#I got her for free from a nice lady giving a bunch of kittens away

[unhinged-idiot]

Salem has something she wants to tell you

[bexterbex]

A Soul to Mend His Own | Ch. 49

Warning, PLEASE CHECK TAGS IF YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU DON’T WANT TO READ THEN DON’T READ. Tag lists are closed

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Will tag as I go along, Will update tags, Slow Burn, Influenced by Star Trek and other Sci-Fi themes, References to We Happy Few, Tons of References and quotes to George Orwells 1984 see if you can find them all, The First Order is the new Big Brother,  but who is really surprised, Blatant Nazi Symbolism, Interrogation Themes, Eventual Smut, Eventual Romance, Really just drawn out Slow Burn, Don’t repost without permission, Torture themes, Suggestive Themes, Execution themes, Disturbing Themes, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Verbal Abuse, Controlling Kylo Ren, Physical Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Kylo Ren is Not Nice, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, Possessive Kylo Ren, A character shamelessly based on Zelda Spellman

A Kylo Ren x Modern! Reader in a soulmate au with some canon divergence. —————————————SLOWBURN————————————–

He is already the Supreme leader, searching the universe to find you, his Empress. Your name on his wrist has been the only constant in his life, while you have doubts about his existence and his acceptance of you. He isn’t in the database and why did the name Kylo Ren cover Ben Solo?

MASTERLIST

Chapter 49: Playing Dress Up

You were woken from your sleep, by a kiss on the lips. You opened your eyes to see Kylo dressed in his usual uniform. “What time is it?”

You hear him chuckle, “It is time for you to get up Kitten. Your ladies-in-waiting will be here at any moment. I have things I need to attend to. So this is goodbye until dinner,” said Kylo who then left down the hall and out of your chambers.

A few moments later the door opened again, Adlez and Olivia-Rose were followed by the lieutenant, Cardo, and Ushar. You went to meet them.

You heard a distorted wolf whistle, “Looking good Pet,” said Cardo ogling you. You immediately crossed your arms in a failed attempt to cover yourself. You could see the lieutenant turning red and averting his gaze. Olivia-Rose rushed into your dressing room getting you a robe.

Adlez let out a loud gasp and turned around to face him. “That is no way to speak to her.” You could hear the anger and authority in her voice. They were almost chest to chest as Cardo challenged her.

Luckily Ushar threw his arm in front of Cardo pushing him back. “I can speak to her how I want,” replied Cardo.

Once your robe was firmly secured around you, you approached the group. “No, she is the Supreme Leader’s match, you must treat her with respect,” said Adlez.

Cardo puffed up his chest once more, pressing against Ushar’s hold on him, but you spoke before he could respond. “Especially when the Supreme Leader has already reprimanded you for such in my presence once before. Shall I call him down,” you ask with a tilted head and cocked eyebrow. You were not going to be playing my horse is bigger than your horse this morning.

You heard Ushar release a distorted laugh, “Lady Ren has got a backbone Cardo, you better not test her. I like her too much.”

A smirk found its way to your face. You watched as both of them backed away, to go stand near the door. Adlez gave one last humph before turning around and assisting you in your dressing room and told the lieutenant to wait in the dining room.

Once the door shut behind you, Adlez quickly joined Olivia-Rose in getting you ready. “How did last night go m’lady,” asked Olivia-Rose.

“Better, he learned some new boundaries. Like keeping his hands above my clothes.”

Both of the women laughed at this, to which you smiled in response. Their hands expertly taking care of you, dressing you in a similar relaxed outfit as yesterday morning. This time your hair was done in a casual elegant style, very old Hollywood. You could tell that Adlez was an expert in this style.

“Now that he has learned this, you can use it to your advantage m’lady. Teasing him and using any additional privileges like a bartering chip,” said Adlez.

“I like that idea. Although I may occasionally extend my favors as I wish.”

“Obviously, the Dark Lord is a handsome man. If I were you it would be very hard to keep my hands to myself,” said Adlez, finishing putting on a necklace for you, while Olivia-Rose applied your makeup.

“I have really tried to refrain from touching him anywhere else but his head. I might lose my battle with him as it would be too much for my brain to handle, and we might cross my imaginary boundary,” you replied. “Also, why did he choose you for me, if he was going to know that you would be helping me mold him into my will?”

Adlez let out a laugh, “He chose me because of my experience, my ex-husband was a diplomat on Corellia. Unfortunately, because the First Order took over his and my position were cut, and I no longer needed to be married to him. We are better off not married anyway. And because of this position, I now have access to a bunch of eligible bachelors onboard,” she gave you a wink. You saw Olivia-Rose blush at this too.

“I wouldn’t know about the selection you have available, just promise me you two won’t get into too much trouble. I already have my hands full with the Supreme Leader.”

Both of them laughed at that. You all got up to go have breakfast, the lieutenant was waiting in the dining room for you as were Cardo and Ushar.

“Would anyone like anything while I order? I know to get you a coffee lieutenant.”  You looked around to everyone.

“Coffee for both of us m’lady,” said Olivia-Rose referring to Adlez. Both Cardo and Ushar shook their heads.

While waiting for your food to arrive Ushar asked, “So what princess lessons are on the agenda today?” He turned his helmeted gaze to your lieutenant. Who swallowed back a lump of fear before responding.

“Lady Ren is free until her lessons after lunch. After they are finished she has dinner with the Supreme Leader,” replied Mitaka.

“So the princess has a free morning, what shall she do with it,” teased Cardo. You saw Ushar hit him again.

Adlez looked at you and said, “If you don’t mind a suggestion m’lady, Olivia-Rose and I would love to spend the morning styling you in various ways for different occasions. A test really to see what you like and what you don’t.”

You heard a distorted snicker come from Cardo, who turned to Ushar, “They are going to play dress up.”

You grew your backbone once more, “If you are going to be rude Cardo then there is no need for you to be here. You can safely guard me from someplace else if it is too difficult for you.”

You watched him stand and clench his fists before Ushar hissed his name and told him to get out. Ushar muttered apologies to you and the others before stepping out of the dining room himself.

You finished your breakfast with some idle chatter with everyone. Not really commenting on this or that. Preferring to eat without much distraction. Once you were finished you saw Olivia-Rose start to take the dishes into the kitchen and you told her to stop, that the droid would take care of it. She was just as out of place as you once were, not knowing how things fully worked.

You entered the dressing room and dismissed the lieutenant until your lesson. Both women seemed to be very happy changing your outfits and accessories and your hair and makeup. Taking you through this scenario and that one with outfit changes. Deciding what works together and what doesn’t. Olivia-Rose did well as she was there when you bought most everything.

“Now we should discuss your routine. I think it would be best for you to take baths every other day, to maintain healthy skin. We should also get a full regime of face masks in the works to keep your skin looking as young as possible,” said Adlez. You trusted her opinions on this, as her skin looked flawless. “We should also get a regular routine of body hair removal and nail care. I will work something out with the lieutenant to always have it in your schedule one way or another. Not taking care of yourself is one of the quickest ways for a man to lose interest. And it is in our best interest to keep the Dark Lord interested in you.”

You did take care of yourself but not to the degree that Adlez was speaking. It sounded like a lot of upkeep and work. But you trusted her, after all, she was right, you needed to keep Kylo interested in you, even though he had shown no real example of not doing so something in your gut told you that something was coming.

“I was wondering if we should take lunch ‘outside’? I would love to feel the sun on my face,” you asked them both.

“Of course m’lady, just let me check to make sure the simulated sun doesn’t give off any UVA UVB rays. Otherwise, we will have to lather your skin in sunscreen. The sun is aging’s best friend and one of your worst enemies,” said Adlez. She then left the dressing room to go check. She came back and informed you that it was all clear.

You three went to the patio and enjoyed the simulated sun during your lunch. This is where both the lieutenant and general found you when it was time to begin your lessons again. You all headed upstairs to the large sitting area once more.

Ch. 14 Part 1: Formal Dinners (para. 1-36)

Ch. 14 Part 2: Formal Dinners (para. 37-80)

Ch. 14 Part 3: Formal Dinners (para. 81-116)

Ch. 14 Part 4: Formal Dinners (para. 117-152)

Ch. 14 Part 5: Formal Dinners (para. 153-end)

Ch. 15: Dinner-Giving with Limited Equipment

Ch. 16: Luncheons, Breakfasts and Suppers

Ch. 17 Part 1: Balls and Dances (para. 1-53)

Ch. 17 Part 2: Balls and Dances (para. 54-end)

Ch. 18: The Debutante

“We will be throwing a formal dinner in a few days with some of the leaders of some First Order planets. You and the Supreme Leader are expected to be in attendance. I will also be there. This is your official debut as Lady Ren, so it will be very important. The Supreme Leader has left it in our hands to get you ready,” said Hux.

You were nervous. You were going to be at a formal dinner, with lots of people you didn’t know, who would be expecting you to be a lady when you weren’t one. This was something that you hoped Kylo would spare you from or something that he would have at least had the courtesy of telling you himself.

You were immensely grateful for Adlez and Olivia-Rose now. They would help you prepare yourself so you didn’t look like an idiot.

“Will I have lessons as to who these leaders are? And to what the rest of the galaxy is,” you ask fiddling with your hands.

“Of course m’lady, it is not my intention to allow you to attend unprepared. It is also the Supreme Leader’s wish for you to be as prepared as I can get you. You will not be alone at the dinner he and I will be there along with other First Order High Command members,” consoled Hux.

“Will Pryde be there?”

“Yes, m’lady, unfortunately, he will be, some of these leaders are the ones I was telling you about. Ones that were Empire sympathizers who like him. But this will be a good time to showcase yourself as someone they can trust. Do not worry, the Supreme Leader will be the whole time with you.” You could see the earnestness in his face. It calmed your nerves a bit.

“When will this formal dinner take place?”

“In a week, seven cycles time. We will be on the other side of the galaxy then near Arkanis. And it will take place here on board the ship, so you will be perfectly safe.” His reassurance did help, as did the date of the dinner. Although you knew that the anticipation may kill you. You were nervous, to say the least.

“Thank you for informing me general, is that all for today?”

“Yes, m’lady. I believe it is now time for you to prepare for dinner.” And with that, both he and the lieutenant left.

You and the girls made your way downstairs to your dressing room. They got out another simple dress and started working on another simple but elegant hairstyle, one that you had worked on earlier that day.

“Do not worry m’lady, we will have you prepared for that dinner, none of those old men will know what hit them,” said Olivia-Rose, voicing herself confidently for the first time.

“Exactly, we will make you the belle of the ball as they say. No one will be able to resist your charm, and if we do everything right, so will the Dark Lord,” said Adlez.

“I know, but I would have preferred him telling me this news versus the general. After all, I am his match, and this is my debut,” you said voicing your displeasure at the situation.

“Well then m’lady you will just have to show the Dark Lord that,” said Adlez while she changed the initial lipstick she was going to hand you. She then picked out a more alluring perfume for you to wear along with a pair of heels. “This will help show him just that. Keep him at arm's-length and he will be eating out of the palm of your hands in no time.”

You liked her thinking a lot. She was right; you needed to show him how it displeased you to have others tell you things that he could have easily told you himself. You were now playing his game, and he did not hold all the cards, but neither did you. But you did have a few aces up your sleeve and now was the time to play one.  

[artificialqueens]

Tree House Kisses, Chapter 38 (Adorney) - Scorpio and Veronica

A/N: Click here for previous chapters. And thank you so much to @saiphl for the beta help!! XO!

Chapter Summary: The girls spend a summer apart, but then start their senior year, closer than ever.

