#she does good art and I'm quite proud of her

[bml1997]

Somewhere on Imu's blog is her art coms sheet...I will find it I am determined

[dragon-kazansky]

Bridgerton shade of blue

Benedict Bridgerton x Female Reader

Benedict bumps into you, quite literally, at a ball while trying to escape his mother's attempts to find him a partner. You decide to humour him with a dance, not realising just how entwined you would become with him. It seems the universe will find every excuse to push you and Benedict together, no matter how much you fight it.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Season one

Chapter Sixteen - Entanglement

♡♡♡

When you wake up in the morning, you spend a good few moments simply smiling up at your ceiling. The memories of last night come rushing back to you.

You feel giddy.

When the concert had finally ended, Lord Hardy escorted you out to your carriage. He plucked a rose from a nearby potted rose bush and gave it to you. He also had not let you depart without placing a kiss upon your gloved hand.

Your mother had been ecstatic on the way home.

The end of the season was drawing in. It seemed you had managed to secure a match after all. Perhaps you would write to him once he returned to the country.

Your mother and yourself would be staying in London.

Your maid came to wake you, and before you knew it, you were up and ready to face the day. You met your mother for breakfast. All she did was gush about the concert and how proud of you she was.

You couldn't stop smiling.

As you tuck into your breakfast, the butler comes in and declares you have received a gift. You glance at your mother and then back at him as a maid comes in carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

"From Lord Hardy, ma'am."

You grin and look at your mother as she squeals with glee.

Things are looking up for you.

♡♡♡

"Then where did you meet her?" Elosie asks her brother as she follows him through the house.

She was, of course, referring to Genevieve.

"About town," he responds.

"At her shop?"

"Should you not be off somewhere, getting ready to attend your very first ball?" Benedict asks her, hoping to cease her questioning.

Eloise groans.

Hyacinth looks up at Anthony and asks if she may join in on the fun this summer at Aubrey Hall. She is asking about their usual game of Pall Mall.

Anthony snaps out of his thoughts and agrees that she may, as long as she does not touch his lucky mallet.

Eloise sits down with Benedict, continuing to question him.

She had thought her brother had been interested in you, but it seemed she was wrong. Which made his friendship with the tailor even more intriguing to her.

"What other places might Madame Delacroix frequent besides her shop?"

There was also the thought that Eloise suspected the tailor to be Lady Whistledown.

"Many places, Eloise, for her many interests." Benedict responds, sketching in his book. He had still been working on his art since he last saw you.

"You mean her many secrets. You should be careful, Benedict. Madame Delacroix may not be who you think she is," Eloise says. "And consorting with her, well, there may be consequences."

Benedict shushes her quietly, hoping the others didn't hear that.

"I would have expected this from anyone but you," he says. "You think just because Madame Delacroix has a paid occupation, or because she does not reside with the bounds of Grosvenor Square, she's different. Is that it? That she is somehow less deserving of my attention because she is not whom polite society deems appropriate?"

"That is not what I'm saying at all." Eloise clarifies.

"Then what are you saying?"

Eloise sighs and looks at her brother. "You are right. I should prepare for our sister's ball."

"Perhaps you should."

Eloise stands to leave but is stopped by the entrance of Violet entering the room.

"Aunt Winnie jas sent word. Francesca will be arriving home tomorrow," Violet smiles.

"How exciting!" Hyacinth beams.

"Perhaps she can tell us of time spent far from London," Colin comments.

"Fran has missed so much," Gregory points out.

"Mm. Indeed." Violet nods. "It certainly has been an eventful season, what with Daphne and the duke, and then Anthony and..."

Anthony lifts his head.

"Yes, well, never mind." Violet stops herself from going further. She leaves the room.

Benedict sighs as he sketches in his book.

♡♡♡

Eloise knocks on the door of the modiste urgently. Madame Delacroix opens the door, dressed in her robe. Her shop wasn't even open today.

"Miss Eloise, you should come back another day when the shop is open."

"I had hoped you would make an exception for me," Eloise chuckles. "I need a dress for my sister's ball."

"You already have a dress for your sister's ball."

"I need another one. A young lady can never have too many dresses." Eloise forces out another chuckle.

She is let in.

"Oh! Perhaps this one." Eloise goes over to a bright yellow gown. "It would make me look quite in fashion in the eyes of the Featheringtons, I rather think. Unfortunate young ladies. They are still quite stung from Lady Whistledown's recent exposé."

Benedict lurks on the stairs, listening to his sister talk. Did she know he had come here?

"I wish the author would write something flattering about them!" Eloise continues.

"Perhaps she will."

"What makes you say that?" Eloise asks.

"Because she knows what is good for her business, and angering loyal customers is not good."

"No... No, it is not." Eloise agrees. "Whether those loyal customers be Featheringtons or Bridgertons, even... Lady Whistledown might wish to examine what she writes about both."

"Indeed."

"I have heard people say that men, such as my brother, if you will, can withstand rumour and gossip, but... I am not always so sure."

"I know why you are here, Miss Eloise. You are very smart, and you care very much about the people in your life, as you should. But you must know I have no intention of compromising anyone."

"That is good." Eloise says. "Because the queen is enraged. So whoever Whistledown is should be careful. I would hate her to be silenced before she has a chance to change her ways and make things right."

"I believe Whistledown is smart enough to take care of herself," Genevieve states.

"Yes. She certainly is." Eloise smiles. "Charming chatting with you, Madame Delacroix."

Eloise leaves.

"Lock the door." Benedict says, looking at her once his sister has left the shop.

♡♡♡

Lord Hardy had come to visit you. You hadn't stopped smiling the entire time he was at the house. Conversation was engaging and thrilling. You were eager to know more about him, and he about you.

Your mother watched you both talk feeling like everything was coming together.

When Lord Hardy requested you join him, your mother had no qualms against him taking you out for the afternoon. You chuckled as you prepared to go out with him.

A boxing match.

You are reminded of the one Anthony brought you to. The thrilling fight you saw. Not exactly a place for a lady, but you were not about to argue.

"Is this alright?" Hardy asks you.

"Yes. I must confess I find it quite thrilling. Though mother may lose her mind if she finds out."

"As far as your mother knows, we are promanading through the park."

You chuckle as you take your seat next to him, keeping your arm hooked around his. You were looking forward to this.

"It is considered a gentleman's sport, but why remain proper when we can have a little fun?" Hardy grins.

You chuckle.

"Lord Hardy, I think I rather like the way you think."

"Thinking is a dangerous activity, but one I am quite happy to encourage. You must also call me Thomas. I insist."

You smile. "Very well, Thomas."

The Bridgerton brothers enter the arena hall. You spot them immediately. They enter in reverse order. Colin, Benedict, Anthony. Each with a top hat upon their heads.

They don't seem to notice you. You're sat quite far up. Your eyes follow Benedict for a moment. He looks well.

Distance seems to have come between you recently. You've seen him a lot less, and he always seems rather busy.

With the end of the season around the corner, you don't expect you'll be seeing much of him at all. Violet had mentioned Aubrey Hall, their family estate. She had said you were welcome to visit them up there.

You hadn't decided if you wanted to go. Perhaps not. Not if Thomas was going to have all your attentions.

Who knows, maybe you'll be a married woman next time you saw them.

"Ladies and gentlemen, take your seats. The match is about to begin!"

Thomas smiles at you as you smile back.

The fight starts. You and Thomas cheer along with the crowd as you watch bother fighters. Will the man you want to win. Thomas had placed a bet on him. You had told him that you had seen Will fight before.

Will gets a hit in and you cheer.

Thomas chuckles.

Across the ring, Benedict has spotted you. He sees you sitting there with that man on your arm. He turns his eyes quickly back to the fight.

Why should he care that you're here?

Why should he care who you came with?

You cheer again as Will gets another hit in. And another. And another.

But then it switches up.

The Beast hits back. Again and again and again.

You find yourself standing from your seat. Thomas doing the same beside you. You call for Will to hit him back.

He falls to the floor.

The bell rings.

You cling to Thomas's arm as you watch half the room explode into cheer. You watch Mondrich lay there. It was like he chose to stop fighting. You wondered why.

"Come on, get up!"

He did not. He just accepted defeat.

After the fight, you took Hardy's arm, and he guided you down to the entrance. When you reached the doors, you bumped into the Bridgerton brothers, well, two of them. It was Colin who saw you first and spoke your name with a smile.

Benedict turned to look at you. Colin tipped his hat to your companion. "Lord Hardy."

"Mr. Bridgerton." Thomas nodded back.

"Lord Hardy," Benedict greeted, though he seemed less enthusiastic about it. He then turned to you.

"Shame about Mondrich," you say.

"Yes, quite. Unexpected." Colin comments.

"Is he alright, do you know?" You ask.

"I believe so."

"Shall we go?" Thomas asks you. You look at him and nod. You bid farewell to the brothers and walk away with Hardy.

Benedict follows you with his eyes.

Colin nudges his brother, and Benedict turns his eyes away. He gives Colin a smile and walks on.

♡♡♡

"I am confident I could last a few rounds in a boxing ring."

Daphne had invited you to the Bridgerton house where her family was gathering. Her sister Francesca had returned from Bath, and they were all getting together. The duchess extended the invitation to you, which was nice.

You hadn't seen much of them the last couple of weeks. You accepted.

You chuckled at Anthont words about boxing. He seemed fit enough but did not quite strike you as a boxer. You supposed it was because you can only see him as the Viscount.

"Well, that is certainly a match I would like to see." Benedict responds.

He had been rather quiet with you since you arrived at the house.

You look up and see Daphne and Simon jad arrived. You smile at them both and get up to greet Daphne. She takes your hand with a smile.

"It's good to see you," you say.

"Yes. We haven't had the chance to talk much," she replies.

Francesca then comes over to greet Daphne and her husband. Then Hyacinth, too. You chuckle at the excitement in the room.

Hyacinth steals Simon away for a bit.

"Show me what you have been learning, sister." Daphne requests, wanting Fran to play the piano for her. You join the two ladies at the piano.

Eloise is eating chocolate alone on the sofa. Well, she's alone until Benedict sits down with her.

"I do not share food." Eloise scolds him.

"You are not to do what you did the other morning ever again," he scolds her back. "Do you understand, Eloise?" He asks her.

"You mean visiting my new acquaintance?" She grins.

"She is not your acquaintance."

"I was wrong about her. She is wonderful. You have nothing to worry about."

"I was worried about anything."

"Not worried about what?" Anthony asked, coming over and sitting on Eloise's otherwise. He held his hand to Eloise. She stared at it and then gave him a chocolate.

"Uh, I... I have a friendship with Genevieve Delacroix," Benedict confesses. "The... modiste."

Anthony stares at his brother.

Silence hangs over Eloise's head.

Then Anthony answers. "Good for you, brother. You deserve contentment. We all do."

Benedict and Eloise both look at Anthony with surprise and confusion.

"If the lady contributes to that, then I'm happy for you." Anthony leaves.

"Whatever is in those candies?" Benedict asks. He takes one for himself and stands to join the rest of the family.

"Your pianoforte is quite impressive," Daphne comments. Francesca smiles at her. You agree with Daphne.

"Join me, brother," Fran requests, looking at her third eldest brother.

"Yes, Colin, why not a song?" Violet smiles.

"If I must," he agrees, coming to the piano.

Francesca plays the piano as Colin sings. It's an upbeat song. Gregory and Hyacinth spin and dance while Anthony claps. You laugh softly as you watch.

The song comes to an end, and you applaud Colin for his wonderful singing.

Hyacinth returns to the duke's side to question him about his horses. Violet scolds her lightly, but Simon answers all her questions.

You smile at the sight.

Benedict is slouching in a chair nearby, and you go over to him.

"Hello."

He looks up. "Hello."

You look at him sheepishly for a moment before speaking again. "Are you well?"

"Quite well."

You sigh softly as you look down at your hands. "I've missed you."

Benedict looks at you with gentle surprise. "You have?"

You nod. "Mmhm."

He sits up a little straighter. "You appear to have been busy." He comments.

"Yes." You know to who he refers to.

"Does he make you happy?" He asks.

You nod.

Benedict lets that sit for a fresh short seconds and then inhales softly as he reaches over and settles a hand over yours. "Then I am pleased for you."

You smile at him.

"Thank you."

He removes his hand and sits back in his chair again. You at least feel like some of the air between you has cleared. Yet, he still seems a little guarded.

You say no more and enjoy the rest of the afternoon.

♡♡♡

@callmemana - @lilscast - @imgondeletedis - @benedictbridgertonss - @clownsdiehard - @wxnterwidow333

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@biancamde - @ifgslsofbsodbf - @kniselle - @berarenado - @grassclippers - @bwormie - @avengersgirllorianna

[hotwaterandmilk]

Grabbed the latest issue of Sho-Comi because Mahou Shoujo Dandelion has been making waves on Twitter in advance of its release and I had to see how it actually turned out.

Mizuho Kaeru seemed a tad overwhelmed on socials about just how much anticipation the series was receiving based on concept and characters alone, but Mizuho should honestly be proud of how well they've lined up trending tropes in Dandelion.

You've got the nasty-cute monster dude (Shade) who would do anything for his bright ray of sunshine (Tanpopo). Throw in the nostalgic magical girl element and it's not hard to see why both Japanese and English-speaking fans have been anticipating this first chapter. So, does it live up to the hype?

I'd veture that yes, Dandelion is worthy of the excitement that has been building around it. It was good as a lunchtime read on my phone and while I'll probably have to re-read it to get everything I want from it, my initial impression is a positive one.

I'm not a fan of grumpy/sunshine type stuff but Tanpopo's strengths as a character really helped me enjoy what was on offer here. You can see why the Special Magic Warrior Management Organisation was interested in her, she's got a good heart and she's got gumption, even if Shade is the one who continually helps break her fall.

The complication here is of course that Shade, while obliging of Tanpopo in his own way, is also monstrous. He plays into this when he wants to, menacing Tanpopo herself at one point because he's A VILLAIN OK?? (Sure buddy.) With Tanpopo becoming Dandelion, how will their dynamic change? Can this uneasy relationship develop further when our leads are technically on opposite sides of a battle with life-altering stakes, despite a potential unspoken desire to present a united front?

What I like about Mizuho's approach in this first chapter is that the world these characters live in is already tinted with grey and what should be a black & white / good vs. evil situation is far more complex than this right out of the gate. The "monster of the week" that shows up here is grotesque and violent, hardly the sanitised version you'd see in childhood cartoons. However, the magic warrior org is quite willing to lop heads (literally) when they have to, showing that they are not all sparkles and rainbows either. Tanpopo and Shade are very much walking into unknown territory here and I'm interested to see how Mizuho handles things in chapter two.

