#this was inspired by talk about it(ms paint school thing) i think it was a little ago i’ll try to find it

[carapacian-swag]

Something Familiar

[mvltixcc]

Girls Like Girls - Robin Buckley X Cheerleader!Reader

Summary: Robin has a crush on the new girl in town. Y/N is also a new member of the cheer squad, which means Robin sees her all the time at games and other school events. Unfortunately, Robin is put in a tough situation. She's scared to talk to her because the cheerleaders have a reputation of being mean girls and she fears that Y/N may not feel the same. Little does Robin know that Y/N does not appear as she seems. Y/N becomes best friends with Eddie, which seems unlikely at the surface due to different social circles. This leads to rumors of course and word spreads like wildfire here at Hawkins, which then makes Robin's feelings even more confusing. After hanging out with Steve and the gang, Robin starts to see a different side to Y/N. Will they end up together or will they just remain friends?

Word Count: 4.4k

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Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Things had been a little peaceful at school since the night of prom. Chrissy and everyone else involved in the paint prank got suspended for some time. Eddie was the happiest about this as the ones that were suspended picked on him more than anyone. When they were finally able to come back, they had to issue an apology to you and Robin, anyone that was hit with the paint, and the janitors as well. Their parents also had to pay for the banners to be replaced as some were splattered with paint. Everyone dreaded the day they were coming back to school. No one knew how things were going to be once they came back. Would things go back to the way things were? Would things change for the better? No one knows and that thought alone scared a lot of people. 

You knew that people could be cruel just for the fun of it or because they could be. But for Chrissy, you knew it was deep rooted. You never excused her behavior because she still treated people horribly and you always stuck up for those she picked on. Chrissy picked on people because she wanted others to feel just as miserable as she was at home. You knew of this secret, but never told a soul. While you were on the cheer squad, everyone thought you were like her and the other girls that followed in her footsteps. But the difference between the two of you, is that you would have never stooped to the level that Chrissy did by using a secret against her. While she should be punished for her awful behavior to others, it wouldn’t be by your hands. Her karma would come and that day came sooner rather than later.

A few weeks had passed before the big day that no one looked forward to. You and Robin had walked into school and were immediately met by Principal Higgins. 

“Good morning to you both, I need you to follow me into my office please.” He said sternly. You and Robin followed hesitantly. 

“Here we are.” Higgins said as he held open his office door. “Please take a seat.” You entered and saw Chrissy sitting there. You sat down and Robin followed.

“I think you both know why I’ve called you in here.” He stated looking at the three of you sitting before him. You all nod in response. “The floor is yours Ms. Cunningham.”

Chrissy let out a sigh. “I’m sorry for potentially harming you and trying to ruin your prom night by dumping a bucket of paint on you Carrie style. It was immature of me to do and it will never happen again.”

“Now that wasn’t so hard was it?” Higgins asked.

“Is that all you needed us for?” You asked. You didn’t want to hear anything from Chrissy and Robin sure as hell didn’t care either.

“Uh yes, that’s all.” He said taken a back.

“Okay then, well we better get to class. Our exams are coming up and I don’t wanna miss anything.” You say standing up. Robin followed after you as well as Chrissy. “Hey, I’ll meet you there.” You told Robin, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

“What are you-” Robin began to ask but then soon caught on as she saw Crissy at her locker. “I’ll see you in class, just be careful.” Robin gave your hand a gentle squeeze. You nodded and parted ways.

“Cunningham, wait up.” You said making your way over to the girl.

“What do you need?” She asked softly.

“I need you to do me a favor.” You stated. She nodded for you to continue. “Chrissy, I know you have shit going on in your life, but it’s no excuse to treat people the way that you do. Maybe this will teach you to be kinder to people. Now, I want you and your friends to also apologize to Eddie for they way you’ve treated him and leave him alone for good.”

“Yeah I can do that. I’m sorry once again.” She said with sincerity in her voice.

“Oh and one last thing.” You said, moving closer so that only she could hear you. “Stay the hell away from my girlfriend or else we’re gonna have some serious problems.” She nods to you and you make your way to class.

“Everything okay?” Robin asked as you walked into class. 

“It should be now.” You say giving her a small smile.

“What does that even mean?” She asked with concern. 

“Good morning class! Today we will be doing more study packs to prepare you for your final exam! This time you can pair up in a group, just make sure you are actually studying this time!! The final exams are a big portion of your grades!” The teacher stated. 

“Yeah Eds!” You joked to him. 

“Hey!” He laughed. 

You, Robin, and Eddie grouped up and started to work on the packet for the rest of class.

“Hold on, why the hell does Greg have so many damn apples?” Eddie asked jokingly. 

“Really Munson, THAT'S what you’re worried about?! Not even finding the root of X to find out how many apples he ate?” Robin laughed.

“Oh I‘m sorry, are you telling me that if someone had THIS many apples you wouldn’t question it?!” He replied.

“No you goof, maybe they really like apples. Did you ever think about that hmm?” Robin teased back. The two of them continued to banter back and forth the rest of the period.

“So are we still on for Hellfire tonight?” Dustin asked Eddie. 

“Of cour-” Eddie started to say.

“No!” You interrupted. “You have to study Edward!” 

Eddie let out a large groan. “Can’t I just wing the test like I do every year?” 

“Look how far that got you dude.” Jeff said.

“Ugh fine, I’ll study.” Eddie sighed. 

“Perfect! It’ll be you, Nancy, Robin, and myself. We’ll meet at my place after school. Just make sure you bring your books this time. Oh, and snacks too!” You say. 

“Yeah yeah yeah, I’ll bring the snacks. Don’t I always?” Eddie joked. The rest of you continued to eat your lunch until the bell rang. 

Normally you would have gym right now, but since it was still a mess from the paint they granted everyone a free period. You went to the quiet little spot that Eddie showed you when the two of you became friends. It was in the woods just outside of the school grounds and it had a little picnic table. How it got there you still aren't sure. You knew Eddie used it for his deals, but you used it to be by yourself and clear your head. Before you made your way there, you stopped by your car to grab your Walkman and your headphones. You laid on the seat just listening to your music and staring up at the trees, just thinking and enjoying the nature around you. Those thoughts were soon interrupted by a thud. 

“There you are, peach!” Eddie exclaimed as he stood above you. 

You turned off your music and began to sit up. “Here I am!” You giggled. 

“What are you doing out here all by yourself?” He questioned as he sat next to you.

You moved closer to him and set your head on his shoulder. “Just thinking.”

“Thinking about?” He asked.

“Life and how crazy it’s been.” You chuckled.

You both sat together like this until your watch alarm went off. “Well we better go, don’t wanna be late for class.” You stated standing up from your seat.

“Yeah I guess you're right.” Eddie said following you back to the school.

 For the next month, You, Robin, Nancy, and yes even Eddie studied your asses off everyday after school until it was time to take the final exams. 

“Y/N, what if I fail again?” Eddie would often ask you. To say he was nervous about taking the exams would be an understatement. 

“You won’t fail them Eds, you can do this! I know that all of this is really scary, but you’ve been doing well with the practice tests that Nancy printed up for us. I believe in you.” You always tried to reassure him. Despite what people thought of Eddie, he was actually really smart when he set his mind to it.

“I’m just scared I’ll fail again.” He said with a frown.

“Eddie, I’ll be here to support you no matter what. I’m always here for you.” You said giving him a smile to cheer him up.

Once it was finally test week, you all decided that once all the exams were done and you had gotten your grades back, you’d have a big get together of some kind. You would still have your usual traditions with Robin which helped the both of you relax during this time as well. The four of you were confident you would pass, well Eddie not as much, but he was still confident nonetheless. 

“How do you feel, Eddie?” Nancy asked as Eddie approached your group. You all had just finished the last exam.

“Relieved to be done with it.” Eddie said as he let out a sigh.

You were sitting on the hood of your car with your arms wrapped around Robin. “Well what do we do now?” You asked.

“I guess we just relax and wait to get our grades.” Nancy shrugged her shoulders. 

You wouldn’t find out about your grades until next Friday when they sent the results in the mail. Just another week, that wouldn’t kill you right? Well maybe not you, but for Eddie it would eat him alive. All he wanted to do was walk across the stage with his best friends and make those he cared for proud of him. He wanted to feel accomplished, he wanted to show those that doubted him that he COULD do it. 

“Well why don't we meet up on Friday and we can look at our grades together?” You asked. Everyone nodded and agreed to the plan. 

“Well on that note, I’m off to take my girlfriend to lunch! I’ll see you guys on Friday!” You stated hopping off the hood and jumping in the car with Robin. 

“Where are we going for lunch?” Robin asked as you drove.

“Mm I was thinking maybe I could pick up a pizza and we could just hang at my place, how does that sound?” You asked, grabbing her hand gently. 

“That sounds perfect to me.” She said, squeezing your hand and flashing you a smile.

“I do have to make a quick stop before I grab the food though.” You had pulled into the parking lot of the video store. 

“What are we doing here?” Robin questioned.

“You’ll see, stay here beautiful I’ll be right back.” You say giving her a quick kiss. Robin sat and waited in the car upon your return. 

You arrived after a few minutes with a brown bag in your hand. “Alright, you ready to eat?” You asked starting the car again. Robin, still confused as ever, just stared at the item in your lap. You noticed her looking puzzled at your lap and handed her the bag. "Take a look. It’s a gift for Steve.” 

Robin looked in the bag and let out a snort. “Oh he’s gonna hate you for this.”

It was finally the next Friday and you were on the way to the Wheeler’s residence with Robin to open the letters that held your grades. You pulled in the driveway to see Eddie had already arrived. You parked the car and the pair of you made your way to the door. Nancy was already standing there waiting for you both. “Come on, let’s go!” She exclaimed.

“Well someones impatient.” Robin remarked. 

“You haven’t seen Eddie for the past 10 minutes, he’s been pacing back and forth waiting. He’s kind of a mess right now!” Nancy continued as she led the two of you to the basement where Eddie was in fact pacing.

“Oh thank god, let’s get this over with!” Eddie said.

You all stood in a small circle and opened your letters at the same time. It was silent for what felt like forever, even though it was probably just a few seconds. 

“Yes!” Nancy cheered, she had obviously passed.

“Oh thank god!” Robin sighed in relief. She had passed as well.

You had also passed the exams. Now all that was left was Eddie’s results. He just stood there with a blank expression on his face which worried you. “Eds, what is it?” You asked him.

“I- I um.” He spoke softly.

“Well did you pass or what?” Nancy asked. 

“I passed.” Eddie said in disbelief. 

Nancy and Robin looked at him with wide eyes while you pulled him in for a hug. “I knew you could do it, Eds, I’m so beyond proud of you!” You hugged him so tight. 

He hugged you back. You could hear him sniffle and shake a bit. All he ever wanted was to make someone proud of him and feel like he did something good. And the fact that it was coming from his best friend made him feel special. You both pulled away from one another and you wiped away his tears.

“Congrats Munson!” Robin praised, giving him a high five.

“I guess this calls for a celebration!” Nancy exclaimed. 

There was a big party planned at Steve’s house later that night. After all the hard months that you all had put into studying, you all deserved this. Music was going, people were laughing, the energy was good. Everything was perfect. “Oh I almost forgot something, I’ll be right back.” You announced. You made your way to your car and grabbed the gift you had gotten Steve last week. You made your way back to the party and everyone looked at you with a puzzled expression. 

“What the hell is that?” Sam asked.

“It’s for Steve, go ahead and open it!” You say handing him the bag.

“Aww you shouldn’t have, that’s so sweet of-” He smiled as he opened his gift, that smile soon faded. “Alright, I take it back. Screw you Y/N!” He joked.

“What is it?!” Everyone asked with anticipation.

Steve pulled it out of the bag to show everyone, Eddie let out a snort and his drink shot out of his nose. It was a copy of Carrie on VHS. 

“Now why the hell would you get me this Y/N?!” Steve asked jokingly of course.

“What? You said you had never seen it before!” You laughed. Eddie couldn’t stop laughing, he found it truly hilarious. 

While everyone was inside, you pulled Robin outside to have a moment alone with her. You sat at the edge of the pool, the very same spot that you two had confessed your feelings for one another. “Hey pretty lady.” You say, giving her a small kiss on her nose. 

“Hi there, beautiful.” She giggled. “You having a good time tonight?” She asked.

“I’m having an even better time now that I get to sit here with you.” You laid your head on her shoulder. You both had your feet in the pool and just sat and talked.

Robin started to go on about a movie that she had seen the other day and you couldn’t help but just stare at her and smile. She looked beautiful with the moonlight beaming on her. You were thinking about her cute freckles and how you could kiss them for hours on end, how her eyes sparkled when she was talking about the things she was passionate about, and how when she wears her hair up like she was tonight, there was always hair in front of her face and you’d have to move it out of the way for her. She was just perfect to you and was everything you had ever dreamed of. 

She noticed you staring at her and stopped talking about the movie. “What? Oh god, is there something on my face?” She asked frantically, wiping her face. 

You moved her hands out of her face and just held them in yours. “No no, there’s nothing on your face my love.” You giggled. “I just- I just love you so so much. More than anything in this world. You’re my everything Robin.” 

“I love you too, so damn much.” She smiled and kissed your forehead. You both sat there in silence, just enjoying each other’s company in the cool night.

“And with that, congratulations class of ‘86!” Principal Higgins announced. You and the rest of your classmates threw your caps in the air in celebration. The auditorium was roaring with cheers and clapping from all the loved ones that had attended. Everyone had piled out into the parking lot and soon you met with your grandparents.

“We’re so proud of you darling!” Said your nana as she gave you a hug and a kiss, your papa following soon after. You thanked them and looked around for your friends and Robin.

 “And there he is!” Your nana exclaimed as Eddie and his uncle Wayne approached you. She pulled him in for a big hug. Your grandparents loved Eddie as if he was a part of your family. 

“We’re so proud of you Eddie!” Eddie could barely talk, he was fighting back tears all day. He just nodded in response, they knew what a big day this was for not just you, but for Eddie as well. Wayne had the biggest smile on his face all day. He loved and adored Eddie as if he were his son. He couldn’t be more proud of him. 

Before you and Eddie met up with the rest of your friends to celebrate your achievements, you pulled him aside to have a moment with him. 

“Eddie, I’m so beyond proud of you and how far you’ve come. You deserve great things in life, truly you do and I hope you know that. I’m so incredibly grateful to have met you and to have you as not only my best friend, but as someone that I consider family. You mean so much to me, I love you so much Eds.” You say to him. 

He couldn’t hold his tears back anymore. He began to sob and you pulled him in for a hug. You don’t know where you’d be without Eddie. Yes, Robin was your girlfriend, but Eddie was your person. Just like Steve was to Robin. 

“Okay, I think I'm good now.” Eddie said, pulling away from the hug. You handed him a tissue to wipe his eyes and blow his nose.. He didn’t want people to see him be vulnerable, that was a private moment for him and only a few people got to see him like this. You were one of them. Eddie trusted you more than anyone and he knew that you would never judge him or pick on him for the way that he was. He gained his composure and you both made your way to the rest of your friends to continue the celebration.

You and Robin sat in your usual spot in the field at the park having a picnic. It was her turn to pack the lunch and whenever it was her turn, she ALWAYS made sure to pack your favorites. You both had finished eating and were currently laying your head on Robin’s stomach while painting her nails. You giggled to yourself as you saw the tanlines where her rings were. 

“Can I tell you something?” She asked.

“Of course you can my love!” You say looking up at her. 

“I uh, this is gonna sound so stupid. Promise me you won't laugh at me okay?” She said with nervousness.

“I would never laugh at you baby.” You reassured her.

“Well before all of this-” She said, waving her hands around, indicating that she meant everything before you. “I used to think- oh god, I used to think that you were mean and scary.” 

You sat up from your spot and looked at her. “Me?”

She looked down, like she was embarrassed. “Yeah…”

“Now why would you think that you goose?” You chuckled.

“You said you wouldn’t laugh!” She chuckled a bit.

“I’m not laughing at you, I promise! You’re just silly is all! Was it because I was a cheerleader?” You asked.

Robin nodded.

“Well am I still mean and scary now?” You ask as you tickle her. You both fell over and you continued to tickle her. 

“I surrender! I surrender!” She laughed. You both chuckled together for a bit before just laying there. You moved a piece of hair out of her face and pulled her in for a kiss. Robin smiled into the kiss, she was truly happy. The kiss lasted for a bit longer until Robin pulled away. “I have something for you.” She said softly to you. She sat up and pulled a gift she had packed out of the basket. 

“For me?” You ask sitting up. She handed you the gift and you kindly took it from her. You opened it and gasped at what was revealed. “No way!! You didn’t!” You exclaimed quickly unwrapping the rest of the present. Robin giggled. She had gotten you the entire Lord of the Rings book collection, including The Hobbit. 

“This is perfect, thank you my sweet angel!” You thanked and gave her another kiss. 

“You’re very welcome, I wanted to get you something special for graduation. I know you’ve been wanting to read all the books and now you don’t have to borrow Eddie’s beat up copies anymore.” She chuckled. It was true, Eddie’s copies had been through the ringer, he’s read them so much.

“I may have also gotten you a gift.” You say turning to your bag and grabbing a box with a bow on it. 

“What is it?” She asked with a confused look on her face.

“Well open it and find out silly!” You chuckled.

She opened the box and her face lit up. “You remembered!” She said with awe. 

“Of course I did, I was there when it broke, remember silly?” You had gotten her a new chain since her last one broke while at a cookout at Eddie’s. 

“Thank you baby, I love it!” She thanked.

“Here let me help.” You had her turn around so you could help her put it on. “There, it’s perfect.” You say as she turns back to face you. You both stayed there for a while before it was time to meet everyone at the new ice cream shop. 

“What took you guys so long?” Sam asked as she pulled you in for a hug. 

“Yeah?! What were you two doing hmm?” Eddie teased. 

“Okay calm down, we were at the park!” Robin laughed.

You all stood in line and waited to order your ice cream. There was a good amount of people there already waiting or eating their frozen treat. “Is this place even any good?” You asked. 

“Yes!” The younger ones exclaimed in unison.

“How do you know? I thought this place was brand new?” You questioned.

“It was actually a shop in the mall before it had burned down.” Steve stated. You nodded your head to show you understood. “You know-”

“Oh hey would you look at that, we’re up next!” Robin interrupted. You looked at her with suspicion. 

Once everyone had their ice cream, you found a table and sat down. “Hey guys-” Dustin started as he motioned toward Steve and Robin. “Do you remember when you used to work at Scoops Ahoy?” 

You almost spit out your ice cream. “I’m sorry, what?!” You exclaimed.

“That’s what I was trying to say earlier before SOMEBODY interrupted me!” Steve stated looking to Robin. 

“Is this true?” You asked, turning to your girlfriend, who had embarrassment written all over her face. 

“Oh yeah! They had to wear uniforms and everything, the same as the ones they’re wearing I’m pretty sure!” Lucas said as he pointed to the workers behind the counter.

“Oh please tell me you still have that uniform!” You gasp and say to Robin.

“I may or may not still have it…” She said softly to you. “But what I DO have are photos of King Steve in his uniform!” Robin chuckled.

“Oh now that I absolutely HAVE to see!” Eddie proclaimed. 

The entire group started laughing. You all were joking around with each other and having a good time. You lay into Robin as you all watch the sunset. You couldn’t help but start to think about the year you’ve had. Moving to Hawkins, meeting Eddie and the rest of the Hellfire gang, all the drama with Chrissy, and most importantly, meeting and falling in love with Robin. You began to get emotional just thinking about everything. 

“Hey, you okay? What’s the matter love bug?” Robin asked as she noticed you getting teary eyed. She pulled you closer to her to comfort you.

You sniffled and shook your head. “Nothing’s wrong, everything is just- perfect. You’re perfect.” You say interlocking your fingers with hers. You never wanted this moment to end. There you were with the people you cared about more than anything. Life felt amazing, despite the ups and downs you faced this year. You wouldn’t have changed a thing.

“I love you so much.” Robin said, giving you a gentle kiss on your forehead. 

You looked up at her and smiled. “I love you too.”

The End ♡

[plushii-gutz]

Forever fall

A short story based around my OCs; Perry and Buck. I mentioned a while ago that I wanted to write how they met and give my readers a general idea of their relationship, and with Spooktacle coming up, I saw it a fitting time! Hope it isn't too boring - it's mostly just for me, lmao

The ship grew closer and closer to its destination. The sun had begun to settle into the ocean, the cool waves tucking it into sleep as if it were a cozy blanket. The sweet scents of fall spilled over the traveling monsters as they finally arrived, moving from the floating boat to soft grass covered in crunchy leaves. Music echoed through the land, monsterlings wandering through the streets and celebrating the holiday.

Among the arrivals was a group of fire monsters, each chattering on about their plans during their vacation. They considered themselves too old to trick-or-treat, now in their later years of high school, and their minds were set firmly on the park - exactly where the grand Spooktacle party will be held in a few hours. It was tradition, set every year, and for every age and monster. Many say you haven't had a good Spooktacle until you've participated in at least one of these wild celebrations. For the friends, this is their first. Their parents agreed to let the younger ones lead their own night, and they would lead theirs.

They come from Amber Island, where travel is minimal. There wasn't much to offer on that part of the world, whether it was due to its small size or low population. Most fire monsters moved to Fire Oasis or Haven as they progressed further with the technology humans had brought to them all that time ago, but the island was still home for many. Now, with easier transportation, the fire monsters get to celebrate like there's no tomorrow!

"We should stop by the old castle at some point," one recommended. "That place is totally haunted!"

"Didn't that one woolabee die in there?" Another questioned.

"Rachel, they came into school the next week. Are you stupid?"

The newly named Rachel shook her glowing feathers, remembering the classroom the following morning. It was all anyone would talk about, and there were no doubts that the woolabee had been exaggerating their story. Right. They didn't die.

"Don't be mean to 'em Dawn," another voice rose up. "It was years ago. Besides, ain't you the one who almost cost us the whole trip tryn'a give yourself a piercing?"

Dawn, the Thrumble, crossed xeir arms. Her parents were stubborn, and if xey weren't allowed to go out and do something, it wasn't new for her to try and do a little D.I.Y-ing.

"Ok, Ms. never-does-wrong, lead the way."

"Happily," she snapped back. They flooded out into the island, making sure their costumes looked their best. Sadly, none could decide on a certain theme for the whole group, and they each went as their own thing.

Rachel went as a Fire Haven critter, her wings decorated to echo the creatures look and a simple headband with ears. Dawn went as an ice cream, inspired by Jam-boree's delectable looks and a waffle cone hat xey had made years prior. The last monster, a Barrb, dressed herself as a scarecrow. She decorated her neck foliage with straw and fall leaves, matching fall cuffs around her wrists, painted fake patches on her cheeks, and a straw hat. It was a simple but effective idea. In her opinion, at least.

They agreed to head to the park first and get a taste of the upcoming party. They still had around an hour or two until it properly began. Upbeat music, trees covered in lights, chattering monsters galore - it was like walking into a movie! It was a tad bit hard to think there could be more, but according to the many advertisements, Punkleton himself were to make an appearance with DJ Epic.