Chapter 38: Feelings

Courtney’s dad had moved with his girlfriend to Berkeley earlier in the year, and both of her parents unilaterally decided that she should spend the summer with him for some “quality time.” She’d argued, she’d protested, she’d pleaded with Karen, she’d even cried; but in the end she had no choice but to go along with the plan, sullenly packing her things and boarding the train, defeated. Her only solace was that Roy was doing a summer program in Stanford for a month, which meant that at least they could still see each other on the weekends for part of the time she was there.

COURTNEY: JFC I’m gonna be sleeping on a goddamn fold out couch all summer. This is shit.

ADORE: Awww, so sorry, princess. Xx

COURTNEY: Lol, fuck you. You have no idea what this is like

ADORE: That’s true. I haven’t seen my dad for like ten years

COURTNEY: WAH WAH WAHHH YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO WIN

COURTNEY: ;)

ADORE: lol

The truth was, Courtney hadn’t really spent much time with her dad since the divorce. Sometimes it made her sad, thinking about how close they used to be. She tried to keep an open mind, but a big part of her was still angry about him having an affair, turning their lives upside-down, leaving her mom...leaving her.

Adore was right, though. As far as absentee fathers went, things could be much worse. One night, while he sat on the sofa (the one that doubled as the least comfortable bed she ever had) watching TV, Courtney wandered over and sat down next to him.

He looked up from the TV, surprised, a smile spreading across his face.

“Hey, kiddo.”

“Hi.” Courtney shifted slightly, tried to shake the horrible feeling that she was sitting next to a grown man that she barely knew. “Whatcha watching?”

“Just the news...if things go well this year, we can take both the house and the senate,” Peter told her. “And in 2008, that fucking shit-for-brains will finally be done and we can get the White House, too.”

“That would be awesome,” Courtney agreed, letting her head rest on her father’s shoulder. He wasn’t perfect, that was for damn sure...but when it came down to it, she supposed she was lucky to have him.

-

Meanwhile, Adore had gotten a summer job as a counselor at an arts day camp, and soon began spending her days surrounded by loud, attention-seeking child star wannabes. Every day, she came home and collapsed in exhaustion, vowing to never, under any circumstances, ever have children.

COURTNEY: How’s camp?

ADORE: The worst

COURTNEY: I’m sorry

ADORE: It’s all good. How’s the homewrecker?

COURTNEY: Weird

ADORE: Is she teaching you any good stripper moves?

COURTNEY: No, she just like, chain smokes and talks to her birds

ADORE: She has BIRDS?

COURTNEY: Yeah man, I told you. WEIRD

ADORE: What are the birds’ names?

COURTNEY: Something in Russian, I dunno. I just call them Boris and Natasha

ADORE: Lol you’re so corny

COURTNEY: I did meet some pretty cool anarchist guys down the block  

ADORE: What’s their band called?

COURTNEY: Who said they have a band?

ADORE: What’s their band called, Courtney?

COURTNEY: Pussy Whisper

ADORE: LOLOLOLOL

-

COURTNEY: Okay, so...this is going to shock you…

ADORE: ???

COURTNEY: The Pussy Whisper dudes?

ADORE: Oh jeez, what?

COURTNEY: They’re gross

ADORE: Yeah, no shit

COURTNEY: i just really liked what Tristan had to say about late stage capitalism

ADORE: Right

COURTNEY: And Grant said I was smart

ADORE: Well, that was your first clue

COURTNEY: HEY!!!

ADORE: Lol, not because you’re not. Because dudes in a band called “Pussy Whisper” that call you smart are up to some no-good shit

COURTNEY: Right. Ugh

ADORE: Bird lady still a fucking weirdo?

COURTNEY: Yeah. Although she did take me to a yoga class this morning, so that was nice. She’s actually maybe not the most vile person on the planet

ADORE: Awww, look at you, falling in love

COURTNEY: Shut up

-

Once Courtney got over her initial resistance, she had to admit that Berkely was somewhat cool. Certainly more her speed than the bland suburban wasteland she was used to. She spent most of her days wandering around used book stores, head shops, or combing through racks of cute vintage dresses. One afternoon, sunbathing in the backyard of her dad’s apartment building (which was a converted Victorian house that she also had to regretfully admit was pretty charming), she made friends with a very affectionate marmalade-colored kitten. Turned out, the cat belonged to their downstairs neighbor, and soon Courtney found herself fully enchanted with the older woman.

COURTNEY: Okay I found a much better new friend than the PW boys. She’s our downstairs neighbor and she’s like 70 and so cool. She has pink hair and all her clothes are made of hemp. She’s gonna take me to an Iraq War protest on Saturday.

ADORE: Oh jeez. You’re gonna come back with white person dreads, aren’t you?

COURTNEY: lol it’s a nice look

ADORE: IT IS NOT

-

ADORE: Abortion should be legal until the kids are like...12 years old, at least

COURTNEY: Campers getting on your nerves?

ADORE: If I snap, will you visit me in prison?

COURTNEY: Of course! I’ll bake a nail file into a cake for you and everything. XOXO

ADORE: Good cake or some bay area bullshit?

COURTNEY: Gluten free agave-sweetened carob cake, courtesy of Patsy

ADORE: Fuck off

COURTNEY: Don’t insult Patsy. She’s been protesting since Vietnam, she’s awesome.

-

ADORE: HEY CHEERLEADER THIS IS WILLAM! YOU’RE A SLUT AND WE MISS YOU!

ADORE: AND I’M VERY DISAPPOINTED THAT YOU DIDN’T FUCK THE PUSSY WHISPERERS

COURTNEY: Sorry bunny

ADORE: He’s high

COURTNEY: And you?

ADORE: Meeee? Whaaaaaat?

ADORE: Yes lol

COURTNEY: Lol, have fun

-

COURTNEY: Would it be really bad if I liked Katya?

ADORE: Omg are you gonna start calling her Mommy?

COURTNEY: Shut up!

COURTNEY: But seriously...it would be like, disloyal to my mom if I liked her, right?

ADORE: Are you gonna start adopting birds?

COURTNEY: No, I just think she’s kind of funny sometimes. I’m a terrible daughter

ADORE: Well, your mom IS the one who sent you up there for the summer. So…

COURTNEY: True

-

ADORE: So. Something happened last night that was...uh…

ADORE: Very

ADORE: ...

COURTNEY: ???

ADORE: Give me a minute...I’m processing...

COURTNEY: Tell me!

ADORE: Well, we started in Violet’s basement, drinking, and I’m not sure how but somehow it ended up being like 10 people

COURTNEY: Aww, was Violet sad I wasn’t there? Did she cry?

ADORE: lol, totally

COURTNEY: So what happened???

ADORE: Yeah, so...I went out to the backyard to smoke and Trin came and like...I’m not sure exactly how it happened, but I think I made out with her

COURTNEY: WHOA

ADORE: Yeah

COURTNEY: Is she gay???

ADORE: No, definitely not. We were just like, drunk and high

COURTNEY: Is everything cool between you??

ADORE: Yeah, I think so. We were laughing about it this morning. But like, I still feel a little bad.

COURTNEY: Why do you feel bad?

ADORE: I mean, I dunno. I don’t want people to think that I’m like, some predatory asshole, you know?

COURTNEY: No one would think that

ADORE: My track record might disagree

COURTNEY: The only thing your track record shows is you’re a ho

ADORE: WOW

COURTNEY: I WAS KIDDING!!!!

ADORE: lol, I know

COURTNEY: XOXOXOXO

-

As much as Courtney tried, and as much as she made her peace with her summer surroundings, by the time August rolled around, she began to get increasingly homesick. Missing her mom, her bedroom, even Grandma Muriel. But especially, missing Adore.

COURTNEY: I really miss you

COURTNEY: Like so much

ADORE: Me too

COURTNEY: No like SO much

ADORE: Are you high?

COURTNEY: No, are you?

ADORE: A little lol

COURTNEY: I’m not high. I just love you.

ADORE: Aww, thanks babe

-

“DORY!!” Courtney squealed, practically leaping from her car the second she pulled into the driveway. She’d texted Adore from her last stop for gas, but she was thrilled to see her best friend actually waiting for her.

She wrapped Adore into a tight hug, her excitement causing her to pepper Adore’s entire face with wet kisses.

“Hi, okay, stop it,” Adore giggled. “Nice car, by the way.”

“Oh yeah, I know, it’s pretty great. Peter gets a gold star for that one.” Courtney glanced back at the car, her dad’s old Honda Accord, shaking her new bangs out of her face. He’d surprised her with the keys just last week, and it had almost made her forgive him for leaving in the first place...almost. “It was kind of scary to do that whole drive alone, though. I’m very thankful to have made it in one piece.”

“Me too,” Adore said, with a grin that told Courtney she was home. “Now that you’re back, it’s gonna be a fuckin’ party.”

Courtney laid a head on her shoulder, sighing happily.

“You’re going to Darienne’s goodbye party on Wednesday, right?”

“Yeah, of course. Omigod! Dory! I wanted to make those peanut butter cupcakes that she loves, but you know I’m just absolute shit at decorating, can you help?”

“What on earth makes you think I’d be good at cupcake decorating?” Adore laughed.

“I dunno, you’re better at art than me,” Courtney said. “Plus, it’ll just be more fun with you.”

Adore pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Count me in.”  

-

School was going to be starting back up soon, and as Adore looked around the party at her friends, she couldn’t help but feel a little ambivalent. Summer had just been so nice, and having that small taste of freedom made her long to be done with school altogether.

Tonight, there was a big group at Pearl’s house--her usual friends as well as a bunch of the neighborhood kids, enjoying the pool and the warm evening air. Violet, Fame and Trinity lounged in the hot tub with April, watching the sun set. Pearl was standing at the grill, living her butch fantasy as she cooked up food for her guests, swatting Bob away with as he peered over her shoulder, trying to “help.”

It was a little bittersweet--Darienne had already left for Pepperdine a few weeks earlier, and Jamin for Cal Poly. Even though they weren’t as close as they used to be, it still felt strange, somehow, for them to be missing. Hell, it was even weird for Alyssa to be gone, the loudmouth head cheerleader now torturing people at UC San Diego, probably already sorority president.

A handful of people were dancing, including Courtney and Willam, twirling until they were dizzy and laughing.

“Ugh, I don’t want school to start!” Willam suddenly whined, reflecting Adore’s feelings exactly.

“I know, but this year we’re coming back as seniors, and we’re gonna rule the school,” Courtney said, imitating the line from Grease perfectly.

“Oh really? You think you’re Rizzo?” Adore challenged her.

“Why can’t I be Rizzo?” she demanded.

“Bitch, you are Sandy and you know it,” Adore laughed, grabbing a beer and sitting down on the back steps.

“I can be Rizzo if I want! Fuck you!”

“Yeah, lesbian! How dare you put cheerleader in a box! She can be whatever she wants!” Willam cried.

“That's right,” Courtney added, “I mean, I did spend all summer hanging out with a prostitute. What did you do? Day Camp?”

“I was a counselor,” Adore replied, laughing. She reached into the cooler and pulled out a bottle. “Here, have another drink. And I thought Katya was a stripper, not a prostitute.”

“You don't know her. It's a very blurry line,” Courtney explained, taking the offered wine cooler.

Willam grabbed Courtney’s hand and pulled her away, spinning her around and around. “Less talking, more dancing!”

Adore shook her head, watching them with a smile, lighting up a joint. Roy sat down beside her--the last of his class, since UCLA didn’t start for a few more weeks.

“Hey, Delano. How ya doing, man?”

“Good...bro.”

Roy flashed some dimples at her, then just sat for a minute, unusually quiet, as they both watched their friends dancing like fools. Willam dipped Courtney low to the ground and she shrieked and giggled.

“God, she’s so fucking beautiful,” he said.

