTime call, their hands over their head and their short hair an absolute mess. They dropped their phone onto their bed, only to appear a second later with a red party hat on their head, waving it in front of the camera.

Y/N laughed. “Thanks, mate.”

“What’re you up to today?” Hayden asked, leaning back against their headrest.

“Well, since I’ve already been awake three hours, I have been up to quite a lot, actually.”

It was Hayden’s turn to laugh now. “What’s that then?”

“Pai and I made some pão na chapa, which is essentially skillet toasted French bread rolls, for breakfast, nothing extravagant. Then we went to pick up a cake that mum’s had made for the occasion, and then mum took me shopping for some new clothes. Just got home,” Y/N explained. “But we’re having a big lunch later with our entire family and we’ll serve a big dinner then.”

“Sounds like a very you birthday.”

“Good thing it’s my birthday, then.”

Hayden laughed, leaning their head back against the wall and forgetting about their birthday hat, making the string snap off their chin and the hat fall off their head. Y/N chuckled as she sat down in her bed as well, looking over at her window to see if it was closed or not. Her papai must have opened it while her and her mum were out shopping. Y/N quickly walked over to close it, but then a breeze came in through the small slit, cooling her down in what had already been the starts to a very hot mid-May day. She left it open.

“I wanted to ask you about something,” Hayden said, throwing the party hat away somewhere in their room.

“Yeah?”

“What do you want for your birthday? Like, is there a specific birthday present you’d want from say…” They shrugged. “Me, Thian, Annalise, and Chloe.”

Y/N smiled. “You’re getting me a birthday present, are you?”

“Of course!” Hayden said, sounding shocked. “You’re our mate! Now, what do you want? It can be anything.”

“Anything?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.” Y/N thought for a second, sitting back down on her bed. “Maybe like concert tickets, but not expensive ones for like a popular band. Maybe for a more lowkey one, one where tickets aren’t super expensive, and we can all go.”

Hayden nodded. “That sounds like so much fun, though. Just the gang, and your flat, of course.”

Y/N smiled. Someone shouted something in the back of Hayden’s end of the call, making them groan loudly before rolling their eyes.

“Right, my mum needs me to come downstairs. But,” Hayden said, getting out of bed, stepping on the party hat and crushing it under their weight. A stream of curse words left their lips before they bent down to retrieve it, showing it to Y/N before throwing it away in the bin. “We’ll bake a cake when we see each other this summer, okay?”

Y/N’s smile widened. “I’d love that.”

“Good, ‘cause we’re baking a cake when we see each other this summer.”

Y/N giggled. “Your mum gonna kill you or something?”

“Think she’s just realised I’ve raided the cupboard of Digestives.”

Y/N laughed.

“I’ll talk to you later, yeah?” Hayden smiled, waving at the screen.

“Yeah, yeah,” Y/N said. “Hope you survive your mum’s wrath.”

“Doubt it.”

Y/N smiled, waving at the screen before they both hung up. A knock sounded at Y/N’s door a second later and then her mother walked into her room, smiling at her. She held a white envelope in her hand, holding it out for Y/N to take.

“You’ve got post, my dove.”

Y/N halted a little, unsure of who could possibly want to contact her through post. Lottie walked back out the door, leaving it open as she walked back downstairs, Davi’s singing sounding from the kitchen as he prepared everything for lunch. Y/N sat back down in her bed, studying the envelope in her hands closely. She thought she recognised the handwriting at the front of the envelope that spelled out her full name and her Nottingham address under it rather perfectly. As she turned the letter around to see the return address on the flap of the envelope, she realised why.

13 Dovecote Close, Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, HP27 9JU. Harry E. Styles.

She bit her lips together, already feeling the oncoming grin tugging at the edges of her lips. She should not have put it past Harry to do something for her birthday, this was just like him, to go out of his way and send her something in the post rather than just give it to her while they were both still under the same roof the week previous. Y/N opened it, peeking inside to see two different notes, reminding her an awful lot of the ones she slid under his door to set up a time for their little sessions. She reached in, pulling one of the two out.

Happy birthday, Y/N. Turn this around to see what I think your next tattoo should be.

She did, only to find herself laughing instantly. A heart was drawn on the other side, ‘Harry’ written in magnificent handwriting inside it. She let her finger trace the letters, imagining how smug Harry would have looked drawing this, knowing exactly the kind of reaction he would conjure up out of her. Chuckling still, she reached into the envelope and pulled out the second and last note.

And here’s something I actually think you would like.

Turning this one around, she found a drawing that took her breath away instantly. With black wings spread wide, almost glittering in the light that was supposed to shine on them, a crow was drawn in vivid detail on the other side. It looked strong, terrifying, even, staring straight back at her with an intensity and intellect only crows managed, as if they knew all your secrets and weren’t afraid to tell them to the wind, letting them carry through the world. Y/N ran a finger over the crow, feeling very overwhelmed all of a sudden. She had not expected him to draw something for her that he thought she would like tattooed on her body forever, yet here he was. It was the most beautiful thing Y/N had ever seen, and she wondered what had made him draw it.

Y/N awoke gradually, suddenly realising with slow efficiency that she was awake. Her room was draped in complete darkness, the streetlamp outside her window having been turned off for the night. Her eyes focused on her door for no particular reason, zoning in and out of what was going on, part of her thinking it was a dream while the other told her she was awake. Once she realised this was indeed reality, she tried closing her eyes again, readjusting the placement of her head against her pillow, tucking the duvet up to her skin.

A car drove by. Y/N’s eyes shot open. The car sounded closer, as if she had just stood outside, and she quickly realised why that was. Y/N had not slept with her window open since before Marcela disappeared, not in this house. Preferring to keep it closed, it felt safer that way. No spirits, no people, nothing, could sneak in through a closed window.

But as she heard footsteps outside, as if someone was walking hurriedly by her house, Y/N knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that her window was open. Wide open. It had not been that open since the night before Marcela was declared murdered. Grabbing onto her duvet, Y/N looked in the direction of the window only to confirm what she had been thinking. There her window was, the blinds open, open to let all the air, everything, inside. She wanted to get out of bed and close it, but her legs were locked to her bed, her limbs felt too heavy, too unsteady, for her to walk on right now. She had to calm down, blame it on her not closing her window earlier that day after talking to Hayden. That was it. It was the draught.

If she could just reach for her phone, she could call her mother and ask her to come into her room and close the door. Maybe she could check under her bed as well to make sure no one had gotten into her room in the time the window had been wide open. Y/N’s room was on the first storey, so it would be difficult to get in through her window, but she was also paranoid beyond belief.

Out of the corner of her eye, Y/N saw movement. A stupid sense of relief washed over Y/N, thinking that maybe Lottie had come to check up on her. But no, it was not her mum. Averting her eyes from the window, Y/N looked to the end of her bed, feeling her heart stop beating. Her body lay still for a few seconds until she suddenly started shaking. It was not violently, but uncontrollable. She gripped into her duvet even harder, telling herself over and over again that this was not real.

Not real. Not real. Not real. This is just a dream; you are just having a nightmare. Close your eyes. Go back to sleep.

And Y/N tried. She closed her eyes, telling herself that this was just a figment of her idiotic imagination. Whatever she had just seen was not real, it couldn’t be. However, falling asleep when you had just seen your dead sister standing at the foot of your bed was hard.

Y/N opened her eyes, feeling a small whimper leave her lips out of pure fear. Even though she could barely see without her glasses, she still saw that. Marcela looked at Y/N with an eerie sort of passiveness, eyes resting emotionlessly on her younger sister as she shook with fear in her bed. The only way Y/N could tell it was her sister was by the slight light that came naturally from the night beyond, only illuminating half of her dead sister’s form. She did not look dead. In fact, her sister had to be a hallucination. She looked like Marcela, yet she did not. It was strange, almost devilish. She wore the exact same outfit as the last time Y/N had seen her, a floral dress and her denim jacket. A tiny smile rested on her lips, but not one Y/N had ever seen before. There was absolutely zero joy behind it. It rather looked like she was smiling for the sake of smiling. As if to ease the nerves of a terrified deer before she attacked to devour every last bit of her prey.

“M-Mari?” Y/N croaked, still unable to move.

Marcela only cocked her head to the side, still smiling that bizarre smile, making her face appear uncanny. Slowly, she raised her left hand. Y/N felt herself shrink behind her duvet. Marcela’s eyes fell onto her wrist, and when Y/N looked, she felt herself draw in a shaky breath. Marcela looked up at Y/N again, that uncanny smile still lingering on her lips as her hand fall to her side again. Slowly, Marcela walked backward towards Y/N’s door, opening it just barely. Moving out of the light of the open window, Marcela looked like a ghost. Black like complete darkness, moving unseen and transparent towards the door. Keeping her eyes on Y/N the entire way, she stepped outside. The door closed just as gradually as Marcela had walked, barely audible as it clicked into place.

Though she was trembling, Y/N removed her duvet, put her glasses on, and shakily made her way towards her door. She walked around the spot the hallucination of Marcela had just been standing, refusing to be near it. Carefully, she laid a hand on her door handle, it felt cool to the touch. As if no one had touched it a mere minute ago. Or that person had been very cold. Slowly, she opened the door, looking out into the hallway beyond. No one was there. Not a trace, not a sound.

Y/N had a hard time falling asleep, and when she woke up at 6 the next morning, it barely felt like she had gotten any rest at all. However, she wasted no time. She got dressed as quickly as she could, put some contacts in, and sent a text to her parents that she was out and about. With some breakfast in hand, Y/N drove as fast as she could. There weren’t too many out driving now, but she knew that she would be spending a lot of times in queues the closer she got to the capital. She zoomed down the motorway, not paying any attention to anything but the road ahead. Whenever she went on drives like this, she would need to have some of her own music playing in the background so she could jam out. Music could wait right now, because there was something she needed to check. Something that could simply not wait.

Once she reached the outskirts of London, the traffic was horrendous, making Y/N bite her nails as anxiety and stress started eating at every single one of her limbs. Though it took a decent amount of time to get into London by normal standards, Y/N still felt like that hour and some was the longest of her life. When she finally reached Hackney, Y/N felt her anxiety ebb just slight away. Driving in London was ridiculous, but at least she knew the streets near her well and could take some small and less busy shortcuts.

On Orsman Road, Y/N jumped out of her car and ran for the flat building’s front door. Then, after unlocking it, ran for her flat, and unlocked that front door too before sprinting for her room. The entire flat was empty, no one but her were there, which almost made it wrong for her to be there, it felt like. This was supposed to be a place she shared with Harry, Nathan, and Mason. Not someplace to run through, anxiety high, pulse higher, to get to her room as fast as possible.

She burst through her door and looked at her desk, trying to calm her breathing down as the sight in front of her dawned on her. With clammy hands, she rubbed at her eyes, maybe that would help her see more clearly. But it made no difference. She walked over to her desk then, throwing the books on her bed and putting the mug filled with pens on her dresser as she searched everywhere. But it was of no use. None at all. The watch was gone.

This is what I imagine Harry’s crow painting to look like btw!

NEXT UPDATE: Sunday, 23rd May, 9PM GMT!

Huge thanks to my AMAZING beta readers! 🏛️ @aileenacoustic​ 🏛️ @devil-in-bw-the-sheets​ 🏛️ @fromyourstrulyh​​  🏛️

FIC PAGE | COME TALK !!!

READ TWO CHAPTERS AHEAD ON PATREON | CHECK OUT THE OTHER FIVE EXCLUSIVE PATREON STORIES HERE!

[wolfstar-supremacy-innit]

"Tell who?"- Part 3

Remus smiled into his pillow. Why’s he so cute? He felt something rustle under his stomach. Reaching under himself, he pulled out a wrinkled piece of parchment. His resolutions list. Remus flipped onto his back and squinted at the letters. Warmth was pooling in his chest. Something is missing here. He patted the bed in search for his quill and ink, then wrote:

5. Fuck this I wanna tell him I love him

The paper slipped to the floor as Remus’ arms gave out and he drifted into an instantaneous, profound sleep.

Alternatively:

The Marauders are in their 6th year at Hogwarts, it's New Year's Eve and Remus writes a New Year's resolutions list. Sirius finds it the next day. The story is written from Remus' point of view. It's wolfstar and lighthearted. Kinda inspired by this fanfic.

This is part 3 of the story. I will be posting the other parts separately here and also the full fic on ao3 (I will link everything when it's done, check this post for that in some time). Warnings: underage drinking and smoking, mentions of anxiety disorder.

Part 1 Part 2

Enjoy <3

I’m such an idiot. I’m an idiot. Why didn’t I lie?! Why didn’t I disprove it? This was it. This was the end of the world. He knew Sirius wouldn’t react terribly badly. He wouldn’t express disgust or resentment, not after Remus confided in him about how sensitive he was on the question of his own sexuality. But it would be painfully awkward. Their connection would never be the same; it couldn’t. Remus dreaded losing his best friend. But it was done. Sirius’ best friend was James anyway. Remus buried his face in his hands as tears stung his eyes. He settled into his new hideout and slept there for the night. He couldn’t bear to face Sirius.

In the morning, Remus made an effort to arrive to Charms class as late as possible, right as Flitwick was commencing his lesson. He slid into the chair at the end of their usual table, next to James. Sirius was on the other end. “Where were you, mate? You scared us,” James whispered. Peter was gazing at Remus over his shoulder.

Remus cleared his throat. “Sorry, fell asleep in my spot,” he said. In his peripheral vision, Sirius was leaning far on the table, trying to catch his attention. But Remus took it upon himself to laser focus on the lesson, his nose buried so deep into his notes, it was nearly touching the parchment.

After the class, he bolted again. He just couldn’t face him. He couldn’t. He returned to his hiding place and waited out his free period and most of lunch. He had to repeat his breathing exercises more than ever. Suddenly, Remus paused. Determination was rising in his chest. Then he forced himself to pull it together. It wasn’t like Remus to run away from his problems. If being a werewolf had taught him anything, it was that neglecting and avoiding your issues doesn’t make them vanish. Makes them worse, even. Also, Remus didn’t have a lot. He had his parents, music, books, magic, and he had his friends. There wasn’t much he prised more than his friendships with James, Sirius and Peter. Sirius knowing about his crush was thoroughly embarrassing, yes, but it wasn’t worth completely losing his friends. Plus, he was due for a shower. So Remus took a few more deep breaths, dusted himself off, and headed for the dorm. When he got there, nobody was inside. He took his sweet time in the shower, allowing the warm water to drain out more of his nervous energy. I can handle this.

When Remus got out, Sirius was there, lying on his stomach, doing homework. He looked up. Remus put on a brave face and said: “Hi.” Sirius’ worried expression was exchanged with a slightly more relaxed one. “Hi.” Remus sat on his own bed looking in Sirius’ general direction, but not quite at him, cleared his throat, and said: “Um, sorry I bolted. That was childish.”

“That’s alright,” Sirius replied in the tiniest voice. It was very unlike his usual loud, assertive self.

Remus wanted the bed to swallow him whole, but he pushed through. “We don’t have to talk about the... thing. Or acknowledge it. It’s not a big deal, really.” A lie. But it needed to be done. Sirius didn’t say anything. Remus was certain he didn't know what to say. Reaching into his bag, Remus retrieved his Charms textbook and started on his own homework. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Sirius still looking at him for another minute, then he went back to work. The silence was agonising and tense, but Remus had known it would be. They would just have to persevere. After a while, Sirius asked: “Hey, could you help me with this? It’s Arithmancy. I procrastinated, and now I have to hand it in in half an hour.” Remus snorted. Their next class was Arithmancy, and only he and Sirius took it. So, Sirius was choosing to act like nothing happened. That was okay with Remus. “Sure.”

Only, as it happens, Sirius didn’t ignore it. Throughout the next week, he started acting a little peculiar. He was still loud and fooling around, but he would also hold doors for Remus, for example. If anyone knew Sirius, they knew doors were either held for him, or he would just swing them open and let them slam behind him into the next person’s face. Even James noticed it and asked him if he had brain damage. Also, a couple times at meals, Sirius would scoot his seat closer to Remus’, making their arms brush while they ate. The first time it happened, Remus blushed so profusely, he could see giant pink splotches splattered all over his neck and cheeks in his reflection in one of the large silver bowls on the table. Sirius stopped calling him ‘mate’ too. Occasionally, he’d ask for help with his homework, even though he clearly didn’t need it. It all made Remus want to shoot himself in the face with a hex. It seemed like Sirius was pitying him, and he despised it. It was somehow worse than Sirius being awkward and distant around him.

January’s full moon fell on the 25th, and Remus’ transformation didn’t go particularly smoothly. It was likely one of the worst ones out of all those he spent with his friends as animagi. He was fairly confident it was because of the whole Sirius thing. Just because he decided to deal with it didn’t mean it wasn’t taking its toll. Remus was stressed all the time. Not just because of Sirius, of course, but that was a key factor. When he woke up in the hospital wing the following morning, his friends were there. James rambled on enthusiastically about an upcoming Quidditch match. Remus didn’t really comprehend half of it, but still tried to nod at appropriate times. Peter piped in once in a while to agree with James or add something. Sirius, however, was completely silent the whole visit. About an hour later, Madam Pomfrey chased James, Sirius and Peter out, but Remus didn’t mind too much. He was knackered. He drifted off to sleep before the boys were even out the door.

Later that day, at dusk, Remus sat in his hospital bed reading a muggle novel when Sirius popped in. Or rather sneaked in. He was alone this time. “Had a free period. Thought you might want some company,” he explained. Elation started brewing in Remus’ stomach.

“Oh, brilliant, thanks.”

“What are you up to, then?” Sirius sat on the bed.

Remus lifted his book. “Reading. Not much to do here, really.”

“Sweet. Will you read to me?”

“What?”

Sirius smiled. “Will you read out loud for me?” He turned around, plopped on the bed face-up with his boots propped up on the railing at the foot of the bed. He tucked his hands behind his head, half lying on Remus’ legs.

“Oh, okay.” Heat sneaked up Remus’ neck. He read to Sirius until it was almost time for him to leave for his next class.

“Transfiguration next. Think I’m gonna gouge out my eyes if we don’t move on from teacup to gerbil.”

“Yeah, yeah, we get it. You mastered it two lessons ago.” Remus rolled his eyes, smiling. Sirius let out a soft laugh.

“Moony...” He was now sitting on the bed next to Remus. “I feel like this is my fault.” He reached out and gently touched the bandage on Remus’ arm. Sirius was referring to Remus’ beat-up state.

“What? Of course not. Why would you think that?”

“Well, because of the... You know... I mean, you’re upset and-“ Remus’ heartbeat picked up swiftly. They hadn’t so much as mentioned the crush since that day in the dorm.

“I’m not upset. Really. I just have a lot on my mind.” He searched his brain for something more to say to make Sirius feel better. It wasn’t his fault at all. It was Remus’ for letting this bother him so much. “It’s not you.”

“You sure?” His eyes were so sad; it was painful.

“Yes, Sirius, really. It’s not you, okay?”

“Okay.” After a pause, Sirius continued: “Oh, I almost forgot. Brought you something.” He smiled, finally. After rummaging in his bag, Sirius emerged with a stack of chocolate bars and dropped them into Remus’ lap. They were Remus’ favourite. Warmth fluttered across his chest. Sirius had to have ordered these from Honeydukes. Now it was Remus’ time to smile.

“Oh, brilliant! Thanks, Sirius.”

“No problem. Right. I better clear off, then. I can’t handle another detention with Minnie for something as stupid as being late.”

“Right. See you in the dorm then.”

“See ya, Moony. Oh, loved the reading. We should definitely do that again!” Then he walked out the door. Remus’ cheeks flamed crimson. He sank deep into the covers, yanking them over his head. He’s gonna be the death of me.

***

After that visit at the hospital, another strange thing started happening. On several occasions, Remus caught Sirius staring at him, then quickly looking away when their eyes connected. In class, at meals, in the common room as the four of them sat in front of the fireplace doing homework. It made Remus very nervous and a little confused. Furthermore, with James’ upcoming match, Sirius and Remus found themselves alone more often than not. James either had practice or was in the library going over tactics for his team, and Peter loved tagging along. When Sirius and Remus were alone in the dorm, Sirius would usually suggest that Remus read to him. At first, they were in their respective beds, but then Sirius started sneaking onto Remus’ bed as he read. It made Remus’ heart thump every time, because Sirius Black in his bed, well. That was a sight to see. He would lounge on his back, one ankle over the other, hands behind his head, eyes shut, and listen. He never fell asleep. Occasionally, he would laugh or comment on an interesting segment.

One of those times, both of them were on Remus’ bed as Remus read “A Stranger in a Strange Land” by Robert A. Heinlein. Sirius liked the muggle books. He was in his usual disposition, with half of his hair loosely and messily pulled back with a hair tie. Remus adored that look on Sirius. He was sitting cross-legged in level with Sirius’ hips, with the book sprawled onto his lap.

“Hey, got a cig,” Sirius asked as Remus was turning the page.

“Yep.” He used Accio to fetch his rolling equipment from his bedside table, placed the contents on the rizla and performed his spell. It rolled smoothly, the tobacco and filter tucked tightly into the paper. He’d been practising.

“Hey, that’s one thing off your resolutions list,” Sirius said, smiling as he accepted the cigarette. Their fingers touched.

“Well, technically, it’s two, isn’t it...,” Remus trailed off, clearing his throat. Christ, why did I say that?! He could already feel the blood rushing in his ears. Maybe Sirius wouldn’t get the reference... But Sirius pushed himself onto his elbows and peered at him. Remus pretended to pack up his cigarette equipment with intense concentration. Sirius sat all the way up and leaned so close, Remus could feel his breath. Nervousness sparked off goosebumps all over Remus’ skin. He swallowed thickly. Sirius smelled of mint and expensive shampoo. “Moony,” he said, and Remus finally turned to face him. Their noses were less than two centimetres apart. Remus’ heart was hammering against his ribs.

Sirius glanced at his lips, then slowly leaned in and closed the distance. Remus fluttered his eyes shut as adrenaline set his insides ablaze. The kiss was warm and gentle. “Sirius..,” Remus started, but the other boy just connected their lips again, this time kissing him more eagerly, and Remus just gave over. Sirius was letting him know this wasn’t charity; he really wanted it. He licked into Remus’ mouth delicately, grasping the back of his neck to pull him closer. Remus had never had a real tongue kiss before, but Sirius was leading him, and it all came naturally. Without warning, he felt tears burning behind his closed eyes. Remus had never, not even for a moment, let himself get caught up in the idea of Sirius liking him back. He knew rejection would shatter his soul, and he couldn’t let himself be torn apart by his own fantasies. But it wasn’t a fantasy anymore, and Remus was overwhelmed with the relief of letting go. Of finally allowing himself to crave what he'd been pushing down for months. His favourite person wanting him back. He entwined his fingers into Sirius’ hair and kissed him back intensely. They were both breathing heavily, then Sirius placed his other palm on Remus’ upper thigh. A tingling sensation shot up his lower back as he inhaled a long breath through his nose. Sirius was remarkably skilled, Remus noted.

Remus lost all sense of time. He didn’t know how long they kissed, it simultaneously felt like minutes and hours. Suddenly, they leapt apart as steps and chatter echoed on the stairs leading to the dorm. Sirius stood up and hurriedly smoothed down his hair. Remus wiped his lips with the back of his hand and frantically covered his lap with the covers. He was tight in his trousers. Christ. He wondered whether Sirius noticed as the heat blazed his cheeks. Peter and James trudged into the room, still talking.

“Alright lads,” James said, sauntered to his bed and started taking off his Quidditch robes.

Sirius cleared his throat, then said: “Uh, yeah. Brilliant.” His voice came out lower that usual.

"Bloody amazing practice today!"

“Oh, you guys Should have seen them! I could barely keep track of the Quaffle! Ravenclaw hasn’t got a chance,” Peter prattled on, but Remus couldn’t focus. His brain was whirring a thousand miles a minute. Holy shit, was the only coherent sentence his mind could congregate. He could still feel the the ghost of Sirius’ kiss on his lips.

