#Try making a set of gifs with scenes haven't been used or seen yet -

[finalfantasyx]

Yue Yao (because I need to scream about her awesomeness and the dangers of retconning), Yue Qing, and How NOT to Write Women - A Rant(TM) about Dashing Youth & The Blood of Youth

Spoilers ahead for Dashing Youth and The Blood of Youth if you have not seen either live action drama, since we haven't gotten there in the donghua yet. You have been duly warned. Now come scream with me. I've been wanting to scream about this for a while.

Okay, what the hell??? Prefacing this again with the fact that I watched Dashing Youth before TBOY and I'm just...floored? Yue Yao was so interesting. She was up against some major political issues where the repercussions of her choices and the choices made by the people around her would impact and probably, most likely, cause the deaths of thousands. She was dealing with a missing father who, for all they knew, could have been dead, a clingy sister-turned-annoying-character-trope, the fate of her people, and also the fate of all of Beili and Beique (I mean, seriously, you want to talk about Yi Wenjun being at fault for instigating the three-way war between Nanjue, Tianwaitian, and Beili, AND SHE WASN'T ACTUALLY AT FAULT ASIDE FROM NOT COMMUNICATING WITH HER HUSBAND BEFORE MAKING A HUGE DECISION THAT WOULD IMPACT THEM ALL and leaving her infant son in the house BY HIMSELF, PLEASE Yue Yao would have been directly responsible for all the deaths resulting from any move she made), all the while trying to find a way to do what was best for everyone AND getting to know the prodigy and dumbass with a heart that was Baili Dongjun, whose grandfather Baili Luochen helped Beili in the war with Beique that resulted in her people being killed and displaced to the unforgiving north.

/breathe

And oh, does she ever find a way. Baby girl decides to just DIY this whole shebang when she finds the natural-born martial arts prodigies with the special meridians or whatever the hell the drama said it was that set Baili Dongjun and Ye Dingzhi apart from alllll the other martial arts practitioners and just takes her sworn sister's identity, gets a makeover, and BAM joins the Jixia Academy...audition.

Not only that, but we see that she is more than her pretty clothes and her miss-fairy-in-a-carriage persona that we've seen up until this point in the drama. SHE CAN FIGHT! SHE CAN BEAT SOMEONE'S ASS! SHE CAN CHEAT AND GAMBLE! SHE STRAIGHT UP APPROACHES BAILI DONGJUN AND CHALLENGES HIM. SHE. APPROACHES. HIM. FIRST. Also it's really freakin' cute.

SHE STANDS UP FOR HERSELF AND HER TEAMMATES AND PROTECTS THEM. SHE SAVES BAILI DONGJUN'S TAIL. SHE'S GOT HER OWN WAY OF THINKING AND SHE'S FUNNY AS HELL. SHE SLAPS HIM CLEAN ACROSS THE FACE FOR GOING TO A BROTHEL.

We see her enter Jixia Academy, we see her train under Liu Yue (which I am still salty about because we could have used a lot more scenes of her and Liu Yue training and just being master/apprentice, see her having a hard time with really just using Liu Yue to stay near Baili Dongjun for her own/Beique's ends, especially with Liu Yue declaring that he doesn't care about her true identity, just that she is now his apprentice and that means that he's always on her side please Liu Yue was the best and he got fking nuked at the end, even if he got to retire from jianghu with Mo Xiaohei lol), WE SEE HER STRUGGLE. This entire time, Yue Yao is absolutely torn between a) doing what is best for her people, b) doing what is best for everyone and not causing the deaths of thousands, and c) not falling for the guy whose grandfather is a war hero because he killed her people.

Also the fact that this dumbass she is falling in love with has been pining after her miss-fairy-in-a-carriage persona for so long he has no clue she's right in front of him. Good job, Dongjun /pat pat

Let's play this out.

If Yue Yao a) does what is best for her people, which everyone thinks is reclaiming Beili, a warmer and far more fertile land, and creating better lives for themselves, that would incite another war and cause many, many deaths. Also, there's a very, very high possibility that Beique might lose anyway!

If Yue Yao b) does what is best for everyone and not cause another war and the deaths of thousands, she is condemning her own people to a harsh life in the cold, icy, desolate north.

If Yue Yao c) falls for the guy whose grandfather is a war hero because he killed her people, she will be seen as a traitor and will be turned on because they'll think she turned on them first, especially since she is basically their princess.

What's a girl to do.

SHE FREAKIN' OWNS UP TO IT AND COMES CLEAN with Baili Dongjun and her followers, Mo Qixuan and Zi Yuji. She does not lie to them and is up front about her vision and what she wants to do for her people and for herself, because they don't have to be mutually exclusive things. She follows her heart; she knows that while she wants a better life for her people, it cannot be found in a new war with Beili to settle old grudges and claim old land. She wants to find a new home for them.

Yue 👏 Yao 👏 is 👏 so 👏 great.

...Only for all of that buildup in the first half of the drama to go absolutely nowhere as her vision is never recognized. She returns to Tianwaitian only to be locked up for betraying Beique with zero timeline as to how long she was locked up for and how she actually got out of the cage. There were no repercussions for her escaping or leaving. In fact, as soon as she leaves Tianwaitian, Yue Yao's character basically stops caring for Beique, and she literally did not matter to the plot going forward. Her people in Tianwaitian never find a better home for themselves. They never get to leave the far north, never reclaim their old kingdom, and never get to rebuild, even before Ye Dingzhi establishes the Demon Sect. Ergo, even if we disregard the events of TBOY, Yue Yao still doesn't get to help her people and all of that development was useless.

Instead, after all that talk about wanting to find a better home and do better by her people, after all the character development and establishment, after all the scenes where we get to see that Yue Yao has a backbone and the fighting skills to prove it, she ends up as arm candy for Baili Dongjun for the next like seven years while the two of them remained unmarried. Um??????????

Why build up all that character and her skills and her relationships with Liu Yue, Baili Dongjun, her freakin' sister, and Mo Qixuan/Zi Yuji only for all of them to basically go kaput? Even with Baili Dongjun, most of the time, she's...just there. Just...looking pretty. Not doing anything.

No one waits seven years to get married, especially when they're in such close quarters like Yue Yao and Baili Dongjun were pre-war and during the war. This makes zero sense, and honestly just cheapens their already-sad relationship even more because it shows a lack of respect on his part. There's no denying that he does love her, but the respect, which is based off of the values of the people in their time, is not there, whether for her honor, virtue, or just the progression of their relationship. Seven years is a long time, especially in period Chinese dramas (and reality, back in those times) when two people are hanging out in an established relationship.

Yue Yao is displeased.

And then we come to the problem of her sister, Yue Qing, who has decided to play a self-insert victim and villain, somehow both at the same time by not actually being relevant to the plot and generally not actually being good at anything at all.

Her motivation: Yue Yao is her older sister, the one she has always looked up to, and she sucks at being the eldest princess and has essentially abandoned them to chase after the sweet, sweet tail that is Neo Hou in a period drama. Ergo, Yue Qing needs to leave Beique to find the other special person martial arts prodigy, Ye Dingzhi, and homegirl does her best to manipulate the hell out of this poor, traumatized kid in order to get him back to Beique and free her father so that they can march on Beili and reclaim their kingdom. He sees right through her though, and because there is no way in the eighteen levels of hell she can beat him in a fight, and she tries, she goes back to his doorway like a kicked puppy every time he throws her out because it's clear she has no idea what on earth she's doing except that she thinks she's all that and has every reason to condemn thousands of people to their deaths so that she can incite a new war for a better life for the people of Tianwaitian.

In the same way that Yue Yao was SO great in the first half of Dashing Youth, we do not give two shakes about Yue Qing and how she is barely even relevant to the plot, because if you stuck Mo Qixuan or Zi Yuji in there to manipulate this poor bastard, the result would have ended up the same way and she does not impact the story whatsoever.

And then Ye Dingzhi saves Yue Qing's life, and all of a sudden, she understands why her sister decided to go with Baili Dongjun instead of staying in Beique, according to the story lore. It also doesn't hurt that he's pretty and he's feeding her medicine and didn't just...let her die.

PFFFFFFFFFFT HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Yue Qing, the bar is on the floor. Also girl, you manipulated him and used him and he does not care for or about you. In fact, the only reason he saved your life was because he lashed out at you and almost killed you and felt guilty for it before he proceeded to throw you out again.

Because Ye Dingzhi is untouchable at this point, Yue Qing proceeds to then manipulate his wife, Yi Wenjun (which is another convoluted story point because she's already married and is a secondary consort to Xiao Ruojin who is an absolute monster in the actual worst way, which is why I did not feel a lick of empathy or sympathy for him in TBOY--I mean, he put her under using some drugs and it was HEAVILY IMPLIED that he gr@ped her while she was completely unconscious and everyone just kind of breezes over this plot point in the dramas), and sends her back to Tianqi by spreading false news of Xiao Yu being really, really sick (causing problems even at a young age, I see). Because of this, Ye Dingzhi is then manipulated into going to Beique to free Yue Qing and Yue Yao's father so that he can be number one in the world and take his wife back, blahhhh blah blah.

AND THEN THEIR FATHER DIES after a confrontation between him, Baili Dongjun, and Ye Dingzhi, and it's almost like Yue Qing and Yue Yao are pitting their respective special martial arts person against each other because they're both natural-born wumai which is NOT actually a thing, and I don't even understand what it is and do not care to actually translate this; IT'S SUPER DUMB.

And because the official leader of Beique, Yue Yao and Yue Qing's father, dies, Ye Dingzhi goes full demon mode and takes over the people of Tianwaitian and establishes the Demon Sect by uniting all 30-something sects in the outer regions of Beili, which was supposedly impossible until this point. He then begins the infamous three-way war between Beili, Nanjue, and Tianwaitian which Yi Wenjun then gets blamed for instigating.

UMMMM??? DOES THIS NOT SOUND FAMILIAR??? DO WE NOT ALSO KNOW OF A WOMAN WHO WAS SAID TO BE SO BEAUTIFUL THAT MEN WENT TO WAR FOR HER AND LAID SIEGE TO AN ENTIRE FREAKIN' CITY WHICH IS NOW A FAMOUS TRAGEDY? DID THE DIRECTORS OF THIS DRAMA WANT A CDRAMA VERSION?

(in case anyone is lost, the answer is Troy. It's Helen of Troy.)

Also, RUDE that her "instigating" this war is what she is known for, even in The Blood of Youth. Yi Wenjun gets blamed for this massive, awful historical event when the only thing she did was be manipulated by Yue Qing using her child. Like, what on earth /eye roll

It was also never talked about how she was coerced into this marriage by her father in TBOY (which we find out in DY) and that this was never something she wanted anyway. Also the gr@pe because that was completely unnecessary and again, breezed over by every single character in Dashing Youth, which, also, WHY did it have to happen that way? Xiao Yu's existence in TBOY could literally be explained by "marital duties" or "wedding night" or something even if the spouses hated each other, did y'all really have to sink to gr@pe????? Especially since I watch dramas for escapism and fantasy and not historical accuracy because of course this has happened probably many times over the course of history. I am angry.

We find out later that Yue Qing is locked up by Ye Dingzhi and then just dies via suicide in prison at the end of the three-way war while Yue Yao rides off into the sunset with Baili Dongjun in her fairy carriage, intent on marrying her at last after SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS TOGETHER, YES I DID THE FREAKING MATH (let me know if anyone needs an approximate timeline).

Following this trainwreck and what Dashing Youth has established, we get to the canon in The Blood of Youth, which takes place twelve years after the prequel. Now that the twelve-year pact between Tianwaitian and Beili where Ye Anshi, the son of Ye Dingzhi and Yi Wenjun, is a hostage in Beili is over, the story picks up where we see our heroes in the following places:

Baili Dongjun: Master of Xueyue City and a depressed drunk after (we learn later) mistakenly killing his wife because he was manipulated into doing so, making this the biggest regret of his life

Yue Yao: dead. Was dead before Tang Lian stepped foot into Xueyue City, and was dead because someone manipulated Baili Dongjun into thinking Yue Yao was Yue Qing and he kills her.

...wait what? But...but I thought Yue Qing died in the prison even before Baili Dongjun and Yue Yao got married in canon? I think we're told in TBOY that Yue Yao blocked an attack for her sister or died for her sister or something via her husband attacking her thinking she was her sister or I DON'T KNOW it's not really clear. The point is, the events of both dramas can't both be true or canon at the same time.

Aaaaaand we've hit one of the biggest retcon snags between the two dramas. Shifting the focus over to the problem with retcons, my first question is this: DY directors and producers, you guys had the perfect template and formula since The Blood of Youth exists and had such incredible ratings. Y'all already have a world and a story and storyline and characters to work with and are able to entirely and completely plan ahead. How did y'all come up with this dumpster fire???? And it's not even a good dumpster fire?? How could Yue Qing cause Yue Yao's death, which we are told is what happens in Baili Dongjun's dream in TBOY, if she's dead??

Other honorable problematic retcon mentions:

There's a specific voiceover at the end of DY telling us what happened to the main characters at the end of the war, and though in TBOY the story said that Lei Mengsha died fighting against Nanjue, we are shown that he and Xiao Ruofeng are both fine and victorious. WHAT???

In TBOY, we are told by Li Suwang of the Sword Heart Tomb that his daughter, Li Xinyue first met Lei Mengsha at the Sword Heart Tomb when he and his buddy his pal Baili Dongjun stopped by and convinced her to duel and then roam jianghu with them. We see that at the beginning of Dashing Youth, Lei Mengsha actually meets Baili Dongjun a LOT later in the narrative, and by then, Li Hanyi is already about five years old and Lei Mengsha and Li Xinyue have been married for A While.

Yin Luoxia and Yue Yao are shown to be sworn sisters who met and became extremely close even before the events of DY, even closer than Yue Qing and Yue Yao at their absolute tightest. Luoxia lives in Xueyue City in TBOY. She knows Baili Dongjun personally. THEY DID NOT INTERACT. SHE DIDN'T EVEN TALK ABOUT YUE YAO ONCE IN ALL THE SCREENTIME THAT SHE HAD.

Sikong Changfeng says in TBOY that Li Hanyi is four years younger than him, but started studying under their master first and this is also why she is the Second City Master and he is the Third. This is only half true; while Li Changsheng took Li Hanyi in as an apprentice, she was literally like five or six at the time. Nangong Chunshui then proceeded to take on Sikong Changfeng not long after, but Sikong Changfeng by then was already a teenager headed into his adult years. Like, he's at least eighteen when Dashing Youth starts.

Speaking of Sikong Changfeng, TBOY says that the healer Hua Jin is his shimei, his younger martial sister from their master, the number one healer in the world, Xin Baicao. DY shows us that they met the one time where Xin Baicao was told by Baili Dongjun's uncle (who was a top poison user and the two of them got into competitions all the time wink wink cough cough) to save Sikong Changfeng's life. Sikong Changfeng stayed in the Medicine Valley for something like six months, all the while studiously not learning medicine from Xin Baicao and instead focuses on his spearwork and fighting skills. Also, Hua Jin isn't in DY at all.

This one is less of a retcon issue and more of a gripe, Baili Dongjun was literal childhood friends and best buds with Ye Dingzhi. Wuxin/Ye Anshi would literally be the equivalent of his nephew/godson. Do we get to see them interact at all aside from like 5 seconds in DY???? No. We do not. WE WERE CHEATED.

Another gripe, Sikong Changfeng and Baili Dongjun were bros in Dashing Youth, and have been for many years (according to my math, it's 21 years between the beginning of Dashing Youth and The Blood of Youth) and did we get to see them actually interact in TBOY??? NO.

Oh, with all this talk of Sikong Changfeng, another gripe about HOW TO NOT WRITE WOMEN--Feng Qiuyu (who is she, you may ask???).

She is, my friends, the mother of Sikong Qianluo.

BUT DO WE REALLY KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HER? No. WE BARELY REMEMBER HER NAME. SHE WAS LITERALLY WRITTEN INTO DASHING YOUTH SO THAT SIKONG CHANGFENG COULD MEET HER AND SIKONG QIANLUO COULD BE BORN. SHE WAS ON SCREEN FOR A MAX OF 5 MINUTES DURING THE DRAMA AND WAS NEVER REALLY SEEN OR TALKED ABOUT AGAIN EXCEPT FOR LIKE A MINUTE AT THE END. WE DON'T EVEN HAVE THE COURTESY OF KNOWING SHE DIED BEFORE TBOY; WE HAVE TO PUT IT TOGETHER USING CONTEXT CLUES.

I AM YELLING.

Man, I started this rant really just wanting to talk about how best girl Yue Yao was done super dirty by the producers/writers of DY, but the more I thought about it and analyzed and wrote it all down, the more I got to the underlying issue of just the less-than-lackluster way this already-awfully-written drama treated their women, the angrier I got.

All this to say, Dashing Youth does not write or treat their women very well and that, my dears, is bullshit.

