#aka renee playing catch up

[simonsrosebud]

my aftg fox children headcannons (guys be nice to them okay)

Dan & Matt:

They have two boys, Jace and Abram Boyd, one year apart (Abram wasn’t planned hehe) by the time Dan is 32.

Dan/Matt aren’t religious, but they still assign godparents to their kids. Jace��s godparents are Wymack and Abby, Abram’s are Neil and Renee.

At first Neil said no. He didn’t think that responsibility was something he could handle until he eventually got a call from Renee. “I know why you’re calling me” “I figured you would. I warned Matt and Dan that you may not respond in the way they wish, they don’t take it personally,” she’d said. Neil knew it wasn’t personal, but he admitted he also didn’t see the point and couldn’t be cut out for that. “I think you may misunderstand their intentions, may I try to clear it up?” Renee explained that, really, it was only a title, a glorified uncle of sorts, since the boys weren’t getting baptized and they weren’t putting their godparents in their will’s like old tradition did. “It’s a way to showcase the love and trust they have in others; you, me, Coach Wymack and Abby”. “It is an excuse to spoil them rotten,” Andrew had added when he talked to Neil. Renee told Matt to wait a bit, not to push, and a week later when Neil was randomly on the phone w Matt he said “I’ll do it, by the way. The kid thing- The godfather thing.”

Naming Abram was a struggle. They wanted something meaningful since Jace’s middle name was David. It wasn’t until Dan asked Matt what Neil’s middle name was that they got cookin. Neil was in the off season when he was born, so he drove out (accompanied by Andrew) to Atlanta from Columbia and they asked Neil when he got there.

Their backup name was Joshua (aka Josten) in case Neil wasn’t comfortable with Abram. Luckily it only took a few minutes of blue-screening for Neil to shake it off and allow it. Abram was Neil’s one real name, the one thing he’d kept all those years, the thing that made him feel grounded and safe. But Neil was 27. He hadn’t needed the name since he first moved away from PSU at 23 and was alone again. The kid deserved something safe.

ANYWAY. Jace is a certified hetero and goes to University of Miami for college. He grew up playing exy and baseball but once he was a sophomore in high school he quit exy and stuck to baseball all through high school. He’s 5’10.

Abram plays midfielder for soccer and used to play backliner for exy. Abram goes to PSU and rooms with Elliot (Andriel’s adopted kid, just wait it’ll make sense i promise), joins a campus soccer team, then makes the PSU team his sophomore year as a walk on.

Abram is 6’1. Has massive game but doesn’t use it bc he’s kinda oblivious. Very silly and energetic and comes off flirty sometimes when he’s just being nice and goofy. He later attributes it to the fact that he didn’t know he was bisexual until senior year of high school.

Abram fucking fawns over Elliot 3 months into living together bc he realizes he’s kinda in love with him. Never lets it show bc he won’t ruin their friendship and plus they share a room tg. Def foams at the mouth when Elliot comes back sweaty and shirtless from runs. Once Elliot is eating a banana and out of nowhere says “You ever eat a banana and wonder how the fuck girls suck dicks?” in the dining hall and Abram chokes on his drink so bad it comes out of his nose. Horrified.

Neil & Andrew (ik hold on):

Blake (f) and Elliot (m) Nelson.

Andriel had no intention of ever having kids bc no.

However, when Andrew and Neil are 42/43 and living in South Carolina again, Andrew notices that there are footprints in Neil’s garden. Then he sees it again and sees that the footprints continue towards the shed in the backyard. He checks their cameras to see that it’s a young girl coming and going with Neil’s electric bike a few nights a week from 12am-4am. The third time he waits inside the shed and promptly scares the living shit out of her.

QUICK VERSION: Andrew catches Blake sneaking into their backyard shed and borrowing Neil’s electric bike at night a few times a week, lets her use Neil’s old raggedy bike that hasn’t seen the light of day in years, turns a blind eye when she returns it run over, gives her bus money instead, goes back and forth with her for like 1.5 months, points out the bruise & bandages she shows up with one night while he’s sitting outside at 12am (insomnia), doesn’t see her for 2 months, shows up at the 24 hour CVS she works at 3-4 nights a week and sees the bruises on her hand and throat through her turtleneck while she thought no one was looking, threatens to call the police post-shift at 4am and sits with her through a panic attack bc “He’ll- I’m only 15, they’ll make me quit my job and we can’t to afford- and they’ll split us up, and he- Elliot won’t- he can’t- oh my god” and then takes her to his house w consent, briefs Neil bc those kids need to get out of that house but they’re not staying here, Neil who somehow takes it all without a second thought and says “well not forever, but definitely for the night”, takes Blake and Neil (awk first meeting) to Blake’s house and gets Elliot out of the house while their dad is gone (Elliot has a black eye and bruises from rough fingers on his forearm and says dad left in a rampage when he saw u were gone, and i told you that job wasn’t fucking worth it).

Elliot doesn’t trust either of the men after what his sister protected him from and doesn’t know wtf is happening bc he thought Blake had been borrowing her friend’s bike. They stay in Andriel’s guest bedroom for the day, Abby is retired by now but only lives 45 minutes away. Neil takes charge of calling her despite Andrew thinking there’s more pressing matters like kidnapping 2 teenagers. “You didn’t kidnap us, idiot, we came with you” Blake says.

Long story short, the siblings end up staying with them longer than they thought due to lawyers and police and safety.

It becomes kind of a lost and found situation. What was once “while we get legalities figured out” became “until your father’s trial is over”, which stretched into “no way they’re getting sent to XYZ” and “until they can find someone competent enough to handle trainwreck’s, they’re stuck here” and “Dan won’t care if we bring them to Thanksgiving, right?” “Amalia’s been playing exy since she could walk, Kevin, Elliot started a year ago” “Elliot knows Santa isn’t real, right? That stops at, like, 12?” “I’m not teaching her to drive, I’ll get myself killed” “If your mouth gets you kicked out of school, don’t come crying to me” “Addie & Annie keep telling Blake to spend a weekend in Atlanta” “I’m not telling her not to date, she scares me” “Just because your mother wasn’t worse doesn’t mean she was good”

Until one day, two and a half years later, Blake hands Neil an application for adoption, who tilts it towards Andrew, who silently takes it and begins to fill it out.

Blake is 5’0, Elliot is 5’9. Blake is blonde and Elliot has light brown hair, and while they’re not ghostly pale, both of them burn in the sun in .2 seconds.

Elliot does cross country and was training for a 10k when they left their dad so Neil gladly continues that. He’s in awe when he finds out who Andrew and Neil really are, not because he knows their names but bc once he watches their old games it’s like watching gods to him. He’s a true golden retriever which isn’t helped by his ADHD, anxiety and mild dyslexia, which he doesn’t get medicated for until he’s 16.

When Elliot was 13 he almost drowned in a lake bc he was never taught how to swim. When their dad found out he took him back to the lake against his will and kept tossing him in the lake until he kept himself afloat enough to pull himself up onto the dock, nearly coughing up water. It was so traumatic to a young kid that Elliot had a problem with bodies of water after that. Instead of being fine just not going in, he avoids pools or lakes entirely. Beaches are give or take since he can sit far up on the sand.

Elliot watches exy with Neil and feels cool about it; latches onto King instantly and vice versa bc she’s an ESA and his anxiety is through the roof half the time.

Elliot gels very quickly with Jace and Abram when Andriel brings them to Thanksgiving at the Boyd’s house. Once he gets the boys’ numbers they add him and Blake to the groupchat they have with Kateaaron’s, Kevin’s, and Allison’s kids.

Later, when Elliot goes to college at PSU, he and Abram room together. They become even more attached at the hip (impossible) and Elliot becomes infatuated with Abram in a totally normal way that he eventually figures out by spring break is definitely bc he wants to fuck him. But Elliot is chaotic and too anxiety ridden to ever make a move so he bides his time being innocently flirty that comes off as being silly, and doesn’t complain when Abram wraps his arms around him or lets him sleep back to back in Abram’s bed after Elliot has a bad nightmare or can’t turn his brain off at night.

Eventually, sophomore year when they live in a house with 3 other guys, Elliot climbs into Abram’s bed face down after a night out, almost half on top of Abram. They’re literally both so drunk. “You’re in my bed,” Elliot slurs. “S’my bed, babe”. Elliot lifts himself up on his elbow over Abram’s (warm and shirtless) chest. “Who you callin babe?” Abram giggles lowly and Elliot leans down and kisses his cheek, “You can be my babe, babe” he boops Abram’s nose and giggles drunkenly, and his head is dipped low already when he lets his lips lightly press down on Abram’s chin, simply touching, before actually pressing a kiss there after a second. Abram’s hand comes up just as he presses that second kiss down, tangling into Elliot’s hair, and when Elliot pulls his head back up Abram’s grip tightens. Abram tilts his chin up and kisses just beside Elliot’s mouth, pulling him down fully and kissing him deep after the two pause against each other for less than a moment.

Aka, they hardcore make out. We’re talking ass grabbing, lib biting, neck sucking, Elliot straddling Abram, a bit of dry humping, Abram pressing him down into the mattress and moving down to-

Anyway, when they wake up Elliot runs to the bathroom connected to Abram’s room to throw up, and when he notices Abram come to the doorway he says “Dude, you sucked my dick” into the toilet bowl “you’re, like, really good at it, too” immediately wretches again. And it’s probs the hazy hangovers, but Abram says, “Yeah, been wanting to do that for a while” “Thank god, I’ve been dreaming about you doing that since last year… Hey, B?” Abram hums and Elliot doesn’t even lift his face from his arms over the toilet seat before asking “Wanna go out with me?” cue gagging, but luckily Abram splashes his face w water and leans down to just kiss the back of Elliot’s neck “oh that was hot” Elliot mumbles. “Yes, I’ll go out with you” “Thanks… Hey B?” another hum “Can you start the shower and also kill me while you’re at it?” “Whatever you want, babe”

Junior year Abram has to live at Fox Tower but Elliot and the other 3 guys stick together. Except Abram is closer with these guys so he ends up sleeping in Elliot’s bed like 4-5 nights a week. Elliot is an absolute THEIF of clothes too, like if Abram comes over he’s going home without a hoodie.

Elliot calls him B or Bram, most recently babe. Abram calls him baby, El, and sometimes sugar when they’re alone.

Blake is queer too which Neil gets really relieved by because how tf do u give a girl the talk. Turns out Andrew had already done it bluntly and against her will when she first went on a date at 16.

Blake doesn’t go to uni but gets her associates at a community college and Allison somehow gets her an internship with a PR agency, shocking considering her no-filter and sailors mouth.

Aaron & Katelyn:

They have identical twin girls: Annalise and Addison.

The twins are… not planned… they’re 26 and Aaron’s in his last semester of med school while Katelyn is nearing the end of her first year of residency (bc exy players 5th year). Thankfully Aaron had already been matched with the hospital Katelyn was at for his residency.

Aaron gets genuinely terrified when she tells him over the phone like 3 days before he was due to visit. He calls Andrew bc it’s too soon and this isn’t supposed to happen and he doesn’t know how to be a parent when the only one he had was a piece of shit and it’s the first time Andrew hears him audibly diss Tilda without adding “but she was my mom”. Andrew doesn’t say much, but he does say “You had a terrible childhood, yes?” “I mean, yeah” “Good. Don’t replicate it, and maybe yours won’t hate you.” and it’s enough.

All of this is thrown out the window when they find out they’re having twins. Aaron almost faints.

Annalise’s nickname is Annie and sometimes Anna by school friends. She has zero preference between the three options.

Addison rarely gets called her full name other than teachers, gets called Addie.

Andrew calls them both by their full names.

Katelyn has no middle name, so when her and Aaron get married she made Mackenzie her middle name and took Aaron’s surname.

Aaron calls his girls Ad/Addie-baby and Anna-bear.

Addie’s middle name is Mackenzie, Annie’s is Nichola…. you know why🥹

When Katelyn has to full name them she’ll typically yell “Annalise Nick!” and “Mackenzie!”

Aaron didn’t like the nickname Annie bc she’s a redhead and “orphan annie” felt weird bc he and Andrew are orphans. But Katelyn loved the name and it came naturally from others so he got over it.

Addie is bisexual aromantic. Annie is straight.

Addie goes to University of Georgia, and Annie goes to PSU for their really good speech pathology program (the twins are a year older than Jace/Blake and 2 years older than Abram/Elliot so Annie was the first kid to go to PSU).

The twins grew up in Chicago until they were 11, then moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Since they’re close to U Georgia, Addie tells her parents they’re only allowed to visit when she says so she’s not suffocated. Annie is more of a homebody so she not only loves that Dan is at PSU, but would let Kateaaron visit every weekend if they wanted (daddy’s girl).

Allison:

Maybe she gets married maybe she doesn’t, regardless I like to think she doesn’t for a while and ends up adopting a 3 year old named Sabrina.

Sabrina grows up to be a natural honey blonde just like Allison and coincidentally has her same smokey grey eyes.

Queen of nicknames: Sab, Bri, Brina, Briners, Reynolds.

Sabrina never puts a label on her sexuality and is pretty fluid with it, just doesn’t rlly give a fuck.

Grows up in Miami but they go to NYC every winter break and normally 1-2 times every summer. Grew up traveling with Allison but not enough that it affects her childhood.

Goes to NYU. Eventually helps Allison run, design, model for her fashion empire.

Has like a million followers on Instagram, has modeled for Victoria Secret, has been a brand ambassador for Moschino and goes to Paris fashion week w Allison every year once she’s 16.

Since the Foxes go on vacation every summer together, Sabrina grows up very close with the twin girls since they’re the same age. Brina and Addie *experimented* together when they were younger bc they didn’t wanna go to college not knowing anything. Since then, every time they see each other they end up hooking up. They’re very touchy feely with one another, but Brina is kinda like that anyway. Addie only tolerates her and Annie being like that.

They jokingly call their situation “best friends who bone”. Realistically, they’re in a (long distance lol) queerplatonic relationship that just includes sex. Annie secretly thinks Sabrina is aro as well but keeps it to herself bc it doesn’t matter to label it.

Kevin & Thea:

Amalia Day🫶🏼

Youngest of the kids, 3 years younger than Abram/Elliot. They weren’t necessarily concerned with the prospect of kids, so she isn’t born until Kevin is 32 and Thea is 36, not even a full year after she retires due to one too many knee injuries. She goes to Kevin one day after practice and kinda straight up says, “I want a child- No” she cuts him off “I’m 36, I want to be a mother, I want to be a mother with you, and I don’t want to be seventy when she goes off to college” but Kevin just says “She?” “Yes, I’m not bringing another spitting image of Kevin Day into this world”.

Clearly, they do have a girl. Despite Thea’s blunt and sometimes abrasive approach to some things, she takes to being a mother with all the gentle-ness that Kevin remembers of his own, and it’s enough to calm him about being a father (bc we all know Kevin was shitting his pants the whole time).

Amalia is tanner than Kayleigh was, but it’s unnerving how similar she looks to Kayleigh. It makes Wymack a complete pushover for her (though he always says no at first just to say he did).

Amalia grows up playing exy, of course, but also soccer and dance which pains Kevin and Thea reminds him to stfu. Thankfully for him, she’s really fucking good at Exy and gives up dance by the time she’s 8 and soccer by 11.

Plays for the US Teen Exy All Stars team (idk made it up). She plays offensive dealer. Her playing becomes Kevin’s dare I say obsession, but he becomes good (by force of Wymack, Thea, Andrew and surprisingly Jean) at being normal about it- not forcing exy down her throat and pressuring her. It’s good that she’s not a striker living up to Kevin’s legacy.

Amalia makes a Twitter when she’s 16 and it lasts about 3 weeks until Kevin finds out and makes her give him her password to monitor the account. Smart, giving the family’s status and her age, but she acts like it’s the end of the world.

If it wasn’t for Wymack, she would probably be an entitled brat. He keeps her humble along with the other kids.

Terrible fucking driver. Like holy shit.

Thea learned French over the years, so they raise her speaking English and French. As a teen she says she wishes she spoke German instead since Andrew, Aaron, Neil, Nicky, Erik, Annie, Addie, and Blake (eventually) all speak it.

She eventually goes to play for USC Trojans, plays pro, and goes to the Olympics as a 4th year senior in college.

Ages:

Sabrina Reynolds, the twins

Blake/Jace

Elliot/Abram

Amalia

All the kids are one year apart, with Amalia the youngest at 3 years younger than the boys and 5 years younger than Sabrina.

That’s all folks holy shit this was long. Maybe I’ll expand on it soon

[rayonfrozenwings]

10 books I want to read in 2019

Game - Tag some people, Say the 10 books you want to read this year - easy.

Tagging: eh, so @faeriequeenofthewest took a bunch of ppl id tag and I didn’t take note except for the first one so i’ll just randomly tag ppl... (also no pressure, I’m horrible at doing things I’m tagged in.... as u can see by me trying to catch up now....) @fae-queen-of-the-east @illyrianbeauty @photofeesh @theyretheirthere @literaturelybookishthings @kazbrekkxrs @aelin-godkiller @elidethewise​ @lorcanswife @adriata @perranth @nephelle-warrior-scribe @velarxs @crownstealer @mooonbeam @terrasn @andrewxminyard @bluebellflames @fireheartfray @elentiyas @athelwood @mariamuses ... 

1) Six of Crows - don’t look at me, I swear i’ll get there

2) Harry Potter - series, I SAID DON’T LOOK AT ME

3) The Fever series. because twinnie said its good, so imma gonna try to read it.

