#2) would have been nice for kat to throw back to just a little while ago where she herself wasn't really keeping that aware of race

[i-literally-cant-with-this]

Some head canons

Teen hanma

also can see him being the type of guy who picks video games over studies

He watched tv once (horror movie)

with kisaki and it ended up with kisaki wacking him in the nuts

He has a thing for saying "fuck it" alot after risking something stupid

Hanma has a thing for clinging up your window and knocking on it at 4am

timeskip hanma

Hanma has a whole collection of watchsHe probably kisses his s/forehead while softly speaking to them about the, plans for the day every morning

homeless hanma befriended a lot of street cats and when he finds money he buys the cats food instead of buying himself food

Hi Kat, thanks for another ask (I'm absolutely lovin' this)!

C/W ::: Mmm, nothing really. More sweet Shuji.

︽ I can definitely feel the whole play before studying. If he studies that night at all. Shuji isn't stupid. He's not necessarily book smart, either. But he figures he's made it this far. What more does the world want from him?

︽ I feel like Kisaki gets really impatient with Hanma (especially) sometimes and feels like there's no other option but to whack him on the balls. But to be fair, Kisaki feels like that about a lot of people.

︽ He DOES say fuck it. I think before doing stupid shit, too. Sometimes, that's the last little push he needs from himself to get the (crazy) job done.

︽ Hanma totally goes to your window at 4am. On nights when he just can't stop thinking about you and how nice you keep being to him. You're one of the first people that doesn't treat him like an absolute asshole (that he secretly feels like??? Is that so much of a stretch?)

︽ He is so vain sometimes! But he would argue there's "nothing wrong with taking pride in your outer appearance." Whether it be with clothing, jewelry, watches, hair ... the man probably has a regular place he gets his brows done, gets facials, and has regular full-body massages. I just see him as someone who likes to be papmered. So what if he has to do it for himself. He's earned it (lowkey not really, though, but he has that mentality that he "deserves it").

︽ When you and Hanma spend the night together, it's usually at his place. He likes the added security of his boys being nearby if anything happens. He can send you off with them or have them stay with you there (he might not even have to wake you up if there's anything eventful happening in the middle of the night), and he won't need to worry about you getting hurt over some stupid shit he started with Toman or Black Dragon. But he totally wakes you up with sweet, soft, minty kisses all over your face in the morning because he's already been up for 2 hours, drinking his coffee and catching up on shit. He brings you a French pressed coffee (a latte, with your favorite flavor or syrup. I think he drinks it black usually, but you've gotten him to sway/experiment with his tastes a little here and there.) And he'll sit down on the bed next to where you're laying and discuss what each of you will be doing that day and how you're coming back to his place again tonight - because he said so.

︽ HANMA. IS. A. CAT. PERSON. I'll say it again. HANMA. IS. A. CAT. PERSON. His landlord/lease doesn't allow pets, so he has to do without. But! But! But! There's a dumpster out back that the complex throws their trash away in, and it's become home to about 15 strays. He saves his table scraps for the "little beggars" when he has something tasty to eat (and by save his table scraps, I mean he saves his food for them to nibble on). He only recently told you about how he helps these kitties out. You think it's the sweetest thing for such a tough guy like him to do, and you know better than to make a big deal about it because he'd get embarrassed and then he and the cats would suffer. And there's enough suffering in the world. You also slip about 6,000 ¥ into his wallet and coats once every couple of weeks or so when he's not looking so you can help feed him AND the cats. You're a big softy for general wellbeing. He's always so surprised to find the money, "Oh what? Look what I found, hana! Shit, I'm lucky. The happy look on his face is so worth it for you because you know deep in your heart of hearts that he's thinking first of the cats and then he'll get whatever he can with anything left over.

Taglist ::: @sjsjkkalatjejejskal @arlerts-angel @viburnt @darkstarlight82 @kazutora-kurokawa

I love your HC's, Kat! (And welcome! We're always happy to have more of us join the ranks! ONE OF US, ONE OF US! ;))

[just-my-type-x]

Christmas colby request!! Maybe where you host a Christmas dinner party with some friends and when they leave you cuddle by the tree and watch movies?? Could be an imagine or a blurb whatever you prefer 😍

Home Alone

The loud voices of our friends can be heard from the other side of the house. I giggle while taking the presents from my wardrobe, handing a few bags to Colby.

"I can't understand how all these bags fit in there. You have clothes for two people", he laughs and i push him playfully, aware that he doesn't have empty hands to return the action.

"It took some time, but i managed", i exhale when i get out of the wardrobe, exhausted by moving clothes around to get the bags out.

We get downstairs and surprise our friends with the presents. They all cheer, but also remain shocked, because we agreed to only make Secret Santa and no other additional gifts.

"But whyyy? We haven't gotten you anything else", Kat comes and hugs me from the side. I hug her back, only holding 2 bags in my hand.

"You two are wonderful, but my arms are killing me", Colby's voice is heard from behind us and we're quick to separate, laughing. "We thought we would make this Christmas a little bit more meaningful and add some of our own gifts for you, since this is mine and y/n's first Christmas together.", Colby smiles and i give him a quick peck on the cheek before sharing the bags to each of its owners.

"There's no way! I think I've been looking at this jacket for months! They were always sold out", Sam exclaims while checking the jacket out and trying it on. "You are insane, thank you!", he hugs us and Colby and i look satisfied at one another.

.

.

The party comes to an end, Sam and Kat giving us a helping hand when the other guests left. I wash the last two plates in the sink and dry my hands on a towel. Colby's arms wrap around my waist, pulling me at his chest. His head lowers and kisses my temple and then rests it on my shoulder.

"We're finally alone. It's so quiet now", we chuckle and we rock our bodies slowly on the spot, left and right, even tho there's no music playing in the background. It's just how we act when we're relaxed.

"It was really nice tonight.", i smile and turn my head to look at him. He nods and we lean in to kiss each other, the softness of his lips making my whole body warm. "Let's watch something. And i already know what", i smirk and pull him by the hands, towards the living room. We sit down on the extended couch, both of us already wearing our matching Christmas pj set. I turn on the tv and play Home Alone, being the absolute best Christmas movie, at least in my opinion, because Colby always brags about it. He rolls his eyes at me and laughs, wrapping his arms around me and getting closer to me. We put the blanket on us and i giggle when the intro of the movie finishes and i see the iconic opening scene.

I start caressing Colby's arm, giving it a few kisses and bites from time to time. He kisses the top of my head and plays with my hair, tickling me every time i bite him too hard.

"oh, c'mon! You cannot be such a bad parent and forget one of your kids at home!", he brags and i throw another popcorn flower in my mouth

"My families have so many kids i wonder how this never happened to them", i say really meaning that and Colby laughs

"We won't make that many, then", i turn my head to face him and i see his face all red and eye wide. "I mean what?"

"Colby?", i manage to say, my smile growing big. "You see, uhm, such a long future with me?", i turn my whole body so i could face him properly. His arm rests on my hips while the other one holds his head.

"Yes. I have all the reasons in the world to do that. You're amazing, i spend the most important holiday with literally the love of my life. This is perfect. You made Christmas perfect and i couldn't have asked for more.", he rubs his nose against mine and i cup his cheeks, bringing him closer to me to kiss him. Colby brings my body closer and i wrap my arms around his neck, hugging him.

"You made Christmas feel like a holiday again. And i love you so much", my face is hidden in the crook of his neck and i place a quick kiss on there.

"Oh my God, y/n", he hugs me even tighter, his smile hurting his cheeks. "I love you so much"

"Has this toothbrush been approved by the American Dental Association?", we both laugh hearing Kevin on the tv and i turn around to watch the movie.

"Merry Christmas, baby" he whispers

"Merry Christmas, Colbs", i whisper back, holding him by the arm he has around me.

[laureljacobs]

It had been weeks since Laurel and Kat's conversation at the diner, but it had sent Laurel into a spiral that she hadn't completely found her way out of yet. Thankfully, the paranoia that flared up hadn't stuck like she'd feared, but everything was still a little off-kilter, and so many different old wounds were raw again.

She knew that checking in afterwards was the right thing to do, but the next text she sent, asking if Kat would be open to another meet up, had Laurel wanting to throw her phone across the room after she pressed 'send.' Even if Kat said yes, what would any kind of relationship between them look like now? Laurel wasn't good at making friends as it was, and with all of the things they'd have to put behind them or interrogate further just to be in each others' lives again...

She kept turning over the question of if Kat was worth it in her head, only to always arrive at the same answer: yes, of course she was. So she'd endure the inevitable awkwardness or gracelessness to see what could come out of it.

Laurel went out for a run and left her phone at home after sending the text, wanting to put real, physical distance between herself and the urge to stare at their thread until Kat replied. During the run, she convinced herself to shower, maybe even make dinner, before she checked her phone — all would be part of some weird effort to pretend like she had more self-control than she did, which would prove absolutely nothing to absolutely no one — but as soon as she came up her front steps, she knew she'd do nothing of the kind.

Blood rushed to her ears as she looked down at her phone and saw Kat's name. Fingers stiff with nervous energy, she typed out a quick reply.

Laurel: That sounds great. 2?

Laurel didn't know how many times she'd been to the bookstore either with Kat or for her in the time they'd known each other, but going back knowing they would see each other hit her with intense deja vu. That Saturday, she got there half an hour before their agreed time — partially to make sure that she wouldn't chicken out, but also because she had a mission. While they were dating, grabbing Kat a new book was something that just turned into second nature whenever she was in town, and she wanted...a gesture. Something to reaffirm that she was taking this second chance seriously.

After some deliberation and help from the owner — a nice if not a little too excitable guy who always used to give Laurel these understanding looks that said "yeah, I know you're whipped" whenever she used to come in to find a book for Kat — she bought one that she thought Kat would like and idly strolled the aisles, keeping an eye on the front door.

@katrinaxbeauford

A week after their talk at the diner, Laurel had sent her a message, just to make sure that Kat was okay. Which she had been, mostly. Really, she just needed time to digest everything that the other woman had revealed, because it had been a lot. And she was thankful that Laurel respected her request for some space to process it all.

Slowly, she did begin to understand. Because she started feeling concern for Laurel, if something could or would follow her to Aurora Bay. She could understand how over time that feeling could grow, possibly even take over. Could understand how if you began to love someone, that you'd want to keep them safe, keep them away from any possibility of getting hurt. But it was the way that Laurel had chosen to do that which still didn't sit quite right with Katrina. The other woman had utterly broken her heart, had made her doubt herself and her self-worth. That's what still hurt the most about the whole thing.

However, when Laurel reached out again, asking if Kat was open to the possibility of meeting up again, she found herself considering it. Some part of her still wished to have things back the way they had been before, when they had been so very good together. But that was just a wish. It would be nice if they could maybe be friends though.

[text: laurel] Yeah, we could get coffee. How about Saturday? I have to pick up something from Oceania Bookshop if you want to meet there.

@laureljreyes

[jrueships]

Alternative jimmy butler ships go

ALTERNATIVE JIMMY SHIPS G O ‼️‼️

Alt jimmy ships that are NOT kyle lowry #1 (in NO particular order) Paul George

i feel like most of my ships for jimmy is gonna be asshole4asshole or the unlucky twink he's become infatuated with... but this one is like a combo so it's the most powerful one <3 THE SCREENSHOT IS FAKE BY THE WAY

but anyways!! they're both big broncos fans and the Olympics coach had to throw away the football just to make them stop playing. Paul's bigass sunglasses that don't fit his face.. Jimmy's jersey. They can dork with each other about The Epic Highs and Lows of NFL football (National Football League.... Football). They're both super stubborn but are willing to talk things over AS LONG AS the other party has the courage to ACTUALLY talk things over and Try. Which they both have because they both think they're the modern einsteins of the nba. PG also defended Jimmy's actions during his Minnesota Massacre, putting him over KAT, who he loves so dearly he makes funny basketball with starring Steve urkel as well. they'd be good for each other because they're willing to help stabilize each other! While thinking they themselves need no stability in return (which they Do. Desperately). man who thinks he is always right and man who thinks he is always right.... on paper it sounds terrible because it is BUT DUDE JUST TRUST ME !! Paul makes fun of jimmy for finding a new sport to want to play in (right now it's tennis.. for some reason) and Jimmy makes fun of Paul for ragequitting in Call of Duty. Their relationship is one people in highschool would give like. 2 days max. And they're right because they break up after 2 days.... then get back together in 5. Then break up in 3 and get back BACK together in 4 and etcetc. Dennis rodman was the son they would have had. This makes no sense and that's how they (and i) like it !

Alt Jimmy ships that are NOT kyle lowry #2: Kyrie Irving

The 'divas' of the nba... i think jimmy wants to put kyrie in a glass jar and observe him. Kyrie kind of wants to do the same to jimmy but also he's scared of him? WHAT I MEAN IS... jimmy watches kyrie douse all his relationships with gasoline and torches, shackles kd, and thinks (because he is insane), I Want That. i think.. kyrie can be Evil because it's Funny. He supports & encourages kyrie's girlbossing! He WANTS it. But he doesn't want 'normal' kyrie though, only the entertaining one. Meanwhile kyrie, who likes being normal kyrie it's just really hard to have that stability when being evil is an option, thinks of jimmy who's ONLY been around him when kyries girlbossing & is like. This guy is crazy. When the Timberwolves drama was about, everyone was talking about jimmy joining with kyrie and going somewhere. Because jimmy made it seem like they were such good friends. But then they asked kyrie about the teamup rumors and kyrie basically said 'we haven't talked since the Olympics. I don't know why this man thinks of me so much. These rumors make no sense'

In SHORT... they seem really funny to me 😭 two people who belong in glass terrariums to protect the public looking at each other and thinking 'THAT guy needs to be put in a TERRARIUM.' Will they work out? ....probably not

I think.... Andrew had/still has a LITTLE crush on jimmy. BMM (Before Minnesota Massacre), he was so positive on jimmy and even DURING and AFTER it he was still on his butler fanclub behavior. Even his brother's butler trade comments couldn't stop Andrew 'watz poppiin!!' Wiggins' love & admiration for jimmy! And now that he's finally free from kat's constant slandering of jimmy, he's achieved True Gay Greatness in the form of winning a warriors championship. He's experienced the movie trope of greatness (1st pick rave), turmoil (bust rumors), triumph, and now all that's left is getting The Girl. Jimmy ALREADY likes him i mean, he's had nothing but nice things to say about wiggs which is how you KNOW jimmy likes him because jimmy never has nice things to say about Anybody <- real other player analysis!!! Andrew just wanted to be the Scottie to Jimmy's mj and complications stopped that! BUT NOW THEY DON'T H A VE TO !! let JIMMY and WIGGINS kiss‼️‼️ that'll finally prove that jimmy only had beef with Kat because he was straight-coded so obviously that made him the enemy. We could finally tie the pretty bow that he Wiggins Fairytale DESERVES

Alt jimmy ships that are NOT kyle lowry #3: Andrew Wiggins

(And they WERE a problem.. just to their own team tho lmao)

Alt jimmy ships that are NOT kyle lowry #4: Russell Westbrook

imma be honest... this one was just cus i said so LMAO. It's kinda like marcus/giannis where I just like their personalities and think they'd be even greater put together. The two psychopaths in their primes of the nba? Together? yes PLEASE!!! also they both love fashion <3 i need them to match croptops... please. Russell i BEG of you i BEG. They're girlbosses and no one understands them BUT them! Bein fr though i think they could be surprisingly soft together mainly due to their known big personalities overlapping their genuine duality. I jusf wan them 2... cuddle 🥰🥰 p...lease. they both deserve it so bad . They could protect each other from The Horrors (str8 sports fans)

Alt jimmy ships that are NOT kyle lowry #5: Joel Embiid with Ben Simmons honorable mention

Now THIS one is DEFINITELY asshole4asshole. Everyone thought they'd tear each other apart, which they did yeah.... but they also LOVED each other FOR it. Joel was someone jimmy could push and would be grateful for it. A fellow natural competitor even when it came to something as trivial as hot wings eating. They could talk shit to each other then high-five the next day, they don't care. Not only do their competitive drives make for good chemistry in the bed... but also just really good in general. Because it's HEALTHY competition. No one took anything as negative, just fuel for being better. Something they both desire on unbelievable levels. That's how they GOT here, after all!! The two most popular mean girl cheerleaders who ruthlessly clawed their way up the highschool food chain & only entertain the dumb football players around them for fun, that's them... and then one of them had to move 😐. Years later they meet again at the highschool reunion to discover one is stuck in a dried up marriage with a dried up star athlete and the other is stuck CHASING marriages. WHEN WILL THEY DISCOVER THEIR TRUE LOVES WERE IN EACH OTHER THE WHOLE TIME???? we may never know..... they may never know.. until it's too Late 😔.

