#this is also supremely old this is like WELL over a year old

[cozylittleartblog]

New Family Speedrun 00:09.12 (World Record Not Clickbait???)

[elbiotipo]

Quick worldbuilding hack, if you want to make a coherent political system for your fantasy world:

Basically, between the fall of Rome and early modern times, in Europe* most political organization wasn't actually kingdoms ruled by One True King like it's usual in fantasy, but something like this:

Feudalism: here, the center of power was not the nation (there was little concept of such thing) or the state, and not even the King, but the landowners (from kings to dukes to counts...) and their network of vassalages to each other. There were no "countries" but rather hereditary titles, and the people who held them. There was little of a true state besides what individual rulers did; they didn't even have formal armies as such, but rather the vassals who provided them, they and could have multiple allegiances. Examples are of course the Holy Roman Empire (neither holy, etc. etc.) France (note that the 100 Years War was a dispute about titles rather than France vs. England), Spain (actually a bunch of kingdoms and crowns rather than a country), etc...

"Empires": A state where a central goverment exerts power over other territories and peoples. These are rather familiar to us, because a formal state exists here, and the ruler is more powerful and often does have a standing arming and administration instead of relying on vassals. Here, there is a bureacracy and a claim to rule a territory, and while they might have vassals and prominent artistocratic families (everyone did) their administration was state-based, not allegiance based. The Roman Empire is the most imperial empire, as well as its cringefail successor the Byzantine Empire, but note that the great Islamic empires also had this kind of administration, with governors appointed and confirmed by the imperial court.

City-States: Basically a powerful city (though they were often the size of small towns, still, very rich) ruled by a local aristocracy, sometimes hereditary, sometimes elected from a few families or guilds, or a mix of both, and in some cases ruled by religious authorities. These could be independent or organized in alliances, but were often vassals of more powerful goverments such as above. Cities are in many way the building brick of larger states; of note, in the Ancient Mediterranean before Rome conquered it all, leagues of city-states were the main powers. Medieval and Early Modern independent city states were the Italian city states of course, and a famous league was the Hansa (many of its members themselves vassals of other powers)

Tribes and Clans: Every culture is different with this, but basically here the centre of power is the relationships between families and kinship. If this sounds familiar to Feudalism, you've been paying attention; Feudalism is what happened when the Roman empire and administration fell, and it was replaced by landowners and their ties of vassalage and allegiances.

Now, besides the history lesson, why is this important? Because there are reasons why rulers had their power, and you should know that.

A king never ruled alone. He was only the head of nobles tied by vassallage (feudalism), or the head of a inherited state bureaucracy and army ("empire"). If you killed the king, another one would rise from the prominent families. Often by bloody civil wars or conquest yes, but the system overall would stay. A king did not reign by its own power or virtue, but because the system itself supported him, and of course, he maintained the system.

A new king who wants to replace the bad old king (a common fantasy storyline) needs to also deal with the allegiances of all its vassals (who would probably rather kill him and take the throne themselves) or build a bureaucracy and an army, supremely expensive endeavors in those times, which took decades if not centuries to build. In fact, the Byzantines and the Arabs inherited most of their state aparatus, in one way or the other, from the Romans.

This is also why these systems lasted so long, too. The appearance of modern republics and other systems of goverment needed the coordination of people and revolutions that did not just kill the king, but also replace it with something else, and for that you need literacy, economic changes, an empowered populace... But that's for another time.

I hope this is fucking helpful because I don't want to spell allegiance ever again.

*I would love to do more about goverments outside Europe, especially Precolombine American ones like the redistrubitionist state-based economy of the Incas, or the Mesoamerican city-states. But that's for another time.

[dustofthedailylife]

Lost And Found

-> Masterlist || → Taglist

Pairing: Welt x (gn!) Reader

Summary: You meet your old childhood friend and crush again unexpectedly and feelings you thought you had long forgotten begin to resurface.

Tags: Fluff, Jarilo-VI story spoilers, childhood friends to lovers, Reader is implied to have known Welt when they were still young so they're about the same age here

A/N: I am on my knees begging for Welt to come home, and he refuses to come home, so I'm offering this fic as a sacrifice to the gacha gods. This is also my first HSR fic! Jing Yuan will probably be the next one I write something for... he is living rent-free in my head atm :3

You were standing in line at the street kiosk for a coffee-to-go and a granola bar. Like every morning before you headed to work. Or whatever your work was, now that the Stellaron was gone. There already had been a huge amount of layoffs lately and you expected that it wouldn’t be long anymore until they would lay you off as well.

It was cold today, nothing unusual on Jarilo-VI, but you felt like it had gotten warmer, even if it was still very minuscule and barely noticeable. 

One glance at today’s newspaper revealed yet another Stellaron headline. Nothing surprising.

Silvermane Guards push back on the Stellaron Corruption further. Supreme Guardian Bronya supports the underground with the delivery of rations and supplies.

You heard some strangers from afar had come here and managed to achieve, within a bit more than a week, what people on this planet failed to do for hundreds of years. Something you failed to help with as well, despite coming here for research on the topic yourself.

“Good morning!” The barista greeted you. “The usual?”

“The usual. Thank you.” You nodded with an honest smile. 

Once served and paid, you clutched your hands around the cup to warm your hands on the steaming hot liquid. 

The brew here could hardly be called coffee when comparing it to the one on Earth, but for what it was worth it made do. All it needed to achieve was giving you a small energy boost and some warmth after all.

Walking further down the street you spotted a lot of new faces. Ever since you’ve been here the underground had been sealed, now that it was back open it was definitely great to see the streets bustling with life again. It gave you hope that things would finally take a turn for the better on this planet. 

Maybe that meant it was time for you to leave soon as well. You had no concrete plans on where to go next yet. But essentially as always, you’d just go wherever the stars would carry you.

Lost in thought you didn’t notice how the person in front of you had stopped walking, causing you to bump into them and spill the entire cup of your tastebud-offending coffee over their coat and yourself. 

Just fantastic.

“Shit, I’m so sorry. It was my bad, I should have–”

You frantically took out a handkerchief and tried to dry the clothes of the man in front of you, until he suddenly took hold of your hand, forcing you to halt your ministrations.

At that moment he questioningly called your name.

Startled by the strange yet familiar voice, you flicked your eyes up to the face of the man you had just run into. And without a shadow of a doubt; it was him. 

His friendly brown eyes still exuded the same comforting warmth as they did all those years ago. Something you thought you’d never see again in this lifetime. Not after he left Earth.

“Welt?” You carefully inquired despite being sure that the man standing in front of you was him. Your childhood best friend. The boy you had the biggest, most mind-numbing, and toe-curling crush on back in the day.

“So it really is you!” He huffed in disbelief with a wide smile and an excited sparkle in his eyes. “I never thought I’d see you again.”

“Neither did I after you left…”

You paused for a moment to take in his features. He had become old, without a doubt, but he was still as handsome as you remembered. You dare say, it made him look even more handsome than he already was back in the day. Maturity certainly suited him.

“Let's get you a new coffee, shall we?” He points out after both you and he just stared at each other for what felt like an eternity without uttering a word. 

"Oh, uh. There is no need. It was my own fault for not paying attention and bumping into you.."

"Please, I insist! Even if it’s just for old times' sake. Although you might have to lead me to a Café since I'm unfamiliar with this city. If you still wish to take me with you in my coffee-stained state, that is…"

He looked at the mess on both his and your clothes before laughing.

But who were you to say no to an old friend? Who, after all this time, still seemed to effortlessly make your heart beat an octave higher.

"I have to warn you though. Don't expect too much from the coffee here. It tastes like hot dishwater at best."

"Well, maybe I like dishwater if I can enjoy it with an old friend?"

After you arrived at one of your favorite Cafés, he led you to one of the tables and pulled out a chair for you, waiting until you sat down. Flustered by the chivalrous gesture you avoided eye contact and waited until he sat down as well before looking at his face again.

Soon after, the conversation with him just kept flowing and it felt as if you hadn't been apart for even a day. Talking to him felt as natural and calming as you remember it. At the same time, it made you painfully aware of how much you had actually missed him.

"Hey, that reminds me, I haven't even asked yet, but what brings you here?"

"Oh, right. My crew and I were responsible for the Stellaron incident." He explained.

Figures. You could've expected that it was him who was responsible for resolving the crisis on this planet the moment you found him again.

“I’m not surprised.” You chuckled. “You mentioned a crew?”

“Yes. We travel together on the Astral Express to planets with Stellaron activity.”

“So you’re essentially the Guardians of the Galaxy?” You joke.

“Something like that.” He laughed as the corner of his eyes crinkled upwards. “Travelling feels great again. When Himeko found me–”

“Himeko?” You inquired a bit too quickly as soon as you felt a pang in your chest when he dropped the name. You tried to stop yourself from doing so but it seemed like finding your old friend again made feelings resurface you thought you had long buried and forgotten. Of course, he too had moved on with his life after so long. It would’ve surprised you if he wouldn’t have found a partner, especially with how handsome he was and still is.

“Is she your wife?” You carefully speculated while trying your hardest not to look hurt by the consideration that she might be.

“Who? Himeko? No… god, no. We’re just colleagues. Friends at most.”

A wave of relief washed over you. Was it stupid to be relieved that he wasn’t in any relationship just for your own selfish reasons? Most likely. It’s not like he’d stay here with you or take you with him all of a sudden. And you shouldn’t expect him to do so either.

Your subconscious feelings were hard to suppress though. No matter how hard you tried.

“What can I get you two lovebirds?” The waitress asked when she arrived at your table with a sweet smile.

