#pratt was so annoying in this ngl...

[aristomal]

me n the girlies trying to survive getting bombed

[secretly-small]

G/t July: Day 1

There are so many awesome short stories and art pieces that’ve been released so far! Ngl, I’ve no idea what I’m doing. Some of the pieces y’all’ve released take today’s word prompt “fluffy” very literally, describing something soft to the touch. Others take it as “fluff,” as in, the opposite of fright. IDEK what I’m gonna interpret it as, so just- here’s a kiss scene.

This features Lindsay Pratt and Nathen Krolav. They’re characters from my published works, The Rise of the Royals series. For context, they are size shifters. Lindsay can shrink things and people, Nathen can do the opposite. 

Please do not compare this oneshot to my official writing. The stuff I publish has been betaed, rewritten multiple times, and professionally edited over the course of months and sometimes years. This is just a sloppy piece I decided to jot down in the middle of the night.

ALSO, this is the first time I’ve ever written a kiss scene, let alone a G/t one. So I know it sucks. Just, bare with me, okay? 😅

CWs: clean romance, PG

Word count: 1,152

✨✨✨

You. Are. So. Boring, I thought to my Link as he leaned over the much-too-tall stack of papers before him. He paid no mind to my presence on his desk, instead continuing to scribble down notes with a pencil twice my size. 

His gaze inched toward the end of the text. I took my chance, jumping atop the page before he could turn it. I crossed my arms and plopped down in defiance. But he didn’t even allow me the satisfaction of an eye roll before he brushed me away with a single finger.

The page flipped, slightly displacing the air around me. I sighed as he leaned over a new paper full of endless gibberish. A quiet moment passed as he read. So quiet even the slight shuffling of Nathen’s dad was audible through the door. As far as I knew, they were both working. “Chief business,” apparently. Despite the fact that Nathen technically wasn’t Upperlander chief yet. He’d been doing this stuff for as long as I’d known him, and from the way he talked about it, probably since he was a mere child.

I wracked my brain for something to talk about and end the staleness of the situation before my Link turned into some kind of reading zombie.

“Did Matthew and Ruth send another letter yet?” I asked. 

He didn’t bother looking up as he answered. Though, it wasn’t really an answer so much a comment. “We just got back from our last mission two days ago, Lindsay. There’s usually at least a few weeks between them.”

I crossed my arms, shooting him a glare. He payed it no mind as he started to jot down another note on the edge of the paper. I kicked the pencil as hard as I possibly could, then yanked away, clenching my jaw as I clutched my foot. The slight mistake to his perfect handwriting was worth it, however, along with the annoyed side-eye from my Link.

“You’re impossible,” he muttered as he attempted to erase the error, but it never completely faded. I grinned, leaning against his pencil cup. It dropped quickly, though, as Nathen’s expression shifted back to neutral and focused.  

After a moment of scrubbing the mistake with his eraser, he finally sighed and set the papers aside. My grin returned when his hand slipped in front of me, palm up. It was pure habit to scurry on at this point. I didn’t bother to think once, let alone twice.

I didn’t entirely realize just how much I’d grown to dislike his desk until I found myself being completely compliant and unquestioning as he set me on his bed, rolling over to face me.

His eyes were glazed over, focused on nothing in particular as he stared past me at the wall. A few moments drifted by, drawing an exhausted sigh from my Link as he further relaxed into the pillow. I copied the motion, but the plush mattress didn’t give to my weight like it did his, instead creating a pitiful indent where I sat with crossed legs.

I scanned my Link, mind filtering through every possible way I could distract him. For a second, I considered putting myself in mortal danger and refusing to allow him to save me until the very last second, but I’d already done that one too many times this month.

Then it hit me, as my gaze landed on one feature in specific—an infinitely sensitive and tempting feature he’d unknowingly placed just a few inches from me. I didn’t hesitate. In a fraction of a second, I’d jumped up and slammed my lips against his upper one, jamming my eyes closed. 

Nathen’s reaction was delayed but not unexpected. After the hour-long moment of him finally realizing what it was I’d actually dared, he shot up. The bed rejected the sudden movement, causing me to stumble onto my hands and knees. I looked up to find him staring back at me with wide grey eyes and a flushed face. His mouth hung slightly agape in a way I’d never seen from him before. 