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review (September 3-9, 2023)

I was a bit nervous about GAMERA -Rebirth-; the animation looked dodgy and Netflix has a shaky track record with kaiju shows. I'm pleased to report this is the best entry in the genre that they've put their name on. Good characters, great action (brutal as always), and actual episodic storytelling that effortlessly weaves in elements from the Showa films beyond all the returning kaiju. Watch it immediately.

Tie-ins abound for GAMERA -Rebirth-: a two-part novelization, a manga adaptation, and a prequel manga that sheds some light on [UNBELIEVABLY MASSIVE SPOILERS]. That prequel manga (GAMERA -Rebirth- code thyrsos) is being published online for free in both Japanese and English. You can read the first chapter here.

In unofficial translation news, English subtitles for GAMERA.1999 (1999) and yokaipedia (2022) are now available. The former is Hideaki Anno's making-of documentary for Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris; the latter is a fun, child-friendly fantasy from Godzilla Minus One director Takashi Yamazaki with a big ol' centipede-dragon at the end. (It's also maybe the first Japanese kaiju film I've ever seen with a major Black character.) I haven't gotten to GAMERA.1999 yet, though from scrubbing through it, it seems like a lot of dialogue was just ignored by the translator. Shame, as that's one I've wanted for a long time.

We have a teaser for Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, as well as a premiere date for the first two (out of ten) episodes: November 17. (I am being showered with Media for my 30th birthday.) The big news from this trailer is that John Goodman is reprising his role as Bill Randa from Kong: Skull Island. I assume that's going to be through flashbacks and old recordings only, since he was eaten by a Skullcrawler in that one. We also catch glimpses of two new creatures, a dragon and a crab from what I can tell. The latter looks to be fighting a Mother Longlegs.

Fandango and AMC have added mostly-empty listings for Godzilla 2000 on November 1. Fathom Events screened Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla on November 3 last year; despite randomly showing Tokyo SOS back in March, I gather they're making a tradition out of Godzilla Day. Note that the listed runtime is longer than the film itself. Predictions for the program: another message from Keiji Ota, the 2022 Godzilla vs. Gigan short, and the Japanese version of G2K. Interesting that they're running the last Toho Godzilla film to receive a wide release in the U.S. exactly a month before Godzilla Minus One has a wide release of its own here.

Gamera isn't a meta-defining Godzilla Battle Line unit... but he's Gamera in a Godzilla game, so I've been using him in every match since I unlocked him. He's gearing towards demolishing flying units, with fireballs that deal more damage against them and knock them back. A pity that he's arriving well after those units were at their most dominant.

Godzilla: Here There Be Dragons #3 still isn't giving me much to write home about, but the kaiju cult creeping to the forefront intrigues. Also cool to see Ebirah in a starring role.

Marubeni, one of Japan's biggest general trading companies, put out a bizarre commercial featuring samurai, zombies, a meteor, and a refurbished GMK King Ghidorah. The ad now has English subtitles, and you can watch a Ghidorah-centric behind-the-scenes video here.

I cannot believe I have more Cleopatra Entertainment fuckery to report on with regards to their Shin Ultraman releases, but they're truly trying to take the "Worst Film Company of 2023" title from the members of the AMPTP. Their third attempt at a barebones disc is starting to reach customers... but the ones who already received the initial replacement disc are being told no more will be sent. @starestream is trying to figure out if they'll be selling the third edition on their site, since it seems buying it anywhere else is a gamble. (Physically, the third edition looks almost the same as the first two, set apart only by the "SUBTITLED" text on the disc.) Either way, it's another blow to a movie that truly doesn't deserve this.

[sofiaispunk]

The Space Cowboy and his Ladybug - CHAPTER 2

Javier Peña x reader

Summary: As you return to your hometown of Laredo, Texas after more than a decade away, you can't help but feel a strange mix of excitement and trepidation. You're here with your new husband, Steven, a successful lawyer from Austin, and you're not quite sure how he'll handle the slower pace of life in this small town. You left Laredo as a teenager, fleeing an abusive father and a painful falling out with your childhood best friend. But will this place ever feel like home again? Can the wounds of the past really be healed, or are they just scars that never fully fade away?

Words: 2,3K

Warnings: angst, trust issues, violence, brief mention of past domestic abuse (mentally and physically), insecurity, references to suicide attempt, smut, TRAUMA

It's a bright and sunny Sunday morning, and you decide to take a walk to the local market in Laredo to pick up some fresh produce. As you make your way down the dusty street, you're struck by the beauty of the small town that you left so many years ago.

The air is thick with the smell of spices and fresh produce, and you can hear the chatter of locals and vendors mingling in the distance. As you approach the market, you're met with a vibrant and colorful scene. Tents are set up as far as the eye can see, with rows upon rows of colorful fruits and vegetables on display.

You walk down the aisles, taking in the vibrant colors and smells of the fresh produce. You pick up a basket and begin to fill it with bright red tomatoes, crisp green peppers, and bundles of leafy greens. As you walk, vendors call out to you, offering samples of their wares.

You pause at a stand selling homemade tamales and can't resist the temptation to try one. The warm, spicy filling melts in your mouth, and you can't help but let out a contented sigh.

As you continue through the market, you catch glimpses of familiar faces from your childhood, but you shy away, not yet ready to revisit those old memories.

But despite the bittersweet feelings that tug at your heart, you feel a sense of peace and contentment as you wander the stalls. The simple beauty of the market, with its bustling crowds and fresh produce, reminds you of the simple pleasures in life that you had forgotten in your hectic city life.

As you continue down the aisle, you overhear snippets of conversation from the locals. The talk of the town seems to be the return of a local hero, a DEA agent who had just returned from a successful mission in Colombia.

On a small corner your eyes fell on a vendor selling the juiciest watermelons you had ever seen. You approached him and greeted him with a smile.

"Good morning, ma'am! How can I help you?" he asked, his accent thick with the flavor of Texas.

"I'd like to buy one of those watermelons, please," you replied, pointing at the pile of fruit.

"Sure thing, ma'am," he said, picking up a large one and slicing it open for you to sample. As you savored the sweet, juicy flesh, the vendor struck up a conversation with you.

"So, are you from around here?" he asked.

You hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to answer. "Well, I used to live here a long time ago, but I haven't been back in over ten years."

"Ah, I see," he said, nodding his head. "You're one of those who got away."

You smiled at his description, but your mind was still racing with questions about your past and uncertain future. As if sensing your inner turmoil, the vendor continued, "You know, there's a big buzz going around town about Javier."

"Javier? Who?" You asked, knowing which Javier he meant.

"Javier Pena, the DEA Agent in town, he's a bit of a local hero," the vendor explained. "He just got back from a mission in Colombia, where he took down Pablo Escobar. Can you believe that? A boy from Laredo taking down the biggest drug lord of Colombia."You couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and awe at the mention him. "But you know, he's a bit of a ladies' man. Left his old girlfriend at the altar, they say." The lady next to you chimed in. “Marcella, he is a hero who has time to talk about these old boring stories. Let the man live his life! You are just angry he didn’t want to marry your daughter.” You thanked the vendor and wished them a good day no longer wanting to be part of this conversation. You obviously knew which ex girlfriend they were talking about. Lorraine. 

Painful memories resurfaces and you barely can hold yourself together.

You couldn't hold back the tears that were streaming down my face as you ran towards your vacation house, clutching the basket of fresh produce that you had just bought from the market. The memories of Javier and emotions were hitting youhard and you felt like you were suffocating. You stopped dead in your track when you saw the old park next to the church on your way home. Next to the park was a makeshift soccer field with only one gate and the same broken white fence you remember from 20 years ago.

As you approached the soccer field, you heard the sounds of children laughing and playing, and it brought a faint smile to your face.

"Hey, remember that time you tripped and fell face-first into the mud?" Javier teases, his eyes sparkling mischievously.

You feign annoyance and playfully push him. "Oh, please! You were the one who pushed me, because I was winning!"

He chuckles and jogs alongside you. "Well, you know I think you tripped because you have two left feet!"

As the warm sun bathes the soccer field in a golden glow, Javier and you chase after the ball, your laughter echoing through the air. Sweat glistens on your brows, but the excitement fuels your energy.

“Javi, lets take a break, okay?I am thirsty.” you say breathlessly and sat down on the soft grass leaning on the fence behind you. 

“Yeah, yeah. You say that because you are a sore loser.” Javier plopped next you on the grass equaly breathless and you both share your water bottle and some grapes Chucho packed. 

As you sat on the grass, you couldn't help but notice the concern etched on Javier's face as he examined the bruises on your arms. "Who did this to you?" he asked, his voice laced with worry.

You shrugged your shoulders, not wanting to tell him the truth, pulling down your sleeves. But Javier wouldn't let it go. "You can tell me, I won't tell anyone else. I promise," he said, his eyes locking onto yours

"Nothing," you replied, trying to brush it off.

But he wasn't convinced. "Please, tell me. I won't let anyone hurt you," he promised.

You hesitated for a moment, not wanting to burden him with the truth. But there's a trust between you that goes beyond words, so you take a deep breath and open up.

"It's... my dad," you confess, your voice barely above a whisper. "He gets angry sometimes, and …." Javier's eyes widen with a mixture of anger and sadness. He stopped you placed a gentle hand on your bruised arm.

“I promise I won’t let anyone hurt you.. ever.” He swore and you immediately believed him. Tears welled up in your eyes, and you nodded, unable to find the words to express your feelings. 

“That’s a space cowboy promise?” you asked through tears. ”A space cowboy promise.” he confirmed with a tight lipped smile.

After the shirt break you stood up and made your way towards the ball and as you were about to kick it you noticed a little bug on the soccer ball. You carefully blew on the bug so it would fly away, which it didn’t.  It seemed injured, and you were worried about it and so you yelled Javi’s name. "We have to help it, Javier," you said, "it's hurt." He agreed, and he carefully picked up the bug and examined it.

"Its a ladybug and it looks like its wing is damaged," Javier said. "We need to find it a safe place to rest." you looked around, trying to find a suitable spot. "How about that leaf over there?" you pointed to a nearby tree. Javier carefully placed her on a leaf, then showed her to me. "She is safe now," he said, pointing at the ladybug. “Let’s give her a name.” you said excitedly, happy now that she’s safe. "Let’s name her after you. Afterall you're my ladybug, and I'll always rescue you and make sure nothing bad ever happens to you."

“LADYYYYYY HEY LADYYYY! KICK THE BALL BACK TO US PLEASE? Why can’t she hear us? LADYYYYY!” you shook your head and looked shocked at the children screaming at you. You didn’t hear them, too caught up in you memories. With a apologetical smile you kicked the ball in the direction where the children were previously playing and made your way back to your house.

The next days had passed by uneventfully, with Steven and you falling into a comfortable routine of doing everyday tasks.You were grateful that the memories did stop haunting you even if it was for a short amount of time. You spent your mornings lounging in the backyard, sipping coffee and reading books in peace. Then, you would go on a jog around the neighborhood or take a dip in the pool to cool off from the Texas heat.

Afterwards, you would run errands like going to the grocery store or the hardware store to buy some supplies for the renovations. It was nice to be able to do these mundane tasks together as a couple, without any pressure or expectations.

In the evenings, you would cook dinner together and watch some TV shows or movies. Sometimes, you would go out to a local restaurant and try out some Tex-Mex cuisine, which was always a treat.

On Saturday, you were sitting on the couch scrolling through your phone, trying to find something to do, when Steven walked in. He looked excited, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

"Hey, I was thinking we could go out tonight," he said, grinning at you.

You raised an eyebrow. "Really? What did you have in mind?"

"Well, I found this bar where they play football, and I thought we could go check it out," he said, already moving towards the door. You hesitated for a moment, not feeling particularly in the mood for a night out, but Steven was persistent. He argued that we needed to make the most of our vacation, and that going out would be a good opportunity to meet new people and have some fun. You finally relented, “Ok fine let’s go. But only one drink.” you warned and headed out to the bar. As we walked through the door, the smell of alcohol and cigarette smoke hit me. You wasn't used to this kind of atmosphere, but Steven seemed right at home. You  found a couple of seats at the bar and ordered some drinks. Steven struck up a conversation with the bartender, while you sat there quietly, feeling out of place.

You sipped your drink and watched the people around you, feeling more and more disconnected from everything. The music was too loud, the lights too bright and you  just wanted to go back to our vacation home and curl up with a book.

People were shouting and cheering as the game played on the TVs mounted on the walls. Steven immediately found a group of guys to sit with, leaving you on your own on the bar. You ordered a drink and tried to watch the game, but you couldn't help but feel a little hurt and annoyed that Steven had left you out although he persisted you coming with him. He was laughing and high-fiving his new buddies, completely engrossed in the game. You couldn't help but roll your eyes every time someone screamed or granted way too loudly in the public bar disturbing the others.

Lost in your thoughts, you barely noticed the familiar voice that called out your name. Turning around, you was pleasantly surprised to see Magda, Javier's cousin, standing there with a bright smile on her face.

"Magda! It's so good to see you," you said as you hugged her tightly.

"I can't believe it's been so long since we last saw each other," she replied, pulling back to look at you. "What brings you back to Laredo?"

You filled her in on your vacation with Steven and how you were staying at your childhood home renovating it and trying to figure out if you should stay permanently in Laredo.

"Magda, this is my husband Steven," you introduced Steven, but he was too focused on the game to pay attention.

"Nice to meet you, Steven," Magda greeted him politely. "Are you a football fan?"

"Yeah, I love football," he replied briefly without taking his eyes off the screen.

You sighed inwardly, feeling a bit ignored. Magda noticed and changed the subject. "It's so good to see you again, amiga," Magda said with a warm smile. "I'm having a small birthday party for my son next weekend, and I would love for you to come."

“We would love to come. Thank you for the invitation.” you smiled at her and as you turned to tell Steven the news, he was already making plans with a group of strangers to watch the game next week-end. “Well, I will be there.” You reassured Magda and hugged her goodbye. You stumbled out of the bar and into the cool night air, making your way back to your vacation home. But even as you walked, you couldn't shake off the disappointment you felt towards Steven's behavior today.

Part 3

[kit-kat-jo]

hey uh, Liam? about that spinoff series actually? ALICE PRETTY PRETTY PLEASEEEEE?

things have been brought up that now i have to think extensively about yet again. like: what the hell even IS Beau?? Whatever he may be, her child or some abandoned pillbaby she programmed some life into to be her lab partner, why doesn't he just........ have a drone body? He's clearly not a child, handling complicated machinery and doing straight up fucking surgery, while seeming to understand Alice completely... and it's not like Alice doesn't just seem smart enough to build a whole body while she's at farming up every single drone part for fun. so why doesn't she?? ok glitch, he's a silly character because he's a drone trapped in a baby body and doesn't have a mouth to scream his horrors. but ah..... idk anymore man

back to our girl, human involvement makes so much sense, actually. they very well could have just made the executive decision to program Yeva to speak Russian because they felt like adding a human sort of diversity to drones, i do like that idea, especially Alice clinging to something, anything that can make her uniquely different.

now perhaps... hear me out here for a minute? one of Alice's lines that sticks to me like glue, is "haven't seen 02 since she left us to die." that line in particular doesn't set with me right, because... what exactly did happen? who's "us?" us as in just Alice and Yeva, or a larger group? we don't see any sort of flashback with her or others in it, so where exactly was she in that flashback scene? shoved away with the other experiments in the lockers, or long gone? it also fascinates me to think about how she possibly got down in the underground facility in the first place, and why she chose to stay there. judging by immediately jumping to call the protag gang "surface slickers," i'm gonna just assume a very concerning amount of time.

either way, the info that we have is just pretty inconsistant, i think. no matter how hard i try to wrap my head around it. i guess it's one of those things that got dropped around carelessly, like the whole having to ingest oil to survive thing.

don’t mind me, im just thinkin about murder drones Alice… it just hit me like a ton of bricks earlier, how did she get her accent?

i genuinely don’t know if glitch cares that much about putting details into background characters, she could literally only be made for the sake of exposition and backstory for Nori or to make Uzi and co suffer, (seeing as it’s up in the air whether they meant to put subject 017 under a different name on the solver list in ep 7) but what if i have a little joy in whimsy in my life?

Doll is Russian so of course i’m gonna assume she has Russian code because Yeva is also. i think it’s pretty safe to assume Alice doesn’t have parents, Nori, Yeva Khan and them being all alive to see the destruction of humanity and being the first generation to make pillbabies and all, so i’m gonna say Alice didn’t inherit this accent from anybody.

all this buildup to say… i think it’d be very silly to just think that Alice just really, really liked old western movies and just… picked up the accent and decided to copy it down into her code. this works especially well, dare i say even makes it make so much more sense, to go along with the trans headcanon. when picking a new voice to give herself she rlly just said: i like thissun :)

@s-wave-entertainment since we’ve done some yapping about lore to each other i thought u might find this interesting

[ahhvernin]

Isabella from Encanto could have easily turned into the kind of woman Ming is, if she never broke out from under Abuela's perfect vision and ready made path. Trying to make your Tiger (grand)Mother/ parent/ guardian proud by being perfect in their eyes and not yours, is suffocating.

