#oh the pattern along the sides of his legs are actually CUTOUTS

[medi-melancholy]

old art and still wip outfit but g o d. still one of my fav oc designs. i gave this manlet SO much gender

[tiredofthehumanlife]

Wtf is even a muse?

Barbie dolls: regulus black x reader

Words: barely 900

Summary: you always wanted to be the muse not the artist turns out you already were

Warnings: reader is an artist, over usage of the word muse but that's pretty much it

You loved your quiet time with Regulus. Interacting with other people, even in silence, was draining. But not with Regulus. It was different with him. On the walls of the courtyard, sitting in the cutout along the corridor. You liked staring out into the courtyard and watching the breeze. Regulus liked sitting across from you with his knees pulled up and his sketchbook in his lap. You liked spending quiet time with him more than others bc he still interacted with you. Regulus always had some part of himself touching you. His foot tucked under your leg, his calf pressed against your thigh, his knee to yours, whatever you would give him really. It felt like he was still reminding you he appreciated you being there even if you hadn't spoken in hours.

You watched two first years wrestling across the yard. You then noticed another student with a canvas set up, painting away. Sitting in front of them was truly a beautiful student but you were more focused on the fact the artist was painting their muse. You squinted and pressed your lips together.

"You know I actually always wanted to be a muse. Like for an artist." You said as you kept your eyes following the swaying grass. Regulus glanced up from his sketchbook. He paused his drawing to watch you.

"Yeah?" You nodded, turning your head to face him. You gave him a small smile.

"Yeah but I always ended up the artist instead. I don't know I guess I'm just not muse material." You shrugged and looked back at the wrestlers. You didn't really mean it to sound sad. You were just talking really, yammering about bc you hadn't spoken in so long you felt like your throat would close. Regulus heard it though, the small bit out discomfort in your voice.

"I'm sure you're someone's muse." He said as he looked back down at his sketch. Regulus' pencil was scraping against the paper in a rhythmic pattern. If he wasnt talking your ear off, god shut up Regulus, you would've fallen alseep.

"Oh haha." Regulus jerked his head up at you, now just confused.

"I'm being serious." He regretted the words the second he said them. The way you turned your head with a growing grin revealed your plan to him immediately.

"Thought that was your brother." Regulus glared at you as you laughed at your own joke. You complimented yourself, giving a high-five to yourself, before looking back at the first years.

"I was being genuine, though. I'm 100% certain you're someone's muse." Regulus rolled his eyes before looking back at his paper. He was truly just annoyed for show, Regulus would spend his very last breath reassuring you. You shrugged and ignored his presence. You were getting uncomfortable with the vulnerability. The courtyard would never betray you with gross human emotions.

"Actually I know you're someone's muse." Regulus muttered. You rolled your eyes.

"Hey did you ever finish that astronomy assignment?" Regulus glared at you. He raised an eyebrow, telling you he knew exactly what you were doing.

"You're not going to ask? No that's okay I'll just forget we ever talked about this and never give you that information." Regulus said, shrugging as he focused back on his paper. You sighed and dropped your head to the side.

You had found Regulus sitting under a tree, reading his book. So you laid in the sun near him, without a word, and took a nap. Just being around him was relaxing. Soon enough you heard Regulus moving around, you thought he was planning on getting up. You turned your head, to find him pulling out his sketchbook. You rolled your eyes and smiled. Of course that's what he was doing. Regulus asked you what you were laughing at. You shrugged and looked back to him. His cheeks were pink, from the sun, you assumed. Regulus gave you a gentle smile. One that he was fighting, trying to push down his lips again. His pencil started moving against the paper. You smiled at the familiar sound, closing your eyes again.

"Fine. Go on then, who do I muse-ify?" Regulus shook his head at your made up word. He gently set down his pencil next to him. Regulus pulled his sketchbook up before turning it around.