Also Ben is there because of that one sus comment

Alt jimmy ships that's NOT kyle lowry #6: Tyler Herro

Yall ready know bout this one but... yeah 😭.. honestly all of these ships reinforce the fact that jimmy is insane, but this is probably like the MOST ship ship for that . I have no words that have not already been said by your greatness on YOUR blog, dr ! ill just leave this here

Alt jimmy ships that ARENT kyle lowry #7: Bam Adebayo

bam and jimmy were smart-ass for smart-ass and i MISS them!!! Their lil headbutts.. their INTERVIEWS. They both HAVE to be right and HAVE to be smart and HAVE to be funny. Seeing them interact was 😭 smthin. They was always doin smthin!!!!

Insane.

I have some thoughts in relation to the bam herro kyle dynamic here vvv

so ill link that!! but BASICALLY.... smartass smartass dumbass GOOD. smartass smartass SMARTASS dumbass..... we have some work to do . .

[themultifandomgal]

Temptation Pt25

Temptation Masterlist

A few weeks later

I wake up to an empty bed, I presume Emmett went hunting. I get up and go downstairs to a panicked house

"What's going on?"

"Bella's pregnant" Rose smiles excitedly. I laugh out loud

"Good one Rose. Seriously what's going on?"

"Kat Rosalie isn't lying. Bella really is pregnant" Alice now says with a worried expression

"Ok I must have ate bad meat last night and I'm just having a weird dream" I close my eyes tightly "wake up Kat" I open one eye still with a scrunched up face

"What are you doing?" Jasper asks and I sigh opening my eyes properly

"Trying to wake up, but it's not working. How is this even possible?" I frown looking at Carlisle

"Im not sure"

"So male vampires can still... ya know... well actually we all know they can because we....."

"Woah babe" Emmett chuckles wrapping an arm around my shoulders

"Sorry. So female vampires are the ones who can't... but I'm only half, how come Emmett and I haven't ever had a child"

"I'm sorry Kat, I know how much you wish you had been able to be with your daughter and I know you would have loved another child" esme says pulling me into a hug

"So you'll help Bella then?" Rose asks me

"Help with what?"

"They want to kill the baby"

"Rose it's going to kill her" Alice argues

"Cant Edward turn Bella then she can have the baby as a vampire?" I ask

"I don't know, but that could also kill her" I then hear the car pull up outside. Then the door opens and quickly Edward is carrying Bella who looks like crap

"Holy shit" my eyes widen

"Edward" she weakly says "I need a bucket" Esme quickly runs off to find one and comes back before Bella throws up. Edward places Bella down on the couch

"So what are we going to do?" he asks folding his arms.

2 weeks later

"Is it true?"

"Hello Jacob how are you?"

"Listen, just give it to me straight" Emmett and I are sat on the couch opposite Bella watching her throw up the food she just ate

"This isn't good" i say as Rose walks over holding a glass of water

"Maybe Jake will knock some sense into her" Emmett mutters

"Jake? is that him at the door"

"She's here?"

"They came home 2 weeks ago" Carlisle sighs. I can hear foot steps walking up the stairs then Jake walks in. Rose is stood in front of Bella, Alice is sat in front of the tv while Jasper is behind her. Thomas and Esme are stood next to Emmett and I on the couch

"I'm glad you came"

"Close enough"

"What is your problem?"

"Jacob" I scold feeling the need to as if we are close, but of course we aren't. Him and Billy are my only living relatives and our families are enemies

"Rose it's ok" Rose moves out of the way over to Thomas. Jake sighs as he sits down

"You look terrible"

"Yeah, it's nice to see you too"

"So are you going to tell me what's wrong with you?"

"Rose, kat, you guys wanna help me up" I get off the couch and help Bella stand up with the help of Rosalie. Jake stands up staring at Bella's large stomach

"You did this!" Jake goes towards Edward but Emmett quickly stops him

"We didn't know it was even possible. Look at Kat and Emmett" Carlisle defuses the tension

"Well what is it?"

"I'm not sure"

"It's a baby" I look at them

"We don't know if it's human or not. Ultrasounds and needles won't penetrate the embryonic sac"

"I can't see it either" Alice stands "and I can't see Bella's future anymore"

"Like Ive told you all, I can hear a heart beating. It's not a vampire or at least it's not full vampire" I sigh

"We've been searching legends, but there isn't much to go off. We do know that it's strong and fast growing"

"Why haven't you done anything? take it out of her" Jake begins to get angry at Carlisle

"This is none of your business, dog"

"Rose" I frown "I'm still here and he is my great grandson"

"All this fighting isn't good for Bella"

"The fetus isn't good for Bella" Alice says between gritted teeth

"Say the word Alice, baby. It's just a little baby"

"Possibly" Jasper stands next to Alice

"Carlisle, you gotta do something"

"All of you just shut up!" I yell which shocks everyone "I'm sorry but no one here actually knows what it's like to grow a baby inside of you. You would die for that baby, if you had to chose your own life or the one inside you you would choose the latter. Ok yes not everyone has that opinion, but if you want that child then that's how you would feel. I'm the only one here who has been through this so I'm sorry, but no one here gets to decide what happens other than Bella. It's her body, her life not mine not yours so just everyone shut the hell up" I sit down on the couch with my head in my hands

"Thank you Kat" Bella weakly says

"Jacob I need to talk to you" Edward moves towards outside, Jake follows him.

[sfb123]

The Final Goodbye - Chapter 1

Book: The Royal Romance, Book 2

Pairing: Liam x Riley

All characters belong to Pixelberry.

Description: In a slight canon divergence from book 2, Riley reaches her breaking point with the engagement tour and decides to restart her life when the court gets to NYC. Can the rest of the group clear her name, and convince her to come back before it’s too late? 

Rating: PG (I think there are a few swear words in there, very angsty, but otherwise pretty mild)

Word Count: 1,496

A/N: So, I did a thing. This started as a one shot that I half wrote like a month ago and gave up on. Then I got haunted by Whitney Houston (and later, when she got sick of bugging me, she moved on to @jessiembruno, I’m assuming to send her to harass me about finishing). This week, inspiration struck and I finished it...and it became a mini-series. So look forward to this over the next 4 Wednesdays. 

A couple of quick shout outs I wanted to get out there: @callmeellabella, thank you for being so sweet and taking a look at the snippet I provided. @queenrileyrose, thank you for taking the time to chat with me, I hope the story lives up to the hype I gave it. 

A not so quick shout out to @jessiembruno, I pretty much annoyed you every step of the way in writing this one, sharing screenshots, and letting you know every time that damn song showed up in my life. Your notes when you read it for me gave me so much encouragement, you were invaluable in helping me get through that last emotional push at the end. Hell, you even titled the thing! I don’t know why we hurt Liam the way we do, but I know in the end, we’ll always give him a happy ending (wait...not like that...well, maybe sometimes like that). 

Tags: Listed below. If you’d like to be added or removed, just let me know! 

Riley sat on the rooftop overlooking New York City, Maxwell rattling off the different images he saw in the stars as she got lost in her thoughts. They were in New York as the last leg of Liam and Madeleine’s engagement tour. Soon, they would be going back to Cordonia where she would be expected to sit in a cathedral and watch the love of her life marry another woman. 

They had been investigating the scandal that came out at the coronation for weeks, and didn’t seem to be any closer to finding Tariq. As the time ran out, Riley’s hope of a cleared name faded further and further away. Could she really go back there and watch another woman steal her happily ever after? She was already in New York, it would be easy to just stay and try to start her life back up again. Honestly, if she wasn’t going back there to marry Liam, what was the point of going back at all? Sure, she had made a couple of great friends, but there were a million and one ways for them to stay in touch. Or ghost them, to avoid hearing about Liam and his wife. She wasn’t quite sure which option she would choose once all was said and done.    

She weighed out the pros and cons, and finally decided that she would not be returning to Cordonia with the rest of the court. But she wasn’t going to tell anyone, she wasn’t going to give them the opportunity to team up on her and talk her into going back. And she certainly wasn’t going to tell Liam, he had already talked her into being the other woman for this entire tour, a moniker she swore she would never take on in her lifetime. She knew she wouldn’t be able to say no to him, and would be convinced to come back to Cordonia and be miserable. She would do it tonight, once they returned to the hotel, she would get her things together, and sneak out while everyone else slept. Daniel had an extra room, conveniently, he was using it to store the stuff she didn’t bring with her when Maxwell whisked her away. 

“Earth to Riley. Are you even listening? I’m dropping some of my A+ material right now.” Maxwell waved his hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her thoughts. “Where’d you go?”

“Sorry Max, I was just thinking. Must have zoned out a little.”

“It’s ok, I get it. There’s a lot going on right now.” He replied empathetically, suddenly jumping to his feet in excitement. “I know, let’s go out!”

“We are out.” She looked up at him.

“No, not boring UN Gala out. Fun out! I’ll grab everyone, the dream team will cheer you up!”

Riley paused to think about it for a second. If she wasn’t going to give her friends a proper goodbye, maybe one last adventure would be the perfect way to remember them. They could do it up big, and then she would start over in the morning. She smiled softly at her friend before responding. “That sounds really nice Maxwell, I’d love to.”

“Yes!” Maxwell raised his fist in the air and pulled her into a hug. “You go back to the hotel and change, I’ll get the gang together and text you where to meet.”

Riley went back to the hotel and put on some more comfortable clothes. Something she would typically wear on a night out in New York. She didn’t want to start packing yet, in case Maxwell offered to walk her back to her room. She reached out to Daniel to make sure she could stay with him. Of course he said yes, while also trying to get the details. She promised to fill him in on everything when she got there. The more she thought about her plan, the more she started to worry. Maxwell said he was going to get everyone together. Did that mean Liam would be there? Would she be able to keep herself composed, and keep her secret, knowing that this would be the last time she would ever see him? She started second guessing her plan, she should have just left. Tonight was going to suck. 

She entered the bar, and immediately noticed Maxwell, Drake, and Hana in a corner booth. No Liam. She took a deep breath and approached them. “Hey guys!” She put on her cheeriest face. 

“Thank God, Brooks. Maxwell can harass you now.” Drake rolled his eyes and patted the seat next to him. 

Riley slid into the booth and put her arm around Drake, giving him a side hug. “Aww, poor Drakey. I’ll save you from big bad Maxwell.” Hana and Maxwell laughed, and Drake rolled his eyes. “So Maxwell, why this place? You know I’ve lived here for like ever, I could have picked.”

“No, this is your cheer up night, so I needed to find the perfect place, and this is it.” He gestured to the stage. “It’s karaoke night!” 

“So, if this is to cheer me up, and it’s karaoke night, does that mean Drake is going to serenade me?” She turned to face Drake, smiling sweetly and batting her eyelashes. 

“Fat chance.” Drake looked at Riley with a stern expression. “I’ll buy you drinks, that’s as cheery as you���re getting from me.”

“Sold!” She put her hand out and shook Drake’s. She signaled for the waitress to come over, and ordered a round of shots for the table, and a drink for herself.  

As the night went on, the group laughed and sang and told stories. Riley was having a great time, and wasn’t letting on in the slightest that this would be the last time they were all together. Maxwell had just come offstage from his third performance of the night, as he walked toward the table, his smile grew and he waved his hand to greet someone. “Liam, you made it!” 

Riley’s breath caught in her throat, and she could swear she felt her heart stop. She closed her eyes briefly to compose herself before standing and turning toward the door to greet him. “Hey, I didn’t know you were coming.”

Liam’s eyes started to sparkle the second they met hers, his smile lighting up at the sight of her. She looked just as beautiful as she did the night they met, he loved when she was dressed casually. Sure, she was stunning in ballgowns and expensive designer clothes, but this was her. Authentic Riley. The Riley that had captured his heart. “It took me some time to get away, but Maxwell said you needed cheering up, so this is where I need to be right now.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek gently. 

Suddenly, Riley was frozen. She wasn’t sure what to do, or what to say. Everything had been going so smoothly. Why did he have to show up? She couldn’t be there anymore. Not as long as he was. Now that she was faced with the reality of her plan, she didn’t know what she was thinking just leaving Liam without saying goodbye. Without telling him how much he truly meant to her. But she also knew she couldn’t give him a chance to talk her out of it. She decided she would use this opportunity to sing her feelings. 

“I have to go. It’s my turn to sing.” She turned away from Liam abruptly, pulling the shot glass out of Drake’s hands before it could reach his lips, bringing it to hers and throwing her head back. With that, she walked to the front of the bar.

After a quick conversation with the DJ, she walked to the microphone and looked down. As the music started, she looked up and locked eyes with Liam. She proceeded to sing ‘I Will Always Love You’ while keeping her eyes locked on his. Their friends looked back and forth between the two of them, seeing the pain in both of their expressions. As the songs continued, Riley was finding it harder and harder to keep her emotions in check. She started to avoid Liam’s gaze, only glancing up at him occasionally. To most of the room, it sounded like she was leaning heavily on her vibrato, but her friends all knew that was her emotions getting the best of her. 

Once the song finished, she placed the microphone back on the stand and quickly ducked into the crowd, before any of her friends could catch up to her. She carefully made her way to the door and left the bar. She walked a few blocks before she lost the battle she was fighting with her tears. After taking some time to gather herself, she continued on her way to Daniel’s apartment. There was no way she would be able to go back to the hotel, she’d figure out how to get her stuff later. 

Permatags: @anjanettexcordonia @athena-penrose @chemist-ana @cordonia-gothqueen @cordoniaqueensworld @gabesmommie1130 @gkittylove99 @hopelessromanticmonie @iaminlovewithtrr @jessiembruno @kat-tia801 @khoicesbyk @kingliam2019 @lucy-268 @marshmallowsaremyfavorite @mile9213 @mom2000aggie @pixie88 @queenrileyrose @secretaryunpaid @sweatyrysconnoisseur @theroyalheirshadowhunter @twinkleallnight @txemrn

Liam X Riley:

@jared2612​

@choicesficwriterscreations​

[navalcriminalimagines]

Backup

Request by @wow-life-love4 ❤️ : So I was hoping to request a Barba x reader; Where the reader sees Barbra back when she goes visits Carisi and she has those feeling again what she had years ago when he left!And he finally accepts the fact that she was the one as well!!!!!(Throw some angst in there I’m dying for it with fluffy ending)

Words: 3,530

Tags: @crying-river

Sorry for the typos. Enjoy. ❤️

Based on 22x04 Sightless in a Savage Land. (Of course)

(Gif isn’t mine)

*Carisi’s office*

Since Sonny got his new office, you found a comfy place on the floor, against his furniture. That’s where you were even though your former partner wasn’t there yet. There was this new case that came up in the night before, he had a few meetings while you were working on your laptop, coffee right next you and Sonny’s on his desk.

He came in a few minutes later, smiled when he saw you. He threw the box he was holding on his cabinet and sat on his desk chair. When he spotted his coffee, his smile grew wider. “You’re the best,” he said, taking a big sip.

“I know,” you smiled. “How’s the case going?”

“I’m going for murder 2, and we’ll see,” he shrugged.

One thing you love about your friendship with Sonny Carisi is that silence is comfortable. There is no awkward silence. While he worked on his paperwork, you were on your laptop. Shopping online, actually. You rescued a car a year ago and the little ball of fur has been scratching on your couch ever since. It was completely destroyed now and you needed a new one.

“Dom,” you called your best friend. “What do you think about this one?” you turned your laptop so Sonny could see it. It was a nice three places blue couch, Scandinavian style.

Sonny wheeled closer to you and bent down to look at it. “I won’t fit in that one,” he said. He’s been crashing a lot at your place for the past two years.

“Stupid long legs,” you teased him. “Although, in 4 years, you’ll be sleeping in my bed, so—“ you turned the screen back at you and kept scrolling.

Sonny laughed at that. “Only if neither of us is married,” he reminded you.

“Doesn’t look good, Dominick. I’m telling you,” you exclaimed. “You seriously need to prepare yourself to spend the rest of your life with me,”

“Wouldn’t have agreed if I wasn’t. Although, that’s not the story I wanna tell our kids,” still laying in his chair, Sonny was facing you, his legs spread as always.

“Why not?” You exclaimed. “It’s cute! Two best friends that made a deal to get together to avoid forever loneliness!” You paused and realized what he said. “Wait—kidS?” you asked, making sure the ‘s’ was heard.

“At least, four, Y/N. You know I want a big family,” Sonny told. This conversation seemed like completely normal between although it wasn’t.

“Then pry I’ll give birth to quadruplets. Cause I’m not getting pregnant four times,”

“Don’t underestimate the Carisi’s power,”

You and Sonny stopped talking for a moment, just staring at each other, until you both started to laugh. “This conversation is nonsense,” you said.