“Oh, uh, we’re not–”

“I’ll take just a normal cup of coffee. Black, two pieces of sugar please.” Welt interrupted entirely unphased and not in any rush to correct the waitress about her wrong assumption of your relationship status. He smiled and threw you a glance out of the corner of his eyes as he spoke, seemingly amused by your probably undeniably flustered state.

With a heavily beating heart, you simply ordered the same as him while trying not to sound too out of breath. Not that you were capable of thinking about coffee when your mind was racing at the speed of light.

“I haven’t had the chance to tell you yet, that you look just as stunning as I remember.” He complimented as soon as the two were back alone. 

Was he trying to kill you?

“Oh, uhm.” You cleared your throat, feeling how your face had started to burn up. “Thank you. I could say the same about you.”

The wait for your coffee would be excruciatingly slow at this rate. Where were you supposed to look or what were you supposed to say now? 

Every ability to converse like a normal human being flew right out the window the moment he complimented you. Lucky for you he seemed to have enough to talk about, so he kept the conversation flowing by telling you about what he had been up to since you last saw each other.

“Anyway, that’s enough about me. What have you been up to all this time?”, he asked as soon as the waitress served your coffee.

“Oh… I actually came here for the Stellaron myself, so I’m basically jobless now thanks to you and your crew.” You chuckled as you took a sip from the coffee. The dark brown bitter liquid enveloped your tastebuds and made you cringe for a brief moment. You would never get used to the dishwater they dare to call coffee here.

“I’ll have to see where I’ll go now. I have no concrete plans or goals. But probably trying to find another planet that might need my help.” You ascertained after a brief pause.

“Why don’t you come with us?”

Taken aback by the unexpected and sudden proposal you started choking on your coffee as soon as he had finished speaking. Despite the butterflies that made themselves known in the pit of your stomach you couldn’t help but stare at him in disbelief. Simultaneously feeling both hope and old feelings started to bloom inside of your chest once more.

“I’m sorry. I know it might be quite a rash proposal. But it seems we share the same ideals and I thought you would be a great addition to the crew.” He paused and took a sip from his cup, awaiting your answer.

“I–I… Okay. Yeah, sure. I’ll come with you.” You reply which elicited a smile and, what you assumed was, a quiet sigh of relief from him.

“I’m glad. There is so much I still wish to tell you.”

Do not repost, copy, translate or edit - © dustofthedailylife || reblogs, comments, and asks about Genshin or my fics are always greatly appreciated and motivate me! Maple dividers are mine - do not copy.

[fanfic-obsessed]

Somehow Palpatine Returned

Ok I had a hilarious thought and I need to share it with all of you. I don’t normally venture into the Sequels, for all that I have been a FinnPoe and a FinnPoeRey shipper for years, or into anything close to canon,  but I want to share this with you. 

Picture if you will the moment where Poe is telling the audience that ‘Somehow Palpatine has returned’. Ponder for a moment Obi Wan Kenobi, in the Force, at that moment. The look on his face. 

We are going with, somehow, Palpatine managed to hide his real identity from the Force Ghosts so they did not know he was still alive. 

We are also, from my own personal headcanon, going with the idea that Obi Wan severely dislikes (as close to hate as he is capable of) Palpatine and has for almost fifty years at this point.  Like 90% of the horrible things that happened in Obi Wan’s adult life can be traced back to Palpatine (both directly and indirectly).

At the moment that Poe reveals that Palpatine is back, in the Force Obi Wan starts swearing. He starts swearing in every language he knows. He starts mixing languages in his swears. He starts inventing new curses and new languages to be able to express his displeasure at the news. 

Obi Wan Kenobi is about ready to materialize into the mortal plane for the sole purpose of ripping Palpatine’s arm off and beating him with it (in a way that violates all manner of physics and Force). 

Slightly to the Left of Obi Wan, Anakin Skywalker is staring at his grandson in mild horror going ‘why are you…this’. 

The Force starts manifesting people to calm Obi Wan Kenobi down (For fear that Obi Wan will break…everything). First Force Sensitives and Jedi he cared for, then Clones, then non force sensitives, even a few old enemies.  

Note 1: Maul appears at one point and screams ‘Kenobi’ for a really long time, to the point that everyone else (other than Obi Wan) looks at him. He shrugs and goes ‘I just wanted to get your attention’ then goes to sit down next to Satine so they can both score Obi Wan’s curses while splitting a bottle of Force Wine. 

Note 2: Maul and Satine have a weirdly cordial relationship for being a pacifist government official ex girlfriend of a Jedi and the Sith Warlord that murdered her in front of said Jedi, but they have found in the afterlife that they both get joy from the face Obi wan makes when they argue about something inane with him. Also they may be each scoring Obi Wan’s swears (with the occasional addition of Yoda, Dooku, Ventress, and Padme) but they are using different metrics so their scores are vastly different at all time (Maul is scoring on Creativity, Violence, and the number of organs violated; Satine is scoring on creativity, number of languages used, how poetic/rhythmic, and how well it translates into basic).

A battalion's worth of clones are arrayed around Obi Wan, taking notes. Quinlan Vos appears and vanishes in rapid succession as he helps to calm then egg Obi Wan on (at which point the Force yanks him away only to be convinced to put him back). Cody tries to calm Obi Wan down for precisely three minutes, then he realizes what has Obi Wan so steamed. At that point he goes ‘no this reaction is completely valid’ and starts discussing how one would make some of those curses a reality (as they do violate physics, the Force, and human structural integrity. Also Palpatine does not even have some of those organs) with Qui Gonn Jinn, who is deeply amused but happy to bond with his pseudo son in law. 

Plo Koon wanders through and announces that he is adopting all of the new stormtroopers both dead and living (in the mortal plane Finn, Rose, and others suddenly get the feeling that they have been absconded with and have no idea why). 

In one corner Anakin, still despairing over Kylo Ren/Ben Solo and his life choices, is having an ongoing yet supremely awkward family reunion with one or more of the following at any given point and time: his wife, whom he had a hand in killing; his daughters adoptive parents, whom he helped murder; his daughter’s husband, who he tortured, froze in carbonite, and sold to a bounty hunter; and his step brother and step sister in law that rose his son on a planet that Anakin hated, whom he only didn’t torture because he never remembered they existed; Assorted Jedi who he had been close to, whom he might of had a hand in murdering.

That one corner has so much passive aggressiveness that it is insane.  A lot of Anakin asking out loud why Kylo Ren is…like that with one or more of the previously listed people going ‘Maybe if his grandfather didn’t become a Sith, Ben wouldn’t have gotten the idea’. Which is both slightly unfair, as Anakin had been dead by the time Ben Solo was born, but also funny as anything. 

Also no one in that corner was actually discussing their elephant in the room, which was Anakin turned out to be THE PROBLEM for two decades. 

There is an ever growing parade of everyone Obi Wan has ever met being thrown at him by the Force because the Force effectively went: SHIT that is a lot of anger. Deflect.Deflect.

[oblooga]

It's you and I

Synopsis: (fem!reader) best friends to lovers with a hint of fake/misunderstood dating :)))

Characters: Kazuha, Al-Haitham

Author's note: SPOILERS FOR 3.4 STORY QUEST (Alhaitham's part!! though now Fontaine is released idk if anyone still hasn't done Sumeru but I'm putting this here just in case^^)

This is a gift for @kazumist for the @solarisfortuneia Summer Santa event!! This was supremely fun to write, I have no idea how to write Alhaitham though, so forgive me if he's a little OOC. I hope you like it :))))

P.S. lyrics is from "poster boy" by Lyn Lapid-- I was looping the song while writing this

Kaedehara Kazuha

The vision hunt decree is finally over, and with it ends the bloodshed and violence that has lingered on your doorstep for years. With a brand new day free of bitter purple lighting comes new beginnings, new futures, and new-old friends returning to their homeland. 

One such friend is Kaedehara Kazuha.

You’ve known each other since you were little— dressed in nappies, sharing childhoods, summers spent racing in fields of gold and exploring caves filled with shimmering blue flowers. He had to flee when the vision hunt decree bore down his back– you still remember sending him away on a night dark as the loneliest shadows, holding back your tears as you watch the solidarity boat sail away from the harbor. 

(away from you.)

But ages have past, regimes have changed, and he can finally return home. Your family has agreed to house him, on account of his precious abode being completely destroyed in the Vision Hunt Decree.

And…also due to a big misunderstanding, as you were about to find out. 

“Y/n, where’s that boyfriend of yours? Didn’t you say he’d be here by noon?” Your mother calls from the kitchen, bustling around as she prepares lunch. 

You spit out the tea you’d been sipping, “I—I’m sorry, what boyfriend?”

“You know? That white haired boy with the red streak that lived next door? Kazuha?”

“Mom,” you groan, “he’s not—“

“Did someone say my name?” A voice calls from the doorway, gentle as the breeze sweeping through golden fields, fondness and amusement settling in its tone like leaves falling in autumn. 

In the doorway of your home stands Kaedehara Kazuha, looking every bit the same as you’d last seen him, just a bit taller and a bit more weary of the world. But he brightens up and chuckles when you leap into his embrace and cling onto him like an overzealous Bake-Danuki. 

“I missed you!! It’s been boring without you, Inazuma has changed so much and everyone’s talking about how—“

“Hello to you too, Y/n, how have you been? It’s been quite a while hasn’t it,” he mumbles into your hair as you continue to yammer on animatedly about the things he's missed.

“Y/n,” your mom calls from the kitchen, exasperated, “why don’t you let the poor boy into the house before you talk his ear off? Lunch is almost ready, please can you help set the table?” 