Adore wasn’t sure if he was talking to her or himself. She nodded, leaning against the banister and sighing slightly.

When Roy spoke again, it was quiet. “I know, you know. How lucky I am.”

Adore looked at him, considering her reply. Finally, she just nodded and said, “Good.”

Roy gave her another smile.

“Make sure she stays outta trouble while I’m away.”

“I think I’m probably the least qualified person for that job,” Adore laughed, then held out the joint.

“Thanks, I’m cool.”

“Debatable,” Adore retorted, taking another hit.

Roy shook his head, chuckling.

“I’m gonna miss you too, Delano.”

“Aww...shut up.”

-

On the first day of their senior year, Courtney and Adore walked out of their fourth period economics class together, giggling over Laganja’s unfortunate new haircut.

“I feel bad for saying so, but it’s just so...”

“Hideous?” Adore supplied, and Courtney giggled some more.

“Yeah. Poor thing. Although it’s hard to say whether her hair is more or less tragic than Mr. Sutton’s awkwardness. He’s like a baby deer.”

“I know! But like, imagine trying to get the respect of students who are pretty much your age,” Adore laughed.

“How old do you think he is, anyway?”

“Uh, I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure he graduated with Kim and Angie. I think I remember him from when Angie did show choir.”

Courtney grabbed onto Adore’s arm, eyes wide.

“Omigod, you’re right! I knew he looked familiar!” she exclaimed.

It wasn’t until they were halfway down the hill that Adore noticed Courtney still walking with her. She hadn’t split off to go sit with the neighborhood kids like past years, simply walked beside her towards the oak tree, where Trinity and Willam already sat, sword-fighting with breadsticks.

“Are you...planning to join us?” Adore asked curiously, and Courtney bit her lip.

“Is that okay? I mean...it’s just a little weird without Roy and Darienne, so I thought…you can say no if-”

“Of course it’s okay!” Adore pulled her in for a side hug. “Everyone loves you, you know that.”

“Everyone?” Courtney asked, one eyebrow nearly to her hairline.

“Almost everyone.” Adore smiled ruefully. “And anyway, I want you here, so she can just deal with it.”

As it turned out, Adore was right. Everyone welcomed Courtney enthusiastically with open arms. And even Violet was unusually cool about it, containing her disapproval to some muttered asides to Fame, who promptly thumped her on the shoulder every time, akin to bopping a puppy on the nose with a newspaper.

Courtney didn’t seem to mind either way, cheerfully trading barbs with Willam and letting Fame “fix” her eyebrows, which were deemed “just too pale.”

“Are your pubes blonde, too?” Willam asked curiously, and Trinity began choking on her sandwich from laughter.

“Gross,” Courtney said, wrinkling her nose.  

“Actually, are they? I’m kind of curious,” Trinity said.

“Come on, cheerleader, just tell us!” Willam urged.

“You know, I quit cheerleading almost a year ago,” Courtney said.

“So?”

“He still calls me ‘New Girl,’” Pearl explained.

“Why are you stalling? Show! Me! Your! Pussy! Hairs!” Willam said, and Fame put her whole head in her hands, letting out a horrified groan before going back to Courtney’s eyebrows.  

“Careful, Bill, or you might get what you wish for,” Courtney sang, staring him down. “You really wanna see my pussy?”

“Uhh...no. Well, maybe...but no. Or…” Willam’s brow furrowed.

“Shit, you broke his little gay brain,” Pearl said, laughing.

“Omigod, that’s so much better!” Fame sat back on her heels, holding up a compact so that Courtney could see her new defined eyebrows.

“Oh wow, that is better! Thank you!”

After snapping the compact shut and handing it back to Fame, Courtney caught Adore’s eye, both of their faces melting into a grin. As Adore buried her smile into her sandwich, she couldn’t help but think about what a change it was from last year.

Maybe a sign of good things to come...or maybe the calm before the storm.

[geekygoddesss]

Not a Hero (Part 3)

Coming home to my dog barking like crazy and almost knocking me down the moment I crossed those doors was something that would never get old. My hair is now messy and my uniform is a little bit dusty from the fight earlier, but thanks to the New York winds that are now going around like crazy, I was not that filthy so I was not making a mess everywhere when I got home.

I drop my backpack and get on my knees as I see Aries running to me so fast that I could almost completely process it.

“Hey girl” I smile and caress her fur as she jumps around me, batting her tail around and licks my face with happiness. She jumps completely on me making me lay on the floor, I was just a complete giggly mess by now, that’s how happy I was of seeing my dog when I got home.

“Good evening Miss Stark, How was your day?” I hear that very familiar robotic voice coming from the walls, I lift Aries off me and roll on my back. Thank god there was no one around, I looked a mess.

I get on my feet and take a look at the chart Friday has pulled on for me, like it does every day, showing pretty much all forecast and plans I might have for the day. I see Aries in the corner of my eyes, running away from me now a bit tired from jumping around for a minute straight and going to the fluffy carpet in the living room to take a nap. Classic. “It’s been okay, Friday, thanks for asking,” I say dragging my finger around the screen on the wall and expanding the weather forecast, news flash, I was going to be a rainy ass rest of the day “any special plans for today?” I ask, like usual. “Seems like nothing has been planned for tonight” Fridays and I look at my lovely schedule, She’s right, all I have in there is a dumb reminder to do my homework, fun.

“Great” I say closing the screen on the wall “Thanks again” “Anytime, Miss Stark” She says shutting down the brightness of the screen.

I take my backpack from the floor and make a quick stop on the kitchen to grab a can of soda before making my way downstairs to the workshop, the only place in the entire house where I or dad could get things done properly without people coming to gossip.

Usually this place would be completely empty by the time I got home from school, it would just be me and the loneliness of my office in the very back of the workshop, but today was different, My father was already here and he was wearing his home clothes, there was a box in front of him that spelled T.R.A.S.H in the very front, it had a bunch of cables and metal popping on the top of it and he was really digging in there, he was too busy with it he didn’t even turn to look at me when I made my way down the stairs. whatever he was up to, I just hope it is good. “Oh hey, you’re here early” I say getting his attention and walking up to him. he did not turn to look at me. “Yeah” he mumbles, taking more stuff from the box  “that’s what happens when you retire” I laugh, while moving to his side and looking to what he was doing, so far all I could see was either broken parts of his suit or cables all around, I did not get how would that work for something “You’re not retired” I say taking a sip of my soda. “If you look at it from my point of view, I definitely am” He says throwing an old metal hand from one of his suits on the table before finally looking up at me “Hi sweety” he says giving a step forward and kissing my head very quickly before sitting down on his chair. “Hey em...” I say setting down the can on my hand and rolling my sleeves up, showing the metal straps on my arms “I think I broke them again, I’m sorry”

Not that I didn’t give myself enough time to even try and repair my wristbands, for now, it was just a fact that I couldn’t do it, at least not by myself. Trust me, now I preferred to just face the consequences of being grounded, then walking around through the streets of new york with broken wristbands and no self-defense knowledge. I really had no other way around this. He has a pretty still expression on his face, which terrifies me just a bit, he rolls the chair to look straight at me and leans back “Oh no” he says raising his eyebrows just a bit “Why?” I look down, Unstrapping then from my arms and put them down on his desk “I tried to put a magnet inside but I don’t know what happened, everything just collapsed or something” I shrug. he sighs and shakes his head, he doesn’t look mad, but he isn’t happy either “I’ve told you a million times, don’t touch the insides” He says grabbing then and opening one of them to take a look. “I just wanted to know if it would work at all” I sigh and lean on his desk just a little  “I’m sorry” I say softly “it kind of worked though, I was able to move stuff around” I say looking at the bright side of it “the magnet is just too powerful, I could lift stuff, but they would fly on to me and nearly kill me” I say with a chuckle. He looks at me kind of alarmed “that was metaphorical” I add before he could say anything else. Thank god he doesn't. “Huh” he nods and leaves the open wristband aside “I’ll have them fixed soon, I guess” he says in a very monotone tone. What does that mean?. “Am I in trouble?” I ask in my softest voice, looking down at my hands “If you ruined them completely, you bet you are” I could almost hear the ‘young lady’ at the end of that phrase  “but I’ll tell you what, I’m gonna let it pass, putting a magnet inside is not a bad idea at all” he says nodding his head at me. “Right?” I say with a smile, I move forward and hug him quickly “Thanks, Dad” I mumble. “Yeah, Yeah” he says nodding and going back to his work. “what’s that?” I say looking at the battery he first reached to look at. “Nothing special, just a piece of junk I decided to fix now” he says taking a screwdriver and with a harsh hit, it snaps in half, showing a messy piece of cables and burned circuits “what’s that?” he asks pointing at me.

Oh, I forgot to mention, I have been carrying around Stella’s kitten in my pocket all the way home, I had to repair it. “Well, I fought with a robot today” I say pulling out the little robot from the pocket of my uniform “Stella had to leave and left me in charge of her baby” “How did that go?” He says extending his hand to grab the robot, I give it to him and he takes a good look at it “That’s a nice kitten” there’s sarcasm in his voice. “I know, it is not intimidating at all” I shake my head as he inspects he little toy-like robot  “but hey, I blew the others guy robot” I mention with a smile “Were you supposed to?” he raises his eyebrows at me. “There are no rules on robot fighting” I shrug and give him a smile. he points at me “Good call, Give me 5” he says and we high five “Homework?” he asks handing me the little cat. I nod, taking the robot and walking forward, making my way to my office “Yeah” I say, opening the little door and leaving my backpack and everything in there “I’ll get to it now” I say, but then my mind snaps, I did not look at the date today, today is so important, shit. I run out the door of my office and walk to dad’s desk  “Wait, is Pepper home yet? I haven’t seen her around” I ask him, I have almost forgotten today was Pepper’s arrival, my dad’s fiance, the best woman on earth. “She’s in New York, she arrived this morning” he nods with a short smile “she’s working but you’ll get to see her later, it’s date night” he mentions like it’s no big deal. “What?” I frown “Date night on a Monday? Am I going to eat dinner alone? Dad!” I start arguing but he stops me, it was no secret that dates nights were those particular nights where I could not (under any circumstances) go. for obvious reasons, but right now it was really unfair for him to just not let me go. “Hey” he says with a mimicking frown “I haven’t seen my fiancé in like two months, stop whining, please” he asks me “I can tell Happy to keep you company” he offers me but I shook my head immediately, I was not going to let him make Happy stay with me on his free hours. “Nah, I’ll manage” I sigh, really fighting the need to roll my eyes “can I come through?”

“Nope” he says almost immediately and shooting a smile at me. Now I am rolling my eyes.

“Oh, C'mon, why?” I say insisting a little.

“No” “Tell me why”I say again, grabbing the closest chair I could find and sitting right beside him. I can see him rolling his eyes at me and dropping his tools on the table to look at me “I wanna see her too, I wanna... show her something” that was just a lie, I didn’t have to show her anything, but it sure sounded better than just talking, I just was desperate for some real girl talk.

“Then do it, when she’s in the house tomorrow and not busy, not tonight” he says shrugging like it was not a big deal at all.

“Dad” I whine and lean back on my sit  “tell me why” “Please (Y/n)” he rolls his eyes at me. “Just tell me why” I insist once more.

