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#y'all probably have seen this but it's just another excuse for me to put our barbie on ur tl
hislittleraincloud · 5 months
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More Random Bitching from a Tired Gen Xer
...Am I just missing the pics, or did Emma Myers not show at the Emmys the other night?
I mean, y'all RPF Jemma ppl make a big deal about how they're so close n' all...but it's weird that we would see the little J meet up with the Core 4 the other night at the gala, yet...
Don't gimme the excuse that she wasn't personally nominated, Joy Sunday (BIANCA! BIANCA I LOVE YOU GIRL, I'M TRYNA BRING YOUR CHARACTER SOME JUSTICE 😭) was there and she wasn't personally nominated either.
Loved her classy outfit, too:
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I just love her 😭 I love Bianca so much, the show really needs to not just let her storyline die. But with this whole "I'm promising more action and horror!" thing, I have little faith.
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LOOK AT THEM. I LOVE THEM. I LOVE THEM MORE THAN WENCLAIR.
The Addams Family was comedy and satire. It was never meant to be gory/horrific. Even in the 90s movies, the gore was more comedic than horrific (e.g. the school play where Wednesday and Pugsley sprayed everyone with fake blood...or when Wednesday electrocuted Pugsley (that was off screen)).
Maybe that's just another reason why Ortega irritates me. The way she talks about the Addams Family makes me wonder if she ever even watched any of it before she opened her mouth about wanting to change it. She had to have watched some, since she incorporated OG Wednesday's dance moves (then again, you could find that with a simple Google search).
I dunno, maybe I'm overly sensitive to the negative stereotypes of 'goth' or 'weird' people (which is what they are, they're weird, not necessarily all goth) being associated with horror and violence, and that's what ticks me off. There's far too much violent shit in the world, why must it permeate our entertainment so much? Put out something that makes us laugh and has heart, and smack it up with a little gore. That's all we really need. Fandom can do the gore thing for ya, bb (and trust, fandom can do horror and gore better than these shitty Mummy writers). Don't Sabrinafy this IP. I will be so painfully disappointed if that happens that I'll probably disregard an S2 that has too much of a dark tone change from S1.
I will say one thing, as an honest fic writer/writer: I wouldn't put it past the writers to make Donovan a big part of the problem. Without any goggles on, I can say that Sheriff Galpin is anti-outcast (despite playing cozy with his Addams in canon, until the beginning of Episode 8). He's actually the one who put it into Wednesday's head that "Maybe it was one of your classmates." at the beginning of Episode 2 when he knew full well that there was a possibility of Tyler being the same kind of monster that his mother was.
My (non-goggled) hypothesis is that Sheriff Galpin suspected that the murders were Hyde related from the beginning because he most certainly had to have seen something similar happening when Francie was turning and killing. And McShane's expression once the Hyde photo had developed on its page was one of confirmation, rather than surprise or fear. I think it was right at that moment that Galpin knew it was Tyler.
Lots of crap that Wednesday comes up with happens to be wrong, like when she opens her mouth in front of Weems with "How long have you known...when I gave you that claw from the cave, did you already know?"
Yes woman, because you suck at looking through photos or looking at a photo that the man compared Xavier's drawing to the second you gave it to him.
But I digress, I was talking about Donovan.
Watch the writers make him into some kind of Goodmen-like douchebag, since he doesn't like outcasts. I'm going to hate that if that happens, because deep down we know he doesn't totally despise outcasts, having married one and--despite openly grumbling about them to Noble--he was open to working with one...the daughter of his enemy, no less. (Though the OG script has him calling Francie a liar, so maybe she didn't tell him.)
Bleh. What was I talking about? Ah yeah, Emma Myers being absent for Jenna's loss. Ah whatever...at least Bee was there. Afterburn Bianca will get her justice, hopefully.
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mineonmain · 2 years
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Reveal your Watch and Rewatch List! (BL Edition!!)
Thank you my love @disaster-j for tagging me - This is extremely overdue I know; I had this whole post written out almost 2 weeks ago but then right when I was getting ready to publish this 💖lovely💖 website decided to refresh and my post was lost. I was so mad that I didn't want to re-write it, but here I am anyways.
Currently Watching (I'm extending this to shows that have juuust finished too)
Kinnporsche - It's so fresh in my mind. I have way too many thoughts about this show to put down here, so i'm going to make another post similar to my Not Me Retrospective - all the things that were right and the things that were not. It may not have stuck to the book, and it may not have fully lived up to all the hype and expectations, but it's still unlike any other BL i've seen so far. Gotta commend them for that. Also it's the VegasPete show now, sorry I didn't make the rules. 7/10 (i'm sorry pls don't @me just read my retrospective later)
To My Star 2: Our Untold Stories - talented brilliant incredible amazing show-stopping spectacular...I think she deserves a separate post for herself too. Maybe when i'm not drowning under the guilt of not working on my Dissertation. There wasn't too much angst, the ending wasn't rushed, it was honestly perfect. Imperfect can be perfect too, you know. 11/10
Old Fashion Cupcake - I had low expectations for this so it kind of blew me out of the water. Great acting, incredible chemistry, and that scene in Ep 4 lives rent free in my brain. It's amazing how they (mostly) managed to tell a story in just 5 episodes and still have it feel complete and not unnecessarily rushed. A teensy bit of beef with how the finale went, but there's always something isn't there. 8.5/10
My Secret Love - Pretty mid, like the standard GMMTV sort of fare, featuring My-ponytail-is-my-personality-trait Boy, Walmart Saint Suppapong, Why RU's too-many-couples disease, mildly problematic behavior and a thin excuse of a plot. Still, it's nice to get something banal and light-hearted after all the weekend angst of KP and TMS. The latest ep was surprisingly better and less superficial than all the others so far.
Star and Sky: Sky in my Heart - The sequel to JoongDunk's Star in my Mind, this is typical lighthearted GMMTV stuff ft. P'Mek and debut actor Mark. A series of mini-series' where new couples get to flex their acting muscles a bit and test out their chemistry on the screen. I don't have much to say except it's soft and cute, nothing too groundbreaking.
Looking Forward To
Never Let Me Go (PondPhuwin)
Between Us (BounPrem)
My Only 12% (SantaEarth)
Remember Me (maybe??) (JaFirst)
Happy Ending Outside the Fence
Love in the Air (maybe??)
War of Y (maybe??) (BillySeng and more)
Moonlight Chicken (EarthMix)
Blueming S2 (let's freaking GO)
Rewatch
So. I'm not in the middle of rewatching anything at the moment, frankly I do Not have the time for full rewatches, but when I get in the mood I tend to rewatch specific moments from certain shows instead of full rewatches:
Bad Buddy Ep 5 4/4
Bad Buddy Ep 11
Literally anything from BBS who am I kidding
ATOTS Ep 6 3/4
ATOTS Ep 10 4/4
UWMA EP 2 4/4
Why RU FighterTutor Cut
LBC AePete Cut
WBL Ep 5
WBL 2
Utsukushii Kare Ep 5-6
Semantic Error
Mr. Heart
Light On Me (esp Ep 13)
Tharntype Ep 6/Ep 12
UWMA WinTeam Cut
Blueming Ep 9/Ep 11
TMS 2 Ep 4/Ep 10
OFC Ep 4
Love Is Science? MarkOuwen Cut
2gether Ep 6 3/4-4/4
My Tasty Florida
(Can you guys smell a theme hmmm I wonder🤔) Y'all I'm so sorry about this gotdamn list. It ran away from me. RIP. If anyone actually goes thru this, veterans discount for you. I could probably add more if I stopped to think more but that's where i'm gonna stop for now.
Tagging (I don't rly have friends but): @elevatormusic @whatisgodtoanonbeliever @incandescentflower @liyazaki @onstoryladders @strutforlove @billlkin @7nessasaryevils @excessivelyobssesed @milkpansa @johnnysuhsbathtowel @rythyme @piningbisexuals @ablazenqueen
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girlgrouptrash101 · 3 years
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Cooking with Loona
Request: "i know requests are closed and i’m reallyyy sorryyyy 🥺 i’ve been going through a lot and i just didn’t have time and didn’t feel right enough to ask this: maybe cooking with loona??"
A/N: to the anonnie that requested this, i hope you're feeling better and ily ❤️❤️
(had to put a keep reading tab cuz the post was too damn long f)
- C
Heejin:
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we’ve all seen the cement brownie she tried to give to chuu on her birthday vlive..... yeah....
she always skips like half the steps when she’s following recipes and then gets confused when her food doesn’t turn out the same like,, Heejins sweetie pleASE-
lowkey can’t cook but she thinks she can because you hype her up too much
like she will serve you a dish that will somehow be both burnt and cold at the same time and you still tell her she did amazing because it makes her so happy and that’s all that matters
your guys’ favourite thing to make together is probably cupcakes or cakes
because you get to bake them and Heejin gets to decorate them, and they always end up looking and tasting immaculate
everything in your guys’ relationship works better when you’re together, you two simply complete each other :’)
Hyunjin:
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not only does she make the most kickass bread but girlie really is a chef of all cuisines too
you still don’t know how or where she even learned to cook so well but you aren’t complaining at all
whatever you feel like eating, Hyunjin knows how to cook it to absolute perfection and she always offers to teach you how to make your favourite dishes
you two also have matching yellow cat aprons uwu
the kind of girl to either kick you out of her kitchen for distracting her while she’s making a meal or else back hug you and help you stir a bowl with her hand over yours all romantically
it literally just depends what mood she’s in at that very moment
highkey loves loves loves cooking for you and surprising you with dinner after a long day, because her favourite thing to do is put a smile on your face :D
Haseul:
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starts off really strong and sticks to the recipe... but then her mind wanders and she's like,,, well,,, what if i add this????
and you're like haseul,,,, please don't put chilli peppers in Kim lips birthday cake, i promise she can do without them,,,,,
she finds cooking in the dorms a bit stressful, doing her best to feed the hungry members after a long day of practice
so cooking with you tends to be a much more therapeutic experience, just you two, a bit of music and some tasty treats
but she of course brings back plenty of wonderful bakes for her members to enjoy too, they're literally her babies she is can't just let them STARVE 😔🙄😢
lowkey pretends she's having trouble stirring so you'll reach from the back and help her with the spoon all romantically
miss haseul you are not slick we SEE YOU
Yeojin:
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yes she did in fact bejewel her cookery book
"yeojin... I can't even read the recipes, there's too much glitter!!"
"Well Y/N, sometimes, sacrifices have to be made in the name of beauty."
said sacrifices are usually cupcakes and cakes that don't rise, burnt food or just complete mush that doesn't even look like food
however, when yeojin is fully dedicated she can pack a mean lunch, sometimes she makes them for you when you're going off to school/work, and she always makes sure presentation is A+
prefers to just go out to cafes/restaurants on dates rather than cook
but that doesn't mean there haven't been times where you and her have been in the kitchen at 2am, trying to make a gigantic cake for you and all her members to share 😌
Vivi:
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has the most peaceful, lofi cooking playlist ever
you two work in harmony, always helping one another but never tripping over the other in the kitchen
it's so harmonious it's like.... y'all were meant to be or sumn idk 😳😳😳
however if u try to eat any batter she will smack ur hand and be like no ⛔ that is for LATER hfhdhd
her hair always gets tied up in the cutest little bun when she's baking, and that along with her fairy apron makes her look like an actual princess
she also LOVES cooking/teaching you how to make her favourite foods from Hong Kong that she'd always make with her mom
those meals always help her when she's homesick, and with you by her side make her feel like she's not alone 🥺
Kim Lip:
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CEO of pretending she has everything under control when in reality she has absolutely no idea what’s going on
“Uhhh Jungeun, is something burning?” “NOPE NOPE IDK WHAT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT HA HA HA........”
wants to put your apron on you every time but she’s always way too shy to ask so she just resorts to back-hugging you until you get the hint and let her tie a cute little bow behind your back with the apron string hehe
makes pretty decent food when she’s not flailing around and panicking over a single grain of rice that escaped from the pot or something
however she refuses to admit when she messes up in the kitchen
like she could burn something to a crisp or use completely the wrong ingredients but she’d still eat every bite just to prove she’s the best cook in the house
if your food sucks she will tell you to your face, followed by a kiss so you forget about the fact she just roasted your cooking skills lol
Jinsoul:
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Jinsoul gives off Hawaiian shirt drunk uncle at the family barbecue vibes who won't let anyone near the steaks
and you're like,, Jinsoul do you even know what you're doing????????? to which she responds - "food, heat, it's cooking. isn't that all i need to know?"
chaotic but refuses to acknowledge the chaos she causes in the kitchen
so when you have baking dates u have to keep such a close eye on her to make sure she isn't going to poison anyone with her creations
once she gets into it tho, she's grooving around the kitchen in her little robot apron, dancing to Christmas songs when it's not even Christmas and just 10/10 having a blast
not really the biggest fan of cooking but she knows you are, and since you help her build her gundams she does like to try and help our properly in the kitchen when she can
perhaps Jinsoul best girl???? perhaps??????
Choerry:
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hello this sunshine absolutely LOVES baking, especially for others because putting a smile on someone's face is her main goal in life
she loves decorating with icing too, her go to patterns are smiley faces, flowers and the sun!
her playlists are always so upbeat, the two of you end up bouncing around the kitchen singing at the top of your lungs as you work
LOVES LOVES LOOOOOVES backhugs, especially recieving them,,, it makes her feel all worm and mushy inside hehe
also likes to kiss face icing off of your face, just to have an excuse to give you as many little pecks as she so desires
choerry always makes you a birthday cake every year, and she puts so much work into it, it absolutely melts your heart
plus it makes her happy to see you eating well and having a good time, she truly just is the biggest sweetheart :']
Yves:
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she always says yes whenever you ask her to cook with you, but only because she just wants to flirt with you for an hour
"why do we need to make all this food, when the real snack is right in front of me? 😏"
cooking with you actually really does make her happy though, she loves that she can be so domestic with you, it's such an amazing break from her hectic life
also lowkey makes her feel like you're a married couple... and you best believe Yves can't wait to wife you up
she doesn't suck at cooking, but has often times gotten,,, ahem,,,, somewhat distracted and has prioritized making out with you against the kitchen counter rather than how long the food has been cooking, which ends up in a lot of burnt meals
baking with her is really a time, and has more than once ended in a very messy food fight because Yves wouldn't stop smearing icing all over your face 💔
her specialty is dialing the local takeaway and ordering food instead ✨ okay Yves Ramsey go off ✨
Chuu:
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this baby girl is just torn between actually wanting to cook or just asking you to cook with her so she can get affection from you (as if she doesn't get that anyway smh)
backhugs except she won't let go
whenever she's making something she calls you over and she's like "Y/N is this okay?" and always asks for kisses as a reward for doing good
will feed you every single ingredient no questions asked
she loves surprising you with meals on very random occasions though, for example that one time she cooked your favourite food because it was the anniversary of the first time she got sick while dating you
she's actually a pretty good cook when she puts her mind to it though, she loves making good food that'll cheer people up when they really need it
btw you will be forced to wear matching aprons and they will be the pinkest, loudest and sparkliest ones that she can get her hands on ✨
Go Won:
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have the fire service on speed dial before you even think about cooking with gowon omg
you literally also need to have indestructible tastebuds because she WILL destroy them
her speciality is starting fires and combining foods that were NEVER. EVER. E V E R. meant to be combined 😭😭
"babe come try this dish!! it's ramen mixed with coca cola, jelly and vegetable soup!!! it tastes GREAT trust me"
at the end of the day you just leave her be in the kitchen because at least she's having fun LMAO
(just always have a fire hydrant by your side okay??? she set the loona dorm on fire making chicken nuggets once...)
despite all her chaos, she somehow always produces something edible at the end and.... sometimes it actually tastes good too???
Olivia Hye:
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lets you do all the work cuz she's worried she "might mess it up" when in reality she just wants to order takeout and cuddle instead smhhh
will probably follow you around the kitchen or rest her head on your shoulder while you do all the cooking, because this tsundere is secretly the biggest softie for you
she's actually a decent chef when she's motivated to help though
like she even put together a cooking playlist for you guys - which she very shyly revealed to you one time, a slight blush on her cheeks as she played the songs for you
cuz miss olhye is very much a romantic, she just doesn't have the confidence to show you all that yet hehe
her favourite is making desserts because well,,,, she gets to eat the batter and also gets tasty treats at the end
10/10 cooking backhugs also 🖐️😌
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chemicalvelocity · 3 years
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Happy Friday! I need therapy
So I wrote a fic for Fingers in my mouth Friday! Hope Y'all enjoy it.
AO3 Link
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No warnings apply
Pairing: Dean Winchester / Castiel
Word Count: 3545
Read Below the Cut:
Dean's not a creep. He's not, he swears. It's just that he's... noticing things now that he's not on high alert for monsters anymore.
He remembers the first evidence of Castiel he'd ever seen, an angry burn scar of a handprint. He thought it was a demon's for christ's sake. He hadn't paid mind at the time to the fact that it took up his entire deltoid.
Now, however, he was absently tracing its outline after a shower, staring more through the mirror than at it while recalling the events of breakfast. Jack had playfully started the comparing hand sizes game that seems to entertain kids so much.
Dean hadn't even put any thought into it until it turned into everyone else doing it to humor him; which culminated in Dean foolishly slapping his palm to Cas's and then realizing just how much smaller his hand was.
Naturally, he'd joked it off and found his way out of the conversation, acting like it wasn't a bruise to his ego. He had thousand-yard stared his way through a shower, and now, here he was.
He carefully fitted his hand over the scar tissue on his shoulder, and yep, there it was, a literal physical reminder of Cas's massive hands. He got over himself as quickly as he could and threw on his clothes before going to the garage to wash Baby.
*
That turned out to be a bad idea, as many of Dean's ideas do. Cas was sat in a lawn chair with the tunnel doors cracked, rolling a joint. Dean had pointedly ignored him, turning to rinse the car until Cas spoke up.
"Would you like some?" He asked, looking over at Dean with a twist of his slender fingers as his tongue darted out to wet the rolling paper's adhesive. Dean swallowed.
"Y'know that shit's bad for you, right?" Dean grumbled, but his heart wasn't in it. He opened a drawer to pull out sponges and brushes, tossing them into nearby buckets and setting them  down near Baby's rear fender
"I think you know that's not true." Castiel hummed, placing the fresh joint between his lips, bringing the flame of his zippo to the end, and inhaling deeply.
"Whatever, Stoney baloney... Don't you usually smoke out on the roof, anyway?" Dean asked, filling up the first bucket with hot water and suds, the second with only cold water.
"It's raining," Cas replied, voice husky from the strain of holding in a hit. "Frankly, the Bunker is well ventilated enough that I could smoke in the library... where we still keep ashtrays on the table, but I figured I'd come in here to keep it away from Jack." He mused, blowing his lungful of smoke out the door.
"Right... Gotta say Cas, I'm sure second-hand smoke doesn't affect 20-year-old Nephilim toddlers." Dean chuckled, saturating the sponge in the first bucket and slung the soap across the Impala's roof, leaning up to scrub away the dust and bugs that come from hauling her back and forth across the Midwest.
"No, but I don't want to influence him, he's very impressionable, you know." Cas flicked the collecting ash into a labelless beer bottle that sat discarded in his chair's cupholder.
"I wonder where he could've gotten that from. Claire came to visit for one weekend and all of a sudden you're Bob Marley!" Dean teased, and Cas narrowed his eyes at him.
"I am not a musician, nor a Rastafarian, Dean. Claire simply pointed out that I think too much, and that cannabis is known to help." He drew in a deep hit and outstretched his arm to Dean, the cigarette balanced between two fingers. Smoke twirled lazily into the air around him.
Dean made a show of rolling his eyes before coming over to pluck the smoke from Cas's possession. Cas watched him appraisingly as he took a drag, then another, and Dean almost choked when Cas's lips parted for the stream of smoke to travel neatly into his nostrils.
Okay, so Claire taught him how to french inhale. Dean idly wondered if he knew what ghosting was, before passing it back and returning to his task, pretending like his lungs didn't burn from the comparative lack of practice.
*
Dean hit the wall hard, his breath punched out of him with a grunt. He scrambled to his knees and whipped his head around to see Sam in a similar position nearby. Cas was still standing though now surrounded by three, very pissed-off demons, one of which had Dean's angel blade. Dean attempted to gather himself and help out, but his vision went sideways and he steadied himself against a table, opting to call out the angel's name, stupidly.
Cas had slashed the leg of the demon to his right and grappled the one to his left. As the first one went down, his palm met its forehead and smote it out of its meatsuit. The middle one charged him, but he spun the demon in his grip, shielding himself by launching his captive forward onto the blade, then seizing the neck of the remainder, holding him in place firmly. He turned to the bewildered hunters casually.
"Did you need him for anything else?" Dean bit down on his tongue in a failed attempt to reintroduce moisture to his mouth.
"N-No, Cas I think we're good, knock yourself out..." he rasped as Castiel tightened his grip on the demon's throat, and light burned out from under its skin. Sam and Dean had picked themselves up off the floor by now and made their way to the middle of the room.
"Good work, buddy," Dean panted as Cas piled up the bodies at his feet, and wiped blood away on his jeans. "Guess you hardly need us."
"Of course I do, You made an excellent distraction." Cas smiled and while Dean was sure it was a genuine statement, definitely felt the hit to his pride. Maybe he was just getting too old for this shit. Sam snorted at something and walked out. Dean didn't know what, but he didn't want to hit him any less for it.
*
"Hey, Cas, I have a bit of a concussion from the hunt the other night. Can you work a little magic?" Sam rubbed at his eyes, setting his laptop aside. Dean raised his eyebrows from his seat, taking a sip of beer. He wouldn't have asked Cas to expend any healing energy on himself, but Cas didn't protest. Instead, he hardly looked up from his book and snapped his fingers. Sam visibly relaxed. Dean did not.