4) Dark Age, Pierce Brown, I need it. Who is the ....

5) To Kill a Kingdom.

6) Red Winter - because Lauren is promoting it... so... well, i just gotta.

(goes to look at goodreads, because i don’t know them off the top of my head anymore)

7) TDA , i own them so i better read them.

8) ADSOM, 

9) caraval, again i own it so really should read it. honestly this list is just turning into - renee needs to read what she owns already list.

10) Crescent City, by SJM. because it will be nice to see how she writes a new world. 

[annlillyjose]

TWINEPATHY

[Image Description: The words TWINEPATHY and Ann Lilly Jose written in a serif font on a background of rippled water// End ID]

Hey y'all. Yep, you read that right. We are re-introducing my short story Twinepathy, aka the piece of work that led to a major change in my writing process and style. Rambles towards the end of the post. Enjoy the specifics now.

TWs: Death, suicide, drowning

Logline: Protagonist is being interrogated on her twin sister's death, and she's reminded of all the dreams she's had of her death.

Word Count: 1665

Characters

Norah

Protagonist

16-17

Has freaky dreams

Hates her parents

Too scared to lose her sister, but ends up losing her

Insecure™

Renee

Norah's twin sister

16-17

Loves art

Wants to love her parents

Obsessed with ladybugs and moths

Dead (oops)

Parents

Has issues but that isn't explored in the book

Just know that they're immature af

Police Officer

Basically just doing his job

Is too nice to be true

Wants to help Norah but doesn't know how

Process

I started drafting this story a few months back when it started off as a totally different story. The characters had the same names, but they weren't twins. Norah was the younger sister then. The dreams weren't an element of the story as well. This version of the story took me about an hour and a half to draft, and went through some minor changes after it. For several months, I believed that the story is complete and that I'll not go back to change anything. Why, then, am I making this update?

This version of the story has helped me find myself as a writer and feel more confident in who I am, my prose, and my skills, and for that reason, this will definitely hold a special place in my heart. I wanted to make a post specifically for it because... um... well... I love it, okay? That's it.

We'll now move on to some excerpts.

Excerpts:

The last time I dreamt of my sister, I killed her.

This is my opening sentence. Quite proud, to be honest. Death in the first sentence is my new favourite thing oops.

Renee and I are in the midst of a forest, a full moon shining translucently through the dark clouds. My teeth chatter in the cold, breath catching mist, turning exhaled air into short-lived frost. We're roasting marshmallows over a little fire, the crackle of twigs burning blended with the music playing from my phone, her dancing to it, swaying from side to side. Observing that she's too close to the fire, I get up, asking her to move away, but she doesn't.

She's dancing to the music as flames turn her into ashes.

This is one of the dreams and is the best one I guess. I sorta really like the imagery in sentence two.

I walk out of the building and take the longest way to the plantation. Reaching a hand into my hoodie pocket, I crumble with teary eyes the painting I'd torn from the back of Renee's History notebook - the one of her submerged in water.

This is how the story ends. I really sorta like this little paragraph, too.

That's all for excerpts. At this point, what I think is that the story requires a rewrite because there's a lot of scope within the draft and I don't want to leave it to waste. The current word count is very low and I'm pretty sure I can take it to about 2.5k to 3k. There are so many aspects of the story that I can expand on, so let's hope it goes well. I'm not sure when I'll get to the edits, because editing this story is a bit of an emotional process. I've seen this as my best project for such a long time and now it feels weird to know that it requires changes. But it'll be for the best, and the process will hopefully be for the best too. (Expect an update post sometime soon haha)

That's all for now, friend.

Love, Ann.

General Taglist (ask to be added or removed)

@maxgraybooks @shaonharryandpannisim @heartfullkings @bookdragonfanish @vnsmiles @dallonswords @wannabeauthorzofija @sienna-writes @violetpeso @flip-phones @avakrahn @ambidextrousarcher @showgirlcurio @jenetmoses @17nim

[moxiicity]

hi babes! it’s mod a or rebel aka samara and scorpio sky, bringing in the person who is hopefully gonna be my last and final character bc i’m indecisive and weird about muses but i’ve been wanting to play moxley for a while, considering he was my first ever muse so here we are, me playing the love of my life all over again just like when i started rping about ten years ago. pls like this or message me if ya'll wanna plot with my little introvert

i'm playing him as divorced from renee and even if we get a renee, i pretty much plan to keep it that way, just my preference. he still gets to see his daughter due to the fact that the two of them didn't end on bad terms and jon very much enjoys being a father. he's pretty introverted, typically likes to keep to himself but if you're friends with him / he cares about you, he's an insanely loyal person and a bit of a teddy bear but ya know...don't tell the others about him.

i am gonna be playing him as sober which is new to me, when i played him last he was still drinking pretty heavily, also probably doing drugs. the most he does now is smoke, both cigarettes and marijuana. he struggles on a daily but manages, the years of the addiction catching up to him every so often.

i do play him as bisexual, that's my preference and he goes for either, no specific preference for male or female, he really doesn't give a shit. he's not a frequent hook up type of person but ya know, a man has needs and he is but a simple man.

SECRET !

up until going to rehab, jon was a heavy drug addict, mostly dabbling in cocaine but occasionally tried other drugs, none of them sticking as well as cocaine seemed to, from a young age, fifteen to be exact. it's something he still struggles with and while he's claiming to be clean, he still occasionally gets himself some of the drug, going on a binge for a few days before spending the next month or two doing his normal thing.

PLOTS !

friends with benefits - either male or female, doesn't matter to me. - toxic ex girlfriend. ex boyfriend. i would really like an exes plot with a renee! he's always down for friends, maybe even a drug buddy. that's about all i can think about but ya know, if anyone has any ideas that they want jon to be part of i'm pretty down for just about anything!

[charming-charlie]

The Worst Goodbye

Title // The Worst Goodbye

Pairing // Anthony Ramos x Reader

Warnings // Mentions of drinking, cute little fluffs

Summary // Anthony is leaving the Hamilton show and you aren’t coping well with saying goodbye.

Word Count // 2k

Prompt // Hey there! Can I request something fluffy with Anthony from Hamilton? Maybe something where the reader really likes his long hair, aka Philip hair, so when he cuts it she’s a little discouraged? // I found a cute writing prompt for Anthony Ramos. “Person A and Person B having deep conversations together on the patio / balcony at 3 a.m.”

It seemed to be a long, winded night. You were tired, not fully exhausted yet, but there wasn’t much energy in you left. It was yet another end-of-run party, this time for Chris Jackson, for Hamilton. The year was full of losses. Lin, Philippa, Leslie, Daveed, and Ariana left earlier during the summer. Anthony, one of your closest friends, was scheduled to leave next.

The next party would be in celebration of him.

You were okay with that. He wanted to further his acting and music career. Working eight shows a week sort of hindered that and often left him too tired to pursue his other interests.

But it went with the territory, especially in your line of work. You worked at the Richard Rodgers theater as a backstage hand. You made sure people got to their places on time, handled wardrobe malfunctions, and helped devise a schedule if someone was going t be out. It was truly a fun job for you because you were able to see the ins and outs of the show, and you became close with the cast members, both past and present.

The hardest part were the goodbyes, like tonight. Chris was leaving, wrapping up his final curtain call in 2 days, which meant 2 more performances from the man who played a stellar George Washington. While these parties were meant to be a celebration, they were sadder for you. You said goodbye to so many people over the past few months.

The party took place on a rooftop bar. There was the bar itself, which had high glass walls and then there was the balcony area that fenced off the roof. Due to the chilly weather, it being November and all, no one even so much as attempted to go outside on the balcony. At least, not yet. Surely after they had more drinks in them and got warmed up from the alcohol, it’ll be full of party people.

For now, you were the only occupant on the empty balcony. The sun had set, and the moon was out. You were able to see very few stars due to the heavy lights of New York City, but it was still a very nice, relaxing sight. You knew you could never give up the city. There was just something about it that you found comforting, and peaceful nights like this were part of the reason why.

You had a drink in hand, barely touched. You were more focused on the sights before you. It was almost like a scene from a movie. Your hair whipped lightly in the cold wind, but you didn’t feel the frigid breeze.

In fact, you were so lost in your little world, you didn’t hear the bar door open, the one that led to the balcony. It was only when you felt someone brush against your shoulder, you were lulled out of your trance. You turned and you saw Anthony. He was wearing a hoodie with the hood up, his hands in his pockets, and some casual jeans. “Well,” you managed to say with a smile, “you certainly dressed for the occasion.”

He turned to look at you, smiling in return. One of his arms rested on the barrier of the roof. “Yo, I came straight from rehearsal. I didn’t have time to change. Besides, you really think Chris is going to care?” Anthony responded simply. It was almost like he knew you were going to say something about his look, and he had a rebuttal prepared. You wouldn’t put it past him.

That’s right, when he wasn’t working on Hamilton, he had rehearsals for the new show he was scheduled to be on. You said nothing, turning back to the city, not wanting to think about saying goodbye to yet another friend. The theater was starting to be kind of bleak with your favorite people leaving.

“No, Chris won’t mind. I mind though. What is this?” you asked. With your empty hand, you reached out to grab his hood, but he pulled back with a laugh, ducking your grip. He looked so casual and yet it looked like he was almost wearing a disguise. Like, he wanted to blend in. It didn’t work for you though. He had a personality and a smile that could be seen and heard from across a room. He was just that type of person, one of the best people you ever had the pleasure of meeting.

“This is fashion,” Anthony said much to your surprise. You couldn’t help but laugh, truly laugh, at his dumb choice of words.

“Your fashion sense is awful. What time is it?” you grabbed his arm and pulled up the sleeve of his hoodie, looking at his watch. It was going on three in the morning. You had no idea it was so late. The party inside the bar was still in full swing. You don’t think anybody even left it yet. The notion of the time emitted a yawn from you, and you tried to swat it away out of annoyance.

“Whoa, my fashion sense is amazing,” Anthony counted back as he lightly bumped into you, nudging you gently.

You took a sip of your drink, which had long since been watered down, and waved a hand in his direction. “There’s your catwalk, go model it for me and try to change my mind.”

You were absolutely kidding, and you thought your voice was dripping with sarcasm and jokes but Anthony actually took you up on that. He nodded, walked to the end of the balcony and turned to face you. You stood there in surprise, watching as the young man strutted toward you, one foot in front of another, giving off ridiculous poses. He unzipped the front of his hoodie dramatically, giving off such ridiculous model vibes. You were not drunk enough for this.

He got closer to you and he flailed his head, pushing the hood down. Your stared at him. Both of your hands flew to your barely drunken glass, fearing you would drop it from the sudden look. Anthony had cut his hair. His beautiful, long hair that he often wore pulled back, was now short and styled, and it caught you off guard to the point where you couldn’t look away.

You definitely were not drunk enough for this.

“Oh no babe, what is that?” you pointed to his head. Anthony was taking it in stride as he ran his fingers through his shorter hair with a sheepish smile. You had a feeling you were the first person he showed his new style to, but your reaction wasn’t exactly encouraging him.

“I had to cut it for the role. Does it look that bad?” Anthony asked. His smile was slowly fading, and he turned to the glass walls of the bar, trying to catch his reflection.

It didn’t look bad. It just looked different. It was yet another reminder that he was going to be leaving the show soon. It was a reminder that things were changing, and you were not liking it. Finding a cold bench, you sat down, your breath shaky. Your put your drink down somewhere on the ground, not wanting to touch it.

Anthony’s smile had turned into a complete frown by this point and he slowly sat next to you. “I’m gonna wear a wig for the rest of my Hamilton appearances, don’t worry.” His voice sounded a bit defeated. He looked out over the scenery, watching the still buildings, trying to avoid looking at you.

You hated how you were reacting, but you sincerely could not help it. To much was changing too fast.

“It was Renee’s old wig. I’m getting it fixed and cut before tomorrow’s show,” Anthony kept rambling on, as if it would make you feel better.

You sighed. Of course, you were overreacting. You knew that. You were being dramatic. Deep down, you had to expect that this was going to happen, and it has. It wasn’t just the hair. You loved Anthony’s longer hair and you thought he could pull a ponytail off better than most girls out there. This was different. This just proved things were not going to be the same in a very short amount of time.

“It’s not the hair,” you mumbled to yourself, but Anthony heard you. Slowly his head turned to look at you, but you could not bring yourself to face his warm, comforting eyes. “It’s what the hair represents.”

That astonished him and he let out a breath, sort of scoffing your words away like he didn’t quite understand. “What does that mean?”

Sighing deeply, you turned to look at him and you grabbed his hand. Maybe it was time for you to say what you were feeling. When were you going to get another chance? Plus, Anthony seemed a bit down in spirit right now from your reaction. He deserved an explanation.

“You cutting your hair means this is really happening,” you began. You were speaking slowly, trying to choose your words carefully. You didn’t want to end up saying the wrong thing and make the evening (morning?) even worse. “I mean… it’s another reminder that you are leaving the show and leaving me. I’m just not… I don’t know, I’m just not handling it well. That’s all. Your hair looks good. I like the new cut.”

There was silence after that. You wished he would say something. Tension was growing between the two of you with each passing second and you were not sure how long you could sit there in overwhelming silence. You couldn’t take it. You exhaled and stood up, only to feel Anthony reach out and grab your hand. He tugged you back and you instantly sat down next to him.

He leaned in, letting his forehead rest against your shoulder. “Don’t leave,” you heard him whisper. His fingers inched themselves slowly and wrapped around your hand in a tight hold. You rested your head against the top of his and closed your eyes. For a moment, everything seemed to be okay. But it was only for a moment.

“We knew this was coming,” you said slowly. Now you wanted to avoid the conversation. Anthony shushed you as he squeezed your hand. You felt his head rise from your shoulder. He let go of your hand, hooked his index finger and thumb under your chin, and turned your head to look at him. His eyes were unreadable, and he had a sad smile. That did nothing to help your dejected feelings.

“I don’t know if I’m ready,” you said but Anthony cut you off.

“Stop talking.”

He didn’t move, forcing you to keep looking at him. His hand shifted from under your chin to the side of your face. He was making it worse. He was stirring up things inside you that were going to be squashed like a bug on the night of his final curtain call.

“I may be leaving Hamilton but I’m not leaving your life. Don’t even think about that. You think I can just walk away and leave you behind? I can’t. I don’t want to. Shut up about saying goodbye. You aren’t saying goodbye. You may be working with a new John Laurens and Philip Schuyler, but you aren’t getting rid of me completely.” His voice took on a bit of sharpness. You could tell he did not prepare a speech for something like that, which further proved he was serious.

He leaned in, kissing your forehead softly. A cold wind zipped by, and you felt it that time. Or maybe that was just the chill that ran up your spine at his sudden, simple touch.

“Please promise me that,” you said, needing it for your own clarification.

“I promise,” he said while looking at you dead in the eyes. He held onto your gaze for a few moments. The lights of New York City were behind him and he looked like such a vision, like a painting come to life. He looked happy, his smile returned, and there was a sort of lightness behind his eyes.

Your worst fear turned out be over-exaggerated and you were thankful he was there. It’ll be hard, getting through these next few weeks knowing he was going to be gone soon, but you had faith that there was more to your friendship with Anthony than meets the eye. You knew he saw it too.

[talatomaz]

reckless | dinah drake x lance!reader

a/n: this is kind of based on how i was feeling earlier this week. i lost someone close to me quite a while ago and though i know that grief never stops and it eventually just gets easier to deal with, it still doesn’t make it any less difficult

warnings: death, mentions of assault. brief sexual references at the end

word count: 1.9k

masterlist | request list | request rules

i do not give you permission to repost or translate my fics on any platform - likes/reblogs are okay and are much appreciated

“Morning, baby.”

“Morning.”

You replied, smiling softly as your girlfriend placed a gentle kiss on your cheek before removing herself from your shared bed.

As Police Captain, Dinah always had to get up early, a lie in a rarity. It didn’t bother you though; you often woke up at the same time, sometimes earlier as you worked in the mayoral office though you weren’t a fan of the current woman in command.

Emily Pollard was both stubborn and narrow-minded; her stance on the anti-vigilante law further proving that. But you had swallowed your pride and worked for her, mainly to keep an eye on her but also so you could sway her on her decision-making.

Though Oliver Queen aka Green Arrow had been turned into somewhat of a martyr by Mayor Pollard, your sister, Laurel, couldn’t be further from that distinction.

After all, she was the beloved Black Canary and Mayor Pollard could never act untoward about that nor to you, lest she face the judgement of the Star City citizens.

So she kept you beside her, allowing you to enlighten her and best suit her decisions for the public.

As you sat up, you contemplated the dream that you had awoken from. It had left you unsettled because, for the first time in a while, you had dreamt of Laurel and she had acted as your Guardian Angel - not any different than when she was alive but it still unnerved you.

You constantly missed your big sister, the ache in your heart a constant reminder but you had a feeling that the loss would be much worse today. Nevertheless, you had to get on with your life, so with a huff, you left the warm bed and started to get ready alongside Dinah.

***

“Hey, beautiful. How’s your day going?”

Dinah asked, as you entered into her office, case files strewn all over her desk. Clearing a space, you placed the food you had bought from Big Belly Burger down on the desk and leaned down to give your girlfriend a kiss.

“Okay. Pollard’s annoying me but what else is new? How about here?”

