#the book of everlasting things

[ramblings-of-lola]

February '25 Wrap Up

I have a tag list for when I do wrap ups! If you want to be added or taken off of it, please let me know!

The Bear and the Nightingale (The Winternight Trilogy #1) by Katherine Arden ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️/5

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy/Historical Fiction

Thoughts: This book was okay. The writing style was very atmospheric and I'm glad I read it in winter. But I found the plot disappointing. Some scenes were really good, others were slow and dull. The creatures from Russian mythology were interesting. Unfortunately, this book had the trope of the immortal powerful being falling in love with a girl who's right around the age of consent, which, in my opinion, can't be done without feeling icky.

The Book of Everlasting Things by Aanchal Malhotra ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Genre: Historical Fiction

Thoughts: I enjoyed this book so much more than I thought I was going to. It's a slow story that follows two families over the span of about 100 years and how the partition of India and Pakistan split these two families apart and effected their descendants. It's beautifully written and so incredibly atmospheric.

Unraveled (Keeper of the Lost Cities #9.5) by Shannon Messenger ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy

Thoughts: I really liked this book. It was more complex than I thought it was going to be. Keefe struggles a lot with his mental health in this story and I liked seeing his process of finding coping skills. There were a few choices with two characters that I wasn't a huge fan of.

Dread Nation (Dread Nation #1) by Justina Ireland ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Gerne: Young Adult Alternative History

Thoughts: While this book has some slightly cringy YA moments at times, it's still a fun read. I haven't really read any books with zombies expect The Maze Runner, and seeing how this story handled what would happen if a zombie virus broke out in the American Civil War was so interesting. There's a lot of heavy moments as the protagonist is a POC and female and the text did not shy away from how the world perceives her because of this. I'm excited to read the sequel!

Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs by Camilla Townsend DNF

Genre: Historical Non Fiction

Thoughts: I just found the writing style a little dull and once I started skimming and skipping over passages, I decided to put the book down. I might try to find a documentary or podcast of some sort about the topic.

Deathless Divide (Dread Nation #2) by Justina Ireland ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Gerne: Young Adult Alternative History

Thoughts: I didn't like this one as much as the first book. The plot felt more disconnected and I wasn't really that invested during the climax. The first half was like a rehash of the previous book in a different town, and the second half felt like a completely new book. I think if the plot from the second half was the only one so it had time to flesh out more, the story would have been much better. But, the I did like Jane's arc in this one, how going further down a dark path with the only goal of revenge affected her loved ones.

Prince Caspian (The Chronicles of Narnia #2) by C.S. Lewis ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Genre: Classic Children's Fantasy

Thoughts: Reading this was such a nice break from all the heavier books I'd read this month. It does have somewhat heavy parts but they're written so delicately, which I really appreciated. Lewis does a wonderful job portraying themes like hope and faith. Anytime Aslan is in a scene, there's such a calm that feels so tangible.

Goals I Met This Month

Read more books I own.

Regularly go through Goodreads list to remove books.

Keep up with reviews for wrap ups.

Don't be afraid to DNF.

Read more non-fiction.

Less scrolling, more reading.

Read more children's fiction.

Try to read more classics.

Read more historical fiction.

Tag list: @thatrandomlemononyourcounter1 @qylinscafvne @book-girl4evaaa @sunflxwcrs @bookwormgirl123

@thoughts-of-caly @brb-on-a-quest @partlysunny15

[zelihatrifles]

The Book of Everlasting Things

But he had realized that history was never just about the events that had once transpired. It was also about who narrated the events and who heard them; who wielded time, fashioned the years, lived, or resisted them; and who ultimately was bequeathed the archive.

Oral historian Aanchal Malhotra writes her first novel, and the way she interlaces fiction and anecdotes into the highly emotional fabric of the divided history of the Indian subcontinent is bound to move you deeply. Star-crossed lovers and national disasters always make a good recipe for tear-jerking stories, but you'd never know that love and loss can be felt so painstakingly until you read this book.

They'd been married for a decade, but the mere sight of her was still enough to make Altaf blush.

What does it mean to be in love? It isn't the most original question, nor is it the most unusual one... But what does it mean to be in love with someone who is no longer around, no longer available, no longer alive?

Malhotra brings in the ancient arts of perfumery and calligraphy into the novel, and makes it a landscape that calls to all of your senses, to your soul, to your forgotten memories. Especially, she looks at how perfume, and ittar, becomes personal and poetic.

In fact, a perfume without memory is a body without soul.

The art of perfumery, thus, is all about association and evocation. It is the union of chemistry and poetry.

Our sense of smell, regarded by so many as secondary, is one of the most extraordinary ways to preserve intimacy, history, and, of course, memory.

There is an intimate connection between smell and emotion, for they are processed in the same part of the brain.

When I read this, I was going through a personal grief myself, and the loss resonated with me so much. You probably cannot feel the novel well enough if you don't shed at least a few tears when you turn its last pages. You recognise the politics and aesthetics of remembering and forgetting, and every tiny feeling and incident take on a larger significance in this beautiful world of everlasting things.

The present had never been enough until it became the past.

It is difficult to forget, but it is even harder to keep remembering. 

[stark-raving-romantic]

Since we all agree the Harry Potter is NOT it...here's a fun poll! These are just my picks but if you feel that I've neglected one, tell me and I'll make another poll, the winners can face off or something.

Please reblog to break containment!

Pride and Prejudice: It is a truth universally acknowledged , that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

Northanger Abbey: No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be a heroine.

Anne of Green Gables: Mrs. Rachel Lynde lived just where the Avonlea main road dipped down into a little hollow, fringed with alders and ladies' eardrops and traversed by a brook that had its source away back in the woods of the old Cuthbert place; it was reputed to be an intricate, headlong brook in its earlier course through those woods, with dark secrets of pool and cascade; but by the time it reached Lynde's Hollow it was a quiet, well-conducted little stream, for not even a brook could run past Mrs. Rachel Lynde's door without due regard for decency and decorum; it probably was conscious that Mrs. Rachel was sitting at her window, keeping a sharp eye on everything that passed, from brooks and children up, and that if she noticed anything odd or out of place she would never rest until she had ferreted out the whys and wherefores thereof.

The Graveyard Book: There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife.

Romeo and Juliet:

"Two households, both alike in dignity

 (In fair Verona, where we lay our scene),

 From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

 Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean."

Tuck Everlasting: The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning.

Fahrenheit 451: It was a pleasure to burn.

The Hobbit: In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

A Christmas Carol: MARLEY WAS DEAD, to begin with.

The Secret Garden: When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Far Out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.

Percy Jackson/The Lightning Thief: Look, I didn’t want to be a half-blood

[ssolessurvivor]

Ships Tag Drop Part 3!

I will be tagging all previous interactions with these tags in place of your usernames (those with AUs I'll hunt them down and tag manually).

This drop includes : @inkedmuses (tommy, buck, prince charming, edward, hayes & jack) TBA for Nikolai, @inabcck (izzy, jesinia, magnus and all his AUs, & harley) @resolutevalor (brianna, rose, yovela, ariel, belle for their original WWII similarity verse, and katerina) @scftmen damien, @townshaped sasha

[myheartissetinmotion]

sam reid percy blakeney WHEN

[theglamorousferal]

Immortal Everlasting Trio who have been exploring the Infinite Realms for the last few centuries. The three of them are flying, braiding their paths as they make their way through the Realms.

“How do you think Ellie is doing in her current incarnation?” Nightshade asks of her partners,

“Hmm probably well, she was exploring the galaxy this time right? I could always check?” Pharaoh responds, a keyboard made of sandstone appears at his fingertips.

