#She is not a good person lmao

[its-queenofthesilence]

Part 1: The Diagnosis

The silence around her was deafening, save for the pounding in her ears. She felt as though she were trapped in space. No sound, just her blood rushing to fill the void.

Cancer

She was only 23 years old, and had just managed to dig herself out of the shithole Oliver had gotten her into. But now, she learned that she was terminal.

“H-how long do I have left to live?” she managed once her hearing returned to her.

She sat comatose on the sofa, fingers gripping the phone like a life line as she listened to Dr. Reyes on the other line explain the results of her MRI and blood tests.

"If you are lucky, a year," Dr. Reyes responded gravely, "most likely less."

"And treatment?" she asked, grasping onto any glimmer of hope.

"Treatment may slow it down, but at your stage and the type of cancer you have...remission is highly unlikely." He didn't sugarcoat the truth. "We can try it, if you want. But it will be painful, and some people prefer to live out their final days outside of a hospital."

“Now, I shou-”

Edith hung up the phone before the doctor could continue any further.

Cancer. It wasn’t fair. She wasn’t supposed to have cancer. The only reason why she even went to get tested was for the stupid nosebleeds.

Edith's gaze instinctually drifted to where Mr. Moo was curled up on the couch beside her, purring softly.

Who would take care of him?

She had no family; She had been raised in the foster care system from the age of 3 up until she aged out at 18 years old. She had no friends to lean on, no partner to ask.

Growing up in the foster care had led her not to trust anyone. Anyone who got close would inevitably abandon her, and over time it just became easier to keep anyone who showed interest in her at arms length, not willing to have her heart broken.

What relationships she did have were abusive, rocky affairs that usually ended the same way: the other person leaving because they couldn’t stand her jealous and controlling behavior.

And now? Now, she suddenly realized just how alone she was.

“Meow?”

Dragged from the confines of her mind, she took notice of Mr. Moo sitting up from his nap, head cocked to the side staring at her, as if he was trying to ask her if she was okay.

Edith reached over and gently scratched Mr. Moo behind the ears, managing a weak smile. "I'm okay, Buddy," she murmured, though her voice wavered.

The cat purred and pressed it’s face into her hand, demanding more scratches.

“It will be fine. Everything will be okay.” she whispered.

Too bad she knew it was a lie.

—

Despite learning she was dying, the world still turned and money still needed to be made in order to afford her apartment. The last thing she wanted was to spend her last year on earth homeless. Not after she just climbed out of that hole.

Never again. She wasn’t sure how long she would be able to work until the cancer progressed too far and made it difficult to work, so she wanted to get as much money while she could to ensure she wasn’t living out of the hospital, or worse: on the streets.

And also maybe be able to afford a small vacation with Mr. Moo. Go see the beach. But that was highly unlikely.

She had a bit saved up; it was supposed to be her retirement fund, but well it looked like that wasn’t getting used.

Monday morning, just days after learning she had cancer, she was back at work. Monday meant she was Greentech Labs, one of her clients she had regular contract work with.

Mondays also meant dealing with Brenda.

Edith rolled her eyes as she walked through the familiar doors of the Genentech Labs office. Brenda was already at her desk, tapping away furiously on her keyboard. To the untrained viewer, it would seem like she was working hard.

To anyone who actually knew her, Brenda was most definitely playing online poker on company time.

"Well, if it isn't Miss Edith Briggs gracing us with her presence," Brenda sneered, her beady eyes narrowing as Edith approached. "I was starting to think you'd finally gotten yourself fired."

Edith bit back a retort, reminding herself that she needed this job, at least for now. "Good morning to you too, Brenda," she said flatly, making her way to her own desk.

As she booted up her laptop, she could feel Brenda's judgmental gaze burning into the back of her head. The older woman had never made a secret of her disdain for Edith. It didn’t help that Edith did not put up with her passive-aggressive bullshit, like leaving post-it notes about eating fish in the kitchen lunch or stopping by her desk to lecture her about wearing earbuds.

If she didn’t know that Brenda was cousins with the CEO and the very definition of nepotism, she might have considered bringing up her behaviour to management.

“She’s starting early today, huh?”

Leaning over the desk, the familiar visage of Cheryl from Accounts Payable became visible. Cheryl was a young woman barely older than her with whom she had developed a sort of friendship with.

Well not really, she barely knew Cheryl aside from the fact she had two brothers and a sister and that she lived with two flatmates in downtown London. And was always trying to ask her to hang out, annoyingly enough.

