#I love how the sky is actually drawn in the speech bubble

[cursed-elo-images]

OKAY NOW THIS IS TALENT RIGHT HERE

fucking around with markers, it’s jeff lynne

[munson-blurbs]

I would actually LOVE to read about the proposal! How did it go down? Was Harris there? I think a blurb about that would be really special :)

Single Dad!Eddie x Fem!ReaderSeries

Summary: A lazy Sunday morning turns into something much more special, thanks to your two favorite guys.

Warnings: pretty much none, just proposal fluff and a smidge of suggestive language at the end

WC: 1.3k

A/N: The proposal/Harris calling Ms. Sweetheart "mommy" was also requested by @hippiefairy02, @cheesewritings, @enam3l, @peachysink, and a handful of anons!

March 1998

“Ms. Sweetheart?”

Harris’s soft voice doesn’t carry over the sounds of running water and the sponge squelching soap bubbles along the lip of a coffee mug, the remnants of a lazy Sunday morning breakfast. He clears his throat and tries again, tugging on the back of your bathrobe as he shouts.

“Ms. Sweetheart?!”

You jump, pulled from your own thoughts, nearly dropping the cup among the sea of dishes cluttering the sink. Eddie had made scrambled eggs and toast for the three of you; a gesture you’d thoroughly enjoyed until you realized that the clean-up fell on your shoulders.

“Jeez, Har. What’s the emergency?” You catch your breath, allowing your heart rate to settle back to a normal rhythm, and shut off the faucet.

Harris wrinkles his nose, the bridge creasing in confusion. “There’s no ‘mergency,” he says, releasing his grasp and motioning for you to follow him. “I gotta show you something.”

You oblige with a soft laugh, haphazardly grabbing a dish towel to wipe the suds from your hands and wrists, and let him lead you to the kitchen table. Crayons are strewn across it, blues and purples and reds intermingled around his artwork. 

“Whatcha drawing?” you ask, hands bracing the back of the chair he’s plopped down on. You peer over his shoulder and smile. It’s a picture of you, Eddie, and him. A full-fledged kindergartener, he’s been adding more details to his stick-figure family portraits: a vase of wildflowers sits atop a sienna oval table, black squares and rectangles above it represent the various photo frames hanging on the kitchen wall. This picture looks different than Harris’s usual set-up; he typically draws himself in the middle of you and Eddie, each of his hands overlapping yours and his dad’s. Today, he’s drawn you, then Eddie, then him. And your hands aren’t linked; instead, he’s used a silver crayon to place something in Eddie’s cartoon palm.

You furrow your brows and gesture towards the mystery object. “What’s that, Har?” It’s better not to guess, lest you say the wrong thing and inadvertently offend him. Just last week, you’d asked him if a small blue object in the sky was a bird, and he was on the verge of tears trying to explain that it was a UFO. 

“Can’t you see the alien?” he’d wailed, pointing to a little green dot you’d assumed was a rogue eye.

Now, Harris grins. “It’s a proposing ring!” he announces. “That’s why you’re smiling so big!” Sure enough, the curved line of sketch-you’s mouth extends to both cheeks. 

Real-you can’t help but mimic the beaming expression. Just the idea of Eddie proposing to you has you feeling giddy. You’d marry him tomorrow if you could; all he has to do is ask. Though your pulse quickens at the thought, you don’t want to build up Harris’s hopes for something that may not happen for a while. Pressing a kiss to his scalp with a soft giggle, you remark, “A proposing ring? That’s so silly!”

“Is it?”

The unexpected sound of Eddie’s voice has you whirling around, startled for the second time this morning. He’s still wearing his pajamas, flannel pants perfectly complementing your own cozy attire. He bites the inside of his lip, and when he takes your hand in his, you can feel it tremble slightly.

“Sweetheart, I…” he starts, trying to remember the speech he had rehearsed an absurd amount of times. He clears his throat before speaking again. “Sweetheart, I wake up every morning and go to sleep every night grateful for you. Never in my life did I think I would find someone who loved me the way you do; someone who loves my son like he’s their own.” He chokes up at the last part, blinking back the tears so he can press on. “Sometimes, I still can’t believe I landed such an incredible, thoughtful, beautiful woman.”

You offer a small laugh, slightly easing his nerves, and he manages to smile. “You…you’re the love of my life, and my world is infinitely better with you in it,” he continues, pulling a small velvet-covered box from his pocket and sinking onto one knee. With shaky fingers, he opens the box to reveal a princess-cut diamond on a thin silver band. “Will you marry me?”

“Oh, my god.” Elation and disbelief simultaneously surge through you, eyes going misty as the realization hits you. Eddie’s actually proposing. He wants you to be his wife, and he wants to be your husband. “Yes, Eddie. Yes, of course I’ll marry you!” You’re laughing and crying, tears streaming down your cheeks; you sloppily wipe them away with the back of your hand.

Eddie stands up, the ring still in its case. You expect him to slide it onto your fourth finger; instead, he turns to Harris with a knowing expression. “Your turn, Har.”

Before you can question it further, Harris takes your hand in his, just like Eddie had. “Ms. Sweetheart,” he looks up at you with wide, exuberant eyes, “will you be my mommy?”

You scoop him up into your arms; he’s almost too tall for you to do it comfortably, and it pangs at your heart. “Yes, I will be your mommy, Harris!” You kiss his cheek with an exaggerated mwah, placing him back on the ground as he excitedly kicks his feet.

With that, Eddie puts the engagement ring on your finger triumphantly, pulling you in for a hug that squeezes the breath out of your lungs. His lips find yours without hesitation, kissing you as long as Harris will allow before the kid becomes impatient.

“Mommy?” The title rolls off of his tongue so easily, bringing with it fresh batches of tears for both you and Eddie. Mommy. You’re Harris’s mommy. The close bond you’ve already developed strengthens in that moment, and you vow to wear your badge of Chosen Mom with pride. 

“Yeah, Har?” 

“Can we celebrate with ice cream?”

“It’s, like, 9:30 in the morning,” Eddie laughs, scrunching his nose. “I don’t even think Scoops Ahoy is open yet.”

Harris pouts but ultimately relents, on one condition. “Then…can we go when it opens?”

You look at Eddie, who delivers his seal of approval with a quick nod. “I think that can be arranged.”

As Harris cheers, you sneak a glimpse of the new jewelry adorning your finger. It daintily sparkles even under the kitchen lighting, a perfect depiction of your love for one another. 

Eddie’s hands snake around your waist, chin resting on your shoulder. “How’d I do?” he asks with a goofy, lopsided grin. “Is my future wife happy with her ring?”

You turn around, draping your arms around his neck and pressing your body against his, desperate for a moment of intimacy. “I love it. And I love you, Eddie Munson.”

“And me?” pipes up a little voice. 

“Both of you,” you amend with a giggle. Pleased with your answer, Harris returns to his crayons and construction paper. 

Eddie’s voice is a melodic whisper in your ear. “After our family ice cream date, maybe you and I can celebrate a bit more privately?” You can practically hear his teasing smirk at the raunchy implication. 

“We can pick up champagne on the way home,” you murmur back, heat blossoming in your belly. You’re no longer just a girlfriend, but a fiancée, a future wife, and there is nothing else you crave more than the touch of your future husband. 

And while you and Eddie finish washing the dishes with a plethora of stolen kisses, Harris picks up a green crayon and titles his drawing, just like he’d learned in art class:

Mommy, Daddy, and Harris. 

--

[majorproblems77]

Sacred Realm updated which means im actually so excited to be making this omg

Hi there Sacred Realm fans! :D

It is I, the one who makes the analysis posts on various comics on the internet. (With permission course) Because I love doing them and they bring me joy.

If you are unaware of what Sacred Realm is, it's a Legend of Zelda AU about a new Link who gets a little medallion that makes him a badass, also it can hold the spirits of heroes from across the realms (Including my fave boy ever okay)

Before I begin, I'll get the important stuff done, This is done with permission from @zelda-the-sacred-realm, and all art from the comics belongs to the comic artist. Please do me a favour and go and check it out because it's a wonderful comic and extremely well-drawn and written.

Now, grab some popcorn, and a drink and please enjoy me rambling about a comic that I enjoy so much. :D

Lets begin!

First, some sass

Damn, possessed Link got a mouth on him. Low key I love him, he looks like he could go for round two like right now. Wouldn't be surprised if he went for the hero of time next.

My eyebrows shot up at this.

Time KNOW's

let me repeat that

TIME KNOWS. HE KNOWS WHATEVER IS IN THE MEDALLION CAUSING THIS.

(More on this later)

He knows he knows he knows he knows he knows

I can hear the mocking voice of Link while he is saying this. Time has experience with this particular entity before.

Okay, so here is when it gets interesting.

Possessed Link or this entity I suppose, referring to Time and in turn Hylians as 'Your Race' Tells me a couple of things.

This thing in the medallion isn't a Hylian spirit. So as much and as fun as a dark link theory is, I dont think it could be.

Time arguing that we're not perfect, again referring to Hylians sounds very much like an "I'm speaking with a god speech"

I present my theory on what is in the medallion.

An extra spirit, a god of some description, from the spirit realm. Out to get revenge on Hylians.

Time has been to the spirit realm, in his games. (I am under the assumption that those still occur in this canon please do correct me if I'm wrong here.)

I'm convinced that this thing in the medallion is a deity of some kind because of the eye colour. I can't get over it.

This style of blue, with no pupils.

We've seen it before.

On Hylia.

From Chapter 2 fate PT2

And here is the first time we see it on Link for comparison, With Sky's alongside him for comparison for what Hylian eyes look like.

From Chapter 2 Fate PT3

The colour isn't exact so it can't be Hylia herself I dont think, but, i believe that there is a spirit trying to escape the sacred realm and is using Link to do it.

Okay, enough of my conspiracy theories moving on!

Link you gotta wake up!

Sky thinks so, I love the coloured speech bubble, what a good idea.

OH BOY I LOVE THESE PANELS

You know those scenes in video games when you're fighting off something that's trying to possess you and you have that ominous-sounding echo that seems to reverberate through your head. But is also muffled at the same time?

(If I find a game example I'll link it)

This. Put that noise you think off over this.

KICK ITS BUTT LINK GET IT, GET BACK IN HERE.

These five panels tell so much when it comes to how much effort Link has to go through to fight off the medallion possession. I wonder if its going to be easier or harder for him to fight it off as he gains spirits in the medallion.

You can really feel his struggle and I just love it. The visual storytelling is incredible in this comic and I will fan girl about it all day because I just love it so much

I'm thinking he says this to gauge just how bad this possession is. time seems like the guy who would, especially as he already seems to know what this is.

I wonder if he really is the hero of realms?

Yes, Time. Yes, he is.

The face he dosent remember any time he's possessed by the medallion is a little worrying.

Makes me think that could be used later.

Like, Link dosent remember fighting this ice comet now. What if he fights an enemy while possessed, breaks the possession then has to relearn how to defeat it because as possessed link he's not gained any information.

Man Link is a cinnamon roll sometimes and I love him dearly okay.

Alrighty, thats me finished with my rambling. Thank you so much for sticking with me through this! And thanks again to @zelda-the-sacred-realm for the permission to do these i really appreciate it.

Please please go and check out the rest of the comic if you haven't it's amazing :D

Thats me finished for this chapter, so I'll be headed out!

Hope you have a wonderful day! :D

[sarahjtv]

BNHA Chapter 326 Analysis: All Might’s Legacy

We’re finally back!  I hope Horikoshi had a good break to rest up.  Glad to see him back in full form!  This chapter focuses on All Might and (finally) his conversation with the Hero Killer: Stain.  It’s a simple, but very effective chapter that shows us again how important All Might is to the world regardless of if he’s a Pro Hero or not.  Anyway, I’m reading the official translations this week since Shonen Jump was released early this time b/c of a Japanese holiday.  I honestly kinda wish Shonen Jump was released on Fridays.  It’s a good way to cap off the week:

Like I said before, this chapter is primarily a conversation between Stain 🩸 and All Might ✨.  This was set up for a while since all the way back in the Hoseu arc, but it was really set up before the war happened.  All Might even mentions it in this chapter, but it got delayed for some reason.  I would say it was because of the war, but the war happened months after that second set-up, so that couldn’t have been it.  So, I wonder why it was delayed?

The title of this chapter is called “Who Are You Really?” which is the question Stain asks All Might during their convo.  All Might gives an answer, but ultimately, All Might is a true hero who wanted to step into the limelight purely to save people and give them that Symbol of Peace he thought they all needed.  Even after retiring, he still did his best to encourage and train Deku to become his successor.  He looked out for the other students along the way.  And like Aizawa said, even his presence alone is giving people the push they need to keep going.

Despite knowing all this, All Might is still disappointed in himself for not only failing Deku, but failing Japan as a whole and letting the war happen.  

Really, there wasn’t anything All Might could’ve done about the war.  His power was running out and Kamino pretty much snuffed most of it.  Even if All Might did have his power during the war, it took several Pro Heroes and students to knock out Shigaraki.  I highly doubt fighting Shigaraki + Gigantomachia would be easy for him.  

As for Deku, All Might could’ve said more to him before he took off, but how was he when Deku kept pushing All Might away.  Also, All Might doesn’t have it in him to tell Deku to stop what he’s doing as Bakugo’s told us before.  They’re the same sacrificial idiots who will risk their lives to save others.  All Might still needs to talk to Deku though.

This is where Stain comes in.  He’s still as insane as he ever was, but he isn’t out to kill All Might.  Remember, Stain thinks All Might is the only hero worthy enough to kill him.  So, instead, he gives All Might some words of encouragement that actually seem to help him.  Stain being All Might’s life coach was not have that on my bingo card...   

Stain lets him see a woman with a snowball/puffball(?) Quirk taking off the “I Am Not Here” sign from the All Might statue in Kamino and cleaning the statue too.  Turns out she does this every day despite it being dangerous to even walk outside.  That woman is the last person All Might saved during the All Might vs. One For All battle.  She was that woman who was pinned down from the debris (Horikoshi drew scars on her leg to show this; nice touch) and pleaded All Might to save everyone.  She gave All Might the strength to keep fighting.   So, in return for saving her, this woman is now saving him again. 

All Might looks at this and starts to cry 😭 as Stain monologues how All Might was loved for his smile and his will to save people.  It had nothing to do with his Quirk.  His flame still lives on in the future generations of heroes: Deku, his friends, his classmates, the Pro Heroes left, and all the civilians who still believe in him.  So long as those flames burn, All Might’s legacy will live on 🔥.  

Stain knew he was talking to All Might this whole time (he had doubts earlier because of All Might’s skinny form, so he tried buffing up earlier, but it didn’t work), so he gives All Might info he got in Tartarus.  Then he wants All Might to kill him for real.  I wonder what Stain got from his time in Tartarus?  Maybe this info will help take down Shigaraki and AFO?  Maybe it’ll have more info on other Tartarus inmates?  You gotta wonder.

Also, Stain states that he killed 40 heroes now.  Wasn’t his Kill Count in the 10s last time?  Did he kill more heroes since he escaped?  It would fit his ideology since a lot of Pro Heroes quit.  Regardless, that’s a lot of people.  His kill count is higher than Dabi’s now.  

Finally, as All Might cries, the Kamino woman sees that the rain has finally stopped.  I saw people mention how it’s symbolic how it looks like the All Might statue punched the sky to changed the weather like how All Might did that literally when he saved Bakugo and Deku from the sludge villain at the beginning of the series.  Ironically, that first punch brought rain 🌧.  The statue’s brought sunlight ☀️.  

Before I end things off, I have to mention he art in this chapter and how well it helps tell the story.  Horikoshi has always been good at letting his art show his story as much as his dialogue tells it.  All Might picks up Deku’s damaged steel mask that was left behind as a way to show that they’re still connected (also that mask was originally inspired by All Might’s smile; gotta love symbolism).  Stain and his speech bubbles are drawn as crazy as ever.  Shoto’s Ice is still there, so this is right after All Might walked away from UA last chapter (you need to melt that ice, honey, it’s a hazard).  It’s been hot minute since Horikoshi’s drawn Buff-Might in the manga and it definitely looks like his art style’s improved a lot since then.  There’s one panel that shows All Might running into danger paralleling how Deku ran in to save Bakugo from the sludge villain (it’s even drawn pretty much the same 😭).  I noticed that All Might didn’t flinch at all when Stain threatened him with his sword; there’s something sad in the fact that he almost expects to die at this point 😢.  And there’s the panel showing everyone who keeping All Might’s flame alive.  Our own Big 3 are front and center here too.  I’m still waiting for Deku to respond to Bakugo’s apology and Shoto’s time to shine, Horikoshi 😤.  Also, All Might imagines Deku clean, so I hope he’s as clean as this when he finally takes his goddamn bath 🛁!

Overall, great chapter!  Loved how the Kamino woman (please give these people names, Horikoshi...) came back and still believes in All Might.  Loved how move All Might is and I hope he finally has the courage to talk to Deku.  Can’t believe Stain gave All Might a legitimate pep talk tough.  Like, Stain is complicated.  He’s definitely a villain and he should be locked up, but he’s not AFO level villain.  He wasn’t wrong with his ideology, but that doesn’t mean all heroes should die because of it.  For example, Ochaco would’ve definitely been Stain’s target at the beginning because she did want to be a Pro Hero to give her parents some money.  A genuine and grounded goal, but not in Stain’s eyes.  So, having him show All Might the light is something to look positively on.  Even if it’s ultimately for All Might to kill Stain one day.  Still hope it’s a push in the right direction for All Might.  Hopefully for us too now that the sun’s out.    

Me @ the Kamino woman being one of the few good civilians left:

[lets-get-kraken-boys]

Fantasy AU! Dragon Master! Katsuki Bakugou X Witch! Reader: Hot Damn, Dragon Man~!

(Description: I don’t think anyone has written a story like this before with this particular backstory, but if someone has please let me know right away! With that out of the way, this was just a fun little idea I had that I hope you all enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing! Also, I aged up both Bakugou and Kirishima in this story to around their early 20s, though this isn’t really important or relevant to the fic, an adult, hunky Bakugou and Kirishima is a treat I think we should all indulge in~! I might make a Part 2 to continue the story depending on how you all like it, but we’ll see! I hope you enjoy and thank you for your time. // PS: Quirks still exist in my version of the Fantasy AU! //)

~

Fanfiction Lingo

(Y/N) - Your Name

(L/N) - Last Name

(N/N) - Nickname

(H/C) - Hair Color

(E/C) - Eye Color

(F/C) - Favorite Color

~

“Normal speech.”

‘Inner thoughts.’

~

Requester: No One!

Reader Gender: Female (She/Her)

Style of Story: Aiming for a multiparter, but who knows! // Fantasy AU! Hope you’re as excited as I am!

Word Count: 6.4K Words

WARNING(s) / NOTE(s): Aged up characters but this story is NOT NSFW, Quirks still exist, cursing (it’s Bakugou in a fantasy world, he’s going to call you some offensive stuff), and a little bit of blood but no real harm is done to (Y/N)!

~

“Man, I have got to work on my cardio! Ughh…,” you huffed out as you took the last few steps to be on top of the hill you had just hiked up. Stopping for the air you desperately needed, you sat down on the mossy ground below and leaned against a nearby tree, taking deep breaths. As your previously foggy brain became clear again, you noticed the purples and pinks of the dawning sky peaking through the tree’s leaves and smiled, springtime weather had always been your favorite kind. The dewy mornings, sunny afternoons, and clear nights were always a welcome change to the drab winter days. Though, being a Green Witch did make you favor specific seasons more than others.

“Sorry, my lord Hades, but I must admit that I’m a little happy your lovely wife is back with her mother again. Nothing can compare to the plants and herbs that grow back in the Spring. Though, do not fret, my lady Persephone will be back with you sooner than you think.” you spoke to the stillness of the forest, but you felt their presence and knew your gods heard your message.

Looking in your wooden basket, you inventoried the goods you had collected near your secret cove to harvest ingredients. You found the cove three summer’s ago while looking for shelter from a storm that rolled in quicker than expected. You were lost and couldn’t find your way home but the kind nymphs that lived in the area offered you a place to stay that night. In exchange for them sheltering you, you made them a few miscellaneous potions as payment (even though they hadn’t asked for any). Ever since that day, you have been friends with them and are allowed to freely take any of the resources that grow in the area with their permission and in turn you trade them any potions or spells they ask for. Of course you’ve found other places to harvest rarer ingredients for specific creations, but with such a bountiful place so close to your home it is your go-to spot.

“Wicker mushrooms, a bunch of Lavender, Yarrow, Thrumdells, could always use more mint sprigs, Merryquil, Heron’s feathers, I have the mermaid’s bubbles and crystals at home...I think that’ll about do it! Great haul today, (N/N)!” you praised as you set down your basket and stood up. You brushed off your flowy, (F/C) ankle-length skirt and smoothed out your poofy shirt and cloak, straightened the potion holder belt strapped to your hip, picked the basket back up, and continued on the path back to your cottage hidden deep within the forest.

“What should I make for dinner? Zeks enjoys sweet things but I don’t know if Zazel--!” Without warning, a booming roar shook the leaves off the trees, causing you to stumble back in shock. You shot your hand on the dagger strapped to your belt while your eyes darted back and forth through the surrounding terrain, trying to locate where the sound had come from and if there was any immediate danger near you. Shortly after the cry, a loud crash sounded like something smacked the ground hard and caused a tremor that knocked you clean off your feet with a yelp. The shaking lasted for only a moment before everything went still once more as if nothing out of the ordinary had even occurred.

Still in shock from the bizarre situation, you sat on the grass for a little longer, listening to the oddly quiet atmosphere, before another cry shot through the hush of the land and nearly scared you out of your boots. Though, instead of what you thought was ferocity in its tone, it seemed closer to a wail of pain than anything. You stood on shaky legs and took deep breaths while staring into the distance where the noise came from. You wanted to turn around and run to the safety of your home, to go back to the warmth of your cottage and just pretend that this whole instance never happened, but something was pulling you towards the creature. Maybe it was the whines and whimpers that it made, the curiosity caused by something that could make lands quake with the strength of its voice but instantly become like a meek puppy was truly intriguing, but that wasn’t quite it. Maybe you wanted to check if anyone had been hurt by the monstrosity but that didn’t seem right either.

You let out a quiet gasp as one thought in particular struck your mind...could it be...Fate? You cursed yourself, wishing you had brought your tarot cards to check for any possible signs, but you didn’t have time for that right now. You considered your options; be a coward and leave whatever the hell just fell out of the sky alone, abandoning it to most likely die, ignoring the call of Fate, and continuing about your day or appeasing that pesky gut feeling, finding the beast, and seeing what was the matter.

You growled as your legs began to move toward the epicenter of the sound, hating how you can never turn down someone in need of help.

~

~ Timeskip to a short while later ~

~

“Where in the fresh hell is that stupid beast?!” you cursed as you trudged through the spongy moss and bushes covering the forest floor. After running for a bit in the direction you had thought you heard the wail come from you had found no evidence of anything out of the ordinary which pissed you off to no end.

“You couldn’t shut your trap earlier, why are you having such a hard time now?” you mumbled to yourself, pushing past a few bushes in your way. Your next few sassy words became caught in your throat as you heard a low growl erupt a few yards away from you behind the bush directly to the right of you. Suppressing your urge to scream in surprise, you composed yourself and poked your head through the shrubbery, only for your jaw to drop at the sight before you.

An enormous creature was laying on its side in the middle of a small clearing of trees, peacefully sleeping in the early morning sunshine. Its horned head and long neck were stretched out while the rest of its body curled around itself in a cocoon like position. The beast took steady breaths, its lungs filling up and stretching its stomach to show off the breath-taking, fiery red scales that coated its entire body. The tail lay still wrapped around the body and reminded you fondly of a litter of kittens your old master cared for. But probably the most beautiful part of all were the magnificent wings that draped over the serpent’s body like a protective barrier from the outside world. You saw the muscles of the appendages and knew that this creature was not one to be messed with. Right there, such a short distance away, was what you could only describe as a humongous, red dragon!

You couldn’t believe it, you almost wanted to pinch yourself to see if you were really awake but you ignored the feeling in favor of watching the sleeping beast in awe. Sure, everyone around knew that dragons existed and heard the legends about them, but it wasn’t like you got to see them very often. The kingdom to the South was well known for its coexistence with dragons but rarely anyone except those in a higher position of power or people who lived in the tribes actually got to see and interact with them.