I just have to add that I absolutely loved this moment where Dandelion, newly transformed, performs her first magical action -- restoring the umbrella she'd used defensively as Tanpopo. So much about her character expressed in this simple yet powerful action. LOVED ITTTTTT.

If the hype remains then I can see this one turning out to be a solid little series. There's definite potential here in both the characters and scenario. I highly recommend grabbing the magazine issue and supporting any other official releases that become available if you can. Mizuho is also happy for people to produce fan art, so maybe draw pic or share a tweet/post/etc. about it if you don't have the money to invest and help keep that hype train moving this way instead!

[taesanluv3r]

as the sun rises.

myung jaehyun x reader

inspired by one of my fave romance movies 'before sunrise' <3 a lot of dialogue (some are directly taken from the movie, some parts are diff to match the characters obv!!), a lot of cuteness, some swear words, TW: mentions of death, mentions of sex (not smut). pls read under ur own discretion tysm! ignore any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors. enjoyyy!!

wc: 6,528

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"no but i'm telling you honey, that's just not how it works! you never believe me when i say..."

a young and pretty girl sighs, trying her best to drown out the sound of the arguing couple as she leans against the seat of the train and stared deeper into the book in her hands. she can't really focus though, the aforementioned couple's quarrel only getting louder causing the girl to finally get off her seat in frustration to sit in another one just a few windows down the cart. as her body makes contact with the plush leather material once again, she can't help but feel a set of eyes fixed onto her. the girl furrows her eyebrows, slowly moving her gaze away from the book and over to the guy that sat directly adjacent to her on the other side of the train cart. they make eye contact, he's quite good looking. an asian man, about a couple centimetres taller than she was. and he, too, had a half-read book in hand.

the boy smiles at her first, she returns the gesture before reverting back to the page that remained opened. "what are you reading?" he suddenly speaks, and she looks up at him in surprise. "um, this" she replies, lifting up the paper-back to show him it's cover. pride and prejudice by jane austen. he nods, familiar with the infamous piece of literature. "and you?" she asks, eyes lingering at the hard-cover book in his hands. "ah" is all he says, lifting up the collection of paper so she could see it well. metamorphosis by franz kafka. she nods too, going back into reading mode, and he does as well. they don't say anything to each other for about three minutes or so until the guy abruptly shuts his book and turns his body fully in her direction.

"hey, i'm heading to the dining car...care to join me?" he's standing and she's sitting, their eyes stare into each other's for a moment before she smiles at him. "um...yeah, let me grab my bag" she doesn't notice but the boy has a sort of proud glint in his eyes, waiting patiently as she gathered her things and making way for her to walk in front of him.

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"so...that couple, huh?" the boy says, beginning to slice at the sausage on his english breakfast plate. the girl giggles, "yeah..." she looks at him intently, her eyebrows knitted together. he notices, tilting his head off to the side. "what? is there something on my face?" she laughs, "no, no! it's just...you're not from around here, huh?" he smirks, "that obvious?" they share a mutual laugh. "well, you're right. i'm here on holiday...er, maybe not a holiday. i'm not really sure what to call it...but anyways, i come from korea" her eyes widen and her lips form an oval shape as she nods in understanding. "your english is amazing" she states, "i'm jealous" and he chuckles, "yeah...i studied abroad for a while. and you? are you from here?" she shakes her head at his inquiry, "oh, no! i go to art school in france, i was just here to visit a friend" he nods, sighing as he stares out the window. "so...you're going back there, then? to france" the girl smiles, watching the trees and clouds that passed by outside the train cart. "mhm...and you are...?" he answers right away, "i get off in vienna, catching a flight back home from there tomorrow morning" the girl responds with a hum, "how's europe been? your not-so holiday trip" she asked and he looked up for a moment as if he were really thinking of a good answer. "it's beautiful, really..." the guy trails off, "...but?" she's curious, her gaze on him getting stronger. "i don't know...i guess being on trains for most of the trip and not really knowing where i'm going...it's just...is starting to get to me" she laughs at his response, taking a sip out of the iced tea that sat in front of her on the table.

"i think this is vienna..." the young woman says, watching the world that stood behind the large glass window. the young man nods, "guess that means i have to get off soon..." they shared a moment of silence, juxtaposing the way natural conversation seemed to ricochet among the pair for the past hour and a half or so that they sat in the dining car. "we have arrived in vienna, please be careful as you exit the cart and don't forget your belongings...have a safe trip!" the announcement sounded scratchy and muffled coming from the old speakers that stuck against most corners of the transport. "so...um...i guess this is goodbye" the guy says, retrieving his stuff and getting off of the seat. she nods, "have fun in vienna" and then he turns around to leave, the girl left all alone as she watched his figure slowly disappear. she sighs, some sort of uneasy feeling starting to rumble up in her stomach. surely he can't just leave like that? right?

and as if he could read her mind from miles away, the girl gasps when she is met with his face again. he looked out of breath, his hands entangled with the strap of his carry-on bag. she's confused, not really understanding what exactly was going on. she was about to speak, not being able to stand the silence that flowed between them. however, he spoke first, though his voice was still a little mumbly from the way he had ran right back into the cart. "come with me" is all he said to her, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. "what?" she asked, not believing the words that came out of his mouth. "c'mon, it's just one night. and i'm not gonna lie i really enjoyed talking to you and i know you feel this connection too and i think this short vienna trip would be a lot more...fun if you were around...?" the last bit of his slight monologue came off as a question, like he was almost unsure about whether taking a stranger off the train to a foreign country with him was a good idea. she laughs, "okay" is all she said, getting her stuff and standing in front of him. "okay?" he asked, eyes widened like he had just seen a ghost.

"yes! c'mon, the train's about to leave again, we have to get off"

the pair walked closely beside each other as they hopped off the train, the automatic doors shutting tight behind them. he grabs onto her bag, taking it away from her hand to help her carry it and she thanks him silently. they stop a few feet away from the train tracks, breathing in deeply to take in the new air. "so..." he starts suddenly, "what's your name?" she widens her eyes, giggling at the thought of agreeing to get off the train before even learning his name. "i'm yn" he smiles, "what a pretty name for a pretty girl, yn" she rolls her eyes, tilting up her head to look at him. "and you?" she asks, tumbling in a zig-zag pattern as they began to walk. he grins, the corners of his mouth pointing up as he did so.

"i'm jaehyun, it's nice to meet you"

the pair exchange a shake of their hands, giggling gleefully as they go from nameless strangers to familiar acquaintances. "so...jaehyun, where to?" she asks, playing with the fabric of her denim jacket, a finger moving up to loosely tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. the boy sighs, squinting his eyes as he takes in his surroundings. "i guess it's all up to fate now" he turns towards her, shooting yn a cheeky grin, his eyes disappearing as he did so to which she laughs, grabbing a confident hold onto his hand. the girl drags him along with her as she strides forward and towards a pretty bridge that stood above a body of water. as they approach it, a pair of local men come into sight. "should we ask them what to do? they seem to be from here" yn asks, a finger pointing towards the two figures in the distance. jaehyun nods, following her as she continued to walk. as they strut alongside each other, a sudden silence takes over them. the girl laughs out loud, and so does the boy. "what?" he asks, finding her sudden outburst amusing. "nothing it's just...a bit awkward?" he nods in agreement, "yeah. yeah it's a little bit awkward" the end of his statement comes out breathy as he breaks into a slight giggle, inflicting a similar sound from the giddy girl.

"excuse me, do you speak english?" yn's voice is soft and somewhat unsure, the two locals she had come up to tilted their heads of to the side skeptically. "yes of course we do. do you speak german for a change?" the pair looked at each other with puzzled looks as the two locals bursts into laughter. "nah, nah i'm just kidding- t'was a joke" then they all laughed. "look, we were just wondering what's fun to do around here, that's all" jaehyun follows up, his tone slightly stronger than the one the girl had previously shown. the two men look at each other and nod before turning to look at the pair again. "how long you here for?" one of them asks, a thick german accent seeping through as he spoke. "only for a night, we-" jaehyun was cut off, "what're you doing here just for one night, then? nothing much to do" the other local says rather aggressively, causing the foreign pair to chuckle in surprise. "we..." the korean boy begins to come up with some sort of a reasonable response, trailing off as he searched his mind for one. "we're on a honeymoon!" yn's sudden excuse catches him off guard, his eyes going wide as he stares at her in disbelief. "is that so?" the one with the thick accent wonders, an eyebrow cocking up in search of confirmation. "yeah...yes...yes!" the boy's voice is clear and confident now, proudly sticking his chest out as he wraps an arm around his faux fiancee.

"she got pregnant, we had to get married, and this is supposedly our- um, well, our honeymoon...yeah" the locals laugh again, "you're lying...a terrible liar, you are, yes" the german men share incoherent conversation with each other for a moment, leaving the foreign pair to watch and listen in confusion. just then, one of the two reveals a pamphlet from out his shirt pocket. "this is uh...this is a play we both star in. we wanted to invite you, so yeah" the korean boy gratefully accepts the paper, scanning through it intently. "what's it about?" yn asks, stroking her hair away as the wind blew against it. "it's about a cow and indians searching for it, also politicians...and stuff" one says, "i play the cow" the other follows. "yes and the cow has a disease...acting a bit strange like a dog" yn and jaehyun share another puzzled look, using all the strength in their body to hold in their laughs at the ridiculousness that escaped the mouths of the german strangers.

"as you can see, there's an address there" one says, pointing towards the obvious map in the pamphlet he had passed them earlier. "it's in the second district...near the prater, you know it? the prater.." he trails off, making a circular motion with his hands. "oh! the big ferris wheel? we should go" yn says, turning towards the boy beside her. "yeah we should" jaehyun replied, nodding as he agreed. "perhaps you can go to the prater before the play, it starts at twenty-one thirty" the foreign pair nod, thanking the odd locals before parting their ways with them and waltzing over to the garden nearby.

he watches as she skips and twirls against the cobblestone. her hair is one with the breeze, as she hums to an unknown tune. "this is a graveyard...i've been here once before when i was young" she explains as they walk through a collection of withered head-stones. "this one" yn says, stopping before a particularly gray grave. "she greatly impacted my life...she died when she was thirteen, and i must've been just that age when i went here the first time..." jaehyun nods, "must've been crazy to think that you were thirteen then, and you're older now..." she agrees, "and this girl will stay thirteen forever" the pair let out a harmonious sigh, staring down fondly at the cemetery scene. "c'mon, let's go catch a tram. my feet hurt" he says, reaching a hand out for her to take. "let's go, the tram stop is just around the corner"

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

yn and jaehyun smile softly at each other as they took a seat on the tiny public transport. the seat just big enough for the two of them to sit, yet so very small that the skin of their arms tended to rub against each under as the vehicle began to skim through the city. "okay, i have an idea, you ready?" the boy speaks and she just hums in response. "it's Q&A time. we have to take turns asking each other some questions and then we have to answer honestly, okay?" she nods, "okay, yeah...sounds good- you first, you ask me" jaehyun smiles, "okay, um...when was the first time you had sexual feelings for someone?" his question shocks her a little, "wow, okay um...probably this hot swimmer guy i went to summer camp with...he was so so fine and he had the most defined set of abs and i think i just wanted him so bad...and you know, at the time, my friend had the biggest crush on him!" jae laughs at yn's answer, "wow...okay, your turn ask me something" yn took some time to really think of a good question, a smile making it's way onto her face as she finally finds one.

"have you ever been in love?"

she looks at him in the eyes as she asks the unnecessarily deep question, catching the way a slight glint appeared in his eyes and the way his lips quivered a bit before he replied. "yes. next question" her deeply focused expression turns into that of a look of bewilderment at his underwhelming answer. "what?! you're giving me a one word answer? after i told you the story of my sexual feelings towards a hot swimmer?" he laughs, "yes, yes i am" she's in shock, mouth hung opened as she shook her head. "that's so unfair" yn says but jaehyun argues, "hey! if you asked about my sex life i would answer too! but love...love is, it's complicated okay!" the girl rolls her eyes, "whatever! you could've made something up, at least" the boy sighs, a hand slapping against his forehead in surrender.

the pair spent the rest of their tram ride going back and forth, asking each other all sorts of questions ranging from deep and dark to silly things like what their favourite colours were. at one point they had decided to hop off the transport, their feet having enough rest and ready to take them to wherever deemed fitting for the day. i guess somehow, fate had taken them over to an old record shop. the place was vintage, the yellow walls were faded and they were greeted with a hefty breath of dust as they entered the store. yn blinks slowly as her delicate fingers run through all sorts of vinyls that were neatly sorted on the rack. jaehyun did the same right across from her. "ever heard of this singer? my friend told me about her, i think she's an english singer" the girl asks, lifting up a pretty looking album. on it's cover, a picture of a freckled girl with bleach blonde hair. "hm...beabadoobee? should we go listen to it?" the boy asks, a head tilted towards the listening room that sat at the very end of the shop. the girl nods, "i wonder if the record players here still even work..."

sure enough, they do work. the boy and the girl watching silently as the round vinyl began to spin under the sharp pin of the player. a sort of scratchy sound rang in their ears for a moment before it died down into the sound of sweet female vocals. they didn't know the name of the track, not really caring enough to check the list of songs that were displayed on the back side of the vinyl's cover. they didn't speak to each other, their backs leaned against the wooden sound-proof walls. 'how was your day? was it okay?' the female voice sang sweetly, the acoustic tune calming down their muscles they didn't even realize were beginning to tense up. jaehyun sneaks a look at her, averting his gaze hastily whenever yn caught him, and then they'd giggle bashfully, as if they were little kids discovering true love for the very first time.

