#AND THEM ON THEIR 20TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

[the-jam-to-the-unicorn]

Olena's Summit is on September 6 ... 😏

[boarix]

Nobody here but us lilies...

[phaoi]

.

[joyousjoyfuljoyness]

In May 2024, the SF LGBT Center reached out and asked if I'd like to participate in the San Francisco Giants' Pride Base Art campaign. I eagerly agreed and submitted an art idea that would encompass the themes of San Francisco, the SF Giants, baseball, Pride, and the 20th anniversary of same-sex marriage in California.

I came up with my painting, "Love's Sweet Victory."

The piece celebrates love, resilience, and acceptance. The shimmering rainbow wedding cake symbolizes joy and unity, while the cake topper depicts two silhouetted baseball players with a heart bearing the San Francisco Giants' logo between them. These symbols honor the City's baseball heritage and commitment to inclusivity. The artwork invites reflection on the intersection of love and sports, echoing the courage of those who openly loved during the Winter of Love. It serves as a reminder that love, like baseball, is a game of passion and perseverance, where shared victories are truly sweet.

Amazingly, I was selected as one of three base art ideas! I received a baseball base to paint my idea on and quickly got to work.

I delivered the base to the SF LGBT Center to be passed to the SF Giants for display during the Pride game on June 15th, 2024.

Before the game, I had a quick interview with the local news channel KTVU Channel 2.

Then, at park before the game, I met the one of the two other artists on the field of Oracle Park, and took some photos and videos with the bases.

The artists got to stay for the Pride flag reveal ceremony too!

And I was on the jumbotron!

What an amazing experience!

[hand-picked-star]

The 13th Anniversary Arshi Fiesta

Moodboard : Historical AU

Whispers of the Heart | Chapter 25 ( final)

DISCLAIMER: The story is set in the early 20th century. While I have made efforts to capture the essence of the era, there may be inaccuracies as this is a work of fantasy. I do not own the characters Arnav and Khushi, and this story is purely fictional with no relation to any real individuals, living or dead. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental.

WARNING: 18+, MATURE CONTENT.

Final Chapter

Three years later.

It was the eve of Diwali, the festival of lights. The Rajput haveli was a vision of grandeur and festivity this evening. The entire estate was adorned with intricate decorations. Strings of twinkling fairy lights draped over every window and doorway and vibrant rangoli patterns were meticulously crafted at the entrance. Rows of gleaming diyas, their soft flickering flames casting a warm, golden glow, lined the pathways and courtyards, creating a serene and enchanting ambience. The air was filled with the scent of freshly made sweets and the sounds of laughter and celebration, as the household came alive with the spirit of joy and togetherness.

Arnav and Khushi had been celebrating their Dewalis with the Rajput family instead of their own Haveli, which they had finally managed to build according to their own taste. It was especially Khushi's touch that could be seen in every corner of the new Raizada state. Though they had a beautiful house of their own, they very much enjoyed spending their Dewalis with the Rajputs. Because, all of their near and dear ones were here and with Mahindar and Manorama's advancing age, they wanted to celebrate the festivals surrounded by all of their children.

"Oh shit."

Arnav hurriedly entered the room and locked the door behind him. Khushi was in the midst of getting ready. was adjusting a delicate gold necklace around her neck. She had styled her dark hair elegantly in loose waves that had gone perfectly with the stunning deep red sari, she had worn. Her eyes sparkled with a hint of concern as she looked up from her reflection.

"What happened?"

"The string of my trousers just snapped. Did you bring a spare?" Arnav replied, noticing how gorgeous she looked.

"Let me see."

As Khushi proceeded to see Arnav's broken trouser string, a mischievous smile appeared on his lips.

"Aren't you a bit too eager to see my treasures, Mrs. Raizada?"

Rolling her eyes at his antics, she said, "Take it off."

"As you wish."

Arnav grabbed her waist, gently placing her on the desk in her room. The old desk was not that big, leaving her back pressed against the wall. He moved to stand between her legs, gently pushing them apart.

"What are you doing?" she whispered yelled as his hands slid up her thighs. He wrapped one of his hands around her waist, pulling her a little closer, while he put the other hand against the wall, above her head.

"Nothing, just testing how sturdy the desk is," he said leaning closer to her. A playful smirk curled on the corners of his lips.

"Arnav, everyone is waiting for us downstairs."

"A few more minutes won't hurt them," he said, capturing her lips in a teasing kiss while his hands gathered her saree around her waist. He touched her in between her legs, finding her already eager for him.

"Ap aise nahi kar sakte," she whispered, biting her lips.

"Kyun nahi kar sakta? Biwi ho tum meri, my legally wedded wife." A soft whimper escaped her lips, as he pushed his fingers in between her nether lips. "And look at you," he murmured, "....already so ready for me. The idea of us on this desk excites you, huh?"

Khushi swatted his shoulder lightly and smiled, her eyes full of mirth. "Shut up."

"Make me."

In the past few years, so much had changed. What hadn't was the undeniable pull between them. Despite the upheavals in many aspects of their lives, there they were, still wrapped up in their own little world.

He looked devastatingly handsome, as always-nothing special in that. But the navy blue kurta he wore today made his eyes stand out even more, and they were now focused on Khushi, brimming with mirth.

Khushi clutched his collars and pulled him close as she fused their lips together, successfully wiping off the teasing grin on his face. Meanwhile, Arnav got rid of his trousers and entered her in a swift motion. Both of them moaned softly, their pleasure barely contained. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders, fingers digging into the fabric of his shirt as she pulled him closer. Her back arched slightly while she adjusted to him. His lips travelled down her neck alternately sucking and kissing her soft supple skin. Her head fell back, eyes fluttered shut.

"Don't leave marks. It would be very awkward in front of the relatives." The desk beneath her creaked softly as he began to move.

"Shhh... I won't... at least not where everyone can see." He whispered, lightly sucking behind her ear.

Their rhythm grew frantic. They tried desperately to muffle their moans, as he pounded repeatedly into her. He then realized they were making lots of noises.

"Shit, your bangles.''

"Huh..?" When Arnav saw his wife completely blissed out and lost in the sensation. He just shrugged his shoulder and went back to his previous activities. Soon, their moans mingled in each other's necks as they finished together.

Both were breathing heavily. Khushi cradled her face against his shoulder, her fingers gently playing with his hair. While Arnav tried to catch his breath by resting his head on her neck. A sudden knock on the door startled them. Instead of pushing him away, Khushi clutched his neck even tighter, holding him close. Akash Bhai's voice came through the door.

"Khushi?"

Regaining her composure, Khushi answered in a shaky voice, "Haan, Bhai?" Her body froze in place.

"Where's Arnav? Hasn't he come yet? Bareilly wale Fufaji usko kabse dhoond rahe hain."

"Hume nahi pata, Bhai. Humne unko nahi dekha."

Khushi noticed her husband's shoulders shaking lightly. She cast a glare at his shoulders as if willing them to stop.

