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[writingforanxiety]

You Still Need Sleep Darlings

Alcina let out a tired sigh as she crossed the threshold of the mansions large intricate front doors. A sunrise of dark blues and greens was just starting to peak above the pines as she closed the doors softly behind her and secured the heavy latch. She had been down in the village most of the night looking for new households that would make a good candidates for any future wines that required more of a youthful taste. Finishing up with the locks she turned from the entrance and started to make her way to her bed chambers to unwind from a long night of perusing the mountain side homes and dealing with the elements. She reached the base of the staircase and undid her overcoat that had a fine sheen of midnight dew adorning it and gently hung it on the coatrack before making the trek up the stairs to her private room. As she neared the top and was taking her hat into her hands she heard hurried footsteps to her left down the hall that lead to the girls rooms. A guileful smile made its way to her face as she changed course from her own chamber to go check on her seemingly still awake trio. 

The girls rooms were all grouped up on the left wing of the house, with two rooms next to each other belonging to the oldest two and a third adjacent to them containing the youngest. Walking up to her youngest's room she opened the door gently and peered inside the sparsely illuminated room and glanced to the bed, where a sleeping girl should have been. The smile on her lips grew as she noted the absence of the child and she quietly closed the door. Turning gently she gazed at the two doors behind her and pondered a moment before choosing her eldest's door on the left and made her way over, getting her hand wrapped around the handle before pausing mid turn after hearing a giggle escape the room to her right. she released the handle in her hand and almost floated over to the door of her middle child and the smile on her face was downright mischievous.

 Forcing her smile into a scowl and mentally bracing herself she flung the door open with an unneeded force and in a mock furious tone let out, “And just WHAT do we think we are doing ladies?”.

 The girls, who were all grouped up on the single bed in the room let out an honestly scared shrill as they whipped around to look at their mother, whom upon seeing their faces immediately lost her mock expression and laughed heartedly at the wide eyes staring back at her in stunned silence. Daniela was the first to recover and picked up the closest object next to her, a small stuffed animal depicting a mountain lion and threw it at her still chuckling mother, who effortlessly caught the projectile without so much as opening her eyes or interrupting her hysterics. Running the back of her hand across her eyes she entered the room and started to settle as she approached her guilty girls. 

“Now I know none of you are young children but I also recall distinctly setting a bedtime for any and all girls living in my home to ensure proper sleep for health and strength, did I not? Perhaps my old age has caught up to me and I’m mistaken. Could one of you remind me my dearests”? 

Alcina’s tone held nothing but affection for the younglings before her and as she reached the bedside and sat herself upon the edge of it she handed Daniela her toy back. As Daniela reached out for the impromptu weapon the youngest daughter separated herself from her sisters and half crawled over them to reach her arms out toward her mother. Without even thinking Alcina reached out and grabbed the girl under her armpits to pull her forward and place her on her lap, stroking her hair back from a forehead that had a warm glow to it.

 “Oh my dear you’re terribly warm, are you ill? Did something happen while I was away?” 

The girl didn’t respond but pushed her head into Alcina’s chest and wrapped her arms around her middle. Her mother immediately wrapped an arm around her to hold her close and while her other hand continued to stroke her hair she looked up at her older two daughters with a worried expression.

 “We didn’t mean to break the rules Mother promise, but she had a horrid nightmare while you were away and we thought maybe if we cheered her up she’d calm down. We promise that’s it.”

 Alcina smiled warmly at her oldest girls and tucked the arm she had around her youngest's back under her so she could stand up with her firmly on her hip. 

“Well thank you girls, but it’s late and all three of you must be exhausted. I’ll take little darling to my bed tonight so you girls can get your rest.”

 She leaned down to kiss Daniela’s head goodnight and gasped a bit when she pulled away, a new look of confusion gracing her face. Daniela’s face had gone light pink and she looked down at her hands on her lap. 

“Can, can we join you too please? If that’s okay.” 