“I don’t need to give you much explanation more than, it’s date night, we’re adults and we’ll keep this date between the adults, understood?” he says loud and clear, shutting down my little tantrum. I hate that he’s right. “So you’re banning me from your date? That’s rude” I mumble giving a spin on my chair “whatever, Can I have money for pizza then?” I ask with a smile. Now he is frowning for real “Again?” he asks “I thought you had pizza yesterday” “And it was really good” I nod my head, closing my eyes, having a moment. The cute guy from that store sold me that pizza, Luke sold me pizza, Luke talked to me. it was great, fantastic, amazing. I want it to happen again. “Okay, fine” He nods and reaches for his wallet on one of his drawers around to hand me a twenty “save something for me” he says giving me the bill. “Yeah right” I say taking the bill and getting up my seat  “bring dessert” I tell him with a smile and he glances at me with the weirdest look “don’t look at me like that, you’re the one who banned me from your date, at least bring something sweet in return” He seems to think about it for a second, before shrugging at my request and nodding “Fine, sounds fair”

I found myself doing a little jump of happiness before turning around to go back to my office, but a loud bark on the outside of the workshop catches my attention. Aries is standing outside of the glass doors and batting her tail around and scratching her paw against the glass for me to open it up, It is so cute, I can’t resist it.

“Hi!” I cheer, running to the door where my dog is. I put in the passcode and open the door for her, immediately dropping to my knees to give her a proper welcome, since she is too happy to be here. “no no no, don’t let Aries come in here” Dad says when the dog makes her way inside and jumps on him, needing some attention from my father. “She loves you” I laugh, getting on my feet “she likes being around” “Of course, keep her out of my stuff” He says, not making a very pleased face at Aries and caressing her fur just a little and then trying to get back to his job. I wasn’t mad that he didn’t really want Aries around his workplace, I knew he wasn’t a dog person and sometimes Aries could be a bit messy, I had to look out for that so she didn’t make a mess here, but I doubted it, she’s a very well trained dog.

“I know, chill” I say taking Aries and carrying her to my office “we’ll be in my office” “Watching you” he says, I didn’t even know if he was being serious or not, I didn’t want to know.

“Of course you are” I say, setting the dog down inside my room and closing the door behind me, giving myself some privacy to do what needs to be done.

I don’t know how long it has been since I buried myself in office, but time has for sure flown buy and Aries is knocked in down bed, sleeping it off, as I looked more closely at Stella’s robot. Of course, it had almost nothing, it was mainly programmed to follow the remotes orders and go fast in any reaction, but what directly caught my attention was the explosive placed right were the kitten's eyes were, I wish I didn’t know where she got them, but I know exactly where she did. Those are the same kind of safety explosive that my wristbands have, and I am almost one hundred percent sure does are the backups I have stored in case of emergency. This bitch took them behind my back, smart, but I kind of hated it, these things were no toys.

Disputing the little need I had to call stella and yell at her, all I could do for now is suck it up and get to work, because there was really nothing I could do, so I attached the leg that was left in the Kitty’s body and made sure it was somehow functional, also I took my time (really took my time) Painting it’s burned body all over again, of a pale white I had around, leaving the robot as good as new, but also with a little twist, of course I was not going to let her get away with my back ups, I put some confetti cannons that were about the same size as the explosives, That would teach her to not mess with my stuff, she would burn anyone else with my things.

Once I am completely finished, I get out of the room to find the workshop completely empty. I look at the time, It’s kind of late but not really, but definitely, the time when everyone should get ready for date time, so I assume that’s what's happening. I get me and Aries out of the workshop and go to my room, deciding to spend some time alone before I was completely alone for the night.  

I see a light on at the end of the hallway, from Dad and Pepper’s shared room, someone’s in there, there’s also music inside, Definitely not dad’s music. My eyes lit up and my smile is too evident in my face, I know who that is, Finally something to be excited about. I peek inside, trying to be as discrete as I could to evict any unwanted surprises, thank god I didn’t, Instead, I could see a blonde woman sitting on the bed, wearing a black dress that looked absolutely stunning on her. What a nice surprise, she’s finally home.

“Hey” I say, walking into the room without asking at all, it slipped, I was just too excited.

Pepper turned around to look at me with the biggest smile ever, she looked just the same as she did when she left home, that was good, I liked to see that she looked just as good. “Oh my god, hi” she said walking to me and hugging me tightly. By the time we break our hug, she takes a good look at me, I know what she’s doing, she used to do the same thing when I only got to see Dad a couple of times a year, she’s trying to see what changed

“honey, You look so good” She says with a laugh, hugging me one more time.

“You too” I say, being totally unable to hide my smile, I was so happy. “Now really, you look different” she says taking my hands and leading me to the bed, making me sit on it beside her “you died your hair?” she asked me. Finally, someone that noticed “I made it a bit lighter” I say, my cheeks totally blushed. “It looks really nice”  She says touching it a little. It was not much of a difference in my opinion, just a shade lighter than my already, no one really seemed to notice when I did, just my dad, Of course, who didn’t really understand why I did it. Aside from that, no one really noticed a thing.

“How was Canada?” I ask her when she is done looking at my (not so) new look.

“It was really great, the weather was nice, work was not so nice” she says, and with that there is a whole speech that goes off, she talks about the city, how she missed New York, how beautiful most places were but how she barely got any time to visit any of them or just to see the city. I love how lost she got in the conversation, saying so many things that barely got to answer anything, she was already answering all of the questions I could ask for. Oh man, I missed Pepper.

“Oh shoot, it’s getting late” She says looking at the clock in her right hand and getting up the bed. “I better get ready”

She walks to the big bathroom attached right beside the bedroom. “Date night, I’ve heard” I say walking right behind inside of the room, where she is looking at the mirror getting herself all ready for the night. “I’m just finishing getting ready, your father is waiting downstairs” she explains to me smiling through the mirror. She puts out a brush and a compact from the drawers, starting to get some makeup on her face  “How’s school?” she says, managing to start a conversation and get ready for her little reencounter with dad at the same time.

“Oh, school is great” I say taking a sit on the bathroom counter (even when I shouldn’t do that) and just watch her do her thing “Nothing really new about it” I shrug

“Wouldn’t really think of you as other than a good student” she winks at me and with a quick move she pinches my cheek. God damn, I’m blushing again.

I see her going around the room and getting already while talking and talking about all of the things she lived back on her long business trip, but all I could think about was her, not in a weird way of course, but just the way she looked tonight, doing her makeup being so elegant so classy, she was just like that all the time and I wondered if that’s what guys liked. Classiness at all time. It was no secret she could get any man she wanted in just a blink, that was just her, she is such a stunning woman and I wonder how she did that, sometimes I wished I just had that power over guys, but maybe that is just not my forte.

“Hey Pepper, Can I ask you something?” I say totally changing the topic of conversation. I knew I was in time to change my question to something better, but here I was, about to look dumb as hell. “Sure” she says with a smile, stopping what she was doing to look at me. “How do you talk to a guy?” I ask her to them feel my cheeks almost burn up immediately  “Without being awkard, you know?” I keep going before adding a quick “Just wondering”. she raises her eyebrows and smile at me widely, leaning on the counter with one arm and resting the other one on her waist. She suspects something. abort, brain, abort. Too late.

“Is there a reason for that question?” she asks in a weird tone that makes me cringe. “I’m just asking” I shrug, trying to make it seem totally normal.

She’s not convinced at all, but she knows me, fighting me to get some answers out was not an option, because she won’t get them out of me, not today.

“Well, you just talk to them like any other person I guess” she says seeing that I was not about answering any more questions about the reason of why I’m asking this “of course, you wouldn’t talk to them as personally as you would with any of your girlfriends, but relax and be you” she says going back to her makeup on the big mirror. “Also, asking questions about them it’s a good idea, you never want to talk too much about you, with anyone, really” she says with a chuckle. “Why are you asking?” She says again with a smile.

“No reason” I shake my head and get off the counter. I was not ready for the rest of the conversation, I would figure out later.

I look around all of the things she set on the table, there is this really nice red lipstick on the table, around a sea of other shades of lipstick. It looked perfect and very classy, I like it. I pick it up and look at it more closely, it’s so pretty, so so pretty.

“That’s a nice lipstick, you should wear it” I say screwing the lipstick completely off and looking at it more closely.

“You’re probably right, Thanks” she says nodding at me and taking it from my hands.

I watch her through the mirror as she puts it on, it just looked stunning, it complemented her look so well. I almost felt jealous, never in a million years I would pull off such a look and she looked so flawless in it, lucky her. I might be staring too much because when she is done applying her lipstick she looks at me and smiles. Yeah, I stared for a little too much  “you wanna try it on?” she asks me and I smile shyly. “Can I?” I ask, looking down a little. I have never put on red lipstick in my life, I always liked it, but putting in such a thing seemed to bold and eye-catching, being noticed was just not my thing. Weird, I know. “Yeah sit down” she says, and I do exactly what she says.

I sit on the top of the WC, and she squats just a little in front of me, making me look up to her. I open my mouth just a little and she delicately swaps the red lipstick on my lips. She is too careful with it, when she is done with it she makes me kiss the excess off on a paper towel and apparently now I am good to go. “You look so nice” she says walking to the counter and grabbing a hand mirror to reveal her masterpiece. Honestly, I like it, I really like it. Somehow it made me look really classy even when I was still in my uniform, but it totally gave my face a different look, I looked different. Damn. “Wow, I’ve never worn red lipstick before” I say, looking at my reflection on the mirror.

“You Should, it suits you” she says walking back to leave the lipstick back on its place. “not on a regular basis of course, but definitely, more often” she says correcting herself before saying something else. “You really look very pretty (Y/n)”

“Thanks, Pepper”

Not to sound like a narcissist, but at that moment I really liked what I was seeing, a different me, a nice me. Something I’ve Never been able to pull off and now we are here, and to be completely honest, I am really feeling myself with this. I am really enjoying feeling pretty.

That night I just couldn’t help but leave that lipstick on, just because I really wanted this to last, and when Dad and Pepper were already out the door and heading to their date night. I took advantage of the moment and decided to put on some more proper clothes and take Aries for another walk and get some pizza.

Unlike Yesterday, today the store had some clients and to my surprise, there was no Luke tonight, I didn’t know how to feel about it, maybe disappointed at first, since I was really expecting to see him here after all. It’s true, I saw him this morning and we had the most awkward conversation in the history of conversations, but I don’t know, I still wanted to see him.

I let the other weird guy that works there take my order anyways, not like I had any other option anyways.

I wait on one of the chairs as I wait for my order to come off and for my surprise, maybe the gods have for once heard my prayers, because the one and only Luke Hemmings come out that door with my order in hand a big smile on his face, just what I needed.

“Oh hi (Y/n)” He says with a bright smile, pointing down at the bag.

I answer very quietly and very shyly, I did not want to sound like he made me nervous, but he really did make me nervous, I need to control myself. “You look nice” he compliments me as I take my order in hand “my shift is ending early today, I was wondering if you wanted me to walk you to your place, I live right down that street anyways, I can keep you company” he offers me and my head goes all over the place.

Is he asking me to walk home with me?. Why?. This red lipstick must have some kind of power because this is just crazy. What is even happening. I smile to him and my cheeks blush, I can’t control it, I really can’t “That’s so sweet of you and listen I would say yes but the security guard is on my place tonight and he’s like kind of paranoid, I don’t think I’d wanna tease with that” I say, totally speaking the truth. On a regular date night, my dad would have the same paranoic guy to watch over me so I didn’t escape the building without permission. Which I don’t see why I would do that, but I get it. “but hey, I’ll tell you what, what if we walk tomorrow after school” I offer. Take in count I was not thinking this through, my mind is just speaking words and going crazy, I can’t think straight. “I like that idea” he says pointing at me and smiling  “tomorrow after school, it’s a date” he says, before laughing and shaking his head  “no, not really a date, you know what I mean” I laugh and shake my head. News flash, I am still freaking out “I do” I say, still somehow acting normal  “see you later then” “Have a good night” He says waving at me, and with that I just walk out that door.

I don’t know what just happened or what just came over me, but I did that.

Mayday, I just asked this guy out, what the hell do I do now?.