Because when you have the weight of your family and society's expectations on your shoulders, you will think you are the weak link, the failing pillar, and are the ruin to the family. You are made to believe you are the sole bearer of the concept of "saving or maintaining face" and if you become The Bruno, your whole family will suffer.

And when you try to be yourself, family or society who have very set ways will eventually tell you to "stop all of this". People say that Turning Red's mother daughter relationship is unrealistic and unrelatable, but we had this before. How to Train Your Dragon has addressed it before. Parental rejection of their kid, telling them that their rebelliousness and true self is a disgrace and the biggest disrespect, their words make your whole world crumble. The fear of being disowned is real.

And despite what lots of people saying how Turning Red had weak emotional scenes and how Brave had a weak mother daughter reconciliation. These moments are so important to kids who have been taught to fit the mold. To be seen, to be recognized that they are a different person, and that they are proud despite straying off mother's made path. And willing to accept their child's flaws and interests. It does not have to be gut wrenching and tear jerking. Because kids who grew up with such expectation, often have suppressed emotions. They might not show the relief or even the denial to hear a parent say these things, and someone who didn't experience this life style might not understand the breadth of it. It can be a big flood gate moment for some, because its a deep yearning desire, but for many these two moments is a subtle feeling, because it is a subtle gesture, a subtle change of the dynamic. Mei is very lucky to have had this heart to heart with Ming at just 13. Hiccup, Merida, Mirabel and Isabella are lucky that their parental figure had made the effort to change and see their kids as who they are and not the sum of their expectations. Many of us, who grew up having to be perfect for family or society, probably didn't get it until well into adulthood, some of us only got after moving far away and cutting ties, and some, still haven't gotten it.

Ming, Alma, Elinor, Stoick....they are not perfect, they were suffocating, they were shitty, yet they were willing to change how they show their love to their child. Ming realized she was repeating the way her mother treated her and doesn't want that. Ming takes the step to break the generational trauma by telling her young daughter.Mei is the youngest at 13. Hiccup and Mirabel are 15. Merida and Mulan are 16. Isabella is 21. And that is very important, it doesn't need an ugly cry moment.

Rebuilding and reestablish the parent-child expectation and relationship is easier at a young age, Mei only started to resent her mother and the expectations placed on her.

The other kids, you could see already had it for a number of years and had been trying for years to be seen.

[chaosandwolves]

Ok ok ok.

I know I'm late but..

I have to go meta again cause that one scene made me shout at the TV.

So let's dive in:

-

We have Carla and Eddie and Chris.

We have Chris trying on the suit. The last time we saw him doing it was in the store where Eddie panicked when Ana was referred to as Chris' mum. The moment that clearly set off Eddie's journey to finally make a decision for himself and break things off with Ana.

This is already a big reference, especially cause Eddie mentions "the last time" Chris was wearing the suit.

You're directly reminded of that scene.

Then Carla and Eddie leave Chris and go to the kitchen (where Ana and Eddie broke up) and talk further. The conversation is about Chris, sure, but also about Eddie.

And we have Carla yet again saying something big, something that's clearly meaningful.

I don't think I have to elaborate on what that dream could be for Eddie...

-

And then this is the next scene:

Chim and Buck carrying in Jee's new bed.

Again, a scene cuts from Eddie to Buck after something meaningful.

And in which way!

Buck in the context of being an uncle, Buck in the context of a kid - after he's donated his sperm.

This CAN'T be a coincidence. Not again and again and again.

What Carla says also applies to Chim and Jee's room situation and might apply to Buck as well.

We see that the room situation doesn't really work out. The fantasy was better than the reality...at least partially. But Chim brings back the words "dream(house)" and "fantasy" and lifts the situation through that into something nice.

So in this case, fantasy and reality kind of mix and it all turns into something positive in that moment.

Now, what does that mean for Buck?

This HAS to relate to Buck's sperm donation. We haven't seen Buck interact with Jee in ages and now he's taking care of her and helping to create a space for her.

Maybe the fantasy Buck had of helping others with their dream will turn out to have been better than the reality in the end.

And what about the "talking about your dreams make it seem too real."?

Eddie's expression is so prominent here

and absolutely reminds of his reaction the last time Carla said something impactful to him "make sure to follow your heart".

Ultimately, back then Eddie's fantasy turned out to be better than the reality as well.

-

There are just too many references in this little scene, in these two sentences, for them not to mean something. We were right last time when we all knew Carla's words were big.

It's set up the same way again. Her words clearly affect Eddie on a deeper level.

Now, of course I'm gonna make this more about Buddie.

We don't only have the scenes cutting from this to Buck, but also that sentence.

Of course the first thing that came to my mind was: That's why Eddie hasn't said anything about his feelings towards Buck because it's too real.

But also... We haven't had a talk between Buck and Eddie since the very significant one in the first ep where they were talking about Buck's love life. And we haven't had a talk about the whole sperm donor thing.

Maybe both of them are too nervous to actually talk about it cause that would make it real.

Idk idk but you can't tell me that this isn't all on purpose. There are just too many references and the absolute lack of Buddie scenes is so suspicious.

-

The film makers are all too aware of how big of a thing Buddie is within the fandom. They know what will make us scream and what will make us read Buddie into it. They're pros. They're not some amateurs.

There are too many things going on that are very suspicious.

You just can't convince me that it's not at the very least, precisely placed.

And as a bonus we have Eddie saying that as a parent you have all these visions for your kid, just like his parents had for him.

But Eddie is fine with letting go of them and imo he's also fine to let go of what remains of the expectations his parents have had for him.

-

This is my Buddie meta rant for this episode. I swear, these two sentences and Eddie's expression and Buck's storyline... It's all connected.

[scarletttries]

The Punishment I Deserve (Adrian Chase Request)

Pairing: Adrian Chase/Vigilante x Reader

Rating: Explicit (Rough sex described, including light choking)

Word Count: 2k

Request: Jealous possessive adrian and something where adrian is in a bad mood because of a patrol or mission didnt go well or something like that and he has rough sex with the reader as like stress relief (he's just so hot, i've been thinking about this concept for like days)

Author’s Note: Thank you so much for gracing me this concept, I am also often thinking about Adrian Chase for days on end so I can relate. I hope you enjoy 😊 also I fully acknowledge that most of my GIFs for Adrian stories are from the prison scene, but it is my favourite Adrian so I will not apologize 💕

The Punishment I Deserve

You were still up when you heard the unusually aggressive stomp of Adrian's vigilante boots outside the door of your apartment. You could never sleep when he was out patrolling on his own anyway, the constant need to be ready gnawing at you, in case he came back hurt or hungry or anything else that you could help with. You quickly flicked off the tv as you heard him cursing at his keys as he fumbled around unlocking the door. As he stormed into the room you offered him a sweet smile, as you did every night, feeling your face fall slack as he slammed the door behind him with more venom that you were used to seeing him move with. He ripped off his helmet, tossing it into the corner of the room with a frustrated grunt, finally looking at you for the first time as you spoke timidly,

"Hey Adrian, everything okay?" He spun around to face you, chest heaving with frustration as he spat back.

"No, everything's not fucking okay. I was this close to catching up with these thugs breaking into a corner shop," holding his shaking fingers barely a centimeter apart as he spoke, "before their fucking getaway driver came out of nowhere and I lost them all! I didn't stop a single criminal tonight! Nobody got punished!" He ranted, face flushed, brow furrowed as he put his glasses back on, tugging off the rest of his body arm with far more force than was necessary. You sat quietly for a moment; you'd never seen him like this, usually he had more than enough skill to apprehend anyone he tried to, coming back from patrol joyful and giggling about how he missed you. You knew how much stopping crimes meant to him, trying to imagine how frustrated he must be feeling to have failed at the thing he feels like he was put on earth to do. You figured there was usually one pretty fool-proof way to cheer Adrian up after a tough day, and you hoped it would work for a mood as bad as this one, watching him muttering angrily under his breath as he ran his fingers through his curls. You stood up slowly from the sofa, picking up your laptop and opening it with your back to Adrian. You spoke softly, a teasing undertone coming through as you tried to fight back a smile.

"I'm sorry you haven't been able to stop a crime yet today Adrian, maybe you'd feel better if we curled up a movie. I'm going to download one...illegally." Pausing on the world to shoot him a challenging look, before turning your attention back to the screen, "I mean unless there's a big, strong vigilante who can somehow stop me from breaking the law, and give me the punishment I deserve." You lent forward to set the laptop down on your coffee table, wiggling your hips as you bent over to make sure even Adrian couldn't miss the hint. You didn't need to worry about that though, the red hot feelings that had been bubbling up in Adrian all night finally had an outlet as he watched one of his sweatshirts rise up the back of your thighs as you bent over. He closed the gap between you in a single stride, one arm looping around your waist to hold you in place while his other palm landed sharply on your barely covered bum. You couldn't help but let out a little squeak as he spanked you, feeling his crotch pressing hard into your lower back. He let out a dark chuckle at the noise, his hand massaging the slapped cheek roughly,

"I'm going to make you regret letting me catch you so easily." His voice was practically a growl as he spoke, tightening his grip around your waist to let you know there was no escape now.

"Make me, hero." You spat back, earning a groan from Adrian as you pushed your hips back against his, earning another swift smack to your peachy cheeks. He grabbed your bum again, hard, as you tried to lean up to face him,

"You don't get to look at me yet, criminal." He laughed darkly, his fingertips running along the sides of the sweatshirt you had borrowed from him. "I can already see you're a dirty thief from what you're wearing. I'm going to have to confiscate this as evidence." With that the shirt was ripped off over your head, leaving you in just your panties, shaking with anticipation at Adrian's aggressive touch. He turned you around to face him, drinking in the full view of your bare chest, his face still twisted with an almost unrecognisable anger. His hooded eyes trailed over you, pupils blown with dark desire as you stared up at him, finally failing to come up with a biting remark to push him further. After what felt like minutes of him just staring, panting uneven breaths, he leant down, pushing you easily over his shoulder and lifting off your feet. You struggled against his grip, but his strong arms easily held you in place as he took you both into the bedroom. He dropped you unceremoniously on the bed, watching you land with a bounce as he pulled off his shirt before he was on top of you. His knees settled between yours, forcing your legs apart as his hands held both your wrists helplessly above your head. He rubbed his centre over yours rhythmically, groaning at the sensation before chuckling to himself at your feeble attempts to struggle against his firm hold on you. His eyes stared deeply into yours as he watched you squirm, moving his hips teasingly slowly,

"Are you ready to admit to your criminal ways?" All you could think about was the thin layer of fabric separating his dripping manhood from your aching hole, desperate to rile him up further. You spat in his face defiantly, before replying, "You'll have to force a confession out of me Vigilante." He ran his finger over the drop of spit sliding down his cheek, gathering it up before running his damp finger in a smooth line down your front, maintaining control of both your wrists with one ample hand.

"And here I was thinking I would just force things into you." He teased before his two wet fingers plunged deep between your folds, his whole body weight holding your hips in place so you couldn't move. You cried out loudly as they worked into you with unrelenting pace, feeling your wet walls stretch around him. His thumb worked to brush over your clit with every forceful thrust, groaning at the way your hips tried desperately to buck up to meet him. His lips latched to your neck as he worked, sucking and nipping until your helpless frame had a trail of dark purple circles leading down your chest.

"Now everyone will be able to see what a bad girl you are." His low breath warm against your neck as you felt the heat inside of you building at his rough touch. His tongue worked down your chest, landing at one nipple and lapping at it hard, sending bright sparks down your spine.

"Adrian." You moaned out subconsciously, overwhelmed by the dominant way he was handling you, feeling your orgasm fast approaching. He smirked at your call of his name, pulling his fingers away from you in an instant, leaving you whimpering for his touch.

"So now you want to talk?" He chuckled darkly, watching your eyes twist shut as your hips rocked desperately against his, craving the friction.

"Please Adrian, I'll do anything." You pleaded, feeling yourself clenching around nothing in your uncomfortably wet underwear, hands still completely immobilised by his grip.

"Tell me you're a bad girl." He commanded, ripping off your soaked panties and moving his hips out of your reach.

"I'm a bad girl." You echoed back, watching the spark in his eyes at the feeling of power he has over you, his own arousal aching between his legs.

"Not for long." He breathed, freeing your hands to flip you onto your stomach. His own pants were discarded as you lifted yourself up with your arms, only to get dragged backwards onto your knees by Adrian's strong grip. He knelt behind you, running his cock over your slick folds teasingly, watching your thighs tremble with anticipation.

"Now say you'll be my good girl." He said menacingly, a firm hand on your chest bringing you upright so your back pressed against his chest, still hovering just outside your entrance.

"I'm your good girl Adrian." You moaned out quietly as he thumb ran over your nipple before making its way to your throat, squeezing lightly. His other hand gripped your hip so hard you knew it'd be bruised for days, stopping you from lowering yourself on his throbbing erection.

"Again." he commanded, waiting for you to open your mouth before thrusting hard into you. A loud moan left your lips and Adrian stopped, tightening his grip around your throat slightly and taunting,

"You have to say it. Only good girls get what they want." You mustered all your concentration to speak, desperate to feel his heavy thrusts inside you, your own excitement already so close.

"I'm your good girl Adrian." You let out in an almost sob, feeling so good as he entered you again, his firm hold on you completely controlling your body. You repeated it again and again, struggling to make coherent sounds as he thrust into you mercilessly, feeling you quickly twitch around him as your pleasure reached its climax. His pace didn't relent as you trembled, pounding hard into you, the careful hand on your throat just loose enough to let your confession fall from your lips again and again. As you came down from your high his fingers trailed from your hip to settle between your legs, rough pad brushing over your sensitive bud with the same harsh pace of his hips.

"Adrian?" You moaned out, already overstimulated from his teasing domination, not sure your legs would support you through another orgasm.

"You're my good girl, so you'll give me another, won't you." He growled into your neck, fingers playing perfectly at your entrance, leaving you completely unable to think, let alone speak as he worked. You just swallowed and nodded, trying to breathe through the overwhelming feeling of pleasure you were experiencing. His powerful thrusts were the only thing keeping you upright as his hips bucked wildly, frustrations of the night fading away as felt you start to clench around him for the second time, mouth slack with the mewling noises pouring out of you. As your slick started to drip around him he lost his rhythm, hips stuttering as he claimed you for his own, filling you with his hot seed. His fingers only let up their onslaught when you had both finally come down from your highs, gently releasing your neck and allowing you to collapse forward on the bed.

His arm quickly wrapped around you, pulling you close so he could place a sweet kiss on your neck, any sign of anger melted away from his heavenly features. He beamed at you like the happiest man alive as you caught your breath, gently sweeping your hair out of your face as he spoke,

"I feel a lot better, thank you. You really are the best girlfriend ever." You returned his kiss,

"Anytime my love." Already planning your next minor crime.

[tamyrawilliams]

"Don't knock it before you see it," Tamyra quickly said when Kaz asked back, but then he seemed interested in what she described, and she smiled. "Of course you can check it out. Pop in anytime and you can try it on and we can see if any adjustments are needed to make it fit you perfectly." She raised an eyebrow at the question. "Haven't talked to him about it yet but I have something for him too, yes. Why do you ask?"

Tamyra rolled her eyes, "We can be cautious and careful and still have fun." And really, seeing Kaz's face when she only described him as pretty enough was already worth coming here. "I apologize, you're gorgeous. You look great, just amazing - is that better?" There was a teasing in her voice, though really, she wasn't lying - anyone who didn't think Kaz was beautiful was simply dumb.

They both changed though and she grinned at him for the compliment. "Thank you, right back at you." And there was a pause while Tamyra remained silent, quiet, waiting out Kaz - she could play this game. And thankfully he agreed to it, with one thing - she couldn't tell anyone about it.

"I am not going to say a single thing," she grinned at him, but she was already taking her phone out - the tower was generous to them on this front, and while calling people who weren't living on the island didn't work, the camera feature of it worked perfectly - and it was the first thing Tamyra learned how to use.

She quickly turned it on and filmed as Kaz walked across the runway - he was a vision, truly. It was obvious to Tamyra, who's seen plenty of fashion shows over her years, that he wasn't really experienced in it, but he had such confidence and swagger as he walked, most people wouldn't have been able to tell or notice, and she didn't mind. It gave another level of hotness to the entire scene, really. Once he reached the end of the walkway, she spun her fingers, "Turn around and pose! That's the tight way to finish a set, come ooon!"

Once he was done and came down, she let out a small chuckle at him asking if he could just fuck around in nice clothes and be high all day, "I mean, if you put on the clothes I make and end up and take some drugs, you can basically do just that without the added stress of it all. And they made a shitton of money. Well, the very popular ones especially, it changed for lesser known ones, but for the most part, they could make insane money."

When he suggested it was her turn now, she shoved the phone into his hands and flipped her hair a bit as she walked past towards the end of the runway. "Watch and gape." She walked the runway like she was home, with confidence and aim, and when she reached the end of it, she did several different poses, spun around, looked straight into the camera all through it before striking the final pose.