There, over ever inch of the page, was you. Your face was turned to the side, still sitting in the position you were now. Obviously what Regulus was working on now. You were stunned, it was beautiful. His lines and shading and smudges, all his effort to replicate you to his page, was amazing. Regulus gently reached out and turned the page to the one before. You again. You were smiling wide, this one had watercolor. Regulus paid attention to the shirt you wearing, getting particularly meticulous with the pattern. He turned the page again. Shockingly it was you. You were laying down in this one. On your back in the grass. You remembered what this was from.

Regulus showed you more pages, each one a different version of you. You stopped looking at the drawings eventually. Your eyes drifting up to Regulus. He spent so long recreating you, just because he thought you looked like art.

For the first time, Regulus was the artist, you were the muse. You never even knew. Regulus looked up from his art, he found your bright smile staring back at him. He crooked his head to the side, very confused. You moved to sit next to Regulus. You scooted as close to him as you could, your body pressing into his. You pecked his cheek before leaning your head in his shoulder. Regulus turned his head, smiling into your hair.

[mcwriting]

The Marriage Project (6)

Heyyy guys! Sorry this has taken so long to get out. Even though I have a lot of chapters written, I’m in the process of overhauling some later chapters and I’m trying to make sure I don’t conflict anything in these earlier chaps. Also I’ve been sooooo busy :(

Also: if you haven’t seen my recent kim possible au, definitely check it out!

Story Masterlist

Word Count: 2307

Warnings: none that I can think of this chapter

% Approximately the 2nd week of October %

Monday you continued to shut down and deflect dumb rumors about you and Tom. The rumors had exploded over the weekend since some had noticed the way Tom pointed you out before his game and walked with you after.

But it was all innocent, right?

In home ec, you started a sewing project of making a pajama set. 

As always, Mrs. Flynn had tied it into the marriage project, requiring that couples sewed each others’ garments and made the fabrics compliment each other. If everything turned out right, the couples would have to wear them during their final presentations.

You laid on the floor over the fabric you’d chosen as Tom marked your hem length for the pants, the main part of the pattern already cut out.

“This Friday is your last home volleyball game, right?” Tom questioned as he rubbed chalk on the fabric.

“Yeah, I know. Crazy, right? It’s been half of my school life longer than I’ve known you. Just like that, it’ll be pretty much over.”

“Have any big plans for your senior night, then?”

You sat up and got off the fabric so Tom could cut it.

“Well, I’m probably gonna do my hair and makeup since they’ll take pictures before the game, and then after we win I’m going out to dinner with my family. My extended fam is coming to town. If they weren’t gonna be here I’d drive over to the football game.”

You laid out the fabric for Tom’s pants and waited for him to lay on it, preparing to do the same as him.

The football game was against the other public school in your town, which was essentially your biggest rival, and this year it was at their field.

“You won’t get to see me win, princess? That’s just sad. I’ll be at your game for at least the beginning. I just have to be over there an hour and a half before kickoff, but it’s not till 7:30. My mom wants to shoot pics so you’ll probably see her.”

Tom laid down.

“Oh yeah? Based on the football pictures I’ve seen, I’m excited for her volleyball shots. By the way, how did the pictures she took this weekend turn out? I haven’t had real pictures like that taken of me since I was probably 3.”

You leaned forward to mark the fabric, but first had to move Tom’s leg to the right position.

“Haven’t seen them. She never shows me pictures until she’s done editing. I also can’t relate to the other thing. She’s had a camera pointed at all of us since the day we were born. I get it, though, it is her career.”

Tom got up and you both went to sit by the sewing machine you’d set up, pinning the fabric cutouts into individual pant leg tubes.

“Tell her I’ll be her subject matter any time, champ. I actually had a lot of fun doing it.”

“WIll do. And you’re really gonna stick with champ?” he asked.

“I don’t know. Kinda rolls off the tongue.”

By the end of class you’d both finished and tried on the pants, and you were surprised at how well Tom had done on yours.

Wednesday, you made the shirts, which, since they were custom made, fit just about perfectly, too. As per usual, you got an A.

%

Friday morning, you dreaded and looked forward to the afternoon. Like, yeah, you were excited to be recognized for your years of hard work, but you didn’t want it to be over either. 

