#I had just got back from greece and didn't want to fucking do it again

[vivwritesfics]

hiii!!! if you can can you please make a fanfic like (sorry for my bad explaining) basically a fluff fic with oscar piastri and y/n where they meet at like the streets of paris or something romantic like that? (you can give it any ending you want lols)

one of my best friends is from paris and we talk about how it's not the romantic place we all fantasize it to be. but i got you boo

Paris, France:

The hotel was awful, just awful. But that was what she got she got for booking her holiday on a budget.

The bed must have had bedbugs. She saw one review online (after she had checked in) that suggested it. And, ever since, she could feel the little fuckers crawling all over her skin.

If the bathroom wasn't down the hall, she would have been throwing up from anxiety. But, instead, she shut her eyes and tried to fall asleep.

And then her neighbours started shagging. Like, bed hitting the wall behind her kind of shagging. Holy shit, she needed to get out of here.

Grabbing her jacket and placing her valuables into her pockets, she headed out of the hotel.

The streets of Paris were a little bit terrifying in the dark. If one of her friends had just done with her, they could have gotten a nicer hotel and she wouldn't have been terrified to walk the streets in the dark. She shouldn't have been out there, she knew, but it was either have a panic attack on the disgusting floor of the hotel room or get out for some fresh air.

It was like there were eyes on her all the time she was walking. She pulled her jacket closer to her body and walked a little faster. Her eyes were trained on the floor as she pretty much marched down the streets of Paris.

Her body collided with somebody else. "Shit," she cried as this persons arms wrapped around her, stopping her from falling.

"Are you okay?" He asked, voice not accompanied by a French accent. "Sorry, I should have been looking at where I was going." He shook his head, floppy, Prince-Charming-from-Shrek hair falling in front of his face.

"It's okay," she said, tightening her grip on the things in her pocket.

He released her. "I'm Oscar," he said, holding out his hand.

She didn't take it, but she did smile at him. "Nice to meet you, Oscar," she replied, not giving her own name.

It was almost like a game, on the streets of Paris. Oscar twisted his wrist and looked at his watch. "Where are you headed? Do you need me to walk you there?"

The red flag in the back of her head was taking a long ass time to raise. "I'm good," she said, because he was still a stranger on the streets of Paris. She began to walk past him. "It really was nice to meet you, Oscar," she said and began walking again.

Santorini, Greece:

The view from her balcony was so fucking pretty. The glittering ocean, the pale sand, the gorgeous architecture. It was a far cry from Paris.

Even on a budget she'd managed somewhere nice. A lot nicer than that hotel room in Paris. Here she felt safe. She left her valuable things in her hotel room (in the safe) and went out to dinner.

It was so damn peaceful. This was the getaway she needed, not those few nights in Paris. This was fucking bliss.

But then he showed up. She was in a little beach front restaurant, having a drink when he came walking past. What did he say his name was? Oscar? What the hell was he doing in Greece?

Her initial reaction was to think he had been followed. But the way he was looking at her, all confused before that look of familiarity crossed his face, it was all so genuine.

"Are you following me?" He asked it in such a teasing way, she immediately knew he wasn't serious.

She kicked out the chair in front of her. "Come have a drink with me, Oscar."

He obeyed and sat himself in the seat opposite her. Almost immediately a waiter came over to take his drink order. As soon as the waiter was gone, she was staring at him. "So, tell me about yourself, Oscar."

"Aren't you gonna tell me your name?" He asked as she sipped her drink.

She thought about it for a moment. "Tell you what, tell me about yourself, and I'll tell you my name."

He held out his hand, and this time she took it. "Deal."

Italy:

Italy had never been on her list of destinations. She didn't understand why not, because it was gorgeous.

But seeing the sights was such a small part of it. She walked behind Oscar, Oscar Piastri the Formula One driver, as he led her through the paddock.

"This can't be real," she said for the fourteenth time since they'd climbed out of the car.

Oscar laughed at her. "It's real," he assured her as he took her to the McLaren garage. He stopped for a second and gave her a minute to step closer and take his hand.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me you were a race car driver," she said as she squeezed his hand. It wasn't a comforting squeeze, but it had Oscar laughing, again.

"I did," he insisted.

"Yeah, after we'd had four cocktails!"

He led her through the garage, to his drivers room. "Okay, okay. How can I make it up to you?"

He shut the door behind him and she stepped closer. "Hmm," she said and pushed his hair out of his face. "Take me back to Paris?"

"Paris?"

She hummed.

"Okay," he answered, still holding her hand. "I'll take you back to Paris."

[dont-offend-the-bees]

Though We're Strangers 'Til Now

And now for something completely different! Now I want you guys to do me a favour here, and I need you to picture this fic as having like, a BBC Saturday night family show budget. I’m specifically talking Atlantis, but if you’ve not seen Atlantis (like most people), think Merlin. I wrote Edwin and Charles’ voices entirely as I’d write them in canon-verse, with nearly no regard to the fact I was transplanting them into ancient Greece, so it’s VERY important to me that you embrace the Camp. This is a styrofoam dungeon. Charles is about to meet his destiny in a labyrinth that’s just a quarry in Wales. The historical outfits all have zips up the back. Get on board with the vibe. This one goes out to @every-moment-a-different-sound, who not only made me aware of Painland week as a thing but also approached me for a collab! Go check out their FUCKING GORGEOUS GIFS for this fic!!! This fic quite literally wouldn’t exist without them, Robin you fuckin' rule 💛 4.7k, T-rated, also available on Ao3. Thanks again, @painlandweek!

The dungeon was a proper dingy place. Charles wondered if that's where they got the name from. Dingy, dungeon. Too similar to be a coincidence, right?

Lying on his back on the hard wood pallet, head on his hands, he stared at the pale moonlight bleeding through the window. 'Window' was being a bit generous; it was more of a slit in the wall. Narrow, barred, so high he could've stood on tiptoes and barely brushed it with his fingertips. But at least it was big enough to let in that light. He supposed he was lucky. Between the sliver of moonlight and the sputtering candle in the hallway past the wall of bars, he was bloody spoiled. He didn't know exactly where they were sending him tomorrow, but he had a pretty strong hunch that it would be dark. The kind of dark that drove men mad. Maybe the madness would get him before the bloody great beast in the tunnels got the chance.

Seemed a bit off, really. Putting him in the dingy dungeon when he bloody volunteered for this. Maybe they thought he'd change his mind and leg it in the night. Any half-sensible person would, wouldn't they? No one had ever given Charles an earful for having common sense, though. Usually the opposite.

No running away for him, that's for sure. He was bedded down for the night, just him and a handful of snoring cellmates. Despite the panic and crying, the six other lads had managed to drift into some kind of sleep, however uneasy. Not Charles, though. Too much on his mind. The stupid idea that brought him here in the first place. The near certainty that he'd fail, in the end, and he’d have no one but himself to blame for his bloody demise.

Wasn’t all bleak thoughts, though. After all, there was always him.

The prince.

He closed his eyes, letting it all play out in his head again. Stepping off the boat, being 'greeted' (shackled and marched to the dungeons) by the 'welcoming committee’ (royal guard). Him and thirteen other boys and girls, thanked like heroes and handled like criminals. The king in all his fancy regalia, booming his solemn gratitude to the brave youths for their sacrifice — as if any one of them but Charles had any choice in it. And standing there, at the king's back...

Look, Charles may have had more important things to think about, but he knew a fit lad when he saw one.

Fit didn't even cover it. The boy was just about the most gorgeous thing Charles had ever seen — or ever would see. Unless he spotted a prettier one before he died tomorrow, that is. Bit unlikely.

There was just something about him, the prince. Charles wasn't even into the posh sort, generally. Like with the more well-to-do lads from his own town — something about the baked-in entitlement soured them. Made them ugly, even if they were objectively alright looking. He could smile politely and play nice, but he’d sooner kiss a frog than a rich merchant’s kid. And a prince was a pretty big step up from a merchant's son, wasn't he? By rights he ought to be even worse. Charles probably didn't even register as a human to him. He wasn’t worth wasting a thought on.

Except Charles could still picture him perfectly, in his head. He could play out the whole welcome start to finish. How Charles' heart, all shrivelled in fear, had jumpstarted soon as he clapped eyes on the prince.

"Charles..."

He'd had dark hair all perfectly combed into an inky shine, almost prettier than the gold crown on top of it. Eyes like sea glass, clear and green and shining with a cunning light; eyes that had scanned the line of offerings and landed on Charles. Fixed him with such an intense, curious scrutiny he'd actually felt himself blush.

Hadn't Charles seen him somewhere before? That chin, that nose, those high cheekbones? He could've sworn he'd walked past him at a temple somewhere, carved from pristine marble. He could see him so clearly in his mind's eye, surely he must've known him all his life.

"Charles...?"

If he concentrated, really concentrated, he could even hear his voice...

"Charles Rowland!"

Blimey, that was scary. That sounded real.

Charles blinked his eyes open and frowned. He let his head flop to the side and looked across the cell, where the stone wall gave way to bars.

There, framed by iron and flickering candlelight, there he stood. Pretty as a picture — baffling as a dream.

Charles sat up, slow, cautious. He almost said something proper stupid, like 'what's a nice boy like you doing in a dungeon like this?'

"Um," he fumbled. "Evenin'?"

Mm. Not much better, really, was it?

"Evening, your highness?" he corrected himself, with a wince. Gods, his old man would've walloped him good and proper for talking to a royal like that.

Prince Edwin, however, didn't sneer or snap or even walk away. It was hard to see his face, at a distance in the gloom, but he almost looked amused. Charles thought he could see the barest shadow of a lifted lip, anyway.

"Good evening," said the prince. He said it so quiet, barely above a whisper, but his crisp tone carried regardless. He cocked his head slightly and beckoned with a finger. "Might I have a word?"

Charles glanced behind himself. Just on the off-chance there was another Charles Rowland he didn't know about squeezed onto the narrow bed with him. There wasn't, obviously, and he was a good few feet from any of his sleeping cellmates. No mistaking who the prince was after. He swallowed, stood up, and crept across the uneven flagstones, stepping over the sprawled legs of another boy.

As he neared, as the situation sank in and the prince came into focus, a new bundle of nerves started kicking off. Nothing like the anxious dread that had been stewing in his gut all night, the 'oh, gods, they're feeding me to a monster in the morning' nerves. No, this was different. More familiar but also, weirdly, worse than the monster dread. Fuck, but this lad was gorgeous. Not even the dungeon gloom could hide it. He was almost blinding to look at — and now those clever eyes were fixed right on Charles, no one else. Nowhere to hide. Fuck, Charles probably had sweat and cellar grime all over his face, and all!

Charles came to a standstill, toes almost touching the bars. Up close, he could see that him and the prince were about the same height. Edwin might've had the advantage by an inch or so, but maybe that was just his perfect posture. Spine straight and shoulders back, he regarded Charles with his head curiously cocked and his hands steepled. For a royal, he wasn't dressed all that flashy. Hadn't gone in for any jewellery besides the gilded circlet on his head. And under the blue silk chlamys clasped at his shoulder, his chiton was a simple white, clean and sharp and draped neatly to knee length. Expensive, pristine, put-together, but not exactly ostentatious. Mind you, that's just the sliver of outfit that Charles could see — because the prince had topped the whole thing off with a thick, practical brown cloak. A peacock disguised as a pigeon.

After a moment's quiet contemplation, the prince finally spoke. "I'm told you volunteered," he said. He kept his voice down, but it stayed crisp and clear. Highborn through-and-through. Probably wasn't even capable of mumbling.

