#hello brief lives nation . i would apologize

[mikarchive2]

barbara crooker, red amaryllis neil gaiman, the sandman, vol. 7 issue #49

[aseasonforexcellence]

"Forgiveness Fits in a Cup"

A brief fictional vignette inspired by when a friend in class commented, "Reconciliation does not mean progress."

This morning I caught the train a minute late. The train on this edge of the city was so prompted as to be the very heartbeat of the city, and I stepped into the cab a minute late. I half expected an attendant to throw me off for disturbing the rhythmic regularity of the train on a beautiful spring day. No one came, and I held my guilt as penance.

The usual schedule was interrupted by an unexpected visitor whom I stopped hoping to see again nearly a decade ago. No strong feeling other than mild annoyance arose seeing them through the glass in the front door—the same feeling I have when the neighbor leaves their trash bins behind the car I rarely drive. They rapped, pleading for entry, while I glanced at the clock and hastily thrust lunch and paper files into a worn briefcase. I opened the door and the guest flushed with embarrassment and no clear motive. The situation is ironic considering the guest, rapping anxiously, prompted me and the door to open.

            “Hello,” the guest said. They rubbed the hat in their hands as if they took it off for the national anthem at a baseball game.

            “How can I help you?” I offered.

            “Can I come in?”

            I hear the cat’s paws are faint in the background. Perhaps suddenly, I scoop my coat and briefcase to step out of the house. I shut the door before J.J. (Jean Jacques) could escape into the yard.

“No,” I retort, smooth a hair from my forehead. I continue, “but I have five minutes while I walk to the train station.” I attempt to soften my response, “It is a Wednesday in the middle of May, and I just got back from vacation. I cannot be late to work today.”

            The cobblestone path to the road basks in morning sunlight. Distant car sounds, the rumbling of a trash can being brought to the curb, and bees hum in a fresh bloom of yard flowers. I smiled and took a deep breath, barely audible. It will be a nice day today, I thought to myself.

            I set off at an intentional pace. The guest keeps pace, at first side by side, and then a half step behind, to the right, as we step left onto the sidewalk. Down the gentle hill is the train station already in sight, dappled with shade and the early sun.

            “I came all the way from Sturbridge,” the guest manages to say, “to apologize. I am sick to think that it has been years since I last spoke to you, and I had to make things right.”

            People milled about the street we walked now. Parents kissed their children before they walked to school, and partners hug goodbye to meet again in the evening. A moment of silence passed until the rhythmic steps prompt the guest to continue, “I need to know if I have your forgiveness. Do you forgive me for what I did? I can’t live without knowing.”

            The road is leveling, and I see a person leaning against a small red car. We make a peculiar pair, this guest and I, that the person stands up straight seeing us, maybe in anticipation. A second later, I realized this person is here with my guest.

            There are four minutes until the train arrives, and two minutes left of the walk there. I walked a beat faster because I cannot be late to work. I need to persuade my business partner to let me take another family vacation in a month and coming late would be another burden. The steps echoed on the background of silence, but it did not prompt the guest this time. I get all the way to the ticket booth line, only a few people deep, before I address the guest.

            I look at their face for a moment intentionally longer than necessary—I acknowledge that their presence is real and solid. I pull a thought from the shelf within my mind and dust it off. I don’t know if it is a response respectful of memories frozen in place and mindful of time passing on, but, at the very least, it was honest. “Jean,” I handed the worker my train pass, having made it to the front of line, “I am glad that you have come to reconcile and that you appear healthier than before.”

            The color seems to drain from the guest’s face, immediate irony, but I cannot read the expression beyond the displacement of color. I step out of line to stand before the gates, and the crescendoing noise of wind meaning that the train has arrived. When the train comes, there will be an unpredictable amount of time before it departs—can you count the number of seconds between heartbeats every time?

I continue, “It has been years, but I gave my all when I could with the ability I had then. I don’t have anything left to say, and I don’t need anything from you. Surely, you came to find me to do something for yourself.” I smiled, pained. “But reconciliation is not permission to move on. What changes for you after this? You already have my forgiveness.”

            My response didn’t sound much like an apology or the acknowledgement of an apology, if that is what it was. I tried again, “You should try the restaurants here. There is no such thing as bad food here. I have never been disappointed in finding what I am looking for.”

            Someone calls out from the train to board before it departs. There is a gray cloud hanging in the clear spring sky. Before this old friend could respond—they certainly took their time—the wheels began to turn slowly. I make some strange gesture with my free hand, something like an apology for the circumstances and a wave goodbye. Either by illusion or manifestation, I make it onto the train and into a cab. I am a minute late, and I expect to be reprimanded. The train pulls out of the station, and the old friend is waving me away. I wave back, and no reprimand comes.

            A reassuring smile from a train attendant convinces me that the train stalled half a second, and I made the train despite being a minute late. I have only ever seen this train late a handful of times in the last decade. I vow within myself to leave a minute sooner.

            The day is beautiful and warm, and the air so thick and sweet you can almost taste it. I eat lunch outside, and I take a later train back to walk around the park near the office. I call home just to chat, and I sit in the backyard when the sun sets. I feel a momentary pang of loss as the sun sinks. There is always a reason to feel pain as there is always the want to reconcile it. All the same, a wound that scarred is still a wound that healed.

            When I go to bed that night, I appreciate the old friend visiting even if only briefly. I imagine my friend and their stranger walked around the town, ate something peppery, and followed it with gelato from the corner store. In the car ride home, they will talk about what happened, or not—about how rude I was, or not. They will eat gelato and talk some more, and it will become apparent in the space between responses that gelato is the only thing from the trip that they can take home in a cup. If I were present, I would refute that claim because forgiveness was a letter I mailed more than a decade ago. And not only is it not here, I promise that it fits in a cup.

[legends-live-in-memories]

Business (Mis)Management

AYO you know the drill. MGI Trope Tussle! 

Fics Masterlist

Timari Oneshot 2.3K words

Summary: 

"Right before her, where her professor usually stood every Tuesday and Thursday, stood a surprise guest lecturer. One problem, though. Marinette hates the guy. She hates him and his stupid well-fitting suit that she dedicated actual blood sweat and tears into making. "

One shot using two prompts for this server event: Day 3:College AU Day 5: "Why'd you do that?" "I- I don't know..."

without further ado: 

It was Tuesday, bright and early at 9:30 am, and Marinette was ready to commit murder. She was sitting in her Intro to Business Management course with her cup of coffee and notepad ready and pencil about to snap in her grip. Right before her, where her professor usually stood every Tuesday and Thursday, stood a surprise guest lecturer. One problem, though. Marinette hates the guy. She hates him and his stupid well-fitting suit that she dedicated actual blood sweat and tears into making. 

Right there, on this awful Tuesday morning, stood one Timothy Jackson Drake Wayne looking all the world like he would rather be anywhere else; stupid rich people were all the same, thinking the world was doing them a favour by letting them grace everyone else with their presence. Marinette also wishes he was anywhere else but life doesn’t work that way. Her actual professor stood off to the side, waxing sonnets about how accomplished the young CEO was and Marinette listened to none of it. Rather, she was silently stewing in her thoughts, lost in how this man became the particularly large thorn in her side.

It was six months ago when she got an email asking for a commission. A commission for the exact three piece suit he was wearing today. He had gotten her contact from another client and his emailed request was perfect and professional. He had asked for the suit, listed all the required measurements and requested any personalizations he wanted. They couldn’t meet for any in-person fittings so it was currently both aggravating and satisfying to see it fit his lean figure so perfectly. The drama didn’t start, however, until two weeks after, when Marinette had sent the finished product to the designated address. While Marinette isn’t one for showboating and bragging about her capabilities, it grinds her teeth when others try to talk down on her skills. 

When Marinette had sent off the suit, and emailed the man that the package was to be expected within three business days, she got a rather crude email in response, labeling her work as ‘tacky’ and a ‘pathetic attempt at wiggling her way into his family’s pockets.’ That had her doubletaking at the sender, making sure it wasn’t some spam mail that she was reading. Nope, that’s his email right there. Marinette remembered a particular twitch she had in her eye the first time she read that email. It was one thing to be ungrateful of a finished product, Marinette was no stranger to harsh critiques and pieces that worked better on paper than as actualized designs, but the accusation of being a gold-digger set off warning bells that threw her back into the tenth grade where she had battles with a rich blonde with daddy issues. At least he had paid her in advance for the suit. Marinette would have been perfectly fine with silently cutting all ties with Mr. Wayne right then and there, and putting the whole ordeal behind her, until he decided that a crassly worded email wasn’t enough. No. He felt compelled to go on national television and insult her suit for everyone to hear. Marinette remembers his words perfectly, as if they were ingrained in her memory forever.

“You’ve seen the suits I’ve worn, I look like I escaped my own funeral. I’ve tried local, and outsourcing designers and tailors and nothing matches my taste. I’m only twenty-three and I dress like I’ve gone through my third divorce—”Marinette had turned off the television to shamelessly cry into her pillow. She couldn’t bear to hear him insult her design over the poorly timed laughs of the ‘live-studio audience’ that particular interview was filmed in front of. 

After that, Marinette had reaffirmed her conclusion that all rich people were assholes best left to their own privileged bubble. 

A solid clap snapped her attention back to the front of the lecture hall, eyes narrowing at the man by the podium. The presentation pulled up on the smart board indicated that he was going to be speaking to them about professionalism and how to engage in buyer-seller conversations. Oh that was bloody perfect. What did this guy know about any of those things? 

The time was 9:45 exactly when the guy decided to start his presentation. 

“Hello, everyone,” his voice was smooth and firm, not wavering while speaking before a hall filled with two hundred students. “My name is Timothy Drake-Wayne but you all can just call me Tim. It’s lovely to meet all of you and I’m honoured to be here speaking for you today.” 

Cue a very predictable, very standard, very boring introduction. Marinette was beginning to tune out at this point.

“To start off this presentation, I would like to talk about misunderstandings in professional conversations.” He started walking across the front of the room. Slow and methodical; he knew he had all eyes on him and he was taking full advantage of it. Marinette wanted to gag. “Additionally, I want to discuss how to avoid them, and what to do if miscommunication occurs.”

Blah, blah blahblah. Marinette didn’t trust him as far as she could throw him.

“To start off, I’m going to talk about a situation I found myself in not too long ago.” That caught her attention. “It’s funny now and makes for great dinner conversation but not so much when it had happened. How many of you siblings?”

He paused and surveyed the room. His eyes passed over Marinette and for a brief second she thought he focused on her for a blink longer than necessary. She banished the thought from her mind; she didn’t have siblings so he had no reason to notice her.  

“Now,” he continued, “how many of you have siblings who aren’t afraid to sabotage your work when they’re mad at you?” 

Another pause as some of the students lowered their hands. Some were unsure and Marinette had a weird feeling in her gut. Her instincts were screaming at her but she couldn’t figure out why.

“Don’t feel shy,” the guy raised his hand to join the students, “my younger brother is a menace who can and has attempted to sabotage my business. Just recently in fact.”

Marinette looked around the room to see quite a few surprised faces. She was vaguely familiar with the Wayne family and remembered a few details about the youngest child. He was a menace, that’s for sure. As egotistical as any thirteen year old can be. That feeling in her gut returned with vigor. She was suddenly very alert and eager, almost desperate, to figure out how the ankle biter had sabotaged this man.

“About six months ago my brothers and I were butting heads as usual. My sister was enjoying everything while shit hit the fan from a safe distance. I’m not going to go into much details.” He’s arms were waving animatedly as he spoke. It was quite endearing. NO. Bad thoughts, Marinette. “The point of all this is that I pissed my younger brother off somehow. I don’t know, maybe I breathed too hard on his cat or something.” That got a laugh out of the students except Marinette. Six months. He said his brother had sabotaged him around six months ago. That gut feeling had turned her stomach into a pit, eating away at her nerves.

“My brother had hacked into my email and sent absolutely horrible replies to everyone that was marked as important in my contacts in a poor attempt at pretending to be me. Of course, most of those contacts work at Wayne Enterprises. It took a courtesy email explaining the mishap and a personal visit with an apology gift to clear the air. Now for the contacts who don’t work at Wayne E, that’s where it gets tricky.”

Marinette was holding her breath, wishing for this day to already be over and for the ground to open and swallow her whole. She both hoped she was and wasn’t wrong. On the one hand, it meant that he was truly that harsh in replying to her and she wasn’t among the contacts his brother emailed, justifying her slowly dwindling fury. On the other more plausible hand, it meant that he wasn’t responsible for the crude email. It still didn’t explain the interview he did but…but she never did watch the entire thing. She had started watching the interview already expecting him to tear her down. He never referenced her suit by any specifics before she had changed the channel. That probably meant that she had poorly misjudged him. But she would have been contacted in some way if she was among those people and she hadn’t. So he was still an ass to her. Right? 

“For those who I couldn’t visit in person,” Oh god, he was still speaking. “I sent them more personal emails compared to what I sent the employees. That was really the most I could do and I hoped for the best. I got a reply from most; they were rather understanding, actually, some even claiming that their own siblings would do something like that. It went over pretty well.” He suddenly had this forlorn look as he rubbed his hands absentmindedly against the suit. 

“While I was lucky that most of my contacts were understanding, one important thing to be prepared for is people who won’t be that forgiving. Do you see this suit I’m wearing? I love this suit. I will absolutely get buried in this suit. I had commissioned and received it just before the email fiasco and I, regrettably, never got a response when I tried to both thank and apologize to them. My brother had used my email to accuse them of being a gold-digger of all things. I would have loved to commission them again but it looks like my brother burned that bridge permanently.”

What? No. That’s not true and Marinette felt hot rage flare up in her. Was he really lying to try and save face right now? She felt the strong urge to interrupt him. To march down those steps and let him know exactly how she felt about him lying about emailing her to apologize. But, a treacherous hopeful part of herself whispered to her, she had to be sure. She had to have irrefutable proof that she wasn’t one of the victims to his rabid brother and he was just an ass. 

She couldn’t get to her phone fast enough. She searched for all the emails the two had exchanged, finding the most recent to be his harsh email. She had another niggling feeling, however, and decided to check her spam mail. 

Marinette has most definitely stopped breathing. 

Right there, in bold letters sat a Wayne Enterprises email waiting to be opened and read. She couldn’t bring herself to click it open, ice flooding her veins, freezing her in her seat. She actually misread the situation. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. She wanted to bash her head on the table and grovel for forgiveness from this very handsome man. She didn’t do any of this, however, managing some degree of composure and sat through the remainder of his presentation. She would bet her left leg it was the best presentation she would have ever heard but she couldn’t recall a single word of it from that point on; too busy digging her own grave and writing her own eulogy. She could never show her face around Gotham again. Her life was ruined.

The sounds of people packing up had her crawling herself out of her own head. She mechanically packed her things up, gazing pathetically at her blank notebook. She made her way down the steps, eyeing the gaggle of students surrounding Marinette’s biggest missed opportunity to date. She was just about to walk straight out the door, resigning herself to her fate when she made a hasty decision. She turned to the dwindling crowd and marched like a woman on a mission. She wormed her away to stand directly in Tim’s line of sight and she braced herself for possibly her dumbest idea yet. She listened to the conversation going on and as soon as it appeared she was not going to interrupt anyone, she shot her hand out and grabbed him by his suit. The act caught everyone’s attention but before she could chicken out, she turned to leave and pulled the businessman along with her, leaving stunned silence behind. 

They didn’t get far out the door when he yanked her arm off him, stopping them in their tracks. He looked angry, confused but also very put out at her. Fair. 

“Why’d you do that?” 

“I— I don’t know.” His glare was intense. Marinette felt her face flush and her knees weaken. She wanted to make things right but it seemed she was only making things worse. She took a breath. Focus, she reminded herself. She just needed to address one problem at a time. “I mean, I do know why but I wasn’t supposed to do it like that. I just needed your attention.”

“Well now you have it. So what do you want?”

“I wanted to apologize. Not about dragging you out here. Yet. But for accidentally ignoring your apology email.” One of his eyebrows rose incredulously as she kept talking, but she ignored it and powered on. “It was, for some reason, in my spam mail and I didn’t see it. But if it’s any consolation, I would love it if you commissioned me for another suit. Or anything else really.” 

“Pardon?” He didn’t believe her, or was at least confused by her, that much she could tell.

“You suit. I made it. Here, look.” She turned her phone screen, showing him their conversations in her emails. At his slightly more relaxed posture she continued speaking. “I’m glad you like the suit.”

“Huh.”

“Also I’m sorry for dragging you out here.” She had curled her shoulders into her ears, still holding her phone out like an idiot. His chuckle in response eased her nerves only slightly. He had a cute laugh. And he was cute too. Bad thoughts! Stop getting distracted!

“Okay, I’ll accept your apology if you accept mine.” The carefree smile he threw at her was disarming. “And I would love to talk more about working with you, Ms. Cheng.”

“Marinette, please, Mr. Wayne.” She could breathe easier now, no longer on the verge of catastrophizing. “If you want to get started as early as possible, I’m free for an early lunch right now.”

“Only if you call me Tim. And lunch sounds great actually. I know a great bistro off campus if you will let me escort you.” He really needed to stop smiling at her like that. Her heart couldn’t take it.

“Sounds wonderful. Lead the way.” He turned and offered her his arm. She was slow to move, still faintly caught in the emotional whiplash of the morning. Her gentle grip on his bicep was enough for her to feel the muscle definition under the suit. It pleasantly surprised her but not nearly as much as his next words.

“Perfect. It’s a date.”

What?

[badapricot]

Hello! I'm not the anon of the last question but I got curious reading your answer: what happened with Mew? I know in broad terms the thing between him and Art, but I didn't know about any of the rest. Is it okay to ask you to explain it to me?

Hi! I used to be in the MewGulf fandom and I’ve followed Mew for 3+ years (Since 2017/2018ish) so I know a lot about this but I’ll try to keep it brief and broad to avoid starting any wank with any of the fandoms.

So Mew and Art were co-stars on What the Duck and they basically had a lot of boundary issues as a “shipped pair”. They’d do IG lives while they ate at restaurants, IG lives in bed together, and they were constantly airing their personal laundry on social media like Twitter and Instagram. Mew would often unfollow Art for short periods of time because of petty things and shade him on Twitter, and vice versa. But I will say that Mew was mostly the instigator. It takes two to tango, but if Mew didn’t like to overshare so much none of their problems would have escalated to the point that they did.

Some notable wanky incidents between them: Art kissed his male best friend on the cheek on IG live and Mew posted an angry emoji on his story before going to cry on IG live about how Art had disrespected him. Another incident where Mew called Art’s older male friends and told them to stay away from him. Mew got very possessive, basically.

They eventually started a vlogging channel together mid to late 2018 and in one of them they went to a resort together. There’s snippets of it all over Youtube where they’re cuddling and Mew is humping Art in a bed.

They ended up fighting on social media shortly after this in September-November 2018? I can’t remember the exact month but it was around that time. Mew made all his social media black and did a BIGO live where he said that Art was unprofessional and lazy because he had come to practice late and said he was sick. He also allegedly called Art’s male friends drug users. This obviously put the fandom on Mew’s side with their fandom pressuring Art to apologize to Mew.

Art ended up doing an IG live crying after that and he said he was forced to do it by his Mom. He said that he was fine with Mew saying things about him but he couldn’t stand by while Mew insulted his friends. He ended up revealing that Mew was mad at him because Art didn’t want to stay at his condo when he came to Bangkok anymore. And the reason Art didn’t want to stay at his condo anymore is because Mew had kissed him in private when he slept over and it made him uncomfortable, but he didn’t want to make Mew sad at the time.

They both went radio silent on social media after and continued their activities professionally before never speaking publicly again.

This issue was relit recently when Mew got in trouble with NCT fans because his cover music video was very similar to Jaehyun’s “I Like Me Better” MV. Mew refused to acknowledge or apologize for the similarities between the videos and it escalated to the point where Art’s crying IG live was unearthed and Mew was nationally clowned for being a sexual harasser, as well as a plagiarist. He had to apologize and say that it wasn’t true and clarify that him and Art were on good terms. Art received a lot of good wishes from Thai locals and ex-fans.

Locals still hate Mew a lot based on the number of retweets and likes random Thai hate tweets about him get, which is why I said I don’t think Lovely Writer would touch this issue with a ten-foot-pole, even for satire purposes.

[daily-dose-of-imagines]

ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ʟᴏᴏᴋꜱ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴏɴ ʏᴏᴜ | ᴀᴋᴀᴀꜱʜɪ ᴋᴇɪᴊɪ x ꜰ!ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ | ᴅʀᴀʙʙʟᴇ

Hello hello~! Admin T relayed this to me-- so here I am writing this Akaashi in a skirt SKSKSK from what I’m aware of, she got this idea from @imaginethathaikyuu​ so I guess this goes out to both them and Admin T LOLOL I hope this lives up what y’all want ^^

» » Admin Ko

»»————-　♡　————-««

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t think I’d have to do a sudden grocery trip.”

With her eyebrows furrowed and a pout on her lip, (y/n) couldn’t help but feel guilt swirl in her heart as she held the crumpled grocery list in her hand. 

“It’s no big deal, darling. Honest. If you’re correct that it’ll be quick then by the time you get back here all the snacks and books will be laid out for you so you can jump right in.”

As always, the soothing calmness that filled Akaashi’s voice brought a sense of relief to her as she could only lightly nod. Still, the pout seemed to stay on her face as she wondered exactly how this situation came about. She was so certain that she had stocked the fridge up the night before.

Then again...it wouldn’t surprise her if her roommates had decided to have a sudden feast without her knowledge. Oh the absolute joys of college life.

“Hey now, stop pouting sweetheart. Like you said, the convenience store is just around the corner. Plus we can always order take out if you don’t get everything you need.”

Within that brief lapse of time, she was brought out of her stupor by the soft plush feel of his own lips against her own. A small sound of happiness escaped her throat as she met his loving oceanic gaze. 

“Yea...I’ll just get the bare minimum and I’ll come back to pitch in for take out. To apologize for it, it’s your pick on where we eat Keiji~. I won’t take no for an answer either.”

“...of course you have to make it at least a little bit difficult.”

Despite the connotative phrase, the warm loving look in his eyes never faltered as he tauntingly pinched her cheek lightly before giving her a light nudge.

 Rolling her eyes, she gave a mock salute before hurriedly grabbing her wallet and keys. On her way out the door, she tugged him forward for a quick kiss. As the light pink blush dusted his features, she couldn’t help but give him a teasing wink before escaping out the door with a promise of being quick.

»»————-　♡　————-««

Fondly shaking his head, Akaashi watched her skip out the door with her own unique flourish before beginning to prepare her bedroom for their surprise study night sleep over.  

With ease, the former setter of Fukurodani began his tasks of lightly cleaning her bedroom before pulling out the mini table. Already, his hands worked on pulling out the necessary books and stationary for their little study session before lightly clapping his hands together at the simple yet aesthetically pleasing sight of their books neatly stacked together.

Though as he went about with his tasks, a thought had come to mind. One where he knew it could result in a large misunderstanding, yet here he was quickly escaping into the bathroom to change into a simple outfit. One that he had been meaning to try out eventually, but never really found the chance to. 

With shaky fingers, down came the jeans and up went a flowy simple deep space grey skirt. Though it was slightly short, the skirt itself brought a sense of relief to the male as he substituted his dress shirt for a large sweater-- courtesy of (y/n) as she had a rather large stash of over sized sweaters in her closet.

