#I know I’m three days late

[starchasing-chocolate]

Happy Christmas, Harry

A small, pristinely wrapped present resides in the trembling hands of Regulus Black. Though the gift was sure to be torn to shreds in just a few minutes, Regulus can't help but fiddle over the package, his nimble fingers smoothing over the edges repeatedly as if the motion could somehow make the wrapping appear even more perfect.

The faint click of a lock startles Regulus out of his thoughts, his attention now focused on the colorful Christmas wreath hanging on the door in front of him. A few quick clicks later, and the wreath is replaced by a giddy James Potter, leaning against the doorframe and beaming at Regulus like a child at Honeydukes.

“You came.” James giggles before pulling Regulus into a slow kiss. Regulus sighs into the familiarity, but as much as Regulus would love to remain on the doorstep the rest of the night, kissing James’ lips until they froze, he knew James was buzzing with energy for something else entirely.

With some unknown found strength, Regulus pulls away from James, one hand cradling his cheek and the other gripping onto the small present like a lifeline. James’ eyes trail down to the box and he smiles instantly. “For him?”

Regulus nods, his gaze flickering to the house. James nods to the door and raises an eyebrow, a silent question of ready to go in?

No. Regulus was not ready to go in.

He nods regardless.

James pushes the door open with a slight creak, stepping aside to allow Regulus to enter first. Tentatively, Regulus steps through the doorway, and is immediately flooded by a surging wave of warmth. He allows it to seep into his bones and wind its way through his veins, praying to some deity that it makes him appear kinder than he looks.

James closes the door behind them and presses a hand on the small of Regulus’ back, a calming gesture that reassures Regulus was free to move as he pleases.

He curses himself for appearing so obviously timid. This was not the first time Regulus had visited James’ home, in fact, he was over quite frequently. He had absolutely nothing to be afraid of. It was only James.

Well, only James and-

“Hello?”

The first thing Regulus notices about Harry Potter was how much he resembles his father. An untamable mess of hair, circular glasses that are slipping off his nose, and wide doe-like eyes that yearn for knowledge.

Young Harry stands near the kitchen, a half eaten gingerbread man poorly hidden behind his back, and frosting smeared along his cheek. He was a tiny little thing, James mentioned Harry was almost three years old, and yet Regulus could already sense his inclination for mischief.

Merlin, help him.

“Hi.” Regulus greets weakly, waving softly towards the boy.

Clearly curious about Regulus, Harry pads his way to the entrance of the house, his eyes squinting as he takes in Regulus’ figure.

“Who are you?” Harry asks bluntly, skeptical about Regulus’ presence and making it obviously so. Regulus breathes out a laugh.

“Harry!” James playfully scolds as he reaches down to pluck Harry from the ground and into his arms. “This is Regulus, remember? The very lovely man I’ve told you all about.”

Harry’s face twists in confusion, before brightening up with the ding of a memory coming to light. “Oh! Regoolus!”

“That’s right! Re-goo-lus.” James repeats, glancing at Regulus with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes and a contagious smile growing on his face.

Regulus feels his lips tug upward. “It’s very nice to meet you, Harry.” Harry flashes him a toothy grin, leaning his head against his father’s shoulder. Harry’s eyes dart curiously to the gift in his hands, and Regulus does his best to conceal the tremor in them, knowing there is no use in delaying the inevitable.

Feeling nausea crawl its way into his throat, Regulus lifts his hand slowly and presents Harry with the present. “This is for you.”

Harry’s eyes widen with childlike wonder and joy and the sight itself tugs at the core of Regulus’ chest. Harry looks up to James for approval, who nods encouragingly at his son. He takes the gift softly. “Thank you!” Harry grins, before trying to squirm out of James’ arms.

“Hold on, hold on.” James laughs, setting Harry safely on the ground. As soon as his fuzzy socks reach the floor, Harry is off, scurrying towards the living room.