“She feels content.” Said Phantom, soothing the worries of the other two. The stars that are freckles on his face brighten with the comment.

They swirl around each other in lazy patterns, unknowing of the passage of time, when Phantom feels a tug at his core. The trio circle up, his partners noticing the shift in mood.

“I don’t recognize this one.” He mutters to himself, placing a hand on the center of his chest. “It’s none of the family, but it is a bit familiar.” He furrowed his brow, trying to trace the sensation to its source. He closed his eyes and felt the pull of magic. “It doesn’t feel malicious, there’s desperation and curiosity for sure, but I feel no ill intent.” He thought for a moment. “I’m going to follow it. I want to know why this feels familiar”

Nightshade formed a purple bloom and tucked it behind one of his ears and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. “Be safe.”

Pharaoh gently took his hand and kissed it, bestowing a glass bangle to his wrist. “Don’t make stupid decisions,” he smirked, “without us.”

Phantom laughed and in a flash of bright white light he was gone.

* * *

With a flash of light so bright it temporarily blinded, Phantom appeared in a summoning circle. The room he now occupied was large, a massive sofa made up a good portion of the room and there was a kitchen off to the side. Turning around, there was a large screen with even larger windows behind it. He turned back and now saw the people in the room.

One was green with a unitard on, one was sitting criss cross in front of some candles, a book and a small cauldron, one was floating and had a mass of bright pink hair, one was a cyborg of some kind and stood at the ready with a cannon for an arm and the last was shielding his eyes with a black cape.

“Who summons me?” Phantom asked in a far quieter tone than the teens apparently expected.

The one who appeared to have done the ritual stood and spoke first. “Mighty Phantom, we seek your assistance in dealing with a massive threat to our world. The demon Trigon looks to the Earth as his next conquest.” They took a breath and looked down. “He intends to use my power to do it, and I do not have the strength to stop him.”

Phantom settled his feet on the ground and placed a hand on their shoulder. “Peace young one. Why don’t we start with introductions? As you know, I am Phantom, he/him, now who has managed to summon me?”

“I am Raven, she/her, the rest here are my team the Teen Titans.” She turned to her team, they all seemed shocked. “I apologize for them, usually they take things in stride a lot easier. This is Beast Boy, he/him, Starfire she/her, Cyborg, he/him, and Robin, he/him.”

“Hmm, may I see the text you used to summon me?” He gestured to the book on the floor. “I was not aware of anything that could summon me in this realm. It is familiar to me though, I can’t place why.”

Raven raised the book into his hand. He leafed through it humming to himself before stopping on a photo of a note that looked familiar. He smiled to himself, remembering the time a century ago to him that himself and his partners helped a small civilization and they left a way for the leader to contact them if they needed help. He skimmed the next few paragraphs and then laughed and closed the book.

“I’ll help. In fact, my partners and I will help. It’s been a long while since we were in a mortal realm. I will return in a week’s time your time to discuss what we need to do. This will work to summon us if we forget or if your danger arrives early.” He magicked a paper with a seal on it and handed it to her. “I must discuss with my partners and will do research on this Trigon. Thank you for calling us, we’ve been aimless for too many decades. Have a good night.” He vanished in another flash of light.

* * *

Phantom appeared in a flash of light cackling as he tumbled across the chess board his partners were playing on, scattering the flowers and sandstone pieces across the green sky.

“Beloved you know not to do that,” Nightshade gathered the giggling king into her lap, Pharaoh moving to lean against her shoulder and push the hair from the eyes of Phantom, “but what has you laughing so?”

Phantom mimed wiping a tear from his eye. “Remember that civilization we helped out a century ago? Well apparently a few hundred years have passed in that world and the people we helped revered us as gods. A sorceress summoned us for help defeating a demon. They were so cute, little teenage heroes like we once were.” He sighed and settled into the arms of his lovers. “Have either of you heard of Trigon?”

[unravelingwires]

Odontomata

Vidya paused when she found the caps. At first, she thought she must’ve been mistaken, but no, they were tooth caps. Vidya had probably been the person to give Katie her first set, centuries ago, but she was startled Katie was still using them. Usually they were just for young vampires. 

Sharpened canines were common in vampires, but not universal. Of the four of them, only Katie and Ambrosia had it, though considering how young Jay was that could change. Eventually, most people outgrew the caps, learning not to cut their tongues on their teeth even when sleeping.

On further inspection, the caps looked pretty old and practically unusable. They were warped enough that it must have been a struggle to keep them on one’s teeth. Tooth caps were available: why was Katie keeping around an old set? It seemed like a strange thing to be sentimental about.

Vidya returned the caps to their spot. It wasn’t her place to judge.

[kelsingra-by-night]

Something you'd like to tell us Beloved ???

-carpenter

-he's the real thing people just don't believe him

-full of wisdom

-has to die in order to save the world (is aware of this, dreads it)

-gets crucified and crowned mockingly

-dies

-is resurrected

[cherrygirlfriend]

EVERLASTING FLOWERS

❀ pairing .ᐟ bsf!spencer x florist!reader

❀ summary .ᐟ your best friend tells you he wants to give flowers to his crush, unaware of your crush on him.

❀ warnings / tags .ᐟ fluff! idiots in love.

❀ author's notes .ᐟ fun fact! i studied the meaning of flowers a few years ago for a fic i was writing for spencer,,, i scrapped it eventually but it was nice to get to reuse that information!! feel free to send me reqs if you want, i really wanna write more for him!!

SPENCER REID MASTERLIST

spencer watched intently as you put together a bouquet of flowers, consisting of white lilies, as well as white peonies, and white roses. "what's it for?" he asked, furrowing his brow.

"i don't know." you shrugged, positioning the flowers, fluffing them up, "the client just asked for different kinds of white flowers, along with some white decorations."

"hmm." spencer pursed his lips, thinking for a moment, before speaking again, "did you know that lilies represent purity, peonies represent good luck, and roses represent passion? white roses have a different meaning, though. they usually symbolize innocence."

"yes, i do know that." you smile softly, "florists kind of need to know what different kinds of flowers mean. we even sell a bunch of different books on what different flowers mean."

"oh." spencer's face fell slightly, "sorry," he chuckled softly, "i didn't mean to dump information on you about something you're pretty much an expert on, already."

"don't worry." you laugh, rolling your eyes playfully, "it's actually nice that someone else knows these things. usually the only person i can talk flowers with is… well, flowers."

"alright…" your friend mumbled quietly, "well, what kind of a bouquet would you recommend i get?"

"that depends!" you smile sweetly, "who is it for? a girlfriend, a boyfriend? a friend? a crush?"

spencer's lips were pursed until he looked up at you with a smile, "well, a friend i have a crush on."

you laugh softly, shaking your head, "that's always the case, isn't it." you move around the store, gathering flower after flower, spencer admiring the amount of detail you were paying, to your task. you brought a bunch of different flowers in a bunch of different colors, starting to arrange them into a vase.

white roses, hydrangeas, baby's breath, tulips… to most people, your strange combination might look messy, but spencer couldn't take his eyes off of it. to him, watching you wrap a white bow around the vase was the most gorgeous thing he had ever witnessed.

"how much do i owe you?" he asked as you added up the cost of the bouquet on the cash register, feeling a slight pang in your chest knowing that the man you'd liked for over a year now was going to give flowers to someone else. damn you for loving plants and flowers enough to make it a career."