“Of course,” Kazuha cuts in smoothly before you’ve even had a chance to reply, patting your head and letting you down gently before sauntering into the kitchen. 

"How can I help you, Ma'am?" He smiles at your mom, helping hold the oven door open as she shoves a giant seasoned chicken inside.

“Oh, you’re a man after my heart,” your mom titters, smiling good naturedly at him, “just as how you’ve captured Y/n’s heart, hmm?” She turns and winks at you, and Kazuha smiles. 

“Well, I’m not quite sure about that just yet,” he says, glancing at you and raking his eyes over your flushed and confused face. “But I most certainly would like for it to be true," he murmurs, as he sends you a shy but sure smile, raising his brows at your reddened cheeks. 

“Ka-Kazuha,” you start flusteredly, “wh— you’re– w–wh–"

"Ah, young love," your mom sighs dramatically, and shoos the both of you out of the kitchen. "Nevermind helping me out, the both of you are so besotted with each other it'll be hard to get any work down. Off you go!" 

And so Kazuha easily gets out of the kitchen work that you've been subjected to for the many years you've lived in this house. You can't even be surprised– there's just something about the boy that is so soothing, so silently charming, that draws one in as unnoticeably as the autumn wind that comes every September.

"Kazuha, should we talk about this? We're not… you're… what are you doing?" You ask him hesitantly, trailing behind as he leads you out of the house and into the gardens. 

"Well– it'd be rude to ruin your mom's fantasies, right?" He grins, turning to a stop in front of you. "She seems so happy to have me around that…I'd feel slightly guilty if we tell her we're just friends and ruin whatever extravagant wedding she'd hold in the future." 

"You–!" You blush immediately, mind wandering to satin gowns and lavish kimonos and Kazuha in draped in silks and– "--married???"

"I mean, it wouldn't be so bad would it," his voice quiets to a hush, something unreadable in his smile as he leans over you and gently removes a leaf from your hair. "Well, maybe not getting married just yet," he says, making a face, "but maybe-- you dating me. As besotted with each other as your mom thinks we are," he chuckles, and turns away before you can fully decipher the feelings on his face.

And it's not…it's not as if you haven't thought of it before. Young as you were when you first met, a large part of your life was spent with Kazuha. You didn't know when your relationship developed from neighbours to best friends, but you'd never trade for anything the long nights spent dashing through starlight-fields, swimming in the salty ocean and chasing each other through the winding streets of town. He'd grown from a chubby boy into a lean man, the carefree, easy smile on his face never failing to cause butterflies in your stomach, ones that you've dismissed to be teenage hormones, before you realized said hormones were specifically centered around him. They say distance makes the heart fonder, and perhaps it's true, for both of you, because he's come back and seemed to have changed his mind about you. Changed his heart about you. (centered his heart around you.)

And… perhaps you had too. 

"Alright," you say slowly, unable to resist grinning at the full-blown smile that breaks across his face like the sun rising after a cold, lonely night. "We can try…this, whatever this is, out. No more faking though, for real this time, except we don't tell my mom it was ever fake because I don't want to sit through another of her lectures."

"Deal," Kazuha laughs, taking your hand in his and pressing a kiss to your knuckles, something in his eyes sparkling with an intensity that promises of a bright future. "I promise I won't breathe a word of your deceit–" he gets a snack on the shoulder for that– "to your mom, if you let me eat your caramel pudding."

"Hey!" You exclaim, wrinkling your nose at him, "just because you're now my boyfriend does not mean you get dessert rights-- get back here this instant Kazuha--!"

And so, in the season of autumn, in spite of the things that wither and fall and fade away, a brilliant and steadfast relationship begins to bloom.

2. Alhaitham

“Date me.”

You push your head up from where you’ve been laying on the table, turning bleary eyes to an ash-haired scholar standing next to your desk. “Hmm—?” you yawn, your brain too foggy from sleep to process his words. 

“Date me,” Alhaitham, academic-rivals-turned-study-partners-turned (begrudging)-best-friend, repeats impatiently.

You finally process his words and frown, blinking the sleep out of your eyes to sit up properly and stare at him. “Are you— are you alright? Did you eat breakfast? Did you ingest something Kaveh oh Archons above Kaveh better not have—“ 

“The Akademiya has proposed a “Day of Love”,” he cuts in, ignoring your spew of genuine concern, “to celebrate the passion and affection shared between romantic lovers. And also as an excuse to take a day off from their work I suppose,” he tsks, “which in any case brings me back to the question I’ve had the misfortune to ask for the third time— will you go on a date with me?” He crosses his arms and stares more intensely at you.

“…Aren’t you the Acting Grand Sage? Can’t you just get them to cancel this "Day of Love"?” you question, and he turns surprisingly defensive and brushes you off immediately. “No can do. It’s central to the welfare of the people of Sumeru.” Your suspicion deepens. You're not sure how… celebrating love and passion can increase the happiness of people of a country that had just experienced a never ending time-loop– okay, maybe you can see the point. 

"I mean…sure I guess…?" You shrug and agree, seeing how Alhaitham doesn't seem to be willing to let this go so easily. 

Which leads to your Saturday being spent on a date with someone you'd once thought didn't even have the word love in their vocabulary. 

Sumeru City was decorated to the nines, pink fairy lights stringed across branches of lush greenery that sprawled across the city, couples everywhere sharing giggles and smiles and kisses. It is all horribly romantic and a part of your heart can't help but flutter in anticipation, for what– exactly, you're not sure, but there is definitely a sense of love in the air. 

Not that the man besides you seems to notice any of it. Al walks at his usual brisk pace, dragging you through stalls of street foods and tiny trinkets, offering his (entirely unasked for) professional opinion on every item you land your sight on. It feels less like a date and more like…a research trip, if you were being honest. You've learnt more about the symbols of love than you'd ever asked for, and you can feel the romantic bones in your body draining of calcium by the minute. 

Although that isn't to say you aren't enjoying yourself. Al follows patiently behind you when you wander off to coo at some shiny necklace (which he purchased behind your back and sneaked into your purse), does not laugh at you when you stuff your mouth full of shawarma warp (although you can see the curl on his lips that belies his seriousness), and only sighs when you make him climb to the very top of the city to watch the sunset with you.

"What a day," you sigh contentedly, turning a fond smile at him. "Did you enjoy the date, Al?" You tease, leaning forward to poke at his nose as his blank expression develops into a scowl. 

"I have procured a valuable amount of information and experience that will be quite useful to me in writing my… future endeavors," he replies, returning your poke with a pinch of your cheeks. 

"Aha!" You exclaim, eyes widening and pointing at him. "I knew there was more to this! No way the Acting Grand Sage would ask me out on a date with no ulterior motive. Be honest, will you? Did you assign yourself a research on the topic of love because your life lacks so much of it?" You tease, watching him cross his arms and avoid your gaze entirely.

He remains silent for far too long, and your attention returns back to the scenery in front of you. Clouds laze across a purple pink sky, the sun had long set and only left behind ghosts of its golden rays that haze over Sumeru like a shimmering fairy, dancing betweens people lounging on benches and sprawled out on grass, enjoying the final moments of a beautiful day.

"...It was my idea."

"Hm?" You turn back to face the scholar, who's still looking resolutely ahead. Belated realization hits you, and you give him a smile of fond exasperation. "I knew it, Al, it was for a paper wasn't it? You could've just asked me to help, instead of only now revealing your big, evil intention. You know, I wouldn't have minded–"

"But I would," he cuts in, finally turning to face you. Those teal green eyes stare intensely into yours, red irises blazing as bright as the sun that sank low over the horizon. 

"You would…?" You trail off in confusion.

"I would've minded," he continues, leaning close enough that you could smell the scent of tattered book and dried ink that clings to his sleeves, "if you thought I had a big, evil intention in mind. Because you see," he says, hints of amusement coloring his features as you flusteredly back away from his advances, "I absolutely could've canceled the "Day of Love"."

"I was the one who proposed the idea after all."

He smirks at you with self-satisfaction, that hint of arrogance and unbeatable intelligence showing through before he schools his features back into nonchalance. Not without a new-found assumed tilt to his lips, of course. 

"Wh–huh?" Your mind was whirring at extremely high speeds, brain unable process the implications his words offer. 

The pink skies hold no candle to the pink staining your cheeks– as the clouds gather speed and the golden rays depart you finally realize what his words mean. 

"So you– you basically forced this "Day of Love" onto Sumeru to ask me out??" You say incredulously, turning a look of equal disbelief and hysteria on him. 

"I wouldn't say forced– it really is central to the welfare of the people of Sumeru," he mutters, once again avoiding your eye, trying to affect complete nonchalance again. 

"Oh Al," you giggle, and lay your head on his shoulder. He tenses, but then you feel his body relax as he gingerly settles an arm on yours. 

"All you had to do was ask."

thanks for reading!

[wallflowerimagines]

Bruno Madrigal Crush Headcannons

This man has spent a good portion of his life watching his family through walls, hoping and wishing and yearning for their happiness, even if it doesn't involve him.

Meaning? He has a staring problem.

Bruno actually caught feelings for you from a distance. You're just...so nice. Nonjudgmental. It's what drew his gaze to you in the first place, how everyone felt safe to be themselves around you. He didn't even need to interact with you to see how wonderful you are!

...Which is a problem.

Bruno refuses to approach you-- he can't. It's just not possible.

But he will watch you.

