#you can’t deny how much care and affection there is on Rex’s face

[the-bi-space-ace]

Forever thinking about this gif in particular.

It’s Echo confused and rambling while he’s still plugged into the Techno Union computer. How he’s still stuck in that moment in the Citadel.

It’s how Rex’s helmet is off so Echo can see his face for the first time in who knows how long. So there isn’t a barrier between them. So he can be as open and vulnerable as possible for Echo.

It’s Rex’s face, his guilt and shame passing over his expression. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s remembering exactly what happened that day at the Citadel when he lost Echo. It’s the sorrow there. It’s how fucking upsetting this must be for him.

It’s the way he grabs the back of Echo’s head to keep him from hurting himself. It’s his other hand as a grounding presence. It’s the way he looks like he’s trying to hold Echo together with his touch alone.

It’s all the history between them. It’s the shared loss of Fives. The grief. The pain. It’s the endless hours spent knowing and understanding each other. It’s the reminder that Rex met a shiny on the Rishi moon and watched him grow into a capable soldier and an ARC trooper. The same shiny he watched die at the Citadel. The one he can’t help but see even in this moment, after he’s been tortured and experimented on.

It’s how Echo puts all of his faith in Rex and always will. He’s never found a reason to doubt him even after everything he’s been through.

It’s the way Rex so very clearly loves Echo. The way he lets go so Echo can join the batch and learn who he is now. The way their trust transcends everything. It is woven through every story thread, every scene, every line said between them.

It’s a connection that can’t be severed because they’ve never stopped fighting for it.

[tragedyofdevotion]

Love and Loyalty

Xiao has known you ever since he swore loyalty to Rex Lapis. You were his senior, his mentor and the object of his admiration. If possible, he wanted to stay like that forever, fighting by your side and protecting the people of Liyue. However, it seemed fate had different plans for him.

“How could you, y/n? Why would you betray Rex Lapis?” holding up your shoulders, Xiao asked you again and again. As the one closest to you, he had his suspicions about this. And that’s why, he had been spying on you, but he wished that he was just being paranoid. Unfortunately, it seems that his prayers weren’t answered.

“I am sorry to say this, Alatus. But never my loyalty has lied in the Warrior God.” Supported by your spear, you stood proudly under the moonlight, a faraway look in your eyes as you reminisce about your past. Despite the situation, Xiao couldn’t help but thought that you were still as ethereal as the day he first met you.

“Are you talking about the Goddess of Rain? Her passing was truly a tragedy. But it has been more than a century since she has decreased. I thought you have become one of our comrades after overcoming countless struggles together with us, together with the people of Liyue.” It was not that he cannot understand where you are coming from. But Xiao did not want to accept that the days you have spent with him were all a lie.

“Is that the reason why you are joining Osial’s side? You, of all people should know that he is far worse than Rex Lapis.”

“That is not the only reason. But Alatus won’t the able to understand. You are too young.”

He felt irked at the term. Just because you were born a few decades earlier than him, you always brushed him aside when discussing serious matters.

“Please don’t underestimate me. Even though I can’t compare to you, I have lived my fair share of years.”

“Sorry, sorry.” You smiled a little after saying that. Perhaps you thought his response childish. “I didn’t mean to treat you like a kid. But you still haven’t experience love, do you?”

Love, that was a term he had often heard from mortals. He didn’t know or didn’t think that it is necessary to know such useless emotion. But after meeting with you, he was able to encounter both the bliss and agony this feeling had brought upon. If only he would be able to convey it to you honestly…

“I…That’s… Do you love Osial?” He felt a terrible pain from his heart when he realized your implication.

“Yes. I do.” Another pain, worse than any injury he had ever gained from crossing sword with his enemies, ran through his chest.

“But Osial has Beisht as his wife. And I have heard rumors that he has other numerous other concubines.” Collecting himself, he said the most rational thing he could possibly think at the moment. However, he quickly regretted it after seeing the hurt on your face.

“It is alright.” You said with a sad smile. “Because I do not plan for this affection to be known. I do know that I am neither as dignify and graceful as Beisht nor as soft and pretty as his shrine maidens.”

Oh… Just how much he wants to deny your words. In his eyes, there is no one as graceful or pretty as you.

“That is why I just want to help him in the only way I know, by fighting alongside him in his conquest for power as a warrior.” Your heartbroken look changed into one of determination at the last sentence.

Seeing your face, he knew it was useless to try to persuade you to do otherwise and so choose the only path left.

He summoned his spear, hold it against you and said, “That won’t happen if I stop you here.”

“But you won’t. You are far too kind to hurt your own mentor. You better fix that though. I would hesitate to harm you when we meet again in battlefield,” you said, turning your back on him as you start to walk away without a care in the world.

Even though you taught him to never show his back to the enemy, you, yourself, was not following it. Yet, he found himself unable to stab you with his spear like he would always do to his enimes.

While he was being indecisive, you looked back at him and said, “One last advice from your former mentor. Don’t trust Morax. He is not the man you make him out to be.”

At that time, he didn’t understand the meaning of your words.

…

Years had passed. People no longer know you as the proud Glaze Lily of Liyue but as the cunning commander of Osial’s army.

The time is the peak of the Archon war. But imstead of the battlefield, he looked at the terror folding in front of him.

With your spear thrown away to the ground away from you, you struggled like a mad man in Rex Lapis’s hold. However, no matter how strong you were, your strength cannot be compared to that of a God.

“Let me go you scum. Are you going to hurt my master again in front of me?”

He grimaced at the use of such language. However, his God did not seem to mind it very much or if he did, he didn't show it on his face.

But wait. You said a strange thing in your words.

Again? What did you mean again? When had Rex Lapis ever hurt your master before. Perhaps you were talking about the Goddess of Rain? There was no way Rex Lapis would have hurt her. She was his ally.

Or what if he did…

“Your master is ME. I have always been and will always be.” Holding your chin up to meet his gaze, Rex Lapis said firmly.

The God did not deny your words. But Xiao wanted to know more on the subject but hedidn’t dare interject his lord’s conversation and ask him the truth of the matter.