“A bit busy. But that’s to be expected given the events of tonight. Everyone’s scrambling to make sure the best protective measures are in place.“

Tonight, at City Hall, Mayor Pollard was due to be holding a function. One of the random fundraisers she always hosted, to pretend as if she cared about the Glades and the wellbeing of the people that lived there. She had you running around, double checking everything, which was a good thing as you weren’t idle long enough to dwell on the dream you had had earlier but you could still feel the painful longing.

“Y/N.”

You blinked, looking at Dinah, soda in hand, staring at you with concern.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I lost you there for a second. What’s up?” Her eyes narrowed in question.

You could never hide much from your girlfriend, her detective skills always managing to have you spilling secrets, but this time, you were able to come up with a relative excuse.

“Sorry, nothing. I was just thinking about tonight and what else I have left to do for Pollard.”

It wasn’t technically a lie but it wasn’t exactly the truth either. And whilst you felt bad, you didn’t want to burden Dinah with your thoughts of her vigilante predecessor.

Looking into Dinah’s hazel eyes, you could see a sliver of doubt but she nodded at your answer,

“If you need to get back, we can always catch up later tonight.”

“It’s alright, Dee. I’m just-”

You were interrupted when your phone trilled in your pocket. Sliding the green answer button, you put the phone against your ear and winced.

“Someone has messed up. I did not want Salmon. I said chicken as the appetisers. And the podium has gone. I need it.”

Sighing, you spoke into the phone,

“Yes, Mayor Pollard. I’ll sort it all out for you and reprimand the individual responsible for you. I’ll be in your office in 10 minutes.”

Disconnecting the call, you shoved the phone back into your pocket with a sigh, horrified to feel your eyes welling up.

You quickly blinked them away as Dinah stood up, gently kissing your forehead and then lowering her lips to yours.

Dinah was only ever gentle with you. With anyone else, she was to be feared. Whether that be as the Captain of the SCPD or the Black Canary. But with you, that facade was gone and she allowed herself to feel safe with you which, in turn, made you feel safe with her.

Returning her kiss, you pulled away, “I’m sorry to do this. We’ll catch up later at City Hall.”

“Have fun with Pollard. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

***

Dinah could tell that you were a little off.

Since arriving at City Hall, you had avoided her, although that wasn’t hard because as Police Captain, Dinah was pulled in every direction.

But now, after the formalities of the event, a more relaxed atmosphere took over as drinks were poured and music was played. And Dinah watched as you remained in work mode whilst also drinking a lot. She did worry about your drinking, having been made aware of your sister’s past, but you were always collected, apart from tonight.

Dinah watched as you approached the bar, quickly downing, what looked to be, a Scotch on the rocks.

It was killing her to not be your source of comfort. She just wanted to make you feel better but wanted to know what had caused you to be like this in the first place.

“Hey, Dinah.”

She turned to face Oliver and Felicity, their arms wrapped around each other’s waists.

“Hey guys. Quick question, have you noticed that y/n’s been acting a bit weird today?”

“No, not really.” Felicity answered.

“Why? What’s up?” Oliver asked.

Having grown up with you, Oliver had become a brotherly figure to you and often took care of you; especially when you had lost Laurel and when Sara had left to join the Legends.

“I’m not sure. She-”

Dinah turned back to face the bar but was shocked to see that you were no longer there.

“I-I’ll be right back.”

You staggered into the hallway, your heels loudly clacking against the marble floor. After having rectified all of Mayor Pollard’s issues and successfully dealing with the fundraiser tonight, you found yourself drowning your feelings in alcohol.

You did feel bad because you had been purposely avoiding Dinah but you didn’t know how you could face her without breaking down.

Truth be told, you weren’t doing so well and you didn’t know why today was so bad. It wasn’t as if it was a special day for you to be missing Laurel but the loss felt as bad as it did the day she died.

Your thoughts were interrupted when you felt a strong hand push you against the wall. You looked up to find yourself caged by a man you barely recognised; some politician’s lackey in a suit.

You were too inebriated to properly fight back and when you tried to remove yourself, he pushed you back against the wall.

“Stay still, y/n. Yes, I know who you are. I see you everyday helping that bitch Pollard and I just can’t contain myself around you.”

He leaned in to kiss you, but you, now slowly gaining control of your actions, pushed him away once more.

“Get off of me, you creep.”

You struggled under his harsh grip as he pinned your arms above your head.

“Shut the fuck up. I’ve been waiting for this for a long time.”

“Get off. Let go of me.” You repeated, now trying to thrash against him.

The hold he had on you suddenly relented and you looked up, surprised at what you saw.

“She said, let go of her.”

Dinah’s voice was hard enough to make chills run down your spine and you weren’t even on the receiving end of it.

She punched your attacker, leaving him unconscious and gestured to someone behind her to cuff him. When he was taken away, she stared at you.

“Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”

You shook your head profusely, immediately regretting that decision when your head started to spin.

“What’s wrong, y/n?”

“N-Nothing.”

“You’re lying.” She said, crossing her shoulders over her chest.

“I’m fine.” You said, intending it to come out firmly, but you could hear the defensiveness in your own voice.

“I can handle myself, Dinah.”

“Really? Because I don’t think you can. You’re acting fucking reckless, y/n! You’re never this drunk.”

You winced at her bitter tone.

“Leave me alone, Dinah. Please.”

You walked away, pushing away any attempts of her stopping you, and you went straight back to the bar.

***

As the music played, you felt yourself sober up after being given some food by the bartender.

Your eyes roamed the dance floor when you spotted Dinah talking with Rene and, when you jumped off the stool you were on, you watched as he nodded towards you and excused himself.

You made your way over to your girlfriend who was standing alone, leaning against a pillar.

Standing in front of her, you found yourself too exhausted for words and murmured a simple “I’m sorry’” as you wrapped your arms around her waist and rested your head against her chest.

Her arms, almost unconsciously, immediately unfolded as she held your small form; one hand around you, the other cradling your head against her.

“Y/N? Baby, what’s wrong?”

She gently held your face in her hands and turned your head upwards so you could look at her. She was stunned when she saw tears running down your face.

“Babygirl, you’re scaring me. What is it?”

Wiping away your tears, you sniffled, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. And I didn’t meant to be reckless either. I just-I’m not doing too good today, Dee. I-I’m really missing Laurel and I don’t know why. I’m sorry.”

“Oh baby,” She brought you close to her again, shushing you as you started to sob.

“It’s alright, baby. We all miss people that we’ve lost sometimes. You shouldn’t be sorry for that. I just wish you would have told me.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Y/N, stop apologising, it’s okay.”

“You’re right. I’m s-”

You stopped yourself when you saw Dinah staring at you with a look you knew too well.

“Come on, let me take you home.”

***

It was the middle of the night and you felt at peace, Dinah having replaced the pain you were feeling with something much more desirable.

She was now asleep, curled up at the other end of the bed and you sighed happily.

You then felt the bed dip slightly as Dinah turned to face you. She gathered you into her arms and placed a gentle kiss on your forehead.

“I love you, beautiful.”

Your skin flushed at the endearment term. Even half asleep, her voice was still husky and had the same effect on you.

“I love you too, Dinah Drake.”

[jebazzled]

Level Up! Upcycling an Intermediate App

Hello friends and welcome to another unsolicited writing tutorial, aka my bread and butter! Today we’re going to build off of ground covered in my earlier tutorial, Level Up! Beginner/Intermediate/Advanced RP and You. 

As always, I’d like to point out that there is nothing wrong with being a writer more naturally suited for intermediate sites! But if you’re looking to write in the more ~advanced or ~literary space, you will need to adjust your writing to fit the community standard. While your writing will likely improve over time as you write with more advanced writers, step one to threading in such a community is getting an app accepted there.

In today’s tutorial, I’ll be talking about how to revise an existing intermediate application to make it more suited for an advanced site. Let’s begin! 

As a staffer on an advanced site, the note I most often have for applications that we pend or decline is: this feels very telly. 

I don’t mean “telly” as in Telly the Sesame Street character: 

I mean “telly” as in extraordinarily expository. 

An intermediate freestyle application often looks like a straight-up timeline of a character’s history, delivered without much style or voice. It might feel like a Wikipedia article, or a very long explanation like you might see in a shipper. 

I often find that it can help streamline the writing process to write a handful of telling anecdotes, rather than rehashing a character’s complete history, infancy to present. More on that in my freestyle application tutorial here!

But if you’re having a hard time wrapping your head around anecdotal-style applications, particularly if you’re accustomed to application formats that have you write a “history” section as opposed to a freestyle, you can improve upon your current app to make it more suited for an advanced site. It will take some work, and certainly more than ten minutes of it. Writing on a “reach” site can be very rewarding, but only if you’re willing to put in the effort. 

TELLING

Before we solve the problem of “telly” writing, we need to establish what “telly” writing is. For purposes of this tutorial, I’ll be using my one application that is a full rehashing of character history. Below is a “telly” take on Sadie Shunpike: 

Sadie grew up in a working-class neighborhood of London with her twin brother, Sam. Neither of her parents were very good at magic, but hid their insecurity in the belief that any magic at all made them better than their Muggle neighbors. Sadie and Sam weren’t educated at the local primary school, but were homeschooled by their mother until they could read. From there, Sadie and Sam would check out books from the local library and teach themselves, with Sadie helping Sam. 

Sadie was very smart, but Sam struggled more with learning. As they got older, Sadie started to read books she ordered from Flourish and Blott’s, learning about magical theory. Sam started to show signs of magic, which he hid from Sadie. When they turned eleven, it became clear that Sadie was a squib. She resented Sam for being magical, especially when he went to Hogwarts and needed Sadie’s help to do his homework. Sadie continued to educate herself.

Sadie developed an interest in the Dark Arts and got mixed up with Death Eaters in a research and study group she attended at Flourish and Blott’s. One of them promised her a Ministry job and ensured her safety if she acted as a spy in the Ministry for the Death Eaters. Later, she got placed into a safehouse, and began to spy on the safehouse network for the Death Eaters. 

This tells you a lot about what Sadie has been up to, but doesn’t tell you much about Sadie, or about my skill as a writer, or about how someone else might expect Sadie to behave in threads. There is no voice, no personality, no interest - just rote explanation. 

As a staffer on an advanced site, when I see an app like the above, I know I will be pending or declining the application. The question I ask when making that distinction is: is the character development strong enough to merit working with the writer on the prose? Is the prose strong enough to merit working with the writer on the character development? 

If the writing itself or the character development is there, it can make sense to help guide the writer - though this is more the case with character development issues than with prose. Character development can be improved with specific notes and adjustments, whereas generally speaking, improving prose is a gradual process over time. 

It is entirely possible that a writer might have much better prose in their threads than in their application! However, your application serves here as a writing sample. which is why it is imperative that it be good writing on its own. I have said it before and I will say it again: I don’t care how much you hate writing apps, lmao! You’ve got to write a good one if you want to do well on sites that use them! 

SHOWING

Writing communities are always talking about show vs. tell. Unless you’re writing stage directions, it is always better to show than to tell - or at least, there aren’t enough exceptions to the rule that you shouldn’t be aiming primarily to show. 

So how do you communicate a character history without making it too telly? 

DESCRIPTION

Here, I’ve described Sadie’s neighborhood as “working-class” and left it at that. What if I went into a little more detail? Explained to you what I imagine when I imagine her upbringing, and shared with you what’s going on in my head between the lines? 

In a small, shabby house in a small, shabby suburb, a small and shabby family lives a small and shabby life. Samuel Shunpike, Sr. sells advertisements for the Daily Prophet, tossing a handful of Floo powder into the minuscule fireplace in the sitting room every morning and getting ash on the threadbare round braided rug every night. 

This has more flavor, doesn’t it? The repetition of “small, shabby” is a deliberate style choice that communicates an idea of how I write in practice when I’m being ~artsy, and the image of a man in a shabby suit crawling into his fireplace and messing up an already messed-up rug builds Sadie’s father as an NPC that will come into play later in her app. Dynamic NPCs - whose actions impact your character, who are more than wooden cutouts - help build the fictional world of your character’s life. They don’t even need to be vital to playing your character - I’ve never really had anyone in Sadie’s family in play onsite, despite how heavily her brother figures into her character development - but they can be very useful in understanding your character. 

DIALOGUE

Ha, irony, that dialogue can make an app less telly! Dialogue gives your reader an idea of how your character interacts with the world in concrete situations, not merely in the abstract. It also helps build the dynamic NPCs that make your character’s history feel more real, and feel like something that genuinely impacted them rather than something manufactured for plot. 

While the Shunpikes are nobodies in the circle of wizarding society, Margie and Samuel Sr take comfort in the fact that they do have one thing making them better than the Muggles who live the small shabby lives on either side of them: the Shunpikes are magic. small, shabby magic, but magic nevertheless. "You lot are better than this," Margie says, smoking a pipe on the stoop, gesturing at the sidewalk where children walk to school with their parents. Sam and Sadie don't take their eyes off their Exploding Snap game. It's no use arguing with Margie, they know. When she goes inside, grumbling about Muggle trash, Sam and Sadie train their eyes on the walk outside. The parade of children their age, all wearing matching khakis and polo shirts. "What do you think they get up to?" Sam asks, glancing at Sadie. "Same as us, i imagine," she says, "but probably, y'know, more guided."

This brief vignette tells us a few things:

Margie Shunpike, Sadie’s mother, is mean, and relies on what little magic she has to feel like she has worth

Sam looks to Sadie for leadership/guidance

Neither of these are specifically about Sadie, but having this background information about her mother seen in action rather than merely mentioned will impact how we digest the news that Sadie is a squib. Sam, as a recurring NPC, will inform how we see Sadie develop, and seeing his changing relationship with her will give another metric for the reader of how Sadie has changed. 

DETAILS

Details build your world, make it feel more real. When I wrote earlier that Sadie ordered books from Flourish & Blott’s, they could have been any books - they could have been the magical equivalent of ABC “First Concept” books - they could have been magical erotica. Don��t details tell you a lot about a person? If I tell you that Renee Rye Bread reads 50 books a year, what have you learned about her? What if I clarify that it’s 50 romance novels? 50 crime dramas? 50 political biographies?

When Sam and Sadie were younger, Margie would sit them together at the kitchen table and clumsily teach them letters and numbers. Once they could put together sentences and basic sums, she happily stepped back and let them figure it out on their own. On an average day, Sam and Sadie will watch the parade of schoolchildren, finish a game of Exploding Snap or Wizard's Chess, eat an early lunch, and spend the rest of the day doing their best to get an education. Sadie tries the hardest, dragging Sam with her to the Muggle library around the corner to read Muggle fiction and do basic research on whatever catches her fancy. She saves her allowance and coins from doing chores for the neighbors and orders secondhand books from the Flourish & Blotts catalog, poring over wizarding texts and trying to make sense of magic beyond even her parents' meager skill. Sam sometimes gives her his sickles, too. He isn't doing anything with them, and everything makes more sense with her in charge.

These details - what Sadie and Sam’s homeschooling looks like, Sadie’s attitude towards books and learning, Sam’s support in her academic endeavors - are building blocks in your understanding of Sadie’s personality. She is driven, self-directed, curious. She doesn’t ask Sam for his input. She is, perhaps, a little selfish. 

DIORAMA

Trying to keep to a “D” theme here for an easy mnemonic device here! What I mean by “diorama” is that even in an app not specifically built around anecdotes it is good to provide a few key slices of the character’s life - a clear window into specific scenes and moments. What strikes you as more impactful: me telling you, “there’s a scene in Heathers (1988) where Veronica’s boyfriend has put a bomb under the bleachers during a pep rally. It’s fine, it doesn’t go off,” or me describing to you: “the gym is full of stamping feet and shouting cheerleaders; no one could hear Veronica and JD fighting under the stands even if they were interested. The bomb is beeping so loudly but no one is paying attention, no one can hear it. It’s a pep rally and everyone is cheering at their own wake.” 

Rather than saying:

Sam started to show signs of magic, which he hid from Sadie. When they turned eleven, it became clear that Sadie was a squib. She resented Sam for being magical, especially when he went to Hogwarts and needed Sadie’s help to do his homework. Sadie continued to educate herself.

I went with the below: 

In June, Sam is sitting in the kitchen while Sadie makes a solo trip to the library, folding paper airplanes and flying them with no success. After a dozen failures, however, he watches in amazement as a piece of notebook paper folds itself up into a perfect airplane and flies around the room on its own. He's done magic, and he has no idea how. And he keeps it a secret from his parents, but more importantly, from Sadie, who he now knows is not going to be coming with him to Hogwarts after all. Later that week, while the family is tucking into ham sandwiches for dinner, the owl arrives, and Sam's stomach sinks when Sadie proudly carries it from the sitting room window into the kitchen on her forearm. She unties the letter from its leg, looks at the front of the envelope, grinning. Samuel Sr and Margie see a shadow pass over their daughter's face for half a heartbeat before she slowly hands the envelope to her brother. But Sam sees it all: her smile cracking like broken china, her eyes widen just a little, the furrow in her eyebrow. He catches the hitch in her voice as she congratulates him. He senses her anxiety in the lightspeed jiggle of her left foot under the table, as he stares at the letter, unable to make sense of the words, as worried as he is about Sadie. She excuses herself early, and Samuel Sr and Margie exchange a look, as if they've forgotten Sam is there. Sam doesn't know what any of them were expecting, but it wasn't this. The next few days, during which Sadie does not speak to him at all, are the longest of his life. Then, one morning, as he sits at the kitchen table having a silent breakfast with Samuel Sr and Margie - who are still flabbergasted to have a squib in the family - she comes down the stairs from their shared attic bedroom. She sits across from Sam at the table as if nothing has happened. She helps herself to a slice of toast from the stack on a plate in the middle of the table, and takes a piece of bacon off Sam's plate. "Since i won't be going to Hogwarts as expected," she says, folding the toast to make a sandwich and taking an enormous bite, "I'll need to arrange for a more formal education.” She swallows her bite and pours herself a glass of orange juice. “I’m happy with our current method of self-directed study, of course, but - i intend to supplement it with the odd lecture or class audit in the city.”

