#the webs and rocks alone made me really excited...

[pcktknife]

I've taken so many pictures in this cave I'm so happy y'all have no idea

[nebulousmoon3990]

GHOSTS OF THE PAST (Batfam x neglected hero reader)

III𓂃› SPIDER

Warning: violence, swearing, sensitive topics, bad things, spelling mistakes (English is not my first language) and the reader has black hair and blue eyes (sorry), female reader!, I accept criticism, but please don't be rude, everything is fictional!

Hey guys! I'm really sorry it took me so long to post (I was sorting out some things in my life). well, enjoy the chapter!♡

Clark really didn't know what he was getting himself into.

He had expected to come to New York to do a simple interview for the Daily Planet, write the report and spreadsheet right here while eating at a café and if possible bring back some souvenirs for Lois and Jon.

Fighting a supervillain was definitely not in his plans.

It had happened out of nowhere, while he was waiting for the meeting with the businessman, the urgent news on television warning about a monster attacking the city made him leave urgently. He could solve this and finish it in time.

He just didn't know that he wouldn't need to solve it.

While flying, now as Superman, he easily found the villain, it wasn't very difficult to see him in fact. He was the size of a building of at least nine or ten stories, his skin was rocky and hard, made purely of stone. Clark was about to attack the giant when he heard a scream.

Looking through the villain a helicopter was in the way, the pilot tried to maneuver away but they would be enveloped in the confusion. Using his speed, Clark tried to get closer to the helicopter, however it was not enough since it was still far away.

The rocky hand would catch the vehicle before him.

Well, he is not alone.

Before the walking rock caught the propeller and possibly destroyed the vehicle something got attached to the hand and pulled it up, bringing the villain's focus to another place, his distraction was enough for him to catch the helicopter. He noticed as he moved away that what had stopped the giant was... a web? He followed with his gaze the path of the white rope and saw a figure pass quickly on it.

What?

Leaving the helicopter on top of a landing area of ​​a nearby building, he approached the frightened journalists. "Are you hurt?"

The one who answered was the cameraman, who was still breathing heavily, "N-no, Mr. Superman. We're fine-"

"IT'S HER! TYLER FILM, FILM!" The woman's excitement made the man quickly grab his camera. She looked at him and gave a shy smile while holding the microphone, perhaps a little embarrassed by her euphoria. "Oh, Superman, thank you very much. It's just that we never get clear images of her, so you can understand our excitement."

She? She who?

No one needed to answer his question because when he looked at the monster he saw the "she".

A super heroine

Her figure swayed between the giant and the buildings. She wore a suit that covered her entire body, leaving no room to see any of her features. All Clark could see was that she was short, perhaps indicating that she was a teenager.

The monster tried to grab her with its free hand, moving much faster than it had when it was with the helicopter. She, however, brought her webbed wrist towards the giant's face, causing him punched his own face. Swinging away from him, she taunted, her voice echoing off the buildings. "Hey big guy, is that all you know how to do? For someone so tough, you're softer than jelly!"

Hit a nerve, for sure.

"Who is she?" He asked the man who was filming the action with the reporter, even in a situation like that the cameraman looked at the heroine with a glint in his eye, a glint that intrigued Clark.

"Her? She's Spider-Woman."

Spider Woman, he had never heard of this superheroine, but that didn't matter now.The "Spider Woman" swung again on her webs at the stone man's aggression towards her. Superman moved away from the reporters and headed towards the brute. He was quick to bump his fist with the giant's, preventing him from punching a building. The action made the heroine finally notice the Kryptonian. She widened the white eyes of the mask when she saw him flying. "Superman?"

She hung from a building, climbing the glass to get closer to him, she looked at the monster and then at him, her head spinning until she realized something, knowing that he would help her she addressed him. "Hey, Superman. Can you immobilize him for me for at least a few seconds?"

The Kryptonian looked at her, hesitating a little, but then a smile appeared on his lips "Leave it to me."

They moved together at that moment. Clark used his freezing breath on the stone legs, freezing them and immobilizing him to the ground. With the giant still, the spider woman climbed on his back and reached his neck. While the monster struggled, he saw her take a syringe and apply it to the rocky neck. With the liquid entering the monster's veins, he began to scream. Clark was about to intervene when the thunderous scream stopped.

Slowly, pieces of stone fell from the giant, and when they found their end on the ground, they turned into sand, being carried away by the wind. Little by little, the monster began to disintegrate until there was nothing left of him, just a cloud of dust in the place. Approaching to see the damage, he went down and came across the individuals.

The villain, once gigantic and grotesque, was now a thin and small man, passed out in the heroine's arms, while his breathing stabilized, Clark for the first time observed Spider-Woman up close, without being in the heat of battle.

The costume she wore was outlined in black and golden, the fabric was a mix of a dull color and another bright color, the symbol of a spider displayed proudly on her chest, the hood covered the mask on her face, making it difficult to see the white eyes of the mask. What intrigued him most was that it was not common fabric, since when he tried to use his x-ray vision he could not see Spider-Woman's identity.

She certainly knew how to hide her identity.

Just like someone he knew.

"Looking at he now, he doesn't look like a villain."

"And he isn't, they forced him, he's just an ordinary citizen." The dust slowly cleared, now revealing the street they were on. "Honestly, it's a surprise to see you here, shouldn't you be in Metropolis?"

Clark started to sweat a little. True, he should be in Metropolis, not New York, but he couldn't just watch everything on TV, there was a villain attacking the city! And he didn't know New York had a heroine to protect them! How careless of him. "Yeah, actually, I was..."

"was?"

"I-I flew past here! That's it." Spider-woman looked at him before starting to laugh, well at least he tried to hide it, in fact the excuse had been pretty bad.

"Okay, I'll take this as truth, you must have your reasons, don't you, Mr. Clark?"

The aforementioned froze, looking at the spider, who stood up carrying the injured man. The sounds of sirens were heard in the distance, indicating that the police were coming. "What?"

This time, it was the spider woman who froze, realizing her carelessness too late. She looked at him, and even with the mask on her face, he could have sworn a bead of sweat was on his forehead. "Ah, I and my big mouth."

"Do you know my identity? How did you-"

"L-look, I swear it wasn't intentional, seriously! I have... my reasons to know, but I promise! I didn't tell anyone and I won't tell anyone." Superman just looked at her in astonishment, it wasn't intentional? How did she find out then? While the police and ambulance finally arrived, the woman was quick to hand the man over to the police and briefly explained everything, she distanced herself from the police, ready to leave as quickly as possible when he approached her.

"Who are you? Like, really?" She looked at him, clearly anxious to get out of there. "That's... a secret, but like I said, I won't tell anyone, don't worry."

She pulled away from him again, releasing a web from her wrist, already trapping her in a building to resume her run. But before that, she turned to Clark, the tone of her words showing no lies, only truths. "After all..."

"If I wanted to do this, I would have done it nine months ago."

And with that she was gone.

Again, Clark didn't know what he was doing.

It had been a few days since his encounter with Spider-Woman, the revelation that she knew his identity disturbed him, but that wasn't what was going through Clark's head now.

That was who she was.

That woman (or teenager?, Clark doesn't know) had been saving New York for at least a year and absolutely no one in the league knew, she was literally under their noses the whole time and no one knew! But while they didn't know anything, but New York knew, you weren't liked by everyone but most definitely liked you, you gave those people security every day and they trusted you.

You were a real mystery.

In addition, there was the identity issue. Clark wasn't rich, so he didn't have spectacular security to hide his identity, but he always took precautions. You, however, found out so easily. Clark knew that your "it wasn't intentional" statement might be wrong, but whether it was intentional or not, you still did it.

Clark knew that you wouldn't reveal your identity to the world. Your statement made that very clear, but even so, his head itched and itched to meet you.

Maybe he was being hasty, but you were a great heroine, there was no denying that. You fought well, you were smart, and you had experience. You could be a good ally. Besides, Clark doesn't know if you're an adult, so it would be a good way to keep you under supervision.

That's why he's heading back to New York now.

The sun had already set, giving him a view of the beautiful night that had fallen while he was flying, but at that moment Clark was trying to find you.

He didn't know where you could be, in fact he didn't know what to do when he found you, he didn't even know what sparked his interest, he simply... felt. Something about how you were, the mystery surrounding you intrigued him, and Clark simply followed that instinct.

His thoughts were interrupted when his super hearing picked up a sound, of what sounded like running, it could have been anything but his instincts told him to follow the sound, to find the source.

He did.

And thank goodness he did, because he found you.

You were jumping over the buildings, like he had seen you do before, and it was only when you stopped that he could approach you. You were on the edge of the building, looking down at the floors. Clark intended to approach you, but it seemed like you had other plans.

"I thought you had already left." Your voice was neutral, showing no irritation or pleading, it was as white as a sheet, which made him stop, a little surprised that you had discovered him. "I did."

You turned to him, the eyes of the mask you were wearing showing him your confusion, looking him up and down, your reasoning led you to realize why he was here. "You- wait, are you following me?!"

"Following is a very strong word-"

"But you just admitted that you went to the metropolis and came to New York again!" Your arms gestured so quickly thanks to your nervousness that when you realized it you put one of them on your waist and the other you ran your hand over your face.

Clark couldn't help but find this cute.

"Look if this is because of the identity-"

"More or less, but that's not all." Clark's mouth turned into a gentle smile, your brain thinking about the possibilities again, all while you looked at him.

Silence reigned between the two, neither of them wanting to comment before the other, but it seems that Spider-Woman didn't have much time because a sound came from her gauntlet, she quickly accessed it and Clark saw that the "bracelet" was a type of miniature screen attached to the fabric of the suit, you looked at the messages before turning to Clark.

"I'm sorry but I have to go." You looked at the city below, looking at the lights that illuminated the place. Clark was about to speak when you cut him off before. "No offense Superman, but I think it's better if you go back to Metropolis, I don't have time to talk."

You spread your arms wide as you leaned towards the edge of the building, your eyes narrowed affectionately, which contradicted your voice full of irony. "Then this is our last meeting, thank you~"

And then you threw yourself.

Clark flew to the edge, ready to catch up with you, only to be faced with the emptiness of the city, you disappeared before their eyes, like a ghost.

"Then this is our last meeting."

No, it wouldn't be.

And it wasn't.

For the past four months, Clark has been bothering you, appearing out of nowhere, scaring you, helping you, making you more irritated by his constant appearances, making you more dynamic, more ironic, but happy.

It was a confusion of emotions, to tell the truth.

You expected that after a while he would stop doing this, after all he had things to take care of, for example: a city called Metropolis.

But Clark apparently didn't agree with that, because at least once every two weeks he would go to New York just to talk. The weirdest thing is that he started talking about his life to you as if he had known you for years! He talked about how he loved Lois, his relationship with John and Conner, GOD! He even talked about the Daily Planet!

Dude, he didn't even know who you were and he was just talking about his life to you?

You, however, always listened to him, you didn't tell him anything about your life but you didn't stop listening to him either.

Honestly, if you wanted to, you could very well mess with his life.

Good thing you're the heroine here.

As you jumped between buildings, your danger sensor beeped, warning you of something approaching. Knowing who it could be, you went down to the terrace of a building. Your suspicions were confirmed when you felt a gust of air from above. Turning around, you came face to face with the hero who had been on your tail for the last few months: Superman.

Clark had a gentle smile on his face, the smile of a hero, something that conveyed confidence and comfort. And it really did.

"Hello, Mr. Super, you look as happy as ever."

"Yeah, you look as relaxed as ever." He landed in front of you as you leaned against the building's railing, your elbows keeping your body steady as you assumed a carefree posture. Clark glanced at the buildings behind you nervously, uneasy about something. "I hope you don't mind, but we have company today."

You arched an eyebrow in doubt as your danger sensor went off like crazy, you had a few seconds before you turned around and launched a web at the person. You expected to find a criminal or even a super villain, but you were faced with the sunglasses of a teenager in a costume similar to Superman. "Yeah, she's really fast like you said."

What?

Before you could react, a much smaller figure appeared in front of you, just like the teenager (the difference was that he was a child and didn't wear glasses) he also looked a lot like Clark, he floated in front of you, bright and excited eyes directed at you. "Wow! You're so much cooler in person!"

A drop appeared on your head, turning to the man of steel you muttered to him. "Who are-"

"John and Conner." He chuckled softly, seeing your eyes narrow in irritation. "John really wanted to meet you and Conner ended up joining too."

"Oh." You pulled away from John a little as sarcasm flooded your lips. "That's great!"

Conner chuckled softly as you released him from your web, he approached you as he bent down a little to speak to you, since he was taller. "I thought you'd be happy to see us, it's not every day three Kryptonians come to New York to help with crimes." His voice held an undeniable teasing, the low and deep tone of his voice having the words dragged in his speech, it seemed almost sensual.

You stopped as you watched the other two, John and Clark froze, their gazes fixed on Conner, who you had confirmed was trying to subtly court you.

But you're not the shy girl here.

You approached him, close enough to be face to face, your breath could be felt on his mask. Conner, surprised by your bold move, leaned back, his cheeks flushed with your approach. "Well, New York is already protected by its heroine every day, so I don't need help." The smile on your face grew when Conner turned redder at the sound of your voice.

You quickly moved away from him and hung on the ledge, you turned to him, your figure shining with the lights in the city. "Then watch me do my job, mini super."

You fell from the building, the wind shaking your hood as you fell. Before hitting the ground, you threw a web up and climbed up again, hanging on one at a time. As your figure moved away, Conner and John looked at you. "Damn."

"You better come, or we'll end up losing her."

The night would be very long.

"OH GOSH, I'm so tired!" You yawned as you hung on the webs, it was almost four in the morning and you decided to go home. The supers had already left, you believe they were tired too (Especially Conner, where you and he played flirting all night).

You stopped on the terrace while looking around, seeing if someone or something had followed you, seeing no threat you hung on your web and slowly fell to your apartment, you opened the balcony door and as soon as you entered you were greeted by a satisfied meow.

Looking at the sofa in the living room, you saw Mooly lying on the cushion, the little black kitten moving and going to your ankle, cunning for affection. You laughed softly and picked her up gently, while placing her in your arms. "Hey, haven't you gone to sleep yet?"

As you petted the little one, footsteps were heard throughout the house, when you looked up you came across a large white vinyl robot, its form being embraced by its shadows, its round eyes shining in the dark space.

You looked at it and it did the same, the atmosphere apparently cold and tense to those looking from the outside, but completely the opposite for those who live in this house. The robot bowed respectfully, its voice, calm and tobotic, showed deep down a contained joy, reserved only for those close to it.

"It's so good to see you home." He stood up from his position, round eyes blinking slightly in the darkness of the apartment.

"Master (Name)."

You smiled as you set Mooly down on the couch again, you raised your hand to his neck and squeezed it, causing his mask to retract, revealing his identity. His face, the face of someone forgotten is a frequent presence on the walls here.

(Name) Wayne, the Spider-Woman, the missing daughter, the useless Wayne. His face was older than before, aged like red wine, clearly showing that you took after your father, since your face was just like his. Beautiful and exquisite, cold and deadly.

"It's good to be home Mark, where's Alex?" You asked as you squeezed your shoulder, which was a bit sore from today's patrol.

"Mrs. Alex is already asleep, she said she couldn't stand listening to you flirting with Superboy anymore."This made you laugh out loud, you could imagine Alex covering his ears so he wouldn't hear the two of you. You pressed the bracelet on your wrist and in a flash your suit retracted into the bracelet, showing your figure that had a loose blouse and pants. You stretched, heading towards the bathroom.

"Well, I guess I better go too, tomorrow I have a college project and Mrs. Vivian wants me early at the coffee shop" before you could get there Mark called you, his voice echoing through the house. "You got a message from Master Billy."

You stopped and looked at Mark, the notification displayed on his cute belly from an ologram. "Did he send it at this time?" The robot shook his head and handed the phone to you.

Opening your messages you went straight to Billy's contact, concern starting to creep in on you, but then again, you should know how Billy is.

Because when you saw the message you felt your stomach churn.

Billy Batson was eating the most beautiful and delicious candy you had ever seen in your entire life, and he sent it to you even though he knew about your addiction to sweets.

That little shit-

You quickly typed furiously on the cell phone keyboard, not caring that it was late, just wanting to curse Batson for making you feel hungry when you planned on not having dinner.

'Fuck, I hate you Batson ಥ_ಥ'

His answer didn't take more than a few seconds to come, his response irritating you even more.

'HEY, you finally answered me, I was already worried. Besides, I know you love me 𖹭𖹭𖹭(∪ ◡ ∪)'

'I promise I'll buy one for you, good night little spider ツ'

'...good night Billy.'

You wanted to cry, that's it.

Especially because you were hungry now.

Knowing your fate, you threw the cellphone on the couch and turned on the kitchen light, you heard Mooly and Mark's footsteps following you.

"I think there are still ingredients for a mug cake, right?" eating now wouldn't hurt.

"Bruce? BRUCE!" The aforementioned looked at the entrance of the batcave where Tim and Jason had rushed in. The two looked like they had seen a ghost, sweaty and pale, still in their suits. "Tim, what is it?"

"You- You need to see this!" He sighed heavily as he threw himself into the chair at the control panel, his fingers typing faster than he had seen them on missions. Bruce looked at Jason, who was standing next to him, who had a burning look on his face, hope hidden behind his eyes.

What's going on?

Bruce didn't need to ask, because Tim began to explain to him. "Since the accident with... (Name), I've never found any clues..." Bruce shuddered at the sound of your name, they didn't talk about that subject.

Even after three years it still hurt.

"But that was because I wasn't looking in the right place!" The teenager put up the pictures of the bus that had been carrying you that day, only the wreckage that was left was in the picture. "But now-now I know where to look."

"Last year, Star City had several people kidnapped suddenly, just like (Name) no one found any clues about the case, but Jason and Roy investigated thoroughly and managed to find a kind of underground dungeon where the kidnapped people would be."

Now on the computer was the picture of the bus and of a kind of what Bruce would call a mental hospital. The place was so rotten and filthy that Bruce wondered if anyone lived there. "Apparently there's nothing, but if you look behind each of the huge graffiti on the wall..."

Tim, using the program, removed the graffiti, which gave Bruce a view of the white walls, but in the middle of them, pieces of something nonsensical resided there. "... and put them together."

The movement in Tim's hands moved the images on the wall, distorting and shaping them until one completed the other, making the nonsensical make sense.

"A symbol."

The symbol of a womb wrapped around a two-headed serpent.

"Do you know where else this symbol is?" Tim again returned to the image of the bus wreckage, he shaped the image and put together pieces of the walls that resulted in the same symbol, but with small parts missing. "So you mean-"

"That the same people who kidnapped the people in Star City were the ones who kidnapped (Name)." Jason answered for the two, his tone as dejected as Bruce's.

He can't blame him, he's in a similar state.

"The problem is that I can't find out what it means, I've tried on the Internet, in history books, even on Wikipedia! But I haven't found anything."

The crushing silence suffocated those present, leaving invisible marks on their being. "It has to have a meaning, anything- okay, what does it mean to a womb?!"

"Jason, this is stupid-"

"No, but we have to try! Shit, you only looked in science books or-or whatever, but have you tried to look for anything related to mythology?" Tim thought for a moment, but shook his head negatively.

"The womb refers to the woman, the mother. Now, what does a two-headed snake refer to?" Bruce asked no one in particular, his thoughts searching for the knowledge he had about it.

"Would it be a mother snake? That's nonsense."

Jason thought for a moment and realized something. "Technically, it's not." The red hood searched the control panel while talking to Robin and Batman.

"In Greek mythology, there was a creature that was half snake and half woman." The mythological image appeared next to the symbol. The grotesque figure of the creature somehow referred to the symbol.

"She was known as the mother of monsters."

"Echidna."

HI GUYS, this chapter was a lot of work, I had a lot of blockages but I managed to do it.

Now I have a question to ask: Is Conner treated as Clark's son or brother?

You already know that I haven't read the comics, I've watched Young Justice (at least there it gave the impression that Conner would be treated as Clark's son) but on Wikipedia it says that Conner is treated as John's uncle, please answer me 😭.

I'm also doing a reader drawing (NON-CANONIC), I think I'll do headcanons too. I'll possibly leave a link below.

Ok, let's go to the Tag list \(•◡•)/:

@daiyanomochi - @amber-content - @wizzerreblogs - @foggyv-oid - @kore-of-the-underworld - @theunknowntravel3r - @space1crow - @shortnsweetsposts - @popursocks - @sugasweettea - @salfishers - @itachisank - @jsprien213 - @infirebaby - @yhin-gg -@h-ib @bunbunboysworld - @h-ib - @sheep-from-rad - @tatsuri-zomushiki - @the-holy-pigeon - @geminis93 - @horror-lover-69 - @mybones537 - @eyeless-kun - @timotheechalametswifeys - @justabreadslice - @nymphzy0 - @1-800-g00ber - @pix-stuff - @jsprien213

sorry for any mistakes.

Bye 𖹭

[aris-stupid-things]

SUNKEN AU - CHAPTER ONE

@soupiestzilla

Shelly was almost unsettlingly excited for the first expedition. The girl went on a whole rambling session on her excitement of possibly finding aquatic fossils, or maybe seeing some neat ocean creatures. Astro was reasonably anxious, the deep sea came with many risks on it's own. He made sure to bring extra of important supplies, putting his extra arms to good use.

Sprout reluctantly decided to come along, but swore he wouldn't go down again after this one time. Dandy and Vee stayed on the surface, understandably so. Dandy had to run Gardenview and Vee couldn't risk getting water damage.

Vee stayed near the water's surface, incase she needed to get help if anything went wrong during the resurfacing. The group got geared up and cautiously entered the deep water, Shelly hesitated, looking back at Vee before speaking.

"I think you're forgetting something, Vee."

"I am?"

"Oh yeah, very important."

Vee blinked, confused. Shelly walked over and gave a quick kiss to the TV's screen 'forehead.' Before she could walk away Vee grabbed her arm and gave her a kiss back.

"Stay safe, okay?"

"I will, Vee."

The ammonite smiled, joining the rest of the group before they wondered what was taking her so long. In Shelly's eyes, the water was so much more vibrant, marine plants growing out of the rocks in the open space. It wasn't nearly as deep near the surface, just a short swim to the gravelly soil floor. She couldn't imagine the other toons seeing this any other way that wasn't just as stunning.

