#or on-head since she had it stashed away in her hat

[reminiscingtonight]

Call Ups

Millie Turner x Reader

Word Count: 1k

[WOSO Masterlist]

It’s quiet when she gets home.

Millie hadn’t wanted to go out. But a combination of her sudden lack of necessities and your pestering had her driving to the nearby store minutes after she returned home from London. You hadn’t even let her in the house, simply scooping her bag off her shoulder before ushering her out. Millie would have been more offended if she hadn’t really needed to take the trip. Leave it to the girls to finish up the last of her shampoo after the game today, leaving Millie scrambling to replenish her stash before driving out to St. George’s in two day’s time.

The call up took her off guard. Leah obviously sat out the match against United earlier today, but Millie hadn’t known the severity of her injury or the caution that would be exuded until Sarina called when the bus was already on the way back to Manchester.

Millie’s nose twitches, the familiar smell of her favorite meal wafting towards her. She toes off her shoes, taking a pit stop to throw the bottle into her bag before making her way towards the dining room. 

The entire time Millie’s expecting you to jump out a corner, congratulate her, kiss her, or really anything at all. But the house is suspiciously quiet and you’re nowhere to be seen. 

When she rounds the corner, however, it’s a whole different story.

She doesn’t even get to take two steps into the dining room. 

“Congratulations!”

You’re beaming, smiling cheek to cheek, party hat sat slightly askew on your head. In your hand is a tiny cupcake, a crudely frosted football drawn on top. Behind you Millie can see the full course meal you’ve prepared for her, everything so thoughtful and pure down to the candles on the table and the roses set in the middle.

It’s clear you’ve been preparing this since Millie texted you about her sudden call up. 

You always do your best to attend her games, but it’s beyond ridiculous for her to expect you to drop everything to travel three hours just to watch her play. She didn’t even entertain the idea, sweetly kissing away the frown on your face when you had tried to work out the logistics of rushing after your morning shift to the game last night when you guys were in bed. It took a bit of convincing, but you finally agreed to just watching her on the TV this afternoon. 

There’s no mistaking the warm feeling that spreads in her chest at the effort you’ve gone through to make her call up special.

“You’re a goof. You didn’t have to do this.” Millie plucks the cupcake out of your hand, swiping her finger through the frosting to get a tiny taste of the sugar. 

You roll your eyes, ignoring the urge to tell her off for being so unsanitary. “It’s not every day your superstar girlfriend gets called up to represent the country’s football team.”

“I’m probably not even going to play. I’m only going because they need someone to replace Leah.”

“Don’t say that,” you scold. 

When Millie continues to avoid your eyes you sigh. Taking a step closer to her, you take the cupcake right out of her hands, placing it down on the table before pulling Millie’s face between both of your hands. 

“You are an exceptional football player.”

“I’m not that good.”

“Repeat after me.”

Millie pulls a face.

“Repeat after me,” you say again, raising an eyebrow up in challenge.

It’s clear that she’s not getting out of this until she does as you say. You can be stubborn when you put your mind to something. Millie sighs. “Fine.”

It’s cute the way your face instantly lights up when she agrees. 

“You are an exceptional football player. You’ve worked hard. You deserve this call up.”

Millie flushes red, mouth awkwardly flattening at your words of praise.

“Millie,” you huff. “Say it.”

“I’m an exceptional football player,” she mutters, avoiding all eye contact. Millie winces when you poke her cheek when she fails to continue. 

“I’ve worked hard.”

“And?” you prompt, turning Millie to face you again when she attempts to get out of your grip.

She sighs, knowing you’re not going to give up until she does as you ask. “I deserve this call up.”

“Yes you do.” Grinning, you reward her by pecking lightly at her lips. 

Millie can’t help but smile when you pull away. You always seem to have this sort of effect on her.

“My girlfriend’s a kickass football player who’s going to wow everyone at camp. You’re going to show Sarina exactly why you deserve to be called up every international break.”

“Stop,” Millie whines, blushing again at your compliments. 

You wave away her embarrassment, simply ushering her into her seat instead. 

It isn’t until later that night, after the meal has been finished, after you’ve properly congratulated your girlfriend that you give her your second surprise. 

You’re busy getting comfortable in Millie’s arms when you suddenly raise your head. 

Millie instantly notices the mischievous glint in your eyes. 

“Babe, I’m a professional athlete and all that but I don’t think I could go for another round.”

You roll your eyes, taking advantage of her exposed skin to pinch at her side. Millie squirms but she can’t quite break out of your hold.

“Get your head out of the gutter, Turner.”

“I can tell you’re scheming!” she defends.

“If by scheming you mean graciously changing my flights, then you’d be correct.”

Millie blinks, mouth suddenly running dry. “You… what?”

The two of you had planned to go somewhere nice and sunny over the international break, making use of her time off during the season. Obviously that was no longer going to happen with her set to wear the Lionesses crest in the coming days. But you couldn’t possibly mean…

You give her a sly smirk. “I heard Spain’s nice this time of year. And I do happen to have the next two weeks off.”

You’re not able to stop the squeal that escapes your mouth when Millie engulfs you in the tightest hug she can give.

[thatlovinfeelin]

He Don't Like The Lights | Bradley Bradshaw Actor AU|

Waiting tables wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t your favorite job either. Not that you hated it, because you didn’t. For the most part you liked your coworkers, your roommate Celeste being one of them. Your bosses weren’t horrible, and the pay was alright. You were able to pay your bills and stash some extra cash away for savings. Soon, or at least you hoped it would be soon, you would be able to move out of the somewhat shitty place with Celeste and get a better apartment. Maybe even leave Virginia altogether. 

“Hey, I need you to take table five.” 

“But it’s not in my section tonight,” You argue with your manager. 

“Just take it, okay? It's a single and you’re better with singles than Celeste,” He replied, shooing you away with his hands. 

You let out a dramatic sigh, rolling your eyes as you grabbed your waitress book and headed towards the single guy sitting at the table. You never sized up tables before you started serving them, never tried to write people off before they had a chance to show their colors. 

But you could tell that this guy was hot just by the way he was sitting with a baseball cap tugged low. He at least knew how to wear a damned hat unlike some of the guys who came in with it halfway on their heads. 

“Hi, welcome in, can I get you started with anything to drink?” You asked cheerfully as you stopped in front of him. 

The bar was relatively empty, which came as a surprise since it was a weekend and the weather was fairly nice. Maybe everyone was still out at the beach and would be in before dinner ended. Maybe you would get lucky and end up having a good tip night to make up for the shitfest that was last night. 

“Uh, just a Bud on draft if you have it.”

“Bud lite?” You question. 

“No, Buswieser, the real shit,” There’s a hint of a laugh in his voice. 

“I’ve got it in a bottle, is that okay?”

“Yeah that works,” He replies, tipping his head back to look up at you. 

It takes you a second to register who’s actually looking at you. You’ve seen those dark hazel eyes on screen plenty of times, because Cele is obsessed with his movies. However, what really takes you back is how normal he looks in an old beat up t-shirt and shorts. He doesn’t look like the glamourous actor that you’ve seen.

“I’m sorry- are you,” You stop and lick your lips. 

You aren’t nervous, because you aren’t obsessed with him. His movies are okay, and you have to admit he is more attractive in person than he is on screen. But you’ve never been one to fall face first over someone who’s in the industry, not that you’ve ever had the chance to before. 

“Are you Bradley Bradshaw?” The question comes out as a whisper as you lean down, trying to be as quiet as you can. 

He pales for a moment, waiting to see if you’re going to fully freak out on him before smiling sheepishly, “Caught that easily, huh?”

“You’re lucky it’s just me and not the other girl over there,” You inform him, “She’d be on the floor, and I know that because I live with her and share a TV with her. But since it’s just me,” you smile at him before backing away a step, “A bottle of Bud coming right up.”

He smiles and relaxes into his seat before looking back down at his phone on the table. You can’t help but smile as you make your way towards the bar and the POS system to start his ticket. 

Bradley Bradshaw is eating in the bar and no one but you knows. He just happened to be lucky enough that Celeste had the one big table and was therefore too busy to take him, even though it was her section. 

“Thanks for taking that table,” She sounds out of breath as she sets a drink tray down next to you, “I’m swamped with those fuckers over there. Tourists on vacation who want everything at that very moment. Including three Virgin Strawberry Daiquiris for the kids. I want to shoot myself.”

You smile to yourself as you make your way around to the beer cooler to grab a nice cold bottle of Bud, “Oh don’t worry about it. He shouldn’t cause any trouble anyway.”

If only she knew. 

“Here you go,” You say, sitting the open bottle down on his table, “Do you need a minute to look over the menu? Or do you have any questions?”

“What do you recommend?” He asked you, looking back up. 

“Pulled Pork Mac’n’cheese, easy,” You replied almost instantly, “Hands down my favorite dish here, after our Crab Dip appetizer, but I also eat that for a full meal.”

He smiles up at you and closes the menu before handing it back to you, “I’ll try that Pork Mac then.”

“Sounds good, I’ll get that right in!” You smile triumphantly before backing away once again, “Holler if you need anything, okay? I’ll be back to check on you before the food comes out.”

Back at the bar, Celeste is finally able to stop for a minute and catch her breath. She looks miserable and it makes you want to laugh a little. Her night would be very different if she just took Table Five instead. 

She’s hunched over her phone reading an article, which normally you would call her out on being on her phone but tonight you can’t be bothered. It’s slow enough and her phone is hidden anyway. 

“Hey, Bradshaw is up for a bunch of awards,” She grins, “He so deserves them. You remember how great he was in that war movie, right! That’s what’s being nominated.”

“Hmm?” You question before your brain seems to catch up with you, “Oh, yeah. No, he was great in that movie. Whole cast was, honestly.”

“Exactly! I hope they sweep at the Oscars, they all deserve it so much.”

You have to hide your smile as you type away on the POS to put in the order. In the back, you can hear your kitchen jamming out to some sort of heavy metal meets classic rock mix which isn’t all that unusual for them. There are some days you’ve come to work and they’ve been listening to Disney music. At this point you can’t even try to say that you understand what their playlists consist of. 

It takes ten minutes before you’re walking back over to the table with another beer in hand. You noticed he was starting to run low and you know better than to let a drink ever go empty. That was one of the first things you learned when you became a waitress. 

“Brought you another one,” You announce, setting it down. 

“Thanks, appreciate it,” He replies, “And uh, thanks for not freaking out on me. Would’ve been a bitch if I got swarmed in here.”

“No worries, I’m not a rabid fan or anything,” You laugh, “But I am curious as to why you’re here of all places. I thought you lived in LA?”

“I do,” He nods, “But this was home long before LA was. I was born here in Virginia, I like to come back and visit family from time to time.”

“Oh,” You’re taken back by his honesty. He could’ve easily told you that it was none of your business, which is what you expected, “That’s really nice actually.”

Celeste calls you, saying the kitchen wants you. Reluctantly you force yourself away from the table and towards the set of double swinging doors in the middle of the bar. Something about Bradley Bradshaw is drawing you in and you aren’t sure if you want to resist it or not. Surely he wouldn’t remember your name in a few hours. He’d forget about the server from Virginia the second he got on a flight back to LA and the way of the world would take back over. 

“Here’s that pork mac,” Chef told you, nudging the dish in the window, “Get it out of my sight.”

“Sir yes sir,” You reply, grabbing the hot dish, “Thank you!”

“Yeah yeah, fuck off,” He grumbled, which only made you smile. 

You made your way back towards Bradley’s table with a smile. You could see why Celeste was so enamored with him. There was just something about him that made you want to sit down and hang on his every word. Plus, he was hot as hell. He still had the mustache from his previous role, and was trying to hide behind his ball cap. He looked normal, almost.

You wondered how other people here saw him? Were they even paying attention to the bonafide star that was hiding out in the corner? Celeste would piss herself if she knew he was here, hell, you might even piss yourself if he smiled at you again. The thought made you a little weak in the knees. 

“Your pork mac,” You said, sitting it down on the table in front of him, “Be careful, it’s actually pretty hot.”

“Mmm, looks fantastic,” He nearly groaned, “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet, you don’t even know if you’ll like it!” You laughed, “But I hope you enjoy, and let me know if I can get you anything else.”

You hop away from him again, taking a deep breath as you go. Maybe the night wouldn’t be as bad as you thought.

[x-liv25-jamieswife]

nash and avery head canons

@hxjxrxh requested this and i'm more than happy to do it. i love their sibling dynamic. its so fucking adorable. my pookie @catapparently helped with some of these. not proof read...

avery knew that nash was going to propose to libby before every one else did. for some reason, he felt like he needed to ask for her blessing. he's not even religious.

nash and her fantasize about killing drake.

for avery's birthday, nash gifted her a cowboy hat with the hawthorne's, libby's and max's signatures (on the inside of the hat)

nash has a secret stash of candy for libby that avery regularly steals from (nash knows but doesn't say anything).

nash asked libby what avery's favorite candy was to add it to the stash bc of that.

avery sometimes smokes weed as a stress relief (she's been doing it since her mom died) and nash smokes it too so sometimes nash will join her.

for avery's 20th birthday, nash managed to get in contact with toby and steal him away from the blakes'. she cried in his arms after he left.

he makes sure she doesn't overwork herself by visiting her at the office or calling her to ask her for a favor (he doesn't actually need a favor he just wants her to let herself rest)

avery helped nash set up the proposal

they go around calling each other sister-in-law and brother-in-law.

when jamie and avery fight (very rare cause they're just the it couple), nash always sides with avery bc jamie just loves being a pain in the ass sometimes

avery talks to nash about her mother. she's obviously still grieving and nash loves hearing about her childhood.

nash knows that avery missed out on a lot of things during her childhood so he takes her out like once a week to do one of those things (avery had never been to an amusement park so nash took her there once)

nash and her once went back to conneticut (with libby) and visited the apartment she used to live in with her mom. she cried in his arms.

nash sits down with her and tells her about all of his crazy adventures while he drinks his beer and she drinks her coffee.

nash sneaks her into the bar he works at and gives her alcohol even though she's not of drinking age in the usa (i think it's 21 in the us but i wouldn't know since i don't live there)

after he found out drake tried to shoot her, nash set fire to the part of the woods where it happened bc he was pissed at that fucking drake dude.

speaking of drake, he somehow got out of prison and they found him trying to get back in contact with libby so they murdered him and hid the body (the case was never solved)

nash loves matchas so avery buys him some when she goes out to buy herself some coffee

when she's out buying books with max, she'll buy him romance books he's mentioned wanting to read in the past. nash cries when she does this for him but no one know that

nash never cries in front of his brothers but he does cry in front of avery sometimes when he feels like he isn't doing enough for the family (he puts too much weight on his shoulders and thinks its his responsibility to make sure the family is getting along). avery will just sit there and listen to him vent. (he also cries in front of libby, obviously)

nash and avery run around trying to find places to store libby's cupcakes when she's guilt baking or smth.

nash will gush to avery about how wonderful his wife (and when he has daughters, he does it for them too). avery just sits there and laughs.

after they killed drake, they celebrated by smoking weed and drinking matchas

when avery mentions wanting a bookshelf or a new desk (anything that requires building), nash goes to ikea, buys the parts, and builds it for her. he places a bow on top when he's done and writes a little card telling her he loves her and she should be easier on herself.

avery gets him customized cowboy hats/boots from luxury brands.

nash peels her oranges because she absolutely despises the feeling of the peel under her fingers

nash has an obsession with eating watermelon and pineapple (it improves fertility in men apparently and he desperately wants kids with libby). avery has no idea why he loves it sm, but buys it for him anyways cause she likes to make him happy. nash finds it hilarious.

he takes her on drives around town and shows her the best restaurants and stuff to give her date ideas to do with jamie

sometimes nash relieves oren of his guard duty at night. he hates the idea of avery being in danger and the only thing that comforts him is making sure no one hurts her himself.

when she was in a coma, he checked on her everyday and brought her flowers.

nash and avery recommend each other fanfiction cause they both read romance (he once recommended her a smut fic and she actually really liked it)

[jihyoruri]

hi aurelia i’m a little sad so i wanted to ask if you had any stashed cute moments of the cib!au losers or gidle!au married couple? 🥹

heyyyyyy im so sorry you’re sad (ill do gidle!au since I haven’t written for them in a while)

#1

yn hummed softly to the music that played in the background as she read the comments of the live, she furrowed her eyebrows slightly when they went from song requests to a certain someone’s name.

“sakura unnie is in here?” she asked before noticing the older girl’s comments telling yn to play sour grapes by lesserafim.

“oh my gosh, sakura unnie is in here.” she says before tucking her hair behind her ear jokingly, “hey bestie.”

#2

“monster practice day one!” yn says cheerfully to the camera while sakura stretched in the background, “This isn’t the first time sakura unnie and I have met each other so this is gonna be so much fun, I can’t wait for you guys to see the performance, I choose monster since it’s my sisters song but sakura unnie is doing her part.” yn explains before walking away from the camera cheerfully, it was obvious how excited she was.

she ran over to the older girl who had her back turned around and jumped onto her back causing sakura to scream and stumble over.

“yn!”

#3

“sakura unnie made this hat for me.” yn said pushing her head towards the camera, she was filming a vlog, something fans have been begging the girl to do.

“she’s actually here right now.” yn said brightly before turning the camera towards sakura who sat on yn’s couch watching the tv.

“sleep over!” yn said cheerfully before bringing the camera close to her face and whispers, “she sleeps over a lot.”

#4

“gidle comeback.” sakura reads before gasping in shock, “I didn’t know about this!”

she then grabs her phone and and turns it to the camera showing a contact that said “summer girl ☀️” with a funny photo of yn at the beach as the contact photo, “I’m calling her.”

it only took three rings until yn answered, “hey ba-”

“the viewers just told me that you’re having a comeback and you didn’t tell me!”

there’s silence for a little.

“um…” and just like that yn hung up.

[firewoodwander]

Hey!! Can I ask for codex and secret? 👀

Mistletoe prompts

3. Secret

Rex is sure he would much rather be any manner of places than here, currently. In his bed in the temporary barracks is top of that list. Crammed into his six square feet of shared quarters aboard Skywalker’s ship is third, beaten out only by the squishy cushions of the old salvaged couch in the officer’s rec.

Anywhere that isn’t here, is the point, surrounded by halls hat are too perfectly ornate and more than enough politicians to make him start looking for the exits.

He’s not alone, of course. Skywalker, Kenobi and Tano are here by personal invite of Senator Amidala, whose hospitality had extended, in some strange turn, to include Rex. There are senate guard posted at the walls but mostly the rooms have been secured by Fox’s men, patrolling in polished red armour. Thorn keeps catching Rex’s eye from one corner and tipping his head in the way that means he’s being laughed at and Thorn wants him to know.

But Rex’s real saving grace here is Cody. Cody at Kenobi’s shoulder or Rex’s elbow or teasing Ahsoka for the hastily-disguised scorch marks on her tunic.

She’d been summarily banned from the kitchens by Threepio, after that fiasco. Rex had told her that’s what she gets for sticking her fingers where they don’t belong—in not so many words.

But for all the stars are bright and the ocean is deep, half an hour into this gaudily lavish affair (“It’s a gala,” Amidala had hissed at Skywalker when he’d compared it to something far less savoury, “and it is important.”), without even a drink for his troubles, Rex wants nothing more than to escape onto the dark city streets.

“Hey,” Cody says, quiet enough no one else hears and close enough to Rex’s skin that he shivers. The back of his neck goes hot and prickly.

“You’re too happy about this,” Rex informs him.

Cody’s hand claps down on Rex’s shoulder and jostles him. It’s just as well that he doesn’t have a glass in-hand, although he’d have to have been considered more guest than spectacle to receive such an offer.

“I’m happy because Kenobi suggested we make an exit while we have a moment to breathe.” The hand slides down Rex’s arm into the crook of his elbow and tugs. “I assume he intended that effective immediately.”

Rex isn’t going to stick around for further clarification. He goes where Cody leads him and ducks behind a pillar when a waiting droid draws nearby eyes beeping at him to get out of the way.

“Fox is off tonight,” Cody continues once they’ve broken through a set of grandiose doors into cooler, calmer corridors. “He’s got some of the good stuff stashed away in his locker. Since he didn’t come to visit when we made planetfall, I think we should pay him a visit.”

Rex is still chuckling to himself when suddenly Cody yanks him aside yet again: this time into the shadow of a slightly more humble gilded archway. He doesn’t give Rex pause for breath before he leans in and kisses him—heavy, consuming, intense like he is about every last thing he sets his mind to.

The way Cody kisses never fails to steal Rex’s breath right from his chest; his heart jackrabbits in his throat and his fingers grasp at the folds and creases of his uniform sleeves.

“What was that for?” he mumbles, half dazed, when Cody releases him.

“Been wanting to do that all night,” Cody replies. Smug and satisfied like a fed tooka, he indicates the florally green plants strung around the entrance like in all the other decorated halls. “I don’t know the significance of that, but if Amidala reckons it’s a well-known tradition then I’m sure Fox does.”

Rex hums. “I suppose we should be asking him, then,” he says.

Cody draws him closer to kiss again, instead.

[yiiyiiwrites]

JJ Maybank x Older Maybank sister

Gif by @forbescaroline

Summary: After a run in with Rafe, JJ's older sister is on the warpath and looking for her brother who has been dodging her since she got home a few days ago. Rafe x Older Maybank sister, JJ x older Maybank sister. Angst. 1166words

Three weeks stuck on a boat and she’d still felt like the ground was swaying beneath her. There was a smell she couldn’t quite expel, no matter how hard she scrubbed. She’d spent the last two days trying to find her brother after her first run in with Rafe. 

She’d been everywhere in search for JJ, winding up at the hotel hoping he’d be working a shift. 

The universe, however did not seem to be working in her favour though. Rafe Cameron stood between her and the exit. His nostrils flared and fists clenched at his side. He marched towards her and in one fine swoop grabbed her elbow. She tried to tug out of his hold, but yelped as he dragged her further down the corridor.

“Don’t make a scene.” 

She scoffed, the only one making a scene was him. The maze of corridors unfamiliar to her. She gulped as he lead her into the sports centre. Lockers lined the tiled floor, he shouldered the door open and shoved her into the supplies cupboard. 

Rafe’s hand twisted in her hair and yanked her head back to meet her gaze. “Just a precaution.” He said kicking the door shut behind him. 