“I agree,” you heard from the doorway. You and Sonny turned like one man, to look at the man standing there. You didn’t have to look at him though. You recognized his voice from the first sound.

“Barba,” Sonny was the first to greet him. He stood up and offered his hand. Both men shook hands and Rafael’s eyes stopped on you, still sitting on the floor. You looked up to him and tried to keep a poker face. But god, he looked more handsome as ever. The beard. You asked him multiple times to keep the beard, when you and Rafael were seeing each other.

“Detective,” he greeted you.

“Counselor,” you quickly said and got your attention back on your laptop. You can’t let him see you still have feelings. And that you’re mad. Hurt, even. Rafael never made a promise to you, you two weren’t actually dating per say, but you wished he gave you a goodbye. Not just—leaving.

“What can I help you with?” Sonny rescued you.

“Mickey Davis. Can we talk about it?” He said.

You felt both men’s gaze on you and looked up, “Oh you want me gone?” You said and Sonny nodded. You stood up, put your laptop in your bag, and walked to the door. “Chinese. My place?” You asked Sonny, completely avoiding Rafael. Your best friend agreed and you would be lying if you said you didn’t hope it would make Rafael jealous.

*****

Sonny showed up at your apartment around 8. He was welcomed by Mania’s purrs, he crouched down and pet your ginger cat for a moment. You were sitting in your - destroyed - couch, with a glass a white wine. Carisi knew that seeing Barba after all those years messed with your head.

“How many?” He simply asked.

“Not enough!” You said, but you were obviously tipsy already.

He’d been there many times. He knew that trying to fight to make you stop drinking was useless. So instead, he grabbed a glass and joined you on the couch. Mania jumped on your lap. “Wanna talk about it?”

“I’m just going to say the same things I’ve been telling you for the past three years,” you said, focusing on your cat.

“But now, he’s back. And I don’t think he liked what he heard,”

You looked at Sonny, puzzled, waiting for him to continue. “He was—cold. Unfriendly. And he left saying ‘Enjoy the chinese—and the company’”

“It doesn’t mean anything, Dom. Three years went by. He probably has someone,” you were on the urge of crying but you were fighting yourself. You cried enough for Rafael.

“His lost,” Sonny put his arms around your shoulders and kissed your temple. He gave a pat to Mania, and extended his legs on the coffee table. You rested your head on his shoulder and a few tears escaped.

“Why am I not over him? Why does it still hurt?” You asked. Sonny hummed in response and you continued. “I wish we were married already. I would be committed to you, and he wouldn’t live rent free in my head,”

Sonny giggled, “You sure ‘bout that?” He asked. “Know that cheating is a deal breaker for me. Thinking of someone else while you’re with me is cheating, somehow. So technically, you’re already cheating on me,”

“I’d make up to you, but we’re not there yet. You refused to seal the deal,”

It took Sonny a few seconds to understand what you meant. “And think about Barba while I’m making love to you? Noooo, thank you,”

You grabbed the wine bottle and poured yourself another glass. Mania wasn’t pleased about you moving around so he jumped onto Sonny’s lap instead. “I need a good dick,” you sighed, laying back on the couch.

Sonny wasn’t expecting you to say that. Or at least, not like that. He was taking a sip and choked on wine. He coughed a few times, which made you laugh. “Need me to remind you what happened last year?”

“Noooo, thank you,” you mimicked him. The last year was a mess. You got drunk at Forlini’s and left with a stranger. It was okay at first, the man was good looking and very cautious with you. The sex wasn’t great. He came really fast, you didn’t have time to get pleasure. When you tried to leave, he offered you to stay with puppy eyes, and you caved. The next morning, you tried to sneak out but he heard you and he didn’t want to let you go. So you texted Sonny, asking him to call you and pretend an emergency. Thank god he did. But a few weeks later, you met the guy again at Forlini’s. It lead to a few weeks of stalking from his behalf, until you went all cop on him.

After eating chinese, you went back to drinking as Sonny stopped. You two watched some terrible show on tv until you fell asleep on his shoulders. Used to that, he moved you to your bed and crashed on your couch, with Mania cuddling to him.

*****

You showed up many times at work with hangovers. You were used to pretend you were okay and your coworkers pretended to believe you. The morning went slow, until he showed up.

“Barba!” Fin was the first to see him. “Liv isn’t here,” he continued.

“I came to see all of you—in private?” Fin, Amanda, Kat and yourself looked to one another. “I don’t have all day, detectives.”

They stood up and followed him next to interrogation rooms. But you stayed put. “Y/N,” Rafael softly said.

“Three detectives is enough,” you said, without looking at you. If you looked at him, you’d caved. And you can’t do that. He doesn’t deserve it. Not so easily. Not just because he is his handsome self.

“I hope chinese with your future husband was good,” he answered, bitterly and joined the others, closing the doors behind him. You sarcastically laughed at that. Was it jealousy? You hoped so.

A few minutes later, Liv came in with Garland. He gently greeted you and asked where were the others. You told them without thinking further. And in a minute, Barba was in Liv’s office with her and Garland. Your coworkers went back to their desks but no one talked. “Fill me in?” You asked.

“In so many words, Barba needs our help,” Amanda told you.

“He’s defending the man that Carisi is prosecuting. That’s not fair to Sonny,” you told, anger started to show up.

“Carisi can handle it,” Fin said.

“Damn right he can. But you’re making it harder for him! Our ADA is Carisi now, not Barba! He left me—us,”

You knew it was too late. Your anger toward Rafael just surfaced and the entire team now knows something had happened. Mostly angry at yourself from letting your emotions get the best of you, you grabbed your jacket and left the squadroom.

You drove to Sonny’s office and stormed in it without knocking. He immediately saw your red eyes, and furry in them. “Barba asked the squad for help! And I think they are in!” You were pacing in the small place, making Sonny’s head spin. “They are going behind your back for him! They are helping him, knowing it will make it harder for you! He just—snapped his fingers,” you did snap your fingers, “and they are all in! I can’t believe it,” you were breathing hard, fighting your tears and your anger. Sonny stood, grabbed your shoulders and brought you to his chest. He held you tight as you cried in his chest. He could feel your body shaking. You stood there for a long moment until you calmed down. Sonny let you go and grabbed you a tissue. You dried your eyes and blown your nose. “I’m sorry, you must be tired of me. I’m a fucking mess,”

Sonny was leaning on his desk, arms crossed and legs spread. “Nah, you’re not, Y/N. You’re my best friend and you’re there for me as much,” he softly grabbed your hand and rubbed your knuckles, “Now tell what you’re really mad about,”

“Him. He comes back and tries to act as if—nothing happened. Like we were nothing. Ever,” you took a deep breath, “it just hurts me all over again,”

“Now that he’s here, maybe you should ask for the explanations you’ve been waiting for? You need closure, honey. You deserve it. And yeah, it may not be what you want to hear but at least, you’ll know and you can finally move on,”

“With you when I turn 40?” You tried to joke.

“Or that guy from last year,” he grinned.

“Shut up, Carisi,” Sonny pulled on your arm to bring you to him. As he was leaning on the desk, you were the same height. You put your arms around his shoulders, and his hands were in your back. “What would I do without you?” You whispered in his ear.

“You’d be stuck in a relationship with a weirdo, and probably pregnant by now,” you laughed at his words.

“That would terrible. I’d be so frustrated,”

“Uh, I’d help you with that,”

“Dominick Carisi Jr, isn’t that a sin? May I remind you, you refused to seal our deal,”

“Because if it went bad, I didn’t want you to ask Fin to be your backup,”

“Wouldn’t have worked anyway, he found Phoebe,”

Really, what would you do without Sonny Carisi in your life?

*****

His words didn’t leave your brain. “You need closure, you deserve it”. And maybe he’s right. You do deserve closure, even if he tells you everything you don’t want to hear. So when the trial was over, and Barba invited everyone for a drink, you joined in. You sat between Sonny and Kat, Rafael was across from you. You could feel his gaze every now and then but you tried to avoid meeting his eyes.

“Cheers,” Rafael said, holding his scotch.

“To what? Jury deliberated for 6 hours to find Davis guilty on murder 2 and we’re back to the start,” Sonny answered.

“To irony, then,” Rafael offered instead.

Everyone got interested in Rafael’s past three years. He explained that he traveled for a while, catch up with foreign family in Cuba. He mentioned meeting a woman there but when you heard the word “girlfriend”, you stood up and went to order another glass.

“Y/N!” You heard from your left. You turned to see the man that stalked you the year prior. “Good to see you,” before you could react, Kyle was hugged you. “Been a while,” he smiled.

Not enough. You thought. “Indeed,” you gently returned the smile.

“May I offer you a drink?”

“Thanks, but I’m with my friends,” you pointed towards the squad. Sonny saw the man from behind and he saw in your eyes you were in trouble. But instead of helping you, he was just—laughing. Bastard.

“Maybe later then? Or another day?”

“Kyle. Last year, I threated you to put you in jail for harassment. That threat still stands if you start again,” you looked at him, seriously.

“Actually, I want to apologize about that. I was in a very bad place and I don’t know why I acted the way I did. Can we put that in the past and start all over again?”

Listening to his excuses, you didn’t see Rafael circling around. It’s only when you smell his intoxicating smell, that you knew he was behind you. You sighed and tried to stay focus on Kyle. “Okay look, if you’re still here when my friends leave, maybe—“ you were stopped by Rafael’s arm, as he slided it around your chest.

“Leave her alone, man. You’re not up to her standards,”

“Y/N, who is that” Kyle asked.

You were so confused about what was happening - and a little tipsy - you didn’t react. “The man that has way more chance to take her home than you’ll never have,”

“Well, man, you’re too late. I already took her home,”

You felt Rafael’s fist clenching. “Kyle—I’ll see around okay?”

“I’m not sure I want to leave you with that guy, Y/N,” he answered.

“But you are,” Rafael growled. “Now and forever,”

Rafael made you spin around so you were facing him instead of that Kyle. He instantly grabbed your face in his hands and kissed you right under Kyle’s nose. He was acting like an asshole but there’s no way you could pull him away. You melted into his kiss, granting access to his tongue. You grabbed onto his shirt, pulling him as close as you could. You felt his hands traveling your back, until you were grabbing your ass. For a moment, you forgot you two were in the middle of Forlini’s. You moaned in his month and he felt his cock twitching.

You pulled away only when Amanda made herself heard as she was leaving. “Get a room, people.”

Rafael smiled. “I agree with her. Come home with me?”

“Where’s home for you?” You asked. A kiss can’t make everything go away.

“Home is you, Y/N. You’re my home,” he looked so damn sincere and it would be so easy to just let it go and hang on to those words. But you still need explanations. Apologizes, perhaps?

Again, you fought against your tears. “That’s so easy, Rafael,”

“Come with me and we can talk. Just that if you want,”

*****

During the ride, you told Rafael you preferred to go to your place; Mania was waiting. If Barba should have a pet, he thought he would adopt a dog. But since you have a cat, he can get use to it. Only if you cut its claws.

As always, Mania was waiting behind the door when you got in. He didn’t move at first, just studying Rafael. “He’s already judging me,” Rafael said.

“He only met two humans. Me and Sonny. Before that, he was beaten, famished and threw with the trash. He doesn’t trust humans,”

“That’s something we can bound on,” Rafael kept his distance with your furry child. And Mania did the same. You pet him a moment, gave him his food and joined Rafael on the couch, with a bottle of Sauternes. It was silent at first. None knew where to start.

“Is—is there something between you and Carisi?” He asked.

“Straight to the point,” you smiled in your glass. You liked the hint of jealousy in it. “For now, no. But in 4 years, maybe,”

“I’m gonna need further explanations,”

“I’m the one that needs explanations, don’t you think?” You challenged him. “Actually, I deserve them,” you’ll have to think Sonny later for that strength.

“Indeed, you do,” Rafael agreed. “It was easier that way,”

“Easier for who? For you? Cause it wasn’t easy for me, at all,”

“I was selfish and I’m sorry,” he softly grabbed your hand. “I knew that—if I came to see you, to tell you I was leaving, I would have back down. I couldn’t bring myself to tell you goodbye. All I ever wanted to see in your eyes, when you look at me, was love. And I was afraid to see—disappointment in them. Pity, hate, even. Cause there was hate whenever I looked in the mirror,” you heard tears in his voice. You knew he was just being honest with you.

“You ruined our relationship—or whatever we had— on assumptions, Rafael. I didn’t hate you before you left. I wasn’t disappointed. Only things you’d have seen were empathy and love,”

“I couldn’t take the risk, Y/N,”

“Let’s pretend I get that. Why didn’t you call, then? Text? Left a letter or a note? Hell, even an email would have made it easier,” you stood up, pacing around. Rafael has been around you enough to know that’s what you do when you’re angry and trying to calm yourself.

“I could have. I should have—I’m so sorry,” he was looking at you with pleading eyes but you were still pacing around your living room. “I never forgot about you, Y/N. I still love you,”

“Uh-huh,” you shook your head, “You can’t tell me you still love me when you never said you loved me in the first place!” You exclaimed.

“Fine,” he stood up and grabbed your shoulders to keep you still. “I love you, Y/N. Wanna know when I knew?” He paused, for what you assumed what a dramatic effect like he does in court, “When Yelina came in my office, telling my ‘crazy coworker’ slapped her. And you didn’t slap her because you were jealous. You did so because she hurt me and talked shit about me for going after Alex. When she left, I smiled so hard, I found the courage to ask you out,”

You felt your cheeks turning pink. “I didn’t know you knew,” you looked down but Rafael grabbed your chin and made you lift your head.

“From that moment, I knew you had my back. I didn’t have yours,” you saw a tear finally escaping his eye. “And if you found the strength to forgive me, I’ll always have your back. I won’t let you down. I promise,”

Seeing Rafael cried made you cry too. You swoop his tears with your thumb. “It won’t be easy, Rafael. It’s going to take time for me to—trust you again. To trust that you won’t leave again,”

“I won’t,” he grabbed your face and kissed. It was needy. Rafael wanted you to feel how much he loves you in that kiss. He wanted you to know you could trust him. Not only your tongue mixed but your tears did too. “I promise. I love you,” he rested his forehead against yours.

“I love you, too,” you kissed again, but it was more passionate. One of his arms were wrapped around your shoulders and his other hand was holding your cheek. Your left hand rested on his firm ass and your right one was in his hair.

He smiled against your mouth when he felt your hand grabbing his ass cheek. “That’s my move,”

“What can I say? I missed your ass,”

He chuckled and made you jump in his arms. Your legs wrapped around his waist and his hands were resting on your ass. “Not as much as I missed yours,” Rafael kissed you again and walked to the bedroom, closing it to Mania’s face.

[jaxsteamblog]

Cherry Blossoms

Click here to read the entire fic on AO3

For dinner, the family stayed in the large estate near to the village. The festival had attracted the Air Nomads for years, and this time they brought along the workers from the oilrig for a well-earned reprieve. All that meant Katara and Zuko couldn’t always be out in public or else they’d be swarmed.

And Katara wasn’t keen on getting attacked or kidnapped again, especially when she was in such a good mood.

“So what do you think of the festivities, Zuko?” Malina asked as she and Hakoda brought out large platters of food. Sokka followed after them with a covered tureen that still couldn’t contain the smell of seaprune stew.

“It’s been amazing. I have a weakness for festivals like this though.” Zuko replied.

“The kind that won’t piss off the spirits if you do them wrong, you mean?” Sokka asked, setting the tureen down on the table.

Katara leaned over and plucked off the lid, breathing in the steam. It smelled right for once.

“Who made this?” She asked, looking around. Hakoda opened his mouth but, looking past her, quickly shut it.

“It’s Gran-Gran’s recipe, Kat. Don’t worry.” Sokka interjected, picking up a ladle and slopping a generous scoop into a bowl. She narrowed her eyes at him but took it.

“Do you have a favorite festival?” Suki asked.

“Does it have to be Fire Nation?” Zuko asked in return.

“No?” Suki looked confused and Zuko leaned over to look in Katara’s bowl.

“I only ask because my favorite is an Earth Kingdom one. But I do have one I like a lot in Caldera.” He said and started pulling the bowl. Katara shoved it over and returned to the tureen.

“Let’s hear the favorite.” Suki said.

“I can’t remember what it’s called because I only got to see it when I was a kid.” Zuko started, picking up a spoon. “I must’ve been really young because my cousin was…”

Zuko smiled sadly and focused on the seaprune stew.

