#A dear friend of mine who passed away really liked him a lot

[bmpersonal]

I would pay real fuckin’ money for an Attikus (Battleborn) avatar on VRchat

One of my favorite designs out there still to this day. What I’d give to see it in motion again (Outside of fuckin, Ready Player One I mean)

Also, ngl, guy holds a special place in my heart ‘cause of some very important people and memories he’s tied to. I’d like to have something more than just memories of that, even if it’s just a bloody avatar in a game

[edgarapoecolouredglasses]

Little mastermind part five

THE GIF IS NOT MINE

Pairing: Troy Otto/Reader

Summary: This chapter is a wild ride. Troy seems to be seeking out Y/n less since the accident. She thinks it’s because it’s going so well in the group and he doesn’t need her help so much. That soon turns out to be wishful thinking.

Part: 3/?

Masterlist

——————————

Hours later, Y/N was stable but still unconscious. Troy remained by her side, his hand clasped around hers as he sat in a chair next to the bed, his expression a mixture of worry and hope. After a few minutes, Tracy joined him, settling into his lap and gently taking Y/N’s hand from his grasp.

Troy, weary but attentive, turned to Tracy. “Tracy, can you tell me again what happened out there?” he asked softly, his voice tinged with concern.

Tracy hesitated. After a moment, she spoke up, her voice barely above a whisper. “I asked y/n if she thought you were in love with her.”

Troy’s eyes widened in surprise, clearly caught off guard. “Why would you ask her that?” he asked, trying to make sense of the situation.

Tracy’s gaze dropped, her voice tinged with sadness. “Mom died when I was so young, and I never really knew what it was like to have a real family. Seeing how you and y/n are together, I thought maybe…”

Troy’s face softened as he listened to his daughter. This was a side of parenting he hadn’t anticipated and one he sure wasn’t ready for.

“Tracy, I do love y/n, but it’s as a very dear friend. Since your mom passed away, I haven’t even considered finding new love. Y/n is someone who has been there for us, but I don’t see her in that way.”

Tracy’s expression showed a mix of disappointment and understanding. “But Mom’s been gone for so long, Dad. I just want you to be happy. I see how y/n makes you smile, and I think she makes you happy. Isn’t that important?”

Troy sighed, his heart aching for his daughter. “I know you want the best for me, Tracy. And I appreciate that. But right now, we’re focused on surviving day by day. We don’t even have a stable home. I am too busy to think about anything else.”

Tracy looked at him with a desperate expression. “But y/n feels like a mom to me. I really care about her.”

He glanced back at Y/n, still unconscious but breathing steadily. “I’m glad you feel that way about her,” he said gently. “It means a lot that you have found someone who cares for you. But I want to be honest with you. I’m not in love with her, and I’m sorry if that’s not what you hoped for.”

Tracy nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. “It’s okay,” she whispered. “I just wanted us to be a family.”

Troy hugged her close, feeling the weight of the moment. “We’ll figure things out,” he said softly. “For now, let’s focus on getting y/n back to full health and making sure she knows how much she means to us.”

————————————

A few weeks had passed since Y/n’s injury, and each day brought a bit more strength and recovery. Her body was regenerating its blood cells, and she could feel herself growing stronger with each passing day.

The group had reached a level of efficiency that felt almost seamless, as if every wheel had been oiled after years of grinding.

Her teenage apprentices had proven themselves ready to handle real patients. Olive was thriving in her role, and to Y/n’s surprise, it seemed that Troy’s need for her assistance had magically diminished.

Troy’s conversation with Tracy had been gnawing at him, the seeds of doubt firmly taking root in his mind. He found himself questioning his own feelings. Self-reflection wasn’t his strength—he preferred things direct and clear-cut, without the messiness of his emotions clouding his judgment.

Because of this, he had been seeking Y/N out less and less. Every time they did speak, he found himself lingering on their conversations long after they’d ended. He would lie awake at night, replaying their exchanges in his head, searching for answers to questions he hadn’t even wanted to ask. It frustrated him, this incessant need to analyze every word, every gesture.

There was a part of him that knew exactly why this was happening. But it couldn’t be, not after all this time. He needed to get his shit together and stop acting like the overly hormonal young man that he was when he met her.

Just because a nine-year-old wanted them together, didn’t mean it had to be so.

“Damnit” he sighed

——————��————

Y/N was finally able to walk around again, her strength slowly returning after weeks of recovery. It was good timing too—supplies were running low, and with the group growing, their needs were becoming harder to meet. They couldn’t stay here much longer.

She made her way to where the so-called ‘guards’ stood, waiting for the supply run party to return. Tracy was already there, standing with her hands clasped in front of her, her small face serious as she watched the gates intently. Y/N smiled softly as she approached the young girl.

“You didn’t visit me today,” Y/N said gently, stopping beside her.

Tracy turned to her, her eyes widening slightly in surprise, before she looked down at her feet. “I wanted to, but Dad said you needed to rest… and Olive needed help with the toddlers.”

Y/N chuckled, reaching out to smooth a lock of Tracy’s hair behind her ear. “Your dad’s probably right. But I’m feeling better now. I’m glad you’re helping Olive though—you’re becoming quite the little helper.”

Tracy looked up again, a small, proud smile crossing her face. “I like helping. But… I missed you.”

Y/N’s heart warmed at that, and she gave Tracy’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I missed you too. I’ll make sure to see you tomorrow, alright?”

Before Tracy could respond, the sound of engines approaching drew their attention. The supply run party was pulling through the gates, the truck rumbling to a stop. Tracy’s face lit up immediately, and she stood on her toes, scanning the group until her eyes landed on her father. Y/N followed her gaze and saw Troy stepping out of the truck, his usual serious expression softened as he spotted his daughter.

“There’s your dad,” Y/N said with a smile, nudging Tracy gently.

Tracy didn’t hesitate. She darted off toward her father, and Y/N watched as Troy crouched to meet her halfway, scooping her into his arms. He spoke to her in low tones, pulled a small copy of ‘the little prince’ from his pocket and Tracy giggled in response, her earlier seriousness completely gone now that her father was back.

Y/N found herself smiling at the sight but couldn’t ignore the strange feeling that tugged at her chest. Things were going well. The group was functioning smoothly, they were working together efficiently, and her own health was improving. But there was an undercurrent of unease, something she couldn’t quite put into words.

Troy’s gaze lifted, and for a brief moment, their eyes met. He gave her a small nod of acknowledgment, and Y/N felt the weight of unspoken words pass between them before he turned his attention back to Tracy. She wondered if he sensed the same uncertainty she did.

————————————

I knocked softly, more out of habit than necessity, before slipping inside. Troy was at the desk, looking over a map, his brow furrowed in concentration. He glanced up when I entered but didn’t say anything, just gave a slight nod.

I shut the door quietly behind me, a subtle click echoing in the room. “Did you find anything today?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm, but the tension was creeping in, the fear that things were getting worse pressing down on me.

Troy leaned back in his chair, running a hand through his hair. He didn’t answer right away, which only made my anxiety spike. Finally, he sighed, his eyes meeting mine. “Not much,” he admitted. “We got some food, but it’s not enough. Not for long.”

I nodded, trying to push down the growing sense of dread. I had feared this. “How long do we have?”

“A week. Maybe two, if we ration well.”

The room felt suddenly smaller, the air thick. “And the medical supplies?”

Troy shook his head. “Didn’t come across anything useful out there.”

I swallowed hard, crossing my arms as I leaned against the door. “So, we’re going to have to move soon.” It wasn’t a question; it was the truth we’d both known for a while now.

Troy rubbed his temples, the tension clear in his movements. “Yeah. We can’t stay here much longer. But we need a solid plan. If we leave without knowing where we’re going, we’ll end up worse off.”

I exhaled slowly, letting his words sink in. It was always like this—trying to make decisions for the entire group, trying to keep everyone safe. But we were running out of time and resources. And the uncertainty of what lay ahead was always gnawing at the edges of everything we did.

“Do you think we’ll find a place?” I asked, my voice softer now. “A place where we can really settle?”

He looked at me then, his eyes weary but still holding that unshakable resolve. “We have to. I promised everyone we’d find something. I promised you.”

There was something in the way he said that last part, something that made me feel both comforted and uneasy at the same time. I wanted to believe in that promise, and I did, but I also knew how fragile promises could be in a world like this.

I stepped closer to the desk, resting a hand on the edge. “We’ll make it,” I said, more for myself than him. “We’ve made it this far.”

Troy gave a small nod, but the weight of the conversation hung between us, unspoken fears lingering in the silence.

I looked at Troy, really looked at him this time. There was something in the way he sat there, the tension in his shoulders, the way his eyes lingered on the map in front of him, but didn’t really seem to be seeing it. It wasn’t just the exhaustion—though we were all running on fumes at this point—it was something else, something deeper.

“Hey,” I said softly, stepping closer to him. “Are you okay?”

He glanced up at me, startled, like I had pulled him out of some distant thought he’d been trapped in. He opened his mouth to respond, but then hesitated. His usual quick answer didn’t come. Instead, he just stared at me for a moment, as if deciding whether or not to let me in on whatever was weighing him down.

He finally shrugged, his eyes dropping back to the map. “I’m fine,” he muttered, though the words felt empty, lacking the usual conviction.

I wasn’t buying it. “Troy, come on. You don’t look fine.” I moved to sit on the edge of the desk, forcing him to meet my gaze again. “You’ve been off lately. Is it the run? The supplies?”

His jaw tightened slightly, and he leaned back in his chair, arms crossing over his chest defensively. “It’s just… everything,” he admitted after a long pause. “The supplies, the group, trying to keep everything together.” He rubbed the back of his neck, a tired gesture I’d seen him do a thousand times. “I’m trying to make the right decisions, but it’s… harder now.”

I frowned. “Harder how?”

He hesitated again, and I could see the war going on in his head. Finally, he let out a frustrated sigh. “I’m second-guessing myself,” he admitted, the words tumbling out like he hadn’t meant to say them. “I don’t usually… but lately…” He trailed off, looking down at his hands.

I blinked, surprised by the confession. Troy never doubted himself, at least not openly. He was always the one who had the answers, who kept us all moving forward. Seeing him like this was unsettling, like watching a pillar start to crack.

“What’s making you doubt yourself?” I asked, my voice gentle.

He shook his head, but I could see the tension in his expression. “I don’t know. Everything. Tracy, the group, you—” He stopped short, his lips pressing into a tight line as if he’d said too much.

I raised an eyebrow at that last part. “Me?”

He rubbed a hand across his face, clearly frustrated with himself. “It’s nothing. Forget I said anything.”

I wasn’t about to let that slide. “No, Troy. Talk to me. What’s going on?”

He looked at me again, this time with a conflicted expression that I couldn’t quite read. “It’s just… lately, I’ve been thinking about things I shouldn’t. Things that aren’t important right now. And it’s distracting me. I can’t afford distractions.”

I tilted my head, trying to understand. “What things?”

His eyes met mine, and for a moment, I thought he might actually tell me. But then he shook his head again, standing up abruptly and turning away. “It doesn’t matter,” he said, his voice firmer now. “I need to stay focused on what’s important.”

I stood up too, crossing my arms as I watched him pace a little. “Troy, whatever’s on your mind, it clearly matters to you. And if it’s affecting you this much, then it’s important.”

He stopped pacing and looked at me, his expression softening just slightly. “I don’t know what I’m doing anymore, Y/n” he admitted quietly, the vulnerability in his voice surprising me. “I’ve always had a clear direction, but now… everything feels off-balance.”

I took a step closer, reaching out to put a hand on his arm. “You don’t have to figure everything out on your own, you know. We’re in this together.”

He looked down at my hand for a moment, then back up at me. There was something in his eyes—something uncertain, something conflicted—but before I could read it, he pulled away, stepping back. “I know. I just… need some time to think.”

I nodded slowly, though part of me felt like we were leaving something unsaid. “Alright. But don’t shut me out, okay? If you need to talk, I’m here.”

Troy gave a small, reluctant nod. “Thanks.”