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"there it is" yn says, looking up at the large ferris wheel at the center of prater park. "what are we waiting for, then?" jaehyun shoots her that smile she's gotten all too fond of, a contagious sight as she, too, grins happily. the girl takes hold of his hand, skipping excitedly over to the queue. not many people were waiting in line, just a few couples and families with their children. "wow..." the boy sighs, his arms hanging out of the window as he looks down at the view below him. "it's beautiful" he continues, moving closer to the center of the cart where she stood. "mhm...the sun's about to set too..." she states, watching as the pretty blue european skies get dim, and a slight orange tint began to paint against it. he finds himself staring at her, sure she'd catch his eye ever since the very moment he had caught a glimpse of her on the train this morning, but he swore nothing- none of that compared to the way he saw her right now. the sunset reflected off of yn's eyes, her hair a mess from all the wind, a soft smile placed delicately against her pink-ish lips. jaehyun just couldn't help himself, he couldn't let this sight of her go to waste, and only if she knew...if she knew how badly he wanted to-

"what is it?" her voice shakes him out of his trance. "huh?" he asks, shaking his head as his eyes meet her own. suddenly his mind goes blank, the boy who had been speaking oh so much all day was at a lost for words. "i...i uh...i just" the girl laughs, her arms moving away from where they sat at the rim of the ferris wheel cart and over to wrap lightly around his neck and against his shoulders. "are you trying to ask me to kiss you?" yn giggles again when a red tint engulfed the boy's cheeks and ears, a bashful look on his face as his gaze lingered onto her own. "i mean..." he begins, taking a single step closer to her. "i'm not opposed to it, are you?" the last thing jaehyun heard was a playful scoff, and the last thing he saw was her eyes rolling sarcastically to the back of her head. or at least that's all that he remembers before she closed off all the space they had between them, their tongues tangled against one another's as they breathed deeply into the kiss. they didn't realize how much they've been longing for a taste of each other until this very moment, what was supposed to be a sweet kiss against the sunset had slowly turned into something more hungry, thirsty like they've been starved for days prior. giddy, a term you must've read far too many times to describe the two strangers that met just hours ago on the train, but that's exactly what they were. so insanely giddy that they found themselves smiling and grinning like a bunch of circus clowns as their teeth tugged against their lips and their hands twisted against their hair.

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"i'm gonna call my friend from art school who i'm supposed to be having lunch with in a couple of hours, okay?" yn says suddenly, sitting across from jaehyun as they dined at a local restaurant not too far from the prater park. "okay" he says, though he sounds a bit unsure and his face showed just the same confusion as he watched her stick an imaginary phone beside her ear. "ring ring ring...pst, pick up the phone" she whispered the last bit, signalling for him to go along with her little skit. he obliges, creating a telephone shape with his own hand and pressing it lightly against his ear. "hello?" he speaks, she fails to hold in a laugh. "hi, it's me yn! listen...i don't think i'll make it to lunch today..." she nods, telling him it's his turn to speak. "oh no, are you okay?" the girl smiles, "well...i'm in vienna right now...i got off the train with this korean guy and-" she was cut off, "are you crazy?!" the boy exclaims in an awful french accent that he assumed her friends over in her parisian art school would have. "mhm..." jaehyun lets out a dramatic sigh, "why'd you get off with him?" she looked up in the air, deep in thought with her chin pressed against her palm. "well...he convinced me" she looked him straight in the eyes this time, not letting him interrupt her as she began to speak into the imaginary phone again. "he's this really interesting guy...we spoke of all sorts of things in the dining car on the train, he was reading metamorphosis by franz kafka, and i just felt some sort of a connection to him"

"well...what's he like?" now the boy was using this roleplay to his advantage, trying to make the most out of the situation and the fake phone call. "well he's taller than me, he's got kind eyes and a fond smile. he kind of mumbles when he talks but he's got this extroverted tone, the kind of person you'd feel warm around even during the winter time...he's kind of clumsy- oh! and he kisses like a dork" jaehyun's eyes go wide, "what?!" yn giggles, "yeah, we kissed...and as the night goes by i find myself liking him more and more..." she trails off, his gaze gets deeper, somewhat more intense. "you gonna see him again?" he asks, still in character. "we.." she stops for a moment, "we haven't talked about that yet" then the pair went silent, just basking into the atmosphere and taking their time to look into each other's sparkling eyes. yn sighs once, putting her hand down in a motion as if she were hanging up the call.

"your turn, go call one of your bros in korea"

jaehyun presses his hand against his ear again, "ring ring...it usually goes to voicemail..." yn laughs, "hey jae, what's up, my man?" she suddenly speaks in a deep voice, the change in octave caught him slightly off guard. "hey, woonhak- what's up bro, i'm alright" the boy says, his free hand toying with the silver cutlery that sat atop his plate. "how's europe? you leaving from vienna tomorrow right?" the girl had decided to rid herself of the previous faux-male voice, reverting back to her usual tone. "yeah, yeah man it's been great...i'm actually having the time of my life right now...and uh, i'll tell you why" the girl doesn't respond, only nodding to tell him to continue.

"i met this girl on the train and we got off at vienna together" jaehyun tells, as if the girl in question wasn't seated right across from him. "oh yeah? what's she like? she hot?" the boy laughs at the girl's awfully blunt response, wondering if that's what women thought men really sound like (they do). "there was this arguing couple that was so loud she had to move seats. she sat across from me reading a book and i decided to talk to her. we went to the dining car and talked for ages. she's smart- like, very smart. she goes to an art school in france. conversations with her seemed to be so natural...it was almost like we had some sort of a connection...but i was so scared i would say the wrong things to her" yn furrows her eyebrows, "but bro, you're never scared to talk to anyone!" she brought back the deep voice, snorting slightly as she fails to suppress a chuckle. he smiles, "i know man...it's just, i don't know...something about her...she makes me nervous"

the fake calls end there, the foreign pair paying for their meals before exiting the brightly lit restaurant. their fingers intertwined as they strolled down the streets of vienna. it was nighttime now, the scenery had become a different vibe from when they arrived earlier in the day. they had just past a beautiful street dancer, yn had explained to him that it was a prenatal dance, soon finding themselves in slight banter as they discussed the gender roles of men and women in society. yn had won the debate, jaehyun admitting defeat and simmering down with the excuse of fearing the wrath of an angered woman. the boy and the girl sat down at a table nearby a twenty-four hour cafe. "look at that..." she says, eyes pointing towards an old woman in a turban. a palm reader. "she looks interesting, no?" the boy nods slowly, "yeah...oh shit- shit, she's coming this way, oh god" the girl laughs, "oh fuck, we made eye-contact" in a matter of seconds, the old lady had appeared right in front of them. "hi...english or french?" yn asks, but she gets no answer, instead the palm reader just grabs at her hand, flipping it over to look intently at the wrinkles of her palm.

the lady drags her own finger against the skin, mumbling something to herself before looking the girl straight in the eyes. "you're a stranger to this place...you're a traveler, you seek adventure...what's more, you seek love. yet, you're a driving force, a strong minded girl..." the fortune teller trails off, dropping yn's hand and moving to grab a hold of jaehyun's. "and you...you'll be alright" the lack of depth in his reading must've felt unfair, a scoff escaping the boy's mouth as he stares at the older lady in disbelief. "now..." she croaks before rubbing her fingers in circular motions. the pair laugh, fishing their bags for some cash to hand over to the palm reading lady. she smiles softly, accepting the money before skipping away into the shadows to find another pair of tourists to rip off for a fortune.

"i just...there's no way you believe all that...do you?" jaehyun complains, his hands thrown up into the air in frustration. yn just laughs out loud, her arms wrapping around her own body to shield her from the cool nighttime air. "i mean...are you sure you're not just upset she didn't give you a great fortune?" the boy sighed, "she absolutely ripped us off!" the girl rolls her eyes, "whatever...you look too into things, you know? you're just upset you didn't hear what you wanted to" he gasps dramatically, "that is so not true! i'm just saying...she's using tourists and fake fantasies to make money and rip people off!" yn shakes her head, "you're so..." she trails off, stopping in her tracks to turn towards him. "i'm so...hot? sexy? fresh and cool? you so badly want to kiss me?" the girl sighs, "so insufferable" she says, watching the way his prideful smirk melts into a pout. "can't deny that you still so badly want to kiss me, though" he states, cupping her cheeks in his hands and leaning in to press his lips onto hers once again.

"huh..." yn sighs as they separate, their hands still intertwined with each other's. "what is it?" jaehyun asks, looking at her worriedly. "nothing...it's just funny to think that we won't see each other again after tomorrow" her words affected him more that he would've thought. "you mean...you don't think we'll ever see each other again?" his voice is sort of shaky, cracking a bit as if he were about to cry. "i mean, let's be realistic. you live in korea, i live in france..." he nods along with her sentences, "you're right..." he trails off, really trying his best not to cry right now. "but, i guess it's not a bad thing...we made the most of these past few hours, and we still have a few more to go, no?" she reasons, her hand unconsciously rubbing circular shapes against his. "yeah..." it's silent again for a moment. the only other sound apart from their breaths on this empty street was the live band that played a couple blocks away from them. "it's depressing though, isn't it?" yn speaks again, looking up at him with glossy eyes, noticing the way his gleamed as well. "hm?" jaehyun asked, "i mean now all we can probably think of is how much longer we have till we have to say goodbye" she bites her lip, still not breaking eye-contact with him. "then let's say goodbye now. so we won't have to do it again tomorrow" she smiles at his idea, nodding enthusiastically as they both fixed their posture to stand straight.

"goodbye" they say in unison. "au revoir" she says, giggling softly when he shoots her a toothy smile. "annyeong!" he says cheerfully, waving his hand around like an idiot.

by midnight the two had found themselves sprawled out against the grass, over at an empty plain of land in the depths of the city's large park, staring at the bright moon that gave light for people to see. "you know...i find myself caught up in special moments like staying up all night or dancing till the sunrise...i always knew those moments were special..." yn's voice quiets down, she can feel his gaze locked onto her face as she scans through the starry night sky. "but?" jaehyun asks, wanting her to keep talking. "but i always felt like something was wrong, like i wish i was doing all those things with someone else" they share a laugh. "but for some reason...i feel content with you- like there isn't a single flaw" he smiles, "do you think we'll have more moments like this?" she rolls her eyes, "what happened to being realistic, jaehyun?" the boy sighs, propping himself up on his forearm so he was almost hovering over her. "i know, but think about it..." he clears his throat and she shifts slightly to get a better view of his face.

"ten, fifteen years from now...we've been married for a couple years, gathering with all our new mutual friends. i'm getting a little too drunk, talking everyone's ear off about the same story about how we met on a train one day all by chance. everyone gets so tired of me yap on and on about how i fell in love with this girl, growing even more fond of her as the sun rises...and you come get me, tell me it's time to go home, tell me you'll drive cause i can't even walk in a straight line..." the boy's eyes wander off to the sky as he looks into his future fantasy, the girl can't help but smile as he went into immense detail, covering every part of their married life- as if just hours ago, they weren't mere strangers.

"are you saying you've managed to fall in love with me that quickly?" yn laughs, finding the way his cheeks flushed all too hilarious. "i mean...did i say that?" jaehyun tried to save himself, slumping down against the grass as he sighed in defeat, his hands went up to cover the embarrassment on his face. the girl sits up, turning to move his hands away so she could look at him. he stared up at her, a hint of longing in the way his dark brown orbs sparkled. she mimicked the same expression, like they were telepathically sending each other the same sort of signal. a signal that read in big bold letters.

kiss me.

the kiss was intense, his hands found home in the backside of her head, pulling her towards him and sending her body crashing down on top of his. lost in each other for a moment, the pair tossed and tumbled against the green grass, completely ignoring the fact that the leaves were starting to scratch against their skin, a high chance of a rash greeting them in the morning. they didn't even notice the way the skies were getting brighter, the sun rising all too quickly, before they could even process it.

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"last night...it was all like a dream" yn's voice is raspy, a mixture of the cool morning air and the events of the night prior. "yeah...lot's of fun" jaehyun agreed, his left hand sneaking up under his jacket to scratch at a spot that began to itch on his lower back. they walked close to each other, roaming the silent streets of vienna for one last time. they were unusually quiet. it's not that they ran out of things to talk about, it's just that they didn't really feel the need to speak right now. they passed by a large theatre, right by where they were at the parter last night. the girl smiles softly, "we didn't end up watching that play..." the boy laughs at the memory. a sudden sound of piano music stopped them in their tracks, they paused to look at each other. both their eyebrows knitted together and their eyes moving around frantically in search of the source.

"is that it?" jae wonders, crouching down to peak into a tiny window. "i think so..." the girl follows, smiling as she catches a glimpse of a young man, sat behind a large grand piano. his fingers moving swiftly in complex patterns as he taps on the black and white keys. "wow..." the boy whispers, fascinated by the musical number. he steps back from the window, beginning to step along to the beat. she laughs when he offers her a hand, "care to dance with me?" who was she to say no, gladly taking his hand in her own and allowing him to take the lead. they waltzed for a moment, sharing hushed laughs when she accidentally steps on his feet for the third time. the streetlights had begun to turn off, indicating that enough sunlight had surfaced over the area.

"we better head off to the station soon..." yn says, her head now sat on his lap as they relaxed on a bench somewhere in the city. jaehyun sighs, reminded that they'd have to part ways sooner or later. he strokes a finger through her hair, her eyes closing once before fluttering opened again. "i wish this could last forever..." he says, his eyebrows twitching and his eyes drooping ever so slightly. she hums, "yeah..."

before they knew it the pair had made it to the train station. he promised to see her off before he looked for his own train. "you sure you know where to go?" yn asked, slight worry at the thought of a lost puppy-like jaehyun. he nodded, "yes, don't worry"

"okay then..." the girl says, standing before him with her bags in hand, the train getting ready to depart making loud noises that rang in their ears. "i guess...i guess this is goodbye then" she continues, her tone is melancholy, almost depressed. "yeah...um...you know, i really- i, you know" the boy tries his best to speak but for some reason he couldn't seem to form any coherent sentences at the moment. she understood him though, nodding as he pressed his hands on either side of her shoulders, her own ones placed against his waist. "um..." he sighs and so does she, deciding it was a waste of time to speak before leaning in for a long and passionate kiss.

"listen..." jaehyun was out of breath, he didn't know if it was from the kiss they had just shared, or if it was because he could feel his heart pumping right out of his chest. "that thing we said last night about being realistic i- i don't want that, i wanna see you" yn's eyes widened at his words, "me too" now it was his turn to be shocked. "what- why didn't you say anything?" he asked, eyes softening as did hers. "i was afraid you didn't want to..." the boy shook her head, as if to say that were impossible. "okay then...why don't we meet here again?" she nods along with him. "in um...five years" her eyebrows furrowed, "five years? that's like torture" he agrees, "you're right...okay one year?" the girl smiles, "okay, one year" but he shakes his head, "how bout six months?" now she looked bewildered, "six months? it'll be freezing!" he laughed, "i don't care! c'mon, six months, same spot right here" yn nods, repeating his words to herself. "okay...i'll see you then"

their conversation is cut short by the whistling sound of the train horn, signalling that she had to leave in just a minute. "okay, i...i have to go" she stutters, still out of breath from this whole thing. "yeah, okay" he replies, pulling her in for one last kiss. as they parted, they made sure to stare at each other for just a little longer, savoring the way the breeze flowed through their messy hair, the way his eyes watered and the way her eyebrows turned upwards in sorrow.

