#when Willow tells him she wants to talk and she's like ''i think we should just be friends'' oh the face he makes is DEVASTATED

[lollytea]

Huntlow situationship gives me such intense brain termites you don't get it

[thebearer]

thinking about teddy or willow calling you baby or honey or something cute instead of mommy because they always hear carmy call you that 😭

OMGGG!!! i feel like carmen calls you "baby" when you're dating and when you're married it's "honey". like he'll kinda bounce back and forth between both but "honey" feels more domestic to him for some reason lol.

"Teddy, can you put your toys away for me, sweet girl?" You coo gently, attempting to chop the apple in front of you. You tried to remember Carmen's pointers about it, but you always ended up letting him do it because he was so fast with it.

You could hear the bustling of toys from the little play house in the living room, looking over your shoulder to see her with her little doll, playing exaggeratedly. You grinned, wiping your hands on the towel by the counter, sneaking out your phone to snap a photo to send to Carmen.

"Teddy," You said, stepping into the living room. Her bright eyes lifting to you, blinking with round eyes so sweet it made you want to melt. "Can you put your toys away so we can have a snack?"

"Yes, honey." Teddy hummed sweetly, putting her toys away in the small box in the corner.

You blinked, a little confused by the name. "What did you say, baby?" You asked gently, sinking to your knees.

"Yes, honey." Teddy repeated, blinking up at you sweetly.

You could feel your chest rush with that familiar heat of adoration. "Are you being silly? Why are you calling Mommy honey?" You grinned playfully, voice lilting in that baby coo.

"Noooo," Teddy giggled, running into your arms, nearly knocking you over when she hugged you. "Daddy says honey. 's your names."

You laughed, hugging her against your chest. You and Carmen both were beginning to learn how observant children were. Teddy caught on to everything- including the word "fuck" which she heard Carmen say once, and seemed to have never forgotten, tormenting him with it every chance she got.

"Daddy does call me honey, doesn't he?" You hum, pressing your nose to her little scalp, pressing kisses there.

"Yeah." Teddy agreed, clinging to your neck.

You carried her to the kitchen, hoisted on your hip, strapping her into her little high chair while you gave her snack to her. You texted Carmen to FaceTime you if he had the chance, babbling back at Teddy sweetly until your phone rang.

"Hey, honey, everything good?" Carmen's face appeared on the other side of the screen, shutting the door to his office when he did.

"Yeah, everything's good. I just... Hold on, listen." You mutter, walking over to Teddy. "Teddy Bear, Daddy's on the phone." You cooed excitedly, grinning at her squeals and shrieks of excitement.

"Teddy, tell Daddy what you've been calling Mommy." You urge lightly, hand running down her curls. Carmen's face falls slightly, the shake of your head assuring him otherwise.

Teddy just blinked, brows furrowed like she had no idea what you were talking about. You gave her a pointed look, brows furrowed playfully. "What does Daddy call me? That you called me earlier?"

Teddy thought for a moment before grinning. "Honey." She smiled when you laughed, nodding. Carmen grinned, watching her grab the phone pulling it to her face. "You call Mama that, Daddy, so-so I calls her honey too." Teddy declared proudly.

"That's right, Teddy. Good job, baby." Carmen cooed, grinning at her little laugh.

You took your phone back, smiling proudly back at him. "When'd she start that?"

"Like twenty minutes ago." You beamed. "I asked her to clean her toys and she goes yes, honey." You giggle. "She's so cute."

"She is." Carmen agreed. "Gets it from you, honey."

"Stop." You roll your eyes, trying to hide your blush. "How's work?"

"Good. Syd said she could handle dinner tonight, so I'm gonna finish prep then should be home early." Carmen hummed, leaning back in his chair.

"Yay. Maybe we could take Teddy down to the square then? She needs new shoes." You grab the wipes off the counter to clean her hands.

"Yeah, we can do that." Carmen nodded. "I gotta go, baby, but I'll see you later."

"Alright. Teddy say bye to Daddy." You coo, smiling at her little trill when she told Carmen goodbye.

"Love you." Carmen grinned at you through the screen.

"Love you, baby. See you later."

[99hook]

home for the holidays

your friends get together to help tyler surprise you at a christmas party

a/n: i just wanted to write something with some of my fav comfort characters so here we are. it turned out way sillier than i thought so it’s not gonna collect dust in the drafts. enjoy babes 🫶🏼

“Something smells delicious in here” Jack says as he walks into the kitchen. He reaches for one of the brownies on the counter before Anna smacks his hand.

“Not until everyone gets here.” She sends him a pointed look. You glance up from the cake batter you were mixing and chuckled at them.

“Yeah, shouldn’t you be helping with that thing.” Skye chips in from where she stood in front of the stove, stirring melted chocolate in a pot.

“What thing?” You asked.

Jacks hand stilled as he tried to make an attempt to sneak a brownie again. His eyes adverted between you and Anna.

“Uh, the decorations.” Anna blurted, smacking his hand again before she turned him around and pushed him away from all the food. “Go help finish decorating.”

Jack nods before he walks out, and you caught the look Anna sent Skye right after. You dropped the spoon in the bowl to get their attention.

“Okay, you guys are being weird. What’s going on?” You asked. You said it harshly but you couldn’t help it. You tried not to be, but you were still sad that Tyler couldn’t make it home in time for this Christmas party.

“Nothing.” Skye shrugs, avoiding your stare. You look at Anna instead. She’s focusing solely on organizing the chocolate covered pretzels on a platter.

“Anna” You raise your brows at her.

“Hm? Nothing. We’re just trying to get everything ready before everyone gets here. We’re running short on time, is that cake batter almost mixed?”

You look down at the bowl and nod, grabbing the pan she’s handing over to pour it in.

“So what’s next?” Skye asks as she brings over the melted chocolate to pour over some more pretzels.

“Let me see” Anna scans the counter. “I think we forgot something but I can’t place my finger on it.”

“The oreo pie” You muttered as you used the spoon to smooth out the batter in the pan.

“Fuck you’re right!” Anna throws her head back. “What time is it? Six? How long does that take to make?”

“Don’t worry about it” You tell her. “I only put that on the list because Tyler wanted it when he thought he was going to be able to come. We can leave it out. I think we have enough sweets.”

“No, we should make it.” Skye says. “I like oreo pie.” She shrugs.

“Yeah, me too.” Anna nods, opening the fridge to grab some ingredients.

You placed the pan in the oven and set the timer before you turned around to help. Just then, Julia and Willow both walked into the kitchen, their arms filled with bottles.

“Sorry we’re late.” Willow says as she sets the bottles down on the table.

“It’s fine, the eggnog mix is in the fridge.” Anna says as she crushes a bag of oreos on the counter.

“Feels tense in here. And why is Tyler-“ Julia gets cut off by Anna shooting her a glare and Skye was quick to talk over.

“What time is everyone else getting here?”

“What time is it now?” Anna asks.

“Six-fifteen” Julia says as she starts preparing the eggnog with willow.

“I told everyone seven. So we need to hurry the hell up.”

“Wait, Julia-“ You looked up at her. “Why is Tyler what?”

She glanced at Anna and Skye both. She got the memo but she definitely let it slip her mind.

“He’s on the phone with Jack, I was just wondering why he isn’t here with you.”

“He couldn’t make it. His flights not until tomorrow morning.” You shrugged.

“Oh, damn that sucks.” She says as she and Willow place some glasses of eggnog on a tray.

“Yeah, but it’s okay.” Skye nudges your arm with her shoulder. “She has her girls here.”

You smiled at that, but the smile fell when you finished the toppings on the oreo pie.

“Okay, I’ll be right back. If Jack tries to steal anything one of you slap him.” Anna directs before she rushes out the kitchen.

You placed the pie in the fridge and grabbed a sponge to scrub the melted chocolate off the stove. It wasn’t long after, Anna came back to the kitchen and announced that people were starting to show up.

———

Two hours had gone by and you found yourself back in the kitchen where the food and Jack of course was.

“Don’t tell Anna I dropped those.” He points to the trash and you glance over to see a whole sheet of her sugar cookies laying at the bottom of it.

“Dropped what?” Anna asks as she comes into the kitchen. Jack throws his head back and you raise your hands up and step away.

“You wasted all my sugar cookies?!”

“It was an accident! They were so good I just got too excited and they fell out my hand, I don’t know.” He shrugs as he stuffs his mouth with the chocolate chip ones.

“You know what, c’mon-“ she grabs his arm and pulls him away from the food once again. “It’s time for secret santa, everyone! Let’s go to the living room! Secret santa time!”

You followed them and everyone started filing towards the living room. Skye caught up to you with two glasses in hand.

“Here, you’ve been so sad all night. You need this.” She says, and you take the glass even though you questioned what was even in it.

“Why is it green?” You asked.

“Christmas colors.” She cheersed her glass with yours. “It’s just dyed eggnog.”

You shrugged and sipped it. It wasn’t bad.

“Who did you get for secret santa?” She asks as she sits down on the couch next to Kyle, and you sit down on the armrest next to her.

“Jack. Thankfully Anna helped me with it cause I had no idea what to get him.”

“Leopard print socks would’ve been what I got him.” She chuckles. “I got Orange. I didn’t know what the hell to get him so I went with a jean jacket like all his other ones.”

“Safe choice” You nodded as you sipped your glass.

“Okay everyone!” Anna clapped her hands together. “I know this is secret Santa and we should play by the rules but I have to go first cause my gift is the best. Sorry but it’s true.” She grins at everyone in the room.

She taps Jacks shoulder and he gets up from the chair he was sitting at next to the christmas tree. You watched him disappear down the hall but turned back around when Skye caught your attention again.

“Do you think this eggnog is a little strong?” She asks.

You looked down at your glass and shook your head. “If anything I think it could be stronger.” You shrugged before you sipped.

“Try mine. I can mix yours like this if you like it.” She says as she hands over her glass. You take it out of her hand, and then it’s taken out of your hand from someone behind you.

You looked back and saw Tyler standing there trying to hold back his smile.

“Happy to see me?” He asks as he steps around and stands in front of you. He handed Skye her glass back and cupped your cheeks, placing three soft kisses to your lips.

You looked up at him with eyes wide and a silly grin spreading across your face.

“Told you.” Anna pats herself on the back with a satisfied smile.

“I knew there was a reason why you guys were being so weird.” You shook your head.

“Shit, I almost gave it away.” Julia remarks from the other couch. “I saw him sitting in the back of jacks car like a weirdo and forgot he was supposed to be your surprise.”

“We had to hide him.” Anna defends. It was clear that she came up with the whole plan. “And it wasn’t easy since he kept trying to ruin it.”

“I was in that backseat for three hours” Tyler says as he slings his arm around your shoulders. “I just wanted to see my girl.”

“You were outside the whole time?” You asked.

“No, Jack had to stick him in the hall closet thirty minutes ago cause he said it was getting too cold in the car.” Anna tells you.

“It was getting cold in there.” He looks down at you.

