#was staring at their ice cream like huh blue and white is an interesting choice for Marshall I wonder what flavor that could be

[fruigity]

Y’ALL

“Where does a chocolate dipped strawberry go to meet a cupcake anyway?”

[thatyamiguy-blog]

Moving day (Harry potter.. I swear we’re almost done!)

They say that any move can be stressful and the adjustment period of living with new roommates can be hard for the first few days, even if your new roomies happen to be your older twin brothers. And not making things any easier though they of course love and support you, is that your boyfriend is coming with you for the move, and as such you had to tell them about the special arrangement. Still stories over the phone apparently didn't fully paint a picture and now Ron and Draco are waiting for the twins to stop staring and let them in. The twins themselves were wearing matching white t-shirts and blue jeans. Ron was in a loose and long sleeved black shirt and black cargo pants, and Draco took the cake. what with the pure blood ex bully being in green cover all's (with crotch snaps!) and a black t-shirt it looked like under the cover-all's. and by how swollen and BIG Draco's crotch and rear looked, the boy was easily rocking 3 nappies. "Interesting..fashion choice." George said finally. "Inner child and all that." Fred said.

Getting Draco inside Ron got his big baby of a boyfriend sat down in the living room to get to know his unca's better while Ron went and unpacked, not a easy job to do since they were making use of a magic suitcase so there was at least a few hours worth of work needed for Ron to do. If your wondering why Draco wasn't helping with the unpacking well, He was a little guy in more ways then attire and a bored/grumpy Draco trying to be 'helpful' never ended well. He could of had one of the twins help him but with it being their first time watching Draco, he figured 2 on 1 gave them a fighting chance against his bratty baby boy.

"So..Cripes..you really wear nappies huh?" Fred asked,leaning down for a closer look at the bulky seat of Draco's overall's and nappies. Draco, who had been leaning forward to get some of the baby blocks they had for him to play with gave a annoyed look as this was the 5th time Fred had asked that. deciding that those who get that close to his butt with no care about their own safety deserved what they got and scrunched up his face. George realized what was happening and started to cry out a warning. "Fred wait get back from hi-" but at last the cry came too late and indeed only made things worse. Fred's poor mouth had opened, and with the distraction from George, Draco moved his diapered rear backwards, almost in slow motion and finished his long sputtering but muffed fart on his unca's face. With the deed done and Fred on his back and gagging, George glared at Draco. "what cha do that for?" he demanded, folding his arms. "But unca George, I'm just a widdle boy and NEED my diapies, Unca Fred should of realized he was playing with fire.. or gas." Draco said, doing his best 'i'm so cute you can't stay mad at me' faces and voices. and unlike Ron who had seen them all and could resit, This was Georges first and he instantly melted. "well,m just don't let it happen again. Do you want some ice cream?" George asked Draco of course knew he wasn't suppose to have any, ice cream made him a super duper pooper..Butttt He was just a little boy and lessons had to be learned all around. Fred finally got up and like wise was about to throttle Draco but the power of the puppy look and he was de fanged as well and went to go and smash up some cookies to crumble over Draco's ice cream. '..heh..yeah. I could get used to this~' he thought.

Ron had been hard at work for a hour and came out to get a glass of juice from the fridge. he noticed Draco was nuzzled on the crotch with his brother and smiled, he was glad they were getting along and didn't wanna say anything to spoil their fun. chugging his juice down and getting a refill, Ron just happened to look in the sink and froze, seeing three dirty bowls that had clearly had ice cream in them. "Ohhhh No. No no no.." Ron said, a knot forming in his tummy. coming out of the kitchen and hurrying to look out into the living room he heard the first poot and toyed with just running before the smell reached him. cries of disgust and whimpers of pain were heard and it delayed Ron enough that he didn't escape the stink field in time and was welcomed to the truly rotten smell of a lactose intolerant like Malfoy having dairy. Nose hairs burning and eyes watering Ron sighed and headed for ground zero. Fred and George were each half out a window, Fred on the left and George on the right. Draco not surprisingly was squatting down and hunching, fists closeted and gritting his teeth. from the look of focus on his face and the sweat you'd almost swear he was doing a power up from a anime. at least till you noted the massive diaper that had forced the crotch snaps open (and Ron looked and noticed some of the buttons on the floor) Spotting Ron in the door way Draco started to cry out daddy, but it was over taken with a guttural groan as a cramp hit him. the diaper, which was already racing for his knee caps jumped in size and Ron found himself glad he hadn't taken Harry's advice and gone with muggle diapers, they'd of had a blow out by now! "D-Daddy tummy hurt!" Draco whined and whimpered, tears going down his cheeks and holding out his hands as his knees wobbled. technically Ron should of let Draco suffer, to enjoy the spoils of his win at getting ice cream and suffer butttt...that just wasn't the kinda daddy Ron was. conjuring up a clothes pin for his own nose, and a dummy with a large rubber teat that found it's way into Draco's mouth, Ron came over and hugged the stinky boy. He also once he noticed the twins were trying to escape out the windows, shut them on the twins trapping them but not hurting them. well, not hurting them till anther spell had the back of their knickers get yanked up for twin wedgies. "OWWW! Stoppp Ron knock it off!" "we'll get you back for this!" "mmmmhmmm. I'll be back to free you after I change Draco..or I can let you two go now and you can change him." Ron said, smirking. "...You know, after the first 10 seconds this feels kinda nice." Fred said. "Could do this all day." added George. "For the record you two will be changing him at some point." Ron laughed. "Now hold on.." George started. "You never warned us about him being like..THAT every time that he goes!" Fred protested. "Hmm? oh he's not. but you dipsticks let him have dairy when he's lactose intolerant. reap what you sew." "..If he knew he couldn't handle it then why did he have three bowls of it!?!" "because he's a baby duh. he just likes yummy things and doesn't think about later." A whine from behind and Ron smiled at the huffing Draco who with one last watery fart seemed to be done..and oh my. the diaper had gotten SO shit swelled that it looked like something out of a cartoon show, Draco had basically made a bean bag chair of sorts! in fact if he hadn't of just stopped pooping he might of been picked off the ground! "Jesus sweetie, you have any bones left in you?" Ron asked fascinated and semi worried at the same time. (and maybe a little pride, that was his boy who had just made a super big present.)

The only way to move him at this point was a levitation spell and Draco hated it. the damn things always made him queasy to his belly even though he'd been used to moving much faster during a quditch game. Still there was no way to change him in the house without getting the mess everywhere and his new uncles seemed to have a high enough stone way around the back of their large yard. "oh look, they have a garden back here..you can provide all the fertilizer from now on!" Daddy teased and Draco tried to glare but the cheating bastard tickled the big babies tum tum making him giggle around the paci. Sat down slowly with a loud squish and a horrible smell being released, Draco whined and held his own nose and waved a hand. "heh, yeah buddy, Stinky.":Ron chuckled then opened his diaper. stinky as it was, Draco couldn't help but giggle even in the outdoor setting as Ron turned green in the face. charming a gas mask onto his face daddy was apparently ok and Draco huffed and crossed his arms. "No fair! cheating!" was what he wanted to say, but just gibberish came out instead because he also refused to let the dummy out of his mouth.

45 minutes later (give or take a century from Ron's POV) and the little guy was all cleaned up and his 'treasure' so to speak disposed of. The twins had manage to get free by seeing what Ron had been dealing with they decided to hold back on their revenge so they wouldn't have to change Draco today. Or at least that was the plan but after carrying Draco in just his diapers (him sitting on Ron's lap, snuggling into him and looking more like a little toddler then the high school graduate he was) when Ron came out of their room, Draco was hiding behind him and still had the dummy in his mouth.  just he was sucking on it BIG time and almost giving the twins ideas. then Ron stepped out of the way and the twin's jaws dropped. If his first outfit had been shocking, and his just diapered look adorable, this look was kinda sexy and having the twins who had considered themself hetero till just seconds again were desperately trying to justify thoughts of what they wanted to do with Draco. "Boys..let me introduce the other side of your new nephew..his niece side." Ron chuckled.

Draco's cheeks were bright red, daddy had promised no sissy stuff around his brothers but said this was his punishment for being a little piggy! So now his short blond hair had a light pink bow in it, he was wearing a very short little girl party dress, complete with a bow on the back that daddy had to tie and of course was a mixture of different shades of pink. whine knee high socks were on him and a pair of black Mary janes on his feet. 'At least daddy didn't put make up on me this time." Draco sulked around his paci, waddling forward with the same bulky cloth and rubber pants he'd had before. His his Mary-janes making a clip clack sound on the floor Draco got in front of his unca's and griping the hem of his dress, curtsy and bowed his head. "so..you two think you can try this again and NOT fuck it up?" Ron asked. "I uh..I.." Fred stammered, apparently locked up in resisting the urge to fawn over the little cutie. "You know Fred, i think we could do a smash up job this time. even handle any diaper changes!" George said. "Glad to hear. no take backies." Ron said and turned to go back into Draco and his room to finish working. as he turned a low rumbling sound was heard that turned into a series of wet farts. "Uhhh Ron?" Fred squeaked out as the back of Draco's diaper ballooned out from under the dress. "No take backsies. " was all Ron said then shut the door. "...Still think letting them move in was a good idea?" "Oh shut up!"

the end

[luci-in-trenchcoats]

By My Side (Part 1)

Summary: While at home one night, the reader, an actress, is almost kidnapped and at her friend’s suggestion she hires Jensen as her bodyguard. While the pair doesn’t get along, an incident at the reader’s new home leads her and Jensen to taking a drastic measure...

Masterlist

Pairing: Bodyguard!Jensen x reader

Word Count: 3,900ish

Warnings: language, minor injury, attempted kidnapping, drugging

A/N: There will be no taglist for this series. Please check out the masterlist for posting dates/times. Enjoy!

_________

“Get the fuck off!” you said, kneeing the man that was halfway through dragging you down your stairs. You threw a punch and a kick, swinging more than a few times before the grip on you fell away and you booked it for the front door. You sprinted outside and down the driveway, dashing across the street and banging on your neighbor’s door. 

A light came on and you glanced over your shoulder, spotting the guy dressed in black and wearing a mask jog to the end of your driveway.

“Shit, shit,” you said, a strong arm grabbing you and yanking you inside before you could even turn back around. The door slammed shut after you and you took a deep breath, your neighbor standing there in his boxers, saying something to his wife in the background. 

“Y/N, are you okay?” said Jared. You straightened up and nodded, his eyes going wide. 

“Gen! Tell them she needs an ambulance too,” he said.

“I’m fine,” you said as he walked you to his kitchen and sat you down at the counter. Gen was in there, on the phone with the police it sounded like, as Jared went to a cupboard. He pulled out a red bag and then was walking back over with a wad of bandages, holding it up to your forehead. “I’m fine.”

“You’re bleeding,” he said. “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” you said, pressing your hand to your head, seeing the half secured zip tie stuck on your other wrist. There were sirens in the distance and you shut your eyes.

“Hey, no sleeping. You might have a concussion,” he said.

“I’m not sleeping,” you said, squeezing your eyes shut. “Fuck.”

“It’s okay,” he said, the sirens getting louder before there were flashing lights in the window. Gen walked over to the front door, letting the police in. About four officers came inside, one of them immediately coming over to you.

“What’d he look like? How many?” he asked.

“Uh, all in black, with a mask. He was white I think from what I could tell. Maybe six foot, average build, strong. It was just the one as far as I know. Last I saw him he was at the end of the driveway before my neighbor let me in his house,” you said.

“You two, call it in for backup and start looking. Jones, get a full statement from these three. Start with the vic. Medics will want to look at that head,” he said. “Which house is yours?”

“Right across the street. Red front door,” you said. He left and the other cop in there pulled out a plastic bag from his back pocket.

“I need to cut that off for evidence,” he said, glancing at your wrist.

“Should we do anything?” asked Jared as the cop made a cut and bagged the plastic tie.

“I would keep pressure on that wound for the moment,” he said, writing on the bag and taking out a notepad and pen. “Alright. Let’s start from the beginning.”

“I was asleep less than ten minutes ago in my bed and I woke up to someone touching my arm and I found that tie thing on me and the guy tried grabbing my other arm but I rolled away. I got caught up in the covers while I was running away so he caught up to me in the hall outside my bedroom and I just started hitting what I could and then he tried to pull me downstairs and I hit him some more and then he let go and I ran over here.”

“How’d you sustain the head injury?” he asked.

“Well he was hitting me too when I started fighting back,” you said. “I was half-awake.”

“Okay. Sir, I’m going to need to ask you a few questions now.”

Three Hours Later

“Hey,” said Jared, setting a cup of tea down at his breakfast table. He rubbed your back and you sighed. “Rough night huh?”

“At least I don’t have a concussion,” you said, touching your butterfly bandages on your head.

“Police said your alarm wasn’t on.”

“So this is my fault?” you asked.

“No, I didn’t say that. I am saying that you and Gen have a very popular show together and if she didn’t have me around, I’d want her to have a bodyguard, maybe even full time,” he said.

“I have had this conversation with my manager multiple times. I’m not getting a bodyguard. For events and conventions, fine, I’ll have one. At work? In my life? No way,” you said.

“Y/N, you know I used to be in the army. Then I was a cop. Then I was on a SWAT team before I retired to become a stay at home dad,” he said.

“Yes. You’re an adorable scary badass. What’s your point?” you asked.

“When I worked SWAT, I worked a a few kidnapping cases. The honest truth is sometimes we don’t find you until it’s too late or we never do. It’s not like a movie. It’s not like your guys show and someone swoops in. No one shows up out of the blue to save you. You save yourself or you don’t get saved. Rarely do we get you out of that situation.”

“Again, what’s your point?”

“My point is whoever that person was, when they come back because they will come back, Y/N, and when they do, they’re not going to be that sloppy. They may drug you. They may knock you out. They could do a number of things but your chances of getting way again would be extraordinary. I love ya and I’ll always protect you. But next time, I might not be able to stop something bad from happening. You alone over there...I wouldn’t know until it’s too late.”

You were quiet, playing with the tea bag in your drink as he drank from his own mug.

“I don’t want a stranger coming into my home,” you said.

“Y/N, Gen and I want you to stay here for as long as you-”

“I meant a bodyguard, Jare. I don’t want somebody I don’t know to start coming into my life and controlling it.”

“I have a friend from my army days who does that kind of work. He’s between jobs at the moment. I’ll vouch for him,” he said.

“You’re not gonna give me a choice on this, are you,” you said.

“Gen and I are moving. A bigger place,” he said. “We think it’s a good idea if you had a change of scenery too.”

“You think she’s in danger too?”

“We don’t know but she’s five months pregnant. We don’t want to risk anything,” he said. “It’s just a thought.”

“Can...can I stay over here a few days? While I figure out what I want to do?” you asked.

“Yeah, of course, Y/N.”

Two Weeks Later

“I like the new place,” said Jared as he helped you carry in the last box. 

“It’s uh, a bit big,” you said. “But the owner wanted to sell fast and I wanted out of the other one fast so it worked out.”

“Seems like a lot of space for one person,” said the man walking in through the open front door. He was in a pair of dark jeans and a blazer, a tee shirt underneath. You stepped behind Jared but he chuckled. “Really Jare? Didn’t mention I’d be stopping by?”

“Y/N, this is my friend Jensen. I told you about him. You said you were interested in meeting him,” said Jared.

“Ms. Y/L/N,” said Jensen, holding out a hand.

“Y/N please,” you said as you shook it.

“I prefer to keep things professional,” said Jensen. “It’s easier that way. So, this is the new place, hm? Which room will be mine?”

“There’s a guest suite over on the first floor you can use,” you said.

“Where’s the master?”

“Upstairs.”

“Preferably I’d like to be in a room closer to yours,” he said.

“Fine. Take the guest room upstairs,” you said. “This is just a test run remember.”

“My contract says this is a six month test run,” he said as he looked around. “I see you’re still moving in so perhaps we can go over some of our new procedures in the morning.”

“Sure,” you said. 

“I’ll move in my belongings then,” he said. “I don’t have much.”

“Mhm,” you said. He nodded and headed back outside, Jared catching the look you gave him.

“What?” he asked.

“He’s gonna be a joy to live with,” you muttered.

“He’s quiet until you get to know him. I wouldn’t have recommended him if I didn’t trust him. He’s saved my life before. I know he’ll have your back,” said Jared.

“Yeah,” you said, his phone going off. “Jared, go. I know you’re already late for the baby checkup.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I only have boxes left to unpack anyways. Go on. I’ll talk to you guys later,” you said. He gave you a wave on the way out, leaving you to stare at the pile of boxes sitting on your kitchen floor. You cracked your back and started to work, catching Jensen move in a few duffel bags of his own. He left and wandered around outside eventually, allowing you to try and get the essentials all stored away.

By the time it was seven, you were exhausted but your bedroom, bathroom and kitchen were all set up. You plopped down on the couch, closing your eyes. They blinked open when you felt a presence standing over you.

“I’ve done a review of the property. I’d like to have an upgraded security system installed tomorrow,” he said.

“Whatever. Just put it on the card my manager gave you,” you said.

“I’d also like to consider hiring an additional person to monitor the system at some point. They can be remotely based,” he said.

“Like I said, whatever,” you said, closing your eyes again.

“I assume I have access to use the kitchen as I desire,” he said.

“No smoking. No drugs. No random hookups you bring here and as long as you don’t bug me and stay away from my ice cream, we’ll be fine,” you said.

“I can agree to that. As long as you follow my rules, we’ll also be fine,” he said. You laughed and sat up, walking to the kitchen to find your phone. “Do you think that’s funny?”

“I think the fact you think you’re going to be making rules in my home that I paid for is very funny,” you said. You took the phone to check on the pizza and wings you ordered for yourself, Jensen walking over and stopping in front of you. “Can I help you?”

“You are paying me a very large sum of money to keep you safe. If you don’t listen to what I say then I can’t guarantee your safety,” he said.

“Let me get something clear. I’m doing this to appease my friends and manager. Do whatever you want around here but don’t start telling me how to live my life,” you said.

“I took this job as a favor,” he said, snatching your phone out of your hand and tossing it on the countertop behind him. You scowled and he walked forward, forcing you to back up until your back hit a wall.

“Dude, backoff.”

“Pretend I’m that man that tried to take you before. What do you do? Right here and now. What’s your plan?”

“I’m serious,” you said, trying to brush past him and getting a light shove into the wall for it. You glared at him but he held his ground, pushing you again when you moved.

“I’m serious. Tell me what your plan is. Better yet, show me,” he said. 

“I don’t care if you are Jared’s friend. I am this close to punching you. Move now.”

“I said show me.”

You narrowed your eyes and brought up your knee to hit him in the groin. He pushed it away before it connected though and you were off balance, Jensen grabbing you and yanking you away from the wall, putting you in a headlock and tugging your arms behind your back.

“Don’t go for the most obvious move in the world,” he said. “Now that didn’t go how you wanted it to. What’s the plan now?”

“Get off,” you growled, trying to stomp your foot down on his but he moved it back and kicked out your ankle, making you fall back against him. He picked you up and you started moving your legs, Jensen suddenly dropping you down onto the hardwood floor. You hit your knee and winced, a hand suddenly grabbing the back of your shirt. “Alright! I get the fucking point.”

“Do you?” he said, squatting down beside you. You tried pushing his hand away but it tightened and you tried throwing a punch, his grip almost too hard now and his free hand easily blocking the hit. “You have no plan. You’re too small and too weak to overpower someone. You can’t afford to have no plan. The thing is, when it’s real, you’ll be panicking and you’ll have no time at all to think of one.”

“Stop touching me unless you want me to call the cops on you,” you spat out. He moved his hand away and stood, staring back at you.

“You need to do what I tell you if you want to stay safe. I will teach you what to do if you’re in that situation for whatever reason. But the rules keep that situation from happening in the first place. Understand?” he said.

“Understand that you are fired as of now. Pack up your shit and get out of my house,” you said. You got to your feet and he raised an eyebrow. “I’m your boss and I can fire you whenever I want. Get out.”

“How on earth Jared is friends with a someone like you I will never understand,” he said. He headed upstairs and the doorbell rang. You forced a smile for the delivery guy and took your food back to the kitchen, digging in before Jensen was even tossing his first bag down the stairs. You rolled your eyes and were on your third slice by the time he was walking downstairs.

“Don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” you said. He shot you a dirty look, his head cocking as he set his bag down. “Oh now what?”

“You look really pale,” he said, walking over to you. “Your pupils are huge.”

“You know what else? You are so not as hot as you think you are,” you said, reaching for another piece of chicken before he smacked your hand. “You are this close to me calling...someone.”

Your head got dizzy for a second, Jensen grabbing your arms and setting you down on the ground.

“I feel funny,” you said, tipping over and resting against him. “Really, really funny.”

“You just got drugged,” he said, using his phone to dial a number. “No more takeout. Got it? Obviously this person knows you moved. I want to put someone at the house full time.”

“I’m gonna fall asleep now,” you said, shutting your eyes.

“No, nope, try to stay awake,” he said. You hummed and he grabbed your face. “Y/N. Try.”

“You’re really pretty for a grumpy grump,” you said.

“I thought I wasn’t hot. Just stay awake for me, Y/N,” he said.

Twenty minutes later you were in the ER with an IV in your arm and feeling a whole lot of crappy. Jensen said something to a doctor before he walked over to the stall you were in and stood by the bed.

“Hey. Police are at your house. Neighbor said they saw a silver pickup parked down the street. Seemed shady. It was gone by the time they got there,” he said.

“Course it was,” you mumbled.

“You more with it again?” he asked.

“Yeah. Feel really tired is all,” you said.

“Well I called your manager. He said he’d be here soon so I’m gonna head out,” he said.

“Huh?” you said, sitting up as he started to leave. “Wait.”

“Last I remember, you fired me. Nothing has changed,” he said. “Goodnight.”

“Wait,” you said, grabbing his wrist, the effort taking more energy than you were anticipating. He didn’t shrug you off, instead gently setting your hand back in your lap and pushing you to lay back down.

“You should rest. There’s a cop outside the room,” he said.

“Stop. Just...sit down,” you said. He sighed but sat on the edge of the bed, raising an eyebrow. “How could somebody already know where I moved? Hardly anyone knows.”

“You rent a moving truck?” he asked.

“Yeah. Movers did the furniture,” you said. He shrugged and you shut your eyes. “The movers?”

“No, probably not them. But that truck probably has GPS for mileage tracking and if this person has your credit card info, they could figure it out,” he said. “The food thing probably happened back at the restaurant you ordered from. Somebody slips in the backdoor, puts some stuff on your food and slips back out.”

“What’s your suggestion?”

“I don’t work for you anymore.”

“Let’s pretend earlier didn’t happen. Please,” you said. “I can’t...I can’t be alone right now and something feels really off about this whole thing.”

“This whole thing has felt off the second Jared told me about it. Tonight just further proved that point,” he said.

“You were in the army longer than he was, right?”

“He decided to retire, go be a cop. I stayed in. Worked on a few more specialized skills a bit longer before I left and got in this line of work,” he said.

“I’m going to assume you know what you’re doing then.”

“Yeah. I know what I’m doing. I can’t guarantee anything but I can give you some pretty damn good odds,” he said. He stared at you for a moment and looked you over. “You’re smarter than the stereotypical actress I pegged you for.”

“It had to have been someone on my team or that’s close to me in order to know that I was moving,” you said. “Or else the person never would have known to look today.”

“Someone that knows your go to takeout place too. You need to be extremely careful about who you trust right now,” he said.