We get a few things here:

Sam’s anxiety/guilt about being the magical one, a dynamic that informs how Sadie will use him later

Sadie quickly hiding her actual emotions and performing fake ones, which comes up later when she manipulates people at the Ministry and in safehouses as a spy for the Death Eaters

Sadie’s decision making, which doesn’t allow room for input, feedback, or disagreement

Think of your favorite books and characters. If a novelist gave you a quick description of a character in one paragraph, you wouldn’t feel the close connection to them that you feel after reading even just a few chapters of them acting, reacting, interacting. Of course we don’t have as much time for that in an app as we do in a novel, but there’s a happy medium between the shallow understanding we get from pure exposition and the deep one we get from 50,000 words and a hardcover. 

IN PRACTICE: HOW DO???

So we’ve got our intermediate app. We’ve got our Four D’s: Description, Dialogue, Details, Diorama. We’ve got an advanced site we are lusting over. 

How do we Frankenstein this all together?

STEP ONE: REREAD YOUR ORIGINAL APP

Give her a look. Get the basics in your head. Think about how you might be able to repurpose this writing for your shipper. Because, hey! It’s already done! And at least in my experience on advanced sites, shippers are a TL;DR for your app, so a quick expository jaunt through the highlights fits the bill just peachy. 

But you’re not going to be able to work from that app directly for version two, okay? Be honest with yourself. How much do you ever revise things? Because this isn’t a “change a word, add one (1) sentence,” project. This is an overhaul. 

Like I’ve said! Going from intermediate to advanced is HARD WORK!

STEP TWO: GET WRITING

Start writing that app from scratch. Think about the Four D’s. 

If you’re approaching this as a straight history of your character, have at it wherever you want to get started. But before you move on to the next phase, address your Four D’s. 

Susie was a difficult baby. 

STOP! Give me the D. Was her nursery hyperfeminine? Did her nannies gossip about her parents behind their backs? Was Susie a fussy baby, or was she sickly? Show me her cold and distant mother awkwardly holding her before passing her off to her father!

If none of these D’s feel important to this phase of the character’s life: don’t include it in the app! A character history does not need to cover every minute! You can just hit the important phases, and you should! Believe me: staff usually do not want to hear about how mom and dad met each other unless it actually has a major bearing on Susie’s life! 

Once you’ve given the moment its due (Due, the fifth D), move on to the next, and consider the D’s every time. 

STEP THREE: REREAD & REVISE

Before you submit your app, give it another look. You’ve likely done a lot of character development between your original application and the fully-overhauled version. Is your characterization consistent? Do your character’s motives make sense? Have you left any gaping holes in their story? Look back at your shipper, especially if you used your original application to build it out. Does it align with the new application? What edits do you need on the shipper to have it describe the same person as your app?

STEP FOUR: PROFIT

Obviously, as with anything else, your mileage may vary. It might take a few tries, or even a few different characters to land on something that works for an advanced site. But the practice of implementing the five D’s - and keeping them in mind subsequently as you post with and develop your character - will be instrumental in growing your abilities as a writer, and isn’t that what this is all about? Wishing you all the best in writing as in life - let me know how you’re doing, and what other tutorials you’d like to see from me. Cheers, and happy writing!

[pastelbatfandoms]

...Like one of your French girls

A/N: A side story for My OC Renee West Wells and Sherloque Wells from The Flash. Takes place during season 5. A little back story since I haven’t written that part yet. Thanks to Nora,Renee finds out her long lost love Eobard Thawne aka Reverse Flash is alive in the future but locked up and goes to see him,Eobard manipulates her to his side again,along with Nora,they keep it a secret until Sherloque (who Renee is currently dating) uses his Detective skills and is not too happy with what he finds out,leaving things with Renee up in the air....

