#whoo busy week

[mey-rin-is-fabulous]

Okay as anyone who’s been around for any amount of time since 2021 knows I have colitis. And I’m gonna run through everything that happened before and after my diagnosis. Under a read more to save your dashes.

I first started having problems after easter 2014. Constant diarrhea and constipation and it was switching between the two constantly. It started off by me only having bowel movements every three days and I found my bathroom usage got worse after either eating high fiber foods or pizza. And as I kept going through highschool it got worse and worse, I had a hard time going to school and staying in class, my guts were constantly churning and accidents were not uncommon. All throughout this I had no idea what I was experiencing was a bowel disease, I just figured it’d clear up eventually. 

My mom and me thought it was a diet thing, so we tried adding more electrolytes, these blueberry smoothies and I tried to add yogurt. None of it helped. So now we’re coming up to late 2018 the end of my highschool career and start of my failed college career. I went to my doctor, he sent me to a specialist. I filled out a form, said specialist told me to just take metamucil, I thought that was the end of it. It wasn’t the metamucil did nothing.

2019 I was still experiencing problems. Went back to my doctor, said hey I think this specific type of food is setting this off. My doctor agrees that I should cut it out. I find out on my own somewhere along all of this about the gluten free diet and celiac disease. So I decide to go gluten free, it helps.

2020 since our family doctor retired me and my mom go see a satellite doctor, a small little cubicle in our local pharmacy with a nurse practitioner and the doctor on video call. I tell him about the problems I’ve been experiencing and he writes up a recommendation to send to a specialist.

Late 2021 I receive a call from said specialist, I have been scheduled for a colonoscopy early 2022. Colonoscopy gets pushed back a month from late January to early February. I go for my colonoscopy and after I am told that I have ulcerative colitis. I was prescribed an enema for like 2 weeks and mezavant(big pills we started at like 4 daily) which was constant. After that I had to get a TB test to make sure nothing would affect any current or future medications. Went back in March for a sigmoid( get yourself knocked out never do it while awake.) We scheduled another sigmoid for May, this time I would be knocked out for it, things were looking better. Also throughout this whole time, I was getting bloodwork off and on. Went into my doc’s office in September and my levels were looking good but around that time I accidentally had non GF spaghetti. After September things got rough for me again.

Now in early 2023, I had my first sigmoid of the year in April. My doc told me instead of ulcerative colitis it was looking more like chron’s colitis. I was told to stop taking my mezavant and was instead prescribed a steroidal medication as well as calcium tablets and vitamin d tabs. I was also prescribed another steroidal medication that required constant bloodwork. About a week or two on the new meds I was told to stop taking the new steroidal meds because my liver enzymes were up. Makes sense because I was extremely sick and after I stopped taking the medication I started feeling better. Saw my doc again end of June so now we’re in July and I’m getting a chest x-ray done this Friday and if everything’s good probably starting my new medication treatment after. the medication is delivered through IV but can be given through a needle injection after, it’s called entyvio.

[swordy-da-goat]

whoo hoo! Artfight!

As much as I am excited, I can’t participate much in the first week due to how busy I’m going to be.

[thelampisaflashlight]

Birthday headcanons for the ghouls, because I'm aging soon and feeling some kind of way about it as always. Let's go.

-Dew spends his birthday with his human family, meaning the rest of the pack rarely see him on his actual birthday, and he doesn't really like having others fuss over him, but he is secretly devastated when people forget.

His birthday landed on a sort of busy/hectic day one year, and he wasn't able to go home to see his family either, so everyone forgot about it in the chaos, and, whoo boy, is it obvious that Dew has never fully gotten over that incident.

He never got vocally upset about it, but when they tried to celebrate his birthday a couple days later he walked out of the surprise party they threw for him and that certainly said a lot about how he felt about things.

-Swiss, like Dew, celebrates his birthday with his human family, but he has a "birthday week" so he can celebrate with his friends and his family, and is generally a lot more excited about his birthday than Dew is about his.

He's not really bothered if someone forgets, unless it's someone he's really close to, then he might be a little disappointed, but it doesn't hit him as hard as others.

Posts an insane amount of pictures of himself with his friends/family while he's partying with them.

-Rain treats his birthday like any other day; He likes the gifts and something sweet to eat, but, other than that, he usually just spends the day in bed watching movies or running errands.

However, once night falls, that guy is gonna go on a mission to the local seafood place that does an unlimited birthday buffet and eat a regrettable amount of shrimp.

-Cumulus celebrates her summoning day instead of her birthday, and pretty much does the same thing every year; Order a cheesecake assortment, watch Jurassic Park, and commit at least one crime.

The "crime" is always different, but as long as it doesn't cost the ministry money or result in jail time, no one bats an eyelash.

-Cirrus 100% avoids celebrating her birthday/summoning day, and will hiss if anyone asks how old she's turning or if she wants anything special; Despite being a performer, she hates being the center of attention like that, and doesn't like acknowledging the passage of time.

Spends the day in her room and only comes out to eat.

Once bit someone for saying, "Happy birthday!" to her.

-Aether celebrates his summoning day by making "poor decisions" that result in "serious consequences" such as waking up in the chapel and not knowing where his shoe went or why he's wearing one of Cirrus' crop tops.

He doesn't really drink or anything, but his quintessence surges on his summoning day and he may or may not use that to get a "little" high.

A little very high.

Mountain found him in a tree once.

-Speaking of Mountain, he's a classic birthday boy; He just wants his cake and to be remembered/feel loved and then he's content.

He's very sentimental about the gifts he receives, and has kept every birthday card he's ever received.

And lastly;

-Aurora and Aeon have the same summoning day, and like the idea of celebrating it together as a joint party; The bakery that made their "Vampire Barbie" cake had a lot of questions, none of which were answered by Copia adding a note to the order that, "The birthday boy would like Barbie to have hot pink blood on her fangs with an extra sprinkling of edible glitter, however, the birthday girl would like it if 'blood' poured out of the cake itself when cut open, and that gummy organs spilled out with it. Please and thank you."

The bakery has to wonder how Copia's "children" are being raised.

[cokou]

Hey! Can you write Sabo x reader? He is so gentleman and cute

❝ SWEETEST ❞

[Sabo x Reader] [サボ×リーダー]

ᴴᵒʷ ᵃᵇᵒᵘᵗ ˢᵒᵐᵉ ᵐᵘˢᶦᶜ, ᵈᵉᵃʳ ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ?

summary* Spending time with your most beloved person. warnings* Fluff * Most parts are flashbacks! note ✉* ~ "WE ALL LOVE SABO" We say in unison♥ // Do not transfer or translate, this is my only account (exp. AO3), will not be crossposted anywhere.// Masterlist

"(Name)!" Sabo ran towards you and gave you one of the tightest hug ever.

Sabo had been gone for almost a month, during those times, you two weren't too connected with each other. He only had given you a baby den-den Mushi to keep in touch with each other, however, the only moments he had called you through the den-den Mushi was his free time. Which, almost rarely happens at all.

Before leaving through the ship with Dragon and the others, he made sure to treat you as much as he can, the reason for it was to make it up to all the days he'll be gone by your side. All kinds of treatment had been done to you for a full week, ranging to all the places you've always wanted to visit with him, to all sorts of gifts you'd been eyeing whenever you pass by a shop.

You had won the lottery with Sabo, he was the most gentle and the most loving person ever. Of course, all his 'surprise' dates would likely fail to be a surprise, he plans it with Koala giving him suggestions, and Koala ending up telling you everything. He never gets mad eitherway, nor irritated, he laughs it all off.

Back to the first time you two met, it was when he accidentally bumped to you on a busy village, he offered too much for an apology and ended up buying you dinner. You both kept in contact with each other after that incident.

Back to the present.

"Sabo! You're back!" You quickly return his hug as he spun you around like a princess. It was nice to have him back in your arms once again.

"How've you been (N/N)?" Sabo asked as he caresses your cheeks, planting a small kiss on them.

"Been missing you a lot!" You grin as he held your hands. "It was quite a surprise that you came home today, i never would've known until one of my neighbors told me that a ship was docked."

"Because — It is intended to be a surprise!"

The walk back from the house you two lived in was short, or so you think. The time passes by with Sabo happens to be so much faster, upon talking to each other, it felt like the world advanced into a faster orbital rate.

"Do you have plans for today (N/N)?"

"I cancelled all of them last minute since you're back, i wanted to spend time with you."

"Whoo.. that's good, i was— planning to take you out today. " Sabo smilled.

"Well i happily agree! I'll change clothes in a few minutes!" You unlock the door of the house and you two stepped in, almost immediately being greeted by the smell of sweet pastries and a hint of honeydew in the air. You walk towards your room, leaving Sabo by the living room.

Sabo wanders around the familiar surroundings, hoping to find something new. Looking at photographies of you two set on the wall, looking at the calming carved designs up on the wall. His nose picks up the familiar scent of your perfume.

"I'm back! Sorry for the wait!" You appeared in front of him, wearing your most beautiful clothing. Sabo swore that everytime he spends time with you, his love only grows so much more. He was in awe with your appearance, top to bottom, and head to toes.

"I almost forgot how beautiful you are inside and outside (N/N)." He looks at you with the widest smile ever.

"You're the Sweetest Sabo! You know I love you so much." You blush at his remarks,

"C'mon, let me lead the way for you." Sabo takes your hand and leads you outside the house.

—

You both reach the destination that Sabo led you to. It wasn't grand and anything, instead it was a flower field, filled with all types of flowers that was such a calming and soothing color, and mention the sunset as well. It lits up the place so much, it felt like the place was set to be in heaven and above.

You pick up a small tulip and held it on your hands as you place your head at Sabo's shoulder, watching the sunset together. Sabo seemed awfully quiet today, fidgety as well.

"Well...do you enjoy it?" Sabo asks.

"Of course! Especially because, I'm with you." You smile.

"I'm sorry for being so awfully quiet today."

"It doesn't matter Sabo! It's fine, we all have our reasons. I'm already happy just by being with you. "

" Turn around Princess."

...Huh? You do as he said, why would he ask you to turn around? You heard plastic crisping behind you and Sabo breathing heavily.

"Okay...Uh..— turn towards me (Name)."

You turn towards him, hoping for silence and nothing but a little prank. Instead, you got—

...

..

.

"Will you marry me, (Name)?" Sabo kneels on one knee, holding a ring and a bouquet of flowers on the other hand.

..."YES!" Sabo happily inserts the ring into your ring finger, standing up and finally hugging you tightly.

"I love you so much (Name), i love you so much." He muttered, as tears of joy fell on his cheeks.

©Cokou 2024, all works belong to me.

[piratecaptainscaptainpirates]

A Guide for Writing Ed's Top Surgery!

I'm getting my top surgery on July 3 (whoo!!!) and I'm using this as an opportunity to gather info for fic purposes. I love writing Ed as a trans man, and I love everyone else who writes and draws him as trans, so I wanted to share the notes I'm taking to help others who want to draw or write Ed's top surgery experiences! I'll update this as we go in sections (pre-op, the surgery itself, and initial recovery).

This is all just my experience with getting a double-incision with free nipple grafts surgery, and it's from a US perspective. Your mileage may vary and this definitely isn't meant as a medical guide. If you're having your own top surgery listen to your surgeon, not me.

Pre-op guide below the cut!

In the months before his surgery:

Getting insurance approval for top surgery in the US, depending on where you live, can be incredibly frustrating, dehumanizing, and painful. Ed will need at least one letter from a therapist or other mental health provider, and he'll probably feel very frustrated about being treated like a child who is unable to make his own medical decisions. I had several insurance denials, needed to switch insurance companies (currently having to settle for one that's more expensive in every other way but will at least approve this surgery), and needed three (fucking 3!!) letters from mental health professionals to get my approval. Hard to overstate how much it sucked and how much it makes you feel like the people writing state and insurance laws see you as a stupid child. Ed will very likely have Lingering Issues about this experience.

Ed will need an initial consultation to confirm he's a good candidate for surgery. Mine was quick and easy!

Once he gets his approval, or once he decides to pay out-of-pocket, he'll get his surgery date! Depending on his clinic, this could be years away or it could be as soon as a couple months out, so anything is realistic for your story. You could lean into the joy of a date that's sooner than he'd expected or he could be frustrated by the whole process grinding to a halt.

His pre-op appointment:

The pre-op appointment is when Ed will meet his surgeon and get the details for his surgery date. Mine was almost two weeks before my surgery. He'll also receive packets of information and his post-op check-up dates. If he smokes, he should be tobacco-free by this date.

This is when Ed and Stede will be able to ask any last-minute questions. Ed can ask here if the surgeon will be willing to give him heart-shaped nipples, but they'll probably say no

This appointment is also when Ed will be struck by the reality of having post-operative drains and not being able to shower for a week. This will be deeply upsetting for him

Ed will probably be very nervous for this appointment (what if something goes wrong and he can't get his surgery?) but he'll be relieved and comforted by the whole experience. The mood in the whole plastic surgery center, for me, was downright fucking jubilant, all the nurses who saw my name on the chart were congratulating me and telling me how happy they were for me! This WILL make Ed cry

The week before his surgery:

It begins to sink in that Ed is about to have major surgery. He's excited, of course, but he'll be a little nervous too! Stede will need to give him lots of cuddles and promise to take good care of him

They'll need to make lots of Ed's favorite comfort foods to freeze so he has something to eat when he can't raise his arms well enough to cook

Ed should practice doing things without lifting his arms above his shoulders. He'll have a great time stomping around and pretending to be a dinosaur

He'll want to prepare a selection of comfy clothes he can wear without raising his arms. Stede's robes will be perfect

The biggest struggle for Ed during his recovery will be the boredom. Stede should help him build up a stock of video games, books, Lego sets, sketchbooks, and model building kits to keep his hands and brain busy!

They should prepare Ed's sickbed. He might be more comfortable sleeping upright on the couch or in an armchair propped up by pillows. He'll have to see how he feels after surgery and what positions are most comfortable, so getting both the couch and their bed ready is a good idea!

At some hospitals, including mine, you won't know what time to arrive at the hospital for your surgery until the day before, when they'll call you to let you know (they do this based on surgery room flow to ensure you arrive at the right time). Ed will find this stressful; Stede will HATE it.

Ed may need to shower with a special antiseptic skin wash the night before and the morning of his surgery. He will not enjoy having to get up at the asscrack of dawn to shower

The night before Ed's surgery, he and Stede should pack bags, just in case. Top surgery is an outpatient procedure, but just in case anything goes wrong and Ed has to stay overnight, it's good to be prepared. A change of comfy clothes, a book, and Ed's Nintendo Switch are good things to pack. Ed will also love taking a stuffed animal to keep him company after Stede can't go any further with him (and he can use the plushie to cushion the seatbelt on the car ride home).

Ed's super excited and everything's set for him! Good luck, Ed! 🥳

[diamondzoey]

Here’s some knight squad incorrect quotes

Galen : Shh, here comes Tajdar!

Eris : Quick, Mathew, start talking about boring nerd stuff!

Mathew: You know, nerd culture is mainstream now, so when you use the word “nerd” derogatorily, it means you’re the one that’s out of the zeitgeist.

Eris : Yes, that’s perfect. Just like that.

——————————————————————————

Aster: Evren , I want a bedtime story!

Evren : I’m busy, Aster. I’ll tell you one tomorrow.

Aster: If you don’t tell me a story, I won’t go to bed!

Evren : Once upon a time, there was a person named Aster, who always wanted things their way. One day, their friends got sick of it and locked them in the basement for the rest of their life. Everyone else lived happily ever after. The end.

Aster: I don’t like these stories with morals.

——————————————————————————

Percival: You know, it’s fine to admit you were wrong.

Lux: *Sipping their drink after accidentally adding salt* I just like the way it tastes.

——————————————————————————

Tajdar: How did none of you hear what I just said?!

Percival: I've been zoned out for the past two and a half hours.

Aster: I got distracted halfway through.

Ophila: Ignoring you was a conscious decision.

——————————————————————————

William: Yesterday, I watched Percival try to eat a decorative rock from Evren 's potted plant. Ophila caught them, and told them they can't eat rocks. Percival started whining something about no food being in the house before walking away.

——————————————————————————

Eris : I have an idea.

Aster: A good idea?

Eris : Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

——————————————————————————

Actor!Mathew: Question, how difficult would it be to bowl in a bee suit?

Actor!William: Not that hard, I don't think, as long as you can move.

Actor!Galen: I'd assume as hard as it is to bowl in a maid outfit.

Actor!Galen: Wouldn't be any harder, but you'd get some WEIRD looks.