“Anyway, my mother had taken Azula and I to visit my uncle and a festival was going on when we got there. My cousin took my sister and I out to attend, and it was a lot of fun. The cherry blossoms were in peak bloom and there were picnics and tea; I knew it was probably my uncle’s favorite festival too.

“But at night, the town had set up these lights under the trees and you could walk around this garden looking at them. When the sun had fully set, other lights went on and they made sculptures with them. It blew my tiny little mind.” Zuko explained.

“So, a colony.” Hakoda said.

Katara sat up, but Zuko nodded.

“Yes.” He answered and looked back at Hakoda.

“I think,” Malina said slowly, resting her hand on Hakoda’s arm. “We can all appreciate what Zuko went through to end up here with us.”

Hakoda looked at Katara’s face and grumbled.

“My favorite is Avatar Day.” Suki stated, loudly clattering food onto a plate. Katara relaxed, rolling her eyes.

“We’re lucky Thuy’s not here.” Zuko said.

“That’d only be a problem if Katara said it was her favorite.” Sokka corrected.

“Oh for sure.” Suki said, drawing out her accent for effect. “Zuko can never leave Katara or else Thuy will smack him down.”

“Like she did his dad.” Sokka quipped and Zuko burst with a laugh.

“What’s your favorite festival, Sokka?” Malina asked.

“Love Day.” Suki and Katara shouted together and started laughing. Sokka groaned with loud exaggeration and Malina laughed lightly.

“I don’t like most festivals if they have fireworks. Those bug me.” He did say, tearing his flatbread into shreds.

“I like the solstice stuff. I get a kick out of how serious everyone gets when in reality they’re talking about Yue and my bratty sister.” He said finally and Katara launched a seaprune at him.

“What about you, Malina? Hakoda?” Zuko asked.

“Anything with good food is the best in my opinion.” Hakoda answered gruffly.

“Mine is similar to Zuko’s, actually. But I lived in the northern part of the Earth Empire and I think what you were talking about is in the south.” Malina said.

���Cherry blossoms bloom all the way up there?” Zuko questioned.

“Not natively, but for a long time the trees were a common gift the kings would send to each other. You can find them dotted all over capitals but only in the south are they everywhere.” Malina explained.

“They’re really something.” Zuko said.

“Oh yes. They reminded me of the North Pole, or at least, how my parents talked about the North Pole.” Malina said in a rush.

“Flowers?” Zuko asked.

“What about them?” Sokka snapped.

“How are they at all like the North Pole?” Zuko asked, bewildered.

Sokka looked over and met Malina’s eye, making Katara frown.

“I mean, have you actually looked at snow?” Sokka asked, turning to Zuko.

“You are clearly Piandao’s favorite.” Zuko murmured and Sokka scoffed.

“My parents would always talk about the North Pole when it snowed. Maliq and I would go crazy seeing how little it snowed inside Ba Sing Se, and how quickly the snowplows would come through.” Malina laughed and tapped Hakoda’s arm. “We were not prepared for coming back home.”

“Did you know that some places pickle cherry blossoms and make tea out of it?” Sokka asked and Zuko choked on his soup.

“Oh spirits what.” Sokka croaked.

Katara patted Zuko’s back and shrugged.

“Apparently it’s a wedding sort of tea and Iroh gave it to Zuko and me a while back.” She said.

“I was trying so hard not throw myself at you at that point too.” Zuko said, wiping his eyes.

“Excuse me?” Hakoda interrupted sharply and Malina snorted.

“Well, turns out you’re married by swamp standards so we should probably go pick up some more.” Sokka said.

“Excuse me?” Hakoda repeated.

“We have to get married before them, really.” Suki said, looking at Sokka.

“We should probably elope then, because at this rate they’ll be married twice over.” He said.

“Now hold on…” Hakoda leaned over the table and Zuko put his arm around Katara.

“We’re going backwards through the Avatar cycle. We just have to figure out which temple Aang was born at so we can get hitched there.” He said.

“No.” Hakoda said firmly, and everyone turned to him. “Both of my children are getting married in the South Pole.”

“Dad, we were just kidding.” Sokka said.

Hakoda sighed and leaned back.

“I know.” He said.

“And Suki and I are getting married in Kyoshi.” Sokka added.

Hakoda sputtered and even Katara turned to stare at Sokka. Her brother took Suki’s hand and stared down at their rings.

“I hate being in the Poles.” He said softly.

“What?” Hakoda and Katara shouted.

“O-kay.” Zuko stood up, jostling the table. “I’m taking Sokka to show me the penguins.”

“I can fight my own battles!” Sokka protested, but Suki also stood and the two of them grabbed either of his shoulders.

“I love you man, but I am trying to keep my future wife and father-in-law from hating my guts.” Zuko muttered as he and Suki started dragging him out of the room.

“That’s not my problem! Hey wait the stairs guys wai-” Sokka’s voice was cut off by the sound of chaotic thudding.

“So, Katara, what do you want to do for your birthday?” Malina asked.

Katara lowered her face into her hands and groaned.

~

“Cherry blossoms, huh?” Katara asked, laying on her back and looking up at Zuko.

Zuko’s long hair acted like a curtain as he propped himself over her. He was doing what he normally did when they were able to sleep together; trying to see which parts of her were ticklish as he lightly kissed her.

“They’re pretty.” He said with his lips against her shoulder.

“And very dainty.” Katara added.

“I’m not in love with cherry blossoms, Katara.” Zuko murmured, moving down to her collarbone.

“I’m just saying.”

“And I’m just saying. Though it would be nice to see you in a bath with some cherry blossoms. Seeing them stick to your skin.” Zuko laid himself on her and went back to her neck. “Mmmmm.”

“You just constantly run hot don’t you?” Katara said with a laugh threading through her words.

“You should have seen me as a young man.” Zuko said, pushing himself up to look directly at her. “And when I was plagued with thoughts of a very mysterious spirit.”

“You’re still a young man.” Katara retorted, putting her hands on his chest.

“Did you ever think of me?” Zuko asked.

“The Blue Spirit?”

“Yeah.”

Katara paused then, trying to recollect. Her memory was shoddy at best, and some events were warped by time and trauma.

She remembered her first kiss with Haru before staging a prison break to rescue his father. She remembered seeing Yue in the moonlight and knew love and heartbreak in the same moment as she saw Sokka’s face. She remembered digging her nails into Jet as if she could mold him into something else.

And she remembered the vigilante that she could never figure out.

“I used to dream about running into you over and over again in the war. We’d fight the same villains, we’d tease each other because we are always suspicious, and you would unmask yourself while proclaiming your eternal love for me.” Katara said.

“Funny, I always imagined the same thing.” Zuko said.

“I would never have unmasked.” Katara scoffed.

“There’d be no need.” Zuko said with a smile and then lowered himself again. “I told you that you sweat your stripes off.”

“Zuko!”

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60

[galactichoneybee92]

The Problem With Spinning Out and Zero Chill

Okay so spoilers. All the spoilers. Go into this at your own risk because every possible spoiler for both shows. Also: I will be speaking about these two shows with the assumption that readers have seen both and as such, will not need a summary of either. Okay, still here? Cool. 

I have no big hot take, just some observations that I would like to put out into the universe in regards to Netflix’s two most recent ice skating shows. Because I have a lot of thoughts, and also one big question for anyone who can maybe help me? 

For starters, Spinning Out and Zero Chill are both Netflix originals that premiered around approximately the same time, both of which feature figure skating as a backdrop for a lot of interpersonal drama surrounding the characters. It’s wonderful, because while I’m not very invested in sports I adore figure skating- It’s beautiful and fun to watch even if you don’t know a lot of the technical aspects or the names of the moves. However, for centering around the same sport the two shows are very different. Also, Spinning Out has already been confirmed to have been cancelled after the first season, while the future of Zero Chill is still up in the air.

In regards to personal preference, I liked Spinning Out a lot more than Zero Chill. It had a love story for me to invest myself in, as well as some messy, dramatic family dynamics, and overall the show was a lot more mature. I suspect that this may have actually been to the show’s detriment but that’s for later. In contrast, I found Zero Chill to be fluffy to the point of an ABC Family special. 

Do you remember those? Shows like Switched at Birth or Secret Life of the American Teenager, that tried to tackle big mature topics while keeping things family friendly? Do you remember how the writing was usually pretty sub par and the drama all seemed super contrived because there was only so much they could actually do within their given boundaries, so they made a much bigger deal out of small issues than they deserved? Yeah. Zero Chill felt like that. For example, the “hazing” from the hockey team was to...put balloons in his locker? And that was a...major diss? Worth getting super pissed? Idk. It’s just that, without the confines of being family-friendly day time programing, I have come to expect more from Netflix original programming. 

Alternatively, Spinning Out may have veered too far into the dark and gritty spectrum. If I had to guess where it failed, I would say that it introduced A LOT of drama, all within the first season and at times felt, overwrought. I think Spinning Out could have done with slowing down and taking a breath. Draw things out. Have the mother slowly escalate her abuse, stop and start with her medication, stretch out the love triangle between Kat, Justin, and Marcus. When I first started watching I thought that maybe Marcus would be Kat’s Luke Danes. Like throughout the show she dates other people, but eventually she realizes that she loves him and they end up together but...nope. The show established pretty early on that we were not going to have an epic, interracial friends to lovers romance. And I loved the enemies to lovers romance we got between her a Justin (Though I really think it should have taken longer. I liked that they hooked up before and that he was kinda low key pining but stretch it out. Sloooooooow buuuuuuuurn. Make it goooood. I want to feel the pining.) but it did feel like the cop out answer. And then they immediately introduce a black female character because apparently in the year 2021 we still have shows with exactly 2 black characters that are there to date each other. Like fuck, even South Park has made fun of that trope, it’s time to move past it. 

Secondly I think that it’s super out of character for Kat to ever go off her medicine, even if it is to help her skating. It’s the same way I felt when they introduced Ian’s mental Illness in Shameless. Like, maybe it’s a thing that people do and if you’ve known people that act this was in these scenarios than sure, maybe I’m wrong. But it just feels like they go to so much effort to show the effect that their parent’s mental illness has on them and their life when left untreated, they establish the characters as grown up too quickly, forced to mature due to their parent’s poor choices, and then just decide to have them follow in their mother’s footsteps when the plot demands more drama. I hated that as a choice for Ian and I hated it for Kat. Partly because I feel like it’s very out of character and cop-out writing, and also because I feel like if they had to do it at all it should have been later on in the series. 

One advantage that Zero Chill had for me over Spinning Out is that at least the characters were consistent. In this case I’m speaking mostly about Kayla, but also some of the others. Sure, I found Kayla’s impulsivity annoying instead of charming like I feel was the intent, but I liked her friendship with Skye arguably more than Kat’s friendship with Jenn. Mostly because Skye was pretty chill throughout the entirely of the show while Jenn would go from hot to cold and back. Do I think it’s stupid that Kayla and Skyle’s big storyline was “I want to skate with my BFF but regulations don’t allow it?” Yes. You’ve already established that Kayla doesnt care about competitions. The only time she ever did was because she wanted to skate with her OTHER BFF. So like....just skate now? You have Skye’s mom’s approval at this point, it doesn’t have to go anywhere. But at least the two seemed to genuinely be friends. Kat and Jenn started off with potential but then turned fairly toxic. Kat was never that supportive of Jenn, always wrapped up in her own stuff and Jenn just got crazy at the end there. I understand her being upset about Justin but then she learns that Kat is bipolar, you think theyre cool, and then she immediately throws that back in Kat’s face at the first inconvenient moment. 

Can I just say though, how much more interested I was when I thought the secret figure skater was someone on Mac’s hockey team? I was trying to guess which boy it secretly was and I thought that there would be a subplot about her trying to convince him to figure skate with her, but he would feel pressured by his parents to play hockey instead. And that would work as a foil to Ava, who wanted to play hockey but was instead forced to figure skate. And there would be an eventual romance because what can I say, I’m here for the romance. But no...it was Skye and then there was just that subplot about Mac wanting to date his sister’s only friend. And like, when I was trying to guess who it was I thought it might be Bear and that would be her romantic interest but....no. Bear just, also likes Skye. 

Also, is it some unwritten rule that for every white girl figure skater with brown hair, there must be an Asian best friend? This isnt a complaint, just an observation. 

And clearly I don’t ONLY have complaints. I thought that both shows ahd a promising premise, and I loved the relationship on Spinning Out. When Zero Chill actually bothered with real issues instead of contrived nothing issues, I think it did it pretty well. I liked the friendships and family dynamic better in Zero Chill, but wished that it would have been a little more mature like Spinning Out. I liked that the characters in Spinning Out were mostly adults and that it had a more adult tone, but I wish that they had dialed the melodrama back just a bit. What I really want, I supposed, is a combination of the two shows which leads nicely into my question for you all: 

I remember browsing Netflix months ago and seeing a figure skating show advertised, however it wasn’t either of these shows. It feels like these two shows were once one, and then got split up into two because I am completely unable to find the show I originally saw a commercial for. 

In that original ad there was a brother and sister, one who played hockey and one who figure skated. But the hockey brother was jealous of the sister because he felt like their parents prioritized her figure skating. So one day, before a big performance of hers, he met her right before the performance and yelled at her about how unfair everything was and it shook her up and when she went out on the ice she wasn’t focused. She slipped and fell, split her head open on the ice, and her confidence was shaken. 

But like...that wasn’t either of these shows so what the hell was it??? Were they once one? Was there some other show that hasn’t been released yet? Did I see it in a dream???? 

[annab-nana]

Something There That Wasn’t There Before - Colby Brock

After a meaningless kiss one drunken night, the friend group notices a difference in Colby and y/n’s relationship, though they don’t. They barely even remember it, but that doesn’t stop their group of buddies from pushing them together.

Warnings: some curse words

Word Count: 2.5k+

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

“So, what have you been up to, girlie?” Tara asked as she skipped on along to the couch with Katrina, Devyn, and Cassie following in behind her. I roll my eyes at her before shutting my apartment door behind them and make my way over to the couch with them.

“Well after work, I took a shower, tidied up around here really quick, and then worked on a few songs,” I tell her as I plop down on the couch next to her.

“Oh, so you have been busy,” Dev adds, earning a nod from me.

“Yep, I’ve been going nonstop since like seven this morning and it is now…” I let my words trail off as I glance down at my phone to see the time, “five o’clock.”

“What songs were you working on?” Cassie wonders as she reaches for the papers I had laying on the coffee table in front of us, but I swiped them before she could grasp them. She gave me a fake pout before leaning back onto the couch.

“You know that I want to keep them a surprise,” I say as I get up to put them on the kitchen counter.

“I don’t know how you do that. I can’t keep my songs a surprise. I have to at least tell Sam,” Kat speaks her opinion and I laugh.

“I can’t either. I tell someone, but I want them to be a surprise to you guys.”

“Who do you tell?” Tara asks, her curiosity getting the better of her.

“Probably Colby,” Kat snickers as I nod.

“That is exactly who I tell. He’s my best friend. I couldn’t keep it from him if I tried,” I explain.

“I think there is something more going on between you two that you guys won’t let on,” Kat starts, and I roll my eyes.

“Are you serious? This again? We don’t like each other like that,” I protest. Ever since Colby and I kissed a few weeks ago when we were each out of our minds, blackout drunk, everyone has been saying that we should get together or that they think we already have and are just hiding from them. I don’t even remember the kiss and neither does he. I honestly wouldn’t believe them if it weren’t for the video Tara took while also being highly intoxicated.

“You guys have been acting different ever since that night, y/n. You can’t deny that. It’s obvious,” Cassie states and the girls nod along with her in agreement.

“That’s the thing though. We haven’t. Literally nothing has changed except for the fact that you guys and everyone else has been egging on a relationship between us. If anything has changed, it’s been the way you all act,” I defend myself. It’s been annoying to be honest. The constant pushing and interfering has been getting on my nerves. I wish it would stop, but I know that they probably won’t until we get together or one of us snaps or if we stop being friends all together. I don’t want any of those to happen.

“You always sit next to him or even lean into him at pizza night,” Devyn brings up.

“We are best friends, so what?”

“He gave you his hoodie the other night when we went to Chipotle,” Tara mentions, and I roll my eyes again.

“Can he not be a nice guy? It was freezing that night and Jake gave you his.” I fight back.

“Jake is my boyfriend.”

“Ever since that night, y’all hang out with each other, just you two, a whole lot more than before. You guys used to hang out with all of us, but you seem to keep to yourselves lately,” Kat points out.