Warnings: Smut because it’s a Wells and I can’t help it ♥ Also Sherloque will not stop trying to persuade me to write about him. Slow burn a bit of Cat & Mouse. 

~~~~~~

Renee should have known Sherloque would find out,he was a Detective after all. What she hadn’t planned on was him saying something in front of Barry,Iris and the rest of Team Flash. Who,known for being a bit judgemental,didn’t take it well. 

If Renee was honest with herself she could understand why Sherloque had made that descion,he felt hurt and betrayed and wanted Renee to feel some of that as well. While Renee hadn’t at first,ultimately leading to Obsidian Storm taking over and joining up with her niece XS,as well as Weather Witch,Bug Eyed Bandit and Rag Doll as The Young Rogues. Eventually after what happened with Nora and Eobard leaving once again,Renee saw the error of her ways and re joined Team Flash.

It was their that Sherloque told them he was leaving back to his Earth,he didn’t look at Renee when he said it but Renee looked at him.Upset but not surprised,if her lover had treated her the way she had treated Sherloque,she would leave too. 

But she wasn’t going to let him leave without at least explaining herself or letting him know that she had cared or does really care for him. 

Biting her lip,Renee works up the nerve then finally clears her throat to get Sherloque’s attention. Sherloque squints up at her in question,as Renee makes a gesture with her head for them to talk in private. Sherloque at first appears to not want too,then eyeing her up and down,excuses himself and follows Renee out of the room. 

Once in the lounge part of Star Labs,Sherloque turns,his hands in his pockets as he regards Renee. “So what iz it you want to talk about?” He asks cooly. 

Renee drops her guard then,hating how distant Sherloque is with her now. “Sherloque I...I am so sorry.” She looks up at him,hoping he can read the sincerity behind her eyes. 

As a so called master detective,Sherloque obviously can but chooses to ignore it,as he looks away with a tsk. “ Iz that all?’ The Frenchman asks. 

“No...” Renee lets out a breath in exasperation,not at him but herself and the situation she had put them in. “Of course not. Look I know you’re mad and hurt and probably hate me,I would too if I were you. But I didn’t mean to hurt you,not intentionally,I do care about you. Honestly I wasn’t expecting to see you again after our one night encounter,then after I left Earth 2,left Harry,I was just lost and you were there but then I started to have feelings for you and then Eobard showed back up and mixed those all up,which I should hate him for but...” The words came spilling out,one after another,unable to contain them or even make sense of them,just wanting Sherloque to know everything she felt in that moment. “I’m sorry you don’t need someone like me,I mean technically you’ve already dealt with me 6 times,why make it a 7th? In fact this was probably a bad idea,I should go.” Seeming to change her mind Renee starts to walk away,when Sherloque,who had been quiet the entire time,grabbed her by the wrist to stop her. “Renee halte’. “

 Pulling her towards him,Renee didn’t have time to react before Sherloque’s lips were on hers,kissing her as if he never wanted to let go. When he did,it was to say. “ I forgive you,you `are not something I have to,how you say,deal with. You are ‘Mon indispensable to me. Mon amour.” 

Renee gazed up at him,studying Sherloque almost like he did with everyone else,but there was no apprehension on Sherloque’s face only sincerity and love.Renee smiled then, “You’re special to me too Sherloque.” 

Sherloque kissed her again,this time slower,as Renee murmured breathlessly between kisses. “Don’t leave Sherloque,I need you,please.” 

“Non. I won’t. Mon avenir “ Sherloque promised,placing his forehead close to Renee’s as they held one another.  

The Following Day... Sherloque POV

Sherloque had been looking for Renee everywhere, at Star Labs,they had just made up and now she had disappeared without a trace. “Where have you gone Ma Tigresse...” Sherloque wondered,muttering the pet name he had for her. Sherloque knew she hadn’t actually left,it was a game she liked,playing hard to get...Sherloque will admit being a Detective he enjoyed it as well,But he was still perplexed as to where Renee had hid off too. So perplexed he even asked Cisco. 

Cisco looked up from the computers and shook his head frowning. “No sorry Sherli I haven’t seen her.”

Sherloque frowned back at the hated nickname but chose to ignore it for the moment.

Cisco stood up then. “I could help you look for her.” 

Sherloque hesitated,making a warding off gesture,shaking his head. “Non,that iz not ne’ssacary.” 

But Cisco insisted following Sherloque,who was heading down to the lounge. 

Sherloque looked back,”Yet you are’ coming anywayz.” He muttered under his breath. 

Once they had reached the lounge and opened the door,Sherloque’s eyes immediately fell onto Renee. Ah there she was. ((Here she iz indeed...)) Sherloque thought,trailing his eyes up and down taking in her,very naked,form as she lay across the couches. Then he noticed Cisco catching up with him and immediately rushed into the room,closing the door so only Sherloque’s face was shown as he shouted. “Ah I found Renee!”

Cisco stopped. “Is she okay?” He asked.

“She iz fine!” Sherloque reassured him trying not to appear nervous. “Very fine indeed...” He murmured,glancing back again at her. Then snapping out of it turned back to Cisco. “I can take it from here.” 

Cisco frowned,”If you’re sure...” Probably thinking Sherloque was just being weird and secretive again.

Sherloque shook his head waving Cisco off. “Oui,very sure!” Sherloque insisted. Waiting until Cisco had left to fully close the door behind him. 

Closing his eyes and Letting out a breath in relief that Cisco hadn’t caught his best friend,and Ex,laying naked in the lounge,all for Sherloque,he forgot for a moment that HIS girlfriend was indeed laying naked waiting for him. Until she spoke up. 

“Sherloque...paint me like one of your french girls...” Renee said softly,quoting that very famous scene from Titanic. 

But Sherloque knew it wasn’t just a euphemism. As he opened his eyes and let out under his breath. “ Oh Tu es toute simplement ravissante’”  Sherloque did paint in his free time and knew Renee was curious about body painting.

“ One moment mon amour.” Putting up a finger,Sherloque looked around then spotted his paints he kept stashed in the lounge,letting out a pleased “Ah!” upon finding it. Once he had retrieved his body paints,Sherloque turned back to Renee,with a wicked grin. “Let uz begin.” 

Renee’s POV

Renee had been waiting for almost half an hour,wondering when Sherloque was going to find her. And was relieved when he finally did,glancing at his hungry look now as he held the paints,his eyes roaming over her body,she was glad she had waited. 

Renee suppressed a shiver,not out of being cold,as Sherloque advanced towards her. 

Then he stopped,setting his paints down as he removed his long coat and rolled up the sleeves of his dress shirt,slowly because he knew Renee was watching. And she was. 

Renee watched every gesture and nuance her boyfriend made,admiring his toned arms but also his ability to size her up as much as she was sizing him up,seeming to appear cool yet interested all the same time,damn did the French go to school for Seduction 101? or was it because he was also a Detective and knew by her eyes,everything Renee was wanting in that moment. 

Renee surmised it was both. She followed Sherloque with her eyes as he knelt in front of her. “Sit up Tigresse.” Sherloque instructed her with a nod of his head. Renee did as she was told gazing up at Sherloque’s intense expression,who was frowning in concentration already in artist mode,Renee openly shivered this time as Sherloque started painting her chest,brushing alongside her nipple. 

“A little excited My pet?” Sherloque smirked already knowing the answer. 

Renee cleared her throat,looking away. “No,I’m fine.” She lied. 

Sherloque gave a disbelieving sound but continued. “Relaxe’...” He told her. “Close your eyez.”

Renee did,feeling instead of seeing every stroke he made with the brush against her skin,swirling it around her nipples and down her stomach. Talk about four play...

In what seemed like forever,but wasn’t nearly long enough,Sherloque told her to open her eyes,she did looking down and seeing awash of colors in blue,black and streaks of yellow over the front of her body. It took her a moment to realize he had painted a Thunderstorm. 

“Sherloque it’s beautiful...” Renee whispered. 

Sherloque gave a small smile but he wasn’t done yet,as he ran a hand up Renee’s legs. “Open.” 

Renee did,slowly at first until she felt Sherloque’s hands grip her thighs,telling her without words,to open wider. Renee’s eyes closed once again as she felt Sherloque’s paint brush glide up her leg closer to more while intimate parts as he gently pushed her thighs open. 

Stopping to admire the view appreciatively. “Perfection...” He murmured under his breath. As he started to paint her inner thighs,then letting out a “Mmmm” of feigned annoyance,rubbed at the spot he had just painted. “Looks like I missed a spot. Don’t worry Mon Cheri I clean it.” 

Renee opened her eyes long enough to look down into Sherloque’s own,dark with lust as he trailed kisses up her thighs,every touch was slow and sensual,making Renee moan and drop her head back once Sherloque’s mouth went where she really needed it to go. 

Slowly,languidly he licked up her,seeming to devour every taste and savor every moan that came from her lips,as she came with a shudder. 

Sherloque let up then,raising to meet her as she said breathlessly,eyes closed. “Make me forget Sherloque.” 

“Forget what Mi Amour?” Sherloque asked,though he knew for the most part what she meant. 

Renee’s eyes opened then,dark with lust,as she stared into Sherloque’s own lust filled eyes. “Everything.” She murmured. 

Sherloque’s lips were on hers then,kissing her passionately,she wrapped her arms around Sherloque as he picked her up and carried her to his makeshift bed. 

Once on the bed Sherloque positioned himself above her,giving her a long kiss as he slowly stroked her,Renee was more then ready when Sherloque thrust inside her with a low moan. 

The feeling of his cock inside her,made Renee want to come right then as they held each other close. “Eager are we Mon cher?” Sherloque asked in a teasing manner. But stopped moving when he felt Renee clench around him. Sherloque tskd,putting a finger to Renee’s lips. “Non My pet don’t cum yet,I want it to last.” Sherloque whispered seductively into her ear.

At his command Renee willed the feeling to pass,opening her mouth to suck on Sherloque’s finger as he slowly moved inside her again. 

He cupped her face then,kissing her slowly as they made love,then gripped her breast to lick her nipple,she shuddered and then those two words low in her ear. “Cum for me Ma Tigresse’” as he slowly fucked her into submission, “Ah yes My love that’s it.” Renee felt every inch as him as she came with a low cry “Sherloque!” and felt him cum inside right along with her. 

Afterwards they lay in each others arms,reveling in the after glow. When suddenly they hear a door open,Renee sits up grateful the blanket is covering them. Then her eyes widen as she realizes who was standing there. Harrison Wells,her husband. 

“Harry I...” Renee’s words die on her lips,at a loss. True they were estranged but she had never told him about Sherloque. 

Harry seems to be at a loss for words as well as he simply stares at them both then turns and walks out. 

Renee gets up quickly dressing. “I’m sorry Sherloque,I didn’t know Harry was going to be here. I need to go.” Renee says hastily. 

“Of course I understandz.” Sherloque answers with a gesture. “Go.” As Renee quickly walks out the door. 

“Harry wait!” Renee yelled,Once she had caught up with Harry in the hall of the cortex. Harry turns around but still says nothing. Thinking he is angry or in shock,Renee tries to apologize. “Harry I’m sorry I know we were apart but I should have told you about Sherloque.” 

“No need. I already knew.” Harry finally spoke,but his voice was different some how,raspier. 

“How?” Renee asked frowning but then her expression turned to one of realization as she studied him. “You’re not Harry...”

Harrison,or who she thought was,let out a dark chuckle and smirked. “No I’m not.” 

“Eobard...” Renee whispered. Not sure how to feel seeing him standing there once again looking like Harrison Wells.

“ I know you have a thing for this detective,he is a Wells after all...” Eobard Thawne said,leaning closer into her. “But just remember YOU belong to ME.” Eobard whispered in her ear then eyes flashing red,he zips away. 

Leaving Renee shaken,not sure if that was a promise or a threat and if she really wanted to find out....

To be continued...

[neshabeingchildish]

Slightly different format, because I just needed y’all who didn’t know this song to hear it, okay? Okay, so I’m about as old as the characters parents could be, maybe slightly younger, because they probably had them a little later in adulthood than I’m far off from them, but I figured, close enough to use MY childhood/youth music for Charlotte’s mom’s taste. At least the general timeline. I named songs and artists, if y’all wanna ever listen to any of it. I haven’t/don’t know if I’m making a Determined Soundtrack/Playlist.

Pretty Brown Eyes

Alright. It was one thing to lean into his kiss, reciprocate his embrace and shift herself into his lap. But, she didn't have to go off the way she did for their first kiss. Because, not only did Charlotte do these things, but she also rocked against him a little, which in turn, he took as an invitation to explore her with his big, strong hands. 

She wasn't quite sure how awkward it must've been for Henry and Amelie to see them there when they left through the front door trying not to make any noise for the pair making out on the floor of the main hallway. But, she had to guess it was as bad as her realizing that they had to have seen them whenever they left, because the front door was right down that, very, hallway.

Eventually, she was the one who caught herself and ended the fun. Her head was spinning, nerves tingling and legs wobbling, but she found her senses and pulled herself together. Jasper was a pile of mush, except for the one thing, what, with her doing all that rocking against him. Ugh. Girl, a first kiss is supposed to be soft and sweet. You're not supposed to half grind the dude into the floor of your parents' house. She shivered thinking about his hands on her body, but it was time for that kiss to be put behind them.

"We can't be doing stuff like this," Charlotte said and helped him up. "I had a point before you did that and I don't even remember my middle name right now."

"The magic of love has rendered you temporarily futile…"

"No. The coursing of hormones has thrown off my equilibrium and it does not feel good."

He panicked. "But, it did though? The not good feeling is an afterthought, right?"

"You have to go and I need to lie down." He nodded and tried to give her a hug, but she placed her hands up to halt him and took a step back. “I’m serious.” He nodded and left her, scratching his head and hoping that his stunt hadn’t done the very thing that she was afraid of - ruined things between them.

.

Morning meetups were awkward. Jasper brought her breakfast, she brought his and Henry’s, but they didn’t really say much to each other. Instead, she spoke to Henry about everything but Jasper and whenever Jasper did speak, she was weird about her reponses. 

Work was atypical. While they generally spent most shifts around each other, she now felt like the store needed to be watched at all times, but if he came up, she took that time to go make scans in the Man Cave to be sure they hadn’t missed any calls for help.

In addition to avoiding him big time, she told him that she looked into Amelie pretty deeply and couldn’t find any reason that he couldn’t “get back on track” with her.

“You’d find that reason in the mirror,” Jasper said and she just rolled her eyes and walked away from him. Whenever he told her that things were weird at home and asked if he could crash, she politely asked Henry if it was okay if Jasper crashed at his, instead. Jasper was exasperated, or as Henry said, in an attempt to be funny, exJasperated. Jasper commented that would be the name of his next podcast, and she left them to that conversation to return to the store.

“So… She’s really just moving on like it didn’t happen?” Henry wondered. He’d waited outside for Jasper that night, because he figured that Charlotte would catch herself and kick him to the curb. But, he thought that by now, she would have talked to Jasper about it, fixed their friendship and outlined how it could never happen again.

“No. It’s worst. She’s moving on like it did happen and it was horrifying for her. She refuses to be alone with me and she hardly talks to me, now. I feel like I did something bad to her, but I thought she liked it. I thought she liked me.”

“She liked it and she likes you. You know what this is really about? Self control. She doesn’t trust herself to be alone with you, because she might wind up on your lap, in your arms again and she thinks she shouldn’t be there. You gotta show her that she should be there.”

“How would I do that without being the very creepo that both you and her have told me numerous times to not be?”

“I don’t know. Maybe her family knows something that we don’t? Something that could help us get her for you.”

“Her parents never say much beyond salutations and asking about my day. But… Uncle Rox might help. He loves me and we’re friends on social media. He lived with them for a while. He had to notice something useful.”

Henry nodded, “There you go!”

.

Jasper made an appointment with Uncle Roscoe at his new house, aka his wife’s house, to set some wheels in motion for wooing Charlotte. The man was all too happy to help. “I LOVE love, Lil’ Nephew,” he told Jasper. “My niece sure can use some wooing. Does she still have an attitude about everything?”

“A huge tude… but I still love her. I find it endearing. She’s polite with people she doesn’t care about, so it’s like… a compliment of sorts when you get that sass from her.”

Uncle Roscoe nodded his head as he made some freshly squeezed juice. “Well, I had a secret weapon to soften her up when she was younger and I found out when I lived at their house that it still kinda worked, depending on the material.”

“I must know!” Jasper said, making prayer hands. Roscoe slid a glass across the island to him and he luckily caught it in his palm. Uncle Rox is super kewl. 

“You subscribe to her Spotify?” Roscoe asked.

“No. I don’t believe that we share music tastes.”

“Well, you better get used to it, because that’s gon’ be your bread and butter, Lil’ Nephew. You see, Charlotte has a love for classic R&B, particularly the late 80's/early 90's. She loves all the boy groups that were popular when me and her moms grew up, because that’s the type of stuff that her moms listened to when she was young. Now, most people stop experiencing new music as they get older. They have some nostalgia about their parents’ music, which they pretend like they don’t, like Charlotte be pretending. They have the stuff that was popular when they were growing up, that was their childhood music. And, mostly, by a certain point, they allow very little new music into their worlds. That’s how my sister was. So, a lot of her music was stuff from the 80s and 90s, and Charlotte loves a lot of it, despite her pretenses.”

“You… Think that me listening to 80’s and 90’s R&B boy groups will win over Charlotte?” Jasper asked confused, finally drinking his juice. “This juice is AMAZING!”

“That’s that Roscoe’s Tropical Trash right there. But, no. The listening is just the first step. You gotta know that music, Boi. You gotta learn it. You gotta know what to play and when. You can control Charlotte’s little ass with the right song selection.”

“That has to be made up,” Jasper said, defeated.

Roscoe told him, “Try it out. If she gets mad, pull up “You Don’t Have to Cry by Rene and Angela,” and see if by the end of that song, she won’t be a different woman. Matter of fact, before anything even happens in your day, just put on Rhythm of the Night by DeBarge and see if she don’t have the cheeriest, happiest day.”

Jasper cupped his cup in his fingers and stared at him. “I seriously can’t tell if you’re making up these songs and artists.”

“Boi, here…” He opened his phone and said, “I’m gonna send you a link to Charlotte’s Spotify. Check out them lists. She’s got some of the music by the year and some by the decade, but it’s all kinda R&B on it. She does like a few older than that, but her most frequent ones, I assure you are those 80s-90s ones, with the groups like Troop, New Edition, Boys II Men…”

“I know them!” Jasper cheered.

“Just… The songs I told you about. Use them, then get back to me when you ready to learn musical conditioning for Charlotte.”

Uncle Roscoe used to be a vocal coach for a production studio that went ass end up in the 90s. He was also a musician, DJ, and club promoter. He was a bouncer at a jazz club, at a strip club, and at a popular night club. He still tried to make music sometimes. He played many instruments and he loved to sing. None of his efforts ever worked out fully. But, he still loved the music industry and he always had a good time with his  niece, whenever a good song put her in a good mood. He knew what he was talking about, but Jasper might have to see for himself.

.

Charlotte was about to go upstairs when she heard the opening notes of Rhythm of the Night and bounced towards it curiously. Jasper and Henry were sitting around, and Jasper’s device was connected to the computer. “How do you know this song?” She wondered.

“Uncle Rox shared a DOPE playlist with me whenever I went over for juice. I can’t stop listening to it.”

“It’s a good song. A good feel good song!” She cheered, excited. “I never would have thought you’d like this, though.”

“I love a good feel good song,” he said. She just nodded, smiling and chilled for a little longer, singing along with the song and dancing by herself. It was a little weird for Henry and Jasper to see, but Jasper immediately realized that Uncle Roscoe was right! The music made Charlotte different! 

Now, she was heading to the store, but she was pulling up her own playlist, because she felt like dancing around as she cleaned up the store. Henry smiled at her on the camera and said, “This is an adorable version of Char,”

“She’s always adorable,” Jasper said, watching her, enthralled. 

Charlotte was glad for the dance party of one. She had been so stressed about letting Jasper down, trying to be his friend, trying to avoid him, trying to forget his lips and hands - she had forgotten to just enjoy herself. How lucky was it that Uncle Roscoe put Jasper onto such great music? And Jasper LIKED it? That just made him more likeable! Ugh. She was gonna groan about it, but Never Knew Love Like This Before by Stephanie Mills came on and she was right back in the feel good zone.

.

Charlotte had taken to starting her days with some feel good music, because everyday around Jasper was a struggle. She found that even when he said something frustratingly stupid, she still thought he was cute. Somehow, his ignorance was tolerable to her and even somewhat charming? She looked at him do something ridiculous and think - look at this cinnamon roll. Ugh! She hoped that whatever was going on was reversible. Until then, music therapy should do the daily trick. Today, she began her day with Square Biz by Teena Marie, which brought her mother in to jam with her for a little while and volunteer to do her hair while they hung out, singing and stuff. They didn’t often, so that was a super plus of the day. She came out of the house in the highest spirits that she had been in, in weeks.