Minutes later, Sirius returned to his usual banter and mucking about with James. If something different was going on inside his head, it didn’t show. A sudden arrow of disappointment and yearning shot through Remus’ chest. Was this just a one-off? His excitement dwindled for a moment, but when he glanced over to Sirius again, he was already looking at him. They smiled at each other. It didn’t matter anyway. Remus felt like this kiss could power his brain for all eternity. It had been like something straight out of a dream.

Part 4 will probably take me a little longer, given that I basically had the first 3 parts drafted when I posted the first one. Also 4 will probs be the last one. Hope you like it so far! :) <3

Part 1 Part 2

[slapshot-to-the-heart]

merry christmas, ya filthy animal

Hi guys! This is my contribution for @hockeynetwork holiday gift exchange, it’s 2.5k of sweet Tito fluff for @dreamypeaches and I hope you all like it. As always, I read all the tags and love love hearing your feedback, so hop into my inbox and reblog if you like it! 

word count: 2.5k+

Everyone has a favorite movie. Some go for a childhood classic like Cinderella, some find an indie documentary from a film class in college, some inherit their parents’ love for the Princess Bride or Casablanca. Not you. For you, there was no movie that could hold a candle to Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. You had watched it for the first time maybe around 7 or 8 years old, and had been hooked ever since, and even Donald Trump’s five-second cameo couldn’t taint the love you had for it. But your favorite part, other than the large cheese pizza and stretch limousine, was the end. The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center, Kevin and his mom finally reuniting after she moved heaven and earth to get back to her son by Christmas. 

It wasn’t your first Christmas in New York City, but it was the first one where it really felt like it was your city, like you belonged to it. And it was your first Christmas with Tito. You had started dating earlier in the year, just as the team was starting to make the big push for playoffs and two months or so before he left to Montréal for the summer. It was strange while he was there, not just because he was hundreds of miles away and in a whole different country, but because the two of you had only been exclusive for a few months and were set to be separated for three. You flew up for Canada Day and met his parents, and he came back for a week in August, but the interim was filled with more FaceTime calls and lonely nights than either of you would care to admit. 

But summer was long over, the leaves had fallen from all the London planes, and the temperature had started to drop below freezing even in the day. The cold weather wasn’t always great; you didn’t love having to scrape the ice off of your windshield or trudge through the slush when it was too early for the snow to stick to the ground, but you wouldn’t change it for the world. One thing that winter changed was date plans. Unless you hit it at just the right time, coffee in the morning was more prone to freeze your fingers off than warm you up, having dinner outside — normally one of your favorite things to do together — was all-but banned after November, and you could only walk around Central Park so many times. And it wasn’t for lack of trying; you knew for a fact that Anthony had spent hours on plane rides trying to figure out what was open, flipping in between Google and the weather app. He was making an effort, though, and that’s what mattered. 

Which is why you weren’t particularly surprised when he showed up at your apartment door on Christmas Eve, twelve hours after he asked you if you had plans that night. You didn’t and it wasn’t a game day, so he told you to dress warm and be ready by 8. You were waiting by the door five minutes early. He greeted you with a hug and a kiss on the cheek, closing the door behind you. “Did you already eat? I know it’s pretty late already but I think I saw a few food trucks by where we’re going if you’re still hungry.”

You nodded your head. “Anthony. It’s 8 at night. ‘Course I’ve already eaten.”

He ducked his head in embarrassment, the slightest pink appearing on his cheeks. “Should have figured.”

“It’s fine,” you said, slipping your hand into his and smiling. “You going to tell me where we’re going, though?”

“Wouldn’t be a surprise if I did,” he said. 

You should have known by the duffel bag in the backseat what his plans were, but some thirty minutes later and he was pulling into a parking lot off of West 49th, shouldering the bag and looking over to you with a grin. “What’s a Christmas in New York without ice skating at Rockefeller Center?” 

You rolled your eyes, trying desperately to keep in a laugh. “You don’t think it’s a bit unfair? You’re paid buckets of money to balance on knife shoes and the last time I went ice skating was,” you tried to remember, “two years ago? Three?” 

Tito shrugged, taking your hand as you walked out the door of the parking lot. “What’s life without a little risk?” Whether the Harry Potter quote was intentional or not, you weren’t sure. 

“Fair,” you conceded. “You’ll have to look out for me, though.” He promised he would, handing his card over to the cashier, who in turn passed you your skates. Anthony led you over to a bench, grabbing a bag of roasted chestnuts from a street vendor before sitting down. You ate a few before tying your skates, swinging one up on his thigh for inspection. “Do these past muster, inspector?”

Anthony took one look at them before undoing your knot, adjusting your foot in his lap while rolling his eyes good-naturedly. “You didn’t tie them tight enough, you could break an ankle in these, babe, and we wouldn’t want that, would we?” You shook your head; he pulled you up to a standing position, leading you over to the gate to get onto the ice. “Don’t feel bad if you’ve got to hang onto the side for a little bit, it doesn’t look like the zamboni’s been over it in awhile so the ice is probably pretty chippy.”

Now it was your turn to roll your eyes. “I’m not completely hopeless, Anthony. I’m no professional,” you half-slipped while taking your first step onto the ice, clinging to the railing, “clearly, but I’m an adult and I can handle myself.” 

He held his hands up in surrender, gliding backwards on the ice before stopping. “I know you can.” The two of you skated for about an hour before taking a break, sipping cups of piping hot apple cider while sitting on a bench off to the side of the rink. “There’s always that one person who feels the need to go in the center and show off, huh?” Tito mused, glancing towards center ice, where a woman was indeed in the middle of a spin so quick and intricate you had no clue how she didn’t throw up from the sheer centrifugal force of it all. 

“Says the professional hockey player,” you quipped. 

“I’d go insane if I tried to do anything like that,” Anthony responded, drinking the last of his cider before dropping the cup into the recycling bin. “Just about the only thing hockey players and figure skaters have in common is our ability to skate in a straight line.”

You laughed, squeezing his arm. “Have a little more faith in yourself than that, Anthony.” 

“Mhm,” he said, noncommittally like he didn’t quite believe you. “You ready to get going, or do you think you’ve got more in you?” 

You looked down at your watch; it was 9:30; the rink didn’t close for another hour and plenty of people were still milling about. “I think I’ve got a little gas left in the tank.” 

Sounds good,” he said, taking your hand and doing an extremely admirable job of not laughing at your attempts to hobble over to the ice on your skates. “One of these days I’m going to get you to go backwards,” he said as he stepped on, gliding back easily before coming to a quick stop. 

“I’ve just stopped having to hold onto your hands like a five-year-old, Beau,” you said, rolling your eyes as you took a moment to find your balance on the slippery ice. In your defense, he had been right about the lack of resurfacing on the ice; the skate attendant said the zamboni only came around once a day, shortly before opening, and the lack of smooth ice couldn’t have done you any favors. But you were determined to prove yourself, to show him and everyone else in Rockefeller Center that you were a fully grown and capable adult who could skate for a few feet without needing assistance. Which you did, for approximately two minutes, trailing ten or fifteen feet behind Anthony as he skated backwards, executing poorly-attempted jumps and spins for no reason other than your amusement. You were doing fine, until the toe pick of your skate caught in a chip in the ice and you tumbled down, down to the ice before Anthony could skate over and catch you,. Down, trying to break your fall with your hands. Pain radiated up your left wrist, the cold of the ice already beginning to melt into your jeans. 

“Oh my God,” Anthony said, kneeling in front of you as several passers-by looked over in concern. “You okay? That looked like a pretty bad fall.” 

You nodded, trying to push yourself up to a standing position, but the second you put pressure on your hand, you let out a sharp shriek. “Fuck,” you said, moving to rub your wrist. Not a good idea; the pain only got worse when you touched it. 

His brow only furrowed more. “If you put your wrist out to break the fall, you could have broken it or something. We should go to the hospital.”

You shook your head. “I’m sure it’s nothing, Tito,” you said as the two of you skated off the ice, your wrist hanging limply by your side as you bent down to try and untie the skate laces. He looked up at your face, seeing you biting your lip with tears pricking at the corner of your eyes as you tried to pull them. 

“Hurts to pull?” You knew it was no use trying to lie to him, so you nodded. He pushed the sleeve of your jacket up as gently as he could after untying your skates, handling your hand and wrist with as little pressure as he could. “Not exactly how I thought I’d be kneeling in front of you,” he said, the corner of his mouth twitching. You knew he had only said it to distract you, try to get your mind off of the inordinate amounts of pain you were in, but the words still made your heart skip a beat. His fingers moved feather-light over your skin, keeping an eye on your facial expressions as he felt. “Hurts to close your hand?” You tried; you nodded. “Hurts to turn your wrist?” A second nod. “Has it gotten worse or better since you fell?”

“Worse,” you managed to squeak out. 

He bit his tongue in concentration. “Shit. Yeah, we should go to the hospital.” You knew it was no use to argue, even as you weakly kept telling him it was probably just a sprain that would heal on its own as he herded you into the car, looking up the waiting times of Manhattan emergency rooms. “The ER wait at Lenox Hill is twenty minutes, it’s like two miles away,” he said, puting the car into reverse and backing out of the parking lot. Of course, two miles in New York City on Christmas Eve really meant fifteen minutes, and by the time he parked at the hospital and you were walking into the ER, it was just past 11. And of course, an ER wait time of “twenty minutes” the day before Christmas meant that, as a relatively low-priority case, you weren’t seen for well over forty. “I feel terrible about this,” Anthony said, slumping back in the chair to the side as you sat on the exam table. 

“Not your fault,” you said emphatically. “Could have happened to anyone. Literally anyone, Tito,” you looked over at him; he still looked guilty. “It could have just as easily been you, if you’d hit the chip at the wrong angle or there was some kind of slippery patch you weren’t expecting. And,” you added as he opened his mouth, “you were too far away to catch me.” Your expression softened. “I know you would have if you could have, but I’m sure it’s not hurt too bad and I don’t want you to keep beating yourself up over it. I’ll be okay.” 

The nurse practitioner chose that moment to poke her head through the curtain, calling your name. You nodded. She flipped open your chart. “I’m Emily, I’ll be taking care of you tonight. It says here you’ve got a wrist injury?” You nodded, explaining what had happened. She pulled a pair of gloves on, fingers moving over your wrist. “With what I’m seeing and how you’re rating your pain, I think we’re probably looking at a bad sprain or a break, but we’ll have to get an X-ray to confirm.” Fifteen minutes later, you were in and out of the radiology suite, and Emily was looking at the images on a tablet. She leaned over the table, pointing to the images on the screen. “Okay, so what you’ve got is called a Colles’ fracture, it’s a break in the radius and they’re actually super common, by far the most common type of wrist break we see. Yours isn’t too bad, so I’d say it can come off in six weeks or so.” She left for a minute to get the casting supplies. Ten minutes later, your entire lower arm was covered in cotton and fiberglass wrap tape. You wiggled your fingers towards your boyfriend. “I think purple’s really my color, don’t you?” you said, nodding towards your cast. 

You saw him crack a smile, his first since the accident. “It’s beautiful, babe.” Fifteen minutes and more than your fair share of paperwork later, you had handed over your insurance information and gotten the okay to leave, with strict instructions to keep the cast dry and call if you had any problems. 

“I think this definitely wins as the most interesting date I’ve ever been on,” you said as the two of you crossed the parking lot. 

“I’ll have you agree with you on that one,” Anthony replied. “I’m glad it wasn’t anything more serious, though. I would have felt even worse.”

You nodded. “You and me both.” Anthony looked down at his watch as he held your good hand, smiling when he saw the time. “What is it?” you asked curiously. 

“Guess there was too much going on in there to keep track of time. It’s 1:37 AM.” 

The painkillers they had given you had kept the pain in your wrist to a dull ache, but all was forgotten as you realized what it meant, what it being past midnight meant, and you couldn’t stop a grin from spreading across your face. “It’s Christmas?” you said, almost like a question. Nothing could extinguish your love for the holiday: not the freezing cold air nipping at your nose or the apple cider that was so hot it burnt your tongue or the fact that you went out for a night with your boyfriend and came back with a broken wrist. You had him, and that was enough. 

Tito laughed, leaning down to press a soft kiss against your lips as he unlocked the car. “Merry Christmas, baby.”

[twinklecheeks]

Friends With Benefits (Jeff Wittek Imagine) Part 11

Summary: Jeff and Y/N have been hooking up for a while. The whole vlog squad assumes they’re dating and Y/N does too but Jeff doesn’t like labels. He eventually starts to express interest in Natalie.

Note: Planning on making this a multiple part series, depending on how good it does.  You’re 21 & Latina in this (maybe) series. Also, I’d like to apologize for the typos, if there is any. I’m just illiterate lmao.  

Side note: Sorry it took me over a week to post this! I just started my last semester of college and I also have a part time job, so I’ve been super tired. I’ll try to be more consistent.

Warnings! Pregnancy, Smut 

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 , Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10,

Word Count: 2k

Christmas Eve 12/24/2019

Y/n: *Wakes up and stares at Jeff peacefully sleeping*

Jeff: *moans*

Y/n: *looks down and notices Jeff has a boner* Hmmm *gently rubs the swollen tip of Jeff’s cock*

Jeff: *thrusts into y/n’s hand*

Y/n: *Smirks and quietly gets out of bed to lock the door* *Pulls Jeff’s boxer’s down and sees his cock slap against his abs* *Softly licks the base of his Jeff’s cock all the way to the tip and sucks the head*

Jeff: *moans* mmm fuck.

Y/n: *You use the entirety of your palms and fingers with just how big and long he is. You hum greedily as you do this*

Jeff: *wakes up and smirks* I guess it’s a very Merry Christmas to me.

Y/n: I can suck on your cock all day daddy *winks*

Jeff: *groaning at how fast you’re going* F-fuck baby the way you’re moaning. You’re gonna kill me *bucks his hips*

Y/n: Shhh, I don't want them to know I’m sucking your cock ;) *continues to deepthroat feeling him twitch*

Jeff: Oh my fucking god baby yesss. Fuck me, fuck me, over and over. I swear I’d be fucking you every nigh- JESUS FUCK *cums inside her mouth*

Y/n: *swallows and sucks his cock clean* That was a great way to start Christmas.

Jeff: *laughs* Me cumming in you?

Y/n: *smirks* Mhmmm, I love it when you’re in me ;)

Jeff: What time is it?

Y/n: It’s 7:42am. I think your mom is already up cooking.

Jeff: Well if you want to see the Christmas parade at 11 w/ Jonah’s family, round 2 in the shower has to be a quickie.

Y/n: *looks down at his cock* You’re still hard? You just came a bunch in my mouth.

Jeff: I’m always hard for you babe *winks*

*After the Christmas Parade*

Suzie: I loved the parade! New York is so pretty during Christmas.

Vardon: Christmas is also more fun w/ snow.

Jonah: Guys it was fucking freezing outside.

Y/n: It was only 38 degrees.

Jeff’s mom: Oh good you guys are back. Marie (Jonah’s mom) and I are almost done with the food.

Jeff: Ma you’ve been cooking since like 6am. Have you had a break?

Jeff’s mom: We also did some last minute shopping/ gift wrapping. Everybody gets to open one present today and the rest tomorrow.

Y/n: You guys open presents tomorrow?

Jeff’s dad: Yeah, doesn’t everybody?

Y/n: Well in the Hispanic/ Latinx community, we call today Hispanic Christmas. So we open our presents today and then we spend the 25th stuffing our faces in left overs. We open on the 24th cause we’re too impatient and yes, we know Jesus was born on the 25th.

Jeff: Maybe we can do that w/ the girls next year.

Jeff’s mom: *tears up* Oh god you’re going to have daughter’s next year.

Jeff: Maaaa don’t cry again.

Y/n: Oh we are definitely doing hispanic christmas. If my sister comes over, she’d want to open the presents like a week before. She’s the most impatient. One year, she opened presents at like 3-4pm.

Jeff’s mom: I’m such a cry baby. Now help me set up the table!

*everybody helps set the plates and food*

Jeff’s dad: does anybody want to start the prayer?

Jeff: I’ll do it.

Karyn: Really? The last time you did it was Easter 2005 and you couldn’t stop laughing.

Jeff’s mom: Karyn.

*everybody holds hands*

Jeff: oh Heavenly Father, thank you for all that you’ve brought us. I know that Christmas is about you but I’d like to say thanks. Thank you for keeping everybody here in good health because I don’t know where I’d be w/ out them. I’m grateful for the supportive family and friends you have given me and most importantly, y/n. I know we were very rocky until recently but you brought her into my life for a reason. She was changing me into a better person and I was too stubborn to accept it. Now she’s going to be the mother of my 2 amazing daughters. Those babies already have me wrapped around their fingers and they’re not even here yet. I can’t wait for the day y/n and I get married and have however many babies you give us but don’t make it twins each time cause that’s gonna make my hair gray fast

Jeff’s mom: Jeffrey-

Jeff: okay I’m just kidding… kind of but you know what I mean. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me and the rest of my family. Amen.

Everybody: Amen

Jeff’s dad: Hun are you crying?

Y/n: *sniffles her nose* NO. Maybe…. I wouldn't have thought Jeff was religious.

Karyn: Only during Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.

Jeff’s Dad: Karyn stop teasing your brother. Now that the prayer is over with, let’s eat!

Jeff’s mom: Marie and I spent all morning cooking. Also, since this is y/n’s first Christmas w/ us, I wanted to bring some of the food she eats during the holidays.

Y/n: What food?

Jeff’s mom: *shows the Pernil* (pernil is pork shoulder)

Y/n: NO YOU DIDN’T *tastes the food* AND IT TASTES JUST LIKE OUT MY DAD MAKES IT. How did you make it?!

Jeff: She asked me a couple of days ago what you eat during the holidays and I found your sister on instagram. I got the recipe from her.

Jeff’s mom: I saw that it was a Puerto Rican dish so I asked one of my friends who knows how to make it to show me the steps.

Y/n: Oooo imma try not to cry again but THANK YOU SO MUCH.

Jonah: Can we eat now

After Dinner

Y/n: I ate so much, I think I’m having triplets. But thank you once again. I was pretty nervous to come here because I didn’t know how y’all would react to me.

Karyn: Just know that when we get mad, it’s at Jeff cause he’s always the one that somehow messes up.

Jeff: What time is it?

Suzie: It’s 7pm. Should we watch Christmas movies and then open presents before bed?

Vardon: Let’s watch the Grinch

Jonah: *ignores Vardon* Any other suggestions? Please. ANY OTHER.

Karyn: Y/n what do you watch for Christmas.

Y/n: Well, my personal favorite is Jingle all the Way but the Christmas Line up in my family is usually Home Alone 2, A Diva’s Christmas Carol, A Very Brady Christmas, the I Love Lucy Christmas episode and other’s I can’t remember.

Jeff: I mean, we are in New York. Home Alone 2?

Everybody: Sure.

*After watching Christmas movies*

Jeff’s mom: It’s 9:45pm. I think we should be opening our one present before we go to bed.

Jeff: Youngest to oldest! So my niece goes first, then Vardon, Y/n, Suzie, Jonah, etc.

*Jeff’s nieces and Vardon opens their gifts*

Vardon: No way. Jeff got me airpods! Thank you *Hugs Jeff*

Jeff: You’re welcome. Now time for y/n to open her gift from me.

Y/n: Oooo okay. *opens gift and sees two little gold bracelets* what are these for?

Jeff: I always see babies w/ the small little charm bracelet. You mentioned your sister and you never got that from your parents but your older brother did. I wanted to do that for our girls even though they're not here yet. So once we pick out the names, we’ll get the charms.

Y/n: *sniffles* Dammit why do you keep making me cry.

Jeff: Cause I don’t want you to ever forget how much I love you.

Jonah: Can we move on from this sappy shit so I can open my gift.

Everybody: JONAH.

*After everybody opens their presents*

Y/n: Thank you so much for accepting me on such short notice.

Jeff’s mom: Hun we’re family now. You’ll always be a part of us. Same for the Antonyans. We know how much Jeff misses having us around since he’s been living in LA and y’all have been a family to him.

Jonah’s mom: I love Jeff like he my own son. He help us so much.

Jeff’s Dad: Y’all just have to make sure to visit us often. Get’s kind of lonely here w/ Karyn living in Kentucky, Jeff living in LA. I mean Steven lives in the city w/ his kids but we miss having all of you together here.

Jeff: I’m starting to think that having girls runs in the family. Karyn has a daughter, Steven has twin girls and now I’m gonna have twin girls.

Jeff’s mom: I mean you never know if the nurse made a mistake. They thought your brother was a girl for half my pregnancy. Then they did the last ultrasound a week before I gave birth to him and they said he was a boy.

Y/n: Oh god I don’t even want to think about that. I’m already stressed out about the babies possibly being deaf now I gotta be worried if the nurse misgendered them….

Karyn: The babies are gonna be deaf?

Y/n: Hmm?

Jeff’s dad: You just said there’s a possibility the twins will be born deaf.

Y/n: Fuck. I did say that, didn't I… Jeff, you wanna help me out here?

Jeff: Ummm. Damn we weren’t planning on telling anybody this for a couple of weeks. We got a call a couple of days ago after we did some genetic testing and the doctor said the babies have a high chance of being born hard of hearing/ deaf.

Karyn: My doctors told me the same thing. Luckily my daughter turned out fine

Steven: I wasn’t a carrier for the gene…

Jeff’s mom: We’ll love those babies no matter what. If we have to learn sign language for them, then we’d do it. I’ll fly out to LA once it gets close to the due date to help out.

Jeff: Thanks ma. Means a lot.

Y/n: Thank you so much. I don’t know if my own parents would forgive me by then to be there for the birth.

Jeff’s mom: Anytime sweetheart. My god look at the time, It’s 10:15, we have to go to bed before Santa comes.

Jonah: Haha, but santa isn-

Jeff: Jonah you better better not finish that sentence cause my nieces are here and I don’t wanna see the magic ruined for them.

Jonah: What I was saying was, isn't Santa a little late?… He should’ve been here by now…

Going to bed

Y/n: I am so stuffed. Christmas turned out a lot better than I thought.

Jeff: See, you had nothing to be afraid about. Also, good job on keeping the deaf thing a secret haha.

Y/n: Hey! It’s been on my mind since we found out. WAIT. Jonah and Suzie.

Jeff: What about them?

Y/n: they were there…. What if they tell everybody else.

Jeff: Suzie would never… Jonah on the other hand… I have little faith in him.

Y/n: I’m afraid to check my phone.

Jeff: Same. I haven't looked at it all day. On the count of 3…

Y/n: One….

Jeff: Two.

Y/n & Jeff: Three. *looks at phones*

Y/n’s phone: 82 text messages & 24 missed calls

Jeff’s phone: 77 text messages & 21 missed calls

Vlog Squad GC

David: Was what Jonah said true?

Natalie: Is it serious?

Jason: Y’all I’m so sorry

Zane: There has to be a way to fix it. My babies will be okay right?

Erin: I’ll postpone my wedding until the babies are okay

Carly: Oh no Carly and Erin jr :(

Corinna: The babies are gonna be deaf?

Mariah: Is it confirmed?

Heath: Have y’all seen other doctors?

Matt: Guys they’re busy. I don’t think we should be spamming them on Christmas.

Toddy: We’ll stop one they answer us!

David: I’ll put in whatever money you need for surgeries or anything.

Jason: Guys stop. They’ll tell us everything once they’re ready.

(end of conversation)

Jeff: I’m gonna kill Jonah.

Y/n: Oh hun, so will I…

The next chapter might take a bit because I’m still thinking what will be in it. You guys can give be suggestions and I can give you credit for it!

Comment if you want to be on the taglist!

Taglist: @elvlogsquad​ @siemprestan​ @zavidzobrik​ @galxydefender​ @iminlovewithenchilidadas​ @ilsolee​ @ranprivate @one-sweet-gubler  @sunwardsss @shamalamashams @michellemxndes

[purplesurveys]

1125

survey by nadine07

[..Introductions..]

First Name: Robyn.

Middle Name: I don’t think I’ve shared it on here and I doubt I will.