[gourmetbooty]

The One Where Kaneki Tries to Woo Tsukiyama and Nishiki Is Drunk

Here is my first fic! I was thinking about Tsukiyama’s birthday didn’t get any coverage in the story line, so I came up with this. For now I’ll post it here, then I’ll publish it on AO3 too when I’ll be able to open an account, which should be next week. Thank you if you read!!

Flipping through the pictures on her camera, Chie looked up at Tsukiyama, who was sitting on a couch opposite to her, reading a book

. “Next week’s your birthday. What’s it gonna be, 27, 28?”

 “I’m gonna be 25. Stop making me older than I am,” Tsukiyama scoffed, glancing up at his best friend.

 “Stop being so pouty. Are you gonna host a party or something?”

“No. There are too many things we need to take care of, and we can’t really afford to have a party right now, when we could die every moment.”

“Jeez, okay. Stop being so negative,” Chie rolled her eyes, going back to her photos. “But alright, whatever you want.”

 --- 

“Chie, what’s the group chat you created for?”

“I wanted to host a surprise party for Tsukiyama’s birthday next week. He said he doesn’t want to do anything, but it could be an excuse for him to let loose a little bit. The atmosphere here is too tense, you could go shopping with the bags under your eyes.”

“I don’t know… I mean, we are in the middle of a war, are you sure holding a birthday party is okay?”

“Oh come on, as if taking a few hours off is gonna get you all killed. It’s for your dear friend Tsukiyama, after all.”

“Hm… okay,” Kaneki nodded, tapping his chin as he began thinking. “Maybe we could have a little party. The headquarters are pretty big, there’s enough room for everyone, I think. Nothing too crazy, though.”

“I promise we will not blow up anything,” Chie nodded, before scurrying back in the hallways. She pulled her phone out, opened the group chat, and started typing.

 --- 

A week later, on March 3rd, in the evening, Tsukiyama was laying on his stomach on his bed, sheet mask on his face and kitten videos playing. Kaneki had told everyone they could take a night off and relax, and Tsukiyama had wasted no time in locking himself up in his private bathroom, take a nice, hot shower and start his skincare routine. He had been putting it off in the previous few weeks, and he couldn’t afford to do that anymore. His skin was screaming in agony.

He was going to stay on Youtube and update his new blog, then read a little and go to bed early. At least, that was what he had planned.

He heard someone knocking on his door and he sighed, pausing the video before going to open up. “Chie. I thought I had told you I wanted to relax tonight. Alone,” he raised an eyebrow.

“Kaneki ordered a special meeting and apologized, but said you guys can take the night off another time, because he has something important to say. Also, you’re spending your first Friday night as a 25-year-old alone and watching cat videos. That’s pretty depressione.”

“I wasn’t… fine, okay. Just… tell him I’ll be down in five minutes.”

“Make it twenty,” Chie interrupted him. “You need to do your make up. And you shouldn’t come to the meeting in you pajamas.”

“I… didn’t think I’d need makeup for a late meeting, but thanks for subtly telling me to cover up my eyebags. Always appreciated,” Shuu rolled his eyes.“You got it,” Chie winked, before turning around and walking away. “The eagle will be down in twenty minutes,” she sent a vocal message to the group chat.

“Alright. Everything’s re-Naki, put that stuff down. We’re gonna eat those later. Anyway, everything’s ready here,” Kaneki replied, gently pulling Naki’s hand away from the bowl full of eyeballs.“Food? Music? The present?” Chie asked.“Yeah, everything. We got coffee, blood, and blood wine, along with eyeballs, fingers and some… stuff… that I’d rather not talk about. Nishiki and Kurona are handling the music, and Banjou and me brought the present.”

“Perfect. I’ll see you in two minutes. I just gotta take a picture of this fly on a wall.”

 ---

Tsukiyama had done his make up, combed his hair and put on a pair of black, skinny slacks and a black button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and was now walking toward the main room, which strangely had the door closed. He tilted his head in confusion and knocked gently, and after a few moments of complete silence, he opened the door and walked inside.

Suddenly, all the lights were turned on and a bunch of people jumped out of their hiding spots, screaming in unison “Surprise!!”.Tsukiyama gasped in shock and took a step back, holding his chest with a hand. “What… what’s this?”

“It’s a surprise birthday party, dumbass,” Touka chuckled, crossing her arms. “Courtesy of your tiny friend and Kaneki.”

“Oh… you didn’t… oh my god, you didn’t have to! Thank you,” Shuu exclaimed, looking around the room and already feeling the corners of his eyes prickling. No one had ever done anything even remotely similar to this for him.

“I’m here because there’s free alcohol,” Nishiki joked, leaning against the wall.

“We wanted to do something for you, after everything you’ve done for Goat. You’re… basically running this place now,” Kaneki smiled, taking a step forward to get closer to Tsukiyama. “It’s the least we could do.”

“Thank you so much, I would’ve never expected it. Thank god Chie told me to put on make up and be a little decent, otherwise I would’ve come down in my pajamas,” Shuu laughed, quickly wiping a little tear that had fallen on his cheek.

“What are we waiting for? Turn up the music!” Hinami laughed, before grabbing a shocked Ayato’s hand and dragging him to the empty space in the middle of the room.

“Come on. You deserve to have a little fun,” Kaneki smiled, extending his hand. Tsukiyama gladly took it, and followed him.

 ---

 “I’m… I’m already feeling a little dizzy… I don’t think I can handle any more wine,” Tsukiyama groaned, his face burrowed in his arms and resting on the table.

“Dude, c’mon, it’s your birthday, get wasted!” Banjou hollered, pouring Tsukiyama another glass.“Maybe later… I need to rest a little,” the purple haired ghoul chuckled, turning around and looking at the dance floor, now that the song had just ended.

“And now, ladies and gentleman, a little throwback to almost ten years ago, because I am drunk and I loved this fucking song,” Nishiki announced, before choosing “Can I Have This Dance” from High School Musical 3.

“Oh my god, I can’t believe it,” Shuu laughed, shaking his head at the ridiculous choice, even though years before he had been a fan of those movies.Someone next to him cleared his throat, and he turned to see Kaneki standing at his right. “Uhm… sh-shall we?” Kaneki asked timidly, extending his hand toward Tsukiyama for the second time that night.

Shuu could feel his whole face burning and he was ready to throw up at any second, but he nodded vigorously and stood up, taking Kaneki’s hand and walking with him to the dance floor. Kaneki held Tsukiyama’s hand firmly and put his free one on his waist, pulling him closer and starting to sway slowly.

“…thank you for organizing all of this for me,” Tsukiyama said quietly, sneaking his arm around Kaneki’s neck and pretending not to be on the verge of passing out.

“No worries. You should thank Chie, she had the original idea. I... I only helped with the organization, and the present,” Kaneki shrugged, blushing lightly.“Oh my god, there’s a present too? You shouldn’t have, my dear,” Shuu smiled, shaking his head. He let Kaneki’s hand go and wrapped both of his arms around his neck, and Kaneki took it as a clue to put both his hands on Shuu’s whist.

“Shut up and accept it,” he chuckled, looking up at him fondly.“Anything for you, my King,” Tsukiyama murmured, starting to absentmindedly play with the hair at the base of Kaneki’s neck.Kaneki leaned in closer and closer, until he could feel the tip of their noses brushing gently against each other. He was so close to Tsukiyama, it would only take a couple more inches to… 

“Let’s open the present!” Nishiki exclaimed, and Kaneki and Tsukiyama abruptly pulled away from each other, both of their faces as red as tomatoes. 

There’s a special place in hell for animals like you, Tsukiyama thought, gritting his teeth.

 “Oh. Yes. Uhm… right. It’s in the other room. But first, you need to put this on and let me guide you,” Kaneki said, pulling a piece of cloth from his pocket and tying it around Tsukiyama’s eyes.

“Kinky,” Touka snickered, which earned her a shocked look form Kaneki and a loud laugh from Banjou. Thank God Tsukiyama hadn’t heard that.Shuu was led to the next room, where his blindfold was taken off. In front of him there stood a beautiful white piano wrapped in a huge red bow, so shiny he could reflect his face on it.

“We decided to do it all together,” Kaneki said.“Yeah, but it was Kaneki’s idea. He knows all about you, and how much you like to play the piano,” a drunk Nishiki intervened, before leaning closer to Kaneki to whisper in his ear. “You’ll thank me later when you’ll be making him scream you name,” he wiggled his eyebrows and patted his shoulder, while Kaneki could only stare at him, mildli concerned.

“This is… so beautiful,” Tsukiyama murmured, walking up to the piano and gently running his fingers on the keys, before pressing down on one.“Thank you so much, guys, to all of you. For the party and the piano too,” he smiled, silently praying not to start crying in that exact moment, because his eyeliner wasn’t waterproof and it would be embarrassing.

“No worries. Now let’s go back to the party, I wanna see Ayato try to drink wine for the first time,” Touka laughed, followed by an angry “I’m not a kid, I can handle alcohol!” from Ayato. They started walking back toward the other room but Kaneki grabbed Tsukiyama’s wrist to prevent him from going. 

“Actually… can we stay here for a moment, please?” he asked, and Tsukiyama swallowed thickly and nodded, turning to face him. “I… had another thing to give you. It’s nothing special, but… I dunno, I figured it might be something… nice. You can also not wear it if you don’t like it, it’s okay,” Kaneki added quickly, fishing a light blue-green box from his back pocket and handing it to Tsukiyama.

Oh my god it’s from Tiffany&Co., please let it be a wedding ring, Tsukiyama thought, taking the box with slightly shaky hands and prying it open, gasping quietly when he saw what was inside. It was a thin silver bracelet, a small charm in form of a heart hanging from it with the trademark Tiffany symbol engraved on it.

“Oh my god, Kaneki… i-it’s too much, you… it’s so pretty…” Shuu whispered, gently tracing the bracelet with the tip of his finger.“It’s… it’s nothing special,” Kaneki laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. “Chie told me you liked Tiffany and I thought I could get you something. To thank you of all the hard work you’re doing for us.” 

After staring at him for a few seconds, Tsukiyama suddenly wrapped his arms tightly around Kaneki’s neck and tugged him impossibly close, burrowing his face in his shoulder and closing his eyes. “Thank you. It’s perfect, I love it,” he mumbled, feeling his heart stop for a moment as Kaneki hugged him back, whispering, “It’s no problem.”

They stayed like that for a few moments, before pulling away. Tsukiyama opened the box and Kaneki took the bracelet out, unclipping it and putting it around Shuu’s wrist. “It fits nice, doesn’t it?” he smiled, admiring how the silver bracelet shined slightly and softly caressing the back of Tsukiyama’s hand. “I swear I’ll never take it off. Except for when we spar or actually fight, I wouldn’t want to accidentally break it or lose it,” Tsukiyama said, looking up at Kaneki.

The half ghoul hesitated for a second, before cupping Shuu’s face with a hand and kissing his cheek firmly, still holding his hand with his other one. 

“Happy birthday, Shuu. Now, are you ready to go back to the party?”

“Ready. Can’t wait to see you choke on wine.”

“Hey, I’m not like Ayato, I can actually drink it without coughing! At least it won’t take me two glasses to get drunk, unlike someone here.”

“...I’ll forgive you only because you gave me this bracelet.”

“You’d forgive me anyway.”

“Oh, shut up.” 

Kaneki laughed at Shuu’s response and put the now empty box back in his pocket before they walked together to the other room. Their fingers were still laced together, and didn’t show any sign of wanting to let go soon.

[kazosa]

Get Over Yourself

Get Over Yourself

John Winchester x Reader

Word Count: 2331

Warnings: Language, fluffy

Summary: Reader wonders what it would be like to be with John. John and Reader catch a glimpse of what could be.

