#// both the older and younger versions are so funny i promise

[krowjones]

Our First Video: We Survived the Apocalypse, AMA!

krowjones | 2 hours ago

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A black-and-white haired teen appeared on an amateurish-recorded video you were watching. He smiled shyly and waved, his voice wavering slightly at the beginning before gaining confidence.

"Hi there, my name's Krow Jones. Some time ago I helped stop aliens from invading NYC. That was... certainly something." He shrugged. "I'm stuck in the past and kind of bored, so I decided to try this. It was sensei's idea, actually. Not really sure how it all works, but can't be too hard, right?"

An older, more muscular man who looked nearly identical to the teen came into the frame. He put a supportive hand on the younger man's shoulder. "You'll get the hang of it, Little Me."

Younger Krow playfully glared at his older counterpart. "Hey, who are you calling little, old man? We're the same height!"

The older one let out a hearty, good-natured laugh. "That we are! But you're still little in age, you know? You're 19, your life's barely begun!" He gave the camera a wide grin, eyes sparkling. "We've noticed some people are curious about us. So we'll answer the internet's most burning, nosy questions! In a longer book-like form, no less. 'It's supposed to emulate vlogging but with words', our writer said. Very fancy!"

"Seems like overkill for something so casual," teen Krow remarked. He gestured to the long blocks of writing on the fourth wall. "Who's going to even read all this?"

Old Krow shook his head. "Have faith in our audience. Anyway, let's wrap this up. Like we practiced, okay?" He counted off on his fingers. "3, 2, 1..."

Both men hooked thumbs, their hand splayed open to each resemble one half of a bird's wings. They sang their vlog's tagline in unison. "You caw, we'll caw back!"

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Written vlog-style ask blog for Krow Jones (Casey Jones Jr.) from the Radiant Souls AU, run by @holopossums

Curious? You caw, they'll caw back.

Previous art/writing can be found in the tag krow jones

BLOG RULES HERE

[themuseinthewoods]

Headcanons for Achilles as an older brother

I wrote a short story of Achilles comforting his younger sibling after Patroclus’s death and now I’m a little obsessed and I was bored, so here's some headcanons, cannot promise that they are good but this fandom deserves so much more attention.

Based majority on the Iliad(my grandparent got me the graphic novel version and I am obsessed) but also on Troy (2004) because Brad Pitt, okay? Any gender can read, mild cursing

Achilles x sibling!reader, Patroclus x cousin!best friend!reader

I personally believe that if Achilles had a younger sibling they would be the softer less harsh version of him who is a talented fighter but really just wants to be a pacifist or the shortest, attack dog vibes person ever with no inbetween

I do prefer the calmer, sweeter one so that's what I will be doing because the second is just funny to me

Let’s say you’re ten years younger then your brother

So lets be honest, ten year olds aren’t always the most excited when a new baby arrives

But since your mother is the literal goddess Thetis who handed her son tiny, little you and said “Achilles, my son, this is your little brother/sister/sibling. Can you protect them for me when I am not here?”

He is gonna carry that with him forever. Even when he becomes the prideful, warrior, who has no soft spots except wait he does, it's his sibling (and his cousin)

Obviously you're gonna be great at fighting, Achilles figures he will fall in battle even before the Trojan war. He wants you to be able to fight the bastards off yourself!

You’re bound to be best friends with Patroclus, you both are the chill ones in the family after all. Y’all are over there playing chess or something while Achilles is absolutely decimating armies.

Something that started when you were little and kept happening is hugs

Casual hugs, comforting hugs, protective hugs, welcome back hugs

All the while he’s glaring at everyone else because how dare they think he has a soft spot for his younger sibling! It is not like he publicly declared he would die before anyone hurt you when he was twelve.

Sometimes when you were younger you would get scared when he would get angry while he was training and due to that he does try to calm down when you ask him too.

After Patroclus dies, he realizes that while all he wanted to do was protect you, bringing you and your cousin to this war has done the opposite

Side note: he totally keeps you with him in his chariot or near him when in battle so that he can end anyone who tries to harm you.

Achilles also realizes that the thing that would hurt you the most would be losing him

For you. He tells himself he shall give up his shot at fame to protect you.

Congratulations, you have the most protective older brother ever.

Feel free to request something!

[jellyfishright]

At A Distance, Spring Is Green -BL Version (Yeo Jun x Nam Soo Hyun):Chapter 5 :Can you please like me?

A/N. This chapter has abuse themes and the mention of suicide, as seen in the episode.

Yeo Jun was relieved when the dinner ended. His aunt and uncle left first.

"Let's go back." Jun-Wan told him.

Yeo Jun nodded.

Their mother was sitting in the drawing room.

"We should get going. I have other plans." Jun Wan told her.

"Already?" his mother asked.

"Let's go." Jun Wan said to his younger brother.

Their mother's eyes fell on Yeo Jun. "Why don't you stay a little longer Jun? It's been a while since you came."

"Come on." Jun-Wan instructed Jun

Yeo Jun turned to his older brother. "You go ahead."

"Yes." their mother agreed. "Go ahead Jun-Wan. You said you had other plans."

"Go ahead." Yeo Jun encouraged. "Mother must have missed me."

Jun-Wan looked at his little brother with those emotionless eyes. "Come out when I call you."

As soon as Jun-Wan left, Yeo Jun could hear footsteps rapidly approaching. Before he could fully process what was happening, he was smacked hard across the face.

"Are you smiling?" his father asked. He gripped Jun by the chin. "Is this funny to you? You were laughing and bragging about your school weren't you? How dare you mention that trashy school during dinner?" his father sounded.

His mother spoke up from where she stood. "Jun-Wan is going to pick him up soon."

His father pointed an accusatory finger at this mother. "You're the problem! Why did you call this useless brat to have dinner? Are you out of your mind?" he bellowed.

Yeo Jun's eyes watered. "Please stop father.It's all my fault."

"Shut your mouth." his father grabbed him by the collar, preparing for another attack. Yeo Jun flinched. "Get this brat out of my sight. Understand?" He threw his hand from his son with a disgusted look. "Arrogant brat."  he spat before leaving.

"I'll get going then mother." Yeo Jun said, his voice barely a whisper.

His mother tenderly touched the side of his face his father had hit.

"Does it hurt?" she asked, her eyes blank as she looked at him.

"I'm fine. It doesn't hurt." 

"Of course it does." she was still touching his face. "Gosh. You poor thing."

Jun slowly raised his head to look at his mother. "No. It's my fault. I shouldn't have interfered."

"No--" his mother interjected. "It's all on me.It's my fault for thinking you'll behave yourself today."

"No.." Yeo Jun's voice was low

"It's my fault for giving birth to you in the first place." His mother said

Yeo Jun's eyes became glassy with tears."What?"

"I did my best with you.Look at your brother.I gave birth to you both .So why can't you be as good as Jun-Wan?"

Yeo Jun felt the lump in his throat and he desperately tried to fight the tears he'd not shed until now. "I know." he conceded. "I'm trying my best."

His mother nodded and gently patted his head "Atleast you're good at listening to me."

"Yes.." the teary-eyed Yeo Jun replied.

"But are you really listening to what I'm saying?" she asked. In one swift, sudden motion she tugged at Yeo Jun's head.The black wig he'd worn to cover his undyed blonde hair came off in her hand.

"Mother.." he was about to defend himself.

"This is why I hate you." His mother's eyes were truly hateful. "I told you to dye your hair black didn't I?"

"I didn't have enough time to.."

"Stop making excuses!" his mother screamed "You're always like that!" she grabbed her phone "I'll call the barbershop! Go get your hair dyed now."

"Okay." Yeo Jun replied.

She spun to face him with those hateful eyes. "Even though you're saying 'okay' I know you're thinking about fooling us on the inside." she accused

"No.Of course not."

"Since you don't live with us anymore I wonder how many more times you're going to fool me."

"I promise I'll go. Which Barbershop is it?" he was desperate for her to believe him "I'll go right away and get my hair dyed."

"Shut your mouth."

"I'll go. I swear."

"Deceiving people while wearing that fake smile is your specialty." his mother sneered. "You think I don't know you?"

Yeo Jun's phone began to buzz. Retrieving it, he saw his brother's name.

"Hey. I'll head out now." he answered the call.

"Don't make it seem obvious that you got slapped.Got it?" His mother warned.

"Yes mother." Yeo Jun looked at the back of the one who had turned away from him. "Mother, please believe me.I just turned 20.Please have a little faith in me."

"Go.Jun-Wan is waiting for you" Was the only response he received.

Yeo Jun dried his tears and walked back to the car.

"Did something happen?" Jun-Wan asked .Yeo Jun shook his head, careful to angle his face in a way that hid the redness of his cheek."You have no family."

"Pull over." Yeo Jun told him.Jun Wan ignored him. That made him angry. "Pull over dammit!" he screamed. He didn't care that they were nowhere near their destination. He just needed to get away from him.

His brother complied.

"Thanks for the lift and for the advice." Jun Wan didn't speak "But moreover,thanks for reminding me that you're a psychopath ."

After Jun-Wan left, Yeo Jun walked around a bit until he found himself in town. There was a hair salon across the street.

For the longest time he stood there looking at it while the bitter words from those he called family bounced around in his head

No one in that house misses you or wants you there. You have no family.

This is why I hate you.

Deceiving people while wearing that fake smile is your specialty.

Retrieving his phone he dialled the first number he saw.

"Hey. It's me.Are you free right now?Let's call the others for a drink.I'm buying."

A few hours and many drinks later, Yeo Jun was still not numb to the pain he was feeling inside.

He was now in the company of four people from school. They weren't exactly his friends but no one ever said no when he invited them anywhere---except that one guy.

Yeo Jun frowned as that uninterested face flitted before his eyes.

"Let me pour you a glass." he wobbly stood to his feet and poured a new round of drinks. "Are your glasses filled? Of course! There is no tomorrow, only a blinding today.Cheers!"

Those glasses clinked and he knocked the contents back in one go.

Yeo Jun drank until he lost count. His head spun but more than that, his heart ached.Closing his eyes, he rested his head on the table.

"He's gone."

"He's out of it."

He could hear his colleagues' comments.

"Hey Jun." someone tapped him on the shoulder "You need to pay for the drinks."

He didn't respond.

"He dragged us here saying he'd buy." someone else complained.

"He already picked up the tab." another drinker pointed out "This is Jun we're talking about."

"He proved his worth once again."

"Once again." someone agreed with a chuckle.

"Life must be so easy for him. He's handsome, popular and rich. What could possibly worry him?"

"He should be scolded for having any worries."

"Could not worrying make life boring though?" 

"Guys, let's drink to that!"

Cheers!

More glasses clinked.

That's right. What could possibly worry a guy like him that had it all? Yeo Jun closed his  eyes, wishing it would all end. Wishing it would all just go away.

Nam Soo Hyun sat at the register, making a list of his expenses.

Academy Fee

Rent

Phone Bill

It still wasn't adding up. It still wasn't enough.

Frustrated, he scribbled over the whole thing.

Just then, his phone rang.

He didn't have this number saved.

"Hello?"

[Soo Hyun] A voice drawled his name.

"Who is this?"

[It's me]

Soo Hyun was silent as he finally placed the voice.

[You know who I am. You know everything.]

"Are you drunk?"

[Yes but I want to drink some more...with you]

"Why would I drink with you?"

[Please don't say no.] Yeo Jun's voice broke [If you do,I'm going to kill myself.]

That string of words stirred something within Soo Hyun.

"Where are you?" he asked.

Yeo Jun sniffled [I'm at the Park].

Soo Hyun looked at his watch.He still had an hour left before he could leave.This thought produced an anxious knot inside. What could he do?

He listened to Yeo Jun as he cried on the other end of the line.

"Where exactly are you?" he asked

Through his tears, Yeo Jun managed to give his location.

"Stay there." Soo Hyun instructed.

He looked at his watch again.

After hanging up with Yeo Jun he called Kim So-Bin. He gave her a brief overview and Yeo Jun's location.

"Stay with him until I get there."

Soo Hyun frowned. 

He hoped So-Bin made it in time.

He hoped that guy didn't do anything stupid.

And why had he called him?

But more than that, why was he bothered? Outside of his family he had never cared about or intervened in the affairs of others.

Yeo Jun on the other hand was pulling him into his business at every turn.

"It's a beautiful night to die." Yeo Jun thought to himself as he balanced on the rope that cordoned off the lake. Not too far away there was a bridge. It would be a simple climb. A simple leap and then all this pain would finally end.

He was gazing at that bridge in the distance, surprisingly maintaining his balance on that little rope that felt like the line between life and death.

"Yeo Jun." someone called out to him.

He lifted his head to see Kim So-Bin.

"How did you know I would be here?"

"Nam Soo Hyun called me."

Jun gave a wry laugh. "You guys must be close.Except me.." this feeling in his chest was too bitter.

"Are you okay? How much did you drink?"

"Not much. I can drink more. Let's go drink more." He finally lost his balance and crashed into her arms.

"What's wrong? Pull yourself together." So-Bin tried to rouse him as he rested his head on her shoulder.

"Give him to me." 

So-Bin was glad to see Soo Hyun.

"You made it." 

"Is he asleep?" Soo Hyun asked.

So-Bin complied and positioned Jun for Soo Hyun to carry him on his back.

"Do you know where he lives?" Soo Hyun asked.

"I don't but I think Hye-Ji knows."

10 minutes later the trio arrived at Jun's apartment complex--Youth Villa, even its name sounded posh.

"This seems to be the place." So-Bin looked at the building.

Brrrrr

Soo-Hyun stopped in his tracks as he felt something warm on his shoulder.

"Oh no." So-Bin exclaimed when she saw the puke on Soo Hyun's shoulder.

Immediately following the warmth, was the smell. Soo Hyun sighed and hung his head. "Unbelievable." This guy was always trouble.

There was more trouble to be had since when they got to the apartment, Yeo Jun was out cold and they didn't know the password.

"Jun." So-Bin shook his shoulders "What's the code for your door?" No response.

Soo Hyun frowned

"I've done enough." he began to set Yeo Jun down.

Just then So-Bin realized something.

"Wait. It's a biometric lock.Could you bend down a little?"

Soo Hyun's frustration was mounting still he complied.It wasn't easy to manage his own weight plus Jun who was practically deadweight at this point.

With some difficulty, he squatted while So-Bin tried to pry Jun's fingers open to access the door. There was a part of him that rued leaving his shift early to come but there was no way he could have done otherwise.

An unfamiliar feeling had gripped him the moment he'd heard Yeo Jun's voice on the phone crying and saying those words.It was something he couldn't have ignored.

Soo Hyun  haphazardly casted Yeo Jun on his bed the minute they were inside.

"You must be exhausted" So-Bin looked at him trying to catch his breath. She looked at his jacket and made a face. "Ahh your jacket." He had forgotten about that. "Take it off. I'll wash it for you."

"Why should you?"

"You're right."

"I've probably earned the right to use the bathroom though." he stood to his feet and went in search of it.

He cast a look at Yeo Jun, sprawled out on his back and left.

Finding the bathroom, he peeled his jacket off and began to wash away the filthy patch on his shoulder.

When he was finished, he looked around Yeo Jun's bathroom. It was twice as big as the one he had.Everything was shiny, polished, new and in their place. Unlike his that had things piled in buckets or on top of each other just to make room.

That itch in his heart was back and he didn't like it.

Soo Hyun sighed deeply.

Get a grip.

So-Bin was in the kitchen, pouring water.

"Doesn't something seem to be up with him?" she questioned. "I really think something is up."

Soo Hyun knew she was right. Still he said "Your mind is running off to places."

"Yours doesn't though."

"Because I don't care about others."

"As if." she rolled her eyes. "After you got his call you sent me looking for him.Then you came by and carried him home to his house.I call that caring."

Soo Hyun looked at Jun, then at So-Bin.

"I talk alot don't I?"

"I just didn't want his last call to have been to me." Soo Hyun stated. "That's why I called you." He paused. "I followed you there though." he admitted. "Because I didn't want to put you out more than what was necessary."

"Right." she agreed. "If you hadn't shown up,we would have stayed there all night."

"Anyway, you did good."

So-Bin smiled. "It's getting late.One of us should probably stay with him tonight."

Soo Hyun looked at her "Why?"

"In case he wakes up and tries to do something crazy."

He thought about it.Of the two, he would be the better option.

"I'll stay." he volunteered. "But--"

"Hmm?"

"I'll just watch over him and leave before he wakes up." He looked at her "I'd rather you not tell Jun about this. Don't tell him I came or that I stayed."

"Why not?"

"I just don't want him to be clingy in the name of thanking me." Soo Hyun explained.

So-Bin nodded. "Jun's like that isn't he?" Soo Hyun didn't need to confirm. "Your secret is safe with me."

With this agreement in place, So-Bin left.

There were no shortages of places for Soo Hyun to sit in this luxurious space and once again he was reminded of the stark differences between his and Yeo Jun's lives.

Unlike him who had to constantly crunch numbers and scrape every dollar. Unlike him, who had to watch how much he spent on food and keep the reigns tight, Yeo Jun could do whatever he wanted and then some.

He was ensnared by these thoughts when he heard Yeo Jun's voice from the bedroom.

"No.No. No..Please. Stop."

Soo Hyun sprang to his feet and ran to the bedroom.

Yeo Jun's eyes were clenched shut as he thrashed about.

"Jun." he shook his shoulder. "Jun."

With a big gasp of air Yeo Jun sat up in bed and clung to Soo Hyun, grabbing handfuls of his shirt.

Soo Hyun stiffened in the midst of this desperate embrace.

"Please...please.." Yeo Jun sobbed in Soo Hyun's chest.

"Shh shhh shh." Soo Hyun found himself raising his hand to gently stroke Yeo Jun's hair as he allowed him to hug him.

Soo Hyun held Yeo Jun for a while until he calmed down.

When he broke their embrace, Yeo Jun looked at him with puffy eyes.

"Soo Hyun." He paused, new tears streaked down his face "Can you please like me?" Soo Hyun was stunned. There was something about the way he asked the question. It wasn't like his usual encounters with that bravado and pretense. There was sincerity in his broken voice.  "Why won't you answer? Do you not like me?" He hung his head " So you hate me too" His voice broke again "You hate me too."

Soo Hyun blinked. He didn't hate him. He never had.

"I don't hate you." Soo Hyun replied, his voice barely a whisper.

That whisper was enough to reach Yeo Jun's ears.

With those tear-filled eyes he looked at Soo Hyun as he gently raised his hand to his cheek.

Soo Hyun froze. He could only watch as Yeo Jun eased himself up, closing the gap between them until his lips were on his own.

His eyes were as wide as saucers, his lips unmoving as Yeo Jun's lips blanketed and caressed his own.

In the next instant, Jun smiled drunkenly at him before slumping on his chest.

Soo Hyun looked at Yeo Jun and his hand subconsciously went to his lips.

What was that?

This chapter deviates slightly from the series since we're developing the relationship between Soo Hyun and Yeo Jun xD (sorry So-Bin lol)

[macabrecake]

cake, bby, love the sandwich fics with Leon but instead of re6 Leon, and in honor of the month of October - what about a smut blurb with re2 Leon and Dan! Vamp Leon?

that could be a wild time.

pls and thank you 💕

Oooh I'm with it! And hell yeah anything for spooky month! Which we're getting closer to the end of and that makes me extremely sad 😞

So let's go out with a smutty bloody bang 😈😈😈

Nsfw under the cut, Minors this the type of graveyard smash you're NOT invited to I'm sorry.

Halloween. A time where the air grows chilly as everyone gets spooky and festive. It's also a time where many people believe that dimensional veils grow thinner. So maybe that could be an excuse as to why, instead of ghosts and ghouls paying you and your fiancé Leon a visit, it's...

Leon.

To be honest, in a time where zombie outbreaks and grotesque monsters make an appearance every other week. You're not that surprised. You are however, absolutely in love all over again. You almost forgot just how young and baby faced Leon used to be all those years ago, so quick to excitement when you mentioned getting married to him. Not to mention how funny it was when the two layed eyes on each other.

"What happened? Did we dye our hair or is that natural?" Rookie couldn't help but ask while staring at his older self, still amazed by how far he made it and how much he matured. Was kind of proud of it even. While your lover stared at his past self with something akin to envy. As if silently wishing he had that innocence back. "Dyed it. We kinda went through a lot."

Oh if the rookie cop only knew just how loaded that sentence was.

Especially when it got to the point where the three of you wanted to have a little fun. Leon wanted to show his younger counterpart how to get you worked up, which lined up perfectly with rookie's need for a stress relief- which was more than well deserved given the shit he just went through in his timeline. Course you had no problems with this idea, it's a chance to love on not just one but two Leon's.

They both moved so smoothly with you. Rookie laying on the bed with your back to his chest while your Leon towered over the both of you, beautifully working in sync like they were sharing one mind in this moment. Kisses dotted your skin that had your pulse fluttering with excitement while their hands softly kneaded and caressed from your thighs all the way up to your breasts. Making you heat up like an oven and softly whimper, your clit already aching and dripping with need. Surprise surprise, not really, Leon's been good with his hands since the beginning.

It was going very well, until your fiancé let his vampiric abilities kick in. To which rookie very calmly and collectively-

Freaked the fuck out.

Shooting upright with a yelp and scurrying away from his older self with you in his hold until his back met the headboard. Obviously terrified but still determined to keep you away from the agent as he holds you closer to his chest and brings his knees up to literally shield you with his body. Your Leon keeps his distance, hands up in defense as to not spook the rookie anymore than he already is while you try and calm him down, "Darling I promise you he's ok, he's not gonna hurt anything." You reassure while gently cupping his face. Always helps Leon on days when things become too much for him, so maybe it'll work for his younger version too.

Eventually you're able to ease his nerves, but he doesn't take to the idea so smoothly. "That's what happens to me?... As if what I just went through in Raccoon City wasn't enough?" He asks, nothing but the utter sense of betrayal seeping into his words as he looks between you and his future counterpart. It's deeply heartbreaking. Luckily, your Leon is able to talk himself down. "Look, I know it isn't what we wanted or expected. But, believe it or not, we manage to make it work." At first, the bright blonde remains a little unconvinced until you place a kiss on his cheek, "I wouldn't have said 'yes' to marrying you if I didn't know whether I could handle it or not."

A fair point he'll admit. And after a little more coaxing from your fiancé to the rookie that he swears he won't harm you in anyway, eventually things start rolling again. Both Leon's get you worked up once more, enough for rookie to slide his cock into your hot, gummy walls. Pulling a shared moan from the two of you while older Leon hums around one of your perked nipples, his fingers massaging and kneading the other. He soon let's go of your breast with a soft pop before setting his blue eyed gaze on another pair of blue eyes. A smirk dons his lips as he whispers to his past version, "Watch this."

Rookie's brow slightly raises in confusion as he watches his older self slowly kiss down your body until he ends up between your legs. That's when his pleasured haze drops into heavy unease when those veins appear again. Watching blue eyes- his eyes become swallowed up by inky blackness as the agent's fangs sink into your inner thigh, squeezing you tight when he hears you softly gasp. The only reason he doesn't spring into action is because of your fingers carding through his hair with a whisper, "It's ok." Still, the 21 year old can't help but cringe when your blood seeps past his future self's lips. He's seen enough blood in one night that will last him a lifetime. Now he's gotta be around it for a lifetime. An eternity even.

He's about to shout at himself, tell him to stop and let go of you, only to be cut off when your pussy suddenly squeezes around him tighter while the sweetest moan falls from your lips. It has rookie burying his face in your neck with a small grunt just as his older counterpart's chuckle reaches his ears, "Keep going."

Don't have to tell him twice.

The blonde wastes no time in picking up his pace, sending your head falling back against his shoulder with a high pitched whimper at the feeling of him hitting all your spots so perfectly. You knew you were done for with rookie already, hearing his cute sounds he tries so hard to keep quiet as he fucks you deep. You already feel it, that heat rising in your lower belly, you're not gonna last. It's like your first time with him all over again. And it's still just as amazing. "Leon.~" You hear him softly hum into your ear while your Leon's blood stained lips come to claim your sex.

Your eyes fly open with a gasp to stare down at the brunette, and his sinister little smirk, as he lays a hefty lick to your little bundle of nerves before beginning to noisily slurp and suck with a low groan. It works like a charm, the vibrations mixing with younger Leon's needy thrusts send you into oblivion fast. Making you wail with ecstasy as your cum gushes around the rookie and into the vampire's mouth. It isn't long after your release that the 21 year old's hips suddenly stutter, his moan muffled by your skin as he spills his load into your slippery walls.

Older Leon can't stop the smile that forms, watching his younger self make a mess of you and the way your clit visibly pumps before crawling back up to steal a little kiss from you, much to your delight as you giggle and happily return it, before glancing to rookie. "Vampires aren't so bad now, huh?"

Rookie thinks on it for a moment before giving a small shrug as he snuggles up to you more with a smile after you place a kiss to his cheek, "Still haven't determined yet." Unbeknownst to the newbie cop that that's what his older version was hoping he'd say as he lowly chuckles, "Fair enough."

And so, after making sure you were ok with it of course, the rest of the night is completely dedicated to the two Leon's lovingly holding you close between them as they push you to orgasm again, and again, and again. Older Leon snapping his hips against yours, stretching your walls around his cock while biting into your skin to drink his fill with a deep, sexy moan and sending that vampiric venom coursing through your veins that brings your euphoria to an all time high with a cry of his name. Just as younger Leon helps by roughly playing with your clit, even sweeping your blood onto his fingers to act as lube, much to his future counterpart's glee. "There ya go rookie, now you're getting it."

Ok so maybe vampires aren't completely bad, so long as he's still able to treat you right. Make you feel this good when he and his future self take turns making you cum and fill you up with their hot seed, to the point it drips out of your spent hole to join the rest of your combined arousals puddling in the cotton sheets. Do the three of you care about that? Absolutely not.

Not when your tears fall from your eyes like rain, that both Leon's sweetly kiss away, as your words fall into gibberish. Rookie and his future self could make out some words- "Leon!~" and "so g-ood!~" but other than that it's safe to say they're practically fucking you silly. Not an issue, especially when you're sworn to receive the best aftercare later.