One of my proudest smirks found its way onto my face at the sight. That was an expression worthy of a million points. Clear, unfiltered shock.

My gaze flicked from his eyes to his hand when he hesitantly pointed a finger to his lips. His furrowed eyebrows indicated it to be a question, to which my smirk turned into a grin. 

Such a feat as that would surely leave him mortified enough to practically flee from the room, desperate to do something that’d take both our minds off it until we both completely forgot. Maybe he’d go bird riding with me, or request another mission from the Messengers, or- success.

Somehow his eyes grew wider, but my view was quickly disrupted as he turned his body away from me. He faced the ground, favoring that over me. My crossed arms fell to my sides when I realized how the rise and fall of his chest had stopped completely. 

Surely I hadn’t broken him that badly….

After a moment, he reassumed his position of resting on his arm, causing my mind to freeze. I didn’t get a chance to properly look him over again before his hand began inching toward me. Slowly, making absolute certain I saw the movement before it settled behind me and created a wall at my back. Again, my mind refused to form a reaction beyond the sudden drop of my jaw.

I suppose I knew, though, what was actually happening as he drew closer. But my mind lagged, not willing to process it until I was pressed between his lips and his hand. My heart stopped, and my body melted against the warmth. His soft skin pressed against an entire half of my body, rendering it all useless.

But it lasted only a second. My magic lurched as he started to pull away, acting on the first thought that entered my mind. White light flashed. Before he could respond to the pain, I’d jumped on him and tangled my fingers into his blond hair. I pulled his head to mine, forcing him into a proper kiss. He took a second to get over the pain of shifting before his hands slipped down to my waist. He tugged me closer until our bodies were pressed entirely against each other.

I didn’t know how long had passed until we finally separated, only that my muscles had started to grow weary from the impact. Nathen’s greenish grey eyes met mine, offering me a sheepish smile. I couldn’t return it; my jaw was too busy hanging half-open. But that was quickly fixed when he pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to me. I squealed in excitement, ripping it open. Sure enough, scribbled onto the paper in two different sets of handwriting, was an assignment from the Messengers. 

This would be fun. 

[obsidianfr3sk]

The Origins (Chapter 5)

Summary: Before the Renegades put an end to the Age of Anarchy, they were six kids trying to survive day by day in a city ruled by chaos and desolation. Is there a space for hope and kindness somewhere in Gatlon City? Maybe.

AO3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25123756/chapters/62643247

Evander chapter took me a little bit longer than expected, ngl. I think this one is a little more action-y than my previous work??? Or maybe I’m just fucking allucinating lol. 

Also, speaking of Evander, how do you guys pronunce his name? Because I was having Word to read this chapter out loud for me so I could recognize mistakes without having to read (?) and it pronunced it as Ee-vander, but I’ve always pronunced it as /E/vander, probably for the same reason I say “Simón” instead of “Simon” or “Hugo” instead of “Hugh”. Fellow spanish-speakers, back me up (? 

BUT REALLY I NEED TO KNOW IS THERE A CANON PRONUNCIATION FOR EVANDER’S NAME???? PLS HELP

Tag list (tell me if you want in or out): @nodrianbcyes @blueraspberry-official @healing-winston-pratt @itsalittlebitchilly @callumtreadwell @plain-jane-mclain

Bring me along to the world you see

Age of Anarchy

Year 9

The night is warm and windless. He looks up and tries to beg the moon for help, but he has lost his voice. A mysterious force holds his arms and legs. The only thing he can move is his head.

The sky is full of stars, red and big as rubies.

"Vandy ..."

He looked to his right. His father's green eyes meet his. He used to say that seeing his son was like looking in the most flattering mirror. They both had red hair, the same eyes, their teeth slightly apart… they were identical. But his father didn't have freckles. His mother did.

"Are you okay?"

On the left, he sees his mother. Her blonde hair covers her face, but he can notice her painted lips and perfect liner. She has always been very protective of her makeup. It makes her feel beautiful.

Evander doesn't understand. His mom is beautiful, even without makeup.