Judging by the diagrams you had seen drawn of dragons, you guessed that it wasn’t extremely old based on its size and bodily markings, making it less of a threat. As you examined more it led you to notice the reason for the creature’s moans of pain. A huge gash was carved on the right side of the dragon’s chest, dripping with fresh blood. It was so deep that you could actually see bits of the beast’s rib cage. Wincing at the sight, you inspected further and saw the scales surrounding the wound were a contrasting dark black to the shiny red ones all over the body, almost like they had been scorched by a tremendous flame. Either way, if the serpent did not receive some kind of immediate help with that large of a wound, it would surely bleed out within the next few hours or somehow be injured even more. After contemplating, you sent a quick prayer, took a deep breath, and shuffled your way out of the bushes and into the open for the creature to easily see you.

You expected that such a powerful beast in this state of physical distress would not let its guard down so easily, so when its golden eyes shot open to glare at you with its teeth bared in snarl you were not in the least bit startled. You smiled sweetly at the dragon, lowered yourself closer to the ground, set your things down, and averted your gaze as to not cause it anymore stress or let it think you were challenging it. You kept your hand visible as you reached for the knife on your waist, even as the beast hissed at your movements, and threw it far away from your reach to show respect.

“Hey there! I’m not here to hurt you, I’m here to help,” you spoke loud and clear so it could hear you, but even if it didn’t understand your language you still wanted to get your point across, “I heard you fall awhile ago, that must have hurt, huh? I came to check up on you, see if you were okay, but then I happened to notice that nasty gash in your side and figured you needed my help!” you gulped with the smile still on your face. You heard another growl before it was cut off by a sharp whimper of agony and that noise alone made your heart drop to your stomach. The smile on your face faded into a frown but you quickly perked back up and continued.

“I promise, I just want to check out that wound and get you healed up. Help you get back in the air again. Please, I don’t want to have to leave you to suffer like this.” you finished as you looked back at the dragon with a desperate look in your eye. The dragon wasn’t snarling or glaring at you anymore, which was definitely a good sign, but as you looked deeper in its eyes it was almost like you could feel the pain radiating off of it. After a brief moment of hesitation, the beast lowered its head back down to the ground in defeat, a sign for you to come closer. You gratefully smiled and picked your things back up, got up, and scurried on over.

When you got close enough to where you could press your palm flat to the warm scales and feel its strong heartbeat, you kneeled and examined the bloodied gash. You first ran your fingers along the outskirts of the wound and the dark marks smudged onto your fingertips and palm, confirming that the dragon had been severely burned by something or someone. The actual slash was about five feet long and two feet wide that dug deep into the body, like something had pierced it rather than just nicked it. You looked closer at the blood dripping from the injury and noticed pine needles stuck in the dragon’s flesh, not just on the surface but deep in the wound as well.

You gasped and looked up at the beast who was already gazing down at it with you to ask, ��Did you hit a tree during the fall?” The serpent nodded its head with discomfort and flopped it back down onto the soft grass. A pitiful sigh slipped from your mouth as you explained what you were going to do now knowing it could understand you.

“Okay, first off we need to get these pesky pine needles out of the wound. Then, I need to slow the bleeding and somehow dress it. I do have the right ingredients on me to make you a healing cream but I do not know how I can…,” you stopped and glanced at the cloak draped from your shoulders and smiled, “I know! I’ll use my cloak to soak up the blood!” The dragon shot its head up in alarm and looked at you with a gaze of what seemed to be guilt. You tilted your head in confusion before looking at the cloak now in your hand, back to the saddened serpent, and connected the two together with a laugh.

“Oh, are you worried about dirtying this old thing? Pssh, don’t even concern yourself! It's to help you survive, so it's being used for the greater good either way! Between you and me, I was planning on treating myself to a new one anyways, so who cares if a little blood gets on it!” you joked, trying to calm the dragon’s nerves. You washed your hands with the clean water from your canteen strapped to your hip and shook them dry.

“Let’s do this!” you cheered, readying yourself for the crazy afternoon ahead of you.

~

~ Another timeskip to later in the afternoon ~

~

“I must say, you are certainly one of the best patients I’ve ever had, my scaly friend! You’ve been so good letting me take out all those nasty needles and clean away the charcoal and blood from your pretty scales! Thank you for being so sweet.” you praised, scratching the dragon’s chin, behind his horns, and belly as he let out happy grumbles and chitters (Dragon Kiri LOVES belly scritches, and you cannot convince me otherwise) at your kind words. His head was now curled up next to you, watching you clean and disinfect his wound with the utmost care, with him enjoying the pets he got every time you hit a sensitive area or made him hiss from the pain.

You were diligently working at patting away the blood with your now sopping cloak, trying to cease the liquid dripping out of the dragon. As you worked, you made sure to give the creature lots of encouraging strokes and belly rubs to help ease the pain, but whether it was more to help it through this endeavor or to get to pet a living dragon was uncertain. Either way, the job was getting done, and so far no big issues from either party.

Yet.

“Awesome! It looks like the blood flow has slowed down a lot now. Thank the Gods, I don’t know how much more my poor coat could have taken,” you joked while setting the crimson-soaked material to the side, “Now, I’ve got the healing cream prepared for you but how the hell am I going to bandage--AH!” you shrieked as you were suddenly shoved away from the dragon and thrown further back into the field.

You heard the beast let out a concerned roar as your back met the dirt ground with a loud THUD that knocked the wind right out of your lungs. You closed your eyes in pain and gasped, desperate to get the lost air back in your system, but you were stopped as you felt a heavy weight slam on your chest, a hand grab your wrists and pin your arms to the ground above your head, and someone lean over you to block out the sun. Even though your head was spinning with confusion and adrenaline ran a marathon through your veins, your eyes shot open when you felt something sharp press into your neck.

“What the hell are you doing to my dragon, fucking maggot?!” the man on top of you yelled in your face, but you could hardly comprehend his words due to the abruptness of the situation. You wish you could say that you hated him from the moment your eyes landed on him, you wished you could have ignored the way your gut did cartwheels as if the Fate of a lifetime had been completed, but god was everything hard to ignore when he looked so fucking hot. His blonde, spiky hair exploded messily around his chiseled face to give him that ‘I didn’t even try to look good today’ natural beauty. From his striking jawline, cute button nose, strong neck, and those striking crimson eyes, he was just insanely good looking. Even as he glared at you with his eyebrows pulled down in a scowl, you couldn’t help but blush at the intense way he looked at you. Not even mentioning what you could see of his bare torso that was every bodybuilders’ dream, you inferred that he was around the middle of his twenties. His attire was composed of a few pieces of jewelry, colorful arm bands, a blood red cape completed with a fur-lined neck piece, and other things you couldn’t quite see from your position under his knee pressing hard onto your sternum. That pain was actually what brought you back from “(Y/N)’s Hot Guy Dreamland” to realize admiring his looks wasn’t exactly the main issue right now. To be honest, he’d be even more hot if he wasn't pressing that sharp scimitar threateningly to your neck, but sadly even that was sexy.

“I...I...well--,” you stuttered in shock, looking for the right words to spit out to appease the barbarian on top of you.

“EH? Out with it, whelp,” he growled, pressing his knee even harder into your chest to get his point across, “What were you doing to my dragon, dimwit?! Did you try to hurt him?”

“What? No, never!” you defended yourself while weakly struggling to free your arms from his vice grip.

“Did you plan to kill him and skin him for his hide! You sadistic monster!” he roared, pressing the blade closer to your neck, causing your skin to break and bleed. You yelped when you felt the burn of the slice but swore you could smell the scent of burning caramel drifting off of his body that hadn’t been there before.

“I would do no such thing, you creep! I was just--,” you were interrupted yet again by your own whimper as he leaned closer to your face. His frown deepened as you felt the blade press even further into your delicate flesh.

“You know what? I don’t even wanna hear your shitty ass excuses, I might just kill you right now and be done with you,” he smirked as your face significantly paled, “Unless you did something to my partner, then you’re gonna explain what you did, fix it, and then I can take my time slicing--,” the madman was cut off as another voice cut into the conversation.

“Bakugou, stop hurting her!” a masculine voice bellowed from a distance away. The sound of steam expelling filled the tense air as a hot gust of wind swiftly blew over the two of you. Shortly after you felt the man, who you now know his name is ‘Bakugou’, unlatch his grip on your hands and draw his sword away from you neck. You let out a sigh of relief and gawked as he completely abandoned from practically sitting on your chest to sprinting in the direction he had pushed you away from.

“Kirishima!” Bakugou shouted as he ran head first into the warm fog the steam had created. You sat up from the ground and pressed a hand to your neck to stop the light bleeding as deep gasps filled your lungs to contemplate what in the fresh fuck just happened in the time span of maybe a minute. You heard mumbling from the fog and, being the ever curious (N/N), decided to get up on wobbly feet and trek into the steam after the brute of a man.

“This is not how I planned to spend my Wednesday.” you murmured to yourself, walking blindly forward in the mist until you found your assaulter and your lizard patient except...not? No, instead of your new found scaly friend, you saw a red-headed man with horns and scales peppering his body leaning against the bully, Bakugou. His hair was spiked up to incredible heights and it blended seamlessly with his red curly horns hidden within. His face was scrunched up in pain but he still held a brave face as he grinned with teeth that were fit for a dragon. He, too, was around the same age as the blonde, and shirtless with the same body sculpted by the gods themselves, but on the right side of his torso was the same gash your dragon friend had. If the smaller, but still powerful, human sized wings on his back and thick scaly tail weren’t enough to convince you, then the wound confirmed that this indeed was the red dragon from before, now known as Kirishima. And, thankfully, he was nearly fully clothed too.

“Kirishima, don’t be an idiot, de-transform and get some rest, dammit.” Bakugou grunted at the man, causing the spikey haired fellow to laugh.

“Aw, I thought we weren’t partners, Bakugou! Now here you are, caring about some lowly warrior? You flatter me!” Kirishima joked as he coughed into his gloved hand while trying to sit up properly but utterly failing.

“Stupid! Just because I don’t want you to be fucking idiotic and die doesn’t mean we're partners!” he barked, his teeth growing sharper like he himself was a beast. Kirishima chortled and looked over to you. When he noticed your dropped jaw and wide eyes he coughed and looked you in the eye.

“What’s up, dudette? You look like you’ve seen a ghost!” he joked.

“I...what...the HELL?! What even...I don’t understand…,” you paced in circles before looking at the two with (E/C) eyes full of confusion, “Who and what the heck are you two?!” Bakugou looks taken aback so he growls, reaching for his sword again, but Kirishima slaps his hand away from the weapon with a grin.

“I’m so sorry for not introducing myself to you earlier, I was in a lot of pain and plus I didn’t know you that well, so I hope there’s no hard feelings,” he smiled while pointing his thumb to himself, “I’m Eijirou Kirishima! And that is my friend, Katsuki Bakugou!”

“You lizard brain! Don’t just give random strangers our names!” Bakugou bared his teeth but Kirishima chose to ignore him.

“I never caught your name before, what was it?” he asked with a sweet head tilt that reminded you of a concerned puppy.

Suppressing the way your heart clenched at the adorable sight, you stopped nervously pacing and spoke, “My name is (Y/N) (L/N), it’s nice to meet you.”

“Such a manly name! It’s nice to meet you too! Hey, I just wanted to thank you for all the help you provided me today. It’s totally not manly of me to ask for that much assistance, but even I knew that I needed it then more than ever! Who knew the perfect person for the job was just an acre away! Ha!” Kirishima laughed as he struggled to stand but fell back down again onto his tail with a groan of distress.

Bakugou had only barely caught him before you rushed over and kneeled down to check his tender wound. Kirishima flinched and flushed red at your fingers traced along his bare abdomen but you were too worried to care. Bakugou openly glared at the way Kirishima blushed at you, but stopped himself short when he realized what he was doing. Why did he do that? He had only just met you, you were a fucking nobody in his eyes! You hurt his friend! Who you choose touch and don't touch wasn’t his problem! Then again, he glanced at your concerned face and noticed the way your soft features shown in the light, how your (H/C) hair framed you like an elegant oil painting in a museum, how your eyes glistened with the rays of sun, how your lips moved with each word spoken. He blushed at that last thought and shook his head. What the fuck? No, he was too great to be dragged down by silly puppy love! But...you did seem nice and strong too...Wait, no! He looked away from the two of you and tried to compose himself as you and the redhead spoke back and forth.

“Woah! Kirishima, what are you doing? I haven’t finished treating your injury yet! Take it easy on your body.” you scolded like you were his own mother, placing a cloth you had fished out of your pocket onto the leaking wound.

“W-Wait...you’re not done?” he stuttered out, thankful the blush on his cheeks was slowly but surely melting away.

You looked up at him in shock, “You thought I was just gonna leave you like this? No way! You still need that healing cream, stitches, and bandages to cover it up so it won’t get infected!”

Bakugou interrupted Kirishima before he could even protest, “Hold on, you weren’t hurting him?” He looked over to the bloody cloak hastily tossed on the ground and scowled at the memories of his actions a few minutes prior.

“No! That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, pinhead! I’ve been healing up your dragon while you were off picking flowers in the woods to make friendship crowns! Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to finish treating him so that you two can head on your merry way and go back to wherever you popped out from, got it?” you shot at the brute, causing him to flinch at your harsh words.

“No way am I letting a weakling like you--,” cutting Bakugou off, Kirishima spoke over the next few words Katsuki said, which most likely saved him from a beating by your hands.

“Actually, he doesn’t get a say in this. I would love for you to finish, (Y/N)! Thank you again for great care!” he quickly said, shoving Bakugou a few feet away so he could lay flat on the ground. You balled up the fabric lining the bottom of your foraging basket and placed it under the dragon boy’s head so he could be more comfortable as you got to work again.

You carefully cleaned, sanitized, and tried to get Kirishima back to his peak performance and he took the pain like a champ, but Bakugou on the other hand was getting a little out of hand. He insisted that he keep a close eye on you to make sure you didn’t hurt his “not friend” in any way, shape, or form, and that was fair, but you didn’t like the fact that all he was doing was squatting next to the two of you and just...staring. Not saying anything, just scowling with those pretty eyes of his. What? Just because the man was a bit of a hard ass didn’t mean he wasn’t damn fine eye candy.

“Are you gonna sit there all day and just glare at me and my handy work or are you going to say something, Mr. Negative?” you snarked, watching from your peripheral vision as he jumped at the sudden intrusion of your voice. You smirked as Bakugou scoffed and leaned further in your line of sight to make you acknowledge him.

“Who are you?” he said with a stern tone.

You raised an eyebrow as you added more of the cream onto Kirishima’s wound, “I’ve already told you, my name is--,” Bakugou quickly hushed you.

“Not in that way, moron! I mean as in what are you? Some kind of mage or something dumb like that--,” you swiftly hit Bakugou on the shoulder for his rude remarks but before he could retaliate you flipped the question onto him.

“Don’t call people stuff like that, didn’t your mother ever teach you manners? I’ll tell you what I am after you tell me what you two are.” you countered.

“Bullshit! I’m the one asking the questions here! I ain’t saying--,”

“Bakugou and I are from a Southern Hemispheric tribe called the The Kin Born of Flame,” Kirishima explained as Bakugou’s jaw dropped, “He is actually the son of Chief Mistuki, leader of the Bakugou Clan! How cool is that? As for me I’m half dragon half human, but I’ve started to call my species Dragon Shifters.”

“Wow, not only a dragon but a Dragon Shifter too? This is incredible!” your eyes sparkled as you grinned down at Kirishima in delight.

“I know, right! If you think dragons are rare, try finding more than a dozen Shifters, we’re even harder to come by! Yeah, I’ve been Soul Bonded with Bakugou ever since we were fifteen. He may seem tough on the outside, but once you get to know him he’s really a huge softy!” he laughed as the barbarian cussed him out.

Your heart sank a little as you heard him speak so fondly of the man but the term he used confused you, so you just had to ask, “Soul Bonded? What’s that? Are you two in a romantic relationship?”

“What? Oh, no way! We’re just close buds is all,” Kirishima snickered, “I don’t think I could ever stand to be in a relationship with someone who's so hot headed! But he is still on the market and up for grabs, if you know what I mean~!” Kirishima wiggled his eyebrows at you while you blushed but played it off with a wave of your hand and a teasing giggle.

“What’s that supposed to mean, you hair-for-brains loser?!” Bakugou fumed, his hands twitching at the thought of grabbing the dragon boy’s face and blowing him to bits.

“So, what is Soul Bonding?” you redirected the conversation once again away from the agitated blonde and left him to stew in his frustration.

“Right! Soul Bonding is when a dragon and a human basically become partners, or friends, for life. Bakugou’s people have such a close relationship with my kind that every year a ceremony is held for all the unbonded individuals to try and find their other half. During this process, the human doesn’t get to choose the dragon and the dragon doesn’t get to choose the human, the feeling is sort of hard to describe but you’ll know when you’ve bonded when you see the other and think ‘They’re the only one I can ever fly with again’. Once you’re bonded, you cannot become bonded with another of the opposite species for the rest of your natural life, so if something unfortunate happens to your other half you don’t get a redo. That’s why the practice is so sacred. Some see it as romantic, others see it as a platonic engagement, so Bakugou and I have chosen the latter! Plus, I already have my eyes on a different person~,” Eijirou swooned with a flutter of his scaly wings.

Bakugou groaned, “Please spare us the two hour long declaration of love for another time, idiot. My question still stands, whelp, what are you?”

You huffed, “Well, since you asked so nicely, princess~, I’m a witch,” Kirishima and Bakugou gasped at the answer and glanced at each other nervously, but you raised your hand to stop them from jumping to conclusions, “but if you’re assuming I’m one of the evil witches that only uses black magic and practices necromancy, you’re wrong. I’m actually more of a Green Witch on steroids. I make healing and protection potions, work together with the nymphs who live down by the mountainside, open up my home all the time to the neighboring normal and mythological wildlife, encourage the growth of new, exotic kinds of plants to sprout in my backyard, and more. That is how I was able to make that cream so powerful for you and I, thanks to your guard dog, Kirishima.” you rubbed your neck where the slice had been that had long disappeared from the magical antidote and glared at Bakugou who simply grumbled and looked away in embarrassment.

“Woah, that’s amazing! I was wondering how you made it feel like it wasn’t even hurting anymore! You’re amazing.” Kirishima awed with wonder as he lightly patted the strips of bandages strapped to his side.

“Awe, thank you so much! I’m glad you’re feeling better,” you gave him a scratch behind his horns and his tail began thumping the ground like a dog as you became serious once more and turned to Bakugou, “But I have to ask, what caused Kirishima to get such a huge injury?”

Bakugou froze and let his head dip a bit towards the ground. You looked over at Kirishima who, for the first time, had a truly pissed off glint in his eye. You were taken by surprise at the silence that overcame them and considered taking back the question you had asked but stopped short when Katsuki began to speak again, this time his voice was just a gravely grunt.

“Ever heard of the Dark Kingdom?” was all he had to say as the mood became sinister and heavy.

Your eyes widened and you let out a brief shutter of a sigh as chills swept over your body, “Of course I have. Who hasn’t been affected by them in some way or another?” a grimace filled your now hushed voice. After all, how could you forget the ones who imprisoned your dear instructor?

“Kirishima and I had just made a trade with that damn Prince Shoto in the Todoroki Kingdom to the North last night and we were flying on our normal route back home when all of a sudden this huge blast of blue flames came hurtling towards Kiri. It came out of nowhere, no warning given. I don’t blame Kirishima for not being able to avoid the fucking sneak attack, but I do blame myself for being ignorant enough to not think that an assassin from the Dark Kingdom would try something on our only route home.” Katsuki closed his eyes as his eyebrows furrowed further.

“I should have expected it too, Bakugou. You’re not the only one who wasn’t thinking the smart way.” Kirishima tried to take some of the blame but Bakugou only continued.

“I got a brief glance at the attacker before Kiri fell. While he was falling, he managed to hit a rather large pine tree and instead of breaking it he impaled himself directly on it like a dumbass and further hurt himself. We hit the ground, I checked to see if Kiri was even alive and if I had anything broken, and once I confirmed he was breathing, I ran after the fucker who did this to give him a lesson like a jackass. I ran and ran, but the bastard got away and when I came back to help Kiri I saw you poking and prodding at his flesh and I just...saw red. Look, I’m sorry I jumped your shit and nearly killed you. Just don’t be such a weirdo and don’t go poking your head in business that doesn’t concern a dummy like you!” Bakugou finished while crossing his arms over his chest.

“How did this turn into my fault?” you rhetorically asked the air.

“Well, it’s because--,” Bakugou started.

“Didn’t need an answer on that, dunce,” you rolled your eyes and stood while looking over at Kirishima, “Well, to end this on a happier note, my medical work here is done, boys! You’re all patched up, Kiri!”

“Seriously? Freaking awesome!” he jumped up from the dirt and almost nearly collapsed again if it weren’t for you and Bakugou rushing to help him lean his weight on you two.

“You didn’t let me finish, you overgrown lizard! You’re all patched up, but there is only so much that cream can do. I wanted to say the both of you can come back to my cottage and you can rest up awhile, rehydrate, get some energy back. Plus, I can see about making you a potion that can fully heal that wound for you too!” you finished with a grin.

“Oh yeah? What’s the catch, bitchy witchy? Turning us into frogs to keep as pets?�� Bakugou sneered.

You giggled with a smirk, “I haven’t thought of the price yet, but if you’re offering that sounds like fun! I bet you two would be the cutest frogs in the land! Maybe I could as far as cursing you to need a princess to kiss you back to your handsome selves again~!”

The two of them gasped at your cruelty, but you laughed, not noticing the blush on Bakugou’s face, “I’m kidding, guys! You don’t think I’m actually that mean, right?” you teased.

“O-Of course not, (Y/N)! Ha ha! Pleasedon’tturnusintofrogs!” Kirishima stuttered out with a paled face, which made you laugh.

“You worry too much! Let’s get you boys somewhere safe to hang out! Ooo! I have to show you guys everything!” you skipped down the dirt path that ultimately led to your house and you rambled on about your own little world as the two of them shambled close behind, one of them wondering what the hell they just got themselves into getting stuck with a cutie klutz like you and the other way too excited to help these two lovesick fools navigate their way through the world of romance.

~

~ The End ~

~

~ Extra Bonus Ending!!!! ~

~

The figure hidden in the shadows of the trees watched with a smirk as the beautiful young lady led the two idiots further into the forest and away from the clearing where the beast had sadly not bled out.

“Wow, what an interesting turn of events, chiefling,” the blue-eyed figure snickered as they incinerated the bloody cloak of the young maiden previously used to clean the dragon’s wound, “Let’s see how long your princess in shining armor can keep you safe~!”

~

~ To Be Continued… ~

~

[bitchin-beskar]

Spidey Sense

Fandom: The Old Guard

Rating: T

Word Count: 2.4k

A/N: So the original prompt for this was something along the lines of: "hey, what if Joe and Nicky keep pictures of each other in their wallets to remind them of why they're doing this whenever they have to be apart" and this was born from that. Enjoy!

Tags: @theocatkov, @cosmicbug379, @marydjarin @perropascal

Let me know if you’d like to be tagged in any of my works!

Please like and reblog! I love feedback!!!

Gazing down at the image of the love of his life, forever immortalized by his hand, never failed to bring a smile to Joe’s lips. His drawings would never be as magnificent, as breathtaking as looking at Nicky with his own two eyes, but whenever they were apart, he had to make do with images drawn by his hand. 

Slipping the small slip of paper back into his wallet, Joe flipped it shut and slid it into one of his many pockets. He hated going on missions without Nicky, but this particular job had required his expertise in infiltrating one building while Nicky’s skills as a sniper were required four blocks away. It was unfortunate, but not the first time it had happened, and it likely wouldn’t be the last. 

When Copley had informed them of the job, he’d made sure they knew that he’d been unable to get any estimates on the number of guards they’d have to deal with. It made Joe uneasy, but they’d gone through with it anyways. Some tech company was trying to use their software to hack into the Pentagon to steal the locations of missile silos located all over the US. The government was very concerned about this threat, and so Copley had called them in.

Joe was supposed to create a distraction at the main headquarters, drawing the company’s attention and thus, allowing Nicky to eliminate guards at the warehouse that housed the company's main servers, which would then allow Nile and Booker to get in and plant explosives. Boom! No more servers, no more threat.

Nicky had been worried about Joe causing a distraction when they didn’t know the amount of guards, but Joe had tried to soothe his beloved’s fears as best he could. 

“Habibi,” he’d said, hand resting on Nicky’s waist, holding him close. “I will be fine. And if anything were to go wrong, I know that you will not allow them to hold me for long.”

Nicky had leaned his forehead against Joe’s, one of his many, silent, I love you’s that he bestowed upon Joe throughout the day. “I would prefer it if nothing goes wrong.”

“As would I.”

