#Also also because it wasn't one of the questions I think they'd have a small-ish guest list. Just close friends and family

[webbedphantom]

💍 shoves Makoto forward

Wedding Headcanons

Hoo boy, I was hoping for this!

Where they get married: While I think Aaron would want to go all out, and would probably either use a bit of his inheritance or do a ton of grinding in Mementos to fund it, they'd probably go for something traditional and have it at a Shrine. He'd still go all out on the decorations though. (She deserves nothing less than the best)

When they get married: I don't think it'd necessarily have to be at any specific time. Given the life or death nature of his "job," once he's decided to marry her, he's not going to want to wait longer than he has to. That said, he is definitely the sentimental type, so he'd probably try to shoot for sometime in Autumn, since that's when they started dating.

What traditions they include: I think it'd be kind of a mixture of Japanese and Western traditions, specifically any their families have celebrated in the past, as a way to honor their heritage. What those would be... I have no idea-

What their wedding cake looks like: This is definitely one of the things Aaron would try to go big on, maybe even getting Yusuke to work with the caterer to design the thing. I could see him wanting the different layers of the cake to represent the different stages of their relationship, the bottom being their first date, the middle layers picturing significant moments of their time together, maybe with subtle references to their time working alongside each other for hero stuff, and the top being the two of them dancing together in their wedding attire. (As I said, he's very sentimental)

Who smashes cake into who's face: I could see both of them doing it, but he'd only do so if he knew she'd be okay with it

Who proposed to who first: This could go either way, honestly. Given how they got together through an accidental confession, it's hard to say who would ask first, at least from what we've written together so far. Though weirdly, I could see them both planning to propose at around the same time, so it becomes this awkward, yet adorable moment between the two of them.

Who walks down the aisle, and who waits at the altar: Again, I could see this going either way. He's not a stickler for tradition, so it really depends on what she wants to do.

What their wedding dresses / suits / or other looks like: I kinda see them both wearing white, but with Aaron's suit having red accents, while Makoto's dress (or suit if that's what she wants to wear. She could probably pull off a tux) having blue accents. And if they're custom made, I could see Aaron's maybe having a subtle web pattern, and both their outfits having the shape of their masks subtly hidden somewhere on there. Could be they'd have their own respective mask, could be both of theirs together, I honestly don't know.

What their wedding colors scheme is, and what kind of decor they have: I kinda spoiled this one in the last question, but mostly white with accents of red and blue, representing Aaron and Makoto respectively. For decor, I don't know what the specifics would be, only that it would be as fancy as Makoto was willing to let him do.

What flowers are in the bouquet (and what do they mean): Black Eyed Susan (Justice), Coriander (Hidden Worth), Heliotrope (Eternal Love and Devotion), Hydrangea (Gratitude at being understood), and Lotus Flowers (Self Regeneration and Rebirth). And because he worked at that flower shop, and is very sentimental, the flowers are meant to symbolize their relationship as a whole. They helped each other find their worth and the strength they had within themselves, which they are both grateful for, they were reborn by finding that strength, they fought side by side for justice, and they will love and remain devoted to each other for the rest of their lives.

What their vows are: I kinda see Makoto coming prepared with hers, in a very traditional manner, whereas Aaron would improvise and just speak from the heart. And while I don't want to say what hers would be, he would vow to always put her first, to love, care, and protect her with everything he has, to support her dreams and her career as much as possible, and to remain at her side through thick and thin. Because no matter what comes their way, he knows they can handle it together. Just as they always have.

If anyone is late to the wedding: I'm tempted to say Aaron would be, as he'd probably go swinging around beforehand to calm his nerves, which would likely lead to him getting into superhero shenanigans... But I'm not sure he'd want to risk that exact scenario ruining everything, because he'd want this wedding to be as perfect as possible for her. So if anyone was going to be late to wedding... It'd probably be Yusuke, but only because he spent too much on art supplies and didn't have enough left over to take the train there-

Who's in the bridal parties / groomsmen / other: Obviously, the whole team would be included, with each on their respective side, including Akechi if he's still alive in that timeline. I could also see Mishima, Hifumi, and Eiko being included there. As for the heads of each group, Ryuji is absolutely the best man, and I could see either Haru or Ann being the maid of honor.

What the bridal party / groomsmen are wearing: I think they'd all be wearing either black to make the lovely couple stand out more, or white to match the theme. But just like with bride and groom, their outfits would all feature an accent of a color representing them (Yellow for Ryuji, Pink for Ann, etc.) The colors for the non-Phantom Thieves are a bit harder to say, but everyone would get their own color to sort of personalize their outfit. I could also see all the Thieves getting the shape of their masks hidden on their outfits, same as the bride and groom had.

Who gives speeches at the reception: I think every member of the team would give one, as well as Sae, Sojiro, and Aaron's Aunt Mika. The team would probably recount memories or say something about how great they are together, Mika would tell some embarrassing story of when Aaron was a kid, and I could see Sae doing the same for Makoto. And Sojiro would do a speech about his first impression of Aaron as just some punk troublemaker, and how he was half right, then his first impression of Makoto as sweet, smart girl, and how he was completely right, and then finish off by saying how proud he is of both of them, of the people they've become, and how his impression of them as a couple is that they're perfect for each other... And that he's pretty sure he's still right.