I watched him for a moment longer, wanting to say more, but unsure of what. There was a distance between us now, one I hadn’t noticed before. And I wasn’t sure what it meant, or if I should even try to bridge it.

“I’ll let you get back to work,” I said finally, turning to leave, though the tension in the room stayed heavy. As I reached the door, I glanced back at him, hoping that whatever was going on in his head, he’d figure it out soon

——————————————————

Let me know what you think!

————

@aldenenjoyer @elleirbag50

Let me know if you want to be tagged for the next part

[my-name-is-apollo]

'Ello :D

I saw a few days ago that you mentioned something about complicated Cassandra & Apollo? I was wondering if you could expand on it 👀 Complicated CassandraApollo sounds interesting

I would like to direct you to this post because it summarises a lot of my feelings on them!

Besides that, I'd like to talk about the way one of my favorite scenes, Cassandra ripping apart her prophetic insignia during her final moments, is written in two different plays:

Farewell, ye garlands of that god most dear to me! farewell, ye mystic symbols! I here resign your feasts, my joy in days gone by. Go, I tear ye from my body, that, while yet mine honour is intact, I may give them to the rushing winds to waft to thee, my prince of prophecy

- Euripides', Trojan Women (trans. Edward Philip Coleridge)

and

Why then do I bear these mockeries of myself, this wand, these prophetic chaplets on my neck?

(Breaking her wand, she throws it and the other insignia of her prophetic office upon the ground, and tramples them underfoot)

You at least I will destroy before I die myself. To destruction with you! And fallen there, thus do I repay you. Enrich with doom some other in my place. Look, Apollo himself is stripping me of my prophetic garb — he that saw me mocked to bitter scorn, even in this bravery, by friends turned foes, with one accord, in vain — but, like some vagrant mountebank, called "beggar," "wretch," "starveling," I bore it all. And now the prophet, having undone me, his prophetess, has brought me to this lethal pass.

- Aeschylus, Agamemnon (trans. by Herbert Weir Smyth)

You can see the difference in how Cassandra feels towards Apollo. In the Trojan woman, there's still some fondness she directs towards her god. She calls him the god who is the dearest to her. She wants to take off the symbols of Apollo she dons on her body and give it back to Apollo while her honor is yet intact. It's a way for her to not let her god get dishonored in that helpless situation.

Where as in the Agamemnon, Cassandra sounds more bitter, there's no hint of fondness here. She tears away her prophetic symbols and tramples them because she wants to destroy them. She also blames her act of destroying them on Apollo. Apollo is the ultimate destroyer for her and his symbols are bringers of doom, as she says elsewhere in the play:

CASSANDRA: Apollo, Apollo! God of the Ways, my destroyer! For you have destroyed me — and utterly — this second time.

- Aeschylus, Agamemnon (trans. by Herbert Weir Smyth)

While the two plays portray Cassandra with feelings that are to some extent contrasting (but both founded on desperation), when I think about Cassandra I think like she can feel all those emotions - fondness, bitterness, scorn - almost simultaneously. Because this is her god whom she worships and has dedicated her life for. She has felt his wrath and she has also felt his divine inspiration. She scorned his advances in the past but she still gives him her body to possess his spirit. She couldn't save Troy, she couldn't save herself. But the very last vision Apollo shows her is that of her death being avenged, and that seemed like a miniscule relief for her in the last moments of her life.

Apollo also seems to takes it upon himself to orchestrate that revenge. He could have had other reasons to do that - but to avenge Cassandra's death could also very well have been one of them. We don't really get to see what Apollo thinks of Cassandra. In versions where Cassandra breaks her promise (Aeschylus' Agamemnon and Scholiast on Lycophron's Alexandra) we can definitely assume that he is betrayed by her and is angry with her, understandably so. The scholiast on Lycophron's Alexandra says that Apollo first tried to take back the gift, but when he couldn't he placed a curse to make his gift useless. So it does show that he intended to go easy on her, but it simply wasn't an option. Things are relatively simple here. But there are versions where Cassandra gets her prophetic powers without any direct deal with Apollo, yet the outcome is the same. She rejects him and gets cursed.

Now here the question arises - if satisfying his lust was truly his only objective, why did Apollo curse her instead of just, you know, having his way with her - which wouldn't be unusual for a god? It could be that he simply didn't want (which we see in the case of Sibyl of Cumae). But sometimes I like to think it's more than just that:

Maybe he did it because he knew it would be dangerous to let Cassandra have this power. He was worried that he had blessed her too much, that she had learnt so much that she could intervene with the destiny in her attempts to save Troy. And look at how that turned out for another seer Laocoon - not cursed by Apollo but killed by Athena for warning the Trojans about the Trojan horse. Maybe Apollo didn't want any other god to punish Cassandra like that. She is his beloved priestess, and if at all she has to be punished and damned, he wants to do it himself.

Or maybe (and this is my favourite thought to entertain about them) this was a way for Apollo to deal with his own helplessness about Troy. Because when you think about it, Apollo is not very different than Cassandra in the sense that he is also able to foresee the destruction of Troy, his beloved city with his beloved people, but he won't be able to save them. He is not cursed, he doesn't let out frenzied cries like Cassandra, but he is obliged to abide by the Fates, and has learnt to suffer with his emotions silently. Maybe he desired for someone to join him in this madness. It would torment them but at least he wouldn't feel alone. And he chose Cassandra because she was probably the most beloved to him, and familiar with her virtue, he probably knew she would give him a reason to curse her by rejecting him. He also probably knew that in spite of how unfair he would be towards her, she would still love him and stay devoted to him.

I know my thoughts are probably very unpopular, but I like to think that the bond between them was unbreakable, but definitely very strained. I don't know if co-dependent would be the right word to use for a deity and his doomed priestess (probably not), but I hope you get the idea.

[popcorn-plots]

HEY ITS JAY (frenchbaguette190) I have a writing prompt!! Anonymous valentine from within a friendship group (it's probably basic you don't have to use it)

OMG HI!!! It's been a while!! How are you?

TYSM for your prompt! It's really cute, I love the friends to lovers trope sm <3

Anyways, it gives off Ironstrange vibes because Wong would have totally picked up on Stephen's crush (actually, everyone can. This man is so oblivious it hurts) and makes him confess to Tony, even anonymously.

Anyways, I had a lot of fun writing this, but I got a little carried away so it's a bit of a long one... and not exactly 'friend group', but I think it's close enough.

Thanks again, Jay!!!!

The moment the door closed, Wong turned to Stephen and cleared his throat.

Stephen tore his gaze from the door and looked at Wong. "What?"

Wong crossed his arms. "When will you realize that Stark is literally head over heels for you?" he asked.

Stephen's brows furrowed. "Him? The gorgeous genius billionaire, falling for me?" Stephen snorted, a light blush dusting his cheeks. "Yeah, right. It's not like he'd care about a useless doctor who does magic tricks for a living. Get your head checked, Wong."

Stephen shook his head and climbed the stairs to his room. Wong almost screamed. Months of this. Months and they were both oblivious. The only good thing about the situation was that Stephen's negative self-talk was getting better. Everything else was hard to watch.

Stephen was completely and totally in love with Stark. Stark was utterly smitten with the doctor. Neither one knew that the other returned the feelings. Wong had tried to set them up, even worked with the other Avengers (who were just as sick of it as he was), but it never works. Wong didn't think there was anyone more oblivious than those two.

And he grew up in Kamar-Taj with a bunch of emotionally repressed sorcerers.

It was take to try harder: desperate times call for desperate measures, and all that.

~~

A week later, Wong found his solution. The Avengers were hosting a Valentine's Ball charity event and even better, it was anonymous. You address a Valentine to someone without signing your name. Valentine's are passed out at the end of the night.

The perfect opportunity to make Stephen confess. Even if it was anonymous.

When Stephen returned from the monthly Avengers meeting, blushing with a love-struck smile, Wong pounced. "Stephen."

Stephen looked at him and smiled. "Yes, Wong?"

"The Avengers, that means Stark, are hosting a Valentine's Ball with an anonymous Valentine's drop. The invitation explains it. You are going."

Stephen nodded, that stupid grin still on his face. "Okay. Tony's great. I like Tony."

"I know. Everyone knows, except Tony."

Stephen sighed. The smile faded slightly. "That's because he doesn't like me back."

Wong sighed. "Send him a Valentine's and see what happens. He. Likes. You."

Stephen rolled his eyes. "If you say so, Wong. Where's the invite?"

Wong resisted the urge to facepalm, instead handing Stephen the invitation and walking away. He had a class at Kamar-Taj he needed to get to.

Two hours later, Wong found Stephen singing softly in the kitchen. It wasn't unusual to hear Stephen singing, but Wong didn't recognize the song.

He turned to corner to see Stephen hunched over the table, writing... something.

"Love me tender, love me dear... Tell me you are mine... I'll be yours through all the years... Till the end of time..." Stephen was singing under his breath.

Wong frowned. He didn't recognize the song.

"What song is that?" Wong asked.

Stephen looked up. He smiled. "Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley. Anyway You Want Me, Side B. 1956."

Wong nodded. "And... what is that?"

Stephen grinned. "A card. For Tony."

The party wasn't for another week. Wong resisted the urge to sigh.

"Can I see?"

Stephen hummed. "I just finished." He turned the card around and showed Wong what he was making. In large, wobbly letters, Stephen had written out a short, but simple message.

Dear Tony.

I Love you.

Love, Anonymous.

Wong nodded. "Keep that safe. Tony'll love it."

"Hopefully."

Wong just hoped that Stark would finally realize that Stephen loved him back. Maybe then Wong could get some peace from Stephen's incessant pining.

~~

The night had finally arrived and Stephen was a nervous wreck. Wong was sick of it.

"Just walk in, drop your card in the box, and have a good time. It's that simple."

"No it's not! He'll see it and he'll think it's dump, or it'll get lost in all the other Valentine's for him and he'll never find it!" Stephen nearly wailed. Wong sighed and sat next to him on the stairs, pulling him into a short side hug. A sign of affection he definitely wasn't used to showing, but Stephen needed it.

"He'll love it. It'll be okay. Deep breath."

Stephen took a deep breath. "Okay... You sure?"

"I'm sure. Now go before you're late."

The doctor took another deep breath. "I look okay?"

Wong looked at Stephen. He wore a rented black tux with a red bowtie with gold accents, giving it away as the Cloak. The suit was well-fitted and accentuated Stephen's legs and shoulders. "You look great."

"You really think so--"

"Yes. If you don't leave now, I will not hesitate to portal you into the lobby myself."

Stephen chuckled. "I'm going, I'm going."

"Good. Begone."

Stephen stepped through a portal of his own and Wong let out a long breath. Hopefully Stephen resolved the mutual pining; Wong was on his last straw. And while he was gone, Wong had his own Valentine to attend to.

~~

Stephen came home two hours later, portalling straight to his room.

Wong decided not to bother him.

~~

The next day, Stephen woke up late. It wasn't uncommon for Stephen to sleep in, so Wong wasn't concerned. He only started to get worried when Stephen didn't come down after lunch.

Wong was about to go up to Stephen's room to see what was wrong when someone knocked on the door. And didn't stop.

Wong sighed and walked back down the stairs. "I'm coming, I'm coming..."

He opened the door to find Tony Stark. Dressed in an oil-stained Black Sabbath T-Shirt and sweatpants, his hair windswept and his eyes wide. He looked like he was crazy.

"Stark."

"Where's Stephen?"

Wong sighed. He glanced at the ceiling, then back to Stark. "I'll get him. Close the door behind you."

Stark nodded, almost frantically, as Wong headed up the stairs. He knocked on Stephen's door, sighing at the muffled groan.

"Stark's here. Go talk to him."

Stephen was silent for a second. "Don't wanna."

Wong felt like screaming. "Cloak?" He hissed.

There was a shuffling of fabric and a scream. "I'M UP! I'M UP!"

Wong chuckled. The Cloak was just as sick as Wong was with their pining, it seemed.

Stephen finally opened the door, hair disheveled with bags under his eyes. He wore an over-sized Columbia T-Shirt and biker shorts.