"Think you can give us one more, sweetheart?" Your Leon soon softly asks as he slows his thrusts down, wanting to make sure you're still enjoying this and that he's not hurting you. While his rookie version takes his fingers away from your swollen rosy pearl to give you a moment, letting his other hand sweetly stroke your thigh as they patiently wait for an answer from you.

You quietly pant as your eyes flutter open to see a pair of blue eyes, and another pair of dark ones that slowly shift back to their original sterling blue color, both staring at you past sweaty fringes. You give them a smile and a nod with a hum of confirmation. Both Leon's mirror your smile, laying their kisses to your cheeks, before your fiancé starts working his pace up again just as rookie cranes your leg back further to give his future self more room to thrust into you while his fingers glide back down to the spot between your legs that has you seeing stars. It isn't long before you're moaning again, such a pretty sound.

So pretty the blonde can't help but smile bigger as he kisses the trail of hickeys and love bites he and himself painted into your skin. The dried blood that stains you isn't much of an issue to him anymore, not when he sees how carefully his older self holds you when you finally come undone. Coating his fingers and his counterpart's lower abdomen in your slick as you give one last cry of his name and relax against him. Clearly exhausted but so blissfully content. Looking at you, Rookie sees now.

His future is actually very beautiful.

[maaneskin]

I LEAVE THE WORLD BURNING BEFORE YOUR WAKE. gojo satoru x platonic!fem!reader, 3.5k

warnings, reader death

although he had many pictures of himself, gojo satoru only had two pictures with other people in his office.

the one hanging on the wall with the rest of gojo’s best selfies was with principal yaga on gojo’s graduation day - gojo had a bright smile on his face as he made a peace sign, while the older man stood stoically beside him. gojo treasured the picture for no reason, really. it just reminded him of good times.

the other picture stood on gojo’s desk alone, framed by a beautiful mahogany frame. the photo was of a much younger gojo - around five to seven years old - in a beautiful yukata, grinning happily with a stick of pink cotton candy in his hand. next to him was an older girl - about ten years older or so - with an equally beautiful yukata and bright grin. she was crouched down so she was the same height as him.

itadori yuuji picked up the picture to get a better look at it, “pretty,” he muttered, eyes going over the girl next to a younger version of his teacher. he showed it to his classmates when they asked what he was looking at.

“teacher gojo,” kugisaki nobara asked, turning her head to look at her teacher, “who’s that?”

the white haired man felt his heart drop. nobara wasn’t the first to have asked that exact question. geto had asked once when they were in their first year. principal yaga asked when he came to see his photo hanging on the wall. nanami had asked a few months back, only to retract his question the second he saw gojo’s smile falter just a little bit.

gojo took a deep breath (quietly. wouldn't want other people to know he has feelings like a normal person), as he thought back at the memories.

“satoru, listen!” you tapped his nose to get his attention, a habit you had gotten from your grandmother doing it to you, “one day, you’re gonna grow up to be a strong sorcerer,”

satoru nodded enthusiastically, listening to your words as if no truer words had ever and would never be spoken.

“but even then... you still won’t be as strong as me,” you pinched his cheek and laughed when he yelled at you.

he got up and began chasing you around the huge garden, both of you making sure not to trample the flowers the gardeners had spent a long time caring for.

of course, his short child legs couldn’t keep up with you, so you let yourself be caught by him, only to turn and catch him in your arms and drop onto the grass. satoru’s and yours laughter could be heard all through the garden. gently, you placed him on the grass and began tickling him, making him laugh and squirm.

“(name)!! stop!!” he begged, laughing his little heart out. you eventually did as he asked, falling down on the grass beside him, both of you catching your breath.

the weather was nice, sunny with a few clouds in funny shapes. satoru pointed at one, “that one looks like a bunny!” he happily pointed out.

you gasped, “it does!”

silence followed, allowing you to really feel the sun warming you up. you breathe through your mouth, debating if you should tell the boy or not, “satoru,” you finally called out.

he hummed, showing he was paying attention to what you were about to say. as always.

“i know i say i’ll be a strong sorcerer and all,”

“yeah?”

you sighed, “but i most likely won’t,”

satoru’s eyebrows furrowed as his lips fell into a pout, “why not? you’re already strong!”

“because i’m not a boy,” you muttered, ripping a few pieces of grass from the ground, “they’ll probably marry me off once i’m eighteen,”

frowning, satoru sat up, looking down on you, “who will?”

“the higher ups,”

satoru was quiet for a few seconds, before he spoke again, “that’s stupid,”

you looked at him in silence, before you began laughing, pulling his small body into yours, falling down on the grass again, “it is, isn’t it,”

“satoru,”

from his place on your chest, he looked up.

“i may not be able to become a strong sorcerer, so you have to instead, promise?” you held your pinky finger out.

a smile grew on the white haired boy’s face, as he locked his pinky with yours, “promise!”

despite it being after hours and having been put to bed hours ago, satoru snuck out of his room to get something to eat. on his way to the kitchen he went past your room, halting when he heard muffled crying. “(name)...” satoru knocked on the door as he opened it, only to see you standing with your closet open and a few suitcases, “what are you doing?” he asked, walking into your room.

“satoru!” you gasped, putting a hand over your chest, “you scared me,”

“i knocked,”

you sighed, “i know. i was just in deep thought,” you kneeled down, so you could see eye to eye with him. you looked into his eyes, taking in the gorgeous blue color they were. your hand ran through his white hair, messing it up even more than it already was.

“what were you thinking about?” he asked innocently, walking over to your bed and getting on it.

you forced a smile, “adult things,”

he pouted, crossing his arms, “just tell me,”

you inhaled deeply, walking over to him, “satoru, listen!” you tapped his nose, cupping his pudgy cheeks.

gojo felt safe, your familiar words and actions made him feel warm inside. but he also felt dread, an unknown feeling to him. he didn’t know why, but something wasn’t right. your eyes weren't shining as bright as they usually were, your smiled felt forced and your words sounded choked.

“i have to go somewhere” you made sure he was looking into your eyes and listening to what you were saying, “and i don’t know when i’ll be back-” lie. “-okay?”

the eight-year-old stared at you, the gleam in his eyes gowing duller and duller as you apologized and explained in more detail while remaining vague.

“when will you be back?”

you pursed your lips. you’d never be back. they wouldn’t let you, force you to stay indoors and do whatever a good housewife is supposed to, but you couldn't tell him that. your hands went to his shoulders, “i don’t know, sato, but i’ll always think of you, okay?”

“i don’t want you to leave,” satoru shook his head, clenching his eyes shut, “i want you to stay here! with me!” he heard you choke back a cry.

“i know, sato, but i can’t,”

he felt the pads of your fingers on his cheeks, wiping away the tears that had fallen. taking a single step forward, he fell into your body, hugging you tightly. you couldn’t leave! everyone else was dumb and boring! you didn’t even look like you wanted to leave, so why were you? most of his tears were getting absorbed into your nightwear, wetting the spot.

was this what you were talking about back then, when you said they would marry you off when you turned eighteen? his eyebrows furrowed. right, you’re turning nineteen this year, which means you’re eighteen now… he sniffled, removing his face from your chest.

“are they marrying you off…?” he got his answer when your face fell, “they are, aren’t they?”

you nodded, wordlessly. through your own tears, you wiped his away.

“what if i marry you?” he asked hopefully, looking up at you with wide eyes.

soft laughter left you. lovingly stroking his hair, you kissed his forehead, “unfortunately, you can’t do that,”

“i don’t want you to leave,” he repeated, burying his face in your body again. you kept stroking his hair, leaning down to press small kisses on his head every once in a while.

“do you wanna sleep here tonight?”

the young boy nodded, tightening his grip on you.

your wedding day…

satoru looked up at the sky as he sat alone outside where the wedding was about to take place. it was bright and sunny out, the higher ups said something about it being the perfect wedding weather, something about good fortune.

satoru scoffed. he hoped this entire wedding would go up in flames (you would be unharmed of course). maybe he could catch a curse somehow and let it loose in the building, he nodded to himself, that could work, but it would have to be a powerful one.

but where would he get a curse from? and on such short notice? shaking his head, he looked down at his shoes.

“satoru,” his father interrupted his train of thought, “the wedding is starting,” the older man held his hand out for his son to take, which he did, but only after a moment of contemplation.

you looked beautiful in your wedding attire, satoru thought, had your eyes not been dull and had you been smiling, you would’ve looked even more beautiful. ethereal maybe.

ethereal. you had taught him that word, and so many other words. usually on the times you forced him to go to the book room his grandfather had made many years ago before either of you were born. when he was younger you would put him in your lap and read to him, explaining all the words he didn’t understand yet.

he felt a pang of sadness in his heart. the thought that you would never read to him again was almost unbearable.

the wedding was over before he knew it and it was time for the reception. satoru wanted to go home.

his parents' estate was only a few meters away, so he could just leave when no one was looking. so why didn't he? he could do it. his eyes danced around the room; the elders looked satisfied and so did most of the older adults, your husband looked happy and satisfied as well. satoru fought the urge to scream when his eyes landed on you. you looked ready to cry, only keeping it together so you wouldn't cause a commotion.

satoru pushed his chair out and snuck over to where you were, sitting down beside you. your hand automatically went to the top of his head, “hey, sato. you enjoying the wedding?”

he shook his head, making you frown, “why not?”

“they’re all annoying.”

you laughed at satoru deadpan, “maybe, but they're family,”

kind as always. the eight-year-old pulled a grimace. they were all terrible, it shouldn't matter if they were family or not. he crossed his arms over his chest, looking out on all of them. you had a good view from here, you could see the entire room and the door.

you nudged him, “did you try the sweets?”

“no,”

you handed him a bowl filled with special sweets that only came out when there was a wedding, and since this was satoru’s first wedding, he had never tried them before, “try them. they’re good,”

his eyes sparkled when the sweet hit his tongue and he stuffed a few more into his mouth, eating them with a smile. you smiled, taking one yourself.

it had been obvious he didn’t want to be there, and knowing him, he probably thought up a million ways to get out of there. you knew he only stayed because of you; it made your heart ache and flutter at the same time.

“satoru,” you tapped his nose twice, getting him to stop shoving sweets down his throat. you chuckled at his filled cheeks, “you’re gonna be the strongest, you know,”

he nodded, gulping down a few sweets.

“but even the strongest have moments of weakness,”

his small eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

you giggled at the adorable sight, “you don’t have to understand now. just promise to remember it,”

“i will,” his words came out muffled due to his filled cheeks, “pwomise,”

the solemn look on his father’s face got satoru’s full attention.

“who died?” he joked.

the way the older man’s eyes went downwards and then towards the single picture of you and satoru when he was first born.

satoru’s eyes widened and he cautiously stepped back, “(name)...” his breathing got heavy, “is she okay?!”

“there seem to be some complications with the birth. they aren’t sure if she’s gonna make it.”

“birth?!” satoru hadn't even known you were pregnant. nobody told him anything. he basically hadn’t seen you in five years. the thirteen-year-old ran out the door and to the house you lived in with your, he gagged, husband.

the main door was open and yelling could be heard from somewhere in there. it wasn’t hard to find where you were, all he had to do was follow the sounds and cries coming from various people. he heard something about blood and the child not being okay. his heart sped up as he got to the room you were in.

it was pure chaos. a few women running around the room, trying to save both or either you and the baby. his eyes went straight to your limp body. it was clear you were weakened, it sickened him to his stomach.

“there’s nothing more we can do,” one of the women said.

no.

no.

satoru’s breathing got heavier. there was nothing they could do. that’s not right. that meant you would die. you can’t die. he hadn’t seen you in a few years but he knew you were alive! knowing you were alive, despite not seeing you, kept him content. you can’t die!

your head turned towards the doorway, where satoru was standing, “sato...ru…” you said, but it was barely audible when you saw the young boy standing in the doorway. you had missed him. he was growing well, tall for his age. and powerful, but you already knew that. a soft, small, small, smile grew on your face.

had satoru not been focusing only on you, he would've missed it. his breath hitched as he saw you close your eyes and take your last breath. he would’ve fallen to his knees had his father not caught up with him and held him up. despite how much he tried to fight them, tears began streaming down his face. this wasn’t supposed to happen. this was never meant to happen. a sob left him.

neither you nor your child made it.

with his arms crossed over his chest, satoru stood with his back against the wall, secretly listening to the higher ups talk about you and your dead child in the most disrespectful way he had ever heard.

“she couldn't give any children,” a disappointed sigh, “even though her cursed technique was so unique. it’s such a shame she couldn't pass it on,”

satoru’s fists clenched. you didn’t need to pass it on. you already had it. it was your technique. anger filled him. actually, he had been angry a lot lately - since your death, since he saw the final look in your eyes, since he saw relief in your eyes before you closed them.

relief.

you were relieved your time was ending. what had that disgusting excuse of a human being you called your husband done to you?

ah,, he should probably calm down before he broke something.

“so in the end, she was utterly useless,”

his anger was back. you weren’t useless. you had never been useless. you had helped take care of him since he was born, while doing your best to avoid your inevitable fate.

“i guess we should find him another wife. his tenquine is too good to go to waste,”

satoru’s body began shaking with anger. you had only been dead for a few days, and they were all ready to move on. he had seen your shitty husband the day you died - he looked completely unfazed, only complaining about the commotion in the house, not at all caring about the fact that his wife of five years and child was dead. had his father not been there, satoru would’ve punched him in the face.

pushing himself away from his place on the wall, satoru walked away from the meeting. speaking up now would do nothing. yes, he had the six eye, but he was still a child. a mere child won’t do much against the many and more experienced higher ups. no, he was going to wait until he was ready to take them all down at once.

he went to the garden and picked a few, despite knowing he would get in trouble for doing so. they didn’t matter anyway. you weren’t there to teach him about their meaning so what was the point of them.

satoru stopped in front of a familiar grave. with pursed lips, he placed the flowers on the ground, sitting down himself, crossing his legs, “i hate them,” he said, after a minute of silence, eyes on the sky above him, “i hate all of them… you deserved so much better,”

“i’m gonna kill them one day,” he firmly said, breathing in the cold air, “i know you wouldn't want that, but… they don’t deserve to live. they killed you, so i’m gonna kill them,”

he could almost hear your voice replying, “you don’t have to kill them, you know. you can just fight against them,”

“but then they don’t get what they deserve,” he countered with nothing. he sighed, “would it be okay if i took some of your pictures? you know, the ones of me and you?”

he kept quiet, waiting for a reply he knew would never come. “i’ll do it even if you say no,” he teased, voice cracking halfway through the sentence and his eyes stung with tears. fiddling with a loose string in his shirt, he swallowed the lump in his throat, “i’m gonna go now. still have something i need to do,”

after brushing the dirt from his jeans, he shut his eyes and capped his hands together in a prayer, “i’ll see you later,”

the front of your house (it wasn’t yours anymore, he reminded himself) looked dull and ugly. he pushed the door open and went inside, seeing your widow soon after.

“satoru? what are you doing here? you here to get some of (name)’s stuff?”

satoru’s hands balled up into fists, “don’t say her name.” he muttered, walking further into the house.

“excuse me?”

god. he hated the sound of this man's voice, it sounded like nails on a chalkboard. how you survived with him for five years, he had no clue. “you don’t get to say her name. you don’t have the right.”

the widow scoffed, “what do you mean i don’t have the ‘right’? she was my wife.”

satoru scoffed, glaring at the man in front of him, but letting it go for now. instead, shoving past the older man and going further into the house. he found a few boxes with your name on them in the main living area.

he went through two of the boxes before he found what he was looking for: a photo album, filled with pictures of you and the people in your life. his mother had given it to you when you had turned seventeen. his heart clenched at the memory of your happy face when you first saw it. his fingers turned page after page, blue eyes scanning each for a specific picture.

there. a small smile made its way to his face when he finally saw it. the familiar picture of you and him at a festival. carefully, he removed the picture from its place and pocketed it, making sure it wasn’t getting crumbled. he gently put the album back in the box,

“what did you take?”

like nails on a fucking chalkboard.

“none of your business,”

“that’s my stuff!”

satoru turned his head, “your stuff?”

“yeah! my stuff,”

saotru’s body followed his head and he stood face to face with the man you had called your husband, “you’re insufferable,”

the man was clearly irked, but suddenly turned smug, “i don’t think (name) would appreciate you talking to me like that,”

without hesitation, satoru’s fist made contact with the widow’s face, knocking him to the ground. satoru made sure to infuse his fist with cursed energy for an extra kick (or punch in this case), “like i said, you don’t have the right to say her name,”

it felt good. it felt great actually. he deserved it, all of them deserved it.

the teenager left your old house and went outside again, this time settling down in the corner of the garden.

taking the picture out of his pocket, running his fingers over your face a few times, staring at it wistfully, “i’m sorry,” he whispered, pressing the picture to his chest, hiding his face in his knees. he didn’t know what exactly he was apologizing for, but it felt wrong not to, “i’m so sorry...

come back please,”

“teacher gojo?” fushiguro megumi tilted his head. unlike the two others, he wasn’t obvious to the way the gojo’s body stiffened, so he hesitated to ask again, “who is she?”

gojo satoru cleared his throat, blinking the tears away behind the blindfold, “just an old family friend,”

[bellamyroselia]

That promised abridged essay about Apollo and how he could be handled in a future Kid Icarus game

Since you liked that one abridged essay about Ares and my speculation on what his relationship with Pit could be, I decided to make more of these and the first one on the list was Apollo. So some spoilers here - my opinions are definitely going to be controversial. But at least by the end of it, I hope you’ll understand why I think this way and I promise, there’s going to be an happy ending so no need to fear in that regard. 

To quickly go over who he is, Apollo is the younger twin child of Zeus and Titaness Leto and the god of prophecy, healing, archery, sunlight, music and various other arts, along with being a bringer of sudden death and disease and protector of young boys. Considering how about 6-12 year-olds Castor and Pollux led a siege against Athens, Parthenopaeus and Hippolytus both died presumably around the age of 15 or younger by rather violent means, Neoptolemus was already a war criminal when he was around 12 and his own young son was beheaded on his own altar with him being unable to do anything, one could argue how well he’s doing his job on that last one. When described in art and literature Apollo is said to be youthful and handsome, though apparently not as handsome as Ares, Poseidon or Dionysus since Aphrodite never saw him as a potential lover. He’s typically portrayed as a long-haired pretty boy and and is often seen wearing a laurel wreath or golden headband Zeus gave to him - he’s actually the only male member of the 12 Olympians who has never been portrayed as an older bearded man even back during the Archaic era, at least up to my knowledge. Usually he has either lyre or bow with him and a crow is accompanying him.

Now let’s jump straight into the controversial opinions, which is that I think Apollo should be an antagonist - it’s unsurprisingly for the exact same reason I think Ares shouldn’t be one, aka Pit’s status as an Eros-expy. This is a kid who gets along with his parents and siblings just fine (except that one time, but that’s a topic for later), but who’s usually characterized as someone who thinks his uncle is easy to bully and has a punchable face. This serves as the starting point of Ovid version of the Daphne-myth, but considering Eros’ status as the god of love, how Apollo’s quite an emotional deity whose thoughts are more often influenced by his manhood rather than brain, with his love life not being the rosiest and how he tried to sabotage Eros’ own romantic relationship later on the line, the idea of them not getting along isn’t a one that comes out of nowhere. On the contrary it makes it rather easy to come to the conclusion that these two will continue annoy each other for eternity, with Eros never turning away the chance make his uncle taste the ground and Apollo always being both petty and pathetic enough to fall for his nephews’ tricks. So could this be just another boring take to a relationship that satirists have made fun of for centuries? I guess, if our protagonist was literally anyone else but Pit. You see, Eros and Apollo’s relationship is almost exclusively portrayed from Apollo’s point of view in media, with him having to deal with a nephew from hell who just hates him for no apparent reason… Though when you start to think of it, it’s easy to come into the conclusion that from Eros’ point of view Apollo’s an arrogant deity who thinks way too highly of himself and needs to be knocked off his high horse. And it’s not like he’s completely wrong in this regard, Apollo has done some rather extreme things and gotten away with them with little or next to no consequences but that’s a topic for later. Because he refuses to yield to Apollo even when the likes of Zeus and Gaia give in, Eros is pretty much the only one capable of giving his uncle his much needed lessons in humility. Now wouldn’t that interesting?

Let’s think of this context of Kid Icarus. The idea of Pit looking someone and thinking that they’re full of shit is just funny, especially if this is his opinion about a major god of whom he’s not opposing morally. Sometimes you just don’t approve the behavior or methods of some people you don't otherwise have anything against to, with it becoming increasingly more annoying when others let them continue with no consequences and it would be the case here. It’s just Apollo doing things in a matter that leaves lot to desired of and especially if it means that people end up getting hurt in the process, Pit’s not going to keep it quiet. While it would be uncharacteristic of him to point it out in a rude way, it’s not necessary since we know that Apollo is both arrogant and petty - it shouldn’t take much for him to declare Pit his personal nemesis, simple “You’re jerk and you should feel bad” could be enough for that. Alternatively we could have Apollo already holding a grudge, a one Pit’s completely unaware of so he would be up to a nasty surprise by the time he officially meets Apollo. The three years Pit’s consciousness spent in the ring of chaos aren’t really explored, so who's to say that his body didn’t do something that may have angered Apollo? It doesn’t need to explored beyond that, as implied, embarrassing noodle incidents are often funnier when left without context. He would be a very low-scale antagonist in both of these cases, his only real crime being his own pettiness and inability to let go of past events. He wouldn’t be a bad person per se, just someone in desperate need of those humility lessons Pit’s the only one capable of giving to him.

To explore Apollo’s potential outside of simple pettiness, he along with Poseidon was the one who built the walls of Troy for king Laomedon. As for why are they doing this, it varies - some say they did as to check how prideful the city’s king was, but the more common reason was that it was a punishment, as they dared to plan an uprising against Zeus with Hera and Athena. While the ladies got away without larger consequences, Apollo and Poseidon were made to build the walls yet Laomedon’s promises of great rewards was enough to keep their spirits high - Apollo even had a child with Poseidon’s daughter in the meanwhile. However Laomedon was a textbook jackass and refused to give the two gods any rewards he had originally promised to them, and to make himself seem like an even bigger jackass he said that he’d sell the two as slaves as he didn’t believe them to be gods. In anger Apollo inflicted the city with plague and Poseidon sent a sea monster to terrorize it. When Laomedon asked the oracle what he should do with the sea monster, Apollo offered no useful advice and instead told the king that he should feed his daughter Hesione to it to calm it down. Luckily for Laomedon, Heracles had just returned from his misadventures with the Amazons and said that he could save the princess if Laomedon gave him his amazing horses which had descended from those his grandfather Tros had received as compensation over the kidnapping of Ganymede. Laomedon agreed but once his daughter was safe and the sea monster dead, he refused to give the horses to Heracles - he in return threatened Troy with a war and orchestrated a siege, in which Laomedon and many of his sons lost their lives except one named Podarces, whom they took as prisoner. Hesione bought her brother’s freedom with a golden veil and from that day onward Podarces was known as Priam. This story serves an in-universe explanation for many things and while Poseidon arguably had a bigger impact than Apollo when it came to it, at least we now know that this is a possible teamup. It could even be paired with the idea I presented at the end of the abridged essay about Ares, the one about Poseidon wanting sue either Ares or Pit.

There’s also one way I could see Apollo being a main villain of a future game which would ironically be the only time I could see him learning his humility lessons without Pit around, and to explain how I came up with that idea I must first tell the story of Asclepius, the god of medicine, physicians, healing and rejuvenation. Asclepius was a son of Apollo by Thessalian princess Coronis and her father was Phlegyas, the king Lapinths. The most famous version of the story goes on that while Coronis was pregnant, she fell in love with another man when Apollo wasn’t paying attention to her and when he learned about it, he wasn’t all that happy about it. In a fit of rage he turned the feathers of a crow who had told him about the unfaithfulness of his lover black and either told Artemis to shoot Coronis or he shot her himself. Apollo however did end up regretting this choice pretty much immediately and tried to heal her, but once he realized there was nothing he could do to save her life he performed C-section to save their child. According to some Coronis became the constellation Corvus (Crow) after her death, though in some versions it’s the poor crow Apollo scorched. Now her father Phlegyas was predictably outraged by all of this and burned Apollo’s temple down as revenge - Apollo responded to this by shooting Phlegyas and casting him down to Tartarus.

Back to Asclepius, he grew up to be an exceptionally talented healer, so much so that he could bring people back from the dead. This naturally displeased Hades, who firmly believed that what was dead should stay dead and he went to Zeus to complain about this. Zeus thought of the situation and then came to a realization that if Asclepius managed to teach this skill to other people, they’d have a massive problem on their hands and it can’t be allowed to happen. The logical course of action was to of course kill Asclepius before he could do any of that, so Zeus struck him down with his lightning bolt. Now it was Apollo’s turn to be displeased, and in a fit of anger he killed the cyclopes Brontes, Steropes and Arges as revenge as it had been them who had created Zeus’ lightning bolt along with Poseidon’s trident and the helm of Hades. Pretty much everyone was pissed at Apollo - while this wasn’t the first time he had killed a child of Gaia, Brontes, Steropes and Arges couldn’t have been more different from Python. They were creators of some of the most legendary weapons of all Greco-Roman mythology which helped to turn the tide in favor of the Olympians during Titanomachy. While Gaia had demanded for Apollo to be thrown to Tartarus over Python’s death, this time Zeus would’ve actually cast Apollo down to Tartarus… That is, had Leto not intervened and as a compromise Apollo was banished from Olympus for a year and made to serve king Admetus of Pherae. And he would even end up getting the last laugh, as Asclepius’ body was raised to the heavens to become the constellation Ophiuchus (Serpent-bearer) and he became the god of medicine. With myths like these, no wonder Pittoo has such a sour attitude towards deities! 

So I guess you all know what I’m going after here - the setup here would be that after killing Brontes, Steropes and Arges, Leto either didn’t come to save Apollo’s skin or that Zeus wasn’t persuaded by her words and so Apollo was thrown into Tartarus as punishment as it was originally planned. He however refused to let this banishment to slow him down, immediately started to plan an escape and tried to make some allies while in Tartarus. While Titans were an easy option, I decided to not include them as his potential allies for the sake of variety. Apollo’s also much weaker than them when it comes to raw power, so I think he would fail at persuading them into joining his cause and so he needs to find new options. For the sake of driving the point on how people’s reasons for being cast away to Tartarus aren’t always equal, I could see this group being composed of individuals like Ocnus, Phlegyas and Arke. This may not be enough to form an army, but I’d say it’s enough named figures to give Apollo an admin squad to interact with. To make it an actual army, maybe some generic background folk who we’re informed were punished wrongly can be added. 

