#Kevin Goes To Wymack AU

[captain-sunshine-11]

What if Kevin was taken in by Wymack when Kayleigh Died?

I know this AU of sorts would be build upon a lot of false hope and a lot of fucking up on the Moriyama's part if their money and lawyers couldn't keep Kevin--especially with the Perfect Court bullshit--but this is for fun and I can do whatever I want forever /lh

This was my original post on this concept and has the context but the basic premise is at the top. Anyway! This is gonna be some random building off of what I already said/how I think this would go, so, onwards!

I can't find the age of Kevin when Kayleigh died, so forgive me if this is incorrect so for sake of ease I'll place Kevin at age 8 until further notice

At this point of Kevin's life he has already been taught that Exy is the only important thing, it is second to Nothing. He is going to be Court--a part of the Perfect Court--of course it was put into gentler words for a child to grasp and understand "oh, this is going to be the rest of my life."

When he returns to Palmetto with Wymack, he is still relatively full of grief for his mom and is overwhelmed with living with this man--who he has only met a select few times during Exy Events with his mom--so Kevin has a rough time adjusting

Wymack tries to give Kevin as much space as he can give a young child but they do end up clashing a couple times. Kevin's messed up emotional state and Wymack trying to also grieve Kayleigh leads to a couple tantrums (from both of them lol) because they have problems understanding each other

They are both incredibly stubborn so a month in, they have a small fight you can only have between a grown adult and an 8 year old that leads to them both giving each other the silent treatment. By 'both' I mean Kevin, and Wymack trying to initiate but failing miserably

It isn't until Wymack makes a dinner that Kevin doesn't like that he has another conniption and yells something like "I hate you, I hate you!! / I wish I never met you!!" and runs off that Wymack decides that something has got to give.

He lets Kevin sulk for a couple minutes in his room before going after him. He talks, and Kevin listens. He cannot even remember the fight that led to this, it was so childish, but Wymack has to retain that Kevin is a child. (This is his first time having a kid, man is struggling)

Wymack is able to instate a truce and Kevin admits that, "I just really miss her."

Wymack scoops the kid into a hug and all the tension from his body disappears as he also says, "I miss her too, Kevin."

From then on, things are easier. They still have small problems but are able to work things out better than before as they learn how to exist around each other

Wymack for a long time is afraid of messing things up beyond repair, and tries to go to Bee as often as he sees fit to ask for advice. Feelings of inadequacy in his medium sized apartment and raising a kid that is not his. The conversation he had with Kayleigh on if she was having his kid and her saying no replays in his head as he doubts himself over and over again.

But Abby comes over about a year into having Kevin with him, she seems to be in awe about something.

She has seen Kevin before, plenty of times actually when Kevin first arrived and meals needed to be made by a more responsible adult (ha.), so Wymack has no idea why Abby seems so awestruck while looking at Kevin--so he tells her to spit it out. And he isn't prepared for:

"He has your nose."

Kid's faces change all the time, and as Kevin gets older even if it is a year later, he gets a bit lankier and the soon-to-be nine year old becomes more comfortable

It breaks Wymack for a little bit, having that old hope rise up again in his chest--but he decides against a paternity test. He cannot have that hope crushed again if it comes out negative.

On Kevin, he goes to a normal elementary school. He had been homeschooled previously given how often Kayleigh and the Ravens had to be moved around. In the paraphrased words of Nora, she had a sport to spread around, and she was pretty damn successful

Like everything else had been, Kevin took an adjustment period to normal public school. There is so many kids and more stimuli than he is used to seeing in a school environment.

On his first day after school he tells Wymack that he doesn't want to go back. He wouldn't give a reason at first but after some needling from a Very Concerned Wymack thinking that his kid was being bullied--Kevin just says that it is too much. Everything there was too much.

So Wymack comes up with an ultimatum, created only because he knew how smart Kevin was with retaining information from subjects he enjoyed, saying that he had to attend the rest of the week of school. And if he didn't like it, then they could look back into homeschooling.

Kevin agreed if only to prove Wymack wrong, but he couldn't. He picked up a fondness for History and when he started re-saying his teacher's lesson on the Early Origins of South Carolina (simplified for a Fourth Grader) Wymack figured correctly that there was no prying him away from school anymore.

On Exy--it is a no brainer that Kevin wants to join the Exy team and he gets in with flying colors. But this also means he begs to go to practice after homework is done and on weekends. Wymack hates his life a little when Kevin wakes him up at 9:30 AM on a Saturday for the sake of Exy

Thats all for now, let me know if ya'll want more

[stabbyfoxandrew]

also people HAVE murdered over horses and HAVE MURDERED HORSES IN CONNECTION TO THE MOB. search up shergar

i just read about him TwT

(aged 4) noooooooo!!!! >:(((

but what i'm learning is that a mob-related jockey au that is on par with aftg's insanity wouldn't be that far fetched... like i knew it was a possibility because where there's gambling there's gonna be a syndicate involved but ahhhh poor horsey :((((

[5a-alf]

Btw if anyone is wondering in my au the numbers on their cheeks are arabs numbers not roman numerals

Why?

Well you see,, these guys are losers.

The roman numerals version fucks too much and 9 years old who grew on the court aren't going to think about numerals (well, actually, maybe kevin would because he is a history nerd. But he's not making the decisions) they are going to think of jerseys . So.

Unfortunately that's how it goes.

[dayurno]

omg reverse riko au is making me feel so ill..... please let us know if you have any more thoughts abt riko kayleigh and kevin legend.....

I DO my idea is that its around the same age kevin and riko met in canon so tetsuji kicks the bucket when riko is 7/8 and riko is (very forcibly) removed from the nest and sidelined to kayleigh as a new moriyama asset from the main branch takes over the nest. riko struggles a lot with the change because he is very young and very scared and he’s used to horrible things at tetsuji’s hand, which means that he doesn’t trust kayleigh and finds kevin entirely too weird. it’s honestly really cute because i think at this point obviously 7 year old kevin wants to befriend him but riko is such an anxious ball of anger that most of their interactions are like

baby riko: what do you WANT from me. go AWAY!!!! NOW

baby kevin: (heavy irish accent) nothing i think. do you want a bite of my sandwich?