"$40." you said, feigning a smile and watching as spencer reached into his satchel and pulled out his wallet, placing a few crumpled twenty dollar bills onto the counter. "wanna write a note for the recipient?"

spencer nodded, and you took one of the little note cards you kept for bouquets, handing it over to spencer along with a pen. you watched as he wrote something onto the small note, each flick of the pen making your heart ache even more, his tongue sticking out slightly in concentration, before he folded it, and his lips curled up into a smile, "done."

"alright. i assume you want to give it to them in person." you pushed the bouquet towards him, "good luck."

spencer look down at the bouquet, letting out a small chuckle before pushing it back towards you.

"delivery costs extra."

"i know. that's why i'm delivering it myself." spencer said, pushing the note to you, "read it."

you rolled your eyes, betting that this was some practical joke spencer thought to be funny. unfolding the note, your eyes widened as you read the words spencer had written down in his traditional chicken scratch.

"to my favorite florist."

you look from the flowers to spencer, back down to the flowers and then back to reid.

"what is this?" you asked, chuckling softly.

"what? it's a bouquet to the friend i have a crush on."

[northboreas]

Highlights from TGWDLMR's Final Countdown stream for those who missed it:

- The stream began with more behind the scenes interviews + some bloopers, with people like Paul Gabriel, James Tolbert, and Juliet Park speaking about TGWDLM.

- Nick Lang confirmed that there will be 16 Preformances for four weekends, doubling TGWDLM's run so everyone will get the chance to go see it. The show will be preformed in Los Angeles at the El Portal!

- Q&A time! First question was "What does the blue slime in TGWDLM taste like?" and the Langs said "It tastes like terror, horror, absolute divinity & godhood."

- "So like a wildberry celsius." - Matt Dahan

- Nick and Matt confirmed they've had many ideas for Charlotte Sweetly NMT stories. Most notably one where Charlotte kills the president and it's revealed she's always been an undercover assassin that CCRP experimented on. Hoooooly shit.

- "Every single character down to the Greenpiece Girl has a story written for them."

- To the question of would Ted commit to Charlotte if he was ever asked, Joey Richter said "Yes. 100%. Ted's whole arc in TGWDLM is realizing, 'Oh shit, I love this woman.'" Nick then confirmed that Charlotte wouldn't want or reciprocate that commitment.

- "How does Pete get infected in TGWDLM?" "When he had JUST spoken to Steph for the first time, he goes to beanies, gets his hot chocolate, drinks it, and dies. OR. Steph and Pete are walking to school together, Steph dies right in front of him, and then he dies."

- When asked about what happened to Steph's mom, Nick and Matt alluded to how Solomon Lauter had used The Black Book to become the Major, and that "The price for making a deal like that would be the thing you love most."

- The Langs know who Lex's father is, It's no one we've met yet. But they said Lex wouldnt be happy with the answer.

- "Does Ted regret becoming a sleezeball?" "I think Ted regrets everything about his life."

- "Who's your favorite LiB?" Matt and Paul said Pokey, Joey said Tinky, Lauren said Nibbly, & the Langs also said Nibbly because of a story they wrote that they havent shared yet.

- "The Lords in Black are immortal, and so they never gain wisdom. They're petulant children. Spoiled, petulant, everlasting children." - The Langs talking about the LiB.

- Nick lang has never heard of Ao3, but apparently Joey Richter has

- SAGE CAMEO !! DIANE CAMEO !! NEMO CAMEO !!!! SO MANY CAMEOS BECAUSE ITS THE FINALE !!!

- Mariah Rose Faith did 7 canonballs before joining the stream

- After more people joined they did tarot readings for the cast & for people in the chat! (If you're seeing this, Happy Birthday Elliott Bang!)

- Most notably: Corey Dorris got The Hunter [Max], The Alchemist [Hidgens], and The Fool [Ted]

- Matt Lang got The Watcher with a Thousand Eyes [Blinky], The Witch [Miss Holloway], and The King in Black [Wiggly]

- Nick Lang got The Collector [Sherman], The Merchant [Frank], The Man in Great Haste [Man in a Hurry!]

- Joey got The Artist [Ziggy], The Blade of Truth [General MacNamara], and The Father [Bill]

- "Lauren, I've got something I need to tell you, I'm pregnant” -Joey Richter out of context

- Nick Lang also pointed out that Corey got the Ted card for his reading and Joey pulled the Bill card. Billted shippers how are you feeling?

- Last but not least, some (paraphrased) writing advice from the Langs:

- "Tell your story to as many people as you can, you'll work out the issues as you tell it. An audience is the other half of the process. Without an audience, your story isnt done. When you show others, you might realize your work is better than you think it is."

- "If you want to be a writer, you actually have to write. When we were growing up, we never put pen to paper. Every single writer has to go through that period of knowing they'll never know what theyre doing until they actually do it, you have to try. You'll eventually figure it out. The sooner you can start, the better."

- We ended the campaign by counting down the last seconds, and we managed to raise 642k, with 9,575 backers. It has been a joy and an honor to have watched this project get funded in real time and to see everyone's excitement for TGWDLM's return.

- Thank you to everyone who donated, and thank you to Starkid for continuing to do insanely cool things. The apotheosis is officially upon us!

[twilightsumu]

everything is romantic | t. kuroo

pairing: tetsurō kuroo x gn!reader

synopsis: kuroo being down bad and falling in love with you anytime he could. based on everything is romantic by charli xcx.

warnings/genre: modern au, timeskip!kuroo, established relationship, fluff, suggestiveness, cursing

a/n: just something cute and short because i #needhimsobad #yearner #onekissplease

in a place that can make you change

freshman year of college.

he is leisurely walking the campus with some of his friends before his night class. the quad is alive, voices and steps bouncing off the brick walls. loud, but weirdly comforting.

that is probably why he was not paying attention when walking into the student center, slamming right into you.

you.

and the first time in kuroo’s life. okay maybe the third time if you count some mishaps in high school and that one time kenma thanked him, he was shocked. like movie scene shocked; his eyes wide, mouth slacked open, and his palms becoming all sweaty.

the most unnatural feeling storming with another feeling that he at times believed he was too logical to feel. love.

he wants to laugh at the absurdity of it but instead he keeps his wide eyes on you. frozen. he wants to stay still, right here.

with you gawking back at him.

“i’m so sorry,” you squeak.

he feels like he’s about pass out. and he kind of hates how corny this all is but with you at the end of it, he wants it all. he wants more.

he wants to study your eye color. he wants to know if you’re going to laugh at his bed hair. he wants to know if you like the beach as much as he does. and he hopes you hate grilled salted mackerel fish so that you could always give him yours.

“it’s okay,” he says back and he’s trying to train his eyes to hear his own voice. making sure it doesn’t sound as weak as his knees are. “are you okay?”

he’s trying to look you over. but he can’t stop looking at your eyes. the books that were in your arms are scattered at his feet.

the student center feels like it’s home. right here. just you two, staring at each other.

“i’m okay,” you say as you smile at him and your nose crinkles. he for sure thinks that he is going fucking crazy. “are you?”

he wants to tell you that he feels like he’s a changed man. as soon as he bumped into you. the electric field of the student center changing him and he wants to be so entangled with you that he continues to change.

but instead, he breathes in a shaken breath and he smiles back at you.

“i’m great actually.”

early nights in white sheets with lace curtains

four years later.

your hair still smells like the sea - salty and wet. despite being a mile away (you’re just on the other side of the bed). he swears he could smell it. as if your smell is imprinted in his nostrils.

the sun, still in the sky but the colors dwindling with the dusk sky pushing in, is trailing into the room at a snail’s pace. the hues of pink and orange dancing along your bare back.

the colors still no match to your beauty. just an added arrangement to your everlasting color, the kind of color that’s burned behind his eyelids — always there, even when he blinks, he sees them. he sees you.

and there you sit, on the edge of the bed. your back to him, the white hotel sheet wrapped lazily around your body.