“Get off me.” She spat, cheek pressing into the wall. The lock clicked shut, her body tensing as he pushed his knee between her legs.

“Maybe if you hadn’t attacked me last time, I would have been a lot nicer today.” 

She smiled at the thought, Rafe cradling his groin as she stepped over him. The last meeting between them had gone her way and she was now paying for it tenfold today. She didn’t regret it though. 

“This is nothing compared to what happens at home though.” Rafe leant forward, breath fanning against the shell of her ear. 

“What do you want?” She squeezed her eyes shut, tears threatening to escape but she inhaled a deep breath and exhaled to stare back him. 

“I thought I made myself very clear last time. If JJ gets in my way, then I get in yours.” 

She tried pushing back, but her cheek bounced against the wall. Rafe’s weight pinning her in place. “I don’t even know what’s going on between you guys.” She winced at another pull on her hair. 

“where’s the fun in that. Besides you’re the eldest, I understand that. You need to make sure they know their place.” 

Rafe released her and stepped back. She turned to face him and massaged her throbbing cheek. “Look I’ll talk to him, but I can’t control him.” 

He took her face in his hand and tilted her chin up. “Then I guess I’ll be seeing you again soon.” His fingers dug into her face before he let go and unlocked the door. 

She watched him walk away, her chest shuddering. Tears pricked her eyes, the pain reminding her that she needed to get out of there and find JJ. She dialled her brothers number, cursing at nothing as the line cut. 

**

In his head, the notion of laying low and dodging his older sister seemed simple. But in the wake of the fight at the beach and the gun stashed in the bottom of his bag, it was getting increasingly hard to come up with anymore excuses. She must have heard about it the moment she stepped off the boat. 

"Hey, JJ. Is that your sister?" 

"Don't look man." JJ whispered to Pope. He grabbed Pope's hat and spun him back to face the dock. He tapped his foot, teeth gnawing his bottom lip as they waited for Kie and John B to pick them up in the boat. 

He peered over his shoulder, his sister storming over the parking lot. The scowl on her face making him look away. He could lie to his dad, but not her. So he made sure not to cross her. 

The sight of the HMS pogue had his heart leaping, he didn't waste anytime jumping on the boat. "We gotta go, Maybank on a rampage." He said dragging John be by the collar and pointing to his sister running down the dock. 

“Do I wanna know?” John B rushed to the start the engine again, his gaze sweeping to JJ's sister. Her long legs making easy work of the long distance to them. 

"You're gonna have to face her at some point JJ." Kie slapped his back, "Please tell me you don't have it on you." She snatched his backpack and threw it to the side, towel hiding it. 

"Well I'm not going to leave it at home." 

A mixture of mumbles were interrupted by the jolt of the boat. Her figure jumping the dock to land a few steps away from JJ. She lost her balance and fell to her knees, hands reaching out to stop her from wiping out. 

JJ stumbled back as his sister rose to her feet. A smile stretched Kie's lips, her arms folded over her chest at the rare silence of her friend. John B and Pope found themselves drawn back to Kie giving the Maybank siblings some privacy. 

“Nothing to say?” His sister followed his steps back. “I’ve been gone three weeks JJ and come back to your shit.” 

JJ’s gaze scanned her face, brows furrowing at the red mark staining her skin. “What happened to your face.” He reached forward, but she slapped his hand away. 

She dropped down to sit and brought her knees up to her chest. “Look, all I ask is for you to be careful JJ. I’m not asking you to be good but dammit be smart. I know you can.” 

JJ knelt down in front of her and nudged her leg. “Did something happen? Was it dad?” He ducked his head to catch her fleeting gaze. 

“Rafe.” She whispered, hoping he wouldn’t hear it. JJ shot up and removed his hat, fingers clutching the ends of his knotted hair. She felt small in that moment, the roles between them reversing and her brother taking on the urge to protect. It didn’t happen often, she rarely got him involved if she was faced with any problems, but this couldn’t be brushed away. 

John B and Pope were beside JJ, huddled together hushed voices going back and forth. 

She tugged the back of his shirt and his face softened. “Be smart, okay. I can look after myself. I’m only telling you this because I’m looking out for you.” 

He scoffed. “Yeah looks like it.” She knew he didn’t mean to direct his anger on her, he always seemed to care more about the ones closest to him than himself. She didn’t want him to do anything in the heat of the moment and get hurt in the process. 

“JJ, just lay low for now and do what you have to. Please don’t make this worse.” She pleaded. 

“What I’m just supposed to take this?” He shook his head and swore. “He don’t get to treat you like that.” 

✨ another small fic for JJ's older sister.... :) - Yiiyii

[draco-dormiens]

THE STRANGEST OF PLACES - Chapter Three

draco x fem!ravenclaw reader / postwar au series

warnings: conversation has sexual themes towards the end, strong language, alcohol, the characters are 18 in this story fyi :)

wc: 3906

masterlist

pls let me know if you want to be tagged!! tags below:

@slyth3rin-princess @lovesanimals0000 @cappgyuccino @lightning1ce @onlygetaway @honeyyypeach

Chapter Three - Christmas

Christmas Day Draco woke to another silent house. Through the curtains he saw snow hurtling down, a small heap pressed up against the window. As used to being alone as he was, your invitation had played on his mind ever since you left. If you asked because you felt sorry for him, then he'd rather you laugh in his face about how pathetic his life was instead. There was nothing Draco hated more than acts of sympathy, mostly because he was so sick of them. People would assume he needed comfort, or that he needed their company, but he had built himself a wall and he was perfectly happy staying alone within it. (Or so he had trained himself to believe, anyway)

He dressed himself and headed down the stairs, a Merry Christmas from the house elf along the way and stood by the tree to observe the gifts beneath it. His mother had left a note with his name on and several neatly wrapped gifts. He sat crossed legged on the floor and began reading his mother's note.

Merry Christmas, my dear. We hope you like your gifts. Wish you were here. Mother x

A smile crept across his face, putting the card down and ripping the first few open. It was the usual stuff, his favourite cologne, cauldron cakes, a knitted green jumper, new shoes, new suit, even a bottle of fire whiskey. He popped the cork out and sniffed the amber looking liquid, and suddenly a wave of memories came rushing back from his time at school, before all the madness and heartache. The first night he got drunk, he was almost sixteen, at the end of his fifth year. Himself, Blaise Zabini, Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy Parkinson snuck out into the night to drink and smoke cigarettes. He got so plastered that him and Pansy ended up in his private dorm room and one thing led to another. Does he regret it? He didn't really know. But Pansy thought that it meant they were destined for each other and became even clinger than normal after that. He took a swig of it and exhaled after, tasting the bitter, sugary substance on his lips. He kept sipping away at it as he opened the rest, and then took himself, the whiskey, and a box of cauldron cakes to the one drawing room he liked. With a flick of his wand, the fire was lit, and he plopped himself down on the couch for a long day of nothingness. After nearly half the bottle of fire whiskey and a tray of cauldron cakes, he started wondering what you might be doing right now, and then cursed himself out loud for even thinking it.

Your Christmas morning was very different. Draco had crossed your thoughts when you woke, but your mother had soon taken your mind off it when she burst through the bedroom door in a Santa hat and a hot cup of tea. The morning went by like it usually did in your house, presents, your younger siblings arguing over what the other one got (they get the exact same thing), and then a slap-up Christmas dinner and midday nap for your father. Being a muggle, he was huge fan of muggle alcohol, and kept a rather stocked up stash when it was Christmas. He'd drunk three glasses of wine before 12:30 and passed out in his armchair with a paper crown on his head from a cracker. You loved Christmas. It was about family, friendship, and the act of giving. Hermione had sent some peppermint toads and a Christmas card from her family, and Luna had crafted you a beaded necklace with your initial dangling from it. They should have opened their home baked cookies you had gifted them by now. After resting your stomachs for a while, you helped your mother wash the dishes as the rest of the house slept peacefully, a muggle Christmas movie going unwatched on the TV.

"So, how is that project of yours coming along?" your mother asks, "getting on with your partner?"

"He's fine," you tell her, drying off a dinner plate, "he's really stubborn and argumentative, likes everything his way and his way only, but apart from that he's okay. I think we're sort of friends at this point, but it's hard to tell with him."

"Oh my," your mother laughs, "he sounds like a treat. What's his name, again?"

"It's Draco. Draco Malfoy."

She froze for a moment, and you saw from the corner of your eye. She began scrubbing away again.

"I'm familiar," she tells you, looking across and smiling, "can't say I have that much of an opinion."

"I'm going to guess it's the same as everyone else's," you chuckle, "I'm not the biggest fan, but he seems to be mellowing a little since we started on the project."

"Maybe that's your influence," your mother nudges you, "you have that effect on people."

"Well, he complains at me a lot, so I doubt it. He's just one big mystery, I know nothing about him apart from that his parents leave him alone at Christmas."

"He's alone today?" your mother exclaims, passing you a soapy tray to dry, "that's awful. Did you invite him over?"

"I asked but I think I just made him feel awkward," you said, cringing at how shocked he looked, "we're only just getting on with one another."

You mother fell quiet for a second, and then left momentarily and returned with a wrapped present.

"Here," she says, handing it over to you with her yellow-gloved hand, "take this to him."

"What? I can't do that," you shake your head, looking at her like she'd just asked for your presents back, "we don't know each other well enough for me to just turn up at his doorstep, on Christmas."

"But he's alone, darling," you mother says softly, "and as a family, we never leave one out, even if they've made bad choices in the past. Go. Take them to him. It's only chocolates."

You sigh, knowing that it was a nice gesture. You wouldn't have to stay long, just take the chocolates, wish him well, and come home. It was an easy enough task.

"Fine," you say, taking the gift, "I'll be back soon. Thanks, mum."

Malfoy Manor looked as daunting as ever in the early evening dusk and white sheet of snow. It stood, grey and foreboding, with one light on in a top left window. You stood for a while contemplating whether this was a good idea, taking a few steps forward and then shuffling back.

"Just knock on the door, hand it over, and leave," you tell yourself, "It's just a nice gesture."

Taking a deep breath, you walked up to the doors and knocked. After a few minutes, the tiny house elf appeared at your feet. He smiled brightly.

"Merry Christmas, miss Y/L/N," he said, "are you here to see Master Malfoy?"

"Well, actually, I suppose you could pass these-"

"Y/L/N?"

You look up from the elf to see Draco stood just behind, dressed in his green hoodie and sweatpants. His hair is little more tousled than normal, and he's holding an empty cauldron cake box.

"Draco," you say, "I was just dropping this off for you."

He pads over to you, and the elf moves out of his way, but not before he shoves the empty packet into the elf's tiny arms.

"You bought me a gift?" He says, taking the box from your hands and eyeing the wrapping paper.

"I just thought, as you're alone today, you might like to see a familiar face," you tell him as he unwraps the bow from around the box, "even if it's mine."

He removes the packaging to reveal a box of chocolates, and the ghost of a smile curls at the corner of his mouth. Of course, he had lots of girls give him presents in the past, lots of secret admirers and heart shaped gifts, especially at Christmas. But this was different, this was an act of kindness and selflessness, and it was for him. He didn't understand why, but you were here, and suddenly he didn't feel so alone anymore.

"Thanks," he said, looking up at you and smiling a bit more, "that was, uh, real nice of you. You didn't have to."

"I wanted to," you shrug your shoulders, "I should probably get going. Merry Christmas, Draco."

"Wait," he calls, and you turn back to see him awkwardly stood in the doorway. That sounded far too eager, he thought, "do you want to come in for a bit? I can't offer you much, just tea. Think there's some cake somewhere. And we have these."

He held up the box of chocolates, and there was a hopeful glint in his eyes that you would say yes, although if you mentioned that he'd probably throw the box at you and slam the door in your face.

"Sure," you agree, thankful as the cold had started making your toes numb, "tea sounds great."

He took you inside and you walked through the now familiar corridors to the drawing room you first met him in, the fireplace roaring and empty boxes of cauldron cakes on the coffee table, along with an empty bottle of fire whiskey.

"Sorry about the mess," he says, quickly gathering up the rubbish, "I just sort of like cauldron cakes."

"Seems that way," you giggle, taking off your coat and basking in the heat of the fire, "is that all you've eaten today? And the whiskey, have you had any water?"

He stopped what he was doing and looked across at you warming yourself in front of the fire. The outfit you had on was nice, he thinks, but he physically shook his head to rid the thought. I need to slow down on the whiskey. You seemed so casual about asking him, like you were his mother or something, and it wasn't the first time you'd made him think of her, either.

"I uh, well, I haven't had time."

"Haven't had time?" you said, spinning to scold him directly, "Draco, just because it's Christmas doesn't mean you shouldn't eat properly. You need to eat some proper food."

He begins to grin, really grin, and it was strange but nice to see. It even made you smile back.

"What?"

"Have you come here to tell me off, Y/L/N?"

"No, of course I haven't," you defend yourself, going over to him and taking some of the rubbish from his hands, "and I don't tell you off, I inform."

He just keeps grinning, and you can't help thinking how nice his smile is. You look down at the empty whiskey bottle in your hand and contemplate knocking yourself out for a few hours.

"C'mon," he says, and you look back up at his smiling face, "I'll make us some tea."

Time seemed to go by so quickly from the minute you got there. You drank tea in his favourite drawing room whilst the fire burned away, played a game of chess, and after a glass or two of water, cracked open a bottle of wine and began drinking it. It was expensive wine, but Draco said that his mother had so much of it that it was almost a waste not to drink it. The entire time you were thinking about going home, but each time you thought about it the less you wanted to go. The wine was good, and surprisingly, so was the company. Draco was turning out to not be as tightly wound as you previously thought, especially with some wine in him.

"That is not how to you play this game," he slurs, glass half full in his hand, two almost empty wine bottles on the side. You giggle, and it's so infectious he can't help himself, and you know you've never been this drunk before, not even on your eighteenth birthday party.

"S-shut up," you hiccup through your laughter, trying to line the cue up with the ball on the pool table, "I know what I'm doing Malfoy, just w-watch."

You go to hit the ball and completely miss, breaking down into a fit of laughter, and so does he, and it's so refreshing to see someone who is always miserable laugh like that. He makes his way over to you, putting down the wine glass and taking your arms from behind.

"Look like this," he tries to show you how to hold it, chest pressed against your back but far too drunk to even care, "hold it like this, and then try."

He tries aiming you, but it fails miserably, and you both end up in another fit of laughter. You drop the cue, but Draco stays behind you, and your head falls back against his shoulder.

"You're so funny," you tell him, gasping for air as you did so. His laughter dies down, but you're still giggling to yourself.

"You think so?" he asks you, and you turn around, face an inch away from his and your cheeks are rosy and eyes hazy from the wine. You're pretty. He thinks you're pretty. Or does the wine think you're pretty? He didn't know right now. He was running on cauldron cakes, chocolates, whiskey, and wine. Oh, and some bread that you made him eat.

"Y-yeah," you hiccup again, "like, I find you really annoying but I kind of like it when you laugh. Is that weird? That's weird, right?"

"No," he shakes his head, feeling so dizzy he just might collapse, "I mean, I don't think it's weird? Is it weird that I think you're really pretty tonight?"

His words register slowly in your mind, and suddenly you feel a lot more sober, remembering you'd just said that you like it when he laughs.

"Woah," you chuckle breathlessly, pushing him away slightly for some space, "I think we've drank too much. My mum is going to murder me."

He starts to understand his words himself, and then repeating what you had said about his laugh, and his stomach does a small flip, and he thinks he might vomit.

"Yeah, way too much," he agrees, stepping away and leaning against the wall, "we should call it a night. Can you make it home?"

"Oh shit," you grumble, holding your stomach because of the nausea, "I cannot apparate like this, I'll be violently ill."

Draco runs a hand down his face. The room is practically spinning.

"You can stay in one of the spare rooms," he manages to get out, not without having to hold his head to stop the spiralling, "I have some clothes you can borrow."

You just nod, tired and drunk and in need of a toilet right now. You can explain to your mother tomorrow, when you're not wanting to throw up over a pool table that probably cost a million Galleons.

The room he gives to you is so neat and tidy you feel bad about using it, but it had a toilet to empty your guts into and water from the sink. After some serious glugs of water and a few moments over the toilet seat, you start to feel a bit better. Draco had disappeared for some time, doing the exact same thing, but he was standing over of his private bathroom sink after vomiting up everything he had digested that day. He looked across at the clock on the side. 1:30am. That's how long you had been there drinking with him. It had only felt like a few hours.

"Fuck," he mumbles to himself, looking up at his reflection. You'd only come to hand over a gift, and now you were being sick in his guest bathroom. He kept thinking about calling you pretty, and each time he feels like lurching again. How utterly embarrassing, he barely knows you.

"Merlin, I'm pathetic," he says to himself, pulling away from the sink and taking a few deep breaths. He heads towards your room and knocks on the door gently, and soon after it clicks open and you appear, looking much more yourself.

"Better?" he asks, and you just nod in relief.

"So much better," you sigh, "are you?"

"I'm just so hungry now," he says, and you laugh at his answer.

"Snacks?" you suggest, "I think I might need something to dry up the wine."

"Sounds good," he said, gesturing for you to follow him, "and I know the best place to eat them."

Draco's pantry is like a muggle supermarket. You tell him this, but it goes unappreciated. You both take an armful of biscuits, crackers, cheese, and Christmas cake, followed by a more sensible choice of pumpkin juice. He takes you to the very top floor of the house and into a room that you think is going to be the attic but ends up being like the Astronomy tower at Hogwarts. There's a giant window in the roof and all you can see is stars, moonlight shining in and casting a beautiful light across the room. It was breathtaking.

"I can't believe you have a place like this in your house," you say, putting down the snacks on the floor as Draco pulls out a huge blanket and lays it on the ground, "the best I have is my bedroom window."

"This is my favourite place," he admits, sitting down and patting the space beside him, which you take happily, "I come here a lot to think."

He screws open a pumpkin juice for you, and you take it with a thank you, as he begins opening all the snack packets and previewing each one as he did so. As he's munching and opening, you just stare up at the black sky with little white specs across it. It's all so far away, and you wonder who might be looking back at you and not knowing it. They might just think they're looking up at the stars, too.

"Thinking hard?" Draco asks, breaking your thoughts.

"I was just thinking how big the world is, you know?" you tell him, "Like, all those little specs in the sky are something, and we're just here. Looking up at them. A small piece in a big puzzle."

Draco looks across at you staring up at the sky, and even with less wine in his system, he thinks you're pretty when the moonlight hits your face, and that outfit is cute.

"That was deep," he says, and you look across at him with a glint in your eye.

"I like being philosophical," you said, "can't handle the truth of the universe, Malfoy?"

He laughs, and then takes a sip of his juice.

"You know, you're the last person I'd imagine bringing up here."

You scoff, but you're still smiling.

"Gee, thanks."

"That wasn't a jab," he chuckles, "I just meant that a week ago we hardly knew one another."

"I guess we don't know all that much now." You admit, looking back up at the ceiling. He peers across at you, and for a little while, he just looks. How much a week can change is truly unbelievable.

"What do you want to know?" he asks you, and he gains your attention once more.

"What do you mean?"

"About me," he elaborates, "what do you want to know about me?"

You stare back at him, but this time you really look at his features. His eyes are a grey, blue colour, and his hair is so unnaturally white he could have bleached it. His jaw was sharp, like his nose, but he was overall quite handsome. Minus his awful attitude sometimes, he was quite a catch.

"Have you ever loved anyone?" you find yourself asking him, and you aren't entirely sure why. Were you curious if the great Draco Malfoy has ever been in love, or were you asking because the wine was still very much in your bloodstream? Either way, he seemed to really think on it.

"No, I don't think so," he answers quietly, looking up at the stars, "I've been with a few girls, but not really had a girlfriend in my eighteen years, so I'd say no."

"Not even Pansy Parkinson?"

He laughs. A genuine belly laugh, and the sound makes your heart feel happy.

"Merlin, no," he says as he calms down, "she was a friend if anything, we hooked up once but that was it. I don't even see her anymore."

"You slept with Parkinson?"

"Yeah?" he says casually, "what? I'm not exactly proud of it. She was my first."

This time you belly laughed.

"Seriously?" you say, and he just nods as he sips his drink, and then wipes his mouth on his sleeve.

"Alright, now you know mine, who's yours?"

You fell quiet and began to play with the rim of your pumpkin juice bottle. Should you tell him? You weren't entirely sure you could trust him yet, but when you looked back at him, there was something that told you he wasn't going to blab it to the entire school.

"A muggle guy," you admit shyly, expecting him to scold you to the ends of the earth, but instead he just hums and drinks his juice.

"A muggle, huh?" he says, "was he, like, your boyfriend?"

You could tell he was uncomfortable asking you that because the label on the pumpkin juice bottle just became interesting to him.

"No, he wasn't my boyfriend. I have muggle friends who don't know anything about this world, and it was one of them. He was sweet. It was at my seventeenth."

Draco just nods.

"I was fifteen."

"Huh?" you almost spit out your drink, but Draco seems unphased.

"Well, I was almost sixteen. It was just before the summer of our fifth year."

You wipe your mouth on a nearby napkin.

"I don't know why I'm surprised, really," you said, "you do have a reputation."

"For being a dick?"

"Yep."

He just bites his lower lip, smiling as he did so. You caught him doing it, and your eyes fell to where his pearly whites sunk into the flesh of his lip. Was this guy attractive or were you still drunk?

"You've changed, though," you say quickly, and his eyes fall on yours again, "you're still an arse, but this last week I've seen you change. It's good."

Draco doesn't say anything for a moment, but he's looking at you and his eyes are dancing across your features and the moonlight is reflecting in them and if this was anyone else the situation would have been romantic.

"I don't want to be the person everyone thinks I am," he confesses to you, his eyes still locked on yours, "I don't want to be the person you think I am. The other day, when you threw that stupid drawing into the fire, that was the nicest shit anyone has ever done for me. Can you believe that?"

You just listen, absentmindedly leaning towards him as you do so. He continues.

"People don't know but I find socialising really tiring and awkward, especially if its genuine, and honestly I just want someone to hang out with. That's how sad I am."

"I don't think that's sad," you say softly, and his eyes are on yours and you're closer and he smells so good and you realise, that was no Amortentia, that's just how delicious Draco smells, "besides, we're buds now, right?"

He chuckles deeply, taking those grey eyes away and putting them back on the sky above you.

"Yeah, we're buds now," he agrees, looking down at you through the corner of his eyes, "and you're not bothered what your other friends might think."