She had two braids with puffs at the end, with some charms braided in. She had worn some makeup. Her outfit was clutch. Honestly, she was slaying, and she felt amazing heading to the bakery. The guy at the bakery saw her and almost burned himself on the oven. She pretended not to see as she fought a smile. He quickly caught himself and got her order prepared. She said, “I’m in a really good mood, so I’ll also take an assorted box of kolaches and donuts for my work. Surprise me with the flavors…” 

They were both distracted by this music outside. Everybody in the bakery looked to see where it was coming from. “Is that Pretty Brown Eyes by Mint Condition?” Charlotte asked herself out loud, right before the doors opened and Jasper came in, singing the song. 

“Pretty brown eyes, You know I see you. It's a disguise the way you treat me. You keep holding on to your thoughts of rejection. If you're with me you're secured…”

“What?” She asked herself, frozen in place at… whatever…  this was. She loved that song. There was a whole ass band outside. “Uncle Roscoe…” She said, when she saw him and his friends playing Jasper’s music. Henry was there, recording with his phone. She smiled at the clerk and pretended that they weren’t there for her. She grabbed her order, forced a smile at her friends and tried to pass by. Henry took her order and Jasper continued to sing to her. 

“You keep telling me that your time is always taken, But I keep seeing you out alone. Listen to love; Your heart is pounding with desire waiting to be unleashed…”

As he did, she tried not to blush and laugh. She walked out, and it was louder out there, with the band playing music, but Jasper’s determined self was following her and singing, much like some kind of 90’s music video. She couldn’t help but be impressed and he was a pretty good singer too.

They’d really missed out, not letting him finish his songs during the musical curse. He danced around her, singing the lyrics and she couldn’t help but bop to the music. 

“Quit breakin' my heart 

Breakin' my heart, yeah (pretty brown eyes, Uncle Roscoe was singing backup and playing his instrument)

Breakin' my heart, yeah

Breakin' my heart, sugar, yeah, yeah”

She LOVED this song! Whenever Jasper neared the end of his song, she was pretty much weak and he was so fine, and this took so much work and wasn’t she WORTH this kind of trouble? Jasper sure thought so. Maybe he was worth a little trouble too. Maybe he was worth the risks she worried about. That high pitched, “Quit breaking my heart!” Was her sign. She grabbed him, pulled him to her and started kissing him. Henry cheered him on, and Uncle Roscoe returned a favor of calling out, “Get it, Lil’ Nephew!”

Henry sniffled, “I’m so proud, right now.”

Charlotte pulled back, laughed, shook her head and told Jasper, “You’re crazy. Remember, when it sucks, you insisted on this. Now… You’ve got me.”

He looked towards the band and yelled, “We did it, Uncle Rox! She’s mine!” 

She rolled her eyes, grabbed his hand and pulled him down the street. Henry stopped recording and looked at the band, “Ummm… Well… You gentlemen, and ladies have a good day.” He caught up with his friends, holding the breakfast while they held hands and smiled at each other the whole time. “Feeling left out,” Henry said.

“You’ll pull through,” Charlotte told him. 

Jasper just laughed and gave her a kiss on the temple. “You are so pretty,” he told her. Then, with a big smile, “I can’t believe that I’m this lucky!” 

[bibliosauruswrecks]

Tag Game: 11 Questions

Okay, so back in September, @bookishbuzz​ tagged me in an Ask game, and because I’m a garbage human being I’m just now getting around to it.

Rules: Answer the questions and then create your own 11 questions.

1. If you had to pick a favorite word, what would it be?

Iris.  Not because it’s my favorite word, but because it’s my favorite flower, and I’ve got to get this started now, otherwise I’ll never get it done.

2. If you could describe yourself, only using a food dish, what would you pick?

My mom’s casserole pan.  It’s a bit unwieldy at times, but it’s also incredibly adaptable for a variety of uses. Oh, wait, you’re talking about food…

3. If you had to put hamartia and yourself in the same sentence, what would the sentence be?

“Wrecks, do your self-esteem a favor and look up ‘hamartia’ before you say it out loud and embarrass yourself again.”

4. Describe an ideal day in your life.

The dogs don’t get me up an hour before my alarm goes off.  My alarm doesn’t go off at all, actually, and I sleep until my body’s not tired.  I don’t have to go to town, the house is clean, the chores are done, and nobody is demanding my attention.  If the weather is warm, the windows will be open, rain or shine.  If it’s cold, I’ll wrap up in a big fuzzy blanket.  Either way, there will be candles burning and lots of tea.  The house is quiet, and I don’t feel an overwhelming need for privacy.  I haven’t forgotten anything important, and there’s no nasty voice telling me that I have.  The creative Force is strong with me, and I finish at least one of my WIPs, and make significant progress on my other projects without getting distracted by a new idea.  

5. Could you live as a nomad?

Nope.  I like the idea of travel, but the actual act itself is stressful and unpleasant for me.  I suspect this might not be the case if I went on trips with someone other than my family, but until I have really close friends or a significant other, I may never know.  Besides, I need some kind of permanent space to call my own.

6. How would you describe the feeling of love?

I’m assuming you mean romantic love, which, unfortunately, I have no experience or frame of reference for, so let’s go for sibling love instead, shall we? It’s this odd combination of “I would die and/or kill for you,” “No one’s allowed to beat you up but me,” and “Listen, skunk-breath, if you don’t put your dirty clothes in the laundry hamper, I swear on all that is holy I’m gonna throttle you.”

7. Do you feel like your outside appearance is a perfect fit for your personality?

As I type this, I have a bearded dragon perched on my head, so... Yes.

8. What is a quote you live by?

Jenny Lawson, AKA The Bloggess, has several great quotes in her books, but I can’t remember any of them off the top of my head.  Said books are also at the other end of my sardine can of a house, and I don’t feel like getting up, so I’m gonna be a good librarian and recommend that you check out Let’s Pretend This Never Happened and Furiously Happy.  I’m also gonna be a responsible librarian and caution you that both books contain potentially-offensive language throughout, so that way if you’re underage and your parents catch you reading them and they want to know why and you tell them some crazy librarian on Tumblr suggested them, I don’t get accused of corrupting the youth.  Again.

9. Do you believe in love at first sight?

I want to, but I don’t.  Attraction, infatuation, maybe even lust at first sight, but not love.

10. Name an author, book, or series you believe is extremely overrated, and one you think is extremely underrated.

James frickin’ Patterson.  I have this strange, not exactly love-hate relationship with him and his books; it’s more like a respect-despise relationship.  On the one hand, I loathe his books.  Not his writing, I mean the physical books themselves.  The covers, the titles, the fact that they take up so much damn shelf real estate, everything.  I want to weed our collection until we only have no more than two copies of each of his books.  And on the other hand, he’s also a huge advocate for children’s literacy, has his own children’s publishing imprint, and funds scholarships for teachers.  I can’t dislike the man himself, even though just looking at one of his books causes this nervous twitch around my right eye.

Dean Koontz gets an honorable mention because his author publicity photo bothers me.  Specifically his hair.

“Underrated” isn’t the word I’d use to describe Renee Ahdieh, but I’m not sure what else works.  She just hasn’t had a lot of exposure yet, but her reimagining of One Thousand and One Nights into a YA duology is one of the best things I’ve read in a while.  The Wrath and the Dawn and The Rose and the Dagger weave a beautiful tapestry of love, adventure, intrigue, and magic.  I haven’t had a chance to read her second duology which is set it feudal Japan, and she’s got another series due to start this year that takes place in 1820s New Orleans, but both are on my list.

11. How do you spend your free time?

Knitting, cross-stitching, world-building, reading anything that actually manages to hold my attention these days, writing, researching random crap that’s usually history-related but not always, drawing when I have the motivation (which is rarely), trawling through the Rumbelle tag on Tumblr because that’s my current fan-obsession, and debating which Nancy Drew game to play next without ever reaching a decision.  I sometimes listen to recordings of Robert Carlyle reading Robert Burns’ poetry while I’m working, because Burns is fantastic and so is Robert Carlyle’s voice. I also do dishes and laundry, and question my life choices when I’m stuck with the job of trying to coax a bearded dragon into having a bowel movement, but no one probably needs to know that.

And now for my 11 questions

If you could hang out with three people from history, who would you choose?  (If you want to do more or less, that’s cool.  I’m flexible.  You can also substitute “history” with “fiction” if you like.)

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever had?

Have you ever googled something in the name of research and thought to yourself, “Yeah, I’m definitely ending up on a government watch-list for this”?  Feel free to elaborate.

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever seen a person do?

Assuming unlimited time and funds, which five countries would you like to visit?

Got any wacky pet stories?

What’s your favorite literary genre(s)?

Is there a particular language or accent you find appealing?

What is the worst book you’ve ever read?

Pancakes or waffles?

Which five character tropes best describe you? (If you were unfamiliar with TV Tropes before this point, I do apologize for simultaneously enhancing and ruining your life.  Like I said, corrupting the youth.  Me and Socrates, people.)

I tag @bookishbuzz​, @woodelf68​, @barpurplewrites​, @jackabelle73​, and @graduatedpillowmonster​

[renegon-paragade]

Based on this prompt from @exyprompts

This got way longer than I meant it to be, and I probably did way more research than neccessary. Google probably thinks that I own a pregnant cat now.

In this au Neil is in witness protection after all the shit went down with his father

Also, Andrew and Neil are neighbors

They haven't officially met yet

Andrew absolutely does not wake up early to watch the cute boy on his jog. Nope. Not at all. He just happens to be sitting on the balcony at the same time

And since their balconies are next to each other, and they both tend to smoke late at night when they wake up from nightmares, they sometimes smoke silently together

Sir is Andrew's cat and King is Neil's.

And Andrew is perfectly fine dealing silently with his crush annoyance with his neighbor

Except there's a slight issue

You see, Neil has never owned a cat before. He found King while on a run and decided to take her in. While he did a bunch of research on toys to get her and what to feed her, he didn't know about getting her spayed

Andrew hasn't had the chance to neuter Sir. Nicky convinced him to get the damn thing when a coworker's cat had kittens because he thought Andrew was lonely. Andrew agreed just to get him to shut up. He knows he needs to get Sir neutered, but the vet closest to him doesn't care about the animals at all (He's the type who puts down healthy animals because of divorce and tries to sell owners a bunch of medicines they don't actually need) so he's waiting until he has the time to go to the one a few towns over that Renee swears by. It shouldn't really be an problem. He has an appointment booked and everything.

Well, it wouldn't be a problem so long as he didn't knock up another cat

Both Neil and Andrew allow their cats out on their balconies as they please. It's fine, they don't roam much except to visit each other (Andrew assumes King is a male cat and thus doesn't think twice about Sir not being neutered)

Eventually, Neil starts to notice that King keeps throwing up, and her stomach is getting bigger

Neil panics and rushes her to the vet (the one a few towns over, thankfully, because he's heard bad things about the local one from Dan and Matt) where he finds out that King is fine

Except, you know, she's pregnant

Neil, overbearing cat dad that he is, starts making a queening box and buying specialty food, supplies for the kittens, books about how to care for kittens, etc

What I'm getting at here is that he's carrying a lot of things that announce to the world that his cat is both a girl and pregnant

And, of course, because Neil's life is the cosmic equivilant to shattering 20,000 mirrors, his bag rips and drops all of it right as he's walking into the lobby of his appartment

Directly in front of Andrew

And Andrew is not normally the kind of person to help out of the kindness of his heart, but the completely overwhelmed look on cute runner boy's face as all of his purchased goods fall to the floor makes him reconsider that

And if it just so happens that this works as the perfect opportunity to introduce himself and maybe flirt, well, no one needs to know

So Andrew helps Neil pick up the stuff and bring it to his appartment, while Neil rambles on about King and the pregnancy and how out of his depth he is

And Andrew thinks that this is the perfect way to get closer to his crush that Neil is such a mess of a human being that he has to help him out, for the poor animal's sake

(And, in the back of his mind, Andrew knows that Sir is probably the father. Andrew decides to keep this thought to himself for now)

So Andrew starts visiting a bit, taking care of King while Neil is out and helping Neil get everything ready. He makes sure that Neil has his number and keeps his phone charged so that if he isn't home when King goes into labor Neil can call him and maybe so Andrew could text the idiot

So of course at 7 am on a fucking Saturday, Andrew wakes to Neil pounding on his door and rushes over

Of course, cat labor doesn't actually require human input

Andrew knows this

He's not really there for King

He's there to stop Neil from being a hoverparent and stressing King out

He does this by sitting Neil down in the same room as King so they can keep an eye on her while they watch an Exy game, much to Andrew's disgust

It was the only thing that distracted Neil from worrying, so whatever, Andrew will watch stupid stickball

After a couple of hours, King is finally done with labor, having given birth to 3 adorable kittens

Two match King's black and cream tortoiseshell markings

But the last one is ginger and fluffy

Just like Sir

Andrew snorts. "Guess we know who the father is"

Andrew doesn't do guilt or regret. They're pointless

That doesn't mean that he doesn't acknowledge that if he had gotten Sir neutered earlier, Neil wouldn't be forced to take on the emotional and financial burden of kittens

And he knows it doesn't make sense, but maybe he feels something bad when he realizes that if he hadn't been there for the birth, his cat would be a deadbeat dad who abandoned his kids

Just like Andrew's father

So Andrew decides to help out where he can

He buys nursing mother food and drops the bag on Neil's balcony with a paper taped to it saying "child support"

Neil's laugh when he sees it absolutely does not make him blush

Andrew and Neil take turns watching over the cats to make sure they are okay

King, like the spoiled brat she is, adores the attention

Meanwhile Sir is getting antsy

His friend (girlfriend?) just disappeared out of the blue? Why won't she come out to play?

He sits on the balcony watching Neil's apartment, waiting for King to show up

Neil is the one who suggests a visit, to let Sir meet his kittens and to see how he reacts to them

He almost takes it back when he learns that sometimes male cats will attack kittens - he knows too well what it's like to fear your father - but ultimately, he decides to give Sir one chance, so long as he's supervised

So when the kittens are about 12 days old, Andrew brings Sir over to visit (with more "child support")

Both Andrew and Neil are ready to grab him if anything goes wrong

But Sir doesn't attack the kittens at all

At first he just watches King as she washes the nursing kittens, keeping his distance and observing

After a minute or so, he moves closer, coming up and sniffing at King, who watches him but doesn't move to react

Slowly, he begins to wash her head, purring softly

King steadily relaxes, accepting that Sir won't hurt their kittens, which makes Neil and Andrew relax as well

They spend the rest of the day together while the cats do their thing. Andrew makes Neil dinner because he has quickly learned that Neil can't cook more than basic meals

Andrew also forces Neil to watch something on tv other than exy games

"Seriously Josten, what the fuck is with you and stickball"

They end up binge watching "My Cat From Hell" until 3am, when they finally decide to call it a day

This quickly becomes routine for them. Andrew and Sir come over for dinner and to catch Neil up on pop culture

Neil thinks "Mythbusters" is interesting, but finds "Finding Bigfoot" stupid. He loves "Planet Earth," since he gets to learn things that he missed in school. His favorite is still "My Cat From Hell," though Andrew doesn't know why he expected otherwise from a man who channels the same energy as a 85-year-old crazy cat lady

(He eventually stops complaining that they're missing the game)

(Eventually)

Time passes quickly and soon the kittens are three months old and ready to find a new home

Neil wants to keep them, but acknowledges that he doesn't have the room or the money for 4 maybe 5 cats

Dan and Matt say they can take in one, Aaron and Kaitlyn ask for another, but Andrew and Neil are still looking for a home for the third

They don't want to give any of the kittens to someone they don't trust to take care of them, but neither of them are exactly social butterflies and none of their remaining friends or family can take in the last kitten

Andrew mentions it during one of his weekly meetings with Bee. She promises to look around and get back to him if she finds a suitable home

A few days later, she texts him and says that if the kitten is still available, she would love to adopt it.

Thirteen weeks after King gave birth, the kittens all go to loving homes

Dan and Matt adopt the oldest, Princess Lazyfluff, aka Princess, who takes after her mother's royal grace and her father's depleated energy levels

Aaron and Kaitlin get second-born Marquis Sweetums McCatterson, aka Mark ("No Nicky I am not calling her that ridiculous name"), a quirky kitten who only sits still when she wants to be pet

Bee gets the youngest, Dutchess Flooftail of Caterbury, aka Dutchess, who's curious but quiet nature makes her the perfect companion for Bee

(Eventually, Bee gets Dutchess trained as an emotional support animal to help patients who are in need)

Andrew and Neil are sad to see them go, but calmed in knowing that they will still see the kittens often and that their new families will take care of them properly

(And also in knowing that all of them, including King and Sir, are now spayed or neutered, since they are responsible cat dads and don't want any more suprises)

Neil is kind of worried that things will go back to how they used to be, with Andrew not talking to him, not coming over to visit every night. He does not like how that prospect makes him feel

But that night, like clockwork, Andrew shows up with Sir

"King is probably going to miss the kittens and I don't want her yowling to keep me up all night"

Of course, Andrew keeps coming after that night too

The only time Neil asks him why, Andrew claimed that he was doing his civic duty in making sure Neil eats real food and catching him up with the rest of the world

This goes on for another month, during which they also start to cautiously trade truths, revealing the parts of themselves they hid from everyone else.

Neil goes to visit Dan, Matt, and Princess. At some point Matt references Harry Potter and Neil snorts. The others are shocked that Neil actually understood what they were talking about, so Neil explains about his evenings hanging out with Andrew and Sir

Dan and Matt, confused, ask if they are dating. Neil is quick to say they aren't, they're just friends, but the idea is planted in his head

That night, as he and Andrew are eating dinner, Andrew notices how distracted he is and asks what's wrong

"Are we dating?"

Neil didn't really mean to blurt it out, and kind of regrets it when Andrew tenses up

"Do you want us to be?" Andrew asks cautiously

And Neil thinks about the quiet companionship. He thinks of Andrew's presence calming him after nightmares and during King's labor. He thinks about the worry in his gut when he thought Andrew was going to go back to ignoring him. He thinks about how his kitchen is arranged how Andrew likes it, how his couch is covered in Andrew's blankets and pillows, how King and Sir are never seen apart anymore, how seamlessly their broken edges fit together. How Andrew learned his truths without flinching

Neil nods, uncertain of how to proceed

Andrew leans in, eyes moving to pointedly look at Neil's mouth then back to his eyes

"Yes or no?"

"Yes," Neil answers, the first of many, many more

[rayonfrozenwings]

Aka Me catching up on tag games, so be ready to learn more about me. :D

thanks @mooonbeam, and @nephelle-warrior-scribe for the tag!~

Rules: answer 21 questions and then tag 21 people who you want to get to know better... it wont be 21, i cant follow instructions.

nickname(s): renee... 

zodiac sign: gemini

height: 5′9

last movie I saw: crazy stupid love, and only a third of the way through,,,, because - BORING and i’d seen it before.

last thing I googled: um, the phone number for my local license place.

favourite musician: I dunno..... whoever sounds good? honestly i suck with music.

song stuck in my head: nothing.... which is nice i guess...

other blogs: like my other blogs? I have a few, mostly organised by fandom so i dont need to be precious with my tags.... so here they are @darrowismyfavourite, @chainsawsronan @ueenofmirth @andrewandneilforever and i also used to run @sjm-fantheoryarchive but tbh haven’t really contributed to that in a wee while. and then im also a part of @faenet. 

following: 627

followers: 1135

do I get asks: not usually but when I do ask games sometimes, im kinda online at the wrong time of the day to play them tho.

amount of sleep: i like 6hrs at least but lately ive been sleeping 8-10hrs but interrupted and that sucks!

lucky numbers: 3 and 8

what I’m wearing: denim skirt and a black tank top

dream job: i have no idea. i’d love to do interior design but have no experience and people dont want to hire designers when money is tight. using my teaching and business stuff would be nice. but i really have no idea. I just know that i dont want to go back to some things. 

dream trip: europe - like ancient places like greece, istanbul, italy, pompeii etc etc. but id want to explore and don’t have the cashflow for that.