Shyly grinning to himself, the male couldn’t help but spin briefly in place to admire the style and comfortable fashion skirts had brought into his life. Though it was a suggestion by Kenma, he hadn’t necessarily thought he’d pull through with it. Now, the aspiring editor felt a new sense of curiosity peak as he left the bathroom for (y/n)’s bedroom once more. After all, he knew she had a full length mirror hidden somewhere.

“It’s...not that bad...”

Despite being flustered and shy, the dark haired male couldn’t help but give himself a long once over. Even though he was of a different build, he was still a lot leaner than a majority of his old teammates. In all honesty, he didn’t think the whole ensemble would suit him. That was obviously quickly shut down as he appeared much more...softer. The slight curls from his hair framed his already ‘pretty face’ as to what (y/n) had said, and the large sweater seemed to only add to the soft aesthetic.

Unbeknownst to Akaashi, (y/n) had returned home earlier than anticipated.

“Holy shit...”

»»————-　♡　————-««

“(y-y/n)?!”

It was the first time she had ever heard so much emotion overtake his voice. She had known him for quite some time, hell the last time she ever remembered his portraying so much emotion was during one of the games during nationals.

Akaashi felt his heart stop as a dark blush overtook his normally pale features. His words came out in a jumbled mess as he tried to explain, though found his words were shut down almost immediately as he was tugged forward into a rough kiss by the other.

“Shit...I’ve imagined you in skirts...but holy shit you’re seriously too pretty Keiji...”

Absolutely dumbstruck, Akaashi could only stare at her in shock. That was short lived though as he was suddenly pushed down onto her bed. An immediate instinct to keep the skirt down from flying up before he was met with a sudden weight on his lap.

“Y..You’ve imagined me in a skirt?”

“Mmmhmm~. I always knew you’d look good in anything, but fuck you really look good in anything Keiji.”

(y/n) watched as the tips of his ears became an even darker shade of red as he struggled to keep his flustered expression down. 

“H-How...who even--”

“Kenma sprung the idea onto me. Can’t say I’m not thankful, but now I owe him $20 bucks.”

“What--- why?”

“I told him I wouldn’t jump you the moment you tried on a skirt-- easy to say I lost.”

A soft groan came from him as he struggled to cover the embarrassment on his face. Yet even as he tried, she easily caught his hands. Her fingers intertwining with his own as she leaned forward to lightly kiss the tip of his nose.

“Stop shying away from me Keiji~.”

“You’re...not upset?”

“Upset? Why would I be? Like I said, I lost a bet to Kenma because I was certain I could control myself. Besides, it’s literally the 21st century, who the fuck cares with how you act or what you want to wear? It’s all cute and hot to me.”

“I...thank you..”

“Don’t thank me, love...now. If I told you I had a cheerleader outfit in your size sitting in my closet right now, would you wear it for me?”

“(y/n)!”

“What? I’ll still study! I promise! I just want you to model for me Keiji~!!”

[radishaur]

Hi! I love waking up in the morning to find my feed filled with your writing! You’re so good! I was wondering if you can write a zuko x female reader based on the song “Easy as all that” by Miniature Tigers? That song gives me major pining!zuko vibes. Hope your day/night is going well! :)

Oh my goodness, this literally melted my heart! 🥺 Thank you so so much! Also I would love to do a song request! I think that idea is so cool! I hope you enjoy!

- Zoe

•••

Crazy About You (Zuko x Reader)

Warnings: none

Genre: Fluff

Part: 1/1

Summary: See request

•••

When Zuko invaded the Southern Water Tribe, he had expected to find the Avatar. What he did not expect to find was you.

You were absolutely fearless, not hesitating to attack him when he threatened you. You were also incredibly talented at fighting. Without even breaking a sweat, you were able to beat him in a fight. Your water bending was powerful. You were clearly a beginner, but that didn’t matter. Your sheer power was enough to knock him off his feet.

Not to mention you were undeniably beautiful. Of course, nothing could ever come of it. You were enemies. Destined to fight each other until the end of time. He had no choice but to repress the feelings you gave him down into oblivion.

Admittedly, he wasn’t very good at it though. Everytime you guys went head to head he would always be careful not to hurt you. He even purposefully let you escape sometimes. Not that you needed him to. He knew you were perfectly capable of taking care of yourself.

There had been multiple times he went back and forth about confessing his feelings for you. He knew they were wrong and that you would obviously be disgusted, which made him want to keep his mouth shut. But on the other hand, his Uncle had once told him that being honest about your feelings is better than hiding them. Maybe if he told you then he could finally get rid of them.

He shook his head. Right now was not the time to be thinking about you. His nerves about seeing you again made him distracted, but he needed to practice his speech. Not get flustered over a girl.

He straightened up and looked at the badger frog who was sitting on the log in front of him. He took a deep breath before starting.

“Hello, Zuko here. But I guess you probably already know me....sort of,” he trailed off, rubbing his head sheepishly.

This was not a good start.

“Uh, so, the thing is, I have a lot of firebending experience and I’m considered to be pretty good at it. Well, you’ve seen me....You know, when I was attacking you?” he asked, quickly realizing that was probably not the best thing to bring up, “Uh, yeah, I guess I should apologize for that.”

Not a good start at all.

“B-But anyway, I’m good now. I mean, I thought I was good before, but now I realize I was bad. But anyways...,” he sighed, realizing this was not going to be easy, “I think it’s time I joined your group and taught the Avatar firebending.”

There was a beat of silence as the badger frog croaked.

“That wasn’t bad, but I would probably tweak a few things.”

I spun around in shock to see her leaning against a tree behind me. She had a basket in her hand that was full of fish. She must have been hunting food down for the group. I looked at her cautiously, unsure if she was going to attack me or not.

“It’s a good infiltration plan I have to say, although none of us are stupid enough to believe it after everything you’ve put us through,” she continued, pushing herself up off the tree and coming closer.

“I-It’s not- I’m not-“ I tried to say, my words getting stuck in my mouth as she came closer.

“Why else would you be practicing your speech? Usually people who are genuine don’t need to rehearse what they’re saying,” she argued, standing a mere few inches away from me.

I blushed in embarrassment and crossed my arms over my chest.

“I’m not exactly a people person. It usually helps to practice beforehand,” I mumbled.

“Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation? Shy? I don’t believe it for a second. Although you’re a good actor,” she insisted, her glare so intense I felt like she was looking inside my soul.

“I didn’t even know you were there! Why would I be acting for myself?” I exclaimed, my blush growing as my embarrassment doubled.

She seemed to hesitate to take in my point. She took a step backwards and looked at me in shock.

“You’re being serious,” she said in disbelief.

“Yes. I’m being serious,” I huffed, finally looking back at her.

I immediately regretted it. She looked beautiful and I felt paralyzed to the spot as she looked at me. Her gaze had softened when she realized I wasn’t joking about joining the Avatar and her stance had relaxed significantly. The way the sun shone on her and glimmered in her eyes-

“What are you looking at?” she asked, looking over her shoulder for something that wasn’t there.

“Oh! Uh....nothing. I just uh- I thought I saw something,” I replied, my whole face going red in embarrassment at being caught staring.

She looked at me once more before sighing. She grabbed my arm and began dragging me behind her.

“Come on, then. If you’re really serious I can convince them to believe you,” she said.

“R-Really? You would do that? I’ve given you no reason to trust me,” I responded, shocked that she had believe me so easily.

“Because you’ve always let me go. You never really attacked me and I know you could have if you wanted to. There’s good in you somewhere,” she answered.

Her response made me more flustered that I was before. My stomach flipped as she spoke and I could feel my cheeks heat up. Did she really notice I was going easy on her? And did she know why?

I didn’t ask any of the questions I had. I just followed after her as she led me down to the group. They had all been horrified to see her dragging me behind her and they went to attack, but she held them off. She let me explain myself and, despite some rough patches, got them to accept me as a prisoner.

It was clear to me then how much trust the gaang had in her. She stood by my side even after I accidentally told them I sent an assassin after them and she had been able to convince them to let me stay. They clearly didn’t want me to, but they agreed because she asked them to. Even though she wasn’t related to any of them, they treated her like family. They trusted her with their lives.

She truly was special.

It wasn’t until after I saved the group from Combustion Man that they began to trust me on my own. Aang and Toph were almost immediately on board with me while Sokka and Katara were more hesitant. But Y/N was by far my #1 supporter and grew to be my best friend. She did everything in her power to help me gain the group’s trust.

She accompanied Aang and I to the ancient Sun Warrior’s temple. She helped me break Sokka’s dad and girlfriend out of prison. She even tracked down Katara and Sokka’s mom’s killer with me. All to get me to trust them.

And everything she did just made it harder for me to repress my feelings for her. Her laugh sent butterflies off in my stomach. Her smile made my heart ache. Her kindness made me feel things I had never felt before. And there were countless times I had been caught staring at her.

Pretty much everybody could see I was desperately head over heels for her. But I was still fighting myself over wether to tell her or not. I really wanted to tell her. Especially now that we had become friends, it could be possible. But there was always a tiny voice in my head that told me I would never be good enough for her. It told me that I wouldn’t be able to treat her the way she deserved. That she deserved someone worthy of her and that I clearly wasn’t.

That was the battle I had within myself everytime I saw her and now was not an exception to that.

Sokka had convinced us all to go see a play about ourselves. I had originally been against the idea until I saw how excited Y/N was to go. I immediately agreed after that. Now, she was sitting right next to me as we waited for the play to start.

My heart was pounding out of my chest. She was so close to me that if I moved even an inch to the right we would be touching. Her hand brushed against mind as she talked with Katara, spending sparks through my arm. She had no idea how crazy she drove me.

“Zuko, are you ok?” Aang asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

“Huh?...Oh! Y-Yea. Just nervous about the play,” I lied.

Luckily, Aang was gullible. That or he decided to spare me the embarrassment of pressing the issue. Either way, he let it go. Pretty soon, the play had started. Everybody was pissed with how their chatacter was portrayed except Y/N. She was displayed as head strong and independent, constantly shown beating stage me in our fights. To be fair, that part was incredibly accurate. Plus, her excitement over her portrayal was enough to make me forget my annoyance about how state me was portrayed.

The play itself was kind of terrible. The storyline was skewed and the relationships between everyone felt off. It was annoying, but bearable. At least she was happy. After a brief intermission, the play continued. I was thoroughly bored up until the scene in the crystal catacombs. At that point, I’m pretty sure my heart stopped beating.

“I have to admit Prince Zuko, I really find you attractive,” Actress Katara said.

“You don’t have to make fun of me!” Actor Zuko snapped in response.

“But I mean it. I’ve had eyes for you since you first captured me,” Actress Katara cooed.

“Wait. I thought you were the Avatar’s girl?” Actor Zuko asked in confusion.

“The Avatar? Why he’s like a little brother to me,” Actress Katara said through fits of laughter, “I certainly don’t think of him in a romantic way.”

“Well, that’s too bad for you. I’ve only ever had eyes on Y/N,” Actor Zuko exclaimed, turning to face Actress Y/N who was watching from the side.

Everyone turned to look at me and I shrunk into my seat. Thank Agni the theatre was dark otherwise they would clearly see the blush covering my face.

“You like me?” Actress Y/N asked with a laugh.

“Your beauty and power is alluring. You’ve had my heart since the day I met you,” Actor Zuko said, taking Actress Y/N’a hands in his.

I could feel everyone’s eyes on me as I hid my face in my hood. I desperately wanted this scene to be over.

Oh how I would soon regret that wish.

Actress Y/N laughed uncontrollably. She even wiped a fake tear from her eyes when she was done.

“I could never like you!” Actress Y/N exclaimed , pushing Actor Zuko away, “I’m much to powerful for you. You disgust me. You’re nothing but a monster. An obstacle in my way.”

I felt my heart sink. Even though she hadn’t actually said those things, it hurt like she did. I needed to leave. I saw Aang getting up to leave and mumbled something about going with him before bolting out of the theatre.

I walked outside the theatre as I thought over everything that had happened. I scolded myself for ever allowing myself to feel things for her. What Actress Y/N had said was probably true. How could she ever see me as anything other than a monster? She was much better than I ever could be, not to mention everything I’d put her and her friends through.

I sat down at the beach that was across from the theatre. I groaned as I let myself lean against the rocks. I cursed under my breath. How did I let myself get so worked up over a stupid play. A stupid play about stupid-

“Hey.”

My heart dropped into my stomach. I felt like I was going to be sick from nerves. I opened my eyes and looked to the side to see Y/N sitting next to me in the sand. I looked up at the stars to avoid her gaze.

“Hi,” I forced myself to say.

“You seemed upset when you stormed out of the theatre, so I wanted to come check on you,” she explained, placing a hand on my shoulder.

Her touch sent a shock across my whole body. Even just her touch drove me wild. I was properly and thoroughly whipped.

“I’m fine,” I insisted, still not looking at her.

“You wouldn’t have stormed off if something didn’t upset you,” she argued, scooting even closer to me.

Spirits, I wanted nothing more than to pull her close to me and never let go. To her over and over again. I forced myself to stop thinking about how close she was. I needed to forget about it. It would never happen. Ever.

“Is it because of what Actress Me said?” she asked.

“I...” I went to deny it, but couldn’t come up with something to say, so I simply sighed.

“Zuko, you know I don’t see you as a monster, right?” she assured me, squeezing my shoulder as she did.

“Why not?” I exclaimed, finally looking at her as I felt my heart breaking into a million pieces, “After everything I’ve done to you and your friends, why don’t you hate me?”

She seemed taken aback at my sudden outburst before her expression softened once more. She let her hand drop from my shoulder and instead took my hand in hers. She gave me a soft smile as she squeezed it.

“Because you’re a good person who got handed a terrible hand of cards to start your life with. I don’t blame you for struggling. I think that makes you an even better person, actually. It means you’re not afraid to work for what’s right, even if it’s hard,” she explained.

I couldn’t stop myself anymore. She looked radiant in the moonlight and her speech was enough to make my heart explode. I reacted before I could think twice about it. I let my free hand cup her face and pressed my lips onto hers. They were soft and warm and everything I had imagined and more.

But then the realization of what I had just done crashed down on me and I snapped myself back. I stared at her shocked face in horror. Oh Agni what had I done?

“I-I’m so sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking. Oh spirits, I-“ I began apologizing before I was muffled by her lips crashing into mine.

I was surprised that she was kissing me, but that didn’t stop me from kissing back. My heart swelled with joy as I kissed her back, letting my hand cup her cheek softly. When she finally pulled away, she rested her forehead against mine.

“I was wondering how long it was going to take you to do that,” she giggled.

“W-What?” I asked, clearly confused as to what she meant.

“Zuko, you’re not very good at hiding your feelings,” she teased, causing me to get flustered once again.

She laughed as I began to blush profusely. I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly as I pulled away from her. I felt her hand on my face and then a soft peck on my cheek.

“You’re so cute when you’re embarrassed,” she said, a huge grin plastered on her face.

I felt my face grow hotter as my blush grew more intense, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling back at her. She stood up and held a hand down for me to take.

“Come on. The intermission will be over soon and everyone will be wondering where we are,” she said.

I grabbed her hand and let her help me on to my feet. She laced her fingers with mine and walked beside me all the way back to the theatre.

The rest of the play sucked. It was probably one of the worst ones they had ever out on. And yet, despite that, I had never been happier. Y/N made me happier than I had ever been before. Looking back, I really should have just come clean about my feelings. But I wouldn’t change it. The way it went down was perfect to me.

Who knew it would be as easy as all that?

[sayingthesamethings]

Magic Shop (Part 6)

Pairing: Poly!BTS x Witch!Fem!Reader

Summary: Underneath the concrete and pavement, between the towering buildings, Seoul is thrumming with magic. Too much magic. It’s become a hot spot for magical beings seeking to feed off of such intense energy. BTS is unaware of such dangers until they come across a witch trying to manage the mischief of other magical creatures while creating her own trouble.

Warnings: Traits of a panic attack

Author’s Note: I would like to apologize to some readers ahead of time. It is heavily implied/stated that the reader was born in America. I’m sorry international readers! I really like giving my readers free reign over their origins and nationality, but this should be the only predetermined factor of the character throughout the story. Other than that, enjoy!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

The sound of wood splintering combined with embers crackling in the air consumed what would otherwise be considered silence. Her nostrils burned at the smell of smoke blanketing the sky.

Is something burning? Why is it so hot?

Sweat drops evaporated as quickly as they fell. Intense heat licked at flushed, sweltering cheeks.

It was almost as if--

(Name) startled awake with a gasp. Her legs kicked at the thick comforter trapping them, and her arms flailed to the side. Her eyes darted around the darkness of her apartment bedroom wildly.

Choked cries crept up (Name)’s throat, but her windpipe constricted painfully and crushed her distress. She could barely relax enough to swallow minimal amounts of air.

The room was too warm. The sheets were suffocating her.

Help.

In an instant, her ferret familiar was curled up around her head, resting on the pillow. A sudden wave of cool calm washed over her whole body in an instant. Her flailing limbs slowly fell to the mattress, and her chest rose and fell with deep, shaky breaths.

(Name) closed her eyes for a few breaths and slowly let them flutter back open.

(Name) hadn’t had that dream in years. Her thoughts drifted to the dragon she dealt with a few days ago. How his flames had her surrounded and suffocated her until—

“I’m home,” (Name) said to herself as she let her eyes drift from one corner of the ceiling to the other. “I’m home.”

A small chuff from above her head startled her further into reality. Jaewon’s narrow face popped into her field of view. (Name) ran a hand down her face and caught the cute tilt of the ferret’s head through the gaps of her fingers.

“I’m alright now,” (Name) said and took a deep breath. She propped herself up into a sitting position. Jaewon leapt up to curl himself around her shoulders just as she tossed her legs over the side of the bed to plant her bare feet on the cool wood of her floor.

(Name) took a minute to rub at her eyes before reluctantly getting to her feet. She dragged her feet across the apartment as she made her way to her small kitchen attached to the living area. Despite her grogginess, (Name) instinctively weaved through the plethora of plants and flowers alike decorating the small kitchen space from planters hanging from the ceiling and resting on the counter.

The witch felt her eyes slipping shut as swiped around her collection of mason jars before grazing a familiar tin lid. She failed to take note of the lightness of the jar and dragged it across the counter lazily.

It wasn’t until she twisted the jar open that she noticed the lack of powder inside.

(Name) frowned. She didn’t remember having so little of the mixture yesterday. Then again, the witch couldn’t remember much from the past few days.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, (Name) deeply sighed. Jaewon gently nudged his head against her cheek. (Name) lazily scratched her familiar’s head.

The witch would have enough for the day, but she would have to make more for the next month. Normally, she would have no problem going into the shop to gather more ingredients, but she was hoping to avoid going out in general after her nightmare.

Maybe I can get Sumi to drop them off for me. (Name) pondered as she dumped the remaining black powder into one of her many coffee mugs. Jaewon slipped off of her body and onto the counter to make his owner’s drink as said witch slipped back into her bedroom to retrieve her phone from her nightstand.

Turning on the nearly outdated flip phone, (Name)’s eyes caught the date on the small display.

“And she’s off for the rest of the week,” (Name) groaned to herself. She didn’t know why she even tried her luck anymore. She flipped her phone shut and took it with her back to the kitchen. On the counter, Jaewon was waiting beside her steaming mug. “Thanks,” (Name) murmured as she wrapped her bare fingers around the ceramic handle. Jaewon chirped before digging around the kitchen for a snack.

Leaving the ferret to his own devices, (Name) wandered into the living room to lazily drape herself on the worn out couch against the wall. The (H/C)-haired witch waved her hand at her spellbook resting on the coffee table, and it floated over to her before fluttering open.

(Name)’s eyes danced across the map, taking note of each red ‘X’ that decorated the page. She downed half of her drink by time Jaewon curled up beside her.

“We still don’t have enough pieces,” (Name) observed as she reached over to stroke the fur on Jaewon’s back. The familiar let out a low rumble. (Name) hummed, “I’d say at least four more.” A deep sigh broke the stillness of the living room.

(Name) didn’t really know where else to check for a magic well. She and Jaewon had been wandering the city for weeks now, and had only come up with one other location. That was when she had stumbled upon that goblin outside the convenience store.

It was also when (Name) had run into the two idols. Taehyung and Namjoon.

The witch couldn’t help but smile at the thought of the men she had been running into recently. Even though their interactions had been brief, they stuck on her mind more than she’d like to admit. They were each just so charming and peculiar in their own ways.

“They’re all so cute, aren’t they?” (Name) prattled as she finished off the rest of her concoction. She allowed her mug to float over onto the coffee table. “All so blissfully unaware and reckless. I mean, did you see him, Jaewon?” The ferret jumped in alarm at the way (Name) bounced in her seat. “ He jumped in front of a goblin! How dumb,” she chuckled.

(Name) rose from the couch and stretched her arms above her head. She moaned at the tension in her shoulders and sighed in relief as she let her arms fall to her sides.

The witch moved back into her bedroom to change out of her pajamas. Once changed, she began to decorate her hands with rings after rings. From emeralds to pearls, jewels littered her fingers, all embedded in bands of silver. Next were her pendants, much fewer than her rings but still plenty to adorn.

Last on was a hefty chunk of obsidian just bigger than the pad of her thumb cradled in a thin swirl of silver.

(Name) let the rock rest in her palm. She relished the warmth that radiated from it with an odd sense of amusement. She eyed the streaks of red that flared within the gem occasionally.

Jaewon nudged his head against (Name)’s jaw and snapped the woman out of her amused trance. She let the obsidian fall against her stomach and rubbed her cheek against the ferret’s head.

(Name) slipped on her sneakers at the door. She draped her bag over her shoulder and summoned her spellbook from the coffee table. It floated into her bag, and she slipped out of her apartment.

Locking the door behind her, (Name) pulled her cardigan closer to her body as a cool breeze rushed past. Jaewon pressed himself closer to (Name)’s neck for warmth. The pair had always been so sensitive to the cold.

I should ask Sonya about teaching me how to write portal runes. (Name) grumbled nonsense and ramblings under her breath as she brushed past civilians rushing past.

The walk from her apartment to the coffee shop wasn’t longer than twenty minutes, but she hated having to travel so out in the open. With everything that’s been happening within the past few weeks, she couldn’t really be bothered to be interrupted anymore by other magical beings. She still had to deal with the goblins lurking around the convenience store, but that was a task for another time. At the moment, she had to focus on just getting to the shop in one piece and gather what she needed.

Jaewon suddenly slipped beneath (Name)’s cardigan and clung to her waist. (Name) was going to peek under the fabric to look at the ferret in confusion, but she was interrupted mid thought.

“(Name)-ssi?” a familiar, masculine voice called out to her. (Name)’s head perked up at the sound of her name.

Namjoon waved at the witch from further up the sidewalk. Taehyung was with him again, also waving at (Name) enthusiastically. Beside the two familiar faces were two black-haired men, politely nodding her way.

“Oh, Namjoon,” (Name) acknowledged as she joined them off to the side. She openly eyed the idols as she greeted dumbly, “Hi.” The two men who hadn’t greeted her gave a short bow. At the exclusion of any honorific after Namjoon’s name, the men shifted uneasily and shared a weird glance, but they all remained quiet about it.

“Hello, my name is Kim Seokjin,” the taller of the two greeted and nudged the other. “This is Jeon Jungkook.”