"Why would I be?" you say, "you're not the devil, Draco. Anyway, I get to choose who I'm buds with."

"You're not half bad, you know that Y/L/N?"

You sit up a little straighter and look him up and down playfully.

"Neither are you, Malfoy. And call me Y/N, yeah?"

He smiles and forces some air through his nose.

"Y/N," he repeats, "alright then."

disclaimer: i do not own hp or any of the characters in this story

dividers from: @firefly-graphics & @happy-ash-edits

[sopheronipepperoni]

Clichés and the Sun Hat Savior

Summary: Theo finally meets Starlet Town's new farmer. Properly this time, all thanks to some wind and a sun hat.

A/N: SO weird to think that this is the first original thing writing since grad school started (and is almost over!!!). I'm just getting into Coral Island, but what can I say: cozy farming games set in the tropics with romance potentials are my JAM, okay, especially in stressful seasons. Also, Theo is great and needs more love. Be the change you want to see in the world, people.

The sun beat down from above. Even though it was still spring, the rays reflecting up from the cool blue water were surprisingly merciless. Today’s temperature was a sign that summer was right around the corner. It was looking like he would get a pretty solid head start on this year’s tan.

Theo twisted around to rest his fishing pole in the boat bobbing next to him, and grabbed a bottle of water from the small cooler he kept stashed in the bow. Taking a deep swig, he wiped his other hand cold with condensation across the back of his neck. A flash of color drew his attention to his right. Shading his eyes, he saw someone wading out across the shallow channel to the heart-shaped sandbar.

Creamy skin that would surely burn with too much sun exposure, long legs, arms toned from hard work…ah. That would be Essy Lyrien, the new farmer. He’d caught glimpses of her here and there since she came to town earlier in the month, between running back and forth from Sam’s or the beach. But he’d never seen her like this. He’d never even formally met her.

A peachy tie-front bikini top and matching bottoms hugged her curves in ways her farm clothes certainly did not. She wore a large floppy and carried a small blue pail in one hand, the other shading her eyes as she gazed towards the horizon. A large part of him sincerely hoped she had put on buckets of sunscreen before coming out here; a smaller but surprisingly forefront part of him had become incapable of coherent thought upon seeing her in a bikini. He felt his neck heat, and tore his gaze away from Essy.

What would his dad and sister say about his lapse and momentary ogling of Starlet Town’s new farmer?

Giving himself a shake, Theo put his water back in the boat. Maybe a quick dip would help him focus again? He’d certainly need it if he hoped to get a decent haul; the fish were in a fighting mood today. Before he could think too much more, he dove into the turquoise waters.

The reprieve was immediate. He had always loved everything about the ocean: the soothing embrace of the water, the gentle rocking of the waves, the way sounds were dampened under the waves. A part of him always felt like he was coming home whenever he was out on or in the surf.

He broke surface with a few strong strokes of his arms, taking in a measured breath and slicking his hair out of his eyes. He studiously kept his eyes on his boat as he kicked his way back to his fishing spot. No sooner had he retrieved his fishing pole, his body dripping water, than a gust of wind raked over him.

“Are you serious!?”

Theo looked up just in time to see Essy’s sun hat get whisked off of her head, copper locks blowing wildly around her face as she struggled to locate her wayward hat. The wind oh-so-nicely deposited it not too far from him. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the situation. Talk about a meet-cute, huh?

Essy sloshed her way over to him through the shallows out past the sandbar. She made decent time with those strong legs of hers, but he was still closer. Her hat was dripping when he scooped it up from where it floated benignly on the water. He tried shaking it out, with mixed success.

“Oh gosh, I am so sorry about that!” Essy had reached him, finally; dimly he wondered why she could possibly be apologizing for the wind, but his thoughts were effectively derailed when he looked up and looked at her. Properly, from up close, this time.

Her copper curls were snarled around her face from the gust, a few strands of gold and red dancing across her cheeks. She had wide eyes somewhere between celadon and the small aquamarine sea-glass he sometimes found washed up along the shore. Up close he could even see a smattering of freckles dusted across her nose and cheeks. He didn’t miss the way her eyes jumped from her hat in his hand, to his face, to…well, the rest of him, before jumping away again. Was it the sun playing tricks on his eyes, or was she actually blushing?

He could still feel rivulets of water running down his torso. He was dripping; what a cliche.

He felt himself color slightly; he also couldn’t help the feeling of smug pride that welled up inside him. He straightened and very minimally puffed out his chest. “No worries. The wind likes to play tricks out here.” He made to hand her hat back to her. “You must be Essy?”

“Yeah, I am—" She stepped forward to take it, but lost her footing on the rocks at the last second. Without thinking he reached out to steady her, one hand lightly on her waist and the other grasping her forearm. He registered contact with warm skin. Warm and soft…

“I gotcha. The reef’s tricky, too. Gotta watch your step. You okay?” If he let his hands linger a beat longer than was strictly necessary, well, what was wrong with making absolutely sure she was steady on her feet again?

“You know, I’m just going to own that this was not the most graceful way to actually introduce myself.” She gathered her hair to one side of her neck with a laugh. “You must be Theo? Fisherman extraordinaire, up-and-coming singer-songwriter, and savior of sun hats?”

It was cute how she didn’t take herself too seriously. His lips curved into a lopsided grin. “At your service.”

“Well, truly, I’m charmed.” She colored again, before plopping the still-wet hat back onto her head. “Thanks to you, I won’t have a terribly burned scalp. Have any favorite spring fruits or veggies? I could try and get some seeds to grow you something as a ‘thank you.’”

He shook his hands in front of him. “Like I said, no worries. What kind of sun hat savior would I be if I let you suffer from a peeling scalp because I couldn’t catch your hat?” What was he even saying? Essy let out a peal of laughter, and part of him felt like it unlocked. So weird. Who was he?

“Anyway, thanks. Really. I’ll let you get back to your fish wrangling—that’s what it looked like back from the beach, at least—" she broke off, her cheeks somehow managing to darken even more. Her words settled like a slowly sinking pebble in his mind. “I’ll see you around, yeah?”

“Yeah, of course.” Before he could gather any more thoughts than that, Essy shot him a warm yet bashful smile and turned to pick her way carefully back to the sandbar and surer footing. He refused to let his eyes linger as she walked away from him. The palms of his hands felt faintly burned, but he knew it wasn’t from the sunlight reflecting off of the waves. He took up his pole again, and readied himself to return to wrangling, like Essy had called it.

He wondered if she’d watch him again.

As he cast the line in front of him, the gentle whirring as the reel spun out reaching his ear, he also caught a distant, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Sure enough, he glanced back at the sandbar where Essy was fishing her pail and small sand shovel from the greedy tide currently sucking her tools out to sea. One hand was firmly clapped on her hat.

Theo couldn’t help letting out a wide smile as he felt a fish bite. What a meet-cute indeed. Maybe he’d write a song about it later.

[emptyblog7]

Dreamlight Adventures: Book 2 Part 1

Here's the second addition in my Dreamlight Series!! @uva124 @signed-sapphire @chillwildwave @oh-shtars This story will focus more on Phoenix, but you may find someone familiar within this second story. ;) This will have three parts so I may just do both this second story and the third story I have today. I hope you enjoy it, and I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this series. :)

DREAMLIGHT ADVENTURES: ROOT OF EVIL

“How’s that, Woody?” Phoenix called breathlessly.

Woody pulled a lever on the side of his Carousel, and the music and lights flickered back on as a result. The wooden horse began to move and the Carousel itself began to spin again. Woody jumped excitedly, “Woo howdy! It worked, Phoenix!”

Phoenix chuckled a bit as she closed the Carousel’s power box and came back to where Woody stood. It had taken them a few hours to find the right parts to fix the broken bits of the Carousel, but thanks to Wall-E’s stash of electronics, both Phoenix and Woody had found what they needed.

As Phoenix knelt down to Woody, he thanked, “I can’t thank you enough for getting this place back up and running, Phoenix! I remember when this place used to be such a wonderful place that reminded the other villagers of what being a kid was like!”

Phoenix smiled kindly. “Happy to help, Woody. If you encounter anymore issues with the mechanics of your Carousel, let me know.” Woody tipped his hat in response, and Phoenix left him to his home.

Phoenix took a route that led to Dazzle Beach, wanting a bit of time just to relax after her busy morning. It had been weeks since she’d returned from her adventure in Rosas, and it didn’t take long for her to get back into the swing of things with her villagers. Some needed help with problems they couldn’t solve, others needed to be guided away from their evil intentions, and still others just wanted to hang out with her. While she truly enjoyed interacting with her villagers (some more than others), she was equally grateful to take a moment to relax. As the ground beneath her went from grass to sand, Phoenix took a deep breath and let out a sigh of contentment. “Wonderful! A moment of peace.”

She came to a dock on the left side of the beach and sat on the edge, letting her legs fall into the water below. She gazed at the horizon and let the sound of the surrounding waves fill her ears, allowing herself to relax from all her duties of the day. All was quiet and peaceful.

“Hi Phoenix!”

Phoenix nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard that until she saw Ariel swimming to her right. Phoenix placed a hand over her heart as she declared gustily, “Gracious, Ariel! You scared me!”

Ariel chuckled. “Sorry! I just wanted to come over and say hello! How’s your day been so far?”

Phoenix sighed, “Busy, but good. I just finished fixing Woody’s Carousel after searching high and low for the parts. Thankfully, Wall-E had some we could use.”

Ariel hummed in understanding. “Wall-E always has the best gadgets and gizmos! It’s funny how a creature like him and myself have something in common. We both love to collect things.”

Phoenix smiled in amusement. “That’s true! Have you two been able to trade with each other?”

Ariel nodded. “Just the other day, he gave me a strange metal thing with a claw-like head in exchange for a tick-tock!”

Phoenix blinked in confusion at the strange terms. “Uh…do you mean a wrench in exchange for a clock?”

Ariel tapped her chin in thought. “Is that what they’re called? Oh, how interesting!”

Phoenix couldn’t help but laugh at Ariel’s curiosity. Her perspective on land life was refreshing to listen to, even if her terms needed correcting.

Suddenly, something in the horizon caught Phoenix’ eye. She turned away from Ariel and squinted towards the horizon. “What in the world?”

Ariel noticed Phoenix’ expression and asked with concern, “What is it, Phoenix?”

Phoenix wasn’t sure. She could just make out a green and black cloud hovering over the water towards the shore. Something about it didn’t seem right to her, and a troubling resemblance came to her, “Why does that cloud remind me of someone?”

Phoenix stood up on the dock and prepared to confront this anomaly. Before she flew off, she urged Ariel, “Could you wait here for a moment? I need to look into something.” Ariel nodded, and Phoenix flew towards the cloud.

As she grew closer to it, she saw the cloud stop its advance and begin to solidify a bit before morphing before her eyes. Phoenix hovered in place just above the water in front of the cloud with her Starlight Staff ready in her hand. The cloud grew taller and more defined in front of her, and her expression went from concern to horror as a familiar staff materialized in the form’s hand. “It can’t be!”

The cloud had turned into a shadowy version of Magnifico! His form was made of the black and green cloud, and his eyes were sharp and eerily green. He looked at her with an evil grin and declared with an echoing voice, “Well, well, well! We meet once again, little phoenix!”

Without a second thought, Phoenix quickly whipped around and shot a magical blast towards the Valley, creating an ethereal dome all around it. The villagers, upon seeing this, were shocked at this development, and some came down to the Beach to see what the commotion was. Phoenix turned back to the shadow as he remarked, “Sorry to burst your bubble, little phoenix, but that dome won’t prevent me from going into your precious Valley.”

Phoenix held her Staff defensively and demanded with a fire in her eyes, “What are you?!”

Magnifico cackled, “Come now, everyone remembers me!”

Phoenix knew who this person was, but she didn’t understand what he was or why he was here. She shook her head in denial. “You…you can’t be real! The High King defeated you!”

Magnifico twirled his staff around and gazed at her with a mischievous grin. He whipped his staff at her face, hitting her right eye with the tip of his staff. Phoenix cried out in pain and faltered in the air as she held her eye. When she regained her bearings, she heard Magnifico declare in a low voice, “Is that real enough for you?!”

Phoenix couldn’t believe this. “But…how?!” she whispered.

Magnifico revealed haughtily, “Looks like playing with that portal to your precious Valley paid off! Perhaps you remember that night, when you humiliated me and took away some of my powers.”

Phoenix did remember that night. Magnifico had tried to force Aster and Asha to surrender Rosas back to him in exchange for the safety of her Valley as he held the portal to her home at staff-point. He had toyed with the portal, and she had attacked him in a fury, resulting in his banishing and his loss of some of his abilities.

A sudden realization dawned on Phoenix. “The green distortion!” She looked at Shadow Magnifico and declared in bafflement, “Some of your corrupt magic escaped into my Valley!”

Magnifico made a flourish, “Correct! And I’ve been making myself at home here in the shadows.” He then thrust his staff towards Phoenix’ neck and seethed, “You will pay for your meddling in my affairs, both you and your precious villagers!”

Phoenix swiped his staff away with her own and retorted, “I will die before you lay a single hand on my villagers!”

Magnifico just shrugged, ill-impressed. “That’s…generally what my plan entails.” With that, he swung his staff towards her side, and Phoenix blocked it with her own with a grunt, and an intense duel ensued.

The villagers who had gathered on the Beach watched worriedly as Phoenix fought for her life against the shadow. Merlin in particular was especially troubled. He tried to use his magic to break the barrier, so that he could help her, but the barrier rejected the spell, and he grumbled, “Oh, confound it all!”

Fairy Godmother, who was nearby, asked worriedly, “What is going on, Merlin?”

Merlin recollected, “I remember that form from my earliest days in learning to become a wizard. He was a dangerous enemy to my mentor, as well as to Phoenix when she found herself in Rosas a few weeks ago. Now it seems, somehow, Magnifico has returned for revenge.”

Meanwhile, Phoenix ducked as a green bolt flew just above her head before firing a Starlight beam at Magnifico. It exploded up against his chest, forming a shadowy hole that quickly put itself back together. Dumbfounded, Phoenix breathed heavily, “What?!” Before it fully put itself together, Phoenix caught sight of a pulsing, purple orb in his chest.

Magnifico made a low chuckle as his eyes sparked. “Nice try, little phoenix.” He then revealed casually, “You know, I learned a new trick while I was lurking under the radar. Perhaps you would like a demonstration?” Without waiting for an answer, the head of his staff began to glow with bright green and purple light, causing the water below them to churn. Phoenix looked worriedly at the sea below her. “What is he planning?”

BOOM!!

One, large Night Thorn exploded from the water’s surface and backhanded Phoenix across the water and towards the Valley’s barrier. She crashed against it with a loud grunt and fell into the shallows, with a handful of muffled, worried cries from her villagers just beyond the border. Magnifico slowly closed in on her and pressed the tip of his staff against Phoenix’ neck in victory and stated, “What was that about you dying before I touch one of your villagers?”

“SHE WON’T PERISH AT YOUR HAND, MAGNIFICO!!”

Magnifico turned around in surprise just as he was met by a new adversary who was sprinting across a magical path above the water towards him with a large magical blast in his right hand. Shadow Magnifico prepared his staff, but he wasn’t quick enough, and the stranger shot the blast at Magnifico’s chest. The light of the blast overwhelmed the Shadow, and Magnifico disappeared with a growl of anger. “I will be back! You won’t get rid of me that easily!”

Silence soon fell as the giant Night Thorn disappeared, and Phoenix used the side of the border to stand herself up. She groaned from the pain in her eye and her midsection until she felt someone help her up. “Are you alright, miss?”

Phoenix turned to the stranger and blinked in surprise. She had never seen this person before! He wore a red-orange princely suit and had brown hair that was tied in a small ponytail. He seemed just a little bit older than Phoenix, and his eyes were a fiery orange.

Phoenix stuttered, “I…I’m okay.” A stinging sensation came over her eye and she groaned in pain. Seeing the issue, the stranger waved his hand at the barrier, causing it to disappear, and led her back to the beach towards her villagers.

Her friends swarmed her with worry, but the first to meet her were Merlin and Fairy Godmother. Merlin cried, “Stars above! Are you alright, Phoenix?!”

Before she could answer, Fairy Godmother fussed, “Oh dear! That scoundrel did a number on you, child!” She then took Phoenix’s hands and led her to a bench. “Come now, let me take a look at your wounds.”

Phoenix submitted to her care as the fairy sent several streams of magic towards her eye and midsection, cleansing her body from the poison of the staff, and slowly healing her wounds. Phoenix exhaled in relief and looked at the fairy with a tired smile, “Thank you, Fairy Godmother.”

The fairy nodded as she urged, “Now, you just rest here until the spell is complete.”

Phoenix sat in silence as Merlin shooed the rest of the villagers away. She was dumbfounded at the fact that a shadowy version of Magnifico had managed to penetrate into her Valley, and though he was gone for now, something deep inside her knew that this wouldn’t be the last time.

Soon, a comment brought Phoenix out of her contemplation. “I don’t think we’ve met, sir. I am Merlin, one of the most powerful wizards!”

Phoenix looked up as the stranger replied with a smile, “A pleasure to meet you, Merlin. I am Yaron. I was traveling to this Valley when I stumbled upon the fight.” He turned to Phoenix as he added, “I’m glad I came when I did.”

Phoenix was rendered speechless. “Who is this person? Why was he traveling to MY Valley?” Remembering something, Phoenix mused, “How did he break my barrier when I’m the only one who can wield this magic?”

Fairy Godmother soon answered Yaron, “And we are glad you came when you did as well, Yaron! Have you come to stay long?”

Yaron nodded, “That was my desire, yes.”

Merlin then purposed, “Well, then, you will need a place to live! I’ll go see if Mr. McDuck has anything from his construction company.”

Phoenix soon began to stand up as she interjected, “I can take care of that, Merlin.”

Merlin gently pushed Phoenix back down on the bench with his cane and countered, “No, you need to rest from that duel.”

“But you know how much McDuck charges for that stuff,” Phoenix protested, “I just recently sold a bunch of minerals, so I have the money to—”

Merlin wouldn’t have it. “No, no. I can take care of it this time, Phoenix, and there’s no argument, rebuttal, or whatever that can change my mind.” With that, he walked off towards McDuck’s store.

Phoenix shook her head as he left, and Fairy Godmother placed a hand on her shoulder, saying, “I suggest you take it slower today, my dear. The spell healed your wounds, but you will still feel a little weakness until tomorrow.” Phoenix nodded in acknowledgement, and the fairy remarked, “Well, I must be off. I still have a few wishes to take care of.” With that, she left, leaving Phoenix alone with Yaron.

After some silence, Yaron came over and gestured to the space next to her on the bench. “May I?” After some hesitation, Phoenix consented, and Yaron sat down next to Phoenix. He then greeted, “I’m glad to meet you, miss.”

Phoenix smiled slightly, “It’s a…pleasure to meet you, Yaron. I’m Phoenix. Gesturing to the ocean, she stated, “Thank you for your help against Magnifico.”

Yaron smiled kindly, “Of course, Phoenix. Magnifico was a dangerous man, and his corrupted magic is even worse.”

Phoenix was momentarily amazed that he knew of Magnifico, but she pushed it aside, agreed with him, and soon stood up. She suggested, “Would you like me to show you around the Village?”

Yaron thought for a moment before stating, “As long as you are strong enough.”

Phoenix waved it off. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.” Taking it as satisfactory, Yaron arose and joined Phoenix as she led the tour.

They walked up towards the Forest of Valor, and Phoenix named each villager that passed by. Yaron greeted them warmly before continuing on. When they came to the steps leading to the Frozen Heights, Phoenix caught sight of a large stump that was hiding around the corner of the stairs. She groaned, “How did I miss that this morning?” She then manifested her Royal Shovel and went to dig it away and turn it into sticks. However, her magic was depleted from the fight with Magnifico and the impact of the Night Thorn, and she leaned her head against the shovel in fatigue.

Seeing this, Yaron urged, “Here, let me. If you don’t need them, I might need the sticks for later.” Without waiting for an answer, Yaron formed his own shovel out of his magic. He dug and transformed the stump with ease, and he picked up the sticks that had appeared.

Phoenix watched this all happen in utter surprise. “How in the world?! I thought only my Royal Tools and my Dreamlight magic could remove debris like this.”

Once Yaron was finished, he turned to Phoenix and asked, “Are you sure you are alright enough to show me your Valley? I can always wander around and get a feel for where everything is that way.”

Phoenix caused her shovel to disappear before answering, “It’s alright. I should be back to normal soon enough.” She then gestured to the Frozen Heights and remarked, “Up here is where Anna, Christof, and Olaf live, though I’m not sure if they’re home right now.” Yaron acknowledged and they continued onward, leaving the green grass for the snow-covered landscape.

As they crossed the bridge leading to Anna’s castle, Phoenix caught sight of a small Night Thorn that had been hidden by a few trees. She sighed as she muttered, “It’s amazing what I miss these days.” She then prepared her magic to blast the thorns. Much to her chagrin, however, her magic sputtered, unable to remove the Thorns.

Yaron noticed the issue and encouraged, “Allow me.” He then shot his magic at the Thorns, disintegrating them in an instant. Once finished, he remarked, “There. Much better.”

Phoenix’ eyes widened with even greater surprise. “Wait. What?! Merlin told me only Dreamlight magic could remove these Thorns! How is Yaron able to remove them?!”

Yaron brought her out of her contemplations and urged, “Please, Phoenix. Why don’t you go home to rest. Fairy Godmother said you would be weak until tomorrow; I can find my way around the Village, and if I find any more debris, I can take care of it.”

“Unbelievable.” Yaron had caused more questions to pop up in her mind than any magical mystery she’d encountered! However, Phoenix had to concede to Yaron’s argument. She did feel weak from Magnifico’s attack, and forcing herself to continue wasn’t helping her. “Perhaps I can find answers after I rest. This Yaron character is truly strange!” With that, she submitted to Yaron’s urging and went home to rest.

LATER THAT DAY…

Phoenix exited her house just as the sun was descending in the horizon. She exhaled in relief, refreshed from the rest she had taken. “Ah! I feel so much better!” She thought of going to Remy’s restaurant for dinner, but then she remembered something, “I wonder if Merlin knows anything about this Yaron character, or at least how he has magical abilities similar to mine. If anything, I should at least see if he can figure out why this Shadow Magnifico is here.” With that, she set out to find Merlin.