***

Nicky had been right to worry, and Joe knew he would never hear the end of it. There had been twice as many guards as Copley’s estimate, and even with Joe’s healing, and centuries worth of experience, he’d quickly been overwhelmed. They’d knocked him out–although, perhaps they’d killed him, Joe wasn’t entirely sure–and when he woke, he was chained to a metal chair, bolted in the middle of an all white room.

His first thought had been something along the lines of how poor of a choice it was to put him in an all white room, as it undoubtedly would become quite the grotesque scene when Nicky arrived. Blood clashed so horribly on white walls, and Nicky could get quite ferocious whenever Joe was threatened. 

His second thought was on the fact that even while bound, he could tell that his wallet was no longer in his pocket. That, in of itself was of no consequence, practically everything in it was fake–it was hard to have valid ID’s and such when you were an immortal warrior born nine hundred years ago–but there was one precious item in that wallet. 

The drawing of Nicky was one of many, but that didn’t mean it was any less special. Joe had saved every single scrap of paper he’d ever drawn Nicky’s likeness on, and while some had aged beyond recognition, he hadn’t had the heart to let any of them go. He knew that Nicky similarly had many, many photographs and paintings of him. Nicky always professed that he wasn’t as artistically inclined as Joe, but every time Nicky sketched him, Joe could see the love and care that went into each piece of art, and he fell in love with Nicky all over again. 

He was jolted out of his musings by the door opening violently, slamming against the wall. He didn’t react outwardly, instead analyzing each of the men that walked into the room. Ten men entered, the last, an older man with grey in his hair, shut the door behind him, making a show of locking it. Joe wanted to scoff. These men didn’t intimidate him in the slightest, and they would have to try a lot harder if they wanted to get a reaction out of him.

“Who sent you?” 

Joe laughed. So this is how they were doing this. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The man scowled, the expression twisting his features into a mask of hatred. “I don’t like your attitude, kid.” 

Joe laughed even harder at that, his body shaking with mirth, although his eyes were cold as ice. “I’m not quite as young as I look,” he chuckled under his breath, watching as the other men shuffled awkwardly. They clearly feared the older man, and he could see in some of their eyes that they feared for him if he continued to antagonize their leader. 

There was a sharp crack, and Joe’s head snapped to the side, the backhand delivered with an impressive amount of force. It might’ve hurt, if Joe hadn’t lived as long as he had, and had experienced far worse. Still, he kept up appearances. The longer these men were unaware of his healing and his immortality, the better. 

“Who sent you?” 

Joe grins, the perfect picture of innocence. “Who says anyone sent me? Perhaps I decided to come all by myself?” He probably shouldn’t be antagonizing this man, but he’s having too much fun. 

The man snaps his fingers, and one of the other men rushes forward to hand him something. Joe recognizes it as his wallet, watching as the man flips through it, pulling out his driver’s license. “Joseph Jones? Is that even your name?” The man scoffs. “Why were you trying to break in?”

“Oh, I wasn’t trying to break in.” The man looks confused for all of two seconds before Joe opens his mouth again. “I’d already broken in. Your men found me after I got in.” Joe can’t help but brag a little, because, well, their security was shit, but also because he was trying to stall for time, so that Nile and Booker could get in and out without any issues. “You really shouldn’t have picked white walls you know, white stains so easily–”

He gets another backhand for his efforts, and the man in front of him actually growls. He goes back to pawing through Joe’s wallet, and Joe can feel his heart stop when the man pulls out Joe’s drawing of Nicky. 

The man looks at it, and it’s clear he doesn’t know what to think at first. He studies the drawing, and Joe can feel sparks of anger igniting in his chest, although he tries not to show it. The man suddenly laughs, and it’s a cruel, mocking laugh. He shoves the drawing at one of the other men before turning back to Joe, a cruel smirk on his face. 

“How cute,” he sneers. “Mr. Jones keeps a picture of his boyfriend in his wallet.” The man spits on the ground at Joe’s feet. “God, that’s disgusting.”

Anger clouds Joe’s vision, bubbling up in his chest like rising magma before bursting forth from his mouth before he can stop it.

“Boyfriend? Boyfriend? Nicolo is not my boyfriend,” he spits, fire burning in his eyes. “You are a narrow-minded, childish, little man. Nicolo means more to me than all the stars in the sky. He has been my light, my heart, for over nine hundred years, and he will continue to be my light and my heart for nine hundred more. I have fought a thousand battles by his side, I have gone to war to protect him just as he has for me. There will always be those who try to separate us, those who cannot possibly understand the depth of my love for that man, and yet,” he pauses, a dark smirk on his face as some of the men step back in fear. “Those who try always end up dead. No, Nicolo is not my boyfriend. He’s all and he’s more.”

***

Nicky was in the middle of dismantling his rifle when he felt it. It didn’t even take him a moment before he recognized the feeling. It was the feeling he always got whenever Joe would make grand declarations of love, which, admittedly, happened quite often. While Nicky was more reserved when it came to lyrical speeches, Joe had no such qualms, and would gladly shout to the heavens–and had done so, multiple times–about his love for Nicky. 

Just as he was reaching for his phone to call Copley–because clearly something had to be wrong if Joe was waxing poetic about Nicky when Nicky wasn’t even in the same building–the phone buzzed.

Nicky didn’t even have time to greet Copley before the man was launching into an explanation. “Nicky, I’m sorry, there were too many guards, Joe’s been captured. They’re holding him somewhere in the building, but I don’t have eyes inside.” 

“I’m on my way.” 

Sending a quick message to Nile and Booker, informing them of what happened, Nicky finished packing up his gear quickly, leaving his spot on the roof and descending the fire escape as fast–and safely, he’d be no good to Joe if he executed a swan dive off the fifth story–as possible.

***

Joe could feel his mouth filling with blood, so he leaned forward and spat some on the ground. Apparently the older man hadn’t been too pleased with being insulted, and he ordered his men to get answers out of Joe, while he watched. 

The beating, while not one of the worst he’d experienced, had not been pleasant. Thankfully, the men hadn’t seemed to realize Joe was slowly healing from their attacks, but sooner or later they would get suspicious. He hoped one of the others would get here before that happened, he really didn’t like dying alone.

He’d just been punched repeatedly in the stomach when the man doing said punching stopped. Joe was confused, but he certainly wasn’t going to complain about a reprieve. 

“What?” Barked the older man, pushing himself off the wall and stalking forward. “What is it?” The younger man shook his head, looking around. 

“Did anyone else–?” 

He cuts off when a loud bang sounds from outside the door. All of the men turn to look at the door, missing as a smile spreads across Joe’s bloody lips. Another bang sounds, louder than before, closer than before, and some of the men jump.

“What do you think it is?” One of them whispers, and before anyone can answer, something heavy slams into the bolted door from the outside. The whole door seems to shake in it’s frame, and it’s only made worse by the sudden scream of pain. 

There’s a sudden onslaught of noise, bangs, screams, gunshots, and crashes and–was that a cat screeching? The men all back away slowly from the door, hands on their weapons, but nothing could have prepared them for the way the door was blasted off its hinges, flying into the room and taking out two of the men. 

There’s a sudden burst of gunfire, taking out three more of the men before they can react. Watching their companions fall around them, the remaining four men all aim for the door, shooting wildly at a target they can’t even see. The older man, the leader, unlocks Joe’s cuffs only to pull him upright, pressing a knife against his neck, using Joe’s body as a human shield.

Joe rolls his eyes. If only this man knew how ineffective Joe would be at being a human shield. He watches with interest as the men stop firing, only for a knife to fly through the air and embed itself in one of the guard’s skulls. The others start firing again, but even though it's three against one, they’re no match for a furious Nicolo di Genova. Bursting into the room in a flurry of movement, Joe watches, fascinated–and more than a little turned on–as Nicky becomes a whirlwind, attacking violently with his longsword, cutting down the three men–with violent efficiency–who stand between him and Joe. 

The older man presses his blade tighter against Joe’s neck, but Nicky doesn’t even blink. Joe stomps on the man’s foot, and Nicky puts a bullet in his brain, quick as you please. The knife cuts Joe as he moves, but it’s certainly not life-threatening, so he’s unconcerned. 

Joe looked around the room, taking in the blood and guts and gore that decorate the white walls and floor and ceiling. “I told them that white was a bad choice, blood stands out far too much–” Nicky strides across the room, and kisses Joe hard, before he can get another word out. Joe grasps Nicky’s face with his blood covered hands, bringing him even closer, moaning as his beloved steals the breath from his lungs. 

Nicky pulls away, but only just, his forehead resting against Joe’s. “Yusuf, amore mio, are you badly hurt?” His eyes rove over Joe’s face, checking for any and all injuries.

“No, habibi,” Joe sighs. “The marks those men left are quickly fading. I am alright.” Nicky kisses Joe again, uncaring of the fact that Joe’s lips still taste of blood. 

They stand there for longer than they probably should, and when they finally part, Joe asks the question that had been pestering him since he first became aware of Nicky’s arrival. “How did you know so quickly, Nicolo? They’ve had me for less than an hour.”

The look on Nicky’s face is one of fond exasperation, one that Joe has been privy to many, many times. “You were being incurably romantic again, weren’t you?” 

Joe grins, his eyes shining as he looks at his love. “They dared insult you in my presence, hayati. Besides, you love it.”

Nicky sighs. “I do.”

Joe cups his face once more and kisses him, pouring nine hundred years of love and affection and desire into the kiss. He would defend his Nicolo to the ends of the earth, against anyone and anything that dared try to come between them. 

***

“I do not understand, Nile. Why do you keep referring to me as a cross between a human and an arachnid?”

“You have spidey sense Nicky, of course I’m going to call you Spiderman! Except instead of sensing danger, you sense whenever Joe’s delivering a love speech worthy of Shakespeare!”

“Hey! Do not compare me to that jumped-up English playwright–”

“Shut up, Joe!”

[ata-art]

Another few spellbook pages are done! This time with a bigger Lup focus since Taako kinda dominated my last set

(First set here)

Edit - This has fanart now!!! Check it out its real cute

(Transcript under the cut like before)

First Image

L: so taako’s learning blink today. i’m writing it down because SCIENCE T: You’re gonna make me look like an asshole. L: nah it’ll be fine i promise ^^ T: I do not believe you in the slightest.

L: take one!! ^^ L: literally nothing happened. taako stood in a field for ten minutes and looked like a dumbass. [an illustration of Taako with a blank expression, and a speech bubble saying “yo what up im taako and i definitely know how to do magic”] T: What did I just say, Lup, what did I just say. L: XP T: For the record, my theory was sound. Opening portals to the etherial plane is HARD.

L: take two!! L: everything got all hazy and black and white for a second? taako still in this plane of reality though. [a drawing in black pen of lup sitting in the back of a caravan with a book and taako standing in the grass near her staring at the sky, which is dark]

L: take five!! L: taako made his arm do the thing! but just his arm. also he can’t work out how to get it back, which means this book is MINE! >:D L (in the green pen taako uses): hey check it out im taako. lup is the best sister ever. L (back to her usual red): thank you taako! ^^ T (in shaky handwriting, using his non dominant hand): Fuck you Lup L: ;)

L: take, uh... thirteen? L: arm’s back! taako did a lot of phasing in and out of reality until he was all in one piece again. T: Yeah, I’m done for today. Taako is 100% FINISHED. Also tired as fuck, and I think I’m out of spell slots? T: But I did it! Kinda. Needs work. I can get in and out in one piece, but my timing’s still off, and I need more control over my location, it’s still too random. L: okay mr perfect, go take a nap. i got dinner tonight. T: Really? L: yeah, you earned it. T: Gods, you’re the best, I love you so much, you’re my favorite sister L: i’m your only sister, dummy :P [taako’s drawn a bunch of hearts underneath, lup has filled them in with hearts of her own] [lup has also drawn an elf lying face down on the floor with an arrow pointing to them labelled “taako”]

Second Image

Page one L: fireball!! [a doodle of lup casting fireball with the caption “pshoooo”]

L: alright this is a classic. L: most evocation spells before this don’t need components because they’re T: basic [Lup has crossed this out] L: better than transmutation. but to make a fire this big, you need a little extra SPARK.

L: apparently the official book recommends sulphur and bat shit? which sounds like a great joke to play on fancy ass rich wizards, eternal respect. but really, anything flammable enough will do. trust me.

L: evocation spells need a chain reaction. you use the energy of the world and the world uses the energy of you and the spell keeps getting bigger until something explodes. if you did it right, you blew up the thing you wanted to blow up. if something else explodes, you fucked up, re-do your technique. 

L: normally you call on ambient elemental energies, like the sun, for fire spells. here, you hold the fire in your hand to begin with, which makes it EXTRA powerful. and then you chuck it at someone. boom. T: brilliantly explained.  L: what, it’s not like anyone but us needs to understand.

[a diagram by taako of a group of trees and bushes labelled “before Lup uses Fireball”, followed by a diagram of burned ground labelled “after Lup uses Fireball”. In the “after” diagram, Lup has added extra fire, and drawn a picture of herself standing over everything, with the caption “mwahaha!! XP”]

Page two L: lup’s tiny hut [a doodle of two kids standing in a bubble while it rains outside, the rain is not penetrating the bubble]

L: like leomund’s tiny hut, but BETTER. also it’s really more of a bubble than a hut? no idea what the fuck leomund was thinking. lup’s tiny bubble? except it’s big for a bubble. T: Lup’s huge bubble for protecting us from weather and stuff. L: yeah, that!

L: so this spell needs a small crystal bead, which is easy to get when your brother is a bomb as fuck transmutation wizard. T: Hell yeah. L: kinda cheating, but who’s counting? L: the harder the crystal, the stronger your spell, cuz that’s what you’re channeling to protect yourself.

L: when you cast this spell, you’re basically picturing you and whoever/whatever you wanna protect inside the bead, and then you expand the crystal shell to form an actual magic barrier around you.

L: if you cast it right, it lasts 8 hours, anything inside when you cast it can move through the barrier, and can see through the barrier if you want. to outsiders, it’s opaque and impenetrable.

L: it’s also weatherproof (always warm/dry), and you can make it dark if you need to sleep. all in all, a dope as fuck spell, and SUPER useful on the road. lup wins in all spell choices forever XP T: Yeah yeah whatever.

[ograndebatata]

Gift Memories and Floating Leaves - Extended Edition

Note: I first wrote this fic as a Secret Santa gift last Christmas, which you can view here. However, I have recently decided to revamp it slightly to include an element present in a fanart which she commissioned for her fic universe, and because I ended up doing a few minor typo and goof corrections as well, I decided this merited an independent post.

For those who already read the original version, I hope you also enjoy this new one. For those who are first reading this version, I advise you to stick with this one, but you’re free to check the older one if you would like. 

This fic is written as taking place in @lostbutterflyutau‘s Mirror World AU, and being familiar with it will help to understand much of what goes on here. But for whose who are unfamiliar with it, I will be including a few basic notes below to provide some context. 

Basically, this AU takes the show’s timeline as canon until Song of the Sirenas, at which point it diverges from the show, besides a few isolated elements.

A few key differences are that in this AU, Carla’s mother died when she was born, and Carla herself, after coming to see the error of her ways earlier than she did in canon, attended a school named Walter Mickey School for some time in a place caleld the Mirror World, where she grew as a person and saved the school and potentially more places several times. She also became one of the Princesses of Harmony, a group of magical girls, each with different powers of their own, Carla’s being that of reading minds.

In this AU, eventually Carla and Gabe fell in love, and started a happy relationship, and... well, I can’t say more without spoiling a key element in this fic.

But for anyone interested in a fuller context of this story, I very strongly recommend both her post with more information about the Mirror World AU (which can be found here) and her great fanfic When The Music Changes, which can found here (if you prefer FF.NET) or here (if you prefer AO3).

I hope you enjoy them both, and that you also enjoy this fic, whether you read the original version or are reading this one first.

_____

Gift Memories and Floating Leaves

At the Royal Palace of Avalor, on Noche Buena…

Standing on the balcony of the palace’s ballroom, her light blue wrap draped over her shoulders, the young brown-haired woman contemplated the twinkling lights of the massive árbol navideño that had been set up in the palace’s courtyard, as well as the smaller and more distant ones of the many decorations put up throughout the city, and the twinkling stars that glittered on the above sky.

It was a lovely view, matched only by the one she knew her violet eyes would meet if she turned around and peered through the ballroom windows. Behind them, people would either be standing in groups or twirling through the dance floor, the spirit of joy and love inherent to the season palpable in the air and visible in everyone, even those who for most of the year weren’t exactly the most agreeable people to be around.

Put together, both pictures combined in such a way that Carla couldn’t help but find surreal, as if Avalor had temporarily lifted itself out of the EverRealm and into another world.

It might seem like a weird figure of speech for someone who had literally lived in another world, but her strong points were dancing and magic, not poetry, and she felt it fit.

A brief breeze blew over her, rustling the glitter-studded dark blue of her ballgown and fluttering her loose hair and running over her skin like a warm soothing hand. Though Carla knew through Elena that ghosts only celebrated with the living on Dia de los Muertos, for a moment, it almost seemed like her mother was beside her this very moment, silently telling her that she got the metaphor, and she didn’t need to be so aggressive, especially with herself.

The thought warming her heart, she closed her eyes and took in a long, deep breath, releasing it in a drawn out, comforted exhale.

As a child, she never would have imagined she would end up spending Navidad like this.

Back then, it had always been pretty much the same thing, one year after another. She and her father would find some place to settle for the season, her father went all out with cooking (the only time of the year at which it was consistently made of purchased ingredients) bought her gifts that she now knew he had sometimes been hard-pressed to afford, and the two of them caroled together.

All things considered, besides the ‘extra mile’ her father went to, Navidad hadn’t been all that different from ordinary days. Her father always went as far as she could with cooking, gave her all the gifts he could afford without impacting their savings, and always tried his best to help her to not feel alone despite the fact that the only company they had was each other. The only real difference between that time of the year and all others was that, unlike all other ceremonies, which her father saw as opportunities to ‘raise their funds’, Navidad was the one where he insisted that people were to be left alone.

But now? Now she actually had a home she could call her own, an actual celebration to attend, and true friends to celebrate it with. And she even still had her father. Granted, he was back in the ballroom rather than outside with her, but that was a small distance, especially compared to certain previous years, which the two of them hadn’t even been able to spend together.

Having him with her was already something to be thankful for.

Her wrap slipped slightly. Carla adjusted it around her shoulders, looking down to make sure she hadn’t creased it.

As she did, her eyes met the silver band on her left hand, the purple gemstone twinkling like a firefly.  

A different kind of warmth filled her at the view.

By itself, it was already a beautiful jewel, but the meaning behind it, joined by the two sets of initials - one on each side of the gemstone - reminded her of something else she had for this Navidad.

Yet another thing to be thankful for.

“There you are.”

Carla’s heart gave a slight leap as she flew from her thoughts. Then, a smile spreading across her features, she turned around to the one she knew had spoken, her violet eyes meeting the familiar profile walking toward her underneath the gazebo.

The next moment, he stepped out of the shadows, giving her a full view of him in his dress uniform, and another view she found even better - that of his warm smile and twinkling eyes as he saw her.

“There you are,” she deliberately echoed, her happy smile turning into a teasing one.

Her chuckled fondly at her retort as he strolled up to her, the sword at his waist swishing to and fro with his steps.

As he rested his left arm over her shoulders and she curled her right one around his lower back, she asked, her voice more serious, “Is everything alright?”

She thought she had managed to keep her voice calm, but she couldn’t hold back the faint concern flickering up within her as she remembered Gabe’s departure from the dance. Today should be his night off, and the fact he was in dress uniform rather than his everyday guard outfit only reinforced that. But as she knew after years of being with him, it could be difficult for the Captain of the Guard to fully have time off. And just their luck, it seemed he had been needed during the Navidad festival.

“It is,” he replied, rubbing her shoulder soothingly through the wrap. “Just a few of the newer guards who weren’t certain of where exactly they should go on their rounds.”

Though a tiny part of her couldn’t help but think that that reason hadn’t been good enough to request Gabe’s presence specifically, the rest of her sighed in relief. At least it wasn’t about any villain having been spotted in the premises or some monster unleashed from a jar or some escaped criminal. Were it any of those, she could only guess their party would end faster than Cinderella’s. Festivals tended to be a magnet for scumbags of all sorts, and despite all the security measures that were put in place, there could be a few who were wily or lucky enough to get past them and wreak havoc.

She should know. She had helped to wreak havoc at similar events in her old days.

Don’t think about that now. She told herself, forcing down the lingering shame brought by the memories of her past life. Those days are gone.

Yes. They were. And she’d never want to go back to them. Not after learning how wrong they were.

“Well, I guess it’s nice that they feel comfortable enough with their Captain to ask directly for him,” she at last said, hoping she hadn’t spent too much time silent. “Even if they could have picked a better time to do it.”

She felt Gabe nodding against her.

“Yes. On both accounts.”

A moment of silence went by, the two of them basking in the comfort of being together. Then, she felt him shifting against her, his stance suddenly more rigid.

“And here?” he asked. “Is everything alright?”

She turned up to face him, meeting the liquid warmth of his chocolate brown eyes.

“It is,” she said. “Just a few… unwanted thoughts.”

His stance turned the slightest bit more rigid. “Is that why you’re out here?” A hint of alarm flashed across his face. “Did anyone…”

He let the sentence trail off, but Carla could read the rest of it just fine. Smiling up at him, she rested her free hand on the one he had over her left shoulder.

“No,” she said. “Nothing like that. I’m only out here because I was hot.”

His stance loosened at her words, but then, his eyes narrowed pensively, as if he was wondering whether he should say something he had in mind or not. Carla held back the urge to curl her eyebrow inquisitively.

“You used the wrong tense,” he at last added. Then, with a mischievous smirk, he added,  “You are hot.”

Her lips shifted into a smirk of her own even as joy bubbled up within her. He really was getting a bit too good at teasing her.

“So are you,” she replied, running her hand over the front of his jacket.

And she meant it. As much as it was part of her own teasing, seeing him in full dress uniform was a treat for her eyes.

An even better one than the usual view of him, at any rate.

The slim fit of his black trousers and dark blue jacket outlined his profile in a way that she could only describe as wonderful, the jacket's color going perfectly with the golden buttons that lined its front. Golden cuffs with matching cufflinks and two burgundy stripes running through their middle added what could only be described as a formal layer, which was only reinforced by the red collar with a golden top and laurel leaves of the same colour circling it. For a further element of fanciness, golden epaulettes with burgundy straps were fastened to the jacket's shoulders, and a length of golden thread that went from the jacket's shoulder to its neck dangled over the right side of the lapel. Adding a final touch of both color and fanciness, a creamy belt tied with a white band running along its middle circled Gabe's waist, securing a sword to it. And the five medals he had earned for his services to Avalor over the years, pinned to the jacket’s front by red ribbons, made up what could only be called the final missing elements whose previous absence was only noticed after they were already present.

For many people, it made for a very eye-pleasing picture. For Carla, it did the same, but it added a much more wonderful element. Namely, that of the happy memories of the the last time he'd worn it - on their wedding day three months prior. The day that had arguably been the happiest in their lives thus far.

As if reading her thoughts - which Carla knew that he, unlike her couldn’t do literally - Gabe smiled at her and drew her further into him, his lack of actual mind-reading powers never a barrier to knowing what she was thinking, not with how well he knew her. Taking care not to snag her wrap on his medals or buttons, Carla rested her head on his chest - careful so she wouldn’t poke his chin with her tiara - and listened to the comforting steady beat of his heart.

And for some amount of time neither of them cared about tracking, they simply stood as they were, the same warm breeze from before flowing over them as they contemplated the twinkling lights of the árbol navideño and the city, no words necessary between them.

It somehow seemed even more surreal than the sheer beauty of the picture all around her. And yet, she had no problem believing it was real.

Not when she could feel it so intensely, seeping into every fiber of her being and spreading through all of her to the farthest depths of her soul.

Another sigh flew out of her, this one dreamy. Gabe brought his free hand up and tucked one of her chocolate brown strands behind her ear, the hand he rested on her shoulder shifting ever so slightly, enough so as to let her feel the metal band resting around his ring finger.

A soft smile returned to her face.

They hadn’t openly talked much about it, but she knew from things he had said and done over the previous days, as well as from his own responses to some of her actions, that he was aware this Navidad would be yet another special Navidad for them.

“Soon,” she whispered to herself.

The next instant, Gabe shifted underneath her arm and head, and over her shoulders. Though she could tell without moving that he was turning an inquisitive eye down at her, she removed her head from his chest and looked up at him.