A/N: Just a fun little story inspired by another I read earlier this week. Hope you like!

         You felt like such a cliché. Falling, and falling hard, for your instructor was one of the oldest clichés in the book, too. Smitten damn kitten, no less. You weren’t so naïve to think you two could possibly have a relationship, but the idea certainly did appeal to you. You really liked him a lot, despite he being so stoic and grumpy all the time. What you’d like to know is if you could just have a one-time wild night of sex with him. The relationship could come later, or not at all. You wondered if he ever thought about you the same way. It was hard to tell with his stone-face, but you were pretty sure you’d caught him watching you, more than once.      You both had gone to breakfast at the diner across the street from your hotel. You sat studying him from your side of the booth. You’d finished your pancakes and strawberries and John was working on his 900th cup of coffee.      The waitress, who you nicknamed ‘Alice,’ though her tag said Delores, came up to the table with the bill. She laid it on the table right in the middle.

     “Sure hope you two don’t plan on goin’ nowhere today,” she began. She nodded out the window where the snow was now falling like a waterfall. “It ain’t gonna stop, ‘n’ it’ll only get worse. Tourists get in accidents all the time up here.”      John cast a quick glance at you then back at the waitress.      “Thanks, sweetheart,” he says, his expression unchanging.      He was getting uncomfortable under your scrutinizing gaze.     “What?! What are you thinking?!” he burst out.      What you’d wanted to say was, “what it’d be like to have a night of hot sex with you,” but you decided against that. Instead you fiddled with the unique, handmade necklace you’d lifted the day before. John had been pissed when he found out, especially since you did it right under his nose.      What you actually say is, “I think we should stay.”      After all, the hotel did have room service and a bar and a bunch of nice amenities that you hadn’t gotten the chance to use yet. All you and John had done was sleep there, it just didn’t seem right to leave without trying them.      “We don’t have the money to stay at the hotel another night,” he says in his low voice. “We’re going.”      You were not about to give up the perfect opportunity. “How about I work my feminine wiles on the desk clerk, maybe get an upgrade?” you suggest.      “Not everybody falls for your bullshit, Slick,” he says taking a drink of his coffee.      “Yes, they do. I get free shit all the time. Care to make it interesting?” you ask.      He sat back in the booth eyeing you carefully. He wanted to pick something good.      “If I’m right, you drive for a month and clean the weapons for two months, no bitching,” he says.      You think about what he suggested. He knew you hated driving his truck, but it also meant you’d finally get to pick the music for a change. Interesting choice, Winchester. Maybe you really are sweet on me, you thought.      “If I win,” you say, “I want you to finally start opening up to me. We’ve been hunting for almost a year, and I feel like I should know you better. What makes you cry? What makes you happy? What’s your favorite fucking color? Fucking plaid?” you’d gotten a little loud at this point. It was like pulling teeth to get him to divulge anything.      For a second or two, you thought you saw the corners of his mouth twitch like he might smile. You longed to make him smile, ‘cause when he did, it was like a ray of sunshine through a dark cloud.      He took another drink of his coffee, “Awfully confident. Fine, I pick the clerk for you to charm though.”      You smile, “So, are we agreed on terms?” John nods. “Shall we stroll?” John nods again and you throw some money on the table, a generous tip for ‘Alice’ and you two slide out of your booth to head back to your hotel.

     Once back inside the hotel, you are glad you’d left ‘Alice’ a good tip. It was nasty outside and there is already a ton of accumulation on the ground. You and John hang back in the lobby to scope out the clerks’ desk. John’s eye falls on a woman who looks like she almost made another employee cry.      “That one,” he indicates the woman with an upward nod.      You give “the girls” a boost before you start walking to the desk and John scoffs at your efforts.      “You underestimate this,” you say doing a funny little wiggle for John, to show you meant your body, and you don’t miss a step as you spin back around.

     At the counter, you get the attention of Erica.      “Hi,” you say in a drawn-out way. You lean in and speak in a conspiratorial way. “Do you see that ruggedly handsome, tall drink of water behind me?”      Immediately, Erica is intrigued. Of course she’d noticed him right away, the definition of tall, dark and handsome had just walked into her lobby.

     “Who is he?” she asks.      You shrug. “I was hoping you could help me with that. I don’t really know how to explain it, but he’s been too scared to make a move on me and I really want him to ‘cause, Jesus, look at him.”     Erica looks over your shoulder at John again and you can see the pink creep into her cheeks.      “Right?” you say to her.      Erica nods. “What’s your room number?”      You tell her and she gets to work on her computer. She takes a few moments to go through several pages of information. “I can’t upgrade you, per se…      However, your room is booked this afternoon, and if you want to stay here, I’ll have to ‘force’ you into another room,” she says with a sly wink. “The room you’ll be in just got cancelled.”      “Oh God, please tell me it’s the honeymoon suite!” you say excited.      Erica grins broadly. She slides a room key across the counter. “Top floor, down the hall to the end. The Martins just cancelled their non-refundable room and amenities. It’d be a shame if it went to waste.” She looks at John again, “Damn, honey… Congratulations Mrs. Martin! We’ll have someone collect your belongings and bring them by later.”      You thank Erica profusely and head back to John.

     “I believe now is when you need to start spilling your guts… and eating crow,” you say.      “Are you shitting me?” he asks disbelieving his bad luck, again.      You shake your head ‘no.’      “Upgrade?” he asks, still hoping to get out of the bet.      “Of course! Let’s go check it out,” you say tucking your arm into his. He gives you a questioning look. “Oh, we’re married now. We’re Mr. & Mrs. Martin. Look happy, dear.”      “No one’s gonna believe you and I are married,” he said as you walked to the elevator.      Your normally high self-esteem took a hit on that comment.      “Why the hell not? Think you’re too good for me?” you hiss.      “God, no,” he sighed heavily. This bet was going to break him. “Because you’re too young and pretty for an old, used up hunter like me.”      “That is bullshit if I ever heard it,” you stop him. “In the almost year I have known you, have I ever once said anything about how old you are? Haven’t I always treated you as I would someone my age?” you looked up into his stoic face. “I have no idea how old you are and I don’t give a shit. I’m an adult, I do what I want. You ought to know that by now. As for used up, you look damn good to me.”       The elevator doors open and you step inside with him, still holding his arm to you. You both settle against the back rail as the doors close.      “You can drop the act, we’re in the elevator now,” he says.      “We’re married 5 minutes and already this is how you treat me,” you say, faking your hurt feelings. You let go of his arm and taking his hand instead. “Who says it’s an act?” you say looking up into his hard eyes that seem to soften a little.      “You’re a strange girl, (Y|N),” he says and you feel his fingers tighten around yours.      “I’m a strange woman and you like it,” you say nudging him.      You could tell by his voice that he was trying to sound annoyed.      “You think I like your constant antics, thievery and smart mouth,” he said.      “If you didn’t like me, at least a little bit, you would have kicked me to the curb a long-ass time ago,” you say plainly as if this were common knowledge.      He just stares down at you in disbelief. Disbelief at how this strange woman had become so much a part of his life, how he loved hearing her opinion of damn near anything. “Ask me something,” he says in barely a whisper.     You look up into his eyes again, “Do you really think I’m pretty?”      People looked at you all the time, but you just assumed it was because of your odd-ball behavior, or because your hair was sometimes purple. You actually did wonder if you were attractive to men or not.      He leaned on the rail to meet your gaze. “No,” he said softly, “I think you’re beautiful.”     The elevator doors opened on your floor and you were still staring into his eyes.     There was a sound of someone clearing their throat that finally pulled your attention away from John. There was an elderly couple standing there waiting patiently for you to step out of the elevator. You pull John’s hand and him out of the elevator making your apologies to the couple as you pass by. As you passed them, a strange feeling came over you, like you should know them somehow.      “Son,” the old man called after John.      John stops and you with him. He turns you both back to the couple.      “Yes sir?” John says.      You look at the two men talking and the lady who was standing to the side of her older husband. The elderly man was only slightly shorter than John, and John is a tall man. Despite his age, the man is still quite handsome. The lady was watching her husband with loving eyes and she was holding her husband’s hand much the way you were holding John’s. The man had on comfy shoes, jeans and a button-down plaid shirt. The woman was also in comfy shoes, though slightly more stylish than her husband’s, jeans and a cute shirt. The woman looked really happy and you were admiring her jewelry. You tried to angle yourself so you could see her necklace.      “Son, do yourself a favor, quit fighting it,” the old man said. John was about to say something, but he raised his hand in a way that was so familiar to you. “You know you love her even though she drives you crazy, that’s part of why you love her and she loves you back. She loves you the way you are and that’s what’s important, so get over yourself,” he finishes. “And lighten up, will ya? Semper Fi, Marine.”      Just as the elderly couple were about to step in the elevator, the woman thumbs out her necklace and holds it up against her hand as she passes by. She winked at you with your own mischievous grin. She waggles the fingers on the hand holding up the necklace and you see it’s the one you had boosted only yesterday. Your hand immediately goes to the pendant around your own neck and you feel it’s weight against your skin.      At this point, you weren’t sure who was squeezing who’s hand harder.      “NO WAY THAT JUST HAPPENED!” you loud whisper.      Poor John was still trying to grasp what had just happened.      “Did you know them? They seemed to know who we are, didn’t they?” he was perplexed. “How’d he know I’m a Marine?”      “I think we’ll know them in about forty years as soon as you can accept what he said is true,” you say.     He finally looks at you with a questioning look on his face.      “You know you love me. How could you not? You think I don’t see you watching me, but I do. I know I’m awesome, you know I’m awesome, but so are you. John, you’re amazing. And those all too rare moments when your guard is down, that’s when I love you most. Apart from you, I’m just the crazy woman. And you, you’re so stoic, you could be on Mt Rushmore. We’re better together,” you tell him.      “That was us in forty years?” he questions while pointing at the elevator.      “It could be if you’d quit being so stubborn and make a move already,” you say.      His eyes meet yours. The hardness is gone. He leans over and puts his hands on your waist, his mouth dangerously close. One hand slips around your waist and down into your back pocket. His eyes bore into you like hot lava. He put the key card in his mouth and the next thing you know, he’s swept you up into his arms.      You let out a squeal in surprise and throw your arms around his neck, not completely unaware of finally feeling his body pressed to yours, his strong body… When you’d recovered, you touch his cheek with your right hand and kissed the cheek closest to you before taking the key card out of his mouth.      “You’re not the only one who can be wild,” he said walking you toward the door that had a “Honeymoon Suite” plaque on the door.      “God, I hope not!” you say.      He leans down so you can key the door and pull the lever. John pushes the door open with his foot.      “Happy honeymoon Mr. Winchester,” you say, throwing your arm back around his shoulder.      He stepped through the door with you still in his arms.      “Happy honeymoon Mrs.Winchester,” he says smiling.      “I like the sound of that,” you said.      He grinned at you then kissed you, the door closing silently behind.

[adventuresaroundasia]

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info. 

Pin Me!

It’s been quite a while since I’ve done the Freedom Life monthly recaps, but I decided it’s finally time to get back into it! That said, I may or may not have started writing this post with the intent of it just being a July monthly recap and then… got too busy to finish it. Story of my life…

So anyway, here’s what I was up to this summer living in Tbilisi, Georgia!

On the way to Kazbegi!

What I Was Up To This Summer

Over the last two months, I’ve been very busy! Firstly, Chris and I took a quick weekend trip to Kazbegi along the Georgia Military Highway!

In addition to that small trip, I attended a baby shower, prevented my cat from dying via surgery, rescued a NEW kitten, launched a new website with Chris, and more!