Cheryl grinned at Edith, her brown eyes sparkling. "Figured you'd be here early today. Heard you had a doctor's appointment Friday from John, finally find out what’s up with the nose bleeds?" She leaned in conspiratorially. Edith was regretting even mentioning that to her

“I have terminal cancer.” she replied nonchalant, eyes fixed to her laptop screen. Best to get it out of the way; she would probably have to let people know anyway once she died and stopped showing up for work.

For a second, Cheryl let out a small chuckle, believing it to be a joke between two acquaintances. She quickly faltered when she realized Edith was not bothering to follow up with an “Oh I got you.” Or any sort of indication it was a joke.

Cheryl's face fell, her expression shifting from amusement to horror. "Wait, what? You're...you're serious?" she stammered; eyes wide.

Edith nodded solemnly, still not meeting Cheryl's gaze. "Yep. Doctor said I'm lucky if I make it a year." She paused, letting the gravity of her words sink in. "Apparently the nosebleeds were a symptom."

Silence settled amongst them.

“Please tell me you’re joking.” If Edith wasn’t self-absorbed, she would have seen the loss in Cheryl eyes or noticed she cared for Edith more than a casual acquaintance. She didn’t however. To her, it was just an annoyance.

Edith finally lifted her gaze to meet Cheryl's, her expression somber. "I wish I were," she said quietly. "But the doctor was clear - it's terminal."

Cheryl's hand flew to her mouth, her eyes wide with shock and dismay. "Oh, Edith...I don't even know what to say." She reached out hesitantly, then pulled her hand back, unsure if the touch would be welcome. "I'm so sorry. This is just...awful."

Edith shrugged, trying to affect an air of nonchalance, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her true emotions. "What can you do, right? It is what it is."

“Shouldn’t you be at home? Taking some time off?”

Edith shook her head firmly. "No, I need to keep working. I can't afford to take time off right now." She paused, then added quietly, "And honestly, I don't know what I'd do with myself at home. This is the only distraction I have."

Cheryl's brow furrowed with concern. "But Edith, you must be going through so much. Shouldn't you be focusing on your health and trying to make the most of the time you have left?"

Edith let out a humorless laugh. "And do what, exactly? Sit around and feel sorry for myself? No, thanks. I'd rather keep busy." She turned back to her laptop, fingers flying across the keys. "This job is the only thing keeping me sane right now."

“What about family?”

Edith let out another hollow laugh. "Family? I don't have any of that. I was in the foster care system my whole life." She shook her head, her fingers pausing on the keyboard. "No one to lean on, no one to say goodbye to."

Except Mr. Moo, but she didn’t dare say that out loud.

Cheryl's expression shifted to one of deep sympathy. "Oh Edith, I had no idea. That must be so difficult, especially now..." She reached out tentatively and placed a hand on Edith's arm.

Edith tensed slightly at the contact, unused to such overt displays of affection. "It is what it is," she repeated, shrugging off Cheryl's hand. "I've learned to get by on my own."

"But you don't have to," Cheryl insisted gently. "Let me help you, please. You shouldn't have to face this alone."

“I’m fine.”

—

Telling Cheryl seemed to be a mistake. By lunch time, a multitude of sympathy cards had found their way to her desk, stuffed full of petty cash from various individuals she honestly didn’t know the names to.

‘Thinking about you’ or ‘I will miss you’ were written on cards most likely hastily bought from the bodega down the street. All filled with generic sentiments from people who didn’t know her but felt sorry enough to stuff a five-pound note into a card.

“And whose fault is that?” her mind said bitterly. Maybe if she hadn’t spent so much time keeping people out, she would actually have more than generically filled out cards.

Edith gritted her teeth in frustration as she pushed through the through the thoughts threatening to consume her mind. The last thing she needed was a pity-party. She shoved the cards into the bottom drawer, determined to ignore them for now.

As the afternoon wore on, Edith found herself growing increasingly irritated by the pitying looks and hushed whispers that followed her around the office. It seemed like the entire office was walking on eggshells around her.

She tried to ignore it, burying herself in her work, but the constant reminders of her impending mortality were wearing on her. She just wanted to be left alone, to forget about the cancer for a little while and focus on her coding. Was that really too much to ask?

Apparently so, because as she was preparing to leave for the day, Brenda approached her desk, a fake sympathetic look plastered on her face.

"I heard about your...situation," Brenda said, her voice dripping with a fake sweetness that made Edith's skin crawl.