To quickly go over this potential admin squad and their relationships with Apollo, let’s start with Phlegyas since there’s so much potential with their possible relationship here. The two likely did start with the wrong foot when they met again in Tartarus, especially once Phlegyas got to know why Apollo was in Tartarus - you don’t get to whine about your dead son when you threw someone else to superhell for losing his mind over his dead daughter, that kind of deal. But as time passes on, the two men start to warm up to each other and overcome their hatred. I think there’s a lot of potential with Apollo forgiving Phlegyas now when he knows what it feels to lose a child for seemingly unfair reasons, and Phlegyas seeing that Apollo has realized he rushed into conclusions, made a mistake and wouldn’t repeat it were he still among gods. So in this scenario the two would become trusted allies and with Phlegyas being Asclepius’ grandfather they now have common enemy, the deities who thought that killing Asclepius was justified. As for Ocnus, he just has no reason given for why he’s in Tartarus in mythology proper. In context of Kid Icarus all I can imagine is Hades thinking that it would be hilarious to throw someone who didn’t do anything bad to superhell for no reason at all. Wouldn’t be out of character from him.

Now to the most interesting one besides Phlegyas, Arke. As the messenger of the Titans, Arke is pretty much the closest thing to a fallen angel Greek mythology has to offer, if one thinks that angels are specifically winged messengers. Once Titanomachy had ended, Arke’s wings were ripped off and she was cast down to Tartarus with the Titans she had once served. Her wings would later on be given to Peleus and Thetis as a wedding gift, which Thetis would later gave to her son, earning him the epithet Podarces (Swift-footed). It’s not much material, but it does give a clear outline - a winged messenger deity loses her wings and gets to suffer what’s basically an eternity in superhell for being a servant of the wrong side of the war. That already makes her sound like a massive woobie, so she’d probably take any chance to leave if given to her. With Apollo being a known skirtchaser, it’s also pretty easy to imagine that there’s also some other feelings going on with both of them rather than just sheer gratitude on Arke’s part. She could also serve as a foil to Pit and Pittoo simultaneously - she may be oldest of her little group, but she sure has seen world outside Tartarus the least. She’d be both jaded yet naive, now that would be an interesting character to see Pit and Pittoo interact with.

Now that Apollo has made his allies, they then plan their escape, bid their time and wait for the right to moment to escape and for the plot to actually start - that time came in KI:U after the defeat of Hades. In the following chaos and celebration they leave Tartarus and it becomes pretty clear to them that world has changed a lot since they’ve last been out. But no matter how much it has changed it’s still far from perfect and would you look at that, while Apollo was getting his humility lesson to heart, the other deities certainly didn’t. There are still bones to pick with them for throwing them away, and Apollo may still want revenge for what happened to Asclepius. So this would be a revenge story from the point of view of Apollo and the Tartarus escapees, with a big moral dilemma thrown into it. What punishment is a fair punishment and can people be redeemed? Sure, after Pit has defeated them Palutena could just cast them off there again like Zeus and others did before her, but besides it making an unsatisfying ending I doubt Pit would allow that to happen. Remember, this would be a version of Apollo who has already been humbled and pulled off from his high horse - besides his kind and empathetic personality, Pit has no reason to think that this Apollo is arrogant and full of shit. Driven by revenge certainly, but just like in the more innocent scenarios in which he never learns his humility lessons he’s not a bad person to the core, and here he has proven that he’s capable of changing. Pit wouldn’t allow others to treat him as he was irredeemable, and upon hearing why some of the Tartarus escapees ended up on there for unfair reasons he would likely try to solve things as peacefully as possible. These people aren’t like Hades, so Pit’s wouldn’t treat them as if they were like him and he would likely also encourage Palutena and others to treat them as people worth another chance if they’re willing to take it. True, there are people like Hades. Some people are just there to watch Rome burn, some people are just evil and they have to be defeated before they can cause any more harm - but there are more people who’re willing to learn from their past wrongdoings and try to make things right in the future. If Apollo could forgive Phlegyas and vice versa in a place of eternal suffering, if they both regret their actions and were willing to work together to get what they both thought as justice, why can’t deities who have spent all their time under blessings and prayers of believers do the same? 

As for what could calm Apollo and the Tartarus escapees down, I think there’s actually pretty easy solution to at least help with Apollo’s anger towards other deities - just show what happened to Asclepius after his death and that that the gods realized that by killing him they made a mistake. Let the father and son reunite, since at this point he has likely been the god of medicine for quite some while. This would show Apollo and the Tartarus escapees that the deities can not only acknowledge that they’ve made mistakes, but also swallow their pride and try to fix said mistakes - just like how in Tartarus Apollo and Phlegyas forgave each other and started to work together towards a common goal. Both sides now know that they’re capable of changing and if they’re willing to change for the better, they should give each other a chance. Apollo especially would end up likely regretting all the chaos he caused in his quest for revenge as he now knows that it was pointless, and since he’s a changed man from his time prior Tartarus he’s willing to fix the mess he has caused. Thanks to Pit’s efforts, Palutena and other deities are now willing to give him that chance and that would lead into him being once again accepted among them. Now as for what could happen for the rest of Tartarus escapees, that would depend if they’re mortal or immortal in origin - Phlegyas and others who were once mortal would likely return to the normal flow of souls to finally have some peace. For someone like Arke, it would be allowing her to heal and give her place in this new world. Maybe Apollo could just marry her if there was any feelings between them. Practically what saves the day isn’t a complete beatdown, but rather apologies from both parties and promises to do better. What a feel-good ending!

So… I think there’s an easy aesop about humility that can be explored with Apollo, in the lighter scenario it’s him who gets the humble pie and in the darker one it’s the other deities who are knocked off from their high horses. And Pit gets to be the teacher of said lesson, not else to be said here. And to think all of these scenarios came to be because of a bad uncle-nephew relationship, good riddance! Well no matter what, Ares isn’t going to be happy about how Apollo treated his little boy.  Maybe he can forgive Apollo once he says sorry to Pit first and he accepts the apology.

[jamiedc-they-them]

Forgive and forget what happened in another time (Platonic)

Requested Imagine: After the incident with the Doctor, Daisy and Jemma see how much it hurt you and do what they can to help, but there is only one person who can really help. Fitz

Leopold Fitz, that name used to make you feel safe, happy, protected. A name of a brother figure, of a best friend.

Now, it was a name of danger, of hurt, of caution; of someone who once meant the world to you, but now a complicated thing. That was the what the name brought now. 

Your hand went to the wound he had caused you, a bullet wound; the scar being patched up by Jemma, who had been doing all she could for you. 

“Knock knock.” You heard Daisy said a your door swished open, there was no knock that was a lie, only the words and swoosh of the door to alert you of her presence in your room. 

You quickly put the shirt down, covering the scar, but you saw her eye go to where it would be on your front (your back was to her, you had turned your head to look at you, even then you only saw her from the corner of your eye) and her smile was sympathetic. 

She had her scar too, running her hand along the back of her neck.

“Hey.” You greeted, trying to sound like you both thinking about the same thing.

“Hey.” She parroted back, trying to do the same thing. 

You cleared your throat, fully turning to your friend and crossing your arms, “So, what’s up?” You asked.

She suddenly remembered why she was here, “We’re gonna be landing soon, gonna need you there with me.” She said, giving you a smile, one you mirrored. 

She hated this, seeing her sibling in pain like this; she hated that your brother figure hurt you both. 

You had found where his ship was after interrogating one of the crew, all you had to do was get to it. 

As you walked, with Daisy leading, Jemma grabbed you by the arm and held you back, “Y/N, if this is it, then --” 

“Now’s not the time.” You said, trying to get her to release you so you could just end this journey. 

“When is the time?” She pressed; you looked at her in the eyes, this journey had made her go to dark places, but she was still the caring soul you met all that time ago.

“Not now,” You said, removing the hand, “Besides, if it is him...then he’ll be with you, and Daisy can do the talking for me.” 

You entered the part of the ship you needed through the ceiling, with Jemma leading the way. You found the pod, and you waited with baited breath. She looked to you and Daisy, two of her best friends in the whole world who had followed her out here for this one moment. 

Her face dropped when she opened it...nothing was there, only some blood. 

She stayed in the pod for a bit, breaking down. You, meanwhile, sat in the commons room, alone, and you allowed yourself to admit it. 

You were happy that he wasn’t. 

And part of you hated yourself for it. 

“Y/N,” Jemma called out to you, you looked up to her, “I need you for something.” 

That was a bit of a stretch, it was more of a team meeting, and something she had spotted on the pod, writing. 

In a language she knew apparently. 

You and Daisy were trying to keep the rest of you guys in check, and at the same time get Simmons to see that you would not survive this trip. 

She, however, saw it differently.

She, however, pulled the lever and sent you deeper into space, chasing after a translation.

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

Jemma knew, she knew that you were pissed by that option; and as much as she defended it, she saw the toll all this was taking on you. 

But, this was her husband, she wasn’t going to just leave him stranded, even if the chance of finding him was small. 

“Y/N --” She said, having a moment alone with you before they went to the city of Kitson, a place apparently only the worst people would go. 

“Don’t.” You were firm with your words, and she could detect the bite. 

“Y/N, please --” Again, she couldn’t finish. 

“You had no right!” 

“I have to find him, Y/N. You would do the same if it was Daisy, me, or anyone else.” She couldn’t stop the words, her goal of finding her husband stopping her from seeing the consequences of her words.

Those consequences came when your eyes widened, almost at the audacity of the words said, before you let out a humourless chuckle, “‘Anyone else’ hasn’t shot me while I’ve tried to free my sister from his split. I get it, not fully in his control, his trauma too, but what about mine, Jemma? You expect me to just move on from it? Sure, Daisy’s done better, but --”

“You don’t need to compare yourself to her, Y/N. You’re making your own progress, I promise…” She was torn, and you could tell. 

“Whatever, let’s just go, ok?” She could tell things were a bit icey between you both, but she knew that you both still cared for each other, even during this time. 

You went to Kitson, yourself and the two girls getting high as a kite in your search, “Co-come on, Y/N...We need to find our british friend.” Daisy said, holding onto your hand and bringing you through the crowds. You had no idea where Jemma had gone, part of your brain wondering if she was real…

If what Fitz had done was real. 

She was, as you found out, being brought onto the floor in a crawl as you went under the table to find some solace from the people.

You observed the surroundings, eyes wide as you blinked a few times, but you swore you saw a man in a suit, a beard and an emotionless expression on his face staring at you a few times in the crowd, but each time you just shook your head and he was gone.

A blaring ‘dolphin’ noise brought the three of you out, it was a signal. But Chronicoms were on your tail, so you both looked to Jemma, assuring her that - despite your states - you could handle them. Jemma looked to you and smiled, glad you still had her back. 

She went, and you and your sister got to work, Daisy spinning on the table and you throwing glasses at the trained opponents. It was funny, how you both almost reverted to how you were before all this - you throwing glasses in a bar fight - and her distracting herself during a conflict and having fun with it. 

With that cleared up, Jemma had news for you. 

“He’s alive.” She told you, and she knew where to go. 

Your search led you to a Chromicom ship, or rather the ship. But, you saw him for the first time --

Not the doctor who had hurt you and your sister --

Not the man who had a split and lost for a moment to his demons --

But your best friend, your brother. Jemma’s husband --

Leopold Fitz.

Daisy was all but ready to make do on her threat of Fitz being hurt again, she’d tear the ship apart. She knew this wasn’t the Fitz that had hurt her, had hurt you. 

You were willing to do a lot of things to get him back, but forgiving him would be another thing. 

You had tried a runner, only for you to find yourself surrounded; you and Daisy were more than ready to fight --

But Jemma stopped you; you couldn’t quite focus on her words, your heart racing as you saw the tears in Daisy’s and Jemma’s eyes. 

This was a goodbye between you three siblings. 

Jemma then looked to you, shaky smile on her lips, “Y/N --” She wanted to say something, anything to help make this better. But she couldn’t think of anything. 

Her youngest sibling was hurting, just as much as her other younger sister. 

You brought her into a hug, one she returned, no other words were spoken; you both just hugged. 

Then she was gone, and you were going home with a member gone, maybe forever. 

As you went home, Daisy found you in your room, she sat next to you, not saying anything but she knew her presence would help. 

Hell, it had helped her, she knew how you both worked. You were her best friend since birth, brought up together in the orphanage. Now, you were more hurt than you were before. 

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

Still, you went back to earth, the ever present image of Jemma Simmon walking away, to whatever her fate held, was etched into your mind. 

You felt Daisy’s gaze on you every so often as you got closer to home. Still, no words were spoken, just the gaze of, not concern, just care. Was she worried? Yeah, but she knew displaying that to you would only make you go further into your hole you had dug for yourself. 

Still, you disembarked and found yourself now in a new situation, a new trauma; Phil Coulson had returned...sort of. 

It was him in the physical form, just not the...mental form? Still, it threw yourself and Daisy, just how seeing Fitz (the older version you cared for dearly) threw you earlier. 

You and Daisy walked away, trying to ignore what you had just seen. It didn’t, however, work that way. 

You instead ended up on the man’s (Sarge) truck, going to stop someone known as Izel, you didn’t care who she was, just that she was a threat to your family. 

So, on board you went. 

He pulled you up to the front, Daisy giving you a pat on the shoulder for encouragement as you went; you gave her a smile before entering. 

“So, smiley tells me you went off to space.” He said, wasting no time it seemed. 

You nodded, “Had a little trip, sure.” 

“What for?” 

“It wasn’t for you, if that’s what you’re getting at.” 

He scoffed, “Trust me, I might have an ego, but not that high of one. What were you really looking for?” 

“Why do you wanna know?” 

“Snow’s...difficult, but I’ve known her long enough to know when she needs to talk.” 

“You offering me a shoulder?” 

“A cold one. But you seem to be more open than your sister. All she wanted to talk about was me.” 

“She’s always been inquisitive.” 

“And you're sensitive.” 

“Was.” 

“Sounds like there’s a story there.” Wow, he was not stopping. 

“I will when you do.” He smirked. 

And he did, just to spite you it seemed; he opened up about Izel and his past; how his planet was destroyed and how revenge and hate drove him. 

He lied at one point, saying it was love, but he quickly said it was the hate that drove him instead. 

Love drove you, you knew that, but also fear. Fear of who Fitz would be.

Sarge looked at you, eyes almost daring you to open up; Daisy caught the look, quickly brining the attention back to her and away from you. She hated it, the look in his eyes, the amusement he got from causing you that discomfort. 

Then he was gone, he was out and you were barreling for a tower filled with Shrike (little bat things) that would infect everyone. 

Sarge was gone, and you were going to slam into the tower with a nuke. 

Deke did what he could to try and defuse it, but was unsuccessful. 

Daisy looked to you, seeing you only staring at the bomb that would now surely take your life; you looked devastated. Her eyes softened as she took one of your hands in her own, she gave it a squeeze, a silent “I love you.” 

Then it all went black…

Only, you woke up. You woke up to Daisy over the bomb with her powers making it go back into the bomb. 

She took care of the shrike too, vaporizing them as they entered. 

Then...then he entered. Leopold Fitz…

It was different seeing him in person, actually seeing him. 

Deke had hugged him.

Daisy smiled, as did May. 

You did, a small amount; he looked like his innocent self, not the beared man who had hurt him. 

But he was still there...always there deep down. 

You had a party, and he smiled at you; you lifted your bottle up, but your smile wasn’t as full as it used to be. 

You left early. 

Then you were forced to work together, looking into what made Sarge...well, Sarge, as Daisy spoke to him. 

She let it all out, the vitreal, the anger at this situation. Fitz chanced a look to you, seeing how you kept your distance, didn’t look at him. 

“Y/N...are you ok?” He asked; Jemma even paused what she was doing to look over at you in concern. 

You gulped, just hearing his voice made you go back mentally, “...Yeah, fine.” You said, trying to hang tough. 

His hand hit your shoulder, and you flinched away, slapping the hand away. He ignored the pain, he just kept his hands up and took a step back. 

“...I can’t do this, I’m sorry.” You said, walking away, ignoring Jemma saying your name softly as you left. 

You went back to your retreat. You felt the place shake, but you just hid yourself more. You couldn’t do this, your hand went to your wound as you felt the burning from it when you were shot. You heard the broken of “NO!” From both Daisy and Jemma. You --

You felt a hand on your shoulder, a soft one and yet you still cried out at it. The hand stayed, however, and you felt yourself be pulled into a hug. 

“I got you, Y/N...I got you.” It was Daisy, and you felt her tears hit you on the top of your head as you sobbed. 

You stayed like that for a bit, with you just sobbing into her as you took yourself back to what would have been your death had...had Jemma not acted so quickly. 

Jemma, the woman who had been by your side this whole time, along with Daisy of course. But Jemma never forced you into anything about the topic, she respected your boundaries. 

“Is...is he?” You started to ask before you hiccuped.

“He wanted to wait...but he understands if you don’t --”

“No, no I wanna see him...It...I can’t just ignore him forever.” You said, Daisy still holding you close.

“Ok...ok.” She said, kissing you on your head before helping you up and bring you to the door.

She opened it, and you smiled at your brother. Not the doctor. But Leopold Fitz, the man who hadn’t lost to his demons. 

And he smiled back softly. 

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

Daisy gave you a hug before departing on her mission, and that left you with Fitzsimmons. Jemma stood on one side, Fitz on the other. 

You stood as a united trio as you watched the mission occur. 

“Y/N, I...I’m sorry.” You let him finish this time. 

This time, you also looked at him, “It -- it wasn’t you.” 

“...I know. But, I still did it.” He said, not wanting to let himself of the hook.

You nodded sadly, “We fixed the timeline...We saved you, we’re all back together now...I’m sure we’ll get there with us, anyway.” 

He smiled, he knew you would, and he hoped dearly that he would. 

Jemma smiled, glad you were starting to heal. 

Now though, without knowing, it would be a while before you would see your friends again fully...

[watermelonlipstick]

Dreams, Chapter 18

If you haven’t read this series before, you might want to start on Chapter 1, or check out the Dreams Masterlist! Here’s the series description:

When Dean dies for good leaving Sam and his girlfriend (the reader) behind, they must figure out how to carry on without him. Alone, reeling, and unsure what to do next, trying to honor Dean’s memory and follow their hearts gets even more complicated when their nightmares become dreams that feel a little too real.

Title: Dreams, Chapter 18

Pairing: (past) Dean Winchester x Reader, (eventual) Sam Winchester x Reader

Word Count: 4326

Summary: Dean gets a better sense of what Sam and the reader’s new life is like.

Warnings: FLUFF, swearing

           Barbie opens the door with an honest to god plate of pigs in a blanket as though she just had them going and you have to remind yourself you’re in a dream. “What a nice surprise! Come in, come in. And who’s this?” she asks, hugging Sam with one arm while holding onto the plate and offering for you to take one. It’s as buttery and salty as you ever could’ve hoped.

           “This is, uh, this is my brother Dean.”

           “Well hello, Dean! What a handsome pair you two are.” She offers the plate to the brothers. Dean grabs two with a pincher, tossing both in his mouth. Sam politely takes one as Barbie yells over her shoulder. “Mike, we have company!” She motions for you three to follow her into the house and Sam has to practically clothesline his brother to get him to take his shoes off before he trails blindly after the plate full of sausage.

           Mike stands up from one of those leather armchairs, folding back the magazine he’s reading to greet Sam with a bear hug. “This is my brother Dean,” Sam offers as Mike hugs you with decidedly gentler back pats than he had for Sam. Dean holds his hand out as if to shake but Mike curves his big paws around Dean’s shoulders and pulls him in for a hug with enough force that Dean almost falls into him.

           “You didn’t say anything about a brother!” he bellows to Sam over Dean’s shoulder.

           Sam and you both freeze, and you can only speak for yourself but you suspect Sam is also worried Dean will be upset to hear that. Instead, finally released from Mike’s binding embrace, Dean rocks back to holding up his own weight with a big smile. “Crazy private, these two, right? You’d think they were in the witness protection program.” For another second you’re worried about how you’ll do damage control, how you’ll talk to them about Dean after this, and then you remember this isn’t actually Mike and Barbie, they won’t actually remember anything.

           Mike leans into Dean conspiratorially. “You can say that again. Now, what can I get you three to drink?”

           “Whatever you’re having works for me, sir,” Dean answers, charming as ever with his most clean-cut smile.

           “You’re going to regret saying that,” Mike laughs, heading over to the kitchen where Barbie is fiddling with something in the oven. He fills a row of pint glasses with dark beer out of a growler you know is the extremely strong beer he brews himself and hands one to his wife with a kiss on her cheek, motions for you and the Winchesters to each take one. “To a pleasant surprise and finding out there’s another man in the world like Sam.”

           “I think you mean another man like me,” Dean says cheerfully as you all clink your glasses together.

           “So you’re older?” Barbie asks, handing Sam a stack of plates to go make the table with.

           “Four years, yeah. It was easier to tell when I had a foot on him.” Dean reaches up to ruffle his baby brother’s hair, and Sam generously waits a half-second before swatting his hand away with a sheepish flush.

           “A foot? Really? I wouldn’t have thought anyone would ever have had a foot on this behemoth,” Mike laughs, catching Sam with a jokey punch to his bicep when he comes back for silverware.

           “Oh, yeah. Sam was a little squirt until he was like 17.” Dean continues.

           “How’s Luke’s basketball team doing?” Sam asks, color rising in his cheeks and desperate to have the focus shifted off of himself.

           Barbie grants his wish with a knowing smile. “Going to the playoffs! He’s very excited.” She hands Sam a huge bowl of salad to carry to the table and takes out a hot casserole dish from the oven.

           “They do playoffs for middle school?” you ask, about to trail into the dining room after Barbie with Sam and Mike like a chain of ducklings. Dean stops you with a hand on your arm.

           “It’s going to make it weird if you’re not yourself with him,” he mutters, low so the Kaisers and Sam won’t hear. “I’m okay, kid, I promise. This is…awesome, but I know you’re holding back. You don’t have to.”

           “What’re you talking about?”

           “You touched Sam more when I was topside and we were together. You’d think he has leprosy the way you’re dodging him now.”

           “Dean, we’re always going to be togeth—”

           He rolls his eyes in frustration. “Okay, fine, yeah, we’re together now. But you know what I mean.”

           You bite your lip. “I thought they’re just my mind’s projections, who cares if they think it’s weird.”

           “Babe.” He holds firm, his gaze steady.

           “Jesus, Dean, it is weird, okay? The whole thing is bizarre!” Your whisper has turned into a bit of a hiss and he glances to the dining room to make sure you haven’t caught anyone’s attention.

           He wraps his fingers around your hand and swipes an arc into it, looking down as he does. “I know it is, I’m sorry. Can you try, just a little bit? The whole thing is only going to get less awkward if we keep at it.”

           “Fine, yeah. I’ll try.”

           Dean holds your eyes for a moment, not seeming to buy it, before staring back at his feet. “For you it’s a dream but this—this is the closest I’m going to get; to being part of your lives. I just—I just kinda want it to be as close as it can be, you know? If you’re acting different then it’s not really—”

           “Understood.” You swallow hard against the lump forming in your throat, willing it to dissolve, not about to keep feeling sorry for yourself when he’s clearly putting so much aside to be present.

           Too quickly for you to react Dean lifts your hand to his lips, and the warmth of the kiss on your skin sends a shudder through you. He follows you into the dining room, where Sam and the Kaisers are about to sit down. You grab the seat next to Sam, leaving the head of the table opposite Barbie for Dean as the new guest.

           “You okay?” Sam asks, quietly enough you’re sure you’re the only one who can hear it.

           You squeeze his thigh reassuringly under the table. “Yeah, definitely.”

           Dean catches your eyes to give you a meaningful look that makes you swallow again, and before you can think about it you’re sliding your hand around Sam’s neck, looping him down to kiss him on the cheek. Sam’s cheeks flush pink as the corner of his mouth tries to tug into a smile and it’s so impossibly cute that you’re not faking your subsequent smile for Dean’s sake.

           Both Barbie and Dean smirk thoughtfully at the two of you before pretending to be engrossed in the salad she’s passing to him. “So, Dean! We heard your families were friends before these two got together; was it one of those things that you always knew was going to happen?”

           Sam chokes on a sip of beer, trying his best to cough with his mouth closed to keep the sputtering to a minimum. You think you’re probably the only one who catches the flair of joyful ribbing behind Dean’s eyes as he pretends to be concerned.

           “Aw, I remember my first drink. All good over there, Sammy?”

           His little brother strains to stop, his voice sounding as rough and cracked as if he’d spent 50 days breathing sand. “Yep. Wrong pipe, sorry.” He gives a closed-mouth smile of reassurance to his hosts that makes him look like a kid.

           Dean turns to Barbie, smile smooth and charming as anything. “You know, it’s funny you ask that. When we were younger, I was the one with the crush on her.”

           You probably should’ve guessed Dean would pull some kind of jokey shit like this but you’re still thankful that the Winchesters aren’t sitting close enough to kick each other’s legs under the table. As it is, you give a grin you hope seems warm and not tense.

           Mike finishes chewing a huge bite and nudges Dean’s arm with his elbow playfully. “I hope there’s no jealousy there.”

           “Ah, you know how it is. You grow up, things happen.” And if that isn’t the damn understatement of the century. “Couldn’t ask for a better girl to take care of my baby bro.”

           “Well I think that’s pretty damn sweet. Barb’s sister hated me until I drove to Wausau on Thanksgiving Day to change a blown-out tire for her. We’d already been married six years!”

           Barbie rolls her eyes across the table at Sam, mouthing “not true,” with an easy smile.  

           “I think that’s worth a drink,” Mike emphasizes, raising his beer. “To the best girl for—what’d you call him? Somehow I can’t imagine He-Man over here ever being a ‘Sammy.’”

           You raise your own drink with everyone else and Dean catches your eye with an iridescent twinkle as he repeats the toast. “To the best girl.”