anyway i think riko and kayleigh do get along but he never really considers her his mother or even godmother, for a long time he thinks of her as his Benefactor until the child therapy starts hitting and she becomes Aunt Kayleigh and then after a few more years he can be loosely convinced to refer to her as auntie once or twice a year. his second son syndrome never really leaves him; in the upcoming years riko struggles with the idea that he’s anything But an add-on to the days and still overworks himself to death trying to be acknowledged by kengo, but it’s leaps better just from being outside the nest and having people to look out for him

riko and kevin have some rough patches, especially during riko’s first years with the days. because kevin is an easy target and riko is afraid of kayleigh he ends up letting a lot of that anger out on kevin, though obviously at this point they are children and riko’s anger manifests in some mild bullying and name calling. i think kevin doesn’t even understand it most of the time 😭 riko has been around grown ups his entire life so his adult level insults make no sense to kevin’s seven year old mind. nevertheless after kayleigh tells him to stop picking on kevin riko does respect it (first out of fear, then later because they actually get along) and they go on to become brothers with only a slight tendency towards antagonism. riko’s jealousy of kevin is still a big part of their relationship and i think even more so when college applications roll around, and he’s even more worried when wymack comes into the picture, but it never culminates into anything as horrible as hand breaking because riko has an actual outlet and a support system :) it’s mostly a yelling match that eventually turns to getting scolded by kayleigh for acting like barbarians

[mini-minish]

nathaniel wesninski & andrew doe au i picked up from a 2021 sketch 🪓🖤🔪

notes under the read more!

• andrew doe gets adopted into the wesninski family when he's just a little older than nathaniel, who hasnt been sent to edgar allen tryouts yet, and andrew doe is trained to be his bodyguard since childhood

• mary doesn't like it, he becomes a weakness for her son and when she leaves she refuses to take andrew with them, so nathaniel stays, and in that mary never really gets to leave

• on the same day she fails at running away and nathan finds them, nathaniel loses his eye lolastyle

• one time when he's a little older, andrew receives a letter, from a boy who claims to be his twin. andrew minyard doe throws it to the fire, and nathaniel picks it up while he's turned, before it burns completelly

• from the day nathaniel gets injured because he refused to leave andrew behind, they go from annoyed acquaintances to inseparable friends

• he calls andrew "drew" and andrew pretends to hate it. later when theyre older the name "nathaniel" starts to weight, starts to sound weird, so he asks andrew to call him something else, and andrew calls him alex, stefan, adam, until they get to neil

• but he only calls him neil when theyre alone, when its a secret, when nathan cant hear them

• "nathaniel" takes up the axe. he's as good a hitman as the little devil of baltimore has to be. he hates it, hates the color red, the color of his hair

• one of andrew's first memories at the house is of nathan cutting a man to pieces and making him watch, making him learn not to flinch, but red is the color of neil's hair, soft, safe, soothing

• before that, though, theres little league. theres learning andrew is talented at exy, theres kevin day, and riko moriyama, and theres jean moreau

• i want jean and andrew to be funny about each other just for some levity here ok

• the reynolds are a renowed fashion brand, far from them to refuse big mafia money, so they work on suits, on silk shirts, on tailored pants, and allison reynolds is always joined by her friend renee when she goes with her parents for fittings

• renee walker meets andrew doe, and andrew thinks shes silly enough to keep in touch.

• kevin day leaves them, and neil realises he doesnt have to be kept either. kevin day gets to get out and nathaniel wesninski gets quieter.

• neil finds his uncle's contact among some of the things his mother left behind. from stuart he gets to ichirou. from ichirou he starts to make a plan

• riko moriyama is going to make a big announcement soon, something about the perfect court, something that will finally brand the rest of them as his, and well, andrew has always told neil how much he hates that the pen's ink makes the skin of his face break out

• and neil still has the address of a boy who claims to be his andrew's twin

• for whatever reason the moriyamas and the wesninskis have one of those rich people dinners planned. neil gets kevin to show up, nathaniel gets andrew to leave, kicking and punching and a promise broken

• later in the night, a little after the first course is served and they begin the socializations, neil gets kevin to leave, leave, run as far as possible, *now*.

• he sees jean, grabs his wrist, and takes him outside. theyre walking fast before neil starts running, and then the explosion comes from inside the house, from the basement, and knocks both of them out before they turn the corner. the hathford's men long gone from the scene.

• all renee walker and andrew doe see from where he's been waiting for the little voice at the back of his mind to make sense, is the house bursting on fire, believing that it does so with what he's supposed to protect still inside

• but since i can't bring myself to do this to them, andrew finds him, finds jean, and at the hospital finds stuart, who takes his nephew in

• he gets contacted by a man called david wymack, who was convinced by kevin day to offer them a place among his foxes :)

[bea-l-t]

Because I love Andreil fanfics to an unhealthy degree, here are my recommendations (and like a paragraph each for why you should read them). Also all of them are complete. I couldn't get links to any of the locked content to work, but I still included the recommendations for ao3 account users:

For angsty AUs where college and exy are still things:

-Raised on Little Light by maqicien. Where Wymack adopted Neil at age 13. Good if you like lots of angst, edgy Neil that still gets his damsel in distress moments, and some really cute relationship moments in between.

-There's Just No Getting Through by maqicien (can you tell I like this author?). A series of oneshots where Neil is a Raven and Andrew is still a fox and the two date secretly. Technically, this is a series, and the series itself kind of leaves off at a cliffhanger that could be seen as incomplete. Personally, I just pretend that the last paragraph of the last part doesn't exist and we're good to go. Good if you like pining and edgy Andriel. Andrew especially feels very canon with his personality.

-The Road to Nowhere by emmerrr. A post-apocalyptic world where Neil joins the foxes as they all try to survive at an abandoned PSU. Good if you like your fics to still vaguely follow the bigger points of the canon content, some angst, domestic fluff and of course an edgy (but still damsel) Neil. Honestly just extremely well written and the characters feel very canon personality-wise. (Bonus if you like Renee/Allison)

For post-canon lovers (all except one are about an injured Neil):

-Scribbles and Sticky Notes by Fortheloveofexy. A (long) oneshot where Neil faces a career-ending injury. Read the tags/content warnings to get a better idea of what you're getting into, but this fic hurts so good. Featuring a lot of domestic fluff. I feel like this fic feels extremely true to how middle-aged Andriel would act.

-The Bones of You by emmerrr (again, love this author). Neil and Andrew are married in this! Neil gets injured during an Exy match and goes through a difficult recovery. Featuring the Moriyamas, Renee/Allison (mentioned), Kevin& Allison being besties, Wymack/Abby, and domestic fluff.

- You go your way, I'll go your way too by Emmerrr (Cannot emphasize how good their fics are). The only fic in this section that isn't about Neil getting injured! About the time that Neil and Andrew spend doing long distance. It's adorable.