"Thanks, man, I appreciate it. I'm gonna go grab some grub, probably just pick up a pizza and some beers or something." Sam held his hand out for the impala keys. Dean tossed them to him with half a mind.
When Sam was gone, he was still staring at Cas in confusion.
"Can I help you with something too, Dean?" He quirked an eyebrow over his book. Dean cleared his throat and shook his head.
"Nope, no, I'm okay, just a few scrapes. Can't have you wasting your mojo on that... I was just wondering why you didn't, uh, y'know," He tapped two fingers to his forehead and Cas's eyes turned up in a half-smile.
"I don't need to do that to heal."
"Oh... okay." He'd already asked a weird question, probably best not to pry into why Cas always touched him to heal.  He tipped back the rest of his beer and fumbled around for an excuse of some sort to break the silence, but Cas stood first.
"I'm going to go find Jack. Let me know when Sam's back with dinner." He passed Dean with a  warm squeeze to his shoulder. Dean watched him go, then realized just how long it's been since he's been laid. Too fucking long, apparently.
*
Yeah, no. Way too long. Dean's half-convinced Cas is fucking with him, too. His suspicion stemmed from Cas's sudden love of eating every meal with them and requesting things like wings or fries.
"Morning sunshine, Sam and Jack already left to go check out a case. I made pan...cakes..." Dean's sentence fell flat when his eyes met Cas entering in a half-buttoned-up shirt. His long fingers slipped buttons into place as he yawned his greeting and trudged his way to the coffee maker.
Dean was a little concerned that he noticed Cas's hands before he noticed the toned and tanned chest underneath the shirt. He ran a hand down his face and moved to pour more coffee. Cas passed over the pot and turned to the stack of pancakes, tossing two onto a plate and proceeding to destroy them with fruit and whipped cream.
"When was the last time we cleaned our firearms?" Cas asked, swirling his finger through the toppings of his breakfast before popping it in his mouth. Dean set his mug down, a little too hard. Cas gave him a look.
"Are you fucking with me?" Dean tried not to sound petulant, but he can't catch a single break.  Cas bit his lower lip, and then cleared his throat.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Was his response, innocent and hid behind a sip of coffee. Dean pursed his lips.
"You- you don't?" Dean was momentarily taken aback. Was he so unbelievably tense that he'd imagined the whole problem?-
"No, Dean, you've been staring at my hands all week, I have no idea what you're talking about." he deadpanned.
Dean's face burned. He didn't think he was being obvious about it or anything. Cas was observant, though.
"At first I thought you were just insecure about your hand size, but surely you'd have gotten over that in a day. Then I did some research and decided to... Encourage you." He continued casually as if Dean wasn't praying for the earth to swallow him whole.
"I uh, appreciate that, Cas... Um, what conclusions exactly did you draw?" Dean squeaked out because frankly he still wasn't sure what was going on here.
"You may have a sexual preference for hands, which makes sense, given your previous statements regarding slapping." Cas hummed into his coffee and, yeah okay Dean needed to end this conversation before he melted from shame.
"Okay, right, got it, I'll stop staring." He managed, grabbing his mug and turning to leave before Cas grabbed his arm. He glanced down at the sudden warmth around his wrist, then up to meet Cas's cobalt gaze.
"I never told you to stop," Cas said calmly, loosening his grip to slip his fingers into Dean's hand and pull him closer. "Dean, I researched it." His expression was earnest, and Dean shuddered involuntarily.
"Listen, man, It's not like, a thing... It's just, well, you have nice hands, and you kinda marked me... with your very large hand." Dean still wanted to disappear, but Cas didn't seem too bothered.
"I wanted to tell you, I touch you when I heal because I like the excuse to," Cas murmured, raising his other hand to cup Dean's jaw. Dean's breath hitched. "I enjoy the warmth. Everything else is always so cold." Cas whispered, running his thumb lightly across Dean's bottom lip. Dean couldn't stop the noise he made as it caught on his nail.
Cas's pupils grew wide, and he curiously pushed his thumb deeper. Dean closed his lips over it and sucked gently, noting the faint taste of the strawberries Cas had put on his pancakes. Dean pulled back before he embarrassed himself any further.
"Uh," Dean's brain replied dumbly. "Can I kiss you?" His dick helped with that one.
"I just put my thumb in your mouth and you feel the need to ask-" Cas's snark was cut short by Dean pressing him up against the counter and slotting their lips together. Cas gripped the front of Dean's shirt and kissed him back like a man dying of thirst. This is why Dean's thought process is filled with question marks when Cas puts a hand firmly on his chest and pulls back to speak.
"I don't think the kitchen is the best place for this." He rumbled into their shared space. Dean perked back up when he realized the proposition.
"Did you wanna finish your breakfast first? I can't guarantee we'll be back in here any time soon." Dean wiggled his eyebrows at the angel.
"That's very thoughtful of you, Dean," Cas smiled. "I'd love to. While I do I think you probably want to go get ready." Cas wiped the look off Dean's face when he reeled him back in for another kiss.
"O-oh, yeah, okay. Meet you in my room in ten." And then he was speedwalking out of the kitchen.
*
Dean turned off the shower after a very thorough cleaning and wrapped his towel around his waist, hurrying back down the hallway to his room. Cas was sitting on the bed patiently.
"Hello, Dean." He smiled, reaching up to tug off his tie. Dean's throat went dry again.
"Hi," Dean was clutching his towel like a lifeline. Cas observed him fondly as he unbuttoned his shirt. "Did you want me to put something on? Or..."
Cas just chuckled and beckoned him closer. Dean stood between his legs and his heart dropped out of his ass when Cas took his hands and pulled gently, signaling for Dean to kneel. He lowered himself slowly to his knees and looked up at Cas, expectant, and not at all freaking out on the inside. Cas leaned in to kiss him again. That, he could work with.
"I want you to put your hands on my knees, and you can't move them unless I say so, is that alright?" Castiel spoke when they parted.
Oh.
Apparently, hand kink isn't the only thing Cas researched. Dean felt the command go straight to his dick. He nodded hastily, but Cas said nothing, only waited, quirking an eyebrow.
"Yes, Cas." He breathed, and Cas grinned and shrugged off his shirt, tossing it into Dean's desk chair.
"Good. Get comfortable." Dean sat back on his heels and placed his hands on top of Cas's thighs. Cas placed both of his hands on Dean's shoulders, rubbing small circles in the muscle before he slid them upwards to massage the back of Dean's neck. When Dean was staring up at him with hooded eyes and humming his appreciation, Castiel's patience grew thin.
Cas held the back of Dean's neck steady, tracing the fingers of his right hand down Dean's temple and across his lips. This time, Dean didn't have any reservations about darting his tongue out to meet them. Cas inhaled deeply through his nose and pushed his index and middle fingers into Dean's mouth.
Dean sighed and let himself go, he lapped at Cas's fingers like he was starving. He held Cas's heated gaze and felt his dick wake back up, twitching underneath his towel.
"So good, you're such a good boy for me, Dean." Cas praised. Dean thought he might pass out. The feeling of Cas inside him, even if it was just his fingers sliding along his tongue was heady. He looked down and took notice of the increasing tightness of Cas's pants. Cas slid his fingers out and leaned back on his elbows. Dean panted, his fingers gripping Cas's thighs with the effort of keeping still.
"Would you like something else, Dean?" Cas smirked down at him. "All you have to do is ask." Dean screwed his eyes shut and swallowed his pride.
"I want," He let out a shuddering breath as Cas ran a hand through his hair. "I want to suck you off."
"You can move your hands now." Cas hummed and leaned his head back. Dean practically sprung forward, ignoring the ache in his calves as he latched his mouth onto one of the angel's nipples. His hands made quick work of Cas's belt and fly, tugging firmly at his pockets to get them off. When Cas's flushed erection came free, Dean leaned forward to mouth at the head and cup his balls.
Cas wove a hand into Dean's hair and pulled. Dean moaned around the cock in his mouth, drawing a deep groan from Cas in response. Dean drank in the sound and relaxed his jaw to swallow him down further, bobbing his head rapidly.
"Dean." Cas sounded wrecked, and Dean's head snapped up to attention.
"Yeah?"  He asked, breath heaving as he leaned up to his eye level.
"May I-"
"Anything, Angel, seriously." He pressed his lips to the heated flesh under Cas's jaw, sucking hard and nipping gently.
"I want to fuck you." Cas gasped, leaning into Dean's mouth. Dean nodded and climbed to his feet to get the lube from his nightstand. Cas sat up and wrenched Dean's towel away. His eyes roved Dean's body appreciatively before pulling him down on the bed. "Lie down on your front, please." He purred, and Dean was on his elbows in an instant, handing back the lubrication.
Cas caressed the contours of Dean's back reverently, before gingerly parting Dean's cheeks and licking a broad stripe across his hole. Dean felt his whole body twitch.
"Fuck, C-Cas..." Dean whined out, completely sideswiped by Cas's impromptu rimjob. He helplessly thrust his hips back against Cas's grip. Castiel reeled back a single hand and gave Dean's ass a hard smack. Dean dropped his face into his pillow with a keen from the back of his throat.
"Sit still, Dean. Let me take care of you." He growled, mouthing kisses from the base of Dean's spine to the cleft of his ass again. He laved his tongue in tantalizing circles, fucking it in and out nimbly and drawing a chorus of breathy sounds from the hunter.
"Please, Sweetheart... I need you... Need you inside me, c'mon." Dean whimpered, writhing under the sensation of Cas's hot breath and slick tongue. Cas finally gave in and sat up, reclaiming the bottle of lube to squeeze a sizeable portion directly onto Dean's entrance. Dean shivered from the sudden cold, only to cry out again when Cas's strong index finger slid in with very little resistance.
Cas continued to pepper Dean's shaking shoulders with wet kisses as he thrust his finger in, curling it hard against Dean's prostate and savoring the faint sound of Dean nearly wailing into his pillow. He slid in a second finger and scissored them back and forth to make way for a third. At this point, Dean had lifted his head and turned towards Cas with pleading eyes. Cas leaned forward and kissed him deeply.
"You're doing so well, Dean... Are you ready?" Cas mumbled into Dean's mouth.
"Yeah, Christ... Yes, Cas, please." Dean managed to get his knees under himself and Cas slicked himself up, working the head of his cock into Dean's fluttering hole. He clutched at Dean's hips and slowly rocked himself in deeper. "Fuck!" Dean yelped, trying to meet Cas's thrusts to no avail.
"Relax, my love." Cas moaned, rolling his hips into Dean, captivated by the catch of skin around him. "Do you want to move?" He asked, and released his iron hold on Dean's waist with a chuckle when Dean nodded eagerly. Dean thrust back against Cas with abandon. A surprised gasp was drawn from both of them as Cas sped up his thrusts to match. Dean was going to come if Cas didn't slow down, so he gathered his thoughts enough to speak up.
"Cas, wait. Can I flip?" He panted, and Cas's onslaught came to a stop.
"Of course, Dean." He pulled out carefully and leaned away for Dean to position himself on his back. Castiel admired the flush that spread down Dean's neck and covered most of his chest. He leaned forward to suck dark hickeys into Dean's collarbone to contrast. Dean reached down to guide Cas back inside, sighing amorously when he was seated again.
Cas rocked in and out once more with renewed enthusiasm. He snapped his hips forward, causing Dean to arch up off the bed with a shout. Stars burst behind his eyelids as Cas lifted Dean's legs to wrap around his waist and repeated contact his prostate shot sparks through his bloodstream.
"Ah-fuck, Cas, Baby... I'm gonna come. Are you almost there?" Dean gasped and reached up to pull Cas down for a vehement kiss when he grunted his confirmation. Dean felt the heat of his release coil deep in his gut and rocked up into Cas with a fervor, moaning heavily into Cas's mouth with each collision of their hips.
Then the tension in Dean's core snapped, and he was coming without so much as a moment's attention to his dick, clinging to Cas's shoulders with a fucked out whine. Cas kept going and Dean's synapses felt like they were being deep-fried as Castiel's stuttering hips drove him in deeply one, two then a final time as he emptied himself into Dean with a low groan. He then pulled out slowly and rolled off a now depleted Dean to spoon him.
"I think I'm in love with you." Dean wheezed, and Castiel grinned into his hair.
"I'm glad I could help you come to that epiphany. I love you too, Dean."
37 notes · View notes
tinyboxxtink · 3 years
Text
“Helpless” *FINALE*
Mwahahaha I got around the un-even numbering. Well, this is it! I hope you’ve enjoyed this series as much as I enjoyed writing it. I really need to make a Master List of all my “works”, but if you wanna check out my other stuff just type “Rafael Barba Imagine” into the search bar of my page. 
As always, big thanks to my lovies:
@wanniiieeee
@dumauier
@word-scribbless
@chasingeverybreakingwave
The COMPLETE Collection:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Part 9
Part 10
And without further ado, the CONCLUSION!!!!
After your shower and you were in some clean pink scrubs, you decided it would probably be best to go look for the squad. Apparently you were still “a suspect”, so you didn’t want to make it look like you were trying to flee or something. 
You found your way back to the waiting room, but only Fin and Carisi were still there.
“...Where’d Benson and Rollins go?” You asked, glancing around the area.
“Well it’s like 4 am, they both have kids, I’d told them we’d update them if anything happened with Barba,” Carisi told you.
“Which you can now do,” Fin added, grabbing his jacket off a chair.
“...I’m sorry, what?” you asked. “Aren’t you supposed to be ‘watching’ me or something?” 
“They combed your street and found the gun, the idiots tossed it as they were driving. And as far as your whole ‘hustling’ business, if Barba vouches for you, I’m not gonna bother with a shitload of paperwork just because you got some money out of some old white dudes,” Fin chuckled.
“So you’re off the hook, and I’d really like to sleep in my own bed,” Carisi patted your back as he walked out with Fin. 
“I--Are you sure? Olivia isn’t gonna--” 
“Olivia’s gonna be a lot of things, but none of it matters legally speaking. So y'all need to work that out on your own,” Fin held up his hands like he was washing his hands of the drama.
“Right. Well I’m sure the doctor will call her,” You really didn’t want to have to talk to her anymore than you needed to. 
“Right. Night, Y/N” Carisi waved as they continued to walk down the hallway and out the front doors.
Okay, so now you were alone. On your own. In a hospital. Great.
Suddenly, you remembered the magical sticker. You pulled it out of the scrubs pocket and stuck it to your shoulder. Then you turned to the big doors that read 
“ICU: Approved Personnel ONLY”
Well, you were in scrubs.You took a deep breath and made a sign of the cross before you walked confidently through the doors. Hopefully people would just assume you were a nurse. 
You were met on the other side with a bustle of doctors and nurses running around, patients being pushed through the hallways; lots of machines were beeping, and you could hear a CODE BLUE down the hall. 
“Please don’t be Rafael Please don’t be Rafael…” you closed your eyes and whispered, but were quickly interrupted.
“Excuse me sweetie, are you lost?” An older male doctor tapped your shoulder.
“Oh um-- yeah YES. I am,” you lied. This is what you did best, just roll with it. 
“It’s my first day, and I got separated from my group. We were doing rounds, and I believe our next room was the ADA?” 
“The ADA…?” The doctor started typing in his tablet, as if someone would add “The ADA of New York” in his patient notes.
“I think his name is Ralph something,” you lied; a nurse wouldn’t be all on the up and up of law people, would they?
“Ah. Rafael Barba. Oh you’re right, it says VIP PATIENT here. He must be something special,” 
“He really is,” You sighed, causing the doctor to look at you funny. 
“I mean, so I’ve heard,” 
“Well it says here DO NOT DISTURB, so I don’t believe you were doing rounds in his room…” The doctor raised an eyebrow as he tilted the tablet towards you. You saw “ROOM 304” next to Rafael’s name.
“Oh, you know what you’re right! I think they said we were NOT rounding on him, y’know cuz he’s the ADA,” You gent;y rubbed your shoulder against his. “I must’ve gotten mixed up because of your beautiful blue eyes,” you batted your lashes, to which the elderly doctor happily ate up.
“Oh well, no harm no foul,” He smiled.
“Ok well I’m sure I can find them, thank you doctor!” you gave him the cheesiest smile and a wink, walking away quickly. You made it into an elevator right before it closed. Luckily, the only other person in it was “Another” nurse, who looked like she might pass out right there in the elevator; she paid you no mind. 
You hit FLOOR 3 and rode up to the floor, practically jumping out of the elevator. You turned to see signs that pointed 300-320 left and 320-340 right. You went left, searching the numbers until you saw 304. You looked around to make sure no one had noticed you definitely did not belong there, and when the coast was clear you opened the door slowly and snuck in the room.
“Excuse me, can I help you?” 
Fuck, you were caught. You were running multiple scenarios of lies in your head as you turned around, but to your relief it was the nurse who had given you the sticker.
“Ah, I see it worked,” she gestured to the sticker on your uniform.
“It did, thank you so much,” You thanked her softly, your eyes moving towards Rafael’s still unconscious body. You immediately grabbed a chair and pulled it up next to him, stroking his hair. 
“Hey...baby I’m here,” You whispered, wondering whether he could hear you or not.
“It says here he coded three times in surgery, but he came back,” The nurse read his chart off her tablet.
“Why….why would I want to know that?” you asked almost angrily.
“...Patients have a lot to do with their own response and recovery,” she replied. “I was just implying he was fighting like hell for something,” she smiled, making you smile for the first time since Rafael had left you at your apartment. God, that moment had been so perfect; how did you get here from there? 
“I’ll put a DO NOT DISTURB” sign on the door, no one will bother you,” The nurse put a hand on your shoulder as she started to walk out. “I think he’s going to be okay sweetie, I really do,” 
“Thanks,” You gave her a small nod, and she was gone. Leaving just you and Rafael, alone. 
“So...I’ve never seen a guy work so hard to get me alone,” You chuckled, calling back to the first conversation you had at Forlini's. That seemed like a lifetime ago now.
“Hey so, they caught Arianna and those guys,” you kept talking, praying he was listening. “I think they’re gonna go to jail for a LONG time,” you stroked his hair. 
“So, y’know obviously that means I’m out a roommate. Probably an apartment too, I don’t really know what Arianna did about that. Surely she didn’t just get out of a six month lease in the middle of the night, she must have just thought they could abandon the apartment. 
“So, if you know of  any fancy mahogany couches that are open, let me know,” You tried joking again with a fake laugh, but it just turned into tears.
“I’m so sorry, Rafael,” you whispered. “I never intended for any of this to happen. I should have never even talked to you, I should have just admired you from afar and sniffed your scotch glasses in private like a fucking creep,” you laughed for real between your tears.
“I just--” you started to talk again, but you felt Rafael’s hand squeeze yours. 
“....R-Rafa?” 
Suddenly, Rafael started to thrash and choke, his breathing tube was still breathing for him.
“NURSE!!! NURSE!!” You jumped up and screamed down the hall; your lucky nurse came rushing in. She quickly pulled the tube out and after a few gasping breaths, Rafael finally calmed down. He was conscious, but his eyes were barely open. 
“Welcome back, Mr. Barba,” The nurse smiled. “I think you gave this one quite the scare,” She nodded to you, to which Barba gave the weakest smile. 
He tried to speak, but just scratchy gibberish came from his mouth. But his beautiful green eyes were more open and had their sparkle back. 
“Your throat will be sore for a while,” The nurse informed him. “....But everything else seems to be doing good!” She checked all of Rafael’s stats on his machines, and the different tubes coming out of his body. 
“I’ll be back later-- let you two, catch up,” She gave you both a knowing smile, then walked out the door.
“I...told...you,” he hoarsely croaked. 
“What? You told me what?!” You asked him frantically, as if this was some kind of ominous threat.
“I’d….,” He cleared his throat as you grabbed a water bottle off a nearby table. 
“I told you, I’d fight for you,” He said almost completely normally after taking a swig of the water.
“...Yeah, well-- I think that was a bit much, don’t you, counselor?” You raised an eyebrow, implying taking a bullet for someone after the first date is a bit melodramatic.
“I mean, here,” he pointed to the bed. 
“W-What?” you blinked in confusion. 
“I fought to come back,” he took your hand and kissed the back of it. “For you,” 
“Why?” you blinked again, still in awe.
“Because you asked me to,” He smiled, taking his free hand and stroking your hair back as you had been doing while he was out. 
“Y-You heard all of that?!” you gasped.
“Well, I thought I had hallucinated it until you just confirmed it for me,” He gave you a mischievous smile.
“Oh my god,” You blushed and hit him softly, forgetting about his tubes and shoulders. He winced in pain, and you immediately started to comfort him again.
“Oh my GOD, what is wrong with me?! Are you ok?”
“I’m fine, carino. And I’m not done yet either,” his words made you stop fiddling with the wires and look him straight in the eyes.
“....Done what?”
“Done loving you, dummy,” he shook his head as if to say “DUH.” 
“Oh my god you DID hear all of it!” You put your hands over your face, your face turning red. Then you realized what he had actually said. 
“WAIT...did you just say…?” your eyes bugged out of your head. 
“I love you, Y/N.” he smiled sweetly, squeezing your hand.
“Really? Are you sure? Because we can just--” He shut you up by leaning over and kissing you. 
“Since I saw you sniff my scotch glass,” He cut you off. “I thought ‘I’m gonna marry that weird girl one day’,” 
“Whoa whoa whoa, slow down there mister,” You put your hands up. “I mean, you can almost die for me, but marriage? That seems a bit much,” You gave him a tongue-in-cheek smile. 
“We’ll negotiate,” He smirked. “In the meantime…” He moved himself away on his bed, adjusting the wires to make a space. He patted it for you to get in.
“I...I don’t think these are made for two people, what if I break it?” You eyed the bed, trying to calculate the weight max.
“I’ll buy them another one,” he chuckled.
“Oh right, with your copious amounts of money,” you rolled your eyes with a smile.
“Yeah, better spending it on that then more ties,” he smirked.