Actor!Evren: Are. Are you speaking from experience.

Actor!Galen: No!

Actor!Galen:

Actor!Galen: ....Maybe.

——————————————————————————

Galen : *dies*

Tajdar: Timer starts now! When are they coming back? I say two months!

Mathew: Bullshit. One month.

Ophila: Nah, half a month.

Aster, sobbing: WHAT ARE YOU DOING? GALEN JUST DIED!

Lux, scratching chin in thought: One week.

——————————————————————————

Lucky: Hey there demons, It's me, ya boi.

Galen : Lucky, NO!

——————————————————————————

William to Lux: First rule of battle, little one... don’t ever let them know where you are.

Lucky, shooting out of frame: WHOO-HOO! I’M RIGHT HERE! I’M RIGHT HERE! YOU WANT SOME O’ ME?! YEAH YOU DO! COME ON! COME ON! AAAAAH! Whoo-hoo!

William: 'Course, there’re other schools of thought.

————————————————

A/n: sorry if some of the knights are out of character

Knights in this one

Aster- @stxph-artist

Ophila- @littlesiren79

Mathew- @lightdragon789

Eris- @piffany666

Lux- @aspenm00n

Lucky- @strayharmony943

Tajdar- @rozeliyawashereyall

Galen- @astralbulldragon13

William- @diamondzoey (me :3)

Evren- @not-5-rats

Percival- @tiefling-chaos

[write-and-buried]

Celestial Navigation

Part 8 - Waning Crescent

Summary; A little ahead of schedule...

Warnings; Drug use (marijuana and ecstasy), oral sex (f!receiving) squirting, sloppy sex, PinV sex, unprotected sex, cumplay, dirty talk

Authors Note; my endless love, thank you and joy to everyone whoo has supported this story and given it some love, it truly means the world to me, and I cannot say thank you enough. Special thanks go to @the-ginger-hedge-witch, @radiowallet, @astroboots & @jazzelsaur for being the best cheer-whores a writer could ask for <3

See you on the next one! <3

Series Masterlist || Main Masterlist

[prev]

Unemployment doesn’t suit you. It takes nine days of semi-seclusion in Dieter’s apartment before the itch of uselessness settles under your skin. The anxiety in your twitching limbs as you check your bank account, feeling only the briefest relief at your savings before the cycle starts again. 

You’re sure your career in financial consulting is finished. Your name tarnished across any of the blue-chip firms you once admired. There’s nothing left for you there, the bridges burned to ashes as you watch each former co-worker disappear from your Instagram following list. You rearrange his apartment, arrange it back, organise the canvases stacked like textbooks in the corner, scrape dried paint from the hardwood.  

You brave trips into the café, fearful of wide eyes as you settle yourself into the squashy mustard armchair and pull out your journal. It’s thick, bound now with a rubber band you suppose you stole from your former office, its pocket bulging with phone numbers and email addresses left in the weeks since, people asking for help.  

Susan is the first one brave enough. She spends half an hour inching towards you, her eyes on her phone as they dart anywhere but your face, the café still bustling and busy. The unexpected whirlwind of press has died off completely, but some of those who joined the fray have kept coming back, tempted in by the swans on Owen’s latte’s, or Molly’s peculiar brand of eye-rolling customer service.  

It's busy most days now, both of them leaving yawning with a shout up the stairs. Molly wants more employees, Dieter has made it clear he doesn’t care what she does, as long as he doesn’t have to look at a spreadsheet. Owen’s asking some friends.  

“C-can I buy you a cup of coffee?” Susan stammers, breaking you out of the neat lines in your journal, the scratching out of deadlines for projects you no longer remember the purpose of. 

“She doesn’t pay here” Molly shouts, tapping the sign with a menacing finger. 

“It’s fine Molly” you call back, half exasperated and half warmed by her protectiveness. This woman, middle aged, with her hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun, doesn’t look like the type to suddenly produce a poster of Dieter’s youth and beg for a signature.  

“I’m sorry” She says, twisting uncomfortably. “I don’t really know, I mean, I know, but I don’t know why I’m sitting down here. Um. I was wondering if you could help me?” 

“What with?” You ask, watching as she opens her phone, and begins scrolling through the huge amount of missed calls. 

“They just keep calling. And I can’t find the paperwork, but that’s not who I owe it to. I’m on a fixed income and I can’t afford to…” 

“Hang on. What is this for?” 

“My youngest, Tommy, when he was born, I had some complications after that required surgery. I, um, I didn’t pay the bill, I couldn’t afford it after insurance. I moved into the city, and they stopped calling, but now they’ve started up again” 

“How old is Tommy now?” 

“He’s eight. He’s in third grade and he just adores bugs. I can't get him out of the back yard usually, even though it's getting cold he still wants to watch what the beetles and the flies are doing, even though I’ve tried to explain they’re going to sleep for the winter” She smiles proudly as she talks about him. 

“And when did they start coming after you?” 

“Six months ago, the phone calls started” 

“Scumbags. Ok. Susan, here’s what has likely happened. Your medical debt got sold. The company you owed it to, bundled it together into a portfolio and then sold it on to someone else, who has probably sold it to someone else and so on until they try to collect it”  

“They can do that?” 

“Sure. Debt is an asset, its money owed so it’s a line in a spreadsheet. Have you made any payments on this debt since they started coming for you?” 

“No” 

“Ok, that’s really good news. The statute of limitations on this is like six years. So, you don’t owe them this. What we’re gonna do is write them a letter, asking them to prove you owe it. That will usually get them to back off, but if that doesn’t work, we’re going to tell them to only contact you in writing, if they’re going to proceed with litigation. I’m also going to give you the info for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau if they continue, and you can get in touch with them to let them know you’re being harassed by debtors for Zombie debt”  

“They have a name for this?” 

“There’s a name for everything, sure” You shrug, looking over the phone records. They’ve called Susan four times a day for six months, sometimes before seven am. “You shouldn’t have to pay this, I don’t think. But I’m also not a financial lawyer, so if you can, get in touch with one of those too”  

“They’re going to call again”  

“I know, and you’re going to answer, and say that any further correspondence will be done in writing, and they must prove you owe the debt. If they get aggressive, or are an ass about it, hang up the phone. You’re not in trouble here, you haven’t done anything wrong”  

“Even though I didn’t pay it in the first place?”  

“That’s a different conversation all together. But no, I don’t think you have. Your insurance paid most of it, and you stated at the time you were unable to pay the rest. They were happy to sell your debt on, so the way I see it, they got paid anyway. It’s probably been passed around until it ended up in this companies hands. They try to scare you into starting to pay it all over again, which resets the statute of limitations on the debt. So long as you haven’t paid them anything, then I think you’re in the clear” 

“Thank you… I was… I came here after I saw that article, and I just, couldn’t figure out where to go for help, and I thought maybe, you could help me with a budget or something” 

You smile, watching the way her body relaxes as she takes your words in. Carefully you write down a few phone numbers for her, as well as the website for Consumer Protection. Tearing the page out of your journal, you give it to her with a smile. She stays to talk with you a little longer, before leaving to pick up Tommy and her other children from school.  

The other receipts are still stuffed in the pocket. You pull them free and begin to organise them, listing them by name and number, any other information they have given in a column on the side. You feel a smile twitch at the corner of your lips as Owen brings you a muffin, the napkin wrapped around it stained from the blueberries.  

“Magnum just texted” he says in a conspiratorial whisper. 

“Are we really still doing this?” you ask, rolling your eyes. Owen grins, throwing up his hands as he shrugs 

“He insisted” 

With a sigh, you unfold your limbs from the chair, feeling them groan in protest as you stand for the first time in hours, rebinding your journal to carry upstairs as you shake your head.  

“Why Magnum?” you ask, feeling the chill of Dieter’s apartment as you see the open balcony. Dieter has dragged a canvas onto the icy surface, his broad back facing you as he paints something you can't make out. 

“If you have to ask Joanie” Eric replies “You don’t want to know.” 

Eric might be the only other thing keeping your restlessness at bay. He’s been sequestered in the same apartment with you, growing out his facial hair as he watches you with amusement, helping you move furniture, cooking in Dieter’s neglected kitchen, sleeping on the couch.  

He’s nothing like what you expected a movie star would be. He cooks, lavish dinners with ingredients you know cost a fortune, eaten with bamboo disposable cutlery over the sink. He brought two outfits in a duffel bag, a tiny jar of ecstasy pills, three movie scripts and a stack of cash. He flew privately to New York, using an alias to Uber to the café, Owen letting him up without question as he greeted him.  

You can understand why they were so popular together. Their chaos matches each other. Dieter’s tornado with Eric’s tsunami, destruction in a force of nature. They argue and bicker like only old friends can, the easy trust and grace of friendship that comes with years of knowing each other. They can sit in total silence as Dieter paints and Eric reads and annotates scripts in spiky letters.  

It would be easy to be jealous of them. The comfort and familiarity of each other belayed from years of shared company. But Eric pulled you into a longer hug than Dieter’s when he met you, and kept his arm wrapped around your shoulders as he asked you a million questions. He brought his own list of movies and sat next to you on the couch as you watched them. 

Now he’s brandishing a box of hair dye at you, pleading with you to help him because he always misses the back when he does it himself. It's an electric blue, bright and eye catching, and you eye the colour sceptically as you shake it to mix the bottle.  

“Will this work?” you ask, tilting his head over the sink. 

“Works every time” he says with a wink, closing his eyes as you scrub the blue dye into his scalp. “I grow out the beard, post on my socials that I’m spending the holidays on some kind of spiritual retreat and come back looking like a well refreshed well rounded Hollywood dick. Go full Leto with it y’know?”  

“But you actually come here?” 

“Usually, yeah. Few years I’ve spent overseas, sometimes D comes too.” 

“I didn’t know” 

“Now you do. Want to come to the Maldives next year? The blue of their ocean really is no bullshit, and the fish are these insane colours” 

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to… I mean” 

“Oh Joanie” Eric sighs, standing and stamping a kiss to your cheek. “You still don’t believe it do you” 

He leaves you to scrub the dye from under your fingernails, wondering exactly what he meant.  

* 

Dieter gets lost in canvas sometimes. Tied up in detail and knotted with ideas. The light changes as he paints, he hears the city roar and deafen as the day changes to evening changes to night. It’s getting colder now, icing in the mornings, frost on the windows as he squints in the low lighting. You bought him a pair of reading glasses from the drug store, they're hanging from his shirt. 

You went out with Eric tonight, Molly and Owen dragging you to a true New York Dive for pretzels and cheap beer. When he couldn’t put the paintbrush down you had kissed his cheek and wished him luck as you left.  

He knows the feeling growing in his chest. Can trace its shape and form with careful brush strokes. He’s throwing oil on this canvas to stop it spewing from his mouth. He’s glad Eric’s here. Glad for his lanky form unspooled on his couch with a highlighter and a pen, annotating scripts. It makes it easier, to not lose himself in the luxury of having so much of you, of gorging himself full on your laugh and accidentally letting it slip before you’re ready to hear it. 

You’re so close though. He can see it in the way you reach for him, feels it in the contented sigh when he joins you in bed. The little smile you shoot him in the mornings, when he kisses you goodbye before you disappear down the stairs. Its somewhere in your throat, nestled just between your vocal cords, a tuning fork waiting to be struck.  

Eric is having far too much fun with it.  

“Oh, you’re a fucking mess” was all he said the first chance he got, you in the bathroom as he cooked in the kitchen. “Told her yet?” 

“She knows” 

“She psychic too? Interesting” 

“She knows.” He repeated firmly.  

“Your dicks not that impressive Bravo” 

“We both know that’s a lie. She’s been through a lot these last few weeks, finding out I’ve got a moron for a best friend was probably the nail in the coffin, I just want her to be happy” 

“And telling her you’re “fucked-up-Mr-Darcy” in love with her is going to make her unhappy” 

“No… I just… fuck you” 

Eric laughed loud enough to have your eyebrows raise when you came back into the room. Like a good friend he kept his mouth shut. Dieter still dipped his hand in lukewarm water overnight anyway.  

The moon isn’t bright enough to paint by tonight. The sky too clouded over with the threat of snow to see the stars. The tv is casting a soft glow, the menu screen tinging the whole room blue as he puts his brushes back for the evening, feeling a cramp forming in his wrist.  

It’s after two am. Eric is asleep, feet dangling over the edge of the couch. You’re asleep too. He has a vague memory of you telling him goodnight, a brighter flash of the taste of your mouth as he kissed you, your hands on his forearms to stop him smearing paint on you.  

Your face is pressed into his pillow, your leg hitched free beneath the heavy blankets he knows you like, your soft skin in the light sending a zap of longing through him as he watches a lock of your hair be caught on the wind of your breath.  

You’re not there yet, your hesitancy towards physical affection only just beginning to shed in Eric’s presence. You know about the history, the long years of no privacy and no filters, the late nights in Rome, in Paris, where they ran the streets as lost boys and ended up in bed together. But you’ve stopped short of allowing him to be as tactile as he wants to be, as he needs to be with you so close all the time. 

He's kicking Eric out of the apartment tomorrow, telling him to come up with some plan or some lie to give him a few hours alone with you. It's been too long since he heard the way you whimper, felt the tremble of your skin beneath his hands.  

He wipes them on his sweats, getting most of the still wet paint off as he feels his cock twitch in his sweats, interest coursing through his groin as you shift, as your hand reaches for the cold spot on the bed he would usually be occupying, if this canvas wasn’t occupying him instead.  

The way you taste. Greedy swipes with his fingers in the shower aren’t enough, you need a hand pressed over your mouth for him to fuck you hard and fast in the bathroom, exiting flushed and steam clogged to nothing more than a breakfast offer from Eric. Quick fucks in ten minute time spans, not enough time for you to spread your legs properly, less time for him to see.  

He's gripping his erection through the cloth now, watching your sleeping form, curled on your side. It’s his favourite way to fuck you in the mornings, when you’re warm from his body and sleep rough, your tongue thick with dreams as he pulls you closer into his skin, clumsily pawing at you just to fuck you full, clean you up and fuck you properly.  

No time for that this week either. You’ve been in the café, returning calls and having meetings, helping people with financial questions he understands the merest gist of. Your fingers have stopped curling and uncurling. You seem lighter.  

Just a taste. That’s all he tells himself, just one and it would sate him for the next few days. Eric leaves in the New Year, a little over a week away. Next year you’ll be more comfortable, maybe enough to let him watch, see the way Dieter squirms when he’s given explicit instructions. The thought of both of you, telling him what to do, has him swallowing a groan. 

* 

Warm. That’s all your hazy brain supplies as your eyes flutter open. It’s dark in the room and you can feel the weight of something else pressing on your pulse, the curl of Dieter’s body behind you.  

“Hey” you mumble, your voice cracking with sleep. 

“M’sorry” he says, kissing a spot behind your ear that makes you shiver in his embrace. “Come downstairs” 

“Where?” you ask, confused as his hands slip up your shirt. 

“The shop. Please”  

His voice is breathy, the deep rich gravel of it scraping your belly as he presses into your back, feeling the thick weight of him in the cleft of your ass. It sizzles your brain, waking you further as you agree, rolling slowly out of bed as he keeps his hands on you. 

You lean on him down the staircase in the dark, his thumb rubbing circles on your hip as he whispers into your hairline. You can see the outline of his erection as he steers you to the mustard yellow armchair, kicking a pillow in front of it as you relax back into its squashy depths. 

“What are we doing?” you ask, your voice still unsteady with sleep. He’s cast in an ethereal glow. The fridge lights are a warm yellow, the coffee machine a sea green, making him look angelic, the sharp planes of his face softer as he arranges himself on his knees in front of you. 

He presses his face into your stomach, hiking your shirt just high enough to press his lips below your navel, his breath shaky as it spreads warm across your skin. He tugs your shorts and underwear off as one, your nails scratching into the fabric of the chair as he drops them to the ground, spreading your legs wider, the burn in your inner thighs as he drapes your legs over the arm rest. 

You’re wet for him already, the cold air chilling you as he groans at the sight of you in the dim lighting. He rests his cheek against your thigh, massaging you open as you scratch at the armrest, his gaze focused only on the juncture of your thighs. 

“I missed you” he groans, leaning forward to take a lungful of your scent, brush his nose against your clit as you whimper. 

You’re still sleep drunk, your limbs uncooperative as he moves you, folds you in half with broad strong palms to spread you wider. The stretch in your limbs tells you you’ll be sore in the morning... later in the morning.  