Who catches the bouquet: Haru, because she deserves to get her own fairytale ending someday

What their wedding photos are like: I think they'd have a bit of everything. Some artistic ones, some funny ones (definitely the cake smash), a couple of them kissing, and a few special ones taken privately after the ceremony of them in their Phantom Thieves outfits. Don't know how exactly they'd make that work, at least when it comes to Makoto's, but I think that's something they'd want, as that was an important chapter in their lives. Also one of Aaron swinging with her, because yes

What sort of food they have at the reception: Tons of dessert options (at Ann's request), as well as a traditional buffet. Though they'd definitely have the twos favorite dishes, whatever those would be. (Could also see Aaron pulling another sentimental move and adding what they ate on their first date to the menu)

Who cries first at the ceremony: Yusuke, because of course it's Yusuke. But I could see Ann being a close second. Though if it's just between the two of them... Probably Aaron-

How wild their reception gets: I think it'd be fairly tame at first, but because I imagine everyone invited would know his secret (since he is notoriously terrible at keeping it), he'd definitely use his powers to bust some ridiculous moves on the dance floor. Aside from that, it probably wouldn't get too crazy.

What their rings are like: He'd have made custom rings, each with an engraving of some phrase to symbolize their devotion to each other, as well as a few hidden features he'd sneak in. For one, both would feature a small orb of cognitive energy embedded in the top, curse for his and nuke for hers, which can be fired by squeezing the sides of the ring to deal a small amount of damage of its respective element, as a means of self defense (though mostly it's there to look cool). There'd also be a homing beacon built in, that can be activated by pressing down on the orb, which will send a distress signal to the other's phone, so that if either of them gets into trouble that they can't handle, the other can find them with ease.

What sorts of party favors they have: I'm not really sure on this one, but they'd probably have mini bottles of champagne and some personalized candy. Maybe some copies of photos taken at the party for their guests to remember the night by

Where they go for their honeymoon: I'm tempted to say Hawaii (because I do love that date scene) but because I feel like that's obvious, maybe a hot spring somewhere? A nice quiet inn where they can just spend some time together in peace. (Considering their careers, peace is probably hard to come by, so they could definitely use it)

Something memorable that happens during the ceremony/party: I don't have a clue how he'd get away with it, but I REALLY want Aaron to swing away with her after the wedding. Just a spectacular send off for the two of them. (Maybe they use the nav to go into the Metaverse or something?? Idk)

Who officiates the ceremony: Sojiro, of course

What song their first dance is to: That is hard to answer, since we haven't been shipped for that long, but it would definitely be something that either means a lot to both of them or one that just fits the vibe of their relationship.

Who gives who away as they walk down the aisle: If Makoto walks, it's Sae. If Aaron walks, either Sojiro or his Aunt. They're both basically his parents, even if they're (probably) not together, but they both mean the world to him, so either of them would be perfect for this.

[acourtofthought]

This is a weird question but do you really genuinely believe there's no possibility of an elriel book? And if sjm writes them well you'll enjoy reading it ? I don't ship gwynriel or Elriel. Gorgeous Elucien fan arts are what brought me into this fandom and I started the series solely to read their love story. But with all the elriel "confirmations" I can't help but think that elriel is a possibility so I'm trying to mentally prepare myself.

You are so right, there is nothing quite like Elucien fanart in this ACOTAR world and if E/riel were to happen then we lose the beautiful aesthetic of Elucien and gain, once again, another golden-brown haired femaled (often pictured with the dagger she returned without looking back) with a batboy who has Illyrian tattoos.

Would I still read an E/riel book? I would because I really do like Elain's character and I'd like to read her journey regardless of things not turning out the way I had hoped but I'd be devastated over the lost potential of Elucien. SJM has gone out of her way to show us how complimentary they would be together, how Lucien is the only male love interest who has treated her with respect so far, she even painted the picture in our heads of where they'd go on vacation (back before she thought she'd be writing the spin-offs and was more open with what their journey entailed), so it would be difficult to act like those things never mattered.

I never like to say something with absolute conviction as I feel it's inviting karma to say, "well let me just show you how many ways you can be wrong" (😂) but I do feel very strongly that E/riel is not happening. For me the debate is "will Elucien or Gwynriel get the next book" with me leaning in favor of Elucien and E/riel as a possibility makes up a very small percentage of my thoughts.

People are going crazy over her recent interviews. That a journalist writing "Elain and Az" in her article has E/riels claiming that it's SJMs version of a soft launch getting us used to the idea of E/riel. Or even some Gwynriels claiming that because she said she wanted to explore Az more in the future, he's definitely getting the next book though to me it seems she's talking about a later book because she was already drafting the next ACOTAR in September (so wouldn't she have already explored his character?).

But what seems to be her pattern is whenever she has a potential love triangle (ish) situation, she goes quiet.