He watches the way you smile and laugh, he's hypnotized by the way your hair bounces when you walk, he wants to take his thumb and rub away the little furrow between your eyebrows that shows up when you're reading intently, kiss your lips every time you bite them--

(Or is that too much, hahahahahahahah-- Kill him, someone anyone please please please---)

Bruno is so, so awkward. While Tio Bruno is funny and adoring with his family, as well as hilariously sassy when he wants to be, people outside his social circle are Not Trusted with anything but The Madrigal Manners. Years of being accused of malicious intent makes it difficult for him to be fully himself in public, and the decades of isolation made him forget all the important social cues.

But you? He's exponentially worse around you.

The few times you've actually spoken with Bruno, he was both Supremely Polite and a Tongue Tied Disaster.

He comments on easy, obvious topics, like the weather or the weekend, but he talks so quickly he can't breathe and starts laughing at things that aren't even jokes. He'll open doors for you or pull out your chair, but will trip over the door frame or accidentally tip the chair over and scramble to pick it back up.

You make him a mess. You whip his thoughts so frothy he can barely remember what he's said, let alone focus on putting up a wall. It's incredibly endearing, and it makes his crush on you supremely obvious.

He's had one or two childhood crushes, but it has been literal decades since the last time his heart beat this fast. It was so bad that this idiot (affectionate) literally thought he was having a heart attack the first time you made eye contact with him--Fully clutching at his chest and panicking before darting away to get some help.

There is a certain amount of guilt he feels about his crush. After all, he's not exactly prime husband material. Bruno is acutely aware of how old he is, and there aren't many love stories out there for people his age(a crime imo). "The fifty year old uncle" is usually the creepy antagonist in drama, never a romantic hero. Besides that, there's the matter of his reputation. Even with the rest of the Madrigal family working to repair it, there are still parts of the Encanto that don't like the weird fortune-telling hermit that LIVED IN THE WALLS OF HIS OWN HOUSE FOR SOME REASON.

(....There is also a little bit of guilt of the Catholic variety. His thoughts about you can get pretty spicy late at night. After one of those he can't bring himself to even look at you.)

Bruno won't confess his feelings to you if he can help it. He doesn't think he deserves romantic love, especially not from someone as wonderful as you, and the last thing he wants to do is burden you with his feelings. He's been enough of a burden already. He will try to get over you before he even considers hinting that he likes you.

Unfortunately, Bruno's resolve isn't as strong as he wishes it was.

Every time he tries to suppress his feelings, someone will simply say your name in passing and it's enough to fully divert his train of thought back to how kind you are, how funny, how understanding....

Fantasies have always been a huge coping mechanism for him, but lately, baby you are the star of every. single. one.

Some are realistic: He pictures the two of you hand in hand, walking to the market, and he's somehow managed to be funny and charming enough to make you smile just for him.

Or maybe you have a suitcase packed and ready to leave the village--it's raining of course--and Bruno will run out to you, pull you into a tight embrace and kiss the idea right out of you.

He could live out his childhood dream and be the director of a theater troupe, while you, his newest actor shaking with nerves, ask him to run through your lines together. He agrees, comforts you through your stage fright, and as your practice ends the chemistry between you both is electric enough to crackle. He just knows you'll do great things together...

Bruno is his best self in every fantasy, of course, witty and charming and without a single grain of sand in his hair. Often, in private, he has his rats reenact his favorite daydreams. (Whichever Rat that plays you gets extra treats. It's the most coveted role.)

...Eventually, though, his wistful sighing and blatant eavesdropping on any conversation involving you start to get on his Family's nerves. They've been supportive of his crush--why wouldn't they be, they've met you, you're great!-- but it's also obvious Bruno is going to need a helping hand.

Mirabel in particular gets it in her head to play Cupid after she sees how happy her Tio gets talking about you. She gathers up the youngest generation of Madrigals, and all of them begin conspiring ways to push Bruno into as many situations with you as possible.

Isabella invites you over to help garden, while Luisa gets her Tio to come help her organize where the pots should go. Antonio begs you to play hide and seek with him and his animal friends, and it's not like Bruno can resist his nephew's puppy eyes either. Mirabel brings Bruno along to tell stories to some of the local village kids, and Camilo makes sure you're nearby to see his Tio in his element.

Bruno immediately picks up on the fact that his nieces and nephews are trying to meddle, but he can't find it in himself to get upset about it.

Besides, it's a little hard to think lately when so many of your pretty smiles seem to be directed at him...

...Maybe he has more of a chance than he thought? 💞

[cogitoergofun]

In 2008, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas decided to send his teenage grandnephew to Hidden Lake Academy, a private boarding school in the foothills of northern Georgia. The boy, Mark Martin, was far from home. For the previous decade, he had lived with the justice and his wife in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. Thomas had taken legal custody of Martin when he was 6 years old and had recently told an interviewer he was “raising him as a son.”

Tuition at the boarding school ran more than $6,000 a month. But Thomas did not cover the bill. A bank statement for the school from July 2009, buried in unrelated court filings, shows the source of Martin’s tuition payment for that month: the company of billionaire real estate magnate Harlan Crow.

The payments extended beyond that month, according to Christopher Grimwood, a former administrator at the school. Crow paid Martin’s tuition the entire time he was a student there, which was about a year, Grimwood told ProPublica.

“Harlan picked up the tab,” said Grimwood, who got to know Crow and the Thomases and had access to school financial information through his work as an administrator.

Before and after his time at Hidden Lake, Martin attended a second boarding school, Randolph-Macon Academy in Virginia. “Harlan said he was paying for the tuition at Randolph-Macon Academy as well,” Grimwood said, recalling a conversation he had with Crow during a visit to the billionaire’s Adirondacks estate.

ProPublica interviewed Martin, his former classmates and former staff at both schools. The exact total Crow paid for Martin’s education over the years remains unclear. If he paid for all four years at the two schools, the price tag could have exceeded $150,000, according to public records of tuition rates at the schools.

Thomas did not report the tuition payments from Crow on his annual financial disclosures. Several years earlier, Thomas disclosed a gift of $5,000 for Martin’s education from another friend. It is not clear why he reported that payment but not Crow’s.

The tuition payments add to the picture of how the Republican megadonor has helped fund the lives of Thomas and his family.

“You can’t be having secret financial arrangements,” said Mark W. Bennett, a retired federal judge appointed by President Bill Clinton. Bennett said he was friendly with Thomas and declined to comment for the record about the specifics of Thomas’ actions. But he said that when he was on the bench, he wouldn’t let his lawyer friends buy him lunch.

[...]

“This is way outside the norm. This is way in excess of anything I’ve seen,” said Richard Painter, former chief White House ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush, referring to the cascade of gifts over the years.

Painter said that when he was at the White House, an official who’d taken what Thomas had would have been fired: “This amount of undisclosed gifts? You’d want to get them out of the government.”

A federal law passed after Watergate requires justices and other officials to publicly report most gifts. Ethics law experts told ProPublica they believed Thomas was required by law to disclose the tuition payments because they appear to be a gift to him.

Justices also must report many gifts to their spouses and dependent children. The law’s definition of dependent child is narrow, however, and likely would not apply to Martin since Thomas was his legal guardian, not his parent. The best case for not disclosing Crow’s tuition payments would be to argue the gifts were to Martin, not Thomas, experts said.

But that argument was far-fetched, experts said, because minor children rarely pay their own tuition. Typically, the legal guardian is responsible for the child’s education.

“The most reasonable interpretation of the statute is that this was a gift to Thomas and thus had to be reported. It’s common sense,” said Kathleen Clark, an ethics law expert at Washington University in St. Louis. “It’s all to the financial benefit of Clarence Thomas.”

[soberscientistlife]

Most abortions are now banned in 20 states following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Fourteen of these states have abortion bans after just 6 weeks of pregnancy.

This is not okay, not reasonable, and definitely not acceptable. If you don’t know me well, maybe you don’t know what I do for a living. I’m an ultrasound technologist. My colleagues and I look at babies in every stage of pregnancy every day. I also work in a high risk unit. My unit and I look at babies and mothers in varying states of mental and physical health. If you think an abortion ban sounds good, then I am a good person to ask about why it isn’t.

So let me tell you:

About the woman whose baby developed with no skull, and the brain just floating around. Her baby still had a heartbeat, and she would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman whose baby has a rare chromosomal condition called T13. Her baby’s organs grew outside its body, and had a cleft palate so bad that there was no nose. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman whose blood pressure is spiking so high that she passes out and is likely to stroke out before her baby is born. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman with such a severe form of hemophilia that giving birth will probably be fatal to both her and the baby. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the 13 year old whose school isn’t allowed to teach her science-based sex-education, so she didn’t know how to prevent pregnancy or STIs, but whose body is not developed enough to carry to term without being damaged. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman who was raped by a friend who wanted to “make sure she got home safely”. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman who has PCOS so only has periods every 3-4 months and can’t find a birth control that works for her. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman whose abusive partner removed the condom without telling her (it’s called stealthing, and it happens more frequently than you’d think). She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman with the cornual ectopic pregnancy that isn’t reliably in the uterus, and could grow to a size that will kill her. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman who has two kids she can barely feed already, and whose birth control just increased in price. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the 18 year old who just started college and is going to be the first graduate of the family if she can just stay in school. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the woman whose IUD slipped slightly and is now endangering both her and the pregnancy it was designed to prevent. She would not be able to access abortion.

About the many, many, many women who just don’t want to be pregnant for reasons that are their own. Health issues, abusive relationships, financial issues, social issues. They would not be able to access abortion.

Some of these might sound like reasonable exceptions to you. And you would be correct. But no one should get to decide what happens with another person’s body, not even to save a life. You need written permission from a corpse before life saving organs can be taken from them. You cannot be forced to donate blood, no matter how dire the situation. And no one else should get to decide what a woman does with her body, end of story.

