#'i mean he's done what--break 2 of our rules right off the bat? i mean he didn't even know'

[guqin-and-flute]

You know, if you think about it, Lan Xichen was the original Wei Wuxian apologist....

[dirtykpopsnaps]

Naughty Girls Break Rules - Jackson Wang smut

Warnings: This fic contains 18+ material. Anyone under 18 seen interacting with this fic will be blocked!!

Contains: kind teasing. punishment. kind of overstim. unprotected sex (wrap it up). Jackson being dumb and joking around. also kind of dom!Jackson

Requested: yes

Words: 2, 716

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I smile mischievously, take some pictures of me in just my bra and panties. I pull a cheesy face and snap the picture, immediately sending it off to my boyfriend, Jackson. He’s currently on tour with his group, GOT7, and I’m home alone. I always hate when he goes on tour, but I know that it’s part of his work and it’s something that he needs to do. Sighing softly, I climb into bed and pull off my pajama pants. Images of Jackson begin filling my head as I slowly snake my hand down and start to play with myself. I can hear recordings of his moans playing in my head and they slowly help to work me up.

Suddenly, my phone vibrates and I groan, stopping my hand to answer. I smirk when I see Jackson’s contact on my phone. He sent a photo in response to my nude. He looks very unimpressed, his deep brown eyes almost daring me to defy him. Underneath the picture, his text catches me attention. ‘Babygirl...I said stop. You know you shouldn’t be sending me selcas like that’. Quickly, I check the time and decide to call him. It’s very late here and, where he is, it’s slowly nearing the time for his concert.

Swiping out of our messages, I click on the phone icon and click his contact. As the phone rings, I put it speaker and rest it on my chest as I begin quickly rubbing my clit again, trailing my fingers up and down my folds. The phone connects and Jackson’s voice fills the room. “Babygirl, that was very naughty of you,” he chides me. I moan softly, pressing a finger into my waiting hole.

“Was-was it? I didn’t think so,” I stammer softly. Silence answers this response, then I hear Jackson let out a frustrated sigh.

“Two rules in one night, baby? Why are you being so naughty?”

“I-I’m not, Jacky. I’m be-I’m being a good girl,” I respond. He snorts and I can almost hear him roll his eyes.

“Is that so? Because it sounds like my naughty girl is playing with herself.”

“And-And what tells you that?” I pant, quicken the thrusting of my fingers. They don’t fill me nearly as good as Jackson’s do, but they’ll have to do for now.

Even through the phone, I can hear Jackson’s deep growl. “Babygirl,��� he says in a warning tone. I pant loudly, trying to steady my breathing as my high creeps closer and closer. “Y/N, don’t you dare come,” he growls again. With one last circle of my fingers on my clit, I allow myself to fall over the edge. I arch my back off the bed, moaning loudly as the pleasure overtakes me. When I come down, I slowly allow myself to cool down and take deep breaths. “That was very naughty babygirl, coming without my permission,” he chides me. I giggle lightly, picking my phone up again.

“And what are you gonna do? You’re on a whole other continent,” I giggle. He takes in a deep breath and exhales before responding.

“Just you wait until I get home,” he says darkly. I roll my eyes lightly at his empty threats. He’ll forget by the time that he’s actually home.

“I’ll make sure to keep that in mind. Now, Jacky, have a nice concert, okay? I’m going to head to sleep,” I say, yawning softly.

“Alright, babygirl. I’ll do good at my concert tonight, can’t wait to see you again. Love you!”

Through the phone, I hear Jackson blow a soft kiss. I giggle, blowing a kiss back at him. “Love you, too, Jacky. Goodnight.” Jackson responds with ‘goodnight’ and I hang up. I pull my pajama pants back on and yawn again, covering my mouth. Leaning over, I plug in my phone and grab the stuffie that Jackson brought me back from tour last time. It’s a fluffy and squishy bee that I named Buzzy. I pull Buzzy into bed with me and lay down, closing my eyes and falling asleep.

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When I wake up, soft sunlight is coming through the blinds on our bedroom window. I groan softly, sitting up and bed and stretching up towards the ceiling. As I stretch, I take in a deep breath and squeeze my eyes shut. Seconds later, they pop back open again in shock and fear. Someone is cooking in my apartment. The smell of fresh eggs and bacon are wafting through the house.

Slowly, I climb out of bed and grab the baseball bat leaning against the wall. This is what we use for our security measures. Well, this and the fact that Jackson can and will fight just about anyone, and he’s still light on his feet from years of fencing. I hold the bag high over my head and creep through the house, making sure not to step on any of the creaky floorboards. After what seems like an eternity, I finally make my way to the kitchen. Slowly, I peek around into the kitchen, still keeping a tight hold on the baseball bat. However, I drop the bat seconds later and run into the kitchen, hugging the person at the stove tightly. “Jackson!” I squeal excitedly.

Jackson chuckles lightly, leading me away from the stove and chuckling lightly. “Hi there, babygirl,” he chuckles, kissing my forehead.

“But—I...I thought you weren’t supposed to be home for weeks!” I say in shock. He shrugs lightly, grinning toothily.

“Tour was cut short because of the pandemic,” he tells me kindly.

“When did you come in?!” I gasp.

“Really early this morning. Don’t worry, I mostly slept on the plane ride back,” he says. Jackson steps aside and starts pushing the eggs around the pan again. I smile happily, hugging Jackson tightly, not wanting to let go. “Sweetheart, if you don’t let me cook, the food is gonna burn!” He laughs.

Pouting lightly, I step back and allow Jackson to finish cooking. “Here? Sit down, I’ll make you a plate.” I sit down at the table and, a few minutes later, Jackson sets a plate of bacon and eggs in front of me. He sets an identical plate at his chair at the table, sitting down to eat with me. Jackson and I have our breakfast in silence, eating the eggs and bacon happily. Everything is cooked perfectly and thank him, pressing a light kiss to his cheek. When we’re both finished, I grab the plates and wash them in the sink, placing them in the dishwasher. Jackson leans against the edge of the counter, watching me as I work.

When I finish, I close the dishwasher and cross my arms smirking at him. “Can I help you?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“I think my naughty girl should be punished,” he says plainly.

“Naughty? I just had breakfast with you! That’s all I’ve done today,” I giggle. He narrows his eyes at me, crossing his arms over his chest.

“You were naughty last night. You came without my permission, and you were teasing me.”

“O-Oh, that,” I chuckle nervously, rubbing at the back of my neck.

“Mhm, sweetheart...that.” I bite my lip nervously and look down at the floor, twiddling my fingers.

Jackson chuckles darkly, pulling me into his arms and kissing me deeply. I moan softly, leaning into his touch and kissing back. Jackson pulls away and I lean forward, trying to follow his lips. “Now, babygirl...I wang you back in our bedroom right. now. I need to punish my naughty girl.” I nod my head and step away from him, grabbing the baseball bat off the floor. I hurry back to the bedroom and lean the baseball bat against the wall. Quickly, I start stripping my clothes off until I’m left in my bra and underwear. I sit down on the edge of the bed and wait patiently for Jackson to come back.

When he comes into the room, he chuckles again. “Well, it looks like someone is needy, huh? Thinks if she’s good now, maybe I’ll go light on her.” He shakes his head, but steps into the room and closes the door. He turns back around and looks me up and down. “Lay down on the bed, babygirl,” he commands. I shift back on the bed, laying my head down at the pillows and shifting my body to watch Jackson. Jackson walks up the bed and I feel the bed dip with his weight as he climbs on.

Calmly, he crawls over the bed and separates my legs, situating himself between them. He leans and breaths deeply, closing his eyes and smiling softly. “God, you smell amazing,” he hums. I feel heat rising in my cheeks and I lift my hands to my face, hiding behind them. He laughs lightly peeling my hands away. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you, darling. Besides, I wang you to watch.” Slowly, Jackson begins pressing kisses to the inner part of my legs. He starts down by my calf and slowly moves up to my thighs, then even higher. I swallow thickly as he nears my clothed pussy, but he sweeps over it and goes to the other leg. I whine in protest and he looks up at me again. “Oh, did you want me to do something? Maybe play right here?” He asks, pressing his thumb against my clit over my panties. I gasp softly, my head falling back onto the pillows, but he just tsks at me. “I said I want you to watch.”

Taking a deep breath, I pick up my head again and I watch as Jackson slowly pulls down my panties. I bite my lip as he pulls them all the wall down, then throws them across the room. He leans forward and presses two kisses to both of my inner thighs before he presses a very light kiss on my clit. I gasp again and arch softly, but Jackson presses his hand to my stomach and keeps me pressed to the bed. Seconds later, he wraps his arms around my thighs and pulls me down to his face. My hands fly to his hair and I gasp loudly as he flicks him tongue at my clit.

As the pleasure intensifies, Jackson pulls me closer to his face. Before I even realize it, I’m sitting right on the edge. “Jack-Jackson, I’m gonna come!” I cry out, tugging at his hair again.

“Come for me, baby,” he hums. The feeling of the vibrations against my pussy is what pushes me over the edge. As I come down, I realize that he hasn’t stopped eating me out. I squeal loudly, pulling at his hair again.

“Jackson, I came! I came!” I squeal, trying to squirm away from his face, but his arms are too strong for me to get away.

“Who said you’d only be coming once?” He asks.

My leans back against the pillows again and I groan loudly, pulling at his hair again and again. It’s all too much. There’s too much pleasure and my brain feels foggy. Just as I’m reaching the edge again, he pulls back and looks up at me. In the light from the window, I can see my essence gleaming around his mouth. Jackson simply uses the back of his hand to wipe his mouth, then wipes it against the bedsheets. “Do you think you’re ready for me to fuck you? Fuck my naughty girl until she says she’s sorry?” He asks. I nod my head quickly, maintaining eye contact with him.

“Please fuck me, Jackson,” I whine, pouting softly. He chuckles lightly and climbs off the bed again.

As I watch, he strips off his clothes and throws them in heaps around the floor. When he pulls off his boxers, his cock springs out, slapping against his lower stomach. I look up at him, giggling lightly. “Aww, the Wang puppy is so excited,” I giggle. He just rolls his eyes, but I can see the smile playing at his lips.

“God, that nickname is so embarrassing sometimes,” he laughs, shaking his head.

“Is it?” I ask, tilting my head. He shrugs his shoulders lightly.

“Eh, a little bit, but I don’t care. But, hey, no distracting me,” he says, pointing an accusatory finger at me. I laugh lightly, throwing my hands up in mock defense.

“Oh, no, you caught me,” I laugh.

Smoothly, he crawls up on the bed again and situations himself between my open legs. He pumps his cock a few times, before looking up at me again and lining it at my entrance. “Now, be a good girl and relax,” he tells me, shuffling forward and slowly pressing in. My body tenses at the slight sting, but Jackson leans forward and pulls me into a deep kiss. It’s obvious that he’s using the kiss as a distraction, but I don’t care. I fall into the kiss, playing with his tongue a little bit. Each time that he pushes in forward, my body tenses slightly, but relaxes again when he pulls me back into the kiss. Finally, he’s sheathed fully inside me and he pulls away, pressing kisses down my jaw.

Slowly, he starts thrusting in and out of me. I moan loudly, holding onto Jackson’s muscular arms and feeling our body’s rock together. When I open my eyes again, Jackson’s nose is scrunched up cutely and I have to hold back a giggle. He looks so adorable. However, that thought is thrown from my mind when he snaps his hips into mine and perfectly hits my g-spot. I gasp loudly, scratching my nails down his arms. “There it is,” he chuckles, continuously aiming for that exact spot. With each snap of his hips, I’m pushed closer and closer to my high, but I can’t fall over.

“Jackson, please-please...my clit,” I moan, not even able to think in full sentences. Thankfully, he’s able to understand what I mean.

Jackson wraps his arm around my waist and presses his thumb against my clit, rubbing it in quick circles. “Jackson, I’m gonna come!” I moan loudly, scratching my nails down his arms again.

“You-You never apologized,” he groans, scrunching his nose up I concentration.

“Fuck, I’m sorry, Jackson. I’m sorry. I won’t happen again,” I whine, holding tightly to him.

“Good girl. Come for me,” he growls. I fall over the edge again and moan loudly. My pussy clenches involuntarily around him and Jackson groans. Seconds later, I feel his warm cum spilling into me.

Both of us come down from our highs, panting loudly. I open my eyes and giggle lightly. He’s staring down at me with unfocus, fuzzy eyes. “Jackson,” I whine, pushing at his chest and trying to get him to roll over.

“Nope, I’m just gonna fall asleep right here,” he groans sleepily, falling onto my chest. I laugh breathlessly, pushing at him fruitlessly.

“I can’t breath, Jack! You’re crushing me!” I laugh. His head pops up again and he gives me a scandalized look.

“I am not that fat!” I burst into peels of laughter, pushing at his shoulder again.

“Come on, Jacky, please,” I giggle.

Finally, he rolls his eyes and sighs dramatically. “Fiiiine, I guess I can move,” he sighs. He slowly pulls out of me and his come rushes out. Quickly, he rushes out of the room and I can hear him grab something from our linen closet. He comes back with a towel and wipes at the cum spilling out of my hole. He makes sure to get all of it before wipes his cock, as well, and throwing the towel in the dirty laundry. He climbs into bed with me and we pull the covers up, cuddling together. “Jackson Wang, if I end up pregnant, it’s all your fault,” I say sleepily, cuddling into his chest.

“Ahh, at least we know the kid will be cute. Then you will have *two* Wang puppies,” he chuckles. I sigh, shaking my head at me.

“Just what I needed, another child to look after,” I giggle. I feel Jackson lightly hit my back and laugh again, closing my eyes.

“Just get some sleep, we’ll talk about that when we wake up,” he tells me. I hum lightly, allowing myself to finally fall asleep.

[mochegato]

Pixie Spy

Chapter 4

Chapter 1     Chapter 2     Chapter 3

Marinette’s eyes fluttered open after only a few hours of sleep.  It wasn’t enough, but she hadn’t gotten enough sleep in years.  At this point, she didn’t think her body would let her sleep a healthy amount, it was too programmed to go without.  One day, after they defeated Hawkmoth and she had moved away from Paris, she was going to sleep for a week… after she cried for two weeks straight, or maybe she would alternate the two.  She was going to buy the plushest bed she could afford, or likely Adrien could afford since she barely had enough money to cover groceries, and sleep in every single day in that bed.

Until then, rest was minimal and often, like last night, fitful to say the least.  She had tried to calm down enough to sleep comfortably, but calming down actually seemed to be part of the problem.  To make up for the adrenaline of the night before wearing off and her body calming, her mind started racing.  With no immediate threats to deal with, anxiety was setting in and taking over, coming up with new and better things to worry about because fuck you, that’s why. Anxiety needs no reason.  It certainly never had for her.

She quietly slid out of bed careful not to move too quickly and accidentally wake up Adrien or the kwamis.  She walked out onto the balcony seeking the morning sun on her face, hoping the new day’s light might bring her some peace.  She stared out at the morning colors blending from pink to orange to yellow to varying variants of blue.  She scanned over the gorgeous colors until her mind caught on one particular shade of blue, reminding her of bright blue eyes filled with concern and determination.  

She twisted to face away from the sky and lean against the balcony grabbing it tightly and relaxing her grip over and over again.  He said he wanted to help and she wanted to let him, which was ridiculous because he was Red Hood.  He was the most violent of Gotham’s vigilantes.  She didn’t know too much about the bats, that was Alya’s area, but she knew at least that much.  He was the last one they should trust to help.  So why was she still questioning it?  Why did she feel like she could trust him?  Her instincts on people were usually good, but he made her mind go haywire and she didn’t trust herself to be impartial when it came to him.  

“Argggg” she groaned running her hands over her face and fisting her hands in her hair.  Everything felt wrong.  She needed something to distract her anxiety so it wouldn’t take over completely and drag her down into a never-ending cycle of could-have and should-have and why-didn’t-I’s.  More accurately, she needed to hit something, a lot and hard.  She quietly changed into workout gear and quickly wrapped up her hands and feet before padding over to the sparring area.  She stalked over to the dummy glaring at it like it was the cause of all of her problems.  She started practicing as she ran through the prominent events from her previous night.

“You don’t seem excited to be here.”  Jab.

“Well aren’t you a ray of sunshine.”  Jab. Jab.

“I’m Jason.” Jab. Hook.

“Wanna Dance?” Jab. Cross. Hook.

“Was the occasion to look stunning?” Jab. Jab. Palm strike. Knee.

“You’re Jason Todd.” Hook. Punch. Jab. Punch. Uppercut.

“I have to go.” Jab.  Elbow strike. Palm strike.

“Are you okay?” Double side punch. Elbow strike.

“I can help.” Kick.  Knee. Kick.

“You left some valuable details out.” Side kick. Straight cross. Jab. Jab. Jab.

“You wanted me to meet the Waynes.” Jab. Jab. Right hook.

“You’re still a kid, you should have fun.”  Double side punch. Crescent kick.

“I don’t enjoy Hell.  DO NOT make me go back.” Jab. Hook kick. Straight cross.

“Change your mind?” Jab.  Left hook. Crescent kick.

“Your life is supposed to be more than the fucking suit.” Palm strike. Elbow strike. Hook kick.

“Dramatic much?” Punch. Punch. Front kick leading to a back flip.

“That rule needs to be finessed.”  Uppercut.  Uppercut. Jab.  Right hook.

“He can help.” Side kick. Elbow strike. Crescent kick. Jab.

“You kids really do need help.” Double side punch. Uppercut. Left hook.

“You won’t be able to move on.” Elbow strike. Jab. Uppercut.

“Think about what I said.” Knee. Palm strike. Jab.

“I can help.” Uppercut.  Uppercut. Left hook. Right hook.

“I can help.” Hammer fist. Side kick. Knife hands. Back kick.

“I can help.” Roundhouse Kick. Jumping downward punch.

She let the velocity of the punch to carry her to the floor.  She landed in a crouch and collapsed to her hands and knees panting for breath, sweat dripping on the floor pads.  Instead of helping clear her head, the practice had just made everything worse. God, she was too tired to deal with this.  She was too tired to think and this anxiety induced doubt was giving her a headache.  She needed to think clearly, but she was too tired to think clearly, and until they defeated Hawkmoth she wouldn’t be able to get the sleep she so desperately needed, so… round and round she’d go, where she’d stop not even Hawkmoth knew.  

She fought the flinch that wanted appear when she heard shuffling near her and glanced up just enough to notice bare feet and the bottoms of Adrien’s pajamas as he crouched next to her.  He had turned sneaking up on her into a game and despite knowing he wasn’t trying to do that this time, she refused to give him that win.  “Hey Marinette, you okay?” Adrien asked gently, his voice laced with concern as he laid a hand on her shoulder.  

Marinette nodded but continued looking down at the mat instead of at him, avoiding his eyes.  She didn’t want to talk about the doubts her anxiety was pushing.  The logical part of her brain knew that talking about her doubts would help her figure out what was really a concern and what was just the anxiety, which is exactly what she needed.  But the illogical part of her brain, the part that anxiety had dominion over, thought that if she didn’t talk about it, she would be able to pretend like it never existed, that it would all dissolve like one of Alya’s illusions.  And the illogical side knew that if she spoke her feelings out loud, that would speak them into existence, making them impossible to box up and bury somewhere until she was better equipped to ignore it, like after she died.  And the illogical part knew if she had to confront all her doubts right now she would die.

As is often the case, the illogical part of her brain was far more persuasive than the logical part, offering the comfort of avoidance rather than the terror of confrontation the logical part was pushing.  But then again, Adrien always had a way of quieting the illogical part without even trying.  All of her friends did.

“You want to talk about it?  Or just want to keep imagining the dummy is Constantine and continue to beat the shit out of it?” Adrien prompted her with a gentle smile. She looked up at him as she stood back up on shaky legs.

She shook her head, “I’m wasn’t.  I’m still deciding how upset I am with Constantine. I mean, we knew it was coming.  I wasn’t expecting him to make us waste two weeks so he could do it though.”  She growled bitterly as she grabbed a water bottle from the refrigerator and walked over to bench next to the sparring mat.  She sat and let her breathing slow for a moment before continuing on.

“Don’t get me wrong.  I was FURIOUS when I thought he did it to avoid an ex… and fuck, I might still be.  I’m too tired to tell anymore.” She gave a tired sigh and ran her hand through her hair that was now plastered to her face.  “But that’s not why he did it.  He saw where we were going to end up and the asshole wanted to redirect us.  He did it to protect us.  And I… I would have done the same so… I don’t know.  It seems like that should make a difference.”

“We are not fucking children.  We don’t need that motherfucker protecting us.  We know what we are doing and we are handling it just fine.  There is no immediate threat that warranted that.” Adrien growled.  He gave her a wicked smile, “And I am never too tired to be a vindictive dick.”

She rolled her eyes, “You’ve been spending too much time with Felix.” She looked away and gave a humorless chuckle.  “Honestly?  I expected it to be worse.  I prepared for so much worse.  I’m relieved this is all it was.  I expected him to go directly to the Justice League or one of the other groups he works with and say something like ‘Hey, don’t go to Paris for… reasons.  And don’t bring your full armory.’  Get them all involved.  And that was if he didn’t just straight out tell them about what is going on.”

Adrien glared at her, “Seriously?  He knew we didn’t want them involved and he did it anyway.  He got them involved.  We trusted him and he broke his promise to us.  I don’t care why he did it or if it could have been worse, he did it.”

“But he didn’t break his promise,” she noted tiredly.  “He orchestrated all of that for us so he wouldn’t break it… He bent his word just enough to keep from breaking it and making it unforgivable.  But he still left us in control and is letting us make the decision for what happens next.  He didn’t completely fuck us over and he easily could have.”

“We,” he motioned between them to indicate the two of them, “have very different definitions of unforgivable.  He didn’t keep his word.  He did betray us.  He manipulated us and the situation to bring in the Justice League.  He did exactly what we told him not to do.  He ignored our decision so he could take away control.  We don’t control this, he caused it.  And on top of everything else, we wasted two weeks so he could betray us.  He could have at least had the decency to betray us without wasting our time.”

She shook her head, “No, he moved one piece in the sequence. One piece that allows the option to follow our current path OR choose a new one.  We define the new path.  It is up to us to decide if we will redirect the pieces back to the original path or let the new sequence take effect.”

“This is not dominoes.”

“It is.  Dominoes, the butterfly effect, whatever you want to call it, that’s life.  That’s everything that happens in our lives, everyone’s lives.  One change now changes what happens in the future.  You know that.  And if you need a reminder, I’m sure Alix would be more than willing to go over it with you, how one decision changes everything.  It is her job to identify the piece that will make the sequence turn out ideally.” Adrien growled at that but glanced away. She continued, “But he’s letting us decide to accept the help or not.  He’s letting us decide the next move.  He made his move, now it’s our turn.”

“So you’re just going to forgive him?  Let him off for lying to us, manipulating us, allowing Paris to suffer while he played his little game of dominoes?” Adrien accused, voice rising as he did.

Marinette sighed deeply, looking down at nothing in particular, “No, I just… I guess I’m too tired to fight this particular fight. You are welcome to though.  I won’t stop you from hanging him over the side of the building for a while.  But, yeah… the time.  The lost time.  And the last few weeks were…” she paused letting out another long sigh, looking up to the ceiling and hitting her head gently on the wall as she remembered the events of the last few weeks, “well they would have happened regardless, but…” she tapered off, not sure how to finish the sentence.

“But the oncoming ones might not have to happen and you know with the way akumas and amoks have been going lately, they will probably be just as bad.”  Adrien fumed.

He looked over to her as he vented and finally noticed how tired she looked.  He studied her closely.  She looked like she had relaxed but he knew her well enough to know her tells, the slight tension in her shoulders, the minute tightening around her eyes, the slightly strained smile that nobody who didn’t know her would think was anything less than sincere.  

He was still upset with Constantine and he was definitely going to have a discussion with him next time he saw him, a discussion that involved a few of the moves Marinette had demonstrated on the dummy earlier.  But his anger wasn’t helping Marinette and that was the primary focus for him.  “But until then, we need to focus on preparing for the aftermath of Constantine’s intervention.”

“I’m not worried, it’s just Batman.  We can handle him,” she gave him a smile that was meant to reassure but didn’t have the emotion behind it.  “Thank God it isn’t the rest of them.  Honestly, this is the best case scenario.  It’s just the bats and now we know their real identities.  That is going to massively enhance our intel on them.  We can discover Bruce Wayne’s pressure points as well as Batman’s, and use them to get him to back off.”

Adrien nodded, “A project for Alya and Chloe. We can let them know when they come over later.” He noted she still hadn’t really relaxed.  Her shoulders and smile still tense, so the Constantine issue wasn’t what was causing her to feel so distressed.  “So, if this impromptu session isn’t about Constantine… Did something else happen last night?  Was it that bad?”

She suddenly looked far more tired than she was a few moments before, her shoulders lowering into a slump. “No, the night was amazing actually,” she said quietly.

“So what's the problem? Why were you in here working out your frustrations instead of sleeping?”

“Because it was so amazing,” she sighed defeated. Logical finally defeated illogical as she started dumping everything she was feeling onto Adrien.  “Because it was great.  I was having fun and I really wanted to stay there.  It made me want to have more.  But I can't have that.  We can't have that,” she motioned between the two of them.  “We can't even leave Paris,” she chuckled bitterly. “It was just a reminder that we’re stuck.”

“You know, we had the horse miraculous. You could go someplace else for school and then come back when you need to.” Adrien offered halfheartedly.  He knew this argument.  They’d had it enough to know she was right.  She wouldn’t give in and neither would he.  Neither of them would abandon the other to escape alone.  They were both stuck.  They didn’t really have any options until they defeated Hawkmoth. But it still felt good to say it out loud, pretend like they did.  Sometimes it was her offering the escape options, sometimes it was him.  But they both knew that neither of them would accept it.

“But then only one of us gets to escape and I’m not leaving you behind,” she looked him in the eye with a determined look to make sure he understood how serious he was.  When he nodded at her letting her know he understood, she looked away to look at nothing. “I just, I feel like I can't move. Every move I make is wrong. I’m confined.  I can’t do anything.  Neither one of us can do anything.  I can’t study fashion, you can’t study teaching.  We can’t start our future.  Hawkmoth won't let us.  He’s keeping us right here, in this moment in time and we can’t break out of it.” She said tugging gently on her hair as she spoke.  “And last night just reminded me of that.  That I’m stuck here, that my priority isn’t me, can’t be me or my future… my happiness.”

He ran his hands over her shoulders and upper arms trying to bring her focus back to him, speaking in calm tones to ground her, “That’s what this whole thing was about though, wasn’t it?  Why we let the bastard help in the first place… to tip the balance, to end this, to break out.”  He smiled gently at her again continuing with the well-established script of this conversation.

“You know, if you can’t study fashion right now, maybe you can delay it.  You can keep doing commissions and bulking up your portfolio,” she opened her mouth to object but he beat her to it, already knowing her response.  “I could help you financially until this all is over.  You could move in with me so you don’t have to pay rent.  I can get an apartment with an extra room and an office you can use… and I can buy the groceries.  You wouldn’t have to pay for anything.  And when we defeat him, then you can go to school.”

“I’m not taking your money, Kitty.  And your father would blow a gasket and probably cut you off unless you kicked me out.”

“I have money saved and I don't want to work there anyway. It's not my legacy.  And we could get married, like I said before.  Then he couldn’t object.  And that way you’re not taking my money, you’re sharing it with me and you’d be my next of kin and have full access to my money whenever you needed it instead of having to ask me for everything.  And yeah, we would kill each other after a few months, but it would be a lot of fun to pretend for a while.” He waggled his eyebrows at her making her laugh.  “I could support you.  We could be happy… you know, for a while.”