Charles supposed it was a bit unusual, but unusual enough to bring a prince skulking down to the dungeons? He reckoned he was right about Edwin's eyes, that cleverness in them — he wasn't just a pretty face under a crown. He wanted to know things. He was staring at Charles like he wanted to pick him apart, understand him.

"Yeah," Charles answered. He forced a grin. "Not my best idea."

The prince blinked and leaned a little closer, intrigued. "Why in the world would you volunteer for this?"

His attention was sort of a lot — but it felt... good. Charles wanted to keep it. Hold onto it. He wanted this clever, gorgeous lad to think he was the most fascinating thing in the room.

Charles shrugged. "I can fight. I can take a hit. Seemed like the right thing to do. The decent thing, yeah?"

Edwin narrowed his eyes. "You’d forfeit your life to... give the beast a fight for its food?"

Charles shifted on his feet. "Not... exactly."

The prince watched him, all expectant. Charles sighed.

"Years it's been going on," he said, barely a mumble — Edwin leaned a little closer still to listen. "Lads and lasses being packed off, fed to that thing to keep it happy. Not right, is it? And I thought, well..."

He'd thought a lot of things. He'd thought well, he was already getting the shit beaten out of him every other day, so what's a little mauling on top of it? He'd thought about being his father's son, with his father's temper, and how maybe that could be a good thing for once. He'd thought about how things could change for him if he came back — and about who would even miss him if he didn't. He'd thought of all those kids less deserving than him, sent miles from home to be ripped to shreds. Sent away from bright futures and families that loved them. Gentle types who'd never hurt a fly. Kids who'd never learned to take a beating. Kids who didn't have the anger to keep them alive. Kids who weren't monster enough to survive the real thing.

"I thought, well, I'm pretty good in a scrap," he said, brightly, plastering on a smile. "Pretty stubborn. Thought if I went down there, maybe I could..."

"Could what?"

Charles raised his eyebrows.

Edwin looked at him blankly.

Charles rolled his eyes, held up one hand, and punched his fist into it twice.

Edwin's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. "You mean to... slay the minotaur?"

"Told you it wasn't my best idea," said Charles.

"You have a talent for understatement," said Edwin, a sharp hiss. His voice had quickened and thinned into a hushed, incredulous patter. "I'd go so far as to describe that idea as fatuous, hubristic, and downright suicidal!"

Charles snorted. "Yeah. Sounds about right." He leaned his shoulder against the bars, brought his face closer to the prince's — which was such a brilliant idea it immediately gave him a really, really bad one. So bad it was impossible to resist.

He gave him a lax, lopsided grin — the one that he could bring out back home to make the girls giggle. "Be good if it worked, though, wouldn't it?"

Coming onto a bloody prince like he was some blushing farm lad... well, it probably wasn't a worse idea than throwing himself into a minotaur's labyrinth, but it probably wasn't much better, either. But what did it matter? They couldn't punish him, could they — they were already feeding him to a monster in the morning. What did he have to lose? Why not take a crack at the handsome prince with the pretty eyes? Sod it, it was his last night on Earth.

Edwin, to Charles' immense glee, actually seemed to get a little pink in the face. His eyes darted away and back again. "Yes, well..." He cleared his throat and straightened his cloak with a sharp tug of the front. "Have you a plan? Tactics? A weapon, at the very least?"

"Um. Well. No, not really." He dropped his fist on the bars once, twice, mulling it over. "But, I have been told my smile's pretty disarming!"

If his clumsy flirting hadn't been enough to break through the regal composure, that would've done it. Edwin's mouth dropped open a little, his brows drawing close together as he stared at Charles in abject disbelief. "Dear gods," he said, voice light and brittle. "You're doomed."

Charles chuckled, resting his forehead against the bars. "Yeah. Suppose so. Won't go down without a fight though, eh?"

He looked up through his eyelashes and found Edwin still staring, lips parted just a bit. Fuck, he had nice lips. Kissable. Charles reckoned he’d miss kissing when he was dead. What was the sentence for stealing a kiss from a prince — was it worse than death by minotaur? He might be willing to risk it.

Edwin tore his gaze away and glanced down the hall, first one way, then the other. Furtive. He seemed to come to some kind of decision. "Charles," he whispered. "Are your cellmates all asleep?"

Pulse quickening, Charles forced his eyes away from the prettiest person in the room to have a glance at the others. Everyone looked the same as they had before. Same chorus of snores and soft breaths and muttered, whimpered nightmares. "Yeah. Yeah, I reckon so."

"Right. Excellent." Edwin cleared his throat again and crowded closer to the bars.

Charles' heart was racing. He couldn't lean any closer to the bars than he already was but he wanted to. He didn't mean to, but he bit his lip, eyes flickering down to Edwin's mouth.

Edwin took another wary glance behind him, and tugged his cloak back. He reached inside. His hand closed around something under his arm and drew it out — something long and wrapped in leather.

Charles caught his breath.

"Take it," Edwin ordered, holding the hilt of the sword to the bars and looking Charles in the eye. "Quickly, and quietly."

Charles didn't need telling twice. He grabbed it, his fingers grazing Edwin's. Gods, he even had beautiful hands. Smooth on the back but a bit calloused on the pads. Didn't escape Charles' notice that the blade, though heavy, seemed to be a familiar weight in his hands.

"Cheers, mate," Charles breathed, drawing the cumbersome thing through the gap. If he was careful, he reckoned he could stash it under his thin cloak without anyone knowing.

He hadn't meant to call the gorgeous boy (who also happened to be fucking royalty) mate, but if Edwin was offended he didn't show it. In fact he ducked his head in a bashful little dip. It was so endearing Charles had to do another quick pros-and-cons list in his head about the risks of snogging him through the bars.

"Well," said Edwin, a forced lightness in his tone. "If you must embark upon this fool's errand, you must have the proper equipment."

Charles let out a ragged breath. "Thank you," he said, sincere, as he slid the scabbard through his belt. He laughed a little, rubbing the back of his head. "To be honest, I've... I've never been more scared in my life."

Edwin's shrewd gaze softened. His whole face did. It actually bowled Charles over a little bit, the difference. He felt like he ought to look away, like he was seeing something he shouldn't. A prince shouldn't be looking at him like that. Not him. Like he was something special. Something he was in awe of. "I can only imagine."

Charles bit his lip. "Less scared, now," he said, fidgeting with the hilt of the sword. Even though he felt a bit like he'd been flayed open and laid at the prince's feet, he still managed a wink. "Reckon I'll show that big bugger what's what with this thing, don't you?"

The prince’s eyes twinkled over his small, indulgent smile. "Oddly enough... yes. I believe you just might." He seemed to catch himself, a pretty blush high on his cheeks as he schooled his expression back into something a bit more lofty. "And quite a feather in your cap it will be. That beast has been a thorn in my father's side for years, holding the kingdom to ransom."

Edwin's gaze flickered over Charles, head to toe, and the pretty blush deepened. "If you were to end its reign of terror, you'd be more than deserving of a handsome reward."

"Oh, yeah?" said Charles. If he sounded breathless, it's 'cause he was. "What sort of reward?"

He felt dazed. He must've been dreaming. Five minutes ago he was accepting his fate, and now he'd been brought a fighting chance. By a gorgeous prince. Who was fucking flirting with him. They must've knocked his head on the bars when they shoved him in the cell — he was probably lying in the corner, drooling and babbling.

Edwin's eyes were restless, darting from Charles' face to his feet. His throat bobbed around a dry swallow. He looked too real to be a dream — but also too good to be true. His hand lifted, fingers resting on an iron bar between them.

"Well," he said, sounding pretty bloody breathless himself. "You could take your pick."

If this wasn't a dream, it was definitely a trick. Some rich kid teasing him, waiting to pull away at the last second and laugh at him for being so easy to string along. Or waiting for an excuse to run to his daddy and bag Charles a fate worse than death for getting fresh with him.

Except for whatever reason, he didn't believe that. Couldn't. For some reason, he trusted Edwin. Felt like he knew him. Like he'd always known him. And he knew he was kind. Not necessarily nice, but kind. For whatever reason he knew Edwin wasn't the sort to mess around with someone's feelings — or pretend to be interested when he wasn't.

Why he'd be interested in Charles of all people was another thing, but... sod it. Charles was probably gonna die tomorrow, anyway. Why not pretend it was possible for a minute? What the fuck did he have to lose?

Feeling once again like the undisputed king of bad decisions, Charles took a breath, and put his hand on top of Edwin's. He almost couldn't believe his luck when Edwin didn't pull away. His hand was soft — like the little gasp he let out when their skin touched.

Swallowing past his dry mouth, Charles laced their fingers. He let them lay there, woven on the bars; the warp and weft of it felt so right he wondered how they hadn't been doing this for years. How'd he gone this long, not realising how empty his hands were without Edwin's tangled up inside them?

He looked at Edwin's face and saw all his own thoughts reflected. Saw Edwin staring at their hands like they were a bloody marvel. Like the last piece of a puzzle had clicked into place. His face was so open, so alive — so gently amazed and Charles had never wanted to kiss someone more in his life.

Charles laughed, quiet, awed. "Handsome prize, alright."

That earned him another quick, coy duck of Edwin's head — but Charles could see him preening clear as day. "Be sure you're alive to claim it," he said, soft and serious. He squeezed Charles' hand once before breaking the hold.

Charles sketched a lazy salute to distract his hand from how empty it felt. "No dying. Right-o."

Edwin smiled. A proper smile; a quick flash of teeth breaking through his tight-lipped, regal composure. Charles would've fought the bloody titans to get another glimpse of it.

"You are... odd," said Edwin, matter-of-factly. "And quite mad, I suspect."

"...Cheers?"

Humming, Edwin reached into his cloak once more. "There is just one other thing..."

He brought out something small from a pouch at his waist. Something round, with a leather cord threaded through the middle and tied off in a loop. Edwin held it aloft, thumb and forefinger pinched through the handle. The little round something glowed silky gold in the candlelight, and Charles squinted at it.

"...String?" he asked.

Edwin nodded, reaching into the cell to take Charles' hand and draw it through the bars. His touch lingered as he placed the generous clew of fine, shimmering string in Charles' palm.

"I had the idea that if you were to unspool it behind you, perhaps you might be able to navigate the labyrinth with greater ease." Head bowed, he looked at Charles through his lashes. Pretty, fluttering things they were, charcoal black. "So that when you slay the beast, you might find your way back."

Charles gawped at him. "Mate. That's proper smart."

Edwin preened again — actually, he preened more than he had when Charles' complimented his looks. Handy to know. "Yes, I thought it rather a sensible idea. I spun it myself; I’ve been experimenting with the tensile strengths of different fibres. It shan’t break."

Charles grinned, closing his hand around the clew — and Edwin's fingers, too. "Brains and beauty, eh?" he said. "Where've you been all my life?"

Edwin went pinker, his eyes twinkled. Warmer than the candlelight, brighter than the moon.

Charles would have to offer up a prayer tonight to any god who might be listening. He'd do anything, give them anything, if they only promised to get him through tomorrow alive. He needed at least a thousand more days ahead of him, just to spend finding more and ingenious ways of making this boy smile at him.

Soon, too soon, Edwin sighed, reluctantly extricating his hand from Charles'. "I must go," he said, apologetic. "Questions will be asked if I'm discovered down here in the dead of night."

"Yeah. Yeah, 'course." Charles let his hand fall to his side, clenching it around the thread — still warm from Edwin's hand. He laughed, softly. "Well, um. Thanks for... dropping in?"