“i don’t think i have ever seen anything as beautiful as you,” he whispers into the room. and he knows you’re going to roll your eyes. he kind of wants to roll his too because of how normal corny things sound slipping off his tongue when it comes to you.

but you laugh most of the time, so he’s never going to try to stop.

you look over your shoulder, a light blush dusting your cheeks. another color added to your ever growing rainbow. he feels his cheeks tint too. a little competition on who could make the other blush.

“we left a cliffside overlooking the bluest water we ever saw,” you playfully roll your eyes at him. “you’ve saw more beautiful things.”

“i don’t think we should argue over what my eyes deem the most beautiful,” he says back and along with the eyeroll (he loves being at the receiving end of) you send him a smile. small and sweet.

“fine, no arguing,” you shrug, turning your head back to the window. he hears the laugh that wants to escape your mouth.

and he doesn’t need to actually hear it to feel it. he has the vibrations of your laugh etched on him like a spotify barcode.

with a light breeze coming in through the lacy curtains, your hair sways a bit and the salt water smell drifts to him and he smiles because he knew. he knows everything when it comes to you.

“come here,” he whispers and he feels the shiver that rips through your body.

you turn to him, your eyes racking over his body like you’re trying to etch him into your brain the way you’re in his.

you crawl over, the white sheet still entangled on your body and he almost feels jealous.

you’re inches away and because he’s selfish and he wants to be the one entangled with you, he grabs you. his hands find their home on your waist as he shuffles you up.

you’re straddling him and and he feels grateful for the new position. he could see the dusk wash over you, playing with the colors of your eyes and the tint on your cheeks and ears.

“we have dinner reservations,” you shyly whisper and he chuckles a bit because after four years, you still get flustered under his stare.

“i know. i made them dummy,” he whispers back. you laugh and he feels his heart swell and he wonders if you feel it too. “i just want to be close to you.”

he runs his hands up your sides, trying to stay near your ribs to feel the flutter of your heartbeat.

“you’re so corny sometimes,” you lean down as you say this. your nose brushing his and he almost wants to push you back so that he could see your smile as you said this.

“my special talent when it comes to you,” your lips are brushing his so softly, like a feather brushing the tip of a nose.

your laugh is muffled as his lips finally meet yours. a soft battle.

and with your moans on the tip of his tongue, he realizes, for possibly the thousandth time since he’s met you; he’s in love with you.

fall in love again and again

he’s standing at the alter. his palms aren’t sweaty like people said they would be. he’s not crying — yet. but if you do that nose scrunch smile when the doors open, he’s finished and bokuto is most definitely going to laugh at him.

for the most part though, he feels calm. he feels ready.

that’s a lie. a little one.

he feels impatient, because all he wants is for you to walk down already. for you to walk right through the doors, a smile of your face. that smile that you only ever send to him. the one that meets every facet of your face. your eyes gleam, your cheeks tint, and your nose crinkles up a bit. maybe even a giggle when you look at him.

because he for sure didn’t do his hair and he knows that makes you laugh. even after six years.

but before that, he thinks he should wait. and despite his bouncing leg because he just wants to see you already. he wants his hand in yours and he wants to hear that weary sigh you let out whenever too many people are looking at you. he wants to appreciate that he is so lucky to be here right now. appreciate the fact that you’ll forever be his and he’ll forever be enchanted by your smile. (legally that is. he doesn’t need a piece of paper for your smile to grace his life with every ounce of love he may ever need).

he wants to pause and just think about every instance where he fell in love with you. every single moment as a collective swiping through his mind like those powerpoints he makes for work. a simple slideshow showcasing the smiles, the laughs, or just the moments where you’re standing away from him; your back to him but even then he knows it’s because you’re waiting to lead him somewhere.

he thinks back to the moments he catches you reading. you finding beauty in the words on the book your nose is buried in and him finding beauty right there on the couch. you read pages and he reads you.

or when you first told you loved him. it was three months after he realized he was in with love you. the night was young and the breeze was cool but he felt warm. you didn’t have to touch him. just the three words and the smile that you lead with the statement and he knew that he’ll fall for it everyday of his life. you could’ve waited sixteen years to tell him and he would’ve waited happily. his heart in your hands and your smile etched on his eyelids.

or after your first argument. it was over something so stupid and small but when he saw that one little teardrop from your right eye (if he had a ruler he would’ve measured how far it dripped before your hoodied covered hand swiped it away). he swallowed his pride and apologized. so quickly because he fell in love with you again.

he thinks of other moments: him having to explain volleyball to you (and you still not fully understanding), you always giving him your grilled salted mackerel (even though you secretly love it), you laughing at his bed head every morning and how you watch him at the doorway of the bathroom, trying to fix it before work.

or now, you finally walking to him.

greeting him with that smile and the nose scrunch. he feels his eyes getting watery. he ignores bokuto’s snicker.

eyes on you, he knows that he’ll fall in love with you again. as he did all these years. waking up everyday and falling in love with you again.

©twilightsumu all rights reserved. please do not repost/modify my work.

[that-weird-thing-in-the-woods]

~{Heyyyy, So I got reminded of an Old post of mine by one of you gremlins so you all get to deal with my bullshit now :) }~

•Everlasting Sirens•

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

When the Lantern Core connected the JL they were expecting a fight some even started to mentally prepare themselves for a battle with the newest enemy’s.

But as they were told the reason they were all pleasantly surprised, apparently a old planet that was code named “Ocean Wasteland” by the LC because of its surface where there is only one piece of land and it’s about the size of a small park is the best thing to compare it too and this planet was mostly forgotten about.

Until the LC got a reading of intelligent life on the planet and they want to send the JL to go check it out, and the JL agrees.

So now the JL [Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Green lantern, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman] were now in a submarine in the middle of a alien sea looking for anything with intelligence and it was not going anywhere.

They had been looking for about three hours now and have seen nothing but the fish of the planet but that was until they went over a very large rock formation that was mostly dark due to the placement.

Than they heard a loud shrill cry and a loud garbled scream that was the only warning before the submarine started to get hit around like a game of volleyball as this was happening the cry’s and screams continued, disorienting the JL and with how whatever was hitting them back and forth was damaging the sides it was only a matter of time before it started to break.

So the JL needed to do something about this fast but before they could do anything the muted sound of rocks being dropped to the sandy sea floor and the hitting stopped that’s when Batman gets up from where he and the rest of the JL have been thrown to the floor of the submarine and straighten the submarine out and when he does.

They find out what was hitting them. A purple and black eel like woman with a red and gold octopus like man who are now looking and hovering around a person with a long flowy black tail and mid-length white hair looking severely annoyed at the two other Alien-Mers while one of their hand stay on their…. stomach.

Oh

OH

They too close to the pregnant one!

~{I’ll probably redo this part when I have the energy}~

-•—••••••••••••••••—•-

•Background•

When Danny took in Dans and Danis or well Dusk and Dawn as they have been renamed cores. He with Jazz, Sam and Tucker knew that Danny couldn’t hide that he was a Halfa anymore, while Maddie and Jack may be neglectful and forget about the fact they even had kids sometimes they weren’t stupid.