           The rest of dinner is the exact emotional and literal comfort food you always get from the Kaisers, a respite from the world in the best way. As you had suspected he would, Dean gets along perfectly with them, falling into a good-natured ribbing of Sam borne of admiration with Mike and charming Barbie within an inch of her life. Dean tells stories about Sam as a little kid that you know are really far more embarrassing than the version he shares, and hearing Dean edit to idealize Sam for the Kaisers even as an eight year old makes you want to melt into the floor.

           You pretend to be tired too early in the evening, feeling selfish and wanting the boys all for yourself. Being handed a Tupperware of leftovers reminds you this isn’t real; the futility of carrying them a flash in the evening that you’ve otherwise forgotten won’t last.

           Standing in the doorway, Sam’s already on the porch when Barbie stops Dean as he’s following you out. Quietly, trying for privacy, she says to him, “Honey, I am so glad we got to meet you. We worry about these two being all by themselves, but knowing they’ve got you looking out for them is going to help me sleep a little more soundly tonight.”

           Dean covers her hand where she has his arm and looks at her with soft doe eyes. “You have no idea how much I could say the same to you.”

           They hug for a beat longer than necessary and then Dean’s right at your side, trailing after Sam’s long legs down the road to your cabin.

           It’s hard not to think it’s purposeful, Sam going ahead to let you walk with Dean on the way back. Dean flicks a side of his jacket away from his body and you slide in there like you always did, warmed by the pre-contained heat coming off of him and giggling when he kisses the top of your head. “Man, I guess some things never change,” he murmurs, breath spilling over your hair. “You even move to the damn arctic and still don’t get any warmer coats.”

           He’s feeding you the intro to an old script but you don’t have the heart to tease back, just snuggling up to him and walking to the cabin together feeling the familiar way the muscles in Dean’s side move against you as he does. Sam doesn’t even look back and it’s so unlike him not to check that you’re there that then you know definitively he’s giving you a moment together. “I miss you, baby.”

           “Kid, I’m right here.”

           You peer up at him. “Don’t be a dick.”

           He glances down at you bundled against him. “I miss you too. But I see you guys all the time; it’s like nothing changed.”

           The reflex to laugh bitterly doesn’t fit the moment but you can’t stop it. “Right. My mistake.”

           His jaw muscles tighten to a ball for a whisper of a beat. “I need you to fucking work with me here, babe. I know this is not ideal but it’s so much more than anyone else gets and I gotta be honest, you’re being kind of a bitch about it.” You kick your eyebrows up on your forehead, both disbelieving and challenging. Dean realizes the mistake borne of his frustration immediately. “Not a bitch, that’s not what I mean, sorry. A baby. You’re being a baby.”

           “A baby?”

           He stops you both. Sam’s already about halfway up the driveway. “Listen, I know that you’re—I don’t know, mad. At me for not being here, the way things happened, whatever. But it’s done. It’s over. No one else in the fucking world gets this, gets to have it both ways, visit like I’m just a town away. You get to see me, I get to see you guys, pretty much whenever we want.”

           A few tears start collecting in the wells of your eyelids, indignance or grief or both. You try to blink them back but when one falls, lightning fast and stupid like Wil E. Coyote running out over the edge of a cliff, Dean brushes it away with a swipe of his thumb. “I get it. I miss you too, all the fucking time. I miss the way things could’ve been; I miss shit I didn’t even have, you know? I miss this fucking cabin, believe it or not—I—we all could’ve lived in a cabin like this together. We—maybe we could have had kids or something, couple of little girls to braid Uncle Sammy’s hair, the fuck do I know? But at some point I had to accept what I do have, and you do too.”

           You look over his shoulder, not wanting to meet Dean’s eyes or the truth that’s there. He’s right, but that doesn’t make the bottomless pit of greed for more of him go away. “Sam’s going to be waiting for us.”

           “Don’t deflect. It doesn’t have to be this second, but you have to get good with this. Today—tonight, whatever—was pretty damn near perfect and you’re upset because you want something that doesn’t exist.” He flicks his gaze up the driveway to confirm it’s empty; Sam’s already inside. His jaw is still tight but his eyes are tender and fuzzy, the same way he looks when he’s tired. When they lock onto yours, you can feel them sear straight into you, heating you up slow like an Easy Bake oven. “But right now you’re going to kiss me like it’s the first time. Then we’re going to head in, and you’re going to act like I know you’ve been with Sammy, sappy freaks that you both are, I’m going to have a few drinks with my brother, and we’ll tell the same stupid stories you’ve heard a hundred times.”

           That’s finally enough to make you chuckle and you venture an arm out of the protective embrace he has on you to take his chin in your hand, thumb on that perfect indent as you catch Dean’s lips with yours. It’s soft and delicate, a thank you and a reminder and a memory at once. His lashes catch a shadow when he opens his eyes, and you hold them for a long second. “I thought you said like our first kiss—you didn’t even try to jam your tongue down my throat.”

           Dean rolls his eyes through a smile and a part of your mind flares with victory knowing you’ve made it past the bramble patch of emotion. “I was like twenty, can’t blame a guy for trying. You couldn’t have been that mad; you still let me get under your shirt the next day.”

           You laugh hard, letting it ring out along the driveway as you tug Dean to the house with your fingers interlinked in his.

           Sam is pouring a few fingers of bourbon into three little juice glasses when you walk in, and you grab one right off the counter without breaking your stride, tossing it back and offering it to Sam. “Hit me.”

           He smirks and obliges as you slide a hand to his lower back. There’s a half beat of hesitation before he leans back that inch or two into your palm like he always does, but what’s more important in that moment is that he still does, and without flushing. Sam and Dean both grab their glasses and you don’t remember the last time you’ve done this many toasts in a night that weren’t at the bar following a Packers win.

           “To you two morons finally figuring this shit out,” Dean says, raising his glass.

           “Yeah, whatever,” Sam grins. For a beat you can see in his eyes the unbridled admiration he has for his brother, the complete devotion and deep grain of grief he’ll never be free of even if he can see Dean like this every day for the rest of forever. You wonder if you had truly realized the way it flared in his eyes before everything. All three of you sip at your whiskeys together, and you have to fight to keep your mouth closed through a petite yawn.

           Sam tucks a stray piece of hair behind your ear and lets you lean into the wall of his body, wrap your hand around to his side. His hand moves to envelop your shoulder, thumb swiping absentmindedly back and forth. It’s nothing, genuinely less physical affection than you used to show Sam most of the time when you and Dean were two halves of a living couple like he’d pointed out to you earlier, but the most important thing is that it feels okay. More than anything it feels like being at the bar, the ‘aren’t they so cute’ on Dean’s face the same one that you get at work only made different by how much you wish you were somehow able to tuck up under Dean’s arm at the same time.

           A couple drinks and a while later you’re sprawled on the couch, head laid back on the armrest. One foot is tucked under Sam’s thigh where he sits next to you and one rests on top of his lap, a large, warm palm gently wrapped around your shin. The living room—area in the non-bedroom-or-bathroom-space in the cabin where you’ve put a couch, armchair, and rocking chair you’ve grown fond of, really—is small enough that Dean’s knees, extended and one crossed over the other where his feet are on the coffee table, are right by your shoulder, absentminded slow rocking of the maple chair he’s on not quite matching the pace of the hand he has playing with your hair. You’re close to drifting off, and isn’t that weird, that you would get sleepy in a dream, but listening to Sam and Dean is so relaxing. They’re talking about the few weeks they stayed in Bar Harbor as kids, running around Acadia National Park like it was their own personal playground and swimming in freezing cold Atlantic waters, creating all kinds of imaginary games in spite of even Sam being maybe a touch too old for it, by then.

           It’s warm; Sam has put a couple logs on the fireplace, trying to hide how eager he is to show his brother all the repairs he’s done to the cabin. More than that, you realize suddenly, it finally feels like home, Dean’s appraisal the baptism that it needed to make you feel safe enough here to approach sleep so casually without Sam’s body as physical protection. Dean’s hand wraps around to cradle your head and he leans over to whisper in your ear. “It’s okay, you can fall asleep.”

           You shake your head loose of a little of the drowsiness. “No, I—we’re in my head, it’ll be over if I—” you murmur, waking up even more as you talk.

           Sam’s hand moves up and down your shin reassuringly. “It’s okay. We have a greenhouse filled with dream root now, we can come back all the time.”

           “Well, not all the time,” Dean amends. “You guys have to get out there, not become sleep junkies. Once, twice a month or something.”

           “Oh good, a standing appointment. Like the dentist,” you say, rolling your eyes around a bitter smirk and killing the rest of your drink. Sam smiles softly and looks up at Dean, silently willing him to be the one to argue with you.

           Dean takes the bait, sliding his hand out of your hair to prop his elbows on his knees. You sit up straighter to be able to fully see his face.

           “Babe, come on, don’t make this harder than it needs to be. Sam and I have seen what happens to people who get hooked on this shit, take it every day. It’s a risk to do it even every couple weeks.”

           “You haven’t even explained to me how this works—do I have to decide to wake up or will it happen by itself?”

           “It’ll be a natural transition if you don’t consciously decide to,” Sam offers, voice quiet and smooth like you’re some victim’s family member he’s trying to soothe. You let him do it, stop yourself from rankling defensively and appreciate for a second how nice it sounds, how comforting it really is. “Most likely it’ll get easier to control it with a little practice, but I think Dean’s right, if you go to sleep that’ll probably do it a little more, uh, gently.”

           Sam’s eyes reflect the firelight as they do every time he sits in that spot on the couch. He looks warm, looks calm and whole. You can see right away that he needs you to be the one who’s struggling to let go—maybe partly for Dean, who’s eviscerated every time he sees his brother hurt and has always been, but also for himself, for the way he’s telling himself this is enough. Though you were the one who’d threatened Dean, Sam had undoubtedly gotten closer to following through—following Dean—both actively and passively. You loved Dean, but Sam in many ways was Dean, just like Dean was Sam. Inextricable in the parts that really counted and that was the point, why you would’ve mainlined dream root swamp ass tea until you withered away like a rat choosing a pleasure button over food to see them both. They were each perfect alone, Sam and Dean—different and perfect—but together they were the sun and the moon, the entire universe inside one Impala.

           It’s easy to let him have it. Sam deserves so much more than this small mercy and you are struggling, want desperately to have been put in some kind of coma together in this little play-pretend world where the food’s always exactly what you want and the time passes inconsequentially if at all.

           You wipe a tear off your cheek that you hadn’t felt fall, can tell before you open your mouth that your voice is going to falter. “Couple weeks, right? You promise?” Sam and Dean nod in tandem and you try to drink up every drop of it, try to ignore the shade of sad-desperate behind both of their eyes. “And it’s going to be the same? No one’s going to like, forget or anything? Is this like Groundhog Day where you’ll have to be re-introduced to Barbie and Mike every time?”

           Dean’s eyebrows screw up in thoughtful empathy. “Pretty uncharted territory here, kid. I hope not, but I don’t want to promise you something I can’t deliver.”

           Sam reaches over to take your hand, stroking the back of it with his thumb. “It’ll still be us, though. That’s the important part, right?”

           You nod tightly, feeling small and stupid ironically like a kid trying to fight off bedtime. It hangs in the air for a beat.

           “Catch you losers later, I guess,” Dean smirks, standing up and offering you a hand. Like he’s heading to his house on the other side of the block you reach up for a hug, only momentarily surprised when Dean foregoes the hug to slip a strong hand into your hair, cradling your face for a kiss that’s somehow bruising and tender as he presses your lower back to weld yourself to him. The feeling of his lips steals the breath from your lungs and you barely have the presence of mind to realize you’re blushing, getting dangerously close to making out just a step away from Sam. Dean, cocky asshole that he is, winks at you as he draws back.

           When you turn back to Sam, he’s—he’s rolling his eyes through a smile. With a start you realize it’s exactly the same long-suffering playful tolerance he’d have catching you stealing a kiss during a case and that thought alone is a buoy as Dean pulls Sam down to tuck into his arms, that same eternally-little-brother hug that has always made you smile. You look down at your feet, giving them a second to share a few of those ever-indecipherable looks.

           “Do you guys want to just stay out here maybe? I can ‘go to sleep’ or whatever in the other room? Feels a little weird to just sit here and have you both staring at me,” you offer with air quotes.

           Sam’s eyes are earnest and reassuring when he meets yours. “Whatever makes you most comfortable. Do you want me to, ah, also…?” He tosses a casual thumb over his shoulder to the bedroom.

           “I’ll be okay, I think. Thanks, though.” You rock back on your feet awkwardly. “Um, goodnight, I guess.”

           “See you soon, babe,” Dean says, and it’s not hard to see the sweetness under the casual affect he’s trying on.

           “See you both soon. Love you, morons.”

           You don’t remember falling asleep, but then you wouldn’t, because in reality you’re waking up.

-

Continue to Dreams, Chapter 19

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[fenheart87]

Sprint Challenge: 3.31.21

I am aware this is a day late but it's finally done!

"Dude, how did you mess this up?!"

 "I did everything you told me to!"

 "Bro, obviously not! Now we have a sleeping beauty who didn't consent nor a way to wake her up! Our grades are gone and maybe our magical career period! We don't even know if she's a witch or a human!" Nino's voice rose with his stress to a higher pitch, hands clutching his short curls, his hat long forgotten on the floor when he first entered the room. 

"I know this Nino!"

 "Adrien. Dude, bro I need you to think very carefully and tell me what you used for this potion."

 "I don’t remember the exact order but I wrote down most of it on this paper. I used all the ingredients listed, like you told me to." The blonde pulled the page from his spell journal where it was tucked and passed it over for observation.

 "Okay well half of these would kill a human, vampire or any type of sea related being. So she's magical somehow at least."

“Because that makes me feel better…” The wind based wizard muttered.

“It should! It means she’s sleeping and not dead, you dummy!” The childish insult slipped out before he could help it and the blonde drew back as if he’d been slapped.

“I’m the dummy? You’re not much better if you can’t reverse the spell you gave me!” Adrien snapped, moving from his seated position to start pacing as the stress was finally hitting him. Even Plagg, his familiar, seemed to be judging his newest failure.

“Dude, chillax. I promise we can fix this, it’s just going to take some time… Hopefully no one puts up a missing poster.” The Earth affiliated wizard-to-be moved from the couch where the young woman slept and started to pull together the ingredients used.

“Nino! Seriously?!” 

“Adrien, I got you. It will be fine, now I need your help to recreate this potion so I can figure out a reverse or cure depending on its… Potency.”

Adrien grumbled but made his way over to the workbench, picking up Plagg from the back of the couch on his way. Using the hand written instructions they measured out the ingredients and consulted other books on the different effects mixing the ingredients would have. In the midst of their research a knock sounded at the door. Nino left his blonde friend to answer the door. Pulling the heavy oak open revealed another teen slightly taller and muscular, his hair was a contrast to his dark robes being black faded to teal tips. His hand were raised and empty to show he was non-threatening.

"Hi, I have a somewhat awkward question but I'm looking for someone and hoping you may have seen her? On the petite side, blue black hair in pigtails and wears a ladybug cloak?"

"Sorry can't say that we have, what's her name? We can keep a look out for you."

"That'd be great." The stranger smiled.

"Hey I found something that could help." Adrien piped up from the work table,  drawing the other males attention inward.

"Oh thank God you brought her inside."

Now they were both concerned and eyeing the newcomer with suspicion. Between the two, being an air and earth affinity that knew each other from boyhood, they had countless hours of spellcasting and mock fighting techniques that were being geared up to use against this stranger.

“Ah, that didn’t come out right. Her name is Marinette and her familiar Tikki has been looking for her all day. Usually she’s too busy taking care of everyone else that she forgets herself and well, falls into a mild coma to recover. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her fall asleep this deeply though....”

“So uh, my dude…” Nino carefully spoke, shifting slightly so his wand was easier to reach.

“Luka, you might know Juleka? She’s my little sister.”

“Oh, we have potions class together! Juleka never said anything about a brother though.”

“We’re always around each other so no need to miss or talk about each other. So where did you find Sleeping Beauty? Last I knew she was sketching for Mendelvie’s class.”

“Uh, well…” Adrien shared a look with his best friend and decided to come clean with a sheepish countenance. “Funny story, I was making a potion for class and found the last ingredient I needed near where Marinette was sketching… She asked for something to drink and I gave her the wrong jar…”

"Well whatever you put in it definitely worked to get her to sleep but she's not under a sleeping spell. This is for Bustier's test right?" Nino nodded and let Luka in the room, closing the door behind him. "So the version she wants you to make is the hardest version out there and almost no one can make it. Which is the point, it's a test to your abilities to see what your second affinity could be or help pick a specialization. May I see the ingredient list?"

"Sure. So what year are you?" Nino shuffled the ingredients list over and went back to the Wildflowers of the Forest tome to compare.

"Third year, my apprenticeship starts soon." Luka glanced over the ingredients list and paused noticeably, scanning the ingredients on the table. "Are these the exact ingredients you used? Everything looks and smells the same?"

"Yeah, everything's here." Adrien double checked each jar and sprig, only hesitating on the belladonna blossoms. "I used pink ones instead of the purple."

"You sir, are a very lucky accidental genius." The older wizard sighed and the tension seemed to finally melt away. "Your mix up saved her life and created a sleep tonic. Marinette is half Naga and that much belladonna apparently helps her sleep because she has venom sacs that are potent enough to absorb the deadly part."

"We don't need to tell Ms. Bustier do we?" The wind wizard asked nervously. 

"Probably, there are other Naga students and I know several other reptile species that could benefit from it. Also incase of a sneak attack the chance to study cures would be invaluable." Luka clapped a gentle hand on each of their shoulders before moving to pick up the still sleeping student. As Marinette yawned she exposed her fangs that were bared as a defense while in her sleeping state, her tongue flickering along Luka's jaw to bury her face in his crook of his shoulder.

"That's kind of creepy but cool…" Nino remarked, starting to clear up the research mess.

"It helps that she knows me, Nagas much like their snake counterparts can taste the air to smell."

"Oh my Gods, Adrien dude! You should totally get with Kagami!"

"What?" The blond was looking at the other like he was crazy with his outburst.

"She's a Naga, they taste air, yanno wind? The only thing that's between your ears?"

"Did you just-" Adrien turned towards Luka who politely coughed carefully to hide his laugh and not wake up the still slumbering girl. "Did he just call me an airhead?!"

"Well I'll leave you to it, let me know if you need anything. Jules knows how to find me." With that parting remark he left the squabbling younger wizards to clean up and compile a report for their grade. With a quick glance around, the wizard opened a secret passageway and took it as a shortcut to near where Marinette's rooms were.

"Mm, my mate… warm and safe, good mate…" Marinette murmured in her sleep and it took everything in Luka to not drop the sleeping girl like she just dropped that bombshell. That was something to unpack at a much later date and when the mixed Naga was awake.

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

Top 5 Reasons Javier Garcia’s Pretty Great

Of all the games in TWDG, A New Frontier seems to get the most shit. Stick around this fandom long enough and that’ll become apparently pretty quick, especially on other platforms such as reddit and instagram... and y’know, I get it. ANF is far from perfect, parts of the storyline go no where and characters don’t get the development they should have, a lot of people were upset that Clementine wasn’t the main playable protagonist, and certain character models look like... well, they look like potatoes. 

Hell, I’ve talked to some people who flat out say they don’t even consider ANF as part of the canon and skip it when they replay the series, which.... harsh, but you do you. However, if you do skip over ANF for whatever personal reasons you have, you are missing out on what I would consider the best part of that game: Javier Garcia. 

I love Javi, and I will stand by the fact that he’s a pretty damn good playable protagonist. I just wish more love and time was put into developing ANF to give him an even better story but y’know... Telltale was goin’ through shit, so we got this... 

But, I still wanna talk about how great I think Javi is so c’mon, let’s take a walk. 

5. Javi’s relationship with David

Now this might come off as a weird one, especially if your Javi has a more hostile relationship with David. Even so, I find the dynamic between Javi and David to be one of the more compelling aspects of ANF and I wish it was more front and center than it is but y’know. 

So we got Javi, who is the younger, more irresponsible brother who became this hotshot baseball star only to lose it all by gambling. Then you got older brother David who is a military man with a couple kids and a second wife, and he’s always felt a little overshadowed by Javi. This creates this dynamic of brothers who do love each other, but don’t always know how to communicate and confide in one another and it can lead to a lot of tension or hostility.

The route I usually take with a Javier who tries his best with David, who wants this connection despite everything, who made the promise to their father to look out for David and be there for him, to stand with him when he needs it, y’know? 

Some stand out moments for me is during the baseball flashback when David’s trying to open up about something, but struggles because Javi isn’t taking a hint about the serious nature, when they stand together on the roof, and the last conversation we see between them if David survives. 

Oh, and ya can’t forget the “I love you”’s when David is two seconds away from murdering Javi... that’s the good shit. 

And y’know, on the flip side where Javi is against David every step of the way, you can still argue that acts as a more tragic yet compelling story of two brothers who never saw eye to eye, never tried to, and it ended in tragedy... I personally don’t prefer this route, but to each their own. 

Again, this is at #5 because it’s not handled the greatest and it’s a bit of an unpopular choice.... but I don’t care, Javi and his relationship with David is one of my favorites. 

4. He’s pretty charming, isn’t he?

I’m sorry, I can’t help it.... if a charming character can make me laugh, then I almost always end up loving them. Javier Garcia is so damn funny and I love him for it. 

Yeah, ANF is a mess but this dude makes it so much better with his dialogue, a great performance by Jeff Schine, great facial expressions, and just an overall charismatic air around him. 

He’s just super likable, okay? Even when you play him as a total bastard, I have a hard time not enjoying his presence. I’ll be honest, if Javi wasn’t the playable protagonist or if he was this bland, watered down version of himself... I might be one of those people who skip over ANF. 

He’s easily one of my favorite parts of this game and one of the few redeeming things about it. 

3. His growth as a character

Like I mentioned in #5, when we first meet Javi he’s this irresponsible ex-professional baseball player who wasn’t around, even though his father was dying from cancer. After his father dies and he runs to try and make it home in time... he’s too late and David and their mother are pretty upset with him. 

And then his father turns into a walker, and the apocalypse happens. Javi is now trying to survive with Kate, Gabe, and Mariana while everything goes to hell around them. But for someone known to not be around or to skip out when things get a little tough, Javi doesn’t abandon them. Nope, he stays with them for years, traveling around and surviving, making sure they have what they need. 

By the end of the game? Javi’s proved to be a leader, proved that he’s better than he once was. Again, this is ANF so this growth isn’t super smooth or the greatest, but damn it, Javi makes it work. 

He and his family, no matter the combo you got, are staying in Richmond and they’re going to try to start over and rebuild it, make it better than it was.... which I can only assume they succeeded because after that they were never heard from again. 

Also, Javi is constantly having shit thrown his way and somehow he manages to pull through. 

So good job, Javi, you did it. 

2. Javi’s got a lot of force

Listen... Javi is so fun to play as. Like okay, I know that Telltale games don’t have the most complex combat system... you literally just push the buttons as they appear on screen. But I don’t care because Javi makes that fun. 

Javi really puts all of his weight into each hit and you feel it. I don’t know how to explain it, but there’s something satisfying about the way Javi fights with a melee weapon, and it’s not something you feel when you play as Lee or Clementine. You do get it a few times when you place as Michonne in the mini-series, but even then, I would argue that Javi did it better. 

It’s especially prominent towards the end of ep5 if you go after David and Gabe,  and Javi’s on this motorcycle with his damn bat knocking over walker after walker until he finds them... then you get all this intense force when Javi is just gunning and beating down walker after walker to get to the vehicle Gabe and David are trapped in. I love it so much, it’s easily one of my favorite moments in ANF. 

Don’t get me wrong, I have fun playing as Lee and Clementine, but Javier Garcia hits different, y’know? 

1.  He’s really trying his best to care for everyone, okay? 

When we think of Lee as a playable protagonist, we tend to think about how wise he was, how he always seemed to know what he was doing and how much he was willing to sacrifice for Clementine... and when we think of Clem as a playable protagonist in S2, we’ve got this sad little girl who gets punished no matter what she does, she’s smart and often underestimated, but she makes plenty of mistakes which she learns from.

And then we have Javi who has a bit of both in him. He’s older and can have his moments of wisdom [like with Gabe and Clem] but he also has plenty of mistakes he’s gotta learn from and sometimes no matter what he does, everything goes to hell... but Javi does manage to stand out on his own among these two. 

Javi does what he can, he tries his hardest to look after these kids even though he never planned to be a father figure, he works with Kate to make sure they’re safe. When he fucks up, he tries to make things right... even though it doesn’t always work out. He loves Gabe and Mariana, and you can see and feel his heartbreak when he’s the one to bury Mari after she’s killed.... and now he has Gabe, who’s hurting, and he does what he can to make sure he doesn’t meet the same fate which.... sometimes doesn’t work out depending on your ending.

I just-- he’s trying, okay? Javi is trying his best and I love him for it.  

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Honorable Mentions

-Javi has some of the best deaths/fails moments... seriously, I could watch him confidently run right into those metal stairs and fall to his doom a hundred times. -He’s a literal disaster bi.   -He fucking loves pudding and I mean, who doesn’t? Y’know?  -His bromance with Tripp is pretty good until Tripp dies for death quota reasons. 

---

So what are your thoughts on Javier Garcia? Do you agree with these reasons, or do you have any to add? Lemme know, it’s always fun to have character discussions.

Have any suggestions for future T5F’s? Feel free to send ‘em in! :D

Next week’s T5F

[opinions-of-loki]

Loki - Episode One, Summary bullet points in form of an unnecessarily detailed opinion

- What I found sort of funny was Loki, who immediately hit the dessert and immediately hurried to the next higher stone, as if this were the pedestal that was his equal, only to be able to explain / present himself to the Mongolian inhabitants, only that they did not understand him and asked again who he is. It kinda gave me Hela vibes. Black haired Odin children have a tough time getting heard.

ALSO! THE SASS! Yet staying polite despite him being confused of what is going to happen to him - Trying to be all intimidating, but nobody takes him serious, as always! You can’t scare the time space cops my boy :/ Finding out how the company works and being all confused was honestly a very sweet and funny moment

- What’s up with the soundtracks??? Someone give this dude a raise who composed these Blade Runner-que music for the TVA followed with those cool bagpipes traditionally used for Scandinavian folk music? FUCK YES! Also the end credits music, it’s just excellent!