"goodbye" he says, voice just above a whisper. "au revoir" she replies, beginning to let go of his hands. "annyeong!" he exclaims one last time, waving as she hops into the cart. jaehyun follows her through the window as she finds herself a seat to sit in. yn laughs to herself as the boy sends her about a billion flying kisses. however her smiles fade into that of a somber frown as the train begins to depart, his tall figure disappearing into the distance until he was completely out of sight.

jaehyun got onto a bus towards the airport not long after. no matter how exhausted he'd been from all his unexpected adventures in europe, the last thing the boy could do was sleep. instead, he sat wide awake all the way back to his home country. only one thing in his mind that he kept circling back to again and again and again. and as all cliche love stories go, you know exactly what it is that's got him so insanely worked up. it was the mere thought of her. of the girl he met by chance on a train, the girl he spent a night in a foreign country with, the girl he could talk to for hours..

the girl he fell more and more in love with as the sun began to rise.

the end.

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

YAYYYY!!! this ended up longer than i expected 😭 guys if u havent watched before sunrise i think u shld DEFINITELY watch it it's like one of the best romance movies EVERRR!! anyways i hope u enjoyed this, sorry for being so ia while i was on my holiday trip </3 will be back on the writing grind i promise 🫶 reblogs n feedbacks r greatly appreciated <3 dms n asks r always opened if u wanna talk to me!! love, kona.

[deafsignifcantother]

the baby

♥ summary: almost loosely based off of this by @ukor02. This is really just a small little writing thing I did at 4am. ♥ relationship: no direct romance really, just some cute stuff between Lucifer and reader. ♥ word count: 1.6k ♥ notes: no childbirth mentioning and this is written like just as summaries of the situation tbh, almost like a bullet point format without the bullet points, the entire cast are characters, hospital scene, I made Alastor a main character and her main bestie because of course I did, reader is happy to be a mother

You wanted to give your baby a chance to get into Heaven, even if it meant they'd leave without you. Hell is no place for a child. Both you and Charlie knew that.

.

"What a pleasant surprise," you sign to Alastor when you see that damn smiling demon right outside your hotel room.

He laughs; aw, you're describing his arrival as pleasant. Did he make a good impression on you when you saw him last when he introduced himself in person in Pride Sign Language? You never seemed to have paid any mind to him, giving one motion signs as responses whenever he tried starting a conversation. But even when you interacted with him like that, he couldn't help but wonder why you always looked at him with your sweet, shy gaze. It's not on purpose, which is the worst part.

Pleasant, you called it a pleasant surprise.

"It's good to see you too, my dear!" He signs, bowing a bit and pushing past you into your room. "What have you been up to?"

What an obnoxious question.

You close the door, squeezing the doorknob tightly. This is going to be a long evening. When you turn back to Alastor, he's in your living room examining the decor, your random art pieces taped to the walls and organized together, though not concisely.

He waves his hands. "I love what you've done with the place."

"I've been bored." You sign with a slight nod to yourself. It's awfully isolating, which is obvious. Still, it has never hit you as hard as it does now as you watch another person walk through your chambers.

"I'm glad I can be in your company then." His smile widens, and the static he emits gets heavier. His ear twitched a bit, which you noticed but tried not to directly look at. Was it a good or bad thing?

"But it's often relieving to be alone," you start and look him up and down.

"You're quite used to being alone, aren't you?"

Your lips tighten, your hands stiff, and you are unable to finish your sentence. Absentmindedly, you rest them on your plump, pregnant belly. Alastor does his best not to let his eyes draw down to analyze it. Still, his head tilts, even just a little. He hates looking at your hands when you touch your stomach. Did his mother hold her belly like that when he was inside of hers?

"Don't you have others to talk to?"

"They're out on their little journeys, you know them."

"Of course."

Alas, he lets his eyes trail down to your stomach. It's not quite full, but it's obvious enough to gain attention from others. Charlie will put her hands on it every day, waiting for the baby to show its presence. She can feel the heartbeat, and so can you and Vaggie, though everybody else can't feel a thing. Alastor refuses to put a hand on your stomach. Life is precious and loud, and the few who were never human understand that differently than the others.

"I wanted to check in on the baby."

A twitch of your eyebrow makes his smile widen.

"Why?"

.

The day before, Lucifer arrived.

You try on your best clothes, laying them flat against your front, looking at your belly in the mirror. For the king, should you try to hide it or show it proudly? He has a daughter, but does that affect his thoughts about Hellborn pregnancies? Gosh, what do you have to worry about? So stupid.

With the other people, your new friends, you stood with your head proud.

He swirled with the dragons and hugged his daughter as if he hadn't seen her for years. What a kind man, unusually kind. His eyes... Those soft, precious eyes. And when they landed on you, your heart almost stopped. He looked at you as if you were an angel. When his lips started to move, the smile you didn't even know you wore faded.

Charlie put her hand on his shoulder and whispered something to him. And there came Alastor, saving the day.

"The idiotic king was just telling you how happy he is for you." With the signs came the grinding of his teeth.

Lucifer approached, his cheeks flushed pink with embarrassment. He addressed Alastor with aggressive hesitance. 'Tell her...' he said.

Charlie smiled excitedly, Nifty kept nodding, and Sir Pentious's eyes started tearing up.

Alastor grimaced. "He's asking if he could feel your stomach."

As always, you've put a thorn in the flow of interactions.

Still, you put on a smile. "Of course."

And there you stood, the King of Hell's hands gently holding you. You could feel the cold of his touch even through the fabric of your shirt. The heartbeat vibrated through both your body and his. The baby was alive and well; you could tell through the pure glee that spread across his face. Beyond your tiny ounce of worry, you knew he'd find hope within your baby.

Alastor watched with a terribly strained smile.

.

"Why?" You ask again when he doesn't answer. "What's with the sudden worry?"

"Worry? No, no." Alastor waves you off. "More like..."

You watch with interest as he trails off, a vulnerability you love.

He squints his eyes and clenches his fists, but only for a moment. His lack of vocabulary kills him. "...Intrigue."

You crack a smirk. "Are you finally gonna feel my stomach?"

Another pause. Alastor considers it, but all he can imagine is his claws accidentally drawing blood.

"No."

"That's okay." Again, your hands rest on your stomach.

.

Alastor has been watching it grow, but so has Lucifer. Charlie's father scarcely visits, and you've convinced yourself it's to see you. Every time he enters the hotel, he asks how you are. He tries to lift his hands to sign but finds no words forming. A language was created in his world, and he has yet to learn how to learn it.

Whenever he presses his hands against your belly, he can feel the liveliness of the soul forming inside you, and he can feel your appreciation at his care.

Begrudgingly, he always has to ask Alastor for advice on communicating with you. Alastor always has a cocky smirk when he teaches.

Charlie has to ask Alastor for help, too, but more willingly. Alastor raises his chin and squares shoulders when people ask him for help. Charlie went to him for help on a conversation you knew she was going to start with you:

"You're not going to stay here for the battle."

"I know." There was no argument on your behalf. Charlie's cheeks still went pink.

"But I have to figure out where it's safest for you. Alastor told me Cannibal Town, but uhh... Maybe not."

"They'll all be here anyway. Maybe they'll distract the angels from going over there."

Her bright eyes widen a bit. "Do you think so?"

"I can stay over there, even if they try to eat me." They won't, and even if they try, they know Alastor would end their lives, don't they?

She fiddles with her fingers before lifting them up again. "I suppose..."

She's so quickly convinced it's cute. You're right, though, of course. Cannibal Town might be the safest place, specifically under the hands of Rosie, who Alastor had previously told you would be more than willing to help you. You can imagine her smile at seeing your belly, twice the size as when Alastor first told you about her. Unbeknownst to Charlie, he's been planning this for a while.

Your stress for their safety irks you more than you expected.

You place a hand on Charlie's, lifting your other one. "I'll be okay."

Before you left for Cannibal Town, you met Lucifer once again, a more loving side of him. He cradled your head and held the back of your neck as he did. His cold body felt like warmth to you. He whispered things to you; you could only tell from how his breath constantly brushed against your ear in sing-songy waves. Was he singing to you? A lullaby? He pulled away and finally signed to you. "You're going to be a great mom."

A moment before, Alastor finally put his hands on your belly. His hands were warm. Like Lucifer, he was whispering to himself, holding silent words from you. In another life, you'd imagine they were prayers. At that moment, only an instinct, you put your hands on his, and he allowed it.

The stress of their safety worsened when they were left alone in Cannibal Town without a word of winning or losing.

The winning of Hell was all you wanted to focus on when you noticed the contractions getting worse, spaced out in purposeful ways. Oh goodness, you found yourself thinking, oh my God.

What if Lucifer dies on the same day your child is born?

But after the battle, he was right there to cradle the baby in his arms, his heavenly grasp relaxing the tiny baby. The rest of the group sat in your room, Sir Pentious absent, tears in their eyes at both the birth and the death.

Beyond Lucifer's cradling, Husk was the only one who touched your child that day. He placed his furry paw against the baby, feeling the body heat that they admitted. Life could be beautiful, he decided.

Vaggie's sense of revenge deepened. She sacrificed Heaven to save a child, and now she's even more than willing to kill her sisters to save yours.

While Charlie stares at your baby with tears, Alastor smiles warmly at you. He knew you could do it: birth something beautiful and worth protecting.

Your eyes are locked on Lucifer. He's an amazing, supportive dad to Charlie, and your heart begins to swell. Your heartbeat increases, and a blush weakly forms on your already flushed face. His rough hands hold a forgiving softness. He's beautiful.

[catmiemy]

Another Chance to Live Final Part (Ana Maria Crnogorčević x Reader)

Summary: Ana and you are facing some big changes.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

A/N: I'm actually very proud of myself for finishing this story relatively fast. And it was a lot of fun to write :)

Thank you to everyone that stuck around till the end. I hope you enjoy this last part!

Of course you didn’t just trust your parents to respect the boundaries you had set in place; that had never been their strong suit after all. Once you had successfully weathered the first onslaught of emotions, you thought about it more carefully and together with Ana put a few precautions in place.

For one you informed the staff at Real that none of your family members should be granted access if they came by to see you. A wise decision, as it turned out. Only a few days later your mother showed up, arguing for so long that she had to be escorted off the premises by security personnel.

You also basically moved in with Ana. No one from your family knew where she lived, so they couldn’t just drop by like they could at your apartment. Another good call as you learnt when your neighbors told you that they had almost called the police because a man fitting your father’s description had been standing in front of the house for so long.

All of this made your guilt kick into overdrive and you were grateful for your girlfriend’s support. She never told you what to do, she was even hesitant to tell you what she would do in your place, but Ana was always there to listen and help you keep apart what you truly wanted from what you felt you should do.

While things with your family were at an all time low, you were incredibly happy with Ana, and practically living together was a welcome change in pace. Both of you were committed to making each other smile with small gestures, so your everyday life was filled with much more happiness than ever before. 

Ana loved to start your day off with a big smile by turning your coffee into a small piece of art, constantly trying out new foam designs. And it didn’t matter if they turned out right or not, you appreciated the effort, and attempting to guess what your girlfriend had been going for was half the fun.

You knew Ana felt the same about something you were doing to brighten her day: learning some Swiss German words. Which wasn’t easy because you couldn’t just use any old translator, you had to invest some time to find the correct words. And often times you failed horribly at pronouncing them, making your girlfriend giggle while she was trying to decipher what you were saying. That in turn always got you laughing as well, which made it even harder to pronounce anything properly.  

The biggest laughing fit set off by your Swiss German attempts occurred when you very proudly asked Ana if she could give you a Schmützeli. You didn’t get quite the reaction you hoped for, a kiss; instead your girlfriend was staring at you, and you couldn’t tell if she was amused or annoyed.

“Wait, does it not mean kiss? Did I mess this up? I’m so sorry if I said something offensive,” you apologized frantically, already pulling out your phone to look at your sources again. You had been so sure, you had even double-checked this.

At that point Ana began laughing, so hard that she couldn’t even say anything. Now it was your turn to stare at her, wondering what was so funny. It was a huge relief though; it couldn’t have been anything too bad if your girlfriend found it so amusing.

After a moment you couldn’t help but join the laughter. You didn’t know what you were laughing about, but Ana’s laughter was simply infectious.

Once your girlfriend had calmed down, she explained it to you still a little out of breath, “Okay, so it’s not even really that funny, but Schmützeli isn’t a word you would use with a partner. At least not where I’m from. It’s more for like small kisses between family members or friends. And it just really caught me off guard.”

You silently agreed, this wasn’t really that funny, and you were still a bit confused why it had made your girlfriend laugh so hard. Then again you were always happy to make Ana laugh, so you weren’t going to complain. And you definitely kept using the word again every once in a while because it amused her every time.  

There were other things you did for each other, like Ana playing the guitar for you, sometimes even singing a song you requested, which made you all chocked up whenever she did. Or you taking pictures of small beautiful things you saw in your day to day life to show to your girlfriend in the evening, eager to share the beauty you had encountered with her.

You also did your best to make your everyday life as special as possible, savoring the time you got together. A part of this was ensuring that you weren’t just spending time together by being around each other, but also by doing things and actively spending time together whenever your crazy schedules allowed it. And sometimes even if they didn’t, carving out time when you didn’t necessarily have it.

It was a good thing your personal life brought you so much happiness because the same thing couldn’t be said about your work. To be honest thinking of football as merely that, work, was painful enough by itself. Sure, it was, but it also always had been so much more than just a job.

Sometimes you still debated if you should just retire and try to find something else that would spark some sort of passion again. However, at the end of the day you weren’t ready to give up on what had been your life’s biggest passion so far.

So you resigned yourself to this reality, where the joy you once found in football only showed itself on very rare occasions. And whenever it did, you clung to it with ferocity to tie you over until the next minuscule moment.

Then, completely out of the blue, you got an offer from another team. It hadn’t even crossed your mind to look around for another club; leaving Madrid had never been something you considered. It hadn’t been something you thought you would ever want to do.