The group stuck around a table with a plentiful arrangement of snacks and drinks, unsure of how to squeeze their way into the crowd. It was overwhelming, completely different than what they had on their home island. There, everyone sort of knew everyone, and no one was left out due to the smaller population. There was just too much here.

"Well, it won't get any better til one of us goes in an' meets someone!"

"Perry, these monsters will tear us to bits!"

"Not if I tear 'em to bits first. If we're gonna be here a few days, we ought to make a few memorable faces."

Rachel and Dawn didn't have much to say in response, instead hoping Pereskia's meeting of new monsters would make the stay less awkward. She introduced herself to a few Plant Island residents, who seemed rather open to her and her friends' visitation.

Casual conversation carried on for an admittedly long time, only growing quiet as the two long-awaited faces take the stage. They began the show by greeting each island individually, having the monsters cheer as they were called. For once, the Amber Island monsters felt acknowledged. Dj Epic started the music back up, adding her own spin on it - pun intended. The crowd became rowdy, the ground below them felt as if it were shaking. The hidden power of music and singing coursed through every monster as they threw their hands up in a wave.

Pereskia stumbled back at the raising of hands, taking a sudden hit to the face. Her face paint smudged, her staw hat falling onto the ground and being trampled before she was able to get it back in her grasp. Pereskia looked around for the monster, only recognizing them by the paint smeared on their hand. It seemed to be a Flowah, who ignored any of her attempts to get their attention. Finally, she grabbed the collar of their shirt and dragged them aside.

"What do you want, woman?" The voice growled. His expression changed a bit quickly at the fierce look in Pereskia's eyes.

He was dressed as a stereotypical cowboy, even having fake plastic guns on a giant belt. He seemed like any other flowah, apart from two tusks poking from his bottom lips.

"Excuse me?" Perry hissed back, crossing her arms. "That is no way to speak to a lady, and especially one you've given a damn bruise to!"

"I- excuse me?"

"You ain't excused. What's ya name?"

"Uh- Buck," he answered hesitantly.

"Buck. You owe me something!"

"Owe - owe ya what?"

"Another hat."

She dropped her ruined costume piece onto the ground, which now was stained with mushed candies and dirt. The other monsters eyes flickered between the hat and the barrb before him.

"And until you do," she snatched the stetson from his head, putting it on her own, "I'm keepin' this."

He was a bit taken back, losing the tough act for a moment before nodding, visibly pissed off. He admired the bravery, at least. Pereskia left the scene, returning to her group of friends in a much more sour mood.

"Perry!" Rachel greeted, relieved to see her ok. "Where did you run off to? What's with the hat?"

"Took it from some jerk after he messed up mine. Not givin' it back til I get my own hat. Eye for an eye rule."

"That's petty, I love it!" Dawn chipped in, pushing the glowl aside. "You think you'll run into him again?"

"Nope. This is mine now, I suppose."

They went back to enjoying the party, eating mass amounts of candy, and encouraging Dawn to enter the costume contest. Xey ended up winning third place for her craftsmanship; something no one expected but welcomed! Xey got a gift card for the best bakery in town as a reward.

They did a bit of karaoke, a bit of dancing, the expected. Long after the streets were emptied of trick-or-treaters, the group of monsters were called to their hotel rooms where they would be staying for the night. They ran around in the halls a little, joking with one another before getting comfortable in their beds and drifting off into a deep slumber.

The following day began very late. Pereskia swapped out her costume for a cozy pink sweater, Dawn into a blue hoodie. Rachel's feathers kept her as warm as she needed.

They debated where to go first, knowing Plant Island had many places to offer. Due to their parents' rules, however, they were forced to stay in one area. A late breakfast or early lunch sounds good right about now - brunch! Perhaps they could find the bakery Dawn had gotten the gift card for? The glowl of the group took to the sky, leading the rest down the many twisted streets in search of their needed destination. They met a few more kind faces along the way, including an adorable young bowgart and his little sister. Rachel wondered where their parents were.

Unsurprisingly, the bakery was quite busy. They chose to sit at an outside table while the crowd thinned out, chatting on about last night's antics. They wondered if Amber Island would ever have a holiday of its own. There have been rumors of a new monster arriving on the island, though it has never been confirmed.

"I don't understand why we can't just have Gobbleygourd like the other fire islands do," Rachel pondered. "It wouldn't be too hard of a trip, would it?"

"You've got a point," Perry agreed, "But don'cha think that would be too much Feast-Ember? They already have two islands celebrating it. Wanna be original, don't we?"

"How about we make a new holiday? What's stopping us?"

"Monsters payin' a lick of attention. Besides, I'm sure - huh?"

Pereskia's vision blurred, the weight of something coming over her head and eyes stealing it. She lifted it off - a hat?

"Gotcha somethin'," a familiar voice spoke.

"Who.. ain't no way."

Dawn covered xeir mouth with a snort, Rachel's feathers puffing up as her friend was bothered.

"I expect you t' have somethin' of mine?"

"It's- I can- Buck? How did ya find me?"

"This is th' most popular spot for mornin' treats," the Flowah answered, pulling up a chair for himself and taking a seat. "Made a lucky guess, it seems."

The three shared a look, debating. Buck wore a casual red flannel, was around their age, and despite being somewhat intimidating, he didn't appear to have any ill intent. Dawn moved Rachel back into her seat, giving a small nod of approval. The council has decided.

"So.. ya got it?" He asked.

"I do," the barrb answered, pushing her new hat up a bit, "But you're gonna have to wait a lil longer. We planned on spendin' the whole day out. Guess you're stuck with me."

"Ah, guess I am."

The other two narrowed their eyes, looking to one another. They didn't agree on that. Did they?

"What's your name?" He finally asked.

"You're gonna have to wait til you get that too, sugar."

Oh. That makes sense.

"I'm Dawn," the Thrumble introduced herself. "This is Rachel."

"Buck Dixon," the Flowah said with a nod.

The glowl sunk into her seat, keeping a keen eye on Buck. Once the line began to fade, they finally got their hands on fresh baked goods for lunch. They were worth the wait, and Buck was able to get himself his own snack. Next stop: the park! Might as well help with the cleaning.

"Where ya from, big guy?" Perry asked.

"Fire Haven. My pals and I come 'round here for th' holidays sometimes, but they couldn't make the trip this year - just me and my parents. How 'bout you?"

"Amber Island, born an' raised. All of us were, really."

"That island's the small one, isn't it?"

"It is, it is. Th' monsters there are real nice, though. I'd say that makes up for it!"

"Other than Dawn," Rachel teased. The two bickered with one another, speeding the walk up.

The park had already been relatively cleared, multiple others having chipped in to restore it to its old beauty. They decided to enjoy the afternoon with a calming walk through the many trees, though the friends fell behind as Buck took lead with Pereskia.

"Oh, she definitely likes him," Dawn chuckled. "Barrbs always go for Flowahs."

"That's a stereotype," Rachel mummbled. "They've only known each other for less than a day! Our lives aren't a fairy tale, you know."

"Faerie Island."

"Shut up. I meant she doesn't know him as much as she knows us."

"Perry's always been a flirt. Let her have some fun!"

"I'm not having fun."

"What's up with those?" Pereskia asked Buck, pointing to the tusks poking from his mouth. They weren't a common trait among Flowahs - that's for sure.

"Not too sure, really," he shrugged. "I never met my birth parents - I was adopted by a Bisonorus couple. I like t' think I inherited them."

"Oh. that's neat!"

"Hehe, wanna see what they can do?"

"Slow down there, Buck."

"Pardon me."

Buck was more familiar with the island than the rest, partially giving a tour and partially giving commentary. He wasn't all too fond of the cold weather, something that most fire monsters could agree on, but he enjoyed the scenery quite a bit. He wished Fire Haven would keep the Feast-Ember decorations up longer. Something about the colors just felt homey - felt right. The colors were reminiscent of the flames that fire monsters once carried, of their late celestial. It was a shame how chilling the world got before the fall leaves came around. Perry couldn't agree more. She fell into every word being said, losing interest in their meaning and soon focusing more on his voice. It was raspy but soothing enough to lull someone to sleep.

They spent the afternoon wandering the nearby area, losing track of time and meeting other faces. The two friends were relieved when Pereskia called it a night, only to be told that Buck was staying at the same hotel. He walked them to their rooms, narrowly avoiding the eyes of their parents. Galvana knows what they would think of him!

"Here's ya hat back, Buckaroo," Perry joked, tossing the costume piece to him. Buck caught it, dropping it onto his head.

"Am I gonna get that name now, Dew Drop?" He asked, leaning against the doorframe and nearly falling.

"Hmm.. Pereskia Marigold Streams. Though, if tomorrow is as fun as tonight was, perhaps the last name can change."

Whoa. The Flowah took a moment to cool off and simply comprehend what he had just heard.

"So there's a tomorrow, eh?"

"I suppose there is."

"Close the door!" Dawn yelled, tossing a pillow at them. Pereskia chuckled, moving back.

"I'll see ya soon, Buck."

"See ya soon, Dew."

Mercifully, the three were left alone with one another. The glowl's hostility never settled, instead growing as time passed.

"Are you done?" Dawn growled.

"What's got your fins in a fit?"

"I'm tired!"

"You've only known him for a day! He never apologized for ruining your costume, either," Rachel added.

"I'd say he made up for it. How 'bout you guys trust me this time, hm?"

"I just don't want you to get into something serious so quickly.. You don't know him yet."

"That's what tomorrow is for, Feathers."

The barrb took a seat next to her friend, assuring her that she would be careful. She understood their concerns and took them to heart, agreeing to slow down. Still, she wanted to at least befriend the guy - he seems nice. They would allow that. Rachel rested her head on Perry's shoulder, giving a tired huff.

"I'll be fine, honey. I promise."

"You better be."

The following days remained the same. Meet with Buck, explore the island as far as their parents would allow it, learn about one another, and get into a bit of tasteful trouble. The adults eventually met Buck, and to Dawn and Rachel's surprise, they approved of him. His parents were, as told, a Bisonorus couple, and they seemed as if they expected him to find someone.

"It isn't new for our Buck to find a lovely lady," the emperor Bisonorus spoke to Myrtle, Pereskia's mother, "But it's rare for one to give him a chance."

They exchanged addresses, and around a week of eager waiting later, Pereskia received her first letter from him. Another week later, he received one from her. Each note carried a part of their lives, whether it was a Polaroid picture of their island life or a leaf fallen from a common tree that told the oncoming weather. They shared their dreams, their nightmares, their wishes, their falls. As Feast-Ember rolled around, they met up at the flowahs home island.

Dawn and Rachel chose to stay behind, and as the school year came to an end, so had their company. Perry never stopped them from moving on - she trusted them all the same. Dawn moved to Bone Island with xeir girlfriend. Rachel migrated to Fire Oasis to get away from her parents. Once Buck and Perry felt they were financially stable, they moved in together. With her father's blessing, Buck gained the privilege to call Pereskia his wife.

Every afternoon, if she were strolling alongside her husband, she was reminded of the last fall they spent together. She wondered if they blamed her for the groups falling out. They never talked about it, and to this day, she worried over what could have gone wrong. Even as they never speak, as they never see one another, their friendship hadn't ended. It simply paused, forever in the fall.

[ofstarsandvibranium]

Bad Reputation

Fandom: Marvel (High School AU)

Pairing: Chubby!Bucky x GN!Reader

Summary: For some reason, your high school’s resident bad boy, Bucky Barnes, seemed to have made it your personal mission to be a thorn in your side.

A/N: inspired by this gif set.

Your eyes glance up every so often to make sure your notes are correct as you scribble into your notebook. Mr. Coulson continues to talk about history and you're adamant to jot down every single thing he says.

You feel something hit the back of your head, but you ignore it. A minute goes by and you feel it again, along with a "pssst!"

You shake your head and try to keep your focus. Something something 1894-

"Hey," you jolt when you hear a whisper and a tap on your shoulder.

You look over your shoulder and see James "Bucky" Barnes now sitting the seat behind you that was previously occupied by Brunnihilde, "What, James?" you hiss.

James, or Bucky as he likes to be called, smirked at his first name. Not many got away with calling him that, but you did.

"Wanna hang out after school?"

You turn back around to continue taking notes, "Don't you have detention...again?"

He scoffs, "Yeah, but I'll skip it for you."

"Pass," you mumble.

You hear him sigh and lean back, "Suit yourself." Minutes pass and you turn back around and Brunnhilde is back in her seat.

________________

When you walk out of class, Bucky is waiting for you by the door. You ignore him as you walk down the hall to your next class. He follows closely behind, you hear the creaking of his leather jacket that he usually wears.

"Leave me alone, James."

Bucky rushes around to stand in front of you, stopping you in your path, "Y/N, why do you hate me so much?"

"Because you're annoying, you're a troublemaker, you never know when to shut up you, you-"

"Jeez. Alright. Damn."

"I have to go to class, James," you walk around him and continue your journey.

He catches up to you again, "I'll walk you!"

"No, thanks."

You continue to head to class, but Bucky doesn't follow this time. He stops in the hall sighing and pushing his hands into his distressed jeans. He looks down dejectedly and heads in the other direction to his class.

The bell already rang by the time he steps into class. Ms. Hill writes him off and he, to no one's surprise, get detention yet again for having three tardies in a row.

He slumps into his seat behind his best friend, Steve, and sighs. As Steve is writing notes, he murmurs only low enough for Bucky to hear, "No luck?"

"Nope," Bucky murmurs back. He looks down and looks how his black t-shirt clings to his round belly. He pats it and sighs, "Do you think they'd like me if maybe I wasn't so chubby?"

"Y/N may not like you, but they're not shallow, Buck."

"I just don't get it. Why don't they like me?"

"Probably because you annoy them so much," Steve answers with a smirk, which earns him a flick to the ear.

"Ow!"

"Steve, is there something you'd like to share with the class?"

He shakes his head, "No, ma'am."

Ms. Hill goes back to giving her lecture and Steve hisses, "Quick being a jerk."

"I'll quit being a jerk if you quit being a punk, you punk," Bucky retorts with an amused grin.

___________________

You head to your usual table where Scott, Hope, Luis, Carol, Brunnhilde, and yourself usually eat.

You sit in between Scott and Carol with a sigh. It's Tuesday, but you already want the week to be over. Carol leans in and whispers to you, "Don't be alarmed, but Bucky's been looking at you since you walked over here."

You groan and let your head fall onto the lunch table, "Why can't he just leave me alone?"

"Because he likes you," Hope answers.

You snort, "More like he likes to annoy me. I don't want anything to do with him. Bad guys like that are up to know good. I don't have time for that."

"I like Bucky," Scott speaks up with a smile, "He's cool."

"You just like him because he gave you a nickname," Hope replies with knowing smirk.

"He's a cool guy!"

You hear a burst of laughter and you look up to see Bucky throwing food at Clint and Sam two tables down.

You roll your eyes and pull out your own lunch. As soon as you're about to take a bite, you hear "WATCH OUT!" and you're hit in the face with a piece of pizza.

Everyone suddenly goes silent. You look up and see Bucky's look of horror. He's immediately rushing over to you, "Y/N! I am SO sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay, James." you say calmly.

He looks at you in surprise, "Wait, really?"

You take Scott's cupcake that he got from Gamora and said, "NOPE!" and smashed it onto his face.

He wipes away the frosting and smushed cake, and smirked, "That's how it's gonna be? Fine." he grabs your tupperware of pasta and dumps it over your head, "FOOD FIGHT!"

Everyone begins to scatter and starts throwing their food left and right. You grab your food, Scott's food, Luis' food, any food you can get your hands on and throwing them to Bucky.

"YOU'RE SUCH AN ASS!" you yell at him.

"AND YOU'RE A STUCK UP!"

The doors to the cafeteria burst open and the principal, Mr. Fury, yells, "EVERYONE FREEZE." And you all do.

You're seething, glaring at Bucky, chest heaving.

"Who's responsible for this, huh?"

Everyone points to you and Bucky who are in a more isolated area of the cafeteria. Fury, watching where he stepped, marched over to you. He points to Bucky, "Barnes." and then you, "L/N, my office. Now."

________________

Two weeks. Detention for a whole two weeks. You couldn't believe this! Because of Bucky, your record was no longer clean. Your dislikeness towards Bucky just grew after that.

After school, you marched into the cafeteria where you'd be helping the lunch faculty.

"Alright James and Y/N, you'll help with dishes. You can discuss who will wash and who will dry."

Without looking at Bucky you head to the sink, "I'll wash."

Bucky cautiously follows you and stands by your side waiting for you hand him washed dishes.

"Y/N-"

"Don't talk to me, James."

"I'm sorry," he murmurs in a painted tone, "I really didn't mean to throw that pizza at you."

"Why are you like this?!" you drop the dishes back into the sink, "Why must you annoy me and bother me every chance you get?!"

"I-I don't mean to-"

"Bullshit, Barnes!"

"I like you, okay?! I like you and I-I don't know what to do! The only time you look at me or talk to me is when I bother you and I just-I just want you to talk to me, Y/N. To see me."

"Why me? There's plenty other people who'd rather have your attention!"

"I don't know. There's just something about you. You're sweet and smart. You're caring. I know-I know something like me doesn't deserve the attention from someone like you, but I can't help it."

You snort, "You don't know me though. Not really."

"Well, maybe I can get to know you now? Ya know, since you and I will spending a lot of time together here?"

"We'll see," you answer before heading back to doing dishes.

__________________

After a week of detention, you and Bucky were more civilized. You got to know each other a little bit more. You found out that he wanted to take over his dad's construction company, that he wanted to help Steve get into NYU with the money he's been earning from working with his dad.

Bucky learned that you wanted to go to school for journalism and that you have a pet bunny named Floppy.

You found out that Bucky knows Celine Dion's music very well because his mom loves her.

He found out that you wanted to be on Broadway when you were younger, but realized you had bad stage fright.

Whenever you two saw each other in class or in the halls, you didn't turn in the other direction. You gave each other a nod and a polite smile.

Then...the flowers started happening.

You walked into Mr. Coulson's classroom and found a daisy with a note next to it. You picked up the note and it read:

I saw this cute flower and thought of you. Have a good day.

-JB

You looked at the back of the classroom to where Bucky usually sat, but he wasn't there. You snort to yourself and roll your eyes. He's probably going to late, per usual.

A few minutes before class started, Bucky waltzed in and sat in the empty seat beside you. He pulls out a notebook and pencil. He writes the date at the top and looks up at the front of the class to see if there was anything on the whiteboard.

He then turns to you and smirks, "Hi."

"Hi. Thanks for the flower."

"You're welcome," he looks down at his notebook and then looks up to see you still staring at him. He chuckles, "What?"

"You're early to class and prepared....are you feeling okay?" you lean in, feeling his head with the back of his hand.

You swats your hand away, "Quit it! I'm fine! Just turning over a new leaf. I'm gonna be a changed man, Y/N."

"Okaaaay?"

Your school day went by fast. One moment you were in your first class and the next you're in the cafeteria helping clean the kitchen.

"So...what's the real reason you're suddenly trying to be a good student?"

"Does there have to be a reason?" Bucky asks as he wipes down the counters.

"There's a reason for everything, Bucky." you freeze and so does Bucky. You look up and he's looking way too smug for your liking, "It was a slip of the tongue."

"You called me, Bucky."

"It won't happen again."

"Can I hear it again?"

"Nope."

"Please?"

"Hell no."

"Okay...I do like it when you call me James, though. Just so you know." he looks at you with a soft stare and an equally soft smile.

You cleared your throat and went back to refilling the fridge with milk, "Anyway, the reason?"

Bucky sighs and walks over to you, resting against a counter as you work, "Had a meeting with Fury. Said if I don't improve on my grades, I'm gonna get held back. Means I can't pursue my goals with taking over my dad's business, can't help Stevie with school. I gotta be better."

You pause and then ask, "Do you....want some help?"

"Um...I'd like some, but you don't have to. I can't ask-"

"You're not asking, James. I'm offering."

"Sure."

So after school, while you and Bucky served your detention, you helped him study.

Eventually, your detention was over, but that didn't stop you from helping Bucky. During lunch, you two would be in the library. You two would study at the park near your house. You soon began to show you his grades and they were definitely improving.

When Bucky got his first A in a long time, you took him out to lunch to celebrate.

You guys went to the local café in your neighborhood, getting burger, fries, and shakes.

You lifted up your shake, "Congrats, James, to your first A in a logn time!"

Bucky held up his own and clinked it to yours, "And to you, Y/N, because I wouldn't have done it without you."

"Guess we make a great team, huh?"

Bucky smiles that smile that you've noticed he only does with you, "Yeah...we do."

____________

"You've been spending a lot of time with Bucky for someone who hates him," Carol states as you join them at the lunch table after what seemed like forever.

You rolled your eyes as you sat down, "I don't hate him. I never did, honestly. Just strongly disliked! But anyway, we're good now. Bonded a lot during detention and then I was tutoring him. We're....friends now."

"Just friends?" Brunnhilde asked.

"Yup. Just friends!"

After school, Bucky is waiting for you by your car.

He nervously wipes his sweaty palms down his round belly and runs a hand through his hair, "Um, hey."

"Hey, what's up?"

"I just wanted to let you know something. You know my feelings for you and, honestly, they haven't changed. In fact, they've only grown since we've been spending so much time together. And, there's another reason why I wanted to do better in school...and that's you."

"Me?"

"I wanted to be better for you, so I can show you that I'm not just that punk ass kid that doesn't care about anything and anyone. That I'm more than just my bad reputation. And, I think this past month, I've done a pretty good job at showing that. But anyway, I was wondering, if you feel the same? And if you wanna go on a date sometime?"

His confession floored you. You didn't expect him to say any of this, "James, I-I won't lie, that I have some feelings for you, but it-it takes a lot more than this for me to like someone. I mean, we just became friends. And while I do like how you've changed, I just-there's more to it than just that."

He nods and clears his throat, "Right. Got it. I'm sorry-"

"Don't be," you grab hold of his arm, "Maybe...we can just be friends for now and see how it goes?"

He nods, "Yeah. Okay. You set the pace and I'll follow, Y/N. I'd rather have you as a friend than not at all."

"I can't promise anything would come from this."

"I know. I'm just....glad you finally see me."

You smile at him with softness in your eyes, "I'm glad I finally see you too."

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

Lila Rossi: I’d Say She’s a Good Villain, but Then I’d Be Lying (300 Follower Special)

Deception and cunning are easily two of the most important traits an antagonist could have. It shows that even if they don't have the strength to overcome obstacles, their wit is more than enough. This kind of trait is why characters like Lex Luthor, David Xanatos, and Princess Azula are so beloved, simply because of how intelligent they can be as villains and pose a real threat to the heroes.

It's clear that the Miraculous Ladybug writers want Lila to be seen as this, but the writing seriously fails to back that claim up.

Easily one of the most controversial characters in Miraculous Ladybug is Lila, mainly for the writing surrounding her. But there was a time where she was actually more of an ambiguous character, mainly for the lack of screentime she had until Season 3. But unfortunately, the more appearances she's had have painted a very poor portrait of an antagonist.