Last Name: Not providing it either but it starts with a C.

Birthdate: April 21st.

[..First Things First..]

What was the first thing you did after you got up? I rushed to the rooftop so that I could see the sunrise. I also got in the random mood to do a time-lapse of it, but the sun took forrrrrrrr-freaking-ever to come up entirely. I was holding up my phone for like 15 minutes and nothing was happening, so I quit halfway through lol.

What was the name of your first pet? Goldie, because it was a goldfish.

Who was your first big crush? Gabie, I would say.

Where was the first place you drove after you got your license? Chelsea’s 18th birthday dinner was scheduled right after I happened to get my license, and the event took place in a small, quaint little restaurant in Marikina. 

There’s a bit of a funny story here, too – Aaron needed a ride to get there and so I offered to drive him. I picked him up and we were having small talk in the car, and he asked me how long I’ve been driving. I told him that moment was my literal first time driving out and that I just got my license the day before, and he is my first-ever passenger (at that point I’ve never even tried driving solo yet). The horror and immediate distrust on his face was something I will never forget HAHAHA. We got to the place unharmed, but it’s still one of my favorite stories to tell.

Who was your very first friend? It was a kind girl named Kaye back in kindergarten. We were always next to each other in our class lists, so it was inevitable for us to befriend one another. She transferred schools in first grade and I have not seen nor heard from her since.

What was the first thing you ate today? I had another bag of salted egg chips. I’m extremely hooked, lmao.

What was your first job? I work as an associate at a PR agency.

[..Colors..]

Name something red in the room you are in: We have an unopened bottle of wine here on the dining table and there’s still a red ribbon wrapped around it.

Is orange one of your school's team colors? No, neither of my schools had orange as one of its colors.

How many yellow shirts do you own? I can think of 5 tops hanging out in my wardrobe at the moment. Two of them are class shirts from high school; the others were tops I bought when I started getting into mustard yellow.

Name someone you know who drives a green car: I believe Angel, a classmate from high school who also studies in UP, also drives a Mitsubishi Mirage, albeit a lime green one.

Is it a blue sky outside right now? Yes for the most part, but the sun is setting soon so the sky is bound to change into many pretty colors as it usually does at this time of the day.

What is the first thing that pops into your head when I say 'purple'? Barney the dinosaur, and ube.

Are the walls in the room you're in white? Yes, all our walls indoors are white.

Does black make you think of depressing things? Not always, but if used specifically in that context, it definitely helps boosts the mood.

Jewelry: gold or silver? Silverrr, always.

[..Phone Stuff..]

Who is your provider? Nothing you would be familiar with, but I use Globe.

How long have you had your current phone? It’ll be three years this year. It would be nice to upgrade, but I’m also still happy with my current phone so it doesn’t really matter to me.

What did your last text say? The last one that came through that didn’t come from my mobile services provider was from someone in the media. It was his birthday last Friday and I messaged him if he’d like to receive a gift from us, on behalf of one of our clients; he just replied with his confirmation and details.

If you woke up naked next to the last person to call, would it be awkward? Yep and I’d feel like throwing up almost immediately.

Was your last missed call male or female? It was from my mom.

Who is your 10th phone contact? It’s from Jum, who I realize is still listed as Ate Jum on my phone. That’s cute hahaha; I must have gotten her number when we weren’t super close yet. Anyway, she’s been super MIA for like the last two years...basically, ever since she graduated. I believe she has also since moved back to Bicol, so it’s become virtually impossible to see her again. Bums me out and I look forward to the day we somehow end up in the same room once again.

How did you meet them? I met her in my very first journalism major class. I had mixed feelings towards her at first since I found her to be super loud in class, and I initially thought she would only be a one-time classmate and nothing more; but I got to know her more and we even ended up as orgmates, and it turns out she is literally the most hilarious person I know.

Are you related to your 17th phone contact? I have absolutely no clue who it is. I no longer remember what led to it, but Gabie and I swapped the SIM cards in our phones at one point, and for some reason it made me have access to her contacts; the 17th contact on my phone is someone from her list. And since I never hang out in my Contacts app, I’ve never gotten around to deleting those extra numbers I received.

How long have you known your 1st phone contact? Around 6th or 7th grade. I can’t remember the exact grade level she transferred to my school as a new student.

When was the last time you saw them? It’s been at least a year. I remember seeing her on campus very briefly when I was on my way to a certain building for class, while she was walking out of it.

Who is your 4th phone contact? LMAO, again, it’s from her contact list. Said person is one of her older cousins, I believe.

Have you ever kissed that person? No, and that is very weird and uncomfortable to think about.

When was the last time someone drunk dialed/texted/left a voicemail? Andi drunk messaged me a few months ago. November, I think.

[..Friends..]

Who is your #1? No Myspace but I’d say my top best friend is Angela.

How long have you known them? It will be 16 years this year.

Have you ever kissed? Oh my gosh, hell no. It would be like kissing a sister haha. She’s super affectionate and will sometimes kiss my shoulder or cheek, though.

Are you dating this person? No, never did and never desired to.

Do you have nicknames for each other? Not really exclusive to each other, but I call her Anj (and only a few people call her so) and she will occasionally call me Reben or Rolayn, both from past inside jokes.

What is your #2's full name? I am not sharing that, but I refer to them as Andi (you may remember them as Andrew from the past times I’ve mentioned them).

Do they live within 20 minutes of you? If there is zero traffic, I can probably make it to their place within that timeframe, yeah. But realistically, no they don’t.

How did you meet? We initially met in an anti-Marcos protest/rally – I approached they first because they had a wrestling shirt on, heheh – and that’s when I learned we were from the same college. But they rubbed me off the wrong way from our first meeting as they were too extroverted for my liking, and I spent a good chunk of time ignoring him whenever we crossed paths, lmfao. Eventually we were put in the same class at some point, and they even joined my org, and an intensely close friendship started from there.

Could you live with this person? Sure. I think they would never be a boring roommate.

Who is your #3? I’m gonna go with Kate for this one.

Where are they right now? I have no idea. We don’t really catch up with each other’s lives on a regular basis; we have a very chill, low-maintenance friendship.

When is this person's birthday? January 1st.

Has this person ever seen you naked? I don’t think so.

What is your #4's full name? I don’t think I have a 4th-tier best friend haha, but I’m gonna pick Tina.

When did you last see them? Last year, on the last normal day I was able to be on campus. She was set to present one of her projects at a journalism conference that was taking place in campus that day, but I was able to hang out with her for a short time before the event.

Have they ever dated one of your other friends? No. I knew she had a crush on someone from the college, though.

Do you know their favorite movie? I’m not sure about her favorite movie but I do know she loves Adam Sandler. I was never able to figure out if her interest was ironic or genuine but yeah, she enjoys a good number of his works.

[..Randomosity..]

What time is it? 6:20 PM.

Are you supposed to be doing something other than this? I wouldn’t say so. I do have deliverables for work but since it’s the weekend, I’m not thinking about them nor do I have the desire to touch those tasks until Monday.

Do you live on your own or with your parents? I live with my family. Considering my monthly income, it’d be close to impossible to sustain myself in my own place this early in my adult life.

Are you more of a cat or a dog person? Dog, for sure.

Are you allergic to anything? I don’t believe so.

Does your shirt have anything written on it? Yeah, it says “UP Fighting Maroons” styled in a varsity font since that’s the term for our sports team.

Have you ever tie-dyed something? I have, but only back in like Grade 6 when we had to do it for a home ec class. I remember wanting to buy a tie-dye set recently so I could revisit the activity, but I never got around to it.

Who can you always count on to cheer you up? Angela for the most part; but I also don’t want to be too reliant on my friends in this way. Sometimes I simply allow myself to be sad or upset, and sometimes I count on myself to cheer up.

How many places have you been today? I have been nowhere but at home today lol. I’ll be going to BGC tomorrow to have lunch with my godfather and my cousins, though.

Are you a forgiving person? No.

When was the last time you felt let down? Last night when I read the news that the government will be making All Souls’ Day, Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Eve working days this year. I already know I’ll be half-assing my way through those days lmao because whyyyyyyy the fuck would you make people work on family-centric holidays such as those

What is the title of the nearest book to you? There are no books here at the rooftop.

Are you wearing anything that belongs to someone else? Nope.

Can you whistle? Only through my lips. I can’t do the kind of whistle where you put your fingers in your mouth as well.

Do you look more like your mother or your father? My mom.

Are you still in high school? I’m well past that chapter.

Are you the oldest, middle, youngest, or an only child? I’m the eldest.

Has anyone ever told you that you talk in your sleep? No, because I don’t.

How many people have you kissed this year? None.

Is there anyone of the opposite sex you trust fully? Hmm, no one comes to mind.

Are you a night owl or an early bird? More of a night owl.

If you could have an exotic pet, what would it be? No thanks. I’ve never had the desire to have one.

Would you rather go to Brazil for the weekend or Finland for a month? I’d have to go with Finland. I feel like the cultural differences would be a lot more marked, plus the vacation is longer so that is an instant win for me.

[..And Finally..]

Where did you go the last time you drove somewhere? I was driving to the local coffee shop to spend some time with myself, and do a liiiiiiiittle bit of work as well.

Where did you last go out to eat at? Ramen Nagi. I was initially hesitant to show up there and ask for a table for one on a Sunday evening...but it turned out to feel incredibly empowering and freeing. It was definitely awkward at first, but it got a lot easier once I realized literally no one gives a fuck. Or if they did, they didn’t do anything about it and let me mind my own business. That evening was a crucial step in reclaiming my happiness, so I’m glad I made the choice to suck it up and enter the restaurant.

When was the last time you let someone borrow something from you? Last week, when Angela needed our abaca mat as an aesthetic for her grad shoot.

Was your last breakup a bad one? Yes.

What was the last song you listened to? Just checked my Spotify and the current song I have on pause is Descansos by Hayley Williams. 

What was the last movie you watched? Midsommar.

Did your last kiss happen in a public place? Not technically, but it did take place outside of my house so we were outdoors for some neighbors to see.

How did you meet the last person to leave you a comment? It was Andi, and I already explained how we met earlier in this survey.

[ificanthaveu]

NYE, You and Me || Shawn Mendes

Description: It’s New Years and you’re alone in Toronto. Someone might just come along and change that. 

A/N: DAY 8 (i keep forgetting to say the day ope) I’ll be in FLORIDA for New Years so my experience will be opposite of this BUT this is cute and shit and I want this to happen to me ok ok and she’s early tonight bc I gotta go see my bb boy Chris Evans in Knives Out :)

Word Count: 3.1k

12 Days of Ficmas

Maybe catching a flight the day before New Year’s Eve to avoid seeing your high school friends at bars around your small hometown wasn’t your best idea ever.

Especially since you were flying to Canada.

A flight to Toronto was one of the last ones available in such short notice, so you decided Toronto was going to be where you spent the beginning of the new year. 

Your flight had been delayed twice, and then you had to stay over in a hotel for a night before finally leaving the next morning. 

You were exhausted. This wasn’t how New Year’s Eve was supposed to be. 

You booked the last Airbnb left in the city, a small cottage on the outside of Toronto. It only had two bedrooms, but it was just you, so it didn’t really matter. 

You sat down on the couch in the small living room and pulled out your laptop, hoping to find somewhere to spend your night to ring in the new year. 

The more you looked at bars, the less appealing they seemed. You’d be fine with a drink or two, but getting drunk sounded like even more of a nightmare after the night you just had. 

You decided you’d just walk around the city for a little bit and hope to see a sign advertising an event for the new year. 

You started down the sidewalk with your face buried in your scarf as you pulled up a map on your phone to get an idea of where you were going. 

You heard laughter to your right, and you turned to see what it was. 

You were met with one of the prettiest parks you’d ever seen. There was a sledding hill in the back, trees lining the edge with lights, multiple gazebos and a small playground. 

You smiled at the sight and walked forward to wander the area. It looked like they were setting up for something.

You were proven right once you saw a sign on top of one of the gazebo’s adverting “New Year in the Park” starting at 8:00 that night. You didn’t think you’d find something so soon, but this seemed perfect. 

You walked back to the cottage and pulled out some warmer clothes to wear that night before finding a place to order dinner from. The only place that delivered to where you were was Chinese, so you ordered your meal and waited. 

You scrolled through your phone at all the posts of people excited to be home. You rolled your eyes at any post talking about missing school and the friends they made. 

You were glad you left before you had to run into any of them.

Before you could get angry about it again, the doorbell rang, and you answered the door to get your food. You sat at the island in the kitchen and watched whatever was on the TV as you ate. 

Your cottage was a few blocks down from the park, and you were shocked to see cars parking by your house and walking towards it around 8:00. Maybe this was a bigger thing than you thought. 

You pulled on a pair of leggings with a pair of jeans over them and laired on a long sleeve, a sweater and your winter coat. You pulled on a hat and mittens and wrapped your scarf around your neck. You grabbed the keys, your phone, and your wallet and started your walk to the park. 

You couldn’t help but gasp as you walked up to it. There were booths everywhere selling every type of food or drink. Music was booming, and there was even a small ball ready to drop at midnight. Kids, grandparents and everyone in-between had something to do. 

It was perfect. It was just what you needed. 

You started down the path lined with the booths, looking at each one and trying to decide what to get to drink. You settled on a peppermint mocha and continued walking. 

You found a light-walk around the corner and started to wander through it as you drank your mocha. You stopped at a bench and sat down for a moment, watching a set of lights that were timed to the music. 

People walked past you, some smiling at you and some giving you confused looks, but you didn’t mind. 

You weren’t paying attention until someone sat right next to you. You looked over and saw a tall man with a mop of brown curls, cuddled up in a scarf and winter coat. 

“It’s fucking freezing,” he mumbled as he looked at you out of the side of his eyes. 

“Welcome to Canada, I guess,” you said with a smile. 

He looked at the lights for a moment before turning back to you. 

“Are you waiting for someone?” He asked.

You shook your head slowly before saying, “Nope, just me.”

“Spending New Year’s Eve alone?” He said with a shocked tone to his voice. “Why?”

“Long story,” you said quietly. 

He glanced down at his watch before back up to you. “We still have three hours until midnight. I have time.”

“Aren’t you here with someone?” You asked. 

“Yeah, my family is up there,” he said, pointing forward to three people walking away. “But I needed a minute away from them.”

“I get that,” you said with a nod.

“So, are you from here?” He said. 

“No, I’m from the states,” you said, looking at him. 

“Why Canada?” He said with a scratch of his nose. 

“To be honest, it was one of the last flights left to book when I was looking for a place to go 2 days ago,” you explained. 

“So why were you trying to get away?” He pried. 

“I don’t even know your name,” you countered. 

“Shawn,” he paused. “Now answer the question.”

“My name’s [Y/N]. Thanks for asking,” you deflected. 

“The beauty of this, [Y/N], is that we don’t know each other. So you can tell me why you’re here, and it’ll be no difference to me,” he said, leaning back and crossing his arms. 

“After high school, I stayed in my home town,” you started. “I worked as a manager at a store in the mall because college just wasn’t going to be for me. It still isn’t for me. I love my job, but I went to a private high school. People are judgy. College is expected. Any time I run into someone from my high school, it’s the same shit. ‘When are you going to college?’ ‘You’re still working there?’ ‘Why don’t you move?’ If I would’ve stayed there, I would’ve gone insane.”

“College isn’t for everyone,” he said simply. 

“You’re preaching to the choir. I wish they’d get out of that mindset, though. I used to be really good friends with a lot of them, but I just can’t take the criticism,” you said. 

“Do you like what you’re doing?” He asked. 

“I love it,” you said with a smile. 

“What about your family? Couldn’t spend tonight with them?” He asked further. 

“Well, I’m an only child, and my parents got married on New Year’s. So they go on an anniversary trip every year,” you said. 

“Yikes,” he said under his breath. 

“Yeah, I don’t mind it. I moved out a while ago anyway,” you said. 

He nodded his head and went quiet. 

“What about your family?” You asked as you motioned to where they were moments ago. 

“Well, I’m kind of all over the place right now. I travel a ton for my job, so I don’t see them a lot. I’ve been back for around two weeks, and I’ve been with them for every minute of that. I love them to death, but I can never be with anyone for that long,” he explained. 

“You’re from Canada?”

“Born and raised.”

“So, when you said that you’re ‘all over the place,’ what does that entail?” You questioned. 

“Name a place, I’ve probably been there,” he said as he looked at you. 

“Wow,” you mumbled under your breath. 

“Yeah, pretty cool, also pretty exhausting,” he said with a quiet laugh. 

“What’s your next destination?” 

“I believe I go to Chicago?” He said with hesitation as he squinted.

“You don’t know?” You asked with a laugh. 

“It could also be New York. It’s probably New York,” he said with a little more confidence. 

“Are you sure about that?” You tested. 

He rolled his eyes at you, “I’ve known you for twenty minutes, and I already regret sitting here.”

You ignore his remark and continue to ask him questions, “Do you live here then? Or do you live in some city you don’t know?”

“I kind of live here,” he said. 

“Kind of?”

“Kind of.”

“So what’s the other place, if this one is kind of?”

“LA,” he said softly. “Kind of the hub for what I do.”

“Which is?” You asked. 

“Which is what?” He asked. 

“What do you do?” you asked. 

He shrugged his shoulders, “Nothing much. I sing sometimes.”

“Sing anything I know?” You asked jokingly. 

“Probably not,” he said, looking at you with a smile and admiration. 

“So not a good singer then?” You asked. 

He feigned offense as his hand went to his chest, and his jaw dropped open. You couldn’t contain the giggle that slipped from your lips. 

“That hurt!” He exclaimed. 

“Well…” you trailed off. “If you were good, I’d hear you on the radio.”

“Maybe you have, and you just don’t realize it and I’m lying to you,” he said. 

You narrowed your eyes at him before shaking your head, “Nah, I trust you.”

“You trust me?” He said with a laugh. “You didn’t even know I existed thirty minutes ago.”

“You just have this presence about you,” you said with a shrug. “Can’t describe it.”

He smiled at you and nodded as a small blush crept onto his cheeks. 

“Thanks. That actually means a lot,” he said with that same smile you didn’t plan on getting sick of. 

“Want to walk the rest of the path?” You said as you pointed forward. 

He nodded his head, and the two of you stood up and started to walk. 

You forgot he was even there as you admired the lights once again. You walked through a tunnel of lights and slowly spun around, as Shawn stood back and watched you.

“This is amazing,” you whispered. 

“This is my favorite part,” he said in response. 

“I feel like I’m in a dream,” you said as you continued to walk forward and Shawn followed you. 

His hand bumped against yours, and at first, you ignored it. Until it happened again, and you let him hold your mittened hand in his. 

You both continued walking, your hands swaying gently as you both looked opposite ways. 

“Hey, look,” he said softly. 

You turned to look at what he was pointing towards. There was a house a little ways back with Santa sitting on top of it. 

“He’s always watching,” Shawn whispered. 

You rolled your eyes and hit his arm as he laughed. 

“Christmas was over a week ago,” you said. 

“But he watches year-round. Better be nice to me,” Shawn taunted. 

You tugged him forward as you continued to finish the walk through the lights. Eventually, you made your way to the exit and threw your cup in the trash. You expected Shawn to want to find his family. 

“We still have an hour until the ball drops. Want to go sledding?” He said with a big smile. 

“Aren’t you here with your family?” You reminded him. 

He shrugged his shoulders before pulling you towards the hill. 

“They probably won’t even notice I’m gone. They’re used to it.”

“That’s horrible.”

“I know, but I want to sled.”

You slowly made the treck up the steep hill with him. He insisted you walk in front of him, so he could catch you if you slipped. He was slipping more than you were. 

You stopped for a moment and looked back at him to see him on his hands and knees. You rested your hands on your hips and waited for him to look at you. 

“Another thing I’ve learned about you, stranger. You’re clumsy as hell,” you said. 

“Shut up,” he mumbled as he stood up and gently pushed you forward. 

You finally made it to the top of the hill, and Shawn went to go grab your tubes. 

“There was only one left,” Shawn said slowly as he approached you. “Guess we have to share,” he said with a smirk and a shrug. 

Shawn set the tube down and sat down first before motioning for you to sit in his lap. You hesitated before sitting on his lap and laughing. 

‘We’re going to fall off,” you said. 

He wrapped an arm tightly around your waist that made your heart skip a beat. 

“Hold on to the handles, and we’ll be fine,” he said as you felt his breath against your neck. 

You rested your head back on his chest as he pushed you forward slowly. 

You squealed as you heard Shawn laugh in your ear as your tube sped down the hill. His grip tightened around your waist as you picked up speed. 

You slowed to a stop at the bottom, you and Shawn still laughing as you stayed sitting in the tube. You finally calmed down after a few moments. 

You went to stand up, but his arm didn’t move. You tapped it a few times, but he just tightened his grip. 

“You’re warm,” he mumbled into your shoulder.

“If you let go of me, we can go down the hill one more time before we have to find a spot to watch the ball drop,” you whispered. 

That sold him as he loosened his grip on you and allowed you to stand up. He handed the tube off to one of the employees and followed you back up the hill. He loosely held onto your hips as you climbed up, claiming it’d help him stay upright. 

It didn’t.

You eventually made it to the top of the hill and went to grab a tube. 

“You riding again with me?” Shawn asked as he threw an arm around your shoulder. 

“Yeah, guess I will,” you sighed. 

He squeezed your shoulder before grabbing a tube. The two of you sat in the same position and were a fit of giggles once again as you raced down the hill. 

You lingered a minute again as the two of you just sat at the bottom of the hill in the tube. You finally stood up and helped him up with you, once again handing the tube off. 

Shawn held your hand again as you walked towards the center of the park. You had fifteen minutes left of this year. 

“Thanks for hanging out with me tonight,” you told Shawn once you found a place to stand. 

He looked down at you and smiled, “Thank you for allowing me to.”

You shivered and crossed your arms across your chest. Shawn noticed and pulled you into his chest. You rested your head against the edge of his scarf and watched people start to make their way towards the center as well.

You took a moment to think about your night. You’d bet you’d never see Shawn again after this. He’d go home with his family, and you’d go back home. And that’d be it. 

“Ready?” Shawn whispered. “Five minutes.”

You separated yourself from him and glanced down at your phone, confirming the time. 

“Any last things to get done this year? It’s now or never,” he said as he shook your shoulders. 

You laughed and thought for a moment. 

“It was a good year,” you finally said. “I’m happy with it.”

“Are you happy with how you’re ending it?” Shawn asked hopefully.

You turned to face him head-on, looking up at him. 

“Yeah, I am.”

People around you started to count down from thirty as you and Shawn stayed still, staring at each other, just inches apart. 

You felt his gloved hand rest against your cheek. 

15 

14

13

“Can I kiss you?” He mumbled. 

12

11

10

“Of course,” you whispered. 

9

8

7

Shawn pressed his lips against yours as you wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him closer. 

6

5

4

You felt him smile against your lips as he held your hips tightly.

3

2

1

Everyone erupted into cheers as the clock struck midnight. But you didn’t care.

You felt like you were in your own world as you rested your forehead against Shawn’s. 

“Happy New Year,” you whispered. 

“Happy New Year,” he responded as he pulled you into his chest, and you watched the fireworks explode. 

People started to walk out after that. The wind was getting colder, and you were starting to wish you had worn another sweatshirt underneath your coat. 

You and Shawn started to walk towards the edge of the park. 

“Where are you staying?” He asked as he turned towards you. 

“A little cottage down the road,” you said, motioning in that direction. 

He nodded his head before he said, “I should probably find my family.”

“Yeah.”

“Thank you,” he said sincerely. “For one of the best nights I’ve ever had.”

“Same to you,” you said as he started to back away. 

“See you around, [Y/N],” he said as he sent you one last wink before finding his family and walking away. 

The walk back was short, and you went right to bed, wrapping yourself up in numerous blankets and falling right to sleep.

You woke up at 6:00 for your 8:30 flight, throwing your things in a bag and calling a cab to come get you. 

You rested your head against the window, trying to convince yourself that last night was just some dream. 