@tamyrawilliams

"Pastels?" Brows folded heavy as the colors ran through his mind. But no snarls or grumbles. Not like Tamyra to fuck him over and she knew his style well enough. "Alright. I trust you. Can I have a look at it, what you've picked out, when we get back?" A beat. "Is Emre letting you dress him up?"

I was thirsty too. "I know. That's why I brought the bottle down here." Instead of downing half the bottle upstairs. Regardless, he intended to share. "Uh, is that what we're calling being safe and cautious now? A downer?" Eh, perhaps it was. Tamyra found the warehouse to begin with. Essentially, it was her trip with Kaz along for a little bonus scavenging. Oh, yeah, and to find shit for the wedding.

Pretty enough face-- "Pretty enough?" Still, he'd take the bit of flattery. "Fine, fine," he held up a hand to say he'd back off. A small smile crept onto his lips. "You 'chop chopping' me now? Thought we're supposed to have fun and now you're trying to rush perfection."

Once in the suit, Tamyra shimmied into a dress herself, a vivid color that only she could pull off. "Damn, you look fucking hot." Not as though Tamyra wasn't aware, but Kaz mentioned anyway. He stood stoic as ever as his gaze shifted between the runway and her. "If I find out you tell anyone about this..." he threatened for good measure.

Kaz took to the runway as though he'd been asked to walk across glass. Foot placement careful, eyes glued to the floor. Spine stiff, fists balled in contemplation.

And then he found his swagger. The thousand yard stare locked on the only person in the room. Might as well play it up for all it was worth. It was just the two of them, after all.

At the end of the runway, he stopped and wet his lips. "Alright how's this. Think I could've had a career? Fuck around in nice clothes high as a fucking kite on coke all day?" Not the most informed idea however he could most definitely achieve both things. "How much you think models got paid?" More in one day than he probably made altogether working at the paper, he imagined.

"It's your turn up here now, isn't it?"

[thelostgetfound-artemis]

BL Actors Who Just...Cry So Well

Now disclaimer for this: I wouldn't say I cry easily, whether the situation in the show is intense or not doesn't really matter, for me it depends on the actors in the scene, and some are just REALLY good at crying. (Or I guess, really making me believe it.) These are actors that could be filming a scene where their toaster isn't working and I WILL cry if they do, just because the certain nuances they add to a crying scene take me out.

This is totally subjective for me, so if your fave isn't here it's not that they're bad actors by any means, they just didn't pass my personal 'emotional-vibe-check'. Or maybe I haven't seen them in anything before!!

No.1 EARTH Katsamonnat ( Cooheart)

Earth has cried in every show I've seen him in. Which means I have cried during every show I've seen him in. 11/10 performance every single time. If he has any lines when he's crying, you can tell from his voice that it's genuine. That choked up sound where your throat feels tight and it's kind of hard to get out what you're saying? He's got it down pat. As soon as it starts looking like he's in a situation that could lead to tears, I'm grabbing a tissue because I know I'm about to be a mess too.

No.2 NANON Korapat

It's the way I suddenly become an empath when this man acts. Like a lot of the people on this list, Nanon acts really well with his eyes. He gets this really sparkly sheen over them in scenes, sometimes even when they're not sad scenes, it's like the lighting is set up specifically to catch on his eyes everytime. Crazy. And let me tell you, as soon as his eyes get glassy mine do too. Then the rest of his face follows suit and it's just downhill from there. 10/10 rec watching episode 5 of bad buddy if you need to make sure your own tear ducts are in working order.

[ The rest follow in no particular order ]

NUNEW Chawarin

I couldn't believe it when I found out Cutie Pie was his first time acting. How?

I was a wreck at the end of episode two during the car scene. I don't know how the driver managed to circle the block so effortlessly because if that was me overhearing him cry I'd have to pull over. The thing about NuNews acting that gets me when he cries, is similar to Earth. It's all in the voice. This really got me again later when he's on the phone to his mother and he pulls it away to get his bearings before he speaks again, not wanting to sound like he's crying. It's done so well and so believably I want to cut the cameras and make sure he's okay, damn.

PP Krit

Listen. Is it his acting or is it just the body's natural response when looking at this man?

In all seriousness, anyone who's been watching BL for a while has seen ITSAY. Take a shot every time one of the leads cries. I dare you. In saying that, I think Billkin probably cries more throughout the show, and he's an incredible actor too, but I wasn't using my sweater sleeves to dry my eyes until PP had his moments. There's just something about him,, he looks so small. Like I just want to wrap him in a blanket and set fire to anyone who's hurt him.

I haven't watched I Promised You The Moon yet, because I got spoiled. And I know from those spoilers Oh-Aew probably cries a lot and I'm not physically ready to lose that much moisture from my body, so.

SANTA Pongsapak

Santa is my most recent addition. Like Nanon he's also really good at acting with his eyes, especially when he's happy or enamoured. When he's filming sad scenes I wouldn't say he's as quick to tears as some actors/characters but you can see it in his whole body how he's holding them back. He also does this thing where he wipes tears away really casually, most times when characters do this it's like a full moisturizing routine with how they do it, or they rub really hard at their eyes, all of which is fine, but for me personally the way Santa does it in a more casual way like he's trying to shake off the feelings is something i personally relate to. I'm really looking forward to more shows from him

Go watch My Only 12% if you haven't, it's amazing

Special Mention: GUN Atthaphan

Obviously Gun is 10/10, he's a special mention because he's ofc an amazing actor and originally I did cry every time he did l,, but Theory Of Love broke me and I'm fine watching him cry now 💗

How does this list measure up to yours?

[helloalycia]

my patient’s neighbour [five] // wanda maximoff

summary: Wanda decides to ruin your chance at moving on, which doesn't go down well with you.

warning/s: none

author's note: jealous!wanda is one of my favourite wanda’s 👀 also your comments/feedback always make my day so thank you so much! ♥️

part one | part two | part three | part four | part six | part seven | masterlist | wattpad

Meeting Anna's granddaughter wasn't something I'd ever imagined, since Anna rarely mentioned her unless it was to recall a memory that eventually made her quiet for the rest of the day or to make a snide remark out of annoyance. So, to have her here in front of us was definitely... new.

"What are you doing here?" Anna asked with disbelief.

Sasha blinked awkwardly. "I, er, got a call from the nurse. She said you'd hurt your back, so I thought I'd check in." Her gaze fell to Wanda and I. "I see you've got company."

"Sorry, we'll give you a moment," Wanda blurted, before looking to Anna reassuringly.

I did the same before eyeing Sasha suspiciously then following after Wanda into the hall. When the door closed behind us, I wondered what exactly would happen in there. To say I was overprotective of Anna was an understatement.

Taking a seat on the chairs outside her room, I became acutely aware of how stupid I looked in my trainers, Mickey Mouse pyjamas and raincoat. Especially when Wanda sat beside me, knee brushing mine.

"Do you want a drink or anything?" she asked suddenly, earning my attention.

I shook my head, crossing my arms and leaning back into my seat. "No, thank you, I'm good."

She hummed in acknowledgement but said nothing else. The awkwardness that lingered between us was overpowering, but nowhere near as overpowering as the scent of Wanda's shampoo that was drifting up my nose from how close she was sat to me. I tightened my crossed arms, trying to think of something else. Then I remembered what had happened in Anna's room before Sasha interrupted.

"What were you and Anna arguing about?" I asked, glancing at the witch.

She winced, but didn't look my way. "Nothing. Just neighbour stuff."

I smiled bitterly. So, she didn't want to share. Fine. No big deal. Who was I but her neighbour's carer anyway?

After ten minutes of waiting, we decided to head back inside to make sure Anna was okay. What we saw was Anna and Sasha crying happy tears as the latter sat at her bedside, clutching her hand.

"Damn, sorry," I apologised for Wanda and I, realising we'd interrupted a special moment. "We can–"

"No, we're done," Sasha said, wiping away her tears with embarrassment. "Sorry about that."

"Devushki (girls), this is my granddaughter, Sasha," Anna introduced, and I'd never seen her look happier.

As Sasha stood up and rounded the bed to approach us, I realised she seemed familiar because of the photographs I'd seen around Anna's apartment.

"It's nice to finally meet the two people who have been taking care of my grandmother," Sasha said, before putting out her hand.

I bit back from retorting with something along the lines of 'we wouldn't have to if you had cared for her yourself', and instead shook her hand. Wanda glanced at me, probably sensing the negative thoughts in my mind with her powers, but she said nothing as she smiled politely at Sasha and shook her hand.

"It's nice to meet you, too," Wanda spoke, realising I wouldn't. "Anna talks a lot about you. I was hoping we would eventually meet."

Sasha sighed regretfully, smile fading. "Yes... well, I haven't been around as much as I should have been. I know that now."

"Took you long enough," I muttered under my breath, it slipping out without me realising.

Wanda shoved me in the arm in response and I frowned, rubbing the sore spot.

"You're right," Sasha said, looking to me apologetically. "But I'm here now. And getting that call earlier... it made me realise that I've treated Anna horribly. That's why I've invited her to live with me. To make up for lost time."

Certainly not expecting that, my jaw dropped with surprise. "What?"

Sasha sat back down beside Anna's beside and I exchanged startled looks with Wanda before looking to the older woman in question.

"No offence," I started, glancing at Sasha, before focusing on Anna again, "but are you sure this is the right move? It's not too sudden?"

Anna shook her head and grabbed Sasha's hand. "She wants me to be around her family. And I want it too, Y/N. I miss them."

I nodded, but chewed on the inside of my mouth anxiously. It's not that I didn't trust Sasha (okay, maybe it was a little), but I was scared for Anna. I didn't want her to get heartbroken all over again.

Be supportive, Wanda's voice filled my mind, and I looked to her to see her eyes fading from red to green.

I clenched my jaw. Stay out of my head.

With a bright smile, she ignored me and looked between the grandmother and granddaughter duo.

"I think that's wonderful, Anna," she said kindly. "I mean, of course I'm going to miss having you as a neighbour, but this is all you've wanted. I'm thrilled for you. And so is Y/N."

When she looked to me for confirmation, I felt a familiar anger in the pit of my stomach, only reserved for Wanda Maximoff. But this wasn't about us, this was about Anna.

"I am," I agreed, eyes flickering to Anna. "It sounds great."

"You can both visit whenever you want," Sasha said, nodding enthusiastically. "Anna loves you both so dearly."

"You can't get rid of us even if you tried," Wanda joked, flashing Anna a teasing smile.

Anna chuckled. "I knew you would both understand."

I smiled halfheartedly, glad that everything was working out for Anna but knowing I would miss caring for her greatly.

"We should leave you to rest," I said with finality.

"Thank you," Anna replied, and by the way she looked at me, I knew she was thanking me for a lot more.

"Get well soon," I told her in my 'nurse' voice that she hated, a playful smile on my lips. "I'll check on you tomorrow."

Anna nodded. "Tomorrow."

After saying an awkward goodbye to Sasha, I left the room and headed for the lift down the hall, not bothering to wait for Wanda. Thankfully, she must have known I didn't want to speak to her, as she didn't speed after me.

—

Since Anna moved in with her granddaughter, the last time I saw Wanda was at the hospital. Two more months passed and I had no need to bump into her at Anna's apartment since Anna didn't live there anymore. And the one time I visited Anna since she moved in to Sasha's house, Wanda wasn't present.

I guess it made it a lot easier to attempt to get over her. Six months since she broke up with me was long enough to move on, I think. I'd been on a few dates, none really going anywhere until Natasha decided to set me up with someone a few weeks ago.

It was a family friend of her Avenger's teammate, Clint Barton, and though it was a blind date, it actually worked out well. The woman was called Elise and she was very sweet and charming on our first date, having a similar sense of humour to mine and a killer smile. It was actually the first time since Wanda left that things felt like they were falling into place. We went on a few more dates, deciding not to rush things, and I found myself looking forward to going out with her.

It was a few weeks into our dating relationship when Natasha gave me a call, inviting me as her plus-one to Clint and his wife's vow renewal. They were having a whole celebration at their homestead in Missouri and Natasha figured I'd enjoy it, able to take a weekend break and join her at the lavish hotel she'd be staying in. And also because Elise would be there.

"Oh?" I said with surprise. "Elise didn't mention anything."

"She wanted to," Natasha said with amusement, "but she didn't want to bring it up in case you didn't want to go."

I quirked a brow, despite her being unable to see me. "And why wouldn't I want to go?"

Natasha hesitated. "'Cause Wanda will be there...?"

A sigh escaped my lips as I massaged my forehead. Elise knew about Wanda because it came up when she asked how Natasha and I became friends. She was actually really chill about the whole thing, which I appreciated, but I could only imagine how she must have felt knowing that Wanda would be at the vow renewal.

"You should still come," Natasha encouraged when I didn't say anything. "I already spoke to Wanda and she said she won't cause a scene or anything."

"I doubt that she would," I mumbled.

"She just wants you to be happy," Natasha finished. "So, be happy as my plus-one and get a cute date in with your girlfriend whilst you're there."

I tried to stifle the smile on my lips. "Elise isn't my girlfriend."

"Yet," Natasha added knowingly.

Rolling my eyes, I said, "Look, send me the details and I'll be happy to be your plus-one."

"Yes!" she exclaimed, and I could just imagine her fist-pumping like an idiot. "I'll see you then, Y/N."

"Goodbye," I told her, though a smile of amusement was playing on my lips.

After that call with Natasha, I didn't hesitate to give Elise a call, hoping I wasn't bothering her whilst she was at work.

"Hello?"

"Hey," I greeted, smiling to myself. "Is this a bad time?"

"Well, luckily for you, I'm actually just starting my lunch break," she said in a joking manner. "What's up?"

I scratched my head uncertainly. "Well, Natasha just called and invited me as her plus-one to Clint's vow renewal. She said you would be there, too, obviously, but I just wanted to check in and see if it was okay that I went."

I left out the part about her not telling me about it, but she seemed to pick up on it anyway as she breathed out slowly.

"I just don't want to step on your toes," I quickly added, before chewing on my lip.

"You could never," she said reassuringly. "I actually wanted to ask you to be my date, but I thought it may be too soon. Y'know, a vow renewal when it's only what, the sixth date in?"

"It's not too soon," I said, before adding, "I can just come as Natasha's friend and we don't have to make it a date."

"There's also the fact that your ex will be there," Elise added, and I frowned at the mention of Wanda. "I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

"It's been six months," I told her with certainty. "I'm as comfortable as can be."

She paused. "If you think you'll be okay, then I'd love to see you there, Y/N."

"I know I'll be okay," I said promisingly. "And I'd like to go and maybe see you, too."

She laughed quietly and it made me smile. "In that case, I guess I'll see you there."

"It'll be fun," I said knowingly.

"It will," she agreed. "And now I can't wait."

It was my turn laugh. "Me either."

And fun it was... along with many other words.

The day of the vow renewal came by quickly enough and as promised, I went with Natasha as her plus-one. She made it as enjoyable as she could for me which I appreciated, with the two of us getting first-class tickets which Natasha was happy to pay for, and checking in to a beautiful hotel for the weekend. And that was just the accommodation.

The actual vow renewal was a stunning affair, as Clint and his wife, Laura, had gone all out with decorating the homestead and it's fields in a traditional, romantic way. A flower arch stood front and centre, with rows of seats set out for guests. Bouquets lined the outside and lights were strung above and all around the trees which I could only imagine would look stunning once the sun set.

"They really went all out," Natasha said, impressed as she took in the scene before us.

I hummed in agreement. "It's beautiful." I glanced at her adding, "Bet you wish you brought an actual date now."

Natasha smirked knowingly. "What's to say this isn't one? This could all be a plan to steal you away from Elise."

"Because that makes sense," I played along with amusement. "The woman who set me up with her best friend's family friend is trying to steal me away from said family friend. Makes complete sense."

"True," she said with a shrug, walking forward. I followed her as she continued, "If I was trying to make a move, you wouldn't see it coming."

I tried not to laugh. "Sure, Natasha."

"Trained assassin, expert in espionage, master of lying and hiding in plain sight," she listed off her skills one by one on her fingers. Shooting me a knowing smile, she repeated, "You wouldn't see it coming."

I rolled my eyes playfully and the two of us made the rounds, myself reacquainting with the other Avengers whom I hadn't seen since, well, since Wanda and I were together. It was a little awkward, since I was never really close with them and vice versa, but they were polite and kind and made me feel comfortable (probably because of Natasha, which gave me yet another reason to be grateful to the redhead).

Eventually, it got to a point where Wanda was the next person to say hello to and I truly thought six months would be enough to get over her; oh, how sorely mistaken I was.

She was talking to Sam Wilson, the two talking about something or the other that was clearly entertaining enough to warrant a laugh from Wanda. As we approached them, the sound of her laugh taunted me, melodic and dancing around my ears like a terrible reminder of what I couldn't have.

They spotted Natasha and I soon enough, their conversation ceasing and Wanda's laughter silencing as her eyes met mine. I tried not to let her effect me, but it became increasingly different when I noticed how beautiful she looked today, wearing a maroon-coloured dress and wearing her brown-red hair down in curls. Of course, all of that didn't compliment the giant scar on her forehead.