Lila's Tragic and Sympathetic Motivation for Hating Ladybug

Lila's first appearance was at the tail end of Season 1, “Volpina”. She was a new transfer student from Italy, and quickly made friends with a lot of her classmates for the lies she told, including being friends with Ladybug (which Alya blindly believed without doing any research like any excellent journalist). But because of how close she was getting to Adrien, Marinette, in a rare act of selfishness, transforms into Ladybug just to chew out Lila for lying about knowing her, humiliating her in front of Adrien. And this is the only motivation we get for what Lila does afterwards.

I'm not saying that it's wrong for Lila to get upset at Ladybug for doing this, and I like the moment of weakness Marinette has, but this is literally the only explanation we get for Lila deciding to side with Hawkmoth, a literal terrorist. As much as I hated the way the arc turned out, I could still understand Chloe siding with Hawkmoth, as it was clear that Hawkmoth was manipulating her and taking advantage of her ego. Lila? Ladybug's mean to her one time, and that inspires her to conspire with a complete stranger who brainwashes people to attack the city, which endangers innocent people and causes God knows how much in collateral damage if not for Miraculous Ladybug fixing everything.

I just don't get how a single negative interaction with someone is enough to conspire with a literal supervillain. Even in Season 3, when Marinette and Lila truly became enemies, it was because she risked exposing all the lies she told, which could damage her reputation. Sure, it's petty, but it makes sense for Lila to want to keep up the illusion. If she was simply an antagonist to Marinette in her civilian life like Chloe was before “Miracle Queen” , I'd be fine with that, but the writers clearly want her to be seen as on the same level of evil as Hawkmoth. I'll get into why that doesn't work later on.

Why Lila is an Excellent Liar

In my Master Fu analysis, I had pointed out that despite all the flaws he had, the narrative insisted on portraying him as an incredibly wise mentor. The same problem applies for Lila as well. We're supposed to see Lila as an expert manipulator and liar, but her lies are insultingly obvious. She always claims to be friends with celebrities and does all these awesome things, and in an age where we can have almost any question answered thanks to the internet, nobody ever stops to question her.

It's even more frustrating when you hear Lila talk about saving Jagged Stone's cat, when Jagged Stone is established to be very fond of Marinette (evidentially more than his own daughter), and nobody ever points that out. I think if Lila's lies were more stories about her travels around the world than outright lies about real people, it could have worked. It'd still be hard to believe, but it's something.

But this is a problem with writing shows aimed at children. As much as we hate writers who need to spell out things to kids, sometimes, they just don't understand some of the media they consume. Seriously, I never got this joke in SpongeBob as a kid, and I can't believe Nickelodeon actually approved this.

So the dilemma when writing a show with children in mind is finding that sweet spot between assuming your audience can figure it out, but not being too vague in your details. It's even harder when you need to find a way to convey the fact that someone is lying without being too obvious. Unfortunately, the show clearly fails to do that

Okay, this is going to sound like an incredibly weird thing to cite, and I only know about it because I used to know someone who was a huge fan of the franchise, but the movie Monster High: Friday Night Frights does a better job of subtly explaining to the audience that a character is lying. Please, just hear me out.

The movie follows the main characters competing in their high school's roller derby for the season after everyone on the usual team gets injured, and the championship match is against another school whose team tends to cheat to win matches. How they manage to do this without getting caught is anyone's guess. While the main characters are practicing, their coach, Clawd, notices a spy for the enemy team taking video of them to study their moves. In response, he calls over one of the athletes, Operetta, to chew her out for her showboating attitude. In reality, he's alerting her to the spy. Only using facial expressions, he clues her, and by extension, the audience, in on the fact that they know what the opposing team is trying to do.

This soon leads to Operetta pretending to tell the enemy team about their secret plan for the championship match, which was really an attempt to outsmart them to gain the advantage in the final stretch. The brilliance of this is how the audience is informed of this with no dialogue, and there's no scene afterwards spelling it out for those who don't get it. It manages to convey deception without being too obvious that Clawd and Operetta are being deceitful.

I think if there were more subtle hints to show the audience Lila was lying, she would be seen in a better light. As it is, Lila's lies are just pathetic, and it's ridiculous that everyone believes her. Which leads me to...

Lila, the Master Manipulator

I once read a Star Trek: Voyager fanfic that poked fun at the series by claiming that the reason a lot of the dumber episodes like “Threshold” and “Twisted” happened was because one of the crew members was an alien who unintentionally produced mood altering pheromones, with Captain Janeway actually realizing they were all high because of said pheromones, while two of the unaffected crew members were wondering what the hell they were doing before they found out the cause. Why do I bring this up? Sometimes, it feels like Lila is an unintentional parallel to the alien in that story.

Like so many characters, it's clear the show desperately wants the audience to view Lila in a certain way, but her actions do very little to actually back up that claim. When she's not using lies to tell stories about so many famous people she knows like her uncle who works for Nintendo, Lila is using strategies to manipulate everyone that are so obviously deceptive, the Thermians could pick up on them. Everyone and their mother knows how ridiculous a lot of what Lila does in episodes like “Chameleon” and “Ladybug” are, and I've talked about them before, so I'll try to be quick.

First off, as someone who had access to accommodations through high school and has had assistance in college so far, there is no way in hell that Ms. Bustier should take Lila's tinnitus at face value in “Chameleon”. If a student has a disability that could interfere with the education process, physical or developmental, not only does the school have to evaluate their performance, and determine if they're eligible for an Individualized Education Program, or IEP, but her teachers would have to be notified in the first place. As her primary educator, Ms. Bustier would be part of the team to oversee Lila's IEP and determine what accommodations she needs to help her learn better with her tinnitus and arthritis. But because the writers don't know what Google is, they just ignore it,  assume that Lila can just say she has a disability, and have everyone believe it. Even when Eric Cartman pretended to be disabled to compete in the Special Olympics, he put in more effort to look the part, even if he looked like a caricature.

Then there's the fact that that in “Chameleon”, everyone just believes Lila when she says Marinette stole her grandmother's necklace when not only is said necklace from the Agreste line of jewelry, but Alya, who is Rena Rouge, can't pick up on the fact that it's a fake. All she does to justify these lies is come up with a sob story about how nobody believes her, yet nobody ever tries to defend Marinette except Alya one time, and it was after she got expelled.

Or what about in “Oni-Chan”, where Lila thinks having Kagami kill Ladybug while claiming she'll back away from Adrien is a good idea? Let's say Oni-Chan does kill Ladybug or at least take away her Miraculous, what then? We know Lila wouldn't go through with this promise, and as soon as Kagami sees her harassing Adrien, she'll be ripe for akumatization again. Overall, not a great plan.

And yet somehow, this last example is what made her worthy enough to become one of Hawkmoth's most trusted agents. I'm just going to say it: Lila is not a good fit for the power of illusion. Whenever she's Volpina or Chameleon, she always goes out of her way to make a big show instead of being subtle with her deceptions. “Chameleon” is the worst offender, as even though Lila gets the power to shapeshift into someone else, instead of being discreet and cornering people into kissing them and gaining their appearance, she just runs around to get Ladybug's attention instead of being subtle. Even Felix had the bright idea to pretend to be Adrien to catch Ladybug off guard. How do you lose to something that happened in “Felix”?

Despite all of these screw-ups, we're still supposed to see her as this master of deception worthy of allying with Hawkmoth in both his supervillain and civilian form, when really, she's a terrible liar on the schoolyard and on the battlefield.

Why Lila is an Important Character

In the grand scheme of things, Lila just isn't as important of a character that the show loves to parade her around as. She's nothing more than a plot device used to raise the stakes in an episode, given how much reality seems to bend over just to accommodate for her lies. Even when the show alludes to her being part of bigger things, like her deal with Adrien, or her rivalry with Marinette, they don't even go anywhere.

She just feels pointless when you remember Astruc's brilliant idea to force Chloe into being the final Akuma for the season while Lila isn't even mentioned once. She only really makes appearances whenever the writers feel like it, which is why it’s hard to take her seriously. Why should I take this character seriously as a threat if the writers refuse to take her seriously as a threat? Why build Lila up as a big threat and not give her a major role in the finale? Why even include her in the show in the first place when you could show Chloe being more manipulative to fill in the plots Lila plays a big part in?

As of the time I am writing this analysis, four episodes of Season 4 have aired, three of them have been about lies or deception, and Lila hasn't been mentioned at all. It honestly seems like she won't appear unless the writers need a easy way to drive up the conflict, so they can justify it by saying that Lila's “superpower” of lying is more powerful than the common sense of everyone else.

I'm sorry this post was shorter than the last one, but compared to Master Fu, there's not that much to say about Lila that I haven't already said. Even the show barely gives her any attention, so it's hard for me to really find a lot to talk about.

[favefandomimagines]

Scenic Views (e.b.)

Summary: an ocean view hike is supposed to be relaxing. so why wasn’t it for you and buck?

AN: i defs lost this request BUT i found it and here it is! I’m sorry that it took me so freaking long! i also added a little bit of spice to this

request: @tacopanda omg so cute. you and Buck go hiking on a very scenic hike to a view a ocean view and on the hike you end up spraining your ankle

You knew you shouldn’t have agreed to go on a hike with Buck. Buck was in impeccable shape, he was a firefighter, so of course he was in good shape. You were an amateur painter, who spent most of their time at an art studio than outside. You were healthy and in good shape but you never went out of your way to go to a gym and workout. 

But when Buck asked for something, you usually caved. And this time, he wanted to go on a hike with you. Saying that maybe seeing that beautiful view of the ocean would give you the inspiration you were severely lacking. 

It wasn’t every day that the most prestigious art museum in LA showcased amateur artists and you were lucky enough to be one of the few to be featured. But, you needed a piece to showcase and you had no inspiration for one. Usually an idea just came to you and you’d go wild but given that you knew what could potentially come out of it, that was blocking your creativity immensely. 

You were doing surprisingly well for someone who doesn’t particularly workout on a daily basis. You were keeping up with your boyfriend just fine for the most part. 

“I can’t believe I let you talk me into doing this.” You groaned, climbing a rather steep incline. “You’re doing great though!” Buck commented. “I’m dying on the inside.” You rebutted. “With the pandemic, this is a good way for us to get out of the house and do some bonding.” He said. “We’ve been bonding, stuck at home, for over a year. How much more until you get sick of me?” You teased. 

“I think it’s impossible for me to be sick of you, Y/N.” Buck said. You smiled up at him as the two of you reached what seemed like the end of the trail. You stopped for a moment to catch your breath as Buck looked at the view. “If this doesn’t give you the inspiration to finish your painting, I don’t know what will.” He said. 

You stood up straight and walked towards where he was standing and overlooked the view of the ocean. “Wow. You don’t see a view like this every day.” you commented. There was really an ulterior motive for Buck bringing you on that hike. 

A motive you were not aware of. You and him had been together for the worst moments of each other’s lives, even if it wasn’t always in a romantic sense. You were there when Abby left him, he was there for you when you started art school, you stayed by his side when he was suing the department and the city. Even through a global pandemic, the two of you stayed by each other through it all. 

There was no doubt that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you and the scenery was beautiful and it felt like the right place to start. Given that you didn’t know about Buck’s plan, your impulsive and exploratory nature got the best of you. 

There was a large rock a few feet away from where you and Buck were standing and you wanted to go get a better look of the ocean. You moved to stand on the rock while Buck was making sure he didn’t leave the ring at home. 

You were looking at the view from the rock when Buck caught your attention. “Hey, Y/N?” He called. You turned around quickly and somehow lost your footing, bending your ankle in a very unhealthy manner and falling on your ass in the process. 

When you hit the ground, the only thing you could do was laugh. Buck rushed to your aid, examining you for any serious injuries, while you were laughing hysterically. 

“Oh my god, Y/N, are you okay?” He asked you. “This is so embarrassing.” You laughed. “Are you hurt?” Buck questioned. “I think I hurt my ankle. Falling straight on my face.” You answered, still laughing. 

Buck furrowed his eyebrows at your laughter before he pulled out his phone. “I’m calling 911.” He announced. “No, no, I’m fine. It’s just a sprain.” You said. “A sprain that’s swelling up to the size of my wrist. Y/N, you need to go to the hospital.” He told you. 

“Can’t you just carry me back down? I mean, you are a firefighter too.” You questioned. Buck looked at you for a moment, knowing that he really should call an ambulance for you. “Fine. But you’re going to the ER whether you like it or not. If you broke your ankle because of a hike I took you on, you’ll never let me live it down.” He finally said. 

You and Buck made it back down to the parking lot and he carefully placed you in the passenger seat of the car. “I can’t believe I convinced you to do this. It’s my fault you got hurt.” He commented. “Buck, I’m the clumsiest person alive. No one is at fault here but my lack of reflexes.” You rebutted. “But,” He started. “No. No buts. It’ll be fine.” You told him. 

You were in a good amount of pain but you didn’t want him to know that, knowing it would make him feel ten times worse. 

At the end of the day, it was just a severe sprain. Nothing too terribly serious and you just had to keep it bandaged for a few days until the swelling went down. Buck felt terrible, so he made sure that whatever you needed he got for you without the usual complaining. Even though it wasn’t the ideal situation, you might have found the inspiration you were looking for. 

__

It had been a month or so since your failed hike with Buck and it was the night of the showcase at the art museum. The entire 118 was going to be there which made you more nervous than you thought. 

No one has seen the piece you made but you were rather proud of it. You told Buck that it was an abstract landscape piece but in reality it was much more than that. It was a simple, black and white portrait of Buck that you painted after a long night watching TV on the couch. 

It wasn’t anything fancy or extravagant. It was just him, completely unaware that you were memorizing how he looked at that moment. 

Everyone was standing around, drinking champagne and talking amongst themselves, while you were a bundle of nerves. You kept looking around the room, waiting to see when they were going to unveil your piece. 

“Everyone’s going to love it. I mean, you haven’t shown me what it is,  but I have no doubt it’s amazing.” Buck told you. You gave him a smile as the art curator stood in front of your piece. “Oh my god.” You muttered. “The next local artist contribution we’d like to unveil, comes from Ms. Y/F/N Y/L/N.” She announced, before the sheet covering your portrait fell. 

There were murmurs throughout the room but from what you could see on people’s faces, they were all positive murmurs. You avoided Buck’s gaze, afraid of what his reaction would. “Y/N, that’s amazing.” Maddie complimented. “Thank you.” You said, bashfully. 

You then looked up at Buck, who was still staring at the painting of him. “So? Do you hate it? You hate it don’t you. I knew I should’ve asked if it was okay-” You started before his lips met yours. That seemed to silence you long enough for your nerves to dissipate. 

“You really like it?” You whispered when you pulled a part. “I love it, Y/N. I-It’s incredible.” Buck answered. “I thought you didn’t have inspiration.” He added. “Well, after the hike and seeing how you were with me, that gave me inspiration. Because why not paint something I love so much?” You answered. “Will you marry me?” He said without really thinking. “I’m sorry, what?” You questioned. 

“That was supposed to happen way more smoothly than me just blurting it out but, will you marry me? I was going to ask on our hike but then you fell.” Buck said. You were stunned at first, trying to process everything but you soon smiled and nodded your head. “Yes, Buck, I’ll marry you.” You answered. 

No one around you was aware of what was going on and that was 100% fine by you. That evening was about your art and other people’s art, you didn’t want to take that away. 

Buck reached into his pocket and pulled out the small box, opening it up and placing the ring on your finger. “Are we going to tell the others?” You asked, staring at the ring on your finger. “Tonight’s about you and your art. We can tell them tomorrow.” Buck answered. 

You didn’t think a person could be more thankful to have sprained an ankle until now.

[organic-guacamole]

episode 209 spoilers below

I'm so late today but here it is

I love EJ, he's finally learning to be happy. I'm so proud.

Ms Jenn = every boomer during zoom calls, like jeez yes we can hear you stop shouting at me.

LOVE THE SUBTLE JOKE ABOUT QUARANTINE "these dark times" "you mean spring break?"

ah yes, remember when we thought covid was just gonna give us a longer spring break? good times

SEBLOS

damn the passive aggressiveness from Carlos and the absolutely over it tone from seb✋

CASWELL COUSINS!!!!! THEY'RE THE BEST!!!!

we needed more if this kind of goofiness for the first part of season 2 that only such an iconic duo can provide.

old old movies-

is it even that old, or is Nini being a gen alpha rn-

i choose to imagine EJ being scared of the movie and hiding in Ashlyn's shoulder while she keeps a straight face and then EJ pretending to be tough afterwards

aww redlyn are soulmates.... yknow, if gingers had souls

(please ignore me)

y'all saw how EJ's face *lit up* when Gina logged on? how dare you tell me he doesn't like her

ofc she's no damsel in distress, she's Gina porter, she's amazing.

so do we think she'd be the type to just glare at suspicious people? or bark at them

do they not know that Rini broke up? or is Ms Jenn just wanting Nini to suffer through her heartbreak to make her a better actress....

speaking of, why is Nini in the call? she's not in the show anymore. Unless she is, even after the rose and the song got cut, which would be so unfair to all those that auditioned properly before she even came back but whatever, she's the main character I get it 🙄

big red is a hero honestly, Nini better thank him for changing the subject like that

I can't-

i won't work you over the break-

this woman would 100% work her kids 24/7 if it was legal and idk how to feel about it.

YES GINA USE THAT CHARM

QUEEN

FRENCH QUEEN

SHE LEARNT FROM THE BEST (antoine obvi)

smh the airport lady, eavesdropping on Gina's call.

The way she was so happy to answer EJ's call, "eej"

I love them your honour.

EJ WITH PAINTED NAILS YES PLEASE

great now we need to see Gina, Ashlyn and EJ having a complete spa day and EJ getting really into it and Gina and Ashlyn take pictures of him when he's laying down in a robe with a mask and cucumbers on his eyes.

finally we get to see Gina's side of portwell

the way she considered it as flirting, this is the sign she asked for in episode 6 come onnnnn

no is Asher/jack really doing tiktok dances in an airport-

Ricky is me. I am burrito.

oh Lynne, sweetie, I'm sorry but the blonde hair is not it

is that even the same lady or-

THE BEAN

THE CHICAGO BEAN

THE BIG OLD METAL BEAN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CITY 😭

jetlag is my go to excuse for anything... I haven't travelled in 2 years.

"welcome to the Lynne and Mike gossip show. where we talk about our depressed son that we both neglect in certain ways! And now a word from our sponsor, Nord VPN..."

SO MANY CANDLES

WHAT DEMON IS LYNNE TRYING TO SUMMON IN HIS ROOM-

is Nina becoming social media obsessed EJ from season 1? AND SHE LIED ABOUT HAVING SONGS TOO PLEASE WHY ARW THEY RECYCLING THE SAME PLOT-

Gina smiling at the picture of her family on Instagram makes me so happy, idek why.

EJ's nails are so pretty, we needed to see it more (unless he had it on for the rest of the episode and I just.... didn't notice🧍🏽‍♀️)

oh not the tiktok kid✋

yes ma'am end this strange mans whole tiktok career

sir take a hint and leave

GINA NO DONT SAY YOUR LAST NAME HE COULD BE A HUMAN TRAFFICKER

Ricky, walking in style✨

weird kid, ok then Lynne, can't you see he's this close to the edge?

not all your fault baby Ricky, Nini sucks a bit more

RICKY YOU DIDN'T COME DOWN HARD ON THE SONG-

YOU ASKED WHAT IT WAS ABOUT AND SHE SHUT YOU DOWN-

PLEASE DO NOT BLAME YOURSELF

ok but the deleting comment thing was very bad

still don't know if I like Jack honestly

hmmm so Nini's calling herself Nini instead of Nina in her little egg seat, while trying to write a song without inspiration.... Nini, honey, Ricky was your muse, he inspired you to write all those songs, even if it wasn't good for the relationship.

that doesn't mean you gotta get back with him, or that you can't write a song that not about him butttt it'll take some time

the rainbow sticker in her box and her rainbow shirt-

anyways wbk she's not totally straight

Jack are you a criminal?

quick, Gina, check his ankle for a tracker

THE YES AND PRACTICE STRIKES AGAIN

the way Gina wasn't into it in episode 6 but she's used the technique twice now

stole her grandma's Pomeranian-

Jack where the hell did you pull that out from-

the fake crying killed me, that looks like so much fun though

anyone wanna raid a first class lounge with me?

wait so is jack not gonna go in with her?

wouldn't he go in too? help look for the credit card? SO CONFUSED

the first class lounge guy was so into the drama though, watch his face when they start arguing 😭

sorry to break this to you Kourtney, but you haven't even blocked the second act yet soooo...

take that as you will

I love how all of them are totally dissing the dance off

that's the most realistic part of this show tbh

shouldn't Nini have asked how she knew....since the start? why is the fact that her best friend has knowledge of a North high secret now dawning on her...

Howie is sweet honestly, at least he's trying to help. but I stand with Kourtney, don't take him back just because he sang an amazing song, and is giving you a heads up on what's gonna happen...

KOURTNEY IS ME TRYING TO LEAVE AN ONLINE CLASS

I hate school

ooo Nini's writing a song about bad internet connection 🤩🤩🤩

I never lie, except when I do-

son that is the creepiest thing you could say to a stranger that you've been "helping"

2 truths and a lie👀

he's an Ariana fan 100%

called it.

OLDER BROTHER-

WHAT-

free spirit? damn so brother porter was in that horse movie

so has she been kissed or not?????????

I feel like she's moved more than 15 times though so possibly

but then if she's moved so much, and before east high she never opened up to anyone, she's never been kissed then?? damn

same though Gina so let's be besties please

heartbreak president is a great song title idea, give Nini a call rn

but wait

is the no strings attached feeling thing about her telling Ricky she liked him? she thought she was moving away so she thought it'd be no strings attached???

guys I think I figured it out insert the "I've connected two dots" meme

THE DUKE SWEATSHIRT

IS THAT YOUR BOYFRIEND'S

OMG I LOVE I LOVE

NOT THAT I KNOW OF???

ma'am did you just kill me

yes you did

Lynne and Ricky have such a weird relationship

YES IT DID SUCK

TODD SUCKS

LYNNE SUCKS

yeah I get that you wanted Ricky to like Todd BUT THAT WASN'T THE TIME

right so we already know that Ricky was so desperate to keep Nini cuz he didn't want to be like his parents, and now Lynne's talking about this-

Richard needs a long hug

yes Lynne, it is your fault. thank you for finally admitting it.

YES DYE YOUR HAIR

BLOND HIGHLIGHTS RICKY WILL RISE AGAIN

"sometimes the best, last thing you can do for someone you love, is let them go."

gotta admit I teared up at that point

not me thinking big red was calling ms Jenn cupcake for a hot second-

Carlos please omg, you're at the "beach" and they're leaving for the pool?

also, why not just do the call from the hotel room please omg

"don't ask me"

"Carlos"

OMG WHAT HAPPENED

big red wants the tea

O M G

SEB IS JEALOUS

JEALOUS SEBBY IS MY FAVOURITE THING IDC

I'm surprised ms Jenn knew how to give Nini permission to screenshare tbh

So lily's been stalking the East high kids and spending time editing this video while she's supposedly in an immersion trip.... right

EJ and Ashlyn's picture is so chaotic, what even is happening there

"slacking off" bestie its spring break, obviously they're confident enough that they'll get it done in time so why not focus on your own musical.

jealous seb = sassy seb

please what if those guys Carlos is posing with are his cousins or something and that's why he's so confused about Seb

6 YEAR OLD EJ I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM

Nini saying she's obsessed with her ex, that's not weird at all 👍

I can just tell Matt had a blast harassing Julia with those puppets.