She looked up at her mother with a sheepish expression and the smile reserved just for her girls returned to her face. Without verbally responding Alcina nodded and held out a hand to help her other two children out of bed and led them all to her room, swaying as she walked to sooth the one still on her hip. Entering her room she allowed the two older girls to run into her bed and get comfy as she gently lifted her youngest off her hip and sat her down by the door and kissed her forehead gently and whispered to her she’d be in bed in a minute and watched as she made her way over to cuddle up with her sisters. She sat her hat on her gown rack by the door before closing it and made her way into her bathroom to change into her night gown and remove her makeup and any grime from her long night. Finishing her morning routine she returned to her room to find her girls cuddled under her sheets and staring at her expectantly. Smiling wide she made her way to the bed and scooted the girls over to make room for herself and settled in, one of her girls crawling over her to lay on her right side and the other two curling into her left. Wrapping both arms around her girls protectively she allowed them to cuddle into her sides and get comfortable before she started humming a tune she used to sing to them when they were little and couldn’t sleep. The girls didn’t stand a chance and were all out in minutes with their heads all resting on their mother and the occasional hand flowing through their hair. Alcina, already tired from her journeys and with her girls surrounding her fell asleep with a smile on her face and a comfortable lightness in her chest.  

[writingforanxiety]

Friendly reminder my ask box is open for writing prompts 🥺

[writingforanxiety]

Hello friends!!! Please please please send me writing prompts for Lady Dimitrescu! I’m willing to write pretty much anything but fluff is preferred!!

[writingforanxiety]

Mother’s Day

Where Eda gets to experience a human holiday and comes to the realization that she may actually like it. 

While Luz learned early on that the Boiling Isles didn’t share many, or really any, holiday’s with the human realm it still didn’t stop her from being both excited, and a bit sad, when certain days came around. Though the realms also had different days on their calendars she managed to keep up with them using her phone which alerted her that today was a rather special day. 

It was Mother’s Day and at first it had Luz feeling incredibly sad. She had stopped responding to her mother’s texts when summer was finally over, the last message she had left was somewhat a goodbye while also stating she promised she would return home one day. She just couldn’t right now, and safe to say the responses she got were very emotional ones. For a little while her mother still tried to reach her, to understand why. It broke Luz’s heart but she was just a kid who didn’t know how to explain. Her mami deserved more than a “because I’ve been in the demon realm and my only way back has been destroyed until I can find another one.” Plus Camilia definitely wouldn’t believe it. 

Keep reading

[writingforanxiety]

Thanks for the tag @consistantly-changing !!!

Top 3 ships: clace, ineffable husbands, and jopper

Last movie- The Ringing Bell

Currently reading- The Last True Hermit and They Both Die At The End

Food I’m craving- cinnamon fried honey banana!

Tagging- @elisaphoenix13 @radio64 @dappermouth @kokokoart @general-dilara65th @pixarpnflover @startouched-moonshadows @star-crossed-lizards

I was tagged by @dancewithyoutoday thank you!! I’m honored 😭💕

rules: tag 9 ppl you want to get to know better

top 3 ships:

Gallavich and Gallavich again from Shameless. Gallavich x3. Those two have the best chemistry in the world. Period. But ok Klaine from Glee. Even if I don’t ship them like I used to, Kurt’s one of my favorite character ever and he will always be my baby. Cazzie from Atypical, I was so happy with those girls, gimme more.

last movie:

Aladdin live action. It was all I needed.

currently reading:

I’m reading El Jardín de al lado by José Donoso, I bought it from my neighbor in a yard sale and it has been helped me a lot during this quarantine. But like, literally in this right moment I’m re-reading this lovely Gallavich fanfic “None the wiser” by Loftec because it always makes my heart feel better.

food im craving:

I don’t feel like eating too much right now, my appetite closes every time i’m nervous and well, you know, hard times for the world. BUT maybe some homemade pizza could help 🥺?

Now I wanna know this about you 👀 I tag @lovelyklaine @milkymickeyway @loftec @imikhailo @fabreagab @babygoldfish921 @gallavich-and-millagher @mickeys-upset @tryintosurvive

[writingforanxiety]

A gift for my new best friend @writingforanxiety (check her out!)

Sleepy time in the Owl House!

[image description: Eda sleeping on the couch with Luz curled up in her arms and King at their feet with his rabbit]

[writingforanxiety]

I struggle with art but did a little piece for one of my short fics I’m working on! It’s a Drabble about Luz pushing herself too hard and Eda finding her passed out lol

[writingforanxiety]

They’ve been coloured!!!

[Image description: Luz riding King like an elephant, now in colour!]

Curtesy of my sister who does not own Tumblr.

@writingforanxiety

[writingforanxiety]

Imma post my usual drawing process along with a fanart for @writingforanxiety ‘s ficlet

Step one is basic circles and lines to get the general positions of everything. I draw crude facial expressions in the margins for the characters, as well as their initials on the drawing so I remember who’s who.