(Name) stiffly returned the bow and replied, “Nice to meet you, Seokjin. Jungkook.” The (H/C)-haired witch couldn’t help but eye the youngest in contempt. Before she even realized it, (Name) commented to Namjoon, “Do you idols not value your safety or something? Because this pattern’s starting to get old.”

Namjoon chuckled guiltily while Taehyung pouted. Jin and Jungkook shuffled awkwardly off to the side.

“I promise, the staff knows where we are this time. They’re actually just further up the street,” Namjoon explained.

Taehyung chimed, “They said we could go to your coffee shop!” He bounced on his heels. “We wanted more of those sweets Jiminie brought back the other day.” (Name) giggled at Taehyung’s excitement.

“Well what are you all doing over here, then?” (Name) asked with a glance around. Bystanders were eyeing the group of five but quickly broke eye contact to continue passing by. “The store isn’t this way,” she pointed out.

Namjoon rubbed at the tip of his nose, and his eyes darted around to avoid Jin’s burning gaze. Taehyung laughed along with Jungkook at their hyungs’ antics, and the youngest clapped his hands in amusement. (Name) laughed heartily with the two youngest idols.

“Is that so?” Jin inquired in mock disbelief.

Namjoon waved a hand and pleaded, “Wait, wait, Jin-hyung. I could’ve sworn it was this way!” Jin planted his fists on his hips.

“Oh? Who told you that?” Jin ridiculed with absurdity dripping from every word. Namjoon’s eyes wandered to the side as he visibly tried to fib his way out of his situation.

Deciding to help the poor leader out, (Name) cut in, “I was actually on my way to the shop. If you’d like, I can take you there.”

Taehyung cheered in agreement and linked arms with Jungkook. (Name) grinned at the two and motioned with a wave for the rest to follow. Jin gave Namjoon a seething glance but reluctantly allowed the blonde to walk beside him after the others.

As Namjoon had stated, the staff was only a short ways up the road. The idols greeted them with a polite bow and warm smiles, and (Name) awkwardly followed suit. They exchanged a few words about where they were heading, and the staff sent them off with the promise of joining them later.

“How have you been, noona?” Taehyung asked as he playfully jostled Jungkook. (Name) jokingly clicked her tongue.

“Noona this, noona that! You boys are starting to make me feel old!” (Name) teased. Jin and Namjoon giggled to themselves, but they were far from discreet.

Taehyung protested, “But Jimin-ah called you noona!” (Name) shrugged.

“It’s cute when Jimin says it.” (Name) nearly cackled when Taehyung whined. Jungkook playfully elbowed Taehyung in the side.

“Jimin-ssi’s everyone’s favorite,” Jungkook taunted and earned a dirty look from Taehyung. The maknae ignored the scoldings from the two hyungs behind him and cutely tilted his head at (Name). “So noona owns a coffee shop?”

(Name) couldn’t help the way her jaw clenched at the sound of Jungkook’s voice. She just couldn’t shake the irritation that lingered from their first encounter.

Taking a deep breath, the shop owner answered, “Yes. I’m a co owner.” The group of men didn’t seem to catch on to her tense reply. Thankfully, they turned to one another to chat amongst themselves, giving (Name) a moment to calm herself.

A little less than ten minutes later, they had sped through the streets at the sight of small groups of young girls wandering about, the group of five arrived at the employee entrance of Sumi’s and (Name)’s coffee shop.

“It’s still normal business hours, so we’ll have to go through the back entrance for now,” (Name) explained as she took out her key from her bag. As she unlocked the door, she said, “There’s a small break room in the back you can all hang out in.”

(Name) cracked the door open and peeked inside. The coffee shop had its usual traffic in the morning. A line from the counter to the door with only one or two tables not filled with students or office workers.

The part time employees were too preoccupied to greet the owner, but the witch didn’t mind. (Name) ushered the group of men into the building and guided them into the small break room the store had behind her personal room.

There were just enough chairs for each of them, and they all gathered around the single table in the middle of the room.

“Make yourselves at home. I can have your drinks started and bring in some snacks if you’d like. Is there anything you prefer?” (Name) eagerly listened to the men’s eager requests for hot drinks and pastries. “Alright, I’ll be back in a sec.” She slipped out the back room and glanced around before slipping into the back room.

As (Name) gently shut the door, Jaewon slipped out from his hiding spot under the witch’s cardigan and onto her shoulders. (Name) picked up the ferret from off her shoulder and placed him down on the counter.

“How about you stay here for now, Jaewon?” (Name) offered as she began harvesting some leaves and small flowers from her overflowing planters. She could feel Jaewon disagree with her but ignored the familiar. “I don’t want to explain to them why I have a rat running around my coffee shop.”

Jaewon almost grunted as he reluctantly laid on his usual sun spot. (Name) eyed him cautiously and only when she was sure the ferret was going to stay put did she collect the herbs she originally needed before packing them away in her bag.

(Name) left her bag and Jaewon in her private room and caught one of her employees, who greeted her earnestly, on the way out.

The (H/C)-haired owner relayed to the employee the idols’ order before finishing, “Just leave it on the back counter and I’ll come pick it up.” The teen before (Name) nodded before rushing back to work.

(Name) side stepped other employees on her way to the pastry display. She nodded politely at the workers and piled on treat after treat on a plate. Some regulars greeted her as well, but she only spared them a few words alongside a farewell before escaping to the back room once again.

“I come bearing gifts,” (Name) announced playfully but frowned when the men suddenly stopped talking at the sight of the witch. Ignoring the slight pang in her chest, she tried playing off, “Is this a bad time?”

“No, no,” Namjoon hastily assured. He grinned, “We were just talking about you.”

Treading lightly, (Name) hummed, “All good things, I hope.” She placed the plate of pastries down on the table. Taehyung and Jungkook were quick to say their thanks with their mouths already stuffed with treats. (Name) giggled at their eagerness to scarf down bear claws and danishes alike.

“Of course,” Jin affirmed with a kind smile. (Name) let out a teasing, noncommittal hum and sat in the last vacant chair.

(Name) knew there was more to it than that. She could very easily sense it, especially from Jungkook and Taehyung.

Maybe I can slip a moondrop or two into their drinks to get them to talk. They seem like the easiest to coerce. (Name) mused as she watched all four idols begin munching on pastries. She allowed herself to break off a small piece of a bear claw and plop it in her mouth. But that would be too easy.

“Have you ever been to France, noona?” Taehyung asked as he swatted Jungkook’s wandering hands from his plate.

Slightly taken off guard by his seemingly random question, (Name) took a moment before replying, “No, I haven’t. Why do you ask?”

Taehyung hummed, “It’s just that these pastries remind me of the time we traveled to france while we were on tour.”

“Oh, I think Jimin mentioned that last time,” (Name) commented as she leaned against the table with her forearms crossed. “You boys must’ve traveled everywhere at this point,” she chimed as she picked at another pastry.

“Everywhere’s a strong word,” Namjoon retorted.

Jin nodded and added, “But we have been to a lot of different places. We might as well say we’ve been everywhere.”

(Name) hummed and said, “I bet you’ve seen some really gorgeous places.” Jungkook wiped the crumbs from his puffed cheeks, full of food.

“Have you traveled before, noona?” the maknae asked with an intense curiosity prevalent in his wide eyes. (Name) shook her head but seemed to rethink her answer.

“Well, I’m not originally from Korea,” (Name) explained, a collective sound of shock emitted from the four men. “But other than that, no, I haven’t traveled outside the country.”

“But you speak so well, noona,” Taehyung noted with a look of pure disbelief. (Name) was amused at the states of amazement and shock the idols were in, and she took her time to admire each one. Yet, there was a ugly feeling curling in the pit of her stomach as she took in their praises.

(Name) giggled and lied, “I had a very good teacher. Plus, I moved here when I was very young, so I’ve had a lot of time to practice.”

Unconsciously, the witch raised her hand to thumb at the cool stone, resting against the dip in the base of her throat as it hung from a thick, black ribbon choker.

“I never would have guessed you weren’t born here with how fluent you are,” Jin admitted as he cleaned up the table a little once all the pastries had been finished. Again, something gnawed at (Name).

“Well that’s a relief to hear,” (Name) managed to reply, hoping they would drop the subject. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to go check on your drinks.

Without really waiting for their answers, (Name) left the break room and peeked over at the back counter. There, waiting, was a small tray with four steaming mugs. (Name) hastily thanked the employees as she went back to the break room with the tray.

(Name) set down each idol’s drink and set the tray off to the side. They each thanked her enthusiastically and took a moment to cool the surface of their drinks before taking a sip. (Name) was content with their content looks and continued to watch them sip at their drinks.

“Where did you live before you came to Korea, (Name)-ssi?” Namjoon asked as he set his cup back on its saucer. (Name) had hoped they would drop the subject.

“I was born in America and moved here when I was about seven,” (Name) answered truthfully, though at the mention of her birthplace, a bitter taste took over the lingering aftertaste of the sweet pastries they had shared.

Taehyung awed, “So young!” (Name) nodded and twisted the rings on her middle finger. The glint of silver caught Taehyung’s eye, and his hand immediately went to the pendant (Name) had gifted him as it hung around his neck. “I saw that you gave Jiminie, Suga-hyung, and Hobi-hyung gifts too, noona!”

(Name) was surprised to hear. She didn’t think the others would have noticed the jewelry, let alone wear them.

“Oh? Did they like them?” (Name) inquired, genuinely curious. Her heart faltered at the idea of the three not liking her jewelry. Perhaps she shouldn’t have listened to Jaewon.

Much to her relief, Taehyung nodded with a smile. 

“Jimin and Hobi-hyung really liked theirs! They liked that we matched,” Taehyung answered. “Suga-hyung won’t admit it but I know he liked his,” he added with a small pout.

Amused, (Name) pressed, “Oh? What makes you so sure?” She leaned back in her seat with a playful grin. “He seems like a hard guy to please, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t like it,” she mockingly grieved. Jin laughed with a nod.

“You’re not entirely wrong,” the eldest said. He wrapped his hands, enveloped in his knit sweater, around his mug as he hummed, “Yoongi’s the type of guy to enjoy something that’s well done. He sees value in the things people genuinely care about and work hard on.”

Namjoon caught the way (Name) frowned as she processed Jin’s words. He chuckled at her perplexed expression.

“Meaning Yoongi saw the effort you put into making that ring,” Namjoon briefed.

A blush unexpectedly warmed (Name)’s cheeks. She found herself sputtering, not really knowing how to respond to such direct yet indirect praise.

“You have a lot of jewelry, noona,” Jungkook commented while openly staring at all of the silver and gems decorating her. He asked, “Do people stare at you a lot?”

“I guess. I probably don’t notice most of the time,” (Name) admitted as she absentmindedly clicked her rings against each other. She stared up at the ceiling and thought carefully. “I like jewelry too much to care about others’ opinions.”

Namjoon was quick to smile and replied, “Then you must understand how we feel about music.”

(Name) honestly didn’t think about that. She was so caught up in their conversations that she had momentarily let the fact that she was sitting with four superstar idols slip from her mind. Everything was just too much fun for her to dwell on the fact.

“Yeah,” the witch mumbled, not sure what else to say. Luckily, Taehyung picked up the conversation.

“Now we all have matching jewelry!” the vocal chirped. He earned a dirty look from both Jin and Jungkook.

Jin huffed, “Everyone but us!” Taehyung only giggled maliciously and continued to prod at the eldest and youngest.

“We’re the best of friends!” Taehyung sang as he laughed off the playful shoves he received from the others. (Name) smiled at the exchanges.

The witch had to admit that in all her years, she had never observed a group of distinct individuals interact so intimately with one another. Yes, (Name) could see that there was something more than just friendship between the seven men, but there was even another layer beyond that.

(Name) could see years and years of hardships woven between each and every one of them. A bond that went beyond normal bounds.

I want that.

(Name) had surprised herself with her own thought. She physically startled in her seat, but not enough for the others to question it.

What had she meant by that? She didn’t need any more friends. She had Sumi and the witches from the next town over who occasionally traveled through Seoul.

More importantly, she had Jaewon.

“Right, (Name)-noona?” (Name) snapped out of her trance and blinked owlishly at Taehyung. A quick glance around reminded her that she wasn’t alone.

Think, (Name). Think of something! (Name) swallowed the lump in her throat.

“What?” the female uttered dumbly.

Idiot.

Taehyung didn’t seem to take any offense and happily repeated, “If you gave Jin-hyung and Jungkook a piece of jewelry, then we’d all officially be friends!”

Seven binding spells was a lot. To have a leash on seven souls would tug her in too many directions all at once. (Name) was already pushing it by giving Yoongi, Hoseok, and Jimin their own links. But she couldn’t help but wonder.

Does this mean I can have what they have? It was tempting. To be a part of something so special and intricate. Is it that easy?

(Name) didn’t know what prompted her to agree and produce two necklaces from her bag. Jaewon had probably predicted (Name) would cave and gift the remaining two idols their own jewelry and hid them in her bag while she was preoccupied in the apartment.

Maybe it was her soft spot for Taehyung? Or perhaps it was the pressure of all four men’s gazes?

The rest of their time together passed with (Name) in a daze. She would passively interact with the idols when prompted but otherwise would stick to admiring them and watching their expressions change with each playful and loving interaction.

Namjoon, Jin, Taehyung, and Jungkook came and went just as swiftly as the other times. (Name) sent them off with a passive smile and a small plate of snacks. She bowed to the staff she had greeted earlier, and closed the back door once the whole group had shuffled into their company cars.

The (H/C)-haired witch stood alarmingly still in her personal back room. Jaewon wasn’t concerned though. He knew she was fine. In fact, the female was at her peak when she was silent.

Seven souls tied to her own.

(Name)’s lips split in a sadistic grin.

Tomorrow she would test if she had made a mistake or possibly the best decision ever.

[multiwarblerrps]

love aint (blainofsky) chapter 2

summary: A few weeks after their meeting in the hospital, Blaine and Dave run into each other at Scandals, the gay bar in West Lima. word count: 3,257 rating: pg warnings: underaged drinking notes: (semi-S3 canon 1x1 RP written with @multiberryrps) established klaine, eventual blainofsky. 250k+ words and ongoing. Also on: AO3

“Man, they’re getting their asses kicked today.”

Dave gave a little laugh as he sipped his beer, finishing it off and setting the empty bottle back down on the bartop. He was watching a football game on a small 14-inch TV stashed behind the bar. Only he and the bartender were watching; everyone else in the bar much rather preferred watching the music video clips play along with the booming music.

It wasn’t often that Dave ventured out to Scandals and when he did before, he was still in the closet. He had to sneak away and almost assume a completely different identity back when he was hiding who he really was. But things were different now. He was out and somewhat proud-- he was still adjusting-- and being at Scandals was the most comfortable place he felt like he could be himself.

“Hey, can I get another?” Dave asked, watching as the bartender gladly went to fetch him his drink. It was the first time in a while he’d pried his eyes away from the TV for more than a minute or two and he took the time to survey the place. There was the obvious share of regulars but there was one guy at the complete opposite side of the bar that he didn’t see quite as often-- one Blaine Anderson.

Blaine had just settled at the end of the semi-crowded bar and exchanged pleasantries with his favorite bartender-- it had been a while since he’d visited. He tried not to make a habit out of going since he’d been with Kurt. After ordering his usual drink he just happened to glance down at the other end of the bar where he saw a familiar face.

They locked eyes and when the look of recognition passed over them, Dave smiled and lifted his hand for a meek wave hello. It had been a little while since they’d last seen each other and Dave felt a little bad that he hadn’t reached out to Blaine like he had promised that evening in his hospital room.

With his drink in his hand, Blaine took the initiative to get closer to Dave. “Fancy seeing you here,” he smiled as he took the barstool next to him. He felt a bit relieved to know someone in the crowd-- especially someone that wasn’t from his group of friends at school. “I thought you might’ve lost my number,” Blaine teased him, giving him a little nudge as he sipped his drink.

“H-hey,” Dave greeted a little awkwardly, though he was genuinely happy to see him. “Yeah, sorry about that. Things have been a little crazy lately; I really meant to call you.” When he knew the lack of explanation probably wouldn’t fly as a good excuse, he elaborated. “I, uh, have to repeat my senior year.”

“What? Why?” Blaine asked, wrinkling his forehead as he placed his drink on the bar. “At Thurston or at McKinley?”

“At McKinley,” Dave answered. “Uh, I guess when my dad tried to see if I could transfer, it turned out that it was too late in the year and they basically said it wasn’t doable unless I took extra classes and summer school. Starting the year over just felt like the best thing since I don’t want to go back to Thurston. My dad and I actually just finalized everything so I’m set to go to McKinley next fall. I’m sort of-- I don’t know-- celebrating, I guess.” He gestured just as the bartender returned with his beer and he motioned for a toast before taking a swig.

Blaine tapped his glass against Dave’s bottle before taking a drink himself. “Wow.” He shook his head as he processed his friend’s news. “Well, I mean, I suppose that’s a good thing-- you should take some time to gather yourself and relax before jumping back in.” Then the realization hit him and his face lit up a little bit. “Hey!” He turned to Dave a little bit. “We’ll get to spend our senior year together then-- that’s exciting!”

Dave broke out into a smile and nodded. “Yeah, I’m trying my best to look forward to it. I mean, I’m out but I also kind of want to keep my head down because I don’t really want to deal with anyone giving me a hard time.” He shrugged then as he tried to remain optimistic. Attempting to shift the attention from himself, he asked Blaine a question. “So how about you? Where’s your boyfriend?”

An audible sigh fell from Blaine’s lips as his smile faded. “Kurt’s, uh,” he took another drink. “He’s with my brother and the rest of the glee club. They’re at my house fawning all over him and how great he is.” There was a bitter tone to Blaine’s voice as he rolled his eyes.

“Your brother?” Dave gave Blaine a confused look.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love my brother, I really do,” he shook his head. “He’s just…” Blaine really hesitated to say anything about Kurt that he wouldn’t say directly to his face; he didn’t feel right complaining about his boyfriend ever but between his brother, senior ditch day, and Kurt getting ready to leave for New York, he was feeling a bit selfish. “Cooper’s really pushy and not to sound like a child but he hurts my feelings a lot and Kurt doesn’t really care to listen. I mean, I’ve never really talked about Cooper before but it’s for good reason-- then he showed up unexpectedly and I didn’t have a chance because ‘Oh wow, Blaine, your brother is Cooper Anderson? He’s the most handsome and talented guy in the world!’” He mocked his friends’ voices as he rambled a little.

Dave furrowed his brow. He didn’t peg Kurt to be the kind of guy to just cast his friends-- let alone his boyfriend-- aside like that; that didn’t sound like the Kurt he knew. “Sorry about your brother being a jerk. At least here you don’t have to be around that,” he said, trying to look on the bright side. He didn’t feel like he was in any place to offer up real advice but he still wanted to at least attempt making Blaine feel better. “We can drink a couple of beers and talk about something that isn’t Kurt or your brother if you need a distraction,” he pointed to the TV behind the bar. “Celtics are down by thirteen.”

Blaine finished off his first drink and waved down the bartender for another as he let out another sigh. “It’s fine,” he said, glancing up to the screen that Dave had pointed to. “Figures,” he mumbled, chuckling. “Not surprising with the week I’m having-- my team can’t even win.”

Dave really wanted to console Blaine somehow but he wasn’t quite sure what to say. He didn’t know Blaine well enough to comment on his brother and he wasn’t looking to meddle in his and Kurt’s relationship. He just wanted Blaine to know he was there for him, for whatever he needed. “Hey,” he spoke up, hoping to keep Blaine’s mind off of what was getting him down. “I know I just said the thing about staying under the radar even though I’m out, but do you think I could, like, hang out with you guys at Glee from time to time? Last year when Coach had us do the halftime show, it was actually a lot of fun.”

“Yeah?” Blaine’s face lit up a little, never for a minute thinking he would even begin to entertain the idea of setting foot inside the choir room. “Absolutely, of course! Between you and me,” He leaned in just an inch. “I’m sort of lined up to be the ‘New Rachel’ next year so, you’re definitely in if I say so,” he chuckled, his nose crinkling as he looked at Dave, his smile growing. “That would be wonderful, that makes me really happy.” He sat up a little straighter in his seat, the news clearly brightening his day.

Seeing that talking about that silly glee club made Blaine so happy, Dave thought to keep the conversation going even though he only sort of understood. “‘New Rachel’-- what’s that?” he asked, sipping his beer. He thought about the girl and what she represented in the club. “You’re going to be bossy and annoying?” He laughed at his own joke. “Shouldn’t it be that you’ll be the ‘New Finn’? ‘Cause you’re the lead guy, right?”

Blaine chuckled softly, shaking his head. “C’mon, Rachel’s not that bad. She’s just… misunderstood,” he defended, shrugging. He felt like he and Rachel were cut from the same cloth sometimes. “I mean, technically the new lead guy, but we all know I’m more capable of taking control and leading us to win than Finn. I mean, he’s great and all and he’s a good leader; Rachel’s just better at getting down to business and knowing what’s important in the competition world.” He noticed he was beginning to ramble again and it made him laugh. “Sorry, I know you’re just barely interested-- not trying to scare you away.” He smiled fondly. “I just love the glee club a lot.”

Dave laughed along, not because he really understood but because Blaine just made him laugh. It was fun to see him so happy about his little club-- it was a lot like how Dave got excited about football so he could sort of relate. “Hey, you don’t have to apologize-- I get it. Do you guys have your championship game soon? Or, uh, whatever you guys call it?” he asked.

“Nationals,” Blaine nodded, smiling fondly at Dave. “We won the last competition while you were still in the hospital-- us and the Warblers dedicated our performances to you, I dunno if you heard. But, yeah, our next competition is in a few weeks, we’re going to Chicago which is exciting.”

“Uh, yeah, I think that Sebastian guy told me about that. I think he felt bad about being an asshole the last time we spoke so he said he did some charity or fundraiser thing in my honor, or something-- I don’t know,” Dave recalled, though the conversation he and Sebastian had had about that was already so brief. “Chicago, huh? That sounds like fun… Man, it’d be cool to eat a real Chicago-style pizza in Chicago.” Having lived his entire life in Ohio, the only time he ever got to travel out of state was to watch a football game or two in Indianapolis. “But yeah; that’s super exciting… Are you guys nervous about the big game?”

Blaine thought it was extremely cute that Dave was sticking to sports terminology when talking about show choir; it made his smile stick. “I’m personally not nervous, I know everyone else is-- probably not Rachel. I have confidence that we’ll win.” He nodded, trying not to sound too arrogant. Biting on his lip, he shrugged. “Maybe you should see if your dad would let you come cheer us on. I’m sure you could bunk with us-- Mr. Schuester is supportive of you joining at any point so I’m sure if he thought it would turn you on to the idea he would definitely let you.”

Dave nodded along with Blaine, finding his confidence a great trait. He wondered to himself silently if it came with the territory of being out and proud. Since Dave wasn’t especially invested in the glee club, he wasn’t sure what to think or make of coming along with the New Directions to Chicago. “Is that allowed? I don’t even go to McKinley again-- or, yet,” he voiced his concerns though he made no personal qualms with actually going with them. “I mean, I have all the time in the world right now until next school year so that sounds fun, but, I thought you had to be part of the team to ride on the team bus. Or, I guess, ‘team plane’ is more accurate.”