“No, you are not. There are only two beings in Teyvat who I ever thought of as my master. You killed one of them and are you planning to kill another now?”

Tears rolled down your cheeks. From sadness or frustrations, Xiao didn’t know. Maybe both.

“Osial is a monster. He is fated to disappear for the safety of the people.”

“Then what about my Goddess? Did she do anything to anyone? Why did you hurt her!!”

“Dear, you, yourself, know the answer best, don’t you? I thought of her as my best ally. So, I really didn’t want to kill her. But when you refused my proposal to use your service for me, I was left with no choice.”

He was beyond shocked to hear the words. He looked at the other Adepti wondering if he misheard his Lord. Moon Craver looked at him with a look of guilt and pity while Cloud Retainer did not even meet his eyes. At that, he understood that he heard everything right and that everyone except him was already aware of the horrifying truth.

“You called Osial monster. But in my eyes, there is only one monster and it is you," you said hatred bleeding not only from your voice but also from your eyes.

Stone lances rained from the sky, sealing anyone and everyone who dared to go against the Groundbreaker. You watched helplessly towards the sea where your beloved Master has disappeared and bawled like a newborn baby who has lost her mother.

If he swept you away with him, will you be able to attain a little more happiness compared to now.

“Yes, let’s steal her away,” Xiao thought to himself. He might not be able to compare to Rex Lapis in strength but he had confidence that he would not lose to anyone in speed. After he stole you away, the two of you could go to the country of freedom and live a tranquil life unknown to anyone.

When he was lost in his thoughts, Madam Ping held his hand. It seemed that he had unconsciously summoned his spear. Madam Ping looked at him in his eyes and shook her head.

“We are adepti of Liyue and our contract is to serve this country and Rex Lapis. Isn’t that right, Xiao?”

At her words, he began to remember what his duty was and what Rex Lapis has done for him.

His Lord saved him from the bounds of Ancient God.

His Lord freed him from the horrid duty of devouring dreams.

His Lord bestowed him the name “Xiao” and gave him a place in Liyue.

He couldn’t possibly go against his Lord.

After a while, you lost your consciousness. All the events that had happened this day was affecting your mind terribly.

He wasn’t able to move a single step forward as he watched his Lord carried you to his chamber.

For anyone who didn't get the backstory because of my terrible writing

I wrote this fic from Xiao's point of view who was in a "Notice me Senpai" situation with Reader.

For a long time, Morax had been a yandere but before the events in this fic, he was contented in just having their loyalty since he was a gentleman.

Osial knew that Morax killed the Goddess of Rain and recruited reader to work for him in exchange for revenge.

That is when reader fell for Osial. However, Osial only saw them as a talented subordinate until the end.

[mrpenguinpants]

Xiao: Falling Hard In Love HCs

I re-posted this in case anyone is confused. Tumblr is not enjoying Xiao and I feel attacked. Pls work ;-; I have family 

Hihi^^ and npnp I’m glad you’re enjoying it. I love Xiao so much, pls send me all your xiao asks I will speed do them. He deserves the world so buddy, come home don’t dodge me like Venti

Semi Part 1: Friendship

Semi Part 3: Cuddles

Semi Part 4: Protective

Semi Part 5: Affection 

Semi Part 6: Jealously

Semi Part 7: First Kiss

Semi Part 8: Opposites Attract

Semi Part 9:  String of Fate [Soulmate] HCs

Semi Part 10:  [ Fainting ]

---

Xiao: Falling Hard In Love HCs

He knows what love is but never thought he would experience this strong of an emotion. He's respected people such as his fellow adepti and Rex Lapis and he has a somewhat close relationship with Ming. He's felt protective over Liyue and children but never for a single person.

His first thoughts are you must either be an unannounced adepti that somehow came to be or you were an evil demon that somehow laid a curse on him. Both very implausible since he can tell you were human and you would never have an opening to curse him before his spear would get to you first.

He watches you, wondering why you've captured so much of his attention. You can feel someone's eyes on you but every time you turn around you don't see anyone.

You go to Xiao worried that a demon might be stalking you since he is the Guardian Yaksha and he might be able to help you. When he sees how frightened you are because of his actions, he immediately stops borderline stalking you. He tells you he will take care of it and you won't need to worry about anything.

He tries to keep his distance and aloof manner to make you both drift apart more since a relationship would not be the best considering he is an adepti, but he does dote on you in his own way without realizing it. It just comes naturally to him.

If you bring a gift or a plate of almond tofu, he can't deny an offering. That would just be rude. This is ignoring the fact that he's never concerned himself with prayers or offerings in the past, let alone appear in front of that person except for you.

If you're a traveler he would silently watch over your path. He won't be watching you from any shadows since that didn't go so well the first time so he'll clear the path so you won't run into monsters. Half way through he get's a bit pissed at his behaviour, that he's doing so much for one person when adepti usually seclude themselves yet here he is in the open, killing fodder when he’s faces demons that could swallow Liyue. But then he thinks about you getting hurt and he's right back to work.

He finds himself missing your presence when you’re not at the inn for an extended period of time. Looking out over Liyue from the roof of the inn hoping to see you appear just over the hill. Whenever Ming points out that he’s missing you because he likes you he frowns at himself. Has he really fallen that hard? He tries to clears his mind by fighting something but his walk back always makes him reflect.

When you return and remark about how easy your trip was. That there were no monsters anyways near their camps and how peaceful it was, he simply shrugs and nods in agreement.

"Xiao? I'm back from my travels!" you call out in the open space where you would usually find him. You had just gotten back from what was suppose to be a 2 week long trip which only lasted for half the time.

"You're back early"

You nearly shrieked in shock. No matter how many times you've talked with Xiao, his sudden appearance always startles you. You slowly calmed your heart as you turned to see the adepti sitting on the roof of the inn, staring up at the night sky.

"You know, it was kind of funny actually. I passed by many hilichurls camps but I never saw any,” you stated reminiscing your trip as you side eyed the adepti, “would you have anything to do with that?”