Next step is to clean it up. Make the vague shapes into actual bodies and heads for the characters. I might remove the initials, I might not based on how many characters there are. This only has two, so I removed them.

Next is the body detailing. I save the faces and hair for last, so this is pretty much the “drawing clothes” stage.

Lineart time baby! Finish drawing in the faces and hair, as well as erase any notes and doodles in the margins.

I forgot to take a pic of the next stage which is outlining it in pen, but that’s fairly easily imagined.

Finally: colouring! I don’t use colour so it’s black and white.

[Image description: Luz is small and riding King like a horse (or elephant based on the size). Thay are both happy about this.]

[writingforanxiety]

This might actually be my favourite thing I’ve drawn.

Sleepy time in the owl house! Please forgive my camera, it doesn’t seem to like shading without intense contrast. Do not tag as ship or I will steal all your left shoes.

[Image description: Eda laying down on the couch with Luz squished beside her and King at their feet]

Inspired by a ficlet from @writingforanxiety check them out!

[writingforanxiety]

Luz Noceda was a normal high school freshman by day, but by night, she was the creator of the webcomic “The Good Witch Azura”

Luz’s comic was fairly popular, but it wasn’t until she saw her rival, Amity Blight, wearing a fan made Azura t-shirt that Luz realized just how special her comic was.

[writingforanxiety]

Spell Gone Wrong

It was finally the day! Luz had gotten up before the sun had risen  at the promise from Eda the night before of teaching her the basics of potion brewing today. She couldn’t wait to get started, throwing off her sleeping bag cover and burying King in the aftermath as she made her way straight to Eda’s door and started yelling enthusiastically outside of it.

“Eda! Eda wake up! It’s morning and you promised to show me magic stuff!”

Luz continued to excitedly chat outside of Eda’s door as Eda awoke with a loud groan. Rubbing her eyes and sitting up she let out a loud long yawn as she made her way over to the door, rubbing her lower back and grumbling quietly. 

‘Alright, alright! I hear you kid hold your dang horses, I’m coming geez. And do you even know what time it is?! How do you expect me to teach you when I’m a sleepy little owl?”

Eda opened the door and Luz let herself in, dancing excitedly around Eda and tugging at her sweater sleeves. Eda could’t pretend she wasn’t glad to see the kid so ecstatic about learning from her, stroke of her ego or her own effections she’d never tell, but she ruffled the girls head affectionately before walking past her and out the door. Luz strode close behind her talking about how excited she was and how she couldn’t wait to become a great witch while Eda scratched her scalp and called out to King to get his lazy bones up and help them downstairs. 

Entering the kitchen and pushing King off the counter Eda set to work grabbing jars out of cupboards and an assortment of pots and pans. Luz had taken a seat at the counter and was ogling every ingredient Eda sat out before her with pure elation. Setting down the last few items and pushing a handful of baby carrots in front of Luz, Eda gave a grand flourishing gesture with her hands and let out an overly enthusiastic “TADA”!

Luz looked down at the small carrots in front of her and back up to Eda’s big smile, then back down.

“Eda… these are baby carrots. Are they important for the potion? Or are we having a surprisingly healthy breakfast for this house”.

“Ha Ha, and no this isn’t breakfast, these, Luz, are what we’ll be enchanting today. I’m going to show you how to make a potion that can make things shrink and one that can make ‘em grow. Super simple and almost impossible to mess up kid”. 

Grabbing two medium sized pots and some of the scattered ingredients she layed out earlier, Eda began explaining to Luz what to mix and how long to cook it before it would work properly. Luz was wide eyed and ecstatic to be learning this, and it made Eda’s heart jump seeing how enthralled in the lesson she was. Once she had both potions to the appropriate consistency she slid them over to Luz and picked up one of the baby carrots.

“Okay now Luz, I want you to take this and dip it in a pot, users choice”.

Luz grabbed the carrot and looked between the pots, choosing the pot on the left at random she swirled the tip of the carrot around inside until Eda told her that was enough, then set it gently on the counter. She heard Eda explaining what the process about to happen was Luz was far too concentrated on the carrot to really process any of it. With a gentle shake at first and a building tremble after, Luz’s eyes grew wide as the carrot seemed to grow ten times its original size, now roughly the same length as the smaller girl’s arms.