- Loki questioning if he’s a robot or not! I mean, he was told to believe he was an Aesir but in the end wasn’t. So who knew if Odin adopted a robot son? Better check on this one - I kinda got cute vibes from Mobius and Renslayer, they seem to perhaps have a closer connection towards another, especially after he greeted her with a formal Hi and talking to her on a somehow personal level - Mobius at first seemed like a very kind man and being patient with Loki, even supportive, but he is an experienced cop and knows how to handle complicated people, especially Loki variants. Mobius gives off a vibe of an older Blade Runner who takes his job very serious. But in the middle I kind of started to hate him a little

- The story of why Loki is an American crime legend D.B. Cooper just because he lost a bet to Thor when they were younger! Hilarious! Most of the most legendary pranks ever! I would have been more happy about the details of why Thor demanded this, or if it went like ” Loki! Cause some chaos on Midgard. Humans are easy to impress.” ” Say no more, Brother!” - Though Mobius seemed like the only person ever who had the ability to call out Loki to his actions: That he isn’t a God of mischief, because he confronted Loki about if killing innocent people is part of his fun, if it brings enjoyment to him to torture people who had nothing to do about Loki’s past. Loki denying that it’s not true, Mobius harshly confronts him about his earlier maniac like expression when removing someone’s eyeballs, if this is still harmless mischief-making. - BUT! Where is it mentioned he was controlled by the mind stone and the thriving fear of Thanos to get killed??? Loki was under pressure, to get killed by the Mad Titan, and he wasn’t thinking rationally when he invaded New York? For someone who studied Loki’s life so well, Mobius sucks to get a point to this one, or it will be mentioned in the future, I better hope so - Loki doesn’t trust easily, because “Trust is for children and dogs.” Gave me Natasha vibes. Because she and him were sharing a quite similar conversation a few hours earlier.

- SEEING FRIGGA’S DEATH! Loki giving great speeches about wanting to free everyone, being a ruler of the Nine Realms to hide away what he truly desired and that nobody would understand his thoughts and emotions, but seeing 2012 Loki seeing that HE gave the coordinates to the Dark Elves, unknowing Frigga would be on this very wing, you can see how hurt he was and panicked! He completely lost all trails of thoughts, asking where she is, if the TVA also kept her, if she is okay! He wanted to save her so badly, he doesn’t want to become the version who will kill her once again. - Mobius saying that there is nothing he can change and that Frigga HAS to die to get back in the flow of time, OUCH! - I get more TTDW vibes when everything that has been explained to Loki, that he will only bring death and chaos no matter what he does, that not only Frigga is destined to die, but Loki is about to die at some point, it made me think of Odin’s words:

Mobius said the same things, Loki’s destiny is to bring death or to ultimately die himself, no matter if he goes the bad or good path. It left me with weird vibes about Mobius being like Odin, just less of an abusive father mentor thing. He was made to cause pain, death and suffering. It hurt. Knowing those weren’t Loki’s goals, he came to the realization that Mobius is right, but doesn’t want to admit it, or at least denies it, but agreed in the end in a very subtle way - MOBIUS AND LOKI FIGHTING!! ” Do you enjoy killing?” “I will kill you!” “Like you did to your mother?” MOBIUS! FUCK YOU! At this point, he lost any sympathy from me towards him. He was guilt-tripping Loki, perhaps even gaslighting him. But this is also part of his job. He isn’t supposed to be Loki’s friend, he is a cop after all. Loki is an emotional and vulnerable being, so hitting him at the worst spot to get out more of him probably wasn’t the kindest thing to do, but probably the most effective for Mobius. Loki likes to pressure other people, but doesn’t like to be the pressured one. - Loki’s purpose is to bring those together he ultimately tried to remove according to Mobius, Loki brought together a team of legendary superheroes together that barely knew each other, and they grew strong together thanks to Loki’s wrongdoings. It somehow hurt a lot, but in the end, Mobius was speaking the harsh truth -  "I will gut you out like a fish!” “What's a fish?!” BLESS CASEY!

- Endless Infinity Stones! I am in love with this idea! I don’t know why I saw people getting confused by it because even though the Stones are what hold the universe together, the TVA doesn’t live in that very universe, they are beyond that very space and time we don’t know and can’t grasp, they visit timelines after timelines, so of course it happens they find stones and keep them, either knowing or not knowing what they are, or they simply don’t care, because they have no purpose in the TVA. Perhaps these stones are variants too and don’t belong to a certain timeline and needed to be removed, such as Loki’s Tesseract

- What got me the most, and we all know what I mean, Loki crying privately when he once again viewed the life of his alternative self, viewing the loss of his family, the loss of his own life. I don’t really know if he mourned over Odin too, but in this series, Odin never threatened to kill or imprison Loki which perhaps didn’t cause any damage towards his anger. Though he was aware that Odin took the other Loki in a cell, but it was a destiny he could avoid now that he knew how things will turn out when he returns to Asgard. He will never get arrested, Frigga probably wouldn’t die because of him, though I get a feeling the Dark Elves will come nevertheless, but this time, it shall be Thor’s problem not to screw it up. Though it was a relief to see him smile soon after when he realized Thor was the only one believing in him, even though their relationships always has been kinda weird, as Loki always was jealous of him being everyone’s first choice, but in the end, Thor was alive, everything that was left, and Thor didn’t hate him - End of File - I don’t know why, but reading this, Loki himself reading this, the very end of his life, it made me shiver. He saw his memories of what could be, what MUST happen to him, and that there are more happy memories. But in the end, there are no memories anymore - end of file. That’s it. That was his life. - I can’t imagine how many thoughts must have been go through his head to see Thanos again, Loki’s try to kill him, just to see his neck and wind pipe getting cracked. He currently recovers from the effects of a full year of torture, both mentally and physically, just the same he would treat his ‘Children’. I can imagine Thanos promised him the world, something small to rule over to expand over more realms. Thanos triggered Loki’s fear and anger, who had to deal with the information he never belonged to Asgard in the first place. Whenever Loki would try to flee or play games with Thanos, I can imagine Loki got punished for it, he never even spoke sassy with Thanos during Infinity War.  Loki is terrified of him for good reasons. I imagine this young man, feared, terrified, trapped on a rock with daily mental manipulation and pain. Loki became obedient and would have done anything for Thanos, whatever he ordered, including an exchange of power. Even if Thanos never fully was on his side and used Loki as a puppet with power and sorcery, being useful, I get a feeling Loki clung to his words and promises to rule over Earth as a savior and liberator, which completely went wrong - His laughter following after could have many reasons, relief, stress or disbelief. He was still crying between those laughs, which could be taken as desperation about no matter what he does, his actions will lead to harsh consequences. Disbelief of what he just saw, as if it felt so unreal to even believe what he had just witnessed, that it was all real, a destiny that was meant to him. But what else did Loki do during serious situations? He avoids them, he doesn’t want to acknowledge problems and shoving them away with a sassy comment or a smile to cope with it - which could mean this laughter could be part of his coping mechanism

- Him opening up, addressing why Loki hurts people, was honestly the best scene to me. He spoke about his inferior complex, his fear of not being strong enough to survive, building up a facade, a fake personality to survive also with the help of his magic. He thought he can be superior to anyone if he could scare everyone, gaining respect and love in form of war and destruction, as he perhaps thought of Odin being a former warlord, he would prefer a son who is able to conquer, being merciless. He doesn’t want to get hurt, he doesn’t trust anyone easily, that’s why he has to hurt people, to avoid of getting hurt or betrayed in the end. He became a double-edged sword I’m open for opinions and private chatting if you guys want to add something ! :DD

[sasa-gay-yo]

Just Us (Chapter Eleven: Break Up)

← Chapter Ten

“A little higher, yes, right there! Now to the left, put the nail right below that truss. Perfect! I’ll hand you the sign.” I reached down and picked up the newly polished piece of wood with the cafe’s name on it in a fresh coat of paint for the year-end opening. 

Flynn’s 

Jonas took it in his hands and hung it up on the new wooden post. This time, it would hang off over the street so that people could see where we were. Before, the sign was nailed next to the door and was now fading drastically. While I kept the old sign there for memories, the new sign was a fresh red color and had been sealed by the carpenter to make sure it lasted longer than the last one. It was something I had meant to do for years, but never got around to it. Now that I was just sitting and making bread for the refugees, I had time to design the shape and font I wanted. The sign was a light wooden rectangle with dark, red cursive lettering and had another small circular sign with a cup of tea attached to it, indicating we were a café. 

“It looks nice, Eva. You picked a good wood to contrast the letters,” Ben marveled up at it as Jonas came down from his ladder. Whenever I had added or changed something about the café, I asked Ben his thoughts about it, seeing he was the only one, second to me, who cared the most about it. When I went to him saying I was buying a new sign, he rejoiced. 

Jonas shoved his hands in his pockets and looked up at it too. He couldn’t grasp why this was such a monumental change to Ben and I who had to fight Mr. Flynn to even make a sign in the first place. There weren’t many visitors to Trost when he had built the café, but when we came along, things were changing and he hated it. The first time Catrin gave out fresh squeezed juice, he grumbled about it for weeks saying a café should just have bread and coffee. It was funny, but if we left Mr. Flynn alone with his precious café, he would have ran it into the ground.

“You think he hates it?” I looked up to Ben and he nodded and mirrored Jonas’s stance. There was almost some undertone of weirdness being friends with Jonas because when he hit puberty, he morphed into a younger version of Ben. It was also a bit awkward that the mirror image of my brother still had feelings for me. Maybe that was one of the reasons I didn’t see Jonas as someone other than my best friend or another brother. They looked too similar.

“Most definitely. The old man is rolling in his grave right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if a strong winter wind knocked it down.” We stood there for a few, marveling at the sign as the sun went down. Jonas was the first one to whine it was too cold and we took that as a sign to go back into the café. I still had to clean up and get ready for opening tomorrow. Ben and Jonas had promised to help me run the café tomorrow to hold off the rush of people coming. 

When I took out an add in the paper to announce my holiday hours, people had flocked to my door, there to confirm if the newspaper was right. When I told them I was, in fact, opening back for year-end only, people were already trying to put in orders. I think the people of Trost wanted normal back, and my café would give them some of it. 

“So the Garrison just dropped you like that? Without any warning?” Jonas swept some dirt into the dust pan. 

“It wasn’t like, out of the blue. I knew it was coming. They have nothing to give me for pay and I demanded pay. I would have done it for a few more weeks as well, just for the refugee’s sake, but with the allotted flour for year-end, I just couldn’t continue without them giving me their stores. I wish they did it a little after year-end though so I could have brought pastries to the refugees. Maybe next year will be a better harvest.” Ben looked up from the book he was reading and moved his feet so Jonas could sweep under them. Jonas mumbled something under his breath about his father not doing anything, but he left it unnoticed. 

“Could you just show up with some things? Maybe you could make enough to give the children?” Ben had also worked closely with the refugees, trying to help outsource jobs and employment opportunities for them when people still trusted them. By now, no one would take in refugees for work. 

“No, they aren’t letting any outsiders into the stockyards now. That might be another reason I can’t make bread anymore. I have no idea why they’re doing that, and I hope it’s not another isolation policy because Trost citizens are complaining again. I even asked a person in the Garrison who likes me, and he said he couldn’t say.” Jonas, again, grumbled something under his breath, probably about the refugees, and I threw a rag at his head. 

“Hey!” 

“You are almost thirty years old and have no regard for other human lives. Tch!” He threw the rag back at me a little harder and glared. Ben just looked on, smirking at the two kids he was used to bickering back and forth. Ben had said the first day he introduced Jonas to me, he knew we’d be best friends and perfect enemies.

“Well, we always seem to forget that two refugees attacked you and that our food supply is little to none because we have to give half of it to them. It’s not just Trost either, Aunt Catrin told us that Stohess is also struggling with the weight of a whole district. We’ll be starved by next spring, the titans won’t even want to eat us!” I put down my rag and just sighed, glaring at him as he swept quickly, wanting to get out of the café. Jonas had broken up with his third girlfriend of the year and he wasn’t in the mood to have a heated argument session with the girl that was still pushing him away. That was the reason she had broken up with him: he still had feelings for me. I was afraid to bring up Levi to him because of this, but I wanted to tell him. Everyday, I would get more and more uncomfortable lying to him.

“I’m sure the titans don’t want to eat you anyways, Jonas.” He stopped sweeping, glaring at the ground. Uh oh. 

“I guess no one wants me then.” It was Ben’s turn to widen his eyes at his son’s sadness. He had spent a few minutes lecturing Jonas about how long it took Ben to find Analee, but it didn’t help soothe his sadness. In all honesty, Analee was Ben’s first girlfriend and he got her pregnant before they were even married and both eighteen. He wasn’t the right person to give his son advice and neither was I. We both agreed to just forget Jonas said that and move on with whatever we were doing. 

“Well, you two, I’m going to get back home. Your sister was adamant I help her build that new desk before tomorrow. I’ll be here tomorrow at opening, Eva, like old times. Don’t come back late Jonas, or you’ll wake up your mother.” I smiled up him, casting away the mood Jonas put me in, and waved to my brother. Ben and I were the closest, probably because of our locations too, and I always felt calm when he was around me. He was the most like Mr. Flynn. Jonas was such the opposite, and I’d always wondered how Ben had made him.

When he left and the bell stopped ringing above the door, Jonas and I just let the silence consume us. At this point, he wasn’t even sweeping up dirt, but he didn’t want to talk to me in the bad mood he was in. Did she really have to break up with him when I was about to spend every day of the next week with him? It had nothing to do with his feelings for me, but everything to do with the awful mood he’d be in. Last break up, I had to pull him from the bar at least three times, waste a pale of water to sober him up, and he fell asleep completely on top of me, cutting off my breathing. I had told Levi about this and he threatened to break off his fingers in letter form, even if it was back when we were eighteen. Levi gave Jonas no chances.

“How many people do you think will be here tomorrow?” He broke the silence first and I was glad he’d changed the subject. I could talk to a regulars Jonas.

“I couldn’t say. I’ve had at least thirty come to the café in the past week asking. I don’t think there will be a lot of people at the tables, but most will be coming in and out.” He nodded and set the broom down, sitting with it. He’d probably swept the floors twice, but I guess the extra cleaning won’t hurt. 

“My dad’s been on my ass about learning how to work at the café. Something about character building…” Sounds like Ben. Well, sounds like Mr. Flynn, but same person. 

“I wouldn’t mind the extra help. Elias can’t really count money reliably enough to let me bake while he runs orders. I let him just take things in and out of the oven and to customers. Sometimes, I’ll even let him use the mixer. Elias is getting that vital character development. I’ve also thought about giving him this job when he gets old enough so he doesn’t have to work under his father.” I jumped back up on the counter and forgot I had just cleaned it. I’ll do it more tomorrow. 

“I hated this place as a kid. Grandpa always forced us to clean if we were staying with him and Duran tried to always beat me up for no reason. When I was old enough to get my own job, I was ready to leave it behind. Funny to think the kid likes it here. I guess since you’re basically his older sister, it’s probably a you and dad situation.” Jonas and his younger sister were forced to come help at the café since Mr. Flynn was getting older. Duran would always run off somewhere and I stayed and baked, so Mr. Flynn needed some others to do the dishes and lift heavy boxes. Jonas stayed because I stayed. The café work at least helped Jonas prepare for delivery work at Reeve’s. 

“I loved this place, still do, but you know that already. It wouldn’t be mine if I didn’t like it.” He rolled his eyes, knowing how much I stupidly fell in love with the bakery at one point. It was during secondary school when Mr. Flynn’s lessons of life actually go through to me. I was finally getting out of the Underground depression and having a purpose fueled me. The bakery was something I did every day, almost every hour, and sometimes neglected my school work to do it. I had finally found something that was mine and I wasn’t going to let any amount of slacking take it away from me. 

“Do you think you’ll stay here forever? I mean, like Grandpa did. Pass it on to your kids and what not.” I nodded, looking out at the hanging sign in a crack of the front window blind. 

“There’s nowhere else I want to really go. I have everything I need here in Trost and I can go visit the other districts when I want. Plus, we’ve already lost four places I can go, so it’s slim pickings for retail locations. If I somehow don’t end up having kids and Elias takes my offer, I’ll give it to him probably. ” He hummed in agreement and leaned back in his chair, tilting the front legs of the floor. This reminded me of when we were in school and Mr. Flynn would make us close up for him when he wanted to sleep early. We’d clean and then sit here talking for hours about anything. I’d force Jonas to help me with math homework and sometimes pay him to do it. After Jonas got a job, it would be just me closing. It’s been a long time since this ex-tradition has occurred, so it was mildly comforting. We sat like that for a while, just staring somewhere in the café, probably thinking about when we were young.

Mr. Flynn acted like he hated us, but I knew a day never went by when he didn’t smile down at us and was thankful we were there. Jonas, Duran, and I were a lot to handle sometimes, but it was just the joys of youth. I would pay to go back them, too. Just to be able to tell myself that I needed to remember times like this, because when I was older, it would all change. I would be alone in the café.

“You know, Dad wants us to get together. He said it’s the thing that makes the most sense.” I sighed. There goes the comforting feeling that we’d just developed. Goddamn it, if he didn’t have to mention that, I would have had a great night, even a drink or two to celebrate opening. Now, his attitude changed and he suddenly wanted to talk about feelings. Didn’t you just get broken up with?

Ben had even taken me aside after Wall Maria fell and mentioned to me what he thought was right. Humanity’s time seemed to be fleeting and it wouldn’t be fun to die without a family. I fended him off, not telling him that I was not alone and very much in a relationship, but he would still leave hints here and there. Today was one of those days talking about keeping the café in the family and remembering the times when little kids ran around the tables. He’d even start telling us stories of how him and Analee would take care of the café as it’s first employees and how they fell in love. He was hoping the same thing would happen to Jonas, and that’s why he was forcing him to work here now. That was probably the only thing Ben and Jonas agreed on. 

“He’s mentioned it to me a few times. I’ve always told him no, but I guess when he gets his mind set on something you can’t tell him to lay off of it.” I looked warily at Jonas, trying to gage where this conversation was going. Why does it always have to be around year-end when he tries to pull all of this stuff? Wasn’t he just crying about his girlfriend breaking up with him yesterday? Now he’s talking about how bad Ben wants us to get married? 

“You know what I think about it. If you gave me a chance then may-” I cut him off before he could dig himself into a deeper hole. How could I tell him he wasn’t the one for me without telling him about Levi? While Levi and I weren’t nearly as serious as our time together would allow, his letters have shown me no reason to think we’d be ending our relationship soon. I was busy with bread and the café, he was busy with training, and at the end of the day we would sit down and write letters to each other, looking out at the same moon over Trost. It wasn’t the best situation, but it wasn’t one that was so hard I’d give into Jonas’s easy way. 

“Jonas, you also know my opinion. You’re like my brother or my cousin. We were raised together and you look almost exactly like Ben. I don’t need to keep listing out reasons to hurt your feelings more.” He sighed, looking up at the ceiling. 

“I know, but it’s just… Actually, I don’t know what it is. Never being able to advance your relationship with someone you have feelings for? Always getting into relationships you know will end because you don’t really like the girl? Maybe, I’m just tired of doing that.” 

“You’ll find someone, Jonas. You just aren’t looking in the right places. What was the girl’s name? Nana? Nora? Whatever it was she was annoying and self-centered.” I laid back on the counter looking up at the ceiling. I wasn’t going to be able to cheer him up like this forever because it’s always at the expense of me not liking him. He makes me feel like all of these breakups are my fault.

“She wasn’t you.” There it is. The direction we were going to. 

“You need to stop thinking about me, Jonas. What do you need me to say or do so that you move on from me?” I put my arm over my eyes, trying to stop the headache that I knew was about to come soon. I guess he was holding this in for a few months since he was dating that girl. It started with an N, I know that for a fact.

“No clue, Ev, but when I find it, I’ll tell you. If knowing that you’re in love with the Captain of the Scouts doesn’t deter me, I don’t know what will.” My eyes snapped open. 

“If knowing what?!” What the hell does he know? There’s a very serious possibility that he was sneaking around and found the letters in my desk. Maybe he saw Erwin’s letter carrier handing me the envelope? It didn’t make sense that he would know from Levi and I’s actions because he was pretty cold to me when Jonas was around. We’d taken most of the precautions we needed to. It had to just be his hunch… but his hunch was right. 

“I heard you that one night when he was bandaging you. There was just… something didn’t sit right with me when I was leaving. I sat there outside of the café listening to you two for what felt like hours. That confirmed it for me, but I still can’t believe it until it comes out of your own mouth. I guess I’m not good enough for you, Eva, but how could you fall for a Scout? I didn’t think you were that stupid.” The anger enveloped me as he said that, but I knew what he was saying was from deep down inside. If he knew this long, his heart beat with anger at every and any mention of the Scouts. His unexplained hatred for their presence in the last few months now made sense. Every time he saw a Scout he was reminded that even though they die young, are never around, and go on suicide missions, I’d rather pick that over him.

Laying there on that counter with Jonas’s eyes on me… it made me uncomfortable. Every layer of privacy and secrecy was shed in front of him now knowing that he knew for that long. That means he must have noticed the letters. Noticed how I always cleaned Levi’s table twice and had peppermint tea stocked even when the café was closed. He might have even heard me crying at night over how much I just wanted to see Levi again when he’d crashed on my couch… and every time I did that, he wanted it to be him. 

I couldn’t deny our relationship and try to make him feel better about himself. He knew and had heard everything we had said to each other that night. I’d have to face this feeling head on and I didn’t want to. I just didn’t want to tell Jonas that it will never be him. It was better to have him in limbo and still have my friend then to break his heart completely and never see him again. Jonas was my first friend and is my best friend. He was there the first day I was above ground. He was there for me when Samias broke my heart. He knows almost everything about me, but here I was about to lose him over something I couldn’t control. I wasn’t going to give up Levi so that Jonas would feel better. 

That probably hurt him even more though; me lying to him about Levi. 

“How much are you going to hate me after I tell you everything?” I was hesitant to tell him anything. I know deep down he wanted to know all about Levi and I. He wanted to see where his shortcomings were and judge Levi’s actions and intent. He wanted to be able to reach deep down and find some string of hope in one of Levi’s downfalls. However, this emotion he’s had was pent up for months.

“I’m never going to hate you, Ev. That’s the problem.” I let the tears fall then and curled up into a ball on the counter top. This wasn’t the Jonas I liked talking to. This was the Jonas that made you feel every emotion he was going through too so that you gave him pity. You wanted to love Jonas because you didn’t want to see your best friend hurting like this. It was my fault that he was hurting and I couldn’t fix it. I couldn’t do what he wanted me to.

I knew he was in pain when he didn’t move to comfort me like he usually does. Whenever I would cry, he would always be next to me, a soothing hand on my back. I would never shy away from it before, but looking at the situation now, I wish I would have created that distance. It was good that he didn’t do that because it would have made the situation worse. We just sat there and I tried to mute my cries with my arm. It wasn’t working. 

“One day he’s going to die, Eva. If he doesn’t leave you before that.” Now he was trying to hurt me directly. Maybe he thought if he broke me enough, I’d go to him and not Levi. 

I didn’t answer him as I was too busy choking on my tears. 

“He won’t marry you. He won’t give you kids. He can’t give you anything you want in the future if he knows someday he won’t have one.” I wanted to beg him to stop. He doesn’t think at night, when all I have are the thoughts to pull me out of loneliness, I don’t think about all of this? Will I be happy with just Levi or will I want more and he can’t provide that? Can I not be up to his standards? After Hange mentioned kids, I thought about how horrible it would be for them to live in a world like this. We’re fighting to stay alive and to eat, and their father would be gone for months on end. I didn’t want to think about the future and Jonas was forcing me to. All the negative emotions I tried to push back in these past months were coming to the surface with every word. 

“Does he really like you or are you there just to fulfill his fantasy of a relationship? What man leaves the woman he loves alone for six months?” I clenched my jaw hard. His words started to stab too deep.

“Shut up.” It was soft and muffled by the sounds of my tears, but he heard it. He was waiting for my response. He wanted to see if I agreed or not; to see if he broke me enough. 

“Eva, I know you know what I’m saying is the truth.  It’s best to stop this game of pretend before it’s too late.” 

Pretend. 

I pull my hands into fists and shot up on the counter. I was angry again now. He didn’t get to call my relationship a game. Whatever feelings of loneliness or sadness that Jonas wanted to make me feel had left instantly as he mentioned playing pretend. 

“You are the one who’s playing pretend! Pretending that I’ll come around and pick you. Jonas, if I wanted you, it wouldn’t have taken over ten years to realize it!” This time his face contorted into some type of negative emotion. His plan didn’t work. I didn’t cave like I normally do. 

“You’re pressuring me into something that I don’t want to do all because you don’t like that Levi makes you feel inferior. He’s stronger, smarter, and now he’s taken your girl from you. You know why? Look at this,” I gestured to him with both of my hands, “Levi has never talked to me at me like this. He would never call me stupid or try and insult me enough to change my mind. You’re right, I haven’t seen him for six months, but in that time he’s written more sincere words than you have ever said to me. I don’t care what Levi does and doesn’t give me, and I know you won’t be able to give me what I want either. Not like this!” I threw my left hand to my side and took the silence to catch my breath. 

“Eva.” It was angry and heavy. He wasn’t ready for me to come back at him like that. He never thought I could talk to him like he talks to me. 

“I have supported you through everything you have done. The countless girlfriends, the times when you were kicked out of your house, when you didn’t have a job; I was the one who comforted you and took you in. Now, I make a decision that hurts your feelings and you can’t live with it? You have to degrade me for who I choose to date, only because it’s not you?!” He stood up too, the chair flying back and hitting the floor. He stood almost a foot above me, but I wasn't backing down. 

“You will never understa-” 

“You’re right, Jonas. I will never love you the way that you love me, and I will never understand how you treat someone you love like this.”

It was tonight. I had always thought about when this would end. When Jonas and I would stop playing pretend. When I would stop pretending not to see how he looks at me across the café. When I would stop pretending that my best friend didn’t only have feelings for me and wouldn’t choose anyone else. When I would stop pretending I didn’t have to hurt him like this one day. Tonight was the night this friendship ended because he couldn’t pretend we were just friends anymore. 