But when you were approached by the managers of Tigres Femenil, you realized all of the sudden that it might be exactly what you wanted. It helped that it was the team Jenni was playing for, so you knew if you actually decided to go through with this, you wouldn’t be totally alone on another continent.

That wasn’t the appeal though, that was merely a helpful factor. What really made you want to do it was the fact that it would be your choice, only yours and no one else’s, not your family’s and not your club’s. It would be you deciding what to do with your life, instead of rolling with the punches others kept throwing at you.

Was that a good enough reason to move halfway across the world, though? Especially since there was one obvious reason keeping you in Madrid, Ana. The thought of not seeing her daily was hard to bare. Then again it probably wasn’t healthy that she was the only good thing in your life at the moment, that was too much pressure to place on one person. So perhaps it would be better for your relationship in the long run if you decided to do this?

On the other hand, Mexico was a long way from Madrid. Would Ana be okay with doing long distance or would this be the end of your relationship? Because in that case you wouldn’t do it.

As was in your nature you drove yourself crazy thinking about every possible outcome either of your choices could have. You did your best to not let on that something was bothering you, but Ana must have noticed anyway because she began acting a bit odd herself, switching between being weirdly distant and overly clingy.

You had almost reached the point of finally broaching the subject, when your girlfriend took the first step. In the morning before leaving for your respective training sessions, Ana nervously asked if you could talk later that night. Of course you agreed, thinking that she wanted to ask you what had been on your mind lately.

Consequently you spent the entire day agonizing about how you could put your thoughts and feelings into words. You made countless drafts in your mind, even though you knew that you wouldn’t be able to remember them in the moment. At least they made you feel a bit better prepared.

Ana was back at your apartment before you and she set everything up nicely with candles and flowers she had gotten for you. You appreciated how she went out of her way to make sure you knew everything was okay. Every once in a while you still got in your head, worried that your girlfriend would leave you if you made on small mistake.

Once you had both settled down, Ana took a deep breath, blurting out, “There is something I have to tell you.”

This took you by surprise. You had been under the assumption she had set this all up to get you to talk. And you instantly began wondering what your girlfriend had to tell you. Naturally your first thought was that she might break up with. However, even you had to admit that preparing a romantic candle light dinner would be a very strange move if you wanted to break up with someone.

“Oh, what is it? I actually have something I need to tell you as well,” you replied, trying to keep your worries out of your voice.

“Really?” Ana exclaimed in surprise. This in turn surprised you, you didn’t think you had been doing a good job at keeping your over thinking a secret.

“You can go first,” your girlfriend quickly offered.

Normally you wouldn’t have accepted such an offer, especially not when Ana had been the one to set all this up to talk to you about something. However, something in her tone sounded almost pleading, as if she desperately wanted you to go first. And begging from your girlfriend was something you could never resist.

“Well, I’m guess I’m just going to come out and say it,” you started, taking a deep breath, steeling yourself for whatever might be Ana’s reaction, “I’ve gotten an offer from another club. And I didn’t think it was something I would be interested in, but now that I have it, I realize that I really am. You know how I feel at Real, so this might be my chance to enjoy football again. But then I also don’t want to leave you alone here because I love you and…”

Ana had been listening to you rattling on for a moment, her face unreadable, until she interrupted you sounding oddly excited, “Wait, you’re thinking about leaving Madrid?”

You frowned at her happiness. It was one thing to be excited about something good happening to your partner, but being so happy about them moving away seemed weird to you, and a little painful.

“Wow, no reason to be so happy about getting rid of me,” you mumbled, avoiding your girlfriend’s eyes.

“What? No!” Ana cried out, reaching over to grab your hand. “That’s not what this is about at all. The thing is that I too have gotten offers from other clubs and I didn’t really consider them, but then a few days ago Atleti told me that they wouldn’t renew my contract, so I have no choice but to leave.”

“And I have been feeling so bad about it because just like you said, I didn’t want to leave you behind here either. But if we’re both leaving, it’s a totally different scenario. Sure, long distance is going to suck, but it won’t be forever and at least this way we hopefully both end up in places where we feel happier than at our current clubs.”

Suddenly Ana’s behavior over the last few days made a lot more sense. You had thought she was acting weird because she had picked up on your distress, but really she had been dealing with something herself. Being dropped by yet another team and faced with having to upend her entire life again.

“Ugh, I didn’t think I could hate Atleti more than I already do! How stupid of them to let you go,” you grumbled.

Your girlfriend blinked a couple of times, a smile appearing on her face, “That’s what you’re focusing on right now?”

“Yeah! I’m really annoyed with them! But also…Why didn’t you tell me?”

It wasn’t something you could really complain about since it was very much exactly what you would have done in Ana’s position. Your girlfriend was much better though, when it came to opening up and discussing her struggles. So the fact that she hadn’t told you before didn’t sit right with you.

Ana sighed, rubbing her forehead. “I made up my mind so many times to just come right out and say it, but every time I lost my courage in the last second. Because at it turns out it’s not so easy to tell your girlfriend who you love very much and who has a hard time at work and with her family that you’re moving to another country.”

“Oh.”

You understood that, it was the thing you had been worried about, that Ana felt too much pressure to bring joy to your life because so little else did. Under different circumstances this might have been harder to swallow, but in the current situation it actually helped. It left not a single doubt in your mind, that leaving Madrid was the right choice.

“So, what are your options?” You asked to move on the conversation.

“There are different clubs in Switzerland I could go to, but I don’t really see myself doing that. It would be nice to be close to my family and maybe I should do it to help further women’s football in Switzerland, but it feels more like something I should do, not something I want, you know?”

You knew precisely what she meant. In fact for so long you had made all decisions based on exactly that feeling of ‘I should’, so you were happy Ana didn’t plan on making the same mistake. And you tried to show her that by nodding encouragingly.

“However, the other option is pretty far away, so I just want you to know that no decision has been made yet, and I really want to know what you think. Because if long distance on that scale is a deal breaker for you, I won’t do it,” your girlfriend continued.

Again you nodded, hung up on the fact that you had been having exactly the same thoughts. So as far as distance went this would either work out well for the two of you or Ana would really end up on the other side of the world. What even was on the other side of Mexico? You cursed yourself for your geography knowledge that was clearly lacking.

“Okay, so, the other option is Tigres Femenil. Jenni’s team in Mexico,” your girlfriend rushed out, her eyes flicking between you and the table, as if Ana was torn between wanting to study every miniscule reaction you might show, while also trying to avoid jus tthat.

“What?”

This had to be a joke! Ana probably learnt about your offer from then and decided to play a prank on you. Maybe Jenni had heard about it and told your girlfriend to do this, that would be a Jenni thing to do.

Except not really, though. Your older friend was known for playing pranks and amusing herself at the expense of others, but there was a clear line that she never crossed. And playing with someone’s heart and feelings was on the “don’t”-side of that line.

“I’m sorry! Like I said I haven’t decided yet and if it’s too far then I’ll go to Switzerland. I’m sure that will be great,” Ana apologized frantically. 

“No, wait, that’s not why I reacted like this. The thing is my offer is also from Tigres Femenil, so it just seems a bit unbelievable? People don’t get this lucky in real life,” you explained, disbelief still coloring your tone and set firmly on your face.

“You’re joking right?” Your girlfriend inquired, apparently also having some issues fully accepting this miraculous coincidence as true.

“No, I’m not. They offered me a one year contract with the option for additional years if I like it there and fit well into the team.” Hopefully the added details would make it easier for Ana to believe this was actually happening.

After that the two of you stayed silent for a while, your hearts and minds needed some time to let themselves open up and accept that you were getting much more than you ever hoped for.

You reached that conclusion almost at the same time, huge grins spreading across both of your faces and then there was nothing holding you back anymore. Ana jumped up from her chair first and you swiftly followed suit.

Mere seconds later you basically jumped into your girlfriend’s arms, thinking in the back of your mind that this was exactly how you would celebrate a goal if you would play for the same time. Your heart jumped happily when you realized that you might get a chance to do precisely that next season.

“I’m so happy!” Ana squealed into your ear and you echoed that sentiment.

Moving abroad and playing for another team had sounded excited, but doing so with your girlfriend? That seemed more like a dream than anything else.

Ana and you stayed wrapped up in each other’s arms for a good while, just basking in the happiness. It was a welcome change from the usual reasons you spent so long in each other’s embrace. Normally you did so because one of you, more often than not you, was sad and needed comfort. Now there was not an ounce of sadness present, the air was electrified by excitement and the possibility of everything that was to come.

---

Of course you didn’t decide that night to accept the transfer, not legally at least, but emotionally you definitely did. Still, like the reasonable adults you were, you thought it through, gathered some more information before officially making the choice you had already made the moment you learnt both of you could go to Mexico together.

You called Jenni together to tell her the good news and she was overjoyed. Although if the amount of teasing you had to endure during one measly phone call was anything to go by, you were going to have to put up with a lot next year. You didn’t mind, though. Also you were aware that Ana would put a stop to it if she thought it was getting out of hand. You could as well, Jenni would listen if you seriously told her to stop, but you knew yourself well enough to know that you wouldn’t.

After that Ana and you focused on wrapping up everything in Madrid, sorting out your apartments and such. There was one particular subject you avoided like the plague, your family. You couldn’t leave for Mexico without at least telling them and try one more time, but you also weren’t ready to face them again in the slightest.

Finally you reached a point in time where you could no longer postpone it. Your girlfriend offered multiple times to go with you, but you declined every time, much to Ana’s chagrin. In the end she decided that she would at least drive you and wait for you in a nearby parking lot. You gladly accepted that suggestion.

“And please leave if it gets too much, yeah? Or call me and I will come get you,” Ana reminded you resolutely, still reluctant to let go of your hand.

“Don’t worry, tesoro, I’ll be fine. I don’t think much will come off today, but I just have to try one more time before we leave,” you explained. And it was true; you didn’t have high hopes for your conversation with your family. But even so you ended up being disappointed.

It started with a very frosty greeting, your father leading you into the living room where the rest of your family was sitting. You had chosen that day specifically because you had thought no one else would be over, but apparently you were out of luck. All of your aunts and uncles were assembled, staring at you disapprovingly.

You swallowed roughly, wetting your lips nervously when it became apparent that you would have to lead this conversation. This had been expected, you had even practiced a bit at home with Ana, but now in the moment your mind felt terrifyingly blank. With everyone glaring at you the only thing you could think of was to apologize. And that was the one thing you remembered you didn’t want to do.

“Did you just come here to stare at us?” Your mother questioned unfriendly.  

“No, I…This isn’t so easy. You’re making this really hard for me,” you muttered

“We’re making it hard for you? Do you have any idea what you’ve done to us? Just completely cutting us out of your life because of some random girl you met a few months ago,” your mother accused you.

The guilt and self-doubt threatened to consume you, but you tried to focus on your anger instead. At least the anger would allow you to say what needed to be said, even if you couldn’t lay it out as calmly and clearly as you wanted.

“See, this is what I mean. Everything is always my fault and you never listen to what I have to say,” you defended yourself. “And Ana isn’t just some random girl. I can’t stand that you talk like this about someone I love, someone who I’m pretty sure is the love of my life.”

Your family exchanged meaningful glances, the sentiment on their faces clear as day; they thought you were being ridiculous or childish or dramatic. Three adjectives they loved using to describe you.

“You’re getting too emotional again, niña, that has always been your problem. How do you expect us to take you serious like this? And think about this, you say we’re always acting as if you’re the problem, but in reality it’s you doing that. You always blame everything on us, your horrible family. Poor you with parents, aunts and uncles that support you!”

Condescension was something you were used to, and it had always made you feel very tiny and incredibly mad at the same time. You were an adult for crying out loud, not a little kid. And still in that moment you felt exactly like that.

“Fine, you know what, I can see that this is totally pointless! I don’t even know why I thought I should try again. So I’m just going to tell you the one thing you need to know; once this season is over I’ll go to Mexico to play there. So I guess, see you never?” You yelled, turning around and stomping out of your childhood home, without giving your family any chance to reply. What was the point?

Tears were already streaming down your face as you ran down the street to where Ana was waiting. Your girlfriend saw you coming; she had been keeping an eye out for you practically from the moment you had kissed her goodbye.

When she saw you rushing towards her, Ana’s heart broke. She had hoped this would go better, but your demeanor and the fact that you were back so soon told her everything she needed to know.

Ana quickly clambered out of the car to meet you with open arms. You fell into them, allowing yourself a moment to completely lean into your girlfriend and absorb some strength from her. Not too long though, you didn’t want to risk anyone catching up with you.

“Come on, let’s go,” you requested, already moving to the passenger’s side.

The drive home was mostly silent, your girlfriend held your hand whenever she didn’t need both of them to drive, and only asked you in the very beginning if you were ready to talk. You just shook your head in response. First you would have some more crying to do, before you could even hope to use words.

And you did exactly that, once again safely tucked away in your girlfriend’s arms. You couldn’t wait to get to a point in your life where you didn’t need so much comfort anymore.

“How are you feeling?” Ana prompted once she noticed you were ready to talk. She had seen you biting your cheek, contemplating how to start the conversation and decided to help you out with questions.

“I didn’t have much hope to begin with, but apparently I still had some that could be crushed. And also…,” you stopped, uncertain if you should continue. It felt like you kept bringing up the same things; shouldn’t you get over them at some point?

“Also?”

There was nothing but love and concern on your girlfriend’s face. You didn’t have to worry about her judging you, this was a safe space.

“I’m so annoyed with myself. I couldn’t even say much before I ran away. I can just hear them calling me a dramatic little girl who runs away as soon as things get though”, you gritted out.

Ana tensed at your harsh words towards yourself and she forced herself to count to three before answering, not wanting to sound too intense. There was however nothing she could do about the emotions lingering in her voice.

“Please stop listening to their voices in your head. I don’t think removing yourself from a bad situation is running away, that’s a smart move really. You need to take care of yourself.”

You nodded thoughtfully, “You know I’ve been thinking about that and realized I often put their needs and wants over mine. But I guess putting others first only works if they do the same. Otherwise if I always put them first, but they never put me first, I’m just always going to end up last, right? I think that’s what’s been happening all my life and I’m done with it!”

“Absolutely! If anything your parents should be putting you, their child, first. That’s what my mom said when I talked about it with her. She also said some other things, but I’m not sure if you want to hear them or if it’ll just make you sad.”

Ana studied you carefully, every sign of pain embedded in your body hurting her as well. She hated how that you had to deal with this, so the last thing she wanted to do was to add any pain to it.