"Theek hain, main dekhta hoon. Tum jaldi tayaar hoke niche aao."

As Akash Bhai's footsteps faded, Arnav couldn't hold back his laughter any longer. He looked back at his wife, his amusement contagious. Khushi tried to give him a stern look but ended up laughing along with him, playfully swatting his chest. Arnav gazed at her affectionately before capturing her lips with his.

As much as he loved to kiss her whimpering lips, he loved kissing her smiling ones even more.

After freshening up, Arnav headed downstairs. As soon as he reached the bottom, two little bodies collided with him, and he effortlessly scooped them up into his arms. Three-year-old Akansha, a spitting image of Anjali as a child, brought back memories of his sister's younger days, while five-year-old Ajit, a perfect blend of Akash and Payal. They grinned up at him. Arnav settled into a nearby lounge chair, both children comfortably perched on his lap.

Little Akansha said in her baby voice, "Mamaji, thank you for the gift. Ma said me to thank you." She placed a tiny kiss on his cheek.

Not to be outdone, little Ajit mimicked her. "Ha, Mamaji, thank you."

Akansha quickly turned to him, frowning. "Arre, buddhu, wo sirf mere Mamaji hain. Tumhare nehi."

"He isn't your Mamaji either," Khushi chided little Akansha lovingly. "Remember what I told you? When you go to our house, you'll call him Mamaji. But when we come here, you have to call him Fufaji."

Arnav scrunched his nose in response, "Don't confuse the children, Khushi." Then, turning back to them, he added, "Why don't both of you just call me Uncle, okay?"

Both of them nodded and sprinted off to play in the courtyard.

Meanwhile, two pairs of brown eyes eagerly awaited their turn on his lap. As soon as it was vacant, they climbed onto each of his thighs. A sweet, confused voice asked, "Daddy, do we need to call you that too?"

"Oh, no, I've worked too hard for you to ever call me that."

"Well, your daddy was very close to being called 'Uncle' by my children once upon a time," Khushi said, lightly touching the little girl's nose.

Arnav cast her a mock glare and mouthed soundlessly, "How dare you?" In response, Khushi just laughed.

While little Ayushi snuggled against her father's neck, little Kush played with his toy, absorbed in his own world. Roma Chachi had remarked aptly that Khushi had indeed given birth to their own reflections, as the three-year-old twins were perfect mirrors of their parents.

While little Ayushi was a bit clingy and voiced her need for attention, little Kush was more reserved. Arnav saw himself in Kush more and more as the days went by. Though Kush didn't seek attention outwardly, inside he was just as eager for snuggles and cuddles as his sister. Even if he pretended otherwise, he desired the same affection. So, Arnav made sure to give both children equal attention. And in some cases, he made an extra effort to give affection to Kush while he was still open to it. Because, As Kush grew up, Arnav knew his little boy might not appreciate his father hugging him as much as his daughter might. It's just a man-code.

Arnav pulled little Ayushi closer, planting a kiss on her head, while he affectionately rubbed his son's back. Khushi watched them with a soft smile, her heart swelling with warmth and tenderness. It had been three years since their birth, and Khushi had been pestering Arnav for another child, but he kept refusing. Their birth had traumatized him enough. Arnav till date clearly remembered and almost felt the panic that he had gone through that night.

He had arranged for the best midwife in the area and had called a trained nurse from the missionary hospital for the delivery. The doctor had come as well and assured him that everything was alright and that the birth would proceed naturally. And there he was, pacing in front of the room where Khushi had been for two hours-two hours of listening to her whimpering and screaming in pain. Arnav was just minutes away from asking Hariprakash to fetch the doctor again when a deafening cry of a newborn pierced the air.

A joyous shout of Roma Chachi came from inside, "It's a boy!"

A few moments later, Roma Chachi emerged from the room with a little crying bundle and approached Arnav. But at the same time, another scream from Khushi nearly stopped his heartbeat. Roma Chachi tried to pass the baby to Arnav, but he grabbed her upper arms and asked urgently, "What's happening inside? How's Khushi?"

A hushed whisper circulated among the women in the room who had come to assist with the birth, noting Mr. Raizada's reluctance to take the baby in his arms. Roma Chachi looked around, guessing how the situation must appear, and spoke to Arnav in a hushed voice.

"Take your son, Arnav. Khushi will be alright."

Chastised by his mother-in-law, Arnav looked at the baby, who had stopped crying and was now gazing at him with wide eyes. He took the baby in his arms and sat on a sofa in the corridor. The baby's little body squirmed in the palm of his hand. Father and son stared at each other for quite some time. An overwhelming sense of protectiveness washed over him, though he couldn't exactly name the other emotions coursing through him. He just kissed the baby boy's forehead lightly and spoke softly as if the baby would clearly understand his words, "I'm not mad at you. I'm just scared."

A little while later, Anjali took the baby from Arnav while Khushi's screams continued to echo from the room, driving him to the brink of madness. He asked Hariprakash to fetch the doctor and also asked Anjali to go inside and see what was happening. Suddenly, the screaming stopped, and Arnav's heart pounded at the sudden silence. Roma Chachi emerged with another bundle, her face radiant with a brilliant smile. "There was another baby-a girl. It's a little Khushi."

Arnav placed his hand on the baby's head and asked, "How's she?"

"She will be okay, Arnav," Roma Chachi reassured him and transferred the baby to Arnav. He felt her snuggle into him as he placed a soft kiss on her crown. Since then, Little Ayushi never missed a chance to snuggle into her father's arm.

When everybody went home and the babies were settled with Anjali and Payal in the next room. Roma Chachi decided to sleep in the room, attached to where Khushi was. She was sleeping soundly after giving birth. The doctor said she had lost a lot of blood. Although the bleeding had stopped, she had become very weak. She looked pale, alarmingly pale actually and her breathing was shallow. Fear gripped Arnav's heart despite everybody's reassurance.

He spent the night holding her hand and sitting on the floor near her head, counting her breaths. He didn't know when he fell asleep, his head resting near their joined hands. But he woke up to Khushi's gentle fingers lightly gliding through his hair. When he opened his eyes, she urged him to lie down beside her on the bed. He obliged, and she didn't waste any time snuggling into his chest, her arm draped across his belly.

"Will you be angry with me for the rest of your life if I leave this world before you?"

Arnav's heart dropped at her question. "Don't ask me questions like that."

"Answer me, please."

He pressed his lips to her forehead. "I can never be angry at you."

"Good, I don't want you to be angry at me at all."

"Then don't even think of leaving."

Khushi tilted her head to look at him and smiled tiredly. Arnav placed a soft kiss on her dry lips. "I felt like I would never see you again, or our babies..... I was so scared."

Arnav gulped down the lump in his throat and didn't say anything in response, only pulled her closer to his body.

She had been quiet for a while, and Arnav thought she had fallen asleep when she spoke again."We have two babies now," she said almost disbelievingly.

"Yes, we do. We didn't even know how to raise one."