"And thank you for your discretion," said Edwin, raising his eyebrows as he drew his cloak back around him. "I'm sure I need not impress upon you the fact that I was never here."

Charles mimed locking his lips and throwing away the key.

"Good. Very good." Edwin shifted his weight between his feet a moment, finger lifting, mouth opening as if he had more to say. But whatever it was, he thought better of it. He drew his hands into fists in front of him, pressed together knuckle to knuckle, and offered a tight smile instead. "Well... best of luck, Charles Rowland. I truly hope you find fortune on your side."

With a stiff bob of his head, he turned fluidly on his heel to walk away. And it hit Charles again, hard, right between the eyes. The possibility that tomorrow could be his last day alive. A few minutes ago, the idea hadn't bothered him much.

Fuck. It bothered him, now.

"Edwin," he said, almost losing control of his volume as desperation sunk its hooks into him. He grabbed the bars, white-knuckled. "Edwin, wait —"

And he did. He waited, his back to Charles, his posture so, so perfect. Still as a statue.

Charles swallowed. "Can..."

Edwin turned his head, just slightly.

Charles' courage abandoned him. He huffed, shaking his head. "Nah. Nothing."

Of course, if there's one thing Charles knew about Edwin by now, it was that he couldn't resist a mystery. He turned to face Charles, eyes bright and curious. "Is there something else you require?"

Charles forced a smile. "You've already given me two gifts, mate. Bit greedy to ask for another one, yeah?"

"Perhaps." Edwin paused, and took a cautious step closer. "But, between ourselves... I can see little harm in the asking."

Charles' grin bloomed into something more sincere, something real. "No standing on ceremony, eh?"

Edwin's eyes crinkled at the corners. "I hardly see the point. I think perhaps you and I might dispense with formalities."

"Right."

Well then. Why not? Last night on Earth, and all that.

Charles ducked his head, laughing softly at himself. "Well. I was gonna be a bit cheeky, actually. Ask you to gimme a kiss for luck. But I reckon that's a bit — mmf!"

Quick, quicker than Charles could've imagined, Edwin was right there; reaching through the bars, taking Charles' face in his hands, and pulling him into a bruising kiss.They were lucky neither of them broke their noses against the iron strips.

Charles startled, gasped, so blindsided he didn't even know what to do with his hands — so he ended up just sort of clinging onto the bars. But soon enough his eyes fluttered closed, his breath rushed out of him and he melted. He kept his grip on the bars, though, holding on tight just to keep his knees from buckling. Edwin's lips were soft, and hotter than fire. His kiss was clumsy and overeager and not even slightly what Charles would've expected from someone so elegant, so refined. But he tasted of honey and home and Charles could've got lost in him, happily. Charles felt like he'd been shoved against the wall and plundered, in the best possible way. He felt like Edwin was everywhere, filling his senses. Hard not to feel wrapped up in him, with the way Edwin had his hands cupped round Charles' face, covetous and claiming. Like Charles belonged to him.

Fuck, maybe he did. Maybe he always had.

Edwin broke the kiss, but he didn't let Charles go. Just pulled back a little, still framing Charles' face with his fingers. His eyes were dark, hooded, his pretty eyelashes fluttering as he stroked Charles' cheek with his thumb. Face flushed, breathing hot and fast, gazing at Charles like he could devour him with his eyes. Charles shivered under the possessive weight of his gaze. He felt seen, admired, treasured. He felt owned.

He wanted more. More, more, until he suffocated under it.

Edwin took a shuddering inhale. "Come back to me," he said. And just because his voice was high and wavering with feeling didn't make it any less commanding. It wasn't a request; it was an order.

Charles nodded, in a daze. "I will," he promised.

He was as surprised as anyone to find he actually meant it.

Edwin nodded, and pulled him in close once more. Quick as you like, for just one more kiss — this one dry and fleeting, almost chaste. Bit of a departure from the one before, but somehow all the more devastating. Charles could feel Edwin's palms against his jaw, pressing so tight they ought to bruise. He hoped they would. A sword and a string weren't enough; he wanted everything Edwin could give him. Every tangible reminder that this was real, wasn't just a mad dream.

When that kiss broke, so did Edwin's hold. When he stepped away, he went all the way. And with one last lingering, longing look, he was gone, fading into the night. A mirage. A ghost.

And like a broken amphora, Charles remained right where Edwin had left him. Off-kilter, rooted to the spot. His outer shell shattered; his insides pooling at his feet for all to see.

~

It would be a sombre morning, just as the others had been. A familiar and predictable tragedy; as it always was, and always shall be.

At dawn's early light, just as they always had, seven young men and seven young women would be led — marched, bullied, carried — to the mouth of the labyrinth. There, the trembling gathering would be ushered into the embrace of the earth and stone. Pushed by the merciless hands of a royal guard, who'd long learned to look past the blood upon them.

But on this occasion, quite without the guards' knowledge, one youth would hang back from the crowd. From his cloak he would draw a small token, round and bright like a golden apple. A ball of fine yarn — spun in strong, beautiful fibres by strong, beautiful hands. He would find the end of the thread and fasten it, tightly, to an old iron ring within the threshold.

Then, with the clew unspooling from his fingers, painting a trail behind him like a steady drip of molten gold, he would walk into the jaws of death. Not with fear, not even with resignation, but with purpose. He was no hapless sacrifice, no tragic victim. He was a youth who'd grown accustomed to treading lightly through the dark, lest the monster in his house leap from the shadows. A youth with steel in his hand, and his own monster in his belly; a monstrous rage, and monstrous desire. A hunger to rival that of the minotaur’s.

A youth with a promise to keep in the dark; and a path waiting to lead him back to the light.

~~

A ball of thread is known as a clew or, in an alternative spelling, a clue. To this day, we talk about following the ‘clues’ to discover something, and it’s all thanks to the story of Theseus and Ariadne’s thread. — things I didn’t even know when I came up with this idea but make me insane… everything is connected… detective boys forever… Thanks for reading guys! You know I adore your comments 💛 and don't forget to give Robin's amazing gifs some love as well! Dunno if I'll get anything posted tomorrow, but if I do it'll either be something much shorter or maybe some sketches. I will defo see you for another fic on day 4, though! Any encouragement very much welcomed, it's been a rough couple of weeks💛 Painland Week Prompt List

[kydrogendragon]

Sandmanniversary Day 1: Uniforms

Words: 1.3k

Pairing: Dreamling

Rating: Explicit

Ao3 Link Here

Hob smiles through the sweat and dirt on his face. They may have lost but the thrill of such a tight match was a win in itself. And as the hooker for the Greek team walks towards him with burning intent, Hob expects this day is going to get even better.

Dream, as fans lovingly call him, steps into his space just off the sidelines. Fucking hell, he's even prettier this close. Hob's sad he only got to get his hands on the man in a tackle once.

"You played valiantly," Dream says with a voice like honey, sweet and slow.

"Yeah?"

"Mm. I'm impressed. I only wish we would be able to play against one another again."

His heart skips a beat. Dream was complimenting him?

"I'm always down for a re-match. Maybe we can get our boys to play again. Just...not at the Olympics, obviously."

"Perhaps," Dream replies with a smirk. "Though, until them, keep these as a promise. You can return them when we play next." His eyes narrow, pinning Hob in place. He watches as deft fingers hook themselves into the waistband of his shorts and begins sliding them down. Hob's eyes widen.

There, in front of all the stands and their teams, Dream Ateleíōtes takes off his fucking shorts. Granted, these damn things are short as it is but now Hob can see every inch of those pale thighs. Lean, but dense muscle tenses underneath and Hob wants nothing more than to sink his teeth into the meat of them.

White fabric is dangled in front of his eyes. Hob blinks, focusing back on something other than the temptation that is Dream's lower half.

"Well? Will you not give me your?"

"Mine?" Hob squeaks. Dream's lip twitches upward.

"Yes, Hob Gadling. Your shorts. Will you not give me yours?"

Hob's sliding his own shorts down before his brain can even catch up. Fuck, he's thankful he didn't slip his an underwear down too while he was at it. He clambers out of his shorts, the fabric catching against his shoes. He nearly trips and falls on his arse trying to get out of the damn thing.

Dream chuckles as Hob holds out his own pair in offering. Those long pale fingers—fuck, what would they feel like inside of him?—pluck Hob's own navy blue shorts from his hand as he tosses the white and blue fabric at Hob. It lands on his face as he scrambles to grab them while he tries not to groan out loud. Fabric that had been pressed tightly against Dream's body—against his arse, against his dick—was now on his face.

As he pulls the shorts down and into his hands, Dream finishes pulling the navy blue up over his legs. He winks and saunters back over to his team.

He stares dumbfoundedly at the over-enunciated sway of Dream's hips as he walks that he doesn't realize he's still technically standing in the fields with no shorts on until Marc slaps him on the back.

"Well that was something," Marc laughs. "You planning on putting them clothes back on or you just rocking the tighty-whitey look for the rest of the day?"

"Fuck," Hob hisses as he scrambles to put the shorts—Dream's shorts—on. He can hear the crowd cheering in the stands, probably both from Greece's win as well as the impromptu show they got from him and Dream.

Marc just laughs at his side. "Right, well, come on then! Coach wants a word in the locker room before we're dismissed."

The shorts were tight. Well, not too tight but Dream was visibly narrower than Hob and that reflected in how each step he takes makes the fabric ride up his arse. The fact that he's half hard isn't doing him any favors.

He sighs as he closes the door to his room, toeing his shoes off in the process. Thankfully, Ed wasn't here yet—off catching some tail, Hob guesses—so he takes the time to enjoy the relative silence. He sheds his shirt, groaning as the cool air hits his skin. Paris is so much more humid than London. The air practically sticks to him and his clothes.

He flops onto his bed with a sigh. As uncomfortable as they are, it's far better than standing. Hob stares up at the ceiling of the room that's been his for this past week and can't help as his mind wanders back to raven hair and blue eyes. He huffs. Dream Ateleíotes, a legend in his own right. And he had the chance to play against him. And he's wearing his shorts! His hand wanders down, thumbing the slightly too tight waistband. The white and blue colors are bright against his skin. He wishes he'd paid more attention to how Dream looked in his colors.

Hob's hand moves down slowly, the palm of his hand pressing against his eager cock. He hisses, arching into the touch. Christ, it's been far too long since he's been able to jack it in peace. Even in the showers, he doesn't get much time to himself. He shoots a passing glance towards the door. Hopefully Ed's preoccupied for some time. (Not that it matters. Hob's caught him mid-session thrice already now.)

Closing his eyes, Hob lets his hand slip under the elastic of the shorts and his underwear. His cock twitches as he wraps his hand around it, pushing the drops of pre down, slicking the way. He winces, the friction still rough.

He pushes his underwear down, the elastic catching below his balls, before bringing his hand to his mouth. He spits, coating his hand, and slides back down. The silky smooth fabric of Dream's kit feels like a dream (ha) against his dick. It's cool, despite the heat and humidity, and sends shivers down Hob's spine. And, perhaps the best of it, is that it's Dream's shorts that he's pressing into. The thought makes him twitch, another pearl of pre beads up and smears into the white fabric.

Hob presses his free hand to his mouth, stifling the moan that rips through him. Fuck. The thought of his seed, of his essence, stained into Dream's shorts has him hornier than he thought possible. He strokes himself, firm and quick. He needs these shorts to be ruined, to be marked by him. He needs them to smell of him before Dream gets them back. For Dream to smell of him.