“Wait, how did you even fit in the hall closet?” Willow chuckles.

“He had to sit criss cross applesauce. I was just gonna send yn back there and find him like that but Anna said no.” Jack adds.

“Not criss cross applesauce!” Kyle bursts out laughing. “This man is six foot tall. Why didn’t you just send him to one of the bedrooms?”

“Shut up, we had to think fast.” Anna snaps back.

“You’ll never catch me sitting criss cross applesauce in a closet.” Julia chuckles.

“I feel like that’s something you would do.” Jack chimes in.

“Who says criss cross applesauce? Are we in kindergarten?” Tyler looks around at everyone before he looks down at you with a smirk.

“Who sits criss cross applesauce in a closet?” Orange teases.

“Jack said if I ruined the surprise he was gonna be dealing with a pissed off girlfriend.” Tyler shrugs. “I didn’t have much choice.”

“Sounds like she didn’t buy you anything, Y/N.” Orange commented from the corner he sat in. Anna shot him a glare but everyone else in the room laughed.

You looked over at her and smiled when the laughter died down. “She couldn’t have gotten me anything better than this. Thank you Anna, you’re seriously the best.”

“I know.” She bashfully smiles before she sits down on Jack’s lap.

You feel Tyler’s arms sneak around your waist as he sways you side to side. He leans down and places a kiss to your cheek before he whispers, “I got you an even better gift, but I can’t give it to you here.”

A blush crept up to your cheeks as you leaned your head back against his chest, about to whisper something back before you were interrupted by Jack saying,

“I just heard all that. Please work on your whispering skills.”

“Yeah, I heard that too.” Skye chuckles as she shakes her head.

“Unfortunately so did I.” Orange mutters as he drops his head.

The room erupted in laughter and Tyler dropped his head to your shoulder to muffle a laugh of his own.

“Anyway, time for everyone else’s gifts. Good luck topping mine.” Anna pridefully announces.

As soon as everyone started passing around gifts Tyler determined that they were distracted enough. He turned you around and you recognized the mischievous look in his eye immediately.

“Sneak out?”

“The closets roomier than you think.” He shrugged, making you roll your eyes.

“Seriously Tyler, what the fuck” Jack called him out again. “My jackets are in that closet!”

You had to bury your face in his hoodie to hide the way your face blushed and when you pulled back he was doing all he could to hold back the widest grin.

“So sneak out?” You whispered.

“Sneak out.” He nodded.

———

taglist: @madhatterbri @730hook @multi-fandom-things730 @willowgreens @shawtys-things @justdamnpeachy @wickedval @730bliss @theworldofotps @madds-97 @gethooked @benjaminka @5secondsofmoxley @cypherpart15 @legit9thlunaticwarrior @littlemissbliss06

still getting used to adding the taglist and i’m sorry if i’m forgetting anyone. lmk if you wanna be added/removed!

[blitheringmcgonagall]

Someone was asking me did I think Sirius was cunning or had lots of Slytherin traits.

I don’t think so at all.

The Slytherin traits are essentially:

Cunning - this is not the same as intelligence or cleverness. It’s the quality of being astute or sharp in practical matters; the ability to find and pursue the most advantageous course of action, sometimes at the cost of moral compromise. Canny, crafty, weighing up the possibility and deciding based on what’s going to be in your best interests. Someone who is cunning has the ability to achieve things in a clever way, often by deceiving other people. When was Sirius like this? I’ll tell you who is cunning and shrewd, it’s Albus Dumbledore.

Ambition where in canon was Sirius ambitious? If he was he’d have pretended he was a good, obedient son and not run away and gotten blasted off the family tree. He might have stayed on and lied to them all, then if he was also cunning he might have brought Voldy down from the inside. Sirius like this? Nope!

Resourcefulness he’s pretty resourceful fair enough

Pride where in canon is he proud? Pride is a feeling that you respect yourself and deserve to be respected by other people; Pride can also have a negative meaning and refer to exceedingly high self-regard. Sirius is shown as racked with guilt about making Peter secret keeper, doesn’t believe Harry will want to live with him when he offers, didn’t try to leave Azkaban for 12 years because he believed he deserved to be punished for being responsible for the Potters’ deaths. He’s kind and thoughtful to Harry and his friends and to animals. He can be cutting towards others that he dislikes but that’s not pride. He’s rude to Kreacher but it’s not because he thinks he’s superior to house elves but because Kreacher hated Sirius and adored his mother and brother.

Self-preservation Sirius scores -10 points!

Shrewdness as above, not a talent of his

The Gryffindor traits are:

Daring To be daring is to be bold, adventurous - a quality possessed by people who tend to take risks. The fellow who became an animagus as a teenager and risked Azkaban every full moon to run wild with his pack. The guy who joined the Order at 18 to risk his life fighting against the bad guys. “What’s life without a little risk?” Now you’re talking!

Nerve Some common synonyms of nerve are audacity, cheek, chutzpah, effrontery, gall, hardihood, and temerity. While all these words mean "conspicuous or flagrant boldness”. The fella who got millions of detentions with his best mate, who loved breaking rules, who nearly got arrested by muggle policemen for his antics, while wearing a stupid, brazen phoenix t-shirt, who converted a muggle motorbike into a flying machine? The guy who taunted his psychopathic Death Eater cousin? Who told Snape about the Whomping Willow… Ah, yep, that’s him!

Chivalry - polite, kind, and unselfish behaviour, especially by men towards women. As noted above, he’s very much like this to Harry and the other children. He tells Hermione she’s the brightest witch of her age. He buys Ron a present of an owl. He’s caring of Buckbeak, he’s great pals with Crookshanks. He risks the dementors’ kiss to buy Harry his Firebolt and watch him play Quidditch and help him fight Dementors. He was polite to Molly despite the fact she told him he wasn’t there for Harry growing up (when he was innocently imprisoned in Azkaban!!) which was very upsetting.

Courage - courage is taking action in spite of the fear you feel. Standing up to his family, fighting against Voldemort in the first Wix war despite being outnumbered 20:1, fighting in the second Wix war to try to protect and save Harry etc etc

Sirius: "What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard that ever existed? Only innocent lives, Peter!"

Peter Pettigrew: "You don't understand! He would have killed me, Sirius!"

Sirius: "THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED! DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

Bravery the quality or state of having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty. It wasn’t just the above, it was also agreeing to live in Grimmauld Place so he could let the Order use the safety of the house, despite the painful memories of a bad childhood and the death of his brother, despite sounding depressed/PTSD/drinking heavily during that part of the book. Resisting Snape goading him for sitting in the house and doing nothing.

“I don't like being back here...I never thought I'd be stuck in this house again.”

😭😭😭

Determination managing to become the first prisoner to escape from Azkaban etc

[cxhleel108]

LITG S8 Thots for this week: Here we go again…

(Sorry friends a bitch was getting crunk the last two days so I did not have time to do this until today❤️)

• Ok before we even start why is he sitting like thiskdmsmsnsnd someone help me.

• So the customization…I told y’all I wasn’t trying to gag too hard when they first revealed MC and this is exactly why cuz once again why we only get braids for textured hair??? They’re not even free like y’all already pissing me off.

• So clearly this season is about zodiac because why else would we only be getting star sign tattoos?

• Meet Jaylin y’all😝😝😝 You’ll be getting all her info soon.

• Everyone hating this swim suit but it actually being my favorite. The others were just ok to me Idk sue me.

• Mind you it’s only been like 2 minutes and we already causing issues.

• I think we’re already getting married tomorrow guys Idk.

• And he has a lion tattoo so that means he’s most likely a Leo and my girl is a Gemini oh look how I ate this pairing up!

• Oh Theo stans I’m so sorry…

• I’m so glad I’ve never ended up getting the guy stuck in the “Day One” couple like I really would just end it all.

• The job options being the exact same…ok! I wanted her to be an athlete anyway😁

• Him assuming that he had a high chance of being picked when Oakley and Jin are present…I just busted out laughing.

• Yeah all this talk about compatibility and these dudes talking about being “magnetized” and “drawn” to us is def giving let’s compare our charts to see if we should fuck each other or not.

• Such a real bitch oh Claudia I love you already💯💯💯

• Sophie telling me to cool it around Jack like I want him…I just busted out laughing again.

• Our date with Theo just feeling like two people building a friendship and not a relationship was nice I would love for it to stay that way tbh (Him like 5 minutes later saying he was trying not to flirt with us can they not do this again like please).

• Jack’s date was a snooze fest who’s shocked? Also him having two moms just makes sense Idk why.

• I am gonna have so much fun replaying this season to do Jin’s route omg this man is too good.

• Yeah I already don’t like Emel. Girl who is bringing yo ass a bouquet at 8 in the morning??? Don’t piss me off.

• Uhhh cuz I’m badder than you, duh!

• Outfit time🥳🥳🥳

• These are cute!

• This is not!

• Right…anyways so!

• Yikes!

• Hehehehe no y’all don’t understand like she is already my bestie fr. Love when one of the girls is here for the fuckshit.

• The drama that be happening sometimes be so stupid like girl. Claudia sitting here telling me everyone was mad at each other on DAY FUCKING ONE because nobody wanted to be with who they were with…do y’all just come on here and then forget how the show works.

• Oh girl just stop like fuuuuck😭😭😭

• Outfit time again✨

• The panties did not need the sheer added.

• This literally being a swimsuit.

• Claudia’s outfit is so cute ugh werk!

• WHY IS THIS MAN BOOTY SO DAMN FAT LIKE OMGGGG😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

• He wanna compete with me so bad!

• I’m cryinggggg why we really living the storybook romance that Emel keep begging for.

• Me & Oakley: “Cheats are the lowest of the low”

• Also Me & Oakley: *Eating each other’s faces off outside*

• Yes please get Emel out of here before she takes Willow’s place and actually starts annoying the fuck outta me.

[avatarmerida]

Um idk what to say about this except Hunter deserves to receive more compliments and Amity has never known how to process Willow’s taste in men

-

“Okay guys, just gimme like 10 minutes, okay?” Willow said, running eagerly ahead. “I just wanna check on my plants real quick. I’m sure they’re okay but I just wanna be totally sure because I-.”

“Go on, we’ll be fine!” Said Amity, seeing Willow was slowing herself down for their sake but desperately wanted to run ahead. Willow didn’t need to be told twice as she darted full speed up the stairs to her room. From the sound of it, her plants were just fine and delighted to see her. As they headed back to the Owl House, Willow’s house was on the way and when she had asked if they could make a quick pit stop Camila saw nothing wrong so long as they were quick and stayed together.

Hunter smiled at the distant sound of Willow happily greeting her plants as he looked around the living room, suddenly aware that it looked stuck in time. A few months ago it was brimming with life and light, and now it was dark and cold without Willow and her dads gracing the rooms with their love and laughter.

“Hey, what are these?” Hunter asked, turning to the dining room table which was covered in glossy brightly colored books.