“We actually are taking a bus, so you were right the first time,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “Anyway, I’ll talk to Schuester, I’m sure he’d love to have you.” Blaine promised, knowing that Will was very sensitive to Dave and his experience and certain that hearing his story of repeating his senior year and possibly wanting to join the glee club would be enough to let him join. “You could hang out with us and get to know us a little better so when you come to school next year you don’t have to worry about making friends; you’ll already have them.”

The prospect of having friends from the get-go sounded appealing. He wasn't sure how the guys on the football team would treat him when he returned and even though everyone thought the glee club was a bunch of losers, they at least had each others' backs. "I'll ask my dad; I guess it'd be cool to see how it all works behind the scenes, too." Dave thought he should warn Blaine before he got a little too ahead of himself-- "But no promises on actually joining; it's fun but even I can see how dumb Finn looks on stage. I can barely dance better than he can," he laughed.

Blaine let out a melodic laugh, shaking his head as he recalled the last time Dave danced with the glee club. “Eh, I seem to recall you being extremely talented out there on that football field-- better than Finn, even. You were very sharp, very good,” he encouraged, knowing that Dave had a lot of hidden talent beneath all of his insecurities. “No pressure on joining,” he added, “You could just come sit in sometimes or participate every once in a while.”

"Yeah? You were watching me?" Dave asked, surprised that anyone actually had an opinion about his dance moves. He was one guy in a sea of zombies; he figured the only person actually watching him amongst all the dancers and singers was his dad. "Yeah, well, I don't know-- I'll have to think about it. But I'll keep the offer in mind." Dave knew it was possible to juggle football and glee club but he wasn't sure if he wanted to be that guy; he was already going to be in the spotlight now that he was out. But maybe once the school year started, he'd feel a bit more comfortable.

“Yeah, I was,” Blaine smiled at his friend, shrugging. “I noticed when you ran out to join them and honestly, even in a sea of dancing football players, you still stood out because you were so much better than the others,” He said honestly as he finished off his second drink.

Dave chuckled at the compliment as he waved the bartender over to refresh their drinks. "I, uh, don't know about that," he replied meekly. "I mean, I guess since I play football I'm already good on my feet." Dave wasn't really the type to take compliments well-- especially if it didn't have anything to do with football or academics.

"You should see him on Country Bear Night," the bartender chimed in, having heard the tail-end of their conversation. "He gets the whole crowd going when he's havin' a ball."

Dave blushed and couldn't bring himself to look at Blaine. "Oh, n-no, I just--" he chuckled nervously. "Again, I'm just joshing around and having fun…"

“I believe it, though! He did amazing with our glee club last year.” Blaine shook his head, grinning at Dave, nudging him. “So you like coming to Country Bear Night?” He asked, making a mental note of that.

"Yeah, I guess I do… sometimes," he replied, still a bit bashful with the continued compliments. "There's not a whole lot of dancing I know how to do but I know my way around a line dance-- I have fun with it." Dave's whole thing since getting out of the hospital was really just trying to find all the ways he could be himself and enjoy who he was. Scandals always made him feel at home in his skin and that fact was made even more so on Country Bear Night.

Blaine was glad that Dave was doing so much work to find himself and find where he was comfortable; the fact that it was at Country Bear Night was incredibly endearing. “I’ve never been to Country Bear Night, surprisingly enough. I’ll have to come sometime, you can teach me how to line dance.” He didn’t intend for it to sound flirtatious.

Dave was a little caught off-guard; he’d never been asked to teach anyone anything before. “U-uh, yeah, I can teach you but you’re already so good at dancing… I bet you won’t even need my help,” he replied, though the prospect of running into Blaine again at Scandals sounded like a great time. All they were really doing here was just talking and already Dave was having a great time; he imagined dancing and letting loose would really be a lot of fun. This was turning out to be a promising friendship and Dave didn’t want to do anything to wreck it.

“I will definitely need your help,” Blaine corrected. “You can teach me and I’ll take a new skill back to the New Directions,” he laughed. “They’ll wonder who the heck I am.” Blaine took a sip of his final drink that the bartender had sat in front of him, knowing that he should be cut off around his third or fourth. He let out a content sigh, feeling a lot less heavy than he had when he came into the bar that night. Smiling over at Dave, he reached over to pat him on the arm. “This has been really nice, David. I feel a lot better than I did earlier.”

"Happy to help," Dave replied as he returned the gesture by patting Blaine on the shoulder. "You can always text me when you need to vent or just wanna shoot the shit; I'm usually here at night just to unwind, too, so I'm a decent drinking buddy." He pulled out his mobile phone and composed a quick text message, with Blaine’s phone chiming just a moment later. "There-- now you have my number too. I promise I won’t ghost you again."

Blaine smiled as he looked at his phone, immediately saving Dave’s number. “Thanks,” he repeated, shaking his head. “I promise that I’m not always a downer. Things have just been a bit rough with Kurt because of the whole graduating thing. I’m not really dealing with it well,” he shared, pulling out his wallet to pay for his and Dave’s tab. “But I will definitely take you up on that.” Blaine offered a kind smile to his new friend. He liked how comfortable he felt around Dave, it was easy and he didn’t feel like he needed to be anyone but himself.

Seeing Blaine smile made Dave smile. Although Dave didn't feel like he did much to make Blaine feel better about his problems, he was glad to help in some aspect. "I don't think you're a downer, so don't worry about it. Next time we meet, it'll be to celebrate or have fun-- not to mope or vent." Dave was adamant on making good on that statement. Dave thanked Blaine for the drinks and waved goodbye to him, watching him until the shorter man was completely out of view. One thing he knew for certain: he wasn't going to wait for happenstance to bring them together again.

[paladin-andric]

The World of Deaco: A Guide

A brief disclaimer before we begin: Hello, everyone. It’s been quite a while. No, I didn’t catch the big CV. The outbreak’s disrupted life quite a bit though. My apologies for remaining absent from the site for so long. I used to be notable for extremely lengthy daily uploads and stories...either way, the book is in the final stages. All of the editing and proofreading is complete, and only a few loose ends remain. My artist had surgery shortly before the pandemic so he’s been in bed and had family obligations. I’m still waiting on the cover and a couple photos, once I have those I only have to move onto publishing. The book should hopefully be out soon!

Here we have a map of Deaco, the continent Blackheart and nearly all my short stories take place in. The continent is notable for its varied climates, terrain and flora. In addition to this, the varied species that inhabit the land lends further variety in setting. Here you can see a little bit more about the people you’ve grown to know over the course of my time here!

Kingdom of Geralthin

Predominant Species: Human

Predominant Climates: Temperate, Continental

Predominant Faith: The Order of God

Government Form: Feudal Monarchy (Highly Centralized)

Real World Inspirations: Medieval England (Culture), England/Hungary (Geography)

Notes: The people of Geralthin live in a land that is rich, fertile and highly developed. As such they have the highest population and population density among the nations of the continent. The mountains near their borders provide natural protection from invasion, and their inner lands offer abundant rivers, rainfall and flat terrain for life and trade to flourish easily. They can rely on manpower from their highly cultivated and irrigated farmlands and wealth from their natural resources and penchant for trade. Combined with them having the most professional military of the medieval age, this makes them tenacious and dangerous to face. Their people are generally prosperous and content. Humans are also known for their sense of wonder, and are predisposed towards the profession of adventuring, as well as diplomacy. They are notable for their acceptance of others; while Geralthin is a human land, many non-humans live among the populace. They enjoy music, art, tournaments and games of chance. Jousting is a popular pastime in Geralthin. Humans are known for their good cooking as well, and regularly hold feasts with friends and their communities at large. All in all, an advanced and prosperous civilization that has the means to defend itself, and has done so regularly.

The Koutu Kingdom

Predominant Species: Koutu

Predominant Climates: Temperate, Subtropical

Predominant Faith: The Church of the Shining Lord

Government Form: Feudal Monarchy (Decentralized)

Real World Inspirations: Ancient Greek & Celtic (Culture), Greece, Scotland, Ireland and Wales (Geography)

Notes: The birdfolk of the west are unique due to their biology. Their ability to fly and their frequent use of it, practical and otherwise, alters their society and culture in many ways. They can travel extremely far in a short range of time, and ignore terrain such as river crossings, hills and forests. Since they fly everywhere, their kingdom does not utilize roads. The only notable road is the one from the Geralthin border to the koutu capital city, Roualinn. This road exists so human merchants, travelers and athletes can have swift and easy access to the koutu’s most prosperous city, and compete in their games! The koutu hold a large competition every four years in the Ceileth Statiam, an enormous outdoor arena situated in their capital city. Games from marathon runs, flying competitions, wrestling, duels and archery contests are held for two weeks, and competitors from outside are welcome to come and try any contest (except flying, of course)! This means while the koutu are fairly dispersed throughout their land and their cities tend to be on the smaller side, their capital is still large and bustling! The koutu seem overwhelmingly curious and welcoming towards outsiders, and as such their homeland have a sizable population of non-koutu. More friends is more merriment, to a koutu! They have a deep love of sports, song and the arts. Koutu sing and dance together, play games, wrestle, duel, and enjoy writing plays and poems to share with others. They also value painting and sculpting, and idolize famous adventurers and historical figures as great heroes and write plays in their names. The koutu are an eccentric and emotional people, and their deep love of life and others makes them extremely popular with the other races of Deaco.

Abinsilia

Predominant Species: Saalik

Predominant Climates: Subtropical, Desert

Predominant Faith: The Word of God and His Prophet

Government Form: Constitutional Monarchy

Real World Inspirations: Medieval Muslim, Arabic, Iranian (Culture), Egypt (Geography)

Notes: Enigmatic and remote, the lizardfolk of the southern kingdom are a reclusive and tight-lipped people. Their land is varied, with the central deserts being uninhabitable outside of magic, while the coasts and rivers are fertile and allow life to flourish in abundance. The inhabitants are Saaliks, lizardfolk, though a sizable insectoid minority exist as well, having been subjugated long ago. They follow a religion revealed to them near the end of the classical age. In the ancient world Abinsilia was a merciless slaver kingdom that utilized cruel mastery over its own people as well as outsiders. A slave received a vision from God that called out for him to rally his people and throw off their shackles. He become the prophet of God, and the new faith crushed the old ways swiftly. The population of Abinsilia are now extremely zealous, anti-slavery crusaders. Their monarchy is ahead of the times as well, already having a constitution in the middle ages. Further on in the timeline it will become a fully electoral position, with all citizens allowed to vote on the next king. They are heavily invested in foreign trade, trading the gems, gold and silver their mines offer for strange and wondrous goods from the mainland. They're particularly large buyers of Geralthin chocolate and sugar. Their magic is strange and otherworldly, focusing on altering the world around them, rather than the humans' focus on themselves and the magic within them. They utilize drakes as cavalry mounts, which counter traditional cavalry by terrifying horses. The saaliks are a people both pious and extravagant, with exotic goods from the outside world and magic focused on making life more convenient. They have a more frightening side, though. Their extremely zeal means their soldiers are holy crusaders that will fight to the death, their magic uses trickery and illusion to alter perception and terrify their victims. As friends they are strong and true, but do not make enemies of them.

Dacun Tribes

Predominant Species: Dacun

Predominant Climates: Temperate, Subarctic

Predominant Faith: Dacun Pantheon

Government Form: Varies (No de-facto ruler, tribes vary from monarchies to councils)

Real World Inspirations: Viking, Ancient Germanic (Culture), Sweden, Norway and Ancient Germania (Geography)

Notes: The dacun, wolfmen and wolfwomen, are a fierce and mighty people. They are the descendants of ancient humans turned werewolves that discovered magic that would restore their wills to them...in exchange for losing their humanity forever. Their culture is a combination of a simple agrarian lifestyle and a lift of war and raiding. The dacuns’ homeland does not have many natural resources being largely tundra and snow up north, and so they often cross the border in war parties to raid and pillage, plundering riches and taking what they need. They follow an extensive pantheon of gods that range from the God of War to the God of Merriment, and as such their values and lifestyles vary greatly from person to person. Some live to fight in war, some try to live in harmony with nature, some dedicate themselves to expulsion of impure thoughts, and others indulge in alcohol and wild parties. The dacun are not unified, living as scattered, independent tribes. They've had one High King in history, and as soon as he died his empire shattered. The nature of their disunity means their methods of governing and diplomacy are vastly different from tribe to tribe. Some have petty kings, some are governed through voting and debate, but most tribes utilize slavery and raids against their enemies. The southernmost tribes cross the border into human and koutu regions, to loot and plunder. This makes the north border a dangerous place for both kingdoms that needs to be heavily guarded. On the other hand, as tribes fight one another, some align themselves as friends to the other races, for support against their foes. Such alliances are usually shifting and uncertain however. If you find yourself there, remember two things; if you aren’t around a tribe aligned towards your homeland you’re probably in danger...and don’t forget to head further north, you can’t afford to miss seeing the brilliant aurora in the sky.

Pona Federation

Predominant Species: Pona

Predominant Climates: Tropical, Swamp/Wetlands

Predominant Faith: Oruism

Government Form: Federal Republic

Real World Inspirations: Native American, primarily Iroquois (Culture),  American Wetlands, such as the Okefenokee Swamp (Geography)

Notes: The pona are a race of bipedial turtles that live a life of magic and deep contemplation. The terrain here is that of a mythical swampland. Its deep, murky marshes are only overshadowed by their trees. These trees are unlike any the rest of the world knows. The trees that grow in the ponas’ homeland are incredibly massive in height and width. They shoot up far into the sky, their enormous branches growing leaves that block out all but the rays of the sun that trickle through. Some pona live their whole lives without ever seeing the sky! The turtlefolk live in small villages and tribes, for the most part. They used to be disunited, but after losing land to both the humans and dacun their people rallied together to protect one another from outside power. The swamps of their homeland made invasions a tactical and logistical nightmare, and ambushes that crushed superior armies were commonplace. Seeing how great their unified power worked at throwing out invaders, the tribes voted to transition to a full-blown federation. Thus, the Pona Federation was born, the continent's first fully realized republic. These people have had an antagonistic relationship with the outside world, but they were rarely the ones that initiated it. They’re actually quite friendly if you approach them in peace, and friendships with them can be extremely beneficial.  The pona are the chief scientists of surgery and medicine, as well as practitioners of healing magic. Human nobles often hire pona as physicians for themselves and their family. This place’s terrain is largely independent of inspiration, it was more a desire for a fantastical setting where deep within the swamps of an unknown world, a wise and mysterious race of mystics and healers can found among trees so massive you can't see the sky, and feel like an ant in a world meant for things larger than you. A small village of wood and magical lanterns cast shadows among the dark marshes that surround you, and the unusual turtlefolk give you knowing smiles. I took some liberty with the map, it would be more accurate if you could see almost nothing because of the trees.

-----------------------

This is the end of my guide, I hope it and the map above have helped to get you more familiar with this fantasy realm I’ve spent so long building up! I hope to have the book ready soon, I’m extremely excited to see it shared with all of you!

Tag list: @thereisnothingwrongwithbeingmad​​​, @lady-redshield-writes​​​, @paper-shield-and-wooden-sword​, @sheralynnramsey​​​, @tawnywrites​​​, @writer-on-time​,  @oceanwriter​​​, @zwergis-spilledink​​​, @fluffpiggy​​​, @elliewritesfantasy​​​, @homesteadchronicles​​​, @laurenwastestimewriting​​​, @elaynab-writing​​​, @the-ichor-of-ruination​​​, @candy687​, @fierywords​​​, @shewrites-sometimes​​​, @nerds-and-nebulae​, @purpleshadows1989​

[mars-the-4th-planet]

Yuri Gagarin harasses a truck driver and talks about politics with Penny Polendina

Yuri landed on the firm Russian soil in a rural town next to a gas station. Well, not that firm, but firm enough. At least, that is what the 4th panzer Corp thought while they rolled through the area, but that is neither here nor there. "Vodka, nyet kaliningrad luftpanzer kozorvorisc niemcy?" She asked the gas station person politely.

Roughly translated the gas station persons response was "No we do not have plutonium fuel, thats not actually a planet therefore it cannot produce fuel!"

Yuri moped excessively until the gas station person handed her a small lump of uranium. "Look, you can have this okay? Maybe you can turn it into plutonium."

Yuri handed it back and shook her head. "I apologize for wasting your time comrade, please have a nice day in our glorious soviet union."

"Our wha-"

"Penny are you a communist or a filthy cappie?" Yuri asked her robot friend, surprised that she never asked this before.

Penny put two fingers together. "I dont know... I am not really into human politics... Personally I think that the best solution would be a society run by robotics like in New Polendine Mesopotamia. It brought peace and prosperity to an otherwise chaotic and violent region."

Yuri Gagarin rolled her eyes. "That is just a mechanically led puppet state overseen and funded by the United States of America."

"Yes but us Polendinas cannot be corrupted by greed or power lust and we always make calculated and empathetic decisions according to our makers... So..."

"Robots supercede the working class Penny, so a nation run by them is anti-worker by default!"

Penny shrugged, a bit nervous about the conversation and to change the subject she pointed at a Republic of Amazon truck and exclaimed "Hey look Yuri! I did not know they had amazons in Russia!"

Yuri frowned and popped up next to the truck man as he applied gas to his truck. "Hello anti-comrade, what are you shipping through my beautiful motherland?" She asked in Russian.

The truck man looked at her, puzzled. His eyes were bagged, his shoulders sagged, his skin was pale and his limbs seemed frail. The man was in bad shape, but that was to be expected of Amazon workers.

"Ma'am... No hablo Español.." He mumbled and continued with the gassing of his truck.

"What are you shipping in this truck for the foul corporation of the Republic of Amazon?" She asked again, in English. There was a slight threatening tone in her voice.

The man blinked. "Bread, ma'am."

Yuri narrowed her eyes. "Right. Give me your keys."

"Are your robbing me?"

"No. I have authority granted to me by the USSR to search any capitalist vehicle."

"My truck does not have a political idealogy ma'am..."

Yuri powered on her rocket and raised her fist. "Silence. Give me your keys in the name of the Soviet Union."

The man sighed. "The soviet union is dead ma'am."

Yuri was about to strike him, but Penny suddenly grabbed her waist and pulled her back.

Penny moved in front of her. "Sir, I apologize for my friend. She is in much grief about the fall of the USSR."

The trucker put the gas nozzle up. "It's alright babe. I best be going now."

"BABE?!" Yuri Gagarin flared up. Literally. "You FOOL! This Penny belongs to ME!"

Startled, the trucker scampered back. "Wait! Fine, take the keys, I'm sorry!"

Yuri nodded and took them, and used the keys to unlock the back door. "Aha!"

"Oh... Oh my... Um" Yuri didnt know what to say about what she saw. "Where are you taking them?"

"C-China..." The trucker stammered.

Inside the truck were what appeared to be twenty humans wearing the yellow and white Amazon Prime uniforms, except they were lacking mouths and their heads had two colorful blue and pink horns or antenna (Yuri wasnt sure which) that were aerodynamic looking like the tail fins on the back of a plane. They curved up and swooped back. The strangest thing about them however was how they all looked pretty much the same. They all had pale skin and black hair, and the males among them were all tall and muscular. While the women were all small and slim and sleek. Every one of them had striking blue eyes that gleamed in the dark. One male was making hand motions but immediately stopped as Yuri Gagarin opened the door.

"Who... Or what... Are these people?" Yuri Gagarin asked. "How could you ship people packed in like this! Like property!"

"I honestly don't know ma'am please... I am just the driver... Amazon has my son in mandatory daycare and I had to take this job to save up for the fee to see him on weekends..."

"they have him in what?"

Penny explained because the trucker was clearly scared. "When Amazon employees complain about not having the time or money to properly care for their children, the Republic of Amazon files a statuate of neglect against them and takes their child into corporate custody. The parents can still visit their child, but it costs them a fee and the price is measured by the minute spent with them. Sometimes with a government permit the parents can get their child back, but only if they make a lawsuit about it and that is even more expensive."

The trucker started crying. "I miss my boy! Please, I know this transport is wrong but it pays well and I am saving everything to see him again! I havent eaten in three days!"

Yuri Gagarin sighed. "Typical abuse of the working class... We are clearly living in the worst timeline. So what are these people? Aliens?"

"I honestly have no idea..!" The man stammered, continuing to cry.

Penny shook her head. "They seem to have mostly human DNA. I would say they are genetically modified human beings made for servitude."

"Why don't they have mouths? How do they eat? What are those things on their heads?"

"I do not know the answers to the last two questions, Yuri my friend. But their lack of mouths is likely intended to keep in accordance with international law on the property rights on genetically modified life forms. If a creature is intelligent enough to speak like a human, it cannot be made into property. This does not apply to robots like me, because I am not a biological lifeform..." Penny added sadly. While she enjoyed her friendship with Yuri, she could not shake the fact that in her mind she was in servitude to her.

"That is rather disturbing, since they are probably just as sentient as you or me or this malnourished worker here." Yuri Gagarin said, and got up into the truck. "Hello comrades, my name is Yuri Gagarin. I believe that your time as chattel is over. Come with me, and we shall run down any who seek to oppress and exploit you. First we must make it to our secret communist headquarters, alright?"

They seemed scared by this, and backed away the best they could with how crowded it was in there. Amazon officials assigned to train these people were sure to really into the idea that any opportunity to escape was just a test, and that failing the test would result in horrible punishment. So they believed that Yuri Gagarin was just another setup to catch disloyals among them.

"Come on, let's go!" Yuri Gagarin insisted. "It is not often that I am optimistic about anything, but I am optimistic about saving you."

They did not budge.

"They are not the brightest beings in the bulb, are they Penny?"

"I think they are just scared Yuri my friend. But they are already in a big truck, why don't we just drive them there?"

"The truck could have a tracking beacon Penny."

Penny doubted that possibility. "You could be right, but my sensors do not detect one. Perhaps I could try to communicate to them that they are safe now?"

"Go ahead, but I don't know how you could do so better than me..." Yuri Gagarin moped.

Penny made a bunch of ASL hand signals to them, reassuring the people that they were safe and free to go now. She added that she was an EA-built robot unaffiliated with the corporate empire of Amazon, and so they had no reason to be afraid of her. For the most part they seemed unconvinced, because they were never taught sign language as that counted as a form of speech. The hand signals they made to each other was a simple code they made themselves, which was punishable whenever they were caught doing it.

Yuri Gagarins brief optimism about the situation seeped away. "Why does everything have go be so complicated and hard! Oh, woe is us!"

She grabbed Penny and held her for comfort. "Oh, my dear Penny! Do you see now the sins of capitalism?"

"To be fair Yuri my friend, many capitalist nations have placed an embargo on the Republic of Amazon for their treatment of their workers. And some other major companies refuse to do business with them. These genetically modified humans were on their way to a communist country anyway... So it is not merely capitalism at fault, but a few corrupt individuals who have a lot of power, and that is a recurring theme in every system. And I mean no disrepect to you by saying that!"

Yuri Gagarin held Pennys shoulders and looked at her eye to eye. She smiled. "You remind me of Freedom Sayori sometimes."

Penny frowned. "Sorry..."

"No no, I meant that as a compliment! I may dislike her beliefs, but I have... A strange respect for Sayori as a person. She is naive, but she is no hypocrite and practices the freedom and kindness she preaches."

Penny giggled. "Hehehe.. I think you like her Yuri!"

"What? No! Never!"

"We should get these people to safety now Yuri. The driver too. Even if there is a tracker, what can Amazon do against a Polendina and a Rocket Girl?"