Edith rolled her eyes, already feeling her patience wearing thin. "I'm sure you did," she muttered, shutting down her laptop and grabbing her bag. The last thing she wanted was to deal with Brenda's faux concern.

"Well, I just wanted to say..." Brenda paused, as if struggling to find the right words. "If there's anything I can do to help, you just let me know." She reached out and patted Edith's arm in what was clearly meant to be a comforting gesture, but only succeeded in irritating her further.

Edith resisted the urge to shrug off Brenda's hand. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm fine," she said curtly. "I don't need your help."

Brenda's brow furrowed in confusion at Edith's cold response. "Oh, come on now, Edith. No need to be like that. I'm just trying to be a good colleague and lend a helping hand."

“Yeah, and I’m the Queen of England. Cut the bullshit Brenda. I know you. You’re a snake. You want something.”

Brenda's expression shifted, the false sympathy melting away to reveal her true self. “I know you're on borrowed time here. And I also know you need the money. So how about we make a little deal?"

Edith felt her hackles rise, instantly distrustful of whatever Brenda was proposing. "A deal? What kind of deal?"

Brenda's lips curled into a sly grin. "Well, seeing as you're on borrowed time and all, I figured you could use some extra cash to, you know, make the most of it." She paused, letting the implication hang in the air. "And I just so happen to have a little side project that could use your particular...skillset."

Edith felt a knot of dread form in the pit of her stomach. She had a pretty good idea what Brenda was getting at, and she didn't like it one bit. "I'm not interested in anything illegal, Brenda," she said firmly. "Whatever 'side project' you've got, count me out."

Brenda clucked her tongue in mock disappointment. "Oh Edith, always so quick to jump to conclusions. Who said anything about illegal?" She leaned in closer, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "This is a perfectly legitimate business opportunity. One that could set you up for the rest of your...well, let's call it your 'limited' time left."

Edith felt her stomach churn with unease. "And what exactly does this 'business opportunity' entail?" she asked warily.

Brenda's lips curled into a sly grin. "Well, you see, as I said I've got a little side project going on - nothing too crazy, I promise. Just a bit of corporate espionage, if you will." She paused, gauging Edith's reaction.

Edith felt a chill run down her spine. "Corporate espionage? You mean stealing company secrets by hacking, don't you?" She shook her head firmly. "Absolutely not, Brenda. I don't do that kind of work, especially not for you."

Well, she did do that kind of work, but not for fucking Brenda.

Brenda's lips curled into a sly grin. "Come on, Edith. Think about it - this could be your chance to really live it up, you know? No more scraping by, no more worrying about bills and rent. Just you, living your best life for whatever time you have left." She leaned in closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "And I'm willing to pay handsomely for your services."

Edith paused for a second, but only a second as her mouth moved faster than her mind.

"I got a better idea Brenda. How about I go talk to John and tell him what his flat-chested, troll-faced slut of a cousin who fucked his brother, your other cousin I may add, is up to?"

—

If being in a fist fight with a forty-three-year-old woman in the lobby of a highly-trafficked business was not on her bucket list, it was now.

It was also crossed off now, as she sat holding her nose, that was definitely broken, and trying to stop the bleeding.

Sure, maybe using sensitive information against Brenda, that she had discovered while hacking her email was not the best idea, but Edith wasn’t sure she regretted it.

After all, who fucks their own cousin?

The security guard who had pulled the two women apart was now eyeing Edith warily, no doubt unsure of what to make of the situation. Edith winced as she gingerly touched her swollen eye with her free hand, hissing in pain.

"You're lucky I don't call the bloody cops on you, you little bitch," Brenda spat, her clothes disheveled and makeup smeared. "Just wait until I tell John about this. You'll be out on your arse so fast; your head will spin."

Edith rolled her eyes, ignoring the throbbing in her face. "Go ahead, Brenda. Tell John. I'm sure he'll be thrilled to hear about how his dear cousin has been embezzling company funds as well as corporate espionage."

Brenda's face paled, her eyes widening in panic. "You don't have any proof!”

“How do you think I found out about you fucking your cousin Dave? It wasn’t from listening to you bitch to your mobility-cart riding, fat-ass of a mum on the phone during lunch every day!”

Brenda straightened her blouse, glaring daggers at Edith. "This isn't over, you little worm. You have no idea who you're messing with."

Edith let out a humorless laugh, wincing as the motion aggravated her injured nose. "Oh, I think I have a pretty good idea, Brenda. You're a petty, vindictive little snake who's about to get caught with your hand in the cookie jar."