“You think getting married would make your dad less likely to lash out and destroy both your happiness and my future?”  She chuckled at him and looked off through the balcony doors, voice becoming wistful, “Even if he wasn’t an obstacle, you deserve to find someone that will make you really happy.  Longer than I would.  Someone you truly love.  Someone that will make you feel safe and loved and valued with just a look. Someone that looks at you like you’re the most important person in the world.  Someone who’s world lights up just by being near you.  Someone who lights up your world.  Someone who makes you feel like they would walk happily to the ends this world and the next to keep you safe,” she gave a small grin, “you know, someone who looks at you like Plagg looks at cheese.”  

He watched her as she studied something in the sky, eyes glassy with unshed tears, hands twisting around each other, and regret lacing her expression.  “That guy really got to you didn’t he?”

She looked back at him surprised.  “Yeah,” she breathed out, looking back at the sky, “which is stupid because I only knew him for like an hour and I won’t ever see him again, except to kick him out of Paris whenever they come here.  I should just move on but… everything is stupid.  I’m stupid.”

He nodded, “Maybe,” he started until he felt the punch to his shoulder.

“The fuck Chaton!” Marinette exclaimed.  “This is your pep talk?  You need to work on your motivation thing.  Triangle, bitch, study.”

He doubled over laughing when she stuck her tongue out at him.  It took a few minutes before he could calm down and his expression turned soft again.  “I meant maybe you should move on because you barely know him, BUT I think sometimes you just know that someone is going to have a huge impact on your life.  We knew it when we met.  You knew it when you met Alya.  I knew it when I met Nino.  Maybe your instincts are telling you something your anxiety doesn’t want to hear. Your instincts have always been right and they’ve only gotten stronger.  I trust them.” He paused to give her the most sincere look he could, “I trust you.  You should, too.”

Marinette smiled at him eyes shining with gratitude, “I love you, you goofball.”

“I know.  I love you too,” he said with a smug smile.  “Is that a yes to getting married?”

“You know, there is absolutely no reason we would have to get married.  We could just be roommates.”

“Yeah, but I really, really want to see the look on my Dad’s face if we did.  Do you think he would have an aneurism?” she rolled her eyes and shoved him away.

“Oh my god, what ancient, vindictive god did I piss off to end up with you in my life?”  

“Plagg, it had to be Plagg” Adrien said giggling.

He pulled her in for a tight hug but jumped back from her. “Oh ew gross.  You’re still sweaty.  Go take a shower and then take a nap.  The others won’t be here for a few hours.  You have time,” he shoved her away to get cleaned up before the rest of their team appeared for a debriefing on the mission. “Also, I am absolutely telling Chloe and Alya about the boy if you don’t.”

She glared at him “You wouldn’t” she hissed at him.

“Oh I would and will.  I’m not dealing with either of them if they find out I knew and didn’t tell them.”

“You better watch it, Kitty.  I’ll take you up on that marriage offer and make your life absolutely fucking miserable.”  She lobbed her water bottle at him, getting up to take a shower.

<><><><><> 

A few hours later after a peaceful but still too short nap, Alya and Nino joined Marinette and Adrien in the Base to hang out and do a post mortem on the night before.  They were snacking and chatting idly about the week to come, enjoying the kind of relaxed atmosphere they hadn’t been allowed for the past few weeks while they had planned for the gala mission, the discussion of which they were intentionally avoiding until Chloe could get there.  They were in the middle of discussing Nino’s upcoming nightclub gig when Marinette’s phone started ringing.  Seeing Chloe’s name pop up on the screen, Marinette answered and put the phone on speaker, “Hey Chlo, what’s up?  You on your way up.”

Marinette jerked back and nearly dropped the phone at Chloe’s shriek, “What the hell did you do at that gala, Dupain-Cheng?”  

Adrien’s face split into a giddy grin and he yelled back from his spot in a nearby chair, “No one yet, but give her and that Wayne kid a few days and that may change.” Marinette spluttered before glaring at him.

“Chaton…” she gritted out threateningly.

“Dupain-Cheng bagged a Wayne?” Chloe shrieked even louder, making Marinette bring her hands up to plug her ears and wiggle them around trying to get the sudden ringing to stop.

“Wait what?! Why aren’t we talking about this already?” Alya gasped offended that she didn’t already know all the details.

“No I haven't... we didn’t… I didn’t bag anything.” Marinette corrected with a glare to Adrien.

“Don’t worry Dudette, I have faith in you,” Nino offered with both finger guns and a sarcastic grin.  “You will.” Marinette stuck her tongue out and threw a handful of chips at him in retaliation.

“Bitch, I TOLD you what would happen if you wore that dress and those shoes.  Do not EVER doubt me again.  I am a goddamned Godsend to you people.  You don’t deserve my presence let alone my guidance in your lives.” Chloe sneered haughtily.  

Marinette rolled her eyes trying to keep a straight face as Alya silently mocked Chloe.  Nino was having a significantly less successful time, his muffled giggles bubbling out from behind the pillow he was holding over his face.  “Okay, you’re a gift from the gods, now what happened?” Marinette inquired.

“The manager just told me the Waynes called this morning to book the rest of the penthouse suites on our floor for a week starting tomorrow.” Chloe hissed.  “Wouldn’t have anything to do with your illicit activities last night would it?” Marinette could feel Chloe’s raised eyebrow and the hand on her cocked hip through the phone.  “Or I guess maybe it was your more licit activities that got their interest.”

“Fuuuuuck, we have until tomorrow then,” she groaned and looked over to Adrien with a cringe.

“We have until tomorrow for what?  What the hell happened?  What did you do?  Wait, did Lady Luck get lucky?” Alya asked grinning at the impending chaos.

Marinette huffed and threw chips at her too, “Back off, Als. Your Trixx is showing.”  Trixx floated up next to her chosen and smiled, patting her on the head.  “And proud of you, Kit.” Alya grinned from the praise as though it didn’t prove Marinette’s point.

“See, I knew my faith in you was justified,” Nino grinned at Marinette.

“Nino, I have more chips and I’m not afraid to use them,” Marinette threatened.

“Whatever, I’m coming right up.  Don’t you dare tell that story until I get there.  And pick up any chips you threw Dupain-Cheng!” Chloe ordered, hanging up before Marinette could respond.

As soon as the call ended, Alya turned to Marinette eagerly, “Okay, she’s off the phone, now spill.”

“I’m not spilling anything until Chloe gets here.  I’m not dealing with Pissed Off Chloe,” Marinette deferred. It was a convenient excuse and gave her time she needed to figure out how to phrase things so she didn’t have to admit more than they absolutely needed to know.  And absolutely NOT discuss Jason.  There were far more significant issues to discuss, less handsome, but more significant.  

“Okay, while we wait for her to get here, tell me one thing,” Alya interrupted her plotting to stare her down, “did you or did you not have to enact the Escape Plan version of your dress?”

Marinette groaned and rubbed her hands over her face.  She had a feeling she was going to be doing that a lot during the upcoming conversation.  “Do we have alcohol?  Is it too early to start drinking?” she gave Adrien a pleading look.

“Yes it is and yes she did,” Adrien interjected.

“Shit,” Nino whispered.  “That can’t be good.  Maybe you should rethink that alcohol ban, dude.”  He patted Marinette’s knee comfortingly.  “Did you at least get the files we were hoping for?”  

“Yeah.  We at least got that out of last night,” Marinette said with a tired smile.  “I’ll start working on the translation today, see how worth it the mission was.”

Before anyone could respond, the suite door slammed open and shut again as Chloe stormed in.  “What the fuck, Dupain-Cheng?”

“Oh good, she’s here,” Alya jumped in.  “Chloe sit your prissy ass down so we can start.”

“Excuse you, I believe you meant sit my amazingly toned, prissy ass down, thank you very much.” Chloe huffed, plopping down on top of Alya.

“Clearly what I meant, sweet cheeks,” she waggled her eyebrows at Chloe who rolled her eyes in response.  “Now get if off me.  I’m not a chair,” Alya complained, unceremoniously dumping Chloe on the floor and completely ignoring her offended squawk before she moved to sprawl across an arm chair instead.  “Okay Chloe’s here, now spill.”

“I will,” not if she could help it she wouldn’t, “but first we need to brace for Batman and the batfamily to arrive in Paris.” Marinette warned them, not at all trying to deflect the conversation.

“What do you mean Batman?  How did he find out?” Nino asked confused.

Marinette huffed out a sigh, looking up to the ceiling for inspiration.  With Alya’s interruption she hadn’t had time to think of what to say.  What was the least incriminating way to say what happened without flat out lying?  “They saw us in the cave, or rather there was surveillance which I’m sure they were monitoring.  They had to have heard Constantine talking to me.  He didn’t say anything specific, but enough.  Enough for them to know something is happening here.” Adrien gave her a deadpan look and raised an unamused eyebrow at her.  She narrowed her eyes back at him and wrinkled her nose in defiance.  She wasn’t going there unless she had to and so far, she didn’t have to.  They were going to have to drag her into that conversation kicking and screaming.

“What does that have to do with Bruce Wayne?” Chloe asked annoyed by the seeming non-sequitur.

“Bruce Wayne is Batman.” Adrien said.

“Fuck!  NO WAY! Really?” Nino yelled excitedly, “Dude, that is so cool!”  

“No wonder Batman has so many gadgets, he has his company and billions of dollars make them.” Alya reasoned.  “God, how did nobody figure that out before?  Of course he is, where else would he get all those vehicles and gadgets?”

“Right,” Adrien said nodding solemnly to them, “so, we’re going to need you two,” he said indicating Alya and Chloe, “to do a workup on them, both sides of the mask.  I know you already know everything there is to know about the Bats, Alya, but now we know their real identities which means you can do the same for the Waynes, or at least you and Chloe can.  The rest of us don’t need to know the details, at least not yet.  Right now, we just need to know what their pressure points are, their weaknesses, what makes them tick, what drives them, what scares them, and what makes them go haywire.  They’re coming here for a confrontation.  We want to make this a onetime thing and we need to know the buttons to push to make that happen.”

“On it.  I’ll start compiling information and get the start of it to you tonight so you can start the profile,” she nodded toward Chloe giving her a sly wink before she turned back to Adrien with an exaggerated innocent expression, “… but I have a ton of calculus I need to get done for school tomorrow, too.  I’ll need your help for that, Sunshine.”  

Adrien rolled his eyes. “That worked out conveniently for you. Were you hoping something would come up and that’s why you waited to do it?”

She shrugged, the mask of false innocence starting to falter as she struggled to contain a smug grin, “Maybe.  And the fact that something always comes up when you two are involved has absolutely no bearing on this conversation.”

“Are you going to make me do your physics homework too?” he snarked back at her.

“…physics homework?” Nino exclaimed.

“Oooh, yeah, what did you get for number 13 on that?  I spent an hour and couldn’t figure it out.” Chloe asked.  “Got the criminal psych homework done though if anyone needs it.”

“Don’t need that but I will take you up on that physics homework offer, Sunshine.  Thanks for volunteering.” Alya responded with a smirk.

Marinette rubbed her temples, “It’s like herding cats,” she muttered to herself.

“Want me to try the same thing with them that Tikki and I did to the cat?” Trixx asked with a grin, suddenly appearing at her shoulder, munching on a piece of fruit as they did lazy summersaults in the air.

“No, that would just distract them more.  Plus if they aren’t pursuing the Jason thing, I’m not going to push it.” She sighed at the kwami before closing her eyes and resting her head on the back of the couch, making her miss the kwami smirking and floating over to whisper something in Alya’s ear.  

“Yes, let’s get back to the immanent bat invasion,” Alya fixed Marinette with a wicked grin. “Let’s start with you bagging a bat.  Does that have anything to do with them coming?”  

Marinette groaned and hit her head on the back of the couch.  She glanced over at Alya to find both her and Trixx looking at her with matching devious expressions.  She glowered at Trixx and muttered “Traitor” none too quietly, which only made Trixx’s grin widen.  She tried to come up with a way to redirect them to something else.  Anything else at this point.  “Not the part I wanted to focus on…” she started only to be interrupted by Chloe.

“Oh, I’m sure.  But it’s definitely what we want more details on Dupain-Cheng.  Because as I recall, your goal was to NOT get noticed.  And yet, a few hours later, here we are with reservations for an entire floor… almost, by the very people who were not supposed to notice you.  Not that we don’t appreciate the revenue,” Chloe admonished with no heat behind it.

“They deserve to hear the rest.” Adrien shrugged at her, a smug smile pulling at his lips.

“Nothing happened,” Marinette exclaimed.

“But she wanted it to,” Adrien singsonged with a smile.  Marinette threw the rest of her bowl of chips at him. “Not helping, Chaton.” She growled at him.

“Depends on which side you’re on,” he smirked.

“Bitch, I did not let you borrow my Jimmy Choo’s to NOT hear details,” Chloe demanded.  “You somehow ended up with a Wayne, and you got their attention enough for the entire family to drop everything and come running.  I want to know every sordid detail.  If there aren’t any make them up.  I want dirty!”

Alya shot her a concerned look, “You okay fam?”

Chloe huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, “No, but whatever.  I’ll deal with that later myself.”

“Oh god, Chloe.  Could you not!  I already had to listen to Constantine.  I don’t need you adding to my nightmares tonight.”  Adrien objected.

“You couldn’t handle me, sweetie,” she sneered at him.  “But, let’s focus on Marinette honeypotting a Wayne.”

She sputtered, “I did not honeypot him.  I… I have no idea what that is, but that is NOT what I did,” she defended herself before giving into her curiosity, “What is honey potting?”

“It’s when… Holy shit, Chloe,” Adrien realized, shocked. He started laughing loudly. “You’re a genius.  You don’t even know anything that happened and you still figured out that’s exactly what Constantine did.”

“Don’t sound so surprised, Adrikins.  I have skills.” Chloe boasted confidently.  “Marinette?”

“Are you interested in the honeypot thing or me almost breaking a man’s wrist for trying to stick it up my skirt?” Marinette offered instead.

“… uh, yeah that one.  I want to hear about that.” Nino answered, suddenly much more concerned about the night.

“So…” Marinette started.  But before she could get more than that out Chloe interrupted her, “Those skills include noting when a conversation has been redirected.  You were about to discuss your honeypotting experience, Marinette.”

Marinette groaned.  She was so close to getting away with it.  So very close.  Damn Chloe. “I want it noted for the record that I still don’t know what that word means.  And the wrist thing really did happen.” She eyed Chloe and Adrien before continuing, “I needed cover to get into a better position to watch the Waynes…” she glared at a cackling Adrien who was being spurred on by Plagg grumbling “needed” while Tikki tried to shush them.  “SO,” she announced over them, “I danced with someone who was definitely not one of the people we went over in our meetings.  There was no briefing on him and I know because I sure as fuck would have remembered.  I mentioned a supervillain to him because I was stupid and not thinking and commiserating about living in a city with supervillains.  I didn’t think it would get back to Batman.  I didn’t think there was any way it could.  What are the odds?  But I forgot my luck outside of the suit.” She glared at Tikki who winced.

“Luck doesn’t always give you what you think you need.  It is about the right person getting the right thing at the exact right time.” Tikki said carefully.  Marinette rolled her eyes.  

“It never gives me what I think I need.  Never, not once have I actually gotten like, a hammer when I needed to break something open to get to an akuma.  Noooo, I get a leaf of lettuce that I have to use in addition to 19 more steps in order to get to the akumatized item.  Meanwhile, this asshole,” she indicated Adrien who gave an offended scoff, “gets a screwdriver when we need to unscrew something.  What is that about?”

“The path to your destiny is sometimes complicated,” Tikki offered weakly floating back slightly so she was behind Plagg and Wayzz.  The latter of whom decided to risk his immortality by adding, “And often the trials on the journey to your destiny teach you exactly what you need in order to achieve it.” Marinette fixed him with a glare so potent the mini god slunk away, hiding behind Nino.

“Anyway,” Marinette turned her glare from Wayzz to look back at the humans in the room. “Turns out the dead Wayne son isn’t so dead.  He’s very much alive and dancing at galas with women who were supposed to go undetected by the Waynes.  AND he’s one of the bats.  So the man I was commiserating with, the one I let my guard down for one moment to, was a bat.  So now Bruce Wayne, Batman knows.  Because I couldn’t keep my mouth shut for one fucking night.”

“Marinette, you okay?  It doesn’t sound like nothing happened.” Nino asked gently moving to next to her and wrap an arm around her.

“Nothing happened and nothing is going to happen because he's an American vigilante, a bat, and a violent one who can't be allowed to stay here and I can't leave.  So it doesn't matter if I had fun with him.  It doesn't matter if we danced and flirted.  It doesn't matter if he was handsome and charming and sweet and protective with a soft spot for kids.  It doesn't matter if the way he looked at me made me feel happy and protected and lighter.  Because I have to be here and he can't be.”  Well shit she groaned to herself.  That was significantly more than she meant to say.  As it turns out, they didn’t have to drag her kicking and screaming into the conversation.  They just had to give her room to saunter her own ass into it.

Alya scooted over to the other side of her and hugged her, “Oh, Marinette.”

“Until we take down Hawkmoth,” Nino nodded solemnly.

“Well that’s ridiculous, utterly ridiculous.  We make an exception and let the one she wants to bang into the country.” Chloe scoffed as though it were the most obvious solution.

Marinette looked up at her in shock and chuckled lightly, “if that’s the requirement, we’ll have to let the oldest son into the country too so Adrien can get a shot at him.”

“No, you need it more than him.  He can wait until we kick Hawkmoth’s ass.” She looked over at Adrien with only the slightest hint of sympathy “sorry Adrikins.”

“You only say that because you haven’t seen the oldest.”

“No, I have.  He’ll still be there after we win.  You can embarrass yourself in front of him then.”

Adrien pouted at her.  “I could bag him.  I have skills, too.”

“Sure you could Romeo,” Nino said getting up and patting Adrien on the shoulder.  “Come on, let’s move this party to Chloe’s room.  We can order lunch and start on the homework for Alya and Marinette.” Nino ushered them towards the door.

“Why the hell am I doing homework for Marinette?” Chloe groused.

“Oh right you weren’t here yet, Dudette.  Marinette needs to start translating the files.” Nino explained, swinging an arm around Chloe’s shoulders.

“You guys go ahead, we’ll be right there,” Alya called out to them, reaching out to hold Marinette back.

Alya waited until they were gone before moving to sit on the armrest on the couch.  She stared at Marinette seriously, “So, spill girl.”

“I already told you about the night.  What more do you want?” Marinette asked defeated.

“No, you told them.  Now tell me.  There is speaking with friend honesty and then there is best friend honesty.  I want the best friend honesty. What was your boy like?” she prompted Marinette.  Marinette looked so defeated.  She needed Marinette to remember the more fun parts of the night, the parts that reminded them that they were still teenagers under their suits and responsibilities.  She wanted to get Marinette’s mind off of the negative and what was to come, to focus on being happy for once, and tease out what impact this boy had on her best friend. Which, knowing her best friend, she was going to try to suppress for the safety of Paris.  God, she hated Hawkmoth for so very many things but this was at the top of the list, the impact he had on everyone’s mentality, especially Marinette’s.  

“Alya,” Marinette sighed, “I haven’t assessed him yet.”

“No!  I want Marinette’s reaction not Ladybug’s.” Alya chided her.

“We’re the same person, Alya.” Marinette rolled her eyes.

“Yes but with different priorities and insights.  I want Marinette’s insights.  No guilt, no responsibilities, no angst, not what went wrong, not what you could have done better.  Just the fun part, the teenage girl perspective.  What.  Was. He.  Like?” she poked Marinette with her foot after each word to accentuate the question.

Marinette sighed again but Alya could see the glint of a smile on her lips as she thought through the night with him.  The prominent details flashing in Marinette’s mind. “He was sweet.  He was clever.  Kind.  Mischievous. He doesn’t like pretense.  He likes blunt, honest.  Knows how to handle himself.  He stopped to help a kid, Alya, a kid.  Really protective of kids.  Respectful. Gentle.  He has the most brilliant eyes and heartwarming smile and he focused on me the entire time, like nothing else mattered.”  She looked off at nothing and cocked her head to the side.  A sad expression suddenly appeared on her face.  “He’s Red Hood, you know the scary one.  But he was so gentle and sweet.  How do I reconcile that?”

“No, I said no angst.  We’re not reconciling anything right now.  We’re not going to discuss that he stopped killing a while ago and that is why he is working with Batman.” She snuck into the conversation.  As the group’s expert on superheroes, she could give Marinette a lengthy, highly detailed essay on each of the Bats, their history, and speculations about them, but she wasn’t ready to discuss Red Hood’s history with Marinette and Marinette wasn’t ready to hear it yet.  She would go over it with Chloe later and they would distill it to the bare basics Marinette needed to know before facing them tomorrow. Today, they focus on the good. Tomorrow they focus on Paris. “Instead, we’re going to focus on the fact that he’s a good guy now who made you very happy for a while last night.  So, what does this good guy look like?”

Marinette paused to consider what Alya had said.  “Nope,” Alya threw a nearby pillow at her head, “not now. There will be plenty of time for that later, after you’ve gotten your work for tomorrow done, eaten something other than chips, and slept a human amount of time.  Now.  What. Does.  He.  Look. Like?” She poked Marinette with her foot after each word again to push her into answering.  

Marinette grabbed her foot on the last word and glared at her. “God, why are you such a bitch?”

“You love me and if I don’t worry about you doing those things, you won’t do them.  Now answer before I have to kick you again.  I’ll do it.” Alya threatened with a mock glare, her foot raised slightly, ready to kick.

Marinette rolled her eyes and shoved her best friend’s foot back at her.  She knew exactly what Alya was doing, it’s the same thing she does for her when Alya gets too caught up in a self-deprecating spiral, but she needed something to smile about so she went with it.  She looked to the side, focusing on nothing while she tried to think of how to describe his looks.  “Tall,” she nodded absentmindedly as she continued, “He was very tall with dark hair and blue eyes, a sharp jaw and broad shoulders.  He had a shock of white hair at the front that was begging to be touched.” She absentmindedly touched her bangs in the same place his streak was and stared off into space with a dreamy look on her face.  “He had this smile that made you weak in the knees. His eyes sparkled when he was talking to me until he discovered why I was there and then they were filled with such sincere concern that took your breath away.”

“He was that good looking, huh?” Alya asked with an amused raised brow.

“Come on Alya, it wasn't just the looks, the personality too,” Marinette admonished her.

“Right, right. Of course...” Alya nodded seriously, “but...” she prompted Marinette to continue.

“He was sexier than Adonis and Henry Cavill’s lovechild, with a personality to match.” Marinette said with a deadly serious expression.

Alya stared at her amused and opened her mouth to speak but Marinette continued, “One look melted ice the next town over.”  Alya beamed at her excitement.  “He is the sexiest thing I think I’ve ever seen, and one of my best friends is an actual supermodel who hangs out with other supermodels.  And this ice meltingly sexy Advill lovechild looked at me like I made his life complete.”

“So you wanted to kiss him?” she teased her friend with a knowing glint in her eyes.

“I wanted to rip his clothes off with my teeth,” Marinette corrected.

Alya balked at the unexpected admission before doubling over with raucous laughter.  Her laughter got louder as Marinette joined her.  Alya gasped for air but she couldn’t catch her breath which made her laugh harder until she was laughing so hard she fell backwards off the armrest landing on the floor with a resounding thump, causing them both to laugh even harder.

 Chapter 5

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As always, if I forgot you please, please let me know.  I’m a bit scatterbrained lately.

Note: was one of those sequences stolen directly from Big Hero 6?  Yes, yes it was.

And the triangle comment is absolutely from Suicide Squad.  I was going to have Adrien comment about the movie but then I realized that is a DC movie so it probably doesn’t exist in this universe.

Also, I am letting everyone keep their original miraculouses just with a redesign because you know they will find a way to do it in the show so let’s pretend I’m following the same premise that they use to allow it.

[isolemnlyswearpevensie]

Paper Cut Part 2 | Edmund Pevensie x Reader Soulmate AU

Warnings: Making out/kissing

Time/Era: Modern AU but the Pevensies have been to Narnia. 

Word Count: 2.5k

Summary: Y/N confronts Edmund about the intense injuries she had received in the past. 

A/N: Here’s the second part to paper cut :) If you haven’t read the first part, link below! Please send requests :D Enjoy! 

Part 1 | Part 3 | masterlist | read on ao3

“Edmund, I think you have a lot of explaining to do.”

Edmund’s face was unreadable, almost as if it was made of stone. He stayed quiet; the only sounds that filled the air were the shuffling of the barista and the espresso machine. Y/N wished he would just say something. The silence was damning. 

“Edmund?” His gaze didn’t falter at his name but stayed glued to Y/N’s hand. His eyes traveled up her arm, taking mental notes of every scar, bruise, bump, or cut. Edmund stood up without a word, the chair making a painful screeching noise in his path, and walked out of the coffee shop. 

Meeting her soulmate had been completely different in her head; maybe they would fall into each other’s arms in the streets of London. He would sweep her off of her feet after noticing a small scar on her neck and say something disgustingly romantic. “I’ve been waiting for you, Y/N, you’re even more beautiful than I could have ever imagined.” Then, they would fall madly, deeply in love, and adopt a dog. Fall wedding perhaps? Maybe summer? But here Y/N sat, one hand on her stomach, the other gripping a foreign notebook. Before Y/N could process what was happening, Edmund was out of sight and she was left to her own thoughts. 

~

“Y/N! Wake up!” Y/N was startled by Y/B/F/N shaking her awake. “Don’t you have a final in like an hour?” 

That sentence felt like a bucket of ice water. Y/N sprung up from her warm bed and scrambled to get ready. The clock seemed to run dangerously fast and by the time she opened the door of her lecture hall, the test was being passed out. 

“You have three hours and because I’m in such a good mood, you may use your study guide.” The professor continued to pass the packets around the room. They looked thick and time-consuming. Time management had never been Y/N’s strong suit. 

When she was handed her paper, all she could do was take a deep breath. This professor was a harsh grader, so unless her answers were 100% correct, there was no way Y/N would pass. She took the unfamiliar notebook she received from Edmund out of her bag and opened it to his scribbled notes. 

His handwriting was somewhere in between messy and neat; some of the words ran into one another and they were all slanted to the right slightly, yet the letters were beautifully constructed and entirely intelligible. Edmund also took it upon himself to highlight passages he deemed important with a note at the beginning that read: my sister had to take o chem. I asked her what’s important. That was sweet, Y/N thought. 

It seemed as if Edmund knew what he was talking about, too. Each answer was answered completely with further background information to make it easy to understand. Why would you willingly take this? Seems like hell… was written in the margins next to one of the boxes of text. I could say the same about law, sweater boy. 

By the time Y/N had finished her final, the three hours had turned into 10 minutes. She was one of three students left in the classroom and the other two were looking beyond panicked. Most of the class seemed to have either blazed through it like it was an 8-year-old’s math homework or given up halfway through and accepted their loss. Y/N, however, had to pass this class so she triple-checked her answers, took a daydream break, then checked it again. She would be lying if she said her daydreams didn’t consist of Edmund. She wondered if he would ever text her again. 

The young girl hurriedly walked out of the classroom, happy to be done with the semester. She wrapped her jacket tightly around her and braced herself to brave the aggressive weather. 

“Hey,” A voice from her right called out. It was Edmund; he was leaning against the wall lazily. His nose was a bright pink, as were his cheeks, and his hands were pushed into his pockets for warmth.

“Edmund? What are you doing here? You must be freezing!” Y/N walked over to him and looked him once over. A simple long sleeve shirt, vest, and jeans. Y/N slung her wool scarf around his neck. 

“Oh, uh, thanks…” He pushed himself off of the wall with his shoulder. Damn, his shoulders were huge. 

“I’m sorry about the coffee shop, I didn’t mean to jump you like that,” Y/N apologized bashfully. He smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. 

“No, I get it. I would have the same reaction. That’s, uh, why I’m here.” Edmund was awkward, looking anywhere but her eyes. Instead, he observed her freckles, eyebrows, and cheeks. “I was wondering if we could, uh, talk? Maybe somewhere private? Like my dorm?”