“You were taking a dangerous route. You should stay on the main road from now on. It would be foolish for you to die out of sheer curiosity and to something like a hilichurl”  he scolds, crossing his arms as he peers down annoyed at you while you sheepishly smile back.

“Aw its not too bad. At least I can count on you Xiao. Going out and protecting Liyue as the Guardian yaksha” you chucked. He can feel the tips of his ears start to blush. But before you can see his face turn pink he suddenly stands up and puts his mask on as he materializes his spear.

“Yes and I must go again. There are more hilichurls coming too close to the inn. I’ll have to deal with it before they cause more trouble” he quickly nods to you as he jumps down from the roof he was perched on

“Oh...alright, have a safe travel” you silently wave to his back as he passes you

“Likewise”

You watched him jump off from the railing to the inn and into the trees as he disappeared into the night. The green glow of his mask fading away the further he ran. He really was incredible.

“Hah, I was so close this time” you sigh, you were trying to lead your compliment into something more but Xiao cut your conversation short. Maybe he did know of your deeper feelings and was trying to softly reject them and you? You quickly slapped your cheeks getting rid of those bad thoughts

“Well, there's always tomorrow” you smiled, hyping yourself up to hopefully tell the aloof adepti your feelings for him.

[willowcrowned]

Okay but has anyone considered Obi-wan/Cody/Satien (is that how its spelled?) Regardless, hes got two hands for his two mandalorians, the au where this happend is gotta be top notch ridiculous ye?

Okay thank you so much for giving me a reason to think about this, because this AU contains three things I adore: polyamory, ships where everyone is frighteningly competent, and Obi-Wan

In this AU, Ventress is somehow even less well-adjusted (bear with me). What this means is that, instead of taking a gap year and finding herself after her family is brutally murdered, she decides she needs to get revenge even more now. What does this mean? In the short term, she still becomes a bounty hunter, but in the long run? She’s looking for a Sith lord team up so she can punch Dooku (with a lit lighstaber) in his stupid, elitist, backstabbing face.

So when Maul invades Mandalore, what happens? Ventress comes right along, ready to give her ‘I know we hate each other, but consider teaming up to kill someone we both hate even MORE’ space TED talk. And though Maul may be terribly annoying, a closet theater kid, always in a tits out kind of mood, and denying his gay awakening, he’s not stupid. He knows Sidious is coming for him, sooner rather than later, and he knows he needs more people on his side than his (impressively beefy) brother. He and Savage agree to the team-up.

Cue Obi-Wan showing up, ready to save his sort-of girlfriend, and finding Pre Vizsla, who got REAL sus the second ANOTHER lunatic with a red lightsaber showed up, occupied by capturing Maul, Savage, and Ventress. 

Obi-Wan saves Satie, who convinces him to call Cody for a quick evac, and they’re running away, flirting, and arguing over shooting things (as usual), when they spot Ventress, Maul, and Savage, about to be executed.

Oh, they both think, hell no. And then, because they have a stupid moral code that makes them do stupid moral things, they go save them.

A little background on Obi-Wan at this point: He has been fighting in a war for over two years. He is exhausted, close to a breakdown, and seriously questioning his place as a General. Next to him at all times, supporting him, helping him, and saving him, is Cody, who is clever, kinder than he has any right to be, and is, of course, devastatingly handsome when he does his special, unique-to-Cody half-smirk.

Obi-Wan, to put it mildly, is totally gone on him. Obi-Wan also, to put it less mildly, is his commanding officer in an army that Cody can’t leave on pain of death. To do anything— make any advance beyond the flirting that he engages in with most people— would put Cody in a very uncomfortable position, whether or not he returns Obi-Wan’s feelings. So Obi-Wan watches him from afar, hoping against hope that his affections are returned, and that one day, after the end of the war, there will be a future for both of them.

A little more background on Obi-Wan at this point: He has always respected Satine. Their correspondence fell apart just a few months after the end of his mission with Qui-Gon, but he’s been keeping up with her professional accomplishments for years. Over time, the love he bore for her faded, leaving him with good memories and an enduring appreciation for her courage, her cleverness, and her ability to deliver devastating blows to someone’s confidence with a few well-placed words.

Until he sees her again. And yes, alright, he might be angry that she’s choosing to stay out of the war— he knows what good she could do— but he understands her fears, understands the very real possibility that if Mandalore gets embroiled in yet another war, they may never recover. The thing is... well, she’s still very beautiful, especially when he’s yelling at him, and as slowly as his feelings had faded then, they come back in a rush now.

He has very much fallen in love with Cody, and he is very much still in love with Satine.

Cut back to the present— Obi-Wan and Satine rescue the three most annoying Sith in the galaxy and get the heck out of dodge. Cody, because he’s Cody, comes swooping in with a last-minute rescue.

At this point, two things are occurring.

The first: Obi-Wan is stuck in a room with four people he’s periodically flirted with over the past few years, two of whom he’s desperately in love with, one of whom he had a weird encounter with that he can never tell Anakin about when she and him got trapped in a middle school auditorium, and one of whom is definitely wearing no shirt and all that jewelry for a reason. It is Supremely awkward for him.

The second: Every single person in that room, each of which is (barring Savage) deeply attracted to Obi-Wan, is realizing that Obi-Wan is dressed in Mandalorian armor, and while Obi-Wan in three layers of tunics and a cloak is an absolute knockout, Obi-Wan in Mandalorian armor may very well kill them (and he won’t even have to touch his lightsaber to do it).

For one single moment, everything is absolutely still as they all stare at each other.

...And then Maul starts on the ‘I will rend your flesh from your bones, feel my wrath, Kenobarrgh’ spiel, and Satine stuns him. Oh, and Savage. Ventress agrees to watch the two of them if they don’t stun her, and Obi-Wan agrees.

Which then leaves him, Cody, and Satine in a room alone.