You looked in the mirror, butterflies in your stomach. 

Since it was chilly, you wore some ripped skinny jeans and a dressy long sleeved top with pink flowers. Your hair was straightened and glittery makeup adorned your face. 

You were interested to see how people would react to the more traditionally “girly” side of you at school.

Even your parents were surprised to see you all dressed up as you said your goodbyes and headed out the door.

In the halls, people pointed and stared, but it wasn’t accusatory like the prior week. Instead, people complimented the look and congratulated you on the upcoming evening.

You walked into calculus, flicking your hair over your shoulder as you sat down next to Tom.

“Wow. Finally decided to go for it, huh?”

“Yeah, well. I thought about our conversation a couple weeks ago and decided to dress for myself. It’s been pretty well received so far.”

“Princess, I’m pretty sure people are gonna like you no matter what you’re wearing.”

You smiled and rolled your eyes, preparing to reply when you were cut off by the bell and the start of announcements.

As your game got closer throughout the day, the pit in your stomach grew deeper. You spent the entire free period talking to coach in her classroom to get your mind off the upcoming game.

“Y/n, I know you’re nervous, but this is going to be the best night of your entire volleyball career. I know you and know that you’re gonna crush it. That whole team looks up to you and Anna. I haven’t seen a pair of such magnetic personalities leading my team in years. I’m proud to call myself your coach.”

You gave a watery smile.

“Thank you, coach. I’ve loved having you mentor me these last four years. I promise I won’t just forget about you after tonight.”

“Well you better not. We still have regionals and state the next two weeks,” she joked. “Now bring it in, kid. I don’t want anyone seeing me be a softie.”

You quickly hugged. Once separating, she took on a serious face.

“Now go run along, eat a snack or whatever it is you do before games,” she said seriously, before cracking one more smile and tossing you a wink.

%

You stood outside the gym nervously, flanked by your parents. 

They were about to walk you out and present you for the final time. 

Anna was walking through the gym now with her parents and siblings as people cheered in the stands, and there were nervous flutters in your stomach.

Finally, someone waved you along. You stepped into the large gym and saw the massive crowd cheering and clapping. All of your friends and family were in the stands.

You also noticed Tom in the crowd. He wasn’t overtly clapping and yelling like everyone else, but he did put up a thumb and shoot you a wink when you made eye contact.

As the announcer listed off things from the senior night sheet you had filled out, you found yourself holding back tears, thinking about all the memories you had of the sport.

A few slipped out and you quickly wiped them away so Nikki could come take a couple pictures of your family.

After the announcer finished up, your parents went to join your extended family in the stands as you warmed up on your home court one last time.

After winning the first two sets, you sat on the bench, ready to win one last one as you noticed Tom slip out the gym, giving one final wave.

You quickly pushed his absence out of your mind however, when you got behind the back line and put an ace down on the first serve.

%

Sam opened his front door for you the next day.

Of course, you had won the night before, shed a few tears, and enjoyed the time with your family, who you’d said bye to before going to the Hollands’.

“Hey, y/n. Good game last night. You and Anna crushed it.”

“Thanks, Sam. Julia was amazing, too. Without her, we’d never have good passes to set and hit.”

Sam agreed and talked to you for a little bit when you thought of something.

“Oh, hey. Where’s your mom? I wanted to talk to her.”

“Um, I think she’s in her office. Let’s go check.”

He led you to a part of the house you’d never been, and sure enough, Nikki was sat in front of a large desktop computer, a picture of you jump serving on the screen.

“That’s an incredible shot!”

She startled a bit and turned her chair to face you.

“Oh! Y/n, you scared me. Come on in! I was just going through the pictures I took at yours and Tom’s games last night. While you’re here, let me show you the ones I took last Saturday.”

She minimized the tab she was working on and pulled up a file, the first picture being a black and white shot of you looking down at a notebook, writing.

“Woah. That’s beautiful,” you breathed, looking at every little detail.

“Thank you, that means a lot. You can scroll through them all, if you like. I’m going to go find Tom, I think I heard him and Harry arguing not too long ago.”