The airport was dead as you breezed through security and found your gate. 

First flight back to Chicago of the new year. 

You found a seat near the front and scrolled through your phone. 

You felt someone sit next to you. 

“Guess I am going to Chicago,” the familiar voice said. 

You whipped your head around to see a grinning Shawn starting back at you. 

You let out a breathy laugh, “You’re a mystery, Shawn.”

He didn’t say anything and instead threw his arm around the back of your chair. 

“Think I can show you around my city since you were so welcoming in yours?” you said as you leaned your head against his arms. 

“Sounds perfect.”

REBLOG, REPLY, SEND ME A MESSAGE, AN ASK, I LOVE LOVE AND SUPPORT PLEASE

tag list: (message/ send me an ask to get added for ficmas!)

@fallinallincurls​ @sunrise-shawn​ @shawnblrficawards​ @itrocksmysocks​ @mendesficsxbombay​ @particularnervous​ @adelaidestreets​ @rosebudmendes​ @shawnwyr​ @dancing-oceans​ @illuminatepotter​

[ngame989]

“Loon” - TGG SVTFOE Fanfic Collection Ch. 10

Writing: @ngame989​​​​

Art: @toxicpsychox​​​​

Editing: @ubercelloczar​​​​​, @toxicpsychox​​​​, @seddm​​​​

Alternate fic links - FFnet, AO3

Summary: While Marco, Tom, and Janna have a birthday bash in the Underworld, Star gets dragged into a standoff with an old foe on the surface. It's up to the Butterflies once more to defend the legacy Mewni will leave in the history books... or is it?

Comic Page

Masterpost

Out with a new chapter in record time, and more to come before Christmas! We plan to update either Sun-Fri-Tues on a 2 week cycle, or once per week if we’re particularly busy, so just keep an eye out. Something EXTRA special is lined up for next chapter courtesy of @ubercelloczar​​, still figuring out how best to include it but it’s going to be amazing. Hope you enjoy!

“...and the foul beast looked me right in the eye as I tore it limb from limb! It put up a spectacular fight, but it was no match in the end.”

Moon placed a hand on her husband’s arm and raised a stern eyebrow. “River, dear, we don’t need to hear the story of every meal you eat. I think it’s making Globgor uncomfortable.” Globgor raised a giant hand, waving it in a so-so motion, and Eclipsa rubbed his neck reassuringly.

“Really? But it was vegetarian! Ate it too quickly to know if it was chicken or turkey,” he quickly mumbled before resuming his usual boisterous shouting, “but it was fowl alright!” Moon could only sigh in response; some things would never change with him, but she supposed that was part of his charm. From their position on Globgor’s shoulder at his current size, she could see half the town at a glance. Though many Mewmans still went by the old names for the various smaller kingdoms, there was a general agreement to still call the whole merged area Echo Creek. She’d been against it until Marco pointed out that just calling the small area carved out by the seven kingdoms “Mewni” was as silly as the prospect of only labeling his modest town “Earth,” and she couldn’t argue that. Abandoning even the very name of the home she’d ruled for decades, and known for even longer, wasn’t her first solution, but perhaps it was fitting. As their destination came into focus, she was reminded that giving up the ways of old could be for the best.

The ruins of Butterfly Castle, untouched for the last year and a half, loomed before them. Globgor gave a signal and began to shrink, keeping his upper body large enough to support them until they were a safe distance from the ground. “Remind me to stretch before carrying three people again,” he said, huffing and puffing as he windmilled his arm.

Eclipsa giggled behind her hand and got on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you, Globby.”

“Yes, thank you,” Moon warmly added. “We got here just in time for-”

A stout, older man in a blue uniform sprinted over to the group with a form in hand. He stopped to catch his breath for long enough that the four of them all had time to look around at each other in confusion. “Saw ya comin’ from a mile away but ya went to the other side of this here castle from what I was expectin’,” he wheezed. “Is one of you Butterfly?”

“Yes,” all four answered, much to the dismay of the man.

Moon got a closer look at the badge on his chest which read, “Police”. Ah, so he’s with the city. “Is this about the renovation clearance?”

“Yes, ma’am,” the officer drawled.

“That would be me, then. Are you the one performing the inspection of the premises?”

He shook his head. “No, ma’am, I was called by the inspector because there seems to be a bit of a mixup. A real noggin-scratcher, let me tell you. I can show you, if you’ll all just follow me.” River leaned over to Globgor and whispered something in his ear that made both snicker. Moon rolled her eyes and elbowed both before leading the others behind the policeman; though she normally found their shenanigans charming, today of all days was not the right time for nonsense..

Ever since magic had been destroyed, Moon had spent far too many hours idly dwelling on the next step of her life without feeling like she was taking meaningful action. Almost a year ago, on the eve of the newly christened Christumpmasday - a dreadful portmanteau, Moon thought, but at least the Stump itself had been no more - Star and Marco had first made her consider the legacy she wanted for the Butterfly Kingdom. Queen Moon the Undaunted might have focused on projecting its strength and valor to the world, but she was just Moon Butterfly now, and she was well aware of how many flaws it had always had - some of them her own doing. The people of Earthni deserved to get to know the history of magic and the seven kingdoms as it truly was, and the castle she’d always called home seemed like the perfect place to do that. But if she was going to do things the right way this time, she needed to go through the proper channels, and that’s what brought them here today.

“So officer,” Globgor asked as they continued around the base of the castle, “what exactly is the issue here?”

“Well, I just got here a minute before I saw ya coming in so I only got to take a quick look, Mr…”

“We’re all Butterflies.”

“Ah, yes.” He slowed down briefly and spoke to River and Globgor directly, eyeing them curiously. “Pardon my prying, but I wouldn’t have thought you two were, how do I put this… related?”

“Oh, heavens, no,” Eclipsa chuckled. “Moon and I are, um… well, it’s still quite complicated, but we’re the related ones. Our husbands took our names.” It took a moment to click why anything would’ve seemed odd, but Moon did recall hearing about Earth’s marriage customs (though they still felt foreign to her).

The officer scratched his head with both eyebrows raised. “Gosh, Mewni was like that? That’s awfully neat. Can’t go a day around this here town anymore without learning something new. Anywho, some lady showed up hootin’ and hollerin’ to the heavens about how whatever plans ya had for this place were a sham, I think, and she stormed past the inspector to keep anyone from entering. Made a real big fuss over it. We’ll see what we can do but I’m afraid I can’t let ya onto the premises if it puts you in any danger.”

“The inspector said this afternoon was the only opening she had for months,” Moon muttered, aghast.

“Awfully sorry, just doing my job, ma’am.” When their destination came into view, Moon spotted a woman with a hard hat and orange vest among the gawking crowd- the inspector, she recalled from her previous meetings. Though the expressions among those gathered varied from amused to unsettled, all pointed in the clear direction of the entryway to the castle.

“Who would even want to cause such a kerfuffle around this?” River asked, echoing Moon’s own thoughts. They’d kept it quiet, hadn’t they? Though her expertise in Earth government was limited, she was fairly certain this sort of thing wasn’t public. No one outside of the city officials they’d made contact with should have known… she’d simply submitted a letter with some information and set up an appointment with the receptionist, who surprisingly enough had turned out to be Manfred. Wait, when she’d last seen Manfred… Everything clicked in her mind just a moment before they came face to face with the answer to her unspoken question.

“Well, well, well... we meet again, monster smoocher.”

***

The telltale whoosh of the flame column signalled to Star that she had arrived at her destination. Hopping out of the carriage, she rounded the corner and bounded towards the front door of the Diaz house. She hadn’t thought Tom would be so into event planning, but Marco was going to love it. Even though they’d gotten into a nice rhythm managing work and school and free time with friends, a relaxing day off was just what the doctor ordered.

She was so distracted she didn’t even realize her foot was colliding with the door, kicking it open and revealing the Diaz living room. Marco was lounging on the couch in his hoodie and a pair of shorts; his only reaction to her sudden entrance was to nonchalantly move the TV remote and soda can out of the way, barely in time to catch her when she pounced on top of him.

“You’re getting better at that,” Star commented, propping herself up on her elbows to look Marco in the eye and bop his nose with hers.

“Have to be if I don’t want to have to scrub juice out of the couch all the time,” he retorted, rolling his eyes and pecking her on the lips. His fingers idly twirled her hair as she settled down into their usual couch cuddling position, her head resting on his chest. Happy, sad, angry, lonely… there was no situation that couldn’t be improved by a Marco hug. She sank into the warmth of his embrace and let the stress wash off of her for a few moments, sighing softly. “So, everything go OK with Janna?”

“Wha?” Pegasus feathers, Butterfly, did he find out?

“You said you were helping Janna with something?”

Right, that’s what she’d told him. “Yes, Janna! Totally, totally, totally… just helping Janna Banana with... girl stuff. And Janna stuff. You wouldn’t get it.”

“Not sure I’d want to.”

Having sufficiently recharged her snuggle battery, she hopped off the couch and bounced in place with excitement, helping him up as well. “Enough of that. You ready for one of the best days of the year?”

“Underworld Beach Day!” They both shouted.

Marco pounded a fist into his other hand with a determined grin on his face. “We’ve gotta find the Skellies for that volleyball rematch after last year. I know we can take them this time.”

“Yeah, Skellies…” She nodded along with a sly smile, knowing the true plans for today would be that much better.  

“Let me get my sunblock.”

“It’s underground, Marco!”

“The lava glow can still mess with my pores!” he whined before disappearing into the kitchen.

Looking out the front door, she discreetly motioned over the skeleton horse that was barely visible through the bushes. Nothing was going to ruin this surprise! Poking her head back into the house and checking to make sure she hadn’t been found out, she called out in Marco’s direction. “Oh hey, the carriage is already here! It’s so convenient, we probably just shouldn’t question it at all! C’mon Marco!” She turned back around and took one step out the door, immediately bumping into someone with enough force to send her onto her butt. Star shook her head and took the offered hand to stand up, finally seeing who it was. “Hi Mom! How are yo-”

“Star, could I borrow you for a short while?”

“What? Mom, nooooo, it’s Marco’s birthday.... tomorrow, which is why we’re just having a totally normal day at the beach today!” Star shouted, aiming her voice back into the house for Marco’s benefit since her mom already knew about the secret surprise party plans.

“I’m terribly sorry, sweetie… this is rather important. It shouldn’t take too long, I hope.” Underneath the apologetic smile was a serious tone that made Star hesitate before protesting further. A normal Mom worry was more like “Star, don’t try to stack warnicorns” or “River, you’ll get sick if you eat that entire mewffalo” and she’d heard it enough times before to know it instantly, but this was something else entirely. It reminded her of how Tom had spoken earlier, which only concerned her more. Maybe Janna had been onto something earlier, which meant maybe this was something important… Yeah, guess I’m doing this. Still though, there wasn’t much they couldn’t accomplish quickly if they put their minds to it, so maybe it could be a quick and easy thing, and they could still have a blast at Marco’s party. When she’d finally gotten the experience of a birthday all to herself after years of dealing with the Stump, she’d immediately resolved to never again let a friend miss their own birthday fun. Never mind that it wasn’t his actual birthday yet, dangit, no errand was going to derail the super special surprise party for her Marco!

As if on cue, Marco emerged from the kitchen with a pack full of supplies. “Alright, Star, I’m- oh, hey, Moon.”

“Marco, you should get going to the beach… Tom’s waiting for you. I mean… probably. Why else would the carriage be here? Mom just needs me to help with an errand for a teeeeensy bit. Peasy squeezy, breezy wheezy!” Her eye twitched. Great job, Star, totally sold it!

“Oooooookay, then.” Marco raised an eyebrow suspiciously. “Let me know if you need any help, you know I don’t mind.”

“Pssssht, naaaaaaaw. Ain’t nothin’ two Butterflies can’t handle.”

“Alright, see you there,” he said, pecking her on the cheek on his way out the door. He smiled and waved goodbye before the carriage whooshed into the ground.

Globgor lifted Star up to his shoulder to sit next to her mother. The cool fall air rippled through Star’s hair as they ascended above the buildings around them; Globgor only got this big for travel when they needed to be somewhere fast. “Alright, spill. What’s going on?”

Moon sighed and folded her hands together, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. “Well, you see, Star... I know you and I have had our differences when it comes to our former kingdom. I’ve spent a lot of time the past year reflecting on its ways, its history, and especially its legacy. Time and time again, we- I repeated the mistakes of our ancestors, and the people of Earthni deserve to know the full story.” She unfurled a thick document from her satchel and handed it to Star, who immediately began skimming the pages. Wait, what was she doing with-

“The old Butterfly Castle?”

“We’re beginning restoration efforts soon to turn it into a place where people can remember and learn. This was actually supposed to be a birthday gift of sorts for you.”

Star crossed her arms and arched her brow inquisitively. “Uh-huh... how exactly is this for me?”

“I want you to advise the project.” Star’s eyes widened in shock. After everything they’d been through, she was being dragged into a big Mewni project again? Any angry retorts were stifled when her mom rested a hand on Star’s own, keeping the other for balance on their precarious perch in the sky. “Star, dear, I know this isn’t the sort of thing you want to do anymore, and it doesn’t need your undivided commitment. I’m not asking as Queen, or even as your mother. Time and time again you’ve displayed wisdom pertaining to these matters well beyond your years, and I shouldn’t- I can’t turn it into a place where anyone can see our history, our people, and all our flaws and strengths for what they truly were without the help of someone who could already do that for herself long before I could.”

Both fell silent for a few moments, deep in thought. The motherly pride and respect warmed Star’s heart immensely, and though it felt weird to think about, she was proud of her mother as well. But… was this the sort of legacy Star Butterfly wanted to leave behind? Hadn’t all of her last efforts on Mewni been to cast aside the undeserved authority her family had? It was certainly a noble aim, but something about it still bothered her. “I’ll… I’ll have to think about it.”

The warmth in the smile Star received proved beyond any doubt that there was no lingering trace of Queen Moon in her solicitation. “I understand.”

“Sooooo what’s the deal with all this, then?” Star flailed her hands wildly in their general direction of travel.

“Our initial construction plans were scheduled to be approved today, but then there was… an unfortunate incident. Mina has returned.”

Star felt her eyes try to bulge the whole way out of her head, as if forced out by her brain exploding at this reveal. “The Mina? Mewman soldier Mina? Evil push-all-monsters-off-a-cliff Mina? Cuckoo-bananas bathe-in-mud Mina? What the heck are we taking any time talking for, then? The whole town could be in danger!”

“No, Star, it’s not- well, yes, it is, but she has no powers. She’s just a regular person who is slightly, as you said, ‘cuckoo-bananas’, though I don’t recall any mud involved. Before we arrived, she had broken into the castle ruins and is now holding it hostage. Manfred might be involved, as well. You’re the only one who might be able to talk some sense into her, or at least figure out how to get her to leave. The city has given us until midnight to get the permit.”

Midnight? But that’s when the Soulrise was… Star had a sinking feeling that this day wasn’t going to be a short one, but this mattered too much to her mother to say no. “I can try,” she said, squeezing her mom’s hand.

Globgor began to shrink as they approached their destination, where she could see Eclipsa’s billowing purple dress and her dad sporting an uncharacteristically formal outfit - heck, they must have really planned for this if he was wearing a shirt and pants at all. She shivered a bit as her feet touched the ground; of all the superhuman genes the Johansens seemed to possess, immunity to the cold just had to be the one she didn’t inherit.

“Thank goodness you’re here, Star,” Eclipsa said gratefully. “It’s far too chilly out today. Mina won’t hear a word from me, I’m afraid… perhaps she’ll listen to you.” She pointed up towards a jagged shard of a ruined wall where Star saw the telltale purple braids.

“Mina!” Star shouted.

“Oh look, it’s my traitorous ex-mud-sister. Back for another round with little old me? I can still take ya any day of the week, you know!” Mina rocked back and forth, still clinging to a stone outcropping. There was no way that was comfortable in the slightest. Did she even feel pain?

“I just want to talk! I’m coming up there!”

Star took one step forward before Mina shrieked. “Bup bup bup! This here castle is for real Mewman patriots only! I got nothin’ to say to you. You can talk to my associate.”

A snobbish man stepped out from the ground-level entryway quickly enough to suggest he’d been waiting there. With his sharp black suit and slicked back hair, it took all the Butterflies only a moment to realize who it was, and they all groaned at the realization. “At your service, m’ladies,” he said sarcastically. Star hadn’t particularly missed Manfred’s snooty meddling in her day to day life, and it wasn’t any more welcomed now. “I will deliver a message to Ms. Loveberry if you so wish, as long as it’s not from the brutish monster.”

Only two minutes into this debacle and Star felt her patience run out entirely. She might have been sardonically impressed if she wasn’t already over this entire affair. “No, I’m going up there.”

River poked her shoulder and leaned in, his eyes narrowing and darting back and forth. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind asking - has she seen the stash of jelly tarts I left in a cupboard years ago?” Star rolled her eyes and walked forward despite Manfred’s protests, with Moon and Eclipsa not far behind. “Alright, nevermind sweetie! Go get ‘em!”

When Manfred tried to get in their way, Globgor stepped between them with his arms crossed, causing the feeble man to cower in overstated fear. “Oh, goodness me, help! The evil monster, he’s intimidating me to oppress my free spee-” Out of the corner of her eye, Star noted no one in the crowd had stepped up to join Manfred or oppose their group, and it lifted her spirit the tiniest bit. Moon took the lead, navigating around all the rubble and climbing up to a safer portion of the wall more level with Mina’s position. So this is what’s left of it. Despite everything, Star hadn’t checked out the castle at all in the years since it stopped being her home. It had been right there, ready for her to make peace with at any time since the dimensions fused, but she just… hadn’t. Maybe it was guilt, maybe it was disdain, maybe it was just being so much happier with what she had now that there was no reason to look back. Narrowly dodging the shards of a broken bust, they continued forward towards the stairs. Seeing it all again, though, made Star think her mother had a point. Their kingdom’s history was full of vital lessons and cautionary tales, but how could the people of Earthni learn them from piles of rubble?

Though Manfred had switched to prim and proper Earth fashion, Mina clung to the remnants of the architecture in the same outfit as always, twirling the braids she’d often used as propellers. From the rips and tears, Star suspected it was literally the same outfit and shuddered. When Mina noticed their presence, she wheeled to face them.

“What do you even want, Mina?” Moon asked. “What’s your game here?”

“Game? This ain’t no game, Moony. I’ve been alive and kicking for even longer than she has,” Mina jeered as she pointed at Eclipsa, “and I’ve spent my whole time fighting for Mewni and the Mewmans - real Mewmans - and I’m not about to let you make a mockery of everything that made our kingdom great.”

“There is no Mewni anymore!” Star huffed as she threw her hands in the air. “There hasn’t been for over a year! And it happened right after you lost!”

“Pfft, you had to give up everything just to keep me from obliterating every last one of you, and it got rid of all your little unicorn stampedes and rainbow blasts, too. Do you think I’m scared of you now? I’d be more worried about that little half-monster brat than whatever half-baked excuse for queens you all are, and she’s not even here!” A giggle erupted down below. Eclipsa scurried over and peeked, gasping as she reached over the edge of the wall and pulled up… Meteora? How had she-

“She must have been nesting in my beard!” River’s voice boomed from the ground below.

The baby cooed at her mother but got a glimpse at the fuming Mina and frowned. “Bad!” She shouted. “Badbadbadbadbad!” Eclipsa struggled to keep her secure in her arms but ultimately won out, lulling the child back to calm.

Mina took the opportunity to hop across a few footholds closer to the tower, still acting dominant and in control. “So you have the little snot now, big whoop! I’ve got an army again, too!” She backed off and ducked behind a pillar in the courtyard. Moments later, they were greeted by… a carefully decorated sock on her hand?

“Mina’s right, monsters are bad!” it said in Mina’s obvious attempt at a deep man’s voice. A second sock joined it, adorned with grass for hair. “Yes,” it chimed in with a high-pitched effeminate cadence, “I can’t stand living in this world with all these lazy monsters hogging stuff from the hard-working people that deserve it!” Confusingly, a third popped in. “And I’m terribly frightened of what they might do to my children!”

“Say what you will, but she is quite talented at puppetry. I didn’t know toes could wiggle quite like that,” Eclipsa snickered from over Star’s shoulder. If she wasn’t just so incredibly done with all of this already, Star might have laughed along - it was becoming increasingly clear how little of a threat Mina posed.

A second later, Mina popped back out and stood before them, visibly missing the sock on her left foot. “See, everyone is saying it!”

Moon buried her face in her hands out of frustration and dragged them down with enough force that her features momentarily sagged. “I don’t have time for these charades, Mina. Your childish tomfoolery ends now. The people of Earthni deserve to see this place and its history that actually existed, not whatever made up fantasy land you’ve concocted in your mind.”

“Hmmph, you do-gooders aren’t gonna budge, eh? Well, you know what, maybe I will let you rebuild this castle. That’d be swell, it was a beautiful place, alright. But Mewni was meant for Mewmans, so if you want to take that and turn it into some big dumb monument to monsters, you’ll have to go through me, and I don’t give up easy, and I ain’t leavin. Wonder how many folks are gonna want to come ‘round when Mina jumps out at em and bops them in the schnozz?”

Eclipsa stepped forward, still rocking Meteora gently back and forth to keep her at bay through all the commotion. “Stand down. The world’s changed, Mina. It doesn’t need any more of this lunacy. Wouldn’t you rather simply live out your life and find happiness?”

“Ha! As if! Seems a lot of people have fallen for your fabricated Mewni malarkey, but not me! I won’t put up with your fake Mews! If you want to stop me, you’ll have to catch meeee!” She rocketed off into the castle. The Butterflies glanced into the corridors in disbelief at just how pointless this all was, but Mina had vanished.

Star folded her arms and curled up into herself a bit as she started to walk away, but felt her mother’s hand pat and squeeze her shoulder sympathetically. “Sorry, dear…”

“Go get Dad and Globgor,” she responded exasperatedly, ignoring her mother’s apology. She knew that there were honest good intentions here, and she did want to at least get Mina out of their hair, but she couldn’t help but be a bit grumpy at the situation she’d been dragged into. “Let’s find her.”

The family, along with a few of the officers who’d shown up, went their separate ways looking for the former kingdom’s final foe. Sunset had come and gone while they searched to no avail and Star found herself slowing down and thinking about her friends and the fun they were probably having. Trying to stave off the mopiness, she idly scrolled through the Marco album on her phone while she searched, her eyes spending equal amounts of time roving the dusty remains of the castle and fondly gazing at the smiles and joy on her friends’ faces. And maybe a bit of ogling Marco’s cute butt in those swim trunks; it never failed to do funny things to her. The most recent picture Janna had sent her as part of their weird tradition was instead centered on Tom trying (and failing) to sneak a pained look at Janna, and had an attached message corroborating the vibe from earlier. So it’s not just me that thinks he was acting really dodgy about something.

A moment later, her Space Unicorn tone - one that was reserved for Marco - went off. Before she’d even finished reading the first text, it played a second time.

“Hey, how’s your thingy with Moon going? We’re missing you here! Let me know when you’re done, we saved half the cake for you. ♥”

“Also, let me know if you need me for anything, I’m here for you.”

Ugh, Marco, why do you have to be so dang sweet and caring? Another set of eyes could maybe help, and she wouldn’t mind having him around to ease the boredom at all, but Star wasn’t going to yank him out of his birthday party even if he’d go willingly. And admittedly she was curious what the deal was with Tom. Janna Banana was near and dear to her, but Star still would’ve been insane to rely exclusively on her if Tom needed a heart-to-heart.