favourite food: i don’t know. i’m torn atm. because i’m so restricted to what i can have. Potatoes. I am samwise gamgee.

instruments played: nothing well.

languages: English, a lil bit of maori and little bit of NZSL

favorite songs:

- shit i honestly don’t know - have some bands. 

- Goldenhorse (kiwi band - good, folksy stuff)

- Fur patrol

- no doubt

- u2

- foo fighters

- meh, i’m stuck. i like random stuff. 

random fact: ummmm I caught a mouse today with the help of a mouse trap.

aesthetic: oh frick, swearing, going from zero to 100, over thinking, dreams, so many dreams, creative and logical, knee high boots, jeans and tank tops, books left lying around the house, lost sunglasses, collector of shinny things. 

@elidethewise @verifiefangirl @theyretheirthere @literaturelybookishthings @faeriequeenofthewest @illyrianbeauty @photofeesh @fae-queen-of-the-east @kazbrekkxrs @howtotameyourillyrian @ladyvanserra

[jbuffyangel]

Weekly Rundown 10/21/18-10/26/18

Time to rundown what I’m watching, loving, hating and everything in between! Spoilers ahead! Full episode reviews and reactions are linked in the titles.

Daredevil Season 3

Just so y’all know - most nuns do not wear their habits in public anymore. It’s been that way since Vatican II, but TV refuses to catch up.

The action is amaaaaazing again. I love how Matt actually gets tired when he’s fighting.

I don’t want Matt to put that ugly Daredevil suit on again he looks ridiculous. Keep the black mask and call it a day.

I want Foggy to propose very badly. I need a Foggy wedding in Season 4.

Is there any particular reason why Karen didn’t haul ass to Frank’s Punisher lair when her life was in danger and Matty Mcbrown eyes was off Daredeviling an existential crisis? That’s where I’d go.

Matt refusing to ask the other Defenders help because “it’s not their fight” is the stupidest reason ever.

Arrow (“The Longbow Hunters”)

It is a bit creepy when Stan says, “I bet a guy like that would do anything to keep his family safe.” Maybe Stan is a nuthouse, but leave me to my dream for now.

Is it me or did Yorke look older than 40? 1978????

Deputy Director Bell is evil. Calling it now.

The Longbow Hunters don’t actually use bows. This is a twist I did not see coming.

Bl*ck S*ren can’t lawyer worth a damn, but she can wear a suit.

“Stay behind me.” That was oddly hot Rene. I’m wildly uncomfortable that I find you attractive right now, but it is what it is.

Rene: Been back in town a week and you’re already sneaking out of A.R.G.U.S. behind Papa Dig’s back? I’m so proud.

Felicity: Thanks man.

This whole exchange was delightful and not remotely derogatory like “Blondie.” THY NAME IS CHARACTER GROWTH.

“Grab your balls Curtis, we’re going in.” If the Rene character only exists to say this one line of dialogue then it was worth it.

Why didn’t BS and Dinah go after the Longbow Hunter? What is up with allowing all these criminals to run away at a moderately brisk pace and our people acting like they can’t catch them? They are called legs! Move your ass!  

BITCH YOU BETTER NOT STEP ON THAT PHOTO!!!!!!!

Legends of Tomorrow  (“The Virgin Gary”)

Legends Season 4 premiere is fantastic and full of all the hi-jinks I’ve missed over hiatus.

“Speaking of the same old crap isn’t that what he did last year?”Legends gets points for acknowledging that Wally gets the storyline shaft a lot.

When you are officially a hero the time bureau gives you a medal, but I was more excited about the balloons.

It would be super weird if the Legends spent more than a day in 2018.

Remember when Oliver asked Sara to move in with him and she went running screaming in the other direction? It all worked out because Sara knew he was really in love with Felicity. I’m just saying she’s come a looooong way.

I want to be clear about one thing and it’s not up for debate. Ready? The best thing about Legends is Mick. It’s always Mick. That is all.

OMG NATE’S FATHER IS BIFF FROM BACK TO THE FUTURE?????!!!!!!!! THIS IS SPECTACULAR CASTING!!!

Manifest “Connecting Flights”

It was nice to fill in the back story of the characters left behind after the plane went missing, however the show is starting to lose my attention. I need more movement on these character relationships. Manifest is hitting a lot of the same notes week after week.

This Is Us (“Toby”)

Randall is going ahead with the city council job? Are they independently wealthy Does no one have to work?

Baby Toby is the cutest.

Holy crap is this how in vitro really works? It’s so friggin expensive and no guarantees. Wow, my sympathies to all those who have gone through this excruciating process.

Randall unbuttoning his shirt is all the reason I need to vote for him. Done deal. 

Toby used his wonderful sense of humor to cheer up his depressed Mom. Ugh my heart.

But for real though sometimes you need just “one damn day.” #MomLife

Three hours to get ready Kate? Just as an FYI - that’s all over when you have a baby. You’ll be lucky to get a shower.

Miguel carried a piano up stairs to cheer Rebecca up. That’s love.

“There’s so much of her in you it scares me.” THAT IS NOT SOMETHING YOU SAY TO YOUR CHILD ASSHOLE.

A+ on the prom dresses. Absolutely what I wore in high school. We were fashionista slaves in the late nineties.

Kate’s impression of Adele is dead on.

Miguel tries so hard. He’s just trying to keep his promise to Jack.

Rebecca is such an amazing mom. Kate doesn’t give her nearly enough credit.

KATE IS PREGNANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Rookie (Pilot” and “Crash Course”)

I really loved The Rookie. I typically don’t hate procedurals, but this one has surprised me thus far. It’s fast paced, so it held my attention more. I hope it stays that way. 

I love how it is the rookies versus the training officers. It fills my Rookie Blue void.

I am not invested in any ships yet. I am not buying the romance between Nolan and Lucy so far. I actually think Lucy has more chemistry with Bradford and Nolan with the Captain.

A Million Little Things (“Friday Night Dinner” and “The Game of Your Life”)

I want to love this show, but they are making it next to impossible. I hate cheating storylines in any show. It’s one of the main reasons I quit watching Shonda Rhimes’ shows because she is unable to write one without including adultery. Arrow’s original love story revolved around cheating and was an absolute mess. It feels like a lazy way to inject drama. This cheating storyline between Eddie and Delilah is making two characters who are otherwise very likable extremely unlikable. 

Instead of jettisoning this plot into the atmosphere where it belongs and never speaking of it again, A Million Little Things is double down on it.  Delilah is pregnant! Oh wonderful, now we get to play “Who’s the Daddy?” for several weeks.

Apparently, the writers come from The Fl*sh school of writing. Characters can only be mad at other characters for one episode. All the friends found out about Eddie and Delilah’s affair and the very next week they are sitting down to pizza. It’s at Delilah’s house and Eddie’s wife Katherine comes too because FRIENDS. No. Just no.

Instead of being angry at Eddie and Delilah, the friends make excuses for them. Regina’s conversation with Delilah turned into a huge “I didn’t see your pain” apology, which is flat out ridiculous. What Delilah did was so off the charts wrong there is no excuse for it. If you are in pain see a therapist. It’s not an excuse to cheat on your husband. Also, Regina you are not to blame for Delilah lying to everyone for over two years. 

Gary, who has been the angriest, decides he’s being too hard on Eddie (ya know by actually holding him accountable for his actions) and lets Eddie move in with him after his wife finally kicked him out. Are you freaking kidding me with this? I was already mildly irked at Gary for giving Delilah a free pass, but I understood his reasoning because her husband just jumped off a building. She has been punished quite a lot. But Eddie? I think we could muster a couple episodes of anger towards Eddie.

The writers attempted drum up sympathy for Delilah by shining a little light on her seemingly perfect marriage with Jon. It’s not really perfect, but what marriage is? Jon was short with Delilah during a family dinner. He took a phone call from work and snapped, “Everything I do is for this family.” What a bastard. Of course, that is reason enough for Delilah to jump into bed with Eddie, her husband’s best friend. GIVE. ME. A. FRIGGIN. BREAK. If my husband slept with someone else every time I was cranky with him, he’d have a harem.

So, on top of being suicide apologists, the writers are adding cheating apologists. There is no reason to cheat. It’s just mean. Nobody has put a gun to your head. If you want out of your marriage you march to an attorney’s office and file for divorce. Not sure if you want a divorce? Then go to counseling. But cheating, under any circumstances, is wrong. It’s cruel and selfish. It’s trying to have your cake and eat it too. A Million Little Things trying to excuse away Eddie and Delilah’s heinous behavior is almost as bad as the cheating itself. Trying to make suicide and cheating okay with excuses is dangerous behavior. I AM NOT A FAN.

Stray Thought - on what planet is a school program presented in the middle of the freaking day? What kind of ridiculous school do Eddie and Katherine send their son to?

Blindspot (“The Quantico Affair”) 

Zapata has a very interesting running stride. Sorry I was in cross country. That stuff interests me

Roman saying "He knows. This is it. Kill him" underscores the dramatic tension.

I’m gonna need someone on Team Blindspot to pick up on Remi's side eye. Y'all are FBI agents for goodness sake.

I don't actually know what Patterson's name is, but I feel confident it is not Lisa.

I think Martin Gero saw me write "Where is Patterson's storyline?" in my last review. I could have opted for patience, but complaining loudly via written word felt like a better plan. 

Hey watch the condemnation Remi aka Jane aka double secret agent who told so many lies I can't keep it straight anymore.

OMG Rich not explaining how the tattoo was solved is the best thing ever. PLEASE DO THIS EVERY WEEK

I wanna talk about the Book of Secrets mostly because Rich calls it the Book of Secrets.

Hahaha. Her one night stand showed up at work. This is how Meredith and McDreamy began. I highly recommend elevator scenes too.

One night stand boy is Weitz's nephew. IT. JUST. GOT. BETTER

Sure Madeline come on in and check out our super secret tattoo murder board.

"Thundercats ho!" OMG was that an ad lib?

Totally ship Patterson and this dude. I should probably learn his name.

Somebody tell Rich about the one night stand. Pleeeeeeeease.

I'm not calling him Lincoln. He shall be known as "Slab of Man-Ham" forevermore.

Patterson and Rich are the perfect work wife/husband team. Remember Rich is the work wife

How does Weitz maintain employment? This may be the greatest of all Blindspot's mysteries.

Of course "Jane" and Weller are on the train Weitz. IT'S THEIR JOB. Seriously someone get this dude a DVD of #Blindspot S1-S3

Patterson girl, Jane is never that cranky with you when she's diffusing bombs. SOMEBODY NOTICE PERSONALITY CHANGES PLEASE!!!

"You're new here." ALL KNEEL TO PATTERSON.

[dplcmcy-blog]

 Hey there! Nice to meet you! :D This is chiv and I’ll quickly run down my guy Rene aka Mercy aka it’s a pun or smth I swear,,, I mean I think it is eventually at least  check out his full-er-ish doss when I get my stuff together but ‘till then, fast facts :D !! 

°✧｡ [ BOOBOO STEWART, HE/HIM ] IT’S BEEN TWO YEARS SINCE MERCY JOINED VELIA FROM OTTAWA, ONTARIO. APPARENTLY THEIR NAME IS RENE CAIRD. THEY HAVE BEEN FIGHTING AS A SOLO MEMBER FOR A WHILE NOW. DIDN’T PEOPLE SAY THEY WERE A BETA TESTER? I HEARD THEY TURNED TWENTY-FOUR THIS YEAR. LET’S HOPE THEY MAKE IT OUT ALIVE.

SYNOPSIS.

Ex-player killer who has decided to no longer engage in any form of physical altercation. Adamantly insists on settling any conflict or dispute through words alone. His goal is to leave his sordid past behind and make up for what he’s done, but in reality he’s just running away. 

CHARACTERIZATION.

Seems like your average quiet withdrawn type guy when you first meet him. 10/10 would ignore if you passed him on the street ( except you get the creeping feeling he might be judging you. .... is it even “judging you” ? who knows— you’d turn around to look for him but by the time you do, he’s disappeared in the crowd )

Will Not casually touch a weapon of any kind. Which is weird, since he clearly has a mid-rate sword at his hip. Mayb it’s for decoration? it’s still kinda lame-ugly tho if you’re honest with yourself.

Kind of guy that Would Help (tm) if you needed someone to watch your bunnies

It’s pretty obvious he’s inhibited in some way. Though he’s a pretty okay guy to get along with long as you’re not, well, doin shady stuff. No 1 way to get to him ( even if it’s not immediately obvious ) is to be a Circus member probably —

He has a really nice, even voice & excellent control over it.

BEFORE VELIA.

Not much. College student, freelance work, video games. If you’d asked him what he was passionate about, he’d probably smile wryly and say he’s looking for it. Supposedly he chose his major by taping the options to a dartboard and not-quite-aiming ( something his parents weren’t quite happy with, but he met them in the middle and included some options to soothe their souls. )

Not quite lonely but predominately so; work--finish--socialize--sleep. The main thing he became truly immersed in was gaming, becoming very involved in communities as mentors and guild members. 

VELIA.

His gaming life had always been a certain degree richer than his offline one. MMORPG had always been his style, so he hopped on the beta for Velia right quick— keeping his online handle, Mercy, and a slight rep for PVP prowess. 

Avidly invested in this upcoming game, he naturally associated with players who shared this interest. However, this led to him quickly becoming involved with a number of PVP enthusiasts who would eventually form the Circus, playing red. 

Having made a dear friend along the way and becoming equally involved in the notorious guild, a kind of double-catch went on which stopped him from leaving and lent towards an addictive cycle of killings and murder. 

Eventually, something had to give, and so it did. There came a chance for— or rather, it was thrust upon him— to cut ties. And so he did, and he ran like hell, and it was enough of a bucket of ice-cold water to wake him up. The name “Mercy” disappeared from Circus infamy, but not before becoming blood-stained and marked by many. 

He’s gone underground for a while now, carefully avoiding anyone who might know his face, his name, or his reputation. Having gotten rid of almost all his gear and opting for non-specialized equipment only, he’s hardly a noteworthy figure— noteworthy, if anything, as the beta player who doesn’t fight. 

However, grudges run deeper than armor and facades, and he desperately seeks a way to get away from “Mercy”, the name he’d held so dearly for many years. He’s heard rumors of some way to untraceably reset one’s username, and clings to some blind hope of getting a truly new start. 

CONNECTIONS.

Someone from the Circus / early Velia that recognizes the username Mercy.

Someone who is deadset on baiting Rene into battle.

Someone who is seeking tutorship in some combat skill.

Someone Rene is trying to avoid.

Someone who is looking for new recruits for their guild.

[olicitysecretsanta]

A Christmas (Tree) to Remember

From: @lovejesusarrowavengersblog

Merry Christmas, Bri (aka @bri617aroundtheworld! I hope your Christmas season is filled with lots of awesome moments, candy, and fun friends and family. I hope you enjoy your story. I struggled with coming up with this, and then writing it. This takes place right after the mid-season finale. And the mishaps are actually based on a true story. Just in case they seem ridiculous. Again, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!! :) ~ Brianna 

The team was broken. Dinah, Curtis, and Rene were gone, the original group wasn’t sure what to do. It was exhausting, frustrating, and, though, he’d never admit it, a little terrifiying. But it didn’t matter today. He refused to let it matter today.

Because they were getting their Christmas tree.

Oliver leaned against the counter, William near him at the table, tapping his fingers on the wood. They were both ready, and just waiting for the one Queen who couldn’t move fast unless Slade Wilson was holding her kidnapped. Amongst other things. “Bud, go yell at the door again.”

“I did that last time.”

“I know. But do it one more time.” Because Felicity was less likely to start yelling at William than she was if Oliver went and told her to hurry up.

William rolled his eyes as he stood. “You just don’t want to get her angry.”

“Don’t worry! I’m here!” The door flew open and she stepped out, wearing exactly the same outfit she went into the bathroom in. Oliver pursed his lips together to hide his laugh when William yelled, “You’re wearing the same outfit!”

“I am. What’s the problem with that?”

“You spent an hour in there. To end up in the same thing?”

“Oh.” Felicity let out a laugh and put her arm around William’s shoulder. “Let me tell you about girls. Not all of them, because some of them can shower, dry their hair, and look cute in less than ten minutes. I could only do that if I were the Flash. Which I’m definitely not. But we should go.” She looked over William at Oliver, a smile on her face. They talked about this last night. No matter how sucky their professional lives were at the moment, they needed to put it all aside and have some fun with William, who couldn’t stop talking about getting a tree. Nothing else mattered today.

“Alright guys, let’s go.” Oliver grabbed the keys and his phone, on silent, because the entire Mayor’s office knew that he was taking the day off and how dare anyone contact him today. Lance’s words, not his, but they were accepted gratefully. “We waited long enough.”

“Is that a dig at me?” When he didn’t respond, Felicity sighed. “It’s totally a dig at me.”

“An hour, Felicity?”

“Next time I’ll take two just to make you extra annoyed.”

William cleared his throat. “Are you guys…fighting?”

“Oh!” Felicity looped her arm around Oliver’s waist. “No. We’re not fighting. This is nothing compared to some of the things we’ve fought about. There was that time—”

Oliver whispered, “William doesn’t need to hear about that time.”

“What’d you just say about me not hearing something?” His son had his hearing, which was irritating. The kid could hear whispered words from the other room, or catch if Oliver was trying to practice the video games. Even if he didn’t have the sound on, though he found out last night that William had all the game things connected so he knew if one was being used. That whole ordeal screwed with him for a couple weeks.

“Adult stuff.” Felicity answered for him with a wink. “But today we’re not being adults and we’re going to drink hot chocolate and cut Christmas trees down.”

“Lots of adults do that.”

Oliver chuckled when Felicity sputtered after William shot back at her. His son gave them both a run for their money at times. He’d grown accustomed to super villains, lawyers with their reasons for his guilt, and plenty of cops. That he could deal with without breaking a sweat. But an eleven-year-old boy who looked like the younger version of him? That caused him to lay awake at night, Felicity snoring against his chest, worrying about everything that pertained to William.

Good thing his son could handle it better than all of them.

“Let’s just get to the tree farm without an argument between you two, okay?” Oliver slipped his arm around Felicity’s waist and drew her closer, as she’d drifted away from him as they walked towards the car. He needed her right next to him. Always. She gently punched his arm, but laughed with him and William most of the way to the tree farm. The only time the giggling between his son and his wife quieted was when William let out a quiet sigh and whispered, “I wish Mom was here.”

He was thankful they were at a stop light, because he needed a moment to close his eyes and wish that he could’ve saved her. He should’ve been able to keep her safe. If he had, William would still have a mom. Felicity was here; so was Raisa, but they never took the place of a mom. He knew that too well.

The only thing that stopped a spiral into grumpiness and sadness was Felicity sliding her hand into his. The look she gave him said a multitude of things, but one thing stood out the most. He couldn’t blame himself. Not for this one, at least.

William cheered up a few minutes later when they pulled into the parking lot. “I can’t wait to get the tree.” He rubbed his hands together. “It’s gonna be amazing.”

That brought a thought to his head that should’ve been there sooner. “Crap.” He’d worked on his swearing a lot since William moved in with him, and it had improved. Though this situation almost required a swear word. “We have a problem.”

“An arrow problem or a ‘our car just died’ problem? Which would be impossible because the car was still running when you said that.”

“I forgot to measure the ceiling.”

“Big deal.” Felicity shrugged. “An average ceiling is nine feet. Ours is probably a little taller.”

“Yeah, but it’s never that simple.” He should’ve remembered to do that. Any decent dad would. Any normal male taking his wife and son to a tree farm would do that so they didn’t have to get multiple trees. Oliver muttered a swear word under his breath as he climbed out. William heard it.

“It’s not that bad, Dad.”

Leave it to William to correct him on his swearing. But Oliver smiled anyways. He would never get used to being called ‘Dad’. After six months of struggling to get by, he’d finally gotten to that point where William loved and trusted him enough. And he was right this time: there were worse things. Like Caden James and Black Siren running wild somewhere. He wasn’t gonna let it bother him today. C’mon, Oliver. “You’re right, buddy. It’s not that bad.” He ruffled his hair, getting a grin out of him. “Let’s go find a tree, huh?”

“We need hot chocolate first,” Felicity said, walking ahead of them a couple yards. “We can take it out on the tree ride.”

“But then we might spill it on the hay ride,” William counteracted, but Felicity insisted on it. His son looked at him with eyes that said ‘so do we listen or do we not’, but Oliver shrugged.

“It’ll be fun. Hay rides aren’t rides on the Waverider.”

“What’s the Waverider?”

“You get to hear about that on your sixteenth birthday.”

“That’s when you said I could start looking at girls.”

True. “No, I changed that. Eighteenth birthday.”

Felicity tossed over her shoulder, “Last thing your dad wants is for you to turn out like him. So expect lots of rules.”

“Well, I don’t like alcohol.”

Which was good, but also concerning. Oliver squinted at William, who grinned. He knew how to make him panicky. “When did you have alcohol?”

“At the toast. At your wedding thingy. Aunt Thea let me have a glass. A little tiny glass.” He made a reference to a shot glass with his fingers. Except he probably didn’t know what kind of glass his aunt gave him to sip the champagne from. Oliver let William bounce ahead to find the hot chocolate, and grabbed his wife again.

“Are you staking your claim on me?”

“Nope.” His hand rubbed the small of her back, and then he smiled. “I did that when I said yes.”

“True. But…” Felicity looked around the store, likely taking stock of the young men that loitered around. “There’s a decent amount of cuties here. That I don’t have my eye on, because you’re the only cutie I need.”

