#I think I've got ideas but I'm unsure if anyone would wanna know

[canary-song]

It's all fun and games imagining scenarios until I get too attached to MCU TV Daredevil Canon and Karen becomes inextricably related to Urich's death. Pete bugs Murdock over knowledge on a current case (for an "interview", but its Spiderman business too) until Karen spots him and recognizes him as Urich's kid and he has never gotten out of somewhere so fast while staying on the ground.

How do you handle grief you thought you'd buried enough it would never hurt you again? How can you look someone in the eyes and stop yourself from admitting you could have saved him?

And on Karen's side, how do you not ask? What if you finally get answers for what truly happened? What if you've found someone who might fully understand losing him?

[rvlse]

Greetings and happy new year! 🎉

Could I request an one-shot with TFOne Sentinel Prime, please? Write any scenario you want. I'm so thirsty to read about him 🥲

(It's okay if you don't want to take this request)

HII! Happy new year, I'd be more than happy to take this request <3 I hope you enjoy it!

Tbh I hope nobody already did this yet lol I've had this idea in my head for a few weeks..

ALSO for everyone who sent me asks, I'm working on them all!

(SENTINEL TFO X GN! READER)

WARNINGS: not too bad, does get a little suggestive tho 😉

Oh, you were going to kill Orion. What had he been thinking? Joining the Iacon 5000? What was wrong with him?

You, Orion, and D-16 had absolutely embarrassed yourselves out in the race. There was a reason miners weren’t allowed to participate, and of course Orion needed to find out why. 

“I just wanna know what your thought process was. I mean, seriously?” You scolded the red and blue bot, who was finding the floor extremely interesting. 

“I’m sorry, Y/N, Dee, but I just wanted to-” 

“You always want to do everything! You can’t ever just stay in your place!” You interrupted him. You were absolutely fuming. Shocker that no one could see the smoke coming out of your audials right now.

Orion didn’t reply, so you just crossed your arms and looked the other way. Dee hadn’t said anything, either.

Just as you were about to open your intake to spit a bunch of curses at Pax (again), four thin black cybertronian legs appeared in the doorway of the medbay, followed by heavy footsteps.

It was pretty obvious who was about to appear. Arachnid, the four legged cybertronian bodyguard, was the only hint you needed. Sentinel Prime. Wonderful. You could only hope he wouldn’t demote you for the stunt the three of you- Orion had pulled… or worse.

Arachnid’s many optics deep scanned you and your friends’ frames, giving all three of you a suspicious glare up and down.

“All clear,” she finally spoke, backing up as the one and only Sentinel Prime stomped into the room to take her place. You wouldn’t lie, he was quite the sight. Blue and gold was a gorgeous color combination, and he wore it perfectly. But… he was pissed. 

His optic ridges were furrowed together, his lips pulled taught, and the glare he held in his optics would offline bots if it could.

“D-16, Orion Pax,” he started, bringing his servos to his shiny hips as he gave your friends a firm once over.

“Y/N…” his dominating gaze narrowed on you. You suddenly felt a bit tense, straightening your backstrut and holding your helm up a bit more. 

Sentinel’s curious optics scanned your frame from your helm to your pedes, and then slowly… too slowly, back up to your optics. Your digits fidgeted with themselves as you tried to make sense of the situation. 

“What you three did today was one of the craziest things I’ve ever seen,” he started off, servos still on his hips.

Orion Pax got up off the medical berth and opened his intake, “sir, this was all my idea and we’re so sorry-” 

“I loved it!” Sentinel interrupted, his servos going up into the air. The three of you gave him a blank, confused stare. 

“You did?” Orion questioned, not believing the Prime’s words.

“How could anyone not love it? You gave my best racers a real run for their money,” Sentinel continued, getting down on one knee to be optic level with the three of you. 

You weren’t too certain of the mech in front of you. He seemed… too animated. Too excited. Too friendly. 

“So… we’re not getting demoted?” Dee spoke up, his voice soft and hopeful.

“Demoted?” the Prime repeated, shocked at his suggestion. Then, Sentinel let out a thick, hearty laugh, the type of laugh that just screamed arrogance.

Uncomfortably, Dee and Orion tried to laugh along, unsure of what the joke was. You just sat there on the medical berth with your arms crossed. You weren’t buying whatever show Sentinel was putting on.

After another few awkward moments of chatter, Arachnid finally let the Prime know his time was up and that he had places to be.

“I’m sorry, my friends, we’re preparing our next trip to the surface,” Sentinel told the three of you, his apologizing gaze travelling over your frames. But then, for the second time today, the Prime’s optics fell on you, his optics half lidded and dark.

“But in the meantime, I’ve got a treat for you,” he continued, letting his vision trail across your body.

“Arachnid, have someone escort these heroes-” he turned to his assistant and gestured to your friends, Orion and Dee, “-to my personal service facilities. The best care in Iacon,” the Prime congratulated the two mechs.

And then he turned his helm to you, and raised his servo. Confused, you opened your intake to ask questions, but Sentinel’s digits touched the bottom of your jaw, and closed your intake for you.

“As for them,” the blue mech addressed you, moving his thumb up so it was just barely grazing your lips, pushing your helm up as if he was inspecting you.

“Take them to my quarters. I want a word with them,” he finished, letting go of your face and standing up to his full height. It was worth mentioning that he absolutely towered over all three of you.

Arachnid didn’t ask questions, just nodded and called someone up on her comm link as Sentinel Prime gave you one last look before he turned and left the medbay. 

What the frag just happened? 

Your helm turned, bewildered, to your friends.

“What was that? Why was he so touchy-feely? Why am I going somewhere else?” you panicked, your servos in the air as you interrogated the two miner bots, faceplates burning hot.

Dee raised his own servos to try and calm you down. 

“Woah, woah, I’m sure it’s fine! He’s a Prime, he wouldn’t hurt anybody. You’re fine,” Dee tried to comfort you, smiling. Orion nodded enthusiastically behind him.

“Yeah, Y/N, you’ll be okay. I’m sure whatever he has planned, it’s go-” Pax tried to say.

“URGH… MINERS!” Darkwing bellowed from the hallway, clearly infuriated. 

“Well. That’s unfortunate,” you stated upon seeing him, raising an optic ridge. 

And just like that, Orion and D-16 were taken away, and you didn’t think they were getting the ‘best care in Iacon’ anymore.

Another pair of footsteps sounded in the hallway, this time lighter and more friendly seeming. Prepared for whatever it was that was about to appear, you sat stoically on the med berth.

Closer, and closer… 

“Hi!” the mystery figure spoke, popping out from behind the wall. 

“I was instructed to bring you to Sentinel’s quarters… so c’mon!” the pink and white bot exclaimed, grabbing your arm and dragging you off the berth. 

“Uhm.. okay,” you complied, not wanting to get in any more trouble than you might already be in. 

About five minutes later, you stood outside of two humongous gold doors. The cheery bot that had brought you here knocked three times on them, and then retreated behind you, putting their servos on your shoulders. 

You swallowed nervously when you heard the same heavy footsteps as you did earlier, and after another second, those golden gates flung open, revealing Sentinel’s daunting frame. 

The pink and white bot shoved you rather harshly forward, gave you a pat on your back, and then turned and left. Great. So it was just you and the Prime. 

“Please, come in…” Sentinel started, a cunning, attractive smile on his features. You gave him an untrusting glare, and hesitantly, warily, stepped inside his abode. 

“What do you want?” you questioned him the second you entered his quarters, turning around to face him. Bad idea, that height difference really was extreme. 

“Oho, straight to the point, are you?” he chuckled, putting his servos behind his back as he took a couple steps closer to you. His optics were doing that stupid attractive stare again. Frag. It would be bad if you were actually getting horny right now. Which you were. Frag again. 

You didn’t answer him, just clenched your servos into fists and glared defiantly up at him. 

“Okay, then. I can play that way, too…” he murmured.

“I saw you out there. In the race. You’re… frag, you’re gorgeous,” he scoffed, laughed, as if it were obvious why he had called you here.

Your optics narrowed, your glare only getting harsher. 

“So, I decided I just had to have you, princess,” he confessed, bending his upper half down so that he could see you optic to optic. Which, his were still half lidded and his gaze was extremely intense. 

At his pet name, you reeled back, the density of your situation finally weighing on you. Ohhh slag. The Sentinel Prime wanted you. YOU. 

You swallowed again, your optics going wide. 

“Pshh- you’re kidding, right?” you fake laughed, heat rising to your face.

The Prime’s cursingly hot smile only widened, and that only made you hornier.

His torturously tall frame took one, two, three steps closer to you, close enough so that his face was inches from yours. 

“Of course not. Why would I go through the trouble of calling you up here?” he chuckled again, closing his optics for a second.

“Listen… I’m giving you two options,” Sentinel’s smile suddenly fell, and his optics narrowed to glare down at you.

“Since you like it straight forward, I’ll keep it short,” his tone was low. Honestly, it scared you. Whatever he was about to say, it wasn’t about to be good.

“Either I get to bend you over that desk right there-” he gestured to what you could only assume was his work desk, as papers and data pads were strewn everywhere on its surface, “-and frag you until you start to see stars…” he spoke carefully, tentatively, as if he was spelling something out for you.

“Or, you become my sparkmate, and I get to screw you anyway,” he finished sourly, searching your expression.

Well, wasn’t this a turn of events. Clearly, he wasn’t giving you much of a choice right now. No matter what you did, he would get what he wanted. You couldn’t run, there were way too many guards who would offline you without a second thought. And you didn’t even want to think about fighting. 

Now, if you really thought about it, he wasn’t giving you bad options. You thought about the first one. You wouldn’t mind getting fragged senseless by him, in all truths. The question, though, was what he would do with you after he was finished with you. 

You didn’t want to know.

Being his sparkmate would be quite the honor. For slag’s sake, he was a Prime, and you just a miner bot. He must really like you… 

“I’ll be your sparkmate,” you told him slowly, carefully, your tone low, matching his. 

Sentinel’s lips curled up into another one of his cunning, unnecessarily attractive smiles. 

“Good girl.”

SOOOOO... I realized this was getting a little long for a one shot.

Anybody up for a part two where they get freaky?

Have an amazing day/night!

[newkatzkafe2023]

Hi! I'm unsure if you do ask for the incorrect verse for the Wukong or not, and if not just disregard this! But I was wondering if you'd do something along the lines of s/o learning Chinese, and they go to say something to them and somehow mess it up xD I apologize if you're not taking quests though, I'm blind for not seeing it 😅

WHAT?!?! I've been telling people that my inbox has been open for months. Thank god you were actually listening I will be more than happy to answer your request Please keep them coming😳😳😳😳🥳🥳🥳🥳

Ok so (Y/N) has been teaching herself Chinese for months from online Classes to books she got from the library. You wanted to surprise your husbands by saying I love you in Chinese I'm sure you can imagine how that worked out😏 but unfortunately when the day came you chocked infront of him and now the surprise is ruined.

(Lmk Wukong): He was shocked to find you were learning Chinese behind his back, and you were trying to say something Meaningful. He's Shookth, but he will start laughing a bit when you messed up on the pronunciation. Don't pay any mind to that part He's more in love with you then ever.

(Nezha Reborn Wukong) Ok he Cringes a bit when you mess up but he's smart enough to know what your Trying to say and therefore he responds back to you in Chinese as well so don't feel to bad He'll teach and help you practice, He also loves you more than ever.

(Mk Reborn Wukong) He's like what the hell is the point of this when you try to say you love him in his language. when he finds that you think you would connect with him better if You literally spoke his language then I guess he'll appreciate it,But just because you Messed up doesn't mean he hates it he'll just lowkey help you practice but Don't tell anyone Also be ready to argue with him in Chinese too🤦‍♀️.

(Hero is back wukong) He Calmly correct you on the pronunciation of what you're saying. Then he tells you that he loves you back. He finds it intriguing that you seem to want to learn And communicate with him and that might make him feel special. So congrats he loves the surprise🥰🥰🥰.

(Netflix Wukong) he's totally gonna laugh. Just imagine somebody trying to talk to you in your butchered native Language it's gonna be a bit funny but also mildly offensive but he's not gonna think so. It's sweet how you want to talk to him In his language and there's just something special about that. So he loves how you want to communicate with him in his language And it might be useful if he wants to gossip about the people around him with you.

So rather they wanna admitted or not they love the idea and also love you🥰🥰🥰

Feel Free to Reblog 😇👍

[silvertws]

You know what? At this point I have more written posts than fanarts... I mean, I could post old ones, but idk if it would make sense you know? Anyway.

You may wonder, is this gonna be another Steve Saga or something post?

Oh no, I may be hyperfixated, but I still do love other fandoms, even if they are dead.

Speaking on dead fandoms.

Hi Origins Crew fandom :}

How are y'all doing? How's the feeling of never knowing what was supposed to happen to your favorite character in OoO, SNO,SAO...? Oh and the unfinished storylines in MHO? FTO? do we wanna talk about the cliffhanger in OZ? I mean, luckily some people posted videos about how the storyline was going to go, so at least we got that.

(to clarify, I'm not mad at anyone who was part of the Origins Crew DW, I could never)

Anyway.

Some backstory on how I started watching Origins.

It was summer of 2019 I think? Pretty sure at least, I know it was before I started highschool because I sucked at English before I started watching Origins.

Anyway.

First series was OoO S1 from Brandon's POV, at least that's the first video that got recommended to me, I'm unsure what episode it was, I can't remember if it was before or after the Aphrodite's ball (we don't talk about those, you guys know why. You know.) So I'm not sure if I even watched it all, but I think at the time I did go back to watch it from the first episode.

Anyway POVS right? With OoO S1 I watched Brandon (*cough cough* Brandeen), Jakey, Brian, Colin and some of Xylo.

And can I just say... IT'S BEEN 3 SEASONS, 3 SEASONS IT TOOK TO GET RID OF A FUCKING SWORD, A SWORD, COME ON. AND WHY THE FUCK, CAN SOME PEOPLE COME BACK TO LIFE, AND OTHERS CAN'T, WHAT PLOT ARMOR IS THIS- Istg that was probably the most annoying thing of them all, nothing against the creators, again I feel like I need to clarify! But it's just my personal dumb opinion that I hope nobody takes offense to???

Anyway.

I feel like I should make a post for every Origins Series I've watched, but idk if that would make sense lol TwT

Besides my personal preferences when it came to all the series, I am very grateful to the Origins Crew, they're the reason I'm here today, the reason I know English and they were the first group that really opened my eyes when it came to the LGBTQ+ community and helped me discover myself.

I know that from an outside point of view it might seem dumb, but I do owe a lot to them, all of them, even the ones who left a year before Origins dismantled, even the ones who joined just before people went their separate ways.

Because even if people might say that the storylines were dumb or maybe cliche (which, in some cases they definitely were) in the end, I still loved every moment of it, every episode every dumb character who didn't make any sense or that was weirdly overpowered (I REALLY want to specify which ones but I don't want the whole fandom to come at me, please, any fandom but this one) but to be fair they kinda all were in some way? Or at least had the potential to in my opinion.

I'm not good at keeping a conversation stick to one topic, I tend to sideline pretty often and I apologize for that. TwT

Also idk if it's just me, but when I find a group of people there's always that one that for some unknown reason I just like more and that one who I dislike, again, for no specific reason, just the vibes???

Like for Hermitcraft and Empires it's Pearl, for Fable it's Ulysses, (I love this fish boy with all my heart if anything happens to him I will cry) for Origins it was Colin and Brandon, don't ask why, I have no idea, I just did, still do consider them my favorites.

I kept watching content from the Origins creators after everything went down. Including the drama with some of the creators I suppose... (I still don't understand most of it)

From Devi Devi Academy/anarchy to Glitch generation, to My Hero Eternity, I watched some of the Fnaf content Bryan made just for the nostalgia.

Holy fuck how I miss these fuckers.

Like it was the whole dynamic they had in the group, the mini games videos in character were so entertaining to watch! Especially the crossovers, I tend to rewatch them from time to time even tho I know basically everything by memory at this point.

Honestly they really inspired me when it came to creating my own storylines, and roleplaying, some people may call it cringe, and I get it, but I still think it's fun.

It's been a year.

Well, more technically, but I didn't have Tumblr at the time of the anniversary I suppose? Can you even call it that?

The Origins fandom never felt too big, in my life I've only talked to one other person who knew about them, and it was pretty fun, we watched the uh.. second episode of my Hero Eternity together making theories and stuff, talking about my hero Origins and wondering which characters canonically knew that you know, mr "I killed both my bio parents" was actually alive. (Which from what we know, Flex knows, and I think Colin, not sure tho, because in the 3rd episode, when they were interrogating the hero, our edgy boy mentioned how he had an old "friend" who could get information and data really easily, and now, we all know Mario definitely wouldn't do that plus, did he even interact with the L.O.V.E. as a whole? I don't think so? So the only option that makes sense to me is Colin)

Anyway I drifted away from the concept once again because once I start talking I won't ever stop.

This is a long post, as usual, cause I write a lot when it comes to things I'm passionate about.

I'm very attached to Origins, all the characters, all the storylines, all the silly little things. And I'm never going to stop missing it I suppose? Not in a "omg how dare they break the group apart blabla blabla..." No, I'm just very nostalgic when it comes to it.