So the four of them made a plan, Danny and Jazz would sit their parents down and tell them everything if they reacted well they would send Sam and Tucker a text that said everything went well if they reacted badly Danny and Jazz would book it out of the house and to the bus station where Sam and Tucker would be with Go-Bags and skip town [To the Ghost Zone or Any other place whatever was safer].

But when Jazz and Danny didn’t send the signal or text, Sam and Tucker got nervous and started to walk up to the window in the room where the talk would be happening and what they saw would haunt them.

They saw Jazz on the Floor with the hole in her side still smoking and bleeding from her head and Danny with the Fentons gone and blood on the walls, Sam kicked in the back door and checked on Jazz who was breathing but not much and she was only able to say that the Fentons gave Danny to the GIW before taking her last breath.

Sam and Tucker buried her near the lake. It was one of her favorite places to hang out with them and far enough from town to be left alone, after paying their respects and giving her a proper burial they started on tracking down their love.

They had finally found Danny, They had broken into the G.I.W base farthest from town by sneaking in without anyone seeing them Does it count as seeing if they don’t live long enough to do anything with it? And search for Danny.

After about 4 minutes they find him. Danny their Love, their sweet boyfriend adores space and would gush about feeling their children’s feelings was strapped down to a metal table with three an around him cutting him open and they were trying to take their children’s cores out of him.

Sam and Tucker left that room covered in blood and gore with Danny in Sam’s arms. As they stood in the doorway checking on Danny a loud alarm went off and they could hear heavy running steps down the hall and approaching fast. And with Danny being in worst shape then they thought it would be impossible to get out.

Suddenly a green portal with purple around the edges appears in front of them and they run through as they recognize immediately who it is and they end up in clockworks tower and as the portal closes behind them some blob ghost that Clockwork likes to keep around to do small things start to bandage up Danny.

As the Blobs do that, Clockwork starts talking saying how they can never return to their world as if they do the G.I.W will just keep on going after them until they are caught or have no choice but they can’t stay in the Ghost Zone as even if Danny would have little problem staying with the need for vitamins but Sam and Tucker aren’t Ghosts yet so they can’t stay. But Clockwork has a place where could stay, it’s a planet far from any place that could hurt them and Clockwork can give them forms that help them adapt to the new location and keep each other and their children safe.

Sam and Tucker agreed.

-•—••••••••••••••••—•-

•Little Facts•

•Sam and Tucker will find a way to drop kick anyone who gets to close to the den or Danny even in Siren form.

•When Ghost/Ghost adjacent people change to a more animalistic form they gain some of the instincts and behaviors of said animal 

•The trio sleep for most of the “Daytime” and do what they want at night, they basically become nocturnal.

•Ah yes some good old gender fuckery on Danny’s part

•Dani and Dan will be renamed Dawn and Dusk

•Sam and Tucker wanted to be in the room where Danny and Jazz told the Fentons everything but Jazz reasoned that they would have to GO if the Fentons reacted badly and already having Danny and Jazz in their was a slowing point so it was better for them too wait outside….Oh how Sam and Tucker regrets not fighting harder with her.

•Sam: Tucker=“Hun” Danny “Love”

Tucker: Sam “Azizi” Danny “Habibi”

Danny: Sam “Moonbeam” Tucker “Sunbeam”

•Sam and Tucker have a body count now :)

-•—••••••••••••••••—•-

•Appearances•

The top half and the animal tail.

Danny’s appearance

The fabric is white and a greenish black

Sam’s appearance

The fabric is black and purple

Tuckers appearance

The fabric is red and gold

(I don’t really love the picks but it’s the best I could do so feel free to pick new one if you feel like it)

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

~{And that’s it! From how it’s written you can tell what I wrote first lol, but sorry if the story bits are weird I am running on caffeine and the will to fight god and I’m going to go to sleep, hope you gremlins liked it Byeeeeeee}~

[ravens-two]

PAC: What do You Need to Face?

This reading includes:

what you need to face

how you can face it

The extending reading includes:

what will start in your life when you face this

Disclaimer: this is just for entertainment purposes, and as a pick-a-card reading it may not resonate for everyone.

TIPS | BOOK A READING WITH ME | PATREON | LINKTREE | SUGGEST A PAC TOPIC

Pile 1

The River | Hanged Man, Nine of Swords

what you need to face:

Pile 1, the thing that you need to face is that you can't control everything. Some things are out of our control, for various reasons, and no matter how hard we try to change them it's simply not up to us. I do feel a responsibility here to talk about manifestation and similar practices (and I do like manifestation believe me) because they can enable unhealthy behaviors. There's certain things that you simply either need to face or let go. And like I said, I do like manifestation and I do believe in it, but sometimes for you to be able to manifest a certain thing you need to face your problem instead of living in delululand (and let me tell you guys that I've definitely been here before, until very recently).

I see that this situation is something that causes you a lot of pain and anxiety, maybe it has even kept you up at night trying to figure out how you can solve it. To you this seems like an unsurmountable situation, something that turned your life upside down and changed it completely. In a way, it even changed who you are. It's important that you also recognize the changes it has caused in you, the things you missed out on because of it. I feel like you're naturally a very anxious person and that you skipped some cool things because you felt anxious about this situation. All in all, the main thing that you need to face is that there are things that you can't control. Do your very best to go with the flow and you'll see that in the end everything will work out. There's an idiom in my country that says something like "there's no good thing that's everlasting, nor no bad thing that won't end".

how you can face it:

Knight of Cups, Nine of Swords

You're being encouraged to immerse yourself into vulnerability and acceptance. The best way to face this situation is to embrace it, to allow yourself to feel how shitty it is, how powerless you feel, how anxious it makes you, how scared. And then, you also need to accept and embrace the good things in it - because everything, no matter how good or bad, brings some good things into our lives. A practice like a gratitude journal or something similar could be very useful for you to help you recognize and appreciate the good things in your life.

An important aspect in your reading though is to try and stay away from dissociative practices (and these might include some manifestation practices) because you really do need to recognize and face this problem that you're going through. Believe me, pile 1, things will seem more manageable once you face it and then process your emotions. That's another thing, another important aspect of facing this thing is that you actually need to feel all of these uncomfortable things. Pain is a part of life, just like joy and pleasure, and all of them are vital for us to grow as people.

check out the extended reading on patreon

Pile 2

The Castle, The Creator | Ace of Cups, World, Page of Cups

what you need to face:

Pile 2, I feel like most of you are artists or content creators of some kind, because the energy here is of creative block and imposter syndrome. One of the things you need to face is that feeling blocked, feeling like you're not good enough is a part of the process - it's all part of the spiral of being a creator, a creative person. Your vision of the world is unique and so everything you make is going to be unique, it will never look like what someone else makes even if to your eyes it's not quite as good. Something else you need to face as a creator is that you will fail. Sometimes you won't have success, people won't like it, you won't like it; and that's fine.

If you're not an artist or a creator, I feel like there's something blocking you, making you feel stuck. With so many cup cards here, it could be that it's related to relationships or emotions. If this is the case you need to realize that you're the one putting up walls and keeping people at arm's length. If you feel as though you're struggling with your relationships with others (like they're not deep enough, for example) you need to face the possibility that you might also have some responsibility in it.