But it’s not the end of the story, is it? Because here’s the kicker: if you consider abortion to be a murder (and some people genuinely believe that!) then miscarriage can be second degree murder. And this is already happening all over the world - El Salvador, Ecuador, and the US of A. Women are being jailed for miscarriages and stillbirths because they might have done something to cause it. If you start down this path of jailing women and doctors for making healthcare decisions that affect no one but themselves, then you get women who don’t go to a doctor for a safe procedure and instead order pills online or use whatever metal instruments they can find to end their own pregnancies. Women who are honestly experiencing a miscarriage (which is medically called a spontaneous abortion, just fyi) will not go to their doctor for help. They will bleed out on their bathroom floors or die of septic shock. And I haven’t even talked about how this will disproportionately affect women of color, LGBTQA+ women, or trans men. This isn’t about the “sanctity of life” anymore. It’s about controlling women.”

Sena Garven

This is happening in America.

[steadymongerbatscissors]

Leo Valdez And His Mistreatment

Recently I have taken some time to go back to some books and reread them for the hell of it. One of these books being the Heroes of Olympus series. Now the Heroes of Olympus series has been my favorites series overall yeah I know people think its worse than the others but I just honestly prefer the multiple point of views. Of course some characters could do with some fleshing out like Jason,Piper,Frank,and Hazel. My personal favorite of all the characters was Leo Valdez mostly because I though his fire powers were cool and he was a surprisingly deep character compared to fellow new characters.

But while reading I noticed multiple facets of his character that I felt did not need to be added or needed to be expanded on and this post I will tell you them all.

His Powers

I’m starting with his powers because that was the main thing that drew me in and in my believe sort of made Leo the person he was in the books. I mean without his fire powers he wouldn’t have accidentally killed his mother therefore never being an orphan and meeting Jason and Piper. This all say nothing about his frayed mental state.

So there pretty important but while also being important they are pretty inconsistent.

What I mean is that when Leo first uses his powers he had been purposefully not using them since he was 8 years old. This gives off the impression that has major control over his fire powers to supremes them for so long. Yet when they are on the bridge to the Wind God’s palace in the sky he suddenly loses control even though he realistically should have not done that since he had already shown he has major control over his power and wouldn’t suddenly lose control just cause he got excited.

Another problem his powers have is that they are supposedly super dangerous yet the only thing he does is throw a couple fireballs towards monsters and that’s it. Well except for when he somehow learns to nuke Gaea with his fire powers.

Wait what?

He learns to nuke somebody!

You see how his powers are super inconsistent. Like how do we go from fireballs to fire nuking a primordial goddess.

This problem seems to only exist for Leo since we get see Hazel get over her tragedy and control her powers to a far more powerful degree,Piper gets to hone her charm-speak so when she makes Gaea go to sleep it makes sense,and finally Frank multiple times throughout the series get to show off his shape shifting and how strong it is. So why does Leo never get this treatment cause we never see him actually hone his power and develop new ability’s from it.

Like your telling me the guy whose dad is the god of fire never once threw Greek fire out of his hands even though he is supposed to be the special fire guy.

His Appearance

Allow me to read you this passage describing how Leo looks.

“Leo looked like a Latino Santa’s elf, with curly black hair, pointy ears, a cheerful, babyish face, and a mischievous smile that told you right away this guy should not be trusted around matches or sharp objects. His long, nimble fingers wouldn’t stop moving—drumming on the seat, sweeping his hair behind his ears, fiddling with the buttons of his army fatigue jacket. Either the kid was naturally hyper or he was hopped up on enough sugar and caffeine to give a heart attack to a water buffalo”

To put the description simply he is described as ugly and extremely hyperactive.

I don’t understand why Rick wrote him that way because why does the outsider of the seven have to be the ugly and can’t sit still.

It’s not like any of the other characters are described as ugly unless their Frank before Mars blessing. Rick has Hazel literally think that Percy is a Greek God. Piper is the daughter of the goddess of love. Annabeth is described as a princess implying prettiness. Hell it’s not even kept to just the seven, Will Solace (the character with no personality trait aside from being a doctor and loving Nico) is described as being hot by Nico.

So like why does it seem that Leo Valdez is the only character described as ugly and hyperactive. Hell it doesn’t even make sense that Leo doesn’t have a little muscle considering he’s a mechanic and mechanics have to lift heavy shit all the time like realistically Leo would have a decent amount of muscle.

Note:Expanding on his hyper-activeness, we know that demigods ADHD helps them react to monster attack better and Annabeth describes Leo as extremely ADHD so wouldn’t that just mean that Leo would have like spider-sense and dodge extremely well.

His Character Connections

Why does everybody seem to hate Leo or at the very least try to avoid speaking with him. Like for real half way through the series Jason,and Piper completely stop hanging out with him. The only interaction they have after the Lost Hero is them going to Asclepius to make the Physician’s Cure.

Rick tried to have Hazel and Leo be friends because she knew his Grandfather or something but that is so flimsy. Frank hates Leo from the jump even though he started the beef by asking Leo if he was Sammy and getting mad every time Leo looked at Hazel. Yet there the ones he confides his whole plan to beat Gaea.

Percy is yet another person who doesn’t like Leo even though they are the basically the same person in different fonts. Annabeth seems to dislike having Leo aboard the Argo with the rest of the seven because she has no problem making fun of Leo in her mind by mocking him cause of his ADHD but then again that’s a bigger problem with Annabeth’s character than their relationship.

The only thing that seems to like having Leo around is Festus the dragon who Leo rebuilt after accidentally destroying him in their first quest.

I don’t care what you say just because Calypso insults Leo a little. It doesn’t mean that she hates him because she actually care like she really fucking cares.

So to recap Leo only has two people that genuinely like being around him and seven friends who put up with him and don’t really want him around.

Compares this to the main character of the last prophecy I.E Percy. Everybody likes Percy even people who realistically shouldn’t like him like him. Like your Reyna the girl who lost a home and was put on a pirate ship thanks to Percy had a crush on him just because he was a decent fighter. Yes right I call bullcrap.

Small Problem

Leo Valdez is a character who throughout the series has a lot of problems in his character. One problem is his treatment towards or more accurately why does Rick write Leo to be incredibly disrespectful even though he himself acknowledges how it was for his mom to get a good job just cause she is a women. One scene that I think emphasizes this problem is when the trio of the Lost Hero book meets the Hunters of Artemis. Now your expecting that since Leo himself saw how hard it was for mother just cause she was women would be extremely respectful towards the Hunters especially Jason’s sister Thalia. But nope he goes right up to Thalia and just says she’s hot to her face like come on Rick your contradicting yourself. Then in Trials of Apollo Rick has Reyna teach Leo about respecting women no like come on Leo since childhood should have know to respect women. I know you might be saying that’s just the persona he uses around people but like that doesn’t change the fact he should have already knew not to do that thanks to his mother.

Conclusion

In conclusion Leo Valdez is a character who could have been treated far better by the story,author,and the people inside the story. He is a wonderful character who in universe only has two people that genuinely want him around and deserved to have his powers explored more than just fireball. But sadly he is riddled with holes that shouldn’t be there if you actually look at his character.

[thebibliosphere]

I don't want to stir up discourse/harassment again, but I'm very curious, what was the Lucia Franko situation?

I'm going to put this under a cut because she's notoriously litigious and scans the net for people talking about her.

It is well known that she wrote a romance series romanticizing an affair between a 16-year-old gymnast and her 30+ coach.

It caused a bit of a shit storm on Twitter when Romancelandia as a community became more aware of it. I was in a group discussion on Twitter where people were saying she needed to not file it under romance or young adult romance (which she had done, presumably because YA romance is a HUGE earner) because it didn't belong in either genre. There was also some talk about whether or not she was in breach of Amazon TOS.

I posted maybe one thing in that whole convo, agreeing that she needed to move her stuff into dark romance and out of a genre frequented by minors because while fandom is a free for all, professional publishing has standards and restrictions we all need to abide by.

To this day, I do not know if it was her or her fans acting on their own, but they must have looked at that group, decided I was the smallest fish there based on my Twitter following, and decided to try and dive bomb my reviews and attack my social media, primarily my Facebook which is where certain types of romance authors reign supreme and you can pretty much ruin someone's career if you're able to destroy their FB standing.

Unfortunately for them, I am not a Facebook romance writer. I am a Tumblr romance writer, so it was not unlike bringing a knife to a nuclear orbital strike. They got blown clean out of the water, and it caused quite a few people to go, "who the fuck was that?!" while I slithered back beneath the surface like some feral Tumblr leviathan.

At this time, LF was also actively threatening to sue Scarlet Parish over factually documenting where she was in breach of Amazon's TOS. She was sending her legal papers and threatening her livelihood. She has since repeated this pattern when people point out facts that she used to brag about as selling points but now considers slander.

In the end, she brought so much attention to the whole thing herself that it resulted in the books being reported to Amazon, who did find them to be in breach of their TOS and removed them

LF has since aged up her character to the legal age of consent and republished them on Amazon, which is fine; she's no longer in breach of TOS. But what isn't fine is that she continues to threaten legal action against anyone who points out that her original character was underage and she was in the wrong genre listings and still puts herself in the YA categories a lot of the time when her content is supposedly exclusively for adults.

Anyway, apparently, me pointing this out when asked about her is the same as being pro-censorship 🤡

[necronatural]

Crossy, where can I read your Forgotten Stones AU?