“I trust Jared and Gen,” you said.

“I trust the guy with my life. I’d trust him with yours. Gen is fiesty when you piss her off but you’re her best friend. They didn’t do this.”

“Your expert opinion, what’s my next move?” you asked. He rubbed the back of his neck and made a face. “Jensen.”

“Ideally? You go off grid. I mean off grid, off grid. Middle of nowhere, no one knows where exactly. Cut yourself off and it’d give us more time to figure out who this person is and what exactly it is they want with you. If they’re as close as we think they are, they’ll find a way to sneak in again and next time, it might be my food that’s drugged. It’s a big risk to go back to the house.”

“I can’t go be alone though. What if they did find me somehow?” you asked.

“I said off grid. I didn’t say alone,” he said. “It’s an extreme approach, I’ll give you that. But it gives me more time to work on this and it’ll keep you safe.”

“Why not hire a bunch of guys to stay around me all the time?”

“Because you’re still in danger if you stay in LA and I don’t have the ability to check that many guys out. I got guys I know I can trust but they’re all over the country and the only other one here is Jared and Gen needs him. No offense but she’s got a kid with another on the way. More bodies means more priority,” he said.

“No, no. Please keep them safe too. If it’s a fan of the show, they could be in the same situation,” you said.

“I’m not going to try and tell you what to do because obviously, you weren’t a fan of me doing that before. But if you want to be able to sleep safely at night, we need to go, just you and me. Jared and Gen can know but that’s it and I mean that’s it. I can secure a safe place and everything we’ll need. But it’s going to be a drastic lifestyle change.”

“How drastic?”

“Like no internet and our electricity will run off a generator drastic.”

“If I stay here?”

“I give it a week tops before they try something again,” he said.

“We wrapped two weeks back and since Gen’s pregnant, we aren’t slated to start filming for another seven months. I’ll have to cancel some events but if I was ever going to go off grid, now’s the time to do it.”

“I will get it arranged. Do not speak a word of this to anyone,” he said.

“Jensen,” you said as he stood. “What was that back at the house? You acting all aggressive like that?”

“The last client I had, I was lenient, never taught them anything, let them push me around and dictate how I worked. They got put in a bad situation because of that. If you don’t take this seriously, then what’s the point of me being here.”

“Well wherever we go, I’m gonna need a few things. Women stuff,” you said.

“Make a list and tomorrow, pack a bag,” he said. “I want us on the road tomorrow night. I don’t care what you tell your team about why you’ll be MIA. Just tell them something so we don’t get a missing persons report on you.”

“Alright,” you said, Jensen nodding and starting to leave. “Wait. Where are you going?” 

“I need to start preparing. Like I said, there’s a police officer by the door.”

You stared at him and he took a deep breath.

“How about he stays in the room with you until we’re ready to go home and get what we need, okay?” he said.

“Okay,” you said.

“Hang tight. When you’re up for it, we’ll get out of here.”

_____

A/N: Read Part 2 here!

[onlyhenrys]

The Choice - Chapter 1

Summary: Grey Syverson and Winter Derby set off into an interesting journey of life as neighbors. Grey Syverson is a cheeky veteran always falling in love with the wrong women. Winter Derby, a veterinary student ready to graduate and settle down with her long time boyfriend. Sy thinks his life is already full of joy and happiness - then Winter moves in the house next door.

It’s a story about overcoming barriers to be with your loved ones. It is about pure and intense romantic love, trust, strength and the reality that all choice is a cheap illusion

Thank you @iloveyouyen for supporting me no matter what and for beta’ ing this story for me. I love you ♥️

Chapter 1

“Oh for fuck sake,” she snapped, looking through the window to see her neighbor behind the grill, his friends fooling around with each other. She sighed and turned to her dog, who was looking at her with his big blue eyes. “We really got the asshole neighbor, huh?”

She massages her temples before focusing on the papers in front of her. She only had a few days left before her big exam, so she needed all the time that she could get. The party of her neighbor wasn’t helping, it only made her more irritable, something she couldn’t use right now.

Winter took another peek through the window, her eyes locking on her neighbor once again. He was quite something, she had to admit. With his muscled body, his rough beard, and the cap, covering his hair. He looked like he owned the neighborhood, almost like he stepped out of one of those cliche romantic movies. She giggled at her own thoughts and shook her head in amusement.

Suddenly he turned around like he knew she was watching and his eyebrows knitted together as his eyes searched the area. She held her breath as his ocean eyes locked with her hazel ones. A lopsided smile appeared on his lips as he touched the rim of his cap in greeting, startling her. She quickly dropped her curtains and leaned back against her chair, softly cursing herself. How could she be so stupid, to get herself caught like this?

A soft whine caught her attention and she looked down at Bear. ‘’What’s wrong, sweetheart?’’

He turned around, restless as he looked up towards the front door. Winter released a breath and rose from her seat to open the door, releasing the excited husky. She stumbled backward as she ran into a tall body that had his hand raised to knock on the door. He quickly reached out to grab her arms, steadying her.

“Well… that’s one way to greet your neighbor.”

A shiver ran through her body at the sound of his voice. His words were laced with a thick accent, the tone low and soothing, the kind of voice that she would listen to if she wouldn’t be able to sleep. She pulled away and straightened her clothes before crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“You’re the one who sneaked up on me,” she snapped, her cheeks slightly tinted red as she tried to hide her embarrassment.

A snicker escaped from the man and Winter pressed down the urge to slap him. “How is waiting on your porch sneaking up on you?”

She pushed past him, her hand shielding her eyes as she looked around, searching for Bear. Her eyes widened as she found him, curled up next to a German Shepherd. ‘’Who’s dog is that?’’ She turned back to face her neighbor who was silently watching her.

He pushed his hands in the pockets of his jeans as he shrugged. ‘’She’s mine, Aika,’’ he watched her from the corner of his eyes, ‘’I think he knocked her up.’’

‘’What?’’ she sputtered. ‘’My dog knocked up yours? And you let that happen?’’

He raised his hands in surrender and moved away from her, giving her some space to breathe. ‘’What was I supposed to do? Boy tried to bite my hands off when I came near them.’’ He pointed at her accusingly. ‘’And you are the one who let him roam around the neighborhood unsupervised. So don’t try to blame me, woman.’’

‘’Winter.’’

The corner of his eyes wrinkled in confusion. ‘’What?’’

‘’Winter,’’ she mumbled, ‘’you called me woman, but my name is Winter.’’

He chuckled. ‘’Like the season?’’ He grabbed ahold of one of her almost white strands. ‘’Makes sense.’’

She was mesmerized by his eyes. They weren’t just solid blue, one of them had a brown spot in it, making them unique. She shook her head to clear her mind and stepped away from him, putting some distance between them.

“Don’t touch me.”

He crossed his arms in front of his chest, straining the muscles. “Feisty, aren’t we? Don’t worry, I won’t touch you again,” he pressed a little piece of paper in her hands, “here’s the bill for the vet.”

He winked as he backed away from her. “Congratulations, we’re gonna be grandparents.” He touched his cap again and turned his back towards her, his shoulders shaking slightly with restrained chuckles.

Her face heated and she pressed her nails into the palm of her hands, almost tearing the small paper. “You never told me your name.”

He smoothly jumped over the little fence that separated their houses, before facing her with a shit-eating grin on his face. “Syverson, ma’am,” he bowed, “Grey Syverson, at your service.” He took another step back before nodding at her.

“Good night, Winter.”

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Syverson walked back to his friends, shaking his head slightly at the fierce ashen haired woman that was his neighbor. Something about her triggered his cocky side, the one that only came out when he was around his friends, his family. The feeling was unfamiliar and stirred something deeply hidden within him.

His friends were already packing their stuff and Adam approached him, pulling him aside. ‘’Don’t do things you will regret, mate. That won’t end well for either of you.’’ He slapped him on the back and joined his family, wrapping his arm around his wife’s waist before walking towards their car.

Sy felt his sister’s eyes burn and he turned left, joining her on the swing that hung from the ceiling.

‘’What?’’

She chuckled and raised her eyebrow at him. ‘’You want to tell me something?’’

Sy frowned and leaned down to bury his fingers in Aika’s thick fur, making sure that she was comfortable. ‘’What are you talking about?’’

She tilted her head as she studied her older brother. She had observed him over the years and was only able to watch helplessly as he fell for the wrong women, over and over again. She wasn’t going to let him fall for the wrong one now. ‘’The woman you were talking to, who is she?’’

He shrugged before answering, ‘’the new neighbor.’’ he scratched Aika behind her ear, ‘’her dog knocked Aika up, so I was generous enough to bring her the vet’s bill.’’

‘’Grey Syverson,’’ his sister gasped, shoving his large body away, ‘’you did not.’’ She threw her head back as an airy laugh escaped. ‘’You’re such an asshole, no wonder why you never settled with someone.’’

‘’Shut up, Hailey,’’ he mumbled, frowning slightly as Aika released a low whine. ‘’What’s wrong, girl?’’ He crouched next to her and rubbed her belly. The German Shepherd growled and tried to bite him, something that she’s never done before.

‘’Something is wrong,’’ he turned towards his sister, ‘’we have to call our vet.’’

“No need,” a faintly familiar voice caught his attention and he looked up to find Winter, staring down at Aika, concern laced in her hazel eyes. “I’m a veterinary student and only one exam away from graduating, I can help.”

She joined Sy at Aika’s side and softly caressed her thick coat, soothing the anxious pup. “Everything is gonna be alright girl,” she whispered, “I’m only here to help.”

Aika rested her head on Sy’s thigh and accepted the soft touch of the stranger that wanted to examine her. Sy stroked her fur as he waited for Winter to give her opinion, growing more worried as time passed.

Winter pulled away and smiled, stealing Sy’s breath as he openly stared at her, forgetting his worry about Aika for a second. ‘’Mom is completely healthy. One of the pups is in the wrong position, but she still has some time, so the little one will adjust fine before it’s time to give birth.’’

Sy cleared his throat, trying to focus on what she was telling him. ‘’So… nothing to worry ‘bout?’’

“No, Captain, nothing to worry about.” Winter opened her mouth again to continue when another voice interrupted her.

“Grey Syverson, did you really eat all the damn ice cream?!”

He shot her an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, but duty calls.”

She chuckled bitterly. “Yeah…… wouldn’t want the girlfriend to go nuts because she doesn’t have her ice cream, right? Good night, Captain.”

She whistled and Bear joined her side as she strode back to the house, her shoulder hunched together, like she was shielding herself against some kind of pain.

He watched her enter her home before he turned on his heels and stormed towards the house, his hands balled into fists.

“Hailey,’’ he groaned. ‘’What have you done?!’’

[themysteriousauthor18]

Radiodust oneshot [Childhood friend AU]

Artist of picture above: 

A wild deer, that’s how it started. 

              A wild deer and a small boy watching it from the bushes. His brown eyes watched it curiously with the handgun in one of his hands, waiting for a perfect angle. As he raised it ready to aim the perfect shot would have been fired….if not for the sudden intrusion.

It was quick a blur almost but the mop of blonde hair was obvious as the small person ran at the deer and they almost had it. But the deer was faster and it moved at the last second causing the stranger to fall face first into the dirt. The brunette groaned, annoyed as he got up from his hiding spot, watching in aggravation as the deer made it’s escape. Far too fast for him to land a hit. 

He looked over to the spot, it was a child and as he approached he noticed the small hand knife in their hand. He wasn’t scared though. “Hey.” The little brunette said, crossing his arms and frowning, the little blonde pushed up onto his elbows and a pair of lime green eyes met brown. 

He had never seen such bright and pretty green eyes and he found himself staring for a second before regaining his thoughts. “Ya ‘don scared off ma’ prey.” The other boy tilted his head as he got to his knees before his feet. Once he stood the brunette stifled a laugh somehow taking pride in the fact that the other was at least a foot shorter than him. 

“I saw ‘em first.” The brunette stared quizzically, he sounded funny. 

“You got da weird voice.” The little blonde boy stuck his tongue out.

“Yeah well, you talk funny.” The two little boys exchanged looks for a second before the smaller of the two looked away. The brunette couldn’t help but look at the knife on the other hand. 

“Why ya got da’ knife?” The blonde looked down at his knife. 

“My pa is making me hunt animals.” The brunette scoffed.

“Dat’s dumb. A gun is betta.” The little boy smiled.

“That’s what I said!” His smile faded soon after, the brunette liked his smile. It was...nice. The shorter of the two glared at the grown. “But whenever I say that he hits me...so I stopped saying that.” The two fell silent the only sounds being the subtle forest sounds around them and heavy sounds of cicadas in the hot summer heat. 

“What’s your name?” The brunette finally asked his curiosity getting the better of him. He was sharply dressed for his age and the other found it strange. His outfit looked like it had been stolen from someone, multiple tears in the pants and white T-shirt he wore. 

It was a stupid choice to be talking to someone, especially out here. His father had told him never to trust anyone yet here he was talking to a boy that was strangely out here in the woods on a hot summer day. Especially when children would be playing in a pool somewhere or getting ice cream. 

And despite all that, he found himself answering. “Anthony.” The brunette found himself smiling, something he rarely did these days. 

“My name is Edward.” The taller of the two said, reaching his hand out as if they were businessmen.

Anthony looked at the hand curiously but found himself grabbing it. They shook and their hands stuck together for a little longer than normal before awkwardly separating. 

Anthony looked at the ground. “So uh..how old are ya’? I just turned 9!” The brunette narrowed his eyes.

“10.” The blonde looked up amazed.

“Wow your old.” The brunette gawked at the bluntness.

“ ‘Dats real rude!” Anthony only grinned.

“But it's weird.” Edward tilted his head confused.

“Why?” He couldn’t help but stare into those large round doe-like green eyes. The freckles, blonde hair and pale skin..it was all so interesting to look at. Was it because he was younger that he looked like that?

“Well I’ve met older people and they weren’t cute. But you are.” Edward smiled nervously.

“D-you can’t go sayin’ ‘dat!” The shorter was simply confused.

“Huh? Why?” Edward frowned his cheeks tinting a like pink. 

“My fatha’ said it ain’t okay for boys to be goin’ around and liking boys. He don’t like it…”

“Oh…” Anthony muttered staring at the grass, as if it held the answers.

“Well, I like you!” The brunette’s face flushed a bright red.

“D-don’t be sayin’ dat!” He gawked, completely shocked. He’d never met someone like this or a boy who had said something like that. 

“Well I am so there!” Edward crossed his arms.

“You very weird.” The blonde boy only grinned. 

“I know. Oh-I gotta go! Bye Edward!” The boy suddenly took off running and before the brunette could question just why he’d run off, he could hear the boy's name being called by a gruff voice.

...Maybe he would see him again. 

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            Two boys, each drastically different, it seemed as if a friendship like theirs would never work out. But somehow it did, in that small quaint town of New Orleans they seemed, by luck, to run into each other again and again. And somehow that friendship grew and they got along. They would go into the woods together and attempt to hunt or sometimes just sit around and talk about random topics. 

Although only the mothers knew of the boy's friendship, and would be the one to maintain this secret friendship. Although there was a lot of bad on each of the boy’s sides, for what it was worth, when they were together things almost for those two years, were perfect. 

And then those 5 years came to an end. 

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            A soft knock came at the door but Anthony refused to look up from the floor. He heard the door open and still refused to look up. He expected to hear the booming voice of his father yelling at him, snatching up and beating him. But instead he only heard the light tapping of shoes as they got closer…

This led him to think that it was his mother who had entered his room, and so he looked up. But his eyes widened in shock, it was not his mother who was currently closing his door very quietly nor her who was smiling sadly at him right now.

“Ed!” He whispered loudly as he got up from his bed and tackled the other in a tight hug. In these two years the other male had grown a bit taller, his voice had gotten a tad deeper and he now wore glasses. But other than that, he hadn’t changed very much. The way he hesitantly passed Anthony’s shoulders before gently pushing him away only proved this.  

“Are you alright?” He asked, he had begun suppressing his accent since a year ago, and although Anthony wasn’t sure why he never bothered to question it. Even if he did miss it. 

Anthony nodded with glossy eyes that he tried to wipe. Edward was dressed in that blue polo again, the one they always wore in schools. Wait did he just skip school? “How did ya get in here..” Anthony whispered. Edward simply shook his head dismissing the question as unimportant.

“Why are you frowning?” Anthony wiped his eyes. 

“You know why! I ain’t gonna be in New Orleans tomorrow…” It was all his father's fault, and he truly hated him for it. He had done quite a lot of horrible things but this was one of the worst. They were being forced to move back to New York just because of his father's work. Naturally he didn’t have a say so in it and, it would also be the last time he would be able to see Edward. He didn’t have a cellphone, he wasn’t allowed one and Edward was far too poor to afford one. Anthony didn’t know his new address and he didn’t want to get the other in trouble for possibly sending letters to his home.

Truly, it seemed this would be the last time they would be seeing each other. 

It seemed. 

And Edward knew this. 

He was frowning now as he moved his thumb to wipe a stray tear from the shorter boy's face. “Don’t frown Anthony. You have a beautiful smile.” Anthony sniffled as he shook his head resting it against Edwards chest.

“I don’t wanna say goodbye to ya...you're the only person in this shit hole whose actually nice to me...everyone else sucks.” This time Edward allowed the contact, he kept his hands on Anthony’s shoulders. 

“I don’t wanna say goodbye either Anthony.” He admitted quietly. He gently patted the other's head. “But there’s nothing we can do.” Once again he pushed the other away holding him at arm's length. Anthony looked up with glossy eyes once more. Edward smiled sadly, and reached into his breast pocket taking out the red handkerchief. 

“Come now, a frown doesn’t suit your pretty face.” Anthony took the handkerchief and wiped his eyes free of any tears. He held it up to hand it back but the other simply shook his head. “Keep it.” This caused the corners of Anthony’s lips to tug up almost into a smile. It was that smile that Edward craved whenever they met up, whenever he saw him and whenever they said their goodbyes.

And this time was no different. 

“Sbrigati, fottuto marmocchio!” The familiar gruff voice shouted from the hall in italian. Anthony’s smile vanished as did Edwards. 

He sighed, suppressing the urge to cry once again. “I-I gotta go…” he muttered in a broken voice. 

“Hm, I think not. Not until you smile.” Anthony looked up.

“Ed-your gonna get me in trouble. Move out of ‘da way..and..and you gotta go before you get found by my pa.” Anthony bit his lip swallowing the tears as he gestured to the locked window. He wanted to run, run away with Edward..but he knew he couldn’t. They wouldn’t survive out there, and he knew his father would find him. Running would just make it worse...besides, he refused to leave his mother and sister. 

Edward only shook his head. “Not until you smile. So how can I get that to happen?�� Anthony looked to his feet, only shrugging. Edward hummed lowley as he took a step forward noting to himself that he’d locked the door. He tilted Anthony’s head up and without warning leaned down and pecked his lips. 

The blonde was shocked, thrown off even. The action was enough to get him to back away, the back of his hand covering his mouth. Edward only smirked, finding Anthony’s bright red face and confused green eyes that searched him, humorous.

“E-Ed what the hell! W-why did you do that.” The brunette only looked quizcally, the smirk on his lips not falling.

“Did you not like it?” Slowly the hand covering Anthony’s mouth lowered, his eyes looking anywhere that wasn’t Edward. 

“.......I did.” He said quietly, almost too quiet to hear. Almost. 

Edward stepped closer once more, leaned down again but stopped just an inch from Anthony’s lips. He smiled softly, and Anthony kept his eyes away even though he could feel Edwards breaths on his cheek. As he felt the others hand come up to cup his cheek he found his eyes tracing back to the brunette. Those large green doe eyes stared up into brown. 

Anthony leaned up pressing his lips against Edwards and grabbing the front of his shirt, pulling him closer. Edward only tilted his head, locking his free arm around Anthony’s hips. 

Time seemingly stopped for just those few minutes. And for once, Anthony felt safe and warm. 

And then that moment was over. 

The loud banging at the door and failed attempt to open it brought the young pair back to reality causing the brunette to quickly pull away. Angel looked up at him alarmed as he moved over to the window quickly opening it, ignoring the angry italian behind the door. He sat perched on the window ciel, the jump down wouldn’t hurt too much as long as he landed in the bushes. 

He looked over to Anthony and reached his hand out. “Anthony come with me.” The blonde looked at the offered hand and slowly shook his head. “I can’t Ed...my sister. A-and what about your mom..” Edward frowned deepened as he sighed. 

He leaned forward, cupping Anthony’s face and kissing him gently one last time. It was short this time, but sweet. He stared into those bright green eyes resting his forehead against the others. “....Goodbye, Anthony.” 

Anthony’s eyes become glossy once more, he couldn’t help but sniffle once again. “Goodbye Edward..” he hoarse words came, and they were the last things the brunette heard before tearing himself away and jumping from the window. 

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          “Wow that sounds like a childhood love story.” The blonde-haired girl said from Angel’s bed. He sighed leaning against his dresser. He took another hit from his joint, his eyes staring out the window and into the city of New York. 

“Eh it was probably the heat of the moment.” The women hummed. 

“Your an adult now, why not just move back to New Orleans and go lookin’ for him?” Angel shook his head taking another long drag from the joint, this time letting stay in for a second before blowing it out. The smoke filled the room, not that it bothered the women.

“That was 10 years ago Cherri, he’s probably long gone by now. An I don’t even remember his address let alone where he lived in New Orleans.” She laid down on his bed. “Plus I can’t. Just cause I got my own place don’t mean pa ain’t got his hooks in me still.” She frowned.

“Well, who knows...maybe you’ll meet him again someday. Loves got a way y’know?” Angel looked into the mirror, he’d grown up his features matured..freckles not as visible anymore. But most importantly, his eyes didn’t sparkle a bright green like they had back then. Sometimes he wondered if that kiss really happened, or if it was all just his imagination. Trying to make something good of a sad memory. Wanting to kiss the guy he’d developed a crush on. 

Did it ever happen...or was it simply a false memory?

“Yeah….I hope so.”

But he wouldn’t get his hopes up. 

He knew better.

He suppressed a sign as he leaned over and switched on the radio. He wanted to listen to something while he did his make up. 

“Good morning all you listeners! Today is quite a lovely day yes indeed! A pleasure to have you all listening once again. I shall be your host for today, Alastor haha! Now let us see what dreadful things are to be had today in the city of New York!” 

Angel frowned only listening to that broadcast in the background..

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…..Maybe they’d meet again someday.

[yamithediaperdork]

Moving day (Harry potter)

They say that any move can be stressful and the adjustment period of living with new roommates can be hard for the first few days, even if your new roomies happen to be your older twin brothers. And not making things any easier though they of course love and support you, is that your boyfriend is coming with you for the move, and as such you had to tell them about the special arrangement. Still stories over the phone apparently didn't fully paint a picture and now Ron and Draco are waiting for the twins to stop staring and let them in. The twins themselves were wearing matching white t-shirts and blue jeans. Ron was in a loose and long sleeved black shirt and black cargo pants, and Draco took the cake. what with the pure blood ex bully being in green cover all's (with crotch snaps!) and a black t-shirt it looked like under the cover-all's. and by how swollen and BIG Draco's crotch and rear looked, the boy was easily rocking 3 nappies. "Interesting..fashion choice." George said finally. "Inner child and all that." Fred said.