"Shhh, we'll manage," she said dreamily. "One baby is for you, one baby is for me. Did you hold them?"

"Yes, I did."

"I haven't yet. I guess I had fainted at the end," she said sadly.

"Why don't you get some sleep and gather some energy, Mommy?" he said lovingly. "If they're to be like you, we'll have a lot on our hands."

"What are you saying? I was a very quiet kid."

"Sure, you were," he whispered against her forehead.

"You were no better, mister. I know all the stories from your childhood, so you can't deny it. At least I didn't get stuck in a patila."

Laughing, Arnav gathered her in his arms even tighter, and both of them fell asleep like that.

"Bhaiya, Bhabi, come quickly! Roma Aunty is calling you," Amelia's voice called out across the courtyard to the little bubble of the family of four, who were just chatting.

Over the years, Amelia blossomed into the remarkable young lady she was destined to be. As the cloud of melancholy gradually lifted, it revealed her true essence—a kind, compassionate, and fun-loving individual, fiercely protective of those she loved.

"Let's go Mrs.Raizada."

He extended his hand toward his wife.

Khushi looked up at his extended hand, recalling a time when he had reached out in much the same way to guide a little girl out of the darkness.

Khushi scooped up Kush in her arms as Arnav held Ayushi. Hand in hand with their children nestled in their arms, they joined the rest of the family. The warmth of the burning diyas cast a golden glow over them.

In the end, as they embraced the spirit of the festival, they realized they found their perfect piece of forever in each other's arms, in each other's eyes, knowing that this was where they were always meant to be.

----------THE END----------

<previous>

@featheredclover @arshifiesta @phuljari @msbhagirathi @jalebi-weds-bluetooth @chutkiandchotte

[sunbloomdew]

Listen. Listen. All of Step 4 versions could canonically take place during the same summer, right next to each other. Derek's Step 4 takes place first. Father's day in America is on the third Sunday in June, so in 2021 that would be June 20th.

Moms wedding anniversary is referenced multiple times in Derek's Step 4, as an event happening a few weeks later.

Then Cove's Step 4 takes place during the anniversary, a few days before and after the event. Taking the estimated time period, their party would be happening in June, i'd say around the middle of the month, maybe closer to the beginning.

Derek makes an appearance here too!

(i actually had to speed replay cove's step 4 cause i had no, and i mean no screeshots from it lmao. that was before i learned that you can make screeshots through steam and don't have to do it MANUALLY sigh)

Then we have the last Step 4 version, the events of Baxter DLC.

I'm assuming the Adams' wedding takes place sometime in August, probably also in the middle, but leaning towards the end of the month.

So hypothetically speaking, MC could canonically participate in all of these events.

All THAT to say: imagine meeting Xavier in Baxter's Step 4 after first meeting them in Derek's Step 4, and them being like "Oh, hi MC! Good to see you again :D" with Baxter looking so confused sdhfjkshfsjk

That's right, it was a Xavier post all along! You got tricked! Xavier DLC when 👀

Just kidding, but i'm living for this version of events. And just in general, it's nice to imagine everything happening, even if it's not possible in the game itself. I headcanon it all happening, it's so fun to think about <3

[buttercupyellow]

BBC Merlin Timeline (canon info only)

Pre-Series

Kilgharrah born - over 1000 years ago

Ashkanar hides a Dragon Egg in his Tomb - 400 years ago

7 of Camelot's knights are seduced by a sorceress and become The Knights of Medhir - 300 years ago

Uther conquers/usurps/is a laughing heir to Camelot

Morgause born to Vivienne and smuggled out of Camelot

Gaius begins working as the Court Physician - 25 years ago

Gaius and Alice meet - 25 years ago

Morgana born to Vivienne

Uther uses magic to conceive Arthur, Ygraine dies in childbirth, Uther begins the Great Purge of magic

Uther tricks the Dragonlords (Balinor) and Kilgharrah into coming to Camelot "to make peace" but kills them and captures Kilgharrah - 20 years ago

Balinor and Hunith concieve Merlin in Ealdor - less than 20 years ago (max 19 min 16)

Balinor is hunted into hiding by Uther/Camelot

Gorlois dies on the Northern Plains, Uther adopts Morgana as his ward - Morgana 10 yro

Uther holds a tounament in Arthur's honour, The Sarrum attends - Arthur 10 yro

Arthur leads an attack on a Druid camp but is unable to control his men and a massacre occurs

Arthur is challenged by Odin' Son to a duel, asks him to withdraw, and kills him in the duel

Elyan leaves Camelot - 4 years before S3, ep7

Season 1

The Dragon's Call

Valiant

The Mark of Nimueh

The Poisoned Chalice

Lancelot

A Remedy to Cure all Ills

The Gates of Avalon

The Beginning of the End

Excalibur - Arthur's Coming of Age/Arthur's Birthday (approx April)

The Moment of Truth - Harvest time (August - September)

The Labyrinth of Gedref - Harvest time (August - September)

To Kill the King

Le Morte D'Arthur

Season 2

The Curse of Cornelius Sigan

The Once and Future Queen

The Nightmare Begins

Lancelot and Guinevere

Beauty and the Beast, pt 1

Beauty and the Beast, pt2

The Witchfinder

The Sins of the Father

The Lady of the Lake

Sweet Dreams

The Witch's Quickening

The Fires of Idirsholas

The Last Dragonlord

Season 3 - "Over a year" since S2, ep12

The Tears of Uther Pendragon, pt 1

The Tears of Uther Pendragon, pt 2

Goblin's Gold

Gwaine

The Crystal Cave - Morgana's Birthday

The Changeling

The Castle of Fyrien

The Eye of the Phoenix

Love in the Time of Dragons

Queen of Hearts

The Sorcerer's Shadow

The Coming of Arthur, pt 1

The Coming of Arthur, pt 2

Season 4 - "A year" since S3, ep12

The Darkest Hour, pt 1 - Samhain/Oct 31st - Nov 1st

The Darkest Hour, pt 2 - (Nov contin.)

The Wicked Day - Arthur's Birthday (approx April)

Aithusa

His Father's Son

A Servant of two Masters

The Secret Sharer

Lamia

Lancelot du Lac

A Herald of the New Age

The Hunter's Heart - Ostara/Spring Equinox/March 20th

The Sword in the Stone, pt 1 - Beltane/May 1st

The Sword in the Stone, pt 2 - (May contin.) Arwen Wedding

Season 5 - "For three long years, we have been blessed with peace and prosperity"

Morgana and Aithusa captured by The Sarrum - 2 years

Morgana and Ruadan begin searching for the Diamair (at Ismere) - 3 Months prior to S5

Gwaine, Percival and some knights investigate Ismere - 6 Weeks prior to S5

Arthur's Bane, pt 1

Arthur's Bane, pt 2

The Death Song of Uther Pendragon - Anniversary of Arthur's Coronation, possibly Beltane/May 1st

Another's Sorrow

The Disir

The Dark Tower

A Lesson in Vengeance - Arthur and Gwen's Wedding Anniversary, possibly May

The Hollow Queen

With All My Heart

The Kindness of Strangers

The Drawing of the Dark

The Diamond of the Day, pt 1

The Diamond of the Day, pt 2

[hardtofindneuro]

hello friends, i am here to follow scoops’ idea, and other writers, in ranking my own fics from least favorite to my absolute favorite. sex-mas isn’t in here because shiv and i co-wrote it, but go check it out!

i’ve also been writing a lot behind the scenes. i have so many wips in progress but im excited to share those with y’all in 2025!! also just so everyone knows, im so shook by how much i wrote this year?? didn’t i take a break? like multiple breaks? how did i write 20 fics, plus literally 19 wips? i don’t know. i really don’t. so sorry this is long!!

in last place, 20th: wrong costume. i actually had fun writing this fic! it was just like, a little insane and i was laughing the entire time i wrote it. definitely just a fun little thing i wrote for halloween season while learning to love writing again.