“I think that’s enough.”

Speak of the devil, and he may appear. A bewildered looking John was standing to the side of them, clearly having walked up on them unseen at some point. From the corner of her eye, Edith could see Brenda going pale.

"What the hell is going on here?" he demanded, looking between the two women.

Brenda quickly composed herself, pasting on a concerned expression. "Oh, John, thank goodness you're here! This...this hooligan attacked me in the lobby!" She gestured dramatically towards Edith. "I was just trying to offer her some help, given her...situation, and she just flew off the handle!"

Edith opened her mouth to protest, but John raised a hand, silencing her.

“Brenda. I overheard everything she just said. So don’t lie to me. I will deal with you Edith after. If you would please wait in my office. I need to speak to my cousin for a moment….” he trailed off

“Of course.” Edith power-walked away from the situation, smirking as she overheard John interrogating Brenda.

“What in the blood hell does she mean you’re fucking Dave?”

—

In the end, it was decided they would end their contract with her. John had been both thankful and angry with her. Thankful for unintentionally revealing to him that his own cousin was embezzling funds from the company. Angry because she had not only kept it to herself until it was fodder in her argument but had apparently been hacking company emails. And announcing to the anyone in earshot that his cousin was an incest-driven slut who would open her legs at the first mention of dick.

Well, he didn’t say it like that but he might as well. It wasn’t her fault Brenda wanted to date in her own gene pool.

It was like college all over again, but this time without bullshit administration putting all the blame squarely on her.

Though, it wasn’t so bad this time around. John had slid an envelope towards her as she stood up to leave.

“A gift, I heard from Cheryl about your diagnosis.” he had said when she asked what it was.

Inside was a cheque for a little over twenty-two thousand dollars. Part of it was no doubt back payment for hours billed, but the other part was a gift. It wasn’t life changing, but it would probably at least cover the rent until she kicked the bucket.

And a little left over to go on a vacation; nothing fancy just a road trip with Mr. Moo to see all the touristy crap England had to offer.

“Thanks.” was all she could bring herself to say.

She didn’t have anything to take except for what she had on her, she didn’t work for the company, she was just a contractor and the desk she used was used by three other people when she wasn’t there.

Honestly, she wasn’t expecting to find Cheryl perched against her little Volkswagen Beatle, clearly waiting for her.

“Hey.” she said, picking at her finger nails.

“Hey” Edith replied back, not sure how to respond.

Cheryl pushed off the car and took a few steps towards Edith. "I heard what happened back there. That looked...intense." She paused; her brow furrowed with concern. "Are you okay?"

Edith shrugged, wincing slightly as the motion aggravated her injured nose. "I've had better days," she admitted, reaching up to gently touch the swollen area. "But I'll live."

"I can't believe Brenda would do something like that," Cheryl said, shaking her head in disbelief. "And with your...situation."

“Well, I probably egged her on, to be fair.”

“I heard…in fact everyone heard. She’s apparently fucking her own cousin? Or so I am told???”

Edith let out a humorless chuckle. "Yep. Read it myself, from her emails.”

A silence elapsed the pair, unsure of what to say next. It was Cheryl who spoke first.

“I’ll miss you.” It came so suddenly out of left field that she didn’t even process it at first.

Edith was taken aback by Cheryl's sudden admission. "Miss me? What do you mean?”

Cheryl's eyes grew slightly damp as she looked at Edith. "I mean, I'm going to miss you. When you're...gone." She paused, swallowing hard. "I know we're not the closest of friends, but I care about you, Edith. And the thought of you not being around anymore, it just..." She trailed off, shaking her head.

Edith felt an unfamiliar pang in her chest. She wasn't used to having someone genuinely care about her wellbeing. "Cheryl, I..." She hesitated, unsure of how to respond. "I appreciate that, but you don't have to worry about me. I'll be fine."

They both knew it was a lie.

“What will you do now? I know Greentech was a big contract for you.”

It wasn’t only a big contract it was the majority of her income but Cheryl didn’t need to know that.

“John gave me a parting gift. Not a huge payout, but should be enough to cover me till the end. Might go on a little road trip with Mr. Moo.”

“Mr. Moo?” the confusion evident on Cheryl’s face.

“Oh yeah probably never told you about him. My cat, Mr. Moo. He’s named that cause’ he has black spots on his white body. Looks like a cow.”

Cheryl's face lit up at the mention of Edith's cat. "You have a cat? That's so sweet! I love cats." She paused, a thoughtful look crossing her features. "You know, I've always wanted a cat, but my apartment doesn't really allow for it. Maybe you could take me to meet Mr. Moo sometime?"