In TOG, she waited to release an Aelin / Rowan Bonus until after a specific book because she felt the bonus would be too obvious a hint about them ending up together as mates and some still held out hope for Chaol / Celaena and believed Rowan lost his mate.

We have the interview below that shows she kept the possibility of Feysand a secret until after the release of ACOMAF.

She also talks about the things she put in book 3 that she was looking forward to seeing her readers excited over because, once again, it was only her, her editor and a couple of critique partners who knew "all these secrets".

She was giddy to talk about the end of CC2 because it was a secret she had kept for a very long time and told no one about.

So knowing that she does like her secrets, shouldn't the fact that Elain and / or Az are being mentioned in interviews be something that makes others nervous considering Lucien's name is almost never mentioned?

It could just as easily means he's not her focus right now but could it not also mean that she's trying to draw focus away from him so the next book being announced is a surprise?

E/riels and some Gwynriels will claim Lucien is irrelevant, that SF was centered around either E/riel or Az but Tamlin was mentioned in ACOTAR 731 times with Rhys mentioned 232 times yet Feyre ended up with Rhys in the next book. Chaol wasn't even in Empire of Storms yet he got the book after and ended up with Yrene who had never been mentioned by name prior to that.

All this talk about buildup, relevancy to the book that preceeded the new release because of name mentions or how often SJM speaks about someone in interviews as proof of something but those arguments are flimsy because we've seen her do this type of stuff before and she still turned around and surprised the reader.

The Elucien bond was introduced in book 2 and it is not just Elain's bond, it's Lucien's too especially when for him, it's been an even bigger deal because his first love was killed and he spent centuries believing she was his mate. That's an enormously angst-y setup which is the exact sort of a thing an author would want to explore versus the one where Az can't admit to being over Mor while lusting after Elain but not envisioning a future with her while also being jealous of Lucien who has only helped them and somehow turning that into a believable romance.

SJM did not create Lucien in the likeness of Jamie Fraser who she was obsessed with, mate him to Elain who she said shares her energy, only to have them never explore their mating bond which is the most sacred thing to the fae and as of SF, we see that Elain is beginning to embrace some of her fae self.

Elain fighting her pull to Lucien by ignoring him is no different than Nesta fighting her pull to Cassian by pushing him away in the novella but it's clear their story is still waiting to be told.

I find it difficult to believe that SJM had Lucien chased out of his home in book 3, finding a group of friends in the human lands in the novella while the reader knows he's heir to Day and have been waiting for that big reveal, only to then have him showing frustration with his living situation in SF but plans on having him remain in the human lands and the defunct Spring Court for yet another book (which they need as a strong ally) while Az gets his HEA with Elain.

Where Elain and Az spend the next book building up the "Dusk Court" (because that's still a thing going around) when the "Dusk Court" had nothing to do Spring, Tamlin, Koschei, Vassa or Beron as we left off in SF.

Everyone keeps claiming Az and / or Elain are needed to move the plot forward but honestly, Lucien is the one needed to truly move the plot forward and Elain by his side makes the most sense because they as a team have the powers and the connections to make something happen.

Elain is the only one who had visions of the box Koschei hides. She is the one who had visions of Vassa and the other girls trapped at the lake.

Lucien is the only one with real ties (and not just "I spy on you to gather information" ties) to Beron, Spring, the humans (which involves the treaty) and even Koschei considering he was at the lake when Papa Archeron negotiated with him and he is living with the female Koschei is now preparing to call back. He is the "son" of the man with his sights set on the lands of Spring. He is the one who is friends with Tamlin and performed in the Rite last and the NC needs Spring as an ally as well as their army. He is the one who is friends with the humans who are leading an ungoverned land and it is the human lands that Vallahan has their sights set on. "The Queen of Vallahan even asked me what the point of a peace treaty would be when another war, this time against the humans, might redraw the territory lines far below the wall."

Az and Elain would keep the plot in the Night Court outside of him possibly spying elsewhere and didn't we already see him doing that in SF? With Eris also providing them Intel? What is more spying going to do when we already know what Koschei and Berons goals are and the goal is to now stop them.

To me, the only person that is currently in a position to make a real difference at this point is Lucien and the love interest that makes the most sense to help him do these things is Elain.

Lucien has been made an underdog by the IC and I think the fandom has adopted that mentality (they've done the same with Elain).

And it makes me wonder if they are not about to be the best kept secret of all if SJM announces an Elucien book as the next one.

[sinkingtime]

So, Questionable Content

Last week I started it from the start for what has to be the first time since I first discovered, several years ago? Probably?

And now I want to rant. About one specific point: we saw the robot liberation.

Not on-screen or anything, but there's definitely a "before" and "after" to robots having rights, in this universe, and we've been privy to it. And most characters also remember the time before. And I think that's nice.

Story-wise, obviously I don't expect it to be nice for them. Though nobody seems too traumatized either, but that's just in the nature of a light-hearted slice-of-life.

Actually we don't know exactly what the timeline is, that I can tell. I doubt it's the 20+ real-life years the comic has existed, is it? But it's probably been a few. There is at least one explicit timeskip, right after the Marigold-Aurelia joint stream, we see a bit of the immediate aftermath and then the very next page is Clinton complaining that it's been "months" but he still sees that stuff going around online.