Regulus is left frozen in place, utterly terrified and unsure of what to do next, looking to James desperately for help. James’ smile softens, as he reaches over and cups Regulus’ cheek, leaning in to press a firm kiss on his forehead. Regulus selfishly allows his eyes to flutter shut at the touch. “Hey.” James pulls back, cradling Regulus’ head with both hands. “You’re doing great.” He affirms.

James presses a short kiss to Regulus’ lips, places Regulus’ hand into his own, and gently pulls them both towards the living room.

Harry is seated in the center of a burgundy carpet, the largeness of it emphasizing the smallness of his body. The present lays unopened in front of him, and judging by his wiggling toes and tapping fingers, Harry is beyond eager to open it.

James falls back onto the sofa and drags down Regulus with him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders as he pulls him close to his side. Regulus is suddenly hyper aware of their position, not wanting Harry to be distraught or confused in any way at their intimacy. But Harry seems to have other priorities at the moment, his eyes never tearing away from the present in his lap.

“Can I please open it now?” Harry begs, eyes still glued to the box. “Pretty please?”

James sighs dramatically, biting back a smile. “Well, since Regulus was the one who gave it to you, I’d say it’s up to him to decide whether or not you can open it.” James turns to Regulus, resting his cheek on the couch. “What do you say, Re-goo-lus?”

Regulus playfully rolls his eyes, but unlike James, he’s unable to hide the smile growing on his face. He looks at Harry, who’s staring back at him with puppy dog eyes. “Go ahead, Harry.”

Harry squeaks in delight, tearing away the wrapping paper with such joy that Regulus can’t find it within himself to be upset in the slightest. Once the wrapping paper is gone, and a small wooden box is all that remains, Harry wastes no time as he removes the lid and reveals its contents.

A small golden snitch lies at the bottom, remaining dormant for all of two seconds before slowly flapping its wings and hovering in front of Harry.

“Snitch!” Harry gasps, his eyes blown wide open as his jaw drops in awe. The next thing Regulus knows, Harry is screeching with joy, clapping his small hands together as he hops in circles around the floating snitch.

“A snitch?” Regulus tears his eyes away from Harry to James, who’s beaming with practically the same amount of excitement as Harry. “You didn’t.” James gapes, watching as the golden snitch slowly flies in circles around the room, little Harry scrambling to catch it.

Regulus laughs, bashfully hiding his smile behind the sleeve of his sweater. “I did.”

James grins devilishly as he pulls Regulus closer by the neckline of his sweater, kissing him hungrily as if buying a present for his son was the most attractive thing James has ever seen.

A piercing shriek breaks the two apart, both Regulus and James springing up in their seats to locate Harry, though it takes less than a second to do so. The boy is only a few feet away, jumping with unabashed glee on the adjacent couch. “I got it!” Harry squeals, bouncing on the cushion. “I got the snitch!”

Sure enough, in the pudgy fingers of little Harry Potter, is the golden snitch Regulus had gifted him.

“Atta boy, Harry!” James cheers, reaching out to scoop Harry into his arms. He curls Harry to his chest, presses a sloppy kiss to his cheek, and sits down beside Regulus once again. “I think,” James turns Harry around in his lap, “that you’re going to be a fine seeker, Haz.”

“Fine?” Regulus chuckles. “Don’t be modest, James. I can already tell he’s going to be amazing.”

“Amazing!” Harry repeats while shimmying off of James’ lap. He settles in between the space between them on the sofa, curling his knees to his chest and leaning against Regulus’ side. “Thank you, Regoolus!”

Regulus takes a shaky breath, trying desperately to blink the sudden income of burning tears out of his eyes. He looks over at James, whose face is full of nothing but adoration and pride, though Regulus can see tears threatening to spill down his cheeks as well.

Regulus wipes his eyes quickly, trying to be discreet, and turns to give his full attention back to Harry. Regulus finds the boy already looking up at him with kind eyes, brighter than the star Regulus is named after. They’re an undoubtable shade of green, full of wonder, innocence, and warmth. Just like his father’s.