A word on Cody at this point: He has been bred from birth to be the perfect soldier— loyal, clever (but not too clever), and rigourously adherent to protocol. Yet, within three months of knowing Obi-Wan, he’s, well, calling him Obi-Wan in his head. Even just that is a gross breach of protocol, but he’s compromised in more ways than one. He talks to Obi-Wan, now, not just as a subordinate, or secondary advisor, but as a friend, as a councilor. Every time Obi-Wan touches him— never for longer than a brief second— his skin lights up under his armor. One time, Obi-Wan fell asleep on him for half an hour, and Cody’s was sure everyone would hear his heartbeat. 

What he’s doing— how he feels— he knows it’s putting Obi-Wan in danger, knows that if the Kaminoans had wanted to the clones to be equals to the Jedi, they would have told them so. And look, he knows what the natborns would call the way he’s feeling, but he can’t feel that way. He’s a clone— he’s expendable by definition. Even if, on some off-chance, he makes it out of this war alive, there’s nothing for him. Obi-Wan couldn’t care for him like that, couldn’t care for a man with the same face as millions of others, born and bred only for war. So it doesn’t matter how he feels.

A word on Satine at this point: Obi-Wan, when he left, was a gawkish, bumbling thing of red hair and freckles and the sweetest smile. Obi-Wan, when he came back, was graceful, eloquent, and very, very handsome. He is also infuriating. (This does not change how attracted she is to him in the least.)

She’s not a romantic, really, but she is a realist, and she knows she’s loved him in some form or another for over twenty years. She knows she can’t ask him to return it— knows that asking him to leave the order for her wouldn’t just be for her, it would be for Mandalore, and while the politician in her cries for her to claim him, the person in her who loves Obi-Wan could not abide tearing him away from his culture for her own purposes. She still loves him, deeply and irrevocably, and she knows he still loves her. (Maybe, she thinks, after the war... But she can’t afford to be sentimental).

What do Cody and Satine have in common? They’re both extremely competent, both instinctively ruthless, and they both love Obi-Wan. Oh, and they’re also both immediately jealous of their counterpart.

They know they shouldn’t be. They know it’s not fair, not when Obi-Wan isn’t theirs anyways, but it doesn’t change the surge of envy and dislike that happens when they see Obi-Wan use the soft voice he only uses for the people he likes best on the person across from them.

Cody knows he can never compare to the Duchess, who is beautiful and well-spoken and has held Obi-Wan’s heart since they were fifteen. Satine knows she can never compare to Cody, who has been at Obi-Wan’s side every second since the war’s beginning, who is so much closer in ideals to Obi-Wan than she is, however it might appear on the surface.

Fortunately, they don’t have to deal with it for long, because Ventress comes in with Maul and Savage and proposes a team up, at which point Maul reveals the identity of the Sith Master.

Obi-Wan swears a string of words that Cody and Satine are both very impressed by, and agrees to the team up. Cody and Satine, who are both going to Coruscant anyways, agree to it too.

What ensues is a good deal of scheming, during which Cody and Satine avoid each other like the plague, Obi-Wan is repeatedly told to get some sleep, and Ventress cuffs Maul to a door on multiple nonconsecutive occasions. When they get to Coruscant, Satine has already told Padmé, who has in turn told her group of anti-war (and anti-Palpatine) senators, Cody has given Rex a heads up, and Ventress, Maul, and Savage have been metaphorically sharpening their lightsabers for ages.

(It occurs to Obi-Wan, at one point, after he’s woken up from his enforced 25-hour nap, that Palpatine must have created the clone army for a reason— must have a failsafe in place— and he asks Ahsoka to pull all the data the Kaminoans have on the clones. They find out about the chips, and Ahsoka immediately immediately holds the Kaminoans at laser sword point until they reprogram every order into a command that dissolves the chip.)

The thing about organizing a coup together is that it makes it very hard to avoid each other. Cody and Satine are forced to work together, and, what do you know, it turns out that even with seething jealousy at work, they end up respecting each other. (Note: Obi-Wan comes into a room at one point to see them both bent over a commlink, heads together and hands nearly touching. He short circuits.)

In any case, coup, Palps dies, Republic fixed, whatever.

What’s important is that Obi-Wan gets really, really injured— so much so that he might die. Cody and Satine have dealt with him being dead before (Deception arc anyone?), but this? Watching him slowly fade, knowing there’s nothing they can do about it? That’s worse.

One night, when Anakin has fallen asleep, they have a long conversation in low voices about Obi-Wan, darting from fond to furious to devastated over and over again. If he wakes up— if, not when— they agree to say something to Obi-Wan, to let him know that they love him. It’s a meager consolation after all they’ve been through, but this is the end, in one way or another, and they deserve to be honest with him.

(Cody thinks, privately, that he will be— well, not tossed aside, because Obi-Wan isn’t the sort of person who does that, but there won’t be a place for him by Obi-Wan’s side anymore. Obi-Wan is a Jedi, a negotiator, a peacekeeper, and Cody is a soldier for a now-ended war. He is already steeling himself to accept Obi-Wan’s polite rejection with equanimity, to not cause more pain to the man. (It will be easy, he knows, to wish him every peace, every happiness. Cody has only ever wanted to see Obi-Wan happy. This does not mean it will not be painful.) Obi-Wan said once that he would have left the Order for Satine if she’d asked— she will ask, now, and Cody knows Obi-Wan will leave, can see the love written in his face, in his spine, in his hands, whenever he is around her. Satine will ask, and Obi-Wan will leave, and Cody will be left to look for a place in this new galaxy.)

(Satine thinks, privately, that Obi-Wan’s feelings for her must be long faded, replaced by his obvious ones for Cody. Obi-Wan is a warrior, a Knight, and Satine is a diplomat who foreswore violence long ago. She is already steeling herself to accept his rejection with grace. (It will be easy, she knows, to wish him well. She has only ever wanted good things for him. This does not mean it will not be painful.) He said once that he would have left the Order for her if she’d asked, and whatever he’d felt then for her pales to what he feels now for Cody. Cody will ask, and Obi-Wan will leave, and Satine will rule as she always has.)

And then Obi-Wan wakes up.

Cody and Satine let him have his long talk with Anakin first, partially because they know how important it is to him, partially because Anakin wouldn’t let them if they wanted to, and partially because they are dreading their own coming conversation. When Anakin has finished, and Obi-Wan is asleep again, they go in, hand-in-hand, and wait for him to wake up.