“Oh, so you want to take me, your newly discovered soulmate, back to your dorm?” Y/N had a hint of mischief in her eyes and a teasing smile on her lips. Edmund’s eyes grew wide and he started to sputter. 

“That’s not what I meant! I would never! I mean unless you wanted to, but no! I just meant to talk,” His cheeks are red again, but this time it wasn’t from the cold. 

“I’m just taking the piss, let’s go, vesty.”

~ 

Edmunds dorm was not what she was expecting. One side looked like it was hit by a tornado, but the other was very organized. Even on the floor, there was a distinct division between the two sides. The neat side, which appeared to be Edmund’s, was very plain. His bed was made with a red duvet and black pillows, his desk was blank besides a small pencil cup, and the cork board hanging above his desk had reminders and pictures. 

“Those are my siblings,” Edmund noticed Y/N’s wandering eyes. “They’re practically dying to meet you, Y/N.”

“How did you know my name? I never told you,” She crossed her arms and strained her neck to look back at him. 

“Ah, so I was right, you don’t remember me. We took a few classes together during first and second years. I always thought you were cute, so I guess it stuck.” Now it was Y/N’s turn to blush. 

“You think I’m cute?” Her arms uncrossed and turned so she was facing him head-on. 

“Well, yeah. You are my soulmate, after all, Y/N. Don’t be silly,” Edmund seemed to be growing more and more comfortable. He was enjoying watching her blush because of what he said; it made a sense of pride grow in his stomach. This was his person, and she was standing right in front of him. 

“Speaking of soulmates…” Y/N trailed off and looked towards the floor. Her hands grasp the zipper of her jacket and unzip it, before rolling up the bottom of her shirt. The jagged scar was on full display, a stark contrast against the skin of her abdomen. Edmund eyed it guiltily; he knew the exact pain she had to go through to get that scar. She had to go through that pain because of him. His own hands found the bottom seam of his own clothes and pulled it up to reveal a matching mark. 

“I can explain but you won’t believe me,” His honey-brown eyes met hers. 

“Try me, Pevensie.” 

He led her to sit on her bed and sat next to her. Y/N hastily kicked off her shoes so she could sit with her legs crossed on her bed. Her shoes tumbled to the ground with two thuds. Edmund, on the other hand, just bent one leg and let the other hang off the edge. He took her hands in his. 

“You have to promise me to listen to it all before you ask questions,” Edmund fidgeted nervously with a ring on Y/N’s fingers as they spoke. Y/N didn’t know if this was on purpose or a subconscious action, but it comforted her all the same.  

“Well, when I was young my parents sent my siblings and me to live away from home. When we were there, my little sister Lucy discovered a wardrobe in one of the spare rooms. Well, inside the wardrobe was this beautiful land called Narnia. It was gorgeous and huge! And when I say huge, I mean HUGE!” He caught himself rambling excitedly and reeled it back in. “Well, uh, anyway, there was this woman, we called her the White Witch and she manipulated me into basically selling my siblings out. The entire nation of Narnia got into a huge battle and the White Witch stabbed me.” 

“Did she lock you up somewhere cold?” Y/N asked, disregarding her promise to stay quiet. 

“Um, yeah. She locked me in this big ice cell. It wasn’t fun. I’m pretty sure I almost got frostbite but my body rejected it because I started warming up randomly.”

Y/N smiled. The paper towel. 

“But that scar on your stomach,” He took his hand away from yours and gently touched your stomach. “Is because she stabbed me. But again, my sister Lucy had this special liquid that could heal any injury.” 

Edmund seemed to smile at the memory. “Long story short, my siblings and I got crowned Kings and Queens of Narnia and ruled for a number of years. We then got sent back-”

“Wait, wait, wait, Kings, and Queens? Who are you? Alexander the Great?” Her tone was teasing and unbelieving. 

“Edmund the Just, actually. And I told you to listen!” His smile reached his eyes this time. “Well we came back to earth through the wardrobe and we were kids again! About a year later, we returned to Narnia and met our good friend Caspian. We had to fight Caspian’s home country. In the end, Aslan helped us and Caspian became a king as well.”

“Who’s Aslan?” Y/N was doing her best to keep up and believe the information, but it was quite hard. 

“He’s a big lion, he’s kind of like the ruler of Narnia. I guess you could say a God? I guess…”

“A big lion god? Edmund…”

“I know it sounds crazy, Y/N. I know but you have to believe me! I went one more time with Lucy and my cousin. We were on a big Naval ship with Caspian and we had to find a bunch of swords-”

“Edmund, love, just tell me the truth.” Y/N was sad that right off the bat her soulmate was lying to her. Edmund’s eyes seemed to lose their sparkle. 

“I would never lie to you, Y/N. Here, look.” He took off Y/N’s scarf and gently placed it on the bed before pulling his vest and shirt over his head. On his rips was a beautifully drawn tattoo of a lion that appeared to be roaring. And on his collarbone was a sword. Y/N delicately reached her hand out and ran her fingertips against the drawing of the weapon. It had insane detail and the way it was drawn made it look sharp. Y/N retracted her hand and sat back. 

“That’s one of the swords we found during my third trip. It was gifted to Caspian by the lord who owned it. And this is Aslan. His roar was the most powerful magic in all of Narnia.” Edmund searched Y/N’s face for any emotion she was feeling. Right now, she was staring at the sword with a pondering look on her face. 

“Okay, say you were a king-”

“I am a king.”

“Fine, you’re a king. What exactly did you do, ya know, as a ruler?”

“Well, me and my brother Peter ran the army and trained them for battle. Along with other things like managing trade and creating political policies.”

“So, fighting? You fight?”

“Yeah, I fought in many battles, big and small. I got stabbed, remember.” His smile was cheeky and he pulled his long sleeve back on. “Once I got good, I didn’t even use a shield. I fought with two swords.”

“TWO? Aren’t those things heavy?”

“Well, yes, but when you went through all of the training I did, it gets easier.” Edmund could tell he was starting to believe him. 

“Tell me more.”

~

The two spent the next few hours discussing the ins and outs of Narnia down to the floor plan of Cair Paravel. Y/N had decided that Edmund had way too much detail to be making it up, and even if he did, it was so magical that she wouldn’t even be mad. 

“Okay, vesty, I believe you.” Y/N says after Edmund gave a lengthy explanation about all the gifts his siblings received and what they do. He stopped mid-word and stared at her. 

“You believe me? Really?” 

Y/N smiled and nodded. “Yes, Edmund. I’m going to be spending my life with you, your highness, so I may as well get familiar with it.”

“Please don’t call me that,” Edmund scooted closer to her. “I hated it even when people in Narnia called me that. I don’t need people outside of Narnia calling me it. Especially not you.” 

She turned her head so she was staring right at him. “Why not me?” Y/N’s speech came out as a whisper. They were so close that she didn’t need to speak loudly. 

“Because if I really was your highness, it would be kind of weird for me to do this.”

Edmund placed a hand on Y/N’s jaw and leaned in. His lips barely brushed her lips before pressing firmly against them. Y/N’s eyes closed shut and she happily kissed back. 

When people described kissing their soulmate for the first time, they always explain it as an electric spark igniting throughout their entire body. They explain it as a firework show full of magnificent colors. Kissing Edmund didn’t feel like that. Kissing Edmund felt like home. She felt safe, secure, and loved as if kissing this boy was what she was meant to do for her entire life. The way he tasted, like peppermint and candy, was the best thing she had ever tasted. And they way he held her, one hand on her jaw and the other holding her close to him by her waist, felt like the warmth of a favorite blanket. The way he moved made her knees feel like jelly. 

As their lip lock continued, his fingertips danced across her back until it landed on the other side of her jaw. He pulled away from their kiss, pressing a quick peck against her nose and jaw before leaning against his headboard. 

“I’ve been wanting to do that for my entire life,” Y/N said, her voice gentle and soft. 

“Me too. The thought of kissing you, Y/N L/N, was the only thing that got me through some tough times. I had to make it to be able to feel what it was like.”

Y/N was silent for a long moment. 

“Edmund, love, do you think I will ever go to Narnia?”

Edmund looked at her for a long moment then smiled with half of his mouth. 

“I don’t know, darling, but anything is possible. Especially when it comes to Narnia.” 

[jaskiersvalley]

I’m honestly so here for the shifter modern au. I love it so much, and I would be so fucking down for a whole story on Ao3. (Only if you want to) And may I suggest. Wolf Vesmir pick fox Jaskier up by the scruff when his boys get to rowdy. Jaskier would be so small!

(I’m adding an anon’s request here too because I’ve been overwhelmed by asks about this ‘verse and I can’t give everyone an individual story so I’m bundling ideas together into one at times, I’m so sorry!)

These stories will, eventually, migrate over to AO3 (with a quick scan for typos - though those are kind of the norm in my writing, and my apologies to everyone about my lazy (read: utter lack of) editing). But that’s beside the point, let’s just jump straight into another installation of this story that has gotten utterly out of hand.

Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4.

There was a trend for celebrities to show off their houses. And, in a wild twist of events, Jaskier had found himself in high demand. Everybody wanted to see where he lived and find out more about his wolves too. After some discussion and a few key rules agreed, Jaskier graciously allowed the camera crew to descend on their home.

“Welcome to Kaer Morhen II,” he greeted as he opened the door. By no means was the home large and getting the regular amount of camera crew in was a bit of a struggle. They were much more used to large, sprawling mansions with more rooms than the occupants could hope to ever need. Now, they were knocking elbows in a very homely living room with soft sofas that looked comfortable and well used.

The questions about whether Jaskier lived with his bodyguards was quickly answered when Jaskier was making introductions and the most terrifying growling drowned most words out. He rolled his eyes and held up a hand with an “excuse me one moment.”

In a display of simplicity, he walked to the open window and stuck his head out, only to yell, “Oi! Cut it out you lot! Our guests are here and I know you could hear them arrive.”

After a moment there was a sheepish reply of “sorry!” and some furious whispering about whose fault it was but by the time any of the crew got a chance to look out, there was nobody out there. While the house was on the smaller side, that couldn’t be said of the garden. It was large, sprawling and with a pond, a copse of trees as well as a summer hut with throws and beanbags. Cosy in its own way and inviting for both two and four legged entities.

“Ah, Vesemir!” Jaskier pulled him close, an arm around his shoulder. “Come meet the lovely crew who will be living with us for the next four days.”

It was four very long days. Or at least, that’s what Vesemir would have said if anybody had asked him. Rules were set up quickly, there were two rooms that were out of bounds, two bedrooms. Otherwise everything was fair game. The questions were unending from the crew and Jaskier seemed happy to prattle on while Vesemir was a quiet, solid presence beside him. Sometimes Geralt would appear and Lambert had no qualms about flouting his presence. Even worse, he made it his mission to steal the big fuzzy microphone off the sound boom at all opportunities.

“Does Eskel not live with you?” The question came as everyone was sat in the garden happily eating a home cooked meal. Geralt was, as per his habits, sleeping in his wolf form, pressed flush against Jaskier’s thigh.

“Who do you think cooked?” Lambert shot back, happily chewing the end of a chicken drumstick. The bone crunched between his teeth, seemingly making him happy. “Right, thanks for the company. Got places to be.”

In the blink of an eye, he was loping off as a wolf, back into the home. In the darkness of the room, the camera crew swore they saw another pair of eyes before a hulking, dark form turned away from them, followed by Lambert pouncing after them.

From then on, it became a bit of a race to catch a glimpse of Eskel. It wasn’t that he was camera shy, he was hiding from the crew even when they weren’t filming. Sometimes someone would catch the glimpse of a tail slinking off around a corner or there was the sound of a voice humming quietly in the kitchen but before anyone could go see, Lambert or Jaskier would be pulling the crew in the opposite direction.

Curiosity grew amongst the crew about the dynamics of the pack. Vesemir seemed to never assume his wolf form and Jaskier was never out of sight of at least one wolf. The few times the crew thought Jaskier was alone, they quickly realised that wolves were predators. Just because they couldn’t see a wolf didn’t mean they weren’t in a wolf’s sight.

“What is your relationship with the wolves?” The question was finally asked and Jaskier laughed at that.

“Yes.”

“Yes?” That made zero sense.

“Exactly. See, you get it! Now, have I shown you the setup we’ve got for play?” Just like that, the conversation was twisted out and Jaskier was off and talking a mile a minute. The camera caught Vesemir hiding a laugh into his hand behind their backs.

The setup for playing wasn’t anything majors. Quite literally a tarpaulin that they could put various things on. Sometimes they made it slippery and wet, other times it was covered in sand, the edges held in place by sandbags that also acted as a crash barrier. They were definitely needed because Lambert, Geralt and Jaskier had all shifted and were haring around, playing while Vesemir watched.

“Are they your pups?”

“I raise them,” Vesemir agreed easily.

“But are they yours?”

There was a flicker of annoyance and Vesemir looked away from the bundle of fur that had become a rolling ball of yips and playful growls. Before he could say anything scathing, there was a sharp, sudden yowl of a fox in pain and both Lambert and Geralt were leaping away. The next moment a weathered old wolf was leaping into the ring and, after soft prod of Jaskier with his nose he delicately picked him up by the scruff and carried him inside.

Scrambling, the camera crew followed. By the time they were rolling, Jaskier was sat on the sofa, sniffling and holding an ice pack to his wrist, fox ears and tail still out, too preoccupied to shift properly.

“Sorry,” Lambert said, looking forlorn in the doorway. He was pushed aside by Geralt, still a wolf as he hopped up on the sofa.

“Have a bit of quiet time,” Vesemir suggested. “Jaskier, you and Geralt stay here, I’ll take our guests into the garden.”

There was no arguing with Vesemir. He led the camera crew out into the garden and they all settled in the summer hut, quietly chatting without the pressure of filming. It meant that Vesemir was also more amenable to answering questions until he shook his head with a fond smile when things returned to the topic of the pack’s dynamics.

“Go in, have a look on the sofa and you’ll understand. Go quietly.”

Tiptoeing back int the house, the crew stuck their heads into the living room and almost cooed. Jaskier was a fox again, curled up tight, nose hidden under his tail. However, he was on top of Geralt, half sinking into the thick white fur. Everybody froze when one golden eye opened and Geralt regarded them, assessing their intentions before closing his eyes again. It got even better when the large, soft body of another wolf wound between the camera crew and Lambert hopped up onto the sofa, doing a few circles before settling down, sprawling over Geralt’s haunches.

After the impromptu nap, Jaskier and Vesemir were keeping the crew entertained when vicious snarling sounded from the garden. Everyone jumped, thinking something terrible was happening. However, neither Vesemir nor Jaskier seemed worried.

“Go on, go have a look.”

As one, the crew looked and were horrified. It looked like Lambert and Geralt were in the middle of a brawl, snapping, snarling with noses wrinkled to show more teeth. They charged, slammed into each other. Lambert’s scruff was sodden with drool. It was truly terrifying and sounded like they were trying to kill each other. Even worse, Jaskier, still human, stepped closer, seemingly not bothered by the violence.

“Are you quite done killing each other?” His voice was lost as Lambert and Geralt pounced, pulling him down and bundling on top of him. It drew a gasp and even a yell of distress from the camera crew, fearing they were going to witness Jaskier be torn apart by his own wolves. Instead, they got to witness Jaskier laughing, batting away Geralt as he was intent on licking his face like an enthusiastic puppy. Lambert was bouncing around, nudging them and bowing down for play.

From somewhere behind them there was a chuff of another wolf and Lambert was off like a shot, tearing through the house even as Vesemir called after him to not break anything.

“Children. I don’t know how many hundred years old and they’re still children.”

In the garden, Geralt looked far too smug, two large paws pinning Jaskier down by the chest. Drool dripped from his mouth as his tongue lolled in happy pants.

“Geralt, stop being a brat!” At Vesemir’s words all drooling stopped and Jaskier wiped his face in white fur.

It only increased the crew’ curiosity about the relationship between everyone. This curiosity was their downfall, despite the clear instructions and rules, they just had to take a peek into the forbidden rooms. They agreed to do it on the last night, when everyone was asleep. As silently as possible, they approached the first door that Jaskier tended to disappear through each night. It was unlocked and they door swung open on silent hinges. Inside was a rather plain bedroom, most of the space was taken up by a gigantic bed. On it, Geralt and Jaskier were entwined, Geralt’s nose buried in Jaskier’s hair. It was sweet until they realised that it was a bare hip that was visible and all answers about that particular relationship were answered.

Interestingly, there were two doors along the wall, both open. One was obviously a bathroom but the other seemed to open into another bedroom. Any further investigation was cut short by a low, menacing growl from behind them.

If the play fighting between Geralt and Lambert had been scary, it was nothing compared to facing down an unknown wolf in the dark. Eyes almost glowing, teeth gleaming in the low light, Eskel stepped closer, head lowered in a snarl. It made the differences between play and real fighting abundantly clear and the crew were thoroughly terrified. It didn’t help that as soon as Eskel’s growls got louder, Lambert was tearing through the door from the connecting bedroom, hackles raised and stalking closer from the other side.

A light came on and Jaskier blinked, sitting up in bed. Geralt didn’t need to change into his wolf form to look intimidating, even naked.

“What’s going on?”

“Caught some idiots sneaking in on you while you were asleep,” Eskel’s voice was low, a growl still evident and betraying his fury. “Want me to see them out?”

That sounded more like a threat than anything else. Tiredly, Jaskier rubbed his eyes. “I think they can find their own ways back to their beds. You come to bed too, look, Lambert’s already settling down for the night.”

A quick glance revealed that Lambert was indeed fussing with the blankets. As a human. Scowling, Eskel stepped around the crew, gave them one last glare before shutting the door in their face. There was the sound of the bed creaking a little as another body joined the pile and the crew looked at each other. Just when they thought they had the mystery of the dynamics cracked, it got more complicated.

[incorrectlumityquotes]

FULL REVIEWS: “Escape of the Palisman”

Hiatus time is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it gives fans time to breath, think about the show, mull it over, and work on fan stuffs. On the other hand, waiting suuuuuucks and I want it nooooowwwwwww. This episode was presented as the midseason finale and honestly I was just kinda excited about it.

I mean the main plot is fine and all but my favorite part of any show is the characters. If I really love the characters than I don’t mind watching them do whatever as long as I have a good time. How important and slash or impactful was the first midseason finale? Let’s find out.

.

Oh snap. Do I really not have the promo pic for this episode? Hold on. Yeah, that’s a no.

Uh...picture picture picture. Whatever. 

The cold open is delightfully hilarious. Eda and Luz take King to the park to play in the playground where he tries to conquer the bumpy slide. Just typing that made me laugh. 

Another kid pushes him off the slide and King’s demand for revenge leads into Owlbert’s full introduction and exposition on palismans. Eda got her staff but she made Owlbert. I guess it’s The Boiling Isles’ version of familiars. And then we get one of my favorite things ever: King’s Squeak of Rage.

“He’s like a little tea kettle.”

Then we’re all reminded that we have a main plot looming over our heads and Eda has a weird blackout from her curse. Good thing we did it from Eda’s perspective. Imagine if we saw it from Luz’s point of view. That would have scared me and given me some adult fears. A little too close to reality for me. 

Eda does what all adults do on their late afternoon off and wants to take a nap. Luz suggests taking care of her and putting King in a little doctor’s outfit. Which is fine I guess but how cute would he look in a little nurse outfit with the skirt and the little hat with the red cross on it? So cute.  

But turns out Luz has plans with Twidledweeb and Twidledorkus (Gus and Willow). They’re off to see Luz’s first grudgby game, and Luz had a little thing called HEXSIDE PRIDE!!!...which really bothers me.

I never understood school spirit and slash or pride. To me pride is something you are allowed to have when you accomplish something, so national or ethnic pride never really made sense to me. There are exceptions to the rule. Minorities with a history of being oppressed are allowed to be proud for surviving their tormentors so gay pride or black pride is okay to me. But proud to be a Texan or whatever is really weird. There is no test to take or obstacle I had to overcome to be born in Texas. Am I glad to be a Texan? Sure I guess. We got the best food here. But proud? I didn’t do anything so not really.

School spirit is worse because I never saw school as anything more than a means to an end. I didn’t attend school because I wanted to. I did it because I had to. Am I proud to have passed all my classes and move forward? Sure. That’s something I accomplished. Am I proud to have gone to the specific school that I went to? No! I just went there because it was within walking distance and my parents didn’t want to give me a ride. I did it because it was easier.

I will give Luz a bit of a break here because, for one, it’s a magic school. Totally cooler than a regular school, and she’s allowed to be excited. And two, she does have to do something to get in but that’s for a later episode. 

Another Skara sighting! She’s so cute. What? Don’t look at me like that. It’s a cute design. Oh whatever.

“We get to go see the footballs match.” RIP Willow’s eye.

I love how all the main characters are such huge nerds that they all refer to it as sport. Not sports. Sport. Seriously, when’s the last time any of these nerds ran anywhere? And I mean with their legs, not by holding X.

Turns out that Luz is wearing Glandis High colors so she goes to the lost and found in a very gross line about mouth guards and they missed their ride.

Images you can feel, Volume 1 of many

Luz and co get the terrible idea of borrowing Eda’s staff to go to the big game and I could really go for some B-plot right now.

So that’s a no on the fire then?

King goes to Eda to get feedback on his revenge scheme to discover that Eda has partially transformed into the owl beast. Since she’s partially transformed she retains some of her mind, leaving her susceptible to suggestion because I guess that’s how that works(?).

Luz shows up to borrow Eda’s staff and King pulls out fiction’s laziest plot device and lies some more to get rid of her. One funny ass joke later and we’re off to the big game.

Hey guys, I literally just remembered right now at this very moment that Luz has no idea what the hell she’s doing.

The episode takes another dark and serious turn as Luz and co crash land to discover Owlbert literally cracked his head open and he runs off into the forest in fear and pain.

Images you can feel, Volume 2

The group follows him to discover that he has taken refuge in the lair of The Bat Queen.

Luz wants Owlbert back but The Bat Queen forces Luz to partake in...the trials (ooo ooky spooky!). Willow notes that no one has ever successfully done The Bat Queens trials. After declaring no helpsies, Luz beings The Trials of The Bat Queen (ooo ooky spooky). Her trials include things like get rid of bee’s nest and give the babies a bath.

No wonder Willow said no one completes The Bat Queens trials. These are all things no one wants to do. If one of the trials included getting rid of a bee’s nest I’d say “fuck this shit I’m out” too. Even Luz puts it together and figures out that The Bat Queen is just making her do her chores. 

The Bat Queen doesn’t want to give Owlbert over until Owlbert chooses to go back with Luz. Even then The Bat Queen refuses to let him go. One struggle later and Luz discovers an interlock on The Bat Queen’s foot.

The Bat Queen used to be a palisman on a great staff for a giant, but that was a long time ago. Now she protects all lost and slash or discarded palismans. The Bat Queen allows Owlbert to back home with Luz, and Luz promises to help The Bat Queen whenever she wants to find out the truth. (My money is on she was the titan’s palisman)

Meanwhile in the B-plot, King takes the mostly transformed Eda to the playground to take back his throne. Only for Eda to start chewing on it and get taken away from animal control. In the biggest surprise of the episode, that snot nosed little kid gives a really creepy speech, King gets Eda to transform back with his Rage Squeal.

Eda returns home and somehow allows King and Luz to both continue living in her house, eating her food, burning her electricity and breathing her air. Whatever. It’s been a day for everyone.

FINAL SCORE: 4 - Liked it.

I liked this episode, but probably not for the reasons you’d think. Truth is I’m not really interested in The Bat Queen’s whole deal. Sorry, but she only came out once before for like a minute. I mean I guess it was fine but I wasn’t into it. I really wanted to give this episode a 3.

But damn did I love all the jokes and the B-plot. I think King/Eda B-plots are just really funny. King was on point today, and even Gus was funnier than usual. Willow got one or two good jokes in there too. Also I’m pretty sure hearing Braxis saying “It’s a monster” bumped up the score for me.

So far so good. Lots of soft intros and lying as a plot device, but we’re past the halfway point. Let’s see what happens next.

[drariellevalentine]

Medically Inevitable

Chapter 12- Obscene Occasions

Characters:- Arielle Valentine, Ethan Ramsey, Liam Mercado, Sienna Trinh, Elijah Greene, Jackie Varma, Landry Olsen, Rafael Aveiro, Kyra Santana, Phoebe Reznik & Danny Cardinal

Pairings:- Arielle Valentine x Ethan Ramsey, Sienna Trinh x Danny Cardinal, Elijah Greene x Phoebe Reznik

Warnings:- Alcohol, cursing, mentions of the infamous WAP (no lyrics)

You’re standing in a sound control booth, ready to flip on a switch. A switch that will blast WAP from the speakers of none other than America’s most posh salon for old ladies. “How did I even get here?!��, you ask yourself. A few hours before…

“Let’s get this party started!”, Kyra shouts as everyone cheers.

“What are we doing first?”, you ask.

Bryce and Elijah share a devilish smirk.

“Uh oh…”, Jackie says.

“We thought it would be fun to see everyone play Twister in fancy outfits.”, Bryce says.

“Bryce! Was this your idea?!”, Sienna shouts. Bryce flashes her a grin.

“I’ll spin the wheel!”, Elijah says as Bryce spreads out a humongous Twister map.

“Wow, this is huge!”, Phoebe says.

“Yep! Okay, so I’ve entered everyone’s names on here. First, 5 people will play. Then the other five will. No exceptions!”, Bryce shouts. “...and the names are here! Drumroll, please!... Kyra! Phoebe! Me! Rafael! Arielle!”

“Looks like ‘birthday girl’ escaped.”, Landry says. Jackie flashes him a warning.

“Does everyone know how to play?”, Elijah asks. All five of you nod as you line up by the mat as you slip off your footwear. “Awesome! First is Kyra!” Kyra places her left hand and foot on the mat, as per the color. Phoebe, Bryce, and Raf place their right hand and left foot on the mat according to the color on their turn When it’s your turn, the mat’s already almost covered.

“Damn! This went fast!”, Jackie says. Elijah holds out the spinner as you spin it.

“Left foot on blue, right hand on red!” You look at the mat, seeing that you can either do a backbend over Bryce or put one hand over Phoebe and a leg under Raf.

“You can’t be serious!”, you shout as everyone laughs. You place your leg on blue and after steadying your legs, you bend your back and place your hand on the red.

“Y’know, when I said you could be on top of me, this is not what I meant.”, Bryce says.

You roll your eyes, “Oh shut up!” After the second round, everyone’s in a huge twisted mess, your back still over Bryce but your feet are under Raf and one of your hands is now twined with Kyra’s.

“I never thought I would say this, but this is entertaining!”, Jackie says.

“Yeah, for you!”, you shout back.

“Okay, I’m out!”, Phoebe says as she wiggles her way out of the twisted jumble.

“Damn! This is hard!”, Bryce says.

“I know right! My back hurts!”, you reply.

“I meant for you.”, Bryce says smirking. You groan.

“It is, but both of you are doing great!”, Raf says. You smack your forehead with your free hand.

“Raf, you do realize he’s trash-talking us right?”, you say.

“Yeah, I know...aand I’m out!”, Raf slides out from the mat.

“Me too. I can’t risk breaking my back.”, says Phoebe. You and Bryce are the only ones left.

“Okay! Bryce’s turn.” Elijah spins the wheel which lands on right-hand red. Bryce chooses the exact spot to place his hand that makes you arch your back even more.

“Bryce! You can’t expect to hold this for much longer!”

He smirks. “Then quit.”

“Damn, you two are still going!”, Elijah says as he spins the wheel. “Lucky Arielle gets to take off her foot!” You cheer. “You didn’t expect me to not return the favor.”, you reply with a smirk. Carefully keeping your hand on their respective colors, you slide under Bryce making him arch his back...a lot. You push him more until he gives up.

“And...the winner is Arielle!”

“Okay, I’m done! I don’t need surgery when I’m already deep in debt!”, Bryce says as he gets up. You plop down on the mat as Si comes to help you up.

“You know, the last thing I thought yoga would help with was playing Twister! Speaking of...bow down to the Twister champion!”