-Pause and Restart My Heart by knoxham. A two-part series where Neil and Andrew get into a car accident, Neil goes into a coma, Andrew has many feelings. Part two obviously has spoilers for part one, but they're both very much worth the read.

-Calling Me Back Once Again by fuzzballsheltiepants. On a ski trip, Neil gets lost during a storm. An angsty wait for search and rescue to find him ensues.

Other POVs of the canon events/books:

-never fallen (from quite this high) by crystalcrow. The series from Andrew's POV. I really like the twins and their dynamic in this.

-Yes, Coach by emerrr (last fic I'll recommend by them, I promise). The whole series from Wymack's POV. It's a digestible length, so 10/10.

Anyway, hope these find fic lovers well!

[jtl-fics]

In honor of April Fools day I will talk a bit about an AU with my favorite fool - (Redacted) Smith that I will probably never write fully but have thought about a bunch of scenes for.

I call it 2 Fluent Freshmen.

Due to a clerical error at both the school and during the local government's push to digitize their documents Smith is noted down as being 2 years older than he actually is and (perhaps a clerical error or maybe no teacher can say if they've had him in class or not) Smith also has enough credits to graduate. Gran has passed away early and there's nothing for him in Washington other than more anxiety.

Wymack & Dan come to Smith when he is 16 and Smith takes the chance to escape from his family IMMEDIATELY. Sure the Foxes are the worst team and sure there's some drama going on with Kevin Day having joined them after his injury but a full ride scholarship is a full ride scholarship!

Smith is rooming with 2 upperclassmen and his only other fellow freshman - Neil Josten. He is not hiding the fact that he can speak Russian, he is hiding the fact that he is 16. Smith ends up pretty close to Seth and Allison due to sharing a dorm / position respectively and just doing his best not to get to close to crazy Andrew Minyard. He does get a bit close with Neil but it's not something he's trying to do.

He's trying to keep his head down and get through the year.

It's a little hard when he is sat on the couch with the Kathy Ferdinand show. It's a lot harder when Riko Moriyama shows up and doesn't realize he's there and just...sits in Smith's lap?? Smith remains as blank faced as ever and what the fuck is Riko supposed to do? ADMIT HE FUCKED UP?

Do you know how hard it is to intimidate someone when you're sitting in the lap of some dude? The answer is VERY. Kevin can't take him seriously at all, especially after Smith made a comment that Riko's ass was bony.

Riko goes after them the same but Smith doesn't really get that his anger is at Kevin. "Hey, I'm sorry I called your butt bony on national television. That was rude of me. You should try some squats though." and like what the fuck is Riko supposed to say in the face of some dude genuinely apologizing to him.

It buys enough time that no one is grabbed or slammed.

Seth and Allison drag him out to the bar that night and after a few minutes sitting with Allison Smith realizes that he actually does have to pee and oh god someone's trying to assault Seth! Smith calls upon the powers of Gracie Hart and Seth has a black eye and a concussion but he graduates.

Neil wants Smith to come with him to the Thanksgiving because Neil has latched on a bit. Smith ends up going and also ends up going upstairs to go to the bathroom because oh god he cannot handle Nicky's parents hearing him take an anxiety shit. He's making his way to the end of the hall and sees a penny on the ground so he bends over to grab it.

And Drake Spears is unbalanced from missing his swing and falls right out the open window to the ground below where he breaks his neck. Naturally, Andrew is watching this scene unfold from the stairs and just starts to laugh his ass off. Smith turns around after flipping the penny over (it was tails side up and therefore not lucky) unaware of what has happened.

Smith asks if Andrew wants to use the bathroom. Andrew insists that Smith goes on ahead. The Hemmicks keep asking if they saw anyone upstairs and Smith has no idea what they're talking about, Andrew does but plays dumb out of spite. A day later it's wild that Nicky's parents got arrested. Like they seemed so normal, how did they kill someone and dump him in the side garden??

The Winter Banquet happens and well...it's dark. It's dark and Neil has brown hair and brown eyes and Smith has brown hair and brown eyes. Riko is not the best at judging heights so he calls Smith to threaten him and tell him that he's joining the Ravens for a Winter Break training camp. Jean is doing the most anyone has ever done not to laugh right now.

Riko only realizes his mistake when he's finished threatening Smith with his father and Smith ruins it. Smith is elated to have somewhere to stay over winter break. He can't mention he has nowhere to go so he'd thought he'd spend the break homeless. Now here comes Riko Moriyama inviting him to a camp where room and board will be provided?

What a nice guy. To thank him Smith compliments the gains he's noticed on Riko's ass. "The squats are really helping you, or are you doing something else?" he asks.

What the fuck is Riko supposed to do? ADMIT THAT HE FUCKED UP? Tell Smith that he's been doing squats and leg lifts before asking that he hand the tickets back and go get Neil???

Fuck that.

He'll just turn Smith against the Foxes and-

Well Riko kept talking about Smith's dead dad and so Smith may have a slight misunderstanding about the full scope of this training camp. He may think that there is some sort of seance element to it at this point and he's kind of excited at the idea of talking to his dad. "I've never spoken to a dead man before, this will be fun." and it's delivered flatly with no expression.

Riko starts to wonder if maybe Smith is the Butcher's son? Did the Butcher have two sons? He's sweating all the sudden.

It does not help that Smith brings a Ouija board to camp or that his dad was a legit Butcher before he died so Riko's tentative questioning only sends him further into an anxious mess about if Nathan had twins and Riko, due to being kept away from the family business, might just not be aware of it?

Smith has a nice Christmas break.

The last scene I've got dinging around in the noggin is in Binghamton. Smith has been left behind at many a stadium at this point. There's a solid and fast rule.

Neil cannot get on the bus without Smith. They are buddies. This is the buddy system. So when the riot starts and Neil seems to be getting pulled away in the crowd?

Well Smith grabs his hand and pulls him towards the bus, "Buddy system."

The bus starts and they're on their way shortly after. Neil's an anxious wreck but that next morning he wakes up to the news that the Butcher of Baltimore died in an FBI raid the night before as well as his men.

Smith watches the news with Neil, "Wow, that's scary." as he sips some orange juice.