Warm. His mouth is so warm, a long and lazy stripe with his tongue as you feel the rumbling vibrations of his moaning as he traces your folds, spit dripping from his mouth as he tastes you. You’re aching, you can feel your pulse through your clit as he slowly drinks you in. 

“Dieter... please” it’s a whimper, a begging cracking plea as the messy curls of his hair brush your belly, each slow rotation of his tongue bordering on torturous. 

“I haven't had you in days” he says, pulling back to look at you, his thumb a lazy light metronome across your swollen clit. It's not enough, it's too much, all at once as he meets your eyes, his brow furrowed. 

“Days, Lou.” He squeezes your thigh; his shoulders are so broad they brush the sensitive skin. “I’m going to lick your perfect cunt until I've had my fill, until your spread open and gaping for me, until I fucking drown. I need you to take it for me, can you do that? Can you let me take my time with you? Until you’re swollen and begging and oversensitive, until you gush all over my face? Because when I shove my cock inside you, I want to feel it, that tremble, that uncontrollable clench of muscle as you cum for me again? Please?” 

His thumb is still swiping circles on your clit, you can feel it swelling underneath his delicate touch, another turn of a seemingly never-ending screw as your skin prickles, your brain fuzzy at his words. He waits for you, staring until you nod, your head falling back onto the cushion as his mouth descends again. 

He sucks your clit between his lips, enough pressure to make you cry out, the sudden sensation sharp as a knife in your belly. He bands his arm across your stomach, holding you still as he sucks harder, his tongue flicking against the ripe berry of your clit. You bite down on your arm to trap the scream in your throat, you can feel the mix of saliva and slick dripping over your skin, sluicing beneath you as he groans into your hot flesh. 

Your orgasm is violent, ratcheting through your system like a supernova as he quickly slips two thick fingers inside your cunt, pressing against your fluttering walls to prolong it. You struggle to breathe with the force of it, his fingers curling against you as he relentlessly lashes your clit, refusing you the option of a come down. 

Pressure. It’s so much pressure, his fingers curling and pressing against you as he snarls into your folds like an animal, barely drawing breath himself as the wet squelch of his fingers fills the deserted café, your whimpers and pleas of his name muffled in the crook of your arm as he keeps pushing, and pushing and pushing.  

You feel it. The wet burst of liquid that accompanies a second, deeper orgasm, you hear the splash on his face, the wet smack of his hand as his fingers are pushed out by the force of it, immediately transferring to your clit to skate across it, gliding smooth and effortless as he drinks from you, pressing his tongue inside you with a desperate groan. 

You’re weightless, your limbs made of clouds and stars as he rises, still pinching at your twitching clit. You barely see his cock when he frees it from his sweats, pushing them down just enough to angle himself into you, the stretch a burn inside you as he buries himself to the hilt with an obscene sound.  

His hand is wet when it grabs your face, squeezing your cheeks open to press his thumb against your tongue, the salt tang of you bursting across your teeth as he folds you in half for the leverage, fucking into you savagely, his hips bouncing against yours as he spews filth into your ear. 

“That’s my fucking girl, there you go, that’s what I want. Fucking drenched aren’t you, all fucked out and cock dumb. You're so good to me, letting me wake you up in the middle of the night because I'm craving a taste of your sweet little cunt. I want to wake you up like this every day, burying my tongue inside you while I jerk off, I want to fuck you awake, and to sleep. I want the last thing you feel and the first thing you feel to be this fat cock splitting you open, so you know every day what a fucking animal I am for you”  

His skin is fevered to the touch, his fingers pressing on your tongue as he fucks into you deeper, punching the air from your lungs with every savage thrust of his hips. 

“You take it so good for me, I can feel it, the way you want to cum again. You going to cum for me again, get me all wet so I can cum on your fucked out cunt, smear myself all over your dripping folds. Pretty as a picture, I'll paint it for you, we can hang it over our bed. My favourite meal, my favourite girl, mine...” 

Your back arches as you grab him, your nails digging into his shoulder as you cum again. Everything white hot and sharp, electricity as your toes curl, the scream let loose into the empty space as Dieter jerks his cock across your clit, the head smearing messy and wet across your folds, his eyes focused on where you join. 

He cums hard, covering your belly and thighs, dripping down into the mess you’ve already made, his voice hoarse as he buries his face in your neck, the scrape of teeth against your hammering pulse.  

He fucks it back into you, cramming his twitching cock inside your fluttering cunt as he kisses you, as sloppy and uncoordinated as you feel, breaths caught in milliseconds as he squeezes your waist, thanking you with half a breath. 

“Missed you too” you manage, looping your arms around his neck as your limbs relax stroking the base of his hairline, feeling him shiver beneath your touch. 

“I couldn’t see Andromeda tonight” he mutters, catching his breath against your skin. “Too many clouds”  

“Perseus fought to the death for her right?” you ask, the memory of him telling you the story under blankets on his balcony. 

“Mmm” he says, his hands squeezing your hips as he kisses your jaw. 

“How come all the stories in the stars are tragedies?” You wonder. 

“Maybe because they haven't all been written yet” he replies, wrapping an arm around your back to pull you closer, his lips descending for a kiss. 

** 

Christmas Eve brings snow. Flurries of spiralling white blanket the city, dampening the rush of traffic, people with places to be crunching through the slush, wrapped in warm coats with frozen fingers, angrily shivering as they wait to cross the street.  

It brings a brief reprieve to Owen and Molly. The café closing early as they make their way upstairs after, smelling of coffee and burnt sugar, both of them retrieving the bags of clothing they stashed in the early hours of the morning.  

“It’s tradition” Molly explains, adding flips of electric green eyeliner with a practised hand. “Eric pays, and Owen and I get absolutely wasted on his dime, and sleep it off on the couch”  

“A Christmas Miracle” Eric says, offering them each a tiny pill of ecstasy, a puff on a tidy joint. They both accept as you wave him off, the pills not interesting you. Dieter has cookies in the fridge, and you’re planning a night of payback, a few hours to unspool him again, watch the way his face twists with your mouth around his leaking cock, your hands holding his hips steady as he keens. 

Just the thought has you shaking off their invitations, Eric quieting their protests with a knowing grin. You’re almost certain he heard you, the scent of fabric cleaner was thick enough on you both in the morning for him to deduce where you had vanished to, what Dieter had left you tucked in bed to clean. He just smirked and winked, laughing at the heat of your skin.  

They look like famous people when they're done. Dressed in neon's and accessories, rave kids, call-back to the club kids, their pupils becoming wider as the drug kicks in. They all drink water before they leave, long kisses on your forehead and warm smiles as they vanish out the door, singing about Daddy Warbucks in offkey voices.  

Dieter falls apart within the hour.  

“We have to move” 

“We don’t” 

“We have to, you’re dripping out of me” 

“Say more things like that” Dieter growls, grabbing at you and pulling you closer. He’s still inside you, the occasional twitch of his spent cock a valiant effort as he wraps his arms tighter around your waist, trapping you against his bulk.  

“There’s no way you can go again” you laugh, stroking his sweaty hair off his forehead as he tilts his chin, angling for a kiss. 

His movements are slow, deliberate as he presses you into his chest. You're both spent, limbs full of static and lead as you lazily explore the slick of each others skin. His hair is wild, curling madly from the heat, the room clouded with the scent of sex as he grabs your ass, grinding you into his pelvis as you whine.  

“Is it Christmas yet?” he asks, stroking your cheek as you press your forehead against his, the chill of winter just starting to creep back into your body heat. 

“Not yet” you mutter, flicking your eyes at the clock as he pouts.  

“I have something for you” he says, unable to leave your lips long enough for the sentence to finish. 

“I didn’t get you anything” you reply, panic settling in your stomach as he grabs at you, forcing you to stay pressed against him as you try to rear away. 

“Yes you did” he says, smiling at your panicked expression. “You got me everything”  

It smacks you hard in the chest, the affection so violent as to make you stiffen. It comes in waves, crashing into you when you least expect it. The way he kisses you, holds you. The way he asks you about your day, follows up with questions of things you’ve taught him. 

He sees you. He remembers everything you’ve ever said to him, listens when you talk. He paints beautiful works and presses your thumb into them. He’s never pushed, never asked you for more than what you’re ready to give. Even now, his hands tracing patterns on your back, he watches your face come to these earth-shattering revelations with a serene smile, a loose grip on you, as if he knows you won't run away.  

“Dieter... I...” 

The door downstairs crashes open. You both hear the off key harmonising of Eric and Molly as the door slams shut behind them, the stumbling of the stairs as they continue a tune you can’t hear. 

You’ve just wrestled into a shirt, blankets covering your bare legs and Dieter’s still nude groin when Owen appears, wearing Molly’s shirt and carrying pizza boxes. His face is covered in glitter, there’s paint on his exposed midriff, his smile wide and lazy.  

Eric and Molly have a Whole Foods bag and less clothing than they started with. The glitter that shakes free from them is like a cloud of stars as they tumble through the door, collapsing together on the couch as they shout a greeting to each of you in turn. 

“They were fucking” Owen says, pulling a slice of pizza free with a grin. 

“They’re always fucking, you still aren’t forgiven for that mess you failed to clean up by the way.” Molly hiccups. 

“Dieter is insatiable, we all know that” Eric replies, grabbing Owen’s wrist to steal a bite of pizza. Owen kisses his nose as he chews.  

“She tastes like sprinkles on a birthday cake, can you blame me?” Dieter asks, wincing as you smack his shoulder. He reaches to the nightstand, grabbing a joint and lighting it as you pull the blanket higher, relaxing back into his chest as the vegetal scent covers the smell of sex still emanating from both of you. 

“Sprinkles on a birthday cake eh” Eric says, running his finger down Molly’s cheek as she curls into his lap.  

“What’s in the bag” you ask loudly, unwilling to continue this conversation without underwear on. 

“Presents” Molly sighs. 

Owen reaches for the bag, toppling it over the couch as a rainbow of colour spills out. 

“Are those...” 

“Sex toys. Yep” Eric says, giggling as he reaches for the joint on offer. 

“We ended up at this drag show and they were just giving them away” Owen says, laughing as he pulls a multicoloured strand of anal beads from the pile. “Thought we could use them as decoration for New Years” 

“Of course, if you have any favourites...” Eric says, winking at you as a heavy violently pink plug rolls across the floor. 

“I’ll let you have first choice.”  

You stay up late, laughing and talking as you share pizza and another joint, Molly falling asleep first, curled between Owen and Eric, who grab blankets and form a protective nest around her. Your conversation slows, the guys nodding off as the ecstasy does, the weed making them fuzzy and slow. You hear their even breathing, a synchronised mass together on Dieter’s couch as he strokes your hair, kissing your temple. 

“Is it Christmas yet?” he asks, his voice low. 

“Yes, it’s Christmas”  

He grins, reaching into his nightstand drawer and pulling out a gift wrapped in twine. You pull the string, letting it fall apart in your lap as the paper falls away. 

It’s a journal.  

The cover is dark, a faux leather, with the coming year burnt onto the front. It feels soft beneath your fingers, a worn give to its weight already as though it had been in use for years already, history in its pages before you open it. 

The pages are off white, uneven but perfect, tied together with uneven knots of twine down the middle. The front pages feature his spiky script, a hand drawn calendar, decorated with linking stars. As you flip through, each month has a watercolour in miniature, betraying the seasons as they change throughout the year. 

It’s set up exactly as your current one, the familiar columns and free pages organised exactly how you would have done. Birthdays and anniversaries and reminders are already sketched in, the loops of his handwriting familiar as you look at the pressed pages, the thickness of them, the way they would take the ink. 

“Dieter... did you make this?” you ask, awe in your voice as you look at the paintings. Figures, dancing in the rain, the snow, the falling leaves with high rises and stars in the background. 

“Thought you’d need a new one for next year” he hums, wrapping his arms around you from behind as you trace his fingerprint, a different colour on every page, a heart in every corner. “Sorry I had to look through yours for how you like it set up”  

The tears come without warning, pricking the corners of your lashes as you flip through the year. He’s marked certain days, little mementos in the corner. Day I first met you, Day we first watched Baby Jane, first time I tasted you, first time you tasted me, first time you realised you loved me, first time you stopped yourself from saying it. 

“I love you” it falls with tears from your eyes. Streaking hot down your cheeks as it blooms like a flower, crackling and sparkling like electricity through your system. “I love you so much”  

Dieter hums, pulling you to wrap your arms around his neck as you whisper it, over and over into his skin. 

“You’re ahead of schedule” he says, smiling as you cry into his neck. “Luckily, I had a plan for such an occasion” 

He pulls a hessian pouch from the nightstand, peeling your face from the crook of his neck to hand it to you, his eyes sparkling with tears as he tips the bag into your palm. 

“I saw you, for the first time, soaking wet. I was down in the shop because I was pulled there from the rain. It ruined a canvas that day, that summer storm out of nowhere. I was down to irritate Owen with my pouting. Then the bell creaked, in it’s old way, and there you were. It was like I had been struck by lightning, every cell in my body exploding like a nova from the minute I saw your face. I’ve been looking ever since for something just like this. Turns out, I just had to be patient.” 

The ring is uneven, waving and discoloured, a deep rich gold streaked with scarlet as he holds it to the light. 

“The rust from that bell is what dyed the paint for that journal. It's old bones are this ring”  

It fits your finger perfectly, already warm as he slips it to the knuckle, tilting your chin to look at him. 

“I’ve loved you since the minute I laid eyes on you. I’ll love you until our atoms are scattered across the universe in an exploding star.” 

He kisses you, full of promise and warmth. 

“Because I know they’ll find their way back”  

[my-hyperfixation-hell]

being yukio okumura must be a lonely nightmare

OK disclaimer to start: I've only watched the anime, not read the manga, so if this comes up in the manga forgive me for I do not know (also no spoilers please <3 I'm picking it up soon) HOWEVER

Yukio being so young and yet an exorcist must be the most gutwrenchingly lonely experience, like... going through his different positions with his three core social groups;

As an exorcist: He has his coworkers, but they're all adults. He's a 16 year old boy. As much as they include him, respect him, acknowledge his experience and skill, there's always going to be the part of them as grown ass adults that sees him as a 16 year old. That gap will always be there, and it'll probably also manifest itself Yukio being excluded from some general parts of adult life, and probably looked down upon, even subconsciously by those who do respect them. He'll always be the "little brother" friend. It's no wonder Yukio isn't very social. What is he going to do, watch all the adults slowly get drunk at a work party? Whoo. (Sure, Shura would probably give him a beer, and I'm sure the others would be willing to look the other way, but Yukio himself probably wouldn't take it.)

Not only that, but he doesn't have the same liberty as other teenagers his age to be dumb teenagers. If Rin or Shima or whoever else messes up- okay, impulsive, but they have the grace of being in training. Yukio, on the other hand, has to be professional. He has to act older than his age, or it's proof that he's not ready to be where he's at. It must be so frustrating whenever he works with a new exorcist- "Yes, I'm young for my position. No, that won't make me more difficult to work with. No, I don't need you to explain this concept to me, I already understand it, I graduated too-"

As a teacher: He has his students, all the same age as him. Hell, even if they have issues, Rin is his brother. But there's a power dynamic in the fact that he is their teacher and they are his students. There's also a duty Yukio has as the more experienced exorcist and their teacher to look after their safety, especially on field trips and the like. When they're fooling around in class, he has to be the killjoy who brings them back around on topic, and this isn't some math class they'll forget as soon as they graduate; he's teaching them information their lives are going to depend on.

It's also pretty hard to maintain a friendship with the same people you gave detention last week, or that you had to fail on a test.

As a student: Yukio also attends classes at True Cross that aren't at all related to exorcism, but I feel like even there he'd struggle connecting with his peers. Yukio's busy with teaching and exorcisms; that's a lot of time. Then his homework and classes- where exactly is he left to fit in a social life?

The anime suggests he's popular for girls to crush on. but being the crush of someone you barely know in high school isn't a friendship. Yukio seems like he'd be the typical introverted kid who goes mostly unnoticed. Even if he makes friends, what happens when he's had one too many last minute call ins for exorcisms, and has to ditch yet another hangout? How many medical leaves does he have to take in such an injury-prone job, not to mention mental health? It'd be easy to gain a reputation as a flaky and uninterested friend.

Then there's the issue of adjusting to a 'normal' life. How does one do that? How do you sit there and listen to your friends talk about homework and video games and whatever else they did last night, meanwhile what you did last night was risk your life slaying a demon, but if you even tried to tell them, you'd sound insane because most people in this world don't know demons are real at all. Not to mention he couldn't talk about his teaching job, either. Oh, also, "how was your vacation?" "My biological dad who is also Satan killed my adoptive dad who was an exorcist". To a teenager, it must feel impossible to find a way to relate regardless.