“Eda, this is so.So.Cool!!! I can’t believe I’m actually learning this!”

Luz reached for another carrot to try the other pot as King made his way back onto the counter, perturbed at the lack of inclusion he was receiving. 

“Hey! That’s nothing! If you want to see something really cool then check this out.”

King slid his demon book onto the counter with a loud thunk, grunting as he repositioned it and flipped it open to a random page.

“Okay, now this dude is really terrifying, just the saliva on his fangs could-”

He was cut off mid sentence by Eda grabbing him by the collar and plopping him down onto a chair next to Luz, handing him his book and giving him an amused look.

“Sorry there small fry, you’ll have to wait your turn at teaching the human, It’s professional mentor time.”

“Hey! That’s not fair! I have just as much important information to teach her as you do”!

The two started a back and forth argument about what was more important to learn while Luz continued to dip carrots into the pots. Dipping the carrots into the shrinking pot resulted in them becoming so small she couldn’t see or feel them. Wondering if they disappeared or if they were just too small to see she prepared to ask as much to Eda when King jumped up onto the counter and upset the shrinking pot. Before Eda could catch it or Luz get out of the was a glob was splashed onto the kids lap as she pushed away from the counter.

“Oh no! Eda, what do i do?” 

“It’s okay! None of it touched your skin. We have to be careful and get you changed and you’ll be fine. King, run upstairs and grab a new shirt for Luz and help me-”

Eda was cut off by King jumping from the counter and upsetting a book that has spilled potion on it. With a horrified look Eda watched as a few droplets splattered across Luz’s forearms. Thinking quickly she grabbed a damp rag from the sink and quickly rubbed Luz’s arms down and mopping off her shirt as best she could. When nothing happened Eda let out a relieved laugh and sat back on her heels, mentally planning to strangle that little fuzz ball of a demon when he was back with Luz’s clothes. Standing up to see where he was Eda heard a surprised gasp and turned around to see Luz staring wide eyed at her hands, a look of surprise on her face.

“Eda, I think, I think somethings happening.”

As she finished her awed sentence her legs began to tremble and she fell to her knees, her body appearing smaller than Eda recalled as she rushed over to put a hand on her shoulder.

“Oh boy, okay kid listen up. You’re going to be fine, alright? Not a lot got on you and all we have to do is use a little bit of the growth potion to reverse it okay? You’re going to be back to normal before you know it!”

Eda knew she was right but didn’t like how fast the girl was getting smaller. As she heard King’s little claws at the top of the stairs Luz was down to the size of a toddler, her clothes shrinking with her at a slower rate and looking adorably big on her. As King rounded the corner into the kitchen carrying some fresh clothes and a bathrobe with him Luz had finally stopped growing and was looking at her small hands with amusement. She was no bigger than one of the Bat Queens babies and couldn't get over how cute King was from this angle.

“Oh my god!! King you’re like, 1,000 times cuter from below! Oh your little face and paws! Oh my gosh I love you so much.”

“Alright king’s cute and all but let’s get you fixed up before anything else happens. I’m going to clean up that spill so no more accidents happen and then we’ll have you right back to normal kid.”

King scurried over to Luz and threw his loot onto the ground. Luz was a little below his eye level and giving him the biggest sparkle eyes he had ever seen from her.

“Okay I know I’m usually the cute one but Luz? You’re like a little baby! Is this how everyone feels when they look at me? No wonder I’m getting cuddled all the time. Come on, I’ll help you get up on the counter.”

Kneeling in front of Luz he invited her to climb onto his back. Luz gave out an excited yell and climbed up, grabbing his collar to hold onto.

“Is it weird that I’ve dreamed about this before? Except instead of me shrinking you were larger and also there was a forest made of candy.”

“Luz you are the weirdest human I’ve ever met.”

“Jokes on you! I’m the only human you’ve ever met!”

“Okay that’s enough, King get Luz up here so we can get this over with. Also, stop being weird, you’re freaking me out.”

With an annoyed grunt King scampered up the chairs with Luz whooping excitedly from his back. He wouldn’t admit it but it was kind of fun to be the one giving the piggy back ride for once. Once at the top of the table and safely over the edge, Luz climbed off of King and over to Eda, who was standing with a small bowl in her hand near the table.

“Okay Luz I had the amount you need, also sorry in advance for the mess.”

“It’s okay Eda I’m ready! Wait what mess?’