There may be other timeskips that I'm not remembering.

If it has been approximately real-time in-universe, then I guess Sam didn't witness the change. But even if that's a stretch, I would guess it's probably it was when she was too small to remember, so it's effectively still been "always", as far as she cares. So, a decade?

But Momo mentions being about four years old at some point, and I'm pretty sure she also precedes liberation, so probably not a decade, no.

On the lower end of my guesses, I'd peg it at two years-ish, minimum, specifically because of the Singularity.

Oh yeah that is also a thing that happened basically off-screen but definitely in the timeline. It was before robot rights, and they are presumably related to it, but how and precisely when we cannot say for sure.

The only real, almost explicit acknowledgment of it, other than Pintsize and Winslow reacting to the announcement on the day it (officially?) happened, is when Clinton remarks that humans don't know how battery technology works. He doesn't explicitly say it, but it's in a way that implies they cannot know; his main concern is that regular people seem to not care about things like that.

If I had to guess, Yay has to be a post-singularity development. They'd be one of my main suspects of being the singularity, except their existence was highly secretive so it cannot be behind the announcement. Anyways, they claim to be two years and change, so I feel pretty confident in saying the singularity cannot have been after that, unless they really are an alien who came here unrelatedly.

Back to robot rights, that also had to have happened before May's crimes, because they landed her in robot jail, rather than a factory reset or something.

I wonder about the robot rights organization. They're not quite the same definition of "rights", clearly they're concerned with stomping abuse and bigotry, not with making rights exist in the first place. But maybe they were, back in the day? Beepatrice probably didn't, she seems way too innocent. I guess that may be trauma but that would seem too dark for this story's tone.

But how about her predecesor at the nonprofit's leadership? The one that ran away to become modern art. That sounds like it could be a retirement, after the big fight was done and by any reasonable definition they won.

Also their original founder, the unnamed wealthy sci-fi author. She was human, therefore already around before robot liberation. We know she was sympathetic to that cause, at least at the end of her life. Did she provide funding, or advocacy, or something?

But what I really want to talk is Bubbles, naturally. One of the few things she says in defense of her choice to be a soldier is that she's legally a citizen, and therefore should be allowed to enlist. But of course she wasn't always. Whether she specifically existed before robot liberation, we definitely were already watching this world before she and her team deployed.

She seems to believe her team was betrayed by the global robot community, presumably with the intent of discouraging the world's governments from allowing their people to be welcomed into armies. Which, would seem to have worked, mostly, kinda.

So now I can't stop wondering what exactly we were looking at, while those soldiers died. Was it while during Emily's birthday? Before Marten became a librarian? Was Faye dating Angus? Not yet? Not anymore? Etc etc etc.

Also, unrelated to all of that, there's a Greg who is Clinton's online nemesis, and also a Greg who is a bus driver who Willow tried to befriend. Until proven otherwise, I will assume they are the same Greg.

[themotherdeerest]

It took some bribing, but Aya managed to get a single letter smuggled up to Heaven from Hell, to Eveline. It was long and rambling, multiple pages telling Eveline she got. Why she was in Hell, what it was really like. How Heaven lied - not all Sinners were pure evil. And telling her to be careful, because it was her questioning that got sent her down there in the first place.

But it was one section in particular that would most likely catch Eveline's eye:

I met your son. Small world, huh? He works at the Hotel I'm staying at, as the Hotelier, and sometimes still does radio. He's...

It's clear Aya re-wrote this part several times, erasing and re-writing as she tried to figure out how to explain what Alastor was like without giving Eveline a heart attack.

He's doing well. Funnily enough, his appearance is a little like mine - deer-ish, with ears and antlers. No legs like mine, though. He's also, like, 7 feet tall. While he doesn't say it, I think he misses you. I made your gumbo the other night and he recognized it.

That was an understatement. She rambles on a little more about the others, painting a picture of life in Hell not being quite as bad as Heaven made it out to be. Hard, certainly, but not the end of the world.

I miss our book clubs - I hope you and the others are keeping well without me! All my love, Aya

It had been quite the heartbreak when Eveline had found out her friend had left, a feeling that only deepened when not a soul would tell her why, the regularity of Heaven wasn't often broken and it was jarring enough. The arrival letter cleared up much of that, opened her eyes to the injustice of Heaven and worst of all, served to incite a mother's rage.

Time passed strangely in heaven, the blur of comfort and contentment constructed perfectly to make it easy to forget time at all. She couldn't help but wonder just how long her son had been dead, how it happened, a cacophony of questions that finally spurred her to action.

Demanding to see her son won her nothing. Pleading. Crying. All had been dismissed and there was only so long she was willing to wait. First she'd update Aya, prepare her in case she did fall too, then she'd make her case.

