#there are a couple things i would change now but eh moving on

[egberts]

posting without context but this took an embarrassingly long time and i got lazy with the bg because at the end of the day it’s all about the ocs baybee

[tarjapearce]

You know the ‘girlfriend effect’ trend going on ? I feel like that would be mama and Miguel. Like Miguel having a horrible style and wearing the most outrageous terrible clothes and not knowing what to do with his hair or not doing any form of facial care routines (you how men are) until he meets our mama and she just helps him develop a style and find what works best for him but doing it in a way that isn’t insulting and belittling but rather caring and loving.

This is Pre-Soccer Family 🤭

Boyfriend Makeover

Ever since MJ's birthday party at Peter's, things had taken a turn between you and Miguel.

Something that had left him with the little seed of seeing you as many times as possible from now on, rooting and blooming within. And in truth, you couldn't wait to see him again as well.

He had this je ne sas quoi that drawn you in like bees to pollen. Like gasoline to a fire, and anything intrinsically related in nature.

When you went home to a little more intimate and girls only after party, you spilled the beans and Jessica slid a couple of bucks in MJ's direction when you were too busy fangirling and gushing like a teenager whose crush just noticed her for the first time ever.

"He tried to kiss me!"

"Miguel?"

"Yes!" You plopped on the bed with a nervous squeal.

"You two kissed?" MJ watched at Jessica eagerly, as if ready to receive more money from the secret bet they had done on who kissed who first.

"Nah, he gotta work for it. But, damn... I was holding back so badly. He looks like a good kisser."

Jessica giggled at your ecstatic state.

"Just kiss him, woman! Pretty sure he'd die on the spot if you do that"

And so you did. The first kiss had been nothing you had expected, A little fumble and clumsy but sweet. He was taken aback when you made the first move, but couldn't complain. He had sandwiched your face in between his big hands and gave you a kiss you only  fantasized often, once the movie had finished in TV back on his apartment's living room.

Things just flowed from there. He once grabbed your hand as you ventured through the sea of people in the mall when you were shopping.

"Won't find you later, Chaparrita." (Little one)

"Well, if you're gonna hold my hand, then do it properly."

With an impish smile you entwined your fingers with his, he only flared an airy yet bashful chuckle as his hand tightened it's grip on yours.

----

Even though he had asked you to date him officially, the doubt in people's faces remained. Not that you cared, but seeing him particularly serious after a gathering meant that someone had said something either about you, or the both.

"Do I look awful to you?"

You truly weren't expecting something so trivial to upset him that way, sure there were things he could improve about himself that would just only add him a bonus to his already effortlessly gorgeous looks.

"What?. Who told you that?"

He shrugged and kept driving. His style was something basic and borderline boring, office like all the way. Like if the nerdiness refused to leave his body completely and had rioted big time and now was the ruling sovereign of his closet.

Sweatpants in different tones of gray and black, graphic tees that had endured through college time and other basic things, sneakers and a couple of shoes and boots. The only stylish sort of thing he had was a navy blue suit that ripped as he tried to slid it past his broad shoulders.

"Shit you hear around." He grumbled while driving.

"Well, if you don't like your style we could change it. I could help if you want to, of course."

"What would you change about it?"

"Even though I love when you wear your lab coat and those sweatpants together" You giggled and took his hand briefly, "I'd add more color to your wardrobe and other different textures. You'd look even more handsome with summer colors."

"It's not summer."

"I know, just saying I'd add a bit more color to it."

"Right. We can do that. What about eh, the... things you put on the face. Masks and shit?"

Your face lit up upon the questions he was throwing at you as he gestured to his face.

"What about them?"

"How do you use them?"

In truth, he had overheard some things behind his back. Him looking like a tired creep that always wore the same clothes, them surprised at you tolerating such lack of style, but what had affected him more than what he let on was hearing that you deserved more than just a greasy haired nerd guy in your life. Mostly said by guys that looked straight out of a photo shoot in Italy.

His hair hovered on his shoulders, either tied in a lazy man bun or simply slicked back. Skin rough and oily, a few ingrown hairs in his stubble. Some pimples here and there. As long as he was clean, like his clothes it had been more than enough for him so far. Contrary to you. Ever glowing, stylish and delicious smelling.

Hell, some of his clothes still smelled like you even if he washed them. But now that a new chapter of his life started with none else but you, he wanted to be better. He was already a bit self conscious about his overall looks, and didn't wanna add more to the list of things he already hated about himself, but for some reason you loved.

He wanted to increase the latter. And if a makeover was needed for you to be even more into him, he'd go under them. And what a better chance to do so when you were excited about it. Another excuse to spend the day together, really. Even if it meant to go under layers of things foreign to his skin or be switching into things in a secluded changing room.

"We could meet tomorrow at the mall, buy new clothes and spend the rest of the day pampering ourselves."

"Sounds scary."

"The only thing you gotta be afraid is what the lack of sun block does to the skin."

"I'm aware that cancer can be developed after the constant exposure to high UV lights."

"You're so sexy when you speak like that."

"I'm actually surprised you find me appealing given my lack of-"

"Ah don't ruin it, Miguelín. You know that's not why we got together."

"Still, I wanna be better. Can't look like a tired creep." You swatted his head gently with a deadpan in your eyes.

"Miguel, even if you wore an unicorn onesie, I'd still adore you the same and I'd definitely fuck you afterwards."

He snorted and looked at you with softened eyes.

"But the gesture is highly appreciated. I'm excited really. We get to spend the day together and have fun."

"Shopping day tomorrow then?"

"Of course!"

-----

You visited different stores, even took a mini photo shoot of the outfits you had picked together for him. He wasn't that into flashy or saturated prints. He was more of plain colors, and if something was printed it had to be minimum. Attention seeking was in the least of his priorities.

His confidence seemed to take a higher place the more clothes he tried and new compliments flew out your mouth.

You had him a blushing mess as you asked him to twirl for you only to slap his ass and give a rather thirsty yet loving comment on him. You already made those when he wore your favorite gray sweatpants. Nothing had changed really, except for one outfit that had your cheeks a bright red the more you stared .

Cotton plain navy blue polo shirt that adjusted perfectly on his upper frame, white pants that made a perfect job in accentuating his waist and white leather loafers. It was the winner of the day.

"Never in my life have I been envious of a shirt, until today."

You then went for the skin care. Exfoliants, moisturizers, masks and so many other tools he had the slightest idea they even existed. Even though you explained each and their functions, he had to take a break to let all sink in.

"How many times I must put all this in my face?"

"Twice a day. Morning and night before sleeping."

"Don't get me wrong but, how do you find time to do this?"

"It becomes a discipline over time. And now I can't live without it."

"If something's worth saying, I like the... uh, the scent and feeling that it leaves in your skin. It's nice."

He cleared his throat as you kept adding products to the basket.

"Why, thank you." You kissed his cheek as you both looked over the men section of skincare, "We gotta get you a proper shaving kit also. Razors only damage your skin. Wanna keep your beard?"

"Do you like it?"

"I don't mind it honestly. With or without it you look scrumptious." Your eyebrows wiggled at him and his ears turned a light shade of pink.

"Let's get it then."

----

His eyes were all teary and glossy the more you pulled the peel off mask from his sensitive skin.

"Ow! Ow, ya! Amor, ya!" You laughed silently as you stopped. Hips straddling him, face to face, masked with the pore cleansing charcoal product, smeared in your features.

You had tied his hair carefully to then teach him how to properly clean his face, after a session of much needed steam to relax and open his pores.

Also squeezed some tools as gently as possible to get gunk and black spots out, but even so had him squirming at the beginning, then you had taught him how to properly cleanse his face, and in what order each product had to be applied. He was genuinely interested at the components of each thing and how well they seemed to react on his skin. Secretly taking a picture of him while having his eyes closed.

"Relax Eddie Brock, we're almost done!"

"¿No te duele o qué?" (Does this even hurts for you?)

"We are Venom." You giggled but he just deadpanned,

"You're not funny. You're a psycho."

"After you do this a bunch of times it comes out easier and less painful."

To his horror, you peeled off the mask without much ows and hissing, like he was, cringing at the way the black and elastic thing abandoned your face, coming out in in a piece.

"It would've be a lot less painful but you put it on your eyelids and so damn close to the ears. The first places I told you to not put it on!"

"I don't know about these things-" He hissed as you pulled in a go the last remnants of the mask. A little whimper and a grunt came out later.

"Canija!" You kissed his face softly where the mask had been, trying to soothe the pain as he cussed.

"Please tell me we're done with that"

Instead of words you smooched his lips with a proud smile.

"We're done. Now let's get you some serums."

"You're not putting needles in my face, are you?"

"What? No. It's not that kind of serum. It's like vitamins for your skin in oily or creamy textures."

By the end of the day he had fallen asleep as you used your jade face roller on him, but woke up with a glowy and healthy looking skin. Even some pimples had diminished their redness. His tired face not only was less tired but looked like he had slept well for weeks. No longer oily and breaking out.

Despite the pain, it all had been worth it. But your shocked face upon seeing him well dressed in a cream button shirt, black pants and dress shoes, and a fresh haircut that would turn into his forever look; holding a bouquet of tulips before your door, was absolutely priceless.

Needless to say you didn't make it to the dinner date, too busy ravaging eachother to care.

[theother-victoria]

been thinking of street racing with aventurine bc I imagine he’d like the thrill of it too…

tags: not proofread, I typed this out in tumblr drafts, some suggestive comments, flirting, gn reader, I don't know anything about street racing so pls forgive any inaccuracies, banter (they're so silly)

Aventurine, who pulls up to the race in an edgy and sleek sports car, drawing the attention of everyone else there- yours included.

You lean against the side of your car, watching him as he leaves opponent after opponent in the dust. He's skilled, you'll give him that. From the aggressive driving style and the make and model of the car, you're betting it's just some bored teenage boy with daddy's money to burn, but you'd be lying if you said you weren't at least a little bit curious about the person behind the wheel.

A few easy wins later that night and you're slated to race against him. He takes his sweet time pulling up to the finish line, but to your surprise, he rolls his window down for the first time that night and you're able to get a good look at him. He's no teenage boy but he has the same mischievous look that implies he's up to no good.

"Checking me out already?" he remarks, his (captivating) eyes twinkling in delight, although they're hidden behind his sunglasses. "And I thought I'd for sure be the one to make the first move."

Oh, so he's a flirt too. You can barely hear him over the loud purring of his expensive and modded car's engine and you know tonight's race will be a tight one.

"I see you've got money. What's a rich boy like you doing all the way out here?"

His grin widens.

"Ooh, you’re sharp. I like that and the way you talk.”

"Why don't you tell me who you are first?"

He laughs and shakes his head. He rolls up the window, much to your irritation, but not before saying one last thing and sending a wink your way.

"If you win, I'll tell you who I am. How does that sound?"

Damn. No other choice but to accept since the race is about to start.

You end up losing, but just barely. You had to push your car to its limits and he wasn't above playing dirty too, giving you a couple of close calls throughout. Although, he at least didn't endanger your life like some others have in the past, so you'll give him that.

After the race ends, you pull into a brightly-lit gas station with some people there. Shortly after, another car pulls up next to you and he steps out.

"Not bad, not bad," he says, clapping lightly. "It's not often that I find someone that can at least keep up with me, much less overtake me a couple times."

"So you were following me."

He raises his hands as a mock display of innocence.

"Hey, relax! Don't be so hostile! I just wanted to get to know you a bit better, that's all. Besides, you wanted to know who I am, right?"

You watch as he scribbles something onto a business card.

"Wasn't that only applicable if I won?"

"Eh, I've changed my mind now," he says, handing the card to you. "I don't make deals that don’t pay off and I'd consider it a loss if I didn't get at least your number tonight."

"You still didn't answer my original question. What's someone like you doing all the way out here? Surely you have more important matters to attend to, right?"

He laughs.

"Wow, you really don't know who I am, huh?"

"... What's that supposed to mean?"

"Ah, nothing. Just talking to myself. But to answer your question... I suppose it's because I enjoy the thrill of it. It's like gambling. Not knowing whether you'll win or lose, or even live or die. After all, the higher the stakes, the higher the excitement- why're you looking at me like that?"

"… You're insane."

"Sure, sure, sweetheart. I'll pretend that your reasons aren't the same as mine and that the adrenaline rush doesn't excite you every time. Why else would you willingly race, night after night?"

With one last wink, he gets into his car and drives away. You finally glance at the business card, only to do a double take and gape at it in shock when you realize its contents.

Aventurine, one of the IPC's Ten Stonehearts? No way... this guy's an IPC exec?

You don't know whether to feel proud about the fact that you got an IPC executive's number without trying or humiliated about the whole exchange...

There's a winking smiley face and an "call me xoxo" written next to the phone number.

And against your better judgement, you do just that.

He turns out to be an interesting companion. You'd think that with his demanding position, he'd be traveling all over the galaxy every day- which is true, to an extent, but he's always there for your weekly races and frequently drags you out shopping with him. He teaches you how to play poker and how to count your cards, if you didn't know how to already. He then tries to get you to play a round or two against him, which you promptly refuse each time.

("I spent all that time teaching you how to play and this is what I get in return? Boo, you're no fun. But a round or two never hurt anyone, right?"

"Aventurine, even a round or two is a surefire way to go into debt to you. Absolutely not."

He pouts and grumbles like a little kid every time.)

He also pays for additional mods to your car. When you try to refuse him, he merely brushes off your concerns.

"Sweetheart, I don't think you understand," he said back then. "I make more in a day than what it costs to mod your car. To me, this is nothing. Besides, I want an opponent who can keep up with me. If you start falling behind, well, then that's no fun for both of us, right?"

One night, there’s a particularly high-stakes race that you’re slated to compete in. The cash prize is one that’s too big for anyone to pass up.

Well, except for Aventurine. That amount of money is probably nothing by his standards.

For once, he’s not racing. When it’s your turn, he waves you over with a teasing smile as you’re getting ready.

“Say, how about raising the stakes for tonight?”

“What now?”

“Let’s make a bet.”

“… Fine.”

“If you win, we go on a date together. My treat, of course. If you lose, then you’ll have to play a round of poker with me.”

There isn’t an ounce of shame in his words. You openly gape at him as he beams at you proudly.

“… What?”

“You heard me.”

“Why though?”

He shrugs.

“Simple. I know this is a bet that will pay off. And I’ve been wanting this to happen for a long time now. So…”

He leans in close, lips teasingly brushing over your ear for a moment.

“Don’t disappoint me. I want to see you try and turn the tides in your favor for this race.”

You pull away from him.

“I accept, but only because I am not going into debt because of poker.”

He laughs.

“Go on then, sweetheart. I want to see you leave everyone behind in the dust. Oh, and don’t forget your good luck kiss!”

Aventurine blows a kiss to you. You roll your eyes as you climb into your car. Insufferable, that’s what he is. But if there’s one thing he’s good at, it’s reading people. Meaning he must’ve noticed that you wanted this too.

You roll your neck and focus on the road ahead. The race is about to begin.

That cash prize and date with Aventurine is yours.

[look-at-the-soul]

Every little thing you do- Part 7

Tommy Shelby x reader

Series master list

A/N:Sorry for not posting this part earlier! I’ve been sick all week but I’m finally functioning like a human again 🤭 you’ll see some references to what really happened in season 3, I just adapted it to this story. Anyways hope you enjoy it! 🥰 let me know in the comments xx

Word count: 3,964

Tommy felt his anger raising, but he needed to calm down and think.

Think straight, have a clear mind.

Father Hughes was the most irritating person on earth. He didn’t want him to be involved in his charity project, that man was far from being someone respectable and he only make him waste his time. Deep down, Tommy knew he must have a dark past, something that he did wrong… he just needed to find what was his weakness.

It was still early, but still he needed a drink. Taking a glass and a decanter, he poured himself some.

“Thomas.” Polly called from the door.

“I need you to take care of everything today, gotta go.”

“Where?”

“I’ve a meeting, will probably be back later tonight.” He took a long swing of his drink. “Arranged a meeting with Vicente Changretta, Arthur and John will be there.”

They needed to fix the relationship with the Italians, after burning down the restaurant. He already had enough trouble in his hands.

“Fine.” She looked at him intensely. “You know… I was talking to Lizzie yesterday.”

Tommy hummed unbothered.

“Has Y/N told you if Lizzie keeps pissing her off?”

“No. Why?” He moved to his desk to take a few things.

Polly shuddered, perhaps she understood Lizzie wrong, she seemed to feel embarrassed and refused to say anything else to her.

“She’s jealous.” Polly ran her fingers through her hair. “She thought Y/N’s baby was yours.”

Tommy’s head snapped towards his aunt. His eyes had closed in disbelief. “What the fuck?”

“Look, I’m not judging her, and you shouldn’t either.” Polly gave him a knowing glance, se had talked to the secretary and she seemed to be having a change of heart.

“She told me she’s willing to do anything to get you to trust her once more.”

Pondering on Polly’s words, Tommy thought for a couple of seconds. “Anything eh? Alright… she’s going to help us clean the mess she made.”

He’d try to push Lizzie’s buttons just to make sure how far she could go. The sudden change could’ve a reason behind.

Now it was Polly’s turn to squint her eyes. “What are you thinking of?”

“She’s going to break up this absurd romance with Angel Changretta. Very peacefully.”