With that Eda upturned the bowl over Luz, emptying the contents over the miniature girl and stepping to the side to grab the bathrobe. Moving back to her original spot she draped the immensely oversized robe over little Luz and leaned her elbow on the counter to wait out the process. It didn’t take long for Luz to grow back to her full size, although the bathrobe was still way too big. Smiling up at Eda she hopped off the table and embraced her around the waist and hugged tightly.

“Thank you Eda! I can’t believe I learned how to do all that! And I got to ride King like a little demon horse thing!”

Eda just laughed and gave her an encouraging pat on the back before stepping back and eyeing the mess on the counter.

“Alright kid that’s enough magic lessons for one day, now grab those clothes and go shower up and we’ll work on some real breakfast after, okay?’

Luz nodded enthusiastically and grabbed the clothes off the floor before sprinting up the stairs two at a time to the bathroom, she got to learn new magic AND Eda was going to actually help them with breakfast? This day was the best!

[writingforanxiety]

Anyone have any suggestions for short fics or the like for The Owl House? I’d love to write about it more!!

[writingforanxiety]

Sleepy Owl Mom

The sun had risen up bright and angry today on the Boiling Isles. The birds had started singing far too early and cheerily for the taste of some. Eda had had a rough night, and those blasted beasts weren’t making her mood any better. Her curse was getting worse and she was struggling to get enough potions to keep it at bay. It seemed like in just the past few weeks she has resorted to doubling her daily intake to keep her preferred form and stay off the beast. She was tired, long nights and weary days were starting to really take a toll on her. She slowly and tipsily left her nest that morning, her bones popping and eyes drooping. 

She made her rambling way down the hall towards the stairs. She chanced a peek inside Luz’s room as she walked by, the door half open and a small toy sticking half out with pleading little eyes. A small smile breaking her lips she carefully bent to pick the poor thing up, noting with mild interest the little scratches on it. King must have tried to assert his dominance by “beating it up”. Cracking the door open a little more she entered and her smile grew into true form. 

Luz’s was sprawled haphazardly on her sleeping bag with her hair sticking up in all directions and her mouth cracked open with a small line of drool trickling out. Her right side was outside the bags containment and her left side was hidden by rumpled blankets and strewn toys and books. King was curled up beside the lump that must have been her concealed left foot. Both looked like they were still deep in sleep, and from the looks of the room and it’s contents strewn about she made the safe assumption that they had stayed up far past bedtime to play some game they made up. 

Eda took some quiet steps in and avoided stepping on another toy and a book, tripping lightly and quickly regaining balance before she could make the mistake of her foot coming down on King’s little paw. She made her way to Luz’s right side and gently laid the toy down onto her side between her sprawled out arm. Luz made an unconscious movement when the toy made contact with her and went into a arms up stretch, causing Eda to hold her breath. After a few seconds of a spread out stretch and a crumpled face, Luz shifted and snuggled onto her right side, effectively trapping the toy to her chest and a content look replaced her scowl. Eda’s smile returned and she carefully smoothed Luz’s hair out of her eyes and stood back up to take her leave. Exiting the room without any more mishap she made her way downstairs to poor herself a hot cup of coffee. 

After her coffee was poured and she had taken a few sips she made her way over to the living room to take a seat on the couch, her head already feeling foggy and  unfocused. She let out a loud yawn as she leaned back and let the back of her head rest on the wall behind the couch. She rested the coffee on her lap and closed her eyes, letting out a long deep breath. She allowed herself to relax into this position, and was almost drifting off when a small tug at her pant leg brought her back to reality as she lowered her head too quickly to look at what was grabbing at her. 

Luz was standing in front of her, her hair still crumpled from sleep and dark half circles under her lidded eyes. Her small fist was still wrapped in her pant leg and King was tucked under her right arm, barely awake as well. Eda was about to ask what she could do for the girl when Luz put King down and sat down next to Eda, leaning her head to the side to rest on her shoulder and closing her eyes. Eda didn’t say anything or move away but was a little perplexed. Luz was an affectionate little spit fire for sure but this quiet act of affection wasn’t like her. Eda instinctively put her coffee on the table next to her and reached a hand up to cup luz’s forehead. She wasn’t warm at all or too cold, but her eyes didn’t open at the contact either. She heard King rummaging around somewhere off to her side but wasn’t worried enough to take her attention off of Luz.

“Hey there kiddo, you doing alright”? 