“How long have you been with him?” The air had quieted and so did his voice. His face was now a mixture of anger and sadness, and he turned his eyes to look at the ground. I didn’t know what he wanted me to say when answering the question, but I was done hiding it from him. Even if it hurt him, he had to know. He had to stop playing pretend and be snapped into the reality he lived in. 

“Around Spring Equinox till now.” His fist clenched harder. 

“So you missed Spring Equinox with us to be with him?” I thought about this moment the day I didn’t show up. He never asked me where I was when he saw me and he must have assumed I just didn’t want to go out then. I’d even told Levi that I was going to be in a weird situation if Jonas asked me where I was and he helped me make a plan. A plan to lie to him. I guess that plan just flew out the window. 

“He was injured and I was taking care of him. I wasn’t going to leave him,” I let the last line out, underlaid with some remorse. I was angry with what he was saying and how he was coming at me, but I was at fault too. I should have told him sooner or at least tried to distance myself. 

“I don’t think I’m going to be in tomorrow, Eva.” He said, still not looking up at me. This was the softest he had even been. I think now he knew he couldn’t sway me towards him. He was giving up.

“Jonas-”

“No,” he held his hand up, finally looking at me with the faint gleam of tears in his eyes, “I’m going to be sick tomorrow and maybe the next day. So, don’t come looking for me.” He turned his back and I had to stop my hand from reaching out and touching his shoulder. I was angry at him, but unlike him I didn’t see this as a reason to end our friendship. It was coming, yes, but it didn’t have to end here. We’d change something. We’d adapt. He was acting like he’d completely given up that. 

“Jonas, you’re still my best friend.” He stopped at the door and straightened up. He was stiff and lifeless when he answered. It was fake and he was hiding his true emotion. If he turned around, what expression would I see on his face? 

“I know.” 

The door opened and closed, the bells ringing twice above it. With the windows closed, I couldn’t see if we walked away and I didn’t go up to the door in fear of him just sitting on the stoop. I didn’t want to hear his tears. Jonas rarely cried and I didn’t want to know that I was the person who did it to him. 

I turned to look at the clock at the back wall. It was nearly one. 

Anger. At him. At myself. Sadness. For him. For losing my best friend in some shape or form. Regret. For not telling him any sooner. But, if I told him, wouldn’t the situation still end up like this? He would yell at me, I would cry, and he would tell me how irrational it was to love someone like Levi. A fantasy he called it. It set the seed of doubt in my head. Levi hadn’t loved or liked before as far as I knew, not to the capacity we’ve set up. Was he really just using this as a test run? 

I put my towel down on the table and decided I didn’t want to be in the café anymore. I wanted to be in my bed, two blankets over me, thinking over and over again the conversation I had with Jonas. Where did I go wrong? When? I wouldn’t sleep tonight and I would be sluggish in the morning when Ben came. Ben was smart, too. He would probably connect the dots between Jonas’s absence and my attitude, but at least he never questioned. 

Walking up the back stairs, I tried to listen to see if Jonas was still there. Maybe something would pull me to go back to him and try to talk it out. I don’t think this issue can be talked over though. It was going to be the way it was. As of now, it was Levi and I, not Jonas and I. It would take Jonas months to turn around or feel like talking to me. It may not go back to normal. 

That thought stopped me on the last wooden step. What would I do if Jonas and I never went back to normal? He was a big part of my day and of my life. Every holiday, every arithmetic question I couldn’t answer, every broken heart; I was with him. It made so much sense to be with him permanently, but that’s not how life wanted it to be. If I was to be with Jonas, I was sure, it would have happened already. I would have feelings for him to the same degree he has for me. 

Maybe we shouldn’t go back to normal as that normal was fake. Pretend. Would it hurt Jonas more to act that way, knowing that Levi was one step ahead of him in every regard? Or, would it be better for him to keep distance and ignore me so he won’t have to deal with the pain he feels every time he’s around me now?

I shook my head and walked in. This was for me to think about, slightly drunk, and in two hours. 

“Here, for you.” Levi handed me a single flower as we sat in the meadow. He had found it on the ground next to where we were sitting and I laughed a little at the gesture before putting it on my ear. He looked at it too and smiled faintly, going back to look at the Scout HQ that was quite a distance away. No one would see us on our way back to Trost. 

I told Levi that I wanted to stop and sit since it was such a nice day. The spring was bringing warm winds to our area, and the whole time I had been with him we were inside his dimly lit office. We were far away enough from Trost and the HQ to be alone and outside. I thought of Jonas and the Equinox today. Where would he be sitting out here? 

“Thank you, Captain.” He laid back, still wincing a little at the pain in his ribs. The horse ride was a bit too much for him to handle, and we had to walk our horses out here to the open meadow. No doubt he would bear the pain to get me to the gates of Trost before we parted. Maybe I would convince him to walk so we had more time together. 

“After this expedition, I would like to start.” I looked over to him, putting a piece of the Scout’s cracker ration in my mouth. Did he have some hobby? 

“Start what?”

“Trying to be yours. I have no experience being in a relationship with someone, therefore, when I can give you my full attention, I will do that. I’ve never made you food. I will do that first.” It made my heart strangely warm, him always announcing his intentions. Maybe he felt that they needed to be approved. He was so apprehensive about anything, and he was not used to being wrong. In this uncharted territory, he needed to make sure he was right before he executed anything. So, I nodded. 

“I’m not picky when it comes to food.” Once he got his confirmation, he went to stand up. I just looked up at him as he did it. 

“Yes?” He put out his hand for me to take it. I just stared up at him again, smiling. I’d tease him a bit more because he was leaving soon. 

“So does that mean we’re really dating?” He rolled his eyes and his hand dropped. The nice gesture went away. 

“Did I not make it clear before? I said I required monogamy.” I shook my head, no.

“You have to ask me. You can’t just command me into a relationship with you.” He cocked up an eyebrow. 

“Ask? Why do I need to ask you when you already know?” I rolled my eyes at him and took another bite of the cracker. 

“We aren’t dating until you ask me to be your girlfriend.” He scoffed. 

“Girlfriend is a word for teenagers. We are almost thirty.” 

“Ask me.” 

“No.” 

“You have to.”

“No, I don’t.” I huffed and turned my head to the other side, faking anger. I knew he probably wasn’t going to do it anyways, and I didn’t really care, but it would be fun to hear. 

“Ask me or I’ll just sit here all day,” I said, folding my arms. There was no protest, or huff of annoyance. He was probably standing there with the same pose I had, just waiting for me to get this idea out of my head.

Huff. Huff. Huff. 

“Don’t tell me you-” I turned and screamed, scrambling to get away from what was to my right. It stood there, his body broken in it’s mouth. His eyes were stained with blood, and were looking at me, begging me to do something, anything. 

The titan crunched down once more on Levi’s body, and only a puff of air came out of his mouth. Not a cry for help. His body went limp, eyes wide staring into my soul. 

Help. Help. Help. 

I shot up, holding my head. My body was shaking and I was afraid to open my eyes. The bustle of customers could be heard below and I knew I had fallen asleep late in the morning and overslept till now. Ben would be holding the customers down fine, and I needed the extra minutes to calm myself down. 

Was that dream an omen? Was he dead? 

It left a bad taste in my mouth that I couldn’t shake, so I got up to get water. I needed to get this taste out of my mouth. Once I drank the water, I leaned over the sink and it came right back up. The shaking of my body stopped after I’d thrown up, but the feeling in my stomach was still there. Maybe I was just hungover. I had a whole bottle of wine while thinking my life away last night. Usually I was fine, but the emotions tied to the amount of alcohol I had could be making my stomach twist and turn. 

Setting the cup down, I quickly went to put on clothes and try to put something on my face to cover the dark circles. The clock was at ten, and I knew that soon Ben would hear my footsteps upstairs using his years of training his ears to identify the creaks of this building and yell up at me to come down. If Jonas really wasn’t here, he was having to remember how to make various coffee drinks himself. 

One day he’s going to die, Eva.

I help my stomach again, trying to position myself over the bathroom sink and not get the face powder all over the floor. When nothing came up, I tried to push that thought out of my mind and finish covering the dark circles under my eyes. To a trained eye, aka Ben, you could easily see through the layer of powder. Hopefully, it will last all work day so I won’t get comments on my tiredness. Those were my least favorite. 

“Eva!” It was muffled by the floorboards, but with one quick look in the mirror, I went to walk to the door. 

Does he really like you or are you there just to fulfill his fantasy of a relationship? 

Stopping on the stairs, I leaned over the railing, hoping that if I did vomit again, it would be away from a window so the customers didn’t notice a projectile falling from the sky. I’d have to get another drink of water before I started or else this hangover was going to kill me. 

I pushed the back door open, taking a look at the plastic one that separated me from the café. People were in there, sitting, talking, and buying pastries. I could hear them and it scared me. My first day open, and I’m in this condition? That wasn’t going to be the best look for business. I was also scared because this was the first customer rush I had in months. It was like my first day running the shop all over again. 

This time my stomach bubbled up with nerves and before I could turn back outside, Ben opened the door peeking in at me. He definitely saw the condition I was in, and had to take a double take. Now, the dots started to connect in his head. Did Jonas look like this to when Ben tried to wake him up only to discover he was “sick”? 

“There’s a line of people out here waiting to be served and to talk to you. I suggest you hurry out, yeah?” I just stared at him and nodded once, tying the matching apron around my middle. 

“Yeah.” Even my voice was shaking. He closed the door again and I picked up a random cup, filling it with water from the sink, and downing it in a few seconds. I coughed once, hoping it would help my throat, and despite my stomach, I walked out into the main café. 

“Eva!” 

“Miss Eva, it’s been so long!” The crowd of people at the counter greeted with smiles, and I did my best to give one back. It was comforting, their words, but my stomach still felt like shit. So did my head. And my arms. And legs. Either way, I willed myself to the crowd that was blocking my view into the café. Ben had done a good job curbing them because he didn’t know how to make a latte. 

“It’s a good thing you’re here, Eva. Ben’s a little rusty.” I smiled to the man who’s order I had memorized, but not his name, and took the personal cup he had in his hands. Ben tended the money while I turned my back to make the drinks. 

“I’ll pass, you make, pass back?” I turned over my shoulder to nod at him and this new angle made me catch a view of the table. The Wings of Freedom were draped over the chair and he was leaning back with the new addition of a book in his hand. There was no cup in front of him, nor was he staring out at the window anymore. 

Six months. 

My stomach churned again and before I could answer Ben, I had to run into the back, past the plastic door, open the regular door, and throw up in front of the trash can where the stray dogs like to eat our scraps.

I’d have to pass it off and I took another big gulp of water before picking up some random milk jug to bring it up. I hoped I didn’t wipe off the face powder that took ten minutes to apply. When I walked back in, people seemed shocked I had run so fast into the back, but once they saw the milk jug, they settled back down. Ben didn’t let it get past him that I’d set the new milk jug next to a completely full one on the table and went to work. 

We went back and forth for what felt like hours. He’d collect the money, write the order on a piece of paper, I’d make it, and he’d go set it down on their table or give it for them to go. We didn’t talk at all while I did it, and I only engaged with other customers. When I looked at him, he never looked back, just down at the book. When I looked at him… my stomach churned, but with a different feeling now that I was pretty sure all the alcohol was in my sink or by the trash in the back. I wanted him to look at me, or to come hug me, but he was Captain Levi right now. 

My dream. What was my dream about? He was here and he was alive, so it couldn’t have been an omen. Was it triggered by my fight with Jonas? Levi dying? It was a simple memory, but it had morphed into something graphic and depressing. He’d asked me to be his girlfriend, reluctantly, but why didn’t my dream get to that part? Why did it cut it off there? I just tried to mock it up as another drunken dream, ones I used to have often, and maybe a few times in the past months, but something wouldn’t let me mark it as that. 

“Eva!” I turned at the little boy’s call and saw all three of them at the counter. I was zoning out so much. Elias, June, and their father were there and I smiled at them, starting their orders. Elias and June: steamed apple juice. Their father: a cup of coffee, no cream, two sugars. 

“Where’s the boy? I thought Jonas said he was working today.” I froze up at their father’s question and I saw Ben glance back at me before answering.

“He felt really sick this morning and could barely get out of bed when I tried to wake him up. He slept at our house last night and came back really late, so he might have been out and drank himself sick,” he tsk-ed his son, but I knew that his message was really meant for me, “Dark circles, a bad attitude, and his face was all red. I’m glad he didn’t show up today.” I turned to them, handing the two steamed apple juices. Before I could turn back around, they started a conversation with me. I could barely focus on it with Ben’s gaze boring holes into me. 

“Eva, Mr. Chapel said I could start on my own books now! Isn’t that exciting?!” I smiled down at her and nodded. In the place in my brain that could still process a little emotion this afternoon, I was happy for her. 

“That’s amazing, June. I have some books upstairs that need to be rebound.” Ben had given their father his coffee and he was now pulling the kids to go. He probably had some cult stuff to do and just wanted to stop by for his morning cup like he normally does.

“Eva, do you need help on year-end? Like last year? With Jonas?” Elias’s face begged up at me to say yes. He wanted to know if we would do something like last year. With no festival, it would be hard to entertain them… and with no Jonas… 

“I don’t know about it his year, Elias.” His face dropped and he was pulled away by his father before he could ask why. I saw June looking disappointed as well as they walked out the door. When Ben turned to greet the next customer, I felt another pair of eyes on me. I looked up at him and felt my heart flip as we locked eyes. His were filled with concern and I knew he’d heard the exchange Elias and I just had. I had always taken the kids in for year-end, so why not now? 

The day went like that. My stomach never settled down, and I could barely keep up the energy of the people coming in and out to talk. Ben would mostly fill that job, but whenever the customer wanted to talk to me directly, I stared at the back wall, mustering a smile, and turned to act. I was glad that I’d decided to close earlier than usual so I wouldn’t have to go through a dinner rush either. My mind was tired from thinking over and over again about last night and the dream I had, that I could barely handle any more stimulus. 

Levi had sat there all day, reading through the book at least twice. I could feel his eyes on me throughout the day, but if I looked back into his eyes, my dream would play over again and my stomach would fight with me. He must have noticed, but he never approached me. Ben and the wave of people coming in and out must have stopped him, or he was waiting for me to go over and serve him tea. It was sitting right on top of the coffee filter box, ready to be made, but I could never pull myself to do it. I wanted to go over and talk to him, but with the amount of people here, I would be talking to Captain Levi. I decided to wait until close, knowing he would stay, so I could talk to the real him after months of waiting. The dream made my stomach feel awful, but the idea of having Levi back to me again made the butterflies stir too. 

“Alright, what’s up with the two of you?” Ben put the small bag of flour back up on the stock rack as I mopped the flour on the back room’s floor. It was closing, and I insisted that he could leave the cleaning to me, but I knew from the second I walked in to the café, he was ready to corner me and ask questions. I still feigned innocence.

“Two of whom?” He huffed and wiped off excess flour on the apron I left him. It didn’t help my case that I couldn’t look him in the eyes when I answered. I didn’t want to stare into Jonas’s eyes. 

“Jonas comes to our house drunk, red face, and mumbling things under his breath. He almost broke Analee’s favorite vase trying to take his shoes off. I thought it was a bit weird because he’d have to come back from your place, but maybe you two decided to do something. I didn’t care. Then, I drag his dead body weight onto the couch and he tells me he can’t come to the café tomorrow and starts crying. I mark it up to him being drunk off his ass. Come today, and you’re not up early like you usually are. I guess I thought you’d be as drunk as Jonas, and gave you a few hours. You come down here, looking pale as a ghost, go throw up outside by the trash can,” He pointed his thumb to the back door, “and anytime someone mentions Jonas, your face goes pale over and over again. You probably drank at least thirty glasses of water today… I really don't want you to answer this question, but I have to ask it. He’s my son, sure, but you’re also my little sister… also weird to say, but you know what I’m trying to get to…” Ben didn’t want to have to finish his statement and trailed off, trying to get me to fill in the blank. Did he think we… ? I pulled my face into a look of disgust, but still didn’t look at his face. 

“Are you trying to ask if he and I had-” He frantically waved his hands at me.

“Please, please, please. Spare me. I realized I don’t want the answer to that question anymore right as it came out of you mou-” I stopped him there. 

“We fought. That’s what happened.” He dropped his hands and let out a big sigh of relief. He was happy we only fought, because he could deal with that. He’d been dealing with that for years already. Mediator Ben was about to come out. 

“Thank gods. What did you fight about this time? Both of you look very upset.” He leaned against a random table, and I had stopped sweeping at this point. I didn’t want to tell Ben, but there was just something about him that made the words flow out. He’s always been like that, regardless of the situation. Comfortable to talk to about any and everything. When I first got my monthly cycle, I went to him and not Catrin, who was the obvious choice. Then later in life, Jonas started to take the same position in my life that Ben had. That made me feel worse again, losing him over something I had to be selfish with. If Jonas felt he couldn’t let go of whatever it was, I would permanently lose him. 

“I think this is the final time, Ben.” He sighed, probably not knowing what that meant. If I told him what the fight was really about, he would have to learn about Levi and I. I shifted my gaze to the plastic door separating us from the main café. Was he still sitting in his chair, waiting for us to kick him out? Waiting for me to lead him up the stairs to my apartment? 

“Did he bring up marriage again? When we were walking to meet up with you, I had mentioned something about it and he seemed to get quiet. Usually, he denies anything like that would happen.” So it was mentioned previously, that’s why it was on his mind. When Ben mentioned it to him, did his mind go to Levi and I?

“Yes,” I whispered, and set the mop against the wall. I was ready to spill all of my feelings to Ben like I always do. 

“Then, is it that man out there?” He pointed at the door and this time I looked him in the eyes. It was like admitting everything to Jonas all over again and it made my stomach twist and turn. I knew Ben’s opinions on the matter, too, so it was worse having to go against his wishes. 

“Yes,” I whispered again, waiting to see a streak of disappointment in his eyes that never came. He just sighed again and walked over to me, putting a hand on my back. 

“He was the first customer today and seemed annoyed that I was standing there instead of you. I was the one who gave him the book. I told him he’d have to wait a few hours to see you, and then another few to get to talk to you after lunch. I’m not going to pretend I didn’t see the way he kept looking at you either.” I clasped my hands together, looking at them. It made me a little less sad that he could see Levi’s emotions as well. Ben didn’t think it was fake like Jonas did. 

“I had a bad dream last night, too… and a few too many drinks. I’m just so… I don’t want to lose Jonas. This felt like it was it, Ben.” I put a hand over my heart and rubbed my collar bone with one finger. Ben shook his head ‘no’ and patted my back. 

“The kid can be moody, but he’ll come around. It may take him a bit longer than usual, but you two are best friends. He’ll just have to deal with the fact that it’s going to really stay like that now. I guess I didn’t help either, talking about you two the way I did.” I shook my head, making sure Ben didn’t take the blame away from me. 

“No, I did this. I didn’t tell him about… I didn’t distance myself from him and-” 

“Do you really think that if you tried to distance yourself from Jo, it would’ve worked? He once came home from secondary begging me to ask the teacher to transfer him to your class. He can’t be away from you for too long, no matter what emotions he has tied to it.” I laughed once at that comment, remembering the day Jonas randomly showed up at a desk next to mine. I reached up to wipe a tear off of my cheek. 

“I still feel awful. It’s my fault I made him feel like this.” Ben rolled his eyes. 

“I’m going to go home and he’s going to have this same conversation with me. You both fight like cats and dogs, and then feel bad that you said anything in the first place. He could have broken your arm and you’d still feel like it was your fault.”

“Yeah.” Ben did make me feel a little better, but I still couldn’t shake the feeling of regret. We sat for a few more minutes as I calmed down and my stomach hurt a little less. 

“Now, that boy out there. He’s the Captain of the Scouts, but I have to threaten him. I know he’s still sitting out there, if you just let me-” 

“Ben.”

“I’m serious. I was close to going over and telling him to stop looking at you. It’s annoying. Like that one kid you dated in the past.” It was my turn to roll my eyes at him. 

“Ben, I’m twenty seven.” Before I could protest more, he lunged at the door to open it. 

“Hey, you.” I quickly raced out of the back room, watching Ben walk his way over to Levi who had grabbed a rag and was cleaning the tops of the tables. 

“Ben-” Levi turned to give me a confused look as to why the giant man was walking towards him. They’ve probably only spoken two sentences to each other and now Levi was going to get reprimanded by Ben. 

“You’re dating my sister, correct?” Levi’s eyes widened a little bit, not expecting Ben to come right out with it. He probably also didn’t expect Ben to know anything, but with how obvious Levi had acted today, it wasn’t a surprise. Ben picked up on things probably to the same degree Levi did. 

“U-u-uh, we are?” He did the same thing I’d done to Erwin, and when he looked over at me again, confusion painting his face, I just nodded once, “Y-yes. We are…” A faint tint of blush painted his pale face. Mine was probably the same way. This was the first time he had admitted that out loud to someone from my world. 

“If you hurt her, I’ll beat you up. Her last boyfriend, he couldn’t walk for two days after Jonas and I jumped him.” He pointed his finger at Levi who didn’t seem that concerned about the threat. Ben was also lying, because he wouldn’t lay a hand on anyone. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ben swat at a fly, let alone a human. 

“My intentions are not to hurt her.” Ben took off his apron and slammed it down on the table Levi had just finished cleaning. Flour dust went everywhere. This was quite the show he was putting on. Levi, however, didn’t know he was playing with him. He was trying to keep his face as neutral as possible, because he didn’t want to, in some way, offend Ben and make him angrier, but he was also getting annoyed with the man’s display. If Ben was to come at him, would he be permitted to slam him on the ground, or would that just make this whole situation worse? Levi didn’t want to beat up my brother, which was nice. 

“What are your intentions then?” Levi was not going to like expressing his feelings aloud to a stranger, so I saved him from Ben who I knew was trying his hardest not to laugh. 

“Ben, just let him go. I have to clean more and you’re keeping me from dinner.” I think Ben was also glad I gave him an out because I heard that Analee was making porridge for dinner and that was Ben’s favorite. 

Ben walked a bit forward, using his height to tower over Levi. This time, Levi’s face hardened. If I did get Ben away from Levi, Ben might end up on the ground. 

“Next time, Captain.” Ben retreated back and grabbed his jacket, turning to me with a smile. 

“Have a nice night, Ev! I assume I won’t need to come tomorrow?” He glanced over at Levi who was now extremely confused at Ben’s 180 degree flip. 

“No, I think I can handle myself tomorrow. Thanks Ben!” He raised his hand up and waved once, exiting the café. There was a moment of silence as the ringing of the door bells finally stopped and Levi turned to me, that expression still on his face. 

“W-wha..?” I smiled at the door, not disregarding the butterflies that came to my stomach now that I was finally alone with Levi for the first time in six months. 

“That’s Ben, my brother.” His face dropped to his regular look and nodded. 

“I can tell.” I huffed and grabbed Ben’s apron, hanging it up behind the counter. I decided to clean the counter and wait to see what Levi was going to do. Heaven knew I wanted to run up into his arms, but again, the vow I took held me back. 

To my surprise, he moved to behind the counter after cleaning the flour from the last table. He put the rag down on the back table and stood there, staring at me for a bit. I just disregarded his stare and kept cleaning the counter and glass case which was ridden with Ben’s handprints from the amount of times he leaned on it. 

“I’m going to hug you.” I left out a huff of laughter and didn’t move, signaling that he could do what he wanted. 

“I told you, you don’t have to say it alo-” His arms went around my waist, chest touching my back, and his head nuzzled into my neck. I also melted right there and then. Who taught him how to hug like this? I used my free hand to reach up and play with his hair, leaning my cheek onto the top of his head. 

“Hi,” I said, breathing in his scent. It’s been so long, the shirt he gave me had lost its smell, so it was nice to have it back. It was also nice that he had given me such an intimate display of affection after how long he’d been away. It told me that he missed me as much as his letters would insinuate. Maybe even equal as much as I missed him. 

He lifted himself up, leaving one arm wrapped around my waist. 

“I thought I’d personally deliver this letter to you,” he handed me the envelope with my name written on it. 

“Do you come with the letter?” I turned to face him and blushed at our closeness. He looked down at me slightly, examining my face. I’d cried the face powder off in the back, so my dark circles were at full force.

“You haven’t been taking care of yourself again.” It was low and had a tinge of disappointment in it. I looked up at him, examining his face. Tired. Large dark circles. Nothing out of the ordinary, but I could still yell at him for it. 

“I can say the same for you, Captain.” I reached up and put my hand on his cheek like the last night we had together. I figured that wouldn’t be off limits and I felt his face heat up a little before pulling back to lean against the back table across from me. He had hit his daily cap for affection and needed to cool off. 

“Erwin gave me the rest of the month off. So, I guessed that the best place to stay was here. He also told me to go see you after my work was done, and then proceeded to give me one more month’s worth of work.” He crossed his arms, his face pulling into one of annoyance for Erwin’s actions. 

“I did ask him to give you more breaks, but he didn’t promise me anything.” His eyes narrowed at the mention of our meeting. 

“Don’t think you three can keep it a secret about what you talked about. I told them I’d get you to tell me.” I smirked back up at him. 

“They aren’t telling you what we said?” 

“No details. I just know they asked you about us and to support the Scouts, and you accepted. I know that they left out everything important and Hange always laughs when I try to get her to tell me.” I guess I’d have to keep up this secret promise with Hange and Erwin. 

“Well, if they aren’t telling you, then I guess I can’t either, Levi. It was a confidential meeting, you know how that goes.” He shot off the table, pushing my stomach into the one I was cleaning. His arms were on either side of me, trapping me against the wood. My heart beat shot up at this sudden, aggressive touch, and I almost jumped as I felt his breath on the right side on my neck. This was the first time he had done something like this. Intimidating, aggressive, and very exciting. My heart wasn’t the only thing that fluttered when he whispered into my ear. 

“I have ways of getting you to tell me, Eva.” He lingered there for a few moments before pushing away and going back to rest on the table. I had to take at least ten breaths to calm myself down, and my face was still definitely the color of a cherry. That was the first time Levi had done something so… hot. One moment, he was pushing back because he was getting uncomfortable with the affection, and another he was shoving me up against the counter, making my brain race a million miles a second with the things I was imagining. The ways to get me to talk. Levi wasn’t like that was he? Did he have experience with that? He did live in the Underground and was extremely good looking, I’m sure he had girls at his feet at some point. It made me curious about his life in the Underground again… and what or who he did there. 