In a more general way, something else that you need to face is that you have a say in your life. There isn't some unwritten set of rules that dictate that you must live this way or that (because I feel like you stop yourself from doing a lot of things), you have free will. You need to face the fact that you have responsibility over your own life and that no one is coming to save you. Pile 2, you need to save yourself.

how you can face it:

Three of Swords, Three of Pentacles

One of the first things you need to do, in general, is understanding and accepting that pain is a part of life and it's going to be a constant. As an artist, for example, creating and growing is going to be painful at times. In your relationships there will also be moments of pain and disappointment, sometimes of utter and complete heart ache. It will be difficult to deal with, it might even seem unsurmountable at times, you will feel as though you're not strong enough or not good enough. But then, it will pass. Accepting that things are going to hurt at some point is fundamental to encourage you to just get out there and do things. Because that's the second step for you, pile 2, it's just get out there and do things. Fail beautifully and spectacularly, and then you'll see how you'll appreciate even your failures because you lived.

Your reading in this section is really simple and straightforward to be honest. Sometimes I try to dig deeper into the cards so that every pile is balanced in how much content it has, but the truth here is that you have those two steps and that's it. First step: recognize that it's going to hurt, second step: do it anyway. It sounds like one of those motivational phrases from the 2010's but it's the truth. Be brave, pile 2, you're going to accomplish some really amazing things.

check out the extended reading on patreon

Pile 3

The Riddle | Three of Wands, King of Swords

what you need to face:

Pile 3, the first thing I'm seeing is that you're someone who is always looking for answers. You're very curious and you don't leave a stone left unturned when you feel the need to know something. This can cause you some problems sometimes because you need straightforward answers to even the most complex of questions (for some of you this could even be about theological or existential questions) and those... those are very hard to answer. You need to face the fact that not everything will have an answer or a reason. Or sometimes it will have an answer but it won't satisfy you. For some of you, these questions you have are about someone's behavior or some conflict that happened with someone. The reality is that it might not be an answer and you need to make your peace with that.

The other thing I'm seeing is that you tend to be a little controlling which might lead to issues in some relationships. The other thing you need to face is that you can't control other people's behavior, but most importantly you also need to confront yourself a little and realize that you might not be right all the time. It's time for some more self-reflection.

how you can face it:

Two of Wands, Ten of Cups

For those of you that need to face your need to be in control in your relationships (maybe because you've been hurt in the past and need reassurance) the way to face this is self-reflection in a first stage, but afterwards you're called to have a more balanced relationship with other people. Give others the opportunity to make plans and invite you or to take the initiative. Give them credit and allow them their independence. I get the feeling that you tend to take over things (like taking care of tasks for other people, ordering for them, or similar behavior) to help them and make life easier for them, but they might not appreciate that happening all the time.

For the unendingly curious, you're being advised to continue to be curious and try to learn more, of course, but in a more controlled way. If you're prone to get lost for hours in a bout of research about a random topic, then you should start using alarms to pull you out of that "hyper fixation" for a moment at least. Be a little more measured and more moderate in your curiosity. When it comes to the people who are searching for an answer from someone else (maybe relating to a problem or an argument that happened) you need to make your peace with the fact that perhaps you'll never get that answer, but not only that, that maybe an answer wouldn't satisfy you. Sometimes people act without thinking; we're all still just animals despite everything.

In general, pile 3, you're being advised to be more open to accepting other people's perspectives and input, but also to rely more on them. You're being encouraged to create and nurture a true community.

check out the extended reading on patreon

Pile 4

The Tear | Two of Wands, Five of Swords

what you need to face:

Pile 4, I think that some of you need to face a traumatic experience you've been through. This experience, whatever it might have been, has caused you great pain and it has greatly impacted your life. Up until now you've been doing your best to ignore it and hide it away in the furthest corners of your mind; and this is normal, it's a survival mechanism and you did need it to make it out of this terrible situation. But I feel like you're out of danger now, so it's important that you start to confront what happened and the pain it has caused you. I really can't stress this enough, but your pain is valid pile 4.

For others of you this wasn't a traumatic experience or situation, but rather a conflict with a person or persons very close to you (maybe family members or close friends). This conflict has caused deep pain both in you and to the other person(s) and maybe it has even put this relationship into question. If this is the case the first thing you need to face whether or not you truly want this relationship and this person in your life. But the second thing you need to face is the possibility that you might have been in the wrong. Look back to what happened and face the possibility that you might not be completely innocent in the situation (none of us are angels and we all do hurtful things, but it's important to confront them if we wish to be good people).

how you can face it:

Queen of Cups, Fool

Pile 4, the first thing I'm seeing is seeking a professional that could help you, especially in the case of those of you that have gone through a traumatic situation. This could be something like therapy or counseling. You need to feel your emotions, but you also need to understand why you feel or felt that way to be able to truly process them. This is why a therapist could be beneficial to you, pile 4. If you're open to it, the tarot is also suggesting that you could try using art to express your emotions - even something as simple as singing your favorite songs could help.

After feeling all of these emotions and processing them, your next step to face this situation is recognizing that you're not a hostage to this situation. Give yourself the opportunity to begin again, to reinvent yourself, to try something new. Another aspect of this is realizing that even though you've been on a certain path so far it doesn't mean that you need to stay in it. You can always change your mind, you're free to grow and change. You're free to look back and say "actually I don't identify with this action/opinion/thing anymore so I'm going to do things differently".

check out the extended reading on patreon

[robinvomit]

† underlined : jason.

⋆˙⟡ "You have given me a thing I could never have imagined, before I knew you. It's like I had the word 'book,' and you put one in my hands. I had the word 'game,' and you taught me how to play. I had the word 'life,' and then you came along and said, 'Oh! You mean this.'"

⋆˙⟡ request: no, i'm just coping. jason using literature as a love language. ↦ kalico note: i have nothing to say here.. but i did notice i had to make a jason banner.. i really have no solo jason requests??? + p.s: yes, there are several meanings to the a.s byatt quote - it was simply teasing because the quote acknowledges that passion can lead to destruction.

jason todd is a complex creature that has never been able to rely solely on words to communicate. he wasn't raised in softness, being taught how to verbally express everything he feels — even now, he struggles with the vulnerability that comes with it, all of it feeling incredibly foreign.

that's not to say he never communicates, no, but there are times when he can't find the words. feels like his own will just fuck things up. so, he uses the only thing he knows will convey his thoughts; classic literature.

"i love her, and that's the beginning and end of everything."

you weren't sure how to act when he said those words

quiet, muffled against the crown of your head

you weren't entirely sure he was looking for a response

jason, on the other hand, thought you were asleep

it was a confession, one he hadn't been fully ready to say outright

"i would rather spend one lifetime with you, than face all the ages of this world alone."

he just says it out of nowhere

sitting on the couch

almost like he's just reciting the words for fun

you, on the other hand, are staring at him

it takes a second to process

"are you.. are you flirting by quoting lord of the rings?"

he doesn't confirm or deny that

"i have waited for this opportunity for more than half a century, to repeat to you once again my vow of eternal fidelity and everlasting love."

you're in the kitchen

his arms around your waist, forehead down against your shoulder

it makes you think, going over the words for a moment

"do you think we were in love in our past lives?"

he chuckles at the question

he turns you around, careful

"i'd like to think i've been following you through each one."

you can only look away when he gives you that little grin

"if i had a flower for every time i thought of you, i could walk through my garden forever."

it's on the little card of a bouquet this time

just sitting on your counter

he's nowhere to be found

you just smile, tucking it back into the little plastic holder

you wonder if he'd like getting flowers, too

"take me with you. for the laughs, the luck, for the unknown. take me with you."

you can't help but laugh reading this one

nothing too loud, just amused

"i'm leaving for too days, dummy."

he absolutely does not care

he didn't care scribbling it on a sticky note

why would he care now?