Jack please dont be like that, "yet"

chances are you'll never see eachother again 🥰

(honestly sometimes I really miss those friends I made on trips and stuff when we'd spend the day or week together, only to never see them again....those were the good days though)

Ashlyn and Nini should write more songs..... something better than this one at least

Nini: "im good"

cue the Tia Mowry (please I can't spell) crying gif

oh I forgot Ricky was in the show for a hot second

1. where did Gina get to film this without people being around

2. did she just... randomly change her clothes???

ok but the transition between Carlos and EJ

*chefs kiss*

now everyone shut up, EJ's singing

oh i think I'm pregnant

HIS MUSCLES

YES KOURTNEY

I love how big red and Kourtney went from being "the best friends™" to the couple in season 1, to kinda close themselves and having their own plots

sebby makes me so happy

props to biggies editing skills honestly

PORTWELL BEING SIDE TO SIDE I CANT

AND SEBLOS OMG

big red lives for the drama

"wow" so true Ricky

no he is not cute, stop it

"holding" ok that's kinda cute

yeah EJ's a lucky guy😌

jokes aside, it's not that hard to exchange numbers-

keep in touch if you want

ok I really like Jack now

if he comes back in season 3, maybe have him be LGBTQ+ ?

like the only out characters they have rn are Seb and Carlos and they're like the sterotypes, yk?

I'd love to see jack kinda break the mold

Ricky's breaking my heart

that song just hurts

the only thing

now I don't hate Lynne????????

HOW DARE THEY WRITE IN A PROPER REDEMPTION ARC FOR HER

UGH IM SUPPOSED TO HATE HER FOREVER

I mean I don't live her now but she's good

but honestly

"mom can I show you something"

IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL

THE PICTURE AND EVERYTHING OMG

I'm sobbing please help

Gina saying she's just waiting for the right guy and then EJ coming to the airport to pick her up late at night without her asking, offering to bring her back in the morning so she won't have to Uber, bringing her a granola bar (WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT SHE FORGOT TO PACK) and without expecting anything in return???

ms ma'am you've got a keeper right there

her smile at the end was so heartwarming I really can't.

this episode was great.

it felt really short but I liked it, great character development for Ricky, Lynne and Gina.

Cant wait for next episode to see more of EJ being the ideal boyfriend /hj

[phykios]

honesty and promise me, part 5 [co-written with @darkmagyk] [read on ao3]

 Annabeth is making her periodic pilgrimage to the gynecologist when she gets Leo's call. It's very fitting--two uncomfortable and invasive things for the price of one. She answers her phone, ignoring the doctor's chastising frown. Surely she can place her new IUD while Annabeth deals with whatever Leo wants.

 "What are you doing on the 18th?" he asks, about the only type of hello she ever gets from Leo.

 The two of them never really grew out of pretending not to like each other, after they had gotten over their initial dislike. When he and Piper first got to Miss Minerva's, more or less straight out of juvie after Piper's dad made a lot of calls and called in a lot of favors, she and Leo had really hated each other. They used to fight over everything, from Piper's attention to the position of captain of the Mathletes team. And also, over Leo hating a rich white girl on principle, which, in retrospect, is totally fair. But then, by a weird twist of fate, they wound up in Boston together.

 If Annabeth had to choose between hanging out with her creepy, Norse mythology-obsessed uncle and hanging out with Leo, she'd pick Leo every time. They had gone through a lot together, things both big and small.

 "Of August?" she asks.

 "Please be still, Ms. Chase," says her doctor. Annabeth rolls her eyes.

 "Duh."

 Wracking her thoughts she can't think of any prior commitments she might have had. Maybe there's a concert that day, but if she can't remember, it probably wasn't that important anyway. "Not much."

 "Good, because we have plans."

 She frowns. "Piper didn't mention any--"

 "No, you and I have plans. I'll see you in Philly, yeah?"

 Philadelphia? Ew. "Why Philly?"

 "Our Smarter House thing won an award."

 "No shit?"

 "Eta Industries Award. The gala is on the 18th. You're my plus one."

 She sucks in air through her teeth, readjusting her hips as unobtrusively as possible. Eta Industries was… a very big deal. "Isn't that, like, an engineering specific award? Maybe you should accept it by yourself." She'd be better off staying out of the limelight for this one, she thinks, even as some part of her longs once again for recognition.

 Something electric whirs in the background, tinny and buzzing. "I'll see you on the 18th, then," says Leo, not having heard a word she said. "Also, you've been summoned to the castle."

 "Leo--" she jumps as the gyno touches something she really shouldn't have.

 "No arguments, she's expecting you today at two. Adios!" He clicks off.

 "Okay, Ms. Chase," says the doctor, a little too chipper for Annabeth's taste. "You should be all set."

 Annabeth leaves the doctor's office with her brand new IUD, a handful of medical literature which immediately gets tossed in the trash, and a sinking feeling in her gut as she gets on a train to Brooklyn, headed to Piper's place for another annoying and unnecessary fashion show. It's not that she doesn't enjoy being Piper's model--it's a position she's held since their time at Miss Minerva's, and it's never really a hardship to be told how gorgeous she is--but Piper has a way of just... getting information out of her that she doesn’t always want to share.

 Stopping off early, Annabeth gives herself a moment to walk down the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, to settle her nerves and indulge herself a bit. That skyline gets her every time.

 Turning down Pierrepont Street, she is once again struck by just how quiet the city can be. Manhattan is loud, rude, in-your-face, almost an entirely different world from the stately, deafeningly silent Brooklyn. For Annabeth, who is incapable of falling asleep without city horns blaring, it wigs her out a little.

 She barely has time to ring the doorbell on Piper's dad's place before the girl herself wrenches it open, grabbing Annabeth's hand and yanking her inside. "You're late!" she trills, suffering what Annabeth can only assume is the onset of a caffeine overdose.

 "I thought I had until two."

 "That was before I had the best idea."

 The brownstone is a mess, as per usual, reams of fabric tossed over every available surface, enough dressforms strewn about to make it look like Piper is hosting a party exclusively populated by headless zombies, adorned with a warehouse's worth of half-finished dresses and jackets. Based on the loud fabrics and structured angles, it looks like Piper is in the middle of a Klimt-ian phase of inspiration. Annabeth eyes a bright gold gown with a huge, extended collar, embroidered with silver eyes, the raw edges trailing the floor. "Please tell me this isn't your idea."

 "First of all," Piper releases her arm as they enter her kitchen-turned-photo studio, gingerly stepping over a box of assorted beads, "even though it would look amazing on you, that dress is for an actual paying client. Second of all--" she snatches up a dressform from its position behind the camera, setting it down in front of her with a flourish. "This is my idea."

 Annabeth was right--Piper is definitely on a Klimt-ian kick.

 Pulled straight from her art history classes, the dress looks like a two dimensional painting come to life, a stunning skirt like a column of liquid silver descending onto the black mat, pleats like fluted columns precisely draped over the dressform's hips… and not much else. Annabeth points. “Is that it?”

 Piper makes a face. "I have a bodice, promise. Now go take that shit off."

 Annabeth looks down at her repurposed The Police shirt, fished out of a thrift store bin some months ago, shirt collar cut and sides resewn to bring the waistline in. "I like this shirt."

 "Oh, I like the shirt plenty," she agrees. "But you could stand to wear a nicer pair of jeans."

 She does have a point there--her jeans are clinging to life at this point, the knees and hems all but obliterated, strings of fabric valiantly attempting to hold their original shape. "Fine. Be right back."

 When she emerges from the bathroom a minute later in just her bra and panties, Piper has laid out another bolt of fabric in that same color, silver with a blue shift beneath the studio lights. Piper, bent over with a strip of measuring tape, looks up at her, then squints. "So who is he?"

 Annabeth starts. "Excuse me?"

 "The guy you've been seeing."

 How... the fuck does Piper always know these things? "I don't know what you're talking about."

 She flicks her eyes down to Annabeth's thigh, Annabeth following her gaze to the remnants of the bruise that Percy had left there with his mouth two days ago. Dammit.

 Piper tsks, a smile distorting the sound. "Naughty, naughty, Annabeth."

 "How do you know it wasn't from a girl?" she asks, petulant.

 "Because if it had been a girl, you wouldn't be nearly so defensive."

 Shit. "We've been friends way too long," Annabeth grumbles.

 "That we have," says Piper. "And out of respect for our friendship, I will refrain from grilling you about him until you are more comfortable sharing."

 "So, for a few hours?"

 She shrugs. "More or less."

 "I suppose you want me to thank you for holding back."

 "Don't thank me yet," she grins, wide and toothy. "I've been cooped up here working on my collection for three days, and I am dying to talk to someone."

 Annabeth sighs, but obediently raises her arms, making room as Piper crouches down to pin the skirt on her. "Okay, you got me. I'm seeing this guy."

 "Seeing or seeing-seeing?"

 "Just seeing," she clarifies. "It's pretty casual."

 "Can't be that casual if you're telling me about it," Piper points out.

 Fuck. This is why she never tells Piper about her hookups. "You're the one who asked."

 "Another business bro, I assume?"

 "He's--" Piper swats at her as she automatically sucks her stomach in, their long held code for "stay put." "He's a dancer."

 She hums, arranging pleats over Annabeth's knees. "Like on Broadway?"

 "Ballet."

 Piper glances up at her, eyes sparkling. “Un danseur! Ooh la la,” she trills. “What’s his name?”

 “I can just leave,” Annabeth says, distinctly not thinking about how Percy will occasionally slip into French whenever he stubs his toe.

 “Okay, okay, no more boy talk.” Piper moves in front of her, adjusting the fabric about her waist. “Tell me about the thing you just won with Leo.”

 “I had honestly forgotten about it,” she says, lying a little, pulling her arms forward. “You remember his master’s thesis?”

 “The shmart kishen thing, right?” Piper asks around the tape measure in her mouth.

 Leo, the prodigal boy that he is, had spent his last year of school dedicated to a singular problem faced by people around the world: the sudden, out of control kitchen fire. Using very complicated electronics and engineering that Annabeth does not understand, he devised a handful of mechanisms to sense, contain, and ultimately douse random fires as soon as they popped up. Annabeth came on as his design partner after he had graduated and had gotten some funding to conceptualize an entire safe house.

 “Well, it just won an Eta Industries award.”

 Her head snaps up, hands freezing in their tracks. “Holy shit.”

 “Yeah.”

 “Congrats.”

 “Thanks,” she shrugs as Piper gets up to grab some more fabric. “I mean, it was mostly Leo’s doing. I just made sure he didn’t leave any stray pipes around.”

 Holding out her arms again, Piper slides them through the sleeves of a heavy, corset-like piece, structured and straight and very forgiving on Annabeth’s lack of curves. “You shouldn’t sell yourself short,” she says. “I’m sure your skills as a guinea pig were very valuable.”

 “Are you ever going to let that go?” Annabeth asks, she who has literally burnt pasta while it was submerged in water.

 “You’re just lucky my dad was out of town that weekend. Have you decided what you’re going to wear to the awards ceremony?”

 She shoots her friend a strange look. “I thought I was wearing this?” she gestures to the unfinished silver gown currently making her feel like an absolute goddess.

 Piper makes a face. “What do I look like, the fucking Flash? This isn’t going to be ready for another thirty hours, at least. I’ve got decals to add, Swarovskis to bead, not to mention all the hand-stitching on the neckline because for whatever reason my machine has decided to hate me this week.”

 “Okay, well,” says Annabeth, appropriately cowed, “then I guess I’ll wear the black one you gave me.”

 “2019 fall/winter?”

 Annabeth nods.

 “Styling?”

 “Luke gave me this really nice scarf for my birthday.”

 Throwing her head back, she groans.

 “What? What’s wrong?”

 “You’re so boring,” she moans, pulling Annabeth’s hair out of the way. “Let me guess, you’re going to pair it with the black shrug and opaque nude tights.”

 “Well… yeah, I was.”

 “Exactly! Boring.” Coming back around, she pushes Annabeth lightly into the light, before taking her place behind the camera. “You could do so much with that dress and you choose to make it boring. Why not some fishnets? Or a big statement necklace?”

 Annabeth waits after a few shutter clicks to answer. “Because I doubt that the people at Eta Industries are going to be big fans of my tattoos.”

 “That is a bald-faced lie and you know it,” Piper says. “Your tattoos and piercings are gorgeous and you would look absolutely rocking with them. Knock all the old farts right off their feet. Turn.”

 Obediently, Annabeth rotates, letting Piper snap off as many pictures as she likes. “This isn’t a Vogue event, Pipes,” she says, rolling her eyes where her friend can’t see them. “Punk isn’t exactly accepted practice yet.”

 “Punk was the Met Gala theme almost a decade ago, babe. It has filtered down from Vogue. It's practically cerulean now. Side.”

 Annabeth turns again, keeping her eyes straight. Side-eye would ruin the shot, no matter how much she wants to give it.

 “I will never understand why you both refuse to wear halfway decent jeans and then refuse to go guns out in my dresses that demand it. I can almost guarantee you that Leo will show up in those stupid suspenders with grease on his face. And you’ll have to get him to leave his tool belt in the car.”

 “Then it’s probably for the best that I have a modicum of professionalism, huh?”

 Piper leans out from behind the camera, glaring. “At the very least,” she hedges, “will you let me set you up with some shoes?”

 “I don’t know…”

 “You are not allowed to wear those horrid Manolo pumps you wear everywhere. And your nude Louboutins won’t look right with the black.”

 “What did you have in mind?”

 Piper’s grin is evil, and the way she scampers out of the room means she’s got something she’d been trying to force on Annabeth for a long time.

 Five minutes later, Annabeth is presented with a set of black strappy sandals, its edges detailed in a gold zipper, with safety pin pull to match. She frowns. “Are you sure? They look kind of… hardcore for something like this.”

 “They’re Versace,” Piper says. “I was not lying about punk’s democratization.”

 Well. They are pretty cool.

 “It’s either this or the McQueen boots. They have studs.”

 Annabeth sighs, holding out her hand. Piper squeals, bouncing a little, wrapping her in a brief, but exuberant hug, kissing her cheek with a loud, wet, smack. “You’re the best!”

 “I haven’t even done anything.”

 “I am saving up favors to cash in. Now,” she releases Annabeth, retreating behind the camera. “If you’ve got some time, can I borrow your head? I’m working on a helmet and all my mannequins are busy.”

 ***

 “Hey,” Percy begins. It is so late at night, the dawn is on the edge of breaking, and they are both exhausted from some particularly good sex. Which is saying something, because all their sex is particularly good. “You doing anything on the 18th?”

 “Yeah,” She says, distractedly, snuggling down into his bed. The fact that she’s also snuggling into him is just a coincidence.

 “Oh.”

 “Why?”

 “Nothing. Was going to invite you to a thing if you weren’t.” She nods her head against his shoulder and falls asleep in his arms, thinking absolutely nothing about it.

 She continues to think nothing of it on the train to Philadelphia on the 18th, half-asleep and listening to Paramore to pass the time, blasting Misery Business on repeat as she changes in her hotel room.

 The Eta Industries event is pretty much exactly what she expected: a lot of old rich white people milling about, sipping champagne and verbally circle jerking each other, the insipid strains of classical music spilling out of the ballroom as Annabeth steps up to claim her name tag. “Name?” asks the young, college-aged girl, skimming her printed guest list over the rim of her glasses.

 “Annabeth Chase.”

 She runs a long fingernail over the assorted collection of name tags, before settling on the correct one, handing it to Annabeth, her star tattoo on the inside of her wrist free and open to anyone who would care to look. “Here you are, Ms. Chase,” she says, smiling. “Have a wonderful night!”

 Automatically, Annabeth goes to pin it on Luke’s scarf, before she remembers that something is already occupying that place--Percy’s Acropolis pin. She had taken to keeping it in her pocket these days, something of a good luck charm, and thought that it might… she doesn’t know, maybe send a subconscious signal to Percy that she’s thinking of him. Even though there is, quite literally, no way he could know, she hopes that maybe he can sense it, and that maybe he’s thinking about her, too.

 Ugh. She snatches up a flute of champagne from a wandering waiter, eager to get that thought out of her head, making a beeline straight for the refreshments table. It’s there that Leo finds her, not five minutes later, munching on some chocolate covered strawberries.

 “And here I thought you might ditch me entirely,” he says, even as he bumps her shoulder. True to form, he is absolutely, 100% dressed in those stupid suspenders, a smudge of grease behind his ear.

 “You’ve got a…” Annabeth trails off, motioning behind her own ear.

 “Huh? Oh!” He snatches up a napkin, rubbing discreetly. “Thanks.”

 She squints. Something about him is distinctly different. “Are you taller?”

 Kicking out a foot, he wiggles it, triumphant. “Platform shoes.”

 “Seriously?”

 “Hey, if they're good enough for Robert Downey Jr., then they’re good enough for me. After all, I am Ir--”

 She groans, good-natured, taking another gulp of champagne. “If you quote Marvel in your speech, I’m leaving.”

 “Fine by me, Your Highness, they’ll give me the award either way.”

 “Excuse me, Mr. Valdez?” The same college girl from before sidles up to them, clipboard clutched in her hand. “They’re about to start.”

 He claps his hands, rubbing them together. “Excellent. You coming?”

 “I…” She casts her gaze to the makeshift stage they’ve constructed, eyeing the bright “Eta Industries” placard, the sharp angles shiny and alluring, the siren-song of recognition.

 This is a big deal. There are photographers in the audience. In the write-ups and reviews, she would be listed as a co-winner of the award, a co-designer of the world’s safest house, a thought so happy she practically starts flying.

 “I think I should stay out of the limelight for this one, Leo,” she says, politely. “This is your moment. I don’t want to ruin it.”

 He frowns. “You sure?”

 Were it not for the fact that people were watching, Annabeth would have leapt up onto that stage without a second thought, snatching up the trophy like she had just won the Oscar, holding it up like the goddamn Olympic torch. “What, you want a white woman stealing your glory?” she says instead, arching a brow.

 “You get a pass this one time,” he quips, holding out his hand. “Don’t make me regret it.”

 Whatever social grace she has left crumbles. She’s denied it enough--she wants to be up there. “Oh, fine. Since you insist,” she says, following clipboard-girl to the stage.

 There’s a quick burst of feedback, then an elderly gentleman at the podium begins speaking into the mic. “Excuse me--sorry about that. Yes, yes, thank you all for coming tonight to the annual Eta Industries awards presentation ceremony. It is always such a pleasure to come together with our hard-working and generous board members and shareholders to honor the best and brightest upcoming talent in engineering.”

 Internally, she rolls her eyes. Rich people.

 “It is my pleasure, however, to introduce the young man who is the recipient of this year’s Millennium Prize for innovation and safety. One of MIT’s youngest and most decorated graduates, he was a recipient of the Mead Prize for Students, the Friedman Young Engineer Award, and the Collingwood Prize, among several others. His master’s thesis, ‘Towards the Design and Implementation of Autonomous Safety Measures in Commercial Kitchens,’ formed the basis of the project which we recognize tonight, the so-called ‘SmartSafe House,’ reflects the pioneering spirit and outstanding creative vision of not only Eta Industries, but also the field of engineering as a whole. Please join me in congratulating this year’s Millennium Prize recipient, Leo Valdez.”

 From the sidelines, she claps enthusiastically with the rest of the crowd as her friend takes the stage, shakes hands with the Vice President of Eta Industries, and accepts the award, a blue, blocky triangle which almost seems to glow in the light of the ballroom. “Thank you, Mr. Helms. This is--this is a really big honor.”

 She can see him shaking a bit, taking a quick drink from his water glass. Public speaking was never really his strong suit.

 “As--as a lot of you probably know, this project is very near and dear to my heart. Growing up in Houston with my mother, a car mechanic, I was eight years old when her beloved shop went up in flames, like that.” He snaps his fingers, his other hand pressed to the podium where no one can see, joints white with pressure. Annabeth is proud of him--he hasn’t been able to speak this candidly about it in years. She knows firsthand how much his mother’s near-death haunts him still. “Thankfully, we were able to rebuild, and my mother went on to bigger and better things--including a shop with cleaner vents. But I can definitely pinpoint that moment as the day I knew I wanted to make the world a safer place, for my mom, if not for everyone else.”

 She remembers, so clearly, that snowy night in the dorms at Miss Minerva’s. The power had gone out, and Leo had made them an illicit campfire out of their trash bin and Annabeth’s failed English exam. Cold and miserable and with dying phones, they passed the time instead telling scary stories and funny memories, until the conversation had gotten suddenly, intensely real.

 “But I would be remiss,” he goes on, cheerful, “if I didn’t acknowledge my friend and collaborator, without whose work I wouldn’t be here today: Annabeth Chase,” he waves to his side, indicating her. The whole crowd, as one, turns their gazes on her. She straightens up, imperceptibly, hoping she doesn’t look too haughty or anything. “I’ve never been very good with people. My mama says I’m just like my dad that way. Give me a car, or a computer, or pages of multiplication tables, and I’m golden. But people?” He blows out a breath, and the crowd chuckles, naturally. “Now, if it had been left up to me, the SmartSafe House would have been a top of the line, cutting-edge metal box, efficient to a fault, but completely unlivable. Thank God I had Annabeth on my team to remind me what the project was really about: a home that families could feel safe in, so that what happened to me and my mom might never happen to anyone else.” He hoists his award above his head, leaning into the mic. “Ma, este es para ti. Thank you all.”

 Stepping down from the stage, they reenter the crowd, ready to receive adoration. In another life, she might have been embarrassed by such praise. Here and now, however, she takes each handshake and word of congratulations like a starving man in a desert who just came across an oasis, hungry and greedy.

 Hey, it’s her night, too.

 After what feels like a whole-ass sixty minutes of shaking old people's hands and polite nodding, though, she is in desperate need of a break. Escaping the throng of mingling bodies, she darts into a dark corner of the ballroom, leaning against the back of a rounded stone column, just barely out of sight of the party.

 Rubbing her hands over her face, she sighs, just short of a scream. Blowing out all her air, she lets the faint music and fake laughs melt into each other, becoming white noise, a blank canvas, empty of concrete thoughts and feelings.

 Then, her ear picks up a strand of conversation.

 “...announcing tomorrow that the CEO of Pallas Inc. is choosing a successor,” a woman says, the sneer in her voice almost visible. “About time.”

 “I thought she already picked a successor,” says the woman’s conversation partner, a man with the kind of cookie-cutter cadence that she heard every time she took a business major to bed. “Pallas is a family business, isn’t it?”

 “You haven’t heard?” Annabeth can almost picture it, the furtive glance around the room, the woman placing her hand on her partner’s arm, leaning in to share a juicy secret. “Supposedly she was grooming her daughter for the role, before she went in for rehab.”

 “Rehab? Really?”

 “What else could it be?” says the woman. “She’s disappeared off the face of the earth, and her mother refuses to talk about her. Let’s be honest, if she were dead, she would have raised a bigger stink about it.”

 Annabeth closes her eyes, sucking air in through her teeth. That… wasn’t totally untrue.