Eda moved her hand up Luz’s forehead and into her hair much like she had done earlier. Luz smiled a little and leaned into the touch while snuggling a little closer to Eda.

“I’m okay, Just tired. King woke me up and I didn’t want to go back to bed, but now that I’m down here I don’t think I should have gotten up”. 

As she was finishing talking King came back into Eda’s view and was dragging a large blanket behind him, he also looked like a walking sleep deprivation fiend. He crawled up onto the couch next to luz and tossed a pile of soft material onto her lap. Eda couldn’t help but agree with her wards sleepy disposition. It seemed the entirety of the owl house residents hadn’t gotten the best nights sleep and could all do with a small rest. Eda wasn’t always the most physically affectionate with those around her but with King being a cuddle monster and her new little girl being used to a very touchy feely lifestyle she was learning to take special care in making them feel cared for. Making up her mind that they all needed a good nap she grabbed the bundled blanket on Luz’s lap and turned to face Luz while scooching back a foot to the armrest of the couch. 

Luz’s head rolled off of Eda’s shoulder when she moved and she caught herself before dipping forward, her eyes opening in surprise at the sudden movement. Looking over at Eda she watched as the older woman grabbed a throw pillow and placed it on the armrest before she lowered herself onto it  and scooted toward the back of the couch, When she settled she extended her arms to the smaller girl in an inviting gesture. Luz’s eyes lit up as she moved closer to Eda to cuddle up, moving into her grasp and allowing the woman to move and adjust her half on top of the other and throw the blanket over them both. She felt King somewhere near her feet, spinning to get comfy and sighing heavily when finally laying down.

Eda let Luz wiggle around to get into her own comfortable position and wrapped her arms around the girl once she had settled. She held Luz close and started running her hand through the soft bangs on the sleepy figure's forehead to encourage her to sleep. It didn’t take long, after the first couple strokes her eyes had closed, and after a few more her mouth popped open slightly and gentle snores exited the sleeping child. Eda smiled down at the sight of her and King peacefully sleeping and snuggled closer. She would have to figure out a cure to her curse soon, or at least find a better management solution. But for now she was tired, tired of staying up all night worrying and planning and tired of pretending she had to have everything figured out. She placed a small kiss on the top of Luz’s head and let out her own content sigh, finally feeling comfortable enough to catch up on some much needed sleep with her family safe and happy with her.

[writingforanxiety]

Also requests open!

In general send me stories!!

[writingforanxiety]

Hey!

A few people saw the story I did for Mama Bear Stephen inspired by @elisaphoenix13 and have sent me story requests for more of the like, and I’d be happy to write them! Important to remember that the idea of mama bear belongs to Elisa and while I love him dearly the character is hers and you shouldn’t send me duplicate asks if she hasn’t answered yours. That being said I asked if she’d mind and she has okayed requests! Again please don’t send things she hasn’t written yet if you’ve already asked her or get her okay first if she chose not to write it, but feel free to ask me anything!

[writingforanxiety]

What about a fic where Stephen is under a spell from an evil wizard? Making him "evil", and peter and tony are the only ones that can bring him back to normal , because you know, mama bear would never intentionally hurt is cub... or something like that ?

A Gut Feeling

He noticed something was wrong the moment Stephen came back home via a portal. Actually, Peter was halfway to his feet when the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he watched in utter confusion as the sorcerer ignored him and walked into the kitchen. Usually, if the teen is the same room that Stephen portals home to, the man will wait for him to approach him and welcome the doctor home with a hug. Even if he had a really bad day. Those he definitely waited for Peter’s hugs because it made his day just a little bit better.

Stephen ignored him this time.

He never did that. In fact, he would have to be dead, dying, or unconscious to ignore Peter, and even if he was unconscious, the teen was relatively positive the sorcerer was astral projecting.

While being ignored was weird, his spidey-senses going off around Stephen was much weirder. Maybe the sorcerer wasn’t out of danger? Peter looks around but his senses kept screaming at him, the intensity growing with each step he took into the kitchen. It was too late when he finally realized Stephen was the danger. Too late because the idea that his pseudo-mom would ever hurt him was preposterous.

But he was. Stephen had glared at him when he entered the kitchen, and then tightly conjured red bands around Peter’s neck when he opened his mouth to greet the sorcerer. The teen’s eyes widen as he struggles with the magical binding and the Sorcerer Supreme sighs with annoyance.