His mom is beautiful, even when she’s dead.

" Evander ..."

An ownerless hand puts the barrel of the gun to his forehead. The metal feels hot. The stranger puts his finger on the trigger and is about to shoot when Kasumi shakes him and whispers:

"Evander, wake up."

Evander woke up screaming and with his heart racing. A layer of cold sweat covered his entire body. Tears began to flow from his eyes and instinctively, he reached for Kasumi's arms and hugged her with all the strength of his body.

"The same nightmare?"

"The same nightmare," he replied.

Kasumi stroked his red locks, while the silence in the room was interrupted by the exasperated moans of the other girls who slept there. Alix approached them with disdain and deep dark circles under her eyes.

He hated Alix. She could look through walls, had just turned seventeen last week, and believed herself to be the leader of the whole place just because she was the oldest.

"You said he wasn’t going to have nightmares anymore, Kasumi," she told her accusingly.

Kasumi shrugged. Evander stuck his tongue out at her.

Three years ago, some Jackals broke into his home during dinner, pointing guns at his parents' heads and demanding answers they didn't have. The first thing his mother did was run at him to protect him, but suddenly, the youngest of the Jackals grabbed him by the collar of his dirty shirt and tried to snatch him away.

However, Samantha Wade was not going to let anyone separate her from her son. She clung to him as if her life depended on it. Evander was too scared and deafened by all the yelling, that he didn't feel his mother's nails digging into his skin. "Don't take my son, please don't kill my baby."

After struggling for a while the boy was able to yank Evander from his mother's arms. The woman let out a brutal scream and that was enough for his father to jump on the Jackal, ready to do everything he could to rescue his son.

The tallest man broke his neck.

He gave a low, hoarse laugh. Evander would never forget it.

"We just need the girl," he explained to the younger jackal. "You take care of the child."

Evander couldn't see his father's body for more than two seconds, because the Jackal took him out to the backyard, sat him on the grass, and ordered him severely:

"Stay still. Unless you want to end up like your dad."

Those words were enough for Evander to overcome his urge to disobey.

He took out of his pocket three fireworks and a lighter.

"Today is Fourth of July, Evander Jr,” he said. "Let’s celebrate.”

Those fireworks were the only thing that lit up that starless night. However, neither their outburst nor their beauty could hide the words that the jackal whispered in his ear:

"Listen to me carefully, kid. You are going to drop to the ground and you aren't going to get up until dawn. In the morning, you'll walk five blocks to the home for child prodigies and you'll tell Bertha that Tom Freud sent you. Now, you will be surrounded by prodigies. Some may be powerful, but you must never to kneel before them. Do you understand?"

How ironic that Evander turned out to be a prodigy. Although no one had knelt before him. Yet.

Tom Freud did not wait for him to respond. As soon as the last spark disappeared, he pushed him to the ground, put his foot on his back, and shouted:

"Stay still!"

The bullet whizzed past his ear. Evander didn't scream, he just obeyed. He stayed still when Freud took his foot off his back. He stayed still when the Jackals left. And he even stayed still when the first ray of the sun illuminated his face.

When he saw the corpses on the kitchen floor, he could only ask himself what would have happened if he had not stayed still.

Every time that nightmare woke him up, he would ask Kasumi the same question. She would only tell him to look out the window.

"Your parents greet you from the stars," she assured. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Wade, hello."

Evander always responded with, “Look, your parents are there too. Hello, Mrs. Kasumi's mom, hello, Mr. Kasumi's dad. How do you say mom and dad in Japanese? "

Then, Kasumi proceeded to teach him some new words and expressions in Japanese. They both liked to put on solemn faces and start saying random phrases in Japanese when they were in public. They knew it was annoying for a lot of people, including Mom Bertha. She said Kasumi's mom used to do the same thing when they were younger when she was mad at her. Mom Bertha seemed sad after telling them this, so they decided not to do it in front of her anymore. Seeing Mom Bertha sad wasn't as fun as watching the older children get angry at them when they refused to explain what they were saying.

"You wouldn't understand," Evander told them, shaking his head with mock seriousness.

"That's right, you wouldn't understand," Kasumi agreed.