“Oh, those are just some silly magazines Willow and I used to read when we’d do our homework,” said Amity as she walked in from the kitchen, the vibrant colors reminding her of a less chaotic time. “We would fill out the quizzes inside and gush about these bard coven bands and argue over who our favorite was.”

“Really? Heh.” Hunter flipped through the pages with a quizzical smirk, remembering Willow had once mentioned listening to a band once while they were messaging on penstagram back when they had first met. “Who was Willow’s favorite?”

“Take a guess.”

“Probably the most handsome one, right?” He said pointing to the obvious front man whose face was featured much more than the other members in the collection of mini posters that occupied the series of pages.

“Uh, not exactly,” said Amity, pointing to the corner to the “mysterious loner” of the group. His smile was more reserved than the others and his overall demeanor carried something... familiar.

“Him? Really?” Hunter chuckled, swearing he saw imprints of faded green lipstick stains near his photo. He wondered just how long they had been fading.

“I dunno, Willow has... unique taste.” Amity said with a shrug and slightly soured look. “We very rarely agree on things like that. I mean, she does not get Azura like at all, which just doesn’t make sense if I’m being honest, because I think...”

As Amity continued ranting, Hunter flipped through the pages and read the silly answers written in Willow’s bubbly handwriting, each ‘I’ dotted with a flower and the words twirling at the end as though they were carefully arranged vines. He treated her circled answers like a treasured artifact, admiring the little hearts and daisies she doodled in the corner of the pages. He also couldn’t help but want to take the silly quiz himself and see if their answers matched.

“...but I guess disagreeing can inspire debates. I mean, like the other day I was telling her how when I first met you I called you scrawny and that practically set her off because when she first met you she thought you were sooo cute, so obviously we don’t-.”

“She thought I was cute?” Hunter repeated, tuning back into Amity's rambling.

“Huh? Oh.” Amity’s hand sprang to her mouth, quickly realizing she should not have said that. “Uh maybe? Ya know, ha, it was so long ago, I might be misremembering. Actually, she might have been talking about a wet cat she saw on her way to school so actually-.”

“You just said you were talking about it yesterday.”

“Did I say that? You know, it was so long ago who can really remember what I said, we should-.”

“Amity, if you’re gonna make fun of me could you at least not use Willow? I don’t know why you’d think-.”

“I’m not making fun of you! I just, uh...” Amity insisted, quickly looking back at the staircase to make sure Willow wasn’t coming back yet. She changed her voice to a harsh whisper. “Ugh, okay listen, Willow would kill me if she knew I told you this but... do you remember before Halloween when I told you to change out of your costume?”

“Yeah?”

“She was actually really upset that I said that because she thought that you looked... handsome.”

Now THAT is a look

“Me?” Hunter asked as though there was someone else she could’ve been referring to.

DON’T listen to her.

“Yeah?” Amity replied, still unable to give a reason. “I mean, she was so mad at me for telling you to change, she threatened to summon a cactus to my bus seat before I sat down.” Amity laughed at the memory, knowing Willow was only a little serious about following through. “And she stared at the photo she took of you like the entire ride, like you were a magazine model or something.”

“She thought I looked... handsome? In my costume? Like the costume I’m wearing right now?”

“Shh! Yes, but you can’t tell her I told you,” said Amity, looking around paranoid. “I wouldn’t lie about that though, I promise.”

Hunter made his way into the living room, finding his reflection for the first time in a hall mirror. It was dusty but still he could see the difference from the last time he had seen his own face. There was a lot to process. Days ago he looked completely different and now it was though he had suddenly aged, he was tired and dirty and covered with scars.

“Do you think... she still thinks I look handsome in it?” He said, his hand tracing his newest scar.  “Ya know, with how... different I look?”

“Well,” Amity started, knowing there was more within the inquiry. “She also talked about how much she liked you, ya know? The way you talk, what you talk about-

“She never mentioned my voice being... annoying?”

“No, actually,” Amity said, realizing Willow was probably the only person she had never heard refer to it in such a way, even as a joke. “Which is saying something because she used to always say that having bad eyesight made her hearing better,” Amity recalled. “I don’t know if that’s true or not but Even when you wore those hideous shoes with the holes all over them she still thought you were so cool... for some reason.”

Handsome AND cool? It seemed too good to be true.

“Does she... talk about me a lot?”

“Ya know, if you really wanna know what Willow thinks about you then you should ask her,” said Amity softly, putting her hand on his shoulder reassuringly. “But don’t tell her you talked to me, otherwise she’ll get suspicious.”

“But has she said anything about... the way I look now?”

“Oh no, you’re not getting any more information from me!” said Amity dramatically, walking back to the kitchen table. “I’ve said too much already, if she ever found out that I said any of this I’d have more than a cactus to worry about.”

“But why wouldn’t she want me to know? Is she embarrassed?”

“Well I dunno, do you tell Willow you think she looks nice every time you think she looks nice?”

Hunter opened his mouth to offer a smug response before he realized that while he did in fact let Willow know she looked nice it was usually agreeing with someone. She would walk down to the basement to show off a new dress she had found while thrift shopping with Vee and wanted to show how nicely it complimented the cardigan Hunter had repaired for her and Hunter would be in awe of how she always managed to pick colors that brought out her eyes. He would think how lovely, how stunning, how utterly beautiful she looked but he never said these words.

Instead, Gus would usually deliver the compliment. He’d say “Wow, Willow you look great!” and then nudge Hunter in the ribs with his elbow as he’d raise an eyebrow and say “Doesn’t she Hunter?” Willow would look at him with anticipating eyes for his thoughts, but the sparkle that found her eyes with her expectations only increased the things to say, and Hunter would end up only being able to nod in agreement or mumble a simple “yes.”

Is that how he made Willow feel? How could he ever...?

“Fair point,” He cleared his throat and tried not to convey the journey his mind was on and hoping he seemed like he was totally normal about the question. “Thank you for your clarification, I shall keep the matter between us.”

“You’re not gonna act... weird about this are you?” Amity asked, fairly certain she already knew the answer.

“Me? Weird? No! W-w-why would I be weird about this?” Hunter sputtered nervously.

Oh, she definitely already knew the answer.

“Okay, well I hear her coming back so zip it,” ordered Amity. “If I wake up with a cactus in my sleeping bag, I’m taking you down with me, spaceman.”

Hunter wouldn't know how to bring it up even if he wanted to.

“Sorry it took so long,” said Willow, entering the room on a vine. “But they’re doing great, luckily the automatic water system I instilled has been working perfectly.”

“That’s great, Willow.” said Amity with a smile.

“Yeah that’s totally great!” agreed Hunter, his voice sounding panicked for no apparent reason. “Awesome! Cool! Yeah...”

“Yeah,” agreed Willow, confused by the room’s vibe. “But uh, we should probably get back to the others. I don’t want Camila to worry.”

“Oh yeah, good idea,” agreed Hunter.

“Oh, before I forget,” said Willow, pulling something off her wrist. “I found this yellow scrunchie in my room and I thought since your hair is longer again, you could use it to keep your hair out of your eyes.”

“Really?” he said, as she slipped the hair tie onto his wrist. “Thanks, Willow.”

“’Course,” she said with a smile. “It’s your color, after all. Plus we gotta make sure we can see that pretty face of yours.” She added with a wink.

“Haha yeah o-o-okay,” he said with a gulp. “I should uh, g-g-go check if the coast is clear.”

He ran ahead as Willow chucked to herself, clearly pleased with his reaction. She watched as he ran to the doorway and pulled his hair back into a ponytail and secured it with Willow’s scrunchie.

“Woah, did it just get hotter in here?” Willow whispered to Amity, a faint crimson gracing her cheeks as she watched fondly as he scanned the outside area, his pulled back hair making it easier for her to see his defined jawline. Before Amity could offer her comment on the change in temperature, Willow cut her off as she continued in a dreamy tone. “Never mind, I think it’s just Hunter. If ya know what I mean.” she added playfully, bumping Amity’s arm with her elbow.

“I really, reeeally don't,” groaned Amity as though she was in physical pain, having endured this talk for months in the human realm and now realizing that there was no end in sight. “You have got to stop saying things that to me I am begging you!” Amity pleaded.

“I’ll stop when he stops,” said Willow with a shrug, fanning herself with her hand for emphasis (half to upset Amity further and half because she was truly grateful she had found that scrunchie).

[loimposibleesloquenoseintenta]

Her favorite uncle

Another short story about teenage Willow Everdeen Mellark, but this time at her home in District 12. She sneaked out to have some fun with her friends at night, and now she must face her parents. But no worries, uncle Haymitch is there to save the day, well kind of. I just wanted to write something about Haymitch being an old uncle/grandpa figure to Katniss and Peeta's daughter. In my mind she can be quite rebellious and impulsive, while still loving her family and wanting to make them proud. But she's also young and wants to have fun. I like thinking that between her and Haymitch there is a special bond, he listens to her and tries his best to guide her. And she trusts him deeply. Also, Willow and her brother (Rye) do get along and love each other, I just didn't develop their relationship that much this time. tw: mentions of underage drinking

The treacherous keys slip from my hands and hit the ground. I curse under my breath. At this pace, there’s no way I’ll get in the house without making any noise. Great. My head’s killing me and now I’ll have to come up with an excuse to explain my night out. I can see my parents’ face already. I think about my brother, biting his tongue, acting like he doesn’t know anything about me sneaking out. He’d never snitch on me, but I know how much he hates secrets. In this family trust is everything, and I respect that. But I just wanted to have some fun with my friends. Is that so wrong?

Under the night sky, I struggle to see the keys, and the drunkenness doesn’t help much. I finally find them and continue on my way, dragging my feet. I'm about to resign myself to the consequences when I notice light coming from Haymitch’s kitchen. Could he be awake at this hour? Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me. Curiosity drives me to stealthily approach his window and when I take a peek inside, I jump back startled. Sitting at the table, drinking something hot, is my old uncle Haymitch looking at me without an ounce of surprise. Mi mind is still somewhat confused, but if one thing’s for sure, is that I’m in trouble. And he knows it too. He points at the door with his thumb and his eyes leave no space for refusal.

As I enter the kitchen, I'm enveloped by the smell of coffee. With his back to me, he's making a second cup. I sit down and place my head on my arms.  

"So, tell me, did you have fun, little one?" he asks handing me the drink.

"How did you know?" I mumble with my eyes closed.

"Your brother called me" I lift my head so fast I get dizzy.

"Hey, you know it’s not his fault. He’s just worried about you. You should be thankful he didn’t tell your parents, honey" and he’s right. I can’t blame Rye for anything. I’m the one who broke the rules.

"What about you? Why didn’t you say anything?"

"I think you’re old enough to fend for yourself. But if they found out, I won’t deny anything, you hear me?" he declares with an accusing finger.