After a bit of wandering, Phoenix found Merlin outside his home reading through a book of his. She made her way to him and greeted, “Good evening, Merlin!”

Merlin looked up from reading and smiled. “Why Phoenix! Good evening! You are looking much better than when you did earlier today.”

Phoenix nodded, “I took a bit of a rest in my house at Yaron’s urging. That helped a lot.”

Merlin hummed in understanding. “And how is our new friend adjusting?”

Phoenix rubbed the back of her neck. “Well, I’m not sure, actually. I really haven’t checked up on him since I woke up.” She then faced Merlin squarely and revealed, “Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”

Merlin quirked a brow. “Oh?”

Phoenix explained, “Well, before he urged me to rest, I was showing different parts of the Valley to him, but there were bits of debris that I missed in certain biomes. I found that I was too weak to clean them up, but Yaron was somehow able to create a version of my Royal Tools to take care of the debris! He was even able to remove a stray Night Thorn I had missed, something I thought only Dreamlight magic could remove.”

Merlin was surprised. He stroked his beard in thought. “My, my! That is peculiar. And he doesn’t look like another Valley Ruler; his attributes don’t quite fit one. In fact, with all my memories, I don’t believe I’ve seen his realm within the Dream Castle!”

Phoenix was amazed. “Then where in the world is he from and how did he get to my Valley?”

Merlin shook his head. “I’m afraid I don’t have the faintest idea, Phoenix. Regardless of that, Yaron seems to be quite friendly, so I doubt his strange abilities or his mystery are of much concern.”

Phoenix hummed in indecision. “I suppose he does seem friendly. It’s just that…well…I don’t know! Do you think you could still look into this, just in case?”

Merlin seemed concerned. “Well, this is rather peculiar of you!”

Phoenix tried to explain, “Well, it’s just that none of the other villagers have abilities like mine, but suddenly Yaron comes along and does exactly what I can do with Dreamlight magic. It’s a little…disconcerting.”

After some thought, Merlin declared, “I will have to do some research on this topic. I need to do research anyways on that Shadow you fought, so an additional topic wouldn’t hurt.”

Phoenix thanked Merlin. “Thanks, Merlin. I do appreciate it.” She then turned towards Remy’s restaurant and revealed, “Well, I need to get something to eat before I can think of anything else.”

Merlin acknowledged, but before she went her way, Merlin challenged, “Phoenix, I do sympathize with your concerns about Yaron, but I want to challenge you to get to know him on your own. That’s the only way you got close to the rest of the villagers here; Yaron is no different.” Phoenix, though skeptical, acknowledged and went her way.

The bell above the restaurant’s doorway rang as she entered, and she was soon greeted by the mouse chef himself. “Bonjour, Phoenix! What can I do for you today?”

Phoenix smiled. “Just a table for one, Remy. Thanks!”

Remy nodded and led Phoenix to a table that was on the left side of the restaurant. As she sat down, Remy stated, “I’ll be back to take your order.” Phoenix acknowledged, and Remy scurried back into the kitchen.

Phoenix then opened her menu and perused the options for the day. Remy was always the best cook in the Valley, so she never went wrong with any of the meals she picked. Still, she had a hankering for something fried today and searched the menu for the best option. “Hmm…maybe the fried fish entrée would be good tonight?”

“Excuse me, Phoenix?”

Phoenix flinched in surprise until she saw Yaron coming to her table. She relaxed a bit as she spoke, “Oh! Um…good evening, Yaron. Are you enjoying the Valley so far?”

Yaron smiled kindly as he answered, “I am. This place has quite the character, and many of the villagers have been very welcoming.” He then gestured to the seat on the other side of the table and asked, “Do you mind if I join you for dinner? Remy said that you wouldn’t mind, but I figured it was best to ask you before assuming.”

Phoenix hesitated before supposing, “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to get to know him a little.” She nodded in consent, and Yaron sat on the other side of the table.

Right then, Remy came over to take their order. “Have you two decided on what to order?”

Phoenix nodded. “I think I’ll have the fish entrée, fried please?”

Remy asked, “Does it matter what sort of fish? Moana caught quite the variety today.”

Phoenix hummed, “Why don’t you surprise me. I trust your palate.”

Remy shook with excitement before turning to Yaron. “How about you? Or did you still need a minute?”

Yaron thought for a moment before answering, “I think I’ll try what Phoenix is getting with the same parameters.”

That took Phoenix by surprise, but Remy nearly jumped for joy. “Something tells me you’re going to be another one of my favorite customers, Yaron!” With that, he went into the kitchen to prepare the meal.

Phoenix and Yaron sat in silence as he did. Phoenix wasn’t sure how to start a conversation with him, unlike her interactions with the other villagers. To her, Yaron seemed quite different than the rest, and she just wasn’t sure how to handle his mystery. “Someone who suddenly appears and is able to do exactly what my magic can do? This is utterly bizarre.”

Soon, Yaron spoke, “How are you feeling after your rest, Phoenix?”

Phoenix answered politely, “I’m feeling a lot better, Yaron. Thank you.” Yaron acknowledged with a smile, and Phoenix mused, “I’ll have to wait and see what Merlin can come up with as far as this new Magnifico problem is concerned.” Remembering what happened in Rosas, she added sharply, “Shadow or not, he has another thing coming if he thinks he can endanger my villagers.”

Yaron hummed, “I don’t disagree, but it doesn’t seem like they are his main concern. I would advise caution in how you handle this crisis. Magnifico’s corrupted magic is formidable, and this Shadow seems to have his eyes set on you.”

Phoenix quirked a brow. “You…seem to know a lot about this.”

Remy soon brought their food, and the two of them thanked him before he went to take care of other customers. As they started eating, Yaron answered, “I’ve come up against many things like Shadow Magnifico.” Phoenix hummed in response, and they ate in silence.

After the meal, the two of them left the restaurant. Night had fully fallen in the Valley, and Phoenix sighed with a realization. “I slept a good portion of the day away! I might have a long night ahead.” Then she had an idea, “Magnifico said something about being underground. I wonder if I can pinpoint where he’s hiding.” With that, she started towards Dazzle Beach.

Yaron, upon noticing her head away from her house, asked, “Where are you going at this time of night?”

Phoenix stopped for a moment and answered simply. “I’m just…checking on something. I slept most of the day away, so I don’t think I’ll get any sleep tonight. I figured I’d do a few things to pass the time.”

Yaron asked, “Do you need any help?”

Phoenix shook her head. “No, I’ll be fine. Thanks anyways.” Though hesitant, Yaron said farewell to her before she headed down to the Beach.

Once she made it to the far-left side of the Beach, she entered one of the deeper caves and walked cautiously through in search of any clues on Magnifico’s whereabouts. She held a bright Dreamlight orb in one hand to allow her to see in the dark cave halls, giving her path a little bit of a purple-blue hue. She brought out her Starlight Staff from her mist just in case Magnifico decided to jump out at her. An unsettling silence hung over the cave halls as Phoenix descended deeper and deeper. She focused so heavily on what was in front of her that she didn’t notice another light begin to follow her from behind…

She soon found herself in the deepest part of the cave. It was a large room with a pond towards the back and a few rock spires jetting up from the cave floor. Seeing that it was darker than before, Phoenix tossed her Dreamlight orb up and swung her Starlight Staff towards it like a baseball bat, sending the orb up into the cave ceiling. Upon impact, the orb brightened the cave room, allowing Phoenix to see comfortably. She scanned the room for any signs of Shadow Magnifico, hoping to get the jump on him and end the crisis before it started.

Unbeknownst to her, however, she didn’t notice that the shadow that was cast from the lightning was morphing into Magnifico from behind her. His eyes soon flashed to life when he saw her back turned to him, and with a low chuckle, he pointed his staff at her, preparing a large blast at the tip.

SCHWISSH!! BOOM!!

Phoenix gasped at the noise and whipped around just in time to see Shadow Magnifico disintegrate from a white blast, and Yaron enter the room. Phoenix’ eyes widened. “Yaron?! What are you doing here?!”

Yaron explained, “Letting you go on your own didn’t sit well with me, so I decided to follow you.” Gesturing to where Magnifico once stood, he added, “It looks like my gut was right.”

Phoenix wasn’t sure how to respond except with, “Well, thanks…again.” She then went to leave. “I should probably check on a few other…things.”

Phoenix went to pass Yaron, but this time, he didn’t let her go. He placed his hand on her shoulder and urged, “Phoenix, wait!”

Phoenix looked at him in surprise. “What is Yaron getting at?” She turned to him as he stated, “Listen, I know I’m new to your Valley, but I cannot in good conscience let you go alone. Magnifico clearly has a desire for your demise and at the first chance he gets, he will take it.”

Phoenix pointed out, “Seriously, Yaron, you don’t have to worry.”

Undeterred, Yaron replied, “All the same, Phoenix, let me accompany you tonight. I’d feel a lot better knowing that you weren’t wandering around this Village at night on your own.”

Phoenix thought about his proposition. Nearly everything about Yaron was either confusing or surprising her, and she had hoped to wait until Merlin knew more about him before fully interacting with him. Still, she had to concede that wandering around the Valley was a lonely pastime, as everyone had turned in for the night. So, with a sigh, she answered, “Alright, Yaron. You win, but I can tell you that you don’t have to worry about me.”

If Yaron had a comeback, he chose not to say it. Instead, he thanked her, and the two of them walked out of the cave and back into the Valley.

THE NEXT MORNING…

Phoenix arose just as the noise of the morning reached her ears. Though she was more tired than most mornings, due to last night, she forced herself to get up and get ready for her morning chores. Last night, she had wandered around the Valley with Yaron accompanying her, since she had slept the day away after the Magnifico incident. The time had been quiet, as Phoenix didn’t know how to start up a conversation with Yaron, but he didn’t seem to mind. Once the moon was at its peak, Yaron had escorted her to her home and thanked her for allowing him to accompany her. Phoenix had acknowledged with a tired smile, and the two of them went their separate ways.

Once Phoenix was fully ready, she left her house and wandered around in search of any debris that had appeared the night before while she had slept. A few villagers were already out and about, and they greeted her warmly; most villagers, however, were still sleeping.

Phoenix started with the Plaza, as it was the first place she came to after leaving her house. Today, there were a few rocks jetting up from the paths, but nothing too ridiculous. She then moved down to the Peaceful Meadows and caught sight of several dark mushrooms that had grown around Goofy’s house. Using her Royal Watering Can, she disintegrated the mushrooms and transformed them into smaller, edible mushrooms.

That’s when Goofy exited his house. When he saw Phoenix, he greeted, “Good morning, Phoenix! Gawrsh, what a lovely morning to be out and about!”

Phoenix chuckled. “Good morning, Goofy! Any plans for the day?”

Goofy scratched his head in thought before answering, “Well…I might do some fishing today, but other than that…I might just see what the day brings. Who knows, I might get a few customers at one of my stalls!”

Phoenix remarked, “Well, perhaps one of those customers might be me later on. I think I might be low on one of my crops, so I’ll need to check that later.” Goofy agreed, and Phoenix continued on her rounds.

She eventually came into the Frozen Heights. Once she scaled the steps leading there, she gasped at what was before her. “These ice spikes are larger than usual…and of course, this is where the Night Thorns chose to sprout.” With that, she brandished her Pickax and got to work.

As she delivered blow after blow to each ice spike, she was grateful to see that it didn’t wake up Anna or Christoph. With every impact of her Pickax, the ice spikes were transformed into unique snowballs that didn’t melt. These often proved helpful when Phoenix crafted decorations for the Frosted Heights; for now, however, they served as a modest means of income. When she finished destroying the ice spikes, she turned her attention to the Night Thorns, using her Dreamlight magic to remove them from the snow and ice.

She eventually came to the last Night Thorn, which had latched onto a nearby tree. She exhaled in exhaustion, but she found that she had just enough strength left to remove this last one before needing to take a moment to rest. “Finally, one more!” With a flourish, she sent her blast towards the Night Thorn.

RRRRUMMMBLEE!!! BOOM!!

The small, yet powerful, explosion sent Phoenix staggering backwards and grasping the Dreamlight Tree for support as she saw a troubling sight. “What?!”

The Night Thorn that she had blasted had grown in size and was slithering about in the general vicinity, as if looking for something. Shadow Magnifico then appeared next to it, cackling at having caught Phoenix in his trap. He glared at her and declared, “Surprise!”

This wasn’t what she was hoping for this morning. Phoenix manifested her Starlight Staff in her hand and prepared to attack, but her exhaustion overcame her so that she couldn’t cast a spell. Magnifico then sent the Night Thorn towards her, which coiled around her in a tight grip and brought her to him. Phoenix tried to wriggle out of the Thorn’s hold, but her arms and wings were cut by the barbs, and she groaned from the pain.

Once she was face to face with Shadow Magnifico, he grinned evilly and revealed, “I told you that you hadn’t seen the last of me, little phoenix. No amount of your Dreamlight magic can stop me from taking my revenge on you.” He looked around before adding, “And it seems like your ‘hero’ can’t do anything about that.”

“Think again, Magnifico!”

Magnifico looked up just in time to see Yaron jump from a cliff and drive a bright ethereal javelin through his shadowy form. He faded away in an instant, and the Thorn disappeared with him, releasing Phoenix. She collapsed onto her hands and knees and struggled to stand up from the pain and exhaustion.

Yaron came to help her and led her gently to a nearby bench. Phoenix held her right arm gingerly as Yaron asked, “Are you alright, Phoenix?”

Phoenix nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” She then went to leave. “I’d better get something to eat before I get any weaker.”

Yaron protested, “But you are wounded! Let me take care of those cuts for you before you go.”

Phoenix waved it off. “No, no, I’ll be alright. Thanks!” Without waiting for a response, she walked away.

Sometime later, Phoenix came to Ariel, who was waiting by the dock, with a recently found diamond from the Forgotten Lands. Phoenix bent down and handed it to Ariel and declared, “Here we go, Ariel! I hope that helps your collection!”

Ariel squealed with glee. “Thanks, Phoenix! This helps a lot!” She then chuckled, “You know, as I’m a mermaid, I can’t really find gems like these on my own. Thanks for your help.”

Phoenix smiled, “Anytime!” She then left Ariel and wandered towards the right side of the beach until she saw a strange sight in front of her. “Wait…what?!”

Yaron was conversing seriously with Scar. Scar appeared to try and wave off the topic, but Yaron wouldn’t let him go until the lion heard him. Judging by Yaron’s countenance, he was dealing with another misdemeanor from Scar. She mused, “I usually handle that stuff. What could’ve happened?”

Right then, Yaron noticed he had company and turned to her. “Phoenix! How are y—”

Phoenix didn’t wait for him to finish. She walked up the steps leading to the Peaceful Meadows.

At noon, Phoenix was going to Remy’s restaurant to get some lunch. When she came close to the entrance, she stopped short when she saw Yaron handing Remy some ingredients. “There we are, Remy,” he stated. “These should be what you were looking for to make that special recipe you were remembering earlier.”

Phoenix’ eyes grew wide. “Remy had a recipe he needed help with? How did I not find this out?”

Remy thanked Yaron. “Thanks a lot, Yaron! This will help a lot. I’ll make this new recipe the special of the day tomorrow!”

Yaron chuckled until he noticed Phoenix just standing there in bafflement. He greeted her, “Good afternoon, Phoenix! Since you’re here, would you like to have lunch with—"

He didn’t have time to finish before Phoenix decided to get leftovers from her house for lunch.

Later that day, Phoenix was helping with repairs on Christoph’s sled on the Frosted Heights, adjusting some of the underlying structures to make the sled’s base more secure. After straightening the last center beam, Phoenix slid out from under the sled and exhaled, “There. That should keep it from wobbling anymore.”

Christoph helped her up as he thanked, “Thanks a lot, Phoenix.” He patted the front of the sled as he explained, “This baby has been with me since my first ice delivery, so it’s very special to me.”

Phoenix was glad she could help. After saying goodbye to him, she made her way across the bridge until she caught sight of another interesting exchange.

Olaf stood closer to mountainside and urged Yaron with a playful chuckle, “Come on, Yaron! Do it again!”

Yaron made a slight smile before asking, “Are you sure falling apart like that doesn’t affect you?”

Olaf was bouncing with excitement. “Oh no. It’s actually funny when I fall apart. I mean, I always get back together anyways.”

Yaron shrugged, “Good point. Are you ready then?” Olaf nodded, and Yaron sent a stream of magic that swirled the winds around Olaf, causing him to float and flutter in place. The lack of gravity caused his three parts to separate, and Olaf giggled with glee as he floated higher and higher. After a few minutes, Yaron caused the winds to subside, and Olaf slowly dropped back down to the ground. While Olaf’s bottom half landed on its feet, the other two parts tumbled to the side. Olaf’s head was on its side, and he quipped, “Look at that! I’m all over the place again!”

Yaron laughed outright as he came over to put Olaf back together. As he straightened Olaf’s head, he remarked, “That was quite fun, Olaf!”

Olaf answered with a grin, “See, I told you it would! Thanks for playing with me, Yaron!” he then laughed, “’Yaron’. What a funny name!” After composing himself, he added, “I would’ve asked Phoenix to play with me, but she seemed really busy with something.”

That comment hit Phoenix a little harder than expected. Had she really been that busy?

Yaron sympathized, “Cheer up, Olaf. Phoenix has had a lot of things to deal with as of late, but once that clears up, I’m sure she’ll be able to play with you again.”

Olaf remembered. “Oh, you mean that weird cloud man?”

Yaron nodded, “That’s right, Olaf.”

Phoenix placed a hand over her heart at the heaviness that suddenly came over her. Olaf was always such a kind soul and a burst of sunshine! “I…didn’t mean to neglect him!” Her face soon felt hot, and she began to walk away before tears could form.

SNAP!!

Phoenix’ breath caught, and she turned to see that Yaron had spotted her again. Concern flitted across his face when he saw her flushed countenance, and he called, “Phoenix? What’s wr—"

Phoenix—not wanting to engage with him at the moment—bolted.

“Phoenix!” Yaron called, “Wait!” He arose and went after her. He was quite done with her running away from him, and he intended on catching her this time. “Why does she keep doing this?”

Phoenix swung around the incline that led down to the Plaza and turned around for a moment to see that Yaron was pursuing her. Having an idea, she waved her hands and teleported away just before Yaron caught her.

Yaron stopped at the end of the incline when Phoenix disappeared. Undeterred, he sprinkled a bit of magic where she had stood, and the white sparkles began floating from that point towards the Dream Castle, betraying Phoenix’ whereabouts. Yaron breathed, “You’re not getting rid of me that easily, Phoenix.” He then jogged up the bridge leading to the Castle.

Meanwhile, Phoenix had reappeared on the highest floor of the castle and collapsed onto her knees next to the large fountain, crying over what she’d witnessed. There were so many needs she had missed, and Olaf’s sadness hurt her even more!” She wondered to herself, “How can I possibly cover every single villager’s needs?! I still need to check with Merlin on what he’s learned concerning the Shadow Magnifico and Yaron and it’s almost the end of the day!” No solution came to mind, and she wept at her apparent negligence.

Unbeknownst to her, Yaron had found her in the castle. He followed the sound of her crying until he came up to where the main fountain stood. When he saw Phoenix crying, he sighed as he slowly came to her. “Phoenix?”

Phoenix looked up with surprise and saw Yaron kneel by her side. She wiped some of her tears away before asking, “How did you find out I was here?”

Yaron smiled slightly, “I have my ways, Phoenix.” He then became serious as he asked, “What’s wrong?”

Phoenix shook her head, “I’m…fine.”

Yaron remarked, “That is a lie and you know it.” Phoenix sighed, and Yaron urged, “Please, Phoenix! You’ve been avoiding me all day, and frankly, I’m a little tired of it. I want to help you, but you keep fighting me!”

Phoenix retorted, “Well, what do you expect! You suddenly appear in my Valley and make it your home, and then you do what I tend to do as the leader of this Valley!” She groaned, “I hardly know you, and you’re already inserting yourself into everything!”

Yaron’s eyes widened at the implied accusation, “I’m not seeking to replace you, Phoenix! All I ever wanted was to help you, to get to know the villagers, and to be your friend! You have so much to take care of in Dreamlight Valley, and with the added crisis of Magnifico, you can’t handle all of that on your own.”

“Why do you care so much?!” Phoenix cried flabbergasted. “I only just met you yesterday!”

Yaron replied, “It is my nature to care as much as I do, Phoenix. Beyond this…well, it is as I said: I want to be your friend.” Phoenix sighed loudly, and Yaron continued, “Listen, I know my introduction to you was a bit…abrupt, but if you would just please give me a chance, I’m sure you’d find that your reservations about me are unfounded.”

Phoenix thought about Yaron’s proposal. Though she didn’t understand who or what this Yaron character was, she couldn’t deny that he had been nothing but kind to her and her villagers since he first came. Without turning to Yaron, she admitted, “I…heard how Olaf felt about my busyness, when you were playing with him. When I heard it, I felt so terrible about having neglected, not only his needs, but the other villagers who you were helping that I just…”

Yaron groaned in understanding. “You didn’t neglect any of your villagers, Phoenix. Take it from me, a ruler’s work is never done, and you in particular can’t possibly cover every villager’s needs all at once. Olaf was just…not understanding what was going on, in his own innocence, but he does now, and I’m sure that like Olaf, none of your villagers hold it against you.”

Phoenix felt a little better at his encouragement. Still, she wondered aloud, “But what about this Shadow Magnifico problem?” She clenched her fists as she revealed, “I’d never forgive myself if he somehow targeted one of my villagers in order to get to me.”

Yaron calmed, “You don’t have to face this on your own, Phoenix, and frankly, I don’t want you to.” Phoenix turned to him as he urged, “Please, give me a chance!”

Phoenix sighed. After he had risked his life to defend her from Magnifico twice, she couldn’t deny that she owed him that much at least. Facing him squarely, she stretched her hand out to him and conceded, “Alright. I’ll give you a chance.”

Yaron was pleased. He shook her hand sincerely as he said, “Thank you, Phoenix. That means a lot.”

Phoenix then added as she rubbed the back of her neck, “And…I’m sorry for running away from you today.”

Yaron smirked as he answered, “It’s alright, my friend. I know this has been a little difficult for you.” His eyes then sparked as he added, “And…since you’re here, perhaps I can now tend to those cuts you still have.”