**For those of you who are concerned about me traveling during COVID-times, the Republic of Georgia handled the pandemic very well (we only had 17 deaths TOTAL) and things are really starting to open up. We did have a very strict mask protocol at the hotel though, and we specifically went to the countryside where we could explore with almost no people.

Where I Went in July

Tbilisi, Georgia

Mtskheta, Georgia

Pasanauri, Georgia

Kazbegi, Georgia

Sno, Georgia

Gudauri, Georgia

Gergeti Trinity Church is lit up behind me!

Highlights

Here are the best moments from July and August!

A Quick Trip to Kazbegi

After being cooped up in a small apartment for months and months, Chris and I were so excited to finally get out and see a bit more of Georgia. Unfortunately for us, we only had about 2 months to enjoy Georgia before lockdown, so aside from a quick wine tasting day trip, we really hadn’t seen much of the country!

Now that things are (almost) back to normal here, we decided to head to Kazbegi in the mountains near the Russian border. The lack of tourism has been really hard for all of these beautiful mountain towns, so it was nice to be able to provide some business while enjoying the fresh (and chilly) mountain air.

We booked a heavily discounted room at Rooms Hotel Kazbegi, which is one of the nicest local hotel chains in Georgia. It was so nice to take a few days away, and enjoy the beautiful view of the mountains and Gergeti Trinity Church.

Honestly, I think Kazbegi is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to in my life.

The Russia Georgia Friendship Monument!

Driving the Georgian Military Highway

Driving to and from Kazbegi was an adventure in and of itself! We hired an awesome driver named Timo from GoTrip.ge, who not only stopped at all the major sights along the Georgian Military Highway, he also suggested additional stops and activities for us!

On the way to Kazbegi, we had the opportunity to visit Mtskheta to see the beautiful Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in town and the Jvari Monastery which sits up on a hill giving you an incredible view of the entire town.

We also stopped at the famous Ananuri Fortress, Pasanauri for their amazing khinkali dumplings, Sakuriani to drink mineral water from a natural spring just off the highway, an area just off the highway with “sticky rocks” you could climb up without slipping despite the slight waterfall, and of course, the Russia-Georgia Friendship Monument, which we had completely to ourselves!

On the way back a few days later, we stopped at Sno to see the famous carved head sculptures of Georgian poets, and we even got to take an hour-long cable car through the mountains to Gudauri! We really thought the cable car would be closed considering no one was there, but they let us ride which was such a fun surprise! That said, it was super weird to ride a cable car for an hour and see NO ONE.

Honestly, the trip to and from Kazbegi is amazing, and I’ll have to write a blog post about it soon!

Fruit Baby!

Attending my First Baby Shower

This July was my first experience attending a baby shower! Two of our friends are having a baby literally any day now, so it was very fun to be able to celebrate with them!

We played baby-themed trivia, ate tons of great food, and there was even a gender-reveal with cupcakes! I also loved being able to shop for a few cute baby things as a gift!

Chris and I Launched Multiple Nerdgasms

Over the last two months, Chris and I launched a brand new blog together: Multiple Nerdgasms! This is a site where we can talk about one of our other loves: Dungeons and Dragons. (Yes, we’re both giant nerds).

Chris has been DM’ing D&D games for 24 years (seriously), and I started playing a few years ago. While I used to play once every two weeks, during lockdown, I got involved in three different online D&D games!!

Chris and I thought it would be interesting to write about D&D from the perspective of both the player and the DM, as well as exploring both a male and female perspective. I’ve already written a few posts for the site, and set up social media accounts. I can’t wait to keep writing more!

Surprisingly, the very first post I wrote about gender equality and D&D actually got a lot of traction! People were sharing it on Twitter in women’s D&D groups, and many people reached out to me with their own stories of sexism in D&D. I even inspired a few men I know to create strong female characters.

it’s hard to get a good picture of him

I Rescued a Kitten

So at the end of August (aka last week), I may or may not have rescued ANOTHER cat. After coming home from a nice dinner out, Chris and I stepped out of the taxi and were immediately accosted by a 2-month-old kitten who wouldn’t stop meowing at us.

He looked fairly healthy, so we thought that there was a possibility he belonged to someone in the area, especially considering the fact that he kept running up to people, looking for help/food.

We were originally going to leave him because we didn’t want to take someone’s cat, and even if he was a stray, Georgia has a ton of street cats and kittens that do very well. We even waited for a solid 40-minutes just to see if we could find a mother or owner, but no one came for him.

But on the way home, this little kitten decided to follow us, almost getting hit by two different cars in the process! Worried that he wasn’t going to survive on his own outside, we decided to take him home until we could figure out where he belongs.

After a visit to the vet the next day, we learned that he is definitely a street kitten, but doesn’t have great street-smarts and was relying on people for food and attention. Now he’s happily at home with us and is probably the most loving kitten I’ve ever met in my life. So… welcome to the family?

Yasmina relaxing after her surgery

Challenges

This summer wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Here’s what didn’t go so well…

My Cat Almost Died

If you didn’t already know, I’ve been fostering a cat named Yasmina for a few months now. She’s also a street rescue and has a ton of medical problems. At the beginning of the summer, Yasmina started to go really downhill. She was having a lot of trouble pooping, barely ate, slept constantly, and appeared to be in immense pain.

I kept taking her to the vet, who gave her IV treatments and lots of medicine, but she wasn’t getting any better. We even gave her an enema to try and clear out her bowels! (She hated it).

While my vet seemed great (and refused to take any money for any of these treatments?!!), she also didn’t speak English very well and couldn’t really take the time to fully explain to me what was wrong with Yasmina. I kept offering to pay her (seriously, she’s a saint), hoping she would give me more time, but even the paying clients were extremely rushed in this very busy clinic. I started feeling like it might be worth my time to go to a different vet that comes highly recommended from other expats in Tbilisi.

So after not hearing back from the original vet for a few days, and getting very worried about Yasmina not making it, I had Chris take her into the Veterinary Clinic at Georgia Agriculture University. Apparently, Yasmina is 8-10 years old NOT 2-3 like a vet originally told the girl who rescued her, and her biggest problem is not her kidneys, but the fact that she had a solid kilo of poop stuck in her intestine! She needed to undergo emergency surgery IMMEDIATELY and there was only a 50-50 shot she’d make it due to her age and medical problems.

On hearing this, I contacted the company I work for remotely and asked to have my remaining shift covered while I raced to get to the hospital to be there for her surgery. The entire surgery I was so nervous I felt sick! But thankfully she’s such a strong girl, she came out of surgery just fine, and has completely recovered!

I had to give her a lot of medicine, and take her in for IVs every day (and this vet clinic is NOT nearby my house…). I also have to feed her Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Wet food in 4 small servings a day which is not cheap.. but it’s a small price to pay for my fluffy baby!

As of now, Yasmina is a completely different cat. She’s constantly playing with toys, and went from barely ever making a sound to becoming an extremely talkative little lady. A little too talkative to be honest… 

At least I have khinkali

My Course Launch Didn’t Go As Planned

As many of you know, I have an online course and coaching program called Teach Abroad Squad that helps people to be successful teaching abroad in China!

Understandably, this year has not been great for my business. With the Chinese borders closed and no end to COVID in sight, it’s been a tough year for me.

That said, I did have a very successful launch of my program in April! I had my highest grossing launch yet, and had a bunch of really awesome people join the program. I’ve been working with a business coach who has really helped me through the entire thing (from positioning for the pandemic to dealing with my many mindset issues about selling during this time).

So after that successful launch in April, I decided to do another one in July! I made the free webinar training even longer and better, and had just as many people sign up as I did in April. However, no one joined the program, despite many people seeming interested.

Honestly, this is not really something I wanted to be open about, because I felt really ashamed of the results. I have this fear that if I talk about the struggles I’ve had with my program this year, people will think Teach Abroad Squad isn’t a success and they won’t want to join.

But deep down, I know Teach Abroad Squad is an incredible course, and I have full confidence in it. It’s really just the current situation that’s made things very hard.

Back in April, people still had a lot of hope that the borders would be open by now. So investing in Teach Abroad Squad was a no-brainer! But now with the pandemic raging in many countries like the US with no end in sight, I have the feeling that many people are choosing to hold off until things become more stable.

That said, it doesn’t make my July launch any less disappointing! I put a ton of time and work into promoting Teach Abroad Squad, and sometimes it’s hard not to equate your business to your own self-worth. It’s definitely something I’m working on!

This failed launch has definitely given me the time and perspective to look at potentially creating a second program I’m really proud of, with a different topic that’s more relevant right now.

While I still love and fully support Teach Abroad Squad (I mean, we do live Q&A’s weekly and monthly Zoom Coaching Calls!), it might make the most sense for me to stop pushing it for the moment and focus some energy on a new topic. Now, just to figure out what that topic will be…

For those of you who are interested in Teach Abroad Squad, I’ve decided to put a hold on webinars and big promotions for now. So if you want to join, I’m leaving the cart wide open for you! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions! 

Drinking cocktails with social distancing in Kazbegi

Work Overload: Course Launch, Freelancing, and Interviewing!

Most of July and parts of August were EXTREMELY stressful for me. Earlier in the summer, I started a new part-time job interviewing Chinese students for their college admissions applications, which has been a great source of extra income, but also takes up a lot of the time I used to use to work on my blog and Teach Abroad Squad.

I also have a position working as a social media manager for my business coach Merilyn! Yes, I joined her Lead Your World program, and then she ended up hiring me a few months later to do Social Media! (I help run her Facebook Page and Facebook Group!)

Trying to do these two jobs, and run a launch for Teach Abroad Squad, while also running my cat to the vet 30 minutes outside of town DAILY… is a giant recipe for burnout.

I ended up having major pain in my jaw that’s only just now calming down. But wow, I really overloaded myself these last two months… hence, why this blog post never got published and it’s a 2-month recap!

Georgian bread and cheese on the balcony for brunch!

Major Payment Plan Issues

To make financial matters worse, I had a few people in my program ask me to postpone their payment plan payments by a month due to financial issues. While I wouldn’t normally allow this, I know COVID has been super rough for everyone, so I allowed the payments to be pushed back by a month and followed the instructions from MemberPress to put their payment plans on pause.

IT WAS A DISASTER.

Not only did the system charge them anyway, but it also created a second subscription for them when I turned their access back on, meaning it charged them TWICE the next month. WTF!

Unfortunately for me, MemberPress only does tech support via email (seriously! It’s a paid service!), and my tech support person literally had no idea what I did wrong when I sent them screenshots of my system. They eventually had to get more advanced tech support in the backend of my website to try and fix the problem. It was a complete nightmare and I’m still mad.

Look at them not killing each other!

Trying to Introduce My New Kitten

While I’ve loved having my new kitten Mordie, my older cat Yasmina has NOT been happy. We’ve had to keep Mordie in the bathroom while Yasmina gets accustomed to him, and then we bring him into the bedroom to hang out for large chunks during the day and evening.

I know this is normal, but we have a very small apartment, and keeping them separate has been hard!

Not to mention, Yasmina was pissed at ME for bringing him home. She’d even smell his scent on my hand and growl at me. One day Mordie escaped into the living room and she was so mad she slapped me in the face! She also completely refused to come in the bedroom because it smelled like him, and hissed at me the one time I brought her in there.

Finally, after a week she’s starting to come around. They even napped next to each other on the bed today and she only hissed at him if he tried to come within a foot of her. Baby steps!

Here’s a Georgian tomato and cucumber salad with walnut paste

The USA is a Giant Mess

I could write an entire post on this, but this summer has really showcased that the US has some big problems they need to fix. Firstly the way we’ve handled the pandemic is absolutely ridiculous (and this is coming from someone who lives in a country that locked down hard and only had 17 deaths nationally). Then on top of this, the police brutality and reactions towards the BLM movement is horrifying.