“Okay, Okay! Now it’s Landry, Jackie, Sienna, and Danny! It’s a close tie but Sienna ends up winning.

“That isn’t fair! Sienna’s tiny!”, Jackie protests.

“Ha! I still win!”, Sienna says.

“That’s enough of Twister! The next stop is shots people!”

Bryce leads everyone to the open bar and as everyone takes a seat on a barstool, he slides behind the counter. “What will it be folks?”, he asks with a southern accent.

Jackie groans playfully as Sienna perks up, “This is Jackie’s birthday, so that means…”

“Tequila from start to finish!”, Kyra finishes. Bryce places multiple shot glasses and pours tequila in each of them.

“Okay, on the count of three. 1...2...3!” You throw back the shot and slam your glass on the counter, the tequila slightly burning your throat.

“Ooh! That’s strong!”, Danny says.

“Expect nothing else from Jackie.”, Landry replies.

“Again!” After multiple rounds of shots, you all are now tipsy and on water. “Ookay Scalpel Jockey, what’s next?”, you ask.

“Well it isn’t a party without truth or dare, but I have a better idea.”, Bryce replies with a huge grin.

“Oh no...don’t tell me that my birthday present is being arrested for streaking!”

“Oh trust me, it’s much worse than that.”, Elijah replies.

“Arielle, what did you drag me into?”, Raf asks. You shrug.

“Okay, for this game, we’ll need to go to the mall. Everyone, to the car!” After a short ride in a cramped car and with the story of how you and Bryce were banned from a different mall, you reach the mall.

“Okay, so we split up into two teams, girls and boys, and basically we play hide and seek. But, the losers have to do a dare of the winners’ choice.”

“Okay people, it’s official! We are definitely going to be in jail by the end of this!”, you shout as everyone laughs.

“Bryce, rules?”, Sienna asks.

“Ok, so we’ll make up the rules as we go!”, Bryce says.

“Ooh! This sounds fun! I’m in!”, Kyra says.

“You know what, me too.”, you reply.

“What the hell, I guess.”, Jackie replies. Everyone else agrees.

“Okay, coin toss.” Elijah picks out a nickel from his wallet. “Ladies first, heads or tails?”

“Heads.”, Phoebe perks up. Elijah raises an eyebrow.

“Cause we’re the only one who actually has them.”, Jackie replies without batting an eyelash.

“Ooh! Nice!”, Kyra high-fives Jackie as Elijah flips the coin to reveal...tails!

“Ha! Karma’s a bitch, ain’t it!“, Bryce replies with his horrible southern drawl.

”So, what will it be boys?”, Phoebe asks. The boys make a big show of huddling and discussing, returning 5 minutes later.

”We have decided that we will seek.”, Raf announces.

”Okay...so we can hide anywhere we want?”, you ask.

”Yeah, but only on mall premises.”, Elijah says.

”We’ll give you guys all 10 minutes to hide, we’ll stay here. You guys can hide in groups or single, your choice.”, Danny says.

”Wait, you guys will find us sooner or later. You’re just setting us up!”, Jackie says.

”Okay then, what if we only get 20 minutes?”

”10.”, Kyra counters.

”We’ll go with 15. Does everyone have their phones on them?”, Raf asks.

Everyone nods. ”Then prepare to eat our dust!”, Bryce smirks. You roll your eyes.

”Oh please, we’ll see about that.”, Kyra says.

”Ok, I'm starting the timer in 3...2…1!” As Danny starts the timer, all of you rush inside the mall.

”I think we should all hide in the same place. It’ll lessen the chance of them finding us.”, you say.

”You're right. But where do we hide?”, Phoebe asks.

”Quick! We already lost a minute!”, Sienna shouts as she looks at the timer on her phone.

”Let’s check the mall directory for some inspiration. We need someplace that no man would never enter.”, Jackie replies as she ushers you all to the directory.

You look at the directory. ”What about the spa?”, Sienna asks.

”No, that won't work. We can't possibly hide there.”, Kyra says.

You look at the list of stores. Your eyes widen as you come across a store that would be perfect.

”What is it, Arielle?”, Sienna asks.

”What about Victoria’s Secret?! The boys wouldn't dare come in there!”, you reply, your voice rising with excitement. Their eyes and smiles widen.

”Oh my God! That’s an amazing idea!”, Kyra says.

”Quick! Which floor is it on?”, Phoebe asks. You scan the directory once again.

”It’s on the sixth floor! Let's go!” After several flights of steps, you reach the sixth floor and rush into Victoria's Secret.

”Everyone just split up and act like your browsing through lingerie. I'll keep an eye on the storefront to see if the boys come searching this way. Keep your phone on.” As per your instructions, everyone splits up and you turn to a section of lace-up bras at the very front of the store.

It’s been almost 5 minutes and there’s no sign of the boys. You rush towards the back of the store as you hear Sienna shout, ”There are only 30 more seconds! We won!”

”We did it!”, You shout.

”Ooh, what do you think we should give the boys as a dare?”, Kyra asks.

”That won't be needed.” You whip around to find the whole entourage of boys right in the middle of the store.

”Surprise! We thought you would be here.”, Bryce says. You notice all the staff starting at the group of boys.

”...you’ve got to be kidding me.”, you say.

“Unfortunately not! The timer ended after we found you!”, Elijah says.

”Are you all just going to stand here?..” You turn around to see one of the employees giving you a judgemental look.

”Okay, we’re going! No need to be so judgy!”, Bryce replies as you all file out of the store.

”So much for our dare…”, Sienna says.

You notice Bryce with an extremely huge grin on his face. ”Time for your dare, lovely ladies!”

“Spit it out, Bryce.”, Jackie says. Ignoring her, he steps forward and whispers the dare into your ear. All the girls get alarmed, noticing your wide-eyed and flushed face.

”...you’re not serious.”, you reply unbelievably. He only grins.

”Just spit out Arielle! What's the dare?!” Unable to say anything, Bryce happily steps forward and whispers the dare into everyone's ears. One by one, every girl’s eyes widen.

”You can't be serious Bryce.”, Krya says. He shrugs.

”Bryce, whatever dare you gave them, maybe you should lighten it up? Elijah says.

”Wait? You guys don't know what the dare is?”, you ask. They shake their head.

”Bryce won't tell us.”, Raf replies. A few minutes later, you're standing in front of Nail, Hair and Beauty, a place which is known for where all the old ladies get their nails and hair done. You tentatively enter the store with all the girls, pretending to browse their nail polish collection. You see Bryce pointing to a closed door, across from the entrance.

”That must be the entrance. We’ll change the song and rush out before anyone sees us.”, you say.

”Why did we even agree to this?”, Kyra asks.

”Look on the bright side! At least we’ll have a great story to tell later at parties!”, Sienna says.

”You're the only person who would look at the bright side, Sienna.”, you reply.

Making sure no one sees you, all five of you manage to sneak into the closet miraculously without anyone noticing. You notice the sound system, a list of soothing piano melodies lined up to play over the speakers.

”Who’s flipping the switch?”, you ask. No one makes a move. You groan.

”Fine! I'll do it. At least before someone notices, we’re here.” You tentatively step up and familiarize yourself with the sound system. Making sure not to disturb anything else, you carefully search up WAP, hoping it's not there but yet it's there.

”They have the damn song. Sorry ladies, but at least if you get a heart attack, we have seven doctors here.” You signal to the girls, 5...4...3...2...1! You click the button as you and the girls rush out of the closet and the salon without anyone noticing.

Bryce looks at you. ”It's done. I've queued at full volume.”, you reply after catching your breath.

”What the hell are you guys even talking about?”, Elijah asks. Just then, the familiar bass beat and interesting lyrics play. All of the girls cringe as the boys’ faces morph into pure utter shock. Bryce just stands there with a smirk on his face. You can hear the pure chaos and shouting from the salon, the song attracting people’s attention.

”OH MY!”

”WHAT IS THIS?!”

“TURN IT OFF!”

”THIS ISN’T RELAXING!!”

”YOU KNOW, MY GRANDSON LISTENS TO THIS!”

“HEY, MINE TOO!”

“WE MUST BE THE COOL GRANDMA’S!”

”TURN THE DAMN SONG OFF!”

”WHAT KIND OF MUSIC IS THIS?!”

“TURN THE FUCKING SONG OFF KATE!”

“I WOULD, BUT I CAN’T!”

All of you just stand there as Bryce doubles over in laughter. Soon the damn song is turned off.

“...I can’t believe we just did that.”

“Me either.”

“Hey! All of you!” You all whip around and see one of the store employees glaring at you.

“Time to go!” Bryce says as he spins around and runs to the stairs. You all follow suit as Phoebe helps Elijah escape through the elevator, sprinting down the stairs until you reach your car.

“Bryce! You idiot!”, Jackie exclaims.

“My feet hurt!”, Sienna says.

“Nice job girls.” Just then your phone rings, you see it’s Liam. You answer it, placing it on the speaker as you start the car.

“Hey, Liam.”

“Where are you? And why are you so out of breath?”

“Long story. We’ll be back in 15 along with a huge appetite.”

“I look forward to that story of yours.” All of you laugh and joke about the crazy dare as you drive back.

General PoV:-

Soon Arielle and her friends are seated at the huge dinner table, waiting for their lavish dinner.

“So, the first course will be out in 15 minutes. Followed by another main course and lastly a special dessert course.”, Liam says. “I have a list of different main courses according to dietary restrictions, everyone just pick out your favorite course.” After everyone chooses, you all start discussing your favorite restaurants when Bryce perks up. ”Guys, let's play a game?"

"What do you have in mind Lahela?" Jackie asks making Bryce grin.

"Truth or truth!" Bryce answers excitedly.

"It's called truth or dare, meathead," Jackie rolls her eyes.

"No, it's called 'truth or truth', " Bryce corrects Jackie. "There's no option for a dare at all. Only truth."

"Ooh!" Sienna makes an exciting sound, "Think how many dirty secrets or embarrassing stories of each other we'll be able to know! I'm in."

Bryce's grin becomes broader," That's the spirit!"

One by one they all agree to it except one. All the heads turn to Jackie and she grimaces, "Fine! I'm in too."

Bryce and Sienna squeal excitedly, making the rest of you smile. "But before we start I have something to show," Sienna says while pulling out her phone. She shows everyone an old picture of Landry, drunk and clad in a giraffe onesie. Landry’s face goes red as everyone laughs. Before anyone can tease him any more, Landry diverts the topic, " How do you play the game?"

"Just like truth or dare but without any dare," he explained before looking around, "We'd need a bottle for spinning."

"I'll go and bring one," Raf says and moves to the bar. Bryce wolf whistles soon after. As Arielle follows his gaze she finds Rafael smiling in a shy but flirty manner with the bartender. The bar isn’t much far from their table so once the bartender moves inside Bryce tries to grab Rafael's attention and when Raf looks back, Bryce winks, and Rafael shyly smiles.

He comes back after a few minutes with an almost empty bottle. Placing it on the table he asks, "Who wants to go first?"

"Since you are the one to bring it, so why don't you go first?" Sienna says.

"No, no," Rafael says hesitantly," It’s Bryce's idea. He should go first."

"Oh, no bro. You start," Bryce insists. They keep fighting about it when Jackie interrupts their fight. Grabbing the bottle she yells so that the guys fighting would stop, "I'll go first."

Jackie spins the bottle and it lands on Sienna. you can see her smirking for a second before she switches back to her poker face. "What's the deal between you and Danny?" She asks as sienna’s face becomes lightly flushed

"Wh- I- We are friends, Jackie. " Sienna somehow managed to say trying her level best not to blush. Everyone's busy teasing her when Arielle notices a slight blush that crept on her cheeks and a well-hidden smile on her face. Arielle smiles to herself understanding what exactly is going on between the two. And before the gang spoils it, you try to divert the topic.

"Stop it guys.”, Arielle smiles at Sienna, "Leave her alone. She said they’re just friends."

"Ugh...You’re no fun Arielle.”, Bryce pretends to be disappointed but fails miserably.

Kyra spins the bottle next, which stops at Rafael. Kyra pretends to think for a minute before asking her question. Kyra smirks as she asks, " Who's your crush in this room?"

Rafael blushes at the question and looks in the direction of the bar, where the female bartender is mixing up some drinks. He looks at her with a smile before turning back with a shy smile. He shakes his head, answering Kyra's question but you all already know the answer.

After Kyra, it's Bryce's turn. Bryce spins the bottle more enthusiastically than others. After spinning a few rounds it stops at Arielle. Bryce smirks before asking, "What's your relationship with Liam?" The mischievous glint in his eyes is visible.

"He's my best friend, Bryce.” Arielle reply with a roll of her eyes.

"Sureeee!" Bryce grins again, "Now spill the beans."

"I already said it already, Bryce.", Arielle says. , "He's my best friend since middle school."

"C'mon Arielle, you can tell us. It’s not like we’re going to announce it to the world," Jackie smirks.

Sienna looks at Arielle as they share a look. She decides to help her out. "Guys stop teasing her."

"You two should stop saving each other and let us have fun instead.”, Jackie says. You mouth a thank you to Si.

“My turn.” Elijah spins the bottle and again it lands on Arielle. “Now Bryce, you’ve got to know how to ask the right questions.” He turns to Arielle, “...Have you ever kissed Liam?” Arielle groans as Bryce and Jackie smile.

“Ooh, this is going to be good.”, Jackie grins.

“...I have. Not romantically or anything! It was a dare in 9th grade and people thought it was fun to make best friends kiss.”, Arielle reluctantly replies, quickly comes to her defense. Nevertheless, everyone teases her until Arielle tells them that he’s engaged and a soon-to-be dad.

“Okay, okay! We’ll stop.”

Not wanting to get back to the previous topic, Arielle spins the bottle. It stops at Phoebe. She smiles mischievously knowing exactly what to ask.

“So Phoebe...who would you go on a date with here?” Simultaneously, Phoebe and Elijah both blush as their eyes accidentally lock.

“Ooh, I think we already know the answer…”, Jackie says. But before Arielle can tease them anymore, a delicious mouthwatering scent interrupts her.

“Dinner is served. Or at least the first course.”, Liam says. Plates of bruschetta, glasses of wine, and different bread baskets are set in front of the gang.

“Oh wow…

“This smells amazing!”

“You’re right about that!”

“I hope everything is to your liking. I’ll be back in 20 minutes with your main courses.”, Liam says.

Everyone digs in, enjoying the peace for a few minutes until Kyra pipes up, “So I’ve been meaning to ask. How did you guys even find us?!”

“So here’s how it started...”

Bryce’s PoV (a few hours back):-

”Guys, I know this hurts but those girls are all smart-asses and we’re never going to find them cause they’re going to hide in some place that we won’t step foot in.”, you say.

“Then why did you ask us to play the game?”, Raf asks.

“Cause if we find that place, we’ll be able to give them a dare.”, you reply.

“We only have 10 minutes.”, Danny says.

“What if we look up all the stores and see which ones fit our category?”, Elijah says.

“Great idea dude!”, you reply as he pulls up the mall’s list of stores on his phone.

“Hmm, what about the spa? Or the nail salon?”, Danny asks as he looks over the list.

“Those should be good places.”, Elijah says.

“How much time left is there?”, Raf asks.

“There’s still 3 minutes.”, you reply.

“Meanwhile, check out which floor they’re on. We don’t want to waste time searching.”, Landry says

“Got it, there’s a spa on the ground floor a little towards the escalator and the salon’s on the fifth floor towards the back of the mall.”, Elijah says.

“Great, 10 minutes are over. Let’s go boys.”, you say as you rush to the mall.

Soon you and the boys are split into two groups, Elijah, Danny and Landry go to the spa while you and Rafael are searching Sephora’s aisles for any sign of the girls.

“Remind me again why we’re here Raf?”, you ask.

“I mean, girls always spend hours at Sephora. And I’ve never stepped foot in one so…”, he replies.

“You’re right about that. I mean did you see the looks of the employees when we actually started to ‘browse products’?!”, you add laughing.

“Damn it! They’re not here!”, you say.

“The others didn’t have any luck either.”, Raf says as he flashes the text in front of you.

“Uhh...okay. Tell them to meet us on the fifth floor.”, you say as you rush to the escalator. After a very quick ride on the escalator (consisting of parents shouting at you for running) you meet the guys at the top.

“No sign of the girls, Bryce. They have to be in the salon.”, Elijah says.

“Then let’s go.” After a thorough search of the store along with scoldings from rude women, you’re finally kicked out by a store employee.

“I don’t want to see you five ever again. Or else I’m complaining!”, she says as she drags you out.”

“Now what are we going to do?”, Elijah asks.

“I’m not doing a dare!”, Landry says.

“Guys think! Where else would the girls hide?”, you ask.

“I don’t know, these are the only stores I can think of.”, Raf says. You look around in exasperation when a certain pink striped bag catches your attention. Taking a few steps back, you look around the mall until you spot the damn store. The boys notice your look. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”, you ask. Their faces all have surprised looks.

“Of course! That’s the only place they would hide!”

You all run to the sixth floor when suddenly Landry stops you all. “Look, Arielle’s standing there!”

“Of course Elle has some plan.”, you think.

“We need to sneak up on them.”, Danny says.

“But how? Arielle definitely will see us.”, Raf says.

“There’s only one more minute left! We’ve got to do this now!”, Landry exclaims.

“That’s it! I bet that Ari will go inside when there’s only a little time left. We’ll have to sneak up on them then.”, Elijah excitedly says.

“Damn Elijah, I like your idea even better. The girls will think that they’ve won.”, you say.

“What about the dare?”, Raf asks.

You smirk deviously. “I’ll tell you when the time comes. Now let’s go give those girls a heart attack.”

Arielle’s PoV:-

“Damn, that was some smart-ass thinking.”, you say.

“Although it might have hurt Bryce’s ego to call us all smart-asses.”, Kyra jokes.

“Not might. It definitely would have hurt!”, Jackie says as you all erupt into laughter.

“What would have hurt?” You turn around to see Liam placing everyone’s pick in front of them.

“It’s a long story.”, you reply with a smile.

”Well, I look forward to hearing it. But I have a cake to decorate.”, he says winking at Jackie.

“I still don’t believe you, Arielle. Like not even a middle school crush?”, Bryce says as he takes a bite.

“Ugh...why are you so annoying!”, you playfully hit him.

“Okay, now all of you be quiet. Food like this deserves all the attention.”, Sienna says. Everyone only nods as they finish off their plates. Another 30 minutes later, you all are stuffed and talking about being stuffed.

“Ohh my god, I’m sooo full…”, you say.

“Seconded.”, Bryce says.

“Yep, Me too.”, Elijah says.

“Well, that’s too bad. I make a mean cake.” Liam says as he brings a huge three-tiered cake with a bunch of candles.

“Ahh! Look at all those cute fondant decorations!”, Sienna chirps.

“Pink?”, Jackie asks.

“Trust me, you’ll like it.”, Liam says with a smirk. He hands you the candles as he sets the plates and serving tools down then heads back.

“Aand...that’s the last one!”, Phoebe says as she places the candle in the frosting.

“Wait, Wait, Wait! We need to take a picture.”, Danny says. He and Sienna quickly position everyone for the photo as Bryce sets up a table for the camera. You, Kyra, Sienna, and Phoebe stand in the front as the boys stand in the back. Jackie sits in the middle on a stool.

“Guys, are you ready? I’ve only set the camera for thirty seconds!” Bryce says.

“Okay, 3...2...1!” Bryce quickly runs towards you and squeezes behind you. All of you pose as the camera flashes after a few seconds. You all rush to check it to find it perfect.

 “...I think that’s the first time that the first picture has come out amazing.” Everyone laughs in agreement. 

 “Okay, now let’s take a few more and then cut the cake!”, Sienna says. After a few more pics Jackie stands behind the impressive three-tiered cake, ready to cut into it. Sienna snaps a picture after lighting the candles as you all count down. 

“5...4...3...2...1!” Everyone erupts into applause and laughter as Jackie blows out the 28 candles cuts the cake. “Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, happy birthday, happy birthday to Jackie!” 

“Now, everyone knows that whoever you feed the first piece of cake is who you love the most!”, Bryce playfully says. Jackie suddenly pushes a piece of cake in your mouth, smearing your lips with frosting. Sienna snaps another pic. 

 “Wha- Heyy!”, you say, mouth full of cake. You take a piece of cake and return the favor, but not before smearing it on her cheek. 

“OH MY GOD! THE DAMN CAKE IS DRENCHED IN BOURBON! OKAY, THIS IS THE BEST BIRTHDAY CAKE EVER”, Jackie yells. You laugh. 

“It’s Mark’s special cake. He makes a sponge chocolate cake and after decorating it, he uses a syringe to fill the cake with alcohol.”, you reply as everyone gets more eager to taste the cake, As Sienna takes pictures and shows then to everyone, Jackie feeds everyone a small bite of cake.

 “Oh damn, that’s good!” “Wow…” “Yummy!” A few minutes later, your phone chimes with a notification for Instagram. You open it to see Jackie’s latest posts.

“ZAID’S ON INSTAGRAM?”, you shout.

 “I know right?!”, Kyra says. 

“Never thought that he would comment.”, Jackie says. 

With Jackie distracted, Bryce takes this opportunity to smear a lot of frosting on her face. “Bryce! I’ll make you pay for his, dumbass! And Sienna, delete that damn picture!”, Jackie shouts playfully as she heads towards the bathroom.

 “I’ll go help her.”, Kyra says following her. 

“Sienna quick! Get the gift basket!”, Bryce says.

 You look at him, raising an eyebrow. “What? You thought I did that for fun?” He flashes you this ridiculous smirk making all of you laugh. You hold the gift basket behind you as Jackie comes back.

 “You do know I have eyes right?”, Jackie says looking behind you. 

 “Well then...surprise!” You hand over the heavy gift basket with everyone else. 

“I’m looking at this tomorrow. I’m too drunk and too spoiled with surprises. Now, where’s that cake?!” After everyone gets a piece, you all indulge yourselves in the rich chocolatey bourbon filled cake as the night dwells on.

 “Okayyy...I think it’s time we all head home.”, Kyra says.

 “Mhm…”, you agree as you stretch. “I think we all agree.”, Jackie says. Kyra, Rafael, Danny, and Bryce all leave in a cab after saying their goodbyes.

 “You guys take a cab. I’ll be there a little while later.”, you say. Everyone leaves leaving just you to take in the beautiful view of downtown Boston. 

“Thought I’d find you here.” You swivel around to find Liam looking at you. 

“What do you mean?”, you ask quizzically.

 “I’ve been your best friend since middle school. I know you better than yourself and I certainly know when something’s wrong.” 

 You sigh. “Is it that obvious?” 

 He nods. “You don’t have to tell me right now.” 

“I know. I just don’t feel like ruining a perfectly good day.”, you say.

 “Why don’t we head to my place? I’ll put on Grey’s and you can lecture me on all the medically incorrect terms.”, he says with a smile.

 “I don’t know, I have work tomorrow…”, you say.

 “Last time I checked, nothing stops you.”

 “Fine, let’s go. But can we take my car? And can you drive? I’m drunk.”, you blurt out.

Liam chuckles, “I can tell genius, come on.” After a quick ride, you find yourself in a sleek and elegantly furnished three-bedroom apartment.

 “Nice decor.” 

“I’ve always had nice taste.”You snort. “Do I need to remind you that I helped you redo your room before high school?”

 “I knowwww…”

 “Yep, you’re drunk alright. Ava should have some clothes in there, take whatever you need.”

 “You sure she won’t mind? And where is she, by the way? It’s been so long since I saw her.”, you ask.

 “She’ll tell you herself in the morning. You do remember that you both wore each other’s clothes in high school?” 

 “Ohh yeah, I remember alright. I practically lived in her room during all of our tests.”, you say as you head into the room he pointed to. After finding a pair of sweats, you change into them. Heading out, you see Liam having laid out a few snacks for himself, water for you, and some throw blankets and pillows. You flop on the cushions and cover yourself with a fuzzy blanket. “What season?” 

“Whatever you want. All of them have some kind of inaccuracy.” 

 He laughs. “I forgot how you drag your words and become painfully straightforward when you become when you’re drunk.”

 “Nooooo...that’s not me!”, you say sarcastically. 

He plays the pilot episode. “You know, I feel like I can kind of relate to Meredith.”, you say.

 Liam gives you an incredulous look. “Not in the mood to explain.” You try to focus on Derek and Meredith’s banter but your eyelids are droopy. Lastly, all you can see is Liam tucking a pillow under your head as sleep overtakes you. 

Part 1 of taglist:- @kaavyaethanramsey @rookie-ramsey @caseyvalentineramsey @hopelessromantics4life @realmrsramsey @mysticaurathings @binny1985 @maurine07 @alina-yol-ramsey @helloitsthiv @tsrookie @arcticlumineer @mary-c92 @sad-satan-herself @whippedforethanfreakingramsey @archxxronrookie @ethansrookie02 @semanticsandsea-lemons @mrandmrsramsey @nikki-2406 @deepikakkannan @siaramsey @katkart122 @openheartthot @imonlybibecauseofethanramsey @akshara16 @luvevelynclaire @literaryexpress @miss-smrxtiee @nadeen-ahmed11 @mrsalanrickman394 @drstellavalentine @ethandaddyramseyx @annekebbphotography @custaroonie @ladyrileybrooks @robbies-sutcliffe @cralinedp @bladesofopenheart @ezekielbhandarivalleros @daddyethanramsey @romewritingshop @lilyvalentine @xpandabeardontcarex @in-love-with-a-trans-girl @coastalengineer @starrystarrytrouble @clowneryme

[mldrgrl]

prompt: Mulder and Scully being competitive with each other over silly things - Jeopardy? solving the case before the end of an episode of some sort of forensic crime show? how many slices of pizza they can eat? a board game? etc.

Loved this one, Anon, thank you so much.  And I was in the mood to whip up something humorous.  Went to sleep last night thinking about it.

Half and Half

by: mldrgrl Rating: PG

“I’m dying to get out of this suit,” Scully says.  “Give me ten minutes and then we can go through the report?”

“I’ll leave the connecting door unlocked,” Mulder says as they exit their rental car and head to the doors to their rooms.  “Come over when you’re done and we’ll order in.”

She sighs in relief as she kicks off her heels at the door.  She tosses her blazer to the side, unbuttons her shirt, and loosens her skirt.  She clips her hair back, washes her face, and changes into a pair of sweats and a t-shirt.

File folders under her arm, she taps lightly on the connecting door before she pushes it open.  Mulder is sitting at the edge of the bed, tie off and buttons undone at the neck.  His shirtsleeves are rolled up and he’s yelling at the TV.

“What is Mork & Mindy!” he yells.  “Mork and Mindy, you idiots.  Everyone knows ‘nanu nanu.’”

“We were looking for, ‘What is Mork & Mindy?’” Alex Trebeck says.

“Obviously,” Mulder says.  “How did you people even get on the show?”

“What are you doing?” Scully asks.

“Playing Jeopardy.”

“TV Catchphrases for $400, Alex.”

“Book ‘em, Danno.”

“What is Hawaii 5-0,” Mulder yells, just as Scully says, “Hawaii 5-0.”

Mulder makes the sound of a buzzer.  “You have to answer in the form of a question, Scully, or it doesn’t count.”

“I still knew the answer.”

“You mean, the question.”

“Do you want to debate the semantics of Jeopardy or go over the reports?”

“Sure, sure.”

“Let’s try Shakespeare Who Said it? for $200.”

“Double double, toil and trouble.”

“Who are the witches?” Mulder answers.

“Who are the three witches of Macbeth,” Scully says at the same time.

“Who is Macbeth?” answers the first contestant to ring in.

“Oh, come on,” Scully says.  “You can’t be that dumb.”

“Right?”

“Not quite what we’re looking for,” Alex answers.  Finally, the second contestant answers correctly.

“Shakespeare Who Said It for $300.”

“I prithee daughter do not make me mad.”

“Baptista, maybe,” Mulder answers.  “Who is Baptista?”

“No, who is King Lear?” Scully disagrees.