"Stark's downstairs."

"Don't wanna."

The Cloak pushed Stephen out of his room, nearly shoving him down the stairs.

"Hey! I'm not decent!" Stephen shouted as the Cloak lifted him up, flew him downstairs, and deposited him in front of Stark.

"Stephen..."

Stephen's eyes widened. "T-Tony..."

Wong had half a mind to summon a bag of popcorn.

"Is this yours?" Tony asked, holding up Stephen's crumpled Valentine.

Stephen glanced at the paper, then to Tony, then back to the paper. "I... I thought I threw that away..." He whispered.

Ah, so that's what happened.

"Well... I.. JARVIS saw it. Told me you never even came in." Tony admitted.

Stephen looked like he was close to tears. Wong didn't know how to feel about what he just heard.

"I... I'm sorry. I-"

Tony raised a hand and unfolded the paper.

"Dear Tony," He read. Stephen's breath hitched. "I love you."

Stephen swallowed. He nodded, slowly. "Love, Anonymous." He croaked.

Tony smiled, grabbing the front of Stephen's shirt.

"I love you too, douchebag." Stephen eyes widened as Tony pulled him down into a kiss.

Wong resisted the urge to cheer. Finally.

~~~

The song Stephen is singing: Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley

[oksana-moods]

Queens of Promise - Part 5

Summary: The plot thickens.

 A/N: Hey you all! I don't even know what to say here rs It feels like a decade has passed and certainly feels odd to come back after such a long time. I don't know if there are people still interested in this story, but after a request of a dear friend of mine, I decided to post what's already written and work on the last chapter (the only one I haven't fully written yet, only on script).

I'd like to explain that my writing time got reduced by a lot of reasons, but mainly, 2022 was a bittersweet year that I'll definitely remember for the rest of my life.

Without further ado, let's get back to the story, shall we? Everything until chapter 10 is written and almost ready to be posted, I'll just look for typos or other mistakes and you shall have it really soon. For real this time. Chapter 11 however, the final chapter, is still on progress but I promise I will give you the end of this story.

Please, let me know your thoughts.

-Previous parts here

Trigger Warnings: Violence, language, mentions of blood and war. If there is any other that should be mentioned, let me know.

Into your eyes, hopeless and taken

Triskelion Castle

“Absolutely not.” Queen Calanthe manifests her disapproval to your latest idea. “I’m not letting you play spy and into Sokovia’s territory, no less. It’s not time for games. We are at war.”

For the thousandth time, you sighed. You tried countless ideas of how to learn the Maximoff’s plans with the Kree and none of them seemed to please your mother.

“Well, what do you suggest? We need to find out what they are up to, messing with the Kree.” You spat the word Kree as if venom tainted your tongue. “You can’t expect me to sit on this. I’m going to discover this one way or another, even if requires me to interrogate Princess Maximoff myself.”

“I suppose you discarded that idea few months ago.” She seethed, referring to when you had the princess within reach, but you chose to let her go and you hated how she was right. You hated even more not knowing why you allowed her to run away, in first place.

Loki cleared his throat trying to clear the air in the room and intervened with an option. “Perhaps we could send a small unit to the harbor?” He folded his hands behind his back and started to explain his idea. “We know for sure that winter is closing down on us, therefore there’s only one harbor in Starksland that any commotion could happen.”

“Hogan’s harbor.” You spoke, grasping what he was proposing. Loki, in turn, flashes you an appreciative smile, he always admired your intelligence and how receptive you were with those who you trust.

“Precisely. If Kree were to arrive with troops or anything else, that would be the place.” He lifted his hand and started to enumerate the facts that supported his theory. “Hogan is a small town, there’s not many prying eyes. They could count with the snow to slow down Stark’s troops. No resistance whatsoever, not until they are far inland and with the large number of trade routes, they could very well disappear until they’re fanning on our necks.”

You looked at him with a smile on your own. You always prayed to the Gods for your mother to live for more than hundred years, but the idea of your ascension as Queen seemed a little bit less scary because you knew he’ll be by your side, sharing his wise.

You turned to him and grabbed his head forcibly and gave two kisses on his cheeks. “Uh brother, you’re brilliant. I knew we kept you around for something more than just your pretty face.” You finish with a smile, which grew wider after his reply.

“Thank you. I have a pretty face indeed.” He straightened his robes from imaginary crinkles, suddenly uncomfortable with your praise.

You turned to your mother, head spinning with ideas, and started to share them. The meeting went for hours without end, but this time plans were discussed instead of rejecting ideas and later that day, you had convinced the queen that your unit should be the one set off for this quest.

After the assembly, you stayed behind in her meeting room. Her eyes were set on your form, while you pretended to busy yourself admiring an old painting celebrating the bravery of your family on some ancient battle. The painting showed some gran-gran-mother regally mounting a white horse, wielding a sword in the middle of a battle. You wondered how many lives were lost for that ancestor to gain this work of art.

“Do you think her mother doubted her worth?” You spoke quietly, after a moment contemplating the moment eternized on the wall. From the corner of your eye, you could see your mother’s head turn to you harshly.

“Oh my love, I never doubted you.” She took few steps and you turned to look at her fully now. The crease between her brows were deep and there was worry in her eyes.

“Yet, you weaken your troops on the battlefield by keeping my company away. You don’t trust me anymore.” Your voice was flat, as if analyzing an event and not delivering how bad it bothered you.

She took the remaining steps between you and grabbed your hands in hers, giving light squeezes. “I’m a mother and you’re my daughter, my only daughter. After your abduction by the Kree, I went berserk and didn’t stop until I had you in my arms again.”

Her eyes were hard, but they showed so much love that you felt your feet slightly out of balance. “Oh, when I saw your fragile, beaten form laying on your bed that night I vowed that I wouldn’t put you in harm’s way again.”

She paused just for a few seconds to make sure you were following. “And this war has so many blind spots, so many white blanks that scares me, my love. I can’t lose you.” She squeezed your hand harder this time. “And Taharr can’t lose you.”

You looked at the emotion seeping from her eyes, and it was once in a lifetime to see the queen Calanthe so vulnerable, so human. “One of the first lessons you taught me was to serve my kingdom. No matter what.” She laughed dryly, of course you’d use her words and ‘lessons’ against her. “And I am good, mother. I need you to see that.”

She cupped your face with her hands and caressed your cheeks with her thumbs. “You are the best, my love, you are my daughter and I taught you myself. If anything, I made sure the greatest warriors in this world prepared you to be the best knight in Noveria, even better than myself. But, in the end of the day, I’m still a mother worried about my cub.” She smiled lightly and you smiled as well.

As a queen, she knew better. From early age, she made you learn how to fight with all weapons and even without one. The same time spent with physical training was dedicated to study the numbers, letters, history, geography, politics, religions, beliefs and even agriculture. After all, knowledge is never too much and information could be a weapon itself, if harnessed properly.

You nodded but still counterattacked. “But I know that your permission had more to do with the fact that I’ll be away from the front than to my investigation skills. It stings.” She was about to speak but you stopped her. “You can’t protect me forever, mother. We are at war and in Taharr there’s always war.”

This time she nodded and took few steps away from you. “I know and you’re right, but I’m old and one day you’ll step up as the Queen of Taharr and I have to make sure that you’ll live long enough.” Her words sink heavily in your stomach, the veracity of her statement hit you like a rock.

Your mother fought her battles, had her share of wars and now she was looking to the future, worried about the type of person would assume her crown when the time comes. “Do you think I’m reckless? Do I embarrass you?” Your voice was low, exposed and she hated to see you second guessing yourself. She always loved your spirit, even though they brought a fair amount of headache.

“Never.” Her voice was firm, and she spoke the truth of her heart. “I’m nothing but proud of who you are. You’re strong, intelligent and you’re never afraid of fighting for your people. You’re a true lioness.” Her soft smile turned into a small smirk. “As for reckless, I can’t judge your youth’s spirit. I remember giving my father few grey hairs due my own adventures.”

You snorted at her choice of words, and you wondered if you’d ever learn how to speak like this. You wondered if you’d ever be half of the woman she was and a quarter of the queen she was. There were many things you wondered, and you feared you wouldn’t be that good. “Do you think I’ll be a good queen?” Again, your voice was small, foreign-like small, showing her your inner doubts.

You knew you could handle a fight; you knew you had learnt troop maneuvers enough to overpower an enemy during a war, but could you run your kingdom with the perfect balance between ruthlessness and kindness as your mother? Could you guide your people during the darkest times when it comes?

“I know you’ll be the greatest queen to ever grace these lands, even more marvelous than Queen Maria Hill.” Pointing at the Great Queen on the painting in front of you, she spoke with a certainty that pushed away the worries hammering your head and heart, at least for now.

You shook your head amused and locked eyes with her. “Will I be as good as you?” Her smile was bright, thanking you wordlessly for your praise, then she replied. “Oh love, you’ll be better than me, for you have a heart of gold. And when the day come, I’ll be a delighted queen and a proud mother.” She finished with a glint in her eyes, and you nodded you head, smiling lightly.

She patted the seat by her side on the balcony, welcoming you to enjoy a cup of tea admiring the beautiful fall tinting the trees and fields on the outskirts of Triskelion of orange, dark red and light brown as the maple leaves adorned the grounds.

--

You were still thinking about the conversation you had had with your mother when a nudge on your ribs brought you back to reality and you looked to its source only to find Lady Rambeau nodding towards a specific door at the back of a decaying pub near the docks.

You narrowed your eyes and saw a young woman stepping inside of it and you smiled, for you knew who she was. And something told you that, after weeks lurking around Hogan Village, today was your lucky day.

You waited on your spot for a while longer and a soldier reported that there was no sign of Scarlet Knight or Black Widow, something foreign stirred in your stomach when they said Princess Wanda was nowhere to be seen, it was almost as if you were disappointed.

But why? You shook your head and chewed your own lip, weighting your options and thinking about what your next step should be.

This time, it was your turn to nudge Maria’s side and beckon her to follow you. You signaled for everybody else stay on their posts and wait for new instructions, then you strolled to the pub’s entrance.

Once inside, you immediately asked for a beer, to blend in with other costumers and locals. You leaned on the counter and tried to find sokovian soldiers. “I’m counting two on the right corner and another by the window, the one with white hat.” Your words were low, to make sure only Maria would hear them.

She nodded and turned her body, leaning on the counter, pretending to be bored with her beer stein. “You missed the guy by the side door.” She took a sip of the liquid and used all her mighty to not spat the content on the floor, pursing her lips. “This beer is worse than piss.”

You snorted. “You know, the mere notion that you can make such comparison scares me.” Lady Rambeau sniffled her laughs as to not get unwanted attention. “Come, is time for us to have a chat.” Silently, she followed you to the table were the person you were after was.

“Oh. Squire Kate Bishop, fancy seeing you here.” Your spoke loud enough for the girl in front of you hear you properly, but not loud enough to attract unnecessary attention. You were disguised as trader and so was your partner, but your face was not particularly unknown.

Despite being low, your voice still made her jump, startled, then she turned back to look at you.

“It’s Knight Kate Bishop, actually.” She raised her chin, proudly and you almost felt bad for her. Unbeknownst to her, she gave you more information with that single sentence than she could’ve imagined.

She was proud of her title and so was of her mission, for sure. Therefore, the mission was bound to be important. Therefore, Scarlet Knight should be close and had interest in whatever was going on. Therefore, it’d be a matter of time for you to learn what it was.

You smiled at her. “That’s quite the title, kid. I’m sure you can handle it, though.” You spoke then you let your eyes stray to the stash of papers on her hands.

“I’m sorry, what name did you introduce yourself with?” She tried. You were lucky indeed.

“I didn’t.” Smiling you retreated from the bar and went to the camping on the outskirts of the city, where you shared your knowledge with your companions. The stash of papers in Bishop’s hands were ship manifests, they meant supplies were about to arrive and you knew just when, for you read the ships names.

Forel Star and Valar Zirtys, both braavosi ships and that made no sense in this crescent pile of strange allies sought for Sokovia. First Kree, now Braavos. Unless…