 But the woman doesn’t stop. “It’s always the same story,” she scoffs. “You throw countless hours of schooling and millions of dollars into girls like her, and what do they do? Turn around and blow it all on drugs and partying. Honestly, she should be grateful her mother is even bothering with her rehab at all. Hasn’t she wasted enough of the family’s money already?”

 Blood roars in her ears, drowning out the fancy party. Sharp points dig into her palm, pinpricks of pain, before she realizes that they’re her own fingernails.

 The lady has got it all wrong. Her mom couldn’t even be bothered with that.

 Luke’s scarf, the shrug, it’s choking her, suffocating and constricting. Percy’s pin feels heavy on her chest.

 Blinders on, she would have sprinted for the exit were it not for the Piper’s stupid Versace heels, reduced instead to a teetering, tottering wreck, like a baby colt running from a predator. The night is hot and humid, heavy with the threat of rain, and Annabeth can barely breathe, dark spots in her eyes, until she ducks into a nearby Target, the frigid blast of air a welcome distraction.

 Almost in a daze, she watches herself pick up a few things--clippers, an electric razor, beef jerky, a blue Gatorade she considers for a moment before putting it back, choosing a lemonade instead--practically throwing them at the poor cashier who begins checking her out, mechanically. He doesn’t spare her a single glance for her odd assortment of items. He doesn’t even look at her at all.

 The walk to her hotel room disappears in the blink of an eye. Blink--she breezes past the check-in counter, slipping into the empty elevator. Blink--she kicks off her heels in her room, nearly hitting the wall mirror, leaving a scuff mark on the white plaster. Blink--she’s down to her underwear and tights in the bathroom, shaving the right side of her curls clean off. She’d gotten them professionally done for the night, perfect spirals held together by expensive products. And now she wants them gone.

 She pauses and breathes too hard, looking at herself in the mirror. Her mother didn’t like that she was blonde. Maybe because of dumb blonde stereotypes, maybe just because it reminded Athena too much of her failed romance with Annabeth’s dad. And that thought stays her hand from getting rid of the rest of them.

 That, and maybe the idea of Percy, of some broke dancer, tangling his fingers in it as they lie together.

 Fuck her mother, and the fucking stories she tells.

 She likes it. She likes her blonde hair and her fresh undercut.

 She can get Thalia to touch this up later, maybe. Now, though, she needs this.

 It doesn’t look perfect. The left side of hair is too long, her gold laurel earrings too fancy for a homegrown haircut like this, her makeup too pristine. Shoving her hand under the running water, she rubs at her eyes, mascara and eyeliner smearing until they’ve reached something much more respectable for the failure that she really is.

 She misses her industrial. And her eyebrow rings. And the tongue piercing. But this will have to do for now.

 Breathing heavily, eyes hot, she doesn’t register her phone blinking, signaling an unread text message.

 It’s from Thalia. surprised you weren’t at kelp heads bday party, it reads. was pretty boring. Kno he missed you  

[narvaldetierra]

Once upon as kids

This is the AU as Kids prompt from the #BarsonBingoAugust2021 created by @simpforbarba. Hope you enjoy it.

Warnings: mention of assault, verbal abuse, angst with an attempt of fluff. Let me know if I forgot anything. Words: 4102 A/N: I was planning something fluff and cute for them as kids, but the story decided to go in another direction. It is what it is. I have another 4 wip for this bingo, and somehow this is the first one I finished. Disclaimer: English is not my first language, so please be nice. I'm open to constructive comments that help me improve my writing tho.

Some music that inspired me

The police chase had started a few minutes ago. The criminal was running away in a red car, with paint chipped on the trunk. The police were following the car, near enough, with the siren on. They went through the streets and turned around at the bakery corner without slowing down. Then turned around at the bank, and then surrounded the park. When it was the third time they turned around at the bakery, they decided that it was time to get out of the toy streets, so they moved to the carpet and under the bed. They even made the cars go over the walls, ignoring all gravity. Rafael was running fast, using the toy car that belonged to the criminal. Olivia was behind, running with the police car, making the siren with her own voice.

Both nine years old, the kids were running in circles one behind the other, through the bedroom, going up and down the bed and the desk, running to the window and then back to the miniature city, playing with the cars.

They had been in Rafael’s bedroom since they arrived from school. They did the homework together and then they played nonstop every game they could think of. They always found a way to keep entertaining each other, even when they were exhausted from running and they laid down on the floor. Looking at the ceiling they were arguing about comics.

“Rafa! Dinner is ready” said his mother, almost singing when she opened the door. Then she noticed that he wasn’t alone and stood at the door frame. “Oh! Olivia… I didn’t know you were here, honey.”

“Hi Miss Barba” she said, then she sat on the floor and waved to her.

“Mamá, can Olivia stay for dinner?” Rafael asked, and sat too. “Please, please, pleaaaaaaase.”

Lucía Barba smiled at the girl, then at her son. This week, it was the third time that Olivia was in their house that late and it was only Thursday. She thought about it for a moment, then she nodded. “Sure, I'll put another plate on the table. Did your mom know that you are here?”

“Don’t worry, she won’t mind” Olivia answered. She didn’t want to lie, but neither wanted to talk about her private stuff.

“Ok. Wash your hands and do not delay or it will get cold.”

The kids hurried up and washed their hands, using a stool to reach the sink. They run to the dinner table, playing with each other. Olivia was excited because Ma Barba was an excellent cook, her food was the best she had ever tasted. Always homemade food, cooked with dedication and love for her family. When they were already sitting at the table, they were able to hear Mr. and Ms. Barba, arguing.

“¡Siempre está aquí Lucía! ¿Acaso no tiene su propia casa?” (She’s always here, Lucia! Does she don't have a home?)

“Será sólo por esta noche…” (It would be just for tonight)

“Siempre dices eso y siempre hay una noche más. Ella no es tu hija.” (You always say that, and there’s always one more night. She’s not your daughter.)

Then Mr. Barba went to the dining room, unable to hide his anger, but he didn't even try to. Ms. Barba was smiling, when she brought the food. Then the rest of the night was in peace, with conversations between Ms. Barba, Rafael, and Olivia, but Mr. Barba remained silent.

When dinner was finished, Olivia thanked them for the food and for letting her share with them that night. Then, she said goodbye to her friend and his parents and went back to her home with her tummy full of food. She wasn’t that far, just two floors down at the same building. She didn’t want to hurry up, so she used the stairs, taking her time. When she couldn’t postpone it any more, she went into the apartment.

She took off her shoes at the entrance and peeked out looking for her mother, before taking the hall to get to her bedroom. As she couldn’t see her, she ran and closed her bedroom door. She changed her clothes for her pajamas and went to bed. She read something from her current book and turned off the light by 10 pm. A few minutes later, she was asleep.

Four hours later she awake with a loud noise in the apartment. She sat on her bed startled, staring at the door in silence. There was no other sound in the entire building, just the New York night outside. She got out of bed and look for the source of the noise, and she found it pretty fast. Her mom was at the entrance of the apartment, laying on the floor and blocking the door that remained open.

Serena Benson, still conscious, was too drunk to move or even try to stand. She was mumbling some unintelligible stuff. She exuded the smell of alcohol that Olivia hated, but even then, she took her mother by her wrist and pull to move her inside the apartment. Olivia closed the door and locked it. Then she pulled her mother to the living room. With some effort, she laid her on the couch and covered her with a blanket. She went back and stare at her mom. She hated it when her mom was like this, and hated it to have to take care of her, but she was used to it. She made sure she would be okay and went back to her bed.

---

Pretending like nothing happened last night, Serena Benson woke up her daughter early in the morning. She had a terrifying face and there was no need to tell, to know that she had a hangover. Olivia knew the rules, when her mom was like this, she should avoid any noise she could make.

In the kitchen was breakfast already done. A bowl of cereal, with the last of milk that didn't fill even a half of a normal bowl of cereal. Olivia sat at the table and ate, then looked for her bag and the science project she had made with Rafael. The project was a solar system, in which the planets rotate around the sun and the earth could be disassembled, watch all the layers from the atmosphere to the planet core.

“It is a good project” Serena said, filling the silence.

“T-thanks...” was the kid's answer with a shy smile. She was surprised by her compliment.

That was all. The grown-up didn't feel well enough to have a conversation, she was facing the fact that she would have an entire class in front of her in a few hours. She preferred to save her energy for that. And Olivia preferred not to try her luck, it was better to stay with that single comment.

She met Rafael at school. They shared most of their classes, and they both were thankful for that. Most of the time, they used to work as a duo in all the scholar projects, with some exceptions when teachers made them choose another classmate, so “they could interact with someone else”.

For lunchtime they had presented their solar system, and get a really good mark. They sat alone at a table by the middle of the school canteen. Rafael took out his food, which was a grilled chicken with some tomato, lettuce, and rice. At the same time, Olivia had peanut butter and jelly sandwich. As it was already part of their usual habit, they merged and shared lunch, letting Olivia's sandwich as dessert.

While they took turns with the fork, Olivia couldn't help but thinking that Rafa was the best. He never asked about her mom, or why she never had something better for lunch. Instead, he was always there to help her, share his food or just give her a quiet place to do homework. They were the best friends, in the whole world and if it has depended on her, she would live in his home. But it wasn't up to her, and based on what happened the last night, Mr. Barba was tired of having her in his home.

“Is your dad still mad?”

“No, he's good now.”

“Rafa…”

“yeah?”

“What does it mean “hija”?” She wasn’t an expert, she couldn’t even speak the language, but after spending so much time in his apartment, she was beginning to learn some Spanish.

“Oh… You understood what they were talking about?” He asked, scratching the back of his neck. He was hoping that she hadn't learned that much, but he was wrong. Olivia nodded. “Hija means daughter.”

“Oh...” she reminded silence and looked down. Olivia tried to understand what Mr. Barba had said, but it made no sense to her.

Rafael made a thoughtful grimace, he was torn whether to speak or not. It was a very sensitive and private subject, but he didn’t seem to need to hide it from his best friend. “My… My mom” he mumbled “my mom had a miscarriage when I was 3” he looked for a way to say the next part without sound as silly as he thought it would be. “They both assure it was a girl.”

“I’m sorry...” was the only thing that Olivia felt was appropriate to say.

“It was a long time ago.” Rafa shrugged its shoulders.

“Perhaps I shouldn’t go to your home today.”

“But we can meet at the roof, right?”

“Yeah, sure.”

---

The roof was their special place, which could be anything they wanted to. One day it could be a jungle, and the next one the Grand Canyon. Sometimes it was a fantasy land where they met with fairies and goblins, who made them knights so they could save their world from evil entities that wanted to steal their magic. That specific day, the roof was a boat in the middle of the ocean. Inspired by Spielberg's latest movie, Jaws, they ran all around the roof, pretending to see a shark swimming around them. Neither of them had seen the movie, they were too young for that movie, but they knew it was about a shark that ate people, so they created their own story.

“Careful! There it is!” screamed Olivia pointing to the imaginary shark.

“He sank underwater. Where did he go?”

“Ah! It's hitting the boat” Olivia walked zigzag, pretending that the boat shook. “It’s going to sink us.”

“Engines are stuck, I can repair them but not with that thing in the water”

“Then we have to get rid of him.”

“I take care of it” answered Rafael with his hands making a gun. Neither of them had ever seen a shark in their lives, they barely knew about them from bedtime stories and they didn't even know the size of a shark or how to kill them, but they thought that a simple gun could work.

They kept playing this way for a while. The shark was around them, then it went away. It came back with another shark and finally, they defeated both sharks. Then they fixed the engines and sailed to the pirate island when they found the treasure.

When they got tired, they just sat on the floor with their back against the wall. The sun was hiding and the winter cold was increasing. Olivia didn’t want to go back to her home, so she kept talking about anything that came to her mind.

“So… are you going to the kermesse night at school next week?” she asked.

“I didn’t plan to go, but I don’t have anything else to do.”

“We could go together, it could be fun,” she said enthusiastically “I heard that Mr. Morris would be in the dunk tank. We could have some revenge from gym classes.

“Sounds very tempting” he admitted thinking about all the times that professor Morris made them run more than their lungs could handle.

Then they planned all night with all the games that would be in the kermesse, talking about how fun it would be and all they could eat. Everyone knew that the food in those kinds of events is the least healthy but extremely delicious.

Finally, it was too cold to stay on the roof, so they had to come back to their apartments. They used the exterior stairways, then said goodbye to her friend when they got to his floor. She sighed and looked at the view of the city lights, before going back to her apartment. Her mother was there, arguing with the tv, as she slurring the words. She gave off the awful smell of cheap whiskey that Olivia hated.

“Another night in heaven...” Olivia thought and then she locked in her room.

---

The next Friday, 6:30pm, Olivia was ready. She had spent the last hour dressing up to go out. Usually, she wouldn't have paid much attention to her appearance, but lately, it had been more important to her. “What was wrong with wanting to look pretty?” She said to herself, trying to convince herself, as she looked for the perfect outfit in her wardrobe. She settled on a dress and collected her hair in a half ponytail.

When she went out of her bedroom, she found her mother doing something that surprised her: she was cooking. Olivia slowly approached her mother, without making a noise. She wasn’t sure about her mood. Serena became aware of her presence when she was halfway, so she turned around to see her.

“Why are you so dressed up?” Serena asked.

“I was... going out.”

“With whose permission?”

Olivia doubted for a while, then she said “It’s game night at school.”

“I didn’t know about that” then she went back to cooking. “We’re not going anyway, we’re having family night”

The kid reminded silent, watching her mother in disbelief. It had been weeks or months since the last family night. Serena cooking wasn’t an image that she saw often. Even when she made her peanut butter and jelly sandwich, that was not actually cooking. Olivia didn’t know what to do: having a normal mom who cooked and spent time together was something she had always wanted. But Rafa was waiting for her in the school, they were ready to sink Mr. Morrins in the dunk tank and to eat some junk food. She couldn’t let him waiting for her just because her mother decided to be a normal mom at the last minute, but she also couldn’t throw away this opportunity, she wasn’t sure when it could happen again.

Finally, she decided that she could stay for dinner and then pretend to be exhausted and go to her bedroom, then sneak out from her window, using the outside stairways, and meet Rafa at school. So, she helped her mother serve dinner. She didn’t change her clothes, she could have dinner with her mother in a nice outfit and pretend they were a normal family.

Dinner started peacefully and quietly. Olivia didn’t know how to talk to her mom or even what they could talk about, but she manages to mention some stuff from school, something a teacher said to her about an essay, and something about her next school project. Serena was pleased with her grades as if that was the only thing that mattered. In the end, she was a professor, and grades were important to her. Serena talked about how important that would be for her future and she took the opportunity to complain about some students who seemed to have no intention of studying for any of their exams. Eventually, the conversation turned back to the Kermes and who Olivia would meet there.

“Always with that boy. Don’t you have any girl friend?” Serena asked dismissively, while she cut another bite. “You have to look after your image.”

“Rafa is my friend, I like to go out with him. I do not understand what's the problem with that” was the kid's answer. She was somewhat upset because her mother did little to take care of her own image.

Then, both of them remained silent. It was an awkward silence. The noise of the cutlery against the plates was merged with the music from some Bowie fan neighbor, and the usual sound of New York City. Olivia looked eager to the clock in the kitchen. She wanted dinner to end as soon as possible, so she could go to find her friend. She no longer liked the family dinner. Something that her mother seemed to notice and for which she went upset.

“You still want to go out, huh?” she put the cutlery aside and stared at her. “This is not a hotel, Olivia. You can’t spend all day out and come back only to sleep. You are only nine and you live more in the apartment of those Latinos than in your own home”

Olivia usually avoided arguments with her mother, she knew she would lose anyway, but this time was different. The way that Serena had talked about Barba’s family, with all that disdain, made Olivia furious and she could no longer remain silent. “And why do I want to be in this apartment? Just to take care of you? To clean your puke? What is so damn special about this house? There’s no food, just those things for microwaves you left, hoping that would be enough.” Tears gathered in the girl's eyes. “You are never here either! And when you are, you are so drunk that you can’t even stand or you have a hangover and so much work to do” She had kept all of that for so long, and she always thought she would feel better if she could say it out loud, but it wasn’t that way.

“What do you want from me, Olivia? You have a place to live, clothes, you go to a good school, and good or bad, you have never been short of food” Serena was getting impatient.

“I don’t care about clothes or school, I want you to care about me! The only thing I ask for is for you to care enough to be with me, to stay sober for a while.” Tears streamed down her cheeks. “You are my mother! I need you…” her voice cracked at the end.

“You need me, but you will go far from this apartment as long as you can, so you don't have to be with me.” Serena raised an eyebrow in disbelief. She wasn’t screaming but her voice was intimidating anyway. “About my job, is the only thing that pays for this house, for your stuff and your food, so you should be more grateful.”

“I would be more grateful if I had a mom” exclaimed and then she added, “You shouldn't have created a person if you weren't going to care about them, if you were going to abandon her every night, to drown yourself in a bottle.”

“I didn’t want you!” Serena strode forward to Olivia and took her by her shoulders “I didn’t even know your father!” Serena shook her, in a desperate attempt to get the words etched into his daughter. Olivia was terrified, her mother could have been negligent and alcoholic, but she had never laid a hand on her. “He just forced me, he did what he wanted with me, even when I begged him not to. Then, nine months later you were in my arms.” Then she released her and Olivia fell to the ground. “If you are here it’s just because I didn’t have the guts to abort you.”

The apartment fell silent, time seemed to have stopped. The rapid breathing of both of them and the music of the neighbor were the only sounds that filled the apartment. Olivia felt like her heart was about to leap out of her chest. The expression on his face changed into horror when Serena realized what she just did. Olivia stood up and run away, out of the apartment. When Serena reached the door, there was no sign of the girl.

---

Rafael didn’t know where else to the lookout. Olivia hadn't been at school, she wasn’t in her home, nor even at his window waiting for him. It was too late for her to be in the library so there was only one place left: the roof. He sneaked out through the window from his bedroom and went upstairs. In a corner, with her knees against her chest and her head between her legs, Olivia was crying. Rafael ran to his friend and knelt by her side.

“Liv” He put a hand over her shoulder. She was startled by his touch, but she didn’t move, not even to see him. “Liv, what happened?” He could hear her sobbing even though she was trying to hide it. “I was worried about you. When you didn’t make it to the kermesse I came for you. Liv?”

“She hates me” she mumbled with her head hidden between her legs.

“What?”

“My mother hates me!” she exclaimed, raising his head. Tears running down her cheeks. “I always knew that she was different from other moms, but I never thought she just hated me.” Olivia hugged Rafael and hid her face against his chest.

“Liv…Don't you cry” he wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. “I don’t think anyone could hate you, that’s crazy”

“You just say that because you are my friend” she sobbed one more. She released him and wiped a tear with her hand.

“What happened?”

“She… There is a reason why she never talks about my father” She clenched his hands into fists. She hated her father, she hated herself, she hated what she said to her mom and her answer to that. Everything was too much to process, and she felt so many things she couldn’t even start to describe it. “We had a fight, she said some things… and then I said some other…” she covered her mouth with both hands and cried again.

It took a while for Rafael to calm her down. It was cold and he should already be at his home, but he didn’t care. He had never seen his friend like this, and he just knew he couldn’t let her alone. Olivia couldn't tell him everything, she wanted to, but she didn’t know how it was so recently. Some day she would tell him the truth about her father, as her best friend he deserved to know, but not that night.

“What would I do now? I can’t go back” she sight. She was exhausted, but she wasn’t crying anymore. “I don’t want to go back tonight.”

“Come to my house” Rafael answered as if it were the most obvious thing.

“But your parents…”

“Don’t worry about them. I’ll take care of it.” He smiled at her. “You can sneak through my window. It's all gonna be alright.”

Rafael stood and offered a hand to Olivia to help her stand as well. Spiritless, she took his hand and got up. She hugged her friend one more time, and then they both went down to his apartment. Before entering through the window, Olivia could see that the light in her apartment was still on. She wondered if her mother was still up waiting for her or just drinking in a poor attempt to forget that night.

Once they were inside his bedroom, Rafa made sure his parents hadn't heard them, and then went out to get a glass of water for Olivia. He almost ran back to his room and from his bedroom door, he wished his parents good night. They would be fine, his parents rarely went to his room once he went to sleep.

Rafa spoke to her of as many things as he could to distract her, something Olivia was thankful for. A few minutes later, they took off the light. As he fell asleep almost immediately, she couldn’t. She was still thinking about the light from her apartment. She felt terrible, she wanted to hate her mother for everything she had told her, and for everything she made her go through, but at the same time she couldn’t help but felt sorry for her, and for better or for worse she was her mother and she loved her. She turned around, hugged her friend's arm, and with the promise of a new day, she fell asleep.

[miraculousmarifan]

Felinette Month 2020 - Day 19: Fallen Angel

Happy @felinettenovember! Can you guys guess what prompts I spend more than one day writing? I almost decided to try drawing the akumatized Felix before remembering that I haven’t drawn in nearly 10 years (maybe I would be better off painting it?) and wasn’t really good at people before that point... So I did this instead!

Almost 1900 words and if requested, this could have a continuation for some resolution later this year or early next year and/or potentially a piece of art to try showing Felix as an akuma and/or the object that inspired his form

Felix was close to flipping tables. Marinette had to be an angel from above with how she was handling being bullied by this Lila girl. How was it that even after the school was notified that Lila supposedly had a disease that made her compulsively lie but wasn’t antisocial personality disorder (?), the teacher refused to step in and help one of her star pupils? He shouldn’t be surprised. This was the same teacher that condoned Chloe’s defacing of Marinette’s present to count as them working together on it, even though Marinette had put actual effort into it. This was the same teacher that tried to convince Marinette to be a doormat, in the name of “setting a good example,” as though that has truly changed people that benefit from wronging others.

What he really couldn’t understand was how her friends weren’t more cautious about the liar. She had temporarily gotten Marinette expelled by claiming that she had not only cheated on a mock test, but also stolen the liar’s necklace, AND pushing the witch down the stairs. The class didn’t believe that it sounded like Marinette and YET after Marinette is returned due to the supposed uncontrollable lying diagnosis, they don’t question Lila's integrity? He couldn’t quite fathom why they wouldn’t take the things she said with a grain of salt after that very public and obvious set of lies, especially about Marinette.

And yet, here he was. Standing outside the classroom, waiting for a phone call from his driver, when he overhears the liar whispering to a few girls from the class. Marinette had been gone for an appointment the last period of school and apparently that wasn’t enough for Lila. He heard Alya exclaim, “That doesn’t really sound like Marinette…” and then a sad reply along the lines of how she knew Marinette was friends with all them but she couldn’t believe Marinette said that to her and just wanted to understand why by asking their closest friends. So on so on. Even with her verbalized doubt, it was clear from the tone she used that Alya believed it possible that Marinette had something to Lila, even if it wasn’t as severe as the liar had made it out to be. Felix didn’t need to be any closer to smell the fake crap Lila was spreading. He was sure it would have smelled over a mile away.