“NO. Never stop buying ties!” You giggled, climbing into the bed with him. He adjusted the arm that wasn’t in a sling around you. You snuggled into him, and he placed a kiss on your forehead. The feeling was back; the safe and warm feeling
And you knew in your heart, you’d never feel helpless again. 
55 notes · View notes
rpbetter · 3 years
Note
I'm so tired of roleplaying with people who don't put half the commitment I do into our threads and muses. I'm so tired of feeling like I'm a weirdo or like I don't belong for that. Any other hobby and people wouldn't care if I took it seriously. Why is roleplaying different? How can I keep going like this if I'm getting rudeness from all sides? I can't even go outside my already tiny bubble and find more partners, because I always see people putting roleplayers like me down and it's exhausting.
"Why is roleplaying different?"
Well, Anon, I know that was a rhetorical question, but I have some thoughts on that. To the surprise of no one!
I strongly believe that this is an issue with how fandom has come to dominate roleplaying. As I've said before, it really wasn't always like that. Of course, you always had canon characters and almost all RPers were invested in a fandom or two. The difference was that online RP was once viewed much more like tabletop RPGs are.
When the RPC became a near-total offshoot of Fandom, a lot of shit changed and very rapidly...and within Fandom, a lot of shit was changing very rapidly as well at that time.
RP has always been something looked down on (though, at least no one ever accused written RP online of being literally demonic like they did DnD, or made correlations to murder sprees like they did LARPing, so there's that) as strange, not the good, understandable sort of dorky.
Part of that is almost certainly because of the difference in the way society views writing vs the way it views hobbies like gaming - writing is seen as an intellectual pursuit and a job, gaming, even at its most negative points of view in wider society, has been seen traditionally as a downtime activity only.
But. RP was not looked down upon from within Fandom or in roleplay communities themselves like it is now.
When the whole experience of fandoms themselves became extremely mainstream and open, it welcomed in a ton of shit ideas and behaviors that were not previously prevalent. It changed RP, too, along many of those same lines.
When your hobby is considered objectionably weird by people within the fandoms you love and RP in and that makes you a sort of lowest-tier fan, the viewpoint of RP to RPers becomes something lesser than a valid hobby. When RPers are the same people who engage with Fandom monetarily, anything not monetized is passively consumable content, including RP. And RPers are trying to both deflect shame and struggling with wider society's mixed messages, that now hit them everywhere online as well. Shit like, "you don't have to monetize your hobby, it's okay to just make really good cross stitches of memes for yourself" and "if you're not paying me, you have no control over me."
We seriously do not view RP as a proper hobby anymore, that's why. There are many factors to that, those are just few, but that's the ultimate answer. It's not seen that way because it's not valued in the same way.
I think much of the problem with muns losing their entire shit over anyone else approaching the hobby differently, dare I say...more seriously, is related to a lot of complex psychology about self-esteem, control, and anxiety. So many people here struggle with serious self-worth and confidence issues, and I think to many of them, whether they realize it or not, when they see serious RPers, they feel like that's an inherent judgment and a danger to their own enjoyment. Because RP, as writing, is a skilled hobby - the more you practice it, the more skilled you become with it. Meaning that someone who approaches the writing seriously is going to be at a higher skill level.
Enter the way we're training to think about writing again - when they see someone who is very practiced, skilled, and confident with their writing, the learned idea is that they're somehow superior in a nasty, personal way.
I most certainly do not think that makes it alright, it isn't, and I'm not very tolerant of it.
It's absolutely alright to engage with RP in any way you see fit. If that's extremely casual, it's a minor hobby for you, that's great! I'm so happy you're enjoying yourself, and I mean that in no facetious way. But not when that is the only form of it respected and accepted. It's just as alright to have RP as your primary, serious hobby!
The only way we can all enjoy a hobby with such great variance within it is by respecting each other's variables, not by vilifying them. It's recognizing that, no matter how much you enjoy the mun and/or muse, they're not engaging with the hobby in the way you are, it's not a good fit to write together. (Please, begging y'all to be friends with those who are different, not enemies, shit's sake. You've not got to write together to be friends!) Instead of labeling them and being hateful. Different =/= a threat.
And, to go off a bit lol y'all demonizing serious RPers really don't get that there are some intense tones of ableism and more going on in that narrative of yours, huh?
Not that anyone requires a reason to be serious about any hobby, but when people pick a hobby like RP as their primary one...you should probably have the maturity to consider why that is. Could it be that they focus on a hobby they can do from their homes and that requires low physical involvement, and has a degree of separation from direct socializing, for a reason?
Serious RPers tend to be limited in their ability to pursue other hobbies. Mental and physical health, region, finances, and ability to spend time outside of the home are all very common limits for those who "take RP too seriously/are addicted to RP."
Maybe take five seconds away from your own issues to consider that the person you're shitting on for something so minor as a difference of importance of a hobby might be the full-time caretaker of a special needs child, having to remain home and on a very small income. They might be chronically ill or suffer from agoraphobia. They might live in an area with no hobbies of interest, affordability, or at all...or they might live somewhere that is incredibly dangerous for them.
I honestly do not know where these people have been that they've been aggressed at by serious RPers, but that's usually the excuse. (I'm not saying it has never happened or does not happen, before anyone goes there.) The idea that serious RPers are extreme elitists who are demanding that other muns do what they do, how they do it. That they expect other muns to be online and RPing all the time, that they be "available for entertainment at all times" at the cost of real-life matters. Having the expectation that threads not be dropped constantly or that a writing partner not leave for months with no contact is neither of those things.
In over two decades of RPing across almost every platform type that has existed, I have literally never seen that be either a singular RPer-type problem or one that serious RPers are even more likely to deal in. I've seen the opposite, actually. Which is not a condemnation or a statement that all casual RPers do this, just what my experience has been. And one that actually stands to reason based on the way they view and engage with RP - quick replies, quick entertainment, and very low commitment to threads, muses, or other muns. Of course, it's annoying to them when a more serious RPer is unwilling to do rapid-fire style quick, short threads from an ask with them, but is writing the lengthy replies they already owed instead.
That's probably a factor as well, in here among a plethora of misunderstanding/unawareness of differences - for many serious RPers, it's not easier and more fun to write short, quick threads. So, what a casual RPer is seeing is that they're willing to put all this extraordinary effort into a massive reply to someone else while their easy, fun, quickly done thread is waiting in line.
Misunderstandings and unawareness breed hostility, period. And there is a hell of a lot of those things in the RPC.
What serious RPers are expressing are either boundaries/expectations or frustration. Not a demand that you be around all the time, but an expectation that you leave them alone if you're not also a serious RPer who will be committed to threads and muses. Not hostility and elitism, the frustration that it's already difficult to find muns who will work out before you add in the majority rule of casual RPers.
It's incredibly disheartening, frustrating, and honestly, a bit anxiety-inducing to constantly be the weird one, always have few choices, and to be at risk of being Problematic purely because you take the hobby seriously. You can't vent without someone jumping on your ass to remind you (even if you said numerous times that "real life comes first" and "people can do what they want") that omg, people have lives, people can do what makes them happy, it's just RP.
It's so upsetting when you think you might have found a good writing partner, then, you see a PSA they've reblogged about how it's a "hobby, not a jobby," and "no one owes anyone anything, ever." Excuse me, as that last one is a direct quote, let me redo it so it is verbatim: "no one owes anyone here anything - EVER !!!"
I said I wasn't very tolerant :)
But seriously, exactly what you've expressed is why I'm not...it's another form of controlling others instead of trying your best to control your own experience, and it's often extremely hateful. I'm not tolerant of anything like that, it's no longer supporting preferences at that point. When your preference is the only one that will be tolerated in the community, it's not a preference anymore.
It's something that makes others feel isolated, afraid of harassment, and depressed. It is a hobby and it isn't supposed to make you feel like that!
And, no, absolutely the fuck not lol the "answer" to this isn't that you're taking it too seriously and need to take a break. I'm so tired of seeing that shit tacked onto RPH responses and vents and PSAs. You're not saying that RP is making you feel this way, "just take a break and come back when you agree with everyone else" isn't a solution.
Of course, if you do feel like your time here has become so upsetting? Yeah, obviously, you should try to find some other things to supplement your downtime that make you feel happier again. Engage in some other forms of writing just meant for yourself, or that can be published as fics. Spend some more time on a game you enjoy for a while, or get invested in a new one. Learn to shape bonsai or make no-knead rolls. Whatever would make you happy as a hobby when you're not here.
Other than that, however, well...we're not going to be implying on this blog that you're too serious and need to take a hiatus until you have no emotional investment in your hobby. That's insane. I'd not say it about hiking, martial arts, dog obedience competitions, hobby farming, or painting either.
I wish I could think of some solutions as to where you could look that wasn't like this, but it's definitely the majority of the RPC. It doesn't help that, due to this, serious RPers have a tendency to quietly stick together and not venture out into the RPC. They're just not incredibly easy to find.
I will say that they tend to be:
novella - if you're not here for serious RP and sticking around for a while, you're not going to invest the time and energy into particularly lengthy writing
older RPers - I would say that twenty-five is probably the youngest, with early thirties to late forties being the majority
in fandoms with a large adult base of fans - even if it's a franchise friendly to, or even meant for, younger fans, if it has a particularly active adult fanbase, it's a better chance of finding serious RPers in it
as above, old fandoms - fandoms that have been around for a long time tend to have more serious RPers in them
fandomless OCs - tend to have a higher chance of being written by serious RPers than canons or heavily fandom-involved OCs
RPers who do not do a ton of advertising for their muse(s), but when they do, they don't advertise them based on activism points or trends
slightly more likely to not have an emphasis on highly aesthetic blogs, graphics, icons etc. - they use a modified basic tumblr theme, low on graphics, their aesthetics are not on-trend, for example
anti-content policing/"write what you want" style muns
muns with more extensive rules pages - they plan to be here for a while, they take writing, RP, and their muse(s) seriously, so, it's a bit more important to them to head off problems before they start
those with older characters/FCs - be that literally in age or the character being one that has existed for a long time
"stay in your lane" style muns - if they're opining on fandom or the RPC, they must really be angry about something
those with numerous and detailed headcanons - for example, their response to a HC meme ask like, "what's your muse's favorite ice cream flavor?" is going to be treated seriously, not simply answered with "mint chocolate chip because my bby is gross"
As usual, not a complete or perfect list. I don't fit some of the things on there! It could give you some things to look for when trying to find other serious RPers, though. It's based on observances from someone who was never a casual RPer, even as a minor (me, obviously), and maybe it could at least keep you from continuously running into hostility about your approach to RP.
I've honestly considered making a list of some sort expressly for RPers who are on the more serious end of the spectrum, but...in a RPC back when things were dominated by serious RPers, I did that sort of thing with a RPH I had, and it still got labeled as being a list for and by Elitists. I don't know that anyone would want to put themselves out there for potential harassment on tumblr, you know? It was a joke then, just having a group of RPers label you as an Elitist. Here, you get told to kill yourself, and none of us need more of that shit, right?
Try to hang in there, Anon, I know it's upsetting, and I'm so sorry that something fun has gotten to be like this.
Try to understand that these people are coming from a place of irrational defensiveness, often in response to bullying themselves at some point or feeling bad about themselves. That doesn't make it right, but it does make it easier to not take to heart.
And keep at it! In my experience here, once you find a group of people you fit into, it really is...A Group. Especially among RPers who are ostracized, they stick together, they promote each other, and they're very happy for their mutuals to become your mutuals. Once you find them, it unlocks so many opportunities for the interactions and type of RP you've been missing!
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inappropriate. sirius black x reader
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summary. remus finds you and sirius in a...compromising position and decided to share his thoughts on the matter. but as it turns out, remus doesn’t have much room to talk. (an extension of trainee).
word count. just under 3k.
warning(s). suggestive (i.e. making out), age gap, language.
a/n. i really liked trainee and the dynamic of that one-shot so i decided to expand upon that. i think i might make a couple installments to this but we’ll see, let me know what y'all think. oh, and requests are open.
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   It had started out completely innocent. Or at least that’s what you told yourself as you made your way up the stairs to Sirius’ room. 
   The tea that you had in your hand precariously sloshed against the sides of the mugs, probably spilling more than a few drops on the floor. It was made just how Sirius liked it, more sugar and honey than there was tea. You’d have make sure to go back and clean up your mess later, but for now you could care less. 
   It had been a week since you’d last seen him. Well, you’d seen him. There was an emergency Order meeting and you both had been there, staring at each other from across the table without making it too obvious. Then there was that training session which Remus had sat in on. So yes, you’d seen him but you hadn’t gotten the chance to be near him or touch him.
   To run your hands through his hair or brush your lips along his jawline. So, by your standards you had not properly seen him and you had every intention of doing so.
   You knocked on his door, biting down on your lip slightly as you waited for his reply. 
   “Come in,” he shouted. 
   You opened the door smiling to yourself. He was sat on the couch at the far end of his room in front of the fireplace. He looked over his shoulder at you and returned your smile before bringing his attention back to the Daily Prophet he was reading. As you approached him, he held his hand out to take the tea. You snatched the paper from him, sitting down and draping your legs unceremoniously across his lap.    
   You pressed your back to the arm of the couch, flipping through the newspaper. Looking at him over the edge of the newspaper, you said, “All you do is read this crap.” 
   You tried not to notice the way his palms trailed up and down your calf. Tried not to notice how much you had missed his touch but that felt nearly impossible. And oh, he knew what he was doing, you could tell by the stupid smirk on his face. 
   “Well,” he replied casually, “when you can’t leave the house this is usually how you stay up to date on current events.” His shirt was only partially buttoned and you couldn’t shake the idea of tracing your fingers along his tattoos. You didn't want to stare but how could you not.
   Before you could look away, Sirius had already caught you looking. There was an endearing smile on his face that would’ve been cute if he wasn’t so damn cocky. You were about to make a sarcastic comment when Sirius grabbed your ankles and pulled you forward. 
   You landed next to him on the couch with a yelp. His hand was on your back, holding you steady. He leaned in to kiss you but you pushed him away.
   “Everyone’s downstairs.” Usually, Sirius would have cared. He was always very careful not to get caught, sometimes too careful. But it had been a week and he missed you and a few kisses wouldn’t hurt anyone.
   “We’ve got about ten minutes before anyone notices we’re gone.” He raised his eyebrow at you and—oh, what the hell.
   His mug and newspaper were quickly discarded on the coffee table. At least everything had started out innocent, but now you were sitting on Sirius’ lap with your lips pressed harshly against his. 
   So that’s why you didn’t hear the stairs creaking as someone walked up them or the floorboards outside the door doing the same. The house was impossibly old and managed to creak anytime anyone took a step, yet somehow neither you nor Sirius seemed to hear a sound. In that moment, the only thing you and Sirius were aware of was each other.
   It wasn’t until Remus opened the door that you were brought back to reality. “Sirius I wanted to—” His sentence died in his throat as he stood in the door slackjawed.  
   Sirius pushed you off his lap, you repositioned yourself at the end of the couch looking at everything but Remus. Sirius did his best to look composed. 
    And as if it would make Remus forget everything he had seen, Sirius crossed his arms and cleared his throat. “Yes, Remus.” 
   “Sirius, I...um...” His eyes wandered between the two of you with a mix of shock and horror. “I...I came up here to talk to you about a few things before the meeting but it seems I’ve interrupted something.” He blinked slowly as if he couldn’t fully process what he had seen. 
   “Sirius, what exactly have I interrupted?” 
   “Well, you see...” Sirius scrambled for some type of excuse. His eyes darted over to you hoping you’d be able to save him. But really there was no saving this situation. “Remus, just listen—”
   “No,” Remus interrupted, “Sirius, you listen. I don’t know what’s going on here but quite frankly it’s inappropriate.”
   Sirius’ eyebrow went up. “Inappropriate?” 
   “Yes, Sirius, inappropriate! She is significantly younger than you and...and...you’re her mentor Sirius! I mean Merlin’s beard that’s beyond inappropriate.” 
   “Remus, although I really don’t believe it’s any of your business, if you just calmed down and talked to us for a second—”
   “None of my business? Honestly, Sirius, at our age I would think you’d be responsible but I see some things never change.” 
   You looked over at Sirius who looked too angry to even speak. His jaw was set and he was sitting straight up in his seat like he was ready to get up and take a swing at Remus. You thought about reaching out to touch his arm but realized it was probably better if you didn’t. 
   “Remus, you seriously have no idea what you’re talking about,” you chimed in. 
   Remus chuckled as if you’d said the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. “No, (Y/N), I don’t think you know what you’re talking about.” He gazed between you once more before shaking his head and turning to leave.
   He opened the door but before leaving he turned back to look at the two of you. “I won’t tell anyone, but I think it’s in everyone’s best interest if whatever is going on between you two ends.” 
   The only sound in the room was the door slamming behind him. You cautiously looked over at Sirius. He was slumped against the couch, his head turned up to the ceiling. He dragged his hands down his face then turned to look at you. 
   You exchanged a look wordlessly. There was really nothing either of you could think to say. He leaned over to you, putting his hand on your thigh and giving it a gentle squeeze. You put your hand over his and that was enough to make up for what you couldn’t say. 
   “You should probably, uh, get downstairs.” You leaned into him, pressing your foreheads together. 
   “Meeting doesn’t start for another half hour.” His hand left your thigh, reaching upward to caress your jaw. 
   “I know but it’s probably better if you just head down now.” He gave you a quick kiss on the cheek before standing up. You reached for his mug, he’d barely have any time to drink any of it and the rest would have to go down the drain. You sighed, looking over at him. He was busy finishing the buttons on his shirt.
   You walked to the door slowly, dreading having to face Remus, or anyone for that matter, after all of that. “Hey,” he called after you. You looked over your shoulder at him and he gave you a halfhearted smile. “We’ll talk later, yeah?” 
   “Yeah,” you replied. You gave him a smile that had just about as much conviction as his. 
   You left the room, closing the door behind you. Instantly, your smile dropped. 
   You walked down the stairs, waving off all the “hello”s from what seemed like an endless stream of redheaded children. You strolled into the kitchen hesitantly, already expecting an inevitable glare from Remus. 
   But Remus was nowhere to be found. The only people in the dining room besides yourself were Arthur, Molly, and Bill who seemed to be catching up. They didn’t even pay you any mind. 
   You ducked toward the kitchen, praying that Kreacher wasn’t in there because the last thing you needed was to deal with him today. You opened the door and nearly dropped the mug from shock. 
   Remus was leaning against the counter with Tonks pressed squarely against him. His arms were wrapped around her waist and it looked like they were making some attempt at swallowing each other. The kisses were sloppy and you had to say you were honestly surprised at Remus. 
   You retreated from the doorway as quietly as possible, closing the door slowly. You had to put your hand over your mouth to stop yourself from audibly laughing, because what a hilarious turn of events that was. 
   “(Y/N)?” You looked up at Molly who had a worried look plastered on her face. “Are you alright, dear?” 
   “Yeah...yeah, totally. I just—I remembered something I forgot to tell Sirius.” You sat the mug on the table before excusing yourself. You had to try your hardest not to literally sprint up the stairs because this was just too good.
   You threw the door open and made your way into the room. “Sirius,” you exclaimed. 
   You heard him hum from his bed. He was laying on the bed staring blankly up at the ceiling. “Sirius, I have something to tell you.” You crawled across the bed toward him, sitting back on your calves. 
   He tilted his head toward you. “I don't really think we should be in bed together after what happened earlier.” 
   “No, no, listen, you will not believe what I just saw.” 
   “(Y/N),” he said warily. You slapped his chest. 
   “Seriously, listen, you won’t believe this.” He sighed, rubbing his eyes before finally smiling up at you. 
   “Tell me, dear, what did you see?” 
   You decided on ignoring his sarcasm because after he heard what you had to tell him all of that would wash away. “I’m so glad you asked, Sirius. I went into the kitchen to put your mug in the sink only to realize the kitchen was currently being occupied by Remus and Tonks who had their tongues down each others throats.” 
   You tilted your head, anticipating his reaction. It took it a moment to fully set but when it did his mouth fell open and he sat up on his forearms. “No...” 
   You nodded at him, maybe a bit too overzealous. He sat up completely. “No way!” 
   “Yes way!” He hopped up from the bed, pacing back and forth. 
   “But...he was just saying...” He paused with his back to you. Quickly, he turned on heels. “Wait, wait, wait, weren’t you and Nymphadora in the same year at Hogwarts?” You nodded at him practically beaming at the irony. 
   “Oh, that little shit! What a hypocrite, he has some nerve telling me about responsible. At least I was in the comfort of my own bedroom, he was in the bloody kitchen just waiting for someone to walk in!” 
   He started laughing and you joined him because the situation really was just downright laughable. Sirius walked back over to you, gently weaving his fingers into your hair. He kissed your forehead, smiling gently against you. You reached up, wrapping your hand around his wrist.
   “So, what are you going to do about it,” you asked.
   “I think we ought to have a little conversation with Remus.” He smiled, leaning down to kiss you.
-
   It was almost painful sitting through the meeting. By the time, you and Sirius left the room the meeting was nearly started and, although, Sirius would have loved nothing more than to confront him in front of everyone you tugged him in the other direction before he got the chance. So instead you had to wait through the entire meeting. 
   The only thing keeping you making it bearable was the look on Sirius’ face. That overconfident smirk that assured you that Remus had definitely not heard the end of this. His hand drifted to your knee, squeezing it slightly. You looked over at him but he had his eyes trained on Remus, smirk wider than ever. 
   Remus wrapped up the meeting and everyone dispersed out of the room, leaving only a few stranglers including you, Sirius, and Remus. 
   Sirius looked over at you, trying to see if you were ready. You nodded quickly and both of you hopped up, walking down the length of the table together approaching Remus. 
   “Remus, a word?” He looked up at Sirius, raising an eyebrow. 
   “A word?” 
   You nodded at him. “Yes, a word. In private, please,” you replied. His gaze danced between the two of you not quite knowing who to look at. 