Getting Draco inside Ron got his big baby of a boyfriend sat down in the living room to get to know his unca's better while Ron went and unpacked, not a easy job to do since they were making use of a magic suitcase so there was at least a few hours worth of work needed for Ron to do. If your wondering why Draco wasn't helping with the unpacking well, He was a little guy in more ways then attire and a bored/grumpy Draco trying to be 'helpful' never ended well. He could of had one of the twins help him but with it being their first time watching Draco, he figured 2 on 1 gave them a fighting chance against his bratty baby boy.

"So..Cripes..you really wear nappies huh?" Fred asked,leaning down for a closer look at the bulky seat of Draco's overall's and nappies. Draco, who had been leaning forward to get some of the baby blocks they had for him to play with gave a annoyed look as this was the 5th time Fred had asked that. deciding that those who get that close to his butt with no care about their own safety deserved what they got and scrunched up his face. George realized what was happening and started to cry out a warning. "Fred wait get back from hi-" but at last the cry came too late and indeed only made things worse. Fred's poor mouth had opened, and with the distraction from George, Draco moved his diapered rear backwards, almost in slow motion and finished his long sputtering but muffed fart on his unca's face. With the deed done and Fred on his back and gagging, George glared at Draco. "what cha do that for?" he demanded, folding his arms. "But unca George, I'm just a widdle boy and NEED my diapies, Unca Fred should of realized he was playing with fire.. or gas." Draco said, doing his best 'i'm so cute you can't stay mad at me' faces and voices. and unlike Ron who had seen them all and could resit, This was Georges first and he instantly melted. "well,m just don't let it happen again. Do you want some ice cream?" George asked Draco of course knew he wasn't suppose to have any, ice cream made him a super duper pooper..Butttt He was just a little boy and lessons had to be learned all around. Fred finally got up and like wise was about to throttle Draco but the power of the puppy look and he was de fanged as well and went to go and smash up some cookies to crumble over Draco's ice cream. '..heh..yeah. I could get used to this~' he thought.

Ron had been hard at work for a hour and came out to get a glass of juice from the fridge. he noticed Draco was nuzzled on the crotch with his brother and smiled, he was glad they were getting along and didn't wanna say anything to spoil their fun. chugging his juice down and getting a refill, Ron just happened to look in the sink and froze, seeing three dirty bowls that had clearly had ice cream in them. "Ohhhh No. No no no.." Ron said, a knot forming in his tummy. coming out of the kitchen and hurrying to look out into the living room he heard the first poot and toyed with just running before the smell reached him. cries of disgust and whimpers of pain were heard and it delayed Ron enough that he didn't escape the stink field in time and was welcomed to the truly rotten smell of a lactose intolerant like Malfoy having dairy. Nose hairs burning and eyes watering Ron sighed and headed for ground zero. Fred and George were each half out a window, Fred on the left and George on the right. Draco not surprisingly was squatting down and hunching, fists closeted and gritting his teeth. from the look of focus on his face and the sweat you'd almost swear he was doing a power up from a anime. at least till you noted the massive diaper that had forced the crotch snaps open (and Ron looked and noticed some of the buttons on the floor) Spotting Ron in the door way Draco started to cry out daddy, but it was over taken with a guttural groan as a cramp hit him. the diaper, which was already racing for his knee caps jumped in size and Ron found himself glad he hadn't taken Harry's advice and gone with muggle diapers, they'd of had a blow out by now! "D-Daddy tummy hurt!" Draco whined and whimpered, tears going down his cheeks and holding out his hands as his knees wobbled. technically Ron should of let Draco suffer, to enjoy the spoils of his win at getting ice cream and suffer butttt...that just wasn't the kinda daddy Ron was. conjuring up a clothes pin for his own nose, and a dummy with a large rubber teat that found it's way into Draco's mouth, Ron came over and hugged the stinky boy. He also once he noticed the twins were trying to escape out the windows, shut them on the twins trapping them but not hurting them. well, not hurting them till anther spell had the back of their knickers get yanked up for twin wedgies. "OWWW! Stoppp Ron knock it off!" "we'll get you back for this!" "mmmmhmmm. I'll be back to free you after I change Draco..or I can let you two go now and you can change him." Ron said, smirking. "...You know, after the first 10 seconds this feels kinda nice." Fred said. "Could do this all day." added George. "For the record you two will be changing him at some point." Ron laughed. "Now hold on.." George started. "You never warned us about him being like..THAT every time that he goes!" Fred protested. "Hmm? oh he's not. but you dipsticks let him have dairy when he's lactose intolerant. reap what you sew." "..If he knew he couldn't handle it then why did he have three bowls of it!?!" "because he's a baby duh. he just likes yummy things and doesn't think about later." A whine from behind and Ron smiled at the huffing Draco who with one last watery fart seemed to be done..and oh my. the diaper had gotten SO shit swelled that it looked like something out of a cartoon show, Draco had basically made a bean bag chair of sorts! in fact if he hadn't of just stopped pooping he might of been picked off the ground! "Jesus sweetie, you have any bones left in you?" Ron asked fascinated and semi worried at the same time. (and maybe a little pride, that was his boy who had just made a super big present.)

The only way to move him at this point was a levitation spell and Draco hated it. the damn things always made him queasy to his belly even though he'd been used to moving much faster during a quditch game. Still there was no way to change him in the house without getting the mess everywhere and his new uncles seemed to have a high enough stone way around the back of their large yard. "oh look, they have a garden back here..you can provide all the fertilizer from now on!" Daddy teased and Draco tried to glare but the cheating bastard tickled the big babies tum tum making him giggle around the paci. Sat down slowly with a loud squish and a horrible smell being released, Draco whined and held his own nose and waved a hand. "heh, yeah buddy, Stinky.":Ron chuckled then opened his diaper. stinky as it was, Draco couldn't help but giggle even in the outdoor setting as Ron turned green in the face. charming a gas mask onto his face daddy was apparently ok and Draco huffed and crossed his arms. "No fair! cheating!" was what he wanted to say, but just gibberish came out instead because he also refused to let the dummy out of his mouth.

45 minutes later (give or take a century from Ron's POV) and the little guy was all cleaned up and his 'treasure' so to speak disposed of. The twins had manage to get free by seeing what Ron had been dealing with they decided to hold back on their revenge so they wouldn't have to change Draco today. Or at least that was the plan but after carrying Draco in just his diapers (him sitting on Ron's lap, snuggling into him and looking more like a little toddler then the high school graduate he was) when Ron came out of their room, Draco was hiding behind him and still had the dummy in his mouth.  just he was sucking on it BIG time and almost giving the twins ideas. then Ron stepped out of the way and the twin's jaws dropped. If his first outfit had been shocking, and his just diapered look adorable, this look was kinda sexy and having the twins who had considered themself hetero till just seconds again were desperately trying to justify thoughts of what they wanted to do with Draco. "Boys..let me introduce the other side of your new nephew..his niece side." Ron chuckled.

Draco's cheeks were bright red, daddy had promised no sissy stuff around his brothers but said this was his punishment for being a little piggy! So now his short blond hair had a light pink bow in it, he was wearing a very short little girl party dress, complete with a bow on the back that daddy had to tie and of course was a mixture of different shades of pink. whine knee high socks were on him and a pair of black Mary janes on his feet. 'At least daddy didn't put make up on me this time." Draco sulked around his paci, waddling forward with the same bulky cloth and rubber pants he'd had before. His his Mary-janes making a clip clack sound on the floor Draco got in front of his unca's and griping the hem of his dress, curtsy and bowed his head. "so..you two think you can try this again and NOT fuck it up?" Ron asked. "I uh..I.." Fred stammered, apparently locked up in resisting the urge to fawn over the little cutie. "You know Fred, i think we could do a smash up job this time. even handle any diaper changes!" George said. "Glad to hear. no take backies." Ron said and turned to go back into Draco and his room to finish working. as he turned a low rumbling sound was heard that turned into a series of wet farts. "Uhhh Ron?" Fred squeaked out as the back of Draco's diaper ballooned out from under the dress. "No take backsies. " was all Ron said then shut the door. "...Still think letting them move in was a good idea?" "Oh shut up!"

the end

[xcamay]

Recruiting Chloe.

Hey there! I can’t believe it’s been years since I last published a fanfic on tumblr. And it’s been months since I last finished one... woo! It kind of feels great and rewarding though hehe. However, this is my first time writing a Choices fanfic, so I do hope it’ll be okay... Here goes nothing! Book: Queen B Pairings: Chloe x Veronica, and a little bit of Zoey x MC (Kate). Yes, I know many people don’t ship Chloe and Veronica, because “Veronica deserves better” and “Chloe’s an airhead and a meanie”, but I’m holding onto the fact that there’s more to Chloe than what we know... Warning: not entirely canon-compliant (seeing as I haven’t played since chapter 6 aired... I apologize if it sounds inaccurate sometimes). Also! This takes place after Veronica joined MC’s posse. And let’s forget about the Bacon-alia, okay? AO3 link ________________________________________________________________ “8:12 AM,” Kate slides her phone in her pocket and yawns, stretching her arms above her head, “Congratulations Zo, you got me out of bed early on a Wednesday. You know, the day we don’t have class in the morning.”

“Oh come on, I already apologized. But I really was craving some croissants this morning and I wanted you to try them,” Zoey smiles as she bites into her pastry, humming.

The two young women continue to stroll down the street at a relaxed pace, eating their respective croissant, joking around and sharing knowing smiles and glances. They stop next to a trash can, throwing the small bags while Zoey finishes her croissant, pinky finger raised.

“So? Verdict?” she offers Kate a wide smile, an eyebrow arched.

“Okay, you were right – they’re worth the awful alarm clock. Maybe we should get some more often. It’d be like our moment,” Kate grins as she steps closer, making Zoey grin back.

“Don’t we have enough moments already? You know, as roommates.”

“Is it really enough?”

“Do you think it is?”

“Do you?”

“Oh my god, Kate. Shut up and kiss me.”

“Your wish is my command, milady.”

They both smile before their lips tenderly meet for a few delightful seconds.

“Hey Zo,” Kate murmurs against her lips, “Let’s go back to our room.”

Zoey pecks her best friend’s lips one last time and nods, smiling. As they resume their walk, Kate slips her hand into Zoey’s.

“Wait a minute,” the new girl suddenly speaks, stopping in her tracks and squinting, “Is that Chloe over there?”

“Where?”

“There. Inside the coffee shop.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah,” Zoey blinks, “Wow. She… she looks so sad.”

“I wonder what happened… Oh well. She probably had another fight with Satan.”

“Not really, no.”

Kate jumps the moment she hears a new, additional voice next to her, “Holy shit! Veronica! Where did you come from?”

The famous beauty influencer rolls her eyes, her lips slightly tugging upward, “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

However, her light smile vanishes as she looks at her blonde-haired friend inside the coffee shop. She seems to be tormented, her brows furrowed and her gaze fixed on the table.

“This is supposed to be our moment,” Veronica sighs, an unexpected veil of sadness crossing her eyes.

Kate and Zoey glance at each other.

“What do you mean, your moment?”

“Chloe and I come here every week, on Wednesday mornings precisely because we don’t have class before 10. It’s just the two of us, for breakfast. No Poppy, no The T, no homework, no livestream… except if it gets interesting, of course,” Veronica smiles a little, but it promptly fades away, “There’s nothing else, no one else. Just Chloe and me. It’s our moment,” she pauses a second, then winces, “Or well… I guess it used to be our moment. We’re… not really talking to each other anymore, so well.”

Kate taps her chin several times, “I think it can still be your moment. Nothing’s here to stop you. Except if you don’t want it, of course.”

“No way. I still want it to be our moment.”

“I feel like there’s more to the story than what you’re telling us,” Zoey hums, barely trying to hide her curiosity, “Veronica, do you… uh…”

The two roommates share a glance, hesitating. Should they really ask something as private as that? As they ponder the answer to that question, Veronica beats them to it.

“Do I have romantic feelings for Chloe?”

They nod, and the ombré-haired girl sharply breathes in.

“I do.”

“Then go! Go get your girl!” Kate exclaims, almost bouncing on her feet like a child who was promised an ice cream.

Veronica raises her eyebrows, “You just want me to recruit her for you.”

“Of course not,” the new girl answers, at the same time as Zoey bluntly says, “Yes.”

“Zoey!”

The latter’s eyes widen and she immediately corrects herself, “No, of course not!”

The influencer rolls her eyes, prompting Kate to look sheepish as she scratches the inside of her elbow.

“One of you is at least being honest.”

“Alright… yes. And why not, anyway? With what we now know and with you helping us, I think it’s better if we get Chloe on our side. And I think she will be more willing to listen to you than us. It’s better if you recruit her yourself. But! We kind of want you two to be reunited too, you know?”

“Let’s kill two birds with one stone,” Zoey adds, serious, “Recruit her. But, most importantly, get your girlfriend back. Shoo, go.” ________________________________________________________________ As soon as she steps into the coffee shop, Veronica makes a beeline for the booth she usually occupies with Chloe on every Wednesday morning. However, she feels her heart break at the sight: Chloe is sitting there, alone, staring into space. It seems like she has barely sipped her hibiscus tea – two or three swallows at the most.

“Hey there.”

The unexpected voice startles Chloe, whose eyes widen when she realizes who is standing right next to her. Her heart rate instantly skyrockets.

“V-Veronica! You… Wh-what are you-”

“Is this seat taken?”

“N-no. But… I-I’m sorry but I have somewhere to be,” Chloe says as she abruptly stands, bumping into the table and almost knocking her white mug over.

“No you don’t,” Veronica hastily says, stopping the girl in her tracks. She lightly bites her lip, before adding in a whisper, “Chlo, please… Stay with me?”

“I-” Chloe gulps, eyes darting everywhere.

She looks conflicted, distressed – so much that it hurts Veronica inside – but eventually sits down again, fiddling with her fingers. She looks at everything, everyone but the beauty influencer sitting across from her.

“So,” Veronica clears her throat, trying to get Chloe’s attention, “We need to talk.”

“V, not now…”

“Then when? You’ve been avoiding me ever since you made up with Poppy. We haven’t even been able to spend some quality time together. We don’t laze around on the couch anymore, we also stopped doing our makeup together. You… you’re not coming to my room anymore. Look, we haven’t even had our Wednesday breakfast in weeks now.”

“You don’t understand!” Chloe seems alarmed for a second, but then she lowers her gaze, her light blue eyes reflecting a sorrow she is desperately trying to hide, “I… I-I can’t be seen talking to you…”

“Chlo, look at me.”

But Chloe weakly shakes her head, nibbling her lips, while Veronica resists the urge to grab her hand.

“Chloe.”

…

“Chloe St. James.”

This time, the girl looks up, albeit hesitantly.

“She won’t do anything to you. I promise.”

“She can-”

“Believe me, she better not.”

At this, a light (but pleased) smile graces Chloe’s features, which makes Veronica grin back. The moment only lasts a few seconds though, Chloe’s smile disappearing as she drinks a mouthful of her red-colored tea. The influencer clears her throat and places her hands on the table.

She wants to hold Chloe’s so bad.

“Chlo-”

“Sorry you had to wait,” a voice suddenly interrupts her – it’s the waiter who always serves them. They offer Veronica a welcoming smile, “The usual?”

“Uh, no, thank you,” then she hastily adds, an idea crossing her mind, “Just your best lava cake, please.”

At this, Chloe blinks, but keeps her mouth closed.

“Right away!”

And they leave. Veronica’s eyes land once again on her dearest friend, warmth, affection and worry dancing in them.

“I knew something was up. The moment you left me on read and started avoiding me, I knew something happened,” she sighs, “And surprise, surprise. Poppy’s the one behind all that, right?”

Chloe doesn’t answer – but her silence is enough.

“Chlo, she- she doesn’t have to control your life like that. You should be the one making decisions for yourself. You do whatever you want to do with whoever you want to.”

“I-”

“So what if you want to befriend Kate and Zoey? Or what if you want to spend time with me, the ‘traitorous cow’? She has no right to dictate your life.”

Chloe bites her lower lip, “V-”

“Chlo, you’re… you’re your own person. You’re not Poppy’s little lapdog-”

“I’m her second-in-command!”

“No, you’re- ah. Thank you.”

Veronica lets the waiter put the plate and the spoon on the table, before they leave. However, she doesn’t touch it, yet, capturing her friend’s attention once again.

“Chloe, no, you’re not her second-in-command. You’re the main pawn in her game, that’s all,” the blonde-haired girl lowers her gaze, pain twisting her features, and Veronica reaches for her – to no avail as Chloe’s hand immediately moves back, “Chlo…” she softly says, “You… do realize that, right? You know that ranking first is more important to Poppy than… you?”

“But she’s…” Chloe grabs her mug, seeking some support. Her knuckles quickly turn white before her shoulders sag, heavy, “She’s my best friend…”

“No, she’s not. Okay, she’s the first person who reached out to you here, I’ll give you that. But a best friend? Seriously? A girl who’s too blinded by her crown and who even goes as far as plotting revenge on you just because you ranked first for, what, a few hours? Do you really call that friendship? Is she really your best friend?”

Chloe bites her lips while sliding a shaky hand in her hair, the other still gripping tightly the mug’s handle.

“Chlo… You’re… you’re so much more than what she reduces you to.”

The blonde gulps with difficulty. She looks torn between so many things – what Poppy, her best friend, expects of her, their seemingly one-way deep friendship, her own needs and desires, the pressure which comes with her reputation at Belvoire, the dear friend she fell in love with…

“You deserve so much more.”

Veronica tentatively brushes Chloe’s fingertips with hers, her warm brown eyes never leaving her face, gauging her reaction. A tremor runs through Chloe, forcing her hand to let go of the mug and move back.

“Chlo…”

The beauty influencer can hear her heart suffocate, ready to crack. She is about to retract her own hand when she feels the tiniest, most hesitant caress on her fingers. Chloe looks at everything but Veronica, a light frown appearing on her face while her lips quiver, indicators of her internal, bone-crushing conflict.

“I-” Chloe starts, her voice clogged with guilt and sadness.

She draws in a deep, shaky breath and, finally, looks up when Veronica’s fingers interlace with hers. Her vision blurs as she holds back her tears.

“I miss you. I miss you so much.”

Veronica’s heart skips a beat, and she breathes back, “I miss you too.”

The grip around their intertwined fingers tightens, as if they are scared of letting the other go and losing her for good this time. Chloe’s first tears start rolling down her cheeks the moment their eyes meet, which prompts Veronica to immediately stand and sit on the booth seat next to her. She wraps an arm around her shoulders while the blonde-haired girl covers her face with her hands, sobbing quietly.

“Hey, hey,” Veronica whispers as she closes her eyes and presses her forehead against Chloe’s temple, heart painfully squeezing, “I’m so sorry I made you cry, Chlo… But you have to face the truth. It’s- it’s better if you do.”

“But it hurts…”

“I know… I know. The truth always hurts.”

Chloe shakily sniffs while slowly unveiling her face, trying to wipe all her tears away. She ends up smearing mascara under her eyes and removing her concealer. She looks so tired. Drained. Veronica’s brown eyes soften as she reaches for her purse and quickly pulls out a cotton pad and a vial filled with transparent liquid.

“My hero,” Chloe gives a weak smile, her light blue eyes still shining with tears, “I’m such a mess.”

“No,” Veronica gently dabs the damp pad under Chloe’s eyes, “You’re perfect.”

“V…”

Chloe’s body start shaking again from the tears she is desperately trying to hold back. No one has ever said things like that to her, not even Poppy, her supposed best friend. She could have, so many times – when they were getting dressed for a party together, for example.

You look nice in that dress.

This skirt’s color looks good on you.

Just… a compliment. Some recognition. A little something which would have made her feel like she was somewhat important, like she was worth it. But no. No one has ever said something nice to her. No one… except Veronica. But with Veronica… it only happened when they were in bed together.

You’re beautiful Chlo, she said the first time she undressed Chloe, making her blush.

You were awesome, she murmured once in the shower, pulling Chloe up and kissing her like she was the only one for her.

Chlo, you’re gorgeous, she groaned the day Chloe straddled her, their breathless moans mingling together in a sweet, loving melody.

You know what? I feel so lucky right now, she smiled when Chloe took her time removing her dress, slowly revealing her new red lacy lingerie.

I want you. And only you, she breathed in the crook of Chloe’s neck the day they had their most agonizing fight, kissing every inch of her jaw, throat and collarbone.

I love you, she cried out once, delirious, intoxicated by the friction, the caresses, the kisses they shared during their most passionate night. Chloe’s heart had never beaten as fast as it did that night.

Of course, all these times mean a lot to Chloe. She fell in love with her friend, after all. But right now, at the coffee shop, it means the world to her.

Veronica gently cups her face and brushes her thumbs on her skin, wiping away some tears. A tingling sensation dances in the influencer’s wrists the moment Chloe curls her fingers around them. Their eyes meet for a second and, when the blonde offers a weak smile, Veronica leans in, tenderly capturing Chloe’s lips. Something bursts in their chests, akin to fireworks, while their mouths slide together perfectly, in harmony. Once, twice. Chloe brings their bodies closer, arms wrapped around her lover’s neck, and the latter smiles, her hands landing on Chloe’s hips, right where they belong. Their lips meet again for the third time, impatient.

When they break the kiss, they press their foreheads together, the tip of their noses brushing.

“Babe, I promise it’ll be okay…” Veronica whispers as she strokes Chloe’s soft blonde locks, looping one behind her ear.

A soft, muffled laugh escapes Chloe’s lips as more tears roll down her cheeks, “You know, I really like it when you call me babe.”

Veronica chuckles and kisses Chloe one more time.

… Okay, three more times.

“Feeling better?”

“A little,” the blonde sniffs, hastily wiping some tears away, “I’m still scared though. What am I supposed to tell Poppy?”

“Nothing. Just… forget about her. We’ll deal with her later,” Veronica pecks the tip of her secret lover’s nose, “Just know that you’re not alone anymore, okay? We’re in this together,” and another peck – on the lips this time, “Babe.”

Chloe’s cute little laugh warms Veronica’s heart. She doesn’t look as downcast as earlier; she even looks relieved, like a huge weight has been taken off her mind, and her smile is more sincere, more instinctive. She looks more like herself – like the girl Veronica fell in love with.

“Now, I believe there’s a lava cake waiting for us before class starts. What do you say?”

Chloe snuggles against Veronica, burying her face in the crook of her neck, “Sounds perfect.” ________________________________________________________________ Meanwhile, outside the coffee shop, two girls give each other a high five, squealing in delight. ________________________________________________________________ Aaaaah I’m super nervous. :’3 But well, I do hope you guys liked that fic!

Thanks for reading and please, take care of yourself and your loved ones! See you. ♥

[weirdlyokaywithit]

Kiss the Girl

Pairing: Bucky x Reader 

For @valkyriesryde ‘s writing challenge, sorry it’s late and I’m also sorry for just disappearing 

Warnings: swearing, fluff, 

When you walked into the kitchen you really weren’t expecting to walk into three grown men, let alone Avengers, arguing about Disney Princess movies. Bucky was sat at the bar, shaking his head and remaining fairly quiet, it was mainly Steve and Sam yelling. 

“You CANNOT possibly believe that SNOW WHITE is the best Disney Princess movie!” Sam yelled. 

Steve rolled his eyes, “It’s a CLASSIC!” 

“You just like it because it’s from your time, old man,” Sam snarked while pouring himself a cup of coffee. 

Bucky’s baby blues found you and his face lit up with a heart throbbing smile. 

“Y/N is here, maybe she can help settle the thing.” Bucky’s warm voice wrapped around you and settled low in your stomach. The effect this man had on you was ridiculous. 

“Sure, um, what’s the argument?” You shrugged, leaning against one of the cabinets. 