Rose exclaimed how she couldn’t believe how much Marinette was starting to act like Chloe and how they really needed to shake Marinette out of this. Alya volunteered to talk to her about it and encouraged them not to do anything crazy before then. It was the first time Felix felt a decent amount of respect towards Alya. Apparently she is starting to learn not to jump immediately to conclusions when it comes to Lila and Marinette. Unfortunately their other friends hadn’t gotten that much insight from the previous incidents and believed that Lila wouldn’t possibly exaggerate or make up anything and cause drama unnecessarily. Alya told the group that she had texted the girl and was going to head over to their place to hang out later that night.

Alya left, muttering how it sounded too extreme to be what Marinette had actually said. Felix had to give it to her, even if she had too much faith in the Italian, it was nice to see she wouldn’t fully discount her friend without any true evidence. Unfortunately with Alya’s departure, the voice of reason had left these girls and they were left with a snake. Felix decided to move slightly closer, just to keep an ear out for danger.

“I don’t think having a talk with her is really going to change Marinette’s mind. I mean she already knows about my health conditions and she’d rather discriminate against me than admit that I’m just trying to be friends. I reached out in good faith, painting her a picture, and she destroyed it and told me we could never be friends. It was just shockingly mean! She’s so nice to you guys so I thought this would help, especially since we like so much of the same stuff! I can’t help it if Adrien rejected her for me!”

Felix wanted to gag at that reasoning again. Marinette had worked to move on from Adrien long ago and especially hard when he had started dating Kagami over a year ago. She even started having tea and snacks with his girlfriend at least once a month, since Kagami didn’t get out much and Marinette didn’t want her to feel left out. As far as Felix knew, Marinette had long since given up on Adrien and was more focused on her personal projects than on boys, something her friends should have known by now.

“We know it’s not your fault and she should realize that too!” Rose tried to cheer up Lila.

“It’s so hard to imagine her destroying someone else’s art when she preaches about how people shouldn’t touch other’s work! Plus she has to know how much that sucks, after Chloe ruined her present for Ms. Bustier a few years ago…” Alix sounded angry enough to act impulsively and it didn’t sit well with Felix.

“To me, it just doesn’t seem like talking to her is going to be enough for her to really think about her actions, but you guys know her the best!” Lila managed to get a small amount of wavering into her voice, to convey hesitant worry and unsuccessfully attempted optimism through her small shrug. Felix may have thought that some of her lies should be relatively easy to dismiss but he had to admit that sometimes she could be a good actress.

“If we left her a message along with doing something, she wouldn’t ignore it right? Especially if she knows that if she ever does something like that again, we won’t stay friends with her…” Alix suggested. Felix felt his stomach sink. This was going bad but he couldn’t just walk in there right? He waited a moment longer to hear them start planning how they were going to ruin Marinette’s personal art project that she had been working on during her study hall, as it was sitting in a drying area of the art room. He had enough information to go talk to Damocles about what he had heard.

After hearing Felix’s concerns and hearing his stern insistence that this was actually at risk of happening, not just girl’s venting, Damocles accompanied him to the art room to check into the security of the projects inside. By the time the pair arrived though, they were too late. Nobody was in the room anymore, however Marinette’s project was beyond repair. 

She had sculpted a human-like angel with arms raised with peace and joy captured remarkably on its face, an orb in its hands being presented to the sky like a holy gift. The wings had been formed into individual feathers and Marinette had just put the first layer of paint on it that day. The base color of the wings was a lovely shade of light pink, her dress had the first layer of white, the skin left a gray tone, with a small amount of darker gray and lighter gray added to certain areas to imitate how light would fall if emitted from the orb. The orb had a strange tone of light blue-green for the base. He had been enthusiastically anticipating her final painting work since she had finished the sculpting step.

Now the angel was missing a wing, the orb that had barely rested on the carved palms was separated from the hands, and the arms were no longer connected. He picked up the body of the statue gently before looking up at Damocles sadly.

“It’s too bad we didn’t get here sooner. I guess we will just have to check the school’s cameras to figure out who did this.” Damocles took a step towards the stand that the statue had previously been set on, picked up the note left on it, and read it out loud.

“‘This is for ruining Lila’s painting. You should’ve accepted her peace offering rather than blaming her for Adrien’s rejection and if you keep acting like this, you won’t have any more friends here.’--” he cleared his throat in displeased surprise, “-- I will need to take this note as evidence in this. Also, we should probably take some pictures of the damages before getting this cleaned up.”

Felix helped set the pieces of the statue on the table next to each other before the principal took out his cell phone and snapped a quick picture of that and of the note. Before the man could leave, Felix volunteered to clean up the classroom as he was sure Marinette would still want the pieces. He was also sure that Damocles would actually proceed with this investigation due to his involvement and firmness regarding the need to supply a punishment. While the punishment would not be sufficient, there would at least be some record of this incident.

Before sweeping up the tiny pieces that he didn’t expect her to care about, he sat down in a chair and held the body of the statue. His fingers ran over the one remaining wing despite the paint smearing on his skin, feeling the texture his classmate had managed for the feathers. It was an amazing work that would be difficult to replicate, if Marinette even decided it was worth doing again. Part of him hoped she would redo the remarkable piece. He felt anger bubbling just below the surface of his sadness, anger that the girls that were supposedly her friends would do this. Anger that their school was not secure for her. Anger that he wasn’t able to protect her, even having heard the plans. Grief over being too slow to protect her. Crushing sadness that she couldn’t trust her classmates, her supposed friends, to even ask her about a situation before trusting another’s words about her. Someone that had very publicly lied to get her suspended just the last school year. He was so busy with his thoughts and the statue that he missed the purple butterfly coming towards him until it settled into the statue.

“Hello Ange Déchu. I am Hawk Moth. The people around you pass judgement on the innocent and work on behalf of the wicked. It must be frustrating to watch them work to break the people you care about. I will give you the power to understand people’s intentions and apply your chosen consequences on them so you can protect the ones you love. In exchange you would give me Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculous.”

In this akumatized form, he could not only protect Marinette but also help her get revenge on the manipulative witch. She would be his queen, his direction, and she would be able to decide how she wanted to apply justice.

“Yes Hawk Moth. I will deal out Marinette’s justice and get the miraculous for you.” The akumatized Felix, called Fallen Angel, unfurled his black wings and pushed off the ground to fly to Marinette’s side. He would protect her first and foremost. Then they would deal with the witch and her flying monkeys however she saw fit.

[prayedtoyou]

elevator confessions

Destiel // 1.6k words // general audiences // mentions of past canon MCD

i was inspired by this adorable fanart by @kamicom because it kinda looks like they’re in an elevator and i just had to write something. i know it’s an older fanart, but i just saw it for the first time ever yesterday and i absolutely adore it and i think we could all use a little love confession and some fluff. so, without further adieu ~

“How did you know Amanda Lay?”

The girl—Emily, Dean remembers—hands him and Cas a couple cups of coffee. It’s early morning and smells like the rain they drove through on the ride here the night before. The windows of her high rise Seattle apartment are all open and a soft breeze rustles a magazine on the coffee table, moves the floor-length curtains. The apartment is stunning in a shabby chic sort of way, full of floral designs and soft throw blankets. It’s not really Dean’s taste, but it’s spotless. Dean wonders if she’s been cleaning through her sadness.

“We went to grad school together.” She takes a seat in the white armchair across from the couch Dean and Cas are sat on. Her face is expressionless but her eyes are swollen. Dean’s seen it plenty of times before; people repress their grief around other people in the aftermath of a death so no one can see them falling apart. Dean’s been there himself more times than he’d like to remember. “We met in the food court between classes and clicked right away. We started living together a year after we met.” She looks from Dean to Cas and back to Dean. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think I had to talk to the cops about this, I wasn’t there.”

“The FBI takes things a little more seriously and we have to run our own investigation,” Dean explains. He takes a sip of his coffee and flips open his notepad. “I know this must be very difficult for you, but we appreciate any information you can give us.”

“The FBI is involved in a . . . bear attack?”

“Killers are very creative nowadays, Ms. Maxwell,” Dean continues quickly when he sees Cas’s mouth open up. He told Cas not to talk too much, since he was never really all that great at undercover work. “We have reason to believe that a person may have done this with their own makeshift claws.”

Dean knew there was no delicate way to put that, but he didn’t have to recite the words like they were out of a script. That’s the downside of having so much experience, sometimes you forget that other people care more than you do.

Emily’s stoic expression holds while she processes Dean’s words, but it breaks down slowly, and then, all all at once, she begins to shake under waves of sobbing. Her hands come up to cover her face as the gasping and wailing fill the otherwise composed apartment. Cas looks at Dean, clearly uncomfortable and unsure of what to do.

“Who would do that?” she shrieks, looking between Dean and Cas with tears streaming down her face, hands in fists on her knees. “To another person? To Amanda? Why would they do that to her? She didn’t do anything wrong!”

Dean opens his mouth to offer some sort of rehearsed condolence, but abandons the idea when she wraps her arms around her middle and bows her head over her lap, the crying continuing. She looks like she’s about to be sick.

Cas leans over and whispers, “Dean, what’s happening?”

It takes everything in him not to roll his eyes. “She just lost her friend, Agent Kossoff. She’s sad.”

“She wasn’t just my friend!” Emily blurts around a hiccup, pulling herself up enough to cast her angry red eyes at them. “I was in love with her! She was the love of my life and I never—” hic “—I never—” hic “—told her!”

Understanding floods through Dean. It hits painfully close to home, but he doesn’t have the time to think about it. He pushes the box of tissues on the table closer to her, hoping that’s what she needs right now. He watches as she takes one to mop up her tears and then another to loudly blow her nose. She’s an absolute wreck. A flash of a memory—knuckles against a back door, carrying a body inside, burning his best friend—knocks a little breath out of him. He pushes it away.

“I was going to tell her on her birthday,” she blubbers quietly, sobs subsiding. “I had this big plan with flowers and wine and some rom-coms. She never really liked parties, so I thought it could just be the two of us, and I could talk to her about it. But at the last minute she said she wanted to go hiking with her sister. I told her to be safe and call me if she had signal, but the next time I saw her was on the news.”

Dean pulls a few pages of his notepad back and finds a name. “Her sister, Kelsey, said that it happened while Amanda was out looking for some water, but Kelsey wasn’t attacked. Was there anyone who would have ever wanted to hurt Amanda?”

Emily shakes her head. “Amanda was the kindest person I’ve ever met. She was a veterinarian, for crying out loud, all she wanted to do was take care of animals and volunteer at the soup kitchen and paint. Everyone loved her.”

Dean nods, scratching a few words on his notepad. He glances at Cas who’s already looking at him, but quickly looks away. 

There isn’t much else she could tell them and Dean’s sure that she would rather be alone to cope with her loss than continue to be questioned by strangers, so he stands and Cas follows suit. He hands her a card. “We appreciate your time, Emily. If you think of anything else, please don’t hesitate to call.”

She takes the card with a nod and nothing else. Dean and Cas let themselves out and press the button for the elevator. It’s quiet between them as they wait for the car. Dean worries his lip, thinking about the times he lost Cas and regretted not telling him.

He should tell him. Before it’s really too late. Cas could die tomorrow—hell, he could die today on this case—and he’d never know.

Maybe Amanda knew and she went hiking because she was too afraid to deal with it. Maybe she thought avoiding Emily would make it feel less like breaking her heart. Maybe Cas knows, too. Maybe that’s why he never seems to stick around longer than a week or two at a time.

The elevator doors open for them and they step inside. Cas isn’t looking at Dean, more concerned with wringing his hands together like he’s nervous. Dean’s never seen him do that before; he looks so human doing it.

He should tell him. Cas is human now, so he’s vulnerable. The elevator cords could snap and they could fall 15 floors to their death. Someone could hit them on the drive back to the motel and crush them against the side of a building. Lightning could strike, a 10th story potted plant could fall, a dog could maul one of them and it’d all be over. He should tell him.

Dean Winchester has never been rumored to be a coward, not since he spent decades hunting monsters and staring Death in the face and fighting God himself. But this is different. This is scary—putting it all on the line to risk losing one of the most important people in his life. Still, he should tell him.

It’s just not the right time. Which is a problem, because it’s never the right time. He could have told him when he first started having these feelings, when they were new and confusing, but how could he explain something he didn’t even understand? He could have told him when he was planning on blowing up Amara and himself, but what would be the point in admitting his feelings when he was just about to die? He could have told him when Cas came back from the Empty, all shiny and new and lost, but there was too much else going on to worry about emotions. He could have told him in purgatory, both times, he could have told him in the hushed hours of the night when he knew Cas was watching over him, he could have told him, he should have told him, he should tell him, he—

“Dean?”

Cas’s voice startles him out of his internal argument. Cas is still distressing his hands and his gaze is zeroed in on the floor.

“Hm?” he replies.

Cas doesn’t say anything for a few seconds. He said Dean’s name so quietly he’s starting to wonder if he even said it at all.

“I . . .” Dean hears Cas audibly swallow and take a deep breath. “I love you.”

Dean’s brain short circuits. Cas didn’t really just say he loved him, did he?

“Hmm,” he hums in response. What does one even say to that? Yeah, I love you too and I have for years but I was too much of a pussy to say anything. And maybe also, Did you just have the same internal monologue as me and beat me to the punch? Perhaps with a side of, Was I even going to take that punch or just continue to repress my feelings for another ten years?

None of those things come out. Instead, he does what he does best and Dean Winchesters his way through it. He wraps an arm around Cas’s neck like it’s no big deal and pulls him in close enough to press a long kiss to his cheekbone. Cas is stiff for a moment, then relaxes and worms an arm around Dean’s waist.

“I love you, too,” Dean says against Cas’s skin.

Cas turns to face him and Dean turns at the same time and their mouths find each other without preamble.

When the elevator opens to the lobby, they walk out to the car like that, wrapped around each other, and then they hold hands in Baby, and then they meet up with Sam at the motel with smiles and breakfast sandwiches. Sam doesn’t say anything, but Dean thinks he knows. And that’s enough for now.

tags under the cut!

@joharvell | @good-things-do-happen-dean | @curly-cue-scamp | @queenvee08 | @cottondean | @flowersforcas | @letsgobethegoodguys | @sorrycas | @randomlikes24 | @hallowedbecastiel | @vought | @wanderingcas | ~ pls let me know if you’d like to be added to or removed from the list!

[iwillhaveamoonbase]

Operation Cool Guy

Callum tries to be a cool guy to get new student Rayla to agree to a date with him.

Inspired by a scene in Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.   Rated M because of sexual references made, but not sandwiches were made.

--------------------------

Callum stared at the new girl, Rayla, out of the corner of his eye.  She looked good in their school uniform, long legs on full display, though she complained often about how the school wouldn’t let her wear tights underneath. It was hard not to notice her, with her almost pure white hair and striking purple eyes as well as a Scottish accent that was very much out of place in their California private school. She’d transferred for her final year after her parents moved to the States for work.  At least, that was the rumor.  Callum didn’t actually know.

He fidgeted with his jacket a bit.  Rayla was instantly popular and surrounded by people almost 24/7.  The star quarterback had asked her out who knew how many times, the last time resulting in Rayla twisting his arm behind his back and demanding he leave her alone.  Due to Rayla being a senior while Callum was a junior, they only shared a mixed-level science class together.  She always sounded so smart when she was called on in class.

A loud slam from Rayla’s direction caused him and everyone around him to jump.  “Just leave me alone, you dick.”  Her voice rang loud and clear as she refused to turn to look at the soccer captain who had, apparently, asked her out yet again.

“Rayla, I can show you a good time.  The best time.”

“Please,” she scoffed. “I’ve heard your exes talking in the locker room.  You expect a girl to suck on your dick and refuse to lick pussy in return.  No thanks.”

“It’s not sanitary,” he groused.

Callum watched as Rayla turned on him, staring at the soccer captain for a moment before laughing.  “The American education system has completely failed your ass, hasn’t it?  It’s self-cleaning, you idiot, and women tend to know how to find info to keep themselves clean.  Also, there’s no way you’d want me because I’ve licked pussy and if it’s so unsanitary, I must also be unclean.”

“Are you…are you gay?”

Rayla rolled her eyes. “I’m Bi, thanks for asking.  And you sounded really hesitant there, so let’s make something clear: I have two dads. Two GAY dads.  I have zero interest in dating someone who has homophobic tendencies, so you can stop hitting on me.”  

“I’m not-”

“Don’t care.  Wasn’t interested in your ignorant ass anyways.” Rayla turned back to her locker, effectively dismissing the soccer captain.  Everyone watched as he stared at her, mouth agape, before huffing and walking away, grumbling under his breath.  

Callum looked down at his phone.  A text from Soren had just come in, telling Callum to go with the plan and act like a tough guy with Rayla.  He’d had a crush on her ever since he had first heard her introduce herself, but there was no way someone has cool and interesting as her would like him.  Soren had insisted he could coach Callum and to act uninterested and all that.

Callum sighed, running a hand through his hair and closing his locker before walking over to her. He leaned against the lockers and tilted his chin to try to show-off his jawline.  “Hey.”

Rayla didn’t stop going through her locker nor did she even glance at him.  “What do you want?”

“Your number.”

“No.”

Callum internally winced. “I wasn’t that interested anyways.”

“Cool.  We done here?”  Callum didn’t have time to respond before Rayla closed her locker again and walked away. Several girls started trailing behind her, their chatter carrying through the halls.  

Callum sighed.  ‘Strike one.’

---------------------------------

Callum groaned as he thought about Soren’s latest text in his plan to get Rayla to agree to go on a date with him.  He’d acted uninterested, like he had an interest in typical masculine things like cars and bikes, and had even gotten detention for telling a teacher off. Rayla was still not responding to him or anyone else.  Maybe Soren was wrong; maybe all girls didn’t like bad boys.

The school was almost completely empty and Callum and Rayla were sitting in detention.  Callum for the teacher incident and Rayla for refusing to take off her tights and follow the uniform guidelines.  She’d loudly complained in class that she didn’t think a simple pair of black tights were a problem when the girls already had to wear knee socks but it had fallen on deaf ears.  Rayla rolled her eyes when she saw him there and turned away from Callum, focusing on her homework.

The teacher got up from his desk, glaring at them both.  “You two better be here when I get back.  I have to go talk to Ms. Smith about another one of your classmates.  Delinquents, the lot of you.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t be an educator if you think so poorly of us,” Rayla grumbled.  Callum stifled a laugh as the teacher glared at her.

“You are an intelligent, respectable young woman, Ms. Burrows.  Why are you so determined to question authority?”

“I’m Scottish and Irish. It’s what we do.  People try to impose their authority and superiority on us all the time.  I question stupid rules and people believing they can tell me what to do without having good reasoning beyond ‘because I said so’ or ‘that’s how it is’ and, in the case of the uniform ‘because that’s how it’s always been.’  Change is good sometimes.”

The teacher pinched the bridge of their nose and loudly exhaled.  “I’ll be calling your fathers about this.”

“Ask to speak to Ethari. He’s nicer.  Runaan will tear you a new one.”  The teacher shook his head and left, grumbling about students refusing to behave and follow the rules.  

Callum turned to look at her.  “So-”

“I’m tired of people telling me what to do.  That good a enough reason for you?”

Callum shrank a bit at her blunt phrasing, looking down at his hands.  “I was going to ask you out-”

“Why?”

“I…I mean-”

Rayla turned her head away, scoffing.  “No, thanks.”

Callum gulped and thought back to Soren’s plan.  There was no way it would work.  Callum remembered his mother telling him to just be honest with others and he would be happier in the long run than if he tried to change himself to make someone else happy.  “Look, I’m just trying to tell you I want to be with you.”

Rayla turned her head and glared at him.  “OK?  Why? Why do you want to be with me?”

“Because you’re smart and cool and really pretty but not in a glamor way, but a ‘I’ll run through the woods and get dirty after climbing a tree but have fun doing it way’.  You’re tough and it was awesome when you twisted the quarterback’s arm behind his back and when you flipped John for putting his arm around your shoulders.  And I’m not this…cool guy who is unaffected by things.  I like to draw and paint and study different cultures and languages. I know I’m not cool enough for you, but I still really like you.  Your laugh makes my heart feel full and my day is a thousand times better when I get to see you or hear your voice and now I sound creepy and I’m going to shut up now.”

Callum turned away and fidgeted with his jacket.  Rayla was quiet for a few moments, before finally muttering a soft ‘hey’.  Callum turned back to see a strong flush on her cheeks going all the way up to her ears.  “That’s the first honest thing anyone has said to me since I got here.  I like you, too.  You’re pretty cute and you care about people around you.  When you did the ‘cool guy’ act, I thought I had misread you and I was really disappointed.”

“Really?”  Callum couldn’t believe his ears.  She liked him?  Him?      

“Yeah.  I’ve never seen cheekbones like your’s in person.  I’ve also got a thing for green eyes, maybe.”

“So, can I get your number?”

Rayla shook her head. “You haven’t earned it yet.  I’m still not happy that you pretended to be someone you aren’t just to get in my pants.”

“I didn’t-”

“OK.  I believe you.  That’s not what it was.  But…”, Rayla bit her lip, “you still have to earn it.  Keep showing me who you really are and then we’ll talk.”

“OK.  Deal?”  Callum held out his hand; shocked when Rayla shook it.

“Deal”

--------------------------------------------

Four weeks later, Callum was the proud, sole person in their school who had Rayla’s private cell phone number and a week after that, they were holding hands down the hall and he was kissing her in the alcoves between classes.  Soren had freaked out that honesty and being yourself had even worked but Callum was not going to question it.  The most amazing girl he had ever met was giving him a chance and he had never been happier.  

[theonlinemuse]

And me and @freckledpianoman are back with more Beth Chapel content! Continuing from this post, here’s even more headcanons about our favourite Dr Mid-Nite: 

Beth is nearsighted and started wearing glasses when she was three and a half. Bridget started noticing that her daughter kept squinting all the time and eventually took her to an eye doctor, attributing Beth needing glasses so early to all the times that she hid under the covers with a flashlight and read late into the night instead of sleeping 

Her prescription is really strong and while her glasses correct most of her vision, she still needs accommodations like enlarged and high contrast texts and other visual aids 

Chuck eventually becomes another accommodation since he acts as a cross between telescopic and magnifying glasses and a talking watch 

She’s fluent in French thanks to her grandma Beatrice’s influence and she can carry a conversation in Spanish (she picked it up from Bridget, who often talks with her patients in Spanish) and Norwegian. That last language throws people off when they first hear about it, but it comes in handy when four-year-old Pieter Cross and his family (who don’t speak much English) move to Blue Valley from Trondheim, Norway 

Yolanda grumbles about not being able to talk to Beth in Spanish class whenever she’s home sick from school because she's the one decent conversation partner she has in that class

Rick often practices translating for his French class with Beth. Once he goofed and said “madame le docteur”. And poor Beth was close to shaking him and going, “Rick, that's wrong on so many levels” 

He knows by the incredulous look on her face that he’s all sorts of wrong and he blushes all embarrassed. But later he mistranslates on purpose just to see her adorable reactions 

She wants to pick up more languages eventually (she’s deciding if she wants to take both Mandarin and Arabic in college like her dad did) and is currently learning ASL 

Beth is a Star Trek fan thanks to her dad’s influence. She and James would watch reruns of Deep Space Nine while she was growing up and it was their way of bonding. While that tradition didn’t happen as often when Beth started high school, she and Yolanda (who had watched Voyager with her brother and cousins) eventually start a tradition of watching Star Trek Discovery 

Beth and Yolanda’s love for Star Trek is often a point of contention with Rick and Courtney, who are both Star Wars fans. It’s been the subject of a lot of arguments about what to watch for JSA marathons. Pat is usually the tie breaker 

Beth learned how to garden from her grandma Beatrice, who raises African violets in her rooftop garden. Beth’s backyard isn’t big enough for a garden so instead she keeps all sorts of plants in her room, including little teacup succulents on her bedroom windowsill and in honeycomb shelves 

While her backyard’s too small for a garden, there’s a pink dogwood tree and she loves reading and having picnics under it when it’s in bloom. In the summer Beth makes her own butterfly feeders and hang them from the tree and watch the butterflies gather 

She grew up listening to Schoolhouse Rock thanks to her dad, who would play their songs in the kitchen whenever he made breakfast on Saturday mornings while she was growing up. Even now, Beth sings along to them whenever she hears them and Chuck starting adding them to karaoke mode, including her favourites “Three is a Magic Number”, “The Tale of Mr Morton”, and “The Energy Blues” 

When she was in middle school, she started using the melody of Schoolhouse Rock songs to memorize things like country names and the periodic table. She used the latter to help Rick memorize different elements for his chem class. Yolanda actually caught Rick softly singing to himself at his locker when he was searching for his notes for one last read through 

“Beth got you to sing? Willingly?” “I wasn't singing, you’re hearing things.”