“Yeah maybe.” Edith said, lapsing into silence once more.

“Well, I’ll let you go. You probably need to go to Urgent care. Can I give you my number?”

“Uh, can I ask why?”

“Cause I care about you. Maybe we could go to a rave sometime together you know? I know it’s not your cup of tea, but I figure might be the last chance to ask you. When you’re back from your vacation that is” she said smiling.

Edith paused. Cheryl was right, it wasn’t her cup of tea. In fact, she had always said no in the past when asked. She was a homebody, through and through and the idea of going to a rave in some shady warehouse was on the bottom of her list. She wasn’t someone who took risks.

But past Edith wasn’t dying from cancer, or at least didn’t know it yet. She only had the present to work with.

“I think I’d like that.”

[arcanegifs]

ARCANE LEAGUE OF LEGENDS: 1x02 - "Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved" ↳ "All I see is a boy meddling with things he doesn't understand."

[australet789]

"Alastor is a villain because he chained poor Husk 🥺"

I think you all forget THIS is the Husk that made the deal with Alastor:

The Husk that was so careless and selfish that was gambling SOULS, to the point he gambled his own soul away to save his powers.

[choccy-milky]

finally drew clora and seb's kids!!🙌🙌

Celeste Sallow: OK THIS IS THE NAME IM SUPER PROUD OF BAHAHA because not only does the name celeste relate to the stars (in typical ravenclaw fashion...clora picked the name) but celeste sallow is also an alliteration. BUT, its an alliteration that begins with a C, which means clora gets to match with celeste in the form of both of their names starting with a C, whereas sebastian gets to match with celeste because both of their names are an alliteration/they're alliteration allies🥹ITS THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS!🥳

Lewis Sallow: as for lewis, if you've read my fic then you know that seb has a vendetta against names that start with an L bahaha, but 'lewis' was actually HIS idea. when celeste was born, seb wanted to find a muggle story to read to her, since clora's favourite story is ALSO a muggle one (sherlock), and he wanted to stick with tradition. so he ended up finding alice in wonderland, which he loved because of how adventurous and clever alice was and of how much she reminded him of clora and celeste (both personality and looks wise). it became his favourite for those reasons, to the point that when they had lewis, sebastian overcame his L-name hatred by naming their son after lewis carroll.

Houses: celeste could have been sorted into either gryffindor or slytherin, but ultimately ends up in slytherin because she wants to be like seb. kinda like how clora also probably could have been in gryffindor, tbh. as for lewis.....him being 10000% in ravenclaw doesnt need any explanation BAHA, just look at him.

Appearance: since clora has a tiny bit of veela blood in her, thats obvs passed down to their kids, too, and so they mostly take after her as a result of it. but there's still little bits of seb that shine through in each of the kids: for lewis its his brown curly hair, and for celeste its her complexion/freckles. and the fact that celeste looks so similar to clora only doubles up sebastian's stress/protective instincts when he watches her BAHAH. he's ofc still proud that she takes after him so closely, but seb also cant deny that he wishes it had been their SON that had taken after him instead, to keep her out of danger.

Celeste & Lewis: for celeste and lewis’ relationship, celeste is a super proud big sister, and treats lewis kinda like how seb treats clora. if there's anything that needs to be done, she offers to do it for him. and although she doesn’t have the patience to read stories herself, she loves playing outside and having lewis read to her in the background, and loves to act out/use his stories to fuel her imagination. and lewis makes sure to pick stories that he KNOWS she’ll like (which mostly involve heroic and daring feats of adventurers or pirates. he's tried to read more classic fairytales and romances to her a few times, but celeste always gets bored). she loves to draw though, so sometimes when lewis reads books that have no pictures, she'll draw them herself.

Celeste & Seb/Clora: celeste is a daddy's girl LOL and always tries to impress seb with the stuff she does, especially after hearing how HE was at her age, and so its half to impress and half because shes competitive that she wants to do the same/be just as good. and seb always gets a kick out of hearing her feats in the crossed wands club, or in defense against the dark arts class, and he also goads her on, telling her she'll have to do better than that if she wants to be as good as HE was. and whenever celeste gets detention, clora always stresses and asks why, whereas seb just tries to keep the smirk off his face. as for celeste and clora, clora also reads to celeste, and bakes and cooks with her, which is something celeste actually likes doing. not only because it keeps her busy and she likes to help and get messy in general, but also because she likes the fact that it results in good food afterwards LOL, and constantly asks when things can be taken out of the oven. also, for as tomboy-y as celeste is, she honestly doesn't mind/likes the clothing that clora puts her in and likes when clora dresses her up, bc it makes her look like one of the princesses from the storybooks, and it just amuses her more than anything else. once she enters hogwarts, though, its mostly trousers. but she still DOES like the occasional girly clothing.