“That is…” he let out a breathy laugh. He never would’ve thought that he would be here. At a Christmas farm, with his arm around his wife. And she was being sappy. “That is so sappy, Felicity.”

“You make me sappy. I can’t help it.”

“Hey, guys!” William waved his hand to get them to move faster. “Found the hot chocolate for you, Felicity!”

She let go of him with a squeal and ran down the hall to the room with the treats. Oliver followed at a slower pace. First, he needed to figure out how tall their ceiling was. The Mayor wasn’t going to show up and not know what height he needed his tree. Second, he needed to walk into that room and look at his wife and son.

When he was a kid, his dad used to walk in and watch the family. Oliver always noticed him, and broke the silence by yelling for him to come play. Now, he understood what his dad wanted to do. Take a moment of quiet, without anyone noticing, and just look. 

Felicity and William stood in line to get their hot chocolate, giggling. His son threw his head back and let out a laugh that echoed throughout the room. They grabbed cups, one extra from him, and William turned towards one of the tables. Felicity spun towards him, caught his gaze, and waved. Then she went to William.

Oliver leaned against the wall and watched the miracle that was his life. Talk about being sappy, Queen. But it was true. He knew more than even Felicity that he shouldn’t be here. He should’ve died over ten years ago. He should’ve died even before he got on the Gambit. No woman should want to be married to him. His son shouldn’t even like him, let alone call him ‘Dad’. But somehow, this all happened.

Call it a Christmas miracle or whatever else, but it was a miracle. That was the only reason he stood here today.

“Hey, Dad! Come over and drink hot chocolate with us.”

He’d been noticed. And someday William would feel the same way that he did now. Oliver dropped to the bench next to Felicity and took the cup of hot chocolate she offered him. “Thanks for getting me some.”

“You’re welcome. But make sure you maintain those juicy abs of yours. Oh!”

Oliver choked on his drink when Felicity covered her mouth, her eyes wide. William’s eyebrows shot up. Several feet from them, an old lady giggled. What a sight they were. The Mayor’s family sitting here, sputtering over a strange sentence that only Felicity could say. And maybe Cisco, but the after affect was filled with annoyance.

This one was filled with love.

And giggles.

“And with that,” Felicity stood up and tapped her fingers on the table, “let’s go get our tree. But I’m getting more hot chocolate before we go.”

When she left, William leaned in closer and whispered, “She’s a little strange.”

Oliver chuckled and messed with his son’s hair. “She is, but it’s a good strange, right?”

“I agree.”

                                                            *******

Felicity accepted Oliver’s offered hand and hopped onto the wagon that would take them out to the trees. “Thank you, husband.” She liked using that as much as possible. It was a special word that she never dreamed of getting to use. Mostly because she was pretty sure she’d die alone for quite a while. Then Oliver came along, and she spent six years going back and forth between ‘I hate you’ and ‘I adore you’. Then there was a middle ground called ‘let’s just get married’. Which is what they did a few weeks ago.

She still hadn’t regretted it.

Besides when telling her mother. Her dad was thrilled; her mom was screaming about not being invited.

A guy dressed in Carhart pants and jacket walked over to them, carrying a saw. “Whatcha gettin’?”

“What kind of tree?” Oliver’s face flashed a mild amount of panic. Felicity’s brain went black. Neither of them had gone tree shopping in years. They talked about it last night in bed. She got a fake Christmas tree in her apartment in college. Oliver helped Thea lug one into the Loft, but she picked it out.

“Frack.”

“We’d like to pick out a Fraser.” William spoke up, shooting them looks of approval. They couldn’t say it was the wrong pick, since neither of them knew the difference between anything. “Is that okay?”

The guy chuckled. “Son, that works out great. We got a ton of those. Hang on tight and I’ll drive you out there.”

When he left, Felicity let out a long breath and giggled. “Clearly we don’t really know what we’re doing.” She nudged William, who sat between them looking proud. “Good thing we brought you along. I would’ve had to pull out my phone to figure it out. Which wouldn’t look good.” She side-eyed Oliver, who looked like someone just broke his precious bow. “You okay, hon?”

“I’m fine.” He straightened his shoulders, which helped squash the whole ‘defeated’ look. “Just thinking.”

His ‘just thinking’ was feeling bad that he didn’t know what kind of tree to get. Or that he hadn’t done this sooner with William. And lots of other stuff.

She should’ve gone to school to be a counselor. “Oliver…honey…”

He flashed her a smile. “I’m oaky, hon. I promise.”

“Good, because—” The tractor jerked forward, which spilled her hot chocolate all over her coat. “Frack!”

“Told ya so.”

“Be quiet, William.” She wasn’t that heartbroken—there was a reason she wore her not-so-nice coat today—but moaning and groaning about her something silly often made him laugh more. And she loved hearing him laugh. “This is a disaster. I can’t be seen out in public like this. I can see it now.” She exaggerated a moan as she swiped some of the errant liquid off her coat. “‘Mayor Queen’s wife spills hot chocolate all over herself after she refuses to listen to her son’.” Double frack. What was with her today? “And by that I mean…” she didn’t know what she meant by that. “I didn’t mean it like—”

A grin lit up William’s eyes. They were sad, but it held a glimmer of hope. His expression was one that Oliver gave her a hundred times in the past six years. It was one that always led to something special. He scooted a little closer to her. “You married my dad. So that kind of makes you my other mom. Mom will always be my real one, but since she’s not here anymore…” he sniffed. “I would like you to be here for me like she was.”

Her heart did something fluttery. Probably like what it would do when she laid eyes on her and Oliver’s first baby. This was almost the same thing. William wasn’t hers. But if they both declared that fact, then it was true. With his permission, she could be a mom to him. As best as she could.

“And don’t cry.”

“I’m not crying.”

William squinted at her. “You said Dad was the worse liar.”

“I did?”

“You did?” Oliver sent her a glare that turned into a teasing smile that reminded her of all the times they’d both done some…covering up. “That’s not fair.”

“I guess that if I were being honest, it’s probably a tie.”

The tractor slowed to a stop and let them off. Felicity and Oliver told William to pick out the tree, so they followed behind him at a slower pace, hand in hand. She paid more attention to the ground than to Oliver for a few moments before he stopped them.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine. Just don’t want to fall.” It was stupid, but after the months of being paralyzed and having way too many accidents, she hated falling. Any time her foot slipped or twisted, it took her back to when she wanted to shower and Oliver wasn’t home. And she fell. Then the time that she tried to reach something on the top shelf of the fridge which meant she needed another few inches in height. And she fell.

Then there was the night they were trapped in the bunker. Oliver hurt, her legs unable to move. The ‘what ifs’ of those hours kept her up at night sometimes. They were so close to never even having this conversation.

The lightbulb went on, and Oliver nodded. “I get it.” He let go of her hand, bent down, and swooped her up. She let out a shriek and threw her arms around his neck. William came running, nearly wiped out on a piece of ice, and came to a screeching halt next to them, breathless.

“Felicity, are you okay?”

“I’m okay, bud, don’t worry.” She patted Oliver’s shoulder in a ‘let me down’ move. But he didn’t budge. “I just don’t like snow.”

“You’re a terrible liar.”

“That is true. And I’ll tell you all about this when we get home. For now, let’s find a tree. Go horsey.”

Oliver grunted, then started walking. His arms cradled her close to his chest in a move that he often did when they laid in bed. He liked her close to him. She knew that, and took advantage of it as much as possible. Because why not? Her mom was right. There weren’t that many men out there that were this attractive and had cooking skills. And who had biceps the size of Hercules’.

“How about this one?” William pointed to a tree that had to be over nine feet tall. But it was gorgeous.

Felicity patted Oliver’s chest. “It’s almost as attractive as you.”

“I’m honored. Because it is pretty.”

“And your dad has never used that term before, so this tree should feel very proud.” Felicity reached out and touched one of the frilly branches. “It’s a strong one. And it looks like we might be going with the first crush.” That caused a giggle from William.

Oliver walked them both around the tree to examine all the sides. Felicity pointed out a couple fatal flaws with it. The branches didn’t start for a foot or so, and they didn’t look great down there. And there was a giant gap that couldn’t be hid since they didn’t have a nice corner to put the tree in.

“Okay, first boyfriend isn’t gonna work out.” When Oliver shot her a look, she shrugged. “What? I think it progressed from first crush to first boyfriend before we broke up.” With that, she winked. He rolled his eyes.

They spent another five minutes looking around until William let out a shout. “Found it! This one’s perfect!” Oliver practically ran down the rows of trees, nearly slipping on a patch of ice. Like son like father. Felicity hung on for dear life until they came to a stop. She whistled after she skimmed it over.

“What a gorgeous tree.”

“And it looks good all over!” William bounced up and down, his excitement flowing over to the adults. Felicity looked up at her husband, who was already looking at her. The look was one of love, sure. But also one of happiness. Oliver had seen pain more, but she did too. She’d seen it in the man holding her right now. Way too much. But seeing William jumping up and down about a giant, fluffy, gorgeous tree brought tears to her eyes. Seven months ago, this boy lost his mom. He was transported into a strange world that involved his dad being a superhero.

And right now, he was shouting about a Christmas tree.

“Looks like it’s gonna be the second boyfriend.” Oliver winked at her as he lowered her to the ground. “Bud, do you want to saw it down?”

“Nope.” William passed the saw to him. “I’ll do it next year. Plus, I gotta watch you do it first.”

“Alright, alright. But you need to hold the boughs up.” Oliver slid underneath the tree, and in two minutes, Felicity and William caught it when he shouted timber. She looked at the kid standing next to her and winced. His arms reached way above hers. He even had some muscle.

“I think you’re taller than me.”

“I am.” His voice was proud. Proud enough that if he had a social media account, he’d brag about it on there. Which was a good reminder to check up on those accounts sometime soon.

Oliver hauled it back to the wagon, and they rode back with the way-too-big tree. While the tree men were wrapping it up, Felicity brought William back into the store. “Let’s get your dad some really sappy gift that he’ll say he hates but keeps for the rest of his life.”

“How about a stuffed snowman?”

“Not stupid enough.”

They ended up buying him an ornament with three snowmen. A daddy, mommy, and little baby snowman. A sappy thing that Oliver would pretend to hate but actually adore. Felicity hid it in her purse just as he came in and said the tree was up on the car. “Good thing we didn’t bring the porsche. That thing is huge.”

“Is it gonna fit in the house?” William had a cup of hot chocolate in one hand and cider in the other. Under his arm, he squeezed a bag of popcorn. Oliver took account of all the sugar his son had before responding.

“I have no idea. But we’ll figure it out. Ready to go home?” Oliver grabbed Felicity’s hand and then snatched a handful of popcorn from William’s bag. “Thanks, bud.” They listened to Christmas songs the whole way home, checking multiple times to make the tree was still on top of the car. Oliver was right. The thing was ginormous.

And it was worse getting it into the apartment. They all helped, some to lesser degrees, since she got sliced with a branch and Oliver ordered her to sit down until the bleeding stopped. William stepped up to the plate and helped his dad pull, drag, and push the tree into the living room.

“How are we gonna get it up?” William stared at it, arms crossed. A mirror image of his father. Felicity laughed whenever it happened. And it did a lot. “Let alone get the angel on top?”

“Like I’ve lived life for the past thirty-two years.” Oliver grinned as he reached for the tree stand sitting on the couch. “Somehow. Thankfully, I now have you two to help me, so it should go a lot easier. Hon, you wanna help me with this?”

“Are you sure you shouldn’t call Dig?”

“Who’s Dig?”

“John—”

“Mr. Diggle.”

“Oh. Him. You call him Dig?”

“In non-stressful, non-life-threatening situations.” Which was mostly true. “But are you sure you shouldn’t call him?”

“Naw.” Oliver was on the ground, getting the tree stand lined up properly. “I believe in you.”

“Hopefully we can pull this thing together like we’ve done the times either of us have said that.” She kept her boots with the bit of heel on so she could be just a tiny bit taller for this job. “Thank God I’ve been working out lately.”

Oliver stood up at that moment and leaned in close to whisper, “I’ve noticed.”

For the love of all of humanity, she hoped that William didn’t notice the heat that rose from her toes all the way to her cheeks. But the way the words were whispered with that husky voice of his, his unshaven cheek brushing against her ear…boy, she loved this man. “We’d better get this tree up.”

Her husband got the tough job, and she did the part of making sure the trunk got into the tree stand. William helped at the last part to make sure the tree stood up perfectly straight. But as soon as Felicity tightened up the sides of the tree stand and Oliver let go of it, the whole thing almost tipped over.

“You have got to be kidding me.” After her near death by being crushed by a Christmas tree, Felicity crawled underneath again to take a look at the tree stand. “Oliver, the tree stand’s bent.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Well, it happened.”

He squatted down to check on it because no way would he trust her about this kind of stuff and sent a glare with the power to kill Supergirl at the stand. “That’s ridiculous.” But he didn’t swear. One of the effects of having an eleven-year-old in the house. “But I can fix it.”

“Do you have a welding machine?”

His eyes squinted. “I don’t need one of those. Just a hammer.”

But they had to take the tree out of it again. When Oliver left to pound the crap out of the tree stand, Felicity turned on a Hallmark Christmas movie. “These are the best movies ever.”

“They’re stupid.”

No way. “Whaaat?” She spun around to William who looked serious. “No. You can’t dislike these movies.”

He shrugged.

“Have you ever actually…watched a Hallmark movie?”

“Yeah. Mom used to watch them on Christmas. And then she’d get really sad.”

I’m with ya, Samantha. She got both of them, actually. “I know the feeling. Your mom was sad about how her life was compared to those, huh?”

“Probably. But I don’t know adults. So I don’t know how that works.” He shrugged again. “But they made her cry, and she didn’t cry very often. So they’re stupid.”

Part of her wanted to change his mind right there, because she had the words to do so. But instead, she turned off the TV and wrapped William in a hug. “I understand. And it’s okay. When my dad left when I was seven, I didn’t sleep in my room for six months. I had so many good memories in there with him. We’d sit on the bed and talk for hours. And so that made me really, really sad.”

“So you get why I don’t like doing some stuff?”

“More than anyone. Oliver does too.” She could hear him walking down the hall, so she lowered her voice to bring up the dramaticness. “He just doesn’t want to admit it.”

The door opened, and her husband walked in. Limped in.

“What the heck happened to you?”

Oliver rolled his eyes and tossed the tree stand to the ground. “I hit my knee with the hammer.”

Do not laugh. Do not laugh. She pursed her lips together and kept a straight face, even when he looked at her with irritation. But when she side-eyed William, who glanced at her with wide eyes, the air she was holding came out in a howl of laughter. The one who caused her to laugh started giggling.

“That’s enough you two,” Oliver practically growled. “This is not funny.”

“Sorry!” Felicity bit her lip, but that made it worse. “I’m sorry. But…”

“But it’s kinda funny to imagine the Green Arrow hitting his knee with a hammer.”

There. The cute little boy finished the sentence off for her. Oliver kept a surly look on his face as they put the tree back in the stand. It got worse when the tree nearly fell again after tightening it in. The Christmas tree putting-up went from nice and easy to more difficult to defeat than Damien Darhk.

Why did it have to be so heavy?

“Hey, Dad, I have an idea.” William hopped off the chair and pointed the wall behind the tree that Oliver was holding up. “How about we drill a hook up there and tie the tree to the wall?”

“Well, if you need any more proof that that is your son…”

“That’ll work.” The response was less growly than it would’ve been two minutes ago. Oliver caught Felicity’s gaze. “Can you hold this up while I get some tools for this?” His voice softened back to sweet, husbandly, fatherly Oliver Queen. “I still believe in you, for the record.”

“And for the record,” she stepped up on her tippy-toes to give him a kiss, “I still believe in you. And if we can defeat Damien Darhk and Malcolm Merlyn, we can defeat this pain in the…butt tree.”

An hour later, after two or three loud swear words from Oliver as he struggled to drill the hook into the wall and get the wire around the tree and up to the hook, and once from Felicity when she nearly got taken out by the tree when William cut the ropes off of it, they were done. Not with decorating, which hopefully would take a lot less sweat and muttered swear words, but now they stood a few feet away, examining it.

“Mom and Dad would be pretty impressed. For the most part.” Oliver smiled. She could tell when he went back, and that smile wasn’t just about right now. He was remembering all the happy Christmases he had with his parents and Thea. “Mom was obsessed with getting the perfect tree. She wanted it to stand up straight, be plush, and be able to hold those lights like…” he chuckled and cocked his head. “If you tip your head to the right, our tree stands up perfectly straight.”

“But it’s perfect.” William nodded a few times to confirm it. “Mom and I always got a little tree. Kinda because we never had anyone big enough to get us a huge one, but also because we didn’t have a tall ceiling. But this one is epic.”

Felicity didn’t say anything. She was just standing there, in between them, relishing in the peace of it all. Snow fell outside like in one of those Christmas movies. There were a lot of Christmases that didn’t end happy. One year was spent mourning her father. One was spent mourning Cooper. Oliver. Then the shooting. Then Billy. So many times she looked at anything Christmas and wanted to cry instead of smile.

Until this year.

She had a strong, sexy, and sweet husband who she somehow hadn’t scared off yet, and she had a boy, just a little shorter than her if she wore heels, kind, sweet, and precious. He was broken. Just like her. Just like Oliver. But he was that third member of the family that they needed.

After some fun marital action that night in bed, a strange thought hit her harder than that time she got hit in the head with a baseball. The last time she entertained the idea of playing sports. “Hey, Oliver. I just thought of something.”

“Don’t tell me it’s about how you want to cuddle underneath the stars.”

“No. But thanks for putting that idea in my head.” She hopped up onto her elbow so she could look at him. “Remember that joke about the first crush?”

“Yep.”

“And how it looked perfect, but then up closer not so?”

“Also yes.”

“And then how we found the second tree?”

“Felicity.” Oliver sat up a bit and shot her one of his ‘seriously’ looks. “What’s the point?”

“It’s like us.” He still wasn’t following, judging by his lost face. “I had Cooper. He was great, and kind, and wonderful. At least it seemed. Then I got up closer and saw the giant gaps that never would’ve worked for us.” Now he was figuring it out. “Then I found you. Gorgeous, stoic, strong, and special.”

“But I’m not perfect.”

“Nope. You’re not. You’re a little crooked, and you’re definitely really heavy. Even if it is all muscle.” She dropped back down to her back and scooted closer to him. “That’s me. That’s us. We both had our first loves, and maybe our seconds too, but then we found each other. And we’re not perfect. But in a house of love, which we have, we are perfect.”

Oliver closed his eyes and smiled. She reached up and played with his hair for a few moments before he spoke. “Y’know, Felicity…Floyd Lawton nearly killed me.”

“What?” She jerked up, all the way up to sitting position. “He did?”

“Yeah. He shot me, and it was laced that curare. I didn’t realize it until I started getting dizzy down in the lair. I had some of my herbs, but that was the only reason I didn’t die right there.”

“I don’t think I needed to know about that.” They’d gone through plenty together, but hearing about the other near-death situations made her stomach churn. “Seriously.”

“There’s a point.” He started fingering her wedding ring. When she wore rings in the past, she always took them off before getting into bed. But this one stayed on. “He nearly killed me, but then he inadvertently saved my life too.” His arm curled around her back which brought her down next to him again. The kiss he gave her brought them closer together, but when he pulled away to get a breath, he smiled, then whispered, “I know it’s a few days to go, but merry Christmas, Felicity Queen.”

She’d called him ‘Mr. Queen’ too many times in the past, so she returned with her favorite new word. “Merry Christmas, husband.“

[ragtagbagofbastards-blog]

Alezi the Half-Orc Barbarian

Hailing from the Northern border city of Northwall in Eldamir, Alezi traveled to Leyline to seek her fortune and perhaps more, but she may be running away from something...

Played by KQ aka @pixel-protag, Alezi portrait by KQ

Flynn the Half Elf Rogue

Traveling from the Elven nation of Tralindor to escape his past, Flynn now calls the more diverse nation of Eldamir his new home, but the past can catch up faster than one would think...

Played by Scott aka @squirrelbro, Flynn portrait by Scott

Oona the Tiefling Bard

All the way from the isolated nation of Jowagon, Oona set out to explore the wider world now available to her. However, it may prove Leyline probably wasn't the best choice...

Played by Renee aka @kortothecore, Oona portrait by Renee

Rhodes the Aasimar Paladin

Originally from Northwall, Rhodes came to Leyline a year ago to stay close to his family.  Having run unexpectedly into his old friend Alezi, he's found himself in some unexpected trouble....

Played by Red aka @adhdalistair, Rhodes portrait by @catelg

See more of the Ragtag Bag of Bastards on our channel!