"Y/N, it's so good to see you!" Sam exclaimed, trying to prevent an awkwardness from occurring. "How have you been?"

I smiled his way. "I'm good, Sam. You?"

We talked for a little while, catching up, before Natasha decided to drag Sam away for a stupid, fake reason that was clearly said on purpose. Knowing I couldn't exactly stop her, I let her get away with it, figuring I'd have to face Wanda at some point.

"You look good," she spoke first, making me push a stand of my hair behind my ear to give my hands something to do.

"Thanks," I mumbled, before clearing my throat and meeting her gaze. "So do you. That's, er, that's always been your colour."

She smiled in response and I cursed inwardly, wondering why the hell I said that.

"You sound like you've been doing well," she said, referring to the conversation I had with Sam.

I nodded. "Yeah, I have."

A silence filled the air that none of us knew how to fill. I stared at my shoes so hard that I'm surprised a hole didn't form. Wanda hugged herself, unsure whether to speak or not.

"What happened to your head?" I finally thought of something, nodding to the scar.

She subconsciously reached up to touch it, though she didn't seem affected by it. "Oh, nothing. Just happened in a recent mission."

I nodded uncomfortably, never responding well to when she got injured. But she knew that.

"So, Nat said you've got a date," Wanda said, and the way she said it made me think that maybe she'd been wanting to mention it for a while. "Elise, right?"

I swallowed. "Yeah. She's just helping the Bartons out with some stuff then I'll be seeing her after."

Wanda nodded, eyes flickering between me and the floor. "That's nice. So, is it new?"

God, this was awkward.

"Kind of, yeah," I answered, not even sure why. "It's not, like, exclusive, but it's nice to move on, y'know?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh, so you're moving on?"

I pressed my lips together firmly. She was watching me curiously, green eyes bright with intrigue.

"I'd hope so," I answered, cocking my head to the side and watching her. "It's been six months."

She nodded, looking down. "Yeah, okay... so you're not in love with her?"

I clenched my jaw. "Is that really any of your business, Wanda?" She didn't answer, so I straightened up and avoided her eyes. "I should go. Ceremony is going to start soon."

Walking away, I left with tense shoulders and more nerves than when I headed in. She had no right to be jealous. She left me.

I found Elise just before everybody was told to take their seats for the ceremony. She apologised for missing me before, mentioning how she was helping Laura with getting ready, then proceeded to shower me in compliments which sent me into a blushing mess. After catching up, we took our seats for the ceremony and waited for it to begin.

Feeling someone's eyes on me, I glanced to my left and saw Wanda sat on the other set of rows, but she was staring right at me, lips pressed together thoughtfully. I rolled my eyes and looked ahead, ignoring her stares. As if sensing my mood, Elise grabbed ahold of my hand gently, glancing at me with a small smile as if to check that was okay. I squeezed her hand in response, letting her know it was.

Are her hands sweaty? Because they look sweaty.

I clenched my jaw and shot Wanda a glare, seeing the amused smile on her lips as she watched me.

Stay out of my head, I told her mentally, knowing she was listening, before rolling my eyes. And her hands are soft, thank you very much. Yours are the sweaty ones.

Though it was a terrible comeback, Wanda lost her smile and rolled her eyes before looking away. I tried not to let her annoying self bother me as Elise and I sat together, watching the ceremony.

It was short and sweet and though I didn't know Clint and Laura too well, it was easy to see they loved each other very much. Their vows were beautiful and it was adorable when their kids ran up to them at the end to give them a giant hug. I didn't know much, but I knew that I'd love to have a love like theirs some day.

After the ceremony came the reception, and there were loads of tables and chairs set up for guests, including a stage and dance floor next to it, perfect for a nice celebration after the vow renewal. It was all wonderful and I was excited, until I learnt that I was sat on the same table as Wanda.

Me, Elise, Natasha, Sam, Wanda and Bucky Barnes were all sat at the same table, which definitely didn't help with the awkwardness as Wanda eyed me from across the food. I tried to ignore her presence and focus on having a great time with Elise. Natasha promised that Wanda wouldn't make a scene, so I just had to believe her.

"So, what can I get you all to drink?" a waiter said, stopping by our table.

Everybody told him what they wanted and when he looked to me, I shrugged.

"Literally anything is fine with me," I said, before quickly adding, "Well, anything except gin. Not a fan of gin at all."

The waiter nodded and smiled politely. "I'm sure I can get you something good without gin."

I returned his smile as he nodded to us all once more before walking away to get our drinks.

"So, what did you think of the ceremony?" Elise asked, giving me her attention.

The two of us erupted into conversation, as did everyone else, and I was genuinely having a good time with her. The food was good, too, as were the drinks when they arrived. But the one problem was Wanda bloody Maximoff who couldn't keep her eyes away from me and was agitating me with her mere presence. I tried so hard to ignore her, but God forbid my eyes flickered over to her and she was already looking my way.

After a delicious meal and lovely conversation with the others, everybody began to get up and mingle with the other guests. I took this as my chance to steer away from Wanda and instead catch up with Natasha and hang out with Elise, who got on with everyone wonderfully. Sadly though, she had to keep nipping away to help the Bartons with some stuff for the party, but I didn't mind. I figured that was also part of the reason why she didn't invite me as her plus-one, so I didn't take it personally.

About an hour into the celebrations, I was mid-conversation with Natasha when we were interrupted by Wanda. I rolled my eyes as she looked to the redhead questioningly.

"Have you seen Clint around?" she asked. "Laura wants me to take everything from the gifts table inside and I need the key."

Natasha pursed her lips, shaking her head. As her eyes looked around for him, she said, "I'm not sure where he is..."

Before either of them could come to a conclusion, Elise appeared by my side with an apologetic smile and a drink in her hand.

"Hey," she greeted, squeezing my hand gently. "Sorry for ditching you before. I had to make sure the bar didn't run out of alcohol."

"It's all good," I told her with a small smile.

"I got you this gin cocktail to make up for it," she said sweetly, making me eye the drink like it was a bomb.

Wanda snorted suddenly, making me look to her with a glare. She tried to hide her laughter behind a smile as she looked the other way, though that didn't stop her from commenting in my mind with her obnoxious, intrusive powers.

Real good listener this one. Didn't you say you didn't like gin earlier?

I refrained from smacking her. Go away, Wanda.

"Thank you," I said to Elise gratefully, accepting the drink. "It looks great."

"Oh, I think I see Clint," Wanda said, before shooting us all a smile I'd love to punch. "Catch you later."

"See ya," Natasha said, as Elise waved and I rolled my eyes.

—

Dancing was fun and I liked to think I was good for an average person. So, when the DJ put on some fun music and encouraged guests to have a little dance, I immediately asked Elise to join me. Unfortunately, she wasn't exactly the most confident of dancers. She was adorably apologising as she held my hands, letting me take the lead.

"It's okay," I reassured her with a laugh. "You're doing fine."

But as she stepped on my foot for the millionth time, I could tell she thought she was doing anything but. I didn't mind though since it was amusing and cute all at the same time.

Be careful over there, Y/N. You may have been better off wearing some steel-toed shoes.

At the sound of Wanda's voice infiltrating my mind, I searched around me until I caught sight of the familiar green eyes over Elise's shoulder. She was stood to the side, entertained smile adorning her lips, as she watched Elise and I dance.

Why don't you piss off and mind your own business before I buy a pair of steel-toed shoes just to kick you with!

She didn't respond, so I focused my attention back on Elise and paused as something a little slower and more romantic played in the background. Offering an encouraging smile to Elise, I held out my hand which she accepted happily.

"Luckily, this one is pretty easy, so you might avoid bruising my feet," I joked to lighten the mood.

She flushed with embarrassment but let me pull her close as I took the lead. Subconsciously, my eyes wandered back to Wanda, who was now crossing her arms with annoyance and watching me with glowing red eyes. She had absolutely no right to be jealous. But I didn't care. It wasn't my business.

After sharing a lovely dance with Elise, the two of us took a seat at our empty table to have some water and talk. Of course, as we were chatting, our conversation was interrupted by none other than–

"Wanda," I got out through gritted teeth.

She grinned as she took a seat next to us, crossing her legs and resting her intertwined hands on her knees comfortably.

"I figured I'd introduce myself properly since we haven't really met before," Wanda explained, eyes dancing with mischief before she looked to Elise. "I'm Wanda Maximoff."

Elise smiled politely. "I'm Elise Fey. And I know who you are. A really impressive Avenger at that."

I narrowed my eyes as Wanda waved her hand dismissively. What was she playing at exactly?

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," she said bashfully. "But I guess, since you know who I am, it's only fair I return the favour. After all, you're here as Y/N's date, and as Y/N's friend, I thought it would be nice to get to know you."

"Friend," I repeated the word bitterly. "So, that's what we are now?"

Wanda chuckled, brushing off my words, before focusing on Elise. "So, what do you do, Elise?"

"I'm a veterinarian," she quipped proudly.

"How cute," Wanda said, tilting her head to the side and smiling. "How long have you been doing that?"

"Only a few years," Elise said, glancing at me with mild confusion. "It's a really rewarding job."

"I can imagine," Wanda said, before pulling a puzzled expression. "But wait, how does that work with you both? Since Y/N is allergic to pets an' all?"

Locking my jaw with agitation, I stared at Wanda's doe-eyed face. Elise looked to me with surprise.

"You are?" she asked. "Why didn't you tell me?"

I shook my head, smiling at her. "No, not really... I mean, well, rabbits. I'm allergic to rabbits. I didn't think it was a big deal."

"It kind of is," she said playfully. "What if I had treated a rabbit at work and then went on a date with you?"

I chuckled awkwardly. "Hmm, yeah, okay, maybe it's a little bit of a big deal."

She hummed disapprovingly before looking back to Wanda, who watched us both curiously.

"So, you work as a vet in New York?" she asked Elise, and I couldn't tell if she was actually interested or just trying to piss me off. When Elise nodded, she continued, "Are you from New York?"

"I'm originally from here actually," Elise said, motioning around us. "My family knew Laura's family before she married Clint. That's how I know the Bartons."

"Oh, so your parents still live here?" Wanda asked, leaning her head in the palm of her hand as she continued to question her.

"Yeah, not far from here actually," Elise answered with a smile.

Wanda nodded. "Cool... so how would that work, the whole visiting them thing? I mean, Y/N works a lot, right? And I assume you're close with your family. So, how does taking the time off to visit your parents work with you both when it's, like, 16 hours away?"

I squeezed my hands together to contain my frustration towards Wanda. Elise opened her mouth to respond, then closed it when she realised she didn't know how to answer. Her eyes darted to mine, asking for help, and I knew she was too polite to call Wanda out for her bullshit.

"We're still newly dating, Wanda," I answered through a fake smile. "We haven't even talked about meeting each other's parents, so it's not an issue right now."

"Right now," Wanda echoed my words, as if adding a double meaning. "But it will be in the future?"

I tried not to react harshly as I said, "That's not what I said."

Wanda nodded slowly, smirk tugging at her lips. Saying nothing more on the subject, she looked to Elise with dark eyes.

"It was lovely meeting you," she finished. "I'll see you around, I guess."

Elise nodded uncomfortably. "You, too, Wanda."

Shooting me a smile, she got up and left Elise and I sat there in mixed emotions. I was peeved at the Sokovian woman, not understanding why she had to try and ruin my one chance at moving on.

"I'm sorry about that," I said to Elise, a frown on my lips. "I don't know what the hell happened, but I definitely didn't expect it."

Elise chewed on her lower lip with thought. I waited patiently, wishing I knew what she was thinking. Finally, her blue eyes met mine apologetically.

"I don't think Wanda is quite over you," she said quietly. "And maybe you're not over her either, Y/N. At least not as much as you think you are."

I raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? Elise, she's just being a dick to piss me off. It's not like that."

Elise winced. "I think it is. And honestly, you're a lovely person, but I just don't want to get involved in something like that right now."

I knitted my brows together with confusion. "What do you mean?"

She rested her hand on mine atop the table. "It's probably better we stay friends. Easier."

"Elise... c'mon. We just– we only just got to know each other." I frowned, feeling bad that she didn't want to see where this would go.

"For what it's worth, today was really fun," she said with a smile, trying to make light of the situation. "And every date we've shared has been fun, too. But I can't compete with the history you share with Wanda. And I don't want to."

I didn't know what to say, speechless, unable to understand why she was doing this. Taking that as her chance to leave, she leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek before standing up and letting go of my hand.

"I'm gonna leave early," she explained. "I hope you work stuff out for yourself."

I looked up to her, watching as she smiled once more before leaving me be. We'd only been dating a few weeks, I knew that, but I still felt saddened to know she didn't want to keep things going. And with the realisation that it was because of Wanda, my sadness was quickly replaced with anger. It always came back to her.

Scowl on my face, I stood up and knew one thing: Wanda Maximoff was dead meat.

[hardlyinteresting]

Matters of the mind, body, and soul

Laszlo Kreizler x reader

warnings: victorian ideals, discussions of sex (no smut), still 18+ to keep on the safe side, minors dni. the ending is open ended so feel free to imply what you like. potential spoilers for season 1 of the alienist. I also haven't edited this. if you know me, then no you don't please don't read this.

The pool house is eerily quiet as Laszlo makes his rounds reviewing the details of the crime scene. you follow silently keeping the bottom of your skirt lifted to avoid the possibility of blood stains. Lazlo follows invisible clues to one of the changing cubicles.

"what is it Laszlo?”

"l'm not sure yet" he mumbles.

you watch fascinated by the man in front of you.

"do you think something, or someone else stole his attention? He didn't complete his ritual on this poor boy" you offer.

"that's exactly what I am thinking” he says, reaching into the cubical with one hand running two fingers up the wall before bringing them to his lips. your breath catches in your throat you stomach turns in on itself and you can feel heat rush to your cheeks. Laszlo is kind enough to not mention the sound of your sharp intake of breath.

it's much later in the evening when you're back at the make shift office Sara set up.

Both Sara and John have gone home leaving Laszlo and yourself alone. you sit the counter pouring over notes you've made through out the case trying to focus your thoughts but the only thing on your mind is the image of Laszlo with his fingers to his lips. you're unsure why but it’s left you with a feeling of—is it longing? whatever it is it feels sinful. your mind wanders further imagining what the tips of his fingers might feel like against your own. at your waist? the curve of your hip?-caressing your thighs? between-- no you can't imagine that. you won't allow it.

"are you feeling alright?"

"hmm?"

"I was inquiring as to whether you might be feeling unwell. forgive me, but you haven't been yourself at all today”.

"no. I apologize l don't know what's gotten into me today doctor"

"you've seen something that’s left you un-nerved?"

"something lot that nature, yes.”

"do you wish to speak about it?”

you swallow hand brow furrows as you consider. if you can’t talk to an alienist about these thoughts who can you speak to? Laszlo puts down the piece of chalk from his hand, he sits down at the table pulling up another chair to face his. He motions to the seat. your heart races as you follow the silent instruction. your knees touch his when you sit and your quick to sit further back in the chair an action that does not go unnoticed by the doctor.

He also notes your unwillingness to look him in the eye instead choosing to focus on where your fingers trace patterns on your skirt

"your mind us wandering again?”

you only nod in response. biting your bottom lip. why do you feel like crying? you take another deep breath much shakier this time.

"it's not right--not proper"

"In my experience it's the thoughts we've been target to believe are improper that are actually the most natural.”

How is it possible that his understanding makes you want to cry more?

“I fear -- l am afraid that these thoughts are not as natural as you say they may be. I cannot imagine anyone having thoughts such as these about a person."

"so it is another person who has been occupying your mind?"

you nod.

"do you wish to cause this person harm? To injure or kill?"

"no! never." You’re quick to respond looking up at him.

He nods observing your wide eyes and damp eyelashes. He'd be lying if he said it didn’t make his heart clench seeing you so obviously distraught.

"well then" he says gently taking one of your hands in his, "l assure you, there is nothing unnatural about you or your mental preoccupations"

you shiver at the feeling of his fingertips against the pulse point of your wrist

"it may be bold of me, but I believe that what you’re feeling is simply desire"

you shake your head.

"l can't stop thinking about it"

"about what" He presses.

"this morning. you-- “ you sigh standing to turn away from the man," you licked your fingertips and my mind has not been my own since then."

"There is nothing shameful about desire. it is our most primal instinct the very reason every creature on this planet continues to exist"

He stands slowly and you can hear his footsteps approaching.

"if this is desire then my mother was not honest with me"

“It is likely she was not. But I doubt that the dishonesty was intentional”.

standing toe to toe with you he tilts your chin up for you to look at him with watery eyes.

"l still don't understand” you confess, "why would what you did cause this-- surely that's odd even if my thoughts themselves are not”,

“On the contrary. But it is not my place to speak to you about such things" his hand returns to yours.

"l must know Laszlo. I am tired of being at a disadvantage especially in matters of my own soul, mind and body."

He resists a smirk at the fire he sees grow behind your eyes. The unmoving need to stand your ground. an admirable quality.