“Who is King Lear?”

“Who is, King Lear.  Act 2, scene 4, referring to Goneril.  And that will lead us to our first commercial break.  More to come after these words from our sponsors.”

“I should’ve known that one,” Mulder says, scooting over to make room for Scully on the bed.  “$600 to $500, I’m winning.”

“How do you figure that?”

“You lost Hawaii 5-0 to incorrect phrasing.”

“You didn’t establish the rules.  $600 to $900, I’m winning.”

“I didn’t have to establish anything, those are the inherent rules of Jeopardy.  Everybody knows that.”

“Mulder, I’m here to go over these reports,” Scully answers, holding up the file folders that have been tucked under her arm the whole time.  She is still standing.

“How about a little wager?”

“On what?”

“Winner orders the pizza of their choice, loser pays.”

“Come on, Mulder.”

“You don’t think you can beat me?”

“No, I know I can beat you.  I just want to get this review done so I can go to bed.”

“Scully, it’s 7 o’clock.  The review can wait.  Unless you’re just chicken.”

“Very mature.”

“Triple dog dare you?”

Scully held her hand out as though to shake Mulder’s.  “We start with a clean slate going in from the commercial and we make our own wagers on Double Jeopardy questions.”

“I’ll keep score!”  Mulder leaves Scully’s handshake hanging in the breeze and jumps up to grab the complimentary pad of paper and pen on the motel desk, which she snatches from him as soon as he comes back to sit down.

“I’ll keep score,” she says.

“You are the math geek.”

They sit through contestant bios and Alex Trebek’s vaguely sarcastic comments on the tidbits they’ve chosen to share with the audience.  When the game starts back up again, there are two answers left in Shakespeare Who Said It? and every answer available in Civil War Nicknames, The Old West, and American Folklore.

Unsurprisingly, Mulder dominates the folklore category, but they tie for two answers.  They both struggle with The Old West more than Civil War Nicknames, but the answers there are easier to decipher within the clues.  Mulder is up $700 when the first Daily Double comes up in The Old West.

“$200,” Scully says.  “I already don’t even want to know the answer.”

“$500,” Mulder answers.  

“Suffering from tuberculosis and alcoholism, this dentist turned gunslinger died in a sanitarium at the age of 36.”

“Who is Doc Holliday,” Scully answers.

“Who is Bat Master..dammit!” Mulder replies just a beat behind her.

“You should’ve known that one.”

“It was the first thing that popped into my head.  What’s the damage?”

“We’re tied.”

“All right, next round, it’s getting serious.”

“Prepare to pay for a large vegetarian with extra olives.”

“Ugh, vegetables on pizza is the antithesis to the point of pizza.”

“And what is the point of pizza?”

“All the pepperoni you can handle and then add in some sausage for good measure.”

“You’re a heart attack waiting to happen, Mulder.  When was the last time you had your cholesterol checked?”

“In May, actually.  Fit as a fiddle.  Here we go, round 2.”

“...categories are: Before & After, Science, Word Origins, Potpourri, The Body Human, and finally, Astronomy. ”

The contestants seem fixated on Potpourri and Before & After, to Mulder’s relief.  He isn’t ready for Scully to completely smoke him in the Science and The Body Human categories.  He figures if he can do well enough in the first two, he might be able to hold firm and maybe they might get to Astronomy where he can make a comeback.  Sure enough, she responds so quickly in the first two Science answers he can’t even get a word out.

“Born this year, a sheep named this introduced the world to cloning.”

“Dolly!” Mulder yells, too excited about knowing a Science question he forgets to phrase it properly.

“Who is Dolly,” Scully corrects.

“Dammit!”

“Your rules.”

“I know, I know.  Still, dammit.”

Blessedly, the contestants leave Science and migrate to Astronomy and since the first answer is the planet nicknamed The Red Planet, a Jeopardy equivalent of low-hanging fruit, they stick with it.  The first Daily Double of the 2nd round hits them at the $800 question in Astronomy.

“I’m up by $1,600,” Scully says.  “You have $3,900.”

“I’m going to make it a true Daily Double.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“$600,” Scully says, after a few moments hesitation.

Mulder worries his bottom lip with his teeth and waits for the answer to come.

“This spiral galaxy is named for an Ethiopian princess in Greek Mythology.”

“What is Andromeda!” They both yell.

Mulder realizes he’s sweating after the last question and even though it paid off, he vows not to make that kind of gamble again.  Scully berates herself for not being more confident in her astronomy knowledge as she now trails Mulder by $1,700, which may or may not be easy to recover from.

Time runs out before all the clues are revealed and the 2nd Daily Double is never found.  By final Jeopardy, they’re nearly neck and neck, with Mulder at $9,100 and Scully at $8,500.

“The final category is: Computers.”

“Good thing The Gunmen aren’t here,” Mulder says.  “Gimme one of those sheets of paper and we can write our wagers and guesses like the others.”

Scully rips off a piece of paper and they both take nearly all of the commercial break to come up with their wagers.  Scully folds her paper in half with the wager face down.  Mulder turns his over and places it on the bed.

“And here we go with the final answer.  Born in 1815, this daughter of a famous poet published an algorithm for a mechanical calculator and is believed by some to be the first ever computer programmer.”

Mulder writes his answer immediately and Scully taps her pen against her teeth as the final Jeopardy music winds down.  She finally picks up her paper and memorializes her guess before the final note.

“Whatcha got?” Mulder asks.

“I want to see their answers first,” Scully replies.

Mulder bounces his knee in anticipation.  The contestant in 3rd place answers incorrectly with Dora Wordsworth, but only wagered $1.

“I hate when they do that,” Scully says.  “It’s not The Price is Right.”

“Listen, if the category was Nuclear Physics, I might only be waging $1 as well.”

“Too bad it wasn’t.”

The contestant in 2nd place also answers incorrectly with “Who is ____?” and ends up with $4500.  Mulder shakes his head.

“At least put something,” he says.

“Seriously,” Scully agrees.

“And now Judith, our three day champion, currently in the lead with $13,800.  What did she guess?  Who is Ada Lovelace?  Daughter of Lord Byron, known for her work on Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine, August Ada King, Countess of Lovelace, or Ada Lovelace.  And how much did Judith wager?  $7,000, bringing her three day total to $65,941.”

“Alright, Scully, moment of truth.”

“Count of three?” she asks.

“Is that one, two, reveal?  Or one, two, three, reveal?”

“One, two, reveal.”

“Okay.  One, two…”  

They both turn their papers around.  Both answered Who is Ada Lovelace?  They both grin.

“Frohike would be so tickled with your familiarity with the mother of computer programming,” Mulder says.  

“Yeah?  How does he feel about your familiarity with her?”

“Pretty jealous, actually.”

“What was your wager?”

Mulder turns over the paper again to show her.  “$3,000.  You?”

Scully bites her lip a little and then flips the fold of her paper for Mulder to see.  “$8,000.”

“$8,000!”

“Go big or go home, right?”

“Damn, Scully.  You’re a monster.  In a good way, obviously.  But, damn.  So, I guess that vegetarian is on me.”

“Extra olives.”

“With extra olives.”  He grimaces and gets up to grab the Yellow Pages in the nightstand.  

Scully opens up her file folders and begins sorting the reports for review across the end of Mulder’s bed as he searches for a pizza parlor.  He’s on the phone fairly quickly after browsing the phone book.

“Yes, I’d like to place an order for delivery,” Mulder says.  “A large.  Vegetarian.”

“Half vegetarian,” Scully interrupts without looking up.  “Half pepperoni and sausage.”

“Sorry, half vegetarian, half pepperoni and sausage.  Extra olives on the vegetarian side, please.  Yeah, I’ll hold.”  Mulder drops the phone to his shoulder while hold music plays and smiles slightly.  “Scully, you interested in a rematch tomorrow night?”

“Depends on how interested you are in buying another pizza.”

The End

[365days365movies]

January 29-31, 2021: The Mad Max Franchise

Now that I’ve finished watching all of the Mad Max films, I can confidently say that I am indeed a fan! The journeys of the ex-cop through a post-apocalyptic landscape that just gets increasingly worse and worse. Yeah, I can dig it.

And so, I thought it’d be fitting to talk about all of these movies at once, rather than just talk about them one at a time. And I mean ALL of these movies. After all, I started this month by saying the Fury Road was my favorite action film; might as well end it talking about the movie!

Recap

Mad Max: 78%

Mad Max was a great movie, honestly. It’s also HANDS-DOWN the weakest of the quadrilogy. I think that, since this is Miller’s first film, as well as being the first in this franchise in general, this is Miller carving out this universe on screen for the first time, so it doesn’t feel as fleshed out and as stylistically unique as the succeeding films. So, it’s hard to hold that against this film. Anyway, let’s break it down a little.

Cast and Acting: It’s legitimately nice to see Mel Gibson before he became...well, Mel Gibson, at least from a cinematic standpoint. And yes, Hugh Keays-Byrne is certainly memorable as Toecutter, and is a fitting first villain to the franchise. But, uh...that’s it for standout performances. Yeah, Joanne Samuel is endearing as Jess, and I like Steve Bisley as Goose, of course. But they don’t take the spotlight in my memory as much as our main two players. Which, obviously, is fine, but I like me a good supporting character in there as well. Still, this is getting a good 8/10 from me.

Plot and Writing: Plot’s you’re pretty standard cop story. Cop is awesome, cop wants to quit to spend time with family, cop’s family is killed by the villain, cop destroys villain. Not much outside of that. The biggest thing to praise to story for is the mild universe-building given to us. And even then, there isn’t a whole lot. Not, of course, that there needs to be. Credit goes to George Miller, Byron Kennedy, and James McCausland for this 7/10.

Directing and Action: George Miller’s cutting his teeth on the celluloid for the first time, and it’s awesome...for a first-time director, anyway. As for the action: yes, please. It doesn’t have the same pageant s future entries in this franchise, but it’s certainly great at the same time. Overall, 8/10 here.

Production and Art Design: It’s beginning, even though it’s not there yet. This universe hasn’t become the post-apocalyptic hellscape that it’s going to become, but the beginnings are there. Because of this, leather might be a dominating fashion choice, but...not as much as its gonna be. But, OK, let’s stop comparing this to the rest of the franchise. On its own merits, this film looks good! Doesn’t stand out too harshly from the crowd, but it still looks quite good. So, 8/10 here, too!

Music and Editing: Tony Patterson and, yes, George Miller were the editors for this mad boy, and they sought to make an Australian film with a fast-editing style, and in a way that the film could work without sound, as well as with. They way they incorporated sound and music (by Brian May, but not the one you’re thinking) into the film would actually be incorporated as industry standard practice in general! Wow! So for all that...8/10. It’s good, but this is early in their careers, so it can be a teensy bt choppy at time. And the music’s recognizable, but not particularly memorable after the fact. But still, 8/10.

Mad Max 2 AKA The Road Warrior: 92%

This is where I start to fall in love with the franchise. The Road Warrior is where the franchise really begins for me, and it’s EXTREMELY high up on my favorite action films list for this month. Obviously not the highest, but it’s up there for sure.

Cast and Acting: Gibson’s starting to come into his own and own this character, and I think this film is where he’s at his finest as Max. Definitely the most memorable and noteworthy. Antagonists, both Vernon Wells and Wez, and Kjell Nilsson as Lord Humungus, are fanTAStic, and I love them both. Supporting cast also ain’t no slouch this time! Bruce Spence’s Gyro is a wonderful character, and extremely fun to watch. Even the settlers, like Michael Preston’s noble portrayal of Papagallo, were memorable to me. Great cast all around, and they’re getting a 9/10 from me. Why not a 10? Well, for all of those performances, there’s also Feral Kid and Toadie...so, it’s not perfect

Plot and Writing: Plot’s definitely more interesting this time around! We’ve gone into the deep end of apocalypse, as compared to the first film, and we instead get an enforcer storyline for Max. And, yeah, I love that. This movie would carve out the tone of the rest of the franchise, and there’s a reason for that: it’s great. Terry Hayes, Brian Hannant, and of course, George Miller, you guys get a 9/10 for this one, too!

Directing and Action: Right off the bat 10/10. Action is AMAZING IN THIS MOVIE, and George Miller is doing a great job with directing. Not much to say here, other than the fact that this movie looks fantastic, all the way through.

Production and Art Design: A 9/10. This is where the franchise comes into its own, and it does that with a HELL of a lot of leather and metal studs. And yeah, the villains of this movie have a BDSM vibe about them, but it’s still iconic. Not to mention that the vehicles are now taking their true, metal-modded forms. Again, 9/10.

Music and Editing: Brian May turned it UP this time, and the music here is iconic and great. Editing’s pretty good, too, although I did notice some spotty sound editing areas, like in Mad Max. For this one, 9/10 as well.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome: 86%

I honestly wish this was rated higher for me, but there are a few issues that I did have with it. However, I gotta say, this one might be the second-highest in my heart. You know what the number one is. Still, I wanna talk about this one, because it’s what made be fall in love with the universe of this franchise.

Cast and Acting: By the time we get here, Mel Gibson is, well...Mel Gibson. He kind of stops inhabiting the role of Max at this point, and becomes the ‘80s and ‘90s action star that we’re all familiar with. So instead, the focus should be on the villains. Tina Turner! WHOOOOOO, Aunty Entity! Look, I love Lord Humungus, but Tina Turner definitely beats him in terms of character. And I might like Wez, but I love MasterBlaster, and...well, mostly Angelo Rossitto. Paul Larsson’s good too, even though there isn’t much acting in the role. And then, there’s Helen Buday, Tom Jennings, and the rest of the desert kids. And let’s not forget Bruce Spence or Edwin Hodgeman! Yeah, this one earns its 9/10 for some memorable performances. Might not have been Oscar-worthy, but they have a special place in my heart.

Plot and Writing: Intricate plot this time! It does seem like George Miller and Terry Hayes get better and better with each movie. Real talk, the universe-building in this one is INTENSE, and well-done for that matter. And the writing’s good as well. This one gets another 8/10, because it’s not perfect in the writing department, but it’s still damn good!

Directing and Action: Y’know, weirdly, 8/10 on this one. Yeah, the action’s pretty damn light here, as compared to the previous two films. Not that I’m complaining, mind you, I love me some good character development and story. But if I’m judging it for action, it’s a bit less. Still, direction’s fantastic; definitely George Miller’s best effort so far. So, 8/10.

Production and Art Design: No surprise, but it’s a 10/10 here. The style of these films is evolve WAY FURTHER with this one, as we get the sense that the world has gotten worse, just by pure physical comparison. And yet, everything is starting to return to some kind of rudimentary order, with places such as Bartertown. Yeah, this one RULES visually, and I would say it’s arguably the best yet.

Music and Editing: Well, music’s still good, but the tone shift from rock instrumentals is a little jarring. Still, for the score, Maurice Jarre does good. And, yeah, Turner’s power ballad, “We Don’t Need Another Hero”, is more well-remembered than the movie itself by many. Hell, I had NO IDEA that this song came from this movie. But for all of that (and for great editing), an 8/10 is going here.

Mad Max Fury Road: 94%

Need I say anything? Let’s get into this one.

Cast and Acting: Well, Tom Hardy’s Max Rocktansky is fine, and definitely takes off of Gibson’s earlier portrayals, but I can’t really say he’s the absolute star. No, that’s the Atomic Blonde herself, Charlize Theron. Furiosa is FAR more memorable than Max here, and that’s pretty obviously on purpose. And hey, Hugh Keays-Byrne is back for a FAR more memorable villain in Immortan Joe. GOD, I love Joe; he’s great. And again, supporting cast aren’t slouching a BIT. Nicholas Hoult, Rose Huntington-Whiteley, and of course...iOTA. You know, the Doof Warrior. Yeah. The dude who plays the blind flamethrower guitarist on the back of a truck is called the Doof Warrior, and is played by a dude who calls himself iOTA. I LOVE THIS GODDAMN MOVIE. 10/10!

Plot and Writing: OK, I’l freely admit that this is the weakest element of an otherwise amazing movie. Because, yeah, it’s basically one long chase with some background plot. Not bad, but not great at the same time. While it’s certainly engaging, and the writing is overly memorable, I’m still giving this one an 8/10.

Directing and Action: I mean...c’mon. 10/10.

Production and Art Design: I mean...COME ON. 10/10!

Music and Editing: MUUUUUUSIC. Junkie XL is the composer this time, and he’s put to excellent usage. Yeah, this is the most memorable music in the franchise, bar none. And the editing is also great, as per usual. While it’s not on my playlist (yet), it deserves to be, just for pump-up music. Although, if I listen to that while driving...eh, maybe not. 9/10!

And the winner is Mad Max Fury Road, at a...94%.

Wait...94%? OH. OH NO.

That means...it’s been dethroned? I, uh...I’m gonna have to figure that out. End-of-month summary?

End-of-month summary. See you later today, people.

[a-forlorn-soul]

Prompt #2: Defying Tradition

Prompt #2: Aberrant

Character: Suki Akagane (Akihide’s mother)

Time: Past

Night had fallen on the world above by the time she started to sneak in through one of the openings in the protective dome of Sui-no-Sato. If all went according to plan everyone would think she had gone pearl diving instead of what she had actually done. Her amber eyes shifted over the area before moving to try and hide in the shadows of the buildings. Though this was easier said than done since her scales were a unique and bright pearl like coloring. It made her stand out far too much. Not that she cared, she was going to do as she pleased regardless.

“Suki!” came a harsh shout from one of the nearby buildings.

Swearing under her breath the raen came to a stop to look over at who had just called her name. She already knew who it was, but the sight of one of the guards made her flinch. Now she had to talk quickly before they found out the truth.

“Oh Kage! I didn’t see you there. I hadn’t heard that they put you on the night patrol,” she quickly and easily stated without batting an eye like nothing was wrong.

“That’s because we know better than to tell you those things Suki.”

“Well that is rather rude, keeping secrets like that,” she pouted, hoping to keep deflecting, “Oh well, if you’d excuse me it was a long die pearl di-”

“You and I both know that is not what you were doing Suki,” the man quickly interrupted her as he moved closer.

She was suddenly aware that other eyes were on her as well. From the shadows several more of the Sui-no-Sato guards moved in on her to block off any means of escape. Something was wrong, true she was known to break rules but nothing had ever gotten to the point where it would seem they would take her into custody like this. It just didn’t happen at all, especially since it meant getting an audience with the Ruby Princess.

“What is going on Kage?” she demanded in a heated tone.

“Suki, by order of the Ruby Princess you are called before her royal highness for the crime of treason,” the man stated in a firm tone, “Please do not make us use force Suki.”

A sigh escaped her lips as she saw no other choice. She didn’t want to fight her friends, nor make any trouble for her family. Now surrounded by guards she made her way back to the opening in the dome. From there they swam in silence all the way out to the palace in which the Princess resided.

Down in the depths of the Turquoise Trench another dome came into view housing an ethereal like palace where the Ruby Princess ruled Sui-no-Sato from. Even at a time like this Suki couldn’t help but feel the awe such a sight always inspired. It was the proof of their people’s abilities when they put their minds towards a common task, and a reminder that since the creation of this palace and their village that they have yet to do anything like it ever again.

All too soon she was brought to the audience chambers of the Ruby Princess, who sat upon her throne with her guards and advisors around her. From where she knelt in respect Suki could have swore there was regret and dismay on the woman’s face. Perhaps she didn’t agree with this whole thing? Such a thought caused her hopes to soar that it would all just be dismissed.

“Akagane no Suki, you are brought before our benevolent Princess under the charges of Treason. You have knowingly and flagrantly disobeyed our laws, defiled our traditions, and put the safety of Sui-no-Sato in peril because of your insistence on interacting with the surface dwellers,” announced one of the advisors, whose face was the epitome of disapproving, “Were it in my powers I would have you flogged until death for such a transgression. Ho-

“However, it is my word that shall determine her punishment not yours,” the Ruby Princess stated in a commanding tone, forcing the advisor to bow in difference. Once he shuffled off to the side the Princess turned her attention back to Suki. “Suki. You are a kind and gentle soul. Grave as these charges are I find it hard to believe that this was out of any maliciousness. Why do you continue to put all we have achieved at risk?”

Taking a deep breath Suki stood and looked at the Ruby Princess. This was the only chance she was going to get to fight her case it seemed. Well, fight her case for the last time anyroad.

“My Princess… I do not do it out of ill will, of that I assure you,” she started, “But we see our way of things differently it seems. Our people have achieved much to create this sanctuary, but we stopped there. While we remain still forever those above continue to move forward. It will not be long before they learn of us, the things they build and create will see to that. We must reach out to them before that happens, learn of their ways to ensure no wars are fought between us and them. Not to mention much of what they are doing would make life easier for our people.”

“Such nonsense!”

“Nothing the surface dwellers do is significant to us!”

“Their ways are an insult to the Kami!”

“We have no need for their help!”

The outcries from her advisors and several of the guards filled the room almost immediately. It was as she had worried, no one seemed to give it any thought. There was no way, in their minds, that the surface had anything worth considering. This went on for a few moments until the Ruby Princess calmed them down.

“Enough!” she shouted, “Suki, your heart is in the right place even if your thoughts are misguided. As such I will not subject you to the usual punishment for Treason.”

Suki sighed in relief until the Princess added more onto that. “However, For violating our laws and ignoring our traditions I have no choice but to banish you from Sui-no-Sate,” she declared, and had to hold her hand up at the outcries from her advisors, “In addition, in order to protect our secrecy and ensure you cannot tell another our existence you shall also lose your voice.”

The raen’s eyes went wide as tears started to form in them. Banishment was one thing, though she loved her home she would be content on the surface too. But to lose her voice? The thought terrified her as she started to shake. None of that appeared to matter to the guards though, as they moved to start dragging her off. Her fate was sealed, never again would she see or speak of Sui-no-Sato.

[ethelphantom]

Form A Family Of Our Own

Just silliness and fluff and lots of romance and attempts at humour here, and absolutely no angst. You’re welcome! It’s a continuation to the Timari Soulmates Secret Santa I created for @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry, though I’m just skipping things in the chronological order (aka the BartAdrien reveal but we all knew that was going to happen so it’s fine. This is also my Maribat March day 9, Sleepover at the same time. Have fun!

Ao3 | Part 1 | Part 2

This is Maribat -- don’t like; don’t read

_____________________

“Does everyone have everything they need? No one needs to use Mari to use the puppy eyes to get Dick to go to the store?”

Marinette laughed at Tim’s words while the others shook their heads. They had checked they had everything at least thrice already, it wasn’t going to change no matter how many times he wanted them to make sure of it. When Tim still didn’t look convinced, Marinette simply grabbed his wrist and stroked the skin with her thumb to help him calm down, just like he sometimes did for her.

After all, touching your soulmate’s mark would always be a comforting feeling.

Tim’s shoulders slumped a little as he relaxed before he turned to her and smiled gently. Marinette recognised this as a silent thank you, and so she beamed in response.

“Are we ready to ruin everyone else’s day now?” Conner then asked, leaning against the doorframe. He seemed to be trying to look relaxed and not in the least excited for this, but they all knew better, considering he seemed to be itching to go do just that.

“Oh yeah. I’ve got the cameras and the scavenger lists. Two teams of three, soulmates in the opposite—” Cassie began, but after she got the puppy face from both Bart and Adrien, she sighed in resignation. “Fine, soulmates in the same team. This is why I’m not supposed to look at either of them while giving orders. Damn it.”

Tim rolled his eyes. All of their friends were idiots (“Like you aren’t as well,” an accusing voice said in his head, and it was a bit concerning how much it sounded like Marinette), but they were also the best — Tim wouldn’t change them for the world.

“I love how the rule is supposed to be ‘no metas in Gotham’, but we’re getting like three metas and two that technically count as metas because Miraculous coming anyway to the home of the one that actually originally set said rule in place,” Adrien mused, remembering what he’d been told at some point after the reveal. And after they had already met Cassie.

Marinette let out an amused laugh. “Oh yeah. Anyway. Could someone please get our bags to the Manor so we can just start with the scavenger hunt?”

“On it!”

There was a flash as all their bags, Conner and Bart disappeared and Cassie took out a clock. She watched it tick for a few seconds before she lifted her gaze again to find her missing friends. “You’re slow. It took you two nearly ten seconds. We’re not even outside the city boundaries, boys.”

“Well, fuck you too, we were carrying five bags each because some of us don’t know how to pack small.”

Cassie simply flipped Conner off before she handed him a scavenger list. “You wanna be with Tim and Mari or Bart and Adrien? I’m fine with either one, just decide fast.”

“Bart. And Adrien, I guess.”

“HEY! ”

Idiots, the lot of them.

It didn’t take them long to sort out into teams and get to the centre of the city. Mari, Tim and Cassie stood on one side, looking down at the people that were all a lot taller than them. Mari cocked her hips and tilted her head, her dark blue sundress following the movement.

“Oh, you’re going down, Chaton.”

“I don’t think so, Buginette — I’m not sacrificing my win even if I’d sacrifice my life for you.”

“Okay, too far too soon, go away.”

Their lists were as followed:

Ask a cashier for the nutritional value of an inedible thing

Act like a stranger were famous and ask for their autograph

+1 if you can get them to take a picture with you

Offer a stranger a penny for their thoughts

Ask a stranger to sign your petition against the euthanasia of rabid puppies

+1 if you can get them to sign your palm

Lie in the grass next to a road and pretend to be making snow angels

Ask the opposite gender if they believe in fate

Ask a stranger where the closest local Christmas festival is

+1 if/when they say they don’t know, ask them how else do they appease the gods

Ask if you can get a discount on a thing that costs less than a dollar

+1 if you pronounce it horribly wrong

+1 if you buy the product with pennies

Ask a stranger if they have seen your cat and proceed to describe a full-grown tiger

Knock on someone’s door and sing them a Christmas song

+1 if the person is a stranger

+1 if you sing Frozen’s Let It Go after you’ve said you’re going to sing a Christmas song

Fake a cheesy proposal in a public place

Ask a cashier if dentists recommend using a toothbrush

Ask a cashier if they have healthy cigarettes

+1 if they say no, you yell “you’re lying” and run away dramatically

Ask a stranger if they can see anyone and point to an empty spot

“You’ve got two hours. The clock starts now,” Tim announced, set an alarm in their group chat so everyone would hear, and then they were all running to get things done.

❋❋❋

“Alright, Bart, go on. You’re the first.”

“You’re not allowed to complain if you wanted to do the same thing, then.”

“Remember, if it involves talking with someone, you can’t be going on your own pace, especially not with a civilian! The camera won’t be able to catch it!”

“Well, your cameras suck!”

With a blink, Bart was standing in front of a door and knocked on it. Adrien, who was right behind Kon, had to contain his laughter somehow because he knew that to Bart whoever lived there was taking ages, even if it was less than a minute — and thus bearable — to him.  

When the door was finally opened, Bart immediately started speaking. “Hello, are you interested in hearing Christmas carols?”

“...In the middle of the summer?”

“I know what I said.”

“Uh, no thank you. Have a nice day.”

Bart returned to them pouting. “They didn’t even give me a chance. I’m not that horrible of a singer,” he huffed, crossing his arms.

Adrien took Bart’s hand in his own and pressed a light kiss on his fingers. “Don’t worry, we still have plenty of time, and I doubt it was because of your singing voice. It’s just a weird thing to ask this time of the year. Try again.”

He did. Fortunately for Bart, the next-door neighbour opened their door much faster than the previous one.

“Hiya, are you interested in hearing Christmas carols?”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

“Well, I guess. Sure, go ahead.”

And then Bart proceeded to sing Let It Go off-key. The person listening to him even applauded his singing and gave him a candy (that Kon forced him to throw away or at least not eat until Tim could do a check up on it in case someone was trying to poison him or something. The Bat paranoia was getting to all of them.) It was fun.

“So, three points for us. That was a great start, Bart!” Adrien said, checking the boxes on the list. “You did film it, right Kon?”