Sprout was comforting Astro, who was almost shivering from the way the rocks loomed overhead, darkness in almost every direction of the cold sea. Well, atleast Shelly was enjoying it. She swam on ahead, webbed claws making her paddling almost graceful as she scouted ahead.

The ammonite's words were basically muffled jumbles of sounds as she pointed at a school of fish just a little further down, probably saying something about how she can't believe there's actually life down here. Sprout nodded, picking up on what she meant by her excited gestures. This was just a scouting mission to get used to what they'll find down here, there'll be time to fish later.

As they dove a bit further down, an ichor machine was secured into one of the rock walls, the water near it slightly murky. It probably wouldn't have been noticed if it weren't for the glowing red light and bright red valve on it, thank goodness they made it obvious. Shelly alerted the other two to it, swimming a bit closer to inspect it. While Astro and Sprout looked around, Shelly tested out the valve, seeing how hard it was to turn and gave a thumbs up to the group when it was confirmed to be functional.

Gurgle gurgle, bubble. A roar rumbled through the water.

Shelly's eyes widened, frantically gesturing to the pair that they needed to surface. Now. They nodded, not really sure of what the urgency was for. They slowly ascended back to the surface, taking short breaks to regain their energy. Well, mostly Sprout. Shelly was too panicky to stay still, and Astro had to help carry Sprout up.

Eventually, they reached the surface again, Shelly coughed a bit, readjusting to breathing regular air again before speaking.

"We... aren't alone down there."

"What do you mean-?"

"Something- I heard it!"

"You're probably just a little spooked from the water."

"No! Trust me, please, something's down there. I don't know what but it sure isn't a fish."

[exactwriter6016]

Alone again: An EpicPenelope!Percy Fic Pt. 1

Percy:

I dove toward Annabeth, catching her right before she fell into the pit, and I am hanging off the side, the rocks are beginning to crumble under my grip.

“I got you wise girl.” I say looking down at her, gratitude sweeping over her face.

“I know you do.” Annabeth smiled at me, and even with the cobwebs in her hair and the bloody scratches on her face she was still the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on. I use all of my strength to make a sweeping gesture to bring her up to the side of the pit, swiftly cutting the web attached to her ankle, and as she climbs up and turns to give me a hand up, the ground I am holding onto gives way and I am falling, falling, falling. I hear a distant scream, and a figure being restrained from coming after me. ‘Better me than her’ I think as I plummet to the pit.

Annabeth:

I stared despondently down the pit, I was kneeling at the edge, staring into its inky blackness, hoping beyond hope that Percy would come up laughing like he had just made the funniest joke in the world (God he just fell and I already miss the way he would try to brush it off with a joke.)Percy, my boyfriend, the love of my life, my wife, (Where did that come from?) who I had just gotten back, was in the deepest most evil part of hell.

Nico put a hand on my shoulder to try and comfort me and I stood up in a rage, “You stopped me from going after him, you separated us again!” Angry tears were pouring down my face, my emotions swirled together in a disastrous cocktail of self-wallowing fury. Nico tried to protest, something along the lines of what would you have been able to do; however, I snarled at him, “Don’t speak to me again unless you have my boyfriend at your side and an apology on lips.” As I walked away, unaware of the pain in my recently broken ankle, Nico ran after me asking where I was going, and I just growled, “I’m getting Pen Percy back, no matter what it takes, no matter what I have to do.”

End of Pt. 1

I had the idea to make this after my last post, so leave a comment if I should continue this story, and I might post it on Ao3 as well. I’m really excited to share this with you, as it has been a while since I have put one of my numerous AUs to writing instead of just letting them bounce around in my head like an Attention Wrecking-Ball.

[hotarutranslations]

2shot With Harusan Today

Evening

When I appeared as a guest, At Sawayaka Goro-san's birthday event,

A Goro-san and Ishida timeline was created, The timings of the breaks were all, Its the day I released a photobook~ I had written about it, on my blog as well but,

With this,

The day before announcing my last photobook release..

Therefore I was alone at the time like,

Huh? The photobook release announcement, Am I going to do it here, today..?

I almost announced it by mistake😇😇

It was greattttt foreshadowing😇😇

Since I really didn't know what we were going to do, It was gradually funnier on stage😇😇

I haven't put together the shoot offshots, so I'm not posting anything! The cover is out so its still fine!

Please look forward to a lot still

Profile.7

There are special original photos, depending on the site

Preorders are ongoing🌟

Tomorrow, Scawaii!-san releases🩷

Please definitely check it out🩷

Thank you very much, for todays exciting meet~~

Continuing from yesterday, today was also fun~~

Yesterday and today made me smile☺️🤍 But everyone has good smiles☺️🤍

I'm happy~~

Lets still do our best, after the holidays from tomorrow--!

This weekend, is already, Rockin'🔥

Wow, wow wow, Nuoaa,

Please don't be late everyone, to Rockin'

Please absolutely come! It seems you can still get tickets in time

By all means, I'll be waiting🎈

Thank you very much for the ceremonial pitch, at Rakuten Mobile Park Miyagi⚾️

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Debut song 48th Pyoko Pyoko Ultra~

I danced a lot on my own..

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Graduation Announcement Blog🐣🪽

Hello! Station #531 I also talk about my graduation in this video

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💿 August 14th new single✨ "Nandaka Sentimental na Toki no Uta/saiKIYOU"

🪩"Morning Musume '24 Concert Tour Autumn WE CAN DANCE!"

Its Ishida Ayumi's last tour💙 I'm looking forward to seeing you

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Releasing September 17th

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I visited as a guest🪽 "Sayashi Riho and The Time From Now On" presented by Meiji Bulgarian Yogurt

📻I visited as a guest🤍 Harami-chan no Harami Fan Radio♪

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see you ayumin <3

[selinakidreams]

pairing: merman! dabi x gn reader

warnings: nameless character deaths, a singular mention of nausea + throwing up, unfortunately a lot of blood mentions, near death experiences, SHARK! THERES A SHARK IN THE WATER ! (I SWEAR this is supposed to be pretty but the warnings make it seem otherwise) slight soulmate au?, dabi had a SINGULAR moment of softness.

a/n: guys I don’t even know what this is and it’s unedited,, but welcome to my contribution to mermay ! I had two scenes plain as day STUCK in my head and I just needed to get them out,,, honestly this was just supposed to be a short lil thing but I’m invested,, so here this is

ps, though this may not be edited... I would like to thank all my monster fucking moots who helped me to piece together the perfect mer version of dabi— I love you guys so so so much.

looking out into the darkness of the night, unable to locate the horizon from your position at the edge of the ship- you lift your gaze to the sky with a small sigh.

an unimaginable amount of stars litter the atmosphere, the clear view above could never be tiresome.

the city was no place for you; too crowded, full of men who were trying to court you for your fathers money and your beauty, not enough adventure. the ocean offered a type of freedom land could never- granted, the ship wasn’t much different from the bustling towns in the sense that all the soldiers would eye you like you’re a slab of meat.

the only difference given at sea is that you’re able to put those undesirable fuckers in their place. given your ranking, your power obsessed father wasn’t completely useless.

escaping to the empty deck had been your big feat today; everyone below was gulping down wine by the barrel when you managed to slip out. it was much colder out here, the chill of the salty wind was refreshing, sobering you up quite a bit- but still mentally fuzzy enough to tempt yourself into discarding edict and loosening up your tighter garments.

your drunken attention span shifted from fiddling with your bow in the back to the inky deep water...

what was that?

ripples were quietly dancing on the surface, the warm light reflections coming from the ship’s sconces moved along with them.

it had been really fast, so fast that you were almost left to wonder if you had actually imagined the most vibrant blue eyes you had ever seen... bobbing in the ocean.

two days. it had been two days since you had first “spotted” them and absolutely nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. the sailors still went about uglily gawking at you, your captain of a father was still behind the wheel, barking orders at everyone, while you went about your business. Sighing, the image of the eyes still fresh in your mind, you prepared to be lowered into the shallower sea.

upon hearing that there was a small island not too far from your current coordinates, you commanded a stop be made, needing to take some time away from the close knit quarters you constantly share with those horrific pigs. thankfully, no arguments surfaced and you headed straight for the dinghy. it had been surprisingly easy.

the trip wasn’t too long; you patiently waited for the tip of the boat to breach the soft sand, excited for what awaited you. it was such a lovely sunny day, big puffy white clouds dotted the expansive blue sky while the palm trees at the base of the beach greeted you with a steady sway.

once your boots sunk into the wet sand, you turned to the two other men who had escorted you and informed them that you were not to be followed- but to wait right there- which in retrospect, was not a good idea. that was too much trust and responsibility that was placed in their incapable hands.

you wasted no time trudging through the lush greenery to get to the other side of the island, wanting to be as far away from the crew members as possible. 

it couldn’t have taken you more than two hours for you to reach an elaborate array of tide pools sporadically placed on a flat uneven rocky surface, some being lapped over by waves while others sat calmly- living in their own little world.

you had to look in each and every one of them.

wide eyes and mouth open, looking at all the lives in the crystal clear pools was an absolute marvel. some only held a few small sea anemones of different colors while others not only held the soft flowery plant but also housed fighting crabs of all sizes, large chunky starfish, and even a fish or two!

you took careful steps towards the end of the rocks, towards the ones where the waves were constantly restocking the pools with new life, your heart flipping in your chest at the colors of the crashing waves.

peering down into one of the deeper ones, you found it hard to take your sights away from the glistening sun streaks that cut through the water; a small gateway to the open ocean was at the bottom of this pool. it’s like you were hypnotized. making yourself comfortable, you laid yourself down next to the glistening water and began to break the calm surface with your finger tips, eyes trained on the tiny ripples.

“they left you, you know.”

you felt so at ease with the sound of the waves crashing around you, you almost didn’t hear it. it wasn’t until the nagging feeling that you weren’t alone hugged you in all the wrong places, that you looked up... only to be met with nothing.

scrunching your brow, the tranquility you were feeling before suddenly slipping through your fingers. you sat up, but not before you held a lingering glance at the glowing water once more. that’s an image that will stay in your mind; you almost wish you had your sketch book.

your mind went blank when you saw something block the light as it swam by... something big. the next few minutes happened in a blur. after scrambling up to get away from the pool, a huge body washed up on a nearby rock plateau and by no means was it graceful. your heart dropped to your stomach as you watched the lifeless body get smacked with harsh waves.

he was wearing your ship’s uniform, now drenched in blood.

nothing came up when you fell on your knees and lurched over, your eyes squeezing shut- the gruesome image of the crew member engrained in your mind.

“they got what they deserved.”

this time when you whipped your head up to follow the velvet voice, you fell into an almost trance. those breathtaking turquoise eyes you had seen a few days ago were now staring right at you, not too far away.

you couldn’t help the gasp that you inhaled as you fell back. looking at him in his entirety- you must have been hallucinating. growing up hearing the tales of deep sea monsters and nasty magical land creatures could never have prepared you for what laid in front of you.

it was such a drastic change; going from looking at something so appalling to something so... flawless... it was indescribable.

on display, your eyes followed the curled figure- wet white hair flopped against a pale forehead, the tips of his pointed finned-ears peaking out from the wet hair. there were deep dark purple markings starting underneath his eyes, slightly mimicking bags that then restarted at the bottom half of his face- all the way down his neck, ending at just the top of his chest. the markings then continued down his arms, right up to his knuckles contrasting the pale thin slightly webbed fingers that merged to sharp claws, gleaming in the sun. his toned chest eased into a pearly type of color around his hips before submerging into a black ragged tail- but it did the strangest thing. when the sun reflected off of it, a blue so royal- that you’ve only seen it on the most expensive of garments- came to life. the dorsal fin looked just as rugged as the tail did, but his odyssey fluke was splayed out so beautifully, you didn’t give it a second thought.

it wasn’t until you took a second glance that you noticed there was a red tint to his claws that you put into context what was said earlier.

“did you- di- you killed that man?”

his voice came out as smooth as silk, “I did.”

how could you be so dense? this was a creature that came from the sea- a ruthless underwater world. he was a predator. but wait-

“you can speak- you s-said.. did you kill them for me? are you going to-?”

“I killed those men because of all humans, the ones who betray others for their own greed serve no purpose.”

he didn’t tell you more than necessary in his opinion, but he was smart enough and old enough to know that you’re still going to ask more.

it seemed you were sitting on quite the pile of questions but he wasn’t going to be the one to break the silence. it was clear that you were mulling over what should be said first.

“was it you I saw at sea the other night?”

out of all the things you could ask, that was the only thing your mind had on repeat- the only thought present.

“and if it was?”

after receiving two similar vague reactions, something in you was screaming for something to happen. the interaction seemed to be going nowhere and here you were, in front of a creature that you’ve heard so much about but never actually met- a drastic change in interaction was calling, and who were you to ignore it?

in hindsight, it was a terrible idea.

one minute you were on land, next you were shedding your heavy, restrictive clothing- the mer watching with a slight smirk and a heavy gaze- then seconds later, were in the violent push and pull of the ocean. luckily you were far enough to be out of the rocky reach, but the current was too strong. you were being swayed back and forth with too much force.

if it had been your first time in the ocean, you would have been a goner- you would have washed right into the sharp jagged edges; a terribly painful way to go. but thankfully, flowing with the ocean had been your specialty since you were young. incredibly masculine and dirty, but you simply couldn’t stay away. the watery depths have lured you in and there was no escaping the spell it had casted on you all those years ago.

maybe that’s why you dove in. or maybe you wanted to see what the mer would do. whatever the case, there you were in the lull of the tide and running out of air. breaching the surface was your main goal, urging your arms and legs to snap out of the shock of the cold water.

eyes on the bubbles traveling upwards, you finally get your arms to push through the current almost missing the dark shadow swimming closer and closer to you, getting larger and larger.

a quick sideways glance in the clear water showed something large with many many rows of teeth out on display, heading toward you and gaining momentum.

a shark.

a... shark.

of all the ways you possibly thought you could go... this was not one of them. it’s almost ironic- the one way you thought you wouldn’t go would end up getting you.

breaking the surface, you gulp your last breath of air- painfully waiting for the horrifying moment when powerful jaws clamp around your body... but it never came. all you felt was a strong current zip past your feet, slightly pulling you along with it.

you’re heart was pounding; adrenaline coursing through your veins, breathing choppy as you whip your head in every which way to see what was going on in the water beneath you. then you saw it.

blood.

just then, the gory image of the crewmate’s body flashed into your mind. there had been another sailor... the mermaid didn’t pull up two bodies- he wasn’t the only predator in the water.

before you could evaluate further, you were pulled by the ankle under the water and into a place where the blood hadn’t seeped yet.

not enough air was sucked in before you submerged, so you frantically searched for ways you could reach the surface again- not even thinking about the now-absent steady grip that dragged you under.

then you felt it. pointed claws lightly tracing up your sides before his handsome face was leveled with yours. if seeing him on land wasn’t good enough, seeing him in his element was nearly heart stopping.

but your lungs were going to collapse before your heart could-

or so you thought.

he flattened his palm around your waist, cupping it gently before he inched his face toward yours, lips slightly ghosting yours, as if asking for permission.

with his toned body pressed against yours, it was hard to think straight, but the most prominent siren going off in your mind was the fact that you were loosing oxygen, and quickly. you found yourself panicking in his grip. was this really the time?

his lips were on yours in less than a second, your struggling becoming more and more apparent- but it was when he got your mouth to open that you realized what he was doing.

A mermaid’s kiss gives you the eternal breath; the ability to breathe under water.

pulling away, he watched as your eyes went wide, the small smirk you’d seen before had appeared once more.

the sensation was otherworldly; though there was a heavy pressure in your chest as the water was filtering in and out of your system, you were breathing underwater.

slowed down by the new density, you lifted your head to look up at the mer- no doubt the most excited and bewildered expression on your face, just to realize the size difference. he was huge- how had you not noticed this on land?

the more human half of his body had to be around the six foot range, his muscular tail roughly adding another ten. the massive figure floating around you was... beautiful.

he had the softest gaze when looking down at you, it nearly shocked you more that the new incredible ability had. he didn’t seem like the type to be full of expressions; it was such a warm and familiar look, something that you hadn’t seen in a long time- and one you typically didn’t see on a stranger’s face, much less a merman you had only just met.

opening your mouth to say something-if you could, that is- his expression changed in a blink, fear now contorted his features.

everything was so fast with him; his arm wrapped around your waist in mere seconds before speedily guiding you through a passage of underwater tunnels that lead to somewhere you assumed to be in the middle of the island- a lush green grotto.

once you resurfaced, you inhaled a breath you didn’t realize you needed; the new air burned your lungs- you almost didn’t want to breathe.

“just keep breathing. it will get easier over time.”

he almost sounded... bored? a complete one 180 to what you had just witnessed in the water.

the mer guided you up to the pool’s edge, lifting you with ease until you sat with only your legs dangling in the water.

outwardly, it stayed quiet for a while. there wasn’t much noise around besides the occasional bird call and the delicate sound of waded water.

your breathing had slightly evened out but you weren’t too confident in your voice, so keeping your mouth shut seemed like the best option.

what now?

tag list: @zhongh-li

[only-lonely-stars]

Hey Nutmeg, I hope you don't mind me asking, but my serotonin levels be quite low rn so if you don't mind could we get some sisterly hc's about best samurai Nya and Pix?? <3

Oh no! Let’s raise that serotonin, shall we? <333

Nya and Pixal really weren’t close at first. It was just... not how they rolled. Nya had never had a female friend she could relate to, while Pixal had just flat-out never had a friend. Zane was her first.

After Zane’s death in Season 3, Nya was the first to try to console her (once she could see through her own grief). She involved Pixal in her mechanics projects and tried to make the other girl feel wanted and useful, because no nindroid wants to feel useless. Uselessness is like being unloved and unneeded; Pixal would rather be shut down.

The girls bonded over their shared grief and determination to live past it. When Pixal disappeared, Nya was distraught, and she led the search for Pixal; when it turned up nothing, she slowly began to give up.

After Season 4, Nya took to spending a lot of time with Zane so she could be around Pixal. They became a trio, and whenever she could, Pixal found refuge in other computers so she could have her alone time with Nya while Zane had some mental quiet. Everyone was pretty happy with the arrangement, and Pixal became quite the asset when it came to coding mainframes for Nya’s machines.

After Season 5, Nya’s new status as the Master of Water cut down her time with Pixal, but they still spent a lot of time together. They talked whenever they could, and they always made sure to compare notes on all the most important details (who was doing the best in training, how the media was responding to the Ninja’s actions, the odds of Zane making pineapple risotto for dinner).

Season 6 saw Nya being isolated a lot, while Pixal took to scouring the web for things that would improve their situation (prior to being wished away). After the time rewind, Pixal was the one who kept Nya company when she was up late due to nightmares. They spent most of their alone time from that point on at night, and Pixal tried to take more of her rest periods during the day so she could be there. They got really good at chess by playing each other (Pixal almost always wins).

Pixal consoled Nya as she dealt with the return of her parents to her life. Maya and Ray, being slightly overbearing, were hard to deal with; Pixal didn’t relate, but she comforted Nya.

Nya was Pixal’s rock and foundation during her years of “imprisonment” in Zane’s systems. The situation was poor at best, and she really did not enjoy it; even being around Zane was tiring, and Nya understood having loved ones just a little too close at times. Pixal shared her concerns with Nya, who kept them under metaphorical lock and key and never shared them. They’re still a secret.

When Pixal was revealed to have a body again, she and Zane were the first to celebrate it. Second was she and Nya, who immediately had a girls’ sleepover as soon as the events of the March of the Oni were concluded. They did all the things they’d used to do, and more! (Chess in three dimensions was much more exciting.)

Now on to the simpler, more fun ones!

Pixal rarely eats, but Nya knows her favorite snack is pretzels, so she always gets them for her.

Pixal is the only person who knows how to get Nya’s hair to do anything fancy. Whenever Nya and Jay have a date planned, Pixal is the hairdresser for them.

Nya insists that Pixal has an extensive wardrobe. She says it’s one of the best things about being a woman, and Pixal quietly admits that it makes her feel more unique, yet still human. She likes to wear a lot of purples and whites.

Nya is always borrowing Pixal’s tools, but she never puts them back where she found them because Pixal’s organization constantly changes. One day it’s alphabetical, the next hexadecimal– it doesn’t make any sense.

Pixal has asked Kai and Jay what to get Nya for gift-giving holidays, as she doesn’t truly understand gifts to the extreme that people do. Usually it is something practical that she knows Nya will use. 

Thanks to Nya, Pixal has an army of succulents in her bedroom. 

Pixal and Nya have matching purple dresses for special occasions.

Pixal is Nya’s go-to when she has problems only girls understand.

[unkownknowledge]

Genshin characters and their spider s/o

A little crossover HC post between terraformars and genshin.

Basically the reader is the result of a messed up experiment and now they look like a monstrous humanoid spider, like this guy:

Except you have no human skin or hair, just pure chitin, extra legs out the back, and mandibles(like a turian)

Also: request are still open, feel free to request!

Including: Jean, Xinqiu, and Razor

_____________________________

Jean: hollow knight

_____________________________

Jean had been receiving reports of frightened merchants and townsfolk, all of whom had been found on the road ranting about a giant spider.

Jean was sure it was nothing more than hilichurls or hoarders or abyss mages and the people were merely suffering panic induced hallucinations, this was supported by the clear signs of such dangers at the scene of the crime.

But still, neither any of the knights nor adventurers in the guild reported saving these people, nor did Diluc claim that he did when she asked him.

So Jean decided to investigate, after all not only is there a chance of finding camps of the three above dangers, but also the chance of finding a new ally.

When she saw you in a clearing you looked like a normal human, until you turned your head in an inhuman manner and looked at her with eight red glowing eyes.

You screamed at her and used your geo vision to grow eight giant legs out your back, which you used to run away.

Jean, being the persistent woman she is, wasn't about let you go until she confirmed if you were a friend or foe.

She chased you through the forest for a while, and unfortunately didn't notice a group of hilichurls hiding behind some trees.

One swung out and struck her from behind, knocking her to the ground.