Something popped in your head.

It was known to a lot of people in other continents, but only a few in Noveria knew and, fortunately, you were one of them. One of the papers had the Ragman’s Harbor stamp on it, which means the ship’s last stop was a harbor that’s open to all foreign ships, unlike Purple Harbor, which tends exclusively local braavosi ships.

Obviously, said ships could have made a quick stop in Braavos coming from another place and after loading the new cargo, set off to Hogan’s Harbor. However, there was this nagging feeling that this was a diversion. Maybe, the Kree used the braavosi harbor to laundry the load as to avoid suspicious. Very meticulous.

The question is, what Sokovia had offered in return?

You could be wrong, but the more you thought about it, the more all the details seemed to click into place. Your instincts never failed you.

You were sure they weren’t start just now.

------

Somewhere between Sokovia and Taharr borders

The road to the Krogani Lakes seemed endless, especially with so many turns, road depressions and lakes to go around that took one moon for Wanda’s troops to move from the outskirts of Hogan’s Village to the battlefront.

Even though the interminable trip was a nuisance in itself, the princess felt her restlessness growing with each day. The wagons transporting their goods could turn their luck on the front. There wasn’t just food, which she knew they desperately needed, or new armors and weapons, but especially medical supplies. Nowadays, those were rarer than gold.

The Scarlet Knight was so engrossed on her thoughts that she didn’t hear Natasha’s horse arriving by her side. So, when her friend spoke, she startled Wanda. “One more hill and we’ll get to Sokovia’s camp before dusk.”

“By the gods, how can you still be silent with a horse?” Wanda put a hand on her heart as though this action could calm her down.

“It’s literally impossible to be silent with a horse, Wanda.” Romanoff shot her a smirk. “You were so absorbed by your thoughts that you missed my approach.” She laughed lightly, trying to lift the mood, sour since their encounter with the Kree emissary.

“Urg. This trip is interminable, and though we’re no longer in Taharr’s territory, it feels like we’re been watched still.” The princess shared what bothered her with her protector, there were so many reasons why she’s restless that she does not know where to start.

“I feel it too. Especially when we went around the Gauntlet Valley by the south, but I believe that I’m still creeped about that power stone we delivered to the Witch Harkness.” The Black Widow spoke, eyes never straying from the road and their vicinity, always looking for a threat.

“I’m still creeped about the whole meeting, Nat. That woman didn’t look like she had her mind on the right place, even less were her intentions.” Wanda felt cold creeping up her bones the second she entered the inn the witch provided as meeting point and every now and then she still felt chills on her cells. “Fortunately, it’s behind us now.” She muttered.

“Unless it comes back to bite us in the ass later.” Natasha smirked a sentence dripping sarcasm, and deep down she prayed that it was just a sarcastic remark indeed and not an omen.

By the time Wanda arrived at their camp, the tents for her and her unit were already up, and everything was prepared for her arrival. The redhead was dreaming with a hot bath and a very deserved rest, but the second her boots touched the campsite, she was taken to the Commander’s tent.

“What happened?” Wanda inquired the second she stepped into the tent. There were important Lords and Knights gathered around a table, but she couldn’t see the man to whom the tent belonged to, only his shield broken on the ground.

“Lord Rogers was captured by the enemy, your highness.” Sir Rumlow fed her with the latest news and the reason why the camp was a pandemonium. Another battle lost to Taharr and now their mightiest warrior, their Commander, was captured. This was a blow to the troops’ morale.

Fuck. The princess muttered to herself. It felt as if fate was against them, only when she brings new supplies, this tragedy happens. “Who’s leading now?” She asked but offered her opinion already. “Lady Romanoff can step in.”

“I’m the next in succession line, your highness.” Sir Barnes started, after clearing his throat. “And I’m afraid King Pietro and Lord Vision would approve, as I’m already familiar with Steve’s tactics.” He spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, but not enough for Wanda to think he’s being rude.

“By all means.” She raised her hands in surrender. As for Vision’s wishes she could care less, but Wanda wouldn’t undermine her brother’s commands on the battlefield, besides the Winter Soldier was a formidable soldier and she knew her army would be in good, capable hands. “Now what?” She asked, sitting by the table, sighing tiredly.

“Now we negotiate and until then, we wait.” Natasha replied and every head on the room nodded in agreement.

Wanda always saw herself as a patient woman, but to wait for any ransom request or even a meeting to draw a negotiation was murderously painful. She had spent the days checking the wounded and their treatment as well as the troops meals, she did everything to kept herself busy to try and forget that one of her mentors was in the lion’s den, possibly dead and there was nothing that she could do.

Dread filled her bones as she walked inside the tent built on the once battlefield, so they could stand a conversation and exchange their requirements somewhat sheltered from the cold rain. Wanda’s eyes roamed the room, taking in every single person present, envisaging who could be a threat in case things went south.

Her eyes stopped and never left the smiling person on the other side of the table, neatly separating the place in two.

Right in the center of Lords, Ladies and Knights, there was you in rich red robes with a few lines adorned in golden, and a lion with an imposing roar was embroidered in your chest. You were breathtaking and Wanda took a few seconds more than usual to breathe again, immediately plastering an annoyed look on her face.

“Ah, Princess Wanda, you’re a sight for sore eyes.” You shot her your most dashing smile and Wanda’s annoyed face turned into a scowl. The gal of you to speak with her like that.

“Can’t say the same, I’m afraid.” She replied, crossing her arms and taking a seat on the table in front of her. “Shall we begin?”

“Of course, Your Highness.” There was a glint in your eyes, but it didn’t feel like you were mocking her title, quite the contrary. For some reason, you seemed truly pleased with her presence and that baffled her.

You cleared your throat and started to speak as if this was a simple matter and not a ransom negotiation. “Your Highness, Ladies and Gentlemen, the last few battles bespeak for themselves, I’m afraid this war is dragging itself for far too long.” You look around to see all eyes on you. “I think a truce is in order. Especially now that the winter is here.” You let your lips turn into a smirk and finished. “No pun intended.”  

With a sudden movement, Sir Barnes unsheathed a hidden knife and stuck it heavily on the table in front of you, dangerously close to your hand. “Why don’t you stop with your funny remarks and get this over with?” He spat the word funny as if it were covered in venom.

While Carol, Maria and Sam each let out their own indignant forms of exasperation, you didn’t even flinch. You remained still, looking at the man known as Winter Soldier dead in the eye. “I could have your head in a spike for that little stunt, Sir. Or maybe I should ask for your other hand?” You tsked, feigning disappointment.

To his credit he didn’t waver at the mention of him losing his remaining arm, you only heard stories of how this had happened. It wasn’t a sore spot, you suppose. Taking a tired breath, you resumed your little speech. “I imagine Lord Wilson was very clear when he said no weapons allowed, yet here we are.”

“The note said we’d negotiate Steve’s release, yet here we are.” He mocked you and for a second you thought that picking him by his neck and breaking his nose on the table would be a nice way to show him that he was not allowed to speak with you like that. One glance at Wanda showed you that she had an unreadable expression gracing her face.

With a start, you decided that an act of violence would be unwise if they were trying to negotiate a ceasefire. As much as you wanted to put him in his place to make sure he’d never forget to be respectful to you, you relented.

“Why do you speak as if you were in charge of anything?” You decided to keep violence as your second resort, then. After all, you still need to get a truce before your men freeze with the winter that is about to ravage that region.

He was visibly frustrated by your comment, and you immediately knew this was his weakness. He didn’t want to be demoralized, specially not in front of everyone in the room, probably because his position was too fragile at the moment. “I’m the Commander of Sokovia’s Army, I represent-” You never let him finish.

“No, Sir. The Commander is currently in my custody, you’re barely a nuisance to me. I’m here to negotiate with Princess Wanda.” You flashed him a dangerous smile, however, he wanted to have the last word.

“Lord Vision and King Pietro, they both agreed that I-.” Again, you cut him midsentence, too annoyed to keep listening to his voice, you were losing a precious time now.

“I don’t care about King Pietro or Lord Vision, they’re hundreds of miles away while our feet freeze in this hellhole, so let me be clear, if I wasn’t already. I will only talk to Princess Wanda, no one else.” You fixed him with a glare colder than the rain outside the tent and this time he spoke nothing, grumpily leaning in his chair, defeated.

You turned to look at Wanda, who looked like she was ready to deny every single one of the requests coming out of your lips. “Princess Maximoff, I’d say we stop this madness, once and for all, but I’m pretty sure you still want to revenge a crime that we did not commit.” You began, keeping eye contact with Wanda hoping she’d see that you meant every single word coming out of your lips.

The Maximoff, on the other hand, started to open her mouth to protest but you raised your hand, signalling that you still have things left unsaid, in return, she simply closed her mouth and waited. “I’m sure you know better than anyone that winter by the lakes is cruel and will decimate our soldiers, no matter the color of their clothes.”

You paused your speech just long enough for you to see that the princess had her eyes glued on you. Her beautiful green eyes. “So, I propose a truce. You take your army home and I’ll retreat mine. We can try a peaceful, new negotiation when spring arrives. If we fail, then you can march south once more.”

There were murmurs and grumbles of disapproval by her side, but you already expected resistance. Illogically, a lot of people seemed determined to prolong this war even more. Something churned in your stomach when all Wanda had to do was to raise her hand for her companions to cease their complains. Were you proud of Wanda’s leadership? Why?

Why would her little demonstration of power affect you to this point?

Your thoughts were sliced by the princess’ heavy accent, and you had to bite back a smile that was already painting itself on your lips. “Why would I let you go back to your warmer south if my troops can endure the winter longer than yours?”

“Because not only I’m willing to set Lord Rogers free, but also, I might pretend that I don’t know where your new supplies came from.” You could see Wanda’s face morphing because of your words and their meaning.

You were willing to overlook her Kingdom’s deals with the Kree and this was a big offer. Huge even. Sokovia could be the most hated people, just like Hydrarr was, and the price paid as an outcast was painfully high in Noveria.  

“Why?” Even under the feeble light provided by the candles, you could see genuine curiosity in her eyes.

“My people need to rest, and we need a truce, Princess. Even if it’s a cold peace until we can settle a more permanent agreement later.” You could still see drops of hesitation in her eyes, that’s why you quickly provided her with an insight.

“If we keep doing this, Taharr will no longer possess an army but the same will happen to you. How long do you think Hydrarr would wait to abuse your borders? Or how long do you think Asgard would take to claim as theirs the share of Bifrost Forest that currently belongs to you?”

You could feel the other sokovians staring daggers at you, but your attention never quavered from Wanda. For a moment, you almost smiled thinking that your mother and your brother would’ve loved to witness your tactics. Information and knowledge are a powerful weapon indeed if one knows how to wield it.

Apparently, all those hours locked up in your chambers learning about boring geopolitics paid off. The basics of being a king or a queen is how to keep your borders, hence why one needs an army and the thin lines on Sokovia’s east were a weakness that you would not hesitate in remind her of.

“You have your deal, Lioness.” Her voice brought you back to present again.

There was a muttering around the tent, but your eyes were solely on hers when you spoke, smiling widely. “We should celebrate with a good southern wine, princess.”

“Don’t push your luck, Princess.” You could’ve sworn that you saw the ghost of a smile flashing on her lips while she got up to her feet to leave the tent, but you probably had imagined it.

taglist: @californianwhiterabbit

part 6

[ghostspillways]

Tony Stark × daughter!reader

(Gif not mine!) Reader is 16!

(This is my first time writing fanfic so, sorry if it's bad!)

Hurt/comfort. Pet names (sweetheart/dear)

Summary: Tony Stark is your father, who just so happens to be Iron Man. Things have been really hard for you two, especially since your mom passed when you were young. The more you grew up, the more distant the two of you became since he was always off at meetings and saving the city. He tries and struggles to connect with you, and you were silently wishing for your dad back.