Phoenix looked at her arms in slight surprise. She had nearly forgotten about the cuts she received from that morning. She answered, “Oh, right. I suppose I owe you that much.”

The two of them arose, and Yaron remarked as they walked down the stairs of the castle, “You don’t owe me anything, but I’m glad you’ll let me do this.” They then stopped, and Yaron took Phoenix’ hands in his, allowing a bright light to engulf her arms and wings. Phoenix gasped as she watched her cuts disappear when the light touched them. When the light subsided, Yaron released her hands, and she said in a small voice, “Thanks, Yaron.”

Yaron beamed, “Anytime, my friend.”

THE NEXT DAY…

Phoenix walked out of Scrooge McDuck’s store after doing her routine perusing of the morning. Before she completely walked out the door, she turned back and called, “Thanks, Scrooge!”

Scrooge called back, “Always happy to help a loyal customer, lass! Bye bye!”

Phoenix couldn’t help but chuckle a little bit as she looked through her Dreamlight mist that held her new purchases. It was times like these that she was grateful to wield this sort of magic, as it made it easier to carry large furniture and a larger quantity of stuff if she needed. “It makes shopping so much simpler!”

“Good morning, Phoenix!”

Phoenix turned to her left and noticed Yaron coming to her to greet her. She responded, “Oh! Good morning, Yaron! How are you?”

Yaron, visibly pleased that she was engaging with him, replied, “I’m doing fine, my friend.” He then added with a smirk, “Though I did wake up to the sound of Donald having a tantrum near my house. Something about a ‘little blue rascal’.”

Phoenix groaned. “Stitch!” She sighed gustily, “He must’ve pranked him or something. Donald is his favorite prank victim.”

Yaron hummed. “I’ve seen this blue fella. I know he does care about how high his ‘badness level’ is, but he certainly is a mischievous little villager.”

Phoenix stated, “I may need to look into that later, but for now, I have a few things I need to take care of.”

Yaron suggested, “Perhaps I can take care of the debacle between Stitch and Donald. The issue did happen in front of my house, so I think it makes sense for me to look into it.”

Phoenix was hesitant. “Are you sure? Donald has quite a short fuse.”

Yaron chuckled knowingly, “It’s not a problem, Phoenix. It’ll free you up to take care of—” he then became thoughtful and asked, “What do you need to take care of?”

Phoenix hesitated to say it. She had planned on going into the Mines in the Sunlit Plateau to investigate any other clues concerning Shadow Magnifico. His taunts and threats had made her think that he might be lurking deep below the Valley, and though the cave in Dazzle Beach didn’t yield many clues, the Mines might. However, Yaron had already expressed that he didn’t want her to take care of the Magnifico problem on her own, among other concerns, so she worried about his protest to her plans.

Finally, she stated, “I…need to go into the Mines for something.”

Yaron looked up at the Plateau where the Mines were located as a bit of concern crossed his face. He hummed, “I’ve walked through those Mines the first day I came into the Valley. Those large Thorns and unsteady walls concern me.”

Phoenix dismissed it as she began walking away. “Don’t worry. I’ve been through those Mines lots of times when searching for Vitalis Crystals and other minerals; the large Night Thorns and the cracked walls haven’t been a threat to me.”

“This is different,” Yaron mused. “We have a shadow who frequently uses Night Thorns on the loose.” His eyes widened at a thought, and he addressed Phoenix squarely, “You aren’t going to try and find him, are you?!”

Phoenix’ colored at the abrupt question. “He has quite the intuition!” She stuttered, “I…uh…”

Yaron reminded, “Phoenix, I thought we agreed you weren’t going to try to handle this crisis on your own.”

Phoenix wasn’t sure how to answer Yaron. “Well…I mean…”

Right then, Phoenix heard her name being called. She turned around to see Merlin coming to her, and she greeted, “Merlin! How are you?”

Merlin answered, “I’m doing just fine, Phoenix, but I need to ask a favor of you.” Phoenix agreed, and Merlin revealed, “I seem to be completely out of Vitalis Crystals for an experiment I’m conducting. Could you possibly spare any?”

This was exactly what she needed! “That gives me a reason to go to the Mines!” With that, Phoenix replied, “Of course, Merlin! I’ll just go into the Mines and grab some.” Merlin thanked her and went back to his house to supervise his experiment.

Once he was gone, Phoenix turned back to Yaron, who still was expecting an answer from her, and stated, “Well, I gotta run.”

Though reluctant, Yaron let her go…with one condition. “Just promise me you will go in to get the Crystals, and then go straight out to Merlin?” With a sigh, Phoenix agreed, and they went their separate ways.

It wasn’t long before Phoenix entered the dark Mines that ran underneath the Sunlit Plateau. There was very little lighting, but it was enough for Phoenix to move around comfortably and get what she needed easily. Brittle rock spires dotted the sides of the Mines, revealing Vitalis veins that glowed in the dark Mines. Manifesting her pickax, Phoenix picked a tunnel and got to work.

Merlin hadn’t specified how many Crystals he needed, so she figured that about ten or so would do the trick. When she was about five Crystals into the job, she came across the suspended railway that used to serve as a mining car rail before the Forgetting. The rusted tracks swayed ever so slightly in the breeze that came up from the depths below. Phoenix couldn’t see the bottom as it was blocked by what Merlin had called “Vitalis Fog”, which had been formed from unstable Crystals below. Phoenix groaned as she slowly crossed the divide. “One of these days, I’ll need to get this repaired, so it isn’t so hazardous!” As she glanced below her, she hummed in thought, “I wonder how deep it goes…Perhaps after I get Merlin his Crystals, I’ll have time to check.”

She soon made it to the other side of the Mines, which looped back to the beginning, and after a few blows to a couple of rock spires, she found enough Vitalis Crystals to give to Merlin.

Once out of the Mines, Phoenix made her way down to the Peaceful Meadows and found Merlin just leaving his house. She met him and gave him the Crystals she found. “I don’t know how many you needed, but maybe this will be enough for your experiments?”

Merlin received the Crystals thankfully and replied, “That’s more than enough, Phoenix. Thank you.” He then turned back to his house and declared, “Now I must be off. Discovery waits for no one!”

Phoenix chuckled a bit as he reentered his house. She was always amused by how passionate he was about discovery and knowledge. Phoenix then checked to see if Yaron was around before flying off to the Sunlit Plateau and reentering the Mines, thinking to herself, “I’m just searching for clues on Magnifico’s whereabouts. I’m sure I can handle at least this on my own.”

She soon made it back into the Mines and retraced her steps until she found herself at the divide once more. With a deep breath, she spread out her wings and dove into the fog.

TSSS!!!

Phoenix faltered a little in the air before making a rough landing on the dirt floor below the fog. Looking up, she discovered that bits of the fog had gotten in between her feathers, messing with them in some way. She grunted from the sensation as she thought out loud, “Merlin might know why this fog is making my wings act up. I’ll have to ask him later.” With that, she stood up, brandished her Starlight Staff, and looked around.

MEANWHILE…

Yaron had just finished settling the dispute between Donald and Stitch and was coming up the Beach stairs leading to the Meadows. He thought to himself, “Those two are something else! Stitch definitely is mischievous, but he means well. Maybe Donald will see that later.” He then looked around for Phoenix, hoping that her errand was just as successful as his. Though, he mostly hoped that she did as she promised. “Those Mines are perfect for an ambush!”

He then saw Merlin walking out of his house, having finished his experiment. Yaron met him and asked, “Hello, Merlin! Have you seen Phoenix anywhere?”

Merlin stroked his beard in thought. “No, I haven’t. I just finished experimenting with the Crystals she gave me, but beyond that, I haven’t the foggiest idea where she went.”

Yaron seemed a bit relieved. “So, she did keep her promise.” He then said farewell to Merlin and went up to the Plaza. He sent out his magic to search for Phoenix, so that he could find her more easily, and the sparkles floated up the incline leading to the Plateau. Curious, Yaron followed the trail as it made a sharp left, floating deeper into the Plateau. “Hmm…I wonder what else she needed in the Plateau.”

He got his answer when his magic made a sharp right…into the Mines! Yaron’s eyes widened. “She went back?!” With no time to lose, Yaron jogged into the dark Mines, hoping to catch up with Phoenix before anyone else did.

BACK IN THE MINES…

Phoenix turned a corner and came into a large, circular room. She gasped as she saw how many large Night Thorns encased the walls of the cave room and eventually converged at one spot in the middle of the room, creating a makeshift pillar of Thorns. The strangest thing was that some of them had a green hue to them, an unnatural color for even Night Thorns. As Phoenix cautiously entered, she wondered to herself, “I wonder if this pillar connects to a root of some sort.” She held her Staff defensively as she ventured further into the room, unsettled by the eerie silence within.

“Hello, Phoenix!”

Phoenix froze when she heard that voice and whipped around just in time to see more Night Thorns cover her only way out of the cave. A moment later, smaller Night Thorns arose from the ground and slithered close to her, intent on trapping her. Phoenix drove her Staff into the ground, sending out a powerful wave of magic that caused the smaller Thorns to disintegrate.

The attacks didn’t end there, though. When the smaller Thorns withered, a larger Thorn from the wall shot out towards Phoenix. She parried the attack and fired a powerful blast from her Staff, sending it back to the wall. She then shot up into air and flew around the room to get away from Night Thorns that had sprung up from the ground. As she did, she growled, “Show yourself, shadow!!”

Shadow Magnifico cackled, “Oh, but I’m just having so much fun watching you try to defeat my Thorns.”

A large Night Thorn soon emerged from the ceiling and batted Phoenix out of the air. She groaned as she crashed onto the ground. The impact loosened her grip on her Staff causing it to disappear in Dreamlight mist. As she stood up, she prepared to summon it again.

THWICK!! THWICK!!

In a flash, two large Thorns from the wall shot out and caught her wrists. They each pulled on their end, yanking her arms out and digging into her wrists. Phoenix grunted from the pain as she was forced onto her knees from the Thorns. She tried to pull her arms back, but the Thorns grew tighter, and the pain in her wrists worsened.

It was then that Shadow Magnifico showed himself. He materialized in front of her and smirked, “You haven’t changed a bit, little phoenix. Always looking for trouble and always needing your friends to rescue you out of trouble.” He then swung his staff towards her face and lifted it to face him as he declared in a low voice. “Only this time, no one will be coming for you.”

Phoenix had no answer for him. As far as anyone was concerned, she was anywhere but in the Mines and certainly not this far down. Still, she wasn’t going to give Magnifico the pleasure of seeing a defeated Phoenix, so she retorted, “And you haven’t changed either, Magnifico! Always making evil plans but never succeeding at them.”

Magnifico snapped his fingers, causing a green vein to run along the Thorns holding her wrists until they crossed over them. Phoenix flinched and groaned at the draining sensation that came over her, and Magnifico cackled, “You know what they say. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! Once you are gone, I will take over as ruler of this Valley, and all your villagers will by my slaves.”

Phoenix gritted her teeth as she answered, “They’ll…never submit to you!”

Magnifico shrugged, “Maybe not all, but I know how to handle insurrectionists.” He then laid the tip of his staff against Phoenix’ forehead as a charge was forming inside of the staff’s head and stated, “Now, since I am a merciful opponent, I’ll make this end quick. Be a good girl and hold still for me?”

ZZZIINGG!! BOOM!!!

It all happened so suddenly that it took Phoenix a moment to realize what happened. A burst of white light shone from behind Phoenix, and a sudden blur shot into the room and tackled Shadow Magnifico to the ground in a rage. Phoenix gasped as she saw who it was. “Yaron!!”

Yaron pinned Magnifico’s arms and staff to the ground and caused a bright aura to flow from his hands straight into the shadow. The aura burned through the shadow with a TSSS, and Yaron thundered, “I told you, Magnifico! Phoenix will not perish at your hand!!”

Before Magnifico fully disappeared, he retorted, “I will not relent until I gain satisfaction! You’ll see! First your friend, then her Village!!” He laughed evilly as his form disappeared.

When he disappeared, Phoenix’ bonds released her, and she grimaced from the deep cuts in her wrists. Her shoulders sagged in exhaustion from the draining, and Yaron knelt in front of her in concern, “Are you alright?”

Phoenix looked up at him and, for the first time since she met him, she shook her head. Yaron sighed as he quickly pulled her into a tight embrace exclaiming, “Oh Phoenix! Don’t you ever do that again! You almost got killed!”

Phoenix was surprised by the embrace, but she accepted it nonetheless. She stuttered, “I…he…I thought…”

Yaron calmed, “Easy, Phoenix. Just relax for a bit here; then we’ll both leave these Mines together.”

Phoenix nodded in agreement and relaxed in Yaron’s hold. After a bit of silence, she stated quietly, “Merlin and Fairy Godmother are going to have a fit when they hear about what happened.”

Yaron seemed to chuckle a little as he answered, “Perhaps.” When they separated, he grasped her hands gingerly as he added, “I imagine Fairy Godmother fussing over these wounds exponentially more than she has fussed over you in the past.”

Phoenix groaned. She loved her fairy friend, but she didn’t want to trouble her with these wounds that were more severe than when she first confronted Magnifico. She whined, “Do I have to show her these?”

Yaron hummed in thought for a moment before suggesting, “Well, the way I see it, you have two options when we leave. Either you go see the fairy for your wounds, or you let me take care of them instead.”

Phoenix considered her options. “Honestly, he saved my life! I think it’s obvious what I should choose here.” She then looked up at Yaron and asked, “Could you maybe…”

Yaron smiled kindly and answered, “Of course, Phoenix.” He then helped her stand up and supported her as they exited the cave. As they went, he pointed out, “Notice I didn’t say the fussing would be different…”

Phoenix chuckled and groaned at the same time. “I should’ve seen this coming.” Though, after today, she didn’t oppose it either.

They soon made it to the entrance of the Mines, but instead of walking straight out, Yaron created a portal that led to the common area of his house. Phoenix was amazed but allowed herself to be led through into his house. Once the portal was closed, Yaron had her sit on one of the armchairs before going into another room to get supplies. Phoenix shook her head in amazement and bewilderment. This sort of attention was somewhat foreign to her, apart from Fairy Godmother whom she always considered as a grandmotherly figure, and a humbling sense overtook her heart. “Yaron was right about this Magnifico problem just like Aster and Asha were!”

Soon, Yaron reappeared with a bowl of water that seemed to unnaturally sparkle in the light, some salve, and bandages. Once he pulled up another chair near her and placed his supplies on a nearby side-table, he took her wrists and got to work tending to them, saying, “I’ll take care of your wrists first before I check your wings. I noticed an irritant between your feathers when I intervened in the Mines.”

Phoenix nodded. “Yeah. I think that might’ve been the Vitalis Fog.” She flicked her wings slightly as she added, “I guess feathers and unstable magic don’t mix.” Her breath caught from a sudden sting in her wrist. “Ugh! That smarts…”

Yaron sighed, “I know. A piece of the Thorn was stuck to your wrist so it was bound to sting.”

Silence soon fell between them as Yaron rubbed the salve over her wrists and bandaged them tightly. Once done, he stated, “There. Now to see to your wings.” He then stood and came behind Phoenix. His hands began to glow with the same bright aura as in the cave, and he placed each hand on the joints of her wings. Phoenix could feel his magic running through her feathers, removing the invisible irritant and soothing her wings as a result.

As he did, Phoenix addressed Yaron in a quiet voice, “Yaron?”

“Hm?”

Phoenix confessed with a sigh, “I’m…sorry I went behind your back for this. I should’ve listened to your concerns instead of choosing to fight you on this.” She looked at her wrists as she concluded, “I really can’t stop this Magnifico crisis on my own.”

Once Yaron was finished, he came around and knelt in front of her so that he was eye-level with her. Softening towards her, he replied, “I forgive you, my friend. All I wanted was to protect you.”

Phoenix nodded. “I know, and…I do want to be a better friend to you than I have.” She shook her head as she added, “I know I said I’d give you a chance, but I haven’t been giving you much of a chance.” Phoenix then asked, “Do…you think we could…maybe…start again?”

Yaron beamed. “I would love that, Phoenix.” Then, in an exaggerated manner, he cleared his throat and began, “Good afternoon! I am Yaron; what is your name?”

Phoenix laughed outright, as did Yaron. Playing along, Phoenix answered, “My name is Phoenix. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Yaron! Welcome to my Valley!”

Yaron laughed harder, and Phoenix couldn’t help but laugh as well. He pulled her into another embrace and said with sincerity, “I’m glad we can be friends now, Phoenix.”

This time, Phoenix hugged him back. “Me too, Yaron.”

[onewizardgirl]

Pre cannon, sometimes a sisters touch can change everything.

Disclaimers, this is likely not cannon compliant since bella is nice, so heres some wholesome black sisters at hogwarts.

Help from Bella

Narcissa Black, the youngest of the black sisters, has finally made her appearance at Hogwarts, her sisters awaiting her turn to go. Bellatrix, more commonly known as Bella, was a fifth year slytherin and Andromeda,, was in her 3rd year, under the same house as Bella.

As Narcissa approached the great hall she hoped upon all hope that she’d be sorted into slytherin with her sisters. She also hoped her nerves would calm enough so her stomachache would go away.

Professor McGonagall led them into the great hall. everyone looked around amazed and narcissa caught the black curls of bella’s head as she looked around. once everyone stopped moving, narcissa saw bella give her a small smile and a light thumbs up.

McGonagall’s speech went on for a moment before the first name was called off the list of first year students. About three or four names later, she heard her name called.

She nervously stepped up to the small stool and sat. the hat gently sat on her head as narcissa was sorted

“you could do well in ravenclaw, quite a brilliant mind and a particular love for learning new things. slytherin also seems to fit you, ambitious and sly, i believe it to be… SLYTHERIN!” the sorting hat said. Narcissa sighed relieved she was in slytherin and sat down directly between her two older sisters.

the feast began once the last of the first years, Lucius Malfoy, was sorted into slytherin as well.

narcissa was lost in thought as she picked at her food, not really eating much.

She was so overwhelmed with everything that had just happened and her nervous stomach ache hadn’t gone, even after she was sorted and reunited with her sisters.

The elder pair noticed their little sister’s odd behaviour, and bella, being the eldest, asked narcissa

“cissa, are you alright? you seem off,”

“m’fine, just overwhelmed with everything that just happened.” narcissa told

“i know how you feel, it happened to both me and andi when we first got here, tell you what, ill stash some snacks for you for later so you’re not super hungry, and once we head to the common room i’ll show you round and help you get your bedding sorted,” bella offered

“i would help, but i have a herbology essay i need to finish. if i finish before the pair of you are asleep ill join in.” andromeda told.

“that sounds nice bella, thanks,” narcissa said wrapping slim, pale arms around her sister. bella wrapped a protective arm around narcissa and gave her back a simple rub.

after another hour or so, the feast ended, and the trio of black sisters went up to the dormitory.

andromeda stayed with bella and narcissa long enough to give narcissa a tour of the common room. She then grabbed her qquill and parchment and sat down at a desk in the common room to finish her paper.

bellatrix led narcissa up to the girls dorms, having pulled a few strings with her head of house, she shared a dorm with andromeda and narcissa, and one other girl, avery anderson if she remembered correctly. the most odd part about this was that her head of house agreed without a single word of argument.

bellatrix showed narcissa where the bathroom was in the dorm, and showed her some good homework spots for when the term started properly after the weekend.

it was beginning to get late so bellatrix advised narcissa to get changed before andromeda came up so the sisters could have a little fun with some stories about their adventures in hogwarts the previous years.

“go on now, i’m going to start unpacking our trunks and putting our things away,” bellatrix said pulling the door shut behind narcissa after she’d entered the bathroom.

narcissa stripped out of her uniform, and pulled her underwear off to change them. when she slipped them down her pale legs, she nearly screamed out of terror.

there was blood in her underwear. it soaked the usually grey fabric a deep crimson red. and the worst part of all of this was narcissa had no clue what was happening.

“bella? help me,” is all the youngest black sister was able to whisper out, unable to form any other words.

“what’s going o- Ooh,” Bellatrix said when she swung the door open. she sighed and stepped into the small bathroom, closing the door behind her.

she could see unshed tears threatening to fall in the rims of narcissa’s sapphire blue eyes. bella took a seat on the edge of the bathtub, guiding narcissa to sit on the closed toilet across from her.

“hey, hey, no need to cry cissa, you’re perfectly fine, trust me, this happened to me too once.” bellatrix assured, calming her youngest sister.

“cissa, d’you know what a period is?” bella asked, wondering how much she already knew since she always had her nose crammed into a book.

“it’s the little dot at the end of a sentance?” narcissa answered nievely.

Bellatrix gave a small smile,

“that’s right, but a period is also something else. you see, every month a girl, like you and me, our bodies prepare for a baby, building up a safe nest of blood and tissue in our womb for the baby to live in and grow. in most cases though, there is no baby, so all of that blood has to go somewhere. so for about five days each month your body gets rid of all that excess blood it had built up, and that’s a period. it’s perfectly normal for all girls. andi has one and so do i, now let me show you something,” bella said pulling out her wand.

she muttered a spell and the fabric that was once stained scarlet was now back to its normal grey color. narcissa looked on amazed.

bella then reached under the sink for a little purple square.

“this is a pad, you put it in your knickers to catch the blood, like this,” bella said putting the pad into narcissa’s underwear for her.

“now, you’re all sorted out, get your nightgown on and we can cuddle for a while, maybe ill let you have some of my chocolate frogs,” bellatrix said watching narcissa’s crooked grin appear for the first time since she’d been on the train.

andromeda was reading on her bed when the other two blacks finally emerged from the bathroom.

“what in the bloody hell were you two doing?” andromeda asked

“dealing with this one’s first bloody hell,” bella answered

“no way, already?! it’s only her first night here,” andromeda said shocked

“believe it andromeda, narcissa is a woman now,” bella said

andromeda leaped off ehr bed and wrapped her baby sister in a huge hug.

“cmon you two, i think it’s time i finally broke down and told you what happened in charms to earn me a month of detention.” bella said

“i’ve been dying to know ever since it happened,” andromeda told awaiting her sister’s explanation.

That night was spent with caring cuddles between the sisters and some good night's sleep.