“I-I’m… done cleaning. We can go up to the up, upstairs.” He didn’t even hesitate and slung his cape around his shoulders, following me to the front to lock the café. 

We walked upstairs without saying anything, Levi walking a few steps behind me. He had retrieved a bag from the side of the alleyway and my eyes widened. I didn’t think he’d be staying here the whole rest of the month. That was almost three weeks. I remembered how dirty I had left it this morning and the empty bottle of wine next to my bed. 

Once we got inside, he set his bag on the couch and took off his boots and cape, hanging it up. I was a bit upset he didn’t take off the ODM gear straps, because now that he had done that little act downstairs, my mind was thinking about them. I had felt the buckle of the one on his chest dig into my back ever so lightly. 

“Did you really forget what I looked like? Stop staring at me.” He mumbled it, but it made me blush a bit and stare at the ground. Did he know what I was thinking about him? How did he get so bold in the last few minutes? 

“Can I shower? The ride here was long, and I sat in the back of the cart on some dirty hay.” 

“O-oh. Yes, you can. It’s that door right there, but you knew that already didn’t you. Sorry.” He smiled and laughed once, digging through his bag for his shower supplies. I just watched him as he did it, staring at the mundane task and letting my mind run wild. I don’t think he’s ever taken a shower here before. 

Without saying anything else, he walked into the bathroom and closed the door. I instantly let out a breath of frustration, but the room did cool down after he left. 

“He’s bold when being like that, but he’s still afraid of sleeping next to me?” I shook those thoughts out of my head and blinked when the bathroom door opened a little bit, the light shining through my dark apartment. 

“I forgot soap for my body, do you have any?” He yelled out. 

“Uh, there should be some in the cabinet below the sink. It’s Jonas’s.” I heard the cabinet open, along with a little grumble about ‘Why is he in your shower?’ before I heard them close again. 

“I don’t see it.” I did not want to go into that tiny bathroom and show him, but I knew that’s where this was going to end if I sent him on a hunt. I’d just let him use mine. 

“There’s a bottle in the shower. It’s glass and has pink liquid in it? You can use mine. I hope you don’t mind rose.” I heard the shower curtain rip back and a tiny laugh. 

“There’s about twelve bottles with pink liquid in them, Eva.” That was simply false. All of my shampoos, conditioners, and soaps were different colors. He wanted me to come in there and show him. I started walking slowly to the door. 

“It should be on the second shelf.” 

“Just come here and show me, I don’t have the patience.” There it was, and I was already halfway to the bathroom anyways. Ignoring my heart, I opened the door. 

“It should be in…” My eyes widened as he leaned against the sink, giving me access to walk to the shower as the room was only meant for one person at a time. My eyes widened as he leaned against the sink shirtless. I instantly flushed and something churned in the pit of my stomach. I glanced for one more second, and pushed on after seeing his smirk. I shoved myself up against the other wall, so there was no way for me to touch him as I walked past to the open shower. There the soap was and it was even labeled. I gripped hard around the bottle, turning to shove it into his hands. I tried so, so hard to only look at his face. When I glanced down at his chest again and back up, his smirk got deeper. It made me angry, but it also made me want to look even more. 

His body was completely toned and looked like it had no ounce fat on it. He was completely lean like I predicted in our last encounter in a bathroom. Every single possible muscle was defined in a sleek way that was easy for him to hide this… this Adonis of a figure beneath a regular shirt. His waist was probably smaller than mine and shoulders broad from carrying the heavy ODM gear on them for years, but I didn’t try to get another look at it as I walked past him, pressing up against the wall again. 

“I told you I’d let you see it when I got back,” he said jokingly as he set the bottle down on the sink. My face was burning and I didn’t dare turn around to look at him again as much as I wanted to. I had a free pass to look at him all I wanted if I took it, but I was too embarrassed right now. This combined with what happened downstairs wanted to make me scream. How long had he thought of doing this? The first time he’s seen me in six months and this is what he planned. 

“I-I’ll make food!” I half yelled, getting out of the small bathroom that was heating up to a hundred degrees. I could hear him laugh a little bit before closing the door behind me. The air outside was so much cooler, it gave me goosebumps and I stood out there for a bit, waiting to hear the shower turn on. When it did, I went to the kitchen and instantly sat in front of the open ice box trying to cool down my face. 

“Why are you like this, Eva? It’s not like you haven’t seen a shirtless man before. You’ve seen more than one and you’re never like this.” I hit my cheeks over and over again, trying to get them to cool down. No man I’ve been with before could go from sulky and hesitant one minute to making a heat pool in the depths of my stomach in thirty seconds. 

The shower stopped and I closed the fridge quickly, taking out eggs to act like I was using them. I had no clue what I was going to make to eat and I’d spent ten minutes staring at an open fridge. 

When he walked out, I almost broke the egg in my hand. He walked over to his bag on the couch, searching for clothes. The heat that I’d gotten rid of came back, and I finally turned away from the indecent sight. Just a towel?! 

“Sorry, I forgot to grab another pair of clothes.”

Chapter Twelve →

Chapter Masterlist

[if-music-be-the-food-of-love]

I feel like I am the only person who feels more represented by Skam than Heartstopper 😂 where did y’all get such wholesome teenage years

oh anon, this is so funny bc I was part of a group chat that discussed this very topic, and I have to say that in that group at least, you are part of the majority. I don't know which teenage experience ppl identify with more, but I do know that both versions are appreciated for what they offer and who they represent. I see myself in Nick and Sander for very different reasons. I love both shows. Never fear, my skamverse heart is still beating strong even though I do recognize myself more in Heartstopper.

I have to begin this by saying, I was wholly and completely out of the loop by choice as a teenager. Either my friends didn't have parties or they knew not to invite me when they planned to smoke or drink. I don't know which is the case. Not once was I propositioned in high school, not once was I offered anything illegal, and I have to admit I appreciated that my friends respected me enough not to offer or make fun of me for not wanting to do it. I only found out recently that the popular crowd at my school used to throw huge parties in a cow pasture. YES, A COW PASTURE. Bc that's what you do in bumfuck nowhere apparently (we had more cows than ppl). I was so unaware of it all, I didn't even know that I'd been missing out. Now I just think it's hilarious and still don't care.

Heartstopper is very much me. I was studious, a band nerd, athletic (on the team but unpopular), unknowingly bi, a mixture of Charlie and Nick. I kissed exactly two boys in high school, and the idea of sleeping with anyone I'd been dating less than a year or two would never have crossed my mind. Like, my relationships developed very slowly. There was none of the epic romance, the lust, the instant attraction of Evak or Sobbe (This is also probably definitely why we didn't stay together, lol. It was horrid.). It was very much a nerve-wracking slow burn of "oh shit, oh shit, oh shit." I love evak and sobbe for the soulmate energy, but how they went about it is wholly foreign to me, even as an adult. I liked having a different approach in heartstopper, a slower version, where the kids went bowling, drank milkshakes, watched movies, and stressed out about holding hands. ngl, i did all of that. I remember going out for dessert late at night after rehearsals and shows (musicals/concerts), never to parties. We literally went to Denny's and pigged out. It was very classy. 🙄😂

My uni experience was more skam, but I was older and more mature by then (and had changed some). Hearstopper, to me, reminds us of how young these kids really are. Charlie turning 15 on the show really highlights that. It's young love, and the emphasis is on young. Robbe is the youngest Isak, and from what I know from the comics (18 month difference between Nick and Charlie would put Nick at already 16 when they meet), Nick is older than Robbe by two months when he meets Charlie, compared to when Robbe meets Sander. I would never have pegged Robbe as the younger of the two, but wtfock didn't play it young; they played it gritty. It's just a different approach.

I think both shows depict realistic teenage experiences, and we can enjoy them both, love them both. I also find it interesting that though I see myself more in heartstopper, I'm still only writing fics for the skamverse. I have no desire to read or write hearstopper fanfic. Who knows how or why something grips us and takes hold, but it does.

Thanks for your ask anon, and I PROMISE you you're not alone in identifying more with skam. We all have such varying experiences, and I am so excited to see more and more of that variety in shows and films. Have a lovely day/evening wherever you are! 💕💕

[kittyprincessofcats]

RWBY Volume 6

So, I pretty much binge-watched this one in a few days because I really needed to know how things go on after Volume 5 and it was just so good! Lots of messy thoughts to come!

[There will be spoilers for RWBY up to Volume 6 in this post (duh). Please don’t leave any spoilers for anything after Volume 6 on this post, or I will block you.]

Thoughts under the cut because this ended up getting a little long.

- The character short for Adam was really cool! It was cool to see how the White Fang began, to see Sienna, Ghira, Ilia and Adam in action, to see the irony of Sienna being a mentor to Adam and encouraging his ways when you know he’ll end up killing her, and to see a glimpse into Adam and Blake’s past relationship (and how the stuff he said to her was textbook emotional abuse). However, I do have one criticism, and it’s something that really bothers me: There’s a continuity mistake with Ilia’s age. Let’s think about this: Ilia was always implied to be the same age (or around the same age) as Blake. In the part of this short where Ghira was still leader of the White Fang, Ilia appears and doesn’t look younger than in canon. But we know Ghira stepped down at least a few years ago. If Blake is meant to be a teenager in volume 1… there’s just no way Ilia could have been there and already been an adult. She’s supposed to have still been a kid when Ghira was leader, unless she’s at least a few years older than Blake – which I don’t think she’s meant to be? Yeah sorry, this kind of stuff just bothers me. I get that timelines can be hard to keep track off, but that was a really obvious mistake and it ruins my immersion a bit.

- I loved the whole opening fight on the train and just seeing team RWBY fighting together again.

- I’ve got to say, I do feel bad for Weiss: After everything she went through to leave Atlas, she now suddenly has to go back there. I mean, that must suck.

- I’m a bit sad they just but Ilia on a bus, but I get that her main conflict is pretty much over and they had to go back to focusing on the main characters’ quest. I still wish we’d have at least gotten a scene of her interacting with the other members of team RWBY, though.

- I really liked Ilia and Blake’s goodbye at the train station, though. (And the whole “wrong tree” moment with Neptune really made me laugh 😂)

- Also just wanted to say I love Ilia’s new outfit (and the fact that she has spots on her belly – this is really important information, okay?)

- There’s a certain irony in the Faunus becoming more accepted because they STOPPED Adam’s attack on Haven.

- I think Jinn and the whole concept of how asking her questions works is super cool.

- I totally get why everyone’s pissed at Ozpin both before, during and after Jinn revealed his and Salem’s backstory. He has been hiding an awful lot from everyone, even after promising not to anymore, and he actively tried to stop the team from finding out the truth. Plus, the whole fact that he doesn’t have a plan for defeating Salem and is potentially risking everyone’s lives for nothing. (That said, can they not take it out on poor Oscar, please? None of this is his fault.)

- Oscar fighting Ozpin from within and telling them how to summon Jinn was a really badass scene. And I feel super bad for Oscar overall. Not only is he kind of at war with someone who lives in his brain now, but he also just found out that he’ll eventually only become a part of Ozma. And on top of that, people are punching and blaming him for stuff that’s not his fault. That’s super harsh.

- I’m kind of glad Cinder’s alive, because as I said, I was hoping they’d develop her more and make her a more interesting villain… but I don’t feel like this volume did that. Right now, she’s still pretty superficial, unfortunately.

- And now, time to get into one of the highlights of this volume for me: Salem’s backstory! Because holy shit, that was one hell of a backstory! When I said back in my post about volume 5 that I hope Cinder’s alive because I would like to see them make her a more interesting villain, I didn’t expect them to do just that, but for Salem. I love villains that are interesting, but I didn’t expect Salem, the literal big bad of the show, to be the interesting one here! I am pleasantly surprised by this, though! (And just to be clear, because some people love to misunderstand this: When I say “interesting”, I don’t mean “She has a sad backstory, this excuses everything she’s doing”, I mean “She has a sad backstory, this makes her more compelling as a villain”.)

- So, about that backstory: Do we all agree that the gods are major jerks, or what? I mean, initially not bringing Ozma back to life was fair, death is a part of life, they can’t upset the balance, I get that – but making him repeatedly disintegrate in Salem’s arms after she just thought she’d gotten him back? And then making her immortal just to make sure she couldn’t be with him? And then killing ALL of humanity just because of the actions of a few? But still not letting Salem die? And then bringing Ozma back after all (because now it suddenly doesn’t ‘disrupt the balance’ or what?) and kind of tricking him into that whole relics task because he wanted to be with Salem? The god are jerks, I rest my case - and I’m not sure if bringing them back is a good idea.

- Also… I get that she’s like… evil and all… but am I the only one who thought Salem got way sexier after jumping into the pools of grimm? Is that just me? Because damn… I’m kinda into that version of her. (Come on, she’s a sexy goth witch and I’m a simple lesbian, what do you expect?)

- So yeah… in an unexpected turn of events, Salem might be one of my favourite characters now? Oops? (*insert obligatory ‘this does not mean I condone her actions in any way’ disclaimer here*)

- I feel super bad for Salem and Ozma’s kids, though. I hate kids getting hurt in media in general. (I imagine the grief over them stayed with Ozma forever. And I like the theory that he gave the original four maidens their powers because they reminded him of his daughters. In general, I don’t consider him to be the bad guy in this backstory at any point. His only mistake is not being honest with the people who are helping and protecting him in the present.)

- I am now convinced that this entire show has to end with Salem and Ozma dying. That’s the only way all of this can end. Salem will have to either be killed somehow or learn the lesson the gods tried to teach her and die. Ozma will have to fulfill his task and die as well – either through Oscar dying with him (😢), through only Ozma dying but Oscar getting to live without him, or through the reincarnation cycle ending and Ozma/Ozpin recognizing that Oscar is going to be his last life. Something like that would be my prediction.

- Speaking of interesting villains: This volume also did a great job with Emerald and Mercury! With those two, I’m actually hoping for a redemption now. (And Hazel is a great guy as well. The fact that he was willing to take the blame for their failure at Haven to protect Emerald and Mercury is something I really respect.)

- I also I want to say I find Tyrion super entertaining.

- It was great to see Neo again! (I’ve gotten so used to Chibi!Neo it was almost weird to see regular Neo again.) Her fight with Cinder was EPIC.

- (I basically feel like this volume did a great job on all villains except for Cinder. But hey, maybe that’ll still happen.)

- This was an interesting volume for Qrow. On the one hand, I get why hearing Oz’s backstory drove him into a sort-of depression and made his drinking habit worse and I feel bad for him, but from the point-of-view of Ruby and the others, it must have also been super frustrating that the one proper adult in the group couldn’t keep it together and everyone else had to keep doing the hard work.

- Maria is a super cool and epic character! I really hope she sticks around with the team for Volume 7 because she’s amazing and I love her. She was super badass in her backstory (that moment where she lost her eyes was painful just to watch), I love the fact that she was Qrow’s hero growing up (and that he based his weapon on hers!), that we finally met another character who has (well, had) silver eyes, and that she’s that funny, cranky, but also wise old lady now who mentors Ruby and is just super funny all around. Good stuff, I hope we see more of her!

- The Apathy are the creepiest grim yet. The whole concept of them draining you of your will to live without you even noticing is just SO scary – I love it, but I’m also low-key terrified. The crew’s trip to that farm estate could have easily gone very wrong. Pretty much nothing but Ruby’s silver eyes even worked on them. I like how those episodes set the whole thing up – Team RWBY having emotional conversations while they were in the house, everyone having doubts (which makes sense at that point in the story, so you don’t really question it at first), and then the sneaking realization of what’s going on. Also, the guy who sealed in those Apathy grim in in the first place was just so dumb. How could you think that was a good idea? Good job getting everyone killed, dude.

- I’m glad this volume gave us more on Ruby’s silver eyes! I like that she finally got to use them before the season finale (though I loved that joke on RWBY Chibi), and I also like that she first used them to protect Blake. (I don’t ship them as much as Bumbleby, but I feel like Ruby and Blake’s ship/friendship is super underrated.) It was also nice to learn more about how the Silver eyes work in general and how they came to be. (If they came from the god of light, I’m assuming all the people with silver eyes are the descendants of Ozma’s past lives? TV Tropes kind of helped me out here: Apparently if you freeze the picture where you see one of his past lives with his kids, you can see the kids have silver eyes.) People with silver eyes being hunted also comes as no surprise to me, that’s kind of what I was assuming already. (Which raises the question: Just how did Summer Rose die?) Also, interesting fact that they only work on the Grimm...

- That moment where they reunite with JNR in Argus was really sweet. I also loved the design of Argus as a whole.

- I LOVE Saphron, Terra, and their son!!! I love that we got to meet one of Jaune’s sisters, I love that we got some more LGBT+ representation, and their baby is adorable!! (I loved that scene of everyone cooing over the baby. Also, that moment where Ruby realized Jaune and Saphron were siblings. Also, that moment where the baby helped them distract the guards by crying.) Basically, I just love the Cotta-Arcs. (Also, I just want to say that Saphron is super pretty.)

- Cordovin and her two goons are hilarious. I mean, I also hate them because they’re overly patriotic Atlas-people and Cordovin was racist to Blake – but they’re also super freaking hilarious. Every little line of Maria and Cordovin’s beef with each other had my dying with laughter 🤣 (mainly it was Maria’s lines that had me dying with laughter).

- That whole scene with the statue of Pyrrha was such a tearjerker 😢. First the leaf, then the sad music, then Jaune talking to that red-haired lady (I’m guessing she’s either Pyrrha’s mom or sister?), and then Ren and Nora joining and giving Jaune a pep-talk 😭 😭. I think this was a really important moment for Jaune, not just to get closure, but also to stop blaming himself and putting himself down. I’m glad Ren and Nora told him they don’t want to lose him too, and that the red-haired lady said she’s “glad Pyrrha was surrounded by such amazing people”. Gosh, now I’m tearing up again writing this 😭. I miss Pyrrha 😭 😭.

- I love Oscar’s new outfit. It was time for him to finally drop the farm boy look.

- I love how Jaune is so down for crime that his plan is just “They only let Atlas airships though, so we steal an Atlas airship.” I mean, makes sense.

- I think their whole plan to steal the airship was super cool and although I get why things can’t be that easy in shows like this (and I love that we got the showdown with Adam), I still kind of wish it had worked just because it was a really cool plan and everyone had their part to play in it. Heck, even the baby got to help (and it was awesome)! But yeah, Adam just had to ruin everything, nothing new there.

- So, about Adam: First of all, he’s a major creep for victim-blaming Blake (again) and stalking her. I like how creepy his behaviour is from a story-telling perspective (and from an angst-loving “I like seeing my faves suffer” perspective), but his story was getting a little old, so I’m not too sad they killed him off now. It was a good point in the story to do it. (That said, holy shit is he a creep! “I wouldn’t have to be doing this if you just behaved”? Wow. I get that he’s meant to be abusive and controlling; that’s the point of his character (and like I said, I’m here for the angst), but… yikes, poor Blake.)

- And then we had Blake and Yang’s rematch with Adam. EPIC STUFF. First of all, I like that Blake was able to hold her own against him for a bit (and same for Yang later). I also love the whole dramatic setting by the waterfall and the fact that Blake lost her coat (this is important, okay? it symbolizes vulnerability – and also it just looks cool), the scar on Blake’s belly (from their fight at Beacon, right?), the face reveal of Adam – I just love how all of this was set up in such an epic, dramatic way. But the most epic moment, at least from the start of the fight, has got to be Yang just jumping down there with her motorcycle hitting Adam and that amazing music. I’ve said before that Yang is just too cool for words and I will stand by that. The fight itself was epic too, though I was so stressed the whole time I couldn’t completely pay attention. Blake and Yang fighting Adam together was definitely the best part, though. And I loved the irony of Yang’s metal arm saving her. In general, I like that Yang and Blake got to fight and defeat (and kill) Adam together because he’s been a demon for both of them, and I like that they clarified they’re doing it as equal partners. “We’re protecting each other” was a nice callback to earlier when Blake tried to reassure Yang she’d protect her, and to even earlier when Yang was protecting Blake at Beacon.

- Let’s talk about my other highlight of the volume: Bumbleby! Because sorry not sorry, there’s no way you can deny their romantic subtext anymore at this point. Early in the volume, there’s the conflict of things being weird between them, and Blake not knowing how to deal with her guilt and thinking she needs to protect Yang (and do stuff like getting her bag down for her) – while Yang feels insulted by this and thinks that Blake sees her as being incapable of doing anything now that she lost an arm. Then, when Blake first leaves to disable the comms, they give each other those really sweet, loving looks. And of course, it all leads up to them confronting their nightmare together, holding hands, and declaring that they’re protecting each other. Add Adam’s jealousy to that (He was making comparisons between himself and Yang and asking “What does she even see in you?” – that’s not a sentence you just say to your ex’s friend) and you’d have to be willfully ignorant to not see the subtext. And those soft moments after the fight just killed me: Blake breaking down crying, Yang immediately running to hug and comfort her, Blake’s promise not to leave, Yang reassuring her and wiping away her tears – I LOVE hurt/comfort stuff and I’m so soft for these two! They love each other so much!

(Pretty much the only downside of all this is that a few major parts were spoiled for me in advance. Look, it’s pretty impossible to follow lots of blogs that post wlw ships and not see that picture of Bumbleby holding hands, or the one of them hugging (or the one of them killing Adam) at some point. So yeah… I’d seen all three of those pictures before and knew this would happen. But it was still really nice to see it all come together and see how we got there!)

- The fight against Cordovin and her giant mecha was also pretty cool! It reminded me a bit of the Legend of Korra finale. Ruby going inside the arm canon was an especially epic moment. And I also liked that small moment when they were flying on the Queen Lancer and Ruby had her arms around Weiss’ waist (a bit of White Rose, yay!).

- I like that moment when the Grimm attack and the team first realizes they just destroyed the only thing capable of stopping them – but to be honest, that was mostly Cordovin’s fault. She brought out that mecha for something it wasn’t meant for and started the fight that attracted the Grimm in the first place. Also, how exactly did she think the people of Atlas would take it if she had actually hurt Weiss? So yeah, most of that mess was on her, tbh. I’m glad she at least came though to help in the end, though.

- Back to Bumbleby: Honestly, the strongest romantic undertones weren’t even in the fight with Adam or directly afterwards for me, but in the last episode when they’re all on the ship together. So, Blake is blaming herself for the plan going wrong, and Yang has an arm around, her, still half holding her and reassuring her. And then – and this one really gets me – Ruby hugs Blake and gives Yang that knowing look over her shoulder while Yang suddenly looks away shyly. They’re communicating without words and Ruby totally knows what’s up. She’s basically saying “So you and Blake, huh?” and suddenly Yang – YANG – is feeling shy. This isn’t subtle. And then later Bumbleby hold hands again and look at each other like that… they’re in love, I don’t make the rules.

- And finally, we of course have Ruby’s epic silver-eyed moment in the finale, which was AMAZING. I loved all the flashbacks and how they’re drawn pictures and not just stills from the episodes, I love how the memories of her friends motivate her, I love how much of Penny there was in there (bit of Nuts and Dolts, yay!), I loved seeing adorable little!Yang, and of course the first look at Summer Rose! (I still want a Team STRQ backstory episode at some point.) Also, the music during that scene was so good!

Gosh, now I’ve talked for way too long again, but there was just so much to say about this volume! Long story short: Loved it, can’t wait to continue! (I know exactly 1 major spoiler for volume 7 because it was unavoidable on social media, but that’s it. And it’s a spoiler I really didn’t mind knowing, so…)

[thevioletjones]

Congrats on the kudos, u deserve it! I did not undestand if I'm supposed to choose one of the lines for the prompt or if I have to combine two or more lines lol. But if it is to choose only one: number 5. If more than one: 5 and 45. *---*

Thank you! I used both. Great inspiration, actually. It spun out of control! 😀

Prompt 2: “How much of that did you hear?” + “Why are you helping me?”

Interloper

“Jesus, Iggy, I’m gonna fuckin’ murder you myself one of these days,” Mickey threatened in exasperation.

They were both leaning over, hands on knees, gasping for air, just having run full-speed for at least twelve blocks. The pillars beneath the L tracks were now providing the mild seclusion they needed to wait out a cursory police search of the area.

“Ain’t my fault!” Iggy exclaimed defensively.

Mickey’s face scrunched up to a degree that only his dumbest family members could make it reach. “Yes it fuckin’ was! Who else’s fault would it be?”

He’d always kind of wondered how he was the only one in his crap-ass family to be gifted with at least half a brain. Well, him and his younger sister, Mandy. She was alright. Skanky and crazy, but not a total idiot. He couldn’t say the same for his brothers, male cousins, father, uncle, etcetera. Mickey couldn’t even get his begrudgingly favorite brother to follow a simple goddamn plan that would’ve kept them out of trouble when they were out committing crimes. He was just gonna have to start doing everything himself. Safety in numbers didn’t apply when the other member of your team seemed to have been lobotomized when no one was paying attention. It was probably all the meth. Mickey was smart enough to stay away from that particular bullshit. Didn’t want to become a scabby, denture-wearing, toothpick skinny, low-life with no mind left to lose. He was content to stick to coke and weed like a normal person.

“That old bitch came outta nowhere! Self-defense!”

“It ain’t self-defense if you’re robbin’ the joint, numbnuts! We’re lucky you fuckin’ missed!”

If he had it his way, Mickey wouldn’t be doing these petty robberies anymore. He much preferred bigger jobs, like gun and drug running. But times were tough, and he had to do what he had to do. He’d even considered getting a legit job for once in his life, but the skills he possessed weren’t exactly easily adaptable to the straight and narrow path. Being a criminal was how he was raised, and all he knew. It brought heat, but it was still a comfortable fit. Living without the constant presence of major risk would probably feel so foreign as to drive him crazier than a meth addiction in the long run.

The job Mickey’d lined up involved hitting up a few different borderline upmarket stores that’d opened up in their neck of the woods since the gentrifiers had set upon The Yards, then selling the goods to a guy he knew in the online black market trade. Not as lucrative as heavy metal and funny powder, but a decent payday nonetheless. Except fuckface over here who had to ruin everything by getting trigger-happy on Main while they were attempting to heist merchandise from location number two of three. If the pigs nabbed either one of them, they’d be going down for at least five to ten. Years. Mickey was done donating years to the prison industrial complex. The most he could afford was months at best.