19th: a new meaning to halloween. this was cute! i had fun writing this one too, but it was just a short thing i ended up throwing together for halloween again. i don’t dislike it at all, actually i really like it, but i wrote so many fics this year that were very meaningful to me so that’s why this is at the caboose. dnf mpreg and gender reveals are always fun to write though.

18th: teach me. listen, i know a lot of people loved this fic and it has a special place in my heart, but it’s not my favorite. i was pushing myself to write it and post it while going through some stuff, and my writing has changed a lot since then. this fic was based on a real life excel sheet shiver shared with me that she was sending tinder men, btw. yes, you read that correctly. shiver canon.

17th: take control. this was just fun to write inspired by dnf being in minecraft lol. this was the first time since like, january, that i wrote smut and it wasn’t so extremely painful. it was finally fun again to write it and i wasn’t having to push myself to do it.

16th: gift a kiss. dream’s birthday fic. i wrote this super last minute but it was still really fun to write!

15th: first times. another one i liked writing, inspired by the hurricane. i wrote this so fast it’s a little ridiculous tbh but i like the final version i posted. i loved watching dream’s hurricane stream lol

14th: same day, different george. this was cute and i enjoyed writing something for the little anniversary. can’t believe george has been in florida this long already!

13th: fear. this fic has a special place in my heart. it was personal in a way that most things aren’t for me, and i was terrified to post it so i kept it off twitter & whatnot but im proud of how it came out in the end.

12th: life is a hardship. another one that was really personal and close to the heart. learning a lot about self care and love this year, and i know these types of fics aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but those who do like them seem to relate and find comfort in them which means a lot.

11th: it’s just hair. idk why i enjoyed this one so much. i think i just liked writing the dnf dynamic in this one and playing around with the idea of dream’s haircut to cope with the loss of curls, however i do like his hair now lol. it was just a shock before

10th: embrace the differences. this fic was just so out of my comfort zone i can’t believe i even got this idea out of the “idea” phase lol. it was a bit hard for me to finish but once i got into the groove, it was cool to play with it. i almost always write canon divergent so this was completely different and i’d love to try something like it again!

9th: it’s not a wedding. i don’t know why this was so hard to write but this took me so, so long but the end product was something i enjoyed. definitely fun to get started and i was glad to persevere on it, even though i was frustrated at the end.

8th: drowning. i just hold this this fic close to my heart. it was the first thing i wrote in second pov and again, not everyone’s taste, but something about writing in second pov makes it feel more personal to me and it was nice to switch it up. at this point, i was very unmotivated and the pov change made writing something i wanted to do again.

7th: label-less. not tons of aroace representation in fics so i thought it would be nice to give it some rep, especially because we all kind of have different views and experiences with it. i’m pretty open about my sexuality here but this was the first time i really wrote about it and it just kind of felt freeing, and during pride month!

6th: love big, love easy. hurt my heart in the way i love when angst hurts my heart to write. got to bring in old lore and stuff to play around.

5th: football BINGO. this was inspired by a tweet and that tik tok trend going around. top tier excitement and joy when writing this, just complete fluff which isn’t usual for me but i enjoyed this one for sure!

4th: going through the motions. this was the first thing i wrote and posted after all the drama in january, and march. it was also the first thing i really wrote and posted that was so personal, which was terrifying, but everyone was extremely kind to me about it and im proud that i took the risk to post it.

3rd: comeback, baby. literally so much fun to write. i had started this a million years ago and then george’s birthday stream ended up being so dnf insane that i ended up speedrunning the last 10k of it in less than a day. awesome stream and dream is insane for saying he was going to impregnate george. that’s all.

2nd: erase. this fic is just so personal and so different from my usual stuff. it’s not something many people read and that’s totally okay, but the people that did read it seemed to really be impacted by it and that’s all i could ever ask when anyone reads my fics. especially ones like this one.

and at number 1, surprise (not), is love you always. as many of you know, i decided to post this fic after my grandfather passed. this fic means the world to me and i recently just lost my grandma as well. i’m really hard on myself about pretty much everything but im truly proud of this fic. everything about posting this sucked and it really fucked me up, but it was worth the impact it made on others & how proud i am of it.

[thedisneybarbie]

The princess and the pauper turned 20 this year! 👸🏼👩🏽🐱🩷💙 I remember when this movie first came out, it was the third Barbie movie I saw and the last Barbie movie of my childhood. I got the VHS and remember watching it with my friend in my bedroom on my old bunk bed, then she got the two singing dolls plus Erika’s wedding fashion set and we spent so many hours just playing with them ❤️ She let me have Erika’s little Wolfie figure and wedding dress which I REALLY wish I’d kept! But I stupidly got rid of all my childhood dolls when I thought it was time to “grow up” (a very stupid, unauthentic time for me) This will forever be one of my favourite Barbie movies and I will always love it so much! The soundtrack especially is the best soundtrack out of all the Barbie movies and Preminger has to be my favourite villain to this day he still cracks me up 😂 I’ve always wished I could be Anneliese, she’s so beautiful, elegant, smart and her dress has to be favourite 🩷 And of course just like all the classic Barbie princess and heroines she’s not afraid to stand up for herself and get stuck into fighting for herself and what’s right. Happy 20th anniversary princess and the pauper, I’m sure I’ll still be obsessing over you in the next 20 years!

[latibulater]

Please share more about your future au. Idk what specifically I am just intigued to hear about it bc god knows what the Ventures are going to do or be like in like 5/10 years time

YASSS YAY I LOVE U

Winter, 2012, Ventech tower goes crashing up and down.

Spring, 2013, Rusty, Billy, Pete, and Vatred are arrested for the whole debacle. Brock, Dean, and Hank stay at Bobbi St. Simone's ranch for a while. Malcolm is severely pissed that his arch is in jail.

Winter, 2013, Malcolm and Sheila create the legal case getting the four of them out of prison and Rusty is genuinely touched that the Monarch got him out of jail.

Spring, 2014, Rusty restarts Ventech/Venture Industries in Colorado with Billy , Pete, and new CEO Wyatt Watt having equal stakes. Billy and Pete hire assistants, Valerie Wahl and George Oon.  