Dear Aya, It's monsterous what they've done to you, I can hardly believe Heaven of all places would stoop so low, making a sweet girl like you go down and face Hell unprepared. Despite your warning I've kicked up quite the stink about it, I won't have them sweep such a thing under the rug as they seem to be doing with everything else. I can hardly believe my poor boy ended up down there too, goodness knows what they think they're doing! I'm glad he's doing well for himself and keeping up his passion for the radio, hopefully those down there can appreciate his talents/ I would ask that you not tell him what I'm doing, lord knows he wouldn't be best pleased if he found out. Please look after yourself and do keep in contact if you can, I'm doing whatever I can to change what's happened for both you and my boy. I miss him too and think of him often, hopefully I'll be able to tell him that myself soon enough. Lots of love, Eveline.

Attached was a recipe for shrimp and sausage gumbo. She hadn't been certain if they'd even have all the ingredients there but she could hope.

[bundle-of-glitter]

what is your favorite rock of your collection :0?

Ahh very difficult question 😭 i mean theyre in my collection because they're all my favourite after all...

Here's the entire thing btw!

Disclaimer 1: somehow a moth managed to leave behind half it's wing at our home? Which is fourth from the left in the lowermost row, I did not harm it. I hope it was okay, tho it's probably long dead by now

Disclaimer 2: About the shells: uh, for the one at the top left corner,,, I mean i just couldn't resist it was perfectly chipped at the top to expose part of the iridescence and the lower portion had this fascinating exterior pattern, so for this once I decided to pick it(my apologies to any hermit crab that might have coveted it😔) (unfortunately some of the iridescence rubbed off in the bag while travelling TT.. but enough of it is still there) the small white ones were from a little stream, and the orange ones were broken pieces so I doubt they'd have been of any use to any other creature? Speaking of which

This one seems particularly old, and there seem to be little spiral imprints on it? I think they might be from little molluscs but idk(update: this might actually be a coral piece as well, based on the texture?)

Also to give a little closer look at some of the rocks that may not be as clearly appreciated in the group photo:

Here's one which I think quite resembles a cloudy sky!!! And if you were to turn it around-

An icy mountain range! (it's not everyday you find a picture of a sky *and* a mountain range on a rock? Some of my friends think it resembles waves on a beach too! )

These have particularly interesting patterns, a bit like the inside of a fish perhaps?

This one has a little rainbow in it! I had to edit it tho since it wasn't very clear in the picture.

This one(third from right in the third row) is almost see-through! I found it at my college campus so I was sceptical about it being a piece of plastic or glass, but that seems unlikely based on the weight and less sharp edges🤔

As for the others(which I didn't take individual pictures of because I thought they seem sufficiently visible? If you'd like to see pictures of them taken closely you can always ask!)

Most of the rocks are from the hill nearby(some of which I previously shared on here! They are often jagged and shiny and have gorgeous red staining from the soil!Some of the less jagged ones have a bluish tinge, which unfortunately looks more grey in photos)

The four rocks(two white and two yellow-brown ones!) near the top right corner are courtesy of my friend who got them for me from a trip!

There's three pieces of coral 🪸!! From my trip to andaman(where I got the big shell and the old orange one, and the smaller orange fragment next to the moth wing) There's the one shaped like a mermaid tail! And directly below it is an orange-ish piece, which was unusual since most pieces on the beach were bleached. And on the right of the mermaid tail is a piece that has rather interesting impressions on it(ig from the polyps themselves growing on it?)

Also next to the orange shell fragment there's a few small stones that i thought looked like canines (which I got near the same stream where I found the small white shells)

Ofc, the short answer would've been to just say all of them, but I hope you don't mind that I used the opportunity to introduce the entire collection and rant about it so much :)

[spicycreativity]

Howl - Chapter 1

Rating: Teen

Fic Content Warnings: Blood, injury, suggestive content, alcohol use

Characters: All

Pairing: Analogical, background Moceit because apparently I can't help myself

Add'l Notes: dw if you don't know what a loup-garou is or how the lore works; all is explained in the story / Have I ever been to Louisiana? No 💕Did I write an entire story set in rural-ish Cajun Louisiana anyway because I hate myself? Yes 💕 / If you're from Louisiana and noticed any screw-ups, pls correct me so I can fix it

It also comes with a playlist! For ambience, not necessarily for the lyrics

Summary:

Two things happen to Virgil Landry on Halloween:

1) Logan Doucet, his longtime friend and slightly-less-longtime crush, asks him out

2) He becomes cursed to spend his nights as a half-man, half-wolf monster: a loup-garou

Despite his new affliction, Virgil strives for normalcy all the way up until he can't anymore and everything falls apart.

The floorboards creaked in their familiar pattern as Virgil paced over them, his feet sliding around awkwardly in his over-the-knee boots. He was supposed to meet Logan alone in an hour, an hour! His heart thumped painfully under his ribs. What did Logan want?

Virgil yanked his phone out of his pocket to re-read the message for the 85th time, ignoring a few new messages in his assorted group chats:

Logan: If it's not inconvenient, could you meet me early at the Plaza tonight? Maybe 6:30?

Virgil: yeah sure 

Virgil: everything OK?

Logan: Yes :-)

What did it mean? Was everything okay? Or was Logan just lying to make him feel better? Because if so, it wasn't working. Virgil ran his hands through his hair, careful not to smudge his makeup. It had taken him an hour and a half to perfect his vampire makeup in the mirror and he didn't want to risk messing it up.