Penny's sweet and determined smile brought some optimism back into Yuri. "You are right. I am prepared to fight for what I believe is right. Let us go, Penny, and bring some small justice to the world! Even if it is neglible in the larger picture!"

"That is the spirit Yuri!...I think..."

[fencer-x]

Hello! I’ve been looking for some good books to read and was wondering if you had any recommendations? I seem to just wander around the bookstore not knowing where to start.

I confess I’ve been reading nothing but fics on fics on fics (Drarry exclusively lol) for a good year now, so I haven’t touched original works in ages, though I have several of the latest installments of my favorite series waiting until I run out of good Drarry fic... (please...god...free me from this hell........)

I’ve made several recommendations for excellent M/M original works (you can always check out my reccs tag for any recommendations as well, though it includes original novels as well as manga and fic). I pretty much only read M/M fantasy (with the very VERY occasional M/M scifi or supernatural book thrown in), so I hope that’s what you’re looking for XD

Here’s a “””””””brief””””””” recap of series I particularly enjoy and go back to reread often, along with details on who might like these books and why. They’re all available via Amazon (most as Kindle reads, but some as paperbacks; some are also available from other sources as well in other formats if you prefer, for example, epub) and at reasonable prices (all but one series are under $10 per book, some under $5).

It is entirely possible you’ve read all of these, since I’ve gushed about them many a time before, and if that’s the case, I apologize I can’t rec you anything new! But maybe it’s been a while if you’ve read these before and it’s time for a reread!

The Lord of the White Hell series, by Ginn Hale - [GOODREADS BLURB: "Kiram Kir-Zaki may be considered a mechanist prodigy among his own people, but when he becomes the first Haldiim ever admitted to the prestigious Sagrada Academy, he is thrown into a world where power, superstition and swordplay outweigh even the most scholarly of achievements. But when the intimidation from his Cadeleonian classmates turns bloody, Kiram unexpectedly finds himself befriended by Javier Tornesal, the leader of a group of cardsharps, duelists and lotharios who call themselves Hellions. However Javier is a dangerous friend to have. Wielder of the White Hell and sole heir of a dukedom, he is surrounded by rumors of forbidden seductions, murder and damnation. His enemies are many and any one of his secrets could not only end his life but Kiram’s as well."] 

Read this if you like... magic and science working together, religion-borne racism and the difficulties of interracial as well as interreligious relationships, snarky aristocrats and a good mystery. And read the second book in the series definitely if you liked Yokozawa Takafumi no Baai or Sore Nari ni Shinken nan desu (I've found I really like stories where the rejected third-party from the main series gets his own happy ending, and Book 2 of this series is one such, building an entire new couple with the midway-through-the-story return of Book 1 couple so you get the best of both worlds.)

The Magpie Lord series by K.J.Charles - [GOODREADS BLURB: "Exiled to China for twenty years, Lucien Vaudrey never planned to return to England. But with the mysterious deaths of his father and brother, it seems the new Lord Crane has inherited an earldom. He’s also inherited his family’s enemies. He needs magical assistance, fast. He doesn’t expect it to turn up angry. Magician Stephen Day has good reason to hate Crane’s family. Unfortunately, it’s his job to deal with supernatural threats. Besides, the earl is unlike any aristocrat he’s ever met, with the tattoos, the attitude… and the way Crane seems determined to get him into bed. That’s definitely unusual. Soon Stephen is falling hard for the worst possible man, at the worst possible time. But Crane’s dangerous appeal isn’t the only thing rendering Stephen powerless. Evil pervades the house, a web of plots is closing round Crane, and if Stephen can’t find a way through it—they’re both going to die."] 

Read this if you like...magic and 19th century UK settings and snarky aristocrats who guard their hearts fiercely. The dynamic is fantastic, and the writing itself is gorgeous.

Whyborn & Griffin series, by Jordan Hawk - [GOODREADS BLURB: (Summary of Book 1) “Love is dangerous. Ever since the tragic death of the friend he adored, Percival Endicott Whyborne has ruthlessly suppressed any desire for another man. Instead, he spends his days studying dead languages at the museum where he works. So when handsome ex-Pinkerton Griffin Flaherty approaches him to translate a mysterious book, Whyborne wants to finish the job and get rid of the detective as quickly as possible. Griffin left the Pinkertons after the death of his partner. Now in business for himself, he must investigate the murder of a wealthy young man. His only clue: an encrypted book that once belonged to the victim. As the investigation draws them closer, Griffin’s rakish charm threatens to shatter Whyborne’s iron control. But when they uncover evidence of a powerful cult determined to rule the world, Whyborne must choose: to remain safely alone, or to risk everything for the man he loves.”] 

Read if you like... magic and the supernatural and 19th century US settings and Eldritch monsters and mystery and intrigue and adventure and era-appropriate treatment of homosexual relationships but with happy endings (and also couples of all types).

The Nightrunner series, by Lynn Flewelling - [GOODREADS BLURB: "When young Alec of Kerry is taken prisoner for a crime he didn’t commit, he is certain that his life is at an end. But one thing he never expected was his cellmate. Spy, rogue, thief, and noble, Seregil of Rhiminee is many things--none of them predictable. And when he offers to take on Alec as his apprentice, things may never be the same for either of them. Soon Alec is traveling roads he never knew existed, toward a war he never suspected was brewing. Before long he and Seregil are embroiled in a sinister plot that runs deeper than either can imagine, and that may cost them far more than their lives if they fail. But fortune is as unpredictable as Alec’s new mentor, and this time there just might be…Luck in the Shadows."] 

Read this if you like... magic, spies, fantastic female characters, adventure, and intrigue. Read also if you love looooong series, as it's complete at 7 books!

Scarlet and the White Wolf series, by Kirby Crow - [GOODREADS BLURB: "Scarlet of Lysia is an honest pedlar, a young merchant traveling the wild, undefended roads to support his aging parents. Liall, called the Wolf of Omara, is the handsome, world-weary chieftain of a tribe of bandits blocking a mountain road that Scarlet needs to cross. When Liall jokingly demands a carnal toll for the privilege, Scarlet refuses and an inventive battle of wills ensues, with disastrous results. Scarlet is convinced that Liall is a worthless, immoral rogue, but when the hostile countryside explodes into violence and Liall unexpectedly fights to save the lives of Scarlet's family, Scarlet is forced to admit that the Wolf is not the worst ally he could have, but what price will proud Scarlet ultimately have to pay for Liall's friendship?"] 

Read this if you like... weird twists on old fairy tales with amazing world-building, provided you're willing to put up with a little bit of a slog until the couple really gets on the same page.

Captive Prince, by C.S.Pacat - [GOODREADS BLURB: "Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the rightful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity, and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave. Beautiful, manipulative and deadly, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country. For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else..."] 

Read this if you like... phenomenal skill with the written word (I mean REALLY TOP NOTCH), fantastic characters with real evolution in relationships, amazingly intricate political intrigue (guaranteed to keep you guessing the whole way), enemies-to-friends-to-"I think if I gave you my heart, you would treat it tenderly"-to-...well, I won't spoil things 8D Please note the 'slavery' aspect that is heavily featured in Book 1. There is NO RAPE between the main characters, but there are forced sexual scenes between Damen and another minor character (n.b. minor as in not major, not minor as in a kid), and well, Laurent just isn't a very kind 'master', nor does he pretend to be. This is not your typical 'omg the slave falls in love with the master and vice versa!!' dreck, but do be aware that the first book deals intimately with those themes as Damen must play his part.

Wytch Kings series, by Jaye McKenna - [GOODREADS BLURB: (Summary of Book 1) "Prince Garrik is the Heir Presumptive of Altan, next in line to be crowned Wytch King. There’s only one problem: in order for Garrik to be crowned, he must possess Wytch power of his own, and thus far, whatever power Garrik might possess has shown no sign of awakening. As things stand, it is Garrik’s younger brother, Jaire — a dreamer completely unsuited to wear the crown — who will take the throne after their father. Concerned about the future of his kingdom, the Wytch King demands that Garrik’s power be forcibly awakened. Hoping to protect his brother from the burden of rule, Garrik allows the attempt — with disastrous results. Now, Garrik must learn to control the fiery dragon that rages within him before he destroys everything he loves. Wytch Master Ilya has been alone for years. Learning to control the icy beast slumbering within him has already cost him his family and his lover, and Ilya will never open himself up to that kind of pain again. Summoned to Altan to avert disaster if he can, Ilya has no intention of allowing anyone to thaw the ice in his heart. When he meets Prince Garrik, sparks fly, and Ilya finds himself fighting feelings he thought he'd buried, long ago. Can Garrik’s fire melt Ilya’s icy heart? Or will Ilya be forced to use his ice to quench the flames that burn within Garrik once and for all?"] 

Read if you like... DRAGON SHIFTERS. There's really not much more I can say to encourage you to read this series (there are five so far!) other than to say HERE THERE BE DRAGONS, AND LOTS OF THEM, AND HOT GUYS WHO TRANSFORM INTO THEM. The plots are interwoven, with side characters from previous books showing up as MCs in subsequent ones, so you get to see major characters fleshed out, even if not right away.

Mermen of Ea series, by Shira Anthony - [GOODREADS BLURB: (Summary of Book 1) "Taren Laxley has never known anything but life as a slave. When a lusty pirate kidnaps him and holds him prisoner on his ship, Taren embraces the chance to realize his dream of a seagoing life. Not only does the pirate captain offer him freedom in exchange for three years of labor and sexual servitude, but the pleasures Taren finds when he joins the captain and first mate in bed far surpass his greatest fantasies. Then, during a storm, Taren dives overboard to save another sailor and is lost at sea. He’s rescued by Ian Dunaidh, the enigmatic and seemingly ageless captain of a rival ship, the Phantom, and Taren feels an overwhelming attraction to Ian that Ian appears to share. Soon Taren learns a secret that will change his life forever: Ian and his people are Ea, shape-shifting merfolk… and Taren is one of them too. Bound to each other by a fierce passion neither can explain or deny, Taren and Ian are soon embroiled in a war and forced to fight for a future—not only for themselves but for all their kind."] 

Read if you like... MERMEN SEX. Again, not much more I can say to encourage you to read this XD There's mermen having sex in mer form, there's mermen having sex in human form, there's just lots of mermen and rather a lot of sex too. But there's also interesting plot! Though lbr if you're going to read this, it's for the mermen XD

[rkxayah]

💎 LUXE VLIVE

↪ celebrating their 1st anniversary     content includes: q&a, peppero game, limbo, whisper challenge, reaction to their royal survival auditions (+ mini performances of them), break for snacks

confused part switch ver.: xayah (belting these high notes) as cheri cheri (accidentally spoiling miniskirt) as zoe zoe (seducing the nation) as ella ella (being a cutie) as yena yena (getting that swag) as xayah

“oh my goddess! hello, we’re luxe!” 

they all chant at once, bowing and waving at the camera. they’ve waited until quite a few hundred people have already tuned in, and for the first couple minutes they most greet fans and talk, explaining that they’re here for a longer vlive this time. it’s their first anniversary and they’ve prepared quite a few things! they will mostly be games, to make it entertaining to both the viewers and themselves. they don’t really get to just relax and talk to fans very often so this is a perfect opportunity to do so. 

they answer questions, but mostly talk about their feelings about their anniversary, express gratitude for all the love and support they received, both through successes and hardships. xayah is even more hyper and talkative than usual but she does her best not to cut anyone as they’re speaking, mainly just looking excitedly at the comments and waving at the camera from time to time. “thank you guys so much for staying with us all this time! and here’s to an incredible second year!” she says once her turn comes. besides their upcoming comeback, she doesn’t know what this year will have in store for them but hopefully it’s more about breaking barriers than being held back by bad news again.

the focus soon switches to games. they have prepared a few of them. the whisper challenge proves to be absolutely hilarious, not to mention chaotic (but not nearly as much as the confused part switch version will be). ella proves to be pretty good at this game, guessing the words and expressions easily which annoys xayah. “yah, you’re supposed to make it funny!” she calls out, and the others laugh at their bickering. it’s always like that with the two of them, but ever since they apologized to each other for fighting, it’s mostly harmless and of good fun. sure, they still can’t stand the other sometimes, but they’ve learned that these differences they have is what makes luxe... luxe. on the other hand of the spectrum, xayah fails miserably. it might have something to do with her level of korean, but she’s just incapable of reading lips in general. she screams incomprehensible and stupid things that have everyone broke into laughter. and let’s say the rest of the group isn’t that good either.

the peppero game proves to be quite something, too. yena acts as the referee, dividing the rest into two pairs. on one side, cheri and zoe and on the other, ella and xayah. there’s a fire in the maknae’s eyes as she looks at her rival. she wants to win no matter the cost. if it means pecking ella’s lips on live broadcast, she will. there’s a definite resolve in the dancer’s stare as well. they bite on each end of the stick, and soon enough they teeth are almost touching. they end up briefly pecking lips, and ella snatches the remaining pieces. it sends the comment section in a frenzy.

the limbo is a nice way to expose the girls who lack in the flexibility department. zoe and ella are definitely top notch due to their dance background, whereas xayah puts up a good fight too. she’s an athlete after all, and while it doesn’t always guarantee flexibility, she manages to scrape by.

after a brief intermission during which they eat snack, hydrate and chat among themselves and fans, it’s time for a surprise from the staff. had xayah expected anything, it would’ve been a delicious cake, but instead they’re met with playful smiles. they’re up to something, but what? “we thought we would have you go down memory lane and watch your royal survival auditions!” they announce, leaving the girls dumbfounded. “you’re kidding!” xayah responds, jumping to her feet and pointing an accusatory finger at them. she barely kept any memory of that... vaguely remembers dancing and rapping. after watching cheri’s audition, in which xayah can’t help but wonder why in hell their leader was put into the minor team after it, they suggest that they perform a snippet of it live, just to see how much they’ve improved over the past... two years, almost. zoe’s dancing was insanely good, and maybe it’s because their choreographies so far haven’t been very impressive in their complexity, but it’s the first time she realizes just how good zoe is. it’s even better now than it was back then, though she only does a small part of it. seolhyun’s audition was also dancing. the girl looks as good as ever, and when she mentions that she’s the only one among them who had never been in the minor team, xayah looks at her. “we know you were so jisub-nim’s pick, unnie~” she comments innocently, nudging at the other’s side.

yena, being loyal to her brand, had performed a very cute song which is so contrasting to what royal has her do now. she does say that it’s a chance she did full moon later on or the company would have not thought her capable of doing a sexy concept. “it seemed like he was only satisfied when i danced hip hop though, so why did he choose me?” she wonders out loud. but the answer is obvious: she definitely had the type of unique sexiness he was looking for. they each have their goddess concept, their own vibe. xayah finally sees her own audition. it was kard’s hola hola, and she performed part of the chorus and two rap verses. she danced along too, and so jisub did praise her boldness in choosing to show off more than one skill, as well as her stage presence. he thought she would be popular with the audience, and she was indeed. royal was always her top choice, even after going to kt, and he remembered that. it goes to say that sometimes it’s better to take an opportunity that differs from your original plan, because it can lead to exactly what you wished for in the end. if you keep waiting for it to fall from the sky...

they go into a deeper discussion about royal survival, how it went down for them, what they liked most, and how they do miss the other girls that were with them. times were different then. they had no idea what lay ahead, that six of them would debut less than a year later. and poor zoe who was sent home first couldn’t have fathomed being selected afterwards.

to conclude the vlive, they announce they’ll be performing confused. the song was indeed a bit left out when every night’s popularity picked up and pushed it aside. but it won’t be just a regular version. they’ll each be picking out a member’s name whose lines they will inherit, and perform it live to the best of their ability. cheri ends up getting zoe, xayah gets cheri, yena gets xayah, ella gets yena and zoe gets ella. it already doesn’t sound too good, but xayah assures everyone that she’s definitely main vocal material now. it convinces absolutely nobody, and especially not cheri who’s had to sit through xayah’s cover of her solo song, butchering high notes to the best of her ability.

it’s just as chaotic as fans expected it to be. cheri forgets dance moves every time she’s in the center, and accidentally spoils their upcoming choreography, but fans will only figure it out later on when the mv drops. yena takes her rapper persona very, very seriously. and xayah, well, she... sings to her heart’s content, taking revenge from all the singing lines royal has been denying her since debut. the reason is obvious. of course she’s not a main vocal, and not as good as yena or ella either, but when within her range she sounds decent, and at the very least stable while dancing. it’s not good, but it’s not bad either. still, she makes it memorable by belting out high notes with no shame at all, exaggerating her facial expressions as if she’s really into the zone.

who said they had to keep their goddess image off stage?

[ricandhaiz]

Blindsided, Chapter 3

The day was warm and sunny with a slight wind as Nic made his way to the university’s main plaza to meet Allie. Given the burned portions of skin’s hypersensitivity to the sun, he’d opted to wear a long sleeve denim shirt and jeans with a baseball cap. While navigating through the throng of students coming and going to campus, he noticed that most of the people gathering for the men’s acapella group’s lunch time performance were women. He spotted Allie and Charlie sitting on a patch of grass underneath a large jacaranda tree not far from the arched gateway separating the upper and lower portions of the plaza. Charlie wagged his tail and barked in acknowledgment as he approached them.

“Nic, is that you?” Allie asked.

“You weren’t kidding when you told me this show was popular with the girls,” Nic replied as he sat down next to her. “I’m surprised there aren’t more men here. This place is practically swarming with women. I think I’m outnumbered three to one, which are great odds for any single guy who’s looking to pick up a girl.”

Allie smiled. “You think so?”

“Absolutely,” Nic replied as he thought about what his pre-accident self would have done in this situation. “It’s their loss, I guess. Lucky for me, I’m already sitting next to the prettiest girl on campus.”

“Wow,” Allie exclaimed, giggling. “You do have a way with words. My B.S. meter is usually pretty good at spotting a player a mile away but the way you just said that almost sounded believable.”

“You think I’m lying?” Nic replied.

Just then, a petite brunette wearing a red t-shirt and jean shorts arrived with arms laden with food and drinks. She greeted Allie with a warm hello as she bent down and handed her a can of Coke and a tuna sandwich. She turned to Nic as she sat down next to Charlie and said, “You must be the guy that Allie’s been talking my ear off about. You’re Nic, right?” Nic glanced at Allie, who was blushing. He nodded. She extended her hand to him and said, “Hi, I’m her roommate, Nicole.”

He shook Nicole’s hand and said, “I can’t imagine what she could’ve said about me. I’m really not that interesting.”

“Oh please,” Nicole replied with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Your name rang a bell as soon as she mentioned it, so being the overprotective and nosy friend that I am, I took the liberty of looking you up on the internet. You’re one of the Spanish soccer players who got into that horrific car accident in L.A. two years ago, right?” Nic nodded again, feeling decidedly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking. “It was all over the news.”

His face fell as he recalled all the news clippings about the accident that his abuela had shown him when he had first returned to Spain. “Have you talked to anyone else other than Allie about me?” Nicole shook her head. Relieved, he added, “I’d appreciate it if you could keep what you’ve learned about me to yourself. It was a very painful period in my life and it took a long time for me to come to terms with what happened. I had to undergo months of physical and psychological therapy to get to where I am now. During that process, I decided that I needed a fresh start. That’s why I came here to study.”

“Of course,” Nicole replied contritely. “Mum’s the word.”

“Have many people asked you about your accident?” Allie asked as she popped the tab on her soda can.

Nic paused, then said, “It hasn’t really come up in any of the conversations I’ve had with my professors and classmates. I think they’re savvy enough to realize that it’s a sensitive issue for me and have chosen to respect my privacy in that regard.”

“Allie tells me that you’re in an MBA student,” Nicole said in a tentative voice. “Do you know where you’re going and what you want to do after you graduate?”

Nic sensed that her question had a lot to do with her concern for Allie and where a possible relationship with him might lead. In an attempt to assuage her concerns, he replied, “My family has been in the wine business for generations. Naturally, my papá would like to pass the business on to me once he retires but nothing’s set in stone. I could decide to stay here after I graduate. It’s too early yet for me to say for sure one way or the other.”

“Some of the articles I read said that your father also played professional football,” Nicole said.

“Yes, he did,” Nic replied, grateful that the focus of the conversation had at least temporarily shifted away from him. “He was one of three goalkeepers chosen to be a part of the Spanish national football team at both the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cups. He played for Real Madrid and Barça for years before he retired in the early 2000s.”

“Is he the reason why you decided to be a footballer too?” Allie asked.

“In part, but it was mostly because I loved playing the game too. My madre told me that I was playing with footballs even before I learned to walk.”

Allie then asked him, “Did people often compare you to your father?”

“All the time,” Nic replied as he reflected on his padre’s storied football career. “I didn’t mind. Most of the time, it just motivated me to work harder, especially since I’m two inches shorter than he is. Most goalkeepers are usually at least six feet tall.”

“Was he very involved in your sports career?” Allie asked.

Nic reflected on her question, then said, “He only gave me advice when I asked for it. He made it clear to me early on in my career that he wanted me to succeed on my own merit.”

“I bet your mom’s mighty proud of what you’ve accomplished,” Allie said. “Not many people have the skill or the talent to make it to the professional level of football like you did.”

“I’m sure she would have been,” Nic replied slowly. “She died of breast cancer when I was a teenager.”

Allie gasped in surprise and bit her lip. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have—”

“There’s no need for you to apologize,” Nic interjected. “You didn’t say or do anything wrong.”

After a brief pause in the conversation, Nicole leaned in as she placed her hand on Allie’s shoulder and said, “Well, now that Nic’s in the picture, maybe Conner will finally take a hint and go and find someone else to bother.”

“It doesn’t sound like you like him much,” Nic chimed in.

“No, I don’t,” Nicole replied matter-of-factly. “And neither does Allie but she’s just too nice to tell him to buzz off.”

“Is that true?” Nic asked.

Allie sighed. “He’s all right, but what irritates me most is his tendency to treat me like an invalid who can’t do anything for herself.”

“He’s such a tool,” Nicole said, shaking her head as she took a bite of her ham and cheese sandwich. “I know he’s a family friend and all, and that your aunt and his mom are close but that doesn’t mean you should feel obliged to put up with him like you do.”

“I know,” Allie said. “But it’s not like I haven’t tried to—”

“But nothing,” Nicole cut in. “You need to stop beating around the bush and tell him to back off, especially now that I’m not going to be there to help run interference for you.”

“You’re leaving?” Nic asked.

“My boyfriend recently got an advertising job in L.A. and asked me to go with him. I graduated this past spring and have been working as a nurse at the university hospital. I’ve already got a few interviews lined up so I don’t think I’ll have much of a problem landing a job.”

“It’s a great opportunity for both of them,” Allie said with a touch of sadness in her voice despite her obvious effort to sound upbeat. “Nicole’s been dying to move to a big city like L.A. ever since we met my freshman year here.”

Nicole nodded. “Hilton City’s alright for a college town but I can’t see myself living here long term. I need to be in a place with a faster pulse, you know what I’m saying?”

Nic glanced at Allie and said, “What does this mean for you?”

Allie shrugged and patted the top of Charlie’s head. “I can’t afford the apartment we live in on my own so I’m probably going to have to move back in with my aunt and uncle for a little while. I’d rather find another roommate but that’s tricky, especially with me being blind. Nicole’s the best. It’s probably going to be near high impossible to find someone like her on such short notice.”

“Where do you live?” Nicole asked.

“My friend, Matt, helped me find a room in a house just two blocks from the south side of campus. I live with an elderly couple whose son recently moved out. They rented out his room to me as a favor to Matt.”