Courtney is weirded out by the fact that Beths texts with Mike of all people, but it's mostly through gifs, emojis, and random memes. She has no idea what they even talk about, saying that Beth texts with Mike more often than she does with Rick, much to the latter’s annoyance. In reality Beth and Mike talk about robotics competitions, the latest episode of whatever they were binging (this week was Julie and the Phantoms), and their ongoing bet on when Courtney and Yolanda will finally get together

If Beth wins, Mike has to help upgrade her costume and if he wins, she owes him an ice cream cake 

“It's like their own little nerd language, it makes no sense.” 

Her style icon when she was little was Ms Frizzle. Beth thought that Ms Frizzle’s themed dresses and jewellery were so cool and she wanted to dress up like her. She still loves Ms Frizzle’s style and you can see the influence it has on Beth’s fashion from bright colours, unique patterns, and quirky jewellery 

Beth has a special section in her closet for Ms Frizzle like outfits that she wears to the children’s library she volunteers at. It makes her very popular with the kids there 

She actually dressed up as Ms Frizzle for Halloween in seventh grade 

Despite being on opposite sides, Beth and Cindy have a begrudging respect for each other similar to Betty and Wilhelmina’s relationship on Ugly Betty, Beth being the JSA member that Cindy tolerates the most

Cindy begrudgingly thinks that she does know a thing or two about fashion because she often upcycles clothes. Courtney’s surprised that Beth’s still alive after she said that Cindy dresses like an evil PTA mom within earshot, though she did kidnap Beth a few times for a shopping spree 

“Get in loser, we’re going shopping!” “Did you just quote Mean Girls?”  

The first time they had a standoff, Cindy went “please, I’m Japanese, you’re Black, we’re not talking around this thing like a couple of dull white people” 

Cindy once called Rick a feral raccoon and smirked when it made Beth accidentally burst out laughing 

While Beth is more than confident with her personal style, but she’s still very new to makeup in general. Yolanda and Artemis (even Cindy much to everyone’s shock) have taken it upon themselves to help experiment with makeup and find out what she likes. Beth immediately knows that she doesn’t like mascara, even as Yolanda scolds her to stay still while she’s trying to put mascara on her

“You’re making it seem like I’m torturing you.” “Your superhero costume has claws, that doesn’t exactly scream safe.” “I’ll have you know I’m very practiced with my claws, now stay still!” 

Beth likes the lipsticks and glosses much better, she likes the different colours and how it feels on her lips 

She has to get used to the feeling of makeup on her face in general, but she doesn’t mind it and she’s shocked when she looks in the mirror. It’s still very much her, but it's like she’s glowing. She can’t stop smiling and the girls all look at her fondly 

And they also exchange knowing looks, knowing that Rick is going to lose his mind 

She did a history report on Bessie Coleman in middle school and she eventually drew inspiration for her Dr Mid-Nite costume from looking at photos of Bessie’s pilot outfit 

Beth and her mom often did ceramics classes when she was a kid. They weren’t very good at it at first, but the little lopsided knick knacks they made always made them laugh. Beth and Bridget got better over the years with Beth painting colours and patterns on whatever her mom helped her make before they went into the kiln. She thought they would be plain otherwise and Bridget agreed with her 

While ceramics classes have since stopped, they still use the honeycomb mugs and planters that they made and painted when Beth was in middle school. Bridget uses one for the aloe vera plant she keeps in her office at the hospital 

Beth is allergic to pineapple. She found out during a school trip in third grade when Henry offered some of his fruit salad and she ended up with a swollen face and tongue, which really freaked Artemis and Cindy out. Yolanda and the villain kids ended up taking care of her until the ambulance came and Beth jokes that it was the one time the JSA and ISA kids worked together on something 

She now carries an epipen in her backpack and Rick has taken to carrying a backup one in his jacket in case Beth can’t get to her backpack in time 

She had a stargazing phase that she never grew out of. Her parents got her a mini telescope for her fifth birthday and Bridget started teaching her about the solar system before Beth started learning about constellations on her own. Bridget jokes that if her daughter hadn’t been set on becoming a doctor, she would’ve gone into astrophysics 

Beth still has a telescope set up by her bedroom window. Sometimes when she has trouble sleeping and she’s not in the mood to read, she’ll look for constellations through the telescope while Chuck chimes in with little known star facts 

She also has a starry globe nightlight and a constellation globe

She and Rick sometimes have stargazing “dates” out on her back porch. They curl up together in a patio chair with midnight snacks while they watch meteor showers. Sometimes Yolanda and Courtney will join them, curled up together in the other patio chair  

Beth and Courtney often have karaoke nights at the Pit Stop after Pat souped up Barbara’s old karaoke machine. The usual playlist includes fun 80s and 90s jams as well as modern songs like Bruno Mars, Lizzo, and Janelle Monae. Yolanda often joins them for girl group songs (Little Mix is a favourite), even though she protests that she’s not much of a singer when she’s not singing Selena songs 

Rick gets roped into doing a song too, much to his dismay. Courtney pouts and complains that he has to because there’s an unspoken rule that everyone has to sing

“I don't sing, dammit.” “Oh really, are you forgetting about that little ditty you were singing before your chem test?” 

Beth sees how nervous Rick is and decides to go easy on him, finding a slow, bluesy song that he can keep up with and assuring him that even if he can’t croon those long deep notes, everyone will cheer him on. He ends up giving the best performance of the night, shocking the girls and impressing them all 

He blushes when he sees Beth looking at him all starry eyed 

When Beth was growing up, her family would have game night every Thursday and they were always old fashioned board games like Clue, Scrabble, and Pictionary. Whenever they would play Clue, Beth would always choose to be Miss Scarlett while her dad would switch between Professor Plum and Colonel Mustard. Beth could never beat her mom at Scrabble and it often ended up with Beth’s chemistry words versus Bridget’s medical terms 

While game nights have since stopped, James will sometimes have Beth join him for a card game at three or four in the morning after he comes back from a business trip. He taught her how to play games like crazy eights, gin rummy, and cribbage when she was in middle school and it’s now their way of catching up after he comes back from travelling  

Both her parents are only children. James’ family was originally from California before he moved to Nebraska for work while Bridget’s family are of Louisiana Creole descent and hail from Omaha. Beth is quite close to Bridget’s side of the family, especially with her second cousin Delphine’s family. Beth sometimes helps look after Delphine’s daughter Eliana whenever she and her husband are in town 

Rick once mistook Eliana for Beth’s baby, hilarity ensued

Beth has a love for animals and since the fandom has collectively decided that Beth is a Disney Princess, she has a particular talent for being an accidental animal tamer. During a mission, three of the ISA’s attack dogs made a beeline for her and attacked her with doggie kisses instead of doing their job 

The ISA are torn between being pissed (“when the hell did Mid-Nite become an animal tamer?”) and confused. Sportsmaster is vaguely impressed and takes it as a challenge 

Later they tried scaring Beth with a python, which only really worked on Yolanda (“oh my god, what is that?”) while Beth just boops the snake on its snout. The snake swooned. So did Rick 

After Rick and Yolanda recover from the shock, they look at the trio of attack dogs follow Beth all the way to the Pit Stop and go “we’re not keeping you”. Rick just hopes that the trio are the only attack dogs that follow her back home. He wishes that he had been more specific because he was not expecting an actual maned wolf suddenly coming up and sniffing all over Beth during a visit to the Dugan-Whitmores’ cabin

“What the fuck, where did that come from and why is it all over Beth?!” 

It turns out that Beth didn’t realize that she had a cookie in one of her pockets and the maned wolf caught a whiff of it and was now trying to find it. The way it sniffs her is ticklish and she’s laughing the entire time 

Once the maned wolf brought over a friend to see Beth and Courtney goes, “aww, he met another–oh my god, that’s a panther!” The panther also wanted one of Beth’s treats and it swooped in between her and Rick and started pawing at her like a spoiled kitten 

Rick picked Beth up and carried her inside because “we can’t trust her outside anymore” 

[stones-x-bones]

Dreamwalker || Hina and Bex

TIMING: About a week ago PARTIES: @born-to-be-wildes​ and @inbextween​ SUMMARY: Hina’s dream is interrupted by Bex when she’s drawn to her energy. Some things aren’t meant to be seen by outsiders. CONTENT: Domestic abuse mentions, Family death mentions (cousin)

It was the first time Bex had fallen asleep willingly in a while. She hadn’t really put much thought into it, instead choosing to focus on getting through each day of her life while wondering when her parents would finally give in and just call the police on her. Or worse. The looming threat of their presence was always around, even if she hadn’t heard from them in weeks-- which might have actually been worse. Not knowing what they were thinking or what they were doing made her stomach churn. Either way, most nights were spent laying awake until she physically couldn’t anymore, and only then did she let her body fall asleep, though sometimes it felt easier with Mina around. Several dozen alarms were set, waking her at least every hour, and to make sure she was really, truly awake, she would prod herself in different fashions. She’d been doing it less and less lately, though, and that was all that mattered.

But today, after so long, Bex was so tired, and all she wanted to do was sleep. And while she’d been having strange, extremely vivid dreams, the one tonight somehow seemed even more so. She was in a classroom. It wasn’t very large, which meant it wasn’t a lecture hall, and the large, wooden tables meant it probably wasn’t an elementary school classroom. Someone was talking and it echoed around and Bex turned in a circle, eyes landing on a woman at the front, discussing some plans with someone else. She looked so happy, eyes alight, a smile on her face. Short brown hair framed her face perfectly and she had on a dress not unlike the one Bex wore. A door opened and someone else came in, and the two seemed to know each other. It was strange, though, because Bex did not recognize either one of them. She made her way towards the front of the classroom, looking around at all the pictures hung on the wall-- art done by previous students, before a voice caught her attention. “Do you go here?” Bex turned, looking over at the two women. She pointed at herself. “Me? I, um--” Okay, this was weird. People didn’t usually talk back to her in her dreams, not like this. “I’m-- not sure, actually. Um...where is here?”

Hina felt delighted : her cousin and mentor had stopped by to see her new classroom. Obviously, it was far from what the young witch wanted, but it would take a while before she could finally see the final product. She hoped that she could create a place fit for inspiring teenagers. The place was a bit dull with its eggshell old paint on the walls, it's aged linoleum and it felt lifeless. A bit of elbow grease, a bit of thrifting and just a bit of magic had helped her turn things around. Yet, the room lacked something for everything to fall into place. Hina was unable to put her finger on what it might have been. She had hoped that perhaps Gillian would have insight on what to transform, add or remove, but it did not seem likely now. 

It was then that she caught sight of a stranger standing by the white board. They looked young, and she suspected them to be either a student who had taken a wrong turn or an alumni looking for their former art teacher. Hina knew that if it were the case, she would disappoint, especially as she had no idea of where her predecessor had gone. According to the staff, they had just vanished one day.

It was her cousin who spoke up. The voice felt foreign, for a reason she couldn't really identify. It filled the woman with unexplainable melancholy. The stranger's reply was too strange not to push away those états d'âmes. Hina put her hands in her painter's apron and glanced at Gillian. Seeing that she was no longer speaking, she chose to reply : "This is my classroom, I'm Ms. Wildes the new art teacher," she had doubts that this would be a suitable answer. Her identity didn't help identify the place at all, if you weren't familiar with the high school.

“Art teacher?” Bex glanced between the two women. She wasn’t sure what she was going there, or what they were, but she supposed it made sense that the art teacher was in the art classroom. But Bex wasn’t taking art class-- seh hadn’t since high school. And since when did the university have an art classroom? Wasn’t the art school divided up by major? She blinked again and felt the world go fuzzy for a moment, shaking her head to regain herself. “Is this the high school, then? What’s, um--” she took another look around but the room was empty. Where were all the students? “Where is everybody? Is class starting?” There was something so strange going on, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She didn’t remember coming here, and she’d never been inside the public high school in White Crest-- she’d gone to a private boarding school. Her legs began to shake as an anxiety filled her. Something was wrong here, but she had no idea what. “I’m sorry, maybe I should just go. I’m sorry.”

Hina looked briefly at her cousin. It seemed clear to her that the young woman was a bit lost, and she wondered if perhaps she was not simply dealing with an exchange student, or someone who had just arrived in the US with their parents. “Yes, it is. White Crest High? Home of the…” She grimaced. Truth be told, she had not quite memorized which animal was the mascot. : a moose perhaps, or a lobster. It must have been either of the two options. At the next question, Hina tried to remember what day it was, when she had arrived, or anything that could have given her a hint of what time of the week it was, but nothing really came to her mind. She approached her laptop to have a look at the date on the screen, but instead, an old typewriter that belonged to her grandparents stood there. That should be in the attic, she thought to herself. She had moved it upstairs two days ago. “That’s weird,” pushing herself away from her desk, she headed in the hallway, to check for herself. There was no one there. Not one soul. 

With a familiar void in her chest, Hina turned back to check on her cousin. She couldn’t quite tell why, but there was this overwhelming urge to make sure that Gillian was still present. And the relief she felt seemed disproportionate, all things considered. Something was going on. 

“Where are you going to go?” As she spoke, Hina had gone to stand by Gillian. “What are you doing here?” If the question had been directed at Bex, the witch froze as her cousin replied, speaking with a dimmed out voice: “You know why I’m here, she’s gone now.” The young woman felt as if the temperature had dropped with the comment, and she could have sworn that so had any trace of warmth that she had tried to insufflate into the plain classroom that had been given to her. Something was going on. This much was sure now. “Who are you?” This time, there was no questioning as to who was meant to reply to her question.

Whatever was going on between these two women, they clearly weren’t on the same page. And whatever pages they were on, respectively, was not the same one as Bex. She glanced between the two of them but listening to them talk and try to explain didn’t answer any questions. She recoiled a little when the questions turned on her, not ready to answer-- but then the other woman answered, as if it were plain known it had been stated to her. Apparently, the original one who had spoken was unsure as well. “I--” Bex tried to interject, still holding herself a little away from the other two. She didn’t know what was going on, and she had no reason to believe that either of these women would hurt her or were out to get her, but something was very not right about this place, and Bex wasn’t about to jump in and find out for herself. Finally, they addressed her again and Bex jumped. “I-- I’m sorry! I really didn’t mean to butt in! I can go! I’m just-- my name is Bexley. I’m a student a-at the university. I’m not really sure why I--” her eyes fell to the woman in the smock. “You teach here?”

Clearly there was something wrong going on here, and while Hina could not put her finger on it, a feeling of unease was growing, seeping its way in. She had never seen this girl before. And neither woman seemed to know why Bexley was here. If this was rather suspicious , she could not simply force the truth out of the other woman. Or, could she. Her eyes narrowed, and heading toward the door, she put her palm against it as she pushed it close, sealing the door shut with the melted handle. This felt wrong. She could not just do things like that in front of her students. Hina was in control of her emotions (at least she tried), and that girl was not a threat to her, was she? If the witch started to notice that perhaps she was not keeping things under control, the thought was shoved away as a benign anomaly. What did it matter? Sure she would have never done that, but the thing was, she had just done that. So clearly everything was normal. “What are you doing here?” She repeated, taking her smock out, as if to completely brush away that question about her job. 

The door shutting made too much noise. Why did it make so much noise? Bex flinched and backed up as the woman came towards her. She was a lot shorter than Bex, but it was years of conditioning that made her feel small. “I-I don’t know,” she admitted, hoping the woman could sense the truth from her. She wasn’t here to hurt anyone or threaten anyone, she didn’t even know why she was here or what was going on. “Please, I just, I’m confused, too,” she added on, swallowing. The white board flickered behind the woman’s head and Bex was sure she saw a window, instead, as if she were in a bedroom, not a classroom. She...she remembered that from somewhere. That feeling. What was this feeling again? Her attention turned back to the other woman. “If you could just let me--” she pointed towards the door-- “I won’t bother you anymore. I can just go.”

“You don’t know?” Hina’s brow furrowed. Perplexed, she came to ask herself : what am I doing here ? Focused, she tried to make sense of what was happening, but her mind just wouldn’t let her get those information. Impenetrable, it gave her not one single clue. She couldn’t know why she was here, what she had done before, where she had been before, or remember that her cousin was missing and that whoever was in the room with her and Bex could not be Gillian. She looked over her shoulder, to see what was so interesting behind her, but there was just her whiteboard. She took the time to look up and glance at the clock. Where are my students, the teacher thought. The school should not have been so silent, a school never was silent. The sense of uneasiness that she had felt just a moment ago came back. She knew that something was not right, and yet her mind did its best to assure her that everything going on was normal. She approached the door to open it, but despite her effort to restore it and let Bex out, it just would not budge. She pulled several times again on the handle. It did not budge. “I don’t understand, this should work,” she despaired, stepping back to let the other try.

Bex was relieved to see that the woman wasn’t pressing her on anything. SHe ignored the weird shapes floating around the whiteboard-- those weren't natural were they?-- and went back to focusing on the art teacher. “What um-- what’s your name?” she asked, trying to figure out what was going on, or why this was happening. Leading questions. She inched closer to the woman when she tried the bolted door again, but found it wouldn’t budge. They were stuck. Bex felt her nerves growing in her stomach. The world around her began to worble and she bit the inside of her cheek, trying to remain calm. Bad things happened when she wasn’t calm. “Here, um-- let me try,” she said, coming over to the woman. “I-- I don’t wanna make any trouble or anything, I swear. I just want to help.” She gave her as genuine a look as she could, eyes pleading with her. “Please.”

“I told you I’m Ms.Wi- It’s Hina,” she had let go of the door handle reluctantly. The door should have moved as easily as it did just a minute ago. Frustrated, she pushed herself to the side and motioned toward it with just a bit of aggressivity in her gesture. This feeling of losing control, of being just a pawn. She never wanted to be just a pawn that one could move around. She wanted to make each and everything a choice. Her choice. Though, if that girl was able to open the door, then she supposed she was willing to accept that alternative. She headed to the window. The sun was still up high in the sky. She glanced down at the floor. If they left through the window, they wouldn’t get hurt too badly, would they? Perhaps if she made the floor turn into rubber for a moment, it would be fine ? Or summon a set of stairs from the side of the building ? Those sounded good, but she’d never get away with this. Yet, she’d done just that with that door handle. “How’s the door doing now?”

“It’s nice to meet you, Hina,” Bex said with a gentle smile,trying to keep the situation calm. She had a hunch about what was going on, and she wanted to test it, but she didn’t want to freak out the other woman first. She needed to pull herself together, to concentrate. She paid no attention to the other woman, then, as she came up to the door and looked at the handle. In Nell’s dream, she’d been able to shift the world, so maybe here, now, shifting something smaller would be much easier. She wished Nell was here, or at least that little Nell-bird that had told her what to do last time. Her hand settled on the handle of the door and she willed it with as much thought as she could to unglue itself. Instead, it turned into a bird and fluttered away and Bex yelped, stepping back. “I-- it-- um--” she looked from HIna to the door. “Not well. I--” she swallowed, “I need to tell you something and it might sound crazy, but please, please, just can you trust me?”

“Likewise,” Hina returned the smile, although hers felt more tense, as if she had decided that now wasn’t the time for being pleasant. They had to get out of here, quickly. “Not well. Of cou-”A bird flew past her and out the window. She covered her mouth with her hand, swallowing her scream into a mostly silent gasp. The scare had been enough to bring some Québéquois out of her. And so, she exclaimed herself : “Batince, what was he doing here?” 

Spells that she could not undo, birds showing up from nowhere, this feeling that she had been having for a little while now that something just was not right… Had they both been cursed? Had this girl cursed her? Hina felt lost, and while the temptation to get out of here through the window was big, it was stopped for the time being. She wanted to know what the other woman had to say. It was quite mysterious, but the word crazy had picked her interest as she knew that crazy was the word people used when they couldn’t understand a notion. Either that or witchcraft or an act of God. The options were limited. “I think I can handle crazy. Try me, then I’ll tell you my -I believe-  just as bad option.” 

Bex bit her lip. She was beginning to get used to the feeling-- of magic. It was here, present, and she knew it wasn’t just her. It was this place. “I think you’re dreaming,” she finally said, inhaling sharply, waiting for the angry denial. “I think we’re in your dream. And um-- I, well, you see, I have this um-- ability, I-I guess. To, um-- manipulate dreams. Change them, m-make them better! I--” but when she glanced around, she’d realized that this woman’s dream wasn’t bad. It wasn’t like Nell’s nightmare. There were no shadows, no looming threats, just another woman standing in the corner, smiling pleasantly, and then the woman whose dream it was, staring at her with expectant eyes. “I-- I don’t entirely know how I got here, but I-- I think I can get us out. Or, um, wake you up. If that’s...what you want.”

“I’m asleep,” confused, she glanced at her cousin, who seemed oddly silent, and far too distant. She wanted the woman to stay close to her and not leave her, and didn't understand why she stayed so far from her. You weren’t meant to realize that you were dreaming. She didn’t remember where she had read or heard that, but as she started to feel dizzy, that piece of information had easily come back to her head, as did the fact that her cousin shouldn’t have been here. “I’m dreaming,” just as she began to sit, a chair appeared right under her, allowing for the woman to rest and regain control of her balance. An ability, Hina knew better. There was something supernatural at stake here, some sort of magic that focused on the mind, while it was at its weakest. Clever. “Can’t I just jump out the window? That should wake me up, right?” She raised her eyebrows, taken aback, but also worried: "You're not going to get stuck here, if I do this?" She really didn't want to do it. She might not have been in a dream but the victim of a hallucination. Hina just couldn’t allow herself to believe all that she was told. Her eyes narrowed. She was curious to hear Bex’s solution. “I’m listening, what do we do?” It was not what she wanted, no. She looked over at her cousin. Her lips trembled. Overwhelmed with sorrow, she tried to tell herself that she preferred not to share those moments, even if they weren’t real, with someone she had just met. 