Summer, 2014, Shore Leave and Al elope and open up a gay bar called The Genie.

Fall, 2014, Rusty goes back to school to finish his degree. Dean and Jared have been dating for some time at this point and Rusty does NOT like Jared anymore.

Winter, 2014, W3V Enterprises benefit drag show at Shore Leave and Al's place. Jared, Dean, Hank, Brock, Rusty, Billy, Pete, Wyatt, the assistants, and Hatred all participate. Orpheus and Twilight and Gathers all come out to watch. Hunter surprises everyone and announces her name as Jean. Dean drops out of school and gets a job at the Genie.

Spring, 2015, Dean begins to help out with the drag shows and find himself really enjoying it to the point he starts questioning things about himself. Hank officially opens HankCo. a subsidiary of Wave (he employs Dermott and Ben).

Winter, 2015 Dean transitions to Liz and she and Jared break-up amicably. Hank is nearly assassinated and gets his own personal bodyguard hired, who falls in love with Hank.

Spring, 2016, Liz starts dating Billy's lab assistant, Valerie

Winter, 2016, at an awards ceremony, Hank is caught in an explosion and suffering injuries similar to the original 6yo Rusty. Hank gets cool replacement parts instead of natural looking ones. The saboteur is Brock's Greek daughter, M.I.A., and is in a Red Room like situation.

Spring, 2017 Rusty turns 57 and is almost done his Masters and starts cloning himself to speed things up

Spring, 2018, Rusty bombs his thesis presentation because of the cloning bullshit and ends up having to re-do the entire year.

Summer, 2018, Liz and her girlfriend accidentally get pregnant.

Winter, 2018, Dr. Z dies and Johnny asks Rusty to go with him to the funeral.

Spring, 2019, Dawn Wahl is born to Liz and Valerie Wahl

Summer, 2019, Rocket Impossible is hired as Doc's assistant.

Winter, 2020, The Captain, Sally Impossible, and Action Jonny get married, as one of the first legal polyamorous weddings.

Spring, 2021, Jean Gathers passes away of natural causes, and Brock is completely depressed.

Spring, 2022, Rocket is officially a full-time hero and can't work for W3VE anymore, so Rusty ends up hiring Dermott as his lab tech.

Spring, 2023, Hank transitions to Stephanie at age 35, and Hatred croaks.

Winter, 2024, Rusty's granddaughter turns 5. Triana, Liz, and Rocket find out from a power mishap about the truth of Rusty's first death

Summer, 2026, Jefferson and Orpheus get married. Liz becomes a published author having written about a fictionalized version of her family's life

Winter, 2027, Brock and Rusty get engaged at Malcolm and Sheila's 20th anniversary party, completely upstaging the Monarchs

Summer, 2028, the Guild of Calamitous Intent send Rusty a very nice wedding gift and Brock a very nice peace offering. Malcolm gets revenge by him and Sheila proposing to Gary. Gary flips out afterward.

Winter, 2030 Pete's long-term assistant George Oon is murdered and there's a whole mystery

Summer, 2034, Ben dies in a car accident and Dermott loses his lower legs. Dermott pulls out old letters Ben wrote explaining to Rusty, he can find out about his first death and why Ben helped Jonas.

Spring, 2035, Stephanie and Gary begin dating, Gary is still involved with Sheila and Malcolm, but it's an open relationship

Winter, 2035, Sheila is assassinated, Malcolm loses his mind, and Gary and Stephanie very amicably break-up. Stephanie stays with her dads for a few weeks. Liz, her wife and daughter also drop by. Liz's daughter is 16 going on 17 and wants to become an adventurer in her own right and Liz is unsuccessful in dissuading her.

Spring, 2040, Malcolm and Rusty get trapped in an elevator and he tells Rusty about being the Blue Morpho

Winter, 2045, Malcolm dies of heart failure.

Spring, 2052, Sheila comes back to life with the PROBLEM machine

Spring, 2061, at 94 years old, Rusty and Brock (93) choose to die together via lethal injection as their quality of life has severely declined and they want to leave happy.

and this is just copy-pasted from my word doc so it has hints to other things not explained LOL. this is a future au where im trying to have things make sense as much as possible and i feel like could possibly happen if the show continued which is why i went with brusty

[i4bellingham]

please a jamal musiala like general dating headcannon he’s barely written for on tumblr LMFAO

DATING HEADCANONS: jamal musiala x reader

CONTENT: lowercase intended, suggestive content, descriptions of kissing and making out, just a general idea of what i think dating jamal would be like

NOTE: tried finishing this for my baby���s birthday ♡ but ey knee ways, happiest 20th birthday to my baby boy in bayern i fucking love you even though you have no clue of who i am <33 also to the beautiful people reading this, enjoy !! and happy jamal day! <33

first thing’s first, jamal is definitely a sucker for cuddles.

LOVES to be the small spoon and he's not embarrassed to admit that, not to you and definitely not to everyone.

loves laying his head on your chest while you play with his hair and enjoys the feeling of your fingers running through the back of his neck because it helps lull him to sleep. it's a therapy for him as much as it is a cuddle.

he loves feeling you close to him whether that may be within the enclosed walls of your home or out in public.

he usually have an arm around your waist or shoulder or sometimes holds your hand in his while you're both out.

cheek and neck kisses are definitely his thing. love placing them on your skin and does so unconsciously often times.

he's definitely getting called whipped, and a simp online by the fans because the numerous pictures about the both of you due to how touchy he is and how fearless he is to show affection towards you despite his seemingly shy demeanor.

speaking of which, he can sometimes come off as borderline possessive especially when he feels like those fools around you thinks they have a shot to shoot with you.

he slams their dreams down by wrapping an arm around your waist and lip-locking with you no matter if it's out in public.

hides his face on the crook of your neck afterwards.

jamal loves it when you come to his games. your attendance is definitely a major contributing factor to his amazing plays.

he's definitely not trying to show his skills off with you watching the game.

and on that note, of course, you have to attend games wearing his kit.

seeing his number and last name being worn by you surely brings a proud glint in his eyes and motivates him to work extra harderㅡ

loves marking you up against a wall while you're wearing it too, or inside the car with you perched on top of his lap as he sucks hickies on your neck or tongue lapping at the inside of your mouth after the gameㅡ

you're definitely one of the first people he goes to after a game ends.

often times reaching for you over the barricade while you wrap your arms around his sweaty body, not minding his situation after a game but you're there to congratulate him and sing him your praises.

you help him cool down after a match by offering a massage, a bath or if the both of you are in for it, a post match session where both of your bodies are entangled in the sheets afterwards.

jamal’s certain that he'll never meet someone as supportive and as loving as you again.

that's why in your third year anniversary, he's already purchased your dream wedding band, safely tucked in his closet as he waits for the perfect timing to finally ask for your hand.