He works himself fervently, panting and tense as he bites into the flesh of his palm. It doesn't take long. Just the image of Dream sliding them back over his legs, stains visible from where his spend had seeped through the fabric, it puts him to the very brink. And then the thought of Dream smiling at that, fuck, at Dream returning Hob's shorts back to him, equally used and dirtied.

He comes, harder than he has in a while, his cock pulsating as he spills ropes into Dream's shorts and his hand. He rests, not moving a muscle as the high slowly fades from his body. He takes a deep breath, letting his heart rate slow back down to normal along with his breathing.

Hob stretches, his spend already growing tacky against his skin. He licks his lips as he wipes his hand against the outside of the shorts. They still look rather clean and that primal desire to coat every inch of these shorts in his cum is strong. Fucking hell, he barely knows the man either and the things Hob wants to do to him...

He groans, turning onto his stomach and buries his face into his pillow. Ed's still not back yet...and he's cleared for the rest of the evening.... Hob sighs as he rocks his hips against the mattress, his poor spent cock already craving the friction. He may as well take advantage of the free time while he has it.

[carnivore-voyeur]

Per Eriksson Live Summary - August 26, 2024.

This one was quite long! There's a few funny stories in there and he revealed a lot.

Per introduces the live as a "cult meeting."

He's still in Sweden.

Black River Kult specific updates:

Production issues with hoodies have been solved. Patches are delayed. Orders should be shipped out this week.

They're not going to do another drop until orders are sent out. Guitar picks will not be restocked. The Baphomet shirt will not be restocked.

Someone asked him for hair care tips and he joked that he needs hair care tips for thin, greying hair. He still wears nipple piercings (someone asked).

He has reiterated replicas are being made of his necklace in silver. They will not be cheap and they will be limited. There will be a waiting list. They'll probably cost over $200.

They might do leggings in the future.

He says Kult memberships are at capacity, so you can't officially join via the website until they make them available again.

Someone asked him if he can get them made with pockets, and he said he'd consider it. He's not really sure how they work.

He saved the live, but he said saving the live was contingent on him not saying something insulting or saying something stupid.

He said he's managed to piss people off in the past, which was not his intention at all. Direct quotes:

"I don't mean to insult people, but sometimes you insult people by mistake and sometimes you say something in passing that maybe people can take the wrong way."

"I get enough hate as it is, and if I say something stupid I just get more hate and that's - I don't need it."

He says he started collecting shirts when he was ~13, and he has hundreds of shirts. He has garbage bags of "retired shirts."

He never "lived" in Spain, but he rented an apartment there. He loves Barcelona.

He is friends with Nergal of Behemoth. He says he's a very sweet person.

He says he is working on a music project but he doesn't want to talk about it. He says it's cool, though.

Someone joked in the chat that they're his wife, and Per had to correct confusion in the chat saying this is what happens - people take passing comments out of context and believe them. He's not married.

Zero and Demon (his dogs) are at the Temple of the Black River (their house) where they work as high priests. Zero's full name is John Zero Costello.

He loves Iron Maidan. He grew up on them.

A little funny moment:

He said his necklace has been on his neck "every fucking- (he covers his mouth) every day - I didn't mean to say fuck"

Per hates being cold. He prefers hot. (Fire ghoul indeed). He says he doesn't have any fat on his body so he freezes a lot.

He likes The Walking Dead, but he hasn't really seen the last season(s).

He likes tea.

He said "I cannot make a heart with my hands" (Again lol)

He's very excited about the Silent Hill 2 remake and might want to stream it on Twitch. It's his favorite game of all time. He loves Resident Evil, too.

He mentioned again that he got his infamous Sodomizer tattoo when he was really young as a joke and he wants to have it covered up.

He doesn't regret his back tattoo, but it was painful and expensive. His chest tattoo is his first tattoo.

He would love to learn how to play piano.

He's been to Greece many times and he loves it. He's also loved Turkey. He's a big fan of the Netherlands, too.

Someone asked him what Sound the Dread Alarm comes from. (It's from a Tool song) He showed off his Tool tattoos. (💜💜💜)

(My username is also a Tool reference)

Someone asked if he was straight again. He is. They asked him if he was sure, and he said he's pretty sure. He would've known by now.

He said he's played guitar for 35 years but he's "still pretty sucky at it."

Someone asked him to show his hands and he immediately asked "why?" He was asked about his pinky. When he was 4, someone slammed a door on his finger by accident. The tip of his finger was hanging off. They tried to attach it, but it died. They had to amputate his finger.

The nail is still growing (this is common in finger amputees. It's called a hook nail.) He likes his "claw" - he thinks it's badass. He uses a nail clipper for dogs on it. He uses his nail to drum on glass cups. The only issue he has with it is that when the nail grows out, it catches on his guitar. (Yes, we know! Remember when it bled all over his guitar?)

He uses Tula skincare products (Per in his Beauty Influencer era) He said he walked into Sephora and walked up to the most good looking man in the store and asked him what he should use and Tula was what he used so he's been using it ever since. (It is a good brand, but omg 😂 Good for him for being man enough to ask)

He says some people ask him weird things in the chat.

He says he doesn't wear gold for religious reasons.

He does love Lady Gaga. Great singer. Extremely talented. (Aries folks always hype up Aries folks. 😛) He could not name a single Taylor Swift song.

He wishes he could be a vegan, but his diet is so poor that he will probably die if he cuts out meat entirely.

He's friends with Amon Amarth.

He's not a fan of "modern bands" like Falling in Reverse. He doesn't really understand them. (Not trying to insult these bands, just not his thing.)

(I'm assuming Per isn't big on Metalcore.)

He said he's had some paranormal experiences but not a lot that he wants to talk about.

He said that at the haunted museum in Las Vegas you have to sign a waver b/c you can leave with bruises or ripped clothes. His brand new pants did have rips in them after he visited.

He doesn't recommend going if you suffer from anxiety or you're easily frightened.

He wishes he could go diving with sharks.

He's not a fan of energy drinks.

He says people are obsessed with his height (and his hair). He's not very tall for Sweden. He's shorter than most of his friends. He says "who cares." He has no issue with his height.

He stopped smoking cigarettes, and he quit snus. (Snus is more common in Scandinavia). He did it cold turkey. He quit drinking ~12 years ago, with minimal slips back in between years. When asked about weed, he pretended not to know what that was lol.

He says he may be allergic to alcohol. It makes him very sick.

There's a famous picture of him on the floor and people think he was hammered. It's not true. He had pneumonia. (If you look at the blog post where the image originates, Per talks about being horribly ill. He was still smoking cigarettes, and there's an ash tray on the floor in that picture. Not a glass. He calls himself a fucking idiot for doing that while he has full blown pneumonia.)

He was asked about the picture of him standing with a comically large book. He was on tour with Opeth at the time. He doesn't remember what the book was about.

He learned to be a guitar tech along the way. He's a handy person and he studied as an electrician in school.

[captaindibbzy]

I was typing out tags for this and then realised I don't actually want to talk to OP about this cause yes you are right about that, but also it is complicated and I have opinions. So you all get treated to my thoughts process. Lol

There is a case to be made about how historical empires have influenced modern day politics. Rome especially had a long lasting influence on Europe and the near east, including the spread of Christianity and the Catholic Church, but also the need of many countries to emulate its behaviour in order to be the heir to Rome. Rome splitting in to the Byzantine Empire after the fall, which operated out of modern day Turkey, and that influence didn't vanish.

There is history and change between then and now but Turkey to this day has long standing tense relations with Greece because of conquest and occupation, which could be said to contribute to the financial situation in Greece right now not least because the need to defend Europe's eastern boarder is their financial burden, and men to this day have to serve time in the military. It is also worth noting that Cyprus is a Greek island that was occupied by Turkey, and that is why half of it is Turkish and there is a buffer zone (1974 btw). Turkey had an extensive empire at one point, the Ottoman Empire, but we don't talk about that. It collapsed in 1922.

China is another one people don't talk about. China is doing this today. It is occupying territories today, and bullying it's neighbours. It only really comes to light in the west when it involved Hong Kong, which has British Empire links. But once again that's not white and it's not in English. This has consequences now, but from most western perspectives most people only view China as standing up against America, as the antithesis to Western Ideals, which they only view through the things they view as mistakes in their western existence.

Then there's the big one. USSR. The states around Russia today are incredibly nervous about what is going on in Ukraine, and there is a political situation going on globally as countries are deciding between backing Russia or back the US. And people are backing Russia. This is for a long list of reasons, but Russia and China hold a lot of influence in Africa these days. While there are historic aspects to it, particularly with the slave trade, the carving up of Africa, this does not mean weight isn't being thrown around today. The collapse of the mercenary group in Russia had huge ramifications for dictators across the world who are angry at the west, because it has affected their power.

At this point I got distracted checking something and found out slavery in Saudi Arabia and Yemen was outlawed in the fucking 1960's. :| Jesus Christ.

But yeah. Empire bad. But Empire not unique. These are not one atrocity perpetrated by the west on the rest of the world. Even historic and long ended empires have shadows cast on today's world, and the empires we don't talk about that exist in the near past, or the present, are not insignificant either. The West struggles to even talk about the rest of Europe.

There may not be anyone suffering under Ancient Egypt or Roman empire today, but there are people struggling under the ramifications of many empires that are not British or the US, historic and current, and if you want to truly dismantle that influence you can't just ignore that in your work and calculations.

[imdoingsortagay]

Dark! Political! Claire Debella who manipulates R to have her first time

39 Inexperienced Smut prompts

The first time

The woman did have good intentions with you when she first met you, only wanting to take you under her wing to rise up the political ladder and be as great as she is. She didn't know when things changed between the two of you when it turned from professional to friendly to sexual as things got more intense.

" What do you mean you've never had sex, honey?" Claire asks you as she gives you more to drink, while you blush at the sheer mention of the word.

You had been grateful for the older woman when she took you under her wing as an " intern" in her office. Attending meetings with her, going to some island in Greece with her group of friends from college to give her company because the original person she had invited bailed and the woman offered you more money than you can think of to join along.

Now here the both of you were, in her room in Mile's massive as fuck mansion while the older woman encouraged you to drink out of the fancy Vodka bottle.

" I'm just waiting for the right time is all Miss Debella," you say as you drink more of the alcohol, head feeling floaty as the woman observes your every move. You ramble on about how you've always been nervous to do it for fear of rejection.

" “Will you let me be your first?” Claire casually asks you as she takes a sip of her wine, not failing to see you blush like crazy at the idea of fucking your boss.

" Miss Debella that's a -"

" Smart idea honey," she starts off," We've been in each other's lives for a year and a half, are comfortable with each other, not to mention I'd never break your heart".

" Miss debella I don't think-"

" Honey first of all it's miss Debella in public," she says while she pulls you into her lap, no shame in wanting to have you as close to her body as possible," in here you call me Daddy, got it?"

"I don't want to do that-"

" I think I know you better enough than to talk back to Daddy sweet girl," she pauses as she shoves two of her fingers in your mouth so you can suck on them," Daddy wants to be your first in bed, and while I'd rather hate to punish you, my sweet baby deserves to be in bed with a woman like me".

She was a pretty woman in your eyes, mean and cutthroat in public while she treated you with kindness and respect that you never got any time in life. Claire let's your mind go all over the place with the decision of sleeping with her for your first time.

Your mind runs wild trying to choose whether or not to sleep with the older woman. one part of your mind telling you to go for the idea of fucking her, the other giving you too many examples of how this can go wrong, and another telling you it's not a good idea in general.