With a sigh that turned into a groan, Virgil threw himself down on his couch. It made the walls rattle, nearly displacing a few trinkets on his crappy, rickety shelves. He heard a tell-tale scrape above his head and knew that his favorite painting had gone crooked again. God, this place was a wreck-- Just like Virgil. He made a mental note to ask Patton for help patching up the leaky roof. It was as good a time as any, as they were well out of rainy season, but it did seem a little rude. What was he even supposed to say? Hey, Patton, I know carpentry is literally what you do for a living, but could you help me for free since I'm broke and sad? Thanks, bud. Yeah, right. He sighed again and tugged at his medallion, a rusted old thing with a glass gem in the center. He had picked it up from a thrift store months earlier in anticipation of Halloween, but maybe he should have made some effort to restore it. It smelled strongly of rust and decay and felt terrible between his fingers, all oily and sticky.

So far, the only saving grace of the day was that it wasn't raining now. Virgil had spent his workday in silent anxiety, eyeing the storm clouds through the shop window and rubbing a small piece of sunstone between his thumb and forefinger. It seemed to have worked, as the clouds had dispersed a little and allowed the watery light of the autumn sun to peek through.

Virgil's phone lit up with a few more messages in his group chats: Roman having hysterics over some detail of his costume, Janus and Remus discussing how to avoid the small army of toddlers that always ran rampant at the Halloween parade. Virgil ignored them all. He was in no mood to be friendly, would probably snap at them. Logan hadn't said anything since his message to Virgil, which he had presumably sent on his lunch break. The question haunted Virgil, that great unknown lurking behind him and instilling a fear that no ghost ever could: What did Logan want?

Virgil set his phone down and leaned forward, heaving a sigh that turned into a yawn. Great. Whatever. That meant he was on the verge of hyperventilating, his breathing already irregular. Damn it, Logan knew better than to leave him hanging like this! They'd known each other for so long and he'd always been more perceptive to Virgil's needs than the others.

Especially lately… They'd been spending more time alone, and Virgil couldn't deny the sweet, warm giddiness that enveloped him every time they were alone together. First meetings were always his favorite, seeing Logan's face light up with a smile. He hadn't dared to think that Logan might feel the same way, but it was getting harder and harder to keep his fantasies on a leash. Worst-case scenarios and best-case scenarios dueled in his head: Logan kissing him, Logan telling him they couldn't be friends anymore, Logan confessing, Logan announcing that he had some incurable disease.

Virgil grabbed his phone and jumped to his feet. He couldn't do this anymore, couldn't sit here and torture himself. He would just leave now. He would rather arrive freakishly early than face another minute of this self-inflicted torment 

He double and triple checked he had his wallet and his plastic fangs, which he

was planning on putting on later. The medallion bounced against his exposed chest as he walked and he wondered briefly if it might be more trouble than it was worth. He could always swap it out for one of his pendants, maybe amethyst to calm his nerves. But it looked so good against his skin, falling perfectly in the deep V of his flowy white poet shirt. Unlike his other necklaces, it screamed vampire. And Janus would tease him if he caught Virgil wearing a subpar costume, and then Roman would join in, and Remus, and it would turn into a whole thing . He could wear the stupid medallion for one night.

 -

Virgil regretted this decision as soon as he got his moped going. Even at its 30 mph crawl, the heavy necklace bounced against his chest in a maddening rhythm. At least it was distracting. Every time he started to worry about Logan, the erratic tap-tap-tap of cold metal on his chest brought him back to Earth.

It was a long ride into town down a windy country road. He hugged the shoulder as best as he could despite the lack of traffic; Virgil's neighbors were few, but they all liked to take corners at frighteningly high speeds. The one person who did drive by honked at him and flashed their lights. Virgil's heart dropped and he nearly flipped them off before he realized that they liked his costume. It occurred to him then that he must look pretty absurd: A vampire riding a purple moped, cape fluttering on the wind.

Upon reaching the Plaza, Virgil did a few laps around downtown, smiling at the spiderwebs decorating Vaillant City Hall. Another lap revealed that empty parking spots were already becoming scarce, so Virgil pulled into one and checked his phone. Nothing from Logan. Just more hysterics from Roman, and Patton's best attempts at comfort. Virgil rolled his eyes. Maybe Roman did need some tough love. He scanned through the messages to orient himself, to make sure he didn't look dumb, and then typed out his reply.

Virgil: look, Prince Charming. 2 rolls of body glitter is more than enough. Stop freaking out

Roman: That's DOCTOR Prince Charming to you

Virgil: :*

He put his phone away, tucked his keys in his pocket, and forced himself to walk slowly toward the Plaza. He was still excruciatingly early, but maybe he could pop into a bar or grab a coffee or even swing by his work-- Oh.

There, standing by the reflecting pool with his hands in his pockets, was Logan. Virgil smiled despite his nerves and sped up. Leave it to Logan to somehow be earlier than early.

"Hey, Data," Virgil said once he was in earshot.