“Isn’t that too much to ask?” She asked cautiously.

“Explain to Lizzie how life works, no matter what Angel says, he’ll always remind her of her past. If she knows what’s good for her, she’ll always have her desk available here as a secretary, but if she keeps this going, I’m going to be her worst nightmare.” He warned right before storming out his office.

First he’d stop by to pay Ada a visit, then off to the meeting with the Russian royalty.

***

Y/N thanked the two men carrying the last piece of furniture into the office, they previously brought in the small desk and chairs, the bookshelf and a file cabinet.

In the corner of the room, she kept a box full of folders, sheets and other office supplies she would distribute among the classrooms. Most of her days have been busy organizing the storage and after a while it seemed to be presentable.

“Miss Y/N Y/LN?” The gardener called, getting her attention. “Your presence is required outside.”

“Oh! Sure.”

The Shelby Institute might open its doors any moment now, she thought as she strolled through the long hall, her shoes clacked against the floor, the daily walks around the institute made her keep in a good shape, because her belly was becoming more prominent day by day, of course she got out of breath anyways.

“We just need you to check if it’s the right color.” Paul asked pointing at the wall.

Tommy made sure to hire Small Heath people, purchasing all the material from local and small businesses, he felt this urge to help as much as possible because he couldn’t stop thinking given different circumstances, it would be him instead of them struggling with money, not having enough in their pockets to feed their family.

“This looks amazing, thank you for all the hard work you’re doing.” Y/N praised.

It wasn’t her place to supervise, but Tommy officially let her decide everything that was needed; from the color, decoration, even the personnel. He just kept signing cheques.

“Am I still on time to enroll my children? Could you ask Mr. Shelby, Miss Y/LN?”

“Yes of course you can! Bring me the papers tomorrow morning and the authorization.”

It was Tommy’s wish, to help as much people as possible.

The man gave her an embarrassed glance. “I don’t want them to be like me, I want them to have an education.” He added with melancholy.

“There’s nothing wrong to work in construction Billy,” Y/N encouraged. “But it’s admirable that you want them to be better.”

“That wouldn’t be possible without Mr. Shelby’s generosity.”

Y/N smiled at him but before she could step inside the building again, she noticed a car parking behind. Squinting her eyes because of the sun, she could barely tell who was that.

“Is this the Institution that runs that gang leader?” The man asked, judging by his attire he was a priest, but there was some off about him that said otherwise.

An uneasy feeling made Y/N take a step back, she covered her bump with the folders in her hands in a protective motion.

“Who’s asking?”

Tommy would be the last person on earth to have something to do with a priest.

The man looked her up and down, giving her a nasty and dirty stare.

“Tell him I’ll supervise this place, once it’s open.”

When he left, his vehicle made a cloud of dust. He didn’t ask politely, no, he pretended to be in charge of the charity.

Y/N walked inside the Institute again, making a mental note to add a room for the children to read, and they might need a fountain in the patio. She chuckled to herself, realizing she started to sound like Tommy.

No long after honking loudly, Tommy announced his presence, Y/N saw him behind the window as he was strolling towards her.

“Pick up your stuff, we’re going.” He announced.

“Where?”

“Somewhere, don’t ask.”

Y/N frowned. “I’ve to ask, it’s going to be midday, there’s things that need to be done.”

Tommy stepped into her office, looking for her coat and handbag.

“Yeah I pay you a ridiculous amount of money it’s about time you hire an assistant.” He said with a wink.

“An assistant of an assistant. That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard.” She added, Tommy noticed she crossed her arms, not pleased by his interruption, she was always doing what she had to do and don’t you dare to move something from her things-to-do-list.

“It’s something good, trust me.”

“Can I ask where are we going?” Y/N asked enjoying the wind in her face.

“No.”

“What’s with all this secrecy?”

“If I tell you, you’re going to tell me no.”

“Well, you better include food because the baby is getting hungry.” Y/N smiled at her bump, while her hands caressed in a circle motion. Day by day she was getting fond of her baby.

“Oh I was counting you’d say that, lately you’re demanding more and more food.” He added in a light mood.

“Polly says I need to eat for two.” Y/N defended.

Tommy chuckled and in a blink, he was gone. He literally stormed into the library.

The little information she managed to get was that now she was reading out loud for Tommy a book about Russians that ran away from the revolution and opted to live exiled and from the Crown’s charity. Tommy assured her that way was practical.

Parking later after in front of a couple of shops, but she still knew so little about what was behind Tommy’s requests.

“I’ve a meeting around, it should be quick,” he explained helping Y/N out of the car, “but I thought it might be good if you start searching for some baby furniture, eh?”

“Tommy…” She covered her mouth with her hand.

“And don’t even start saying you don’t have money, I promised your grandma to look after the two of you, and that includes the things the baby will need.” Tommy used her shocked state to practically drag her inside the store, wining the argument way before it could start. “Hello, we would like to check out a moses, a rocking chair, a drawer…”

Y/N stared at him silently, Tommy thought of everything and even though his generosity wasn’t a surprise, it still came out of the blue, catching her off guard.

“Would you like us to open an account?” Asked the perplexed sales woman.

“Yes,” Tommy answered eyeing a catalog. “Everything she wants, a lamp, the carpet, the sheets… just put it into my account.” He handled a card with his company name and address. “Pick you up in about an hour?”

Y/N nodded, still trying to process everything.

“Leave something for the rest of the costumers ey!” Tommy shouted from the door before disappearing.

The woman started swooning immediately. “I hope the baby will get his eyes.” The woman admitted with a blush.

Y/N opened her mouth to correct her and tell her that Tommy wasn’t the father, but she closed it instead, remembering the advise her grandmother shared with her; don’t explain your situation to people you don’t know, let them believe their assumptions even if it’s incorrect. It will save you of uncomfortable explanations.

So Y/N gave the sales woman an awkward smile and followed her to the back of the store, this moment would arrive sooner or later and she was already here.

“We can make any piece you want in a variety of colors, there’s a trunk in the corner that goes well with this dresser…”

“Let me bring the fabric catalog for the carpets.” Added another woman, they obviously wanted to make a juicy sale.

Y/N felt like she was walking on a cloud, the smile on her face couldn’t get bigger. And now, she was the one swooning over the furniture, her imagination taking her to unknown places with images of her rocking her baby to sleep, or taking a look through the canopy at a small bundle of joy.

An excited gasp escaped her lips when she landed her eyes on a crib mobile. Her heart did this flip inside her chest and she could hardly hide her emotions.

“Should we add it?” The expert eye of the sales woman noticed her excitement. “Your baby will be fascinated and spend hours staring at it.”

The mobile had a handmade star and a sheep, a fluffy cloud and a small sun. It was adorable, she couldn’t wait for her baby to be born to use everything.

Y/N was allowed to sit on the rocking chairs to see which one felt more comfortable and the women showed her a few combinations to create a whole set of dresser, a small wardrobe, a bedside table and also the different colors they had to offer. The more she looked, the more confused she felt because everything was beautiful! She had never had the chance to purchase furniture, since her house was filled with her grandma’s possessions.

A fond memory of her grandmother knitting a blanket for one of her sisters filled her mind, her parents didn’t have enough money to buy fancy furniture, so they used a basket as a crib, she was just a girl but she remembered it clearly.

Both women shared endless recommendations for her baby arrival, and Y/N felt extremely grateful and was willing to take every little thing that could be helpful.

As she flicked another page of the catalog, she wondered how long would it take Tommy to pick her up, then her thoughts wandered towards her sister Lee-Anne, the last time she saw her, it was the day her father hit her. They couldn’t meet because their parents where so strict now, after what happened, they were trying to move under the radar according to her grandmother. There were so many things she wanted to tell Lee-Anne, firstly assure her that she was alright, she didn’t need to worry, then when the time is right, she would explain everything to her, so the younger girl wouldn’t make the same mistake as her.

Not that she thought her baby was a mistake, no. Those are two separate things. But the circumstances it’s what was wrong, she was aware that not all women had a Tommy Shelby around the corner to selflessly take care of everything.

If only she knew then, she’d do it differently.

“Y/N?” A gentle voice called for her, something squeezed her arm slightly.

Her eyes fluttered open and Y/N looked around confused.

“You fell asleep.” Tommy pointed out.

“It happens all the time.” The sales woman gave her a small glance. “We didn’t want to wake you up.”

“Goodness.” Y/N felt embarrassed and mortified, she felt tired.

“So, I think you found the perfect rocking chair then.” Tommy raised his eyebrows in amusement.

“We’ll have everything delivered in a couple of weeks.” Her smile couldn’t get bigger.

Thanking them, Tommy and Y/N stepped outside the boutique, she wanted to stretch her legs so bad.

“How did your meeting go?”

“Boring.”

He always had just a few words to say. But his eyes, said everything that was crossing his mind.

“Did you get to drink vodka and do the Russian dance?” Y/N teased.

Tommy scoffed at her sense of humor.

“He’s a liar, a buffer. He’s just a filthy lucky bastard with the right connections.”

He sighed loudly, but at least Tommy was sharing something with her. In that case it would be so easy for him to make that man show his true colors.

As he started the engine, Y/N started telling him of all the adorable things they showed her at the store, noticing the way her eyes were glowing. And he obviously preferred that kind of news instead of the one Polly was about to share.

“I’ll wait here by the fireplace.” Y/N announced, not wanting to get in the middle of the argument.

Sitting in one of the couches, she leaned her head back, rolling her feet meanwhile a few steps away, the Shelby family were discussing over whatever John had made.

“If you apologize once, you do it again and again…” Y/N heard Tommy say as she was drifting away to sleep. But she was far too gone and tired.

Feeling drained after all the things he got busy with, Tommy couldn’t wait to be home.

“You can stay over so you don’t have to drive back.” He proposed to his brother Finn, who would be driving.

But as Tommy stepped into the entry, he stopped abruptly when his eyes landed on Y/N. She was peacefully sleeping on the couch, the flames of the fireplace casting shadows over her features while one of her hands rested under her belly.

He didn’t have the heart to wake her up.

“Bring the car around.” He whispered Finn, trying to concede Y/N a few more minutes before starting the road back home.

Taking off his coat, he slid it over her frame to cover her from the cold. Tommy tried to call her in a low voice, but she only adjusted her shoulder as answer. Y/N should probably take things easier, but she was adamant to finish the charity project, she was pouring every fiber of her soul into it and wanted to make sure every single detail was perfect.

“Y/N… let’s go.” Tommy tried again softly.

Fluttering her eyes, she slowly opened them squinting in confusion by feeling Tommy touching her shoulder.

“C’mon let me help you.”

“Hmm.” She hummed barely cooperating.

She was beyond sleepy by the time they reached the car, settled taking the back seat by herself, she heard the Shelby brothers talking something about an Italian pub and a fight that would eventually happen. Tommy mentioned something about their fragile ego and sending flowers to a hospital, but Y/N couldn’t be sure because maybe it was part of her dream.

She moved across the room, smashing the fresh berries for the pie she was baking, the lovely smell feeling the small kitchen, it was a sunny day and she could hear the birds chirping, when suddenly a baby cry came to her attention. Y/N rushed then to get pick up her baby who was demanding her presence.

“It’s just fine, are you hungry?” She cooed to settle the lovely bundle wrapped in a blanket.

“How’s my ray of sunshine?” Asked her grandmother from behind, reaching over to caress the baby’s face.

“Woke up hungry.”

“You feed the baby while I finish the pie.”

When the car took a turn Y/N’s bumped something, she woke up disoriented.

“Finally I was tired of you snoring.” Tommy teased taking at look over his shoulder.

“Oh my God I don’t snore!”

“Loud and clear.” Tommy assured her. “Like a truck driver.”

Y/N gave Tommy a surprised and embarrassed look, awkwardly she tried to fix her hair since it was out of place.

Finn rushed upstairs while Mary greeted them by the door.

“Something important came up?” Tommy asked the maid.

“Just a few letters.” She gave him a nod.

“Oh, and maybe a couple of responses to the charity invitation.” Y/N wondered out loud.

“All correspondence arrived under Mr. Shelby’s name.” The maid explained, making a bit obvious that she wasn’t very fond of Y/N.

Y/N looked between Tommy and Mary, waiting.

“Go on, go check the mail.” He told her softly.

“Mr. Shelby.” Mary tried to get his attention. “The mailman thinks Miss Y/LN is Mrs. Shelby, he asked me if Mrs. Shelby had anymore invites to send off.” The maid voiced with concern.

Tommy noticed the offended tone in her voice.

“Let him think whatever he wants, Mary.” Tommy shuddered, not thinking it was important. “As long as he takes the mail.”

“But…” she tried again, then closed her mouth when Tommy gave her the look.

“That’s all, thank you Mary.” Tommy dismissed her just as Y/N entered the reading room skipping happily.

“Guess!”

Sitting, Tommy groaned. “Guess what?”

“He said yes!” Y/N explained excitedly.

“Who?” He chuckled at her happiness.

“He leader of the Birmingham City Council is going to attend the dinner.” Y/N showed him the letter back. “Everyone has said yes.”

Tommy dragged his eyes from the piece of paper, towards Y/N.

“Ah.” Suddenly she got the energy of a kid, it was the nap during the car ride did wonders to her.

“I keep changing the menu, do you think we should offer something else?” Y/N kept explaining how she needed to send a Thank you note back to the people who had confirmed their attendance.

The charity was clearly an excellent job for her. Keeping her busy with something good whilst helping people in need and he was glad to have someone he could trust to take care of that.

“You need to remember to take this slowly, write off those notes tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.” He suggested.

“But Tommy, these things can’t wait, it takes days for the letters to be delivered and-”

“Very well then, why don’t you use the typewriter I gave you.” He cleared his throat and took a sip of his drink.

“Tom!” She chuckled. “You don’t write letters of a social occasion on a typewriter.” Y/N explained him with a smile.

“Oh, forgive me.” He raised his eyebrows.

She then went on to show him another paper. “I’ve the drawings of what they plan to do with the grounds of the institute. There’ll be an area for the children to play. Look.” He hummed in response. “And the Birmingham Charity Commission have agreed to set aside their three rotten floorboards upstairs and grant us the license within a month.”

She finally took a deep breath after managing to explain him all in record time. There was a soft smile playing on his lips and she found tenderness in his eyes.

“You’re not listening to me.” Y/N sentenced.

Tommy leaned forwards. “Yes I am. I am.”

“You think I’m becoming obsessed?” Y/N stopped abruptly.

A chuckle escaped Tommy’s lips. “No, as a matter of fact, I love the passion you’ve put into this project.”

“This wouldn’t be possible without you.” Y/N expressed honestly.

Tommy gave Y/N a long look, studying her features, until he finally spoke.

“I’ve something for you.” Y/N frowned confused. “I know you’ll say it’s a bit too much, but still.”

“What did you get?” She eyed him suspiciously.

“Close your eyes.” Tommy encouraged.

“Tom.”

He fixed his eyes on her, not taking a no for as answer. So she gave in, turned around and closed her eyes.

Leaning back, Tommy got something out of his pocket, holding the chain between both hands, he presented Y/N the present.

Y/N felt lost for words when she saw the necklace. “What’s this?”

“A sapphire.” He explained calmly.

The cold stone sent a shiver down her spine when it made contact with her skin. It felt heavy and strange to have a stone that bug hanging from her neck.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“A simple thank you could work.” He winked. “And before you even start, you can either wear it or keep it in the box it’s your choice.”

Y/N was still trying to process the overpriced present, never in a million years she imagined to own something like that piece of expensive jewelry.

“This is insane, but thank you.” She chuckled nervously. “Where am I even supposed to wear something like this? The charity event?”

“You can wear it to church if you want, it’s yours Y/N.”

“Goodness.” She looked down at her chest and touched the cold gemstone. “You really look for any excuse to show off your wealth, damned bastard.”

Tommy laughed loudly. “You got me.”

“I wanted to ask you to be my baby’s godfather… but you’re going to spoil the poor child.”

“Oh I think I earned that right, so you better keep considering me.”

She slapped his arm playfully, earning another laugh from him. Tommy pulled her by the arm but the sharp move caught her off guard and made her loose her balance, landing on his chest. His arms came around her waist instantly in a protective motion, and their laughs subsided as soon as they realized how close they were to each other’s faces.

Something they both didn’t know how to name ignited in that moment, suddenly her warm hands felt like burning through the layers of his clothes, his deep blue sparkled in a way she had never seen before.

Struggling to form a coherent thought, Y/N used his chest to support her arms and move back. Tommy cleared his throat just as he was trying to clear his mind.

“Sorry… I stumbled.” She tried to smooth her clothes.

“Yeah.” He noticed the blush on her cheeks.

“Better go to get s-some rest.” The words rushed out of her lips. “Have a good night.”

“Good night, Y/N.” He replied more to himself, watching her leave the room.

Taking the remains of his drink in a swing, Tommy thought how close they were of crossing a line that would change everything.