After scanning the empty closet she’d wandered towards, she hastily punched in a message to Marco. “Mina’s back. Long story, not what you think, we’re fine here 👍. Kinda crazy tho. 😵 Will tell you later. 😈 acting a bit strange, stay and try to see why? 🤔 Also have fun, it’s your party!!!!🎊🥳🎉🎈 Hopefully will be done soon, would never miss 👻rise with you 💕💞💏 Love you 😘🥰😻”

With that out of the way, and a small smile returned to her face, she slid her phone into her purse and buckled down on the task at hand. Phone pictures of Marco and a fun birthday party were nice, but she had to get to work if she wanted any chance of the real thing. She nimbly hopped over the crumbled busts and assorted rusty parts of weapons and armor that covered most of the floors and stairways she encountered. Whatever her mom wanted to do here would require a ton of work, and Star could see why she was so eager to get started. Her explorations finally led her to a hallway that stopped her in her tracks. The tapestries of many of the former Queens of Mewni hung before her. Celena, Jushtin, her actual grandma, Comet… all had been torn nearly to shreds and reassembled. Her mom had mentioned what Mina had done here when they sat down not long after the Cleaving to share everything that had happened and make up - a conversation that lasted through more pots of tea than Star could count on her hands - but it was still jarring to see up close. Star slowly made her way to the end of the hallway and into the secret room, where- wasn’t Solaria’s portrait supposed to be here?

“Hyah!” Star was blinded and wrestled to the ground, all movement impeded by a thick canvas on top of her entire body. She was pushed sideways and had the fabric rolled around her like a tube constricting her arms. Pushing forward on her knees, she managed to wiggle the top of her head. Dangit, dangit, dangit. Suspicions confirmed: Mina had pounced on her with Solaria’s tapestry and a bit of help from Manfred. “Gotcha now! I’m slipperier than a slime snake!” Mina gloated, plopping down on top of Star and knocking the breath out of her. “Maybe they’ll take a hostage situation a bit more seriously, hehe!”

“Oh, my goodness, is the little ex-princess in trouble? ‘Tis an awful shame,” Manfred joined her, his voice dripping with gleeful sarcasm. “M’lady, we should abscond soon. The others should be arriving shortly.”

Mina patronizingly patted the top of Star’s head. “Aw nuts, I wanted to have a little bit more fun with my new caterpillar buddy! How’s it feel, Star? As long as I’ve still got eight fingers, eleven toes, and three beating lungs, this world ain’t gonna be taken over by ‘equality’ horsedoodie, you hear me? Monsters are scum, and the world would be a better place if they all took a nice long vacation to Off-a-Cliffsville.”

Star wanted to kick and punch and scream her lungs out. How many times can you ruin everything I care about? While flailing about, she tried to keep herself from grinning too obviously when she noticed a new arrival. She redoubled her efforts to cause a scene and keep the focus on herself so that Mina wouldn’t notice her real hope of escape crawling across the ceiling. Just need to distract… “You’re right, Mina, I can’t beat you. There aren’t any warriors like you.”

“Lookie here, Manny, she’s having a change of heart? What did I tell you? Glad to see someone’s finally letting the logical facts into her thick little noggin.”

“Yep, that’s exactly what I’m doing. But I do have a fun fact for you, though.”

“Oh?”

“There is a warrior a lot more adorable than you, with way sharper teeth.” Star looked above Mina and nodded, and by the time Mina followed her gaze it was too late. Meteora dive-bombed and lashed out, knocking Mina to the ground and forcing her to deal with a pawing, clawing toddler. Manfred cowered in the corner uselessly while Meteora continued to thrash about. The noise must have echoed throughout the castle, as she heard the search squad’s footsteps approaching the scene. Without the two bodies sitting on top of her, Star freed herself from her binding in a minute, by which point everyone else had arrived just in time to corner Mina. Globgor called out to Meteora and got her to back off, leaving behind a very battered and bruised Mina and an indignant Manfred.

Mina glared daggers at the crowd gathering around her, who all seemed a bit too concerned at her instability to make any sudden moves. “Oh, so that’s how it’s gonna be with you mooks. Little old me just has a slight difference of opinion and this is how I’m treated? Don’t we live in a society? Instead I’m getting stomped on like a masochistic bushel of grapes!” Her beady green eyes darted frantically around the crowd, causing most to shrivel from the ferocity of her deranged gaze. Tense seconds went by before she finally softened up, gently smiling. “Y’know what, you win. If you want the castle so bad, it’s yours. Just gonna need a friendly barter in return…” The Butterflies all exchanged nervous glances. “You can have your little phony dream house here, but I get to enact my brand of Mewman justice on that ugly rock you monster-smoochers call a temple!”

Moon stepped forward to grab Mina’s arm but was narrowly dodged. “Mina, that’s enough. Everything you’ve said is preposterous, we won’t stand for it.”

“Bit too late on that one, Moony,” Mina taunted, wagging her finger back and forth. The subtle light from the moon and stars streaming through the jagged hole in the ceiling in the room suddenly faded, leaving them all with only the dim glow of the torches lining the walls. Overbearing squawking and flapping sounds, magnified by their echoes throughout the hallways around them, assaulted Star’s ears. She only barely caught the “Gotta fly!” Mina shouted as she was lifted up and out of the room. As the light streamed back in, Star finally saw the culprit: a massive murder of trained crows hauling her through the sky with alarming speed, presumably towards the Monster Temple.

“We have to stop her!” Star shouted, turning to run towards the castle entrance. She stopped when she realized the police officers present weren’t following. “Um, excuse me? A little help? That maniac is about to go destroy my family’s house!”

One of the officers, an older man she recognized from her time on Earth, wrung his hat in his hands. “Hmm, well, gosh, that sure is a pickle… Bit extreme, I’d say, but it’s always nice to see passion from young folks like yourselves. Both of you might have a point, so maybe you should just try sitting down and having a nice calm talk about it. Call us later if there’s still an issue, though!”

A scream erupted in Star’s throat, raw and animalistic. Stupid, stupid, useless! Leaving the officers behind, she and her equally flabbergasted family bolted back towards the exit to track Mina down. The dark bird cloud was still in sight when they exited the castle, nearly bowling over some onlookers and reporters who’d shifted their attention to the birds that had just swarmed out of the scene.

“She’s flying over a bunch of houses, I don’t think I can chase her directly,” Globgor said after growing to survey the distance Mina was covering.

“The Eagle Queen taught me how to speak bird, I’m sure I remember some of it.” River shouted, squatting down. “Now, Globgor, toss me!” Globgor picked River up and threw him in a straight line, enlarging his hand to add to the momentum of the throw. Star cringed as her dad soared through the sky. “Squa-squakah!” he hollered, his voice cracking. The birds parted, leaving a hole in their formation through which he promptly flew right through. “They don’t like me!” he hollered, his voice fading as he fell out of view. Daaaaaad.

“Well,” Moon said, taking a beat to sigh disappointedly, “I’m open to other suggestions.”

Star’s phone buzzed in her pocket; it was another of Janna’s kinda weird but somehow sweet candid Marco camera check-ins. Now’s not the time to tempt me with Marco abs!, she mentally groaned after opening the image. Wait, how is he surfing on LAVA? I know it’s the Underworld, but- Wait a second... Underworld, demon powers, carriage - they could get to the Temple right away!

Her eyes drifted towards the attached message: “ugh tom being super weird, stormed off. did he tell u anything? actually worried about him, haven’t seen him this bad since drama with u. rly dont know how 2 help, can i hang w/ u? dont drool over pic too hard lol” It stopped Star in her tracks for a moment: yes, the immediate situation was a crisis, but Janna being genuinely concerned? Now that was a cosmic anomaly. Star sent a response quickly checking in with the state of things (with an innocent inquiry about Marco abs - cut her some slack, she’s only Mewman) and passed along a message for Marco to stay and check in with Tom. Star was so angry at Mina and at the cops and at never being free of dealing with this freaking warnicorn manure that she wanted to karate chop an entire forest, and Tom and Marco didn’t need that messing up their days even more. But if Janna already needed an excuse to leave, well, Star wouldn’t complain.

“We can still beat them there, let’s not dally,” Eclipsa said, hopping on her husband’s shoulder. “Everyone, get on.” Once Star sent the relevant details and instructions, she followed her mother and off they went. As the minutes passed, Star remained silent while the others strategized, an atmosphere of helpless déjà vu permeating her spirit. Just like the first time facing down Mina, she knew she was just curling up and hiding, but she felt as if there was a seductively depressing whisper in her ear telling her that nothing had changed and that there was no hope of escaping the loony bigots trying to strongarm society. Even changing the world hadn’t been enough, and though she’d still seen growth on the whole, what did it say that the Minas of the world kept popping back up like a horrible game of whack-a-goblin?

Soon after, they finally arrived at Monstertown and dismounted. Eclipsa had at least been right about one thing: the ominous cloud flying in was still at least a minute or two away, though oddly there was no one else to be seen. Janna was supposedly here, according to a text received while Star had been lost in thought on the ride over, but that was the last anyone had heard from her. With seemingly nothing left to do, and not much of a plan, Globgor grew into a one man wall protecting the temple while everyone else readied to defend however they could.

Mina descended, keeping most of her birds circling above her. The defensive line of Butterflies swatted away any that got too cocky, but they were slowly being forced back. Star got knocked over into some mud and was helped up by Eclipsa, and scowled at the damage to her outfit she’d picked out for the beach. “Did the big ugly monsters run away all scared-like? Bah, I wanted to crush ‘em myself, but oh well, I can still have my fun. They’ll be all ‘Oh no, my big dumb mud hut’s gone! Where will I keep all the Mewman babies I want to eat?’” She cackled wildly, and it got on Star’s nerves even more than before. In the background, something peculiar glinted in the moonlight. Star squinted in an attempt to make it out, but she quickly realized what was actually happening when the surrounding area shimmered and revealed an upright chameleonoid monster. It had caught Star looking and used its tail to point at what Star now saw was one of Janna’s potion bottles before blending in once more. What effect it might have, she never knew, but help was help. Just have to distract. Again.

“Hey Mina!” Star yelled, diverting Mina’s attention from the wall of a home she was preparing to bash down. “I thought you were gonna tear down the Temple! Why be cruel to some random monsters’ houses? Aren’t you trying to protest your rights or something?”

Eclipsa turned in confusion. “Star, what-” Star shushed her and tried to indicate with a sharp glare that there was a plan in motion here.

The disgraced warrior tapped her chin for a moment before shrugging. “I kinda like both,” she stated matter-of-factly and wound up for another blow.

“Oh dear, Star,” Eclipsa whispered dramatically, clearly loud enough for anyone nearby to hear. “What are you doing? Don’t you realize all the monsters are probably huddled up in the temple right now?”

“Is that so? Huh, maybe you are useful for something after all. Get ready to kiss ‘em goodbye, then, since I know how much you love doing that.” Mina whistled sharply, gathering a cloud of concentrated feathery darkness around her. “Say goodnight to your mamas. Atta- ech,” she sputtered, wrapping her arms around her sides in a coughing fit. “Golly, monster musk must be getting to me. Now, attack, my pretties!” All the birds lazily circled around her for a moment before plummeting to the ground in a giant heap. “What the corn-” She stumbled and gagged a few more times, falling victim to the gas cloud that Star could now see billowing from the potion bottle, incapacitating all the birds that had inhaled it.

To her right, Star noticed a dirt-covered hatch in the ground pull back as a few unidentified creatures crawled out of it. Mina noticed too late and was tackled to the ground by someone from that group that seemed familiar... Penelope! Star’s face lit up in awe as she recognized the former Spiderbite princess, who held Mina down while she futilely thrashed. A monster with a glowing tail had joined them, which allowed Star to see Slime slink over and quickly slather some goop onto Mina’s arms and legs that bound her to the ground.

“You guys!” Star ran over and yanked the couple into a tight hug for a more-than-welcome reunion. “That was amazing!” The monster that Star just now dubbed Glowtail wrapped its tail around Mina’s mouth to cover up her attempted protests.

“Hey, Star. And Big G, and the other Butterflies,” Slime said, indicating the rest of her family. “Yeah, well, Penny’s totes great.” Slime wrapped an arm around his girlfriend’s shoulders - well, it was more of him just wriggling his gelatinous form into her side. “She can wrestle spiders the size of a dog.”

“Hey, you’re the one that figured out how to make your slime do all that stuff, like glue people’s hands and feet down,” Penny lovingly said, kissing his cheek. Star hadn’t seen them in many months despite visiting Monstertown, often because Slime had been spending a lot of time living as a healer/celebrity in the Forest of Unlikely Spiderbites.

“Just gotta swallow some gum, wait a few minutes, and bam.” He clapped his hands together and stretched them apart to demonstrate how sticky they were. “There’s all kinds of stuff I can do to change it up.”

“Pineapple’s a lot of fun,” Penny mischievously added. Wasn’t there some sort of urban legend about that fruit on Earth? Wasn’t it supposed to… oh. Star’s face heated up when she drew the connection, enough that she was thankful when Mina screeched with an intensity sufficient to cut through their conversation, even with a fluffy tail still stuffed in her mouth.

Glowtail shuddered, running away, presumably to go wash the Mina spittle out of its tail. “Monsters can’t even fight me by themselves! Let me go, you nincompoops!”

“Mina-” Moon sternly grumbled.

“Look, L,” Slime casually interrupted, and though Moon was surprised she relinquished focus to him. “Working together is, like, pretty cool. We made these big community plans if anyone like you ever showed up again. That creepy human girl warned us, my super rad Mewman girlfriend took you down, and a bunch of other monsters made the plans for evac,” he stated as their chameleon friend nodded emphatically. A handful of other monsters lurked around them, presumably having been stationed elsewhere in the village and just now received the signal for it to be safe to check out the action.

“Mewni sucked when everyone was just snobby and mean anyway,” Penny added, giving her boyfriend a lopsided smile. “Everyone in my old kingdom was always covered in spiderbites but we’d just say ‘well at least we’re not those dirty monsters’, but that’s just dumb. Why live like that? Everyone here has been so welcoming, why can’t you?” Mina finally fell silent, hanging her head in what Star might have thought was shame if that didn’t seem so farfetched. “Ugh, it’s too late for this. I’ll go get the others so we can figure out what to do with her. Stay here and make sure she doesn’t go anywhere?” she said as she turned to Slime

He gave a thumbs up and sat down on the ground “You got it, babe.”

“Bye, Star! We should hang out more!”

“Yeah, bye, Penny!” Star waved before turning back towards Slime and a forlorn Mina. “So what now?”

Slime glanced around at the other gathered townsfolk who were calmly keeping watch, though a bit tired and disgruntled. “We’re fine here, if you’ve got somewhere to be. We’ve got stuff under control. Look, I can tell you’re worried, and I’m super grateful for everything you did for us, but things are pretty good now. Feels like we can finally just be, y’know? And we’re ready for any other losers that have a problem with it.”

“Yeah,” she simply responded, getting a bit lost in thought. “Well, see ya.”

“Thank you, to everyone,” Moon succinctly added before the Butterflies all began to walk back towards the entrance to the Monster Temple.

Star felt her eyes glistening at the heartfelt togetherness on display that night, but the feeling was far more than that. She realized her mom must have misinterpreted that though, as she was pulled into a fierce bear hug. “Star, dear, don’t cry… I’m sorry you had to miss the festivities you had planned-”

“No, Mom, it’s not that, it’s just…” Star paused as she struggled to put her emotions into words. “Don’t you get it? This; all of this? This is Mewni!” Her family all looked a bit puzzled. “The castle is still a really cool idea, but the people who have been living and working to build a home together - they’re the ones that have always known Mewni best.”

“What do we make of the hootenanny at the castle, then?” Her dad asked, fending off Meteora’s attempts to poke at his eyes and nose as he held her.

“If you want some of it to be a museum with queens and wars and stuff, that’s fine, and Mom’s the most thorough organizer I know… but I think you should be asking what everyone else from Mewni might want to see.”

Eclipsa affectionately ruffled Star’s hair - something that’s never failed to make Star squirm in happy embarrassment. “Quite the wisdom coming from someone insisting they aren’t wise,” she jested. Star jumped at a terrifyingly loud snore from behind them, where River, Globgor, and Meteora had apparently all curled up on the ground together and promptly fallen asleep - Star couldn’t help but yawn herself at the sight.

She could really just crawl into bed right now until Soulrise… hehe, sunrise, not Soulrise, silly…. oh crud. “How late is it? Don’t we still need to get the castle inspected?” she said, adrenaline giving way to a weighty exhaustion that threatened to knock her out where she stood.

“Perhaps I’ll hold off for some time longer until I’ve had some more input,” her mom mused, putting both hands on Star’s shoulders. “I’m so, so proud of you. I want you to know that, Star.”

“Aww, thanks, Mom. I… I don’t mind helping, but being in charge of this sort of thing… that’s not right for me.”

Moon pulled Star into a gentle hug, and was soon joined by Eclipsa. “I understand, dear. Now go have fun with Marco and get some rest. I believe I spotted Janna in an alley that way pouring something into a puddle.” Star rolled her eyes and wandered off in search of her friend.

Blink. Blink.

Wha… wazzat, where am I? Star blinked a few more times and wiggled her fingers and toes. Ew, sand. Wait, sand? She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand and found herself on the beach, resting her cheek on drool-stained red fabric. “Marco?”

“Hey, Star.”

“OhnodidImissit?” she slurred, slumping further into his side. The fog gradually lifted on the details of the past hour - she’d made it to the Underworld and groggily regaled Marco with the story of her day, she could recall that much. She remembered him saying he’d missed her, though he hadn’t been upset, but the rest of the details had been lost as she drifted in and out of sleep.

He shook his head and squeezed her shoulder affectionately as he pointed up above them. Star had to squint when she tried to look up, and after her eyes had adjusted she gasped. Spirits shrieked and soared in and around each other as the Soulrise put on its magnificent display above them. Different souls mingling in harmony was always a special sight to behold… maybe she couldn’t know Earthni’s exact destiny, but those that could fully embrace and understand each other unconditionally had a bright future ahead of them. The thought made her smile dopily at Marco, wholly secure and content as she buried her head into his delightfully pillowy shoulder. “Happbirdaymurrco,” she whispered, finally surrendering herself to slumber.

[wxyvision]

Dear First Love {3/4}

Genre: angst, fluff

Word count: 2,106

Part 1 | Part 2

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Dear first love,

So you heard, from either Guanheng or Mark, I assume, that I wanted you to teach me how to dance. I mean, I was sort of serious, I thought it could be a good way to get closer to you whilst doing something fun. I wasn’t actually expecting them to tell you, though. I should thank you for actually offering to teach me, and for not laughing at my bad dancing. I was surprised that you bought food and drinks for me, I really wasn’t expecting you to do that. The food was tasty, thank you. You keep making me fall for you more and more with your sweet actions. It’s not fair, how do I make your heart melt? How do I make you fall for me the way I have done for you? I keep hoping maybe I’ll get really good at dancing and your heart will flutter. I can hope, huh? You were really patient with me, I appreciated that. I think I would have gotten frustrated after a while! Also, did you notice that my Mandarin improved a lot? I’ve been studying hard recently! Guanheng still doesn’t know that I’m learning for you, I think he thinks I’m learning because a lot of the boys speak the language and not because I have feelings for you. We talked a lot whilst you taught me, it was fun. Did you enjoy it too? I hope maybe we can do it again in the future, even though I’m nowhere near as talented as you are. Even if I mess up all of the steps, I would be a fun time as long as I get to spend it with you! I wish I had something to share with you in return as a thank you, but you’re already into acting, so it’s nothing new to you. What can I do?

Your little dumpling

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Dear first love,

Guess how long it’s been since we met! It’s been a whole two years!! Right now it’s nearing the summer holidays and I’m really looking forward to it. Especially since we made plans to hang out over the summer, both alone and with the boys. Just as long as we don’t go camping, I don’t want anyone to break a bone or anything. Perhaps we could visit the zoo! Or maybe the beach? Again, I would love to go to the theme park all together, but I can imagine that it would be chaos! Can you imagine a group of teens running around like kids in a sweetshop? Yeah... maybe that would be one for just us two, or us and a couple others. That would be nice, wouldn’t it? Oh, but I forgot you’re afraid of heights, aren’t you, my little chicken wing? Perhaps that wouldn’t be such a good idea after all.. I’m sure we’ll find something that everyone wants to do! Do you have any other plans for the summer holidays? I know you said something about trying to visit home for a week or two, I hope you get to spend some quality time with your family, you must miss them a lot. My summer holidays will be spent either hanging out with you and the boys or doing random little doodles when I get bored of eating ice cream in the park. Ha, just kidding, I’ll never get tired of eating ice cream. Especially if the other person is paying ;). I should do a doodle of you, but I would have to do a doodle of everyone so it doesn’t seem like I’m only drawing you. After all, I don’t want to make my feelings obvious, especially because I don’t know how you feel… Damn, why can’t I just tell you? It seems so silly to be so scared. You wouldn’t run away, right?

Your little dumpling

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Dear first love,

Summer flew by fast! I think it's because I had a lot of fun. We should be able to meet up once before school starts again, right? We got the chance to hang out a lot over the summer, which was amazing. We all went to the beach a couple of times... that was complete chaos, but it was funny when we all tried to throw Mark in the water. He still uses that against me. You wouldn't believe how many ice creams he's gotten out of me. At least YangYang managed to get us free ice cream out of the oldie hehe. Did you enjoy the little water fight? We were on the same team, weren't we? I always knew you were secretly competitive! You were a good shot, better than me at least. I wish we could do that again some time. There's always next summer, isn't there? I hope we'll all stay in contact when we leave. It's our last year here now, and then we will have graduated. It's kind of sad to think that I may never see you and the other boys after then, but I hope we at least talk sometimes, even if it's not as much as we do now. I'm just gonna enjoy this year as much as I can and make even more amazing memories with you! We made plans to hang out often, assuming school doesn't get in the way too much. I won't be doing any performing this year, I have enough on my plate with exams and that, but I volunteered to be a stagehand, so I'll still be pretty busy. Not too busy that I can't see you, I hope. Maybe we can all go bowling again like we did over the summer. It was a little difficult since we couldn't all play against one another, but it was fun to have a friendly competition. And how could I forget? You and me going to the zoo together, just the two of us. It turns out you were just as excited to see all of the animals as I was. Although I wasn't just happy because of seeing the animals, but because I got to spend time with you, too. We took many photos, didn't we? I hope we can both look back at that day with fondness. I know I will. If only it could have been a date, but I will settle for a hangout for now. Perhaps one day?

Your little dumpling

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Dear first love,

It was your birthday on Wednesday! You're another year older and wiser (and sweeter) now. I know this year it was a bit less organised than before, but everyone has been busy with school work recently so we had less time to make proper plans. It's regretful, especially since this is the last year celebrating your birthday like this. Still, it was nice to have a more relaxing celebration, don't you think? Well, apart from Lucas starting a high note battle and nearly getting us kicked out. But it's those kind of memories that we'll keep in our hearts. The two of you had two cakes (lucky!). Unfortunately one of them was allowed to be decorated by Donghyuk and Guanheng… sorry about that. They really made a mess, didn't they? Still, they were proud of their "artwork". It was cute, though… kinda. You looked really happy the whole time, I don't think I ever saw that smile leave your face, not even for one second. I'm really glad that spending time with us made you so happy. We also celebrated Halloween together, didn't we? It was pretty cool seeing everyone dress up in fun costumes. You looked super handsome as always! It probably wasn't a good idea to watch spooky movies though. All I kept hearing was someone screaming… and I could see a few of the boys hiding behind cushions. But then Johnny put on a Halloween playlist and we had a mini rave. I don't think I've ever seen anyone waving strawberry pencils like a lightstick before. It's these sort of things we learn not to question after a while, huh? It was good to spend more time with you, school has been pretty hectic recently. It seems that every class has a million and one assignments to complete and to blink would be wasting time. Still, that's no excuse not to party! ...Maybe that's why I'm so behind. I hope things are going well for you. I hope your classes aren't too crazy and that work isn't piled up high for you <3

Your little dumpling

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Dear first love,

Christmas has come and gone! How was it for you? I heard that you went home to see your family this year. I know how much you've been missing them from the conversations that we've had lately. I keep seeing photos of you and your family on your Instagram. You look absolutely adorable in that Christmas sweater! I can tell how happy you are to be home from how wide your smile is and from the twinkle in your eyes. I wish for you to be that happy always. I can't wait to hear all about your Christmas when school starts again. I wonder what sort of presents you got. I bet you got something really cool, right? Did you eat well? There was so much food for me, but I ate a lot! I mostly received money and small gifts but I treasure those gifts a lot because they were so thoughtful. Did you enjoy the presents you got from me and the boys? I know mine wasn't that much but it's the thought that counts, right? I know how much you like those. Are you flying back for New Year's Eve? Johnny is throwing a party to see in the new year. I hope that you'll be there but if not, then happy new year. I hope next year treats you even better. Time seems to fly by so fast, doesn't it? It feels like only a week ago that the year began, yet it's already ending! Are you planning on making a resolution? I never stick to mine. I always promise myself that I'll eat healthier, or procrastinate less, or sleep better but I never do. I wonder if it's the same for you.