"Just-" Tony rubs his forehead. "The dishes, kid. I'm not asking for much here." He knows you're mad at him, even if he doesn't know why. It feels like you're always mad at him these days. You used to think your dad being Iron Man was cool, but you don't anymore. He doesn't know how to reach out to you, or how to connect with you again. You're his only kid, his whole world, ever since your mother passed.

You sigh, not having the energy to get up. Tony feels defeated. Even though he's your dad, even as Iron Man, he still can't reach out to you. Part of him just wants to give in. But deep down, he knows this will get resolved sooner or later. "Look, I know we're not best of friends at the moment, but could you at least do that for me, please?" He asks. "Fine." You say with a sigh as you get up to clean the dishes.

Tony watches you slowly sit up with a lot of grumbling and complaining. He hopes this is the first step to rebuilding your relationship. "Thanks," He says as you finally start heading for the kitchen. Once you finally get finished, you go back to your room. Tony signs in relief. At least the job is done. But he can't help but hope that maybe this means your relationship is on the mend. He wants things to go back to the way they were.

The next day, you're getting ready to hang out with a friend. "Going out?" Tony calls from the living room. He's been in a good mood lately since things seemed to be going well, either you or him. "... yeah..." You say awkwardly. "Where are you going?" Tony asks curiously. His tone is light-hearted and hopeful. He wants to take an interest in your life.

"Just...out with some friends..," you quietly said. "That's good," he says, "You'll be back home around eight, I assume?" He asks. You nod and get your bag, your keys, and your phone. "Okay," Tony says, a little nervous about you going out with friends, but tries to play it cool and maintain his cool dad vibe.

"Have fun," he says, forcing himself to not look too worried. You leave and go hang out with your friends, you get ice cream together and hang out at a local park not too far away. You lose track of time and either o'clock rolls around. You weren't paying attention and when your friend said it was almost nine o'clock, you started rushing home. Tony waits for you, but when nine o'clock rolls around and he hadn't heard from you, he becomes worried.

But a part of him feels bad for being paranoid like this. You're your own person... He thinks. I can't hold onto you forever...

Eventually by nine thirty you come home. Tony is waiting for you in the living room, trying his best to stay calm. "Hello, y/n..." He says with a strained smile when you walk in. "How was your night?"

"It was good." You say, slightly panting. Tony was relieved you were safe, but at the same time, he wants to know why you were late. "So... why are you home half an hour late?" He asks. "I-Im sorry! I was trying to text you but my phone died and I didn't realize how late it was..." You say.

Tony looks skeptical, as he always does. "Are you sure there wasn't a boy involved in this y/n? We talked about this y/n..."

"Ew dad, no." You say, slightly weirded out. Tony laughs a little at your response. He takes your word for it that nothing inappropriate happened, but he can't help but ask one last time. "Promiseme there wasn't a boy."

"There was no boy, dad." You say, jokingly groaning. Tony sighs in relief and smiles at you. "Alright, kiddo.nim gonna head off to bed, make sure you're in your room by ten thirty. Got it?" He asks.

"Okay." You say as you start heading off to your room. "Great." Tony says. He wants to say something else, maybe something about how he loves you and that you can talk to him about anything.... but it's tough for him to say when your relationship is strained. So, instead,Tony gives you one last smile before heading off to bed.

Hours later,you were in your room sleeping when Tony walked up to your door and knocked gently. "Y/n?" You awake, kiddo?" You slowly wake up and rub your eyes tiredly as you sit up. Tony waits for you to wake up, then asks. "You uh...feeling good today? After last jight?" He's hoping since you're up and in a good mood, maybe your relationship has returned to a better place.

Tony comes in after you say he can. "Just wanted to see how you were feeling," he says awkwardly trying to break the growing silence. "I'm sorry if I was a little...overprotective last night..." He says.

"It's fine..." * you say, not looking at him. "Look, y/n.. I know lately things have been... weird.. between us, but I want to repair what we have. Us. You and me." He says, hoping you'll say yes.

"I don't know if we can.. You're always off at meetings or saving the world or something..." You say. Your voice trembled a little. Tony nods a little. He isn't surprised by your comment. He knows he's not a present father most of the time. It's been like this for years since he became Iron Man. "I know. And trust me... I'm trying to improve on that... it's just hard." He takes a moment to think and then asks a serious question. "Does it bother you?" He asks. "That I'm gone so much?"

"Not anymore, I guess, I'm used to it at this point..." You say quietly. Tony is gutted by your comment but hides it well. "Yeah, I get that," he says. "But I've been thinking, maybe I can take you with me next time I go on patrol as Iron Man? That way we can spend more time together." He softly smiles. You shrug your shoulders. As much as you love your dad, you don't think you would bond over that. Tony frowns. He knows your response all too well because it's often how you respond when he tries to bond with you.

It hurts that you don't seem to want to spend more time with him, but he also doesn't want to do anything that makes you feel like he's hovering over you. "That's.. fine," he says. "Just a suggestion.." He sighs. "Right, Uh... well, if you need anything let me know." He stands up and starts walking towards the door. "I'm gonna head to my workshop for a while. You... you can find me if you need me, okay?" *I looks at you. "Okay..." You quietly say.

Hours later, you had gotten dressed and left a note saying you were going to take a walk in the nearby forest trails and that you'll be back in a few hours. Tony is in the workshop working on some new plans for his Iron Man suit when he hears a slight vibration from his phone. He checks the screen and his heart stops. "Y/n you better not be doing anything you're not supposed to do..." He says as he starts to call you. You were walking through the woods trying to clear your head. Tony tries to call you but you didn't answer. "Damn it," he mutters.

He gets up, puts on a jacket, and heads out of the workshop as fast as he can to search for you. You were sitting by a tree with your knees to your chest. Tony searches in the forest for you, worried for your safety, suddenly he stops. He recognizes the area you're in as he sees you sitting with your knees to your chest, against a tree. "Y/n? Are you okay?" He says as he goes to you to make sure you're okay.

"I called 5 times, but you never answered." He says, his voice shaky. You look up at him. "You did?" You look in your bag and realize you accidentally left your phone on your bed. Tony kneels down in front of you, worried about you. "Why didn't you have your phone?" He asks, slightly confused. "I accidentally left it at home." You say as you look at him. "That's alright." Tony says, holding your hand and helping you get to your feet. It feels nice to hold your hand again, to be able to connect with you in some small tangible way. He hasn't done anything like this with you in ages...

"I'm just glad I found you, I was really worried." You and Tony start to walk along the forest path back home, trying to think of what to say to you. As you're walking, people walk up to him and ask him for autographs. You scoff and walk away back home. "C'mon y/n, let me sighn these peoples stuff and we'll get going..." but you shake your head, walking away as if you're not even interested in spending time with him. Tony knows you're a growing girl, and your privacy is important. So he leaves you be for now and focuses on signing autographs.

You went to your room, feeling like you were going to cry. Tony slowly opens the door. "Hey...y/n, can we talk for a second...?" He asks, his tone is soft and understanding. He's genuinely wanting to reach out and try to connect with you. "No..." You said, turning to lay on your side with your back facing him. Tony pauses for a moment. He remembers this is how you usually respond to him. "Right..." He sighs and looks down for a moment before he leaves.

A couple hours later, you went downstairs to look for a snack, your eyes were red from crying, and you were tired. Tony looks at you, "Hey y/n.... Did....did you go for another walk?" You quickly wipe your eyes. Tony notices how tired you look and walks up to you. "Are you okay?" He asks. You nod, but he knows you're lying. He is down at you and gives you a hug. "Just know... I'm here for you, okay? I....I'm not always going to be able to be here for you, but I'm here if you need me." More tears filled your eyes. He was barely there for you.... he didn't even feel like your dad anymore.... "I promise I'll be better for you..." He says. "You always say that..." That was the last thing you said before you went to your room.

Tony shallows and sighs. You were right. You heared him say something like that more times than you can count. Later that night, you waited until Tony was asleep and snuck out your window. You didn't go far, you went to a small area that had a small pond that he used to take you too a lot when you were younger. Tony begins to stir in his sleep, he had a sudden feeling in his stomach that something is wrong. He went to check on you and realized your bed is empty and you snuck out the window.

Where could she have gone so late? Is she...is she outside om her own?

As you're sitting in the area he used to take you too, you started to cry. You just wanted your dad back... Tony searches for you, he searches the neighborhood, the forests, even the streets. "She can't be this far" He mutters to himself. But then he gets a gut feeling. He feels it deep down. He just knows you must be at a spot he used to take you to. After a short while of looking, his gut feeling was right. And there you were, sitting all alone crying. You were hugging your knees to your chest as you cried. Tony quickly walks over to you, his heart absolutely breaks for you. "Y/n" He says. "It's okay sweetheart, I'm here now. I'm here" He says. More tears fill your eyes as you look up at him. Tony wraps his arms around you and hugs you tightly. "It's okay y/n" He says. You hugged him tightly as you silently cried.

Tonyslowly rubs your back, trying to comfort you. He feels so bad that he let things with you get so bad. "I'm not going anywhere y/n. I won't let anything take me away from you again." He quietly says. Tony kisses your head and hugs you tight once more. "I just want my dad back..." You say through sobs and looked at him sadly. Tony sighs and looks down at you. "I'm right here, dear." He says quietly. "I haven't gone anywhere." He rubs your back once more, feeling your small vulnerable frame in his hands. It breaks his heart to know that he failed you as a father.

"I'm so sorry I hurt you" He says softly. "I promise I'll do better." You nkd and lean into him. He hugs you close. "I love you y/n" He softly says. "I love you too dad." You say as I look up at him. He softly smiles and you too walk home.

(I would write more but this took a long time to make, hope you enjoyed!)

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #289

Today is day 2 of recovery. I felt really awful when I woke up, and really hungry, too. Awful enough that I ended up getting snippity at J while I was washing the dishes. There was an overwhelming amount of silverware in the sink that I really didn't want to have to do, given how hungry I was and how much pain I was in. He said that he would get the rest later, but… that wasn't helpful for the state of overwhelm I was in. I needed clean bowls and silverware, and I needed them right away, so… I said a rather annoyed, "Yeah, okay."

By doing that, I hurt his feelings. Being in a weird state of mind due to the condition of my body doesn't give me any right to get snippity at people. And what's worse, it's not as though he hasn't been trying his best to help me; he made me a soft rice thing for me to eat yesterday, and he went to the store to get me some Pedialyte and other odds and ends. I was out of line. I apologized and reminded him that it wasn't his fault that I was being a miserable curmudgeon.

…I don't wanna hurt and frighten people by being cranky. I have to be more careful. Tomorrow's gonna be the worst of it, according to the aftercare sheet. I'm a little scared, but… the only way out is through.

I still feel really bitter about the fact that this all could have been avoided. If I had gotten proper dental care as a child, I wouldn't be going through this now. But… at the same time, it's good that I am able to get this stuff taken care of at this point in my life. I don't like that I am needing to pick up the slack for my parents' mistakes, but… well... my life has been such that I was able to become someone who can pick up that slack. I suppose that's something to be grateful for.

After writing your letter yesterday, I played a lot of Dead Cells, for lack of much anything else to do. Given the level of pain I was in, I didn't expect to get very far. But... well... I managed to defeat The Time Keeper without getting hit:

I defeated The Hand of the King without getting hit, too, but I wasn't able to get my phone out to get a picture in time.

Oh, and... I defeated The Collector, too:

And then I went and did it again, this time, in The King's original body:

...The only thing left to do at this point is go through the Castlevania DLC, and then go through some of the other weird bonus content. There are like... modified bosses to fight, I guess, that are more difficult than the originals. Suppose the thing to do is get on that.

...I don't have much else for you today. I'm feeling pretty miserable. Sorry about that...

I guess I'll pass the time with some Dead Cells now. It's not as though I'm well enough to do much else. You can join me here, if you wanna:

I love you a whole lot. And, just like I reminded J today, that doesn't change just because I'm temporarily a miserable crankypants. I'll get better. It's just gonna take a hot minute.

Please stay safe out there. Please come back home to us safely. And please take care of your body now so that you don't end up being put in a position like mine, where you get weird problems later.

I'll write again tomorrow.

Your friend, Lumine

[celestie0]

HALLO ELLIE!!! proud to say ive successfully managed to move on from my situationship! hope u don’t mind me rambling about this guy.

let’s call him f since that’s his initial. F and I have been friends since primary sch, he eventually had to move because his dad passed away. Anyways, two years ago we started talking again because his family visited mine. Long story short, things were complicated because we had been flirting a lil bit and he also said that ‘if you flirt with other guys, I’ll starve myself’ which Icked me so BAD. He did apologised .Last year, I ‘happy birthday’ed my way into his life and started talking again because I really did miss him, he’s my childhood best friend after all. After like two weeks? I don’t remember anymore💔 He told me he loved me and i was happy to say it back to him. (I was such a fool😭) I remember being giggly and all. On 23rd August we got into a fight because we planned to meet up and i said to him ‘okay I’m nervous. I don’t think I wanna meet up’ which made him mad. MIND YOU! we were in planning stages. i didn’t cancel on him on the day itself! I had lots of things going on at that time so him just casually saying I was PLAYING him made me so upset. He had the cheek to tell me ‘ily’ because honestly I hate when people start getting all affectionate after a fight. I hope you get it😭 the next month went okaaay until 23rd sep. (23 is like a curse at this point💔💔) I confronted him on why he hasn’t been saying ‘ily’ back it may seem something small but I hate not getting it back like excuse me? AND HE SAID TO ME ‘my ex was the only one who managed to make me feel loved’ I CRIED SO BADDD!!!! how could he say that after everything I’ve did for him. smh. yada yada things went on and in dec we stopped talking. I really did liked talking to him and all but it was too much. There was certain moments where I felt like he was just using me cause I wanted him. The times where we sexted (no nudes were exchanged, just texts.) though we did call because he wanted to hear me moan. not my proudest moments, I don’t wanna be begging for a guy’s attention again. I genuinely loved him with my whole heart :((

IM SO SORRY 4 RAMBLING ON!!!! I needed to let this out so badly 🤒❤️‍🩹 love u sm ellie

— frank ocean anon

hiii my love <3 omg GASP i’m so proud of uuu situationships are hell on earth i hope you feel at peace now!!

PLS YOU’re SO REAL FOR GETTING THE ICK OVER THAT!! i swear jealousy is only attractive w fictional men ✋🏼😭 it is NOT a cute look for actual men slsldkfjfh imo its a lil overbearing n strange haha

aww thats sad hun u guys are like childhood best friends so i imagine it was still tough not speaking :(( WOW he said i love youu n you said it backk. its ok bb if it was a happy thing in the moment then it can stay that way in your memory regardless of how stuff turned out in the end :”) be kind to yourself <3

ahhh yea thats 🚩 the whole getting mad cuz you cancelled…and no i totally get that, i hate that sort of “love bombing” after a fight, it just comes off as in-genuine. thats so valid n i relate

OH MY GOSH THE COMMENT ABOUT HIS EX ☹️☹️ WHY WOULD HE SAY THAT…some things you should just keep to your fuckin self. thats awful im sorry love 🥲🥲 you deserve SO much better than that

it’s okkk bb, you knew him a long time n even apart from relationship/situationship, there was still a friendship there too. you can really love someone but also realize theyre bad for you, those two can coexist. i’m so proud of you for realizing you deserve better than someone who makes you feel like you’re being used! no one should ever feel that way. take it easy bb but truuuly truly truly time will heal <3 chin up!! so many wonderful experiences out there for you still my dear

- much loveee, ellie ☁️

[featherlouise]

Do you have any more funfacts about mothfriend, his relationship with Hollow, their kids or maybe the childhood friends AU? 👀 I am very normal about all of them (lies)

Okok so I kinda have a habit of centring all my characters’ lives around the main character. So!! I’ve been thinking about mothfriend’s childhood, how he came to live in the middle of nowhere, etc

So!!

The day the Radiance is consumed by the void, her dying screams echo across the lands. It’s a sound no mortal has heard in millennia, but every living being intrinsically knows the meaning of: the death of a god.

As the child of the Seer, he was expected to have a deeper connection to the dream realm than most, and as such was raised with. A lot. Of pressure put onto him. On top of that, his mother believed that if she were to offer her child to the Radiance as a vessel, her connection to Her would deepen, and she would forever be known as the one who broke the chains cast upon their goddess by the pale usurper.

When the Radiance dies, however, mothfriend ceases to be of any use. His magical abilities are lacklustre, to say the least, and with Her gone, he just becomes another mouth to feed.

I’ve not really worked the specifics, but long story short, mothfriend takes the commotion caused by Her death to make a break for it. He runs out into the middle of a blizzard and doesn’t look back. He runs until he can’t and then runs even further. Because if he knows one thing, it’s that he cannot stay in this kingdom. Not with how deep the Order has sunk their teeth into it.

Eventually, he reaches the edge of the kingdom (the capital is p near the border, so this takes maybe an hour or two) and he knows that if he doesn’t find shelter soon, he’s a dead man walking.

(I’ve not figured out how, bc I don’t want him to just find it by chance but!!) eventually, he stumbles across a cabin, and figures if there are any owners, they won’t begrudge him for taking shelter in their barn, and manages to fall into a fitful sleep.

When he wakes up, there’s a blanket thrown over him. (Again, not worked out the details (this is a very new idea lmao))

Turns out!! This cabin is owned by a blind old lady, and while she can get by pretty well on her own, manual labour jobs her wife used to do have been getting more and more difficult. Mothfriend, with nowhere else to go, takes up her offer of lodging in return for work.

I’ve been thinking about mothfriend’s character a little, and have decided that his kind, mild, generally teddy bear like demeanour?? It’s VERY deliberate. Mothfriend is VERY hot headed, and for the first few months of his stay with the lady, whenever he starts getting angry, she sends him outside to chop wood to let out his frustration.

When he’s done, he’ll bring whatever’s usable (aka whatever hasn’t been chopped to pieces) into the house, puts it into the basket next to the fireplace, and sits down at the dining table with the lady, who made a warm drink for the both of them while she waited (sometimes it’s tea, other times it’s hot chocolate, or coffee, she’s surprisingly good at figuring out just what mothfriend needs in these moments).

While they drink, they talk. And, through these chats, he learns that the lady (“Call me Gran, dear.”) had a wife and child, the former of which passed away peacefully in her sleep almost a decade ago. Her child on the other hand?? Was captured and presumably killed by “religious fanatics” when he was young. Almost half a century later she still has no idea what happened to him.

He decides not to tell her about the Order.

One day, a couple of months into his stay, she tells him to help her clean out the spare room in the cottage, since he “may as well have somewhere proper to sleep, can’t have your back giving out before mine!! That couch does you no good.”

It’s at this point mothfriend begins to worry about possibly trying to replace Gran’s lost child, and when he brings it up during one of their post wood chopping conversations, she just laughs, and tells him,

“Dear, just because I’m letting more people into my life, it doesn’t mean I’ve gotta kick anyone else out!! This ain’t a hotel, hon. My heart’s got unlimited space. Once you’re in here,” she pats herself on the chest, “Y’ain’t leavin’.”

After a few years, Gran’s health starts to deteriorate. A few years after that, she passes away, bedridden, with Mothfriend holding onto her hand.

Before she goes, she tells him, “I’m glad you escaped those evil sons a’ bitches dear. Never woulda’ met my favourite grandson otherwise.”

He never finds out how she knew, and surprisingly, it doesn’t bother him.

A year later, an injured god (though he doesn’t know that) shows up on his doorstep

[kath-artic]

more weird dreams

it's starting to fade now because i've waited too long to start writing it down, but i do remember some vague fragments. there was some scene at the beginning where i was being made to get into bed with a much older man and his wife but i was also disguised as his wife i think? but he kept touching me and i could tell he was naked under the covers and the other woman in the bed was gonna get up to go to the bathroom and leave us alone and i begged her to let me go with her and spent the whole night in the hallways outside the bathroom (also worth mentioning the bedroom was my parents room in my childhood home and the bathroom was placed in the exact way it was in my childhood home)

and then i was wandering in the snow down empty new jersey highways i've been lost on in other dreams (the port city i often dream about also made an appearance but i cant remember the context) and came to my high school except it looked different. i dont remember how he got there, but i wound up running into my first ex (the one who assaulted me) and he was the version of him i knew before we dated. he was funny and charming and after everything that had happened in the last part of the dream, i needed that comfort. he was so kind to me this time and i remember us walking outside together and him packing a snowball to throw at me and i stopped short and said "my mom cant see us together" because i knew her car was parked nearby and she was waiting to pick me up. he asked why not and i couldnt bring myself to say "because she knows you raped me" because i was so afraid of breaking the illusion that he was a good person.

then there was a third chapter where i was staying w my friend who i stay w a lot in real life except she lived in a big modern house instead of a college dorm and the whole front face of the house was windows and i was playing a lot of bg3 and looking out at the snow unsure of where anyone was. and her and her roommates kept phasing in and out and they were getting ready for some dress up event and i was just gonna be alone in the house and i started flashing through to another dream where i was in canada w my grandparents staying in a big treehouse in the woods and exploring a nearby swamp (neither of which exist on their property in real life lol) and i knew there were faries out there. i flashed back into the house dream and i had to pack to go home but as i started packing it quickly became my childhood bedroom and i was packing up my toys and i look outside into the snow and feel so so alone.

the whole dream felt so lonely and empty. like everybody was getting blown away with the snow. something in there about tainted memories. and the part with my ex is so particularly strange because i was trying to find him the other day to see if he's still alive and okay. despite everything he ever did ive always found it hard to think of him as a bad person and some part of me will always care about him because he used to be such a dear friend of mine. and even though i know i shouldnt i can sometimes justify what he did to me, i just know i probably wasnt the only one

i think the thing that really gets me is that i ran to him after my friend who was like a brother to me passed away from an overdose because i never got to articulate how much i loved him and i needed to give that love to somebody. and then he developed a drug problem. and its like he did so many horrible things to me but some part of me still wants to save him. weird.

[crvstybowlofcereal]

(hey moots, this one's gonna get a little personal about me, avert your eyeballs)

Dear 13 year olds (and surrounding ages, ie 12-15 or whatever)

Being your age IS hard, and I'm so sorry people try to brush it off and say you "don't know anything about adult problems and stress"

They just Forgot what it's like to be your age.

12-15 was the Worst time in my life, and no one took me seriously.

From 11-14 I was bullied and I couldn't even figure out why. It was like the entire school (minus like a handful of people) were out to get me and my friends.

When I was 13 I was being cyberstalked by pedophiles.

When I was 13/14 one of my friends tried to pressure me into dating him (despite knowing I'm gay), he told many many lies, and even tried to threaten suicide.

I had friends going in and out of the mental hospital during middle school, and we didn't have reliable communication so they would just be gone from school and I didn't know if they were okay.

Puberty caused me a lot of problems, including but not limited to gender dysphoria, body dysmorphia, and my sensory disorder severely worsening (I couldn't make it through the day without a meltdown, and God forbid you melt down in front of middle schoolers, so i would hold it in all day and go home and SOB)

I had my heart broken at 12, but who takes it serious when you're that young?

My grades fell from As for the first time ever when I got to middle school, and my parents got mad at me for it (today they would deny that statement, but I carried it with me)

From 12-16 I was in the depths of an eating disorder

I had so many loved ones in my life passing away, and no one really checked up on me.

The one opportunity I had to see a therapist, my mom wanted us to talk about my "anger issues"

Your peers expect you to have independence and expensive things like clothes (at least mine did) while you have no license and no job. God forbid you grow up poor I guess.