When he does wake up, he sees them holding hands and immediately comes to several wrong conclusions. Wrong Conclusion A: Cody and Satine are in love. Wrong Conclusion B: Cody and Satine are going to try to break the news that they’re in love to him gently. Wrong Conclusion C: This conversation is about to break his heart.

Then they speak.

At the end of it, Obi-Wan has some Thoughts. Thought One: alkdfjhskhsgjljlbhkgkjbjvnab,gkjvn;qlerghjsv?????!!!!fwbfwlkrehwogwhuwrijvhfdbhkf!!!! Thought Two: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! Thought Three: Oh, we’re all idiots. Fantastic. 

He then passes out, because being on the edge of death for days and then having a shock to your system this big tends to do that to you.

When he wakes up, he is mildly more coherent. Then he sees that Satine and Cody are asleep on each other, and the coherence is lost, but he does manage to wake them up and get across three things:

Thing One: He is desperately in love with them both.

Thing Two: He’s leaving the Order for a multitude of reasons, but they are a Significant Bonus.

Thing Three: He would very much like if they both held his hand while he falls back asleep.

Cody takes Obi-Wan’s right hand, Satine takes Obi-Wan’s left hand, and the three of them stay like that, fingers intertwined, for a long, long, while.

[emilyxvalentyne]

Alcoholic Love CH Part 2

A/n: finally have part two up! Thank you guys so much for loving this series. And just to clear somethings up, the whole time period of this series is a year before 5sos3 was released. Also please let me know if you guys want to be tagged in part 3. I apologize in advance :,( And lastly Request are open let me know if you guys want blurs!!

WARNINGS/TRIGGERS ⚠️⚠️: Alcohol abuse, depression, fighting, yelling, and over all just a really strong talk about feeling alone and breaking (herself) down.

PART 2

3am

Two hours of sleep was all I could manage. Somehow I found myself downstairs sitting by the pool with a bottle of Stella Rosa, listening to Rex Orange County.

The waves of the pool seemed to be rocking back and forth in slow motion. The trees were swaying. The stars were to damn bright, or maybe it was the tears in my eyes that made them blinding. You know that feeling you get when you have had a few drinks and your whole body just feels so light. Well mine felt so heavy tonight. I felt like mine was just weighing me down, and I so badly just want to feel light again.

So what do you do to try and feel light again? Some find ways to just relieve their stress in ways like, working out, reaching out to professionals, or they find coping mechanisms to try and relieve themselves. I on the other hand, can admit that my coping mechanism is not the best.

Every night for the past three weeks I come down here to just drink. But I’m only ever a reck at night. During the day I seemed completely fine. Besides the minor hangover I got every morning, I seemed okay. I continued school and work just to keep my mind busy. However at around 3am every night I would wake up just to drink myself to sleep.

At first it was just a few beers. I would still get the light feeling at first. Then it was tequila, probably around 1/3 of the bottle. That would get me to sleep so quick. But then that light feeling slipped away. I then found myself drinking whatever I could find, whatever I could get my hands on. Sometimes it was whiskey or tequila, others it was a 24 pack of corona and a bottle of wine. But no matter how much I drank, I wasn’t able to get that light feeling anymore.

No one knew about my addiction. I made sure of that. I went so far as to the extreme of not buying alcohol from the same place no more then once a week. Even then it was risky. If someone recognized me then it was over I would never return to that place. This is what made it seem like it was all my fault. Every night I blamed myself. Never once did I blame him.

He did this to me. My heart was broken because of him. I knew that it wasn’t my whole fault deep down, but yet I always blamed myself. I always made myself thing that I deserved this, that I deserved what he did to me.

No seemed to remember me anymore. All of my old friends with Calum never hit me up anymore. It was like I was never in there lives in the first place. Sierra would sometimes send me a text here and there to check up on me. I never wanted to burden her with my broken heart so I didn’t tell her what happened between Calum and I. I would never bring my problems with Calum into any of their lives because Calum is like their brother. It just didn’t take away from the fact that I was still heartbroken. I just felt like this was it.

3 weeks ago

I walked into the kitchen everything was not fine today. After a long night of tossing and turning, I was in a bad mood. Calum stood me up yesterday and I was really disappointed. Today I was actually not hoping to see him, but just like yesterday morning he was there in the kitchen drinking his coffee and on his phone. He seemed like everything was fine. Well everything was not.

I continue making myself some toast. All I wanted was for the San Andreas fault to finally split open and take me with it. The tension in the room can’t even be cut with a knife at this point. It was so strong that even Duke could feel it. I could actually feel the burning from of his eyes whenever I moved.

The tension in the room was so strong. This made me feel almost afraid. Every step I took, every move I made was being watched. I eventually sat down with my toast and coffee. The only thing separating us was the bar stool that was between us. The whole house was dead silent.

“So you’re just gonna be mad all day, and give me the silent treatment like you’re 19 again?”

I wanted so badly to ignore his comment but if I did then that would only show that I am weak and that he was right. “ I’m not mad, I’m just over it”

“Over what?”

Now I was staring at him, did he really just say that. He should know I’m not going to give up. He know that he was playing with fire now.

“I’m over the fighting Calum” I so badly wanted to just scream at him. To tell him how I was feeling.

“If you’re tired of the fighting then don’t get so mad at everything I do”

Now I was mad. No anger, I was heated right now. How could he just say that. “That’s the problem Calum! You always think that I get angry at everything you do! Well I don’t I feel so damn sad all the time because you would rather go out then just spend one night with me”

“You see you are mad about yesterday, because you can’t let the little things go! So what I forget about yesterday, it’s not like the world was going to end” Calum now was stood across from me with his hands in his pockets.

I felt so mad I just couldn’t believe what he was saying. It was really hurting me just the way he was acting like it shouldn’t affect me. He didn’t think about my feeling, he just wanted to get his point across like it was more important then what I was feeling.