Your little dumpling

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Dear first love,

I wasn't going to write another letter so soon but I have to get these feelings out of my head and onto this page. I'm glad you were there for the party. You looked handsome as ever, although was I really expecting you not to? You were wearing the cutest sweater I've ever seen. It looked so good on you, but then again what doesn't look good on you? That was… I'm sorry. I'm glad you enjoyed the party. It was nice to spend time with you again after not seeing you for a bit. I heard all about your Christmas with your family. It made me wish I had been there, it sounded so homely and sweet. Your family sound lovely. It's no wonder you're such a sweet person when your family is also that sweet. Still, I'm now wishing that I was busy that day. Or sick. Or for some reason I hadn't been there. As much as it kills me to say that, that's how I feel. Despite being so happy to see you and talk to you and spend lots of time with you, I wish that I hadn't been there. But we can't take back that now, can we? If you were reading this now I bet you'd be wondering why I felt like this, wouldn't you? It sounds so silly, and I shouldn't be so upset over it, but it still hurts. I had always wished that one day I'd have a new years kiss. Maybe I should have been more specific with that wish. I felt so bad. It'll be awkward to see Mark tomorrow. Actually, I don't know if I will. It depends how things go I guess, but I hope things will be okay between us, he's the best best friend I've ever had and I don't want to lose that. I feel bad that he was kissing me yet the only person I could see was you. I feel bad that I don't feel that way for him, and now our friendship is threatened by one stupid kiss. And I wish I felt that way for him because then it wouldn't hurt so much seeing you kissing someone else… I don't know if you have feelings for them or not, but either way the image still makes me heart feel heavy.

Little dumpling

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hello, what's the most recent fanfiction you've read?

HAHAHAH OKAY SO. I was legit just going to do “Last XX Bookmarked Fics”, but then I checked when I last did this list and it was in November 2017. I usually wait until people ask me this very question before I post them up. After some deliberation… WE’RE DOING ALL the bookmarks I’ve saved since my last one over a year ago! I’ve been reading longer fics lately and RE-READING some faves because I have this thing where if I read ONE fic I don’t enjoy, I go on this huge spree where I re-read a lot of my bookmarks to counter it, hence why I’ve only under 100 bookmarks in over 1 year, LOL. Anyway, enjoy, in word-count order as per usual! These are ALL fantastic reads, so check them all out!!

I-J’s LAST 86 BOOKMARKED FICS (Nov. 2017 to Jan. 2019)

John Will Never Forget by gelos (bia_mpinto) (NR, 244 w. || Fluff, First Time, Love Confessions) – John will never forget Sherlock’s everything.

New World, Old Words by thedeafwriter (G, 641 w. || Deaf Sherlock, Sherlock Whump, Pining Sherlock, Marriage Proposal, Fluff, Always John) – It was disconcerting to experience. One second, he was laying on the table, breathing in the gas that would make him sleep, the next, he was dragging his eyes open to look around the bright room, trying to wake up.

New Year, New Beginning by DaisyFairy (T, 810 w. || New Year’s Eve, John POV, Post S4, Friends to Lovers) – New Year at a crime scene and John makes a decision.

Bands by dragonQuill907 (T, 1,017 w. || Established Relationship, POV Sherlock, Anxious Sherlock) – “Her wedding ring. Ten years old at least. The rest of her jewelry has been regularly cleaned, but not her wedding ring. State of her marriage right there. The inside of the ring is shinier than the outside – that means it’s regularly removed. The only polishing it gets is when she works it off her finger.”

The First Night by TheForerunner (NR, 1,043 w. || First Time, Fluff, Non-Explicit, Prose, ACD Canon) – When all was over, Sherlock reached to dress again and John reached to stop him. They sat at opposite ends of the bed and one set of eyes surveyed the other’s set of limbs, and they were quiet in the downbeat, melody suspended. Sherlock was sheepish, and this confused John, who now smelled of his companion and felt they were part of one another.

Secrets by 796116311389 (G, 1,084 w. || Drunk Sherlock, Drunk Confessions, Angst, Fluff, Happy Ending, Pining Sherlock) – “He is the best person in the world and sometimes I get sad because I’m not. Not his best person.”

I love you, I say by khoshekhskitten (G, 1,576 w. || Pre & Post TRF, Hurt / Comfort, First Kiss, Love Confessions) – “I love you” is a phrase that follows John Watson through his life with Sherlock Holmes.

Lost and Found by jaradel (G, 1,750 w. || Post-HLV, John Whump, Est. Rel., Hurt/Comfort) – He’s honestly not sure what’s worse, right now - being where he is, the beaten kidnap victim, or being where Sherlock is, trying to rescue him before it’s too late. Unwillingly his mind offers up the image of Sherlock in a video message, tied to a chair, bruised and bloodied. John squeezes his eyes shut to hold back tears. No, he decides. That would be so much worse.

Like Euphoria and Scotch by FinAmour (M, 1,856 w. || TSo3 Fix It, Five and Ones, Drinking, Pining, Second Person POV Sherlock, Armchair Sex, Cracky and Fluff, Sherlock’s Imagination, Happy Ending) – 5 different ways it all could have gone + the one way it actually works itself out.

Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil by PipMer (T, 1,895 w. || Deaf John, Mute Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, Romance, Fluff and Angst, Character Study, Morse Code, Love Confessions) – John is deaf. Sherlock is mute. There are no two people more suited for each other.

The Lie-In by KendylGirl (M, 2,000 w. || POV Sherlock,  Bed Sharing, Fluff, True Love, Introspection) – Five months after his return, John and Sherlock spend a day in bed. Part 2 of When to Let Go

Husband by jinglebell (E, 2,003 w. || Est. Rel., PWP, Anal, Multiple Orgasms, Fluff) – Sherlock orgasms when John refers to him as ‘husband’.

Hell or High water by bluefire301175 (E, 2,250 w. || PWP, Frottage, Alley Sex, First Person POV John, Case-ish Fic, Mutual Pining, Bed Sharing) – John wants. Sherlock wants. Plain and simple.

A Study in Lace by KarlyAnne (E, 2,320 w. || Est. Rel., Crafty Sherlock, Tiny Lace Panties / Lingerie, Domestics, Experiments, Oral, Masturbation) – “Why do you suppose he was doing that?” “Why do I suppose who was doing what?” “The room. The lace. The secrecy. He was playing with fire in everything he did, and didn’t care one bit. But he had a secret chamber, carefully concealed, solely for the purpose of making lace lingerie. Obviously for personal use. Why?“ Part 1 of The Unintentional Crafts of Sherlock Holmes

Thief by KendylGirl (M, 2,430 w. || Rev. Reich., Heavy Angst, Regret, Grief / Mourning, Pining Sherlock, Implied Drug Use, Self-Flagellation) – John has been gone for four months, and Sherlock is not dealing well with it. When he finds a personal item of John’s, the situation reaches a crisis. Part 3 of When to Let Go

Undercurrents by entanglednow (E, 2,996 w. || Disturbing Things, Crime Scene Fetish, Pseudo-Necrophilia, PWP, Masturbation) – “There, that’s it, perfect, shut your eyes and don’t move - and don’t speak.”

Untouched by KittieHill (E, 3,239 w. || Kissing, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock, Body Worship, Sherlock’s Scars Mentioned, Masturbation, PWP, Rimming, Multiple Orgasms) – Sherlock leaked a lot. John had never needed lubricant. John loved watching it, had once spent an entire afternoon edging Sherlock so he could watch as the thick precome drip, drip, dripped onto Sherlock’s belly.

Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down by standbygo (M, 3,282 w. || Post-S4, Five Plus One, Missing Scenes, Parenthood, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Cuddling & Snuggling, Hurt/Comfort, Declarations of Love, Fluff, Food, John Whump) – Five times when Sherlock and John ate together, and one time they didn’t. A history of the boys, in food.

The Bee Charmer by dreadpiratewatson (M, 3,314 w. || Est. Rel., Captain / Soldier John, Idiots in Love, Domestics, John in the Army) – Greg goes to 221B to check up on Sherlock after a strange phone call pulls him away from an important case, and is stunned to find himself in front of a gun brandishing soldier with a sleeping Sherlock on his chest. John Watson is a doctor, a war hero, a husband, and the only one in the world who can soften Sherlock’s heart.

Apodyopsis by QuinnAnderson (E, 3,347 w. || PWP, Rough Sex, Table Sex, Anal, Sexual Tension) – Apodyopsis: (æpəʊdaɪˈɒpsɪs) noun. the act of mentally undressing someone. Part 2 of Undressed

Paranoia by Ewebie (M, 3,789 w. || Humour, Drinking Games, Scotland Yard Gang, Jealous / Posessive Sherlock, Inappropriate Questions, Embarrassed John, Matchmakers) – John and Sherlock join the gang of Scotland Yard for a night of drinking, and it gets a bit personal and revealing.

Coldness/Heat by agirlsname (E, 3,790 w. || Cuddling & Snuggling, Body Heat, New Year’s Eve, PWP, Bedsharing, Frottage) – The inn is booked up on New Year’s Eve. The train home is cancelled because of the snow. The only option is to sleep in the non-heated guest room of a client, and John and Sherlock are freezing.You know where this is going. Part 1 of New Year’s Kiss

Jukebox by standbygo (T, 3,990 w. || Fluff, Singing/Music, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Hurt/Comfort, Humour, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss) – After the music halls of Sherlock’s mind palace get damaged by accident, John learns that Sherlock never forgets a song. Even the ones he’d rather forget. But the random singalong brings some unexpected benefits.

Tree Topper by May_Shepard (E, 4,017 w. || Christmas Tree, Christmas Fluff, Drunken Shenanigans, Smut, First Time, Friends to Lovers) – Sherlock and John are celebrating Christmas the best way they know how–alone together, with booze. They’ve almost finished decorating their tree, but John is determined to find the best way to top it.

Things That You Can’t Say Tomorrow Day by PsychGirl (T, 4,022 w. || Post S4, POV John, Cuddling / Snuggling, Hypothermia, Snowed In, Angst, Romance, First Kiss/Time) – Things go horribly wrong while John and Sherlock are on a mission for Mycroft. Now they’re out in the woods in the middle of winter with no coats and no shelter. However will they stay warm?

Lingerie by Sexxica (E, 4,135 w. || Valentine’s Day, Lingerie / Women’s Underwear, Mildly Public Masturbation, Picture Texting / Sexting, Bottomlock, Body Worship, Anal Sex / Fingering, Rimming, Orgasm Delay / Denial, Est. Rel.) – It’s Valentines Day and Sherlock is taking John to Angelo’s for dinner. Sherlock also happens to be wearing a garter belt, stockings and a rather small pair of women’s underwear under his clothes. There’s no dessert at Angelo’s because John needs to get Sherlock home just as quickly as he can before they both lose their minds entirely.

If He Knows by shamelessmash (M, 4,513 w. || TSo3 Fic, Pining Sherlock, Bed Sharing, Angst, Sherlock POV, Texting, Internal Monologue, Blanket Forts) – I imagine mornings: John handing me a cup of tea, hair sticking out at odd angles. How he would bend down to kiss me, smiling fondly as he pulls away. The way his skin crinkles at the corner of his eyes, the way his skin looks in the morning light. The soft sigh as he sits in his chair with the morning paper, the way his toes curl in the carpet, the way he rolls his shoulders before sinking deeper into his seat. I watch him, how he is when he is content, as it should be. As he deserves. Happy. With me.

Captain John Watson, Genetics, and Other Crazy Things by cyerus (M, 5,581 w. || Torchwood Crossover ||  Humour / Crack, Jealous Sherlock, Sexual Magnet John, Captain John, UST / RST, Three Continents Watson) – The explanation for John “Three Continents” Watson? Jack Harkness is his father. Sherlock doesn’t know whether he’s going to die from jealousy or sexual frustration first.

Times Two by WhimsicalEthnographies (E, 5,595 w. || Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Victorian John, Modern John, Sherlock has a Good Imagination, PWP, Bottomlock, Spitroasting) – “But you’re not that John…”“Of course I am,” John’s lips and mustache brush against Sherlock’s mouth as he talks. “All us Johns are that John, now. That John is in every room in your Palace.” He leans in for another messy kiss, tongue swirling all around the inside of Sherlock’s mouth. “In fact,” he moves to suck on the sensitive skin underneath Sherlock’s ear. “I think I hear him coming right now.”

The Only Available Transportation by blueink3 (T, 5,379 w. || Post S4, Fluff and Angst, Insecure Sherlock, Caring John, Parentlock, Sherlock’s Birthday, Family, Misunderstandings) – It’s possibly the desperation that’s seeped into his voice despite his best intentions, or perhaps it’s just a mother’s intuition, but she knows that whatever he’s calling about is Serious, hangover be damned. “What’s happened?” she asks, tone soft and as comforting as a hot cup of tea on a cold winter’s night. “Mummy,” he begins, voice catching. “I think John may be moving out.”

Talk by illwick (E, 6,364 w. || Dirty Talk, John’s Giant Junk, PWP, Light BDSM, Size Kink, Oral / Anal, Rough Sex, Dirty Talk, Established Rel.) – Sherlock was never much for dirty talk… until an unexpected visit yields unexpected results. Part 20 of Unwind

5687 (Approximately) by prettysailorsoldier (T, 6,771 w. || Est. Rel., Alternate Canon, Christmas, Pining, Fluff, Soldier John) – When John’s leave request for Christmas is denied, Sherlock is nothing short of devastated, not that he’s letting it show. The holiday season now something he’s just waiting to end, Sherlock doesn’t think anything can possibly make it worse. That is, until he realizes no one in his life believes his army “boyfriend” is even real, but, luckily, everyone is in for a surprise. Part 13 of 25 Days of Johnlock

A Kiss and a Cuddle should be Sufficient by Evenlodes_Friend (E, 6,853 w. || Gay Sex Club, Fake Relationship, PWP, Orgies, Rimming, BJ’s, Violence, Case Fic, Voyeurism) – Going undercover, Sherlock and John pursue a vicious killer to a gay group sex party. Not unexpectedly, things get a little out of hand. Set after Baskerville, but before the Fall.

Full Disclosure by Itsallfine (E, 7,032 w. || Bars & Pubs, Fake Relationship, First Kiss / Time, Love Confessions, John’s Army Mates, Three Continents Watson, Semi-Public Sex) – John’s army mates get together for the first time post-discharge and invite John “Three Continents” Watson to join them. If John shows up alone, he knows he’ll be the object of non-stop ridicule all night. Sherlock plays along. John tests the waters.

where the good things grow by anchors (M, 7,066 w. || Tea Shop AU || Alternate First Meeting, Magical Realism, Gardens, Tea, Friends to Lovers) – “I have a magic garden.” As come-ons go, John’s heard worse.

Speak My Language by Itsallfine (T, 7,479 w. || Thanksgiving, Love Languages, Love Confessions, First Kiss, John Experiments in Sherlock) – When Mrs. Hudson introduces John and Sherlock to the concept of the five love languages, Sherlock descends into a dark mood and John’s curiosity gets the better of him. What is Sherlock’s love language, and why does the whole concept set him so on edge? Part 1 of A Holiday Triptych

The doctor is in by PlainJane (E, 7,581 w. || Omegaverse || Sex Therapist, Anal, Hand Jobs, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock) – Sherlock is a young alpha with an aversion to his cycle. John is a gender medicine specialist. Nothing could possibly go wrong… Part 1 of Doctors and detectives

On Favors and Keeping Score by Ewebie (G, 7,622 w. || Hurt/Comfort, Sick Fic, Fluff, John Whump) –  John woke up to the horribly unpleasant sound of his clock alarm. Which meant he’d slept through his phone’s alarm. And for a moment he glared blearily at the noisemaker before smacking at it with his palm. Ugh, he felt like rubbish. The back of his throat was burning with the irritation that heralded a proper dose, his nose was threatening to drip every few seconds, and he had the uncomfortable flush that normally suggested a fever. Nothing high, just uncomfortable. Nothing deadly, just irritating. Nothing worth calling in sick with, just a full day of discomfort in the face of other people’s discomfort. It was going to be a day where he was forced to bite his tongue from telling people off. “You’re not as sick as I am, so off you pop.” Part 7 of Tumblr Shorts

On the Steadfast Approach of an Oncoming Darkness by 2bee (T, 7,772 w. || Apocalypse, Minor Character Death, Sort of Parentlock) – The world is ending. Not fast, but slowly, like falling asleep with a fever.

Caves in the Mountains Are Seldom Unoccupied by starrysummernights & TheMadKatter13 (E, 7,925 w. || Were-Creatures, Werebear John, Pseudo Bestiality, Rimming, Dub Con, Rough Sex, Come Inflation / Eating, Size Kink, PWP, Bratty Sherlock, Rutting) – “This isn’t something to play at, Sherlock,” he snapped. “If it doesn’t work out- what you’re asking of me- we can’t shrug and say ‘oh well, at least we tried’. If we do this… I could seriously hurt you. Do you understand? I could lose control. I could… I could kill you.” (This one is… REALLY REALLY kinky, heavy dub-con warning)

Every Night I Look for You by destinationtoast (E, 8,377 w. || POV John, Post-TRF, Angst, Mystery, Unsafe Sex, BAMF John) – Every night, John looks for familiar hints of Sherlock in the men he meets in bars, and he does with them all the things he wishes he’d done before. Eventually, he stumbles into a situation that Sherlock would know how to handle, and John must decide whether he can handle it without him.

Galapogos by anchors (E, 8,460 w. || Hurt/Comfort, Angst, 5 and 1, John Whump) – Somewhere in the depths of the universe, and somewhere in the middle of Sherlock’s chest, a star goes into supernova.

He’s Not Paid Enough to Deal with This Shit by janonny (T, 9,828 w. || Personal Assistant AU || Humour, First Meetings, Snarky John) – One of the first things John did was to write up step-by-step instructions on how to conduct a proper job interview before handing it over to Mycroft for his perusal. There were no kidnapping, deserted car parks or stolen therapy notes anywhere on that list. (Or the one where John returned from the war and ended up working for Mycroft as his personal assistant slash doctor on retainer. Everything was fine, until he was sent to post bail for one Sherlock Holmes.)

How To Give Your Boyfriend Who Doesn’t Know He’s Your Boyfriend the Best Valentine’s Day Ever by unicornpoe (T, 9,832 w. || Valentine’s Day, Fluff and Crack, Soft Sherlock, POV Sherlock) – Sherlock is pretty sure that John Watson is his boyfriend. He’s also pretty sure that John doesn’t know it. But with a little help from a magazine, some friends, three crepes, five dates, one awesome CD, and a stalker van, John is bound to realize just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Rainbow Hearts Retreat by PajamaSecrets (E, 11,638 w. || Fake Relationship, Case Fic, Undercover, Fluff and Smut, Bed-Sharing, Therapy, Humour/Crack, First Time) – “It’s a same-sex couples retreat. For those experiencing troubles in their relationship. Consists of group and couples therapy as well as encouraging socialization between the couples. It’s all in their incredibly dull brochure.” “Rainbow Hearts Retreat,” John read. “Sounds… quite gay.”

And Here We Are by J_Baillier (T, 12,416 w. || ASiP Fic, Alternating First Person POV, Drama, Friendship, Mild Case Fic, Autism Spectrum Sherlock, Insecure Sherlock, Protective John, Pining, Homophobia, Loneliness, Angst, Humour, Domestics, Morbid Fluff, Kidnapping) – All the little things we never got to see when an army doctor and a consulting detective were adjusting to sharing a flat. And a life.

Fucking Cake by Random_Nexus (E, 12,965 w. || Pre-Slash, Humour/Crack, Inanimate Object Smut, Frottage, “For a Case” / “Experiment”, PWP / Kinky, Mutual Pining, Fluff) – Sherlock brings home a chocolate cake, John finds him about to have sex with said cake, then exceedingly weird hijinx ensue. Part 1 of “Fucking Baked Goods” - Sherlock BBC

The Nutcracker by Odamaki (T, 13,758 w. || Nutcracker AU ||  Christmas, Dark Magic, Dolls) – Sherlock is unimpressed with Uncle Rudy’s present. A doll? What does he want with a doll?

I Will Take Care Of You by SailorChibi (T, 16,664 w. || Hurt/Comfort, Sick Sherlock, BAMF John, BAMF Lestrade, Reunion Fic) – Two years after Sherlock’s death, John comes to find him on the sofa. Wounded and ill, Sherlock is convinced he’s hallucinating and refuses to share any details about Moran or the fact that Mycroft has been compromised. That doesn’t stop John from stepping up and taking care of the last of Moriarty’s web, BAMF-style.

Software Malfunction by tiger_in_the_flightdeck (E, 16,679 w. || Android Sherlock, Love Story, Unhappy Ending, Angst) – “You think I can’t love you? Just because you’re made with metal, and detailed programming?” The doctor propped himself on his elbow, and looked down at it. “I am nothing but blood and bone, and tissue. Things just managed get mashed together in a manner that made me like this. Just like you were put together to make you how you are. When I kiss you-” he did so, briefly, to prove his point. Then more deeply, and lingering, because he could. “When I touch you, or smile at you, does it make you feel different from when others have done it in the past?”

Best of Three by SilentAuror (E, 17,473 w. || POV John, 3G Moment, Porn with Feels, Post HLV, Rimming, Denial, Anal) – “You want to have sex with me,” Sherlock announces one evening about a year after John’s divorce. John’s vigorous denial sparks a three-day wager wherein Sherlock is determined to prove his point, and John is determined to hold onto his heterosexuality. Set well after HLV. (Canon-compliant). PORN. With feels.

Between Friends by SilentAuror (E, 18,036 w. || Post S3, Alternating POV, Friends to Lovers, John in Denial, Abduction, Awkward Situations / Miscommunications, Porn With Feels, Blowjobs, Pining, Unrequited, Angst With Happy Ending) – Sherlock gets abducted. As John discovers him tied up naked in an empty storage facility and comes to rescue him, Sherlock’s body has an unfortunate reaction which triggers a series of events. John is convinced that everything will be fine as long as they never discuss it. Sherlock isn’t as sure…

Uncharted Territory by J_Baillier (T, 19,603 w. || Dystopian Future / Black Mirror AU || Alternate First Meeting, Angst, Drama, Homophobia, Bisexuality, Technology, Humour, Romance, Near Future, Happy Ending) – The System puts people through a series of assigned relationships in order to determine who their Perfect Match is. John believes that it works; Sherlock really, really doesn’t. One of them is probably going to be wrong.

whiskies neat by Ellipsical (E, 20,660 w. || Alternate First Meeting, POV Second Person Sherlock, Slow Burn, One Night Stand, Rimming, Blow Jobs, Anal, Soldier John, Crying, Emotional Lovemaking, Switchlock) – Home and hearth and whiskies neat, or, alternatively, Sherlock Holmes falls in love.

When to Let Go by KendylGirl (M, 22,109 w. || Friends to Lovers, Reverse Reichenbach, Sacrifice, Forgiveness, Angst, Love, Implied Drug Use) – What if it were John who had to die to thwart Moriarty’s plans? John’s supposed death shatters Sherlock, and when he returns, it will challenge the pair to forge a path of forgiveness, to peace, and to find a way back to each other. Part 1 of When to Let Go

Dropping the Act by jadztone (T, 27,258 w. || Parentlock, Fake Relationship, Mary’s Family, Post-S4, Cuddling & Snuggling, Bed Sharing, Pining, Christmas) – Sherlock and John are quite happy living together with Rosie in Baker St. They might be even happier if they didn’t act towards each other like their love is only platonic. Mycroft brings troubling news in the form of Mary’s parents wanting to know just what their grandchild’s home life is like. The boys decide to spend Christmas pretending like they are in love in order to seem more like a “normal” family. It’s easy enough to pretend when all you’re doing is dropping the act.