At the sound of this you turned around and saw Jean on the ground.

While she easily could have beaten the hilichurls, she didn't have to. This is because you were immediately next to her, sword drawn and slicing through the monsters like a hot knife through butter. Your geo legs acted like extra blades that parried any attack directed towards the knight.

Because you're other legs were busy, however, you were unable to block the attack from a crossbow that shot right through your knee.

You fell down and were beaten senseless by the hilichurls, the last thing you remember was the sounds of a blade and the monsters turning to dust before you blacked out.

You woke up on a soft bed inside an unfamiliar building. You tried to get up but your knee had a large hole in it, luckily for you your ability to feel pain was long lost.

Jean entered a minute later with some food, "good, your awake."

"Where am I?" You asked.

"In my home, the guest room to be exact."

"Why did you save me?"

"Because you were in danger."

"Yes but why? Aren't you afraid of me?"

"Considering how you saved me as well? No, not at all."

Jean poured some tea for both of you, "now onto-"

You felt your eyes water, something you didn't realize you could still do.

"What's wrong?" Jean asked.

"It's just, it's been so long since anyone was...nice to me. My appearance isn't exactly very welcoming."

"And yet you still help people, the same people who call you a monster?"

"Of course! I might be an abomination, but I'm not a monster. In fact, before I became...this I had always dreamed of joining the knights."

"Well, that makes things easy."

"What do you mean?"

"While I cannot officially make you a knight, I can make you an honorary member of the knights of favonius."

"REALLY!?" You said, a child like excitment on your face.

So you joined the knights, of course not everyone was happy about this.

But noone doubted the acting grand master's decision, after all she never once failed the city.

After a while the city warmed up to you, even hailing you as a hero thanks to all you've done!

But the city's attitude towards you wasn't the only thing getting warmer.

Infact, a certain person's cheeks seemed to grow red as Amber's ribbon at the mere mention of your name.

Lisa and Kaeya were the first to notice Jean's infatuation with you, and they were quite intent on helping her.

It would be easy for them to set it up: you were cold blooded, so you had a heater in your room during the winter, and thanks to a 'freak lightning strike', your house was under renovations for the whole season, this caused Jean to let you stay in her home until yours was repaired.

Now all they had to do was sneak in an 'cool it' down.

You awoke in the middle of the night due to the temperature suddenly dropping. You tried turning on your heater but that didn't work. You went downstairs to make some hot tea, unaware that Kaeya swapped the labels on Jean's coffee and your tea. After making the beverage you sat down in the warmest corner, covered in blankets, and with a warm drink in hand.

Fun fact! Spiders get hella drunk off caffeine.

You are a spider.

One sip of the coffee and you felt funny, you couldn't think straight and felt wobbly.

Kaeya and Lisa giggled watching you.

"So, how DID you get them drunk? You couldn't exactly have spiked their tea could you?" Lisa asked.

"I swapped the labels on their tea and Jeans coffee. Spiders get hella drunk on-" Kaeya noticed Lisa worried face, "fuck, what did I do this time?"

"Kaeya, spiders don't get drunk on caffeine like humans do with alcohol."

Lisa pointed Kaeya towards the window

"Whoops"

Caffeine doesn't make spiders drunk the same way alchohol does a person, which is what Kaeya expected.

Caffeine makes spiders hyper, very hyper.

When Jean heard skittering and clanging she thought someone was robbing the house, so she was reasonably surprised to see you lying in the center of the kitchen, crying, and with webs all over.

When she asked what happened you just rolled over and mumbled out gibberish about how you can't catch any flies.

Jean picked you up to take you to bed, but you wrapped your arms and legs around her and caused her to fall.

"(Y/n), please let me go." Jean pleaded.

You shushed her, "nap time" and fell asleep.

Your grip was to strong for her to get out, and with your weight she couldn't get up in this position, so she just had to wait for you to get up.

The next day Jean got up the same time as you, she would have said something if you didn't kiss her and pet her head.

"I love this dream." You said, nuzzling into the crook of her neck.

Jean was shocked, what dream? You were clearly awake.

"I wonder if Jean is this warm in real life....I wish I could find out..."

"(Y-y/n)" she stuttered out, "you're not dreaming."

You shot up with all your eyes wide as saucers.

You immediately thought of running. But where would you go? The forest? Yeah, that works, just go there a-

You felt a warm sensation on your cheek.

"So (y/n), how does this dream usually go?" Jean said with a suggestive wink.

.

.

.

"(Y/n)?"

404 error, reader.exe has crashed

After that rather unconventional confession session, you both started dating.

Jean was concerned about not having enough time for you, but that proved to be very unfounded. Thanks to your many years alone you didn't know what dating was, so to you simply working together was fine.

On every mission out of the city you would bring gifts or a picnic for when the sun was setting.

On days where you both had paper work you would make tea and buy little cakes or biscuits and sit on her lap as you rested on eachother's shoulders and fed each other snacks, under the excuse that "sharing a chair saves space".

On the rare occasion Jean gets to have a day off, she showers you in affection.

She'll make you breakfast in bed(it's not good 80% of the time, but you don't tell her), she'll cuddle with you all day, she'll even read to you if you want. She wants to give back to you for all the time she couldn't give you her full attention.

_____________________________

Xingqiu: it's like one of my Inazuman graphic novels

_____________________________

Your meeting with the guhua geek was far more coincidental.

You were just minding your business, catching some animals to eat, when some weird guy just walks by you, not noticing you at all, as he reads his book.

You were rather suprised and, by extension, curious about this boy.

Was he blind in peripheral? Was he that brave? Was he an idiot?

A bit of colum B, mostly colum C.

Xingqiu sat down on a rock and continued reading, given how he was reading aloud you figured you might as well take advantage of his lack of notice and learn to read.

But he did notice.

"Ah shoot, spaces out again." Xingqiu cried, "now I have to start all over."

Xingqiu started reading the book all over again, much to your joy.

You could easily match his words to the page thanks to your speed of comprehension.

When the boy noticed it was getting late he decided to head home, while you were upset you didn't try and stop him. In fact you immediately darted away before he saw you.

The next day he came back, and read from the same spot.

And again

And again

This went on for quite some time.

Xingqiu knew someone was watching him, but he never was able to catch a glimpse. He just figured it was someone who wanted to read legends of the shattered halberd but couldn't find any copies, and so the chivalrous thing to do would be to read it for them.

One day he finished the fifth book and proclaimed it was the last one, which made you rather sad.

Until he spoke to you.

"Well my secretive friend," he turned around, "shall w-"

You screamed

He screamed

For about five minutes.

After which you both just stared at eachother.

He pointed a shakey finger at you, "you're-"

You turned away, 'a freak I know' you thought.

"SO COOL!"

"What?"

Xingqiu immediately ran at you and started inspecting you.

The whole time he had such an amazed look on his face.

"Woah!" He said as he grabbed your mandibles, "are these real?!"

"Ye ey are, a ah ee e ah a" you said hoping he would understand that you need them to talk.

"Oh. Hehe. Sorry." He said releasing them.

"Aren't you...scared of me?" You asked.

"Why would I be? If you wanted to kill me you would have. It's not like I was particularly on guard when I was reading for you."

'Y-you knew I was there?"

"I knew someone was there, and I knew they were watching me read. Since you showed such interest in my book I thought the only chivalrous thing to do was to keep reading."

You were shocked, most people just ran and screamed upon seeing you.

"Now, shall we go look for the sixth book?"

After that you and Xingqiu became fast friends.

He used some of the money he made from the scam he pulled on that scammer to buy out the forest you lived in, making it officially private property so that people won't go after you.

He kept coming back with books for you both to read, you absolutely loved it!

And while you never realized it, you also loved him.

He however, did know he loved you.

Being the menace to society he is, Xingqiu decided the best way to confess was to just kiss you.

You're sitting on a stump with your head on Xingqiu's shoulder.

"This book isn't as good as the others." You say.

"Ah don't be like that, fairy tales are the foundation of all those 'knight in shining armor books' you love."

"Yeah but this is boring."

"True, true. But I think it has a great ending." Xingqiu turned to the final page, "and then the knight told the (royal title) how much he loved them, and to seal his love he placed a kiss on their cheek."

"That wasn't good."

"Why? It was very realistic."

"In what reality does someone confess by kiss-"

*smooch*

It took you a solid five seconds to process what happened.

Xingqiu smirked at you like the bastard man he is, "this one I believe."

Your mandibles hung slack as your face got a dark shade of blue.

"Uh, (y/n)?"

"Clothes off, now."

Xingqiu stumbled out the forest four hours later. Chongyun, who was protecting his privacy, asked him what's wrong.

"Absolutely nothing." He responded with the largest grin a human could muster, before his legs gave out, "can you carry me home?"

Your relationship was more steady than just that bit though.

Xingqiu spent as much time with you as he could, he even learned how to hunt so he could be with you while you hunted for food.

You never left your forest though, you were far to afraid of people and especially the vigilant yaksha(which Xingqiu tried to convince you was friendly).

Of course, not everything goes so simply.

Xingqiu was skipping through the forest, far to enamoured at the idea of you to notice someone following him.

You sat calmly on your rock and awaited your boyfriend of two years, today was his birthday so you made him a beautiful silk picture of his favorite scene from 'the legend of the broken halberd'

You felt the boy drop into your lap, "hello my love!"

You wrapped your arms and extra legs around him, "hello my little knight, I have a wonderful gift for-"

"XINQIU! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!"

You both turned around to see a man who looked oddly like Xingqiu.

"H-hey big bro..." Xingqiu said, clearly nervous.

"You're his brother?" You asked, "nice to meet you! I'm your future sibling in law!"

His brother looked surprised, then angry, "Xingqiu, a word."

"No," he responded, "anything you can say to me you can say to my (s/o)."

"Xingqiu, this is not a game."

"ANYTHING," Xingqiu said, far more aggressive, "you can say to me, you can say to them."

His brother sighed, "you can't date them."

"I believe I can."

"XINGQIU! ME AND FATHER HAVE TOLERATED ENOUGH OF YOUR CHILDISHNESS! YOU ARE AN HEIR OF THE FEIYUN COMMERCE GUILD, YOU CANNOT DATE THAT-THAT THING!"

Xingqiu shot up into a fighting stance, "care to repeat that?"

Xingqiu stared down his brother with murderous intent.

"So you wont back down?"

"Never, I love (y/n) to much!"

"If you don't leave them, you'll be disowned by father, all your wealth, power, and influence will be forfeited. All for an inhuman freak!"

"Xinqiu please," you tried telling your beloved, "I won't let you sacrifice-"

"Sorry darling, but I don't give a damn." He interrupted you before turning to his brother, "I will NOT abandon my beloved (y/n)! They are the most precious thing in the world to me! So go ahead! Strip me if my title, my riches, of my very skin! My heart will yearn for nothing else but the cold hard touch of love that is my (s/o)!"

Xinqiu's brother smirked

"So, you promise to always be with (y/n)?"

"Yes!"

"Through both sickness and health?"

As smart as he was, Xinqiu couldn't see what was happening, "with all my heart and soul!"

"And you would take (Y/N) as your contractually bound spouse?"

"I would sooner bite my arm off than live another day without them as such! In fact!" Xinqiu turned to you, "(Y/N)! WE'RE GOING TO GET MARRIED RIGHT NOW! COME ON!"

"Hold it!" His brother demanded, "(Y/N)! Would you stay with my brother, Xinqiu, through sickness and health, through rags and riches?"

You nodded, "forever and always!"

"And would you take him to be your contractually bound husband?"

"E-even if I had to fight Rex Lapis himself!"

Two burly hands grabbed the couple and pushed them together, "You may now kiss the bride!"

Without thought, you two kissed each other, not thinking to question the cheering, clapping, and crying-

You both pulled apart, "what the abyss is happening here?!"

The burly arms, now wrapping you both, was an older crying man who also looked like Xinqiu.

Xinqiu's Brother was crying and clapping.

Chongyun was blasting off party cones(🎉🎉these things)

And several other of Xinqiu's friends were there celebrating.

"W-wait..." Xinqiu started to remember that his brother, as a high ranking member of a commerce guild, can officiate marriages.

The older man, Xinqiu's father, cried and said, "finally! Grandchildren!"

(If you can't have babies, adoption exists and is perfectly normal)

Needless to say

404 error, Xinqiu.exe and Reader.exe have stopped working

_____________________________

Razor: the big bad spider and the itsy bitsy spider

_____________________________

(Please understand that my knowledge of Razor is based on his quest, I know of his special vision but it won't be brought up for this. I will be sure to read the wiki page for him if I write him again)

Razor knew something was wrong.

His wolf side told him something was wrong with the forest, and his human side told him it should be either avoided at all cost or destroyed.

Because it had stayed away he had largely tried to just avoid it and keep his lupical away from whatever IT is.

Until a foolish pup decided to try and defeat whatever big bad monster had their protector so scared.

Razor ran faster than any lightning bolt upon hearing the news.

Razor didn't know what he was seeing: giant webs strewn out covering entire trees, boars and Hilichurls wrapped in webs and frozen in a sickly green.

And at the center of it all was a giant, monstrous creature with eight leg like roots coming from it's back, feeding off the life of all the creatures stuck here.

This is what he was afraid of, the beast that every inch of his primal self screamed to get away from.

But he couldn't, not until he found the pup!-

"Hello." You said calmly to the strange man coming into your home, "is this your's?"

You outstretched your hand and a sleeping pup drifted towards razor on a flower.

"He caused lots of problems, so I made him sleep. Don't worry, it's nothing permanent, give him an hour or two and he'll be right up."

After Razor left, you assumed that would be the last disturbance for a while.

But it wasn't.

Razor's wolf half still feared you, was still mortified when he pictured your spider like face, your towering body, everything.

But his human half...teembled.

Not in fear, but in a different way.

He couldn't stop thinking of you, and his primal upbringing did little to quell the less romantic thoughts about your gem like eyes, the way your mandibles clicked and moved when you talked, the overwhelming nature energy that you radiated.

But he still knew good enough to get to know you better.

Just not HOW to do it.

"Why are you spider?"

Is not a good first thing to ask.

But you explained regardless: you were taken as a kid and experimented on by some rogue students from Sumeru academy.

Then some purple lady rescued you, and while you were grateful you much preferred living out in the wild.

"Yes...wild is good! Wolvendom, especially good!"

Someone please help him.

"Purple lady....ah! Shockey wizard lady from knights?"

You nodded

"Razor good friends with her and honorary knight! Do you know red flamy girl?"

"Klee? Oh yes! I love her! She's such a nice kid!"

"Yes, Klee is like lupical! Even if she...burns down forest from time to time."

Lucky for him, your shared familial love for the pyromaniacal minor helped bridge the gap between you two.

Eventually he even got you to leave your grotto(?) And meet his lupical!

He introduced you to the wonders of actually eating rather than just sucking the life force out of animals.

You both love and protect the forest of wolvendom, and if any large threat arises to it then you both will fight fang and claw to protect your home!

Neither of you know what love is in the human sense, but you both feel it to each other and act upon it: giving each other a portion of your food, taking blows in battle for each other, and cuddling more intimately than just friends would.

You are his lupical, and so much more.

_____________________________

I started this near last year's end, it took me till now to realize I should only do 3 characters.

(Paging: @golden-wingseos, @storytravelled)

[anonymous0writer]

Saving You II JJ Maybank

Part One: Fine Line

Author: @anonymous0writer

Summary: You and JJ had been best friends for as long as you lived. But the feelings that would change your status haven’t been said. Will the words ever be said?

Warnings: Alcohol use, parental abuse, swearing. Brief mentions of depression/ self harming. 

Please read at your own discretion! (I struggle with depression so I wrote it how I experience it.)

Requested: “Reader and JJ are friends since kindergarten. She is his complete opposite - shy and low-key and introverted, but that’s why they fit so well together. They have feelings for each other, but never confessed. She knows about his issues at home, but JJ doesn’t want her to interfere, its dangerous. One day tho she sees as JJ's dad is abusing him and tries to help him, but she gets hurt as Luke slaps her too. JJ freaks out and after this mess he tells her how he feels”

A/N: This was really fun to write!! I love a best friends to lovers troupe. :) And this is long.... I hope you like it anon!! It’s also long..

Also: My second JJ series!! I actually have a plan for this, so it won’t be like Not Together Anymore, which was pretty bad! But for this series, I have four parts roughly planned... and I’m excited for it!!

Let me know what you think!!!

My Masterlist

Add yourself to my taglist!

If any one wants to be added to the taglist, let me know!! :)

Tags: @jayjaymaebank @rudys-pankow @maaybanks @everydayimfangirling @outrbank @thelocalpogue @teamnick @bxbyyyjocelyn

Y/N was laughing, with her head thrown back and her eyes alight with amusement. She didn’t catch the look her best friend gave her. But it was there, the secret glances filled with love and longing. In fact, ever since seventh grade, the two had been stealing admiring looks, hugging a little longer and smiling just a bit wider at each other. 

They were in love, yet the strict line of “best friends” kept their mouths shut, confining them to longing and dreaming of the day one would toe the line. But years had gone by, and no one had toed the line or even stepped just a little too close to it. The line was there for a reason right?

They’d met in third grade, and once they knew that the person staring at them was their person, they made up for the years they missed quickly. The two, ever since they met at the field trip to the beach when they were eight, and forced to be in a group together, they never left the other’s side. At eight, they knew that they were soul mates. Maybe not romantically, but in every other way. They never kept a secret and never left the other behind. They had a secret understanding that they couldn’t abandoned each other. Y/N and JJ were each other’s rocks. Any thing they needed, the other would be there in a heartbeat. 

And that’s how Y/N knew about JJ’s father way before anyone else. He’d been able to deal with it for a couple days, but when he showed up for work one day, grunting and wincing up a storm, Y/N demanded to know what had happened. JJ knew he couldn’t lie and say it was Rafe or another Kook. That was how Y/N learned that JJ’s father had beaten him ever since seventh grade and his mom left. Ever since then, whenever Y/N sensed something was off, she drove to JJ’s and found him hurting and bruising, and would nurse him back to health and kept her mouth shut.

JJ knew about Y/N’s struggle with depression. She’d been hurting herself by biting herself since the start of high school. The episodes hit out of no where, and when Y/N didn’t show up for two days at school, JJ knew something was very wrong. Y/N was never late to school. Hell, she hated missing class more than anything and came in once when she was half dead from a cold. So JJ had barged in, and found her in the shower, staring blankly at the wall, bruises and angry red teeth marks marring her arm. He’d nursed her back to health, promising to keep her struggles a secret from everyone, including her parents as long as she didn’t hurt herself anymore. 

Both had secret they’d rather keep secret, but they couldn’t keep it from each other. They had a pact. They’d be there and help each other, and they’d never leave the other. 

The two were practically attached at the hip. You didn’t see Y/N without JJ close behind. You never saw JJ without an arm around Y/N’s shoulders or her laugh chasing after him. They were always together, and it was a shock if you saw one alone. They didn’t avoid each other if they fought. Sure, they rolled their eyes at each other and called each other an idiot or a dumb ass, but they still sat close and acted as if there wasn’t a fight. They’d make up, deciding it was too much work to be mad at each other. But no matter what, they were always together. Some called them twins, or the two. Even the pogues didn’t call them individually. Even when JJ was begin a dumb ass, and Y/N was just sitting next to him, Kie would yell, “Quit it you two!”. 

But with knowing each other since they were eight and spending every day together since then, and knowing each other’s deepest darkest secrets, they fell in love silently. They’d both crossed the line without the other knowing, thinking it was untouched.

And Y/N would’ve known that the blonde was in love if only she saw the look he gave her as she laughed. But she didn’t, so she never knew. 

-----

The Boneyard party was in full swing, but a small group of kids from the Cut were sitting by themselves, opting for hanging out with each other instead of getting shit faced drunk with the rest of the kids. 

Pope Heyward sat, back pressed against a dead tree, no beer in sight. The boy liked to keep the ‘signal clear’ and not get a DUI. The boy ran a hand through his hair, eyes bright as he talked. He wore an old fishing T-shirt and was sitting cross legged, talking enthusiastically with the girl across from him. 

Kiara Carrera was shaking her head at Pope, waiting until he finish so she could launch into her own point. Her long and dark curly hair was tamed into a half up half down bun, the curls bouncing around her shoulders. She wore a bright yellow crop top, her shorts faded and worn. Her flip flops were discarded beside her, and she dug her bare feet into the warm sand. When it was her turn to speak, the boy on her right poked her in the stomach. Kiara slapped his hand, and started over. 

The boy who poked his best friend was John B. Routledge. Called John B. because his father was also a John, and John B. fit him more than John. He laughed and poked the girl again, but let her talk as he took a sip of his beer. He was tall, tan and wore a half open button up. He sat on a log, and dropped the empty beer can to the sand, asking his best friend since the second grade to hand him another. 

JJ Maybank grabbed the cooler seated next to him and fished out a beer, popping it up into the air for his friend to catch. “Nice one, slick.” He commented when the boy failed to catch it and it hit him in the stomach. The blonde laughed, smirking hard, but was able to listen to the girl who’s feet were in his lap. His hands rested on her legs, thumbs tracing small patterns onto her skin. JJ was wearing his famous backwards cap that tamed the blonde hair underneath. His tan arms were on display in his sleeveless T-shirt. 

The girl with her legs on JJ was Y/N Y/L/N. Head thrown back as she listened to the heated conversation of the two next to her, and smirking at John B. and JJ. Her longest friend here was JJ, but John B. was in close second. Kiara was her sister and Pope was the fellow genuis. Each kid had their own connection to each other, but in all, they were the closest group of friends you could find, best friends since the day they met. 

And with the closeness of the best friends came a few set of rules. 

One: Never leave a Pogue behind.

However, the rule had been broken a few times when they came a little too close to the cops catching them. But the rule was the foundation of their group. They would die for each other and wouldn’t even think about leaving one. Except when the cops were inches away from putting them in a cop car. The cops were the only exception, though JJ had a knack for ending up there anyway.

Two: No pogue on pogue macking.