Tag list: list: @lyarr24 @runnning-outof-time @cillmequick @datewithgianni @cloudofdisney

@gretelshelby @garrison-girl-08 @lespendy @onlydeadcells @fastfan

@stevie75 @prettylittlehoneyeyesxoxo @esposadomd @forbidden-forest-witch @ange-thoughts

@moral-terpitude @elenavampire21 @forgottenpeakywriter @thenattitude @winchestergirl22

@zablife @elk96 @blondie-22 @imichelle-l-rigby @allie131313

@already-broken144 @peakyscillian @babaohhhriley @shaddixlife @sloanexx

@sydneyyyya @lau219 @adaydreamaway08 @pono-pura-vida @thomashelbyswife

@darleneslane @lauren-raines-x @everythingelseisextra @kmc1989 @red-riding-wood

@lovemissyhoneybee @theendlessvoidofdarkest @wannabeperfectionists-blog (can’t tag) @yeppaweshallsee (can’t tag) @skydisneylover (can’t tag)

@holacia3 @galactict3a @mysticalbouquetwolf-posts @ietss @abaker74

@natalie--rushman @elliaze @justrainandcoffee @teawonderfultea-blog1

[spider999sposts]

you kept me like a secret—Miguel O'Hara

🕸synopsis: you are done being his little secret

🕸tags: fem!reader × Miguel O'Hara

🕸no warnings

🕸notes: posted this on ao3 and forgot to update here!

🕸part 2

It made your blood boil.

You couldn't take it anymore. It was fun at first. Hiding it from everyone. Concealing your underlying feelings to one another infront of the rest of the Spider-Society, yet if anyone looked closely, they notice your little slip ups. How you glanced at each other with fondness, how Miguel's hand somehow always ends up trailing across your waist, how your fingers brush against his everytime you are in a meeting, how on missions, you two always stick together, and how during break, you would be the only one making sure he's had his daily dose of empanadas.

But now it was ridiculous.

It's been a few months now, and he's been different. Treating you the same way he'd treat any regular member of the spider-society, even a little lesser than that. He was rough, harsh, unforgiving, you knew that about him, but despite his nature, he would always be a little gentler to you. That changed.

You just assumed it was because of the Miles Morales situation. When Miguel became fixated on something, he'd be that way, a perfectionist. It was a blessing and a curse.

But what made you realise that this is getting a little too secretive for your liking, was his birthday.

You stood with your drink in hand at the bar. You were the one who set this whole thing up for him, after all, parties were the only occasion where he would let loose (as well as in the privacy of his penthouse with you, but that was not the case now.)

You made sure you got his favourite flavour of cake, getting decorations that won't bother his sensitive red eyes, going even as far as hacking into his gizmo so no bothersome notifications would upset him that day. You were even dispatching other spider-people on anomaly and canon event missions, so he wouldn't have to worry about it all day. It was exhausting, planning a party while simultaneously keeping everything in order in the multiverse without any guide to how Miguel keeps it all together.

You thought he'd be happy you threw him a party, but ever since he'd walked in, he ignored you. He did not utter a word with you since his arrival, yet you could see him chuckling and smiling along side some other people.

"Hobie, do you have something stronger than this cranberry soda?" You turned to the bar, pushing your glass towards Hobie, who was bartending for the night. "F'course I do," He chuckled, "But you know Miguel's rules, lad doesn't want anyone getting drunk."

"Oh, Come on, I've seen you sneaking Lego Peter and Peter B. martinis and scotch, why can't you do that with me?—Wait, since when do you follow any rules anyway?" The punk chuckled, "I don't. You said it yourself, I've been sneaking drinks and everyone is a little tipsy. But they're drinking to let loose, that's not why you wanna drink though, eh?" His eyes glanced at Miguel, then at you. Hobie was the only one smart enough to notice anything, and he was also the only one who noticed the change in attitude between the two of you. You never really talked about it, but he always had this knowing look on his face.

You grumbled, and he just moved under the sink, pulling up a tall glass of..some unspecified liquid. "The fuck is that?"

"I present you to you, 'The Unnamed'. I don't believe in labels."

"Ah, but isn't calling it 'The Unnamed' a label in itself?"

Hobie's colours changed a couple of times, from red to blue to pink and then back to grey. You've irritated him. He rolled his eyes and then put some of this unspecified liquid into your glass, filling it halfway. "You've bested me, now drink up."

"Is this like regular alcohol or—" You asked, bringing the drink to your lips. It was queit sweet, and it had none of the sting that seeps into the throat when you drink alcohol.

Hobie interrupted, putting the bottle away."It is not alcohol, it is a special concoction of mine. It may or may not make you want to speak your mind." His eyes left your confused face and looked up, to the taller frame making his way towards the both of you. "Birthday lad, want me to get you anything?" He jumped off the counter, standing beside Miguel.

"Hm. A refill on the scotch would be nice."

"Too bad, help yourself, I don't take orders from anyone." He strutted away, and gave you a wink, as well as a small smile.

Miguel huffed, "Ese pedacito de mierda."  He mumbled, grabbing a glass and a bottle from behind the counter. He still did not acknowledge your presence, so you decided to be the bigger person and just talk to him.

"He's funny though, his little antics are amusing." Miguel raised his brows at you, moving to sit beside you. That was good, you were hoping for any reaction.

"He's bothersome." He replied shortly, sipping his drink. When he spoke, he didn't look in your eyes, which is odd, Miguel loved gazing into your eyes. He always said it was the only way he could tell how you're feeling. "And yet you keep him around."

"I never said he lacked skill."

"I suppose you did..not." You took another sip of that weird drink he gave you. An odd sensation was tingling at the back of your head. Miguel took a glance at you, and his nose scrunched up in confusion. "What on god's green earth are you drinking?"

You held up the glass to him, chuckling. The liquid was a bit odd looking. Consistency like melted ice cream and the colour of silver. "The Unnamed."

"Pardon?"

"Its called 'The Unnamed', Miguel. It's Hobie's great invention. It's pretty good, once you ignore how it looks."

"Doesn't look very inviting." He added, and then suddenly it went queit between both of you, the only thing peircing through the thick silence was the loud music playing and the sounds of people laughing and chuckling.

You weren't sure if it was the drink, or the ever-growing, tamed anger in your chest, but you felt the urge to speak.

"I planned this party for you, you know."

His red pupils met yours.

"I made sure you had a nice day. No stress. Made sure LYLA didn't inform you of anything that could make you lose it—"

"What? The multiverse—"

"—and  I dispatched teams to make sure everything goes smoothly. All while getting decorations and setting up the place."

He went dead queit. You did not like that.

"...and yet, you have not spoken a word to me all day." A laugh sounded out of you, but it seemed more like a huff. "Not even a thank you. No anything. It's like you don't even know me."

"I—"

You didn't let him continue.

"You did not even come and talk to me until now, and it was because you wanted a drink."

He slammed his glass on the counter, the glass cracked a bit. You slammed yours too, he was not the only one irritated here.

"What do you want me to say?" He rasped, his voice a little lower than a whisper. So far, no one has noticed your heated argument, but if this escalates further, you will have an audiance. "There are suspicions that we are a thing. I can't..We can't risk it." His tone was a little more gentle, but there was still this look in his eyes that you couldn't decipher. To most, Miguel was a book shut close, one that no body could peak into. With you, he was different.

Was different. You couldn't for the life of you figure out what he was thinking as of this moment.

"Miguel, you don't even ask me to spend time with you when everyone is gone or asleep." You replied, "And what if the spider-society found out? Is that so awful? You hand picked these people because you trust them. What's wrong with them knowing?—"

"You and I are not from the same universe. That could very well disrupt the canon—"

Unknown to both of you, you two have been leaning towards each other, your lips almost touched, but it was hard to focus on anything else when you were boiling.

"Do you think I'm naiive? If our love was a threat to the canon, you would've eliminated the possibilty of us happening anyway. You wouldn't have kissed me that day. You—"

"Oi, birthday boy, this one was specially hand–picked for you!"

Your necks snapped towards the direction of Hobie, who was standing behind the DJ booth with Gwen. A familiar song started playing, Miguel's favourite.

How ironic. Of course you only realise now why a song like Secreto de Amor is his favourite.

You both turned away from each other, but Miguel's features softened.

"You're the one who told them I like this one, I'm presuming." He hummed, sighing heavily. You only gave him a small 'mhm'. "Thank you."

You glanced at him, his fingers were circling the edges of his empty glass of scotch. "It..I'm enjoying my time." He added, giving you a faint smile.

Yet he did not acknowledge what you told him. But you found yourself sighing, that burning feeling subsided for a moment. You let yourself smile at him, extending one of your hands towards him.

Miguel just stared at it, a bit confused.

"Since its your favourite, we should dance. You haven't danced since you got here."

Puzzled, he kept staring at your hand. It took him a moment, then he shook his head.

"No."

Your brows furrowed.

"What?"

"I am not dancing with you."

You stared blankly at him.

"Why?"

"I can't."

"You can't dance?"

"I won't dance. Not with you. You know we can't."

That was it for you. You put your hand down, and picked up your belongings. You couldn't even look at his face. This was absurd. You weren't asking him for the world. You were only asking him to dance.

You moved quickly, you heard Hobie calling out for you, but you had already gone through the door and was heading to the elevator.

You heard heavy footsteps running after you, and a familiar red webbing wrapped around your wrist as you kept slamming the elevator button.

You looked up, and he was there, looking at you like he can't figure out what he has done wrong.

"You're being childish." He spoke, his voice echoing through the space. You couldn't believe him. "What?"

That's all it took him to say for you to burst.

"I am done being with you, Miguel." You said, not noticing the tears that welled up in your eyes until they were staining your cheeks. "I'm done being your little secret. I'm done being your midnight lover, and I'm done being with a man who is so horrified at the thought of us being together."

"You don't know what you're talking about." He pulled the web that was wrapped around your wrist, pulling you towards him, but you ripped it before you could collide with his chest.

The elevator dinged, and you got inside. Miguel rushed to follow you, but you were already closing the door.

"Wait—"

"I'm not coming back to your little club-house." You pulled a box from your bag, and threw it at him before the elevator's door could close.

"Happy fucking birthday, Miguel." was the last thing he heard before the elevator began descending.

Miguel looked at the box on the ground, and picked it up. When he opened it, he saw a silver ring, with engravings inside of it. There was a note as well.

'Consider this a promise, and an oath.

I will always love you, no matter what you do.'

The engraving inside of the ring were the date you first met, with the words 'I'd look for you in every multiverse.'

Seems like that was untrue now.

[breadnauppercrust]

some designs i came up with for the girls in miraculous. the idea was 'what if they could have multiple outfits like sailor moon, as told by ginger, or totally spies?' and 'what if their clothes reflected their story arc?' however, i kind of gave up on them because i no longer have time to work on it as much as i would like to, so below this are copy+paste from my wip instagram account. lowkey its fanfiction-y lol

Alya:

Alya redesigns! tbh don’t know if they’re cohesive but 🤷‍♀️

S1: dresses for comfort & is geeky - think DrWho/Marvel/Tumblr. Obsessed w superheroes & has dedicated blog for each one, & that includes LB. Beginning of her & Maris friendship, starts to dates nino halfway s1.

S2: Mari influences her way of dress, still geeky but experimenting w clothes. Ladyblog becomes popular, interested in finding out her secret ID. Is also investigating akumas, HM, The Who/what/where/whys. Lowkey figures out who ladybug is but doesn’t say anything. Has been given fox miraculous at least a couple times.

S3: notices changes in Maris behavior & confronts her. Becomes fox miraculous holder full time, helps LB figure out who HM is & shares all the info she’s found. CN lowkey pushed to the side, causing friction, bc wrapped up w finding out who HM is ig. Constantly wears a Fanny pack now for trixx. Goes w comfortable but stylish clothes (ig lol idk) also at this point is BFF w Mari

Chloe:

S1: wears preppy designer brands to impress mom, despite living in diff countries. Basic mean girl, her only friends being Sabrina and Adrien - whose a childhood friend & lowkey helped him attend school. Both know how it feels to “lose” a parent & Adrien has seen a softer side of her. Probably has a crush on him ig. Maris bully, jealous of her talents at sewing & making friends easily, & prob her knit tight family.

S2: still preppy but w 60/70s inspo. Given bee miraculous a couple times, has resisted akumas - info she uses to help others later. Helping ppl & being somewhat nice makes her feel good & likes the appreciation from others+LB. Maybe Mom moves back to Paris w half sister, Zoe - might be significantly younger than Chloe idk. Didn’t like her at first but warms up to her as season goes on. Sees lil sister copying her & their mom, has an epiphany ig. Connects dots on akumas & feelings & tries to be better.

Should Zoe exist tho??? idk

S3: preppy but more casual. She’s nicer but still sarcastic, has made a few new friends, treating Sabrina better. Still trying to get moms approval tho & follows her around, even to fashion things w the Agreste. Notices Gabriel is acting strange, more distant towards Adrien, doesn’t notice what he’s doing or where he’s going. pt queen bee ig, probably given towards the very end of the season tbh by Adrien/CN after being ignored by LB bc of RR involvement w finding out HM id. AND noticing Chloe change significantly in the past several months (?) does Adrien reveal to her IDK he is still loyal to LB but eH

Mari:

1st Mari is shy, her outfits are safe & she kind of disappears in a crowd. She just became 🐞 & isn’t 💯 with her role yet. She’s designed and made her own clothes but doesn’t wear them outside of the house bc Chloe, oof

2nd she’s now comfortable being 🐞 & that boosts her confidence as Mari, she’s wearing more bold colors & outfits that she may or may not have designed herself 👀

3rd 🐞 is now the guardian of the miraculous box, has bigger responsibilities & problems to deal with. Being 🐞 has creeped into her daily life. Doesn’t have time to design/make clothes so wears w/e, but tries to appear happy.

Kagami:

i like the idea of kagami being prim and proper looking all preppy at the beginning, but after making friends she starts to rebel by modifying her school clothes w accessories but eventually wears w/e she wants w a punkish vibe. lowkey worried about falling into a trope so idk

[saiscribbles]

What are your future plans for your channel btw? Although I like your content criticizing Lily, I think it’s best for you to move away from her because her time on the internet is a huge trash fire that never leads to anything good.

I’d personally really like to see you talk more about Hazbin Hotel or Steven Universe! Your streams are really fun and I love having them on the side while I work. :)

BOLD OF YOU TO ASSUME I HAVE A PLAN!

Much like I never actually intended to start a Steven Universe AU series I never actually intended to become a YouTuber in the first place.

Here's the story:

For years now I've been doing a stream weekly on Twitch where I just talk with chat while drawing. One day Hiding in Public/Private released a couple of great videos on old SU hate videos, including Lily's infamous "Steven Universe is Garbage and Here's Why".

Not too long after that Lily released "Was I Wrong About Steven Universe?" as a nakedly obvious response. I thought hey, wouldn't it be funny if one stream I just react to this video? Just for funsies? To see if Lily has actually changed her mind on anything?

What I didn't expect was I'd end up spending like half an hour explaining Shoujo Kakumei Utena of all things during that video reaction.

I was kinda impressed with my own recall of Utena despite not having watched it in full in over a decade. So I thought eh for funsies lemme cut down that part and slap it on my account. Which is the same account I've had since 2006. I've put videos up there just for my friends and small number of fans before, as you can see from this Minecraft video from 11 years ago I filmed and edited for my friend for her birthday.

And then that Utena video got 5k views. On my completely unestablished YouTube channel. And I was like... huh. I knew people are annoyed by Lily Orchard but damn.

By that point I had also already decided to react to Lily's video on the Steven Universe Movie the next stream. Cause obviously the SU movie is something pretty near and dear to me that I know very well. And Lily's video was SO BAD and had so many OUTRIGHT LIES in it I thought well hell, let's cut down the two SU reacts into a video too!

It'll probably get like 10k views tops.

And then I'll just fuck off back into the shadows whence I came.

And I suddenly found myself with 3,000 followers.

And I suddenly found myself monetized.

And that video just passed 200k views now. In 3 months.

So I was like... well shit. Now I have this new audience over here on YouTube. I should probably actually give them something. I mean the added revenue stream is nice but I'm not looking to become a career tuber. Mostly I felt like I owed it to this new audience I now have.

So I started doing my art stream on YouTube as well! And I also have been game streaming, if you haven't checked my Lives recently. I've been streaming I Wani Hug That Gator, of all things, while doing silly voices and we're all having a blast. I already wanted to get back into game steaming this year even before this giant explosion in attention.

So for now that's the only thing resembling a plan! I'm gonna keep art and game streaming and cutting videos from those streams. I'm not a video essayist. I can't write and perform a script, I'm just not good at it. But I am very good off the cuff which is why I'm a streamer. I can explain things when prompted. So hey, come to my Wednesday art streams (2pm EST) and poke me for art and writing advice! Or to pick my brain about Steven Universe and Hazbin. I thrive on chat interaction! And then those can be shorts and videos too.

I do plan to do at least 3 or 4 more Lily reacts in the future just because they're videos I think would be funny to react to. But after that? Who knows!

[kanmom51]

Those JM and JK being ‘subtle’ moments - Part 9

cr./to the creators and owners of the media used in this post.

Part 9 of maybe (?) more to come that is.

Or...

A page from JM and JK’s book of “How do we do the couple in the group without others noticing it (or so they thought)”.  

Been a while eh? I guess I thought it was time for part 9.

At this point I'm not even sure if I'm repeating or not, but let's be honest here for a sec... who cares? Right?

The hugs.  

You know, the ones that kind of don’t seem buddy buddy like, that just feel like MORE.

Moving on...

JM not so subtly checking out that hunky piece of JK.