“Wanna know why? Because literally every time we are around anyone in the friend group, y’all try to get us together. The guys aren’t as bad about it as you are. Maybe that’s why Colby isn’t having as hard of a time with all this as I have but you guys have been basically suffocating me with it. I talked to Colby about it, but I kind of don’t want to go to pizza night anymore because I can’t even enjoy myself without thinking ‘Am I too close to Colby?’, ‘Are they going to think we are dating?’, ‘I’ll just stay close to the other guys so that they don’t suspect anything’. I just want to have fun with my friends, but my friends are making it hard for me to have fun.” I finish. I stood up in the middle of my whole speech because I was too mad to stay sitting. I could tell that I had taken them back a bit, but what I said had to be said.

“I’m sorry I had to unload all of that on you guys, but I had to say it. I’m sorta tired, so I’m going to go to my room and take a nap. Y’all can hang in here or leave if you want. I just want to be alone,” I softly speak before I walk off to my room.

KATRINA’S POV

“We did kind of come at her, guys,” Cassie mutters and I nod at her. I thought y/n liked Colby and figured we were helping her out by pushing them together, but I must have been wrong. I throw my head in my hands and groan in frustration at myself.

“I feel like shit,” I murmur into my hands. I didn’t realize that we had pushed her so bad to the point that she doesn’t even want to hang out with us anymore.

“I’m going to go talk to her,” Devyn’s soft voice spoke before she stood from her spot on the sofa. Cassie and Tara do the same as me and stand with her.

“Let’s all go talk to her,” Tara speaks, and we nod before I lead the way to y/n’s bedroom. My right hand places a soft knock against her door as my left reaches for the doorknob, twisting it and swinging it open. Sadness washes over me when my eyes lay sight to y/n. She lays facing away from the door, but I can tell from the slight shakes of her body that she is crying. I look back at the girls behind me, sticking my lip out sadly before walking in.

I walk over to the side that she is facing before taking a seat next to her. Her gloomy eyes meet mine and she grabs a small pillow that laid next to her, covering her face with it. I let my fingers swipe across her forehead, pushing any hair that was in her face out of the way, then pulling the pillow out of the way.

“We’re sorry for pushing you,” Cassie is the first to speak.

“We didn’t know we were hurting your feelings or making you feel like you couldn’t have fun or hang out without our judgment,” Tara adds.

“We just saw something in you and Colby that we didn’t see before and immediately thought y’all were in love, but maybe it was nothing or y’all are getting closer as friends if that is even possible,” Devyn chuckles as she rubs y/n’s leg comfortingly through the covers.

“We love you, y/n, and would hate it if you didn’t come to pizza night and have fun because we made you feel like you couldn’t. We are really sorry,” I apologize before wiping away the tears that had laid on y/n’s face before we came in. She gave me a shy smile before speaking.

“I love you guys too, but you’ve got to cool it with the constant Colby stuff. We are just friends,” She says as she props herself up on her elbows to look at us all. We all nod at her in agreement.

“We will. We promise,” Tara answers, sticking her pinky out in front of us all. I laugh before placing mine with hers and the other girls follow suit. After a few shared giggles, I decide its best we leave y/n because she is probably really tired.

“Okay girls, let’s go, so she can take a nap,” I announce before standing.

“Give me a hug first,” She pouts, and I roll my eyes playfully before leaning down and wrapping my arms around her.

“I love you, Kat,” I hear her whisper in my ear and I pull away, smiling down at her.

“I love you too bubs,” I coo. The rest of the girls get their hugs before we head out to let the poor girl get some much-needed sleep.

Y/N’S POV

“Damn, how long did I sleep?” I whisper to myself after seeing how dark it is outside and I grab my phone. 9:18 p.m. I groan as I sit up and rub the sleepiness out of my eyes before shooting Colby a quick text.

Y/n: you busy?

Colbert😜: nope

Y/n: wanna walk with me to panda

Colbert😜: yeah i’ll be down there in a few

I am starving, so as soon as he gets here, we are leaving. Walking to my closet, I pull out the neon yellow ‘Okay 2 Decay’ hoodie he gave me the other night when we went to Chipotle with Jake and Tara and contemplate putting it on. I have borrowed his clothes before. I don’t know why I am even thinking about this. It has never been a problem before, and it shouldn’t be a problem now.

I slip the hoodie on and walk to the bathroom to put some concealer on to hide what I could of my slightly puffy and red eyes from crying right before falling asleep. My mascara from earlier today was still on mostly, but I added a little more just because. After putting on a little chapstick, I brush through my hair, throwing it into a ponytail, and slip on my shoes just as Colby walks in.

“What happened to you?” Colby jokingly asks as he watches my worn-out self.

“I am exhausted and hungry. Leave me alone,” I pout before grabbing my phone, keys, and money and stuffing them into the hoodie pocket. “Let’s go.”

“Yes ma’am,” He chuckles as he shuts and locks my door behind him. We walk to the elevator and descend on down to the lobby before beginning our walk to Panda Express.

“So, what did you and the girls do earlier?”

“How’d you know I was with them?” I question. I never told him that they came over.

“Sam and Jake told me.” I give him a look that tells him to continue which he does. “I went over to Sam’s to see what he was doing because I was bored and you told me you were going to work on songs today and I couldn’t bother you. He told me that Kat was going to your place. Then, Jake said that Tara was going too with Devyn and Cassie.”

“Oh, we were just hanging out before they brought up what they always do. Then things sort of blew up and I snapped at them about it, but we all apologized, and they promised to chill out with the pushing,” I tell him.

“It's good that you finally told them how you feel because if you didn’t, they would have driven you crazy,” He states before I nod my head in agreement. We make it to the restaurant and Colby opens the door for me, allowing me in first.

“Thanks, Colbert,” I sweetly thank him as he groans at my nickname for him. He says he hates it, but I think deep down he loves it. After we order and get our food, we sit down.

“So, what did you do with your Kansas boys?” I ask as I spin my fork to get some noodles.

“Same thing as y’all, but it didn’t end in a huge argument. We hung out and then they started to talk about how they think we’d be good together.” Colby tells me as he stuffs a big bite of orange chicken and fried rice into his mouth. I don’t know how he manages to fit it all in there, but he surprisingly does.

“Yeah, but all of them have been saying that ever since we became close friends. I do not get why it changed so quickly and everyone pushed for it so much harder. It can’t be because we kissed while we were drunk. Before she started dating Jake, Tara and I kissed while drunk at one of your parties and no one was jumping on us to date.” Colby laughed at the brought-up memory before speaking.

“I don’t get it either. Sam mentioned something about there being something there that wasn’t there before.”

“Devyn said something like that earlier too,” I add as I slide some honey walnut shrimp onto my fork.

“Hopefully, it will all blow over and things will go back to normal soon,” Colby says. I nod before we go back to talking about our days before I realize something.

“This is where we first met, isn’t it?”

“Yeah about two years ago, wasn’t it?” I nod to answer his question.

“Yep, I wasn’t paying attention as usual and bumped into you. We started to talk for a long ass time before realizing how late it was getting and you would not let me walk home by myself,” I reminisce.

“Because I couldn’t let you walk home in the dark by yourself after I had kept you out so late. And especially since it is L.A. and you look like you do, there is no telling what could have happened to you.”

“What do you mean ‘you look like you do’? How do I look?” I question him as I watch him look down slightly before meeting my gaze again and his cheeks redden a bit.

“You’re gorgeous, y/n. Anyone can see that,” He compliments, and I can’t help the blush that rises to my cheeks.

“Maybe they’re right. You like me,” I joke. His blush darkens as he shakes his head.

“I can’t think my best friend is hot? Well damn, what a world we live in,” He chuckles before finishing up his last bit of food. I still had a little bit left to go since I wasn’t taking monstrous-sized bites like he was.

“For the record, I think you are hot, too,” I giggle as I sip on my drink.

“Oh so, you like me now?” He grins as he pushes his food to the side and leans in closer to me, trying to challenge me. I slide my food over as well before leaning in too.

“Wouldn’t you like that?” I push. A smirk falls upon his lips as the tension between us grows. It feels like a magnet, pulling me closer to him and I don’t know what to do about it. I don’t stop myself. I let myself get closer to him as he does to me.

“You’re not drunk, are you?” He asks and I shake my head.

“No, are you?”

“No, but I want to kiss you.”

“Then, kiss me.”

[mega-knight-of-breath]

Criminals?

Summary: We finally get back to part 1

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4]

Catalina looked at herself in the gift Anne had given her. It was certainly eye catching, And the plates would give her much greater protection than what she currently had... Also, gold was totally her color. But, “Where did you get it?”

“That... doesn’t matter”

“Anne”

“I’m serious, it really doesn’t matter,” Anne wasn’t even looking at her, she was inspecting a choker lovingly. It had a sparkling “B” charm hanging from it.

“Anne, tell me you didn’t steal this”

“Ok, I won’t tell you,” She shrugged.

“Anne, I-”

“No,” the smaller woman grabbed her wrists to stop her from removing the plates, “Catalina, listen to me. I got that for you. It’s yours now and it doesn’t matter who owned it before you, I because it’s yours. It’s going to keep you safe. I need you to be safe. Do you understand me?”

Catalina looked deeply into those absurdly green eyes. Her heart beat in her ears and her palms began to sweat. Her mouth went dry. She needed to say no. Theft was wrong. She needed to take the gift off. It was a nice gesture but... No. 

When did Anne’s eyes get those little brown specks in them? This close, she could smell the lavender the smaller woman cleansed herself with...

“Ok,” Lina closed her eyes before she could sink any deeper into the spell her wizard didn’t even seem to realize she had cast. It was useless, she was still surrounded by her thoughts of the woman who haunted her dreams, “I’ll keep it.”

“-ooo! I was just going to stop here and wait for those nice men with swords to catch up!” A very annoyed voice spoke from outside. Catalina broke away and looked out their door, “You just had to take that stupid necklace, didn’t you?!”

To her surprise a pair of women turned down their alleyway. The woman who wasn’t the previous voice spoke up, she had wavy hair, gaudy gold accessories and a whole. Lot. Of blue, “I’m sorry, ok?! It was just so shiny and cool, I thought it would be a nice gift.” 

“WHO THE HELL ARE YOU GONNA GIVE IT TO?!” The other woman had half blonde, half brown hair and was clearly jealous. She had a lute strapped to her back and was dressed rather revealingly and in varying shades of pink. 

Catalina saw the men chasing them and made her decision and gave Anne a look, to which the wizard nodded.

“Doesn’t matter, I-” She grabbed the shorter girl and dragged her inside, covering her mouth and holding her tightly to her body, watching Anne do the same with the other woman.

She held her breath, the town guards passed them without noticing a thing, likely thanks to some trickery from Anne. She still waited a tick before speaking up, “Are they gone?” Anne nodded, clearly tense though. She hissed down to the woman she had captured, “If you scream, we’re throwing you back out into the streets, got it?”

The woman frantically nodded and she released her. As soon as she did, the woman’s eyes darted about with an appraising gaze. Catalina glared at her in warning, only to not be noticed.

“Annie?” Lute girl gasped, looking at the wizard in awe and surprise.

“Kitten, I didn’t recognize you. You got so big,” she gave the, to Lina, stranger a smile that until then had been reserved for the paladin, unknowingly sending her partner reeling with burning... what was that emotion?

“And you’re as short as ever,” she snorted, pulling the woman into a hug that made the paladin extremely displeased. She was surprised to see the woman beside her glaring at the pair as well.

“Ahem,” The blue woman cleared her throat, “Katherine. Who’s your... friend?” she glared at Anne in a way that, if she had been capable, likely would have set the wizard on fire.

“Oh,” she stepped back in surprise, “Cathy, this is Anne, we grew up together. Annie,” she smiled sweetly, making Catalina’s gut turn, “This is Cathy, she saved me a while back.”

“Nice to meet you,” Anne nodded coolly, clearly noticing the looks she was getting, “Lina, this is Kat. Kat, this is Catalina, we’re questing partners. We’re also roommates.”

“Oh, are you two... ‘cause I mean it’s totally cool if you are.”

Anne’s face became the same color as a ripe apple, “Ah! N-no, no! We’re just roommates.”

“What did you steal?” the Paladin asked.

“Lina!” Anne hissed, gently elbowing her so as to not bruise herself.

“Kat” looked at “Cathy” expectantly, “Yes Catherine, what did we steal?”

“None of your buisness, what are you, a guard?” Cathy glared up at her, covering a satchel at her hip protectively.

“You’re out of your bloody mind,” Kat rolled her eyes before looking at Anne with stars in her eyes again, “So what’s questing like?”

And that’s how Anne and Catalina suddenly had two more Party Members

[superpaperclip]

I Never Planned (on someone like you)

After like a month, chapter 2 of the Javid fake dating AU is here! Sorry for the wait, life got in the way. CW for brief mentions of blood/injury and alcohol at the end.

Ch. 1  | Read on AO3

***

For the remainder of the week, David and Jack spent a lot of their free time together, getting to know each other. David would sit at the counter in the coffee shop during Jack’s shift, then Jack would walk him home. They would wait for each other after class and study together in the library. It was during one of those study sessions that they expanded on their plan. 

“Alright, this is what I have so far.” David said, pulling a notebook from his bag and flipping open to a page filled with notes, plus a small sketched calendar. He ignored Jack’s snickering. “So we have the party this weekend, on Saturday. That’s where we’ll tell Sarah and her girlfriend Katherine that we’re together. But we’ll also need to tell your friends, unless you’d prefer to tell them one at a time?” 

“We can tell most of them at the same time in two weeks. We’re gonna be hanging out at Race’s apartment on Friday, just our group and any partners that want to come.” 

“Alright, that’s what we’ll do. Now, we will have to go on dates and display PDA. We have to have a conversation about what levels of PDA we’re comfortable with. And, we can’t end the ‘relationship’ too early or people, at least my sister, might be suspicious. I don’t like to date around. But I think we’ll be fine if we keep it up for a few months. Once it’s been long enough, we can fake an argument and break up.”

When David looked up from his notebook, Jack had an odd expression on his face. David brushed it off, choosing instead to flip to the next page in his notebook. 

--

Davey Jacobs was very cute, Jack decided, when he rambled about the details of their fake relationship, trying to be all clinical facts and very little emotion. That just made it even more special when he flushed while talking about dates and showing affection. Jack rested his chin on the palm of his hand, staring at Davey while he talked. Jack wasn’t sure why he had suggested this ruse. Yeah, he wanted to get back at Race, Albert, and Crutchie, but he had never thought he would go this far. Maybe there was something about Davey…

“Hello? Jack? We need to discuss our limits on affection- what we’re comfortable with, what we definitely don’t want to do, things like that.” Davey waved a hand in front of Jack’s face, breaking him out of his daze. Jack blinked, refocusing on the conversation.

“Huh? What? Oh, yeah. We need to talk about kissing.” Jack watched the blush reappear on Davey’s cheeks and felt something stir inside of him. We’re just friends, he reminded himself. No, not even friends. We’re just two guys who’re trying to fool their friends. The relationship is fake. That’s the whole point. 

--

The night of the party, David paced in his living room, trying to calm his nerves. He was supposed to pick Jack up at 8:30 but, as usual, he had been ready to go an hour early. After emptying his closet and frantically asking Sarah for help (why did he care so much about how he looked?), he chose a pair of jeans that Sarah insisted on, which were frankly too tight, and a dark blue button up shirt with small white flowers. He folded the sleeves up to his elbows and cuffed his jeans. 

“Settle down, bro. What are you so worked up about? It’s just a party. I know you don’t get out much, but it’s really not a big deal.” She got an odd gleam in his eye, and looked him up and down. A slow smile spread across her face. “You really like Jack, don’t you? That;s why you’re so nervous. You want to impress him.” David nodded his head, deciding it was better to go along with Sarah’s assumption than to correct her. He just kept fiddling with his sleeves, adjusting and readjusting the length. 

Eventually, it was time for David to pick Jack up from his apartment. He and Sarah had decided that he would take their car, while she would catch a ride with Katherine. As he drove, David drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, trying to focus on the road and not the party. One problem at a time- get to Jack’s apartment, get to Bill’s house, where the party was being held, and then concentrate on pretending to be a couple. He could do this.

--

Jack sat on the steps of his apartment and ran the sleeve of his flannel through his fingers as he waited for Davey and resisted the urge to run back inside and change his clothes. After much deliberation, he had settled on a pair of distressed skinny jeans, a plain t-shirt, and a flannel tied around his waist. He knew it wasn’t the best outfit, but he hoped it would be fine for the party. No matter how poor his fashion sense and how much he wanted to impress Davey, he was absolutely not going to call Race, despite what wonders he could undoubtedly work with Jack’s closet. Jack would never live it down. He could dress himself for one party. 

As he was ruminating on the teasing he would’ve gotten had he called Race, a car pulled up and Davey got out, opening the passenger side door. Once Jack was in the seat, Davey’s got in the driver’s side and pulled away. 