That was established by Kie. And seconded by Y/N. If people started to sneak around, the intricate webbing of their friendship would unravel. The rule sharpened the line between Y/N and JJ. This was also another foundation of the group. No kissing or messing around with each other, and everyone would be fine. Sure, they’d kiss on dares and on time Y/N kissed Kie because the boys wouldn’t leave them alone, but that was strictly... ‘professional’. 

There were other rules, but none as important as those two. And, with the closeness of JJ and Y/N, people automatically assumed that they were a couple. Hell, out of the five in the circle, they were the only ones touching, with Y/N’s feet in JJ’s lap, his fingers tracing a soft pattern in her skin. There was no denying or arguing the fact that those two were the closest out of all of them. Soulmates was the one word to describe them.

“Alright, Kie,” JJ called out, thumbs pressing a little harder into the calf of Y/N. She didn’t mind it and smiled lightly at the surfer. “You gotta pay up.”

Kie glared, pulled out of her conversation with Pope. But now everyone’s attention was on the blonde. He smirked and raised his eye brows at the dark haired girl. 

“For what?” Kie asked. 

JJ laughed, “C’mon. The bet about-”

“Yeah, yeah. I know, JJ.” Kie grumbled, embarrassed about loosing the bet. 

The five bet all the time. Nine out of ten times, JJ was involved, but everyone gambled with each other. Over stupid things, but one was always granted a kiss, money or fulfilling a dare. This time, the award in question was a kiss. If JJ could do three of the difficult tricks on his board, three times in a row without messing up, (in one go) Kie would give JJ a kiss. 

But Kie being the clever girl she was, knew JJ didn’t specify the kiss. She smirked, and leaned forward, mouth hovering near JJ’s. 

Y/N looked away, mouth twisting at the thought of JJ wanting a kiss from Kie. It made her heart ache just a little. Y/N had fallen in love with the boy in front of her since high school and had helped her through one of her darkest moments. The blonde never reciprocated the feelings, and Y/N never pursued them. The line between them was clear. Friends, and friends only. Even if she felt like crossing the line, she knew JJ would never feel the same way. Not in a million years. The countless girls he took from Boneyard parties and the locked doors was enough evidence of such. So Y/N kept her secret close to her heart, keeping it from the guy she’d never lied to in her whole life. She’d kept it for two years, silently yearning and begging the boy to feel the same way. 

But here he was, grinning as a girl leaned toward him, rewarding him with a kiss. And not just a girl. Kie. The girl he flirted with shamelessly. Sure, JJ did that with Y/N, but it was toned down and not as obvious. Y/N even overheard the surfer refer to her best friend as “the super hot hippy chick”. It was obvious why JJ made the bet with Kie in the first place, no less established a reward as such.

But Kie wasn’t into him. Or the bet. She smirked for her own reasons and planted a soft kiss on JJ’s cheek. Kie pulled back and sat back down, ignoring the squawk of disbelief from the boy.

“That wasn’t the deal!”

“You never said it had to be on the lips, idiot.” Kie muttered, eyes glancing over to Y/N to see her friend frown slightly at JJ’s reaction. “You’re a dumb ass.” She reiterated, but this time for a different reason. 

Kiara was the only one that knew the feelings the ‘two’ had for each other. But none of the two involved knew that she knew. She saw the way JJ looked at Y/N. Sure it was always different from the way he looked at everyone else, but something had changed in the past year. JJ had caught feelings later, but Kiara knew Y/N had loved the boy since the beginning of high school. 

“What?” JJ pouted, flashing his baby blues. When Kie shook her head, the blonde turned to Y/N. “You’ll kiss me, right?” 

The boy puckered his lips as they curved into a devious smile. Y/N blinked and met the eyes of her best friend. JJ leaned closer, waggling his eyebrows. However, Y/N recovered quickly, and smirked. She leaned in like she was going to kiss them, and then as their lips neared, she put her hands on his chest and shoved him back. JJ floundered, hands reeling and his jaw dropping in disbelief. 

Y/N giggled, smiling at her best friend. But as her stomach erupted in butterflies at the thought that JJ asked her for a kiss, even if she was the second option, JJ’s stomach was sinking because of the slight rejection. 

They knew each other inside out, but for their own reasons, they didn’t know that the other was feeling the same thing. They were falling in love, but they thought they were alone in the plummet, when they could be falling together.

[starshipsofstarlord]

Spider On The Wall | Peter Parker

Request:  Hey :) could you write something about the reader having a major crush on Spiderman and being Peter's friend, but not being aware that he's spiderman, so she's like: fuck he can destroy me with that super strenght and Peter gets a boner cause damn he would love to destroy you as well? lol - Anon

A/N: It might not be great, but I hope you like it anyway. Feel free to send me some feedback, it’d be much appreciated. And don’t forget that requests are open xx

Warnings: It’s a lil smutty (handjob, blowjob)

The thing was, when Peter had became Spiderman, he spared no thought on how you would react to the webslinger in that moment. All he wanted was to fight crime, and get justice for the victims in Queens.

Perhaps he hadn’t thought about your reaction to the boy in red and blue because you had never been one to hype up the idea of superheroes. He could quote, once you had supposed, that you had ‘zero attraction’ to anyone from another planet or someone with superpowers. 

And so he hadn’t suspected you to be spending your time ogling at an ass kicking vigilante, if you could even call him that. Falcon said that he spoke too much when they were fighting, but in all fairness, he still kicked his ass...

That was a few months ago now, that whole hero on hero fiasco. And to his luck, the secret of his identity was safe, from those that he fought against and his loved ones. Except Aunt May... and Ned... Okay, only you. But he was afraid that your boredom of anyone genetically exceptional would dictate the way you felt about him, or didn’t. And in all fairness, those two finding out his truth had been an accident.

Those seemed to be happening too much lately. The only thing to keep him preoccupied was the Stark internship, what wasn’t what it sounded like at all, it was a cover. Even today, when he had been shadowing Mr Stark, he broke a test tube when trying to explain how he makes the suit’s webbing, and then he got stuck in an elevator because FRIDAY was being reprogrammed, and she mistook him saying ‘stop’ as a message to her.

But actually, he was on a call with you, listening to you making fun of a song a lady of the street had played. It was about the Spiderman, being able to apparently do whatever a spider could do. So when he returned home, he had not been expecting to hear the music coming from his room, speaking about him.

He smirked as he opened the door, watching as you laid on his bed, eyes closed, rocking your socked feet to the tune. “I thought you said it was annoying.” He counteracted your earlier statement, making you jump at the sound of his voice.

Aunt May had went out for her weekly shop, so you had expected to have the place to yourself after she had let you in for an hour or so. But Peter was early, and clearly enjoying the redness that was growing on your face.

“It is!” You defended yourself, not wanting your friend to find out your little secret. “But admittedly it’s catchy, so...” You dragged out, hoping that would be enough to make him shove off and leave you alone.

When you realised that the song was still playing, you grabbed your phone, stopping it. “Did you download it?” He asked seriously, astounded by the fact. He saw that it was in your music app, so you must have.

“Well who knows, maybe it will get me to soften up to the idea of a hot guy swinging around the neighbourhood in blue leggings.”

“They aren’t leggings.” He whined, disregarding the other thing that you had said for a second, until, “you think he’s hot?” Peter couldn’t believe it, but if that was the case, then he was feeling jealous at the thought of himself. The only thing was, that you didn’t know that he was that guy.

“I’m optimistic.” You smiled, shrugging your shoulder, trying to not be too open with your opinion. If he knew that you had a thing for Spiderman, you would never hear the end of it. “And plus, everyone thinks he is.”

“They do?” He knew that all of your peers at school perceived him as some sort of god, at least practically, even Flash. But the fact that they found his ulterior attractive gave him some sort of silent confidence. The only problem was, that you seemed more interested in his disguise instead of the real him; your friend.

“Yeah, I mean fuck, he could totally destroy me with his super strength and I wouldn’t care if I was incapable of getting up in the morning. Or the morning after that, or... well, you get the picture.” Yes he did, and it was very vivid. His mouth was gaped open at your confession, and he tried to think of anything that would get his mind off the images that were blurring through his mind.

He couldn’t help it, he was a teenage boy. So he as he thought, he came to one conclusion that would change the topic, although not really. “But you’re a virgin!” He squeaked.

No that didn’t help. Right now, he felt like he knew too much about you. And just the idea made him sigh in frustration, and then he felt it. He had gone hard, and as he dreaded to look down, your eyes followed his gaze, clamping a hand over your mouth, covering your amused giggles.

“Don’t tell me that you have a thing for Spiderman too!” You laughed, making Peter shuffle and try to tug down his shirt, but to no avail did his efforts cover much.

“I don’t.” He wasn’t that vain. In respect you tried to look away, but you just couldn’t, it was practically right in front of you! And so you continued to laugh at the cost of his dignity, feeling bad for your friend at the same time.

“Then what gave you that?” You went to point at it, but you were too close. Your fingertip grazed the bulge in his jeans, making Peter’s eyes widen in shock as he let out a whimper. “Shit, sorry.”

His whole body had gone stiff at the contact, not just that one limb. He was frozen, clearly, and as you knew, had never had anyone touch him there, or really anywhere for that matter.

“Do you want me to leave, so you can, y’know, fix yourself up?” On instinct, you bit your lip, slightly nervous in this situation. As Peter had said, you were a virgin, this was all new territory to you too. “Or... do you want me to maybe, I don’t know... help?” At that thought, you shook your head, ashamed at your own offer. “Never mind, that’s stupid, why would I-”

“Would you?” He was sheepish, and with good reason. He didn’t want to cross a line, he knew that if you left right now, things would be awkward for a while, and then you would never get the real answer of why he had gotten a hard on.

His question had you struck with shock. Yes, when you said it you had been serious, but you had never expected him to actually agree with that condition. “You sure?”

You needed his consent if you were going to go ahead (no pun intended) and do anything to his body. This had to be what he wanted, because these first steps were things that you could ever retake, they weren’t like drafts in class.

“Yeah.” His composure had relaxed from how it had paused. At that he let out a deep breath, relieved that he had even managed to answer you with words. The nervousness that he was feeling, you could relate to.

The two of you were friends. Nothing more, as much as either of you unknowingly wanted to be. Sure, a couple years back you had kissed, but that was just to get the heat of the first kisses off of the both of your chests. And since then, you had never paired your lips with each other’s, let alone another’s.

At his answer, you stood, looking expectedly, dragging him by the sleeve to switch places with him. “Sit down.” You motioned at the edge of his bed with a nod, and he looked back at the portion of covered mattress, before he complied with your command.

You wanted him to be comfortable, you cared about him, a lot. Possibly more than a friend should. Clumsily, you shuffled onto your knees, feeling the carpet through the rips in the knees of your jeans.

You reached towards his belt, but the proximity that your hands were on made his hips buck up in the air. His body was eager, excited. But nevertheless, your fingers continued their route, grabbing onto the pleather and unbuckling it, until you had a free path towards his zipper.

Dragging the closing of metal down, and shimmying the rest of the fabric a little ways down his thighs, you were left with one layer. His boxers. It was dawning on you that this was all happening all so suddenly. Peter noticed the anxiety painting your face, and so he spoke up about it.

“Are you okay?” If you had changed your mind, that was okay. If this wasn’t the position that you were wanting to be put in, then you wouldn’t have to continue. Although you were the one about to do the dirty work, it was still half about you and your emotions.

“Yeah.” Nodding your head, you reached up and began toying with the blue plaid that was covering his nether region, running your fingers below the elastic band slightly. “Just settling into this, it’s new and everything.”

A small smile played at your face, and Peter reached down and began to play with your hair, but not with a sexual intention. He often noticed that when you were tired, or even scared about an oncoming exam, you would do so yourself. And his attempt at calming you worked, and as a result, you dragged the blocking material down, leaving his lower half exposed.

This was the first time that you had seen a penis in person, and at the sight alone your eyes widened. You guessed he was average size, perhaps he was more, but at the end of the day, you had nothing to compare it to. It wouldn’t matter whether it was or not, after all, genitals didn’t define a person.

But still, it was weighing on your mind as you reached forward and took a hold of it in your dominant hand. At your light grasp, Peter threw his head back, clenching his jaw. It felt so much different when it was somebody else’s hand, he realised.

You began moving your hand in soft jerking motions, leaning your head towards the action in interest until a thought appeared in your mind. Sure, hands worked, but so did your mouth, and so you brought the tip to your lips, engulfing it out of curiosity.

The feeling of having something so filling and warm in your mouth was strange. But it wasn’t bad, and so you suckled around the head, letting your eyes roam until they landed on Peter who had now began fisting his own hair and sheets.

“Fuck.” He breathed, with sweat collecting upon his face. It felt so good, possibly even too much. And then you attempted to take him a little further into your mouth, in the direction of the back of your cheek, and with that, he was plunged into pleasure. “I think I’m gonna -” He tried to warn you, but he cut himself off with a groan.

You hadn’t pulled away, instead you had rested your chin upon his thigh, taking everything that he had to give you. Swallowing, frowning at the unusual taste, you pulled him out of your mouth, extensively breathing, surprised with how you had handled the situation, and well, him.

His breathing was still pretty heavy too, but he gave himself a moment to laugh euphorically. “So... you like Spiderman?”

Wiping your mouth, you shook your head at his comment. Of course he had to bring that back up.

[pastelsandpining]

Belongings

A BotW Post-Calamity Zelink hurt/comfort one shot

Summary: Zelda struggles to find her place in this time she should not be a part of, and she doesn’t understand how Link makes it look so easy.

Words: 8156

Warnings: blood mention, depression, honestly not sure what else to add here so proceed with caution and let me know of anything I need to tag!

tagging @etiquetteemotions :) I hope you enjoy!

When she watched him, she wanted to be upset that he couldn’t remember everything. It wasn’t his fault of course, and she knew he was probably facing deep turmoil for it, but she still cried out for the knight she fell in love with. Yet she couldn’t be upset, because he smiled now. He seemed so free of the burden on his shoulders all that time ago. He smiled and laughed and talked.

But it was never with her. Not the way it was with everyone else. 

She saw how he interacted with Sidon and Riju and Yunobo and Paya. She saw how he spoke to stablemen and village people. She saw how his smile was wider, his eyes were brighter, and it was a stark contrast to when he was with her. 

At least, she thought so. Because when he looked at her, his eyes seemed distant. His smiles didn’t reach her heart like they used to. And when he touched her or held her or did anything of the sort, he was so careful. Like he was afraid she’d break apart if he were to touch her in any other way.

There were many times when Zelda felt like she would never fit in with this new life. That she would never connect with Link in his Hateno house, or fit in with all of his new friends, or be anything other than Princess Zelda. Sure, helping Purah and Robbie with research and talking with Impa brought her back down to Hyrule—made her believe that it wasn’t as bad as she thought it was. But then she would return to Link’s home, eat dinner across from what might as well have been an empty chair, and lay in bed, feeling the hopelessness wrap around her like a weighted blanket. 

Some nights, she would feel Link’s arms hugging her ever so gently, and she’d think that maybe it wasn’t so bad.

And then the morning would come and she would wake up alone. 

Maybe it was her. Maybe she’d just become... unreachable. With nothing but the Calamity to keep her company for a century, maybe she’d changed without realizing it. Or maybe she was just a reminder to everyone about what the Calamity had done—how she failed them all the first time. Had it not been for Link, Hyrule would’ve been devastated beyond hope of returning.

The Hero of Hyrule. The savior of them all. Even her. 

And after a century of growing doubts and fading hope, she supposed she would be different too. But her difference didn’t come with the freedom his did. Because Link had done everything right up until the very end. She did nothing right until there was nothing left to do.

There was nothing left to do. No pieces to pick up and put back together—not here. Not in Hateno. 

And after staring at a page filled with scratch outs and unfinished sentences, Zelda decided there was really nothing she could say. Nothing but a sincere thank you, and a hope that his life of newfound freedom would bring him nothing but happiness. So that was all that she left behind. 

Her hands were scraped and blistered from the hours she spent yanking at rubble, at the cave in that cut off the entrance to her bedroom. It was the first place she wanted to see, even though she couldn’t imagine it looked very good. Link said he’d gotten in through climbing, but she certainly didn’t have the upper body strength to climb the tower to her study. She was left with no choice but to use a rusty old sword she’d found to try and help her loosen the rocks and stone and dirt. And she’d done a decent enough job too, or at least that’s what she wanted to believe. The most she’d done was get the rubble to crumble and slide just enough for her to be able to squeeze between the top of the pile and the ceiling. 

Zelda let out a slight scream when the rock beneath her hand gave out and she went sliding head first down the rubble, into her room.

It was completely trashed, which she’d sort of expected. But seeing it was a different story. Her living space, what she’d called home for her whole life, was reduced to practically nothing. Her bed had collapsed in on itself, her papers and books were yellowed and ripped, the staircase to her study was completely gone, and it looked so sad and empty. Yet she had seen so much destruction that she could not bring herself to mourn any more than she already had. 

She ran her fingers through the layer of dust on her vanity. Her mirror was cracked, and spiders had taken over. Her rugs were torn and looked to be burnt up, and the only thing that looked truly intact was the Royal Guard’s Bow above her fireplace, that Link had gifted her a century ago.

She peered out to her balcony, and then up at the missing staircase. Going to her study was out of the question entirely, so she supposed she’d have to wait until the staircase was rebuilt. At least she still had her journal, which Link was kind enough to recover for her. 

She busied herself by carefully pulling down the time-worn papers above her desk. The edges crumbled under her fingers, but her writings and drawings remained untouched—other than the fading. She set them down on her desk in a neat stack and gathered the ones from the floor, then set the paperweight on top of them. Then she got to work on pulling her small, circular table back upright. She pulled the yellowed table cloth off of it and tossed it into a corner. Soon, the pieces of broken chair joined it. 

Her bed was going to be a little tougher to deal with, so she stuck to small things for now. Picking up what rubble she could, using the sword to knock down spider webs, throwing everything she didn’t want to keep into the pile. But it didn’t look like she’d done anything. Maybe her room was also too far gone for her to do anything with.

But to rebuild everything from start..? 

No, not for her room or study. She could manage. But the rest of the castle—she could gather people willing to help. Gorons, Sheikah—all of Hyrule could help if they were willing.

She could invite the Sheikah to return and implement their technology—or at least encourage them to return to creating, and use that in the restoration of Hyrule. She could take the kingdom a step further than it was before, bring it into an entire new age with the help of those her family had wronged.

With the ideas filling in her head, Zelda fished her journal from the bag she carried and quickly scribbled down everything she was thinking of. 

Gorons to help get rid of the rubble. The Bolson Construction Company could work with the Sheikah to create new floor plans and interior designs. The Zora could bring their designs in too, and incorporate the beautiful luminous stones that lit their architecture.

But how would she go about bringing this up to them? She would have to go up to all of the leaders individually—which was not an issue, since she’d been considering going to each region to propose the permanent station of the Divine Beasts as memorials for the Champions. That would be another thing to the list. 

Zelda paced in her room, relaxing into something that felt familiar to her. Brainstorming, keeping herself busy. She could bring in Purah and Robbie to help rebuild the Research Lab too, which sent a flood of excitement through her.

Maybe once she thought she could stay away, but this was where she belonged. She had a duty to her people, to her kingdom, and she refused to fail them again. She refused to sit idly because of what she’d been through. She wasn’t the only one, so she had no right to sit and sulk. Hyrule needed her.

Didn’t it..?

Zelda’s pacing slowed, and she looked back towards the pile of rubble with a frown.

Did Hyrule need her?

Now that the threat of Calamity Ganon was gone, was she really of any use? A century without rule seemed to do Hyrule just fine—even if the kingdom was only beginning to recover. The four regions were thriving well on their own, under their own leaders. And the remaining Hylians—what did they truly need her for? Other than reconstruction, but even then, did they need her for that? She could propose ideas all she wanted, but she could do very little with her hands. 

And now that it was safe for Hyrule to begin rebuilding, who’s to say they wouldn’t? Who’s to say they wouldn’t rebuild on their own? There were brilliant minds out there that didn’t need her permission or her ideas.

Zelda took a slow seat into the red velvet chair and looked around her crumbling room again. 

Did she not belong here either..?

There was no one. Her father—everyone within the castle walls had perished when Ganon rose. Sadness and bloodshed were embedded deep in the walls of this place. There was no one left to tell her how to be a queen, how to rebuild a kingdom. She’d spent her entire life devoted to awakening a sealing power that came all too late. Her father had been right, it seemed. She was an heir to a throne of nothing. Nothing but failure. 

Maybe she shouldn’t have come back. But if she was the heir, didn’t she owe it to the kingdom to rot alongside that nothing? To be reminded of her failure everywhere she looked? 

She didn’t realize she was crying, screaming her voice raw, clutching her father’s journal to her chest, begging aloud to deaf ears—like she’d done for years. What she would give to feel her mother’s hugs, or Urbosa’s comfort again. What she would do to see her father again, even if he were looking down at her in his disappointment. What she would do to have someone, anyone left to guide her. 

To get an answer from Hylia about what to do now that they had won. 

But no one would hear her. 

Zelda curled up in her chair, hugging her knees to her chest, and leaned her head against the top of it. She was reduced to gasping for breath and squeezing her eyes shut, as if that would stop the flow of tears.

It was getting dark now. She’d spent hours here, but she couldn’t bring herself to move. Where would she even go if she did? 

It was getting colder. In regular circumstances, she would have someone light her fireplace. But this was not regular circumstances, and there was no one left to do anything. 

She must’ve cried herself to sleep, because she certainly didn’t remember going willingly. But instead of the nightmares, she was left with a dull ache. Nothing but darkness. Nothing but nothing.

———

When Link returned from hunting to find his house empty, he knew something was amiss. There was a sense of loneliness—the same one that filled the house when he first bought it. He didn’t quite know what to make of it, but he tried not to make assumptions. As much as he wanted to protect her, to not lose her again, he also didn’t want her to feel suffocated. Perhaps she just wanted to take a breather.

But it didn’t feel like Zelda had just gone on a short outing. It felt more like standing among a village of ruins. It felt sad and dull, like the life that once filled it took all the color with it when it left. There was something she brought with her to Hateno, and that something was gone now. Maybe he was simply overreacting, and he would find her at the lab with Purah. 

She would come back later.

Except, the minutes turned into hours and she still hadn’t returned. Link became restless, and he took his horse up to the lab to check for himself. But Purah said that Zelda hadn’t come by at all that day. 