Unfortunately with the alcohol running in your body, you whimper with Claire's fingers in your mouth, ready to have your first time with someone who you trust.

" I want you, daddy," You say while claire takes her fingers out of your mouth, holding in a groan as she hasn't even touched you yet and she's got you looking fucked out.

" Tell me again sweet baby," She repeats."

" I want you to be my first daddy," you tell her, mind going fuzzy with the vodka in your body.

Claire doesn't fail to place your body under her while she runs your hands other than your clothed body, ready to have you under her.

" I can't wait to take your innocence doll".

[barbiebraganca]

HSHQTASK059: FAREWELL !

when did you join ? what made you join ? what do you remember from the plotlines that were current at the time ? where were you in life when you joined and where are you now ?

right at the beginning of 2016, around feb or march. i had just finished high school and took an off year to prepare for uni admission exams. i needed something to take my mind off studying for it and my friend julia suggested i joined her on tumblr rping. i had no idea what that was but she helped me through it and we joined another group together. at the time i also developed a bit of a thing for royals and made my character in that group an undercover norwegian royal, on some princess diaries bullshit. but looking up things for that group i decided to search norwegian royalty on tumblr and found the blog for a character in vik. olav if i'm not mistaken. i started stalking the group and got really interested in it and mentioned it to julia who told me she'd been here before and would join with me if i chose to so we brought barbie and biel. then the group closed and i completely gave up rping until one random day many months later i logged into tumblr again god knows why and there was a message from martha, she told me the group came back to life and i decided to rejoin. and here i am, haven't left since.

which characters have you written over the years ?

ffs, let me see if i can remember all of them: ayo, bruce, barbie, toni, leon, sergi, silje, ilija, zoey (silje's draft), pedro, noémïe (poor thing lasted 3 seconds), ionie. i feel like there's more, i just can't remember.

what is your favourite plotline that you've been part of ?

the zulu & the southern africa conflicts. even all of us applying together that day was such a moment, i loved every bit of it. i had so so much fun writing ayo even if he was one of those characters it is impossible to write filler threads with, i still felt so much joy when i got a notif that someone replied to him, even if the entire reply was someone hating on him hard.

what about other people's plotlines ?

it's impossible to pick one when you've been here from the start and have seen countless amazing ones but the english plot was truly a wonder, even the murder mystery event was fucking incredible. anything involving russia and the romanovs as well was so well thought and made so much sense when you put the pieces together you just can't help but love every bit.

who is your favourite character from the ones you've played ? why ? what made you love them ? what made them so fun to write ?

favourite to write i'd say ayo, for the same reasons i mentioned on the plotline question but if i had to choose only one to keep playing forever it would either be silje or ilija. i feel like those are versatile ones that i could go in different directions with if i'd wanted to. the one i had the most fun writing though was pedro for sure.

if you could relive a plotline, which would it be ?

the invasion in greece and i think everyone who was here for that would say the same thing. that was our most iconic event and for a reason, everyone put 150% into it and it worked out so so so so well we didn't even imagine the outcome it would have, we just wanted to traumatise everyone a bit but received the best event in hshq in return.

is there a plotline that you'd edit now if you could ?

i don't think there is, especially because i don't think i remember even half of them but even then everything was fun and a joy to write about so i probably wouldn't change anything.

what's a plotline you wish you would have been able to finish before closing or just write more of ?

the ones that never happened. e mentioned some of the things we planned and didn't happen on the timeline post but i assure you that's not even the beginning. at times we'd plan an entire year of events in advance and come up with a full story, reasoning, plot drops for it but when the time to have them came we forgot all about it and change everything to something we'd put together in 20 mins instead of the plans we spent days working on. even the cruise ship they were supposed to be stuck in was an idea we had so much fun coming up with and it didn't get to see the light of day.

what is your favourite ooc memory ?

every honesty hour chaos was such a fun time to be on the dash, or whenever something big would happen ic and there would be 100 ooc posts reacting to it on the dash and the jokes were the peak of comedy. but i'll always have a soft spot for the soletsky silent thread bc icb we actually had 40+ notes on that, it was priceless. the word lunch is stuck with me forever. AND that one time i got kicked out on this exact date a couple years back.

where can others find you if they want to get in touch ?

i won't delete the tumblr app from my phone just yet so if you want to send me a mssg, i'll be checking it every now and again. same with discord, i'm there under barbielandwired and we're not deleting the hshq server so we can still have that in case anybody wants to pop into the chat and catch up. i'll give you my socials too if anybody wants that, we're all friends here. i've known u lot for 8 years.

what else would you like to say ?

here.

[hymemena]

100 Gecs (2023 Album) 10,000 Gecs Sentence Starters

Feel free to change pronouns as necessary, and remember to specify muse for multimuse blogs.

CW: Drug use, drugs, death, religious themes, smoking, mental health, food, sensory problems, guns, weapons, threats, death threats, stalking, murder, abuse, injury, violence, insomnia, cursing

—

Dumbest Girl Alive

"If you think I'm stupid now, you should see me when I'm high."

"I'm smarter than I look."

"I'm the dumbest girl alive."

"Never ask me what I think."

"Money coming from my eyes."

"I'm so happy I could die!"

"Put emojis on my grave."

"Yeah, I'll fuckin' text you back."

757

"Yeah, I'll never go to Heaven."

"I've been smokin' since eleven."

"I got problems with my spending."

"Doing eight in a thirty."

"I'm never in a hurry."

"Everybody wanna party!"

"Wish that I was more discerning."

"Where's the water?"

"Today I'm feeling pitiful."

"I'm taking things too literal when it was hypothetical."

"Now, I'm whining over nothing."

Hollywood Baby

"What you crying about, Baby?"

"Did you get the payment?"

"We had an arrangement."

"Do you wanna party?"

"So go pitch your fit, no one gives a shit."

"I'm going crazy."

"Do you buckle under pressure?"

"You'll never make it in Hollywood, Baby."

Frog On The Floor

"Where'd he come from?"

"Nobody knows."

"He's been chillin' in the basement for a minute."

"It's time we move into the kitchen."

"Make him feel safe."

"Frog on the floor."

"Hey, yeah, I heard you met my friend the other weekend."

"He got on his front legs and did a keg stand."

"The party got real."

"He was chasing flies around."

"Give him some space, he's still workin' it out."

"He doesn't know what people think about."

"He gets the party jumping."

Doritos & Fritos

"Okay, I went to France."

"I went to Greece to get something to eat."

"I'm hard to please."

"Okay, I saw the beach."

"It's one hundred degrees."

"I'll swim in the ocean."

"The TV's tuned to cable."

"I'm sleeping when I'm able."

"The TV's on so loud it hurts my brain."

"I'm eating burritos."

"Jeez Louise, I'm weak in the knees."

"I'm joining the circus."

"I'm lying to strangers."

"I'm looking for danger!"

Billy Knows Jamie

"-Muse- got a gun."

"-Muse-'s gonna kill me, think I need to run."

"-Muse- is kinda scary when he's lookin' at you."

"Run!"

"I've heard it all before."

"He's like a movie star."

"They say he's so deranged."

"Bought mace to keep me safe."

"It's not enough to stay away."

"He knows my house and he knows my name."

"I'm in the closet scared."

"He's kicking down the door."

One Million Dollars

"One million dollars."

"I'm a marijuana addict."

"Fuck you!"

The Most Wanted Person In The United States

"I turned on the news."

"I turned on the news and it said that I was the number one most wanted person in the United States."

"Yeah, I'm a real killer."

"I just killed -muse- and then I ate his dinner."

"I took his car."

"I took his car and I crashed it in the river."

"I was born in the winter."

"Hot like the summer."

"Don't cry to me."

"Don't cry to me, I'm not your mother."

"Everybody shuts the fuck up when I'm passing."

"I'm laughing 'cause shit's so funny."

"Oh, is it hot like that?"

"Yeah, it's hot like that."

"Don't need to ask me."

I Got My Tooth Removed

"You were tough."

"You were unforgiving."

"Made me cry all the time."

"You were mean, such an asshole."

"I had to say goodbye."

"I don't wanna talk about it ever again."

"My head's like a ton of bricks."

"This dumb bitch still learns new tricks."

"I woke up and was down horrendous."

"I think I need to see a dentist."

"Praying to a fuckin' God I'll never be."

"If it's gonna fix itself, I guess it's just as well."

"It doesn't hurt me every day so I just let it get away."

"I'll deal with it another day."

"I guess that day just never came."

"I don't know what to do."

"My cheek swelled up twice its size."

"Playing Operation with a safety pin."

"Looking up home remedies."

"I'm staring at the ceiling, counting seconds 'til I get to sleep."

"That shit didn't work."

"I promised you, honest, tried my hardest."

mememe

"Back once again."

"You'll never really know."

"You'll never really know anything about me."

"No, you'll never really know anything."

"When we were together I tried to tell you."

"I used to tap dance when I was in choir."

"I broke my arm when my -parent- crashed a go-kart."

"I tried on your lipstick, I thought I looked pretty."

"You're always so busy."

"You're always so busy so you never hear me."

"Do I sound like a joke when I'm talking to you?"

"I take it back."

"You say so many things."

"I'll laugh too fucking hard."

"You probably think I'm so mean."

"I don't even know you."

"I guess it's such an easy game."

"Could you explain it all away?"

"OK, bet, I forget."

"I don't think I'll pretend it's cool."

[khaire-traveler]

Speaking of my experiences in Greece 🇬🇷

~ You can skip this post if you want lol; I just wanted to talk about my love for Greece and the trip I just took ~

I can honestly say that my trip to Greece has changed me as a person. I went at a time in my life where everything felt hopeless and I was processing some very major, very recent, traumas. To say the least, I was very stressed out leading up to this trip, and I remember praying to Hermes and Apollo for a life-changing experience in Greece, begging them for something to genuinely look forward to. And I got exactly what I asked for.

I have realized how seriously I've been taking both myself and the world around me and how much I desperately needed to take a step back and just enjoy life as it comes.

On my trip, I unfortunately got sick, and it made a lot of things very difficult. We had somewhat of a schedule to follow in the beginning, so it felt like I was struggling to keep up with everyone with my cold slowing me down. All I could think about was how much it sucked to be me, how much it sucked that I could barely keep up with everyone, how much I was a burden on others for something I literally could not control. And after needing to miss a night of festivities in order to finally rest, I realized just how harmful that thinking was. I finally noticed that hey, I have some actual agency over the thoughts I think and the things I feel. I thought I was at the mercy of mental illness and trauma, but as I took that day to rest, I realized that I really just needed to take care of myself and enjoy the things that I could participate in.

I also realized my POTS - a heart-related condition I have - does not have the right to control my entire life. I had to push myself quite hard in Greece, mostly in the last five days of our trip which was in Athens. It was blisteringly hot, and I had literal drops of sweat rolling down my face from the heat alone. Heat is a trigger of my POTS, so I was very concerned that something bad would happen but was extremely surprised when it didn't. Granted, my heart rate was constantly elevated - between 120-130 bpm - but overall, I was able to push myself to walk much farther than I ever thought I could. Although I'd never want to push myself that hard at a job (that would get exhausting to do each and every day 💀), I did at least find out that my limits are a lot further along than I previously assumed.