“Obviously. I wouldn’t accidentally not. Hold the camera, Adrien. We’re going to a shop now and annoy the heck out of everyone. Tim is so not going to be happy when he realises some of us might get banned from the shop forever,” he snickered.

“I’m already feeling sorry for the employees.”

“At least we aren’t about to be assholes, really.”

“No, just weird as hell. Maybe they’ll get a story or two to tell others and discuss in the break room when they’re talking about the weirdest and worst customers they’ve had.”

“Do they really do that?”

“Oh yeah.”

“Damn.”

It didn’t take them too long to arrive at the store. Adrien and Bart went in first, pretending to be actually considering buying something when Kon came in and looked around for a moment. Then he walked to an unsuspecting employee. “Excuse me, do you have any of those clairvoyance foes? I was thinking of getting one.”

“I must ask you to repeat what you asked for, sir, I’m afraid I didn’t quite catch it,” the woman working said.

“It’s alright. I meant classical woes.”

“I’m so sorry, sir, I must say I don’t understand what exactly you mean by that.”

“Clarification folds, miss.”

“Oh, do you perhaps mean classification folders?”

“Yeah, that’s what I said.”

“...Of course, sir. Yes, we do have those. Do you want me to show you where they are, or would you like me to just point you in the correct direction, sir?”

“If you could show me where they are, that would be great.”

“Of course, sir. This way.”

The woman led him through the shop as Kon glanced behind himself and saw Adrien following them from a safe distance. Bart looked like he was practically vibrating, like he wanted to do something, but all he could do was jerking aborted movements. Actually, scratch that, he probably was vibrating. Of course.

“Here they are. Is there anything else I could help you with?”

“Is it possible to get a discount on these?”

“I— I’m afraid not, sir, but they’re only a dollar so…”

“That’s fine. Thank you for your help anyway.”

“It was no problem.”

Once the woman was gone, Adrien and Bart walked to him. “Oh my kwami, I pity her so much. I’m genuinely sorry she had to deal with you and I’m kind of considering going to find her and give her a tip for dealing with you,” Adrien snorted after he cut off the filming. “I don’t even care that’s not a custom in stores, I still want to do it.”

Bart laughed. “I’m gonna go do just that if you give me some money.”

Adrien did. He gave him twenty dollars. He could almost feel Wayzz shaking his head at the two of them even despite the fact Wayzz was with Marinette at the very moment.

“I hope you’re ready to keep recording cuz I ain’t done yet,” Kon said, earning an eye roll from Adrien.

“Sure. Let’s do this.”

Adrien kept his distance while they were walking to the checkout, Bart appearing next to him at some point. Adrien bumped his shoulder against Bart’s to express he knew he was there, the act soon returned. A smile made its way to his lips. They only started paying attention to what Kon was doing when they heard him speaking to the cashier.

“Excuse me, mister, but what is the nutritional value of this thing?”

“I’m sorry to inform you, but folders aren’t edible.”

“I am aware. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t have nutritional value.”

“I’m afraid I don’t know what it is, sir. I’d only be able to find out if they had given me a list, but unfortunately, they did not.”

“Oh, alright. Well, I’d like to purchase it anyway.”

“That makes one dollar.”

“Sure, wait a second.”

Kon pulled out his wallet and went through his money, counting it silently and quickly. Then he offered the cashier a handful of coins — all of them pennies. The disbelieving face on the cashier’s face, as he started counting, was miserable and a little sad to see, but no helping it now. Thankfully the product only cost a dollar, it didn’t take him that long to do it.

After paying, he went back to the end of the line, waited it, and asked the same person if they had healthy cigarettes. The cashier looked rather resigned at that point but stayed polite and told him that no, they didn’t have those because those didn’t really exist, and “are you sure you’re old enough in the first place?”

Kon gasped loudly. “You’re lying!” he yelled and ran dramatically out. The other customers didn’t even pay attention to him as if it was just another day. It probably was. This was Gotham, after all. Bart and Adrien made their way out behind him, slipping a twenty-dollar bill to the man behind the checkout and quickly apologised he had to deal with that, “please accept this.”

Then they were out and laughing, even if still feeling bad for doing it.

“Mari would kill me if she had to see that, honestly. She used to do this at their bakery and god, the stories she sometimes tells me,” Adrien said, shaking his head. “I hope that paying for them for suffering because of us was good enough. I don’t really know what else I could have done to compensate for having to deal with us.”

“No one does!” Bart told him before he snatched the camera from him. “Go on, your turn, Sunflower!”

The nickname was kind of fitting — blond hair and being a bit taller than Bart tended to do that. Adrien blushed a little at the pet name and then forced himself to get his thoughts back on the trail.

He buried his head in his hands before taking a look at the list. Then he grinned, getting a wonderful idea. Hopefully, he wouldn’t hurt anyone by doing it. If he was lucky (for once, considering he was the Bad Luck incarnated), he would end up finding someone who would ake it more as a joke.

Stopping someone who didn’t look like she was in any hurry, Adrien asked, “Excuse me, but do you believe in fate?”

“Yeah, I guess. Why?” she responded. Adrien visibly slumped in relief.

“Oh thank god.”

“...What is it.”

“My soulmate and I were just arguing about it a second ago and I needed a new opinion. Now I can tell him he’s very very wrong, and that we clearly belong together ”

The girl looked at him like he was a ghost. For a second, Adrien was afraid he’d hurt her feelings and was ready to apologise, but then she burst out laughing and doubled over.

“Oh my god. That’s wonderful and so hilarious! God, I was afraid you were about to flirt with me, dude, but that’s so much better. I wish you and your soulmate the best of luck. Buy him his favourite food, maybe he’ll then accept that you’re meant to be,” she said smiling and winked. Then she punched him lightly in the arm. “Go on, dude, your perfect happy ending is waiting for you!”

Adrien could feel a wide smile spread on his face. “Thanks, I will! You go get your happy ending as well, whether you’ll find it in a passion, person or a pet!” They exchanged numbers and names (her name was Zoanne, and Adrien had a feeling they’d become good friends over time), both excited about it, and parted in good spirits. Adrien waved to her as he walked to where Bart was staring at them.

Once he actually paid attention to how both Conner and Bart looked like (staring at him, Conner not even focusing on the camera), he tilted his head and arched his eyebrow. “What is it?”

“Dude.”

“What?”

“Duuuudde.”

“What?”

“Only you. Only you could make a friend while doing a scavenger hunt task and basically also pranking her. Wow.”

Adrien just shrugged. He wondered how the girls and Tim were doing.

❋❋❋

Tim was the only one of them who still had any sense of shame or embarrassment at this point (and they’d already completed most of the points on the list between the two young women), but he was determined to win and actually do something for the win as well so he wouldn’t be able to care. Soon enough, he was walking up to a stranger as Marinette was filming.

“Excuse me, miss, but have you seen my cat? She’s a sweetheart and I lost her when I was out with my friends.”

“Oh, you have a cat? I’m sorry, I don’t think so, but what does she look like? I could try to pay attention in hopes to see her later.”

“She’s a beautiful orange with white in her face, chest, belly and the underside of her tail, she’s about this tall,” he put his hand at about his waist, “and she’s got a lot of black stripes. Also, she’s a bit loud when she decides she wants to talk, but it’s not that bad.”

The woman backed off slowly as he was talking with a concerned look on her face. She was gone before Tim finished talking.

Marinette shook her head fondly and placed the camera in Tim’s hands as he returned. “Have fun trying not to laugh behind the camera!”

She wondered around like she was looking for something worriedly. When someone came to ask her what was wrong, she internally congratulated herself.

“Well, Monsieur, I was looking for the nearest local Christmas festival. Do you know where one might be?” she asked, looking innocently at him. “I really do need to find one, preferably close.”

“In July? Yeah, I don’t think I know where one would be at this time of the year.”

Marinette adopted a horrified expression on her face. “But— But— How do you appease the gods you might have angered, then?”

“The what?”

“The gods, obviously.”

“What gods?”

“Those,” she said and pointed behind the man. When the man turned around, he was greeted by the violet eyes of the fox god of mischief and trickery as well as the orange eyes of the pink tiger goddess of stealth and the brown eyes of the small but way too enthusiastic monkey god of jubilation. On any other occasion, she wouldn’t let civilians see kwamii, but this was an exception and she had Wayzz hide them from the view of every other person that didn’t know of their existence already, so it was fine. The most likely case was, the man would forget about meeting the kwamii or think of it as a hallucination of sorts later on.

When the man looked back to where Marinette had been, she was already gone. It was too much fun to mess with people a little bit. She knew the kwamii would be following her and perfectly capable of keeping themselves hidden when she told them so, so she didn’t worry about them.

Cassie snickered as Tim signed she was done filming. “That was amazing. I’ll go next!”

She walked to another stranger, Tim and Mari following her from a distance. Tim already had his camera recording. “Oh my god!” she gasped when she noticed a young person standing alone at the corner of a clothing shop. “It’s you! God, I never thought I’d meet you in real life!” When she ran to them and jumped a little as though she was excited, she also let out a squeal.

The person looked at her weirdly. “Excuse me? Have we met?”

“No, but now we have and it’s the most amazing thing! I’m such a huge fan. Can I please have your autograph? I want to show all my friends I met you!”

“Uhh…. Sure.”

Cassie handed them a piece of paper and a pen (which, where did she even get them?) and watched in anticipation as they wrote their name on it. Then she pulled out her phone. “Could I take a selfie with you? Please? I’m not going to put it all over the social media if you want to keep your whereabouts private, but I just want a picture.”

The person seemed to be already done with her, and probably guessed that this was the quickest way to get rid of her. They agreed and crouched a little to fit in the same picture easily. Cassie did a little peace sign, acting her role of an enthusiastic fan with all her heart. It took Tim and Mari their everything to keep from laughing.

When Cassie returned to them, flipping her hair, Tim handed her the camera. “Film this as closely as you can,” he said in passing and walked where there were as many people as possible, to the park nearby, Marinette and Cassie following in his wake. When Marinette was close enough, he made his way to her and swiped strands of hair behind her ear.

“Marinette, my dear, I love you more than anything in this world, you know that, right?” At Marinette’s slow but still a little confused nod, he continued. “I’ve thought about this long and hard, and I’ve decided I would like to take the next big step in our relationship,” he said loud enough for the people nearby to hear.  

“Every time I look in your eyes, I get a peaceful feeling. When I am around you, everything seems perfect. I promise that I will always be there for you in whatever you do and support you in ups and downs as long as I live. You give my life meaning and make it worth living. You’re the shoulder I can always trust to be there for me to lean on when I need it, you’re the one who I can always count on to be by my side. You were made for me, and I was made for you, and no matter what our souls are made of, mine and yours are the same.” Tim took a deep breath and looked at Marinette, whose eyes seemed to be glimmering as she bit her lip.

“In case you ever foolishly forget this one truth, let me declare it out loud for you, in front of all these people who are here to witness this: I am always thinking about you. I want to form a family of our own with you. Your words are written on my skin for the world to see who I belong to, a reminder for you should you ever doubt it. Feel free to doubt this world — doubt the stars are fire; Doubt that the Sun does move; doubt the truth to be a liar; But never doubt I love. I certainly have never had even a moment’s doubt of that. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life. You’re the answer to all those lonely prayers at night when I wished for someone to be there one day, and every day I thank God or Fate or whoever gave me you that you’re here now.”

By then Marinette was openly crying and she had covered her mouth with her hands, but Tim kept on going. He was not done, and he was determined to make this proposal the cheesiest he possibly could. As the CEO of Wayne Enterprises, people were bound to notice, and he only had one shot at it. “And I will love you against all odds in this world. Let me defy fate, let me defy stars. Let me defy everyone and anyone who may deny love, who may deny our love. Above all, you are my love, you are my stars, you’re my galaxy.” Tim lowered himself on the ground, now on one knee in front of his soulmate, his Marinette. He produced a ring box from his pocket and held it open for her. “So, as my best friend and the love of my life, will you be my one and only or my everything?”

“Are you— Is this for real?” Marinette whispered, tears glimmering on her eyelashes and staining her cheeks. Tim nodded, biting his lip. He knew it was one of the things on the scavenger list, so he hoped Marinette wouldn’t take this as only one of them.

Marinette swallowed and smiled brightly. “Yes!” she breathed out and fell on her knees next to Tim, not really caring if the action had her scrape her knees. Tim placed the ruby ring with a diamond halo on her ring finger and pressed a kiss on her fingers before Marinette lost her patience, cupped his face and kissed him on the lips.

When they broke apart, they could hear the cheering of the crowd. Tim looked to the side to Cassie who gave him a thumbs-up, the camera still in hand, probably recording as well. Bart, Conner, Adrien and the entire family, as well as Jagged and Penny, were all standing behind them. Thank god he’d half-planned this and told them to get themselves over there at a specific time and to stay behind Cassie so they wouldn’t bother or distract him.  

Adrien just ran to Marinette once they locked eyes and hugged her, congratulating her for the engagement. Bart slapped Tim’s back and did the same. When Tim got nothing from Conner, he raised his eyebrow because there was no way Conner stayed quiet about this without a very good reason.

“What is it.”

“Well. Technically, this can’t be counted as a point since you didn’t fake a proposal.”

“Fuck off.”

“You know I’m right.”

“Go away you overgrown toddler with too many leather jackets.”

“That’s such a creative insult you’ve got there, Timmy. Sounds like you had it memorised, even. How long have you been waiting for a time to use it?”

Tim just stuck out his tongue at Kon as Marinette and Cassie laughed at them.

Kwami, did Mari love her friends (and fiancé — she was never getting over being able to call him that.)

❋❋❋

“Alright. We gotta do something that is like, something people do at actual sleepovers,” Cassie announced as she flopped down on the mattress they had dragged into the biggest guestroom in the Manor they could find. The mattresses were all in a circle around their snacks so that it would be easy for them to talk and eat. Two of the mattresses were also bigger so Marinette could share with Tim and Bart could share his with Adrien. “I don’t know, like, trade secrets or gossip or… Oh, I know! Let’s play Never Have I Ever!”

The sly smirk on Cassie’s face did little to assure Mari or Tim this was a safe idea, but they were going to do it anyway, weren’t they.

“You did bring the shot glasses, didn’t you, Kon? Get them out, like, now. We gotta do this properly! And Adrien, you got the tequila, right? Please tell me it’s not flavoured.”

Adrien took out the bottles from his bag. “They are flavoured. Coconut, mango and chipotle.”

“Oh for fuck’s sake.”

Marinette saw it as a good moment to butt in. “Yeah, that works. Tim, choose the flavour.” She looked at her beloved next to her, poking his side when he didn’t answer.

“Huh? Oh. Uh, mango?”

“Alright, we’re going with that then. Adrien, can you please open the bottle?”

He did, and the game began. To the surprise of exactly no one, Cassie was the one to start. “Never have I ever ‘cleaned up’ by piling everything into a closet or pushing everything under my bed.”

She smiled as Tim, Bart and Marinette reached for the bottle with various states of grumbling, filling their glasses and downing them.

This evening was definitely going to end with them drunk. The only reason some of them wouldn’t be was if they were simply damn tolerant, which was basically what all of them except for Tim were — Adrien and Marinette because of the long use of the miraculous, Cassie because she was half goddess and technically an Amazon, Bart simply because of his fast digestion (damned Speedster), and well. Kon was Kon.

This was not going to end well, now was it.

“Alright, I’ll go next. Never have I ever lied to a police officer,” Adrien said. Marinette looked at him like he was crazy before it turned sour as she reached out for the bottle once again at the same time as the rest of them did. “Wait, how have you all lied to a police officer?”

“Well, Kitty, it might be because half of the police officers were corrupt in Paris during Papillon's time of reign, and it was simply safer. That's one thing. A better question would be, how have you never lied to a police officer?”

Tim rested his head on Marinette’s shoulder as he explained his own reasoning. “Then there's the fact my brother happens to be a police officer. I've totally lied to him multiple times. Same with Commissioner Gordon at least once or twice.”

The rest of them nodded along. “Yup, lied to Nightwing, which means, lied to Police Officer Grayson. No regrets, 5/5, would recommend, he's too much of a mother hen sometimes,” Cassie stated.

It was probably good she stated it then and not a minute later, because only a moment after that, the door flew open and Jason marched in. Marinette and Tim buried their heads in their hands or the mattress, Adrien just shook his head, and the three others were staring at Jason like this was somehow that much of a surprise. A minute later, a mattress was pushed inside the room as well.

“Hey kids!” he yelled as he settled in and had Cassie, and Bart and Adrien move themselves away from one another so he could push his mattress between them.

“Jason, what are you doing here.”

The deadpan question shot at him was said in a tone with such an irritated undertone that Jason mock-winced.

“Well. Our dick of a brother—” Jason motioned at himself and Tim, “—sent me here to be a babysitter for a bunch of kids over the fragile age of 21.”

“Dick! ”

Dick looked inside from the door and immediately got thrown pillows at. He scrunched up his nose and looked at them with disappointment. That got him six disappointed eyes staring at him from around the room. “Well, you can’t actually blame me! There are two couples sleeping in the same room and oh my god also on the same mattresses and I am worried and concerned and this is my safety measure to make sure we get no babies after this night.”

“You do know Tim and I are getting married, right?”

“Precisely, you just made my point.”

“Besides, we wouldn’t do it in the same room with these guys anyway, and also Bart and Adrien can’t get children because neither has a womb?”

“Still.”

Marinette sighed. “Fine. As long as you stay away for the rest of the night. At least Jace could be fun. You, instead, are not fun when you’re trying to mother hen us at the same time.”

“Rude much.”

“Now go or I’ll throw you with Jace.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“I would, and I could, in the transformed form anyway. I’ve thrown Chaton across the city, don’t test me.”

Dick huffed and closed the door. Jason laughed at Marinette’s words and patted her head after reaching towards her a little bit, over all their snacks and food.

“So, whatcha doin’? Drinking games?”

“Yeah. Never have I ever. You in?”

“Am I in? Oh, definitely. You couldn’t stop me even if you tried.”

“Sounds like trouble. I’m already regretting letting him in.”

A chorus of “same” echoed around the room.

“Alright, so…” Kon looked around the room before his eyes landed on Tim and a smirk tugged on his lips. “Never have I ever sneaked out of my house in the middle of the night alone.”

Tim frowned and drank a new shot. Marinette sighed, elbowed Adrien and took the bottle from Tim’s hands.

“Okay, Pixie, explain. You, sneakin’ out of the house, let alone in the middle of the night? Impossible.”

“Nuh-uh. Need I remind you, Ladybug. Papillon hardly cared about our sleeping schedule. Had to sneak out at night multiple times to save the city. Same with Adrien.”

Adrien nodded, agreeing with her. “‘S not like we had a choice in the matter, it was our sleep or the safety and lives of over two million people. Ga-bitch didn’t leave us much of a choice.”

It was Tim’s turn to interrupt. “And how have you never sneaked out of the house in the middle of the night? You, Mr. ‘I do whatever the hell I want, whenever the hell I want, fuck Batman’?”

“Well, with B it was easier to sneak away when it was the middle of the day and he thought I was somewhere else, and in the Alley, it was safer to either stay inside or stay outside through the night, not both. Also, no house to sneak out of at one point.”

“Oof.”

“Never have I ever died,” Tim shot with a pointed look at his brother and his best friends. Yeah, he was still a little bitter even if it technically wasn’t their fault, so sue him.

“Low blow, dude,” Adrien said as he downed the glass. Marinette shuffled next to him and the next thing he saw was her stealing Adrien’s newly filled shot glass.

He was, least to say, shocked when he saw everyone take a shot, his fiancée included.

“Akumas. To be exact, Desperada and Time Breaker, at the very least. Probably some others too. He’s never been that good at not dying, and there was one time when he had to witness me die like, 25 thousand times.”

“25,913 times, Buginette.”

“Sorry, 25,913 times. He saw me die that many times, and I remember exactly none of them. He probably remembers most.”

“Holy shit.”

After everyone had had time to think over it and let the realisation that two out of their three sunshines had died god knows how many times and had had to witness one another die as many times sink in, Jason simply grabbed the chipotle vodka and took a few gulps. “I need more alcohol to deal with this” had been his explanation, and when he’d been told he’d die if he drank too much, no one realised the mistake until it was too late, because…

“Been there, done that.”

Cue them groaning and hiding their faces in their pillows all the while Jason just laughed.

“Okay, back to the game. Never have I ever been related to a supervillain.”

“Fuck you too Jason.”

Both Conner and Adrien took a shot as they glared at Jason, and Kon gave him the finger.

The rest of the game went in the same style. Everyone was flabbergasted at how many times both Adrien and Marinette had to drink. Those happened with, for example, Bart’s question of drinking before the age of 21 (“We grew up in France, he was a rich ass bitch, what else did you expect? Besides, legal drinking age is 18 there.”), Jay’s of whether someone had peeked at another person in the shower (“Well, I suppose it could be called that. Chaton pretended to be in the shower every time I came over during an Akuma that came for his or Gabritch’s head, nevermind the fact he always had clothes on. It’s not like I knew.”), Cassie’s “never have I ever fantasized about a real person” (“I mean, I was a teenager with a huge crush on Ladybug…” “Gross, Chaton, gross.” “Don’t try and deny having a crush on me as well.” “Well, fuck you too.” “I think I’ll leave that for your fiancé.” “Oh my god, Adrien.”) It just went on and on.

After a few hours of different things, such as hide and seek in the dark (it went as expected — Adrien won. Damn that night vision of his even in civilian form), truth and dare (they were all superheroes or vigilantes, there was hardly anything they wouldn’t say or do in relatively safe company, especially when they were at least tipsy), strip poker (this one Adrien lost because he couldn’t stop making puns, Bart came second last because he couldn’t keep a straight face (“Well, it’s not like anything else about me is straight either.”), which, to everyone’s surprise, Marinette won (“Whaatt? I had to get really creative and good at bluffing during school and Papillon, why is this so shocking to you all?”). They stopped when the next thing to go would’ve been someone’s underwear), and they were definitely glad to finally just lie down and rest.

Then Adrien’s phone went off. He surged out from under the covers and unlocked his phone. In the darkness of the room, the phone lit up his face rather well. He was smiling. Bart pushed the covers aside and sat up next to Adrien.

“Whatcha doing?”

“Texting to a friend.”

“Oh, is that your new friend? The one you met while scavenging?” Bart sounded excited and got closer to be able to see the messages. Adrien just placed his phone so that Bart could see them more easily.

“Yeah, it is.”

Marinette sat up as well. Smiling, she asked, “Oh, you made a friend while scavenging? That’s so wonderful, though only you, Kitty. Only you could manage to do that.”

“Kon said the same thing right after it.”

“Of course he did. What’s her name?”

“Zoanne.”

Beside Marinette, Tim went still and paled. He swallowed audibly and forced himself to look at Adrien. “Do you know her surname?”

“Yeah, it’s Wilkins. Why?”

Tim buried his face in Marinette’s knees and thighs, whining. “Oh god. Kill me now, please. Maybe borrow the Cat Miraculous to do it. Or Jason’s guns.”

“Why? What happened?”

“She’s my ex and I might’ve left her in rather an unfortunate situation.”

Adrien stared at him. Then frowned. Then honest to god scowled. “Are you fucking kidding me.”

“Oh my god, Adrien swore.”

“She’s dating again, by the way. Some girl named Ariana.”

“Please tell me you’re kidding me.”

“Nope.”

“Fuck.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow at him. “Let me guess. You also dated Ariana.”

“Yeah.”

An amused sigh fell of Marinette’s lips as she stroked Tim’s hair. “You’re hopeless.”

Tim scrunched up his nose. “No, I’m not.”

Marinette gave him a look.  

“Okay, yeah, I am. Please kill me now. I can’t have you two be friends with nearly all my exes.”

“What do you mean nearly all your exes?”

“Cassie and Steph, and considering Adrien is friends with Zoanne, you’ll probably be soon too, and I’m sure you’re going to call Ariana your friend soon enough as well.”

“You’re forgetting I’m also friends with Tam.”

“Fuck.”

Jason just snorted. “Fuck, Babybird, you’ve got a ton of exes, and your fiancée and her best friend are friends with like, all of them. Damn.”

“Shut up, Jay.”

The next morning, both Tim and Jason were hungover, and Adrien and Marinette could definitely feel themselves having drunk the night before.

They thanked the kwamii they didn’t need to suffer as many or horrible consequences for the drinking and bought and or baked a ton of food for Plagg and Tikki.

___________

@the-navistar-carol @caffeinetheory @jardimazul @captainartsypants @marinettepotterandplagg @kris-pines04 @thethirdwheelfriend @daminett4life @abrx2002 @persephonebutkore @rebecarojas07 @corabeth11 @freshbark @maribat-march2020 @catsandfanfic @fertileleaf @eat0crow @cutechip

[perseusjackson-jasongrace]

Hey! How are you? Hope you are doing well!

I read your jealous!percy fanfiction and OH MY GODS is it possible to be in love with a fanfiction because I really was!!

Can I request for a part two??

Please feel free to ignore this if you are busy or cannot do it right now!

I just wanted to say that I really do adore you and your content!!!

Thank you!!!

When I tell you I sat in my room and cried when I saw this ask?!? Thank you so much for your lovely words angel💖🥺they really do mean the world! And I’m so so so happy you enjoy the mess I put out☀️

Your wish is my command so here is Part 2 of the Jealous! Percy fic. There is no jelly Perc in this one but there's enough fluff you may have a cavity after all this sweet👀

Please enjoy!

Masterlist

Percy puts the final bauble on the Christmas tree and stands back to admire his work. The tree glitters brightly, a combination of tinsel and the soft yellow lights wrapping around the branches. The low melody of Christmas music comes from the small radio sitting on the bookshelf and the coco steaming on his coffee table looks more than inviting. He figures if he, and his band of misfit daddy and/or mommy issue group of friends, couldn't go home for Christmas he would do his best to bring the festivities here. The one person he really wants here is going to California for the holidays, something he hasn't done in years, and although Percy is disappointed he knows his friends will make the most of the time anyway.

He collapses onto his couch, staring at his hard work and takes a small sip from the steaming mug. His laptop is silently playing some Christmas movie or the other and the mountain of notebooks and pens on the table shake precariously. A small collection of weathered envelopes sits to one side; cards for his friends. They had promised no gifts, as they do every year, and instead sought to make the cheesiest, funniest, most tear worthy cards. There were different categories and if you won you got to pick the holiday games or what happens to the losers.

A single knock at his door pulls a frown onto his face. He considers ignoring it, mostly because he wasn't expecting anyone, but it starts back up a moment later and he resigns to a baseball bat and a cautious glance. He eases the door open and bursts out laughing as he sees who's behind it.

"What?" His unexpected guest gives him a wide eyed look, "Did I forget pants or something?"

"I thought you were a really polite murderer."

"What?" Confusion is etched so perfectly across that beautiful face Percy can't help but laugh again.

"Come in my love," He moves out the way and let's his boyfriend pass.

Just as he closes the door again Jason Grace pulls him by the wrist and crashes their bodies together.

"I missed you," The blonde breathes, and he has to hide the shiver that races up his spine at those husky words.

"We saw each other two days ago?"

"Maybe I'm an addict."

"Please kiss me. Right now."

And those blue eyes glitter with joy as their lips meet. It is soft and patient and full of sweet wonder. Jason threads his hands through those black curls and slants his head slightly, trying to get closer, if that were even possible. Percy swipes his tongue across the blonde's lip and his mouth parts in a little gasp. Their kiss deepens, turns to languid exploring and content passion.

When they break apart they are out of breath and the smiles taking over their faces make the sun look dim.

"Missed me that much huh?"

"More," A golden hand strokes his flushed cheek.

"What are you doing here?" He leans into the hand, looks up, into that adoring gaze, "I thought you were going to Cali to be with your father?"

"He has a last minute work trip," The blonde rolls his eyes, "I'd rather spend the holidays with you anyway."

"Well the gang is coming over tomorrow but we have tonight and every day after that all to ourselves."

"Who knew we'd be here?" Jason sighs, laying one of Percy's hands against his thundering heart.