“Best Disney Princess movie. It’s very simple. The answer is Beauty and the Beast.” Sam said matter-o-factly. 

Steve started to counter but you beat him to the punch. 

“Under no circumstances is that the best Disney Princess movie when the Little Mermaid exists,” you exclaimed in a mock outraged tone. 

Bucky groaned and put his face into his hands and you giggled, he parted his fingers to look at you and you gave him a cheeky wink. 

Steve and Sam both cried out in frustration and you couldn’t help but laugh at them. 

“Okay so Steve thinks Snow White, Sam thinks Beauty and the Beast, and I think the Little Mermaid. What do you think, Buck?” You inquired, your eyes not leaving his. 

His face split into a sheepish grin, “Couldn’t tell ya, doll, I haven’t seen any of them.” 

This development did not surprise you, he’d been frozen for the majority of the Disney franchise and let’s face it Hydra isn’t interested in make-believe princesses, but there was only one way to settle this dispute. 

“Well, sorry bud that’s about to change. That’s how we’re going to settle this, Bucky is going to watch all three and tell us which one he thinks is best,” you said. 

Sam and Steve looked at each other before nodding in agreement, you were impressed that was all it took for them to agree. Plus, you would get to spend more time with Bucky this way. Your friendship was currently at a weird place where you hung out a lot but were still unsure of how to be around each other. 

“I think each movie needs a fair shot, so, we watch them one night at a time. Takeout, popcorn, candy, the works.” Steve said, and you all nodded agreed.

“How do we pick the order? So there’s no bias.” Sam questioned. 

“Draw them out of a hat?” Steve suggested. 

We all nodded and Sam ran off to get paper and a pen, Steve grabbed one of Tony’s fedoras. Once Sam came back with the paper you snagged it and wrote down the movies and crumpled them all and dropped them into the hat. 

“Bucky draws since it’s technically for him.” Sam exclaimed. 

The dark haired man rolled his eyes before turning so he couldn’t see the inside of the hat and reached his hand inside and drew out a piece of paper. Bucky unrolled it and snorted at what he read, his baby blues found yours and they were twinkling with humor. 

“And Snow White it is.” He rumbled in his deep timbre and you shivered internally at the sound of his voice. 

“Okay so let’s meet back tonight and have a full on movie night. No interruptions, popcorn and take out. And dessert!” You said, rubbing your hands together. 

“Can we get Indian?” Sam asked. 

Steve groaned, “You always want Indian food.” 

“And what do you want, Old Timer?” Sam snarked. 

Bucky laughed at Steve’s mock offense and you finally realized you’d been staring at him and quickly averted your gaze. The group settled on ordering a couple pizzas from Marco’s, and getting ice cream for dessert if you didn’t gorge yourselves on sliced heaven. 

You finally walked back into the kitchen to make yourself lunch which is what you actually went in there for, Bucky followed you in there. You both just hopped around the other making yourselves lunch, before you both ended up at the bar stuffing your faces. 

“So, be straight with me, how much of a snooze fest is this movie gonna be tonight?” Bucky asked mid-chew.

You giggled, well snorted rather, because out of all the Disney princess movies Snow White was rather boring. I mean she sings to birds, it’s not exactly like she really had that much of anything to overcome, how was that relatable at all? 

“Trust me, you’ll be glad we got this one out of the way first,” you assured him.

“We all know Steve’s is gonna be sappy so it’s really down to you and Sam,” he admitted in a suggestive tone. 

“Don’t you insinuate that birdbrain even has a chance in hell!” you teased, playfully shoving his shoulder. That was a mistake because you could now feel all of the muscles in his shoulder, they were corded and strong and very warm. You reluctantly removed your hand before it got to be weird that you were literally just sticking your hand out to touch his muscles.

Bucky chuckled and shook his head, “Y/N, you underestimate Sam and his amazing taste in movies. I mean, I know his taste in movies and so he may have a leg up on you.”

“Now that’s just offensive, have I EVER let you down when it comes to movies? You know I have slightly offbrand taste but you’ve never disliked anything we’ve watched,” you countered. 

“Very true, so I guess we’ll see huh?” he winked before he got up and cleared his stuff away.

You watched him walk out of the kitchen and you tried to clear your thoughts because that wink was making your ears hot and thighs twitch. God, now you needed a cold shower after a hard run, yet again.

________________________________________

That night, you and all the boys were sitting in the living room, stuffing your faces with pizza and cheesy bread while Snow White played on the screen. You and Bucky were sitting next to each other on the small couch while Sam and Steve were all sprawled out on the larger one. 

Bucky was being his usual unknowingly hot self just sitting next to you and it was distracting, you could feel the warmth radiating off of him and you were always cold so you were unconciously shifting closer and closer to him. Eventually you sat your plate on the floor and started to relax as the movie was well underway, you kept shifting and readjusting over and over. Bucky sensing your unease, motioned for you to put your legs in his lap because he had seen you time and time again with your feet propped. You smiled softly and shifted so your legs were across his lap and your back was resting comfortably, he placed his big hand on your knee and you felt electric just from that small contact. 

You couldn’t help but steal glances at the gorgeous super soldier who let you lay your legs on him, his mouth was partly open while he watched diligently. His long dark hair framing his face, he looked younger as he watched Snow White dance in the forest. Most of the time Bucky looked like someone who could tell you horrific dark stories but when he looked like this he seemed like a guy who would give you stories of wild times in his early twenties. You loved seeing him get to be soft, and to get a sense of normal as he started to adjust to his new life in the tower. 

You turned your attention back to the movie and tried to concentrate on actually watching the movie, not just staring at Bucky, that’s when he started slowly rubbing his thumb back and forth. It sent butterflies racing and goosebumps down your legs, you slowly stole a glance at him and his attention was actually on you. He grinned and rolled his eyes motioning with his other hand towards the screen as if to say I told you so, you couldn’t help but grin and nod back.

You forced yourself to turn your attention back to the screen, you saw him do the same out of the corner of your eye. The two of you stayed like that for the entire movie, his thumb sending your heart into overdrive every so often with a gentle rub. When the credits finally started rolling and the lights were flicked on by Steve, you finally started to sit up and remove your legs from their comfy perch on Bucky. 

“Well, Buck, what did you think?” Steve asked expecting a good reaction. 

“It was pretty good. Dwarves were an interesting choice but ya know it’s a fairytale so whatever.” Bucky said, almost laughing but stifling it with a goofy smile. 

Sam snickered and you bit down on your tongue to keep from actually laughing because Steve lit up at the praise. 

“Well, let’s wait for commentary until after all of them,” you spoke up. 

“Fair enough, that’s enough for tonight, we can watch the next movie tomorrow night. For now, let’s just head to bed,” Steve said, his voice sounding almost like y’all were on a mission. 

“Aye aye Cap’n,” you snarked and both Sam and Bucky burst into laughter. 

“Whatever, short stack, just get to bed at a decent time,” Cap wasn’t fazed one bit by the comment.

You all made your way upstairs to your beds, as you were riding the elevator up you caught Bucky staring out of the corner of your eye. You smiled softly to yourself as you bid the group goodnight as you got off for your floor.

_________________________________________________________

Part Two coming soon!!!!

[jaehyun-eclipsed]

Before I Met You | Eleven

Updates: Sundays

Pairing: NCT (Jaehyun, Lucas, Mark, Jaemin, Johnny) X Reader/OC

Genre: Romance, Angst, Coming of Age

Summary: Four. There were four people before I fell in love with you… Here are their stories.

Author’s Note: I apologize that my updates have not been at the time I had originally designated. I’ll still be posting on Sundays (except this week since it’s after Sunday. I’m sorry!), but there will no longer be a specific time. Thank you! 

Before I Met You Masterlist

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Sunday evening, I open the door to my house and walk in to hear chatter and laughter amongst my housemates. My new home was previously a frat house, but had been renovated to serve as general student housing. There were fifteen separate rooms – one to three people in each room and shared common rooms and a kitchen downstairs. The color schemes of the dining room and living room were atrocious interesting – dark blue walls opposite tan and mustard yellow ones with a series of white trimmed windows. The dining room was paired with dark brown dining room tables, a pool table, and several granite-top bar tables. The living room was no better with oddly color-blocked couches and chairs and an ancient piano that desperately needed to be tuned. The dim yellow lighting throughout the house created a nice atmosphere for relaxing, but was absolutely horrendous for late-night studying. Perhaps the lighting was purposely horrible to make it so dark you couldn’t see how terrible the design choices were. Despite this strange mesh of interior designing, it still managed to create an all-around cozy environment.

The first week of classes had just ended and I was returning from a dinner outing with my former roommate.

As I head towards the spiral staircase, I briefly look to my left to see three boys playing pool and some others doing homework in the main dining room. I recognize one of the boys from our move-in meeting; he was quiet, but had a very soothing voice when he spoke. His name was Ren – Ren-something?

My room has a much simpler design compared to downstairs; grayish walls with the same white trimmed windows as downstairs, a mini-fridge, microwave, and simple wooden furniture staples for two people. Though boring, at least it didn’t give you eye strain.

The light in my room is on when I enter and my new roommate, Jia, is sitting at her desk watching a Chinese reality show and eating dinner.  

“Hey!” she greets. “Where did you go?”

“I went to dinner with my roommate from last year,” I say. “What are you eating?”

“I ordered some Chinese food.”

Jia is an international student from Beijing, double-majoring in statistics and business. She came to the U.S. when she was fourteen to attend high school on the east coast. As a result, she’s been quite sheltered, a lack of life experience and hints of naivety evident when you speak to her. Having been sent here for school, she was expected to work hard to get a good education and hopefully, a well-paying job. That’s what her focus has been all her life: jumping academic hoops.

As I place my purse and jacket on my desk, I grab my water bottle and head back downstairs to the kitchen to refill it.

As I step foot into the dining room to get to the kitchen, the three boys shooting pool immediately stop playing and look up at me. I pause upon making eye contact with the boy who caught my eye at our meeting and hesitate for a moment before offering a half smile. He stares at me, remaining expressionless. I quickly look away, regaining enough composure to continue walking towards the entrance to the kitchen. But as soon as I have my back to the three boys, a wave of discomfort pulses through my body. I can’t explain why, or how I even know considering I don’t have eyes on the back of my head, but I can feel that one of them is still watching me as I’m walking away – and it’s not the one from the meeting.      

When I reach the water dispenser, I shake my head in dismissal, attributing the sudden feeling of discomfort to a figment of my imagination. You couldn’t even see him. They just looked at you because you entered the room. That’s all.

When my water bottle is half full, I hear the three of them walk into the kitchen and begin pulling out several pans and other kitchenware out of the cabinets next to the stove. The water dispenser is on the other side of the kitchen, so I keep my back to the them, but am unable to shake the feeling of the one that was standing next to the shy boy with the nice voice. I quietly huff in frustration. Why do I keep feeling like he was looking at me? Does he… think I’m attractive? Hyojin did say I get looked at a lot when we hang out together. Maybe I’ll talk to him.

The three of them start cooking, walking back and forth between the stove and the sink that’s several feet away from me. While screwing the cap back onto my bottle, I turn around and immediately lock eyes with the boy in question as he walks towards me. He stares at me for several more moments before breaking eye contact and bringing his gaze back towards the ground.

My eyes narrow. Okay, that was kind of weird.

I walk over to the large refrigerator in the middle of the kitchen, reaching into my reusable grocery bag sitting on the second shelf to pull out an apple before heading over to the sink to wash it.

A moment later, the boy with the nice voice walks up next to me to wash a pot. I take a step to my right to give him more space, grabbing a paper towel from the dispenser and wrapping it around my apple. I continue to stand there awkwardly, over-drying the fruit while contemplating on whether or not I should introduce myself.

I decide to bite the bullet.

“What’s your name?” I ask.

“Renjun. What’s yours?”

“Y/N.”

There’s a momentary pause, the sound of running water filling what could have been a very awkward silence. Renjun keeps his focus on the pot.

“What’s your major?” he asks.

“Uh, biology. Yours?”

“CS and math.”

His responses are very quiet. Even in tone. Emotionless. I look at him as he rinses the soap off of the pot and his face remains expressionless. Do you ever smile?  

“Oh, nice,” I remark. God, even I’m boring.

“Where are you from?” he asks.

“Oregon,” I reply.  

“Portland?” asks another voice.

I flip around and see that the boy who had just stared at me is standing in the middle of the kitchen with a polite smile on his face.  

“Medford!” I say.

Huh! You were listening to our conversation…

I’m a bit dumbfounded when he nods and walks back over to the third boy standing at the stove, wondering why he didn’t continue to talk to me considering he was clearly interested enough to listen in on my conversation with Renjun.

My eyes flicker over to the wooden dining table near the window, a collection of bright colors having caught my eye. Coupon books. Maybe Suji will want one of these. She has a whole stash of them in her desk.

I take out my phone and look around briefly to make sure no one is watching particularly the weird staring boy while I snap a photo of the coupon book to text to Suji to see if she’s interested. While waiting for her response, I grab one of the coupon books and flip through it to see if there’s anything in particular she might want.

Pizza, ice cream, sandwiches, dentist…

I place the book back on the table and look up as the boy walks towards me; he’s staring at me again.

Opportunity has arrived.  

I look back at him, briefly narrowing my eyes in curiosity. “What’s your name?” I ask, completely skipping the formalities.

“Jaemin!” he says as his eyes shoot open in surprise. “And you?”

“Y/N.”

“Well it’s nice to meet you, Y/N,” he says with a smile.

I smile back at him.

“Um –” he tilts his head and looks at me thoughtfully “– why were you taking pictures of the coupon book?”  

Shit. Someone was watching me. I specifically checked to make sure no one was, especially YOU.

I chuckle nervously. “Oh, uh, I didn’t think anyone was watching,” I murmur to myself. “I was sending a picture to see if my friend wanted one.”

“Oh!” he remarks. “I thought you were taking pictures to try and save paper or something. Like why not just take one?”

“Oh, no.” I bite the inside of my lip before smiling out of embarrassment. “Yeah, I was seeing if there was anything my friend might want.”

I guess I’m not imagining anything. You are, in fact, watching me.

“Ah.” He gives me an understanding nod, quickly choosing to move onto another subject. “So what’s your major?” he asks.

“Biology. How about you?”

“EECS.”

“Oh, nice.”

He looks at me quizzically, apparently surprised by my lack of being impressed. Most people were fascinated when they met an EECS (electrical engineering, computer science) major as that was the hardest major to be accepted into at the university. It was also one of the most rigorous majors, which led to an onslaught of jokes about EECS students only showering once a month and being too nerdy to get into a relationship.  

“Yeah, you always wonder what people’s responses will be, you know?”

“Yeah…” I say slowly, offering a courteous smile that doesn’t fully reach my eyes.  

I’m guessing he wasn’t satisfied that I don’t seem impressed.  

“Are you pre-med?” he asks.

My eyes widen in horror. “Oh dear, no.”

“So what do you plan on doing?”

“Research. I never wanted to go to medical school.”

“Huh, interesting. Why?”

“I don’t like blood.” I crinkle my nose. “I also don’t really feel like being in school forever. Granted, I have to go to grad school and will be in school forever anyway.”

“True.” He chuckles. “So what do you think of this place?” he asks, referring to the house.

“I actually really like it!” I grin at him. “Despite the questionable design choices, I like it. It’s quiet.”

“Yeah, it’s quiet, but I think it’s kinda… antisocial.”

“True.” I shrug. “I don’t know, it kinda works for me. If I want to talk to people, I can. If I don’t, I can do that too. I don’t talk to that many people… not the friendliest person,” I say with a small smile.

He looks at me skeptically. “You seem pretty friendly to me.”

“Depends on who I’m with,” I reply with a shrug.  

“Ah, yeah, oh –” He quickly turns his head towards Renjun, suddenly realizing that he hadn’t been helping out his roommates with their dinner preparations. “Hey, Renjun, do you need help?”

“No, it’s fine,” Renjun curtly responds.  

He nods once and turns back to me. “So what are your plans for the rest of the night?”

“Uh, probably just catch up on some work.”

“You’re so productive.”

“I’m trying to keep up with everything to do better this semester.” I frown. “But the problem is that I’m really bad at physics.”

“Oh, I’m taking physics too!”

“Are you in the one specifically for engineers?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, okay,” I reply. “I’m in the other one. I’m just frustrated because we’re doing kinematics and I used to be really good at it in high school and now it’s like I’ve completely forgotten how to do it.”

“That’s what happened to me with circuits. I did it in high school, but I can’t seem to do it anymore.”

I smile at him, unsure of what to say as he leans in towards me, putting his weight on the back of a kitchen chair.

“I could probably help you with physics sometime,” he offers.

Oh! Well that’s nice of him. I could use the help.

However, there’s an… unsettling feeling in my chest. Suspicion – that’s what it is. Suspicion that this isn’t just a friendly offer for help.

“That would be very helpful! Thank you!” I respond, trying to keep my tone even to avoid giving away my intuition.

“Do you just do work in your room?”

“Uh, sometimes. I hate the chairs we have in the room, so I normally just work on my bed or I go downstairs to the piano room.”

“Ah, yeah. I should probably go downstairs or something because I don’t get anything done in my room.”

I pause for a moment, contemplating on whether or not to say my next immediate thought. My goal for this year was to make new friends and I had begun to develop a habit of offering open invitations for people to spend time with me. In a split second decision, I reasoned that this was no different. It’s not like I was interested in the guy. It’s also somewhat of a personal experiment to see if my intuition is correct: that he actually is interested and would take up my offer.

“Well, if you want company, I’m almost always in the piano room! I usually go down there because if I work in my room, I just watch TV,” I say.

“Oh, what do movies do you watch?”

“I actually watch television shows, but I’ve been watching the Justice League until my shows come back.”

“And what shows are those?”

“Uh, NCIS, Castle, The Blacklist, and The Flash.”

“Oh. So superheroes, some mystery and action.” He nods in approval. “Those are shows I’d be into if I watched them.”  

“Oh nice! Yeah, it’s pretty easy to get distracted and just watch in my room. It’s very relaxing.”

“Well, it’s quiet.” A smirk forms on his face. “So it fits with your personality, right?”

The corner of my mouth raises in amusement. “Right.”  

I take a good look at him. Jaemin is tall, relatively slim, and fairly attractive. Though, it’s interesting. He looks young and innocent, but there’s something about his eyes. They’re playful, but there’s mischief behind that playfulness. He’s quite charming and that look in his eyes is enough to tell you that he knows it too.

“Which room are you in?” he asks.

“202.”

“Oh, I think that’s down the hall from me. I’m in 206. But yeah, whenever you need help, just –” he makes a weird gesture with his hands “– knock on the door.”

I nod, but a thought crosses my mind. “Actually –” I pull out my phone from my back pocket and hand it to him “– why don’t I just get your number? Then I can just text you and won’t have to worry about bothering your roommates.”

“Hey, Jaemin.” Renjun places a plate of food on the table. “This is yours.”

Jaemin gives me back my phone and smiles at me. “All right, well, I’m gonna go eat dinner. It was nice meeting you!”

“Yeah, you too!”

I take a bite into my apple and walk outside to sit on the porch, dialing my dad’s number for our nightly call.

“Hello?”

“Hi,” I sing. “So I met this guy. His name is Jaemin and he seems pretty friendly.” I click my tongue. “Though, I got this weird feeling that he thinks I’m cute or something because… he kept staring at me and then later he offered to help me with physics.”

“What’s his major?”

“EECS.”

“Are you interested in him?”

“No,” I say. “He’s cute, but he’s not really my type. It was really weird though because I walked into the dining room when he and his roommates were playing pool and they all stopped playing as soon as I walked in and watched me until I left.”

“Are you going to take him up on his offer to help you with physics?”

“Yeah, probably. I actually do need help.”

“It’s nice of him to offer, but he probably does have something for you.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Guys don’t just offer to help you in physics if they’re not interested.”

I chortle at my dad’s response and with a slight hint of sarcasm, respond with, “Are you sure? You don’t think he’s just being nice?”

He scoffs. “Nice? Uh-uh, sorry, I don’t think so.”

I continue giggling when he asks if I’m going to work downstairs tonight.

“Yeah, later after I clean up a bit. I told him I’m usually downstairs so I guess we’ll see if he shows up.”

When I arrive downstairs, laptop and books in hand, both of the work tables have been claimed by other residents. I turn to my right, figuring I’ll work at the coffee table instead. To my surprise, Jaemin is sitting on the couch, hunching over his laptop and a notebook he placed on the coffee table. There’s a flash of amusement in my eyes, but I bite back a smirk when Jaemin looks up and waves.

Well, well, well, what do we have here? Looks like the personal experiment has given us some confirmation…

To say I didn’t feel a sense of satisfaction from Jaemin actually taking up my offer within a matter of a few hours would have been a lie. It’s flattering.

I walk over to where he is and set my things down before sitting on the floor across from him. “Hey.”

“Hi,” he greets. “Doing work?”

“Yeah, I’m going to the marina with my roommate tomorrow so I need to finish up some things before Tuesday.”

While waiting for my laptop to boot, I grab my phone to send a text.

Me to Dad [8:56 PM] Guess who came downstairs?

Dad [9:00 PM] Does that mean he’s interested? 😉

Me [9:01 PM] I guess so?

“I think you have the right idea,” a voice says.

“What?” I ask, looking up at Jaemin in curiosity.

“Sitting on the floor,” he replies as he starts moving from the couch to the floor.

I open an internet browser and habitually log into Facebook instead of my physics homework assignment. There’s a message notification from Hyojin regarding some video she saw.

“Hey, Jaemin!” Renjun’s voice calls from the doorway. “Want one?”

“Oh sure!” Jaemin stands up and begins walking over to Renjun. I hear a loud smack when Jaemin catches something with a plastic wrapper. “Thanks!”

As I type a response back to Hyojin, a teasing voice elicits an embarrassed smile from me for the second time that night.  

“That’s not studying.”

I look up at Jaemin as he glances down at me. A playful smirk has formed on his face, bringing back that mischief in his eyes.  

“Want some?” he asks, holding up a small bag of chips.

“No, thanks.”

There’s a comfortable silence between us as we complete our individual assignments. I seemed to be having an easier time making acquaintances this year. The first week of school, I had made a personal goal to talk to five new people every day and I am happy to say I achieved it. I was learning to take the initiative with introductions and with the couple people who introduced themselves to me first, I realized that everyone is just as afraid as I am to talk to someone. But really, it’s not a big deal. No one thinks you’re weird. Unless you start your interactions by shamelessly staring at them like Jaemin. Mark will definitely be interested in hearing about this.  

I huff in frustration as I fail to obtain the correct answer to my physics problem for the second time. I had three chances; so I needed to get it right this time.

“Hey, Jaemin?” I call.

When I look up, I meet Jaemin’s gaze. He’s staring at me with a blank expression, as if he’s in some kind of trance. It’s unsettling to a degree – the way he’s looking into my eyes, like he’s trying to read me with a precision equivalent to breaking down the walls of my mind and learning every secret that’s behind them without any difficulty.

Um… I tilt my head and narrow my eyes at him. “Jaemin?”

“Hmm?” His eyes widen and he shakes his head as if I’ve pulled him from some reverie. “Sorry, what’s up?”

“Is there –” I press my fingertips against my cheek “– is there something on my face?

“What?” His voice is a tad loud. “No, no! I – I just zoned out for a second.”

Right…

“Uh huh…” I remark skeptically. “Um, can you help me with this physics problem?”

“Yeah, of course!”