I think this has overall been a pretty sad post. I do think as Yukio grows up, he'll find his place. Once Rin and the others graduate, the wall of teacher-student between them will also be removed, though he'll still probably outrank them, at least for a while. As he grows up, too, the age gap between him and his peers will lessen, and he'll gain new coworkers who've only know him as an adult.

It will get better, just takes time.

[swan-of-sunrise]

Taking Care of Business (Chapter Thirty-Three)

Summary: The notorious mechanic of Mos Eisley sells the trio a replacement droid and on Mandalore, the Clan of Three faces more than one challenging obstacle as they search for the Living Waters.

Pairing: Din Djarin X Fem!Reader

Word Count: 6k

Warnings/Disclaimers: None

A/N: It’s time to finally visit our favorite mechanic and then we’re off to Mandalore! Thank you for reading and I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter Thirty-Three The Mines of Mandalore (Previous Chapter)

“Whoo-hoo! You hear that? She’s purring like a nuzzle shrew!”

(Y/N) grinned at Peli’s colloquial turn of phrase as she switched the starfighter’s engines off. “No complaints so far, but she’s still a little faster than I know what to do with.”

“Well, I’ll tune her up just the same,” The mechanic gave them a wide smile, showing off the gap in her teeth caused during the skirmish between Boba Fett and the Pyke Syndicate not too long ago. “So, uh, where’s my guy?” Before either (Y/N) or Din could reply, Grogu popped up from his seat on her lap and Peli clapped her hands in delight. “There he is!” The child expertly leapt out of the cockpit and into Peli’s open arms. “Now, who taught you how to leap like a Lurmen, huh?”

Din leapt down from the starfighter and extended a hand up to help (Y/N) down, lowering his modulated voice as the mechanic continued fawning over the babbling child. “You know she’s gonna try and rip us off again, right?”

“Her and every other kriffing mechanic in the galaxy, but at least she’s got a nice sense of humor,” (Y/N) shrugged and allowed him to give her a Keldabe Kiss before turning her attention back to Peli. “It’s good to see you again, Peli. How’ve you been?”

“Always so polite! You sure snagged yourself a real lady, Mando; there’s not too many of us out there in the galaxy…” Peli winked at him and (Y/N) hid her smile as he mutely stared back. “Well, it’s Boonta Week and I’ve been making a pretty good killing here, so no complaints. Are you three here for Boonta Eve?”

Din shook his head. “No, we’re here on business.”

“Oh, are the Hutts back? Are you takin’ out Boba Fett?”

“We need a droid part.”

Peli’s excited expression fell and she rolled her eyes. “Urgh, boring!” She turned to the pit droids working on a blue and silver speeder in the hangar’s corner. “Hey, get the Jawas back in here before they hit the cantina.” The pit droids chattered amongst themselves as they followed the mechanic’s order. “You know how Mos Eisley gets during Boonta week…” She held an invisible glass and mimed guzzling down a drink, much to Grogu’s amusement and Din’s exasperation.

“The Anzellans on Nevarro weren’t able to help us, but we were hoping that you’d be able to,” Din explained as Peli led them further into the hangar. “We’re looking for a replacement IG memory circuit.”

The mechanic scoffed. “Oh hey, grandpa. They haven’t made those for a while.” The pit droids led three irritated Jawas into the hangar and Peli addressed them in Jawaese, but the Jawas soon shook their hooded heads and scampered away. “Sorry, pal, no chance cubes.”

“They can’t find the part?”

“Nope.”

“We need our droid fixed now.”

(Y/N) rested a soothing hand on her husband’s beskar chestplate and gave him a gentle smile. “In the meantime, I’m sure that there’s something that Peli can do for us. We’re a couple of her favorite clients, after all.”

“Right as usual! Which is why I think you should buy this beauty here.” Peli stood beside a red and white astromech droid and patted its top, ignoring the puff of smoke and the panel popping off its center.

Din looked between the mechanic and the droid in incredulity. “We can’t use an astromech; we need a droid that’s rated for spelunking.”

“Spelunking? What are you spelunking?”

“We’re going to Mandalore,” Din explained and (Y/N) nodded. “We need a droid that can explore ahead of us and test the atmosphere, make sure it’s safe to breathe.”

Peli sighed. “Okay, well…” The frightened astromech droid started to roll backwards but was quickly spotted by the mechanic. “Uh-uh-uh-uh, get right back here! Right back here, scaredy droid! Come on, now, you gotta shine.” She chuckled and patted the droid’s top again. “This R5 astromech is built for adventure-” The astromech interrupted her with a series of timid beeps, but she only rolled her eyes. “What? Of course you are! You’re supposed to be piloting starfighters across the galaxy and fighting tyranny!”

(Y/N) looked over at Din beside her and watched as he shook his helmeted head in irritation. “It’s falling apart and besides, we’ve got no room for it on the N-1.”

“Nonsense, R5-D4 is as good as the day it came back from serving in the Rebellion! And I’ll reinstall your droid port so this little baby here can even co-pilot.” The droid shuddered and Peli fixed it with a hard glare. “Hey, if you don’t settle your bolts, I’ll sell you back to the Jawas.” She turned back to them with a toothy smile. “And because it’s Boonta, what I’m gonna do is I’m gonna give you this for half the price and throw in a free oil bath.”

Turning to face Din, (Y/N) lowered her voice and pointed out, “We don’t know how long it’ll take to track down that memory circuit or if we’ll even be able to, and an astromech could still really come in handy on Mandalore.”

Din heaved a deep sigh before looking over her shoulder at Peli. “Fine, we’ll take it.”

“I knew you’d make the smart business decision, Mando! Hey, pit droids!” Peli shouted, setting Grogu down and marching across the hangar towards their starfighter. “Bring me my tool chest and prep the oil tank, and be quick about it!”

While the mechanic barked out orders and started working on the starfighter, (Y/N) knelt in front of the timid astromech and smiled. “Hi, R5. It’s always nice to meet a fellow veteran of the Rebellion; I was a captain in the Alliance Fleet, but I never had the honor of flying with an astromech.” She picked up the panel that had popped off and carefully fixed it back on. “There you go, all fixed.” The R5 unit beeped and whistled, and she grinned at his binary message of thanks. “You’re welcome. Enjoy your oil bath!” She got to her feet and brushed the sand off her trousers as the astromech rolled away, but she stopped when she noticed Din staring at her. “What?”

“I thought you weren’t a fan of astromechs.”

“I’m usually not, but he’s a Rebellion veteran,” (Y/N) shrugged. “He might be a droid, but he chose to help us fight the Empire and his service deserves to be as appreciated as any other being’s would be.”

The Mandalorian rested a gloved hand on her waist and lowered his forehead to rest against hers. “Ner cyar’ika alor’ad. Every day since the day I met you, I’ve admired that kind heart of yours.”

(Y/N) felt her face warm at her husband’s words but before she could reply, Peli shouted across the hangar, “Hey, lovebirds! I’ll knock a couple of credits off your bill if you can tear yourselves away from one another and give us a hand over here!”

Chuckling, (Y/N) pressed a fleeting kiss onto the beskar covering Din’s mouth and scooped Grogu up into her arms. “C’mon, you two, let’s go help Peli so we can leave Tatooine before the Boonta Eve festivities get too out of hand…”

The three of them spent the afternoon reinstalling the starfighter’s droid port and tuning the engines and by the time they finished, night had fallen over Mos Eisley and its citizens had begun lighting fireworks to celebrate Boonta Eve. After a quick meal of bantha jerky and biscuits, (Y/N) and Din climbed up into the starfighter’s cockpit and as Grogu jumped up onto (Y/N)’s lap, Peli helped R5 settle into the starfighter’s new droid port.

“Oh, come on, now, don’t be a coward. You’re an astromech, act like one!” Peli scolded before fixing (Y/N) and Din with a knowing look. “I wouldn’t rely too much on this one. Its circuitry’s a little fragile.”

“I thought you said it was built for adventu-?”

The mechanic suddenly slammed the windshield shut and shouted over the engines and the fireworks exploding overhead. “What? Sorry, I can’t hear you!”

Biting her lip to keep from smiling while Din grumbled under his breath, (Y/N) steered the starfighter upwards and remarked, “Peli really is one of a kind, isn’t she?”

While her husband mumbled something in Mando’a, Peli waved alongside her pit droids and called out, “May the Force be with you!”

(Y/N) flew the starfighter over the streets of Mos Eisley and her heart warmed when she noticed Grogu watching the colorful fireworks illuminating the sky in silent awe; Din noticed too, lifting a gloved hand from her waist to stabilize the child as he sat on (Y/N)’s shoulder and pressed his little clawed hands against the windshield. “All right, kid. You ready for an adventure?”

Grogu squealed in delight and R5 anxiously beeped away in the droid port as the starfighter made its way through Tatooine’s upper atmosphere and shot off into hyperspace, charting a course to Mandalore and to Din’s imminent redemption.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Several hours later, (Y/N) was nervously biting her lip and trying her hardest to think positive thoughts as the starfighter came out of hyperspace. “I knew that the Empire did a number on Mandalore, but this…?”

The planet’s surface had been completely destroyed in the Purge and from what little they could make out through the intense weather patterns sweeping through its atmosphere, it was indeed crystalized and barren of the usual signs of life. It was a sight that (Y/N) had seen time and time again throughout the Rebellion, but knowing that the planet before them was near and dear to her husband and his religion made her blood run cold and led to her silently cursing the Empire for what they’d done.

Grogu whimpered in fright but Din was quick to console him. “It looks scary, I know. But it was once green and beautiful, back when the songs were written. It’s Mandalore, the homeworld of our people; every Mandalorian can trace their roots back to this planet, and the beskar mines deep within. And you know what? I’ve never been there, either.” Din pointed to one of the planet’s distant moons. “I grew up there, on that moon. Concordia.”

“And that’s Kalevala, where we visited Bo-Katan,” (Y/N) added and gestured towards a dot on the starfighter’s scope. “It’s in the same system.”

Grogu cooed and wrapped his hand around one of Din’s fingers as the Mandalorian continued, “A Mandalorian has to understand maps and know their way around. That way, you’ll never be lost.”

Tightening her grip on the controls, (Y/N) surveyed Mandalore’s upper atmosphere with cautious eyes and nodded. “I think I can get us through all that, but it’ll be a bumpy ride.” She leaned down to press a kiss onto Grogu’s wrinkled head. “Hold on tight, little guy.” With a sharp twist of the controls, she piloted the starfighter down through the planet’s storm-filled sky, looking past the sleet and rain pummeling the windshield to avoid the sporadic lightning strikes that lit up the darkened clouds. After several tense moments, they emerged from the storm and flew across the clear skies of Mandalore’s capital city. “See? I told you I could get us through all that,” (Y/N) chuckled after breathing a sigh of relief.

“We never doubted you once, alor’ad. Did we, kid?”

Grogu cuddled up against (Y/N)’s chest and she gave his head a quick pat before smacking the starfighter’s blinking console. “Looks like the fusion bombs from the Purge disrupted the magnetic field around the planet. From the surface, we won’t be able to communicate with anyone out of atmosphere, so we have to be careful.”

She could feel Din nod behind her. “Down here, we’re completely cut off from the rest of the galaxy.”

Spotting a flat patch of crystalized earth, (Y/N) landed the starfighter down onto it and switched off the engines before addressing the astromech through the comms. “Okay, R5, we’re gonna need you to scout ahead and analyze the atmosphere.”

R5’s beeps and whistles were interrupted by an impatient Din. “That wasn’t a question.” He reached past (Y/N) and unceremoniously released the astromech from his droid port, ignoring the pointed look that (Y/N) gave him as he pointed towards a cluster of green-colored crystals nearby. “Go over to that split in the rock, and take an air sample of the ruins below.”

The three of them watched the astromech reluctantly wheel itself towards the rocks and (Y/N) stroked one of Grogu’s ears to soothe his anxious whimpers. “R5 will be fine, little guy, we just need him to take some readings to make sure it’s safe for us.”

The astromech stopped and turned his top to look back at the ship and beep. “Don’t be a baby. Just get the samples we need, and hurry up.”

“You know, it wouldn’t hurt to be just a little nicer to the poor droid. I think he’s intimidated by you…” (Y/N) pointed out but before her husband could reply, R5 disappeared from view and Grogu let out a fearful wail. “Here, Grogu, look. You can watch him on the scope.” The child watched the red dot that represented R5 move farther and farther away, and (Y/N)’s brow shot up in surprise when the dot vanished from the scope altogether. “…Dank farrik.”

“R5, come in. Do you read me?” There was only static coming through the comms. “It’s probably just interference.”

Grogu stared up at Din with eyes wide in fear and even (Y/N) was beginning to feel that something was wrong. “Sweetheart, I’ve got a bad feeling about this and so does Grogu. R5 could be in some serious trouble right now.”

Her husband looked between the both of them before sighing and giving them a nod. “Fine, I’ll go get him. Normally, this is droid work; I was hoping to avoid going out there.”

“Wait, I’m going with you-”

“Alor’ad, someone has to watch Grogu and the ship in case the droid’s disappearance is some sort of diversion.” Din lifted the edge of his helmet so he could kiss her furrowed brow. “I’ll be okay, I promise.” He waited for her to nod before reaching into one of the side compartments and pulling out a portable oxygen mask. “I’ll pressurize my helmet, but you’ll need to wear this while I open the top and Grogu, you’ll need to seal yourself in your pod.”

Grogu closed his pram and (Y/N) fastened the oxygen pack onto her blaster belt. “Be careful, Din.”

“I’ll be right back.” Din waited for her to secure the mask over her mouth and nose before opening the starfighter’s windshield and climbing down; as soon as it slid back into place, she pulled the mask off and the child emerged from his pram, his large ears drooping at the sight of the Mandalorian walking off towards the rocks in the distance.

“It’s okay, little guy, he’ll be right back,” (Y/N) reassured him, but the ominous feeling remained festering in the pit of her stomach and judging by the way Grogu was looking at her, she suspected that he felt the same way. “I don’t like this. I’m gonna go and help him, all right?” Grogu cooed and patted her hand before closing himself up in his pram again, and she took a deep breath, slipping her oxygen mask back on and climbing down from the cockpit. With a small wave to Grogu anxiously watching her, (Y/N) drew her blaster and slowly crossed the clearing to the jagged crevice in the rock. She entered the dimly-lit tunnel with the intent of quietly reconnoitering, but the sounds of battle ahead urged her forward into a run.

When she turned another corner, she was met with the terrifying sight of Din fighting off three snarling humanoid creatures; he held the Darksaber in his hand and as she watched, he cut one of the creatures along its torso and let it roll off the nearby cliff overlooking a massive cavern housing the ruins of a sprawling city. He sidestepped the second’s attack and shoved it hard over the cliff, but the third creature slammed its club against his back; before it could strike him again, (Y/N) shot it in its torso and bought Din enough time to counter its strikes and stab it through the chest with the Darksaber. He retracted the illuminated blade and pushed the corpse over the cliff as (Y/N) hurried over to him.

“I told you I didn’t have a good feeling about all this,” She joked and handed him his dropped blaster. “Are you okay?”

Din nodded, holstering his weapons and giving her hand a squeeze before gesturing to the opposite side of the tunnel. “I’m fine, and I think the droid is too.” R5 beeped and whistled in indignation as he laid on a pile of crystalized earth, and the both of them exchanged a look before striding over to him. They both righted the weighty astromech and while (Y/N) brushed off his sides, Din gave his domed top a pat. “Okay, you’re all right. Now come on, let’s get you back to the ship.”

They followed R5 out of the tunnels and crossed the clearing to the starfighter; Grogu’s face brightened in relief when they came into view and he tapped an impatient hand against the windshield as they stopped beside the ship. “Hang on, little guy. Not until we check the toxicity.”

“You got an analysis on the atmosphere yet?” Din asked the astromech. R5 replied in binary and projected a graph into the space before them, and both Din and (Y/N) exchanged a look of surprise. “The charts were wrong; the atmosphere is breathable.”

“Which means that Bo-Katan was right,” (Y/N) breathed in realization, slipping off her oxygen mask and opening the starfighter’s windshield. “Mandalore’s not cursed. It was all a lie spread by the Empire to keep the Mandalorians in exile.”