Jack could’ve cut the tension in the car with a knife. This was going to be their first time out in public as a couple, so he had expected some nerves. But he didn’t anticipate how bad it would be. Eventually, Davey cleared his throat and spoke.

“Ok, let’s go over the plan. I don’t know when Katherine is picking Sarah up, so I don’t know who will get to Bill’s house first. Whoever it is, we’ll all have a chance to mingle and talk to other people before the four of us meet up. When we do, I’ll introduce you as my, ahem, boyfriend. Bill’s family is very well connected, so you’ll probably be able to meet some important art world person, or people. There are some big names from journalism who will be there as well, so I’m gonna keep an eye out for them. We should probably stay together for most of the night, though, to keep up the charade.” 

Jack nodded and murmured his assent in the appropriate places, but his mind was elsewhere. He was focused on Davey’s profile, studying his face. He didn’t know when he would get another chance. Before they knew it, Davey had turned onto Bill’s street. Already, the party was in full swing. Music could be faintly heard coming from the house, and people were sprawled across the porch, undoubtedly drinking. Jack saw Davey’s shoulders tense as they approached. He started to reach over to comfort Davey, but paused with his hand in the air. Would it be weird? Were they at that stage of their ‘relationship’ yet? He didn’t know. Slowly, he put his hand back in his lap. 

There were no spots open on Bill’s street, so Davey parked around the corner. As they walked toward the house, Jack felt his hand drift towards Davey’s. He kept pulling it back, sensing that affection would only make him more tense. They walked up the steps of the porch, greeting the people, all in various stages of drunkenness, sitting on various surfaces. Jack opened the door, and they were hit with a wave of sound. The music was so loud they could feel it in throughout their bodies. 

Inside, people were dancing or trying to talk over the music. Almost everyone had a drink of some kind, and some had a slice of pizza. Davey quickly grabbed two sodas from the kitchen, giving one to Jack, then took a seat on a couch in the living room. Jack didn’t know what to do. Would Davey want to be comforted or left alone? He saw the tension in Davey’s shoulders, the hard line of his mouth, the way his eyes darted around the room, and made his decision. Quietly, he sat next to him and gently placed his empty hand on Davey’s. Jack felt Davey jump in surprise, then relax. Slowly, Davey turned his hand over and laced their fingers together. Jack smiled. 

“You don’t like parties, huh? Me either. I don’t like all the strangers. I’d rather get together with my friends, even if they can get pretty noisy.” Davey nodded appreciatively.

“I’ve never liked loud, crowded spaces, parties especially. They agitate me.” There was an odd look in Davey’s eyes, Jack thought. He didn’t know what to make of it. Fortunately, or unfortunately, he didn’t get much time to ruminate on it. At that moment, Sarah ran up to them, dragging another woman behind her. Davey tightened his grip around Jack’s hand and they stood up, hands still clasped together.

“Dave! Jack! There you are! Guys, this is my girlfriend Katherine. Kat, my brother Dave and his boyfriend Jack.” Jack regretfully had to let go of Davey’s hand to shake Katherine’s.

“Hey Kathy, I’m Jack, and this is Davey.” As soon as Davey shook her hand, his hand was back in Jack’s. He squeezed once, and Jack squeezed back. 

“Nice to meet you two! David, Sarah has told me a lot about you. Nothing bad, don’t worry.” Katherine smiled at Davey, who returned it.

“I’ve heard a lot about you, too. My sister likes to talk. Well, I suppose gush would be a more accurate description.” Sarah rolled her eyes and hit her brother in the shoulder. At that moment, something across the room caught Katherine’s eye. She muttered that she would be right back, then disappeared into the crowd of people. A few seconds later, she reappeared with two guys following her. 

“Sarah, Dave, Jack, these are my friends Bill and Darcy. Bill here is the esteemed host of this wonderful party.” Pleasantries were exchanged around their little circle, everyone tanking Bill for throwing the party. Jack glanced at Davey, who was looking at him. Jack started to smile, but something behind him caught Davey’s attention, His eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to say something. 

“Jack-.” Before he could finish, Jack felt a body push against his back, making him stumble forward and crashing into Davey. When he got his feet under himself again, he pulled back to see that his soda had spilt on Davey’s shirt, and Davey had clutched his own can hard enough for it to break. Various people muttered curses as Katherine and Darcy ran to get towels from the kitchen. 

“Bill, is there a bathroom where we can clean up?” Jack asked hastily.

“Down the hall, second door on the right.” Jack pulled Davey through the crowd, following Bill’s directions. After kicking out the couple who’d been using the bathroom to make out, Jack directed Davey to sit on the small bench. Grabbing the hand towel, he started dabbing at Davey’s shirt, attempting to get the soda out.

“Look, Jack, you don’t have to do all of this. Besides, I’m pretty sure it won’t come out. I’ll wash it tonight.” 

“Well, you shouldn’t have to spend the rest of the night in a soda-y shirt. Here, you can wear my flannel.” He untied the sleeves of his flannel from his waist and handed it to Davey, then turned his back. There was a minute of shuffling before Davey told him he could turn back around. When he did, he felt like the breath had been punched out of his lungs. Davey looked very good in Jack’s flannel, unfairly good. The fabric stretched across his chest and hugged his biceps. Jack’s mind was clouded with the knowledge that Davey was wearing his shirt.

“-you ok? Jack? Look, I cut my hand, so I’m going to find a first aid kit.” The mention of injury snapped Jack out of his daze, and he grabbed Davey’s hand to inspect the cut. There was a thin, angry red line across his palm that was slowly leaking blood. He quickly grabbed a handful of toilet paper, pressing it to Davey’s hand, then dug through the cabinet for the first aid kit. 

Opening the kit, he grabbed Neosporin, gauze and medical tape. He expertly rinsed and bandaged Davey’s hand, wrapping the medical tape around his gauze-covered palm. After putting the first aid kit back, they both exited the bathroom. 

For Jack, the rest of the party passed in a blur of Davey is wearing my shirt. They stayed for a few more hours, leaving around 1 in the morning. Davey didn’t have anything to drink, so he drove Jack home. More than slightly buzzed, Jack watched as Davey’s face was illuminated and darkened in the uniform pattern of the streetlights. All too soon, they had arrived outside Jack’s apartment.  

“Um, thanks for lending me your shirt. And for helping clean up my hand. Oh, here’s your shirt back.” Davey started unbuttoning the flannel, but froze at Jack’s outburst.

“No! I mean, keep it for tonight. You can give it back to me later. Besides, it suits you.” Jack swallowed thickly, sure that he would pass out if Davey took off his shirt. Instead, he fumbled with the door handle, managing to open the door. Before he could get out, Davey grabbed his arm.

“I don’t usually like parties, especially when I don’t know anyone, but that was enjoyable. Thank you. Really.” Under the soft light of the moon and the harsh light of the streetlamps, Jack could see Davey blush a deep red. Jack smiled, both at the confession and Davey’s subsequent embarrassment. 

“No problem. But remember, you still have to hold up your end of the bargain. The get together with my friends is next weekend. I’ll text you the details.” They sat in silence for a minute before Jack opened the door and stepped out. 

“Thank you again for coming with me. I… I’ll look forward to your text.” Davey looked like he wanted to say something else, but he didn’t say anything, so Jack just closed the door and entered his apartment. Once inside, he went to his window and pulled back the curtain, watching Davey drive away.

***

Tag list: @mousies @mulletbilly @mylifeincharacters @jelloguts (If you want to be added or removed from the tag list, just send me an ask!)

[prettyinlimegreenboots]

I’m getting a shovel talk from your sibling/best friend.

This is pure chaos but so much to write!! There are a couple of cuss words in this!

He heard the door slam as he looked up from his phone. “Oh Thank God you’re home!”

Race dropped his bag by the door, toeing off his shoes before hopping over the back of the couch to join Spot there. “What’s going on?”

“I’m getting a shovel talk from your brother.” Spot gulped loudly, as his phone dinged with an incoming text. “He said the hole is already dug in the backyard.”

Race raised an eyebrow, clearly confused. “Back up 80 steps. Who is texting you and what is the shovel talk?”

“You don’t know what a shovel talk is?” Spot blanched at the thought. “How do you not know what one is? You’ve given plenty of them over the years.”

Shrugging, Race shook his head. “What is it because I have no idea?”

“The shovel talk is if you hurt him/her, we’re comin’ after ya. You hurt them, you’re gonna get hurt kinda talk.” Spot said as the light bulb clicked over Race’s head.

He chuckled. “So who’s giving you the talk? ‘Cause we've been for 2 years already, so I’m pretty sure that ship has sailed.”

“Jack is texting me.” Spot shrugged. “He mentioned a hole in the backyard and that’s where my body would be if I hurt you. I texted him back and said that we’ve been together for two years already and that ship had sailed but he said it’s always good to be reminded.”

Race shook his head. His entire family was weird and crazy and loved saying they were going to hurt someone when it was an empty threat. “Don’t worry snookums, I’ll protect you from Jack.”

“You promise?” Spot dropped his cell phone on the coffee table before snuggling up to Race.

Throwing an arm around his shoulder, Race kissed his forehead before humming. “Yes, I promise you. Jack won’t be able to hurt you.”

A Few Days Later

Family dinner was a weekly tradition that was just mayhem. As everyone had gotten older, Medda demanded that her children come home once a week to have dinner with her. So that Saturday night, Race and Spot along with Jack, Katherine and Smalls gathered around the table.

“So what’s with this shovel talk you gave Spot the other day, Jack?” Race raised an eyebrow looking at his older brother. “You know we’ve been together for two years already?”

Jack grinned, helping himself to more mac and cheese. “Well I like to remind him every now and then if he hurts you.”

“Shovel talk?” Medda looked between her children with an eye raised. “Jack you’re not going to kill Spot are you?”

Spot’s eyes went wide while he looked at Katherine, who rolled her eyes. Jack laughed. “Just gotta keep him on his toes momma.”

“Jack Francis Kelly - there will be no killing, today or any other day.” Medda pointed at him. “Besides, Spot is a nice guy and he treats Race well. We love him in this house.”

Jack opened his mouth, giving Spot a look while Katherine’s eyes went wide. “Is that why there’s a hole dug in the backyard? You’re not throwing anybody in there, Jack Kelly or you will find yourself divorced.”

“You can’t kill Spot!” Smalls butted in giving her brother a look. “You wouldn’t last a few hours in jail, let alone the rest of your life.”

“You’re going to have to go through me first before you get to my boyfriend.” Race glared at his brother. “Besides, he’s too pretty to kill.”

Jack’s hand hit the table, groaning at the insanity of his family. “I’m not killing Spot. Geez all of y’all are nuts. Kat and I are getting a new tree put in the backyard. That’s why there’s a hole. But glad to see what you think.”

There were a few wide eyes and ooohs that went around the table. “Then why the shovel talk?”

“I was JOKING!” Jack shook his head. “Why do y’all gotta take everything so literal? I wouldn’t kill Spot because y’all love him more than me most days and I don’t want you all on my back anymore than you already are.”

Katherine leaned over and kissed his cheek. “Why won’t you admit you like Spot?”

“He, like all of y'all, is a pain in the ass.” Jack grinned, shaking his head. “But at least he’s a decent pain in the ass for my little brother.”

Spot put his hand on his chest, grinning at Jack. “Awww that’s the best compliment I’ve ever received from you. You do love me.”

“Watch it Conlon.” Jack pointed his fork in Spot’s direction. “I could still murder you in your sleep.”

Race glances between his boyfriend and brother. “Over my dead body, Jackie.”

Medda’s hand hit the table. “I swear only in this house we would talk about murder and not bat an eye. No more talk of death or killing anyone. Now how was everyone’s week?”

The conversation continued about the week each of them had. Race thought his family was nuts but at least they’d always be there for him as that’s all he needed in life - his family and Spot, not dead.

Thanks @wide-eyed--wonderer for sending this in!!!

[danwhobrowses]

Justice League Snyder Cut - Review

Fan Power has willed the Justice League back to life

The much-awaited Snyder Cut came out earlier this week and at last I have found time to watch it, so now it’s time to review it

Did it live to the hype or did it fall and flounder like Whedon’s?

Spoilers for the Snyder Cut underneath, find 4 hours to watch it and come back. You can watch via HBO Max, NowTV (who do a 7-day free trial) and Sky Cinema

I will also preface that these are my opinions, everyone has them and they are not all the same, these are my thoughts about the film

And I did like the movie, I think it was much better than the Whedon one but not as much a flawless masterpiece it could’ve been

What wasn’t Great Every movie has flaws, and longer movies tend to have more flaws. While these are gonna be things I didn’t think were great about the movie this does not mean they entirely ruin the film for me.

4 Hours is Probably Too Long The 4-Hour runtime was manageable in terms of pacing, however, there were several scenes that kinda felt like padding - which for a 4-hour movie isn’t really necessary. Scenes like the two where it’s just a character walking to a song wasn’t needed and felt more like it was there for the sake of it being in trailers, and while I am a heavy advocate of trailers not showing us scenes not in the movie. As much as it was nice to see Iris West, because it didn’t really do anything for the film it didn’t need to be in the film, Quality over Quantity. The Epilogue’s Knightmare and Martian Manhunter sequence for the most part felt like it was lumped on too, like we had 2 other Knightmare Sequences of Superman breaking bad, the third one didn’t really give us anything new except for Joker, Mera and Deathstroke being a part of the Knightmare Squad.

Some Still Sour Casting While not entirely Snyder’s fault you do get a bit of a pit having to see some actors reprising their role, Amber Heard as Mera particularly. Eisenberg’s Luthor also didn’t feel like it was much better (though these were old scenes, I am aware of that). Leto’s Joker also was a mixed bag, ups and downs.

Keeping Some Bad Scenes from Whedon, and Cutting the Few Good Whedon Scenes So while it was rumored that the film would be completely different from the Whedon JL film it was of course not the case. While many, many scenes were altered, some scenes that weren’t too great still made it to the Snyder Cut, small scenes with crappy dialogue for sure but you notice them. I think the one that annoyed me though was the omission of the good scene in the Whedon version and it’s when Bats gives Flash the ‘Save One Person’ pep talk, I thought that scene went a long way in imbuing Flash with the confidence to embrace his heroics more, I also liked when he sharpied the guy’s face before visiting his dad in prison, sold his more playful personality.

Flash needs to Pick a Lane As much as Flash was the comic relief character at times, it did feel like he would flit between Competent and Incompetent throughout the film. This is where the Whedon JL pep talk scene could’ve forgave this, because Flash will either be invaluable in a fight, or a detriment to himself and others, sometimes at the same time. Boy trips over a lot! And his Iris scene was kinda creepy...

...And So Does Diana’s Romance Angle Frankly, Diana doesn’t need a romantic subplot, it doesn’t really progress her character at all for the situation at hand. But across the film there seemed to be bits here and there that looked like the movie wanted to nudge potential romances with her and other League members, and that’s members plural. The main romance seems to be the Bruce/Diana bit, they have had a tiny flirt in BVS so the one scene makes sense, but then there was this weird energy with her and Cyborg and then also her and Aquaman. I can understand the sentiment that every dude there finds her attractive but it’s not exactly necessary to try and push any of the three to be more than platonic, and Diana isn’t quite the mother hen trope that Alfred is.

Some CGI and Dialogue doesn’t quite fit TV CGI of course gets a hit and miss, but Cyborg many times does suffer a bit of uncanny valley, as does Steppenwolf’s armor. The dialogue also suffers sometimes, some things that look good on paper don’t come across the same way because of the tone and inflection used in the speaker. A prime example is when Diana, for some reason, only seems to call Clark by his Kryptonian name, another being Silas’ recording to Victor. The ‘Mrs’ ‘Doctor’ is always a cringey cliché, the headmaster wasn’t undermining you by gender, if he called Silas Mr. Stone there wouldn’t be such offence, it’s just an eyeroll. Cyborg’s ‘Didn’t think you were real’ is also dumb in context, he is a cyborg made from a Mother Box who recently talked to an Amazon goddess and fought Parademons, he knows about Superman but the Dude dressed in a Bat Suit for 20 years can’t possibly be real.

“This Place, it’s Toxic” This is a small one, but Steppenwolf’s base of operations isn’t much better than Whedon’s. Though it’s not populated, it’s supposed to be toxic, something Steppenwolf makes not of when he arrives. But all that kinda goes out the window when the Justice League lot come in and raid it. At the least when Whedon’s had a family living in it we could see that the environment wasn’t too hostile for humans to breathe in let alone fight in.