[emry-stars-art]

Oooh do go on about raven neil and jean 👀 (if you’re so inclined ☺️) - @neil-jostenminyard

*chanting* raven Neil raven Neil raven Neil (and lots of Jean) (quite possibly even jeaneil) (although most of the thoughts are post-ravens lol)

So my personal thoughts about this are also mostly thanks to chats and inspiration/prompting from @jtl-fics and @greenautumnleaves so if you see any additions from them on this post it's most likely also thoughts I adore lol

Anyway this got kind of long so:

I ALSO latched onto Sakavic's statement that Neil wouldn't leave Jean in the nest bc yeah it makes sense and also ow

But just the two of them being partnered up like Riko and Kevin as is common in these aus, and then after Kevin gets out first, they have to stick together and rely on each other even MORE because Riko is pissed that Kevin is gone and probably takes it out on the next closest two idk

But in our imaginings, Renee or Andrew get Jean out quicker than in canon, again because Neil would refuse to leave Jean behind and I can only imagine he'd go so far as to trick or manipulate Jean into leaving. Maybe by being at a certain place at a certain time to get picked up, however he can make it happen. But the issue we run into is that once that's done, what the hell would Neil have left at Evermore, besides Exy that maybe he still loves deep down. But Exy's been so warped being raised on it at the nest that at that point his obsession is barely recognizable.

Kevin might recognize this, because he knew Neil in the nest. Or at least he knew the person that Neil presented himself as. But it's probably more likely that Jean recognizes this, and yeah things are super rocky and weird but Jean can barely even function without Neil. So back a fox goes to rescue their second raven's partner.

They bring Neil back to Palmetto and he and Jean are completely inseparable. Emotionally and physically. Neither of them act like, feel like, or even call themselves "touchy feely" or "clingy" people but as soon as Neil is treated for various intense and mysterious injuries, they're curled up in some hidden place for hours. Even the short time having left Neil behind made Jean almost too anxious to leave his room. Even the short time without Jean - now with more punishment for aiding Jean's escape - was enough for Neil to consider something drastic.

(side note: Andrew now has not one, not two, but three gorgeous tragic boys under his supervision and I'm sure he's handling that totally normally lmao. But it's so obvious to him that Jean and Neil have something going on that any ideas for himself aren't worth entertaining.)

So it's a little easier to ease out of various habits and thought processes because Jean and Neil are doing it together, with outside help. They fix their sleep cycles/rhythms, try a slightly more normal college diet, and most slowly lose their "win or die" mindset in practices. They're still never seen without each other - Wymack had a talk with some of the school board about their schedules and dorm arrangements for the first semester. In reality, he's not sure if he should have them go cold turkey on raven habits or if he should take it slower, but he's doing his damn best to get these boys adjusted to life outside a cult. And Neil and Jean, whether or not they actively realize it, find that step to be the one they absolutely cannot take. Why would they go through the agony of learning to live separately if they don't have to. When no one else understands them like the other, when they've already seen each other's worst so nothing else is worth keeping secret between them. Who else is Jean going to go to when having a better life makes him feel like he more deserves death or punishment and the guilt hits him so hard he can't breathe, much less sleep. Who else is Neil going to go to when he can't let go of his birthright - if he isn't good at what he does (Exy) he literally could just be shot like a lame horse - and he's not allowed to go practice Exy against a wall to the point of tearing himself apart anymore so he forces his feet away from the court to find the only person he knows he'll listen to when they say no.

Kevin, of course, is keeping a close eye on the two, whether unintentionally or on purpose is unclear. Neil still has a mouth on him, he sometimes plays mind games with the foxes like chess against himself, and most of all does not allow anyone to get too close to Jean. Jean is still quiet, having learned not only to take a punishment without resistance but also that Neil will speak first. Neil will resist so Jean doesn't have to. He's safer in Neil's shadow.

Maybe it's a phrase or warning that Neil uses and that Kevin recognizes. Maybe it's a gesture between Neil and Jean that Kevin oversees. Maybe it's just the general demeanor of the two. But whatever it is is familiar to Kevin, not in a "I remember this from them in the nest" way. He can recognize by now that Riko was not good to him, he can acknowledge it even if the rest of him hasn't caught up. He looks at Jean in Neil's shadow and remembers himself in Riko's.

As if Butcher's son Nathaniel Wesninski wasn't already scary enough on his own.

But Kevin won't allow this kind of thing on his court, and he's not good at it but he is still trying to let go of unhealthy raven ideals. If Neil is holding onto some fucked up dynamic, Kevin is going to put a stop to it.

He pulls Jean aside, a miraculous feat. He asks what Neil has done.

"Mistake" might be an understatement.

It could very easily be the longest string of words Jean has said to anyone besides Neil. Kevin doesn't know near as much French as he does in canon - Neil is the one that shares that secret defiance - so it's all clear English, Jean making sure Kevin understands every word. Kevin should never speak about Neil that way again. He knows nothing about them, he shouldn't so much as pretend to understand Neil. Neil is the only good thing that ever happened to Jean. Kevin never cared enough to bring it up in the nest, so he has no right to start caring now.

It isn't great for their already tumultuous relationship. Kevin wonders for a bit if Jean would tell Neil about it - then next practice Neil doesn't even try to work with Kevin, even after the two had made it a point as strikers to figure out how to. He ignores the other strikers entirely, falling immediately and seamlessly into perfect synch with Jean behind him, speaking hardly a word of English the whole practice. Because he knows that will make Kevin even more angry than Neil being actively hostile to his new teammates.

Kevin isn't sure what he was expecting. Chances are Jean hadn't even needed to bring it up for Neil to notice something was off.

As for Andrew, I think he could still pick up a game of truths. He'd need to offer a similar deal as he did for canon Neil, this time for Neil-and-Jean, the entity of the two of them together. I think he could ensure some cooperation by saying he won't force Jean and Neil apart from each other the way some others have muttered about doing. Even if Neil knows by now the codependence isn't healthy, neither of them are ready to give it up.

It probably really throws Andrew to hear that they don't consider themselves to be an item. They're together, sure, but for a raven that doesn't always, maybe even rarely, means "in a traditional relationship". Neil and Jean definitely never offer any clarification. That's no one else's business, even if they could explain it so that a non-raven could understand. Generally I feel like if this is an andreil universe, it's an even longer, stranger, more winding road to get there than in canon.