[porryc]

Detailed description of how old Gabriel Agreste is acording to show with leaks

In Episode 20, the date on Gabriel's real ID as “Gabi Grassette” is given is April 23, 19*5.

They didn't want to give an exact date because Thomas and other creators don’t like give exact dates for show so they blacked out the middle number, but the storyboards show the date as 1985.

But that can't explain it fully because anything not shown in the show is not real , So much can be extracted from storyboards

Here Gabriel definitely looks like a pre-teenager , probably 14-15 years old

But if we have to go based on the information given to us :

Thomas Astruc said in a comic-end interview that he wanted to publish a comic in which he wanted to tell about Gabriel's life as a teenager and how he met people like Emilie and Nathalie

So this means that Gabriel met Emilie when he was a teenager and in Episode 24 show what Gabriel looks like when he meets Emilie in Felix's story

He has wavy hair and wears a blazer, freed from his old punk look with purple mohawk and he’s big enough to have its own apartment

18-19 is still a teenage age, but you are entitled to have your own apartment and explains the case of Emilie, who came to Paris for "study" , Emilie may have come to Paris for college or for the last year of high school or as a some kind of exchange student

According to Felix's, Emilie found true love "Immediately ”when she came to Paris , they probably decided to be together for less than one year and they got married quickly in the story

Also, in Episode 22, we learned that Audrey and Andre are really old friends of this couple and that's they are the ones made the two of them come together even Gabriel sewed his first suit to Andre so he could feel more confident in expressing his feelings to the girl he liked : Audrey

When Audrey and Andre were not together, Gabriel and Emilie were together and even lived in the same house as a married couple according to Andre’s “Do you remember when we were young and penniless? You, Me and Emilie would make the world a better place from yours little attic” in Episode 22

In an episode of Season 4, we see Andre and Audrey celebrate their 20th anniversary , so they have been married for at least 20 years and we also know that Gabriel and Emilie have been married longer

In the Weredad episode, we learn that Tom will turn 40 from 39, and we find out that Sabine and Tom have been married for 20 years , This information makes him married at 19-20, as confirmed by his Wiki page

So according to the Miraculous universe there are lot of people were married at that young

But I think Gabriel must be older than Tom because he has gray hair.

Gabriel and Emilie met in the story, they got married right away which makes me think that they married between the ages of 18-20, when Gabriel should have met her "when he was a teenager"

Now we all know that Emilie is inferitle , Gabriel said “For so long…We thought we would never able to have a child,” in final episode

They were married for a very long time until they have Adrien : Which makes sense because they were poor when they got married.

Gabriel was the son of a fast-food business owner who didn't come from a wealthy family anyway, and Emilie, on the contrary, was the heiress of a old-money and noble British aristocratic family and she was a “Lady”

Her parents were furious that she was with a ordinary man like Gabriel who were not the extremly wealthy and powerful man we know at the time so her parents wanted her to end this relationship and they probably had a plan in their mind for her to have a arranged marriage with a powerful and rich man just like they would do to her twin sister Amelie

But she choose him and they married poor , I guess they didn't even have a wedding because Felix showed off his parents' marriage with a fancy wedding, but Emilie simply split her ring in half and put it on Gabriel

But then we saw them living in the mansion we know now so they are pretty rich enough have to afford a huge mansion next to the Eiffel and they still don’t have a child so they didn't have a child from their poor to ultra-rich times, confirming Gabriel's "Too long time"

Also we know they are married more longer than Andre&Audrey who is married for 20 years

Of course, we cannot interpret Gabriel's "Long Time" perception, maybe 5 or 10 years

So if we collect all this information :

He married Emilie when he was a teenager who could have his own apartment so thats make him 18-19 and there are couples who get married so young in the series and he supposed to fell for and married with Emilie after a short time she came to Paris

They didn't have children for long, and that was long enough to go from poor to a multi-rich life (So maybe 5-10 years)

They look grown-ups here and never look like the teenagers-to-adult types so probably 30

And we know that Adrien is 14-15 years old and they're going to make Adrien there

And this is a series set in 2014-2015

and Marinette and Kagami's birth dates are 2000 and 2001, and Marinette and Kagami are where he talks about the Chinese zodiac signs

This means that confirms Gabriel's date of birth in the storyboard and yes Gabriel was born in 1970 , because the date 1985 is the date of issue of that identity, not the date of birth

This makes Gabriel 44-45 years old and possibly married with Emilie since 25 years

[real-life-senshi]

10 (Mostly) Spoiler-Free Reasons to Watch Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon 2003 Live Action

A countdown to the 20th anniversary of Act 1 air date!

Reason 5: The captivating story!

Ultimately, I would say the live-action stayed true to the essence and intention of the original source material when concerning the Dark Kingdom arc.

I’m choosing to use the word “essence” though, because it is also factual that in multiple aspects, the story does diverge from its source material, but with the intention of further amping up the stakes and angst for drama, and possibly even pulling in elements from story arcs beyond the manga’s Dark Kingdom arc into the one season we (sadly) only have.

Sometimes those differences could be due to limitations of CGI and execution methods in real-life filming, while others could be due to updating the content to appeal to the newer generations of viewers in the early 2000s.

Regardless of what's faithful or not faithful to original source material, I think PGSM did really well striking a balance of making it a kid’s show, and also adding some complexities to appeal to viewers who were kids or teenagers that grew up reading the manga or watching the '90s anime, who would be in their late teens or adulthood or even parenthood by the time the live-action aired.

Warning: Going forward these series of posts will contain minor spoilers to introduce some live-action only elements. It will only be at the introductory level though!

Staying true and delving deeper into source materials

Personally, I can’t speak much to the ’90s anime, but I can confirm the live-action pulls many elements from the manga source material where possible. Here are just a few:

Introducing the Sailor Senshi!

The story of how Usagi and Ami discovered their Senshi power largely follows the same story, while Rei and Makoto's intro episodes heavily reference the original manga chapter and use the same theme behind the attacks that lead to them accessing their transformation. There's no magic bus to whisk victims away in Rei's case, and there's no wedding dress ghost story in Makoto's, probably due to the feasibility of recreating those scenes.

The Forbidden Love & the Past Life lore

The live-action definitely deep-dived into the 'forbidden love' concept when it came to Usagi and Mamoru, and further created a whole complexity of the storyline to justify WHY it's forbidden. In the manga/anime, it felt like the idea of their forbidden love was purely political and mostly glossed over since the past life kingdoms were dead, but in the live-action, there were actual stakes and consequences to consider even for the present.

And the ABSOLUTE MOST AMAZING THING and by far my favourite twist to the live-action storyline is they actually ventured into exploring the impact of making teenagers soldiers of war! There is actually ample screen time and dialogues AND monologues dedicated for us to see individual Senshi AND the team together grappling with the pros and cons and exploring both extreme sides of the need to follow the past life mission to avert tragedy regardless of the sacrifices made, versus the necessity of making one's choice and finding ways to live in the present in spite of the past life lore! Do they support Usagi's and Mamoru's love for each other or not???? Do they know for sure whether their love WILL cause misfortune again or not or can they trust Usagi to know what she's doing????? FASCINATING AND ANGSTY STUFF RIGHT THERE!