After situating Grogu in his pram and helping R5 back into the starfighter’s droid port, they drew their blasters and cautiously navigated the tunnels, their senses on high alert after Din’s ambush. They found themselves standing on the same cliff overlooking the ruined city, and they both holstered their blasters. “That’s the Civic Center; this is where Bo-Katan said to go.” He wrapped an arm around (Y/N)’s waist. “Hold on tight.”

(Y/N) flung both arms around Din’s neck just as he jumped off the cliff and activated his jetpack, pressing her face against his chestplate to avoid looking down and watching their slow descent. When their feet finally touched the ground, she leaned back far enough to meet the visor of Din’s helmet and sighed. “I still can’t help but think this would be less terrifying if I had my own jetpack.”

“You’re perfectly safe with me, alor’ad.” Her husband suddenly scooped her up so that one arm supported her back while the other curled under the crook of her knees, and she could hear the smile in his voice as she clung tighter to him. “Besides, I wouldn’t be able to hold you like this if you had your own jetpack.” (Y/N) rolled her eyes and glanced around, realizing that they were standing on a crumbling walkway only halfway down the chasm. “The mines should be further down. I guess we’re on our own from here.”

Grogu babbled in agreement from his pram and Din jumped down from the walkway, the gentle hum of the jetpack echoing off the walls and structures they passed on their way down. When they reached the bottom, Din gently set her down and she drew her blaster as he switched on his helmet’s flashlight; she studied the massive pipes that they walked past and looked down at the water dripping from the walls. “Well, I think it’s safe to assume that these waters lead down to the mines and the Living Waters. We follow the water and we’ll find the mines in no time.”

Din nudged her arm and nodded towards an opening on their left. “Look, that passage heads down.”

They climbed down the slight slope and walked through the opening, silently examining the debris littering the ground. Spotting the familiar t-shaped visor of a Mandalorian helmet poking out of the dirt, Din knelt down and (Y/N) followed as he carefully tugged the sculpted beskar loose; Grogu cooed sadly and (Y/N) rested a comforting hand on her husband’s pauldron, but before either of them could say anything, the earth around them exploded and they were tightly encased in metal brackets. The trap flipped over, pressing Din’s body into (Y/N)’s and her back against the brackets, and two needles stabbed themselves into their necks, causing (Y/N)’s vision to darken and eventually turn black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“…wake up. C’mon, alor’ad, open your eyes for me…please, (Y/N), you’ve gotta open your eyes…”

Groaning in pain, (Y/N) struggled to open her heavy eyes and when she finally succeeded, she was met with the sight of Din’s helmet directly in front of her. “D-Din? What happened?”

“Thank the Maker,” He breathed a sigh of relief. “We were caught in some sort of cyborg’s trap. I saw some beskar helmets when it brought us in here; I think it harvests Mandalorians.”

She was unable to move her head much but she could tell that their bracketed trap was suspended above the ground in a dimly-lit chamber. Before she could ask about Grogu, the cyborg approached their trap and reached a mechanized hand through the brackets to remove Din’s blaster and the Darksaber. It tossed the weapons onto the ground and chattered to itself as it crawled across the chamber; when she could no longer hear it, she shakily released the breath she’d been holding and whispered, “My blaster’s wedged between my back and the brackets, but I can’t move my arms.”

“Neither can I…” Din shifted above her and grunted in annoyance. “I don’t know what that thing injected us with, but my head feels like it’s been trampled by a bantha.”

A quiet shuffling nearby drew his attention and (Y/N)’s brow furrowed at his small gasp. “What is it, Din?”

“Grogu.” They both craned their necks to look at the child, who was standing near the trap and holding a clawed hand out towards them; he closed his eyes and after a moment’s pause, the trap began to shake but it loudly clanged against its control panel, drawing the cyborg’s attention and spurring Din into calling out, “Get to Bo-Katan!”

Grogu jumped out of the way of the electrical blast that the cyborg fired from its staff, leapt into his pram and sped out of the chamber. The cyborg disappeared into a separate area of the chamber, and (Y/N)’s eyes prickled with unshed tears. “He’s gonna be okay. He’s gonna find Bo-Katan, and we’ll be out of this mess in no time.”

“Of course we will,” Din agreed, trying his hardest to keep his voice even and calm. “We’re gonna be fine, alor’ad, I promise.”

(Y/N) wasn’t sure how long it took for her to realize that she was taking shallow breaths or that her limbs were beginning to grow numb but when she did, she couldn’t help but wheeze out a breathless chuckle. “Usually, I’m quite fond of having you on top of me but I think I prefer it without all the beskar.”

Her husband didn’t laugh or make another quip, instead trying to lift some of his weight off of her chest but to no avail. “You need to take slower breaths…regulate your breathing…do that for me, alor’ad?”

Din’s voice was cutting in and out and after (Y/N) blinked hard in an attempt to clear her eyes, she noticed the black dots starting to litter her vision. “D-Din? I can’t…can’t breathe…”

“I know, ner cyar’ika alor’ad, I know, but you’ve…eyes open for me, okay? Don’t fall asleep…”

Everything around her began to fade away, from her husband’s panicked voice and the distant creaking of the cyborg to the pain encasing her entire body, and the last thing she did was thank whatever deity that was watching over them that her end was painless.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dreams of Naboo and a woman’s mournful yet beautiful singing abruptly ended when (Y/N) gasped for air, her eyes flying open and her hand reaching for her blaster when memories of their capture filled her foggy mind.

“Easy, Captain,” Bo-Katan soothed and held her hands out in a peaceful gesture; the Nite Owl was seated by a small fire beside Grogu, who squealed in delight when he saw that (Y/N) was conscious, and it appeared as though they were back on the cliff that overlooked the ruined Civic Center. “You were out for a while – lack of oxygen mixed with a bad reaction to whatever that thing injected you with – but you’re safe now.”

(Y/N) lowered her blaster and smiled a little when the child hurried over to her and crawled into her lap. “I knew you’d be able to find Bo-Katan. Good job, my little hero.” Hugging Grogu to her chest, she glanced up at Bo-Katan with a grateful nod. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” The Nite Owl’s lips curved into a smile and she gestured to the cups she was heating over the fire. “I’m making pog soup; trust me, it’ll make you feel better in no time.”

Grogu cooed in interest and returned to his spot by the fire while (Y/N) looked over at the unconscious Mandalorian lying beside her; his beskar-covered chest was slowly rising and falling and when she realized that he didn’t have any visible injuries, she breathed a quiet sigh of relief before scooting closer to lean over him. “Din?” She placed a hand on the beskar covering his cheek and caressed her thumb along the metal. “Sweetheart, it’s me.”

A moment passed and Din slowly began to stir. “(Y/N)?” His gloved hand moved to hold her waist and gently tug her down into his embrace. “Maker, I thought that you’d…you wouldn’t wake up, and I thought…” He choked up, unable to finish his sentence; his free hand cupped her cheek as she rested her forehead against his in a Keldabe Kiss. “I think I’d prefer having you on top of me from now on, alor’ad.”

(Y/N) let out a watery laugh at that. “Whatever you say, sweetheart.”

“Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum, ner cyar’ika alor’ad,” Din murmured and took hold of her hand, slipping it beneath the edge of his helmet and pressing his lips against her fingertips.

“Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum, ner cyar’ika riduur.”

With a final smile, (Y/N) sat up and helped the Mandalorian sit next to her, and he finally looked over at where Bo-Katan was preparing the soup by the fire. “What happened?”

The Nite Owl shrugged. “I saved your lives.”

“How did you find us?”

“Your kid.” Bo-Katan smiled and nodded towards Grogu. “He’s tougher than he looks, and he’s quite the navigator.”

Din sat up straighter with (Y/N)’s help. “Thank you for rescuing us.” She nodded again but remained silent as she worked. “You were right: Mandalore is not cursed.”

“Was I?” Bo-Katan asked jadedly. “Look around, there’s nothing left. A great society is now a memory. I once ruled here for a brief time…now, it’s destroyed.” She sighed and stood, handing one cup of soup to (Y/N) and another to Din. “Nothing to cling to but ashes.”

(Y/N) drank her soup and smiled to herself when warmth returned to her limbs, but Din’s helmeted head tilted to the side in confusion as he studied the cup in his hand. “What is this?”

“You’ve never eaten pog soup?”

“…No.”

Bo-Katan chuckled and turned to pack her rations away while Din lifted his helmet up to take a drink; when he had his fill, he gave the rest to Grogu, who downed the soup in record time. “Can you appreciate the irony? Any Mandalorian worth their armor was raised on this since they were his size.” Din slowly got to his feet and (Y/N) followed, picking the child up and placing him in his pram while Din retrieved his weapons. “You should rest. I’ll get you all back to my ship soon enough.”

“I’m not going with you.”

The Nite Owl frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“I must continue to the Mines of Mandalore so that I may be redeemed.”

“We must continue,” (Y/N) corrected and met the visor of his helmet with a firm stare. “We’re not letting you go back down there by yourself.”

Din sighed but nodded in agreement as an exasperated Bo-Katan rolled her eyes. “I honestly think it’s adorable that you actually believe these children’s stories, but there is nothing magic about the waters.”

“Without the Creed, what are we? What do we stand for?” The Mandalorian demanded, reattaching his jetpack while (Y/N) patted Grogu’s wrinkled head. “Our people are scattered like stars in the galaxy; the Creed is how we survived. You rescued my wife and myself and I’ll always be in your debt, but I can’t – we can’t – go with you until I fulfill my obligation.”

Bo-Katan took a deep breath. “I will take you.”

(Y/N) arched a brow in surprise. “To the Living Waters?”

“Yes. You’ll never find them on your own…not in all this wreckage.”

Din exchanged a brief look with (Y/N) before giving the Nite Owl a nod. “Thank you.”

She smiled humorlessly. “Don’t thank me until you see them.”

They stomped out the fire and once Din scooped (Y/N) into his arms, they stepped off the cliff and flew down to the bottom of the chasm. Hopefully we won’t stumble across any more surprises, she thought to herself as she drew her blaster and walked between the two Mandalorians down a pathway.

“It’s hard to believe that this all was once filled with our kind…”

“It wasn’t that long ago,” Bo-Katan replied, her gloved fingers tightening around the helmet she carried against her hip. “You’d never know it, looking at all this destruction.”

(Y/N) nodded in agreement. “It looks like it’s been centuries. While I was in the Rebellion, I saw many of the cities and planets destroyed by the Empire, but none of them looked quite like this.”

“The Empire set out to punish us Mandalorians, to wipe away our memory.”

With her heart filling with sympathy for the Nite Owl walking beside her, (Y/N) quietly remarked, “It must pain you to see it like this after witnessing its beauty.”

Bo-Katan spared her a brief glance. “What pains me is seeing our own kind fight one another time and time again. Killing each other for reasons too confusion to explain. It made us weak; we had no hope to resist being smashed by the fist of the Empire.” Din shifted uncomfortably, no doubt reminded that the Children of the Watch had broken away first and were not there in Mandalore’s time of need, and (Y/N) gave his hand a comforting squeeze as Bo-Katan pointed at a crevice in the rock ahead. “There. The entrance to the Mines of Mandalore.”

They followed the Nite Owl into the crevice and after (Y/N)’s eyes adjusted when she tossed a hovering light sphere into the air above them, she glanced around the space in interest. “This area looks much older.”

“The mines have been here for thousands of years,” Bo-Katan replied. “The Living Waters are in the chambers below.”

It was then that Din finally spoke up. “Have you been there?”

“Yes, when I was a child.”

“Really?”

A small smile began to play across Bo-Katan’s face. “I was part of the royal family. I took the Creed and was showered with gifts, but the rituals were all just theatre for our subjects. They loved watching the princess recite the Mandalorian tenets as her father looked on proudly.” She snorted in amusement. “Such a heartwarming spectacle.”

“Maybe he was proud,” Din speculated, and (Y/N) knew it was more for Bo-Katan’s sake than his own.

“I know he was. I didn’t embarrass him in front of everyone.”

The tunnel was silent for a moment before Din spoke again. “Your father sounds like an interesting man. I would’ve liked to have known him.”

“He was a great man.” Bo-Katan swallowed thickly and kept her gaze trained ahead. “He died defending Mandalore.”

Din stopped in his tracks, leading (Y/N) and the Nite Owl to stop walking and Grogu’s pram to hover in the air nearby, and he bowed his head in respect. “This is the Way.”

They continued down the tunnel, the silence amongst their small group accompanied only by the steady dripping of water. As they walked, (Y/N) thought about Bo-Katan’s glowing praise of her father and felt a familiar pang in her chest; she’d never known her own father – not even his name – and all her mother told her was that it was because of his choice that he wasn’t in their lives. When she was a child, she often wondered what her father was like and grew envious of the other children in her town who had two parents, and when she was a teenager and already suffered her mother’s untimely death, that childlike curiosity soured and turned to anger. Now that she was grown, the fiery anger was gone and had been replaced by an empty feeling, not quite sadness but a little like grief. Grief for the little girl who was forced to fend for herself after the only person in the galaxy who loved her passed away, grief for the young woman who spent years alone with only her pain and fury for company, and grief for the woman who would never have the chance to introduce her honorable husband and adoptive son to a father filled with pride for his daughter.

“Alor’ad? Everything okay?”

(Y/N) blinked and gave Din a brief smile. “Yep, just lost in thought.”

The Mandalorian’s gloved hand tightened around hers, keeping her grounded in the present and focused on the end of tunnel as it widened to reveal a massive chamber filled with inky-black water that was smooth as glass. “Here you go: The Living Waters. I want you two to get the full tour.” Bo-Katan chuckled and walked over to a tarnished plaque on the wall. “‘These mines date back to the age of the first Mandalore. According to ancient folklore, the mines were once a Mythosaur lair; Mandalore the Great is said to have tamed the mythical beast. It is from these legends that the skull signet was adopted and became the symbol of our planet.’”

While Bo-Katan teasingly read from the plaque, Din and (Y/N) stood by the steps that led down into the waters; she looked over at her husband and although she couldn’t see his face, she could tell from the way he stared out at the waters that he was overcome with emotion. “Are you ready, sweetheart?”

Din silently nodded and went about removing his cowl, weapons and jetpack, setting them down on the stone floor and turning back to (Y/N); he leaned down and gave her a lingering Keldabe Kiss before slowly descending the steps into the waters. “I swear on my name and the names of the Ancestors…” (Y/N) anxiously bit her lip and both Bo-Katan and Grogu moved closer as the water quickly covered Din’s boots. “That I shall walk the Way of the Mand’alor…” The water soon encased his torso. “And the words of the Creed shall be forever forged in my heart.”

Just as Din finished reciting the Mandalorian Creed and (Y/N)’s shoulders relaxed, he dropped down into the waters and entirely disappeared from view. “Din!” Bo-Katan quickly put her helmet on and jumped into the waters after him while Grogu wailed in alarm. “It’s okay, little guy, your dad’s gonna be okay…” She scooped the child into her arms and held him close, worry filling her heart as she stared down at the inky-black waters that were meant to redeem her husband, not condemn him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mando’a Translations:

Ner cyar’ika alor’ad-My darling captain Alor’ad-Captain Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum, ner cyar’ika alor’ad-I love you, my darling captain Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum, ner cyar’ika riduur-I love you, my darling husband

A/N: Thank you all so much for reading and commenting! Oh, and I’ve created a Spotify playlist of all my favorite music from the world of Star Wars, so if you’re interested in checking it out the link is down below!

Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2KuSKJhVOPPvxdJ9YHeo4M?si=2977ff31bf0c4bdd

Chapter Thirty-Four

Taking Care of Business Masterlist

Tagging: @remmysbounty​ @sinon36​ @seninjakitey​ @thatonedindjarinfan​ @ginger-swag-rapunzel​ @mostclevermiss​ @momc95​ @welcometothepedroverse​ @sarahjkl82-blog​ @elinedjarin​ @itsnottilly​ @crowleysqueenofhell​  @goldielocks2004 @wondergal2001​ @groovy-lady​ @impala1967666​ @fluffy-canada-pancakes​ @icee228​​

[dindjarindiaries]

Security - Chapter 54: The Homeworld

summary: Din and Astra make their way to the Mandalorian homeworld, where they find many surprises awaiting them.

warnings: canon-typical violence, references to trauma, angst, hurt/comfort, fluff

rating: T

word count: 6.424k

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chapter 54: the homeworld

Tatooine’s landscape is familiar to Din in a way that isn’t quite like home, but falls somewhere near it. The streets are heavily populated with people and speeders as the starfighter makes its descent into Peli’s hangar. Din exhales as he realizes what day it is: Boonta Eve, a holiday he never celebrated but often witnessed throughout his life spent in the Outer Rim.