“No, please, tell me. I think it will be helpful, hearing what an actual good parent thinks about all of this,” you requested.

You had only met Ana’s parents twice before, but they had been everything you wanted your own family to be. They were excited to see their daughter, but expressed that without making her feel guilty for not being around more. And they had welcomed you with open arms, clearly very pleased that Ana had found a special someone to share her life with.

“She also said that nothing makes her happier than seeing us, her kids, living our best life. Not some life my parents pictured for us, but the life we choose. She can’t really understand why so many people try to force their kids to be something they’re not. According to her slowly getting to meet your children’s truest self is one of the biggest joys of them growing up.”

Your eyes filled with tears again causing your girlfriend distress. You had been sitting opposite each other, hands intertwined in between you, but now Ana pulled you into her embrace again.

“See, I knew I shouldn’t have said anything,” your girlfriend cried out.

You shook your head, “I wanted to hear that, I needed to hear that. It makes me feel less unreasonable and ungrateful.”

Ana gently kissed the top of your head, rubbing comforting circles on your back. “You’re anything but, you’re absolutely amazing.”

The longer you were with your girlfriend and the more she told you things like these, the easier it became to believe them. It wasn’t easy or natural yet, but you found yourself questioning your old beliefs much more often.

You didn’t speak more about it that evening, indulging in some self care instead. However, a few days later you recognized that it was still bothering you. There was no way you would try again, but it also didn’t feel right to shut the door to your family completely.

Surprisingly when you brought it up to Ana, one day after training when you were cuddling on the couch, you practically on top of your girlfriend, she informed you that she had been thinking about that as well.

“How about you set up an email account just for them? This way you can check it every once in a while when you feel up to it, or I can even check it if you prefer. That would allow them to contact you if they have a change of heart, but you aren’t constantly bombarded with unwanted messages.”

A huge weight was lifted from your heart when you heard this suggestion. That was precisely what you wanted, some small gap left open, but nothing that would affect you in your everyday life. The last thing you wanted was to constantly get attacked by hurtful messages.

You placed a few kisses everywhere on your girlfriend’s face, uttering one word between each kiss,”You. Are. The. Best. Girlfriend. In. The. World. And. I. Love. You. So. Much.”

Ana happily accepted your kisses. “So, no second thoughts about moving to Mexico?” She inquired cautiously.

“Not a single one, I’m so excited for it, and I won’t let my family ruin it. Plus it would be the same if I stayed here. If anything being not only in another country, but on another continent might actually be good for me.”

“Good, because I’m very excited about it,” your girlfriend announced with a big smile.

“Me too,” you agreed.

In fact you couldn’t wait to start that adventure with Ana. You had never allowed yourself to be an adventurous person, telling yourself, or really being told by your family, that you were anything but.

However, now you realized that you did have an adventurous streak and it was high time you used it. For too long you had lived the life everyone else wanted you to live, but now you were getting another chance at life, at the life you truly wanted.

You didn't even wait until you moved to Mexico. A few days before leaving, you dragged Ana to a hairdresser, stating that both of you should change up your look to start over fresh.

What you didn't expect though, was for your girlfriend to decide she wanted to color her hair pink. You had thought about something more along the lines of cutting your hair a little shorter.

But then Ana announced with a big grin that she was going pink, and you made a split second decision, telling the hairdresser to whip up some purple hair dye for you.

And that's how the two of your started off your new life, one of you pink haired and the other one purple. You loved the way it looked and couldn't care less when pretty much the first thing out of Jenni's mouth when she picked you up from the airport was, "Where are you two going? A five year old's birthday party?"

"Shut up, Jenni, you're just jealous of us," Ana retorted.

Jenni rolled her eyes, "Maybe, but I get a feeling you're going to help me get over that by annoying me with your lovey-doveyness."

"Absolutely," you agreed, pulling your girlfriend against yourself and kissing her passionately.

"Fine! I'll stop if you stop!" Jenni exclaimed, grabbing one hand from the both of you and marching you towards the exit. "Bienvenida a México, chicas!"

[dyannawynnedayne]

Which character parallel do you like the best?

Quentyn and Jon: are by wodania

Catelyn: art by cosmiart (1, 2)

Propaganda is encouraged!

Quentyn and Jon

Both are hungry to make their fathers proud

When Jon had been Bran's age, he had dreamed of doing great deeds, as boys always did. The details of his feats changed with every dreaming, but quite often he imagined saving his father's life. Afterward Lord Eddard would declare that Jon had proved himself a true Stark, and place Ice in his hand. Even then he had known it was only a child's folly; no bastard could ever hope to wield a father's sword.

AGOT, Jon VIII

His father's disappointment would be more than Quentyn could bear, and the scorn of the Sand Snakes would be withering. Doran Martell had put the fate of Dorne into his hands, he could not fail him, not whilst life remained.

ADWD, The Merchant's Man

Catelyn and Olenna

Oft ignored advisors to their sons

"And now my oaf son is doing the same, only he's riding a lion instead of a palfrey. It is easy to mount a lion and not so easy to get off, I warned him, but he only chuckles. Should you ever have a son, Sansa, beat him frequently so he learns to mind you. I only had the one boy and I hardly beat him at all, so now he pays more heed to Butterbumps than he does to me. A lion is not a lap cat, I told him, and he gives me a 'tut-tut-Mother.' There is entirely too much tut-tutting in this realm, if you ask me. All these kings would do a deal better if they would put down their swords and listen to their mothers."

ASOS, Sansa I

"Who better to treat with Balon Greyjoy than his son?" "Jason Mallister," offered Catelyn. "Tytos Blackwood. Stevron Frey. Anyone . . . but not Theon." Her son squatted beside Grey Wind, ruffling the wolf's fur and incidentally avoiding her eyes. "Theon's fought bravely for us. I told you how he saved Bran from those wildlings in the wolfswood. If the Lannisters won't make peace, I'll have need of Lord Greyjoy's longships." [...] "Robb—" "I'm sending Theon. Good day, Mother. Grey Wind, come." Robb walked off briskly, the direwolf padding beside him. Catelyn could only watch him go. Her son and now her king. How queer that felt. Command, she had told him back in Moat Cailin. And so he did.

ACOK, Catelyn I

[oklotea]

MY FAVORITE TINTIN SIDE CHARACTERS

ARRGRGWHDHEH I'M VERY VERY PROUD OF THIS I'M NGL!!!!!!! I LOVE THE WAY I COLORED THE CHARACTERS, I LOVE THE POSES I DREW THEM IN, I MADE SOME DECENT COMPOSITION IN THIS ONE!!!! HATE THE EDITING I DID I FUCKING SUCK AT EDITING

Anyway, I'm going to ramble about these guys and you can't leave until I'm done ok? Ok.

First of all, MY BOY MY SON MY PERSONAL LITTLE DEMON, ABDULLAH!!!!!!! he is very endearing to me!!! But I really do wish we could've seen more of him!!!! He looks mischievous enough to sneak on adventures along with the marlinspike crew himself for shits and giggles!!!!! HIM AND HIS DAD'S DYNAMIC IN LAND OF BLACK GOLD IS MY FAVORITE IT MAKES ME SO GIDDY AND HAPPY. like no matter how obnoxious and annoying Abdullah's pranks can become, his dad will forever love him unconditionally. MY FAVORITE DYNAMIC. I MISS THEM SO MUCH.

A little note, even though a lot of poc representation in tintin is pretty influenced by the stereotypes of the time, and a bit of orientalism, tintin and the land of black gold is also the first time in my childhood where the words "assalamualaikum" Was muttered in any piece of animated media. It definitely wasn't perfect, but that was important to me as a Muslim child. Maybe that's why Abdullah and his dad hold a special place in my heart!

Next up we've got ARREGEHFHFHHGHJ!!!!!!! CHANG!!!!!!! MY FRIEND FROM SCHOOL WHO HELPED END A CRIME RING IN SHANGHAI!!!!!!! I adore him and his personality so much!!!! HE WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHARACTERS AS A KID AND HE STILL IS TODAY WHEN I REWATCH BLUE LOTUS!!!!!!!! The way that the moment he was saved by Tintin in that flood he pledged his undying loyalty to Tintin will never not be sweet to me. HE IS SO TALENTED AND CUNNING, HE SAVED TINTIN FROM CERTAIN DOOM MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE LITTLE TIME THEY'VE SPENT TOGETHER, AND IN TINTIN IN TIBET, TINTIN SAVES HIM ONCE AGAIN (Tintin in tibet is also a very memorable and special episode for me) AND JUST-- ARGEHDBEHF I CAN CONTINUE ON AND ON ABOUT HOW CHANG SHOULDVE BEEN INCLUDED IN MORE ADVENTURES!!!!! actually Tintin has TONS OF CHARACTERS who should have been given more important roles in a lot of different stories!!!! Idk maybe that's just a wish that will never be fulfilled.... Still I can dream!

And last but DEFINITELY not least... THE MILANESE NIGHTINGALE HERSELF, BIANCA CASTAFIORE!!!!!!!!!!!! AGHHDHEHFHJDHV MY GORGEOUS MY BEAUTIFUL MY LOVE MY EVERYTHING I MISS HER SO MUCH

SHE WAS A HIGHLIGHT FOR ME!!!!!! AND SHE IS VERY UNDERRATED!!!! I love seeing how much she treasures her friends, how she's so dramatic about everything, how she has such an unapologetically loud and large presence and personality everywhere she goes, how she is genuinely passionate about her singing and her art, how she clearly knows her worth and won't settle for less from anyone.

Every time she was on screen she always made me feel very happy and warm inside, also I really like her voice!!!!!

AND HER DESIGN!!!!! ARRRGHWHFHH HER DESIGN!!!

I'm ngl, she was the hardest for me to draw. But at the end I'm quite satisfied with the results!!!!

She would be such an amazing friend. SHE'S ALWAYS BRINGING GIFTS AND BEING CONSIDERATE WITH HER FRIENDS, AND SHE WOULD NEVER HIDE JUST HOW MUCH PEOPLE MEAN TO HER

PLEEEEASEEEE CASTAFIORE I MISS YOU SO MUCH GIRLFRIEND COME BACK TO ME-

Anyway, the last picture is how I'd imagine Chang and Castafiore's first meeting would go. She as always, acts as sweet and polite and extra af as she always does, let's Chang know that Tintin's talked a lot about him! And then she would bring out some biscuits and pastries she bought as a gift for everyone, and then she and Chang would sit together while eating, and they get along really well, CHANG HAS A WICKED SENSE OF HUMOR THAT CASTAFIORE CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF, (haddock would be completely dumbfounded with how good at talking to Castafiore Chang is, and how anyone could talk to her for so long) but little did haddock know, in their conversations, Castafiore does a whole lot more listening than speaking, especially when Chang starts to tell his back story, and all the things that have happened to him and Tintin. After Chang ends his story, he looks up at her after a while of being lost in his story, and mascara is dripping down her face silently, her mouth is agape, and for a few moments couldn't say anything.

Suddenly she burst out loud, pulled Chang into a hug, and sobs after listening to the horrors this sweet kid has gone through.

In over a few hours she seems to have grown a strong attachment to this kid, she'll probably send a package filled with gifts a few months later, along with a long letter talking about what she's been up to and her wishes that Chang will succeed with anything he's currently busy with, and that he shall take care of himself well.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the small character appreciation I was able to share for some obscure/underrated characters! And that they will occupy your mind just for a little while. I love these three so much, tintin shaped me as a person, tintin made my childhood, I hope you have a great day.

Click for better quality!!!!!!

[doodlegirl1998]

Listen...I detest spinner now thanks to hori's canon. No hate to anyone who likes him and yes you can fix spinner in fics and arts...but to me, I see him as a raving and fanatical fan of shig who ....honestly didn't give a fuck about spinner...it was so oneside.

Spinner hating Izu and calling him murder???

Spinner saying he could have saved shig???

And Izu takes all bc ofc he does ...he is the perfect victim.

This is MHA ...Izu gets nothing but pain and blame. Bk and shoto have fangirls ...Shoto I get it (even if we ignore the whole dabi's situation) but bk?

And Izu is saddle with that superficial bitch ??. (I know people can fix ochako in fics. She is a character...but god canon makes me detest her)

To sum up, spinner is an insane fan who thinks he and shig are besties since day 1 and will write his fanfic about shig meaning he will write his own version of shig...not how the real shig is bc no one knows...and blames Izu for this.

Im tired of this manga.

But it does make me realize how...I can do better. I was feeling a bit insecure about my writing ...it boost my confidence a lil.

Hi @mikeellee , 👋

Not much filled me with anger quite like watching Bakugou get fangirls for existing and being his detestable self - and Izuku getting none.

There's also Spinner venting his rage at Izuku for Shigaraki's death (Izuku, who tried his very best to save Shig). Spinner's rage should be at All For One - not Izuku. So this was pretty rage inducing as well - considering this is in the same chapter Bkg and Todoroki get fangirls, the contrast is jarring. - And a spit in the face for Izuku from Hori once again.

Izuku owes none of the LOV, not even Shig in canon, a damn thing. If Izuku had decided to kill him (which he didn't), he would have been justified because Shig was a country ending threat with decay and AFO who was not gonna back down!

There's also the fact that Spinner is a hypocrite, turning around and calling Shoji a mutant slur when he has apparently been discriminated against himself.

Spinner for the love of God, sit down and shut up.

Also, I suppose that's one good thing to come from the state of MHA's writing now. I'm glad you are feeling proud in your own writing - as you should.

[nin3kyuu]

As much as I agree that Dany is a nutjob, you’re not exactly innocent either. Sure, it’s good to call out Dany’s psycho behavior and her idiot friends for making gross jokes about dropping bombs and feeding into displacement and genocide, but you actively surround yourself with and associate with multiple artists who do the exact same things and are also currently contributing to displacement and genocide. Also, you admit to literally shit-talking people with Dany like that’s a normal thing to do, but when she does it to you??? It’s suddenly a problem and toxic of her to do?? If you’re gonna call out bad people for their extremely gross behavior, maybe check if you’re not exactly like them first. You are just as disingenuous and a bitter liar like Dany. You are a major hypocritical loser and, quite frankly? You and Dany are made for each other💕

Leo? Is that you babe? Did I hit a nerve pointing out you will never be latinoamerican and that you feel proud of your daddy bombing lil colonized islands????