Nicole’s eyes seemed to widen in apparent excitement. He wondered why. She asked, “Are you obligated to stay there for the entire school year?”

“No,” Nic replied.

She quickly followed that up with a few more questions. “Do you smoke or drink?”

“No, and a lot less than I used to.”

“Are you neat? I mean, like, do you tend clean up after yourself or are you the type that leaves his stuff lying around the house?”

“I’d like to think so.”

“Have you had roommates before?”

Nic shook his head, then swiftly added, “But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be a good one.”

Nicole paused, looking thoughtful as she tapped her finger to her cheek. “Would you mind having to share space, like a bathroom with someone, if you had to?”

“What’s with all the questions?” Allie cut in.

Nicole nudged her in the ribs and said, “Isn’t it obvious? I’m trying to find out if Nic would be a good replacement for me.”

“What?” Allie asked, appearing utterly confused.

“Can you just see it?” Nicole replied, clapping her hands together in delight. “Trust me. I have a sixth sense about these things.”

For a moment or two, Nicole’s suggestion rendered both Nic and Allie speechless.

“Well, say something!” Nicole said. “You know I’m right.”

“Umm…I don’t know. My aunt might not approve of me living with a guy.”

Nicole rolled her eyes and said, “Your aunt needs to bring herself into the twenty-first century. People of the opposite sex live together all the time. Isn’t that right, Nic?”

“Yes, I suppose so,” Nic replied cautiously.

“What do you think?” Allie asked.

“I don’t see why not.” Nic replied as his eyes darted back and forth between Allie and Nicole. “But I’d only do it if you’re one hundred percent okay with it.”

“Really?” Allie asked, sounding slightly off-kilter. Nic was finding it hard to gauge whether Allie agreed with Nicole’s assessment of the situation or not. But then she said, “Before you commit to anything, you ought to come by our apartment and take a look around first.”

“Are you doing anything this afternoon?” Nicole asked expectantly.

“I have an accounting class at two o’clock, but I could drop by any time after that,” Nic replied.

Nicole answered, “Why don’t you swing by at six? Allie and I will make spaghetti.” She patted Allie’s knee, adding, “Sound good?”

“Are you sure?” Allie asked, furrowing your brow as she turned her head in Nic’s direction. “We’re just getting to know each other. The last thing I want to do is make you feel like I’m pressuring you into moving in with me out of some misguided sense of obligation or pity.”

Nic placed his hand over Allie’s and gave it a squeeze. “Believe me, if I do agree to do it, feeling sorry for you definitely won’t be the reason I say yes.”

Just then, a member of The Warblers spoke up. He thanked the crowd for coming and then announced their opening song, “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Nic was grateful for the diversion. As the very real possibility of living with Allie began to sink in, he couldn’t help but think of this unexpected turn of events as the best stroke of luck that he’d encountered in a very long time. Although there was a part of him that was wary of being exposed to possible disappointment and heartbreak, the desire to love and be loved was much stronger. And so, he decided to keep an open mind and see how things would pan out later this evening.

 It was five till six when Nic looked up at the number on the white door and compared it to the piece of paper upon which Nicole had scribbled her and Allie’s apartment number and address earlier that day. It had been a pleasant and relatively short walk from the university library to their two-bedroom ground floor apartment. He’d stopped and sat on a park bench for a little while so as not to arrive too early and amused himself by watching children feed the ducks which were congregating at the edge of a small pond.

He knocked. A tall, sandy-blond haired man wearing a black t-shirt and shorts opened the door. For a second, Nic wondered if he was in the right place and was about to take a second glance at the paper in his hand when the man said, “Are you Nic? I’m Brandon, Nicole’s boyfriend. Come on in.”

Nic smiled and waved at Nicole and Allie, who were in the kitchen with Charlie, and followed Brandon to the living room. He was immediately struck by how neat and tidy the apartment looked. He glanced at an assortment of flowers in a glass vase on the coffee table and saw numerous pictures of the girls with friends and family hanging on the walls and side tables. He thought these things gave the place a decidedly homey feeling. Brandon motioned for him to take a seat on a red futon which had multicolored throw pillows on each corner.  As he sat down, his eye fell on a picture of a man in a fireman’s outfit holding a little brown-haired girl in his arms.

“That’s Allie and her dad,” Brandon said, following Nic’s line of sight. “I think Nicole told me that that picture was taken just a week before he died.”

“What happened to him?”

“He was one of the hundreds of firefighters who died on 9/11 at the Twin Towers. Allie was five.”

Brandon asked Nic if he wanted a beer. He said yes. The sound of pots and pans clanking and clattering in the kitchen filled his ears as the smell of freshly baked bread and pasta wafted through the air. He glanced at the forty-inch flat screen T.V. against the wall directly opposite the futon and the bookcases on either side of it which were filled with even more pictures, textbooks, audiobooks and CDs.

After returning to the living room with a beer in each hand, Brandon handed one to Nic and plopped onto a white bean bag next to the futon. “Nicole tells me that your thinking about moving in with Allie.” Nic nodded. “She’s a sweet girl, and Charlie’s the best. The neighbors are all right and the landlord’s usually pretty responsive to the girls whenever they’ve had a problem. Personally, the only thing that I think is kind of annoying about this place is how thin the walls are.”

“I’m a pretty deep sleeper so that shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Good. I was told that dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Would you like to see Nicole’s room?”

Nic shook his head. “I can wait. I wouldn’t want to do that without her being right there with me.”

“Not a problem. She’s the one who told me to ask you.” Brandon stood up and motioned for Nic to follow. “Let’s go.”

Brandon led Nic down a short hallway and then flicked on the light to the room furthest back. He stepped aside to give Nic a chance to take a peek inside. It was small bedroom with a closet which contained a twin bed, desk and dresser. He pointed to a door opposite the closet and asked, “Where does that lead?”

“The bathroom,” Brandon replied. “Did the girls tell you that you’re going to have to share it with Allie?”

No, not exactly, he thought as he tried to recall everything that Nicole had said to him earlier that day. He replied, “We really didn’t have much time to talk particulars before The Warblers’ set began.” After a brief pause, Nic asked, “Do you think Allie will have an issue about living with a roommate of the opposite sex?”

Brandon shrugged. “I doubt she would have asked you in the first place if she did. But…”

“But what?”

“Her uncle, Big Mike, might look at you sideways and give you the stink eye at first, but I’m guessing that even he’ll come around once the dust settles and he gets to know you better.”

Wonderful, Nic thought as he leaned against the doorframe and stuck his hands in his pockets. Just then, he heard light footsteps heading in his direction. He turned and saw Nicole coming toward him. She patted him on the shoulder and said, “I’m so glad you’re here. Allie’s been beside herself ever since I opened my big mouth and suggested that you move in with her.”

Nic frowned. “Is she having second thoughts?”

“God no. Just the opposite. She’s worried that I might’ve scared you off and that you’re going to say no.”

“Nicole has that effect on people,” Brandon chimed in, grinning. “Is dinner ready?” Nicole stuck her tongue out at Brandon before answering in the affirmative. Brandon replied, “Let’s get some chow. I’m starving.”

Nic sat down next to Allie, who was already seated at a square shaped wooden dining room table. Her long, wavy brown hair was down, and she was wearing a floral summer dress with sandals. Nic reached out for Allie’s hand and said, “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you.” Allie blushed.

Brandon placed a large bowl filled with spaghetti and meat sauce in the middle of the table. Nicole came up behind him holding glasses of champagne. She placed one in front of each person, and then looked over at Nic and asked, “So, what do you think?”

Nic felt Allie’s grip on his hand immediately tighten. She leaned over to Nic and said in a low voice, “You don’t have to decide this very minute if you’re still not sure what you want to do.”

Nic smiled and said, “I think your apartment is very nice and I can’t think of a single reason why I shouldn’t say yes.”

Allie beamed. Nicole let out a cheer, then said, “Just give me a sec. I’ve gotta run back and get the champagne.”

When Nicole returned, she promptly filled every person’s glass to the brim. Brandon stood up and said, “A toast, to roommates old and new.”

Everyone clinked their glasses together. As Nic raised his glass toward his lips, he felt profoundly grateful to be in the company of these down to earth and friendly people. While the others filled their plates, he glanced at Allie and then up at the ceiling. He silently said a prayer of thanks. After more than a year of self-imposed isolation, he finally felt that now was the time to take a chance and let someone special into his life and heart.

[animakupo]

Dearest Heart (Ravus x Reader)

COME ONE COME ALL TO SOME RAVUS FLANGST BROUGHT TO YOU BY A LAMEASS (me) AS REQUESTED BY @aeciru !!!!!!

From the prompt list:

#8: “I don’t need you anymore.”

#20: “Please don’t hurt me like this.”

#59: “You own my heart.”

I did all aforementioned prompts despite having the option to choose just one because there just isn’t enough love for Ravus ok!!!!! I took the liberty to adjust the prompts accordingly to fit with the dialogue though.

ALSO. BOY OH BOY WAS WRITING THIS A CHALLENGE. Ravus and Luna speak in a really eloquent and flowery manner, so I did my best apply such a style and drop contractions here and there whenever I saw fit. I went back and forth with several sections here just to beef up the story and make the relationship and history with Rea more developed and fluid. (((((idk why but i felt pressured to do our boye real good)))))) (i hope i delivered)

(keeping just ravus in character is hard okkkkk)

Speaking of!!!! I read that smol Ravus was actually really nice and kind, so I wrote him as such in the beginning. He becomes the Giant Angst Bean™ that we all know and love later on.

Title was inspired by @birdsandivory who often tags posts relating to their s/o as “dearest heart.” I thought it was the most DARLING thing ever, so I hope you don’t mind that I took that as inspiration!!

Tagging @thatoneawkwardfanthing and @lokewight who asked to be tagged!

i hope you all enjoy this ; w ; 

word count: 5.3k+ words, fluff and angst, soft Ravus and hard Ravus (not sexual ok), spoilers for Kingsglaive

Growing up within the walls of House Nox Fleuret was a privilege that not many were privy to. Luckily for you, your family maintained close ties to the royal family of Tenebrae, thus granting you access to the more personal side of the Nox Fleuret family.

Though you were shy, your parents insisted that you befriend the Nox Fleuret siblings as a show of goodwill. Something about “maintaining peace,” or whatever it was the adults often talked about.

When you were first brought to Tenebrae to meet the nation’s royal family, you were in awe of the region’s majestic architecture — was that an actual castle? — and its signature blue flora, the sylleblossom. Fenestala Manor blew you away in particular, so you were all the more enlivened when your parents explained that this would be your new living quarters.

It was a long time coming, your move to the Manor. After all, you were being groomed to become the Royal Advisor to rising generation of Nox Fleurets.

Upon your arrival at the Manor, Queen Sylva had greeted you personally with the warmest of receptions. She even offered you a brief hug after you clumsily bowed before her. The queen’s friendliness took you aback, but it made you feel all fuzzy on the inside. She was nice.

With Queen Sylva were her two children, a boy and a girl. The female of the two siblings gravitated towards you naturally. She called herself Lunafreya, and she had the sweetest eyes and kindest smile. You regarded her with awe of her beauty.

“This is my brother, Ravus,” Lunafreya introduced as she gestured for you to step closer towards her sibling.

“Welcome to Tenebrae,” Ravus greeted with a friendly smile. “I do hope you enjoy your stay here.”

The different hues in Ravus’ eyes helped you maintain eye contact with him. “H-Hello,” you mumbled timidly. “I’m (Name).”

“What a lovely name!” Lunafreya clapped her hands excitedly as she looked to Ravus. “Wouldn’t you agree, Brother?”

Ravus nodded. “Indeed it is.”

You immediately blushed under their compliments. “Thank you,” you managed to let out, feeling the last of your discomfort crawl away from your skin. These two were good people, you could tell. Even though they were royalty, they welcomed you into their home — into their lives — with open arms.

That was the start of your allegiance to the royal family of Tenebrae.

*

“Princess,” you called. “It’s time for your lessons.”

“Oh (Name),” Lunafreya hummed from her bedroom. “Can’t we skip for once? Please?”

It had been several years since your life had first become interwoven with that of House Nox Fleuret’s. Since your initial meeting, you had only grown closer to both Lunafreya and Ravus at varying degrees.

Lunafreya was almost always attached to your hip. If she wasn’t busy with her duties, she was accompanied by Gentiana. Otherwise, she was often around you. You had come to love her like a sister and would do anything to keep that divine smile on her face.

On the other hand, you had also forged a very formidable friendship with the elder Nox Fleuret. You were closer to Ravus in age, so naturally, the two of you found a lot of things in common. In the years you had spent getting to know him, you had come to realize that Ravus was very much like his mother.

Unbelievably kind.

Incredibly accommodating.

So, so warm.

You were honored that Ravus felt safe enough around you to let his guard down and not just be himself, but also show his softer side to you.

You wanted to think that you were at least somewhat special to him in that regard.

These days, you weren’t sure what to make of the butterflies that went wild in your tummy whenever you were around Ravus, but spending time with him always made you giddy and caused your heart to race. It was hard not to smile in his presence.

“Your mother would have my head if I allowed another absence, Princess.”

“She would not!” the young blonde retorted as she fixed her fringe in place. “Mother is much too nice for such barbaric extremes.”

“Perhaps not,” you replied, a teasing smile sneaking its way onto your face, “but if Her Highness won’t have my head, then it will be your brother who may scold me if I continue to be soft on you.”

“That won’t happen,” Lunafreya assured you, a knowing smirk on her otherwise delicate face. “Ravus adores you.”

You immediately flushed at her statement. “H-He…! He does not!”

“Oh, but he does. In fact, Ravus-”

“Are you speaking ill of me again, dearest sister?” Ravus’ voice interrupted from the doorway.

You spun around to face him, feeling embarrassed that he had nearly caught onto what his sister had been insinuating. “My Prince!” You bowed before him, trying to keep the warmth in your cheeks at bay.

“At ease,” he said, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder to set you upright again. “How many times must I insist that ‘Ravus’ is enough?”

“My apologies.”

“And how many times must I defend my honor in front of you, brother dearest?” Lunafreya challenged teasingly, staring indignantly at her older sibling with her hands on her hips. “When have I ever spoken ill of you?”

“If we count all the instances,” he said, “then you will most surely miss your lessons, and we cannot allow that, now can we?”

Ravus glanced at you then, his dual-colored eyes holding a playful glint. You took this as a sign to usher your charge out the door and off to her obligations.

“I-Indeed, we cannot!”

Lunafreya threw her hands up in the air, exasperated. “Ah, I can only take so much when the two of you bully me together! Off I go, then.”

“We-! We weren’t bullying you, Lady Luna-” Your impending apology was cut short with the realization that Lunafreya had already left. Flustered, you turned to Ravus and asked, “She’s not… She’s not angry with me, is she?”

Ravus chuckled, waving his hand to dismiss your fears. “Fret not, dear (Name). My sister merely jests.”

You let out a sigh of relief. “Lady Lunafreya will be the death of me one of these days.”

“As she will be for me, as well.”

His reply caused a few giggles to escape your lips. Once your small bout of laughter tapered, you found Ravus to be looking at you with what appeared to be fondness in his eyes. His gaze made you blush, so you opted to break the silence by bringing the attention back to him.

“So how may I be of service of you today, my Prince?” you asked, returning to your well-mannered front.

Ravus sighed at your ignorance of his name yet again. “Yes, I’ve come to you in need of a favor, actually.”

“Oh? A favor?” You looked at him questioningly, your curiosity piqued. “I will do my best to be of assistance to you, my-”

“Ravus,” he repeated sternly, though his eyes remained tender. “When we are in private, kindly refer to me by my name.”

‘I take it back,’ you thought, feeling your cheeks burn all the more thanks to Ravus’ sweet plea. ‘It is the prince who will be the death of me, not the princess.’

“R-Ravus,” you tested, feeling lighter at the sight of elation on the prince’s face upon the utterance of his name from your mouth.

“Much better.”

You had to keep it together to stop yourself from swooning at his dazzling smile. At the age of 15, Ravus had grown well into his body, and by the looks of it, he would only continue to grow as the years go by. His face had matured some from the time when you first met as children, and while his features sharpened, his kindness had not wavered.

Especially not around you.

“U-Um… Ravus. Ahem. What is this favor you speak of?”

“You have heard of the upcoming ball, have you not?”

“Ah, yes.” You nodded, thinking back on the invitations you had glossed over just a few days prior. “The one celebrating our nation, correct?”

“That is the one. May I ask if you will be preoccupied then?”

You did a mental scan of your duties and responsibilities leading up to the ball. “I may need to assist Lady Lunafreya,” you answered, “but otherwise, I will be present at the sidelines in the event that my aid is needed for the remainder of the night.”

“I don’t suppose you would like to attend as a guest of the family?” Ravus quietly proposed.

Your brows furrowed. What need of Ravus required you to attend as a guest of House Nox Fleuret? You would already be present at the ball anyhow, so the invitation seemed odd as it was rather unnecessary.

Regardless, attending as a guest of House Nox Fleuret meant that the festivities would at least be a little more entertaining, what with the company of Lunafreya and Ravus making everything a little more enjoyable.

It also meant that you would by their side for most of the night, and that alone seemed more appealing than having to lurk in the shadows by yourself.

“That is a very generous offer, my- Ravus.” You winced at how your correction made it sound like you had referred to the prince as ‘yours,’ but you trudged on, hoping he hadn’t taken notice of your slip up. “I would be honored to-”

You were stopped by Ravus clearing his throat. “I’m afraid I failed to clarify.” Dusting off imaginary dirt from his sleeve, he added, “Would you be willing to attend the ball as my guest?”

You blinked up at him, caught off guard at the offer. “A-As…? As your…?”

He huffed a little uncharacteristically. “As my date.”

“Ah.”

An awkward silence enveloped the room. On your part, you were unsure as to how to respond to Ravus’ request. While there was no denying that you would be more than happy to accompany him to the ball — as his date, no less — when it came right down to it, you were torn between your personal sentiments towards the prince and what was expected of you as his Royal Advisor.

Perhaps it was because you were in your teenage years — being just a year younger than Ravus — but it was quite evident to you that you had begun to develop some feelings for your charge. It was a bit of a pickle for you, because it became a challenge having to keep your feelings at bay without crossing the line of what was considered proper.

Though your relationship with the Nox Fleuret family was definitely friendly and familiar, it was still encased in decorum and your respective obligations not just to each other, but to the nation of Tenebrae as well.

Thus, Ravus’ proposal practically blindsided you. You weren’t so naive as to presume he harbored some sort of romantic feelings for you as well, but you could hope, couldn’t you? He wasn’t required to bring a date to the ball; you knew, because you helped piece the occasion together. So what was he doing here, asking you of all people to come with him?

Your nerves and apprehension over how to approach Ravus’ offer must have shown on your face, as he immediately backtracked, saying, “You are not obligated to accept, of course.” Was he worried that you would only say yes because you thought you had to? “I am well aware that such gatherings are not to your taste. Thus, my request may be more of a nuisance than anything, so-”

“Yes.”

Ravus’ rambling came to a halt. “I… beg your pardon?”

“Yes, Ravus.” You gave him a bright smile, hoping it would convey enough of your feelings for him to understand. “I would be delighted to accompany you to the ball, if it won’t be too much trouble for you.”

His shoulders practically sagged in utmost relief. “No, never,” he said as a small smile began to bloom on his face. “You are not an inconvenience in the slightest.”

“So…” You looked away, feeling bashful over the how things had unfolded. “I shall see you then, my Prince?”

“You do me the greatest honor.” Ravus reached out to you and delicately grasped your hand in order to lay a soft kiss on it. “I shall see you then, my (Name).”

“Ex-Excuse me?” you blubbered, feeling your cheeks grow even warmer. “Your (Name)?”

“It’s only fair, is it not?” he asked, a teasing lilt in his voice. “I am your Ravus, and so in return, you are my (Name).”

“Th-That’s-!”

“I shall see you at the ball, dearest heart. Good day.”

And with that, Ravus not only left you a flustered mess, he took with him the rest of your heart as well.

You didn’t really mind, though.

*

You often look back on that time with much fondness and love. The ball was boring as expected, but being by Ravus’ side for the entirety of the night made it much, much more tolerable. Lunafreya sending the two of you some smug smiles also made for some amusement that night.

Despite the fact that you came as Ravus’ date, neither of you initiated the step to further your friendship into a romance. Both of you merely skirted around your feelings, too shy to do anything beyond the confines of your personal and professional lives together.

Lunafreya often urged you to take the initiative and allow the love between you and her brother to prosper, but you always evaded her prodding. In spite of Lunafreya’s unabashed approval and support, you believed that you were in no position to present your feelings to Ravus and expect some sort of reciprocation in the form of a romantic relationship.

No, you wanted it to come from him. You were merely his advisor and a childhood friend at best. There was no way you were going to burden him with your feelings, not when you were unsure if this was what he really wanted with you. If he was not going to take the step forward, then you would adjust to his pace, as you have done all these years.

You were content with remaining by his side. Whether it be as his advisor, his friend, or his lover… so long as you were with him, then that was more than enough for you.

Things changed just a year later with the death of Queen Sylva and the imperial control of Niflheim over Tenebrae.

*

Now, years later, you still remain by Ravus’ side. Many things have since changed, such as Lunafreya’s appointment as the new Oracle, as well as Ravus’ new occupation under Niflheim’s invasion.

No longer was he the prince of Tenebrae. Now, he was known as Ravus Nox Fleuret, the High Commander of the Imperial Army.

You still referred to him as your prince, though. Ravus would merely ignore the title as if you had never said it in the first place.

After the death of Queen Sylva, Lunafreya had pleaded with you to place your focus on her brother rather than on herself. You had objected, arguing that both she and Ravus were your responsibility. However, the young girl proved to you just how mature she was beyond her years when she countered that Ravus needed you more than she did.

“There is only so much that I can do for him,” she had admitted to you tearfully. “But you… you are his heart. Please, (Name), I beg of you. Please do not leave my brother’s side.”

“Lady Lunafreya…” You had held onto her as she fell apart in your arms. Right then and there, you swore that you would remain steadfast in your devotion to Ravus regardless of what life would throw at you.

“I promise.”

If only it were so easy.

At present, the young boy you came to know and love was nonexistent in the Ravus that stood before you today. Gone were the warm smiles and gentle eyes, now replaced by hardened glares and permanent scowls.

The death of his mother had clearly changed Ravus. Though you held him close to your heart, you struggled to reach him beyond the icy walls he had put up around his own heart. Still, you stood by him and remained at his side amidst all the changes he went through.

“My Prince,” you murmured timidly, stepping into Ravus’ office. “Your sister requests your presence for supper.”

“Tell her to proceed with her meal,” replied Ravus from a pile of papers he had not looked up from.

“My Prince, if I may.” Shutting the door behind you, you made your way across the room and settled in front of his desk. “It’s been several days since you last shared a meal with Lady Lunafreya. She merely misses your company, and-”

“How many times must I tell you?” Ravus abruptly stood up and sent you a cold glare. Though you had become used to such painful gazes, you had to admit that they still pierced at your heart rather agonizingly. “I am no longer a prince, and you must address me accordingly by my new title instead.”

It was hard to keep your face neutral when the sadness in your heart overflowed for Ravus.

“My apologies, High Commander,” you muttered softly, offering a bow. “Old habits die hard, I suppose.”

“If only some would die easier than others,” you heard him grumble under his breath.