You're becoming aware of the world for the first time, the social and political climate, the push to be perfect in every way, and you really become aware of all the ways you don't fit in, or aren't "good enough"

At this age especially they want you to act like an adult while being treated like a child.

So I am so sorry you're having to deal with so much and people think it's funny when you say so. You are always welcome to vent to me if you need a shoulder to cry on. Because i Remember being your age. You are not alone.

[beesflowers]

𝒟𝑒𝓇𝓇𝑒𝓉𝒽 𝒮𝓉𝑜𝓇𝓎 𝒱𝑜𝒾𝒸𝑒-𝐿𝒾𝓃𝑒𝓈

Characters: Derreth

Type: OC description

Hello

Welcome dear and mighty Traveler! I heard of your achievements and of how many people you saved! So… what do you say for small deal, huh?

Chat: Counting

1, 2, 3... huh... I made only 3 thousands mora today... ehh... not much clients...

Chat: Game

Its' boring here... Wanna play a game? No? Oh...

Chat: Song

♪ I love Mora~ And Mora loves me~ Mora comes- ♪ No wait... that's not how it went... Oh well, who cares?! ♪ Lalalalala ♪

When It Rains

Wait... Did I closed my stand?! Oh let's hope I did...

When Thunder Strikes

Watch out. It can be dangerous during this time and I don't sell any medications.

When the Wind Is Blowing

Ahh, I love wind like that~ What? It's not often when you get cold wind where I come from!

Good Morning

Good morning! Eat something and begin new day! I'll go on stand a bit later... surely I can enjoy my meal!

Good Afternoon

Good afternoon there! Would you like some Zaytun Peaches? I'll give you 25% off since you're such a great companion!

Good Evening

Good evening! Are you done with your quests? If so, how about we go on a walk? It may be good to take your mind off things from time to time!

Good Night

Good nigh! I don't know about you but I'm definitely going to sleep! I don't want to be a zombie tomorrow after all...

About Derreth: Wondering

I often wonder how Dori is doing... I really hope she's having a good childhood... maybe I should visit her someday? No, others might recognize me...

About Derreth: Best School

Did you know that I attended to one of those "fancy schools" back in elementary school? Well it's actually horrible! You meet kids that are spoiled, teachers that see you as money and they have strict teaching system! Good for me I knew how to cheat... I passed that whole school and all exams with flying colors!

About Us: Travelers

So you say you come from different world? Well I just think we may not be so different after all... you got here by force and I had no other choice that to escape my region... Oh well, let's not think about it! Let's go somewhere else, okey? This place seems to take out too much memories from me.

About Us: Friends

After how much we've been through, I think I can safely call you my friend. This comes with many benefits! We can help each other with our problems and if you catch me on good mood, I may even give you small treat for free~ Don't get used though!

About Vision

I got my vision when I was escaping from Sumeru. It would've been more useful before it but... I won't complain. But Pyro Archon does have... interesting taste it seems. I'm a little scared to go to Natlan region now!

Something to Share

Okey, let me tell you BIG secret! Did you knew I had a husband? Hehe~ Yeah, I really did! But it wasn't that great... that's why I'm kinda holding back with marriage now. Heizou seems to understand tho!

About Dori

Oh Dori! How's she doing? Can you tell we're sisters? Yeah, unfortunely we had to part away... you won't mind if I use you to deliver few messages, right?

About Heizou

Oh? Heizou? Haha! Let me tell you a secret! But you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone else! Especially Heizou! Okey so... after we started dating, he started wearing shoes that make him look higher~ It's kinda cute if you look at it...

About Sean (@vodka-glrl OC)

He's great! He could be less grumpy sometimes but I guess it's only accurate looking at what he've been through... Not gonna tell you that! But did you know that he has crush on Yo- actullly no, wait... if I tell you he might ACTUALLY tell Heizou that one secret of mine... let me remain silent then...

About Arataki Itto

He's really nice guy! But the place where we met was… a jail… not great start of friendhip but hey! We're friends now!

About Kuki Shinobu

She's great!! She always helps Itto when he gets into jail and since I'm Mr. Detectives girlfriend, I can help out a lot~ I also suggest that if you ever get into jail, you can count on both of us!

About Kujou Sara

This little… Agh! Can I not do what I'm passionate in Inazuma anymore!? Honestly she needs to mind her own things!

About Yae Miko

She's amazing! We often flirt with each other for fun and some people think it's for real! I can't tell you how many times Heizou told me that he was informed that I'm cheating on him with Yae...

About Yoimiya

She's great! She's always so lively and cheerful! Honestly, if you look for someone to entertain you and I'm unavaible, she's the best option!

About Sayu

I honestly would love to sleep all day... I know she has work as ninja but just being sleep for one whole day would be perfect for me! As nice is it seems, I doubt I could stay in bed for so long...

About Sangonomiya Kokomi

I only know a little about her from Ry- Sean! She seems like very nice lady to me! It's a shame she had to go through all this... How about you tho? Did you met her yourself? If so can you tell me a bit about her as well?

More About Derreth: I

You know, Yoimiya isn't the only want you can go to when you want to escape from Inazuma! I admit, she's great but if she's busy, you can always come to me! I may or may not have some experience~

More About Derreth: II

I'm honestly really glad that I'm all healthy now! It's really a curse to lay in hospital bed through a long time... afte a week, I can guarantee that you'll get bored to death! I hope my sickness won't come back after all those years...

More About Derreth: III

You wonder how it's possible that I had a husband when I'm just 18? Well you see... there's something like forced marriage that exists... usually when both families have some benefits and they force their children to be married. Not fun... but it's important that I'm not stuck anymore! I like my freedom very much you see!

More About Derreth: IV

When I escaped Sumeru, I left my good friend there... I honestly hope he's doing alright now... life also wasn't good on him... Oh well, I believe he's a responsible guy so I'm sure he'll be just great!

More About Derreth: V

I'm sometimes not sure about Heizou... I know he loves me but I'm not a saint. I don't just mean the more... illegal trades I do. I mean my past... Sometimes we have no choice... or I was dumb and stupid... well I don't like going back to it. How about we change the topic?

Derreth's Hobbies

Now I like to go around different dark places in Inazuma and hide there. It's rather peacful, especially that one cave in Inazuma. I will take you there one day! It's really pretty there~

Derreth's Troubles

I'm kinda not used to heat anymore, as much as I was before traveling to Inazuma. I feel like even if I wanted, it would be hard for me to deal in Sumeru. Sure I can skip walks around deset... eh... I will think of it.

Favorite Food

I absolutely love Tulumba! They may be a bit unhealthy because of the amount of oil they need but it's really great! I even managed to make it a bit healthy just so I can eat it every day! I'll give you a nice treat if you'll deserve it~

Least Favorite Food

I dislike dishes that have nothing but meat. Don't get me wrong! I like eating meat but not when it's alone. I need something alongside...

Receiving Gift: I

For me?! Oh you didn't had to~ Well show me!

Receiving Gift: II

Aoooh~ I see you understood my taste~

Receiving Gift: III`Receiving Gift: III

You're so generous today! Don't mind if I take it~

Birthday

Hey there Traveler! Happy Birthday to you! Hehe~ Don't think I forgot! I prepared day full of surprises for you~ Follow me! I'll show you our first stop! And you can also find your first gift there~

Feelings About Ascension: Intro

Huh... that's a nice gift, I'll tik it! Thank you!

Feelings About Ascension: Building Up

Oh so it wasn't just one time gift... I'm a bit interested to see how far will you go...

Feelings About Ascension: Climax

Oh! I feel so much better now! Well, well, keep going and I might reward you~

Feelings About Ascension: Conclusion

Traveler wins!! Hehe~ alrigth, I told you I will reward you so I did! You can choose anything from my stand for free! And I don't mean my fruit stand! You know which one I mean~ But it's not all! I wanted to thank you. At first I wasn't sure if you're just using me but now... I see that you're my true friend. Thank you for that.

[baronetcoins]

HELLO please I would like very much to hear about your bisclavret au (also the selkie au, if you'd like to discuss that too! lots of enthusiasm about shapeshifters goeth on at this time!!)

Yes!! Both of these started with my dear friend @kangoo who I made watch the film with me and who has since been a brainstorming partner of mine when I want to write Them. He is welcome to add his thoughts if he feels inclined.

The Bisclavret AU centers around the traitor’s plot—the kings of England have a secret, with men able to take on a wolf’s shape. Of course they can only turn back if they have their clothes as per the original tale. So when Scroop is persuaded to join the plot to remove Henry from the board before he can cross the channel, he can’t find it in his heart to actually kill the man he loved. He does, however, know about that secret, and hides Henry’s clothes away.

Montjoy, meanwhile, is traveling back and forth between France and England as the French try and use the chaos to their advantage and the English are frantically searching for their king who vanished without a trace. Of course there also happens to be a mysterious wolf who keeps following him around on his travels whenever he’s on the island, and acts much more like a big dog than anything threatening.

Eventually Montjoy decides he has a dog now and starts telling that bold faced lie to anyone who questions why this wolf keeps following him around. It’s a big guard dog. Keeps me safe in the wilderness. What do you mean it doesn’t look like a dog. The reveal comes when Henry sees Scroop and tries to fucking kill him at which point Exeter finally puts two and two together.

I think it’s very fun to cast it in this way because at the time Europe, as a rule, hated wolves. Kings had all kinds of policies about trying to kill as many wolves as possible. It ties in really well to the idea of Hal as having been this wild, irresponsible youth who people looked down upon. I haven’t written too much of this yet, just a bit of the opening scene (which I have posted an excerpt from already), but it’s rattling about in my head again.

The selkie AU is less real and mostly a set of vibes passed back and forth between us where I’m mostly just going to excerpt our DMs because that’s what exists so far though I do want to come back to it properly.

[oregano-writes]

Tartaglia's 5-Step Plan for Wooing Morax- Chapter 10: Finale

Childe woke up in Zhongli’s bed that morning– which, if he had a mora for every time that had happened, he would have two mora. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice. A pounding headache was the next thing he noticed, easily worse than any hangover he’d suffered. As he sat up, running his fingers through his disheveled hair, he noticed someone else leaning on the side of the bed.

When Childe reached down to pat Zhongli’s head, he startled and sat up. However, his expression quickly melted into relief.

“You’re alright.”

Childe gave him a confused look. “Yeah? Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You don’t remember what happened?” Zhongli asked, confused.

“Not really– the last thing I remember was being in Snezhnaya, at the Zapolyarny palace. I think the Tsaritsa called for me, and then–” His eyes went wide when he remembered what the Tsaritsa had done.

He gave Zhongli an apologetic smile. “I hope I didn’t worry you too much.”

“How could I not be worried? You’ve been out for almost–” Zhongli glanced at the window– “twelve hours.”

Childe sat up with a jolt. “Twelve hours? How come you didn’t wake me up?”

Zhongli looked away from him sheepishly. “You looked very peaceful sleeping. I thought you could use the rest.”

Childe blushed and looked away. “Um. Thanks.”

Zhongli watched him for a moment, before standing up. “Would you like some soup?”

Childe smiled. “Sure.”

──────── ✧ ────────

Childe waited in a chair by Zhongli’s dining room table as Zhongli poured two bowls of soup. He slid one of the two over to Childe, and passed him chopsticks and a spoon. Apparently Zhongli had taken some of the time he had been sleeping to clean up, as now at least the table was more or less clear of clutter. There were still a few priceless artifacts sitting near the end, but at least there was enough room for a proper table setting.

Zhongli waited as Childe tried the soup. “Do you like it?”

Childe smiled at Zhongli across the table. “Of course! You made it, after all, and who am I to reject the cooking of an archon?”

Zhongli scoffed at that. “I would not use my authority as an archon to force my subjects to pretend to like my cooking. Do you take me for some kind of tyrant?”

Childe laughed and raised his hands in surrender. “Got it, got it.”

They ate in silence for a few minutes.

“Did you give it to her?”

“Hm?”

“The Gnosis. I know that’s what she wanted.”

Zhongli stayed still for a moment, hesitating, before nodding. “I did. But do not think that it was your fault– You should not be held accountable for the Tsaritsa’s actions.”

Childe sighed. “It’s your Gnosis, but are you sure that you made the right decision?”

Zhongli beamed at him. “I do not regret it– I would have made it a thousand times over.”

Childe felt his face go warm and looked away. “Don’t say stuff like that. You barely know me.”

Zhongli tilted his head. “You are kind, loyal, hardworking, and a dear friend of mine. I would treasure any more information about you, but nothing will change that.”

“That’s just what I’m talking about! I’m a monster, Zhongli, cursed by the Abyss. How can that not change anything?”

“And I am a dragon. Your point?”