“I’m not mad about yesterday Calum, I’m disappointed, not that much in you but more at myself for ever thinking that you actually cared. I gave you all the space you wanted. I never once stopped you from going out because I know you needed space and for a relationship to work we have to let each other do our own things, as long as we came back to each other at the end of the day, because that matters Calum. You can go and blame me all you want, but I know what I feel, and what I feel right now is hurt. I can’t believe you actually would rather come home at night argue rather then just hang out. To tell me about your day, all I’ve wanted for the past month was for you to just come home and ask about my day. To hold me at night when I’m sleeping. A simple hug would do if you don’t feel like talking. That’s all I’m asking Calum. But you would rather let this keep going, what has gotten you to be so cold, what did I- ”

“I cheated on you” Calum eyes seemed light this time. His whole face read regret. I wasn’t sure what for. If it was because he regret cheating, or because he regret telling me.

I knew I was gonna crack any second now. My heart was hurting so bad. My eyes were so watery that I could feel the tears at the brim of my eyes. I wanted so badly to just punch him. To make him feel what I felt. But no amount of physical pain could really compare to what I felt. So instead I ran upstairs to our room. I put on the first pair of shoes I could find.

“Wait don’t leave I’m sorry I didn’t mean it. Let me explain myself” of course that what they all say. Tears were just freely streaming down my face now. This would have been the first time Calum has ever seen me cry. I never let anyone see me cry ever. I just felt so pathetic.

“Move” I felt so small. No matter how hard I tried to get passed him he wouldn’t move from the door way.

“No you’re angry I can’t let you leave while you’re crying you could get into an accident” no he was holding my shoulders. This made me cry even harder. But I was more angry at this point.

“Let me go!” I was pushing him with all the strength I had left. “Move it!” I bit his left arm causing him to jerk away from me. “Just leave me alone I don’t want to see you again!”

Current time

I drove for what felt like hours. But it was actually 20 minutes until I had to pull into a 7/11. I cried in my car so long that day. I eventually had to leave since so many people were staring at me.

When I finally made it home that day. The whole house was off. Calum’s things were gone. His half of the closet was completely empty. But what really killed me was not hearing Duke’s paws paddling against the floor. My heart was so shattered. I was all alone now. I didn’t even have Duke now to cuddle up against, he was my only buddy. Even though he was just a dog I knew he understood me. Duke always made me laugh when I cried, and he would make me feel not alone. Now I didn’t even have him, All I could do that night was cry. I drank half a bottle of Patron Silver, that night. And since then I just have not been the same.

I should have see it. I should have known that he was cheating. I knew that he was writing and working on the third album, but I should have know that he wasn’t at the studio all night long. I ignored all these things. I felt so guilty, I knew that I wasn’t giving him enough attention either. I should have dropped some classes just so I could be with him more. Going to school full time and juggling a part time job, was so time consuming. I felt like I denied him more then he has denied me. And I let him leave. I told him I didn’t want to see him again.

The heavy feeling started to come up again. This time I couldn’t keep my eyes open. The whole floor felt like it was shaking. Then my eyes shut...

Tagged: @kikibelle @shanetoo

[midnightbluefox]

I actually cried when @gopherbroke gifted me this amazing Reylo Halloween art this morning. 

At the beginning of the month, we talked about what costumes Rey and Kylo would wear for Halloween in my fic, Broken Things, but I never expected to be gifted something so amazing. She is beyond talented and has such a kind heart, I MEAN, LOOK AT THIS. 

It’s honestly just beyond beautiful and I can’t thank her enough <3

I also wrote a Broken Things one-shot featuring The Princess Bride costumes and all the fluff, which I’ll post below.

If you haven’t read Broken Things and want to, you can right here!

----------

“I, uh, I don’t know how I feel about this,” Kylo said, and Rey turned around just in time to see him pulling at the black pants molded around his thighs.

Admittedly, they were a little tight. But damn, she wasn’t complaining. Not when it meant she got to admire every inch of his thick, powerful legs encased in black leather.

He turned around to look in the mirror again and her mouth went dry at the sight of his ass in those form-fitting pants. Nope, she wasn’t complaining one bit. Not one single bit.

“I think you look great,” she told him honestly. “And it’s too late to turn back, you’ve already committed.”

Kylo grimaced. “How was I supposed to say no when you got so excited? You played me.”

She laughed, shaking her head as she pulled her red dress out of its bag and smoothed out the wrinkles. When Poe had told them that he wanted to plan a Halloween party, with costumes mandatory, Rey instantly knew what she wanted to do. The Princess Bride.

There was no denying it; the thought of Kylo in those black pants, billowing shirt, and pirate boots… it did embarrassing things to her. And how could she not love the idea of dressing up like Buttercup? That red dress still gave her flutters in her chest every time she watched the movie.

She’d never thought that he would agree but here they were, and he was filling out that costume in all the ways that she had hoped. Better than she had hoped, if she was being honest.

He lifted his arms in front of the mirror, his black sleeves puffing with air from the movement. It was a little comical looking but all she could focus on was the way that shirt stretched across his broad chest, the front ties just begging to be undone.

Fuck, it was going to be a long night.

She draped her dress over her bed, going over and wrapping her arms around Kylo to press a kiss on his shoulder. “Listen, it’s Halloween. Everyone gives each other a hard time about their dorky costumes, that’s just part of the fun. But I think you look amazing.”

His dark eyes met her own in the mirror, an uncertain look settling on his face. “You really do?”

Rey nodded, letting her hands slide down a little, fingers dipping under his shirt to stroke at the bare skin of his stomach. “I’d be happy to show you just how good I think you look, after the party.”

His stomach muscles tensed under her hands and she could see a small smile curling at the corners of his lips in the mirror.

A deep sound rumbled through him. “Are you sure we can’t just cancel?”

Laughing, she pulled away and spun him around, tucking his shirt in quickly, then handed him his mask. “Not on your life. Poe would just break down the door and yank us out of bed.”

“I mean, I didn’t say anything about using the bed,” he said with a suggestive gleam in his eye.

She rolled hers with a grin, pushing him towards the door. “Go make sure everything is ready, I need to get dressed.”