You chuckled as she left, looking at each photo. Some she kept in color and others were in black and white. You stopped on the picture of you and Tom laughing at each other.

Your faces were lit up in genuine happiness, and you felt a pang in your chest as you burned the photo into your memory. You quickly changed it when you heard footsteps approaching.

“Hey, sorry. Harry was being an ass. You like the pictures?”

“Yeah, they’re incredible. I’d love to have some of them.” you said, scrolling through the last few.

“I’ll ask her to put some of those on the flashdrive she’s making you. She was planning on just putting all the pictures from last week to tomorrow on one if you’re good with it.”

“Oh, yeah. No rush. Ready to go upstairs?”

“Yeah, sure,” he replied as you picked up your backpack from the floor and followed him. He continued. “So I hear you guys won last night. Way to end on the best note possible.”

“Yeah, it was a bittersweet night. What about you? I never heard anything about the game.”

“Oh, we won. Not much to it, but it was a tough game.”

Tom closed the door behind him and immediately went to his desk. He pulled out a piece of chocolate and tossed it to you as you sat down.

You worked together for a while, then decided to take a break, just sprawled across the floor on your backs a couple feet apart.

You glanced over at Tom, who was messing around with his necklace.

“Can I ask you something?” you said quietly.

“Hmm?”

“What’s with your necklace? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you take it off.”

Tom was quiet for a few minutes, rolling his plastic ring in his fingers.

“My grandad, my dad’s dad, gave it to me a few years ago before he passed. It’s just a saint’s symbol for protection. It was basically his way of saying he’d always be there for me. He was one of the best people in my life, and I wear it to remember him. It also helps me stay grounded sometimes, when I’m anxious or sad.”

You listened intently and looked at Tom for a while, who was just staring straight at the ceiling. There were tons of questions racing through your head, but you narrowed them down to one.

“Why did you put your, uh, ‘wedding’ ring on there, then? I don’t feel like I deserve to be next to him.”

Tom smiled and let out a breath through his nose, then looked right at you.

“Well I definitely wasn’t going to wear it on my finger. At first, I did it just to piss you off, because I could tell that you didn’t like it. But… I don’t know, I just… kept it as a reminder of everything we’ve been through. We still call each other enemies but honestly, I’ve started to consider you one of my closest friends.”

You scanned his face, grinning slightly. Over the past week and a half his bruises had pretty much faded, a little bit of yellow lingering around his cheek and his lip pink with new skin. 

You noticed his hand close by and laid yours on top of it, stroking your thumb over the tops of his fingers.

“Yeah… yeah,” was all you could manage to whisper out loud. 

After a few moments, Tom flipped his hand, pressing your palms together and curling his fingers around yours. All you could manage to do was stare at each other in silence, unsure of what to think or how to act. 

You were startled out of it when there was a knock at the door. Your hands quickly pulled away from each others’ as the door creaked open and you sat up. It was Nikki.

“Sorry to bug you two, but I was just gonna come ask what time would be good for you tomorrow, y/n? We need enough time to get there and take the sports pictures during the day but I think golden hour would be perfect if you wanted to bring another outfit and take regular pictures.”

“Okay, yeah. Whatever time you think. I’m free all day.”

“Well I was thinking we leave here by two so we get there at three and have plenty of time before it gets fully dark around eight. My parents would love to have you for dinner, too.”

“Sounds good with me. I’ll make sure to pack a dress or something to change into.”

“Alright, well I’ll let you get back to it, just wanted to ask before I forgot again.”

Once she shut the door, you let out a breath you didn’t know you’d been holding. You looked to Tom, who seemed just as uncomfortable about everything as you were.

“Okay then, let’s finish up,” you suggested, waking your computer back up.

%

A/N: once again, so sorry it has taken this long to upload ch 6! I’m so excited for y’all to see ch 7 tho like I literally love it. Anyways, I really want to get on a more consistent upload schedule but I also want this story to be the best it can be and school is making that so hard rn

Don’t forget to check out my new work and hopefully I’ll have another one-shot out soon, too!

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