“When’d you turn into such a giant asshole?” asked Iggy. “Oh, nevermind, probly when you started gettin’ it railed on the reg.”

A giant smile stretched across his perpetually dirty face, causing Mickey’s eyebrows to lift dangerously high on his forehead. Occasionally, his dumber-than-rocks older brother managed to think up some admittedly clever asides. Mickey didn’t know whether to punch him or give him daps.

Before he could decide, however, he heard a distinct little snicker from the other side of the large concrete column they were leaning on, raising his hackles to invisibly join his eyebrows in their heightened incredulity.

Mickey hastily rounded the pillar and grabbed the giggler by the shirt collar, hauling him to their side and pinning him next to Iggy with his forearm. He looked into the guy’s eyes, and finally registered who it was. He kinda sorta knew him from around town. Used to hang out with his sister back in high school. He was a lot scrawnier then. This version of the dude could probably hold his own with Mickey in a fight. He’d built some definite muscle.

“How much of that did you hear, asshole?” Mickey demanded, seeing Iggy flash the gun in his waistband in his periphery.

This idiot didn’t look as rattled as he should be, though. He just shrugged his shoulders.

“Considering I was here first, I guess… all of it?”

He was wearing an annoying little smirk, his green-blue eyes shining bright, and his red hair distracting Mickey as much as the light dusting of freckles across his nose and cheeks. He had a stupidly ultra-defined chin, and Mickey immediately hated it. His chin hadn’t looked like that when he was a 15-year-old pipsqueak.

“Wipe that smile off your face, bitch,” ordered Mickey, pressing his arm harder against the guy’s pale throat. “You think this is fuckin’ funny? You know who we are?”

The guy shrugged again, like this was all a casual conversation on the corner. “Mickey.” He glanced at his dumb, blonde, curlicue brother. “And Iggy, right? I used to hang out with Mandy all the time. Have a good memory.”

“Yeah? Well I remember your goofy ass too, Gallagher. I know where you live and I know who your family is, so if you know what’s good for you, you’ll keep your big mouth shut or I’ll pick ‘em off one by one and save you for last. Got it?”

The dude snorted, and Mickey wondered if he was some kind of crazy tweaker with no sense of propriety or self-preservation.

“You outta your goddamn mind or somethin’?” Mickey added. “I ain’t jokin’.”

“Look, Gallaghers don’t snitch, alright?” He held his hands up placatingly. “I promise not to say shit to anyone. It’s none of my business, and I really don’t care. That good enough for you?”

Mickey loosened his hold, but sized him up all the while. “Maybe. But it’s possible you need a little lesson to remember it good. Wouldn't want you to forget about the consequences of you breakin’ your word.”

The dude winced and shoved Mickey off. “I don’t need a fucking beatdown, Mickey. I get it.”

“Ohhhh,” Mickey singsonged derisively, meeting Iggy’s gaze. “He gets it.” He thumbed his eyebrow. “Guess I’m just s’posed to believe you, huh?”

“That would be ideal, yeah.”

Mickey had to give it to him; he almost cracked a smile. The kid had balls. Most people around their neighborhood cowered before a Milkovich like spring lambs. Still, he lived by a code, and letting some rando walk away unscathed when he had dirt on him just didn’t fit the rules.

He cocked his fist back to knock it into tall, pale, and red’s pearly white teeth, just as the stunted siren of a cop car rang out very close by. Their collective heads all snapped toward the sound, and after sharing a meaningful look between brothers, Iggy took off running once again, without a word.

Normally, Mickey would’ve followed hot on his heels, but some unknown force was keeping his useless feet stuck to the dirty ground, eyes watching as Gingerballs glanced around the column at the flashing lights, taking a very long look that wasn’t suspicious at all.

Before he could react outwardly, Mickey was pulled against a hard body, Gallagher’s warm breath sending a shiver down his spine as he whispered, “Be cool. I got you.”

Suddenly, big hands were caressing Mickey’s back, and despite a part of him not minding in the least, the rest of him stiffened considerably.

“What the fuck are you doing?” he rasped out, hearing the telltale slam of a car door, and attempting to pull away. But a strong grip held him close, spinning him around so that he was the one up against the concrete now.

“Saving your thug ass. I know this guy, okay? Just chill and follow my lead.”

Okay, what the hell was this surreal turn of events? Gallagher was bold as shit, cradling Mickey all gay like. Sure, Iggy had made a fag joke earlier, kicking off this whole… whatever it was, but still. This guy had no way of knowing it was based in reality. Did he?

And had Gallagher really been gay this whole time? How had Mickey never sniffed this scorching information out?

“What’s going on here, boys?”

The copper rounded the corner, genuinely swinging his nightstick like a cartoon character, and Mickey had to suppress a deep roll of his eyes.

“Milkovich?” Mr. CPD continued, extreme disbelief coloring his voice.

Mickey was abruptly reminded that he was currently stuck between a rock and a hard body, and nothing about their entanglement screamed anything other than gay, gay, super-fucking-gay. Not that Mickey hadn’t come to accept who he was and what he liked, but he didn’t go around spreading the truth all over town either. This could seriously damage his carefully crafted reputation.

“Tony!” Ian interjected, sparing him from having to invent some lame excuse, and the cop’s eyes snapped to him instead.

“Ian?” His tone was still dripping with astonishment.

“Yeah! What's up? How you been?”

Mickey shot him an ‘are you goddamn serious right now?’ look, and Ian just squeezed his hip in tacit reply.

“Uhhh… gooood? Care to explain whatever…” he waved his stick between them, “this is?”

Ian laughed and he figured the dude truly was a nutcase. Mickey was going to jail for sure.

“Um, well,” answered Ian, suddenly playing it very meek and demure, “Mickey and I were just… you know…”

“You and… Mickey?”

“Not fucking or anything! Just... hanging out?”

“Hanging out.”

“Yeah, you know how it is. I’m tryin’ to convince Mick here to come home with me, but he’s being squirrelly.” He shook his head and shrugged. “South Side guys.”

“What the fuck?” Mickey whispered harshly, completely taken aback.

Ian just squeezed him tightly again, which was not helping his whole brain scramble situation.

“Huh,” said Tony, a tone of acceptance seeping in. “Mickey Milkovich, eh? Wow.”

“Come on, Tony. I don’t have to tell you this is all a big secret, do I?” replied Ian.

“And blondie who ran away like there was a damn fire? Did he flee a threesome?”

Mickey frowned and fake-wretched, finally speaking up. “Fuck no, man. That was my dumbass brother. He don’t like cops.”

“Uh huh. And you and your brother didn’t happen to be getting into trouble about 15 minutes ago, did you?”

“No sir,” Mickey said with a mock salute.

Ian kicked at his foot in warning.

“He’s been with me since like 3 o’clock, Tone. Scout’s honor.”

Officer Tony eyed them both with a look of skepticism, but didn’t contradict Ian’s word. The CB sounded from the open window of the black and white, with some cop-speak crackling over the airwaves.

“Stay put,” said Tony, eyes lingering longer on Mickey’s than Ian’s. “Both of you.”

He retreated to answer the radio call, and Mickey let out a deep whoosh of air.

“Goddamn, Gallagher. You’re spinnin’ quite a yarn here.”

“Yep,” Ian agreed. “A big gay yarn.”

“How the fuck did you know—”

“That you’re gay? Well, I heard Iggy make that joke, obviously. Pretty specific bottom joke to make if you weren’t actually into it. Plus, I always had my suspicions.”

Mickey scoffed. “Yeah fuckin’ right!”

“I did!”

“Whatever. Why are you helping me?”

“Out of the kindness of my heart?”

“Try again.”

“I don’t know. Why not? Makes us even or something. Now you know I won’t rat you out. About any of it. I wouldn’t out someone like that, and I don’t give a shit about the illegal crap you’re wrapped up in. Tony Markovich is like turbo gay too. Used to bang my sister, I think, but he came out a couple years ago. He won’t let it slip about you. He’s not a total bastard just cuz he’s a cop, ya know?”

Mickey bit his lip in contemplation. Gallagher seemed pretty genuine. Still didn’t much make sense in his brain, but whatever.

“Fine. But you know what’s gonna happen if—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, kick my ass, kill my family, got it.”

“You’re a cocky little shit, ain’t you?”

Ian smirked again, and it was pretty sexy, actually. “Maybe.”

He had the gall to push against Mickey more fully, pressing the bottom halves of their bodies closer together.

Mickey gasped. “Gonna have to ask you again… what the hell do you think you’re doin’?”

“You wanna go out sometime?”

Mickey cackled in his face. “You’re off your fuckin’ rocker for sure.”

“Am not! I can tell you want me.”

“Oh, Jesus Christ. Cocky little shit doesn’t even begin to cover it, does it?”

“Come onnnn,” Ian prodded.

“Do I look like I date, Gallagher?”

“A date can be whatever we want it to be, Milkovich. I’m easy.”

“Yeah, I bet you are.”

“Okay,” Tony interrupted, coming back into view. “Get the hell outta here. You wanna bang, do it indoors somewhere, or I’ll have to arrest you for public indecency or worse. And Milkovich… if I find any evidence of what I’m sure you know I’m talking about, I’ll be paying your ass a visit real soon.”

Mickey let the eyeroll loose then, withholding a flip of his middle finger, and deadpanning instead, “Don’t know what you’re talkin’ about, officer.”

Tony sighed loudly. “Whatever.”

“Thanks, Tony!” Ian cried at his retreating back.

“You always kiss cop ass like that? Cuz that’s not the way to get into my pants, Red.”

Ian just grinned, finally pulling his body away as he looked around. “You gonna follow me home or what?”

Mickey wanted to tell him to go fuck himself and swagger away like a badass. But was he not a thirsty man being propositioned by a hot guy who just randomly saved his ass from a trip to the slammer?

He at least feigned protest, huffing and puffing as he kicked at the dirt. “Goddamn it, Gallagher, you drive a hard bargain.”

Ian’s face lit up like a Christmas tree, as Mickey added, “Lead the way, weirdo.”

[ladyfawkes]

Eugene Appreciation Week - Day 1 - Childhood | The Trial and Tribulations of Fitzherbert and Schnitz

The Trial and Tribulations of Fitzherbert and Schnitz

Current word count: 3178

Current Rating: T for upcoming chapters

This is my version of that now-infamous RTA lost episode, "The Trial of Fitzherbert and Schnitz". Most of you are aware how I took issue with Disney having used both adoption AND Eugene's having adopted his lifelong persona as Flynn as a 20-minute throwaway plot. I'm gonna try to beef up that premise.

I suppose this is ALSO my way of refuting some of the (very limited) spoilery stuff I've read that's included in the upcoming traditionally published Flynn Rider novel.

My own plot line will be significantly darker than your average Disney plot, though.

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

Chapter 1: Sister Eunice

Several years into the past....

Arnie was skipping down the corridor just past the chapel, minding his own business, when suddenly a loud CRASH!!! sounded from just behind him. He whipped around to see an enormous new hole in a large ornate stained-glass window behind him that was intact just seconds ago.

Thinking one of the rowdier orphans to be at fault, Arnie ran to have a looksee outside. He was shocked to discover nobody except Sister Eunice opposite him next to the stone wall. Surely she couldn’t have been the one to shatter the window??

The young nun noticed him from outside the chapel though and hissed, “Arnie!! Arnie, don’t tell anybody you saw me here! Please. I’m trying to save Eugene!! I’m trying to save you all!! If anybody asks, especially Father Francis, tell them you saw Eugene throw a rock at the window. I can’t explain why, but it’ll help out. A LOT. Can you do that for me, please, Arnie? Would you do this to save your best friend, Eugene?” She was looking at him with frightened eyes, taking surreptitious furtive glances behind her.

Ten-year-old Arnie had stared back, wide-eyed, and had only barely begun to nod when Sis Eunice turned back, ran around the corner of the chapel toward Arnie’s right, and disappeared. Young Arnie was left standing there, mouth agape, wondering why on earth a nun - a nun!!! - would throw a heavy rock through a church-owned stained glass window. And especially a window that the children were told was hundreds of years old!

Not long after that, to his left, Arnie saw someone else outside out of the corner of his eye. The young boy instinctively hid behind the full partition of the wall where the stained glass window ended. It was Fr Francis, the priest for the local parish, walking at a brisk pace. And Arnie could’ve sworn the scary priest might be tracking Sis Eunice. Arnie and Eugene hadn’t ever been particularly fond of Francis. In fact, they went out of their way to avoid the older dour-faced man.

Although Fr. Francis was currently looking at the hole in the window from a ways off, he couldn’t see where Arnie was from his vantage point. Arnie slinked away to go find Eugene.

Turned out he bumped into Eugene almost immediately since Eugene had been in the chapel, waiting to meet up with Lord and Lady Boskin. Arnie stopped in his tracks at the sight of his friend, all freshly bathed, his hair combed, and so unexpectedly dressed in a new blue velvet skeleton suit, white stockings, silk shirt, and leather shoes. It was the latest modern fashion that all the rich boys were wearing in Vardaros. He knew that because Eugene told him every time they were fortunate enough to go to town with one of the sisters. Arnie would have to pry Eugene away from the shop window where Eugene’s face would sometimes get so close to the display that his nose print would remain on the glass. Arnie didn’t understand why Eugene cared about stuff like that. Fashion and velvet and lace. Orphans weren’t supposed to care. Food was more important anyway.

“I heard a terrible crash and came to investigate!” Eugene said breathlessly.

All thought of the broken window had flown from Arnie’s mind at the sight of his transformed best friend and he demanded, “What’re you wearing alla that for??”

Suddenly self-conscious, Eugene crammed his hands in his new pockets, stared at the floor, scuffed the sole of his new shoe against the mosaic tile and mumbled, “Fr Francis took me aside after breakfast to the rectory and said that Lord and Lady Boskin have chosen to adopt…..me.” He said it with the same amount of awe he felt when he first saw the suit in its parcel.

“....and….and you didn’t think to tell me any sooner? You were just gonna leave without saying goodbye?” accused Arnie, his eyes filling with tears. Eugene could see his pouting lips tremble from several yards away. “But...but I didn’t know either…!” protested Eugene, now fighting tears himself, before he was abruptly cut off.

As Arnie stood there simultaneously hating and envying Eugene, a whole crowd of people had arrived from both sides of the corridor, to all of the ensuing hullabaloo of the shattered window. Unfortunately, it was just in time to see these two boys standing by themselves right near the new gaping hole in the priceless stained glass window.

Fr Francis had reappeared inside followed by the Mthr Superior, Sis Eunice, several dozen children, and a few other nuns. Everyone was chattering and buzzing and arguing about which of the two boys had broken the window -- Arnie or Eugene. Perhaps both? Immediately they both protested their innocence and the bored aggressive older boys used the moment as an excuse to break out into a fight…

Two brawny red-headed boys quickly left the mob only to have one boy each bowl right into Eugene and Arnie. All four boys toppled over to the floor.

All of the other children started shouting, “FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!” and just before the redheads could land their first actual punches, Fr Francis easily intervened by grabbing both of their pulled-back fists, squeezing them, and ordering the boys to get up off their intended victims and up off the floor. They reluctantly complied. Then Francis ordered Arnie and Eugene off the floor and to follow him to his office.

As Eugene looked down in dismay at the visible dirt on his beautiful new suit, Sis Eunice surreptitiously put a comforting hand on his shoulder and said, in a voice so softly only he could hear, “Don’t worry -- these are play clothes. More than capable of taking a few layers of dirt from rambunctious young boys.” She always had a way to help him feel better….but this time, since he was effectively being frog-marched to the priest’s office over something he didn’t do, the good feeling didn’t last nearly long enough.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~((0))((0))((0))~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two Hours Earlier…..

Eugene had been called to the rectory by Fr. Francis immediately following breakfast. Without any prior notice whatsoever, he informed Eugene that Lord and Lady Boskin had actually chosen to adopt him!!!

Young Eugene couldn’t believe his luck! He wondered why he’d been chosen. What had the wealthy young couple seen in him? Even though he’d only been formally introduced once or twice, and had spoken only a few sentences to them, they chose him. And he supposed they seemed nice enough.

Eugene and most of the orphans had already seen the younger couple several times. He learned from the nuns over the past couple of years that the pair were evidently unable to have children of their own and as such, had been growing their own family a different way. Twice per year for the past two years, they had chosen a new child from amongst the orphans at this orphanage. Prior to their more formal choosing-times for each child, they would come to the orphanage for several trips and take turns meeting and chatting with the children. Yet this time, they had actually chosen Eugene.

Sis. Eunice had entered the rectory right behind Fr Francis and his announcement; the latter then vacated the building. Sis Eunice had taken Eugene by the hand and led him to the home’s water closet. And already waiting for him was a fresh bath -- mid-week, even! He was accustomed to every Saturday at most. For the first time in his life, Eugene was treated to his very own bath where the water was actually extra warm and didn’t contain the sloughed-off post-bathing scoodge from a zillion other children lurking in the bottom.

Eugene had seen the nuns sniffle and get misty-eyed plenty of times when other children had been adopted. But their crying was always rather delicate and they always tried to smile through it. However, as Sis Eunice helped him to properly wash his fingers, toes, and ears during what Eugene thought of as his luxurious bath, Sis Eunice also kept repeatedly bursting into tears. And apologizing for it. She seemed genuinely….worried.

The nuns weren’t supposed to have favorites but Eugene knew Sis Eunice was easily the most fond of him. She had arrived at the orphanage during the height of a disease outbreak which had very nearly claimed little Eugene’s life. And it would have done so too, if it weren’t for Sis Eunice’s dogged persistence. They had originally bonded over their funny-sounding first names. She’d turned her own name into a joke to try and give him a reason to smile….and it worked. Most if not all of the other nuns were quite hands-off but Sis Eunice believed in healing touch. As Eugene’s stricken body fought the virulent infection, the Sister held him, rocked him, and sang to him. After that, she promised to come back to the room that housed the most ill children and read aloud a story once she finished her rounds. She had sat closest to little Eugene as she read aloud “Flynnigan Rider and the Pirates of Penzance” for the very first time. It was the first time Eugene had become familiar with the novels.

And though Eugene hadn’t really noticed before (nun’s habits often made it difficult to tell who was older than whom) right now, after he learned he would soon be leaving the orphanage forever that day, it was almost as if Eugene were seeing Sis Eunice for the first time. And for the first time, he noticed how young she truly was. She had a spray of freckles across her face and a little space between her front teeth. A halo of strawberry blonde curls framed her face and perpetually worked their way out of her wimpole. It’s possible Sis Eunice was even younger than Lady Boskin.

He couldn’t help but notice as she had him put on a clean slick-feeling shirt -- a brand-new one, just for him!! -- yet that was only the beginning. Apparently with each chosen child, the adoptive couple provided a freshly purchased outfit from the shops in town. Even Sis Eunice couldn’t help but smile this time as she presented Eugene’s new clothes to him. She asked him to tug open the string holding the paper parcel together. He stared at the parcel, eyes darting between the string and the Sister’s face. “Another present?” he whispered in awe. “For me?” Inside lay a brand new velvet suit. “It’s my favorite color!” he squeaked in delight. “Cornflower blue!” And Sis. Eunice nodded with the same huge smile on her face as him. “Shall I?” she asked softly, reaching into the parcel so he could see the whole suit. Eugene was utterly thunderstruck now. He stared wide-eyed at this beautiful boughten suit which was already quite familiar to him.

“But this is the same…..” he trailed off as Sis Eunice finished for him, “It’s the same suit you’ve had your eye on all year in that shop window?” Mouth agape, Eugene nodded slowly, clearly still in shock.

Eugene recalled how Sis Eunice had begun reading the Flynnigan Rider story with a splash, quite literally, and encompassed the first three chapters. The very first words of the book started with Flynnigan Rider on the mains’l full on the mast of a tall ship, shouting, “As long as I possess air in my lungs, I shall never surrender!!” And right before an enemy bullet could pierce him, Rider had sprinted and dove off the end of the mains’l to plunge down into the sea below. Sis Eunice had taken a fresh mildly damp cloth and spun it above her head, so everyone could feel the ‘splash’. That’s all it took for her to hook every single one of her charges. Sis Eunice had read aloud in every voice. Acted out each scene. She had as many props as feasible. And at the end of chapter 3 that first night, she closed the book amidst many “awwws”, protests, and left the children clamoring for more and some even wanting to help star in the show. Six-year-old Eugene had finally found the strength to speak for the first time in days and tugged Sis Eunice’s robes. “Tomorrow? Please?” he whispered breathlessly. The Sister knelt down close by his ear and pushed his hair away from his fevered brow. “I’ll tell you what,” she said softly. “If you think you can stick around for me by this time tomorrow morning, I promise to come back and read for you. Deal?”

And she turned to the rest of the room, “Tonight’s life lesson from Flynnigan is to hold air in those lungs -- by breathing deeply -- so that you can keep fighting.” Eager to prove to Sis Eunice that he could be brave like Flynnigan Rider, he concentrated on breathing as deeply as he could. Though it was by far the most difficult and painful thing he’d ever done in his young life, he followed through with it nonetheless. And Sis Eunice had returned each morning and night, as promised, to divulge more of Flynnigan’s adventures and life lessons. By the time he was well enough about a week later, she’d ask for Eugene to actually promise to wait for her the next night and bit by bit, little Eugene had found the strength to come back from the brink. And it was all because of one (or was it two?) very special people -- Sis Eunice and Flynnigan Rider.

“Shall we dress you smartly then? It’s not proper for a young man of your new status to be prancing around, half-dressed, you know,” Sis Eunice teased, bringing Eugene back to the present. Usually he’d act silly in return but right now….as soon as he had the new trousers on….Eugene was overcome and couldn’t help but throw his arms around the Sister’s neck. “Thank you,” he whispered, “so much.” It was the nicest clothing -- the nicest anything -- that anyone had ever given him. And Sis Eunice thought he was misinterpreting who’d provided for him this suit but he wasn’t. “I know it wasn’t your money,” as Eugene was well aware that the nuns scarcely had more than the orphans due in large part to their vows of charity and poverty. And yet he replied, still embracing her, “But I just know that you had something to do with it somehow, Sis Eunice.”

She briefly taught him the tricks with helping Eugene learn how to dress himself up in the fancy new suit. It had a lot of buttons. Big shiny brass ones. She was insistent that none of her charges was going to be reliant on servants to dress them, even after they left the orphanage. Once Eugene was fully dressed in his new comfortably-tailored playsuit, Sis Eunice also presented to him new stockings and new mahogany leather shoes.

Sis Eunice looked adoringly...and then somberly at Eugene as the thunderstruck little boy could not stop studying his own reflection in a full-length mirror.

Though most boys hated baths, he actually liked them (especially when they were warm with fresh water) almost as much as he liked playing in the dirt. He wondered if he’d have his own bed at his new home. He wondered if he’d get to have a mattress, bedclothes, and a pillow every night.

“Well, I suppose it’s time,” said Sis Eunice with a watery smile. The pair of them began to head over to the parish chapel just off the orphanage and across the compound from the rectory. Halfway through the walk, Sis Eunice asked him to continue onto the chapel and said that she’d meet up with him again in a very short few moments. And that was apparently where he was supposed to meet up with Lord and Lady Boskin to sign the final papers and officially become their latest son for real. His heart skipped a beat at the thought.

After his arrival in the chapel, and within 3 minutes, he heard a very loud crash outside in the corridor to the right of his vantage point near the front of the chapel. He thought maybe he should stay put just in case, but his curiosity got the best of him and he went to investigate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~((0))~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, in the Office of the Clergy….

Arnie had been called into the clergy office with Fr Francis, Mthr Superior, and Sis Eunice. Eugene had been left outside to stew and fret by himself.

“So you witnessed Eugene Fitzherbert throw a rock at the stained glass?” said Fr Francis imperiously. Arnie’s wide frightened eyes kept darting back and forth between Fr Francis’s unpleasant features and Sis Eunice’s equally terrified eyes. She nodded imperceptibly to encourage Arnie to say yes. Arnie didn’t want to lie but he didn’t want to be the one who got in trouble either. Not to mention….it utterly broke his heart that Eugene was getting adopted and that he wasn’t even gonna say goodbye to Arnie. Thus Arnie looked to the floor and nodded downward at it half-heartedly.

Eugene was brought into the office and not even given a chance to defend nor explain himself.

“Naughty misbehaving boys who destroy priceless works of church art don’t deserve to get adopted,” Fr Francis began imperiously. “Remove that clothing at once. It’s no longer yours and you are no longer fit to wear it.” Poor Eugene recoiled in shock and horror and Sis Eunice stepped in to try and intervene. She shared scared looks with Arnie, even more frightened than before. “There’s no need for that, he hasn’t physically harmed anybody,” Sis Eunice reasoned, “there’s no reason to treat him like he’s a criminal. He just had an accident, that's all.”

Eugene kept backing further and further away, “Not adopted??” was all he could manage to say. “That’s precisely it,” Fr Francis replied coldly. “I’ll tell Lord and Lady Boskin not to follow through with the paperwork because misbehaving children are evil children, and they shan’t have evil brought into their perfect home. Now give back that clothing or I shall turn you in for theft of property.” Sis Eunice’s hands flew to her mouth in open dismay. Arnie had correctly deduced that this was definitely not a development she had anticipated. Now the Mthr Superior and other church lackeys outside the door had begun to put their hands on Eugene in effort to take back his new boughten clothes.

Clearly, not knowing what else to do, Sis Eunice pressed her advantage, knelt down by Eugene's ear, and said, “You must run, Eugene!! Stay as far away from here as you can! Make certain they can’t ever catch you. I’ll take care of the rest.” His eyes bugged out and still he hesitated before Sis Eunice hissed, “GO! NOW!”

Eugene spun on the heel of his new shoe, managed to just barely pull away from the sea of grabbing hands, and sprinted out into the great beyond. P.S. Yes, I have every intention of continuing this. And hopefully even seeing it to completion, like a real "episode", even though the timelapse will be more like a full hour as opposed to 22 minutes? In fact, I've already written a bit more beyond it. I just have to write other things for the time being.....

@gleamful-lanterns @kingreywrites @autumn-ravenclaw