[chaosdndsquad]

The Roadin Road Inn

2 months ago, Nastrea

The silence had become a comfortable companion to Magda and Sasha. It had started heavy on their way out of Pada, but in the days they had traveled, it had settled. Both of them were dealing with a lot, dealing with the fallout of what had happened. They had spent the past few days staying within sight of the road, but avoiding anyone else traveling, just in case anyone recognized Sasha. She was supposed to be dead, so someone spotting her out here would have been detrimental. Magda was less worried about being recognized, but she was still far too memorable for her liking in an area with few types of people beyond humans. A purple skinned person with a crown of black thorns growing out of their head would definitely stick out

But the silence had only been broken by short questions between the two as they were slowly making their way toward the border of Nastrea. The days had all blurred together in their silence and grief. But as Magda spotted a road sign, pointing their way to a few towns in different directions. Magda paused her horse, looking over at Sasha for confirmation on which way to go. Her instinct was to head toward the mountains that loomed in the west, but she wasn’t sure which road to take. This was not her home.

Sasha urged Glory to go to the left in the fork and Magda followed along wordlessly. She took her right hand from the reins and let it hang by her side, trying to hide the flexing, the wrist rolling and general stretching of her new arm. She was still getting used to the sensation, but Magda was grateful that Sasha had even found it among the stash of things she had squirreled away from the Governor’s shipments. It was with that thought that Magda reached into her bag and pulled out a ratty old newsboy hat.

“Hey,” She said to Sasha, her voice sounding loud after so long. “We should probably hit the next town, our supplies are getting low. Also, I’d like to sleep on a bed not made of rocks.”

“Ok.” Sasha didn’t even look back, her voice was so quiet as she answered. Magda urged her horse forward to come even with Glory before she smacked Sasha with the hat.

“You’re gonna need this too.” At that, Sasha looked over, confused, spotting the hat. It was patched up and falling apart and she was looking at it with a frown. She doesn’t reach for it as Magda holds it out. Magda just sighs at her. “You’re gonna need to wear it for a bit before we get to town. It needs to get used to you before you can use it.” Sasha just looked at her more confused. So Magda just put the cap on and her whole body shimmered for a moment before changing. There, sitting atop Magda’s horse, sat a middle aged human woman, with tanned weather beaten skin, graying black hair in a simple braid, crows feet crinkling at the corners of her eyes. Sasha nearly fell off her horse as Mama Mags smiled back at her.

“That was you?!” It was more emotion than she had shown since before they left Pada. But thinking back on it now, Sasha thought it made perfect sense that Magda and the neighborhood Tia were the same person. The interactions made more sense, the knowing, warm smiles from Mama Mags, how Magda had known certain things. Sasha wanted to feel upset about the deception but she just let out a soft chuckle as she shook her head.

“Hey,” Magda pulled the cap off and transformed back into herself. “It was easier to blend in and keep an eye on my business as a fussy older woman. This purple mug kind of stands out in a crowd.” She shrugged and held it back out to Sasha.

“Of course it was you,” Sasha had a ghost of a smile on her face as she reached out to take the hat from Magda’s outstretched hand.

“Just put it on until you feel it…I dunno, tingle? You’ll know when it likes you. Then you just think of what you want to be disguised as. Could even look like a gnome, just have to remember that you’re still as tall as you are, people just won’t see the top half of you. You don’t shrink, you just…It’s like you’re hiding behind a cutout of a gnome? You know what…don’t pick a gnome. Too complicated.” Magda’s lips pursed and she squinted her eyes as she concentrated on trying to pick a disguise for Sasha. Sasha thought her scrunched up nose looked cute, then jerked back at the thought, wondering where it had come from. She decided not to look at it too closely as she put on the hat.

They continued to ride, Magda mostly talking to herself, tossing out ideas for Sasha, then quickly dismissing them. Sasha couldn’t really think of anything either, though she stayed silent trying. Her first thought was a lieutenant, as people sometimes saw an officer and quickly looked away, not wanting to catch their notice for fear of reprimand. But she quickly dismissed that idea. Why would a lieutenant be out on their own in uniform, riding with a civilian? So she looked back over at Magda as she kept throwing out ideas.

Magda looked up at that moment, sensing Sasha’s eyes on her. She was met with amber yellow eyes, just like her own. She started to shake her head, the laugh coming out as she said, “No.” She was amused, flattered even. The hat had apparently attuned to Sasha without her noticing.

“No? What- no?” It was slightly surreal to see such confusion on a face that mirrored her own, but Magda kept chuckling.

“You can’t disguise yourself as me. One of me is more than enough trouble.”

“What do you mean ‘disguise myself as you’? I’m not-” Magda motioned to Sasha’s hands and she looked down, finding one deep lavender and the other mechanical and she let out a gasp. Magda laughed louder. It was a pleasant sound until she started cackling. She slapped a hand over her mouth, but she was still grinning behind her hand. “Ok then, what do you suggest?”

“A man.” Sasha just looked at her. “What? Your voice has a low enough register you could get away with it and it is definitely different from what you are. But not so different as you have to move differently. You’re still a soldier somewhere in there. Your muscles still remember. So just pretend you’re a sellsword. Or my bodyguard. Your choice.”

Magda had never been on the other side of the disguise spell before. She was starting to understand how it could be a little unnerving for people to know it wasn’t her real face when she used it. But it was still stranger to see Sasha, just…more masculine. Her friend still sat in her saddle with shoulders sloped inward, gazing off in the distance like she was shouldering a massive, invisible weight. But her jaw was wider, her shoulders broader and her nose just slightly bigger. Magda had protested that change, saying it was unnecessary, secretly liking her nose, wanting to tap the tip of it every chance she got.

But Sasha said it was what her father looked like when he was younger, so she relented and hoped her dad didn’t have any friends out this way. Sasha added a few scars for flavor and mystery and to pass the time, Magda asked her about how she got each one. The more solid the story, Magda told her, the more solid the scar would be in Sasha’s mind’s eye if she had to bring the disguise back after dismissing it.

~~~~~

They arrived in town a little while later and Sasha let Magda do all the talking. She got the horses stabled, got them rooms for the night and even had a hot bath set up for Sasha. Magda ushered her upstairs, ignoring the looks from some of the patrons in the tavern below. She leaned against the door to close it and let out a sigh. The sight of the beds was like heaven to her and she face planted onto one as soon as the door was locked behind her.

Sasha let out a low chuckle as she removed the hat but Magda pointed at her without lifting her head from the bed. “Hold it,” came her muffled shout.

“What?” Sasha paused, hat in her hands.

Magda rolled over and looked at her, her head hanging over the edge of the bed. “You gotta keep it on until the bath is set up. Then you can leave it off until you leave the room. I’ve got to go check in with someone local, so you can have all the privacy you need.”

“Wait, aren’t you getting a bath too?” Sasha looked confused as she put the hat back on her head as she sat down on the other bed.  

“While I would love to join you,” Magda smiled then laughed as a pillow came flying at her. “Guild business comes first. If I’m not back by the time you’re done, just go down and get something to eat.” Magda rolled off the end of the bed, into a crouch and back to her feet. She wandered over and stood in front of Sasha, adjusting the hat on her head before tapping the tip of Sasha’s nose. Sasha peered up at Magda, suddenly noting how the golden color of her eyes contrasted sharply with the purple of her skin.

“Sure you can’t stay?” Sasha asked quietly. “Get clean first, you know…to give a good impression?” There was a brief moment where neither of them moved, just stared at each other. Then Magda stepped away, toward the window. She stepped up one foot onto the windowsill before looking back. “You’ll be ok. I promise I won’t be gone long…and I left you a book to read.” She gave Sasha a tight smile before crawling out the window and disappearing.

~~~~~

Magda blinked rapidly as brightness assaulted her eyes as the bag came off. Gods, she hated this secrecy crap. She’d followed the cant signals as she was supposed to, did the call and response as she was supposed to and she still got black bagged. She grumbled unintelligibly as the room came into focus, spotting a small goblin sitting behind a desk. Always the goblins. She knew this wasn’t Queenie, but she’d be hard pressed to tell the difference.

She waited patiently, not wanting to talk first to be rude, even if she wanted to be sassy and her arm was starting to itch like hell. But she waited, silently, trying not to itch her arm.

“So, what brings you way out here?”

“I come with a message from Mama Mags.” The goblin sat up a little at that, resting her chin on her hands.

“And what is that message?”

“Pada has gone to absolute shit. Please take in any of her little mariposas that come your way. Also, she is ceding control to the trade lanes and rights to you temporarily while she gets things under control.” The goblin squinted her eyes at Magda, assessing her.

She sat back in her chair. “And who are you to speak for her?”

Magda produced the ring she’d taken off the previous guildmaster in Pada, after she’d killed him. “She sent me with this. And she also said if you need anything, you can contact me. She’s going to be busy dealing with the fallout of Pada, and trying to keep her people alive.” Magda dug around in her bag and produced a rather crumpled piece of paper. On it was a rather slapdash poster of the Chaos Crew - for hire. It made Magda smile just looking at it, but it was still an ad for them, and she was hoping to meet up with them again soon. “I’ll be meeting back up with my group. You can find us with this.” She walked up and put the paper on the desk before stepping back. The goblin looked at the crumpled poster with a small sneer before looking back up at Magda.

“Contact you, if we need anything. Right. Well, I thank you for your message and rest assured any little mariposas that cross my people’s path shall be well taken care of.”

Magda's gaze turned steely, stomaching just about enough of the disrespect as she could manage. “They had better,” she growled before snapping her fingers and turning invisible, using her Mage Hand to shove the door open as she bolted out. She ran for a bit, before she was sure she wasn’t followed and made her way to the roof of the inn. She lay there a moment, staring up at the sky as the last mission she’d given herself completed, at least for awhile. Hector’s face flashed before her eyes and she squeezed them shut. Their names flooded her mind as last moments flashed before her; Alejandro, Luz, Gabriela, Diego, all of them standing near Hector before the world exploded.