Link raced back to his house to search for any sign of where she might’ve gone, but what he found made him feel nauseous. In her neat handwriting were the words:

Thank you for all you have done.

I wish nothing but happiness for you, and that a day will come where we can meet again.

He read the message over and over again, desperate to pry some other meaning out of it, but it was useless. He knew what she meant by this. 

From the weeks he’d spent with Zelda, to the memories he recovered of her, he knew this wasn’t like her. It wasn’t like her to disappear, or hold back whatever was on her mind. He saw how hesitant, how closed off she’d become since she gained freedom, but he always hoped that maybe she’d talk to him eventually. He shared stories of his journey, took her to see everything he’d seen, in the hopes that she would someday feel comfortable enough to speak. He never wanted to force her.

But maybe he should’ve, because she was gone.

Link didn’t bother grabbing anything other than his gear before taking off towards Kakariko. He had a feeling she wasn’t going to be hiding with Impa, but he was going to need help. 

There was only one other place she could be, but he struggled to imagine why she would return to the castle alone. Why she would suddenly leave without a word. Had he done something? Did he say something that made her want to leave? Did she feel trapped? 

He didn’t know, because she hadn’t talked to him. 

It was dusk by the time Link was finally able to set out for the castle, accompanied by Purah, Symin, Paya, and Impa. He’d been weary about so many people at first, but he let it slide for the sake of finding her before something happened. Sure, he made sure to kill every monster he found when he explored the castle, but there was no way of knowing if other monsters found their way in. Or people looking to find treasure. Or anything, really. Did she even know of the danger she was in?

Of course she did. He needed to give her a little more credit. She faced Ganon alone. Surely she could take a few monsters, or people, right? There were weapons in the castle, scattered everywhere. She would be fine, right? 

Still, Link urged Epona to go faster. They raced past Dueling Peaks, through Central Hyrule, through the gates of the castle. 

“Go,” urged Impa at his hesitation, with a nod towards the tower he’d climbed what felt both like yesterday, and a year ago. “We’ll find our way. Take this. Go find her.”

Link took the damp towel and bandages into his hands and slipped them into his bag before turning on his heel and sprinting towards the tower. He knew at the top would be the study, and the bridge that led to her room. Would she be there..? He couldn’t imagine how she’d accessed it, but no one knew this castle better than Zelda. He was sure there were ways in even he didn’t know about.

The pattern of the stone bricks underneath his hands and feet were familiar as he scaled his way up the tower, going as fast as he could. With no guardians to shoot him down, he was able to reach the midpoint and use Revali’s Gale to get him the rest of the way—at least, to the open window. The study looked as empty and depressing as ever. Zelda was not in here, though he wasn’t surprised. The stairway was broken, after all.

The bridge was empty too, so Link continued on to the princess’s room. 

He could spot her from a mile away. Even if it was dark, and he was descending slowly on his paraglider, he saw her curled up in that dusty chair. Part of him wondered how she got in, and the other part broke upon closer look. She was asleep, but still she looked troubled—almost like she’d been crying. And—was that her father’s journal, in her hands?

And oh, her hands. He crouched besides the chair and gently took hold of one of her wrists. He pulled it gently to him, causing her to only stir, and examined it up close.

Years of climbing experience made him recognize the blisters, but she hadn’t climbed. No, because there was dirt underneath her fingernails and under the torn skin, and there were scrapes caked with dry blood. A glance towards the rubble pile outside the doorway confirmed his suspicions. She’d dug her way in.

Link looked back to her hand and gently pressed the towel to it. She flinched away and was awake in seconds, her wide eyes searching over him like she couldn’t believe them. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

“Hi,” he said softly.

“Link,” she replied, her voice hoarse. “I-“

“Your hands,” he stated, holding one of his own out. “They’ll get infected.”

Wordlessly, Zelda placed her hand back in his. Her father’s journal rested on her lap in favor of the Sheikah Slate, which she tapped away at with her free hand. Link only looked up when he heard the familiar warping sound of an item. 

“Here,” she said softly, holding out a glass bottle filled with water. Link took it with a quiet “thanks” and dumped some on the cloth, figuring he could ask about herbs for medicine later. The priority right now was cleaning the wounds.

He dabbed at one of her palms, mumbling an apology whenever she would wince. He knew from experience that it stung, and it made him feel even worse. And the silence—it was more agonizing by the second. So he tried to fill it.

“You tidied up,” he said, nodding his head towards the trash pile.

“Hardly,” Zelda replied. “All I really managed was stacking some papers.”

“And that, if I recall correctly, is new.”

Her smile was weak and small, and hardly sincere. It didn’t belong on her lovely face. He took care with wrapping her hand and fingers, for an excuse to hold onto her a little longer. 

“I think if there wouldn’t have been a Moblin in here, it wouldn’t be as bad,” he continued, thinking back on what a scare it’d given him originally. The last thing he’d expected to find in her bedroom, a place that was supposed to be so private and safe, was a monster. But then again, a monster had long since taken over her home. “They don’t have the best manners.” 

“A Moblin?” Zelda asked, her eyebrows furrowed. 

“Not sure how it got in,” Link said with a shrug, wetting the cloth again so he could begin cleaning her other hand. 

“A century is a long time,” she replied, her voice breaking just enough to make his fingers twitch with the urge to hold her hands tighter. “There’s really no way to know if the collapse happened during... or later on. It could have found its way in at any point. You mentioned monsters of all sorts infested nearly every room.”

“Not your study. I wish I could take you see it, Zel.”

She was quiet. Link looked up at her to find her gazing at the missing staircase, but he didn’t know if she was actually seeing, or if she was lost in thought. He watched her for a moment, wondering just how much she was thinking of. What memories she must have been replaying—if they were ones he no longer had, if they included him at all. He knew he had been in her study with her at least once, if not multiple times all those years ago. Maybe he used to help her research, or kept her company while she did. He wanted to take her to her study, show her the Silent Princess that bloomed right in the middle. He could remember her mentioning prior attempts to grow them domestically and save them from extinction. Did it result from an attempt of her own, only able to actually flourish a century later?

Link returned his eyes to her hand. It was cold against his, despite what the red, irritated, and torn skin suggested. He tried to stay as gentle as possible as he wiped the grime and blood away, feeling worse every time her hand stiffened in pain. The silence was getting to him again, as was the still overhanging question of what drove her here.

“Zel..” he spoke. If she looked his way, he didn’t know. He busied himself with wrapping her hand. “I would’ve come with you.. You didn’t have to come back here alone.”

“It’s home,” she whispered out. Link glanced up at her, holding her hand just a little tighter.

“I know,” he said. “But home doesn’t have to be just one place.”

Zelda did not reply, but he could faintly hear his name being shouted. He’d nearly forgotten about the others, and clearly Zelda was as shocked as he was. But he stood from his position, letting her hand go at last, and jogged to the pile of rubble.

“—in there?” someone said, muffled by the wall of filth.

“We’re in here,” Link called back, wincing at how loud he sounded. “There’s a hole in the top that you can squeeze though, or we can try to remove more of the cave in.”

He thought he heard something like “stand back”, but he wasn’t sure until he heard a loud crash, and rubble began sliding down towards him. He backed up just in time to miss being pelted by a large rock and the rush of dirt and dust behind it. He coughed, waving his hand in front of his face to try and disperse the cloud it had created. 

“This’ll take a lot more force to clean up entirely,” came the voice of Purah after a coughing fit of her own. 

“We’ll manage,” replied Impa. Once the dust settled, the four were able to enter the bedroom at last. Link gave them all a polite nod and turned back to Zelda, who was staring at them as if they were ghosts. She looked pale.

He crouched before her again and raised the cloth to her face. When she didn’t move to pull away, he started wiping at the grime and scratches.

“This is quite the place to run off to when you’re upset,” spoke Impa again. She sounded far closer than she had before and Link had to keep his surprise that she could move that fast at bay. 

“It’s home,” Zelda repeated, adverting her eyes. Though this time, something about her voice gave away that she didn’t believe it. 

“Maybe once, a long time ago,” Impa said. 

Link raised a hand to Zelda’s cheek, holding her still while he wiped at a scratch on her forehead. She was making a point to avoid looking at anyone. She looked a little guilty, too, though he couldn’t think of why. 

“We can rebuild,” Purah promised, standing to the side of the cushioned chair. “Really, your room isn’t that far gone at all. And most of the castle structure is still intact—at least, the parts we can get to. Really, Princess, it’s not as bad as it looks.”

“That’s kind of you,” Zelda replied, but she shook her head. “But reconstruction will take years.”

“It’s not impossible,” Purah argued, grabbing the arm of the chair with her little hands. 

Link slowly lowered his hands now that Zelda’s face was, for the most part, clean. He capped what remained in the bottle and set it aside, reaching instead for the Sheikah Slate. When she didn’t stop him, he placed a hesitant hand on her knee and got to work looking through their gathered materials. He could make a healing potion for her hands with the right parts.

“No,” Zelda agreed, leaning back in the chair. “But it’s long and tedious and.. and we— I do not deserve your help.”

He furrowed his eyebrows and looked up at his princess with a frown. He wasn’t the only one, but her eyes remained stubbornly glued to the floor. An overwhelming desire to see those green eyes sparkle with happiness once again hit him, but he didn’t know what to do about it. Was it even his place?

“The concept of being ‘deserving’ of anything is silly,” spoke up Paya. Her voice was soft and rushed, like she were nervous to be speaking up to a princess. Link didn’t blame her. He felt like that too, in the beginning. “I’m sorry, Princess, but everyone deserves kindness, regardless of what they themselves think. To imply that they don’t is to say that they’re not.. human.”

“Paya is right, dear child. But I can think of no one more deserving of a comfortable home and happiness than you,” Impa said. 

Zelda looked like she was trembling. Link set down the Slate and gently took her bandaged hands in his own. Only then did she look at him, her green eyes glistening with unshed tears. The sight tore his heart in half. 

“Talk to us,” he whispered, running his thumbs over her knuckles. “To me. Please.”

He wished he could read her mind, soothe whatever fight she seemed to be having with herself. But all he could do as tears slipped down her cheeks was kneel upright against the chair and wrap her in a hug. And the journal she kept in her lap fell to the floor when she pressed closer, holding parts of his shirt in tight fists. He held her tighter, hoping just maybe, he could keep the remaining pieces of her together. 

“I’m sorry,” she said again. Link shook his head.

“Don’t apologize, please. You have nothing to be sorry for. But if there’s anything I can do-“ 

“Link, you’ve done so much.” She was looking at him again, like he were some kind of grand hero. He was, according to almost all of Hyrule. But when she addressed him as such, and looked at him as such, it was different. Like he were her hero, and hers alone. Sometimes, he wished he were. “Really, there is nothing more for you to do.”

“I can be here, with you. If you really wanted to come back, I would’ve come with you.” 

He felt like he was begging. Begging for her to still give him a place in her life. For how confused he’d been when his journey began, he felt so inexplicably complete when he finally got her back. He wanted to feel that way again—wanted her to know that feeling if she didn’t already. But he would struggle greatly with acceptance if she didn’t want his help.

“Why come back?” she asked, pulling back from his embrace and leaving him empty. She looked so sad. “The heir to a throne of nothing. Is that really who you want to follow?”

He could still hear those words, spoken originally in the gruff voice of the king. At the time, Link found him to be acting as neither a king or a father. It was cruel, to spit those words in a sixteen-year-old’s face. To relay to her what the gossip mongers said behind her back, to imply that they were correct in some sort of way. She tried all she could, but they refused to let her be of any help outside of her supposed destiny. Little did they know her destiny involved facing a great evil alone, locking herself away for over a century. And yet, all these years later, those words still bit deeply into her. Did she truly believe them? After all she had done?

Link had never once believed in those words. Though he was as clueless as anyone else on why the goddess remained silent, he instead believed that she would save them all. Her worth and ability were never tied to any sacred power. Not to him, not to her friends, and not to her father. It was just a shame the king picked so late to act like one.

He reached up to hold her face again, trying to get her to look at him. 

“I follow the princess who cared so much about her kingdom that she sealed herself away with evil incarnate for over a century. I follow the princess who worked tirelessly to fulfill her duty. I follow the princess who knelt in freezing waters for hours at a time to pray on deaf ears. I follow the princess who did everything she could, and not just because she was told to.”

“You follow a princess who killed you and countless others with her inability to do her job,” she spat, but there was no venom to her words. She just sounded.. tired. Link shook his head again, racking his brain for the right thing to say. What had he said back then, in moments like these? What would work to comfort a broken soul? 

“Please.” He was begging again. He was desperate, because her coming here alone meant more than what she was saying. “Please don’t blame yourself for the things Ganon caused. I hate to admit it Zel, but we were fucked regardless whether or not you unlocked your powers. But they don’t blame you—and neither do I.”

“But why don’t you?” Zelda asked, finding a grip on his shirt once again. “I was so cruel to you, so jealous of you.. and in the end... I don’t understand.”

“I took a vow to protect you with my life, Zelda.” He brushed his thumbs over her cheekbones, wishing he could get rid of her unshed tears that easily. “And I’d do it again. Without hesitation. Wherever you go, I will be there.”

Because without her, it felt so very empty. Even with the friendships he’d made along the way. And the why evaded him until he’d come to understand that it was better left unspoken. And the weeks spent with her in Hateno, while they tried to adjust to this world neither of them were really a part of, was when the pieces of the puzzle fell together. 

“That vow was made as a knight to a princess and a king, in preparation for the Calamity. There is no threat. There is no more king. And there is hardly a princess. But should you need it, I, Princess Zelda of Hyrule, officially release you from your vows.”

Link shook his head again, as if it could prevent the words from reaching his brain, his heart.

He felt like she was slipping right through his fingers. Just as she had with every memory along the way. One minute she would be there with her green eyes and warm, sunny smile, or annoyed glare, or concentrated expression. Then he would open his eyes and find himself alone, with any lingering warmth fleeting to join her in the castle, locked far away from him. He would look towards the castle and think of nothing but her. This Zelda that he knew long ago, this voice that compelled him to find her, this Princess that a century ago, he had fallen in love with and given his life for. And maybe his memories were fragmented, and maybe he’d never get them all back, but he was certain of that much.

“I made a promise to protect you, Zelda, princess or not. Because I want to. So if this is where you want to be,” he freed a hand to gesture to the room around them, “then I will be there too.”

“You belong to the wild,” Zelda replied simply, bringing her hands to cover his. “I can’t take you away from that.”

“Then stay with me there, please. Or, or with Impa in Kakariko, or Purah in the lab. Anything is better than here, cold and alone.” She had to know that. To return to a place of nightmares...to consider staying... Link was so afraid she was too far gone, and they hadn’t caught anything until she’d broken. 

Zelda peeled his hands from her face and shook her head. Link couldn’t find the right words, and he’d never felt so hopeless before.

“I’m afraid,” began Impa, joining them at the chair. Her wrinkled hands covered theirs. Link hoped with all his heart that they were bringing warmth back to her icy fingertips. “That her century with malice has driven the light from her mind. Princess, why have you convinced yourself that what you want is unreachable?”

Zelda recoiled at the question. Link tightened his hold on her hands ever so slightly, because he felt her trying to slip away again. 

“There are times when the darkness can extinguish the light,” she replied, tearing her green eyes away. 

“And the blame for that does not fall on your shoulders, sweet child. In fact, Hyrule would not have been able to recover at all, had it not been for your selflessness. The horrors you endured, sealed away with a beast, are something we cannot ever understand. But we can recognize that without you, Hyrule would have fallen completely to Ganon’s control. When you focus solely on your stubborn power, you ignore the other things you were able to do. Without your help, the Champions would have been unable to master their Divine Beasts.”

“The Champions are dead,” Zelda repeated, her voice trembling again. Link knew the feeling, and goddesses, how he wished he could grant her the closure he’d received. He found himself praying, begging out for Urbosa to somehow come to her aid, appear to her and let her know in a way he couldn’t that it was alright. 

“The Champions knew just what and how much they were risking when they answered your call, Princess. You chose well. But I’m afraid Link is right, Ganon would have taken them out even if you had awakened your power. The beast was prepared for our attack, and I’m afraid by following our ancestors so closely, we doomed ourselves. But the blame for that does not fall upon you.”

“But if I had just worked harder, if I had done more, prayed harder, then maybe-“

“Zelda,” Impa said, her voice stern. Even Link felt like he was being scolded, and he was nothing more than a bystander. “You gave all your efforts and in the end, prayer was hardly what woke your power.”

Her eyes drifted to Link. She looked defeated, because she did know. And so did he. When Kass relayed to him the song, he’d nearly cried. It wouldn’t have been the first of the tears shed on his journey. And it wasn’t the first time he’d learned of a princess doing something out of her love for him. He remembered quite clearly when he found out—how he spent that night asking into empty air if it were true. No answer ever came to him. 

“I know,” Zelda replied at last, ducking her head and instead looking at their hands. In two simple words, his answer had come.

“Then I trust you to make the decision you believe is best for you. But no decision should be made at this hour. I suggest we get some sleep before dawn’s light is upon us.” Impa’s hands lifted, and with a simple gesture to Paya, they disappeared through the rubble at the doorway.

“If you ever need a place to go, or someone to talk to about ideas, my door is always open. But I have to agree with my sister on this one. You should get some rest, and make your decision in the morning.” And Purah and Symin were gone as well.

Now that they were alone, Link wished he knew what to say. He wished he could leave it at that and tell her to get some sleep. But he couldn’t.

“I still don’t understand,” he said, releasing her hands so he could dig in his pockets. Zelda lifted her head to look at him, and he held up the piece of paper she’d torn out of her diary. The writing that was burned into his brain. “Why?” 

She lowered her gaze again, but she did not answer. 

“I thought you might’ve been at the lab with Purah,” Link continued to fill the silence. “And then I thought maybe you went to Kakariko, but Impa said she hadn’t seen you.”

“I’m sorry,” Zelda said softly. Her eyes were fixed on the dirty rug beneath her chair, but he could tell she was looking far past that.

“Why didn’t you talk to me..? Or say goodbye, at the very least?”

“I just.. I couldn’t,” she admitted, hugging her arms. “It would’ve made it harder.”

“How long have you been thinking of leaving..?”

“A week or so...” 

Link let out a sigh, dragging a hand down his face. He felt guilty again, for not saying anything when he first noticed her drawing back. Maybe she thought he was disappointed, because she continued,

 “I just—I didn’t know what to say. I’m sorry.”

“Did something happen, Zel..?” he asked hesitantly, lifting his gaze back to her’s. It was selfish, but part of him needed to know if it was him, or the setting. “To make you want to leave, I mean. Do you not like it in Hateno?”

“No, no-! Hateno is lovely, Link.” She straightened up, reaching out a hesitant hand towards him. But she dropped it before it made any contact. “I just...”

“You don’t have to talk to me,” Link said, lifting a hand to her face, though he desperately wanted her to. “But if there’s anything you need, please let me know. You don’t have to suffer alone.”

After a moment more, he dropped his hand to his side and picked up the Slate again. He wished there was more he could say or do, to help her. But this wasn’t something he could swing a sword at and disintegrate.

“Do you ever feel like you don’t quite belong here?” she asked, ending the stretch of silence. “Like you shouldn’t be, because you belong to a different time?”

Link looked up at her, masking his surprise that she was perhaps finally speaking what was on her mind. He nodded once, but said nothing more, urging her to continue. She did.

“At first, Hyrule didn’t look much different than it had before.. But seeing Castle Town and Central Hyrule in ruin was still... so fresh. Something that took years to build and was once full of life, was destroyed in minutes. So many lives lost... And then I find this new village—two, actually, filled to the brim with life. Like the Calamity had never touched them at all. And it was so.. different.”

“A Hyrule one hundred years later,” Link said, finding her hands again. “Toeing the line between recovery and destruction. And the only thing keeping that line steady is you.”

“I’m sorry,” Zelda said again, her hands twitching like she wanted to pull them away. “I shouldn’t be complaining when you’ve no memory of the Hyrule we were a part of all those years ago.”

“But maybe that’s a good thing,” he responded. It made her finally look at him, her eyes wide with shock. But he’d thought long and hard on it, and he was being honest.

“Link-“

“I’m serious,” he insisted. “I don’t remember everything. And it hurts sometimes, that I can’t remember everything about you, and about our friends. But I don’t feel the pain that came with fighting Ganon, or fending off guardians. I don’t feel the burden of the sword. I’m.. a little more free of that trauma than you are. For a century, you sealed yourself away with nothing but evil incarnate. And you still remembered everything you had done and been through up until that moment.”

“You make it look so easy. Living in this Hyrule, I mean. You have so many friends, you seem so comfortable and at home..”

“It’s hard not to make friends when they risk their lives to help you. And I don’t think I’d be as well off if I still remembered everything. But it’s not easy. I’m living in a world I really know nothing about. And as for home, well... it didn’t feel like home. Not until you were with me and safe.”

Zelda blinked. She looked like she wanted to cry again, but Link was being more honest than he’d ever been. Yet for some reason, a fraction of hurt took over her eyes. It was gone as quickly as it had come, but he saw it.

“You hardly know me,” she said. Even she winced at that and went to apologize, but Link held her hands a little tighter and willed her to look directly at him as he spoke, pouring everything he could into his words.

“I know that you love your people so much, you faced Ganon alone. I know that you love to research and wanted to learn as much about Sheikah technology as possible. I know you faced criticism from everyone, even your own father, but you pushed yourself to your limit anyway with a silent goddess. I know you saw me as a reminder of your own failures, and I know you tried to convince me to taste a frog. I know your favorite dessert is fruit cake, I know you had a white horse you named Storm who you struggled with at first, I know Urbosa was like a second mother to you, I know Revali annoyed you just as much as he annoyed me, I know we somehow ended up as friends, and I know what woke your powers in the end.”

Zelda looked as if she couldn’t find the words she wanted to say. It wasn’t impossible to believe, given he’d mentioned some things only someone who was close to her would know, but maybe that last part should’ve stayed to himself.

“Urbosa did always say it was quite obvious.” She shook her head and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. “Did she tell you?”