“I was just thinking out loud. And I meant how soon it will be yet another first Navidad for us.” Her lips curled in a mix of teasing smirk and fond smile. “Husband.”

Clarity lit up his eyes.

“I know,” he said. “And I can’t wait to celebrate it.” His look a mirror of hers, he added, “Wife.”

After a brief search for a reply, she instead ran a hand along his jawline, her smile still in place. As much as she liked to be a tease, this time somehow didn’t seem to be the right one to let that streak of hers unfold too far.

“And I can believe it,” he went on. “Even if I wouldn’t have in our early days.”

That was something else she got. After all, she had felt exactly the same way back in the days when she refused to even admit her own feelings for him, much less to do something about them.

And perhaps because of the season, one of those sprang to the front of her mind.

Despite herself, she briefly unleashed her urge to tease him.

“You mean like in a certain Navidad-related early day?”

Again, he didn’t give her a verbal reply. But his ever so slight nod, coupled with his fond chuckle and the spark in his eyes, told her that he understood what she meant, and was remembering the exact same moment right now.

///

Four years before, a few nights before Navidad, by one of the Avalor Palace’s living rooms…

Her heart pounding as she stood before the closed door, Carla aimed her tamborita straight at the lock, her senses alert to any kind of suspicious noise, and her being so jittery from the position she found herself in that she swore she’d jump out of her skin if a drop of water landed on her.

Thankfully it wasn’t raining, and the palace didn’t have leaks on the ceiling, but that didn’t make her feel any better. After all, being out in the palace in the dead of night seemed weird to say the least. Even if she excused herself saying that she couldn’t sleep - which sounded superficially plausible given she was in her pyjamas and a robe - coming all the way to this place during an insomnia would sound at least odd.

Of course, the suspicious air to her location was the whole reason she should stay here for as little as possible. The faster she was, the less chances she would be seen, she had told herself more than once as she kept staring at the door, as if her mere gaze could magically make everything end up where it should be and send her back to bed, safe from any suspicions.

Just get on with it! She told herself, mentally pushing all the determination she could summon through her being.

It was a sentence she had repeated more than once over the last five minutes or so. But somehow, this time it spurred her into action. Maybe something about her tune had been different this time. Or maybe she just needed to say it more than once to build up her determination. One or the other, it was meaningless. At least she could muster her will now.

“Nitla abrax conzaporti!” she whispered as she brought her hand down on the tamborita’s drum, trying to tap it in the slightest way she could while also doing so hard enough to cast the intended spell.

Violet pulses flew from the drum and toward the door lock, which then slid to the side with a low click. Then the panel itself slid open, more silent than a sheet of paper falling.

Armando really is a good chief of the castle, ensuring the door hinges stay so well oiled. She couldn’t help but quip in her mind.

Then, she scowled at herself. There was no time to joke when she was in such a compromising position.

At least it seemed that practicing this spell in secret had paid off. But there were still a hundred ways things could go wrong before she was done. And again, the longer she stayed up the more risks she took.

Finding it easier to return to her focus this, Carla aimed her tamborita to her right, at the sack that rested beside her.

“Llévaluq!” she said as she smacked the tamborita again. A purple glow bloomed around the sack, which silently floated off the ground and into the open doorway.

Twiddling her fingers, Carla directed the bulk through the room until it landed on its intended spot, the plush carpet muffling the noise.

Sighing in relief, Carla tiptoed into the room, hissing and grimacing as her bare feet briefly made contact with a few patches of uncarpeted floor. This was why she typically made sure to wear slippers. But wearing them now would make her steps noisier, so she had forgone them to reduce the potential giveaways.

A few seconds later, she pushed the door closed, but held it back just before it clicked shut. If the door fully closed, it would make noise, and bring about yet another potential giveaway. At least like this, as long as no one passed directly by the door and didn’t decide to give it a close check, there would be nothing suspicious.

For safety’s sake, she pressed an ear to the door, listening out for any suspicious sounds, like muffled footsteps on the carpet, the rustle of fabric as a guard walked, or even a guard’s breathing.

None came.

A breath forcing its way out of her lungs like clay, Carla straightened herself and headed into the room, half-lit by both the outside light that filtered in through the windows and the twinkling yellow and purple lights that decorated the huge pine tree resting close to the unlit fireplace.

Despite her nervousness, a smile blossomed on her face as she got closer.

There in the dark, with its lights now largely unhindered, rested what Carla thought was the most beautiful and most special árbol navideño she had ever seen.

True, she had seen others that could be described as bigger, or more opulent, or technically better in their decoration. But none could even come close to this one. The first true árbol navideño she had helped to set up since she decided to turn her life around, the first one where she’d truly had the fun of decorating in years.

Her smile only grew bigger as she remembered the various times she had spent working on it, whether it was picking out decorations with Elena and Isabel, or hanging them on the tree with Naomi and Esteban, or casting that spell Mateo had found to add twinkling firefly-like lights to the tree.

Even now, she could stare at it for hours, lost in the memories of the happiness that came with being part of something so special.

You don’t have hours! Her common sense shouted at her. Hurry up!

The warning making her spring back into focus, Carla hastened her step toward the árbol navideño, kneeling down beside her sack, which she had laid by the many gifts that had been placed under the tree. A relieved look spread across her face. No new gifts had been added since the last time she checked, and the current ones still looked indistinguishable enough from each other that there was no way to tell who had gotten each gift.

Her choice still held up.

A slightly easier breath flowing out of her, Carla unlaced her sack, looking into it as she plotted out her next course of action.

“What are you doing?”

A shout flew from her throat, her heart almost shooting out of her mouth as she jumped so high she swore her head nearly smashed into the ceiling. Her sack flapped as she rustled by it, her crash after she landed so noisy that it was a miracle she hadn’t woken half the palace.

“This isn’t what it looks like!” she yelped even as she whirled toward the sound, raising both her free hand and the one that still held her tamborita, her heart leaping like a demented monkey.

For a moment, she almost expected to see three or four guards raising their crossbows at her, their looks as stern as that of Elena when she had kicked her and her father out of Avalor on Carnaval.

Instead, only one guard stood there, and the only thing he had raised was his hands, even though he had a sword he could be drawing at her.

Even in the dim light, his startled and apologetic look was visible to her. And so was his identity.

“G-G-Gabe?” she managed to stammer, her heart still slamming all over her chest, but somehow an edge calmer at the sight of him. “W-w-what are you doing here?”

Of course, it was purely a rhetorical question. She could already paint the whole picture in her mind. Either he had been suspicious at the half-closed door or a faint breeze had somehow opened it before he passed by, all without her noticing. Then he had looked in, seen her kneeling by the tree and started thinking things. Probably bad things, given who she was and the fact she had her tamborita and a sack with her.

Strangely, his apologetic face shifted into a playful one.

“I asked first,” he quipped, somehow managing to sound endearing rather than silly or annoying, perhaps because of the wink he joined to his words.

Though her heartbeat was still frantic, she managed to muster a smirk.

“And I’m a lady,” she returned. “Don’t the rules of etiquette say it’s ‘ladies first’?”

The moment her sentence was done, she barely held back both a scowl and a wince, mentally kicking herself.

Where did that come from? Her inner voice shouted. Why on the EverRealm had her teasing nature decided to come out just at this very moment?

Fortunately, despite how it must have sounded, Gabe only nodded.

“Good point,” he acknowledged, the hint of a grin on his face telling her that he got her joke and was rolling with it, but at the same time something in his eyes conveying that he was also truly trying to respect her wishes.

Then, nervousness ghosting across his features, he stood straighter and then started speaking in a more official voice, not all that different from the one she heard him use with Elena when he was on duty.

“I was doing my rounds, and I saw this door was open, and saw you were here, and…” his voice faded, his arms twitching as if he was trying not to press them alongside his body or put them behind his back. “I have to confess I got confused.”

Fear flashing across his face the moment he finished his sentence, he raised his hands again and said, “Don’t get me wrong, I know you’re grown past your thieving days, but…”

Again, he fell silent. Carla waited for him to find his voice again, but while she could see from the unnatural stillness of his eyes that he was trying to find the right words, he didn’t make any more sounds.

And the silence dragged on, so thick Carla about expected to be able to hear the steps of the other guards as they did their rounds throughout the palace, or the crickets chirping outside.

“But?...” she eventually echoed, gesturing in circles with her free hand as if winding a crank.

His features and profile loosening a fraction, he added, “But my curiosity was strong enough that I just had to ask what you were doing.” After a moment’s pause, he added. “For some reason.”

He looked apologetic again, which Carla couldn’t help but appreciate.

But then again, there was nothing to appreciate to begin with. It was a good question after all. There should be no good reason for her to be kneeling by an árbol navideño with a sack in the middle of the night. And while she could tell from his voice and face that he really didn’t believe she was trying to steal anything, she could also tell that he was puzzled as to what she could be doing.

Before she could say anything, he shook his head with an annoyed scowl, the emptiness in his gaze telling her the expression was directed at himself.

“You know what? Forget it. I should have just left you alone. Like I said, I know you’re not here to steal anything.” He gave her a polite half-bow. “I’m sorry I bothered you.”

He started turning around to leave, his gaze no longer focused on her.

Before she could stop herself, her arm shot up like an arrow, a single word flying out of her lips.

“Wait!”

Then, as the word finished, she mentally kicked herself again. But it was too late. Gabe had already turned around. Though his gaze was nothing but gentle and encouraging, Carla still felt as embarrassed as if she had actually been caught committing a crime.

But for a reason she couldn’t quite explain, she felt he deserved an actual explanation rather than to mull the matter over in his head and perhaps literally lose sleep as he tried to find the answer to his question.

His gaze remained as calm as before, but still, nervousness built up within her.

At last, she managed to whisper, “Promise you won’t laugh?”

She winced the moment the question was done, as if her body had already decided there would be a bout of laughter from it alone. But instead, his gaze looking even gentler and more encouraging, Gabe nodded.

“I promise.”

There was nothing forceful or demanding in the words or the way he said it, but her nervousness scarcely faded. After all, she was about to say something that would be weird at best. And yet, for some reason, as afraid as she was of what he could think, she wanted to tell him.

Fiddling with her bracelet as well as she could while she was still holding her tamborita, she tried to muster the nerve to speak up.

Then, she explained, “I’m dropping off my gifts for everyone.”

For a moment, his expression remained just the same. Then, ever so slowly, his left eyebrow started to curl, the hints of puzzlement all too visible in his widening eyes.

“And you need to do that in the dead of night?” he asked, the same puzzlement trickling through his voice.

“Yes,” she replied, trying her best not to look down in embarrassment.

He didn’t say anything, but she could read the next question on his features plain as day, even without using her powers.

Despite her nervousness, she managed to get out, “It’s just… I never had to get gifts for anyone other than Papá. And…” she paused, the incoming words seemingly so hard to utter that she needed time to gather strength to do so. “... well, in case they don’t like my gifts, I don’t want anyone to know they’re from me.”

Understanding dawned on his face. Again, Carla braced herself for laughter or some kind of reproaching comment. Now that he knew the reason, he was bound to find it silly.

But yet again, he didn’t laugh. More than that, he didn’t even seem like he was trying to hold back laughter. His gaze remained just as understanding as before.

“You didn’t need to have done that,” he soothed. “I’m sure they’ll appreciate the effort one way or the other. Whatever your gifts are, they will mean that you thought of them and took the time to get them something, because you like them.”

Despite the comment, Carla felt her whole being loosening. The calm and comforting way in which he’d spoken to her, rather than the mocking or derisive tone she had been so afraid to hear from anyone who might have caught her, made those words much better. At least as good as they could be when he was still telling her she didn’t need to go to such lengths.

She did suppose he was right, although she wouldn’t know for sure. Like she had told Gabe, she had never needed to get gifts for anyone other than her father, and even he hadn’t gotten all that many gifts from her, because she had only started being able to get away from him to buy them herself once she was fourteen, and even then she’d had her spots of trouble. Yes, her father had always liked the gifts she got him, and she had no reason to think her new friends and her found familia would be any different, but all the same...  

“I still think it’s better like this,” she managed.

Already, she gathered herself for further words of disagreement from Gabe, sure that he would keep insisting on the matter until she agreed that his point of view was the right one. But instead, he simply nodded again.

“I respect that,” he replied.

And though that sentence could easily be said out of mere formality, she could tell that he meant it.

“Can you please turn around then?” she requested. “I really would rather no one saw where I put anything.”

He gave her another polite half-bow. “I promise I won’t look.”

Then, without any further prompting, he turned around, suddenly rigid as if standing attention, though he was facing the door rather than any person. An invisible weight lifting from her, Carla again knelt by the tree and took her hand to the sack. All things considered, things had gone far better than she had hoped. While she had been caught, Gabe had believed her innocence and given her a chance to explain herself. And now that he was here, she’d be able to finish her job without without being seen by anyone.

Or maybe not. She realized, invaded by a sudden fear.

After all, Gabe was still here. What if…

Don’t be like that! She told herself. This is Gabe! When he gives his word, he keeps it! You know that by now!

Yes. That was something she had always known about him. It was true that many guys liked to pass them off as gentlemen when they were even worse than the scumbags she had met on the road, but Gabe was one of those who if anything was even better than what he proclaimed to be. If he had told her he would turn around, she had no reason to not believe it.

But maybe she should just make sure. And she could do it. After all, she knew a spell that could turn her tamborita’s surface into a mirror. And it was one of those that Mateo called a ‘hitless spell’, so she wouldn’t draw Gabe’s attention by smacking the drum. She only had to whisper the word and she would have a makeshift mirror on her hand, and would be able to see whether Gabe was holding up his promise.

No. She told herself. 

He had trusted her. The least she could do was now trust him in return.

All the same, it really might be better to simply be sure.

It’s Gabe! She insisted. If he told you he wouldn’t look, then he won’t look!

Then again, he might not just be able to help his curiosity. It had happened when he saw her in the room. There was no way to say it wouldn’t happen now.

Before he didn’t know what was going on! She insisted. Now he does! And he promised!

Yes, he had. And he never broke a promise. That was something Carla knew about him from the days she had been Rita. And, she realized now, it might have been one of the reasons she had never been able to bring herself to manipulate him. Granted, that should only make him an easy target by all means, but somehow, even for her self from back then, there had been something about Gabe that had prevented her from branding him as a target.

But still, maybe just…

I SAID NO! Her mind’s voice shouted.

Then, before she could change her mind, she finally seized one of the gifts from inside the sack, and placed it by the tree, at a spot where its wrapping wouldn’t stand out too much between the surrounding gifts.

Satisfied with her job, she repeated the procedure a second time. Then a third, and a fourth, and so on, until she had placed a total of eight gifts under the tree, each of them carefully placed at inconspicuous spots, inside wrapping paper that didn’t stand out, and with the name of the person they were for written in a disguised spelling so that they wouldn’t know it was from her.

Wiping a forearm over her forehead, she sighed in relief and grabbed her now empty sack in her right hand and her tamborita in her left one.

“You can turn around now,” she told Gabe.

So he did.

Then, to her surprise, he surveyed the gifts under the tree with the same probing gaze she saw him using during guard inspections.

Unlike those, it lasted only a few seconds before he looked at her.

“You did a good job,” he complimented, again somehow sounding both teasing and genuine. “I can’t tell which of these gifts were put there by you.”

She tried her best to shrug nonchalantly, her cheeks crinkling in a sheepish look.

“Well, I got one for everyone,” she said. “Even Esteban. I’m hoping no one feels left out.”

Puzzlement briefly flashed across Gabe’s face when she said ‘even Esteban’, but it lasted all of a moment. Then, for some strange reason, he started inching toward her, but stopped almost as soon as he started and straightened himself again. If Carla didn’t know any better, she would swear he had been about to move closer and comfort her, like she saw him doing a few times to Elena or Naomi, or even to Mateo once.

And despite her childhood mantra of keeping just about everyone at arm’s length, she couldn’t help but be a bit sorry that he hadn’t done so, even as she was above all touched that he had respected her personal space when he didn’t know if he was welcome inside it.

“Like I said, I’m sure they will appreciate the effort.” He smiled. “I know I would.”

She returned the smile even as she felt her blood rushing to her cheeks. She hoped so, almost as much as she hoped that it was dark enough for him not to see her blazing red face. After all, one of those gifts was for him. Which didn’t mean anything special, and wasn’t meant to - Elena and her family had each gotten a gift from her, as well as Naomi and Mateo. Of course Gabe would be included as well. Her getting him a gift didn’t have to mean anything.

Even if she had to admit she spent more time trying to find a good gift for him than for many other people. And that she, for some reason, was more worried about him not liking her choice than she was about other people feeling that way.

“Thanks,” she settled on.

“Anytime.”

Again, there was a moment of silence, after which he spoke up.

“Do you want me to escort you to your room?”

At first, she could only give him a dumbfounded look. Then, as if she was having a delayed reaction, a cartload of sleepiness crashed on her being as if the ceiling had come down on her. Before she could do anything to fight it back, a massive yawn forced its way out of her and into her right hand as she put it before her mouth for the sake of propriety, part of her unable to hold back the thought that she must look ridiculous by holding the empty sack in front of her as she yawned.

“Why not?” she replied after her yawn was finally out.

Saying so, she walked up to him, the two of them making their way to the door.

The fog in her mind suddenly thickened, despite her yawn to clear sleepiness out, almost making her sway on her feet. At the last moment, she managed to keep herself in check and hold a standing position.

And then her eyes widened in alarm as she saw what hung above the doorway.

“Wait!” she called, all drowsiness gone from her voice.

He snapped to a halt the moment he heard her.

“What?” he replied, alarm bursting on his features.

Her mouth opened and closed as she ransacked her mind for something to say in response. But despite her best efforts, nothing seemed capable of coming out.

She knew the real reason she had stopped, but she couldn’t tell it to him. If she told him that, he’d really think she was an idiot for sure.

But she had to say something before he started to get suspicious. Assuming he wasn’t already.

BUT WHAT DO I TELL HIM? She shouted at herself.

As if on cue, her eyes found the árbol navideño and the gifts underneath it. She seized it - that gave her a solution.

“On second thought, I think I’ll just check one more time, to really make absolutely sure my gifts are properly disguised,” she said. “Can you wait outside?”

This time, Gabe pursed his lips a few times, as if he was briefly struggling with whether or not to make a comment. But like on her request to turn around, he replied, “Of course.”

Carla waited with bated breath as he walked toward the door. For the briefest of instants, she thought she saw him freezing, as if he had also looked up and spotted what she did, perhaps even worked out her true reason to stay in the room. But before she could be sure of it, he kept moving and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Only when it clicked shut did she let out a sigh of relief.

That door had mistletoe hanging over it. And she knew what mistletoe meant. Couples who found themselves under it had to kiss.

So if she and Gabe had walked out of that door together, they would have had to do just that. And there was no way she would do it.

Would it really be so bad? A voice that seemed both annoying and patient asked.

Yes. It would. And not because it was Gabe. In fact, he had to be top of the list of guys she would mind the least about kissing if she found herself under the mistletoe.

Wait. Where did that thought come from?

It didn’t matter. Even if he was on top of that list, she would still mind about kissing him.

It would be her first kiss after all.

No one in Avalor knew that, and even most people who knew her in the Mirror World didn’t know so either, but it was the truth. Though she was eighteen, she had yet to have her first kiss. And while even less people knew that, she wanted her first kiss to truly be special. Weird as it may sound coming from someone with her background, she wanted it to be the kind of unique and dreamy kiss that was discussed in romance novels, the kind where only she and her partner seemed to exist in the whole world, where both of them were lost in each other and their feelings.

Yes, she still didn’t know if she would be able to have that, and she hadn’t yet found the right guy to share it with, but at least she had dodged giving her first kiss away.

Which meant that she still could be able to save it for a special occasion.

She only hoped that someday, she would have it.

///

Present day...

It had been years since, but Gabe remembered that day like it had been yesterday. His puzzlement and curiosity at seeing her kneeling by the árbol navideño with a sack beside her. His inability to hold back his question. Her alarm at his intrusion. His attempts to reassure her, joined by his fear that he was only making her feeling worse. Her own fear that people wouldn’t like the gifts she had picked out for them. And her relief at the fact he hadn’t laughed at her and had respected her wishes for him not to see what she was doing.

In a sense, it had been pointless. Everyone Carla had gotten a gift for had worked out that it came from her, and had taken the time to give her a hug and thank her for it. Of course, that included him, and he had been sincere in his gratitude for the sword care kit she had gotten him. Even today, he still had the box it came in, although the cloth had gotten too stained to use and the products had long since run out.

True, his thanks had come out a bit on the awkward side. Which even then he knew was to be expected, given that they had opened their gifts the day after that year’s Navidad festival, where he and Carla had ended up sharing what they both called ‘their dance’, the one which lead to both of them realizing their feelings for each other. The one that ultimately had been their first step toward this moment.

Yes, the walk had been long, and both of them had stumbled across the way, but they had both managed to get up and keep going forward. And now, years later, they stood outside the very same ballroom where they had taken that first step, now as husband and wife, together on a level they hadn’t been before.

His fond grin melting into a subtler smile, Gabe drew Carla closer and ran his fingertips over her hair. She closed her eyes in pleasure and again rested her head on his chest.

It seemed so surreal now to think there had been a time they had been so afraid of their feelings as to not even talk about them. And that was already discounting the days when they actually had their feelings for each other but were still in denial about them even to themselves. Like the day when they’d had the ‘Navidad-related incident’ both of them had just recalled.

Of course, that had turned out to be for the better. That way, they had been able to share a proper first kiss as a couple, and Carla in particular had been able to have a proper first kiss, period (though he had only learned about that months after the ‘mistletoe incident’).

He supposed it was a good thing neither of them was superstitious. After all, avoiding a kiss under the mistletoe was said by some to bring back luck.

And it was true they had been in some rough spots over the years.

But they had managed to overcome each one. And he knew that together, they could overcome whatever came next.

Still, that was no reason for them not to amuse themselves a bit with their memory of that moment.

On cue with the thought, Carla raised her head from his chest.

“Just what kind of naughty idea came into that mind of yours?” she teased, reaching up her arm to twirl his signature pushed up strangs.

In the early days, there had been a few such occasions where he had wondered if Carla had used her mind-reading power to figure out what he was thinking so quickly. But he had learned to sense when she did so, and he knew that outside of a few emergencies, the one time she had used it was on that time when she wanted to find out his feelings for her. This case was just a sign of how well they had gotten to know each other.

“You know, I’m not sure how that can be, but in all these years, I realize we never got to have that kiss we both dodged.”

Carla hummed mock-pensively, her lips quivering as she fought down a smirk.

“Is that so?...” she drawled. “And what are you going to do about it, Captain?”

Saying so, she again reached up and flicked her fingers through his hair. He raised his eyebrows in mock-pensiveness.

“Well, if we had some mistletoe, I know what I would do, but alas, there isn’t any over here,” he replied. “So it seems we will need to move over to a place where there is some?”

She frowned pensively at his words.

“I think that would give everyone too much of a show. We should find another solution.” Her eyes lit up. “And I know just the one.”

Saying so, she slipped her hand under the top layer of her dress and drew out her tamborita.

“I can just bring some over here.”

“Always prepared, I see,” he teased.

She smirked again, flicking at the handle of the sword at his waist.

“Look who’s talking.”

He had no argument for that. While this sword was slightly shorter and much thinner than the sword he used on everyday duty, and mostly meant for decorative purposes, it was still fairly sharp and would be able to make damage if he used it on someone. He hoped that day wouldn’t come, but too many things over the years had shown it was better to be safe than sorry.

“Llévaluq!” she said as she aimed her tamborita at a spot above the balcony’s door.

Three mistletoe leaves floated from their ties and floated over the balcony toward them, halting at a spot about a foot above Gabe’s head, magic keeping them still despite the breeze that blew around them.

Without any more words, she slipped her tamborita back into its giant custom-made pocket.

Then, she turned upwards to face him, a current of sparks flowing between them as their gazes locked into each other.

Resting his right hand on her jawline and his left one on her shoulder, he leaned down to meet her, as she in turn reached up toward him, both her arms wrapping around her shoulders, her left hand sliding up to rest on his nape.

Then, their lips met, their mouths moving over each other in exactly the same way both of them knew the other liked by now, nipping at the ideal spots, pursing their lips around each other’s with just the right amount of pressure, and moving at the exact pace both of them knew the other like.

His right hand moved from Carla’s jawline and dove into the chocolate-brown waterfall flowing down her back, his fingers and palm resting on her nape as her fingers wrapped around his hair. Somehow, the two of them managed to come even closer together, their kiss so tuned over the years that it seemed more rehearsed than one of Carla’s dance performances, and yet flowing from each other as naturally as breathing.