"long enough-"

"perhaps it is our imperfections that make us so perfect for one another."

you saw this one coming

he'd seen you upset

upset over stupid things

your brain messing with you, as it does so often

he'd comforted you in the moment

but seeing the note stuck to the bathroom mirror?

it almost made you want to cry again

"i know from experience that poets are right; love is eternal."

he quotes this one after you ask him something he doesn't want to hear

that inevitable conversation

the "what if something happens to me?"

the "what if you don't come home?"

there's nothing much he can do to soothe those thoughts

the world doesn't work that way

but he kisses your forehead, whispering the words

a promise of sorts

no matter what happens, he is going to be loving you

"i would rather be happy than dignified."

it's after a fight

not even really a fight

an argument that left you both uneasy

it comes in the form of the book

highlighted for you

a way of apologizing

because words don't always work

"i love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul."

this is one you hear him mumbling under his breath

something that catches your attention

something that makes your stomach twist

"jason?"

he doesn't look up immediately

dealing with other voices that he's trying to shut out

it's a simple question that makes you understand

"you're here for it all, yeah?"

"i cannot let you burn me up, nor can i resist you. no mere human can stand in a fire and not be consumed."

it's scribbled in a card for your anniversary

you look between him and the card a few times

reread it once or twice

you click your tongue

"are you trying to tell me that our love is destructive?"

maybe he didn't think that one through

"there’s nothing in all the world i want but you and your precious love. all the material things are nothing. i’d just hate to live a sordid, colorless existence because you’d soon love me less and less and i’d do anything — anything — to keep your heart for my own. i don’t want to live—i want to love first, and live incidentally… don’t—don’t ever think of the things you can’t give me. you’ve trusted me with the dearest heart of all—and it’s so damn much more than anybody else in all the world has ever had."

this is the one is said after a mission

after nearly losing his life for the second time

after potentially leaving you to deal with the world alone

you don't respond to it

you simply let him have his time

he doesn't let you go for a while

"i’m so damn glad i love you – i wouldn’t love any other man on earth – i b’lieve if i had deliberately decided on a sweetheart, he’d have been you."

it's the first time you respond using his own little language

you say it with a smile

a little over exaggerating

even going as far to tap him on the nose

for once; he has no quotes

no words

no jokes

he's simply looking at you in a way that says he loves you

for the simple fact that you did that specifically for him

[kingjasnah]

obviously what really hurt about the way that adolin was injured during the siege of azimir was how similar it was to thaylen field (honestly a lot of what happened this book paralleled thaylen field on purpose) just adolin almost fondly remembering one of the top renarin moments of all time aka taking out that fucking thunderclast and saving his brother <3. but of course this time renarin isn't here and things get bad. but i really feel like adolin remembered that moment of his brother going like "i can do this i can fight this huge fucking monster because i am uniquely qualified for it. i have struggled with feeling useless my whole life but there are parts of me that were made for fighting these things" and went okay how can i use what i am uniquely qualified for to win like ten different unwinnable fights. oh right i can lovingly bully inactive spren into everlasting friendship. or rather until they make me a mobility aid

[mydarlingclaudia]

I will love you ‘til the end of time

note : divider is from @/toastray. I have nothing to say this was supposed to be a couple hundred words but yk.

wc : 2.7k

tags : @lottiies @luvrgreyy

desc : he’s been in love with the memory of you for too long, falling back in love with the newer you took a matter of seconds. fluff, bit of angst (?), au, re4rLeon, fem!reader, not proofread, I talk a tiny bit about sex at the end but there’s no smut.

Leon doesn’t remember the sound of your voice, it’s been too long, too many years have passed since the day you died.

Six years was all the time the two of you had together. Six good years. All a really, really long time ago. Leon hates it, he knows he’s forgetting, memories are serving less and less of a purpose to him everyday. How is he to remember lying under the trees with you when those trees have been cut down and turned to homes and firewood? How can he remember you gutting fish for the two of you to eat when the fish have left the river you lived by?

The home you originally lived in had been torn down and rebuilt dozens of times by now, Leon wasn’t always there, even when he was, it wasn’t very lived in after you died. He’s been around the world more times than he can remember, before you, with you, after you. No place looks the same. Leon has many homes, stays there for a few decades, packs up, and moves to the next house in the next country.

He had been gifted with everlasting life for being some hero, for fighting monster when those were still a thing, it was well after he had married you, he didn’t tell you, but he thought you’d spend forever together. Didn’t happen, obviously. You got sick, he took care of you, nothing helped.

Leon prayed to whatever God that had bestowed his immortality to him to give it to you too, to keep you alive, to make you healthy again. He received no answer and you died not long after, Leon was left to spend the rest of his eternal life alone, but the world was his, and he has all the time that the universe has to offer. But what had he done to not be granted the one thing he wanted in the world? Why would some God reward him just to let him live the rest of his life miserable?

Leon’s seen everyone fall in love, but love evolved from courting to dating apps, he’s seen an embarrassing amount of shitty first dates. But he’s also seen a lot of good ones, ones where the first date turns to a second one, then a third, then a fourth, then before he knows it, those twenty-something-year-olds he had seen fall in love in a small restaurant were now taking their teenagers to the mall and going to high school reunions.

You would have loved this, or he hopes you would’ve. Because he really wishes that you were there to cuddle up to him on the couch and watch tv with him until midnight, he wanted to take you on cute dates, he wants to buy you things and renew your vows once every few years.

He wishes that the memories are clearer in his head, he can really only see them when he closes his eyes, or when the weather is a certain way, or when a certain smell hits his nose. Leon wants to feel your skin against his again. he wants to hear you talking directly into his ear and see that smirk on your face when you suggest something you know he won't refuse.

But it's been so long and he knows that your body has long since decomposed and your grave has been swallowed up by the ocean, a good half of the time since then he's been living on auto-pilot, the other half he's painfully aware of your absence with each day that passes.

He's not even sure he'd be able to hold you correctly, should you fall back into his arms one day. Would you still love him despite that?

He's gone so long without a lover, would he remember how to kiss? The Hollywood movies don't do it justice, kissing. But no one in those movies kissed like you had, Leon's seen all kinds of romance movies, read all kinds of books, he's always imagined you and him as the main characters, but you never kiss him the way you used to.

Would you even choose him? There were so many different men out there and so many new ways to meet someone and stay connected, there was no rush to get married or have kids, would Leon be the man you'd pick once again? He hopes so.

He doesn't remember Beowulf having a wife, and Beowulf had been great. He knows that many heroes aren't able to keep their wife and their glory at the same time, the decision is often made for them, and they go on fighting until they die. But Leon stopped fighting with the same determination when you passed, he still did it, people needed protecting, but if he wasn't there to protect you, then was there really anything to fight for?

Despite all of this, he's still here. Leon looks the same as he did all those years ago, some things have changed, a lot, really, but not just about him. The world around him has grown, he's watched generations come and go just to get to some shitty grocery store in Raccoon City twenty minutes before they close at eight.

Leon doesn't like to have to work all the time, he thinks it's crazy how he went from hero to cop, more money was needed to live now than he ever imagined would be possible. He has money saved up from years and years of work, but he can't keep using the "generational wealth" excuse when he's got no family.

He doesn't like being bugged much, either. Maybe that's why he's buying his dinner when he's already supposed to be in bed, could be why he works so much even though he can't stand it sometimes, too.

Leon should have grabbed a shopping cart, the basket he carries is overflowing with shit he doesn't even need, when has he ever even eaten Devil Dogs and Zebra Cakes? He really needs to eat more than just pasta and steak every other night, maybe stop getting deliveries from the pizza place, too. He's looking over the ingredients on the back of a cereal box he knows he's going to get no matter what when there's a soft tap on his shoulder, he sighs and stops, turning around and preparing to be asked a question a cashier would know the answer to rather than him.