She pushed herself to her feet, trying to block out the memories and faces, knowing they’d still be there later, when she lowered her guard, her defenses. She had one more pitstop to make.

~~~~

Sasha spent close to an hour in the tub. Some enchantment was on it to keep the water warm, and, she had to admit, Magda had a brilliant idea staying the night in a place with an actual bed. She would have gotten out the tub sooner, but she had gotten absorbed in the book Magda left behind. It had kept her mind busy at least. She only thought to get out when her stomach reminded her she hadn’t eaten since they woke up that morning. Reluctantly, she got out and dried herself off and slowly got dressed. She was halfway to the door before she remembered to grab the hat. And she grabbed the book for good company while she ate.

Being called “sir” or “Mr.” took a little getting used to as she settled into a seat in the tavern, a warm cup of tea and a bowl of stew with a heel of fresh baked bread. She didn’t remember ordering a second bowl but she was almost done with it when a familiar voice whispered in her ear.

“Cover your eyes.” Magda said and Sasha put down her spoon, marked her place in the book and did as requested. She felt Magda walk past her, heard the chair across from her scrape against the floor and then felt a small thump on the table before Magda said, “Ok, open them.”

There was a small cake with a single candle sat on the table in front of her. She looked at it, then back up to Magda, then back at the small, spongy dessert covered in some sweet cream.

“Happy birthday.” Magda gave Sasha a small smile, but it fell at the look on her friend’s face. “I...saw the…the date on the tags you left behind. It’s still your birthday, even if, you know, you don’t technically exist.”

Sasha hadn’t even realized it was her birthday. She wasn’t even sure what day it was. But Magda did. And though this would definitely be the quietest birthday in her life, it suddenly didn’t seem absolutely awful.

“Thanks, Magda.”

[beckleysbooks]

When Visions Of Sugar Plums Danced In Their Heads

Ten days out from Christmas and I'm trying to answer the age-old question, "What is a sugar plum?" I'm 64 years old and for the past 60 years when reading or listening to Clement Clarke Moore's "The Night Before Christmas", I always had an idea what a sugar plum looked like, kind of like a candied fruit.

It's a sweet plum, right? Hmm, not really. Referencing sweets historian Laura Mason's account found in an article in The Atlantic, sugar plums were well known to Englishmen between the 17th-19th century as a sweet made of sugar, also referred to as "comfit". To put you in the picture, take some caraway or cardamom seeds, or you may prefer almonds. Then, wrap a coating of sugar around the seeds, hardening it as you add each layer. Think of a modern day "jawbreaker" with seeds in the middle.

So, there's no fruit involved at all? Interesting. I know there's a history of children receiving fruit, mostly oranges, as a Christmas present, so I just assumed fruit was involved in the Christmas Story. Come to think of it, a nice juicy orange would've been a pleasant surprise on a cold wintry day.

And, isn't that same element of surprise a part of the fun when receiving and opening a Christmas parcel? What's inside?

Back in the beginning of the tradition of gift giving (mid-late 19th century in America), shop keepers targeted the public at Christmas time suggesting, "What are gifts but the proof and signs of love?".

In my historical fiction, "Oh! Susannah", I chose the Christmas of 1861 (Chapter 17) to describe what times were like back then at this time of year. For one, it was the first December since 1851 that Susannah had not been pregnant or sick. Secondly, her children were coming of age to appreciate the efforts their mother would've taken to provide them the best Christmas ever. It helped that Susannah was a weaver and was able to make clothes, especially for her daughters. These homemade gifts held more sentimental value to folks then the advertised store-bought ones.

Along with knitted mittens, Susannah's children received rag dolls and underwear as their presents. Looking back when as a child myself, who didn't receive underwear as a present wrapped under the tree? In our family, my sisters and I would have our "stash" of presents in front of us. We soon learned that each parcel did not contain a sugar plum. There were socks and clothes, and woolen hats, house slippers, and yes, underwear - every year! Don't get me wrong. My parents made sure there were a couple gifts that would take our fancy and occupy our attention for days or weeks to come - toys, bikes, games etc.

However, Christmas isn't all about receiving, but more importantly, the act of giving. In my historical fiction, while preparing her children's Christmas gifts, Susannah spares a thought for her brother Sam and his wife who had recently lost two of their children from diptheria. She also laments in the story for those less well-off families living around her who could surely use "the gift of her knitting". Would not a knitted blanket be received as a sugar plum to one in need?

Yesterday, my father-in-law passed away. For a slightly-built man, I was surprised at the heavy bulkiness of his winter coats, and so many of them! This weekend, my wife and I will be paying a visit to our local Haven Of Rest homeless shelter. We've got some sugar plums to deliver. May I suggest to my readers that you do a quick check of your storage closets as well, just to see if there might be a couple sugar plums hiding in there too.

[violetarks]

Arguing With Them/Making Up With Them

Games: Fictif/Arcana

Characters: Asra Alnazar, Julian Devorak, Felix Iskander Escell, Sage Lesath

A/N: Kind of went over board with Felix, oops, and spoilers for asra's route in his part, but really just minor spoilers. ALSO I COULDN'T ADD THE PHOTOS BC TUMBLR SAID I EXCEEDED THE LIMIT >:((, please tell me if you spot any use of pronouns for y/n!! i've tried to fix it because i previously used she/her by accident

Asra Alnazar:

getting into a fight with you would not benefit either of you

it was obvious how much you two liked working together and time apart would not help

and fights don't actually happen frequently, only once every few months

asra is a very grounded person and they don't enjoy it when the two of you ever have an argument, no matter how minor the actual problem is

but they would always be the first to apologise, coming to terms with the way you viewed things and ultimately understanding it

so fights never lasted too long with this person because of how much they really love you

you'd be back in their arms the next minute, because Asra could've fathom the idea of not having you at their side as they love you that much

fights never lasted more than just 30 mins with them, truthfully

you couldn't bare to leave it more than that because it hurts to be away from each other for too long

which is why asra finds it difficult to go on trips without you after you two make it official

and you'd apologise first a few times too, since you knew when you were wrong and didn't think asra was the one who really needed to say 'sorry'

nevertheless, you always came back to each other

this time, however, it went further than expected

this fight had lasted hours, most of it yelling back and forth

you and them were going through with your normal routine when you had suddenly dropped a specific potion that Asra had been keeping to themselves for a while

it was smeared on the floor and you couldn't help but feel upset at yourself, no matter how many times the white-haired person in front of you had dismissed it

you could tell they were very disappointed that they no longer had a stash of it and frustrated with himself for not getting spares

so you had sought off to get some while asra was away on another trip, and they again hadn't told you how long they'd be away, so you believed you had some time to retrieve it

you were originally going to close the shop for the time being, but then asra's parents had come around at the perfect time

they had offered to take the shop until you came back

it took you longer than expected since you had to track it down yourself, asking people around town and ending up at a merchant just outside of town who gave you the directions and specific instructions

you recognised the name of the town they mentioned, which is the same town on the lable of the bottle, so it had to be right

you were dead set on wanting it to be a surprise, and returned home around two weeks later, opening the door to see Asra pacing around the room

they were still wearing their large scarf and their bag as well as their hat was carelessly thrown onto the chair, so it was obvious that asra had just arrived home recently

their parents were nowhere to be seen, so you assumed that they had left already

asra's head turned at the sound of the little bell above the door and they widened their eyes once they saw you, rushing and engulfing you in a big hug

you thought asra was just happy to see you, since they had been separated from you for a while

y/n: "hey, did you miss me more than usual?"

asra: "..."

y/n: "usually, i'm the one who jumps on you like this, heh. what's got your panties in a twist?"

asra doesn't reply, only tightening their hold on you

which was definitely weird

asra would almost always have something sneaky and flirtatious to say in return, but not this time

you clench the back of their vest before pulling away, now realising the frustrated look on their face as they looked back at you

asra asks where you were in this tight voice that seemed unfamiliar, and it only got worse when you admitted where you had headed

it was dangerous, from what asra remembered and the thought of you being there made their chest tighten

and asra was correct, it was dangerous, but you made sure to stick to what you were taught for protection and look, you made it out without a scratch

but asra didn't see it that way at all

asra let all their waiting in agony come at you in a loud yell that had shook the candles hanging from the ceiling

you were shocked, holding onto your bag tightly as asra continue to tell you off for what you were doing

sometimes you'd attempt to support your decision, but that was lost in asra's words

asra: "y/n, do you realise how reckless you were? that place is swarming with trouble and it's even worse for someone who hasn't been there before!"

y/n: "i was only there for a few nights, i booked a hotel the rest of the time on coming back home—"

asra: "but you were still there! how am i supposed to protect you when i don't even know where you are? you should've asked me, and i would've come with you."

they would go on and on about how you should ask them and such, and throughout the whole entire thing, you held the souvenirs in your bag close to yourself

you didn't know how to give it to them now that they were mad at you

and you were frustrated as well, because you've grown so much and you're able to do whatever you please

it made you bring out your sarcasm more, which was a habit you had picked up ages ago

it had developed over the years of asra shutting you in and out of danger bc they're too scared of what will happen when you're alone

you two are rarely ever apart from each other already bc of your living situation, sharing the bedroom and the whole shop

y/n: "asra, i believe i am fully capable with taking a trip like you do"

asra: "i know, i just don't want you going there, y/n, i don't think that's too hard to follow"

y/n: "oh, i'm so sorry asra, why don't you tell me where else i'm allowed to go?? am i back on my leash with you, huh? can i go to the bedroom, master?"

asra had blinked at you a couple times before feeling themselves break, a few tears forming in their eyes

the word you used to address them as always made their heart pound in the worst way possible

because that's what you used to call them before they let you go, and now asra hates that word with all their being

you were so irritated with them that you hadn't noticed, now pacing around the room like asra was as they stands there, struck

asra: "don't... don't call me that..."

y/n: "oh, so now i'm not allowed to say things?"

asra: "i just want you to be safe! isn't that what you want too—"

y/n: "no, asra, i just want to do what i feel like and not have you breathing down my neck about it, alright? i understand that you don't want to lose me and that you love me, but that's exactly how i feel about you and i still trust you enough to go out there without me or any other form of help"

you're not even looking at them at this point

if you were, you would see that asra's actually crying and they're just staring at you

you're looking at the floor as you clench your fists at your sides, one holding the strap of you satchel

y/n: "i'm not the helpless person from years ago asra, i'm stronger now. i hate depending on people when i'm perfectly capable by myself."

asra: ",,, so you don't need me anymore? is that it?"

this is the moment where the two of you are just staring at each other, finally linking gazes

asra was already crying, it was silent and slow

they tend to do that, cry quietly so nobody had noticed unless they looked directly at their face, even then they tried to hide

they trained themselves to keep their voice steady when speaking as asra cries because they would rather not warn the other person about it

you were on the verge, angry and sad tears already forming

you were aggravated by yourself, knowing full well that you should've at least mentioned it to asra. they worried about you a lot, and that was a fact regardless of what they really thought of you

you were sad at the two of you for even starting this fight, they could've solved this better with just talking normally and not shouting

y/n: "i never said that"

asra: "but thats what you meant, isn't it? you... you don't want me to worry about you, and i can't..."

this time, you walked towards them with a focused expression

they were wiping their eyes before seeing you waltz up to them, utterly surprised by the look on your face

asra goes to say something when you suddenly bring your hands forward to collect their tear-stained cheeks in your palms

the two of you stop, another time to take a breath

you looked them right in the eyes, you heart beating hastily before biting your lip as you tried to hold back your own tears back

asra's fingers brushed against your elbows, holding onto them in reassurance

y/n: "i'm... i'm sorry for not telling you where i was going. i just... wanted to replace what i broke and i wanted it to be a surprise. but it was reckless of me. i should know better by now..."

asra: "no, i just worry about you too much. i want to protect you and be there for you but... it's like you don't need that anymore."

y/n: "asra, i don't need you to protect me. just... just be there for me. love me until you can't anymore. in return, i'll do the same for you."

you couldn't ever see yourself not wanting or needing asra ever

you two have been through so much and you're together til the end, you will make sure of that

having asra's face in your palms, you kissed their forehead lovingly and slowly, telling them what you had thought about that

it would not be the case, ever

asra was embedded in your life and you couldn't imagine anything without them

asra: "but what if something happens?"

y/n: "i'm sure that we'll both be able to handle it. i don't want you shielding me. i want to stand beside you, asra. aren't we equal?"

asra: "of course! i'm just scared of what might happen..."

y/n: "you don't have to be."

as you spoke, asra only pulled you in closer, wrapping their arms around you

you dig your head into their shoulder and hold onto them like they were doing to you

the two of you cry together in the middle of your shop, nothing but hushed whispers leaving either of your lips

after a while, asra mentions the lateness of the day and brings you up to the bedroom

the two of you go to sleep right after that, asra laying on top of you as you brushed fingers through their hair

a habit after fighting is always being the closest you can with each other, letting the other know just how much you forgave them and still loved them

Julian Devorak:

julian was definitely a hard one to get into a fight with

arguments and disagreements were only natural for a relationship of any kind

but julian was the type to not voice his feelings purely because he was afraid of what the other person might say

he didn't want to lose you and if anything he speaks does that, then he could not forgive himself, so he thought it was better to just keep it inside

he hated disagreeing with you more than anything, which is why you would only get a statement or two about it before he decides to just keep quiet about it

a habit between that's formed because of this is that you tend to not push him too far

he made you more independent with your decisions but also take into consideration his points

there's only been a few times where you two have fought for real and it had taken a toll on the both of yous

one time was when you had been frustrated all day while making plans for a certain mission and you had gotten into a disagreement with julian about something small

it started off as something he tried to make sweet and joking

but he hadn't seen just how much today had taken a toll on you

nadia was busy with forming different groups to specialise in certain things and she was already trying to calm down her servants and city from the recent events that threaten them

asra was caught up with travelling around and getting information about the whole affair to help you guys win

so then you offered to help with setting up the plans and such for each group as well as the four of you, thinking it couldn't be that hard. just devise a plan that is foolproof. and it shouldn't be that hard.

but julian was talking a lot for someone who should be keeping an eye on the enemy in the chambers

y/n: "but why would we take the scenic route when the backway is way more safer for us?"

julian: "because, my dear, if this is really our last night alive, i'd rather spend it staring at the sunset with you."

y/n: "julian, i am not putting you on that ride if you're thinking that way, we don't need some saviour out there trying to get himself killed."

julian: "my, my, darling, what's going on with you?"

y/n: "look, i'm sorry, but could you leave for a few minutes? this is really important and nadia needs to set the fighters in place by tomorrow morning."

he gets the idea of it once you say that

he now understands that you are stressed from all the work you had taken on, and he even offers to take some of it off your shoulders

but you just say 'no'

and that stumbles him

you rejected because he had played his part already and you didn't feel right about giving someone else your workload when you took the responsibility yourself

but this is one of the times where julian wasn't quite sure how to handle situations like this

he was so used to himself being the one who was pulling away and you being the one to understand that and know when to stop

but it was switched here and julian didn't know what to do, or even how and when to pull away

so he stands there quietly as you draw lines on multiple maps for separate army guards to follow

all the two of you hear is your pencil against paper and you sighing out when you have to reach for the eraser

you could feel him watching you and just tracing your every move, which made you feel uneasy and frankly, make you work even worse than you were before

y/n: "..."

julian: "..."

y/n: "..."

julian: "... *coughs*"

y/n: "please, julian, leave."

julian: "what did i do?"

the breaking of silence makes you drop your pencil, resulting in you pinching the bridge of your nose and squeezing your eyes shut

maybe that would help you feel better

but it didn't as julian begins to hum some obnoxious tune

you're looking at him with a very serious and annoyed expression, making him feel even more confused

it results in a fight in the study room that makes all passerby people immediately leave the area

they wouldn't want to be mixed up up in any of that just by the sounds of it

you're yelling because you just want julian to leave you alone for a few minutes, thinking it would help you get some things done before you can see him again, and you can't focus with him just looming over you

julian's yelling because he doesn't know how to deal with this and he's trying to comfort you, in the worst way possible, but it's something and he isn't used to leaving you alone while you're upset without him there

it's frustration and confusion hovering in the air

you were piling up in stress because of this and it caused you to say things you surely didn't mean

which caused julian to say things he didn't mean either

a few times, asra or nadia would nearly walk inside but hear all the commotion and decide to come back later

they knew better than to interfere

last time one of them did, the two of you stared at them for a while, ceasing all talking and expressions before just walking away from each other, now silently arguing with each other

having another party try to butt in made you two feel like you were blowing it out of proportion, so you thought it was better to just ignore it

you're already gathering your things

y/n: "yknow what? if you won't leave, then i'll leave. i can't get this done when you're constantly talking to me."

julian: "ah! hey, i'm just trying to figure out what's wrong! i'm—i'm trying to help!"

y/n: "julian if you really wanted to help, you would've left me alone when i asked you to. i really need some space right now."

julian: "space? from... from me?"

y/n: "for only like... an hour or two! you know how important this is is nadia and all of vesuvia. i need to get this done. if i don't, i can't even comprehend how many people will die and if that happens because of... please..."

julain goes quiet as he hears the amount of desperation in your voice

you're really stressing hard about all of this and it definitely shows in your tone and face

julian finally sees how much weight is on your shoulders and decides that he should give you what you initially asked for

he decides to leave you alone

but he doesn't do that without rounding the table and giving you a kiss on the side of your temple, whispering a small 'i'm sorry' and 'i love you so much' before he leaves

you finally get moments of peace and quiet in the room and yet your ears are ringing loudly

you can't help the frustrated tears that escape you and the way you harshly rub them away before getting back to work

all within one minute

of silence

and without julian

you end up getting all the work done within the next hour and a half and you can't bring yourself to leave the room after everything you said to julian and you know for a fact that he won't be waiting very far

a servant comes around after noticing the quietness and asks if you need anything, and you ask for a drink (wine, really, it's been a long day) and you get it the next minute later

usually, they'd give you a glass and hang around with the whole bottle

instead, the servant hands you the whole entire bottle itself and a chalice before leaving quickly

you silently thank nadia for her good choice in people

you're by the window, sitting on the table and taking a swing from your cup, when you hear the door being opened

you expect julian, but hear another voice

asra: "is there a reason you left this guy walking around the palace like a lost puppy?"

with your cup still to your lips, you turn around to your friend and see him holding the taller man by the elbow

your boyfriend looked like he just got caught stealing, refusing to look in your eyes and only away at the wall

asra knows full well why, but he just tugs julian along towards you

y/n: "where'd you find him?"

asra: "the garden."

y/n: "which one?"

asra: *points*

y/n: "ah. okay. thanks, asra. i'll see you at dinner. tell nadia that i've finished and we'll go over it tonight."

he nods and leave you guys alone

julian stands there like a kid about to get told off

you're sipping your wine as you watch the vines and flowers outside

y/n: "so you were waiting just outside the window, huh?"

julian: "... just in case you were in trouble..."

y/n: "i'm on the third floor. how would you help from the garden?"

julian: "i can climb."

that makes you chuckle, and julian sees that you're looser than before, meaning he can relax as well

he walks towards you, sitting himself down close so your legs are touching

you hold out the chalice of wine to which he takes, pouring in some from the bottle

he clinks his glass with your bottle before you both take a sip

it's a nice silence between yous before julian bumps his shoulder with yours

julian: "i'm really sorry about earlier, darling. it was completely unnecessary and you needed to get things done. i was wrong."

you can tell by his voice that he's really meaning this, and he's playing with the rim of the chalice

y/n: "it's okay, julian. i should've been straight with you and just asked politely, but i took it out on you. i'm sorry, and i hope you can forgive me."

he smiles at you, wrapping an arm around your shoulders and pulling you into a hug

julian: "only if you forgive me, my love."

he gives you that smile that makes you believe that everything is okay

because it is and he really loves you

Felix Iskander Escell:

fighting with felix is very,,,,,, interesting

he's very stubborn and always wants to get what he wants

sometimes you just cave and do it his way because you don't have enough time to fight

more times than he'd like to admit, it's over very silly things that is just a preference for his every day life

like once you two got into a little argument about laundry day and how he needed to get all his dirty clothes together the day before, but he thought it was preposterous how he had to dig up clothes deep within his wardrobe to wear until his clothes dried

it was very useless

but sometimes you wouldn't see a proper way around doing his idea, so you fight to do yours

sage and anisa didn't particularly like getting involved in you fights, mainly because you were both ruthless and vvvv stubborn with your own points, depending what it was

felix would tell anisa that she was too uptight to understand where he was coming from

you would tell sage to butt out because he's too drunk to hear the bullshit he's spitting

you both endlessly apologise to the both of them in the end, because it's just plain rude and they didn't do anything

one time, you guys were in the middle of a fight with troops made up of sage's friends and anisa's peers, against some horribly strong enemies

felix was not good with close range attacks, so he happened to miss out on some assassin drawing in close to you, who was covering his vanguard

he calls too late as you get slashed in the back and grunt before turning around and slamming them into the way, breaking their helmet and watching the blood drip from behind it

you take a moment before stepping away and tripping back on your feet, landing on your rear as felix calls your name and stays at your side while your coworkers did what they needed to

you hear sage call out your name but felix tells him to go on while he takes care of you

felix: "i need to get you out of here. now. a... a first aid station or something."

y/n: "we're in a battlefield, felix, and the closest thing to a first aid station is that bathroom over there."

it gets blown up as soon as you say that

y/n: "nevermind."

felix: "then i'll find a way to assist you here."

felix knew nothing about closing wounds and how to heal them quickly with magic

he once tried the same thing with sage and he ended up in a ghost form for two hours, where he haunted felix and messed with anisa's hair

he was panicking though

he needed to help you

felix pulls off his coat and wraps it around you, pulling your arms through the sleeves since he knew if anyone saw one of their leaders injured then they'd be disheartened

anisa had warned them about that

y/n: "not now, we have things to do."

felix: "but you'll bleed out before you can finish anything useful! y/n, just allow me to bandage you up."

y/n: "you'll have an easier time the faster we finish this fight, come on."

you stand up, ready to continue with your weapon in hand when felix yanks you back with some magic

you look at him confused

felix: "haven't you ever read those tales? the injured back away from the war, y/n, not rush into it again."

y/n: "this is all we've got. nobody else is going to fight for us except for us."

felix: "don't be so deluded! listen to me—"

y/n: "after."

and you sprint off with your weapon, heading towards the group anisa is leading

this area was clear, and you trusted felix to know better than to wander off without any help

you're doing well so far, since you were wearing a black cloak over your back

sage was fairly good with a sword so he had taught you to use one

you told anisa to go on ahead so that you could make a round to find any other enemies that would be holed up in this facility

the fight was continuing outside

just as you get the area cleared, you feel your arm being tugged in the opposite direction

out of pure instinct, you flip them over your shoulder and hold them down harshly

takes you a moment to realise it's felix

you immediately let go and get off of him, calling out his name in surprise

y/n: "god, felix are you alright? you shouldn't scare me like that!"

he doesn't answer you for a moment before he slowly gets up and turns to face you, hand on his head

felix: "i'm taking you home."

y/n: "we're not finished!"

felix: "i do not care for this stupid war! you're bleeding through your back and i can tell how much pain is residing within! do not test my patience! my decision is final!"

all the yelling runs to his head, making it worse as he grips his hair

when he pulls his palm away, blood begins to drip down from his hairline

you're staring at him

you must've hit him hard,,,

felix: "i'm... i'm fine..."

and he passes out

you're kind of torn, because you need to get out there and fight but you also don't know who can look after felix

you groan as you haul him onto your back, making way for a nearby tower that you could hide in

felix used to teach you a few things about offensive magic, but gave you books about it since he wasn't able to teach that stuff

so you were shooting magic fire arrows at enemies when felix wakes up, bandage around his head and throbbing pain everywhere

you only had just enough for him

you look to him for a moment, focused look before turning to the field

you hated arguing with felix

this might not have seen like much to anyone but this was a breach for you

you trusted felix in his study, making plans, doing crazy experiments

and he was supposed to trust you on the field and protecting the others

it was like he didn't think you would do right here

you hated that

you spent so long to earn the respect of people around you in Porrima and anisa had warned you that many fighters did not trust you

you needed to prove how good you were and how much you intended to help

you promised to be on the front lines

but now, you were in a tower providing sniper aid while your lover was trying to recollect what happened

you shoot another arrow, getting an enemy square in the shoulder

y/n: "done whining?"

felix: "excuse me?"

y/n: "i only stayed back to make sure you were okay. they're expecting me out there."

felix: ",,, you didn't even treat your own wounds, y/n."

y/n: "busy."

he's so confused

why don't you just take a break???

it's not that hard???

felix knows a certain telepathy spell that lasts a few seconds for him, so he decides a quick look into that head of yours should help him understand better

you were only a few feet away from him, pulling back another magic arrow before you feel felix tug on your arm, making your arrow shoot within the room

it sputters around the room, hitting all the walls around the both of you

you tackle felix down and hold his head to your chest, making sure he was covered so he didn't get hit and you're also getting irritated

the arrows shoots out the window and you pull yourself up, taking a breath of relief

you shoot a look to felix

y/n: "what the hell is going on with you? what were you thinking?"

felix: ",,,,,"

y/n: "felix, we don't have any time for this! we're in deep shit right now, i don't need you trying to pull me out of the fight when i need to be there!"

you stand up, grabbing your sword and opening a portal like how felix taught you too

you're about to walk through

felix: "you don't need to prove yourself to anyone, y/n."

you stop and turn around to him, asking him what he said

felix: "none of this is of your concern, y/n. this is porrima's affairs and you are not even from here. i don't understand why you would make this a problem of your own."

you're still confused as to why he's saying these things

the portal closes behind you, making felix give a sigh of relief

he stands, carefully

y/n: "i'm fighting for my friends and their home"

felix: "you're fighting for the sake of being known, being seen as someone. y/n, that is selfish and you know it yourself. don't let a dream like that delude you from what is reality."

his words are harsh and he knows this, because if he doesn't speak this way then he won't get his point across properly

you look like you've seen a ghost

you're horrified

because you know he's been through your mind

a part of you knows that it's true

y/n: "shut up. you don't know what you're talking about."

felix: "i was just in your thoughts, y/n, i know. you shouldn't think of yourself something you are not."

y/n: "i'm trying to help! what do you want?"

felix: "you need medical attention. you're... you're back is drenched in crimson and you look pained whenever you draw back an arrow."

you shake your head at him because you can't believe how selfish he is making you sound, so much that you'd risk your own life to be seen as a god in the end?

you throw your sword to the wall

and grip felix's collar harshly

he's startled at the sudden movement

y/n: "listen. i've become too close to everyone here to just let them die. you have to let me do this."

felix isn't worried about himself in this situation like he would be whenever someone stronger began to threaten him

he's seen into your head so he knows where you are mentally

he only holds onto your wrists

felix: "you don't always have to be the savior, y/n, there are other people in the world."

y/n: ",,, and what if they fail?"

you've been burdened with all of this because of the mystery around your sudden appearance making everyone either think you were a traitor/assassin sent to kill them all, or some powerful all knowing being

you worked hard to get everyone's respect and attention

no way are you letting that all down now

but you're pushing yourself way too hard

you're shaking and your grip is getting looser

felix: "well... if you really want to, then you should face them when you're healed and okay. no point in trying to save the world when you're low on health, correct?"

y/n: ",,, right. but... but i can still help them."

felix: "of course you can, but please allow me to heal your back first."

you nod your head before sliding off the jacket, letting felix see the damage done, it was a lot

after he finishes, you apologise immediately and he does so too

he gives you a shy kiss to show that it's fine now, and by the sounds of it, the fight has stopped

you two meet up with sage and anisa and explain the situation that had happened, and they understand immediately after seeing how much bandaging your back needed, in private of course. your whole area from your chest to your waist band, blood still seeping through your back

in the end, everyone praised your bravery and nobody blames you, making you feel a lot more better about yourself

Sage Lesath:

sage is

not the ideal person to get into a fight with

not only does he constantly hide his emotions from everyone else until the bottle can't handle anymore, but he also blows up and says a lot of hurtful things when he's upset

however this is with anyone, he just gets so frustrated that he ends up tearing the person he's arguing with a new wound

he gets very emotional when he fights

tears are almost a given

yelling and headaches

but sage tries to get better