“I-- I’m sorry,” Bex stuttered. She kind of wanted to stay here, too. Her chest didn’t hurt here, she wasn’t exhausted and weighed down by the guilt of her actions. She looked at the woman, watched her sink into a chair that appeared from nowhere. Conscious of her dream, the woman could now control it almost as much as Bex. Probably more, considering Bex barely knew her own power. She needed to stop doing these things by accident. She needed to get better control of herself. Maybe she could start by taking control of this dream. She looked at the woman in the corner, then back to the woman whose dream it was. “I can change the dream,” she said softly, chewing on her lip. “If you want. I-- I know this probably isn’t something you want someone like me to see. Someone you...don’t know.” She rubbed her head. Last time she’d done it, she had gotten stuck somewhere, but that was a completely different situation, wasn’t it? It had to be. She didn’t want to go back to that place. A sudden fear gripped her and the world began to turn dark around them. No, she needed to calm down. She inhaled and held it for a moment. “No, I-I don’t think I will. I think we’ll both just...wake up.” A pause. “Hopefully.” She couldn’t really ask this woman to just trust her, but they had no other choice. Bex had no other choice.

“I -” She shook her head in dismissal. What good could it do her to see her family again? She’d wake up crying and wondering why she was so stupid. “No. I’d rather not. This is fine,” she looked over where her cousin stood. The woman stared at Hina with an emptiness in her eyes now, as if she had gone somewhere. 

The witch took her eyes off of her and approached the younger woman. There was nothing to worry about, right? They would both wake up, and everything would be okay. All she had to do was to wake up now. Hina might have not been sure of what to expect Bex to do, she was beginning to tell herself that maybe this was part of the dream. It must have been what made the most sense to her brain. “I..Okay, wake us up.” 

Bex looked between the two women and wondered what could have happened to create such a palpable sadness. She felt like an intruder. And she was. And wasn’t the dream trying to push her out? Like white cells attacking a disease inside someone’s veins? She swallowed and held her hands out to Hina. “Okay, just-- think about your room. About your bed.” This time, Bex didn’t have any place to think of except her own room, her own bed. She closed her eyes as she tried to picture it, and as she tried to picture where she wanted them to go, how she wanted them to wake up. Just like she’d done with Nell, in her dream. A hiccup of fear grappled inside of her-- what if she ended up in the wakeless dream world again? Her grip tightened for a moment. The world flickered around them. Faces began to melt away. The room unfolded itself as if it were a gift box and they drifted into a void, before an energy snapped between them-- HIna’s energy hadn’t been warm like Nell’s, it felt like sand, almost. Hot sand on a warm beach, and ocean, and salt, and rocks. Right before Bex’s eyes snapped open, she understood something about the woman’s energy-- it was familiar, but it wasn’t. 

Her head shot up on the bed and she inhaled sharply. She was alone, in her room. Hina’s face was etched into the back of her eyes. She needed to find Hina now.

[tedesquire]

We do need more fics/headcannons for our favorite cherub, Bill! Maybe it could involve him figuring out how to ask the reader out? Or going to see a concert with him? Or anything spicy 🌶🥺

When It’s Love

[This may not be exactly what the dear anon had in mind but it’s what I felt inspired to write. Obviously you can request another Bill/Reader if you want something a little bit different!

I was definitely inspired by Pride and Prejudice, Emma, the above picture, Van Halen, and one scene in “10 Things I Hate About You” (Mod Olivia)]

_______________________________________________________________

Study hall was as lively as ever. Cheerleaders sat in the back to expose their peers to the unpleasant smell of nail polish and snapping sounds of gum. Papers rustled as the jocks passed notes back and forth with crude drawings and curse words. Every so often Ms. Ritcher would loudly clear her throat, tipping the edge of her cat-eye glasses and letting her milky eyes glaze over the classroom to make sure no one was speaking or getting up to any mischief. 

Despite these distractions, you found yourself in your own little bubble, eyes rapidly racing back and forth as you read.  

You enjoyed your copy of Pride and Prejudice so often that the edges of the pages had started to fray and the spine was one drop away from crumbling. 

“In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.” You mouthed the words, sighing forlornly. Your eyes fluttered shut and you pushed the book against your chest. Your heart seemed to ache, as if you were looking at the words for the first time.

You shook your head and opened the book once more to continue, unaware of the eyes that lingered on your figure.

“We’re still on for Friday, right? I looked at the TV Guide for this week and Eddie Van Halen is scheduled to appear on Letterman. It will be most triumphant!” Ted Logan slyly whispered to Bill, his eyes trained on Ritcher’s figure to make sure he wouldn’t be caught. Bill’s brown orbs didn’t leave your face, particularly interested in the way you were biting your bottom lip.

“Uh, yeah.” Bill whispered, not fully knowing what Ted had just asked.

“What would you think if I grew my hair out like Van Halen? It might help in our conquest to get him on lead guitar.”

“Mm-hmm.” Bill mumbled. 

Ted’s brows furrowed and he let his gaze stray from their teacher to look at Bill directly. He knew if Bill were paying more attention he would have acted more excited.

Much to Ted’s amusement, his friend had once again taken up his recent pastime of staring at you and tuning everyone else out. He decided to press Bill’s buttons, an impish grin forming on his face.

“Actually, I think it would be most foolish to try and copy Van Halen. Perhaps I should shave all my hair off?”

“Sounds good, man.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I mean, who even likes Van Halen? Kind of a has-been, right Bill?”

“Oh yeah.” A glimmer of fondness grew in Bill’s eyes as he watched your brows knit in concentration.

“Y/n’s pretty hot. Do you think she’d say yes if I asked her to prom?”

Bill nodded, ears perking when he heard your name. He mentally repeated what Ted had just asked him, letting the true weight of his friends words hit him. A blush crept up his neck, finally meeting Ted’s gaze.

“Staring at y/n again, hm? You’re lucky she’s always reading or she might think you were a creep.”

“Shut up, Ted.” Bill hissed.

“Keep it down, gentlemen.” Ritcher’s gravelly voice interrupted the quiet atmosphere, causing their conversation to end.

After a few moments, Ted deemed it safe to speak once more. “Bill, we’re about to be the biggest rock stars San Dimas has ever witnessed. Why don’t you talk to her? The fall formal is coming up.” He suggested, nudging Bill’s side eagerly.

“Ted, if you have not been made aware, Y/n is notorious for turning men down. I wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“You never know if you don’t ask!” He encouraged, trying to stay upbeat as Bill frowned. He opened his mouth to argue when the bell interrupted. 

Ted quickly sprang up, giving Bill no time to follow. The taller boy pretended to trip against your desk, causing your thermos to hit the tile loudly. He muttered an apology before turning around, gesturing between you and Bill.

The impact of the thermos caused you to snap out of your reverie, and you were surprised to find people exiting the classroom, heading to their next period. 

“Hey,” A soft voice called to you. You turned to meet the owner, only to be met with your thermos. “I apologize for Ted’s behavior, it was most heinous.” You accepted the bottle, finally looking up to see your classmate, Bill. 

“I didn’t even realize he had knocked it over, it’s alright. Thanks, Bill.” You smiled politely, grabbing your bag and starting to head out the door.

Your smile made Bill’s knees wobble, and now that he had your attention, he was not so eager to lose it. “So, uh, what’s in the thermos?” He asked, trailing behind you. You slowed down, letting him fall into step with you. 

“Oh, this? It’s tea. Green tea with lemon.” Bill blinked in surprise. 

“Are you sick? Granny Preston seems to drink that when she’s under the weather.” He tried not to seem too desperate in continuing the conversation with you.

“No.” You chuckled under your breath. “I just like it. It’s also good for your vocal chords.”

“Most excellent!” His grin did well to cover the panic he felt inside. “So um, I noticed your book. It’s uh- it’s my favorite.” You couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped you.

“You like Pride and Prejudice?” Your humorous expression faded as you noticed Bill blushing. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh. It’s just, I don’t think I’ve ever met a guy who’s read Austen novels willingly.”

“That’s where you’re wrong!” Bill lied, heart racing erratically. “I love Austen. He’s one stellar dude, dude.” You shook your head, approaching your next class.

“Austen isn’t a dude, dude.” You tsked. “Jane Austen is the author of Pride and Prejudice, your favorite book, as you claimed.” You gestured to your class. “This is my stop. I’ll uh, see you later Bill.” 

The smile Bill so proudly wore a moment ago faded, replaced with sheer embarrassment. The beginning bell rang, signaling class had started. 

He blew it. The one chance he had to talk to you and he had managed to make an absolute fool of himself. 

His cheeks were still stained red as he strolled into History class, late, much to the annoyance of Mr. Ryan. Ted beamed at him, excitedly leaning forward as Bill sat down.

“Dude! How’d it go?”

“Shut up, Ted.”

-

Bill huffed for the third time in the past twenty minutes, prompting a look from Ted.

It had been an unusually quiet lunch, Ted slightly freaked out that Bill was reading a book that was neither assigned in a class or a textbook. 

After the disastrous conversation that occurred between you and Bill, he had asked his stepmom to drive him to the library, mumbling a lie about an English class assignment to prevent her from asking any questions. He was now in possession of Pride and Prejudice, but the only problem was, he was having a hard time understanding what the hell was going on in the book. 

“What does it say?” Ted asked, hoping he could help but knowing he probably wouldn’t be able to provide a satisfactory answer. 

“The book keeps mentioning this place called ‘Netherfield’, which is confusing since the book takes place in this town called Meryton, I think, so it can’t be another city, can it?” Ted shrugged, slightly embarrassed he could not help his friend. 

Ted surveyed the cafeteria, finding you tucked in the corner reading, as usual. An idea formed in his mind and he stood, making his way over to you.

Bill was too busy trying to re-read the paragraph he had been trying to decipher for an hour to notice Ted’s absence at first, but upon opening his mouth to complain again and not seeing Ted’s friendly presence, he searched frantically for the familiar figure.

“Oh no, Ted you moron!” Bill huffed, cheeks heating as he watched the interaction between you and Ted. You seemed skeptical at first, but soon your eyes found Bill’s, prompting him to turn away once more, praying for Ted to return.

“Can I sit here?” You startled Bill, who jumped at the sound of your voice. He avoided your eyes, clutching his book tightly.

“Are you sure you want to?” You took that as the closest to a yes and plopped beside the blonde. Ted was nowhere to be found.

“Ted told me. He said your dad was a hard-ass and wanted you to get caught up on some summer reading list. You were just trying to ask me to help you interpret the book and I made fun of you, I’m sorry.” Bill looked lost. His dad was certainly not a hard-ass by any means. In fact, he bet that his dad wouldn’t care if he had to repeat high school just as long as he stayed out of him and Missy’s way. Realization seemed to dawn on him. It was merely a ruse Ted had made up to get you to talk to him. 

“Oh um, yeah! My dad is strict, most abominable. He wants me to read this, but I’m having trouble understanding some things.” This entire book, he had wanted to say, but held his tongue. “I noticed you reading it and thought you would be willing to help me.”

“Yeah!” You nodded enthusiastically. “P&P is one of my favorite books of all time. Jane Austen writes so perfectly, I feel as if I’m in the story itself with the way she paints the scenery.” You continued to coo, and Bill felt his nerves start to melt away.

Ted stood at the back of the cafeteria, out of plain sight to watch you and Bill, a smile overtaking his boyish features. 

Bill so owed him a slurpee. 

-

“So, why is it you like Jane Austen so much?” You and Bill had been spending every lunch period together for the past week and had finally decided to meet up after school at a park not too very far away from San Dimas High. 

At first, all your conversations had been about Pride and Prejudice, but as you started to spend more time with the boy, you found yourself oddly entranced by his weirdly polite mannerisms and goofy grin, and thus your conversations ranged from your favorite music, to plans after high school, and whether or not Ms. Richter needed new glasses. 

The California sun seemed to be suiting him well, making his curls seem as if they were crafted from liquid gold itself, but if anyone were to ask, you could very well say you didn’t seem to notice. 

“Well, it’s not just that I enjoy Jane Austen and her works. I love everything about the 18th/19th century.” You put down your copy of Emma to fully meet his stare.

“Pardon me, but I do not believe they had indoor plumbing dating back then.” Bill mischievously grinned and you laughed, playfully rolling your eyes and nudging his elbow softly.

“Okay, okay, almost everything.” You inhaled deeply. “I mean mostly the whole… aesthetic of it all. The gowns, the gloves, the candles, handwritten love letters, wax seals, the ascots, tall hats, the stocking the men wore, the balls- oh! especially those. I mean, we have the stupid formals and all, but I can’t very well wear a gown to those, can I?” 

“The tea?” He offered, admiring the passion you held.

“The tea!” You confirmed. “And back then, true love was so rare, y’know? I mean, Jane and Bingley were in love with each other the minute they met at the ball but they didn’t get married for so long! And take Darcy and Elizabeth, or Knightley and Emma! Their love wasn’t at first sight but it grew and grew until the men couldn’t stand to stay silent about it any longer. Nowadays men consider peak romance to be a night on the beach with a towel and a few beers.” Bill watched as your nose wrinkled in disgust. 

“Every single guy is looking for their Molly Ringwald or just another pretty face. No guy is interested in a “Elizabeth Bennett”. At least, not ones our age.” You sighed. Bill nodded in understanding.

So that’s why you rejected every guy who asked you out. You wanted romance and you deserved it! 

Bill’s heart beat so loudly in his chest he was sure you could hear it through his ribcage, swallowing thickly as he tried to come up with something to say other than, “I think I’m in love with you”. 

“Wouldn’t that be something though, wearing a ballgown to a school dance.” You snickered, too lost in your own amusement to notice Bill’s eyes glazing over, a most excellent plan forming in his head. 

-

Loud, thumping bass and whirling neon lights seemed to overtake your every sense. You were currently standing in the middle of the gymnasium, half your classmates dancing wildly, the other sending you strange looks. 

You had told yourself you weren’t going to the formal, content to rent a few VHS’s from the local Family Video and spend a night by yourself, but that was before you received the letter.

Upon opening your locker the other day, you were surprised to find a white dress of Italian crape over a white satin slip stuffed carefully inside. Silver thread laced the bodice and the bottom of the slip with a silver ribbon tied around the waist to match. 

A slip of paper was pinned to the fabric, reading:

“O fair one.

Join me at the Formal.

I will be waiting.

Love, 

Fitzwilliam Darcy.”

You had no idea who could have sent it and debated about staying home anyway, but your curiosity overtook you. Surely someone who had put the time and effort to notice your interest in the regency era and buy you a dress was worth facing ridicule; however, you were starting to get impatient.

You managed to convince your mother to borrow a pair of her pearls to accompany the dress and spent two hours styling your hair the exact way you wanted to. The only exception to your outfit were the modern silver shoes you wore, but you felt beautiful nonetheless.

You looked around the gymnasium once more, straining your neck to find anyone wearing a suit, or at least a button up, for heaven’s sake, but to no avail. Perhaps it was time to cut your losses and head home. 

You turned towards the entrance, disappointment creeping into every pore when you noticed a man stepping into the gym nervously. 

You first noticed the freshly-polished, ebony shoes, eyes trailing up to the cream stockings that ended just below the knee where matching black knickers began. The man wore a plaid, crimson vest underneath a warm, brown waistcoat. A ruffled, ivory button up and matching cravat were the last ornaments he wore, and you found yourself speechless. 

Your eyes finally met the face of the man who had won you over. This time it was your turn to blush, the rich, familiar eyes taking in your figure as they had done so many times before. 

“Bill…” You whispered, finding yourself at a complete loss for words.

“You can call me William, if you’d like. Just you though.” He smiled, extending his hand. 

“I can’t believe you did all of this… for me… I-”

“You deserve it. Every bit of it. I know your expectations of guys are pretty low and rightfully so. You don’t need to change who you are or what you like to please anyone else but yourself. I think you’re pretty radical the way you are and uh... I’ve liked you, for a while, actually. Ted told you about some summer reading list when the truth was I just wanted to read Pride and Prejudice as a way to talk to you.” Your blush deepened, truly taken aback by the confession. You never believed that anyone would be able to offer you a night like this. 

“So… perhaps that wasn’t as romantic as Darcy’s confession and all but I stand by it. And now I only have one question to ask you: May I have this dance?” His hand was still outstretched towards you. You slid your palm against his without hesitation, letting his arm wrap around your waist.

Of course the tune of “Girls on Film” by Duran Duran wasn’t a slow song by any means, but that didn’t stop the two of you from slowly spinning around the wooden floor. Your eyes couldn’t seem to leave his and you couldn’t feel the ache in your cheeks from your wide smile.

Later on in the night you two were able to jump and headbang to classic hits, because you didn’t expect Bill to change who he was for you either. 

You found yourself extremely fond of each curl of his that bounced from his forehead, the glint of happiness in his eyes, and each smile he sent your way. You were convinced that neither Jane Austen herself or any of the female protagonists she created were ever as happy as you were with Bill that night.

FINIS.

[mando-abs]

Dream Time with Abs

On this episode: First Dream with a young modern rebel Din Djarin

Context: I recently added the Session series by @mandocrasis on my TBR list and my brain said “Alright, bet.” and ran with the idea of it. So, I guess this dream is inspired by the series???? I don’t know. I haven’t read it yet. But, this dream was too good not to share.

Also 18+ warning - some sexual themes are mentioned in this dream but never actually put into motion.

The Story:

No idea why my dreams have been involving schools with varying age ranges lately but HERE WE GO.

It all started out with me in a gym class. I was talking to a group of chatty girls, and they started gossiping about the rebel Din Djarin. One girl, we’ll call her Stacy, mentioned how she wanted to quote “get in his pants.” I rolled my eyes at Stacy, and she got really defensive over it. To appease the Stacy, the girls decided that they would pass a note onto Din about which girl, me or Stacy, he would rather hook up with. (It’s so teenage lunchroom-esque. I love it)

I wasn’t too worried about it since I’m practically a nobody, but it still bothered me that they would send such a crude letter to him. But also, my brain really wanted to see this plot through, so I allowed it. The girls came back by the end of the day with huge grins on their faces. As it turns out, Din was more interested in me than Stacy. In fact, he had his eye set out for me anyways.

Now, I start panicking internally. Like, what? All I’ve heard are whispers about the guy and how popular he was (or unpopular, it’s never really discussed why he was the talk of the school). Why would he agree to hook up with a nerd like me? (Spoiler alert: that isn’t explained in this dream either, sorry)

Regardless, the girls were really excited for me and decided to help a girl out. They scouted the perfect classroom for me to stakeout in. It was currently being held by a class full of children (what kind of a school is this???), but, eventually, it would be empty, giving me the best opportunity to get my freak on. They even tried giving me pointers (in shushed voices of course) on how to, for lack of better terms, stick it in there in a classroom setting. Then, they just leave me there.

So there I was, sitting in this classroom full of children, waiting for Din to come do whatever with me. I was so incredibly nervous, constantly shifting in my seat. What was I even doing? But in my mind, to keep the dream going, I was like…

After waiting for a few minutes, Mr. Din Djarin finally walked into the classroom.

And when I tell you that this boy was so fine, that this boy was so scrum-dilly-icous… Let me paint you a picture of him. Din was much younger than he is typically. He was not like the man he is rn, he was a boy (still my age of course, but not aged like the fine wine he is in Mandalorian).

The best way to describe him is Pedro Pascal as he looked in Hermanas, but with a white t-shirt and leather jacket over it.

Wooooooo. Okay. Well, now I was trying to play it off cool to match his sick rebel vibes while simultaneously going into meltdown mode on the inside. He pulled up a seat next to me, placed his bag on the floor, and sat down.

“Hey,” he said all nonchalantly.

“Hey,” I said not so collected back at him.

“Looks like we’re going to be here a while.”

“Yeah… Got any homework you need to do?” 🤦🏻Nice one, nerd. God.

Din laughed, but not condescendingly so. It’s almost like he was actually relieved I was more concerned about his grades than having sex with him.

“Yeah, actually. I’ve got a quiz coming up.”

“Well, good then.”

So he got out his binder and started studying for some unknown quiz.

Now…this was the part I remembered the most because it felt so real. While we were sitting there as he was studying (and I nosily looking over his shoulder to see what he was studying), I got brave enough and held his hand. I physically felt his hand. I will not be able to forget his touch for a while. And all of you writers out there like to write Din and Pedro characters alike with large calloused hands (and respectfully so, most of his characters are hard workers). His hand was soft. It easily enveloped mine still, but they were gentle. I think he smiled out of the corner of his mouth, but I didn’t look at him as hard out of nervousness.

So we sat and sat, and sat some more with our hands locked like this. All the kids left, but the teacher still hung around. By that point, I was frustrated and really wanted the teacher to get lost. But, knowing Ms. Goody Two-Shoes me, I wouldn’t do that. I was more concerned about my parents not knowing where the hell I was.

I got to thinking. I whispered to Din. “You know, we don’t have to do this here. Maybe we can go somewhere away from here, away from student hangouts?”

“Well, I’ve got a truck. You wanna head out?” (Btw, I imagined rebel Din’s truck as Bella Swan’s old red Chevy truck…if that’s any interest to you…)

“Sure. Lemme just…” I got out my phone and texted one of my parents.

Hey! Going to get a bite with a buddy. Be home soon.

We headed out, hands still interlocked, with Din leading the way.

Now, this is the part we’re things get interesting. On our way out, I stopped dead in my tracks in front of one classroom door and made Din flip around due to the suddenness of it.

He looked confused at me. “What?”

“I’m sorry. It’s just… I heard there was a baby in art room class.”

Din raised his hands up like he was saying, “And?”

“Well, this is the art room.” I shuffled my feet. “And, I kinda want to see it.” I flashed a smile at him. But I didn’t even wait for his response, I just went in the classroom.

Din stood at the doorway confused for a moment. He straightened his jacket and acted like this was all a part of his plan. “I know my way around this place.” He didn’t.

When we both were in the room, we looked around to find the baby with a small cluster of students ogling at and playing with. And, to no surprise, it was Grogu. Grogu did not change his appearance in the dream AT ALL. We just all accepted the green skinned, bug eyed, pointy eared baby.

After Din and I spent a few moments cooing and making wiggly fingers at the baby, we went to go talk to the teacher about how cute the kid is and how proud he must be.

But the teacher was like, “Oh no. That’s not my baby. I’m just babysitting for a few days. That baby is on it’s way to back to be reunited with his cult.”

Din and I looked at the man like he was crazy. We then looked at each other a bit uneasy over it. This didn’t sit well with the two of us.

So instead of heading out to his truck, we went to go research more about this mysterious cult (I’m guessing at the library??? idk) As it turns out, this cult is notorious for stealing family’s’ babies, and adopts them into their own weird cult stuff.

Din and I looked up from the book we were reading in and stared at each other. We didn’t speak a single word to one another, but I knew we had one goal in common -

We were going to steal back a baby that night.

__________________________________________

And that’s it! That’s the dream! I hoped you enjoyed it. Uh, I wouldn’t expect an update dream as my dreams are very unpredictable and highly unstable. Hopefully I’ll get to see rebel Din again, and we go steal babies to bring back to their families. Maybe hold hands again, maybe have sex? Who knows! Cause I don’t 😀