#maybe I’m on the totally wrong track and it’s just another of seconds nonsense phrases

[sadisopodhours]

I’m still a little bit confused by what Second meant by

Mais ce puits n'était pas plus vrai qu'un lapin d'Odin

But this well was no more real than a rabbit of Odin

Because she also gave Thorn the drawing of the rabbit leaping from a well.

I think the rabbit of Odin in this case is obviously Victoria and neither the well nor Victoria are “real” because they’re in The Reverse, but it leaves me wondering why Victoria was represented as a rabbit and why the drawing was colored blood red.

[eleven-times-lively]

Will You Be My Love?

Hi! I wanted to say that I really love you're blog and your writing! I was wondering if you could do a Charlie Weasley x Hufflepuff!reader and Charlie is head over heals for the reader and Bill keeps teasing him to go ask the reader out? And the reader is kinda oblivious to it? You can take it from there but I really like your writing and I hope that this isn't too vague of a description lol! Thank you so much!

Moodboard by @it-was-three-am​ , go show Liv some love!

Summary: Charlie fancies you, but isn’t quite sure how to tell you. Word Count: 1749 Note: I LOVE the concept, I LOVE the moodboard, and I LOVE this fic!💕

Charlie’s breath hitched as he saw you coming down the corridor. The yellow tie adorned on your neck highlighted the glimmering strands in your hair and made your eyes pop. He was nearly late to History of Magic, but he stopped dead in his tracks to stare at you passing by. Talking to your best friend, twirling a wildflower between your fingers, and going on without a care in the world. He was absolutely smitten. So smitten, in fact, that he didn’t notice Bill trying to talk to him.

“Charlie? Oi! Mate, over here!” Bill waved his hands in front of and around Charlie to get his attention, but nothing would work when you were around. Charlie finally turned around with a start.

“Huh? Oh, hey, Bill.”

“Yeah, hi, been trying to say that for bloody ages now. So, who’s the girl?”

“Huh? What? Oh… uh… no one.”

“Ha! Mate, I’ve fancied people before, I know the difference between nothing and absolutely head over heels in love,” Bill said with a smirk

“Pfft… head over he-... please… that’s absurd,” Charlie tried to shrug off the interaction, but failed miserably.

“Sure, mate. Now if I’m not mistaken, aren’t you late for class?”

“Oh shoot!” Charlie went off running down the corridor.

***

Later that day after dinner Charlie saw you again near the quidditch pitch, sitting in the grass and talking with one of your friends. He was on his way to practice when he once again stopped upon seeing you, but this time worked up the courage to say something.

“Hey-... uh… hi, y/n.”

Sitting up more, you gave him a puzzled look, “uh, hi?”

A blush crept across his cheeks as he was once again frozen in place. You cocked an eyebrow at him expectantly. “Right, I… um, practice! You know, uhhh… practice.” He ran onto the pitch, cursing as he went.

“What was that about?” you asked, turning back to your friend. “I mean,” you began, “who even was that?”

“Are you kidding?” now it was her turn to cock an eyebrow at you.

“What?”

“That’s Charlie Weasley!”

“Am I supposed to know what that means?” Your attention had already been diverted to a bowtruckle creeping across the lawn.

“Charlie Weasley…” she repeated, as if a simple repetition would snap your memory into place, “Gryffindor team captain and seeker? Gryffindor prefect? Bill’s younger brother?”

You continued to stare blankly at her. “You sound obsessed, maybe you should go have a chat,” you snickered.

“Oh, please. It seemed as if he was fairly obsessed with you.” She shrugged casually and went back to her notebook.

“What? Nonsense.” You had nearly brushed it off, but the thought lingered in the back of your head. Maybe you should try to have a conversation soon.

***

You were walking down the corridor when you saw him again. The words of your best friend echoed in your head as you walked up to him and gave him a light tap on the shoulder. He practically jumped upward towards the ceiling. “Um,” you steadily began, “it’s Charlie, right?”

The boy looked like a deer caught in headlights, mouth forming a circle yet he was unable to speak. “Oh...uh, yeah,” he let out a light chuckle to diffuse the tension, “You’re y/n, right?”

“Yeah,” your voice was drawn out as you cocked an eyebrow at him, “how’d you know?”

“How would I not know?”, he laughed, quickly continuing when he saw your now even more puzzled expression. “Hufflepuff prefect?”

You nodded your head and laughed lightly, not wanting to bring up yesterday’s interaction. “Ok then. See you later I guess.” You waved at him as you skipped down the corridor. 

A wide smile and a blush crept across his face as he saw you leave. What he did not see, however, was Bill watching the entire interaction play out. 

“Well would you look at that!” Bill shouted at Charlie from down the corridor, and Charlie jumped for a second time. Bill made his way over to Charlie, flashing a cocky smile as he went. “Told you she doesn’t seem like no one.”

“We’re just friends, Bill.” He began to walk away before Bill once again stopped him.

“She didn’t seem to know exactly who you were, mate,” Bill whispered, face contorting.

“What?” Charlie looked back in the direction you had left, as if you’d still be there, “She said my name.”

“Yeah, but it sounded like someone had told her.”

“Oh,” Charlie’s expression quickly fell.

“But don’t worry, mate!” Bill quickly interjected, “You just need to talk to her more and make sure she knows who you are! Or…. just go straight ahead and ask her out!”

Charlie’s fallen expression was quickly replaced as he grew hopeful. 

***

The next day Charlie devised a plan: he would talk to you every day in the great hall, and always make sure to say hi when he saw you in the hallway, then once you became friends, he would ask you out. 

As he was sharing his plan with Bill, who was trying not to laugh, he saw you enter the great hall. “Hey, y/n!”, he bravely called out. You stopped for a moment to figure out where the noise came from, and waved back to him when you saw. Something inside you told you to walk over to him, so that's exactly what you did.