“Kass did,” Link replied, adverting his eyes. He felt a little guilty to admit it. “The Rito Bard. His teacher, the court poet, set out to.. learn some ballads about the ancient hero, so he could help me. He mentioned it in his song. Though, now that I think about it, it was a little... rude. I mean, it’s no one’s business and..”

Zelda looked amused. Link forced himself to stop speaking, which was new. He was still getting used to a lot of things.

“Well, he didn’t say anything that wasn’t true. It’s better you hear it from them, than a gossip monger who has nothing better to do but impose on the life of others.”

“I’d rather hear it from you,” he replied with a shrug before he could stop himself. Even in the dim lighting of the room, he could see the way her cheeks flushed. 

“You just did,” she argued, ripping her hands away so she could cross her arms. Link held his hands up in defense. 

“All I’m saying is that having a descendant of the goddess Hylia herself love you is quite the feeling.”

“Oh, so being Zelda isn’t enough for you then? You’ve got to play the goddess card to inflate your already big head?” But there was no malice behind her words, and the faint smile on her lips was more than worth it. 

“Now I never said that,” he defended, fending off a smile of his own. “I happen to find Zelda absolutely wonderful all on her own. But having goddess powers is cool, too.”

A small giggle passed her lips. The light was returning to her eyes slowly, but progress was progress and Link was desperate to keep it up.

“I’m glad someone around here appreciates Zelda,” she joked, leaning back in her chair once again. He rested a hand on her knee and looked up at her, letting the smile onto his lips.

“Someone should tell her that she’s deserving of love, and happiness, and a fresh start too.”

Zelda’s smile was weak, but it was there. It was enough to make him swell with hope that maybe, maybe they’d figure it out eventually. But something was still eating at her. He could see it in the way she adverted her gaze again, for what seemed like the hundredth time.

“What if I don’t get along with your new friends?” she asked at last. “If I don’t fit in?”

It would’ve been rude to laugh. Her fears were absolutely valid, and he took her hands again in an attempt to show that. But it was hard for him to imagine any of his friends not getting along with Zelda. She was lovely, even after years of nothingness. He was sure she would fit in perfectly.

“Sidon will absolutely, enthusiastically praise you for every little thing you do,” Link began, counting off his closest friends. “Yunobo will bow to you with your strength, maybe even ask you to help him with his own. Riju will be the little sister you never had. And Teba may be just as proud as, but he’s less openly arrogant than Revali. They will love you, I promise.”

“And if they don’t?”

“Zel, I can’t believe you’re worried about that. If you could hold the Calamity back for a century and make me fall in love with you twice, then you can easily make friends who’ll love you just as much.”

The confession he hadn’t intended on making caused a smile to tug at the corners of her lips, and Link knew maybe, finally he’d said the right thing. He gently pulled her forwards by her hands but before he could kneel to meet her, she’d joined him on the floor. He wrapped his arms around her, pressing her into his chest with an unspoken promise to continue being by her side until the end of time.

“If you’re really ready to be here,” he whispered out, “then I’ll be here. But if you’re not, it’s never too late to come back home.”

Zelda pressed her face into his shoulder, and he leaned his head against hers, drawing gentle shapes on her back.

“Thank you for coming after me.”

“Of course. If I didn’t, people would think I was mad at my princess or something.”

Zelda let out a quiet laugh and he felt her hold him a little tighter. 

“What, so you only came after me to protect your reputation?” she joked, tilting her head up so she could look at him, forcing him to lift his head.

“Obviously,” Link said as he looked back down at her. “Can’t be the Hero of Hyrule if I leave their princess all alone.”

“If I recall, you did that for over a century.”

“My bad.”

Zelda laughed again, the sound bright and joyous in the empty room. It filled him with comfort, and he couldn’t help simply gazing at her, taking in every little detail he could see. Part of him wondered if he’d really forgotten her, because it felt impossible to imagine a time he didn’t know her face. Her lovely eyes, her warm smile, her infectious laugh, her pink lips—it wasn’t something that could be forgotten. A beauty like hers transcended that. 

“I meant it when I said thank you for everything,” she said with a small smile. “Hyrule really is in your debt.”

“I would do it again and again.” Without thinking, he pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. It was lucky for him that her love lasted over a century. 

“Get some sleep,” she said softly, tugging the cushion from the chair and tossing it behind him. “You must be exhausted.”

“I slept for a hundred years. I think I’ll be fine,” he replied, but laid back and rested his head on the cushion anyway. Zelda laid gently on top of him, resting her head against his chest. Link folded his arms around her and took a deep breath so her scent enveloped him again. Her fingers tapped against his shoulder, keeping time with his heartbeat. He knew, just as he had for a while, that they were right where they needed to be. He couldn’t speak for Zelda, but he knew that he belonged with her, no matter what life it was.

And he closed his eyes, missing the dawn’s light peaking over the horizon.

Masterlist

[siren1song]

Merman Dee AU, Anxceit, shell

Me, lover of mermaids: OH WORM??

Taglist: @acanvasofabillionsuns, @emo-disaster, @greenninjagal-blog, @jungle321jungle, @demidork84

Sea Life

Virgil didn’t like being on land too much. He preferred the open sea, the rocking of a ship under his feet and the salty air blasting his face as he moved around on deck. Preferred hearing his shipmates laughing and singing and working as they sailed, looking for a rich man’s ship to raid, or a village to plunder.

He supposed land had something to offer though, with its pretty greenery and… shops? Maybe?

Listen, Virgil hated going on supply runs when they couldn’t find another ship to raid and take their stock. Like sure, he was good at figuring out how much they’d need to last for a while but being on the sea was so much better than the unsettling stillness of the earth under his feet.

At least he was done with scouting where they needed to hit. He’d taken a week, only spending money on his Inn room, and he was packing up now to get back to the ship so the rest of the crew could pillage and have their fun while he recovered from being on land for too long.

Virgil was shoving clothes into a burlap sack he carried with him everywhere when he went on land, not really caring about being neat or careful with how he got them in there until he heard a thunk and his heart dropped.

Was that..?

He dropped the sack, getting on his knees to dig around in the clothes still on the floor. There was a frantic search for a moment, Virgil holding his breath until he moved a dark colored shirt and a flash of pale cream caught his eye.

Sagging in relief, he picked up the frog shell, fingers brushing over the brown spots decorating it.

Virgil remembered getting this, remembered the man who had given it to him. He wished he could see him again, wished he could give him the kiss he’d always wanted to.

“I want you to have this.”

Virgil looked up from the shell, more confused than he had been when Dee had handed it to him.

“What? It’s just a shell, Dee.”

Dee frowned at that, shifting on the rock he’d chosen to rest on while Virgil sat cross-legged in the sand of the small island next to it.

“No, it’s… important. In ways I doubt you can understand. I won’t try and explain, but if you really think we won’t be able to see each other again I want you to have it.”

Virgil looked back to the shell, turning it over in his hands and admiring the strength he could clearly feel.

“I do really think that. I wish it wasn’t true, I l-” he stopped, clearing his throat for a second as he closed his eyes, “care, about you. I enjoy your company quite a bit. But my captain grows suspicious of my constant leaving of the ship, especially with my usual hatred of being on land.”

Dee was quiet for a moment, then he slid off the rock, tail curling under him in the sand. He put his webbed hand on Virgil’s jaw, gently directing his head towards him so he could look the mer in the eyes, stark yellow and pupils slitted unnaturally.

“I care about you too.”

“Virgil!”

Virgil jumped, nearly dropping the shell in his hands as he whipped his head in the direction of the door, seeing Patton standing there with a bright grin and heaving chest.

“Are you ready? The captain is getting impatient, he wants to set fire to the town and you’re still here with the information for which shops have the best quality supplies!”

He huffed out a laugh, carefully setting the shell into his sack before shoving the rest of his clothes in on top of it.

“Yeah I’m ready, sick of being on land,” he said, pushing up from the floor so he could follow Patton out of the inn.

They ran through the empty dirt cobblestone streets, the bottoms of their shoes (or feet, in Patton’s case) slapping against the stone as they made their way to the docks.

Virgil’s excitement grew when he saw the sea, and then more as he clambered into the boat that would take them to the Mind Palace, a ship that wasn’t yet recognizable but would be, under Captain Sanders’ command.

When they were next to the ship, Patton got ready to call for being brought up, stopping only when he saw the look on Virgil’s face.

“Sometimes, Virgil, I think you love the sea more than anyone else who has ever chosen life on the water,” he said, smiling as Virgil laughed.

“Quite literally born on the water, Pat, I think my love of the ocean is warranted. Come on, let’s get us up on the ship, I’m ready to share my information and then sleep for a fortnight.”

Patton laughed himself, calling up for the two on the ship waiting for them to raise them up to lower the ropes.

“Two days for every one you were on land, as usual. Honestly, Virge, I’d think you were siren yourself if I wasn’t so thoroughly acquainted with your mother.”

Virgil rolled his eyes, helping Patton get the boat ready to go up. It was still weird for him to think that his friend knew his mother so well, especially since Virgil barely remembered her.

It wasn’t much longer until he was back on the ship, taking a moment to cherish the rocking under his feet, breathing in the sea air and the wind blowing through his hair.

“You belong on the water.”

Virgil jumped, turning towards the unfamiliar voice and yelping when he saw the man on the edge of the boat he was standing in.

It was clear the man wasn’t human, with his webbed fingers and finned ears. What was catching Virgil the most off guard was the glowing yellow eyes, pupils sporting a cats eye slit. 

“What?” he asked, confused by the jumble of feelings in chest. 

He couldn’t tell if he was afraid or in love, but his heart was pounding in his chest and this mer was beautiful.

The merman smirked, tilting his head to the side as his eyes went from the unnatural purple hues in Virgil’s hair, down to his torso where thin lines he was born with decorated his ribs under his shirt (how he knew to stop there, Virgil was unsure), then down to his legs.

“I suppose I should rephrase. You belong in the water.”

Virgil gave a disbelieving laugh, sitting back down as he stared at the mer.

“Are you a siren after my heart and life? Or simply a mer after my flesh?”

The man scoffed, rolling his eyes.

“I am a siren, but I hold no interest in feeding myself with you.”

“I’m not sure whether to be relieved or offended. Am I not to your tastes, siren?”

The siren lifted an eyebrow, looking over his body again.

“Tell me, pirate, have you ever wondered why you naturally had a shade of color in your hair that other human’s never had?”

Virgil hummed, removing the shiv he had hidden in his boot so he could play with it between his hands. A simultaneous warning and fidget. 

“I have, but it’s never been something that’s bothered me. I know how to hide it, whatever it may mean, and it does nothing but look pretty.”

The siren nodded, resting his chin over his arms as he watched Virgil.

“I suppose, if it doesn’t bother you, I won’t push,” he commented, earning a look of befuddlement from Virgil.

“I wasn’t aware there was something to push.”

The siren shrugged, but didn’t give Virgil any more than that.

With a sigh, Virgil let it drop. He was sure he didn’t want to know anyway. Sirens were known for telling men what they wanted to hear to lure them to their deaths, so it was for the best anyway.

“Do you have a name?” he asked, cleaning the dirt from under his nails with the shiv, glancing up only when the silence after his question stretched just a bit too long.

“I do. Are you sure you want to know it, pirate?”

Virgil hummed in thought, pressing the tip of the shiv to the tip of his finger.

“I think I do. You’re a beautiful man, siren or no, it’d be a shame not to at least learn your name.”

The siren lifted his head, staring at Virgil with wide eyes the unnatural glow they were giving off in the dark seeming to get brighter as his face began to glow a soft yellow.

“…My name is… complicated to share, in its entirety in human languages. But you can call me Dee.”

He smiled, looking up at the stars.

“Dee, hm? My name is Virgil.”

“Virgil? Are you okay?” Patton asked, waving a hand in front of Virgil’s face and making him jerk back in surprise.

“Huh?”

Patton’s concerned expression deepened, looking at Thomas who Virgil only just realized was standing in front of him with an equally concerned look.

“You haven’t been responding to us for the last few minutes, and Thomas here has definitely been trying to talk to you.”

Virgil flushed, rubbing at the side of his neck and avoiding looking Thomas in the eye.

“Sorry Captain, just relieved to be back on the water.”

Thomas nodded, though he didn’t look like he believed the lie. Which was fair, Virgil wouldn’t have believed it either.

Dee would be disappointed.

“Alright. I just need the list of locations, Virgil, and you can rest, though you’ll have to stay on deck, Logan played with something that made him sick again and Roman is taking care of him so they can’t keep watch like usual.”

Virgil nodded, listing the places he found that the crew should focus on raiding, already eyeing the railing on the far side of the ship where there was rope coiled for him to sit in.

It took an hour before Virgil was alone again, sitting against railing of the ship and staring up at the stars.

He missed looking at the night sky with Dee. The siren often had something interesting to say about whatever new thing he found that fascinated him. Virgil had fun, misleading him about whatever he’d shown him, laughing when Dee would catch on that he was lying through his teeth about the use of a fork he’d found or a rusty candle holder, likely retrieved from a shipwreck.

“I see you still stare at the stars as if you want to join them,” a familiar voice said, making Virgil straighten from his slouched position, turning towards the voice with wide eyes and-

“Dee!” he shouted, a grin spreading on his face that quickly dropped in concern as he looked around the ship.

Logan and Roman may be below deck, but Virgil still worried about the siren getting caught.

Dee rolled his eyes, heaving himself up until he was sitting on the ship wall, tail leaving a puddle of water on the deck beneath him.

“Oh don’t worry so much Virgil, I can take care of myself.”

Virgil looked back at the siren, letting out a small laugh because yeah, that was true.

“Yes, I remember watching you take on a massive shark for fun. Still, what are you doing here? It’s been years since we’ve last seen each other, I’d figured you’d forgotten me by now.”

Dee went quiet, looking up at the stars- a habit he seemed to pick from Virgil, since he himself did that whenever he needed to think.

“I could never forget you, Virgil. You may be a pirate, but you’re still... I still love you, even if I never told you that to your face.”

Virgil’s breath hitched, unable to respond as he looked at Dee with wide eyes.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why now. Well...” Dee looked down at him, smile soft, “would you like to learn something new about yourself?”

Virgil hesitated, standing from the deck so he could be level with Dee’s eyes as he thought.

“If you’re the one showing me? I suppose that couldn’t be a bad thing.”

Dee snorted, rolling his eyes as Virgil grinned.

“You’re a sap, Virgil.”

“I’m a romantic, Dee. Though don’t tell anyone. My crew mates will get insufferable if they learn that.”

Dee smiled softly, holding out a hand, an offer for Virgil to take.

Why did Virgil feel like if he took it, his entire life would change?

“Kiss me, Virgil. Let me taste you.”

Dee’s voice was soft, and Virgil felt as if his heart would burst from his chest at the request.

He didn’t even think twice, taking Dee’s hand in his own and surging forward, pressing his lips to the siren’s in a passion he wasn’t known to give anything but the sea.

Dee wrapped his free arm around him, his hand shifting to his wrist as they kissed and he held Virgil close.

And then they were free falling to the water, Virgil not even able to hold his breath before he was submerged.

Honestly, he hoped Dee had a reason for this. He hoped he wasn’t being betrayed someone he loved, not again at least.

“Relax, Virgil, I promise if you open your eyes you’ll see that you’re fine.”

How was he able to hear Dee’s voice so clearly?

Why weren’t his lungs burning? Why wasn’t he drowning?

“Open your eyes, love.”

Virgil opened his eyes as Dee asked, first seeing the siren’s apologetic face.

“Sorry for the shock, it needed to happen for the change.”

“Change?”

Virgil had spoken without thinking, and it had taken a moment for him to recover from the shock of water filling his throat. But it hadn’t hurt and it was gone with a bizarre push coming from his ribs.

“Look down, Virgil, really,” Dee teased, laughter ringing in his tone.

He always did find Virgil’s confusion amusing.

Virgil looked down.

At first, he didn’t know what he  was supposed to be seeing. There was Dee’s pale yellow tail, swishing lazily in the water, skin shimmering in the moonlight reaching into the sea. It was something Virgil loved to look at.

And then he saw the dark purple sheen underneath him, fear spiking until he realized it was connected to his waist.

He had a tail.

[actuallybarb]

The Aftermath ~ Part 3

Summary: y/n learns how much of a dick mysterio is and gets hit in the head because of it

Pairing: peter parker x reader

Warnings: swearing, angst, fluff, mysterio being a dick, trauma, it’s marvel what did you expect

Word Count: 2017, the year i honest to god don’t remember, like at all

A/N: okay we’re starting to get rolling and i’m excited! i don’t remember how far i got last time but i’m really glad i’m finishing this time

                                                        //////////

If Harrington thought I was going to the opera his head was farther up his ass than I thought. We all groaned as he made the announcement and turned back upstairs to get changed. But I didn’t go back downstairs.

“Come on, Y/N.” I didn’t peg MJ as one to plead, but here she was, making puppy dog eyes at me. But if I could resist Peter’s, I could resist anyone’s.

“Remember how I said I was trying to prove Peter wrong? That’s way more entertaining than some stupid opera.”

I could feel her losing patience with me. Hell, I was losing patience with me. I wasn’t really helping myself become more integrated in my class, but Quentin Beck was all I could think about. I had to solve this mystery, for Peter and for myself.

MJ scoffed before slamming the door on her way out of the room. I paid no mind to it and got to typing.

It felt disrespectful to break into the servers of a company who’s namesake had just died, but I tried to convince myself this is what Tony Stark would’ve wanted. Yeah, sure, Y/N. I know, I’m pathetic, let’s move on.

It only took me an hour and a half to break in, and ten minutes after that to find Beck’s file.

It wasn’t pretty.

“Contract terminated due to unstable behavior.”

“Upon further psychoanalysis Quentin Beck has shown sociopathic tendencies and is a danger to himself and others.”

“Before removal from Stark Industries, Beck manipulated company drones to create illusions, disturbing many employees, including Tony Stark himself.”

Oh.

Fuck.

The stupid metal thing in the water, it was part of a drone. A drone used to make the Elemental.

I have to tell Peter.

I pulled on my sneakers and started running through the streets of Prague to the Opera House, but I ran into MJ, literally, as she was leaving.

“Where are you going?”

“Why are you running?”

“I asked you first.”

“I’m following Peter.”

“I’m looking for Peter.”

“Did you figure it out?”

“Yeah. And if we don’t get to him soon he’ll do something really stupid.”

I let MJ lead the way as we ran in the direction of the light festival. But before we could get too close, I pulled her aside.

“Listen, shit is about to hit the fan. As much as you’ll want to look for Peter and help, promise me you’ll stay back. Okay?”

“What are you gon—“

“Just promise me, MJ. I need to protect my friends.”

She gulped. “Okay, yeah, I promise.”

I exhaled in relief. “Good. Now let’s find Peter before this all goes to hell.”

It wasn’t that hard to find him. He was the one webbing the fire monster up, or at least trying to. But MJ didn’t know that. MJ couldn’t know that.

“Remember when I told you to stay back? That’s the smart thing to do right now.” MJ nodded and moved to a side street, still with an ample view of the festival.

I knew it was an illusion. But I couldn’t figure out how it was so real. What had Peter said? It grows stronger with metal? That’s something I could work with.

Of course, the big metal scaffolding was right where the fire monster was headed. But something distracted me first.

“Help! Help!” Betty and Ned were trapped in the ferris wheel, and the Elemental was getting closer and closer.

“What the hell are you guys doing here?”

Betty looked down at me and visibly sighed. “Thank god, Y/N, can you get someone to help us? We can’t get down.”

“Yeah, just—just hold on.” I could easily help them. But did I want my secret getting out to any more people?

Another swipe from the Elemental that was a little too close for comfort made my decision for me. I hovered myself up beside their door and manipulated the gears in the lock, letting it swing open as wide as their mouths were.

“Y/N, what the—“

I lifted some rock beneath the cobblestone and made a sturdy platform for them to stand on. “You might wanna hold onto something.” Then I shot them back down the thirty feet to the ground. “Now get the hell out of here.”

“We’re talking about this later!” Ned shouted as he and Betty ran for cover. I just rolled my eyes as I landed on the ground again.

In the time it took to get them to safety, though, Quentin showed up and was putting on a fantastic show. And I still had no idea how it worked. But I was determined to foil it.

One of the perks of being able to conjure fire: if I concentrate hard enough, I can become fireproof. So I could easily get in the middle of the fiery bastard and see how he did it. But I couldn’t be seen. Or, I could douse him up and hope he hardens, like lava.

The cat’s out of the bag, Dani, just finish the stupid thing.

Yeah, yeah, okay, whatever.

I felt a pull in my gut, my abs tightened, and I could hear the rush of water in my ears. With all of the strength I had left, I directed the water shooting out of the fire hydrant straight in the Elemental’s face. It was working, too, he wasn’t going anywhere.

Then something hard and heavy hit the back of my head, and I went out like a light.

//////////

“Shit, shit, shit! C’mon, wake up, wake up!”

It felt like my skull was caved in. I knew it wasn’t, considering I could actually feel how bad my headache was, but that didn’t change the fact that it still hurt like a bitch. The person kept shaking me to get up, but all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and sleep for five days. Note to self, sleep deprivation is never the solution.

One more good shake and I was groaning and wincing and barely opening my eyes. “God, I’m up, calm the hell down.”

Peter Parker was looking down at me, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. I tried to sit up and he put an arm around my waist, helping me. “Are you okay?”

I squinted my eyes at him. It looked like Peter. It sounded like Peter. And yet, it didn’t feel like Peter. You pay attention to how people walk long enough, you start to recognize their patterns of movement. And this was all wrong. “Really? I just got hit in the head with a brick and you’re seriously asking if I’m okay?”

A light smile crossed his lips. “Yeah, that was a stupid question.”

I moved to stand up completely but Peter stood first and extended a hand to me. He felt wrong. I nearly toppled over when I stood, and Peter took a step to catch me, and I couldn’t feel him. Like, sure, I felt arms around my waist, but they weren’t Peter’s. The step wasn’t Peter’s. “You ask those a lot.”

What the hell was going on?

Another laugh from Not-Peter and it was a little unsettling to hear his voice so perfectly and yet know it wasn’t him. “I’ll probably keep asking them. C’mon, let’s get back to the hotel.”