This experience has taught me so many things. Independence from my parents is essential and should be my first focus, any goal can be achieved through hard work and tenacity, I need to sit down and think about what I want to achieve in life and what gives me passion, self-confidence is crucial, who gives a single fuck what other people say or think if I'm happy, pessimism is not the same as realism, sometimes I make myself unhappy by solely focusing on the negatives, look at the world through the lens of child where even little things are amazingly captivating, it's ok to be generous with others as long as I'm also taking care of my own needs, I'm capable of doing a lot more physical activity before having health issues than I thought, and I will straight up never complain about being too hot ever again.

The Greek people are so impressively hard-working! They put a lot of passion and care into the things they love, and it was genuinely really inspiring. I'm so grateful I was able to participate in cultural traditions while I was there. Everyone was incredibly inviting, and it was refreshing to see such strong cultural values and traditions. Even when I was feeling shy or lacked confidence, I was encouraged to participate and just have a good time (being a bit tipsy made it all the merrier lol). I absolutely love Greece! I truly hope I can visit again soon.

I can't thank my gods enough for answering my prayers and providing me with something that will influence my life, and even my worship, from now on. I can't thank the people I met enough for teaching me lessons I never knew I needed to learn and treating me like a close friend or family. I'm so grateful for all the things I learned in Greece. I can now only hope that I will continue to change for the better.

[bucky-h0e]

A/n: Sam is now apart of the family! I am taking requests for this. I have a lot of scenarios lined up for this series and am very excited for it! I am creating a taglist so if you enjoy it and would like to get notified, please make sure ot ask!

Feedback is always welcome!

Serendipity Masterlist

Main Masterlist

How Sam met Alpine

It wasn't like Bucky was keeping Alpine a secret from Sam

No, it was the fact that for the longest time, Sam was sure Bucky got a cat

Bucky talked about Alpine a lot, normally just to vent about the weird ass shit she got up to

he thought it was pretty obvious that she was his neighbour

but I guess starting every daily conversation with "hey guess what Alpine did today..." like a proud stage mom doesn't help

It started off when Sam and Bucky had gone out for drinks a couple of weeks after Bucky and Alpine had their first 'family' dinner

"Alpine knocked over a few glasses today, just out of the blue. Completely for no reason."

"Shit happens i guess."

the next day, there was another thing

"So, Alpine just comes over and smacks my arm, like i was the one in the wrong. I didn't even do anything!"

sam laughs it off

"Kids these days man" Sam thinks it a funny joke because Bucky is a cat-dad

Bucky is confused because should a 21 year old just be smacking men?

is that a crime?

A few weeks later, they're training with the shield and Bucky shares more stories during their break

"I bought some straws, just cause my teeth were getting sensitive, with ice - shut the fuck up Sam, I know you have those weird ass straws that look like glasses - anyway, Alpine just keeps chewing them. Nothing else, just chewing."

Sam is starting to think that Bucky is going to start an Instagram account for this cat

"I also bought a plant yesterday, I went to the store for milk, came back and it had a bite mark in it."

"A bite mark?"

"Alpine BIT my plant. It's dead. She's a murderer Sam."

Honestly, Sam thought that either Bucky had never met a cat before

OR

Bucky adopted a crackhead instead of a cat

(little does he know, that's exactly what happened)

"So I wake up at 2AM yeah, there she is. Stood over me, staring at me, nibbling on a chip."

"Dude, get an exorcist or something, jesus christ"

Honestly, Sam was happy for Bucky

truly, he was

BUT if he had to hear anymore stories about this damn cat

he was going to sign up for a long mission abroad

maybe Greece

Athens

they have crimes, right?

And for a while, it was silent

Sam had invited Bucky to a family cookout and Bucky seemed to enjoy himself

he was getting along with Sam's family

playing with his nephews

honestly, he seemed happy

at the end of the day though, there was the mention of that damn cat

"Next time, I'll bring Alpine. She'd love this."

"That and she shouted at me for leaving her out."

he probably just meant that she was meowing and hissing at him

he suddenly liked this cat

i mean, how bad could it be if it was hissing at Bucky

then again

what was this sudden obsession with a cat

it was a bit worrying

it wasn't like it was a person he could talk to and laugh with

not like a friend

Bucky was on his way to become the crazy old cat lady from the 1940s

and as much as Sam wanted to see it

Steve would have killed him if he let Bucky do that to himself

a few months later, Sam decided to see what this whole weird relationship was between Bucky and his cat

see if he needed an intervention or something

of course Bucky was confused when there was a knock on the door

Alpine would have just burst in (she'd gotten very confident that he wouldn't just throw her out of the door)

it would be incredibly valid

he's even more confused when he opens it to Sam holding a packet of cat treats and a pack of beer

"Thought i'd drop in and see the little furball"

"furball- what?" it's too late

Sam is already walking around the flat going pspspsppsps

he's actually quite offended that Alpine didn't greet him at the door

what was her dad teaching her?!

"Sam... what are you doing."

"I'm calling for the devil, obviously"

"The devil? Sam-"

"Here kitty kitty"

HONESTLY

these men have zero communication skills

it's only when the devil herself walks into Bucky's flat holding a bunch of receipts that Sam looks at Bucky worriedly

who the fuck was this girl

why is she walking into his apartment

uninvited

holding receipts

"Hey Buck, I know thinks may have changed since the 40s but like... what are taxes and how do I pay them."

WHO IS THIS WOMAN?!

Bucky looks physically drained already

"Kid... have you not been paying your taxes?"

"Have you?"

"YES! IT'S ILLEGAL NOT TO!"

the girl deadass scoffs

"Ha, okay mr winter soldier."

"kid i sWEAR TO GOD"

she just mocked-

WHO THE FUCK IS THIS KID

"Who are you?"

"Oh! Falcon, Sam Wilson right? I'm Alpine."

Bucky rolls his eyes

He will find out her real name

one day

"You're human."

"..."

"..."

"I hadn't noticed that, thank you."

slowly, Sam haned her the cat treats and she just nodded

though she looked at Bucky like

wtf

is this an avengers thing?

is she being indoctrinated?

she cant fight

she would literally die

she has the fighting capability of a raw pork sausage

the most she could do was T pose at them

"Thank.... you?"

"I thought you were a cat..."

a moment of silence

".... why?"

"I mean... there was the time you knocked over the glasses"

"they were disgusting, it was a mercy killing"

"you bit his plant"

"Killed my plant"

"i didn't like the way it was looking at me, it was giving very Loki in 2012 trying to take over Stark tower vibes."

"plants... plants don't have eyes"

"And Loki was just a myth, now here we are."

Sam can't put his frustration into words and Bucky is grinning

because FINALLY

someone else gets to deal with this kid

"Buck I thought you had a cat"

"I'm allergic to cats Sam"

Of course he is

he couldn't have just gotten a dog

or a bird

maybe even a lizard

but no

he had to just adopt a random kid

a random kid.... that was trying to eat cat treats

"HEY!"

Bucky never turned so quickly to grab the packet of treats

"Alpine, no!"

honestly she's pissed

she just wanted to do her taxes

then she met Sam

but then he presented her with the chance to eat some cat treats?

she was just curious

intrusive thoughts always win with Alpine

damn

sulking, she sits herself down on the couch, watching as Bucky chucks the treats on the chair next to it

Sam stands with his arms crossed, still confused as hell

"What kind of a name is Alpine? You some sort of agent or something? Or are your parents just weird?"

"bro i don't know, ask bucky"

Sam looks scandalised

Bucky named a random girl in his building

"Bucky wtf man"

"Not like that, it sounds weird when you say it like that"

"Buck a random kid just walks into your- WHY IS SHE EATING THE CAT TREATS?!"

Bucky has never tackled anyone so fast

"ALPINE!"

Sam can't believe his eyes

he didn't know if a cat was better or worse

but, he had to admit

watching Bucky struggle, in all his super soldier strength, to get Alpine to stop eating things designed for animals?

that shit was entertaining

It was obvious that they were close

fighting like siblings

Bucky cared enough about her to make her stop eating shit not meant for humans

Bucky seemed happy

and that was good enough for Sam

besides

they could terrorise this man together and never get bored

[esc-is-holding-me-hostage]

The annual pre-show quick-fire "reviews"

Guess who procrastinated for a month and a half on this post!

Albania An Albanian song starting with a woman going "AaAaAAaaaAAAAA"? Groundbreaking. Duje is a very run-of-the-mill Albanian folk power ballad and at this point, I'm kinda tired of these.

Armenia Music good, lyrics clunky.

Australia It is, dare I say, alright.

Austria A song that everyone thought is gonna be a musical shitpost turned out to be an absolute fucking banger, god bless.

Azerbaijan I'm not sure whether I actually like it a bit or it's just me being happy that Azerbaijan has finally let local artists write their song. Now wait until the twins flop and Azerbaijan goes back to swedes-for-hire next year.

Belgium It's fine.

Croatia Is it weird that I don't have much to say about a song like this? Mama ŠČ is shocking the first time you experience it, and I do like the layers of interpretation, but it's not something I want to return to after a couple listens.

Cyprus Imagine Dragons-ass production, ugh.

Czech Republic It's pretty good but I can't fully enjoy it because of the fucking controversy. Look, I think that the girls had the best intentions in mind when writing My Sister's Crown but didn't realize that singing about Slavic unity and "choose love over power" while having a russian member might come off as problematic. Classic ignorance over malice. Still, I wish they had someone Ukrainian-speaking in the band, at least temporarily for ESC.

Denmark This type of "uwu cute softboy" music is not my thing, but eh, it's fine, I'll let zoomer kids have this one.

Estonia Well someone had to fill the ballad quota this year.

Finland It's crazy, it's party, I'm going to throw hands if it doesn't win the televote.

France Fulenn flopped so now we're back to being aggressively French. Evidemment is a bop, I like it.

Georgia It feels like they had a song that made sense in Georgian and then asked a third-grader to translate it. I'm not opposed to silly lyrics in general, but Echo is clearly trying to be meaningful but then fails at basic english grammar.

Germany "We have Rammstein at home". Blood and Glitter is fine but, I dunno, it feels a bit too "smoothed out". It just doesn't go hard enough (bold words from a Slovenia stan, I know).

Greece The most remarkable thing about this entry for me is that I've been watching Eurovision for longer than Victor has been alive.

Iceland Wish Diljá stuck with the Icelandic version.

Ireland I didn't mind We Are One at first but with every listen it just kept getting worse. This is such a formulaic, cliche, cheesy love-love-peace-peace wet napkin of a song. I've already complained about Portion Boys making a generic "eurovision unity anthem" for UMK but at least they tried to be funny. This one feels like a lazy attempt to game the system WITHOUT KNOWING HOW THAT SYSTEM ACTUALLY WORKS.

Israel My god, so much hype before the song's release and we got this? There are so many parts in this song but somehow forgot to put in a proper chorus, it's like Sekret all over again.

Italy L'essenziale is the one Italian ESC song that I always forget about. And now Due Vite is bound to join it. Eh, at least my mom loves it.

Latvia Didn't care about it when the Supernova songs first dropped, but now I'm vibing with it so much.

Lithuania It's okay ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. The "Čiūto tūto"s saved it from being totally forgettable.

Malta Somehow they've managed to find a half-decent song in the pile of garbage that was MESC. It's alright but I wish that I liked it more.

Moldova So "token pagan rave song of the year" is a thing now, huh? Glad to see Pasha's back.

The Netherlands It starts off really boring, but picks up around the second verse and becomes pretty good by the end.

Norway I think I like it but for some reason, my brain doesn't register it as a song??? It's hard to explain, but I don't see Queen of Kings as something you would listen to without some kind of visuals.