"Thank you Haymitch" I offer him one of those smiles I use to soften him. They always work, even if he denies it.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now drink your coffee and tell me what you’ve been up to over there"

There’s no point in hiding anything to him, he can read my mind without trying. So, I tell him all about the laughs, the dancing, the drinking and the gossip. We keep talking until dawn, and, even though he doesn’t judge me for my juvenile adventures, he asks me to be more responsible next time. Especially with my drinking. At times like this I wonder how his life used to be before I was born. Even if my family tries to be as honest as possible about their past, I know there’re things that are just too hard to explain. I understand that, so I don’t pressure them, but sometimes I can’t help but think about it.

When the phone rings, Haymitch tells my mom I had agreed to help him with his geese that morning. Apparently, I was so excited with the task that I had woken up extra early to enjoy breakfast with my favorite uncle. I doubt she bought it, but she didn’t ask more questions. Later I understand that she just wanted to laugh at my disastrous attempt to deal with those wild animals. Well, at least someone’s having a good time. With that said, I think I won’t drink again for a long, long time.

[arc-misadventures]

Rebirth AU since there's a strong chance of Winter being Jaune and Jeanne's half-sister. Did Jaune ever hook up with Winter in his last life, I'm just imagining Jaune reacting to him remembering that he may have fucked his sister in his last life

Stop Asking Asking Me About My Sex Life!!

Jeanne: So, Jaune you saw, Winter allot when you were in, Atlas, right?

Jaune: No we didn’t do anything.

Jeanne: What are you even talking…?

Jaune: We never dated, we never had a one night stand We never took innovatory in a supply closet. We rarely even spoke outside missions, and such. Nothing ever happened between me, and Winter Schnee in my past life.

Jeanne: …

Jeanne: But, if you could…

Jaune: No. I never liked, Winter…

Jaune: Well, I did like her, but I never liked her like that.

Jeanne: So, nothing happen between you, and Winter.

Jaune: Nope.

Jeanne: But, something happened between you and all those, Atlas Milfs, eh~?

Jaune: Why are you so interested in my sex life?

Jeanne: …

Jeanne: Because you had one…

Jaune: Beg pardon?

Jeanne: You had a sex life! You were this blond Adonis who had multiple conquests! And, I only had the one girl, and you slept with her too!

Jaune: Who?

Jeanne: You… You slept with, May. Right?

Jaune: Nope. We were going to go on a group date; May, Pyrrha, and I. Then the, Fall happened. And, I lost them both…

Jeanne: O-Oh right… I forgot… Since the, Fall didn’t happen in my world…

Jaune: Gods I wish I could forget that day…

Jeanne: Does it… It still hurts?

Jaune: Always. Even with, Pyrrha back in my life it still hurts… The hidden fear I may lose her, and everyone else I ever cared for again… It terrifies me.

Jeanne: Is that why you’re pushing, Pyrrha to use her semblance more, so you don’t lose her again?

Jaune: Partly; I want her to have more fine control; She used to use it as a fan, blowing away her opponents, attacks. If she used it more, if she mastered her semblance, she could use it to hit you with the force of a sledgehammer, or cut you with the precision of a surgeon’s scalpel. I want her to be better, because I know she can be better! And, I don’t want to lose her again…

Jeanne: But, there isn’t the threat of, Salem, and her Grimm hordes! She should be safe this time.

Jaune: The Grimm are still out there, and based on the news we don’t have the peaceful, White Fang in this world. So we have no idea what we may face when we start out on the path to becoming, Hunters. So, are we really safe?

Jeanne: …

Jeanne: Haaa… Damn you, and your deep philosophical questions…

Jaune: Hehe. So… Winter Schnee… Should it be, Winter Arc Schnee, or Winter Schnee Arc?

Jeanne: Arc Schnee. Rolls off the tongue better. And, she’s spent all her life a, Schnee. So, I don’t think she’d be okay being called, Arc all of a sudden because she just found out, Dad is her real father.

Jaune: Make sense, but considering the hell her father put her through she may not want to keep her last name.

Jeanne: Wait, hold up, what did her father do to her?

Jaune: …?

Jaune: What did, William tell you about his father…?

Jeanne: Uhh… He was was a respected, and honourable man, who strove for the rights of Faunas everywhere. He ushered in a new era of prosperity, and equality for all. He was also a loving father, and faithful husband. I met him myself, he was a very nice person to be around. He also had a wicked sense of humour. What was he like in your world?

Jaune: A cash greedy bastard, who trampled on the rights of others, particularly the faunas. Destroyed anything, and anyone who got in his way for a quick buck. Told, Willow Schnee to her face he married her for the family business on, Weiss’s tenth birthday. Drove, Willow Schnee to become a reclusive alcoholic. Lead to, Winter Schnee to join the military to escape from her father. Abused, Weiss mentally to keep her in line. Groomed his youngest son, Whitely to become a mini carbon copy of him. Rigged an election that eventually lead to the total destruction of, Atlas, and Mantle.

Jeanne: Okay… And, I thought your life was just shit for you, not that everyone else’s life was also shit for them too!

Jaune: Yeah, I didn’t think that way for your world too. I thought it was all sunshine, and rainbows for everyone there.

Jeanne: Evidently not. Does that mean we’re not living in, ‘my world!’

Jaune: Hmm… Have you ever heard the name, ‘Adam Taurus, before?

Jeanne: No. But, I knew a, Eve Taurus before.

Jaune: And, what were they like?

Jeanne: They were nice person. She was a redhead faunas with an overly bubbly, and welcoming faunas. Horny.

Jaune: Are you talking about her faunas traits, or her state of mind?

Jeanne: Yes.

Jaune: …

Jaune: Okay then.

Jeanne: So who was, Adam? The female counterpart to, Eve?

Jaune: Well… He was a Pro-Faunas racist radical who was part of an terrorist organization called, The White Fang. Who lead a splinter cell of these terrorist to help in the destruction of, Beacon Academy. He then tried to destroy, Haven Academy, but was eventually stopped by the new peaceful, White Fang. But, he was eventually stopped when he was killed by, Yang, and Blake. All of this was no doubt caused by his childhood trauma, and ant-faunas racism that was directed at as a child, as well as the fact that the letters, SDC was branded on his left eye.

Jeanne: …

Jaune: Did I mention the fact he was, Blake’s ex-boyfriend?

Jeanne: …

Jeanne: Okay… That… Yeah, okay…

Jaune: …

Jeanne: So… What kind of world are we living in then?

Jaune: Beg pardon?

Jeanne: Well… It’s just… We thought it was my world because, Selma is in charge of, Beacon Academy. But, it has your version of the, White Fang, and it seems like we also have the, SDC of your world too. However, Winter wasn’t our sister in either of our worlds. So what kind of world is this?

Jaune: A new one. It has some of the same elements in both of our worlds, but, it has a bunch of new ones as well. Makes it pretty exciting doesn’t it?

Jeanne: Yeah it kinda does.

Jaune: Haaa… We’re going to have one hell of a talk with mom, and dad about our past lives.

Jeanne: Any idea how we’re going to deal with that?

Jaune: We just roll with the punches?

Jeanne: Sounds like a plan.

Jeanne: Wait… Considering how this is a different life, and what not… Will, Terra take your first time… Do you think someone else may have your first time instead~?

Jaune: First off: Why the hell are you so interested in my sex life?! Second: Terra wasn’t my first time.

Jeanne: She wasn’t…?!

Jaune: Or, was she~?

Jeanne: So she was…? R-Right?

Jaune just smiled cheekily as he walked away with, Jeanne chasing after him.

Jeanne: J-Jaune… Jaune what happened! Who took your first time, Jaune! WHAT HAPPENED!!!

[thatsgay-writes]

The Princess & The Knight... & The Archer? Part 2

Part 1

Not Proof Read, Nothing Is Proof Read

TW: Death (I apologize in advance :) )

The days blur together as you ride in the silt sleigh across the shattered sea. The wound on your arm was definitely affecting you still, even after your friends tried their own methods of healing on it, but you were getting better at managing the pain. Each day, Jade or Kit or sometimes both would sit in with you and you would all talk about anything and everything you could. It was nice, it felt like you were back in the old days where there was less responsibilities and less chances of death. At night you would usually stay in the sleigh, as getting in and out meant using your arm, but tonight you finally felt that you could join the others. And how you wish you didn't.

You walked out the door of the sleigh to see Willow and Elora having a magic battle and on the other side of the island, hidden by shadows, you could see two figures sword fighting. It was obviously Kit and Jade, as Boorman used an axe and Graydon had magic now, plus both man sat in front of the fire. Your heartbeat sped up at the sight of your two favorite people and you were ready to take off the makeshift sling you had been wearing to go down and join them but before you could they both fell to the ground. Kit on top of Jade pinning her down. It felt like sucker punch to the gut again as it reminded you of what you saw many, many nights ago before everything went to hell. A cold feeling washed over you as you could see Kit's face lower to Jades. That was why you were here. You were here because Kit loves Jade and Jade loves Kit and you were in love with them and even though you couldn't have them you would make sure that they would always have each other.

---

"You've killed us!" You hear Boorman yell from the front of the sleigh. Kit and Jade stand up fast, both offering you a hand to help you up but you ignore it. "I didn't have a choice." Graydon defends as the three of you walk around the side of the sleigh. "What did he do?" Jade asks and you could tell Boorman was angry by the way he looked. "He set... Kenneth free. Now we are stuck in the middle of nowhere! There is no where to go forwards and no where to go backwards!" Boorman rants as he paces. "He was sick!" Boorman opened his mouth to continue but Elora cut him off, "Then we walk." You eyes go wide as you look at her. "Walk to what? For how long? Until we starve!?" Boorman says as he gets in her face. You take a few steps towards them and put your hand on his chest to push him back some. But instead of putting it on the center of his chest, you place your hand right where the lux enters the cuirass and Boorman slaps you hand away, causing Jade and Kit to yell at him. "We're close." Is all Elora says as she heads towards the sleigh to pack her bag.

The rest of you slowly follow suit. It silent as everyone takes turns to pack their things, since the inside of the room is small. You, Jade, and Kit all pack yours at the same time. You take this time to also change your bandage on your arm, letting out small grunts of pain. So focused on your arm, you miss the way the two girls behind you stop their packing and share concerned looks. Your arm, while it had stopped bleeding, still leaked gold or sometimes both. You wrapped your injury and put extra pressure on it since you knew you were coming to the end of your journey and that you would need to fight and have less time to worry about it. You slide your sling back on over your head and grab your bag when you feel a hand on yours. You turn to see Kit giving you a sad smile, you turned to Jade and she was giving you the same expression. "What's going on?" Kit looks at Jade, not wanting to be the bearer of bad news. "We don't think you should come with us." Jade says as Kit continues to hold your hand. "What?"