While I’m glad I’m in Georgia right now, there is definitely a part of me that wishes I was in the US so I could participate in the BLM protests to demand racial equality, police accountability, and justice for the many victims of police violence and racism.

I’ve been trying to do my part to help, and have the difficult conversations with the few people in my newsfeed (and on my Adventures Around Asia page!!) who just DON’T get it. While I would typically just block these people for my sanity, I’ve realized that this isn’t productive. But wow, is it EXHAUSTING to talk with people who refuse to recognize their own biases, and will literally never change their minds.

But every time I feel like I just want to walk away, I remember that many people don’t have the privilege to do so. I think many of us have felt exhausted, hurt, and angry these last few months, and I really hope the protests (and upcoming election) create some positive change for our country.

Hello Tbilisi!

Blog Posts I’ve Written Lately

Here are the blog posts I wrote and guest posts I published on Adventures Around Asia since my last major life update/recap!

Fun Fact: I’m a Huge Nerd

What It’s Like to Teach in China as a Black Woman (Guest Post)

Moving to China With Kids: Teaching Abroad With the Whole Family (Guest Post)

I’ve also written two blog posts for Multiple Nerdgasms!

Why I Always Play Female Characters in D&D

Tragic Backstories: 10 Subtle Traumas for Your D&D Backstory

Travel Product of the Month

This month I want to give a shoutout to my amazing Teva W Ysidro Sandals that have gotten me through the summer. Not only are these things super cute and go with pretty much every outfit, but they’re also SO comfortable and supportive. They even have extra cushioning on the ball and heel of the shoe!

I had a pair a few years ago that I literally wore to death, which is why I was so excited to get these for Christmas! Now that the weather is warm I can finally wear them.

This cat tried to eat our food for the entire meal.

What I’m Reading Now: Wisdom of the Enneagram

If you didn’t know, I’m more than a little obsessed with the Enneagram, a personality categorization and self-help tool. The Wisdom of the Enneagram is considered by many to be the “Enneagram Bible” and the book that you really need to read if you want to learn the Enneagram in-depth.

While I’ve owned Wisdom of the Enneagram for quite a while now and had read through most of it, I decided to start reading through from the beginning again now that I have a better understanding of the Enneagram. I’m also taking notes and highlighting important info!

I honestly feel like I’m back in college again and I don’t even mind. It’s always fun to learn something new!

Best Instagram Post

I took this one from the balcony door of my room at Rooms Hotel Kazbegi! Man, the view here is so amazing…

  View this post on Instagram

  A post shared by Richelle (@adventuresaroundasia) on Jul 25, 2020 at 4:24am PDT

What I’m Up to in September

To be honest, I don’t have any big plans for September, but there are a few things that I want you all to keep me accountable on!

Firstly, I plan to start writing a blog post EVERY WEEK on Adventures Around Asia. I know, right? I’ve been so horrible about writing since the pandemic started because I just haven’t felt the passion for travel right now (and neither does anyone else…).

My plan is to write every week about something I’m passionate about, whether or not it has anything to do with travel. To be honest, most of what I’ll say will at least be tangentially related to my life traveling and living abroad (because that’s my life!), but I’m not pressuring myself to write travel articles and teach abroad posts right now when I just really don’t feel inspired.

I hope you all enjoy my passion-led blog posts this autumn and keep me accountable if I haven’t posted anything in over a week!!

The Freedom Life: July + August 2020 This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.  It's been quite a while since I've done the…

[howtobeacrazycatlady]

The Real World...

It’s been another bonkers week.  A Board meeting scheduled for Thursday and a high-profile workshop coming up means a whole bunch of running around and sorting various bits for both events.  

Monday was flat-out, but Tuesday found a whole new level of intense.  By the time I stumbled out the office with a headache and sore shoulders, I was a little gozzy-eyed.  It was going to be a looooong week.

I hurried to the station wondering what joys Thameslink would have in store for us this evening.

My phone buzzes with a message.  I don’t usually answer when I’m dashing to the station but it’s Marie.  Have I got a moment to chat?  

For my foster-crew….always.

Marie wonders if I’ve heard of the little cat that’s been spotted hanging around the local supermarket and skate park?  Nope, not heard anything.  Turns out she’d had at least 3 people mention it to her and she’d nipped along to see what she could do.  A pretty little tortie, friendly but wary and looking a bit rough as well as a little runny around the nose.  Marie took along a carrier to try catch her – with the intention of getting her checked over by a vet and scanned for a chip.  

And that, she explains, is when she ran into Crazy Cat Guy.

To cut the long story of Crazy Cat Guy short, he hangs around the local supermarket.  He looks like a rough sleeper and he’s mentioned ‘pitching his tent’ a few times.  I first met him through Oscar, effectively, when Osc was a stray living in the bushes of the supermarket.  Richard feeds any cats that wander by and he was furious at me for catching Osc and taking him in. Richard’s feeling is that cats should be allowed to live free and ‘naturally’ ….neutering is ‘not up to humans to decide for the cat’ and they should be left alone to ‘enjoy their families together. Like lions.’  Er…OK, Richard. Trying to talk to him is often pointless but I keep chatting to him, largely to find out about any other waifs and strays that might need rescuing.  

So Marie ends up having the same conversation with Richard and going around and around.  Marie patiently explaining that she wants to get the cat to safety then get it checked by a vet and scan for a chip. Richard going on about him feeding it and it being no one else’s business but his and wishing people would leave the cats alone.

Marie clears off with the intention of returning when Richard isn’t around.

I say to Marie that I’ll let her know if Richard has disappeared as I pass by the supermarket on the way home.

He hasn’t.  And he’s agitated when I approach, going on about everyone bothering the little cat that he’s been feeding and he’s looking after it and folk need to leave it alone.  

I’m feigning complete ignorance about the little cat when suddenly I spot a young lass heading towards us with a carrier.  Ohmygoodness – EVERYONE knows about this cat and is trying to catch it!

A somewhat heated discussion ensues between Richard, the young gal and myself about getting the cat to safety.  During which time, Marie drives by!  She was planning another go at catching the cat.  Surreptitious gesturing from me has Marie not stopping but slowly turning around and driving away.  While the back and forth with Richard and the young lady (it won’t ruin the narrative if I cut to calling her by her name – Eve) is going, on I slink off with “Oooh, I’ll just see if I can find the little cat” and sidled off to the car park to chat to Marie.  

I assure her that Eve has a carrier and seems pretty damn determined to catch the cat regardless of what Richard thinks.  Marie is pleased but says she’ll head back first thing in the morning to try again in case Eve hasn’t managed to catch the tortie.  She heads off and I get back to Eve and Richard and do my best to try, once again, to make Richard understand that the life of a stray or feral cat is horrible.  It’s short; it’s rough; it’s repeated pregnancies until too weak to fend for itself, it’s constant fighting for survival – against illness, against other cats, animals and for every scrap of food it can find.  I’m also really keen to ensure Richard doesn’t turn aggressive with Eve.  She’s a tiny wee thing – feisty, but tiny!

Out the corner of my eye, I spot a lady and her daughter crossing the road from the park.  She has a cat in her arms.  

“Blimey,” I say, “This is just the most blummin’ popular cat in Flitwick EVER!” and point out the lady to Richard and Eve.  

Eve suddenly turns into Usain and BOLTS towards the woman and the cat.  A full-on sprint after the woman, carrier bouncing about and all.

A furious Richard starts to follow.  He’s got a bad leg so he’s only able to walk after them.

Eve manages to catch up with the lady and convince her to hand the tortie over. By this point, the cat is wriggling wildly so the lady happily agrees.  The little tortie is safe in the carrier.  

Richard is agitated but starts to back down in the face of, now, 4 people saying the animal needs to see a vet and be checked out.  Eve promises again and again to keep Richard up to date.  Richard starts to look like he’s heading back to the supermarket and I figure Eve is safe with the lady and her daughter so time to head home.  

My step is light and my mood high.  All the stress of a crazy day at work completely erased.  I burst through the door and greet Freya and Mimi enthusiastically “Oooh, ladies, you wouldn’t BELIEVE what’s just gone on….but the little cat is SAFE!  She’s SAFE, girls!!”  I quickly send Marie a text and let her know the young lady has successfully rescued the tortie and will take her to the vet the following day.  I resolve to track her down via the tattoo and piercing studio t-shirt she’s wearing and try not to come across as too much of a weirdo in order to get an update and, if needed, to offer the tortie a foster space with our branch.

Sean’s round that evening. I’m totally animated, waving my arms around telling him the whole story.  Tired?  What tired??

Wednesday goes into overdrive and there’s not a moment to spare to email or even call Eve via her workplace.  Another long day, I more or less slide out of the building.  All the excitement of Tuesday night buried under a to-do list spinning around inside my skull.  I get home and try to get some dinner standing in the kitchen whilst checking various Board members onto their flights for Thursday evening. Board meeting is now locked and loaded.

I get a text from Marie. Eve has posted a ‘found’ of the little cat and is keen to find a shelter space.  Would I mind getting in touch with Eve as we’d already been chatting? I was all over it like a bad rash. Messaged Eve and after several messages back and forth we’ve got ‘Tammy’ scheduled for dropping off at Marie’s on Thursday evening.

I happy dance all over the kitchen and around the front room.  Freya follows curiously; Mimi is hoping there’s a scrunchie-throwing-session in it for her.  

Thursday - blissfully working from home as it means I can get an early start on the to-do list and it’s clearing nicely.  A brief interruption of getting the total drama-queen that is Oscar over to the vet for his annual MOT.  And then straight back into planning for the workshop.  The Board Meeting is going ahead without a hitch so now there’s everything else to catch up with – including a goodly couple of hours of the Billing Team and me trying to out-passive-aggressive each other on email. I lose.

I send a text to Alison hoping to catch up on various admin things I want to check with her.  But, in the Real World, Alison is spending her afternoon rescuing a stray from Marsh Farm in Luton.  List of admin questions can wait.  “Is he OK?!”  Yes, the 4-month old kitten is now fine – dusty and full of fleas and ticks.  But safe.

Billing can go to hell. In the Real World, all that matters is that the kitten is FINE.

6.30pm - I’m keeping an eye on Board Member flights departing on time. Minor delays but so far, so good.  Whoop!  I make a start on some of the fostering admin that needs sorting. Diarising the chip and neuters for the kittens that have come through the branch.  Updating chip details.  Drafting an email on the next batch of rehomed cats and rabbits that’ll need their post adoption follow up.

7.30 - Eve collects me and we head over to Marie’s to settle Tammy The Tortie into her new luxury digs. The new pens have only just been signed off by the inspector.  They’re LUSH. It’s always lovely catching up with Marie and Eve is just terrific.  Between that, cooing over little Tammy and introducing Eve to Marie’s other two fosters, it was 9pm before I got home.

So, jam in feeding my furry crew, watering the garden, replenishing the fish pond and giving it a much-needed treatment.  Watching, transfixed, the little toad that’s moved in – so cute! Feeding the Night Creatures.  Having a good old play with Mimi who’s been cooped up all day because Oscar is home on the couch with the vapours after the ordeal of being in the cat carrier.  It’s well after 11pm before I get round to pulling my dinner together.

I sit on the couch eating way more than I should do and I ponder the frenetic Friday scheduled for the office – it’s do-able. Pah, it’s a walk in the park.  I’m back in my Real World.  My furries are all home and safe and two cats have been rescued this week. In my Real World, those little cats are sleeping soundly tonight and I’m doing what I hoped to start doing a couple of years back – I’m making a difference.  It might be small….but it’s a difference.  I’m knackered and I’m aware I’m about to doze off on the couch…again….and utterly happy in my Real World.