"very well. There are many things that draw us to potential partner some attraction is conscious, but mostly attraction is a subconscious function, something we do not actively focus on in order to process. Some alienist believe that features that may seem insignificant to us are actually very important,” He lifts one of you hands to hips lips pressing a gentle kiss to your knuckles before continuing, “hands for example seem to be an important subconscious factor when women look at a man. Simply put; when I brought my fingers to my mouth this mourning--" he pauses to repeat the action and you can feel your bottom jaw go slack again, your thighs clench without thought. Laszlo continues, "it brought your subconscious processes to the surface. I trust you can understand why the lips and mouth might also play a role in desire".

"kissing." your mother had told you that much.

"among other things yes” He turns away returning to his chair.

"other things? Laszlo, please don’t give me half truths." you plead moving to sit in front of him again, this time not moving when your knees touch.

"it is not easy to explain.. And when it comes to matters of desire it is better you wait and experience them instead"

"wait? for what? To wed a man I do not care for, and who will not care for my desires? If all men knew what you say you know, then I know my mother would have told me more"

He considers it. your right. it's true that women are only told what it is they need to know to be "good wives" He is not obtuse to the fact that society has not been built for the comfort, satisfaction or pleasure of the female sex.

"Both the hands and mouth can be used to stimulate the body during relations"

you nod watching Laszlo's finger mindlessly trace circles on the arm of the wooden chair and you briefly consider that he's reimagining a moment from his past as he looks deep in thought.

“And, forgive me, have you done these things?”

He looks back up at you, “I have”

“Show me”. You surprise yourself by saying.

"you deserve to venture through these experiences with someone who loves you, and that you love."

Your brows furrowed as you think, then you're the perfect man. You drop to your knees in front of him taking both his hands in yours where they rest on his knees. "and do you not hold affection for me? John has told me you've said as much in so few words. I am not naive in believing you must know how I feel about you by now"

He offers a gentle smile, one hand leaving yours, moving to cup your cheek, "It is my propensity to the very affections you speak of that prevents me from acting. I have-- I have never been bold enough to assume that the feelings may be returned."

It's your turn to reach to hold his face in your hands,

“Oh, Laszlo”.

He stands slowly and you stand too. His weaker hand finds a place to rest on your hip, and despite the layers of skirts and petticoats you swear you can feel the warmth of his palm, the tender press of his fingertips. His other hand traces the the shape of your cheekbone, and jawline memorizing each detail. It's slow and almost imperceptible but at some point your eyes have fluttered shut and your can feel yourself leaning in as his lips meet yours. Oh. He pulls you closer, the hand on your hip moving to press you close by the small of you back.

His forehead rests against yours and you take a moment to appreciate the soft scratch of his beard against your palm.

“Is this equal to the images your mind conjured”.

“Yes,” you confess, “but there was more”.

“Tell me”.

You shake your head avoiding his gaze almost as embarrassed as you were earlier.

“There is no shame between lovers, mien Schatz”.

“Lovers?” The word catches in your throat as you return your attention to him once more.

“I thought that I was clear in my intentions--forgive me. I would never have--if this is not an interaction you which to have tell me at once, I will put the notion to rest”

“I want this-- I want you Laszlo”.

“Then it would be an act of cruelty on my part to not give you what you desire”.

His lips are on yours once again, but this time we walks you backwards until your back is against the wall, the grip of both his hands on your hips much more firm this time.

“I wish to know what it feels like-- “ you grab one of his hands in both of her own “--to feel your fingertips upon my own lips”

You maintain eye contact with the doctor as you bring his hand up, dropping your head down to meet his hand that is in your control, his fingertips graze your bottom lip, his fingers twitch but he does not pull away. You hesitate but venture to brush the tip of your tongue against his forefinger as he had done himself this morning. Pulling away only when he lets out a shaky breath.

“I think I understand,” you mumble, “and these things, they affect you too, doctor?”

“Very much so”.

[rendellstreet]

“I'm sorry that I didn't build you a stronger ship, young Rose.”

[anextraordinarymuse]

Head vs Heart: Part 3

Part 1 can be found here, and part 2 can be found here.

(@jonesgirl88 .... ARE YOU TIRED YET KATIE

ARE YOU YELLING AT ME TO JUST SHUT UP, JESS, YET?)

Okay, picking up where we left off: Despite Holly's presence in FPWL, Shane continues to symbolize Oliver's heart and retain both her impact and presence on Oliver's left side, which is synonymous with the heart. After Holly invites Oliver out for drinks that evening to talk leaves the DLO, Oliver goes looking for Shane and chooses to not only deliver Caitlyn Castelluci's letter/divorce papers, but to have dinner with Shane. What follows is a moment where Shane demonstrates how well she knows Oliver, and how connected they are, as she tells Joey not only how good Oliver is at his job, but shares some insightful wisdom that may have come from Oliver at some point previously, but certainly encapsulates who he is and what he believes. Now, it's important to note that until this point, Oliver and Shane have been somewhat at odds. Oliver is upset because Shane read his letter to Holly which she promised not to do. He forgives her for that transgression in the restaurant, and though he doesn't do so explicitly we do get to see that understanding pass between him and Shane here:

We're not surprised that Shane is standing on his left here are we? Oliver and Shane's wardrobes often match, and that's true in this episode too. Oliver's shirt is pretty busy in this scene, but color wise it's pretty complementary to Shane's shirt. Of course, then you have the bright red suspenders - an obvious tie to Holly, who showed up wearing a lot of red. None of that is important to the left oriented discussion - just interesting tidbits I thought about. And I know their transgressions are not the same, but it's interesting to me that Oliver is able to forgive Shane rather quickly and effortlessly in this moment when he's struggling so mightily to forgive Holly.

So, Oliver goes to drinks with Holly after this moment. That's an interesting exchange. Holly is obviously late which is indicated by Oliver looking at his watch and then calling her room. The anxiety he's feeling is pretty obvious on his face: he thinks she's disappeared again. But when he sees her at the top of the stairs, he has quite the reaction. It looks like he sighs in relief, but he also looks ... I don't know if stricken is the right word, so let's just say he seems to be reminded all over again that Holly is a beautiful woman. But none of those things hold out over the course of their drinks. They can't communicate effectively, and when Holly tells Oliver what the one thing he taught her was we're kind of left going "huh?" It doesn't really sound like Oliver at all, though it's sound advice (something about being your own hero).

While Oliver and Holly are trying to find a table she is on his left, but they spend most of the time sitting directly across from each other. There's no notable connection between them, physically or otherwise. They're not in sync.

You know who is? Yep. Oliver and Shane. The scenes after Oliver and Holly's drinks give us these two moments:

Once again, Oliver is allowing himself to be vulnerable with Shane. Not only is she on his left again, she reaches out to establish physical connection (and even caresses him with her thumb to soothe him). They also match again: the black and blue pattern of his tie matches the black and blue of her shirt. But look at Shane's hair again: it's tucked behind her left ear. We've never seen her wear her hair like this, but we get it twice in FPWL. Once in Holly's presence, and once in Oliver's - the two people that Shane (and her heart) is most vulnerable to at this point.

A better look:

(Once more, for the people in the back: SHANE MCINERNEY IS FREAKING BEAUTIFUL, OMG)

This is the conversation where Shane identifies that Oliver hasn't forgiven Holly, and that he needs to in order to do the right thing. Shane is again encouraging him to find resolution to a situation that has caused him pain for years.

Notably, this hairstyle of tucked behind the ear doesn't appear again after this moment. When Shane observes Oliver and Holly from outside the Mailbox grille her hair is back to covering both ears. But the Oliver and Holly moments inside the Mailbox grille are what we're going to talk about next, because despite the fact that they dance (and kiss) the connection that Oliver shares with Shane is not recreated with Holly.

We know that dancing is Oliver and Shane's thing. We know that some of the first threads of their bond were sewn while they were dancing - so watching Oliver do the same dance with Holly is interesting. Despite the intimacy that comes with dancing their connection is never more than surface level which is exhibited by their hands (or lack thereof).

We don't see Oliver or Holly's hands in this moment. Remember, when Oliver and Shane had their near kiss, Oliver was holding Shane's hand and had it pressed against his heart. We don't see anything like that in this moment. I think in the moments before this gif we actually see Oliver drop Holly's hand - he doesn't pull it toward him like he did with Shane's. In fact, aside from the fact that their chests are touching there is no physical connection between them except for the kiss they're about to share.

And then we get to see Shane alone in the DLO packing her things to leave. Remember how earlier I said that the objects that Holly chose to interact with when she was alone in the DLO were not representative of Oliver as a person, but of her presence in his (past) life? The opposite is true of Shane. She only interacts with one set of things on Oliver's desk, and they're absolutely indicative of both Oliver as a person, and how well she knows him: the letter openers. And not all of them: Shane immediately gravitates to Oliver's favorite letter opener, which she steals. Shane is connected to Oliver; Holly is connected to who she remembered Oliver to be, and her presence in his life. Two very different things.

Almost done!

Now, in the porch swing scene there is no obvious left-side symbolism aside from Shane taking Oliver's left hand to see for herself that he's no longer wearing a wedding ring. I would say that this is because the symbolism isn't as necessary now that the struggle between Oliver's head (Holly) and his heart (Shane) is resolved - and it is - but this symbolism is actually continued in Truth Be Told. And probably further, but I haven't gotten past TBT for gif purposes yet. Anyway, suffice it to say that Shane continues her trend of outright establishing physical connection with Oliver's heart through his left side.

We see it here:

When Oliver needs emotional support and calls Shane to be with him at the reading of his biological father's will;

and here:

after he has indirectly acknowledged that he'd welcome a hug and Shane once more reaches out to touch the left side of his face;

and here (this one was hard to catch because of the camera angle):

There are so many more examples of Shane being representative of Oliver's left side/heart, and I'll probably do another post (or several) when I have gifs for the rest of the movies, but it's SO CLEAR to me that Shane is representative of Oliver's heart, and hopefully these make it clearer how I came to that conclusion. I don't think it's any accident that she's so often connected to or present on that side of him, or that it literally starts as early as the pilot. Oliver may have saved Holly's life in that blizzard, but she had the opposite effect on him. She froze him up, and made him a snowman - Shane reconnected Oliver's head with his heart, because she connected with him on both fronts. The more he connected with her, the more aware of and connected with himself he became.

Whew. That was a lot.

So ... what do you think? Are you bored? Did I lose you?

[spencers-dria]

Light Amongst the Darkness

Ch. 13 of Someone to Stay

Spencer Reid x fem reader

POV: Spencer

I wake up for the third time this morning as a technician comes in the room to take my vital signs. It seems like it's always something, labs, vital signs, or medicine. I look over to see Y/N curled up on the couch, sleeping soundly. She really could sleep through just about anything, but somehow she seems to always know when I get up.

I slip out of bed and make my way to the bathroom as quietly as possible to shower and get ready for the day. I feel a hand grab by wrist as I pass the couch. I look down and see her still half asleep, her eyes aren't even open yet.

"Spence?"

"It's okay, go back to sleep. I'm just going to take a shower."

"Let me know if you need anything" she says through a yawn as she rolls back over. I can tell she has fallen back asleep within seconds by the sound of soft snoring. I can't help but smile. It was an adorable quirk of hers.

By now I'm able to take the bandages off and wash the surgical wound. I wince slightly as the gauze pulls as the staples. It seems do be doing okay. Y/N has really been helping a lot. The nurses here seem to know her well and let her do as much as she wants to help take care of me. I've tried convincing her that she's not at work and she doesn't have to be my nurse but she insists.

I make my way out of the steamy bathroom in fresh sweatpants as I towel dry my hair. Y/N is wide-awake, sitting on the edge of the bed with bandages all laid out on the side table.

I start to sit down next to her as I try one last time to convince her to take a break. "You know you really don't have to..."

"Shush. I want to help."

I turn to face her as she delicately dresses the wound after covering it with an antibiotic ointment. I had to admit, it hurt much less when she did it. I watch her as she puts all of her focus into what she's doing. I really enjoy getting to see her do what she does best, what she's passionate about. She looks really beautiful, despite having just woken up. It's almost not fair. Her hair is hanging down in its natural light waves, I'm almost tempted to reach out and run my hands through it. I can feel my skin tingle where she's placed her hand on my other shoulder for balance as the leans in to examine her finished work. I shake the feeling from my head. I can't scare her off.

After she's finished, I slip on a t-shirt as she pulls out her laptop and we settle into the hospital bed, ready to watch the final Harry Potter movie. Downtime in the hospital had allowed us to make our way through the series much quicker than anticipated. She had asked for a couple extra days off, which I fought against and lost. This was my fourth, and hopefully last day staying in the hospital.

As we get into the movie I hear her say "mmm I miss it."

"Miss what?"

"Hogwarts" she laughs as though this was obvious.

I give her a quizzical look.

She continues. "You know, the wizarding world, in Orlando?"

"Ohhh yeah I almost forgot they had that."

She pauses the movie and turns to look at me with wide eyes. "You mean you've never been?"

"No. By the time they built it I guess I was older and already working for the FBI."

"Spencer I only went my first time in college." She laughs. "You're never too old to go to Hogwarts!"

She sits for a moment, lost in her thoughts, before her face lights up with a huge smile.

"We have to go."

"What, the two of us?"

"No genius, me and Hotch." We both giggle at the thought as she elbows me. "I used to take road trips with my friends back home all the time. It's been awhile though..."

I can tell she's been a bit homesick lately. She misses her friends and family. No one has been able to visit her yet. So I decide that this is a great idea for us both.

I look over to her, unable to hide a grin. "When are we going?"

"Really? Really??! You'll go? Oh my gosh, Spencer!" She jumps up out of the bed and starts pacing the room.

"We have to start planning. When do you want to go? I have to ask for days off. You will too of course. I can't wait to show you everything. We'll have to get you a robe..."

"Y/N!" She stops to look at me, as I can't help but laugh at her.

"Take deep breaths. We have plenty of time. You really get excited for trips, huh?"

"Oh you have no idea! Vacations are my absolute favorite! Planning is half the fun."

She stops and loses herself in thought for a moment. "It's not weird, is it? Us taking a trip together?"

I simply shake my head and she continues to plan out loud.

Her question makes me think. We are just friends. Friends can take trips together. My thoughts drift to the events that took place a little over a week ago at her apartment and at the bar. We still haven't talked about that. I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it, but ever since then I have taken extra notice of little things.

We used to sit apart to watch movies together, but ever since that day she seems to snuggle next to me. I find myself incredibly aware of how close she is, or when her arm brushes mine, my skin igniting at every touch.

She eventually settles down and makes her way back over to the bed, setting us up to continue the movie. Her head settles onto my shoulder, as if it belongs there. As her gaze falls on the screen, my gaze falls on her, and I can't seem to tear it away. I love watching her reactions. Despite having seen the movie so many times before, her expressions are as dramatic as someone who is seeing it for the first time. She told me she still cries at the boathouse scene, every time. I love that about her, her ability to see light in dark places, good among the evil. She is definitely the shining light amongst the darkness I face every day at work. I never want to lose that...lose her.

Eventually the nurse comes in with the discharge paperwork and instructions for wound care. They try to offer me prescriptions for pain medications at home, but I insist on sticking with Tylenol and Advil. Y/N drives me home and helps me carry my things up to my apartment. After we make our way inside. She immediately starts cleaning, switching on some music before she gets to work. I think about telling her to stop but I know better by now. Instead I lie across the couch and grab the book I was reading before I left for the case.

I try to focus on the words in front of me, but I find myself reading the same page over again as my eyes are continually drawn to Y/N. I see her go in my room and come back out with a laundry basket and bed sheets. After starting a load, she makes her way to the kitchen, wiping down counters and cleaning off any dishes in the sink. She's too focused on each task to notice my lingering stares.

She had come back out dressed in some loose fitting, high-waisted denim shorts and a black tank. She's pulled back the top half of her hair and tied it with a silk, gold scarf. She's still got no makeup on with her glasses. I normally take absolutely no notice of what women wear, but I really admire her style. It's always changing, completely unique and completely hers.

I try to hold back a grin as I watch her dance around the kitchen, barefoot as she sings a song I don't recognize.

"You get ready you get all dressed up, to go nowhere in particular. Back to work or the coffee shop, it don't matter because it's enough to be young and in looovee."

I can't put my finger on it but something about her has definitely been different lately. There's a new glow about her, and I'm drawn to it like a moth.

During her cleaning she's also opened up all my curtains and window's letting light in. She brought home all the flowers that had been dropped off during my hospital stay and is rearranging them into small vases to spread across the apartment. Its almost as if her light is so infectious, she's spreading it into every corner of my life, my home. I blush at the thought of how nice it would be to have her around all the time.

Every once in awhile I catch her gaze and she simply smiles at me as she continues to sing with equal enthusiasm. I appreciate that she's finally comfortable enough around me to sing, to be completely herself.

When she finally runs out of things to busy herself with, she makes her way to the couch and sits across from me, handing me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as she bites into one she made for herself.

"Thank you" I say appreciatively with a mouth half full of food.

"Thanks for everything actually; cleaning my apartment, staying with me at the hospital, taking care of me...and just for sticking around, being my friend."