Another Auld Lang Syne by DiscordantWords (M, 30,234 w. || Post S4, Mutual Pining, Alternating POV, Introspection, Parentlock, Christmas, New Year’s, First Kiss, Past Drug Use, Angst with Happy Ending, Drinking, Sherlock Whump) – There had been years of missed chances.

Love or What You Will by miss_frankenstein (T, 31,987 w. || College/Uni AU || Professor John, Ph.D Student Sherlock, Pining John, Poetry, Falling in Love / Slow Burn, Light Angst, Happy Ending) – John is an English professor who specializes in War and Post-War Literature and Sherlock is the brilliant yet impossible Ph.D. student assigned to be his TA because no one in the Chemistry Department is willing to put up with him. And - somewhere between Waugh and Plath, e-mails and takeaway, novels and villanelles - they fall in love.

Chaperones by MissDavis (T, 34,114 w. || 11 Years Post-S4, Fake Relationship, Parentlock, Disney World, Bed / Room Sharing, Friends to Lovers, Fluff, First Kiss, Obsessive Sherlock, Insecure John) – Right. Of course. Everyone assumed they were a couple and no one would question it. John put his elbows up on the table so he could rest his head in his hands. “You want to pretend to be a couple so we can chaperone a trip to Disney World with Rosie’s class and you won’t have to share a room with a stranger?” “Exactly.” Sherlock beamed at him. “Don’t worry about the cost. The Birmingham case last month paid more than enough to cover expenses for all three of us.”

Malediction by MapleleafCameo (M, 36,680 w. || Ladyhawke AU || Magical Realism, Romance, Curses, Eventual Happy Ending) – Cursed to a half-life, John and Sherlock must fight the forces of evil to be reunited once again.

The Unfinished Letters by SilentAuror (E, 37,391 w. || Post S3 / S3 / HLV Fix it, Angst with Happy Ending, Romance, Infidelity, Depression, Case Fic, POV Third Person Sherlock, Love Confessions, Pining Sherlock, Letters) – A fire at Baker Street leads John to read something he was never intended to see: a notebook of half-written, unfinished letters Sherlock wrote during his time away…

Nothing to Make a Song About by emmagrant01 (E, 36,833 w. || Post-TRF, First Time, Reunion, Jealous John, Pining Sherlock, Romance, Angst with Happy Ending) – When Sherlock returned from his faked death, John could not forgive him for the deception and broke off their friendship. Ten years later, John returns to London in search of yet another new beginning. Sherlock, not surprisingly, is waiting.

Set in Stone by SilentAuror (E, 39,309 w. || Romance, Wedding, Therapy, Fluff and Angst) – Sherlock and John are back from Ravine Valley and planning their wedding. However, as they move past the trial of the human traffickers, Sherlock can’t help but wonder if he’s imagining that John is becoming a little distant. Surely he isn’t getting cold feet about the wedding… Part 2 of The Ravine Valley series

In the Still of the Night by SilentAuror (E, 42,234 w. || S4 Fix It / Post-S4, Sherlock POV, Angst, Drama, Romance, Virgin Sherlock, Awkwardness, Misunderstandings / Miscommunications, Case Fic, Travelling, Pining) – As locals on the Northeastern coast begin to report UFO sightings, life at Baker Street becomes significantly awkward as John brings up his desire for more than friendship and Sherlock refuses him. They embark on the investigation from the confines of the tiny cottage Mycroft has rented for them, attempting to navigate both the clues of the case as well as their own inability to communicate…

Bloody But Unbowed by BeautifulFiction (E, 43,211 w. || Abduction, John Whump, Mild Torture, Background Case Fic, Friends to Lovers, Post-TRF / S3 Rewrite, Hurt/Comfort) – When a familiar argument threatens to destroy the last remnants of John and Sherlock’s failing friendship, both men are left questioning their worth to one another. Before either of them has the chance to make amends, circumstance intervenes. John is left at the mercy of his abductors, and this time, he’s not sure Sherlock will bother coming to his rescue.

Lost Without My Blogger by starrysummernights (E, 52,155 w. || Rev. Reich, PTSD, Hurt / Comfort, Fluff / Angst, Psychological Torture, Reunion Fic, Friends to Lovers) – John is abducted and declared dead. How will Sherlock cope without his blogger? How will he react when John comes back from the “dead?” Drama and angst with a healthy dose of romance. Part 1 of I’d Be Lost Without My Blogger

floating through a dark blue sky by Lediona (M, 58,966 w. || Notting Hilll AU || POV John, Celebrity Sherlock, First Date / Time / Kiss, Past Drug Addiction, Angst with a Happy Ending) – Of course, I’d seen his films and always thought he was, well, brilliant – but, you know, a million miles from the world I live in. Or, when John is the owner of a travel book shop and the famous Sherlock Holmes stops in one day.

The Book of Silence by SilentAuror (E, 60,056 w. || S4 Fix It / Post S4, Virgin Sherlock, Rosie / Parentlock, Domesticity, Fluff, Praise Kink, Sex Toys, First Person POV) – As spring blooms in London, John and Sherlock begin to take new cases and cautiously negotiate this new phase of life with John living at Baker Street again. Despite how well it’s all going, John struggles to forgive himself for the way he treated Sherlock following Mary’s death as well as trying to figure out how to finally put his long-time feelings for Sherlock into words. Part 1 of The Book of Silence/Rosa Felicia

Scars by SilentAuror (E, 60,493 w. || Rape / Non-Con / Abuse, Gaslighting, Manipulation, Dub Con Elements, Homophobia, Angst With Happy Ending, Mary is Not Nice) – S3 rewrite, showing Mary’s manipulation of John as he realizes his love for Sherlock. Mary is not having it.

Summit Fever by J_Baillier (M, 78,802 w. || Mountain Climber AU || POV John, Angst, Tragedy, Suicidal Ideation, The Himalayas, Mountain Guide / Doctor John, Mount Climber Sherlock, Loneliness, Drama, Suspense, Slow Burn, Injured Sherlock / Sherlock Whump, Pining John) – After graduating from medical school, John Watson followed his heart to the Himalayas. Ten years later, he’s a haunted cynic working for his ex-lover’s trekking and mountaineering company. Will leading an expedition to Annapurna I—the most lethal of all the world’s highest mountains—shake John out of his reverie, and who is the mystery client added to the group at the last minute?

Uphill by scullyseviltwin (E, 84,945 w. || Olympics AU || Sherlock POV, Skier!Sherlock / Medic!John, Rivalry, 2014 Olympics, Happy Ending) – Sherlock Holmes is striving for gold in this, his fourth and final Olympics as a downhill Alpine racer.

31_Days_of_Porn_Challenge_2017 Series by distantstarlight (E, 96,540 w. across 31 stories || Prompt Ficlets, Assorted Kinks, PWP) – A collection in response to the 31 Days of Porn Challenge issued by AtlinMerrik! Thanks for doing that because this has been buttload of fun (that joke never gets old). All stories will be brief stand-alone one-shots.

The Baker Street Nativity by SwissMiss (E, 99,662 w. || Nativity! AU || Teacher Sherlock / TA John, Pining, Sherlock POV, UST, Angst, Christmas, Music/Song Fic, Anal / BJ’s, First Kiss / Time) – Fusion between Sherlock (BBC) and Nativity! (2009 movie starring Martin Freeman). Sherlock is a primary school teacher and John is assigned to be his classroom assistant. Together, they are charged with putting on the school’s Nativity play. What could possibly go wrong? Part 1 of The Baker Street Nativity Verse

The Wedding Garments by cwb (E, 105,390 w. || Alternate Future AU || , Alternate First Meeting, Dating / Arranged Marriages, Romance, First Kiss/Time, Heavy Petting, Cuddles, POV Sherlock, Virgin Sherlock, Idiots in Love, Slow Burn / Falling in Love / Dev. Rel., Nervous/Anxious Sherlock, Jealous/Cranky, Hiking, Vacation Homes / Honeymoon, Sherlock’s Family, Horny John/Sherlock, Patient John, Massages, Hand Jobs, Assassination Plots, Hand Jobs / Oral Sex) – This is the story of a young consulting detective who wants nothing to do with marriage and an army doctor who wants to find true love. It’s 2020 post-Brexit England and the British government is encouraging arranged marriages. Candidates meet through state-run agencies and date in hopes of finding love (and tax benefits). Sherlock doesn’t need or want a spouse, at least not until John Watson shows up. Hesitant to give in to his more carnal urges because of the way they derail his mind, how will Sherlock progress toward the more intimate aspects of a relationship? The answer lies in a very special wedding gift. (I’m about a ¾ done this fic and I already know I will be bookmarking it, so here we are! Additional tags will be added to subsequent recs of this fic

Maintenance and Repair by patternofdefiance (E, 106,650 w. || FutureAU, Augmentation || Augmented John, Depression, Body Modification, Slow Burn, Worldbuilding, Sci-Fi, Self-Care, Body Dysmorphia) – John wants to explain the rush of sensation and data, which is just another form of sensation (or is it the other way around?). John wants to say:Augmentation circuits report temperature, pressure, various forms of quantitative input. Sudden changes are reported as pain, since sudden changes are dangerous, and pain is the quickest way to encourage reflexive extraction. But all John can manage is, “Nng.” Because this sudden touch is not reporting as pain. Part 2 of STATIC

A Study in Winning by Jupiter_Ash (E, 106,658 w. || Tennis AU || John POV, Dirty Talk, Mutual Pining, Misunderstandings, Happy Ending, Sherlock Speaks French, Switchlock, Wimbledon) – John and Sherlock are professional tennis players and it’s Wimbledon. One is a broken almost was at the end of his career, the other an arrogant rising star tipped for greatness. It should have been a straightforward tournament. It really should have been. How were they to know that a chance encounter would change everything? Part 1 of Tennis

Eyes Up, Heels Down by CodenameMeretricious (E, 107,845 w. || Sports Equestrian AU || Fluff, Angst, Humour, Rider!Sherlock, Groomer!John, Show Jumping, Slow Burn, Happy Ending) – Sherlock is a top eventing rider currently training at Baker Farms. John is the new groom who’s been told to steer clear of the surly rider and his horses. Part 1 of Baker Farms

The Burning Heart by May_Shepard (M, 119,150 w. || Canon Divergence, Post-TRF, John’s Sexuality, S3 Rewrite, Pining, Angst with a Happy Ending, POV John Watson, John’s Gay) – When Sherlock dies, John Watson feels like his life is over too. He’s completely shut down, until Mark Morstan, a new nurse at John’s medical clinic, catches his attention, and helps him uncover the long buried truth of his attraction to men. Although he’s certain he’ll never get over Sherlock, John plans to move on, and build a new life with Mark, unaware that Sherlock is not quite as dead as he appears, and that Mark is hiding secrets of his own.

The Swan Triad by Pennin_Ink (T, 121,660 w. across 3 works || Swan Lake AU || Magical / Fairy Tale AU, Romance, Falling in Love, Pining, Psychological Torture, Transformation) – Sherlock and John grow up spending every summer together. Their mothers’ attempts to play matchmaker only fuel their mutual resentment and scorn. But then, one summer.

The Horse and his Doctor by khorazir (T, 129,003 w. || Horse / Vet AU || Magical Realism, Horses, Vet John, Horse Sherlock, Implied Alcoholism) – Invalided after a run in with a poacher in Siberia, veterinary surgeon John Watson finds it difficult to acclimatise to the mundanity of London life. Things change when a friend invites him along to a local animal shelter and he meets their latest acquisition, a trouble-making Frisian with the strangest eyes and even stranger quirks John has ever encountered in a horse.

Colors by Quesarasara (E, 140,537 w. || Pleasantville-Inspired AU || Soulmates, Colour Bonds, Alternating POV, Angst, Fluff, Pining, Case Fic, Medical Procedures) – Everyone on earth is born with eyes that see in black, white, and an endless series of greys. When you meet your soulmate, you finally see the world in color. We’re all searching for the person who brings color to our lives. John and Sherlock are no exception. Part 1 of The Colors 'Verse

How to Build a Heart out of Ashes by Teumessian (E, 144,931 w. || Changling AU || Slow Burn, Drug Use, Mentions of Child Abuse / Bullying, Mentions of Student/Teacher Relations, Uni-Age) – In an AU where a small number of the population become Changelings at a young age, at 17 John Watson believes he’s destined for Normal life but then the Change takes him and he is sent to the Baker Institute. There he meets Sherlock Holmes.

Gimme Shelter by SinceWhenDoYouCallMe_John (E, 159,368 w. || 70′s Surfer AU || Period Typical Homophobia, Hawaii, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Professional Surfers, Gay John / Sherlock, Angst with Happy Ending, John was a Sailor, Misunderstandings) – All John Watson wants is the feeling of a freshly waxed surfboard under his feet and the hot California sun baking down onto his back. To finally go pro in the newly formed world of professional surfing and leave the dark memories of his past behind him as he rips across the face of a towering blue barrel. To lounge beside the beach bonfire every evening with an ice cold beer tucked into the cool sand beside him and listen to Pink Floyd and the Doors while the saltwater dries in his sun bleached hair. That’s all he wants, that is, until the hot young phenom taking Oahu and the Hawaiian shores by storm steps up next to him in the sand in the second round of the 1976 International Surf Competition.

Mise en Place by azriona (M, 161,004 w. || Restaurant (Kitchen Nightmares) AU || Sherlock is Gordon Ramsay / Celebrity Sherlock, Restauranteur John, Harry Plays Prominent Role, Alternating POV, Mutual Pining, Cranky Sherlock, Bed Sharing, Slow Burn) – John Watson had no intentions of taking over the family business, but when he returns from Afghanistan, battered and bruised, and discovers that his sister Harry has run their restaurant into the ground, he doesn’t have much choice. There’s only one thing that can save the Empire from closing for good – the celebrity star of the BBC series Restaurant Reconstructed, Chef Sherlock Holmes. Part 1 of Mise en Place

Sketchy by serpentynka (E, 184,053 w. || Post-TRF, Post-Mary, John Whump, Slow Burn Love Story, Case Fic, Art, Porn With Feelings, Switchlock, Travelling, Career Change, Family Secrets, Illness / Health) – What (and who) will be left when nobody cares about your Work? A slow-burn fic with cases, places, mistaken identities, unfair choices, essential changes, violent feels, blatant lies, fearless portraiture, family secrets, high-risk bespoke gifts, durable friendships, bedtime stories, foreign travel and tongues, sickness (and health), and the significance of things which are slow to unfurl – but cannot be ignored. Oh, and…porn. Part 1: Sherlock takes on an obvious case (barely a 4) and meets someone who will force him to re-examine what it means to see. Part 1 of Sketchy

The Gilded Cage by BeautifulFiction (E, 326,887 w. || Omegaverse || Omega Sherlock / Alpha John, Friends to Lovers, Dub Con, Reproductive Rights) – In a world where Omegas are the property of the elite Alphas, locked away and treasured by those wealthy enough to buy them, John never questioned his flatmate’s secondary gender. Sherlock Holmes was an Alpha through-and through. Wasn’t he? A chance discovery turns the world on its head, and John is left grappling to come to terms with Sherlock’s past as events conspire to threaten their future. 

[dnkaus]

Fateful Visions | Ch. 6 Hidden Jealousy

Namjoon x Reader (OC)

Summary: Idol Namjoon meets a grad student, Maya, but he experiences strange visions each time their eyes meet and they touch one another. Fate plays a magnetic role, & keeps bringing them together. Are these visions a sign that they should stay away or stay together?

Genre: Angst, Fluff (eventually)

Previous Part: Chapter Five Next Part: Chapter Seven

 End of 2017

It was near the end of the year, over a month after AMAs incident when Maya found out that her grant that she had applied for was approved. This was the same grant that she had told BTS about back when she went to meet them at their Wings concert. The grant would now fund her to go to Korea and study Korean fiction and cultural history for an entire year, just like she wanted. They would pay for her housing and school, as well as her living expenses. This was truly a dream come true.

Maya left for Korea immediately after her winter semester ended in Arkansas, because Korean colleges started much sooner than American colleges. This meant she needed to be in Korea at the beginning on January. To Maya, this was going to be a whole new adventure as she didn’t really know anyone in Korea, unless you count the ever-famous BTS. However, after the AMAs incident and Namjoon’s apology, the group had barely shown their faces in public and even Taehyung stopped contacting Maya. It was sad for Maya to see how much the incident had affected them, but she assumed this was just how celebrity life worked.

Maya landed in Seoul 2 days before New Years Eve’ and settled into her new apartment. She had found this apartment on Google, and had mainly focused on how close it was to her new college. She wanted a place that was close enough to the college so that she could just walk there. The new apartment, in her opinion, was perfect because it was not only located close to her college, it was also located near lots of convenience stores, which made it perfect since her cooking skills were subpar at best. She knew she would be living off of ramen and kimbap everyday.

The next 2 days were spent setting up the place. She had to figure out the transportation system so she could go shopping. She had to set up her internet and electricity. She had to make sure she was properly enrolled in all her new classes and was ready to start the new semester. She had to do all that before New Years’ eve  as she knew everything would be closed on New Years.

By the time, New Years eve arrived she was mostly settled. She had a new bed and a couch and some basic appliances. Just the bare essentials that would allow her to survive. Except in all of the chaos, she never went grocery shopping, which meant she would starve for the night unless one of the convenience stores near her were open, since most places would be closed.

Maya’s apartment was on the second floor of the building, so she came downstairs and started walking towards the convenience store where she had eaten lunch the day before. She liked that convenience store because the cashier was a really sweet old lady, who was the first person that didn’t judge her based on her skin color.

It was true. Ever since she stepped in Korea, every where she went, people gave her weird looks, as if they had never seen a dark skinned person. Maya had expected that this would happen, but it was astonishing how often it would happen to her. Maya had experienced similar things in America, as she was a minority, but she didn’t give much attention to it. She never thought of herself as any different from everyone else. She was just Maya. However, being  in Korea reminded her more of her dark skin color than ever before. In Korea, she was not just Maya. She was Maya, the darker skinned foreigner. To find that sweet lady at the convenience store was no less than a blessing for Maya.

Maya walked hastily towards the convenience store to see if the lights of the stores were on. When she got there she let out a sigh of relief, when she saw the lights were indeed on. She quickly walked inside and bowed at the sweet lady.

“Hi, ma’am!” She said while bowing.

“Oh, you are here again? What are you doing here on New Year's Eve?” the sweet lady said.

“I just landed in Korea a few days ago, so I don’t really have many friends here yet, so I decided to have a date with ramen instead” Maya laughed as she grabbed ramen and started putting it in the microwave that was available at the store.

“Well, you are not the only one….seems like all the young people have forgotten what the word fun means anymore. ” the lady replied.

A man that was sitting with his food near the windows of the store suddenly began speaking “Ms. Kang, I told you, it’s not that I don’t have friends, but actually I just wanted some time to myself since  I am always working.”

“You and your celebrity friends always intrigue me. You could be eating at any expensive place in Seoul and here you are with your cup of ramen.” Ms. Kang responded.

“Ms. Kang, everything is closed tonight, so you are literally my last hope.” he responded.

By this time Maya was finished warming up her ramen and so she came to sit down at the tables where the other man was sitting. He turned towards her as she put down her cup.

Maya was shocked as she saw his face. She had never in a million years thought she would just casually run into this man at a convenience store, and yet here she was sitting only 2 chairs away from him. The man was none other than EXO’s leader, Kim Junmyeon, A.K.A Suho. Maya immediately got off her seat as she made eye contact with him. She wasn’t sure whether she should even sit there or not. This could not be happening. This must be a dream. It couldn’t be him. It was probably someone that looked like him. Maya knew of EXO even before she knew of BTS. She wasn’t a huge EXO-L, but ever since getting into BTS, she also listened to a lot of EXO songs. But seeing the leader of EXO at the convenience store was far from what she would ever imagine.  She kept staring at him like she had seen a ghost, that was until Ms. Kang interrupted her thought by coming up to her and putting a jar of kimchi next to her cup of ramen.

“Here, try this. I made this at home so it’s probably better than the stuff you kids eat at the store,” Ms. Kang said as she put the jar on the table. Maya wanted to say thank you but she was still too much in shock about who was sitting only a few feet away from her. Was this a dream? If so, this was the strangest one she had had until now. That definitely can’t be Junmyeon, right?

“Oh, and don’t forget to give some to Junmyeon, otherwise he might start a riot.” Ms. Kang continued and began laughing. Junmyeon. This was Junmyeon. This was EXO’s leader, Junmyeon. Maya’s brain began to spin.

“Is everything okay?” Junmyeon asked. Maya hadn’t realized she was staring at him the entire time and she was now just awkwardly standing there with her ramen and the jar of kimchi.

Maya didn’t initially respond, until she realized he was asking her a question. “uh...yeah...I am...I am okay. I am great. Thank you” Maya shyly replied and hesitantly sitting back down in her seat. She sat there wondering whether she should stay there or not.

Maya slowly picked up her chopsticks tried to open her packaging around them so that she could start eating, but her hands were shaking so much that she dropped them. Of course, as all great stories go, the chopsticks just happened to land near Junmyeon’s feet. How convenient.

Before Maya could get off her chair and grab another pair, Junmyeon bent down and picked up the chopsticks and  handed her the ones she dropped.

“Here you go. They are still unopened, so you can still use them,” he said politely and gave her a smile.

Maya gulped. She couldn’t think straight at all at this point. “Uh...thanks,” she muttered before going back to her seat, again.

“So, are you gonna use the kimchi, because I would like the jar, if you don’t want any…” Junmyeon asked after a few minutes of silence. At this point Maya was just eating and was in her own thoughts.

“Huh?” Maya said as she hadn’t really heard what Junmyeon said.

“Oh...the kimchi...can you pass me the jar?” Junmyeon asked again.

Maya became frazzled. “Oh...oh my gosh...I am so sorry! Yes! Of course…” Maya said frantically passing him the jar.

Junmyeon laughed. “You know who I am, don’t you?” he suddenly asked while he put some kimchi in his ramen.

Maya’s heart began beating faster as she heard his words. “Well, yes...uh...you are Junmyeon....leader of EXO. I am sorry, I just didn’t know I would be running into you here tonight.” Maya responded.

“It’s okay. Relax. Most of us idols don’t bite,” Junmyeon casually responded. Maya couldn’t help but laugh, at her own luck.

“I know…” she said smiling, thinking back to BTS and the entire lake house trip. The time spent there had left her with some really fond memories. She wished she could go back to those moments, even though for BTS, those moments were probably their lowest point.

Junmyeon thought it was a weird response, but he assumed the woman in front of him had probably met other idols before, considering the location of the convenience store. Yes, as fate would have it, Maya had picked an apartment in the same area where many of the idols had their dorms and unlike common beliefs, idols ate a lot at  convenience stores and other common places. They just made sure to go at night, when there would be less people. For Junmyeon, New Years’ Eve was his day of freedom. He could freely walk around in this part of Seoul, because everyone would be out partying.

Seeing Junmyeon’s friendly nature, Maya began to feel less intimidated. Junmyeon also carried that authoritative tone to their voices, when they spoke.  What was with her and these boy group leaders? She thought.

Maya continued to eat and surprisingly her and Junmyeon had a really nice conversation over their dinner. Maya told him about how she just moved to Seoul and how she is studying Korean culture and Korean fiction. She also told him about how she is originally from L.A. and moved to Arkansas for graduate school. Junmyeon was a great listener and so he listened to all of the information Maya told him. In return, he also told her about EXO, and how they are currently on break for the holidays and how his members are all out partying, but he decided to stay home. He also told her about how he comes here often because this is the only convenience store in the area, where he doesn’t really need to hide himself since he doesn’t run into a lot of fans. In fact, along with Junmyeon there were many other idols that would come in here for a quick dinner or lunch. It was their sanctuary away from the glamourous world.