I'm almost CERTAIN there's more Im forgetting about rn but this has been my taster on raven Neil+Jean, I hope it was at least a little bit coherent, and greenautumnleaves - I hope this comes anywhere close to your galaxy brain ideas on these two lol. Maybe I'll be back with other thoughts later who knows

[allfortheslay25]

Same anon who mentioned the demon slayer AU uwu, it's been wracking my brain cause it's fr so interesting.... LIKE!?!? I doubt Andrew has the same mindset as Tanjiro ish so how does that affect the plot, who r the hashiras, and Neil neil (⁠･ั⁠ω⁠･ั⁠) ur AUs always bring sm serotonin in me lolz

So for the Demon Slayer AU, I didn’t intend for the Foxes to fill the role of demon slayer characters. It’s more of an inspired AU🤔

When Andrew went to live with Luther and Tilda’s family, he promised himself he’d kill all of them to protect Nicky and Aaron who had become important to him since his stay. But Andrew waited too long and they were attacked by demons. It was fortunate that Nicky had been already training to be a demon slayer somewhere else and was not killed, but Aaron must’ve been severely traumatized

When Andrew goes to find some help, he realizes Aaron’s become a demon. Andrew is conflicted because he is devoted to protecting his people, but Aaron is acting like a monster. Before Andrew can decide to kill Aaron, Aaron shows some humanity and begs Andrew to help him. It’s the only words Aaron speaks for a very long time

Andrew, after running into Kevin who is a Hashira, decides he’ll find a cure and murder every demon in his path to do it. Andrew trains under Wymack, passes his test as he reunites with Nicky, and then sets off for a lead

He eventually meets Neil who is a demon slayer who never took the test and steals swords to get by. At some point Andrew realizes he’s landed himself with three idiots and can’t get rid of them (Neil, Aaron, Nicky) makes it all the more worse when Kevin joins them

Renee is a demon in disguise who helps Andrew cure Aaron. She used to be a Hashira but retired to hide her demon identity. Dan, Matt, Allison, Jean, and Riko are also Hashiras

There are lots of similarities to both AFTG books and Demon Slayer anime for this AU but there are also lots of stuff I took creative liberties

Here’s a wip!

[mostlyvoid-partiallyflowers]

andreil rodeo au for wip wednesday?

- @you-know-i-get-itt

Hi Gia! Thanks for the ask! I hope you enjoy Andrew's reaction to seeing Neil ride for the first time!

WIP Wednesday 9/11/2024 | Andreil Rodeo au

Kevin moves to stand next to Andrew, as usual, propping his elbows on the upper rungs of the barrier. “His name’s Neil Josten.”

Andrew glances over, pulls another breath of smoke into his lungs and waits for Kevin to continue.

“He’s one of the best bronc riders I’ve ever seen. He’s unpracticed, but with some time he could be great.” Kevin goes quiet as Neil mounts his bronc, holding position as they all wait for the buzzer to go off and the gate to release. 

With a loud buzz and the bang of the gate, Neil’s horse breaks loose of the tight space, kicking and bucking, trying to send him flying across the arena. Neil holds on, leaning into each movement of the horse, holding tight to the rope and throwing his other arm back with each buck. He holds on until one strong buck loosens his grip and he flings himself onto one of the pick-up men’s horses. Andrew watches Kevin out of the corner of his eye. Kevin’s eyes never leave Neil’s form, watching and dissecting each movement, counting the seconds before Neil lets go. Andrew knows a threat when he sees one and Neil Josten is the worst threat he’s seen since joining Wymack’s band of merry misfits. He could ruin everything.

[simonsrosebud]

hi, i just wanted to say how much i love your next gen socmed au!

could you give us more information on amalia day and how her relationships are(with her parents, stepfathers, significant others)

yes!! i love her sm

Amalia & Kevin

Despite the stern, impolite, and brash Kevin that we see in aftg, the Kevin that raises Amalia is almost a complete opposite

Kevin and Thea have split custody of Amalia, but Kevin has her a lot more often. She grows up in Kevin’s shadow, but he is very protective of her when it comes to his fame because he decided before she was even born that he did not want the same kind of childhood for her.

Amalia has Kevin’s determined and focused expression, the one that often mimics Wymack’s on the sidelines.

She also has Kevin’s resting bitch face, which Andrew is the one to point it out to Kevin, it leaves him speecsshless.

Amalia is a daddy’s girl and it’s always “daddy do it!” when him and Thea were still together.

Kevin carried her until shded literally got too big to carry, she’s his little girl and he surely treats her like the little princess she is.

Stern with her when need be because someone has to.

Ultimate sports dad. Goes to every single game of hers and cheers her on like all the other dads. Wymack, Jean and Jeremy relegate him to being a normal person about her playing exy instead of being kevin days daughter. Jeremy bc he’s seen the damage it can do, Jean bc he never got a choice in his future and needs to ensure she does, and Wymack bc he’s his voice of reason.

Kevin is the one who she goes to to complain and hear what she wants to hear, because Kevin is smart with his words when it comes to her.

Kevin is the one who teaches her to drive- the only one she lets because Jeremy is not a good driver and Jean doesn’t have the patience.

He takes her to shop for prom dresses with Abby and Amalia’s school friend. He gets teary eyed once she disappears back inside to take off the winner. She looks so much like his mother it hurts.

When Amalia is truly heartbroken over her relationship with Thea (because she sees how Katelyn Minyard is with the twins, how her friends are with their moms) then she cuddles with Kevin, something she hasn’t done to this extent in a few years, and falls asleep in his bed.

Amalia has Kevin’s stubbornness and hard headedness, his determination and confidence.

Amalia & Jeremy

Jeremy is the one that Amalia goes to when she wants something because more often than not he will say yes (within reason of course)

Jeremy is also the one that Amalia goes to when she fucks up and is scared of the consequences because Jeremy is the most patient of the three and operates by calmly talking things out and discussing what will probably happen while also making it clear that she has to tell the others or he will.

He is the one that she curls into and cries to when Thea doesn’t text her until 7pm for her 17th birthday, and who she confides in when someone in 8th grade questions her about her 3 dads and she doesn’t know what to say.

Jeremy and her go to the movies often and it’s their thing. They love Marvel movies and House of the Dragon (shut up ab timelines) and spend like 20 minutes after movies and weekly episodes debating and theorizing what this meant or what will happen next or what movie could come next.

Amalia and Jeremy share the same humor that he, Cat and Laila always had. They’re both silly and lighthearted and laugh with their whole bodies, a mimicked thing from over the years.

Amalia has Jeremy’s gentle heartedness and easy joy.

Amalia & Jean

^But Jean’s honesty and ability to verbally rip someone to shreds.

Jean is the most conscious of not stepping on Kevin and Thea’s toes when he and Jeremy get reintroduced into Kevin and Amalia’s lives, so he and Amalia take longer to bond. He and Kevin have too much history for him not to care about her, he’d take her in without question for her safety after the world they’d grown up in. But he knows there are limits when there is an existing family involved in the relationship he, Jeremy, and Kevin endeavor on.