Poland Ughhhh. It's basically impossible to judge Solo on its own merit, but I'll try. And my impartial judgment is: I don't like it. Rigged selection or not, I just hate this kind of songs in general.

Portugal One of those songs that I like a lot but don't have anything specific to say about.

Romania The song's okay, and the vocals are good, but the staging is just beyond tacky. Dude, you can't pull off this type of cool, sexy image while looking like a wimpy history major freshman who barely ever shows up to class.

San Marino ... I'm a Piqued Jacks apologist now. Yeah, the lyrics are cringe, but the music? I enjoy it absolutely unironically.

Serbia "I just wanna close my eyes And just get it over with"

Yeah, dude, me too. The most relatable song of the year.

Slovenia I've jumped on the Joker Out hype train as soon as they were announced as Slovenia's participants and I'm riding that train all the way to Liverpool. Favorite song of the year.

Spain Hey, spaniards have finally gotten an artsy song about motherhood as their ESC entry! I have similar feelings about Eaea as I did about In Corpore Sano last year: absolutely mesmerizing on stage, but not something I would listen to casually.

Sweden She's gonna win, ain't she? I mean, Tattoo is fine, and the staging elevates it immensely, but it's such a predictable winner. I want more INTRIGUE, okay?

Switzerland Oh wow, boring AND tone-deaf? Switzerland is breaking new ground this year. I initially placed Watergun 31st but since then it sunk to the very bottom. Like, someone wrote this song, sat on it for several years, and decided that NOW is the best time to send it to Eurovision. Nothing against Remo, but "war bad, i don't want to go to war :c" is uhhh, rich coming from someone living in fucking Switzerland.

Ukraine I can't shake the thought that they first came up with a standard "I'm so cool, you can't hurt me, idgaf" song and then retroactively tried to give it a deeper meaning.

United Kingdom I don't even think it's a bad song and yet I lowkey hate it. It's the beat, it's driving me nuts for some reason. People hate the spoken word part, but I like it because you don't hear that bloody "dun-da-da-dun" for once.

[blinkvlink]

ub watching eurovision

im going to be using eurovision 2021 for this since it was my favourite from the last 10 years so beware.

Adam/Ava

Would act like they are not really interested but would actually get very invested.

I think their favourite would be France's 'Voila' not only because it's in french but because it's just a simple nice ballad. (Also if them and the detective are..uhm...involed the lyrics could be....relatable)

Would get incredibly competitive during the voting. Would never actually cheer when a country gave France 12 points but their whole body would tense and they would just whisper 'yes!!' under their breath.

they would be so smug omg. they would be sooo sure that france would win. their smug smirk would be DESTROYED the second italy got their televotes.

would get mad that cyprus and greece gave points to each other and would go 'of course you fucking would.'

would get even MORE MAD that france lost and got 2nd place. Farah/Felix would tease them about it during the whole night while they grind their teeth together and proceed to break something of the detective's :(

Farah/Felix

They would have so much fun oml. The best person to watch eurovision with.

that being said i dont think they would know what eurovision is lol (but would force the entire team + tina to watch it live once they found out)

Dances to every song that has a danceble rythm. sings along most of the time whenever they understand (they would just dance so HARD to ukrain man)

I think they would like 10 years by Iceland the most. It's just their whole vibe in general and also if they are in a relationship with the detective they would want it to be 'their song'

i feel like they would know who flo rida was, so they would just go 'wHAT IS HE DOING HERE???'

would attempt that high note from israel but would stop when Morgan/Mason threataned to punch them through the wall.

i feel like they would like ukrain, lithuania, malta and germany too. they would burst into tears the moment they saw that middle finger costume

would cheer whenever someone gave 12 points to Iceland or and just scream when they got their televotes.

would be confused about A being mad about the cyprus and the greece thing and A would have to explain the whole thing to them.

but in general i think there wouldn't be a performance they didn't like (except england, they would make fun of england so bad bro) and they would still be like 'yay!!' when italy won, would never shut up about france losing though, just to tease A

Nate/Nat

would be very excited and interested, say that it's about celebrating differences and just enjoy the vibe.

i think they would like songs that had parts in them that represented their country, as they would believe that's what eurovision is all about.

that being said...their favourite would still be portugal lol. i feel like that's something they would enjoy. but they would enjoy switzerland, azerbeijan and ukrain as well as france (i actually think france could be their favorite as well? idk) . i feel like they would be a little shook after ukrain lmao. like '....oh! that was pretty nice!'

would cringe physically once they saw england. would lowkey refuse to watch it as F made fun of them

would still be shocked and lowkey offended when UK got 0 points though LMAO

they would be still happy with the end results and try and not laugh at A's reaction.

Morgan/Mason

would be extremely uninterested until 1.greece's performance and they would go...wtf was that and would be uninterested again until 2. finland would come along and they would be like 'hmmm. ok i guess thats cool.'

their favourite would def be italy. that's when they would pay full attention and lowkey tap their feet to the rythm

would have to leave the fckn room when israel pulled that high note and be convinced to come back, would seriously be tempted do so again once switzerland came along

they would smirk when italy won but wouldn't say anything, would just enjoy their small victory from the sidelines.

[rglsrctrsblck]

✨i would've made such a lovely bride (but he'll patch up the tapestry that i shred)✨

part iv : letting go

"Er du sikker på at du vil at jeg skal bli med deg tilbake til Hellas?" (You're certain you want me to come back with you to Greece?) Remus asked in amusement as he leant against the door, shirtless and only wearing sweatpants that hung way too fucking low on his hips.

"Selvsagt er jeg sikker, din tøffe Viking. Er du sikker på at du vil bli med?" (Of course I'm certain, you daft Viking. Are you certain you want to come with?) His way of speaking the language was still rough, considering he'd only been with for almost two weeks, but the pleased smile on his partner's face said that it didn't matter. Because to him, James was just the right amount of perfect in whatever he did.

"Å, jeg vil gjerne. Jeg ville bare at du skulle være sikker." (Oh, I'd love to. I just wanted you to be sure.) James smiled, dropping the rest of his clothes in favour of walking over to the taller and looping his arms around his neck, tugging him down gently for a kiss. Remus happily kissed back, hands gentle over his waist. "Du er så jævla vakker. Jeg kunne giftet meg med deg akkurat nå." (You are so fucking beautiful. I could marry you right now.)

James playfully glared at him, giggling when the other kissed his neck. It had been a running inside thing between the two of them. On James' first night of being shown around by Remus, a lovely elderly couple had mistaken them to be husbands before he tried to explain in English how they weren't married. Until Remus said that they weren't married yet and not to spoil the surprise. Of course, the couple believed he was being honest and grinned despite James' splutters, tugged him along with their fingers entwined, never once letting him go.

That was what made him fall for Remus in the first place.

Remus had been so understanding, and listened to him intently after assuring him that he wouldn't be judged. He told his story and how he left his home to move to a different country just to heal himself. How he agreed to be the best man in his ex-lover's wedding to keep a promise he made years ago. How he chose to stay despite every nerve in his body telling him to go. And Remus admired him for it. Said he didn't think he could ever deal with that if he had been the one in his place. James argued otherwise. But nonetheless, he called James a hero. A selfless hero that deserved everything in the world.

"Du lar meg distrahere deg. Men kommer vi tilbake til Hellas?" (You're letting me distract you. However will we make it back to Greece?) James giggled and hopped up, wrapping his legs around the other's hips and gasping at their proximity.

"Jeg kan takle en distraksjon eller to en stund, ja." (I can deal with a distraction or two for a while, yeah.) Remus only smirked before kissing him again, deeper this time as he slowly began to walk over to the bed.

They did eventually have to part minutes later when James' phone rang with a ringtone that he never thought he'd ever hear again.

Remus squeezed the skin on his waist and set him down with a soft smile, gently pushing him to the direction of the coffee table.

"Regulus?" He whispered, not sure what he was expecting.

"Just what the hell are you fetching from your car that's taking too long to get?" The younger asked in amusement, making James huff out a laugh.

"I'm fetching my wonderful ego, ever heard of her?"

"Oh? I didn't know you were transgender too?"

"My dick didn't seem plastered on to you?" Regulus let out an honest-to-god giggle, sighing after.

"I miss you, you idiot."

"Hey, you're the only one who didn't tell me that in a past tense. It's always the past tense with the others, makes me feel like I died."

"To be fair, you almost did. Pardon our friends if it stuck."

"Fair enough."

"I… I really do miss you, Jamie," Was… oh, fuck him, was Regulus fucking on the verge of crying?! "You were gone. Again. God, and it rained the night you left so I got worried and –"

"Reg.. Reggie, breathe. You're hearing my voice, aren't you? I'm okay."

"Thanks to you, that's not even a word anymore." James giggled, letting Remus hold him against his chest.

"How was the honeymoon?"

"It was… god, it was amazing, Jamie."

"Is he treating you well?"

"Always…" he could hear the love and adoration even if they were in very different places just from his voice alone. And that was all he needed to know that he made the right decision.

"Good. Do tell him that if he ever decides to cross you, I will shatter his kneecaps." Regulus giggled, and just like that, it was as if they were in high school again, giggling in the broom closets after running from Sirius and their then friends.

"I think he knew that, knows. Told me you intimidated him."

"Me? Intimidating? Little old me?"

"Oh, get off that high horse."

"Hm, high stag, you mean."

"Oh, yes. Definitely." A beat. "Are you being treated well?" Regulus never had to ask if there was anyone. Anyone who knew James in and out would recognise the happiness in his vocal tone alone, making the older smile that Regulus still knew him well enough to know he was happy.

"Yes. I've caught myself a Viking."

"I'm glad. I'm so… I'm so happy for you, Jamie."

"As I am for you."

"Thank you. For keeping your promise and being my best man. For helping me with our parents." James wanted to tell him that it wasn't him who had assured that their parents would be there, but he let it slide, just happy that Regulus was living his life.

"I'll take it you're back in England?"

"No, we decided to stay in Greece for a bit. We're actually in the bar Evan found you in."

"Is this supposed to be a full circle moment? Because my flight's not supposed to be for another few hours."

"We can wait or come back here, Jamie. But we want to welcome you home."

"Oh." There was comfortable silence between them for a few minutes, to each their own, before Regulus spoke again.

"I'll always love you. You know that, right?"

"Of course, Reggie. I've loved you from Leonis Vega to Regulus Arcturus and have had no regrets since."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"Come home to us, James."

And come home he did. With Remus' fingers entwined with his, their bags in hand, they came home.

Home was his house in Greece.

Home was his friends waiting for him at the very bar he ran from.

Home was Remus Lupin's hands.

Home was the love he had for all of them.

He was home.

FIN.

[when-wax-wings-melt]

“I need to know what you meant earlier by my time, [brother]. I keep coming back to that, and I’ve seen that you choose your words carefully, and I know my time was no mistake. Please.” His anxiety and fear was almost paralyzing in its strength, the only thing which kept him from hiding and throwing himself back into the nightmares was his curiosity. Icarus was completely still, for once. He glanced at Tim to make sure he hadn’t woken up.

Bold of Icarus to assume Jason didn't know Ancient Greek -- one of his closest friends was an Amazon. He caught it, but let it slide. "I don't think it's linear, since we're from different universes, and I'm not the historian of the family, but... Greece as you know it was over two thousand years ago."