Lewis & Seb/Clora: lewis is a momma's boy LOL and unlike celeste, doesnt care about duelling or of proving himself or anything like that, and is only concerned with stories and his future studies. so ofc clora had to show him sherlock, which he naturally loved. it even inspired lewis to want to write his own stories, so that he could challenge his own skill and see if he could, but also because he wants his mom to read them, and likes the idea of writing his own sherlock-esque story with equations and mysteries to be solved that he can offer her. lewis also wants to write a book for celeste as well, bc although he wont admit it, he basically wants to write a story tailor-made for her and her interests. one that he thinks will have everything she’d love in it. and part of it is genuinely because he WANTS to do it for her, but the other part of it is also for his ego, and to see if he CAN write a compelling story, and write something that would actually get THE hyperactive celeste to sit down and read it in its entirety (not to mention of her own volition). as for with seb, lewis looks up to him more than anyone else, due to how well-rounded he is and how hes so good at practical stuff AND studying, and he kinda sees seb as a main character/protagonist from one of his books, and uses sebastian as inspiration for his own stories. if hes stuck on what he thinks the dashing main character should do next, he'll ask his dad what HE would do, which results in seb getting very weird questions that he nonetheless is always happy to answer. also, when lewis is older and finally learns the full story of what happened with clora and seb and ranrok and rookwood, he writes their story in novel form, except he just changes their names/some of the details, and it becomes a best seller LOL. and i didnt know where to put this, but the four of them all read a story before bed every night, with lewis in the middle and seb and clora on either side of him. though celeste stands at the foot of the bed, basically doing a charade/mime show of what theyre reading, and putting on a little play to go along with it BAHHA.

OK thats all i can think of for now ive yapped enough😩 if youve read all of this ur a real one.... ive also considered giving them a 3rd (and last) child, which would be a boy that looks exactly like seb, and seb would just be praying like please.....let this son take after me🧎‍♂️🙏 BAHHA

[blushedfemmes]

breaking hiatus one more time to ask my butch followers whether or not they’d hit on me at the club (testing potential nye outfit) (femmes pls also weigh in)

[sergle]

man, you know, nobody asked me, but I have such conflicting opinions on some of the fat falin art, where on one hand: it's always nice to see A Fat Body in fanart anywhere + it's being done in positive ways, for funsies and on the other hand, there is something so familiar about how you are automatically The Fat One if you are a woman simply standing next to a more petite woman, bc I've had a 0% hitrate in seeing people change Marcille's body type and keep Falin's, or change both of them. it's just Falin

[wheneverfeasible]

When Steve’s parents announced their divorce, Steve told Eddie he loved him. They weren’t dating at the time, though Steve thought that the feeling was mutual to at least some extent since Eddie always flirted back with him, but he hadn’t been certain.

He had known his parents stopped loving each other years ago. Hell, he didn’t know if they had ever truly loved each other, but in any case, Steve knew.

His parents decided to sell the house, to move away from Hawkins with its cursed misfortune and small town gossip, and there was no talk of either of them taking Steve with them. Which, sure, he was grown, he hadn’t been part of the conversation at all.

Steve was left at a crossroads on what to do. So, distraught at his change in circumstances, he’d gone straight to Eddie’s and confessed his feelings because he had to know if it was at all possible for anyone to want him the way he wanted them.

Luckily enough for Steve, Eddie did!

The Munsons still had a decent amount left over from the government hush money after everything, so Eddie took his share (Wayne tried to get him to take more since all Wayne had lost was physical possessions and the trailer while Eddie almost lost his life, but Eddie would only agree to a 50/50 split) and together he and Steve threw caution to the wind and found a small place to rent together in one of the new complexes being built as part of the town’s rejuvenation project.

Things were going great. They still visited Wayne, who could now stop working such long hours at the plant and who had moved to a small fixer upper on the outskirts of town. He even moved up the ladder at the plant after some of the higher ups were lost in the “earthquakes” (R.I.P.), which offered better pay and benefits.