I flip my laptop around for him to read the question. A small smirk creeps up on my lips as I watch him scribble equations into his notebook. I feel so smug.

Oh, you definitely think I’m cute and you’re not even trying to hide it. Mark is definitely gonna want to hear all about this.    

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Before I Met You Masterlist Masterlist

[im-up-to-shenanigans]

Fairy Tale

Read on ao3

Read on fanfiction.net

Summary: After getting Chinese takeout together, Ladybug and Cat Noir must battle an akuma and discover that maybe dreams really do come true. Ladynoir July 2020, Day 5: Banter

Rating: K+

Characters: Adrien Agreste | Cat Noir, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug

Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Cat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug

~*~*~*~

A/N: Credit to someone on YouTube (not me, but I couldn't find the original comment, so I can't give you a name. I did ask - and got- permission to use this idea, though) for coming up with the idea for this. I made some minor tweaks. Also, this is my first fight scene for anything ever (also first original akuma). Anyway, have some Ladynoir! (Also, yes, I put a Once Upon a Time easter egg in here. No, I’m not ashamed of it.)

~*~*~*~

Patrol had been quiet that night, which was a relief. After several consecutive days filled with akuma attacks, the heroes of Paris were grateful to have a peaceful night. Ladybug and Cat Noir were currently sitting upon a beam of the Eiffel Tower, swinging their legs back and forth as they talked and laughed. Ladybug had brought some Chinese takeout to eat (It wasn't as good as her mother's authentic Chinese food, but Cat Noir didn't need to know that.).

"That was pretty good! I've never had Chinese takeout before," Cat said as he finished his food. He looked at her with a bit of awe and wonder in his eyes, as if she were his everything.

Ladybug blinked. "Wow, really?"

Her partner nodded. "Yeah, my father has my diet regulated, and I don't get to eat much food like this." He smiled.

"Then I'm glad I introduced it to you." She smiled softly back at him.

Cat Noir's smile turned into a toothy grin, and he leaned forward. "I'd be willing to try anything for you, M’Lady." He winked.

Ladybug rolled her eyes and pushed him away gently. "I'm having second thoughts about this."

"Too late, ‘Bug. Food's already gone." He gestured to the empty white boxes. He turned back to her, his face void of any goofy expression, suddenly serious. "But honestly, it was amazing."

Ladybug shrugged. "It was just takeout. I wouldn't call it amazing."

"You are the one who brought it. It is wonderful because it came from you.” He stared into her eyes, his own filled with conviction and sincerity.

Her heart did a funny little flip in her chest. Not wanting to figure out the reason behind it, she turned away, digging in the bag from the Chinese restaurant. "I nearly forgot the best part." She produced two small packaged treats of some sort. "Fortune cookies!" She gave one to him.

He watched as she opened her cookie and took out the little slip of white paper before doing the same.

Ladybug popped the cookie in her mouth as she studied the paper. "What does yours say, Kitty?"

He glanced down at the white slip that came out of his own cookie. "Follow your dreams."

Ladybug paused. "Huh, mine says the same thing."

Cat Noir scooted closer. "Maybe it's a sign." He grinned at her again.

She laughed and nudged him with her shoulder. "Down, Kitty. They are probably just running out of ideas to put in these things." She crumpled the fortune before gathering the empty cartons, shoving everything in the bag.

Cat shrugged before looking over the city, his eyes gaining a thoughtful look. "I guess that's a possibility. I just think it's strange that I would get this particular fortune today of all days."

Ladybug paused, glancing over at her partner and taking in his thoughtful expression. "Why's that?"

"I had a pretty great dream last night. It was about you."

She snorted. "How is that different from normal?"

He looked over at her and scowled, crossing his arms. "Haha, very funny." He pouted.

She giggled before reaching over and ruffling his hair. "Oh, lighten up, Cat." She pulled her hand away. "Tell me about your dream."

Cat leaned back on his arms, face turned to the stars. "Well, the two of us were walking hand-in-hand in a park along a moonlit path. We came across André and his ice cream cart and decided to get some.” He smiled softly up at the stars. “It was amazing.”

Ladybug felt the corners of her lips pull up in amusement. “The ice cream or the dream?”

He turned to look at her, a smirk forming on his lips. “Why not both? Care for some ice cream, M’Lady? After all, the fortunes did say to follow our dreams.”

The spotted heroine cocked her head in thought, her gaze falling over the streets of Paris lit up in the night. “Well, since we're talking about dreams, I had a pretty interesting one about the two of us last night as well.”

Cat Noir smiled. “Really? You dream about me?” He laid a hand on his heart. “You flatter me, Bugaboo,” he said, a silly grin on his face as he pretended to swoon.

Ladybug mock-scowled at her partner. “Didn’t we agree that you’d stop calling me Bugaboo?”

“Maybe you did. I enjoy the way you get all worked up over it too much to agree to any such thing.”

When she gave him a legitimate scowl, he started laughing. She huffed, crossing her arms. “Well, I guess you don’t want to hear about my dream.”

Cat calmed down, wiping the tears from his eyes. “Sorry, LB. What was your dream about?”

“Well in my dream, we were being chased by a bunch of knights, wolves, and witches out of a castle, past a giant gingerbread house, and up a hill in the woods with a well on top. Suddenly, we slipped on a giant broken egg laying next to a wall and went rolling down the hill.” She paused, looking over at him with the faintest smirk on her face. “I'm sorry, Kitty, but not ALL dreams come true...”

~*~*~*~

She was going to kill Hawk Moth. Because seriously? Who akumatizes someone at 3:00 in the freaking morning? She had tests in class tomorrow (today), and she did not have the time or patience to deal with this. Stupid Hawk Moth. He probably has no life. Probably never leaves his house and just sits in a dark room all day waiting for someone to akumatize. She was going to be dead to the world tomorrow and probably fail all her tests because of this. Great.

Grumbling a few choice words under her breath, Ladybug dashed over rooftops to the source of the screams. Upon arrival, she crouched behind a chimney to avoid detection while she surveyed the situation.

There were trees everywhere. The streets of Paris were being turned into a forest. People were screaming and running in all directions. Some escaped, but most were shot down by a beam of light, knocking them to the ground. Ladybug watched as the civilians hit turned into witches (with broomsticks) and knights with black armor (complete with black plumage on their helmets, mind you), rising from their place on the ground and walking to the center of all the commotion. Man, it’s like Darkblade all over again, she thought.

They joined a circle of black knights around who Ladybug assumed was the akuma victim. Ladybug could barely make out a figure in the middle of the circle due to all the black knights surrounding the akuma. With a huff of mild annoyance, she pulled out her yo-yo and used the camera function to zoom in.

The villain of the week was a little girl in a dress that came to the ground. The skirt was covered in lace and ruffles. The entire dress was sparkling and shimmering and was the color of cotton candy. On her back rested a set of wings that resembled a fairy’s. They were the same color pink as her dress with light blue undertones and accents. Her long, chocolate brown hair flowed down in waves, stopping halfway down her back, and an elegant tiara rested upon her head.

What really caught Ladybug’s attention, however, were the items in her hands. In one, the girl held a wand which she used to transform people into her black knights. In the other rested a large brown book. “Once Upon a Time” was written across the front in gold letters, and there was gold trimming around the edges of the cover to match the text.

“Good morning, M’Lady,” Cat Noir said as he dropped down beside her.

“You are way too chipper for 3 a.m.”

He chuckled softly. “So, what do we have here?”

“A little girl dressed like a freaking fairy princess holding a wand and storybook turning people into freaking knights and Paris into her own personal freaking forest.”

“Someone’s grouchy tonight.”

Ladybug shot him a glare.

Cat raised his hands up in a soothing manner with an easy smile on his face. “Let’s get this akuma taken care of so Sleepybug can go back to bed."

She rolled her eyes and turned back to the scene. The black knights were escorting the akuma toward the Eiffel Tower, the witches following behind as they flew around on their brooms.

“We better follow them. Whatever they’re up to, it’s probably not good,” Ladybug said as she started spinning her yo-yo. Not waiting her partner’s response, she took off after the crowd, Cat Noir following close behind.

~*~*~*~

Mistakes were made. No sooner had they reached the Eiffel Tower than the akuma had turned into into a castle with a flash of light coming from her wand. Ladybug and Cat Noir had followed the entourage inside… and were immediately surrounded by the akuma’s minions. They desperately tried to fight against the akuma and her posse. Eventually, Cat Noir managed to grab hold of her wand and snapped it over his knee. No akuma. The akuma victim spawned another wand for her use.

The heroes were getting overwhelmed and exhausted. With only a glance shared between them, both heroes turned and fled out of the castle, away from the witches and knights now chasing them. The akuma, who they now knew was named Fairy Tale, flew above them, turning cars that had not been destroyed when the city had turned into a forest into rabid wolves who joined the chase.

“We’ve gotta lose these guys.” Ladybug shot off another rooftop, both superheroes doing their best to avoid the streets because of the huge pack of wolves snapping at their heels while simultaneously dodging bursts of magic sent their way by the witches and running from the black knights that had followed them onto the rooftops, occasionally fighting off the ones that caught up with them.

"Couldn’t agree more, M’Lady. I know normally black cats are friendly with witches, but these guys seem to prefer the wolves.” He was right behind her, sometimes growling and hissing at wolves that got too close for comfort.

It was way too early in the morning for this.

"We’ll lose them at Notre Dame!” Ladybug ripped the sword away from a black knight and hurled it at a nearby witch. The witch tried to dodge, but lost her balance and fell from her broomstick. Cat Noir launched the swordless knight off the roof, and the heroes raced to the cathedral.

At first, Notre Dame seemed to be a bust, as the superheroes saw that the once glorious church was now a gigantic and elaborate gingerbread house that threatened to crumble whenever they touched it.

Ladybug glanced back at the oncoming horde, then back at her partner with a grin on her face, a plan forming in her head. “What do you say we give our guests a little snack?”

Cat smirked. “Read my mind, LB.”

The two rushed inside and hid behind one of the grand gingerbread pillars in the back of the church. Soon enough they were joined by Fairy Tale’s minions.

Cat darted out from behind the pillar waving his hands and shouting. As the mob closed in on him, Ladybug snuck back around to the front door and quickly shut it behind her.

Once he saw that she was outside with the door closed, Cat raced back to one of the pillars. “Cataclysm!” Cat quickly launched himself through one of the frosting windows in the back, while the entire row of connected pillars crumbled, bringing the rest of the church down as well and burying the horde in a mess of gingerbread and frosting.

The two heroes ran away from the rubble, heading back to the Eiffel Castle. Fairy Tale had made some adjustments while they were busy with her henchmen. It was now complete with a moat and drawbridge. A few remaining knights were standing guard while a few witches flew around the castle.

“We’ll be able to easily cross the moat and take the knights and witches, but the drawbridge might be tricky since I’m down a Cataclysm,” Cat muttered to Ladybug as they crouched on a nearby rooftop.

“Hmm, we’ll have to draw her out then.”

A few minutes later, as they were racing up a hill with two tall stone walls on either side of them instead of trees with an extremely angry Fairy Tale on their heels, the two heroes were regretting taunting her so much.

“I don’t remember the Champs-Elyseés being a giant hill.” Cat spotted a well at the top. “Or there being a well at the top.”

“Must be Fairy Tale’s magic. She’s been taking a lot of things from fairy tales and putting them in Paris.” Ladybug paused for a moment as they dodged a blast of magic. “Is-Is that the Arc de Triomphe?”

Cat consulted his mental map. “I guess so.” He glanced behind them. “Uh, Ladybug? She’s getting closer.”

The moment they reached the well at the top of the hill, Fairy Tale opened her book and shouted, “Once upon a time, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall!” She waved her wand and a beam of light shot past the heroes.

Before they had a chance to react, a huge egg fell from one of the walls and crashed right in front of them, cracking open. Ladybug and Cat Noir had no time to stop their momentum and slipped on the egg yolk, tumbling and rolling down the hill.

As they picked themselves off the ground, both covered in egg yolk, dirt, and grass, Cat’s miraculous beeped, signaling he had three minutes left. They searched for Fairy Tale and spotted her flying over the top of the hill. “Now might be the time for some luck, M’Lady. Y’know, before she gets here.”

She nodded. “Lucky charm!” A red ball of yarn with black spots fell into her hands.

“Ooh, a ball of yarn! Christmas came early for this feline!”

Ladybug hummed. “Not yet, Kitty. Would you be so kind as to distract her for me?”

He bowed. “As you wish, Mademoiselle.” He looked up and winked before taking off, shouting to catch Fairy Tale’s attention.

While she was distracted, Ladybug ran back up to the well and crouched behind it. Then she got an idea. She scramble up the nearest tree, breaking off a few branches. Soon, with the wood and the yarn, she had fastened the frame of a net. She opened up her yo-yo to text Cat. When I give the signal, lead Fairy Tale back to the well. That’s where I’ll be.

Once he sent a confirmation, she scrambled back down the tree and hid back behind the well. She peaked over the stone structure to see her partner still being chased by Fairy Tale. He doesn’t have long. Need to do this quickly. She took her yo-yo and wove it into a net for the frame large enough for the akuma.

She peeked back out and caught Cat’s eye. When she nodded, he nodded back and began running her way.

Ladybug took a breath. She needed to time this just right. She watched as Cat led Fairy Tale closer and closer. When he jumped between the stones and the wooden roof of the well, Ladybug brought the net up, waited a beat, then brought the net up as Fairy Tale passed through.

The akuma cried out in surprise, as her flight was interrupted. She went crashing to the ground, scrambling to get out of the net. She gave up, opened her book, and began to shout. “Once upon a time—” Cat Noir reached through a hole in the net and ripped a page from the open book.

An akuma fluttered into the air.

Ladybug untied her yo-yo and the yarn, freeing the victim and caught the akuma.

After everything was cleaned up and the little girl was given back to her mother (who just happened to be one of the remaining witches guarding the palace), Cat Noir looked over at Ladybug. “You remember that dream you told me about earlier?”

She raised an eyebrow and stood akimbo. “Yeah, what about it?”

“Well, you followed it.” He shrugged. “Everything you said happened actually happened.”

Ladybug narrowed her eyes before they widened again. “Yeah, I guess it did.”

Cat Noir stepped closer, tilting his head and smiling. “So, since yours came true, and we got the same fortune…”

Ladybug sighed. “When do you want that ice cream?”

~*~*~*~

When Marinette finally got back to bed that night, she would deny the smile on her face, no matter how much Tikki insists it was there.

~*~*~*~

A/N: So, I hope you enjoyed that. It, uh, kinda took me a while since I first got the prompt. Oh well. It happened eventually. (Also, this is my first fic on tumblr, so I hope this goes well.)

@ladynoirjuly2020

[mlpdestinyverse]

“Royal Run-In”

So an ex-prince, an artist, and a socialite meet in front of an ice cream shop...

Feat.  Monochrome,  Nova Spark,

Story and Description Under The Cut

-On a sunny and bustling street of the great city of Canterlot, a well-dressed young mare strolls along with her head held high, humming a cheerful tune. In one foreleg she holds a lace parasol, twirling it above her every so often. She moves as though she is a sight to be envied, the elegant curls of her hair bouncing along her back with each peppy step. As she passes by ponies she offers sweet smiles and friendly greetings, earning many back in return. As she rounds a corner, taking in the beautiful sights of the grand city, a display of stylish dresses in a shop window on the other side of the street catches her eye. The mare admires them, contemplating whether to cross the street to get a better look. But due to being distracted she squeaks as she bumps into something - the back of somepony sitting hunched over at a table, just outside of an ice cream shop- Heather: *feels a tinge of annoyance for the blunder and the eyes she had drawn, but puts on her best sheepish smile. She speaks with an accented voice, one meant for a proper lady of social standing* Oh I'm so very sorry, love! I wasn't quite paying attention- -Heather cuts herself off as the other pony sits up and turns around. She soon finds herself wide-eyed, tilting her head back further and further just to find the pegasus' face. And there, she sees a familiar set of green eyes staring back at her. Heather's own eyes almost bulge at the sight of Monochrome Dashielle, nearly a foot taller and...very much in-shape, if the toned muscles underneath their light coat say anything. She's ready to briskly leave, forcing the run-in to end there, until- Monochrome: *calmly appraises her, closing the sketchbook in their hooves* Hello Heather. Heather: *internally curses, knowing she can't ignore a greeting of familiarity now, not with so many ponies within ear-shot. She forces a smile* Monochrome! Hello! *looks them up and down again* I...didn't recognize you! -Heather nervously shifts her eyes. Some ponies glance their way, surely curious of someone of high stature like her speaking to a normal citizen, but thankfully they continue on their way. Her attention only returns when she hears the pegasus hum- Monochrome: *stoically glances down at themself, then back at her* Yes...I suppose puberty was kind. Heather: *tenses, absolutely loathing the jab. Yet manages a stiff laugh* I suppose it was! Monochrome: *stares at her smile before meeting her eyes* ...I see you haven't changed much. -Heather desperately wants to scoff, or roll her eyes, but knows such ill-temper would land her in deep water. Canterlot, after all, is vast and so unlike the schools she had attended and proudly stood at the top of. Ponies here, especially in the higher classes, are willing to believe and chatter about the tiniest of things, reputation of a pony be damned. She has no choice but to keep in check her desire to tell off those who manage to insult her or get in her way. So she opts for option two: sweetly put them in their place- Heather: *gives a cheerful, sugary grin* Oh Monochrome dear, don't be so silly! So much has changed, actually~ You wouldn't believe it! *takes a step back so Monochrome can get a good look at her and all of her glory, dressed with only the finest of fabrics* Moving to Canterlot after I graduated Friendship Academy was truly a dream, darling~ It didn't take long for me to meet the love of my life! *proudly touches the golden ring hanging from her neck* You are looking at one Lady Heather Tart Reed~ *waves a hoof* Or Heather Reed for short. Mister Reed is a darling noble stallion. You should've seen us! We started off as business partners and just fell absolutely in love! Our company has been growing rapidly and successfully ever since~ Monochrome: Wow. Heather: *barely holds back her smirk* I know~ So much has happened in only a few years! Monochrome: No I mean you....actually managed to get married. Heather: *feels a vein twitch in her head. She pushes out a giggle* Of course I did! My dear is just absolutely smitten with me. *twirls her hair around her hoof* I have him wrapped around my hoof, really~ Monochrome: Huh. Poor guy. Heather: *plastering back on her sugary smile she rests her hooves on her cheeks and makes a show of glancing over Monochrome's form* So what about you, sweetheart? I don't see a ring on you. *flutters her eyelashes* Don't tell me you don't have a partner yet! Oh how awful! -Monochrome calmly stares back at her, and for a moment, Heather thinks she's struck them- Monochrome: *hums and glances off to the side* He's a partner. Just not the kind you're thinking of. He's one of Canterlot's most brilliant minds, actually. -With great timing, both ponies hear the bell of the ice cream shop chime as someone exits. Looking up, they see a short purple stallion wander out. He holds two ice cream cups within his magenta magic, scrutinizing the larger of them with squinted blue eyes-

Nova: Okay, so they didn't have my carrot spice gelato, so I caved and got their weekly special...

-Heather almost cringes at the treat. It's some sort of red velvet and milk chocolate ice cream sundae, littered with dark swirls of fudge and topped with large brownie chunks, strawberry syrup, and black and white sprinkles. She watches the stallion stare at it with a mix of awe and fear-

Nova: Chrome, if this kills me, tell my mom- *finally looks up and stops, noticing another pony with Monochrome* Oh...uh sorry, didn't know you had company.

Monochrome: I wouldn't call her that.

Heather: *smiling wide, she tilts her head and speaks through gritted teeth* Oh, Monochrome, you're just...an endless sea of wit, aren't you? Monochrome: *corner of their mouth twitches* It's all I have nowadays.

Nova: *snorts, light-heartedly rolling his eyes* Not true, but okay.

-Heather finds herself going quiet as she watches the unicorn stallion place the cups at Monochrome's table. A weird feeling of familiarity continuously gnaws at her as she stares at him. The brilliant colors of his mane strike her, yet no matter how much she tries, no sense of recognition hits her as she scans his face. It's almost as if she's failing to register it, compared to everything else about him. She's tempted to ask him if they've met before.

Heather then glances at his cutie mark and softly gasps. As an avid admirer of the princesses, she can recognize that brilliant spark from anywhere.-

Heather: (!!) *straightens excitedly* Nova Spark! Prince Nova Spark! Of course!

-Nova Spark tenses as Heather's exclamation garners attention and murmurs from surrounding ponies. The onlookers nosily try to take a peek, as they naturally would with a royal nearby. However, to Heather's surprise, Monochrome stands and moves to Nova's most exposed side, blocking the view of the staring ponies. Mo sends an uncomfortably intense stare back at them, forcing a number of them to flinch or look away, if not making them give glances sparingly.

Nova relaxes a bit, but not for long. Heather tucks her closed parasol under her arm and steps forward to happily take Nova's hooves into her own. She almost misses the deliciously irked look that crosses Monochrome's face as she does. This is her chance to impress the eavesdroppers and bystanders with oh-so-wonderful pleasantries and familiarity. She's sure that as she is now, she can finally charm him- Heather: *gives her award-winning sweet smile* Oh Prince Nova, I knew you looked familiar! It's so good to see you again! The glasses are quite a look! Nova: *stares at her, wide-eyed, before slowly turning his head to make eye contact with Monochrome, as if searching for some answer* Monochrome: *sighs heavily and shrugs, waving a hoof at him to go on* Nova: ....*turns back to Heather just as slowly* I uh...do I know you? Heather: *giggles. She can only guess how different she looks from her old drab self* 'Course you do, love~! We went to the same Friendship Academy! I was Heather Tart back then! Nova: .... Heather: We worked together during a few group projects~? Nova: ....*slowly raises an eyebrow* Heather: ...*sweats, smile slowly straining* Y-you and I earned some of the highest test scores in our grade, deary! Remember? -Mentally, Heather finds herself recalling that they went to Friendship Elementary too. But of course he wouldn't remember that. He was always so interested in...Eventide. So much so, Heather could never capture his attention for long. Oh how she had loathed that. All because Eventide had connections with his family. She patiently waits for him to ponder over it. Even if he can't remember right away, she knows a well-trained prince like himself would have the common decency to at least feign recognition.- Nova: *breathes in deeply, shoulders rising...only for his whole posture to fall at once, staring at her cluelessly* Yeah no, I got nothing. Sorry. -Heather can't stop her eye from twitching. Hearing a snerk, her gaze then shoots up to find Monochrome hiding half of their face behind their sketchbook. She doesn't need to see their mouth to notice the amused crinkle of their eyes. Who knew the prince was so...blunt. But even if ponies are listening in, she still has a chance to recover. If anything, his memory failure would just look bad on him.- Heather: *quickly pats his hoof* Oh don't worry! It has been a few years, my prince! Nova: *strains a smile, one that looks nothing but forced and awkward* Stick with 'Nova'. Heather: *laughs* How modest of you! But isn't that a little too familiar, Prince Nova- Monochrome: *sighs in annoyance, shooting her a look* Maybe just respect a pony when they tell you what they prefer to be called. Nova: Agreed... Heather: (!) O-oh, of course! My apologies! *feels a bit nervous, seeing the uncomfortable edge to Nova's posture. Quickly changes the subject, bringing back her peppy tone* So what's been happening on your end, Sir Nova~? I'd love to know! Nova: *perks up a bit* Oh. Well... *glances over at Monochrome. He lightens up, smiling brightly* Chrome and I are working on a big project together. So that's exciting. -A vein bulges in Heather's head. For Monochrome, of all ponies, to be working with a prince- Heather: *voice becomes a pitch higher* W-what kind of project? Monochrome: That's a secret. *seeing Heather shoot them a tense look, the corner of their mouth lifts* All a part of the partnership, dear. Nova: Yep! Heather: *laughs stiffly* W-well, that's great, Sir Nova! *tightens her hold on his hooves. At least now she had an opening to truly impress him* I actually have a partnership myself with my dear husband! *winks* Surely you've heard of Reed Enterprise, our rapidly growing corporation right here in Canterlot! We've been quite the talk on the streets and in the local newspapers~ Nova: ...no actually. Heather:  A-ah...well! That's quite alright! If you've only been visiting, of course it would be difficult hearing about us! Nova: *tilts head* Actually, I've been living here in Canterlot for...two? Three years now. Heather: *sucks in a sharp breath*......and you've...never once heard of us.