Kylo dipped into a wide bow, backing out of the room. “As you wish.”

Her cheeks were hot as she closed the door, hating how easily he affected her.

——

Fifteen minutes later, she was just coming out of her room when someone knocked on the door. She heard Kylo heading to answer it so she took a minute to straighten her long dress and gave her apartment one last quick look over.

She had been worried that suggesting the party be here would end up being a mistake, but Poe and Finn had stopped by earlier and decorated the whole place. It felt like every inch was covered in cobwebs, bats, or black lace tablecloths, the whole place lit up with festive purple and orange lights. To be honest, she had just wanted the party to be here so if Kylo got overwhelmed, he could go hide in the bedroom and calm down without feeling weird. But it had actually turned out better than she had hoped.

He still hadn’t come back from answering the door so Rey made her way over to make sure everything was okay. The sight that greeted her was nothing she could have ever imagined.

Poe, obviously dressed as Ian Malcolm, complete with thick-framed glasses, an open black button up, and a splint on his leg, was helping Kylo pull a very unamused looking Finn through her front door. Finn, who was wearing one of those inflatable t-rex costumes.

She lost her shit.

“Can you stop laughing at me and help?” Finn snapped, embarrassment obvious in his voice.

She tried her hardest to stop, she really did. But then she looked at him again.

“This is not helping,” he ground out. He tried to shoulder-shuffle through the door, his little dinosaur arms flopping around.

Kylo stepped back, covering his face with a hand, shoulders shaking. He was trying so hard.

“Okay, wait,” Rey managed to gasp out, trying to catch her breath. “How did you even manage to get him up here in the first place?”

Poe grinned hugely, like he’d accomplished some great feat. “We took him through the double exit doors around back. And I just walked behind him and held him up on the stairs. There were a few close calls but we made it.”

She just stared at him as Kylo shook his head slowly, lips pressed together tightly as he tried not to laugh.

“Can we talk about this after you get me through the door?” Finn nearly growled, much to Poe’s delight.

In the end, they just had to deflate his suit. Luckily, Poe brought the fan in case he wilted throughout the night. He was free to move around the kitchen and living room, though no one mentioned what the plan would be if he needed to go to the bathroom. She supposed they’d tackle that one when they got to it.

On the plus side, they’d all been so busy laughing at Finn’s costume that no one commented on Kylo’s, though Rey did catch Poe checking out his ass with an approving look on his face.

A few minutes later, someone else knocked on the door and Rey let in Rose and her sister Paige, both dressed as Hogwarts students. Though they weren’t super close, especially with Rey not working at the cafe anymore, she’d always liked Rose’s sweet and supportive nature.

A couple more friends of Poe’s shuffled in and Rey’s little apartment was starting to feel a bit crowded. She wiggled through people to find Kylo serving drinks out of a bowl shaped like a witch’s cauldron and oozing mist from the dry ice.

“Hey,” she muttered, pressing against his side. “You doing okay?”

He nodded, though the movement was a bit jerky and she could see a muscle tick in his jaw. This many people in her small apartment, necessary socializing with strangers… it was wearing on him.

“Don’t forget, just say the word and I’ll create a distraction so you can slip away.”

His smile was strained but genuine. “I’m okay for now.”

“I’m not,” an annoyed voice said from the other side of the counter. Hux stood there, empty cup in hand, trademark scowl across his face. “I’m exhausted thanks to my client from hell and everyone keeps giving me dirty looks for not wearing a dumb costume.”

Kylo looked thoughtful, raising his eyebrows. “Client from hell… Hux, that might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said about me. Maybe coming to a party and loosening up a little is good for you.”

Hux actually sneered at him. “You’re one to talk about loosening up, Ren. How long until you nervous sweat straight through that ridiculous shirt of yours? I only came because you said free drinks.”

“Actually,” Rey whispered loudly, “he’s only in a good mood because Rose wore that short plaid skirt.”

She was totally reaching, making a guess based off of the lingering, carefully expressionless look he’d given Rose across the kitchen earlier, but his ears turned bright red.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said stiffly, turning around and walking away with his empty cup.

They watched him go in a stunned silence.

“Well, that was weird,” Kylo finally said. “Should we warn Rose?”

Rey considered for a second. “I mean, I feel like I should, as her friend. But also, I want to see where this goes. And it’s not like Rose couldn’t take care of herself if he approached her. That girl would destroy him, and I’m just saying, I wouldn’t mind seeing it.”

Chuckling, he leaned against the counter, looking visibly less tense and together, they watched Finn try to back into an empty corner without knocking anything over.

“This is the first Halloween party that I’ve ever been to,” Kylo told her. “Or uh, thrown, I guess.”

Rey grinned, remembering cheesy party after cheesy party over the years. It was pretty much an unspoken requirement that if you were throwing a Halloween party, it couldn’t be too high budget or cool.

“You haven’t missed much,” she told him. “They’re all pretty similar to this; silly costumes, cheap drinks, and cheaper decorations.”

“I kind of weirdly like it,” he admitted. He always sounded so surprised when he tried something new and enjoyed it.

She felt bad for a second, thinking about how she’d almost declined to have the party or go at all. Leia was throwing one for her foundation and all of the kids they’d been helping were invited. She didn’t want to miss it, or the chance to connect with some of the children who she’d been counseling, but now she was happy she did. Making these sorts of memories with Kylo would always be a priority to her.

“Then we’ll do another one next year,” she said, giving him a smile. “Though, we might have to use your apartment instead… mine will probably still be going through repairs after Finn gets done destroying everything tonight.” She laughed, having seen him knock several things over already.

He tensed up next to her. “I actually wanted to talk to you about that… though now might not be the best time.”

Rey could feel her eyebrows coming together in confusion. What exactly did he want to talk to her about? The Halloween party next year?

Taking his hand, she led him out of the kitchen and through the crowded living room, managing to make it to the bedroom in one piece. She distinctly heard a suggestive whistle that she knew was Poe, and gave him the finger and a saucy smile as she closed the door behind them.