Logan's face lit up, and even the yellow contacts he was wearing couldn't mask the fondness in his face. "Evening, Virge," he said. His smile dropped too quickly and he kept his hands shoved in his pockets. Virgil surveyed all this with dread. Was he reading too much into it? Most definitely. Could he stop? No way.

"Everything okay?" Virgil asked, tugging at his medallion and turning his nervous gaze upon the placid waters of the reflecting pool. Great. Now he had two awesome reasons to be nervous. It was an old Vaillant legend that anyone who disturbed the waters of the pool would be cursed, and Virgil did not mess with curses. He usually took pains to avoid the Plaza, even if it meant he had to take the long way to work.

"Yes, Virgil," Logan said in a voice that was far too breathy. He cleared his throat. "As you know, we have been friends for a long time. I…" He paused, blinked. "I forgot what I was going to say."

"Jeeze, Lo," Virgil tried to tease. "You're making me nervous."

"But I--" Logan ran a hand through his hair. "Virgil. I had prepared something far more eloquent than what I am about to say, but I can't seem to remember it at the moment. Forgive me if this comes across as confusing."

"All good," Virgil said, making only a minimal effort to hide his confusion. The medallion was cold and oily under his fingertips, but he couldn't stop messing with it, tugging at it, rattling the chain. He needed some outlet for all this nervous energy.

"We've been spending more time alone together and I

thought-- I wanted--" Logan touched his face and Virgil realized a second later he had tried to push up his glasses, which he wasn't wearing. Oh, how cute. "Virgil, I would like to go steady with you."

A rush of vertigo smacked into Virgil with such force that he had to take a step back just to keep his balance. "Go steady?" he heard himself say. "Like-- Like, boyfriends?"

"If you are amenable to that," Logan said, furiously running his fingers over the piping on his uniform. "If not, I-- We can pretend this never--"

"Yes," Virgil interrupted. "Yes, yes, yes. Logan, I do want that."

"Oh," said Logan, his face breaking into a smile. "Good."

Virgil clenched his fist around the medallion wondering if it was too soon to ask for a kiss. He took a breath and felt something give with a quiet snap. The broken chain snaked along his neck, dragged down by the weight of the pendant. Virgil watched in silent agony as the necklace landed in the water of the reflecting pool with a quiet splash. "Shit."

"Allow me," said Logan, already in motion.

"No!" Virgil caught his hand and held it. "The curse." He realized what he had done and let go of Logan's hand.

"I don't believe in such things, Virgil, but if it's important to you, then I'll leave it."

"Thank you." Virgil stared down at the water and sighed through his nose. He'd already disturbed the water. Would it be better to leave the necklace or take it out? Littering seemed more disrespectful, he supposed. So he bent and grabbed the necklace before he could change his mind. "I'll, uh, de-curse-ify myself later."

Logan nodded, looking preoccupied. "Let me know if I can help. I might be able to repair the chain."

"Actually," said Virgil, stuffing the wet necklace into his pocket, "I was wondering if maybe, um…"

"Yes?"

"Can I kiss you?"

"Please do."

Virgil closed his eyes so he wouldn't get weirded out by Logan's contacts. He had been expecting a short kiss, sweet and chaste, but Logan's hand tightened in the loose fabric of Virgil's poet shirt and his teeth grazed Virgil's bottom lip. Fuck propriety, then; the Plaza was still fairly empty. Virgil raised a hand to grab a fistful of Logan's hair and ran his tongue along the edge of Logan's lip.

They were interrupted by a wolf whistle and golf claps. "I'll be damned." Crap. Why did it have to be Janus? He was never going to let Virgil live this down.

Virgil pulled away so fast it made pain shoot through his neck. He exhaled sharply and covered the area with his hand for all the good it would do, turning to face Janus with a blush blooming on his cheeks. "What are you supposed to be?" he asked, looking Janus up and down. Janus had always been unnecessarily private about things that really didn't matter. He had evaded all of Virgil's attempts to guess his costume, and now presented wearing an old-fashioned suit including top hat, gloves, and cane.

"Don't change the subject," said Janus, dismissing Virgil with a wave.

In true vampire fashion, Virgil snarled and bared his teeth, then remembered something. "Oh, shit, my fangs!" He dug in his pocket for them, leaving Janus to do… whatever he was going to do.

"Logan, I presume?" Janus asked. Virgil stopped in the process of sticking on one tooth, heart hammering again. Janus and Logan had never met, and they could both be… a bit much in their own ways.

Logan nodded. "Logan Doucet." He held out his hand for a shake.

Janus took it. "Thank God you didn't bother to paint your face, else Virgil would have more than smudged lipstick to contend with. You've got some on your mouth, by the way."

"Thank you," Logan said stiffly. He withdrew his hand and used it to wipe away the lipstick stain on his face. "Nice to meet you, Professor Moriarty."

Virgil's eyes darted back to Janus, who smiled. "When I'm not acting as the Napoleon of Crime, you can call me Janus. Janus Bellefontaine."

"Where's Remus?" Virgil interjected, looking around. "Didn't he ride with you?"

"He got waylaid by some angry mothers because his costume made their kids cry," Janus said, nonchalantly running a

fingertip over the brim of his hat. "He'll be along." To Logan, he said, "Virgil tells me you're an accountant."