If others knew it was just random words and phrases, the game would be over, so they had to keep it a secret. Kasumi confessed that she regretted not being able to learn her parents' first language. However, she made an effort to learn how to say a very specific question. 

Unfortunately, it was a question she had to make very often.

"Vandy, did you wet the bed?"

Evander hugged her tighter. Kasumi nodded and began to remove the covers. The girls immediately noticed what happened and started complaining, especially Alix. Evander sat on the corner of the bed, feeling dirty, and humiliated. They all looked at him with disgust and mockery, secreting each other.

Yeah, they didn’t like the idea of Evander sleeping in the same room as them. They said there was a room for boys and a room for girls for a reason. But Mom Bertha wouldn’t hear a word about it. Evander was going to sleep there, whether they liked it or not. 

Why? Because he was a bed wetter and the boys weren’t very nice about it. Neither were the girls, but at least they didn’t start a fight with him when they realize Evander had wet the bed again. 

He looked out the window. Mom Bertha was outside, talking to some men. He couldn't see their faces.

Evander had seen these men before. Sometimes when nightmares woke him up, he would listen to Mom Bertha talking to them. There were times when they yelled at each other, but there were other times when they gave her boxes filled with food and medicine. Kasumi made up the story that they were the guardians of the shadows, protecting the kingdom of the night.

"They look scary," Evander said to her when she told him the story.

"Don't worry, they won't hurt us."

But lately, Evander heard more screams and saw fewer boxes.

She dropped the wet sheets on the floor and handed him some clean underwear. Evander crawled under a blanket to change. Although he had a lot of privacy that way, Kasumi still turned her back on him so as not to make him uncomfortable.

"Kasumi, don't you listen to what we're saying?" Alix asked.

"I’m listening, Alix," she replied shyly.

“Then stop ignoring us. Evander is getting too old to sleep with the girls, he has to go with the boys. "

"But they are going to hit him again," Kasumi said.

“Well, better for him,” Alix replied. "Maybe he’ll finally learn wetting the bed is a horrible habit.”

Evander pulled the blanket off, pointed his finger at Alix, and yelled:

"You are horrible!"

Alix opened her mouth to respond and Evander threw his dirty underwear at her face. Kasumi burst out laughing along with the rest of the girls. Alix squealed as Evander started bouncing on the bed yelling  "Horrible, horrible, horrible girl!"  in Japanese.

He would do anything to annoy Alix and to keep Kasumi laughing. 

When Alix recovered from the shock, she screamed:

"I'm going to kill you, Evander!"

A gunshot. Two gunshots.

Evander put a hand to his chest. Alix hadn't shot him.

Then who shot who?

Alix pushed Evander off the bed and leaned out the window. The shots had come from outside. Her face twisted in horror.

"Mom Bertha..."

All the other girls leaned over to look. Evander tried to push his way through them, but Kasumi quickly caught on and took him away from the scandal.

"Don't look," she whispered. "Please don't look."

"What happened?" he asked innocently. "Who’s shooting?"

"The guardians of the shadows," she replied, taking him by the shoulders, "have turned against us, Vandy."

As if she had summoned them, the guardians of the shadows knocked down the door to the girls' room pointing their guns at them. He and Kasumi hid under the bed, while the other girls screamed and raised their hands. The guardians of the shadows started holding them by their nightgowns and kicking them out into the corridor, not even giving them time to put on their shoes. The same scandal did not take long to begin in the men's room. A few more shots were heard.

And laughs. Low, hoarse laughs.

It can’t be…

The room was almost empty when a huge hand grabbed Kasumi by the wrist. Both screamed at the same time. Another hand grabbed Evander's arm and dragged them out of there.

The man was tall, muscular, and bald. A red bandanna covered his face.

Jackals.

"What are your powers!?" he yelled at Kasumi. His friend froze, staring at him with wide eyes and a sealed mouth. "What are your powers!?" he asked again.

More screaming. More demands. More questions they couldn't answer.

Evander tried to free himself from the man's grasp. All he wanted was to hug Kasumi once more. Maybe if he did it hard enough and for the right amount of time, he would be able to wake up.