-Nova and Monochrome exchange a matching blank glance, simultaneously returning their attention to the earth pony after- Nova and Monochrome: No...

-Heather can physically feel her pride cracking. Her ears then catch a few whispers. Tensing, she's forced to remember the passing ponies and those still lingering nearby, no doubt listening in on this mess. She grits her teeth, determined for some way to save this conversation- Heather: (!!) A-anyway! That reminds me! I'm holding a party tonight at our penthouse, to celebrate our new office building! If you're free, you absolutely should drop by~ *lifts her head proudly* You'll see many familiar influential faces, knowing you~ Miss Rarity and Fancy Pants himself will be attending! Oh they'd be just elated to see you, I'm sure! Nova: *winces* Thanks. But I'd rather just...you know...stay home. -Nova bobs his head in a continuous nod, his mouth pressed into a tight line while Heather waits for more of an explanation. ...none comes. Only awkward, empty silence fills the air between them-

Heather: Please, at least consider it! *eyes flick nervously, landing on Monochrome* (!) I'll even invite Monochrome! You could both come together! -Though the thought of Monochrome attending exasperates her, Heather is convinced for a short moment that the offer has to be a selling point. However, something akin to a record scratch occurs. Nova shuts his eyes and shakes his head vigorously, as if uncertain if he had heard her right- Nova: Wait wait, stop, hold up- *eyebrows draw in as he pulls his body a significant distance away from her* You invited me to some party, right in front of Chrome, and you were about to leave them out? Heather: *caught off guard by how offended he looks, as if she had personally insulted him. She stumbles over herself for a proper response* W-well I just- I didn't think they'd enjoy such a scene- Nova: Because they're not royalty, like me. -With eyelids half-lidded, Nova raises a brow-

Heather: *feels a bit of panic, realizing attention is returning to them* Of course no- -Heather suddenly feels something dry and...leathery against her leg. Glancing down, she's greeted by the sight of a large tortoise, dressed with goggles and a strange mechanism on its back, as it ever-so-slowly pushes its head into her foreleg, actually managing to move it back. Startled, Heather releases her hold on Nova to jerk away from the wrinkly thing- Heather: What is that doing here?! Nova: *frowns* Well that's weird...never seen him do that before. Hang on, buddy- *attempts to pick the tortoise up, only to grunt as he struggles with its weight*....C-Chrome... Monochrome: *releases a breathy laugh, moving between the ponies to pick up their tortoise* Tank...were you trying to protect Nova from the strange lady?

Tank: *slowly nods his head* Monochrome: *smiles fondly and rests their head against his* Good boy. -Heather doesn't stop herself from finally shooting a glare at them, but swiftly drops it when Nova turns back around, eyeing her- Nova: ...I have to say. Inviting ponies based on social stature alone is pretty shallow. And, like...a pretty awful way of making friends, I'd think. *glances away* I mean, I'm really not the 'life of the party' like you're probably imagining. -Heather gapes, utterly dumbfounded. She then finally hears it; distant snorts of laughter, eagerly exchanged murmurs, a soft "damn" and "yikes". The earth pony's face burns horrendously, that word echoing in her head. 'Shallow'. At once she wishes she could snap at him, for the impudence and sheer indecency.- Monochrome: Nova...*eyes the table* I'm sorry to interrupt with tragic news, but... Nova: *follows Mo's gaze and yelps, seeing his ice cream cup almost completely melted* Oh come on... I was looking forward to that. Monochrome: *frowns at Nova's look of disappointment. They gently place Tank down and, reaching into their saddlebag, they hand the unicorn a few bits* Just go get another one. *pulls the melted cup towards their body* We can try it together and...have sugar comas later, I guess. Nova: *snorts* Gee, how comforting...*shakes his head smiling* Thanks Chrome. *awkwardly looks back at Heather one more time* I...guess that's it. Enjoy your party, uh... Heather: *voice takes on a flatter tone*  Lady Heather, sir. Nova: *eyes her warily* Yeah...bye then. -Nova proceeds towards the ice creams shop, entering it once more. Sitting there seething, Heather can't believe how much of a crude, ill-mannered stallion the Friendship Prince actually is. Nearby, Monochrome raises a brow at her.- Monochrome: Something wrong? He was just being honest. I thought a beacon of honesty like yourself would appreciate that. -Heather shoots a withering look at them, gritting her teeth to hold back words as she silently fumes. Monochrome cracks a smile, a glint in their eye- Monochrome: *leans their head down to meet Heather's gaze evenly, softly whispering* Nice try, but...turns out I'm not afraid of you either. Heather: *releases a soft growl, followed by a soft 'hmph' as she stands* If you would excuse me, I have actual business to tend to. Good day. -With that, Heather dramatically opens her parasol and elegantly trots away, ignoring ponies in the immediate area as she hides away her injured pride. Monochrome simply takes a spoonful of their melted ice cream, barely containing a growing satisfied smile that they give to Tank- Monochrome: Hopefully that'll humble her. For a while at least.

We momentarily skip ahead to present day, to see what Heather is up to. We have one pony who's making a name in high society, and another who couldn't care less about that world after abandoning it. Put them together and you get one very, very amused Monochrome. ...who, with all of the drama going on, I almost forgot was originally written to be petty as fuck. To those they think deserve it, at least. As seen in their introductory chapter, "Overpriced".

Anyway! Believe it or not, this is the last chapter we'll be seeing Heather in who knows how long. Next chapter we'll be returning to Eventide's arc. Heather originally was meant to simply fill the role of the ex-best friend who had emotionally traumatized Eve, and while I had some plans for her, she was meant to remain a minor character. But lo and behold, as I do with characters, she's become much more complex than planned aaaand well...there are ideas, but until the day comes for those to come to life, we won't have to deal with her for a while. I will, though, be doing a bio for her to delve more into her character. Meanwhile: Gosh I've wanted to write Monochrome and Nova interactions for so long...as you can see there's so much you guys haven't seen, events that are only explored in Nova's past arc, but because his arc is the longest of any character's in the cast, it'll be a bit of time before we delve into that story. Til then, here's a taste~ Lastly. As you can also see, I've changed up my method for script-style chapters! Hopefully this is much easier and cleaner to read than what it was before.

[afraidof-thedark]

When my older sister turned 19, my parents started looking at me with the deepest pity and grief I have ever seen; like I was going to crumble and disappear at any moment.

I was 16 and listening to music in my bedroom when my mother came to me with a beautiful portrait in her hands. It was of my great-grandmother Eleanor.

“Pat, you know how Eleanor used to say that when she was 18, a she-devil offered her some kind of paradise if she agreed to die immediately, right?”

It was a weird question; whenever my mother had a little more to drink, she’d retell this tale over and over. She came from a long line of spiritual but pragmatic women, women who fought to study and to work in male-dominated fields. Women who also found a good man to marry, women who had everything.

But then tragedy struck in their lives and they would lose a daughter or a niece. Always.

“Yes, mom," I replied, and we recited together: “And she said fuck off, I have 7 siblings to help raising."

And Eleanor did. She worked her ass off to send her younger brothers and sisters to good schools, became a college teacher herself, and kept teaching every new generation of women to be strong and stand up for themselves.

My mother always loved her to bits, and did her best to raise her kids the way her grandmother had taught. Eleanor peacefully died of old age when I was a baby, and overall lived a great, accomplished, loving life.

But grief knocked on her door periodically, as she had to bury a daughter and a granddaughter, both at age 18. My aunt Cecelia died years before I was born, and that took a huge toll on my mother and on my other aunt, Christa.

Eleanor didn’t believe it was a tragic coincidence. No.

She thinks that the same she-devil who invited her to go live in a better place came to claim her descendants.

After Cecelia, there were no deaths.

My sister and my cousins have all crossed the line to 19, and none of them reported anything weird happening to them.

I’m the only female in my family who is still 18.

Despite the fact that I always admired Eleanor, I confess that I thought that she was being superstitious, or even mocking us—she was known for her savage sense of humor. So this conversation I had with my mother had been completely brushed from my mind.

Then today a gorgeous, magnificent woman approached me.

I am a part-timer at a frozen yogurt joint. As you might expect, the small store was empty. The little bell on the door rang, and I raised my eyes to meet a stunning, elegant woman who seemed to be on her early 30s.

She was wearing a simple and unassuming dress, but the fit was flattering. It was impossible to take your eyes off of her.

“Hello, Patricia." Her voice was velvety and melodious. “I see Eleanor’s granddaughter told you about me."

I forgot how to breathe for a while. She was just… God, I had considered myself straight up to this point, but then I had found a woman that I both wanted to be like and have for myself.

“Come on, get yourself some fro-yo on me. Mine will be salted caramel and strawberry, if you please."

I mechanically filled two little cups as she graciously sat.

I stared at her intently.

“When you see Christa, tell her to see a doctor about that persistent headache. Unpleasant surprise on the way,” she said very casually. “So tell me about you, Pat."

“D-don’t you know all about me already?” I asked. She smiled kindly, but the warmth never reached her violet eyes; it wasn’t like they were cold, but they were neutral. Neutral and incredibly sharp.

“I know everything there is to know about everyone on your little planet, darling. But I’d still like to hear your version."

“I’m not actually interesting, you know?” I sighed. “I am only okay at everything. My sister is brilliant and she’s pretty too, while I’m too average and not even sure what I want to major in."

She smiled so brightly I thought I was gonna go blind.

“Don’t you want to be part of something bigger and easier?” she asked. “I’ll offer you a great deal, the same one I offered your ancestor Eleanor, her daughter Bettina, and your aunt Cecelia. You know the results."

“I’m listening," I said. I don’t know the circumstances of their deaths, but I know that both Bettina and Cecelia took the offer.

“Well, take a look around the world you live in. You’re young, but old enough to know. Do you feel safe walking the streets? Isn’t this world rotten? Sure, you can say there are good people; people that mind their own business, at least. But the rotten apples always spoil the whole barrel. And lately you mortals have seen that happening a lot of people you used to deem good, huh?”

“I don’t… feel safe. Two of my friends have been assaulted. I admit sometimes I’m scared to leave my bed," I replied. “Still, I’d feel so bad about how my mother would miss me."

She smiled.

“You’re a good girl, Patricia. I’m Lilith, by the way," she grabbed my hands. “Let me tell you something, although I’m sure you already know this in your heart. All the women in your family are fit for this deal, but I have to choose only one. I chose you because you won’t be missed as much." I recoiled, feeling hurt, but I knew that Lilith wasn’t lying. There was a spark of compassion in her eyes too. “It’s not that you’re not loved, it’s just that your cousins and your sister…”

“Are so much better than me in every sense. I know. I panic easily, I don’t trust my own decisions, and I don’t have any special talent. Sometimes my life feels like such a waste."

“It’s not, dear. It’s not. Because you were born for something greater. Greater than these girls you deem better than yourself. They are fit for this world. You are fit for the Utopia."

“What’s the Utopia?”

“It’s everything there is out there, the only eternal life in the universe, offered to a select few. All the great people on Earth are nothing but a heartbeat. They will fade to nothing, like all the unassuming lives."

“So you mean there’s no heaven and hell? And what about God?”

“Oh, God exists. God created great things. Imperfect, inferior beings like you humans are just the collateral damage of his masterpieces; the residuum of the creation. He never even turned His face to you, or batted an eyelash when we told him our plan. Lucifer and I see potential in you. Well, some of you. Most are truly garbage”.

I was utterly amazed. “Why do you only take young women?”

She smiled again.

“That’s a great question. Lucifer likes to collect men in their 40s, so he can laugh at their moral dilemmas. How will my family live without me, the great provider?? What if Karen marries another man and Cody turns gay because he didn’t have a masculine figure?” She did a great impersonation of a generic middle-aged man. “But I take my girls while they are still beautiful and not completely tired of how unfair this world is to them. I don’t want the morons in your society to make you forget what Eleanor taught you. She knew there would be only nothingness out there after she died, but she opted to stay and take care of her loved ones. It was a bold, admirable choice, and I decided to reward her for it. She was the only one I ever approached to refuse."

“So you can’t both live a great life here and go to this place you call Utopia?” I asked.

“Oh, one usually can’t have it all, no. But I picked two or three of those. Like Marilyn and Cleo. They were almost 40 but still young at heart and completely unfazed by how the world tried to break them. You have to admire that."

“How is that Utopia? Will I like it?”

Lilith snapped her fingers. The walls and furniture around us, and even the street across the door started to fold and fold and fold, like the reality was only a 3D draft, until they became minuscule pieces of cardboard, and then they fell into the infinite under us.

We were now surrounded by a stunning, futuristic place. There was no sense of feeling cold or hungry, we could move by floating around as we pleased, and there were amazing buildings everywhere, decorated with statues of pure white marble and paintings so beautiful I wanted to cry.

I could see colors I never imagined possible, and the sky was always a warm shade of blue, but dotted with stars, and an immense full moon.

Everything was shiny, symmetrical and felt right; peaceful, but far from boring. A perfect, ordered chaos.

“This place is constantly expanding, so you’ll always find new things to do. You’ll never live another tedious day."

She snapped her fingers again, and everything unfolded and rose back into place.

“And if I accept your offer, which I will… can I choose the way I die and do something first?”

“Oh, you have a few days to deal with all your stuff. I’m not a monster, you know?” the she-devil smiled again.

“Great!” I said. “There’s only one thing I need to do before I go with you. I want to kill the man who raped by best friend."

Lilith agreed to allow me to do it, and we talked some more before she left.

And that’s all I can remember clearly. The rest of the day was a blur; knowing that I would die, I wanted to quit my dead-end job immediately, but I had no one to quit to, and I couldn’t leave the store unattended. So I stayed, surrounded by weird ice cream, thinking about what awaited for me.

The she-devil told me that I couldn’t tell anyone I was about to die, but I was allowed to discreetly say my goodbyes. My family was really nice and had taught me a lot, and I had valuable friends, but none of that was reason enough to refuse an eternal life of happiness where I could even be friends with Cleopatra and Marilyn Monroe.

I spent some quality time with my loved ones, then two days later, I took my mother’s handgun and headed to see the one who hurt and destroyed my beloved friend, both physically and mentally.

I won’t describe the details of the torture I put him through. I’ll just say that I only stopped when it seemed to me that he went through at least ten times what he made her endure.

And then I killed him.

“Oh, shit," was my only reaction as I realized that punishing this disgusting man felt even better and even more right than living in a perfect Utopia.

It feels like I finally found my purpose. If this world is all that there is, the only thing we can do is enjoy it.

And we’ll only be able to enjoy it if we cleanse it.

I decided to take this mission upon myself.

But there’s only a problem: I already agreed with dying tomorrow.

I signed the contract and now I'm terrified of what Lilith will do to me when I say I changed my mind.

-u/poloniumpoisoning

[shawol9196]

Teacher AU 9/?

“Should we...hold hands?” Kibum asks tentatively. Minho holds the door open as they step outside the building. Holding hands was something Minho had dreamed about -- if he was being honest with himself -- but not something he’d counted on or even hoped for.

Minho’s classroom is a revolving door the entire week: Suho and Kyuhyun find every reason and more to stop by; Hyukjae finally accepts Minho’s request to visit for a health-themed day (though he uses every opportunity to tease him); when word starts going around, Sunny and Amber start dropping by more often; even Leeteuk stops in for a chat. By Friday morning, Minho wants nothing more than to be left alone with his students. He gives his students an easy day: they’ve been extraordinarily behaved the past week considering all the extra interactions with adults they’ve had. With Leeteuk’s permission, they go outside for most of the day. He and Kibum set up a tiny scavenger hunt and he lets the class roam around in pairs to look for their tiny treasures. Kibum comes outside and does a cloud drawing activity so that Minho can eat his lunch. He stays outside, afraid of who is waiting for him in the breakroom. It takes an eternity to corral the children back inside but they go home rather quickly. Since he had no lesson plans inside, there’s little to clean up. When Kibum knocks on his door to signal that he’s done cleaning, they make a quick exit before anyone can spot them. The bus is more packed than normal and they end up having to stand in the aisle.

“Did anyone bother you today?” Kibum asks once the bus starts moving.

“No, I managed to evade everyone today, thankfully. Yeri did ask me what a crush is but that was because her aunt asked her if she had a crush, not because she overheard anyone else use it regarding us.”

The bus stops suddenly and Kibum almost loses his balance. Minho wraps an arm around his waist to keep him standing. Once the bus is comfortably back in motion, he lets go. Both are blushing and there’s a pause after Kibum says a quiet thank you.

“So are we still good for tonight? If you’re not in the mood or are too tired we can wa-”

“Don’t you back out on me, Minho,” Kibum teases. “I’ve been looking forward to it all day.”

Minho laughs and a smile blooms on Kibum’s lips.

“What’s the dress code?”

“Something casual that you don’t mind getting slightly messy in.”

Kibum’s eyebrows arch in curiosity but he doesn’t inquire further.

“I don’t have any plans for dinner, I figured we’d just eat here so we don’t have to worry about anywhere being too busy.” Minho says as he unlocks the door.

“That works for me. I’ll get it started and you can go shower first.”

“Do I smell that bad?” Minho teases.

“No, no! I just thought that since you were outside getting handed leaves all day that-”

“I’m just teasing, Kibum. I appreciate it.”

Kibum opens the fridge to start on dinner and Minho goes to his room. He showers quickly, not wanting Kibum to have to wait. He sees his razor sitting on the counter and silently thanks it. He’s a little sad that his wrist is healed and that he won’t need help anymore, but still, it had been useful in that moment. It takes him longer than he would like to pick an outfit out: on one hand, he should look nice for the date; on the other, his outfit shouldn’t make Kibum feel out of sorts or underdressed. He settles on jeans first. Out of the corner of his eye he spots something peach: it’s a nicer t-shirt with a decorative pocket. Hadn’t Kibum said peach was his favorite color? Dressed and hair brushed, Minho comes out to the kitchen. There’s 5 minutes left on the timer for the oven and he hears the water running from where Kibum must be showering. He has enough time to search through his cabinet for the cologne Donghae gifted him for his birthday and spray some on before the oven timer goes off. He portions out the food and sets the table just in time for Kibum to come out. Minho stares at him for probably a little too long, enthralled once again with the sight of Kibum’s damp hair. He’s dressed similarly to Minho, wearing a blue shirt.

“Do I look okay?” he asks, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

“Yeah, you look great.”

They sit down and eat their dinner quickly; the relative silence paired with shy glances at each other reminds Minho of their first dinner together. When the leftovers are put away and the dishes are washed they slip their shoes on and head out.

“Should we...hold hands?” Kibum asks tentatively.

Minho holds the door open as they step outside the building. Holding hands was something Minho had dreamed about -- if he was being honest with himself -- but not something he’d counted on or even hoped for.

“If you’d like,” he replies, holding his hand out.

Kibum gingerly accepts; Minho’s content as the walk along.

“So where are we going?”

“Pottery painting. Sunny recommended it to me a while back as being a -- and I quote -- ‘fun and casual place for both a casual first date and a fun we’ve-been-dating-forever place’.”

“That sounds like a bad slogan trying to meet a word count.”

Minho laughs. “So, you didn’t hear this from me but Sunny and Siwon -- our neighbor -- have been dating for 10 years now. Everyone knows that they were high school sweethearts but for whatever reason she wants to pretend like her love life is mysterious so she acts like she’s single.”

“How do you know that?”

“I’ve seen her leaving his apartment too many times when I’m coming home from wine night for her to lie to me.”

“And what does this have to do with our date?”

“They came here for their first date and always come here for their anniversary and I saw all the cute matching mugs they have so I’ve had this romantic notion of coming here on a date and since you have an art background this seemed like the perfect opportunity.”

The studio is rather empty when they arrive. One of the staff sets up a booth for them while they walk around looking at the pottery choices. Minho picks out two mugs with heart shaped handles and Kibum picks out a hedgehog-shaped pencil holder. Paint trays in hand, they sit down. Kibum eyes Minho’s mugs nervously.

“My parent’s anniversary is coming up soon. My mom likes couple things so I thought I’d decorate mugs for them.” Minho explains.

Kibum tries to hide his relief and starts painting his piece.

“Can I interest either of you in a coffee or ice cream?” a staff person asks as they clean the table behind them.

“Do you have affogatos here?” Minho asks.

The staff person nods so he orders one. He looks at Kibum.

“I’ll just have a flat white please.”

The staff departs and they go back to painting. Minho’s just finishing the mug for his mother when he hears a familiar voice.

“Minho!”

“Mrs. Kim, hello! What brings you here?”

Yeri comes running up from behind her mother and stands in front of their table.

“I’m paint!” she exclaims.

Minho and her mother laugh.

“Yeri’s been well behaved so we’re here as a reward.” Mrs. Kim explains.

“That’s exciting!” Minho says, giving Yeri a high-five.

“Yeri, go ahead and pick out which one you want and come tell me so I can get it for you.”

Yeri nods and scampers off.

“Is your wrist doing better?”

“Yes, ma’am, thank you. I appreciate your help last week.”

“I’m always glad to help out where my daughter is concerned. So what brings you here?”

“Oh Kibum and I are here to enjoy a night out. I’ve never been here before so I’m treating him for helping me throughout the week.”

Mrs. Kim looks at Kibum and smiles politely. “If I didn’t know better I’d say it looks like you two were on a date.”

Minho and Kibum laugh uncomfortably. Yeri comes running back and starts tugging at her mother’s arm.

“Well I have to go, it was nice to see you two.”

There’s a vague tension when she leaves and Minho can’t figure out what to say.

“I’ve never been on a date before, I’m sorry I don’t know how to act.” Kibum whispers, avoiding Minho’s eyes.

“I’ve never been on a pleasant date, so I don’t quite know how to act either. But since I’m the one who asked you out, I should probably step up my romance game, huh?”

He finishes painting the handle of the mug he’s working on and reaches out for Kibum’s hand. Kibum hesitates before accepting, much like before, eventually glancing up at Minho. The staff comes back with their drinks and Kibum is quick to let go.

“So what are your parents like, Minho?”

Minho stops painting mid-letter, caught off-guard by the question.

“My parents?”

“Yeah. You know, the ones you’re painting the mugs for?”

“Well, my dad is the head of athletics at the community college near where they live. He used to be a PE teacher and basketball coach for the high school I graduated from.”

“Did he still teach when you went there?”

“Yeah.”

“That must have sucked, having your dad as your PE coach.”

“Luckily for me I’m pretty athletic so it wasn’t terrible. Also it was nice to be able to sometimes hang out in his office for whatever.”

“What does your mom do?”

“She’s a caretaker at a retirement home. She used to work at a special needs orphanage but it closed down.”