I owe everything to them, part of who I am today is because of them.

PS: if anybody wants to talk about this fandom I suppose, please do, please let's start a conversation. I have so many things to say.

Like you know in SNO when people didn't know Lucas and Brandon were SIBLINGS???? and they SHIPPED THEM??? yeah, hi it's me, I'm the problem it's me, HOW THE FUCK CAN YOU JUST DROP A BOMB LIKE THAT ON THE LAST EPISODE MAN, AND HOW DID I NOT EXPECT IT????? luckily for me, mine was very much platonic shipping, so uhhh yay??? Don't come for me guys, it was years ago, please ToT Also I did kinda Ship Lucas with uhh was it also called Jakey???? I don't remember anymore my friend will probably remember this because when the series was happening I'd just go on and ramble about the fact that I didn't know who I should have shipped with the angel boy.

Man shipping anyone in any of those series was HELL, LET ME TELL YOU, HELL. ABSOLUTE HELL, HOLY FUCK THIS IS WHY I DON'T SHIP CHARACTERS AT ALL.

Ok actual PS now:

Please, let's all sit and chat in front of a glass of tumbjuice/tomb juice??? (idk how to spell that, don't come for me) and not get cursed by anything while we do so.

Let's just vibeeeeeee :D

[bu-blegh-ost]

A Niklaus Hendrix theory (spoilers for the entire series up to 110)

So, I've been meaning to share my thoughts on Niklaus Hendrix for a while now, and seems that there won't be a better time than now, but you gotta bear with me cause there's a lot I wanna say, and hopefully it'll be interesting enough to read.

So, there was a theory going around a while back that Niklaus might be a warlock, whose patron is a Fathomless. I'm new to DnD myself, so for anyone in the same situation as me, let me share what I learned. Fathomless is a sort of almost god-like entity that lives in the ocean depths, and a warlock can make a pact with it to borrow its power. What made people think that this is something Grizzly might have been influenced by, were very familiar black tentacles that seem to be associated with the creature. Of course, Grizzly's campaign is very much homebrew, so if it is connected, it was merely an inspiration, cause, though the Nameless Prince might be a creature similar in power to the Fathomless, it is a seperate entity with its own goals and abilities. But the gist of the theory, is that Niklaus is a warlock and The Nameless Prince, his patron. I'll do you one better tho. What if I told you, that The Nameless Prince WAS a patron, but not of Niklaus, but Captain Hendrix. And you may ask next: Wait, are they not the same person? Well, yes. But no. Lemme explain.

Let's go back about ten years, before the Hole in the Sea. Let's assume that by that time, Captain Hendrix is a simple warlock. Very powerful, but nothing as otherworldly as he seems to be now. He is described by Drey as a man who can never be content, he seeks more power, more control. He has a powerful patron, one of the most archaic and dangerous beings that exist, and as we learned in ep. 110, the entity that took the power of the entire world to seal away. And somehow, the same creature reached out to him. That's why Drey mentioned, that Finn would often warn Captain Rose, that Hendrix seems to be hiding something about the true power of his arcane. But, as said, Hendrix was never happy with what he already had, and one day he came to an agreement. He was promised something, he wanted most, no idea what it could have been, maybe to rule the world or something like that. In turn he was to help free The Nameless Prince from the shackles he was chained by, below the ocean. I believe that years ago, the Nameless Prince, in his fascination with the mortals, in his desire to corrupt, to know, and eventually to destroy, made his way to Mana. Here is where he was stopped permanently, somehow imprisoned with no way to leave. He wants his freedom back and he wants Hendrix to help.

Captain Rose is about to retire, but when talking with his crew, he mentions that he's unsure. That there's something that always makes him want...more. A desire. Hendrix can use that. Whatever Rose did on this last journey of theirs, it opened the hole in the sea. From then, Rose got corrupted by the Nameless Prince which led to his death, and when Drey touched the egg...something was released...but not fully. Drey was not the key, not the right person, not the Chosen One, so The Nameless Prince's release was incomplete, corrupting only a single ocean, but also releasing wild magic across the rest of the world. With what little freedom it had, the Nameless Prince did not have a way to influence the world. No body, no face, no voice. But it did have Captain Hendrix. In ep. 100 we can see that Hendrix looked much more human than he does now. His eyes turned fully black, the very shape of his face changed a little. I think what The Nameless Prince proposed to him, was a fusion. A merge of their consciousness, personalities and goals. The Nameless Prince received Hendrix's memories, his talents and knowledge, his emotions, his body and his face. A name. Niklaus Hendrix. His host in return received power beyond any mortal's imagination. The power to grant wishes and corrupt people from within. But I have no doubt, that most of what Captain Hendrix used to be, belongs to the Nameless Prince now. And he finally has a way to influence the world in order to work towards freeing himself.

There are so many things that make me think that. His deal with Chip, his desire for him not to touch the egg. In his own words "Not him, anyway." Gillion. The fact that the new prophecy makes it feel like his release is inevitable. Naturally. After all, The Nameless Prince granted himself a favor from the Chosen One as early as the 8th episode. His fascination with people, so similar to what we heard about in the book Goobleck found. His nearly absolute power, so strong in fact that he can alter the reality itself. And yet, seemingly a person with a past, experiences and even friends. That's because he's not one being. He's two. And it was very clever of Grizzly to lead us astray like that.

When Chip asks him what he desires most, he says freedom. Naturally. Cause of all the things in the world, this one thing, freedom, is what both of them, the entity and the Captain, whose body was stolen, do not truly have. And they are ready to do anything to get what they want. They are pirates, after all.

I could be going on forever, with quotes and excerpts and even more details to my thought process, but I'm afraid to bore you, so I'll leave it at that for now. But hey, do let me know if you find that little theory of mine interesting, and if you'd like to hear more of my thoughts. For now, take care <3

[webbedphantom]

... I think I'm depressed again-

And because of that, I kinda want to ramble/vent about things. But since I don't wanna be a nuisance, I'm gonna just leave it under here for anyone who wants to read it.

Maybe it's just because of how hectic things have been lately, and how I missed my therapy appointment this week, but I'm just... constantly tired, even now that I'm starting to feel better from whatever I had a few days ago. And today I've just had that constant feeling of just... not knowing what to do, so I don't do anything. And when I do find something to do, I lose interest moments later.

Like I've tried to write replies, but then I'll hit a snag, or be unsure which reply to write, or think it's pointless because if they reply back, I won't be able to keep it going because I can't trim things without my computer... which I can't set up because my desk is still in storage, with no way to get it here without a truck, and nothing I can use as a temporary desk in the meantime.

And this goes on and on with a bunch of stuff, games I want to play, stuff I borrowed from the library, there's always something that gets in the way that keeps me from really sitting down and enjoying myself.

I hate feeling like this, and I hate even more that I feel like I can't talk to anyone about it, because when I'm depressed, I isolate myself, which makes it harder to reach out because I don't want to bother anyone. And I sure as hell can't go to any of my "family" about it, as lately I've been feeling like the term has no meaning, as most of mine just use that shared blood as an excuse to get things from you.

Which is kinda why I'm even making this. I don't typically do this, I don't like putting my personal problems out in public like this. But I don't really know how else to deal with these feelings, because I really don't wanna bother anyone, even though I know all of the people I'd usually tell this stuff to would be okay with it.

I'm not really sure what to do... My next therapy appointment is on Wednesday, but I go back to work on Tuesday, which kinda makes me anxious, especially since the person who hired me got transferred, so I have no idea what to expect anymore.

And on top of that, I just don't know what to do with myself in the meantime. I don't really have the energy to use any of my normal coping skills, and the few that I do haven't been working, so I'm just... lost.

Best I can think to do is reach out to my case manager and see if he can help me work through this, but... I'm not particularly hopeful about that. Still, it's all I got, and I did need to meet with him anyway, so I just gotta hope things work out.

I'll get through this. I always do. Doesn't mean it'll be easy, but... life is never really easy, is it?

[ednito]

Another kinda important post! (Sorry lmao)

So I first wanna say, I'm so sorry I have haven't posted any art in awhile. Its a bit of a mixture of being busy with life stuff and then having troubles with my computer.

See my computer is SUPER old, I got it when I was in middle school (im 20 now) and it's lost a lot of its capabilities and has often times been turning itself off or even blue screening. I've been losing a lot of artwork cause of it and there's only an amount of times I'm gonna be redrawing the same drawing you know? It's also showing occasionally it won't save my completed drawings, clip of course will save what I had last left off on and luckily clip usually saves it finished or before the slight editing I make at the end but it's still concerning as is.

Now the things that is the main topic of this is obviously, I need a new computer- that wasn't even half the problems I face with daily on the old guy! And while I do have a job it's hard to really earn the amount I need for a new computer and admittedly! I have a horrible spending problem! Of course from here on out I'm gonna be putting some money in savings to save up for the computer but that's not really what I'm trying to get at.

What I'm asking is would it be a good idea to open commissions? Admittedly I've had bad experiences with doing commissions and honestly I've usually tried to stay clear of them though whenever I did open them up no one was usually interested which is understandable. I'm unsure how I'm gonna really do it, honestly I don't think my art Is good enough for commissions so what I was thinking of just doing 10 dollar commissions that are colored and shaded (similar to how I draw SSH just a bit nicer) but idk. I don't know if anyone would even want that? Would you guys be interested? I'm genuinely unsure how to go around this.

[angelart67]

HEYA ALL YOU WONDERFIL TUMBLR PPL, I'M POSTING MY REPLY TO MY RECENT EMAIL, TO GIVE YOU ALL A HEARTY LAUGH, SO GET OUT YOUR SENSE OF HUMOR, HERE WE GO...

(YES I really did send this to them, & NOT by email either, I sent it direct thru thier website chat feature, so I knew someone would have to go over it, in order to contact me back)

OK, so I have an opinion about your recent (strange at best) email invite I discovered in my inbox today. 

Let's go over it...

First, the basic idea is to find out what Amazon customers think about Amazon Delivery, & my first thought, I must admit, was... IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME

Then I kept reading, & laughing & even crying at one point...

YOU SAY... Survey is hosted by external entity, called Alida, ummmm WHY? Is Amazon afraid to ask me themselves? I've been begging Amazon to pay attention to DELIVERY ISSUES for at least a decade now, only to be hung up on, ignored or patronized.

YOU THEN SAY...

Don't include ANY personal or confidential info in my answers...

THAT IS QUITE CLEAR AMAZON !!!

EXCEPT YOU FOLLOW UP BY...

Telling me if I have ANY CONCERN about the authenticity of the email, that I should... TAP A LINK??? AS IF, REALLY?

Anyone who has used a computer or phone at any level has probably been told NEVER CLICK A LINK, ESPECIALLY IF UNSURE OF ITS ORIGEN.

But you want me to tap on in if I'm feeling weird... HINT HINT: WHY not say if you are not sure, come ask us directly thru our website, while signed into my account? That sounds safer to me...

AMAZON, this is EXACTLY what is wrong with Amazon Delivery, Amazon Customer Service, Amazon as a whole...

YOU DO NOT LISTEN WHEN GOOD CUSTOMERS TRY TO TELL YOU WHAT'S WRONG, BUT YOU THEN TELL CUSTOMERS TO GO AGAINST ALL BASIC COMPUTER SAFETY PROCEDURES...

Here are my survey answers, I'm just doing it my way READ IT AMAZON...

Amazon Delivery IS ONE GIANT ISSUE, because you allow the drivers to go by whatever rules they want to. INSTEAD OF PROTECTING THE INTEREST OF YOUR CUSTOMERS, WHO ARE GIVING YOU MONEY, You'd rather kowtow to the drivers you already overpay, to do a job, that only about 10% (& that's a kind guesstimate) actually know how to do, & then proceed to do properly... 

Amazon profile asked specifically for me to include specific notes regarding my deliveries in several fields, I WAS QUITE CLEAR WHEN FILLING THAT IN, but drivers DO NOT even read that section... they go ONLY by, "Where should we leave your package?" 

That's just one more blatant example of how BACKASSWARDS Amazon is, so it WASN'T just the email, BUT, the email did include icing on the cake, in the point that besides telling me to tap into an unknown link, within an email I may question, if a person taps your yellow SIGN UP BUTTON... IMMEDIATELY after being told to NEVER include personal info (SEE RED UNDERLINED SECTION)

Tap button and... the FIRST THING I SEE IS A FORM ASKING FOR THE EXACT INFO YOU JUST TOLD ME NOT TO INCLUDE... Oh, by the way, it don't say a single thing about Alida Survey, it says Amazon Delivery Service, shouldn't your IT PPL know that?

Try to pull your heads out, before you lose all your good customers, we are NOT hostages, there are OTHER WAYS to shop, my Amazon has dropped to a bare minimum of the business I used to give you, because I finally got SICK TO DEATH of paying good money for items I purchase, so your arrangatan drivers can drop kick, throw, or hurl it at my door, against the wall, or on several occasions, completely abandon it outside, cause they are too damn lazy to come to my apt door, inside building as politely requested IN MY PROFILE... and those who do come inside, toss it, take a pic, & flee the scene, like they murdered someone, without a single thought to stick out their arm & knock...

I'm ALWAYS HOME for deliveries, yet YOU & YOUR PEOPLE DO NOT CARE if I receive what I pay you to bring out, or if it's in one piece in the box, once they finish battering it... SO NOW, YOU STILL WANNA KNOW WHAT I THINK ABOUT AMAZON DELIVERY... MY RESPONSES HERE ARE BETTER THAN A MYSTERIOUS SURVEY...

[self-proclaimed-best-blog]

I think I'm gay.

Admission post for future me. I'm glad nobody follows this page.

But I think I'm seriously considering it.

I think girls are pretty. But I can never bring myself to be attracted to women. I was all like "HYUK HYUK IM A BOOBS GUY!!!" but I'm unsure if that was ever true. Maybe it is true? Is it? Do I really like ladies? Maybe it was the idea of liking ladies that made me think this.

I've never flirted or dated anyone before. I don't know what it's like to be with anyone in particular.

But I believe I was caught up in being like the rest of the crowd. Or trying to. I was never girl crazy. I always just thought attraction was very little and not deep. Because I tried hard to stray away from the idea of liking other men, I never considered being in love or crushing on anyone was more than a "They're pretty and kinda nice I dig their vibe so I'll romance them". That got me thinking about what it was like to date a girl. I thought it was just like super close friends but you buy roses, kiss sometimes and maybe wear a suit while your lady wears white and you kiss under some church alter.

But apparently, that's not all there is to it. Shocker!

I found myself deep diving into 80s cheesy romance movies which led to romance cartoons, and romance comics to romance anime and manga recently. I never really liked that crap (at least the romance part of it ) much in all honesty. In retrospect it was probably me not being able to like relate to the characters. (The characters typically being a woman and a man)

But recently I found some stupid nerd anime-movie about two dudes. And I felt something. I thought something that wasn't "oh good for them" "Wow they seem happy" "They work well together" "They deserve a happy ending" in a very non-chalant and statement of fact sorta way. No, it was much more of a feeling rather than a thought. Something that made the gears in my head turn. It made me wanna giggle and kick my feet. It made me invested and feel connected to these characters. I think it made me wish it was me. (I know, a whole ass male admitting to being giddy like a little girl, that's crazy)

I was like "Huh. That's weird." and I haven't stopped thinking about it.

So I kept thinking and thinking. I looked more into queer media. I looked into bibliographies of gay people and their early life experiences.

I'm really uncomfortable about how familiar these things sounded to my own desires and life.

Over the course of the month I absorbed more media that has to do with gay dudes. Just sweet stuff about falling in love and slice of life. I found some ones I like a lot. like genuinely love these. They felt comforting and relatable. They felt genuine and hit right at home for me... A lot of these things even had making out and holding on tight to each other during emotional moments. When I watched shows, movies or read books that have a straight couple just kissing or connecting like that, I felt... uncomfortable. I assumed it was just me being immature and not getting over that "KISSING IS GROSS!!!" phase that little kids have around the ages of 6-12. But I didn't feel uncomfortable at all. I felt warm inside. It made me yearn for something I never even before considered. It made me want affection. It made me wanna be held. But not just by anyone. By another man. It felt like my heartstrings were being tugged at and violently pulled instead of barely strummed. It's a feeling I can't shake.

It's not even inherently sexual either. I just wanna be loved I think. But being loved by a woman doesn't seem as good as being loved by another guy.

I don't wanna express this. I wanna continue on like i was a couple months ago. Very infatuated with the idea of liking girls even if I didn't have any genuine interest in getting with one. At least I was oblivious and happy. Most of my friends are part of the LGBTQ+ so I don't know why I feel so... bad. Why I feel so bad about feeling this way when I know 90% of my homies would support me and help me feel comfortable in any way they could. It's not the coming out to them part that scares me. It's accepting myself that does. I don't think I wanna be this way but I think it's undeniable now. And yet I still try to shove denial and excuses down my own throat. I can't push it back or suppress it now that it's all up in my face now.

THIS IS SO CONFUSING. 💀

I just feel guilty.

Sick to my stomach guilty. I threw up about this the other day actually. I don't understand.

I got a haircut by the way.

[differentkettleoffishalltogether]

I’m On Fire [Chapter 2]

With her sister’s wedding fast approaching and her Mom hounding her about finding a date, Y/N makes a terrible decision that lands her and her least favorite genius in a confusing situation.

Chapter Summary: Y/N and Spencer start to put a plan together.

A/N:  I’ve got a head cold at the mo’ but I had to get a covid test just in case so I’m not allowed leave my room till I get the results! So enjoy a bonus chapter while I wallow on my own for like 36 hours :( On a positive note, thank you guys all so much for the response to chapter 1 I really didn’t see that coming! I’ve tagged everyone who asked, let me know if you wanna be added

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem Reader

Category: Fake Dating, Enemies to Lovers, (Eventual) Smut, Fluff, Angst, it’s a Slow Burn Baby

Warnings: Cursing, some NSFW language/themes

Word Count: 6.1k

Previous Chapter -- Next Chapter

Series Masterlist

Masterlist 

"Are you coming up or what?"

The question was still ringing in my ears. It caught me completely off guard. 'Up' as in up to Spencer's apartment? Where he lived? I knew he lived somewhere in theory, just like I knew deep down that he wasn't made in a test tube. 

Without noticing I've undone my seatbelt and I'm hopping out of the car, following him around to the front door. I guess I am coming up.

Spencer's apartment is more cosy than I thought it was going to be. It's warm and lived in. It's not big, but I think that might be what makes it homely. Something about the way he behaves had me thinking it would be fully decked out in stainless steel or glass or something. But it wasn't pristine, it was messy. 

There were books bursting from the shelves that lined the walls of the apartment, along with books laid open over nearly every surface in the place, it looked like he was in the middle of reading all of them, and honestly, I didn't doubt it. Maybe I'd misjudged him. He even had some photos of what looked like his family, and maybe friends, even some of the BAU, lining his walls or propped up on his mantle. He had little trinkets and souvenirs on his shelves too, evidence that he'd been around the country for reasons other than a case. I would never admit it to him but there was a real charm to the place.

Once we got inside he took off his bag and suit jacket, tossing them on the desk just inside of the door. I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do, and he seemed to pick up on my awkward energy.

"You can make yourself at home" he said, his confident streak remaining. I had no idea what to do with that. What would even make me comfortable in Spencer Reid's apartment? I took a seat on his sofa and just sat with my hands resting in my lap. Really not even sure where I should look without feeling like I was invading his privacy. Even though I wanted to. I think it was morbid curiosity, looking for clues on who this man might actually be outside of the BAU. What I really wanted to do was stand up and walk around, soaking in every bit if this place as if it would help me decipher our messy relationship.

He returned to the living room a few moments later, two mismatched mugs in his hands. He places one in front of me on the coffee table. I pick it up and take a sip. It's lemon and ginger, how did he know what kind of tea I liked? I held the mug in my hands inhaling the steam in an effort to relax. When I look up he's watching me, arms folded across his chest.

"So, how does this thing work. What's the game plan?" I honestly have no real idea. This evening really got away from me, I was still expecting to snap out of it and wake up in my bed at any moment.

"Well I can't say I've ever been in a Sandra Bullock movie before either so this is uncharted territory for me too" I say with a chuckle, trying to ease the tension. Even a little. I can see him crack a small smile but hides it almost instantly, his face hardening again.

"My sister, Margot, she's getting married in like 4 months." I can feel myself tense and I shake out my shoulders, I have to remind myself that he's agreed to this already, "Fuck it, I'm just going to be honest with you. My Mom's mostly freaked out that I'm too attached to this job and that I'll just never find someone again." I shouldn't have said again, fuck. I hope he didn't pick up on that. Who am I kidding. "Even though, I'm not sure I care if I do or don't?" he doesn't say anything, like he's waiting for me to continue. I know I've shared a little too much already but I keep going.

"Margot's 2 years younger than me, I introduced her to her fiancé Philip, we met in college, he's a sweetheart. But since they've gotten engaged Mom's gotten exponentially weirder. I think she's convinced I'm fully going to die alone, as if that would be the worst thing that could ever happen? Anyway, she's been trying to auction me off to all these guys, using this wedding as an excuse. I'm not sure how much of that phone call you actually heard earlier but Mom was trying to sell me on this guy, David, and I just… snapped." I look up at Spencer and he unfolds his arms, leaning in ever so slightly coaxing the story out of me.

"David, he uh, he worked for my father for a while back in high school, filing documents and stuff, busy work mostly. He used to make out with me when he was at our house after school, but then he'd ignore me in the halls the next morning. I know it's because I was a pariah back then or something but I didn't want to think about it today and I just got worked up. I shouldn't have let on that you were my date, I was just going to ask if I could bring Garcia or something, and I'm sorry." I cover my face in my hands, "I'm insane, you can back out if you want to."

I can hear him move from his spot on the opposite side of the sofa, he takes my wrists and gently pulls my hands from my face. He looks into my eyes, "I'm in this now Y/N, what do you need me to do?" he asks, and there's a genuine earnest in his voice that I think I've only ever heard a handful of times. And it's never been directed at me.

"Okay, well we've got a few months before you ha–, wait, fuck!" I throw my head back, there's already a complication, "shit" I curse under my breath. His eyebrows knit together, sitting upright.

"What's the matter?" he asks.

"I forgot about my Mom's 50th, it's next month. They've got this whole huge party planned back home in upstate New York. I've gotta go and they'll probably want to meet you, or they're gonna have a load of questions for me at least. I can try and get you out of it I'm sure"

He gets that cocky look again, he shakes his head "I don't know, I've always liked a bit of competition" he reclines back into his corner of the sofa, taking a satisfied sip from his own mug before speaking again. "You know, if I've got to learn enough to pass as your boyfriend in a month, surely that means you've got to learn enough to pass as my girlfriend within the month, no?"

Oh god. What have I done, why didn't I think this far ahead. "I mean, yeah I guess you're right." I had to remember he was doing me a favor. I had to get over myself. "Okay, if you're sure you're up for that?" I ask, and he nods, and I think he looks excited, or maybe he just finds the whole situation funny.

"If anyone's up for the competition it's you" he says, and I'm not sure if that's a compliment or a dig but I nod in agreement.

He takes another sip of his tea, collected and relaxed. I can't help but notice how at ease he is when he's in his own surroundings. I'm so used to seeing him sitting at a desk surrounded by paperwork, or combing through file after file in the make-shift office in a small-town police station, usually flustered or anxious, or antagonizing me whenever he wasn’t. This was a different Spencer. Completely in control, at ease.

"Alright, shall we get started then, we can't really afford to waste any time can we?" he was actually sort of right, so I nodded. It was only now occurring to me that I'd have to share parts of my personal life with him if I wanted this plan to work. We already knew the basics about each other, I'd read his file when I started at the BAU, I'd read everyones. And I feel like it was safe to presume he'd done the same.

His eyes bore directly into mine as he leaned forward, I think he was enjoying how uncomfortable I must've looked.

"How about I ask you some rapid-fire questions and you have to answer 'em?" he asks, and it's as good of a plan as any, and I can't think of any other suggestions, so I nod.

"Okay, shoot." I say, unsure and nervous, so I brace myself. I'm just grateful that he's making my life easier rather than harder for what feels like the first time since I met him.

I really should've known better.

He leans in, "So Y/N, first question, when did you lose your virginity?"

I almost choke on the mouthful of tea I just took, that can't be what he just asked, and he looks like he's savoring my shocked expression.

"I uh, I don't think you need to know that?" is all I can get out.

"Really? You think that's something your boyfriend wouldn't know about you?" he's right, but I didn't want to admit it outright.

"I feel like I sort of already hinted. It was that same guy David, I was 18, he was 19. We had sex on the couch while my parents went out one evening. I kept my bra on the whole time, he came, I didn't. It was all very standard stuff." I wasn't sure what compelled me to add that last part. I think I was giving in to the open honestly thing. "So what about you Doc?" I challenged.

He didn't seem embarrassed, or even shy. "I must've bloomed little later than you" he admits with a soft chuckle, "Vivian Stewart, I was 21, she was too. It was the last semester of my last PhD and I figured I must be missing out on something. And I sure was" he smirks to himself. "I came, she did too, 3 times. I did a lot of research ahead of time" he mirrored my story and I rolled my eyes. It was hard not to feel a little impressed but I tried with everything I had to stifle it so he couldn't tell. I wish it didn't make me feel something but it did. I gulp down the mouthful of tea that's been sitting in my throat.

I have to shake myself back to reality. I can't give him the satisfaction of throwing me. "My turn." I command, "When was your last relationship Dr. Reid?" I ask, "I mean like, serious one, not like hook-up" I clarify before he can ask. He thinks on it for a moment.

"I'm not sure what you classify as fully serious, but I guess it was this girl, Rebecca, we dated for a while when I first joined the BAU but it didn't work out. What about you?" he flips it back.

"So that was what, like 6-ish years ago?" I ask, he just nods.

"Mine was like 3 years ago now I think. I met this guy Nathan on my first week of college, we dated for like 4 years. He moved here for me when I got accepted by the BAU." I had to stop myself from delving into the detail. It was a long time ago now but it still hurt. "Long story short, the hours were demanding and they got in the way more than I would've liked. We ended up splitting a couple months after I got the job." I tried to play it off like it wasn't one of the more devastating things to happen in my life. But something told me he’d registered that, so he didn't push.

His energy picks up and he looks at me with a grin, but there's something a little sinister behind it. "I've got a more fun question for you." he leans in closer to me, "Y/N, when was the last time you got laid?" I just looked at him in shock. 

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me, I can go first if you really need me to?" his voice didn't waver,

"Fuck you Reid, I know when it was!" I snapped back at him. I did have to think back a little farther than I'd like to pull up the memory.

"Met this guy in a bar when I was out with Pen one night, we went back to his place and hooked up." I say as deadpan as I can make it.

"Well that's not very exciting is it?" he jokes, "Did you at least cum that time?" I know he's just trying to rile me up, but I answer anyway.

"As a matter of fact I did" I earn back a little of my confidence.

"I'm so happy for you, but you did manage to avoid my initial question" fuck "when was this exciting night of yours Y/N?" he probes, like I really, really wished he wouldn't. I could lie, but I'm sure he'd be able to tell. I cringe before I can say it.

"About 8 months ago" I mutter, just low enough for him to hear.

"Sorry, did you just say 8 months ago?" He nearly shouts in disbelief, he seems to find it funny.

"Hey fuck you Spencer!" I go on the defensive, "When was the last time you even got laid?"

"Like two and half weeks ago" he says, confident, and still laughing, "Wait wait, when was the last time you got yourself off? I know you're not waiting 8 months!" he giggles and I think I could kill him. I know I kept giving him outs but was it too late for me to just get up and leave?

"I'm not doing this with you if you're just gonna make fun of me Reid, I get enough of that at work" I get out, my voice is serious but I'm trying to hide how awkward all of this is making me feel, and I don't know that I'm doing a very good job.

I can tell that's gotten to him, he relaxes and eases up on the giggling. "Look okay wait Y/N. I'll stop, I'm not actually trying to make fun of you. I was being serious, I think stuff like this is important if we're gonna have to be comfortable around each other enough to seem like a real couple. Plus, it'll just help break the ice?" he shrugs. "But you don't have to answer if you don't want to."

I soften, because I agree, even thought I hate that he's right. "Fine" I collect my thoughts, "2 nights ago I'm pretty sure." I regret it almost instantly, but breaking the ice is supposed to feel awkward.

"Same here actually," he chuckles, "what'd you do?" I'm so startled by the question I almost forget how to answer.

"I, uh, my, my vibrator? I just felt like uh, I watched some..." I still can't force out a whole sentence. It's not like I was always awkward about sex or anything, I could talk to Garcia, or honestly probably any of the other team members about it. But with Spencer it didn't feel as comfortable. He still sat calmly, smiling just a little.

"Same here, 2 nights back, but with my hands I guess. I wonder if we were doing it at the same time?" he mutters the last part gently and my head goes a bit fuzzy. My eyes drift away from his face and settle on his hands, the mug he's holding looks so tiny with his fingers wrapped around it, I wondered how they'd look wrapped around my-

"Okay I think that's enough for one night, don't you think?" I jump up off the sofa and turn, mostly so that he doesn't catch the blush thats creeping from my neck up to my cheeks. And because I don't know what I'll say, or regret saying, if this conversations continues on its current trajectory.

"Sure," he says, standing up next to me, and I want to move further away instantly, "you're probably right, and it's getting a little late now anyway" he glances at his watch. Ushering me back towards his front door and opening it up. Before I can walk out he lightly touches my shoulder to turn me back to face him, and I wonder if he can feel the heat radiating from every part of me.

"So are you free next Friday after work?" he asks, and I'm so flustered I almost forget why, I just nod. "Perfect, how about we come here again and we can dive into preparing? You could also make a start on getting these onto a hard drive?" he gestures to the antique looking hardbacks adorning the shelves.

'Sounds great!" I perk up, feigning enthusiasm, "See you then!"

"Well, see you Monday morning actually Y/N" he smirks as I walk out the door. Fuck, he was right.

I really hadn't thought this through.

——

The weekend was a bit of a blur. I decided to try and put some useful information into a document for Spencer. It felt strange to try and condense my life into as few pages as possible. I knew Reid had an eidetic memory, and nothing would necessarily overwhelm him. But I also knew that he was someone that the team relied on to fill in a lot of the gaps in the rest of the our knowledge. So I felt bad about dumping a load of information on him, especially considering it was a favor he was doing for me.

I'd complied the majority of my life into a 15 page document and printed it out. Hopefully that would address most of what my family could guerrilla attack him with. There was also something unsettling about the imbalance. I was going to give him so many of the intricate details of my life in a little file, whereas all I really knew about Spencer was what I'd taken it upon myself to learn about him throughout the past few years.

I'd read all of his work while I was in college, given how he was the gold standard of getting into the BAU at a young age, I wanted to know who this guy was. I think I'd pictured something different. And I couldn't deny there was something enticing about finally getting to know him after all of these years of working together. Maybe this could actually be fun, or interesting at least.

----

I arrived early on Monday morning. I thought I was first into the office as usual but Garcia was sitting in my desk chair waiting for me. The second she saw me walk in she tensed, she must've known we were the only people in this early.

"What happened! You've been avoiding me all weekend?" she asked, and she was right. I'd drafted enough texts to her, trying to explain what the plan was, mostly without wanting to admit that she was right. Maybe I was stubborn.

"Alright okay, I drove Reid home." I admitted, dropping my bag by my desk. She rolls her eyes at me, dramatic as always.

"Well I knew that already Y/N damn! What happened next?"

"Fine, we went into his apartment and talked for a while. Trying to sort out the details, get a handle on things I guess?" I said, unsure of how much I should actually give away about our conversation.

"What things!?" She shouts, standing up from my desk,

"I don't know Pen, like logistics and stuff, I still haven't decided how I feel about that little stunt you pulled on Friday night!" I let my frustration get the better of me, and maybe that's why I haven't talked to her. It could also be because I know she's able to read me like a book and I'm not even sure how I feel about this whole situation.

"I call bullshit." She counters, "I know you were relived as hell when I sorted that whole thing out. You would've had anxiety tummy all weekend if I hadn't called Spencer!" I just go silent, she was right. I'd gotten so caught up in the whole, 'how to have a fake boyfriend' that I'd almost forgotten about how stressed I was about Spencer hearing my call in the first place.

"Okay, shit" I sigh. "Maybe you were right Pen. We're actually meeting up again this Friday after work to make a plan for the next while, so I guess that's progress?" I shrug, trying to play it off like this whole situation doesn't make my stomach flip.

"Ohhhhh! So like a date?" She probes, her enthusiasm rising drastically.

"Oh my God Pen no! Like an appointment at best" I diffuse the situation

"Ugh that's no fun" she says, not even trying to disguise her disappointment.

As if on cue Dr. Reid walks through the double doors into the bullpen. Both Garcia and I wave, overall awkwardly, but making an attempt pretend like things were completely normal and like nothing had changed since the last time we were all in the office together.

Penelope heads to her office as the bullpen starts to fill up quickly. Less than an hour later though Garcia's back at my desk and there's a new case that needs the teams attention in Boston. I follow her into the conference room and wait for the rest of the team to join. Spencer follows a moment later with 2 cups of coffee in his hands. I can see my mug in his hand and my automatic response is that he's messing with me. But he places my mug in front of me in the circular table before taking the seat next to me, listening to Garcia's briefing. I don't know if he's ever sat next to me in this conference room, at least not by choice.

I barely had any time to finish my coffee before I have to say goodbye to Garcia and hop on the jet to Boston.

----

The case was grueling. More so than usual. It was wrapped up late on Thursday night and the team decided to fly back home first thing on Friday morning. I was exhausted. Even if there was enough time to get sleep each night it wasn't like I got any. Whenever a case got on top of me like this it made it hard to rest, or get it off my mind at all until it was wrapped up. So even though it was over, that didn't mean I wasn't exhausted.

Hotch gave the team the rest of the day off, given that we have until submit our paperwork by Monday. I wasn't sure if Spencer's invitation from the following week still stood. I didn't want to ask, partly because I was so tired, but also because I was scared. I wasn't about to show up at his house in an effort to have a heart to heart, or hand him a condensed version of my life story on a manilla envelope if he was as drained as I was.

Standing by my desk I packed up everything I'd need to get my paperwork done over the weekend, I was just about finished when Spencer snuck up behind me, perching himself on the edge of my desk. "So, you almost ready to go?" he asks, like it's the most obvious question in the world. I couldn't really hide my surprise.

"Oh yeah. That's fine, I mean, if you're still cool with that?" I ask, and I hate how flustered I sound, like he makes me nervous.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" He chuckles, standing up straight.

"Cool, gimme a sec and I'll be good to go."

I pack up the rest of my stuff quickly and we make our way out. There's something that feels a little eerie about the two of us being in an elevator together alone again. It was a different kind of awkward to how it felt a week before hand. It almost felt like a kind of tension rather than a hatred or a rivalry. Either way we rode down in silence.

Once we got to the basement Spencer walks out of the elevator and walks straight to my car without having to ask. I unlock it and he hops into the passenger seat. Like this is a natural interaction. Something we do all the time. And I don't hate it as much as I thought I would.

"So," he says, buckling up his seat belt and breaking the silence, "do you know how to get to my place from here or do you need directions again?"

"Well I've got to turn on the engine first" I tease, hoping he picks up on the reference to our last car ride, he chuckles like he does.

"Are you hungry?" he asks

"Starving."

The delivery guy get's to Spencer's apartment at almost the same time we do.

---

Once the food's been demolished the two of us finally sit on his sofa, the same sides as the week before. "So, shall we get back into this?" He asks, sitting forward slightly to pull a notebook out of his satchel on the floor. It's small and lavender, and it's got a pen clipped into the spine. He cracks it open and flips to a specific page.

"Sorry, what's that?" I ask, pointing to the book, he looks confused,

"They're my notes?" he says, like it should be obvious

"Your notes?" I ask,

"My notes on you." he smirks, again like I'm silly for even asking.

He had notes on me? He had a whole notebook on me? What was even in that thing?

"You've got notes on me?" I ask, my hands reaching out to grab it, but he retreats faster than I can catch him. "What have you got in there that's so serious?"

"Nothing." and his tone's a bit too stern and I don't really want to push it when he's being so uncharacteristically nice to me.

"I've actually got this ready for you" I pull the file out of my own bag and toss it to him. "I'm not sure exactly what you need to know but that should be the majority of it at least."

He opens it up and glances over the the pages. It takes him all of 2 minutes to get through the whole thing. It feels unsettling that he's taking in a boiled down version of my life while I'm just sitting on the opposite side of the sofa. Trying to avoid the attention I pipe up.

"Um, hey, maybe it would be a good time for you to show me where to make a start digitizing your books over here?" I stand up and make my way to the shelf. He jumps up off the sofa and walks toward me, visibly excited.

"That's actually a great idea, I thought that the theses from my degrees could be a good place to start, since I'm pretty sure they're not backed up anywhere." he guides me to a section of the book case by the window. There's a series of leather bound hardbacks, the same gold font embossed on the spines. I recognize all of them, pulling out the first one.

"This is my favorite" I say without thinking about it and he does a double take, clearly thrown.

"You've, uh, you read my work?" he asks, completely puzzled. I'm sort of proud that I've managed to make him this awkward, and I nod.

"Mmhm, back before I joined the BAU actually. Before I really knew you" I regret saying the last part, it comes out a little meaner than I really wanted it to so I back track. "Spencer, I read all of your work while I was in college, you were like the gold standard. I don't think I slept more than 2 hours a night throughout my PHD because I was just trying to get as much done as you." and his face softens at the admission. But it takes him a moment before he responds. Leaving the two of us in silence a little too long.

"I had no idea" is all he says.

"I think this one was best" I say propping up the one in my hand, "you get a bit cockier as you move on” His eyebrows shoot up in surprise, "but I'll start with all of these I guess" I grab the matching books and stack them in my arms. Walking over to his desk and setting up. Glancing at the clock it was only 7pm so I decided to just make a start.

Spencer didn't contest. Letting me just get settled at his desk, I pull out my laptop and begin work on transcribing the first volume. After a few minutes he silently places a cup of tea down beside me and goes to sit on the sofa. The time rolls in quickly after that, each time I look up at Spencer he's carefully combing through the file I'd given him. Re-reading it and making little markings in his lavender notebook. I'm not really sure what I put in there that was worth making a note on but clearly he was reading between the lines on some things. That little notebook was like a profile of me.

When he seemed like he'd finished writing he pulls out his phone, scrolling through it aimlessly like I'd never seen him do before. It made him look so normal. His eyebrows knit together as he's looking at something on his screen and he stands up. Making his way over to me at the desk and shows me what he was looking at.

"Who's this?" he asks, "This guy you're with?"

I recognize the photo instantly. It's from a few years earlier, Nathan and I on the beach, my head resting on his chest. He'd taken it while we were on vacation celebrating our anniversary. That was about a month before I got into the BAU, I had no idea that was going to be our last anniversary. I gulp down the emotions that it stirs. I'm mostly over the whole thing by now, but looking at old photos like that, photos of happier times, it can still sting.

"That's uh, the boyfriend I was telling you about last week. Nathan, we broke up not long after I joined the BAU?" he nods, but he's smart, and I kind of figure he already knew that.

"Ah alright" he takes out the hardback and jots another note down. Maybe he's trying to get a read on me.

"What are you doing?" I gesture to the phone,

"It's research, do you not think that if you and I were really dating that stalking your social media profiles would be on my agenda?" he's smug, and he's right. But I guess I just didn't expect it from him.

"Well that's not really fair now is it? I can't reciprocate, you've got no social media presence whatsoever!" he finds that funny, letting out a deep chuckle and tucking his phone away in his back pocket.

"Maybe so, but that imbalance is hardly my fault. Besides, you've read all my dissertations apparently..."

"Bastard" I joke, slamming my laptop shut and throwing a pen from his desk at him so that it lightly bounces off the top of his head.

"Hey, there's no need for violence Y/N!" he rubs the spot beneath his curls, "Maybe it's time you took a break actually?" he says, sitting himself back down on the sofa.

I was reluctant to admit it but he was right. My eyes were starting to go a little fuzzy after looking at the screen for so long. I stand up and stretch my arms out above my head, feeling my spine stretch out after sitting for so long, letting out a low groan. Spencer waves me over to the sofa and I join him.

"How about we go back to basics?" Spencer asks with a small grin, and I can't help but let out a long sigh.

"I thought I was taking a break, no more questions" he just laughs at me,

"Relax, you're not that interesting, it's just a simple question." he states, and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to find it funny or offensive

"Ugh, fine, shoot"

"Well, actually it's two questions" he corrects, "what's your favorite movie, and what's your favorite snack?"

I'm confused mostly by the fact that it actually is a simple question, I was expecting something a lot more contentious, but also because he looks eager to know the answer.

"I'm not really sure what my favorite movie is to be honest, one of them is Night of the Living Dead?"

He nods to himself, and jots it down in the notebook again, "Alright, I can make that work" he stands up off the sofa before turning back to me, "and snack?"

"Peanut butter cups I guess?" I respond and he grins ear to ear, which is a completely new sight, and I like it way more than I thought I would.

"Perfect, gimme 2 minutes!" he leaves the living room and wanders towards the kitchen.

Spencer returns a few minutes later with a DVD, a packet of peanut butter cups , and a thick knitted blanket gathered in his arms. He drapes the blanket over me and gently places the peanut butter cups on top of it before popping the DVD into the player and sitting down beside me. I'm not really sure how to process any of the situation. Am I about to watch a movie on Spencer Reid's sofa? Sitting next to Spencer Reid?

"I... I, uh, thought you were just asking for your notes?" I ask, pointing at the notebook resting in his lap. He picks it up and throws it onto the coffee table.

"Sometimes I find experience is the best teacher, don't you?" he asks before pressing play, “And besides, it should keep you quiet for a whole 96 minutes” of course.

I can only nod in agreement, I'm not really sure what I'll say if I try to speak. I get myself cosy under the warm blanket and we watch the movie in near silence.

Once the credits roll Spencer finally speaks up, "I actually went to see a screening of this last month downtown, there was this little old horror movie fest-" I cut him off without really realizing, I'm just strangely excited that we've genuinely got something in common.

"Holy shit, I was there!" I say, more enthusiastic than the situation calls for.

He laughs at my excitement, "Well, I guess we have more overlap than I thought, that should probably help with the whole charade." he stretches his arms up over his head and let's out a small, gentle yawn. I'd been enjoying myself more than I thought I would, or would ever tell Spencer, that I'd almost forgotten that we'd both been on a case for almost every waking moment of the past week. I really should feel a lot more drained than I do.

I was just after midnight when I suggested that I head back home. I offered to take some of the books home to work on throughout the weekend but Spencer insisted that I just work on them whenever I came over again. I sort of felt like I should thank him for the evening when I was on my way out the door, or give him a quick hug, no that felt wrong. In the end all I could really muster was a lousy, "goodnight" and a meek wave on my way out the door before I drove home. And couldn't get to sleep.

— —

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[maraudersftw]

This is weird. My dialogue is awful. I've been writing for over eight years now. I've barely improved. I feel demoralised every time I reread something of mine because it's just plain terrible. Like, there's no way anyone is actually ever going to say that. Let alone two super witty people, you just know would be great at bantering / flirting. I've asked people to beta, they're just too nice to actually tell me the very apparent issue with my dialogue. I'm not exaggerating. What should I do?

Hey, anon! First of all, I'm honoured that you thought of reaching out to me for this question even though I'm definitely still learning a lot of things about writing and what feels right to me myself. But I understand where you're coming from, and I'll do my best to help you out in whatever way I can. If any of my lovely writer mutuals have more to add, please feel free to do so!

1. Before I even start talking about anything else, it's important to remember that we're our own toughest critic, so it's possible (and quite likely) that your dialogues are not nearly as terrible as you think they are. When you've been writing and staring at the same words you've written multiple times, even the most interesting of dialogues can feel lame and try-hard to you. Whenever I write a fic and proofread through it before posting, 9/10 times I feel like it sounds boring or too dragged out. And it's because I already know what's going to happen, what the other person is going to say. Even if something is meant to be witty, I no longer find it to be so because I've written them. Return to your fics a year from now and you may feel differently.

2. Your betas are there to help you. I know it's difficult to broach that awkward boundary where you want them to be brutally honest about your writing vs wanting strangers on the internet to shower you with validation, but if you really, genuinely, want to improve your writing and make the maximum use of your betas, try talking to them about it. From what you've told me, they seem like very nice people, and if you tell them that they should just be as critical with your writing as they are with theirs, I think they'd understand. If they find that uncomfortable, that's fair. You can always ask someone else. I find that having different betas for different fics is always a good idea because you get to see how differing perspectives work.

3. Ask your betas to leave you comments when they're editing. It's easier to just pass on the doc and have them fix your typos and grammatical errors, but ask them how you can improve the dialogue and pacing as well! Tell them to leave some tips for you as they go over your work. This way, it doesn't have to be an one-on-one conversation (so neither of you feel awkward), and you can just return to the doc later and go through the suggestions slowly and imbibe them into your future works.

4. This might sound very simple, but it's important to remember when you're writing fic that these characters are normal humans who talk and behave like normal humans do. Sometimes, the whole flirting/bantering feel of the conversation just comes through from their actions and not their words. For eg. instead of writing something like:

"Hey, Potter! Are you free this weekend?" asked Lily.

"Why? Wanna take me on a date, Evans?" He smirked.

"Maybe I do."

You bring the scene to life through the same words, but more actions. Like so:

"Hey, Potter!" Lily called, her fingers tentative as they fell on his arm. James turned around, one eyebrow cocked. "Are you free this weekend?"

He looked at her silently, a smirk pulling at his lips. "Why? Wanna take me on a date, Evans?"

Lily's eyes glittered with the thrill of a challenge, and she pressed a little closer. "Maybe I do."

5. Make sure that you let your characters talk and breathe like normal humans, too! Let them take those heavy pauses for tense scenes, let them break off in between sentences because they can't finish a thought right or they're laughing too hard or they've just suddenly remembered something that froze them on the spot. Let them fumble and sigh and repeat words like we do IRL conversations. If your character is having an argument, and they're red in the face, they're probably not gonna say: "Why not?"

They're much more likely to say: "Well, why the hell not?!"

You can throw in a couple of "um"s and "uh"s and "er"s for those unsure few milliseconds. Em dashes are your best friends here. Sometimes, even saying that they're pausing to think or breathe or collect themselves can help bring your dialogues to life.

But yeah, don't overdo them either coz then the flow might break lol

6. Read! Read! Read! As writers, we sometimes forget to really read other stories or appreciate different characterizations and writing styles, which can make your writing growth halt. Not saying this is true for everyone, but reading more definitely doesn't do harm. And especially for us fanfic writers, this works even better, because we're writing about the same characters again and again. If you read another writer's take on it, you'll slowly start to hold onto the pattern of how a certain character speaks, or what they're likely to do. This is extremely useful when writing a dialogue. For instance, I know how headstrong and stubborn Lily is, I've read so many takes on this trait of hers. So when I write my dialogues, I know I can't have her backing down easily. She will go red in the face, she will yell, she will be in denial, and say harsh things she probably doesn't mean entirely when she's mad. But at the same time, I also know she's unflinchingly kind, so you know you have to write that she speaks in soft tones when comforting someone. She probably smiles really kindly, tucks her hair behind her ear when she's shy, confesses things with a lot of bravery, watches James from the sidelines with the softest expression (sorry, got lost in the feels for a sec)

Similarly, you've gotta make James be the loudest one in the room, the one who's voice carries over to everyone, who's absolutely unabashed in his dialogues and whose confidence shines through his words. But the same boy then turns unsure and tentative in moments where his heart is on the line. I always write his dialogues as super vulnerable during such scenes (much more than Lily's would be). A lot of desperation, pleases, promises, etc. etc.

I know this got really long, and I'm not sure if any of it was at all helpful. If you're looking for something specific, please do send in another ask! I don't mind helping out!

[allegra-writes]

“Heartfelt”

Bar musician! Harry styles x Bartender!Reader

General audiences

Warnings: None

Just some Valentine's day fluff with our favorite green eyed boy. Dedicated to @gaycinnamonrollgirl for giving me the idea, and @tomsrebeleyebrow for patiently listening to me endlessly gush about Harry Styles and still being my friend. Happy belated Valentine's day 💖

"You don't have to say you love me

I just wanna tell you somethin'

Lately you've been on my mind..."

Adore you - Harry Styles

...Oh, she looks so good, oh, she looks so fine

And I got this crazy feeling that I'm gonna ah-ah…

"Bartender, my good friend! I'll have my usual and a plate of your finest chips, if you would be so kind"

It was closing time when Harry, the local musician, sat in front of you, elbows on the bar you were wiping down while humming to Patti Smith's "Gloria".

You raised an eyebrow at him, but the willowy man could see the slight tremble at the corner of your lips, a tell that you were suppressing a smile.

"I'm afraid the kitchen is closed, mister Styles. Sam left an hour ago."

"Yes yes, but I have it from a very good source he left you a big pile of leftover chips before he did," He accused, "you know, as he does every night..."

You frowned in confusion,

"I thought you hated cold fries. That you found them to be, and I quote, soggy and disgusting" 

"I guess you can say I acquired a taste for them" He shrugged, mischievous green eyes sparkling, "Just like you did for this lowlife songwriter in front of you and the heartfelt conversations you share with him" 

"Did you now?" There was an edge of scepticism in your voice, but you were already disappearing inside the kitchen. 

Harry's heart did a little jump as you didn't immediately deny liking him.

"Hey, Joe" he called out, "why don't you go home? I'll help Y/N close when we're done…" 

There was a deaf noise as a young waiter, the only person left in the bar beside the two of you, set the last chair on top of a table. 

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I got this" he reassured him, "did it dozens of times. Go home to your girl"

"Thanks, mate!" The second brit practically skipped on his way to the backroom, but turned around just before reaching the door. "Listen, you know I like you, but if you hurt y/n in any way…"

Harry smiled, genuinely. He could never get mad at anyone that protective of you.

"You know where I live. Pick my sister on the way, though. I think she would like to join you."

Joe rolled his baby blues,

"I know you're not a creep. I meant her heart"

"Yeah, me too…"

Whatever your friend saw inside Harry's eyes was enough to convince him. He nodded and left, as the musician got up to lock the front door and turn the "open" sign off. 

If you noticed Joe's absence at your return, you didn't comment on it, simply setting the giant pile of chips and two cans of cherry cola you were carrying, down in front of Harry, who had returned to his seat. 

"Ah, you always have the good stuff!" the sigh that left his lips as he took the first sip of the soda was not unlike the one any of your regulars made after the first taste of something strong after a hard day. 

"Rough night?" 

"Kind of. Good show though, so at least I have that going on for me…" 

"It really was, I'm actually impressed" You had to confess, "And surprised too, it was a bold choice going acoustic on a night like this, with such a big audience," So many people had gathered to see the show that the bouncer had to start rejecting people so you wouldn't have trouble with the fire department "but it definitely worked" 

There was a slight blush on the singer's cheeks when he replied, far more humble than you were used to,

"Well, you know, Valentine's day and all that. The band, all have boyfriends and girls they wanted to spend the evening with…"

You tilted your head,

"And you didn't?" It was hard to believe, when almost every night he played there you would see him leave with a different, always sculptural, painfully perfect girl. Or man. 

Harry didn't reply, choosing instead to stuff his face with stale fries.

"Alright then" You raised your shoulder in surrender, "keep your secrets…"

He squinted in disbelief,

"Did you just quoted The Lord of the Rings at me?"

"Did you just recognize my Lord of the rings quote?" You countered.

"You are such a nerd!"

"Look who's talking, chicken little!" You gestured at his powder blue sweater with a yellow baby chick at the front and herringbone pants. 

"Oi!" His manchester accent popped out, like it always did whenever he lost his cool "I'll have you know, this is Gucci"

You scoffed,

"That doesn't make it any better, it just means that you spent a shit load of money to look like my third grade teacher, mister Harrington!" 

"Ok, first of all," he countered, "your teacher sounds awesome and second-"

An inelegant snort escaped your mouth. Harry's emerald eyes pinned you down. 

"Second of all, you're no one to talk either, kitten hoodie" 

You could feel the heat creeping up your cheeks. Praying he couldn't see your blush in the dim light, you took a mouthful of soda to cool you down. 

For a moment, none of you said anything, the sweet notes of Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams" the only thing filling the silence.

… Players only love you when they're playing

Women, they will come and they will go...

"Listen, y/n-"

"If I'm being honest-" 

He chuckled,

"I'm sorry, ladies first" 

"Now I'm not sure if I wanna tell you…"

"Come on" A grown ass man pouting should not be that cute, "I want to know"

You feigned a long suffering sigh,

"Fine, if you must know- If you must know, I actually like your new style. It's way better than that... rock and roll cliche... thing you had going on when we first met" You gestured vaguely in the direction of his body, "You know, the long hair, black clothes, doc boots…" 

He flinched, 

"Ugh, Don't remind me. I was trying too hard back then. And not only with my clothes, with my music too"

"Oh, yeah, I remember. All you used to sing about was" You chose your words carefully, "frisky girls and being horny…" 

"Well, to be fair, I still sing about being horny"

"Yeah, but now you're…"

You trailed off, unsure of how you could explain the difference, the change in your feelings towards his music, without explaining the change in your feelings towards the man that made it.

However, Harry would not let it go that easy. He was used to you being sharp, opinionated, guarded. Now there was a crack on that armour, and he wanted to see what was underneath it. 

You hadn't even realized how close you had leaned into each other until his hot breath fanned over your face.

"Now I'm what, y/n?"

More real. More mature. More emotional, as if he had finally found the link, made the connection between sex and love. 

"More open"

Harry smiled,

"Open. Yeah, I like that…"

So close. He was so close now, his malaquite eyes were out of focus. So close you could feel his magnetic field, the gravity of his atoms pulling in yours.

"Harry…" 

Never in his twenty seven years of life and over ten as a musician, had he heard a more beautiful sound than his name, breathlessly falling from your lips.

"Yes?" He murmured, lips ghosting over your soft, perfect ones.

"No"

"No?"

"No" You repeated, more firmly, taking a step back, putting as much space between the two of you as possible, "I know what this is"

"And what is this, y/n" To your surprise, he didn't sound mad, or demanding. He sounded confused and sad. Dissapointed but unsurprised, as if he had expected it to go south or… never had dared expect it would actually happen at all. 

"A bad idea" You explained, "with guys like you, is always the same: You have beautiful women throwing themselves at you every night. And you take them home with you cause why wouldn't you? You are young, and free and hot. There is nothing wrong with taking what's being offered" 

"Y/n-"

"I'm not saying it's your fault" You went on, ignoring him, "And I'm not saying you don't fall in love, sometimes. But that's the exception, not the rule, and I… I'm the kind of girl that's the rule. Not the exception"

Harry had always thought the worst that could happen to him was losing your friendship. Finally making a move, a real move, and getting rejected by you. He thought that was the definitive pain, the one that would obliterate him, if things were not to work out. And he was almost certain they would not work out. 

But sitting there, in front of you, separated by a wooden bar that might as well have been the great wall of china as you stood there, arms around yourself, small and defenseless as you explained to him all the reasons why you wouldn't allow yourself to love him… that was way worse. 

"What if you already were my exception?" He blurted out, before he could stop himself, "What if I was in love with you?"

You laughed, bitterly.

"Harry, I'm not even your type. I've seen you leave night after night with models and socialites and actors, each one more surreally stunning than the last one…" You didn't have a bad self esteem, you didn't. You considered yourself attractive, but the people Harry usually went for were on a whole different level.

"Yes, but that's only because the most absolutely perfect woman in the world for me, keeps me at arm's length!" He rubbed his face in frustration, "And it's so maddening, so fucked up, the way I can't even get away from her long enough to get over her, because even the pain of seeing her every night knowing I can't touch what I see, that I will never have her, is better than the pain of being away from her. 

So I keep on taking home the hottest people I can find hoping they will keep me distracted long enough to fill the hours until I can see her again… until I can-"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Never, in all the time you had known each other, had Harry given you a single signal indicating he had any kind of feelings for you. Your relationship had always consisted of friendly banter and quip battles. Sure, you could get flirty sometimes, but you were a bartender, flirting was pretty much your customer service voice, and he was a musician, he would flirt with his own shadow if he could.

Harry opened his mouth to explain, but a familiar melody started coming from the still working speakers.

Walk in your rainbow paradise

Strawberry lipstick state of mind…

"Hey, this is my song!" You didn't quite understand why he seemed so marveled, "You never added any of my songs to your playlist before!"

Oh. Oh.

"Yeah, well" Harry could now clearly see your darkened cheeks as you stumbled over your words, "I guessed I never liked one of your songs so much before" 

This time, he was the one blushing and avoiding your eyes.

"What would you say if I told you-... If I told you I wrote this one for you?"

"I'd say you're full of shit" You scoffed, "Didn't you tell me you only ever wrote about girls you had dated?"

"No," he corrected, "I said I only ever wrote about women that had broken my heart…"

"How did I break your heart?"

Harry sighed. Your walls were back up, higher than ever, and he didn't know how to break through them. It wasn't your fault -and had it been your fault, truth was he could never blame you either, there was something about you that made it physically impossible for him to get mad at you- you spoke from experience, he didn't need to unlock the secrets of your past, didn't need the details. It was obvious you had been burned before, and though he hated it, hated them for whatever they had done to you, he couldn't fault you for trying to protect yourself.

Not when he wanted to protect you too. 

"You didn't like me, back when we first met"

"Harry-"

"No, it's ok. You didn't like me, and you were right not to like me. I know you probably didn't realize it but, that first time you rejected me, when I flirted with you that very first night and you rolled your eyes at me… you changed my life"

"What? How??"

"You weren't wrong, I was a cliche. And I was trying way too hard, to be cool, act like a rockstar… but you took a look at that guy, at that though, playboy, sex, drugs and rock 'n roll guy… and you hated him" Harry snickered. You didn't understand what about all that was so funny, "I had created that guy so that everyone would like him, and you hated him. And the funny thing is-" He finally met your eye. No, he caught your eye and imprisoned them, "The funny thing is, you hating me for what I wasn't, somehow allowed me to start being myself a little bit more, because if you already disliked me… then I had nothing to lose" 

You didn't quite know what to say to that.

His bright green eyes were unable to face yours, choosing instead to focus on the palms he was picking at,

"Is that why you… uhm…" You pointed at his sweater.

"Yup" He admitted, "I showed up here one day, on laundry day, in one of my old nerdy sweater vests and you smiled, when you saw it"

"I remember that!" You chuckled, "It was the brown striped one, it almost looked like a crop top, cause it obviously didn't fit anymore"

Harry nodded,

"I may have had a couple grow spurts since I got that in high school" 

"Ok, but, you made it work somehow…" 

"Thank you. The point is…" he turned serious again, his deep, rich voice even more hypnotic than usual. Or maybe it was just you, for the first time allowing yourself to enjoy it without reservations. "The point is, you didn't like cool Harry, but you liked the real me. Even if just a little bit, and that meant the world to me. I… I adored you because of it. So I wrote a song for you, cause even if I couldn't say it to your face, I had to get it out. Just like I had to get this out tonight"

He opened his arms wide, in his typical ta-da gesture, sad, resigned smile on his face, before getting up from his stool, grabbing his jacket and guitar case.

"You don't have to say anything, I don't expect you to love me back" He declared, "I just- I thought I'd let you know. Valentine's day and all that."

He turned to leave, his own voice still signing in the background,

I'd walk through fire for you, just let me adore you

 Oh, honey…

"Harry, wait!" You almost fell on your face, trying to jump over the bar, but managing to stop him right before he reached the door. His poorly concealed smirk told you he might have seen your little show, but you didn't care.

"Did you mean it? That you'd do anything for me?" 

"I did" He confirmed, earnestly, "I still do. Anything you want, just say the word"

"Well then," you took a step towards him, that he mirrored without even noticing, "what about a date? A daytime date. At a public place." You clarified. Harry did smirk at that.

"What's the matter, afraid you won't be able to keep your hands off me?" He teased, leaning closer. 

"Don't ruin this, Styles" You warned, raising to your tiptoes to meet him eye to eye.

His smile faltered, replaced by the most sincere intensity you had ever seen on his handsome face,

"Wouldn't dream of it, bartender" He whispered, before capturing your lips with his.

[ionicexpressions]

You have no idea how much I cherish all of your kids

🍁🌼☘️ Ladybug

🍃 Sugar Rush

🌈 Raspberry Dazzle and Zinnia

❄️ Hare

☁️ Duckpaw

🌸 Jasperchasm

🌲 Vervain Vesper 👁️

🍁Favorite Ladybug moment HAS to be the time Jasperchasm took her to the gathering place and they had it all to themselves. That was where we started actually shipping the two of them I think and it was just so sweet...I go back and read it sometimes bc of how sweet they both were to each other.

🌼Alternate name...I really love Ladybug lol so I havent thought about it too much honestly. I had an old of named Beetlebird though and I think that name would be really cute! Since "Lady Beetle" and "Lady Bird" are both other names for Ladybugs :)

🍀Romance with Ladybug and Jasper for sure!! They need more development!! To stop being dumb!! I would love to develop more of her friendships with the other mothers of the clan as well. And I think it would be real nice to befriend Jasper's family members as well, especially Ravine.

🌈 I want Razz to gain some confidence!!!! Its been so fucking difficult to get the bot to cooperate and its annoying. She was meant to have confidence issues but I was hoping someone would have helped her along at this point...but maybe soon!

🌈 I would like it if Zinnia reconnected with her romantic side. Considering her first ever crush (and best friend) kind of left her for dead... She's forgotten that anyone can actually have feelings for her. I've talked about it a bit with another rper so we have scheduled a bit of an arc with them...unsure if it will go into romance but we will see! Exciting!!

❄ Hare...god he says so much good shit.

"I like ta think I got a brain rattlin' around up in there!"

"Ya cant jus' say that after someone goes an' pours their heart out ta ya!"

"I'll take a look-see. If one o' us is gonna get in trouble fer crossin' the border it should be the guy who has a higher chance o' gettin' away wit' it."

And my ALL TIME FAVE:

"I jus' told ya I don't wanna hurt 'er an' the first thang ya take from that is that I'm some sort o' lily liver?;; I respec' Turtle. Even if I am late ta tellin' 'er an' she goes fer someone else, it won't matter. Ma feelin's ain't gonna change an' I ain't gonna suddenly start havin' a problem wit' 'er 'cause she followed 'er heart. I'm bein' patient 'cause I think that's what she needs. If I lose out 'cause o' it, then it prolly weren't meant ta be.;; I'm still gonna like 'er an' we're still gonna be friends regardless o' who holds 'er heart in their paws. Maybe ya should mind yer own bus'ness instead o' givin' advice fer cats ya left behind..?"

🌸 I adore Jasper's relationship with Newt. Like theyre best friends who are also in love with each other but also bully the shit out of one another??? They're so funny! But they care about each other so much too. They're kinda like brothers at this point I think, just bc of how close they've gotten and I know the romance arc of them has since been kinda retconned with the introduction of Lady (lmao sorry dudes). Alternatively his relationship with Hare is just so sweet. Jasper really is a great family member, regardless of what role he takes or if theyre biological. He just has so much love to give!

🌲 Vervain Vesper...I mean I think its a given that I ship her with Rose Light. But also recently Andante Noon!! Honestly the 3 of them are all so good together and idc if they end up in a throuple but I want at least two of them to get together!!! Make it happen!! *bangs fists on table*

[ressyfaerie]

Last suggestion! (I've only saw the dub & not read the manga so pls forgive if I'm wrong with this and they all know) Random headcanon that somehow Kai is the last to know about Tyson's mom passing. Idk but I feel like Kai makes a tasteless comment and the team are like dude we know this? And he's just generally ??? what? He misunderstands and thinks it's recent and speaks to Tyson but he tells him it's been years and years and he's at peace with it. Bonus if awkward hug/attempt at one from Kai 😂 (I also headcanon he's never had a hug so has no idea how to)

AWWW this sounds so cute im doin it. Oh alcohol mentions! It wrote itself but its v cute im proud of this one for sure!!!

Just teenagers being teenagers.

A night in the dojo without adult supervision and nothing to do meant stealing alcohol from the liquor cabinet and singing karaoke.

Ray and Max’s harmonies shattered eardrums.

Tyson laughed, “how can they be high and low pitched at the same time?”

Acting silly and opening up was what tonight was all about.

Even Kai got talkative after a few drinks, you could even say he was acting—

“Irresponsible! Kai get down from there!” Tyson held his sides laughing so hard he thought his lungs would collapse.

Kai hung off the edge of the couch, lounging like a rich prince.

Max hopped up beside him, “what are you doing buddy?”

“I’m a cat.”

The room fell into an uproar of laughs and giggles. Kai fell to the cushions laughing as well.

Tyson took every opportunity to jab questions into Kai.

“Favourite animal?”

“Cats.”

“Favourite food?”

“That ramen you made for us that one time.”

“Favourite dance?”

“Never done it, but I’m a fan of swing.”

“Favourite childhood toy?”

Now he got hung up on that one.

They both laid on the floor, everyone slowly joined. Music from karaoke turned on low escaped the TV surrounding the room in a comforting atmosphere.

“I never really had one.”

“Everyone had one!”

“My parents gave me a stuffed tiger.” Ray grinned while holding a pillow close to his chest, “I lost it though. Man, I loved that thing.”

Max started to talk, then stopped giggling, “I had a piece of silk.”

They laughed, Tyson was the first to respond, “a piece of silk?”

“I called it silky. I was from one of my mom’s old skirts. I would sleep with it every night when she was gone.” He chuckled, “I actually still have it.”

“Where is it?” Ray asked.

“At my dads. I keep it on my nightstand.”

Hilary was sleeping on the couch with her head on Kenny’s lap, Kenny joined the conversation with a hushed voice. “Was it hard? Having a mom that was only half there all the time?”

“Yeah. I always told myself… At least I have a mom. There’s lots of people who aren’t as lucky as me.”

“Yeah…” Kenny trailed off, knowing he had two parents that loved him, and he probably wasn’t welcome in the conversation about to ensue.

“Your Dad’s nice though.” Ray pointed out.

“I love my Dad. My Mom can be a handful…”

“Other way around for me.” Tyson had his arms folded behind his head, “at least you don’t have any crazy siblings.”

“Dude, fuck Hiro.” Kai hiccuped.

“Guess we learned Kai has a low alcohol tolerance.” Max threw a pillow at Kai to catch him off guard.

He caught it in midair.

“Ooohhhh!!” Tyson cooed in awe.

Kai grumbled,” I’m fine. I just hate that guy.”

“Well I never knew my parents thanks for asking.” Ray changed the subject delicately, Kai had a habit of getting aggressive when he talked about Hiro, he didn’t want the conversation to turn sour.

“Why not?” Tyson asked with a drunken lack of compassion.

Ray shrugged, “ it takes a village to raise a child, I guess that’s what happened.”

“Makes sense.” Tyson sat up lazily, “wanna know what my favourite toy was?”

“Hell yeah!” Max somehow had another pillow and was throwing it in the air and catching it over and over again.

“Other than Dragoon, it was this old kendo sword my mom gave me. It was an heirloom. I still have it, but I played with it so much I wore it out, I’m afraid to use it again.”

Surprisingly, it was Kai who responded.

“Wow, your Mom must have put a lot of trust in her kid to give them something like that. She must have loved you a lot.”

The room grew quiet and cold.

Kai turned to look at Tyson, who was just staring back with a blank expression.

“I’m going to go get some water.” Tyson sat up making his way to the kitchen.

As soon as they heard the door slide shut, Max shoved a fist into Kai’s chest.

“Ow! What the hell was that for?!”

“Idiot! Tyson’s Mom died when he was just born! He never even met her! He never talks about it because it's a bit of a touchy subject!”

Max frowned and glared at Kai.

“Sorry.” Kai started, “I never really clued in. I thought she died when he was older.”

Ray slapped a hand to his forehead, “dude, we know this.”

Kai sighed, “I’ll go apologize.”

“Yeah you better!” Max threw the pillow at him, this time Kai let it hit him, accepting his punishment weakly.

“Tyson?”

The kitchen was dimly lit, Tyson was making something at the counter.

“You want some tea Kai?”

“What kind?”

“Just green tea. Nothing special.”

Kai watched him pour the water, unsure how to start, he could still feel the effects of alcohol bouncing around his brain. He waited a moment, hoping to articulate his thoughts appropriately.

“I’m sorry—”

“It’s okay, Kai. It’s been a long time, almost two decades, I mean—you’d think I’d be over it?”

Kai saw his eyes, slightly damp with tears.

“This is a tough subject for you. I’m sorry.”

Tyson rubbed his eyes with his sleeve, letting out a sniffle.

“I’ve always been okay with it. I guess… I’ve never known anything different. I do wish my father and brother were more present though.”

Tyson stared out the window into the darkness of night. He couldn’t see anything, but he still looked, for a long while.

Kai licked his lips before continuing, “I never knew my parents well either. They abandoned me, I have some memories of them, but not much.”

Tyson gave him his attention, and tried to change the subject, “so you would have had a favourite toy then?”

Kai suppressed a laugh, knowing what he was trying to do,” like I said, my memories of that time are fuzzy. I actually remember more of the abbey—surprisingly enough.”

“Oh.” Now Tyson was worried he had overstepped.

“Do you remember what your Mom looked like?” Kai wasn’t sure why he was pressing the subject, he normally wouldn’t.

Tyson blinked a few times, surprised by Kai’s sudden curiosity. “Um, apparently I have her hair, and her eyes. Her face was soft too, so I guess I got all my Mom’s features.”

Tyson rubbed the back of his head grinning.

Kai agreed, “thank god.”

Tyson let out a fast laugh, “ha! Did you just call my Dad ugly?”

Kai squinted his eyes, “I guess I did?”

They fell into probably the hundredth laugh attack of that night, Tyson placed his hand on Kai’s shoulder stabilizing himself.

Their laughs drifted away, Kai glanced at Tyson’s hand, then at his best friend.

“I’m sorry you never knew your mother.”

Tyson was caught off guard at Kai’s soft voice.

“I’m sorry you never really knew yours…” Tyson returned the sympathy.

Kai grinned, and bit his lip, “I’m sorry your Dad’s so ugly.”

“Ha!”

The uncontrollable giggles had Tyson holding his side, and Kai hunched over. They were so close to each other now. Tyson’s hand had drifted to Kai’s neck, he could feel his warm skin and heartbeat. Kai had gone completely against his character, and was holding Tyson’s stomach trying to prevent him from keeling over.

Then Tyson fell forward, letting his chin prop on Kai’s shoulder.

Kai was halfway to hugging him.

When he realized this, he stopped giggling, and Tyson’s irregular breathing was the only remnant of laughter left in the room.

Kai’s voice barely reached Tyson’s ear, “I’ve never hugged anyone before.”

“First.” Tyson wrapped his arms around Kai’s shoulders.

Kai held his arms out loosely, “what are you, a youtube comment?”

Short laughs, Kai felt Tyson’s chest rumble with each chuckle, he let his hands fall into Tyson’s body.

He had his arms wrapped around Tyson’ abdomen, then curled them along his back, completely unsure if what he was doing was right.

Tyson’s voice reverberated through Kai’s ears, “I can hear your heartbeat.”

“What does it sound like?”

“Fast.”

They didn’t say anything.

Kai felt Tyson’s long hair against his cheek, he had never felt such soft hair, let alone so close… He breathed in.

“You smell like cedarwood and cherry blossom.”

“It’s my shampoo.”

Neither one of them had the confidence to break apart, or maybe... they didn’t want to.

Kai found his hand gliding up Tyson's spine, he felt Tyson shiver slightly at the touch. He gently played with the ends of Tyson’s blue hair, feeling it twirl through his fingers like silk.

“Are you… are you playing with my hair?” Tyson’s voice rang in disbelief.

Kai’s eyes grew wide when he noticed what he was doing. He pushed himself away, keeping one hand on Tyson’s side, he didn’t want to let go completely, out of fear he could never go back.

Tyson was in a mirror position with one hand on his shoulder.

“I won’t tell anyone.” Tyson smirked.

“You better not.”

“You can play with my hair whenever you want.”

“Can I!?” Kai took a step back after he realized how excited his voice was.

“Learn how to tie a braid and then we can talk.” Tyson pushed the envelope with his teasing.

“I’ll google it right now.”

[addictofsupernatural]

Mind Readers

Harry Hook x reader

Soulmate au

Based on: this request

Requested by: @descendantofthesparrow

Summary: Soulmates can read each other's minds, so you and your soulmate communicate with each other, no matter how far apart you two are.

Warning: some angst (lots of fluff tho)

Word Count: 6305

Everyone has a soulmate, one that's always connected with you by mind. When you have a soulmate, you are able to read each other's thoughts. And that's what you did all your life.

Being the daughter of Moana felt a bit lonely. You would always voyage everywhere, so it would make sense for you to be connected with your people, but you weren't. You felt like the odd one out, especially when you announced that your soulmate is from the Isle.

You tried talking to your mom, but she was always busy. She would get even more distant with you when you'd ask about your father. She said that she loved him, but they couldn't stay together. She wanted to continue voyaging, and he wanted to stay.

So all you had left was the sea, Pua's children, and your soulmate. If felt better to talk with a person than a bunch of pigs though. It started off when the two of you were kids.

Hey again.

Hiya. You could hear the Scottish accent.

I wish I could see you, so I could give a big hug.

I've never gotten a hug before.

It's okay, because once you and I are together, I'll always give you hugs whenever you ask for them.

I don't think we can, y/n. I'm a villain, and yer a hero.

That's not true! It'll happen, promise.

You grew up talking to him through your mind. You also felt connected with him by the sea. You dreamed about going on a ship with him, sailing the sea together and enjoying the ocean. The ocean was a friend of yours.

One day your mother told you that you won't be voyaging anymore, and instead going to school in Auradon. This was your chance. You had tried talking to people about the Isle of the Lost, tried to convince that maybe the children shouldn't be in there. But no one listened. They saw you as a freak, and made jokes of you being a villain. All you had was Harry, and you were fine with that.

But someone finally did listen. Ben talked to you about it, and agreed. He said that when he would be crowned king in about a year, he'll have some children of villains to attend school with us to show others that they aren't the bad ones.

You were ecstatic.

Harry~!

Why ye thinkin so loud, princess?

So I just made my first human friend, apart from you of course, and he said that he agrees with me. His name is Ben, and he's the King's son.

Ben, hm? Is he as good looking as I?

I don't know how you look like, but you're probably more handsome than anybody I know. But sh, listen! He's going to be king in about a year, and he said that he's going to bring some VK's to Auradon to show that they can be good!

I have to wait a whole year?! I want to see ye now princess.

We just have to be patient. We'll be together, Harry. Don't give up hope. Please, for me?

Fine. But when I get there I'm showing em how a pirate can truly be.

He heard your amazing laugh ring through his head. You got yourself a deal, pirate. But just not too much, okay? I want to stay with you once I got you.

Like a fish on hook, eh? You could practically hear the smile from that.

Exactly. I gotta focus on homework now. Talk to you later hookie.

Bye fishy.

"Harry!" The angry voice of Uma snapped him out of his conversation with you. "You wanna cut the daydreaming and get to work?"

This would happen a lot. Harry would be talking to you when he was supposed to be doing stuff. He didn't really care, as long as he got to hear your voice. Usually when you weren't talking to one another he would just block out what you were thinking.

You're the reason that he's usually so cheerful, although in a bit of a crazy way. You always talked him out of his fits of rage, reassuring him that he'll always have you.

He'd make the excuse that his dad had the same levels of anger, but you told him that he was better than his father. That's why he listened to you. Everybody on the isle tried to live up to their parents, but here you were saying that his dad could live up to him. That's how he knew that you were worth waiting for.

As he was occupied with his crew, you had made your first friend, Ben. It was nice having someone to physically talk to, at least until Audrey showed up. She didn't like you, and you didn't like her.

"You know what y/n, I'm sure you wouldn't want to be sitting here with us." She said cheerfully one day at lunch. "You'd probably rather be talking to your soulmate, since that's really your only friend, right?"

You looked at Ben, who didn't say anything. "Um, okay."

When you left, he decided to speak up. "I don't see what the problem is with her sitting with us."

"Ben, she has been filling your head with crazy talk of villain kids being good. You've heard, right? That her soulmate is a villain?"

"Yeah, and I don't see a problem with that. As long as they love each other, it shouldn't matter."

She annoyedly shook her head. "Let's just eat, kay?"

Meanwhile, you went to your unshared room and began to tear up. You just didn't understand why nobody liked you. Although you didn't realize it, you were thinking about how horrible Audrey was.

What's wrong princess? Those are a lot of nasty thoughts about this Audrey girl.

Sorry Harry. It's nothing.

Hard to believe that when ye were sayin some not so nice things.

I know, and I shouldn't be thinking that way about anyone! Ugh, I must be a bad person for thinking this way about people.

Bad person? You heard laughter. Las, you're my hero. It's okay to be thinkin those things about people. Nobody but me will hear ye.

Tears silently fell as you sat on your bed crying. You didn't have to pretend to be anything around him. I just lost my only physical, human friend. All because of his horrid girlfriend who loves to comment on how amazing she is. She isn't even his soulmate.

Well I guess I don't have any more competition for ye now.

You never did hooky. You know you're the greatest thing in my life, but it was nice to have company. I just hope that she doesn't fill his head with dumb stuff about villain kids being bad.

It'll be okay princess. Some day we'll be together, remember?

Yeah. Thanks for listening Harry. You're the best, as always.

Ye welcome love.

A few months later, Ben had been trying very hard to talk to you. You didn't know why, especially now, but you didn't care. If he wanted to leave a loyal friend for some bully, then he wasn't worth your time. At least that's what Harry told you.

Until he followed you to room without you noticing. Before you closed the door, he ran up to your room and stopped you from closing it. "Y/n please. I want to talk."

"Talk to your girlfriend." You tried to close the door again, but he wouldn't budge.

"Audrey wouldn't understand." He looked a little sad, but dating her was his choice.

"Ben, you're a prince. You could talk to all of your other friends, since you probably have so much."

"No, I really don't have that many friends."

You fake smiled. "Gee, I wonder what that's like. Bye now!"

"Y/n please, it won't be more than ten minutes." He said. He sounded desperate. "Please."

You said nothing, but opened the door wider and gestured for him to come in. He came in, pacing back and forth until he noticed you just staring at him. He then stopped but still antsy. "Uh, take a seat."

"No, it's okay. I'm okay. Sorry, I'm just nervous-"

"Ben sit. What's wrong?"

He took a seat at your chair where your desk is. "I'll be king in two months, and I have no idea what to do or how to lead. A king should be able to know what decisions to make and how to help his people."

You sat at the edge of your bed. "Well, what do you think would be good for the people?"

"The Isle. The people there will also be my people too, and it's not fair to the children on evil people to be stuck there. When you talked to me about that for the very first time, I was already thinking about it. For my first proclamation I need a citizen to agree with what I propose."

"And what are you going to propose?" You were praying for what you think he's going to say.

"For some of the villain kids to be brought to Auradon. I want you to be my citizen-"

You ran up to him and gave him a hug. "I'll do it. I'lldoitI'lldoitI'lldoit!"

He laughed. "That's great news. We'll finally get to meet our soulmates."

You were out of breathe for some reason. "Yeah!" Then you thought again about what he said. "Wait, what do you mean we?"

You both talked some more, and you understood why he saw what you saw. His soulmate was a VK. He didn't know which VK, since she tried blocking out her thoughts when discovering that he was the son of the king. You told him that you'd talk to Harry about it to see if he knows anything.

Harry pulled a few strings, but found out that her name was Mal, the daughter of Maleficent. Ben was ecstatic, saying that he would have her be one of the people who come, and will slowly get to know her so she would realize that they're soulmates.

"Go ahead and pick your three people, and those three, along with Mal, will be the ones that I choose." You quickly chose the daughter of Ursula, son of Gaston, and most importantly, the son of Hook.

You were so excited to be able to hold Harry and look into his eyes and kiss him whenever you wanted. You waited for two months, time going by slower that you could ever think. Finally the day had come, and you were in the room when Ben announced his first proclamation to his parents. They were unsure, but allowed it. Everything was going to be written and delivered for the limo to get them, until Audrey showed up.

"I'm sorry, but I found these notes regaurding Ben's first proclamation, and I don't think this is a good idea!"

"They already agreed. The deal can't be undone or else they will be dishonest and untrustworthy about their word." You argued.

They told her that you were right, but she was ready for that. "If you can't undo this, then I have a better way to rearrange this."

She proceeded to talk about how the daughter of Maleficent didn't get along with the other three from what an anonymous source told her. She said that it was most important to gain the trust of the daughter of the evilest villain, so the three VKs would have to be changed. To Mal's three friends.

Bell and her husband agreed. You ran out of the room, Ben running after you. You made it outside before you began to breathe hard, finding it harder and harder to maintain breathing. Ben rushed to your aid and calmed you down as you had a panic attack.

Meanwhile, Harry didn't take the news too well either. He was heartbroken. He was angry, but more importantly devastated. He shoved his way to his small room on the ship and went inside, laying down and crying his heart out. He wanted to be with you, feel you, love you with all his might. But good things didn't happen to villains.

Once you were okay Ben made you another deal. If the four VKs coming so good with their stay at Auradon, then it'll be easy for him to bring others once he's king. You nodded.

When the four of the villain kids came, Ben had asked you to be there as well. You found them fun and easier to be around than the fake, royal students at Auradon Prep. As you showed Mal and Evie to their dorm, you joked with them about Auradon and Audrey.

"You know, you're not like other princesses here." Mal said.

"Oh, I'm not a princess. I'm the daughter of the village chief, and it's not like I have my own castle or anything. We're voyagers, so we go where the ocean takes us."

"Eh, must be tiring to always travel with your people. But whatever, you here are all probably full of friends wherever. You just enjoy yourself anywhere you are with your buds."

You let out a laugh. "Hardly. The only friends I have are pigs, chicken, the ocean and Ben. Nobody likes to be around me after they found out about my soulmate." It just slipped out of your mouth. You didn't know why you were nervous since they're villain kids, but you still felt that people wouldn't like you for it.

"Who's your soulmate?" Evie asked.

"Um, the son of a villain." You said nervously.

Both stopped you. "Your room should be right there." You pointed.

"Back up a second, your soulmate is one of us?" Mal asked. You nodded. "Is it Jay or Carlos?"

"What? No, it's someone else. He was originally supposed to come, but Audrey, being the home wrecker that she is, changed that."

"Come on, we need to talk about this is private." Evie said, the two of them dragging you to the room. They pushed you inside that closed the door.

"So, who is it?"

"Um, Harry Hook."

They looked at each other. "Harry Hook?" Mal asked. "As in Uma's little henchman?"

"I think he's think of cute." Evie said.

Your ears perked. "Is he?! It's not like I've ever seen him, so I was just wondering." You said very fast, voice full of hope.

"He's no prince, but he's nice to look at." Evie said, taking your hands. You smiled and went back to your room to talk to Harry. He had rarely left his room.

Hey Harry.

...

So today I heard that you were handsome. I guess I hit the jackpot. Kind, funny, and attractive. Who would've known?

That doesn't matter.

I know, it's just a bonus. The sound of your giggles filled his head. He weakly smiled.

How are ye so hopeful?

Because if I give up, then I won't be able to have you in my arms. You're my soulmate, which means that we're perfect for each other. I don't wanna give up on my perfect match.

He felt better. He felt special. Somebody cared for him that much. I like ye.

I like you too.

Over the course of a few months a lot happened. The four VKs, who you befriended, decided to be good, Ben was made king, and Mal was going to be a lady of the court. Until she decided to run away. That's when everything went downhill, and Ben ended up captured.

You were walking to your dorm and passed by Carlos and Jay's room. Their door was open, and they were talking to Chad. "Look, Ben's been captured." You stopped in your tracks to listen. "And if we tell anyone he's dead meat, so we don't have time for your weirdness." With that you took off to grab swords from the supplies closet and waited outside.

When you saw the two outside you stepped out of hiding. "I'm coming."

They both jumped and turned around to see you with swords in a bag. "What are you talking about?" Jay asked. "We're going...to the... Waffle House."

"Nice try. You guys are going to the Isle to save Ben. I'm coming, period." You stared them down, and they reluctantly agreed. You excitedly walked to the limo. "Let's go!"

As you focused on preparing yourself for a fight, your mind slipped off of the fact that you were going to the place that your soulmate was. When you got there you gave Mal and Evie a hug. "Y/n, there's something you should know," Evie said.

"There's no time, E, we gotta go." Mal said.

You smiled at her. "You can tell me after."

You then all went to where Ben was being held captive. A pirate ship. You looked at the others. Jay spoke up, looking down. "We didn't know how to tell you."

You were taking bigger breathes now, not knowing how to handle this. "Let's just, let's just get Ben."

They nodded. Carlos side hugged you, and you side hugged back. He was always the sweet one. You then started to focus on Harry's thoughts. They were about Ben, and Mal, and the wand. He was thinking about being with you when they get the wand.

Harry.

What are ye doin up so late princess?

I know about everything your doing right now.

...

Harry this isn't the way to do things.

Love, I'm tired of waiting. We'll be together y/n. Don't ya want that?

Of course I do, but not like this.

It'll be fine, I'll have them go easy on yer friends.

Harry you know I'd protect my friends. One of them being Ben.

I'll talk with ye later. And with that he blocked you out. You huffed. He's always been so one track minded.

You all got there. Mal and Uma were arguing, and soon she took notice of you. "I see you brought one of your little princess friends. Hope none of us villains smudged your tiara."

"I'm not a princess." You said, voice sturdy. "I'm a Voyager."

Harry's smile that he had on quickly fell. "Is that..."

Ben heard his mumble. "Yes, it is. That's y/n, your soulmate."

Before he knew it, Uma called out for him. He snapped out of his thoughts, tugging a tied up Ben with him. Uma had him cut the ties, and gave them the wand. In a blink of an eye there was a sword fight. The wand was a fake, and they couldn't let the heroes go. They were villains after all.

Harry's mind went off of you as he fought, and he was at his overly bubbly self. That was, until he made his way to you. Immediately he put down his sword.

"Y/n." He said. You looked at him confused, until you looked down and saw that he was holding a hook. You looked up at him. "Princess, it's me."

You drop the sword and run up to him, immediately wrapping your arms around his neck. He wrapped his arms around your waist in return. "You don't know how badly I've wanted you." He said lowly in your ear.

"Do you trust me?" You asked. He looked at you, confused. Please say yes.

"Of course I'll say yes, las." He smiled as he looked down at you.

"Good." You slip out of his arms and grab his hand, jumping off the dock and into the water, taking him with you. Harry expected to crash into the sea, but the water went up, gently putting you in the ocean.

As you both floated in the sea under the docks, Harry pulled your waist and brought you in for a kiss. You put your hands on his face as he tilted to deepen the kiss. You pulled back for breath, putting your hands on his shoulders. "I've waited all my life for that." You said as both your foreheads were pressed against each others. "I figured we shouldn't be seen."

"How do you plan on gettin back up las?"

"The ocean's a friend of mine." You gestured to the water that was moving up on its own, waving at the two of you. Harry smiled in awe and hesitantly waved.

"I don't want to let ye go princess." His blue eyes gazed down at you.

"It'll be okay Harry. I'll ask Ben to bring you with me. Now that he's seen the island he'll sympathize."

He looked away from you. "Are ye sure? I may have threatened him a bit." He pressed his lips together.

You brought your hand to his cheek, having him look back at you. "Yes, I'm sure. He forgave the other four for trying to steal fairy godmother's wand, so I'm sure he'll forgive you."

"What if he won't let me there?" He looked like he was in pain. Soulmates are supposed to be together, having them apart puts an emotional strain on each other.

"Then I'll come back and stay here."

"Princess-" you cut him off with a kiss on the corner of his mouth. You knew he wouldn't want you staying here. But you didn't care.

"I want to be together. I don't care where I live." You heard Evie calling your name. "Dip your head under the water to make it look like you fell."

You both did so, the ocean gently bringing you both back up. He grabbed your hand. "So beautiful."

You gently squeezed his hand. "Bye hooky."

"Bye fishy." You then went back to your friends. You looked back, the smudged eyeliner on him making his bright eyes even more piercing.

As you went back to Auradon in the limo, you sat in the front with Jay, looking out the window as silent tears fell down your face. Evie wanted to make you feel better, and designed a dress for you to go to cottilion. Although you didn't want to go, she was convinced that this would make you happier.

As you were in a white and peach dress at cotillion, you stared out at the sea, wandering what it would be like if Harry was there with you. If he took your hand to dance with him. If you were in his arms. If he leaned down to kiss you.

Harry heard all these thoughts, and was so excited to finally be with you. He shut out his thoughts from you temporarily, and got ready. He put on red leather pants with his red long sleeved jacket. Underneath he had a white button up with ruffles and a loose red tie, as well as fingerless gloves.

Meanwhile, you sucked up your sadness and out on a smile as you saw Mal come down. A moment later Ben came down, and, to the horror of everyone present, Uma as well.

As you questioned her, she dropped a surprise on you. "I figured that you deserve happiness too, y/n, so I didn't come alone."

Everybody watched as Harry stepped out, walking straight up to you, bowing and kissing your hand. He smiled as he came up. You hesitated, not knowing if this was a dream or not, then brought him into a big hug. He hugged back, feeling complete.

"Harry, what's going on?" You said as you pulled back.

"I can be with ye now, princess." He smiled, putting his hands on your waist.

You put your hands on his face gently. "You know that's not what I mean. What's going on with Uma? Is she planning something?" He looked away from you. The only ones who were next to you were Mal and Evie. Harry!

You tried to read his mind, but couldn't. He blocked his thoughts from you. "I can't betray Uma."

"Hooky," you said quietly. "Look at me." His sad eyes looked into yours. "Please. Do Uma and Ben really love each other?" He didn't say anything, and that was all you needed. You understood, that was his friend who was probably just as loyal to his as he was to her. You then faced Mal. "Does she know how to use love spells?"

It seemed like something clicked inside Mal's head. "My spell book! I left it on the island. She must have gotten it."

After Mal confronted Uma and Ben, she and him kissed, breaking the spell. True love's kiss. Uma and Mal were about to fight after turning into an octopus and a dragon, but Ben stopped them. Uma left, feeling bad and leaving Harry.

After the Cotillion, you talked with Ben about bringing more VKs to Auradon, with Harry right behind you. He was trying his best to behave himself, in fear of losing you again. Ben agreed and even allowed Uma and Gil to come as well.

After this, Harry didn't let you out of his sight. Everybody seemed to be afraid of the impulsive pirate, but you didn't care. You were always on your own, you didn't care what the others thought. As long as you were with your soulmate, you didn't care.

He had two periods with you, sitting next to you in both since everyone was afraid of him. About a week later, the new VKs arrived. Gil greeted Harry with a hug, while Uma looked around. Her eyes then landed on you. "You don't seem like much, princess."

This took you by surprise. How were you supposed to respond to that. "Sorry?" You squeaked.

Harry walked behind you, grabbing your waist and putting his head on your shoulder. "Oh, but she is Uma. So much." He gently squeezed you, igniting a giggle from you for being ticklish. You smiled and put a hand on his cheek.

As it turned out, Ben arranged for you to share your room with Uma. You put on a weak smile and thanked him. He was just trying to be a good friend, but something told you that Uma wasn't going to be the kindest to you.

Day after day, she tried everything to push your buttons. She wanted you to get angry. There was no particular reason why, she just wanted to see it. She's never met someone so shy and nice before, it got on her nerves.

She would never pick up, use your stuff, 'accidentally' break things, leave wet towels on the floor, and laughed you off every time you kindly asked her to please stop.

But that wasn't the worst thing. Worst of all, she never let you sleep. She would make noice or leave the light on. Sometimes she would train at night.

This took a big toll on you. Everyone noticed, but you brushed it off. Of course, nobody believed you. Harry confronted you about it, especially because you too tired to block your mind from the thoughts of what Uma was doing.

When he did confront you, you were so out of it that you just hugged him, snuggling into his chest and taking in his warmth. "You're so warm Hooky."

His flustered mind didn't know what to do, so he just hugged back. When you pulled away you kissed his cheek, caressing the other with your hand. "What can I do to help ya, princess?"

You shook your head with tired eyes and a gentle smile on your face. "Nothing. It's okay though, I'm fine. I have to get to class."

After you took off Harry went over to Uma. He opened the door to your dorm room to see a mess everywhere. But it was all Uma's stuff. "Bit of a mess we got here, isn't it?"

She looked up from her tv. "Harry, hey. Just living life in Boradon with your girl."

"Why is she so tired Uma?"

Uma laughed. "Right, that. That's because I want to see how long until I break her. She's always little miss perfect shy princess, but everyone's got their bad side. I just want to see hers."

"Uma let the las be. Ye know she means a lot to me."

"Don't worry Harry, I'm just having a little fun."

Harry huffed, not knowing what to do. He exited the room as he thought over the situation. He went to class, not really paying attention to what the teacher was saying, but more on you.

When he returned to his room after class he was in for a pleasant surprise. He found you curled up on his bed, sound asleep. This then happened frequently, not that Harry or Gil minded. Harry found your sleeping form cute, and you and Gil had become good friends.

There was one particular night where you had it with Uma, and you spoke up. "Turn the music off Uma, I'm trying to sleep."

She looked up from her phone that blasted out music. "Oh, I'm sorry princess. Did I mess with your beauty sleep?" Her smile made you angrier than ever.

"What the hell is problem with me? What did I ever do to you?" This made her sit up.

"Oh princess, you've done nothing wrong. I'm just simply evil, in case your royalty brain forgot that."

You stood up from your bed and put on your normal clothing. You couldn't stay here, not when Uma was trying to drive you crazy. "You don't have the right to call me that!" You said as you put on your shoes. "I'm not a princess, and I'm not royalty!"

She scoffed. "I was wondering when that whole nice girl act would wear off."

"It's not an act, it's called a personality Uma! You should try to get one."

She then stood, anger coming to the surface. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me! Every VK here is happy here. Just because your parents are villains doesn't mean that your a villain too. The four original VKs are living honest lives that they love, Gil finally doesn't have to try to be tough since he could never hurt a fly, and Harry is the sweetest person I've ever met. They're all so happy to live their lives here. But not you Uma. You just want to make others miserable to satisfy yourself! Let me give you some advice, people will like you more if you stop messing with their lives and start living one of your own!"

And with that you slammed the door, leaving a speechless Uma. You stomped over to a certain dorm and knocked, being greeted by Gil. "Oh hey y/n. Everything okay?"

Harry stood from his bed. He heard your fast and frustrated thoughts running through his mind. "Yeah, yeah I'm good. Um, is it okay if I sleep here? Please?"

Gil immediately understood. "If you want I could sleep in your room and you could take my bed."

You hugged him. "You're awesome Gil. Thank you." He smiled and headed to your room. Harry stared at you the whole time. "Did you hear everything?" You said quietly with your head down.

He nodded, walking toward you and wrapping his arms around you. It was then you fully realized that he was shirtless. The warmth of his skin made you feel safe and able to talk. "Maybe I shouldn't have said those things." You didn't look at him.

You couldn't help but feel bad about what you said. You barely had any friends, and you felt self-conscious about your personality. Maybe this was the reason why people stay away from you.

"Fishy, look at me." You looked up at him with sad eyes. "It's not a bad thing for ye to stick up for yourself. Don't feel bad for it. I'm proud of ye."

You smiled and kissed his cheek. "I think you're rubbing off on me Harry."

He then pecked your lips. "I think you don't have anything to wear to sleep y/n." He was right. You had put on your normal clothing to go to the dorms. "Don't worry princess, I'll let ye borrow some of mine."

So there you were, coming out of the bathroom, feeling extremely shy as Harry sat up from his bed to stare at the huge shirt on your short figure. You felt your face burn up as he didn't take his eyes off of you for a second. "What?" You laughed nervously.

He got up and took your hands in his. "You look beautiful las. So beautiful."

He then walked backwards and lead you to the bed. "Wait, Harry-" Do ye trust me? You smiled. "Of course I'll say yes."

"Don't worry princess, I just want to hold ye." He smiled at you as you both laid down on the bed. He didn't need to tell you that he was touch starved, you knew. He buried his face in your neck as you ran your fingers through his hair, both of you dozing off.

When you woke up you let out a content sigh as you kissed the top of his head. Mornin' las.

You smiled. Morning Harry.

I'm a bit hungry. How about we have ourselves a little breakfast date, hm?

"Sounds like a plan." You felt him smile against your neck and hug you, rolling you over and causing you to giggle. You got up, putting on your clothes but leaving his shirt on, which he loved.

As you two were enjoying yourselves by the docks eating your plates of breakfast, Audrey came stomping by. "Sorry to bother your little low budget date, but King Ben wants to see you both."

You both came into his office with Audrey leading the two of you, head held high. Uma and Gil were standing inside as well. "Ben, what's this about?" You asked.

Audrey spoke up instead. "There's a chance that these pirates could be getting sent back to the isle."

"What?" You all exclaimed.

"Now, hang on a minute." Ben said, standing up from his chair. "Let's not act too rashly about this Audrey."

She chose to ignore this. "It's against the rules for any males to be sleeping in the female dorms, and the same goes for girls in the boys dorms. I saw with my own eyes Gil go into your dorm room last night, and people have seen you frequently go into their room." She crossed her arms. "Care to explain yourselves?"

"We're sorry, we didn't know that it was against the rules." You said. "There wasn't any harm done anyway."

"Aren't you two weirdos soulmates? Who's to say that you two aren't doing anything gross when you sleep in his room? And is that his shirt you're wearing?"

"First of all, asking what we do at night is the creepiest thing ever Audrey." She gave you a look. "Which is, for the record, nothing. People say that their going to sleep somewhere to sleep." You then pointed at her. "You're disgusting."

"Hey, guys let's be civil." Ben meekly said, offering an awkward smile.

"She was never civil with me. I'm done trying to be nice to someone who only cares about herself."

"You dare speak to me like that? I am a princess. You are some traveler who never stays in one place for long. You've lived on a boat." She then scoffed. "No wonder why you're friends with pirates."

"Excuse me?" Uma was now offended.

You put a hand on Uma's arm, giving her a smile. "It's okay Uma, I know how to deal with girls that have a silver spoon up her ass." Audrey gasped. You then turned to her. "Gee Audrey, it's so weird that you're trying to insult us, when we're all happy with our lives. You, on the hand, find it necessary to try to make yourself happy by having others below you." You put a hand to your heart. "It makes me sad that you can't just go on with your own life. I mean, it must get boring to do nothing but sit and judge people all day in your palaces. I encourage you to get a hobby, but, trust me, involving yourselves in other's lives isn't the right one."

She looked at you angrily before running out of the room. Sweet innocent Gil spoke up. "Um, can we go now?"

"Unfortunately, no." Ben said. "A rule was still broken and action must be given. Why were you sleeping in each other's dorms?"

Uma looked at you, ready for you to speak up and cause her to be punished. But you didn't. You were silent. Gil cleared his throat. "Um, so Uma-"

"It's my fault." You said, your expression blank. "The full story doesn't matter. It was my idea, and accept all responsibility."

"Are, are you sure?" Ben asked. "Honestly the only one who could be punished is Uma. I've seen how tired you've been." Uma looked at you, a tiny bit of fear in her eyes. She didn't want to go back.

"Uma didn't do anything. Like I said, I accept full responsibility." You smiled at him, and he nodded his head.

You ended up getting a three day suspension. You silently thanked the Gods that your mother was busy at sea to know this. As you were going to walk back to your room, Uma grabbed your wrist. "Hey. I just wanted to say thank you. I went too far."

"It's fine." You smiled at her, and she smiled back.

"Well las," Harry said. "You have three days off. What are we gonna do?"

You put your hands on his cheeks. "You have class."

"Eh, I got my soulmate right here. That's all I need." He wrapped his arms around your waist.

"You are positively evil, Harry Hook, and I love you for it."

"And you, my wee little princess, are the love of my life. I love you too." He then kissed you, with ever ounce of love and devotion in it. It felt right. He was your soulmate, after all.

-------

Author Note: So I just watched Descendants 3 and this kinda contradicts it, but this is set kinda between 2 and 3

[rocksandrobots]

Of Rocks and Robots Ch. 21 - Fishing Trip

"So what do you wanna do this weekend?" Hiro asked Varian.

The other boy only shrugged his shoulders as he had no idea.

It was Friday and they were both walking home from school while trying to make plans for the weekend. All of their other friends were either away or busy due to Father's Day coming up. Fred was going to accompany his dad on a mission. Gogo was driving down to her father's for a few days. Wasabi had bought plane tickets to fly back to his hometown of Seattle. Karmi went back upstate for the weekend with her parents, and Megan was still grounded, but had a full day planned to butter up her dad. Even Honey Lemon was going home to spend time with her abuelo.

This left Varian feeling a little awkward. In Corona they had a Guardians Day, which was meant for both parents or caretakers in general, but for Varian it was always a day for just him and his dad to spend time together. One of the few times in the year when his father wouldn't work in the field, or go to market, or have business at court.

Varian knew precisely what a day like Father's Day meant and how special time spent with the man who raised you could be. He envied his friends, but mostly, knowing this would be the second year without his dad pained him.

In a way, he was thankful that Hiro shared his delima. Though he certainly wouldn't have wished his predicament upon anyone, it was still somewhat comforting to know that he wasn't alone.

They were a less than a block away from the Lucky Cat, still discussing things to do, when a sleek car pulled to a stop beside them. The window rolled down to reveal a man with blonde hair, a large nose, and a wide smile. He was wearing a plaid shirt and a tan floppy hat.

"Hey Hiro! Go grab your overnight bag and some sunscreen!" He joyously ordered. "Your new brother, cousin, thingy too. We're going fishing!"

Varian could only look on confused, he didn't know this man nor why he wanted to him and Hiro to go on a fishing trip with him. However, Hiro apparently did know him and was also apparently not onboard with this idea at all. He stood with his mouth a gape with a look of horror in his eyes.

After processing this terrible news, Hiro could only sputter out, "But.. but why?"

The man in the vehicle began to offhandedly list his reasons. "Because fishing by oneself isn't any fun unless there's someone else around to show off to. Because I had an awful childhood, whose own father would never take fishing, and now I'm living vicariously through you. Also, you're still my intern and for the rest of the year, I still own you."

The man flashed another wide grin and Varian began to put the pieces together. This must be Krei. Owner of Krei Tech, the man in charge of the portals that brought him here, and also Hiro's boss. Though, this new revelation did nothing to stem the confusion in his mind. He couldn't for life of him see why he was being invited along on the trip nor did he understand Hiro's objections.

"But...but...b, but…" Hiro suttered desperately trying to think of way out of going.

"No buts! I've already talk with your aunt and got her permission, reserved the campsite, and I even bought you both fishing poles!" Still grinning, he reached down beside him and lifted the new poles up for Hiro and Varian to see.

Hiro let out a wordless half groan, half whine in defeat, before turning around and slumping towards the cafe. Varian blinked and looked back and forth between the two of them unsure what to do. Krei waved to him cheerfully, clearly excited for the upcoming trip, and Varian numbly waved back before deciding to follow Hiro and pack his own bag.

                                               ----------------------------

Varian found himself enjoying the fishing trip more than he had expected. The first day was spent mainly getting there and setting up the campsite. The second day was spent fishing, exploring, and just taking in the scenery.

Varian had been allowed to bring Ruddiger along, as Hiro had also brought Baymax. His pet was overjoyed to be back in his natural environment and Varian had to admit that he felt more at home here in the great outdoors than in the crowded streets of San Fansokyo. The big city was fascinating but he'd always be a simple farm boy at heart.

Krei felt much the same way. The businessman hadn't been raised in the countryside the way Varian had, but he had a great love of camping, fishing, and being out in nature. His passion stemmed from childhood summers spent on vacation at something called 'summer camp'.

Varian found he got along with older man well. They spent the ride up chatting about science and it's more practical applications, spent the trip sharing wilderness tips, and fishing out in Krei's boat. Fishing had never been Varian's favorite activity, but he now found a new sense of nostalgia for it and the praise Krei would send his way whenever he caught one helped to fuel his enjoyment of the sport even more. Plus he got a chance to show off his cooking skills after they had cleaned their catch. Not the most pleasant task ever, but Varian could stomach it much better than butchering other kinds of meat.

Hiro however did not enjoy fishing, or camping, or anything to do with the outdoors really. The other teen mostly sulked the whole trip. When he wasn't busy gagging at the worms used for bait or getting scared by the unfamiliar sounds of the local wildlife that is. Mainly he stuck close to Baymax and the tent, bored out his mind and annoyed he had been forced to come long. Varian's enthusiasm only aggravated him further and, if he was being honest with himself, he was a little jealous by how easy things came to the other boy. He'd spent half a year trying to get on Krei's good side and impress him, while Varian had managed it in mere minutes of meeting the CEO.

The only time Hiro came out of his grumpy shell was at night, when they built a campfire and roasted marshmallows. Varian had never had smores before, but they were tasty, if also sticky and a little too sweet. Ruddiger however went nuts over the fluffy sweets and had to be kept from stealing the whole bag of them. Hiro didn't really care one way or the other about the traditional treat, but was more than eager to share ghost stories with the rest of the group. Gleefully recalling with gory detail about the spirit of an ax murderer who apparently stalked the woods. Perhaps it was a little vindictive of him, to try his best and scare the other teen, but Hiro couldn't help filling a little thrill whenever Varian gave a little jump or clutched his pet raccoon even tighter in comfort.

Keri was only amused by the story. He'd heard similar ones growing up at camp. He laughed at the end of Hiro's tale.

"Ha! Kids are still telling that one? Let me tell you a real horror story."

It was about tax audits.

Both boys could only shrug at each other.

"I do not understand the purpose of a 'ghost story'." Baymax observed.

"It's suppose to be for fun." Hiro informed him.

"I see; an adrenaline rush within a safe and controlled environment can be considered a pleasant feeling for some people. However I do not understand how taxes figure into that."

"Uuuuh, neither do we." Hiro admitted, "but I guess fear is subjective. Do you have any stories to share, Varian?"

Varian had to rack his brain on that one. His own life was more of a horror story then most ghost tales he knew, but he didn't want to devel into that. Instead he told a folk legend that his dad had once told him. It had been an old story from his home country; a parable about a rich man who was so greedy that he hoarded a well from the poor townspeople during a drought. Forcing them to pay him tribute lest they die of thirst, but he made the mistake of refusing water to a witch and so was cursed to become a vampire. To spend an eternity in thirst himself and to be forever alone, because he could no longer get close to other people without risking harm to them.

"And so a leader must care for his people, son," he remembered his father instructing him at the end of the tale, "He must share and give back to the community. He who sacrifices love for his fellow man in exchanged for selfish possessions, forfeits his right to live among mankind and to even be called a 'man' himself."

If only his father's words had been true. If real life had been as simple as stories, then Corona would have sided with him and not the evil king who kept the wondrous healing flower hidden away and who turned his back upon people need. But Varian conveniently left out this more personal anecdote.

"Wow." Hiro said flatly. "That's deep."

He wasn't used to horror stories having explicit morals attached to them and didn't know how else to respond. The tale hadn't been scary so much as eerie with an unnerving ending. Unlike his serial killer story, it wasn't anything you could be afraid of happening to you, yet questioning your place in the world was somehow more off putting than simple dismemberment.

The mood was broken however, by Ruddiger stealing Hiro's marshmallow off his roasting stick. It turned out to be last one as Krei had spent the majority of Varian's story battling the gluttonous raccoon over their food stores.

"I know racoons aren't 'mankind', but does this mean he's doomed to be a marshmallow vampire now?" Hiro joked as Varian got onto his pet.

"I don't know. Your robot looks like a walking marshmallow though." Varian shot back good naturedly.

Now out of food, save for leftover fish, they all decided to tuck in for the night.

                                              ----------------------------

Hiro hated the woods. He hated how unfamiliar everything was, how inconvenient it was, and most of all he hated how gross it was. He woke up irritated and sore from sleeping on the thin sleeping bag inside the tent. He couldn't find anything decent to eat for breakfast. He never stopped grumbling while he was forced to use the bathroom outside. To make an awful morning even worst, he couldn't shake the feeling of being stalked as strange animals hooted and howled. One bush in particular shook right when he pasted it. He nearly jumped out of skin when Ruddiger pop out of it holding the last of the fish in its mouth.

He groaned as he watched the raccoon scurry away and climb up a tree a little ways off from the campsite. He didn't much care for the creature, or for wild animals in general, but he knew how important the pet was to Varian and so had tried to be polite about having it around. Still Hiro's patience was wearing thin. The walking bottomless pit had eaten practically everything in the camp.

Hiro reluctantly followed after, debating if it was worth trying to get the fish back. Probably not, he didn't even like the taste of fish all that much to begin with. He stopped in surprise when an apple core fell from tree and nearly hit him. He looked up and found Varian sitting in one of the top branches, raccoon by his side, and reaching up to pick another apple off the tree.

The other teen paused when he saw Hiro. "Hey! Morning! You wanna an apple for breakfast?"

Hiro's stomach growled in response but all he actually said was, "How did you get up there?"

Varian laughed, "Climbed up here. How else you do think? Fly?"

Hiro looked up at him blankly. It was an obvious answer, of course, and he felt silly for having asked it.  

"Come on up!" Varian encouraged. "There's plenty of apples to go around."

"I..I can't." Hiro admitted sheepishly.

"Why not?"

"I don't know how to climb a tree." He mumbled.

Varian looked surprised by this revelation and before Hiro could do anything else, the other boy quickly climbed back down to join him.

“You never climb a tree before?”

‘Well, I did once, with Baymax’s help.” He rubbed the back of his neck self consciously.  

“It’s not like there’s a whole lot of trees in San Fransokyo to climb.”

“Oh, well, it’s easy. Here, I’ll show you. Just put your foot there, in that knot, and place your hand here on this bump in the bark.” Varian instructed, helping Hiro find the footholds. “Now you see that groove up here, place your other foot there, and as you hoist yourself up grab that lowest branch with your other hand, like climbing a really uneven ladder.”

Hiro did so, though not without some struggling, but eventually he pulled himself up onto the lowest branch.      

“Great!” Varian cheered and followed after with practiced ease. “The hardest parts done. Now all you gotta do is swing up the rest of the branches, like so.”

Varian took off, showing Hiro the best way to navigate the tree top. Hiro followed him, mimicking the other boys actions. With great effort he hauled himself up onto the final branch and heaved a ‘wooooph’ in relief of having made it up.

His sigh quickly turned to awe though when he caught sight of the view. The early morning sun sparkled on the lake. Further out a misty fog was beginning to disperse and you could see the opposite shoreline reflected in the water like glass. Beyond that giant redwoods poked out of the canopy of trees and way, way off in the distance you just about make out the tips of blue mountains.

“Woah.” He breathed. Hiro had to admit, you didn’t get scenery like this in the city.

‘Here.” Varian handed him an apple. It was smaller than the ones you’d buy in the store, with pink and yellow skin. Hiro tentatively took a bite. It was crunchy and very tart, but edible. Not to mention it was practically the only food they had left in the camp, so Hiro wound up eating it all and started in on a second one.

“So, where did you learn to climb?” Hiro asked taking another large bite of the wild fruit.

“Oh, I’ve been climbing trees since I could walk.” Varian laughed. “We owned an apple orchard along with the farm. Also the forest is right next to my village.”

Ruddiger joined them, procuring his own apple and sitting right on Varian’s lap to enjoy his meal. Varian scratched his pet’s ear.

“Does he ever get full?” Hiro asked.

“Nope.” Varian replied, and then they both broke into giggles.

Once the laughter had subsided Hiro commented, “I guess that’s why you’re so good at this outdoors stuff. This is the first time I ever been fishing, and with any luck, it’ll be my last.”

“My dad taught me.” Varian quitely confessed. “He’d take me on trips like this sometimes. Try to teach me how to hunt and fish. The fishing is a lot better than the hunting, let me tell you. I never could fire an arrow right and I can’t stand the sight of blood.” He cringed as if recalling a gruesome memory. “But, I guess he was just looking out for me. He taught me the skills he had to live on to survive. Apparently there were no farms where he grew up, the land was always baren. I guess that’s why he prefered gardening to being a knight.”

“Wait, your dad was an actual for real knight?”

Varian nodded, “Yeah, I found his armor after...after the accident. Along with a bunch of other important stuff he never told me about.” He added bitterly.

Hiro didn’t know how to respond to that. So he stayed quiet and let Varian dictate the conversation.

“Anyways, it worked. The fishing did come in handy. I had to do a lot of that, when.. when I was on my own.” He worked his jaw as he mulled over that last confession, his eyes gazing out to into the distance, clearly not seeing the breathtaking view before them.

Hiro’s heart dropped. He had a vague idea of what happened to Varian, but this was the first time it really hit home just how messed up the other’s teen’s life had been before now. He could empathize with losing a loved one, but he had always had his aunt and his friends to depend upon. If nothing else to be there and take of him as he sank into depression. But Varian had to do everything for himself, even while battling that same depression. The idea of having to catch or scavenge for your own food on top caring for you ill father was a nightmare that Hiro could barely comprehend. A nightmare that only somehow got worse.

“Fortunately, there’s a river that runs through my village, and I could set up lines overnight and just go check them in the morning, and we had food stored up for winter. Like oats, bacon, dried peas, that sort of thing. That is, until spring rolled around and the king's guards run me out of my house.” He said irritably.”Then I just had to forage or steal to survive.”

“Be...because you stole medicine?” Hiro asked disquietly. He couldn’t imagine a world so cruel and yet to his surprise the story got even worse.

“Oh no, this was before I stole the flower.” Varian said matter of factly and Hiro just stared at him in horror. Varian heaved a heavy sigh and went on to explain. “My father was the only other person who knew about the sundrop. The king kept it hidden from everyone. I guess when he found out that my dad, was, was ‘gone’, he decided to try and remove me from the picture, so as to keep his secret safe. He made a bunch of false charges about me ‘attacking the princess’ so that no one would believe me when I asked for help or told them the truth about the flower. Then he sent his elite guard to arrest me and I had to run.”

Varian gave a little shrug and added, “I guess after that, ‘treason’ didn’t seem like that big of deal. I mean they were going to throw me in jail either way, and not many people leave those dungeons alive.”

Hiro could barely process what was being told to him. He didn’t know what to say. His stomach churned and his breath shallowed. Varian’s past was far scarier than any ghost story.

Then suddenly he felt guilty. He’d been so caught up in his own grief and his own struggles with readjusting, that he hadn’t actually stopped to think about things from Varian’s perspective. He had thus far grinned and bared the discomfort of having his life turned upside down, because, well because that's what he thought he needed to do in order to be a mature decent person. And while that was true in part, it never occurred to him that this move was yet another upset in Varian’s life, in a long, long string of seemingly never ending upsets.  

Hiro found himself so easily annoyed by the other teen, yet he really had no right to be. Varian was readjusting to whole new culture and way of life in addition to struggling with his grief and trauma. So what if he cooked weird food sometimes, didn’t always know the appropriate conduct to certain situations, or was so super confident in nearly everything he did that it made Hiro self conscious and a little jealous at times. Deep down, Varian was suffering through something that no one in Hiro’s little corner of the globe could fully understand, and the least that Hiro could do was try to be a little more patient and a little more open about letting Varian into his life.

“You know,” Hiro slowly said, trying to ease the conversation and offer a little understanding, “I never really knew my dad. I was just four when he and my mom died. It was always Tadashi who taught me things, like how to ride a bike or how to hotwire a robot. Though he never taught me to climb to tree, so I guess that’s one I owe you.”

He smiled encouragingly at Varian, who nervously returned it. Once again Varian wasn’t used to praise or acknowledgement that he anything ‘right’.

“Maybe, you could teach me more outdoorsy stuff.” Hiro offered. “And I can teach you more about more modern stuff, like how to play Mind Smith II Turbo .”

“That..that’s that video game you like, isn’t it?” Varian asked as he tried to remember what Hiro even talking about.

“Yeah!” and with that Hiro eagerly launched into a detailed description of the game.

Soon the boys were interrupted by Krei emerging from the tent. He stretched sore back and tried to reheat the leftover instant coffee he’d brought. He then promptly spit it back out in disgust. The boys tried their best to suppress their snickers. Keri spotted them anyways.

“How ‘bout we pack it up and go get tacos instead?” He asked them.

“Yeeesss!” Yelled Hiro, who was more than ready to go.

“Sounds great!” Agreed Varian. “We’ll be right down!”

Keri went back in the tent to start packing and Ruddigger scurried down after him, hoping to maybe steal another treat from the camp.

Varian stood up and started to also make his way down when Hiro’s voice stopped him.

“Ummm...Sooo how do you get down exactly?”

                                              ----------------------------

The day ended with a trip to Yaki Taco and a huge feast of fast food nachos and deep fried burritos. Rudiger was once again confined to his carrying cage, but was allowed a cup of some cheese sauce to snack on. Baymax was let out of his charger case to kept an eye on the mischievous raccoon. All agreed it was actually the best part of the camping trip.

“Say, ‘cheese’.” The robot said, as he took a photograph with his internal camera.  

The three guys sing songed the the word even as actual cheese dripped off the burritos they held in their hands, plastering on dopey grins for the camera. Then a few more pictures with silly faces to complete the set.

“Fantastic!” Krei said. “I want copies for the office.”

“Why?” Hiro asked.

“So if any clients come in I show off ‘my family’ to them instead just the photo of my mother. I love the woman but she doesn’t necessarily impress the image of ‘family friendly company’.”

“I knew there was a catch.” Hiro scoffed.

Keri looked wounded. “Hey, I told you, my employees are my family.”

Hiro rolled his eyes but he couldn’t help giving a little smile at that. He knew Krei well enough by now to know that, underneath his seemingly conviving self-serving self, he had a heart, and he wouldn’t have invited Hiro and Varian along if he didn’t care.

“Aunt Cass put you up to this, didn’t she?” He prodded.

“I’m sworn to secrecy.” Krei insisted and they gave Hiro a knowing wink. Then more seriously he said, “I know what it’s like not having your dad around on Father’s Day. So, I figured, why not a fishing trip? It’s better than being stuck at home while your father’s away on a business trip to Tahiti that weekend.”

Hiro raised in eyebrow. Keri had a tendency of oversharing at times.  

“Buuut, enough about me. Who wants dessert!?”