“Hey, Charlie,” you smiled at him and his brother. “How are you?”

Charlie remained frozen once again. He would’ve stayed like that too had Bill not nudged him. “Oh, hi, y/n. I’m, um, I’m good, thanks. How are you?”

“Really good, thanks,” your eyes darted back and forth and your words were slightly drawn out. “Ready for the charms exam?”

“The.. the what?” Charlie looked like he could’ve passed out right there.

“The charms exam we have tomorrow? Oh well, I should get going,” you skipped back to your table as if the interaction had never happened.

“Take it you didn’t know about the exam,” Bill snickered as he pulled Charlie down to sit at the table. Even seated Charlie was still flustered and unable to think. “Maybe ask her to help you study?”

“Pfft… I don’t need help,” Charlie tried to brush it off.

“Sounds like you do, mate. But fine, don’t phrase it that way. Ask her if she wants to study together.”

Charlie took a sharp breath in as another plan was hatched in his head.

***

Later that day he found you by the creatures reserve tending to some nifflers, (yes his heart did skip a beat), and he walked over to you. “Hey, y/n!”

You turned, a little startled, “Oh, hey Charlie!” You were genuinely excited to see him, but you couldn’t quite discern as to why.

“Nifflers, huh?” he questioned, attempting to make conversation.

“Yeah,” you chuckled, “they’re my favorite. Hopefully I can be a magizoologist one day. You’re into dragons, right.”

Well if he wasn’t absolutely enamored before, he certainly was now. “Yeah, actually,” a wide grin crept onto his face, “Hopefully I can spend my life studying dragons.” The two of you exchanged smiles, and actually managed to make some conversation about the nifflers. After a few minutes he felt brave and piped up, “So, uh… y/n?”

“Hmm?” You didn’t turn away from the nifflers.

“I was thinking… would you maybe want to study for the charms exam together?” He rubbed his hands together nervously as he awaited rejection.

“Yeah, totally! That sounds awesome!” You turned to face him this time, and you were both sporting matching grins. “Want to go to the library now?”

“Sure,” he flashed a warm smile at you as the two of you began the walk back to the castle. Your hands brushed more than once, and you could’ve sworn you heard Charlie’s breath hitch just a bit each and every time.

After about an hour of studying and practicing charms in the library, Charlie changed the subject. “So, y/n, do you… do you have a boyfriend… or something?”, he was immediately cursing himself in his head. Who the bloody hell asks that?

“Umm… I do not. Why do you ask?” You hadn’t looked up from your textbook, but your interest was definitely piqued.

“Oh, well, I-... I kind of… like you, I guess.” His voice was shaking as he spoke, his face turning a bit red. What do you mean ‘you guess’ you idiot! Now she has the wrong idea!

“Oh…” you looked up at him from the textbook and smiled, “I hadn’t realised.”

“You… you seriously didn’t? I mean Bill kept nudging and bothering me to say something and I’m so awkward and can’t seem to make conversation and…” You bloody bimbo just shut up!

You chuckled lightly as you cautiously took one of his hands in your own, earning a surprised glance from him. “Well I suppose I was hoping you would say that…” you trailed off, not noticing the mix of utter joy and utter confusion coming from Charlie. “I… I think I like you too, Charlie.” A rosy blush spread across your cheeks as you looked up at him. He was smiling down at you with the warmth of ten suns. 

He grabbed your other hand and stood up with you. He moved his hands to your hips, glancing down at you for approval. You nodded and smiled up at him, seeing the wide smile akin to your own. The two of your stayed like that for a moment, subconsciously inching closer to each other to the point where your bodies were pressed together. He ran a hand through your hair, letting it come to rest at the base of your neck, all while asking for silent confirmation the entire time. You never stopped him. You both leaned in as he took you in a deep, but sweet kiss. You kissed him back and the two of you moved together in perfect harmony, as if made for each other. You reluctantly separated as he gazed down at you lovingly. He took your hand back in his own and led you out of the library. “That was…”

“Amazing,” you finished his sentence. The two of you walked out of the library and down the corridor hand-in-hand, and you were sure that you would never want to be separated from him again. 

What you didn’t catch whatever, was Bill in the corner, shooting sly glances at Charlie as you left.

[datawyrms]

The thrilling conclusion. (may not actually be thrilling/a conclusion) Part 1 and 2 respectively. Why was she actually doing this? Standing outside of FentonWorks and it’s eye searing sign in full ghost fighting gear, preparing to knock on the door. It had to be a trap, the ghost kid must have done something to the ghost hunters to make them want to help it. ‘Wanting to talk’, as if. Yet here she was, blundering right into the obvious bear trap anyway. Danny still hadn’t returned to school, even though Sam and Tucker had been acting like they knew where he was, so they had to be in on it too. If Phantom thought he could use her friend against her, he’d have another thing coming. Several very painful things, even. She clenched her fist hard to stop the slight tremor before knocking on the door.

Jack always struck her as more of a brick wall than a man, towering and orange as the door swung open. He looked puzzled for half a second before beaming. “HA! I was right, you did show up! See Mads, she totally did!” He seemed more like an excited puppy than anything, neck craning back to talk to his wife.

“Yes Jack, I see her.” Maddie still had the hood of her suit up, adjusting the goggles as she peered out to their doorstep at the teenage ghost hunter. “You did come to talk, right?”

“Course she did! He’s gotta trust his friends more, like I do!”

Even with her face obscured, Maddie clearly wasn’t a fan of the ‘trusting friends’ line, lips pursed before patting the boisterous man on the back. “How about you go let him know sweetie, while I let her in?”

“Great idea! I’ll even get some discussion fudge!” He zipped away faster than Valerie thought he could manage, the oppressive positivity swept away with him as the blue jumpsuited hunter crossed her arms.