Childe sighed again, frustrated. “You don’t get it, do you? You’re a good person, and I’m not. You have no reason to be doing all of this for me. I don’t deserve it.”

Zhongli pushed his soup to the side of the table, before leaning over towards Childe and grasping his face in his hands. Childe looked up at Zhongli, eyes wide. “Zhongli, what are you–”

“Is the fact that I care about you not reason enough? I would be terribly lonely without you– the weeks that you spent in Snezhnaya were dull compared to the ones before.”

Childe tried to look away, but a hand– a hand with no glove, he noticed belatedly– gently turned his head back towards Zhongli.

“I don’t get why my being here or not is that important. All of Liyue loves you, Zhongli. How could I compare?”

Zhongli blinked. “You love me?”

“That’s not– I– That’s really what you take from that?”

Zhongli waited in silence, tilting his head slightly. 

Childe sighed. “Does it really matter that I do? You’re so far above me that it could never work out anyways.”

Zhongli just smiled and pulled Childe closer to himself. “It does matter, because if you do, I can do this.”

“What–”

Before Childe could finish that thought, Zhongli pulled him forwards and closed the distance between them. 

Childe froze, and Zhongli let go, moving back and away from him.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”

Childe leaned back over the table, grabbing him by the lapels of his suit jacket. 

“I’m not upset.”

“Then why are you–” Zhongli gestured to Childe’s hands, still gripping his jacket. 

“So I can do this. ”

Childe leaned over further, pressing their lips together.

──────── ✧ ────────

After breakfast the next morning, Zhongli brought in the mail from the past few days. He set the pile on the table with a thwunk , shifting through the pile and pulling a letter out.

“This one is for you.”

“Oh, thanks,” Childe replied, setting down his tea. He checked the senders, seeing that it was from–

Matvey?

Childe checked the address on the letter– it must have been a mistake of some sort. But no, the letter clearly stated ‘Tartaglia’ as the recipient, with the bank listed as the address.

Childe cautiously broke the seal with a butter knife, pulling the letter out slowly, hesitant to see the contents. He set the envelope to the side, leaving the still-folded letter on the table.

Zhongli, who had been looking through the rest of the letters, (who was preoccupied with glowering at a letter from the Yuheng that appeared to have something to do with back taxes if Childe’s loose knowledge of written Liyuean was to be believed– and yes, he did pick up some written Liyuean, he wasn’t a total incompetent, regardless of what the other Harbingers might say) looked up, making eye contact with Childe. His gaze shifted down to the unread letter on the table, and he gave him an inquisitive look. “Is there something wrong, qin’ai de?”

Childe smiled, and shook his head. “No, nothing you should concern yourself with. By the way, you’ve called me that a few times, would you mind telling me what it means?”

Zhongli took a sip of tea, using the cup to hide a smile. “Yes.”

“Y’know, I’m just going to ask Hu Tao.”

“Hm.”

Childe turned back to the letter. He steeled his nerves, and unfolded it.

Ajax,

Childe stopped reading, eyes widening. This was the first time in almost a decade his brother had called him by his real name. Nevertheless, he went on, hoping to learn the reason for this change of heart.

I know that you probably don’t want to hear from me, so I’ll keep this short. I’ve been a shitty person to you, and an even worse brother. I turned you away when you needed me most, and I don’t expect you to forgive me. I don’t even really expect you to read this letter all the way through. I just need to get this off my chest, and Sofia said this might help.

I think, when you first got back from wherever you were, we could all tell that something was different. Just– getting into fights, always seeming on edge, stuff like that. It’s like someone had taken meek, earnest Ajax and replaced him with a wild animal wearing his face.

I think that was easier to believe, at first. Ajax was dead, and this new thing, Tartaglia, had taken his place. It also made me less at fault– the new thing, Tartaglia, wasn’t my brother; it didn’t need my kindness– it probably didn’t even care. It was just a monster, and no one cares about the feelings of monsters.

But I think I realized pretty early that I was wrong. I honestly didn’t expect you to come back from the Fatui once you left– after all, a monster’s place is among other monsters, not humans. But you came back nonetheless. I avoided you, of course, like a coward. But everyone else had nothing but good things to say about this new-and-improved Ajax. He was just like the old one, just more confident, more polite, more generous. Like he was trying to win back our affections. A monster wouldn’t do that. This new thing– this new person– may not have been exactly the same as the old Ajax, but he clearly wasn’t a monster who had taken his place. Even if you seemed different, I think we could all see hints of the old Ajax shining through. 

If you finish this letter without throwing it into a fire, I want you to know that I’m getting married to Sofia in two months. I would be immensely grateful if you came, and let me start to make amends.

–Matvey

Childe stared at the letter in his hands.

“Zhongli? How would you feel about visiting Snezhnaya with me?”

[devilsrecreation]

That moment when you come up with angsty headcanons about minor characters

Professor Hermonculus:

He still thinks about why his father hates him. He’s cried about it to Bump on two occasions: After he ran away from home and stayed with Bump and after Any Sport in a Storm when he was thinking about his behavior.

Speaking of which, you know that spiky headed kid with the sloth palisman? Believe it or not, Herm actually related to him. The two were having a conversation before class and at one point, the kid said “My dad doesn’t like me.”, to which Herm replied “Oh…I’m sorry. Mine didn’t either.” ….Yeah

Herm gets jealous whenever he sees parents supporting and genuinely loving their kids, since he never got it in his youth

More of a “What if” scenario, but let’s say Hermonculus got into a little spat with his husband, Gunnar, and the last words he said to him was “You are so annoying sometimes. I wish you would just leave me alone!”

Little did he know, Gunnar dies trying to help/save someone and Herm is left with the guilt and regret you’d expect someone to have after saying something negative to a person just before they pass on.

He then starts acting a lot meaner to everyone, especially his students. Bump hears the kids talking about it and soon finds Herm bawling his eyes out behind the bleachers. As they both sit down, Bump lets Herm spill everything: from the entire argument, to how much Herm really loved him even though it was never shown, to Herm’s guilt. At the end, Herm was sobbing about how this was all his fault and Gunnar was always right and “I should have been a better husband”. The one person who’s been by his side no matter what is gone and he hates himself for it. For everything he did.

Now ofc, Gunnar’s not really dead in my mind. He’s alive and well. This was just a thought I came up with for no reason

Osran

What if, in order to keep Osran to shut his mouth about the DOU, Belos used Ophelia against him

Like, maybe he’d say something like how Ophelia wouldn’t believe you and judging by how she is with him, she’d leave him in a heartbeat cuz no one in their right mind would stay with such an asshole and a liar. Gives him the whole “You don’t deserve her.” thing and calls him out on his fear of losing his loved ones. As if he wasn’t terrified already, now he’s afraid of the love of his life leaving him if he ever messed up.

Osran would never admit it when he was younger, but his biggest fear was (and still is, actually) losing his family. The problem is, it keeps happening to him.

-He was probably raised by a single parent and took them for granted—gone before he knew it…and he was only 18

-Terra, more or less—they were friends/frenemies when they were little, then they started dating, then they broke up and he lost her as a friend

-Sid Buls, his favorite professor—last time he saw him alive was when he graduated.

- Riley—we know what happened with them

-His palisman, Auspice—same as above

This is a big reason why he humbled himself, this is why he holds his loved ones so dear to his heart, it’s why he was so overprotective of his kids, one of the many reasons why he treats Ophelia like a goddess, and why he tries not to get too attached to new people

He doesn’t want to lose any of them. Not anymore.

Darius:

I wanna see Darius and one other character in a “Raine’s Rhapsody” situation and while battling, someone looking at a picture with Darius and his adopted kids like “Darius…do you have kids?”

And instead of Eda saying “They’re not MINE, mine”, Darius is like “Why do you think I’m doing this?”. All Darius has are Eber, Hunter, and Salem and he is NOT letting anything bad happening to his loved ones

Vitimir:

Oh boy, here we go:

Evangaline once got severely injured when she was making a new potion with Vit

Being with Vit for so long means she can tell when a potion is about to blow up and she pushes Vit out of the way so he didn’t get hurt again. That resulted in an emergency trip to the Healing coven and Vit being overcome with guilt while on the verge of having both a heart attack and a mental breakdown. Eve has a decent home life, so it was no surprise that her parents were PISSED and would have physically fought Vit if it weren’t for Hettie stepping in. Because of how severe the injuries were (she was barely breathing), her parents forbid him from seeing her, even after she was discharged. Not only that, but Vit had to deal with nightmares about her dying due to his mistake, his experiment, she died because of him. Due to this, Vit had no choice but to push her away since he doesn’t want the same mistake happening ever again.

Now don’t worry, Eve DOES manage to study under him again and even figures out the recipe for the potion they were trying to make, but the journey was pure agony for the both of them. Vit loves her like his own and would never want anything bad happening to her.

[imaginarybestie]

Burning Questions for Other Friends

Dear P,

It is not just D that I'd write burning questions to. But also C, perhaps, since she is someone who gets the real me, more. Maybe K, sometmies, too, since she also might get the real me, in some ways, if not all ways. Maybe other friends too. Sometimes T, with all her deep wisdom and life insight and intelligence, creativity, high ideals, compassion, and the empathy, that I all attribute to her. Also maybe other writers who I love. Maybe other people from the online community that D and I frequent.

Maybe other family members, even though we are mostly pretty distant and don't seem to see eye-to-eye or really see the same world at all, in so many ways. Yet they might know me better and have certain things in common with me that might let them see certain answers, maybe better than I'd expect. They surprise me sometimes with some of their strengths, intelligence, wisdom, kindness, goodness, gentleness, sensitivity, subtlety.

So often, it feels to me like the world is just so very cold and delusional in so many ways, but then my family will do some little things sometimes that makes me feel they're different, and they give me some hope for humanity, for love, kindness, the chance of closeness and relating. Even though it's usually a very short-lived little ray of hope. And others besides my family also give me hope like that, sometimes, but I guess it's different with family because we have more in common in a few ways, and they're this stable presence in my life, unlike all the others who give me hope, but I don't know them well enough or have enough in common with them to really be attached to them that much.

And then there are family members who have passed away now, my grandparents and maybe others. They have a special kind of meaning and memories for me, and maybe I would ask them some questions, if I could ask their souls or the ideal imaginary friend version of them. Other saints, perhaps. Other famous people online whose writings or youtube videos I love, maybe? Hmm.

And best friends I had in high school, too, maybe. When I get in the right state of mine and emotion, I can really feel a sense of connection to them the way we used to be. Maybr they're not really the same anymore, and maybe I am not either, and yet, maybe there's still some kind of commonality between us, our personalities, values, interests. Or even if not, then once there was. And who they were then inspires me to connect with an imaginary friend based on that past them. Maybe sometimes an imaginary friend of how I wish they would have changed and grown over the years, so that we could have stayed close, instead of what really happened where we changed so much that we didn't have much in common anymore, it felt, and things fell apart.

Maybe even my husband, who I have a bad relationship with, to say the least, and do not feel very close to at all and don't trust. Some imaginary friend version of him that's based on the good things that still exist in him, and the good things that existed in the past but are no longer there anymore, too. And maybe the ideal him that I thought he was but he maybe never really was, because I thought he was better than he really was. I thought he'd also improve and grow over time and we'd grow closer, while what happened was just the opposite, in so many ways.

Now I see he is a narcissist, but it's mostly latent and I've learned to deal with it and be ok, most of the time. I need to depend on him for a lot of things, at this point, and I'm better off with him than alone, due to physical and mental health issues that make me unable to support myself or to get the help I need from supposed governmental aid or anything such as that. So anyway, those are a few ideas of friends I migth write. Also characters from books who I really love and who really come to life or teach me important lessons. Maybe I'll think of others later. But that's a start for now.

Love,

C