"Not me," He giggles, "I thought I'd be spending my Christmas pretending I haven't been pining over you and maybe drinking unhealthy amounts of coco."

His boyfriend scrunches his nose, "Why do you even like the stuff? It tastes like bitter bean water."

"I think you're talking about coffee," His green eyes sparkle with amusement.

"Ugh don't even get me started on that stuff. Tea is the only valid hot beverage." The blonde huffs as they stow his stuff in the bedroom and flop down on the couch.

"You are such an old man," He shakes his head, rubbing a thumb over his palm.

"What time is everyone else coming tomorrow? And who is?"

"They'll be here between eleven and one because I told them ten. And it's Frank, Haze, Leo, and Reyna. Everyone else is with their families."

Jason snuggles into him, hair tickling his neck as he rests against his shoulders. A muffled yawn escapes him and Percy's heart clenches for the gentleness of the situation.

"You want some tea?"

"No," He yawns again, "I'll need to pee every five seconds in the night."

He laughs, and his boyfriend whips his body up, eyes wide with horror, "Sorry that was probably too much information."

"Are you kidding I’ve seen you throw up your guts because of food poisoning. That was hilarious."

"Shut up," Jason mumbles, golden cheeks heating, "We don't talk about that."

"I think it's the only time I've ever seen you look disheveled."

He shudders, laying his head back on Percy's shoulder, "I never went to feel like that again. I swear I was dying."

They settle into the quiet, the hum of the radiator and the low music still playing from the radio washing over them. Jason intertwines their fingers, tracing patterns against the back of his boyfriend's beautiful brown skin. And that's how they fall asleep, slowly and indulgent. As if they can hang up time on a hook and take it down when they need it next.

When Percy's alarm starts playing the next morning he groans loudly and stretches out. His boyfriend mumbles something and snuggles further into his side. He strokes a hand through those sunlight strands and drops a kiss on his forehead.

"I have to get everything ready, my love."

"Don't leave," He garbles, "You warm."

"I promise I'll be back. Why don't you go sleep in the room. You'll be more comfortable there"

"Want you," His voice is raspy with sleep and Percy has to stop himself from yanking his boyfriend by the hoodie and planting a passion fueled kiss on his lips.

"If I don't set up we'll never be ready by the time the gang comes."

Jason simply holds his arms up, blue eyes unfocused and gives him a lopsided smile. With a sigh that hides his amused affection he loops his arms under the blonde's, wrapping them around his back, and grabs his legs.

"You ready my love?"

A nod, and fumbling kiss into his neck is the reply. And then Percy is lifting up his boyfriend and carrying him through the apartment and into his room.

"Mhmm," Jason hums onto his skin, "Smells like you."

"You like it?"

"Smells good," He bobs his head as he snuggles into the duvet, "Like ocean and rain."

Percy just smiles and brushes his lips across the blonde's gently, "Sleep."

As he turns to walk away Jason catches his wrist and tugs him back.

"Stay," His blue eyes are wide with pleading, "Please."

"But i—" He starts, and then he's falling onto the bed and wrapping his arm around his boyfriend, "We are going to be so late."

Jason kisses his cheek, his nose, his other cheek, before finally reaching his lips.

"Iss okay," He's already falling back asleep.

Their breathing slows, and they find each other once more, in a land as perfect as this one.

***

"Well good morning lover boys," A delighted voice squeals.

Percy moans, muttering something unintelligible and buries himself into the sheets.

"I take it nobody has ordered our Christmas feast or started on the Eggnog Nogfest?" Another voice giggles.

"Go, sleep, warm." He tries to form a coherent thought.

"If y'all don't get your asses up right now I'm pouring ice water on both of you." A husky growl comes from right over them.

Ocean eyes blink open as he struggles to bring the room into focus.

A scary, bright-eyed Reyna is glaring at them and Leo is leaning against the door frame, mirth swimming in his expression.

"Finally," Hazel laughs, "So can we get this party started?"

"Ugh," Percy groans, "What time is it?"

"Half twelve. We let ourselves in after knocking at your door so long your neighbor came to tell you off for having sex in the kitchen."

"What?" He isn't awake enough for Leo's explanations.

"Cause you know banging against the wall?" His friend prompts but Percy just waves him off and rubs at his eyes, nudging Jason to get up.

"So when's lunch?"

Frank steps into the room with a reassuring smile, "On the way. I just ordered."

"Are we having Christmas in here then?" He asks.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Reyna shrugs.

And before Percy can protest Leo is catapulting onto the bed and Hazel is flopping over their legs.

"Wow Jase," She pokes at the blonde, "You bony shins are really comfortable against my spine."

"Who asked you to collapse onto my bones?" He grumbles, trying to wake himself up.

"Who asked you to be sleeping on Christmas morning?" She shoots back cheekily.

"Touchè." He grins, moving over to make her comfortable.

"Well," Percy looks at his friends, eyes shining, "What are you two waiting for? Get on here!"

Reyna and Frank shake their heads, like the parents they were so rightfully labeled, but happiness sparks in their eyes and they dive under the covers.

"So who wants to play Go Fish or Forfeit?" Leo smiles gleefully.

A shout of excitement goes up and they all shuffle into a circle, the blue-threaded black silk duvet being tucked around them. He grabs the double pack of cards he keeps at his nightstand and distributes seven per person.

"Everyone know the rules?" He asks.

They all nod. So the Christmas festivities begin.

And there in that room, on that bed, Percy and his friends know what warmth feels like, and the glittering in their eyes can only mean love.

[puckinghell]

In secret kiss with Willy?

I had this ready to go up and I figured after the stream today it must be fate. It’s so fricking long sorry I could’ve wrote a whole three part fic for this I think

–

You’d known this was going to suck, but as you watch Will’s back disappear into the crowd, you start to wondering if you should’ve just called in sick.

There’s an ugly knot in the pit of your stomach, and you don’t like it being there. After all, you and Will are not a couple.

You couldn’t be, even if you wanted to.

When you were hired as the Leafs’ photographer, it felt like the best day of your life. Who doesn’t want to do the job they love, for their favorite sports team? You were born and raised a Leafs fan and if you could’ve picked any job in the world, you would be right where you are now, taking pictures of Auston Matthews’ horrible mustache.

Didn’t mean you weren’t fricking nervous when you walked into Kyle Dubas’ office to sign your contract.

But he seemed nice enough, made pleasant small talk with you and complimented your portfolio. It wasn’t until you shook his hand, ready to leave and planning to call your dad and scream into the phone for a solid half hour, that Kyle’s face went strangely serious.

“There will be a lot of contact with the players, as you’ll be traveling with them and join them at events, but I would recommend you keep it to a strictly professional level.”

The words had thrown you and all you’d been able to say was, “Oh?”

Kyle pulled a face. “Just, our last PR person… She didn’t, and unfortunately she’s no longer with us.”

You hadn’t known it at the time but Morgan told you the story later: apparently years ago the PR girl had a thing with a player and when they broke up, they could no longer work together and one of them had to go.

And you don’t fire your 2nd line center.

But even before that story, you had seen the look in Kyle’s eyes and thought: no way.

This was your dream job, and there’s nothing, and nobody, you would risk that for.

Enter William Nylander.

You didn’t even really notice it until it was way too late, until he was pressing you into the wall in a hotel hallway, his fingers digging into your hips, leaving hot kisses all down your neck, until he muttered a quiet: “My room’s right here.”

And by then, you were too far gone.

See, at first you thought Will was just being friendly, because he’s friendly to everyone, all the time. You’ve rarely seen him in a bad mood, even when things weren’t going so well for him; he’s never rude, never stuck up, and only when things are really bad, he goes a little quiet.

But then you started noticing that he was not only being overly friendly, he was also seeking your company literally all the time, and he would touch you without reason – just his hand on your lower back or your arm as he brushed by, or a half hug after games.

And, well, yadayada, from one thing came the next, and now you think you’re kinda dating except you’re not, because you can’t and will not lose this job, but you’re definitely sleeping together, which is probably also against Kyle’s rules, but you haven’t checked.

It’s working decently well for you; Will is an affectionate enough guy that his teammates don’t bat an eyelash when he half drapes himself over you and he’s spontaneous enough that they don’t even look up when he leaves halfway through dinner.

You’re enjoying yourself.

But.

These team galas are always fun because you get to go around and take pictures of the boys having a good time, and they’ll pull you in and rope you into any conversation, so you end up just chatting with them and taking sips of their champagne.

But the last time you did one of these, you weren’t sleeping with Will yet, so you didn’t care about the fact that there’s always different girls around whose main objective, you think, is to see how many times they can bat their eyelashes at a Leafs player.

Normally, you wouldn’t mind – you do you, girl, get it – except now…

Except now you’re gritting your teeth and staring at a beautiful girl hanging off Will’s arm, and you think if you squeeze your camera any harder the lens is gonna crack.

But you can’t very well do anything about it.

“You okay there?”  Of course it’s Zach Hyman, an amused and all-too-knowing smile on his face as he approaches you.

If you would’ve put money on the first person to figure out what’s happening, it would’ve been Morgan or maybe Muzz, but it certainly wouldn’t have been Zach. Except it should’ve been, because Zach and Will seem to have this telepathic connection that means any time Will looks in your direction a bit too long, Zach seems to catch it.

He hasn’t said anything. So far.

“I’m fine,” you lie. “Don’t you have some sponsor to talk to?”

Zach only laughs, ignores your question. “That girl he’s talking to hooked up with Kappy last year and he knows it. He’s not interesting. But he can’t just ignore her with all the sponsors watching, that’d be rude.”

You absolutely do not appreciate the way your stomach lurches, at that information.

“You should go over there,” Zach continues. “He’s looking for someone to rescue him.”

You did notice Will look around in somewhat desperate fashion, but there’s not really a lot you can do about it.

Especially since you just saw Kyle somewhere in that general direction.

“I can’t,” you manage to bring out, and you have no idea what Zach knows but his face softens.

“How about,” he hums, taking your arm as he starts to guide you in Will’s direction, “you go take a picture of me and Will? Our suits match.”

Their suits are both some shade of grey, but that’s as close as they get; however you take Zach’s excuse for what it is and follow him towards Will.

When Will catches your eyes, his face lights up.

“Y/N!” he exclaims, cutting the girl off in the middle of a sentence. “Zachy! How nice to see you.”

“We did say we need a picture together.” Zach motions to you. “Found her.”

“Huh?” Will looks confused as he clearly tries to rack his brain for when that conversation happened and comes up with nothing, but then it seems to click. “Oh, I did say that, huh? Let’s do it. Sorry, Melanie, give me a minute.”

Zach puts his arm around Will’s shoulders and they pose. You take the picture and notice, to your annoyance, that the girl – Melanie – is still standing there, clearly waiting for Will to be done.

You desperately wish Kappy would appear; he’s always flirting with random blonde girls but when you need him to, he’s nowhere to be seen.

“Let me see it,” Will demands, hand grasping your elbow and tugging you closer to him. It’s a weird request, because for as much people seem to think Will is vain, he is one of the only ones that never requests to proof his photos.

Maybe he knows he always looks stupidly good.

You let yourself be tugged against him anyway, because, well, obviously, and try to still your shaking hands when he hooks his chin over your shoulder to look at the screen of the camera.

What you don’t expect is for him to put his lips near your ear and mumble: “Back door, 2 minutes.”

Before you can ask him what the hell he’s talking about he grins and exclaims loudly: “That’s a good picture! I actually wanted one with Kap, too, I’m gonna go find him.” And disappears into the crowd.

Zach sends you a knowing grin, then turns to Melanie.

“So, how’s your evening been?”

Although Melanie seems a bit downed by the ring on Zach’s finger, she still goes straight into the small talk and you manage to slip away, making a mental note to thank Zach later.

And buy him the best Christmas present ever this year.

You find the back door and slip out; it leads to an alley that’s both dark and empty, except for the blonde guy in a suit, leaning against the wall.

“Mitchy told me about this,” he grins. “Said him and Steph snuck off last year and nobody found them for hours until someone came out for a smoke.”

You don’t even manage to answer him before his hands find your hips and yank, having you stumble straight into his body, falling against his chest. His face is close enough that you can see the darkness in his eyes, and the tilt of his lips.

“Kyle doesn’t smoke,” Will whispers against your lips, and then he kisses you.

Despite being in a literal alley trying to sneak away from your employer, making out secretly beside a dumpster, Will kisses you slow and deep, until your toes are curling in your way too uncomfortable heels.

Your hands make their way to his waist and you feel the hard panes of his abs under his shirt, and then he shifts his thigh between yours and you feel something else hard, as well.

Finally he breaks the kiss. You feel a bit dazed as he goes to nip on the skin below your ear, voice low as he mumbles: “Not that I’m happy about this being a secret, but this sneaking off stuff is kinda hot, right?”

And you’re probably gonna need two bottles of wine and a four hour talk with your best friend to dissect what that means, that he’s not happy with this ‘being a secret’, but right now you kinda just want him to keep kissing you, so you decide to ignore what has the potential to be the root of a lot of pain and heartbreak along the line and instead press up on your toes so his lips slide to your shoulder.

“Impatient,” Will mumbles gruffly.

“Don’t like seeing you with other girls,” you admit. The words, although soft, sound loud in the empty alley and you wonder if they’re too much, too soon.

But Will simply breaks away and takes your chin between his fingers, forces them to look at you.

“I know,” he says, as if it means nothing at all. “But I need you to remember that even if I have to spend all night listening to them, I’m only going home with you.”

And you think as long as that is the case you can force yourself to get through this night.

As soon as you’re done with kissing Will.

(Which is not soon at all)

---

No more requests please! These will be tagged ‘blurb’ if you want to blacklist

[pronouncingitwang]

pre-canon Jon/Georgie | 4.3K words | for @the-magnace-archives

1.

“Laundry detergent is practically a self-contained emulsion—not that it has to be a mixture of anything, but it has a hydrophilic and a hydrophobic end,” says Jonathan-Sims-but-I-usually-go-by-Jon-oh-and-it’s-nice-to-meet-you-too, and Georgie grins. She hadn’t expected much when she dragged herself out tonight, prompted more by the vague feeling that she really ought to make some friends this year (apparently, her tutees don’t count, thanks Mum) than any real desire to do so. Then, she’d looked across Balliol Bar to see the student who’d interrupted their Modern-ish Lit prof in lecture yesterday, holding a briefcase in his lap and scowling at his beer as if it too wasn’t planning to analyze Jane Austen through a post-colonialist lens this year. Georgie had headed over as a gesture of BAME Literature student solidarity, and now it’s been an hour and she’s still here, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Jon doesn’t seem to be a fan of eye contact, which gives Georgie plenty of opportunity to observe. None of his initial red flags—being dressed like a professor on TV, for one—have proven to be signs of a deeper rottenness yet. There’s something in Jon’s gestures—abrupt, abortive, like he’s holding himself back—that assures Georgie that he’s not just doing this as an ego boost. This is all to say that the last three hours of banter and infodumping have been wholly pleasant. Probabilistically, it can’t last.

“Do- do you want to go back to mine?” Jon asks, and god does Georgie hates being proven right sometimes. It’s not that Jon’s unattractive, per se—Alex would have called him “hot in a murder victim kind of way” (and the memory of her voice hurts, but less than it would’ve a year ago)—but Georgie had hoped for a little more class. Plus, even if Jon seems harmless and even if Georgie's not scared, she'd rather not run the risk of being called a bitch tonight. She starts scanning for nearest exits.

Something about her silence must’ve clued Jon in because he quickly exclaims, “Not like that! God, sorry, not like that.”

Georgie pauses in her room surveyal. “Oh?”

“Sorry, sorry, I just meant that- that I’d like to keep talking to you, but it’s really loud here and I can’t think of anywhere quieter that’s open right now. I promise. But in retrospect, I can... I can see how that might’ve sounded.”

He looks earnest enough, and a little flushed as well. Georgie wants to—does—believe him. But she takes a second to size Jon up anyway. Between the eyebags, height (or lack thereof), and twig limbs, he looks like someone she could defend herself against if needs be. Also, she kind of does want to learn more about emulsifiers, or just watch him as he talks about them.

“Well, as long as you mean it—” “I do.” “Then, let’s go.”

(Georgie wakes up seven hours later with a crick in her neck and an Oxford sweatshirt she doesn’t own draped over her shoulders. Her hair’s a mess—she hadn’t pineappled it last night, and the back of this chair(? yeah, it’s a chair) is definitely not silk—and the time is… shit. Oh, and there’s Jon, perched on his bed and looking at her.

“You, ah, fell asleep during the ghosts debate? I didn’t know whether or not to wake you.”

“Yeah, I figured,” Georgie says, rolling her neck and wincing. “Sorry for stealing your chair.”

“Tea?” Jon asks, holding out a mug Georgie’s almost certain was just in the godforsaken microwave. Not that she hasn’t done the same thing on many an occasion.

“Sorry,” Georgie says, “I should probably be going; I’m gonna be late for a lecture. But before I leave—do you want to do this again tomorrow?”)

-

2.

Georgie spends some time deliberating over when to pop the question. It’s not fear holding her back; it’s practicality. There’s only a small window of feeling—after “certain she wants this” but before “starting to think losing Jon’s company would require her to take another gap year”—where taking the risk is worth it, and the second stage is coming up much faster than anticipated. (She’s never thought of herself as someone who falls for people fast—she hadn’t even realized her feelings for Alex until it was far too late—but now this. Maybe it’s another side effect of getting a philosophy lesson from a corpse. Or maybe it’s just a Jon thing.) All in all, it’s only been three weeks after their first meeting before she asks.

“Are you seeing anyone else?”

“What?” Jon asks, eyes jolting from his book to scan his room for uninvited apparitions. They’d both been unusually absorbed in their readings for the past hour, only interrupting the silence with scoffs and huhs.

“No, like, are you seeing anyone else romantically?” Jon frowns, and a thread of doubt worms its way into Georgie’s throat. “That is what we’re doing, right?” Granted, lunch meet-ups in the dining hall that spill over into long and unproductive study sessions might not scream “date,” but there’d also been a fair amount of (well, okay, Georgie-initiated) arm-around-the-shoulder action a few times. Also, hand-holding, of the fingers-intertwined variety.

“Oh. Um, yes, we’re romantically involved, or I suppose I should say that I hoped we were and didn’t know how to ask for clarification”—note to self: communicate clearer in future, Georgie thinks—“and no, I’m not seeing anyone else.”

Georgie had thought as much, but the confirmation is nice. “Cool. Me neither. Want to keep doing that?”

“Seeing each other?”

“And not anyone else, yeah.”

“Oh.”

“Maybe even start calling each other girlfriend and boyfriend?”

“Oh. Um.” Jon’s leg starts to bounce, which doesn’t seem like a good sign. Georgie waits.

“It’s not that-” Jon begins, then cuts himself off with a frustrated sigh. “It’s not that I don’t want to, believe me. I just—I have a… ground rule. That you may not be happy about.”

“Just one?”

“What?” Jon looks startled out of his worry for a second, which Georgie counts as a success.

“Well, I mean, if you’re talking about boundaries, I’ve got plenty. Routines that I’d need you to work around, stuff I don’t want to talk about, and if you’re ever even slightly sympathetic to the Tories…”

Jon doesn’t even laugh at the last one, and she knows he’s not a Cameron cocksucker. Something’s really bothering him.

“This one is… a pretty big deal.”

Georgie tries to keep her tone reassuring. “Let me be the judge of that, yeah?”

“Okay,” Jon says, “okay, yeah,” then nods decisively. “I’m… not going to have sex with you.”

What?

Jon continues, hands fluttering nervously as he explains. “I mean, I can’t say for certain that I’ll never change my mind, but if we’re doing this, it should be under the assumption that I won’t. And it’s not—it’s not a you thing, I swear, it’s just the thought of doing that with—with anyone is just…” he shudders slightly, and Georgie gives him a sympathetic wince. “And I know that’s a dealbreaker with a lot of people. I think I’m—well, it’s called asexuality, there’s some books I found if you don’t believe me, here, I’ll write the titles down—” Jon reaches for his briefcase, presumably to find paper and pen, but Georgie grabs his hand before he can.

“Jonathan,” she says. He tightens a little at the sound, and damn if that doesn’t near break her heart. “Jon. I believe you. And”—she squeezes his palm—“I still want to be with you.”

“Are you—are you sure?”

“Completely. Honestly, I’m kind of relieved?” Georgie says, realizing as she replies just how true the words are. “I’m not sure how I feel about sex yet either, really. I’d wondered, each time I’ve been over, if you’d try to… and then you never did, and I was always glad. I’m not like you, I don’t think—the thought doesn’t repulse me, it just… might not be something I’m ready for yet.”

“But you think you’ll want to later?”

Georgie shrugs. “Well, yes and no? People are hot, but even if I changed my mind about sex, I wouldn’t ask you for anything you don’t want to give me, and I doubt I’d be so horny that we’d need to renegotiate our relationship. I’ve been doing just fine dealing with everything single-handedly. Or,” she amends, “sometimes double-handedly.”

And there it is: Jon laughs, a rusty exhale that makes Georgie smile more than anything.

“So…” she whispers, bumping her nose against Jon’s, “Unless my boyfriend has any more objections…”

“Just to—just to clarify. That’s me?”

Despite her best efforts, a giggle escapes Georgie’s throat. “Yes.”

“Well. In that case. He does not.” Jon says. “Oh. Except. Can I kiss you?” he asks, which conveniently answers one of Georgie’s unvoiced questions.

“Absolutely.”

Their lips meet despite Jon’s grin, but only because Georgie’s smiling just as wide as he is.

-

3.

That conversation, it seems, marks the beginning of Jon-initiated physical affection. Georgie had assumed before that his lack of cuddliness was fully a result of touch sensitivity, but it's clear now that although the sensory stuff was a factor, Jon had also been holding himself back, trying to avoid any touch which could be seen as either too clingy or a prelude to sexual activity. Now, on some days, there’s a head leaning against Georgie's shoulder in the dining hall, a leg swung over her lap as they sit on his bed, an arm around her waist when they walk to Modern-ish Lit together. It’s not all effortless—Jon still moves like he half-expects Georgie to bat his hand away, and sometimes Georgie forgets to ask before she touches Jon—but they’re getting there.

Currently, Georgie’s wheeling a shopping cart around Tesco with Jon draped over her back like a very determined lichen. It was Steve-from-down-the-hall’s birthday last night, so Jon and a few of Jon’s acquaintances-turning-friends from a budding local urban exploration group had come over to duck into the party and snag several bottles. Georgie’s more than a little hungover, and Jon is no better for wear—he doesn’t drink, but staying up all night has taken its toll.

Jon’s wearing a sleeveless top that, on second thought, may actually be an old skirt of Georgie’s. Either way, he looks great. Georgie’s in her pajamas, and also, for some reason, a top hat? Between the outfits and Jon’s posture, they’ve gotten a few looks, but being literally fearless does wonders for one’s ability to ignore that stuff. Plus, Georgie knows almost all the employees here. They’ll have her back if needs be. Georgie’s not bothered, not by the other shoppers and not by her barnacle boyfriend—Jon’s not heavy, and he matches her every step, only disentangling himself to add items to the cart. She’s just glad they’ve both stuck around long enough to see each other like this.

In fact, there are a plethora of behaviors Georgie can sort into pre-commitment and/or post-commitment Jon things. She’ll make a Venn diagram once she’s certain her observations are solid. Pre-commitment things that Jon has since dropped include making his bed in the morning and keeping his professorial garb on at home. Things that go into both categories are Jon’s love of debate, the posh accent (though sometimes, after Jon’s just finished up a stilted call to his grandmother, his “of”s sound more like “off”s), and the fact that every time Georgie comes over, he opens the door before she knocks, like he’s been listening for her the whole time. Post-commitment, there’s calling her “George” when he’s sleepy; launching into completely sincere dramatic readings of his assignments to help him think passages through; stimming without looking self-conscious about it; and luckily for Georgie, cooking.

“Pasta tonight?” she asks as Jon squints at two identical-looking tomatoes so hard Georgie thinks they might explode.

“Mm.”

“The one on the left is a bit bigger?”

Jon puts the other one down with a scowl. “Maybe.”

The kitchens in Jon’s building have a stovetop and just enough counter space for prep. Georgie insists on helping this time, so she chops vegetables as Jon gets the noodles going. As the water nears boiling, Jon begins to hum something that Georgie thinks is meant to keep time, tapping his foot to the rhythm.

“Whatcha singing?”

“Oh,” Jon says, foot no longer tapping. “I didn’t notice—that is—it’s just. Something my grandmother sings when she’s cleaning.”

Jon doesn’t talk about his grandmother much, but Georgie can fill in the blanks. Again, she's been in the room for some of their phone conversations, and though she doesn't understand Urdu, she does understand silence. So she doesn’t push, just says, “Well, it sounds nice” and keeps chopping. Jon doesn’t sing, or speak, for the rest of their time in the kitchen.

Georgie’s dad said something once about vulnerability being a mutual exchange, and it’s stuck with her ever since. (Seems even more relevant now, since the no-fear thing means vulnerability doesn’t cost her much anyway.) Five minutes into a very silent dinner, Georgie speaks.

“You know, during first term, on the weekends, I didn’t eat dinner at all. Or any meals, really.”

Jon doesn’t move, but she can tell he’s listening.

“It made sense to eat on weekdays, because I’d always come across a cafeteria on my way to class. But on weekends, it was way too much work to drag myself out of my room, sometimes even out of bed. There didn’t seem to be any reason to. And I always had some rolls on hand that I’d taken from the dining halls earlier that week, so it’s not like I was starving myself. But still. Wasn’t great.” Jon nods, which is enough encouragement for Georgie to finish. “So I guess what I mean is, thank you? For being a good enough reason.”

Georgie takes Jon’s hand, and he squeezes back.

(A few days later, when Georgie’s almost forgotten the incident, Jon pulls the blanket tighter around them and says, “I think I’m going to tell you about my grandmother now, if that’s okay,” and Georgie says, “okay.”)

-

4.

Georgie hasn’t had a bad episode in a long time, but then her dad gets into a car wreck and he’s fine, he’ll be fine, but the bill’s gonna be hell to foot, and Georgie should be calling her English course freshers to see if they or their friends want any more tutoring hours, but instead she hasn’t brushed her teeth in four days and she’s missed her weekly scheduled room cleaning and she has that marked in her calendar for a reason, she has a routine for a reason, but every limb feels heavy and she’d rather stare at the ceiling and wait for it to collapse on her the way it one day will and therefore always has been. She misses Alex. She misses home. She misses being able to move without feeling like she’s dragging her body in a bag behind her.

Jon finds Georgie on what she thinks is a Saturday. He takes a second to scan the room before his eyes alight on the pile of blankets she’s under. “You haven’t been answering my messages,” he says.

The one time Jon had a meltdown in Georgie's presence, he shouted at her to leave, immediately. Georgie thinks she should extend Jon the same chance to escape, never mind that Jon's brain in crisis does better alone and Georgie's doesn't.

“Please go away.”

Jon does go away, but only to the other side of the room—where Georgie had accidentally knocked over her laundry hamper two(? three?) days ago and then stared at it until it felt like her insides had been hollowed out—and starts picking up each item of clothing on the ground, inspecting it, and shoving it back in the basket.

“Is this clean?” Jon asks, holding up a pair of knickers. Under most circumstances, the image would be funny, but as it is, it’s just surreal.

Georgie sighs. “I don’t think there’s a single clean thing in this room.”

“That’s good to know,” Jon says, and then, “Maybe you should get up.”

“Make me,” Georgie says. He does not.

As Jon continues to tidy up the floor, he asks her various bite-sized questions—trying to ground her, she assumes. Where did she get these jeans? What’s that poster on her wall of? Does she need the notes from Thursday? How is she doing? That last one, she elects not to answer.

When Jon’s done with the laundry pile, he asks for a hand to lift the hamper upright again. Georgie considers calling him out on the ruse, but finds that it’s easier to take Jon’s hand as he half-pulls her out of bed. Standing upright makes her a little dizzy, but he holds her still until her vision clears.