Neither of them spoke, and neither of them actively tried to convey their thoughts through any other way, but as their kiss lasted on until it seemed to grow eternal, both of them knew the other was thinking exactly the same thing.

That despite however things had started out back when Carla first showed up in Avalor, and however they had turned out by the árbol navideño all those years ago, both of them were glad they had found their way to each other, and thankful to be together.

All around them, lights kept twinkling whether from the stars above or from the various Navidad decorations nearby, neither of them paying much attention as they devoted their focus to the moment they were sharing, and the joy that was being with each other.

[the-storyteller-and-her-soldiers]

In The Pits

Title: In The Pits

Word Count: 2,166

Warnings: Mild angst in the beginning but I don't believe it's too bad! (Just being salty over school) Probably a swear word or two in there, none said in malice but just to be safe! FLUFFY ENDING SO FLUFFY YOU WILL CHOKE ON THE FLUFF!! ...Not really but it is fluffy

Ship: The Storyteller and her Shield (Gladio x myself) (Golly gee, I can't even explain why I love him so much! AAA!!)

Summary: Yesterday my friends and I got to talking about school starting up and since my school is literal hell (The devil is our mascot) I kinda work myself up over it since I'm still struggling with my sickness. Well when I go outside to try and work things out all on my own, someone comes in to check on me. And let's just say it's so much easier to sort out everything with someone who cares!

Harsh rays of burning daylight shot down from the cloudless sky above right onto the wooden planks that made up the porch of the historic white house, warming them. This house that held so much unspoken history sat across from the parking lot of one of the town's oldest churches. Aside from the immense humidity that could make a person soak in their own sweat, the world outside was quite vibrant which made it the perfect destination to go try and clear one's mind.  

A pair of bare feet, colored by the sun and multiple scrapes and bruises, approached the warm wood. The hushed curses and questions of why the person didn't bother with shoes went unnoticed by the nearby nature of the quiet birds and tired breeze. What could alarm them, however, was the blaring bass guitar that could be heard from multiple feet away, ringing out from tiny black earbuds. The marked-up feet hastily climbed the one stair that lead up to the porch to escape the burning concrete, a huff of relief escaping into the air as the feet settled themselves on the noticeably cooler step. The rest of the body, that of a young lady, plopped itself down on the wood, basking in the heated glow for only a moment before wrapping sun-kissed arms around wobbling knees and curling into a self-given hug. A sudden thump filled the air, earning a caw from a crow that perched itself just above on the charcoal colored roof, as the young lady let her phone carelessly fall from her hand and on to the step below her. She hadn't even reacted to the tug that her trusty little earbuds gave her when she did this, only folding her now free hands over her shaking knees to create a pillow for her heavy head.

The young woman lifted her head only a little to sweep strawberry locks from her view in order to see the familiar empty sight before her. Staring off into the winding horizon, at nothing in particular, lightened her mind somewhat. Although, the fiery-haired girl couldn't even place where her mind was, really. Sun-kissed arms curled in as close as they possibly could towards her torso in an attempt to soothe her main problem, the pit. Oh god, the pit. It felt more as if the girl had somehow swallowed a five-pound weight. It seemed to pull her to the ground and left her throat far too dry and scratchy to even cry out for some ease. Resting her cheek on her arms, the gaze of chocolate eyes fell to another direction of standard nothingness on the desolate residential street. Sitting up halfway, she thought about getting up to grab a bottle of water. The pit in her stomach instantly ate up any strength to even stand and with no motivation, fiery locks once again crashed into the pillow of her arms.

What even caused this? Were the only words of her own that she could hear over the music that had faded to nothing but muffled speech and background noise.

At the melodic ting of her phone reporting that she had multiple messages, she was reminded of the source of her sudden downtroddenness. Picking up the rough black case that enclosed her phone, dark eyes squinted at a darkened screen to view the incoming messages. She flicked through them, chuckling at a few until she reached the conversations that slapped her in the face.

“Riiight,” The girl muttered, glancing down to where she felt the evergrowing pit, “School begins tomorrow.”

Dropping her phone to the side of her, the air was filled with another thump. Hickory eyes hid behind cream lids and tanned hands, while a shiver coursed its’ way through the girl's body.

It was normal to feel nervous before the first day, but this wasn’t just nervousness. This felt more like full on anxiety, which again was normal before the first day, except she had it for all the wrong reasons. Dried peach lips pursed themselves to hold in one of many dry heaves. The girl had been in a very similar situation entering school last year, from the year before. Except for the fact that this time she wasn’t even cured of her ‘sickness’ one that still pained her to no end. That meant that putting on a brave smiling face and enduring all of the needlessly stupid questions from not only her peers but from her teachers would only be that much more difficult. Not to mention putting up with any harassment, god forbid they find her shaking body that hilarious like they did last year.

“No they did not ‘fix’ me, and no I’m not going out spending two hundred bucks of my own money to buy a wheelchair just to be able to come here. I’ve worked too friggen hard.” The young girl responded bitterly to last year’s questions that were echoing in her mind. “And no, I am not a spastic freak! My leg isn’t even spastic. It’s shakey, yeah. But I wouldn’t call it spastic. God, you’d think English would teach us about a little thing called word choice. Gah...”

The girl continued her monologue to no one in particular, only replacing her current frustrations with new ones as she recalled more and more memories from the previous year. Her monologue paused just to let out a drawn-out groan that had been bubbling up inside. Too wrapped up in trying to sort out her frayed mind, the lady with locks of crimson didn’t even hear the heavy footsteps that were coming towards her.

“Yo, Becca, thought you might be out here.” A deep voice called out notifying her of their presence.

Upon hearing a voice that wasn’t her own, Rebecca jumped slightly startled by the sound. Sitting up much straighter than before, she sent the towering brunet a wary smile. “BWAHH-- Oh, hey Sweetheart! What’s up, anything I can help you with?”

“You alright? Didn’t even notice that you left.” Gladio shot back, taking in and seeing past the facade his partner was trying to muster. 

Rebecca hung her head slightly causing crimson locks to shield her eyes. “Me, I’m functioning. I just wanted to get some fresh air, can’t stay locked away in my room on a day like today.” A giggle trailed after that statement. But, like the smile she had cobbled together, that too, was rather forced. Gladio simply narrowed his own amber orbs at the girl who sat just beside him. When she allowed herself to catch a glimpse of her partner’s face, she knew that he wasn’t taking any of her crap. She let her airy tone fade into her more natural voice, the one that revealed how close she was to crying. “You’re not buying it, are you?”

Gladio only shook his head. He watched his partner cup her cheeks with her hands and physically fight with herself to keep the smile on her lips. “It’s stupid, getting all worked up over this. It’s stupid!” Crimson locks further obscured her sight while she shook her head.

“Can’t say unless I know what’s going on.”

Rebecca hummed in agreement while she edged closer towards her partner. When she was close enough, Gladio wrapped his arm around her and closed the small gap that was between them. A high pitched squeak emerged from Rebecca as she felt herself being pulled closer. Widened pools of hickory met with ones far brighter for a brief moment before hurriedly averting themselves. A small smile, however, started up its slow game of playing at peach lips. Though the smile once again faltered as she spoke of what troubled her mind.

“School. I’m freaking out over the mere idea of going to school tomorrow.” Resting her elbow on the one knee that had calmed itself and resting her chin in the palm of her hand, words continue to bubble out of her. 

"I'm not afraid to go in, though I know what to expect, and to say I hate it would be an understatement. I don't want the pity, or to be someone's shot at free publicity because 'oh look at them they're so nice to talk to the sick handicapped kid.' and I know that's what they want because as soon as the teachers go away so do they.

Don't even get me started on the teachers, I've had a few treat me like a mental vegetable, instead just talking to my aide in regards to me instead of myself. No one is going to know my limits better than I do! There's a lot more but I've said my piece. Now don't get me wrong, there are good people there and I'm not trying to play the 'oh woe is me, I have no one here' because that's bull! 

But you've seen my campus, meeting up with said people and friends is a rather difficult normally, let alone in my current state. Not to mention how people can get away with calling me actual slurs but if I try to defend myself, I’m the one being disciplined.

I dunno, it's just why travel through the toxic waste dump --that has been known to kill-- when there are alternative routes to get you to the goal in the same time? You see my point? I’m just not prepared mentally to handle all that without snapping at someone, and that’s the last thing I’d ever wanna do."

Trailing after this long ramble was a breath that Rebecca never realized she was holding. She picked up her head to feel the golden shine on her face while she rubbed away any tears that threatened to spill over ebony dams. Getting all that bottled up noise out had lightened the weight within her chest. But now her stomach had lightened up enough to begin flipping, because oh God, did she truly just spill out like that?! Her insides continued the scream in peril as the programs in Rebecca’s mind ceased to function. Without a proper thought, Rebecca fell over only finding a cushion in her boyfriend’s lap.

Gladio’s fingers found themselves entangled in her ruby strands, watching his partner’s shocked expression shift to one of calmer contentment. Eyes wide as small dinner plates closed and little crinkles revealed themselves at the corners and that oh-so-familiar smile began to tug at the corner of her lips.

“It’s alright if you have more to say. Better to get it all out there.”

Rebecca shifted her body to make herself a bit more comfortable as another airy hum filled the air. “Yeah, that’s true but I don’t know what else to say! Nothing that wouldn’t just sour my mood anyway. I’d rather focus on the positives since I can see them again.”

“Oh yeah? Those being?”

Rebecca opened one of her eyes and did her best to hold back a grin, “Well one of them being you and your cute face.”

Now it was Gladio’s turn to be shocked. It was obvious that he was quite attractive to most and there was never a shortage of compliments from those wanting to be with him. But cute? That was something that he still wasn’t used to since Rebecca was the only one who ever said it to his face. Chocolate eyes studied his expression while she laughed. That sweet smile and those glistening eyes that held such adoration. Rebecca was pretty sure she could feel her heart skipping a beat or two. Though she wouldn’t have long to bask in this moment since her hands flew to cover her suddenly blushing face at Gladio’s comeback. Various high pitched and embarrassed groans were sounded off as Rebecca rolled back and forth slightly.

The heat within her cheeks made Rebecca finally absorb how hot it was becoming outside. Not wanting the extreme heat to mess with her constant headache any further, Rebecca sat up and asked if they could head back inside where it was relatively cooler thanks to her air conditioning. Gladio agreed and stood up first only turning to give his hand to his partner. Glancing down, he noticed that her feet were bare and relatively cut up.

“Want me to carry you?”

Rebecca giggled as she stood up, shaking her head one more time. “Nah, I’ll be fine. It’s just a short walk after all!” Though once the top half of her foot touched the rocky concrete beneath her, her answer changed. 

“Nevermind, please carry me!” Was what she sheepishly whimpered, practically leaping into her boyfriend’s open arms...

[folklorecostumes]

REPUTATION LYRIC INSPIRED TOUR OUTFITS AND POSTERS PART 2

A lot of these posters are pictured in either giant bubble letters, rep font or in calligraphy. Can’t do any of these? Download the rep font or font you wish to use, type up what you want in a big enough font size, print, cut, and trace, or glue them down up to you! Of course, write these however you wish!

Hello all! Thanks for waiting so patiently for this list! Because of how long it is and how very excited you all have been waiting for this we have decided to post it into 2 parts to keep the excitement going. Part 1 is linked below! Please enjoy all the ideas we listed below, feel free to send us others you may have and want to share with the swiftie world. We apologize if the formatting on this looks bad on mobile, we are trying to actively make it easily accessible and readable across all platforms!

And lastly, enjoy and tag us in these recreations! We want to see them! We want to help them get seen by Taylor!

Find the Reputation Part 1 list here.

Find the 1989 idea list here and here.

Find the Red idea list here.

Find more costume and poster ideas and tips here.

lovelovelove,

- Reputation Costumes.

GORGEOUS:  

1.  “Gorgeous” – Few options:

      → Draw/or print the baby emoji onto a poster with a speech bubble saying the word gorgeous.

      →  Poster spelling out gorgeous between you and your friends.

      →  One poster with the word gorgeous on it. This song really sounds very bubblegum-y pop so pink and glitter and fluff and flowers can be associated with this. Keep that in mind when designing your poster.

     →  Create your own gorgeous inspired Taylor merch. Get an idea based on how her current merch looks and design a shirt similar but instead of saying like “rep” everywhere it’ll say gorgeous.

2. “Made fun of the way you talk” – Poster with a multiple taymojis of Taylor with speech bubbles including all the extra hashtags, replies, reblogs Taylor’s ever used or said. This includes (find more on tumblr or I’m sure there are screenshots of these all somewhere since she like cleared her tumblr):

     →  Mom-croon

     →  Bae

     →  Emojis

     →  “I think for me, um…”

     →  Pop Tart Squad 4 Lyfe

     →  Can’t find my chill ever

     →  Shifty Swifty Strikes Again

     →  No it’s Becky

     →  Brb going to buy more cats now

     →  Merstare

     →   I stalk because I care

     →  They see me lurkin…They hatin…

     →  Welcome to moo York

3. “Magnetic field being a little too strong” – Glue magnets onto a shirt and create a poster cut into the shape of a giant U-shaped magnet with that lyric written in it.

4. “Whiskey on ice” – Poster of a tumbler filled with whiskey and ice. The lyrics can be written into the ice cubes.

5.  “Sunset and Vine” – Few options:

      →  One person dresses up as a sunset, see the idea above for the “grey days clear” lyric in So It Goes…

      →  Another person dresses up similar to Poison Ivy from DC Comics or one of the other poison/vine related looks listed above for Don’t Blame Me.

      →  Poster with a map street view with a pin at the intersections of Sunset and Vine.

      →  Dress like you’re favorite vine!

      →  Poster cut out to look like a vine video post, you can take pictures with it as if you’re in the vine. Have the caption of the vine video be a cute lyric from the rep album!

6. “You’re so gorgeous, I can’t say anything to your face” – 2 options:

      →  Wear a morph suit or shirt consisting of only Taylor’s face over and over—can be where she’s making a funny/weird face or can be just a normal shot of her face. Have a poster saying “you’re so gorgeous” to go along with this.

      →  You and a friend can have two posters, one that says, “You’re so gorgeous, I can’t say anything to your” and have an arrow pointing over to your friend. Their poster will be a giant cut out of Taylor’s head.

7. “Cause you’re so gorgeous it actually hurts” – Poster saying Taylors so gorgeous it actually hurts. Can have a friend hold one that says “(Honey, it hurts)” or you can write that underneath the main lyric in the ( ).

8. “Ocean blue eyes looking in mine” – Poster of eyes, draw them big enough where you could draw waves of water where you’d shade it blue for eye color.

9. “There’s nothing I hate more than what I can’t have” – Typically we don’t recommend this simply because it canget fans overlooked, however it’s funny and cute so here it is: Write this lyric with “(t-party, club red, loft 89)” underneath in a small font, cross them out like that too since we won’t know the name of the after party show!

10.  “Guess I’ll just stumble on home to my cats” – Buy 2 cheap plush cats, maybe at a local dollar store, glue the heads of it onto a poster (or cut holes into the poster and stick the stuffies through, make sure they’ll stay all night though) and write the lyrics. Draw paw prints along the poster. Could pair with cat shirts and cat accessories. Could also glue multiple mini plush cats to an outfit and pair with a poster cut into the shape of a paw print. @taylortreasures has created an outfit similar to this!

GETAWAY CAR:

1. “Best of times, worst of crimes” – Set of posters for you and a friend to match with.

       →  Times poster could consist of multiple watches/clocks drawn throughout the words

      →  While crimes poster could have things like handcuffs, stolen money bags, cars all drawn throughout it. Turn these poster ideas into two unique outfits!

2. “Struck a match and blew your mind” – Set of posters:

      →  Poster in the same of a match with a flame.

      →  Poster drawing out the words “mind blown” in pink. See link to get a good idea, don’t draw the bitmoji.

3. “Ties were black, lies were white” – Dress up fancy for this! Think Blank Space video but before the outfits get torn up! Poster can read, one a white poster board, “lies were” and then leaving the rest blank. Could write “white” in glow in the dark paint/tape that would only show after the lights go off.

4. “X marks the spot where we fell apart” – 2 options:

     →  Treasure map idea, see End Game “bury hatchets” idea!

     →  Write out your stadium(s) name and draw a giant red X over it and write  “where we fell apart” underneath.

5. “From the first Old Fashioned” – 2 options:

      →  Dress old fashioned—so like pick a decade and go with it! May we recommend the 80s ;)

      →  Poster in the shape of a tumbler that appears to be filled with an “old fashioned”, be sure to include the small details like a lemon rime/wedge and a cherry!

6. “Never had a shot gun shot in the dark” – Poster of the night sky with cutout bullet holes in it. Write the lyric out in mini glow in the dark stars to stand out!

7. “Drivin’ the getaway car” – Few options:

      →  Poster in the shape of a car. Think of a 1969 Camaro or another vintage car that’s often seen in movies involving getaway cars. The lyrics from the chorus can look like its spray painted on the side of the car or front depending on how you face it in the poster.

       →  Poster of the front of a car that’s cutout so you can wear it to look like you’re sitting in the car. Could have fake money hanging off the edges to make it look like money is flying out.

        →  Poster with any of the chorus lyrics with a little drawing of a car speeding away with money flying out or drawing of tire tracks on the ground. Perfect for the “we were flyin’ but we never get far”

8. “Don’t pretend it’s such a mystery” – Few options:

        →  Poster of the side of the Scooby doo van with the lyrics above the word Mystery that’s painted onto the van (omit words “the” and “machine”)

        →  Make a Clue game board involving Taylor scenes from videos/tour pics etc and you can even include Olivia in a little detective outfit and a magnifying glass. Have a few game cards flipped over on the board with the lyrics being written across them.

9. “Think about the place where you first met me” – Met Taylor before? Or even some of her band members, dancers, parents, team? Make a poster with any pictures of these events and the lyrics!

10. “Sirens in the beat of your heart” – Draw a heartbeat line emitting from a police car or the red and white lights attached to the top of them (think the portable round ones’ undercover cops would attach to their cars). Put this idea onto a poster. Could even cut out the shape of the red and white siren lights and the heartbeat line and use glow in the dark tape/paint to make it stand out.

11. “The great escape, the prison break” – Dress up as runaway prisoners or thieves on the run! You can make posters in the shape of giant money sacks.

12. “A circus ain’t a love story” – Few options:

       →  WANEGBT tour outfits from Red tour worn by Taylor and dancers!

                  → This includes ring leader, clowns, acrobats, etc

       →  Traditional circus outfits

       →  Love Story, a classic Taylor song! Dress like the music video or past performances of this song.

       →  Romeo + Juliet

13. “Hit you like a shot gun shot to the heart” – Same concept as above, however instead of a night sky poster, have a large cut out heart with bullet holes in it.

14. “We were jet-set, Bonnie and Clyde” – Dress as the infamous Bonnie and Clyde!

15. “Put the money in a bag and I stole the keys” – Bank robber with a money sack poster. Reference the poster to either show it’s a friend’s (or Taylor’s) money and have novelty keys hanging off the tie of the bag.

16. “I was ridin’/cryin’/dyin’ in a getaway car” – Few options:

      →  Poster using a car emoji, the crying emoji and the skull emoji in the lyrics.

      →  “I was crying to getaway car” pun on you enjoying the song poster

     →  “I was dying to hear getaway car” poster

KING OF MY HEART:

17. “I made up my mind, I’m better of bein’ alone” – Poster saying you’re better off being a swiftie.

18. “We met a few weeks ago.” – Tribute to if you’ve met Taylor/her team/parents/band/dancers/etc on a poster or shirt.

19. “Callin’ me baby like tryin’ on clothes” – Poster board that’s interactive! Make a cut out Taylor (using the IKP outfit from 1989 tour will be the best option to start) and attach multiple tour outfits or appearance outfits she’s worn with double sided tape or some other adhesive and allow fans to try different outfits on Taylor!

20. “Salute to me, I’m your American Queen” – Few options:

         →  Dress up as a Queen/royalty

         →  America/4thof July inspired outfits

         →  Crown and sash/Pageantry. Sash can say “Miss American Queen” You could even have a fake acceptance speech written out on a poster board that says like “And I want to thank Taylor…”

        →  Poster cut out into the shape of a crown.

        →  “you traded your baseball cap for a crown” relate KOMH to Long Live.

        → Poster saying this lyric and have American Queen colored in red, white and blue.

21. “You move to me like I’m a Motown beat” – Motown beats originated in gospel music but also in the 1970s music industry, use these two to inspire decade looks! The 70s were big on disco.

22. “With their range rovers and their jaguars” – 2 options:

       →  Poster in the shape of the range rover or jaguar emblem.

       →  Wear or make merch that looks dawns these brands emblems.

23. “You are the one I have been waiting for” – Poster ideas:

       →   Typically, we don’t recommend this simply because it can get fans overlooked, however it’s fun and cute so here it is: Write this lyric with “(t-party, club red, loft 89)” underneath in a small font, cross them out like that too since we won’t know the name of the after-party show!

       →  Taylor’s the one I have been waiting for on a poster.

24. “King of my heart” – Few ideas:

      →  Giant heart shaped poster with a king’s crown and mini robe attached to it.

     →  Poster using the crown emoji and the heart emoji.

     →  Going with a significant other? Have them dress up as a King (or Queen) and have them hold a fake heart (think the vampire diaries but less gore ha) or hold a cutout heart poster. You can wear heart shaped sunglasses (think heart eyes motherf*cker vine) and shirt with these lyrics and an arrow pointing to your significant other.

     →  Going alone but like the above idea? You can say you have Taylor’s heart or she has yours instead.

25. “I’ve been waiting” – Poster including how many days you counted down for your tour date(s).

26. “Late in the night, the city’s asleep” – Poster using the visual opening for WTNY that showed the landscape of the city at night. Use glow in the dark stars over the skyline and hole punch the lettering when writing out the lyric.

27. “Your love is a secret I’m hoping, dreaming, dying to keep” – 2 ideas:

      →  Make a poster using this lyric and draw out the emotions of hoping, dreaming and dying. Think of the see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil sort of imaging.

     →  “Taylor’s love is a secret I’m hoping, dreaming, dying to keep”

28. “With a school girl crush” – Dress up as if you’re trying to impress your crush on the first day of school! Have a poster that consist of those passing note questions you’d send your crush but have them addressed to Taylor. (ex. Do you like me? Circle one. Etc)

29. “Drinking beer out of plastic cups” – Red solo cup poster.

30. “Say you fancy me, not fancy stuff” – First fancy in the lyric draw heart and draws in the sentence and the second fancy draw diamond rings, luxury items etc. with a large red X through them.

DANCING WITH OUR HANDS TIED:

1. “Oh twenty-five years old” – Poster with your age in replace of the 25 lyric.

2. “My love had been frozen” – Few options:

       →  Poster in the shape of a heart that is frosted over and turning blue.

       →  Poster with these lyrics but the word frozen is drawn like the movie poster font for the Disney film.

       →  Winter wonderland type of outfit or poster. Think Snow Queen.

       →  Dress as Elsa, Anna or Olaf.

3. “Deep blue, but you painted me golden” Few options:

      →  Two matching posters saying Deep Blue and Golden painted in the prospective colors.

      →  Matching outfits made from the prospective colors.

      →  “Deep Blue” think the deep sea.

      →  Dress up as a painter.

4. “Picture of your face in an invisible locket” – Make a poster cut out in the shape of a locket, have it folded to open up like an actual locket and have a picture of Taylor in it.

5. “But we were dancing” – Poster with these lyrics, have the dancer emoji drawn on it.

6. “Dancing with our hands tied” –  2 options:

        →  Poster in the shape of a pair of hands tied together.

       →  Poster with these lyrics. Have it split up if you’re going with a group of friends.

7. “Yeah, we were dancing, like it was the first time” – First Taylor show? Make this poster dedicated to seeing Taylor for the first time!

8. “Through an avalanche” – Poster in the shape of a mountain top with the words of the lyrics to appear to be snowballing down the side of mountain.

9. “I’m a mess, but I’m the mess that you wanted” – 2 options:

       →  Dress up like you’re a mess and have a poster to match with the lyrics.

       →  Poster that says you’re the mess Taylor wanted.

      → You’re a mess because of Taylor poster.

9. “Cause its gravity, oh keeping you with me” – Poster with these lyrics but have them begin to fall down and off the poster. Have cut out letters dangle off the poster.

10. “I’d kiss you as the lights went out” - few options:

        →  Poster in the shape of lips painted red. Use red reflective tape to make it stand out.

       →  Poster adorned with miniature red lips all over it. Use glow in the dark tape/paint on the words “lights went out” so it stands out.