Rei’s Personality

More as an FYI, but Rei’s personality is much more similar to the manga Rei’s personality, instead of ‘90s anime Rei. More cool beauty and calm, less aggressively hotheaded and abrasive. And very importantly, NOT boy-crazy.

New, original dramatic elements

On the other hand, here are some live-action exclusive dramatic elements that I'd like to highlight:

Aino Minako the idol

Even many who haven't watched the series would have heard about how Minako's character is drastically changed in the live-action. Indeed, Minako is an acclaimed teenage idol and singer with best-selling songs in the show!

It's basically as if the live-action screenwriter pulled in the Outer Senshi elements from the Mugen arc into Minako's character: she's famous, experienced, and serious. Minako has full access to past life knowledge and is ultimately mission-driven like Haruka and Michiru are in the Mugen arc, which causes some of her decisions to maybe not be as morally white as we'd expect her to be (I think her costume style of white and black is a nice nod to the idea of her double life and her sense of moral).

Now, that's not to say live-action Minako is completely a new character, you can certainly see manga/anime Minako's character traits here and there if you pay attention - pun-loving, prank-loving, mischievous. For god's sake, the girl named her album Venus, and one of her most iconic songs is called C'est La Vie, which sounds exactly like "Sailor V" pronounced in Japanese. Just imagine this girl playing a vigilante life, and having a chuckle every time she sings her best-selling song that basically announces her identity to the world and no one realizes. lmao

Basically, Minako's character embodies the extreme result of what happens if a teenager is burdened with all the knowledge of the Past Life war and has the weight on her shoulders while working alone.

If you can get past Minako's changed character setting in the live-action, you'll find there are still plenty of Dark Kingdom arc manga/anime Minako elements in there, just some more exaggerated while others are more subtle. (Coz to be fair, Minako didn't start becoming Usagi's twin until after the Dark Kingdom arc.) And her relationship with Artemis is absolutely heartwarming to see in the live-action.

Who's in the wrong? Who's an ally, and who's not?

While our Senshi team is clearly the heroine, and the Dark Kingdom the villains, the live-action takes a more interesting take on what's considered "good" versus "evil", and more importantly, who's in the wrong on how things ended badly in the past life. Who is actually the person the Senshi needs to protect the world from? And that drives the story into a direction that is more complex than what you'll ever find in manga or anime, and certain characters react accordingly and act more grey than black or white - from both the heroine side and the villain side!

Shitennou & Endymion

Something we didn't really get to see as much in the manga and anime, while we know who the Shitennou are, we don't really see the Shitennou and Mamoru interacting until after they... became their name-sake rocks (okay, technically, GEMS). And we don't get many hints on what their past live relationships were, so for many years fans have taken to pen/paper/tablets/keyboard and filled the gaps with their amazing imagination and creative work instead.

In the live-action, we get a much more expansive and interesting take in seeing the Shitennou - technically still under the Dark Kingdom's influence, interact with Mamoru as they all grapple with what happened in the past life.

How would the prince's ex-guardians act seeing their master again? How would Mamoru react? Choosing to accept his responsibility for his past life or not? After all, they had such fond memories of arm-wrestling each other! (Spoiler alert: Nephrite won.) :P

I must once again emphasize that I love what they did with the Shitennou's characters and gave each of them a different story trajectory. They are written so well they pull at your heartstrings!

If you want some canon-material for writing the Shitennou in the age of Elysion Kingdom, definitely give the live-action a go!

Power up! The Senshi Needs Training

Because the live-action only gets one arc, there's no room for us to see the Senshi team (conveniently) get upgraded transformation like they do in each arc in manga or anime. Instead, the live-action takes a different, and I dare say, a more realistic approach, where the Senshi learns that their initial access to their transformation isn't the full access to their powers as they expected. They are put through some legit, and some questionable training of the body, mind and spirit, and each of them has to overcome something within themselves across the series to access their power!

This approach highlights and solidifies each Senshi's strengths AND ties in really well into the girls' character development throughout the series. As well, it makes it feel like the Senshi did have to put in work to get strong and gain access to their power, instead of relying on the plot to get them new powers at the right opportune time, seemingly out of the blue.

Remember: THEY ARE IN SCHOOL!

Yep, sometimes in the manga and in the anime, it's so easy for us to forget that the Senshi are kids in school when they are in the thick of a crisis or fighting evil. Somehow, it always seems quite clean and convenient that the Senshi could separate their school life and their heroine life, doesn't it? How the responsible adults in the world may wonder... "Gosh, where did that kid go in the middle of [insert context]????" Or for a fellow peer in school to wonder - "How the hell did this random group of girls come together like an odd band?"

The live-action takes time to make room for some reality checks in their episodic storylines to explore all the different repercussions our heroine's double (or triple) life has on their normal life, and with that ties in personable and relevant topics and themes into their episodic plots:

Family relationship

Peer relationship

Romantic relationships

Moments that remind everyone how awkward and tough it is to be a teenager.

The toll of lying through your teeth to keep a secret, etc

I cannot emphasize enough that the screenwriting is superb in the series! Not one thing is referenced only once and left out the window, everything that happened builds up into a moment of learning or lasting impact for our characters!

To people who've not watched the live-action, PLEASE GIVE IT A CHANCE! At least give it 6 episodes, and you'll probably be hooked!

You can watch the subbed versions of the series at:

Miss Dream Fansubs

Sea of Serenity Fansubs

The series is also on other online streaming sites, but be cautious to only visit them with good adware and firewall installed.

6 days till the 20th anniversary of Act 1 air date!

Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |

[leebrontide]

When we got married, I promised Ty that someday we'd get them a reason for a black ballgown.

In 5 years, we'll have our 20th wedding anniversary, and we thought that seemed like as good an excuse as any for formalwear.

So I was thinking about like...wedding themes and colors and stuff, because I couldn't find my good pen.

And I thought...how about taking the pallets and inspiration from pigeons?

So I started dinking around on Pinterest and like...I think I might have something here.

[prfm-multiverse]

⏰ October 30th (Wed) ⏰ `THE TIME 🎉 Entertainment information ①🎉

This marks the 20th anniversary of their major debut. Perfume releases the album "Nebula Romance Part I" 💿✨

We interviewed them 🐥🎤

※ This is a live broadcast so there may be changes

[hand-picked-star]

The 13th Annniversary Arshi Fiesta

Moodboard:Historical AU

Whispers of the Heart | Chapter 01

I am not very good at writing ffs. I even read ffs very selectively. But it was an attempt of me to participate in the 13th-anniversary arshi fiesta. I might be wrong about certain aspects of that age and era, but it's a fantasy, so why not?

I don't own Arnav and Khushi and the story is purely fictional and has no relation to any living or dead. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

warning : death,murder,rape,suicide. so it's a trigger warning.