   “A word...sure.” 
   Sirius led the three of you into the kitchen, making sure to shut the door once you’d all entered and stand in front of it in case anyone happened to want to come in. “So, Remus,” Sirius began. He was smiling at him. “We’ve done some thinking about what you said to us earlier and the nature of our relationship.” 
   “Good. Look, I know this is hard but it’s for the best. I hate that I had to be the one to say it but it had to be said.” 
   “Well, thank God there are still good people like you in the world, right Remus,” you remarked. 
   “Yeah, we want to thank for that Remus.” Remus nodded. “But, since you know, we’re all going around saying things that need to be said: why were you kissing Nymphadora in my kitchen?” 
   Remus’ eyes widened. He sputtered, trying to find his words. “Sirius, (Y/N), you don’t understand—”
   “Oh, save it. I can’t believe the way you talked to us, you treated (Y/N) like she was a child. ‘Sirius, you’re irresponsible. Sirius, it’s inappropriate.’ Talk about bloody inappropriate, you’re kissing my cousin in my kitchen where anyone could see. I’d appreciate you not doing that, thanks!” 
   “Sirius, keep your voice down!” Remus ran a hand through his hair nervously. “I don’t know what to say.” 
   “Then I’ll keep going, yeah? Get off of your damn high horse. We’ve both found people that we care about very much who also care about us, that’s what matters. So, if you want to keep this self-righteous bullshit up, be my guest but I don’t need you telling me what’s in my best interest.” 
   Remus was too stunned for words. “I’m sorry,” he finally managed. 
   “Yeah, well, next time remember not to throw stones from a glass house, hm?” Sirius looked over at you, motioning you to come with him as he slipped out of the room. You looked at Remus over your shoulder, flashing him a quick smile before leaving. 
   You ran trying to catch up to Sirius. “That was awesome,” you giggled. 
   He smiled at you despite himself. “He deserved it after what he said.” You followed him up the stairs, waiting for the second you were finally alone. 
   The moment his bedroom door closed, your lips were attached to his. He inhaled sharply at the sudden nature of the movement but welcomed it nevertheless.  He pulled away slightly. “What’s that for?”
   You shrugged, moving out of his reach and heading for the couch. You picked up the Daily Prophet which had been discarded on the coffee table, stretching out across the couch. Sirius followed you, picking up your legs so he could sit before returning your legs to his lap. 
   He watched you flip through the paper, studying the ways your eyes roamed across the pages. Your eyelashes brushed gently against your cheek every time you blinked and Sirius took notice of it, because he noticed every little beautiful thing you did. And he tried in vain not to replay them in his mind constantly. 
    He ran his palm up your calf. “Do you...do you think there’s any, uh, merit to what Remus was saying earlier?” Your eyes darted up to his. “I just...there are always going to be people who think that, that this—what we’re doing, whatever that is, is wrong...” He trailed off, barely able to meet his eye. 
   You sighed, folding the paper in your lap. “Sirius, I think that Remus was projecting his insecurities onto you.” You crawled toward him, wrapping your hand around the back of his neck. “And as far as I’m concerned everyone else can go to hell.”
   He turned to you. “It’s not going to be easy,” he mumbled. 
   “Nothing’s ever easy, but I’m willing to try.” 
   Sirius almost laughed because, of course you were. You were just about as stubborn as a damn mule and it would take a lot more than Remus to scare you away. “Then to hell with everybody else.” He leaned forward to kiss you, throwing the Daily Prophet back on the coffee table where it belonged.
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a/n. i really wanna make more additions to the trainee universe. like not just one-shots but i wanna do headcanons and drabbles like idk. just let me know, requests are open.
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eveenstar · 3 years
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𝑩𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒔 [𝑨 𝑨𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝑯𝒖𝒙 𝒙 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒙 𝑲𝒚𝒍𝒐 𝑹𝒆𝒏 𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 || 𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒛𝒆𝒏 𝑨𝑼]
||➸𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈𝐈: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐚𝐧||
Summary:  After your sister's coronation, you hoped destiny had bigger plans for you. With the arrival of the king of Alderaan, you finally feel like your life will turn into a fairytale after so many years of being isolated. Maybe you shouldn've have been so hopeful. But not everyone gets a happy ending, and maybe the answers you seek are right down the hallway.
Tags/Warnings: Angst.
Author's Note: Hello! Well, here's chapter 2 as promised. Kinda didn't like the ending, took me 3 takes. I also left a easter egg somewhere in this chapter, wanna see who'll notice it :)) Feedback is much appreciated ♡ Hope y'all enjoy!
Taglist: @girl-next-door-writes
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The ball room has never been so colorful like before, and you were certain you had never felt so many eyes laid on you like shadows in the dark. Like they were waiting for one single wrong move from you, a false step, so to say.
Your feet almost slid across the floor as you searched for your grandfather Palpatine in the crowd, he was nowhere to be seen. So many unfamiliar faces and no one to recognize, but again, you had no friends.
"Hello."
You turned around and met the brown eyes of your sister, Rey, who was staring at you with a relaxed smile.
"Oh, hello me?" You stupidly looked around in a brisk, "Uh, hi. You look beautiful! Is that mother's dress?"
An astonishing scarlet dress with a V neckline, you wouldn't say it was adequate for the coronation, but she looked amazing in it. Rey's new crown fit her head perfectly, you swore it was your father's crown but the newly red crystal on it made you doubt a little. What kind of crystal was that, anyway?
"I can say the same about you." Rey sweetly smiled and looked to the huge crowd dancing around the large gala room. She never looked at you for too long, you guessed it was merely because...well, you actually had no idea.
"Your Majesty, the duke of Alzakan."
"Alsakan! Duke of Alsakan! Ahem," You stared at Rey, and given to you two being sisters, you could sense how tense she'd gotten when a taller man approached her and overly exaggerated bowed down. You don't remember hearing about this duke's arrival, even if he made it seem like he was the brightest star of the room.
The queen gave him a polite nod.
"Your Majesty, as your most profitable trading partner, it is an honor to finally meet the true queen of Naboo." The man gently kissed Rey's hand, but even if it was just a respectful greeting, you didn't blame her for being tense. This duke had the energy of a child that ate too much sugar.
Behind Rey, you coughed by accident and it caught their attention as you saw both heads turn to you with brows furrowed. You got your perfect princess posture back and offered them a apologetic smile and a wave.
Rey put herself in front of you as a way of ending this embarassing moment and distract the duke as she offered her hand for a shake.
"I must say the same about you, Duke Pryde. My grandfather spoke very highly of you." This surely boosted Pryde's ego as he smug smirked to his guards behind him, "I hope our trade routes will remain as sucessful as they were with my parents."
"Well, I, uh." Their conversation faded to background noise as you tried to distance yourself from the spotlight and pretend this never happened, maybe if you slowly backed off nobody would notice the younger princess slinding off somewhere.
You felt too many eyes on you, even if your eyes were certain nobody was watching you. You did not plan on disappointing anyone, at least, not at your sister's coronation party. Full of grace, you looked to the crowd and surroundings, and your eyes paused on a strange symbol on the far away wall just to your right. It was a sixteen-rayed symbol inscribed within a hexagon, denoting an explosive force pushing against attempts to contain it.
You were quite sure you'd seen this symbol before, somewhere. Your eyes only focused on the sigil as you tried your hardest to search your memories for it. But, the closer you got to it, an invisible force pushed it further from your grasp. Just like sand slips through your fingers when you attempt to hold it.
In fact, you do not remember your childhood, nor your early teenage years. Not a single thing. You just remember the feelings after something traumatic had happened; the loneliness, the pain, the anger and more loneliness. Sometimes, as of right now, your mind didn't feel like your own, nor did your memories. They felt like they belonged to someone else. Someone who was not you.
Tu'iea eyes deceive tu, isar nenx jostas savimi
The whispers in the walls. There they were again. They always came from the walls, but you only say that because you hate to admit that they sound right next to you.
"(Y/N)?"
You loudly gasped as you turned around in a fright, your eyes met Rey's once more. She was frowning, and with a slight worried look painted on her eyes. Oh, you hoped nobody heard it.
"Is everything alright?"
You quickly washed off your scared face and laughed to ease the situation you were currently stuck in, hoping she wouldn't do any questions about it. Or mention it by any case.
"Dear stars, yes, I'm quite alright, thank you. It was probably just some bug."
She nodded, and only when she moved away from you that you realized Rey was holding your hand in a way of calling for your attention. Before moving to her side, you glanced an eye to the wall where the symbol was, but it wasn't there.
"This party looks so alive." Rey commented besides you, her eyes were as bright as stars in the sky as she watched the people dance like there was no worries in the whole galaxy.
"Maybe we could keep the gates open." You suggested, your heart full of hope. "Your queen now, Palpatine can't control us anymore. We can bring life back into the palace!"
"We can't just change things without thinking, (Y/N)."
"But why not? It can be like before. I don't understand." You softly grabbed her hands and stared into her eyes, "This party doesn't have to be the only one. We can have plenty of more!"
"That's right," She replied, and your smile stretched further, "You don't understand. You never will. Things will never be like before."
And just like that, you felt your heart shatter into millions of pieces, like somebody just pulled your heart out of your chest and stabbed it right in front of you. Even if you and Rey weren't close, she had never spoken to you that way. No, something changed about her.
Upon realizing her mistake, Rey let go of your hands and smiled, but a strange one. A forced smile.
"Forgive me, I...Excuse me."
Not even giving you the chance to apologize, you watched Rey disappear behind some group of horned beings, which you didn't even try to remember what they were before you heard another voice behind you.
"Princess (Y/N), we meet again." Kylo Ren, that voice was impossible to forget. "I was just about to meet the queen, did something happen?"
"Oh, no, she had to...to talk to some duke of Alzakan." You looked back at with, forcing the same smile Rey had just pulled ten seconds ago.
"You look upset." His coal eyes were analyzing you once more, as if he was trying to read your inner thoughts. His eyes were like black holes, you quote internally, so easy to get lost in. They held so many emotions within. Your mother used to tell you that your eyes are mirrors to your soul, and you believe it, most of the time. You wonder what kind of soul Kylo Ren had.
"I'm sorry, do you want to get some air?"
The king silently nodded and gave you the front lead to the palace private gardens, your most favorite place to wander around and be in contact with nature, since you weren't allowed to leave the palace's grounds.
The echoes of the enchanting gala sounds began to fade in the background at each step you took farther from it. The shiny walls were replaced by glass ones, the only barrier between you and the actual garden. It was ethereal at moonlight, a complete breathtaking view. If you were to choose a place to spend all of eternity, this garden would be the chosen one.
Saturn Gardens.
The name you remember choosing for them when you were a child. Which doesn't make a lot of sense since it's only one garden, but hey, who cares right? Saturn was a funny name, you had a slight feeling it belonged to a name of something you were deeply fond of, but you couldn't quite grasp what it was. Nonetheless, you were thankful you choose a good name for them.
Yvir always told you how heavenly you looked at moonlight, and you're sure of it. This place is almost magical, so peaceful and silent even when there's a party happening just on the end of the hallway. You remember falling asleep here a few times, either it was reading or painting. You were quite a multi-talent person thanks to growing up bored and isolated on a huge palace, so you've gained a few skills here and there. This place was your big centre of inspiration.
You felt free here, from all responsabilities and troubles of life.
You discreetly glanced a curious eye to Kylo, who was walking besides you and attentively exploring the garden with his eyes only. In your mind, you wondered if he had a safe place too. A place where he felt free of everything, where he could relax without troubles, or where he felt inspired. Maybe everyone has something like that, you're not sure.
"Truth be told, I have no idea why my grandfather ordered the gates to be closed, or why most staff was fired." You sighed while your fingers gently passed through some book pages laying there on the pale blue glass table. Kylo looked over to you with an intrigued gaze. "Or why my sister shut me out. It was always me and myself."
So distracted by your thoughts, you barely noticed Kylo taking your hand from the book and hold it. His hands felt warm, surprisingly, as you had imagined that they were cold as ice. In difference to yours, his hands were also far larger. It caused a small smile across your lips.
"I spent most of my childhood lonely too." He admitted, his eyes never leaving your hands. "My parents were either ignoring me or too busy to hear me."
You remember the stories about them, but you didn't want to cross the line and ask him. This conversation you and the king of Alderaan were currently having was something that already cross rule number three; never mention his parents. So this caught you off guard.
Probably noticing your tense posture, Kylo's eyes shifted to yours; they held such a curious yet comforting gaze, as if this was his attempt to say "it's okay" without actually saying those two words. The moon behind him made him seem like an angel.
"I know how you feel." He assured you calmly. You were so lost in his eyes, so lost in the way they stared at you. "You can talk to me."
If you could preserve this moment, you would. You'd keep it close to your heart and protect it from all darkness in the galaxy. The mighty and mysterious Kylo Ren, former prince and now king of Alderaan, just opened his heart to you and pronounced those five words that you had never been told before.
You hoped this wasn't a dream. It'd break your soul if it was.
"Do you dance?" Upon your sudden question, Kylo raised an eyebrow. You got up from your seat and twirled around, loving the way your dress moved. "Will you dance with me?"
Even if his lips didn't move, his eyes expressed all the emotions you needed. They were like a calm ocean, or the rising sun in a early morning.
"My lady," He politely offered you his hand, once more. "It would be my pleasure."
You smiled, the most genuine smile you'd had in a long time. Your heart was filled with joy and excitement, hopefully it wouldn't jump out of your chest by the way it was beating so fast. Faster than the way you rushed to the coronation. You never felt like this for someone, no, and definitely not for him.
His moves were calculated, but so tender-hearted and light. He twirled you around again and kept you close to his chest, one hand on your waist and another one guiding your other hand. At this point, you weren't even worried about making the wrong turn or stepping your foot on his. No, no, it was like your body was no longer your own, but knew perfectly which steps to take and you were glad for that.
In your mind, you imagined dancing like this with Kylo in the middle of a royal ballroom, but it was only you two. With or without music, it didn't matter, you and Kylo were too busy staring at each other's eyes to notice any background sound.
You had no idea how long you two had been dancing, but it ended so quickly.
"May I ask you something?" He asked in a strange, low voice.
"Of course, anything." You stepped a bit away from him once the dance came to an end.
Kylo traced lines alongside your hand, back and forth, and another hand came to meet your cheek as he slowly caressed it.
"Will you marry me?"
Oh dear stars.
Everything stopped around you, at least that's what you felt. You didn't even know what to say or do. Maybe, just maybe, the universe was finally showing you your destiny. That you were worthy of something just like Rey is.
The king of Alderaan had just asked you to marry him, and there was only one answer available to your heart.
You laughed and smile, nodding in happiness, "Yes!"
The ballroom was still full, everybody seemed to be having a great time just like you. Palpatine was nowhere to be seen, but Rey was seen talking to Duke Pryde and some others you assumed were also trading partners. Poor thing, a part of you felt guilty she had to spend her party talking to them. She didn't look happy. But maybe the news you're about to give her will make it up. That's what you hoped for.
Moving through the crowd as you held Kylo's hand had already got you lots of side-eyes and surprised gasps and whispers. This will entertain them for a very long time, and you didn't even try to hide your smile. Why would you? You're the most happy person in this room right now, and you were not going to hide your emotions again.
"Rey! I mean, your Majesty, may I speak to you, please?"
She nodded, excusing herself from the boring companies, and followed you to a more empty space of the room.
"I, I mean, we'd like to ask for your blessing on," You and Kylo looked at each other for a brief moment, "on our marriage!"
Rey almost chocked on her drink and quickly put it down on a table.
"Ma,Marriage?" You nodded. "I'm sorry, I'm quite confused here."
"Well, I know it's a bit of a sudden, and we haven't planned the ceremony, but it could happen here! Just like mother and father's wedding." You chuckled innocently at the thought of it.
"If Your Majesty doesn't mind it, of course." At this comment, that you didn't spare a thought, Rey furrowed her brows at Kylo in a angry stance and dismissed him completely.
"We could invite everyone in the kingdom! We could get so many songs to play and the decoration, oh I'll need to talk with Yvir." You put your hands on your hips, going through a mental list of preparatives for the wedding. You couldn't wait to tell Yvir.
"(Y/N)-"
"Oh stars, I hope you don't mind if Kylo stays here until the wedding! I'll need a few days to plan everything-"
"Absolutely not! (Y/N)!"
You stopped, her loud voice kicking all thoughts you previously had. Kylo, next to you, stared at her with indifference, like this somehow didn't even surprise him.
Rey inhaled calmly, "With all due respect, your Majesty, but my sister can't marry a man she just met."
"What? You can't decide that for me, Rey. I'm an adult, just like you." You crossed your arms, eyebrows furrowed just like hers. Your sister's expression turned to a more uncomfortable one, and you had no idea why this was making her be like that.
"(Y/N), you're too young to know about love."
"And I suppose you know instead? All you ever did was shut everyone out. You shut me out."
All the eyes in the room were now on you three, this time not even a single whisper was heard. Even more silent than the gardens. Rey shifted uncomfortably on her feet, moving her fingers repeatedly, a panicked gaze on her eyes.
"(Y/N)-"
"Just why, why do you do this? Why did you shut me out? What are you so afraid of?" Unlikely and unexpected, you screamed at her, only to regret it the moment that sentence left your mouth. But it was too late.
"That's enough, (Y/N)!"
A rash strong blow sent Kylo flying across the room. Hadn't it been for Kylo placing himself as a shield in front of you, you knew that was intended for you.
"That's the force." Somebody said.
"She's a Jedi!"
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queensdivas · 3 years
Text
Peonies Chapter 8
It has been a while since I've posted about Grigor or The Great. Y'all I have been busy with finals and another fic on archive that has been my favorite thing to write. If you've ever watched The Terror from AMC then you'll enjoy this.
But I haven't forgot about one of my favorite fics. Never.
Other than that! Here we go after weeks of not writing.
Previous Chapter
Masterlist
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The idea of falling asleep after today just sounds nauseating. Seeing the horrors in front of me then coming back to my apartment for Peter wanting to kill me. Then for Grigor to storm off due to the fact that he thought I would lay with my own cousin by marriage. Yes I’m well aware that’s still a common practice amongst the Monarchs of the world but not in my book!
Turning my head to watch the flames slowly begin to die down before my eyes. The room was beginning to spiral into that infamous Russian cold. I didn’t feel like throwing another log on since part of me thinks I deserve to be in the wintry world that I have chosen to live in.
This plan for making Catherine the ruler of all Russia is becoming stale. What have we done that’s been achievable anyhow! Go to the front to feed a bunch of soldiers! You saw what happened when I alone tried to help Peter! Catherine influenced a new Patriarch yet the women of the court still find Catherine to be an annoyance. There has been absolutely no effort or somewhat change Catherine has done to make things more in her favor. God she is a child thrown into a world that she has no idea what she's doing. Although I should be guiding...but...
What good am I doing here! I feel as if I’m just now a fuck toy for Grigor to feel a womens touch since his wife is with the Emporer on a daily basis! Throwing the blanket off me to march over to the nearest vase and chuck it across the room!
A screech left my body as I cleared everything off the vanity onto the floor. I could feel the blood rushing through me for this anger to spiral out of control! This stupid country! Grabbing a book to throw it against the wall!
THIS STUPID COUNTRY!
HOW CAN ONE FUCKING BELONG TO THIS COURT!
HOW CAN ONE SINGLE HUMAN BE SUCH AN ABSOLUTE MORON! AND YES THAT HUMAN IS ME!
WHY DOESN’T HE TRUST ME!
I’M NOT HIS WIFE!
THIS STUPID GOD DAMN COUNTRY!
IT’S MAKING ME QUESTION EVERY SINGLE THREAD OF INSANITY I HAVE BECAUSE THE MAN I’M BEGINNING TO FALL FOR HAS MAJOR TRUST ISSUES! CAN’T HE SEE THAT I AM A ONE MAN ONE WOMEN SORT OF WOMAN!
YES I’M A WHORE TO A MAR….
Huh...would you look at that Chiara? All because he lit a fire under your own ass because everyone else around you stays clear of it.
I…..
I feel nothing….
Maybe the cold will make me feel something in this empty body. Grabbing the handles of the window to pull them out. They smacked against the walls for the wind to soar through my room. It flew through my hair for the first few seconds for it to stop. The cold swaddled me up but I didn’t move from the window.
I do not deserve the things I have been given in life. For I am a cold hearted bitch with almost no remorse in my actions. I could possibly kill a hundred people and proclaim it to be for the greater good. No sense of remorse or sadness.
How could Grigor want to love someone as vile as me..I am cold..evil. Someone like me doesn’t deserve the warm embrace of what love is. This lust is beginning to form into the most dangerous tool one can have in their life. For it can bring life and destroy it in a matter of seconds.
I miss his touch..the way his fingers would glide across my arm as we snuggled together on the bed. The way he kissed my forehead after a long time of making love. Him showing me his drawings and I know he’s drawing me in my sleep! It hurts to feel this sort of way! I don’t want to feel anything! This feeling is almost heart wrenching and...beautiful.
My breathing began to choke till the only warmth that was on my body was the singular tear that had escaped my eye. I’m not a crier. Though we Italians embrace our emotions and turn it into something beautiful, I think this tear is a sense of relief. If I didn’t feel anything. I wouldn’t be whimpering in front of an open window.
A gentle beat from the door echoed through my room as I didn’t even move. If Peter was sending his soldiers to kill me I get the feeling there would be no knock. Please let it be Grigor. I need to feel his touch and tell him the truth. Not all of it but at least enough that I don’t spoil my plans for Catherine.
I closed the window to hurry over to the fire and toss a log in. If it’s Grigor then he probably would prefer something a little warmer. Please him please. Grabbing my robe to put it on as I opened the door. My eyes expanded from the confusion of who was standing before me in my bed robes.
“Elizabeth?” Well if she was coming to kill me I imagine my room has some sort of secret entrance and would’ve done it in my sleep.