BB immediately darted out from underneath her bed, Kylo’s mask firmly between his teeth. She’d been looking for it all day.

“You brat,” she muttered, going over to sit next to Kylo on the bed. He looked pale, paler than before, and his fingers were tapping out a frantic beat against his leg.

She caught this hand in her own, squeezing gently. “Hey, what’s going on? You’re obviously nervous.”

His dark eyes met hers, always so vulnerable and open. If anyone ever wanted to know what he was feeling, all they needed to do was study his eyes.

“You’d think after everything we’ve been through, I wouldn’t get nervous with you anymore,” he said, a self-deprecating smile curling at the corners of his mouth. “I wasn’t planning on asking you tonight but I just… I couldn’t get it off of my mind and we’re having a good time and it just seemed-”

“Ask me?” Rey cut him off, mouth going strangely dry. She was suddenly hyper-aware of the heat of his hand in hers.

He took a deep breath. “I wanted to ask you to move in with me. I mean, if you’d like to move in with me. I know we live literally right next to each other but if we moved in together, we wouldn’t have to-”

She laughed softly, cutting him off again. “Kylo, you don’t have to convince me. I’ve been hoping you’d ask for a while now. It makes sense and I want to live with you.”

And there it was; the look of surprise lighting up his face and turning his dark eyes into a warm brown.

“Okay,” he breathed. “Okay, let’s move in together.”

“Well, we can’t right this second,” she teased, shifting closer, heart pounding with excitement and love. “There’s kind of a party going on, if you didn’t notice.”

“Really? I didn’t,” he deadpanned, making her chuckle.

Leaning up, Rey kissed him softly, his lips warm and welcoming against her own. She’s known for a while now that home was wherever Kylo was, where they could be together.

He wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her closer, deepening the kiss eagerly. He tasted like relief and happiness, of the promise of their life together.

A loud bang on the door sent them jerking apart, a startled gasp escaping Rey.

“Are you guys getting it on in there?” Poe called, banging on the door again, sounding like he’d already had a few drinks. “I know life finds a way and all that, but there’s a party out here and we’re all going to listen to you guys if you are.”

A loud chorus of “nopes” and “no ways” followed his statement and one disgusted sounding scoff that had to have come from Hux.

Rey covered her face, wondering if this hadn’t been a mistake after all.

“You know what,” she told Kylo, who looked like he didn’t know whether he should laugh or hide under the bed. “I think my window opens to the fire escape. Want to sneak up to the roof and hide out all night?”

His laugh shook the bed. “That sounds perfect.”

[jhulbert19-blog]

Product Placement

Sponsorship, or product placement, is a staple in most movie making processes. Companies have always paid filmmakers to put their product in a popular movie or television show. They do this because they believe when viewers see a character or set on the show using their product, they will want to use that product as well. It allows for even more recognition among the commonfolk. Product placement is in most films and shows, but they are not always equally effective. Here, I am going to go into a few examples of product placement, and whether or not they worked.

  My first example is in the film The Martian. In the movie, the astronaut (Matt Damon) who has been left alone on Mars finds a way to grow his own food, potatoes, so he doesn’t starve to death until he is rescued. At a point in the movie, he begins to stress the importance of his ketchup supply to go with his potato meals. So, the product on display here was Heinz ketchup because the brand on the bottle is shown. I find it to be effective simply because I relate to the fact that potatoes by themselves are very bland and have no flavor. The way the dialogue was written, really sells the need for ketchup in his case, and we the viewers, feel the desire to have the flavor combination of ketchup and potatoes that he lacked. It always makes me appreciate the taste of ketchup, which is what I think they were going for. So in my book, I’d say that was an effective example of product placement.

 The second example is in the movie Iron Man. The scenario is the protagonist, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) has just been rescued from a hostage situation in the Middle East and brought back to his home in America. The first thing he does when he gets off the plane landing in America is that he desires to go get a double bacon cheeseburger. After some argument, the next shot is Tony Stark getting out of his car with a bag from Burger King, being the product on display here. I find this placement effective as well because of the sense of hunger and satisfaction. Our protagonist has just been held captive and has not been fed properly or taken care of. It is also assumed that he just had food that wasn’t that good, or at the very least not a double bacon cheeseburger. I know if I had come from this situation and I was back home, that would be one of the strongest cravings of a meal, a double bacon cheeseburger. At this point, it didn’t matter who was used for the company of the burger. Honestly, I don’t even like burger king! But I relate so much to the satisfaction that comes from eating a bacon cheeseburger after starving and not having one for years, that it makes me want some. So, I’d say this was one of the best product placements that I’ve seen.

  On the flip side, there are times that product placement is out of place, blatantly obvious, stop the flow of the movie, or are not used to benefit the company. An example of this is in the movie Jurassic World. As the company in the movie is presenting a new dinosaur they say the line “Verizon Wireless presents: the Indominus Rex.” That is so on the nose it’s almost painful. They attempt to make a line in the movie to make light of it’s obviousness, but that doesn’t excuse the laziness in the writing as to the timing of the product placement. Another example was in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles where there is a Victoria Secret billboard and all that is done is the movie makes a joke where the turtles hide in their shells covering the bra of the model on the billboard to blend in. This is ineffective because it doesn’t try to convince anyone to use their product, nor does it even make the company look good. The movie sacrificed these things to make a joke that wasn’t even that funny. I’m sure the company was probably not satisfied from their money’s worth.

 There are many examples in the film and television industry of product placement. I could continue to list examples until you don’t want to read anymore. The power of product placement lies however in the execution of the storytelling towards that product. A lot of product placements are very subtle and are just background pieces. Some are used to further the story and effectively advertise it to the audience. Others are completely in your face and shoehorned into dialogue. While I have my complaints about this in terms of how it affects the flow of a movie/ tv show,  I cannot deny that sometimes it is still effective for both the company and the viewer. There is a lot of persuasion when you see an everyday product being used in a fantasy world that we’ve been transported to. That’s what movies are for a lot of times, escapism for the viewer into a world where our problems don’t exist; and companies have wisely manipulated that to their advantage and I can’t argue with the occasional success of it.