She leans forward placing her elbows on her knees. "I couldn't have found anyone better if I had hand picked them myself." She laughs at her own cheesiness.

I cough, clearing my throat for a moment. "Should we talk about the other night?"

"The other night? Oh!...oh." I notice her face turns a bit red and she breaks eye contact, staring at the wood floors instead.

"We don't have to I just thought..."

"No it's okay. We should talk about it. Well, first of all I want to apologize for making you uncomfortable. Sometimes when I drink I flirt with just whoever is around. It's not personal. I'm really sorry." I notice her start to nervously pick at the hem of her clothing, a sign of her anxiety.

"No! No you didn't make me uncomfortable." I shake my head, biting my lip as I try to think of how to continue.

"It was unexpected. I've never seen you be so confident. It was really s-s-something else." I feel my face heat up as I catch myself almost saying something I regret. I shift in my seat, incredibly aware of the thick tension lingering in the air.

She finally speaks up. "So the trip? I guess we can pick some dates once you're back at work. Then we can request off and buy some tickets. Sound good?"

"Mmmhhmm." My heart is still racing from the previous conversation. I can't believe how quickly I go from completely at ease around her to a hot mess of nerves. I tell my self it's nothing, that it will go away if I only give it time. It has to.

[twoidiotwriters1]

Written In The Stars CXLII (Harry Potter xF!Oc)

A/N: I think this week’s chapters are the most boring out of all the book, but hang in there it gets better -Danny

Words: 4,940

Series’ Masterlist

Previous Chapter // Next Chapter

Chapter Four: Horace Slughorn.

Mel stumbled onto a bench and inhaled sharply.

"Wizards should just drive!" She panted.

"We drive," Erick said. "I drove you here, didn't I?"

"I was there during your lessons, don't try to show off with me," Mel grumbled.

"Dumbledore and Harry are over there — C'mon..."

"Professor?" She heard Harry asked once they caught up with them.

"Harry?"

"Er — where exactly are we?"

"This, Harry, is the charming village of Budleigh Babberton."

"And what are we doing here?"

"Ah yes, of course, I haven't told you! Well, I have lost count of the number of times I have said this in recent years, but we are, once again, one member of staff short. We are here to persuade an old colleague of mine to come out of retirement and return to Hogwarts. I sent Erick and Mel to look for his whereabouts and they told me he'd be here, let's hope they're right."

"How can I help with that, sir?"

"Oh, I think we'll find a use for the three of you," Dumbledore replied. "Left here."

Mel scoffed and Erick nudged her arm muttering a warning.

"Professor, why couldn't we just Apparate directly into your old colleague's house?"

"Because it would be quite as rude as kicking down the front door. Courtesy dictates that we offer fellow wizards the opportunity of denying us entry. In any case, most Wizarding dwellings are magically protected from unwanted Apparators. At Hogwarts, for instance —"

"— you can't Apparate anywhere inside the buildings or grounds," said Harry. "Hermione Granger told me."

"And she is quite right. We turn left again."

The clock behind them announced midnight, Mel felt a chill ran down her spine and held Erick closer. She was abruptly reminded of the dementors, and she had no wish to see one right now.

"Sir, I saw in the Daily Prophet that Fudge has been sacked..."

"Correct," said Dumbledore, "He has been replaced, as I am sure you also saw, by Rufus Scrimgeour, who used to be Head of the Auror office."

"Is he... Do you think he's good?"

"An interesting question. He is able, certainly. A more decisive and forceful personality than Cornelius."

"Yes, but I meant —"

"I know what you meant. Rufus is a man of action and, having fought Dark wizards for most of his working life, does not underestimate Lord Voldemort."

"And... sir... I saw about Madam Bones."

"Yes... A terrible loss. She was a great witch — Just up here, I think — ouch," Dumbledore looked down to his injured hand with disinterest and lowered it.

"Professor, what happened to your —?"

"I have no time to explain now," said Dumbledore. "It is a thrilling tale, I wish to do it justice."

"Sir — I got a Ministry of Magic leaflet by owl, about security measures we should all take against the Death Eaters..."

"Yes, I received one myself... Did you find it useful?"

"Not really."

"No, I thought not. You have not asked me, for instance, what is my favorite flavor of jam, to check that I am indeed Professor Dumbledore and not an impostor."

"I didn't..." Harry turned to look at her with mild panic, Mel found it amusing.

"Oh well, he came to my house first and I didn't ask him either, but Erick was the one who let him in."

"I'm sorry I put you all in danger," Erick replied playfully.

"For future reference, children, it is raspberry... although of course, if I were a Death Eater, I would have been sure to research my own jam preferences before impersonating myself."

"Er... right," Harry shrugged. "Well, on that leaflet, it said something about Inferi. What exactly are they? The leaflet wasn't very clear."

"They are corpses. Dead bodies that have been bewitched to do a Dark wizard's bidding. Inferi have not been seen for a long time, however, not since Voldemort was last powerful... He killed enough people to make an army of them, of course. This is the place, just here..."

"Like zombies?" Mel said.

"Those things are stupid and slow," Erick replied. "The inferi are nothing like that, trust me."

Once Mel caught sight of the house, she gasped.

"Oh dear. Oh dear, dear, dear." Dumbledore got closer and examined the scene:

Harry followed his gaze up the carefully tended front path and felt his heart sink. The front door was hanging off its hinges.

"Wand out and follow me," He said. "Mr Flint, keep guard on the entrance..."

"Of course," He walked away, Mel wanted to stay and watch over him, but she knew that would hurt Erick's ego, so she held onto her own wand tightly and walked away from him.

"Lumos..."

Everything was wrecked inside the house, but there was something weird about it... it was too peaceful.

"Not pretty, is it?" Dumbledore asked. "Yes, something horrible has happened here."

Mel got closer to the stain on the wall and gawked at the smell. It was really strong and brought back a clear memory of Hagrid holding a chunk of dragon meat to his swollen eye.

"Maybe there was a fight and — and they dragged him off?" Harry said behind her, his voice trembling a little.

"I don't think so..." said Dumbledore. "Mel, what do you think?"

"This isn't human," She said, pointing to the bloodstain, "and the place is empty, if a fight had taken place here the muggles would've come to check on their neighbours, so either this just happened or he's..."

"Still here somewhere?" Dumbledore concluded. "Yes. A very good observation."

Then, without a warning, the old man stabbed the armchair next to him.

"Ouch!" It yelped.

"Good evening, Horace."

"There was no need to stick the wand in that hard," He huffed. "It hurt."

The wandlight sparkled on his shiny pate, his prominent eyes, his enormous, silver, walruslike mustache, and the highly polished buttons on the maroon velvet jacket he was wearing over a pair of lilac silk pajamas. The top of his head barely reached Dumbledore's chin.

"What gave it away?"

"My dear Horace," said Dumbledore, "if the Death Eaters really had come to call, the Dark Mark would have been set over the house! And of course, the non-magic people would've come to see what was happening, as Mel kindly explained a moment ago."

"The Dark Mark," Horace hit his forehead with one hand. "Knew there was something... ah well. Wouldn't have had time anyway, I'd only just put the finishing touches to my upholstery when you entered the room."

"Would you like my assistance clearing up?"

"Please..."

They moved around the room and fixed everything in a matter of seconds as if this was the kind of stuff a wizard would normally do on a Friday.

"What kind of blood was that, incidentally?" asked Dumbledore.

"Dragon's," Mel replied.

They stared at her.

"How did you know?" Her uncle questioned.

"Hagrid used its meat last year to heal his eye," She explained, scrunching up her nose. "It has a very distinctive smell."

"These," said Dumbledore, smiling at her, "are Harry Potter and Mel Dumbledore. Children, this is an old friend and colleague of mine, Horace Slughorn."

"Oho! So that's how you thought you'd persuade me, is it? Well, the answer's no, Albus," Slughorn pushed past them avoiding eye contact. He froze and stared out the window. "Oh dear — Albus, I think you were followed!"

"You mean that young man?" Dumbledore glanced out to the garden. "Mel, could you please bring Erick inside?"

"Sure," She replied.

As soon as Erick heard her, he turned.

"What happened in there? Is he..?"

"Alive," Mel brushed it off. "Apparently this whole act was a security measure — Dumbledore said you could come in but I recommend you to fix yourself first."

"Why?"

"We're bait," She explained while adjusting his coat. "I know why he brought us... Slughorn must be important if he's playing this dirty..."

"What do you mean?"

"Just act as posh as possible," Mel sighed, patting his cheek lovingly. "It should be easy for you."

Erick followed her inside and both sat next to Harry on the couch, the three of them displayed in plain sight so Slughorn had to look at them.

"Hmpf," He studied them before forcing his eyes to look away. "Here —"

He gave the drinks to Dumbledore and then put the tray on Harry's lap rather forcefully. He looked at Erick again.

"I should introduce you," Mel said. "Mr Slughorn, this is Erick Flint, a very good friend of mine. Erick, this is Horace Slughorn, a very dear friend of my uncle's."

"Nice to meet you," Erick stood up and shook the man's hand with a firm grip and a confident tone.

"Hmpf," Slughorn said again.

"Well, how have you been keeping, Horace?" Dumbledore asked.

"Not so well," said Slughorn. "Weak chest. Wheezy. Rheumatism too. Can't move like I used to. Well, that's to be expected. Old age. Fatigue."

"And yet you must have moved fairly quickly to prepare such a welcome for us at such short notice — You can't have had more than three minutes' warning?"

"Two. Didn't hear my Intruder Charm go off, I was taking a bath. Still," He added hastily, "the fact remains that I'm an old man, Albus. A tired old man who's earned the right to a quiet life and a few creature comforts."

"You're not yet as old as I am, Horace," Dumbledore commented.

"Well, maybe you ought to think about retirement yourself," said Slughorn, quickly glancing at Dumbledore's injured hand. "Reactions not what they were, I see."

"You're quite right," said Dumbledore showing a bit more of his hand to them. "I am undoubtedly slower than I was. But on the other hand..."

He shrugged and spread his hands wide, as though to say that age had its compensations, and Harry noticed a ring on his uninjured hand that he had never seen Dumbledore wear before:

It was large, rather clumsily made of what looked like gold, and was set with a heavy black stone that had cracked down the middle. Slughorn's eyes lingered for a moment on the ring too, and Harry saw a tiny frown momentarily crease his wide forehead.

"So, all these precautions against intruders, Horace... are they for the Death Eaters' benefit, or mine?"

"What would the Death Eaters want with a poor broken-down old buffer like me?"

"I imagine that they would want you to turn your considerable talents to coercion, torture, and murder... Are you really telling me that they haven't come recruiting yet?"

Mel felt Erick tensing next to her, she was sure Slughorn wouldn't appreciate knowing that they'd managed to take down two death eaters outside his house a few hours ago, all because Dumbledore had sent them to spy on him.

"I haven't given them the chance. I've been on the move for a year. Never stay in one place more than a week. Move from Muggle house to Muggle house — the owners of this place are on holiday in the Canary Islands — it's been very pleasant, I'll be sorry to leave. It's quite easy once you know how, one simple Freezing Charm on these absurd burglar alarms they use instead of Sneakoscopes and make sure the neighbors don't spot you bringing in the piano."

"Ingenious," said Dumbledore. "But it sounds a rather tiring existence for a broken-down old buffer in search of a quiet life. Now, if you were to return to Hogwarts —"

"If you're going to tell me my life would be more peaceful at that pestilential school, you can save your breath, Albus! I might have been in hiding, but some funny rumors have reached me since Dolores Umbridge left! If that's how you treat teachers these days —"

"Professor Umbridge ran afoul of our centaur herd," said Dumbledore. "I think you, Horace, would have known better than to stride into the forest and call a horde of angry centaurs 'filthy half- breeds.'"

"That's what she did, did she?" Slughorn scoffed. "Idiotic woman. Never liked her."

Harry let out a short laugh and everyone looked at him.

"Sorry," He said. "It's just — I didn't like her either."

"No wonder why," Mel nodded. "She mistreated all of her students — We had to teach ourselves! It's a wonder how I even passed my O.W.L. for that class."

"As if you didn't know you'll get an 'O' in every subject," Erick replied with amusement.

"If I did it wasn't thanks to her," She shrugged.

Dumbledore stood up.

"Are you leaving?" asked Slughorn.

"No, I was wondering whether I might use your bathroom..."

"Oh," Slughorn visibly deflated. "Second on the left down the hall."

After ten seconds of heavy silence, Slughorn got to his feet and turned his back on them, staring into the fireplace.

"Don't think I don't know why he's brought you," He said.

Harry stared at the man silently, Erick remained in place while Mel stood up and looked around the room.

"You look very like your parents," Slughorn told them.

"Yeah, I've been told," Harry replied.

"Except for your eyes. You've got —"

"My mother's eyes, yeah."

"Hmpf. Yes, well. You shouldn't have favourites as a teacher, of course, but she was one of mine. Your mother, Lily Evans. One of the brightest I ever taught. Vivacious, you know. Charming girl. I used to tell her she ought to have been in my House. Very cheeky answers I used to get back too."

"Which was your House?"

"I was Head of Slytherin," Mel turned abruptly in surprise. "Oh, now, don't go holding that against me! You'll be Gryffindor like your folks, I suppose? Yes, it usually goes in families. Not always, though. Ever heard of Sirius Black? You must have done — been in the papers for the last couple of years — died a few weeks ago — Well, anyway, he was a big pal of your fathers at school. The whole Black family had been in my House, but Sirius ended up in Gryffindor! Shame — he was a talented boy. I got his brother, Regulus, when he came along, but I'd have liked the set."

"I wasn't judging you," Mel replied. "Erick's a Slytherin, and he's our friend. He's a Prefect as well, and bound to be the Headboy this year..."

"I see," Slughorn eyed him up. "Eliot Flint's grandson? I met him during my school years... great man he was, I'm sorry to hear about his passing, how are your parents?"

"I wouldn't know, Sir," Erick smiled tensely. "They threw me out of the house after they discovered my correspondence with a muggle."

"He's living with me," Mel added.

Slughorn nodded.

"I remember when your mother made peace with Miss Evans, the two of them were a thing to fear! Your mother was Muggle-born, of course, Harry. Couldn't believe it when I found out. Thought she must have been pure-blood, she was so good."

"One of our best friends is Muggle-born," said Harry. "and she's the best in our year."

"Funny how that sometimes happens, isn't it?"

"Not really," He said coldly.

Slughorn looked at them like he'd just realized his mistake.

"You mustn't think I'm prejudiced! No, no, no! Haven't I just said your mother was one of my all-time favourite students? And there was Dirk Cresswell in the year after her too — now Head of the Goblin Liaison Office, of course — another Muggle-born, a very gifted student, and still gives me excellent inside information on the goings-on at Gringotts!"

He pointed to the bunch of photographs on the dresser.

"All ex-students, all signed. You'll notice Barnabas Cuffe, editor of the Daily Prophet, he's always interested to hear my take on the day's news. And Ambrosius Flume, of Honeydukes — a hamper every birthday, and all because I was able to give him an introduction to Ciceron Harkiss, who gave him his first job! And at the back — you'll see her if you just crane your neck — that's Gwenog Jones, who of course captains the Holyhead Harpies... People are always astonished to hear I'm on first-name terms with the Harpies, and free tickets whenever I want them!"

"And all these people know where to find you, to send you stuff?" asked Harry with curiosity.

Mel knew he wasn't doing it on purpose, but he was poking in all the right places.

"Of course not," He said gloomily. "I have been out of touch with everybody for a year."

"You must miss it," She said carefully, "your life was really active before you had to hide..."

Slughorn stared at her as if he'd just realized she was right, although he was quick to cover it.

"The prudent wizard keeps his head down in such times. All very well for Dumbledore to talk, but taking up a post at Hogwarts just now would be tantamount to declaring my public allegiance to the Order of the Phoenix! And while I'm sure they're very admirable and brave and all the rest of it, I don't personally fancy the mortality rate —"

"I gave up my old life to help the Order," Erick replied. "I don't think I'll ever regret my decision, I do something worthy, I'm valuable to them."

"And you don't have to join the Order to teach at Hogwarts," Harry sounded upset. "Most of the teachers aren't in it, and none of them has ever been killed — well, unless you count Quirrell, and he got what he deserved seeing as he was working with Voldemort. I reckon the staff are safer than most people while Dumbledore's headmaster; he's supposed to be the only one Voldemort ever feared, isn't he?"

Slughorn pondered their arguments.

"Well, yes, it is true that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has never sought a fight with Dumbledore... And I suppose one could argue that as I have not joined the Death Eaters, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named can hardly count me a friend... in which case, I might well be safer a little closer to Albus... I cannot pretend that Amelia Bones's death did not shake me... If she, with all her Ministry contacts and protection..."

"You know, people think that I'll be safe forever thanks to my blood relations," Mel smiled in the same ironic manner her uncle did. "But in the end... a bloodline, a connection... it's not as efficient as watching your own back. I think you should take every precaution."

Dumbledore walked into the room and Slughorn jumped.