As they completed their meals and paid for their food, it was time to bid their goodbyes. “It was nice meeting you, Maya-shi” Junmyeon said slightly bowing.

“Oh, it's really nice to meet you too, Junmyeon-shi. I feel like I must have saved a few countries  in my past life to get the opportunity to run into you like this.” Maya laughed.

“Ah, this is only your 3rd day in Korea. I am sure we’ll meet again. I come here at least once a week,” Junmyeon replied.

“Oh really? Well, I guess I will see you again then.” Maya responded back.

“Sounds good.”

Junmyeon was right. Maya did end up running into Junmyeon again at the same store. In fact, she ran into him much more often than she had thought. Those coincidences turned into routine, where Maya and Junmyeon would essentially meet for dinner almost twice or three times a week, if Junmyeon didn’t have any schedules. They initially would sit at least 2 chairs apart at the table in the store, but then it became 1 chair apart, and eventually they begin sitting next to each other.

Their friendship blossomed as the new year began and Maya began her new journey at her new college. She would complain to Junmyeon about her day and in return he would tell her about the new show he was working on. Maya also made another new friend at the convenience store through Junmyeon, a female medical student named Han Bi. The duo turned turned into a trio as Han Bi, Maya and Junmyeon would now all meet up to eat dinner together. However, since Han Bi was a med student, she often spent her nights at the library studying so sometimes it would just be Junmyeon and Maya.

Meanwhile, BTS was busy trying to recover from the incident and had began focusing all of their energy into their new music and their collaborations that were on-going with American and Korean artists. By the end of December, it seemed that the public had moved on from the news, at least for now. However, BTS remained quiet for a few more weeks just in case. In the middle of January, BTS resurfaced again for the Seoul Music Awards. They gave another amazing performance and even ended up winning another daesang.

Maya had watched the award show, and was intrigued that not only had she met BTS, she had now also met Junmyeon. Seeing BTS against EXO for the award categories felt weird. A feeling she had not felt before when BTS had won other awards. She knew she would hear from Junmyeon about the loss the next time they had dinner together, and she already began to wonder what she would say to make him feel better.

On the other hand, ever since the incident, Namjoon had began working even harder in producing songs so that he wouldn’t think about other things. He worked so much, that at times the members even worried about his health. He would trap himself in his studio and would skip meals. Once he almost fainted during the practice and had to be taken to the doctor’s.

The night after Seoul Music awards, Namjoon had decided to go get something to eat after a long day at his studio. He was tired and didn’t really feel like eating anything at the dorms. Recently BTS had moved into new dorms, which were located right around where other idols lived. He would often go out to the restaurants nearby when he didn’t want to be at the dorms. That night, he was just craving kimbap, so he decided to go to the convenience store that was located right down the block from the dorms. He was walking right towards the store when he saw a familiar figure sitting by the store window. He paused before crossing the street, as he began to realize who it was. Maya. Maya was sitting in the convenience store that he was planning to go to.

Namjoon stood there for a while, just observing. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Was Maya really in Korea? How come no one told him? In December,  Maya actually had told Taehyung she was coming to Seoul for a year, and he had texted her back at the beginning of January saying that they should meet up.  However, Taehyung became busy with their schedules, so he never informed the other members that Maya was in the same city as them.

Now, Namjoon was directly looking at the woman he had only seen in America sitting and eating ramen at a convenience store only a block from where he lived. Was she stalking him? Namjoon’s eyes shifted to the person sitting next to her, and that person surprised him even more. She was eating dinner with Junmyeon. Was he seeing things correctly? Was Maya really eating with Junmyeon from EXO? What in the freaking world was going on? How many idols did this random girl know? Namjoon decided he would go eat somewhere else, as he wasn’t sure he wanted to face her yet.

As he walked away from the convenience store, various thoughts took over him. He figured if Maya was indeed in Seoul, it was none of his business. It’s not like she was really his friend, right? She just helped them a few times, but that didn’t mean he should expect her to notify him that she was in the city. Was he angry? No, he had no right to be angry. He didn’t know why, he just felt strange around Maya. To Namjoon, Maya was an enigma.

Namjoon ended up eating at another convenience store that night and pretended he hadn’t seen Maya with Junmyeon. He had forgotten about the incident and managed to avoid them until 3 weeks later, when he decided to go to the same convenience store again, and saw both Maya and Junmyeon again at the place. Again, they were eating together and were enjoying a soju too. Maya seemed happy. Junmyeon also had a smile on his face. Namjoon saw Maya casually hit Junmyeon’s shoulder, and was laughing hysterically. He must have said something funny. Namjoon tried to remember when was the last time he had seen  Maya laugh like that? Ah, it was the night of the campfire at the lake house. Namjoon again stood there across the street observing them. Who was the real stalker? Maya or him? Namjoon thought to himself. He didn’t know why he was standing there, he just did. Then he  suddenly had a weird thought: Wait, were these two dating? Nah, that’s absurd. But then again, why else were they meeting so often? Namjoon was confused by Junmyeon and Maya’s relationship. Yet, he wasn’t sure why it mattered to him anyways.

Namjoon debated whether he should go in or whether he should just walk away. He then began walking towards it, except he noticed that Maya and Junmyeon were both coming outside. Namjoon stopped in his tracks as they came outside and began waving goodbye to each other. Namjoon quickly put on his face mask and his hood so he wouldn’t be recognized. However, Maya and Junmyeon were in their own little world as they started heading their own ways after saying goodbye. Namjoon stood there a bit longer, watching as Maya began walking in the opposite direction than Junmyeon. She pulled out her headphones from her bag and started connecting them to her phone. Namjoon also started walking away from the convenience store and away from the direction that Maya was heading.

Another man came out of a dark alley that Maya passed on her way home. Maya was untangling her headphone cords and didn’t notice as the man was behind her. However, after a few feet she did notice the footsteps behind her so she decided to look. The man gave her a scary glare which made Maya walk faster. Her heart was beating fast. She then suddenly remembered that she had felt this way before. She remembered her heart feeling like this and the fear that she was feeling in that moment. She started walking faster, almost running. The man continued following, and Maya began to run. He was running after her. She was running faster. She was running as fast as she could, she felt like she was going to explode. She suddenly remembered the scene, she knew that there would eventually be someone who would grab her from one of the  other alleys. She panicked was that person the same man that was following her? Is this how she dies?  She was sprinting at this point, tears spilling from her eyes. She was trying to press 119 on her phone, but her fingers were trembling. She knew someone would eventually grab her hand, but she didn’t know which alley, so she had no choice but to keep running. Maya’s intuition was right. Someone did reach out and grab her hand and pull her into a narrow alley between 2 buildings. But, who was it?

[keywestlou]

PENCE LAYING LOW IN INDIANA.....FEARS FOR HIS LIFE

Yesterday on Morning Joe, Joe Scarborough said Mike Pence was “in fear for his life…..he was laying low in Indiana.” All because of Trump’s actions leading up to and on January 6.

Scarborough blamed Trump for putting the former Vice President “on the hit list.”

A shame from my perspective also. Pence could not have been a more loyal Vice President. From Trump’s perspective, Pence wavered at the end. From mine, he did his job in interpreting the Constitution properly.

Some came to kill Pence and Pelosi on January 6. Others decided to during Trump’s rally under the white tent before.

Trump put Pence behind the eight ball. Before and at the rally in suggesting Pence had the power to invalidate the election. Trump told everyone at the rally: Pence “did not have the courage to do it.”

Trump’s rabble rousers were ready. They had heard the words of their Master. As they proceeded to the Capitol, they chanted “hang Mike Pence.”

It has been reported 2 police officers died by suicide following what occurred at the Capitol. One a Capitol police officer. The other a member of the MDP.

The Department of Homeland Security issued a “national terrorist bulletin” yesterday. The bulletin indicated there was a “lingering potential” for “violence.” From persons motivated by anti-government sentiment following Biden’s election.

The Department suggested the January 6 riot emboldened extremists and set the stage for additional attacks.

Amazing how many Republicans have jumped ship since the election. It was reported yesterday 30,000 Republicans changed their registration to another party.

The number is probably higher. Sufficient data is not available. Only a handful of states report voter registration and information about voters switching parties on a weekly basis.

Some things in life are carried a step too far. One is the removal of statues of persons who had ties to slavery in the past and public buildings named after those considered to have had black animosity.

San Francisco joined the group supporting name removal yesterday. The San Francisco School Board had a resolution under consideration for 3 months. Forty four schools involved.

The Board approved a resolution calling for removing names that honored historical figures with direct or broad ties to slavery, oppression, racism or the “subjugation” of human beings.

Some of the names on the list included George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Father Junipero Serra, Paul Revere, Francis Scott Key, and Dianne Feinstein.

A step too far.

Yes, Washington owned slaves. Everyone did back then. It was a form of wealth. People forget how Washington made it possible for our country to be born, the cold winter he spent at Valley Forge, and his crossing the Delaware in the middle of a freezing Christmas Eve to defeat the Hussein troops.

Without Lincoln, the black race might still be where they were 150 some odd years ago. He is honored. Referred to by Americans as the Great Emancipator. On a personal level, he was shot in the back of the head and died for the good he achieved as a result of the Civil War.

Would the colonists have won the Revolutionary War had Paul Revere not galloped through the night shouting: “To arms, to arms, the British are coming.” The Revolution might never have gotten beyond Concord and Lexington.

Francis Scott Key wrote the Star Spangled Banner.

Dianne Feinstein is a today woman. What did she do to blacks?

San Francisco is a gay community. Overwhelmingly. Why not require San Francisco to tear down the statues of any persons who were anti-gay at any time in any fashion? Also, those public buildings that were named after anti-gay persons.

Another great inquiry in the Citizens’ Voice: “If the City gets 100 vaccine doses, what portion of that goes to second doses?”

Key West continues to receive acclimation as being a popular place to vacation.

The 2021 Travelers Choice Award for Destinations listed Key West fifth. Behind New York, Maui, Las Vegas and New Orleans.

Miami appears to have fallen behind after many years at or near the top. It is now listed #18.

DAY 3…..Greece The First Time

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Key West Lou

I cannot believe I have been in Novara only three days. It seems like a lifetime. Especially in view of my experiences.

Earthquakes still in the news big time here. Much destruction to Northern Italy.

I reported being in two earthquakes yesterday. Turns out it was three. Maybe five. Three hours after publication, I felt another one. I was sitting at the computer at that time also. I did not consider it of any consequence. After all, I had been involved in two already that day. Last night while watching television, it was reported that Novara had suffered two more quakes around eight in the evening. I never felt them.

Many dead. Significant damage. Sad. The people of Novara spoke of the earthquakes much yesterday. It was like being in Key West following a hurricane.

Speaking of hurricanes, I was thinking yesterday whether a earthquake or hurricane was worse. One is short and the other prolonged. Both cause significant loss of life and damage. They ended up equal in my mind. Better that both not occur, however.

Earthquakes are not common to this region. So I have been told. The word on the news is that whatever problem there is in the San Francisco area exists now in northern Italy. A shelf or whatever and it is moving. Italian news describes it as a mountain rising to the surface. The scientists have predicted at least 70 more earthquakes over time as a result. We shall see.

Lisa got Skype yesterday. We skyped for the first time in the morning Lisa time. The grandkids had already left for school. Corey joined in. It was exciting to see them both. I hope I get to speak with Robert and Ally soon.

Around 5, I decided to take a walk. I rambled up and down the streets of the historic centre of Novara. It was a high knowing that most buildings were a thousand years old. The first floor the best quality shops. Top floors great apartments. By the way, people live in apartments here. Homes are considered too expensive. I do not understand. Most of the apartments go for $1 million dollars plus.

My walk led me to discover the Piazzetta Delle Erbe. Piazzetta means little piazza. I am learning.

In English the Piazzetta is the Little Square of Herbs. Back when, probably a thousand years ago, growers and merchants came from all over Europe and Asia to buy and sell herbs at this market.

Close by, I made another discovery. The Broletto. I do not know what the term means. It was the place where the first market in all of Italy was established in medieval times. Everything and anything sold. It helped the Novara area at the time to gain financial independence

The best was yet to come. The Partigiani. It is at the Piazza Dei Martiri. Partigiani means partisans. The Piazza translates to the Plaza of Martyrs.

I learned the story of this special place while sitting at an outside cafe having a drink and watching the world go by. Two gentleman at the next table engaged me in conversation. They spoke English. Americans are revered here. I am being treated with kindness and respect because I am an American. It was not unusual for them to engage me in conversation. They started the conversation with…..American?

Novara was occupied by the Nazis during World War II. Some of the locals were not pleased.They became partisans. Guerrilla types working as the underground. Five were captured. They were placed against a brick wall and shot by the Nazis. In full view of the citizens of Novara.

After the war a small monument was placed near where they were killed. A tree was also planted. It still stands today. The tree. By itself against a large red brick wall. Bullet holes could be seen in the wall.

It dawned on me that the medieval thousand year old buildings I have been speaking about were in good shape. I asked were they not destroyed during World War II? Bombs, artillery and tank fire. No, I was told.There was never any fighting or bombing or what have you in and to Novara. The Nazis walked out and the Americans walked in. The people of Novara were very lucky. Other communities in the area, such as Milan, sustained significant damage.

My walk took me past many fine stores. I was particularly impressed with the shops featuring apparel for women. The most beautiful clothes I have ever seen! Absolutely magnificent! Bright, shiny and smart for summer wearing. The thought struck me it would have been nice to have a woman to take into the stores and buy a new wardrobe for.

Remember the 124 steps I spoke of yesterday. There are not 124. I counted them again yesterday. At a time when I was not suffering from jet lag and a bad stomach. There are 68. Still a lot of steps for this old man!

The effects of jet lag are still with me. I went to bed at nine last night. Did not sleep one minute. Finally got up at 5:30 in the morning to start this blog. I will pay for the no sleep later in the day.

Never got to Milan yesterday to view the Last Supper. The trains were out of commission because of the earthquake.

I cannot let this experience pass. At the dinner party three nights ago, one of the meats was a dark one. Deep purple. Sliced thin. Every one was going crazy over it. They loved it! A bit of lemon and they ate away!

I had a few pieces. Did not particularly like it. Other guests were surprised I did not.

Yesterday similar meat was served to me for lunch. I again was not crazy about it. I asked what is this? It was horse meat! Horse meat is legal in Italy. There are specialty butcher shops that sell horse meat. And lest I forget, donkey also. That was it. No more for me! I explained that horse meat was not legal in the United States for human consumption. My fellow diners were shocked.

The big deal today is for me to go to the bank. I have no euros. Only American money. The exchange process should be interesting. Is cash or a credit card required? Can both be used?

Stephanie Kaple is one of the loves of my life. She lives in Key West. She is known as the Island Shoe Girl. She only wears expensive shoes with high high heels. Looks good in them!

Stephanie now plays bocce. She joined the same bocce league I play in. She wears heels while playing. Not wise from my perspective. But that is Stephanie!

She writes a blog as I do. A recent one was interesting and funny. Take a look at it if you have the time. A short read. www.islandshoegirl.com.

That is all for today folks! Sorry for the length but there is much to share regarding my trip. Tomorrow I leave for Athens to start the Greece phase of this trip. Athens, Santorini, Mykinos and some deserted island. Five weeks will be spent in Greece. Then back to Italy for a while. Portofino and Morocco under consideration for the scheduled end of my trip. If I return. I am enjoying everything so much I might stay.

Enjoy your day!

PENCE LAYING LOW IN INDIANA…..FEARS FOR HIS LIFE was originally published on Key West Lou

[vickisventures]

Happy 2021!

Happy New Year!  I doubt there’s a single person who won’t remember 2020 for good or for bad AND I’m pretty sure everyone is hoping that 2021 is more “normal.”  Hope it what keeps us going.  

We had a fun Christmas. Steve got home early Christmas Eve and we packed up and went to my brother’s house.  Christmas day after we ate some great food, we watched the new Wonder Woman movie and played games.  Steve was off until Monday morning, so we spent the rest of the weekend doing chores.  Steve spent some of his time cleaning his truck cab real well and organizing things.  

Sunday night, Aspen started acting lethargic and was almost constant tremors that made him unsteady. He couldn’t lift his head when he walked and so he’d run into things.  We decided we’d better take him to a vet clinic so at 8 p.m., off we went. Due to COVID, they came to the car, took Aspen and said they’d call in 4-5 hours (yep, that would make it around 12:30).  Around midnight, I got a text saying he had 3 pets ahead of him.  At 3:30 a.m., the vet finally called saying she’d examined him and wanted to know what we wanted her to do.  We had her do a urinalysis, but it didn’t show any issues.  So, Steve left for work around 4 a.m. and I went to pick Aspen up.  Monday he was so pitiful.  I was sure this was it, but by Tuesday, he started acting more normal.  I’m happy to report, that he is back to his old dog self today.  I’m not sure what happened but I’m glad he’s doing ok.  He has to live another 1½ years until Steve gets done driving!  

Speaking of Steve, his job is so messed up at times.  As I mentioned before, he left Monday and headed to Las Vegas.  That went fine.  Then they sent him to Yuma where he ended up with a flat tire on his trailer and had to take it to get repaired.  They wanted him to go to Georgia and he was going to accept it but at the last minute, he chose not to.  (He’s regretted that decision since then.)  He went to Albuquerque instead and after dropping his load off, he called for his next trip and they didn’t have anything for him until Saturday at 2 p.m. He celebrated New Year’s Eve in a truck stop parking lot and then spent all day Friday and half of the day Saturday there as well.  I felt sorry for him because he was so bored.  Thankfully he picked up his load and is headed back to Phoenix now.  I figure he’ll take 2 days off and then go back out again. This job is definitely not what I thought it would be.

Speaking of that, I found out that I am expected to work 30 hours a week for the next 3 months.  The workamping coordinator had sent out a text a week or so ago saying that singles had to work 30 hours January-April. Problem is, she told me in our interview that I would work 25 hours (1 more hour/day).  So, when our schedule came out yesterday, she had me working 9-3, Monday-Friday.  I wasn’t really surprised but I am a bit miffed.  She tried telling me that she’d told me in the interview that she wasn’t sure of the hours until corporate decided but she never told me that.  I have notes that state nothing of the kind and even a few emails, but it doesn’t really matter.  It’s not like she can give me a raise.  From what I’ve heard, people say she quickly skimmed over that info in their interviews or didn’t mention it at all.  I’m sure she knows it’s hard to find people willing to pick up more hours due to the rent increase which is almost 2x as much as it was for October-December.  I know of at least 2 couples who left because they weren’t happy about this change.  I knew that when I’d done the math months ago, that the numbers didn’t come out right.  25 hours didn’t pay the bills, but I thought maybe there was something I didn’t know…I hoped that there was!  I told her that’s not what I was told, and she said I could work 25 if I wanted but I would have to pay out of pocket for anything my salary didn’t cover.  She also said that we could divide the hours up differently.  I’m sure she’s worried I’ll quit.  I won’t, but I’m not working 30 hours.  I’m not sure what I’m going to propose yet.  Maybe 2 6-hour days and 3 5-hour days.  I plan to work 9-3 on Monday and then talk to Amanda about it when she comes in. That’s the joy of workamping!

New Year’s Eve at the park ended up being a lot of work.  We weren’t having much luck getting people to pay to attend the party that had been planned.  I spent a day and ½ trying to call people to find out why they weren’t coming and trying to see if they’d change their minds.  Then Monday, when I got to work, I was told that the party was now free of charge and we were taking the first 150 who emailed saying they wanted to go. I spent all of this week, calling people, playing musical chairs with the seating chart and helping get things ready. You gotta love last minute changes! Maybe that’s why the park manager treated the office staff to Olive Garden on Thursday for lunch.  I didn’t have to work the partyso, after I got off work Thursday, I drove to Brian and Sue’s to “party” with them.  We had a nacho bar (yum), watched a movie and played games (Nerts and Sorry).  We were going to play Life but didn’t feel like reading the instructions (no one remembered how to play.)  I left around 10 p.m., but actually stayed up until midnight which I haven’t done for years.  Then Friday, I went to an outlet mall (gorgeous day to be outside) and a regular mall and spent my Christmas money.  It’s been a good weekend.  (Just wish Steve hadn’t been stuck in NM most of it.)

[blovebugg]

Lockdown 3!

So I went back to work for a month. Not as busy of a month as we were hoping :( seems like a lot of people did their shopping online during lockdown in November or in the few days before. We were heaving then! Since then of course a lot has happened. We had the announcement on 23rd that we would be going into tier 4 from boxing day! We jumped from tier 2 straight to 4 which was a shock. As well as thinking we were getting 5 days over Christmas to see our loved ones we now only got 1. Of course this was done for all the right reasons, we Need to slow this virus, but I think it was just such a shock for people and after the year we've all had we were looking forward to a sense of normality at Christmas!

Christmas Eve.

So I finished work at 6.45 on Christmas eve. Had to work a normal day then strip down the store ready for our third lockdown of the year beginning boxing day. My last day at work for a while was christmas eve. It really sucked having to strip down the store once again and especially on christmas eve when myself and the team just wanted to get home but we did it fast and I was glad for their help! Then it was time to actually begin celebrating! David had made us a special dinner of pineapple spiced ribs, Chipotle sweet potatoes and mango salsa. He also made cocktails using champagne and we had a bottle of cranberry and clementine bucks fizz. The champagne was gifted to us when we got engaged 2 years ago and seeing as this was our first Christmas in our new home it seemed right to crack it open!

We played games with his friends over zoom and then bed around midnight. That's the latest ive ever stayed up on christmas eve! We did our Christmas eve gifts as tradition. David opened some new grinch pjs and I got some super fluffy socks!

Christmas Day.

Got up around 7ish and did our mini stocking gifts. I opened a reeses peanut butter bath bomb and David opened the catch phrase game I got him. We then went downstairs and made bacon rolls and bucks fizz with the leftover champagne and orange juice. Around 8 we got dressed up and ready to go meet my parents in the park for a walk. Didn't walk for long as although it was dry, we were all cold! Then it was back to theirs for 2nd breakfast of nutella christmas tree plus coffee and juice! Rest of the morning was spent preparing lunch and playing christmas music. Toby and Hannah were at her dads in the morning so we ate lunch at 2.

After lunch it was time for presents!! Multiple pairs of socks were opened by all which we turned into a game, yelling SOCKS and holding them up for all to see. We were all very spoilt this year as usual and I felt so grateful and loved by all those in my life. After presents it was time for games and drinks! We played a lot of games and then around 6ish we paused to watch top of the pops and have a snack. Overall we had a wonderful day and I was so sad to see it end! Christmas day felt normal as we saw my family as we would anyway but the thought that it wasn't going to last as long crept in at bedtime and made the day feel bittersweet. Definitely gonna make the most of every moment i can spend with them all from now on.

Boxing Day.

Just a chilled one. Tried to make the most of the fact that I wasn't working as I normally would be. We spent a couple of hours on a zoom call with David's family opening presents and catching up about our days before. Again very spoilt! Took ages as we all had a lot to open and a lot to talk about. Really enjoyed it! After it was time for a buffet lunch which was lush. Then a chilled afternoon of tv and games before grazing on the buffet a bit more, drinks and bed.

27th.

As the unpacking was neglected the day before we spent a while doing that. Finding homes for all the presents takes a while and we put a load of washing on. Then we had a cheese board for lunch before settling on the sofa to watch the new disney pixar movie Soul. I really liked it! It was a bit deep and in some parts sad but I thought it was so good! Made me emotional. I've read that some people haven't liked it but we did! Then I read one of my new books I got for Christmas; miracle on 5th avenue by Sarah Morgan; while David went on playstation. I enjoyed it a lot. It was a Christmas themed book which was why I had to read that one first and set in New York which I'm a sucker for. We had Mexican for dinner then watched Shield. Then early bath and bed.

Cannot believe we are back in lockdown! :( but still

lovelovelove as always