“Oh.” Icarus felt something crack. It got a bit harder to breathe. “How long have you known about this?” His heart was beating perfectly fine, that fucking traitor. “How long have you known that everyone I once knew was dead? How long would it have taken you to tell me if I didn’t ask so many stupid questions?” His voice was quiet, but the tone was furious. He noticed his knees almost touched Jason, and his expression turned pained. He moved away, avoiding any contact, physical or that of their eyes. “How long would it have taken you to tell me that everyone and everything I cared about there was dead? Why did you put off telling me?” His arms wrapped around his stomach to hopefully ease it some. It didn’t help. There was a pressure in his veins and in his head and it was shrieking. It was so loud and it sounded like the pleas of a father to be forgiven and it hurt. Tears began to well in his eyes. “Why didn’t you just tell me? Does he know? Was anything you told me real?” He was trembling, then. He curled in on himself, and in his eyes was such agony. He was mourning a million things, all at once. “Did either of you mean it when you said I could be safe, that I could live with you, that I could meet your family and maybe even be a part of it? Did I die alone in your world? Oh wait, I’m sure I did. If my father was anything like the one in your world, I know I did. At least that Icarus died in peace.” His next words, the ones which would have hurt lost stuck in his throat. I wish I had never come here. I wish I had never met either of you. I wish I had just died. Everything would have been so much simpler. It’s partially true at least and they don’t get it. He wanted to hurt. He needed to hurt. He had to make his br- Tim and Jason understand what was happening in his chest. His heart was tearing apart and he wished he didn’t care so much. Furious tears began to fall down his cheeks.

Jason forced himself to stay still, despite the hammering of mistake, mistake, mistake in his head. "I didn't want to hurt you." Mistake. "It didn't even occur to me until you mentioned priests and kings." Mistake. "I thought Tim would have told you." Mistake. "I'm sorry, I should have told you from the start."

You can't do anything right.

He held Tim slightly tighter, counting his heartbeats.

"We meant it when we said you could stay," he added softly. "I-- neither of us wanted to hurt you. We just wanted you to feel safe. I'm sorry."

"Well, he didn't. And you didn't either. Fuck-" The rushing in Icarus' head was so loud and it was getting harder to breathe, but his stupid, idiotic, open, bleeding heart continued beating. "It goes two ways, I told you everything. I told you about him. And... and..." The fury in his veins was burning him. He needed to get it out, it hurt, he had to get away before he burned the only people left in his world he cared about. "It hurts. I trust you both and now my blood is burning me, and my heart is being ripped out but I'm still here." He was hyperventilating by that point, and his eyes were wild with panic. He pulled gently at the hoodie, at the part above his heart. Words were trying to escape, but they were trapped behind some fucking barrier in his own head again. The tears kept falling.

He couldn't breathe enough, and he could only hope that Jason understood. He hoped, with the functioning part of his head, that Jason noticed the present tense of trust.

But he had bigger problems.

"I know," Jason said, fighting the urge to reach out and hug Icarus because he knew that would be the wrong move. "And I shouldn't have put off telling you -- clearly exhaustion is nothing compared to this. And you deserve to be told the truth and to have people you can trust. And you have every right to be angry with me." Even though it hurt, worse than the time he'd taken a knife to the gut or a bullet to the shoulder. Stupid emotions.

Icarus put his hands at his throat and gently squeezed before both hands went back to his chest, holding the tatters together. He couldn't stop crying and his head was bowed to hide it, despite how much harder it made breathing. A whimper came from his throat as the rage continued to rampage through his veins and burn everything it touched.

He wished he could speak but his words had shut down. It was so frustrating and he wanted to scream.

"In through your nose, out through your mouth," Jason said, so desperate to control his feelings that that desperation was all he felt. Counterintuitive, but at least he wasn't angry. "If you need to take a walk, do that. I can also shut up."

Icarus immediately got up. He cringed and looked to Tim before he tried to meet Jason's eyes. I don't forgive you. I love you. He slipped out of the room like a ghost, leaving behind one paper in his rush. It was the drawing of Solace, looking concerned.

Jason let out a choked breath and dipped his head, resting his forehead against the top of Tim's head. "Fuck."

That about summed it up.

Tim was just kind of unconsciously vibing in absolute terror, but he was definitely fine. Yep. Actually, being curled against Jason was helping, and so was the tightness of the blanket, but there was only so much those things could do in the face of sheer panic.

Tim woke up with a start -- he was shaking so badly that Jason had to put both arms around him just to be able to keep him balanced.

"It's okay," Jason said as evenly as he could manage, trying to keep his own surging worry under control. "Breathe."

"Where's Icarus?" Tim managed.

"I fucked up," Jason muttered.

Tim shook his head -- that wasn't an answer.

"I told him about the time gap."

Tim stopped breathing. That-- Jason had-- Icarus would--

He couldn't even form the words, just that something about that was so, terribly wrong, and he could feel the anxiety and panic dig its claws in deeper, his heart stammering to pick up speed to match his racing, incomprehensible thoughts.

Jason could feel his brother's panic, and it broke his heart. He hadn't been this helpless since--

Absolutely not.

He forced the memory down with every ounce of resistance he had left.

And that's when the Pit raised its head. You know how to end this.

He did, and his mind immediately began making the calculations. Who was alone? What could he use?

He started to get up-- but Tim clung to his arm with a death grip, like he was drowning. "I know what you're thinking."

"Tim."

"Please don't leave me here," Tim whispered, and it was that that made Jason sit back down and hold his brother closer, against the screaming of the Pit.

HELLO???? IM KIND OF OBSESSED WIRH THIS TBH

[unalomepath]

365/365

Hi Dear Me!

What a year! Last post done in the end of 2022. Let's summarise!

Moving abroad.

Well, I knew that it wouldn't happen. I didn't even want that. I guess I was trying to convince myself that it is a good solution and time to run from Poland, but deep in my hear I just knew. In the end the main reason was that we did not find a proper flat due to be expats. Also we couldn't take our cats. Everything with that idea was a mess and I completely forgot about it a little later.

Job change!

New opprtunity to develop in a strong worldwide company and great salary (60% rise). Am I dreaming?

Mess in my head.

In the beginning of May, I am not sure, I started therapy. I could not bare anymore panic attacks and feeling just like a trash. I felt responsible for every fucking misfortune. May long weekend we spent in Greece, Corfu. Only because I had a really high pressure that I need to go somewhere. It's been 6 months of staying at home, it is unacceptable! But the weather was bad - half of the stay heavy rain, and if not - almost all the time fully cloudy. It affected the whole experience. And I was utterly sure that it is my fault. Also we spent sooo much money for that trip only because it was in a desirable date. We were arguing, I was depressed and annoying, everything went awful. At least in my head.

During the therapy I learnt to think and see myself and the world differently. My therapist made me aware that the wather is not under my control and that I forgot about everything good - like the fact that I am a great planner when it comes to the sightseeing or renting a car.

New job is going worse and worse...

New dream job turned out to be a disaster I hate. I realised that it is not me. It a imagined me, extravert, confident and proud. I had to go on a official trip to Germany, I felt there lost, I did not understand a thing, everyting was so confusing. I did not receive any onboarding, any explanation, any introduction. Only more and more calls and upcoming requirements. I started stressing me and I felt so stupid. A job that I couldn't tell a word about. But my holiday were soon I stopped caring at leat in the summer.

I am a fiancee!

The 10 days in Zakynthos, Greece, were my best holidays ever. Everything finally went perfect. PERFECT. The hotel, food, sea, beach, trips, views. It overcome my expectations. Best holiday ever! And the main point was that my partner gave me a ring, so I finally after almost 8 years changed my status from girlfriend to fiancee.

Come back to the old job.

After holiday I realised I need to run from my "dream new job". Quickly. Somewhow my previous company took me back. Of course not too easily - I went great during the interviews, but to punish me for leaving they lowered my salary in comparison to the other people in the team. And there is nothing I can do about it. And it is really fucking annoying. I am not progressing with my salary due to the high inflantion for the past 2-3 years.

After job change I started again to have panic attacks and issues with myself. Unfortunately my therapy had to end in July because the owner of the medical center decided to close it... But I learnt back then a lot. I just need to remember to follow the rules.

2023.

Some points about 2023.

I got engaged. It means that I am important in this big world.

I had a short adventure in another company that allowed me to pay off the car, go to therapy, buy a computer, and benefit fully from the holiday. I quitt because it was the best choice for my mental health and money wasn't worth it.

I realised I do not need social media to live. I feel better without the knowledge what everyone is doing! If it is something interesting, they will tell you.

I realised that life is not about building it the same as other people. You choose. You have your own, special priorities. You have your own plan.

Me is the most important (of course besides my fiance). I live only for myself, I do not have to fit in, drink alcohol or enjoy the same stuff. Big NO.

Health is the biggest value. Doing overtime, skipping lunch breaks, trying be always the best IS NOT WORTH YOUR HEALTH. Both, physical and mental!

Life is about living, so close this virtual blog for today. :)

[mayra-quijotescx]

w e l p

Denmark: awful mean of them to send a kid to Eurovision with the song he wrote to invite his girlfriend to prom. Protect this kid.

Armenia: full disclosure, I'd probably love this song if it wasn't straight. The chorus is definitely an earworm, whether you like it or not (I don't tbh.) 12 points for her outfit, nul points for the Welcome To Hell-esque flipping of the lights on and off.

Romania: oh god y'all this ain't it, he's like a swagless horndog knockoff of BDG. I cannot believe I'm saying this, but *sigh, long inhale* BOOOOOOOO PUT YOUR SHIRT BACK ONNNNNNNN

Estonia: I always get the Fake Piano Fire bloodlust whenever I see a piano on the Eurovision stage. Sadly, she didn't go for it. Beautiful vocals though!

Belgium: Eurovision always needs more queer anthems, and they brought an actual vogue performer in but Gustav my dude what is that outfit, please go change, we can reschedule you, just please go

Cyprus: he's at least giving it more than he did in the official MV but IDK y'all. His impressive vocal range isn't enough to save the song from itself. (also do you really want to be barefoot on this stage?)

Iceland: threw herself the fuck around for three minutes and didn't miss a single note. [insert "power move" dad joke that gets me defenestrated here] I have since learned that it was originally in Icelandic and she switched to English version for the contest, and I'm sad now.

Greece: imagine showing up to fucking Eurovision in a beige outfit and performing a beige ballad. Who made you do this. Blink for help.

Poland: Polish Eurovision fans have asked the Eurovision community not to vote for this song because of the last minute corrupt jury vote in their national qualifier that featured two people with personal interests in Blanka winning over the contestant who maxed out the popular vote. This shouldn't be a tall ask, because quite frankly, the song fucking sucks.

Slovenia: [grandma voice] they seem nice. I hope we get to see them again on Saturday.

Georgia: Eurovision Gothic with gorgeous symphonic metal characteristics

San Marino: the weirdest sexual harassment you ever received at that one bar you never went to again, but now it's a three-minute long musical number! Yay. Petition to lock this guy and his Romanian counterpart in a utility closet somewhere until they kill each other, or at least until Sunday afternoon.

Austria: FINALLY SOME GOOD FUCKING MUSIC. A biting (and haunted!) satire of the music industry, but I'm a little sad that the backup dancers weren't in Poe cosplay. If someone got the "ugh" text in a screenshot please link me.

Albania: singing so beautiful you can almost forget that it's a family airing family drama onstage! I really hope they're cool with each other now…

Lithuania: the song itself is nice! the blurring in and out had me wondering if I needed to go lie down.

Australia: you think you're listening to a synth song and then that mid-song genre swap will hit you like a brick. I do not have a strong opinion, but what I do have is positive.