Din glances back and smiles to himself at the sight of Astra sleeping with Grogu tucked under her chin. He’s relieved, as the emotional weight of their brief stop on Kalevala no doubt weighed heavily upon his wife. She needs all the rest she can get and Din’s trying his best to do the same. It’s hard not to admire his family in such a peaceful state, and this time, he spent most of it with his daughter who now sleeps in the space between his bandolier and his cuirass.

“Cyar’ika,” Din’s gentle with his call, regretful to wake her, “we’re here.”

Astra stirs with a deep breath that Din can hear over the intercom. “It’s like we never left,” she says.

Din chuckles at her words. They had definitely overstayed their welcome, but Boba Fett had been generous in letting their family stay as long as they needed to. That opportunity for his family to rest had made every injury Din sustained during the fight worth it.

As soon as the N-1 touches down in Peli’s hangar, Din can hear her voice shouting to him. “Whoo-hoo!” she whoops. “You hear that? She’s purring like a nuzzle shrew.”

Din slides his and Astra’s canopies open. “No complaints. Still faster than I know what to do with.”

“For better or for worse,” Astra adds, amused.

“Well, I’ll tune her up, just the same,” Peli assures them. She sets her hands on her belt and looks between them. “So, uh, where’s my guy? Huh?”

Astra lifts Grogu high enough for Peli to see him. He coos with joy as Peli does the same.

“There he is!” Peli lets out a surprised exclamation as Grogu leaps from Astra’s arms in a grand front flip. Din tries to suppress a laugh and somewhat succeeds, an action that starts to rouse Zora upon his armored chest. “Now who taught you how to leap like a Lurmen, huh?”

“It wasn’t us,” Astra jokes as she starts to stand. “Trust me.”

“Well, what about my other pal?” Peli gestures to Din as he rises with a gloved hand holding tight to Zora. She gasps with sweet delight. “Oh, my stars! She’s gotten so big!” Peli waves while Din offers a hand to Astra and helps her down. “Hi there, Zora!”

Zora smiles at Peli and then looks at Din. He’s just gotten to the ground when Zora taps his helmet and points. “Baba!” She takes a firm grip on the lip of his helmet and tries to pull it up. Din lifts a hand to push it back down and removes her grip in a gentle motion. He holds onto her tiny hand while Peli chuckles.

“You’re trying to show me your dad, aren’t you?” Peli asks Zora in a baby voice. Astra laughs as she sets a hand on Din’s pauldron and keeps it there. Din takes a quick moment to admire her and the bright shine he sees in her gaze.

“As much as I’d like to keep this reunion going,” Din speaks up, “we’re here on business.”

“Oh, are the Hutts back?” Peli questions. “Are you takin’ out Boba Fett?”

Din tilts his helmet at her. “We need a droid part.”

Peli rolls her eyes and scoffs. “Ugh. Boring!” She turns to shout at her droids. “Hey, get the Jawas back in here before they hit the cantina!” The pit droids set off and Peli faces Din and Astra again. “You know how Mos Eisley gets during Boonta week.” She lifts a hand to mock drinking and Din nods in understanding.

Astra gives Din’s shoulder a playful shrug. “Do you really, riduur?”

Din swings his helmet to look at her. “I… was younger then.” He clears his throat and focuses back on Peli, though he doesn’t miss the squeeze Astra gives his shoulder. “I’m looking for a replacement IG memory circuit.”

Peli gives Din a surprised look. “Oh. Hey, grandpa.” Astra laughs before she can suppress the sound with her hand. This time, Din deals her a playful shoulder shove. “They haven’t made those for a while.”

Peli guides them closer to a speeder she’s working on, where the Jawas meet them in the middle. When they stop in front of her, she speaks to them in Jawaese, ending her sentence with “memory circuit.” The Jawas make a few frustrated hand gestures before they run off again. Din and Astra share a look before Peli turns to them again. “Sorry, pal, no chance cubes.”

Din lifts his free hand in shock. “They can’t find the part?”

Peli shrugs. “Nope.”

Din gives Astra a worried stare and tightens his hand into a fist. “We need our droid fixed now.” Zora whimpers and Din starts to gently rock her, resisting the urge to apologize for his frustrated feelings.

“Which is why I think you should buy this beauty here.” Peli turns and slaps a hand on top of her R5-D4 unit, causing a piece of him to fly off completely. One of his circuits crackles with electricity that makes Din hold back a sigh.

“I can’t use an astromech,” Din reminds her. “We need a droid that’s rated for spelunking.”

Peli wears an incredulous raise of her brow. “Spelunking? What are you spelunking?”

Astra moves closer to Din’s side and he wishes he could thank her for it. “We’re going to Mandalore. We need a droid that can explore ahead of us and test the atmosphere, make sure it’s safe to breathe.”

“Okay, well…” Peli starts. She’s cut off by R5 beeping and shaking his head as he tries to back away. Peli waves him back over and tuts at him. “Hey! Get right back here. Right back here, scaredy droid.” She sets a supportive hand on him. “Come on now, you gotta shine.”

Din glances over at Astra to read her. She’s focused back on the starfighter, her lips pulled tight in consideration. Peli goes on before he can question her about it.

“This R5 astromech is built for adventure,” she informs them. R5 gives her a sharp look and she returns one with bewilderment. “What?” She sighs when he speaks to her. “Of course you are. You’re supposed to be piloting starfighters across the galaxy and fighting tyranny.”

R5 offers only nervous beeps in response. Din’s gaze meets Astra’s and she becomes the one to voice their shared parts. “We don’t have any room for him on the ship,” Astra tells Peli. “We can barely fit the four of us in there.”

“Not to mention he’s falling apart,” Din mutters.

“Nonsense,” Peli insists. “R5-D4 is as good as the day he came back from serving in the Rebellion.” Astra raises an eyebrow at Din and he holds back an amused chuckle. “And don’t you worry. I’ll reinstall your droid port and this little baby here can even co-pilot.” R5 begins to shake with worry and Peli glares at him. “Hey, if you don’t settle your bolts, I’ll sell you back to the Jawas.”

“Peli,” Astra starts with a worried sigh, “that only worsens our problem of fitting in the ship.”

“I’ve got it, princess!” Peli assures her. Astra huffs at the use of her old title. “It’s Boonta Eve, so what I’m gonna do is give you this—,” she leans against R5, “—for half the price and throw in a free oil bath. And since it’s inconveniencing you and I happen to like your family, I’ll push that droid port back and make some other modifications to fit you all in there a bit better.”

Din and Astra share a glance while Peli and R5 do the same. Astra shrugs and gestures to the ship. “It’s up to you, riduur. You have a better idea of what we need for this journey.”

Din glances at the starfighter and sighs. The part for IG will take months to find if even the Jawas can’t get it, and the longer Din waits for this adventure, the more his family will have to suffer. He ultimately offers a nod towards Peli. “All right.”

Peli grins and pats R5 in celebration. “Great!” She hands Grogu off to Astra. “Then I’ll get to work.” She starts to walk towards her toolkit then stops. “Though… a helping hand or two might make this go by faster.”

Astra nods at Peli. “We’ll help you in a minute.” She shows Din the pouch that still hangs from her belt. “We just need a quick snack break.”

“Sure, sure!” Peli responds. “But next time, bring some for me.”

Astra laughs as she sets a hand on Din’s back and guides him to a more private corner of the hangar. They sit on cargo crates across from each other, Din keeping Zora balanced on his knee while Astra sets Grogu beside herself. Astra offers Grogu one of the containers first before she sets Din’s on her lap.

“Are these the ‘special treats’ we were promised earlier?” Din asks, hopeful.

Astra beams and nods. She opens the container and lets him look. “Cream of jogan.”

Din inhales an excited breath. He’s launched back to his childhood at the sight of the purple fruit. “How’d you know I love jogan?” Din wonders with a smile that remains concealed behind his beskar.

“We’ve been married a long time, now,” Astra reminds him with a sweet smile of her own. “But I have to say, this was Zora’s idea.”

Din looks at his daughter and bounces her a few times. “You have good taste, Zozo.” He lifts her to press her tiny head against his helmet, resulting in a bubbly laugh that only makes his grin grow. “You must get it from me.”

Din sets Zora back on his knee and reaches to take the container from Astra, but she shakes her head at him. “You don’t have a lot of free hands,” she reminds him. “Just lift your helmet when you’re ready and I’ll take care of it.”

Din’s face warms under his helmet as he shifts his weight and nods. He refuses to let his shyness flare up as he instead enjoys the intimate moment with his family. Din frees a hand from Zora to touch the lip of his helmet and as soon as he lifts it, Astra reaches forward with a share of the jogan. The taste once again launches Din into a state of nostalgia as he closes his eyes and rocks Zora in pure joy.

Astra looks upon him with both affection and amusement. She prepares Din’s next bite and checks in on Grogu, who’s nearly finished devouring his dessert. Astra speaks to Din as she does so. “You’re blushing, my love.”

Din shrugs, his helmet only getting warmer as his visor falls. “It’s… warm here.”

Astra chuckles with him. “It sure is.”

Given the rather small size of the dessert, the family’s snack time comes to an end more quickly than Din would’ve liked. Din retrieves the pram from the N-1 and sets Zora inside of it, tasking Grogu with the important job of keeping her safe and entertained. He and Astra pick up some of Peli’s tools and assist her as best as they can, though Din often finds himself distracted by the sight of his two children playing and laughing with each other.

The last time his family was working on this ship with Peli, Grogu had been away for almost a full standard year. Now, they’re all back together again, and they’re just one more adventure away from what could be the start of their forever home and future. These thoughts carry Din through his share of the work while he allows Peli and Astra to converse amongst themselves.

But Din’s silence doesn’t go unnoticed for long. Astra stops what she’s doing to give Din a look that he can sense before his visor even meets her gaze. She comes closer to him and lowers her voice, keeping their conversation private. “Is everything okay?” Astra gives him a once-over. “You’re quieter than usual.”

Din smiles underneath his helmet and nods. “That’s the thing.” He fixates his visor on their children again. “I couldn’t be better.”

Astra smiles with him and lifts a hand to urge his helmet to meet her forehead. “We’re almost there.” She takes her tool and taps his cuirass with it. “If you work a little quicker, we’ll get there even faster.”

Din huffs and lifts her hand from his helmet to jokingly push it away. Astra chuckles and returns to where she was before. Din’s gaze doesn’t leave her for even a single moment. He wants to freeze himself in this moment, where the joy on the faces of his wife and children could be as permanent and radiant as possible. But deep down within himself, Din comes to terms with the truth that he can’t, because he’ll never be able to fully partake in that joy until he finds his redemption once and for all.

Their teamwork on the starfighter makes their progress both quick and efficient. By the time the two suns have set and the Boonta Eve celebrations have begun, the family of four and their droid companion are settled in the modified N-1. Grogu’s finally settled himself on Din’s lap after his fifth crawl through the small hatch added between his and Astra’s seats.

Peli says a few final words to R5 before she turns to Din and addresses him. “I wouldn’t rely too much on this one,” she says, gesturing to the astromech. “His circuitry is a little fragile.”

Din furrows his brow. “I thought you said it was—.”

Peli takes the liberty of closing Din’s canopy for him.

“—Built for adventure.”

“What?” Peli questions, raising her voice above the starfighter’s purring engine. “Sorry, I can’t hear you!”

Din makes sure Astra’s canopy is closed before he starts to lift the N-1 into the air. He focuses on navigating them off planet through the Boonta Eve fireworks while Peli waves to them from below.

“May the Force be with you!” she calls up to them.

“I never know how to respond to that,” Astra confesses to Din over the intercom.

Din chuckles and shrugs. “Me neither.” He releases a breath as they pass by the fireworks, watching as Grogu admires them through the transparisteel. Din grins and focuses back on the way ahead. “All right, kid,” he says just to Grogu. “You ready for an adventure?”

Grogu coos in the affirmative. Just a few moments later, the N-1’s launched into hyperspace, sending them back the way they came. Din glances back and sees Astra and Zora already pursuing rest, with Zora’s curly head resting on her mother’s shoulder. He’s overwhelmed with a surge of warmth, though this time, he makes himself join them in slumber.

Din awakens when the starfighter returns to sublight travel. He blinks a few times at the swirling planet ahead of him, his heart aching at the sight of Mandalore’s destroyed surface. It’s visible even from this far. What used to be a beautiful part of his starry galaxy during his childhood is now a place to be feared.

Grogu’s fallen victim to that first. The little one whimpers as he looks upon the planet they’re quickly approaching. Din rushes to comfort him before he checks on Astra and Zora.

“It looks scary, I know,” Din murmurs. “But it was once green and beautiful, back when the songs were written.” He pauses, letting a wave of nostalgia wash over him. “It’s Mandalore, the homeworld of our people.” Grogu glances at Din. “Every Mandalorian can trace their roots back to this planet, and the beskar mines deep within. And you know what?”

Grogu lifts his ears in interest, though he doesn’t look away from the view of Mandalore.

“I’ve never been there, either.” Din lifts his gloved hand to point at the distant moon. “I grew up there. On that moon.” Grogu’s gaze follows his finger. “Concordia.” Grogu coos with wonder at the sight. Din moves his finger to the proximity scope. “And that’s Kalevala where we visited Bo-Katan. It’s in the same system.”

Grogu babbles a response and lifts his hand to match Din’s own.

“A Mandalorian has to understand maps and know their way around. That way, you’ll never be lost.”

“Wise words from a wise man,” Astra responds.

Din tilts his helmet and grips the controls a bit tighter. “You’re flattering me too much.”

“Oh, please. I would never lie to you.”

Din holds his breath as he navigates the starfighter closer to Mandalore’s atmosphere. “You’re not gonna think I’m so wise in a second here.”

As soon as the N-1 enters the planet’s swirling clouds, their family is surrounded by darkness. Thunder rumbles and lightning threatens to strike them at any moment. The consoles begin to glitch from the atmosphere’s disturbance and the ship itself shudders from the sheer brutality of the storm. Grogu whimpers and Din keeps him close and steady. Din wonders if Astra would be sharing some choice words of her own if the intercom wasn’t malfunctioning from the atmosphere’s disturbances.

The starfighter breaks through the clouds and reveals the roughened surface of Mandalore. The consoles continue to glitch and Din gives them a few taps. “Looks like the fusion bombs from the Purge disrupted the magnetic field around the planet,” he tells Grogu. The consoles come back to life and Din lets out a sigh of relief.

“It's probably a good thing you couldn’t hear me through all that,” Astra informs Din, her voice broken up by Zora’s whines of fear.

“I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect,” Din replies, apologetic. “I would’ve warned you more if I had known.”

“It’s all right. We’re perfectly fine back here.” Zora’s cries stop and Din assumes it’s from Astra’s comfort. “Aren’t we, Zora?”

Zora releases a quiet coo, one that’s not fully reassuring but just enough to put Din at ease. He tightens his jaw as he reads a warning message on the console. “From the surface, we won’t be able to communicate with anyone out of atmosphere, so we have to be careful. Down here, we’re completely cut off from the rest of the galaxy.”

Astra’s worried breath is audible through the intercom. “That’s comforting.”

Din circles his jaw and increases the speed of their descent. “We’ll be okay. I’ll make sure of it.”

“I believe you.” Astra’s words are honest and kind, but cautious. “Just don’t promise me. I don’t want you to have to break it.”

Din nods. “Understood, ner kar’ta.” He lowers the N-1 to the crystallized surface near Sundari. “Some of our past promises haven’t boded well.”

“That may be true, but I don’t doubt you or your word.” Din turns in his seat to face Astra and he’s relieved to be met with her soft gaze of comfort. “I just don’t want you to have to carry any more burdens.”

Din tilts his helmet at her, a motion that says more than his words could. He prepares himself with a deep breath and gets a quick glimpse of the flat and haunting landscape. “Well, here we are.” He then turns his helmet to their astromech escort. “R5, you ready? I’m gonna need you to scout ahead and analyze the atmosphere.”

R5 beeps his response and frantically shakes his metal head back-and-forth. Din resists the urge to sigh to himself.

“That wasn’t a question.” Din hits a button on the console and he hears R5 drop to the surface. The droid beeps in pure fear. “Go over to that split in the rock and take an air sample of the ruins below.”

R5 obeys, despite his worried warbling. Grogu watches him with intent and Din can hear Zora release a frightened coo through the intercom. Astra’s tone is sad rather than afraid when she speaks. “It’s hard to believe a civilization as great as Mandalore’s once stood here.”