“I hope I didn't disturb you. I think we need to have a little chat.”
“We do?” Dear God if Peter opened his mouth about what he started and what I finished I’m going to go kill him myself!
“Yes. May I come in?” Taking a step back for the door to open. She was in her bed clothes as she noticed the mess I had made in my room.
“The work of Peter no less?” I kept my mouth shut for once waiting for her to say something more. She’s going to defend Peter as much as she can. Probably for his own father who I imagine she secretly loved. From my understanding Peter the Great was also quite promiscuous just like his mother. A family of harlots.
“I heard from Peter what happened here early today. I highly doubt that you called him a bastard since he can be quite over dramatic.” So she’s aware that he’s a sniffling bastard whose inability to rule is quite prominent.
“Not talking much tonight are you? Usually you have a comment to say if I were in here talking about Peter.”
“For once Elizabeth. I could truly give a shit about Peter and his antics. I’m not here to please him and make him happy. I’m here for Catherine and making her more comfortable with her new station.” Try not to think that we might kill her own Nephew in a good amount of time. If not by Catherine then by the military.
“You’re not angry that he was in here and wanted to kill you?” She sat down in front of the fire in the love seat for me to stand before here.
“Your nephew. My cousin by marriage is a harmless little bug in my life Elizabeth. His actions were not even worth a single drop of sweat from my brow.”
“Did the stabbing of a major General not scare you? As an outsider I thought it would have scared you horribly.”
“Not scared. More gasping which then leads to utter annoyance. I am more than capable of handling Peter when he’s in a state of anger trying to kill me. What do you even want because I would like some sort of rest.”
“Be more gentle when it comes..
“Just because his mother was a horrid woman does not excuse his actions Elizabeth! That’s saying Zeus should be considered a kind man even though he raped Leda because of his own mental state. Peter thinks of him as Zeus when in reality he is worse than Hades himself! Life is horrid Elizabeth and constantly blaming his issues on his mother is disgusting and you standing here trying to defend him holds you accountable for his actions.”
“What an interesting comparison. You are a very bright woman and that wicked tongue is able to strike anyone down.”
“I can strike down anyone with tongue and steel.” Taking in a sharp breath to walk over to a full bottle of sweet red wine.
“Would you like a glass?” Asking for her to nod. Popping off the court to grab two glasses then bringing two glasses over for us. Sitting down across from here to begin pouring her a glass. She motioned for me to stop for me to pour myself some as well.
“I apologise dear Aunt Elizabeth. I sometimes forget to catch my tongue before it falls out of my head.” We both took a long drink to the point when we were done I had to pour a little more between us.
“It’s quite alright. I’m just grateful you didn’t kill my beloved Nephew before it was too late.” Before I could answer the doors bursted open.
“Excuse me mam?” Turning to see a serf was standing by the door of my world. Did something happen to Fernanda?
“Zasha? What is it?” Elizabeth stood up from my chair to approach her.
“It’s the Emperor. He’s fallen gravely ill.” Well. That is going to solve our problems much faster than I thought it was going to happen. She wrapped herself around her robe as we began walking out of my bedroom.
“Why are you coming? I thought you despised him” She asked for me to nod but was still walking.
“We’re family by marriage. He is now my cousin whether I like it or not.” Turning the corner to see that Orlo, George...and Grigor were waiting outside the room. Splendid. I imagine his wife was ready to lay in bed yet stumbled into that mess.
“From what I’ve seen and heard it sounds bad. A lot of vomit and blood.” Orlo told us to stand next to Orlo. One of the priests that was in the room came out with the black mask on his face to then take it off before us.
“You may not enter the room. For it might be contagious till the doctor tells you differently. For he’s running a high fever, a lot of vomiting, and has been seeing strange visions. The Archbishop is there with him now. He’ll tell you more once he comes out.” Is...Is that vomit on his mask? Or...dear god. He walked past us heading down the hall towards the apartments.
“How is he?” Catherine came in with a very well detailed look of uneasiness.
“Very ill.” Elizabeth told Catherine for my eyes to drift over to Grigor. He was holding onto George but staring directly at me. Stupid man. Stupid man!
“Can we go in?” Catherine asked Orlo but I’m assuming not.
“Well everyones being kept out here.”
“In fear of contagion.” Finally looking at Grigor again for us to lock eyes for a brief instant till I turned to Catherine.
“He’s been vomiting continuously throughout the night, and he runs a high fever, and he has fits of wild delirium.”
“The Doctor and Archbishop are with him.” I told her to place my hands on her shoulder to give some comfort to this poor wife and my cousin. The door opened for a child to come out with a bowl filled with blood and vomit. Not to mention his entire body was covered head to toe in Peters upchuck...and from the smell..the back door was also used as well.
“Excuse me.” Oh the smell! Covering my nose for Grigor and I to look at one another again. He doesn’t look concerned. Is that a smile?
We all leaned into the doorway to see what was happening in there since we could only hear the sound of Peter vomiting and coughing more and more. I did the sign of the cross to hold onto my cross necklace. I don’t pray for Peter. But I pray for the Doctor inside the room that he stays safe from whatever disease has fallen upon Peter. Peter could go to hell for all I care, but I have to keep up appearances.
The Archbishop popped in the doorway for us to straighten our backs. He came out of his bedroom to close the door behind him. Grigor inched a little closer to me to the point I could sense the warmth radiating off him.
“How is he?” Grigor asked for the Archbishop to stare directly at us.
“Extremely ill. The fear is that it may be Cholera.”
“Cholera?” That’s a rough sickness. Even I wouldn’t wish that sort of death on my enemy.
“Which I suspect he will have caught from a possessed, nocturnal animal. Probably a badger.” If I ever get sick in this country I would rather just endure the ride home and die in a carriage. These doctors are not touching me with a ten foot pole!
“Where would he have come across a possessed badger?” Catherine asked thankfully. That sounds absolutely unrealistic and not how you even got Cholera. Not that I don’t know how you get Cholera but I imagine it’s not from a possessed badger.
“If it is Cholera, he will die, will he not?” Holding her a little tighter as a cue to sound a lot more concerned. You have to make it believable that you’re distraught that he might die!
“It’s a strong possibility that we must face.” Looking at Orlo who kept the same straight face he usually has.
“Oh my little man.” THE POOR BABY! I WILL WEEP WITH A BOTTLE OF WINE AND GLORIOUS MUSIC!
“The Doctor is working hard on cures. It may be something else.”
“Has he said anything? Is he talking?” Why would he be concerned if he’s talking? Grigor might as well give a shit if he truly dies or not.
“He speaks intermittently. Much of it is deranged. Said he was a wolf, and wanted to eat Swedish children for breakfast. And there was some talk of what he’d like to do to Chiara and with various ladies of the court. I’ll spare you the details.” My body ran cold for Catherine to turn and face me. The blood in my body felt as if it dried up as I wanted to vomit. Looking at Grigor as I felt so disgusted with myself.
“Before more bouts of diarrhea and vomiting.” The Archbishop went back in for Grigor to take in a deep breath.
“I will go in to see him.” Say what?
“Do not risk your life.” Elizabeth told him as he stopped in the doorway.
“I want to be there for my friend.” Bullshit! He could give an absolute shit about Peter at this point!
“I had no idea your husband was so brave, Georgina.”
“Oh yes famously so.”
“In more ways than one.” Adding into the conversation for George to turn and face me.
“Just being honest.” An angry snake she is when I add my own little comments. Settle down hypocrites.
Orlo, Catherine, and I huddled into our own group to see the expression of Catherines face change from the fake grieving widow to an excited future ruler. Must admit this is a little exciting for me as well.
“If this is Cholera, he could be dead within the day.” Orlo told us as Catherine was beginning to smile slightly but trying to control herself.
“Right. That means..”
“Yes. Yes it will be yours. You will rule Russia.” By God it’s going to actually happen.
“After all our planning..it just..”
“Falls right into your lap.” Orlo finished as the doors opened back up. The ArchBishop came out of the room to take off his mask. Remember when I said that this planning became stale? I stand corrected and I was completely wrong. This just made everything better.
“In light of this terrible situation, a meeting is being called to deal with the possible transition of power.”
“To me.” Easy Catherine. That’s a little too exciting for someone who's losing their husband.
“Indeed. It seems so. You are the next...should the worst happen.” Seems like the worst is about to happen right before them. If it’s going this quickly then I might be going home soon! Finally an end to this horrid nightmare and cesspool!
“Prepare with prayer, and the senate will be called.”
“I look forward to it.” Damn it Catherine!
“Not him dying. That is bad. And sad. And we hope for the best and a speedy recovery.” If I could slap my own face I would without making this seem like we’re excited that Peter is dying.
“God will be with us. He always is.” The Archbishop left the hall for Catherine and Orlo to talk amongst themselves. I need to talk to Grigor. I can’t stand being apart from him at nights for it is his warmth I believe that is keeping me sane. I don’t think I can tell him that I think I’m starting to love him but atleast telling him I need him is a good start.
*Grigors P.O.V.*
DIE! DIE YOU HORRIBLE HUMAN! YOU THINK YOU CAN SLEEP WITH MY OWN LOVE BECAUSE YOU’RE THE EMPEROR! DIE DIE DIE! I WILL KILL YOU AND WILL LIVE PEACEFULLY IN MY OWN LIFE!
Removing the pillow to see that he was still breathing! Bastard! Slamming the pillow back onto him to push down even further in hopes that I might finish the job! Just die! How hard is it to kill someone who's already dying! Talking about Chiara as if she’s just a common peasant!
“What are you doing!?” George yelled as I continued to push down harder and harder.
“What is right and you know it George! I have to do something!”
“Fuck!” George pulled me back as we stopped to see Peter was still breathing. Dragging me from his bed towards the middle of his room.
“I was given the choice to be a man or a child! I’ve decided to become a man for the sake of my sanity!”
“You poisoned him?”
“Arsenic. From the wall in his borscht!” Feeling the cold slap from George as she was in full rage of my actions.
“What happens to us when he’s dead? Think what Peter provides for us!”
“You...you..”
“You’re a stupid fool Grigor!” She took a deep breath to calm herself down.
“Our situation is complex. Yet also simple! We have a safe life with Peter! Luxury, security, a place in court. Who’s he gonna be replaced by? Catherine!? We’re nothing to her! What happens to us then? Not to mention Chiara is making it much more difficult to handle this situation. No thanks to you!”
“So you may have a lover but I may not!” I love Chiara and this marriage is non-existent!
“Grigor?” Peter called for me as I turned to see him barely awake and moving. Say something George! You hypocritical bitch say something!
“We’re here.” George, like a mother goose, flew to Peter's aid. Well. It’s very clear now on where my life stands now. George has made her bed and it is time for me to make my own with a Duchess who isn’t afraid to get the job done when it needs to be done.
Letting go of the pillow to march out of the room and slamming the doors shut. Taking in a few deep breaths to calm myself before scampering off to Chiara. Chiara? Where is she? Perhaps in her chambers!
It was like seeing a light at the end of the tunnel heading to her apartment! The outline of the room was glowing before my eyes. Chiara..my love. The only woman in this world that can make my knees buckle to bow at her feet. That fire is intoxicating to the point that I might die of happiness.
Slamming the door open to see Chiara was in front of the flames looking directly into them. Her head slowly turned to face me with a somber look. A bottle of wine sitting next to her looked thoroughly used. Oh my precious flame. Closing the door to sit down next to her as she went back into looking into the fire.
“I placed my blade against his neck threatening to take his life away. Why didn’t I slice it open? Tell me why I didn’t Grigor?” She asked for me to place my hand on her cheek.
“What happened before I came in?”
“He was mad that I helped Velementov at the front for strategy. He drew a sword on me and I fought back. I won and threatened him that if he were to ever draw his sword on me that I would win. I...I should’ve sliced his throat open and strung him up as if he was game to place on my wall.” I feel like I should tell her that I’m the one that poisoned him. That he is dying in his own bed because the world would be better without him! She was literally going to kill him before I even came into the room!
“Chiara. I’m the one who caused him to become ill. I poisoned him in the borscht while he was eating dinner.” Her expression was the same as before till it clicked in her mind. Her entire face went from a beautiful red to a ghostly white in a matter of seconds.
“Holy shit..” She whispered to turn her attention to the fire. Is she going to tell Catherine? Not that Catherine might care much but what if she does? Would she tell the court? No...no what have I done!
“I would ask why but that..oh my god.” Turning her head to face me as I gulped.
“If it helps, I did it for you. For us..for everyone in the court that his idiocy will go away.” Her lips were slightly open with her breathing beginning to rise.
That lovely color began returning to her cheek as she climbed on top of me and wrapped herself around me. Those entrancing lips striked against mine as my hands traveled up her back to pull her shirt. She stopped to place her index finger on my lips.
“For you committing such a horrendous act. Allow me.” Removing her finger to place a kiss on my lips, to my cheek, then right underneath my jaw line. I could see the stars from how well she was working those luscious lips. Her hand gripped my cock to start playing it through my pants. God her touch. It’s almost too delicious to even allow. My eyes rolled back for me to lay down on the rug for her kisses to start moving down my body.
I love her...I hope that she knows that I would kill an army for her without regret...
~~~
@mirkwoodshewolf @bonafiderocketqueen @johndeaconshands
@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels @amethyst-serenade @radio-ha-ha@i-have-a-wonky-eye-too @deck-heart @actuallyanita @the-baby-bookworm @ewanmcgregors​ @panagiasikelia​
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nightswithkookmin · 3 years
Note
I am curious about your take on something. So Taekook probably hate the idea of Taekook, right? If Jk and Jimin are together (as I beleive they are) then the very idea of taekook has to be like sooo weird for everyone, especially when it results in hate directed at Jimin. So why don't Taekook agree to like NEVER LAY HANDS ON ONE ANOTHER in public. I know they shouldnt have to. They like skinship and all. And no one is going cray cray over jinkook or jihope etc. But its an easy fix? Maybe not?
Tradshippers... Haha.
The gag being Tuktukkers say the same thing about Jimin and Jikook all the time- if V is his soulmate and friend, shouldn't he keep his hands off JK? Shouldn't he respect the sanctity of his friends' relationship? Doesn't he care that his actions with JK hurt Tae? That he is wrecking another man's home, yadda, yadda, yadda.
Heard it all before. Not particularly impressed by that level of rudimentary mental adroitness- at all. It all flows from insecurities and or the shipper's dissatisfaction with how these people in reality interact with one another because that often tend to be in disharmony with their shipping fantasies about their OTP.
The shipping community in general is a fantasy bubble. Haven't done much research on its demographics but from my observation, it seems the younger demographic can't seem to detach fantasy from reality while the much 'adult' population'- perhaps, for fear of having their reality warped or their hearts broken, are too engrossed in reality as such tend to approach shipping with quizical glares at best, cynicism, skepticism and what I like to call a false sense of logic- at worst.
Then of course, there are those in between.
But one thing they all seem to have in common is their emotional response to the demystification of their fantasies. Like any fantasy, people tend to lash out at or carry resentment towards anything or anyone that threatens their false sense of safety built around their fantasy.
For Taekookers they tend to lash out at Jimin or even Jokers because they threaten their sense of ship safety. Jokers do the same with JK more so than Tae, but Tae too nevertheless.
Taekook, Jinkook and the other ships Jikooker's are threatened by are viewed as threats and looked upon with disdain and resentment only because they ruin the fantasy of Jikook for them and nothing else.
And if that's not the case, then these people are too invested in someone else's relationship and lack both personal and emotional boundaries- it's their relationship not ours.
You can't sit in your homes, behind the screens and pilot someone else's relationship or point out what is wrong with their relationship and feel strongly about it to the point you start demanding and dictating how they should relate with eachother or their friends- that's entitlement and borderline toxicity which is scary, not gonna lie.
Jikook and Vmin equally ruin the fantasy of Taekook for their shippers. And they look to Jimin as the grinch and killjoy, hence lash out against him without reservation.
In a perfect shipping alternate universe, Taekook or Jikook would be couples within a group where it's glaringly clear that they are couples and as such no other ship would compete or interact with them in a way that raises questions about the general perception of them as a couple unit within the group or threaten their status as such. But this is reality. Not fantasy. And it just doesn't work that way.
Most of these conversational topics you raise are about how people want their OTP to behave rather than how their OTP actually behave towards one another.
It's especially disconcerting when their disapproval of an interaction stems from them 'wrongly' labeling or interpreting that interaction as 'intimate' and or romantic and proceed to go on an emotionally charged rant on behalf of their OTP calling for them to instill boundaries.
Maybe Tae is not instilling boundaries for JK with Jimin because he doesn't have the right to? Because he is not in a relationship with either Kook or Jimin?
Maybe Jimin is not telling Tae and Kook to keep the skinship off cameras because he is not bothered by the 'hate he receives' because of their interactions?
Tae kook have been interacting on our screens for 7 good years. You think if Jimin found their interactions as problematic or disrespectful to his relationship with Kook that he wouldn't have nipped that in the bud?
Have you not seen him react a countless time to when he is uncomfortable with an interaction that crosses his limits or boundaries? It should tell you he doesn't have a problem with Tae Kook at all.
He only has a problem when an interaction crosses the line. Same with JK. And if due to his ideosyncracy he can't stomach an interaction, he averts his eyes. I don't think he would want them to stop interacting all together. If he did that would be problematic because they are all friends and he doesn't own Kook or vice versa.
Also the statement that Tae Kook need to keep their skinship off camera because Jimin receives a lot of hate because of it is a non sequitur. Tae kook is not the reason Jimin recieves a lot of hate in the fandom. Jikook is.
Taekook doesn't hurt Jimin, Jikook does. People lash out at Jimin because of his interactions with JK not because of JK's interaction with with Tae.
So the solution would not be for Tae and Kook to keep their skinship off camera, it would be for JK and Jimin to not interact on camera at all. I mean if we are being honest.
And all those who claim JK isn't protecting Jimin because his interactions with Tae is what fuels the passions of Tuktukkers towards Jimin, think again...
JK puts up boundaries with Tae as it is. Out of all BTS, they are the two who have openly admitted to having 'drifted apart' over the years- I wonder why. When Tae spoke about wanting JK to treat him as a friend rather than hyung, JK told him he couldn't do that because that would have led to a lot of fights between them. What other boundaries do y'all expect him to put up again?
Dude rarely nurtures his relationship outside Jimin within the group- responding to texts a whole year later and what not.
And even with this, Jimin recieves a lot of backlash regardless. I think we need to stop justifying hate. There is no justification for hate. No excuse is excuse enough for the traumatization of another human being.
JK equally gets dragged for filth in these shipping streets. Tuktukkers hate him as much as they hate Jimin because of his interactions with Jimin. Tae stans hate him. Jimin stans hate him. He is neither here nor there. He got called a pig, sissy, and all kinds of derogatory names when he pulled away at KBS when Tae wanted to hold his hands.
Jokers, PJM jokers drag him for filth in their gcs and shit and equally hates on him because to him he doesn't love Jimin enough or at all. Especially, when he doesn't interact with JM in a way that pleases them.
The problem is Jikook. Both Jimin and JK will have their peace of mind if they didn't interact at all and kept their relationship private. The best way for JK to protect his boyfriend from all this bullshit is to keep a safe distance from him and act like he doesn't know him or never met him- because that is how Kpop idols usually protect their relationships.
And yet, and YET, when he does just that y'all jump on his neck on every turn, screaming Jk hates Jimin and doesn't love him. I gotta ask-
WHAT Y'ALL WANT FROM JK?!
People just like to ruin beautiful things, don't they?
And while we are at it, let me address this Ask I got a few days ago claiming if JK loves Jimin then it doesn't make sense for him to want to act so loud with Jimin or express his feelings for him in a way that out's their relationship because that can hurt Jimin and bring him a lot of hate...
You think Jimin openly loving on JK doesn't bring JK a lot of hate too? Damn. It's the double standards for me. Lmho.
Listen, JM has a duty to protect JK just as much as JK has a duty to protect JM. By your logic, if Jimin loves Jk then he equally needs to stop doting on him in public because his love causes JK as much pain as JK's love causes Jimin- but Jimin can't stay away now can he?
Jimin had to ask JK permission to express himself the way that he does with him- on their Log when he asked JK if he was ok with him saying he loved him on camera. Jk had a need to keep their relationship private, Jimin had a need to keep it open and clearly didn't want to hide their relationship. But they have since outgrown their old selves. Their wants and their needs have changed- if you pay attention to JK's lyrics in recent times.
Their dynamics keep flipping. And they are constantly negotiating their needs, from my perspective anyway- let them do them. Y'all didn't seem to have a problem when in their earlier dynamics Jimin was the one pushing for them to be open with their relationship. JK eventually gave up his need to hide their relationship didn't he? And overtime he became comfortable expressing affection for Jimin openly.
Yet, suddenly when JK wants the same thing in their relationship y'all claim he is being unreasonable and unfair towards Jimin? Huh?
Granted, he over does it sometimes. Yes. Lol.
But you can't hold Jikook to different standards. They are both human and their feelings for eachother are equally valid. Their needs from eachother are valid in the same weight.
If Jimin gets to show the whole world just how much he loves JK and because of that many people are convinced Jimin loves JK more than JK loves him- even if half of the time he is using fanservice as a cover or even his persona as a cover, then why can't JK equally use his art or whatever means he prefers as a cover to show the world just how much he loves Jimin?
...Even if half of the time he is borderline outing him and getting him in trouble? Lol. That's just the love if you ask me. Hehehe.
Chilee JK, you make it hard to defend you sometimes! Lol. Just don't out your man. How hard is that!😭🤭
Seriously though, you don't think he wants people to see he loves Jimin too? Damn, y'all be reading Jimin wrong. Because Jimin loves it when JK shows the world he loves him... Did you see his face after Rosebowl? Why do you think JK keeps cutting it close? Dude is gunning for the points. Lmho. Jikook speak eachother's love language. Let that sink in.