"Oh, there you are, Albus — You've been a very long time. Upset stomach?"

"No, I was merely reading the Muggle magazines, I do love knitting patterns. Well, we have trespassed upon Horace's hospitality quite long enough; I think it is time for us to leave."

Erick and Harry jumped to their feet, Mel calmly made her way to where they were standing.

"You're leaving?" asked Slughorn, this time sounding a bit hurt.

"Yes, indeed. I think I know a lost cause when I see one."

"Lost..?" He stared at Harry closing his jacket and Dumbledore putting on his travelling cloak.

Mel picked up her coat and Erick helped her put it on.

"Well, I'm sorry you don't want the job, Horace," said Dumbledore. "Hogwarts would have been glad to see you back again. Our greatly increased security notwithstanding, you will always be welcome to visit, should you wish to."

"You could've been one of my favourite teachers," Mel sighed, trying to look disappointed. "Well, what can we do?"

"Yes... well... very gracious... as I say..."

"Good-bye, then."

"It was a pleasure to meet you," Erick nodded.

"Bye," said Harry simply.

Mel had barely reached six in her silent countdown when Slughorn stopped them.

"All right, all right, I'll do it!"

She smiled down at her shoes, Dumbledore turned to see him.

"You will come out of retirement?"

"Yes, yes. I must be mad, but yes."

"Wonderful," said her uncle brightly. "Then, Horace, we shall see you on the first of September."

"Yes, I daresay you will," Slughorn huffed.

As they reached the garden, Slughorn shouted the last demand.

"I'll want a pay rise, Dumbledore!"

Her uncle chuckled.

"Well done," He told them.

"We didn't do anything," said Harry frowning.

"Oh yes, you did. You three showed Horace exactly how much he stands to gain by returning to Hogwarts. Did you like him?"

"That's why you said we were bait?" Erick smiled at her. "You clever girl..."

"You say that a lot," Mel replied, clearly pleased with his compliment. "It wasn't that hard to guess after hearing him speak for like, ten seconds... he likes flashy stuff and the three of us are quite dashing..."

"Horace likes his comfort," Dumbledore nodded. "He also likes the company of the famous, the successful, and the powerful. He enjoys the feeling that he influences these people. He has never wanted to occupy the throne himself; he prefers the backseat — more room to spread out, you see. He used to handpick favorites at Hogwarts..."

Dumbledore explained all of Slughorn's way to them, Mel was absently hearing his voice while also looking around anxiously, every dark corner seemed to be watching them, she didn't feel safe. The Slytherin noticed her apprehensive attitude and walked closer to her, their hands brushing.

"Smart," Erick admitted after Dumbledore finished his explanation. "Though a bit... opportunist, may I say..."

"I tell you all this not to turn you against Horace — or, as we must now call him, Professor Slughorn — but to put you on your guard. He will undoubtedly try to collect you. You would be the jewel of his collection; 'the Boy Who Lived'... or, as they call you these days, Harry, 'the Chosen One.' And he wouldn't say no to teaching you, Mel, after all the rumours surrounding your upbringing — As for you, Erick, I daresay it only took one conversation for him to realize you're one of a kind."

They continued until they reached the church, where Dumbledore stopped walking.

"This will do. If you will grasp my arm, Harry. Erick, you know what our next stop is?"

Erick nodded, offering his arm to Mel once more.

"I've only seen the burrow in pictures, so you'll have to hope for the best here, " He told her.

"Brilliant," Mel grimaced. "Can't wait."

She crashed against Harry when landing, both of them fell harshly on the ground and were quickly lifted by the people accompanying them.

"If you don't mind," said Dumbledore. "I'd like a few words with Harry and Mel before we part. In private. Perhaps in here?"

Erick stayed out, making sure no one was close to hear what Dumbledore had to say. Harry and Mel followed the Headmaster to the little closet where the Weasleys used to keep their brooms. Dumbledore conjured a light and smiled at them.

"I hope you will forgive me for mentioning it, but I am pleased and a little proud at how well you seem to be coping after everything that happened at the Ministry. Permit me to say that I think Sirius would have been proud."

Mel fixed her gaze on her feet, she wasn't proud of the way she'd acted during the last term. She'd been selfish and arrogant, and now she was trying her best to make up for it. She didn't feel like she was coping well with her loss either, more like ignoring all her thoughts to remain sane.

"It was cruel," Dumbledore continued, "that you and Sirius had such a short time together. A brutal ending to what should have been a long and happy relationship, and a loving family."

The silence lasted for a few seconds, then Harry spoke:

"It's just hard," He said, "to realize he won't write to me again..."

She stared at the poorly lit face of her friend, his eyes were looking up to the ceiling, suddenly she remembered that Harry was, perhaps, lonelier than her. Maybe that was one of the reasons why he wanted to keep their lifeline, it was nice to have something tying them together.

She wanted to tell him they didn't need the connection for that, but if she was honest, she wasn't sure.

"Sirius represented much to you that you had never known before. Naturally, the loss is devastating..."

"But while I was at the Dursleys'..." Harry interrupted in a firmer voice. "I realized I can't shut myself away or — or crack up. Sirius wouldn't have wanted that, would he? And anyway, life's too short... Look at Madam Bones, look at Emmeline Vance... It could be me next, couldn't it? But if it is, I'll make sure I take as many Death Eaters with me as I can, and Voldemort too if I can manage it."

The feeling she'd get whenever Harry would step into his role of the tragic hero fell upon her like a kick in the face — She couldn't blame him for being brave, but she was a tad upset that he wasn't making things easier for her troubled heart.

"You still have a family, though," Mel reached out for his hand shyly and held it. "You have reasons to stay alive."

"Spoken both like your parent's children and Sirius's true godson! I take my hat off to you — or I would, if I were not afraid of showering you in spiders... Now, Harry, on a closely related subject... I gather that you have been taking the Daily Prophet over the last two weeks?"

"Yes."

"Then you will have seen that there have been not so much leaks as floods concerning your adventure in the Hall of Prophecy?"

"Yes. And now everyone knows that I'm the one —"

"No, they do not. There are only three people in the whole world who know the full contents of the prophecy made about you and Lord Voldemort, and they are standing in this smelly, spidery broom shed. It is true, however, that many have guessed, correctly, that Voldemort sent his Death Eaters to steal a prophecy, and that the prophecy concerned you. Now, I think I am correct in saying that you have not told anybody that you know what the prophecy said?"

"No," said Harry.

"Of course not," Mel said with a bit of outrage.

"A wise decision, on the whole. Although I think you ought to relax it in favor of your friends, Mr Ronald Weasley and Miss Hermione Granger. Yes, I think they ought to know. You do them a disservice by not confiding something this important to them."

"I didn't want —"

"— to worry or frighten them? Or perhaps, to confess that you yourself are worried and frightened? You need your friends. As you so rightly said, Sirius would not have wanted you to shut yourself away. On a different, though related, subject, it is my wish that you take private lessons with me this year."

"Private — with you?" Harry's eyes widened. "Like Mel?"

"Yes. I think it is time that I took a greater hand in your education. And fortunately, Mel has completed her lessons with me, so that gives me enough time to focus on you."

"What will you be teaching me, sir?"

"Oh, a little of this, a little of that," said Dumbledore.

"If I'm having lessons with you, I won't have to do Occlumency lessons with Snape, will I?"

Mel snorted, but she quickly turned it into a cough.

"Professor Snape, Harry — and no, you will not."

"Good, because they were a —"

Mel stepped on his foot, successfully shutting him up before he could continue.

"I think the word 'fiasco' would be a good one here," Dumbledore sighed.

"Well, that means I won't see much of Professor Snape from now on," He said happily, "because he won't let me carry on Potions unless I get 'Outstanding' in my O.W.L., which I know I haven't."

"Don't count your owls before they are delivered," said Dumbledore. "Which, now I think of it, ought to be some time later today. Now, a few more things before we part. Firstly, I wish you to keep your Invisibility Cloak with you at all times from this moment onward. Even within Hogwarts itself. Just in case, you understand me?"

Harry nodded.

"While you stay here, the Burrow has been given the highest security the Ministry of Magic can provide. These measures have caused a certain amount of inconvenience to Arthur and Molly — all their post, for instance, is being searched at the Ministry before being sent on. They do not mind in the slightest, for their only concern is your safety. However, it would be poor repayment if you risked your neck while staying with them. This goes to you too, Mel, since they agreed to take in Emily and young Regulus for the rest of the year."

"I understand."

"Me too," Mel nodded.

"And lastly," He looked at them carefully. "Have you made a decision on the lifeline?"

"Yes —"

"— No."

Harry and Mel looked at each other again, both exasperated.

"What do you mean 'no'?" The boy frowned.

"I—I," She stammered. "I... need more time."

"But you —"

"We haven't talked," She insisted. "We can't just make the decision without talking first, can we? Otherwise, who knows if the spell might work?"

Harry wanted to argue against it, but he knew she was right.

"Very well, then," Dumbledore opened the shed door. "I see a light in the kitchen. Let us not deprive Molly any longer of the chance to deplore how thin you are, Harry."

Next Chapter —>

Taglist.

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[inessencedevided]

The Untamed, episode 39 - watching notes

How did this show manage to make me care for these characters in about one episode???

Xue Yang is 100 kinds of creepy

How does he disappear like that? That's a power we haven't seen on this show yet

This whole revenge plot is waaay too convoluted to be only about revenge

Ohoh ... this silence is too ominous

I love how A-Qing still has her rebellious streak, even in death

This is too easy ... he won't die just like this, right?

Holy shit his arm!! 😱😱😱

Um ... sorry but, it's really obvious that the actor just has his arm tugged under his clothes 😅

Whaaaaaaaat???

He's not the guy under the mask???

Who???

Who is that and why does he want the stygian tiger amulet???

I was so sure that that was him

Lan and Jin sword style? I'm wreaking my brain right now who has a strong connection to both, but I'm coming up empty

Oh no, a qing :'(

This is such a brilliant shot! Goosebumps! All over!

And wow

All the awards for song lan's actor 😥

I am ... fascinated by Xue Yang's backstory. Like ... the guy is a goddamn sociopath

With the parallels of his backstory to wwx it's almost like he's wwx without his good heart 😥

So ... all of this is a direct consequence of what happened when they met them in the flashback?

But this isn't how "human affairs" should go or even normally do! Obviously, xue Yang isn't a reliable narrator at all, but all I want to do is wrap Xiao Xingchen in my arms and tell him that not all his good faith in humanity was misplaced 💔

"Stupid, naive, dumb idiots like you, who think the world is a better place just because they did something good!"

But it is!!!! The world on it's own, without humans, isn't inherently good or evil! It is what it is. Good or evil, that's up to us! In the face of the endless indifference of the universe, every act of kindness tips the scale towards a better world!

(Sorry, my atheism is showing)

And that's why I will always have infinitely more respect for the Xiao Xingchens of the world than the cruel and bitter Xue Yangs.

Oh fuck no

No, this will break him, won't it? 😰

Oh no 😭😭😭😭

Oh no

Honey...

"Say something..."

Oh god

Does this show want to set some kind of record for must characters severely traumatised in 50 episodes???

Noooo

No

Fuck

When I wrote that I hadn't seen yet ...

He ... killed himself

I am crying so hard right now and I feel like I haven't even really processed the full tragedy of this arc yet

What is Xue Yang doing?

This is so weird. He honestly looks at Xiao Xingchen like he is a doting husband waiting for him to come home

Ohhh

And now it makes sense that he wanted wwx to restore his soul

And why his soul didn't want to be restored ... because he killed himself. He doesn't want to come back 😥

The way this looks ... that can't be an accident

So NOW he's grieving. Because he can't bring Xiao Xingchen back, can't control him. Xue Yang has such a screwed psychy, it's fascinating ... in a very disturbing way

Wow, he's damaged ...

Oh no ... the candy ... THE CANDY!!!

Holy shit ... what even am I supposed to feel right now? 😨😨😨

Trying to parse that out, I feel like (and this is just my first impressionof thus and my very raw thoughts)... Xiao Xingchen and his kindness they did touch Xue Yang. But he was ill-equipped to deal with whatever feelings they stirred in him, because he had already been so twisted by the world and his own actions. And so he expressed his love the same way he expressed everything: with obsession and the desire to posses and control.

Honestly, I need some more time to really process this ...

They buried A Qing 😭

Oh, Lan Jingyi. I didn't know you had it in you 💚💚💚

Oh god, the Juniors are ALL so soft! 😭

Oh god I want to know so badly. What did Lan Wangji want to say??? "Fortunately... this wasn't us" "Fortunately... you came back to me"? 😭

Omg ... this is a parallel right? From behind they might as well be song lan and Xiao Xingchen!

Oh song lan 💔

The way he takes the pouch 🥺

And Lan Wangji's look. Maybe I'm imagining too much into this but ... if that's not a man intimately aware of what he's going through

"Roam the world. Exorcise evil beings alongside Xingchen."

I can't guys, I'm crying so hard right now 💔💔💔

Holy shit Lan Wangji's actor's performance as he hands him the sword 😭😭😭

IT IS A PARALLEL! 😭😭

look at the screenshot up there again!!

I'm ugly crying so hard right now 😭😭😭

Gimme a moment ...

Tge music in the next scene is really unusual for this show, almost jarring after I've just bawled my eyes out

What is that?

An entrance?

Okay no, not an entrance

Who is that????

Aardgfdgh

The Juniors!!!

The scenery us so pretty :)

Waitwaitwait ... I have a suspicion... no ... nooooo? It can't be ...

The butterfly toy ...

And the comments in the last episode fit, too ... 😳😳😳

OH MY GOOOOOOOD!!!!

The shot of the little flying thing! That's in that restaurant, right??

The comment about remembering stuff from when you're three!

IS HE A YUAN????

@sweetlittlevampire IS HE A YUAN??? 😱😱😱

I'm crying again you guys

Of course he is! It all makes sense

And omg, lan Wangji with the bunny lantern 😭😭😭

And now wwx remembers A Yuan and... the LOOK!!! The song!!! The bunnies!!!

The smile 😭😭😭😭

"Let's buy it" "Okay"

They're a family, you guys!!!! They're a family and I'm ... so ... so emotional!!! 😭😭😭

So much softness between them!!! 💙🖤💙🖤

And wwx smiles as brightly as before this whole mess and ...

Holy shit this episode you guys!!!

First I cry out of sheer devastation and now I feel like my heart is ready to burst!

And it FITS!!!

wangxian got the happy ending Xiao Xingchen and song lan never did. They reunited and even though they spent many years apart they have a real chance now!!!

And this, their child, this is the pay off.

I'm listening to the new album by Nightwish (my favourite band) all the time right now and in their song "How's the heart?" Is this line "now there's one who came from me / A child of light, another tale" and I can't help but think of that right now! The whole song is about how it is worth it, going through the bleak times, fighting through your own darkness because there is light and love at the end of it. It's worth it to keep fighting, just so we can keep meeting others with love. And I can't help but think of little A Yuan/ Lan Sizuhi (and god, I'm almost bursting at the fact that I can write that line!!) As their manifestation of that love. Their "child of light" :')

And even with Xiao Xingchen and Song Lan ... there is this slight hopeful feeling of "we will meet again", if not in this life than in the next ...

Guys, I'm so emotional right now

Sorry for the tengant. It probably doesnt make much sense put in writing 💚

I'm so sad and so happy at the same time ... :')

Oh god, lan Wangji with the lantern is so unimaginably cute!!!

And they gave it to Lan Sizhui!!!

SYMBOLISM!! 😭😭😭

Now, this should be interesting

How much does lan Xichen even know at this point?

Ohhh! That was nie Mingjue in the coffin earlier!

Why is he buried in Yi City???

I'm so confused right now!

(But don't tell me the answers. As always, these are rhetorical questions ;))

Ohhh ...

I have a suspicion about the ghost faced man

And apparently I'm not the only one

He has been "discussing" things with you every single night. Aha 😏

Sorry, this is serious 😬

(This has nothing to do with anything but I paused the stream to type and this was the image I got. I thought i should share :D)

Lan Xichen is so deep in denial

Poor guy

And again with the parallels! There is another Lan who has stuck to someone with a bad reputation and he's standing right there

And jin ling is conveniently reminding us of that 😐

So much drama

OMG!

That was smooth!

No, I KNOW WHO YOU ARE!

Just, "Wei-gongze" :D

"Don't take it to heart"

MY HEART!!!

I feel like Lan Wangji isn't the only Lan who will suffer an aneurysm from repressed emotions one day

@sweetlittlevampire @fandom-glazed @elenirlachlagos @allhailthedramallama @luckymoony @kyrrahbird @i-love-him-on-purpose and @sxnshot (should I tag you again next ep? No hard feelings if not 😊)

Honestly, this ep was the most emotional one for me so far in terms of the whiplash from pain and joy it gave me, though I certainly cried harder at the Yunmeng massacre. The prevailing emotion is joy now, though. I am such a sucker for mismatched, found families and wangxian and their child of light isn't exactly that, I don't know what is. I'm going to sleep with a smile on my face now. 💚