Are you saying I support genocide when I'm literally a minority? Make it make sense babe

Why don't you stop hiding behind the anonymus and cry about it like a man? Oh right your balls are small LOL

I wanna properly adress you and put you in my pin of shame, stop hiding like the little bitch you are ;3

Or should I tag you??? LOL @dmifyouknowagoodpsychiatrist

I didn't want to move this to Tumblr since I have bigger numbers here but since you want to adress me here I'm going to adress you too here.

Context!

[illarian-rambling]

Hopping on this open tag from @kaylinalexanderbooks because I'm boooored at work!

OC Interaction Tag

Kaylin's OC: Rose is a twelve-year-old girl with dimensiokinesis, or dimension manipulation, though she mainly can just sense dimensions as she's working on the rest. Her mother has made her insecure about her weight and other parts of her appearance, but the one thing that makes her feel good is her art, outfits, and fashion designs, which she is very, very proud of. Though her personality has been repressed, Rose is actually very compassionate, friendly, and spontaneous. She doesn't let her emotions show, but she feels very deeply and strongly. Rose does like fun and excitement, she just hasn't had much of a chance to follow her impulses. Despite being more of an introvert, if her friend (and unrequited crush) Lexi is not there, she'll be the one at the lead making all the introductions and talking to others. She believes she can handle a lot more stress than she can, so she doesn't see the problem in, well, her problems stacking up. She likes doing things her way and defying anything that holds her back, though she is more patient despite going on impulse sometimes. It's not uncommon for others to see her as lazy or tell her she needs to do better at certain things. She's reluctant to accept the affection she craves, but when she opens up she's incredibly well-loved and charming. She doesn't stay angry and doesn't like arguing, even if she explodes when she does.

My OC: Astra DuClaire is a 25 year old human witch with vitiligo and a trademark ribbon coat she wears everywhere. She grew up on a debtor's farm and has worked her ass off to learn magic to support her family, even if she wasn't allowed to get a true university education on account of her low birth. This has given her a bit of a chip on her shoulder. From the outside, Astra is supremely confident, bordering on arrogant. She sings the praises of her infallible magic at any opportunity. This is a cover for a deep well of insecurity. Astra loves magic, but she's been told so many times that a debtor's daughter like her will never be a true mage that she's internalized that attitude, believing at her core that all her prized skills are flawed. Other than that, she's mouthy, with a crude sense of humor, and a deep desire to help people even if they're total strangers. Like all mages, her curiosity brings her to places most would never go. She also tends to act before thinking things through, probably on account of the adhd. This can result in her saying things she doesn't mean or even causing violence she didn't intend. Her hobbies include magic (duh), mechanics, and embroidery. Astra loves to sew and often incorporates runes into her designs. She is demisexual, but who needs a relationship when there's adventure to be had and massive amounts of emotional obliviousness to cloud your perception!

How they'd interact: Surprisingly, or maybe not, Astra has a soft spot for kids. I'm not saying she's good with kids (she will teach them to make fireworks and swear like a mechanic), but she does like them. That said, she would immediately want to protect Rose. Maybe fight her mom, idk. Given how good her relationship with her parents is, Astra despises people who treat their kids poorly. I'd like to think that seeing a woman with some extra curves be so confident in everything would help Rose with her body image a bit. Also, they can bond over fashion! They both design clothes and though I imagine their style is quite different, I think they'd have fun sewing together. Astra would be super curious about the 'dimension magic wackiness' and would want to run lots of tests. Probably, she'd be a little disappointed when this twelve-year-old doesn't hold the same rigorous adherence to the scientific method and also just can't answer half her questions. I think both of them might recognize the same emotional repression and explosive temper in each other. Astra would definitely try to help Rose admit her crush on Lexi, probably through some convoluted grand plan involving gifts and flowers. I think Rose would laugh to see just how deep in Astra is with her own crush, all while remaining painfully oblivious. They could wingman for each other, is what I'm getting at. All in all, I think these two would be great and Astra is still 100% trying to throw down with Rose's mom.

I'll tag @thecomfywriter @the-golden-comet @ominous-feychild @willtheweaver @mysticstarlightduck and anyone else who wants to play!

[igotsnothing]

OC QUESTIONNAIRE

Thanks for the tag, @stargazer-sims and @eljeebee! I really enjoyed reading your questionnaires! And since you both tagged me, I am going to do this for Sasha and Gideon because I'm obsessed with telling their story, and I need a little fluff for them; they've been going through a lot recently.

Gideon: Interesting! Ready?

Sasha: Nooooo.

Gideon: I'll go first.

NAME: Gideon Westergaard

NICKNAME: None (Sasha: Oh, I can think of a FEW, all of them unpublishable.)

GENDER: Cis man

STAR SIGN: I honestly don't know...and I don't really care. (Sasha: He's a virgo, obviously. Please.)

HEIGHT: 6'3 (1.90 cm)

ORIENTATION: Bi, like many vampires.

NATIONALITY/ETHNICITY: Citizen of San Myshuno, member of the Forgotten Hollow Coven, originally from somewhere further north of Windenburg.

FAVORITE FRUIT: Sasha... (Sasha: SERIOUSLY? You think that's funny? F*ck you!)

FAVORITE SEASON: Fall.

FAVORITE FLOWER: Lily of the valley

FAVORITE SCENT: Cartier's Pasha.

COFFEE, TEA, or HOT CHOCOLATE: (Gideon: *Looks at Sasha.* Sasha: DON'T YOU DARE. NO.) Scotch. If good quality, I prefer it neat. (*Sasha pretends to puke*)

AVERAGE HOURS OF SLEEP: I don't need much sleep; I usually get 4-5 hours.

DOGS or CATS: *Grins broadly* My kitten, of course. (*Sasha grumbles incoherently*)

DREAM TRIP: I actually love San Myshuno. I like going to the art galleries, theaters, concert halls- all the activities the city has to offer. But if I had to travel somewhere...I like skiing. Mt. Komorebi is quite the challenge.

NUMBER OF BLANKETS: I don't really get cold.

RANDOM FACT: Vampires are connected to their covens via specific bloodlines. Gideon has a coven sire, who turned him- but the one who claims him as her "child" is his coven's mistress (more to be revealed...can't wait to share.)

Gideon: Your turn!

Sasha: Hello, nosey people! Why don't you mind your own bu-

NAME: Sasha Velky

NICKNAME: Sash. Sassy, but don't call me that ever. Loco- but only Hector gets to call me that (Gideon visibly bristles at this). And...that's it. (Gideon mouths 'kitten' and winks. Sasha does not acknowledge this and maintains a steady glare.)

GENDER: Cis man

STAR SIGN: Okay, my sun sign is Taurus, moon sign is Leo, and Aquarius rising! (Gideon: What? Was that even Simlish? Sasha: That's such a virgo reaction.)

HEIGHT: 5'9 (1.75 cm)

ORIENTATION: Homosexy (Gideon: Did you mean homosexual- Sasha: NO! I know what I said! It's a JOKE! I didn't get mixed up this time! You are so pretendcious sometimes! *Gideon doesn’t dare correct him this time; Sasha’s irritated enough.*)

NATIONALITY/ETHNICITY: I'm from San Myshuno, born and raised, but my mom was from Simvlakia and I understand and speak Simvlakian a little bit. I can't write it for sh*t.

FAVORITE FRUIT: Twinkies. (*Gideon shakes his head*)

FAVORITE SEASON: Summer.

FAVORITE FLOWER: Sunflowers.

FAVORITE SCENT: (*Looks sheepishly at Gideon*) Cartier's Pasha. (*Gideon sits up, pleased*)

COFFEE, TEA, or HOT CHOCOLATE: Cigarettes. (Gideon: What happened to quitting? Sasha: I'm no quitter! Hey- don't look at me like that...I am trying. It's been three days, ok? Gideon: I'm so proud of you!)

AVERAGE HOURS OF SLEEP: I need 7-8. I'm a pretty deep sleeper.

DOGS or CATS: Yes.

DREAM TRIP: I don't know...I haven't really been out of San Myshuno. I always wanted to visit my mom's family in Simvlakia, but I wouldn't know where to begin. After she died, my father got rid of all her pictures, her papers, documents...I don't have anything from her, except for a stuffed animal from when I was really little. (*Gideon inhales sharply and his expression darkens- it begins to soften again when Sasha rests his head on his shoulder.*)

NUMBER OF BLANKETS: One? Two? I guess I get cold at night. (Gideon, knowingly: Hey- I can keep you warm at night. *Sasha, perking up*: You are a pervert! Is this a ploy to get me in your bed? Gideon: Always... Sasha: *Snickers*)

RANDOM FACT: Sasha has a green thumb. It's something he shares with his late mom. He's really good with plants.

I AM TAGGING: @agena87, @damseljamsel, @lynzishell, @alinelie (plz plz plz!), @simarcana (Alika or any of your fabulous OCs), @eslanes (love your stuff and saw you have more storytelling coming soon?), and even though @greighish is taking a hiatus, I AM NOT ! This is all optional, do it if you want to, ignore me at your own risk, up to you! ❤️😆

[burningknucklecraftworks]

Finished product first, held by my wonderful spouse. Northshield is a kingdom big on the power of light. Our motto includes illumination as a virtue. We have a star named Griffin's Light. On top of the society A&S badge being a candle, our A&S awards are the Black Flame and Brigit's Flame. Since about year two of my tenure in the SCA I've dreamed of making a lantern scroll to honor that aspect and now I've done two. I'm so grateful to be surrounded by people who inspire me to push my boundaries and make cool art.

As such, these are lantern scrolls for Brigit's Flame awards, the GOA level Northshield arts and science award. One is for my wonderful friend Thegn Samson Muskovich (aka Samii), who does so much for the arts and sciences of the SCA. From metalworking with bronze and silver, to leatherwork and armoring, to teaching about existing as a trans person in the SCA and deep diving into the experience of the Gullah Geechee and making sure we know that the experience of Africans trafficked to America is as period as their resilience and resistance. I'm so proud that he's my cousin in the Choctaw tribe. The second is for the magnificent Dame Katerinka Lvovicha (aka Kat), who received her Brigit's Flame in 2015 but never got the scroll for it. She also does so much for Northshield, especially in the realms of heraldry and scribal arts, and she blasts a path for all Northshielders to feel safe by being extremely proactive about pronouns, cultural touchstones, and literally offering housing and travel assistance to people.

The inspirations for the project include these four lanterns and Morgan Donner's lantern build video. In the top row are two illustrations from period showing lanterns. The red lantern is from Book of Hours, MS M.972 fol. 1r, and has a bit of a splayed shape with a wider base and a turned dome at the top. It also has horn panels that aren't quite perfect fits for each side panel, as evidenced by the uneven horizontal lines. The second lantern, held by a crotchety dragonesque beast, is from Breviary, MS M. 8 fol. 158r and has a flat top with straight sides.

The second row shows two lantern awards made by other SCAdians. The first was made by Brig Ingen Erennaigh for a baronial service award called the Coill's Beacon, and the second is an Award of Arms by Northshield's own Tatiana Melville.

My original plan was actually to make a couple of so-called Viking lanterns like the kind you see all over Etsy. These usually consist of a top and bottom disc of wood, with dowels in between, and parchment or rawhide wrapped around the exterior. Extremely simple, and the parchment provides the perfect scroll text surface, but thanks to Morgan Donner's video, I now know those are dated to the 1800s. The idea of illuminated parchment stuck with me though and I decided to make a lantern more along the lines of the Breviary lantern but with simulated parchment in place of horn panes. I felt this was a good compromise between my original plan and a documentably period shape.

I didn't leave myself enough time to make this scroll, between the shield I made for Crown Tournament and Halloween festivities. Thinking fast, I ran out to my local hardware store for some precut 6 inch rounds. The ones I got have an ahistoric Roman ogee routed into the edge, but they'll add some nice visual detail to the scrolls.

Splitting my poplar side beams to width was vaguely harrowing on my radial arm saw. It would've been better to use my bandsaw but it's really not set up for use yet, so I made a janky jig and stood off to the side.

I was successful, and began the annoying process of carving 24 dowel tips.

Tools of the trade, and five doweled supports installed in the first base.

The coping saw did a great job of parting off each dowel end.

Dog bless the Shinso rasp. This thing makes my woodworking experience so much easier.

I got one set done and checked my progress. This looks really, really good so far.

I then grabbed some copper and went to town making the candle holders. I wanted these to have some give for different diameters of candles, including electric candles. These were made entirely off of Morgan Donner's video and aren't based on anything I personally researched, so I can't say anything to their historocity beyond knowing that sheet copper definitely wasn't the material of choice back then. I used a spare fat poplar dowel to form both holders.

I then used sidecutters to make the flanges, and bent them out flat. I used some brass brads to nail the holders to the bases, and pressed them through with my drill press just as I did with the tacks to the targe I made last month.

At this stage I needed to do a test fit, and boy was I happy with the way it looked so far. Now, I must say that this is not enough spacing between the candle and the lantern roof. It'll probably be alright, but it could also get pretty dang hot and risk a fire in there. A shorter candle would be better, but I have a hundred of these beeswax candles so I'm gonna give them away as gifts whenever I can.

Since the Book of Hours lantern is red and Samii's livery colors are red and gold, I painted his lantern red. I used a few different paints mixed together to achieve this shade, and then I sprayed the whole thing with matte polyurethane sealant.

I decided to make Kat's a nice golden oak color in contrast to the red lantern, based on so many being light colored in the various illustrations and illuminations I saw. It was down between this and painting it blue to match her arms, but I think I'm glad I did two very different finishes. The poplar is so green that the oak stain couldn't really compensate, but it's not bad. This lantern was sealed with finishing wax.

At this point Kim stepped in to get the scrolls done. This is Pergamenata, a perennial favorite of SCA scribes for having a similar surface feel and translucency to animal parchment. Usually I do illumination and word smithing while they just do the hand writing, but this time they took on all three of those tasks, much to my joy.

Here's Kat's scroll panes before color. You can see Kim used a template made off my test fit of the lantern to get the spacing correct. They used Speedball india ink and matched the hand to the calligraphy in CNM XXIII.C.124 Velislavova Bible, which they also took the design of the torch from.

Both scroll panes inked, painted and drying. We chose these scrolls to try tempera paint for the first time and the translucency of the tempera on the translucency of the perg is just so good.

Here's Kat's scroll panels with the oak-stained side supports.

Here's Samii's scroll panels with the red side supports.