If JK is pushing against the glass closet it's because he is convinced that that is something Jimin wants but is afraid to go after and he is the fearless one among the two. Y'all just be fighting the wrong battles. Lmho.
Jikook is asserting themselves against eachother. They are pushing eachother's boundaries and I don't think that is necessarily a bad thing.
You can't claim JK doesn't love Jimin and in the same breath condemn and disapprove of the ways he expresses himself and his love for Jimin- I think you need to free JK now!
Between Tuktukkers and certain Jokers, I don't know who is worse- Nevermind, I'm not a fan tradshippers in general.
JK is there to please his man not shippers and the way I see it Jimin looks like a satisfied customer to me.
If you are dissatisfied with Jikook, there are a countless other ships in BTS. Get on one. See how that goes. Lol.
Where were we, Anon?
Oh right, Tae Kook. Lol.
I think we need to learn to hold the right people accountable for their actions. The problem is not Tae Kook, or Jikook or any other ship. The problem is with the toxic shippers who use them as an excuse to perpetuate unfathomable hurt towards the boys and towards others.
I think Tuktukkers need to develop a better attitude towards Jikook. Jikooker's need to do the same about Tae Kook or Jin Kook.
Personally, I would rather Jikook kept their relationship private but I also understand their need to take advantage of the glass closet- secrets are hard to hide. They get heavy before they get easy.
And Jimin loves to be loved. He loves when you show him off. It's part of his love language. You can't date him and Keep him a secret- and still we question why JK doesn't want to hide him.
If y'all don't want to ship Jikook that's fine. I'll ship them myself.😒
Whatever decisions they are making, I support it wholeheartedly. I support them with every fiber of my being.
LONG LIVE JIKOOK. JIKOOK IS REAL.
Signed,
GOLDY
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spencers-dria · 4 years
Text
Turn for the Better
Someone To Stay Ch. 1
Spencer x fem!reader
Spencer POV:
I open my eyes and glance around the room. It's darker than I remember. I must have fallen asleep reading on the couch again. I glance down and see a pile of books on the rug. Oh yeah...I only made it through about four books this time before I nodded off. I sigh in frustration that I'm awake. Might as well get up I suppose.
I wander into the kitchen and pull open the fridge only to be met with a jar of peanut butter, week old left overs, and a half empty jug of juice. Next.
I try again with the pantry. Almost completely bare. I guess this is what happens when you stop going to the grocery store. I settle on a cup of apple juice and a bag of chips... better than nothing right?
I slump back down onto the couch and pull my green wool blanket over me. As I stare up at my ceiling, as I begin to let my mind wander. But this was dangerous territory. I have to keep my mind occupied, I just have to. So I quickly sit back up and turn the TV to one of my favorite Dr. Who episodes. They say that anxious people re-watch the same shows because they find the familiarity comforting. I could definitely understand the feeling.
It was the weekend, which meant I wasn't called into work. Cases had been slow lately, as we spent quite a bit of time doing paperwork back at the office. Unfortunately for me, this meant less distractions. Distractions were good. Distractions were necessary. They are the only way I make it through the days anymore.
Things had finally returned to normal for me back at work. I was going into the field, and it felt like my coworkers were no longer tiptoeing around me. I hate when they do that, and it bothers me more than any amount of teasing ever could. I'm not so delicate, so easily breakable. Look at everything I have been through, everything I have endured. Yet here I am, still alive, still doing my job. I didn't need to be babied. So it was a relief when I felt the regular rapport I shared with my friends return. They had gone back to the sarcastic remarks and silly nicknames. I was grateful for it. They did, however, continue to check up on me. This was something that I did appreciate. They've seen me go down a dark road once before. I have no intentions of ever returning. I was stronger than that... I think. All I know is I have held on this long without resorting to any unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Coping mechanisms...oh how I wish I had something to make the healing process easier. Having a fairly empty social calendar left me alone often. Normally I would find comfort in the peace and quiet of my solitary apartment, but not quite so much lately. I couldn't very well make plans to go out, and I wouldn't even know how to begin to do that. Who would want to hang out with me right now anyways? I'd be a damper on the fun, and everyone knows it. That's probably why my friends stopped inviting me to the nights at the bar.
There I go again, letting my mind slip into a dark hole of anxiety. Its not a safe place to be. I quickly turn my attention back to the show in front of me, letting it drown out all other thoughts.
The ring of my phone quickly draws my attention away. Finally...another case! I jump up to answer, seeing the name on my screen: Derek Morgan. That's odd. Usually Hotch or Garcia call to notify us of a new case.
"Hello?" I answer, confusion lacing my voice.
"Pretty Boy! Buzz me up!"
Well now I'm even more confused. Derek never comes to my apartment. I quickly press the button letting him into the building and opening my apartment door, waiting for him to arrive.
As he comes up the stairs, he gives me a grin shouting, "Come on man! Get dressed. We're goin' out!"
I roll my eyes and retreat back into the apartment, Derek close behind me.
I sink back onto the couch, my eyes glued to the television as I tune him out.
"Aw c'mon. Don't be like that. How long have you been sitting there watching TV? Have you done anything else today, at all?"
I don't answer, I don't even look at him.
"Oh, let me guess. You've been reading all day, huh?"
"Wow, can't get anything past you huh?" I say dryly, regretting my tone as soon as the words left my mouth.
"Alright that it. You've been cooped up in here too long. Like I said before, we're going out. And I'm not taking no for an answer" he says sternly, raising an eyebrow at me.
I finally look up at him as I roll my eyes.
"You know I can kick your ass right?" Derek smirks.
"Fine" I concede. "Well...where are we going? I don't know what to wear unless you tell me what our plans are."
"Don't pretend you don't wear the same fancy button ups no matter where you end up going."
I let out a small laugh...he's got me there.
"Dinner at Rossi's. I know pretty boys are high maintenance but, hurry up or you'll make us late!" I smile at the nickname. Same old Derek.
Y/N POV:
You let out a sigh of relief as you watched your coworker approach you, ready to receive report. It had been a particularly busy shift, and you were ready to get some much-needed rest. You walked to each patient room, giving Clementine summary of the day and the latest updates on labs and vital signs. You stepped into each room with her, checking one last time to make sure each of your patients was doing well and didn't need anything else before you left. Normally you and Clem would spend some time catching up and making jokes, but she could tell you were tired and needed to be home more than anything. You wished her good luck on her shift as you made your way to the break room. After putting away your stethoscope and the large collection of pens, pencils, and markers you kept in your pockets, you finally headed towards the elevator to leave for the day.
You opened the door to your apartment to be greeted by your dog, Juneau. She was a rescue you adopted a few months back. She still needed to make progress, but she had really warmed up to you and your friends and seemed much more comfortable in her new home. After feeding her dinner and taking her for a short walk, you heated up a quick frozen dinner and sunk into your couch.  Curling up in your blanket, you spent a few minutes browsing through different streaming services only to land on The Office, as usual.  Your mind drifts to what your next few days might consist off. You just so happened to land 4 days off in a row, but you had no idea how you would spend your time. You glanced down at your phone as it lit up.  It was your Uncle Will.
"Hey, whats up!" you chimed, glad to hear from your favorite uncle.
"Hey, (Y/N). I'm actually calling to invite you to a dinner some friends of mine are having tomorrow night. I know your schedule is real busy. But I haven't seen you much since you moved up here to Virginia! I know you haven't met many people here yet, but I think I can help you make a start. "
The kind gesture made you smile. You had always been fairly close with your father's side of the family. He had grown up in Louisiana and met your mother at a college in Texas. You spent your childhood in Houston but frequently visited the Cajun half of your family. Uncle Will had moved away once he fell in love with Jenifer Jareau, his now wife, and you hadn't seem much of him the past few years. But as luck would have it, your nursing career had lead you to a hospital in Fredericksburg, VA. You felt extremely lucky to have family nearby, or else you would have been completely alone. But sometimes you still felt that way, which is why you were so grateful for his offer.
"That actually sounds great! I am off for the next four days, and I didn't really have anything planned. Who will I be meeting at this dinner?"
"Well it's some of JJ's coworkers. They're like a second family to us, and I know they'll be just as welcoming to you. I already told them you moved up here, and they've been begging to meet you."
"Aww I can't wait to see Aunt JJ and my sweet little cousin, Henry! Its been so long since I came to visit you guys. I think Henry was barely two years old the last time I saw him."
"Well we all hope to see you a lot more now that you're here. You're like a daughter to us, Y/N. You are welcome to visit any time you like. I know nursing is a stressful job, and it can take a toll. Its important to have family and friends around you when things get tough." You could hear that this was a genuine offer and you fully planned to take him up on it in the future. Being alone in a new state was taking its toll.
"So where and when should I plan to meet for dinner?"
"I'll text you the address real quick. Everyone is planning to meet around 6. It shouldn't be too far of a drive. It's one of JJ's coworker's houses. David Rossi. He's a real easygoing guy, and he loves cooking for everyone. He loves meeting new people even more, so you should feel right at home!"
"Sounds like a fun time. Thank you again for thinking to invite me. I'm really looking forward to it!"
"Alright boo, talk to you later."
You smiled at the pet name used by the entire Louisiana side of your family. I guess the north had yet to steal his southern roots. You hung up the phone. You finally had plans. It would be nice to talk to someone who wasn't a coworker.  It would also be your first excuse to dress up since moving and starting your new job. Too excited to wait, you jumped up from the couch and began to rifle through your closet for something to wear. You didn't want to be too over or underdressed. You grabbed a black spaghetti strap fit and flare dress and throw it on with some black panty hose, a lightweight maroon cardigan, and some black heels. You snapped a quick photo in the mirror and shoot a text to Aunt JJ.
Y/N: Apparently I'm joining y'all for dinner tomorrow night...is this too much???
Aunt JJ: I heard! I can't wait!
And oh my goodness, no! You look gorgeous! It will be perfect.
Also...Henry is so excited to see you!
You smiled, more confident in your choice. Aunt JJ had great taste. You had only had the chance to meet her in person a couple times, but the two of you had clicked right away and stayed in touch over text and Facetime. Sometimes she felt more like the sister you never had.
Starting to feel the effects of your particularly difficult shift, you start to get ready for bed. You wanted to be well rested for tomorrow. You say goodnight to Juneau and crawl into bed, snuggled under all the blankets. You fall asleep with a smile on your face, with the feeling that things in your life are about to take a turn for the better. You couldn't explain it...but somehow you just knew.
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Text
Gravity | JJ Maybank (Outer Banks, Season 1)
Pairing: JJ x fem!reader
Wordcount: 2100 words
Warnings: swearing, mentioning of underaged drinking/smoking
a/n: English is not my native language, so there might be spelling/grammar mistakes. Also, this is just a simple oneshot, so don't expect a great plot or anything. Have fun!
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“because in my world, i'm constantly havin' a breakthrough or a breakdown, or a blackout, would you make out with me underneath the shelter of the balcony?”
─ clementine by halsey
[ Clementine, better known as Clem by the Pouges, lived on the southside of Outer Banks with her mum, near John B's home. Her mum worked pretty hard and was often out of town, so Clem was usually to herself. Since she began to work for Kiara’s dad two years ago, she sort of grew on the chaotic group and got involved in a lot more shit than expected. Besides serving tables at the restaurant, hanging out in the hammocks or on John B’s boat and handling the one or other mystery on the island, Clementines mind was occupied by a certain blonde guy. ]
The sun was nearly unberable, making me fan myself with my book. Summer had arrived, in full glory and a lot of hot air. I relaxed in my hammock behind our small bungalow and swung from side to side to keep myself from falling asleep, one foot on the dry grass.
Summer break just started two days ago and it was already boiling outside.
My hammock was placed between two thick trees, right beside the water and the wooden dock. Small waves sloshed against it from time to time and seabirds squealed above my head. I felt at peace and my body nearly forgot it already had more than ten hours of sleep last night as my phone vibrated. A new message from JJ lit up on its screen.
get urself ready
5 min.
A smile spread across my face. Within seconds I was back in my room, putting on my bathing suit, a pair of shorts and an open shirt with hawaiian flowers. I packed some drinks into my small cooling bag, slipped into my flip flops and wrote my mum a message in case she would be home before me.
With a towel over my shoulder and the cooling bag in my hand I walked outside again and onto the dock. John B was already steering his white boat towards the wooden planks as I reached the front.
“Aloha boys,” I greeted them with a big smile, and JJ held out his hand so I could easily jump on board.
“Hi Clem.”
“Aloha, darling. Watcha got there?” JJ asked, peeking over his sunglasses.
Once in a while, when I hadn't seen JJ for a day or two, I thought I wasn't completely head over heals for the sunkissed boy anymore and my heart had settled. But then he had the nerve to smile at me again and my whole body began to tingle.
“One for you.” I handed John B a cooled beer bottle which he thanked me for with a fast kiss onto my tempel. He was at least two feet taller than me. “And one for you.”
I threw another one in JJ's direction before getting myself one, placing my stuff under the bench seat and sitting down beside him.
“That just saved my day,” JJ answered and gave the cold glass a kiss, then he kissed me on my cheek. I hid my smile by taking a sip of beer.
“Don't lie, you already had two,” John B said grinning while he navigated the ship to where Pope lived. The boy was standing outside, helping his dad by cleaning some empty, second-hand boxes as usually.
“Hey, Pope, get your ass in here!”
“I told you yesterday, I can't!”
His dad came outside, a broom in his hands as if he wanted to chase us away. It wasn't a secret his dad disliked us.
“Oh, come on, it's summer vacation,” I interfered and waved him. Pope was already putting down the water hose and giving his dad an excusing look.
“I'll do it tomorrow. I promise!”
“Hell nah, you're stayin'!”
“I’ll be back for dinner!” Pope laid the pipe down and snatched a towel from the railing.
“Get in the boat, get in the boat,” John B whispered, whereupon Pope jumped onto the deck of the ship.
“Pope! Get back here right now!”
“We're getting him back safe, promise!” JJ yelled as John B turned the speed back up and we rushed through the waves up to Kie's house.
“Man, your dad is so unrelaxed. He should try one of my joints.”
“Don't you dare. He'll get us all killed.”
I laughed at the boys conversation. Such idiots. But I loved them nonetheless. They were my family.
Kie lived on the rich northside of Outer Banks, even though she hated it with nearly every fiber of her heart. The darkhaired girl was casually walking up to us, in her hand a bag fully of snacks ─ at least I hoped so.
“Morning y'all.”
“Welcome on board, pretty. Are those snacks?”
JJ got up to give Kie a hand, just like he did with me. Her hair was in a messy pointail, held together by a green cloth.
“Oh, you know. Some watermelon slices, stuff like that,” She joked, smiling.
Kiara was pretty. And not just that, she was smart and knew how to handle things. That didn't stay unnoticed by the guys. They were practically all into her, even if they weren't admitting it. Which wouldn't have been a problem if I was that confident in myself too. Or a bit more adventurous, inventive, whatever.
I wasn't jealous of her. In fact, she was one of my best friends, the only female one I may add. She made sure I got a job at her father’s restaurant, for which I couldn't be more thankful.
“Hey Kie.”
“Hey,” She greeted me, hugging me tightly before sitting down next to me. We provided everyone with drinks so we could touch glasses.
“Salud, guys. To the best summer of all times,” JJ announced, holding up his bottle.
“To the best summer of all times,” We echoed him and clinked our bottles together.
John B turned up the speed and the volume of the stereo as the waves splashed against the boat. I closed my eyes, smelling the salty water, my coconut sunscreen and the beer. I had missed summer.
We stayed out all day long on the water, sunbathing and diving in the ocean. Kie connected her phone with the stereo and put on some of our favourite songs. As the sun was slowly going to set, we all laid in the front of the white varnished boat, sandy and drained from all the sun. Within five minutes, we infested Kie's brought snacks and finished the beers.
JJ was passing around a joint he made himself. His skin glowed orange in the evening sun, even though there were some light bruises on his rips. His head was resting on my tanned legs.
After everyone had taken one or two drags, my body didn't feel as tired anymore. Kie started some more upbeat songs and while Pope navigated the boat back to John B's place, we danced. It probably looked horrible, but it was fun.
First, I was just dancing with Kie. Spinning her around and stuff, but she knew about my feelings for JJ. She was the only one I had told, ever. She was also the only one who believed JJ was interested in me too, as much as I tried to talk her out of it.
So, of course she used my blurry state to get me to dance with JJ. To make it less awkward, I stole his sunglasses and put them on, stupidly smiling at him.
“We dancin' now?”
“Absolutly.”
Grinning, he grabbed my hands and pulled me closer to him. Kie winked at me.
JJ put one of his hands on my hips, swaying me around in the front of the boat.
The sun was melting into the water and gave everything an orange touch. My body was glowing because of the heat, my heartbeat was going way too fast. JJ's blond hairstrands fell into his eyes and I couldn't stop laughing. Then he let me make a twist so my back was pressed against his belly and our hands were intertwined. Once he had unknotted us, he dipped me before pulling me up again. We were so close, our noses nearly touched.
“You look good with my glasses.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Then I might keep it.”
I grinned and bit my bottom lip. His eyes looked so pretty. Blue like the ocean.
“Hey guys, not on my boat, okay?” John B reminded us that we still had company around us.
I rolled my eyes and ─ as much as I didn't want to ─ let go of JJ. My hand slipped out of his and it felt like I was suddenly bound to gravity again.
Pope and Kie attached the rope of the boat with the hook on the dock, and I grabbed my stuff and followed the others to John B's house. I placed the now empty cooling box and my towel on the porch. My body felt like the alcohol and weed had left out of nowhere. The sun was barely seeable by now and the wind was colder than expected.
Inside, I put my clothes back over my swimwear and tamed my frizzy hair in a loose bun.
“That. Was. So. Much. Flirting.” Kie bumped her ellbow into rips with a knowing smile on her lips.
“Shut up. That was nothing.”
“Are you kidding me? Have you seen the way he looks at you?”
I crossed my arms, eyeing her in disbelief. My head just couldn't comprehend the idea of someone liking me like that. Especially not JJ.
“He likes you. A lot. Trust me.”
“Come on, Kie. Just because he flirts with me once doesn't mean he has feelings for me. You know how many girls want him.”
She scoffed. “Okay, fine. I'm gonna ask him.”
“Wha─ No. No, Kie!” I whisper-screamed at her and tried to grab her arm, but she escaped my grasp and jogged into the kitchen where the boys probably looted John's fridge. Fuck.
“Uh, guys, my mum texted me. I'm gonna go now, see ya tomorrow!” I yelled and quickly escaping onto the porch. The warmth seemed to have disappeared, thick rain drops where pouring down onto the shelter of the porch.
There was no way I would just let Kie embarrass me because ─ surprise ─ JJ wasn't actually flirting with me. Absolutely not.
I was already on the last step and out in the rain, as someone called me.
“Clem? Wait.” JJ. Goddamnit. I shut my eyes for a second before facing him.
“Yup?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
He scratched the back of his neck. “You─ uh... You still have my sunglasses.”
My heart dropped. Had I honestly expected something else?
“Yes, right. Sorry.”
I shook my head, scoffing as I took them off and went up the stairs again. I left my stuff down on the paveway. Internally, I was shaking like hell. My heart was a wreck. Utterly nervous. Maybe Kie hadn’t said anything, maybe he hadn’t heard her, I thought.
I stood infront of him again, not as close as before though. Without thinking and instead of just handing the stupid glasses over like a normal person, I put them on his face. He didn't need them, the sun had already vanished beneath the ocean. I did it anyway.
JJ pushed them up in his hair.
And then we were just looking at each other and I hade to pull myself together so I wouldn't faint. I gulped and tugged at my own shirt, that ridiculous hawaiian shirt.
“So,” JJ spoke under his breath. The rain was still pouring down onto the plastic shelter. My heart beat felt louder, and I wondered if he could hear it. I was so scared.
“Goodnight, J.”
With that, I turned around and wanted to leave, like I always did when I was too afraid to face the truth.
“I like you too.”
Everything in me froze just to melt in the next second. My heart stumbled. So Kie did tell him.
Slowly, I turned back around.
JJ just stood there, hands in his pockets and sunglasses in his hair, chewing unsurely on his bottom lip. He seemed vulnerable. No smug grin, no stupid joke on the tip of his tongue.
“I mean I really, really like you, Clementine. More than that.”
For once, I didn't want to be afraid. If he could be brave, I could too. Within a second, I was back in front of him, though way closer. Even closer than on the boat.
And this time, I kissed him.
My hands grabbed his hair, pulling his face down to mine, and once he had understood, I felt his arms wrap around my waist. There was no gravity pulling me down when we were this close.
“I really like you, too,” I mumbled between two kisses. I could feel his lips forming a smile as he pressed them onto mine again.
“"I thought you'd never admit it,” He said, grinning.
“Don't get used to it,” I answered, grinning just as wide as he did.
And then he kissed me again under the shelter of the balcony, surrounded by the heavy sound of the rain, while I buried my hands in his hair and he pulled me off the ground.
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rogue-durin-16 · 3 years
Text
AN UNUSUAL YEAR (Part V/V)
Summary: After having little to no interest on girls for five years, Fred suddenly feels the need to nag the shit out of a certain witch, completely oblivious to the reason behind it.
Pairing: Fred Weasley x Slytherin!Reader
Genre: fluff (+ enemies to lovers)
Tags:
An unusual year: @natural-hearts @manuosorioh @lumos-solemn @westyywifee @whiskeyn-rain @warlock--protection @gossip-girl-ecr @fandomscombine @birdy944 @28cnn
Permanent taglist: @elia-the-bibliophile @randomparanoid @karlthecat15722 @thebutchersdaughtersblog
Warnings: a little angst, a little snogging 👀
A/N: maybe a bit longer than I expected but it's alright. Also I might write an addition to this story, not sure tho. I hope y'all enjoyed reading this story as much as I did writing it <3
Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Rogue-durin-16 masterlist
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"Y/n! Come sit with us?" George waved at me from the Gryffindor table as I entered the Great Hall, prompting me to sit across him and Angelina, and besides Fred. "Where's Mathilda?" He asked as I got closer, leaving my books on the wooden surface.