Din shakes his helmet. “I never got to see it.” He’s distracted by Grogu whimpering and turning his head towards his father. Din returns the glance. “The droid will be fine.” Grogu’s ears remain low. “I just need him to take some readings to make sure it’s safe.”

R5 stops in his tracks and looks back at the ship. He beeps at Din.

“Don’t be a baby. Just get the samples we need, and hurry up.”

R5 beeps something rather unkind and continues ahead. Grogu continues his worried babbles while Zora’s own whimpering gets louder. “The kids are afraid, Din.”

���I know.” Din gives Grogu’s head a reassuring pat. “But the droid will be okay.” R5 disappears behind the split rock and both the children’s distress gets worse. Din starts to mess with his console. “Here, Grogu, look. You can watch him on the scope.”

Grogu settles himself more on Din’s lap and watches the red dot of R5 get farther and farther away. After a few moments, the dot suddenly disappears from the scope. Grogu gasps in worry as Din hits the console.

“R5, come in. Do you read me?”

“Did we lose him?” Astra asks over the children’s whining.

“It’s probably just interference,” Din insists. He looks at Grogu and he’s met with two worried eyes that are double their usual size. Grogu coos, babbles, and sputters in despair, and despite him lacking in words, Din understands what he’s asking for. Din sighs and gives in. “Fine. I’ll go get him.”

Astra’s voice now carries the same worry as their children’s. “Is that safe?”

“It should be, but normally, this is droid work,” Din mutters. “I was hoping to avoid going out there.”

“What if it’s toxic?”

“I’ll pressurize my helmet.” Din helps Grogu lower to the floor of the starfighter. “Grogu, seal yourself in your pod. Girls…” Din turns to face Astra and Zora, “don’t open that canopy, no matter what.”

Astra tightens her jaw. “That’s a big ask, riduur.”

“You won’t even have to worry about it.” Din nods for further reassurance. “I’ll be right back.”

Once Grogu’s sealed in his pod, Din pressurizes his helmet and slides his canopy open. He stands and pauses to take a quick look around before he steps down. His helmet hisses and reminds Din why he avoids pressurizing his helmet. He closes the canopy using his vambrace and starts to walk off, but Astra’s voice stops him short. “Din.”

Din approaches her canopy and meets her gaze with his visor. Astra swallows hard and sets a hand on the transparisteel. Din lifts a gloved hand to cover hers, his touch and his gaze lingering before he forces himself to step away. He only makes it a few strides ahead before the cries of his daughter and the burning gaze of his son make him turn around once more. “Don’t worry, kids,” he assures them. “I’ll be right back.”

With that, Din closes the distance to the split rock, turning the corner and coming upon a deep cave. His steps slow and he remains more cautious once he enters, the crystallized walls emitting nothing but darkness and green-filtered light. There’s no sign of R5 just yet, but the more Din goes on, the less focused he becomes on the astromech. Instead, his attention’s drawn to what lies at the end of his vision.

The walkway turns into a cliff that opens the crystallized cave large enough to fit an entire city within it. Ruins of a city Din can only dream of visiting are charred yet preserved, giving him an idea of what life on Mandalore might’ve been like. He looks upon it with awe, his visor scanning the view while his mind tries to take it all in.

It’s only the rustling Din catches behind him that draws his attention back to the situation at hand. A creature appears from the darkness and roars at Din as it raises a weapon that knocks him to the ground. Two more creatures join the fight, but Din remains focused on reaching for his blaster and firing a bolt at his first attacker. The other two come at him and knock him down before he has a chance to steady himself on his feet. Din keeps firing blaster bolts, but the creatures remain unfazed, swinging their weapons at him and forcing him to remain on the defense.

Din rolls away from them and props himself up on one knee, assessing his attacks while he has the brief chance to. Having lost his blaster before, Din reaches behind himself to take a hold of the Darksaber’s hilt. He’s displeased to find that it’s still as heavy as it was the last time he tried to wield it. With a prayer to the stars and an apology to his awaiting wife, Din swings the blade towards the creature on his left and throws a punch to finish it off. He tries to do the same to the creature on his right, but he overshoots, and the weight of the blade forces him around in a full rotation.

When he recovers, he’s met with a blow of their club to the front of his helmet. He falls back a few steps and runs right into another one of the creatures, who knocks him to the ground yet again. Every time he tries to stand, the creature forces him back down with a firm fist upon his jetpack. Din manages to unsheathe his vibroblade from his boot and sticks it into the creature’s thigh. He holds it there for a long moment before he withdraws it and slashes the creature with the Darksaber. It tumbles off the cliff and Din tries to anticipate the next attack.

He’s too late. One of the creatures knocks him back so far he nearly goes off the edge of the cliff. The other creature dives at him and Din dodges just in time to send the creature flying off the cliff instead of himself. He’s hit with another blow before he can turn back around, but he’s prepared for the next few hits. He blocks them with his arms and even gets a kick into the creature’s leg, bringing it to its knee. Din uses the advantage to run the Darksaber through the creature’s middle. Once he’s satisfied, Din retracts the blade and throws the final creature’s limp body off the cliff.

Din watches the spectacle while he catches his breath. He checks himself for wounds, though his observation is interrupted by R5 beeping. Din turns around and finds R5 knocked back against a few crystallized rocks, unable to get himself to move. He approaches the droid and starts to lift him, though he can feel the droid trying to help. “Yeah, wait,” Din commands breathlessly. With a heave of effort thanks to his recent fight, he gets the astromech back to his wheeled feet. “Okay, you’re all right.”

R5 rocks a few times as he beeps in gratitude. Din offers a nod.

“Now come on,” Din urges. He’s begun to fear for his family following his own run-in. “Let’s get you back to the ship.”

Din leads the way and R5 follows close behind. His steps quicken in his desire to reach his family, and in just another minute or so, he turns the corner and spots the N-1. The only difference from when he left is that Grogu’s used the hatch to join Astra and Zora in their canopy. Din smiles to himself in relief and he can already see Astra doing the same. Grogu and Zora both coo and set their hands upon the transparisteel. Din chuckles to himself and stops both himself and R5 just in front of the ship.

“They’ve been waiting to join you,” Astra manages to tell him through the transparisteel.

“Hang on,” Din responds. “Not until I check the toxicity.” Din looks at R5. “You got an analysis on the atmosphere yet?”

R5 beeps in the affirmative and lifts his holotransmitter. The holo reveals the analysis charts that only get more and more promising, the number rising higher and falling more and more into the green zone. Din watches it with amazement.

“The charts were wrong,” Din murmurs. The count stop and the number Din reads is a welcome and beneficial surprise. “The atmosphere is breathable.” Din glances up. “Bo-Katan was right.” He then meets Astra’s gaze. “Mandalore is not cursed.”

Astra’s lips stretch wide in a prideful smile. “And now, you’re the first person brave enough to return to it.”

Din beams underneath his helmet and moves towards their canopy. “It’s about time you all joined me.” He slides the canopy open and looks at Grogu, gesturing with his helmet to the pilot’s seat. “Go get your pod for you and your sister.”

Grogu obeys with an enthusiastic coo. Din helps Astra and Zora out of the ship and onto the crystallized surface. Astra looks around with the same wonder Din felt in the cave, her gaze brightened. Din wishes he could have more time to admire her and her excitement. No sight in the galaxy could be as beautiful as this.

Grogu returns at Din’s side in his pod and Astra sets Zora inside it. Their daughter whines and reaches out to Din. He summons the strength of the Ancestors to deny her request. “I’m sorry, Zozo, but you’ve got to stay in the pod with your brother,” Din tells her in a soft voice. “It’s safer there.”

Zora begins to cry. Grogu lets out a concerned coo and sets a hand on her tiny shoulder. Din twists his lips and kneels down to the height of the pram, his gloved hands holding her face as his visor meets her devastated brown gaze.

“Zora Arilia.” Din nods and runs his thumbs over her cheeks to dry her tears. “You’re a Djarin. Cuy dral. Cuy verd’ika.” You’re strong. You’re a little warrior. He lifts a hand to the lip of his helmet and raises it just enough to kiss her forehead. Zora calms and even smiles at her father’s words and affection.

Din doesn’t lower his helmet when he stands, instead turning to his wife and wrapping his free hand around the back of her neck. He pulls her to himself in a kiss that displays his utter love, admiration, and desperation for her, a gesture of gratitude that words can’t express. She’s stuck by his side for so long, much longer than anyone else in his life, and now she’s come all the way to a destroyed planet for him. Din never knew it was possible to hold so much love in his heart.

They separate and Din lets his helmet fall back fully over his face. He presses his helmet to Astra’s forehead and takes one of her hands, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Are you ready?”

Astra’s gaze is somehow even brighter than before. She nods and squeezes his hand back. “Let’s get you to those Living Waters.” Astra takes a step away from him and keeps her hold on his hand. “This is the Way.”

Din inhales at her words, unable to contain the warmth that spills from his very chest. His voice is strained when he responds. “This is the Way.”

They keep their hands entwined as Din leads their family towards the split in the rock. He rolls his shoulders and keeps one gloved hand near his holster. Astra glances at him out of the corner of his eye. “What happened in there?”

Din returns her stare. “In here?” He points to the way ahead.

Astra sharpens her look before he can go on. “I know something happened.” She gestures to his armored shoulders. “You’re stiffer than before.”

Din releases a soft sigh. “There were some… creatures.”

Astra’s brow lifts. “What kind of creatures?” Her gaze gives him a once-over. “Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m fine. I don’t know what they were.” Din gives her hand a squeeze for reassurance. His visor leaves her gaze as he continues. “I did use the Darksaber, though. I’m sorry.”

“I had a feeling.” Astra steps closer to his side, until they’re brushing against each other with every step. “It’s all right. I trust you with it if you trust yourself.”

Din nods, keeping her close and enjoying her touch while he can. He draws his blaster with his free hand at the mouth of the cave and Astra does the same. They share a look before Din takes a cautious step forward. They’re forced to separate as Din clears their path. He scans the area for more of the creatures he’d seen before, but by the time he reaches the end of the walkway, he doesn’t find a single one. Din releases the breath he was holding and holsters his blaster. “That’s the Civic Center,” he tells Astra, who also holsters her blaster at his side. “This is where Bo-Katan said to go.”

Astra looks upon the city with a grim pinch in her brow. “This is the Civic Center?” She glances at Din. “It looked like it was once a beautiful place.”

“That’s what I thought, too.”

Astra’s sadness is replaced by confusion when she looks at Din again. “How are we supposed to get down there?”

Din taps the pod at his side. “Grogu will get these two to follow us in the pod. As for you…” he opens his arms to her, “we’re gonna have to do this the old fashioned way.”

Astra looks between the buried city and Din a few times. She takes a deep breath of composure and nods. “All right.” She walks towards him and wraps her arms tightly around Din’s neck. Din lifts her and helps her to wrap her legs tight around him. His grip becomes a vice to keep her in place.

“I’ve got you,” Din assures her. “Just make sure you’re hanging on as tight as you can.”

“I will. It would be really nice if I could get a jetpack of my o…”

Astra cuts herself off with a gasp as Din makes the jump from the edge of the walkway. He activates his jetpack to keep them at equilibrium. He’s pleased to see the kids’ pod following at his side, Grogu’s ears flapping in the wind as they make their descent. Din waits until they’re far down enough for him to evaluate. He lands on a long yet stable strip and keeps Astra in place.

“Please tell me we’re almost there,” Astra murmurs.

Din rests his helmet against her head on his shoulder. “Sorry, cyar’ika. The mines should be further down.” He takes a breath to prepare himself. “We’re on our own from here.”

Grogu babbles at Din and he nods in return. Din steps out and lets them freefall again. The jetpack carries them all the way down until they can’t go any further. When they land, his boots splash in a small trail of water.

Din takes a breath of relief. “This should be good.”

He helps Astra get back on her feet. She heaves a breath and sets her hands on his cuirass. “Thank the stars you’re so strong.”

Din chuckles and shakes his head. Astra steps away to let Din get a good look around, and upon seeing the tunnels surrounding them, Din charts a path in his mind. He sets off and his family follows. When the darkness becomes too much, he clasps the light onto his helmet, urging Grogu to do the same with his pram. Astra stays close to Din’s side while he investigates the area, looking for any clues or dangers. He draws his blaster for security and Astra follows his lead.

“Do you know where we’re going?” Astra whispers. She gives her head an aimless shake. “This all looks the same to me.”

“Look.” Din gestures with his blaster to a nearby stream of water that falls from above them. “These waters should flow down to the mines and the Living Waters within.”

Astra nods and continues to follow Din forward. He can hear Grogu babbling something in a nervous tone behind him. He doesn’t blame the little one; the darkness of the tunnel mixed with its lingering creatures would be enough to frighten even the bravest of travelers.

After they’ve traversed the tunnel for countless minutes, they come along a seemingly dead end. Din glances around and his light catches an opening. “There.” Din points it out for Astra. “That passage heads down.”

Astra lifts her blaster higher. “Looks dangerous.”

Din gives his helmet a quick tilt. “Could be.” He glances over at her. “Stay close.”

Astra complies and stays right by his side as Din walks up to the mouth of the passage. He stops and scans the opening, lifting his blaster to prepare for any threats. When he looks down and takes a few more steps, Din spots something in the dirt. He kneels down and brushes the dirt from it, his heart sinking when he realizes what it is. Din lifts the broken helmet and examines it, much like he did that nearly fateful day on Nevarro. Astra sets a hand on his shoulder for support.

The rest happens in a quick and brutal flash.

Din can hear the trap set off. He manages to push Astra away from himself, watching only for a moment as she rolls in the dirt. The massive trap secures him just after and Din struggles to fight his way out. Whatever’s holding him stands, and one of its massive legs settles too close to the place where Astra had landed. Din tries to look for her as he continues his fight, but a sharp jab in his neck makes a horrible chill paralyze him.

And the last thought on Din’s mind before the dark tunnel goes completely black is the fear that he likely just sealed his family’s fate within the dark tunnels beneath Mandalore.

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[monsterfloofs]

Sabrina (Female Siren) x Anonymous Librarian Reader

(Floofs wobbles back onto the writing train. Whoo whoo!! Have a small silly thing I was typing while I was waiting for dinner to be done cooking. A cute siren lady, and a mutual crush ⛦◜▿◝ )

The children's corner of your local library had a new reader. One that could soothe even the most rambunctious of children. She was short and squat, with flyaway hair that made her look as if she had been caught in a hurricane on her way to the library. Past the wild mess of peppery hair she had a face that knew laughter like an old friend. A heart shaped face with a round nose and black almond eyes that sparkled.

She came in wearing shawls with tassels, a multitude of scarfs, clothes with wild colors that contrasted the browns and greys of her hair and feathers. 

The children adored her, and you did too. When she bustled in, you just about dropped your armload of books to try and help her set up for her reading days. Talking about books and listening to her chatter about her favorite picks for the week. You tried not to smile too widely, or have your heart melt too much while she was around.

“What’s on your schedule for this week, Rina?” You asked casually, feeling both sly and caught red handed at the same time. 

“A little bit of this and that!” She chirruped as the both of you busied yourselves with cleaning up the children’s corner. Her flock had come and gone, leaving toys and blocks scattered in their wake. While she was reading they were angels, however the little scamps still found enough time to make a royal mess in their wake. 

You dug out a flat wooden dinosaur from the cushion of the sofa. Turning the chunky puzzle piece over in your hands as you thought of what to say next. You had gotten farther than you had expected, and you now stood on the edge of uncharted territory. You studied the green smiling caricature on the puzzle. As if it’s plain beady eyes could give you direction of what to say next.

“Would you–”

“Oh hey!” Sabrina cut you off, and you look up startled.

“I know this is sudden,” She huffs, her voice turning into a breathless jumble. “But last week you mentioned there was a movie playing in theaters thatyouwantedtosee. Would you– Wouldyoupossiblymaybebefreethisweekend?”

You stare outright before feeling your mouth stretch into a wide smile. Your cheeks aching from trying to contain your joy.

“YES!” You cheered before turning meek. Looking around to see a number of patrons glaring at you from the loud proclamation. 

“Thatwouldbejustdandy,” You whispered as Sabrina threw her head back and cackled with silent laughter.

[lovebillyhargrove]

Life's a quest, innit /Part 1/ Part 2/ Part 3 /Part 4

It's the end of school year. Actually, it is the end of school for Steve. End of an era. It's supposed to be a lot, so much to be sad and thrilled about, and summer is just around the corner, but Steve is feeling .. bland.

Just bland. Did he get into college? No. Is he excited about this job at the new ice cream shop with a dumb name which he starts next week? No.