Jean speaks to Amalia solely in French until she’s like 7 because Kevin and Thea were raising her bilingual and it was hard for Kevin to teach both when he had custody of her most of the time. Even after, French becomes their main mode of communication.

Jean teaches her to cook the same way that Cat once taught him. Coming becomes their thing.

Jean buys her pads and tampons when she gets her first period a month after Thea gets transferred three states over. It’s mortifying for her but Jean has zero shame and shows her how to use a tampon against her will.

Jean is the one Amalia goes to to complain and get a brutally honest answer or advice or whatnot. She goes to him when she’s pissed off and wants to scream because he’s surprisingly good at settling her with just facts and not feelings.

Amalia & Thea

Thea was heavily focused on her Exy career even after she had Amalia, but always made the time for her.

She and Amalia always had a special bond, but by the time Amalia is 9 that has greatly lessened. I don’t want to paint Thea as a bad guy bc it’s rlly not ab her as much as me simply wanting kerejean lol.

Amalia gets Thea’s skin tone, lighter but still not white. She teaches Amalia about her indian heritage and teaches her to love herself because she knows it’s not easy being a woman of color even if Amalia passes as a tan white girl with bright green eyes. Amalia learns to stick up for herself and correct people when they mis-label her as white.

She gets Thea and Kevin’s athleticism and height and ends up being 5’11.

Thea gets transferred to another team when Amalia is 12, and Kevin and Thea don’t go to court for custody because Thea knows Amalia needs to stay where she is with her family and friends and support systems. Thea is very supportive of Jeremy and Jean being in Amalia’s life bc she knows how important they are to her and wouldn’t rip her from that.

But her calls become less frequent over the years and although she visits when she can, Amalia doesn’t feel like she knows her as much as she should. Junior year of high school when Thea is a sports announcer or smth after retiring, she’s only able to get one weekend off not two in a row, and instead of using it for Amalia’s prom she uses it for her Exy tournament the weekend after. This crushes Amalia.

Amalia gets very jealous of other mother daughter bonds and Abby fills in as a mother figure while Thea is gone. Kevin, Jeremy, and Jean pick up on this easily and fill in where they can.

Amalia loves her mother, but she hates that she left. She hates that she didn’t visit, that her calls had spaced so far apart, that she wasn’t there 24/7 like she was supposed to be. She had 3 fathers that she loved, but nothing would compare to the way she remembered her mother brushing or braiding her hair and telling her stories when she was little.

Significant other?

I don’t have anyone planned out for her rn bc in the AU she’s freshly 17, but I think she befriends a kid from her high school exy team, a boy striker a year below her. He lives with his aunt and uncle because his mother died and his father is in prison, and Amalia often times finds him in the gym practicing alone because it’s so quiet at home, and his aunt and uncle are lovely but it’s just jarring to get used to, not having parents.

Amalia is a dealer, so she invites him to practice with her on the weekend when “my dads are free. we have scrimmages sometimes.”

And he agrees but hesitantly. He knows who Amalia’s parents are, and he knows he’s no match for them. But she’s delighted when he’s actually waiting there when she walks into the gym that weekend with Kevin and Jeremy in tow. Bc he’s dorky and kinda quiet which rivals her family, so she wasn’t expecting him to actually show.

The kid does pretty well, but unsurprisingly gets lots of criticism from Kevin. He doesn't waste time with the switch from how he played to how Kevin is telling him to play instead. He’s the pro after all.

Then it becomes a habit, practicing with Amalia with or without her family, and eventually he impresses their coach enough to let him start a game.

Then they start hanging out more often.

He gets more playing time, which Amalia likes, because he's a reliable player and quick to call for help. Morgan’s other seniors don't do that and it infuriates her because then it's her fault for not dropping her mark and helping out.

And then he starts getting invited over for lunch after going to the court on the weekends. He gets along with Jeremy and finally meets Jean who grips his hand hard when he shakes it and says something to Amalia in french just to make him sweat bc this is the kid that's been making her smile at her phone so often?

Kevin doesn’t know when things go from friendly to more than that, but jean is the first to notice. He brings it up to Kevin and Jeremy first bc did they even establish rules on dating?! But then Jeremy sees Amalia run out to the lawn and jump into his arms and nearly take him down on the ring camera and- did she just kiss him?! Before getting into his car?! Did no one else see that?!

“You’re freaking out”

“Yeah, within reason though, right? She’s dating!”

“Kev, not to alarm you, but there's also a good chance she's kissed a boy by now, too. She’s seventeen.”

[captain-sunshine-11]

What if Kevin had gone to Wymack after Kayleigh died. What if Kayleigh figured out her time was running out but could not for the life of her (literally) figure out how or if her son would be safe. What if Kayleigh Day knew that Kevin ending up with The Ravens would be the worst outcome and had made sure that plans were in place for Kevin to go to Wymack.

What if Wymack shows up at her funeral, seeing little Kevin and can't believe how much he looks like Kayleigh in person. How much he looks like him. And only finds out that he was Kevin's chosen guardian as per her wishes when her lawyer approaches him at the will reading. What if Tetsuji and Riko tried to fight that claim but Wymack immediately jumped on that responsibility.

What if Wymack raised Kevin?

[stabbyfoxandrew]

Hellooo

As per usual, I'd like to ask for some arsonist Neil/firefighter Andrew, I'm still stuck on Neil's whole ass gay panic to Andrew calling him cute. Also, the firemen light structure thingy was very funny because the pic totally looks like it could be Neil's

Anyways, thank you and have a good week : )

WIP Wednesday (9/25) | Arsonist Neil / Firefighter Andrew AU (Part 238)

The call ends and Andrew rolls onto his side to get snuggly-warm in his nest of blankets and pillows. His best adult purchase, he thinks, is this bedding. He smushes his face into one of his pillows and lies there in the dark on the verge of slumber. But, just as he's about to fall asleep, his brain suddenly comes to life and he replays the call in his mind. Did he call 10 cute? Andrew thinks for a moment. Yes. He fucking did. What the hell's the matter with him? Andrew isn't the type to call anyone cute.

He lets out a sigh. Evidently, half-asleep Andrew is the type.

10 didn't call him on it. He must not have noticed. Good, good. Andrew wriggles a bit deeper into his cocoon and goes to sleep.

-

Andrew spends much of the next afternoon pondering a possible gift he could get for 10. He knows it's not needed, but he'll be damned if 10 gives him two presents before Andrew's gotten him one. (The gift basket full of chocolate was the first, of course. Andrew misses those stupid little cookies.)