As he looks at Harry, and as he feels the comforting presence of the man he loves beside him, in a house warm enough to melt even the coldest of souls, Regulus wonders how on earth he got so lucky.

Regulus runs a hand through Harry’s fluffy hair and smiles.

“Happy Christmas, Harry.”

[twomanyfandomshelp]

Has this been done before?

[kimtaegis]

I’m feeling quite sad about how much the active bts fandom on tumblr has shrunk and/ or how selective the community has become regarding content interaction. I’ve heard people pointing out a clique-building here lately, and while I’m well aware of closer mutual circles existing – and I can only speak on behalf of my friend group here – these pretty much develop naturally when there’s just no one else who reacts, reblogs from and talks to you anymore except for these handful of people. I don’t like that some people perceive these “cliques” as “exclusive”, for example to content creators only. that’s bullshit; it’s certainly not great to have only other cc’s support your work because they personally know how much time and effort it takes. also, knowing how lovely most of these people are, you’d get immediately followed back and showered with love too as soon as you’d even show a speckle of kindness on a regular basis, regardless of whether you make gifs yourself or not. ccs dedicating sets to each other isn’t a sign of exclusivity, but rather us holding onto and appreciating people who still give us at least some motivation to create and post in the first place anymore, because there’s quite literally no one else left by now.

[hplonesomeart]

You know I had to do my own rendition of this eventually. It’s just too good to pass up :))

Attached is just the still image version (not gif) and then some behind-the-scenes initial sketch without puzzle pattern. Also the car had a nose for some reason…glad that I went back to the actual reference material to change it because the Puzzlemobile ain’t got one <<

[alaskan-wallflower]

my councilor fr out here asking what i wanna major in bitch i’m tying not to have a major mental breakdown give me a minute

[thesconesyard]

Underneath the Western Sky

3. Break Away from the Herd

“Pasha!”

Jaylah ran around the corner of the barn where Chekov was sitting with Sulu.

“There you are!”

“What is it Jaylah?” Chekov asked, beginning to stand.

“There is another race! In town this weekend!”

“Oh no,” Chekov muttered to himself.

“I want to enter again,” Jaylah said, sitting herself down across from Chekov. “As myself.”

“I don’t think they will let you,” Chekov said, frowning.

“Spock needed my help with- uh- something,” Sulu said and hurried away.

Chekov looked after him.

“I am going to enter,” Jaylah said with determination.

Chekov sighed. “What if they say no?”

“I will race,” she said firmly.

The weekend came and to Chekov’s surprise, everyone decided to go to town to watch. The house was shut up for the day, the chores were done early and Sulu pulled the wagon into the yard after breakfast.

Of course there was more going on besides just the horse race, but Chekov knew everyone wanted to see Jaylah race after she had won last time. It had been a surprise when they came in for dinner and announced she had won.

Jaylah rode next to the wagon on Trébol. Last time she had tucked her hair up under her hat and surprisingly no one had been the wiser. Now her hair, so blonde it was nearly white, hung down her back. She had been smiling all morning and now it was a positive grin.

In town, Sulu drove the wagon towards the yard at the train station, but Chekov jumped out to follow Jaylah. She had hopped off her horse and was leading it over to tie up.

A few people looked her over as she walked by in her pants and work shirt. Her wide brimmed hat was tipped up on her forehead.

“Over there,” she said to Chekov pointing to where the table to register for the race was.

Chekov nodded, but his stomach twisted, worrying if she would be allowed to race.

“Hello,” Jaylah greeted the men at the table.

“Howdy miss,” one of them greeted her back. The other man lifted an eyebrow at Jaylah’s outfit.

“I want to sign up,” she said, and placed some coins on the table.

“Well, see—” the first man began.

“Women don’t ride in the races,” the second man blurted out.

Chekov’s face heated.

“I want to ride,” Jaylah said.