The jackal growled and tossed Evander onto the bed as if ridding himself of an irritating mosquito. If he had done it harder, Evander would have been thrown out the open window.

The cold breeze gave him chills.

He looked at the window, then looked at his friend. She was still paralyzed and unable to answer the man's question. Kasumi, Evander, and the jackal were the only ones left in the room. Everyone else had gone to the common room.

He looked at the window. Then he looked at his friend.

The jackal drew his pistol and held it to Kasumi's head.

"WHAT ARE YOUR POWERS, LITTLE SLUT?!"

"She doesn’t understand you!" Evander yelled.

The jackal fell silent. Now the gun was pointed at him.

But Evander was not afraid.

"What are you talking about?"

“She doesn't speak English,” Evander explained, looking down. "That’s why she doesn't understand a single word of what you’re saying."

He looked at Kasumi curiously and threw Kasumi onto the bed, laughing. Evander hugged her.

Wake up, Vandy, wake up…

"What powers does the little slut have?" he asked Evander.

"I don't know," he replied, "she’s never used them."

"But she’s a prodigy."

"Yes, Mr. Jackal."

Another laugh. "I'm glad. If she wasn’t, I would have to kill her. And it would be a shame to kill such a pretty girl. "

Kasumi hugged him tighter. Perhaps she was also begging that it was all a dream. Or maybe she was more scared than he was.

Evander had to be brave for both of them.

"Do you want me to ask her for you?"

"Huh, now you happen to know Chinese," the jackal sneered.

"No, I know Japanese," Evander corrected.

He gave the loudest laugh of the night. Evander could perfectly visualize him breaking his dad's neck, laughing in the same way...

"Prove it."

Kasumi held his face in her hands. Her gaze seemed to scream at him:  "What are you doing?"  He had never seen her so confused.

He wished he could tell her what he was thinking.  Kasumi, don't be afraid. Think of this as a story. You know the best stories. Let's make our way out of this. Have a little bit of imagination.

But how could one have imagination at this moment?

"I... distraction... you window... we escape."

He saw his friend's gears moving inside her head. "Water... waterfall... escape," Kasumi stammered.

"Window, waterfall, escape" Evander repeated with a nod.

Kasumi smiled at him almost imperceptibly. She had understood. Those afternoons of annoying others had helped.

"What's she saying?" the jackal interrupted.

"She says she can heal trees," Evander replied.

"And what do you do?"

"I can control light."

It wasn't entirely a lie.

"And why aren't you wearing pants?"

Evander hadn't realized he was still in his boxers.

"I- I wetted the bed.”

The jackal's laughter echoed in his head. "How old are you? Six?"

"I’m eight, Mr. Jackal.”

The jackal pointed the gun at the old closet in the corner of the room. “Put on clothes, kid. And then go downstairs with the rest. "

Evander hurried to the closet. He grabbed the first pair of pants he could find. They were green and had strange spots on the knees. But he didn't have time to think about that. 

"What are you waiting, bitch? Move,” he yelled at Kasumi.

Kasumi didn’t move.

The pants were too big for him.

"I said move!" and hit her with the pistol’s grip.

Evander ran to get between the jackal and his friend. "Leave her alone!" he screamed.

The jackal raised his hand for a second blow. Both children closed their eyes, preparing for the beating they were about to receive. However, the blow did not come. Something had stopped the jackal.

Evander opened one eye. The jackal stared at him incredulously, his mouth slightly open.

He laughed. "I'm going to kill Freud..."

Then, he loaded his gun, put in on Evander's forehead, and said:

"Hello, Evander Jr. Stay still."

At that moment, Evander knew he couldn't stay still this time. 

He placed both of his hands over the jackal's eyes and fired the most powerful and explosive fireworks he could. The jackal's laugh became a cry of pain so loud that all of Gatlon City could hear it.

Kasumi carried him and created a waterfall that ran down to the fence door of the building. As Kasumi slid both of them to their freedom, Evander looked up at the stars.

He didn't know what would have happened if he hadn't stayed still four years ago. But if he had obeyed this particular jackal tonight, the sky would have one star more.

He loved his parents. But he didn't want to be a star just yet.