But Leon freezes the second his eyes land on your face. He must've gone crazy, it can't be you, can it? You're not really standing in front of him with a basket in your arms, wearing a winter jacket over your sweatshirt and smiling at him as if you're some stranger to him.

"Where did you get those?" Your voice is quiet when you speak, his gaze doesn't even follow your hand when you point at the sweets in his basket, he just stands there and admires you for a few seconds.

Leon wants to cry, he wants to hug you, he wants to kiss you, tell you to run away with him, find someway for you to become immortal and stay by his side until the world ends. But he doesn’t, you look at him like he’s a stranger.

"Oh- Th-the uhm, the Zebra Cakes?" Leon finally asks after a few seconds, you only nod. "The e-end of aisle six." Why is he stammering? He's thought about all the things he'd say to you for hundreds of years, and he's instantly throwing every single word out the window the second you come out from whatever corner of the world you've been hiding in.

"Alright, thanks." God, it really is you. Your smile's the same, you look the same, you smell the same, you sound the same, you just- it's you. He remembers the way you sound again, God, please don’t ever take your voice away from him. He stops himself from reaching for your wrist when you walk away, knowing that you don't remember the things he does and that it'll only make you feel weird about him. But he'll settle for knowing that you're alive and that you're in the city, and that hopefully this won't be the last time he sees you.

—

The next time Leon sees you is on the subway a few weeks later in December.

You're not really looking when you step into the train, reaching up too high for the pole to hang onto and instead grab onto his hand. Your hands are so cold, you really need to wear gloves. But you gasp and pull your hand away when you feel his warm hand touch your skin, instantly holding lower down on the cold pole and looking at him.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry!" It's cute how quickly you apologize, it brings a smile to his face.

"No- No, you’re fine." He wants so badly to wrap his hand around yours, to hold you close and keep you warm, but he couldn’t, he was still a stranger to you. Being in a crowded train and standing a few inches apart was enough for now.

Leon just watches you, you don’t notice because you’re too busy staring down at your shoes, but his eyes are tracing over the curve of your nose, the way your eyelashes look when you blink, how kissable your lips look. He missed this view, although he'd much rather have you looking back at him with the same adoration in your eyes.

Neither of you speak again for the rest of the ride, you can feel him staring at you, though, you don’t entirely mind, you’d probably looking at him if his eyes weren’t burning holes through your skull.

You haven’t left his mind since he saw you at the grocery store, he’s been trying to figure out ways to find you again without getting put on some kind of radar, he’s too impatient to let things happen naturally, but it’s really the only choice he has.

He knows you recognize him, he can’t help but wonder if you’re getting some kind of vision from the past of him kissing you, of you resting on top of him in the sunlight, of him looking at you with awe in his eyes as you laugh at a story he told you.

But he can’t think about that for long, the train comes to a stop and you leave again, looking back over your shoulder at him and giving him a small goodbye smile. Where have you been all these years?

—

Sometimes, shitty dates were a good thing.

Both parties normally end up having a bad rest of their night, but if some man-child asshole you had been put on a date with hadn’t just thrown a whole tantrum and stomped out of the bar, you wouldn’t be sitting next to Leon.

He didn’t know you’d be here tonight, he was just here because he wanted to grab a drink after work, but this was better.

It’s awkward, he really, really doesn’t hope you think he’s stalking you. How small could a city be? Is it really so odd that the man you said a few words to at a grocery store and bumped into on the train would be sitting next to you at a bar?

Leon’s always had a staring problem when it came to you, he’s sure you’re too pretty for him, not that you were really his anymore. And Christ, you’re still beautiful, maybe even more so now. Modern clothes look good on you, he likes your dress, your shoes, the way you did your hair, the color you painted your nails.

He has to stop staring, because now you’re looking back at him. Leon expects for you to yell at him, or slap him, or something, but you just smile at him and turn towards him a tiny bit more.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to stare, zoned out.” Leon apologizes once his eyes snap up to yours, you had moved from your table up to the bar a few minutes ago, most likely embarrassed. You brought your drink over, too, though you didn’t really pay attention to it, just circling the lip of the cup with your fingers and taking a few sips every few seconds.

“It’s okay, I don’t mind.” Your smile only grows, Leon has to bite back a grin threatening to stretch across his lips. Once again, he’s not sure what to say. Does he ever really know what to say now, though? You take the words right out of his mouth and turn them into broken mumbles that he tries to cover up with a fake cough or forced chuckle.

That didn’t use to happen, he’d still get nervous around you, but seeing you now made him feel like he was falling in love again.

“I’d feel like I’ve seen you before…?” You say, you know you’re right, you just want him to talk to you because you haven’t been able to get him out of your head, for some reason.

“Oh, uhm, yeah- Yeah, I think I’ve seen you around, too.” Is he seriously fucking blushing right now?

“Hm, small world.” You take a sip from your drink, he does the same.

“So, uh, bad date?” Leon asks before he can stop himself, he knows the answer, but you were probably going to get mad at him, get offended and ignore him if he sees you again.

“Yeah,” You sigh, “It’s fine, though. Blind date.” Leon nodded, staring down at the ring of water his glass left on the countertop. “You just here for a drink?”

“Mhm,” Alcohol was like water to him now, not the way that he drinks it everyday, but that it hardly has an effect on him anymore. But he can’t sit here and drink glass after glass unless if he wants people to get concerned, so he just sips on one or two for an hour and leaves. You’re drinking the same drink as him, though, so he decides to stay for longer than usual.

And to his amazement, you stay, too. You laugh and nod at the stories he tells you, he listens intently to the ones you tell in return. Of course you’ve been living a different life than the one he had with you, but this is already getting better than the last. And you seem… into him? More into him than you were with your actual date, he’s not complaining.

By the time you and Leon go your separate ways, it’s pitch black outside, well, not really, it’s never completely dark in a city. The lights of driving cars and buildings illuminate you beautifully, like you’re something holy.

Leon finds a napkin with a phone number scribbled on it in his jacket pocket, it must’ve been yours, he couldn’t be happier.

—

Whatever higher being blessed him with another chance with you, he’d praise for the rest of eternal life. Because after a few hour-long phone calls and a couple more coincidental meetings, he’s taking you out on dates and you’re holding onto his arm and kissing his cheek.

It’s better than he remembers, the city offers more things for the two of you to do, and he’s up for anything you suggest.

Leon is finally able to feel your skin underneath his fingertips, feel your lips against his, listen to your voice in his ear, buy you nice things, have you cuddle up with him on the couch, he has you back.

You look so peaceful when you sleep, your head resting on his bicep, his naked skin pressed against yours. It’s been a year, you both still look the same, but he knows you’re changing. Leon hadn’t had sex in so long that he was sure that he would’ve fucked it up, you had taken charge, and it had been soft and slow, anyway. Nothing for him to worry about.

He’s been awake for an hour, just looking at you, trying to imprint this memory into his mind in case you were to disappear soon. But you finally start to stir, blinking your eyes a few times as you start to wake up.

“Leon…?” You mumble, he pulls you closer.

“Go back to sleep,” A kiss to your eyebrow, then the bridge of your nose, your lips twitch up into a sleepy smile.

“Mm… ‘kay. Love you.” You yawn, resting your hand on his chest as you close your eyes again and nestle into his shoulder. He hasn’t heard that from you in ages, he doesn’t know if you meant to say it, but he’s thankful you did.

“… Yeah, love you, too.”