"Yes," said Logan. 

"And you haven't killed yourself yet, so I assume you must like it."

Virgil busied himself sticking his fangs onto his canines so he wouldn't worry about the conversation at hand. A sideways glance at Logan revealed that he seemed to find the comment amusing, thank God . "I've always been good with numbers. People, less so."

"Never would have guessed," Janus said, and Virgil didn't have to look at him to know he was smiling that crooked, tight-lipped smile that might have been genuine or might have been mocking. Asshole. "Well, if you have any rich clients, send them my way, won't you? I sell nice suits to dumb men with low self-esteem and too much money and I'm always on the lookout for another rube to swindle."

"If the suits are any good, I'd be happy to," Logan said.

Satisfied that his fangs were in properly, Virgil's attention shifted suddenly to the cold, wet medallion in his pocket. Right. He was cursed. Despite his interest in the occult and the supernatural, Virgil didn't have much experience with curses. His friends weren't really the type to play around with magic (well, maybe Janus, maybe- maybe Roman) and he wasn't the kind of guy who made enemies. No one had ever cursed him before. How soon would this one take effect? Should he go home and come back? Should he hop into the bayou, makeup be damned? Did bayous even count as running water?

He was so caught up in his panic spiral that the sudden sensation of hands on his shoulders made him jump. "Fuck!"

To his surprise it was Roman, not Remus, who laughed from somewhere behind him. "What, are Logan and Janus boring you?"

Virgil looked up and flinched again. While Roman looked relatively normal in his glittery Doctor Frank-n-Furter costume, Remus, who was lurking just behind his brother, was a horrorshow of fur and face paint and fake blood. "Um…" He shook himself and noticed Patton standing a ways off, peering at Remus. Distracted, he went to introduce Patton to Remus and Janus only to learn that he and Roman had run into Remus on their way over and rescued him from a brigade of shouty young mothers.

"He's Macavity," Patton said in a tone like he was pronouncing the death of the family goldfish.

"The other Napoleon of Crime," Janus agreed. "And you are?"

"Patton Haydel!"

A pause. "I gathered that. " Janus gestured at Patton's costume, which he had also kept a secret. Virgil had been staring at it as well, trying to figure it out. Patton was wearing what appeared to be a headless bear costume, round glasses, and what might have been a cowboy hat, though Virgil wasn't 100% sure. "What are you?"

"You have to guess!" Patton said, extending his arms and backing up so everyone could get a good look at him.

Virgil stared at him, running his tongue over the edges of his plastic fangs. "I got nothin'."

Logan took a sideways step and tapped Virgil's hand. Virgil nodded, and Logan interlaced their fingers as casually as he might clock in for work. "He's Teddy Bear Roosevelt."

They all groaned. "Good work, Pat," Virgil said begrudgingly.

"You have a big wet spot on your crotch," Remus pronounced, pointing at Virgil.

Janus raised his eyebrows, turning to Virgil with undisguised schadenfreude, but Logan stepped in before anyone could say anything. "It's water. He dropped his necklace in the reflecting pool."

"Well," said Patton, "that's not good."

"You dropped something in the reflecting pool and didn't immediately run for the nearest source of running water?" Janus asked. He looked from Virgil to Logan, then to their intertwined fingers and grinned. "Ah. More pressing matters at hand?"

"Maybe it's not too late," Roman said, drumming his acrylic nails against his thigh. "We can still dump him in the bayou."

"There's alligators in there!" Virgil said. "Fuck that. You know my house is plastered with wards. I'm sure I can make it through one evening."

"Your funeral," said Remus, leering. "Let me know if your dick falls

off.

 -

Despite his friends' concern, Virgil had a wonderful evening. Logan stuck close the whole night through, and they even snuck a few kisses here and there like infatuated teenagers. Each one sent a lightning thrill down Virgil's spine and made him want a dozen more. His friends noticed in turns and either teased or cooed, but each reaction was encouraging.

Logan kissed him goodbye at the end of the night and he practically floated back to his moped. He was so caught up in his daydreams that he only remembered the curse when he caught sight of the nazar hanging on his kitchen wall. Cursing under his breath, Virgil went to his bookshelf and began to compile a few methods of curse-breaking. Did a shower count as running water? God help him, he was not getting in the bayou. Maybe he could combine methods.

A few moments later, Virgil had everything set up in the bathroom. He lit the last candle, tightened the herb sachet around his neck, and stepped into the shower. Okay, time to focus. He was washing himself free of the curse and wouldn't it be nice if Logan were here? Logan didn't believe in magic and his clear-headed confidence would undoubtedly make Virgil feel better, too-- Focus! Wash away the curse. Logan would probably help him if he asked, helping Virgil set up the crystals and making sure his candles stayed lit-- Virgil! The curse! Wash away the curse.

The bathroom smelled of candles, incense, and herbs. Almost like Virgil's workplace, except that Virgil was using lavender and his boss preferred nag champa.

He stepped out of the shower and inhaled deeply, letting the mixture of scents relax him and draw him toward sleep.