“I thought maybe you would take a hint. That I didn’t want to be bothered…but I guess I gave you too much credit.”

Peter’s vision begins to spot and he gasps for breath when the bands tighten, and then they finally loosen when Stephen releases his end, sending Peter to his knees. He sucks in precious air as the sorcerer shuffles around the kitchen to make tea, and when the spots finally fade, Peter scrambles to his feet and escapes to his room.

Maybe he was being too clingy and Stephen had tried to kindly tell him to back off before? That would explain why he got so violent. Peter was pretty bad about reading someone’s body language. It could also be that parenting Peter was too much of a hassle and he was done with it. He was technically only Tony’s even though they were married, and Peter couldn’t really blame him. Who would want a clingy, mutant teenager for a son?

The train of thought turned into a dangerous one.

What if Stephen told Tony to get rid of Peter?

The teen curls up into a ball on his bed and shakes his head. No, Stephen was just having a bad day. One where even Peter’s hugs wouldn’t make things better, as the sorcerer claimed. He would just need to give Stephen his space and hope that Tony figured out what was going on and help make things better.

He laid in his bed for hours. His room slowly darkening as the sun set until only the city lights dully lit his room. Peter did eventually move to his desk to work on his homework, and was only a little surprised when he checked the time halfway through his chemistry homework and found that it was past nine. No one got him for dinner.

His stomach growls at the thought of food and he bites his lip as he glances at his closed bedroom door. Maybe enough time had passed for Stephen to relax that he could grab something to eat? He didn’t want to stress him out more. It was probably late enough that his parents would be watching tv in the living room and the kitchen would be open.

With that thought, Peter puts his pen down and quietly slips out of his room and down the hall into the kitchen. He found Tony sitting at the table with leftovers from last night and reading something on his phone, and Peter opens the fridge to see if there was leftover leftovers.

“What the hell?!”

Peter looks over at Tony and finds the man glaring in his general direction. Was he in a bad mood too? “I’m just getting something to eat.”

“Did that happen on patrol?”

Patrol? Did Stephen tell Tony he was on patrol and that’s why no one got him for dinner? Or maybe the fact that Tony was eating leftovers was why. It must have been a ‘fend for yourself’ night.

“Uh…what?” Peter jumps when Tony stands and approaches him and the elder grabs his chin and tilts his head to the side.

“There are bruises on your neck. Who did that?”

Bruises? Peter clears his throat and gently bats his father’s hand away to heat up the food he pulled out of the fridge. Tony must not know what happened earlier, and if he was right, Stephen took advantage of his silence and took the opportunity to place the blame on criminals. Just thinking that felt wrong to Peter. First Stephen strangled the teen then lied to Tony.

Something wasn’t right.

“Just your typical lowlife. I’m alright. It’ll heal in a couple of hours.” Peter lies.

Tony frowns. “Maybe you should let Mama Bear look at that.”

It felt like the man had thrown ice water at him. It didn’t take much to identify the feeling as fear. He was actually afraid of Stephen. “No. It’s okay. I’m breathing fine and it doesn’t hurt.”

The billionaire looked unconvinced but nodded. “Alright. Just…take it easy. Eat and head to bed.”

“Okay.”

Tony affectionately ruffles his hair and returns to the table to finish his leftover casserole, leaving Peter to finish putting together a simple sandwich. The teen joins the mechanic at the table temporarily, and when Tony finishes he throws his dishes into the dishwasher and heads to bed with a 'good night’ over his shoulder. He may be going to bed, but he wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon. Stephen sort of made it a thing that if Tony was going to stay up, to at least lay in bed with a Starkpad so he was at least next to the sorcerer while he slept. That little rule was helping Tony have somewhat of a more decent sleep schedule.

Peter heads to bed as promised after he finishes his sandwich, with just a few minutes to finish his homework, and despite his interesting (terrifying) day, he fell asleep pretty quickly. He had his usual nightmares, but this was one of the times he was aware it was a nightmare. So the heavy feeling on his chest, and the difficulty breathing wasn’t as panic inducing as they normally were. Peter discovered that if he relaxed in the nightmares he was aware of, he either woke up faster or the dream changed to something more pleasant.

He woke up…but he found himself in another nightmare. One he would rather replace with his dreams of being crushed by a building over and over again, because what he woke up to was horrifying.

He really was having difficulting breathing because Stephen was standing over him and strangling him again.