"Well your already injured and we wouldn't want anything bad to happen to you." Jade's explanation is logical but you were too angry to care. "So what? I can't take care of myself because of some cut on my arm?" "You could barely function a few weeks ago... And now we're almost to the Crone..." Kit says as she trails off. You drop her hand with a scoff. "I can handle myself. I-" You let out a sudden scream of pain as Jade barely grips your injured arm. "Look I barely touched you and you screamed. You can't come." Jade said sternly, hating that she caused you pain just to get her point across. You glare at the both of them. "Neither of you are my mom, so you don't get to boss me around." Kit opens her mouth the speak but you cut her off. "I don't care if you're the princess. I am going and until one of you has a better reason for me not to go, then I am going. Whether you like-"

"It's because we love you!" Kit yells at you and you go silent. "What?" You look between the two girls in front of you with tears in your eyes. "If this is some sick joke, I don't-" "It's not." Jade says as she puts both hands on your shoulders, forcing you to look at her. "We have both been working on expressing our love for each other and you and this may not have been the ideal way to tell you but we do... love you." Your heart was beating out of your chest. Was this real? Were those months of pain for no reason? "But the kiss in your room and then on the beach... It didn't seem like you guys needed any work for that." You spit out as you back away from Jade's hold, the faces of the two girls in front of you heating up. "Well one was a heat of the moment one and the other, afterwards, we were started planning on how to tell you and-"

A banging on the side of the ship interrupts Kit. "Hurry up, we're losing non existent daylight! Save the love making for later!" You hear Boorman yell. "Just please, wait here. We'll be back in a few days top." Jade says as she ushers Kit towards the door. "Wait but-" Your cut off by the door closing. "I love you guys too..."

---

"What idiots." You mumble as you walk forwards the shattered sea alone. You gave the group maybe and hour head start before you broke down the door, Jade had barred it closed from outside, and followed them. "Tell me your in love with me and then expect me not to even follow... Didn't even get a damn kiss at least." You continue to mumble to yourself, until you see a small figure coming towards you. "Willow?" You question as you both finally meet in the middle, and your stomach drops. "Where are the others? Did something happen?"

"We found it. The end of the shattered sea." Willow says solemnly. "That's great! Then why are you here?" "They jumped off the edge to get to Immemorial City, that is hopefully there." Your heart dropped again for like the 5th time in the past couple of weeks. "They what?" Willow just nods his head in confirmation. "And you didn't follow? You're an all powerful sorcerer or something! They could need you!" "It is too much of a risk I need to get back to Mims, she's in danger and I need to be there or I'll lose her too." You want to scoff at Willow but you know he is just following his heart like you are. "Willow, we are weeks, months even, from your home. If something is going to or has already happened to Mims, it's too late. But maybe, just maybe, taking out the Crone can stop anything from happening. There is clearly a war brewing out here and if we don't stop the Crone right now, there will be nowhere for any of us to return to." Willow ponders what you said for a few seconds before nodding his head. "I guess your right. Just this once." He says and you laugh before patting him on the shoulder. "Well let's not make a habit of it. Take us to the edge of the world." You say as you both head the way Willow had just come. "You three are very much alike... I can see why you all love each other." Willow says as he walks a few paces in front of you, thankfully meaning he can't see the smile that grows on your face.

---

"No!" "Graydon!" You and your companions yell as there is a lull in the battle, only for you to watch Graydon get seemingly exploded and pushed through a portal. You share a scared look with Kit and Jade as Elora punches the Crone out of the room. You're all on high alert afterwards, even after Boorman takes the time to give Kit the Cuirass and Jade the Lux and pushed all of you out of the room. "Boorman!" You yell as he closes the door behind him and you bang on it once before stopping. "Come on, we need to go." Jade says as she grabs your arm and pull you away from the doors. "We need to find Airk." Kit says as she looks between the two of you and your bad arm. "I thought we told you not to come." Jade turns on you after noticing Kit's eyes wander. "You can't tell me you love me and then not expect me to follow you to the end of the world!" You tell her. "We will sort this out later, I need to find Airk." Kit cuts of your arguing and you and Jade both nod. "Fine but you are to stay back and cover us." Jade says to you and you begrudgingly agree.

---

"I am your king!" You hear Airk yell and you shake your head at his idiocrasy. You keep an eye on both battles happening at each side of the fountain when you notice a movement out of the corner of your eye. It's the nice looking version of the Crone, the captured Princess of Cashmere, and she was sneaking up on Elora who was too busy with the Crone. You knew that Kit was supposed to be Elora's defender but she was locked in a heated battle with Jade against her brother and no one else was in sight. So you take of running towards the other princess and tackle her to the ground. She manages to escape your hold and grabs a sword that was laying on the ground. "How are you here and there?" You ask you unsheathe your sword and take off your sling. "Magic." Is all she says before charging at you and you accept that answer because that seemed reasonable. Your swords clashed loudly as she swung hers in a downward motion with two hands. If you were at 100%, this would have been the easiest fight of your life because it seems that when the Crone split herself, she kept all the magic for her form directly fighting Elora. And the princess version of her was mediocre at best with a sword.

But each time you had to use both arms to hold the sword to block an attack, pain was shot throughout your body, black spots danced across your vision, and everything was just so sore. "I thought this would be a harder fight." Princess Crone taunts as you roll to the side to dodge another hit. "Well maybe if this was a fair fight, you wouldn't be so cocky." You say back as you let out deep breathes. Dodging was better than blocking but it was still so taxing on your body. "Then how about I make it fair." She responds as she smacks you across the head with the hilt of her sword. "Wha-" Is all you can say as the hit dazes you before letting out a strangled scream. "There, no arm, no pain." You fall back against a wall and hold what's left of your arm to your chest, blood coating your clothes. "You bitch!" You yell at her as tears stream down your face. "Don't worry, I know how to make the pain stop permanently." She says as she brings her sword over your chest and you accept your fate. But the blow never comes.

---

"Hi." Kit says happily as she holds Airk's face in her hands, glad she was able to save her brother. "You're okay." Willow says from behind her and Airk just nods before sending a questioning look to his sister. "Who is that?" Kit laughs as she lets a happy tear slide down her face, she turns to look at her group of friends. "That's Willow..." Kit surveys her group, Boorman having just arrived covered in goop, just meant you and Graydon weren't here. Graydon for obvious reasons but you...

Kit's face morphs from one of pure happiness to fear. "Where's y/n?" Kit feels like she can physically see Jade's heart stop. Everyone else looks around confused before they get worried as well. "Y/n!" Boorman starts to yell as he turns and starts to look for you, everyone else joins in.

You can hear your friends calling for you and you want to scream, shout, yell, whisper, anything to let them know that you were just down this hallway, just on the other side of the wall, just right there... and just so utterly scared. You lost feeling in your body first, any strength you had seeped out of your body twice as fast as your blood, along with any warmth. You tried so hard to stay awake, so hard to see Kit and Jade one last time, to speak to them one last time. Maybe they would hold you close, let you know you did everything you could. Maybe they would kiss you, reassure you that they would always remember you, always think of you. Maybe... Maybe, maybe, was all you would get. You were so tired, falling asleep in the sand wouldn't have been the worse place you've had to sleep on this quest. No, wait, you weren't falling asleep, you were dying. But every time you closed your eyes you would see Kit and Jade there, laughing and happy with you, like a dream. Maybe that's the last thing you want to remember before you go, not the inevitable look of fear and heartbreak when they find you lying here, broken and dying. You use any last strength, life, that you had left in you to write the words, I love you, into the sand before letting go. They would be okay without you, it may take time but you've all always had each other, and this time it wouldn't be any different.

---

Willow's the first to find you, tears instantly gathering in his eyes. He could tell you were already gone, the rise and fall of your chest was inexistant and your eyes were still open in an unfocused gaze, unblinking. He walks towards you solemnly and closes your eyes, the others didn't need to see that, Kit and Jade didn't need to see that. He walks out the hallway back to where everyone was searching and waited for someone to notice him. He didn't want to be the one to say the words, to tell the group that not only had they lost Graydon but you too. It's Jade that notices something is wrong first, she was always so observant about things. She could see the way Willow had deflated, how he didn't move from his spot in front of the hallway, how he already had tears falling from his face and onto his clothes.

"Kit." Is all Jade had to say to get the other girls attention and they both started running. The sound of Kit's armour and sword clanging against each other was enough to get the focus of the other people looking for you.

Kit was the first to reach you, crumbling to the ground as she took in your state. Head down, arm gone, blood everywhere, no movement. She calls out your name over and over again, begging for you to wake up for this to be some sick joke. Her fingers digging into your shoulders as she tries to shake you awake like you were in a trance. It only fully registers that this was real when she feels Jade pull her back and into her embrace. The feeling of Jade's tears falling onto her shirt, cementing that you were gone and you weren't coming back. The two girls broke down together, you were gone. There would be no more trainings, no more late night conversations, no more sneaking Jade AND you into the castle at night when you returned to Tir Asleen. No more anything.

And the message you had written into the sand? Blown away before either could see it.

[coraniaid]

I don't know how it's possible to watch Season 3 of Buffy and not notice that Buffy Summers is  consistently the one character most willing to come to Faith's defense, both before and after Allan Finch dies.

I mean, yes, I understand how in-universe it's possible for Faith to not notice this.  It's very natural that she doesn’t: Faith's a traumatized teenager with literally no support system.  She isn’t used to anybody else believing in her or caring about her. 

She’s somebody who is always willing to believe the worst of others (“all men are beasts”, “nine times out of ten the face [a person] is showing you is not the real one”).  And her own sense of self-worth is very fragile and deeply intertwined with her relationship with Buffy, fluctuating wildly between "I am better than everyone else (because I am a Slayer like Buffy)" and "every parental figure I've ever had has told me I was stupid and worthless and they were right (I will never be as good as Buffy)".  

So it's easy for her to interpret Buffy's overtures of friendship as rejections of a deeper connection, to take her suggestions that they should work together as judgments that Faith isn't good enough on her own and that she needs to act more like Buffy.

(And ... okay, yes, it’s also true that sometimes Buffy does judge Faith, and she does think Faith would be better off being at least a little bit more like her.  I think it’s clear that Buffy does care about Faith, and wants to protect her, but I don't think Buffy's perfect.  She's often afraid to express herself clearly or talk about her feelings, especially after what happened with Angelus in Season 2, and she does have a definite inclination to assume she knows best and that other people should just listen to her without question. She's a traumatized teenager too, even if that's not always quite so obvious.)

And crucially, Faith doesn't get to see Buffy defending her when she isn't around.

But the audience?  We do get to see that.  We see how much Buffy believes in Faith and how her first instinct is almost always to stick up for her.

We see it at the end of the first episode Faith appears in, when Buffy is talking to Giles about their fight with Kakistos.

Buffy: "[Faith] really came through in the end.   She had a lot to deal with, but she did it.  She got it behind her."

-- S3E03 | Faith, Hope & Trick

(This is also, as the episode makes clear, an example of Buffy comparing herself to Faith and deciding that she needs to follow the other Slayer’s example.  Which is something that Faith is convinced never happens.  But it does: when Faith isn’t there to see it.)

And after their fight in Revelations, we see Buffy admitting to Xander and Willow that she worries about Faith and wants to include her in the group more:

Xander: "How come Faith was a no show?"

Buffy: "Couldn't reach her ... again.  She hasn't been hanging out much."

Xander: "I detect worry."

Buffy; "A little bit.  Slaying's a rough gig."