You're not gonna believe this. I accidentally deleted my blog a while back so the specific post I used to link to on my vids got obliterated. Let me see how much I can recite from memory. Here are all the OCs

On one of Blue Diamond's planets, Pink Diamond was allowed to try out a Kindergarten. It went well, so she moved on to Earth while the process was supervised by a Peridot and her team of Feldspar, which are generic little starter kit gems that are impossible to fuck up and pad out personnel teams (Corals pad out Quartz crews.)

Then the apocalypse happened!

Rock-"eating" microbes has completely disrupted the function of gems, shattering every single gem on the planet, including the ones still in the Kindergarten. Feldspar is one of a generic gaggle of Feldspars, made the only survivor because in a fight to escape she accidentally took Peridot's place in an isolation chamber until the microbes stopped breaking down gems like that.

The planet was put under quarantine, and Feldspar had no choice but to spend the next few thousands of years figuring out a way to reverse the damage to repair shattered gems using what little Diamond Oil she has at her disposal.

Tiger's Eye and Rutile are her sole successes, and it's not perfect; they tend to glitch, and the more fusions happen, the worse the glitches get. In this AU, Rutiles don't fuse into anything, they're a type of equipment for other gems that have radar features and such, so while Rutile glitches too, she's the only one that doesn't cause problems during fusions.

Feldspar found Coral slightly deeper than most injections, allowing her to be the only survivor out of all the Kindergartens, but also making her malformed, so she has the mind of a child. Literally. She has almost no pre-programming and has to learn everything manually.

Without Homeworld roles or staff to help with certain tasks, Rutile has taken over the job of a Bismuth with construction, and Tiger's Eye has become Steve Irwin wrangling crocs and forcing Feldspar to learn to treat organic life in her spare time, which, in combination with Coral's lack of programming, inspires her to create Elkhorn and Tridacna.

Elkhorn Coral and Tridacna Pearl are Feldspar's test models for using more organic life to increase the amount of working Gems on the planet, but she has no idea they've emerged, or that the quarantine of the planet has allowed sapient life to develop. Elkhorn Coral lives in a fishing village and retrieved Tridacna when she emerged. So they are both just fishing several miles away.

The Movie video I did is actually a secondary AU, "what if they were all successfully picked up and Feldspar became a Diamond bootlicker only to realize Coral is considered Off Colour and got shattered for it, and her creations will no doubt soon follow".

It's not in the video, but Pink Pearl is one of the antagonists! In my head she has a villain song that's functionally like It's Over Isn't It (Reprise). Rutiles don't fuse into new gems so she fuses and unfuses with dozens of them to vastly improve her range and mobility and it's Circque Du Soleil in the reception room. I was so obsessed with her she was my blorbo supreme

While the whole of this setting was written in Season 4 i think?? (Not the movie AU that was a direct reaction to the complete series) Feldspar and Coral also have Steven Universe Future designs! Set in the movie universe. While previous designs make it distinct that they have no inherent allegiance to any diamond, there's no call to a diamond at all in their new designs.

They have been exiled back to their home planet to live a happy life of science with a thriving gem colony that protects the planet's organic life. In the years she spent in Homeworld Coral has improved her ability to collect data so she's spiritually a 14-year-old. When Steven comes to her for advice about his emotional instability she says "I exploded into light, remember? Anyway have you tried raising a child." And Steven says "the child is why you exploded." And Feldspar says "No comment."

[strange-dreams-are-made-of-these]

Let Me Adore You

Established romantic F!Reader x Stephen Strange

Word Count: 1,763

Disclaimer: I do not own the gif that is used, i found it on google. I do not own any of the Marvel characters mentioned or their plots.

Warnings: NSFW, 18+ ONLY, DSMOM Spoilers, Smut (p in v, unprotected sex, cream pie) {I think thats it?}

Summery: after helping rebuild Kamar-Taj and getting America settled into her new studies, Stephen and the female reader finally have some alone time

A/N: Hello everybody! this is my first smut fic, so please don’t judge it too much.

The students were training in the courtyards of Kamar-Taj, surrounded by the open breeze ways and the construction. They were recovering as quickly as they could from the recent assault from Wanda Maximoff. Y/n peered up, spotting one of the students as she was practicing summoning portals. The woman had been proud of her, young America Chavez. She was a lost soul in the multiverse, just a kid. You, Stephen, and Wong agreed that America was safe now from the threats that pursued her and was welcomed to Kamar-Taj to learn the mystic arts.

The woman watched as Stephen spoke with America, about what was beyond her. All she knew was that Stephen and America saved the multiverse, the three of them had a couple of bruises and scars to add to their story collections, and all was right and well in the world. America left Stephen to go back to her lessons. Y/n walked down the corridor, watching as Stephen and Wong met with each other as they walked up a set of stairs. "Ah, y/n" Wong spoke, gesturing to the woman. "So glad you could join us."

Y/n nodded before bowing to the Sorcerer Supreme. "I think my work here is finished. Relics have been repaired, the library has been organized, and the defensive shield around Kamar-Taj has been refortified."

Stephen hummed a little. "I'm sure you also helped America feel settled in her room."

Y/n turned to face Stephen, your better other half for the last eight years. "I just find it a coincidence that she ended up in my old room." Of course, she had everything to do with that placement. Y/n had helped her get used to the layout of Kamar-Taj. Y/n knew she was going to be an excellent student. "I can admit to something though; I want to go home and lay down in our bed."

Stephen smiled, winking at his fiancé. He turned to bow to Wong, something he hadn't done before. He wrapped his arm over your shoulders as you opened a portal directly into the main living space of the Sanctum. The two of you walked through the portal watching the scene instantly changing around you. It was dark outside, the lights coming through the windows coming from street lights. Stephen checked his watch, nodding. "We have saved so much money on flight tickets. What are we going to do with all of this cash?" He asked sarcastically.

Y/n started up at him, the both of you walking up the stairs. "You're being paid for your superhero work? Who's your employer? I'd like to submit my resume." She spoke, chuckling a little at the end.

"It's this super top-secret organization called, Myself." Once stopping at the top of the landing, he pulled her closer to his side. "The pay isn't that good, but I can promise dinner twice a month."

The woman looked up at him as they walked to their bedroom. "Can I negotiate for dinner and a dance twice a month?" She asked him, leaning into his side as her arms wrapped around his torso.

"I don't know, seems a little high for somebody with your experience."

The woman gasped, one hand resting on his chest. "My experience? Excuse me, who landed in Kamar-Taj first?"

"Hmm, but I see you don't have experience as the Sorcerer Supreme."

"I have experience living with you, that should be enough."

"Oh, those are fighting words." He spoke, stopping right outside of their shared bedroom.

The woman's hands rested on either side of his waist, putting her back against the door. "Why make war when you can make love?"

Stephen took a step towards her, pressing his forehead against hers. "Well, when you delicately phrase it like that," He pressed a kiss to your lips before placing his hands over her hips. He lifted her up, her legs wrapping around his waist as her arms wrapped around his neck. He opened the door with one of his hands. Once inside the room, he spun both of them around. The Cloak of levitation that had been secured on his shoulders had detached itself, leaving the two of you. Once the Cloak had left, Stephen shut the door, putting her back against it.

The door was securely shut, and it was just the two of them in the Sanctum. Stephen's lips traveled from y/n's to her jawline, then her neck. Her nerves were set ablaze, feeling electricity consume her body. One of her hands laced a crown in his hair while peppering kisses to his forehead.  She had expertly kicked both of her shoes off to the sides, taking her sling ring off and dropping it on the floor. When Stephen heard the shoes hit the floor, he began walking back towards the bed, his fiancé moving her legs wrap being wrapped around his body as he sat down on the bed. Her legs bent around him before the two captured each other's lips in theirs.

The woman gently pushed him backward, his back now flush to the blanket and mattress. His hands rested on her hips while hers let go of his hair, pressing kisses to his neck and jaw, nibbling and biting along the way. He groaned under one of the bites, "I didn't realize it was feeding time." He mentioned.

She sat up, removing her tunic top with Stephen's help. As the tunic top and undershirt were removed, his fingertips traced down her sides, a slight tremble to them. "I think you're the hungry one here," she responded, watching as he sat back up again, capturing her frame in his arms.

"I can't wait for the day I get to call you my wife," he proclaimed. The ring was secure on her left ring finger. It was beautiful, the proposal itself nice and intimate. Much like this moment here.

"Eighty-two days away, big guy."

Stephen moved one of his hands to capture her left hand, his thumb running over the ring he gave her. He turned to press a kiss to her hand, then slowly moving his lips up her forearm, upper arm, and then to her neck. This brought a soft moan from her. Stephen laid back, pulling her with him before rolling over to be on top of her. She craned her neck up as he kissed at the sensitive flesh, nipping at her skin. She craved to be closer to him, wanting more skin-to-skin contact.

She felt a warmth between them, looking to see he made use of his magic, removing the rest of their clothes, then pushing his sling ring off the bed. She laughed before entertaining his thoughts again. Her arms wrapped around his back, her fingers running up and down his spine. He had one arm placed supporting himself, while the other reached down and gripped at her leg. Her knee bent up, the inside of her thigh pressed to the exterior of his. She loved how he could be gentle, but rough at the same time.

Stephen looked at her, their eyes meeting the other. They had a silent type of communication. They had nodded at each other at the same time before passionately kissing the other. Stephen had moved his hand from her thigh to his member, placing himself inside of her. Once inside, his hand moved back, gripping at the inside of her thigh. She bit her lower lip, holding onto him while he groaned again. Once he was all the way in, he kissed her again, setting a slow pace.

The two of them enjoyed slow times, quick times, and passionate times. With everything they had been through recently, it made sense that they were yearning for each other's touch, the passion for each other. Y/n had pulled an arm away from him, reaching up to her head. His hand caught hers, holding it above her head and lacing their fingers together.