“A teacher dad and caretaker mom? Sounds like you were destined to be a caring teacher.”

Minho laughs and Kibum cracks a smile. The second mug isn’t taking as long to decorate -- since it’s for his father -- and Minho gets nervous that the date is passing too quickly. Kibum finishes his painting and his drink so he works on cleaning his brushes.

“Sorry I’m taking so long. I got thrown off my groove.” Minho says, picking up the pace.

“Who are you? Emperor Kuzco?” Kibum teases without looking up.

“You’ve seen Emperor’s New Groove?”

“Mostly. What’s an affogato?”

“Espresso with ice cream in it.”

“Is it good?”

“I mean, I think so.”

“Can...can I try it?”

“Sure.”

They reach for the cup at the same time, fingers brushing against each other. Kibum blushes and pulls away as Minho sets the cup closer to his reach. He takes a small sip and Minho struggles not to laugh at his expression: eyebrows arched, lips puckered, topped off with an odd hum. He notices a bit of cream left on Kibum’s upper lip and stares too long.

“It’s sweet, like you.”

Minho blushes, then signals to Kibum to wipe his lip. Kibum seems embarrassed and turns away until he’s sure he’s wiped his face clean, but it just adds to the charm of it all for Minho.  He feels affection bubbling up in his chest, but is interrupted by a tiny voice before he can pay Kibum the compliment.

“Mr. Minho! Look at the pizza I drawed!”

[randomactuallywrites-57]

The Great Elysian Bakeoff

Title: The Great Elysian Bakeoff Author: randomwriter57 Rating: G Word Count: 7,293 Event + Prompt: @sormikweek day six - Anger/Humour (Thunder) Notes: because of today's prompts, i tried to make this a comedy fic. i hope you guys enjoy it!

Summary: Sorey extends a hand to Mikleo. “Good luck.” Mikleo returns the gesture, bumping their wrists together instead of shaking hands. “May the best chef win.”

Also on: AO3

“Ahhhh!”

Leaning back on his hands, Sorey lets out a satisfied sound, revelling in the feeling of a warm summer’s evening and a full stomach. The grassy fields of Lakehaven Heights sway in the breeze, and an expanse of colour opens above them as the sky slowly turns from blue into a soft pink hue, the beginnings of sunset appearing. The leftover scent of cake batter mingles with the smell of fresh grass. It makes him want another serving.

“That was delicious,” he says.

From the other side of the small campfire they’ve set up, Lailah smiles warmly. “I’m glad you enjoyed it. It’s been a while since I last made chiffon cake, so it’s good to see it came out well.”

“It’s really good,” Mikleo chips in. He prods his own slice of cake with his fork as he speaks. “The texture, the flavour - I don’t think I’ve tasted better chiffon cake before.”

“Seriously,” Rose adds, “we should sell these along with Mikleo’s ice cream! We’d make a fortune.”

Lailah gives a soft laugh as Mikleo narrows his eyes at her. They’ve had this conversation before, back when Mikleo first made fruit parfaits for everyone after Rose and Dezel joined their party. Sorey remembers how long that argument had lasted, with Rose trying and failing to convince Mikleo to market his parfaits, and Mikleo insisting that she shouldn’t try to sell the food he put all of his feelings into making.

Well, as long as Sorey has the chance to eat it, he doesn’t really mind. Mikleo’s ice cream and Lailah’s cakes both are a wonder to behold.

Before they can argue about it again, Sorey decides to speak up. “Putting that aside, don’t you think everyone’s really starting to improve with their cooking?”

Mikleo scoffs. “Speak for yourself. When it came to sweet treats, you could only make piles of black stuff when we first left Elysia.”

Sorey frowns. “You say that like you’ve never messed up when cooking! I don’t know how you make a fake snack, but somehow you’ve managed it a few times, now.”

“That only happened a couple of times! Besides, I hardly make mistakes in cooking, especially compared to you.”

“When it comes to cool sweets, sure, but if we let you near a fire-”

“Just because you can cook meat doesn’t mean you have the delicacy needed for baking-”

“Maybe I do, and you just haven’t seen it-”

“Oh? Then I’d like to see you try-”

Sorey stands up. “Fine! It’s a match, then! Let’s see who can make the best cake.”

Mikleo also stands, meeting him eye to eye with his shoulders squared. “You’re on.”

It’s as they stand in silence, challenging each other, that they remember their companions.

Edna is the first to break the silence, tapping her umbrella against the grass. “So are we hosting a cooking competition now?”

“That’s a great idea,” Rose says. “We should market it and sell tickets!”

“No one would be able to see Mikleo,” Dezel says, finally speaking. “It would be pointless.”

“Then we’ll only invite seraphim!”

This strikes Sorey with an idea, and he turns to the others. “Actually, could we do this in Elysia? That way we’ll have our own kitchens to prepare the food in.”

“You want everyone in the village to see your grand failure?” Mikleo teases. “Fine by me. We’ve not been home in a while, anyway.”

Lailah claps her hands together. “It’s settled, then! Let’s gather the ingredients before we head to Elysia. That way everything will be ready for the final showdown.”

Even though it strikes Sorey as a tad ridiculous that their argument has spawned a full-on cooking competition, he can’t say he’s not looking forward to it. After all, there’s nothing like wiping the smug smile off of Mikleo’s face with an undeniable victory.

Thus, their most recent competition begins.

Needless to say, when Sorey and the others arrive in Elysia with their arms filled with bags of baking ingredients, they get a few stares of curiosity from the seraphim who come to greet them. Once they explain the situation to them, though, the seraphim become far more invested in this competition than Sorey expected them to be.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen either of them make a cake in their lives,” he overhears Myrna saying to Lailah at one point. “It’ll be interesting to see how well they turn out!”

“My money’s on Mikleo,” Ed says, joining in with the conversation. “He’s always been better at cool sweets.”

When they catch Sorey listening, they only give him knowing smiles. He can’t find it in himself to really be annoyed with them, since they’re not wrong.

Despite the apparent low expectations, he is serious about this competition. Baked sweets are the one niche which neither of them have explored much in their cooking, but he’s sure he can make a delicious cake to impress even the stubborn Mikleo. Besides, there’s more of a chance of Mikleo burning it than of Sorey doing so. He already has a head start.

They take a couple of days in preparation to choose their ingredients and find the perfect recipes for their cakes, to save time on the day of their competition. In that time, Sorey and Mikleo barely see each other, less out of choice and more because the seraphim keep them busy, talking about their preparation and giving them tips and tricks. For the likes of Myrna and Medea, it makes sense, but for seraphim like Ed and Shiron, Sorey is sure they’re only getting involved because they have a bet going. He probably has Rose to thank for that.

Neither of them see each other until the night before their match. Sorey, unable to sleep, heads out into the night, making his way towards the cliff edge where he and Mikleo tended to relax at times like this, before they left Elysia. There’s already a head of white hair there, looking out onto the horizon.

Mikleo hears him coming. “You’re up late,” he says.

“Couldn’t sleep,” Sorey says, sitting down beside him. “Same with you?”

“Yeah.”

A calm breeze brushes through their hair. It’s times like this when Sorey feels most nostalgic, sitting in his pyjamas with Mikleo, without needing to worry about the state of the world below. Even if this will only last a short amount of time, he can’t say he’s not grateful for the distraction.

“Are you worried I’m gonna kick your butt tomorrow?” Sorey teases, nudging Mikleo with his elbow.

Mikleo only smirks, meeting Sorey’s nudge with one of his own.  “No way. We both know I’ll be taking the victory this time.”

They return to their relaxed positions. Though the temptation to start a tickle fight is all too real, Sorey only remembers how scared Mikleo had been that one time when they’d almost rolled off the edge of the cliff. Probably best not to relive that particular experience.

As Sorey reclines, his hand finds the edge of Mikleo's in the grass, and he leaves it there, their fingers barely brushing.

“Maybe I should start thinking of a forfeit for when you lose,” Sorey says.

“Or maybe you should start worrying about your own forfeit,” Mikleo replies. “I’ve got plenty of ideas.”

Sorey grins despite himself. It’s been too long since he and Mikleo have had this competitive banter, since they’ve been so busy purifying the malevolence and earning the spiritual powers. Even if he’s been lucky enough to have Mikleo at his side on this journey, this is something he’s missed, too.

“Don’t be too harsh, alright?” he says.

Mikleo presses his pinky finger against Sorey’s. “Don’t count on being given any mercy.”

They stay there a little longer, silent but enjoying each other’s company and the calm before the storm that is to come.

The next morning marks the day of their match.

They meet at dawn, with the wind blustering around them, wisping hair across their faces and their cloaks into the sky. A few feet apart, they stand at odds, eyes filled with determination. On each side behind them stand groups of seraphim (plus Rose), each having chosen which side to support. This way, everyone can watch whoever they’re supporting, since they’ll be using separate kitchens for the competition.

Sorey extends a hand to Mikleo. “Good luck.”

Mikleo returns the gesture, bumping their wrists together instead of shaking hands. “May the best chef win.”

Lailah, who is hosting the event, steps between them.

“Before we begin, I have an announcement to make,” she says, bringing both of their attentions to her.

“Huh? What is it?” Sorey asks.

Smiling with the air of someone who knows far more than them, she says, “We are implementing a surprise rule in your cooking challenge! As you both know, your task is to bake the perfect cake. However, last night, during dinner, we were talking to some of the residents of Elysia. They told us all about your childhood habits. It was really sweet.”

“Who would have guessed that Meebo had a rebellious streak a few years ago?” Edna’s mischievous smile makes Mikleo flinch in annoyance. “Rebelleo.”

“If this is in relation to when I ran away that one time-” Mikleo starts, but Lailah shushes him.

(Calling it a rebellion is a stretch, anyway. He’d hardly ran very far - only to spend the night in the Mt Mabinogio Ruins, after Gramps separated them into different houses. He’d gone alone, but Sorey found him an hour later, and spent the night with him until Mikleo finally caved, returning to Gramps to apologise for his behaviour. That doesn’t mean he didn’t break the rules a couple of times, but never so much as when they first met Alisha, when everything first began.)

“One of the stories they told us was about how you read a book one day about human customs,” Lailah continues. “It talked about birthdays.”

“Oh, I remember that!” Sorey says, turning to Mikleo. “You seemed down about the fact that I didn’t get to celebrate like other humans, and I felt sad because the seraphim didn’t seem to do it either.”

Mikleo nods. “Yeah. We gave everyone their own birthday, after finding out that they didn’t already have them.”

“And we always shared ours,” Sorey says. “You were so grumpy about that at first, but I thought it made sense.”

Lailah, looking pleased with their reactions, says, “Yes, that is what they told us about. And apparently, a certain seraph’s birthday is coming up.”

For a moment, Sorey and Mikleo freeze, racking their brains for the knowledge of whose birthday was coming up next. It’s difficult now that they’ve been gone for a while, since time passes by so quickly in the process of purification. Once the realisation strikes them, however, their faces move into identical expressions of mixed shock and horror.

“Gramps!”

Gramps’ birthday is always in the middle of summer, during the hottest period of the year. It’s the only time when the clouds beneath Elysia’s mountain seem to grow dark, and Gramps lights up the night sky with fascinating electric storms to clear the muggy heat. In the warmth of summer, they’d get everyone together to prepare a feast, filled with grilled meat and cool sweets and fresh fruit juice. Everyone would laugh and sing and celebrate together, and it was the one time of year where Gramps managed to be less strict towards the boys, ruffling their hair and going along with their antics, if only for a day.

A pang of guilt rushes through Sorey for having forgotten. It’s one thing to forget a friend’s birthday, but to forget the birthday of the one who raised him…

“We thought it would be good for you to try to create the perfect birthday cake for Sir Zenrus,” Lailah says. “Can you do it?”

Sorey exchanges a look with Mikleo, both apprehensive but willing to try. After all, they’d love nothing more than to make Gramps happy. If they can be here to celebrate his birthday, even after having left for the world of humans, they might as well throw in every effort to make it special.

“Of course we can,” Mikleo answers for them both.

Lailah smiles. “Alright. Your challenge is to create the perfect birthday cake for Sir Zenrus. You’ll be judged on flavour, texture, and appearance. And of course, you’ll only have so much time to do it, too.”

“We’ll be holding the birthday feast at sundown,” Kyme says from where he stands in the crowd. “That way most of us can prepare for it, whilst the others watch your competition.”

It’s nerve-wracking, to hear the stakes put so plainly. Sorey gulps.

“Now,” Lailah says, raising a hand. “Let the Great Elysian Bakeoff begin!”

The heat in the kitchen is stifling, and Sorry hasn’t even lit the fire yet.

He doesn’t know what to attribute it to: the summer sun, the pressure of competition, or the sheer amount of bodies lazing around his house, watching his process.

Okay, to be fair, there are only about ten seraphim in the house, but his house was only ever built for half that, at most. He didn’t even know his bed had the capacity to fit five people sitting in various positions. And yet, any time he glances over his shoulder at them, he’s proven wrong.

At least he doesn’t have to wait for the butter to reach room temperature.

He measures out a rough pound of butter on an old set of scales before transferring it to a bowl, along with a pound of sugar and flour. He cracks the eggs in a separate bowl, beating them before pouring some of the liquid into the batter. Then, he gets to mixing the ingredients.

Though Sorey likes baking well enough, he’s never been fond of the technicalities of it. Being bound to a recipe feels a little restrictive, so he’s always liked experimenting with his dishes. That’s probably why he ends up making black stuff all the time, though. In any case, it’s because of this that he ends up throwing in a teaspoon of lemon juice, once he’s mixed the rest of the ingredients together. He also adds some extra sugar, just to balance it out. It’s not so adventurous that it should ruin the cake for Gramps, but it gives him some freedom as well.

As he mixes the ingredients, Edna pops up at his side, watching him sceptically. “You look like you’re having fun.”

“I am,” Sorey tells her, keeping his eyes on the bowl even as he smiles in response. “Its been a while since Mikleo and I have had a competition like this. I’m enjoying it!”

“Even when it’s something as tedious as cake-making?”

Sorey shrugs. “I suggested it in the first place. Anyway, you talk as if you’re not interested in how it ends up.”

Edna turns away, tapping her umbrella on the floor. “I just need to make sure I didn’t waste my money, that’s all.”

“Wait, did you bet on me to win?!” Both the idea of Edna gambling over something like this, and the nature of who she put her money on, surprises him more than anything.

“I sure did,” she says, looking over to him again. “Meebo will probably burn everything. Faileo.”

Sorey laughs nervously. He supposes when it comes to elemental stereotypes, Mikleo has always been much better with cool sweets. Then again, there have been a couple of instances in their journey that he’s managed to make a perfect cake. He doesn’t point that out to Edna, though.

“I’ll try my best to win, then,” he says instead.

“You’d better,” Edna says, gripping the handle of her umbrella with a little more force.

He tries not to think about how painful the point of that umbrella will be between his ribs if he messes this up.

In his own house, Mikleo moves with the same cool composure with which he faces everything, save perhaps for Edna’s teasing. He sweeps ingredients into the bowl in perfect measures, mixing them with the kind of arm strength which might surprise those watching him if they hadn’t seen the force with which he uses his staff in battle. Everything comes together in a smooth, rich batter, flavoured with a touch of matcha, giving it the green tea flavour he and Gramps have always been so fond of.  Maybe it’s a dirty trick, but that's just the nature of the secret challenge they’ve been issued.

His house is smaller than Sorey's due to having been built later, and for the use of someone who rarely slept there, but it comfortably fits the group of people watching him. Then again, some of them are outside, taking in the sunshine, whilst those in his house have been instructed to stay away from the kitchen area whilst he’s baking. That’s probably why it feels spacious right now.

(He just hopes the others aren’t looking through his belongings. He’s picked up an embarrassing number of new books on this journey, some of which have nothing to do with history, and he doesn’t want to be the butt of any further jokes.)

Carefully, he pours the mixed batter into a rectangular cake pan. The slight green hue will die down during the baking process, so he tries not to worry about how unsatisfying it looks in the pan. Once that’s ready, he pops it into the wood-burning stove and relaxes.

That’s the hard part done with. Now, all he has to do is catch up with his dishes and make the glaze and decorations. It can’t be a birthday cake without looking special, after all.

As he’s washing the dishes, Rose comes over, sniffing the air with a hungry expression.

“Something smells good!” she says.

“Lets hope it tastes good too,” Mikleo replies. He uses an arte to evaporate the water dripping from the bowl in his hand, then returns it to its proper place in the cupboard.

“I’m sure it will, everything you make tastes amazing!” Rose’s expression becomes serious, and she lowers her voice. “Besides, I have a 1,000 gald bet riding on you winning this thing, so it’d better taste like the best cake on the planet.”

Mikleo gives her an exasperated expression. “I appreciate your support, but isn’t 1,000 gald a bit of a high bet?”

Rose shrugs. “That’s what Edna bet on Sorey, so I had to match her. The other seraphim here aren’t high rolling gamblers, you see.”

He doesn’t point out how all of their collective money ends up being spent on equipment fusion and food for all of them, no matter how much he wants to. She probably wouldn’t care that her bet means nothing when her money and Edna’s money are already essentially the same thing.

“Well, I’ll do my best to make sure you don’t go broke because of Edna, then.”

As he finishes the dishes and moves onto the glaze, Rose stays with him in the kitchen. For the most part, she keeps trying to convince him to sell his sweets, to which his answer is a consistent “No.” He’s beginning to tell her to leave when he smells something strange and pauses, halfway between a word.

“Do you smell that?” he asks.

Rose sniffs the air, grimacing. “It smells like after Lailah did that crucible of malevolence thingy.”

Turning around, Mikleo blanches.

“Oh no.”

Sorey pulls his cake out of the stove, using a towel to carry it over to the nearest clear surface. From what he can see, the cake looks beautiful. It’s perfectly browned, and already tested with a skewer to make sure it’s cooked through. He can’t wait to taste it.

Of course, he won’t be able to do that until after the competition. For now, he sets it aside to cool, with Edna watching beside him. She hasn’t moved since their earlier conversation, keeping Sorey amused with dry commentary and snarky remarks about Mikleo. It’s been nice, to have her company. It isn’t often that they get to hang out as just the two of them, after all.

“You left your stuff all over the counter,” Edna points out, not moving from her perch on one of the counters to help him.

“Oh, yeah.” Sorey moves over to start clearing away his used ingredients. Since he’s already made the glaze which will go over the cake, he doesn’t have much else to do. He moves to pick up the large bag of sugar, making sure to close it properly so it doesn’t go all over the place.

When he turns to face Edna, however, her face morphs into one of surprise, then quickly to amusement.

“What is it?” he asks.

“Humans sure are unobservant,” she says, a cryptic response to his question. She twirls her umbrella around idly.

Still, since she said it right after he picked up the sugar, Sorey can’t help the bad feeling which crawls up his spine.

He puts the sugar back down on the counter, surveying the bag. It’s only when he turns it around, however, that he notices the word neatly printed across the material: SALT.

Sorey freezes.

“Oh no.”

Out of the stove where Mikleo’s cake bakes comes a puff of black smoke, slowly gathering on his ceiling. He lets out a strangled cry, throwing his hands out to cast a water arte on the stove. It’s only once the fire is out that he realises his mistake.

With a pair of well-worn oven gloves, he pulls his charred, soaking cake out of the stove.

Rose watches on with an expression half pitiful, and half stifling laughter.

A couple of seraphim appear at the door, wearing concerned expressions, but they back away with good humoured smiles when they see Mikleo's agitation.

“This is because you distracted me!” Mikleo snaps when Rose's laughter becomes full blown. “What am I supposed to do now?!”

“You could always decorate it and try to make it look nice,” Rose says, her laugh lingering as she eyes the mess that was once Mikleo’s cake. “Probably won’t mask the taste, though.”

Mikleo puts the cake pan down on a nearby surface, glaring at it as though it’s the cake’s fault for burning to death. In his head, he runs through his options.

The cake is burnt through, not to mention sopping wet. Even if he extracted the water using his artes, it might remove some of the moisture from the cake, making it not only burnt but dry as a rock. It might even fall to pieces like ash as soon as he tries to remove it from the pan. There's no way he’s going to serve this to Gramps.

And yet, he only has enough ingredients left for a cake half the size of this one. He wouldn’t want to ask the other seraphim to borrow their ingredients, either – that would feel like even more of a loss.

But he doesn’t have any other options. If he wants to win this competition, he can’t give up now.

What is he supposed to do?

The front door creaks open, and Lailah pops her head through the gap, her eyes widening as she takes in the scene in front of her. “Oh dear, what happened here?”

“The competition heated up too quickly,” Rose jokes, still grinning.

Mikleo turns his gaze to the ground, listening as Lailah lets out an understanding “oh” and moves into the house, closing the door behind her. She heads over to where he stands and looks at the cake.

“It’s not too bad!” she says, wearing the falsest smile he’s ever seen from her. “It could be a new invention!”

“The cake is ruined, Lailah,” Mikleo points out, looking at her with a deadpan expression. “I don’t have enough to make another one unless it’s half the size.”

(In the background, Rose’s face falls, and she pulls out her coin purse, swearing under her breath.)

Lailah bites her lip, looking down at the ground. After a long moment, she looks up again.

“Why don’t you take a little break?” she asks. “Some fresh air might be good for your head. Maybe you’ll think of a new solution when you’re not stuck in such a hot kitchen.”

Though he very much doubts this feels too hot to Lailah - she didn’t even break a sweat during the fire trial, after all, and that was in a volcano - he has to agree. As a water seraph, his heat resistance has always been weak. Maybe the air will help.

“Alright,” he says. “I’ll take a break. But only for five minutes.”

“Of course,” Lailah says, holding the door open for him. “Let’s go, then!”

They head out of Mikleo's house. Once the mountain breeze hits his skin, he understands what Lailah meant; he takes a deep breath, and a wave of relief washes over him.

It might not be enough to really make him forget the situation, but it calms him nonetheless.

“It’s surprisingly lively, today,” Lailah says, her gaze falling on the seraphim setting up the decorations around the village. A couple of rocks make for tables which already hold the beginnings of a feast, plates of foods covered by cloths and a space especially for the main attraction – the cake.

Mikleo hopes Sorey's cake has gone better than his own.

A moment later, he scolds himself for thinking such things – he needs to stay determined, or else he’ll never have a chance of winning this competition.

Perhaps Lailah notices his frown, because she does not wait for him to respond before speaking again.

“Have your celebrations always been like this?”

Keeping his gaze on the blue skies, he hums. “At first, they were smaller, I think. We didn’t have as much experience in throwing parties. Over time, of course, this has become normal. I think everyone is putting in more effort because you guys are here, this time.”

He remembers the first birthday celebration they threw for Gramps. Incidentally, it had been the first birthday party they’d ever thrown for anyone, after their own shared birthday which had been organised as a surprise for them. All they’d had was a cake baked by Lawrence and a couple of flowers to give him as gifts. Gramps seemed to enjoy it regardless. He even let them off lightly on having picked the flowers from Cynthia’s garden without permission.

“It’s a lovely thing, to be able to celebrate the lives of those you care about.” Lailah says. “They must all truly enjoy this.”

“I think they do,” Mikleo agrees.

Walking once more, they take a quick stroll along the edge of the cliff, past the gate and back up the village summit. This way, they find themselves on track to Sorey’s house. Mikleo can only imagine the lively atmosphere inside of there.

“Would you like to visit him?” Lailah asks when she follows his gaze. “We can see how he’s doing.”

“Wouldn’t that be cheating? I’d be spying on my competitor,” Mikleo points out.