His harsh tone made you wince, but you did nothing to address his statement. Sending him an affirmative nod, you said, “I bid you a good evening, then, High Commander.”

Noticing your wounded look, Ravus softened his voice and called out to you almost apologetically. “Have you forgotten?” He combed a hand through his hair, which had grown much longer over the years. “I am Ravus to you in private.”

So there was still a bit of the old Ravus somewhere in there. The thought made you smile, albeit a bit sadly.

“Please don’t forget to eat something, Ravus.” Your eyes softened as they met his. “Feel free to summon me if my help is required.”

At that, you made yourself scarce, unaware of the look of longing in Ravus’ eyes as he stared after you.

*

Just a few hours later, Ravus had called for you once more, requesting for dinner. You delivered his meal to his office without a word, only to be stopped by him as he requested that you join him and have a bite as well.

“I’ve already eaten, Ravus.”

“Would you do me the honor of gracing me with your company, then?” He pulled out a chair for you, the hard strain in his eyes growing tender for a few moments.

Only you still got to see this side of Ravus. Only you could do this to him.

“It would be my pleasure.”

The two of you sat there in his office, basking in the quiet. Though no words were shared, the company you offered each other made for a fairly pleasant night.

*

When word of Lunafreya’s imminent union with Prince Noctis of Insomnia came to light, you grew worried. Not just for Lunafreya, but for Ravus as well. Ever since the death of his mother, he had come to loathe the Caelum line and, in effect, Noctis himself.

His bitterness and rage towards the Lucian royal family had consumed him over the years. You had seen firsthand how such dark thoughts and feelings had changed Ravus, so with the announcement of his sister’s engagement to the Crown Prince, you became distraught over how your own prince would handle the news.

One day, you noticed the younger Nox Fleuret carrying a suitcase as she made her way across Fenestala Manor. She appeared to be dressed for travel, prompting you to wonder what her intentions were. As far as you knew, Lunafreya had no meetings scheduled for today. She made no mention of going out, either.

With your brows furrowed, you caught up to her and asked, “Princess, where are you off to?”

“(Name)!” she squeaked in surprise. “I am in need of your help, kind (Name). Please, allow me to leave as I must speak to King Regis immediately!”

“King Regis…?” you repeated, trying to process the growing urgency on her face. “Is this about your engagement to Prince Noctis?”

“It is more than that.” Lunafreya nodded, taking ahold of your hand. “Please, (Name), I must make my way to Insomnia as soon as possible. Will you assist me?”

Your mind scrambled to sort out your thoughts. “I… I cannot, my Princess,” you informed her regretfully, feeling a pang at the frown that took residence on her face. “But it is only because I swore that I would remain by your brother’s side. You remember, do you not?”

“Of course I do. I am eternally grateful for your honor and devotion to Ravus.”

You bit your lip, sending a prayer to the gods above that all would work well. “Still, I cannot simply abandon you in your time of need.” You pulled her to the side and stealthily made your way to the lower floors of the manor. “I may not be able to escort you to Lucis, but I can at least ensure that you find your way out of Tenebrae.”

Lunafreya’s expression brightened at your words. “Thank you, (Name). I owe you.”

“You owe me nothing. Now come, we must make haste.”

Both you and Lunafreya had evaded the imperial guards that monitored the hallways of the manor. Just as you were nearly at the door, the two of you were stopped by none other than Ravus himself.

Snatching Lunafreya from your grasp, he dragged her towards a nearby room, but not before sending you a scathing look.

“And you,” he snarled, “I will have a word with you once I have settled things with my sister.”

The dread that churned at the pit of your stomach almost hurt as more as the pain in your heart due to Ravus’ anger directed towards you.

*

“What were you thinking?!” he barked, slamming the door of his office.

You opted to create a small distance between you and Ravus, growing cautious of his boiling rage. Drawing closer to his desk, you answered, “I merely offered my assistance where it was needed, Ravus. It is as I have done for you and your family all these years.”

Ravus sneered at your response. “Were you foolish enough to allow Lunafreya into the clutches of our mother’s murderer?”

The neutral mask you wore began to crumble with the beginnings of a frown. “Ravus, I understand that you blame King Regis for the death of our queen, but-”

“Understand? You think you understand?”

This was the first time you had ever truly been on the receiving end of Ravus’ fury. It wounded you deeply, causing you to wither away at his spiteful voice. His build, which had grown sturdier even more, now felt menacing as he towered over you.

Still, you reminded yourself of your promise to Lunafreya, no matter how much Ravus was now hurting you.

“You think you understand what my sister and I have been through?” he continued with a scoff. “Are you so stupid to believe that you are so special simply due to our history together?”

Your eyes began to water by then, but you remained rooted in your spot. “I-I…”

“If that is what you believe,” he snapped, “then you are much more idiotic than I thought you to be.”

This time, you flinched. You kept your head bowed in order to hide the steady stream of tears that rolled down your face. “R-Ravus, please…” you hiccuped, “I know you are hurting, but please…”

“YOU KNOW NOTHING!”

A sob threatened to escape your throat, but you slapped a hand over your mouth to keep it in. “Please,” you whimpered pathetically, “do not hurt me like this, Ravus.”

Your plea seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, for Ravus broke you down even further with one simple but cruel statement.

“I do not need you any longer.”

“Wh-What?”

“You are hereby dismissed of your duties,” he continued, voice devoid of emotion. “Until a more suitable role for you can be found, you will remain at the manor for the time being.”

You were openly weeping by now. “Ravus, you cannot mean this.”

“I do,” he retaliated coldly. “Now get out.”

You lifted your pain-stricken gaze, only to pull away the moment your eyes met Ravus’ seething glare. Where was the Ravus you loved? This wasn’t him. The Ravus you loved wouldn’t hurt you so brutally without any heed to your sensitive emotions. The Ravus you loved wouldn’t strip you of the one thing that gave your life meaning throughout the years.

What were you to do now, if you could not remain by his side?

Sniffling, you shuffled your way towards the doorway where Ravus stood. You lowered your head once more as you bumped against him. But, before taking your leave, you offered some parting words to Ravus that would haunt him forevermore.

“You… You will always be my heart, dear Ravus. I pray that you find peace and happiness.”

*

In the days leading to Lunafreya’s escort to Lucis, you steered clear of both her and Ravus. Ultimately, you were no longer bound to them, at least by Ravus’ words.

‘I have failed you, my Princess,’ you thought glumly, looking up at the night sky. ‘How can I remain by your brother’s side if he no longer wants me there?’

Soon, Fenestala Manor grew quiet with the departure of the remaining Nox Fleurets as they traversed to Insomnia. It didn’t take long before news of the nation’s fall reached your region, causing you to plunge into a pit of despair as the tragedy sent a blow to your very core.

King Regis, dead. Even the sweet Prince Noctis was said to have passed on. But what truly broke you was the news that your dearest Lunafreya was gone as well.

Maria, who had remained in your company the past few days, could do little to console you as you drowned in your hysteria. This couldn’t be true. You refused to believe it. No, Lunafreya was still alive. She had to be.

And what of Ravus? Where was he now? Had he fallen amidst Niflheim’s betrayal as well?

You didn’t know what to do with yourself.

‘Please,’ you begged to the heavens above, ‘please, keep them safe. They’re all I have.’

*

Some of your worries had been eased at the return of Ravus. Though he retained his cold demeanor, he brought with him a new prosthetic — one that you couldn’t help but marvel at as you stood before him in his office yet again.

Though news of his arrival had reached you, you had forced yourself to remain at your quarters and not seek him out. With the memory of your last conversation still painfully fresh, you chose not to look for Ravus, providing him the space and privacy he had forcefully set between the two of you.

Your efforts were put to rest when Ravus himself summoned you. Here you now were, avoiding his gaze as you fidgeted nervously in front of him.

The silence was incredibly overbearing, but you feared that if you spoke, he would only lash out at you again. Thus, you kept mum, giving Ravus the floor to voice his thoughts, whatever they may be.

At first, he sighed. Then, with a few careful steps, he approached you. Raising a hand — from his flesh limb, notably — he caressed the side of your cheek in a motion so affectionate, you had to question if this was really the same Ravus you had last perceived before the blatant dismissal of your obligations to him.

“You appear well,” he commented softly, his hand leaving your face.

You couldn’t help but long for his touch. Still, all you could do was nod, feeling as if your voice and words would merely betray you if you tried to speak.

“I…” You could hear his fists clench. “Will you look at me? Please?”

At this, you lifted your gaze to meet his eyes. Based on the memory of your last meeting, you had expected to see bitter rage in his stare. You were proven wrong, however, as you found nothing but throbbing emotion looking back at you.

There it was. The same fondness he used to look at you with. The same tenderness and affection his dual-colored eyes had always revered you in.

There was also one other thing you found in his soft gaze, but you dared not voice your thoughts in fear that you were simply dreaming.

In his eyes, you found love.

“I am sorry.” His voice broke. The last time you were a witness to Ravus’ tears was shortly after the death of his mother. Now, such waterworks were making a return, though you found it hard to fathom that these tears were due to his own grieving for you.

“I was wrong,” Ravus went on, reaching out to you but stopping short, as if he was afraid you would reject him. You eased his fears by meeting him halfway, reaching up on your heels to hold his face in your hands. “I do need you, (Name). I will always need you.”

His hands enveloped yours as you both cried for each other. “Ravus…”

“I meant none of it. Not a single word I had uttered that day held any truth. Please, believe me.”

“I know, Ravus,” you sobbed. “I know.”

You don’t know what it was that had happened to him in Insomnia to cause this sudden turnaround in Ravus, but you weren’t going to question it. All that mattered was that he was here now, with you.

“I realize now that it was I who was the foolish one. It was always me. Never, ever you.” This large man, whose mere presence held a threatening aura towards his foes, was now a snivelling mess in your hands. “I beg for your forgiveness.”

“There is nothing to forgive,” you assured him tenderly, wiping away the tears that had leaked during your exchange of words. “I am relieved that you, too, are well.”

“I will never forgive myself for hurting you that day,” he admitted, pulling you closer. You felt your lip quiver as you recalled the relentless words he had directed to you back then.

You shook your head, trying to rid yourself of such memories. “None of that,” you told both Ravus and yourself. “What matters is that you are here now.”

“There is so much that has been lost, but I will not allow you to be lost to me as well. Not anymore.” He paused for a bit, moving his grasp from your hands to your face, albeit hesitantly. “What you said then, did you mean it?”

“Mean what?”

“You… You own my heart, (Name),” he confessed at last, leaning his forehead on yours. “I would like to know if your sentiments remain the same, though I know I am undeserving of them.”

A sweet smile began to surface amidst your tears. Carefully bringing your face closer to his, you whispered against his lips, “You are my dearest heart, Ravus, as you have been and always will be. Nothing will change that.”

What lay ahead seemed bleak, what with Niflheim’s rise and the still unknown whereabouts of Lunafreya. But, as you remained glued to Ravus, your mouth locked with his in a passionate exchange, all you could do was melt into him and allow your feelings of love to come undone once and for all.

Come what may, you would remain by his side until the very end. What made it easier this time around was the knowledge that he would do the same for you.

At the end of the day, it was just as Lunafreya had told you all those years ago. You were his heart, just as he was yours.

[peacefulrestvalley]

Hello Family

Fandom: Shall We Date? Love Tangle Summary: Set after both Yangzi and Lumiere’s Hello Baby stories, this story explores the dynamic of their shared families.

The ice rink where he usually coached at was only a short bus trip from home.  In fact when they bought the house, that had been a major selling point for him (that and the only place that served decent larb ped was only a block away).

As they say, location, location, location.  

And within twenty minutes they were located right at home at the front door, one of many in a block of brick rowhouses in one of Kaleido's better neighborhoods.  Their door was always the most special one, though, because it was theirs in both heart and deed.  He would never smile while fumbling with the keys to get in, but it always thawed his heart a bit knowing that any second they were going to cross the threshold and finally be home once more.

But someone didn't seem too enthused.

"Dad, do I have to do homework right now?" his cute yet stoic daughter protested as they went inside, referring back to one of their conversations on the bus after skating practice.  "I'm too tired."

How did seven-year-olds even get tired? he wondered as he sighed and took off their coats after closing the door, vaguely responding in turn, "Michelle, you know the rules..."  

(The rules tended to be that Dad was a pushover when it came to allowing some rest between activities while Mom was the one who wanted everything to be finished for the day before anyone rested, and so he placed his hand on his daughter's head as a brief sign of apology.)

They heard a voice from a room or two away, likely signaled by the closing of the door and Michelle's spoken words, saying: "Yangzi?  Michelle?  Is that you?"

Indeed it was them.  Yangzi haphazardly kicked off his shoes while placing his daughter's neatly where they were supposed to be.  

"Yeah, honey, we're home."

There was silence for one second, two seconds, three seconds, four--

"MICHELLE!"  It was another voice this time, one that caused Yangzi a headache at least once a day, barely accompanied by a blur as she whizzed past and grabbed on to his daughter, stealing her away into the night (or, you know, the play room).

Again, Yangzi sighed and said to pretty much nothing at that point as he collapsed on the entryway bench, "Hi Titania, how was your day?"  Of course, Titania was long gone.  She rarely sat still at that age, although the same could be said of Michelle when she was the ripe old age of five as well.

"Did she just...?" asked Lumiere apologetically as he came into the foyer with Julia.

Almost simultaneously, Julia rushed up to him with a hug.  

"Welcome home, Yangzi."

Then Lumiere laughed, and he had been in the process of getting out a word of welcome when the authoritative voice of his princess overshadowed all:

"KING DADDY, THE COURT NEEDS YOU!"

"Ah!  Alas, Yangzi, I must--"

"DAAAADDDYYYYYYY!!"

"Fine, fine..."

Julia laughed while Yangzi shook his head.

"Anyway, I'll let you get settled in, but as soon as you're able, can you help me with dinner?"

It was a simple enough task, so he nodded, appreciating the time alone.  After all, tonight was a special night...the Vegasus Nationals.  

The texts were already coming in from colleagues he had met during his time as a professional figure skater as well as texts from fellow coaches within his network, wanting to know his thoughts about sportscaster analysis, the judges, who was going to blow it out of the water this year...  It was well appreciated, even though he represented and supported Kaleido's talent now as a coach.  Analyzing the Vegasus Nationals was top on his to-do list that night because the Internationals, which a client of his would be participating in, was closing in each minute that passed.

He took a moment to answer some of the texts and emails, and to spread some thoughts on a popular social media network, where his account had thousands of followers as fans and members of the industry.  The big event was trending, even.  Figure skating wasn't the most popular sport in the world, so he took pride in its popularity when it came.  Briefly he wondered even if there was some form of media out there that incurred an increased interest in ice skating.

Already in game mode, he brought out his tablet and turned on the living room television to the sports channel covering the event.  With a stylus, he was in the middle of jotting down the names of key players when he was interrupted with

"...I thought you said you were going to help me with dinner."

Yangzi blinked.  Of course, yeah, dinner, but he had just...  Then Julia's eyebrows arched, her mouth tightened, and at once he knew That Look.  If he didn't get up to the kitchen right then there would be hell to pay.

"Yeah, yeah..."

As he followed Julia into the kitchen, he figured that by the time they were finished the actual performances were due to start, and he could always do prep-work for a formal analysis for his clients and social media fans later while he gathered his thoughts.  The ones he would give live would be quick and fleeting, 140 characters or less.  After all, watching and analysing the main event was going to be key tonight if he expected to--

"So, the rice paper rolls are right there on the counter if you wanted to get started...  I brought out everything I think you would want, so I'm sorry if I missed something," Julia interrupted his thoughts with a quick flourish of her hand.  Next to the spring roll station she begun work on a chicken and mushroom concoction with a red wine reduction that was starting to smell familiar.

"Hey, we had that before, right?  When Lumiere, uh..." Yangzi laughed, "when Lumiere decided to make it."

Her giggle was small as her focus was large when she prepped the chicken, "Yeah, and you and the kids secretly ordered take-out."

It was his turn to laugh then.

"Oh, you knew about that?"

"How couldn't I?  I smelled it, and I was so jealous!"

They both laughed as it was for the best that Lumiere was off entertaining the girls.

"Well, sorry, you seemed to be okay with eating it, otherwise I would have..."

For a second she put her hand on his before removing it to work on the mushrooms next, and then admitted, "I knew you guys weren't going to eat it, and I didn't want to waste all the time he spent making it..."

With a smirk, Yangzi declared, "Well that was in the past, and we're gonna make this coq au vin even better this time."

"Coq au vin...with spring rolls!"

He snorted.  "Yeah, with spring rolls."

For a moment he supposed it was probably touching that Julia tried so hard to integrate varying national foods of comfort into their lives, but honestly even if they ate store-bought mac and cheese every day, that would have been all right with him (...as long as Lumiere didn't cook it).

"Hey, Yangzi," she said after about a minute of silence, "there's something I want to talk to you about."

At once he gulped.  He hated hearing that phrase because it always brought something uncomfortable for him to think about.  Why didn't she just go into what she wanted to talk about normally without sounding off the alarms?

"You know how this Saturday...."

It was their big getaway celebration for their tenth anniversary, that's what it was.

"Michelle's having her first sleepover with friends," Yangzi finished, knowing intuitively what the direction of her concern might be.  At least, he hoped.  Or, rather, it was his concern all along.

Julia nodded, much to his relief.

"I think she'll be all right," Julia began, "and I know we're prepared to go get her if something goes south, but I am worried about when she sees her friend's family and compares it to ours.  Or when the other girls talk about their families, and she realizes that ours is...different."

Yangzi shook his head.  "Nah, I don't think it's that big of a deal.  At that age, kids are pretty self-oriented.  They'll probably just talk about all the things that interest them."

At least, he hoped and wished that after secretly reading a parenting book or two during his commute on the bus.

"You're probably right," she said as she moved to the side to lay her head on his shoulder, "but it's just been eating away at me all week."

"Nah, nah," Yangzi dismissed as he attempted to reassure her, "don't worry about it.  I mean, think of who her father is--"

"I'm worrying."

"--And rea--"

Julia burst into laughter as Yangzi's face changed from an optimistically inspiring one to that of abject despair at her words.

He snorted again, and she laughed some more.

"Sorry, sorry," she apologized, "but seriously, I want to have a talk with her before Saturday...about family."

"Yeah, I get it," Yangzi confessed uncomfortably while slightly turning away from her.  "I mean, remember when she started school this year and asked if we were divorced of all things based on something her heckin' teacher said?"

"We just said 'no,' which seemed to reassure her, but sometimes I wonder if--"

"I think Michelle is smart enough to ask questions if she thinks she doesn't understand," interrupted Yangzi, resolutely almost, and Julia simply nodded in agreement.

When he finished with the spring rolls, he helped her bring everything to the skillet, leaving it to simmer for a while.  He had a good, what, half an hour or so until everything was done?  The Nationals were just about to actually start.  This was a prime time to sneak downstairs into the so-called 'Man Cave' to get some work done.

"Right, see you," he said quickly once his work was done, leaving Julia alone with her thoughts in the kitchen as he grabbed his tablet and headed downstairs.

As he flicked on the light, he was comforted by the soothing, warm tones of said 'Man Cave', decorated floor to ceiling with his trophies, outfit designs by Lumiere, photos of Kaleido leopards, newspaper clippings about the highlights of their careers, and, more recently, an award of Michelle's.  Yet again he sighed, more pleasantly this time as he plopped himself on the familiar couch and turned on that familiar sports network.

But he was only comfortable and able to concentrate on his work for so long before...

"WE NEED TO WATCH SAILOR GALAXY AND FRIENDS!"

Ah, Titania.

"And I'm going to do my homework, too."

He turned his head to look at the hopeful little girl carrying a textbook and paper and the enthusiastic littler girl sporting a cool tiara...and Lumiere behind them, looking entirely apologetic.

"Fine, fine," he acquiesced, realizing the theme of futile resistance that day.

At once, everyone crowded in and Michelle was the one to take charge of the remote control and switch it to her favorite channel where almost immediately a catchy theme song started to play.  Titania started dancing and Michelle bobbed her head as Lumiere settled into the couch next to Yangzi.

The girls had good timing, to say the least.

"Bravo, girls, we did it!  We completed the quest, and--"

"SHHH, DADDY, WE'RE TRYING TO WATCH."

Lumiere gave a defeated chuckle as he extended his arm on the backrest behind Yangzi, settling into the couch while acting as if numerous pounds had just been lifted from his shoulders and it was the first time all day he had grasped some rest (and while on kid-watching duty, that may have actually been closer to the truth).  He looked over to Yangzi, exhaustion and vulnerability coloring his face, and whispered, "There's no pleasing them, is there?"

Yangzi snorted in response, not envious of Lumiere's position as he grabbed his tablet and left, giving a simple "I'll be upstairs," as his parting words.

The Invasion of the Hallowed Man Cave was a common enough occurrence despite the playroom sporting a television specifically for the girls to watch Sailor Galaxy and Friends, Princess Sparklepony, and whatever other drivel they were obsessed with at the moment.  But what was the point in having a television in there if they were just going to flock to the room where someone else was watching something first?  Julia actually had a theory, come to think of it, that the television and its location was irrelevant as far as the children's needs went, and that the children were actually seeking, um, companionship? Even though they had each other? A need to share excitement and joy in their limited community as a resource in itself?  Something like....that?

He was going to have to ask Julia again about that theory.

Now, back in the living room, Yangzi settled down again with the sports network, praying he wouldn't be interrupted again.  He lounged comfortably on the couch, armed with his trusty phone and tablet as he juggled his attention between the two devices and what was happening on the television screen.  According to the schedule and his social media feed, he had missed the first performance, although it seemed to be nothing to write home about.  That was fine because he had the rest of the night to take in.

For the next half hour he was able to draft up some general thoughts to use for his formal analysis as well as quickly air off on social media thoughts about the sportscaster commentary, the pair of performances he managed to see, and how delicious dinner was starting to smell.  He even was able to respond to a few comments on his posts when, once again...

"IIIIIIIIT'S PRINCESS SPARKLEPONY TIME!"

At that point Yangzi had been in the zone and was starting to lose patience.

"Seriously?" he asked in a tone sharper than he had intended.

"UM...YEAH?"

Lumiere was right behind Titania, and Yangzi could definitely see the exhaustion practically hanging over and gripping him in a tight embrace.  It was in his mannerisms, it was in his voice as he explained, "Sorry, Yangzi, but Miss Velociraptor didn't want to watch Princess Sparklepony, and--"

"PRINCESS SPARKLEPONY TIME!" Titania interrupted and went for the remote, deftly changing the channel in a practiced motion.  If Yangzi wasn't so irritated he would be quite proud that she had mastered full use of the control while her mother still struggled to tell the difference between the volume and channel buttons.

But the fact remained that he was irritated - irritated and conceding defeat, and the theme song for Princess Sparklepony (season three, not as good as the first two) only heralded that.

"Do whatever you want, I..."

He set his tablet aside as Titania almost body-slammed on top of him - "oof!" - while Lumiere still stood in the doorway with a complicated expression.

"DADDY, WATCH PRINCESS SPARKLEPONY WITH US!"

"The more the merrier," added Yangzi dryly as he set his attention to his phone, feeling the headache coming on again as he was trying to gather context of the ongoing performance from his social media feed.

"YEAH!"