Wayne even started dating again, which Eddie informed Steve of in such a scandalized tone, but Steve could tell that Eddie was happy for his uncle, ribbing the older man when they had stopped by one morning and the man hadn’t even been home, stumbling back an hour later with lipstick stains on his shirt’s collar.

(Wayne had told him that he was going to call the cops on them for breaking and entering while he was gone, but there was no heat in it as they set chocolate chip pancakes, eggs, and a steaming cup of coffee before him, having made use of the kitchen while he was out.)

Wayne never introduced any of the women he dated to Eddie and Steve, saying that it wasn’t proper to introduce anyone to the kids yet until he was certain that things were serious, never mind that the “kids” were well into their 20s now.

(Steve also felt a warmth at being included as a “kid” of Wayne’s, however, filling a hole in his heart that his parents had left behind, though his mother had recently reached out to him to rekindle their relationship. His father remained radio silent.)

Eventually, however, there was someone Wayne kept seeing repeatedly, someone he’d met while outside of town when he was at some convention for work and her car had broken down outside of his motel room. She hadn’t left the motel room until the next morning, and Wayne was certain it was just a single night of passion, but…

They had really hit it off, it seemed, and though Wayne hadn’t thought such an amazing and sensual—(“Uncle Wayne! For the love of everything holy, unholy, and whatever’s in-between, please don’t say sensual!)—woman would be interested in him, they exchanged numbers. And then, the day after he’d told her he should be home again from the trip, she called him.

Things only progressed from there, and soon enough there were talks of something committed, of something truly serious, and after a while, Wayne broke the news.

“Boys, my partner is going to be moving back to Hawkins and, while we know it’s a giant leap, we decided to move in together.”

As it turns out, apparently the woman is actually from Hawkins too but had left after the earthquakes tore the town apart, so she is someone that they actually knew. Wayne still won’t tell them who it is, however. He seems a little embarrassed by that, actually, but he also tells them that he is the happiest he’s ever been and he was willing to fight to be with her, so what else can they do but accept that?

They are thus excited for him, excited to finally meet her (again?), and the plan is set that they would have a family dinner together once she was in town. Steve and Eddie are, of course, moderately worried given the whole being queer thing, but Wayne assures them that they will be safe. That Wayne had made damned certain that both his boys would be safe.

(Steve again feels that warmth of belonging to someone, of being loved and cared for and supported in a way he’d never known before.)

And then the day arrives. Steve and Eddie show up early, looking pretty damn spiffy they believe, and help Wayne get the dinner ready, though it’s more like a late lunch really. Eventually, they hear the sounds of tires outside of Wayne’s house.

Wayne, smiling and looking absolutely besotted, moves toward the front door to let his girlfriend in without missing a second. Steve and Eddie hear the door open and close from the kitchen, hear quietly murmured words and what disgustingly sounds like kissing, and then there’s footsteps and—

Steve turns around to greet this mysterious woman, a smile on his face, before dropping the bowl of salad in his hands as shock and something very much like horror make itself known to him.

“MOM???!”

~

Hostage Hotties: @derythcorvinus @katyawriteswhump @honeii-puff

[lotstradamus]

have you read any books as good as captive prince in terms of plot :/ im desperate!!!

the only series I've read that really evoke that Captive Princeish countries-on-the-brink-of-war, shifting alliances, spies, WHAT IS HAAPPEENNINGING vibe are The Masquerade by Seth Dickinson (The Traitor Baru Cormorant is book #1) and The Queen's Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (The Thief is book #1).

both of those series deliver a Prince's Gambit Patran Soldiers Arriving On The Field At Hellay jaw-dropper and are so SO satisfying. they will also make you cry LIKE a little bitch lmao

OH MY GOD ALSO??? HELLO???? C. S. PACAT'S NEW YA* FANTASY SERIES DARK RISE??????????? (Dark Rise book #1!!!) we're only on book 2 of 3 but I trust her enough to say: you absolutely have to read it now immediately. on the surface the plot seems SOOOO simple and straightforward (it's VERY pastoral English 20th century children's fantasy vibes, but it's C. S. Pacat so...) but thematically it's very similar to Captive Prince: dead brother angst, hidden identities, sexually fraught gold collars, hot blond bitches and WAR. and sis THEE twists. THEE levels. I spent 85% of the first book like yeah okay I guess I'm into this and the last 15% with my mouth open in shock. I read book two in one sitting the day it came out and transformed from a woman into a sentient scream. 10/10.

*I have to laugh... ok girl ! filth !

[royalarchivist]

Mine: Refer to me however you want!