“Nonsense,” Lailah says. “It’s not spying if you’re just visiting.”

Though Mikleo isn’t sure how credible her excuse is, he goes along with her anyway.

When they open the door, a wave of heat smacks Mikleo in the face. For a moment, he wonders if Sorey forgot about his cake completely.

Only it seems that’s just the natural heat of a kitchen in the summer. Sorey’s cake sits on the counter on a plate, undecorated with a slice already cut off, though it lies unfinished beside the cake, like a broken limb. For a brief second he sees Sorey with his head in his hands, though he looks up upon hearing the door close.

“Mikleo, Lailah!” he says in greeting. He moves to stand in front of where his cake lies, blocking it from view. “What are you guys doing here?”

The wavering tone of his voice and the nervous, maybe even guilty smile on his lips are enough to tell Mikleo that something must have happened.

“Mikleo had some time to spare, so we thought we’d come to see how you’re doing!” Lailah says.

“Oh, right.” Sorey looks both taken aback and worried about her words. Almost like he doesn’t think he’ll have enough time to finish if Mikleo is already done.

Walking over to Sorey, Mikleo peers around him at the cake. Or at least, he tries to - Sorey shifts at the last second, frowning at him.

“Hey, no cheating,” Sorey says.

“I’m not cheating,” Mikleo replies. “I want to know what’s wrong.”

Sorey’s face pales. “Wrong? There’s nothing wrong-”

“Show me the cake.”

At first, Sorey stands his ground. Still, there’s nothing more corrosive than one of Mikleo’s glares, and he shifts, letting Mikleo past to look at the cake.

In all aspects, it looks innocent enough. In fact, Mikleo thinks this might be the best-looking cake he’s seen Sorey make. The outside is perfectly browned, and the cake itself looks light and fluffy. The only indication that something might be wrong, other than Sorey’s behaviour, is the lack of decoration and the broken off piece.

He turns his eyes to the counter, scanning for any evidence of something having gone wrong. All he sees is Edna on one of the other counters, twirling her umbrella and watching on with a smirk. Beside her sits a large bag of-

Oh.

Mikleo turns his gaze back to Sorey. “You used salt instead of sugar, didn’t you?”

“Maybe,” Sorey says, keeping his gaze away with a pout. A moment later he crumbles, letting his head fall. “Okay, yeah, I did. It’s an easy mistake to make though - the containers look exactly the same!”

“Yeah, except one says ‘salt’ in huge lettering.”

Lailah takes this moment to chip into the discussion. “Perhaps now wouldn’t be the best time to throw salt into a fresh wound, Mikleo.”

“It’d hurt just as much if you mistook it for sugar,” Edna adds from her perch.

Even though part of him feels victorious since he’s not the only one who messed up his cake, the rest of him feels bad for Sorey. They’d both been looking forward to this competition since it was proposed, and now everything has gone up in flames.

“Guys,” Sorey says mournfully. “I think I’ve lost this one. I don’t have enough ingredients for another cake this size - well, except for the sugar.”

“Neither do I,” Mikleo says. When Sorey gives him a questioning glance, he explains. “I accidentally left my cake in the stove too long, and when it caught fire, I doused it with my water artes.”

Sorey grimaces. “Charred and soaking cake? That sucks.”

“Oh, good,” Edna says. “I thought I’d lost my bet, but it looks like Meebo really did come through. Burntleo.”

“Knock it off,” Mikleo complains.

“This sucks,” Sorey says. “Now Gramps won’t have a birthday cake at all.”

For some reason, this hadn’t occurred to Mikleo before. Hearing it now gives him pause, and he feels his heart sink. “You’re right. What are we going to do? We don’t have enough time to get more ingredients; it would take a day just to get to the nearest human settlement, and they might not even have what we need.”

“We could make two smaller cakes, but that just seems…” Sorey trails off. His eyes light up a moment later. “Oh! I have an idea!”

“What is it?”

Sorey grins at Mikleo. “The competition is a bust - we’ve pretty much figured out how good we are at making cakes. You’re good at creativity and making the mixture, but you forget about the timing.”

“And you’re good with timing but you’re careless with the ingredients,” Mikleo adds. “But how will this solve anything?”

“Why don’t we just make a cake together?”

When the words come out of Sorey’s mouth, the answer seems obvious. They’ve both got half the ingredients they need. It would be easy enough to combine their resources and work together. And with Sorey being a Shepherd now, they even have a way of doing it so they won’t get in each other’s way.

Mikleo hates to say it, but it’s the perfect plan.

“Alright,” Mikleo says. “Let’s do it.”

“Does this mean the betting’s off?” Edna says to Lailah, her expression less annoyed than it should be for having just lost 1,000 gald. “Lame.”

“But everything has turned out in such an interesting way,” Lailah says, watching the boys with a smile. “Won’t it be fun to see where this goes?”

Edna shrugs. “I suppose.”

Bumping their wrists together, Sorey and Mikleo grin at each other before speaking in unison.

“Luzrov Rulay!”

They move around the kitchen like a river, flowing naturally between work stations. They measure out each ingredient in perfect quantities (with Mikleo making sure they definitely use sugar instead of salt, this time) and add them all into a large mixing bowl. Using their combined strength, they mix the ingredients, slowing moulding it into the perfect batter.

From the bedroom, their companions and a few of the Elysian seraphim watch on, amazed by this new method of making cake together.

“I don’t think this is what the armatus was created for,” Dezel grumps. He’s been in this kind of mood since Rose dragged him over to watch, making him stop being a loner and standing out on the cliff edge, as he’d been doing earlier.

“Maybe not, but somehow they’re actually doing it,” Rose says. “Besides, what do you expect from those two? They’re not exactly conventional folks.”

“They've always been like this,” Myrna says from where she sits nearby. “Even if they’re competing or bickering, if it means someone else will be made unhappy, they always resolve their differences and find a solution quickly. Even if their methods can be unconventional.”

Kyme laughs. “That’s right. They once argued over who should do which chores, and when I told them Gramps would be upset if they kept arguing and got nothing done, they started doing every chore together. They only ended up doing half of what needed to be done, but it stopped them from arguing.”

“In the end, their arguments made them unhappy more than anyone.”

Though the discussion is a serious one, and those watching Sorey and Mikleo can see the importance of this information pertaining to their friendship, it’s difficult to take them seriously when they’re wearing a pale blue apron over their armatus form clothing. At least it matches, in terms of colour, anyway.

With the batter mixed, the boys pour it into their baking tin. They share a sense of satisfaction when they put the cake into the stove, hopeful that this time, everything will turn out better than ever.

Despite expectations, they do not release the armatization just yet. They move on to do the dishes, using their shared artes to wash them, then evaporating the water just as easily afterward. By the time they put them away, the scent of a beautifully baked cake fills the kitchen. Putting on Sorey's oven gloves, they pull it out of the oven.

“It looks perfect,” Sorey says. “Let's test it with a skewer, though.”

The skewer comes out clean. Now, they put the cake aside to cool before getting to work on their topping. This time, the cake is a simple vanilla flavour, since they both ran out of their previous flavourings of choice. For the decoration, they whip up a vanilla buttercream icing to decorate it with, along with some summer berries they brought with them from Ladylake, where they bought their supplies.

(Actually, the strawberries came from a little farm on the way to Elysia. They’d all been surprised to see that some farmers had managed to keep their produce alive even in this Age of Chaos, and were wary that the farmer might be reluctant to part with any. On the contrary, he'd been glad to be of service to the Shepherd. Sorey made sure to pay him for the fruits, despite his insisting that he could have them for free.)

Primarily, Mikleo takes charge of the decorating. His stylistic sense has always been more composed than Sorey's, something which they used to argue over, though Sorey will now readily admit. Even if Mikleo makes cakes look beautiful, Sorey is faster at decorating them, or creating any artistic endeavour.

In the end, it’s no surprise that the cake looks amazing. They pick up the plate they transferred it onto before decorating it, then turn to their guests.

“It's done,” they say in unison.

Their small audience come closer, crowding around them to get a better look at the cake.

“It smells amazing,” Myrna says.

“The arrangement is beautiful,” Kyme says.

“You’ve done a marvellous job,” Lailah says. She looks just as proud as the Elysian seraphim, despite only having known the boys for a short time in comparison.

Edna pokes their side with her umbrella, though far more gently than she usually would. “Don’t just stand there, dummies. Take it outside.”

The front door of Sorey’s house opens, seemingly of its own accord, and they turn to see Dezel looking away, his frown softer than usual. They don’t thank him aloud, knowing that he’ll just say it wasn’t him, but they both felt the gentle breeze which passed them on the way to the door. There are no other wind seraphim in the house at the moment, besides. Instead, they shoot him a grateful expression before heading out the front door, their small entourage following them all the way.

It’s a short walk to where the feast has already been laid out, each dish covered to preserve its taste. In the centre of the table stands a cake stand, ready to hold Sorey and Mikleo’s prized creation. Very carefully, they place the cake onto the stand, the centrepiece to what looks to be a promising celebration.

“I’ll go get Gramps,” Kyme says before heading in the direction of the eldest seraph’s home.

In the meantime, Sorey and Mikleo finally release the armatization, now two separate entities once more. Sorey is the first to raise his arm for a wrist bump which Mikleo instinctively returns.

“Nice job, Mikleo,” Sorey says, grinning. “We actually made it.”

“I have to say, you did a good job on the cake itself,” Mikleo says. “The timing was perfect.”

“You’re the one who made it look amazing, though! If we’d still been competing, this would have to be your win.”

Mikleo frowns. “No, it would be yours. I still burned my own cake. Even if it looked good in the end, it wouldn’t taste good. Isn’t the point of food the quality of taste, not appearance?”

Sorey’s eyebrows furrow. “Maybe, but I’ve seen you make cake before, and they’ve turned out well enough. Even if my cakes taste good, they’re boring compared to yours.”

“I’m trying to give you your victory,” Mikleo says, his voice heating up a little in agitation. “Stop being humble!”

“I’m not going to accept a victory like that,” Sorey replies, also getting into the argument. “If we’re still having this argument, we’ll need to have another competition, with fairer conditions.”

“The conditions here were fair enough!”

“Maybe if we had less distractions-”

“We’re not having another competition over this, Sorey-”

“But how are we supposed to pick a winner if-”

A loud crack of thunder interrupts their argument.

Faces suddenly pale, they slowly turn to see Gramps a few feet away, with Kyme not far behind. His expression is unreadable, even to the boys who have learnt to search for the expression behind those thick eyebrows over their time of knowing them. They’re both inclined to think he must be angry, though.

The silence, perhaps, is the worst part. When Gramps doesn’t say anything for a long moment, they both brace themselves for the oncoming lecture they’re bound to receive. For what reason they’d be getting a lecture, neither could truly say, but they’ve probably done quite a few things that would make Gramps annoyed since they left Elysia.

Still, it’s not like this is their first time back since leaving. Gramps already knows that Sorey is the Shepherd now, and Mikleo a Sub Lord. They’ve already had the lecture for that, too.

Oh no. Did Gramps not want cake this year after all?!

“H-hi Gramps,” Sorey says, trying to smile through his teeth. “We’re back.”

When Gramps speak, his voice seems louder than the thunder he’d summoned.

“Arguing when in the presence of guests? Those aren’t the manners I raised you to have, are they?”

Sorey and Mikleo flinch. So it had been about their argument, after all. Quietly, they chorus an apology, hanging their heads.

“And what’s this I hear about misusing the Shepherd’s power for trivial matters?” Gramps says.

At this, Sorey raises his head. “It’s not trivial, Gramps!”

Mikleo also speaks up. “We just wanted to make the perfect cake, and this seemed like the easiest way of doing it.”

“Just because an idea is simple doesn’t mean it’s good,” Gramps points out. After a pause, he wears a small smile. “Besides, there’s no need to go to all that trouble for my sake.”

The boys hesitate only for a moment before rushing over to where he stands. They group together in a three-way hug, one which was far easier to manage when they were all the same height, close to ten years ago. Now Sorey and Mikleo have to almost kneel down to hug Gramps properly.

Still, it’s worth it. Gramps pats their heads in a caring nature, too used to their behaviour to truly be upset.

“Happy birthday, Gramps,” Sorey says into his shoulder, more emotional than he expected to be at this moment.

Mikleo repeats those words into his other shoulder, just as emotional.

Try as he might to be stern, Gramps still smiles as he responds. “Thank you, Sorey, Mikleo. Now, I hear you’ve made the perfect cake?”

They separate, smiles brightening even in the darkening evening, and their celebration begins.

“So who won the bet?”

Rose grimaces at Sorey’s words. “Did you have to bring that up?”

They’re all in Sorey’s house, late after the celebration has ended. Sorey and Mikleo sit on the floor near the fireplace, graciously allowing the girls to share the bed whilst Dezel lingers in a corner. It’s a cozy setting, one made warmer by their full stomachs and fond memories of the evening.

“Well, they both failed,” Edna says from where she lounges on the bed. “Shouldn’t we get our money back?”

“Actually, the bet’s still on,” a quiet voice says from the corner.

Everyone’s eyes shoot to Dezel, surprised at his contribution and even more surprised by the tiny smile on his face.

“Wait, you made a bet, Dezel?” Lailah asks. “Who did you bet on?”

“I bet that they’d both lose,” Dezel says, holding out a hand. “1,000 gald. Pay up.”

Sorey and Mikleo watch in shock and a little bit of offence as Rose and Edna give him the money they owe, both grumbling under their breaths as they do so.

Well, not every competition ends up as expected, but it’s the having fun that matters most. And Sorey can’t say he didn’t have a lot of fun, today.

He grins over at Mikleo. “Let’s make food like this together again, alright?”

Mikleo smiles with fond amusement. “Just so long as we don’t make a competition out of it again.”

They sit back together, feeling a sense of satisfaction as the day - and their cooking competition - comes to a close.

[alicemalory-blog]

Huckleberry Friend

Moon/River fanfic!

Queen Moon was seventeen when she used her wand to ice her Giggle Water. Giggle Water was an enchanted alcoholic drink on Mewni, it was dry and spicy. The Queen liked it and had mastered not giggling after taking her sips. Moon was drinking to celebrate clearing monsters from her kingdom. They could take up swamps, deserts,caves; really anywhere as long as they clung to shadows and were far away from her people. Though she knew some people doubted her for the vice of youth she was proving to be a very serious queen. Queen Moon impressed the High Council with her take-no-jokes attitude. The people feared her and while Moon loved them she felt cool for being feared. Moon became the pride of her family.

The Butterfly family had already been the most arrog-honorable family of Mewni and strived for the cream of the corn's top.

"You've grown quite lovely, Moon." Aunt Etheria said as she stood behind Moon. She snapped her fingers and a servant gave Moon a tiara made of sparkling stardust.

"Count Mildrew speaks of that fact very often."

"Yes Aunt Etheria, you've mentioned that many times." Moon said as she strung pearls into her pale-blue hair.

"He is a fine boy, my girl. Since we're just chatting away I may inform you that I took out your father's needle." Aunt Etheria said while she pointed to a crooked hair over her ear. A servant tucked the loose hair against the rest of smooth pile or violet.

The marriage needle was the tool that would imprint a forever bond between spouses. Its enchanted ink written on the skin would seep into the blood and make the connection permanent. A servant brought the needle in its glass cubical casing, it rested on white petals.

Moon flinched, "I beg your pardon, Aunt Etheria but my father's things are private."

"Pssh. No need to blush, my young queen. Consider examining it before returning deciding where to place it next." The eldest Butterfly said before excusing herself out of the room.

The silver needle was engraved with insect-wing vertebra pattern. Moon felt aggravated by her aunt's pushing, how dare she tell a queen how to live! On the other glove, just the sight of the sharp point put Moon in a romantic mood. She wasn't a frivolous person, she rarely believed the hokum of happy endings and eternal bubble love like other seventeen-year-olds. Bubbles pop, love fades and it's best to make a good bargain instead of choosing by gooey feelings.

And yet...despite all rational thinking and self preservation Moon took the glass cube in her hands. She let grow the sweetness of her silly affections and desired to have an fuller life.

A week later, to her aunt's delight, Moon hosted a ball. She was wearing the widest, most dazzling dress she had made only for that night. On the outside she was cool as cucumbers, on the inside she was a stamped of warnicorns. Tonight she had to ask, not demand, and while certain she'd get a 'yes' Moon was nervous about changing her life.

Count Mildrew was in a corner, long hair flowing, writing a poem about his feelings. Moon looked forwarded to not seeing that one except in minimal social events. In the opposite direction River Johansen of the Johansen clan was suffering to fake interest in Lady Dawnson's chatting. River could not understand why a woman would stuff her head full of feathers when she was in a perfectly warm and crowded ballroom. Moon enjoyed seeing River far more than anyone else. He was funny and odd, which was new and strangely delightful.

Over a feather River saw an arrow made of blue smoke. He excused himself and followed the next arrow out of the ballroom, then onto the castle's balcony.

The smoke lead him to the glowing crystal-heart of Queen Moon's wand. Queen Moon against the night sky... nothing was prettier. She was like medium rare pork covered in honey. River missed his home kingdom almost not at all when Moon was around.

"Your highness, I compliment the choice of bacon. It almost tastes like real zebirou." River said sitting on the marble bench."And I've spent many a cold night with those bros."

Moon wanted to sit next to him. She wanted to brag about where she found the imitation corn-based zebirou meat because the tale would make River would laugh. She liked his barkish laugh. She wanted to hold his short square body in her arms and snuggle against his blonde stubble. Moon, you're not an animal, do what mewmans do in civil society.

"River, I consider you to be my dearest friend." Moon began.

River inhaled and smiled widely, "Uh huh." She's leaving me in the friend-barn, I want to die.

"You know me in the most personal way and know that my first priority is the people of Mewni. I strive to lead them into a grander future," Moon said so business-like and with her arms behind her back, "I must achieve this with the right people. River."

"Just let me have the axe before I jump off this balcony." River said, his eyes dewing.

"River, you're letting your sensitivity could your better judgement." Moon said, "However, I must admit, I like your gift of flexible feelings."

She placed the glass casing into his muscular hands. His eyes glistened and his dimpling grin cemented her decision.

"River, I would honored if you'd be my king." Moon said, allowing her love to shine in her eyes. River made a squeaking bird noise and nodded. Moon allowed the corners of her mouth to raise as she unclenched the latch of her family heirloom. River squealed at the marriage needle then grabbed Moon's waist. He stood on the bench and dipper her to make the perfect night a little bit sweeter. Moon let herself dip into foolishness and kissed him back. The needle's casing between them which she loosely held with her elbows as she held his shoulders.

She felt lighter than air, then Moon realized a servant had lifted her shoes. The servant was attempting to carry her away from her fiance, "Put me down." She said flatly.

"I say!" River said as he pushed the servant down and took the standing Moon's hand. "Mine now."

"Absolutely not." Aunt Etheria said, her glare on River.

He rolled his eyes, "Old toad with a wig."

"Rotten barbar-"

The aunt zipped her lip when Moon glared with a blizzard.

"Auntie, I am your queen. My word is law and my law will unite me with the man I love with or without your blessing."

River held his head high as he escorted Moon into the castle. He would've paid almost anything to wink and stick his tongue out at Etheria. Anything was not everything and Moon saying she loved him was everything he could dream. Not to mention, he was going to be king! Happy day!

"No." The viking with the missing front teeth and brass knuckle said.

Shocked, furious and a bit saddened Moon heard this word from the chief of her fiance's tribe. "Sir, may I inquire why you'd deny me the pleasure of your company."

Chief Thud Johansen made a raspberry noise as he threw an axe towards his nephew's head. River didn't mind the axe, he wanted something to throw at his cousins for chuckling at his attire. He didn't enjoy the fru-fru outfits Moon liked but he very much liked standing at her side with pride.

"Respect, your highness, but you're a stiff. River won't be happy." Chief Thud said.

"I don't want happiness, I want my Moon." The young Johansen told his uncle. He grabbed a chair and threw it at Thud's head. The Cheif took the blow without a blink.

Moon scolded, "That didn't sound quite right." She spoke up, "Your majesty, I am to wed River and as his family I request your attendance."

In a dove's beak there was a lacy invitation to RSVP.

"Baah!" Chief Thud laughed the dove against a wall. The rest of the hairy Johansens laughed like bears and shook the stained rugs under Moon's feet. She did not falter.

River went to her side, "Rats they all are, my love we can go away and marry in a sunnier dimension with less idiots around!"

"We are marrying in Mewni with all of our family members included." Moon said with steel in her eyes. "Whether by their will or not is up to me."

Seeing his oh-so formal darling sound so vicious made him affectionate. River giggled and kissed her gloved hands.

Oustide Moon castle there was a mountain. The five members of the Butterfly family met with four members of the Johansen family. Aunt Etheria, cousins Dorawreathe, Birchward, Fluttersnow and Peggy were there in their fanciest outdoor clothes. Chief Thud, grandmother Spike, cousins Blunt and Lump came in no more than fresh-fur over their backs and groins. The groups sneered at one another, thinking the worse of the polar identities.

A trumpet sounded and introduced an open carriage with Moon and River. They had a servant named Manfred hold three flags. River held up Moon's gloved hand as they walked out.

"What is this then, Queen Cousin?" Birchward asked, his handkerchief at his nose.

"None of you wish to attend my wedding." Moon announced.

Dorawreathe raised a limp finger, "We would if it were to someone else. Like, anyone else."

"Ditto!" Lump yelled and the vikings punched the air.

A lightning blast from Moon's wand silenced the yelling.

"I propose a wager to you all, whomever may reach the top of that hill," Moon pointed to the elementally furious mountain, "may choose mine and River's fate."

The Butterflies exchanged secretive glances while the Johnansens slapped one another's chests. "And I promise resist using my wand." Moon said, she held it in both hands then let it disappear.

"The starting line is here," Manfred said from his floating chair and bejeweled microphone. "Ready?" Fluttersnow held a handy little flamethrower under her corset. A handy potion had Blunt grow two extra fists on his original fists. He was excited to break some dollish faces.

Moon leaned down to hold River's cheek. Her first layer was cold and beautiful, the second layer was hopeful and frightened. River held her hand to his face.

The couple stared at one another while shot went off. Their ravenous family members ran past them. River stared at Moon while he smiled, "Let's give them a five minute head start."

At the time Moon found it very romantic that she and her fiance could bury anyone that dare come between them. Relatives or not there was satisfaction in placing their flag together while everyone else laid mangled.

Barely a year later Queen Moon and King River hosted a party in the castle with their combined families. This time was to celebrate the healthy birth of their newborn princess.

"She smiles so often, is she unwell?" Aunt Etheria asked looking over her great-niece.

Cousin Lump pushed forward to offer the baby-size hatchet. "Baby Star's already owning life better than you!"

There began an argument between in-laws. Princess Star was held in a plush baby carriage with two guards at her side. Moon covered her daughter's ears when the family began using slurs in their heated conversation.

Moon looked sourly at the bickering. She then looked down at the baby's cheerful cooing. The queen was glad to see her offspring grin with her eyes the same way her husband did. Moon was less frothy when her King took baby Star out of her safe zone.

"Pumpkin, come with Papa swing from the chandelier. We can look down on Momma's family." He poked his daughter's tiny hands then whispered, "And throw candy until we see them feel it."

Note: My theory of Mewni Marriage is getting tattooed with magic ink. In Moon and River's case they chose half moons that swirled like clouds placed directly over their hearts. It glows an effervescent periwinkle. They feel it every single second of the day.