Stephen moved his face to the side, giving her the chance to kiss his neck, latching her lips to one spot and sucking on it for a little bit, her tongue licking at the skin she had marked.

She surprised him, rolling him onto his back and straddling him. She had moved up and down, quickening the pace. His hands gripped at her hips as she bounced on him, both moaning and groaning at the friction between them. Stephen raised up, his arms wrapping around her as he kissed her chest and breasts. His mouth captured one of her nipples, placing soft kisses on them. Her arms snaked around his neck, holding him near to her as she bounced, his hips bucking up into her.

Their breathing was deep, almost in tune with the others. He rolled her back over to be on her back, rushing his pace again, he needed her. He needed Y/n at that moment, and you craved for him. "Ste-Stephen.." She breathed out, her hips rolling into his thrusts.

A sweet release was emptied inside her, Stephen riding through his high as he felt her walls begin to seize around him. Her release dribbled out of her after Stephen pulled himself out. The lovers held each other in their embraces, bringing their lips to each other's. Stephen's hands sneaked around her, grabbing the blanket and pulling it up onto them. His arms then wrapped around her again, their lips parting. Their chests fell and rose as they recovered, their breathing beginning to slow down.

The woman snuggled herself into Stephen's hold, capturing one of his hands and holding it between hers. "I think we should let America stay with us. You know, on weekends."

Stephen looked at her, wondering what she was planning now. "Do you think the mystic arts waits because it's the weekend?"

She shook her head before looking up at him. "No, but..."

"But, what?"

"She lost her mothers. She doesn't have any friends here in this multiverse except for Wong, you, and me. She needs our help, and I don't want her to feel alone." She told him. Maybe it was a silly idea, but the thought of having America hang out with them a couple of days out of the week would help her.

Stephen hummed before closing his eyes. "You might be onto something," he replied.

The woman smiled before closing her eyes, her forehead pressed into his chest. The thought of having America around made her feel happy. She wanted to help the young girl as she mastered her powers, but it would be nice to have her at their wedding too.

[alexis-royce]

The Events of the Year 1900-1901 1899-1899

I don't have time for another fic right now, so I have to sum up.

The Ex-Disgraced Academic has their appellation because they were booted from the University and High Society. This happens to pretty much everyone along the main Fallen London plotline. But it hit them harder, and they never quite got over it.

The Ex-Disgraced Academic is driven by curiosity. They're a very classic sort of Mad Scientist. The Neath is one big book, and they want to keep reading. If there's no next page, then they have to get out there and make it.

They want to see what happens.

Spoilers for Evolution, Heart's Desire below:

The Academic has spent this past year going back and forth between The Evolution plotline and wormgrinding, which for them was a lab carousel for Cartographer's Hoards. I've got plenty of jokes I'd like to make about that grind sometime, but the most important thing to know is that they have well and truly devalued an expensive item. This is the text you get when you get one:

And this is how many they had, partway through grinding:

I didn't even get a shot of the total number, because I sold a lot of them halfway through out of sheer boredom. I needed to see some other number go up for a change.

Doing massive amounts of research, smuggling it out of London, and disseminating it upriver was a fairly in-character thing for The Academic to do. Forbidden knowledge in the hands of the public has been their M.O., after all. And as they could make a tidy sum off the whole deal and incensify their rivmantic colleague, why not?

The Academic's destiny, by the way, is Gleam:

Not exactly shocking, considering that they're a Mr Cards, but that's the "accompanies The Masters when The Bazaar leaves, but never truly becomes one of them" destiny, not the "I am one of you now" ending. The Academic really loves London, for all its flaws, but was also supremely arrogant: they chose Power instead of Time at the end of Heart's Desire because they wanted to forge a path for London, rather than relying on the word of The Masters. And if they had access to lots and lots of secrets, then surely putting those into the hands of the public would mean that scientific advancement would flourish!

And, incidentally, The Academic would get to see what happens. That's just incidental, of course. They're doing this for kindly reasons, they would assure you (and themself), reasons that benefit London. They would never be so careless as to allow unchecked experimentation to run rampant through The Neath. They would never encourage scholars and NPCs to commit grievous acts of body horror upon themselves merely to sate an addiction to see what happens.

If you've played Evolution, you know what is about to happen.

Evolution has been an exercise in trying to play nice with many of the same people who cast them out of society. Evolution can be many things, but for The Academic, it's a tale of scientific openness, a tale of forgiveness and community and-

It's a tale of throwing one person after another under the boat in their quest for power and The Dilmun Club is one big piggy bank and the Naturalist is not a person, but the control group.

Because it didn't really matter what sort of perks knowing the Boatman or fulfilling The Masters' promise to the old one might be. Calling in favors with the person who decides who lives and dies or getting the thumbs claws-up from your peers is far, far inferior to that sweet, addictive rush of encouraging the person who has trusted you and worked with you, someone you quite like, to stumble at the final step of their ambition, to not take into account new information, to doggedly pursue their goals at all costs, causing their humanity to unravel before their very eyes.

It hurt a lot more the first time The Academic did it, anyway.

The Academic knew they were going to go The Hanged Man route before they even drew the card, knew that they were going to split the Naturalist off into something unrecognizable, and when they stepped back to the loom in Irem, they were positively drunk on this power. They gorged themself on the visions of the possible futures, shuffling and flipping over card after card after card, the proverbial child given access to a pack of cigarettes, laughing at the leniency of their parents, until they realize that they're trapped inside the gift, that it's turned on them, that this was a punishment all along, stifling and choking them, because it wasn't fun, it wasn't freedom, it was bad, it was always bad, and en masse, it is killing them.

They could have any destiny, any at all, but now that they'd seen them all, now that they'd read them all, they'd pilfered their future right out from under their hands. What were they supposed to read? What do you do when you can look at all the futures and you realize that they're all painful, or fearful, that you can't hold onto the lovely city you adore forever, that all things must die or change beyond recognition?

You go back to work. A little broken, a little shattered. You sail to the Khanate, do a little dirty work for Fires and Stones, and take the long way home because you can't bear to pass by Irem again. You dock back on familiar Netha Firma, breathe in the mushroomy air, and head for Veilgarden. Sometimes, the simplest pleasures can be overlooked. Sometimes you just want a minute with your fellow man.

But then The Dilmun club calls. They're throwing throwing a huge banquet! In your honor! Because you did it! You unlocked the secret to life everlasting, to the continuity of a singular life form, you understand how to weave causality and change the future and though not a single one understands a word you're saying, it all seems oh so very charmingly impressive, and everyone, everyone is clapping

and you're being invited to a private supper with Her Majesty herself and both colleges are so very proud of you and you're going to be in all the London papers, and think about how amazing it will be, to share this knowledge with the public at large, and wait what's that that's being handed to you-

what is this

what

Oh.

And you realize that you've already read this one. Not the map. Not the whole damned sheaf. These people. This city. You've read it. There is nothing more for this city to give you. And maybe that's why it's the Fifth one, maybe that's why these small little people with their small little minds don't appreciate good research, whether they're lauding you or leaving you, maybe the infinite possibilities of scientific research, the blossoming fruits of causality. Maybe you should, in fact, hoard it all for yourself. Maybe it isn't, in the end, ethical to be charitable. Maybe your destiny was right all along, save for the mindset. Maybe you are one of them. Maybe you should rob the city of every last story from every last crevice, keep it all for you to read, and tear up two more cities when you leave with the rest of your bat-kin.

Maybe those ingrates just plain don't deserve to see what happens.

[convexicalcrow]

Does Scar also have a possession kink? I read your 'Old Habits' and just... Im thinking they both are whores for it. lol

I mean... yes and no. They are both whores for it but for different reasons. They get different things out of it. Yes, because possession is the vehicle by which they become full Vexes and access their powers. Scar wouldn't be so possessive of his Vex head if he wasn't into it. But there's more to it than that.

To me, what makes me say Cub has a possession kink is that for him, it's all about the lack of power, the giving up of control to a higher being or authority. It's about willingly giving your body to Something Else to use as It sees fit. (Or unwillingly, as was the case with the skulk.) It's like being in a 24/7 total power exchange/TPE relationship, to borrow some BDSM language. Cub's not in charge, because he doesn't want to be; he just does what he's told, and he's fine with that.

And ofc Scar does have that to a certain extent, because he does place the Vex as a higher authority. He still has his Vex head that he's so possessive about, he has the giant Vex head in Scarland, the Evoker in Main Street, he won't kill Vexes beause he's Not Allowed To, it's there. He's willing to serve and embrace the Vex and give them a presence in Scarland.

But to me, this isn't about Scar giving himself over to the Vex in the way Cub does. To me, this is a show of power. It's signposting what he is, what power he has access to, who he is. Scar is a Vex, and you can't go to Scarland without being able to see that. It's a threat, and a reminder, that the ConVex never went away. ConCorp didn't die at the end of s6 with Scar on his diamond throne. That lore never ended. It wasn't like wizard Scar or tycoon Scar or Elf Scar or any of the other various characters Scar has played over the years. They come and go, but Vex Scar is forever.

Contrast that with how Cub leans into it, but he isn't building Vex shrines in his base, he's not having Evokers everywhere, it's not something he shows off, because that's not who Cub is. With Cub, you don't know what's hit you until it's too late. You never see it coming. Things seem normal... until they really aren't, and you can't remember how we got here, but that's what's happened.