"She's feeling unwell." As I sat down, I noticed George's arm around Angelina and I couldn't help the knowing grin that tugged the corner of my lips. "The date exchange at the Ball turned out well, huh?"
"I could say the same about you." He wiggled his brows at me with the same grin I had.
I felt a sudden rush of panic going through my body. My eyes traveled to the boy by my side, who was oddly quiet, and I found him already peeking at me.
"Meaning?" I decided to play dumb, taking a bite of my golden slice of toast whilst ignoring the intending gazes of the couple in front of me.
"You two were having a great time last night." Angelina jumped in, leaning over her table. "Didn't see you coming back, Fred." She added, redirecting her eyes to the ginger.
"I did." His brother laughed. "I daresay you two had an intense night." I felt my cheeks reddening, not finding enough strength to meet George's look. "It was about time, really."
I was startled by Fred abruptly standing up. "See you in class." The curt reply he offered before fleeing shocked all of us; specially his brother, who, with a polite apology, left me and Angelina to go after his twin.
"I feel like I shouldn't ask." She spoke quietly.
"I don't have an answer."
I feared she would see through me. I hadn't lied, but my gut told me whatever happened had to do with the change of demeanor he had at the end of our night out.
I wouldn't say it out loud but a part of me began to worry.
The worry stayed throughout that entire week, guilt joining it at some point. Fred's attendance in Charms, Astronomy and Potions had decreased; I had only see him attend once to Astronomy. The only thing he did was play with his quill and, whenever he thought I didn't notice, stare at me.
Ironically enough, we started spending most of the time together; after the winter break, George had incorporated both Mathilda and me to their friend group, which, in different circumstances, would have been great.
Alicia Spinnet gained special interest on my best friend; Lee Jordan would joke about Slytherins and Gryffindors getting together, and Angelina— well, she seemed happier now that she could hang out with all her friends at the same time.
Fred was miserable. Everyone could see it, yet they did their best to cover it up.
George would overcompensate his brother's attitude by being louder and paying extra attention to me, but it worsened the situation.
I wanted to ask Fred what was wrong, but then again we weren't even good friends, so was it really my place to ask?
~~~~~~~~~~~~
George had proposed a trip to Hogsmade a couple of days ago and we all agreed on going, but the day came and Fred wasn't there.
His brother alleged he had a terrible headache and had chosen to stay in bed. We all saw through his excuse, and once more no one said a word.
It was that night that George came to look for me.
"—well then, go get her!" His shouts got into the common room when a second year entered..
"What's this about?" I inquired, coming out to the hallway to see the ginger about to throw hands at my prefect.
"I need you." He stated, quickly losing interest on whatever the prefect had to say. I only nodded and motioned him to move with me far from the Slytherin door. "You have to speak to Fred now." He almost pleaded, a frown of worry forming on his face.
"Sure— wait, now?" I stared at him in confusion.
"Sorry, I know it's late" his apology didn't mean he would ask me to do it in the morning instead.
I let out a sigh before inquiring, "Where's he?"
"The Astronomy tower, I believe." He replied.
"Alright," I said more to myself. "I'll go grab my jacket." He murmured another apology and a thank you before heading off to his House.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
I came to a halt at the top of the stairs when I saw him sat against the wall, his knees pulled to his chest with his arms around them, and his face buried between them."Hey there, stranger."
He raised his head, letting his eyes and nose be seen."Who gave me away?"
"George."
"Tosser" he muttered, taking his gaze to the levitating bundle of newspaper on fire that was probably keeping him somewhat warm up there.
"Is it that bad to see me now?" I took a couple of careful steps towards the boy.
"It's always that bad to see you."
"Odd for you to say that," I let myself slide down the wall to sit by his side with my legs stretched out. "given how much you stare."
"Touché." He replied, the ghost of a smile breaking through his depressed demeanor. "What are you doing here?"
"What's wrong?"
"I asked first."
"I asked second." He raised his brows at me and it was my turn to avert my eyes from him. "I'm... Worried. About you."
When I shivered due to the wind flowing through the tower, he scooted closer and moved the little fire with his wand for it to be in the middle.
"You're all dejected and sulky," I explained. "You barely attend to our classes together, and if you do, you don't pay attention." I felt him shift uncomfortable by my side. "I'm... I'm gonna regret this— I miss you being a bloody nuisance."
"I knew you loved it." His teasing, though it was meant to be funny, sounded almost painful.
"now, what's wrong?" He shrugged, his chin resting over his forearms. "Listen, if you're not gonna tell me, it's fine, but at least tell George."
"Are you thick?" The bitterness in his tone took me aback. "Y/n, I fancy you." He hid his face between his arms. "quite a lot, actually." He added in a mumble.
"I figured that at the ball, you know?" This time it was me who scooted closer. "Tell me that's not the reason behind this."
"Would you like me to lie?" He questioned, shame slipping out with his voice. "I'm a very good liar you wouldn't even question it." He took a deep breath before looking back up, stretching one of his legs and leaning against the wall. "At the ball, I tried to start something." He began, fidgeting with his hands. "I... This never happened to me, so I wasn't- I didn't know what I was doing, but I thought I was making it clear." He tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. "But when I left you—"
"You know I fancy you too, right?" I tilted my head, searching for his eyes. "As in, more than a one time thing."
"That I didn't know." I felt a pang of guilt, realizing that unconsciously I had played a big part on this.
FRED'S P. O. V.
We stayed in silence.
It wasn't an unsettling silence, but the air weighed over us due to the tension floating on it; I needed to defuse it, otherwise it would crush me.
My heart hammered against my chest while I extended my arm to hold her hand on mine.
It's not meant to be nerve-wracking, I thought to myself as I pulled her hand away from her lap; we had already made clear we fancied each other.
The moment she put her head on my shoulder, the tension completely dissipated. I didn't notice the sigh that left my lungs when it happened.
"Didn't put you, Fred Weasley, in the I'm-a-bundle-of-nerves-with-girls category."
"Oh, shut it." I threw my head back, laughing for the first time in a couple of weeks.
"Never." She gave my hand a squeeze and I allowed my cheek to rest over her crown. "You could, of course, find a way to shut me up."
It wasn't her words that cracked me up, but the suggestive tone she used, which took me back to that night in the Duelling Room when I accidentally let slip my feelings for her for the first time.
I raised my head from hers. "Beg your pardon?" I played the fool, trying to hide the ghost of a smile when she shoot me a wide-eyed look. "What are you insinuating, woman?"
"Do you really wanna start the teasing now?" She gave me a warning glare.
"You've just said you missed it." I couldn't hold back the chuckle.
"I knew I was gonna regret it." She groaned, throwing her head back. My eyes, finally on her, traveled to her now exposed neck and collarbone. Though they weren't visible, I could see the trail of kisses I had left there just a few weeks ago. "Stop staring and kiss me."
It didn't take anything else for me to throw the levitating burning paper away and tug her closer by her hand.
The moment our mouths met, I slipped my hand away from Y/n's so I could led her thighs to straddle my legs.
A quiet moan escaped my lips when she rolled her hips against mines; my hands automatically traveled up from her thighs to her waist, pulling her flush against me.
The temperature in the high, cold tower had shot up all from sudden. Just as we were about to start discarding clothes, quick steps were heard climbing up the stairs.
"Fuck!" She whisper-shouted, practically pushing me away as she got up. "Move, move, move!" As she helped me up and we ran to hide, it dawned on me that we were way past curfew. That got me moving.
We waited for Filch to get to the top of the tower before running down as fast as we could.
"No time for goodbyes!" she warned as we rushed through the vast hallways with Filch after us. "See you tomorrow—"
Before she could sprint downstairs to the dungeons, I grabbed her hand and pulled her into a side hall.
"You won't make it to the dungeons." I stated between pants, glancing at the path we had taken. I wasn't able to see the caretaker yet, but his pants could be heard. "Take the other stairs I'll distract him."
"You'll get grounded." She observed, her breathing as heavy as mine, if not more.
"Worth it." I curtly reply, feeling the corners of my lips twisting up.
"You know?" She pushed herself off the wall she had leaned against to catch her breath. "Sometimes you're really sweet."
"Quick!" I tugged on her hand, seeing Filch finally turn the corner. "Gimme a good luck kiss!"
She pulled me down and kissed my lips briefly before taking off in the other direction. I had to tell myself to shake off that stupid smile and run.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
READER'S P. O. V.
The next morning I eagerly made my way to the Great Hall with two goals; having breakfast, of course, and checking if Fred had made it to his House without getting caught.
I soon spotted the group, this time sitting on the Slytherin table.
Soon his eyes found me too, and without saying a word to anyone, he got up and jogged to meet me halfway.
"Did you make it?" I asked, standing way too close to him and therefore attracting some nosey looks.
"By a whisker." He responded, taking a look around before looking back at me. "I was wondering if you'd like to go for a drink after class." I raised my eyebrows at him with a smirk. "We can use a passage to get to Hogsmade."
"Are you asking me on a proper date, Weasley?" I teased with my hands on my hips. "How cute."
He avoided eye contact, deciding to take another look around instead. "I swear if you tease me right now—"
"I'm free after four." I cut him off. "Now if you excuse me, I'm hungry." I passed him by, playfully bumping his shoulder, and made my way to our friends.
I didn't get far before his hands spun me around and cupped my cheeks, giving me a surprisingly deep kiss. "Are you gonna kill me?" He murmured, his lips still ghosting over mines.
"Oh, you know me so well." I replied, feeling my face heating up. We couldn't help but laugh when whistles and hollers came from behind me. "I might kill them too." I added, making fall into a fit of laughter as we pulled away in order to walk to where our friends sat. "I wanna have breakfast in peace." I warned them, sitting down with Fred by my side.
Everyone was giving looks at each other and trying to hold back the giggles, so I knew a comment was coming, but not from whom.
I could instantly tell I wasn't the only one shocked by the speaker. "But you just had him for breakfast." My best friend responded, faking confusion.
"I was just thinking about that!" Lee yelled, a bit too excited.
"Mathilda Foxglove—" I began, everyone cracking up.
"You are doomed." Fred finished, shoving a toast into his mouth to stop his laughter.
"It was worth it." She stated between giggles.
Fred gave me a side look with a half smile and I thanked Merlin no one could see the boy's fingers interlaced with mines under the table.
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dinosaurtsukki · 4 years
Text
haikyuu!! characters as their zodiac signs (pt. 1)
aside from being obsessed with haikyuu!! i’m also That Bitch Who’s Into Astrology and i’ve really been into looking up the characters’ zodiac signs so why not make it into a post ? these are basically me analyzing how the characters fit their zodiac signs, and also making headcanons based on their signs. ofc i’m only basing these on their sun signs because it would be hell to go over their entire freaking birth chart. so let’s get into it!!
hinata - gemini/cancer cusp
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okay for starters one thing very interesting abt kagehina is that they're both cusp babies
(for those who dont know being born 'on the cusp' means ur born a day before another zodiac season so u share traits between both signs)
in hinata's case its gemini and cancer which makes sO MUCH SENSE
the hyperactivity and hinata just being In Constant Motion is very gemini
but the his pureness of heart and soul is very cancer 
u can even tell jus by the way he talks which is 50% pure excitement and love for volleyball and 50% volleyball sound effects
the way he's very extroverted and at the same time kind with his opponents is very gemini/cancer
baby boi basically gets a long with everyone and everyone loves hinata which is why he has a harem
as a gemini he's also very very excited about learning new things and new opportunities because geminis are very passionate abt learning
and his love and devotion to volleyball is very cancer esp since its a skill he chose to develop over time after falling in love with the sport
he is the bestest friend you could ever have, super loyal and caring
but also such a bABY. he’s clingy and pouty and down for Attention 
in conclusion: the softest and noisiest boi
kageyama - sagittarius/capricorn cusp
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oOOOH ANOTHER CUSP CHILD
which is interesting because while hinata is an air/water sign cusp child, kageyama is a fire/earth sign cusp child
which makes for some very interesting dynamics because they're quite different in terms of personality
if i were to summarize this whole analysis it would be: sag is responsible for kageyama's dumbass energy and cap is responsible for his talented volleyballer energy
(not too generalize but most of the sags i've met are basically Big Dumbass Energy)
but sag signs, and fire signs in general, are typically very energetic and competitive. also super aggressive and passionate abt what they do
caps on the other hand are hardworking and tend to be reserved emotionally
god i know so many capricorns who are basically 'hAh, emotional repression go brrrrrrr'
 but also very practical-minded, they don't take things personally and expect you not to
n e weigh back to our boi
you can esp see during kag's 'king of the court' era how sag/cap he is
his frustration and bossiness is very sag but that frustration was based on the fact that he was working hard on his tosses and he expected his teammates to do the same
that's why kags is also not very socially intelligent and sensitive because he values results first 
at the same time, he's able to put personal feelings aside and be accountable for his mistakes. his pride balances out with his desire to do better
in conclusion: someone pls be friends with him
tsukishima - libra 
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aHhh libras
there's just something about libras. in my experience no two are the same and the differences in their personality are very dependent on their moon sign
(this is why moon signs are v important y'all)
but first off air signs are very intellectual which we obvs see in tsukki but when it comes to libras, they recognize the importance of decision-making
(am i making an excuse for their indecisiveness? maybe?)
his intellect and ability to quickly make decisions upon reflex is very obvs in his gameplay (esp the shiratorizawa match which i keep on 24hr loop in my head)
at the same time he's very patient and very able to get into his opponents' heads
when it comes to how he is with people, tsukishima's ability to intimidate or annoy people just by speaking are very libra
air signs are also known to be easily distracted and tend not to take things that seriously which can be seen in tsukishima's initial behaviors abt exerting minimum effort
but once he got that taste of excitement oH BOI all of that brain cell juice just goes into winning 
tsukishima's pessimism is also very rooted in how aware he is of the realities of life
that emotional distance (hence the infamous Tsukishima Kei is bad at feelings ao3 tag) is very air sign
but once they find someone they like libras are such softies
apparently they’re the flirtiest sign sooooo
 in conclusion: kuroo has his work cut out for him and yamaguchi is the bestest friend Ever
yamaguchi - scorpio
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okay i have a feeling some of y'all are familiar with the stereotype that scorpios are kinky, goth people
which is not true because my gf is a scorpio and has the personality of an excited puppy
which is what yamaguchi is but aGain. moon. signs. are. very. important
while scorpios are very emotional (like every water sign) and tend to be quite dark , serious and pessimist with thinking, i've read that they usually undergo a large amount of personal transformation
with yamaguchi, his anxieties tended to overwhelm and prevent him from thinking of alternate possibilities and doing his very best
“when i start gaining self-confidence it’s over for you bitches - yamaguchi tadashi, probably”
but his fears also pushed him to do much better and eventually develop his skills to become a key player for the team
scorpios are also very protective, honest and the most no-bullshit out of all the water signs
that's why when he told tsukishima off for being uncool, it was very much a build up of his frustrations abt tsukishima not being serious enough despite all his skills
his relationship dynamic with tsukishima is also v interesting because they're basically sister signs 
so they're different but they keep each other grounded
while yamaguchi is protective of tsukki he's also unafraid to call him out which makes him a Great Friend
in conclusion: a cinnamon roll but a spicy one 
haikyuu characters as zodiac signs series: pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3, pt. 4, pt. 5
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scribbling-stiks · 3 years
Text
Puppets - XXIX - Calm in Chaos
Texas relaxes after about 20 minutes. He is shaking slightly, and he leans heavily against the tree behind him. His breath comes in short gasps, and he has a pained expression on his face.
"Are you going to be okay?" Massachusetts asks.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Texas mumbles.
Texas tries to stand, his left hand is pressing against the trunk of the tree behind him to steady himself. He waves off Russia when he tries to help. Texas shakily gets to his feet before collapsing back down with a loud groan.
"So, no moving?" Massachusetts asks, sitting beside Texas. In response, Texas tries again to stand, but Louisiana puts a hand on his shoulder, halting his movement. Texas sighs before sitting back down.
"'m sorry," he mumbles.
"Hey, it ain't your fault," Louisiana soothes, " 'sides, you can't control the weather."
Texas sighs, but doesn't reply. He pulls his hat down to cover his eyes. They sat in quiet for a few moments.
"What should we do now?" Massachusetts asks.
"We should be lookin'," Texas mumbles bitterly.
"We can't go if you can't come with us," Massachusetts deadpans.
"I think we should just settle down for a while, ya know?" Louisiana says.
"Sounds good to me," Canada replies, sitting back and throwing his hands behind his head. Russia nods in agreement.
"We should collect firewood," Russia suggests.
"I'll help," Texas volunteers.
"Oh no, you ain't," Louisiana demands.
"Me and Nada can do it," Massachusetts volunteers. Canada stands with Massachusetts.
"Don't be going too far!" Louisiana announces before turning to look at Texas.
"Hey, Taz, are you okay?" Louisiana asks with a gentle voice.
"'m fine, Lulu," Texas replies in a tight voice, "y'all can go help," he suggests.
Louisiana catches Russia's eye, and jerks her head to the side, directing him away. Russia stands and follows her into the middle of the campsite.
She sighs. Russia turns to keep an eye on Texas over her shoulder.
"Listen," Louisiana begins, "Tazy gets like this sometimes, 'specially after big tornadoes. Pops is the one who normally talks him down. I've tried, but all he does is yell at me and push me away. Always apologizes later, Bless his heart, but me helpin' doesn't help, ya know?" She whispers.
Russia shifts his gaze from Texas to Louisiana, and his eyebrows furrow briefly. Louisiana gives him a faint smile. "He blames himself... It ain't his fault, but people die, and his people grievin' for the things they lost ain't helpin' him much," She mutters, her face falls, "but I ain't never seen him this upset. He gets frustrated when them storms leave him hurtin', but he doesn't try'n drive people away unless they're being pushy 'bout it," she sighs and takes a glance over her shoulder.
"I wanna help, but... I ain't got any idea of where to start. He's been tryin' to pretend he's all fine, but he ain't. He just don't want people seeing him upset. He ain't good at openin' up," Louisiana trails off. She rubs the back of her neck with a saddened look on her face.
"I can try to help. However, I make no promises," Russia volunteers softly.
Louisiana smiles brightly. "Thanks," she says sincerely, "Imma go keep an eye on Sett and his shenanigans. Just holler if you need anything." She excuses herself and walks a short distance away, leaving Russia alone to approach Texas, who hasn't moved.
Russia slowly approaches Texas, trying not to make too much noise, and sits down in front of him. Texas had taken to hugging himself after Russia and Louisiana had walked away. It is a sad look, Russia decides.
"Texas?" he asks. Texas immediately releases his arms, and he swipes away at his face.
"Yeah, Russ?" Texas responds.
"Are you alright?" Russia asks.
"'m fine, Rooskie," Texas insists, "'sides, shouldn't y'all be helping with the wood?"
Russia doesn't respond. Instead, he sits quietly in front of Texas, unsure of what else to say. Texas sighs before biting out a laugh.
"Ya know, it's pretty funny," Texas chokes out, "My people are dying, and I can't do nothing. America needs me, but I can't do nothing!" Texas voice breaks, and he forces a laugh. Texas looks up at Russia and reveals the tears streaming down his face under his hat.
Texas forces a smile and laughs. But his laughter dissolves into weeping, and his smile dissipates. He pulls his hat down to cover his face, and his frame shakes. He hugs himself and hunches over as if to look small. Russia doesn't know what to say.
He lays a hand on Texas' shoulder briefly, but Texas pulls away. Russia racks his brain for another way to comfort him. He ultimately decides to offer company and try to distract Texas from sinking too deep into his thoughts. He isn't sure if it would work, but he doesn't feel like he had any other options.
Russia gets up and sits next to Texas, and begins humming lullabies he remembers from his childhood. It soon evolves into singing Russian folk songs so old than most of his current population probably wouldn't recognize them. He pauses briefly, and another voice takes over. Russia looks up to see Louisiana joining in on the fun.
She begins singing in a language that Russia identifies as French, with an accent he hasn't heard before. She dances along to the upbeat songs as she belts them aloud. Russia finds himself smiling at the sight, even though he doesn't understand a word.
Texas chuckles, "now you're just showing off."
"You be saying that like you ain't never done it before," Louisiana comments with a smirk.
"What are you two doing? Tryin to summon something?" Massachusetts asks, walking over with Canada. Both had arm-fulls of kindling and a few logs.
"Oh, be quiet, Massy-pants. You're just jealous you can't sing," Louisiana teases.
Massachusetts blushes, and he glares at her smug face, and Canada laughs. Massachusetts throws a stick at Louisiana from his collection, which turns into the two flinging smaller pieces of kindling through the air across the campsite. One of these sticks hits Texas in the face, and he laughs. By the time the kindling stopped flying, it's mid-afternoon.
Texas is sleeping and leaning against the tree with his arms crossed against his chest. His legs straight in front of him and the wide brim of his hat shields his face from the sun. The other states are collecting the sticks and leaves they had thrown. Russia is speaking with Canada.
"What should we do?" Canada asks.
"What?" Russia asks.
"For food," Canada elaborates, "and after night falls."
"We should sleep while the sun is out and take watches tonight. I do not think we should start traveling until Texas has time to recover first," Russia replies.
"And food?" Canada inquires.
"I can go hunting for something," Louisiana offers.
"I don't think we should be separating, eh?" Canada replies hesitantly.
"We still have food in our backpacks. We can eat that," Massachusetts suggests.
Canada nods in agreement. The rest of the afternoon went without incident, but this has Russia on edge. To him, it seems too quiet.
'Something is wrong,' Russia thinks, 'but what?'
The blue expanse of the sky above offers no answer.