My head felt like it was going to split in half, my ears were ringing, and I couldn’t even stand up straight without falling over. But I refused to take another step. “You’re not Peter.”

He made the exact face I imagined Peter would make. “What are you talking about, of course I’m Peter. You must’ve hit your head really hard.” His hand reached up to touch my forehead but I grabbed his wrist and let my hand get hot. Really hot. He looked like he was in pain, then he finally grimaced, and there was a small flicker by his ear. I was right.

“Where. The hell. Is Peter.”

Beneath the ringing in my ears I heard a low whir. Almost imperceptible. But definitely there. Without breaking eye contact I shifted my feet and shot a shard of earth at the noise. A crash resulted that rattled my brain and almost made me flinch, but it definitely made part of Not-Peter’s facade glitch.

Shit.

“You’re smart, kid, I’ll give you that.”

It was still Peter’s face, Peter’s voice. But the world around us started crumbling and I was suddenly falling and no amount of manipulation to the air currents was going to stop me from hitting the ground full force. Concussion number 2, anyone?

“Where’s Peter?”

“You really shouldn’t be so worried about him when you have other friends to think about.”

Suddenly I was looking up at our hotel and MJ was thrown from the top. Then Ned. Then Flash.

And I couldn’t save any of them.

More and more classmates were piled on top of each other, none of them alive. None of them saved by me.

I knew it wasn’t real. I did all of that research, I lost days of sleep over it, I knew. But all I could look at was MJ’s lifeless eyes and think that they looked so real.

“What the hell do you want?” I wanted to sound dignified. Like I was in control of myself. Like I wasn’t absolutely terrified. But I was. I didn’t know whether I was feeling the truth or not, and that scared me the most.

“To watch you squirm.”

I was thrown to the side and my surroundings changed again. I was twelve once more, and I walked into my house just in time to see my parents turn to ash. I turned to run out the door and I was suddenly in Jess’s apartment when her husband reappeared and the gut-wrenching feeling of rejection hit me all over again. One more turn and I was back at school with hundreds of kids pushing past me; completely forgotten, completely alone.

I collapsed to my knees and sobbed. I had buried everything so deeply just so I could function as close to a normal teenager as possible. And now they were thrown back in my face all at once.

Wait. Midtown Tech had tiled floors. These were wood.

Liar.

My sobs turned to sniffles, but I kept my head down. There it was, the whirring. I lightly tapped the ground, and sure enough, it was earth. I slapped the ground and drones started dropping left and right with pieces of rock sticking out of the metal. Midtown Tech was crumbling before my eyes and I smiled.

Of course, it didn’t last very long.

“You bitch.” A remaining drone fired at me but I dropped down and let the bullet fly over my head. Not-Peter’s facade faded and Quentin Beck stood there instead. He grabbed my hair and forced me to look at him. “Let’s make this simple: you can come quietly, or you can come in a body bag.”

A part of me thought he was bluffing. A part of me knew he wasn’t.

“What the hell do you want?”

“You’re going to help me put on one more show.” Before I could move there was a needle in my neck and my vision went black.

/////////////

I was crashing. I had gone too long without sleeping, I had too much adrenaline, and now I was crashing. Karma’s a bitch. You know who else is a bitch? Quentin Beck. And guess who was staring me in the face as I came to.

“Not you again.”

“This is how this is going to work,” he started. “You’re going to make a real Elemental, and then I am going to defeat you.”

“Hell no.”

Beck’s fist connected with my jaw and I swear I got whiplash. “Let’s try that again. You will do this, or I’ll have the drones in New York kill every person you’ve ever loved.”

Fucking bastard. I just got them back, I’m not losing them again.

“What do you need me to do?”

tags: @eridanuswave​ @vampirestrawberries​

[quickspinner]

New Year, New Life

A little sequel to All I Want for Christmas is a New Beginning

It's been a year since a certain cute elf met a certain hot single uncle waiting in line to bring his niece to see Santa. A year since she ran away from him and fate--or rather Juleka--brought them back together again. A year since they kissed at midnight after Alya's annual New Year's party.

It's once again time for Alya's New Year's party, and with all the possibilities of a brand new year before them, Marinette and Luka can't help but be excited about it.

Technically I feel like I should be posting this tomorrow, but I wrote it for the @lovebugs-and-snakecharmers Sprint Challenge which closes today, so Happy New Year just a little bit early! The prompt was "New Year’s party with a New Year’s kiss" and it seemed like the perfect chance to revisit these two. You don't really HAVE to have read the previous fic to get this one, but it will have a little more context and impact if you do. 3 15-minute sprints with 24 hours to edit. I did it all in less than 12 hours, but I also added a good five or six hundred words in the ‘editing’ phase, so...make of that what you will.

😆

It was amazing how many things could change in a year, Marinette thought, grinning up at Luka and leaning back into him as they moved together with practice ease. Just like last year, he had joined her at Alya’s annual party after playing his own New Year’s gig, in the same ballroom of the Grand Paris that Alya had rented last year. As soon as he’d arrived and done the obligatory greeting and handshakes and bises where necessary, he’d coaxed her to the dance with him, just like that first time. It was easy to agree; after a year of dating him, she was no longer awkward on the dance floor. They swayed and rolled and dipped together, both grinning and neither with eyes for anyone but each other. His hands on her body were not so light or hesitant as they’d once been, and frequently they were not so carefully respectful anymore either. She bumped her hip into him and gave him a pout for teasing her, which just made him lean down and catch her mouth in a brief kiss.

Marinette giggled and faced him, sliding her arms up around his neck as his hands found her waist and pulled her close.

“Hey!” Alya yelled as she danced past them, one hand holding a drink as the other waved in the air. “No making out on the dance floor!”

“Since when?” Marinette hollered after her, and then pulled Luka down for a prolonged kiss, just to make her point. He tasted like champagne, and Marinette had to stop kissing him because she couldn’t stop smiling.

“I”m almost sorry this year is ending,” she told him, rubbing a hand along his arm tenderly. Luka gathered her up in a hug, and then dropped his arm to slide around her waist, guiding her off the dance floor. They wandered together towards the windows, cuddling together as they looked out over the city lights.

“I love you,” Luka murmured, and the words still gave her a little shiver. She pressed closer to him.

“I love you too,” she sighed happily.

“It has been a spectacular year,” Luka continued, squeezing her hip. “But I gotta say that I’m looking forward to this year even more.”

Marinette hummed and looked up at him. “Why’s that?”

Luka took a deep breath, glancing back behind him as he slipped a hand in his pocket. Curving his body towards her slightly so no one else could see, he held up the small velvet box between them.

Marinette stared at the box for a stupefied moment, and then her eyes snapped up to his. A smile quirked the edge of his mouth, and he nodded at her with a soft look. Slowly she took the box, turning slightly towards him as well as she opened it to further shield them from the party. The ring nestled inside removed any doubt as to what was going on. She stared at it, overcome.

“I’d get down on one knee but I’m pretty sure that would give us away,” Luka murmured. “Marinette, this has been the best year of my life, and I want every year from now on to be just like it. Will you marry me?”

“Yes,” Marinette managed to gasp, and Luka plucked the ring out of the box, taking it with his other hand and snapping it shut, popping it back in his pocket before anyone else could see. As calm and smooth as he appeared, his hands were shaking when he took Marinette’s hand and carefully, deliberately slid the ring on her finger. As soon as it was there, Marinette pressed against him, burying her face in his chest. She could feel him taking slow, deep breaths with extended exhales, and smiled to herself. He was a cool customer, her Luka, but she knew his cues now. He’d been nervous as hell. She stayed there until her own jumbled nerves were settled and his breathing was more normal. Then she looked up at him, and as soon as her face was tilted high enough, he bent down and kissed her, slow and deep, and his heart fluttered wildly under the hands she placed on his chest.

“It’s not midnight yet!” Alya called, and they both turned to see her approach.

“Traditions are for the weak, Césaire,” Luka called back, grinning fit to split his face. Marinette opened her mouth to get rid of her dearest friend, but before she had a chance, Alya let out a shriek.

“MARINETTE DUPAIN-CHENG WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?”

Before Marinette could blink, Alya was at her side, grabbing at her left hand. Marinette flushed deeply and behind her Luka chuckled. She looked up at him, and he shrugged, though a blush was painting his cheeks as well.

“How could you not tell me?” Alya said, examining the ring.

“I haven’t had time ,” Marinette snorted, snatching her hand back. “Way to ruin the moment, Alya.”

“Now?” Alya gaped, looking up between them. Then she recovered and put a hand on her cocked hip. “Really, Couffaine? You couldn’t wait until midnight?”

“Nope,” Luka said easily, without shame. “Gotta seize the moment when it comes.” He winked at Marinette. “Besides, now I get to kiss my fiancée at midnight.”

Marinette turned bright red and felt as if there were no air in the room. She hadn’t even had time to process and then he had to go and say that . Alya burst out laughing and shoved Marinette back into Luka’s arms. They folded around her and squeezed, and she snuggled close.

“All right, all right,” Alya laughed, “I'll keep the secret a little longer so you two can have your moment, but I’m making an announcement at midnight and you two are going to smooch in front of everybody . If you’re going to upstage my party you’d better do it right!”

When she was gone, Marinette sighed, resting her chin on Luka’s chest and peeking up at him. “Sorry,” he smiled. “Maybe I should have waited until we were alone, but it just...seemed like the right time.”

Marinette smiled, and then lifted her head to kiss his chin.  “It was. It was perfect.”

“If it’s too soon, you can tell me,” Luka said, squeezing her lightly. “It’s not a one-time offer. You don’t have to wear it if you’re not ready. Or you can wear it for as long as you want to, and we don’t have to set a date until—”

Marinette rolled her eyes, straightened, and took his face between her hands. “Luka. I’m ready. I want to marry you.”

He flushed at that, and the grin on his face was so wide and boyish and so unlike his usual smooth smirk, that she had to laugh. “Silly,” she muttered as he pulled her close again.

Luka shrugged. “It’s not like the first time I jumped the gun. I don’t want you suddenly freaking out and making a run for it on me again,” he teased.

“Oh,” Marinette gasped, too outraged to even scold him properly. “Oh, you—argh!” She drew back and whacked his arm, but she did it with her left hand, which just drew her eyes back to the glittering stone on her finger—wow, it was sparkly, no wonder Alya had noticed it right away—and then she was all smiles again.

“Dance with me some more,” Luka urged, catching both her hands in his and tugging her after him.

Marinette joined him gladly, and maybe her eyes kept straying to that sparkle where her hand rested on his shoulder, and maybe his hand kept sliding up her arm to caress her fingers or hold her hand to his chest, and maybe for once midnight came a little too soon for either of them.

A few minutes before midnight, their attention was drawn from each other to Alya, who had gotten a microphone from Nino and climbed up on a table.

“Everybody ready for the countdown?” she hollered, and there was a chorus of cheers. “Marinette and Luka, get up here.”

Marinette groaned, but took Luka’s hand and led him toward Alya’s table, accepting the inevitable.

“Hold up that hand, Marinette, and flash us all that rock!” Alya demanded, leaning down to grab Marinette’s wrist and wave her ringed hand in the air. “Check it out, folks, and remember you heard it here first! These two lovebirds are tying the knot. Max, who wins the pool?”

Marinette snatched her hand back, her mouth dropping open in outrage. “ Pool? ”

“Yep,” Alya grinned. “Been running since June. So who picked New Year’s Eve?”

Markov flew up to Alya’s side and she held out the microphone for the little robot.

“The winner of the Couffaine-Dupain-Cheng engagement pool is Jonathon C.”

Alya frowned, pulling the microphone back. “Okay, who’s—”

Luka coughed, behind Marinette. “That would be me.” Marinette turned to stare at him, and he winked at her. “Luka Jonathan Couffaine.”

“Oh you filthy cheater,” Alya screeched, kicking him and nearly falling off the table. “How did you even— Max ?”

Max held up his hands, but no one could hear him over the uproar.

“He filled out the web form with all the pertinent information,” Markov observed. “There is no rule excluding Luka from participating, nor any rule against using a middle name for registration. Luka’s entry is valid. I shall transfer the appropriate amount to the account you designated.”

“Thanks, Markov,” Luka said, and the pure Couffaine shit-eating grin on his face robbed Marinette of any ability to be mad at him. “I appreciate you all funding the ring.”

Alya groaned. “Oh my G—okay, you know what, the countdown’s about to start, so you two get up here. I expect one world class smooch for that, Couffaine.”

“Sorry, Alya, I’m in a very committed relationship,” Luka laughed, but while Alya scowled at him and insisted he knew what she meant, he pulled over a chair and graciously offered his hand to help her down from the table. Then he helped Marinette up, and carefully joined her.

“I hope these tables are sturdy,” Marinette muttered under her breath as the countdown began.

“So what kind of a show are we making here?” Luka asked her, raising his eyebrows.

Marinette smirked at him. “I’ll handle it. Just put your arms around my neck and don’t struggle or we’re both going to fall off this thing.”

Luka’s eyebrows lifted higher but there was no time for more questions.

“Five,” the crowd screamed, waving their champagne glasses. "Four!"

“Three,” Marinette murmured, her eyes fixed on Luka. “Two.” She hooked one leg behind his knee and put her arms around his waist. He put his arms around her neck as she’d instructed. “One.”

She dipped him back over her thigh. “Whoa!” Luka gasped, and then grinned, and leaned up so she could reach him, and the crowd roared “Happy New Year,” as they kissed, oblivious to both the cheering and the camera flashes going off all around them.

Later, they would watch the year’s first sunrise together through the windows, pressed tight under a blanket on the couch, and sit quietly with the gravity of all that had passed, in the contentment of each other’s company.

But just as that moment, the fireworks and cheers and celebration seemed a perfect background to a kiss that went on until Marinette’s trembling arms forced her to break it. Luka laughed breathlessly as she hauled him up, and he pressed his lips to her forehead.

“You’re amazing,” he told her, as the music resumed. He got down from the table, and then reached up to catch her waist and lift her down beside him.

“Think Alya will be satisfied?” Marinette giggled.

“If she’s not, I’m more than happy to try a do-over,” Luka grinned, and then lowered his forehead to hers. “I love you.”

Marinette smiled, cupping his cheek. “Happy New Year, Luka.”

“Happy new life, Marinette.”

[shadow-whisperer152]

Father’s Day (Chapter 4)

(I know it’s been a hot minute since the last time I updated this fic, so I decided to post this chapter before summer so I can work on the next part while I’m on break! Hope you guys enjoy it! A little shorter than usual, but the upcoming bit is important so I wanted to put it all in one chapter.) 

(Chapter 3)  

Virgil doesn’t remember much from when he first came to be. He remembers arms wrapped around his body. He remembers a soft voice, whispering reassurances into his ear. He remembers the warmth of a crackling fire, paired with a gentle rocking motion, putting him to sleep.

But that’s about it. 

He does, however, remember the day he first learned about the others. He clearly remembers his papa’s face as he told him of the ferocious Creativity, the cold-hearted Teacher, the ignorant and disgusted Happiness. The story of how his father-figure came into the Mindscape was one that filled his head with nightmares for weeks. Spiders, snakes, bugs, heights, the dark; none of those things compared to the fear that filled him at the thought of ever coming face-to-face with the terrifying Light Sides. The Sides who had hurt his Papa, to the point where he’d flinch if Remus came up to him too quickly, or become desperate if either of his boys vanished for a long period of time.

Which is why, when Remus first came home, Virgil was wary. He’d glared and hissed when he’d learned of his origins, ready to protect his Papa at any cost. This Side, no matter how new he was, had come from the Light. And any Side from the Light was bad, they hurt, they could never be trusted. At least, that was what Papa had taught him. However, when Deceit had explained to him that Remus had been outcast by the Light Sides for being himself, he realized that this was the only place Remus would ever belong. He may have come from the Light, but he had been used and then betrayed. Typical Light Side behavior. Shunning what they didn’t understand, not even bothering to listen or comprehend before they attacked and destroyed and expelled it. So, Virgil let him stay, soon growing fond of the violent and unsettling Side. 

His Papa got used to having him around too, Virgil could tell. He was a little scared at first, jumping whenever he saw Remus’s face, oh so similar to the face of the attacker from his past. Virgil made sure to give him extra cuddles on those days, and played with Remus (despite how gross it could get) to show his Papa that he didn’t need to be afraid. He didn’t need to be afraid of anything ever again. Not while Virgil had anything to say about it. 

But times change. Virgil wasn’t his Papa’s spiderling anymore. He grew older, stronger, smarter. And that age-old fear of the Light Sides grew with him, morphing into anger as the years went by. Why was it that they got to live the good life? Why did they get to reveal themselves to Thomas, and play a part in his development? They were just as good as them, better even! His dad always talked about how strong his influence was, about how he’d never seen anything like it. How he’d grow up to be stronger than him and Remus combined! Well, Virgil wanted to prove it. Which is what sparked the argument at the dinner table.

“Dad, come on! I’m older now!” Virgil protested. “I can take care of myself!”

“Virgil, you don’t understand. Those Sides are dangerous! They are violent and unpredictable. I don’t want you to reveal yourself to them!” Deceit shook his head. Remus looked between the two Sides, chewing loudly on a bowl of popcorn (covered in some substance Virgil hoped was paprika) as he watched the exchange. 

“We have to reveal ourselves to Thomas sooner or later! If they really are all you say, then Thomas is going to end up some criminal! I’m not scared of them! If they want to come at me, they’re gonna have to watch out!” Virgil stood up, all four eyes glaring at his father. “I’m sorry, but unlike you, I can’t stand by and let them manipulate Thomas for the rest of our lives!” 

“And I can’t stand by and watch you get hurt!” Deceit shot back, standing up as well. “I can’t let my son get hurt! Why can’t you understand that!?” Silence fell over the table, both panting harshly. Deceit looked away first, one gloved hand coming up to harshly wipe at his human eye. He crossed his arms as vivid memories flashed before his eyes, of piercing screams and throbbing wounds. He didn’t know what he’d do if he ever had to see Virgil or Remus in such a state. He’d rather peel all his scales off with a pair of tweezers then allow his sons to get hurt. After all, he knew the cruelty of the world first-hand. He knew what the Light Sides were like, those animalistic beings that preyed on the innocent and unarmed. His body shook as he fought to stop any more tears from making an appearance. 

Virgil slowly went around the table, pulling him in for a hug. His spider legs uncurled from his back, wrapping around his father. Deceit hugged back tightly, shaking a little. “You aren’t going to lose me, Dad.” Virgil said softly after a moment. “You’ve made sure of that, by teaching me how to take care of myself. They’ll never be able to take me down, okay?” He pulled away a little, looking his father in the eye. “But we have to do this. For Thomas.”

Deceit was silent for a moment, thinking things over. He nodded slightly, sighing. “Alright. If this is really what you want to do, I won’t stop you.” He put his hands on his shoulders. “But be careful. Don’t let them fool you. Don’t let them get too close. But most of all, don’t tell them your name.”

“My name? Why?” Virgil asked.

‘Because that’s ours, and ours alone.’ Deceit thought to himself. Instead of admitting that, he said: “Because they’ll use it against you. Names are a sign of friendship and trust. If you tell them your name you’re going to be seen as vulnerable. Easy to take down. You can never put your guard down with those monsters.”

Virgil nodded, an excited glint in his eye despite nerves welling in his stomach. “So…..can I go?”

Deceit took another deep breath, closing his eyes. “Yes, you can.” He nodded. His spiderling was leaving the web, as all children do, but he tried not to worry too much. After all, it’s not like he’d be gone forever. He knew he could always trust that Virgil would never let the Light Sides attack him without a fight, and at the end of the day Virgil would always come back home.

Right?

(And there you have it! Again, sorry for the short chapter, but bigger (and badder) things are coming soon! Thank you to everyone who is still following this fic, I really appreciate it.) 

[official-weasley]

The Irreplaceable Charlie Weasley: Pt. 1, Ch. 6

PART 1: WHERE IT ALL BEGAN Chapter 6 - Christmas Weasley

Nova

It was the last week of October and I think it's safe to say that we finally got used to doing homework and all the professors. Tulip and I are proud to say that it has been 13 days since we last got lost on our way to lessons.

Now that we went through all the subjects a couple of times and it feels more real since we don't have any more introductions in classes, I have to say that I was surprised how well I was doing in Charms. When we did the Levitation Charm I was the first to get the feather flying almost to the ceiling. I also managed to cast Lumos on my first try and so far have been so good that I've earned Ravenclaw 35 points in just that class.

Tulip wasn't doing that bad in Charms either, even though she was beating us all in Astronomy, for which we later found out that her uncle is an Astronomer and has been teaching her since she was 5.

Penny, of course, was exceeding in Potions, something not even Snape could deny. She knew the answer to every one of his questions and when we finally had to brew our first potion, she had to help all three of us not to blow up half of the Dungeons.

History of Magic was still as dull as ever, something even Penny couldn't deny as Tonks told us one day, having dinner, that she was drooling on her notes, after falling asleep in the middle of the lesson. Penny denied the accusation and said that she was just resting her head because she stayed up all night working on her Transfiguration homework.

Speaking of Transfiguration, it is by far my favorite subject! I had no idea how I will do in the class and what exactly was expected from us as every time I saw Professor McGonagall she seemed so strict. I wasn't wrong about that as she gave detention to Tulip the first time she came in class 5 minutes late because she was confident she could find the classroom on her own and get one more piece of toast instead of going with me.

Because I was one of the first to arrive in class, I sat down in the second row on the right side and after a couple of Gryffindors came in I spotted the redhead immediately.

“Nova! I forgot we had this class together!” Charlie sat next to me without even asking if the seat was taken.

“Isn't Jae going to be mad if you don't sit next to him?” I knew now that the boy Charlie was spending the most time with was Jae Kim, a fellow First Year with whom Charlie also shared his dormitory. It was getting quite annoying sending notes across class to each other in subjects we had together so I didn't mind Charlie sitting next to me.

Besides, I wanted to prove to Tulip that she should've gone with me to class.

“Nah, we can't be together all the time and besides I want to spend more time with you.” He grinned at me. “And if it happens that you're good at Transfiguration I can benefit from it as well.” He was taking a couple of pieces of parchment out of his bag.