Cyborg’s ‘heart’ doesn’t fully land Upon promoting the Snyder Cut, a lot of focus came down to Ray Fisher’s Cyborg. The promotion suggested that he would be the ‘heart’ of the story, and the league, but upon watching the story unfold it didn’t quite land. When I hear that someone’s the ‘heart’, it’s more than just that they are core to it, it means that they carry the emotional story as well, and Cyborg’s emotional story wasn’t really something to be moved by. He rightfully has resent for his father and his father tries to make up for it, mutually having care for each other but not being great at showing it. While Cyborg was a good character showing good development, I wouldn’t say he kept the promotion of him being the heart of the movie. Also his ‘helping’ breaks the financial system, I mean you could’ve helped a different way.

There’s not Six, there’s Seven! But J’onn sits this one out The reveal of Martian Manhunter was great, J’onn has been one of my favourite DC heroes since the animated Justice League Unlimited where Carl Lumbly gave us a uniquely compassionate, intuitive and someone ethereal kind of hero. But in Justice League his reveal as the army guy in Man of Steel left me lacking a little bit, why has J’onn sat out of this? If he’s been around since MoS he would’ve had some idea of all the stuff going on from BVS and JL, and it’s not like he’s simply not caring because his human form is a military person sworn to protect people. It just would’ve been nicer if J’onn’s contribution was more than just getting Lois out of the house you know? Like if he was saving other hostages from Parademons or gifting the League intel it would have been nice. Also, ditch the glowing eyes, I know he has red eyes but the glow makes it more menacing, at first I thought Martha had been Parademon’d or had the Omega imprint.

Apokalips Technology kinda sucks For a planet that has razed several tens of thousand of planets, mind controlling their lives into Parademons, being able to open Boom Tubes and capable of space flight, the technology the League face doesn’t seem that great. Consider Steppenwolf’s 'Stronghold’; it is easily undone by breaking the ‘tower’ which the Batplane crushed through like a Kit Kat bar - after penetrating a weak outer shell - after that the Parademons have cannons that can barely even harm the Flash and stormtrooper aim. It does really feel like the only valid technology Apokalips brings to Earth is on Steppenwolf’s person, but even that suffers. Clark freezes the axe and shatters it with his breath, his armor is eye lasered off - more on those later - even though Bruce’s gauntlets were able to stave off the lasers for a bit. Consider that: Alfred built gauntlets that fared just as well as Steppenwolf’s armor...it just feels off. And it wouldn’t be as bad if the technology was praised, but Steppenwolf made note of how primitive the technology was, then lost. Even with the Mother Boxes that brought Clark back to life and were said to be able to rearrange matter however it is willed, but Steppenwolf’s fortress couldn’t make it out of a sturdier material.

Amazons take the L The Amazons are a warrior race, with superhuman power, no fear and enhanced skills in combat - but they barely ever win. Granted, the Amazons had to lose to Steppenwolf, but they were for the most part wasted as they were with Whedon. This would’ve been much easier to stomach if the Amazons were showing contributing better to the Darkseid flashback, but you don’t really see any of them fight Darkseid like the Atlantean King, the Greek Gods and the Green Lantern. You could make a call for Artemis being the Amazon pile since her arrow warns Diana but it’s not exactly enough, I don’t think it helps that the Amazons are consistently bringing swords to a gun fight. They only lasted longer than the Atlanteans in protecting the Mother Box because they kept throwing it out of Steppenwolf’s reach, only earning credit for failure and stubbornness.

Also I have to add, the Female Chanting that becomes the Amazon and Wonder Woman’s theme was heavily overused to the point where I got sick of it, needed more of Diana’s actual theme.

Too Much Slowmo! Snyder has his style, but he needs to have some restraint. Some slow-motion scenes did hurt the pacing. Slow Motion needs to fit a purpose of showing something we’d want to see that at normal speed would be hard to track, Bryan Singer knew this, but Snyder uses Slowmo as much as JJ Abrams uses lens flares.

Look at these Cars, MERCEDES CARS! Product placement happens, it needs to, but Mercedes needed to be a little less blatant with it. The cars looked ugly as balls as well.

The Over-Deifying of Clark Kent *sigh* So this is gonna probably be a me issue more than anything. I understand the crux of the plot is that Superman kept the Mother Boxes from calling Steppenwolf before, but I have to make this clear: Superman is NOT a God.

I have to make this clear because Diana is a God, daughter of Zeus, and she frequently struggled against Steppenwolf alone. While the resurrected Clark going unchained against the League led to the cool scene of Flash noticing that Clark can track him, it still left the sour realisation that in this universe, Superman is above all the other 5 league members combined, as well as being almost as fast as the Flash...who can turn back time. And that always hurts, Diana and Aquaman have at certain times of the comics slapped around Superman and have more than been enough to be his physical equal - the same is for J’onn and Shazam btw, Supes is weak to magic. It annoys me because making Superman the alpha defeats what makes Superman the leader, he’s considered one of the best heroes not because he’s the strongest but because he is humble, kind and reasonable, regardless of his genetic strength from an extinct race of aliens what makes Clark Superman is the Kansas Boy Scout attitude and what made the Mother Boxes fear him should’ve been his ability to bring people together.

His flexing on Steppenwolf did not nearly give me the catharsis others might have had, Diana’s sword and gauntlets are godly relics but a Kryptonian eye laser can fare better against Steppenwolf’s armor, Kryptonians aren’t gods.

Also they don’t really explain how Clark can resume normal life, people think he’s dead.

What was Great Okay that did look like a lot of complaints...but remember, 4 hours! There was still a lot more enjoyable moments and improvements upon the Whedon version, which we can delve into now.

Improved Character and Motivation Of the characters in the Snyder Cut there is definitely a greater improvement in fleshing out the main League Members think and feel, where they come from becomes key to how they act. This also is true for Steppenwolf, while a fully disappointing villain in Whedon, Snyder kills the ‘mommy issues’ dialogue and paints a much more desperate, outcasted and slightly pitiful antagonist, even in his defeat it’s shown just how little Darkseid cared. The inclusion of Darkseid also adds to Steppenwolf, because we see the head of the table we know that if Steppenwolf is overwhelmed there is still Darkseid, who was so tough that it took 2 of the strongest gods to wound him. While his emotional story didn’t land so well, Cyborg getting the backstory and the mental turmoil really helped with his character and made his declaration of ‘I’m not broken’ earned and emotive, through Vulko - and Dafoe’s glorious mane - we get to explore Aquaman’s reluctance to meet expectations of him a bit further. Affleck’s Batman also gets good development, attempting to assemble the League out of honoring his promise to Clark and trying to bring himself out of the darkness and anger. Barry’s dad happily rejoicing that Barry has his ‘foot in the door’ was also a sweet moment.

In the Knightmare sequence we see improvement in Leto’s Joker, a lot more like the Joker we are fond of and his underhanded taunting of Batman. Remove the orange gloves though...

R for Red, Blood Red I read somewhere in criticism of the Snyder Cut that it did not earn its R Rating, and I think that was dumb. You got blood, violence and cursing, Steppenwolf freaking bisects a dude and the rating allows Diana to behead Steppenwolf at the end. There’s believable brutality that never comes off as overcompensating or gratuitous.

The Fakeout That caught us off-guard didn’t it? A great way to use Flash’s time travelling powers by having the Unity actually be achieved. Seeing the Unity atomize Superman as well as Arthur and Diana was also a good display of the dangerous power of the Mother Boxes. For a film where we already know what’s going to happen because we’ve seen it before, the fakeout of the League failing was a great shock value moment.

Good Exposition The story had a lot of background  and backstory to cover, so it had to make sure that the exposition they used wouldn’t be dumps of preachy dialogue. This was done really well thanks to the way the story showed Cyborg’s abilities, producing simulations that Vic would then walk through such as when he explained the Mother Boxes, the Murals in the tomb forewarning Darkseid’s first invasion - which later became the flashback story - and the Mother Box visions were able to tell valuable information without overwhelming the audience with it.

Knightmare Warnings Although the final Knightmare warning was kinda lumped on the wrong place, it continued to give us teases of a different scenario, the fear of what will happen when Darkseid comes to Earth. Seeing the deaths of Aquaman and Wonder Woman paired with what seems to be the incineration of Lois and then Clark breaking bad forewarned Cyborg in a similar manner to how Bruce was warned in BVS and the epilogue. The scenes also teased their importance to the Knightmare resistance, since Cyborg and Bruce look to be a part of a bigger role which can be key to preventing such a thing. 

The Knightmare scenario did also make me want to see more of this apocalyptic scenario, as well as all the dynamics had with Bruce, Joker, Cyborg, Deathstroke and Flash (but not Mera, unless they change her actress because Fuck Amber Heard) as they try to face off with evil Superman.

Some Nice Easter Eggs As well as the awesome Martian Manhunter reveal and the Age of Heroes Green Lantern, we got cameos from Zeus, King Atla, King Arthur, Ares, Artemis, Iris West, Deathstroke, Joker, Commissioner Gordon - who looks really similar to his BTAS design, the voices of Jor-El and Johnathon Kent, Darkseid and Granny Goodness, we also got Ryan Choi - the third Atom - as Silas’ assistant and a cool nod with the policeman Lois gives coffee to every day. That guy is Mark McClure, who played Jimmy Olsen in the Reeve Superman and Dax-Ur in Smallville. There’s of course the Black Suit, which looks amazing, the code for the Mother Box is the issue which Cyborg’s origin story is introduced, one of the cops Crispus Allen would later become the Spectre and we finally see Arkham Asylum. You can also see Kilowog dead at the foot of the Hall of Justice in Cyborg’s Knightmare vision. You can also still see the open pod on the Kryptonian’s ship, implying Supergirl.

Two Fathers / Using Zimmer’s Flight Perfectly Zimmer’s ‘Flight’ is perhaps one of my favourite themes in Superhero movies, definitely the best in the DCEU next to Diana’s theme, so to hear it be used at the very mention of Superman was great. To hear it more than once was even better, especially in the Black Suit scene. With Superman about to return to the fight, hearing encouragement from his birth father and his Earth father was a wonderful touch, getting to finally embrace himself in the way Jor-El hoped and with the blessing of Johnathon. While the Amazon chanting was overused the film definitely made good on the rest of its music hitting at the right time.

Stronger Visuals While the visuals of Whedon’s version were never god awful, there was a lot of great visual moments in the Snyder Cut, Flash’s super speed scenes of course being one of the main highlights. Snyder is one for showing artistic frames and it does shine a lot here, the Comic Spread scene when attacking the Stronghold, the lineup after the battle, the view of Apokolips, the mural and even the Anti-Life Equation looked amazing. I particularly liked the ‘Melted Iron Zoom Call’ Steppenwolf did to contact Desaad and Darkseid.

Legitimate and Varying Dynamics Between Characters If every hero got along the same way then you’re not really doing much with your characters. Snyder made sure that each character had a varying level of dynamic with them, for instance: Barry is the same personality by default but he’s intimidated by Bruce, crushes on Diana, scared of Arthur and tries to pal with Vic and that affects his approach, Arthur doesn’t treat Vic the same way he treats Barry or Diana and so on. The dynamic is also sold by stuff like Bruce’s desire to atone with Clark, or Diana and Arthur’s people having been at war with one another causing distrust. There’s also the relationship between Vic and his Father which tragically only starts on the path of making amends, Alfred’s micro-managing of Diana’s tea making, Barry’s less-enthusiastic demeanor when around his dad, Bruce’s ‘hate you but need you’ dynamic with Joker and Steppenwolf’s estrangement with the rest of the New Gods are properly expressed.

Setting Up a Bunch More If the DCEU decides against picking up from the plot points of the Snyder Cut it’d be a huge mistake. As well as uniting the Justice League we’ve set up a future villain in Darkseid and Deathstroke, future members in Atom and Martian Manhunter (not to mention Shazam and the potential for Green Lantern), a potential AU film of Knightmare, and future normal developments with characters such as the potential Lois pregnancy and Barry getting a forensics job. With the Mother Boxes still on Earth as well there is potential to use them in a similar way that Infinity Stones were used in the MCU, Atom gaining abilities from the alien technology for instance such as introducing Nth Metal and then Hawkman and Hawkgirl, or just making more and the introduction of the New Gods allows other characters such as Mister Miracle, this can easily be a stepping stone for a lot more DC content to varying degrees.

Conclusion This film was very good, not the best superhero film ever but definitely a labor of love that succeeded in its expectations and bettered its previous version in nearly every way. Despite seeing the Whedon version and it having a similar plot it still had moments that surprised and excited me and the characters all felt better, whether every cut will have the same acclaim will be up for debate but the fan-charged attempt to salvage DC’s Justice League is definitely a success.

[lonewolf34500]

The plot thickens and this might of have left off in a cliffhanger. Drew I am so sorry and Kat you gave the motivation I needed to complete this. With that said I have no idea how long it will take me to write the next part since I am starting school again. I forgot to add what their tail designs are: Lucifer is the eastern blue devil, Gabriel is a rainbow parrot fish, and Raphael is a yellow fin tuna. The rest of this series can be found here and the rest of the story down below.

Panel 1: Council meeting

Lucifer: This is the fifth time I brought her a gift and she just thanked me and swam away. Like what is her deal I…

Ralph: This is a stupid rant! We are here to discuss a very important issue according to Michael.

Gabriel: This is so boring; I want to go eat some sweet snails, mangos, or a papaya right about now rather than be at this meeting. If this meeting doesn't happen any time soon I am leaving. 

Michael: As they enter the council chambers he hears his brothers arguing and whispers to Adam, “They are at it again.” He says much louder so his brothers will hear, “Hey, enough!” 

Panel 2:  Meeting Adam

Gabe: He is the first to speak after seeing his brother holding the other merman’s hand, “You two are holding hands! Is Mikey getting laid...finally!” He has a face splitting grin.

Lucifer: He grins and lets out a low chuckle, “Mikey is definitely getting laid. I like the new arm candy. Maybe I can take a turn with him and rough him up a bit.” He cackles at his brother's expression.

Michael: He grips his lance tighter, everything is telling him to throw it at Lucifer. He knew of the rumors but there was never any evidence. “Just because you are my brother does not mean you get to get away with comments like that. Adam will be shown respect as much as you show me,” he declares as he looks at his brothers. 

Gabe was smiling, but he was just happy for his brother. Raphael, as always, looked indifferent but silently he was happy for Michael, too. Lucifer was unfazed by his brother’s declaration. He rakes his eyes across Adam’s body and licks his lips hungrily. 

Adam: He  tries to not react to Lucifer’s behavior  but he still squeezes Michael’s hand for reassurance. “Michael has something to tell you that is why he called this meeting not so you could make rude comments,” Adam says as he crosses his arms. 

Michael: His brothers turn towards him waiting for him to speak, he takes a deep breath and lets it out, “Thank you Adam. Yes, I do have something to tell you and we need a plan so no fighting among yourselves. Leviathans are attacking other colonies, we need to protect them and stop them from attacking.” Michael looks at his brothers at some point Lucifer had actually started to listen to him and now had a blank expression. Gabe looks confused and Ralphael is furious, his hand is hovering close to his sword. 

“Why are you just telling us now! How long have you known?” asks Ralphael accusingly. 

“ Aren’t Leviathans stories we tell kids before they go to bed?” asks Gabriel at the same time.

“They are not just stories Gabe, they are real monsters that wage war on the colonies a long time ago. Father did not want you and Castiel to know I don’t know his reasons but he forbade us from talking about the subject and they became a scary story. Raphael I have known for some time when I received a report from a patrol of one of our smaller colonies had been attacked. I told you it was just a shark attack but it wasn't.” Michael finishes speaking still looking at the ground unable to look at his brothers. He feels Adam slip his hand in his and intertwined their fingers again and squeezes his hand. 

“Michel is okay, I know father was not the greatest dad ever anyways plus now we got a cool looking monster to fight,” jokes Gabriel giving a humorless laugh. 

“I hate that you lie to me but I have double patrols even though you told me not to because of all of this “shark attacks” but it is okay now we can come up with a plan together,” says Raphael. Michael slowly looks at them. He still sees Gabe’s pain behind his smile and a bit of anger but it is mostly targeted at their father, hopefully. Raphael is still angry at being lied to but he still wants to protect the colonies and he will calm down eventually. 

“Lucifer you haven’t said anything,” says Michael now looking at Lucifer’s still blank face.

“I have nothing to add it all has been said you are a liar and put everyone in danger all because you have been getting down and dirty with some common merfolk,” hisses Lucifer. 

“One more comment like that Lucifer I will kick you out of this meeting and your opinion will not matter understood,” Michael growls. Lucifer shrugs and remains silent. 

Panel 3: Meeting Dean and the hatchling and an egg

Dean: They swim to the Council Chambers as they come in they hear someone ask, “So what is the plan?” 