Lumiere was a bit more delicate than his daughter when it came to joining Yangzi on the couch, choosing not to body-slam but instead to carefully position himself next to him in a slight hug.  "I'm sorry," he whispered as he rest his head on Yangzi's shoulder, "I know you were doing something, but--"

"SHHH, DADDY."

What did Lumiere think he was trying to pull, talking while Princess Sparklepony was on?  

Honestly, if Yangzi considered himself a pushover when it came to his daughter then Lumiere was even worse than that.  Again, he didn't envy his role in manning the girls today in the slightest, and even he could see the vitality and life they pulled from him.  It wasn't to say that children were a drain because far be it - the girls were a constant source of pride, wonder, and love - but for the first time actually he wondered if Lumiere could have used help just as Julia did cooking dinner.

He felt his phone buzz and with it came a text from Lumiere - despite him being literally right there:

>What's wrong?

What was wrong? Yangzi asked himself and aside from not being able to participate in the Vegasus Nationals as much as he wanted, not much else.

>Nothing

>Truly?

>Truly??

>I'm being serious Yangzi is there something wrong?

Yangzi looked over at Lumiere inches away from him, looking up at him with a complicated expression, and at once he felt he was missing something.

>Nothing wrong just wanted 2 watch tv

Again he looked over at Lumiere and could tell that his answer wasn't cutting it for some reason.

Fortunately he was saved by the bell - well, the dinner bell - okay, Julia saying that dinner was ready.

The moments that passed between then and finally sitting down at the table were a blur (and they always were with children).  In between trying to actually turn the television off and everyone's hands washed, there were some arguments and fruitlessly attempted negotiations, the sensation of truly becoming 'one' with the meaning of the word 'hangry', hiding in the closet for the first time, and even a brief bout of crying (we're not going to say from who).  

In the end Julia gave up calling everyone to dinner and instead forcibly escorted them to their designated positions at the table.  If she felt frazzled by the exchange then there was no indication of it in her demeanor as she saw to it that everyone had a helping of what they would reasonably eat on their plates.  

After all, there was a reason why Lumiere frequently joked despite Yangzi's posturing that she was actually the one in charge.

"I think," Julia began once everyone had a full plate, "that we should go around the table and each of us should describe something that makes us feel thankful."

"What a wonderful idea, Miss Fairy!" Lumiere exclaimed as he jumped aboard.  After all, he was the only one aside from Julia who hadn't yet begun eating.  "I would be honored to start.  May I?"

"Go right ahead."

As Lumiere cleared his throat and scanned the table, he said with a flourish of his hand, "I am thankful...for each and every one of you being in my life.  The past decade has brought about the most wonderful years filled with light and love.  For a time, I didn't know how I could be happier, and then you came into our lives Miss Velociraptor."

"HEY, WHAT ABOUT ME?"

"For a time I thought my happiness was complete," he continued steadily, "I didn't know how I could be happier, but then you came along, too, my darling Princess.  Now I truly feel not just happy but absolutely blessed to have each and every one of you here with me.  Thank you all."

Yangzi snorted slightly because leave it to Lumiere to turn a simple activity into a grand declaration of love, but he also couldn't help but smile a little.  He felt very similarly, after all, even if he would never express those feelings to everyone so sappily.

"You're welcome," Michelle mentioned as she was about to munch on a mushroom.  Short and simple, that was his girl.

"YEAH!  I'M HAPPY, TOO!" That was Titania, excited and full of love as the said Princess exclaimed, "I'M THANKFUL FOR MY FAMILY!"

Julia giggled and placed her hand on top of Lumiere's, "Lumiere, that was a wonderful sentiment.  Titania, sweetie, you, too!"  Then she turned her attention to Yangzi and at that moment he found something in her gaze that was more expectant than usual.  

"What about you, Yangzi?  What are you thankful for?"

Of course there was plenty he was thankful for but that didn't mean he had to go confessional at dinner - or at all.

"I'm just thankful the chicken's not burned this time."

Titania unintentionally took the sting out of the withering, disappointed look that both Julia and Lumiere gave Yangzi and added her own two cents, "YEAH!  LAST TIME IT WAS BURNED!"

"And gross," Michelle chimed in, and Yangzi couldn't help but laugh because it had really been that bad.

"I didn't think it gross at all!" Lumiere tried to defend.  "I even had it every day for lunch."

Julia just put her head in her hand and admitted, "Well, you were the only one who ate it..."

"How?" Michelle laughed as she pushed some of her food around before scooping it up and eating it.

"What do you mean how?"

"All right, all right, gross chicken is in the past," Julia ruled, putting any further discussion about it in the past as well as she tried to get them back on a more pleasant topic.  "Michelle, what about you?  What are you thankful for?"

She scrunched her lips together and tapped her chin for an extended period of time before Yangzi lost patience and added, "C'mon, I had to answer so you answer, too."

"I'm thankful for..." she finally drew the words out as she spoke, "...Lumiere calling me Miss Velociraptor now.  Instead of Miss Pixie."

"...And I have so many questions about that that no one will answer me," Julie admitted flatly, giving up on this heartwarming family scenario that she had so many hopes and dreams about.

Michelle smiled and responded, "I'm clever...and so are velociraptors.  They are so much cooler than Pixies!"

"Miss Fairy, my love, it was all age-appropriate and no one had nightmares," Lumiere yet again defended even though he probably should have left it with Michelle's response.

"I DID!"

"You did not."

"You told me you dreamed you were a T-Rex...  How is that a nightmare?"

"BUT I DIDN'T GET TO EAT ANYBODY."

"Not even the guy on the toilet?" Yangzi added.

"NOOOOO!  THAT WAS GROSS!"

He laughed, but then again so did she so all was right.

"And...what about you, Miss Fairy?" Lumiere asked softly, guilty for being part of the derailment of her touching family moment.

Much like Yangzi, she snorted dryly and shook her head, "I'm thankful I get to go to work for most of the day..."

---

In the end, Yangzi never did get back to watching the Vegasus Nationals.  

His social media feed was left hanging because right after dinner it was discovered that Michelle never did actually do her homework despite saying she would, so he had to take some time to make sure she was doing all right with it.  Julia helped at the end when he became frustrated with the content, and they swapped places so that he could take care of washing the dishes and tidying up the kitchen.

Then were was bath time drama when Titania only wanted her mother to help with a bath, so again Julia swapped with Lumiere while Yangzi was content in the kitchen, again trying to gather context about the performances through social media.  But it turned out that Lumiere was no help for Michelle's homework in comparison to her Dr. Mom.  About that time Yangzi was done with the kitchen and tried to help with homework, but in the end they just ended up using a search engine for basic concepts and Michelle became frustrated and decided it was time for bed.  At the time same Julia was tucking in Titania for bed, so really that was kind of a winning scenario?  If someone squinted at it and wished fervently?

At least, Yangzi declared it so and once again attempted to watch the last of the performances that night, however, both Julia and Lumiere cornered him and had other plans...

Which led to them being sweaty but satisfied in their shared bedroom.

Neither Lumiere nor Julia spoke much, keeping Yangzi in the middle as they held each others hand or stroked each others arm before moving to his chest.  They were still coming down after experiencing a great fall, and for a while he had one hand planted on each of them, even giving them both soft kisses on their bodies before his curiosity about what he missed during the Vegasus Nationals took hold of him once he had exited the zone.

He reached over Lumiere for his phone.

At once both of them protested with a disgusted sigh and a harsh "really?"  It wasn't as if this was a minor irritation once but rather something that had been building all night.

"What?"  What was the big deal?

"You've been on your phone all day!"  That was Lumiere, rising up to rest on his elbow as he somewhat hovered over Yangzi, comfortably on his back again with his cell phone while checking the comments.

"Since you got home, you've just been so distant," Julia added, rolling over to her side to face him.

He felt kind of cornered if he was honest.  "The Vegasus Nationals are today...  What the heck is the big deal?  I just want to check on how things are going!  I mean, you know this is for my work, right?"

With that, Lumiere backed down a bit because in a sense he understood, but Julia was still coming strong.

"You can look at that later," Julia said, looking him directly in his eye, "but the day of our ten year anniversary only comes once."

...Wait, what?

He looked at Lumiere, and he looked at Julia, and both of them seemed to be gazing at him with the same intensity.

"But," he protested, a bit weak against that strong gaze of Julia's, "we're celebrating our tenth anniversary of us together...this weekend.  And besides, the actual anniversary is...tomorrow."

There was a second, then another second, before Julia and Lumiere looked at each other and decided, "No, the actual day of our tenth anniverary is today, Yangzi."

And it so, totally, was not.

It was so totally not that Yangzi just laughed which disarmed them both.

"This is all because you think I've been distant on our anniversary as a triad?  When it's not actually our anniversary?"

"It is," Julia firmly maintained.  "It's on our calendar.  But I guess you wouldn't know because you won't get the same kind of phone as us..."

"Honey," and that honey referred them both, "today is not our anniversary.  Do you remember the day we decided we were all going to be together?  What event was happening in the background?"

Julia had been the one to argue, but it was Lumiere who took out his phone and added, "It was actually the Vegasus Nationals ten years ago, wasn't it?"

She nodded, remembering.  "It was the first time you weren't a part of it since you were skating for Kaleido then."

"Aaaand," Yangzi said with a shit-eating grin, "what date was that?"

Lumiere at once dropped back to the bed and outstretched his hand to Julia, who grabbed his phone to read.

"I'm so stupid," he moaned as she gasped, "but it's in our calendar as today!"

"What?"  She clutched his phone.  And there she verified that the anniversary of the Vegasus Nationals ten years ago...was tomorrow.  "How did we make this mistake?"

Yangzi shrugged.  "Maybe you two with your synced calendars made a mistake when you upgraded phones this year?  Not that I would know since I..."

"Oh shut up about your ancient phone," Lumiere pouted and kissed him deeply.  

Julia followed suit with a "just shut up entirely" which made the three of them laugh and then kissed him deeply, too.

Not a bad end to a not-anniversary if he did say so himself.

[joeybelle]

Oh, how the tables have turned - Part 2

Clyde Logan x Reader

Inspired by @clyde-prompts: “Some guys are rude and use ableist slurs against Clyde. The reader is with them, and although she feels bad about what’s happening, is too scared to say anything in front of her “friends”. She comes back to the bar a couple nights later to try and show him she’s not a bad person. They get to know each other and fall in love”. Doesn’t fully follow the prompt

Warnings: Language, ableist slurs, general stupidity, first person point of view.

Rating: Mature

Setting: Pre-heist

Tags: @lonelyravenclaw @kyloren-supreme-ben

My decision to never set foot in that bar lasted exactly until the next day. After a night of sleeping like absolute shit and a morning spent eaten up by guilt I gathered all my remaining courage and went back to apologize, under a cloud of shame.

It was late afternoon, and the bar was still almost empty. Only the regulars, I supposed. It was quite early to start drinking, but there I was, already craving a shot of something strong to wash away the shame and give me a little courage to do what was right. Clyde was behind the bar, a tower of a man, but somehow he looked a lot more relaxed. Or maybe I just saw him in a different light. He noticed me the moment I entered and followed me with his gaze until I climbed on the stool in front of him. There didn’t seem to be any ill feeling in his eyes, but then again I wasn’t very good at reading people.

“Hi,” I said, trying not to sound too overwhelmed.

“Hello,” he replied, placing a napkin in front of me, an automated gesture he probably did countless times every day.

“I came here to apologize for yesterday,” I started, taking the band aid approach and wanting to get over with it as soon as possible, so I could either have a nice drink, or go hide under a rock for the rest of my days, depending on how this all went.

“It’s ok,” he said, making himself busy with some glasses. “I know how they can get after a few beers. Fortunately, they don’t come here very often.”

“I’m not apologizing for them, they’re old enough to clean up their own shit,” I said with a frown. “I came here to apologize for what I said yesterday.” He stopped what he was doing for a moment, but didn’t lift his eyes. “I didn’t mean for it to sound that way. I… I don’t what you to think that I was reducing you to a disability, or… ”

“I know,” he cut me off. “It’s ok.”

“But it’s not, is it?” I said, nervously twisting the napkin between my fingers. “Cause you keep saying ‘it’s ok’ but you’re not looking at me right now.”

He put down the glass and moved in front of me, where he leaned on the counter, his face a few inches away from mine. The bar suddenly got a lot warmer, now that I was staring into a pair of mesmerizing brown eyes. This close up I could easily count all the beauty marks peppered across his light skin, but I was too hypnotized by his gaze to look anywhere else.

“I accept your apology,” he said, and his deep voice went straight to my uterus. “Do you feel better now?”

“Slightly?” I said, as he straightened his back. His sudden retreat from my personal space left me a little disappointed. I kinda liked it when he looked straight at me with that intense gaze.

“Can I get you anything?” he changed the subject, and I knew that conversation was over. I didn’t know if he’d really forgiven my stupidity or he only said it to get it over with, but there wasn’t anything more I could do at this point.

“Umm,” I said, looking around the bar, looking for some inspiration. “Something sweet that goes well with self-loathing?” I could swear I saw a smile on his face, but it was so brief that it could very well have been just a figment of my imagination. It made me wonder how hard it was to make him laugh.

“How does a Manhattan sound?”

“Like it speaks of greener pastures,” I said, flashing him a smile.

He cleaned the shaker, took out a couple of bottles and started preparing the drink. It was fascinating watching him work with only one hand, and I was pretty sure I could do it all day. As he was carefully preparing the drink, I realized that I could see myself coming back here more frequently. The atmosphere of the bar was quite pleasant once I got used to the rather dated decor. The music wasn’t too loud, so you could have a conversation in peace. And the best of all, the bartender was really really cute.

“So, how come you moved back here? ” he asked, looking at me for just a second. “I thought living in the big city was your dream.”

“Did we know each other? Back in the day?” I asked, propping my elbows on the counter and leaning a little closer.

“Don’t think so.”

“Then how come you know that?”

“I’m a bartender and people talk.” Of course there was an easy explanation for that, it’s not like he had any real interest in me, but a girl could dream.

“Don’t they have something better to talk about?” I asked, but I was more amused than annoyed. I didn’t really think that I was such a noteworthy person that someone felt like gossiping about me. But I had to admit, it did feel good to know that he knew who I was. It meant he cared. A little bit at least. Gotta start somewhere.

“Well, gossip is the national pastime and not that much happens ‘round here,” he said, pushing the glass in front of me.

“Thank you,” I said, taking a sip and being met with the familiar sharpness of alcohol, followed by the sweetness of the drink. I wasn’t much of a cocktail connoisseur, but the drink was really good. “So… It’s a typical story really. I had high hopes when I left this place, thought that I was going to make it big. It wasn’t the case, like it happens 90% of the time. When I got there I was proven that I’m not as smart as I thought and not as charismatic as others. I did what I could, I worked two jobs at times, but the cost of living has skyrocketed in the past year and they’re not hiring in my field. So when I found out there was a job opening at the local college I decided to more back here. My parents have moved to Portland a few years back and still haven’t sold our old house, so I don’t have to worry about rent anymore.” I smiled and downed half of my drink, probably looking like an alcoholic. “Got plenty of other things to worry about.”

“Isn’t this place boring after New York?”

“A bit. I don’t miss noise and the traffic jams and the rush, but I really miss my friends and having something to do in my free time.” I sighed. “Here, besides my colleagues at work, I don’t really have anyone to talk to.” I hoped I didn’t sound too bitter, but he opened the pandora’s box by asking. Not my fault.

“You still have your old friends from highschool. They seemed really excited to see you again,” he said, looking at the pool table where they were yesterday. I really didn’t know if he was being sarcastic or not.

“Safe to say we’re not really seeing eye to eye anymore.” I snorted and finished the rest of my drink, hoping the sting of the alcohol would wash away the shame. “Were we really that shit in highschool too? I know we used to be stupid and said a lot of shit, but was I really that stupid? It hurts cause I really don’t remember, and I might have hurt people and not realized it.”

“I don’t think you were shit,” he said all serious and I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Thanks, I guess.” It’s not like there was anything I could do about that now, I just had to live with the realization that at some point in my life I might have been a terrible person and to try not to do the same mistakes now.

“Should I make you another one?” he asked, taking the now empty glass.

“No, thanks. Just give me a beer. I still have to go grocery shopping tonight, now that I have a working fridge. I don’t want to be drunk enough that I start hugging people in the store because I don’t have any friends.”

Clyde took a beer from the fridge, opened it and placed it in front of me. He seemed lost in thought for a moment, before he spoke again. “You used to be friends with my sister, Mellie.”

“Oh yeah!” I said as realization finally hit me. Somehow, I had forgotten that Mellie was their sister. That’s probably because I had never seen them together: Mellie was my friend from school, Jimmy I admired from afar, as for Clyde, I didn’t have a face for the name until recently. I wondered what it would have been like had I met him when I was a teenager. I had a feeling he wouldn’t have liked highschool me very much.

Mellie was in the same year as myself, but we didn’t really talk much until our senior year. Before that, I only really spent time with Maggie’s friends, but senior year was a turning point for me. I started hanging out with Maggie less and focusing a lot more on my studies. And that’s how I met Mellie, in the library while studying for an exam, and we hit it off really well.

“Is she still in town?” I asked with a glimmer of hope.

“Yeah, yeah. She’s still here. She’s working as a hairdresser in town.”

“Oh really? Awesome! I’ll have to pay her a visit one day,” I said, taking a sip from my beer. “If she remembers me, that is,” I said, realizing that there was the chance that she didn’t.

“She does.” He said it with such confidence that I was left wondering if they had talked about me. “I bet she still remembers you,” he backtracked slightly, and turned his back to me, suddenly busy with some bottles on the shelf opposite of me.

“So tell me about yourself, Clyde,” I inquired, trying to get something out of him. I was really curious to find out more about this burly man who seemed to really want to make me work to get something out of him.

“There’s not much to know about me,” he said throwing me a glance over his shoulder. I propped my chin the palm of my hand and shot him an encouraging smile. He replied with a sigh. “I’ve lived here all my life. You know my siblings. Ummm… I own this bar and spend most of my time working here.”

“I’ve heard you’ve been to Iraq,” I said and instantly regretted it. Casually reminding people of trauma is a no-no in every conversation, but I usually realized what I’d said after I’d already put my foot into my mouth.

“Yeah, twice,” he said, turning around to face me once again. His face was still unreadable, but his eyes seemed sad. “The second time I didn't come back in once piece.” He placed his prosthetic on the bar right in front of me. Up until now he seemed to have tried keeping it out of sight as much as possible, and I did my best to ignore it, but now I allowed myself to study it, as his fingers traced the upper edge of the flesh coloured plastic. “Landmine. They say I was lucky.”

“Yeah, maybe you were lucky. And we’re definitely lucky to have you back. I think this town would be much too boring without a handsome bartender,” I said, winking.

He didn’t smile like I had expected him to, instead he just looked at me with a slight frown on his face. I always thought bartenders were used to this kind of light-hearted flirting, after all it seemed to be in their job description, but it seemed I had somehow crossed a line and it saddened me.

“Anyway,” I said, wanting to change the subject as quickly as possible to avoid the silence getting much too awkward, “what do people do for fun around here?”

He was visibly more comfortable talking about all the local pastimes than he was with my pathetic attempt at flirting. It seemed I might have lost my touch as I hadn’t been dating for quite some time. Juggling two jobs while avoiding starvation and homelessness didn’t leave much time for dating. I kept telling myself that I didn’t mind being single, and a lot of the time I didn’t, but sometimes the loneliness crept on me.

Especially when the very handsome man behind the bar was telling me in a very seductive voice about the best steakhouse in a 30 mile radius. I just sat there smiling dumbly at him. I didn’t care that much about steaks, but I was completely mesmerized by him. I loved how seriously he was taking the task of listing all the places I could go to and all the things I could do in my free time, like my entertainment for the next few years depended on him. He wasn’t as serious as I first thought, but his sense of humour was a little more subtle and since he seemed to deliver everything with a straight face, his jokes were easy to miss.

Although he tended to other customers too, with the same care and attention that seemed to be ingrained in his nature, he somehow seemed to gravitate towards me. I loved talking to him, he was overall a really pleasant person. This is how I’d wished the meeting with my highschool friends would have gone: sharing memories, joking about the old times, telling me about what was new in town. Unfortunately, my old friends ended up being assholes. Fortunately, thanks to them I met Clyde and he was incredibly sweet.

“Can I get you another?” he asked pointing at the empty beer bottle I was still clutching in my hand.

“Ummm…” Part of me wanted to say hell yeah, keep them coming until I’m drunk enough so I’d have an excuse to ask you to walk me home, but there was another slightly more grown up part of my brain that reminded me that I had early classes the next day and I really needed to buy some groceries if I didn’t want to eat ice cubes for my next breakfast. “I really have to go,” I said, hating myself for letting the rational part of me win. “I still have to do some shopping before I’m too drunk to remember that I hate mushrooms.” He smiled. A brief, tentative smile that I’d almost missed. “But I do have a very expensive vodka bottle from my going away party that I plan on opening tonight.”

“That’s unhealthy,” he said and I laughed, probably a little too loud.

“You, a bartender, who sells alcohol for a living are trying to tell me that it’s unhealthy?” I said, leaning on the counter.

“No, drinking alone is unhealthy.”

“Well,” I said, playing with one of the napkins on the counter, “why don’t you join me then?” I watched his eyes go wide and his whole body become tense. Come on dude, it’s not like you haven’t noticed me trying to flirt with you for the past two hours. Right? “Or you know, if vodka straight up isn’t really your thing, I could take you out for dinner sometimes. You know that steakhouse you told me about. If you’re single of course, I don’t mean to imply…”

“Thanks,” he said, eventually finding his voice. “But, umm…” And here comes the rejection hotline, I thought, bracing myself. “I’m really sorry. I just… I don’t need your pity,” he said, avoiding my gaze completely.

“Wait, what?” I was completely taken by surprise. I had expected anything to come out of his mouth: that he was married with kids, gay, that I was a cute girl but he really didn’t like me like that, that he was only interested in pink unicorns. Anything but that.

“You don’t have to pretend to like me just ‘cause your friends were assholes to me the other day.” Getting those words out of his mouth seemed to take a lot of effort, and his face looked strained. He started hastily rearranging something behind the bar, still avoiding to look me in the eye.

“Is that what you think this is? Do you really think I’d ask you out just because I feel guilty or something?” It probably sounded harsher than I intended, but I did what I could to mask the hurt in my voice. I wanted nothing more than to grab his shirt, force him to look me in the eye and tell me that he really thought that.

He swallowed hard, but stubbornly kept his gaze away from me. “You don’t have to go out of your way to be nice to me just to clear your conscience. I already accepted your apology. That’s enough.”

“Is that really what you think?” I was hurt. Not by the rejection, although that hadn’t registered yet and would certainly hurt later on, but by the assumption that I was only doing this to appease my conscience. I really didn’t know what was going through his head, and seeing that he didn’t seem willing to give me an answer I sighed and hopped off the barstool.

“Listen, Clyde,” I said, taking out my wallet, “I really don’t know what kind of idea you’ve formed about me today, but I can assure you of one thing: I’ve never asked anyone on a date out of pity. Never did, and never will.” I pushed two notes on the counter and shoved the wallet back. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Clyde,” I said, and I cringed as I recognized the tone I usually used in class. “I’ll see you around. I guess.”

I turned around and left, feeling a lot worse than I did when I entered. I was leaving the bar on the brink of tears once again, this time of frustration not of shame. It was like every time I came here something bad happened. Maybe they were right. Maybe it was cursed.

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