But it's hard to pick out a present for someone he barely knows. Actually, he knows 10 quite well. He knows about his terrible past and his night terrors and love of fire. He'd guess he knows 10 better than anyone. However, the arsonist hasn't got any (non-arson) hobbies or interests.

Andrew likes to think himself a good gift-giver. Sure, they're usually practical ones. But they're good. The problem is, as far as he knows, 10 doesn't need anything.

See, last year Andrew bought Renee a new backpack. Hers was falling apart, so Andrew scoured the internet and found a duplicate. She loved it.

And for the station's Secret Santa, he drew Wymack's name. So he bought him a nice cushion for his chair. (The old man was constantly complaining of back and hip pain. Andrew fixed it.)

Last Christmas, he and Aaron hadn't exactly been close enough for gifts. Andrew had considered buying him a new remote for his Xbox, because he'd been complaining about it during their calls with Nicky. But he didn't want to shell out that much for a man who hated his guts. So he didn't.

The only other gift he bought last year was a pair of noise-canceling headphones for Kevin, who'd been struggling with the nosiness of planes and team buses. Until Andrew fixed it. (He likes fixing things.) Oh. Speaking of Kevin, Andrew really should thank him for the sweater. He won't. But he should. The asshole. How dare he know Andrew looks good in green before Andrew did. Bastard.

In lieu of a thank you, Andrew sends Kevin the photo he took of last night's outfit. Less than a minute later, his phone nearly vibrates off the table. Renee looks up at him, concerned.

"Everything okay?"

"It's just Kevin."

"Ah." Renee nods and looks back down at her crossword book. From the look of it, she's only got a few left. Maybe he should get a new one and leave it laying around the station. Andrew makes a mental note to do just that and picks up his phone.

Kevin Damn. See, I told you. I fucking told you that would look good on you. Is this the first time you've worn it? I think you could try it with jeans too. And a smile. For fuck's sake, Andrew. You look like the most bored person alive. But good. Really good. I love being right. It's a hobby of mine. Are you not going to answer? Asshole. Andrew Excuse me for taking thirty seconds to reply. Some of us have actual jobs, Day. Kevin Exy is my job. Andrew Exy is your disease. Kevin Which I get paid for. Do you like the sweater? Does this mean I get to buy you clothes now? Andrew Do whatever you want. If you buy me something, I might wear it in three years. Kevin You suck. But you really do look good in that, Andrew. It suits you well. Andrew Stop flirting with me. Kevin I'm not flirting with you, idiot. By the way, Jeremy also says you look nice. Jean thinks you should get those pants hemmed. Andrew Are you going to get opinions from all your teammates? Kevin No, just the ones I live with. Where are you going? Have a date? Andrew It was last night. Went over to Aaron's to 'meet' his girlfriend. Kevin Oh. Do I need to post bail or...?

[splishsplashyouropinionistrash]

hello hello my loves, it's been a while since I've done a fic rec list and I'm feeling *inspired*

my qualifications are that i'm a loser and have read over a thousand fics so far in 2023

Was Sorta Hopin' That You'd Stay by jaydreamz (8/8)

Minyard Josten rivalry but they actually hate each other. They have a prank war. It's beautiful.

Eighteen Wheels And Three Beating Hearts by Autumnalpalmetto, IKnowWhoYouAre_Damianos (21/21)

Small town AU, Neil is a trucker with a son and Andrew runs a diner. So many found family feels, was giggling like a child the whole time. Connor owns my heart.

Die Free Or Die A Failure by Mickey_99 (54/54)

This one. This one!!! It's so good. Like, so good. It's a Raven!Neil fic, where Neil escapes the Nest and joins Kevin at PSU. It's super dark at times, but so lovely? The found family in this one is just *chefs kiss*

I Guess This Is Where I Say Goodbye by Artificiosus (2/2)

Listen y'all. I bawled like a baby reading this one. Full on ugly sobbing. It was amazing. It's MCD, so be careful. Neil gets in a car crash and calls Andrew, but Andrew doesn't pick up. The whole fic is Neil's voicemail and Andrew's reaction. It's so beautiful and so so sad.

Here And Where You Are by pentagrammed (1/1)

This one!!! It's almost sort-of MCD? But not actually. Read it, I'm begging. There's not much I can say about it without spoilers, so just... read it.

Dating & Other Disasters by lolainslackss, moonix (12/12)

Okok but this one. It's fake dating, the Foxes all go to a fine arts school. Neil is an actor and Andrew is a writer. It's so good !!! Andrew's poem lives rent-free in my head.

Murder Boyfriends by justadreamfox (3/3)

Heathers AU!!! It's beautiful, I'm in love with it. Go forth and read.

Better Than A Night Light by Ominous (1/1)

Literally 7k of fluff. Neil watches one of those alien horror movies and gets scared by it (but Drew is there to help, ofc)

Small Angry Gardeners by SensationalSunburst (8 part series)

Neil and Andrew's adventures in homeowning, gardening, meeting neighbors, owning animals, and other domestic bullshit. So fluffy, so sweet, so fun. Simply adore.

Heimkehr Means Homecoming by This_Witch_Writes (2 part series)

Cass is good! Andrew gets a mom! Family !!!! Literally so good, I cried a lot.

What Does 'Viral' Mean? by darkbluebox (1/1)

Kevin is a sports commentator after retirement, and Neil joins him for a game. So much bickering. Fucking hilarious

In Reel And Rout by maydaykevin (10/10)

Fantasy pirates AU. Vaguely Pirates of the Caribbean? So good though, oh my god. Andrew has water powers and shit. Neil is a pirate captain. I'm in love.

The Exy Team Is Nuts: A Survival Guide For The Uninitiated by Cute Negativity Cloud (Ofelia) (1/1)

The Foxes from the perspective of the other sports team. They have a whiteboard with rules for how to deal with them without being murdered/beaten up/insulted to death. It's fucking hilarious

Kill My Mind (Raise My Body Back To Life) by r3mus (1/1)

Ghostface!Andriel. They're murder boyfriends who kill bad people. It was such a fun read tbh

Queer Eye For The Demi Guy by neilwrites (13/13)

Neil goes on Queer Eye. The Monsters + Allison are the fab 5. it's wonderful, I love it.