“You don’t have any weapons? We have more than enough ourselves if you’re worried about your safety.”

“I won’t do anything if that ghost doesn’t.” It was hard to keep the disgust out of her voice, watching them act like this. Maddie had always struck her as the more reasonable Fenton, yet she seemed far more worried about some ghost than Jack did, for all his positivity.

“That isn’t what I asked. So I’ll repeat it. Do you have any weapons on you? If you do, just hand them over and then we can talk.”

She was talking like she was more of a threat than that monster in the basement! Whatever that ghost did, it must have been powerful. Maddie Fenton, worried for a ghost she’d gladly spoken about cutting open in the name of science only a month ago. It felt like she’d walked into bizarro world. Maybe if she waited long enough a white rabbit would run by screaming about the time.

“I didn’t bring any weapons. Even though I should have.”

Maddie watched her for a long moment, as if trying to see past the mask and figure out if the red suited ghost hunter was trying to lie. With the smallest sigh, she stepped aside to allow her into the home that doubled as a laboratory. “Follow me. You’ll be perfectly safe.”

She doubted anyone could be perfectly safe in a lab with a portal to another dimension filled with ectoplasmic fiends in it, adding the most dangerous ghost that liked to play ‘innocent’ just made it worse. She wouldn’t be alone down there, judging by the snippets of conversation that were floating up the stairs.

“-not gonna eat that, just take it.”

“Aww, but it’s the good stuff!”

“You need to try-” Jazz stopped speaking at the sound of footsteps on the stairs, turning to glare at the ghost hunter.

Phantom barely even reacted, only the eerie green eyes flicking towards the entrance. Apparently he was too busy sitting comfortably in what looked like a recliner they’d brought down for the ghost to bother with more than that. It just seemed off, having a ghost looking so grounded. “Left it to the last day, huh?” The confident grin didn’t reach his eyes, and even that vanished after a few seconds, like it had been more of a habit than wanting to act like that.

“Only because I know you’re up to something.”

“Yup. That’s me, plotting evil deeds. Maybe next time I won’t get punched through a wall!” He had the energy to roll his eyes, but didn’t cross his arms like she expected him to. “You can go guys, it’s just a chat. Probably.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea-” Maddie’s concern was sickening, watching someone she could respect sometimes just fawning over a playacting ghost.

“I’ll be fine. This is between us.”

“Sure thing! Oh, if you have any symptoms just yell and I’ll be right there kiddo.” The huge man mussed the ghost’s hair, grin wide despite how wrong it looked. “I totally thought of a new approach, so just sit tight!” He was halfway up the stairs by the time he finished talking, not that the distance made him any less audible. Maddie hesitated a moment longer, but followed the loud love of her life.

The only unjumpsuited Fenton seemed to disagree. “I’m not leaving.”

“Yes you are Jazz!”

“I don’t care if she stays, ghost. You can quit stalling.” Valerie interrupted before the two of them could make her wait for ages with some pointless bickering.

Instead the redhead rounded on her. “He has a name. Use it.”

“Jazz, I really don’t care. Just go already.” He looked almost as irritated as she felt . “I just want to get this over with.”

“I don’t trust her not to do something.”

Didn’t trust her? Over the destructive white haired menace? That was just insulting. “You said you’d talk, so start explaining” she did her best to ignore Danny’s sister, it was probably just whatever the ghost was holding over their heads making her act like this.

“Won’t help if you don’t actually listen for a change.” His eyes narrowed, but more at Jazz than Valerie. “You don’t need to hear this Jazz. Okay?”

“If you think I don’t, I definitely do.” She scowled right back, acting as if they were a bratty younger kid than a ghost that could rip her face off. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Fine! Whatever, be stubborn. Can’t do anything about it.” His eyes seemed to glow more strongly before the ghost slumped back more in the chair. “So what do you think I did then? Since you keep trying to bother my friends.”

“There’s no way you got the Fentons and those two on your side without leverage. Sure, some kids actually buy that hero crap, but the Fentons don’t.” Only having a finger to point at the ghost made her feel unprepared.

The glowing teenager looked bored. “So you think I’m a kidnapper.”

“I know you did something to Danny. The timing matches up too well. So out with it.”

“Or what, you’ll kill me faster?” He seemed to freeze up after the words were out, smacking himself in the face. “Habit. I didn’t do anything, but it’s going to be hard to explain.”

This was such a waste of time. “Because it’s all made up nonsense?”

“It’ll sound like it! But it’s not. I can prove it.” the ghost stopped as if he needed to catch his breath. “At least I think I can. You left this really, really late.”

“You’re getting off track.” Jazz spoke up before Valerie could say something similar but with far less charitable phrasing.

“Right. Just trying to figure out how to say it.” A gloved hand rubbed at his forehead, brow furrowed as the ghost muttered. “You know what ghosts are made of, right?”

“Ectoplasm and bad attitudes. Duh, anyone in Amity could tell you that.” What was this, quiz time? Some sort of ‘How long can I annoy the ghost hunter before she shoots and makes me look good’ plan?

His shoulders barely move, a negative effort shrug. “Close enough.”

“It really isn’t! Ectoplasm might be what a ghost builds their body out of but-”

Phantom cut her off, leaning forward with the air of absolute exhaustion. “Jazz I do not have time to explain the specific inner workings of ghosts to someone who hates me right now!”

“It’ll help with the next bit, but fine. Go ahead and get all confused.” The redhead sat back, arms crossed.

“Thank you.” Green eyes shifted to find Valerie again before the ghost continued. “Thing is, I’m not all ectoplasm.”

“Is that why you’re extra obnoxious? Have some dirt mixed in there?”

The ghost actually laughed. “Probably!” He did hold up a hand while the laugh subsided, apparently having something more to add. “Not all dirt. But you got the important bit. I’m not a proper ghost, exactly.”

“I don’t run some endangered petting zoo, ghost. So why should I care?” Though it did explain the hunter ghost that was always after the obnoxious white haired creep.

“You should care because right now, I’m doing the whole ‘post human consciousness’ thing completely wrong.” He was watching her closely, a strange look on that dead face. Dread, anxiety? It didn’t look right on his face. “In that I’m not post human. Yet.”

Maybe the ghost was just trying to see if he could get a funny reaction. “Sorry Phantom, you look really dead to me.”

“Oh I feel real dead! But nope. Ah- I said I can prove it, don’t start yelling.” he muttered the last bit quickly, eyes flicking away from her obvious disbelieving glare. “Probably. Hurts. Gimme a sec-”

“I just wanted an answer to what you were doing, not this inane story.”

“Inane story very important answering that.” the ghost didn’t seem to even notice he was just dropping words from his sentence, more focused at staring at his own hand.

Jazz got up, hovering over the ghost as if deeply concerned for the absurdity spouting spirit. “I can back you up, you don’t need to prove it.”

“She’ll never believe it without seeing it. Which is why we’re doing this at all. Before I can’t.”

“Mom and Dad are still working on it, they’ll figure out a way to fix it.”

“No they won’t Jazz! I want them to, but they won’t! Not with how they explained it.”

“You’re just letting the worst outcome seem like the most likely one.”

“No, I’m actually understanding what they mean and being realistic!”

Honestly, this entire little exchange felt like something private she’d barged in on. She gave a loud cough, which seemed to startle both of them, heads jerking to look in her direction. They almost looked related, being that in sync.

The psychology lover recovered first. “Urgh. Just say it out loud, you’re obviously struggling.”

Which snapped the ghost boy out of it. “And you’re obviously not helping!”

“So what, you threatened the Fentons with a really bad comedy act?” The ghost winced at the angry rebuke, but she wasn’t done. “I get you being obnoxious, but dragging Jazz into it? You’re pretty sick.”

“He’s Danny.” There was no amusement in her voice, no hint of the concerned smile she kept giving the ectoplasmic pest.

“Jazz!” There was a genuine note of anger, and the temperature seemed to dip as the ghost glared at the one that didn’t want him blasted out of existence.

“I don’t really care what you call him, that doesn’t answer-”

Jazz cut her off, ignoring the cold glare being thrown at her. “It does. Danny isn’t missing, he’s right here.”

“You managed to trick the Fentons into thinking you’re their kid? What did you do to Danny?” Valarie rounded on the ghost, hand reaching for a weapon that wasn’t there.

“Nothing!” His hands were up even as his eyes stayed fixed on the elder Fenton child. “I told you she won’t believe it!”

“Nothing’s happened to Danny. This is him. Only grumpier.”

“You can’t honestly think that thing is your brother!”

“Wow Jazz, you managed to get me called a thing. Great assist, keep it up.” Phantom was muttering, settling back as if he planned to just take a nap. “If you keep this up, maybe she’ll shoot me!”

“You could try standing up for yourself, Danny.”

“Oh no, you dug this hole. You lie in it. I’d say your grave, but I have dibs in that department. Twiceover!”

She was going to punch this ghost. Even if the creature could just phase through it. She wanted to clobber it for whatever THIS was. “So you killed Danny, and took his place. That’s what you’re saying?” At least she had the satisfaction of the ghost looking like it wanted to vanish as she stepped forward.

“Hey, I didn’t say anything. That was Jazz.”

“No! Danny’s always been both. I’ve known for a while, but he had to tell Mom and Dad. That’s why they’re suddenly fine with Phantom.” Jazz insisted, trying to look Valerie in the eye. “He isn’t missing, and hasn’t done anything to us.”

“Danny is not a life ruining monster. I don’t care how convincing that thing seems to you, that ghost is NOT my friend.” Danny was sweet, big hearted and a bit of a shy little dork. Phantom was nothing but a snide, cocky creep that insisted you should just forget anything that made him look like the scummy ghost he was. They were nothing alike.

“And this is why I just wanted to make things quick.” The ghost seemed to fold in on himself, not looking at either of the humans in the room. “You can hate me all you want, just let me explain.”

“There’s nothing to explain! You aren’t Danny.”

“He is. It explains everything. Think about it logically. Danny goes ‘missing’. He tries to fix the problem himself, but he can’t. We convince him he has to tell our parents. He finally does, and even though Danny is still ‘missing’ they stop saying things like a ghost kidnapped him. Because we know where he is.”

“Or he’s still missing and you’ve bought some nonsense story to feel better about it when this ghost probably just tortured him for information.” Jazz didn’t back down from her snappy response, but did seem to be at a loss.

“Hey! I do not do torture. That’s literally everyone who isn’t me.” the ghost sounded offended, shaking his hand as if trying to get it to do something. “Anyway, this is going to suck. I blame you Jazz.”

“Excuse me for thinking friends of yours can be logical with the truth in their faces!”

“Nah. I get to say I told you so for a change.”

Valrie planned to make the two quit their pointless bickering, but words died in her throat as a set of rings appeared near the ghost’s wrist. It wasn’t an attack she’d seen the menace use before and she was already settling into a fighting stance to combat it. Yet it stayed around the ghost, slowly down his arm. It seemed a bit much as a way to take off a ghostly jumpsuit, but she preferred that first thought to how the ghost changed as it swept over his face.

Black hair, blue eyes. Her friend’s face, Danny’s face set in a grimace of pain as the rings snuffed out, a boy that looked pale and sickly while struggling to breathe where the blight of a ghost had been.

“Yup. Sucks. Ow.” Danny wheezed, eyes unfocused even though he knew the two of them were still there.

Jazz was there in seconds. “You need to switch back. Mom said-”

“S-she’s gotta know it isn’t a trick first.” the boy insisted, and his voice was right. It was Danny’s, without the horrid echo or slimy snaps the ghost made.

Yet it had to be a trick. There was no way her friend had been a lie. Just some rotten ghost who’d gotten close to her as some sort of joke. A ghost that had tricked her after making sure she knew he was nothing but a monster in one disguise. “Who are you.” The question was weak.

“Just Danny. Been this way since the accident.” He looked like he was going to say more but was cut off by a coughing fit, flecks of ectoplasm making his pale skin look even closer to dead as it splattered on his hastily raised hand. “That’s new.” His laugh set her teeth on edge.

Her brain wouldn’t work. It was impossible, it couldn’t be true. She didn’t want it to be true. She’d liked him well enough before. This-she wasn’t sure how else she could take this. “So why are you telling me now.”

“I wanted you to know while I could still prove it.”

“Why? Did you think this would help you? Think I might pity you if you look sick?”

“No.” Blue eyes looked away as the rings returned the ghost to the chair. “I told you so you’d leave my friends alone. Since I don’t think I’m going to stop being missing.”

He’d revealed his nasty trick, but wasn’t mocking her about it, or lording over her with it. It didn’t fit. They couldn’t be the same person. You couldn’t be alive and dead at the same time! She wanted to choke him, but also wanted to help. She hated this, she hated him for making this complicated. “Stay missing?” The sickness had to be an act, right? Like how he pretended he was a friend.

“Yeah. I got lucky in the accident. I wasn’t quite a ghost, and not exactly a human.” Phantom wasn’t looking at her as he spoke, apparently preferring to stare at the wall. “It was a balance thing, I guess. I didn’t really notice at first. Like the obvious I did, the whole having ghost powers thing, being able to switch back and forth.” The rambling didn’t stop even as he started scratching at the back of his neck. “I didn’t notice even as a human I needed ectoplasm to keep my heart going, or as a ghost I could use more than just ectoplasm to keep my energy up. I need both halves, I can’t survive without both.” He hesitated again, getting a reassuring hand on the shoulder from Jazz. “Problem is I managed to get that balance screwed up. Ran myself ragged fighting ghosts, didn’t get enough sleep, basically coasted on my ghost half to keep functioning. And I’m a strong ghost now, I guess. Too strong for my weak human body to manage anymore. So I’m basically eating myself alive and falling apart. It’s great. This is when I have a quip about work life balance or something, but I’m too tired to think of one.”

“He wasn’t hiding this out of maliciousness you know. He was afraid.” Jazz was frowning as she watched how the ghost hunter hadn’t really relaxed, still stiff and angry looking. “He couldn’t even make himself tell Mom and Dad until we basically forced him to.”

“She doesn’t care, Jazz.” he grunted, still not looking, “But you know now. So you don’t need to go after anyone to find out what happened. It’s self inflicted.”

It was too much. The whole thing was absurd. What could she even say to something like this? To have the world invert to show ugly stains you didn’t see before? They would need to talk again. About this. About what he actually was, or wasn’t. Now though?

She could only leave without a word.

[peterspideyy]

chapter 7 - partners in crime

series masterlist

————

your date with tom (well, it wasn’t really a date. just two friends who love each other more than friends, hanging out while acting like a couple. so, not a date, right?) was going...surprisingly nice. it’s been great spending time with tom, but actually not talking about work was a nice change. different. but, a good different.

laughter and chatter was all you could hear, as the smell of freshly made coffee filled your nostrils. tom took you to a cute and small shop on a random street in new york, which was filled with different collectibles, probably passed down for generations. in the shop, was a cafe, so of course you spent a while there.

“honestly, the amount of coffee i’m drinking this month, is crazy.” you laughed, while tom nodded, agreeing with you.

“well, at least our energy will be good.” tom smiled, but you noticed how for a slight second in his eyes, he zoned out.

“tom,” you spoke softly, bringing him out of his thoughts, “what’s on your mind?”

tom sighed, “do you remember when i told you about, my d-dad?”

you nodded, waiting for him to continue. when tom was younger, his dad worked for the fbi, which is quite ironic. he worked in the same department, that we work in now. he was a special agent, with carson. but, one time, he was undercover, and while his team where listening in over comms, it cut off. they couldn’t hear him. they couldn’t track him. he just...went. they didn’t find anything, to prove he was dead. they found, nothing. tom was heartbroken. even at a young age. so, he followed his dad’s footsteps, and became an agent himself.

“well, today is the day he, you know, went missing.” he gulped, as sorrow swallowed him.

“oh my god, tom. i-i didn’t realise, i’m sorry.”

“no. it’s okay, i never told you to exact date. i wanted to go out though, to try and take my mind off it, you know. but, i just can’t help it you know. when he went missing, we looked for months and found nothing. people say he’s dead, but i just have a feeling that he isn’t.”

you placed your hand on top of his, “tom, if john was here i don’t think he would want you beating yourself up on what you could of done to find him, okay? he would want you to live your life.”

“y/n,” tom whispered, “i have a feeling that he’s in new york.”

your eyes went wide, “that’s just a feeling tom. you don’t know if it’s true.”

“i know, but i feel like i’m being watched all the time, and i can’t help but think, could it be him?”

you were about to responded, but a waiter came over to pour us both more coffee, before walking away after we said thank you.

“tom, listen to me. after the case, if it will help ease your mind, we can look for him. see if he’s in new york. you’ve probably done it before, but maybe i could help? i’m sorry if i’m overstepping-“

“no, i-i would like you to help. it’ll be good for a new set of eyes.”

you smiled, looking away from tom’s adoring gaze. you just wanted these weeks to be over, so you can officially be with him.

“shall we go shopping now?” tom asked, making you laugh.

“you hate shopping.”

“for you darling, i’ll love it.” tom grinned, making you swoon. walking around the small, yet homely, shop you were currently in, you admired the variety of objects. everything you could think off, was there. it was almost as you were thrifting, but not for clothes.

you picked up a necklace, studying the variety of sparkly gems in the rose gold chain. you noticed that there was a little charm, in a shape of a heart with your initial on it. you thought it was a coincidence, put saw a stack of them, with different letters on.

“found anything?” tom mumbled, walking up beside you.

you showed him the necklace, which made him smile slightly. he took it off you,

un-clipping the chain before looking at you. he moved your hair gently out of the way, as you turned around with your back against his chest. you hissed slightly, as the cold metal met your skin, but soon felt warmth overcome you, once you felt tom’s fingers graze the back of your neck, as he was tying the necklace once again. you blushed, turning back around, to come face to face with tom.

“it suits you really well.” tom grinned, looking down at your lips for a second before bringing his gaze up to your eyes, again.

“he’s not wrong there,” a man said (obviously the shop owner) while you laughed saying thank you, “are you thinking of buying it?”

you shook your head, “no.”

“nonsense, i’ll get it for you.” tom spoke, already handing the man money.

“tom. it’s fine.”

“no. i want to buy it for you, because you deserve it, okay?”

giggling you replied with an ‘okay.’

“you two make a lovely couple.” the man said, while you and tom looked at each other smiling.

“we do, don’t we?” tom whispered, so only you could hear. you glanced at him, admiring his features, while he did the same. a slight cough, from the man, interrupted you both, as you looked away quickly.

“have a lovely day.” the man spoke, handing tom the necklace. you both said your thanks, before leaving.

“wait, let me put this on you.” tom spoke, once you got out of the shop. once again, you moved your hair while tom clipped the necklace into place. your breath hitched, once you felt tom’s lips against your bare shoulder, before you turned around with a wide smile.

“i can’t wait for this to be over, you know?” tom spoke, as you both walked down the busy streets of new york. people around you, where walking quickly, speaking loudly on the phone or to the person next to them. but, you and tom weren’t in any rush. so, just casually strolling down the street, was just fine for you both.

you nodded, looking at your feet, “me too. but, do you not think we’ve jumped too far into the deep end, too quickly?”

tom frowned slightly, glancing at you, before looking at his feet as well, “well, us arguing all the time, after we broke up just kind of proved how much we missed each other. you have to admit, even when not together, there was always an unspoken feeling. a spark.”

“i guess your right. i just,” you stopped abruptly, “i don’t want our second time, to end up as our first time.”

tom stopped in front of you, “i totally get that, y/n-“

“no,” you interrupted, “you mean too much to me. i don’t want it to be ruined. what we have, is so special. i don’t want it to fall apart.”

“it won’t fall apart. because, this time, you know for definite how i will never cheat on you.”

“what about actually starting a life together? what if, in another 5 years time, we aren’t living fully?”

tom’s breath hitched at your words. he still hasn’t told you, how he did propose, but you didn’t see it. he looked at his feet again, as he felt the velvet box in his jacket. he’s never got rid of it. and he’s always kept hold of it. he doesn’t know why. he just feels attached to it. and he hoped that he will be able to use it. and for you to actually see it. but, it’s not the right time. yet.

“come on. let’s go back to the apartment, yeah?”

you gave him a puzzled look, as he ignored your questions, but you soon brushed it off as you drove back to your shared apartment.

arriving back at the apartment, tom poured you both a glass of water, while you checked the footage from today, to see if you missed anything. even though this was your day off, the red dragons will still be working. you both watched in silence, only the gulps from drinking and the voices from the monitor, filling your ears.

“do you really trust the kingston’s?” a man asked keith. you and tom shot your head up, at the sound of your ‘names’.

“what time was this at?” tom asked.

“it’s live.” you replied, after looking at the time and date in the top corner.

“what do you mean?” keith asked, placing bullets in his gun.

“do you think it’s strange that they came in as soon as you asked a question? just seems as they were waiting.”

your eyes went wide, as did tom’s. could this be how your cover gets blown?

“well, if your so scared, why don’t we bring them in?”

before you could comprehend what he said, you phone beeped. you looked at tom, who was waiting to see the text.

unknown

come to the warehouse now. we need to chat.

you showed tom, as you both got ready, making sure to hide your badge super well, so your cover won’t get blown. you stopped, as you felt your phone buzz in your pocket. pulling it out, your breath hitched at what it read.

unknown

don’t bring the husband.

you gulped, showing tom. you watched how his face fell at the words. panic grew in his eyes, as he looked at you. he knew you could look after yourself, but he would rather be there. these people were unpredictable as well as dangerous, and if our cover is blown, he has no idea what will happen. one wrong move could be fatal. for you both.

“y/n-“

you shushed him, placing your gun in the back pocket, “i’ve been undercover on my own before. i know what to do.”

“i know. but, not with people this dangerous.”

“we haven’t got time to argue. i’m going in.”

tom sighed, shaking slightly as he tried not to think of the worst possible scenario, “o-okay, erm, here put this on.”

he gave you a small ear piece. you rolled your eyes, placing it in your ear, as tom spoke ‘testing’ into the microphone. you gave him a thumbs up, making tom grin slightly. walking over to him, you stood on your toes, and kissed tom’s cheek softly, to calm his nerves, as well as your own.

“if you feel uncomfortable or feel like something is going to happen, say the phrase, ‘the weather is nice today’, and the whole force will come through the door, okay?”

you placed a hand on his chest, nodding, “okay.”

“i don’t want anything bad to happen to you.” tom whispered, making your heart ache. bringing your fingers to chin, you moved his head to meet your eyes.

“i’ll be fine tom. i promise. i’ll be in and out.”

tom nodded, still unsure about if he should follow or not. but, before he could think about it even more, you already left, walking across the street to the warehouse. tom watched carefully, on the computer screen, your every movement.

“so much for a day off.” you mumbled, so only tom could hear. you heard tom stifle a laugh, before agreeing with you.

knocking on the door, you looked up at the cctv camera where you knew tom was watching. the door swung open, to reveal keith, with a cigarette in his mouth as per usual.

“ahhh, amelia. husband isn’t here is he?” keith asked, blowing smoke right in your face. you didn’t flinch though, just shrugged.

“you told me not to bring him. so i didn’t.”

keith nodded, waving his hand in the air, probably signalling someone. you guess was right, as two men appeared, with no emotion in their faces.

“come in.”

as you walked in, a loud squeak was heard in your earpiece. trying to ignore the noise, you followed keith.

meanwhile, tom couldn’t hear you. he couldn’t see where you were. somehow, all signals from inside the red dragons den, was stopped. you were on radio silence. and tom didn’t know what to do. his mind went to when his dad went missing. this is exactly what happened with him.

tom sat down. he couldn’t think straight. his mind was racing. are you dead? are you missing? he couldn’t breath. he’s empty without you. even though, it’s took a long time for him to realise.

“shit.” tom muttered, realisation hitting him like a train.

is this the end?

————

a/n- thanks for reading chapter 7! i can’t believe there’s only three chapters left :( have you been enjoying it?

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taglist-

@parkersbliss @dreamofaprilsblog

@deathofmissjackson @averyfosterthoughts

@jannine00742

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[mediaeval-muse]

Book Review

A Touch of Stone and Snow. By Milla Vane. New York: Jove, 2020.

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

Genre: fantasy romance

Part of a Series? Yes, A Gathering of Dragons #2

Summary: Danger lurks in the western realms. The Destroyer’s imminent return has sent the realms into turmoil as desperate citizens seek refuge—but there’s no safety to be found when demons and wraiths crawl out from the shadows. Even Koth, a northern island kingdom left untouched by the Destroyer a generation past, is besieged by terrors spawned from corrupt magics.

When Lizzan leads the Kothan army against these terrors, only to see her soldiers massacred and to emerge as the only survivor, she is called a coward and a deserter. Shunned from her home, Lizzan now wanders in solitude as a mercenary for hire, until she encounters a group of warriors seeking new alliances with the northern kingdoms—a group that includes Aerax, the bastard prince of Koth, and the man who sent her into exile. Though they were childhood friends, Aerax cannot allow himself to be close to the only woman who might thwart his treacherous plan to save their island realm. But when a goddess's demand binds them together, Lizzan and Aerax must find a way to overcome their painful pasts. Or there will be no future for the western realms.

***Full review under the cut.***

Trigger Warnings: sexual content, violence, blood, references to rape

Overview: I learned of this book while I was browsing Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. I’m usually hesitant to pick up dark fantasy novels, but the site gave this one a positive review, so I took a chance on it. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by some aspects of this book: the worldbuilding was way more involved than I thought it would be, and the author made her world dark and violent without relying on brutalizing women. However, I didn’t rate this book higher because I did feel overwhelmed by all the information I had to keep track of. Moreover, I felt that there was a lot of information, but very little actual plot, so I had a hard time being invested in the story. Maybe that’s because I started with the second book in this series, rather than the first (but then again, it’s romance, which usually doesn’t require you to read a series in order). I will be writing this review as someone who didn’t read book one, so perhaps my evaluations would have been different if I had started with A Heart of Blood and Ashes, but it is what it is.

Writing: Vane’s prose is somewhat odd. On the one hand, I thought it did a good job evoking the grim setting. On the other hand, Vane uses some archaic constructions, which tended to sound formal and frequently pulled me out of the story. Not only would characters generally avoid contractions, end their phrases with a verb (like Yoda’s speech), and use constructions like “I know not” or “I thank you,” but the narration/omniscient narrator would use the same linguistic patterns to describe events and character emotions. This got especially awkward during more intimate scenes, when the formal quality of the prose didn’t seem to jive with the passionate romance.

Vane also has the tendency to throw a lot of worldbuilding at the reader without much scaffolding. Names of characters and places are mentioned that don’t have much relevance to the events at hand, so I often felt like a lot of things were being dumped onto me in order to give the impression that Vane had put a lot of work into creating her world (which I don’t doubt she did - it just wasn’t communicated in a way I found helpful). There were also awkwardly placed chapters where characters would communicate lore or backstory through lengthy conversations, rather than through something more engaging, like a flashback. It made for a lot of infodumping, which I didn’t find to be a particularly enjoyable reading experience.

Plot: I don’t know how to describe the plot of this book other than too much and not enough happens at the same time. In terms of all the non-romantic threads, there is a lot at stake: the book begins with the need for a number of kingdoms needing to make alliances - a figure called the Destroyer is rumored to be returning to the area, which threatens the lives of everyone in these kingdoms. While negotiations take place, representatives from the kingdom of Koth plead for aid - a few years ago, their army battled some bandits led by a sorcerer called Goranik (who has significant history with the princess/heir apparent of one of the kingdoms negotiating the alliance). This battle resulted in the total slaughter of most of the Kothian troops, save for one survivor (Lizzan - our heroine). The Kothans point out that last time the Destroyer was in the area, he never conquered Koth, and it is suspected this is because Koth is protected by divine magic. So, it is argued that Koth could be a refuge for people fleeing the Destroyer, but they need aid to fend off the remaining bandits, who have stayed in the area surrounding the kingdom. Lizzan reveals that her troops were killed because the bandits were accompanied by wraiths, and she alone was spared because of a mysterious magical amulet, which could be the key to protecting everyone from the Destroyer. Aerax, our hero, supports an alliance, but also does not believe that Koth is protected by divine magic (to say the least). As a result, he is contemplating a full scale evacuation of Koth, and toys with the idea of letting the entire kingdom sink into the lake that surrounds it - for secret reasons (you’ll have to read to find out). Lizzan - who has been exiled because the Kothans don’t believe she encountered wraiths at all, but was a coward and hid in battle - takes a divine quest in order to restore honor to her family’s name, and this quest involves being close to Aerax, with whom she has a complicated history. They were once childhood friends, and later lovers, but haven’t seen each other since Lizzan was exiled. There are a lot of bitter feelings between them, as Aerax didn’t speak up for her at Lizzan’s trial, nor did he follow her into exile. Moreover, Aerax is now the heir apparent to Koth, and is duty-bound to return, but Lizzan can’t, because of her exile.

It’s a lot.

I’m not against a complex fantasy plot, but where this book went wrong for me was the lack of events that actually built on one another. Most of the book is spent travelling and talking - people talk at the alliance negotiation, they talk on the road and unload a bunch of lore and worldbuilding, they talk about their pasts and how they got where they are. In terms of things that actually happen, the plot is rather sparse. The only events that held my attention were when the party arrives at a monastery that’s filled with spooky things, and the ending. Other than that, there wasn’t really a sense of suspense. We also never really got scenes of characters investigating magical knowledge or engaging in political intrigue, things that show them piecing together the puzzle to defeat the big bad in a way that was compelling, so those storylines felt less like a part of a narrative and more like an infodump.

I personally would have liked to see the story be a bit more limited in scope. I think the Destroyer stuff detracted from the narrative; just focusing on the plot that concerns the wraiths and the gods would have been sufficient. Most of what happens in this book could have been the same - Aerax is named heir and goes in search of help because bandits are surrounding his kingdom. He finds Lizzan, and so on and so on.

Characters: Lizzan, our heroine, is an exiled mercenary with survivor’s guilt. I took an instant liking to her because she fits an archetype that we usually only see in male characters: she’s a gruff loner who drinks heavily, bouncing from job to job to make enough money to drink some more. Unlike some male counterparts, Lizzan isn’t a jerk - though she could be rough, Lizzan always seemed to care about the people around her, and part of what I liked most was that she decided to be a warrior in order to protect people, not because she wanted honor or rejected more “feminine” roles.

Aerax, our hero, likewise surprised me in that he’s got plenty of angst himself, but never takes it out on other people. He does that thing where he’ll only answer people with a grunt, but he never seemed prone to nonsensical violence and often acted selflessly. I appreciated that he never crossed any boundaries that Lizzan set, nor did he act possessive. The main thing I found strange about him, however, was the sense that he was holding something back. The story would constantly say things like how he was putting up a calm facade to hide how dangerous he really was, or that he had to restrain himself during intimate scenes. I was therefore constantly questioning whether Aerax possessed some kind of magical power that made him threatening, or if this was just a way to make him seem more masculine and thrilling.

Aerax has an animal companion named Caeb. Caeb is a saber-toothed snow lion, who mainly acts like a huge housecat who can understand human speech. Caeb was responsible for some of the sweeter moments in this book, as he would occasionally butt up against Lizzan and purr or push Lizzan and Aerax together.

Supporting characters were numerous, and in general, I think they were varied and interesting. My favorite was Sari, a young warrior who wants to prove herself. She’s pretty adorable in the process. However, I also think that because of the complex plot, there wasn’t room for them to shine.

Other:

Worldbuilding: Despite not having a pleasant experience with infodumping, I do think Vane’s worldbuilding is intriguing. I liked that the world was filled with jungles and animals that seemed to be out of the prehistoric period, rather than being set in the fake European Middle Ages. I also really liked the mythological stories that characters told about their gods, which reminded me of a lot of folklore, and that women were present in every sector of society (in other words, they weren’t confined to the household or the church/temple). Vane also didn’t rely on misogynistic violence to make her world seem “gritty,” so that was also a big plus.

I mostly wish that Vane had reigned in her worldbuilding a bit more. Despite being an interesting world, Vane had the tendency to overdo it by giving the reader info that wasn’t relevant. I also got the feeling that the rules of the world weren’t well-established. By that I mean that once I thought I’d gotten a handle on what the world was like, Vane would introduce another bit of lore that would throw me for a loop (for example: surprise! there are dragons!).

Romance: I’m usually all about a story about rekindling a relationship, but I don’t quite think this romance resonated with me. On the surface, I do think the stakes were sufficiently high: Aerax had to return to Koth, but Lizzan couldn’t accompany him due to their exile. I also thought the childhood friends to lovers background, as well as the sense of betrayal resulting from Aerax’s failure to speak up for Lizzan and follow her into exile, built some sufficient angst.

However, I also think that Aerax and Lizzan got intimate a little too quickly, and tended to participate in sexual activities at fairly inappropriate moments. Although they were lovers before Lizzan’s exile, Lizzan makes a good point that the two of them barely know each other anymore. I’m not shaming anyone for having sex with a stranger (that’s a personal decision, and I’m not here to judge), but I do think the process of re-falling in love before becoming intimate could have been a nice arc.

I did, however, like the angle that Vane took about the two of them challenging each other emotionally - as people. Lizzan insists that she doesn’t want other people to make decisions for her, yet Aerax points out that Lizzan has a tendency to make decisions for other people, even though it comes from the genuine desire to protect others. For example, Lizzan is angry that Aerax withheld information from her to protect her, yet Lizzan herself does the same thing to others. I liked that Vane handled this without suggesting that Lizzan was a hypocrite, and that her relationship with Aerax set her on a path to self-improvement.

Overall, my first foray into the fantasy romance genre was up and down. While I liked the ideas that Vane featured in her book, I wish the narrative had been tighter and the language more updated.