Cas leans towards Dean and whispers,” Let me do most of the talking and introduce you to them; they don’t know you are my mate.” He nods and follows Cas to the meeting room where he sees his brother Adam and four other mermen; they must be Cas’ brothers. Cas clutches the egg closer to his chest as he lets their presence known, “Hello.” All the mermen turn towards them stopping in mid sentences.

The first to speak was Michael, “Cassie what is going on? Why are you here?”

“Dean, you have kids now?” asks Adam, shocked to see his older brother being clutch by a hatchling by his tail. 

“ First, this is Dean my mate. Dean, these are my brothers. The one with the lance is Michael the leader of the colony, right behind him is Raphael the main healer. Gabriel is our head scholar, and then there is Lucifer, the one that deals the punishment when someone breaks the laws,” says Cas. Dean looks at them again, Michael has a stern face but a slight smile but if you weren't looking closely you will miss it and Raphael just looked stern. While Gabriel has a wide smile and Lucifer looks like he woke up on the wrong side of the nest.

“Nice to meet you Dean but this doesn't explain why you have hatchlings,” says Michael. 

“Before you answer that Cas, why are you here Adam?” asks Dean, still confused by Adam’s presence at this meeting.

“I am with Michael,” Adam says shyly.

Michael wraps one arm possessively around Adam, “Yes I am courting him,” he confirms as he nuzzles behind Adam’s fin making Adam blush. 

The whole room fills up with Gabriel’s laughter, “Why not pee on him while you are at it Micky. This meeting is the most interesting one ever first Leviathans, Cassie has swam off and mated with hatchlings, and Micky is now marking his territory.”

“Speaking of hatchlings can we get back to the issues at hand,” says Raphael. 

“Right we found a nesting area that was completely destroyed by something. The only thing that remained was this egg and this hatchling. We just wanted to tell you about it and we are also adopting them,” Dean explains as he puts his hand on the little hatchling's head. 

Panel 4: Meeting Crowley

Dean:  They were interrupted again before anyone could say anything again by an octopus looking creature. “Hello darlings,” says the man with an odd accent. Raphael takes out his sword and Michael grips his lance firmer while pulling Adam closer. Castiel holds the egg close while shielding Dean from the stranger as Dean pulls him close and pushes their little girl behind him. Lucifer balls his hand into a fist and looks furious and Gabe just observes the stranger with curiosity and intrigued. 

“Who are you? This a private meeting, how did you get past the patrols and guards,” asks Michael calmly but his stares intently. 

“Let me introduce myself the name is Crowley. Your patrols are predictable so it is easy to get in and your guards are asleep with a little bit of magic, it helps being the son of a witch,” Crowley smirks, “Anyways I came to make a deal but it looks like you have some eels among you.”

“What are you talking about man?” asks Dean not sure about the new comer.

“I think Michael and tentacles here should go talk in private,” suggests Gabriel. 

“I should go with Michael. I am not letting him,” says Raphael pointing his sword towards Crowley, “Out of my sight especially around Michael.” 

“Dean and Castiel take your hatchlings to your den. I will talk to you both later,” Michael says looking at Dean. Dean mumbles under his breath, not happy at being dismissed but he does need to protect his family so he nodes as he ushers them out of the chambers.

Michael: Sees his brother go before looking at the rest of the room. “Okay Raphael and Gabriel you are coming with me. Adam go and wait for me in my den. Lucifer go and get a report on the patrols, also check on the guards to make sure they are going to be fine.”

“Why am I the one to go check on them? I am going with all of you,” Lucifer growls.

“ I need someone to check on them and we are just listening to him not making a decision,” explains Michael.

“No you are dismissing me like always,” says Lucifer with fury in his eyes.

“You just insulted Adam multiple times, you keep arguing with me, always wanting to be right and you never listen to anyone else’s opinion besides yours,” says Michael, growing more frustrated with his brother.

“Lucifer please just go and check on the guards and patrols we will tell you later what he has to say like Michael said we are just listening not making a final decision,” says Gabriel trying to diffuse the situation. 

“Whatever,” mutters Lucifer under his breath and swims off. 

“I will be waiting for you,” says Adam as he kisses Michael’s cheek and swims off too. 

“Are we done with all the mushy, feely, sappy stuff and temper tantrums because we have more important stuff to discuss,” sighs Crowley. 

Michael takes them to a smaller room and Raphael stands guard behind Crowley, “Alright what is it that you want?”asks Michael.

“Like I said I want to make a deal as you know the Leviathans are back I will give you more information about them,” answers Crowley.

“Why would you have information about them? How do we know it is reliable and you are not just lying?”Michael  prompts further.

“I have worked with them so they don’t attack the pack but I kind of have been overthrown and well I am willing to give information,'' replies Crowley.

“What is the catch? I don’t think you are just giving this information away out of the goodness of your heart,” snides Raphael. 

“Well you are not just the silent type you have a funny bone in there glad to see it didn’t go all to waste on shorty over there,” says Crowley smirking as he tilts his head towards Gabriel.

“Look who is calling someone short shorty, tentacles,” Gabe snarks back. 

“Can we focus or are we just going to do this all night,” says Michael. 

“Right yes there is a catch you have to provide protection and a den for me to stay until the threat is dealt with and I can potentially return to the pack. In return I will give you all the information I know,” concludes Crowley.

“This sounds reasonable but we will like to discuss this with the full council present but for now you will be given a den with guards outside and no magic to get away. You will be allowed to move around with escorts until we have made a final decision,” says Michael sternly.

“I will not talk to the eel although there are more of them.You will be wise to not to give up the upper hand away just like that, do not tell him anything,” warns Crowley. Michael knows this could be true; he remembers all the complaints and reports of missing, dead, or heavily traumatized merfolk that wouldn’t talk even now.   

“We will go with what Michael said and we will come up with something to tell Lucifer, perhaps we could partially lie to him so some truth but not all of it,” suggested Gabriel.

“Does he know who you are? Are you in danger from him?” asks Raphael. 

“I am not sure if he knows who I am but I am going to assume he does and I might indeed be in danger from him and every other bloody thing that is trying to kill me,” scoffs Crowley.

“One more question, do you know who the other eels are?” asks Raphael.

“I know he has a pack that follows all of his orders. The only names I have heard are Azazel, Alastair, and Lilith but I am sure there are more,” answers Crowley.

“Thank you Crowley for this information and we will try to keep you safe. That will be it for this meeting,” declares Michael. Michael gives his soldiers the orders before he goes to his den to meet Adam as his brothers leave to tend to other things in the colony. Michael enters his den to find Adam curled up on himself and badly bruised and bloody. 

Tagging: @shadowywerewolfqueen @peanutbutterandgrapejelly @fantastikitty7 @deservetobesaved @katishereintown

[excaliefur]

How Anne got her Introduction

Hey y’all. I hope your good!

This idea came to me from a whim, I was listening to the Anne Boleyn introduction and it just came to me lol. I have a lot of angst coming so savour this strange fluff while you can.

Also a bit of context, at the time of this fic, they are working on the musical, it wasn’t fully written.

TW: I don’t think there’s anything, a bit of swearing maybe, let me know if I need to add something.

And sorry for the boring dares, I have no life and no friends to do stuff like this. Anyways, enjoy folks!

*THIS IS A REUPLOAD BECAUSE TUMBLR DECIDED TO HATE ME AND MY LAPTOP*

All the queens were working hard writing the musical, so naturally after a hard week, on the Friday evening, the only thing they wanted to do was get drunk and have fun. So thats what they did.

‘If i roll a 2, you have to call Starbucks and say you want a pizza.’ Catherine snickered, pointing at Jane. Jane looked affronted and nodded vigorously. ‘I’ll do it, I’ll do it, just watch.’ She said, offended.

‘Woah, calm down she hasn’t even rolled yet.’ Anna said, holding her back. Maybe everyone was a little drunk, scratch that, they were very drunk. First they played some harmless board games, then moved onto cards against humanity after Jane started to slur her words, and now they made up a game, just because they could. Anne had to stand on her head for a round, which she did, afterwards she proceeded to throw up and return to the game. Everyone was too drunk to say otherwise. Cathy had to chug 3 red-bulls, which was definitely not good, she was definitely gonna throw up soon. So maybe some of the dares were a bit extreme.

‘Awww man, I rolled a one.’ Catherine cried, she was a very emotional drunk. So if she felt sad normally, as a drunk she would be devastated. all her emotions were multiplied by a 100. Jane frowned. ‘I wanted Pizza!’ Anne yelled from her armchair. ‘Ok, moving on, Kat, its your turn!’ Cathy said, out of all of them, she was probably the most sober, which was saying something. She passed the die to Kat.

‘If I roll a six, Anna, you have to do push ups until it comes back to me!’ Kat shouted. Kat was a loud, horny drunk. Anna did not look like she was fit for push ups, but nodded nonetheless.

‘Seriously Kat?’ Anne groaned. ‘You’ve been focusing on Anna for the last four, or five, no it was two, turns.’ She continued, looking extremely confused as she tried to count on her fingers.

Kat shrugged, ‘I like seeing you do them Anna.’ she said, winking very clearly, everyone except Anna and Kat groaned. ‘Get a room!’ Jane said in disgust. Anna sighed and said ‘Fine, roll it then.’ Kat threw the dice across the room, right next to Catherine, who crept over and looked at it.

‘ahh, a five,’ She said, very sympathetically.

Anna smiled, glad she didn’t have to, but she looked over to Kat, who had a very exaggerated pout on her face. Anna hated seeing Kat upset, but was too drunk to notice that it was fake. ‘Don’t look so upset liebe, I’ll do it.’ She told her, before sighing and dropping down. Kat instantly looked happy and cheered ‘Yay!’. However, the others had noticed her fake expression.

‘Wow another manipulator huh?’ Catherine asked, cynically. That wasn’t really said well, and Anne slapped her hand. She looked up and noticed the not fake frown on Kats face, and the fear in her eyes. ‘Oh I didn’t mean it like that, I swear! I meant it like you and Anne are so alike!’ she rectified, Kat nodded and looked down. Catherine sighed, how could she have forgotten about Kat’s previous tormentors. ‘I’m sorry Kat.’ Kat nodded and gave a small grin, saying she accepted the apology. When everyone looked away however, Kat had a devilish grin on her face.

‘Lets move on then.’ Cathy sighed, she was getting bored. She caught the die from her god mother and passed it to Anne who slid onto the floor. Anne thought for a second, wondering what she wanted.

‘Ok, If I roll a 4 then Cathy you have to cuddle with me.’ Anne said impishly, Cathy groaned, Anne was such a hypocrite. A minute ago she was talking about lame dares and then she asked for this.

‘You could just ask for affection, you know?’ Cathy asked. She rolled her eyes and waited for a rebuttal.

‘Hush, let me roll.’ There it was. It was very late in the night and Cathy was starting to get energised from the red-bull. She stood up and started pacing. As she looked around from the room, she noticed that Anna was perspiring heavily, she felt sympathetic for her. Jane was curled up next to Catherine, looking tired.

‘A four!’ Anne cried out in joy. ‘Now get over here!’ she said with her arms open. Cathy rolled her eyes and climbed into Anne’s arms. She focused on listening to Annes heartbeat.

‘Anna, you can stop now, it was a stupid dare.’ Kat said, eyeing Anna nervously. Anna shook her head. ‘I never back down from a dare.’ she said between breaths.

‘It’s my turn right?’ Jane asked, before grabbing the die, and preparing to roll. Anna stopped doing push ups and grabbed a bottle of water. during her break she looked up. ‘Do something good this time!’ Anna huffed out, Anne nodded.

Jane looked upset, ‘Hey! Mine was good last time.’ Jane said.

‘Seriously? Knocking on the neighbours door and giving them a high five without speaking isn't that interesting.’  Anna sighed, then she dropped back to do more push ups

Kat grinned at Anna before speaking, ‘Ok, moving on, what do you suggest?’ she asked calmly, Jane pondered for a moment, and took a look around the room. Cathy was sweating badly, but neither Anne or Cathy seemed to notice. Anna was looking faint and seemed to struggle to stay balanced. Kat looked worried, but Anna was extremely stubborn. Jane, although drunk, still had her mother-senses dialed high. So she quickly thought, Anna was exhausted and needed to rest, while Cathy was energised and needed to let off steam before she overdosed.

‘If I roll a 1, Anna and Cathy have to switch dares.’ Jane said smugly, she was a genius. Anna looked relieved, Cathy looked confused but excited, she was so hyper it seemed animated. Kat looked relieved, Anne however pouted.

‘Ha! I rolled a one, both of you, move.’ Jane shouted, pointing at them. Anna stopped and collapsed onto the floor. Cathy and Kat moved to help her.

‘Can Cathy even do push ups?’ Anne asked, not meaning to sound mean, just Cathy was so short, and underweight. Nobody really expected her to be the second strongest queen.

‘Rude, I am very strong for your information.’ Cathy replied, while moving into plank position. Anne rolled her eyes. ‘Sure, twig arms, i dare you to do like 100- Woah.’ Anne said, before she stopped. Cathy, energised by the caffeine and wanting to prove Anne wrong, immediately did 20 push ups rapidly, without breaking a sweat. Everyone stared at shock, everyone except Anna, who smiled smugly. Cathy and Anna trained together all the time, they were both extremely fit.

‘Get on my back.’ Cathy said to Anne. Who looked confused ‘What. no I’ll break i-’ she was interrupted by Cathy, who shouted ‘GET ON MY BACK.’ Anne flinched and complied. ‘O- K?’ She said, still confused.

‘Woah!’ Anne was taken aback by the speed of the push ups Cathy did. Caffeine and Alcohol did surprising things to people.

‘OK! moving on. Anne it’s your turn.’ Catherine said suddenly, getting up from her chair rapidly and grabbing the die.

------------TIME SKIP BECAUSE I PROCRASTINATE------------

A few rounds had passed, it was nearing 1 am and everyone was still awake. Everyone was even more drunk, Cathy was banned from the coffee, Jane had to do the chicken dance to crab rave, Catherine had to stare at Anne for 2 rounds. Kat was trying to balance herself between Anna and Janes chairs, which were opposite each other. Anna had write a fan fiction about Henry Manox and Thomas Seymour both getting what they deserve, and she had to publish it. Anne was forced to throw her phone into the air and let it drop, only if the others were nice, they would catch it. Nobody caught it. Cathy stopped doing push ups and was now running up and down the stairs.

It was once again Anne’s turn.

‘Ok, if I roll a, 3, then you guys have to write a song about me.’ Anne muttered, slurring her words. Catherine chortled ‘Thats easy, i already have one I HATE ANNE BOL-’ she began. ‘No, Catherine,’ Jane commanded ‘Stop’ Cathy said before running back up ‘Don’t be mean pwease,’ Kat stage whispered ‘Did you just say pwease?’ Anna stage whispered back. Kat giggled. Frowning, Catherine sat back.

‘No, I mean for the musical! And it has to be good.’ Anne said after Catherine shut up. Cathy reappeared, also frowning. ‘But we already have Don’t Lose ur head?’ she asked.

‘Yeah! but it has to be like, like it’s hyping. me up!’ Anne said, throwing her hands up. ‘Like, OH HERE COMES ANnE BolEYn THe GreATEST tEmptReSS!’ She sang, very out of tune.

‘Yeah I’d make that for you when hell freezes over.’ Catherine muttered darkly. Anne sighed. ‘Ok, say if it doesn’t land on 3, then I have to do something instead.’ she suggested, that got them interested.

‘Go on,’ Anna said, sitting up. ‘Ok, so, um, if it lands on 4, you guys get to make me do a dare instead.’ Kat nodded, a devilish smirk appearing on her face. ‘BUT, if it does land on 3, you guys have to make a good song for me, ok?’ Anne said before anyone interrupted. Looking at each other, the queens nodded.

‘Ok, we’ll agree with that, but are you sure you want to do this? I mean the odds of it landing on 3 is low, and we won’t show any mercy once it lands on something else.’ Cathy said cautiously. Anne smirked, they were overconfident, that was their mistake. She nods and gets ready to roll.

She rolled it, it disappeared underneath a table and everyone held their breath as Kat went to check it. She popped out and sighed. ‘It was 3.’ Everyone groaned. Except for Anne who shot up. ‘YES!! YOU GUYS HAVE TO WRITE A SONG ABOUT ME!’

Catherine shook her head desperately. She grabbed the die and rolled it, ‘It has to be tampered with, no, I can’t write a song about Anne.’ she hissed. It was a six, then it was a 4, then a 3, then a 1. It wasn’t tampered with.

Catherine dropped her head low.

‘Suck it Aragon!’ ‘Fuck off Boleyn!’

_______________________________________________________________________

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Stay safe and wash your hands queens/kings/leaders