On top of that, now more than ever, he wants to be in love. He wants to go to his parents' cottage on the lake shore with the person he's in love with and do all the things people do when they are in love. It's fucking summer. Time to be carefree and enjoy life. Go skinny dipping at night. Or in broad daylight. Sit by the fire and watch its reflection dance on the water. Go for aimless drives, just to feel the wind blowing in your hair. Smoke slowly and watch the rings of it go up in the starry sky. Feel love sparkle all around you. Make love, for fuck's sake.

There's a small cliff not far from their cottage on the lake. Steve remembers how he used to throw parties at this place back when he was King Steve, the parties were VIP only and cool as hell, and they would get drunk and jump off the cliff into the lake. Tommy was so wasted once, he wanted to do a flip, and he did, just landed on the water flat on his belly. Man, it hurt like a motherfucker.

Yep, it's summer time. But instead of enjoying simple pleasures, Steve has to deal with the constant feeling of failure, low final grades, multiple colleges flipping him off, love life non-existent, parents who seem to just having given up on him.

Yay to summer! Whoo-hoo!

Have you even seen that stupid sailor uniform he'll have to wear for the biggest part of this season? The hat ..?

Yeah. Utter humiliation.

Okay, if Steve is completely honest, there's one thing that he's been excited about for a while now but .. That's a secret. That's his dark secret because that's not even an option. He's never gonna talk about it with anyone, ever. It's not .. possible.

Steve opens his locker and something white falls out of it. It's a white envelope, and Steve knows it's not something he had left there. Interesting. He opens the envelope and finds a note

"So .. it's the last week of school and I'll hate not seeing your face. Let's play a game, heartbreaker? Every couple of days you can find more clues, if you follow the instructions. Clues to what ? - you're asking. Play and find out."

What the hell?? His cheeks are suddenly burning.

Steve's looking around. Everything is just the way it usually is, everyone's going about their usual business.

It has to be a girl, right? Or these munchkin kids, playing a trick on him? Is it some kind of a trick or is it something genuine? .. Tommy? .. He lost all interest in Steve long ago. It has to be a girl, but there's something not girly about.. Steve can't put a finger on it. The choice of words? The handwriting? ..

Well, Steve could play the game. Even if it's a prank, what's the worst that could happen? He's just gonna be very careful about it. Maybe tell Dustin, if it's going to turn into something too sketchy. Fuck, he doesn't even have a friend to confide about stuff like that. Pathetic.

What's he supposed to do now? What if it's a dumb trick? Steve even feels his hands tremble a bit.

He shuts the locker and looks around again. Nope. No-one's looking at him. He puts the note in his backpack absentmindedly.

He's gonna play the game, screw it.

So, where's the next clue?

***

A small gift for the wonderful @dragonflylady77 who's always so awfully nice ❤️

On ao3

[mystic-story-lover]

~See You Back at My Place~

~~~

Matt Jackson x female!reader

Word Count: 788

Warnings: Cringey pick up lines

Type: Fluff

Summary: After coming back from a shoulder injury, the reader is a surprise entrance for a fatal four way in the main event.

A/N: You may think these pickup lines can’t be that bad, but whoo you are in for a doozey with these.

~~~

Nine months and six days had passed since your last fight in AEW, and to say you were nervous for your return was an understatement. You’d been cleared for roughly two weeks, but you hadn’t made your on-screen debut since you and Tony Khan needed to plan how you’d return to the ring. You suggested the idea of using your rematch clause at the AEW women’s championship, and Tony added to your idea that you could earn it in a main event fatal four-way match for the next contender. Both of you agreed that this would be the best way because gave you the chance to test your ability in the ring before it being a championship match, and it allowed for the element of surprise for the fans.

                “You know, Y/n, you’re so hot that even my zipper is falling for you.” Matt Jackson beamed as you shot him another glare. Ever since he got back from his match with Nick and Kenny he’d been telling you dirty pickup lines.

                “Matt, that was so cringey.” You turned to face him fully, taking in the way his baby blue’s were staring directly at your face.

At that, he shrugged before waving his fingers in a twist motion. Following his “order”, you turned back around and continued to walk towards guerrilla. Ruby Soho and Thunder Rosa were already in the ring, and Anna Jay was walking out of the curtain as you reached your spot to wait in.

                “This might seem corny,” Matt started behind you before taking a step so you were right against his broad chest. “But you’re making me horny.”

He could hear the audible groan from you as you shook your head at the terrible line. You didn’t know why the oldest Jackson was telling you these, but some of them made you laugh.

                “Oh god Matt that was awful.” You sighed before turning around to face the man behind you. Before you could say anything, he leaned his head down and placed a passionate kiss onto your lips. You were about to ask him why he did that, but you were called to get behind the curtain.

                “I hate to see you go, but damn I love to watch you leave!” He called out to you.

Before properly walking out, you flipped him your middle finger, then adjusted the strap to your top. When your music hit, you could hear the fans screaming in joy, even though you were one of the heel’s when you left. Nobody was sure how you’d be when you came back, and tonight you were going to show them just who you were.

~~~

1… 2… 3

You’d pinned Anna to get the victory, and a shot at the title. The fans erupted into a fit of cheers, and you could see that Matt, Nick, and Kenny were standing at the top of the rope. They were standing there applauding, and you could see Matt with a smile on his face. With the confidence of a successful return, you leaned in between the ropes and requested a mic from the announce team. When Justin handed you the equipment, you smiled and nodded at him, a way to say thank you.

                “Britt Baker, you and I have unfinished business. See, I was on the shelf for nine months because I got hurt during our title match, and that gave you the opportunity to win my belt. But I’m back now, and I’m coming for what’s mine. I have a rematch clause, and it got me in this match, and I’ll be using it to take back what doesn’t belong to you.” You called through the mic as you looked into the camera.

Dropping the mic in the ring, you stepped out of the ropes and onto the apron. Once you were out of the ropes, Matt began walking down the ramp to you, so you sat down, waiting for him. When he reached you, you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him in for a deep kiss.

                “So, Matt, do I have to sign for your package?” you questioned with a cheesy grin. The two of you could hear the fans going crazy with cheers, being as you just kissed the man who was the first to welcome you into The Elite.

                “How about you just tell me what time you’ll be coming back to my hotel room?” He smiled back at you.

                “Hmm, how about now?” You state, pulling him in for another kiss. He kissed you back, and you gasped when he lifted you off the apron with ease.

This time, you didn’t mind the cheesy pick-up lines, because they made your night that much better.

[maxverstepponme]

This is a lazy summary on Kelly 101. I might come back with receipts and polish up the list. Feel free to add stuff.

*Rumors she lost the job as FE social media correspondence because she slept with a married man and blocked the wife from the official FE chanel. *Rumors she tried hopping on all the Redbull drivers like she is a Whoo girl on an electric bull in a Taxen bar on ladies night. *Rumors she cheated on Daniil several times and tried to become an IT girl, but Daniil didn't like it. *Rumors Daniil broke up with her once and for all, apparently there were small separations beforehand, when he found out Kelly leaves P with the nanny all the time to go party/shopping instead. *Daniil broke up with her when she was in Brazil for her birthday, however she painted it as if she dumped him. Extremely childish break up notice "trash is dumped, so are you" *Rumors Kelly might be responsible for Max breaking up with Dilara *Max was flirting with a lot of girls online and used the most cringe pick up lines. Kelly then used HIS pick up lines ON HIM. *End of September 2020 Serendipity is born. Went on wagsf1 page and claimed everyone knew Max and Kelly are dating *Serendipity send in private pictures in October to proof M&K. *Serendipity got really defensive of Kelly and fans found out with proof Kelly is behind the account because of same language she used on her official accounts to argue with Max fans. *Fans found out she has 2 more finsta accounts. One named Jenssen and the other Chantal

*January 2021 Max confirmed the relationship and she moved herself into his place immediately renovating it to her liking *Several people have negative run ins with her, especially female fans. *Something happened Zandvoort 2021 which led her to leave the GP after qualifying and Max slept in his motor home. She didn't come back and claimed to be a mother as the reason. Rumor was huge fight with Jos. Jos stops following her *Kelly uses the GP for merching and was called out by many fans. Rumor says RB sponsors did not like she use their image logo in her merching and forbid  her to come to the next races Cota and Mexico. *Kelly befriends Yasmin by slipping into her DMs and they have a wild girls night out several nights in a row. They just met. *Kelly joins Max in Brazil and her family have a professional photoshoot with him because her family uses him to sell their products. *Kelly spend birthday in Monaco and there were a lot of specific cheating rumors. Any page mentioning this was deleted swiftly. *Kelly made Abu Dhabi about herself and accepted well wishes. Her finsta accounts defended criticism by saying she is his lucky charm, basically claiming she is the reason he won. *Max was supposed to spend Christmas 2021 at home with his family like all years before and confirmed by RB staff after their Christmas party. Rumor has huge fight with Jos and they went to Brazil instead. She had a friend leak the confirmation beforehand. *During winter break she posted Max a lot mostly when he was completely drunk. *She posted a ice skating video, in which she theatrically fell to the ground. Fans called her out for how fake it was. She argued with fans online and told them to go see a psychiatrist *Preseason 2022 and rumors started Kelly will baby trap Max. Supposedly he got confirmation of a friend and during testing in Barcelona was overheard on the phone saying "You better be gone when I'm home" *Kelly left for Brazil. Rumors about another man started. Also rumored they broke up however she just ignores it and plays as if everything is business as usual. *1 week before Bahrain she returned with Otitis. Don't worry somehow she was good to fly to Bahrain *Rumors on race morning they had a fight at breakfast. She did not spend the race in the box but in the grandstand confirming that rumor. After Max's DNF further rumor she was clinging onto him when he wanted to be left alone. *Kelly wore an unflattering dress that made her look chubby. She had her fanpages and wags accounts take down the pictures. Leaked screenshots confirmed Kelly talking to them *Another round of cheating rumors. Only post that was ever taken down swiftly by instagram of Just Another. *Generally hate between Kelly fan accounts towards Max fans who don't like her.

*A lot of Max fans were blocked from his page and his fanpage. When his mother was asked about this, she said to bring it up to Kelly *Nelson Sr video in which he called Lewis the N word and says homophobic things showed up. Kelly defended the use of it by liking a post that says it's her nanny's nickname and let Max handle the backlash for her and her family *In October she posted fake news about Lula because she and her family support Bolsonaro *In the Vogue NL story she admits to grooming Max talking about a special connection first time they met.

I got a bit lazy there in the end. Guys there is just too much. The amount of crazy of herself with the 10 finstas and her crazy fans bullying and mass reporting anyone that does not kiss her ass. Rude fan encounters. Her following him everywhere and inserting herself in Redbull team pictures. Calling the paparazzi on them over and over. Generally posting a lot of private moments especially making Max look like a stepfather. Lying her ass off and we can proof her lies constantly. Playing the victim card whenever convenient. Her entire family being a guest in his place all.the.damn.time. they barely spend time apart after she returned from Brazil in March 2022. There was always minimum 1 extra Piquet in his house.

If this was a lazy list I can’t imagine what a proper one looks like. I forgot half of this shit happened so thank you 💀

[themadlu]

WIP Wednesday

Days of the week are a social construct, ok? Don't judge me and my bad prioritisation skills please.

Tagged by the amazing @vixstarria, thanks!

Sooo, I have been busy with a new job and travelling for said job recently, plus exams for a possible career change, so I haven't had as much time to write for fun. I'm also struggling with inspiration, but to make up for the longer waiting time between stories, here are two excerpts.

One is from my Astarion and Zélie longfic Dutiful As Death, and the other is for a new series with another BG3 OC that I'm still unsure whether to post on Tumblr or keep on AO3. Let's see if anyone guesses who the poor lass is doomed to fall for (he isn't happy about it either).

Dutiful As Death (Ch. 2)

She is on a beach. A beach that is not the one from her childhood, or from anywhere she has been before. She was high in the mountains and she is now somewhere else entirely.  Right. Breathe. In. Out.  The world spins as she sits up, but her trained breathing eventually helps her settle down. Still crouched, Zélie studies her surroundings, taking in every detail that can clue her to where she is.  She is on a cliff.  She is facing not the ocean as she thought but a river—an impressively wide one at that. Discontent weaves through her when she realises the area is unfamiliar to her.  Not Biarritz then. Nowhere else close to home either.  She instinctively searches her pockets for her phone before remembering she left it in the car in her rush to follow Percy. Worry for her brother’s safety mounts in her chest, but she forces it to subside. Nothing good ever comes from allowing fear to be in control. She survived so that she could search for her brother. She will not waste precious time with counterproductive worry.  Master your circumstances not to be mastered by them, Grandmama’s voice rings in her ears, authoritative even when distributing advice

Foul No More (some chapter somewhere)

"Listen, mate, I dunno who it is you think you are, but lemme spell it out: I. Am. Not. Sending. Any. Of. My. Crew. Back. There. I won't say that again. Now, I'm drinkin', you're leaving." He was close enough that he would have spotted the hard base of her horns peeking through her forehead like an oversized scab. Thankfully, he was too enraged (or too ignorant of anything non-human) to notice. Chiyo felt chastisement radiate from the blooming bruise on his right cheek already turning a dark purple. She was aware she should have at least tried to solve things diplomatically at the Grove's entrance. She was usually better at cooling things off (such a bore even fistfights lose their pathos), but that blasted man and the obscenities he spewed, he was begging to be hit. Maybe Bahamut put him on her path as a test of her wisdom and patience. She would say a little prayer to her god later on. Just to check. "I am not saying you should send your crew," Chiyo allowed, staring at the human's flaring nostrils. "I am saying you should come yourself. You know the way, you can show us around. We'd be much quicker." If looks could kill, she would be a pile of ashes now. The man's eyes bulged and he took a half-step closer, towering over her. His crew mates eyed her with anger. "And why would I walk to my death when I just escaped it, under-half-breed? We're done. Feck. Off." He all but spat through his teeth before turning his back to her to stomp to a nearby chair. Perfect angle for a kick in the backside. He was definitely Bahamut's doing. "Because you haven't seen your companions' bodies, have you?" Chiyo chided. Then, with more grace than she thought she could muster, "They may still be alive. Will you let them rot in a goblin's prison because you gave up on them so easily?" The tawny man stopped in his tracks.

Tagging (no pressure) @amywritesthings and anyone whoo feels like sharing!

[four-loose-screws]

Blog Update 2024.2.15

Hey all, a lot has been happening fast in my life, so it's time for another update!

TL;DR / Updates on translations:

Bad news: I have not been able to respond to asks or work on other translations projects AT ALL, because my personal life is BANANAs busy right now!

Good news: I'm about to put my 2 weeks in and accept a new job offer, so changes are coming! Also, after translating FE2 Book 1, I'm getting better at handling the high-level writing of the FE2 novels, and Book 2's translation is coming along much more smoothly. I do not foresee getting behind on FE2 or FE6's novel translations at all.

I apologize for having to ignore asks for so long, but here's to a better future! Cheers!

Long story / why my non-novel translations upload schedule has suffered recently:

First, I had to hold off on moving back to Japan until further notice. A family member's health is declining more rapidly than initially expected, so I'm staying in the US for now. I still have a job application open that would send me over in March 2025, if I was accepted... but I may reject it and apply again for another year's cycle. Not certain yet.

That being said, my current job's conditions have continued to get worse. It's not too bad of a gig. Co-workers are very kind, lots of WFH, and I'm good at my assigned tasks. But the work has piled up and up with zero pay increases, positions have been cut around the office when the staff we originally had arguably wasn't enough, and quality of non-salary benefits has decreased. Plus, it's not a Japanese company, so my Japanese is getting worse.

There's tons of Japanese companies around me - meaning there's no reason why I should feel the need to stay chained to an American company. Especially one I keep giving more and more of myself to, for no improvements in return.

So last week I reached back out to some of the Japanese recruiting offices in the US, and in exactly 1 week I already have an offer! Better base pay, better hours, overtime pay, guaranteed bonuses, guaranteed yearly raise reviews, initial summary of benefits looks better... all for the same line of work! I did ask myself "Why didn't I do this sooner?", but building up skills and experience for a few years before jumping ship, is never a bad thing!

I just promised the recruiting company that I would keep my 1 other scheduled interview this week before making a final decision. Still going to submit my 2-3 weeks notice to my current company on Monday. (May work a few days longer based on what I end up arranging with my next company.)

Will this help me have the time in the day to regularly complete and upload non-novel translations? Only time will tell, but my personal life needed a change, and I'm getting it! Whoo-hoo!