Chapter 1

In the early 20th century, in Delhi, standing in a field where the cremation was happening, the people gathered in their white clothes watching two pyres of fire burning, mourning for the two lives that ended too early.

"Give them peace and make it easy for them to pass the afterlife."

Praying silently for the departed soul, Manoroma Rajput wiped the tears from her cheeks and looked at the small soul beside her. The child hadn't uttered a single word in the two days following her parents' tragic death. Manoroma reached down to take the young girl's hand, hoping to offer some comfort to the only child of her dearest friend, Garima Gupta.

When the son of Jamidar of Laxminagar, Sashi Gupta, saw Garima Roy Chowdhury, daughter of a respectable Jamidar of Calcutta, in his best friend, Jamidar of Santinagar and neighbour Mahindar Rajput and Monorona Sengupta's wedding, he fell head over heels in love with her. Manoroma was so happy that she could have her childhood friend with her all through her life as a neighbour. But alas a few days ago, a dakoit attack had crumbled all her dreams along with the happiness of the eight-year-old child. Sashi was brutally murdered and Garima was brutally raped and murdered alongside her husband and the details that Manoroma pried from her husband, the little girl might have faced the same consequence as her mother if the servant Madhumati ji had not intervened in time risking her life. Madhumati had been with the Gupta family since childhood. And She considered Sashi as her own brother. So, when she came to Rajput's house that fateful night with that unconscious child wrapped in a blanket, Manorama and Madhumati could nothing but cry at the horror of the situation. To make matters worse, the next day, Sashi Gupta's elder brother came to take the child home, only to marry her off to a man old enough to be her grandfather to shake off her responsibility and capture the property of her father. In these days and age, female children had little right over their parents' properties but Sashi Gupta was ahead of his age. He had a connection with the local government and transferred some of the property to his daughter's name. No wonder her uncle was so ready to marry her off in exchange for money. But Manoroma and Mahindar had intervened in time and all but snatched the little girl back to their home and heard her uncle disowned her of the Gupta title. But who was he to disown her, that title was all she had of her parents left.

Coming back to the present, Manoroma tried to comfort her by squeezing her hand, but the little girl didn't want her comfort. She gently pulled her hand away before looking up at Manoroma with eyes so big and brown and broken that Manoroma felt her heart break all over again. A sob caught in Manoroma's throat. It was unthinkable, unimaginable… and yet it had happened. Sashi and Garima were gone, leaving behind their eight-year-old daughter.

The service concluded, and yet Khushi remained still, refusing to speak or even look at those who stepped forward to offer their condolences. Not wanting to put any additional strain on the young girl's shoulders, Manoroma glanced at her husband.

Mahindar nodded, instinctively knowing what his wife had communicated.

"I'll get the carriage "

The ride back to the house was filled with a strained silence. Manoroma sneaked a glance to check on the child quietly sitting all alone in front of her. Worry and concern battled for dominance, little Khushi was such a sensitive child - how would she cope with such a devastating loss?

The next few days, Manoroma and Mahindar were devoted to the child, trying to draw her out of the little shell she'd retreated into. Mahindar always loved Khushi as his own, always wanted a daughter himself but after two sons back to back his dream was yet to be fulfilled. But looking at his best friend's daughter so small and vulnerable, he vowed to himself, that if God gave him a chance, he would do anything for this girl and raise her as his own as she was gifted to him. And then nobody came to take care of the child from Sashi's in-law's side and God fulfilled Mahindar's wish of having Khushi as his daughter.

It was unnatural for a child her age to be so very still. She seemed to sit and stare no matter where she was. In her room, she would stare out the window, clutching the rug doll her mother had made for her to her chest. If prompted, she would wander outside only to sit on the small bench and stare at the trees. She would pick up things they tried to give her, but her actions were more dutiful than enthusiastic. She had no interest in food or any games they tried to play with her. She spoke not at all, though she could be coaxed to nod or shake her head. She didn't even touch her favourite jalebies.

At the end of the year, Manoroma and Mahindar's two sons came home from boarding school in Darjeeling. Manoroma was excited and hopeful for Khushi too. Because he always adored her Akash vai and the chocolates he brought for her every year since he went to boarding school. Sixteen-year-old Akash swept the tiny girl right up off her feet, tossing her high in the air. His ever-present grin faltered and fell when Khushi reacted not at all. She didn't cry out, nor did she giggle with delighted little-girl pleasure. Unsure how to handle her apathy, Akash sat her back down again. Fourteen-years old, Amandranath Rajput and his friend Arnav Singh Raizada looked at the scene in front of them with a forlorn look.

Arnav was Mahindar's best friend Amarpal's son. Mahindar, Sashi and Amarpal used to be thick as thieves. He never thought in a million years that all of his friends would face such horrible consequences. Amarpal's father was a great businessman at that time. Despite not being a Jamidar, Amarpal's father had the same amount of properties as Mahindar's father. But Amarpal's father wasted most of them on gambling and alcohol. Amarpal and Ratna's marriage was arranged by their fathers who were business partners and the couple had a daughter, Anjali and a son, Arnav from their union. Amarpal Singh Raizada was not like his father at all, he was a scholar and was too fascinated with Western education and culture. Seeing his enthusiasm Ratna allowed her husband to leave India to study at British University for a few years, but little did she know that her husband would have an affair with a ferengi, Natalie Smith there. Upon hearing this news, Ratna Singh Raizada hanged herself, discovered by her 12-year-old son. And on the other hand, receiving the news of his wife's demise Amarpal shot himself in the head in a drunken state out of guilt. After that, Arnav's Uncle had all but thrown them out of their home. Till then Anjali and Arnav were living with their maternal grandmother Suvadra Malik. He too was studying with Akash and Aman in the same boarding school and as a result spent most of his holidays in Rajput haveli, actually he lived with the Rajputs when he came to Delhi as his grandmother couldn't bear the sight of him as he looked so much like his father. But thank god, that lady adored Anjali and had no problem with her. So, Arnav was just bidding his time to end his education and do something of his own and be free from his grandmother's torment. Because without education and no properties, he was no better than a manual labourer. And Arnav Singh Raizada was nothing but ambitious.

Amandranath aka Aman moved first, squeezing Khushi's cheek to get a reaction from her awkwardly but failed. Arnav didn't greet the child at all. Manoroma and Mahindar watched them curiously. Their eyes followed the children, watching as Arnav sat on the step beside Khushi without saying a word.

This continued for several days. No matter where Khushi would choose to sit and stare, Arnav would sit quietly with her. He might read or work on his homework, but he was always with her.

On the fifth day, Arnav stood suddenly and said unceremoniously. "I'm taking a walk," he said to no one, his voice unassuming.

He extended his hand toward the little girl.

Manorama watched, surprised, as Khushi first turned her head, staring at his hand with a look of serious contemplation that seemed wrong on such a small angelic face. Then she stood, tucking her rug doll safely under one arm, and put her hand in his.

Together, they walked out beyond the tree line hand in hand.

@arshifiesta @phuljari @featheredclover

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