~
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lady-divine-writes · 4 years
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Serendipity (Rated PG13)
Summary: Aziraphale’s best friend Tracy sets him up on a blind date, but the man who shows up isn’t what he expects. (4351 words)
Notes: Written for the @ineffable-valentines prompt ‘perfect date’ and inspired by a post I saw @miraworos reblog on tumblr, which happened to be the exact premise of a story I had written a long time ago for another fandom. So I brushed it off, re-sculpted it, and voila. I hope y'all like it
Read on AO3.
“So … how’re the crepes treating you? Are they everything you dreamed they’d be?”
“Oh my yes! They’re absolute Heaven!”
“They should be. This place is famous for them.”
“Good, because they’re my favorite.”
“I know. That’s why I brought you here. More wine?”
“That depends … are you trying to get me drunk?” Playful blue eyes, twinkling above cheeks darkening from baby pink to dusty rose, meet seductive liquid gold.
Lush lips split into a devilish grin. “Maybe.”
Those blue eyes dip down to those inviting lips and linger there, lost in a daydream of mouths meeting, tongues sweeping, kisses traveling, caressing pale skin … “Well, at least you’re honest about it.”
Wine pours. Glasses clink and the robust red sipped. Fingers snap, and like magic, another bottle of wine appears.
“Now,” the devilish lips ask, “where was I?”
“You heard something in your walls?”
“Oh yes. For days I’m hearing scritch-scritch-scritch, and the pattering of tiny feet on my marble floors morning and night, like little ghosts wearing tap shoes puttering about my flat.”
“Ooo! That’s spooky!”
Subtle shrug. “Don’t bother me. I like spooky. Big spooky fan me. So I look and look. but I can’t find where it’s coming from. And I mean, I look everywhere …”
Aziraphale covers his mouth and giggles, blown away by how drawn in he’s become to this story. Reuben is such a dynamic storyteller. Aziraphale feels like he’s there with him, searching his house for the mysterious scratching that’s plagued him day and night, shivers as his description of them runs its nails delightfully up his spine. For good or bad, Aziraphale is invested now, even though the events of this tale are over and resolved. Reuben pauses his story; chuckles shyly, too; while Aziraphale waits patiently to hear the rest of the saga.
“To make a long story short, I take apart the entire wall unit, and finally I find the culprit – the cutest family of white rats I have ever seen! Momma had made a nest in the insulation and had babies! Five of them! I couldn’t believe it!”
“Oh no!” The tips of a mouth turn down as those shivers make a return trip. “I don’t personally fancy rats. What did you do?”
“The only thing I could do.” Reuben takes a sip of his wine – a 2014 Bogle Petite Sirah. It sounded so scrummy when Reuben ordered it, Aziraphale couldn’t help himself. He had to have a glass, too. And Reuben was not wrong. Its dense blueberry and blackberry flavors compliment the crepes exquisitely. The alcohol doesn’t overwhelm the palette, but it’s racy enough to bring color to Aziraphale’s cheeks. “I adopted her. Named her Rogue.”
“You adopted wild rats!?”
“Turns out - not wild. After a little investigating, I found out that momma rat had belonged to a neighbor who moved out a week ago. They couldn’t bring the rat with them, or they didn’t want to, so they set her loose in the garden downstairs. She ended up getting back in somehow.” Reuben runs his index finger around the rim of his glass. “It may sound bonkers but I admire Rogue. I really do. Abandoned by the family she thought would love and take care of her, she fights and struggles to find a safe place to have her brood, which ends up being the place she was cast out from. I couldn’t just put her on the street.” He sighs, a fond but sad smile crossing his lips. “Reminds me a bit of my mum, to tell you the truth - the unforgiving life she had raising me and my sisters after our father left …”
Aziraphale gasps, that confession wrapping around his heart and giving it a solid tug. He could listen to Reuben talk all night. But he’s not just a great storyteller. He happens to be sweet, funny, attractive (God is he attractive! But, of course, Aziraphale has always been a sucker for hazel eyes like his, with flecks of gold that brighten the irises when the alcohol flows or the lighting is right). And as if that wasn’t enough, he works at one of the most successful (and philanthropic) firms in the city. But he doesn’t wear his wealth on his sleeve, doesn’t flaunt it like a selling point. His shirt is vintage, the wine he ordered costs $20 a bottle, and he came here on the tube. Personality, modesty, good looks, environmentally conscious, a stable career … Aziraphale sighs. In his opinion, Reuben is close to the perfect guy, and this blind date is going swimmingly!
Too bad it isn’t his.
“Oh Reuben …” Lorelei – Reuben’s date – blots her eyes with her napkin. She reaches across the table to touch his hand. Reuben’s eyes flick towards the touch and he smiles brighter.
Oh yeah, Aziraphale thinks, raising his glass and finishing the last of his Sirah. They’re having a fabulous night.
Aziraphale pulls out his pocket watch and checks the time. 
9:45.
He’s been sitting at the table next to theirs for over an hour, waiting for his own Reuben to appear. Aziraphale figured out thirty minutes ago that his blind date wasn’t coming. He’s gotten no texts, no calls, no apologies, no explanation why. Reuben and Lorelei might have a glowing future together, but his date for the evening is definitely a bust. The wait staff knows it, too. Every time the waitress stops by, offering to refill his water glass, it’s with a sympathetic smile. She’s long since stopped asking him if he wants to pack up what’s left of his crepes to go.
What’s left.
That’s a joke.
It’s pretty much the whole order.
He lost his appetite a long time ago.
Aziraphale reaches for his cell phone but stops with his hand on his pocket. He’s not going to be that guy. He’s not going to send another text. He’s not going to give this man an easy out, refuses to give him the benefit of the doubt and say, “Well, I guess you got caught up. Text me back and we can reschedule for another time.”
Aziraphale is done.
He just wishes he knew why.
Why doesn’t dating work out for him?
He’s not a bad guy, if he does say so himself. He’s reasonably attractive (at least, he’s always thought so). He owns his own small business, even if it doesn’t necessarily turn a profit, but money isn’t something he needs to worry about anyway. He’s doing what he loves, therefore he’s living the dream.
He’s not asking for much. He’s not looking for the perfect man, just a nice one. One who might share some of his interests like theater, food, music, wine, food, books … food. But on the whole, he wants to find a man who wants to spend time with him, get to know him, who maybe isn’t ashamed of doing cutesy, romantic things, like hold the door open for him, pull his chair out for him, offer him half his desert the way Reuben did with Lorelei.
Reuben.
Aziraphale peeks back over at the happy couple.
As Reuben stares into Lorelei’s eyes and signals for the check, Aziraphale knows that he needs to face facts and be done with this. His roommate Tracy has, yet again, succeeded in finding him a date that’s not interested in actually dating.
Where does she even find these guys?
More to the point, why hasn’t he learned to say no to her?
Unfortunately, he won’t get to gripe to her about it until Monday when she comes back from some spiritualist retreat she went on with their friend Anathema, so Aziraphale has a long, lonely weekend of reading Oscar Wilde and drinking (Irish) cocoa to look forward to until then.
Aziraphale takes one last sip of the lukewarm water in his overfilled glass and decides to ask for the check. He feels awful. He may have ordered a full meal but he’s barely touched it. Plus, even though he’s done his best to be as polite as possible, he has wasted over an hour of their time occupying a table that could have been made available to other paying customers on this busy Friday night.
He prays he has a forgettable face. On the off chance he ever comes in here again, he wouldn’t want them spitting in his food.
He looks around the dining room in search of his waitress – a lovely young red-head with freckles across the bridge of her nose and a permanent pout. He doesn’t see her, but spots a man rushing towards his table – a tall, remarkably handsome man dressed all in black and wearing designer sunglasses (indoors!); cheeks flushed as if he’s been running in the cold; a warm, inviting smile aimed his way.
“Hey there, handsome. Sorry I’m so late,” the man says, pulling out a chair, spinning it around, and straddling it across from Aziraphale in a move that makes Aziraphale’s breath catch. “I wish I could say I was stuck behind a seven car pile-up or something, but I really have no exciting excuse. Not that the M25 isn’t a bitch at this hour, but I didn’t take it so, again, no excuse.”
The man smiles at Aziraphale, waiting for him to laugh at his joke. Aziraphale looks suspiciously back, turning his head left and right, searching for an explanation.
“I … I’m sorry,” he says, addressing the man, mostly through side-eye glances. “Are you are you … looking for me?”
“Yes.” The man extends an arm across the table. “I’m your date for the evening. I’m Tracy’s friend Gabriel.”
“You?” Aziraphale raises an eyebrow. “You’re Gabriel?”
The man’s smile becomes wider in a tense sort of way. “Yes, I am.”
Aziraphale looks left and right again, obviously skeptical.
The man folds his hand on the table and sighs.
“Look, Aziraphale, I know I was supposed to be here at a quarter to nine, and I know you’ve probably called and texted a hundred times. I’m really, really sorry.” He looks down at his thumbs, fidgeting as he speaks. “I know this is going to sound lame, but I got caught up at work, and then my car ran empty. I wanted to call you, but I left my phone at the office.” The man sighs again, deeper, the air leaving his body causing him to flatten a bit. “This has been a pretty shite day, all things considered, and I was really looking forward to this date tonight. I would like the opportunity to make it up to you.” The man looks at Aziraphale from behind dark lenses, a sincere expression of regret on his face, eyes peeking over the frames pleading for a second chance.
Hazel eyes, with so many gold flecks crowding in they practically shine.
“Will you let me try?”
Aziraphale is stunned to silence. He doesn’t quite believe that Gabriel ever intended on showing up at all. But then, why is he here? Did some other plans he made fall through? Did he feel guilty about blowing Aziraphale off and turn around at the last minute? Aziraphale knows he has every right to leave - stand up, say goodbye, and go on his merry way. But Gabriel did show up – the first of three blind dates to even bother – so maybe Aziraphale should give him a chance.
He’s mulling it over when he catches sight of the man staring at him, a flirty smile on his lips that Aziraphale can’t help find alluring.
“Please?” the man mouths, the hands he’d folded on the table finding their way up to his chin to aid in his begging. “Please?”
Aziraphale rolls his eyes to pry his gaze away from the man’s mouth. “Alright. It sounds like you had a hard day. I can’t fault you for that.” The man looks relieved. His smile turns slightly impish, and Aziraphale finds himself giggling without meaning to. “Why don’t we have a nibble and get to know one another?”
Gabriel smacks his hand on the table in triumph. “Great!” he says, reclining back on the chair like a large snake relaxing in the sun. “Thank you! I promise, you won’t regret it!”
A hint of a smirk twists Aziraphale’s mouth at the corners as his waitress makes a sudden and unexpected appearance. “Don’t get ahead of yourself, my dear. You have a bit of time to make up for.”
***
“So my mate rings me up, and he’s screaming …” Gabriel gestures with his hands as he gets more into the story he’s telling, and Aziraphale watches, utterly captivated. If Aziraphale thought Reuben was a good storyteller, it’s only because he hadn’t met this man yet. “He’s straight yelling, “They’re everywhere! They’re everywhere! And it’s bloodcurdling, ya know? Like straight out of a horror movie. And I’m trying to pretend I have no idea what he’s talking about …” He pauses to catch his breath in the middle of a laugh while Aziraphale, already in tears, pictures Gabriel sitting at home, listening to his friend Ligur yelling while trying to make out like he has no idea what the man is on about. “And I’m just like, “Calm down, buddy.” But at home, I’m biting my fist trying not to blow my cover. And the next thing I know - bzzt.”
Aziraphale sobers slightly, his eyebrows shooting up. “Bzzt? What does that mean? Bzzt?”
“Bzzt as in the line goes dead. And on my end, the world might as well’ve stopped spinning because I knew what happened.”
“And what did happen?” Aziraphale asks, on the edge of his seat.
“They’d destroyed it! The rats! Those furry little buggers, they managed to knock out the phone system! And not just in my neck of the woods, but the whole of London!”
Aziraphale’s eyes go wide. “That was you!?”
Gabriel points to himself proudly. “That was me! All because …”
“All because you fed a rat!?”
“All because I fed a rat!” Gabriel guffaws so loudly, other diners turn their way to make sure he’s not choking.
“I remember that day!” Aziraphale says, but not too upset since he’s not all that fond of his cell phone. Necessary evil in his opinion. Tracy made him get it so he could field calls from potential suitors. But Tracy, who spends hours on the phone talking to her fiance, was livid!
It gives Aziraphale no small measure of satisfaction to say he now knows the man who inconvenienced her.
“I didn’t know its whole family lived in the building! Extendeds and all! I thought it was just one rat!”
“And what happened to them?”
“Exterminator, I guess,” Gabriel says with a hint of regret in his voice. “Rats are smart, though. Resilient, too. I’m hoping they got away.”
His story brings to Aziraphale’s mind Reuben’s story about the rat in his walls. He looks towards the table where he and his date were sitting, but a new couple has taken their place.
Huh, he thinks. Wonder when they left?
Aziraphale, having ordered a second glass of wine, takes a healthy sip, but the buzz he gets from the alcohol is nothing compared to the one he already has from this date with Gabriel.
“I have to say,” Aziraphale says as the laughter dies down, “I was a little wary about being set up. I mean, you hear so many stories. Best case scenario, you find your soulmate. Worst case, you wind up in the boot of someone’s car. But this is going so well!”
“Yeah. Yeah, it is,” Gabriel agrees, becoming suddenly quiet.
“I’ve never met a real live Pied Piper before!”
Gabriel laughs, but it’s not like before - not as effervescent and carefree. Aziraphale looks down at the empty plates on the table, at the stray pieces of crepes and deviled eggs they’d ended up splitting, not a single full bite left. As it turned out, they both ordered really well. Aziraphale didn’t think it was possible for two things to be so compatible.
He was wrong, pleasantly so.
“I know you had a rotten day but thank you for showing up. This was probably the most perfect blind date ever.” Aziraphale watches Gabriel, concerned that his attention seems to be slipping away.
Before he gets to comment, Gabriel beats him to it.
“Aziraphale, I have a confession to make.”
Aziraphale feels the butterflies that have been dancing in his stomach during dinner drop dead, as if hit by a sudden frost.
“Yes, Gabriel?”
“I …”
“Crowley! Hey! Fancy seeing you here, ya old bastard!”
Aziraphale’s attention pulls to the left, to a man with white hair and dark eyes heading their way. No, Aziraphale amends. He’s going to go past them, to a table on their right since neither of them are named Crowley. Aziraphale peeks at the handful of tables there, but no one seems to notice the man calling over their heads.
No one named Crowley is responding to his call.
He is sort of making a scene. Maybe this Crowley is trying to ignore him?
But the man coming their way seems completely focused on Gabriel.
Aziraphale looks to Gabriel, staring down at his plate and concentrating on it, as if praying this man, whoever he is, will pass them by.
Who could it be to him to elicit such a reaction, especially when it’s obvious he’s got the wrong man?
“Gabriel?” Aziraphale says, worried that perhaps something they ate soured his stomach. “Is there something the matter?”
Gabriel closes his eyes and shakes his head. “Aziraphale, I …”
“Crowley!” The man comes right up to their table and claps a hand on Gabriel’s shoulder, hard enough to make him flinch. “How long has it been, huh? Two months? Three?”
Gabriel sighs. He turns to the man looming over him and smiles the strained smile of a man about to commit a murder. “Hastur! Buddy! What a pleasant surprise!”
“Yeah.” The man chuckles. “You look like it is.”
“I thought you were vacationing down under.”
“Well, I’m back now. Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend?” he asks, taking no time cutting to the chase.
“Aziraphale,” Gabriel … no, Crowley … says, doing everything in his power to avoid the full intensity of Aziraphale’s confused gaze, “I’d like to introduce you to Hastur. He’s … uh … an old friend of mine from school. Hastur, this is Aziraphale. He’s my … date for the evening.”
“Pleasure to meet you,” Hastur says, extending a hand. Aziraphale takes it and gives it a shake. It’s cold from the outdoors but not unpleasant. Hastur, on the whole, isn’t being impolite. He’s just oblivious.
As is Aziraphale.
“I’ve been tellin’ this asshat for years now he needs to get off his high horse and start dating again. Nice to see he finally took my advice.”
“Yeah, well, now that I have, why don’t you make yourself scarce so Aziraphale and I can continue?” Crowley grumbles, shooting Hastur several venom-filled glares.
“A’right, a’right,” he says, putting his hands up in defense, “don’t mind me. Just headin’ to the bar anyhow. Ring me up later, Crowley. We’ll go out for a few. Maybe your friend can come with us.”
“Will do.”
“You gentlemen have a nice night.” He bumps Crowley with his hip, winks at Aziraphale, then turns on his heel and heads for the bar.
The silence he leaves behind at Aziraphale and Crowley’s table is so thick, it could suffocate a wild boar.
Aziraphale clears his throat first. “So …”
Crowley follows, a bit softer. “So …”
“Tell me the truth,” Aziraphale says, too emotionally charged to keep frustration from cracking his voice.
“And if you don’t like what you hear?” Crowley looks at Aziraphale’s hands worrying his napkin, as if he’s longing to reach across the table and take one. “Are you going to leave?”
“I’m going to leave anyway. I just want to know who I’m calling the cops on when I get outside.”
“Don’t do that. I’m harmless. I promise.”
“Who are you?”
“Well … as you probably already know, my name isn’t Gabriel,” he says, finally removing his glasses and setting them aside. “It’s Crowley. Anthony Crowley. And I wasn’t your blind date. I’m not the man your friend set you up with.”
Aziraphale moves the napkin to his lap and smooths it, giving himself something other than Crowley to look at.
“To tell you the truth, I had a feeling,” he confesses. “I mean, you don’t seem like the type of man my friend would usually set me up with.”
“What kind of men does she usually set you up with?”
Aziraphale chuckles. “I don’t know. They don’t tend to show up.” Crowley growls, shakes his head in disgust. Aziraphale is flattered by his reaction. But he has to ask, “I don’t understand why? Why did you do this?”
“I stopped in for a drink and I saw you sitting at this table, waiting for your date.” Crowley grins. “I have to admit, I thought you were a looker, so I kept looking. I heard you talking to the waitress, making jokes. You sounded like a nice guy. You told her how your friend set you up, how excited you were. Then I heard you calling, saw you texting, and waiting and waiting and …"
“And you took pity on me,” Aziraphale says, embarrassment wearing a pit in his stomach.
“No, I was angry! I was angry that some dumb fuck got the chance to have a date with such a great seeming guy like you and he bailed. Opportunities like that don’t come by all the time and he threw his away. But I saw an opportunity and I took it. And no matter what you think about me now, I’m glad I did. Because you’re great. You’re really great. And I hope that you’ll forgive me and let me take you out on a real first date.”
The table becomes quiet again - Crowley watching Aziraphale, Aziraphale looking at his lap. The whole restaurant seems to have gone silent, as if everyone around them who has listened to them laugh and talk and watched them share their meal is waiting to see what Aziraphale is going to say. From somewhere off toward the kitchen door, Crowley thinks he sees a few of the waitresses peeking around a corner, watching their table a little too intensely.
“What else was a lie?” Aziraphale asks. “Everything you said over dinner, was any of that true?”
“All of it,” Crowley says. “Everything I said about living in Mayfair, owning a Bentley, taking a permanent gap year, working as a nanny for kicks, being an obnoxious trust fund baby, tormenting my friends with a rat army … here … wait …” Crowley opens his jacket and reaches into his pocket, pulling out his phone. He touches the screen, swipes it a few times, then hands it to Aziraphale. “Take a look. Granted I’ve only had this since the recent iPhone hit the bricks, but I’ve got a few pictures on it that should back me up. My Bentley, my flat, a few of my plants …” Crowley ticks photos off as Aziraphale flips through them. “There should even be one or two of the rats. Ligur sent them to me before he ran screaming.” Crowley snickers in such an off-handed way, Aziraphale can’t help believing him. And speak of the devil, next photo up is of a work station covered in black rats rooting through the works and apparently sending London skidding back to the dark ages.  
Maybe Aziraphale just wants to believe him, but as far as he’s concerned, Crowley is telling the truth.
“I … I don’t know,” Aziraphale says, handing the phone back.
“What?” Crowley asks, his expression of newly kindled hope falling off his face. “What don’t you know?”
“Yes, you’re telling the truth, but …”
“But …”
“I don’t know anything about you. Not really.”
“Fair enough,” Crowley says, slipping his phone back in his pocket. “But can I ask you a question?”
“I guess.”
“What did you know about Gabriel before you showed up here to meet him?”
“Well, I …” Aziraphale sits there with his mouth open, expecting words to come out that don’t exist, because he didn’t know anything about Gabriel. Not even what he looked like. Tracy told him that she showed Gabriel a picture of him, and that Gabriel would know him when he saw him. But other than that, all he had was Tracy’s assurance that they would work well together. In reality, Gabriel could have stopped by at some point, caught Aziraphale waiting for him, didn’t like what he saw, then turned around and left, and Aziraphale would have never known.
But Crowley on the other hand - Aziraphale has been talking to Crowley all through dinner. Provided he’s telling the truth, Aziraphale knows more about him than he does his best friend, and they used to room together.
“Okay,” he concedes. “You’ve got me. Alright, Crowley. Sure. I would love to go on a real first date with you.”
Crowley reaches his hand across the table and Aziraphale takes it, suddenly recalling the look in Reuben’s eye before he signaled for the check.
Crowley has a similar look.
He raises his hand for the check.
But after not seeing her for most of their meal, their waitress walks over and puts two glass flutes down. Then she pours each man a glass of champagne from a bottle Aziraphale is certain costs more than their meal.
“Uh, waitress?” Crowley calls to the woman before she can walk away.
“Yes, sir?”
“What’s this?” he asks, perplexed by the sudden appearance of alcohol.
“It’s champagne,” she says, as if that isn’t apparent. “The house special.”
“But we didn’t order champagne” Aziraphale points out.
“I know,” she says with a wink. “It’s on the house. Enjoy it. Take all the time you need …”
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