“We can’t let a pretty thing like you do something like that,” the first man tried to soothe.

Chekov saw Jaylah’s eyes widen and knew her anger was rising. So was his own.

“She won the last race and you didn’t even know!” he exclaimed.

“What?” both men said together.

“Piotr Chekov. That’s who won last time,” Chekov said. “I told you he was my brother. I don’t have a brother! It was Jaylah and she won!” He stared hard at the two men and from the corner of his eye, he saw Jaylah smile at him.

“Now wait a minute!” said the second man.

But the first man was looking at Jaylah in interest.

“Now wait Tom,” he began. “We might draw more people if we let this gal in.”

Tom looked hard at Jaylah before turning to the first man.

“Or we might become a laughing stock.”

“I’ll take that chance,” said the first man. He looked back at Jaylah. “Alright, you’re in.” He stretched his hand over and took her coins. “I suppose you already know where the starting line is.”

“Thank you! I do!” Jaylah smiled brightly and Chekov let out a small sigh of relief.

“Race starts in fifteen minutes,” Tom called behind them.

Chekov found everyone else sitting near the top of the stand that had been set up again. He’d left Jaylah with Trébol to get ready.

“Is she in?” Mr. Scott asked as Chekov sat down next to him.

“Yes.”

The racers lined up at the start. A murmur went through the crowd in the stands.

“Is that a woman?” Chekov heard someone ask.

“Look! She’s listed as Miss Jaylah on the board!” said another, pointing out the sign with the riders names.

A pistol shot and the horses flew down the track. Around Chekov his friends began to cheer for Jaylah. He began to smile.

As the riders rounded the post and began to come back, the crowd got louder, trying to see who was in front.

“It’s Jaylah!” Jim yelled.

To Chekov’s surprise, and delight, the whole crowd began to cheer for her. The pounding of hooves grew louder and moments later Jaylah won the race. Around him the cheering grew louder, but Chekov cheered loudest of all.

[excelsior9173]

i just realized it’s been a year that my right knee hasn’t been okay…

last november i got booked a week from hell in terms of abusing my body- i was walking 15-20km a day for five days straight.

let me tell you- while i am used to 30-50km weeks, that week nearly did me in. by the wednesday, i was unable to walk without feeling like my right knee was going to explode. that is not hyperbole- i was convinced a tendon was going to rupture i was limping those 18kms but i persevered

ended up getting kinetic tape to try to help. it holds things together, i should use it more, but my knee is completely bitched now. cannot keep it bent for any length of time anymore, and if i do there’s this horrible pressure in the tendons up the back, a deep, pinching ache

now any day that i walk 10+km that knee is so tired and inflamed. it hurts so badly and yet i cannot stop

can’t afford to leave work to seek medical care for it, let alone the potential recovery. i will simply continue my regimen of heat, ibuprofen, and tape and hope for the best

[arolesbianism]

Some au antag doodles

[saintbuffy]

got some new books at the library today 😈 hehehe

[emilys-axford]

worst intro so far question mark

[okcoolthanks]

Two rats having lunch

Two rats having lunch

The vermin

The vermin

Enthusiastically munch!

TWO RATS

ON THE GROUND

EATIN FOOD

GRILLED CHEESE AND

TOMATO SOUP

[solymn]

Wish me luck lads, we’re entering crunch mode

[stars-on-fyre]

Made a terrible decision y’all… 😔

I’m finally starting One Piece

[tvrningout-a]

i might lurk more than anything tonight — we’ll see! work and a lack of sleep just has me very tired uvu

[tiredsadpeach]

I don’t think any of my friends would even notice if I just isolated myself lmao

[francofolle]

i’ve been sick at home all week, feeling guilty for calling out of work, but literally unable to get out of bed all week, and here i am, 11:30pm friday night and suddenly i’ve got all the energy in the world. i’m relieved i’m feeling better but god damn it, where was this energy a couple days ago?