       →  Make a cut out poster of the lyrics “lights went out” and fill the letters with glitter, as much as you can. Do a matte finish or laminate it so you can shake it up and have the glitter move around.

11. “If I could dance with you again” – Print out the photo of Taylor performing Holy Ground on the Red Tour, print it large enough that you can make a cutout silhouette of her dancing as a poster. Don’t have the resources to print it big enough? Try your best to sketch the outline! Incorporate the lyrics either into the silhouette or have it as a sort of a halo written around the entire silhouette of her!

DRESS:

1. “Our secret moments in a crowded room” – Poster with the words secret moments being suffocated by a multitude of things such as confetti, glitter, charcoal etc. Have the words pop out of whatever you chose to relate to the sense of a crowded room.

2. “There is an indentation in the shape of you” – Poster cut out into the shape of the indent of a person lying in bed.

3. “Made your mark on me, a golden tattoo.” –  2 options:

        →  Wear those gold jewelry type tattoos people wear to music festivals!

        →  Poster asking Taylor to make her mark on you with her signature.

4. “All this silence and patience, pining and anticipation/pining and desperately waiting” – Few options:

        →  Poster of these 4 adjectives for you and your friends to hold!

       →  Desperately waiting for rep room.

5. “Say my name and everything just stops” – 2 options:

       →  Say my name, Beyonce/Destiny’s Child connection.

        →  Say Taylor’s name and everything just stops.

6. “Only bought this dress so you could take it off” – 2 options:

       →  Poster in the shape of a dress, possibly little black dress since Taylor has referenced those forever.

       →  Make an outfit that you can transform from dress to whatever else you want! Think tear away tour outfit!

7. “Carve your name into my bedpost” – Poster of a headboard with Taylor’s name or initials into it, make it look carved in. Could even carve out lyrics or the word reputation.

8. “And if I get burned, at least we were electrified” – 2 ideas:

       →  Two posters of the words Burned and Electrified. Have burned be made or engulfed in flames and have electrified have lightning bolts striking off of it.

       →  Make the poster idea above into an outfit. Use reflective tape and cut out pieces into the shape of flames or lightning bolts and attach them to the outfits.

9. “I’m spilling wine in the bathtub” – Poster in the shape of a wine glass. Cut it so it’ll be on an angle and have red or rose wine sloshing out of the rim.

10. “Flashback when you met me” – Met Taylor/her team/parents/dancers/band? Make this a tribute to them!

11. “Even in my worst times, you could see the best of me” – Make a poster using headlines about Taylor and have them slashed up and covered with positive memories and headlines and all her success. Have reputation written in the middle of it.

12. “My one and only, my lifeline” – Poster made of these lyrics. Could also say Taylor’s my one and only, my lifeline.

THIS IS WHY WE CAN’T HAVE NICE THINGS:

1. “It was so nice throwing big parties” – Posters made to look like balloons, party favors, etc. Think Gatsby and vintage since this is a popular theme in this song.

2. “Everyone swimming in a champagne sea” – Make a poster in the shape of a giant champagne bottle and have confetti looking like its pouring out of it.

3. “Feeling so Gatsby for that whole year” – 2 options:

       →  Dress vintage and 1920s Gatsby like.

       →  Use the Great Gatsby font and make a poster using these lyrics.

4. “So why’d you have to rain on my parade” – Make an outfit that looks like you’re a part of a parade celebration and hold a poster in the shape of a rain cloud with raindrops dangling from it. Use reflective or glow in the dark tape for the rain drops to stand out.

5. “This is why we can’t have nice things” – Poster of these lyrics but instead of the word nice, replace with drawn items or emojis of things like rings, money, designer brand labels.

6. “But you stabbed me in the back while shaking my hand” – 2 options:

       →  Related to back to Bad Blood, check out our 1989 costumes post to get some ideas.

       →  Where a fake knife attached to the back of your shirt, you can find these sort of props at a Halloween/gag store or at like Party City.

7. “Get you on the phone and mind-twist you” – Cut out of an old fashion rotary phone and have a speech bubble coming out of the speaker portion of the phone to make it look like the person on the other line is saying “mind-twist you”

8. “So I took and axe to a mended fence” – 2 options:

     →  Could recreate a blank space music video or tour look

     →  Poster in the shape of an axe.

9. “If only you weren’t so shady” – Poster in the shape of sunglasses with these lyrics reflected into the frames.

10. “Here’s a toast to my real friends” – 2 options:

    →  Poster with these lyrics and champagne glasses clinking drawn throughout

    →  Poster in the shape of a champagne glass clinking with another, could even make two (or more) separate ones for you and your friends to match.

11. “He-said-she-said” – few options:

    → He said she said is typically hearsay/rumors, so you could dress up as a news reporter.

    →  Using the NYT’s font aka reputation font as a background/filter for the lyrics in a poster. Think of how it looks on the right ride (Taylor’s left) on the album cover.

    →  Poster of a fake headline regarding Taylor. Could recreate the back of the reputation magazine covers. Have the headline be the lyric.

12. “Here’s to my baby” – Poster idea. Do what you think works best with this as it’s a very simple line.

13. “Here’s to my momma” – Poster dedicated to Mama Swift.

14. “Had to listen to all this drama” – Drama poster, it’d be a cool idea if you bought all those crappy tabloids and sort of papier-mâché the word out of all the headlines revolving around drama.

15. “Because you break them” – 2 options:

    →  Poster cutout of a broken fancy item. Could be a broken award, broken watch, etc anything fancy that you deem making.

    →  Make an outfit out of the idea above, wear broke items glued to you.

CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT:

1. “My castle crumbled overnight” – Poster in the shape of a castle, could have pieces hanging off or broken to represent it crumbling. You could also dress up as a princess/prince.

2. “I bought a knifer to a gunfight” – 2 options:

   →  Foam knife/sword accessory

   →  Poster of the knife emoji

3. “They took the crown” – Crown shaped poster or plastic crown to wear!

4. “My baby’s fit like a daydream” – Few options:

    →  Fit is British slang for attractive or good looking. Make a pun of the word fit and have a poster that looks like a guys six-pack abs.

   →  Poster in the shape of a thought bubble with the lyrics “my baby’s fit” could even use all or some emojis in replace of the words.

   →  Could dress up as a sort of fairy/daydream-y/soft type of persona. So wings, pastel colors, definitely having jewels glued around your eyes and such! Have fun with this look, for makeup lookup festival looks or mermaid looks to get an idea.

5. “I’m the one he’s walking to” – Poster replacing the lyric “he’s” for “Taylor’s. Could have foot tracks painted around the lyrics or even use high heel cutouts from magazines and catalogs rather than painting foot tracks.

6. “Call it what you want” – Paint this in a pretty pastel color in a calligraphy font. Have the background of the poster have a soft feel to it, like cloud and starry like. Could even make a 3D type poster and have plush either as the background or as the letting.

7. “My baby’s fly like a jet stream” Few options:

    →  Poster in the shape of a plane/jet with these lyrics behind the plane in a loop. Think of how planes on maps so dashes to track their paths.

    →  “Taylor’s fly like a jet stream”

    →  Couples costume of a pilot and attendant.

8. “High above the whole scene” – 2 options:

    → Poster of a skyline. Can be whatever city skyline you’d like, maybe even emphasis in the building windows/lights which city; it’d be cool to reference your tour stop! Have the poster cut out to mimic the buildings rather than drawing in a sky.

    →  Could make a poster of a bird since they fly above the scene, as well as planes like referenced above. Could relate this back to 1989!

9. “Loves me like I’m brand new” – Few options:

     →  Not necessarily tour outfit related but don’t want to dress up? Simply buy a nice outfit and only where it the day of the show! It’s brand new. Could even be Taylor merch.

    →  Poster of a giant price tag that has Love written as the amount. The product into written on the tag could say like Taylor Swift. Size: Reputation Stadium Tour

    →  Taylor loves me like I’m brand new.

    →  Poster of a new package or wrapped gift with the tag saying “love you – (name or xoxo)”

10. “All my flowers grew back as thorns” – 2 options:

    → 3D poster of like a thorn-bush or vine type thorn with only a few flowers still left on it. Have the lyrics written or painted out in a deep green cursive font, intertwining with the thorns.

     →  Buy or make a skirt and attach fake flowers to the entire skirt so it is covered. Buy or make a top and attach plastic “thorns” or vines around the top and have them hang off of it so it looks like they are slowly taking over the flowers. Have the top be very dull and lackluster in color but have what is remaining on the skirt be full of color.

11. “Windows boarded up after the storm” – Poster of a broken windowsill with boards covering up the cracked window. You could even make the boards openable like a book so that when you appeared into the window you could see the fire that is referenced in the next line. Have caution tape covering the planks but have the lyrics written repeatedly over the caution tape.

12. “He built a fire just to keep me warm” -  See idea above OR make a poster in the shape of the flame emoji or a log campfire.

13. “All the drama queens taking swings” – Dress up as a baseball or softball player and have your team name be Drama Queens. Make a baseball bat poster with the word reputation on it.

14. “All the jokers dressing up as kings” – Dress up as a joker/clown/fool but masquerade as a king so also were a crown and possible a cape. Make a sign that says “King of Reputation” or that displays the lyric.

15. “They fade to nothing when I look at him” – 2 options:

     →  Poster with these lyrics where it looks like the words are fading off the poster. Use glow in the dark paint/tape to have it still show after the lights go down.

    → They fade to nothing when I look at Taylor.

16. “I did one thing right” – Poster that says Swiftie or Proud swiftie, meant to represent you made the right choice in being a fan of Taylor.

17. “I’m laughing with my lover, makin’ forts under covers” -  Make a poster that is drawn like a bed fort, so multitude of different blanket patterns etc and attach a speech bubble to the top of the poster to show either “hahahaha” or “* giggling *”“* laughing *” to make it look like there’s laughing underneath the sheets.

18. “Starry eyes sparkin’ up my darkest night” – few options:

     →  Dress up in a costume that is galaxy themed. So tons of stars, especially glow in the dark ones, have glitter, moons, a tutu and have it all be in a navy blue. Your matching poster can be in the shape of a shooting star with the lyrics “Sparkin’ up my darkest night.” Use reflective tape or glow in the dark paint to stand out!

    →  Poster cut out of eyes and have the galaxy drawn in them rather than simply coloring in a regular eye color.

   →  Could have a lit match or sparkler shaped poster.

19. “I want to wear his initial on a chain round my neck” – Make a poster of Taylor’s initial’s and wear them like a necklace. Think back to when flavor flav wore a giant watch.

20. “Late November” – Poster of this exact lyric but have it big enough where you can decorate inside the words and have it fall themed.

21. “Would you run away with me? (Yes)” – Make a poster asking Taylor if she’d run away with you. Have it set up like a check yes or no question and have a paw print or 13 stamped in the yes box.

NEW YEAR’S DAY:

1. “There’s glitter on the on the floor after the party” – Few options:

     →  Glitter, glitter glitter! Wear sparkly outfits (think NYE) and have body glitter all over you. Have fun and extra glittery makeup looks and have a poster of these lyrics written out in glittery puffy paint.

    →  Have a poster made that looks like you’re staring down at hardwood floor and have a spilled glitter container open, glitter all over the bottom of the floor with the lyrics written out (think written out as if someone took their finger and just wrote it out in the pile).

     →  “After the party” – reference the end of your show with this, rep room.

     →  “There’s swifties on the floor after the party(concert)”

2. “Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby” – Poster cut out and drawn to look like you’re carrying a pair of high heels. Look at some of the heels Taylor’s worn for previous tours and outfits and recreate them on a poster.

3. “Candle wax and polaroids on the hardwood floor” – Few options:

     →  Burning candle poster, could be a simple candle, could be in a jar like the ones she uses frequently, or it could be decorated with things that remind you of Taylor and Reputation.

    →  Polaroid poster (1989).

    →  Poster of burned out candles and dried wax on the floor (look up the candles Taylor loves to have in her home and create the logo for the posters) and polaroids scattered on a hardwood floor (reference the opening lyric idea to get how to picture this.) Have the polaroids be pictures from the reputation magazine.

4. “Don’t read the last page” – Poster of the opening/dedication page of a book with this lyric written in it. Either make it look like the author purposely wrote it, OR have all the prewritten info from said book be information about Taylor and the reputation tour and use her handwriting from 1989 and have it look like she handwrote “don’t read the last page” as a note to the next reader. Make it look three dimensional by having the page look like it’s about to be turned to the next.

5. “But I stay” – Make a poster of these lyrics but make it big enough that you are able to write inside of each individual letter. Write the speech Taylor gave about how she felt her hands were tied behind her back but swifties always defended her (it’s a clean speech). Could even write long live lyrics.

6. “I want your midnights” – 2 options:

     →  An analog clock striking midnight

    →  Or a digital clock (think the old digital though where the numbers physically flipped rather than it being just animated) and have the numbers look like they’re changing from 11:59PM to 12:00AM.

7. “But I’ll be cleaning up bottles with you” – Poster of a recycling bin that is piling up with empty champagne and wine bottles. Have all the labels on the bottles be song titles or lyrics!

8. “New Year’s Day” – Few options:

     →  Dress up like its NYE/NYD. This means glitter, 2018 hats and glasses, champagne, confetti and streamers, dresses or skirts and crop tops. It also means holidays, so you could reference a few other things as well with this.

     →  Poster drawn out of the NYE ball dropping. On the countdown screen you could either write the lyric (full or just NYD) or you can write how long you waited for your show.

     →  Simply just sketching out the words New Year’s Day however you may want.

     →  Midnight kiss, so a poster of lips.

     →  “Ring” in the new year. Could be a poster of a bell or a ring.

9. “in the back of the taxi” – Dress up like a taxi or make a poster of the backside of a taxi with the silhouette of two people sitting in it. Have the license plate reference reputation or swifties. Be sure it’s a NY plate.

10. “I’ll be there if you’re the toast of the town, babe” – Few options:

     →  Could do a large poster that looks like a champagne glass with a tag/ribbon hanging off the stem (think like seating cards) that says Toast of the Town.

    →  An award poster (like an Oscar or such) but instead of it saying Best Picture etc it’ll say “Toast of the Town: (name)” You can either write your name or Taylor’s name or even Joe’s.

    →  Poster of a cut out magazine cover you can take photos in (or make it look like an Instagram post) and have the little blurb on the “cover” say this lyric. Make the magazine a reference to the rep mags.

11. “If you strike out and you’re crawling home” – Baseball or softball player costume with a poster in the shape of a bat. Could even have two posters for you and a matching friend where the bat is broken in half and you’re each holding a split end.

12. “Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you” – Few options:

     →  Reference long live. Whether it’s by poster or you want to recreate the long live tour outfit!

     →  Poster of the word memories but have it being spelled out by photos from previous tours, Taylor with fans, from previous album booklets. Tumblr likes/posts, etc.

    →  Met Taylor/her team/band/dancers/parents/etc? Wear an outfit or make a poster using pictures and memories from that moment.

    →  Poster of the word memories being hugged/squeezed. Don’t have to draw the entire body, just arms wrapping around the word.

     →  Have a poster in the shape of a jar and have it labeled Memories and then fill it with your favorite Taylor memories. So love the Speak Now album? Write the words Speak Now in big block/bubble letters in the jar. Keep doing this with words of memories you like. Don’t have the words overlap, simply cut off a word if it doesn’t fit. Make it seem full but not unreadable.

13. “And I will hold on to you” – Poster of this lyric just as is. Maybe make it written on a music sheet or on piano keys. Could also write Taylor will hold on to you or I will hold on to Taylor.

14. “Please don’t ever become a stranger” – Poster dedicated to her 6 albums.

15. “Whose laugh I could recognize anywhere” – Poster collage of all the photos of Taylor laughing.

16. “You and me forevermore” – Poster of the word forevermore. When I hear this line, I think of a clear night sky, glitter, love, passion so incorporate that into this creation. Maybe have it made out of stars or hearts, or have it made out of flowers. Whatever you envision when you hear this.

THEMES OR GENERAL IDEAS:

1. Make poster that looks like the popup stage in the reputation VIP tour box, make it out of papier-mâché newspapers.

2. Snake poster.

3. Use the dialogue from the LWYMMD end scene as funny posters.

4. Meredith and Olivia posters.

5. Reputation/REP poster cut out using the rep font.

6. “There will be no further explanation. There will be just reputation”

7. Lots of gold and metallic colors, glitter.

8. TS/TAS Initial Poster

WHY SHE DISAPPEARED POEM:

1. “Pavement she once decorated as a child with sidewalk cross” – Poster that looks like a sidewalk drawing.

2. “Her skin was spattered with ink” – Use body paint to spatter ink on your arms and clothes. Make a poster using the same idea. Maybe use the word snake in some of the spatters.

3. “She rose slowly” – Poster of a flower slowly blooming.

4. “Avoiding old haunts and sidestepping shiny pennies” – 2 options:

      →  Poster of a ghost (think emoji)

     →  Poster of a penny or writing out this piece of the poem using pennies (or drawing them if you don’t want to waste the money)

5. “Way of phone calls and promises” – Relate this back to All Too Well or LWYMMD. Have a phone poster with a speech bubble writing this line.

6. “Waded out into the dark, wild ocean up to her neck” – The ocean is almost all unexplored so have fun with this line. You could do mythical mermaids or sirens. Or you could make an outfit out of seashells and seaweed. Your poster could be a cutout of a wave.

7. “And in the death of her reputation, she felt truly alive” – This is a GREAT quote for a poster and to really sum up the entire reputation era.

IF YOU’RE ANYTHING LIKE ME POEM:

1. “Cross your fingers” -  Poster of crossed fingers.

2. “Wish on lucky numbers” – Poster of a number cutout related to Taylor. (13, 22, 1989)

3. “Rest in Peace, to your naïve bravado” – 2 options:

     →   Poster of a gravestone addressed to your naïve bravado.

     →  Dress up as a zombie (zombie Taylor) and where a tombstone or have written on shirt “Here Lies my Naïve Bravado”

4. “Secret garden gate” – Poster of a flower garden. Have it three dimensional so use craft flowers.

5. “Each new enemy turns to steel” – This line reminds me so much of Yellow Flicker Beat by Lorde in the line “I’m locking up everyone who ever laid a finger on me” Maybe make a poster combining these two ideas.

6. “You’ve grown to hate your pride and to love your thighs”

7. “But Darling, it’s going to be okay”

[parsippanylibrarykids]

By: Miss Jen, Miss Katy, & Miss Melissa

Picture Books 

Barnett, Mac. The Wolf, the Duck, and the Mouse. ​(Grades K-2)  This clever picture book begins with a mouse that is quickly gobbled up by a wolf. Fortunately his new accomodations AKA the wolf’s stomach include a duck with kitchenware and jam. The duck states “I may have been swallowed but I have no intention of being eaten.” Award winning illustrator Jon Klassen’s artwork add to the charm of this folkloric tale. 

Colleen, Marcie. Love, Triangle.​ ​ (Grades K-2) Square and Circle have been best friends since they were first created. Triangle arrives on the scene and brings new ideas. Both Square and Circle want to be friends with Triangle which causes a split between the two buddies. This common friendship problem is resolved at the end of this geometric story.

 Daywalt, Drew. The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors. ​(Grades K-3) The origins of the classic schoolyard game are explained in hilarious detail. Will Rock, Paper, or Scissors be victorious? Rock is searching for a worthy opponent. Paper leaves the Empire of Mom’s Home Office after conquering the Computer Printer while Scissors defeats Dinosaur-Shaped Chicken Nuggets. Wacky inanimate objects come to life under the expertise of illustrator Adam Rex. Fans of Daywalt’s The Day the Crayons Quit will be equally as charmed by this book. 

Denos, Julia. Windows. ​(PreS-1) In this story, a boy of color dons a read hoodie, leashes his dog and ventures out into the twilight, where the windows are “blinking awake as the lights turn on a neighborhood of paper lanterns”. The reader gets to peer in at the small figures dancing, making dinner or throwing a party and watch as the color of the sky changes. The compositions are rendered in ink, watercolor, letterpress and digital collage. The narrative ends with a story shared and a snuggle. Readers will want to revisit this story over and over. Everyday routine turned to wonder on an evening walk filled with discovery. 

Dykman, Ame. Read the Book, Lemmings!​ (PreS-2) Another delightful collaboration by the team behind Wolfie the Bunny and Horrible Bear! Lemmings don’t jump off cliffs. It says so in the book that Foxy is reading. However, the three lemmings on the boat have not read the book and keep jumping into the water. After trying unsuccessfully to get the lemmings to read the book, Foxy realizes he is going to have to actually teach the lemmings to read before he can stop them. A funny read aloud! Children will love this book at storytime and at home. 

Jory, John and Benji Davies. Come Home Already!​ (PreS-3) The third hysterical picture book about Duck and Bear, unlikely pals. In this book, an excited Duck wants to hang out with Bear but Bear has left to go fishing for a whole week on his own. Bear is relieved to have some time alone. What will Duck do while Bear is gone? How will he survive without his best friend? 

Lamothe, Matt. ​This is How We Do It: One Day in the Lives of Seven Kids from Around the World. ​(Grades K-3) Seven children from Italy, Japan, Uganda, Russia, India, Iran, and Peru describe one day in their lives as they eat, play, and learn. An author’s note, a glossary, a map, and photographs of the families are included at the end of the book. This is an informational picture book that could be used in a social studies unit. 

Shannon, David. Bizzy Mizz Lizzie​. (Grades 1-3)  Lizzie is the busiest, buzziest bee in Hivetown. She longs to impress the Queen by winning a spelling bee contest, but she studies to the point of exhaustion on top of trying to juggle all of her other activities. When she dozes off in the middle of the competition, the only solution is rest. Lizzie finally learns to stop and smell the flowers. A book with a good message and wonderful illustrations will appeal to young readers. 

Tsurumi, Andrea. Accident! ​(PreS-2) When a little armadillo named Lola knocks a jug of red juice all over her family’s white sofa, she flees to the library to hide. But as Lola run through town, she is joined by many others who have also made a mess and want to hide at the library too, avoiding conflict. Fun and colorful illustrations are found throughout the book and children will be drawn to the intricate details. This book teaches that a mistake can happen due to thoughtlessness, carelessness or bad luck and that it is ok to call it an accident but also necessary to “make it better” and “own up to it.” 

Easy Readers 

LaReau, Kara. The Infamous Ratsos are Not Afraid. ​(Grades 1-2) Brothers Louie and Ralphie Ratso plan to clear out an abandoned lot in their neighborhood and create an arcade. The problem is that the house next to the vacant lot might be haunted. ​This is the second book in the series that began with the Geisel Honor Book, The Infamous Ratsos. 

Shea, Bob. Ballet Cat: What’s Your Favorite Favorite? ​(Grades 1-3) Ballet Cat and her cousin Goat are preparing a show for grandma and both want to prove that they are the best. Ballet Cat will come up with a fancy dance routine and Goat will perform tricks at his magic show. Which one will be her FAVORITE favorite? Terrifically fun third entry in this series. 

Snyder, Laurel. Charlie & Mouse & Grumpy. ​ (Grades K-1) This picture book/easy reader hybrid is the sequel to Charlie and Mouse. Charlie and Mouse are brothers who are spending time with their grandfather AKA Grumpy. In four short chapters, the trio discuss what it means to be “medium”, enjoy a special night while the boys’ parents go out, and choose the proper goodnight song. 

Yoon, Salina. That’s My Book! and Other Stories. ​(Grades K-1) Big Duck, Little Duck, and Porcupine are a sweet trio of friends that find the best use for books, plan a talent show, and dress like a pirate. The latest addition to the Duck, Duck, Porcupine series contains three short chapters with bold text in large speech bubbles. 

Juvenile Fiction 

Bartok, Mira. The Wonderling. ​(Grades 4-6) Number 13 is a groundling (half human/half animal) who lives in an orphanage run by Ms. Carbunkle. He is named Arthur by a fellow groundling when he saves her. The pair of new friends escape the “Home” and set off on an adventure full of danger, magic, and mystery. Fans of Erin Hunter’s Warriors series will enjoy this lengthy fantasy novel. 

Bradley, Kimberly Brubaker. The War I Finally Won. ​(Grades 4-6)  Picking up right after 2015’s Newbery Honor book The War That Saved My Life, this very worthy sequel continues the story of Ada, her brother Jamie, and their guardian Susan. Set against the backdrop of World War II (which is felt much more immediately in this novel), Ada struggles to deal with the aftermath of years of abuse by her mother. An emotional, yet rewarding book for fans of the first book or for readers who love excellent historical fiction. 

Broach, Elise. Trouble at School for Marvin & James. ​(Grades 1-2) This is the third book in the Masterpiece Adventures series featuring best friends, James and Marvin. James is a human and Marvin is a small black beetle. James decides to bring Marvin to school so he can experience James’ art class taught by beloved teacher, Mr. Chang. Mr. Change has blue hair and often quotes, “There are no mistakes, only happy accidents.” Marvin enjoys school until a sneeze separates him from James. This book is an excellent choice for new chapter-book readers. 

Clements, Andrew. The Losers Club.​ (Grades 3-6) Alec loves to read -- so much so that it gets him in trouble at school and at home. Even the head of the afterschool program at his school says he can’t just sit around by himself and read; he has to join a club. So Alec comes up with a plan to create his own reading club, which he names The Losers Club to deter other kids from joining. His bright idea backfires when it turns out to be the most popular club at school. There are tons of great books referenced throughout, and there’s a helpful list at the back of the book for bookworms who want to read them all! 

DeStefano, Lauren. The Girl with the Ghost Machine.​ (Grades 4-6) Emmaline Beaumont was 10 years old when her mother died; two years later, her father remains so consumed with grief that it’s almost as if Emmaline has lost both parents. In a desperate attempt to bring his wife back, Monsieur Beaumont tinkers with his “ghost machine” night and day. When Emmaline’s attempt to destroy the machine doesn’t go as planned, she and readers are left wondering if precious memories of loved ones are worth trading for the chance to interact with them one more time. Emmaline’s twin best friends, Oliver and Gully, represent the push and pull between hope and logic that plagues Emmaline and offers her new ways of understanding grief. Readers should be prepared for heaviness and sadness throughout. A story of loss, friendship, and resilience. 

Farrer, Maria. Me and Mister P.​ (Grades 2-5) Arthur is tired of his younger brother Liam’s behavior. He can’t even watch television with volume since it upsets his brother. Arthur decides to run away from home but he meets a friendly polar bear named Mister P. who alters his plans. Mister P. helps Arthur accept his brother’s differences. This quirky story is bibliotherapy for siblings of children with autism as well as a good read for children who like fantastical animal stories. 

Krishnaswami, Uma. Step Up to the Plate, Maria Singh. ​(Grades 3-5) Maria Singh lives with her family in Yuba City, California during WWII. Most of the community members are adha-adha (half and half) with fathers from India and mothers from Mexico. Maria’s teacher forms a softball team which Maria wants to join but she is not sure if her father will let her. Maria and her family struggle against discrimination from kids and adults. 

Middleton, Dana. Open If You Dare. ​(Grades 4-6) For Birdie and her best friends, Ally and Rose, the joy of finishing elementary school is overshadowed by their dread of summer’s end. With Rose unwillingly moving back to England, and Ally and Birdie attending different middle schools, their long, close friendship is coming to an end. In the meantime, Ally deals with problems on and off the pitcher’s mound, while Birdie follows the trail of mystery, and Rose rebels against her parents in a creative, yet destructive way. The story is set in Atlanta with well-drawn individuals from different generations. Tween issues are addressed from first crush to first steps toward independence. A rewarding chapter book. 

Morris, Chad. Mustaches for Maddie.​ (Grades 4-6) Maddie is a 12 year old girl who has a big imagination. When she is diagnosed with a brain tumor, she faces surgery and possible negative outcomes from the operation. She also faces middle school friendships and even jealous classmates with humor and bravery. Maddies loves fake mustaches so her supporters wear them. This book is based on the authors’ daughter and will appeal to readers who liked Wonder by R.J. Palacio. 

Pennypacker, Sara. Waylon! Even More Awesome​. (Grades 2-4) A Clementine series spin off which features another likeable kid. Waylon and Baxter are classmates who have to share a dog who lives in a shelter. The two boys can not be more different. While Waylon loves everything about science and following rules, Baxter is always in trouble and close to being a juvenile delinquent. When their dog, Dumpster Eddy, is going to be thrown out of the shelter he is living in, the boys come up with a plan to save him. A book about friendship, family, perseverance and hard work make this a wonderful book for reluctant readers. 

Schlitz, Laura. Princess Cora and the Crocodile. ​(Grades 1-3) Princess Cora never has a moment to play or relax as her parents, the King and Queen, are constantly training her to be perfect. She writes a desperate letter to her fairy godmother asking for help. A pet crocodile arrives the next day and he impersonates Cora so she can have a day off. Caldecott Medalist Brian Floca’s illustrations add to the humor of this story. 

Swanson, Matthew. ​The Real McCoys. ​(Grades 3-5) Moxie McCoy is a fourth grade detective who faces her biggest challenge yet in this fun chapter book. When someone kidnaps beloved school mascot Eddie the Owl, Moxie is on the case-but she is forced to solve this new mystery on her own since her best friend, and fellow detective, has moved away. Moxie finds clues and points fingers but she needs help to find the owl mascot. Enter Milton, Moxie’s smart little brother. Can the real McCoys solve the crime of the century? 

Wilson, Amy. ​The Lost Frost Girl​. (Grades 4-6) A modern day fairy tale about a girl who discovers that she is Jack Frost’s daughter. Owl is a twelve year old girl with a quirky mom, a dad she has never met, a cool best friend named Mallory and a boy who gives her weird looks at school. When she finds out that Jack Frost is her father, she is determined to meet him and delves into Jack’s wonderful and wild world of winter. She realizes she is part human/part fay and has special powers of her own. A tale of family, friendship and magic and embracing who you are meant to be. 

Zemke, Deborah. The Curse of Einstein’s Pencil. ​(Grades 2-3) This second story about Bea Garcia will appeal to fans of Judy Moody. Bea is initially excited when the smartest girl in school, Judith Einstein asks her to be a partner in the geography contest. Then Bea wonders if the secret to Judith’s intelligence is her pencil. Bea takes Judith’s pencil when it rolls on the floor but the effect on her life and friendship is not what she expected. 

Graphic Novels 

Hale, Shannon and Pham, LeUyen. Real Friends​.​ (Grades 3-6) Shannon Hale, author of the bestselling Princess in Black series, debuts her first graphic novel: a memoir of her childhood friendships from kindergarten through sixth grade. Friends, rivals, and frenemies drift in and out of Shannon’s life, but her mean older sister remains a constant menacing presence. Readers will find much to relate to: neighborhood friends who move away; the dread of finding out that all of your friends have been assigned to another teacher. Hale as an adult narrates the story with a welcome perspective, acknowledging when she herself was a bad friend or seeing the dynamics of a situation more clearly in hindsight. Fans of Raina Telgemeier will love this. 

Jamieson, Victoria. All’s Faire in Middle School​.​ (Grades 4-8) From Victoria Jamieson, who won a Newbery Honor for Roller Girl, comes another middle grade graphic novel. Imogen has been homeschooled her whole life; her world revolves around the local Renaissance Faire where her parents work. But now she’s ready for her biggest challenge: middle school. Imogen’s unconventional background makes it difficult for her to fit in, but is she willing to do what it takes to conform? Recommend to fans of Raina Telgemeier. 

Siegel, Mark. The Sand Warrior. ​ (Grades 3-5) The Five Worlds is a galaxy of five planets filled with different species. Oona Lee teams up with An Tzu, a boy from the poorest slums, and Jax Amboy, a lonely star athlete. They discover that they may be able to light five ancient beacons and save the Five Worlds. Hand this fantasy story to fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender and the Amulet series. 

Biography 

Guglielmo, Amy and Tourville, Jacqueline. Pocket Full of Colors.​ ​(Grades K-4). Mary Blair is remembered today as one of the greatest and most influential Disney animators, but at the time, her use of color was considered “too vivid, too wild.” When her all-male colleagues at Disney reject her ideas, she strikes out on her own, where she finds huge success as an illustrator and set designer following her own vision. Finally, Walt Disney himself asks her to come back; she’s the only one he will trust to design the now-classic ride It’s a Small World. Gorgeous brightly-colored illustrations evoke Blair’s distinctive style. An author’s note is included at the end of the book. 

Meltzer, Brad. I am Sacagawea. ​(Grades 1-3) Sacagawea’s story is the latest addition to the Ordinary People Change the World​ best-selling biography series. Sacagawea was the only Native American to join Lewis and Clark’s expedition. Children will learn about the traits that made Sacagawea a trailblazer and the significant contributions she made to the world. A timeline and photos are included at the back of the book. Christopher Eliopoulos’ illustrations reflect his origins in the comic industry. He recreates lively scenes from Sacagawea’s life. 

Rosenstock, Barb. Vincent Can’t Sleep. ​(Grades K-2) This picture book biography of Vincent Van Gogh explores his life especially his troubles with insomnia. He had trouble sleeping as a child, an adolescent, and as an adult in the hospital. The text is short but lyrical while the illustrations in acrylic, pen, and watercolor reflect the night sky and his iconic work, The Starry Night. An author’s note and sources are included at the end of the book. 

Nonfiction 

Burcaw, Shane. Not So Different. ​(Grades 1-3). Shane was born with a degenerative muscle disease, and he’s never been able to walk. People always seem to ask him the same ten questions, like “How do you eat?” or “Why is your head so big?” Answers to these and more are accompanied by funny photographs. Through Shane’s funny and frank stories--he once broke his expensive motorized wheelchair by using it to lift his brother to dunk a basketball--readers will learn that they’re not so different from him after all. A nice introduction to disability for younger kids. 

Burns, Loree Griffin. Life on Surtsey: Iceland’s Upstart Island​. ​(Grades 4-7) In 1963, an underwater volcano off the coast of Iceland erupted, creating a new island formed from rock and ash. Scientists realized they could use this new island to study how life takes hold in a new environment. What are the first plants to grow on the bare rock? When and how do birds, insects, and other animals arrive? The book follows a team of scientists who return to the island every year to study the changes; full-color photographs document their journey and the changing island landscape. It’s a great introduction to how scientists really work, full of details that kids will love. (On a deserted island, how do you go to the bathroom?) A glossary and bibliography are included at the end of the book. 

Chin, Jason. Grand Canyon.​ (Grades 3-5) Some may think of the Grand Canyon as just a “big hole in the ground,” but through gorgeous and detailed illustrations, Chin reveals the complex ecosystem it hosts and what it tells us about our geological past. As a father and daughter hike through the canyon, the reader learns more about what makes each level of the canyon unique. Die-cuts reveal fossils in the modern-day, and when readers turn the page, they are transported back millions of years, to what the landscape looked like when each fossil was formed. Further scientific information, an author’s note, and sources are included at the end of the book. 

Eggers, Dave. ​Her Right Foot. ​(Grades 3 and up) A beautifully illustrated book about the history of the iconic statue along with humor and interesting trivia during the first part of the book. The second part of the book talks about the statue’s feet and how the back of her right foot is actually lifted as if she is going somewhere. No one ever seems to talk about the fact that the statue of liberty is walking; she is on the move. If the statue of liberty is a symbol of freedom, if the statue of liberty has welcomed millions of immigrants to the United States, then how can she stand still? 

Harris, Chris. I’m Just No Good At Rhyming.​ (Grades 3-8) Fans of Shel Silverstein, Ogden Nash, or Jack Prelutsky will enjoy this volume of humorous poetry for kids. Lane Smith’s hilarious illustrations add to the fun.

Rose, Deborah Lee. Beauty and the Beak. ​(Grades 3-5) An Alaskan bald eagle lost most of her beak after a poacher shot her. She was unable to eat, drink, or preen without her beak. The eagle later named Beauty was sent to the care of biologist Veltkamp at a raptor center in Idaho. Since Beauty’s beak did not regenerate, Veltkamp enlisted the help of a dentist and an engineer. Together they fashioned a beak for Beauty using a 3-D printer. This nonfiction animal rescue story has similaries to stories by the Hatkoffs including Winter’s Tail. 

Roy, Katherine. How To Be An Elephant. ​(Grades 3-6) A stunning look at how a newborn elephant matures into a capable member of the herd. This book emphasizes how an infant elephant learns through her family herd an array of skills that are necessary to keep up; from learning to walk and swim right away, projecting her voice, using her nose to eat and smell and keeping cool with her large ears. Large illustrations of calves with their herd are interspersed with captivating diagrams and smaller images work well together. A carefully researched book and a must have for all elementary school collections.  

[krakenator]

CHAPTER 5 aka “RGB ruins any fun times that are to be had”

SPOILERS are sprinkled around extremely liberally for The Property of Hate

Masterpost here

Day 3 guys, give it up for Day 3 in the Make Believe

I’d like to personally take a moment to appreciate the visuals of the sound effect this good doge makes

Suit counter = 3. Its cool to actually see him fritzing/changing into it.

All he needs is a sprig of celery on his lapel. Hello, 5th Doctor!

We’ve never seen drool stain his suit and YET here it’s visible on his glove (though they don’t stay past this page). The consistency is also… thicker than I’d thought. That’s almost goopy looking. Oh urgh, imagine the TEXTURE of the glass Time gives Hero. That’s like drinking a technicolor smoothie! Though, checking ahead, the colors Time drains out of RGB’s vents look WAY more liquid-y

Ey, we can actually see here that her cut from the vial hasn’t healed into white scar tissue yet

The Idea shifts everything about Hero- the style she’s drawn in, even the color of her speech bubble

Oh snap, Hero has green eyes! Or the Idea has colored her eyes green

RGB: NO that’s MY Hero GO FIND YOUR OWN

I mean, I joke, but RGB referring to Hero like she’s his property is suspicious in a comic literally titled The Property of Hate

THIS JUST IN, RGB STRAIGHT UP CHOKES A CHILD

But also a reference to that ol’ ‘terrible actor is yanked off stage, gag’

‘she’s getting carried away by an idea’ oh hardy har har HAR

If Ideas can feed on the World, and the Make Believe is made of Thought… lmao Idea’s are like pesky varmint in this setting aren’t they. They’re squirrels chewing through all the wiring

In any other story I’d expect Idea’s to be good things, yet here they’ve obsessions that’ll eat you from the inside out. thats just. very neat. and definitely accurate

I love how RGB is just so casually strong, like… sprinting while holding a kid out in front of you like that. Or just sprinting and hauling a kid along at all

Hero: oh! I know what makes ME super bored! (switches RGB to TV mode and tunes in to infomercials)

… you know what I’ll add it to the counter. Times RGB’s gotten Fuckin Rekted = 2

Oh! Butterfly.

What is this things agenda and motivations anyway?? mostly it seems to want Hero to strike away from RGB- reminding her that as the Hero this is her story, not RGB’s. Make your own decisions, kid! RGB is just the mentor trope after all. Those are designed to die

… oh god mentor characters always die

I wonder what it is about the Plains, or any particular place, that makes it unusual for trees to grow there.

Ah, stalling. Classic. Truly the most iconic of uncomfy reactions, by me, RGB, or anyone

Hero: YOU SUCK. RGB: yOu SuCk

We’re starting to see these rectangle… things in the sky. My first thought was the doors like when they first arrive, but looking at this panel they’re more like picture frames? They also cast shadows onto the ground so they’re, like, there physically

Frame, frame... frame of reference? frame of mind?

RGB: see if I give a damn!!

RGB two (2) days later: Hero? Me? Attached? I think you’ll find you’re mista- *trips* *thousands of pictures of Hero spill from sleeves*  fuck those aren’t mine I swear I’m just holding them for a friend I- *slips on a pile of pictures* fu ck no they’re not mine I just- *more pictures spill out* hang on a sec jUst LISTEN-

As we learn in the market, this world’s inhabitants are Whats. They are not yet Who. Hero’s actually gone the opposite direction; the process of entering the Make Believe has changed from her a fully realized Who to a function in a story, a What, a Hero.

All of this to say that we’ve just reached why the chapter’s name is Suture, the process of stitching things together. There’s also a film theory thing called Suture Theory? Man, who knew. Basically that’s about a film’s ability to draw you into the story’s world. Except for Hero that’s now literal. She is tied to the story and the Make Believe now, and she will remain so until she either… oh goddammit. Until she either dies a Hero or lives long enough to see herself become the villain?? sure

WAIT A MINUTE, HOW MUCH D’YOU THINK THAT QUOTE COULD FIT DIAL? CONFIRMED FORMER HERO AND RED RIGHT HAND OF THE BIG BAD HATE HERSELF??

RGB: hold the fuck on that doesn’t sound like my stubborn ass at all

If only I was as good as RGB at recognizing out-of-place and distorted thoughts

‘Old chestnut’ actually is an idiom, if an out of date one haha. It’s for an old, repeating problem

“There’s a Doubt in my boot”

shit about to go DOWN, FOR REAL, in the next chapter!

[prettiestsupersoldier]

Ooh

Jon Bellion Ooh  

AN: This was supposed to be short. edit there was a mistake but i fixed it hella too late but.... its still trash as fuck though

I don't believe that you're from New York

You're from the sky, past our view of space

Don't bullshit me, tell me you're an angel

Steve had dragged them out for an early morning run and he was already pissed. It was way too cold and quiet for his liking and Sam was there he hated Sam. But Steve had promised him that he would buy them the biggest breakfast they could eat so he managed for the time being.

When they had finally stopped running for the morning he had the biggest plate of waffles and bacon in front of him and he couldn't have been happier. Sure it was nearly 8 in the morning and he had run 15 miles but he had food and was sitting in a warm cafe.

Then he heard the ding of the cafe’s door opening and in walked the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen and he openly stared as she found her seat and pulled out a book. Her voice was full of life and not at all like it was so early in the morning as she asked for a cup of hot tea and a muffin.

“Bucky!” He jumped effectively slamming his knee into the table at the voice that had drawn him from his thoughts.

“What.” He sneered in Sam's direction as he rubbed his knee.

“You were drooling man just checking to see if you were good.”

He looked at Steve for any sign of truth because he didn't trust Sam one fucking bit, he fucking hated Sam. Much to his chagrin Steve had only looked up and handed him a napkin to wipe the drool that had collected in the corners of his mouth. He grumbled as he snatched the napkin away to wipe his lips.

He tried to focus on the food in front of him but his attention kept going back to the girl a few tables away from theirs. She was gorgeous and sure it wasn't​ even 8 in the morning and she was wearing sweat pants and her hair was in a bun, but if she looked gorgeous like that then surely when she was actually dressed she looked like a goddess. His eyes kept wandering to her lips full and pouty and swollen from her lightly chewing on them.

He turned away whenever a waitress walked over to refill her tea. He didn't wanna be caught staring he looked atrocious. He was all sweaty his own hair sticking up in every direction and he was sure his eyes were dead to the world. Maybe he would come back another morning looking presentable and she would be there reading her book.

He tried to keep up with whatever conversation was going on between Sam and Steve but he would inevitably end up tuning them out instead focusing on the woman he was sure was an actual angel. The way the light from the window opposite her landed on her face and made her eyes sparkle. He was lost in her and she didn't even know it

He turned back to Sam and Steve only for them to both give him knowing looks.

“Shut up and eat.” He said as stabbed his fork into his waffles.

When he looked over at her for maybe the hundredth time since she had arrived, she looked up from the book she had in her hands and gave a small wave in his direction.

Fuck. He turned his head around faster than she could blink.

“I’m leaving.” He announced to his friend and Sam as he practically leapt from his seat.

“What? You haven't even eaten yet.” Steve said looking down at Bucky's overflowing plate confused because he was the one who wanted breakfast now he was ditching.

“I'm not hungry anymore.” He said and was gone before Steve could even reply.

The entire walk back to the tower he cursed his luck. There was a beautiful woman in front of him and he thought, that he had scared her off by staring. He was an idiot.

When he got back to the tower he was bright red with  embarrassment. She was so pretty and he had ruined anything that could possibly had happened by staring at her and he didn't even know her name! He sulked his way up to his room of the tower intent on burying himself in his bed for the next day and a half.

Then there was a knock at his door while his face was stuffed in his pillow.

“Go away!” He shouts back .

“I'm coming in.” Replies Sams smooth voice as he hears the door open and close.

“What do you want.” He grunts out.

“I've come bearing gifts.” He says as he steps further into the room.

“Don't want your gifts. Leave”

“Really? Because I think this one is really good man.” He says holding up a torn piece of paper.

Bucky looks up for the first time since he’d entered the room. He looks at the piece of paper and his curiosity gets the better of him.

“What's that?” he leans up a little in his bed.

“10 numbers arranged in a random order that connects you t-”

“Shut up. Who’s number is it?’

“One miss Y/N” he says with the smuggest grin on his face. Bucky just stares at him confusion written all over his features and sam realizes this might take months if he doesn't just outright tell him.

There's a loud sigh from him before he continues.

“The girl that caught you staring at her that had you running for the hills? Does any of this ring a bell frosty? I know you have a terrib-”

“Shut up. How the hell did you get that?” He's sitting up now ready to tackle Sam to get that piece of paper.

“Well after you went running out of the cafe like a crazy man. I asked Steve if he could get us take out boxes because my pancakes were delicious and I wa- ”

There's a low growl from Bucky that stops him in the middle of his story. he stands up ready to jump on Sam the minute the story gets out of hand again.

“Right, right not important.” He says holding his hands up in mock surrender.

“I went to her table and talked to her for literally 5 minutes dude. 5 minutes. She asked why my ‘cute friend’ “ He makes a gagging sound before he continues.“Had run off and I told her you had a bathroom emergency.”

Bucky tackles him right then and there.

“Give it to me.” No sooner than the words are out of his mouth Sam is in a headlock.

Your lips they taste like June

Your eyes are a rocket to the moon

Those legs gon' put me in a tomb

Praise God when you hit me with the Ooh

That had been nearly 5 years ago though. Now he stood in a room that costed way too much money for just a single day of use. In a tuxedo that hugged him in all the right places but made him stiff as a board. With Steve and Sam behind him as he waited for the longest 5 minutes of his life to tick by. Then the music starts to play and his eyes shot up towards the double door and his heart stops.

He knew you’d look gorgeous in a white dress but this was on an entirely different level. The way your hair was pinned up and the way the dress hugged your curves. Then your looking directly at him and he wants to run again just like the first time you had looked at him. He feels a hand on his shoulder and it keeps him grounded and he's so thankful for Steve and Sam in this moment.

Then you're standing in front of him and he can't breathe all over again. 

He thinks about your first kiss after a date at the fair and how you tasted like strawberries and whipped cream. He never had a sweet tooth but now he loves funnel cakes just for that memory of a too hot June night. He thinks about when he first said ‘I love you’ under the stars and how when you said it back he felt like he was soaring among the stars you were under.

Before he can get lost in anymore of his thoughts there is a sharp elbow being jammed in his back and the sounds of Sam clearing his throat. 

“What?” He says a little too loudly for this particular situation.

Tony clears his throat before continuing. “I said do you take Y/N to be your wife?”

“Of course, I mean yes.” another sharp elbow in the back has him correcting himself again.

“I do.” He feels his cheeks go from warm to flaming hot as you try to hide the giggles bubbling from your lips.

Then tony asks you the same question and a million things go through Buck’s head in the 10 seconds it takes for him to finish. She could still say no. Someone can object at any second. This could be a dream, HYDRA could still be controlling me. I could still be in Wakanda frozen. This could be a horrible prank. This could be a dream a beautiful, horrible, heartbreaking dream.

“I do.” You says as you squeeze his hands. You can tell by the look in his eyes that he’s over thinking something and you’ve learned over the years that touch grounded him in these types of situations where his brain tried to fight him over every possible thing it could.

He wants to kiss you right now, wants to hold you against him and finally be your husband, to love you for the rest of his life and yours too, but Tony is taking ages to finish his speech and he's getting antsy. Sure all this people are here for you, to celebrate with you because they love you too. But he just wants to be alone with his wife.

“... Kiss the bride.” Tony says with a smile on his face.

“Now?”

“What do you mea- Yes now.” And then Tony mumbles something under his breath that sounds something like ‘super soldier serum my ass’, but you can’t and don't care to hear what he says because Buck is grabbing you around your middle and he is finally kissing you. You can make out the faint sounds of clapping over the loud thumping of your and his racing hearts. It feels like it's been minutes since you started kissing but it's been maybe 20 seconds and when you pull away from Bucky too look up at him  there are tears rolling down his cheeks and he has the biggest smile on his face.

When the two of you walk into the reception hall there are thunderous claps and whistles as you take the center of the room to have your first dance as Mr. & Mrs. Barnes.

If anyone asked him why he picked Bruno Mars’ Just The Way You Are as the first dance song he would happily recount the day that he first saw you and he knew he was gone for you. You had come into his life by chance and it had been the very best thing that had ever happened to him.

His forehead was resting gently on yours as he looked into your eyes.

“Her eyes, her eyes make the stars look like they're not shining” he sang along with the song as he gently rocked with you.

“Her hair, her hair falls perfectly without her trying” He moved away from you just enough to push a strand of hair behind your ears.

“She's so beautiful and I tell her everyday.”He smiled down at you.

“I can't believe I married a hopeless romantic.”You giggle out

“Only hopeless for you doll.”

[unfolded73]

Homecoming (2/2)

Rated: T, 4500 words total

Thanks to @j-philly-b for the beta and the idea of adding an embarrassing Henry story!

Henry/OC + Captain Swan with a kid. Henry’s never told an outsider about Storybrooke before, but with Ava he decides to take the plunge.

PART 1

PART 2

“Daddy!”

A small elbow poked her in the boob, and Ava winced as Maureen climbed off of her lap and ran to the man who’d just come through the front door. She set aside the book they’d been looking at together, picked up her drink, and turned to take in Henry’s stepfather.

“Hey there,” he greeted his daughter. He reached down and scooped her up, propping her against his hip with practiced ease, his left arm under her bottom and his hand spanning across her back. Ava’s eyes were drawn to the shiny metal of the hook he had in place of a left hand.

The little girl put her arms around her father’s neck. “Ava read my Elsa book to me,” she announced.

“Did she?” The skin at the corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled, taking away from the dangerous look he seemed to otherwise have going for him, with the leather jacket and black clothes and eyeliner. And the hook. He carried Maureen back over to the sitting room, depositing her on the sofa.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Killian,” he said, holding his hand out for her to shake.

“Ava,” she responded. “Your daughter’s quite the charmer.”

“Don’t I know it,” he said. “Henry, how are you?” The two men hugged, the kind of back-slapping hug that men considered acceptable, but she could see the affection they had for each other. “How’s Boston?”

“Good, it’s good.”

Killian looked hard at Henry, then at Ava, then at Henry again, but before he could say anything else the front door opened and there was a flurry of activity. Ava stood up, nervous about who else she might be about to meet.

A dramatic-looking dark-haired woman swept in first, and Ava watched as a pie she was levitating rather than carrying was swept into the kitchen and deposited on the counter by magic. No one else seemed to find this the least bit remarkable. Ava swallowed the rest of her drink, squeezing her eyes shut against the burn.

Immediately on this dramatic woman’s dramatic heels followed a short woman with a pixie haircut, a sandy-haired guy, and a boy staring so intently at a Nintendo that he collided with his mother’s back when she stopped to hug Emma.

“Henry, my boy, you should probably make the introductions,” Killian said, prodding him with his hook.

“Um, yeah. Everybody, this is Ava. Ava, this is Regina, my mom, Snow and David, my grandparents, and Neal, who despite being ten is actually my uncle.”

Grandparents, she thought, looking at the couple who looked no older than Emma and Killian did. Henry had explained about the curse, but she’d sort of ignored that part, her brain triaging the information as best it could. Now here was more proof that if these people were really Emma’s parents, there was some kind of magic involved. Her brain whirling, she shook hands and said whatever pleasantries seemed appropriate.

Maureen immediately attached herself to Neal, following him to another part of the house. Ava could still hear Maureen’s constant stream of chatter long after they’d left the room.

Regina gave Henry a hug and a kiss on the forehead, and then started to give Ava a skeptical once-over that brought to mind Henry’s characterization of her fairy tale alter ego as the Evil Queen. Ava wasn’t the only one who noticed the scrutiny.

“Come on, Regina, you’re scaring the lass,” Killian said, stepping in between them. “I got some of that Zinfandel you like; would you like a glass?”

Regina grumbled something to Killian that Ava couldn’t hear, but allowed herself to be led into the kitchen, and Ava let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding.

“Do you want a refill?” Henry asked, taking her glass.

“Sure.”

“It’s lovely to meet you, Ava,” Snow said, and the warm smile that enveloped her face instantly made Ava’s shoulders relax. “Henry tells us you started working at the newspaper at the same time?”

“Yeah, we met in one of those interminable orientation meetings they subject you to.” Snow White, she thought, slightly hysterically. I’m talking to the real Snow White. Because if she was going to accept that the people in this town had access to some kind of magical powers, and she’d seen that with her own eyes, why not just accept the rest of it?

Henry returned with her glass and stood beside her, and she suddenly felt so comforted by his presence, so awed that he had trusted her enough to bring her into the close circle of his very unusual family like this.

“I’m glad you came,” Snow was continuing. “I’m sure Storybrooke may seem strange, and we all must seem… it must be hard to believe all of it.”

“Well, I’ve seen both of Henry’s moms doing magic, and apparently Henry has a magical pen he never told me about,” she said with a gentle elbow to his ribs, “so--” A streak of darkness in the sky outside the window caught her eye. “So what the hell was that?” Ava pointed. It certainly hadn't looked like a bird.

Henry went over to the window to look. “Mal’s behaving herself?”

Killian chuckled. “For the most part. Of course, every time a pet or head of livestock goes missing, she or her daughter gets blamed for it.”

“Mal?” Ava asked.

“Maleficent. She’s a dragon sometimes,” he explained.

Ava took another sip of whiskey. “Of course she is.”

“Killian, could you and Henry go get the folding table and extra chairs from the basement?” Emma called. “We’ve got nine people.”

The next few minutes were a flurry of preparations for dinner, as covered dishes brought by the guests were warmed up and Henry’s stepfather put together a salad. Ava kept out of the way, standing by the window, watching a dragon cut figure eights through the sky.

~*~

“And then he proceeded to knock over a mailbox with my truck,” David said.

“You did?” Ava asked, elbowing Henry in the ribs as he flushed at the friendly laughter around the table.

“It was my first driving lesson, and I was barely tall enough to reach the pedals and see over the steering wheel,” Henry replied. “Granddad just thought I was spending too much time taking sailing lessons from the local pirate, that’s all. He was jealous.”

David took the laughter at his expense in stride, rolling his eyes. “I could just see the writing on the wall, that I was gonna be stuck with this guy at family holidays for the rest of my life.” He punched Killian good-naturedly in the arm.

“And then it all came full circle when I helped to teach Killian to drive and he almost took out the same mailbox,” Henry said.

“Yeah, I took over the driving lessons after that,” Emma commented, leaning over and kissing her husband on the cheek.

“Will you marry Henry?” Maureen whispered loudly in Ava’s ear.

“Mo, sit down please,” Killian called from the other end of the table. The child quickly plopped back down in her seat, but she kept her eyes trained on Ava, expecting an answer. Around them, the buzz of dinner table conversation carried on.

Ava blinked and set her wine glass down, wondering what the protocol was for carrying on a conversation with a preschooler while drunk. Because she was definitely well on her way to drunk.

“I haven’t known Henry long enough to think about marrying him,” Ava whispered back, aware that the man himself was sitting on her other side and possibly listening with one ear while he laughed at another one of his grandfather’s stories.

“Daddy says when you have a True Love, you get married.”

“You should probably eat some more of your beans,” Ava said, pointing to Maureen’s plate. One of the adults had painstakingly put a little bit of each food on the dish, far enough apart that none of the foods touched.

“I don’t like beans. And then after you get married, you have a baby,” she continued, undeterred. “Mommy said she doesn’t want more babies, so I can’t have a sister.”

Ava smirked. “Sorry about that, kid. I didn’t have any sisters either.”

“But if you make a baby with Henry, that would be almost as good.”

Taking a drink of her wine, Ava shuddered. “Don’t hold your breath, okay?”

“Maureen, if you don’t eat your beans, you won’t get any of my apple pie. Ava, are you from Boston originally?” Regina asked from across the table. Ava wasn’t sure if Regina’s intent was to rescue her from Maureen’s attempts to plan out the rest of her life, but she appreciated it all the same. Maureen put a single bean in her mouth and made a face.

“No, I grew up in Brooklyn, actually.”

“Oh, Emma and Henry lived a year in New York,” Snow piped up. “How old were you then Henry, eleven? Twelve?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“You could have run into each other and never known it,” Snow said with a dreamy look in her eyes.

“It’s a big city, Grandma.”

“Well, if you were in Manhattan around that time and saw a guy wandering the city in full pirate regalia, it was this guy,” Emma said, pointing a thumb at her husband.

“Aye, rescuing you from a curse and an ill-fated engagement to a flying monkey.”

“I didn’t say yes to the proposal, Killian.”

“No, but you were thinking about it.”

It sounded like well-worn banter, and everyone around the table had the look of people who’d heard it a hundred times before. “Flying monkey?” Ava asked. “I assume that’s not just a figure of speech?”

“My sister is the Wicked Witch of the West,” Regina clarified.

These proclamations weren’t even startling anymore. “Got it,” Ava said, and started to giggle. She clapped a hand over her own mouth to stop the laughter from bubbling out further, but the more she tried not to laugh, the more the laughter seemed to want to overtake her. “Sorry, it’s just…” Ava dabbed at the tears that had sprung up in her eyes, trying not to smudge her mascara. “This place is bonkers.”

“You’re dealing with it way better than I did,” Emma said, standing up and starting to clear plates from the table. Killian intercepted her hand as she reached for his plate and kissed the back of it before moving to help her.

“She’s probably not as infuriatingly stubborn as you are, Emma,” Regina commented.

“Oh, I don’t know about that. She’s pretty stubborn.” Henry squeezed her hand under the table.

~*~

Henry found her later in the room Killian called “the study,” a warmly lit room paneled in dark wood and lined with bookcases. Ava sipped from a glass of water, perusing the spines of the books, as Henry stole up behind her and kissed the back of her neck.

“Hey,” he said, his eyes both hopeful and wary. “You okay?”

She held up the water. “Figured I’d better stop drinking alcohol before I did something even more embarrassing.”

“As long as you don’t try to jump my stepfather, we’re good,” Henry said. At her raised eyebrows, he added. “He came to pick me up from college alone a couple of times, and some of my friends were… not subtle.”

She grimaced. “I mean, he’s good looking, but not really my type.”

Henry smirked at her. “No? What’s your type?”

Ava set her water down on a table and put her arms around him. “I don’t know… I guess I’d say the bookish intellectual type? Likes scarves, wears glasses, has a secret fairy tale family that no one knows about? Ring any bells?”

“It sounds like you want to date Harry Potter.”

She made like she was pulling away from him. “Is he real too? Do you think he’s on Tinder?”

He grinned and pulled her back against his chest. “He’s not real, but I can think of maybe one guy I could set you up with who fits that description.” She stretched up and kissed him briefly on the lips before dropping back down to her heels. “Everyone loves you,” he said. “Thanks for coming here with me, I know it’s…”

She looked up into his familiar face. “Your family is nice. I don’t really even care who they are. All that matters is that they love you and they love each other. The rest of it is… okay, mind-numbingly weird, but it sort of doesn’t matter, you know?” She kissed him again, and then stepped back to put some space between them. “Your little sister already has plans for us getting married and having babies together, by the way.”

He laughed. “That figures. Another budding romantic, just like my grandmother.”

“Living in a town full of fairy tale characters will probably do that to a person.”

“Or it could just make them horribly jaded, with no hope of ever living up to the epic love stories of their forebearers. Destined to always be the one to document the dramatic romances, but never to live them.” He scratched at his cheek. “Just for example.”

“I don’t know, if epic love stories automatically come with sleeping curses and dying and rescuing your significant other from Hell and all that, I might just take a pass. Boring, everyday stories are more my speed.”

Henry’s resulting grin lit up his face. “Mine too.”

end

[lilflowerkiddo]

an ‘about me’ moodboard

Since I was tagged to make a moodboard about myself, here it is! I’ll explain why I chose each image so that it doesn’t seem like they’re just there for no reason. 

~ In the top left corner, there is an image of the detailing for the sky from the painting Wheat Field with Cypresses by Vincent Van Gogh. I chose this piece of art because of the way that Van Gogh created such a magnificent work of art with a mixture of light and soft colors and also bold and bright colors. I feel like the artist was expressing how things that may not appear to go well together can end up making beautiful things; much like life itself. 

~ The center picture of the top row is a photograph of peaches for sale. This image was chosen because I love all fruits, but peaches were the most aesthetically pleasing. I also chose this one because of the fact that the picture looks like it was taken at a farmer’s market or someplace like a farmer’s market, and my grandma used to take me to farmer’s markets all the time when I was little. Peaches and farmer’s markets are parts of important childhood memories for me. 

~ On the top right hand corner, there is an edit that I made. It is of the transgender flag with a speech bubble in the center that reads ‘transgender pride.’ I put this picture because, as some of you might already know, I am a pre-t and closeted, FtM (female to male) transgender guy. I chose to put transgender pride because I am not ashamed to be trans. Yes, I wish I had been born as a cisgender guy, but I am not any less of a man for not being born cis. 

~ In the image on the left of the center row, there is a picture of someone playing the ukulele in yellow and orange-ish clothing. This one was chosen because I play the ukulele and also because yellow is my favorite color. The ukulele in this picture actually looks a lot like my ukulele, other than the fact that mine is covered in stickers I’ve collected from vacations. 

~ In the very center of this moodboard, I have made an edit. The edit says ‘JASPER ELLIOTT’ in large, yellow letter that have been outlined in very dark blue, and ‘lilflowerkiddo’ in much smaller, white and black letters. The ‘lilflowerkiddo’ comes from my URL, so that everyone who sees this moodboard knows that I made it. The part that reads ‘Jasper Elliott’ is there because that is my first and my middle name. The background I chose for this image is a picture of bees on a light blue sky, and I picked this particular one because I love bees and they are absolutely adorable to me and they must be protected at all costs. 

~ On the right picture on the middle row, there is writing on what looks like a yellow plaster wall. The writing says “The world is filled with nice people. If you can’t find one, be one.” This picture means a lot to me because that phrase is something that I’ve embedded into my mind and that I hope to never forget. I try to live by that saying. 

~ In the bottom left corner of the moodboard, I have a picture of a light blue sky with purple and pink clouds at the bottom, that has doodles of space on it. This picture really stood out to me when I was searching for images to use. It seemed different from the pictures around it because I love taking pictures of the sky on my Polaroid camera, and I enjoy doodling drawings of planets and stars and moons on all my school work. 

~ The picture in the center of the bottom row reminds me a lot of myself. I love to paint and make messes with art supplies. After I paint, the water in my paint water cup always looks like the water in the image; more purple than brown because I tend to use bright colors instead of dull colors. 

~ And finally, time for the picture on the bottom right corner to be explained. I wanted to use this picture because I am a Pisces, and the color that most people associate with my zodiac sign is blue. I really liked this one image because the eyes on it are very beautifully drawn and they go well with the blue shade used. 

I was tagged by @yougoghkiddo 

I tag: @artsypear @baby-honeybear @etoilekid @fuzzypetal @grumpytrans @angerytrans @timidleigh @honeybubb @peachy-mutt @katelynsgnarlyblog

(The only two pictures that are mine is the edit that says ‘transgender pride’ in the top right corner, and the image in the center that says ‘Jasper Elliott’ in large letters and ‘lilflowerkiddo’ in smaller letters. None of the other pictures belong to me, I found them all on Google. Credit for the pictures goes to their owner.) 

[satuwrites]

13. Like the moon we borrow our light, I am nothing but a shadow in the night.

A quick author’s note: It’s only fitting that this story is a follow-up to this one, just like Part II is a follow-up to Let the Flames Begin. It’s recommended to read the first story before this one.

Maybe it would have been a good idea to open the bottle of champagne before they came outside to wait for the fireworks and she was supposed to go through with her plan. But she had convinced Sydney the bubbly drink could wait until after the turn of the year, had managed to talk her into coming to stand in the biting cold twenty minutes before midnight because it was all part of her plan. According to her plan, they would have a more significant reason to celebrate after they returned inside so why waste an expensive bottle for something as trivial as the passing of another year. What she hadn’t planned for was how she would’ve needed a glass of that champagne to stop her hands from trembling where they were resting on her girlfriend’s waist or to calm her rampant thoughts because what if she says no?

It was ridiculous. Rationally, she knew it was absurd to doubt because they had discussed this. They had lied in bed late at night on numerous occasions and discussed their hopes and dreams with hushed whispers and secret smiles, their intertwined fingers a comfort and a promise of a shared future. She shouldn’t worry because on those nights when they had felt like the only two people left in the world, they had agreed that maybe marriage didn’t sound like such a terrible idea after all. It would simply make a truth they held close to their hearts official in the eyes of others as well, and wouldn’t it be a waste not to take the chance that had been denied from people like them for generations?

Their discussions of the future always ended with slow kisses and assurances of someday and that was more than enough because they knew they were not empty promises. It was just a matter of taking the final plunge. A plunge that she had been preparing for the past few months, and now here she was, waiting for the year to turn with the woman she wanted to spend the rest of her days with. Somehow she felt like she was standing on the edge of a cliff, looking down at the calm waters a hundred feet below. She had practiced for this jump and knew with almost absolute certainty she would land safely into the warm embrace of the sea. And yet there was a small but terrifying chance of a rogue blast of wind that would push her off course and make her crash into the sharp and unforgiving rocks instead. It was this possibility that had her heart beating wildly against her ribcage and made her afraid of uttering the words she had written weeks ago and memorised during the long shifts her girlfriend worked at the hospital.

She took a deep breath to calm her erratic pulse, hoping Sydney couldn’t feel the rapid beat where her face was nestled against her neck. The seconds were ticking by and she really needed to start with her speech if she wanted them to start the New Year as something more than girlfriends. She wanted to be able to kiss her fiancé silly when the clock struck twelve, and in a year or two, her wife. The thought made her giddy, and suddenly her heart was thumping rapidly for a completely different, and much better, reason: excitement.

Sydney shivered slightly from the cold and pressed more tightly against her, mumbling something about a stupid idea, sprinkled with a few choice curse words. The movement of lips against her neck sent a shiver of her own running up and down her spine, and she marvelled at the reaction the other woman could spark in her even after six years of dating. There was never a day when the simple act of saying I love you didn’t thrill her to the core or seeing her partner smile fondly at her didn’t lead to a team of butterflies practicing aerobics in her stomach. She didn’t understand how people could claim that the act of loving eventually becomes mundane because whenever she thought she had finally fallen as deeply in love as possible, the ground crumbled beneath her feet and she found herself falling once more. The love she felt for the woman in her arms was as endless and eternal as the bottomless night sky above them, and she never wanted to take it for granted.

After pressing a soft kiss that Sydney probably couldn’t feel on top of the mustard yellow beanie, she turned to look up at the dark sky. She was glad to notice the weather forecast had been correct in predicting a clear night. After all, the moon casting its silver light on the world around them was an integral part of her speech, which would have lost some of its impact under an overcast sky. Everything was as it should, and now she only needed to force the words out.

Here goes nothing.

“You know,” she started, voice trembling a bit too much for her liking. She cleared her throat and continued, squeezing Sydney closer in order to mask some of her nervousness, “I’ve been doing some thinking – a shocker, I know – and I’ve come to the conclusion that there are two types of people in this world. The first type includes people like me, and I’ve come to call us ‘the moons’ because we circle around this thing called life, not really doing much. We’re just there. And maybe sometimes we engage in the happenings of the world and actually manage to achieve things, but mostly we’re as useless as a huge ball of rock in the sky that not a lot of people pay attention to.”

Sydney leaned back to look at her with a confused frown on her face while pulling away a few strands of blue hair stuck to her mouth. She had gone through all the colours of the rainbow during their time together but always seemed to gravitate back towards the electric blue that she had sported on the night they first met. Sydney claimed it was because the bright blue complimented her copper skin the best after her natural brown, but sometimes she wondered if maybe the other woman thought back to that night as often as she did, and the way it had changed everything.

“Where are you going with this?” It’s not like her girlfriend wasn’t used to her random bouts of philosophical talk that often were interrupted by a forceful kiss, but she had caught on the way her words were too careful and soft for this to be another speech that went nowhere.

“You’ll see soon enough,” she reassured and nudged Sydney’s nose gently with her own before resuming. “As I was saying, the moons aren’t usually that remarkable. But there are times when even we can shine, but we can’t do it without help. Like the moon, we borrow our light. And here’s where we come to the second type of people: the suns.” Because it was so cold they could see their breaths, she saw more than heard the way Sydney’s breath hitched at the words. She decided to take it as a good sign. “They are the people who make everything happen; they are the leaders, the inventors, the doctors. Without them, there would be no life. And just like the sun, they exude so much warmth and light that they can spare some even to the moons around them, allowing them to reach their full potential. The suns burn brightly, and you, my love, are the brightest sun of them all.”

She had expected the tears that started forming in the brown eyes that shone a light as warm as the setting sun (and wasn’t that fitting?). After all, Sydney had never been good at hiding her emotions. They always surfaced through the cracks in her poker face she sometimes attempted to keep when she was upset or the situation called for seriousness that was unnatural to her. It was the exuberance that had initially drawn her to the other girl in that club years ago when she had craved for even a speck of light in her dark life. Never in a million years would she have thought she would find the sun.

She took Sydney’s hands into hers, tracing mindless patterns on her knuckles as she tried to keep her voice calm for the rest of the speech. “Before I met you, I was a moon without a sun; nothing but a shadow in the night. To me, the world was a hopeless place full of never-ending darkness and loneliness. And every time I tried to reach out to people, I was only met with black holes who wanted to suck out the last of the light left in me. So I accepted that all I would ever get was eternal night.” The tears were now running down Sydney’s cheeks, but the grip on her hands was strong and sure. She fell in love all over again. “When you asked me to dance in that nightclub over six years ago, it was like I saw the sun for the first time after a polar night. The force of your spirit melted away the ice and brought the world around me back to life. You brought me back to life, as cliché as it sounds.”

The night of their meeting was still clearly etched in her memory as if it had happened the day before, not years ago. She remembered the way she had been skidding towards a panic attack as she took in the mass of people dancing wildly in front of her and blocking the exit, the flashing lights and loud music forcing her heart into overdrive. She had felt the overpowering need to run away and hide before everything became too much, but then Sydney had appeared and her panicked thoughts had quieted down and everything was calm. Sydney’s warm presence, she had quickly learnt, was something that could always soothe her, and with her help the panic attacks became much more infrequent visitors. Not that they ever disappeared completely, not after years of incessant bullying, but she had gained back the control over her life, and for that she was eternally grateful.

She let go of Sydney’s right hand to stuff hers into the pocket of her coat and wrapped her gloved fingers around a small, velvet box that she had stashed there early in the morning. Watery eyes followed the movement, and they were both aware of what was coming, but she had one more thing to say.

“I know you’d like to argue that I’m not dark and lifeless like the moon without the sun, but that’s only because you can never see me without the sun. You are my sun, and whenever I’m with you, I glow like the moon on a night like this. See?” With a nod of her head, she urged Sydney to turn her gaze to the sky where the full moon was shining down on them. “That could be me, burning with the strength of your light. You are my sun, and if you’re willing, I’d love to bask in the light of your love for the rest of my years. And that leaves us with one question,” she knelt down onto one knee, pulling the ring box out of her pocket and opened it with shaking hands. Sydney turned back to her with wide, gleaming eyes, and the soft light around them made her almost ethereal.

“Will you marry me?”

The ease with which the question rolled off her tongue assured her that this was the right decision. It felt like coming home and she couldn’t believe she ever felt nervous about proposing because this was Sydney. The one person who never made her uncomfortable, who was always ready to stand by her side through thick and thin, and who she would do anything for.  She knew with aching certainty that this was it, this was the course her life had taken the moment she had looked into Sydney’s eyes for the first time. Maybe it was sappy to think that way but she didn’t care because she was so unfathomably, indescribably happy.

It took almost a minute (54 seconds to be exact, not that she was counting) for Sydney to form an answer, but she wasn’t too worried. She knew what the answer would be, had gathered it from the way her partner’s breath had hitched earlier during the speech. The response started with a slight nod of the head and then her soon-to-be fiancé was radiating, her full lips stretched into a wide, stunning smile that almost knocked her to the ground.

“Yes,” Sydney exclaimed, her voice breathless with delight. “Yes, of course I will.”

They struggled getting the rings onto their fingers because their visions were blurry with tears of joy and their hands were shaking. Once they were both happily burdened by the new weight and Sydney had had a chance to marvel at the simple beauty of the silver band, they crashed their bodies and mouths together. The kiss was familiar but there was also something new and exciting in it, a deeper level of significance that they were more than happy to explore together.

When the first firework flew through the sky and burst into a brilliant shower of green and gold, they pulled apart for just a moment to catch their breath.

“Happy New Year, fiancé,” she whispered, giddy with the way the word tasted in her mouth. She could only imagine how wonderful it would be to replace the word with wife.

One day.

“Happy New Year, moon of my life.” And just like that, she found herself once again falling in love a bit more deeply with this woman who would quote Game of Thrones at her a few minutes after getting engaged.

She couldn’t wait to marry her.

Song lyrics from Part II.