-- S3E09 | The Wish

After Finch dies, Buffy is the one to tell Angel that Faith wants to be helped, and urge him not to give up on her:

Buffy: "How's she doing? ... You'll keep trying, right? ... I'll just go to Faith's and I'll get some of her stuff.  That way she'll see that we're on her side."

Angel: "Look, I don't want to get your hopes up, Buffy.  She may not want us to help her."

Buffy: "She does.  She just doesn't know how to say it."

-- S3E15 | Consequences

And at the end of the same episode, Buffy is again the one to persuade Giles that Faith’s actions in saving her from Trick show she deserves a chance at rehabilitation:

Buffy: "She could have left me there to die, Giles, but she didn't. ... I'm not gonna give up on her."

-- S3E15 | Consequences

And in the following episode, we see Buffy defend Faith to Willow and again talk about how similar they are.

Buffy: "[Faith] had it rough.  Different circumstances, that could be me."

-- S3E16 | Doppelgangland

And a couple of episodes later, when Buffy's attempting to talk herself out of the fear that Angel might be cheating on her with Faith, it's Faith who she tells herself wouldn't betray her, not the vampire she's actually dating.

Buffy: I went to Angel's last night and Faith was there.  They looked sort of intimate.

Willow: No way.  I know what you're thinking and no way.

Buffy:  You're right.  Faith would never do that.

-- S3E17 | Enemies

Even later on in the same episode, when Faith's actual collusion with the Mayor is revealed, Buffy's first reaction is to make excuses for her and then to implore her to listen to her:

Buffy: You don't know what you're doing ... Faith, listen to me ... I never knew you had so much rage in you.

-- S3E17 | Enemies

It's only after all of that that Buffy seems prepared to give up on Faith, and only in Graduation Day when Angel's life is on the line that she's actually willing to hurt her (earlier, in Choices, she’s still talking about ‘capturing’ Faith).  And when she does stab Faith, and Faith falls from the roof, seemingly to her death, it’s obvious from her reaction that Buffy immediately regrets this.  Even if she didn’t think she had any other choice, it isn’t how she wanted things to happen.

So honestly it kind of baffles me when I see people agreeing with the take that Buffy’s focus on how Faith might be feeling, when she hears that she’s woken up in This Year’s Girl, and her apparent hope that Faith might regret her past actions and want to change, is somehow something new.  That it isn’t perfectly in keeping with how Buffy’s always felt about Faith.  Or even that the idea of being willing to give people a second chance is something Buffy had to learn from Angel.

Because no, sorry, that's just totally backwards: Angel himself learned all that from Buffy.  

(Also, just logistically ... how would Buffy have learned anything from Angel at this point in Season 4 that she didn't already know back in Season 3, when – from her point of view, at least – she's barely spoken to him since he broke up with her and left town last season?)

Not just in regards to Faith, either, but the whole idea of needing to keep fighting for people and not give up on them, and how you have to keep doing that every day? Angel's whole mission statement (both the character and the show)? That's literally all taken from a speech Buffy gives Angel in Amends.  The show is very clear on this: it's Buffy who teaches Angel to be a better person, not the other way around.

[lowkeyed1]

Willow Month 2023: Day 3 - Favorite Episode This is a tough call for me, because it's very close. I love Episode 7: Across the Shattered Sea because it has so much gorgeous character development for everyone and so much beautiful scenery, but Episode 4: Whispers of Nockmaar just barely shades it. I think it's the whump. This ep is basically 45 minutes of whumping on poor Graydon and.... he suffers beautifully.

This poor kid starts off the ep infected with dark magic. He and the group both know it will eventually corrupt his entire system, cause him to become possessed and try to kill everyone, and they will have to kill him. And they spend the first part of the episode chaining him up and not doing anything about it, except Elora comforting him.

They finally decide to do something and this leads to him restrained even more, splayed out on some kind of bench. He spends a lot of time writhing and moaning in pain. They tear his shirt open while he gasps, exposing horrific scarring he feels deeply ashamed of and doesn't want to talk about, while he sweats and groans even more.

Then they throw a bucket of liquid on him while he writhes around some more and it's obviously painful and I should probably just acknowledge it's not just the whump I love in this episode? They did NOT have to make this whole thing so BDSM but they really did, god bless them. Plus lovely grace notes in the script referring to him being ravaged and also reamed -_-

ANYWAY we go on from here to his having hallucinations about his painful past, then the possession really starts to set in and he gets aggressive, then starts talking in the voices of loved ones to scare and distract people. Then we have a break in the action and when we get back to Graydon...

well. all right then. Spoiler, he's fully possessed here but acting like he's not. You can tell because they flat-ironed his hair! Lol, but also he's uncharacteristically comfortable with his exposed flesh and touching other people which seems like a nice, subtle hint.

Trust me, Graydon in his right mind is never leaving that many buttons unbuttoned. He leads Elora up to the tower so he can complete the banishment ritual Bavmorda was trying to do to baby Elora at the end of the movie, but then everyone else shows up and he gets whumped on some more...

Literally I would die, as an actor, if I had Erin and Ruby holding me down and Amar crawling on top of me and pretending to pummel me but like. That's the biz, I guess?

At any rate, Kit convinces Elora that she is magic enough to fix this, so she goes and almost-but-not-quite kisses him (she does call it a kiss later) and sucks the evil out of him. He tells her he never doubted her, and the boy is clearly smitten after that

Unfortunately, Elora had a vision of him shoving his brother out of a tree when he was possessed as a child and feels like he might be sketchy. So he's giving her a big smitten smile when they leave....

(credit to willowgifsdaily for this gif)

...but that smile starts to falter bc she's giving him this look in return, yikes

Anyway, that was good wholesome fun for the whole family and kudos to Disney+ for realizing they needed to put in a bondage-themed whumpfest to really sell me on the show! And kudos once again to my boy Tony Revolori, who sells every inch of this episode just amazingly. The emotional range is all over the place and there's no part where he falters in just performing the absolute shit out of this one. This episode changed my brain chemistry forever, I think. And that is why Whispers of Nockmaar is my favorite episode of WIllow! Send help!

[munchmemes]

mitski lyrics, The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We edition

❛ as i got older, i learned i'm a drinker. sometimes a drink feels like family. ❜

❛ did you go and make promises you can't keep? ❜

❛ amateur mistake, you can take it from me. ❜

❛ i try to remember the wrath of the devil was also given to him by god. ❜

❛ i have a hope and though she's blind with no name, she shits where she's supposed to and feeds herself while i'm away. ❜

❛ sometimes i think it would be easier without [them] but i know nothing can hurt me when i see [their] sleeping face. ❜

❛ all of our love is filling all of our room. ❜

❛ now i bend like a willow, thinking of [you/them]. ❜

❛ i sip on the rest of the coffee [you/they] left like it's a kiss left of [you/them]. ❜

❛ something set free is running through the night and the dark awaits us all around the corner. ❜

❛ here in our place we have for the day, can we stay a while and listen for heaven? ❜

❛ i don't like my mind, i don't like being left alone in a room with all its opinions about the things that i've done. ❜

❛ so, yeah, i blast music loud and i work myself to the bone and on an inconvenient christmas, i eat a cake. a whole cake, all for me. ❜

❛ there's another memory that gets stuck inside the walls of my skull waiting for its turn to talk. and it may be a few years but you can bet it's there, waiting still for me to be left alone in a room full of things that i've done. ❜

❛ i want someone to take this soul, i can't bear to keep it. ❜

❛ i'd give it just to give and all i will take are the consequences. ❜

❛ your pain is eased but you'll never be free. ❜

❛ there's a deal that i made. ❜

❛ when memories snow and cover up the driveway, i shovel all those memories and clear the path to drive to the store. ❜

❛ and if i break, could i go on break? ❜

❛ i'll be back in my room, writing speeches in my head. ❜

❛ my love is mine, all mine. ❜

❛ nothing in the world belongs to me but my love is mine, all mine. ❜

❛ nothing in the world is mine for free but my love. ❜

❛ after everyone's long been gone but me, i was hiding or forgotten. the only one left. ❜

❛ now the world is mine alone with no one to share the memory. ❜

❛ you're my best friend. now i've no one to tell how i lost my best friend. ❜

❛ remember when we met, we acted like two fools. we were so glad to have found it. ❜

❛ that love is like a star. it's gone, we just see it shining. it's traveled very far. i'll keep a leftover light burning so you can keep looking up. isn't that worth holding on? ❜

❛ you know i'd always been alone till you taught me to live for somebody. ❜

❛ you believe me like a god. i destroy you like i am. ❜

❛ i'm sorry i'm the one you love. ❜

❛ no one will ever love me like you again. ❜

❛ so, when you leave me, i should die. i deserve it, don't i? ❜

❛ one day, you'll figure me out and i'll meet judgement by the hounds. ❜

❛ people always gave me love. others were never to blame after all. ❜

❛ you believe me like a god. i betray you like a man. ❜

❛ stride through the house naked. don't even care that the curtains are open. ❜

❛ let the darkness see me. ❜

❛ streets are mine, the night is mine. all my own. ❜

❛ oh, how i love me after you. i'm king of all the land. ❜

[specialagentlokitty]

Giles x reader - cursed trickster

Glancing across the room, you smiled a little to yourself and turned your attention back to the cup in your hands as you stared at the warm tea.

Truth be told you didn’t like tea all that much, sure you would drink it if coffee wasn’t available but it wasn’t your go to drink. But you could never say no whenever Giles offered you tea.

“So, what exactly do we know about this witch or whoever it is?” You asked.

Walking over, you set your cup aside and leant on the back of the couch, leaning over Giles and Buffy’s shoulders to look at the book.

“That she’s apparently just throwing random spells on random people.” Xander said.

“There’s nothing random when it comes to magic Xander, you should know this by now. When practicing it there must always be a clear mind and a clear purpose, especially for spells that affect people’s personalities.”

“Yes, I would have to agree, I don’t think there is anything random about these spells. The ones that have been affected may not know each other, but we cannot be sure that they don’t know our mystery witch.” Giles muttered.

He began flicking through the pages of the book, and you watched him.

You briefly scanned the pages, seeing if there was anything you recognised, but none of it seemed relevant to what was happening.

Reaching over him, you took the book and looked at the cover before you handed it back and pushed yourself from where you were leaning.

“I might have something at my apartment.”

“Oh, can I come? I love your books.” Willow smiled.

“Yeah of course, come on.”

Willow giggled a little and she jumped up to run after you as you made your way out to your car.

Getting your your apartment you looked along the walls that were lined with shelf after shelf of old and ancient books.

“We’re looking for a spell book which contains any reversal spell, then we’ll go from there.”

Willow walked over to a shelf while you went to the opposite end of the room.

“Do you think I could borrow some of these books one day? I’d love to try some of the spells.”

“If you want then yeah, I’ll start you with the ones that are harmless, all my dangerous books are safely locked away.”

You were at it for a few hours and you sighed, running a hand through your hair before sitting on the arm of your chair.