But then they go to lift the hamper, and Georgie drops it again and Jon doesn’t catch it fast enough and the clothes go spilling over the floor again, and she screams something at Jon that burns in her throat and Jon blinks and blinks and hardens and yells something back and Georgie wants to throw something or hide or fall asleep but instead she just tells Jon to get the fuck out out of her room.

“Fine,” Jon snaps, and wrenches the door open. He pauses before he takes his first step into the hall. “I’ll be back in an hour, if you want me here then.”

Georgie curls up on the ground and thinks about what Jon breaking up with her would look like and she isn’t scared, just sad, and then she counts prime numbers until she falls asleep again. And then Jon does come back, and Georgie is no less frustrated and Jon is no less hurt, but he’s holding a takeout bag. (Georgie tears through the wrap, and then, upon Jon’s prompting, all of his kebabs too, and he sits there until she’s finished. Once she’s full, she feels a little less heavy.)

-

5.

Georgie practically runs up the stairs to Jon’s room, phone still clutched in hand. “URGENT,” the text had read, and Georgie had felt a sharp curiosity course through her.

When Jon opens the door, he’s practically vibrating. “I figured out a way to get into the Sheldonian after-hours,” he whispers.

“No fucking way,” Georgie whispers back. “Seriously, how? We have to tell the others right fucking now. But how?”

Georgie had recently dragged Jon into her latest obsession—Oxford history—though “dragged” implies that he hadn’t come extremely willingly. She’d wondered if the incident in the medical building would come up, but Jon had quickly turned to fixate on something else. For the last month, Oxford’s main theater has been the subject of most, if not all of their conversation. That's spilled over into their conversations with their urbex friends (read: all their friends), which has then spilled over into their collective ability to engage in academia. Each member of their friend group—going on different days to deflect suspicion—has been on a tour to scope out the surveillance cameras’ blind spots. Plus, they’ve pooled their money to buy a fancy lockpicking kit.

“Well,” Jon says, hands flapping wildly as he looks for his phone, “I was talking to one of the violinists who played there last year, and then there were some blueprints in the Balliol Library—here, I took pictures—and…”

There’s more planning to do, obviously, if the six of them want to achieve their ultimate goal of “don’t get caught, like, seriously.” They practice treading lightly, quiz each other on floor plans, and (at least try to) confine themselves to a strict sleep schedule to keep their reflexes sharp. It’s unbelievably overkill, but such is life.

Then, there’s scheduling, which is difficult because Marie has two big assignments coming up and Steph works night shifts five days a week, but eventually, the expedition is a go.

Two weeks later, Georgie finds herself standing on the wood floor of the Sheldonian Theater, looking up at the barely-moonlit ceiling.

“Wow,” Jon breathes over a chorus of April’s “holy shit!”s.

“Kind of stupid that Truth is white,” Georgie says, but her voice is tinged with as much awe as Jon’s is.

Jon lets out a huff of laughter. “Next time, we can break in and repaint.”

“By stacking like ten ladders on top of each other?”

“Obviously.”

Georgie’s seen the ceiling before on daytime tours, of course she has, but those times, it was always just a painting, no less shiny and solid than the rest of the theater. The fresco she sees now is smudged with shadow, but that only makes it look more real. It depicts a vortex of orange clouds surrounded by scholars and cherubim. The figures curl themselves around the perimeter, simultaneously drawn into and bracing themselves against the storm. In the center of the swirling mass, Truth raises itself up, holding out its glowing hand. Structural support beams run over the mural to hold the ceiling up, sectioning off various parts of the scene. Every figure is drawn in exquisite detail; the shadows of their robes, the strands of their hair. But from down where Georgie stands, the whole thing just looks like an ancient mouth straining against a golden net, ready to consume them both.

“It’s beautiful,” Georgie whispers, and then, because one time doesn’t seem enough, “It’s beautiful!”

“You’re beautiful,” Jon tells the ceiling, though his whisper doesn't carry very far.

“You’re beautiful!” Georgie whisper-shouts at Jon. (Georgie senses, more than hears, an exasperated groan from Nick behind her, but she pays him no mind. She’s earned the right to be this sappy, thank you very much.)

“So are you!” Jon whisper-shouts back.

“I am!”

Most of their friends begin wandering farther off, but Jon and Georgie stay put. The Sheldonian is a flat-floor building. There’s no raised platform that draws the line between stage and audience, just an area with chairs and one without. Whatever secrets the two of them whisper to Truth, it is both call and response.

“Sometimes, I feel so lonely I could scream!”—from Jon.

“I wish I remembered what fear felt like!”—from Georgie.

“I don’t understand poetry and I never will!”

“I don’t know what I’m doing wrong because I don’t know what I’m doing!”

“I wish I’d chosen a different course! I have no idea what to do after graduation!”

“When professors call me Georgina, I feel physically ill!”

“I hate having short hair!”

“I hate having long hair!”

“I wish I’d actually taken my Urdu lessons seriously when I was younger!”

“I don’t feel guilty about quitting all my clubs in first year but I feel like I should!”

“We should be a little quieter!”

“I agree!”

A pause.

“I’m going to fail all my exams!”

“Funny, I’m gonna fail all of mine!”

“I’ll always feel like a disappointment! And I love my girlfriend!” It’s not the first time Jon’s said it, but the words send a thrill through Georgie anyway.

“I stubbed my toe yesterday and it still hurts! And I love my boyfriend!” It is the first time she’s said it. It feels right.

“I’m going to try to get to the balcony without being seen!”

“Good idea!”

“I really do love you,” Jon says again, and begins to move towards the nearest staircase, where Steph and April appear to be arm-wrestling. As Georgie watches his back, she’s suddenly struck by another memory—someone else Georgie loves standing in a building she’s not supposed to be in, taking one of her very last steps away from her. The feeling that rises in Georgie isn’t fear, but it must be the closest thing to it.

“Wait,” she says. (Jon turns around. He really is beautiful.) “I’m coming with you.”

-

+1

It’s third year, which means fast-approaching papers and goodbyes and post-graduation uncertainties, but it also means Georgie and Jon (and Nick and Marie, but they aren’t arriving until tomorrow) are moving in together.

“You’re gonna have to try to hold still,” Georgie says as she attempts to apply a second coat of purple to Jon’s pinky nail.

“I am,” Jon says. “Can’t you tape around it?”

“I don’t know which box the tape’s in,” Georgie says. “And since someone insisted on having his nails done before we began unpacking…”

“New place, new hands,” Jon says. “It just makes sense.”

“It really… doesn’t… but… there! That’s all of them! Now, just- don’t touch anything for the next ten minutes. I’m gonna do mine now.”

“Yes ma’am.” Jon gives a mock salute, and of course, grazes his nails against his hair in the process. “Oh, shit.”

“You’re the worst. I’m stealing all the blankets tonight for revenge.”

“Which blankets did you pack?”

“I thought that was your job?”

“It definitely wasn’t…”

“Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no…”

“What did you say the last time I asked you to check the packing list…?”

“Shut up!"

“No, I don’t think ‘shut up’ was it. I’m pretty sure it was more along the lines of ‘I’m not an idiot, Jon,’ but if you’re sure…”

“We can check if they’re still there after our nails dry, okay?”

“Okay.”

A few minutes pass.

“I think we should get a cat,” Georgie says. “Do you want to get a cat?” and Jon breaks the holding-still rule again by shouting something incomprehensible and flinging his arms around her.

(Later, over takeout and scuffed nails:

“This year will be a good year,” Georgie tells Jon. “I can feel it. And if it’s not, I’ll make it good.”

“I’ll make it good, too,” Jon says, “Or I’ll try to, at least. I promise.”

And Georgie believes him, and Georgie is not afraid.)

[ooohyou]

Submitted to r/nosleep by u/NemesisLuce

Please support the original author.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my job. Cute little bookstore in a quaint little town. I love helping customers find the right book for their mood. I love showing cute children’s books to curious kids. I love talking with sales reps and figuring out exactly which new releases to order from them.

I also fucking hate my job.

It was ten minutes past closing time, and I had my brightest, fakest smile on while trying to get the last customer out of my store. No sir, I cannot look up a book on the computer if all you know is the cover was red when you saw a poster for it 5 years ago. No sir, “I think it was about the cold war and a detective who drank too much but maybe it was something else” does not help me at all. Look sir, all my historical thrillers are on this shelf. Does anything ring a bell? No? Was it made into a movie? You don’t know? Oooookaaaay then, I’m sorry to inform you that we are already past closing time, here’s the store number, if you remember the title give us a call and we’ll order it for you if it’s still available. Thank you, good evening to you too sir, goodbye. Yes you have your umbrella, it’s right here in your hand sir. Okay bye bye.

I sighed and gave my cashier the biggest eyeroll I could manage before locking the door and turning over the sign that previously said ‘come in, we’re open!’. I heard the coins clanking in the coin counting machine (do these have a name? I don’t know. Coin counting machine is pretty self-explanatory and I’ve never bothered to check if they were actually called that), signifying that Alice had started to sort her cash drawer. I would only need to take out the profits of the day, make sure she had enough cash for tomorrow, and send her home. I went through the motions mechanically, only thinking about the nap I was about to have in the breakroom. It was going to be glorious. I really needed it if I wanted to be alert for the night shift.

Oh, yeah. We’ve got a night shift here. It’s my store’s most… peculiar aspect. We close at 6pm, but we open again at 11, up until 5am. Then we open again at 10am. So when I said ‘nap’ earlier, I actually meant the first half of my night, since I am working both shifts. Yes, I live in my store. Please buy books instead of reading stuff on the Internet, I would really love to be able to afford another employee.

So there I was, counting money fully on autopilot, daydreaming about drinking a nice cup of herbal tea and hugging my pillow, when Alice said something that ruined my plans.

“I forgot to tell you, something weird happened when you were on break.”

I snapped out of my daydream instantly and shot her a questioning glare.

“Yeah, this old lady came in, looking for something about fairy tales. I showed her the section but she didn’t want to have a look there apparently, and she asked me about something from the back. And I was like ‘do you think we’re hiding books from our customers or something’ so I just told her everything we had was on display in the store but we could order any book we didn’t have if she wanted. And she just shook her head and mumbled something and then she handed me this pamphlet and I was like ‘okay feel free to look around’ and didn’t even look at the pamphlet before shoving it in my pocket because a kid entered the store holding an open juice box and that was a disaster waiting to happen so yeah but that was weird right?”

She had actually run out of breath by the end of her sentence, and I wasn’t surprised. I was pissed though.

“Alice for FUCKS sake. Give me the pamphlet, don’t look at it. I’ll write that you were fired because of the store’s financial situation and give you a glowing recommendation.”

All color drained from the young girl’s face. I wasn’t mad at her, but I was still mad. She was supposed to know the rules. Hell, I even had her train the temps we hired to help around Christmas time. In retrospect, it was a miracle nothing bad had happened.

Okay, I was slightly mad at her. But I really didn’t want to be.

I saw in her eyes that it had finally clicked. She understood the gravity of what she had done, and handed me a crumpled pamphlet from her pocket, making sure to avert her gaze. God damn it. She had one momentary lapse, and it cost me a good cashier. Fucking hell.

“I’m sorry…” she started.

“It’s okay Alice, you didn’t mean to. You were alone on the floor, she was an old bat, it could’ve happened to anyone. You’ll be missed around here, but please don’t visit.”

She nodded. She finally remembered the rules, and she understood that there was no other way.

I put the cash drawer in the safe while she gathered the stuff she had left in the break room. I opened the back door to light a cigarette. She had tears in her eyes as she exited the store. I gave her a smile and clasped her hands in mine.

“You were a good employee, Alice. You’ll do great in a regular bookstore. Don’t doubt yourself and avoid this street for a few weeks. Call me if you run into any trouble, okay?”

“Thank you for the opportunity, boss. I really loved working here.”

“I know you did. Now hurry home. Don’t answer to anyone knocking on your door. Be safe.”

She nodded and scurried away, her backpack bouncing with her steps. I crammed my half-finished cigarette into the already-full-but-I-keep-forgetting-to-empty-it ashtray and went back inside.

The pamphlet was sitting on top of the safe, and as I grabbed it I felt the urge to read it. Nope. In the bin you go. I was accustomed to those old tricks. First rule of working with my clientele is to know when you can’t trust your instincts because something’s fucking with them. Second rule is to trust your instincts. Confusing? Welcome to my life.

So I ended up sitting at my desk typing furiously on my computer instead of napping. I still had a few hours until night shift, but I absolutely had to start interviewing prospective employees in the next couple days – in the meantime I just had to hope one of my part-time employees would like to work a few extra hours. I just have too much work to spend all my time manning the register and keeping the tables neat. While the store isn’t that big, it still is a lot for one person.

I obviously had to update the employee rulebook as well. Just emphasize that you can’t take chances with crazy old people. You never know if they’re truly crazy or something else.

“Never accept anything a customer hands you directly if it’s not (real) money. If they’re promoting something, make them leave any cards, pamphlets, posters at the register. If you end up accepting whatever they gave you, don’t look at it, and come to me immediately.”

Yes, it’s weird. I know it’s weird. Look, I pay my employees a fair enough wage that they make sure to follow the rules. I don’t care if they think I’m crazy. I probably am. It doesn’t matter.

I pressed enter and added:

“If a customer asks if they can see what we have in the back, politely decline and offer them to order whatever book they need. If they persist, come get me.”

God damn it, Alice actually handled this part well. But she grabbed the pamphlet, and I had to protect her.

I don’t write the rules to make my employees better workers. I write them to make sure they survive. The main reason any infraction is cause for termination is that, well, it could be the cause for the actual termination of their existence on Earth. Getting fired from a job is a way better alternative.

Alice accepted the old lady’s pamphlet. It could’ve been anything else. A tissue, a cigarette, a glass of water. She unknowingly made a bargain with whatever the woman was. ‘I gave you something, now I’m free to take something’. Entities like the old lady abide by archaic rules. In a store, this is what applies. I lost a regular day customer that way. The poor lady was watching over her kid, who was merrily making a mess looking through the 3-5 years old section, when a young girl came up to her. “Look miss, look I made a drawing”, she said. My customer grabbed the piece of paper and the girl ran off. A couple days later, posters popped up everywhere in town for a missing toddler.

I was obviously pissed. I’d been waiting to see that little girl again and tell her that business rules applied only between merchant and customers and she had no right to force an innocent, unaware person into a contract. My night clientele is well aware of that, and treasure having a place to find literature enough to not risk jeopardizing the fragile balance between both worlds. Nonhumans can be facetious little shits though, and I’ve never seen that girl again. Some entities enjoy chaos just for the sake of it. This one just danced around the rules, grabbed what she wanted, and ruined two lives. My customer sank into a deep depression and ended up gouging her eyes out during a manic episode. Her toddler was never found, but I don’t think he will grow up to be a respectable, human adult.

I checked the time and decided I could get 2 hours of sleep before having to get the store ready for night shift. So obviously I went to check out who – or what – was knocking on the glass window near the entrance because who needs sleep anyway.

It was an old lady, her wrinkled bloated nose pressed against the glass, her skeletal fingers tapping against it in a rhythmical fashion that was getting on my nerves. She had piercing, blood-injected eyes that were fixed on me and a grin so large it couldn’t possibly be natural.

I didn’t have time to be scared, but I still felt the fear creeping up on my stomach, slowly making its way through my body. No matter how hard I tried to reject it, I couldn’t. Stupid human nature. I adorned my best customer service smile and walked up to the old lady.

“My apologies, you seem to be a bit early. We will be open for business at eleven.”

I didn’t need to yell. I knew she could hear me clearly in spite of the glass separating us.

One… two… three taps on the window. Her already impossibly wide grin grew even wider, revealing rotten teeth sticking out of black, putrid gums. Thick, yellowish saliva was dripping down in strands from her non-existent lips. By the time the corners of her mouth reached her temples, I was sure I would lose my fake confidence and run in the opposite direction. No matter how many times you deal with unnatural entities, being mere centimeters away from a nightmarish mouth full of rot and decay will shake you to your core. I tried to breathe calmly, being secretly thankful for the glass that separated me from what was probably the foulest smell I’d ever submitted my nose to, hoping the old lady would see me standing my ground and respect the rules of business. I could deal with her inside my bookstore, where she would be a customer. I just needed to stay brave and meet her transfixed, unwavering gaze. Her eyes were more blood vessels than pupils, and I found myself focusing on those instead of whatever was moving in her mouth. I did not want to see her tongue, not after seeing the state of her teeth. And I sure as hell did not want to see whatever I clearly caught moving around her mouth if it wasn’t her tongue. No, her eyes were scary but I could deal with them, no matter how unsettling it was to see them bulge in and out of her head in a slow motion, almost as if they were breathing. The glass became foggier and foggier on her side due to her heavy, animalistic panting, but I kept my gaze straight, only catching glimpses of fog and movement in my peripheral visions. If I were to treat her like an animal, I needed to assert myself as the alpha. I don’t yield to rude, entitled customers, and I wouldn’t yield to rude, entitled nonhumans breaching the unspoken contract that allowed them to enjoy my store.

After what felt like forever, she stopped tapping on the window. Her grin reverted back to a normal, almost friendly smile. She blinked, soggy wrinkled eyelids covering those eyes I had stared at for far too long.

“I guess I’ll see you when you’re open, then”. In spite of the glass panel separating us, I felt her putrid breath against my ear as she whispered her parting words.

Just like that, she turned and left.

Understandably, I was not looking forward to seeing her during the night shift. My regular customers were unsettling enough, I did not want to add the batshit-insane-nightmarish-grandma to the list.

I’m a business owner. The customer may not be always right, but they are always my priority. I will have to open tonight, because while some may not consider books to be a necessity, I guarantee you that it is vital not only for my business, but for some of my night customers that I open every night. I complain about my life a lot, but some of them face issues they can’t simply look up on the internet nor ask a friend or even a therapist. They may urgently need something from the night inventory, and I will do my best to provide it for them. I’ve always loved being a bookseller, but helping nonhumans find whatever fits their very specific needs has given me a sense of purpose I’m not ready to give up just yet.

I will open tonight. And I will protect my business and its rules, to ensure that I can open tomorrow night.

(Note: edited some words to fit in with the location LOL)

[onlyhereforangst]

WWR

Ok so maybe I shouldn’t call this Weekly Wednesday Reflections anymore since I’m terrible at writing it in time 🤷🏻‍♀️ granted it is Wednesday...just a week late 😅

I’m pretty sure this is my new favorite Ellick episode. After rewatching it, I’m just so- happy with it. From exploring Ellie’s range of emotions and character depth to the progress we saw in their relationship just 🥰

The opening scene already gives us SO MUCH. First, they jog as the cutest freaking married couple I’ve ever seen and this certainly is a routine because they knew to target him here. But Nick teasing her by sprinting, her struggling to keep up but giggling with each other because clearly it’s not the first time he does that little speed up thing & she’s working on getting faster because she used to hate training for marathons like- can you NOT. My heart can’t take the implications, ALSO Gibbs & McGee didn’t bat an eye that they just so happened to be jogging together in the early morning (everyone was only just leaving their house on their morning commute) so they know it’s their routine too and don’t even question it. GAH.

Flashforward to hospital scene with Ellie breaking my heart slowly. She’s clearly been crying by the red rimmed eyes, and yet also trying to hold it together to be strong for Nick & so she does the only thing she knows how to do since feelings scare her and the love of her life Nick just got hit. Ellie’s logical brain takes over as she does best (see 16x18 for reference) - when she’s dealing with emotions, all she can do is her job, it’s all that makes sense in the monsoon of feelings. She’s going to analyze every last bit of the hit & run and immediately parrot it back so that *something* can be done right away and she can find justice for Nick. She doesn’t care about her own health- just justice for Nick. And in that same vein, she doesn’t want to eat, she doesn’t want to rest, she doesn’t want to sit down until she knows Nick is okay (I’m sorry but to have a CODE NAME from the nurses because they feel the need to run from you- can you say “Crazy Worried Wife™️”??)

Kasie is our new captain, it has been decided. (I think this was already decided but I’m making an official decree) Her probing McGee to see his reaction because girl knows why Bishop is taking it harder, please. Then laughing it off for McGee, “we all gon need therapy if those two ever hook up” while thinking *boy you better stop denying because you KNOW they hooking up after this shit* is just 🙌🏼 the outright addressing of Ellick by the show- thank youuuuu.

Ok and now begins the Ellie show. Excuse me, the BADASS BISHOP SHOW. (Also why I’m partial to this being my fave ep). First- girl does not know how to holster her gun. Ellie: “you say there’s a tiny lead” *cocks gun* “let’s go” I’m herrrrrre for it. She’s blunt with everyone, she doesn’t care when Gibbs gives her the look, she don’t take no SHIT in interrogation. “You’d have to be [creative]” had me cry-ing 😭😭😭 AND THEN her equivalent of cursing out Vance over Nick, followed up by freaking out in the bullpen had me breaking on my couch. YES ELLIE GET IT is what I believe I chanted. The stare off, oh lordy. Y’all I was sweating I was pissed for her. Just the raw emotion in her eyes, the constant holding back tears and tears I just- 😭💔 and emojis don’t do it justice. I wanted soooo bad for her to land a sweet, sweet punch like she did with Victor, but knowing a second offense unprovoked wouldn’t go over too well, she held back. But aaaahh that scene was SO heartbreaking. And then, and THEN Ellie standing there gazing at his desk- oof. Her body language was key- her crossed arms, holding herself literally together so she doesn’t break?? She wants to break, y’all. She wants to break. Staying strong for Nick is the only thing getting her through.

When Gibbs sends her to be at the hospital because THE WHOLE DAMN TEAM KNOWS, I did a happy dance. McGee encouraging her but almost pulse-checking Gibbs after was very very intriguing. Gibbs’ “He’s a fighter” followed by McGee’s pulse-check, “so is Bishop...” and Gibbs’ exasperated look off towards the elevator and admission of agreement says SO MUCH. First- McGee is worried about not only Nick, but his sister, Ellie. He knows how much Qasim’s death hurt her, knows what she went through after- WHICH TIME OUT. For anyone saying this episode was OOC for Ellie? Sit the hell down and go watch 14x16. Then come back. Then continue reading. Ok resume WWR- McGee also knows how much more Torres means to her, he may try to deny it, but he knows. Implying Bishop is a fighter, obviously not about her health because *she’s fine* but more about what she’d do out of revenge. (And the man doesn’t even know Bishop is about to say she’s gonna kill him) Gibbs’ already sees himself a little in her, recognizing the same feeling he experienced with Shannon many years ago- hence the completive look on his face & heavy sigh. He knows he’ll have to revisit Rule 12 soon (but also in his mind he’s basically already burned it like Rule 10).

Speaking of Ellie saying she’s going to kill him, please see this excerpt from my notes during the ep: “FUCK YES BISHOP - the emotions!!!!!!!” That basically sums up how I felt the entire scene & commercial break afterward 🤷🏻‍♀️😂😂 My reaction when it came back? KILL HIM. But like in all seriousness, her face- holy shit going from on the verge of tears when they rolled Nick away to calculating her next move as McGee’s talking to her to making up her mind that she will be committing murder (please, girl already planned it & is just deciding which lipstick to wear during it at this point). Emily Wickersham is an amazing actress and I don’t care what you have to say. And yes, McGee trying to calm her down in a big brother way is adorable, but Ellie not having it is great. “Torres doesn’t get a say” is such a Nick thing to do of her 😭 Remember Luis going off on his own, yeah- this is Ellie’s version because she wants to & her husband is rubbing off on her. Oh also, the office she refers to? Totally means Ziva’s office at Odette’s - “if we missed something, I’ll find it there.” Hmmmm sounds eerily similar to *why* Ziva had that office in the first place, doesn’t it 🤔 also explains the lack of her on HQ’s logs and her “going home” excuse— which by the way, her shrugging them all off? Suspect Bishop, suspect. Her trying to play it all off with a wry laugh, not gonna lie, I love it. Her “too late” to Gibbs is quite interesting though- she sees herself going down that path any way, because she killed him? Or because she triggered a chain of events that will lead to it? Or because she may not have killed him, but lord knows she wanted to & planned it down to every last detail? Like I said, interesting.

Ok side note: Jack suggesting taking her off duty kinda pisses me off - with the spiraling comment too. She got to spiral when that guy from her past came & it screwed with her psyche, why the f can’t Bishop? It just rubbed me the wrong way, but I don’t hate Jack (don’t @ me, people.)

Back to Badass Bishop Show. She literally always has her gun out now. Just walking to the penthouse again where they didn’t try anything last time, *cocks gun.* When Gibbs comes up and tells her Nick is away 😩 Her relief though in the fact that he’s asking about her and he’s hungry (Ellie rubbing off on him, you can’t tell me I’m wrong) to go to the kicking down the door because that’s what her baby does so therefore she kicks down doors now- the parallels & the influence 😭😭

THE BATHROOM SCENE. McGee like seriously? You actually killed him?? And Gibbs like “oh fuck here we go again.” And then Jimmy had me dyinggggg. Theory alert: I really think Ellie (maybe Gibbs went with her & they’re helping each other with alibis/cover up??) went to kill him but got there after it had happened, that’s why she’s a little cagey about it- not that she *actually* killed the guy. BUT reference 14x16 again, I wouldn’t put it past her.

The final hospital bed scene has my heart. Ellie is so relieved and just so happy and open (but also a little nervous about what happens next so she hides a touch of her emotions, can’t let him see alllll of her heart now can we)- going back to their teasing ways, “worst pretend sleeper”, “next time jump out of the way” - UGH so cute. Side note, they use last names here almost similarly to the submarine episode. When shit gets scary real for them, it’s their way of grounding themselves almost, trying to hide just how much that incident actually affected them. They both do it & yes, it frustrates the hell out of me, but at the same time shows me just how much they care for the other 😭 BUT this time!! Nick made it take a serious turn, and I think Ziva finally got through to him- that sentence “cause you know I risked my life to save yours” is more him openly saying like oh shit I really did that 1. to himself and 2. to finally take that next baby step in their relationship. The emotion behind it showing her it wasn’t just because they’re partners- he wanted her to know that for sure, to make sure he didn’t just make light of it & glaze over it. He needed it out there in the universe that he Nicholas Torres, of sixteen different identities & no family, nothing to live for anymore, would rather DIE- than see Ellie in harms way. He needed it to be tangible for himself AND for her. Because this is growth, this is not what most people think of when they think of him.

And Ellie’s response: the look, hesitation building up courage, and making that first move of physical touch speaks VOLUMES about Ellie at this point. Not only does she take hold of his hand, but she rubs it in a soothing gesture. As if she needs to confirm for herself he’s really there, he’s really alive. The struggle she went through, the turmoil- wasn’t all for not. It’s her saying “I know” not just to the fact that she was joking earlier, she knows he risked his life & she’s grateful for that, but she knows it was more than because they’re just partners, more than just best friends even. That first move is her saying “I know” and “I might be ready to open up & let you in to the walls that surround my heart because the last time I was in a hospital staring at someone I loved, it didn’t turn out the same. Except this time, it took the hospital trip to really bring that into focus, and I know I can’t let that happen again.” Aaaaaaand catch me sobbing in the corner, it’s fine. I’m fine.

Nick’s reaction speaks volumes from him too, his slight shock to Ellie reciprocating & making that first move with his soft smile that is hinted at across his face to show he knows she’s letting him peak in, just a little, and that’s a start. A start people!!!

Last notes: Gibbs being such a dad and defending Nick liking his fireplace is the cutest. Vance was eager to get out of there at the end- his contacts are very very suspicious... And on that note, I really do not think it was Gibbs. I think Gibbs and Bishop may have gotten there after it happened with the purpose of doing something, so now they’re covering for each other, but I do not think it was either of them.

Pretty sure this is officially my longest review to date, WHOOPS. If you made it this far, congrats & thanks for staying with my inner ramblings 🙃 Like I said- my favorite episode so farrrrrr (now let’s see if we get anything AFTER this episode......lol I got jokes 😅).