The final assembly process. I had to cut the scroll panels into individual panes, because the spacing wasn't perfect. I used wood glue to affix the perg panes to the backside of each support, holding or clamping alternately to keep everything in place as the glue-wet perg curled away from the supports and then uncurled as the adhesive cured. It was a pain in the ass but it worked out. I then had to form two bronze rings for the tops of each lantern, and install hooks and loops to close the back pane, which has one end loose and wrapped around a thin piece of basswood.

Here is the final assembly completed, showing the door hooks made of bronze and the eyelet screws made of brass. This is not a very historic door shape, but it's what Morgan Donner hacked together for her lanterns and if it worked for her it'll work for me.

Kat's scroll completed as well, and here's the only view I have of the top suspension ring.

And of course it's not a lantern if you don't see it illuminated. I gave both recipients a beeswax candle and an electric candle, and this photo was taken with the electric candle in place. I had to wrap gaffer tape around the base to make it fit. The electric candle is actually pretty bright! Look at that pretty red paint, and not the fact that the support is slightly angled.

[taesanluv3r]

as the sun rises. (snippet ver!)

myung jaehyun x reader

heavily inspired by one of my fave romance movies 'before sunrise' <3 a lot of dialogue (just like the movie), a lot of cuteness! ignore any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors. enjoyyy!!

full fic HERE!!

snippet wc: 1,225

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"no but i'm telling you honey, that's just not how it works! you never believe me when i say..."

a young and pretty girl sighs, trying her best to drown out the sound of the arguing couple as she leans against the seat of the train and stared deeper into the book in her hands. she can't really focus though, the aforementioned couple's quarrel only getting louder causing the girl to finally get off her seat in frustration to sit in another one just a few windows down the cart. as her body makes contact with the plush leather material once again, she can't help but feel a set of eyes fixed onto her. the girl furrows her eyebrows, slowly moving her gaze away from the book and over to the guy that sat directly adjacent to her on the other side of the train cart. they make eye contact, he's quite good looking. an asian man, about a couple centimetres taller than she was. and he, too, had a half-read book in hand.

the boy smiles at her first, she returns the gesture before reverting back to the page that remained opened. "what are you reading?" he suddenly speaks, and she looks up at him in surprise. "um, this" she replies, lifting up the paper-back to show him it's cover. pride and prejudice by jane austen. he nods, familiar with the infamous piece of literature. "and you?" she asks, eyes lingering at the hard-cover book in his hands. "ah" is all he says, lifting up the collection of paper so she could see it well. metamorphosis by franz kafka. she nods too, going back into reading mode, and he does as well. they don't say anything to each other for about three minutes or so until the guy abruptly shuts his book and turns his body fully in her direction.

"hey, i'm heading to the dining car...care to join me?" he's standing and she's sitting, their eyes stare into each other's for a moment before she smiles at him. "um...yeah, let me grab my bag" she doesn't notice but the boy has a sort of proud glint in his eyes, waiting patiently as she gathered her things and making way for her to walk in front of him.

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖

"so...that couple, huh?" the boy says, beginning to slice at the sausage on his english breakfast plate. the girl giggles, "yeah..." she looks at him intently, her eyebrows knitted together. he notices, tilting his head off to the side. "what? is there something on my face?" she laughs, "no, no! it's just...you're not from around here, huh?" he smirks, "that obvious?" they share a mutual laugh. "well, you're right. i'm here on holiday...er, maybe not a holiday. i'm not really sure what to call it...but anyways, i come from korea" her eyes widen and her lips form an oval shape as she nods in understanding. "your english is amazing" she states, "i'm jealous" and he chuckles, "yeah...i studied abroad for a while. and you? are you from here?" she shakes her head at his inquiry, "oh, no! i go to art school in france, i was just here to visit a friend" he nods, sighing as he stares out the window. "so...you're going back there, then? to france" the girl smiles, watching the trees and clouds that passed by outside the train cart. "mhm...and you are...?" he answers right away, "i get off in vienna, catching a flight back home from there tomorrow morning" the girl responds with a hum, "how's europe been? your not-so holiday trip" she asked and he looked up for a moment as if he were really thinking of a good answer. "it's beautiful, really..." the guy trails off, "...but?" she's curious, her gaze on him getting stronger. "i don't know...i guess being on trains for most of the trip and not really knowing where i'm going...it's just...is starting to get to me" she laughs at his response, taking a sip out of the iced tea that sat in front of her on the table.

"i think this is vienna..." the young woman says, watching the world that stood behind the large glass window. the young man nods, "guess that means i have to get off soon..." they shared a moment of silence, juxtaposing the way natural conversation seemed to ricochet among the pair for the past hour and a half or so that they sat in the dining car. "we have arrived in vienna, please be careful as you exit the cart and don't forget your belongings...have a safe trip!" the announcement sounded scratchy and muffled coming from the old speakers that stuck against most corners of the transport. "so...um...i guess this is goodbye" the guy says, retrieving his stuff and getting off of the seat. she nods, "have fun in vienna" and then he turns around to leave, the girl left all alone as she watched his figure slowly disappear. she sighs, some sort of uneasy feeling starting to rumble up in her stomach. surely he can't just leave like that? right?

and as if he could read her mind from miles away, the girl gasps when she is met with his face again. he looked out of breath, his hands entangled with the strap of his carry-on bag. she's confused, not really understanding what exactly was going on. she was about to speak, not being able to stand the silence that flowed between them. however, he spoke first, though his voice was still a little mumbly from the way he had ran right back into the cart. "come with me" is all he said to her, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. "what?" she asked, not believing the words that came out of his mouth. "c'mon, it's just one night. and i'm not gonna lie i really enjoyed talking to you and i know you feel this connection too and i think this short vienna trip would be a lot more...fun if you were around...?" the last bit of his slight monologue came off as a question, like he was almost unsure about whether taking a stranger off the train to a foreign country with him was a good idea. she laughs, "okay" is all she said, getting her stuff and standing in front of him. "okay?" he asked, eyes widened like he had just seen a ghost.

"yes! c'mon, the train's about to leave again, we have to get off"

the pair walked closely beside each other as they hopped off the train, the automatic doors shutting tight behind them. he grabs onto her bag, taking it away from her hand to help her carry it and she thanks him silently. they stop a few feet away from the train tracks, breathing in deeply to take in the new air. "so..." he starts suddenly, "what's your name?" she widens her eyes, giggling at the thought of agreeing to get off the train before even learning his name. "i'm yn" he smiles, "what a pretty name for a pretty girl, yn" she rolls her eyes, tilting up her head to look at him. "and you?" she asks, tumbling in a zig-zag pattern as they began to walk. he grins, the corners of his mouth pointing up as he did so.

"i'm jaehyun, it's nice to meet you"

end of snippet.

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FULL FIC SOOOON!!!! and hiiii im finally out of hiatus 😭😭😭😭 im EXHAUSTED from my trip and i have a fever rn 😭😭😭 but i was watching before sunrise on the plane recently and i just thought it wld be so cute as a myungjae fic <333 hope u enjoyed this teaser snippet moment, reblogs n feedback is VERY appreciated 🍭 love, kona.

[meowyjean]

marauders as architecture styles

remus as renaissance - neeerrddd; probably wished the great classics saw him and hoped they were proud of him; values silent independent reading time; gets excited over the golden ratio and symmetry and columns

james as post-modern - if you gave a child a paper and crayons and told them to make buildings but they forgot what you asked of them halfway through and just made whatever; let's stop repressing our feelings u guys; life's motto is have fun!

peter as mid-century modern - it ain't that deep bro; unassuming; "you don't need to do all that" (secretly wishes he could do all that); a repressed catholic virgin if you will; banging taste in furniture, shit taste in structures = don't judge a book by its cover

sirius as baroque - (i am biased and i love them); let's make a statement on every surface imaginable; let's put all our efforts and money to the pursuit of being pretty; oh and add gold. everywhere.

regulus as victorian - combination of dark and mysterious and the desire to be ornate; you would think he'd be gothic, but he just wants to sit on the plush seat in the library of his home, surrounded by unnecessary amounts of ornate moulding and picture frames

pandora as art nouveau - the fluid era not the geometrical one; bespoke everything; fun, fresh, flirty, frivolous; bonus points on her matching the art style of the era too (pandora fanart in an art nouveau style would be so)

mary as islamic - you can't keep your eyes off her; the intricate geometric AND symmetrical patterns, the lofty AND pointed arches; oh you feel hot in the courtyard? we'll put water there babes it isn't that serious

lily as neoclassical - whatever you can do, i can do better; "wake up babes, be so fucking fr"; it girl all-day every day; oh that was your style but she added to it and made it completely her own? yeah, sorry babes, she won, it's hers now

barty as high gothic - as in over the top, go big or go home, i want it so high, oh shit too high i need to add buttresses, "yo what if we put glass in thick ass walls and get risky with them and maybe even have fun with them while we're at it" high gothic

evan as industrial - sleek, lofty, no bullshit; i'm so confident in myself that you can look through me; wdym you're scared of this new construction material? look at me fucking bending it and making tall ass structures bitch

marlene as deconstructivism - nuh uh; fuck it, fuck you, fuck everything, fuck the police; thanks for letting me read the rules, now i'll be breaking them (and look good doing it)

dorcas as art deco - a cultural reset; get you a girl who is elegant AND artful; no one does dark and sophisticated quite like she does; plus she's fun and ornate too? she is the coolest girl to ever walk the campus

thank you for coming to my ted talk

[sketch-guardian]

Hii! Can I request the RAD classmates with an MC who looks and acts like Azrael from the Obey-Me-Angel-Bros blog by simply-yulia

I’m the biggest fan of that blog and the artist so the crossover would make me so happy 🙏🙏

If you’re not comfortable with the request then I understand!

So, I had never heard of that blog, now I feel stupid for not having known about it before🙈I had to do some research to understand what you meant and in addition to admiring the ideas and drawings of the blog in question, I hope I understood their version of Azrael well enough, since I didn't find much about his character😖I hope it's not too OOC😭

Furthermore, I also hope that the request doesn't make Azrael's creator uncomfortable, since I don't know them, so to be safe, even if I'm not sure if they're still active, I'll tag them ( @obey-me-angel-bros by simply-yulia), to specify this Azrael is their version. Now let's start with the ask:

"RAD CLASSMATES WITH A MC THAT LOOKS AND ACTS LIKE AZRAEL FROM OBEY-ME-ANGEL-BROS BLOG"

DEMYA

To be clear, as long as MC gives Demya her freedom, isn't intimidated by her feral side, and lets her eat to her heart's content, then MC could be the scariest being in all of Devildom and Demya would still cling to them, nuzzling against their arm and tagging them along around for shopping. Demya, not really having an opinion about celestial beings, would find MC's appearance to be quite ethereal, however she would prefer to see MC without bangs if they're comfortable enough, because in Demya's opinion, mates should accept each other and show their true self, both good and bad, for example MC with their several eyes in full view with Demya with blood dripping from her mouth. Demya might initially tease MC in a witty way for their quiet and hardworking nature, it's also likely that every now and then she would try to drag MC into some reckless adventures to make them loosen up, much to their dismay. As for the paintings, Demya would be interested and would even model without any problem for MC, albeit sometimes in dirty poses, just to see their reaction. Demya would also get a lot of fresh red paint just for MC (don't ask where she got it, it's as bad as you think-)

DOMNRA/MOBIM

The angelic appearance might initially destabilize Domnra a little, because it would remind him of his days as a soldier in the celestial army, so it would take some time for him to get used to MC's presence (nothing personal, even with Simeon and Raphael was like that-). Domnra would understand the reason behind MC's act of covering their eyes, since he has a quiff, the only difference is that Domnra does it because he is blind from that covered eye, in fact in a rare joking or sarcastic moment, he would ask MC to lend him a working one. MC's calm nature would be a balm for Domnra's often mad soul, so listening to some music while they draw would be ideal, or even training (the idea of ​​being drawn in that context would embarrass Domnra). Mobim would at first be intimidated by MC's appearance, but sensing their good intentions, the little curse would come out of its shell and sit on their lap or shoulder while they paint, even dozing off sometimes

AZUL

Fortunately (or unfortunately, since it can result in a big headache-) Azul is quite a charismatic conversationalist, so despite MC's awkward attitude, he would do his best to engage them in conversation and get them to talk more freely about their interests, especially because they both have a passion for art. Azul wouldn't show it outwardly, even if his colors would betray his true thoughts, however having an MC that reminds him of his past as an angel would disturb him quite a bit, at least at first, given how badly he had coped with his fall from the Celestial Realm. When Azul was an angel, he didn't have ordinary wings, but rather butterfly wings that he was proud of and that he misses terribly sometimes, so if MC made a portrait of him at that time, it would be one of those few times in which Azul would cry quietly. During some of his mood swings, Azul might let out a few jokes, like comparing himself to a butterfly that fell into the spider's web stretched by MC, as a metaphor for their fall in love (corny, I know-). Azul would also return any paintings by making some himself, with MC represented with their eyes in plain sight, since Azul considers them part of MC, therefore beautiful. MC's gentle presence would help Azul stay calmer and avoid his mood swings

ZURI

Even Zuri, like her other two fallen angel friends, would be a little hesitant to interact with an MC who reminds her of her past as an angel, however she would be much more mature and professional about the situation and would quickly get used to the idea. Zuri would appreciate MC's calm nature and wouldn't be bothered by their awkwardness, since she would be perfectly able to speak on behalf of both of them (basically: they asked for no pickles-). Noting that to hide their different eyes MC seems to be uncomfortable sometimes, as if they would prefer to keep them uncovered, Zuri would propose to build some tailor-made masks to make their life easier and more comfortable in general, she would also recommend being careful not to get dirty with paint during their paintings, even if Zuri would take care of arranging and possibly modifying their clothes in the end

ODON

Odon would be intrigued by this version of MC, especially because they would notice similarities in their hair style, however the reason why MC does it seems to be to not make others uncomfortable or out of shyness, while Odon does it for the mental health of others' sake and to prevent them from dying in a atrocious existential suffering, the only way for Odon to be seen without bangs would be to shapeshift their face into something more bearable. Considering their past, Odon would be surprised that they caught MC's attention, pure as they are, but they wouldn't complain. Odon in demon form has several arms and several eye-like creatures fluttering around them, so some might jokingly compare Odon to a spider. Odon and MC could spend a lot of time in a cozy silence without getting bored, while MC draws and Odon sips a cup of tea reading a book, even out loud, if upon request. Besides, Odon is a bottomless well of knowledge, so if MC ever needs inspiration for new painting ideas, they can ask Odon