Like, when the crossover happened, Cub hid one (1) skulk catalyst under the sheep/cow/animal farm at the Hermit base on the first day for shits and giggles, and that seemed fine. Talked about building a cake empire. Sure, why not? Built a house out of blocks from every empire, which was a nice touch. Becomes a monster slayer bc why not and also cool giant battle axe. And then all of a sudden, ya boi decides to go into a swamp and get his ass possessed, and starts pranking hard for a couple of weeks before finally getting cured and escaping back through the rift. Like. LIKE. IT WAS LIKE FIVE WEEKS. ALL OF THAT HAPPENED IN LIKE FIVE WEEKS. There's no way we could have predicted ANY OF THAT given where we started. Especially given it was his idea. Just go to another server and get posssessed for Lore Reasons nbd. Lore that Shubble also took on as well later on in her series when she got skulk possessed while Supreme was around. Lore that Cub still leans into even now, which makes me see him as serving both the Vex and skulk, since he hasn't just left the skulk lore behind either. It's left residue that he isn't interested in dropping.

(as an aside, I find it SO INTERESTING that of all the character lore Cub has, there's nothing for the old man -> young Cub transition. He just entirely changed his default skin bc he wanted to at the start of s8 and left it at that. Which is fine! You do you, Cub. But you better believe I'm gonna fill that lore gap if he won't. XD)

Meanwhile, Scar was hanging out at Tumble Town, and having a lovely time of it which included building trains and Western-style buildings and ponderosa pine trees and not getting possessed by swamp skulk. SEE. IT'S NOT HARD CUB I PROMISE.

So yes, Scar has a possession kink, but it's nothing like Cub's. For Cub, he serves the Vex (and the skulk); for Scar, the Vex serve him.

[foodsies4me]

Another for later: Magnus and the trainees headcannons (aka I used to hate shadow hunters now I have a whole clan of them)

I have SO MANY Magnus and the trainees headcanons and if I manage to work in even half of these in the second part of AWG then I'll be happy. (Obligatory sorry for the rambling cuz it's going to be LONG😅)

Magnus is the first to find out Max has saved Alec's number under "Dad" on his phone and he's quick to promise him he won't tell Alec, but that he thinks Max should tell him.

Following up on that, Magnus promises to Max that if Alec ever moves in with him, there will also be a bedroom for Max to stay at because he won't take his big brother/dad away from him.

There will naturally also be a bedroom for Madzie

And some handy portal magic to make sure the trainees can also stay/barge in whenever they need some Alec hugs want to drop by.

When the Institute aka Alec makes a formal request to remodel the sleeping area so all the shadowhunters and trainees can have their own bedroom (thank you space manipulation magic), Magnus spends an entire week looking at bedrooms with all of the trainees to give each of them the bedroom of their dreams.

Arjun's bedroom wall has a moving dragon and Arjun refuses to leave his room for a whole two days when he sees that.

Magnus struggles to gain Ariadne and Hideaki's trust the most because of how shy they are. And then he finds out both love to draw/paint. Asking them if they will teach him is what makes them open up to him and it ends in a weekly drawing hour that Magnus enjoys far more than he expected - even if he has no natural talent at all.

On the flip side, Sarah finds out that Magnus knows how to dance and knows a lot of different types of dance and ropes him into teaching her. Colton, Linette, Aloysius, and Doris are quick to join in when they find out as well.

After Magnus changes his hair color for the fourth time Rara asks him if he can do the same with her hair and if he can make it sparkly, which is how Rara ends up with permanently sparkly hair.

This quickly leads to most of the trainees sporting rainbow-colored hair for a number of weeks.

Magnus finds out Barika is trans about three months into dating Alec.

The third time Magnus attends a training session with the trainees, Alec takes them on a parkour trail over the New York skyline and Magnus is reminded that all Nephilim are well and truly insane.

When he finds out that Keith likes to try new foods/snacks etc. Magnus picks up the habit of buying local snacks whenever he goes to some place Keith hasn't been to yet.

Magnus gets into the habit of bringing easy books on magical theory whenever he's hanging out with the Fearsome Foursome because they always want to learn more.

Steph is the first to successfully pull off a prank on Magnus, which earns her bragging rights for a whole week.

Of course, Max has to prank him even harder to regain his title of Menace Supreme the week after that.

When Magnus decides to prank them back it turns into a full-out prankwar that almost rivals the Mumbai Incident.

Max still somehow ends up winning and Magnus ends up ranting to Ragnor, Catarina, and Raphael after a glass too many because HOW DID HE LOSE TO A NINE-YEAR-OLD???

(Alec wins the betting pool because he's the only one to know all of the details of the Mumbai Incident.)

(He doesn't tell Magnus he won however, that would have meant admitting he bet on his little brother.)

(He does reveal to Magnus that Max is strictly forbidden from ever setting foot in the Mumbai Institute ever again, so he doesn't feel too bad for losing.)

I definitely have more, but these are already some headcanons that I adore. Thank you for asking! Rambling about the trainees always brings me joy and I'm delighted other people love them as well.💜

[strrvnge]

Reflections || Prologue

Pairing : Stephen Strange x Reader

Summery : after the blip Stephen has to face one more enemy; his feelings for you

Warnings : idiots in love, Stephen being in denial about his feelings, blip trauma, fluff that will potentially turn into angst (you know me)

So this is the prologue of this idea based on this ask that instead of a one-shot I decided to make into a series. This part is written from Stephen's point of view.

Stephen Strange had been many things in his life. An excellent example of a student according to his professors, one of the most well acclaimed neurosurgeons the world has ever known,a cocky asshole according to his coworkers, a womanizer according to all of his ex (heartless dick was the term used more often)But what he did not expect to be was a hero.

Stephen Strange was a universal hero, saving not only half of earth's but the universe's population. Now little children drew pictures of him, dressed up like him for halloween, people asked for photos and autographs they even made pages dedicated to him on social media. He was known, loved, admired, recognised by millions and if you excluded the blip his life was a dream. For a man like him who sought perfection in each ascept, in every little detail of his life, it all was a dream, his world was some short of utopia.

And then you came into the picture. You, you, lovely you who just had to turn his world upside down.

Don't get him wrong, he didn't hate you. How could he (that didn't mean he hadn't tried in the past). But how you made him feel was just enough to destroy everything. Well who is he kidding?

The truth was that he hated it. Everything that revolved or had anything to do with you he simply hated it. How his stomach twisted every time he smelled your perfume, that painful feeling of anticipation when he was to see you, how his palms get sweaty when you were around,how he smiled with the mere thought of you, how his heart beated uncontrollable when he talked with you at the point of paining him so much he just wanted to rip it out of his chest.

No, he hated it with all his heart. Utterly and completely. Perfection was about control and the way those feelings struck him was everything against it. There was no control in falling in love, how the heart suddenly got a mind of its own, how it defied logic, how it made him act like a seven year old stuttering and tripping over his words

(but it made you laugh. Humiliating but perhaps worth it)

To his eyes Stephen was nothing great but escpecially when it came to the matters of his heart he was also a coward.

"Good morning" he snapped himself out of his thoughts entering the kitchen where you had already woken up early and made tea.

"Oh hi" you beamed him a smile and he violently bit down his tongue to hold himself from smiling back. "Want some tea?" Stephen hummed, unable to talk, eyeing you quietly up and down however your every careful and precise move as you made him his tea (as always choosing his favorite cup, adding the perfect amount of honey just like he liked it).

You had known him many years (not so many without the blip but still), living with him in the Sanctum his apprentice he liked to call you thought you were practicing the mystic arts a long time before he did. You weren't friends, he wouldn't use that word. You were patient and understanding with him at the first period of his studies but after becoming Sorcerer Supreme for some reasons you still kept your distance.

Only for everything to chance with the blip. After coming back everything was different alongside you too, no matter how much you both tried to cling onto who you used to be. Things had changed because of the desperate need to connect with something somewhat stable he could perhaps call you now a friend.

"Did you sleep well?" He asked

"Yeah, you?"

He knew you were lying. There was a very specific type of uncomfortness clouded over the futures of your face each time you lied, an easy to spot uneasiness he had come to easily recognise after times of observing your beautiful face. He couldn't really blame you though. After five years being blipped he too avoided closing his eyes, afraid he'd be dragged back into that cold darkness.

"Yes" he said, his hands reaching for the cup you held to him, your hands accidentally brushing against each other for a mere moment enough however to memorize that softness of your touch.

"Thank you Y/N" finally he said and only now you met his gaze.

He could say your name a million times, repeat it for an eternity and never get bored of its godly sound.

Every morning it was the same dream, the same nightmare. You in the kitchen making his tea so beautiful, so lovely,warm, so oblivious of the caos you caused inside of him, so close to him you were almost his. Until he said your name and brought himself back to reality. And just like that you felt cold, distant , putting him so far from you in the most cruel way keeping him away. You stood so close to him yet you weren't his, perhaps you'd never be.

His heart once again beated faster than he could catch on while his thoughts tripped over one another, all the things he wanted to tell you, all the things he couldn't say becoming a mess as he starred into your eyes. Before finally saying in a surprisingly calm and steady voice "You know you can wake me up and you can't sleep right?"

"Am I interrupting something?" Suddenly Wong walked in, uncomfortably standing in the middle of the kitchen looking at you two as with his entress you immediately broke eye contact, one of you staring at the floor while the other at the ceiling.

"No. I was just gonna check those books you asked me to" you quickly said, leaving your cup on the counter before hastily walking away from them.

Wong observed as Stephen's eyes drafted on your back followed your figure till you completely got out of the room, like a sad puppy staring at its owner leaving them at home and leaving. He fakely coughed trying to get his friends attention back to him.

"What?"

"You're such an idiot"