Willow was surrounded by books, and she looked up at you when the phone rang.

Getting up you picked it up.

“Hello?”

“Somethings wrong with Giles! His house!”

Buffy hung up and you sprung to your feet.

“Grab your books, somethings happened to Giles!”

You rushed back, and burst through the door, making a beeline straight for the librarian who was laying on his couch.

“What happened?”

“We don’t know, one minute he’s talking to us the next he’s passed out on the floor.” Xander said.

You nodded, walking around the couch you crouched down, gently shaking him.

“Giles?” You asked.

He grumbled a little bit didn’t sit up or open his eyes, so you shook him again, this time a little harder.

“Giles? Are you alright?”

He swatted your hand, and you held it, rubbing the stinging sensation away.

“Don’t touch me…”

He slowly sat up, looking around at you and you couldn’t tell if he recognised the four of you or not, or if he did there was something different.

He didn’t look as happy or a soft as he usually did when he was with you all, he looked tense, annoyed, and angry.

“You three wait outside.” You said.

They didn’t argue, they left and you stood up, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Giles what happened?”

“You and… and your magic!”

You blinked a few times in confusion.

“What?”

“You’ve been using magic, haven’t you? Making people like you with magic?” He snapped.

“Giles what the hell are you talking about? You know I only practice the dark arts when absolutely necessary, you know what happens when I use it.”

He shook his head and stood up, and you backed away to give him his space.

He ran his hand through his hair and muttered to himself as he paced back and forth.

He was stressed, and you couldn’t tell if it was the spell that was affecting him or if it were something else.

“I.. I was right when I said we should’ve stayed away from you…”

Your face fell.

Now that hurt, it hurt deeply, because that was your biggest fear, the fear of people being scared of you because of what you could do. The fear that people would just one day up and leave.

You clenched your jaw a little and took a small breath.

“Giles listen to me the witch has got to you, she’s trying to make sure we can’t stop her.”

He glared at you, and grabbed his crossbow, aiming it right at you and you quickly raised your hands, backing away to the front door.

“If.. if you’ve hurt them…” he warned lowly.

“You have my word I haven’t laid a hand in them they’re outside, I just want to talk.”

He shook his head.

“Get out. Get out and never come back here, never go anywhere near any of us again.”

There wasn’t a hint of emotion in his voice, just stone cold threats.

“She never would have been like you.. she.. she was compassionate.. she was good… you’re not her.. you never will be…”

You nodded your head, slowly backing up a few more steps and you glanced to the door behind you before looking at him.

“You’re right. I’ll never be Jenny.”

You shuffled to the side, slowly going to pick up the jacket that you always left at his just in case you needed it.

Then you carried on backing towards the door.

“I’ll go, I won’t come back.”

“If I see you again I.. I swear I’ll.. I’ll hurt you.” He mumbled.

“I won’t.”

“You’re cursed.. a.. a.. a demon…”

You turned around and left, closing the door behind you, and you pulled your jacket on as you turned to the teenager who were waiting.

They all looked at you anxiously and you offered them all a gentle smile.

“He didn’t mean it..” Buffy whispered.

“Forget about it, it doesn’t matter right now. I need you three to stay with him, if he flips on you leave straight away don’t fight him.”

“What will you do?” Xander asked.

“I’ll figure this out, just watch him, keep him safe. We know the spell works quick, I have maybe a few days before he looses all sense of self.”

Willow stepped forward.

“I’ll come with you, I can help.”

“No.”

You turned to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a small squeeze.

“No, I need you to stay here and keep me in the loop, I’ll give you the counter spell. It should also give us the location of the witch, she’ll come out of hiding when she knows her spells are broken.”

Willow nodded and they all looked at you sadly.

“You’ll come back?” Xander asked.

You just smiled and stuffed your hands into your pockets as you made your way back to your car to go home.

Your hands trembled, and you fought tears in your eyes as you walked through your door and straight to the back of the apartment.

Muttering a spell, another door showed, and you opened it to reveal a larger room and walked in, letting the door shut behind you.

You didn’t have time to cry over the words that had been said.

Sitting up the table, you began to flick through the books, doing hours and hours of research so you could find something to counter the spell.

Yes, the witch was strong, but you had stronger spells, and after endless hours of reading and drinking way to much coffee for one person you found it.

And you began to gather everything you needed, setting it all up.

You looked at it all, and you sat down, taking a deep breath.

Before you could start, your phone began to ring, and you pushed yourself up so you could go answer it.

“Yes?”

“He’s getting more agitated, Xander had to leave, we don’t know how long we can stay before Giles turns on us…” Buffy whispered.

“I’ve found a spell that can counter not just the one on him, but in everybody, I need you to be ready Buffy.”

“You can’t! Your curse won’t let you!”

“I’ll be fine Buffy, be ready. You or Willie wait by the phone, I’ll track the witch and tell you where she is after.”

Buffy tried to protest, but you hung up and walked back to your spot to sit down.

Rolling up your sleeves, you looked at the cursed mark on your arm, and you rang your hand over it.

“Just give me some time to fix this.. to save them.. to save him..” you mumbled.

With that, you closed your eyes and began to chant.

The pain was instant, immediate, the searing burn that started with the cursed mark, and as you carried on chanting it carried on spreading.

You clenched your teeth through the pain and carried on, finishing one chant and you jumped straight into another.

The pain got worse, and you said the final word, gasping for breath, and you stood on shaky legs, walking over to the map.

All but one part was burned out, and you stumbled to the phone, dialling the number that had just called you.

“Buffy…?” You mumbled.

“What happened? Are you okay?!”

“You.. you’re looking for… the old.. factory..”

“Thank you, we’ll come over straight after and Giles seems to be-“

You didn’t wait for her to finish her sentence, you just hung up, dropping to your knees as you curled into a ball, tears streaming down your face.

The pain was intense, you felt like you were on fire on the inside out. Your head felt like a thousand anvils had been dropped on it, and you could feel the blood running from your nose.

You had no choice but to give into the pain, unable to fight it and you passed out curled into a ball.

Giles shook his head, and he looked around his home where a few things had been thrown, and Willow was stood behind Buffy who looked ready to attack.

“What.. what happened?” He asked.

“The witch got to you, we broke the spell and we know where she is.” Buffy said.

“Willow broke the spell? That’s very powerful magic.”

Willow shook her head and stepped from behind her friend now that she could see Giles was back to his old self.

She glanced at Buffy who nodded her head and turned back to Giles who began to pick things up and put them away.

“I didn’t..”

Giles furrowed his brows a little and paused what he was doing to look at her.

“(Y/N) did…”

The books in his hands fell.

“The.. the curse… what about the curse..?” He whispered.

The two girls shook their heads.

“We don’t know, she didn’t even give us a chance to protest, she did the spell, called to say it was done and hung up.” Buffy said.

“I’ll go, find the witch!”

Giles grabbed his jacket and car keys and he rushed to your apartment, but the closer he got the more painful his head became.

Snippets of memory came back to him as he walked up to your door, and he began to remember everything from when he was affected by the spell.

Giles knocked on the door and waited for a response.

“(Y/N) are you home?” He called.

He waited a moment before reaching above the doorway for the spare key, and he unlocked your door.

“It’s just me.. I.. I’m coming in!” He called out.

Closing the door, he set the key aside and slowly began to look around for any sign of you.

“(Y/N)…?”

Giles checked every room, looked behind every door he could see, and as he was making his way back to the living room he passed a wall and stopped.

Out the corner of his eye he could see the door, but when he looked at it head on he couldn’t.

So, with his head turned away, he reached out in the hopes the door was real and he wasn’t just making a fool out of himself trying to find a door that wasn’t there.

He felt to cold metal, and he pushed it open, slowly stepping inside and he looked around carefully for anything.

“Hello?” He called out.

He heard a noise, and it put him on edge as he slowly moved around.

Walking around the desk, he saw you on the floor near a table where the phone was.

“(Y/N)!”

He rushed over and dropped to your side, carefully reaching out and he pulled back as you screamed in pain.

“I.. I’m so sorry..”

Tears fell from his eyes, and his hands trembled as they hovered over you, absolutely terrified that if he touched you it would only hurt you more.

He could see the blood on the floor, and the blistering of your skin around your cursed mark, his tears fell on your face.

“I.. I.. don’t.. I can’t…”

He couldn’t form a sentence.

Giles didn’t know what to do, he didn’t know how to help you, how to stop your pain and he only blamed himself for it.

Because if he hadn’t of chased you off, maybe you wouldn’t have done the spell, you’d be okay, even if he wasn’t himself at the time he just could bare the fact you did this to help him even after what he said.

Even after he compared you to the woman he cared about before you, and called you the one thing you hated being called the most.

He pulled his jacket off and he carefully draped it over you, his hand smoothing over your hair as he repeated his quiet apology.

For once, Giles was lost.

He didn’t know what to do

[disco-girl]

tight space or now or never kiss for the gm prompts? :O

Ok sorry this took so long I may have got a bit carried away…

From this list of prompts/tropes

Small spaces

Willow patted Gus’ shoulder empathetically. “Oh Gus, I’m sure it wasn’t that bad. If you just talk to each other—

“Absolutely not. He needs to apologize to me first.”

“What even started the fight?” Luz asked

“I….don’t know actually. But it doesn’t matter! Matt was still in the wrong and I’m not talking to him,” Gus huffed, crossing his arms.

Willow and Luz looked at each other with concern. It had been a week since The Fight and Gus was clearly not “fine” as he had continued to assure them. He had barely left his room all week and Perry had called them, concerned about his son slipping into a bout of depression. Even a Cosmic Frontier marathon with Hunter didn’t seem to cheer him up.

“We know it’s difficult, Gus. When Hunter and I get into a fight we sometimes say a lot of things that we don’t mean. That’s why it’s important to talk it out,” Willow offered.

“Yeah, same with me and Amity. Relationships are hard but they’re worth it, you just have to put in the effort,” Luz said.

“But that’s different,” Gus whined, “you guys are couples. Matt and I are just friends.”

Luz and Willow shared a brief, discreet expression of skepticism. Luz leaned over to whisper into Willow’s ear: “I have an idea.”

“Luz, I don’t understand. Why am I hiding in the closet again?”

Luz clicked her tongue. “Gus, Gus, Gus! What did I tell you? It’s all part of the game.”

“I don’t remember ever hearing about this game when we were in the human realm.”

“Well it’s…new. Like hide and seek, only better! Now remember, stay here and keep your eyes closed until I tell you to open them.” Luz carefully shut the door to the closet with Gus still inside. Then she sent a quick message to Willow who was waiting outside with Matt.

“Oh! They’re ready for us,” Willow announced.

Matt only frowned. “I still think this is stupid. Why can’t he just hext me or come to my house?”

“He wanted to talk to you in person and he thought the Owl House would be the best place. You should just be glad that Gus wants to make amends. Though he might change his mind with that attitude.”

Matt sighed. “Fine, let’s go.”

Willow led him through the house to the same closet that Gus was “hiding” in.