when he hears it himself after he says it, he instantly regrets even opening his mouth

immediately tries to apologise to whoever he yelled at, but there are a few times where he's gone too far

that would mean the person he yelled at would need a day or even a week to fully forgive him for what he's said, and more often than not it's someone he's close with, which makes it even worse

but sage knows when he goes too far

it's just that he has a hard time getting over it himself

this has happened between the two of you at some point in your relationship

you guys had been on the rocky side of things because he had a fight with anisa and felix about something important and you had just walked in as it hit the middle of it

you asked what was going on, and when they explained it to you, you had agreed with the duo rather than with sage

that made him frustrated, because now it felt like the world was against him today

and he started yelling at you as well

y/n: "sage, there wasn't another way to go around it. anisa and felix made the right decision, they couldn't do anything else."

sage: "maybe if they listened to me, then we wouldn't be in an even bigger mess!"

y/n: "nothing has changed though. we're just in the same spot, so we can retry everything."

sage: "oh my god, but this was the perfect opportunity to move forward! and those two dumbasses wasted it!"

you tried to calm him down even more and the other two have stopped talking at this point

you don't like it when sage faces his problems without a good mindset, you can tell he is frustrated by what happened and can't see the bigger picture

sage just doesn't understand why you can't see things the way he is

both of them recognise that this is no longer about them but about you, which makes them confused

why did it suddenly change? was it because you were involved now?

sage had already had a go at anisa and felix, spitting some harsh words at them that the two only overlooked as they knew about him and how he acted at these times

however, it lingered in their head about whether or not sage would go that far with you

y/n: "calm down, please. it's already happened, so we might as well just figure out our next course of action."

sage: "oh to hell with that. where were you when all of this went down, huh?"

y/n: "i... i was here."

you backed down for a moment, feeling a little useless at this point

anisa realised how sage was going to take this and stepped in herself

anisa: "i asked y/n to stay, sage, that was my fault. if you are angry with that, then discuss it with me."

you didn't like it when either of them fought, but what could you do?

sage was in no agreeing manner and anisa held firm to her statement

it was incredibly hard to sort things out in this group

sage: "but that's it. y/n was here while we were out there risking our own lives. what's the point of you being here if you aren't going to help us?"

y/n: "i am helping! anisa asked me to gather whatever information i could about the opposition!"

felix was about to ask what you found, since you had asked him to transport you to a very enemy secluded area and he was worried about your safety

but he was ignored

you two were still going at it

sage: "well that's now fucking useless, isn't it? we lost."

y/n: "you didn't lose."

sage: "and how would you know? you weren't even there!"

felix and anisa seat themselves down

at this point, there's no trying to stop them or even separate them

this had gone on for too long to go back, so they had to ride it out

it goes on, your frustration building up so much that you start to yell just out of pure frustration with sage

he falls deeper and deeper into the hole, pulling out things that would surely anger you further from just hearing about it

it would usually be that the two leave the room, but they haven't seen you this heated before

it was strange and they wanted to be careful, especially considering that you haven't mastered using your relic yet

sage: "you're so single-minded, oh my god! i just want you to see things my way, is that so hard for you?"

y/n: "sage, you can't expect someone to put themselves in your shoes if you can't do it for yourself! anisa and felix could've died out there and all you care about is winning that one fight! there will be others to redeem yourself if your pride and reputation as a mercenary means that much to you!"

you don't mean that

you know how much he cares for his friends but you're baffled by the fact that he'd prioritise the mission over them

and you're sure that they are as upset as you are

they give each other a look before listening in to the both of you

you were usually the calm one in this situation and it would take a lot to rile you up

and these two didn't know if your relic would come out to play in these times

you weren't someone who would resort to violence in a fight but your emotions are tied to your weapon, so if you were pushed far enough then it would appear

sage: "i don't even know why you even got involved in the first place."

y/n: "because you're acting crazy at the moment"

sage: "you keep saying i'm overreacting when you won't even hear me out."

y/n: "calm down first. you don't know what you're saying when you get this angry."

he's walking up to you and is now standing right in front

he's glaring holes into your head and getting more heated up that necessary

you've never been afraid of sage and you aren't now

you know that no matter what, sage would never ever hit you

and of course he wasn't going to

standing right up in front of the person he was arguing with was a habit that he had formed after years of having to fight for himself with no one to back him up

it was like an unconscious practice between him and fighting with anyone

so when he got up in your face, you didn't think anything of it

sage: "you know, y/n, what you have to say doesn't even matter. you're just some random person felix brought from another world, you don't matter when it comes to our lives. you mean nothing to what we have to do. to us."

this was the first time that he had hit that deep part in your heart

a sense of alienation when it came to you and porrima

you had mentioned this to sage before when you were feeling homesick a few days after your arrival

you were very vulnerable at that point and sage was there to help comfort you

you never brought it up again because everyone had made you feel a part of their lives and more comfortable, considering you were in a whole different time

when sage hears what he said, his head begins to reel at his sheer stupidity but he doesn't let it show on his face

he still believes that he is right

his pride gets in the way a lot

anisa: "that is far enough, sage."

she's angry with him, mostly because she had never believed that sage would treat y/n the same way he treated them in arguments

she believed that y/n was the only one who could properly calm sage down but it seemed this was just a bit too much

felix is wide eyed at the both of you, still processing what was happening

this was the first

he hadn't pictured sage yelling at you like that

and what was worse is that you feeling alienated was more of a silent secret kept between the group because of the nature of you coming into this world

everyone had a hint of it

but you hadn't actually told them, which made this even worse

you trusted sage with this and now he just confirmed it and resurfaced the problem when you were so close to forgetting about it

felix: "sage, that was a bit much, don't you think? it was uncalled for."

sage: "you—... i just..."

anisa: "are you alright, y/n?"

everyone's eyes are on you now

you give your best calm smile

y/n: "i'm fine. i supposed that clears that up."

everyone knew you weren't talking about the argument between the three

you left to your bedroom right after that, feeling your face burn with embarrassment and your chest tightening

anisa and felix were lecturing sage about it, making his tail only brush against the floor beneath them

they leave soon after

you had originally gone in there to give anisa the information she needed, written on a few sheets of paper, so the knight took that and began on her way to building the next step

felix wanted to come along as well, seeing as y/n needed time for herself and sage wasn't in the companying mood

sage would be in the study by himself for a while

until it was dinner time

he went into the dining room to see anisa and felix seated down, already beginning to eat what was prepared

sage: "where's y/n?"

felix: "hasn't left the bedroom. i tried already, but my efforts were useless."

anisa: "perhaps i should try again."

but before she can stand up fully, sage is already scooping up the two dinner plates and utensils in his grasp, leaving the dining hall against felix's calls

he's in front of your room in under a minute, using his foot to gently knock of the door

sage: ",,, hey, um... it's me? can i come in?"

he's met with silence

sage: "anisa and felix said you didn't come down for dinner, so i brought it up with me here. i was hoping we could eat together... and talk...?"

he hears a few shuffles before you open the door, allowing him to come inside

he sets the plates on the desk before engulfing you in a tight hug, arms around her shoulders and head dug into your shoulder

he's apologising almost immediately, which stops you because it happened all so quick

y/n: "hey..."

sage: "i was such an ass to you and you don't deserve any of that. i know how hard it is for you and i didn't help. i don't think you're nothing, and those two sure as hell don't. you..."

his grip on you tightens as strands of his hair falls over your eyes

he takes a shaky breath in

sage: "you're the first thing to mean everything to me. so please, forgive me. i'll do whatever it takes to make up for this."

he's crying and you are as you wrap your arms around his torso

y/n: "please don't talk about that anymore..."

sage: "i promise."

y/n: "okay,,, i'm really sorry about everything i said. i know you were worried about the others and that you're better than your pride. but i... i still think they made the right decision."

he takes a moment before brushing fingers on the back of your neck as a reassuring act

sage: "i understand. they probably did, i have no idea what was going on, i was freaking knocked out."

you asked if he was okay and he responds with tilting his head so his cheek is facing you

sage: "kiss it better?"

of course, you obliged

[scorchieart]

HIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!! The headcanons about the princes as children are soooooooooooo cuuuuuuuuuuuute I need moaaaaaaaar! Could you do Licht, Nokto and Luke but modern day?

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii back! You have no idea how happy that makes me to hear you say that, I just adore the mini princes! And putting them in a modern setting, Anon you are a genius!

Please accept this offering of 3 bite-sized princes navigating our modern world. I put the twins together since they be getting into trouble together.

Thank you for the awesome prompt!

Silly Headcanons About the Princes as Children - Part 3: Modern-Day

Read the first two editions to this silly saga here! Part 1 // Part 2

Licht & Nokto Klein

Would always get stopped during outings and draw crowds. People would run into street poles, jaywalk through rushing traffic, and trample over each other just to get a glimpse at the darling twins. It became such a hazard they started covering themselves with hats and scarves to keep the peace. With great cuteness comes great responsibility.

Were always put in separate classes in school, but when the lunch bell rang they’d find each other in minutes no matter how far apart they were. They called it their twin telepathy. Their powers were feared by students and faculty alike.

Had a reputation of nabbing chocolates and candies and stashing them away to munch on whenever they were still hungry after a lousy dinner of cooked vegetables. They kept them organized in a wagon in the event the location of their treat trove was discovered so they could make a speedy escape. So far, it’s worked on multiple occasions. Licht usually picks places that are high up so they can spot unwanted visitors early (like a treehouse or attic) while Nokto goes for more secluded and inaccessible locations (like underneath the basement stairs or in the vent behind the bookcase).

Started their own gibberish language and writing system, mostly so they could talk about their brothers and grownups behind their backs, but also so they could secretly discuss possible new locations for their sweet stash. The only person to crack their code was Chevalier, but he’s never bothered to make use of it.

Ok, once he used it to leave them a bag of nougat-filled chocolate eggs, but only because he doesn’t care for nougat in the first place.

One year, the twins asked to visit the hospital so they could meet all the babies that shared the same birthday as them. The new mothers went simply gaga over them, and they helped ease their worries about having to raise two newborns at the same time.

Luke Randolph

Had the most diametric stamina. One minute he could be flying across the playground, crawling up slides and launching off swings, and the next he’d be out cold underneath the jungle gym.

Would absolutely spoil his little sister. If she wanted a piece of his chocolate bar, he’d split it and give her the bigger half. If she wanted to play Princess, he’d make her a crown from the prettiest flowers in their yard and be her charming prince. If they were passing by a gaming center and she wanted a teddy bear from the claw machine, he’d camp there all afternoon just to win it for her.

The owner of the gaming center took pity on him when he cried after using his last quarter and gave him 2 bears. Luke and his sister ordained them siblings and always made sure they were sitting together before they headed off to school.

Luke was that one kid who hated brushing his teeth before bedtime. He wanted to wake up with the taste of honey in his mouth, and the minty freshness of the toothpaste always stung and made his face scrunch up.

His favorite book is Winnie the Pooh, and he’d be ecstatic every time they announced a new movie or show or special. He sings “Everything is Honey” up and down the house and drives the neighbors bonkers.

And speaking of honey, anytime one of the adults wanted to try out a new recipe for honey cake or honey bread or honey butter they’d always invite Luke over as taste tester. But they’d make sure the kitchen was spotless and all the ingredients were packed away before he arrived, otherwise they’d have a whole new mess on their hands to clean.

(Check out my Ikemen Prince Writing Master list here! And if you want to send me a request, please check the details here!)

[that-sarcastic-writer]

Coach (1)

Fandom: Dylan O'Brien

Pairing: AU Dylan x Fem!Reader

Mini series summary: Being a newly single mom of two kids wasn't exactly easy. And love wasn't exactly part of your agenda. So, should you avoid lusting over your son's baseball coach? Absolutely. But with a man like Dylan, could you really resist? Probably not.

Warnings: nothing major yet, small sexual innuendo, mentions of cheating and divorce

WC: 1.9k

A/N: a yes, to those who have been following me for a while may recognize this title, it's my old Dylan AU fic. Yes I decided to continue it. Updates will come periodically, because I write spontaneously and I cant guarantee quick updates. But I do promise I wont wait a whole year to update. And since I did some slight updates in the first 2 parts I decided to archive the old ones and repost them again. So yeah, if you've read them before great, give it another read, my writing is much better now I promise and if you're new welcome, I hope you like this mini series.

(You are here, part 2, part 3)

Dylan stood by the side of the large field, near the home plate, occasionally yelling out suggestions and pointing out mistakes to the young boys. 

"Ezra! You have to watch the ball! C'mon! I know you can do better!" He called out to the blonde boy standing on the home plate with a bat in hand. Dylan then turned his attention to the dark haired boy with the baseball mitt and ball in hand.

"Roman! What's going on, buddy? You gotta focus, alright? You gotta work on that throw!" Dylan called out to the young boy, who half nodded and sighed heavily in response.

Not long after, Dylan signaled the young boys scattered throughout the large field to gather around. He spoke some encouraging words to the boys before allowing them to disperse and gather their equipment which meant practice was over.

Your son, however, stayed behind for a minute. There was an inaudible conversation happening between Dylan and your ten year-old, Roman. You watched from the bleachers as your son made some tired gestures at his coach followed by a small pat on the back from Dylan. You couldn't help but follow them with your eyes as they made their way to the bleachers, your eyes lingering a bit too long on the brown haired coach. An action that wasn't taken lightly by the female sitting beside you.

"You're staring at him again." Your best friend, Ezra's mother, Eliza -or just Liz, commented.

"I'm not." You muttered out quickly, tearing your eyes away from the handsome coach, your mouth hanging open for a couple of seconds. "I wasn't staring." You stated matter of factly and shrugged as you looked down at the small six year-old sitting on your lap, making sure she wasn't paying attention to the conversation.

"Really? The drool coming from your mouth says otherwise." Liz playfully ran her finger across your chin, pretending to wipe away at it. You slightly glared at her, an eye roll going her way.

"I'm not drooling. I wasn't even staring." You tried to defend yourself, making a small sassy gesture to her.

"Hey, I don't blame you. If I wasn't married," she took a pause as she eyed Dylan as he removed his baseball hat to run a hand through his messy chocolate locks, you couldn't help but stare as well. "I'd jump on his bones any day."

"Hey, there's young ears present." You said quietly to Liz as not to disturb the young girl in your arms.

Despite your attempt not to, you couldn't help but allow your eyes to fall once again on the field, following the handsome male that was the topic of your conversation. You had to hide the infatuated sigh that left your lips at the sight of your son's coach running around the field, talking to the kids and picking up equipment.

"Well he is handsome, I'll give him that.." You admitted quietly, "and he's really good with the kids."

Your friend smirked slightly at your words and wiggled her eyebrows at you.

"I bet that's not the only thing he's really good at." She eyed you suggestively and slightly nudged at you with her shoulder, "You should find out what other things he's good at."

Your mouth instantly fell open and your eyes widened at the insinuation.

"Eliza! Oh, my god. Don't say that." You slightly shook your head to brush off the embarrassment and hid your face on your hands to cover the crimson on your skin.

"Mommy you're warm!" Athena, your six year-old giggled as she grabbed your warm, sweaty hands. Even your daughter noticed the nervousness that crept up on you when it came to Dylan, even if it was just the topic of him. Truth was, you had been shamelessly crushing on your son's baseball coach ever since he joined the team a couple of months ago. 

Get it together, you should not be crushing on your son's baseball coach.

"I know baby, it's just hot out here." You tried to brush it off, but the knowing smirk on Liz's face wasn't exactly helping. "Thena, why don't you go get Roman and Ezra? They're over there." You pointed to the field where Roman and Ezra were talking —or more like just Ezra was, to the other kids on the team. She quickly nodded and bolted off the bleachers, somehow not tripping over the steps as she went down. You sighed heavily the moment the young girl was far enough and slightly turned your head in Liz's direction.

"You should totally ask him out." She said out of nowhere with a shrug and a smirk on her face. Your eyes widened for the hundredth time, and you instantly shook your head frantically, the idea alone giving you a headache.

"Ask Dylan out? No way. I.. No.. That's just.. No." Your cheeks slightly heat up at the preposition. But you quickly turned it down with a vigorous shake of your head, not even giving the idea a minute to sink into your brain. "No, he's Roman's coach. It's just wrong."

"Why? I mean, you're single, and as far as I know, he's very single. Soo," she dragged the 'o' as she wiggled her eyebrows and she nudged your shoulder, pushing you over a little in a high school girl manner, "Why not get ready to mingle with the hot coach?"

"First of all, I'm technically not single, not yet." You groaned with an eyeroll. As much as you and your husband —or ex-husband or whatever were no longer living together, the divorce process had been unnecessarily long and dreadful. So as much as you wanted to be legally single, you were still married to that piece of shit. 

"And second of all, if I were to date someone, which is a big if, I can't date Roman's coach out of all people. He already has enough as it is. It'll just confuse him and probably upset him more." You sighed heavily as you looked over to the side of the field, where all the boys were having a conversation about elementary boys' things. And there you saw your son, trying, and ultimately failing at joining said conversations. And with little Athena tugging at his side, all he got from the other kids was laughing and rejection.

Seeing your son's sad and hurt expression when the other boys laughed at him or even told him to go away broke your heart. You wanted him to be happy again. You wanted him to be the energetic and loving kid he was before your waste of a husband left. Ever since Ryan —your waste of a husband left, Roman hasn't been the same. 

For the past six or so months, he has been distant and seemingly unhappy. All he ever did was lock himself up in his room and play video games. He barely ever interacted with you and Athena anymore. He barely interacted with anyone, period. Once Ryan left, it was up to you to support your kids financially. Of course, their father still paid child support, but he sure as hell didn't pay your bills or everything you needed to spend on your children. Which meant you had to take him out of the fancy school he went to in order to still pay the monthly expenses of your home. And he just didn't quite fit in at school, especially now. 

So, you hoped that him joining the baseball team would change that, that it would help him open up again and that it would help him make new friends. But so far, it's worked just the opposite.

"So, I'm making dinner tonight. Do you want to come over with the kids and get drunk? Luke will watch over the kids." Liz spoke, interrupting your train of thought.

"That sounds a-mazing," you spoke in a song-like tune, a sigh of contentment leaving your lips. "But I can't. I told Roman I'd take him to that Italian place he likes."

"Tomorrow then. I'll have that Chardonnay you love so much waiting for you." She winked at you as you both stood up, ready to greet your children.

"Thank God for your alcohol stash." You joked, flinging your arms up in praise. 

You both laughed and smiled in your children's direction, but your smile dropped as your kids and Ezra approached you. Ezra was holding Athena's hand, while Roman walked behind them, with a certain heaviness on his step and an annoyed look on his face. And Athena had a small pout on her face.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Rome doesn't want to hold my hand!" Athena whined with a pout of her lower lip. She released Ezra's hand and exchanged it for your own. Ezra going to his own mom. While Roman simply stood there, with a hand stuffed into his pockets and the other messing with the strap of his bag, his gaze stuck on the ground.

"Roman, baby," you sighed softly, not wanting to give the poor kid a hard time. You understood he didn't exactly fit in, no matter how much he wanted to, and that upset him. You didn't want to add up to that. "Your sister just wanted you to hold her hand."

"She was embarrassing me.. I'm already the kid without a dad, I don't need to be the kid with an annoying  baby sister." He muttered, his gaze not once leaving the ground.

 His words were harsh, but lacked emotion. And it broke your heart. But as much as you wanted to tell him that it wasn't true, that he did have a dad, you'd be lying if you did. Ryan was already absent in your children's lives before the split, but at the same time he was there, and Roman felt as if he was. But now, his father really wasn't there, at all. And there was nothing you could do about it.

You sighed softly, gesturing your free hand out for him, "Roman, come here," a heavy sigh left the young boy's lips as he took a few steps closer, standing in front of you with his head hanging low and his eyes stuck to the ground. You used your hand to hold the side of his face, his eyes meeting with your own. "Baby, Thena just wanted to show you that she loves you. She didn't mean to embarrass you, right Thena?" You turned your attention to the small girl that hid behind your arm, her eyes glistening with tears.

The small girl sniffled and shook her head, "No.. I'm sorry Rome.. I won't do it ever again, I-I promise."

You exchanged looks between your children, your eyes finally landing on Roman as you waited for a response. You raised an eyebrow at him, your eyes speaking a silent 'and' to the boy. He eventually signed, almost too heavily, and nodded. 

"It's okay, I guess.. I don't really mind all that much." He half smiled, shrugging slightly.

Athena's expression quickly lightened, the small girl detached herself from your hand and hugged her older brother. And as much as he hated to admit it, he didn't mind the affection. He returned the hug and smiled, for a moment at least.

After a second or two, Roman slightly pushed Athena off him, signaling that that had been enough affection for a day. You breathed out softly, turning to look at Liz, who gave you a sympathetic smile in response. 

"Well my loves, off we go. Say goodbye to Auntie Liz and Ezra." Both your children did as you said. Athena hugging both of them, and Roman simply waving at them. Good enough.

And at last, you gave Liz a quick but tight hug, "I'll call you tomorrow." You said shortly before you grabbed a hold of your daughter's hand and your son's bag, and eventually parted ways.

Today was gonna be a long day.

《Here's an edited version of part 1. As always I hope y'all enjoyed it. I'm trying to get back into writing after a long year, hopefully this will help me get back on track. Let me know your thoughts. And let me know if you'd like to be added to my dylan/coach taglist which I do have》

[hyungieyoongi]

Found: “Run Away to You” Part 1

Let me go.

He was, without a doubt, your hardest goodbye.

Pairing: Min Yoongi x Former Actress!Reader 

Word Count: 1.6K

Genre: Fluff + Angst 

Series Masterlist: Run Away to You 

Premise: You ran away from your acting career one year ago, disappearing from the spotlight without a trace. No one from your past life knew where to find you. On the anniversary of your disappearance, your carefully constructed reality is shattered.

// Part 2

---

Looking at the calendar on your wall, the date glared back at you, red marker encircling the number as if you could forget it.

One year. It had been one whole year since you ran away from your old life.

Happy anniversary to me, you thought bitterly.

It hadn’t been easy–no, it had been tactful, strategic. Your best friend-turned-publicist, Marianne, had programmed your social media accounts to simultaneously deactivate. The phone you used for “celebrity” contacts and business-related matters was permanently turned off, stashed away in the back of a drawer. You had already moved all your belongings to a new apartment on the other side of the city, address undisclosed to everyone except Marianne and your parents on the other side of the world. Everything had been in place for you to completely disappear.

You were instructed to lay low for at least one entire month, groceries delivered to your door under a fake name with Marianne’s credit card. You had cut your hair, once long and flowing, to your collarbone. It was often hidden under a baseball hat when you went to your favorite café for a coffee or took your elderly neighbor’s dog for walks around the park. You were completely off the radar, just as intended.

That didn’t stop the world from trying to track you down for a while. Fan blogs speculated where you could have gone, and tabloids splashed old pictures of you on their covers with speculative headlines. Your parents even had to install a state-of-the-art security system in your hometown in the States after a magazine found out where you grew up and tried to break into their backyard. But you weren’t naïve enough to go back home; that was the first place people would expect you to go. Instead, you were hidden in plain sight in Seoul, just sans the flashes of the cameras following you. Without the designer clothes or big sunglasses hiding your features, you looked just like anyone else. Undetectable.  

You had grown up in America, studying acting and Korean during your time at university with Marianne. Upon graduation, you landed a major role in a K-drama, uprooting your entire life to move to Seoul. For five years, you lived in the spotlight under the industry’s microscope. People said you were living the dream, but it started to feel more like a nightmare. It became overwhelming, suffocating.

When the show wrapped after three seasons, you knew it was time. You decided to run. You just wish you didn’t have to hurt anyone else in the process. Especially him.

You had instructed Marianne to give him a letter explaining why you had to go away, but she never heard back from him.

Let me go, Yoongi. Don’t look for me. This is for the best. I will always care about you. – Y/N

The words were emblazoned in your memory, your eyes tearing up at the thought of him reading the words you wrote to him.

Let me go.

He was, without a doubt, your hardest goodbye.  

Your cell phone rang, distracting you from the memories that plagued your thoughts today.

“Good afternoon, dearie!” Marianne chirped on the other end of the phone. “It’s a big day for you. The first half of your manuscript came back from the publisher, so get excited to do some editing!” Hiding away from the world for a year gave you a lot of time to think. For you, that meant time to write. Marianne seamlessly transitioned from being your publicist for your acting career to managing your budding career as an author, even helping you pick out a pseudonym.  

“That’s great news,” you mumbled in reply, taking a long sip of your coffee, the bitterness blooming on your tongue.

“Are you alright? You sound, I don’t know, a little off,” Marianne questioned, concern lacing her normally peppy tone.

“It’s been one year, Marianne,” you replied, knowing she’d understand.

“Oh my,” Marianne said after a beat of silence. “It completely slipped my mind. How are you holding up?”

“I’m alright just a little…weird, I guess? I’m so relieved to have my own life again. But I’m also just kind of mourning my old life today.”

“Oh babe, I’m so sorry you’re going through this. Do you want me to come over after work–we can order takeout and watch a movie? Take your mind off things?” Marianne offered.

“No, that’s okay. I think I’m just going to spend the day doing some self-care. We’re meeting tomorrow to discuss the manuscript timeline, right?”

“Yes, of course! I’ll be at the café at 11:00 a.m. Are you sure you’ll be okay today?” Marianne asked, clearly not convinced that you were telling the truth about being alright.

“I’ll call you if I need you, I promise,” you reassured her.

“Night or day, Y/N, you know I’m here.”

After you both said your goodbyes and ended the call, you started to feel restless, needing something to take your mind off the date and the competing emotions swirling in your brain. You decided fresh air and comfort food were the solution.  

Grabbing your keys off the table by the front door, you slipped on your shoes, heading for the local corner store in your neighborhood, mindlessly forgetting your hat on the hook on the wall.

---

Mask pulled over the lower half of his face to conceal his appearance, Yoongi slipped into a nearby corner store, saving himself from the prying eyes that seemed to be examining him a little too closely from across the street.

He had snuck out of the studio without security, wanting to just take a moment to breathe all to himself. He had driven around Seoul with no destination in mind, eventually stopping in a neighborhood he found with a quiet park for a walk. His thoughts betrayed him as they kept going back to you and the letter he received one year ago, now crumpled in the top righthand drawer of his desk. He didn’t need to pull it out today to remember exactly what it said.

Let me go.

Once he read those words, he had stopped reading, smashing the paper together between his fists in frustration, shoving it in the drawer. It had stayed unopened since last year.

Yoongi aimlessly wandered through the aisles of the store, his mind continuously returning to that drawer. He had worked so hard to stop thinking about it–about you–over the past year. Today was a harsh reminder that you were still on his mind. He had stopped calling a long time ago, knowing that you wouldn’t pick up or return his calls. Sometimes though, if he had a little too much to drink with the boys, he’d call your number just to hear your voice on the voicemail recording. He didn’t tell anyone about those late-night calls.

Rounding the aisle corner, he collided with someone, knocking the snacks they had bundled in their arms to the ground. They immediately knelt down, trying to collect them.

“Shit, I’m sorry. Here, let me help you,” Yoongi offered, starting to lean over.

“Oh, no that’s okay I’ve got it.” Yoongi froze, his body going rigid. That voice. Your voice. He hadn’t heard it in-person in over a year. The sweetness of it rang through his ears, reminiscent of the voicemail he knew by heart.

It was you. After all this time.

---

Standing up with your snacks back safely in your grasp, you looked at the man in front of you who seemed to be barely breathing.

You were about to ask if he was alright, but then you recognized it. The black hat–the one with two rings on the edge that he would often wear when he went out. His mask had slipped below his nose, his pale cheeks slightly squished under the pressure of the fabric. Black hair poked out from underneath the hat, falling onto his forehead and into his dark brown eyes. They were wide with shock.  

You felt the color rush from your face, hands beginning to shake because this wasn’t supposed to happen.

You were safe. Safe in your self-made bubble away from the world.

Until he found you. And it burst.

You contemplated turning around, pretending you hadn’t recognized him. Leave him again. But you knew that wasn’t an option now. You had to face the thing you were most scared of–him.

“Yoongi, I-” your voice cracked, barely above a whisper.

“Your hair,” Yoongi remarked, cutting you off, tone flat and quiet. “You cut your hair.” His eyes narrowed at you.

You swallowed the lump that had lodged itself in your throat. “Just...wanted a change, I guess.”

Hide. You wanted to hide.

“You seem to have gone through a lot of changes,” Yoongi said, bitterness seeping into his voice.

You winced at the implication of his words. You took a deep breath to try and collect yourself before replying.

“Can we...can we not do this here?”

“Fine.”

“I live around the corner. Maybe we could just...talk?” you asked, averting your eyes to the ground. When you didn’t hear a reply, you looked back up to Yoongi, who nodded at you once in agreement.

Abandoning your would-be purchases, you walked out the front door of the store, Yoongi silently following behind you. You felt his eyes burning into your back.

Just put one foot in front of the other, you thought to yourself.

As you and Yoongi silently walked to your apartment, neither of you noticed the camera pointed at the two of you, snapping the photo that would change everything.

// Part 2

---

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