Every part of him was screaming that something wasn’t right. This was not the sorcerer that was always so gentle with him, that was sometimes annoyingly overprotective of him. No. This Stephen was angry. His eyes, which always held love and fondness for him was filled with resentment and hostility.

Peter just didn’t know why.

“W-Why?” He croaks out when he pries surprisingly strong hands away enough to talk.

“It won’t matter in a minute.”

The teen chokes on a whimper when Stephen tightens his grip, and as his vision began to spot again and when confusion was about to set in, he realized that the hands at his throat weren’t scarred. They were strong though so Peter could only guess the sorcerer was focusing his magic into his hands. While Peter would have been strong enough to throw him off, Stephen had the element of surprise and the teen was already too weak to do much of anything.

Just when he thought it was the end though, he faintly recognized the sound of a portal forming, and Stephen was pulled away. Peter gasps loudly and holds a hand up to his released neck and watches through blurred vision as Stephen is punched and Levi wraps itself around the sorcerer’s arms after forcing them against his sides.

“You won’t kill me.” Stephen snarls.

The responding voice had Peter looking toward his savior. “You hurt mine. I don’t know what happened in your dimension for you to do what you did,” this was around the time that Peter finally recognized a second Stephen, and the man looked both enraged and devastated. “But I have no qualms against killing myself to keep my son safe.”

Peter’s vision clears a little more as Levi unravels itself from the wrong Stephen, who gets thrown through a portal, and the remaining Stephen turns to the ailing teen. He approaches him slowly, the teen recoiling just a bit when the sorcerer reaches out, and gently cups Peter’s cheek. His senses, for the first time all day, were silent. This was the Stephen he knew. His familiar scent (something the other Stephen didn’t have but Peter didn’t process it), his gentle shaking touch (definitely amplified by fear), and kind eyes filled with worry and a bit of devastation still there.

“Mom.”

That was all the other man needed before Peter was pulled into a tight embrace. He could feel the other man trembling when his face was quickly pressed into Stephen’s collarbone. Sure, Peter was scared when he woke up to being strangled, but he could tell something was bothering the doctor.

“I am so sorry. A rogue sorcerer managed to switch me with an alternate version of myself without my knowledge. It took me getting to the tower in that dimension to realize something was wrong.”

Well that already explained a lot. An alternative version of his Stephen would be messed up.

“It’s okay. You got here just in time. I’ll be okay.”

Stephen holds him tighter. “Barely. Peter…you were dead in that reality. He killed you and apparently told that Tony that it happened during your patrol.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. I can’t think of anything that would turn me into that monster. I was already coming back as soon as I found out though. When I did…” Stephen’s breath hitches.

They sat there in silence, Stephen’s grip on him unwavering, until Peter finally manages to get them both laying down. The doctor lays down without a fuss, using magic to change his clothes, and directing Levi to a corner of the room. They both definitely needed the validation that the other was either okay or real, and Peter wasn’t about to complain. In the back of his mind, he was still a little afraid that this was another dream, that the other Stephen had choked him out of consciousness, but then the man next to him clung onto him again once they got comfortable.

Being shoved into a world where someone he vowed to protect with his life was dead because of him (although indirectly) shook Stephen to his core. Peter was considerate and wore his heart on his sleeve, it kind of made the sorcerer wonder what caused so much hate in his alternate self.

“Your father doesn’t know.” It wasn’t a question. If Tony knew, the other Stephen would have been dead.

“He thinks I got hurt on patrol.”

Stephen swears under his breath. “I’m sorry cub…so sorry you had to go through that. I’m surprised you haven’t thrown me out yet.”

“My senses went off around him. I’m okay now though. He didn’t have all the small things that you do, so I know for a fact that I’m safe again.” He pauses for a few seconds. “I don’t blame you by the way. I’m sure you’re thinking about the what ifs and I just wanted you to know that.”

Peter was far too good for this world.

Any world really.

“Love you Mom.” Peter says after a few minutes of quiet.

“…I love you too Spiderling.” Stephen whispers.

It wasn’t guilt that kept the sorcerer up that night. It was pure unadulterated fear. Fear that one of the most important people in his life would be taken away if he closed his eyes.

So he asked Karen to turn on the tv to a quiet setting when Peter eventually fell asleep. It helped distract him from everything but his thoughts of having Friday delete any and all footage of the other Stephen harming Peter. Just thinking about it made him sick. He couldn’t see it again, and definitely wouldn’t let Tony either.