“He’s in here,” she said.

“Wait isn’t that a clo—aaaahh!” Matt yelled as Willow pushed him inside and closed the door, locking it from the outside.

Luz came out from her hiding spot to give the other girl a high five. “We did it!”

“Why does Eda have a closet that locks from the outside anyway?” Willow asked.

“I…didn’t want to ask too many questions.”

Gus, true to his word, had kept his eyes shut for what seemed like an eternity. That is, until he heard a yelp and something came crashing into him.

“Mattholomule?!”

Matt recoiled in horror, pulling himself off of the younger witch. “Ew, get off of me!”

“You’re the one who threw yourself at me.”

“I did not! Willow pushed me.”

“She did what?”

“Never mind, let’s just get out of here.” Matt went to try the door knob to no avail. Then he started banging on the door yelling for help but Gus already had put it together.

“They’re not going to let us out,” he said, “might as well give it up.”

“And stay here with you? Yeah right. Unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Unless you apologize for what you did.”

“I didn’t do anything, you jerk! You’re the one who should apologize.”

“Oh yeah? For what?”

When Gus didn’t answer, Matt slid down against the door and hugged his knees to his chest.

“You always do this,” he mumbled.

“What?”

“You only care about yourself. Not about how I feel.”

“That’s not true.”

“It seems like it. That’s why—ugh, never mind, this is stupid.”

Gus scooted closer. “What is it?” All the bitterness was gone from his voice, replaced by genuine concern.

“Just…I feel like I can’t tell you things.”

“What kind of things?” Gus was right in front of him now. Matt bit his lip and his eyes flicked upward to meet his friend’s. It was cute and it made the younger witch’s heart swell.

“…w-well…”

Gus’ fingers ghosted over Matt’s briefly and then suddenly his breath was on his cheek, warm and inviting and his eyes were on him, wordlessly asking the question that hovered over them. Then the younger witch’s lips were on his, soft and unsure, but it wasn’t long before Matt pulled him in closer. They didn’t know how much time passed, too caught up in the euphoria of finally expressing the thoughts and feelings that they had bottled up for so long. They were still attached at the face when Willow opened the door.

“Did they make up?” Luz asked.

“Oh yeah,” Willow said, “they definitely made up.”

[mdhwrites]

Do you agree with the idea that Luz is a people pleaser? Or is it just something the fandom made up to make her seem more likable/relateble/interesting with no real basis in canon?

GOD NO! But that's not necessarily a bad thing as the protagonist archtype she's hailing from normally isn't. The problem comes from the fact that she is so ANTI people pleasing that it clashes with her backstory, rare moments in the show and she also just NEVER LEARNS ANYTHING.

This is also a problem for Randy Cunningham: Ninth Grade Ninja. Him and his best friend make a declaration at the start of the year to be popular. They don't care if they're liked or disliked, the goal is for EVERYONE to know their name. This fuels a bunch of teenage shenanigans that are meant to impress people or make them look cool by the definitions they have in their brains rather than what reality is.

Cookie from Ned's Declassified did stuff like this a lot, Danny and Tucker from Danny Phantom are also prime examples of it. It is just a teenage protagonist archtype for them to be trying to live out a fantasy of being special when the reality is that they're just nice nerds who should be happy being who they are. This is Luz. Period.

And there's two sides of this archtype. The first is the FIRST THING WE KNOW ABOUT HER. They will do things to stand out from a crowd because they think it's cool regardless of if it's right. We are literally shown FOUR instances of this back to back from her book report to the montage of her fuck ups. Each time, she is actively looking at what others are doing and going "Nah. Hold my beer and watch this." I mean... She brought fucking SPIDERS to school and looked at best confused as to why everyone ran off screaming and that's not talking about the play she RUINED.

This is then reinforced in Episode 2 when she tells King and Eda to go suck eggs because she is totes a chosen one. She does save them at the end which brings the other half of this archtype when it comes to their fuck ups. When they fuck up, they fix it, commonly so as to not get people killed but also to make sure that either people in general or those closest to them don't HATE THEM. Now, that might sound like a people pleaser... But it's not. It's seeking forgiveness, not permission. I mean in S1 alone you have her explicitly ignoring Willow's wishes in both Understanding Willow and Wing it Like Witches so that she can have her fun before then someone gets hurt or upset and fixing it in someway.

As a note: The moment you realize that SO MUCH of Luz's character is motivated by tropes she likes or be special, a lot of actions she takes take on way worse connotations. A perfect example of this is when she declares in Lost in Language that she'll be friends with Amity come hell or high water... A minute later she's fucking around with Amity's siblings who Amity has shown clear disdain for. Or you can go with Adventure in the Elements where despite her trying to get along with Amity and impress her, she STEALS FROM HER so that she can get the instant gratification of casting magic. And this sort of recontextualization is ALL over the first season especially of Luz just doing bat shit crazy things because it lets her be cool and she never really learns to stop, even PROUDLY stating in Reaching Out that she'll always choose the option that leads to the most chaos. The most adventure, the most tropes. A season and a half in and instead of growing at all, she is still defiantly against reality.

This is also all inherently AGAINST being a people pleaser. A people pleaser wants everyone to LIKE them. Sprig spends half an episode being a people pleaser like this, even if I don't think it's quite who he is. What Luz is after is just to make sure people don't hate her. At best, she doesn't want people to actively dislike her but she mostly cares about if you remember her name. If she left an impression bigger than anyone else.

But I don't blame the fandom for making her a people pleaser. All of what I've said is based on her actions. By her words, she's meant to be someone who has had to hold back who she is. Who has hid from the world so as to be liked by society. Being a people pleaser IS a part of that archtype and that's where we get "Oh no teenagers" and "I'm gonna get made fun of again" and... That's about it. It's actually why those lines annoy me so much because they happen over a season into the show and she has NEVER held back on who she is for even half a second during that ENTIRE TIME. Even Adventure in Elements isn't about pleasing others, it's about not being embarrassed. Being brought low.

But those are literally the ONLY moments in the entire series where she gives a fuck. The Collector and Belos angst? It's not about how no one will like her anymore, it's that they'll hate her because it needs to be that drastic for her to care. It also makes her less of the paragon hero that she sees herself as. And that's laughable because she only has like TWO moments in the entire series where she actively seeks out a way to help someone without them asking. The cure for Eda's curse at the end of S1, where she's trying not to have Eda die in return for watching over her which is just kind of basic kindness and going after King's stuffed rabbit in Titan Where Art Thou. At that point though, the show claims they're siblings so it's just being kind to your family... You know, right before she effectively tells Eda to go rot because she won't let her go fight Belos.

All the while, she is learning NOTHING. The teenage dumbass archtype is GREAT as a main character because it allows so much room for growth. It's part of why Anne is such a good protagonist because while she embraces the lazy side of it more than trying to appear special, she is still a teenage dumbass. As such, S1 spends time teaching her morals and making her grow up so she can be better.

Luz never grows up. Then again, she'd either have to actually face consequences for her actions or care more deeply about others for that to happen. That isn't going to happen though, not when she, and everyone around her, are solely focused on letting her live the isekai fantasy that she's always wanted.

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I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead, If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

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[pandoratheprocrasticreator]

just remembered this post by @smokestarrules again and it’s making me think about the implications for luz in the rest of s3.

like yeah! she puts up a front that she’s okay in front of everyone. that if she isn’t happy, necessarily, then at least she’s just upset over the same stuff her friends are upset about. ie being trapped in the human world and missing their families. if she tells amity, willow, and gus that she feels at fault for the whole belos thing or getting them trapped in the human world, then she knows they’ll tell her that isn’t the case and that isn’t what she wants to hear. same with camila she wants her mom to be angrier at her about leaving home.

hunter has never blamed luz for the belos thing. in fact, if he heard luz and phillip’s conversation in hollow mind, he probably knew luz was tricked the whole time. but the way he grew up, his understanding of “fault” is that even if something isn’t directly your fault, that doesn’t matter if you end up having to make up for it. he’s been blamed for so much stuff that wasn’t his fault in the past, that he doesn’t bat an eye when luz blames herself helping belos. at the beginning of thanks to them, he tries to make her feel better by acknowledging her guilt, but he didn’t find it necessary to tell luz that it wasn’t actually her fault.

and luz takes this as hunter agreeing with her that she SHOULD feel guilty about belos. this in addition to hunter’s trust in her, both of them knowing each other’s secrets and all, makes luz gravitate towards talking to hunter more. because hunter, while he means well, will ABSOLUTELY feed into luz’s guilt, since he doesn’t understand why you shouldn’t do that. (also if luz does feel guilty about getting her friends trapped in the human world she would feel the least bad about hunter. bc he technically doesn’t have anything left in the boiling isles to return to anyway)

but by the end of the episode, hunter’s realized that he deserves better than what belos tells him. they all deserve better. just because belos tried to drive a wedge between luz and her friends by blaming her for helping him, doesn’t mean luz was actually to blame. and now hunter knows to refute that. but even though luz gets a pep talk from him, amity, and her mother, i doubt she’s internalized the sentiment that being tricked by belos doesn’t make her complicit in his crimes. and if she did, based on her track record, i don’t think she’s internalized the fact that no, her mistakes aren’t magically worse than everyone else’s and arent something she needs to put herself in danger to fix.

in fact, now luz is probably feeling guilty about hunter’s whole possession thing. so she might start avoiding talking to him about feelings out of guilt like she has been with her other friends and her mom. on top of that, hunter’s probably going to stop agreeing with luz when she self deprecates. he’ll do what the others do and tell her she’s a Good Person Actually and not everything is her fault, which is the LAST thing luz wants to hear. and luz already doesn’t feel comfortable talking about this stuff to her other friends and family. without hunter, i think luz will probably just bottle up all her feelings for the next two episodes.

and like. when luz thinks she’s responsible for bad things happening to someone she loves, she is SO DOWN to put herself in danger or distress to “help.” she breaks into the conformatorium and fights belos because she thinks it was “her fault” eda was being petrified. she tries to fight a selkiedomous to make up for eda losing her magic. she almost gets blasted to bits by the blights to get willow and gus enrolled in hexside again. she upset her mom by leaving so she decides to stay in the human world forever. she purposely gets herself captured and brought to belos with no plan because she thinks she’s the reason he’s like this today. and given how luz already decided to stay in the human realm, and how we never hear what she planned to do with her palisman if that happens, i have some ideas on how she could “help” hunter with losing flapjack and all of them are sad.

and don’t forget king. he’s with the collector, who luz helped belos find, and was also at the head in the first place because they were coming to rescue her. luz is going to think king being captured by the collector is ENTIRELY her fault. luz is going to tackle the collector and get marcy wu’d. and she isn’t going to tell any of her friends and family ANYTHING because they’ll try to say stuff like “don’t put yourself in danger luz” and “we care about your as our friend/daughter/sister/girlfriend and would be sad if you got hurt luz” and “your mistakes are human and dont make you irredeemable luz” and she Will Not Want To Hear It.