Perhaps Charlie was going to be great at Divination if he decides to take the subject as I was indeed amazing in Transfiguration. At first, I thought I was just lucky when I transfigured a matchstick into a needle perfectly. Then it also happened with the quill which was in perfect condition transformed from a fork.

Charlie was in awe at first and was excited that I was going to be the one who helps him with his Transfiguration homework. Much to his and Tulip's disappointment, I've made them do the homework in the Library on their own. However, I was with them all the time and I did check and correct it when they were done with it.

After I also cast Revelio correctly on my second try, Professor McGonagall made me stay after class one day to talk about having Advanced Classes in my Second Year if my talent would continue to grow. I accepted at once and I couldn't wait to tell my mum as Transfiguration was one of her favorite subjects as well.

We didn't do any practical magic in Defense Against the Dark Arts yet, but we have learned about a lot of dangerous creatures which Charlie and I always discussed after class.

—

The day after the 'slug incident' as Tulip liked to call it, I woke up very early as I kept thinking about how I have to finish my drawing of Pip. I decided to get out of bed and go down for breakfast alone. I knew I could bring Pip with me so I thought I could finish the drawing while munching on my toast.

I went to the Owlery and for the first time, I had to actually wake Pip up and he wasn't so happy to see me as he wished to sleep for a little while longer. Nonetheless, he gave in to my strokes on his head and hopped on my arm. Together we made way to the Great Hall which was practically deserted except for a couple of Ravenclaws that were half asleep and looked like they were studying for their O.W.L.s.

I put some jelly on my toast and opened my notebook.

“Now, where were we Pip?” I took out one of my pencils. I started working on the feathers again and was quite happy with the progress I was able to make since Pip was too tired to peek at his portrait.

“Good morning, Nova.” I heard a really sleepy voice say behind me.

“Mind if I sit next to you?” Charlie asked, sitting down before I could even answer him. I couldn't help but chuckle when I saw what a mess his red hair was.

“Good morning. What are you doing up already?” I helped myself to another piece of toast, while Pip was trying to get some of the crumbs left behind from my last one.

“We got a lot of homework yesterday by Professor Snape and I better get on it before I forget.” He shuffled a few spoons of cereal into his bowl. “Name and describe seven differences between the Wiggenweld Potion and Blood Replenishing Pooo...tion.” He yawned.

“Seven differences, what did you do to Snape?” I gasped.

“How did you know we managed to destroy a cauldron?” He poured milk over his cereal now.

“I didn't, I just thought you had to do something wrong since we only got three differences.” I put more jelly on my toast as I decided one thick layer wasn't enough. “And how did you manage to destroy a cauldron on your first lesson? We weren't even working with them?”

“Well, one of the Slytherins wanted to show off by performing the Fire Making Charm under the cauldron and it exploded.”

“A cauldron exploded, where?” Penny interrupted my laughing. She had a concerned look on her face. She was followed by Tonks who looked as if Penny woke her up so abruptly that she will never recover.

They didn't even sit down properly when Tulip came running to our table, panting.

“I...thought...I...missed...breakfast.” She said, trying to catch her breath.

“Tulip you have got to get a watch.” Penny chuckled.

“And who is this red-haired laddie?” Tonks reminded me that I haven't introduced Charlie to them yet.

“Oh, right! Sorry, Charlie. Tonks, Tulip, Penny this is Charlie. The boy I told you about yesterday. Charlie this are Tonks, Tulip and Penny.”

“Nice to meet you!” They exclaimed as they each shook his hand.

“Do you mind if he seats with us?” I asked, not knowing if they would be bothered by having breakfast with a boy.

“Get off it! He's one of us now.” Said Tonks while stuffing a huge piece of toast in her mouth. Charlie couldn't help but blush a little.

“Say, Charlie, Penny is really good at potions, perhaps she can help you with your homework.” I said while trying to make Pip, now completely awake, to be still.

“Homework, Potions homework?! What do you need?” Penny was so excited about what I just said that I thought she was going to scare Charlie away from our table.

He just chuckled and told her all about the cauldron, for which of course she scolded him as if it was his fault and then helped him with his homework so much that he was done before the beginning of the first class.

—

On Halloween, the girls and I decided to visit Hagrid and take him up on his offer of rock cakes and tea. We loved how beautiful the whole school was, now decorated in candles, spider webs and there were pumpkins everywhere.

We made our way down to Hagrid's hut, announced of course, with a letter Pip took to Hagrid one day prior. Hagrid was delighted that we were going to visit him and told us to come down after breakfast. Even though it was Wednesday, the lessons were canceled for the Halloween celebration which was happening at dinner.

Once Hagrid's hut was visible, we could see he has decorated it with webs and there were pumpkin patches all around it.

We knocked on his door and could hear a bark, which could only have come from a really small puppy. When Hagrid opened the door, a soft grin on his face, Penny got knocked down to the floor by Fang to which we got introduced after we helped Penny get up.

We promised ourselves not to say anything about Hagrid's rock cakes as indeed they were hard as rocks and kept making excuses that we have to save ourselves for dinner. Tea, however, we didn't mind and we drank about 5 kettles of it. Hagrid told us all about why he is living on the Grounds and he couldn't stop saying nice things about our Headmaster Dumbledore as he was very grateful for the position he gave him at the school.

It was almost time for the dinner celebration in the Great Hall when I had to wake Fang, who fell asleep on my lap because I couldn't stop scratching him behind his ear. He got off me not very happy about it and we thanked Hagrid for the tea and the cakes and ran up to our Houses to change, our stomachs growling as we didn't eat much at Hagrid's.

The feast was even greater than the one we had on our first day at Hogwarts. Of course, Tulip and I were a bit bummed as Tonks and Penny couldn't join us. For bigger celebrations and events, students had to sit at their House Table.

When the feast officially ended and a lot of students left the Great Hall we could finally be joined again. Charlie also sat down next to me, looking a bit blue.

“What's wrong, Charlie?” I asked while Tonks was still nibbling on a chicken leg.

“It's my birthday in December and this is going to be the first time I spend it on my own. Of course, I have my brother Bill...”

“And us!” Penny interrupted him. I could already see her planning a birthday party for him.

“Wait, your birthday is in December?” I finally looked away from Penny's cheering face.

“Yeah, why?” Said Charlie a bit cheered up.

“My birthday's in December too. When exactly is yours?” I asked.

“The 12th.” Charlie said surprised.

“Hers is on the 14th!” Penny showed excitement for me.

“Oh, this is going to be so much fun! You two can celebrate birthdays together!” Said Tulip, mimicking Penny. I chuckled as I knew she was only doing so to mock her.

“Wicked, I would love to!” We were all so excited that Charlie completely forgot he was sad about not having his family here for his birthday.

“Why don't we go down to Hagrid's and celebrate there?”

“Oh, that's a great idea, Tonks! Nobody will bother us and we can have some of Hagrid's delicious tea.” Penny applauded Tonks.

“You guys are friends with Hagrid as well?” Charlie beamed.

“We just met him today officially but he is amazing and so nice. How do you know him?” I said while putting the finishing touches on my Pip portrait.

“Oh, I have been going there since the first week. Ever since I saw he has a puppy. How adorable is Fang?” We all nodded in agreement. “And he is giving me all these amazing books about animals and he promised me to take me into the Forbidden Forest next year. I keep trying to persuade him to take me this year but he reckons I'm too young and we could both get in trouble.” Charlie sighed.

“That settles it then.” Penny said slowly as I could see she was debating in her head why would anyone in their right mind want to go to the Forbidden Forest of their own free will. I, on the other hand, couldn't wait to get Charlie alone to ask him to owl me as soon as Hagrid agrees to take him, as I would love to join them.

“We just have to figure out how to bring some of our own food, since Hagrid's rock cakes aren't the best to, well, chew on.” Charlie clutched his lips as if his teeth were still hurting from biting into Hagrid's cakes. We all chuckled in agreement.

“I think Tonks and I can handle that one.” Said Tulip proudly.

I scribbled a message for Hagrid on a piece of parchment and gave it to Pip. However, he refused to go before I showed him his portrait.

“Alright, alright. Here you go.” I turned the notebook to him. He tilted his head for almost 90 degrees and stared at it for a couple of seconds. Tonks and Tulip who were on the other side of the table looked as well. When Pip hooted in agreement that he likes how I portrayed him, I turned the notebook to Penny and Charlie who felt left out for seeing it last.

“Another brilliant drawing, Nova.” Complimented Charlie.

“You are so talented. I wish I could draw like this.” Penny said, disappointed.

“You can't have both a pretty handwriting and know how to draw.” Tonks rolled her eyes playfully at her.

“She's right, you do have pretty handwriting.” Charlie said, half to himself as he was copying some of Penny's Potions notes. Penny couldn't hide the blush on her cheeks so she pretended to talk to Pip.

—

My birthday has always been amazing but nothing compared to the one I had with my friends at Hogwarts. As planned, we all gathered at Hagrid's on my birthday after we finished our lessons on Friday.

Charlie and I almost got into a fight as we couldn't decide when to celebrate. I was quite alright with celebrating my birthday on his birthday so that he wouldn't have to wait for two more days, while he insisted that it would be rude to me not to celebrate my birthday properly and that his birthday was in the middle of the week anyway and was more convenient to do it on my birthday which was on Friday. I agreed after Charlie didn't want to hear another word about it. He even waited until Friday to open all the presents his family has sent him. Of course, we also invited his brother Bill, who was delighted to accept the invitation and was very happy to see Charlie was finally doing well and finding more friends.

We had so much fun that night at Hagrid's. We drank tea and ate so much food which we later found out Tonks and Tulip smuggled from the Kitchens. Of course, they didn't want to tell us how they got in and kept giggling instead, every time we asked them.

Fang was rather conflicted as Charlie and I fought who was going to pet him next but he didn't complain at all when we finally agreed that sitting in front of the fire, both scratching him at the same time wasn't so bad either.

Even though Hagrid's rock cakes stayed untouched, he surprised Charlie and me with a birthday cake. It had 13 candles on it, pink frosting, and Happee Birthdae Charlie and Nova scribbled on it. Charlie and I each went on one side of the cake, looked at each other, closed our eyes, and blew our candles.

I've made a wish to always have such an amazing time with my friends as my First Year at Hogwarts has been nothing but great so far.

It was then time for us to open presents. Charlie got a jumper with the letter C on it from his mum. A bag full of candy and firecrackers from his twin brothers Fred and George. Something that Penny named a Rubber Duck from his dad, with a note attached that he should see if it floats on the Black Lake and a brand new edition of From Egg to Inferno: A Dragon-Keeper's Guide from Bill, for which Charlie jumped up so much that Hagrid's hut shook a little and we all laughed.

Tonks and Tulip gave Charlie a scarf with a Dragon embroidered on it. Penny gave him a book on Potions for easier understanding and I gave him a book I've made myself. I called it Fantastic Dragons and How to Train Them. Inside were my drawings of every known species of Dragons and descriptions of the most important details to know of each breed.

It seemed I've made everyone speechless, as they were staring at the book, while Charlie was slowly turning the pages, as his cheeks became slightly pink. He then put the book down and gave me the type of hug my mum usually gave me when she was super proud of something I did.

I got a scarf from Tonks and Tulip as well, just that mine had a Niffler on it. Penny bought me a set of magical pencils that dependingon how you rub them draw in different patterns. Bill gave me a new notebook with a special type of paper that changed colors depending on what you draw on it and Charlie gave me a necklace that had a little Dragon as a charm.

He showed me that if you rubbed the Dragon gently, it would breathe fire and I was in awe of how thoughtful his gift was. I put it on at once, bending my head down as I tried to hide my watery eyes.

Hagrid's gift for both of us was a set of 10 tea bags he made especially for us and we each got a book about Magical Creatures called The Creature Care.

That night when we finally said goodbye and Tulip and I climbed the stairs of the Ravenclaw Common Room, our family owl Waffle was waiting for me on the window shelf of our dorm. I opened the window to let her in and I took the letter and the present from her.

I must've frowned when I was reading the letter as Tulip rushed to my side. “Nova, what's wrong?”

I looked at her, sadly. “I think I'm going to spend Christmas alone.” I said miserably.

“My mum wrote to me. She was sent for Azkaban duty during the Christmas holidays and my dad is stuck in Egypt as they've just discovered a new tomb.” Tulip sat on my bed, putting her hand on my back, rubbing it in circles.

“Blimey Nova, if I knew I would've asked my parents to stay.”

“No, no. It's fine. You should go home and see your family. I know you can't wait to see your parents again.” I sniffed as my nose clogged from tears gathering in my eyes.

“We ALL want to see our families, Nova. You could ask Tonks or Penny if they could stay.” She tried to cheer me up.

“No, no. Penny has to go home as her sister can't wait for her to tell her all about Hogwarts. And Tonks, even though she doesn't want to admit it, misses her parents as well.” I put on a fake smile. “I'll be fine, really. I'll have Pip and I can play with all the amazing presents you guys gave me!” Tulip smiled at me, trying to hide that she felt sorry for me.

That night I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking what will I do for the Christmas holidays all alone. I didn't think this was going to happen and as much as my aunt could be annoying squeezing my cheeks and feeding me her not-so-tasty pie, I was seriously considering going to her for the holidays.

But then I remembered. I didn't know if Charlie was leaving home for Christmas. That's when I decided to owl him in the morning, to ask him what his plans for the holidays were.

I woke up with the sun gently brushing my face. I wrote Charlie a letter, asking him about his Christmas plans and thanking him again for the necklace, which I was still wearing.

I sent Pip to the Gryffindor Tower in the hopes that I wouldn't wake him up. I knew how much he liked to sleep in.

Pip found me not even an hour later in the Courtyard. I opened Charlie's letter at once.

Hi Nova,

I am so sorry to hear that you won't be able to spend Christmas with your mum and dad. But Bill and I are going home, mum misses us too much.

If you'd like I can ask her if you can join us? I'm sure she wouldn't mind.

Love, Charlie

I smiled at how small his handwriting was. Christmas with the Weasleys? Bill and Charlie were so amazing, I think their family can't be any different. I sent Pip back with a reply that if his family really wouldn't mind I would love to spend Christmas with them at the Burrow.

The next week went by as fast as you can say Kneazle. Our professors gave us so much homework to do over the holidays that I kind of regretted not staying at Hogwarts.

Penny in the meantime, couldn't stop talking about all the Muggle pastries her dad was going to make, for which Tonks and I couldn't deny, sounded delicious.

Tulip was waiting to pack almost until the last day, while Penny scolded her that she should've done it already and that she has been packed since the weekend of my and Charlie's birthday party.

The day before I was supposed to go spend time with Bill and Charlie's family Tonks, Penny, Tulip, Charlie, and I were sitting in the Great Hall for breakfast. Charlie was just explaining how each year they enchant a gnome and put it on the Christmas tree without their mum noticing. Which gave a brilliant idea to Tonks and made Tulip laugh so much that I thought she was going to fall off the bench.

I was about to put a spoon full of cereal in my mouth when an owl flew straight into my bowl, splashing us all with milk. Errol hooted confusingly as she had a couple of corn flakes on her head. Tonks flicked it off her, while Charlie took the letter she had tied around her ankle and frowned.

I placed my head on his shoulder as I read the letter with him.

My dear Charlie,

I am sorry to say that you and Bill ought to stay at Hogwarts this Christmas. Your brothers thought it would be funny if they set a whole package of Filibuster's Fireworks off in the living room.

Thanks to them, we are going to spend Christmas cleaning up the mess they've made. I would rather see that you, Bill, and your friend Nova spend a nice, quiet Christmas at Hogwarts.

I have already written Dumbledore a letter to sign you up on the list of students who are staying for Christmas as it is too late for you to do it.

Don't worry, you'll still get your presents and know you will be missed greatly.

Please give this letter to Bill if he's not reading it with you.

Love and lots of hugs,

Mum

“Oh, Charlie I am so sorry.” I hugged him.

“What's going on?” Asked Penny confused.

“My bloody brothers, that's what!” Charlie said, so mad that even his freckles got red.

“Language little brother.” Bill came to our table and upon seeing Errol playing with Tonks said: “What did Fred and George do now?”

“They blew up the bloody living room with them fireworks they always carry around.” Charlie was still frowning and gave Bill the letter.

Bill rolled his eyes slightly then smiled at Charlie.

“Look, we can make a nice Christmas for ourselves right here, can't we Nova?” He winked at me to encourage his idea.

“Yeah, we can celebrate here, see how the Castle looks in the snow. Perhaps have a snowball fight?”

“Hey, I want a snowball fight!” Tonks intervened.

“It's not going to be the same. I miss mum and dad, and Ginny and Ron. Even Percy and those cheeky trouble-makers.” Charlie frowned at the last few words. “And how are we supposed to celebrate Christmas with Nova? She is not allowed in our Common Room. We won't even be able to open the presents together.” He added.

“Charlie, listen. We can work something out. We can be here in the Great Hall on Christmas Eve for as long as they'll let us and then in the morning we can bring our Christmas presents here and open them together, what do you say?” Bill ruffled his hair.

“Oh, alright.” He said and let Bill squeeze him in a hug.

Later that afternoon we said goodbye to Tonks, Penny, Tulip, and Jae as they were all packed and ready to go to Hogsmeade Station to catch the train home.

On Christmas Eve it was just as Bill promised. We were sitting at the Gryffindor Table eating as many gingerbread cookies as our stomachs were letting us. I was drawing in the notebook Bill gave me while he was still explaining to me how exactly the enchanted paper worked. Charlie was trying a new hairdo on Pip, which he didn't appreciate as much as he appreciated the attention Charlie was giving him.

It was getting rather late. The time passed so quickly as Bill and Charlie were telling me all the stories of their previous Christmas when Fred and George almost set the Christmas tree on fire. How they were happy when they found out they are finally getting a sister and how their brother Percy is something else in the family. Bill then told me the secret recipe for Christmas cookies their mum makes every year to which they made me swear I will never tell her that I know and how their dad was obsessed with everything Muggle-related, which explained the rubber duck Charlie got for his birthday.

We then said goodbye as the boys went to the Gryffindor Tower and I went to Ravenclaw's. When I woke up in the morning, I couldn't help but feel excited. I put Tulip's Christmas present on her bed and as the Hufflepuff Prefect stayed at Hogwarts for Christmas as well, I decided to ask her, if she could put Tonks' and Penny's presents on their beds.

I put on a hoodie and the most comfortable pants I could find as I was still full from the previous day. Then I grabbed all my Christmas presents that were waiting for me at my bedside and rushed to the Great Hall.

Bill and Charlie were already there and Charlie beamed with excitement when he spotted me.

“There you are! What took you so long!” Charlie hurried me to take a seat at the Gryffindor Table.

“He meant to say good morning, he is just too excited for the presents.” Bill apologized on Charlie's behalf. “See, mum felt so bad that Charlie and I couldn't come home for Christmas that we both got an extra present.” Bill explained Charlie's excitement.

I chuckled as Charlie threw all of them on the table.

“This one's for you Nova,” he handed me a big soft package wrapped in red gift paper. “And this one.” Continued Charlie, as he gave me another, now a smaller soft package. “This one is from me.” Charlie beamed proudly as he gave me yet another present.

“If this one is from you, who are the other two presents from?” I was in awe at how many presents they had for me.

“Well, this one is from me.” Bill shook the small package Charlie gave me before. “And this one,” he said while blushing a little, “is from our mum. She felt bad that she couldn't meet you.” Bill chuckled as he pointed at the red soft package.

I gave Charlie and Bill each their present. Charlie opened it at once and he gasped when he saw what he got. I got him a snowball in which I recreated the Burrow as much as Bill could help me in detail.

“Since you can't go home for Christmas, I thought I'd ask Bill to help me bring home to you.” I smiled. I couldn't help but notice that his eyes got watery.

“Th-thank you.” Was all he could say, his eyes still on the snowball.

I got Bill a new Gryffindor tie as his old one was looking rather ghastly after he didn't take proper precautions in his last Potions class.

I opened their mum's present first and when they saw what I got they both chuckled. It was a navy blue Christmas jumper with baby blue N in the middle.

“Mum gives us one every year. When you get a Christmas jumper from our mum, you officially become a Weasley.” Charlie grinned.

I didn't know what to say. I took off my hoodie and took a while to get the jumper over my head so that I could cover my red cheeks. It was so soft.

“I love it! I didn't get anything for her though.” I felt bad.

“Don't worry, Nova. She doesn't make these to expect something in return.” Bill showed on the jumper he was wearing. His was burgundy with a golden W on it, while Charlie's was green with a red C on it.

I then opened Charlie's present which had a little notebook in it. “It's a self-doodler.” He explained excitedly.

“A self-what?” I opened the notebook and found it empty.

“You turn to the desired page, tap it with a wand, and whisper the creature you would like to see. Try it. He took my wand out of my back pocket and handed it to me.

I tapped on one of the pages and whispered: “Niffler.” Something started to form on the page. It was as if someone was drawing the creature in front of me.

“It draws all common creatures on your demand. The sketch stays there until you close the notebook. I thought it might come in handy when you draw.” He scratched the back of his head.

“Char...Charlie, this must've cost a fortune.” Was all I could say as his gift left me speechless. I looked at him and caught him quickly glance at Bill. I looked at Bill and he winked at me, indicating that he helped Charlie to buy me the gift.

Lastly, I opened Bill's present and chuckled when I saw it was a hat. It was amusing to me that we both got each other a piece of clothing.

After we ate our breakfast and opened the rest of our presents, Bill sent everything upstairs while we got dressed and headed outside. It was beautiful as snow has been falling all night and all morning. We went through the Main Courtyard and decided to go down to the Black Lake where we had an epic snowball fight and I couldn't help but think of how jealous Tonks was going to be when I tell her about it.

After 2 hours in the snow, we were practically freezing, so we decided to pay Hagrid a visit before heading back up to the Castle for dinner. He made us hot chocolate this time and Bill and Hagrid were in a heated discussion about creatures that might be found in ancient tombs as Charlie and I played with Fang.

I said goodbye to the boys and returned to the Ravenclaw Tower with the biggest grin on my face. I was wondering if mum and dad would be mad if I said that this was the best Christmas of my life. I completely forgot that I wasn't home for Christmas and by Charlie's excitement and the smile he had on his face when we parted ways I think it's safe to say that so did he.