And JM of course is not the only one to loose his cool

Like what was this for JK?

And if they are all about the fanservice, and lifting up JM’s shirt is for the fans, what exactly is JK looking at?  Or even more so, why is he looking? And that smile...

Those times they change the lyrics singing to each other.

This wasn't us JM was admiring.

Poor man lost himself for a second there.

I guess this needs no description.

Ties in with my "The terms JM has used to describe JK" post...

How subtle of you JK.

Now, the second one there, nothing subtle about that one now is there?

So, that second moment, not TTU one (that one I'm still on the fence about), JK was not being real subtle. But thing is, it would have gone unnoticed. Like many of their moments do.

And then, like many of those moments, once you have noticed them they are anything but subtle.

And if we are on the subject...

The kiss blowing

We had young Jikook blowing kisses and miraculously catching each other's kiss.

Can we call this blowing a kiss?

Jimin blowing kiss at 2018 MMAs

2020 Festa Karaoke

2022 Las Vegas concert - JM again

2019 concerts

1st one, ok now, wow there JK...

2nd one, well it's cut off but like many Jikook moments pretty sus.

3rd acknowledged by JM.

Is that a kiss JK?

Once again I've reached my image quota (Tumblr is just mean).

But you know what that means, don't you?

...

To be continued.

I am kind of feeling the next one will be a good one. Already have some ideas floating around. Hopefully no repeating, but then again, who cares?

[shiemori-writes]

If your still doing requests, How would Cater, Kalim, Malleus and Jamil be like when their s/o gifts them a portrait of themselves that s/o painted?

✰—" because every artist need's a muse!"

the prefect decides to gift their lovely s/o a portrait!! how will the boys react?

characs: cater, kalim, malleus and jamil <3

includes: sfw, fluff, pining, pre-established relationship, and ofc, gender neutral reader as per usual!

notes: this was pretty fun to write! thanks for the request nonnie~! (also yes thats malleus' username) (he was using speech to text and it was too late to change it khehehe)

♡︎CATER DIAMOND♡︎

Growing up, he never really wouldve thought he'd have someone..Let alone a partner, care for him like you do, and now after he's seen how you see him? Heh, he might as well have fallen for you all over again.

Sheeesh you got him feeling all mushy inside mc! youre gonna be the death of him, you're too cute you know that?

He's uncharacteristically careful, quiet even for a few moments, wide eyed as he observes the little strokes and splashes of color you added, whether it be the emerald green you carefully painted for his eyes, the lovely ginger locks you gingerly (heh) painted across the canvas, or even just his smile, not the smile that he put up with everyone but the smile that he puts with you.

Once he's done observing though, he'd smile, he'd smile real big at you, the type of smile that never failed to make your heart flutter

Thanks you by tackling you into a hug, peppering kisses all over your face despite your giggly protests

He definitely posts it on magicam bring all ooey-gooey

(yk those couple posts? Yeah)

heh, after all! he has such a lovely s/o and he absolutely wants to brag about it

If you hear ace gagging in the background ignore him smh (maidenless behaviour)

He has the painting in his room now, a silent reminder that you'll always be here for him, and he greatly appreciates it <3

"—Hey, (name)-san, thanks, alright? no really,- I-..I really appreciate this, kay? You made cay-cays heart melt y'know!! You're the most cutest sweetest s/o ever!!! Hehe!! I'll post this later but..For now, I'll reward you with my affection!!!"

☀︎︎KALIM AL-ASIM☀︎︎

You decided to give it to your sunshine of a boyfriend once you were both done with classes, casually showing him the portrait inside your locker wh- OH GOD IS HE CRYING??? KALIMM-

Bros literally SWOONING (rook who?)

HIS BEAUTIFUL, PRETTY, ELEGANT GORGEOUS, LOVE OF HIS LIFE, HIS OTHER HA- ok you get the point

HIS?!?! HIS S/O PAINTED HIM?!🥺🥺🥺🥺 BWKDJAJD (NAMEEEEE) HE LOVES YOU SO SO MUCH!!!

Literally squeels and scream like a little kid on christmas when you gave him the portrait, guy fell in love with you all over again please his hearts doing jumps and he feels all mushy and just <33 his,,, his pwetty s/o 👉👈 painted him🥺

Thanks you by giving you lots of kisses!!! literally smothers u in his affection and hugs the life out of you (FLOYD WH-)

He immediately hangs it on his bedroom wall, gushing about you to jamil (help him)

it definitely cheers him up in his bad days!!

Like he could be doing the most mundane things and randomly think about your portrait, and hes smiling all lovesick all over again

Seriously, at this point jamil's heavily considering into moving into a different dorm because all Kalim will talk about for the rest of the week or so is prefect this, prefect that, blegh dear sevens jamil is TIRED

But anyways, kalim loves it, and love you even mooreee!!! He also hosts a party in your honor (jamil stopped him from doing anything more grand)

(I love him so much omg)

"—AWW THANK YOU SO MUCH (NAMEE)!!! I LOVE IT!!! *SNIFF* YOU PAINTED ME SO WELL TOOOO!!!! I love love love you!!!! I'll make sure to hang this in my room hehe!! oh and by the way!! im hosting a party later for you!! eh? what do you mean its not necessary? Only the best for my dearest jewel!!!"

ꨄ︎MALLEUS DRACONIAꨄ︎

this man, oh my sevens where do I even start? He already praises the ground you walk on, so boy-oh-boy does this work wonders for him! (sebek crying in the background is normal)

You guys were at your normal hang outs, gazing at the stars as Malleus held you close, talking about whatever is on both of your minds when you realized the portrait you did for him!!

Literally mid way of you talking you stopped bc of that and just went like :O !!!

(Malleus found it ridiculously adorable, he wants to kiss u stupid rn)

Curious to what revelation you had just witnessed, he watched as you grab something from your bag carefully

"My my,? What's this child of man? Fufufu~ I was not aware you would be bold enough t—!!!"

His teasing remark was caught in his throat once he saw your bashful grin at the painting of what seems to be,,...him..?

You handed him the painting as he carefully examined it, the details of his features that you took great notice of, his eyes, his horns..

You cleared your throat and explained yourself when you saw noticed how quiet he was, cheeks flushed

Breaking him out of his reverie, he finally processed your explanation and flashed you the most sweetest, sincere smile that made your heart go crazy bc he was so cute rn oml

He quietly pulled you closer, engulfing you in the most gentle hug ever, treating you like fragile porcelain as he inhaled your scent, chuckling a response to your gracious gift

"—my my, child of- no, (name), for once you have me speechless...You truly are full of surprises arent you,? Well..Anyways, I sincerely thank you, dearest. Your affections have reached me and I hope you know I plan on returning them ten fold. I love you, (name)."

᯾JAMIL VIPER᯾

Its no secret that you and Jamil are busy people, after all he was the vice housewarden and you were a prefect

Regardless of your busy schedule, you would always reassure him that no matter how busy you two would get, you'd always be there for him, whether it be through sticky notes, or little cute texts to get him going, he would cherish them all, but..

all of that pailed in comparison to what you had just given him now

He stared at the painting you had given him in awe, wide eyed and cheek flushed as he stroked every detail of the piece, from his golden ornaments to his eyes..or the way his smile was painted, you never missed a single detail about him and..and..and god you were just so, so amazing

He's definitely quiet for a long time, but once he's out of his thoughts he immediately smiled, a small curve on his lips as his cheeks was painted with a lovely red, gazing at you with the most fondest look he's ever given.

Pulls you close to him as he mutters a quiet 'thank you', trailing kisses around your neck as he buries his flustered face in the crook of your neck, he loved you very much

He hung up the painting a little while after, admiring the little detail's you had painted on him.

"—ya hayati..Thank you..I really appreciate it," he mutters out, voice gentle as he trails a kiss on your forehead, chuckling at how flustered you were, too. "Love you.." He said, voice laced with fondness as he held you closer, feeling your warmth.

"-Say, (name), there's a feast later in Scarabia..Mind joining? I'll cook your favorite, alright?"

end notes: hi hi!! sorry this took so long nonnie </3 hope you like it!!! My favorite parts to write was definitely jamil lol! i think it showed but anyways, thanks for requesting!

[vodika-vibes]

„What’s your ideal type?“ „you“ + Prudii pretty please with a cherry on top 🥹🙏🏻

Come With Me

Summary: You’ve been crushing on Prudii for an embarrassingly long time. And you’ve finally decided to do something about it.

Pairing: Prudii Skirata x Reader

Word Count: 1261

Warnings: None

Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni @imabeautifulbutterfly

A/N: This is another request that's been sitting in my inbox since before christmas! I'm so sorry it took me so long to get to, and I hope you're still around, nonny!

“Long day?” You ask as you peek around Prudii’s shoulder with a small grin on your face, “You look exhausted.”

Prudii flashes a small smile as he leans back against the bench, “It has been a long day. So many things to do. So much paperwork.” He shakes his head and pats the bench next to him, to invite you to sit down, “How about you? I haven’t seen you in a couple of days.”

“Oh, well. You know how it is.” You shrug as you drop onto the bench next to him, “I had to make all of the arrangements for my grandparents to get moved into that new Nursing Home, because you know my parents weren’t going to do it-”

“Ah, so that’s where you’ve been.”

You hold you hands out to the side as you shake your head, “Honestly, I had to go through the court system to get power of attorney for them, good thing that my family hasn’t been subtle in how they’ve been taking advantage of my grandparents.”

“I still think that you should have just thrown me and my brothers at the problem.”

“Honestly, you and your brothers do so much for me already, I couldn’t put this on you. Besides, my family, my responsibility.” You grin at him, “At this point, I’m pretty sure I already owe Kal my first born for all the help he’s given me in dealing with this.”

Prudii laughs, “Kal-Buir has been a great help to you, hasn’t he?”

“That lawyer he got for me is a shark. I’ve never been so impressed in my life.”

Prudii laughs again, and a small smile lifts your lips. It’s nice to talk to him, after all of the stress of the last couple of months. “Anyway,” You say after a moment, before you do something foolish like confess your love for him, “What are you up to today?”

“Well, I was thinking of hitting the hiking trail.” Prudii admits, “but hiking alone is no fun, and none of my brothers are available.”

“I’m free.” You offer, probably too quickly, given the fact that you hate hiking and nature.

Prudii shifts and throws his arm over the back of the bench as he turns to look at you, “You?”

“Yeah.”

“You hate hiking. And nature. And being outside.”

“Maybe I’ve grown as a person.”

“Uh-huh.” He replies doubtfully.

“I could have!”

“You’re going to be miserable. It’s hot, and there are spiders-”

“Well….well, I’m wearing shorts,” You counter defensively, “And you can protect me from the spiders.”

A sly smile crosses his face and he leans in so that his face is a lot closer to yours, pulling a startled squeak from your lips, “You know, you can just say that you want to spend time with me. I won’t judge you.”

You narrow your eyes at him, “That’s very arrogant of you, Prudii Skirata.”

He smirks, “I’m waiting~” Prudii says in a sing-song voice.

A huff falls from your lips and you fold your arms, “Fine. I would like to spent time with you, Prudii.”

“There we go, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

“It was as painful as pulling teeth.” You sniff.

He laughs and tosses his arm over your shoulder, tugging you into his side, “You’re so dramatic.”

“Dramatic? Me? I would never-”

“Sure, sure.” He grins down at your face, “So, since we’re going to be spending time together, I got a question for you.”

“Oh?”

He pauses, “Eh, I’ll ask you later.”

You sputter at him, “I...you...You’re impossible! You can’t just say that and then change your mind!”

“Can and did! Come on, angel. We’re going hiking! With spiders. And Wasps! Isn’t that exciting?” He gets to his feet, dragging you with him.

“See, now I think you’re doing this on purpose.”

“Oh, absolutely.” He keeps his arm thrown over your shoulder, “But, you already agreed. So, no take-backs.”

“Ugh, what are you, five?”

“Thirteen, actually.”

You sigh, “That joke is never funny.”

“That joke is hilarious.” Prudii corrects as he starts walking you away from the park and towards the hiking trail, “You just don’t have a sense of humor.”

“I have a sense of humor, you just aren’t funny.”

“Ooh. Ouch. You’re not pulling your punches today, are you angel?” He looks amused though.

“Do you need me to?”

“Nah, I can take whatever you can dish.”

You glance at him for a moment, and then avert your gaze. Damn him and his stupid charm and his even more stupid smile-

“Well that’s good. I’d hate to hurt your feelings.” You murmur lightly.

“Ah, you could never.” His arm tightens around your shoulders, as he brings you to the sign board that indicates the various trails. “Lets see...we want...Ah, this one.”

“That hiking trail is 10 miles long.” You say flatly.

“It’s good exercise.”

“There isn’t even a path for half of it!”

“Don’t worry, angel. I won’t let you get hurt. And I won’t let us get lost.” Prudii downloads the map to his comm, and then tugs you to the start of the path, “Trust me.” He adds with a grin.

“I do trust you. Just, this is going to take forever.”

“It’ll be great. There’s a stop about a mile in where we can buy water and food, so you won’t have to worry about that.” He flashes a small grin at you, “Regretting your decision yet?

You scowl at him, “No.”

“Good.”

It’s about an hour later, when the pair of you are well on the path that Prudii picked, that he picks up the line of conversation that he started well before you started the hike, “So, angel,” He says as he helps you down off a large rock, “Got a boyfriend yet?”

“Please. As if I had the time for that.” You set your hands on his shoulders as he lifts you down from the rock and sets you on your feet next to him, “Besides, I’m undatable, remember?”

“Yeah, the opinions of assholes are worthless, angel.” Prudii counters with a roll of his eyes, “You definitely shouldn’t take the words of your ex as fact.”

“It’s not like I have a line of potential suitors, Prudii.” You say with your own eye roll.

“Well then, what’s your ideal type?”

You hesitate, just for a moment, before you throw all caution to the wind, “You.” Your answer is a little hesitant, not sure that he’d appreciate your answer.

Prudii blinks at you. Once, twice, three times. “Me?”

“Please don’t make this a thing-” You start, but you’re not able to finish as his lips crash against yours. His kiss is so forceful that you nearly topple backwards, though his arms settle securely around you.

“Oh thank Kriff, I thought you had a thing for Ordo.” Prudii breathes out against your lips, “And I was planning on telling you all of the horrible things I know about him-”

You blink at him, “I...were you jealous?” You ask, incredulously.

“Yes. Kriff yes. So kriffing jealous.” He kisses you again, and again.

“...and now?” You ask softly.

“Now, I’m so happy I think I might burst…and I owe Ordo an apology for blackening his eye.”

“You...what?”

He smiles sheepishly, “I was a lot jealous. I’ll talk to him about it.”

“He’s going to break your nose.”

“...yeah. Oh well, worth it! Because I can do this now.” His lips are on yours again in a matter of moments, and you melt against him. This is all you’ve ever wanted, after all.

[sourbinnie]

title -> take me back (take me back literally) genre -> angst (oh my god, is that all i write) + hopeful ending plot ->  your relationship fell apart with minho but he still remembers everything about you, especially that one trip to monaco. warnings -> minho sometimes curses a bit too much + implied sexual content (one unholy night that's it but no explicit stuff) pair -> ex!minho x gn!reader words -> 1572 lowercase intended a/n -> this one's kinda bad but eh, i wanted to publish it anyways bc this song is my boo

las luces, las noches que fuimos de bares las vez que peleamos y perdiste las llaves se extraña todo lo que fue tenerte haría todo por volver a verte mirar tus ojos y esta vez perderme

monaco / lagos & danny ocean

every time i thought about them it was as if flashbacks came rushing through me. the wind hitting me in the face, the bright sunny day, the music that the radio played, the long car drives that never ended, everything felt too familiar yet so distant. as if you were nothing but a lost memory that i left on a vacation in monaco.

if i told anyone why we split up, they wouldn't believe me. 

everyone would say that we were the perfect couple, the combination that came once in a lifetime and then you stayed with that special someone till the end of time. i beg to differ that we weren't perfect at all, we just showed a version of ourselves in front of people and in the more intimate moments everything would collapse slowly. it wasn't toxic but it wasn't healthy either. yet if i knew that what we had wasn't good, why am i missing you so much? why do i wake up everyday wishing you were by my side? why do i want our first vacation back in monaco to grace me back? just let me repeat it one more time before i go to sleep and keep dreaming of you.

why do i keep saying this place? this country? 'cause i know what we had was special. i know that what we lived there was out of this world even if it was my vacation with the boys and i brought you along, and literally everyone called me a simp, i did not care. 

we explored so much, drank way too much and did unholy things but i wouldn't change that for the world. you taking my hand as the sunshine would reflect our shadows on the pavement. you bringing me closer and giving me the sweetest kiss for the world to see. you saying that you didn't wanna leave, you didn't wanna go back because you would miss me when i would go back to work, broke my heart and as much as i wanted to say "let's stay here forever", it was just an illusion and nothing else.

i know you (y/n), i know you're probably thinking that i don't miss you, that those words said to me that night are just a reflection of what i feel. i would do anything right now to see you, i miss everything you gave me, everything you were. even if it brought some of the saddest moments, i do not care, i am so fucking in love that i will go to couple's therapy with you if it's a way to fix us. i would quit my job, move to monaco for fuck's sake, i just want you back. 

i shouldn't be reaching for my phone right now like i knew exactly what i was gonna say 'cause i did not have a fucking idea of what i'm doing. i needed to hear your voice, everyone around me knew i needed you, the boys, my parents, even the staff and jyp himself knew that i wasn't acting the same way since the break up. 

since we split ways and decided to let our relationship die, i've been dead myself. trying to hold on, trying to put a fake smile, trying to just not fall apart in front of everyone. when they asked me why, i just said things weren't "working out" which is partially true but maybe i'm realizing now that if i put more effort and didn't let go like i did that night, we would've ended up in a better place.

i dialed your number, i prayed to everything & everyone that you didn't block me. and in fact you didn't...

maybe you were waiting for this as much as i was?

maybe you just needed me to call.

or maybe i should hang up and pretend this never happened in the first place.

"hello? minho?" your voice caught me off guard. i haven't heard it in a while and i've been processing in my head way too much. panicking as anxiety settles in and just knowing that i have to keep this conversation up, not wanting to let you go again.

"hey (y/n) i'm sorry, this is way out of nowhere and i-i needed to talk to you." voice crack and everything, good job minho. "i know you probably don't wanna talk to me right now but-."

"i did wanna talk to you, you know i'm always waiting for you to come back right?" what? did they actually say that or am i hallucinating again? 

"what do you mean?" what the hell would it mean minho!? why am i so goddamn awful at speaking, jesus christ. "i just, i didn't expect you to be waiting after what happened that night."

i was invaded by awful memories. no more monaco, no more sunshine, no more petals, just a cold rainy night in seoul in our shared apartment that now only belongs to me. i said some fucked up things, i destroyed everything we built with just words, i regretted every single night since then. i know they were also wrong in some things but it's nothing compared to the things i've said out of pure anger, fear and disappointment. 

i didn't want that but i also knew i couldn't keep living like this, thinking that there was a chance that we could go back and fix the mess we made.

"i know, i thought so too and it wasn't fair to me what you decided to do that night." you said calmly and i understood, i wasn't an idiot, i wasn't angry or throwing things thinking you were in the wrong. i took it because i know i hurt you and i'm...

"sorry, i'm always gonna be sorry for what i said, for what i did and for all the things that happened." i was feeling the tears and it was rare, i didn't like to cry. i've been told i don't cry at all even when sad moments happen, i just don't have the strength to do so when usually it's the opposite for most people. "i know you know that we were both in the wrong, we fought endlessly and i needed to let you go somehow and i chose the worst way, i will always be sorry."

"it's okay, i don't blame you even if it hurt me, even if it stings sometimes, i know it wasn't you talking and i know my minho way better than that." my minho...

my minho was gonna kill me and bury me for god's sake, i'm losing my mind. the tears, the dizziness, everything was falling in it's place and i still didn't know what to do. i didn't expect things to go like this but i knew it was my chance to make it better.

"(y/n) i'm gonna make it simple, you know i'm not good with words, in fact i've been panicking trying to think of what to say to you." i laughed but it wasn't the laughter that they knew, it was more of a choked up kind, one that was desperate to be told what to do in this situation. "i haven't been the same since you left, i can barely function, i don't know what i'm doing most of the time as i wait for you (and it looks like you've been waiting for me too), hoping you'll return."

speaking as you're crying is probably the worst way of communicating but i was taking this like my last opportunity to mend everything.

"i want you back, i'll do anything to be with you again." i said lightly and softly 'cause words were barely coming out of me. "i love you, i will never stop loving you and i've been remembering so much of our history but mostly that specific vacation we had with the boys..."

"oh so you're also thinking in monaco? the promise we made right?"

how could i forget the most important part? as we stared at the sunset, you held your pinky finger and i thought it was dumb and childish but when we intertwined them and promised to never let go, to always hold on to what we had even in our darkest times, even if the skies were no longer blue but gray & dull, i would have your back and you would have mine. i broke it somehow and in some way but i didn't mean to, i never let go, i never wanted to end things and i was hoping, praying, you didn't either.

"i'm always thinking about it, i'm always thinking about you, about us..." i said and sighed. i gave it all and somehow it still felt like a weight when i heard their voice, because i had to make up for so many tears. "please give me another chance, i won't promise because i know you're probably thinking that i'll break it but i need you back in my life, i love you."

as sincere as i got and as cliche as it was, i just couldn't contain it anymore.

"i love you too but we have to talk about it in person okay? can you hold on a bit for me min?" you said, this time tenderly and softly. i nodded even though you couldn't see it and that's when i said...

"anything for you jagi".

[cc-horan28]

Be My Valentine - 6

Let Me Be Your Last First Kiss

Soulmates AU (G) 1.3k

Louis Tomlinson x Harry Styles

There was one boy in particular, with rectangular glasses and a beanie pulled down over his hair who caught his eye, gesturing extravagantly as he boomed out the lines to what sounded like Grease in front of a small group gathered appreciatively in front of him. 

OR

Harry just changed schools, and finding his soulmate wasn't what he expected at all

No warnings!

A/N: I am back at it with the Oops, Hi! Headcanon. I’m obsessed. Sorry not sorry. For the purpose of this fic, lets assume H and Lou are the same age. Also i wandered into the love at first sight category instead of first love but eh. As always, huge thank you to Akeyla for this fest! <3

Title from 1d's 'Last First Kiss'

Harry brushed his fringe aside, digging his other hand awkwardly into the pocket of his jeans. “I know, mum,” he said, doing his best to keep his voice level, not wanting her to sense his apprehension and fear. “I’ll keep my nose clean, I’ll behave, drink water and message you when I leave. Don’t worry, I’ll be responsible,” 

“When are you not, baby?” Anne smiled, reaching up to adjust his hair for him, Harry already gangling over her at 16. 

“Oh, don’t cry mum,” Harry said, scrunching his face up as he furtively looked around to see if anyone had noticed them yet, “It’s not like it’s my first day of school or anything. It’s just a new one. I’ll survive,” 

He wasn’t sure he would. Moving here hadn’t been easy. Holmes Chapel had been so small, everything was so familiar. Everyone had known everyone else, and Harry had had his own group of friends. 

He’d have to start over again, and this school was so much bigger. Swallowing down his worries, he smiled and waved goodbye to his mum, walking into the big brick building, looking around from the admin block as he passed through the huge glass doors.

A couple of minutes later he was standing in front of another set of double doors. He quickly glanced up at the room number, cross checking it with the time table clutched in his hand. He could peep through the little glass inlays in the door and see people moving around, but he didn’t want to take any chances. 

Sure that it was, indeed, the room he was supposed to go to for his first period drama class, he pushed the door open, eyes catching at the grey anchor on his wrist. He tugged the sleeve of his jacket down as he entered. 

It wasn’t exactly like he was ashamed to know he had a soulmate, many did, but he didn’t want it advertised in front of everyone. He shivered a little at the prospect as he made his way to the back of the class, the entire room empty with all the desks pushed up to the sides.

Everyone was loud enough to not have noticed him when he entered. Many were grouped together, going through what seemed like lines. There was one boy in particular, with rectangular glasses and a beanie pulled down over his hair who caught his eye, gesturing extravagantly as he boomed out the lines to what sounded like Grease in front of a small group gathered appreciatively in front of him. 

He pulled his eyes away, wondering if there was some pre-requisite reading he had somehow missed out on. He set his bag down on a desk as he leaned against it, riffling through his bag to check if he had actually missed something. The last thing he wanted was to make a bad impression on the first day.

“Hi,” he heard a soft voice to his left and whipped around, mind already reeling with how he had practiced he would introduce himself. All thoughts vacated his head at the sight in front of him. It was Beanie-Boy. He could see his eyes more clearly now and was seized with an inane urge to rip his glasses off and just stare at his eyes. 

His gaze wandered up to the feathery bits of hair peeking out from under his beanie and found himself wondering why Beanie-Boy covered everything up. His hair looked very soft and Harry wondered what it would feel like between his fingers,

He was jerked out of his reverie when the other boy cleared his throat, blushing.

“Oops,” he mumbled, “I didn’t mean to stare, I just-” he held out his hand, shooting him a small smile. “I’m Harry,”

“Louis,” Beanie-Boy smiled back and Harry barely had time to notice that there was a grey mark circling his wrist before he felt his own burning up. He glazed down at his hand shoved into the pocket of his jacket and oh-

The anchor was getting darker.

Louis was frowning down at his own hand, and Harry stared at him for a moment before the realization hit him. 

“Is that an anchor?” Louis said, voice low enough that Harry had to lean forward to hear. Louis’ eyes were now fixed on Harry’s jacket. 

“Yeah,” Harry breathed out, too dumbfounded to say anything else. 

“Oh my god,” Louis exclaimed, “I- mine’s a rope. I always thought it was a bit stupid. Like- i was tied up or something but I-” he broke off, staring at Harry’s face now and Harry felt a bit warm, blushing a deep red. 

“We’re soulmates?” they both said simultaneously, Harry sounding like he was in disbelief, Louis nothing but overjoyed.

“This is not how I pictured my first day going,” Harry admitted with a sheepish chuckle, letting go of Louis’ hand almost grudgingly.

“Me neither, Curly. But I like it,” Louis grinned and Harry found himself a lot more flustered than the nickname called for. 

The door swung open and everyone hushed, lining up against the walls as the teacher walked in. 

“What say, Curly?” Louis smiled, taking Harry’s left hand in his right and leading him to the back of the class, rope lining up with the anchor perfectly. Harry smiled at the sight. “Bowling sounds good?”

“Yeah,” Harry smiled back, biting his lip as he tried to disguise the look on his face. “Bowling sounds great,” 

He couldn’t wait for the day to end.

“I can’t believe this is all actually happening. I mean, if you would have told me back then- when I joined, I mean- that I would be at prom with my soulmate. I wouldn’t have believed it,” Harry whispered to Louis, looking down at their joined hands. Louis turned his head to press his lips against Harry’s temple, leaning the chair onto its back back feet as they watched the rest of their year dancing. 

“Me neither,” Louis said, and Harry could’ve sworn he could hear the smile in his voice, “I mean when I saw you coming in, looking around and like- you thought no one noticed you,” he chuckled, “Have to be blind to not notice you, by the way. I’d made up my mind already, but to… see our marks. We were always meant to be,”

Harry flushed, batting his free hand weakly against Louis’ thigh. “Stop being so over the top,” 

“I’m not!” Louis protested, “We’re literally soulmates!”

“Doesn’t mean you have to be soppy,” Harry giggled, flushing despite his words.

Louis paused for a moment, and Harry raised his head off Louis’ shoulder, a little concerned as he tried to read his expression in the dim lighting. 

“I love you, Haz,” Louis said softly,

Harry smiled back at him, tilting his head to the side and watching him for a few moments before leaning in for a soft kiss. “I know. We’ve been over this,” he quipped, raising an eyebrow with a smirk, ducking when Louis made to ruffle his hair. 

“Hey, it took me hours to get my hair right,” he giggled, slightly out of breath, “Now will you ask me for a dance already,” he smiled, getting up with his fingers still linked with Louis’.

Louis shook his head fondly as they made their way to the centre of the floor, looping his hands around Harry’s waist as they turned to face each other, moving slowly. The younger boy rested his head on Louis’ shoulder.

“I love you, Louis,” he whispered. 

“I love you too, baby. We’ve been over this,”

A/N: Reblogs are always appreciated 💕

[anonymousewrites]

One Hell of a Love (Book 2) Chapter Three

Sebastian Michaelis x Demon! Reader

Chapter Three: One Hell of a Roommate

Summary: (Y/N) and Sebastian begin their work inside the circus but encounter a surprising individual.

            “Friends! Lend me your ears! We’ve a couple of newcomers joining us today,” said Joker to the rest of the troupe.

            Behind him, Sebastian, Ciel, and (Y/N) stepped out. Ciel wore a blue, black, and white costume with bows and a pirate hat. Sebastian had been lucky enough to just get to wear his suit and just changed his tie for a bow and a top hat. (Y/N)’s maid outfit had not been suitable at all, but they had been able to keep to black. They wore a black leotard with faux gemstones of black overlaid so that they shimmered as they moved, black heels, and netted stockings.

            Sebastian was doing his best to not let his eyes roam—he was a professional—but (Y/N)’s figure was quite something, and as had been established, they were always attractive to Sebastian. It didn’t help that the outfit’s silhouette and show of (Y/N)’s skin and body were reminiscent of their demon form. Sebastian attempted to control his thoughts, but images of them in their demon form with him in his own continue to flit through his mind.

            (Y/N) below him, cat ears twitching in pleasure while their sharp eyes try to stay open as he gave them pleasure humans could never imagine. (Y/N) above him, tail curling over him as he allowed himself vulnerability and placed himself in their power. (Y/N) with his true name on their lips as they moan and c—

            “This one here in the tailcoat is Black!” introduced Joker, shaking Sebastian from his thoughts.

            “I am Black. Nice to meet you,” said Sebastian, quickly collecting himself and smiling.

            “Then we’ve got the acrobatic Cat,” said Joker.

            (Y/N) smiled and ignored the teasing look in Sebastian’s eyes as he smirked at them when he heard their circus name.

            “And this little one—” Joker gestured to Ciel “—is Smile!”

            (Y/N) and Sebastian were both smothering laughs as Ciel blanched.

            “Treat them well, now, alright?” said Joker.

            “Come, Smile. Say hello to your seniors,” said Sebastian, stepping towards the other troupe members.

            “And remember a smile,” teased (Y/N).

            “I…I look forward to working with you.” Ciel forced the words out.

            “C’mon Smile, smile!” cheered Joker. Ciel forced a smile, and Joker laughed. “Now I’ll give ye a quick tour. Come with me.” He led them to a collection of smaller tents. “First, these are the tents ye’ll be sleeping in. This is where the so-called ‘second-string’ members—stagehands, newcomers, and the like—live. There’s usually two or three to a tent.” He nodded to a larger tent. “And that there’s the dining tent and the tent that serves as our larder. It’s up to ye new folk to cook up the meals, too, so give it your best! The tent all the way in the back is the first-aid tent, and…” Joker showed them to a roped off area with medium-sized tents. “From ‘here on back are the private tents of the main cast.”

            (Y/N) and Sebastian exchanged a look. That was where the real information would be if there was any. The “main cast” would definitely be involved with any wrongdoings of the circus if it turned out it was the cause of the children’s disappearances.

            “Private tents?” said Ciel.

            “Well, once ye hit it big, ye get a place to yourself.” Joker pointed to a tent. “Oh, and one more thing, that’s Snake’s tent, so ye should stay away for your own good. There are a great many poisonous snakes roaming free, so one bite, and off ye go to the other side. Snake and his slithery friends are still veeery shy, so newcomers especially should stay sharp ‘round these parts.” Joker cocked his head. “By the way, what’s become of your right eye, Smile?”

            “Eh?” Ciel stammered. “Ah, this, there was an accident.”

            “How sad,” said Joker genuinely. “For someone so little to have had such misfortune befall him.” Undoubtedly, Ciel’s “accident” reminded him of he and his circus troupe’s various disabilities. Joker smiled and patted Ciel’s head. “Well, everyone ‘ere’s got their own issues, so ye’ll get along just fine!”

            “Yes,” Ciel forced the word out awkwardly.

            “Like us, did everyone here join the troupe while the circus was making the rounds?” asked Sebastian.

            “For the most part, yes, but all the first-string members come from the same town. Guess ye could say we’re all childhood friends,” said Joker.

            “Childhood friends?” repeated (Y/N), raising an eyebrow. That was a promising lead.

            “Yeah, but Snake’s still a rookie. He’s a genius with his snakes he is, and we were without a snake charmer at the time, so he became a member right quick,” said Joker. “If ye join the first string, ye don’t have to help with prep, and ye don’t have to worry about fighting for your meals. And ye can get your own tent. That’s why everyone does their best to get to the top, to the first string.”

            Joker finished the tour where they started, at a large tent filled with various tools, acrobatic bars, and tightropes—everything a circus performer could need to practice their tricks.

            “And here we are: the training grounds,” said Joker. “Newcomers train and train ‘ere with the hope of debuting in an actual performance one day. Ye must always start with the basics. Once ye’ve made quick work of your warmups, then—”

            “Joker!” called Beast, entering the tent. “It’s almost time.”

            “I hear ye!” Joker clapped Sebastian and (Y/N) on the back and ruffled Ciel’s hair. “Good luck to ye! I’ll see ye after my performance.” He left with a smile, and Beast tsked as she watched the three newcomers.

            (Y/N), Sebastian, and Ciel began stretching to talk quietly while blending in. Well, Ciel couldn’t really stretch, but Sebastian dutifully assisted him, and (Y/N) was contorting themself into positions humans couldn’t reach (cat flexibility came in handy).

            “A tent full of poisonous snakes at the entrance of the main cast’s private quarters, hm?” huffed Ciel.

            “Guard snakes instead of guard dogs, eh?” said Sebastian.

            “So to gain access we need to become first-string,” said (Y/N), speaking upside-down in a backbend.

            “Poisonous snakes won’t kill you two,” said Ciel. “Go see whether children are here or—”

            “They are not here,” said Sebastian.

            “There are no children’s presences at all in the circus,” said (Y/N), kicking over to their feet and sinking into the splits.

            “But we have yet to find proof that the circus has no relation to the missing children. We can’t leave until we’ve looked into all the nooks and crannies of this place,” said Ciel.

            “Quite,” said Sebastian, bending Ciel over his back. “It is entirely possible that they might be in such a condition that I would be unable to sense their presence.”

            “Don’t say such an ill-omened thing,” said Ciel, struggling under Sebastian as he bent over Ciel’s back. “She wishes for the children’s safe return.”

            “Yes, sir,” said Sebastian.

            “However, instead of the children, we did sense—” began (Y/N).

            “Heeey! Ye can’t be stretchin’ all slow and steady, like, pick it up!” said Dagger, jumping towards them.

            “Huh? Dagger ol’ boy, wot about yer act?” said another circus performer.

            “I was up first today! I’m all done, so I’ll supervise yer practice, like.” Dagger smiled. “First, we gotta decide what’cher act’s gonna be. Requests?”

            “I’m fine with anything that doesn’t involve me using my body, like the tightrope. Anything but that,” said Ciel. Sebastian and (Y/N) unsuccessfully smothered chuckles at the memory of him on the tightrope.

            “Yeah, ye do look awful weak!” laughed Dagger. “Then I’ll teach Smile all ‘e needs to ‘bout knife throwin’. What about you, Black, Cat?”

            “Well, I do not have any requests in particular,” said Sebastian.

            “I prefer acrobatics,” said (Y/N).

            “Right,” said Dagger. “Well, then, show me what ye got, and I’ll see what I think would work!”

            “Let’s see…juggling,” said Sebastian, throwing bottles incredible heights as they spun through his hands at high speeds.

            “Passing through a ring of fire.” (Y/N) ran up and flipped through a ring of fire with the precision and ease of a cat slipping through a fence, landing on their feet without wavering.

            “Pole climbing,” said Sebastian, running up a pole at a ninety-degree angle.

            “Trapeze,” said (Y/N), swinging from the bars.

            Sebastian joined them, and they jumped from one bar to the other, wrapping their legs and arms around him as he showed off his strength of support both (and smirked at the sensation of (Y/N) pressed so close). (Y/N) pushed off him and flipped backwards, landing on the other bar in a show of balance and strength humans simply couldn’t master.

            (Y/N) paused as they saw Beast huffing over Betty the tiger. Her act had finished, but Betty clearly still wasn’t pleased with being retrained and was being more difficult than usual. (Y/N) smirked, deciding to have a bit of fun with Beast since they needed a bit of petty revenge after Sebastian was so close to her.

            “That’s hardly a way to train such an animal,” said (Y/N), approaching the cage.

            “What do you know about it?!” said Beast.

            “I know that this darling tiger needs some respect,” said (Y/N). They knelt and extended a hand between the bars.

            “Hey! What do you think you’re doing?! Are you mad just like that other one?!” said Beast.

            But Betty let out a light growl, as close to a purr as a tiger could get, and butted her head against (Y/N)’s hand. Beast’s jaw dropped open, as did several other people’s. (Y/N) smiled and petted the tiger, who was reacting to (Y/N)’s demon cat side.

            “Sebastian, would you like to apologize for accosting Betty yesterday?” said (Y/N) teasingly.

            “Of course,” said Sebastian. He eagerly walked over and began petting the tiger. He sighed happily. “So soft…So beautiful…”

            (Y/N) smiled as they watched Sebastian. They were happy to make him happy. They didn’t believe there were many ways for them to show they cared for him or earn anything from him, so they did what they could. (Y/N) was blind to the fact that anything they did would be praised by Sebastian to Heaven and Hell and back.

            The pair rose and returned to Dagger, who was still watching the tamed tiger in surprise.

            “Wow!” said Dagger. “Ye two are something else, Black, Cat.”

            “You’re overdoing it,” muttered Ciel. “You should be acting more like newcomers…”

            “Don’t you want us to be first-string?” said (Y/N), smirking.

            “Man! I give up! Two more mad great new fellers?! For real?! I can’t lose to ye,” laughed Dagger.

            “…Another newcomer?” said Ciel.

            “There’s this guy who’s just joined. ‘E’s amazin’! O’er there, on the tightrope,” said Dagger. “He used to be a civil servant or something’ and is serious like ye wouldna believe!”

            And above them, in a brightly colored suit and holding a tree trimmer as he walked across the tightrope, stood the exact being (Y/N) and Sebastian had sensed at the circus. Their gaze darkened, and Ciel’s eyes widened.

            “Heey! C’mon down ‘ere fer a bit!” called Dagger. “Suit!”

            William the Grim Reaper glanced down. He sighed. “I thought I sensed something unpleasant. It was you two, was it? Good grief.” His Death Scythe extended and stabbed the ground beside Sebastian and (Y/N). “I never thought we would meet again. Goodness. What ever did you come sniffing around to devour this time?” He leapt down and pointed his Death Scythe at Sebastian’s neck. Sebastian shifted before (Y/N), unconsciously blocking them from any initial attack. “You demons!”

            “Demon…?” said Dagger, perplexed, as people murmured in confusion.

            “In this day and age, when there are rarely enough Grim Reapers to get the job done even at the best of times, the appearance of a demon, let alone two, means I shan’t be able to clock out on time yet again,” said William.

            “Grim Reaper?” Dagger cocked his head.

            Damn, they’re true identities! “N-No, he’s just—!” Ciel floundered for an explanation.

            Dagger laughed and smacked William. “That’s enough o’ that, me big fore-‘eaded friend! Ye said it with such a serious mug, I couldna tell ye were jokin’!”

            Ciel breathed a sigh of relief. (Y/N) wasn’t surprised at Dagger’s obliviousness. Humans would ignore the truth whenever they could.

            “Been shootin’ off strange jokes from day one, ‘e ‘as!” said Dagger. “’E’s always goin’ on ‘bout souls and the like, and ‘e’s mad fer anythin’ to do wiv ‘em ghosts ‘n stuff.”

            “I am not one for joking,” said William.

            “I’ll introduce ye,” said Dagger, ignoring William. “These’re the rookies who joined today. The tiny’ sone’s Smile. The big one’s Black. The pretty one is Cat. Yer all risin’ stars, so play nice now!”

            William turned away. “I do not, by any means, wish to make nice with noxious beasts.”

            “ ‘By any means’?! C’mon, teamwork’s important in the circus, ye know!” said Dagger.

            “Why is a Grim Reaper here…?” said Ciel.

            “It’s unusual for a Grim Reaper to go about snooping of his own accord,” said Sebastian.

            “And that one isn’t like you-know-who,” said (Y/N). Sebastian nodded. William wasn’t Grell. They were pretty much as different as Grim Reapers could get.

            “But now we can be sure of one thing,” said Sebastian. “There is something going on at this circus after all.”

            “Looks like he’s worth investigating,” said Ciel. “Sebastian.”

            “ ‘Eeey! What are ye doin’, Smile?! Ye gotta practice, practice, so ye don’t lose out to Black!” said Dagger, looping an arm around Ciel. He dragged him away with promises of teaching him knife tricks.

            Sebastian and (Y/N) stepped towards William as he made to go back up to the tightrope.

            “Pardon me, there is a little something I would like you to tell me, ‘Old-timer,’ ” said Sebastian.

            “I have nothing to say to you,” said William.

            “Please do not be like that,” said Sebastian, grabbing William’s wrist.

            (Y/N) smiled pleasantly. “Let’s step outside.”

            William tsked but stepped out of the training tent. “Really,” he said. “On top of the London district being perpetually understaffed so that I, a member of management, must go out into the field to retrieve souls simply because the retrieval division is missing one employee…What a travesty.”

            “So, what brings such a busy Grim Reaper as yourself to a place like this?” said Sebastian.

            “I’m here cleaning up after that scum dispatch member who is currently suspended,” said William.

            Grell is always getting into trouble, isn’t she? thought (Y/N).

            “I didn’t think I would be made to do so just because that bother and I are coworkers…and without any extra pay, at that,” said William.

            “Well, there must be something pretty special going on here if a reaper is investigating covertly,” said (Y/N).

            “I cannot give information pertaining to souls to fiends,” said William. “It amounts to throwing a rabbit in front of a carnivore.”

            “I doubt any souls around here are appetizing to me,” said (Y/N).

            “I am afraid that I as well have no interest in cheap souls,” said Sebastian.

            “Big talk for a starving demon,” said William. “When the reality is that you’re mad with hunger.”

            Sebastian smirked, teeth sharp, and spoke with a low voice, demonic aura seeping into it. “I grew weary of indiscriminately devouring souls long ago. The more ravenous I am…the more delicious the dinner.”

            (Y/N) had been taught that by him, and they grinned in agreement.

            “Moreover,” continued Sebastian, slipping his glove half off to reveal the contract seal that thrummed with magic. “As I have a collar around my neck at the moment, you have nothing to fear.”

            “From you, perhaps.” William eyed (Y/N), whose own contract mark would not show a connection to a demon since they had no master at the moment. “I don’t trust when your kind is wild.”

            “As I said, I’m not interested in any souls around here,” said (Y/N). “Sebastian can tell you that I have a refined palate.”

            “Indeed,” said Sebastian.

            He had long ago given up showing (Y/N) other souls to form a contract with, even just to learn. From the moment they had been reborn as a demon, all they wanted was the pleasure of consuming a soul that found power, particularly those that found power over others who abused their own influence. Sebastian had never learned why they drifted to such souls and found themself satiated with that particular contract, but he suspected their mortal life played a factor.

            Although most of their memories had been forgotten in time, certain characteristics remained branded on their demonic aura, as if their soul had burned into them as they died and reminded them of what they desired. Sebastian knew they radiated a demonic aura that echoed the vestiges of a human soul that had reached maturity and achieved its ambitions before death. He was curious and desired to understand more of (Y/N)’s very self, but he refrained from ever asking, both when he was their mentor and now when he loved them.

            He would not risk their trust in him by prying. When they were his apprentice, it had become clear (Y/N) gained power when they consumed the souls that suited them and found the contracts easy for them to handle. And now, with Sebastian’s feelings for them having developed into love, it would be a greater victory in his quest to win their affections if they were to share themself. He would not force them into vulnerability. He respected and loved them too much for that.

            William gazed at Sebastian and (Y/N) before tsking. “Very well. Since you have the honor of being the greatest of evils to appear before I get to work, let me warn you. We, the Grim Reapers, are tasked with judging those who are scheduled to die according to the Soul Retrieval List that is distributed to us. We use our Death Scythes to check each person’s memories—their Cinematic Records—one by one…and judge whether they deserve to die or not. And without understanding the great effort we put forth, you demons go about snacking away at those souls like ravens on a corpse. Let me be blunt. A few days hence, we will judge a large number of souls in this vicinity. This is a special case, so please refrain from interfering.”

            “Goodness, and you have to deal with it all on your own? How terrible,” said (Y/N). “Still, a large number of souls…” They smirked and teased William. “Shall I lend you a hand?”

            William’s Death Scythe whipped out towards them, and (Y/N) leaned to the side to avoid it. “I refuse to work overtime free of charge,” he said. “I will hunt you down if you get in my way.”

            “What a temper for someone so serious,” said (Y/N), grinning at how easily they had riled him up. “You forgot so quickly I have no interest in any of the souls here. Or, in fact, of being involved with Grim Reapers.”

            “Hey!” Ciel stepped outside the tent. “That nosy knife-thrower is looking for you."

            William glanced at Ciel. “He doesn’t seem all that high-quality to me. I truly don’t understand you demons…”

            “You,” said Ciel harshly. “Stop calling Sebastian and (Y/N) that. What are you going to do about it if the troupe members get suspicions? We were lucky they thought you were just joking before, but the fact you can’t even blend in among people makes you lower than that vulgar reaper.”

            “Indeed. As we will not get in the way of your duties, we hope that you will not get in the way of ours,” said Sebastian.

            “Thank you. I do not even want you in my field of vision,” said William.

            “Then we’ll all leave each other alone,” said (Y/N).

            “Right then, Smile,” said William. “I’m counting on you to hold your dog’s lead tight.” He glanced distastefully at (Y/N). “And someone keep an eye on the wild one.”

            “I don’t want to hear it from specs, who can’t even manage a covert investigation properly,” said Ciel.

            “I am not Specs. I am Suit,” said William.

            “Come on, Sebastian, (Y/N),” said Ciel, turning away.

            “Yes, sir,” said (Y/N).

            “Yes, Young Master,” said Sebastian.

            Inside the tent, Joker was rounding up all the rookies. “There they are! Now here’s what ye’ve been waiting for! Time to announce room assignments for the rookies! The results of the impartial lottery are as follows—Smile will be in tent eight. This is your roommate.” He gestured to a sweet looking boy with red-brown hair and freckles.

            “Black is in tent nine,” said Joker.

            “Seb—Black and I won’t be in the same tent?” said Ciel nervously.

            “Ahaha! Smile sure is sweet on Black! Ya gotta learn to be more independent,” teased Dagger.

            “And Black’s roommate is—Suit!” announced Joker. William and Sebastian’s eyes widened in horror. “And then we’ve also got Cat in tent nine!” Joker glanced at (Y/N). “It’s a three-person tent, and hopefully you’re alright with rooming with men since we weren’t sure what you’d prefer.”

            (Y/N) forced a smile. They were happy to room with Sebastian, but the Reaper? They were not pleased. “Yes, it’s alright.”

            Joker grinned. “We knew it! Black ‘n Smiles ‘n Cat were already friends so we thought it would work out!”

            “Guess we’re outta here!” said Dagger. “Righty, sleep tight!”

            They left the tent with Sebastian, (Y/N), and William glaring at each other, Ciel looking horrified at staying with a stranger, and the boy with freckles smiling brightly.

            “This is the worst,” said William.

            “My thoughts exactly,” said Sebastian.

            “How unlucky,” muttered (Y/N).

            “Nice to meetcha, Smile!” said the freckled boy brightly.

            “Right…” said Ciel.

l

            (Y/N), Sebastian, and William entered tent nine. There was a bunk bed on one side and a single bed across from it with a small path between.

            “I will take the upper bed,” said William. “You, Black, will sleep on the lower.” He glanced at (Y/N). “I prefer a collared beast to a wild one being near.” (Y/N) grinned to show their sharp canines. “Let me make one thing clear from the outset. Unlike demons, Grim Reapers need to sleep. Don’t make noises late at night and disturb my rest.” He climbed up into his bunk.

            “My kind does enjoy sleep as a luxury, however,” said Sebastian.

            (Y/N) nodded. “I like the occasional rest after a particularly good meal~.”

            “A catnap?” remarked Sebastian impishly

            (Y/N)’s nose twitched as he teased them.

            “You two are disgusting,” said William, rolling over to ignore them and what he (correctly) assumed was demonic flirting.

l

            Sebastian lay awake as the moon hung over the tent. He and (Y/N) had attempted to stand and investigate, but Sebastian had nearly gotten pierced by William’s Death Scythe for trying to “wander without his Master.” So, Sebastian and (Y/N) were forced to either sleep for luxury or lay in their beds, bored.

            Sebastian rolled over from where he lay stiffly on his back and gazed at (Y/N). They faced away from him, the space between the beds small enough that Sebastian would easily be able to reach over to them. As the moon filtered through the flaps of the tent, Sebastian watched it highlight the slope of (Y/N)’s body. And he found himself wanting to hold them, lovingly. He could imagine enjoying the luxury of sleep with his arms around them and them curled up against him.

            Sebastian wanted that, wanted them and that love.

            And so, even as he didn’t sleep, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to imagine loving them in all the ways he wanted.

l

            (Y/N) didn’t dare turn around to face Sebastian. It would be too obvious, then, that they sought him out, and if Sebastian didn’t reciprocate their love, it would hurt. So (Y/N) stayed frozen on their side, wondering what Sebastian was thinking of. Because (Y/N)’s mind was filled with him. How safe they felt beside him. Any other demon or even man and (Y/N) would immediately request another tent, one with a woman, instead. Much more trustworthy.

            But Sebastian? (Y/N) trusted him. He had never pushed their boundaries, even when he was mentoring them. When they made it clear they had some lines they didn’t want crossed (touch had been a prominent issue for quite some time), Sebastian had respected them and allowed them to bend and learn at their own pace. He pushed just enough to get them stronger but never made them break and feel vulnerable.

            That was probably when (Y/N) first started getting attached to Sebastian. They had been wary when he first became their mentor, suspicious of his intentions as a demon, even if they were a demon themself. They had known far too many men of that kind to not be wary. But Sebastian had proven himself from the beginning. He had been strict with his teaching and made sure (Y/N) became a capable demon. He didn’t take advantage of them. He had respected them.

            (Y/N) just hoped that he’d come to love them, too.

Taglist:

@technikerin23

@im-making-an-effort

@izzieg3987

@jinxxangel13

@alexpangender

@otomyoli

@neenieweenie

@nex-crowley

@anxious-chick

@bellacastiel

@v1l-ismissing

@agentdedf1sh

@idkhowtoplayhoyoversegames

@iamsexytrash

@oceansfloor

[mcytblr-archive]

Early MCYTblr Interviews: ilyuqi

today's interviewee is ilyuqi, who joined both MCYTblr and dreamlying after quitting twitter. below, under the cut, is a transcript of their audio messages responding to the questions.

Q: You were on Twitter before you moved to Tumblr– was there a specific reason for that change?

A: Yes! I got canceled! (Haha, very funny). Yeah, that’s kind of the crux of it, I got canceled pretty hard (to a point where, even though I might have had a chance to maybe regain my reputation and continue using my stan account, I just didn’t want to at that point.) I’d already been in so much drama before that (some warranted, some unwarranted), for example one of the things that people got on me for was that I wasn’t Sapnap-focused enough on my twitter account, and there was just an element of responsibility I felt, harboring a stan account with that many followers, as pretentious as that sounds. 

It was just no longer fun for me anymore. And now people were creating these multi-thousand-liked cancel threads against me citing my friendships with other people, and then also harboring real-life kind of things on me, for example, like, someone was accusing me of mlm fetishizing, and although I don’t think that’s the most serious accusation (Within the realm of internet discourse. Over the internet specifically, that’s a pretty “eh” thing to get canceled for), I just felt like – I was like, I didn’t do that, though! But I felt like my words were purposefully twisted and misinterpreted just because y’know, a lot of people also didn’t like me on that platform. So I just found it easier to go “yeah, I’m gonna go ahead and quit twitter, this isn’t fun for me anymore, the point of having a stan account is that, you know, I want to feel a part of a community” and I just didn’t feel that anymore, so I found it reasonable to just go ahead and like. Quit being a stan account. 

I think I might've privately stanned them on, you know, private accounts for a while, but then I one day ended up randomly answering someone’s question about dreamlying on tumblr, and then that spiraled into me actually becoming a critblr account. I never really intended that to happen, I thought it would be a fun thing of answering a couple of asks, but then suddenly it was, like, hundreds of asks and I was just like “woah!”. If you scroll back far enough on my tumblr, you’ll see that this really was never supposed to be a critblr. Like, I think you can still find my essays about, like, y’know, Girl Meets World from 2017? 2018? I have no idea, there’s no concept of time. But what I’m getting at is that, you know, the shift– the getting off twitter was definitely intentional, but the shift to tumblr, it was kind of just events. Y’know? It just kind of happened, but the main reason I left twitter was because of the cancellation, and I guess it just ended up transitioning into me moving onto tumblr.

Q: What was your experience being in the “fringe” of MCYTblr? 

A: My experience being on the fringe of Minecraft Youtube tumblr– I guess I should say that I didn’t really feel, like, a difference in my experience, which is illogical– I am perfectly aware of the fact that my blog and the community I participated in was very different from the minecraft youtube tumblr community as a whole. 

But I guess because I was never a part of the [larger] minecraft youtube tumblr community in the first place, I didn't really feel that lack. So for me, being on critblr was just– for me, that was minecraft youtube tumblr, you know? And I think that’s a very unique experience. I think many critblr blogs had the experience of being on minecraft youtube tumblr and then transitioning into being critblr, but for me, it was just immediately critblr. I never had the “idolizing my content creators” stan period while I was on Tumblr– I say that in heavy quotes– I never had that on Tumblr, I had already done that on Twitter. So I think it resulted in me not feeling a difference, I was just like. “Yeah this is– critblr is minecraft youtube tumblr for me, this is the only context in which I would want to talk about minecraft youtube on tumblr”. 

So I guess for me, my experience was just being on tumblr. I enjoyed answering the asks, I enjoyed making jokes, I was perfectly awake that sometimes I was saying crazy things, but for me it was just fun, so I just did it anyway. It should be noted that, for the majority of the time I had my blog, I think I was like sixteen, seventeen? So that might explain a lot of the stuff I said. But for me, again, it was normal. I did not feel a lack from being on critblr. For me, that was minecraft youtube tumblr. 

Q: Were you ever harassed for being part of critblr? 

A: I would say no. I never really felt harassed for being on critblr. At that point, I wasn't– like, my friends, they were all aware that I was on critblr, and none of them really had anything mean to say about it. At the time, those were the only opinions that mattered to me, so it was just kind of like. Eh. 

I think if I received any harassment ever, I– I don’t even think I can count it as harassment, it was just people who disagreed with my opinions, and were like, “this is crazy of you to say”. And in hindsight, I'm sure I deserved some of it. But harassment? No. While I was on twitter, I had adults attempting to cyberstalk me, doxx me, create these insane cancel threads on me (all while I was like fifteen years old), and to me, that was harassment. I would see familiar faces popping up in my dms to send me gore, send me death threats. I never experienced anything like that on tumblr. I think probably the craziest thing that ever happened to me on tumblr was some friend of mine sending an ask littered with slurs because they were mad at a critblr opinion that i had. That's probably the craziest thing I've ever had happen to me. I’m not friends with that person anymore. But harassment? No. I don't think I ever really, you know, got harassment. I think I had people who definitely didn’t like me, but I don't think I would count that as harassment.

Q: Do you remember any specific discourse/drama from that time?

A: I will say that a majority of the really really old discourse stuff, I experienced through twitter, not tumblr. So for example, the “Dream Native American war cry” situation, the “r slur” stuff, the spreadsheet, those all came through twitter for me. I experienced those while being active on twitter. 

The ones that I remember that I experienced through tumblr were specifically the “Dream kkk edit”, and then there was also an internal critblr affair where this account called mctruther or mcyttruth (I can’t remember, one of the two) made this giant callout post dedicated mostly towards Jason lmanburg. I remember this pretty vividly mainly because I wrote a callout, like, a response to the callout post, and uh, personally I found the post to be very silly. They were criticizing Jason and other people for using stuff like kiwifarms and being a part of ebblr, I think, and it was just very odd, and I didn't vibe with it. So I made a callout post, and I was just like “I don't agree with what you’re saying”. 

But yeah, no, so personally the Dream kkk edit  is what kind of made me go “okay, I don’t think I want to talk about Dream discourse anymore”. Because before this, for me, my critblr account was mostly dedicated to talking about the relationships that Dream had with his family, and George, and Sapnap, and other content creators, the internet in general– sometimes, I talked about Ranboo, and y’know like, what I thought his fans were doing for his face reveal? As in, y’know, they were hyping him up too much and he was getting visibly more and more insecure. But for Dream, you know, I think I was able to always maintain like, “yeah, I think he’s done a lot of shitty stuff in the past, but I think he’s perfectly capable of growth and learning, because he’s always owned up to his mistakes”, but the Dream kkk edit was one where he gave lies so quickly to try and cover his ass, and then gave this halfhearted apology in which he really rubbed me the wrong way. 

I obviously had no problem saying this, obviously I’m going to find a kkk edit pretty despicable, but I had people in my inbox arguing with me whether or not a kkk edit is really a mark of someone being antisemitic, or racist. They even debated whether or not the edit itself was racist or not, and I just kind of had to take a step back cause I’m like, “C’mon guys, like, I think if this happened in real life, y’know, this would Not be the conversation occurring right now, but you guys are giving so much leeway to this, like, random white guy over the internet.’ Like, I don’t want to have to debate with people whether or not racism is real. I wanna talk about GeorgeNotFound’s visa, and I wanna talk about Ranboo’s face reveal! I don’t want to talk about like– I don’t want to try and convince you that racism is real, that is not what I want to do. That is very exhausting, honestly. Cause, like– I don’t know, it was just very disheartening to see this community go down that route. And I was just kinda like “Okay, no,” and I think I made a big post that was just like “Hey. I’m no longer going to address Dream’s controversies, because they seem to be going down a route where I'm going to have to defend things that I know to be true, basic things I know to be true, and I have to defend them like I'm already wrong. And I don’t wanna do that, that’s too much for me.'' So yeah, that’s kind of the biggest discourse that I remember from critblr from when I joined it. 

Of course there were other things too, from the very very beginning. Like, I don’t know if any one of your interviews has talked about it, but misogynap was one of my favorite things on tumblr in 2020. Because like, I fully agreed, I was like yeah! Sapnap does give off misogynistic vibes! It’s really weird! And I vibed with that– but you could never say that on twitter. 

I think what made me the angriest about this whole thing– there were tons of things that made me angry, y’know, I didn’t vibe with the argument that he was, like, 15 years old therefore he was a dumb fifteen-year-old. I was like okay, I've been fifteen, I've never done anything like that before. But what definitely pissed me off was the fact that he immediately tried to deny it, and I was like dude, c’mon. Like, these are some pretty serious allegations and accusations, and you just decided to deny them, and you’re like “Augh! It’s just my stupid antis!” and it’s like, no, you made that edit!

And then when he owned up to it, he basically said something along the lines of “some people grow up with kindness surrounding them… I was not, and I grew up with hate… and therefore, this is the byproduct of that :(“ and I– I dunno. I don’t wanna say I get what he’s saying, but I think that is an incredibly, incredibly privileged take, to be able to say that. Like, I grew up with hate, therefore I also started hating. There are plenty of people in this world surrounded by hate all the time, and they don’t grow up to do that kind of stuff. And the fact that Dream’s stans took that and they were like, “oh my god he’s such a good person, I love that he apologized so well!” I was just kinda like guys. Come on, like this is a white guy being like “It’s just not my fault, it’s not my fault that I was so freakin racist as a kid! It’s just not my fault!”. Like, we’re all capable of making choices. Sorry. Sorry, does that sound too harsh? I’m sorry.

But that definitely was kind of my breaking point, to be like “Yup! I’m not gonna be debating dream controversies anymore, because if this is the kind of person he is, this isn’t someone I want to playfully speculate on. This is some serious stuff, this is not my forte, no.”

Q: How do you feel that the overall culture and in-jokes of critblr differed from “main” MCYTblr?

A: Like I've said before, I don't know if I'm the best person to make the differentiation between main mcytblr and critblr, only because I never felt the difference because I jumped right into critblr. Even before, in like 2020 when I was a lurker, I was lurking on georgeeehd’s blog, wormweeb’s blog, etc etc. I never really interacted with normal minecraft youtube tumblr. I guess maybe the closest I might've gotten to that is endercores? But we actually ended up meeting over twitter, and that’s where we became friends, we never really interacted on tumblr. So honestly, I don't know if I'm the best person to ask that question.

I just kind of would say that, going off of vibes alone, it’s that critblr was a lot more okay with poking fun at content creators for their jokes and making jokes at their expense, while main mcytblr jokes definitely lined up with more traditional stan culture, praising and uplifting their CCs. That’s kind of the most basic generalization I can give, but I personally would have no interactions to give you in main mcytblr.

Q: Similarly, how do you think the culture of MCYT tumblr differed from MCYT twitter?

A: So this is something I can definitely give you a lot on, the difference between minecraft twitter and tumblr. I think that the main difference between the jokes and the culture, honestly, between twitter and tumblr, was in direct correlation with the fact that the content creators being discussed were on twitter, but weren’t on tumblr. 

On twitter, you were faced with the possibility that these men might respond to your tweets at any time. You might make a harmless joke, but they might come after you for it. You might give valid criticism that’s meant to be shared amongst stans as kind of like a thinkpiece, you know, like “what do we think of this?” and you could get the men themselves in your replies, and completely change the trajectory of how that post was supposed to be taken. I have direct experience with this, so I can tell you firsthand, there were times where I made tweets and I had people kind of going like “Yeah, I do agree with you, I do agree with that!’ and then Dream (or whoever) replies, and they immediately go “oh, that’s so true Dream! Good job Dream! Yeah, yeah, yeah!” and I’m like guys, c’mon. Come on. You know? It was like that for me. 

But on tumblr, you really didn’t have to fear that! You knew that your post was going to remain in stan circles. Back then, I barely remember anyone screenshotting from tumblr to take onto twitter– I don’t remember that happening very often. I know it happened, just not very often. So you could really say whatever you wanted on tumblr, and not be absolutely crucified for it. For example, misogynap! Like, people were just calling Sapnap a casual misogynist on tumblr, and no one got in trouble for it. But, on twitter, Sapnap got super offended at someone saying “Eh, I think Sapnap might smell like cheetos and weed!” and he actually went through the process of making sure all of his friends blocked that one specific person, just because they said “Eh, I think Sapnap smells like cheetos and weed.”

So there was a very very different culture. They kind of made it so that twitter had to have that stan, like, idolization going for them, because if you didn’t, if you made jokes at their expense, they would come for you and they would get their stans on you, and you had to just pray that they also see what you said as a joke, otherwise they’re gonna pounce on you, too. I don’t know. I think that’s probably the biggest difference, the fact that the content creators were on twitter and not tumblr changed a lot of how you could make jokes and how you could act on those platforms. I don’t know, you can take that however you’d like.

Q: Looking back, a large amount of 2021 critblr culture revolved around doxxing and sharing personal information– what was that like? What’s your current perspective on it, looking back?

A: So, doxxing. Very interesting topic. I guess what I first want to start out with is: do I want to call it doxxing? No, probably not. I don’t think what anyone (or at least, what I saw anyone doing) was doxxing, or would be ever considered doxxing. I think if you really wanted to put a label on it, you could say “being invasive”. But is that illegal, or a crime? No, it’s not. Everything that I know that  people found was just, you know, public information on the internet, and it wasn’t obtained via illegal means, no one was hacking into bank records, no one was– [laughs] I don't know, stealing house papers? This was all just stuff that was online, available for the public to see. You just had to know how to find it. 

I would say for a while there– this was not on tumblr, this was on twitter– there was almost a competitive aspect to it, to see who could find what, but this was very strictly on twitter. This was– or, at least in my experience, this was on twitter. But on tumblr, it was just kind of like “Eh, if you know, you know”. Y’know? Like, it’s not like anyone’s making these blogs, and they’re like, uploading bios of Dream, George, and Sapnap, and have their addresses, and like their parents’ names and everything, it was just kind of like “if you know, you know”. 

I guess the big thing is like, do you regret it, how do you see it looking back. And while I can say “Y’know, probably not the best thing for a bunch of teenagers to be doing in their spare time”, I cannot say that I fully regret it, because these are men who are known to take the fact, like– known to take people’s lack of information and twist it and try to use that lack of information in their best interests. 

To kind of give you a feel of what I’m trying to say, think about Manatreed, right? That was a straight up abuser that Dream was housing and trying to platform onto the dream smp, which is a fandom composed of mostly minors and mostly teenage girls. Dream tried to do that! Dream might have gotten away with it, if people did not dig into his life and figure out who Manatreed was, and therefore figure out what this guy had done in the past, and then been able to put pressure on Dream for it. I cannot see something like that and say “Ooh, but being invasive is bad!” Like, I don’t know, I don’t wanna say they brought it upon themselves, because that’s a bit much, but at the same time, what would have happened if people hadn’t doxxed them? Manatreed would have just been on the SMP forever, like, no one would have known that! That’s kind of scary to think about. Like, in a way, yeah, sometimes things like that are important. And you know, again, everything was found through perfectly legal means, nothing was done illegally, and at the end of the day, the Dream SMP was free of an abuser. (In the end, considering recent events, does that really matter? Since half of the Dream SMP were all, like, abusers or allowed abuse to continue? Whatever– we’re not gonna talk about that.) 

But you get what I'm saying. I can’t look at a situation like that and say “Yeah, I regret like, doxxing or being a part of that community”. Cause at the end of the day, these men were hiding a lot of things, and they would have gotten away with a lot more if people weren’t so… I don't wanna say vigilant, but you know what I mean? I feel like you understand what I’m trying to say here. There was definitely an element of necessity, when it came to situations like those.

Q: Which criticisms do you think hold up? Which didn’t?

A: There is one criticism that I think has held up very very well, and it’s the fact that I believe that Dream is no longer going to change his behavior or make any real efforts to become a better person from his last mistake, because he has no real reason to. Because he now has stans that will enable and back him up through basically anything. There have been– I mean, I stand by that. I totally stand by that. He is able to basically do anything and kind of be untouchable for it. 

Even when the grooming accusations were going on, and the Gumball beef was going on, and most of the internet hated him, he still had stans backing him up. And those exact stans are the reason he was able to come back onto twitter, and now has his platform again, and people praise him and say like “Yeah, yada yada, Dream made a response video,” when that response video really did nothing! It was genuinely nothing, it was just a bunch of– like, he just talked into the mic for two hours. He didn’t prove or disprove anything for me. For me, it was just like, okay? You’ve given me nothing here. The thing is, though, his stans will take it, they will enable him basically through anything. And when you have people that, even at your worst, still see you as being the best, why would you want to change? Why would you feel the need to put in the effort to change your behavior if the people that give you your money don’t care about that, you know?

So that’s something I still stand by, that Dream isn’t going to change anymore, even if he says that he is, it’s going to be very disingenuous. Because at the end of the day, he knows he has stans backing him up. He has no personal gain in changing, and therefore, he won’t. 

Q: Is there anything else you’d like to add, or have archived on the blog?

A: I’ll say that I joined dreamlying in August of 2020, so a few months after it was created. I would say that it’s definitely insane to me that dreamlying has managed to keep its infamous status in the minecraft youtube sphere, just because we are all so vastly different from when it first began. So to see people still refer to us that way is just a little insane. I don’t even know if I’m really included in the “us” cause again, I joined a little bit late, but to me– that’s the thing, though! I think when other people think of dream lying, they think of these massive critblr blogs, but when I think of dreamlying I’m like, “these are the guys that I do movie night with”. Like, “haha these are my best friends”. You know? 

That’s another thing, I think people were genuinely surprised to find out that we were a friend group. Like, yes? [laughs] These are people that I genuinely love spending time with, and not in the context of minecraft youtuber-ing, it’s just like– yeah, these are my friends, and I love them dearly! And I don’t wanna get all like [various noises conveying sappiness] but these are my friends, that’s kind of how I see them. My experience as a member, like, boils down to “these are my friends! I did stuff with them that I would do with any other of my friends!” And I think it’s like a weird concept to people, because again, they view dreamlying as this kind of– they regard dreamlying with a lot of mystique, but then me, it’s just “friends :D”. “My friends, awesome friends”. I don’t know, I don’t think I’m very good at being articulate about, like, being perceived and how people perceive other people, but I guess the only word I could really use is just “insane”, that dreamlying has continued to keep its reputation, even after four years.

[the-desilittle-bird]

Greens win AU are my favorite ones and honestly the story intrigues me and I liked the fact you made the reader realistic-tired and numb(who can blame her) and Aemond is so cocky about himself that I want to slap him, grovel for reader's forgiveness.

I wouldn't mind a part 2 of Crimson Lady—where she rules beside Aemond, challenging the patriarchal norms and ensures the peace her mother wanted:she proves she's a good ruler much to the Green's dismay and tries to change the law of succession to allow also girls to rule.

Aemond would be supportive because she has never seen her and any other woman less.

A thing I notice is that she never smiled, a perfect parallel to Aegon III from Fire and Blood-I can see Aemond fighting desperately to earn her forgiveness, to see her smile again ignoring Otto's advices and attempts to manipulate him.

He tries to be a good husband, but to no avail, her attitute doesn't change but she seems only happy with her brother so Aemond decided to bring Baela and Rhaena at court annnd to find her baby brother Viserys and bring him to her.

Would be kinda tragic if before the war the reader tries to remain Aemond's friend but he's cold and unforgiving and now the roles have switched.

The reader doesn't smile, she only wears black and never calls him on his first name but your majesty.

Just my thoughts,eh, I like this Au, kinda depressing😪

Author's Note- Thanks for the request. I had been thinking of a way of moving the story forward but was a bit clueless at first, but after your request, I had a clear idea. Hope you like it and it is upto your expectations. Do not fret to leave another request if you wish for. And I decided to make the end a bit less disappointing since I wished for (Y/N) and Aemond to be happy after all they have been through.

Thank you and Enjoy your reading!

The Crimson Queen

Summary- The war had it impacts and the acts of horrors had to be put aside to move on in their lives...

Tag List- @eliseline, @little-moonbeam-666 , @blackhoodlea, @omgsuperstarg, @shopping, @lizlovecraft, @dayane, @bbgmonsay, @michelle-26 , @all-things-fandomstuck, @hc-geralt-23, @chevelledahuman, @morganastrucker, @shrexy , @helloitsshitzulover, @daringboba, @minaxcarter, @b-tchymoon, @stargaryenx, @hukio, @saraelizabeth26, @targaryenmoony, @moon-light1415, @eudximoniakr, @themaze13

GIF Credits to @bobahwrites

Two long moons had passed and the realm as well as the council had suffered several drastic changes. Most of the council members were changed; taxes reduced to the half of what the people had to pay; new trade alliances were made with the Free Cities. And the biggest of them was the allowance of a female heir. All under the reign of Aemond Targaryen and (Y/N) Targaryen.

Wed for almost two moons, the couple were yet to have a real conversation. While Aemond had tried to make amends with the former princess, (Y/N) had only replied with curt replies.

Aemond only found her softening in the presence of the common people and her younger brother Aegon, flashing an occasional smile when he wasn't in her sight.

The people called her the Blessed Queen, much to Aemond's mother and grandfather's dismay. He had always let her take the charge of the realm, letting her give the final verdicts and decide.

Aemond liked how (Y/N) would command the attention of each and every person in the room without even uttering a single word. But the distances in between them only pained him even more.

"I was wondering if we could bring Rhaena and Baela to court," Aemond said, sitting in the chair beside the fireplace. His eye carefully studied his wife's face as she glanced up from her book. "They are safe where they are," she replied strictly.

Aemond hummed, leaning in a bit. "They are, but I was thinking that they should be here, in the court, as they are the Queen's half-sister," Aemond tried to reason. (Y/N) looked up, setting her book aside. "Is it a part of your mother's plan? Or perhaps of your grandfather?" (Y/N) asked, standing up and walking to the balcony.

"Let me assure you, (Y/N). I am part of no plan of theirs," Aemond said, standing up and joining her on the balcony. (Y/N) sighed, her eyes casted down at her hands. "How can I trust you, your grace?" The Crimson Lady asked, her voice monotone with no feelings.

"You can leave the formalities aside, (Y/N)," Aemond said softly, placing a hand on her back. (Y/N) jerked back as his hand touched her back, eyes wide in paranoia. "Our very marriage is a formality, your grace," she said, wrapping her hands around herself.

Aemond swallowed down the lump in his throat, head slowly lowering as his mind processed the silent resignation. "I will be in my chambers, if you need me, my lady." With the words hanging in the silence of the room, Aemond left the queen with a single glance over his shoulder.

The council room was yet again in a fit of chaos as everyone seemed to shout and cut each other. Only the silent ones were Aemond, (Y/N) and their new hand, Cregan Stark.

Aemond watched as (Y/N) shared a glance with Cregan, before slamming her fist on the table, making everyone stop abruptly. "My Queen?" The master of laws asked, his eyes wide. "I would say that the taxes which are leveled on the common people are just fine."

"But what of the treasury, my queen? How are you thinking to pay the extravagant cost of maintaining the court?" Otto hissed, trying to disguise his frustration. "The extravagant cost of the court, along with other things can be afforded with the amount of taxes we are receiving currently, my lord. I recommend you and the council try to remove the corrupt middle men to avoid the shortage of money."

Otto and Alicent, along with the Lannister representative of the West, looked at (Y/N) with disapproving gaze while the others present in the room nodded understandingly. Everyone were aware of the corrupted middle men who seemingly took a part of the taxes for themselves and gave only the remaining to the royalty.

"Master of coins, will the suggestion made by the Queen work?" Aemond asked, his eye trained on the man who calculated something in his notebook before looking up with a smile. "If my calculations are accurate, my king, then almost 16% of the taxes are missing and if we are able to get the complete percent of the common people's taxes, then everything will work perfectly."

This only fueled the growing frown on the Greens' faces, which seemed to make Corlys Velaryon and the Wolf Lord smirk wider, as they looked at their queen with pride.

"Then, we know what you are supposed to do," Aemond said, his words laced with finality. The men nodded before (Y/N) respectfully dismissed them, before following them out; leaving Otto, Alicent and Aemond in the room.

"Poison her like you poisoned Aegon," Alicent broke the silence, making Aemond's jaw drop to the floor. "She is my lady wife, mother," Aemond replied, his gaze moving to the Valyrian ring in his ring finger. "Your and the bastard Queen's marriage is yet to be consummated. Poison her and marry someone of your choice, son. Perhaps, that Alys River."

Aemond's body stiffened as his former lover's name slipped out from his mother's mouth. "She is my wife and I shall do no such thing, mother. You should be aware of it," Aemond said, glaring at his mother and standing up. "Where do you think you are going, grandson? We are not done yet," Otto said with authority as he watched Aemond move towards the exit.

"But this conversation is over for me, Lord Hightower." Aemond slammed the door shut behind him, leaving a stunned Otto and a tear-filled Alicent sitting in the council chamber.

"Sister!" (Y/N) heard someone yell from behind her as she walked in the garden. The Dragon Queen turned to find herself engulfed in a hug. She felt the strong smell of salty sea water and books fill her nostrils. "Rhaena?" She asked in disbelief.

Another pair of hands hugged her from behind, making her head snap back to find Baela, hugging her closely. "Baela? You two are here?" (Y/N) asked, her eyes wide with disbelief, tears brimming in her eyes. "Aemond send for us to be taken to here," Rhaena said with a soft smile.

"Aemond?" (Y/N) let a frown take over her features, but it didn't make home for long as she was reunited with her family. "Yes, but why are you wearing black?" Baela said, as she parted to take her in.

(Y/N) sighed, something she has been doing commonly now. "Sister, you don't seem happy. Is something the matter?" Rhaena said with concern, making (Y/N) let out a breath. "How can I be happy when I am married to the man who killed my brother and father?"

Baela and Rhaena stayed silent as they hugged the warrior-queen again. "He is sorry for what he did, my dear," Rhaena said, caressing (Y/N)'s cheek softly. "Is he? And why should I accept his apology? It is my decision after all," (Y/N) said stubbornly, feeling slightly betrayed as she saw her own sisters take her husband's side.

"Might I remind you that you killed Daeron, his brother," Baela said softly, her hands making their home on her forearms. (Y/N) blinked once, twice, before she nodded. "Then sister? We are aware of everything that happens during the wars, but keep the bad acts aside, now, my dear. Forgive him and yourself," Rhaena said.

(Y/N) only nodded, humming. "I will later this evening. For I wish to spend time with you two," (Y/N) smiled. "Where is little Aegon?" Baela asked, grinning. "Little Aegon is no more little, sister."

(Y/N) felt like the nerves in her entire body were screaming at her to knock at the door to Aemond's chambers but the usually courageous and brave Queen felt too coward to do so.

'Am I doing the right thing, mother?' She thought to herself as she finally knocked on the wooden dragon. She heard shuffling from the other side as the door opened. Surprise painted Aemond's face before melting in a cold look.

"Your grace," he said with a nod. No smile or even a hint of softness. "May we talk for a few moments... Aemond," (Y/N) said nervously, her usual composure fluttering in front of his sharp, penetrative gaze. Aemond only nodded, stepping aside to let her in.

Once the door was closed, (Y/N) took in a deep breath, turning to face a grim Aemond. "If I may ask, your grace, how is it that you have graced me with your presence?" Aemond asked coldly, making tears well up in her deep eyes.

She was aware that she was only getting the taste of the medicine she had forced him to drink, but it only pained her more. She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath.

"I am here to apologize, for my behavior to you, Aemond. I understand that it is important for us to put aside all which happened in the past," (Y/N) said, her eyes watched as Aemond moved to pour himself wine.

"Aemond, I apolo-" "Are we done, your grace?" Aemond interrupted her, making her jaw agape. "Aemond?" (Y/N) asked in disbelief. "If you are then you are free to leave, your grace. Your apology is well heard but not accepted, for I always tried to make amends while you so graciously pushed me away."

The Crimson Queen gulped, nodding her head in agreement. "I am certainly sorry for my behavior, Aemond," (Y/N) could feel her tears spilling down her face. She walked briskly to Aemond, kneeling down in front of him.

Aemond tried not to look at the queen who knelt in front of him. "Stand, your grace. My feet are not your true place," Aemond said, trying to keep his emotions from slipping. "You have done a lot for me, but I... I have always done nothing to appreciate it but only criticized them. Give me whatever punishment you think worthy of me," (Y/N) said, trying to keep her hiccups at bay.

"I should be punished, my queen. For I have killed your dear ones, and you," Aemond kneeled down in front of her, grasping her elbows in his forcefully. "You have not killed my dear brother. Daeron. Do you remember him, your grace, or have you forgotten him altogether?" Aemond asked, hatred laced in his voice only triggered (Y/N)'s tears.

She let herself feel. Feel all the emotions she could see coming towards her way. Her head placed itself on his chest, tears staining his leather tunic. Sobs filled the entire room, echoing around the silent walls. Aemond's heart clenched in the worst ways as he felt her bury herself more and more into him.

"It's alright," Aemond whispered, his fingers caressing her hair. "I am so tired, Aemond. All of the blood and violence. I don't wish it anymore," (Y/N) whispered, hiccups breaking her sentences in between. "I know, my queen, I know."

"Do you... do you forgive me?" (Y/N) whispered, looking up at him with red and puffy eyes. "Truthfully, not now, (Y/N). But soon, very soon," Aemond said, letting a reassuring smile take over his face.

(Y/N) sniffled, parting away from the embrace to study the slightly wet leather tunic of Aemond. "I apologize for that," (Y/N) nodded to that, making Aemond bite down a small smile. "Do you feel light now, (Y/N)?" Aemond asked, his hand still on her back.

"Unexpectedly, yes," (Y/N) said with a small smile, making Aemond's eye tear up a bit. "What happened?" The Queen of the Seven Kingdoms asked, voice filled with concern. "This is the first time you smiled at me," Aemond said with a chuckle, his eye shining with adoration.

(Y/N) blinked, feeling guilty of her behavior directed towards him. "I hope there are more times of it," she whispered, gently placing her head on his shoulder. "I hope the same, dear," Aemond smiled softly, as they sat there in complete silence, basking in each other's presence.

It was in that moment when the story of the One-Eyed King and the Crimson Queen took a right turn and shifted from a story filled of blood and violence to a story of love and peace. A reign so peaceful that the common people called it the Reign of Gold.

[peakyswritings]

Lurking

Requested by @dandelionprints for my 2k followers celebration, with the prompt “lurking”. Since my last drabble was for spooky!Tommy, I changed things up a bit here🔮

Warnings: this is a dark fic, supernatural elements, brief mention of suicide

Dividers credit

It was coming.

What it was, Tommy had no idea. But he could feel it. He could feel it under his skin, in his bones, in his veins. It was there, lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right moment. Watching him. It had been watching him for months, now.

It started as a tingling sensation that only came at night, when he walked alone the dirty streets of Birmingham after business, and it would pass as soon as he got into his car to go back home. After a while, that feeling began to follow him inside his house, in his bed, and he found himself shutting all the windows, closing all the curtains, locking the door of his bedroom. And he couldn’t sleep. Paranoia had taken the best of him, it plagued his thoughts, making it impossible for him to focus on anything else.

When he closed his eyes, Tommy could almost feel its icy grip on him. The same grip that clutched his throat in his dreams, sharp claws digging into his skin until streams of thick, warm blood were running down his neck. He could almost smell its metallic tang.

It was close. Tommy had the feeling that it knew he was waiting for it as well, and that it took some sick, twisted pleasure in prolonging that painful wait. It was part of the game. A game of cat and mouse. But it was coming to an end. He was sure of it, because the pressure in his chest had never been that strong. And it had never felt that close. What used to be a disembodied threat, was now very much tangible.

Arrow House stood still in that cold October night, imposing and somber. The crackling of the fireplace and the howling of the wind outside were the only sounds that could be heard in Tommy’s office. Standing in front of the window, he caught sight of his reflection, and he could hardly recognise the sunken face staring back at him with hollow eyes. He just wanted it to stop.

A shiver ran down Tommy’s spine. The knot in his stomach became tighter and tighter with each minute that passed, anticipating whatever it was that would happen. But nothing happened. The gun in the drawer of his desk was calling him, and every cell in his body was begging him to give in to its lure. One bullet was all it would take to make it stop. He turned to open the drawer, and he looked at the weapon, at the way it seemed to shine in the dim light of the room, deadly, alluring.

No. He wouldn’t do that.

A sudden noise against his window made Tommy snap his head in its direction, his eyes wide as adrenaline started to kick in. He grabbed the gun and flicked the safety off, that gesture giving him a new sense of security. With his heart thumping in his chest, he waited.

Nothing happened.

He slowly got closer to the window, squinting his eyes in the attempt to recognise something in the dark garden. But the moon was fully covered by the clouds, and no star shone in the sky. He couldn’t see anything besides the branches of the trees swaying in the wind.

Then something moved right in front of his eyes, a black shadow, fast and ephemeral. He hastily opened the window, ignoring the instinct that told him to run, and leaned out of it, the cold breeze hitting his face. But again, there was nothing. A frustrated growl left his lips, and he took a couple of steps back, running the hand that wasn’t holding the gun through his hair. A wave of pure, blind rage hit him, and before he could think about what he was doing, Tommy fired the gun outside. The loud noise echoed into the night, making the crows that were resting on the trees fly away with screeching sounds. A faint, feminine giggle came to his ears, and Tommy could swear that his heart had dropped to his stomach. It was playful, taunting, but eerily unnatural. Inhuman.

“What the fuck do you want from me, eh?” He shouted at the emptiness, desperation dripping from each word. But again, he was met with silence. The giggle had faded, and his question was left unanswered. A feeling of powerlessness overcame him, and it took all of his strength for him not to fall down on his knees.

“Come out!” At that point, Tommy could barely recognise his own voice. “You hear me? I said fucking come out!” He fired the gun again, completely unable to control himself anymore.

“I’m here, Thomas.”

A melodious voice resounded in the room, making the blood freeze in his veins. She was behind him. Tommy’s throat went dry, and he had to build up the courage to turn around and face her. When he did, the first thing he noticed were two golden eyes that seemed to stare right into his soul. They were almost as hypnotising as her voice. The beautiful woman took a few steps in his direction, the white, long dress she was wearing flowing behind her, and he couldn’t find it in himself to move. She smiled, and two sharp fangs caught his attention. His pulse increased even more at that sight, and for the first time in his life, Tommy was literally paralysed by fear.

“Oh, Thomas,” she whispered sweetly, gently taking the gun from his hand and placing it back on the desk. Her icy hand went to softly caress his face, her sharp, long nails grazing his skin, and he immediately recognised the chilling sensation that had hunted him in his sleep. “You could’ve asked nicely.”

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