Mike: Yeah, for me too. I think I use all pronouns too.

[They high-five and fist-bump each other]

Mine:

[via @barbmine]

[tothepointofinsanity]

MAGICAL DOCTOR.

[galactic-rhea]

padmé is as possesive and obssesive as anakin she just doesn't seem like it. send tweet.

[nuppu-nuppu]

More Angel Devil

[arte072]

Op was talking about the Stark girls but the problem with this take is that Sansa calls Arya ugly AND would also never die for her lol. In fact, she actively risked Arya’s life/safety multiple times be it the Trident incident, telling the entire court that Arya has traitor’s blood while she herself was a “good girl”, telling Cersei about Ned’s plan, etc etc. and never reflects upon it. She still blames Arya for Lady’s death in A Clash of Kings 😭

I’m sorry but Sansa’s dislike of Arya runs deep. Far deeper than any negativity that might be felt in reverse lbr. And it may not be as bad as say, Cersei and Tyrion, but it also doesn’t have to be for it to still be considered negative.

I’m just so baffled by the insistence that this fundamental aspect of their relationship be denied.

Name one moment of Sansa being selfless for Arya or standing up for her in any way. Name top three moments of Sansa saying or thinking anything positive specifically about Arya! (Vaguely remembering her existence in her idealized memories of Winterfell doesn’t count btw) They both care about each other as family, sure. But where’s the actual love y’all keep talking about?

I think the biggest evidence of the sheer dearth of positivity between these girls is the fact that Arya and Sansa are both POV characters with some of the highest chapter counts in the series, they’ve interacted with each other both in their own chapters and in other’s, and have thought about each other multiple times even after they’ve gone their separate ways. Yet the most ““positive”” quote this fandom has of them is Ned’s “sun and moon” comment. (And for context, this quote was said by Ned after Arya was angry at Sansa for victim-blaming Mycah for his own murder so…..lol)

In the combined 50 something chapters these girls have, the fact that the “Stark sisters LOVE each other!!!! 🤬” crowd has just that one quote spoken by their dad who was basically giving his daughter a lecture and nothing from the girls themselves is just…. sad tbh. Imagine if we were constantly told of the strength and love between Jon Snow and Arya’s relationship and the only evidence was Theon’s “Lord Stark’s sullen bastard has always been fond of his half-sister Arya”.

Sad.

There used to be this trite, overused comeback made by Sansa/Stark Sisters fans that went:

“Umm if Arya knew you were saying anything bad about Sansa she would fucking HATE you!!!!!”

and maybe so! Arya’s very empathetic and has been shown to defend Sansa and get upset on her sister’s behalf multiple times! But would the reverse be true?

Would Sansa hate me if I said negative things about Arya? And if so, where are the textual evidence for this? Because Ned’s “sun and moon; you share dna” is not cutting it I’m afraid 😔

[thepunkmuppet]

↳ cordelia chase + comfy / casual

[ganondoodle]

the closer we get to arcanes finale the more worried i am bc so often .. if not always .. things i like end in a way that i dislike so much it ruins everything else for me

and im so worried they pull a 'this is a multiverse' thing bc then they can say every skin is somehow canon bc its all different universes you seeeeee and jayce went mad bc he lived through all of them or something, or force it to end in a way that makes the champions end up like they are in game- Vi is a shitty cop, Jinx is just heehoo craycray bc xyz etc

[buccellato]

Going a little insane thinking about how from Knives' perspective, his olive branch for Rem was rejected by his childhood perception of her loyalty to humanity, but Rem was assessing the situation as both a ship official and a parent and definitely making the choice she thought would maximize his and Vash's survival chances...like, if she was following duty as a crew member first and foremost, she'd head immediately to the bridge and tell the boys to head to the escape pods via comms or something. But instead she spent valuable minutes ensuring that Vash and Knives were safely strapped in and ready to escape, and then turned around to minimize the ship damage. Plus she had no actual way of knowing whether the plant ships were on a crash course, either—and while tristamp Nai can survive completely without food and water, no version of Vash has been shown to be able to do so completely (plus all other versions of Knives are shown at least drinking lol). So from her perspective she didn't just need to save both her kids and the humans on board, she also would've needed to save as many dependents as possible just so the boys had a way to stay alive.

She did the best she could do as a parent in that scenario, and Knives forever locked himself into a traumatized child's reasoning for her actions and blamed her to cope with it and then never reassessed from the perspective of an adult due to his, well, issues with everything. That's rough buddy.