Baby I'll Bleed You Dry by priorwalter (2 part series)

The Twilight AU this fandom desperately needed. In which Andrew is Edward, Neil is Bella, and many jokes are made. I spend a solid half an hour cackling

The Gaslights Burn Brightly by This_Witch_Writes (8/8)

Okok so Andrew and Neil were childhood friends, but Neil disappears one day and everyone convinces Andrew that he never existed at all. Eight years later, they meet again at PSU. It was so. Amazing. I love this author sm

A Dad By Any Other Name by SensationalSunburst (2/2)

Coach Wymack being a dad for 5k. That's it. That's the fic. (5+1 Wymack being a dad)

Called It Home by jingerhead (1/1)

Neil is spiderman. Spoilers for No Way Home. Guys it's so good !!

What We Ask by constellationqueen (40/40)

Neil gets hurt. Andrew helps him. SUUUUPER dark guys, like. Super dark. MCD too, so watch out. Really sad but so so beautiful, I sobbed so violently my sibling thought someone had died

The Suit Universe by marie_pothos (17 part series)

Ohhhhhh my god THIS ONE!!! My all time fave series. It's a popstar AU, but Neil is basically Taylor Swift. It's all based off of Taylor Swift songs. Absolute must read, even if you don't like TS that much. It's so beautiful, and funny, and so so sweet, and just- I could go on forever about this one.

Shake My Tomb by exactly13percent_OLD (hymbeaux) (10/10)

Butcher!Neil (sorta). kevin goes to Neil for protection from Riko, so neil goes to PSU. So beautifully written, I just re-read it today. It's so good guys.

Take To The Wing by iceEckos12 (20/20)

Neil signs the contract during his Christmas at Evermore. Surprisingly fluffy for a Nest fic, and there are some absolutely wonderful OCs. I would die for Joshua.

Something In Return by reaching_my_summit (10/10)

Neil and Andrew go to Disney World. That's the whole fic. Tooth-rotting fluff, it's amazing

Funky Happenings With The Fox Family by dobbypussypopper (27/27)

THE Fox group chat fic. It's fucking hilarious, I laughed so hard I started crying.

The Marks We Make by Fortheloveofexy (11/11)

Soulmate AU. Guys, this fic. It's one of my favorites. I reread it all the time. It's so good, and so sweet, and just UGH. I adore it so much.

Falling. by Idnis (16/16)

Art School AU where Andrew is a photographer and Neil is a painter. It's so poetic and beautiful, I'm begging you to read it.

Too Gay To Function by gluupor (1/1)

Mean Girls fusion. Andrew is Regina George. Enough said.

And there you go! This is a very very small fraction of the fics I've read this year, so obviously I have more if anyone's interested.

Go forth and read !

[dayurno]

Thoughts of an au where kevin goes back to evermore instead of Neil ?

riko would never let him go + andrew would have killed neil for breaking his promise of taking care of kevin in his absence. i��m not sure how kevin would’ve been able to go around neil (& wymack) to even get to evermore at all. But It Is Very Interesting. worst timeline

[aledethanlast]

Seriously, how are those FBI agents doing in that Baltimore hotel for the David Wesninski AU? They signed up for none of this, yet here they are, dealing with the craziest family drama any of them have ever witnessed. Honestly, their faces when it gets confirmed that Wymack is the identical twin of this serial killer must be priceless

The first thing you need to understand about fbi ops is, you don't just write those up on a whim. Theres investigations and plans and preparations. They were prepared for the Hatfords to push the agreed boundaries and kill against orders. That's why they were contacted in the first place. They were prepared for the cleanup, and the inquiries, and to throw the Hatfords under the bus as an excuse to begin what was sure to be a years-long investigation into Nathan Wesninski's network.

The second thing you need to understand about law enforcement operations is that you're either going shit shit shit shit shit when things are going according to plan and fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck when they aren't.

So, on the whole? It was a shitty night. The whole thing got pushed back by like two hours because of an alleged break in, and then by three more hours after a fight with op command on how much can they look over the police's shoulder without tipping their hand. And then it all goes down, and there's corpses everywhere, and it's all gone to shit...

And then Junior is on the front lawn.

Which, first of all, how are you not dead? Rhetorical question, clearly Nathan tried. Second, no seriously, how are you not dead. The fuck you mean it's a secret bitch I will [redacted]-

But it's fine. It's fine. Actually, hold on, this is great. They get to skip years of investigation all it costs is some witness protection. The kid seems like a real shithead but once they get him talking...

And then Towns says "We gotta talk about his team."

Oh right, them. "Once they calm down we'll give them a basic rundown of what's happening and send them home. Considering what they said so far it doesn't sound like they know much."

But Towns shakes his head. "You don't know who they are, do you?" Browning raises a brow. "Palmetto State Foxes?" Nope. "Edgar Allen. The ravens." Nope. "Kevin Day?"

That does sound familiar, but Browning knows he doesn't get the points for that. "Sure, one of the other players, no?" He never cared for exy, personally, and while he gets that people get excited about college sports he's always believed in some healthy iconoclasm. He shakes his head.

Towns grumbles. Then out of nowhere, he says, "Call Suzie."

"What?"

"Call her. Right now. Put her on speaker."

She should be at lunch, so Browning obliges, but he really doesn't see what his teenage daughter has to do with...

Click. Suzie's high, confident voice. "Daddy?"

"Hey Suzie, it's Freddie, your dad's pal from work," Towns says.

"Oh. Um. Hey?" Suzie sounds nervous suddenly. "Is my dad okay?"

They both suddenly realize what this call must look like, especially after Browning hadn't come home last night, and they both rush to reassure her that he's fine. "We've just had a long night," he reassures her. "No, I'm just calling because...hey Freddie, why am I calling?"

It's Towns' turn to raise an eyebrow, as if to say watch this. "Nah, I was just wanted a reminder, what's your husband's name again?"

Silence. A quick, sharp inhale, and in his mind's eye Browning can see his daughter's eyes focus like an eagles. "Well, first of all, it's future husband, because daddy says that the law says I have to be 18 to get married..."

Ohhhhh.

Fuck.

"But his name is Kevin Day. He's the world's best exy player, even after he had an accident last year. A lot of people abandoned him but I'm never gonna because when a mom and a dad love each other very much..."

A thousand dinner conversations run through Browning's head line an electric current as he opens his phone browser and searches the name. The results look nothing like the bruised shell of a man his colleagues have stuck in a hotel room, but they look like every poster on Suzie's wall. A terrible, terrible thought strikes him. "What about his friend. The, um, the short one."

The response is automatic. "Neil is cute too I guess. There aren't as many good posters of him, but Jessica from biology did her binder from shots she printed from youtube. Her dad yelled at her for wasting the ink."

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck.