#also why did it take me so long to realize callum is the one sitting on the table looking like the pikachu meme

[spell-of-the-rain]

elder gen z james strikes again

[thekatebridgerton]

So I don't have any Philoise mutuals and I have to get this off my chest.

Well we know that Theo is most likely reappearing and some kind of a build up for future Eloise. And I was a little scarred that they would turn Theloise in Philoise and have them sending letters to each other and her running away to him, because Calam mentioned that Theo is also gardener like? And Eloise' family is going to keep an extra eye on her after that scandal. Then Theo asks her to visit him and to get married.

Now I realized that they could do this but in that case Eloise doesn't run away to him because maybe A. She feels something but it's not strong enough, B. She's to scared of her family, C. She's too scared of love.

Okay then years later the same story repeats itself with Phillip. Now Eloise is more experienced and actually wants to get married. And this time she doesn't want to miss the chance on love because she did it with Theo and regrets it and now she really likes Phillip or is just very curious. This time she wants to overcome her fear of love or her family, or this time she doesn't care if her feelings aren't strong enough.

I feel like this would fit so much better to show!Eloise. I mean I see why people would think that running away to Phillip wouldn't fit her and that she is different from book!Eloise. But with that build up it would make sense. Even the Philoise haters could see it then.

I haven't even finished TSPWL because I'm so scared that they could change it to Theloise and I don't want to mourn something I could have almost gotten. So I guess those theories are helpful to me.

What do you think about it?

Dear Anon relax everything is going to be okay with our ship. Philoise is wonderful and they can't take that from us.

That being said you picked the wrong person to ask about Theo, simply because I, like the rest of the Philoise shippers on Tumblr. Am too lazy to care about him.

My favorite philoise mutuals are @missielynne and @sirphillipcranestanaccount you could ask them. But as far as I know they are too lazy to care about Theo too.

Actually, I'm going to let you in on a secret, Philoise shippers on Tumblr are one of the most don't-care-a-bit people in the fandom. You know those people who sit in the corner of a coffeeshop nursing a cup of tea, who look extremely hungover but it's just because they haven't slept since they picked up their favorite author's new release and still need to get to work at 7? That's more or less how Philoise shippers are in general. And I say this affectionately. We couldn't care less.

Not about Theo not about Theo's relationship with Eloise. We care about our ship, it's been cannon in the books since the early 2000's. And we have busy lives, we've got coffee to drink, messy lives to lead, personal relationships to manage, and way more interesting characters to actually devote our attention to.

Philoise is in every sense of the word. A comfort ship.

So relax, enjoy yourself and don't pay attention to how the show chooses to push Eloise character development. As long as she gets said character development.

And I apologize Theloise shippers, but I find myself more invested in secondary working class characters like Mme Delacroix, and Will Mondritch when they don't only exist to provide character development for a main character. Part of the reason I couldn't care less about Theo is because he was literally introduced so Eloise could have a 'not like other girls' love affair.

If we were shown more about him that didn't directly corelate to Eloise or her interests, in the way Will's story wasn't all about his friendship with Simon or Mme Delacroix story still isn't all about her affair with Benedict. Then maybe I would care about Theo.

Callum is a great actor. He's been an absolute charmer in interviews. But in fact, so is Ruby Barker. But if I had to choose who is more interesting, then Ruby Barker's Marina is definitely going places.

Now to the second part of your ask

I think that when the time comes in the show Eloise kind of running away is not going to be about having a mid life crisis because her friend is getting married. But rather it's going to be about her needing a safe place to run to.

Sometimes when you live in your the spotlight for so long you just want the place that nobody knows about, that can make you feel protected and safe. Some place that really feels like you have found some refuge.

I think it's possible that Eloise will create a scandal so big that she's going to need an escape and that she has this pen pal, or rather she knows this guy, that Colin knows, who she's been writing to and he has this house that is conveniently very close to Aubrey Hall. And she's going to be like 'yeah there's some place that I can go to that is calm and that isn't far away from my family and nobody will look for me there and I can come back in a few days. And then there's this pretty harmless guy who is way too nice to kick me out so I can recoup there for a while. '

I think the show could do it that way because come on, it's Eloise she's not going to stop causing trouble everywhere she goes. I imagine her causing a scandal so big, she needs to run away and she needs to find a safe place where she can lay low and that is far away from her family because they're pretty angry at her

probably something big and feminists like leading a riot among other intellectual women or helping the bride of an influential arranged marriage escape their crusty abusive would be husband

And then it's going to happen just like you said, she doesn't want to fall in love, because she's been hurt before with Theo. And falling inlove with Phillip would happen entirely by accident for both of them. Because show Eloise has loved and knows what it's like she doesn't expect it to happen again

And Phillip, who is pretty much okay with Eloise doing whatever she wants, would be fascinated. Falling inlove with how chaotic she is and how much fun she has destroying his carefully boring post-marina life. And also getting along with the twins. because he's never had someone like her in his life before.

I can imagine Phillip trying to study Eloise the way he studies his plants. Trying to find why he likes her so much and not coming up with an answer.

Philoise is going to be a ship in the show that's going to take viewers but surprise because Phillip and Eloise started out in wildly different places and will come together when they are right for each other

And that's the tea

[onceupon]

London Boy - Part 3: I like girls that dance

summary: It’s your first night out and your first real introduction to Westheath. Rafe is quick to find his way on your radar.

pairing: Rafe x reader (slowburn)

warnings: swearing, drinking

word count: 4.6k

a/n: the way I’m imagining Jack Harlow as I write Liam 😩✋also, im pulling these chapter titles out of my ass - but actually tho, go listen to Girls That Dance by Masego 

Part 1 Part 2

Despite your doubts, you put on the sheer top and the black mini skirt Millie and Olivia had insisted you wear. Your favorite pregame playlist plays as you do your makeup in the mirror. You move as quickly as you can, in desperate need of a shot to calm your nerves before your flat fills with people. You’re also nervous about seeing Rafe after that encounter in the kitchen you just had. 

As you run your fingers through your hair and put on your earrings, all you can see is his stupid (and annoyingly attractive) face, staring down at you with that dumb backwards cap, telling you that you guys should watch Game of Thrones together. Every time your mind starts to think if that means something, you quickly shut down the thought. Of course it doesn’t mean anything. Just because a boy wants to watch a show with you does not automatically mean he wants you or that this was going to turn into some kind of Netflix and chill situation. Or was this gonna be a Netflix and chill situation? I mean it was Rafe Cameron after all, the boy certainly had a reputation. But then again, hadn’t he just showed you that he’s different from what you had expected? Oh god this was all too much to think about right now, you needed a shot. Stat. 

“Y/N!” Olivia shouts, swinging the door to your room open right on cue. “Oh. My. God. You look so hot!” she exclaims. “Here, this is for you,” she extends a shot glass toward you with a devilish grin. 

“Oh god what is it,” you grimace. Shots always seemed like a better idea in theory than in practice. 

“Try it and find out,” she smirks. You sigh and send the liquid to the back of your throat, immediately cringing at the sting of raspberry vodka, Olivia bringing a cup of cranberry juice to your mouth to chase. 

“Don’t worry love, a few more and you won’t even taste it. Now come on,” she laughs, dragging you with her to the kitchen. The rest of your flatmates are already there, Millie bopping along to the music, giggling at whatever Topper is saying, Rafe standing close by sipping his drink. 

“Y/n you hottie!” Millie cheers, looking up as you make your way into the kitchen. You pray to god your cheeks aren’t turning pink. You don’t dare turn your head, but you know Rafe is staring at you. If you looked at him now you’d be crimson for sure. 

“Alright everybodyyy,” Olivia begins, pouring the same raspberry vodka into the five shot glasses she has lined up on the table. You can’t help but laugh at her infectious energy, this girl is nothing if not the life of the party. 

“Cheers to our first night out as flat mates! Wooo!!!” she exclaims, as everyone grabs a shot glass from the table, Rafe instinctively passing you one, hands briefly touching during the exchange and again as you all clink your glasses. You down the contents, unsure if the heat forming in your chest is from the vodka or the feeling of Rafe’s passing touch. 

Pretty soon people start to arrive, Olivia and Millie making sure to introduce everyone. The flat becomes a blur of bodies drinking, dancing, and mingling about, and somehow, despite it all, Rafe Cameron is the person you find yourself standing with. There was something magnetic about him that you couldn’t quite understand, but it kept drawing you near. 

“What are you drinking tonight Cameron,” you nod at the cup in his hand.

“Jack and coke. Of course,” he scoffs with subtle sarcasm, which you instantly pick up on. 

“Not straight whiskey? Wow. That’s not very Figure 8 of you,” you admonish playfully.

“Straight whiskey? L/n who do you think I am?” he twists his face in mock disbelief. “But I’m game to do a shot if you are,” he adds.

“Hmm that does-“ you begin, but you’re quickly cutoff. 

“Y/n, babe, if I had known you’d be here I would’ve came sooner,” Liam greets you with a kiss on the cheek and a cheeky smile. 

“Now how on earth do you two know each other,” Millie asks, walking in line with the boy.

“Umm,” you chuckle nervously. You could not have possibly felt more awkward at the conversation unfolding in front of you, Rafe standing by as witness to it all. “He’s that boy I went to the bar with the other night,” you explain sheepishly.

“That was Liam!? Chrissake. Well I apologize on his behalf for anything he said or did.”

“Hey I’ll have you know I’m a proper gentleman!” he defends, throwing you a wink as Millie rolls her eyes. Just at that moment, another group of people walk in through the door, conveniently coming to Rafe’s rescue.

“Rafe!” a girl calls and he clears his throat excusing himself, Millie following suit to greet the latest batch of guests. You watch as he leans in for a hug with the girl who’s just called his name. She’s twirling her hair and batting her eyes, confident, flirty, gorgeous - just his type. A sick feeling pools in your stomach, you don’t even realize you’re staring. 

“Lily Colts, if that’s what you’re wondering,” Liam informs you as he takes the now empty spot next to you.

“Oh, um no, I was just uh-“

“It’s okay Y/n, I get it. So flatmate huh” he laughs, unbothered.

“No no it’s not like that at all I uh-”

“Alright. Y/n,” he says, jumping up to sit on the counter behind him, cracking open the can in his hand. “You know I think you’re hot and you know I like messing with you-”

“Actually I know neither of those things,” you reply indignantly. 

“Yes you do, you’re not dim,” he bulldozes right on, “I can read people pretty well, and there was a vibe there.”

“A vibe?”

“Yeah. Between you and what’s-his-face. You should’ve seen the way he tensed up when I came up to you,” he snickers in amusement.

“Shut up. His name is Rafe, by the way, and there was no ‘vibe.’ Also why are you even telling me this?” you ask, growing frustrated with the cocky brunette.

“Y/n please,” he scoffs. “I told you I can read people, so let me read you. You’re out here in London right, far away from home, keen for a fresh start. You’ve never been one for meaningless flings, but fuck it, if everyone else can do it, why not you? Or so you try to convince yourself, but you know that’s not you. See, you crave that emotional connection, and when you find even a hint of it, you’re a goner. Which is why you’d never actually hook up with me and it’s why you’re staring at that boy from home even though you swear you don’t care, but you do - you feel something there.”

You’re dumbfounded by his ability to know things about you that even you yourself can’t recognize. “I liked it better when you were just flirting with me,” you grumble.  

“No worries darling, I’ll definitely still do that. I’ll even dance on you in the club if you ask nicely, might make pretty boy over there jealous,” he motions with his eyes toward Rafe, at which you give his shoulder a shove.

“You’re an idiot you know, Millie was right on the money with that,” you quip, as the two of you head over to her, Liv, and the boys.

“Please, Millie wishes she could be right on something else,” he says as you shoot him a glare, trying your best to suppress a laugh. Liam was starting to become a pain in your ass, too smart for his own good, but at least he was a funny one.

—

Your first night clubbing was going great. The place was packed, the music was good, and you were having a blast dancing with Liv, Millie, and their friends. You couldn’t help looking around the club though, eyes scanning for Rafe in the crowd. He’d been hanging out all night with Topper and some of the guys from their new soccer team. You longed to be near him somehow, to interact with him again. All your conversations with him earlier today had left you with an excited buzz - you didn’t know what it was about this version of Rafe Cameron in London, but you were actually enjoying his company.

You try to push him out of your mind and just enjoy the moment. It’s not like there was anything between you and Rafe, you had just barely began to form a semblance of a potential friendship today, let’s not get carried away. Besides, you live with the boy, accidentally running into him wasn’t going to be much of a challenge. 

“Anyone want anything from the bar?” you shout over the music to your friends.

“Vodka soda with lime please!” Olivia shouts back and you nod, turning to make your way to the counter a few feet away. You place your order and mindlessly tap your fingers on the bar as a figure appears beside you.

“Hey, Y/n right? Flatmates with Olivia, Mills, and the boys?” the girl asks, and you turn, now face to face with Lily. 

“Uh yeah, hey,” you feign a smile back. 

“I’m Lily, nice to meet you,” she smiles genuinely. “I’m friends with all the Westheath bozos you’ve probably been meeting tonight,” she laughs, “Callum and Henry over there are my best mates. They’re on the football team with Rafe and Topper, we were showing them around earlier. My god you guys have been hoarding some cute ones over there in America.”

You chuckle, “glad that Kildare’s presence can at least be of some benefit.” 

“So, girl to girl here, what can you tell me about Rafe Cameron? He’s such a hottie isn’t he? Would love to get a taste of that,” she smirks, licking her lips.

“Umm I don’t really have much to tell,” you say, unsure of how to navigate this conversation. You could tell her what you thought you knew of Outer Banks Rafe - he’s a rich, party-boy player. But after today, that no longer felt right. You didn’t want to say or presume anything about him at all actually, it felt wrong to talk about him like that. God, what the hell was wrong with you? You spend a few hours with the boy and you already have a soft spot for him? You needed to get a grip. “Our families know each other but we don’t really hang out at home. He’s uh- he’s cool though,” you decide as a sufficient response.

“Any girl friend?” she asks, sliding cash over to the bartender as she orders a shot.

“Rafe’s not really the ‘girlfriend-type’,” you answer, bartender sliding you the drinks you ordered and Lily her’s. 

“Well then cheers to that,” she grins, clinking her shot glass to your drink before she downs it, waving a quick goodbye. You watch as she makes her way back to Rafe and their group, adorning a flirty smile. You feel sick to your stomach. You wanted to hate her, you did. But you couldn’t. She wasn’t doing anything wrong. She was just confident, outgoing, and not afraid to go after what she wanted. There was nothing for you to be angry about, who was stopping you from doing the same?

 But in the back of your mind you decided you could never go after Rafe like that. He would never be interested in you in that way, you were sure of it. You had a hard time believing your friends when they hyped you up, so you definitely weren’t going to believe for a single second that a boy you thought was cool could possibly look at you in the same way. Besides, the mere idea of being rejected by Rafe Cameron, and then having to continue living with him and eventually go back to the Outer Banks for everyone to find out you had been rejected by the kook prince, was so mortifying that the very thought made you want to crawl into a hole. So you promise yourself, right then and there, that you won’t let yourself get hurt like that. You could hang out with Rafe, get to know him, become friends even, but under no circumstances could you be caught wearing your heart on your sleeve. You couldn’t disarm yourself like that and give him the upper hand. You needed to look out for yourself first and foremost, preserving the little bit of control you still had over your life. 

You walk back over to your friends, slipping Liv her drink as her and Jake dance together. Your new friends are all tipsy and in a world of their own, getting lost in the music and their movements.

“Dance with me,” you turn to Liam who’s right beside you.

“I said if you ask nicely,” he admonishes sarcastically, to which you roll your eyes.

“I’m not gonna beg Liam. You wanna dance or not?”

“Sheesh, Lily Colts got your panties in a twist like that?”

“Not. At. All.” You confidently stare into his eyes, sipping your drink. It’s no use, Liam knows you all too well by now, and you curse yourself for the way in which this boy is able to see right through all the walls you put up. You may think these walls are made of brick, but to Liam they’re glass.

He just laughs at you, shaking his head in amusement. He grabs your free hand and pulls you closer to him, your bodies now pressed together. He takes your hand and rests it on the back of his neck, his finding their way to your hips. He plants his leg in between yours and soon you guys are lost in the rhythm. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t enjoying every second. He spins you around and you lightly grind your ass against him.

“Damn Y/n, I didn’t know you move like that,” he jokes, as you face forward again. He leans in, his hand on the small of your back, and you feel his breath right against your ear, “he’s looking by the way.” Your breath hitches, but you know better than to turn around. Liam is already one step ahead of you, instinctively twirling you again so you can quickly catch a glimpse of Rafe’s eyes on yours without it being obvious. “Told you he’d be jealous,” he smirks down at you triumphantly.

“Shut up,” you reply, the slightest smile tugging at your lips as your sweaty bodies continue to move to the music.

—-

“Aw flatmate bonding you guysss,” Olivia gushes, as you all sit together at a booth. She had forced you all out of your beds this morning to get breakfast together. Despite being hungover and groggy, you all reluctantly agreed. “Mimosas anyone?” she jokes.

“If I so much as smell any alcohol I think I’ll vomit,” Topper groans.

“Aw, what’s the matter, can’t handle your liquor Tops?” Millie asks, quirking her head to the side.

“Ha. Ha. Very funny. Could ask you the same question. My room is right next to the bathroom, don’t think I didn’t hear your retching last night,” he snaps back, to which Millie turns bright red and soon you’re all hunched over in laughter.

“I think a mimosa would make me yak right now too, to be fair. Coffees all around!” Olivia asserts.

You’re seated across from Rafe as you both scan your menus, your eyes immediately fixing in on the pancakes. The waiter comes by to take all your orders and you can’t help but blush a little when Rafe orders pancakes and you have to follow with a “same for me.” Such a silly, meaningless thing, I mean everyone likes pancakes. But being the only one to have the same exact order as Rafe leaves you feeling embarrassed, for no good reason all the same. You all begin to scarf down your food as soon as it arrives, thankful to have something to soak up the alcohol in your stomachs, as you share stories and laugh about last night’s drunken antics. 

“So how is it that we’re all flatmates and yet I only have Topper’s contact. Come on, add ‘em in,” Rafe says, sliding his unlocked phone to the middle of the table.

“Wait I want snapchats too. Oooh! And instagram!” Olivia pipes, whipping out her phone as well.

“I expect no booty calls Cameron. This is strictly business,” Millie jokes, typing in her and Olivia’s numbers before passing his phone to you. 

“Am I allowed a booty call?” Topper smirks, extending his phone as well.

“I wouldn’t push your luck Thornton,” she smirks back and he pouts in response. You finish typing your name and number into Rafe’s phone and hand it back to him, skin briefly making contact once again. Even though you had known Rafe all your life, somehow you two never had a reason to exchange numbers, only following each other on Instagram which he never posted on anyways.

“Alright everyone, pull up your snapchat codes, I wanna make a group,” Olivia says and everyone obliges, arms crossing every which way as you all add each other. “What should we name our group chat? Ooo can we do a ship name of our schools - like Kilheath or Westare?” 

“I like Kilheath,” Topper chimes in.

“Yeah I bet you do you psychopath. Sounds like the name of a bad horror movie,” Rafe laughs.

“Oooo there’s five of us, we could be the Spice Girls,” Millie beams.

“No.” Topper immediately shuts her down. 

“What about ‘American Boys and Spice Girls.’ You know, like the Kanye West song,” you add.

“Ehh, we’re getting closer, but not quite there,” Rafe teases you and you playfully kick him under the table. “I’m hearing a lot of opinions and not a lot of contributions,” you cross your arms and raise your brows.

“Hey hey hey, I’m a critic, not a chef L/n,” he lifts his hands in surrender.

“Ooo I got it! We can call it the ‘Royal fam,’ like the royal family,” Olivia suggests, finally getting approval from the whole group. Breakfast is soon over and you all return to your rooms, eager to nap away the remainder of your hangovers. You lay in your bed and stare at the newly formed snapchat group on your phone. Royal Fam 🇬🇧🇺🇸 appears on top and you scroll down, looking at Rafe’s username and bitmoji on your screen. You laugh at the fact that even his bitmoji wears a backwards cap. It was weird, having him in your phone like this. You had known this boy your whole life, but you two had always operated in separate spheres. And here he was, in your Snapchat, a glimpse into the life of Rafe, of which you only ever got a birds eye view of back home. It almost felt like you were trespassing somewhere you didn’t belong, having access to him like this. You sigh and lock your phone. Rafe Cameron really isn’t all that bad.

—

The next few days fly by fast as you become acclimated to Westheath. You and the rest of the Kildare kids attend an orientation with Westheath’s exchange advisor, spending the whole time with your little trio: you, Rafe, and Topper. When you had first arrived abroad, you were deadset on forging your own path in London and steering clear of everyone else from OBX. But hanging out with Rafe and Topper made you all but forget. It was fun and easy hanging out with them, in fact, counterintuitively, they were helping you forget all about the Outer Banks, just as you had hoped to do. Your conversations centered around your interests, your new lives, on random jokes and made up bits. It was almost as if there was a mutual unspoken agreement between you, them also trying to escape and forget their lives in OBX.

Pretty soon classes began, and you were learning a new schedule and adapting to British schooling. Your evenings were spent singing and dancing in the kitchen as you, Liv, and Millie simultaneously cooked your dinners, getting pints at the pub around the corner with your Westheath friends, and playing card games at the kitchen table with Rafe and Topper, the smack talk between you three flowing strong. There’d be short moments where you’d find yourself alone with Rafe - he’d explain to you whatever Premier League team was playing that day, you’d show him how the coffee machine works, and the occasional passing comments of “so when are we finally starting Game of Thrones, Cameron?” “I’m ready whenever you are, L/n.”

—

It was a Wednesday night, and you were curled up in your fluffy gray blanket watching Gilmore Girls in bed. You found the show comforting and familiar, the small town of Stars Hallow reminding you of what you wished your life in the Outer Banks could be like. Instead it was more like the cold and pretentious atmosphere of Chilton and the older Gilmores’ Hartford life. Your phone buzzes, and you pick it up lazily to check, suddenly freezing at the notification on your screen.

Snapchat: Rafe Cameron

You had opened a few snapchats from the boy over the past few days, but they were always random ones he would send to the group chat. This one was just for you. You gulp and put your phone down, not wanting to open it too fast. A few minutes go by and you realize you haven’t paid an ounce of attention to the show on your screen, even though you’re staring right at it. Fuck it. You open your phone and tap on the unread snap.

When are we watching Game of Thrones L/n the snapchat says, a picture of his laptop on his bed and the HBO Max home page open, the series featured in the corner of the screen.

You snap back a picture of your blanket and the laptop playing Gilmore Girls in front of you: ready whenever you are Cameron.

Almost immediately you get a response back.

Rafe Cameron: wait are you home rn? His message is accompanied by a random picture of his room, a view you let your eyes linger on until the message expires. Another peak into Rafe Cameron’s world.

Y/n: Yep! You send a blurry selfie of you wrapped in your blanket.

Rafe Cameron: be over in 5

You leave that last message on open and your heart starts to race. Just breathe Y/n, breathe, you keep telling yourself. It doesn’t have to be a big deal if you don’t make it out to be. It’s just a show. Just a show. And besides, you guys are friends now, right? You sit up in your bed and grab your pillow, shifting over to sit horizontally on your mattress. That seems more casual to you, more ‘just a couple friends watching a show together at a comfortable distance’ and less ‘sitting right on top of each other Netflix and chill’. You gulp down some water to ease your dry throat when you hear a gentle knock.

“Come in!” you call out, and now Rafe Cameron is in your room, eyes absorbing all the details that are so you. The posters on one wall, film camera photos on another. The string lights which wrap around your room and give it a warm glow. The plants, the subtle scent of vanilla. The bag you always carried with you, hanging off the side of your chair. He almost felt like he was intruding, like he was getting an intimate glimpse of something that was for your eyes only. 

“Whats up,” he says, holding his laptop and closing the door behind him. 

“Ready to finally start the show,” you laugh, “it’s about damn time.”

“Hey, I’ve been ready, it’s you who’s been taking your sweet time.”

“Is that so?” you ask sarcastically and a smile forms on his face.

“What are you doing over there? Who sits like that on their bed?” he asks, now coming over and taking a seat on your mattress facing vertically, propping your other pillow behind his back. “Can’t even stretch out your legs or anything,” he continues, patting the spot on the bed next to him, signaling for you to come over.

“I don’t know, I think it’s comfy,” you lie as you crawl over to him, your first line of defense already shot down. 

“Weirdo,” he chuckles to which you nudge him in the side with your elbow. “If Topper’s wrong about this I’m gonna give him so much shit,” he says.

“Topper does have a lot of questionable opinions,” you laugh, “but I have a good feeling about this one.

—

One episode turned into two turned into three, you and Rafe instantly hooked. The nerves you had felt earlier at sitting so close next to this boy in your bed had all but dissipated, you quickly acclimating to the space he took up next to you. Even though by now all your previous misconceptions about Rafe had disappeared, replaced with the boy you had come to know over the past week, there was a small part of you that was still waiting to see if he’d try to pull something on you, like the Rafe you imagined back home surely would. Of course he didn’t, watching and discussing the show with you, making you feel as comfortable as if you two had been friends for years. You almost felt bad for having had doubted him in the first place.

When the third episode ended and you two got into a long post-episode discussion, you hardly noticed when the conversation began to digress. You both started to sink lower and lower down into your pillows, until you were both laying on your backs, staring at the ceiling and lost in exchanges of words and thoughts. The conversation was different this time, more candid and open, as if the shadow of the night was inviting you to divulge thoughts you wouldn’t have shared in the day. He spoke of his strained relationship with his father and you shared the silly drama that had caused a riff between you and your former friends back home. He showed you pictures of his dog and you showed him the video you had been working on all summer long in OBX, not having anyone to hang out with before you left for London. He talked about how he felt so disconnected from almost everyone on that island, and you nodded, understanding all too well. The conversation continued to ebb and flow, the occasional funny video or meme pulling you two into fits of laughter before seamlessly delving into another vulnerable train of thought. You both had your Spotify accounts open now, taking turns sharing your favorite songs. You put on a playlist you had made over the summer, full of songs that made you feel at peace. 

“This puts you at ease huh,” he says.

You turn your head to look at him, “how could you tell?”

“I don’t know. I guess just the way your whole body relaxed the second you pressed play,” he replies.

“Yeah,” you say turning your head back toward the ceiling. “I know it sounds cheesy, but I feel like these songs are speaking to my soul or something,” you whisper.

“Yeah I get that… I have those too,” he whispers back. Neither of you realize it’s already 5 am and neither of you notice as your eyes both get heavy and sleep washes over you, playlist in the background like a lullaby. And at some point during your deep sleep, Rafe’s arm has found itself unconsciously wrapped around you.

---

Part 4

a/n: lemme know what you think!(:

[ask-runaan-anything]

Runaan@NYCC 2021 AU headcanons

If Runaan actually attended in person with the characters voiced by the VA's who will attend: gosh the muns got self-indulgent, this is long

Runaan leaves home for NYCC 2021 and sends Ethari a single Pleading Face emoji every time he thinks of him

Ethari gets 2472496 Pleading Face emojis while Runaan is away

Runaan brings his favourite book(s) with him to keep him company and also for Serotonin

Rayla mentions this to Callum

Runaan is all WHy did you Tell the HUMAN

but Callum did the exact same thing

Runaan is unexpectedly supported and he's not sure he likes it

they also make a plan for what he (and Rayla) can do if he ever gets very overwhelmed

Ethari@Rayla: Rule #1 is, do not let him shoot anyone

Rayla; *very serious nod*

he rehearses what he'll say at the panel beforehand, using flash cards

and some of the cards say things like "Thank you" bc Ethari worries he'll forget

Ethari color coding the flash cards for "Social" and "Informational" so Runaan can flip through them if he's put on the spot

he also asks Ethari what he can mention about him+what's off limits bc he doesn’t want to make Ethari feel exposed or anything

Runaan: please don't have a Q&A section please don't have a Q&A section please don't have a

host: so let's open it up for a little Q&A now-

Runaan, internally: *bleep*

Under the table he starts flicking through his flash cards

he doesn't realize there's no tablecloth and everyone can see him do it

he watches the recording of it later to find all his faults but Rayla sits right next to him and she's all, "Yes yes they saw you and guess what, no one assassinated you over it, it's okay!"

Runaan goes Soft™

it's like he can feel Ethari there with him through Rayla's words

he has to thank her but words aren't his style so he offers to let her drag him out of the hotel for the first time that trip

ten steps outside and he has regretti

but he promised and his honor is at stake now so he keeps going

Rayla takes him to a bookstore

its slightly outside his comfort zone but it's quiet, and the city streets are so noisy

Ethari texted her a list of recharge spots, and one was a bookstore, with a reading nook, so she takes him there and they curl up on pillows and hammocks for a while

Another time they go out to a coffee shop at 3am

Runaan sends Ethari a Pleading Face emoji

Ethari replies with “!!” and “IT’S 3AM GO TO SLEEP YOU HAVE A PANEL IN THE MORNING”

Runaan just sends him another Pleading Face

Runaan has noise cancelling earshrooms if he needs them

Ethari wears them while he hammers

Ethari sends Runaan jokes to distract him just before his panels start

And Runaan lies down at night to talk to Ethari with his phone near his ear so it feels like back home when Ethari cuddles him

Ethari sending his own homemade "good luck" memes just before Runaan’s panel, so Runaan can fall back on showing them to the audience if he gets nervous, which he does, and they LOVE it, and Runaan is like, “I can see my husband has some support in the human lands, I'll be sure to tell him,” and the room cheers and Runaan is like "Aaaaa this is making me feel so seen but also yes, my husband deserves all the support"

Runaan sleeps surrounded by like 8 extra pillows in the bed so he can feel as snuggled as when Ethari's actually there

and one is Ethari's

Ethari lending Runaan his scarf bc it smells like him

and Runaan not only sleeps with it right near his nose but he wears it during the panel

Runaan wearing his serious face at the panel and answering hard or angsty questions, and the whole time he has earshrooms in and their lil stems are pokin out of his ears

If Runaan is here then all the other characters with VAs at NYCC are also here, so it’s a panel of actual characters

Viren using chopsticks to try and steal one of Runaan's earshrooms out of unbridled curiosity, and Runaan just. takes them away from him. without looking over. and slaps them on the table like. no, bad human, do not steal my earshrooms while I'm talking.

Claudia's flipping through a book but it's a recipe book and she's looking up mushroom soup

Ethari made Runaan an anti-dark magic charm so he's safe and no one can use it on him, so he feels safe attending the panel at all

someone asking about Lachir and Runaan just brightening

also pspsps that person is @hoothalcyon

Runaan goes off for ten minutes unprompted and uninterrupted about his moonstrider, it's about as animated and excited as anyone has ever seen him

Clauds over on the side making big heart eyes

she asks if he has a picture and he says yes and she bounces over to him and squeals loudly

Rayla texts Ethari just then and Ethari gets a FaceTime call going so everyone can see Lachir in person back home, because ofc she is fine and alive

and Lachir looks derpily at the camera like "wat dis"

She do the blep, sniffs camera, makes it smudgy

Ethari laughing and protesting off screen

the entire panel and audience is all "awwwwww"

Viren loudly demanding a cute pet so people will like him too

Runaan does a discreet lil happy stim and it's so discreet that barely anyone catches it except one or two ND's who are like aaaaa

Rayla slipping behind Viren and putting an adoraburr on his ear tho

"One cute pet, courtesy of Xadia! You've had your Adorapox vaccinations, right?" she chirps sassily

yes the pox look like adoraburrs

you are very contagious and very adorable

Janai, someone asks her about Amaya and she gets flustered and Runaan feels seen

audience question during the Q&A: Runaan, who would win in a fight between you and Janai?

Janai, immediately: Me.

Runaan: Her.

Janai flexes, literally

Runaan is happy to give her the spotlight, which is why he lied, bc ofc he thinks he could take her, he'd do it at night and he'd steal her sword first, obviously

nowhere in the question did it say "fair" fight

Amaya is in the audience and she keeps signing flirty things at Janai no matter how loud the room gets or who's asking who what, and Janai keeps getting more and more flustered and distracted

Runaan has one (1) moment where he's actually relieved his husband isn't there

Ethari would want to tease him so badly

Q: Runaan, are you a good dancer?

Runaan: I'm passable, with the right partner.

Q: So can you show us some moves?

Runaan, blushing: Distinctly not.

whistling and clapping ensue

Rayla jumps up and grabs Callum's hand and says, "I can show you some moves!"

and they dance very sweetly and cutely with some basic Moonshadow moves

and Runaan is like "I can't tell if this is worse"

Q: Runaan, how did your marriage proposal go?

Runaan, after a long flustered moment: ...Successfully. *taps his horn cuffs*

Q from someone wanting to know how to follow Runaan on social media: Runaan, you're amazing, where can we find you?

Runaan: The Silvergrove, but you can't actually-

Q: No I mean, what if we want to follow you?

Runaan: You'd need to know the key dance, and that's protected information. Also, stalking isn't nice.

Q: But you stalk people.

Runaan: *dramatic eyebrows* And it isn't nice.

Next Q: Has Ethari ever gotten hurt, and what did you do?

Runaan: *crushes water bottle*

Host: Okay another question then!

his answers would be really short if he did not feel comfy interacting, which is probably most of the time

Rayla took away Runaan's bowblade before the panel started

Runaan: but that's my emotional comfort trick weapon

Rayla: No. Ethari's Panel Rule #1. No stabbing or shooting people.

they pass a weapons display in the artist alley and someone made a replica of the Bloodborne bowblade and Runaan’s like, hm that looks familiar

Runaan wandering the con and talking to all the cosplayers with cool looking weaponry tho

he takes pics for Ethari

Runaan wandering the con and asking Runaan cosplayers, "So who are you supposed to be?" bc he genuinely doesn't know

he doesn't think he should be in the pictures for security reasons but he takes pix of Rayla posing with everyone dressed as Runaan

social media gets flooded with pix of his hair from the back though

#itssosoft trends on Twitter

Rayla sets up a pic where half a dozen happy fans get to brush Runaan's hair at the same time, and he's stuffing his face with moonberry surprise so he doesn't get nervous

it actually makes him look happy and social and Ethari is like HOW, HOW DID YOU MANAGE THIS, MAGIC

people shyly approach him and ask if he and Ethari can adopt them and he says yes

he ends up in a coffee shop zone with a couple dozen people gathered around and tells them the importance of found family in Moonshadow culture and he doesn't understand why they're all crying

Rayla teasing Runaan and telling him to tell a pirate story

Runaan is like, "Spoilers for Season 5"

some superfan nerd like mun tries to get him to admit how much he knows about Xadia and history and the show's plot, and he does that one line that all stabby people say. "I could tell you. But then I'd have to kill you."

he gets half a dozen volunteers and he is so concerned

Runaan, Protector of Secrets

Soren starts to spill about 14% of a secret and from across the entire con hall a green fletched arrow just zips by

Soren is like "You know what, never mind"

Cracky: Viren runs through the room looking for protection, and Runaan is like ugh fine who's after you this time, and Viren's all, "No one, my children are just being so silly and I just need a break for five minutes, can we please have a grownup conversation about something serious and angsty, please I’m actually begging you"

Runaan spots the adoraburr on Viren's ear and he's like, "Adoraburrs get lonely if they're alone," and he puts another one on Viren's other ear

and then a bunch more so they stack like a hairband and they're happier

Runaan just smirks and walks away

the adoraburrs start squeaking to each other and Viren is like, "Ugh, I preferred my children's terrible puns" and the adoraburrs get huffy and all hop down and abandon him

he does not in fact get adorapox because Viren believes in inoculation

some attendees would try to convince Runaan to "seek asylum" in NY and not return to Xadia or something, and he'd be like "But. Ethari."

they remind him that if he goes back he has to wait in a coin, and he doesn't get it

"Wdym. Ethari is there. Not here. I have to be there."

"BUT. COIN."

"BUT. ETHARI."

Rayla's like, I ain't Naruto running all the way back

She clicks a car fob and there's a *boop boop* noise

and this hovering coin like Tenser's Floating Disk shows up and they hop onto it and surf into the distance

Rayla shouts "SPOILERS FOR SEASON FOUR I KNOW WHO DIES AND IT’S-"

and Runaan is like "RAYLA DON'T MAKE ME HAVE TO SHOOT YOU, I COULDN'T DO IT LAST TIME AND I CAN'T DO IT NOW, DON'T GET ME IN TROUBLE I SWEAR TO THE M-"

talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, everyone hopes they come back next year too

[minimitchell]

callumhighwayweek day 1 - “I still think about him.” (ao3 link)

(tw scars, callum talks about how he got injured in the army)

.

The room surrounding Callum is dark; the only source of light coming from the beam of a street lamp outside, shining through a crack in the curtains. He’ll have to get up and draw them close before even attempting to go to sleep - he needs the room to be completely plunged in darkness to fall asleep - but for now he’s content with just lying here like this, the bright light creating a bright streak across the bed.

It’s chilly in the room; the October weather harsh and unrelenting, cooling the flat down to low temperatures. It doesn’t help that the covers are pooling somewhere around his waist, his naked chest otherwise exposed to the cold inside the bedroom.

Ben is dozing next to him, head half resting on the pillow half on Callum’s shoulder, one arm slung heavy across Callum’s chest. He isn’t asleep yet, Callum can tell from the way he keeps grumbling and burying his nose in Callum’s arm from time to time or pressing kisses against his skin.

Callum thought he’d be overwhelmed or scared at the prospect of being intimate with a man, for real this time, but it isn’t like that at all. The nerves and fear were still there, of course they were, but Ben does his best to ease him into everything with so much patience and understanding.

They haven’t done much yet, just friction or their hands from time to time, slowly trying to work up to more Callum’s comfortable with. It’s still good though; it’s really good to be honest. They’re not just getting to know one another in mundane ways but also more intimately and Callum feels the trust between them build with every moment they get to spend with each other. And while he definitely feels ready to do more soon, right now this is all he needs.

Ben’s fingers begin to dance over Callum’s chest, careful fingertips gliding up and down and from left to right, alerting him that Ben’s completely awake again.They’re lying in comfortable silence for a while, just touching and feeling and being in each other’s orbit; the sole focus of the other’s silent attention.

Goosebumps are breaking out on Callum’s arms as Ben’s fingers continue to run over his skin, sending shivers down his spine. He almost wants to put his shirt back on, pull the covers up around them, but he doesn’t want Ben to stop touching him. He never wants him to stop.

“Can I ask you something? About your scars.”

Ben’s voice is soft and careful and the slight clearing of his throat he does to get rid of the scratch that comes from lengthy disuse perfectly masks the slight intake of breath Callum does at the question.

They’ve never talked about them. Ben hadn’t asked any questions when he’d first seen Callum without a shirt on, he had only glanced at them briefly before focussing back on Callum’s face, watching out for any sign of discomfort or unease. At the time, he had been thankful if a little surprised about it; he hadn’t been ready to talk about all that with Ben just yet.

Taking your clothes off in front of someone else is different than being naked on an emotional level.

Since then though, whatever this unlabelled thing that’s going on between them, has changed. It has become deeper and more meaningful. They have spent a lot of time talking about his childhood, about what made him feel like he had to hide himself away for this long. He told Ben about Chris and Ben in turn opened up even more about Paul. But the Army, especially his last tour, still felt too raw, too hurtful, to get into.

Ben had seen some of it, had seen him at his lowest that day in the rain on the swing, bottle poised to bring only temporary relief, but it’s still hard to open himself up to him fully. To tell him about the other demons haunting him.

It’s nice the way it is right now, getting to know each other without the looming threat of someone finding out or shame burning in the back of his throat. It feels good; right. And Ben doesn’t put any pressure on him to say or do anything he doesn’t want to. He seems to be content in just being with Callum, listening to him ramble on about whatever and share his life with him as well.

It’s what makes him certain he can trust Ben with this as well; that he can be honest about what he’s been through and not have Ben feel any differently about him afterwards. Ben understands him so well, understands a lot of things Callum never thought someone else could, and he just has to look down at Ben’s side to see that circular wound that tells him he’ll understand this as well in some way.

Looking at Ben always makes him remember he’s not alone in the world anymore. He has someone by his side who makes him not feel so lonely anymore.

“Okay.”

The word rushes out of his mouth in almost a whisper. The world around them feels so delicate encased in darkness and silence - the right atmosphere to spill secrets to your lover. He doesn’t want to break the spell around them.

“Are they from your time in the Army?”

Callum knows it’s just a question of courtesy, an easy way to lead into this heavy conversation. Ben knows a lot about scars, he has a lot of them himself; visible and hidden underneath, he can definitely tell they’re not old enough to stem from a turbulent childhood.

He subconsciously tightens the arm he has around Ben’s body and he gets a response in Ben digging his fingers into his chest, blunt nails pressing against his skin in silent reassurance.

He feels good around Ben and Ben has never told him he’s anything less than beautiful, but it takes time to believe it; to unlearn the harsh voices in his own head and accept kindness when it’s given to him.

“Mhm. I got hit with shrapnel from an explosion. I- We saved this boy but we couldn’t save his mum. I still think about him, that boy. It’s all I think about when I see this.”

He vaguely gestures down to his stomach, expecting Ben to follow his hand with his eyes, but he stays focussed on Callum’s face, listening intently. Callum can’t bear to keep their gazes locked though. It’s too much right now. Those old doubts keep streaming back into his head; the voices telling him that he isn’t worthy of all this softness and support from Ben.

“They just remind me that I’m broken, you know. Damaged goods.”

Ben’s hand leaves the skin of his chest and runs up to his face, his other one joining to turn Callum’s head down towards him, forcing him to make eye contact.

“Hey. They don’t make you damaged, they make you brave. A survivor. See, this?”

Ben’s hands leave Callum’s face to come together between their bodies, balancing his weight on his elbow to remove the big, clunky ring sitting on his left ring finger. He turns his hand around, the back facing up at Callum, pointing at the scarred skin where the black ink of his tattoo used to sit.

“This don’t mean I’m broken beyond repair. This means I survived the worst thing that ever happened to me. There’s proof of it, inside and out, yeah, but I’m still here. Our past doesn’t have to define us; we can just accept it and learn to live with it.”

He pushes the ring back onto his finger, his hand running back down Callum’s chest, a smooth fingertip gliding gently over the elevated skin and harsh lines lining his stomach; never prodding or pinching, only feather-light brushes against tissue.

He’s always so careful with Callum. Whether it’s his feelings, his boundaries or his body, Ben treats them like they’re precious things not to be disturbed. Like priceless treasures in a museum. It makes Callum breathless sometimes; the realization that he has found someone who makes this whole process of finding and being himself so easy and without any pressure sending his already too-attached heart into a wild rhythm.

“These scars don’t make you any less beautiful, you know. Don’t be ashamed of them.”

Ben’s voice is unwavering; tone sure and steady. Callum believes that every word he says is true to him. He might not believe it himself, but he’s sure Ben does.

He’s never had this. Sure, Whitney’s complimented him from time to time but he’s never had someone so openly tell him he’s pretty on the outside, not just that he’s a nice guy or that he has a good heart.

More than that, he’s never had a man tell him this. A man, he’s so interested in that it makes him dizzy with it sometimes. Dizzy and brimming with barely suppressed want. He’s never gotten the fascination before. He wasn’t one of those teenage boys who kissed a girl for the first time and never wanted to stop doing it afterwards - in hindsight, it’s blatantly obvious why as well. But with Ben it’s exactly like that. He wants to kiss him all the time. He wants to be kissed by him all day.

“Thank you. For saying that, for understanding.”

“No need. I’ll always be up for complimenting your bod, babe.”

Soft laughter fills the quiet air around them, Callum squeezing the skin of Ben’s neck where his hand is running up into his hair. As nerve-wracking as it was to open up to Ben that bit more, he’s glad he did it.

Ben is special. What they already have is special. Callum is sure of it.

He can’t wait to see where this goes.

[austennerdita2533]

Hey!

I love Penelope Douglas for sure check her out! She writes some of the best smut tbh. I’m working my way through her devils night series right now-I’m on book 2. It’s good so far, definitely dark though. I’m interested to see how she goes about a redemption arc for the character Damon right now I don’t think he deserves one but I hear such good things about his book, Killswitch, but that’s book 3 so I will see how it goes. I definitely recommend Birthday Girl from her though I loved it and the couple from it are my favorite age gap could I’ve ever read. I find myself still re reading some of their best moments.

I am slightly embarrassed by Credence though so I hope it doesn’t bother you too much if you read it. Just so you know before going into it, it is about her and her step uncle/cousins. To be fair they are not blood related and very distance to the point she didn’t even know about them. But she does call him Uncle Jake during a sex scene, and the two others call her cousin during one too. There’s also a MMF scene with her two cousins. But on top of that there is a sexual assault scene (it does get stopped but the intent is there)-personally I wasn’t a fan of how she inwardly dealt with that scenario it felt like she was blaming herself for it instead of holding the other character accountable. Uncle Jake also does kiss her when she is still 17. So if any of that makes you uncomfortable don’t read it.

I’m so happy you liked the atlas six as much as I did. I can’t believe we have to wait until next year for the sequel to see what happens. It’s too long!! I also liked Callum the least, I still appreciated his character though and what he brings to the story I just wasn’t a fan of his, probably because of his problems with Libby/Parisa. Plus his powers terrify me-as someone who likes to have full control of my emotions the fact that someone could just change everything scares me. I also loved Nico he is my typical character that I love the whole I’m an asshole but soft and caring for the people I love gets me every time. Parisa is my queen though I’m obsessed with her. Like I’m literally in love with her, I wish she was real so she could be with me instead. Not that she would because I’m broke have 0 magic or power to give to her, but still. But I have a thing for power hungry women so I was gone the second I met her. But anyway if she was real she could destroy me or do anything she wanted to me and I would say thank you. Reina I also love and agree she could destroy the whole planet and one day probably will. I just love how she is there and wants all that knowledge but also doesn’t give a fuck about anyone else. Tristan also grew on me I’m still not completely sure how much I like or don’t like him yet he gets annoying sometimes because he is constantly in his mind about his alliances but I also love how loyal and caring he is. Libby is my girl!! I also relate to her as well since I was an outcast and battled inadequacy and all that (you and I must have some stuff in common!) Out of all the characters I relate to her the most and am rooting for her so hard-also because the author made her from Pittsburgh and I’m also from the area so I felt personally attached. But Olivie just did an interview and said Libby is getting a corruption arc and I am so excited about it!!

Okay ships- so I will be honest and I think it’s an unpopular opinion but oh well-I am a nicolibby stan. They have every single dynamic that I love in a ship and they could potentially be my favorite book couple of all time if that is the road they are being taken. Honestly I was obsessed with them from their first interaction so i have it bad for them. Obviously I know they were not romantic in this book but the potential (at least for me) was there especially in some of their quotes in the end. I fully believe they are soulmates though-even the author said they were born on the same day and feel like their other half is missing in an interview once-whether that will be platonic soulmates or romantic soulmates I have no idea and I could see either happening. My heart will break if it is platonic but it’s okay I can just live in my own little head about their potential.

But I get the idea and also like both libbytristan and NicoGideon and could see those happening instead of nicolibby too. I wouldn’t say I would be mad about it either-I do like both just to me the potential of nicolibby works more for me! My only thing about libbytristan though is I’m not sure how much of their tension/feelings are real (like did any of it exist before Parisa put the idea of the other person in their thoughts to lead to all the feelings.)

Weirdly enough since they probably my least favorite characters I also adore Tristan and Callum together. Their dynamic just works for me.

And I love Parisa and Dalton too and I’m so interested in how that relationship pans out because they have some stuff to figure out. But they work well together and honestly they are just so sexy together so I’m down for it. Although I do ship myself with Parisa more than her and Dalton but I’m biased.

Honestly though all the ships are wide open though so I’m curious to see what ends up being endgame. But omg yes the twist I was not expecting it-I’m so excited for the rest of this trilogy!!!

In other news though I finished up the ravenhood series. I know you said you either read it or it was on your tbr. But god I loved it. That series broke me and then put back all the pieces. If you haven’t read it and want to feel both heartbreak and happiness I highly recommend it!

Oh and don’t apologize for babbling as you can tell I also babble!!

-ACOTAR anon

Hiiiii sweets!

I've been sifting through a bunch of summaries of Penelope Doulgas' work on Goodreads and there's a bunch of stuff there I think I'd enjoy. I'm all about good smut. I didn't realize she had that many books. I'm excited! Thanks so much for the rec! I love dark romances/erotica every now and again so I'm also going to have to dive into the Devil's Night series at some point.

Oh, and idk if you know about it/read it but a couple of my friends told me about the Crossfire series by Sylvia Day a while back. It's BDSM, like Fifty Shades, but supposedly loads better. I don't know if you're into that but I figured I'd just throw it out there anyway. The smut is supposed to be steamy. I haven't read it yet but I do have the first four novels on my Kindle (where they've been sitting, unread, for about 2 years now)...so that's something haha.

And please don't be embarrassed about Credence. Seriously, the most wonderful thing about reading is you can go wherever tf you want in your imagination. No one can stop you. There are no rules. No restrictions. You can be whomever or whatever you want to be for a while, morality notwithstanding. One of my favorite things about books is that I can experience the most bonkers, outlandish out-of-this-world stuff that I'd never dream of wanting/liking in real life. It's liberating!

Thank you for the trigger warnings, though. I appreciate that. None of them sound off-putting enough to keep me from reading it. (Tbh, I want to read it more now.) I've read loads of books where characters marry or have sex with their cousins or siblings *waves at ASOIAF, the Secret History* so it doesn't bother me. I've also read most of Lolita and all of My Dark Vanessa by Kate Russell, which both romanticize pedophilia in disturbing degrees, so it takes a lot to put me off. If curiosity could kill then I'd be long dead by now. Hell, sometimes I will purposely read things I know will upset me to my core. What can I say? I'm a weirdo. 🙃

I DON'T WANT TO WAIT A YEAR FOR BOOK 2 OF THE ATLAS SERIES, EITHER. AHHHHH. How am I going to make it that long? It seems so far away!

Callum is the most terrifying of them all right now, imo. I think that's why I disliked him the most. Like you, it shook me to my core to imagine someone like him being able to toy with my emotions. I have a tendency to detach, to keep my emotions pressed close to my chest so that I can't be manipulated or hurt, and the idea that someone could have power over them, over me in that way is...no freaking thank you! I would put as much space between him and me as possible. Most of the Atlas crew had the right idea there. He does bring a lot to the story, though, like you said. I have a feeling he's going to be one of those characters I "love to hate" as the series progress. I might even grow to "hate to love" him, idk. He's just such a shady bastard! And so judgmental/mean to the girls.

I'm with you on Parisa, by the way. She's the kind of conniving, ambitious siren of a woman I can get behind. She has a similar vibe as Katherine Pierce on TVD. I mean, there's nothing in her arsenal she won't use and I love how she weaponizes her beauty. It's delicius. She's unpredictable. Definitely the type of character who inspires "scared and aroused" energy any time she walks into a room. Like, she could choke you and instead of crying you'd just ask her to do it again...harder lol.

Reina has the same kind of "no fucks given" attitude I have because I genuinely don't care what people think of me, either. I'm just here to do my thing. Be nerdy. Learn. Whatever. And Nico is my fave for the same reason as you--the asshole who only has soft edges for those who matter to him. *heart eyes*

Omg, Libby is going to have a corrupted arc? AHHHHH. That's going to be amazing, I cannot stinking wait! I was sort of hoping she'd go dark so now that it's confirmed I'm even more pumped. Also, I think you and I have more in common than either of us realized. I'm from the Pittsburgh area, too! How wild is that? Maybe there's something in the water here and that's why, like Libby, we've both felt inadequate and like outcasts at different points in our lives? Olivie might be onto something here...🤔

The thing that's been so cool for me about this series so far is that there are a bunch of potential pairings I could get behind. And I kind of like that it's not clear cut right now. Most series I know who I want together or who will be together like halfway through book 1. I like that I don't know have firm preferences and am still open. That's novel. Not to mention fun!

I don't blame you for shipping Nicolibby so hard, though. They're definitely one of my top contenders for a romantic pairing. They have that enemies-to-lovers element with witty banter that I always gravitate toward. And you're right about Libby/Tristan. I don't know how much of their connection was manufactured because Parisa intervened, either. That'll be fun to puzzle out moving forward. And Callum/Tristan should NOT be a ship I like but they have a palpable something that I can't put my finger on. I've got my eye on them, for sure.

The Ravenhood series is still on my tbr. I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it so much, though! It's rare to read something that just ticks all your boxes. The next time I'm the mood to binge a series I'm gonna have to pick that one up. :-D

I've been trying to clear out my backlog of ARCs lately. (Not possible because I'm getting more on the regular - as in constantly haha - but I'm trying.) I just finished Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult, which has a Sliding Doors premise that is set during the pandemic where the main character has a parallel life experience (one, where she's in the Galapagos Islands on vacation when the shutdown hits so she's stuck there with strangers, alone, not speaking the language; the other, where she's in Manhattan with her surgeon boyfriend and recovering from COVID). It's intense but so, SO good! Picoult is such a good writer. Anything I've read by her has been moving, with rounded and real characters. I haven't been disappointed yet. I so recommend her.

Oh, and if you're into nonfiction/biographies at all I finished The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson not long ago, which is about Winston Churchill as well as those around him, and it was fantastic! Read more like fiction. I loved it. I am no longer surprised it was on all the BEST lists for 2020.

[ofclaires]

IV. CLAIRE WALSH

PAST SELF PARAS: april 2020 / september 2020 / march 2021. 

hi, before the read more i just wanted to say THANK YOU. getting to play claire has been absolutely a treat, a challenge, and genuinely, a huge part of my life for the past year and a half or so. it occurred to me when writing this and looking back at other things i’ve written for claire that i didn’t just feel like i was writing this for myself or for claire ; but i was writing it for you guys, too ! that has been one of the most special things about gallagher for me is the writing community that i feel like we built, taking such a huge investment in our characters and everyone else’s writing. i feel like i’m writing with and for some of my best friends. i also feel like i’ve grown so much ( ok, i actually don’t just feel like it, i can look back at those three paras and SEE how my writing has improved. ) i am so blessed to have gotten to write claire with all of you and to share her story, i feel like she has been so fucking beloved & it’s given her so much life. i am so proud of her and it’s really bittersweet that i’m finally saying goodbye to her as well. so, thank you all so, so much, gallagher has been a writing experience like no other for me & i love you all ! 

trigger warnings : domestic violence & abuse, death

PART ONE: CHILDHOOD.

The trailer that Claire spent the back half of her childhood in never felt like home. Maybe because trailers are made to be temporary, or the fact that if she accepted that this was where she belonged, she’d have to give up hope.

It’s normal Maggie Walsh to be out late, Claire’s usually cleaned up the kitchen and tucked herself into bed by the time her mother comes in the door – but she’s not sleeping. She’s always had trouble with that, brain bouncing around from one thought to the next until eventually she hears the creak of the door.

Her mom’s home.

She hears the usual stumbling, the clatter of dishes falling from where she’d neatly placed them on the drying rack. Maggie’s drunk, Claire’s sure of that. Ten years old and she knows what it means to be so drunk that you can hardly see straight, that the words you say under the influence are a different reflection from the person that you really are. She inhales deeply and crawls out from under the covers to check on her. Ten years old and she knows the steps: Help her take her makeup off, make sure she sleeps on her side, glass of water on the bedside table, trash can on the floor. Maggie is only twenty-six years old herself now, not done with her childhood by the time that Claire was born, not ready to be a mother. Claire’s had to figure it out most of it herself.

“Mom?” Claire knocks on the door lightly, plastic cup full of water already in hand.

“Don’t – don’t come in!” Maggie sputters, and Claire’s confused. She defies her request and opens the bedroom door the rest of the way. When she sees her mom, she drops the cup on the floor, small hands curling into fists.

“What happened? Who did that to you?”

“I told you not to come in here, Claire,” Maggie repeats, but Claire has always been on to disregard commands. She learns at a young age that authority only means older than you or some assigned title, not that they know best.

“Who did that? Why?” She repeats her questions. Despite being mature for her age, it’s hard for Claire to wrap her head around the black eye obscuring Maggie’s face, and the swelling on her cheek.

“It doesn’t matter,” Maggie sighs, dejected as she flops down on the bed. Even in her state, she knows that there’s not much use telling Claire to back off or go away once she’s decided that she’s not going to. Her little girl is a spitfire, strangely enough reminds Maggie a lot of her own mom, like living with a miniature version of her. Maybe that’s why Claire wins most arguments. “Come here.”

Claire walks closer to the bed, kicking the cup aside on her way for no reason other than to kick something. She crawls into bed next to her mom and looks up at her, waiting for more of an explanation or literally anything but silence. 

“I don’t know why I keep looking for a happy ending. I leave you home alone, I come home like this...not helping either of us,” Maggie presses a kiss to the top of Claire’s head, runs her fingers through her daughter’s hair. It’s so soft and Claire is so little, she can’t help but look at the spilled cup on the floor with a pang of guilt. “I’m sorry,” she adds, voice choked up and words a little slurred. Tears squeeze out of the corners of her eyes when she closes them, hugging her daughter closer, “I’ve blamed you for my fucked up life for so long...that’s not fair.”

Now, Claire is only ten, but those are the kind of words that you remember forever. Still, she smiles. “It doesn’t have to stay fucked up. It can get better,” a childish spark of optimism in her heart that hasn’t yet been put out. It makes Maggie smile back though, kissing her daughter on the top of her head yet again.

“I like that,” she says, and they fall asleep curled up beside each other. Claire sleeps soundly, thinking that it’s possible. Things really could get better, and for a while, it seems like there really is a sort of shift. Maggie starts cooking, cleaning again, and she doesn’t even stay out so late. That’s when she meets Martin.

He seems better than the rest. Until he isn’t.

But Claire does her job as her mother’s protector, just as she’s been doing all of her life, and it’s that event that jumpstarts the rest of everything that happens next.

PART TWO: GRADUATION.

Claire’s come to the formal conclusion that graduation ceremonies are a waste of time. There’s all this build up, everyone’s so excited, and then you have to sit around and wait for your name to be called so you can spend two seconds walking across a stage while everyone claps. She would have skipped it entirely if her mother hadn’t already come up, and if she knew that people were going to insist. The small talk afterward is even more agonizing than the ceremony itself. It is sort of painful saying goodbye to everyone, and it occurs to Claire that there’s more people that she’s going to miss than she ever expected.

“Callum and his mother are here,” Maggie points out.

“And?” Claire rolls her eyes. Seeing Callum again to begin with had brought up a lot of old feelings, and generally, even though they’d resolved things, she tries to avoid him whenever possible.

“Well, it’s probably weird if we don’t say hello, at least, right? I’m going to say hello,” Maggie interjects, “he’s such a sweet boy.”

Claire’s eyebrows rise on her forehead as she crosses her arms over her chest. “Go ahead then,” she sighs, “I’ll wait right here.”

“Claire,” Maggie draws out her name with a withering stare, but Maggie has never been able to establish that sort of authority with Claire that would prompt any inclination of obedience, so Claire just shrugs her shoulders, unimpressed. She’s not going to budge. “Fine, I’ll be right back.”

Claire’s done her best to put the chapter of their life that includes Martin out of her mind when rekindling things with her mother, and she certainly doesn’t want to stand around making small talk with his other ex-wife, trying not to look at Callum with his matching jawline, trying not to remember everything she hates. It all comes back in a flash. The horrible cracking sound that her mother’s head had made when it connected with the wall, the blood on the marble floor. They say you don’t remember trauma properly, that your memory doesn’t work quite right, but she will never forget the way her fist connected with Martin’s face : like a puzzle piece, like it BELONGED there, and she’d done it over and over again until she heard sirens.

And yet, Claire can’t deny that it’s a part of her life that got her here, where she is today. She thinks life is shitty and random, and that not everything has to happen ‘for a reason.’ Still, she’ll catch Kass’s eye across the room and see her smiling so brightly that it seems impossible not to believe in something. Claire can’t help herself anyway – she smiles back. No one has ever been able to produce Claire’s smile in its truest form the way Kass has, unashamed of being so happy to look at someone. She once thought the idea of looking at a person and seeing your whole future was ridiculous, that you’d have to be stupid to put that much of yourself into someone, but it isn’t like that at all. All of it was unintentional, like by the time she realized it, Kass was already everything. And she feels so safe with that thought that she doesn’t mind at all.

“Am I interrupting something?” A figure steps in front of her, cutting off her line of sight. She’s not really fond of being snuck up on, so she opens her mouth to say something snarky when she’s met with the gaze of Lisanna Harlin, one of last year’s mentors. Her daughter, Elisa, is there, but she’s not graduating, so Claire’s confused by Lisanna’s presence.

“No, Ms. Harlin,” Claire says, though there’s a spark of indignation in her words that practically goes hand in hand whenever an adult commands authority.

“Lisanna is fine,” she says with a light laugh, like she’s amused Claire’s greeted her this way.

“Can I...help you with something?” Claire asks, mostly curious about how long this interaction has gone on. While she’s friendly with Elisa, she was Kass’s roommate last year, they’re not exceedingly close, so she’s not sure what else Lisanna would have to say to her other than maybe a polite hello.

It’s more than a polite hello. Lisanna Harlin works for Lexon Corp in Durham, North Carolina, a private military company that provides armed guards, bodyguards, and guns for hire. They’re the sort of place that would be looking for the best of the best in combat, and they have a bit of a reputation for hiring Gallagher girls. Claire had given up on the job search months ago since the video went out, in fact, she’s had a job lined up for graduation already : at a boxing gym in D.C., where the scene isn’t too bad. It was suited to her, but not exactly the sort of thing that her Gallagher education had prepared her for. Lexon Corp? Everything her rigorous love of January boot camps were tailored to. And they want to interview her.

A month later, Claire’s sitting on the cusp of a completely fresh start. It wasn’t easy to backtrack on the plans that she and Kass had made together, knowing how much was changing for the both of them, it had been nice to have the stable idea of an apartment together on the horizon. Now, she’s a four hour drive away, and she goes home to her one-bedroom studio in Durham after rigorous training throughout the day. But she’s grateful for the chance to work her way back into the field, and she can remember what Lisanna said to her when they gave her the offer.

“We’re aware that with your history that we’re taking a chance on you, Claire,” Lisanna said. “But we think the reasons that made other agencies look past you are exactly what makes you an asset. You care about your jobs, the people that you’re involved in, and you’d have a partner’s back until the bitter end. You listen to your intuition, trust your gut...and above all else, you have follow-through. I’m excited to be able to offer this position. Don’t prove me wrong.”

Claire swears that she won’t.  

PART THREE: KIPTYN.

Kiptyn isn’t supposed to be in the left hall closet. 

In fact, he’s not supposed to be awake at all. But who can sleep the night before their birthday anyway? Sure, he’ll be thirteen, and that’s probably old enough to have gotten over the magic of it all, but...he’d still been lying awake with excitement, the anticipation keeping his eyes open for hours on end. Well, that and the video game he’d been playing under the covers, but he’d obviously only been playing it because he couldn’t sleep in the first place.

Then he started thinking about the left hall closet and the conversation that they had at dinner the other night. In Kiptyn’s defense, Dahvia – his younger sister – had totally started it and he was an innocent bystander. After all, Kiptyn’s old enough to know that they don’t bring up Claire to mom, because it just puts her in a mood and then you can forget about doing anything else for the rest of the evening. But Dahvia’s ten, practically a baby, and she doesn’t know any better.

“Hey, mom? What sort of accident did Claire die in? Nina asked me at recess and I didn’t know,” Dahvia pipes up, before she’s even properly sat down. Kip visibly cringes. He’s older, wiser, knows this won’t go well. Still, he dares to look at his mom’s face and he notes the faraway look in her eye, like she seems to experience a bunch of things at once. Kip notices how even though her eyes are glassy, she doesn’t cry. Though sometimes, their mom will just cry randomly, like two weeks ago when he asked for help with his Spanish homework and she couldn’t even help him finish the first worksheet.

“It was a car accident,” she says stiffly, “eat your dinner.”

Kiptyn kicks his sister under the table and flashes her a look that says : Great. Look what you did, ruined dinner. Dahvia sticks her tongue out at him.

So, he knows that he’s not supposed to be in the left hall closet because he could ruin many more dinners, but he’s here anyway. He’s been thinking about it ever since they sat in silence for the rest of that half hour, and he’s come to the conclusion – his mother was lying. Because all sorts of things make their mother cry, like a bowl of mac and cheese or Spanish class, or motorcycles, and she won’t let Kiptyn take boxing lessons though his friend Robert is and he thought it sounded really cool, but she doesn’t have any problem with cars or driving, and also, she’s never told them a single thing about Claire except that. They aren’t allowed to know anything about her, especially not anything true, so Kiptyn is pretty sure that’s a lie. There’s just something just weird about it.

So, in the middle of the night before his thirteenth birthday, he looks up a video on how you pick locks and then he figures it out on the door of the left hall closet. He’s there for at least forty-five minutes, practically ready to give it all up when he hears the clicking sound, and then it opens. His first thought is : Woah. This is a load of junk.

And he’s right. There’s boxes upon boxes of paperwork, old clothes. Some things start to click, like when he finds a pair of worn boxing gloves with Claire’s initials embroidered on them. His favorite thing that he finds is the fattest scrapbook he’s ever seen – his mom always makes them, there’s one for every year of his life. Dahvia’s too, they love looking at them. The cover of this one, though, says Italy 2021. It’s all pictures of his mom and Claire, probably in their early twenties. Kiptyn mostly notices his mother’s smile, how he’s only seen her look like that a couple times in his life and yet it looks so EASY here, like she wears it all the time. It’s so strange to him. He sets the scrapbook down and crawls toward the back of the closet. His eyes land on two leather folders with gold embroidery, and he opens up the first one. In big letters at the top : GALLAGHER ACADEMY.

It’s a diploma.

This certifies that Kassandra Sutton has satisfactorily completed the…

“What are you doing?”

Kiptyn yells out like a child, not having heard anyone creeping up on him. He claps his hand over his mouth as if to shush himself. “The door was open! I don’t know how, but I just...noticed it was open and wanted to make sure that...no one was stealing your stuff!” he grins sheepishly, hoping that he can ride on the high of his birthday week to get him out of this one.

“It was just...open?” his mother looks down at him with raised eyebrows before brandishing a twisted paper clip between two fingers. The one that had formerly been stuck in the door. His guilty expression widens, he can’t help it.

“Okay, I might know how it opened,” Kiptyn admits. He hesitates for a moment, before he realizes that he’s ALREADY in trouble, he might as well just come out with it and pray to the birthday gods. He holds up the diploma with her name on it : “What’s Gallagher Academy?”

Kass’s sigh is heavy and deep, accompanied by the amount of exhaustion that comes with raising two curious kids by herself. After Claire died, she moved her family to London to be closer to their aunt and away from everything that reminded her of Claire. She never told her children why. From hiding that world from them, the world that took so many people from her : her father, her ex-girlfriend, and the love of her life. She swore that she would never lose her children to it, too. But Kiptyn looks up at her with wide eyes, desperate to know about his mother and his past, and Kass also knows what it’s like to have part of yourself missing due to family secrets that are being kept from you. He is practically a teenager now. So, she relents.

Kass doesn’t go into all of the details, of course. Just that Gallagher Academy was a school for spies, and that’s where it all started. Kiptyn already knew that his moms met in college, so it’s the spy part that’s most interesting to him. She talks about Claire with a light in her eyes he’s unfamiliar with, how she was one of the best fighters in their year, that she grew up with such a talent in the ring that she probably could’ve gone pro if her life had gone in a different direction. She talks about how they had to part ways after graduation, because Claire got a job in North Carolina and she got a job in Washington, DC, but they made it work, and both got very accustomed to the four hour drive – though it was sometimes closer to three for Claire, because she always drove too fast, even on this big, black motorcycle which Kass swears that she hated. She tells Kiptyn about how they got married, the way she’d almost moved to England for a dream job and that long distance threatened to drive them apart again – until Claire chased her down in the airport with a ring and proposal.  

She also talks about how Claire really died : the abridged version. It was an overseas mission where they’d been cornered, and Claire risked her life to save the rest of their team. There were no other casualties, and the information they were able to bring back helped stop the terrorist organization they’d been chasing to end them for good. Kass tells the abridged version for her son, gives Claire a hero’s death. In some ways, it was. She doesn’t mention the ways that Claire was consumed by the case, it was an organization hellbent on killing spies and it likely reminded her of the brotherhood. Kass had been worried about the case the whole time, because it felt like Claire was taking it too personally. In the end, she may have been right : because Claire had let it take her life in order to close it. She also doesn’t mention that such a sacrificial death means that her wife died fighting alone, swinging her fists until her very last breath. But still, she was all alone.

She had no choice but to take her kids as far away from that life as possible.

Kiptyn tries, but he doesn’t really remember Claire. He’d only been three years old when she passed away, and before then, she’d been so consumed by her last case that she was barely present. Still, he thinks she sounds badass.

He falls asleep on his mother’s shoulder that night, looking through the scrapbook of pictures from their trip to Italy in 2021. He’s animated for the first part, pointing out buildings and asking questions, wonders if Claire was sweating in all that leather, but he slowly starts to drift off. He wakes up on the couch the next morning, no trace of the book or any of the other papers he’d hauled out of the closet the night before. He looks at the closet and there’s an extra padlock. Figures.

It comes up in little ways, like a private joke that he has with his mother, like she’ll say something and flash him a secretive smile. He likes that, and he understands that this is a big secret that he has to keep. It doesn’t come up again until his fourteenth birthday the next year, the summer before high school. It’s a strange letter in a manila envelope, sealed with some expensive red wax, his name written in fancy calligraphy. The most attention-grabbing part, however, is not Kiptyn Sutton-Walsh in big cursive letters. It’s the return address :

GALLAGHER ACADEMY.

learn her skills, honor her sword. keep her secrets.

[simpstar123]

More Than Friends || Callum Airey

Requested - No, but requests are open 💙

A/n - This is one of my fave things I've written lately tbh. Hope y'all like it 💕

Word count - 1,033

7.17.20

Y/n was over Cal's house again, of course. They had been in this type of relationship for a while, and neither of them really had anything against it. She had fallen for him but kept it under wraps well enough. He was in love too but hid it out of fear of losing her. They both chose to be satisfied with what they had going.

That was, until tonight. The two rarely argued, if you could even call it that when they did. However, things such as this are bound to blow up eventually. That just happened to be sooner than expected in this situation.

Y/n had come over and they had done their usual activities, which of course consisted of Netflix, cuddling, and eventually hooking up. It was normal for her to spend the night at Cal's, and, if it was at her place, Cal almost always stayed over. As the two were laying together, half-naked and relaxed, Y/n thought of something. "You think Cal heard us?" she asks, running a hand through her messy hair.

"Probably," he laughs, "I think he usually does, but he knows about us, it's fine."

She thinks about that for a minute, trying to figure out exactly what the relationship between them had become. She really had no idea anymore. On the surface, it seemed like friends with benefits, except those benefits were starting to include a lot more qualities of a romantic relationship than a purely sexual one.

"Cal knows about us?" she asks incredulously, sitting up quickly. Her chin rests in the palm of her hand as she waits for an answer.

"I guess, why wouldn't he?" Cal replies, still staring at the ceiling. He can feel her eyes on him and suddenly feels guilty, although he can't figure out exactly why.

"Because that's weird," she says, her eyes drifting around the room. She leaves it at that, hoping for a more intelligent reply from the man next to her. He doesn't say anything at first, obviously thinking about something.

"What's weird about it? He doesn't judge," Cal explains, finally turning over to face her. She blinks slowly at him and bites her tongue.

"This isn't even an actual relationship," she finally breaks, sitting all the way up and crossing her arms. She'd raised her voice, without even realizing it, and worried for a second that Lux could also hear her now.

"What do you mean by that?" Cal says, avoiding eye contact. Her anger surprised him as it was pretty unusual for her.

"This means nothing, right? Let's face it, I'm just one of your many booty calls!" She hisses. Without looking back at Cal for even a second, she stands up and walks out, heading straight for the other Cal's room. The two were close friends and told each other almost everything. Her plan was to rant to him until she felt better. She didn't even care if the other idiot could hear her.

"Cal?" She asks, knocking quickly on his door.

"Come in," He calls. Y/n doesn't even hesitate to open the door. She walks in, quickly shutting the door behind her, and flops onto Cal's bed next to him. He shoots her a look of concern, but otherwise stays quiet and waits for her to speak. However, she remains quiet and stares at the ceiling, clenching her jaw.

"What happened?" Cal finally asks, hoping to avoid upsetting her more. She scoffs and shakes her head. Eventually, she sits up and crosses her legs, facing Cal and studying his expression for a few seconds.

"Cal's a fucking dickhead," she replies simply. Lux sighs, closing his laptop and putting on his bedside table with his headphones. Y/n watches his actions and realizes he was most likely using the headphones while she and Cal were 'making noise' in the other room. Lux sighs and takes a deep breath. He'd known about the whole friends with benefits thing since it started and he had a good guess of where it would end up going. Actually, he'd assumed they'd fallen in love a long time ago when they had first met. Now, looking at the situation in front of him and knowing that Cal was more in love than he'd ever been, all he could do was shake his head.

"Are you sure he's not just... trying to hide his true feelings for you?" Cal suggests, hoping to sound inconspicuous. She laughs aloud and rolls her eyes.

"Yeah right. Our first rule was not to catch feelings. Cal isn't like me, he wouldn't break that rule," she says, dragging her fingers lightly across her arm as she's thinking.

"What do you mean 'like you'?" he asks, already knowing the answer.

"Oh, isn't it obvious. I love him. He's a dickhead, but I love him," she groans, putting her head in her hands and closing her eyes. It was painfully obvious to everyone who knew the two of them. Although Cal opted not to mention that, he was thinking it very intensely at her as though she'd somehow get the message.

"So why don't you just tell him?" he asks, hoping that Cal could hear the conversation from his room. She shakes her head at him silently.

"Hello? I broke the first rule of being friends with benefits," she replies simply, her eyes trained on anything but his.

"And you think he hasn't?" Cal says, watching her facial expressions carefully.

"Has he?" she whispers, her eyes lighting up like Christmas lights. He nods in response, glancing towards the door and back to her. He had a feeling his friend was listening in on the conversation.

"Y/n, everyone knows you mean the world to him," he says, smiling. She returns the smile and gets up quickly. The door opens behind her, causing her to spin around, suddenly face-to-face with Cal. He meets her eyes, trying to hide his nervousness. She runs into his arms and they share a tight hug. Lux laughs and snaps a picture of the pair, sending it to the group chat. When he looks up again, Cal mouths the words thank you to him.

[dawniebb]

In which Queen Aanya validates Rayllum

HIII! <3

So, this is kind of a crack fic lmao because...idk i just wanted to have fun, guys agshja it's not that good but it's just an idea that popped up in my head and,if somebody reads this: I hope you liked it <3. Comments are appreciated, btw :3

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

Then, they are left alone.

Well, not alone.

They're sitting there, enjoying each other's company while surrounded by the remnants of the battle. Some people injured, the rest just tired or sleeping (Like Rayla, whose eyes are barely open). At least, Callum thinks, they're now under the protection of Queen Zubeia. All of them together, humans and elves, for the first time in a very long time.

With a sigh, he tries to go back to his sketchbook, just as Rayla's horns poke him in the face, very close to his eyes.

"Oh, sh..."

"Hey." Callum laughs. "There are children here."

"Did I hurt you?" She asks, very, very concerned, as she inspects Callum's face as if one of his eyes were now rolling by her feet.

"Rayla, you barely touched me. It's okay. Don't worry. Come on, you're falling asleep. You need to rest. “He smiles, while he takes her hand and places a tender kiss on her palm. “If something happens, I promise I'll wake you up.

But just when she looks convinced enough, through the corner of his eye, Callum can see aunt Amaya signing something at him, with a smile on her face. She's close to them, sitting next to Princess (Queen?) Janai, her new elf friend. And, of course, being the careful individual she is, Rayla follows the direction of his eyes.

"What's she saying?" She asks in a very discrete way. Callum doesn't notice he's blushing until he feels his cheeks burning.

“Oh, it's nothing... She just said that we... Uhm...”

"What?"

"That we make a…quite adorable couple." He laughs, as he signs back at aunt Amaya. "Thank you."

"...Oh." Rayla scratches her nose, as she tries to keep calm, even though Callum doesn’t know for sure why she’s so nervous in the first place. “Well, I guess she likes me now."

"Well.” Callum grabs her hand. "I guess you could say that."

"I'm glad." She smiles. To Callum's eyes, she looks adorable, all tired and barely awake.

"Yeah..." He says. "Me too.”

Suddenly, they're leaned into the other's face, close to their lips, paying little attention to the fact they've never really had an audience before (besides Ez, and that wasn't even on purpose). However, they're interrupted seconds before they can do anything, thanks to the sound of somebody clearing their throat.

When they turn to the side, there's Queen Aanya, standing like a monument even though she's not even a year older than Ez. Shocked, Callum scoots up as fast as he can, and even if Rayla's not really sure of what's happening, she imitates him, but when they try to reverence her, Queen Aanya straightens her back and says, in a very soothing voice:

"Please, do not kneel."

Still, Callum can't help it and ends up bowing at her in a very subtle way. A gesture that goes apparently unnoticed.

“I actually wanted to apologize. It appears that I might have interrupted something. “Queen Aanya folds her hands on her lap.

"Oh, no, no!" Callum says, nervously. “No, we were just...!”

“Nothing special, Your Majesty.” Rayla smiles. “Do you...?”

"Need...Request our help?"

Fortunately, Queen Aanya seems amused, as she laughs politely, covering her mouth with her hand.

“I will try to be as brief as possible, as I assume you need some time with each other to process the events.” She says. “You do happen to be in an established relationship. Am I correct?"

Callum feels Rayla's confusion and he doesn't blame her. Everyone is confused about Queen Aanya at some point, given the fact that, even if she's still a child, she's more mature than a lot of grown-up people. And, well, now she's questioning the nature of their relationship. What a convenient situation.  

"Yes." Rayla finally speaks, staring directly at Callum. “You are correct."

For a moment; a moment so brief it almost goes away in a blink, they can see a spark in Aanya's eyes as she smiles at them with something that reflects a lot of things, one of them being tenderness. Callum feels something warm deep in his heart.

“In that case, I would like to congratulate you first.” Aanya says. " It is... pretty noticeable, and I felt the need to express the feeling of respect I have grown towards both of you, for being able to create a relationship out of such circumstances and such strong cultural barriers. I must admit that I am very impressed."

Callum doesn't realize their heads are leaned against the other until he feels Rayla's skin so close their cheeks are touching.

"We appreciate your words, Your Majesty.” Callum says, as Aanya stares at the two of them more than she focuses on him, who happens to be the one talking to her. "We hope to grow stronger in our relationship.”

"Everyday. Like we have done it until now." Rayla says.

“It warms my heart to hear that.” Aanya says, placing a hand where said heart is located. "That is why, if you do not have somebody to do it, I would like to offer myself to officiate your marriage."

It arrives like a clap in the face, and Callum goes cold, just like Rayla.

Then the room is hot again.

Very hot.

And they both were red. As a cherry, as an apple, and as all the red things that were coming to Callum's head right now.

So, not knowing what to do, they start rambling, like they always do.

"OH!"

“Your Majesty, that's very kind of you but right now... "

"I MEAN, WE DO WANT TO..."

"SOMEDAY BUT... BUT RIGHT NOW WE'RE KIND OF..."

"YOUNG."

"YES, YOUNG! VERY, VERY YOUNG!"

"AND DUMB! WE TAKE PRETTY DUMB DECISIONS WHEN WE'RE TOGETHER, YOUR MAJESTY! DIDN'T YOU SEE HOW...?"

And then a sound comes out of Aanya's mouth.

When they stare at her, she's laughing. And she keeps doing that until she notices the confusion in their faces.

"Do not worry.” She says. "I was just playing with you."

They just stay there, looking like idiots, with their mouths half-open.

Callum fills his cheeks with air, and then he lets it out in relief.

"...Oh.”

"That was...clever, Your Majesty."

"I know.” Aanya shrugs, completely conscious of how in a matter of seconds she managed to set the world on fire. "I am going to have to retire now, but congratulations again. You have all my best wishes."

Callum bites his lower lip as he watches her leave, and even if for a moment he feels weak, he realizes he does have the guts to ask what suddenly popped into his mind.

"Your Majesty?" He calls her.

Queen Aanya turns around in the very moment she hears her name. She's not annoyed, she's not mad. She's just there, staring and waiting, with a patience made of steel and that, somehow, helps Callum to feel safe.

"This means that... Well... given the fact that we're a human-elf relationship... we...we do have your blessing as one of the human kingdoms, right? "

Aanya stays in silence.

Then, she speaks, getting a little closer.

"Listen, Prince Callum. I want to clarify the type of Queen I am trying to be, and for that, I am going to need you to be aware of the fact that, for these types of issues you will not, ever, need my blessing."

Callum smiles, as a silent "thank you."

"I may be tough as a person, and some people may even say I have a really bad temper sometimes. And I am aware that is a truth, just as the fact of me having really strong opinions is also a truth. I believe there are bad humans in this world, and I believe there are bad elves as well… But above of that, I believe in my mothers’ legacy, and I believe in love. And when I first landed my eyes on you that is exactly what I saw.“  She says "I saw love. And trust. And hope, for you and for all of us, in this divided world we have gotten used to. "

In a very calm way, Aanya takes Rayla’s hand, and then she proceeds to carefully put it into Callum’s.

“…And I might have also seen four fingers that fit perfectly into five, just as if they were made for each other.” She chuckles.

There's that tender expression again, and somehow Callum believes they'll be okay.

Somehow, he manages to be almost sure that their relationship will be accepted and everyone will be willing to see them the way Aanya does. Not a human and an elf, just two living creatures who found each other and fell deeply, madly in love.

“I hope that answered your question, Prince Callum.” Aanya says, as she turns around again, only to stare at them one last time.

"Oh, and...Whenever you feel ready to take that step, in case somebody decides to question your decisions, remember that I am a Queen, and even if my statement was intended to be a joke, I do carry the authority to officiate weddings. I hope will not find yourselves in the need to ask for that kind of help. “She smiles in a way so pure she almost looks like she’s trying to act her age for once.

“An invitation is welcomed, though. I have never been to an elven wedding. It could be a really interesting experience for me and I would really appreciate it.”

[iwillhaveamoonbase]

The Long Game ch. 3

“You called, Dad?” Claudia announced her presence.  Viren turned to her, sighing as he faced away from the mirror he had gotten back in Xadia. He still hadn’t figured out it’s secrets, but he had seen a cloaked figure appear every once in a while.

“Yes, Claudia.  We need to talk about relationships.”

“Oh.”  Claudia blushed, putting a few strands of her dark hair behind her ear.  “Did you hear about the girl at the bakery?  I know it’s unorthodox, but-”

“You don’t have time to be worrying about bakery girls, Claudia.”  Viren sat in his chair, gesturing for Claudia to sit beside him.  “Ever since Rayla got here, Prince Callum’s attention has drifted from you to her.”

“I know.”

“That’s not acceptable.”

Claudia looked down at her hands.  “He’s my friend and I didn’t want to embarrass him, but I never liked him, Dad.  I like girls.”

“I know.  But we’re a different cut above people who work in bakeries.”

“That’s not what Harrow says.”

“Claudia, please.  In order for our families to be closer together, in order for us to keep living a life you’re accustomed to, I need you to make an effort to get Prince Callum’s attention again.”

“Dad…I don’t want to. If he wants to be with Rayla-”

“Soren wants to be with Rayla.  You’ve seen how he makes a fool of himself around this castle when she’s in the room.  Don’t you want your brother to be happy?  It frees Rayla up if Callum’s taken.”

“How would I even do it?” Claudia put her arms around herself. Viren got up, wrapping an arm around his daughter.

“Callum wants to learn magic.  Though both he and Harrow are deeply opposed to dark magic, start teaching him how to use the primal stone.  Private lessons.  Do whatever you can.”

“I don’t know….”

“Claudia, look at me.” She finally did, confusion in her green eyes.  Viren shook his head.  He hated that he was asking his own daughter to sacrifice her happiness, but he had plans. Harrow was growing more and more distant from him.  Killing Thunder and taking the egg hadn’t done their friendship any favors.  If anything, it had deteriorated it.  They argued constantly and Harrow had threatened to send him out of the castle.  Viren couldn’t let that happen.  Harrow was becoming too against dark magic and was starting to doubt everything they had built towards.  What if Xadia attacked and Katolis was defenseless?  Or worse, Harrow tried to make peace and Xadia used it as an excuse to invade the entirety of the Pentarchy?  Viren couldn’t let that happen.  “Please. It’s important that you do this.”

“OK, Dad.  I’ll try my best.”

“Good girl.”

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

Rayla watched from the window as the royalty from the other kingdoms came to the castle.  They were coming to celebrate Ezran’s eleventh birthday. “They’re here,” she whispered to Callum and Ezran.  They both looked over at her, interest on their faces.  “Have you really never met any of them?”

“I met the former Queens of Duren when I was four,” Callum started, “but, besides, that, no.  This party for Ez is pretty unorthodox.”  

“Why?  Seems counter-intuitive.  You get a stronger alliance when you all know each other, right?”  Rayla glared at herself in the mirror.  Was that too obvious?  Callum and Ezran were really trusting individuals, but she really could be slipping as she grew comfortable here.

“There’s a concern about influencing the other kingdoms.  There’s a desire to be friendly, but to also be separate and to respect differences.  Duren and Katolis have usually had a reasonably close relationship compared to the others. But when you have a country like Evenere, which is far out compared to everyone else, it can lead to concern about plotting and alliances.”

“Fair, I suppose.”  

“We’re going to get ready for the party.  You coming?” Rayla nodded, keeping her eyes on the window for a moment longer.  This was the other reason she was here; information.  As she followed the princes to their rooms, she noticed just how rushed everyone was.  They were moving about and it felt like the whole castle was being remodeled.  “Good thing I moved out months ago,” Callum said to Ezran.

Rayla raised a brow.  “‘Moved out?’”

“Oh.  You didn’t know?”  Rayla shot him a look of confusion.  “Ezran and I used to share a room.  The day I turned 15, which was right before you got here, I finally got my own room. It’s next to Ezran’s, but I needed space.”

“Why did you two share a room for so long?”

Callum shrugged.  “Maybe because of our mom’s death.  I know I had nightmares and didn’t like being alone and when Ezran needed a room because he outgrew the crib, I offered mine.  I only moved because the king suggested it.”

Ezran sighed.  “Call him ‘Dad,’ Callum.  He liked it when you did that one time.”

“It felt weird,” Callum whispered.

“Because you made it weird. You apologized right after and everyone could tell that you were thinking about it for a long time.  He liked it.  For all the Big Feelings Times we have, the two of you are so hesitant to be open about this.”    

Rayla was quiet as they argued about whether or not Callum should call Harrow ‘dad’.  What was she going to do while the royal families were here? If she mingled too much, it would be obvious that she was trying to get information.  Viren was already suspicious of her.  But if she stuck with Callum and Ezran she would be missing out on an important opportunity.  When they approached their rooms, they saw Soren and Claudia arguing in the hall.  “Can we help you?” Rayla called.

The two turned, smiling at the trio.  Soren cleared his throat.  “Rayla, I was wondering if you would like me to accompany you tonight?  Usually, for these things, people take dates and-”

“Callum already asked and I said ‘yes.’”  Rayla’s eyes widened a bit.  It was the perfect chance.  If Callum was her date, then she could meet the royals and have an excuse to not be too conspicuous.  But, that hadn’t been why she had said that.  She didn’t want to go with Soren.  She looked over at a sputtering Callum.  “Right?”

“Yeah,” he muttered.  “I asked a little bit ago.  Sorry, Soren.”

“Oh,” Claudia interrupted. Rayla’s eyes narrowed.  “That’s a shame, I was hoping you and I could go together, Callum.”

“Really?”  Callum raised a brow.  Rayla looked at her door.  She didn’t want to hear this.  “Why?”

“Well, you and I have known each other for a long time, so…maybe the two of us could start thinking about dating.”

“But…Claudia I saw you in the bakery last week.  You and the helper were very clearly flirting and making-out.”  Claudia flinched.  “I don’t know what’s going on here, but I’m sorry, I’m not interested in you like that anymore.”

Claudia’s jaw dropped for a moment, biting her lip when the shock probably wore off.  “OK.  That’s fair. Ezran, will you be my date?”

Ezran looked down at Bait. “Can Bait come?”

“Of course,” Claudia smiled.

“Sure!”  Claudia, Soren and Ezran moved on, heading to their rooms to get ready.  Callum hung back, still looking at her.

“Rayla?”

“Hmm?”

“I never asked you.”

“I know.”  She said it so matter of factly it probably shocked him if his continued stare was any indication.  “I didn’t want to go with Soren.  I’m sorry I put you on the spot like that, but I didn’t see any other choice.”

“Is that the only reason?”

‘No’ almost escaped her lips.  He needed to stop looking at her like that, like she was something to be admired and adored.  “I trust you. Is that not enough?”  Callum held her gaze for a moment longer, finally nodding. They stood in the hall a bit longer, static crackling in the air between them.  “Besides, you need a good guard.  Who better than me?”

Callum chuckled.  “True.  You can take anyone in the crown guard.”

“Yes, I can.  And don’t you forget it.”  Rayla turned away, entering her room.  She leaned against the door for a few moments, pressing her clenched fist to her heart.  Her heart was beating too fast.  It always did that when he looked at her too long.  ‘Does he see?  Can he see through the illusion?’  She couldn’t tell.  Ever since that first night on the balcony when he said something about her appearance was off, he sometimes looked at her like he could see through to her true form. He never said anything, so Rayla had no way of knowing if she was being paranoid or if he was quietly observing.

That wasn’t it, though. They talked on their balconies almost every night.  Their winter at the Banther Lodge had been cozy and intimate and she had gotten to know him, Ezran and Harrow more.  She liked what she saw.  Liked it too much.  Also….Ezran. Oh, gods, Ezran.  Was she really here to kill Ezran?  The more time she spent with him, the more she realized he was just a child and how wrong all of this was.  The Dragon Prince hadn’t deserved to die, but, would justice be achieved by killing another innocent?  

‘Stop it, Rayla!  You’ve been having too many Big Feelings Times with them.  You are here for a job.  It’s not your responsibility to judge what is justice and what isn’t.’  It wasn’t her job at all.  Rayla pushed away from the door and made her way to the bed.  There was a blue gown on the bed.  The gold embroidery on the skirt was obviously meant to be reminiscent of the uneven towers of Katolis.  She ran a hand down the expensive silk.  ‘Too much…’  Rayla pulled her clothes off and dressed in the gown.  When she looked in the mirror to make sure it sat correctly, she was startled by her reflection.  Human…she looked human.  Would she ever get used to seeing blue eyes, rounded ears and blonde hair staring back at her?

Rayla stepped forward for a moment, hand touching the reflection and the other touching the necklace.  What she wouldn’t give to pull it off and see herself looking back at her.  Lujanne’s warning screamed loud in the back of her mind.  ‘If you take that necklace off, the illusion will break.  If you put it back on, you will not look exactly the same. There is no way of knowing if that difference could be explained away or not.  You can never take it off as long as you are on this side of the border.’

Rayla quickly put the necklace under her dress.  She didn’t need people asking questions.  She did her hair in a loose bun, several chunks framing her face, and her small braid used to wind it all together.  She had never thought about her looks before coming here.  It was a distraction.  There were most important things to do than having perfect hair.  There were a few tubes and jars of, what she assumed, was make-up. “No way.”  Rayla was not going to paint her face with human cosmetics if she wasn’t allowed to wear the dye of her people.  

She put on the low heels Opeli had most likely picked out for her.  The dress covered the heels.  What was the point of wearing them if no one would even see them?  She shook her head; just thankful she hadn’t been given anything with a corset or laces.  She had seen that fashion here in Katolis and it didn’t interest her at all.

She looked in the mirror one more time and walked out the door to the hall.  Callum was waiting for her.  Her eyes widened as she took him.  He was in a red jacket and a fancier version of his black pants.  There was clear padding on his shoulders as well as the same embroidery of the uneven towers.  His eyes scanned her form, slowly taking in every detail.  She both wanted to hide and stand firm in his attention.  “You clean up pretty good,” she finally said.

“You look beautiful.” That wasn’t fair…he couldn’t say things like that.  Not when she was fighting her heart against him.  Her heart was so desperate for her to run into his arms, tell him the truth, and maybe, just maybe, it would all work out.  That wasn’t how things worked, though, was it?

“Thank you.  I’m just hoping I don’t trip on this dress.”  She lifted the skirt a bit to show the shoes. “I’m not used to heels, either.”

“You’re a pretty good dancer, though.”  Rayla smiled. Callum had been tasked with teaching her how to dance since he wasn’t terrible at it.  Rayla had taken to it quickly.  It may not have been the same steps she knew, but Silvergrove was full of dancing.  It was in their keys, their celebrations, their harvest, everything.  

“You need to stop complimenting.  You’re going to make me think you mean it.”

“I do.  You’re amazing, Rayla.”  Callum cleared his throat.  “Shall we go?”  He held his arm out, giving her the crook of his elbow.  “I can’t wait to for you to show me off.”

“I’m showing you off?” Rayla chuckled.

“Of course.  I’m the step-prince of Katolis.  I need to be shown for the whole world to see.  Oh…is the whole world going to see?”

Rayla looped her arm through his.  “No. Just the important people.”

“Same thing.”  Rayla laughed as he stuck his tongue out at her. They waited for Ezran and walked with him to get Claudia and Soren.  The group of five exchanged pleasantries, Soren stumbling on his words as he complimented Rayla.

“The dress really suits you, Rayla.”  Soren bowed a bit.  “You sure you don’t want me to escort you?”

“I’m sure.”  They walked behind Ezran and Claudia, who looked back at them every once in a while.  Rayla didn’t know what game Claudia was playing, but she didn’t like it. It wasn’t acceptable to play with Callum’s heart like she was.  “You got a problem with this?”

“No,” Claudia said too quickly.  “Just wasn’t expecting it.”

“After seeing you give lingering looks to half the girls in the castle, I wasn’t expecting what you asked either.”

Claudia was quiet. Rayla wasn’t sure if she was simply refusing to answer or if she had offended her.  Either way, Rayla couldn’t find it in her heart to care.  They arrived at the hall, waiting for Ezran and Claudia to be announced.  “This is so much,” she whispered.

“I know,” came Callum’s soft reply.  “You can stay by my side all night if you want.”

“Thank you.”  They walked forward when Opeli gestured.

“Introducing Prince Callum and King Harrow’s ward, Ms. Rayla.”  Rayla took in the room.  She saw a lot of figures she had seen from the window.  She could hear whispers flitting to her ears.  

‘She’s stunning.  Look at that face!’

‘I heard a rumor she was gifted with weapons, but she looks so slim.’

‘They look uneven, don’t they?  A rare jewel like that next to the step-prince?’  Rayla’s eyes flitted around the room, trying to find that particular voice.  She saw a young man with a crown on his head dressed in golds and creams.

“Who is that?” she gestured with her chin when she got Callum’s attention.  

He looked over and was quiet as he thought.  “I think Prince Kasef of Neolandia.”

“So no avoiding him?”

“No.  Why?”

Rayla looked back at Kasef. He was staring at her with heat in his eyes.  She had heard rumors that Kasef acted like a child when he didn’t get a toy he wanted. “I don’t trust the way he’s looking at me.”

“How’s he looking at you?”

“Like he wants to eat me. I couldn’t be less interested.”  

“Really?  A lot of girls think he’s attractive from what I’ve heard.”

“I’m not into selfish children disguised as men.  I’d rather kiss Soren, and I’m not into himbos, either.”

“‘Himbos?’”  Rayla winced.  Right, that was a Xadian term.  Hopefully she could play this off.

“Not very bright, but muscular and kind.  Well, he’s kind with Ezran.  I don’t like how he treats you.”

“He’s not so bad,” Callum looked down at his feet.  “He can be a pretty good friend when he wants to be.”

“He calls you the ‘step-prince’.  I’ll believe you when he apologizes for that.”  Callum didn’t push it.  They finally made their way to stand by Harrow and Viren, standing off to the side. Rayla tuned out Harrow’s speech about friendship and forging connections to be a united Pentarachy.  She’d heard Harrow practice it a million times.  Watching everyone’s reactions to it was far more telling.  There seemed to be a good-natured attitude in the air.  Kasef, though, rolled his eyes every so often.  Rayla looked at a young girl with blonde hair in a crown. She stared at Harrow with an intense gaze, but moved her eyes down the line.  When she made it to Rayla, they held eye contact for a few moments.  In those moments, Rayla saw a world of strength and pain. Someone who wasn’t willing to back down and didn’t trust because they were betrayed every time.  “Queen Aanya,” she breathed.

Callum looked where she was, nodding slightly in ascent.  “Yeah.”

Aanya held the gaze. What did she see?  Finally, Aanya broke away first, but Rayla felt like she had given Aanya far more than she had learned herself.  “She’s Ezran’s age.”

“She is.”

Harrow’s booming voice broke through Rayla’s concern.  “Please, enjoy the night.  And, again, thank you for coming to celebrate Ezran’s birthday.”  Rayla stood to Callum’s side as the royals came up and introduced themselves.  She curtseyed and kept her head down as much as good as she listened to everything around her.  

When Kasef got to her, he picked up her hand and placed a kiss on it, a smirk that he probably thought was charming on his face.  “May I have the first dance?”

“Already promised it to Callum.”

“Second?”

“Ezran.”

“Third?”  Kasef’s voice was straining, squeezing her hand.

“Harrow.”  It bothered Rayla how quickly lies left her lips lately, but she felt no guilt for this.

“Fourth?”

“Callum again.”

Callum coughed a bit. “Look, she clearly isn’t interested-”

“Was I talking to you, step-prince?” Kasef hissed.  Callum looked down at his feet.  “Thought so.”

Rayla glared at Kasef, snatching her hand away.  “He’s right, I’m not interested.  Pick someone else to annoy.”          

“Rayla, right?”

“You’re bothering me and you’re asking to make sure you got my name right?”

“I just want to be sure I know the name of the woman I plan on pleasuring tonight.”

“Then you’re talking to the wrong girl.  Not happening tonight, tomorrow, or ever.”

King Ahling sighed.  “Kasef, leave the girl alone.”

Kasef cocked his jaw, but moved on.  Rayla didn’t stare after him, looking straight ahead lest he turn back and think she was encouraging his behavior.  Aanya was next.  They stared at each other for a few moments.  How did this tiny human queen make her feel so small?  Aanya nodded.  “I’m Aanya, Queen of Duren.”

“Rayla, a simple farm girl.”

“Not what I hear.  How does a farm girl get so good with a sword she beats a member of the crown guard or so good with a spear she trains a prince?”

“We watch the military and play a lot.  I’ve got good reflexes, I guess.”

“I see.”  Aanya stared at her for a few more moments.  “Has anyone ever told you that there’s something not quite right?  It’s like something is pulling at the edge of my mind when I look at you.”

Rayla nodded.  “Callum said that.”

Soren piped up from behind them.  “It’s because she’s so pretty.  You know how beautiful women make you stop in place.  Same thing.”  

Aanya was quiet, staring long and hard at Rayla.  Finally, she turned away.  “I see.” She turned back and nodded her head. “It was a pleasure to meet you.”

Rayla grabbed her hand, shocking them both.  Aanya raised a brow but did nothing else.  “What do you see?”

“I see someone who was deeply hurt by someone they love but hides it because it’s easier than thinking about it.  I see confusion and anger and hurt.  I also see a heart that’s too good for the world we live in, one always concerned with war breaking out.  Perhaps, if you let go of that hurt and forgave, you could be happier.”  Aanya walked away before Rayla could say anything.

“How did she do that?”

“She’s good at reading people,” Callum whispered.  

“That’s an understatement.”

“You have to be if you live the way she does.  Sycophants, assassination attempts, regents pretending to love her like their own child, whispering in her ears.  It caused a stir when she took the throne last year.  Everyone said she was too young, but she couldn’t trust the regents anymore.  She’s either going to be one of the greatest rulers the Pentarchy has ever seen or she’ll be so clouded by distrust she’ll be a tyrant.”

“What do you think?”

Callum mulled it over. “She’ll be a good queen, I think. Maybe she won’t always make the popular choice, but she’s well-known for loving her people.  She views them as her family because she lost her parents when she was a baby.”

The night dragged on. Rayla meant dignitaries and nobility who stared at her like she was a piece of cattle on display.  Her face hurt from smiling and her feet hurt from the heels.  The biggest reprieve had been dancing with Callum.  A simple waltz had left her imagining they were the only two in the room.  He had that effect on her, like the rest of the world just melted away and there was no one left but them.  She had clenched her fists in Ezran’s clothes when he danced with Claudia while she and Ez danced.  

“Rayla?” Ezran whispered. She looked down.  “Callum doesn’t like her anymore.  I don’t know what Claudia’s doing it, but anyone with eyes can tell her heart isn’t in it.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Rayla whispered.

“Then why are you so upset?” Rayla didn’t say anything.  She danced with Harrow in silence, smiling at his jokes, but unable to get rid of the cloud hanging over her head now.

When she came back to the dais, Kasef was waiting for her.  “May I have a dance?” he asked.  Rayla couldn’t put her finger on it, but she had a feeling he expected her to say ‘yes.’  

“Don’t you give up?” Rayla shook her head.  “Will you leave me alone if I do?”

Kasef smiled down at her. “I can promise you you’ll never want me to.”

Rayla snorted.  “Sure, but promise you’ll leave me alone.”

“If you truly wish it, if you let me have this dance, I will leave you alone for the rest of the night.”

“I’ll hold you to it.” Kasef took her hand and pulled her way too close when they got to the dance floor.  Rayla pushed herself a more than appropriate amount away.  “You’re pushy.”

“How old are you?” Kasef asked.

“16.”

“Marriageable age in Neolandia.”

“Cool,” Rayla huffed under her breath.

“You’re quite stunning. Why would you choose to be the step-prince’s date?”

“He’s nice and I like him.”

Kasef pulled her closer again.  “I have experience with women.”

“How nice for you.”  Rayla was going to slap him if he didn’t stop.

“A beautiful woman like you should be draped in silks and dripping in diamonds.”

“Not interested.”

“Come on.  I’m offering you a chance no other farm girl would ever get.”  Kasef spun her, and brought her back far too close.  “If you keep my bed warm every night, I’ll give you all the pretty things you never dreamed of.”  His hand snuck down her back and he groped her ass.  

Rayla couldn’t hold back. She slapped him so hard his head swung to the side.  “DO.  NOT.  TOUCH. ME.”  Rayla held firm as he turned his head to look back at her.  “Learn to take a ‘no’ every once in a while, and stop acting like a child.  Actually, that’s not fair.  Children know that ‘no’ means ‘no’.  You’re spoiled and you need to grow-up.”  Rayla walked away before he could say anything back.  The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.  

“Well,” Aanya’s voice carried throughout the room, “I don’t know about all of you, but I think this party should move on.  I’m tired of dancing.  King Harrow, I heard that Katolis has a beautiful garden.”

Harrow nodded.  “It does indeed.  Let me show you all.”  Rayla stayed back as everyone went to the gardens.

“You OK?”  She was startled back into reality as Callum took her hand.

“I’m fine.  Just grossed out.”

“Not even the jerkface dance could make that better.”

“No, it couldn’t.”  

“What do you need?”

“Can we just go to bed? Or would that be rude?”

“Given the circumstances, I think it would be OK.”

“Did I really just slap the crown prince of Neolandia?”

“You did and it was awesome.”  Callum chuckled with her, gently putting a hand on her upper back.  “Let’s get you to bed.”

“Thank you.”

“Anytime.”  He looked up into her eyes and she almost fell into them. His lips her so close and they were alone.  He moved away before she could let her heart make the decision for her.  

‘It’s for the best, Rayla.  Your heart is a fool.’        

[foolsiwillshowthemall]

Rayla doesn’t do slow burn.

Random thoughts on Rayllum, heavy with TDP Season 3 spoilers, following.

Rayllum has been the most likely endgame ship among the main characters for a while, which is ironic considering that it wasn’t even planned from the start of the series.  The writers just realized midway through Season 2 that the chemistry between the two of them worked out really well.  For me, it clicked when Callum was reading the letter from his father, who advised Callum to seek a narrative of love instead of power.  It’s not clear if this line was written before or after the writers decided that Rayllum would be a thing, but it does fit perfectly with the love of a human prince and an elven assassin/Dragonguard helping bring peace to the two sides.

However, while I was expecting them to get together, I was expecting it to happen a lot more slowly than it did.  Usually in these kinds of shows, they’ll string along the will-they-or-won’t-they dance for as long as possible to build tension, and only resolve it in a season or series finale.  We were all expecting a slow burn situation.  But in a brilliant bit of character-driven storytelling, just as the existence of the relationship was driven by the chemistry between them, the pace of the relationship was also decided by the characters.

Because Rayla is just not a slow-burn kind of person.

Callum could do a slow burn, easily.  At the start of the show, it’s implied that he’s been pining over Claudia for some time.  Years, maybe.  He just doesn’t have the confidence or any idea on how to progress that relationship.  In an alternate universe where the Moonshadow elves never attack, he and Claudia could spend years dancing around each other before finally ending up together.  He’d probably also end up apprenticing to Viren to become a dark mage in that alternate universe, so it’s just as well that didn’t happen.

But Rayla isn’t the kind of person to do a slow burn relationship.  Rayla makes sudden, life-changing, emotionally driven decisions.  Deciding to not kill Marcus after he discovered the assassin team, or deciding to take the Egg to Xadia along with the human princes, or to go and save the downed red dragon from Soren and Claudia.  And when she makes these decisions, she acts on them, immediately and decisively.  So once she realized that she’s in love with Callum, she’s not going to sit around pining for him or wondering if he feels the same.  She’s going to immediately start courting him, Moonshadow elf style.

Admittedly, we have no idea what Moonshadow elf courtship looks like.  But we do know that they keep their feelings secret, they’re not supposed to admit to fear or apparently anything else openly.  So Rayla’s not going to be ready to openly declare her love just yet.  But a lot of her behavior in the first few episodes of Season 3 makes more sense when interpreted as attempted courtship.

Episode 1:  Sol Regem.  When all else fails, Rayla makes a heartfelt speech praising Callum’s virtues to try and convince Sol Regem to let hum accompany her and Zym into Xadia.  It’s totally wasted on Sol Regem, but really we know this speech was meant for Callum.  It’s Rayla’s way of letting Callum know how much she likes him, without actually admitting anything.  

I suspect that praising someone you like to a third party, where they can overhear, is a common courtship method among Moonshadow elves, as it lets them know you like them without you having to admit any feelings of your own.  “I don’t admit to personally having feelings for them, I’m just stating how amazing they are as a fact” is a distinctly Moonshadow-ish behavior, and something that both Rayla and Callum have done for each other.

Also, she keeps his scarf, although unfortunately not past the end of the episode.  This comes after they’ve established how strongly it smells of him, because apparently Rayla likes the way he smells.

Episode 2: The Crown.  Moonshadow elves are all about concealment and secrecy, so showing somebody a secret place where you played alone as a child is an incredibly intimate and personal step.  Rayla might as well have stripped naked in front of him for all that she’s laying her life bare.  Fortunately, Callum has responded positively to her courtship so far, although at this point he doesn’t realize that this is what she’s doing.  As incredibly empathic and perceptive as Callum is, he’s fairly clueless at figuring out matters of romance, and has no idea that Rayla likes him that way yet.

Episode 3: Ghost.  Courtship is going well, so Rayla takes the next step of introducing Callum to her one remaining parental figure and showing him where she grew up.  Unfortunately, things don’t go well, as she’s been magically banished and is reminded of how she’s disappointed everyone and was more or less responsible for all of the other members of the team being killed or sealed in coins.  Callum tries to comfort her, and we might even have proceeded to the scene we do eventually get in the next episode, but Ethari interrupts them and gives them the means to start seriously traveling onwards again.

Episode 4: The Midnight Desert.  Enter Nyx.  Nyx is a conman (Con-woman?  Con-elf?) who is skilled at reading people.  She figures out pretty quickly what’s going on with these two, which is why she makes that teasing comment about whether they need one blanked or two.  She’s also smart enough to realize that Callum and Rayla will, given the chance, provide enough distraction to each other for her to slip away with Zym.

It’s in this episode that we get the continuation of the emotional moment interrupted by Ethari.  Rayla is wallowing in self-loathing, but Callum comes along and starts praising her virtues.  At last, Rayla thinks, the big dumb human has caught on and is reciprocating my courtship.  So she kisses him. 

Unfortunately, Callum wasn’t actually trying to court her, at least not consciously, so things get all awkward and stuff.  Poor Rayla is very confused, as what seemed to be fairly clear signals weren’t what she thought they were.  It turns out that Callum does actually like her like that, he just didn’t even realize that it was an option so far, and they probably would have resolved things with a little more talking, but Zym’s been abducted and they have to put the courtship on hold to deal with that.

Ironically, if Callum hadn’t backed down and had been kissing her back right away, Nyx would probably have gotten away freely.  Emotional awkwardness saves the day.

Episode 5: Heroes and Masterminds.  Zym has been rescued, Nyx has been defeated and then also rescued, and Callum get the opportunity to praise Rayla to someone else in front of here.  You can see the surprise and hope on her face as she’s trying to figure out the meaning of this gesture, not wanting to mis-interpret his intentions again.  You can also see that Nyx figures out pretty quickly that this speech isn’t for her benefit, as she turns and walks away halfway through it.  Rayla still isn’t sure what Callum’s intentions are, but he makes them more clear when he kisses her.

He then gets flustered and tries to back down again, but Rayla knows what the deal is.  If she wants the relationship to proceed, she has to take the initiative.  Fortunately, she’s more than capable of doing so, and Callum is willing to let her.

So where do things go now?  At the moment, we don’t know if there even will be a Season 4.  Netflix likes to cancel shows after 2 or 3 seasons, and the internal drama among the creative team at Wonderstorm still might tear the company apart.  Personally, I’d be satisfied with the story as it is if it ended here, since the third season wrapped up the initial plot very nicely, but I’ll also happily watch season 4 and any more that they make.

It’s rumored that there will be a timeskip before the next season, and if so then presumably the relationship between Rayla and Callum will only develop further during that time.  Although she won’t be able to actually show him around the Silvergrove until the banishment is lifted, and it will probably be a while before they can free her parents from the coins they’re probably trapped within.  I think that I speak for many in the fandom in hoping that the writers don’t split Callum and Rayla up for cheap drama, since they’ve been pretty good about not doing that kind of thing so far, and since Rayllum wasn’t even planned for part of the story initially it’s probably not going to be a major driver of the plot.  Which is actually kind of a relief, if they can just be a stable couple together while the rest of the plot is going on around them.  There’s enough drama happening in the world of TDP as a whole, they can just be the rock that keep each other stable and safe.

It’s also been really amusing seeing the fanfiction sites react to season 3.  So many slow burn stories that are now just completely AU compared to how quickly things went in the canon story.

[moonlightreal]

Fate episode 4

Welcome back to Fate Elemental Academy!  Or should I call it Fate: The Elemental Academy Saga? Fate: Tales From Elemental Academy?  I kinda wish I had an actual following now, we could push changing the name all over the fandom. Fate’s a bad Winx show but it’s not a bad show.

When we left our cast Beatrix just murderized a dude, Terra was suffering, Musa was finding love, Stella was mysterious, Bloom was destiny-ridden and Aisha was getting bored with it all!  What will happen now?

Also, is Rosalind evil?  I assumed she was the “she” who got rid of all the Burned Ones and thus was a hero, but she’s got some serious resting evil face.

Episode 4 opens with a gorgeous shadowy shot of Alfea in the twilight of day twelve-ish I assume.  In Dowling’s still badly lit office the adults are investigating Callan!  Whose real name was Callum, I think, but he’s dead and so won’t mind what I call him.  But Dowling says he hasn’t been seen “for days” so we’ll jump to it being day twentyish.  They’ve searched Callan’s room and found “metal-amalgam” which seems to be mercury, which someone would use to try to get past the trap on the door to the undercroft. Harvey charmingly starts a lecture on its properties before realizing Silva and Dowling want to get on with the infordumping.  Dowling says Callan wouldn’t have known about the mercury, it’s “archaic fairy knowledge” and he’s not a fairy.  

But couldn’t anyone study the lore even if they don’t have powers? Dane was doing potions/chemistry in the greenhouse with Terra and he’s not a fairy.  There’s usually some magic stuff that muggles can do just by having an enchanted thingamabob.  Fate, your worldbuilding leaves much to be desired.

Silva guesses Callan had help.  And Harvey’s made magical fingerprint mist!  He’s got a pitcher on a stick and smoke is coming out to track the magic used in the room!  Does that make Harvey a fairy?

The smoke outlines Callan’s vanished form, where he was sitting paralyzed before Beatrix zapped him.

Dowling: “At least we know where he went.”

Silva: “And that there’s a murderer in our school.”

The murderer herself is looking at her phone, scrolling through Bloom’s social media selfies.  Bloom’s online name is bloomerang04 which is a dumb online name.  Of course the fact that we pick our online name at age 15 or thereabouts means most of us have dumb ones.  Riven asks B what she’s obsessing over and Beatrix says, “Your fault for spreading it around that she’s a changeling. She’s now the most interesting person at school.”

WHAT is it about changelings?!

Riven says everyone will move on in a few days and asks Beatrix if this is “one of those movies where you dye your hair and take her life...” and Beatrix looks… hmm.  

Do I smell Plot or am I imagining it?  But then Riven decides to claim Beatrix’s attention in smoochy ways and I’m pretty sure they’re Doing The Sex.

Opening!

In the cafeteria, people stare at Bloom as she gets her breakfast!

Aisha has taken over Callan’s job to snoop on what he knew!  Bloom “suggested” she do it.  Or more like, begged.  And thought Aisha is such a suckup she’d do it just to get brownie points with the headmistress.

The vibe of this scene is like nails on a blackboard.  Bloom, you are awful people.  And Bloom wants to eat breakfast in here to avoid the stares because she’s a changeling.

Musa comes in cheerful, “Bloom still pretending she’s not upset by the gossip?”

Bloom: ‘still pretending you’re not dating your roommate’s brother?”

And Terra comes in right in time to almost hear that.  Bloom, you are awful people.  But Terra’s got her own gossip: Stella’s mom is coming!  Stella is “dreading being outshined by her mom” and Terra is kinda loving it.  For which I can’t entirely blame her since Stella is also awful people even if my suspicions are right and there are circumstances that made her that way.

Bloom tries to be non-awful and says the girls don’t have to come eat breakfast with her “like I’m some kind of loser-mess.  I’m fine.” Friendship music plays.  The girls smile. Then Bloom heads off to finish her “poison paper” before the assembly.  Musa says, “For the record, she’s not fine.”

In the arched walkway above the cafeteria Riven, Dane and Beatrix and talking about changelings!  B: ‘Changelings were a way for pissed-off fairies to get revenge on the first world.  Swap a fairy for a First world baby and wait for it to wreak havoc.  Changelings are bad news.  That’s why we stay on their good side.”

One of the boys had asked about “is that true about changelings?” presumable Dane, since Riven knew enough to spread the truth around. So not everybody knew all this.

FINALLY! Thank you, show.  And, this is neat!  Those would have to be some very pissed-off fairies to sacrifice their own baby, what’d the first worlders do to them I wonder!  Though it still doesn’t explain why Bloom should be “bad news” any more than any other fairy.  Does growing up in the human world make for more powerful fairies?  I mean, that IS the lore, human food, human milk, human soul… but did the writers of Fate know that?  I’m not trusting the writers of Fate to know much of anything at this point, even if they did get all those Yeats episode titles.

But we get interrupted by teen drama, Dane sees Terra down below and goes to see her.  Sigh.

But then to muddy the waters, riven says Dane “believed all that changeling bullshit you just fed him!”  but B says it “isn’t all bullshit, changelings can be dangerous.  You did everybody a favor.’ warning them about Bloom, I assume she means.

Show, I hate you now.  WHY are changelings dangerous?  What was true and what wasn’t?  Bloom’s changeling nature is the central bleeping worldbuilding of this story and we get dragged around?

Next I see black SUVs, tell me it’s Silva and his army people coming to do cool competent stuff so I can like this show again!

Nope, it’s Stella’s mom.  Stella and Sky are waiting to greet her, Sky says it’s only half a day and Stella says, “Half a day of everyone adoring her like she’s literally the sun.”  Sky says, ‘She is the queen of light.” which is an awesome title.  She’s here to do an assembly about Burned Ones… what, like those  PSA assemblies we had about the dangers of drugs?  Hahahaha!  That kind of PSA might be more apt, I’m pretty sure there’s more drugs at this school than there are Burned Ones.

But Stella is terrified, I think, behind her Stellaishness.  Says her mom is really here to “check on my progress.”  Sky suggests getting the rest of the girls to be a buffer but Stella says, ‘I don’t need them.  I have you.”  But Sky can’t stay physically, he leaves Stella to meet her mom alone

Stella is wearing a long coat of pale pink with gold and diamond star barrettes in her hair.  I would love it if at the end of Stella’s character arc when she grows past whatever it is that’s squeezing the life out of her, she’ll switch to bright bold colors and teenage rather than middle-age fashion to celebrate her freedom.  At the moment it makes sense that she dresses rather dumpy and too-mature, she’s dressing under pressure.

The black cars, they’re not all SUVs, pull up.  there’s a flag, faded blue above, red below split by a diagonal line with some kind of crest in the middle.  Solarian flag?  No yellow, no sun or moon.

Stella’s mom looks noting like Queen Luna, she looks like a middle aged lady with brown hair, her hairdo and clothing juuuuust like Stella’s! In season 8 the real Stella designed a dress after her mother’s gown out of love, but I think this Stella dresses like her mother because of pressure.  Also there’s nothing queenly about the queen. She’s wearing a business skirt and jacket, big chunky necklace, no crown.  Political royalty not magical royalty.  She gives Stella a kiss on the cheek and says, ‘You look stunning.” and Stella grins.

In the greenhouse Harvey, Terra and Sam hang out.  Where’s their mom? Harvey wears a wedding ring but no mom in sight.  Harvey is working on a special project, filling a vial with something.  Terra asks if she can help but Harvey says he’s got this.

Dane comes to see Terra.  Both her family members give Dane a serious Look.  Heh.

Terra: “Whilst I appreciate that it is the historical perspective of the patriarchy to save women from upsetting situations, I’ve got this.”

Props to Terra’s actress for delivering that in a not at all groan-y way. Every time this show tries to be woke it is groanworthy and awful and they should just not, but every time the actors pull it off.  

So Dane says “You didn’t answer my texts… you’ve been really great to me...” and Terra shuts him down!  “Yeah I have.  I’m a good person, Dane.  I think you are too, but I’m not really sure I care to find out.  Anymore.”  and leaves him with “A word of advice.  Be careful who you trust.”  

Sam: ‘Still kinda want to punch him.”  Heh.

Harvey gets a text and takes his project off to meet the queen.  When he’s gone Terra immediately goes to his workstation to check out what he’s up to.  

The queens party goes to Callan’s office, which is now Aisha’s office.  Aisha greets the queen, whose name is actually Luna!  And she knows Aisha’s name, but does not need any help.  The adults go into Dowling’s office to talk.  

Aisha accidentally knocks some papers off the desk then, grumpy at this spying job she’s taken on and isn’t having any luck with, slams a filing cabinet door.  And finds something.  A mechanical ring the size of a jewelry ring, stuck in between two parts of the filing cabinet.  Aisha thinks it’s part of the cabinet, but then it begins to whir and she hears voices.  It’s the receiver for a bug!  Callan bugged Dowling’s office and now Aisha can listen in on the adults!

Only she… hides the receiver back under the cabinet?  

The only thing she overheard was the fact that Callan is dead.  Seems that Dowling’s telling everyone he left for a family emergency. Aisha tells Bloom this and Bloom is even more keen to get at those old records, from before Dowling became headmistress.  Maybe they’re in the east wing, and everyone’s going to be at this mandatory assembly so now would be the perfect time!

Aisha says it’s a bad idea.  Bloom says it’s a better idea than getting stared at by everybody and “I can’t just sit and listen to people make stuff up about me.”  

WHAT are they making up?!  I wanna hear these rumors!

Anyway Aisha is finally convinced to cover for Bloom, say she was too sick to come to the assembly.  But for reasons of Plot Beatrix was right above them on the upper walkway so she knows where Bloom’s off to.

Gorgeous outdoor shot of the castle.  Pardon me while I look it up… it’s a stately home!  You can go there, they have a farmers market and everything!  Ok, mark that down on my travel list between my Lost Crown tour of Polperro and my Higurashi tour of the real Hinamizawa…

Whilst I dream of seagulls and cicadas, Bloom is back in the dark east wing past a keep-out looking for clues.  Sky catches her!

Beatrix is outside looking for Bloom.  Riven catches her.  She says, ‘mandatory assembly’s a mandatory ditch.”  they pass a keep-out sign on some big doors as rain begins to fall.

Mysterious big doors in the school!  Another Winx Club sort of thing here at Elemental Academy.

In the cafeteria benches have been put in for the assembly,  Lots of students chat and the adults talk together.  Outside the arched windows we see bright blue sky.  Are the windows enchanted?  That’d explain why I never know if it’s day or night around here!

Queen Luna walks in her heels on a sort of stage in front of the windows. She holds up her hand and snaps her fingers and the light in the room goes purple and the sunlight streaming in from outside dims as if dusk has fallen outside.

Stella, wearing a brighter pink coat and double star pin, sits in the very front between two of her mother’s bodyguards.  The pin could be just because of Stella’s name, but in Winx Solaria does have two suns.  I like this pin, for Escape to Witch Mountain reasons, so I looked it up.  Stella’s pin is gold but the silver version is… oh dear… three dollars on amazon!  Methinks this show spent its whole budget on the Irish castle!

Terra and Aisha admire the queen.  “Massively powerful fairy, zero ego, boss goals.  Bet it drives Stella crazy?”  Stella glances back. She can hear them.  

Musa and Sam are knee-nudging each other, it’s pretty cute.  They text with phones on laps, sam asking if Musa’s into all the sneaking around hiding their relationship from Terra.  He asks, ‘is it a kink?’ and Musa texts back, ‘Meet me after the assembly, you’ll find out.”  Tell me you two aren’t dumb enough to start Doing The Sex in the same suite Terra lives in too!  Maybe they’re just gonna hang out and make out.

Hilariously Queen Luna is saying, ‘I’m here to treat you like the adults you are” as these two plot that most teenage of plots, meeting up to have a good time!  Luna says she’s here to talk about the Burned Ones, it’s been years since one was sighted…

Terra nudges Musa.  “What’s Stella going through right now?  She’s miserable, right?”  Terra has noticed what I’ve been suspecting! Poor Musa, distracted from flirting with the cute guy, sighs a little and says a polite, ‘Please wait.’  

She turns her powers to read Stella’s emotions… but there’s interference.  Dowling is walking by and she’s using her mind powers as well!  Musa says, ‘This assembly isn’t just about the Burned Ones.  Something else is up.”  Harvey is standing in the audience and Dowling takes a position among the students also

Queen Luna is talking about, “...for decades, families and villages suddenly torn apart by one of these monsters that left our world in chaos...”

The teachers are here to scan for Callan’s killer, I assume.  Since it’s a mandatory assembly every student will be present… except for Bloom and Beatrix, who ditched!  Gee, I hope Beatrix doesn’t try to pin it on Bloom!  But how could she when Dowling can read minds?

Back with Bloom and Sky, Bloom says she was born in 2004—the year Winx Club was first broadcast, seventeen years ago!  Our beloved show, may it survive to see eighteen.  Bloom’s idea is to look for pregnant teen fairies in the class photos, and she has oddly specific details to look for: baggy clothes, girls holding books in front of bellies.

There’s some conversation about how Bloom is tired of being whispered about and wants to yell at people they’re all assholes, and Sky agrees that most people are but you have to find the good ones.

Then he finds a picture of adults.  His dad is in it, along with Rosalind, Dowling, Silva and Harvey.  Bloom says, “you look like him” although we don’t really get a good look Andreas at the photo.  Sky mimicks Silva’s accent, “And act like him, and maybe one day if I work hard enough I can be half the warrior he was.”  Heh.  Bloom also giggles at the accent.

Sky also said, ‘his commander was a woman” presumably Rosalind.  So Rosalind was a leader of soldiers.  Was she a fairy or a specialist?

Bloom asks if it’s weird that everyone knows his dad better than he did, and Sky says ‘Alfea’s been my home my entire life” so I guess he grew up here with Silva being much more father than mentor. Wonder what happened to Sky’s mom.  They’re having a nice moment and here come Riven and Beatrix to join the party!

Back in the assembly, Musa scans the adults.  Dowling and Silva are on edge, and Harvey is really scared.  Terra says her dad was making something with the crystals from the vessel, so he was putting crystals in a little vial.  A magic tracking device.  Now Dowling’s got it.

Queen Luna is saying, ‘conflict is now on the horizon!  We are tracking at least five Burned Ones throughout Solaria.  The threat is serious. And growing.”

Back in the vaults B says, “people who think history is rubbish are rubbish.  Don’t be rubbish”  Ah Beatrix, there’s the like 10% of your personality that I like!  Then she reverts to the other 90% and suggests Bloom and Sky were down here to have The Sex.  Riven says nah, Sky’s not that interesting.  Bloom, who heard all that, says ‘But we were alone and that was pleasant.”  Heh.

They find a locked door.  Sky says he can ask Silva what’s behind it but bloom wants to get through now.

Riven: ‘The more you say no the more she wants it.  Give in.”

Beatrix: “Do we need to have a talk about consent?”

The more this show throws woke verbiage into random conversations the less woke it looks. 9_9

Bloom sensibly: “Why are you guys down here, again?”

Anyway Beatrix says she’s on Bloom’s side, which I do not believe for a minute.  Bloom says no thanks, don’t need help from someone who posted a nasty video about terra, Beatrix says she was an innocent bystander which I do not believe for a minute, and says Bloom should be mad at riven for starting the Changeling rumors.  Bloom and Sky look at Riven.

Riven: “Not exactly the way I thought you’d screw me today, B.”

Sky if it’s true, Riven flees to escape a lecture from “Saint Sky” and Sky goes after him to deliver the lecture.

And he does, out in the rain.  Riven says he really likes Beatrix, that B is the only one who likes him the way he is.  That Sky thinks he’s better than riven.  And that Sky should maybe not be talking about bad life choices while he’s chasing Bloom while still having Stella.  Sky says that’s not what’s really going on and Riven says that’s what everyone else sees, including Stella.  And Riven says, ‘that’s probably why she told me Bloom was a changeling in the first place.”  And he walks off, leaving Sky in the rain with the knowledge that Stella is mean-girling Bloom.  Unsurprisingly.

Sky of Elemental Academy is having just as much trouble here as his animated counterpart keeps having with Diaspro!

Back inside the girls haven’t figured out what the adults are after. Terra finds it hard to believe they have “some big ulterior motive.” and Musa says, “people have more stuff going on than you’d think, especially parents.”  Heh.  Then she takes off for a snog session with Sam! Sam says he’s like to make their relationship public, but Musa likes the secrecy.  If everyone found out, she’d have to feel everyone’s reaction, ‘good bad, positive or negative.”  Sam says she has to feel it bu does she have to care?  And says being an empath seems to suck, which it sure does seem to!

Would “everybody” even care that they were dating?  I mean Terra would but at a school full of teenagers dating how many people would care?

I read a book… Burning Glass, about an empath so powerful that when a starving mob approached she let them in the gates because she forgot she wasn’t one of them, caught up in the mob’s need to get in to where the food was.  She didn’t just feel people’s emotions, she acted on them because she couldn’t tell which of the things she was feeling were coming in from outside.  I keep thinking the writers are trying to imagine Musa like that and failing completely.

Over in the east wing Beatrix guessed that it was Rosalind who left bloom in the human world and Bloom realized that Beatrix lied the night of the party about not knowing who Rosalind was.  B says Rosalind was “a fierce bitch.”  I’m still feeling this great big hole where someone should say “Rosalind destroyed the Burned Ones in the war with her great magic.” or something and nobody says it.  Bloom knows Rosalind was headmistress before Dowling and is dead, we viewers know Rosalind is not dead, did something important with the Burned Ones, and has an evil face.  I dunno, like the changeling thing it feels like there are these weird blanks in what the show is giving us.

Beatrix suggests Bloom light the locked door on fire as a way to get it open. She knows Bloom’s powerful enough.  Bloom says power is not the problem, lighting the whole school on fire is the problem.  Then sky texts and Bloom lies and says she’s not down here anymore which will definitely be back to bite her later.  She suggests she could “fry” the hinges off the door, but Beatrix has already picked the lock.

With a machine custom made for picking locks, not with bobby pins.

On the other side of the door they find… a war room.  A round sand pit that, when B enchants it, the sand lifts up to create a miniature of the school.  Beatrix calls it, “A place where dangerous, shady-ass people decide who lives and who dies.”

Dowling is giving Stella a magic lesson.  She creates an arc of colored light between her hands, mimicking the chains on her brooch.

Queen Luna is not impressed.  A little mini rainbow is not much of a display of power.  Luna and Dowling proceed to ignore Stella and talk over her head.  Luna sent Stella back to be “fixed”--the same word Stella used about bloom after she taught Bloom the way of the Sith—after the “incident with Ricki.”  Dowling says rehabilitating magic is a process and it takes time.  Luna: “would you like me to recite the list of threats we’re facing while you take time?”

Me! I would!  1)Burned Ones 2)???  And how much can one fairy do about them?

Stella tries to interrupt and Luna says, “Do not speak when I’m speaking.  Solaria is the strongest realm in the Otherworld, she is its heir, an extension of that strength.”  Stella protests that it’s working, she is getting stronger, and her mother just snaps at her not to speak again.

Stella says she blinded a Burned One and Dowling has her back, praising her for how skillfully she did it.

Queen Luna makes a full illusion, disappearing the room and leaving Stella in a VR forest.  With wind-howling sound effects, not sure how light did that!    Stella is terrified.

Queen Luna: ‘when you control light you control what people see.  And despite what anyone says matters in this world, appearance is everything.  You know that better than anyone, Farah.  Especially given my efforts to help you maintain them.”

Dowling just says they’ve both done a great deal to preserve Solaria’s reputation.  Hmm!  That’s interesting!  And she lets Stella go.

Outside the office, Aisha is working at her desk.  She asks Stella if she’s ok and Stella says of course she is, but Aisha’s using the listening device again!  She overhears Queen Luna basically threatening to have Dowling removed as headmistress!

Outside in the still cloudy day, Sky is taking his mood out on a punching bag.  He gets a text from Stella saying, “She’s a monster.” before Sky can go give her some much deserved sympathy Silva walks past demanding an update.  On what?

In the greenhouse Harvey is worried.  His magic bottle, which is very pretty, didn’t work.  Terra comes to ask if everything’s ok and he yells at her, then apologizes.  Terra turns to go then turns back and asks, ‘if there was something going on you would tell us wouldn’t you?”  and Harvey lies and says of course he would.

Aaaaaaaand now I’m looking up potion bottles on amazon wondering if this prop is also something I can have.  Not obviously.

Terra, Musa and Aisha are talking about it in the suite.  Aisha is sure the grownups are doing what they think is best.  Terra would rather just be told there’s a secret rather than be lied to.  But they do work it out.  The crystals read magic, there’s a dead person, the adults were looking for someone who kills by magic but didn’t find them.

Then Sky bursts in looking for Bloom.  The girls ask if Silva told him what’s up, but Sky is out of the loop.

Terra: “Dowling’s assistant died, the faculty think a fairy did it. They held the assembly to find out which fairy, but they didn’t because he or she wasn’t there, so now we don’t believe or trust literally anyone.”

Sky: “Shit.”

Sky, smart cookie that he is, realizes immediately that it’s Beatrix.

The murderess and Bloom are reading scrolls in the war room—in the DARK, everything’s shadowy how are they even reading?

In 2004 Rosalind was “leading the crusade against the Burned Ones” Beatrix says so finally there’s that laid out.

Bloom was born December 12 2004, just like the real Bloom.  Beatrix seems oddly interested in that fact.  I’m beginning to have a suspicion.

Bloom’s phone is blowing up with messages but she’s busy reading.  Beatrix stealth zaps bloom’s phone to break it so she doesn’t get Sky’s warning call.  

Rosalind was in a place called Aster Dell.  This also seems to interest Beatrix, who suggests they just go there right now.  She knows where it is, it’s not far.  Bloom has a rush of common sense to the head and hesitates to leave school with someone she barely knows but Beatrix points out that they’ve already broken into a secret war room and maybe now is not the time to stop before they get somewhere. Not completely without a point there, so Bloom agrees.

Sky finds Riven and demands the whereabouts of “The unstable sex addict who’s been leading you around by your dick.”  Pfft!  Also, not very understanding after Riven admitted he really does like Beatrix and feels accepted by her.  But Riven doesn’t know, anyway.

Stella bursts in, “I sent you twenty texts and you’re here looking for Bloom?”  And Riven gets to say, ‘Have fun with that!” as he escapes.  Sky blames Stella for starting the changeling thing, Stella says, “I didn’t want to hurt her.” which is not true.

Sky: “You say you don’t want to be like your mother but all I see is someone who treats others exactly the same way that Luna treats you.” And he says he’s done with this.

Harsh but true.

Beatrix stole a car.  Bloom is very impressed!  Heh.

The other three girls have had a rush of common sense to the head and gone to Dowling to tell her about Beatrix.  Dowling’s first response is to ask why Bloom was down there but Terra pulls out their deductions and says “can we please drop the bullshit?” and when her father tries to stop her she calls him out for putting them in danger by not telling them!  Go Terra!  Silva comes in to tell them someone knocked out one of the queen’s guards and stole an SUV.

Beatrix must be extremely badass to take out a bodyguard!  we’re only in episode 4 but I don’t think she’s planning on coming back to school after this.

Black SUV drives on a dirt road between trees.  I do love how there seem to be no other buildings and no paved roads in the Otherworld.  I guess I’ll take what worldbuilding I can get.

Bloom and Beatrix have arrived at an absolutely stunning location, a cliff over the sea.  Bloom wonders if this is the right place.  Isn’t Aster Dell supposed to be a town?  Then she realizes there are skulls at her feet among the heather.

But no time to ponder it, Beatrix is getting lightningy!  She throws lightning—shorting out an invisible barrier concealing ruins. Aster dell was a peaceful town until it was attacked by Burned Ones and “a military unit from Alfea” decided to go all scorched earth on the place and killed everybody.  Queen Luna set up the illusion to hide the ruins.  “Leader of our realm tried to cover up a war crime.’

Beatrix says this is where she was from, and where her family died.  Two days before Bloom’s birthday.  This is where Bloom is from.  Rosalind rescued Beatrix too, and gave her a memory of the Alfea adults destroying the town.  Rosalind was the only one of the adults with a conscience about killing innocent people.

Bloom protests, the adults are lying but they aren’t monsters.  I’m skeptical too, because us viewers know that Beatrix is Beatrix and has said all sorts of things. 

On the drive back Bloom asks Beatrix if she’s a changeling too, but no.  Rosalind left B with “a close friend” and Bloom in another world.  Bloom asks why Dowling would recruit her as a student after killing her family and Beatrix says she doesn’t think Dowling realizes yet what Bloom is, and Bloom shouldn’t tell her.

Bloom: “Which is exactly what you’d say if you were making this up.  To keep us from comparing notes.”  go Bloom!   Beatrix asks what she has to gain from making up a story about murderous teachers, and the two of them can work together to find out more.  Rosalind is alive and imprisoned at Alfea, and Beatrix came to break her out.

...for “him”?  Mysterious “him” not mentioned yet.  And where does the return of the Burned Ones fit in?  Hmm.  I admit my main reason for not believing Beatrix’s story is that it’s Beatrix telling it.

Also in these sorts of stories the birth parents are never dead.

But no time to ponder it, the teachers are here!  They stop the car, Dowling slaps some magical cuffs on Beatrix and Silva and Harvey grab Bloom.  They deliver her back to Alfea into a group hug from her suitemates.

The girls were worried that Bloom was off with a murderer but they heard that from the adults who Bloom just heard are liars and murderers themselves.  We know the adults are telling the truth about Callan but Bloom doesn’t.  Sky is there, also worried that she’d been kidnapped by Beatrix—but Silva calls him away.  Paranoia intensifies.

As they head for bed Terra rants about her dad lying to her and acting like it was for her own good.  Terra ends with, ‘you don’t lie to people.  Not if they matter.’

And Musa feels guilty and spills the beans about her and Sam!  It’s been weeks!  Terra bursts into giggles and hugs Musa and says Sam looks just like their dad and he went bald early.

Looking down from the walk they see the queen’s guards rolling Stella’s suitcases towards the door.  The one thing the two Stella’s have in common apparently is their love of lots of luggage!  Yep, Stella’s been moved out.

Stella is in the car.  Back home her mother will teach her.

Stella: “You could’ve let me say goodbye to my friends.”

Luna: ‘”They’re not your friends, Stella.”

Which, evil mum kinda right.  Apart from taking out a Burned One together, every interaction between Stella and the others has been nasty and catty and mostly Stella’s been avoiding them whenever possible. They aren’t friends.  They might be later, but they sure aren’t yet.

Beatrix has been thrown in a cell.

Silva locks the door—with Sky there watching, and I’m sure Silva’s trust in Sky will come back to bite him later.

Then interesting conversation.  Silva asked Sky to keep an eye on Bloom, and now he wants Sky to get all the details of what just happened out of bloom and report back.  Silva actually says the “a soldier’s job is to take orders” and “your loyalty is to me, no one else.” which, I like you Silva but that is the wrongest tack you could take right now!  Silva is very scared and it’s making him make bad choices.

Bloom has gone to Dowling’s office to ask what she did to Beatrix.  The cuffs were “runic limiters” which prevent a fairy from using magic.  Bloom says ‘They were barbaric” and “You tore her skin open.” which I guess the cuffs did kinda burrow into her skin.

Dowling is just worried if Bloom’s ok and then asks what they talked about. Bloom says it was just a joyride, she and Beatrix talked about clothes and boys.  Bloom leaves.

Dowling immediately phones up Bloom’s parents on Earth and says Bloom’s been having a bit of trouble and would they please report to her if Bloom says anything weird.

Sheesh. Could these otherwise smart, capable adults who have years of experience with teenagers be handling this any worse?

Well that was… something.  Terra is badass.  Stella’s mom is exactly like I expected her to be.  Beatrix spilled a lot of important Plot and I’m sure some of it was true and some of it wasn’t.

Next time on Elemental Academy!  Will the girls rescue Stella from evil mum?  Will Bloom bust Beatrix out of the dungeon?  Will Sky be forced to choose between his father figure and his crush?  Will Bloom’s parents accidentally betray her?  And what’s Riven gonna do now that his smoking and boinking buddy is under arrest?  Half the cast is being set up to make some really dumb life choices!  Tune in next time!

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Sinday: Bucky's Professor

Bucky takes a couple college courses and becomes obsessed with one of his professors as requested by anonymous

Hey it's me ya girl sagechanoafterdark on my main, can I get some stalker dark Bucky to sooth my soul on this fabulous sinday? Maybe a little noncon or dub on? 😘 As requested by @sagechanoafterdark

It had taken a year for Bucky to find the courage to walk into the therapist’s office. Another six months to take his advice to find a hobby. It was hard at first. Journalling didn’t work for him, drawing was never his forte, and he was tone deaf. Dr. Callum suggested he try some classes; something to keep him focused.

Days spent perusing the catalogue and he had finally chosen two classes. When he revealed his selections to the doctor, he had been wary. Maybe history wasn’t the way to go. He might not be ready for something so personal. At least, if he was going to study the past, he should opt for something he hadn’t lived through.

Bucky enrolled anyways. He wasn’t interested in ancient ruins or corrupt kings. The community college was small and both courses were taught by the same professor. Night classes he could work in between missions. He bought his textbooks and was early for his first day. And every class after that.

He met her in the hallway as he waited outside the locked classroom. He thought maybe she was another student. She remarked on his punctuality and muttered some excuse about her previous class. She let him in and crossed to the desk at the front to drop her bad on top. He was surprised.

He shouldn’t have been. He was among the oldest of her peers. As they filtered in, he sat in the front row with his open notebook and watched her. She wrestled with the projector remote and went about opening her presentation. Finally figured out, she watched as her students took their seats. 

She closed the doors and clapped her hands together. She silenced the room and smiled. Even as a few continued to titter. She gestured to the screen and welcomed the class. Bucky was eager. He hadn’t been involved in the pacific theatre of the war. This was something entirely different and yet completely familiar.

“I know you are all excited to get to the blood and grime of war but let us begin this course by setting the stage for our conflict.” Her voice was much bigger than her. He suspected the mic on her lapel helped with that. “Please open your syllabus and we will briefly go over our schedule before we jump in.” She waited as papers fluttered and folded. “So week one, that’s today, we will go over society and politics. Get an idea of how the US and Japan ended up at loggerheads. Week two, we will travel the road to war in the US, week three, we will head over to Japan, and by week four we should be at our declaration of war.”

Bucky didn’t look at his syllabus or scribble in his notebook. He watched her as she lit up. “And a short disclaimer before we get into the content. This is not a glorification of war. We are not learning about the war as scripted by Hollywood. This will be war as it is; destruction, death, tragedy. This is not war in numbers, it is war in blood. In human life. The casualties are not just statistics, they were people, on both sides. As much as this course is about the Pacific War, it is also about the greater picture of war as the calamity of human history.”

Bucky liked that. He smiled. How often he had rolled his eyes at the screen when the war was painted as some heroic crusade. At the ignorance of those around them who didn’t realize how greater powers barted the lives of the dispensable. He picked up his pen and jotted in his notebook. Her voice filled his chest with a peculiar warmth and he didn’t look down as his hand moved across the page.

His other class with her was in the same room. He took the same seat. Front row. This course was about the European front. He knew that much better. She was just as fiery. Just as confident in the knowledge locked inside her head. Just as fascinating.

He started recording her in the third week. He’d listen to her lectures as he fell asleep or when he was travelling for a mission. He managed to keep his class schedule between his work. Sometimes he showed up overtired and still bleeding beneath his jacket, but he was always present.

And he didn’t tell Dr. Callum about her. He told him about the classes but not her. He didn’t want to talk about her, he wanted to keep her to himself. She was his secret. His appointments grew fewer and further apart. He explained that he was busier; his missions kept him out of town. He could tell the doctor was disappointed but he didn’t care much. The doctor was always disappointed in him even when he did as he said.

It was just before midterms when it all combusted. He had an important mission. He’d be out of the city for a week. He e-mailed her. It took an hour to get his words right. When he hit send, his heart felt as if it would explode. She replied quickly. They could meet to re-schedule his exam if need be. 

“Before class?” He asked. She couldn’t do that. She had a class right before and was always cutting it too close. She sent her office hours. He couldn’t make those. He was busy with work. Well, she could see him in her office on Tuesday after class. That was the hour she usually used for marking. Yeah, that would work.

When she finished her lecture, she began to pack up. He remained in his seat and waited as the other students left. A few stopped to speak with her and she was just as lovely as always. He wasn’t the only one who liked her. A few of the boys who sat in the back made lewd jokes as they passed through the door, thinking themselves unheard. He was tempted to follow them but he had an important date to keep.

The classroom was empty at last and she zipped up her bag. She looked up as he tucked his notebook into his textbook and stood. She smiled. It was a habit, both genuine and nervous. He had seen her at the cafe just inside the library. She smiled when she ordered and wrung her hands. She sat and opened a book. When she looked up and accidently caught the eye of another, she smiled then too. Nerves.

He could hear her heartbeat. It stuttered when she saw him. Had she forgotten their appointment?

“Mr. Barnes,” She ventured, “Or James, can I call you that?”

“Bucky,” He corrected her. “Only my mom calls--called me James...but if you prefer it.”

“Bucky,” She repeated, “I’m sorry about the delay. We can head up to my office.” She looked over at the clock on the wall. “The cleaners will be here shortly.”

“Okay,” He stepped back to let her precede him. She smiled and passed him. He watched her hips as she walked to the door. Listened to the click of her low heels. He smiled, too.

-

You led the silent man into your office. You were surprised when he had emailed you. He wasn’t the most talkative and despite his punctuality, he had become a pillar of your class. He was almost a comfort as he took his usual seat and his blue eyes followed you around the hall. You would miss him in his absence, you were sure, but for now, you needed to figure out when he could sit his midterm.

You rounded your desk and the door closed. You looked up but didn’t think much of it as Bucky neared the chair opposite yours. You set your bag down beside your desk and sat. You gestured to the seat next to him and reach into your bag for your large leather planner. 

“You can put your things down, if you like,” You said as he balanced his books on his lap. He nodded and placed them on his side of the desk. “Now, I’ve gotten approval from the faculty dean for the re-sit but I just need to submit the date.”

“I’m sorry again,” He said. “I just...have to be out of town.”

“I understand, these things happen,” You opened your planner. “And given your...work, it must be difficult enough as it is.”

He shrugged.

“Would you like to sit it before or after that week?”

“Either,” He replied. “After would probably be easier given the time restraints.”

“Of course,” You scanned the lines and flipped the page. “I think I can do...the Monday before the class after? Does that work?”

“Sure,”You smiled and grabbed a pen. “Thank you.”

“Not at all,” You finished writing and sat back, “You know, it’s not everyday I teach a veteran about a war he fought in. It’s a bit...awkward.”

He chuckled. “I never thought of that.” He said. “I guess it would be.”

You nodded and tapped the pen. “Can I...ask you something?”

“Sure,” His metal fingers bent slightly along his thigh.

“Why exactly...are you taking these classes? Pure curiosity. Sorry, it’s just...you were there.”

“I was.” He accepted and stretched out his metal fingers. “But it was a long time ago. I wasn’t there for all of it.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” You broke the silence that began to rise. You placed your pen in the middle of the planner and closed it. “Well, I won’t keep you any longer unless you have any other concerns or questions.”

He lowered his head and thought. He sighed. “No, I think that’s...everything.” 

He stood and you did too. You rounded just to the side of the desk and he reached for his books. He didn’t quite grasp them and they slipped to the floor. You flinched and bent to grab them as they splayed across the carpet. He did the same. He grabbed the heavy textbook as your fingers wrapped around the open notebook. Your eyes flitted across his narrow writing and you froze.

'07:02 arrives on campus. Grabs coffee and muffin at The Chestnut. Today’s flavour is carrot and pineapple. Sits by window. Leaves 07:23. 

Walks to office in history wing. Arrives 07:38.

In office until 08:14. Proceeds to classroom for class at 08:30. Dismisses early at 10:17

Next class 1200. English wing. Dismisses 13:51. 

Returns to office. Leaves at 16:22. 

Stops at grocer. Drives home.'

You dropped the book and backed away. That was your schedule from last Wednesday. He had followed you. How long had he been following you? 

"Bucky," you said shakily, "I think you should go."

He picked up the notebook and sighed as he closed it. He set it down on his textbook atop the desk. "It's not--” He paused. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Why?" You retreated around the desk and he followed. "Please, just go."

"My therapist said I should take classes. Find a hobby. Something to keep me busy." He closed in and you tripped on your chair. He caught you before you could fall. "You've kept me busy. Kept me from feeling lonely. Every Tuesday and Thursday."

"Let me go," You rasped. "Please."

"I know you're lonely too." He pulled you close. His metal fingers squeezed your arm as his other hand went to your waist. "I've seen you at night."

"Please," Your voice was barely a whisper.

"Please, don't be scared." He leaned in and his lips brushed your forehead as he nuzzled your hair. "I only want to keep you safe." His arms snaked around you. "Because you're mine."

[chilling-seavey]

Anything But Mine (d.s.) - Chapter Thirty

A/N wow this picture makes me feel things 🤤

Sunday, August 16th, 2020

Daniel went almost completely MIA after the brief encounter at the mall. Florence had barely heard from him for the entire week after and it was really taking a toll on her already tired and stressed mind. She tried to let it go, telling herself to move on from a friendship that was never going back to what it once was, but she was hung up on it - hung up on him - and she felt like the hurt would never go away.

Callum was still there to support her, making his own sacrifices for his little family, and he did it all without hesitation. It was clear to anyone that he absolutely adored his nieces and his twin sister. Florence was glad he was around but his obvious avoidance of returning to LA was concerning to her. He even bought himself a car about a week after he arrived. Whatever secret Callum was keeping from her made her anxious; they always told each other everything.

Clementine was not acting herself. The usually sweet toddler was throwing fits more often and it made the entire situation worse. Florence knew it was hard on her to have to adjust to sharing attention with her new sister but it seemed like everything she tried to do was wrong.

After a night filled with two girls under two screaming long into the night, Florence finally fell asleep in Clementine’s bed, curled up with the toddler, the only way Clementine would quiet down. The solid six hours of uninterrupted sleep was almost blissful to the young mother and she felt more than rested when Callum woke her up, his phone held out to her.

She frowned tiredly but took it, her other arm cradling her eldest who slept on.

Her rough “Hello?” made her grimace at herself. Callum chuckling at his sister as he left the room again.

“Hey.” Aidan spoke from the other end of the line. “You sound rough.”

“Yeah.” Florence chuckled, “But I slept. What’s up?”

“Callum was telling me what’s been going on and I was saying I can take the baby today if you two want to go out for a day with Clementine.”

“You were talking to Callum?” Florence raised an eyebrow, suddenly more awake.

“Don’t act so surprised.” Aidan scoffed. “Now, I’m being nice. Take me up on my offer.”

“Of course that sounds nice, Ai. Are you sure you can handle her though?” Florence asked slowly.

“We have a whole setup here. We’ll be fine.”

“Thank you. Clem will love that.”

“You all need a break.”

“Yeah.” Florence smiled softly, moving her free arm to brush Clementine’s light whispy hair from her sleeping face. “I’ll be over in an hour or so.”

“Sounds good.” Aidan agreed.

When they hung up, Florence awkwardly crawled off the end of the toddler bed, making sure not to wake the sleeping child, and she tiptoed out into the kitchen. Callum had Penelope laid out on the living room rug, way too many toys around them.

“Since when have you and Aidan been talking again?” Florence questioned, crossing her arms teasingly towards her brother.

“For a little bit.” Callum shrugged, keeping his embarrassed gaze on the baby.

“He’s going to take Penelope for the day so we can spend some time with Clementine.”

“I know.” Callum nodded, scooping up the newborn before getting to his feet. “It’s really nice of him. I know Clem needs it.”

“You finally going to tell me today what’s been going on with you?” Florence asked.

“Like what?” Callum chuckled.

“Your mysterious meetings? Staying here for over two weeks? Suddenly being emotionally stable enough to look at Aidan yet alone talk to him?”

Callum simply shrugged, picking up the baby and taking her to get dressed for the day without another word.

Left in a state of confusion, Florence turned to the kitchen to start making breakfast. Clementine came shuffling down the hallway, her blanket crumpled in her arms and her hair a mess on top of her head.

“Good morning, sweetheart.” Florence smiled, reaching down to pet back her daughter’s hair. Clementine held her arms up and Florence gladly picked her up, the toddler curling into her shoulder. “I have a surprise for you today.” Florence told her as she one-handedly popped the toast out of the toaster and started to spread strawberry jam over it.

Clementine, still half asleep didn’t acknowledge her statement, focussing her attention on the red substance that was being spread over the toast, her arms clinging around her mother’s neck.

“Good morning, you.” Callum approached them, tickling Clementine’s side, making her giggle shyly. Penelope was laying in his other arm, dressed in a pink undershirt and little grey striped pants, her legs stretching mindlessly.

“Clem, Uncle Cal and I are going to take you out today. Just the three of us. No baby.” Florence said. “Does that sound fun?”

Clementine lifted her head and broke into a big smile, “Yea!”

“We’re going to eat breakfast and then drop Penny with Aidan and maybe we’ll go to the aquarium. Okay?”

With a squeal from the nineteen-month-old, their morning was set into gear.

~~

Aidan and Jonah came to pick up Penelope in the car to make it easier for the twins’ route south farther into the downtown core. With one child out of the way, they were safe to make their quick drive west and once they parked, made their way by foot to their destination. Clementine was strapped into the stroller with yellow framed sunglasses on and her hair pulled back in pigtails. In her yellow dress with floral undershirt, she peered at everything they passed with wide eyes and excitement, acting like the ultimate city-girl even at such a young age.

After paying for their tickets, the little family of three headed into the exhibits, the pale blue light of the aquarium filling the dim hallways and surrounding them with water. Since it was a Sunday, the place was quite crowded, lots of loud children running around, but Clementine kept her quiet composure, eyes glued to the glass walls. She cheerily pointed to a striped fish that was floating next to her, little bubbles floating from its mouth.

Florence crouched down next to the stroller, talking to her toddler and pointing to the sea turtle floating farther away. Callum watched with fondness, his heart beating heavy in his chest at simply being there. The last time he had walked these halls was with Aidan back in high school; the day that arguably changed the course of their relationship. Now, two and a half years later, he was sharing the same magical experience of the water’s gentle flickering light with his niece. He adored her and there was no doubt about that.

Clementine seemed particularly fascinated by the jellyfish. Sitting in Callum’s arms, she had her tiny hands pressed to the glass, following their slow paths with wide eyes. The neon lights that were filtered through the dark room made the jellyfish glow pink against deep blue.

“Fishy.” Clementine whispered with awe, watching the jellyfishes’ tentacles wave dream-like through the water.  

“They’re jellyfish.” Callum told her. “Aren’t they pretty?”

“Jellies!” Clementine giggled, leaning forward to press her face against the glass.

“Don’t do that, silly.” Florence tisked, gently pulling her back.

“You should get one as a pet.” Callum suggested.

“Oh, yeah, totally.” Florence rolled her eyes playfully, pushing the empty stroller farther down the exhibit. Callum followed, Clementine having one arm around his shoulders.

Florence could sense the slight tension in the air the whole time they were at the aquarium. Even at the end when Clementine was left to play in the little toddler soft play area, Callum simply sat quietly with his sister, not speaking much. It was odd, Callum usually never shut up when the twins were together. Florence eyed him, wondering what was going on in his mind.

“You can stop staring.” Callum chuckled, turning to look at her.

“Sorry.” Florence mumbled. “Just wondering what’s up with you.”

“It’s just…memories.” Callum shrugged. 

“Memories of what?”

“Aidan and I skipped class and came here together one day. Like…our first outing together.”

“Oh.” Florence nodded once.

“It’s okay though. It was a good day.” Callum said, looking back to Clementine who was climbing over small foam fish with other toddlers. “Clem seemed to enjoy herself. That’s what matters.”

“What’s up with you, Cal?” Florence frowned, setting a hand on his arm. “You don’t seem yourself.”

“Just caught up in my mind.” He smiled softly at her, leaning his head against hers. “I’m happy to be back with you.”

“Me too.” Florence agreed.

After an hour in soft play, the three of them headed for a restaurant down the street for dinner, a newly purchased white and blue plush jellyfish held tightly in Clementine’s arms. It was a little present from her uncle, and he bought it for her with pride, smiling at simply the sight of how she clung onto it even at the dinner table. It wasn’t until their entrees had arrived that Callum decided to finally confide in his sister with what had been going on in his life the previous few months.

He started with a blunt, “Ivan and I broke up.”

The sudden break of silence with such a startling sentence took Florence back for a second but she recovered with a stuttering, “What? When?”

“Like…a month ago.” Callum shrugged, pushing his vegetables around his plate with his fork.

“I’m sorry. What happened?” Florence frowned.

“It just wasn’t working out. It was hard with mother and father being around all the time and they always were on my back about everything and it was getting between us.” Callum tried to discreetly wipe his eye but Florence could easily catch the tears forming.

“That’s why you’re avoiding going back to LA.” Florence sighed with sad realization for her brother.

“Sort of. But I’ve also decided I’m moving back to Toronto so…”

“Wait, what?” Florence gaped. “Sorry, you’re throwing so much at me right now, I just - you’re moving back?”

“I’m transferring to UofT.” Callum nodded. “Biology was two years at UCLA and they helped me work towards switching into Toronto’s animal psychology program for this coming year. No other program in California really interested me and I really wanted to work towards my veterinary degree. Plus, I like it better here with you so it’s a win-win.”

“And mother and father? What do they think?”

“They’re surprisingly supportive. They’re still holding up my credit card and everything which is nice. I guess when I’m ‘not gay’ they love me.”

Callum’s humourless chuckled made Florence frown.

“In all honesty, I’m okay.” Callum assured her after noting her worried stare. “I got my new car as you know, I’m working on getting an apartment, and my first semester is already set up.”

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier? I could have helped you.” Florence asked quietly.

“I know how your brain works, sis. You’d worry all the time. I wanted to make sure things were settled before I told you.”

Florence playfully smacked his arm from across the table.

“Last year was so hard on you and it made it worse that we were so far apart. Being back with you will be a good thing, I’m sure of it.”

“But what about Ivan?” Florence sighed.

“What about him?”

“This whole thing with Penelope…what if it turns out Emilio is the father. It’ll be…awkward then between everyone.”

Callum forced himself to silence, merely shrugging and directing his gaze to his plate before saying a quick, “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“You always end up heartbroken, Cal. I hate to see it.” Florence frowned, setting her hand on his on the table top.

“I feel the same towards you.” Callum glanced up at her again. “We are twins after all.”

“A pathetic pair.” Florence chuckled to her brother before turning her attention to Clementine who was working away at her chicken fingers, ketchup from her French fries all over her face. Florence took a napkin to her toddler’s mess, praising her quietly for being on such good behaviour.

Callum cleared his throat from across the table, taking a nervous bite of his meal that had been going cold in front of him.

“What is it?” Florence inquired.

Callum simply looked at her before turning back to his plate.

“Tell me.” Florence encouraged.

“Aidan and I have been talking again.” Callum mumbled. 

“Well, yeah, Cal, I know. I’m not dense. You were on the phone with him this morning.”

“We went out the other night to catch up on things.”

“How was that?”

“Nice.” Callum blushed, feeling like he was back in high school again. “I really missed him.”

“Things ended really abruptly with you two. I’m glad you found each other again, though.” Florence smiled warmly at her brother. He couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief wash over him. He knew his sister would be supportive no matter what path he chose in life but there was something so comforting about her reassurance.

Their day concluded with a walk along the boardwalk, Clementine gladly sat in Callum’s arms, her jellyfish squished between them. The sun had started to set below the trees of the Toronto Island and the lake was turning smooth as boats were returning to the docks for the night. She was fading fast as it was approaching 9pm, past her bedtime as the adults had been caught up talking, and it wasn’t long before she was completely out. Her arms were draped tiredly around Callum’s neck, her cheek squished against his shoulder, and her whispy blonde hair falling over her face. She was carefully buckled into her car seat and Callum drove them off towards the boys’ house. They soon parked out front of the old Victorian, the porch light casting a warm orange glow over the dark street.

“I’ll go get her.” Florence whispered to her brother, before stepping out of the passenger side of Callum’s black Audi. She walked up the dimly lit steps of the all too familiar Victorian and let herself in. 

The interior was near dark, the only source of light coming from a table lamp in the living room at the back of the house, soft music could be heard, and she followed the sound and the silhouette of Daniel and his guitar sitting facing away from her in the arm chair. As she got closer, the light showed Penelope laying on the couch, carefully placed between two small pillows that were almost bigger than her. The two-week-old baby was asleep, her chest rising and falling under her white and blue sleeper gown. Daniel was sitting about five feet away from her in the armchair, facing her, his guitar on his lap as he played a song and sung quietly. His gentle voice sent the warmest comfort through the room and Florence could feel it in her heart.

“Knew I was falling when I looked inside your eyes. / She said, ‘I know you are but what am I?’ / Tell me, have you seen the sunset turn into a sunrise, kiss right through the night? / Cuz we should try that sometime, hold you 'til the morning, / and if I said I'm falling, would you just reply: ‘I know you are, but what am I?’”

He ended the song with a final quiet strum of the guitar, letting his hand fall. It had been a while since Florence had heard him sing. She almost forgot how incredible it was to listen to him. Silence took over the house, Daniel keeping his eyes focussed on the newborn.

Florence finally broke the silence with a quiet, “Well it’s nice to see you’re not ignoring her.”

Daniel turned his head quickly to where Florence stood a few feet away, arms crossed in peaceful amusement. He looked back to the sleeping baby in front of him, simply letting out a quiet hum in response.

Florence walked over slowly, “I thought Aidan was watching her.”

“She was crying and he couldn’t quiet her, so I gave it a try.” Daniel mumbled, keeping his gaze downwards.

“Well your singing always worked with Clementine.” Florence smiled softly.

Silence fell between them.

“Was that a new song?” Florence asked softly.

“Yeah. Just something I scribbled down. It’s nothing.” Daniel whispered, ruffling a hand through his hair.

“It sounded really nice, Dani.” Florence set a gentle hand on his shoulder. Daniel cleared his throat quietly as he stood up, forcing her to take a step back.

“I should get to bed.” Daniel said. “I had to get up for this so...”

The slight edge to his voice made Florence’s eyebrows furrow momentarily, searching his expressionless face for any reason as to why he was being so weird and distant. Daniel licked his lips nervously, staring at the ground, holding the neck of his guitar in a tight fist. Florence hesitated a moment before she went past him and picked up the sleeping baby, setting her carefully in her arms before turning back around. She found herself alone in the darkened main floor, just catching the sight of Daniel’s feet disappearing at the top of the stairs, her heart heavy in her chest. She only wished she knew what she did wrong.

[chloe-clegane]

My Devotion and Mah Protection, Our Love - Chapter 2

Summary: Rayla and Callum arrive in Katolis and bring good news with them!

AO3

Prev Chapter 

THE KING COMMANDS A FAMILY HUG

Rayla and Callum were already planning to leave for Katolis in a week to make it back in time for Ezran’s birthday. They decided to keep the engagement to themselves so that their families would hear it first. Rayla sent a letter to Ethari the same day they set out. She figured it’ll arrive before they make it to the human kingdoms but that shouldn’t matter too much.

The trip back was exceptionally enjoyable, it was just the two of them riding through Xadia, it reminded him or the first time. The March days were growing warmer and they spent them enjoying the sun and making pit stops to goof off. But the nights were still cold, and body heat was clearly the most efficient way to keep the chill out of their tent. With no one around to stop them, their passions raged freely. Each night after making love they would lay naked in each other’s arms and talk about the future. Everything from the ideas for the wedding, what they want to do after all the battles and conflicts were over. Rayla wasn’t sure if she wanted to commit her life to the Dragon Guard and live the same life as her parents. Callum wanted children and Rayla wasn’t opposed, neither felt even remotely close to ready and that was ok.

Callum relished every moment with Rayla on their trip, her jokes, and her laughter, the way she would turn round to look at him over her shoulder and smile. The feel of her skin under his fingers and the sound of her gasping his name… and the way her horns fit perfectly in his hands while her mouth set every nerve in his body on fire.

For years now they’ve been traveling facing threats of war and attack, Aaravos and his minions are out there now and the world is holding its breath to see what happens next. There have been reports of mages going missing across Xadia but no encounters since their close call a few months ago. But somehow despite it all, this trip gave him a beautiful feeling of freedom. That the two of them could live in this bubble forever. Callum knew his head was in the clouds but luckily Rayla balanced him out as the pragmatist. So every night he casts an illusion and during the day he would mask their tracks with different spells. They were careful but still carefree.

Kissing at sunset and pulling pranks on each other with fart flowers, they were two dorks in love.

Callum hadn’t thought ahead to the fact that their Shadowpaw mounts would draw attention as they rode into his home. When they arrived through the main gates of the city and traveled through town It was a mixed reception. Anytime elves came through human cities or vice versa it brought raised eyebrows and disapproving glances. It was at least an improvement from open hostility. As they rode, they turned heads. Some were surprised and in awe of the foreign creatures, some were happy to see their prince return and others were distrustful and judgmental. He didn’t care for the sneers and aggressive looks that were directed at Rayla. They made him angry but also defiant.

Rayla’s body language was tense, her spine was straight and stiff and her hands clenched the reins so her knuckles were starting to turn white. He rode a little closer and reached for her hand. She flinched and hesitated to take it.

Callum leaned in to speak to her “Rayla, it’s ok. Take my hand, I want people to see us, I’ll not going to be ashamed.” Rayla smiled nervously. “I love you.”

“I love you too Callum.” She still signed.

“It may not feel like it but you are welcome here.” He kissed her hand.

She looked up at the castle’s tall towers sadly “It… I guess… Coming here always brings up the guilt.”

“I know. But the past is the past.”

“And the future is what we make it.” Rayla finished the mantra statement with attempted confidence.

“See! You got this Rayla, we got this” Callum would always be her cheerleader. He knew being here was a source of remorse, the first time she came to this castle was on a mission to kill. She remembers a version of herself who was reckless, angry and didn’t value her own life. The woman she’d become didn’t deserve to feel this way, Callum was certain of that. She squeezed his hand and released it with a smile. She kept her chin up the rest of the ride. He knew she was trying to fake it’til you make it .

When they reached the main courtyard they were greeted by a few guards and a very confused stable boy. He took the reigns of the shadowpaws cautiously, holding them a little away from himself. Callum noticed his unease, “Don’t worry they’re friendly, see.” He gave them scritches behind their ears and they nuzzled him in return. The stable boy still looked apprehensive.

“Wha-What do I feed them?” He asked timidly.

“Oh, yeah. Give them oats and birdseed, there some be some in the saddlebags. Fish is great too. They do not like hay. This one is Bubby and that one’s ChiChi.”

Bubby nuzzled the stable boy and he jumped. When it was clear the creature wouldn’t eat him he quickly warmed up to them.

“I’ll take good care of them your highness” He gave a small bow to both him and Rayla and left after Callum thanked him.

Rayla smiled at Callum. “Maybe yer right, looks like things from Xadian aren’t so scary once you get’tae know them” He squeezed her hand.

“Exactly, humans and elves are warming up to each other. I think in time, it’s only going to get better. Both sides just need to realize, they aren’t so different” She kissed him and gave him the I’m proud of my big’ol goofy human smile.  

“And you think we’re going to show people?” she said with teasing skepticism.

“I do!” He pulled her close by the waist and kissed her on her beautiful perfect lips. “We’ve already started to change the world, I think we can keep it up. Now come on, let’s go find my brother”.

Ezran was in the middle of holding court when they arrived. The guard insisted they be formally announced as they entered. “Your Majesty, his Highness Prince Callum has arrived, accompanied by Rayla of Silvergrove.”

“CALLUM! RAYLA!” Ezran jumped from the throne and ran past the startled crow lord. He nearly knocked the couple over with the force of his hug. “I’m so glad you’re here! This is already an amazing birthday, I missed you both so much!”

Rayla chuckled “We’ve missed you too Ez!”

Callum put his hands on his hips “Uhhhh, How was I going to miss your birthday? My little brother is a teenager! How wacky is that?” Callum gave him another hug. Ezran had grown a few more inches since ley last saw him. Long past were the days of Callum crouching to embrace him. Callum had a feeling he was going to be tall like their dad.

Janai had been sitting in a seat of honor beside the dais of Ezran’s throne. As visiting royalty she was allowed to formally sit in on his courts. Her and Aunt Amaya joined to give the travelers a hug. Opeli also chimed in with how good it is to see both of them.

“Opeli, Crow Lord, I think we can be done for the day.” His little brother gave the orders in a very kingly voice but immediately switched back to his regular goofy self.  

“As you wish my king.” The Crow Lord bowed and left with his cart, Opeli began rolling up a few scrolls and placing them in a box.

Ezran was beaming and rambled on with questions “Rayla how’s your shoulder? Did you have a nice ride here? Did you get me a cool birthday present? What’s the earth nexus like? How’s the earth primal magic? Callum are you good at it?”

Rayla laughed “Ez slow down, I’m doin’ fine, the trip was...” she smirked a little “pleasurable. Even under torture, I wouldn’t tell you a thing about any present.”

Callum tried to take over “It’s really green and muddy. I’m do-”

Rayla cut him off “He’s havin’ a bit’o trouble and falls on his arse quite a bit”

His brother found that hysterical and he felt the need to defend himself “Hey! I’m getting better especially since we-”

“Had a very nice swim” Rayla caught him from slipping the secret. As with a lot of his magic, love seemed to strengthen him. He wasn’t sure why but after they got engaged some of the spells started to feel a bit easier.

Ez looked confused “Why did swimming help you with earth magic? Also, Rayla you hate water.” Amaya seconded that question. They both wore confused smiles.

Callum noticed Rayla was trying not to blush, which made him happy. “We… well… it was such good quality time. Right Rayla?”

“ Yeah ” She grinned still trying to be nonchalant “it was just the perfect evenin’.” Earlier they talked about telling everyone at dinner. But the way Rayla smiled at him made him giddy.

“Love goes a long way.” He sighed when he looked at her, like the lovesick fool he is.

“Uuuhh, guys? You’re doing that weird thing where you look at each other and talk without talking.” Ezran had raised an eyebrow suspiciously at the two of them “What’s up?”

Exactly as Ezran described, they asked one other for permission, both bubbling with delight they nodded. “WE’RE GETTING MARRIED!” They shouted it in unison.

Ezran’s jaw hit the floor. “ WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!?”

Amaya and Opeli shared a look of shock and concern.

“We love each other” Callum started before trading off finishing each other’s sentences.

“and we know we never want tae be apart”

“so logically. It’s time that we”

“get married!” They both finished with bursting enthusiasm. Callum wrapped his arm around her and she pulled herself closer. “We couldn’t be happier if we tried!” he tilted his head to rest on hers.

Callum was surprised and proud at just how well synchronized that was. It just confirms his convictions about how perfect they are together.  

Amaya was uneasy but Opeli spoke first. “You’re both very young are you sure about this?”

The couple had expected this question “Hey I’ve studied Katolian history, plenty of royalty has married younger than us. I’ll be 18, and Rayla 19 in just a few months”

“Prince Callum keep in mind those were political marriages, maybe you should-”

“Well, this is too, right? In a way”.

“We love each other” Rayla insisted. “There’s no questionin’ it. We want our relationship tae be seen for what it is. Lovin and true, taken seriously No more slinkin’ about”

Callum’s mind went to what they do when they’re slinking. “You wouldn’t have to worry about a licentious prince getting caught if it’s with his wife.” Callum snickered for a moment before realizing what he had just said. Licentious Prince was a name Rayla teased him with privately. His aunt glared at him with narrowed eyes. He frantically tried to back peddle. “Uh-I mean-it-I-if I was hehe, you know hypothetically” Rayla’s red face was in her hands. “I would never-Uh-but Rayla is so beautiful and uh-um-so as my wife… we would-”

Rayla shoved her hand over his mouth and groaned “You all know Callum and I aren’t stayin’ apart, so tae speak. It’s silly for us tae pretend we aren’t.” He was eternally grateful she was willing to clear up his messes. He could only imagine how often she’ll be forced to do it the rest of their lives. She’s his angel.

Opeli spoke up once more. “Just to be clear, and know I ask this as gently as possible. Is there anything we should know, any reason we should expedite things?”

”Like what?” Callum had no idea what she meant and Rayla looked confused.

“Anything that could cause scandal? At this point Callum it’s better if you just tell us now.”

“Tell you what?” He cocked his head to the side.

She looked exasperated and turned to Rayla “are you in a delicate condition?”

Rayla made a face and looked offended “When have I ever been delicate? Have you met me?”

His aunt rolled her eyes and signed, “Are you pregnant?”

Rayla didn’t need that translated. Both he and Rayla immediately went into separate rambling versions of “No”

Ezran just stood to the side cringing at the scene in front of him. “Uhhhhhhh anyways….”

Callum and Rayla both tried to regain their composure and Opeli breathed an audible sigh of relief.

Aunt Amaya’s face softened, she approached him and placed her hand on his shoulder to get his undivided attention before she began signing. “You two are young and... passionate” She cringed slightly, “I know you’re in love and that’s very real, I respect that. But I worry-”

“Aunt Amaya, this isn’t just about, wanting to do that...” He side glanced at his brother. “Sandwich husband and wife thing.”

“Caaaallllum!” Ezran groaned “we’ve discussed sandwiches, I know what you’re talking about.” Now his brother was the one to roll his eyes. “I’m a teenager in 5 days. You just talked about making babies, I’m not an idiot” Callum winced, and looked to Rayla for help. She had her face in her palm and was muttering obscenities under her breath. Their excited, joyful announcement has devolved into a wretched mess.

Their Aunt put her hand up to silence everyone and began to sign. “Callum, please I want to say something important”. He sighed and gave his aunt his attention. “When we lost your mother, I made a promise to myself. You and your brother were her world, she loved you both so much. To honor my big sister I swore I would always protect you, not just your safety but your happiness too. I know that’s what she would have wanted.” Callum hadn’t expected this kind of heartfelt speech. He felt his eyes start to tear up. “So I have to ask you, Callum, is this what you want? I’ve never been married myself, I can’t give advice” She gave a quick side glance to Janai. “But I do know it’s a serious commitment. Vows should never be taken lightly and forever is a very long time. Are you certain that you both love each other, truly? And will this bring you happiness? Not just for today but for your whole life?”

Callum quickly dabbed a tear before it could roll down his cheek, he looked to Rayla and smiled, she smiled back at him and her eyes offered all their support. He mustered his conviction and looked his aunt straight in the eyes “Yes, Rayla is the person I love. In my entire life, I’ve never met someone so kind, smart and brave. She makes me laugh and smile constantly. She makes me better, braver. We were brought together, maybe by destiny or fate or something to save Zym and end the war. We’re meant for each other. I want a future with her more than I’ve wanted anything. I would give up being a mage to be with her. I know we’re young but it doesn’t matter. I know Rayla is the person I want, forever.” He signed some of the words to emphasize them to her. When he finished his declaration he looked to Rayla and saw that her eyes were glassy but still bright and she was smiling only at him.

His aunt smiled, she walked forward and took Rayla’s hand and then Callum’s before bringing them together. Then she stepped back and signed “Then I give my blessing and I truly believe your mom would too.”

Callum squeezed her hand and she leaned forward to give him a small soft kiss.

Rayla turned to the general and signed a little awkwardly “Thank you”. It was one of the basic signs he had taught her.

Ezran spoke up, “You don’t even need to ask me for my blessing! This means Rayla will officially be my sister now and I’m all for that. She’s a part of our family!”  

Rayla chuckled and destroyed any evidence of her tears. “I feel the same way about you Ez.”

“Good, because THE KING COMMANDS A FAMILY HUG!” every guard in the room felt the need to repeat him.

Amaya didn’t hesitate to scoop up Callum, Rayla and Ezran, lifting them off the ground and crushing them, making git hard for them to laugh.

Opeli cleared her throat with a smile. “Your Majesty, if this is decided then I think we should discuss details. As your brother stated there are very good political reasons for this marriage, it unites both sides of a divide a millennium long. We have precedents for royal weddings, protocols for inviting dignitaries, there should always be a two week period to celebrate the announcement. I assume with ambassadors and nobility from Xadia we should anticipate at least 500 to 600 guests”.

Rayla started gaping like a fish and looked at Callum with wide eyes for help. Opeli continued “And then we have to discuss feas-”

“Whoah Whoah!” Callum put his arms up in defense “Rayla and I already talked about it and we don’t want a big spectacle”.

Rayla stepped forward and looked back and forth between Opeli and him. “We decided we want it tae be smaller, with only the people that count”

Opeli tried to interject but Callum continued their speel before she could. “and don’t worry, that includes some royalty and dignitaries so it’s still political or whatever.”

“Right!” Rayla agreed. “It’s our day, it’s about our love and our family so that’s what we want it tae be. You’re right, this is the first weddin’ between a Human and an Elf in basically forever, and we know how important that is but we don want tae be paraded and put on show”

“But-” Opeli started

“Ok” Ezran said plainly “You guys shouldn't have to be on public display for something like this” Opeli deflated.  

The couple both smile thankfully and gave Ezran a nod.

“We want a traditional Moonshadow Elf ceremony, wiiiith some human touches,” Talking through the plan like this was making him excited.

“And” Rayla added, “we think it should be at the Moon Nexus, that way it’s ah place sacred tae mah people but still on Katolis soil”

“It’s a win-win!” Callum wrapped his arm around her and they both raised their arms in a ta-dah style. They had rehearsed their pitch and it went rather well.

Opeli looked impressed, “as long as the major royalty is invited then I suppose it is a good compromise. We still need to publicly announce it here at the castle”

“Muh only request is that I hear back from Ethari first, I sent him a letter before we left. I just need tae know he’s heard it from me, not by random word of mouth.” Rayla looked a little insecure. “I’m surprised I haven’t heard from him yet… “

Callum squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. “We will”  

The throne room doors burst open and they all turned to see Soren enter a little winded. “HEY GUYS! Rayla, Callum, I missed you two! I heard you got here so I ran the whole way, it was good cardio. Anyways sorry I’m late, I was for sure totally not doing anything related to surprises or birthdays. Yup! Just the regular kind of not doing anything suspicious to make me late.” He coughed awkwardly. “Did I miss anything?”

Ezran jumped and threw up his arms. “CALLUM AND RAYLA ARE GETTING MARRIED!”

“WHAAAAAAAT!? You guys!!! Best missed conversation ever!” Soren’s excitement was genuine and Callum truly appreciated it. It sometimes baffled him that his once tormenter had become such a steadfast friend.

There was a discussion about announcements and a procession. Once Opeli was satisfied with the plan and had the need information to begin preparing Callum and Rayla were excused to go bathe and settle in before dinner. But before they left the throne room his aunt got his attention. “By the way, the licentious prince thing? You come by it naturally, your mom was a fucking horndog.”

Callum didn’t need to know that. “Please don’t”

“I’m telling you this because I’m a fun aunt, you always want to know what she was like” She was not being fun, she was messing with him. Callum’s face went beet red as he translated for Rayla who immediately broke into cackling laughter. She continued “I remember this one time-”

“NO!” Callum covered his eyes. “NO DETAILS. YOU’RE EVIL!”

Rayla was cackling “PLEASE, I wanna hear a good story, Callum don’ be rude” When he peeked through his fingers Amaya was hugging Rayla. “I’m going to my room!”. She was right, he always loved to hear stories about his mom but this was just… no.

He was glad to get ahead of her. If he cleans up quickly he’ll be able to sneak away for an errand.

[sunsetsover]

ideas on ballum’s first date? and does ben enjoy running his fingers through Callum’s hair just as much as callum does? p.s hope your holidays improve 💕

thank you, they weren’t so bad but i’m very glad to be home lmao 💞

ok so i went a little bit overboard w this but this is me we’re talking about, it’s to be expected lmao but i did them in bullet points for clarity !!

so ideas for the first date:

it’s awkward as hell at first lmao

ben is still in a lot of pain from his injury because he isn’t fully healed, and also he’s lowkey a nervous wreck bc he realizes this a big deal for callum!!! but also it’s a big deal for him too!!! he likes callum!! he doesn’t want to fuck it up!! for callum’s sake, and the sake of their Thing that they have going already

and callum is highkey a nervous wreck for a multitude of reasons…. mostly it’s the gay thing bc it’s all so fresh and new and he still can’t walk around the square without feeling like ppl are staring at him…. and he realizes a lot of it is paranoia but also like….. he’s just split up w whitney, and everyone around walford knows them and knows him and what’s happened and like there’s just no anonymity….. he kind of wishes they could get on a train and go somewhere else, somewhere where they can slip into the crowd where no one knows them so callum maybe won’t feel like everyone is watching them and judging him but ben can’t risk going too far away from home yet….. which is fine it really is he’d rather be safe than sorry and it’s Just A Pint anyway not a big deal……. it’s just that callum kind of wants to crawl out of his skin a little bit….. no biggie……….

(but callum still goes on the date, because of course he does. he wants to go out for a drink with ben. he does. that’s not the problem. the problem is everything else.)

so yh they go to e20 (it’s not ideal but the alternate choices are the vic, which has too many prying eyes, and the prince albert, which is too much too soon for callum) and it’s really awkward at first bc ben can sense how nervous callum is - jumping at every noise and constantly checking over his shoulder and can hardly sit still

and at first ben is a little bit put out bc he hasn’t had a problem keeping a man’s attention in a Long Ass Time but then he remembers what he was like when he was in callum’s shoes and can’t really be mad at him lmao….. he just is maybe kinda sad abt it bc this date is Weak and callum deserved better

so after a while ben asks callum if he wants to leave and callum is like ’???? wtf no’ bc he doesn’t even realize how jumpy and distracted he is

and ben is like ‘it’s ok if you do, i don’t mind, i get it’ and callum is really just sitting there like ???

so ofc bc callum isn’t saying anything ben starts rambling like 'maybe this was too soon, you have just broke up with whitney and you’re still getting your head around things, i don’t want you running into things when you’re not ready’ etc 

meanwhile in his head he’s like ben u Fuckin Idiot!! u’ve fucked it up!!!!!!! u’ve pushed him too hard this is too much u should have just waited!!!!!!!!!!!

that is until callum interrupts his rambling by Very Firmly saying 'ben, if i didn’t want to be here, i wouldn’t be here’

that shuts ben up lmao

after that callum makes a more conscious effort to relax and actually pay attention to ben and it doesn’t take long for callum to actually relax and forget where he is and everything that’s happened and enjoy ben’s company

and ben keeps having a go at cal for making him laugh bc it hurts and every single time callum gets really serious and apologetic which only makes ben laugh harder :-(

by the end of the night they’re sat practically pressed together in one of those rounded booths and neither of them know how they ended up like that bc they were on opposite sides when they sat down but neither of them really care :-)

they don’t stay out too late bc ben’s still a little out of whack from his injury, though it’s callum that insists they leave bc ben keeps being like ‘one more drink’ even tho cal can see him drooping w exhaustion :-( poor ben just doesn’t want it to be over bc tho the date started weak they have completely turned it around :-(

ben perks back up once they’re out in the fresh air and immediately starts teasing callum abt the fact that he’s walking him home

“proper gent you, ain’t ya? i can’t remember the last time someone walked me home after a date.” “you’re injured, i’m hardly gonna leave you to walk home by yourself am i? what if something happened to ya?” “what, during the five minute walk between e20 and my dad’s?” “you never know.” “just admit that you’re hoping i’ll invite you in for a nightcap.”

callum kind of freezes up at that but ben just gives him That Look and a small shove and says 'i’m joking, callum’

when they’re at the door to the mitchell’s ben turns to him with this soft smile and says 'don’t take this the wrong way, but i think we’re a bit too old for snogging on the doorstep while my dad’s probably sat in the living room’ and callum laughs and looks at the floor all shy because he doesn’t feel too old. he feels like he’s sixteen years old and he’s just been on his first proper date and this is all new and exciting to him.

(he supposes it is, in a way.)

and then ben very softly asks 'wasn’t so bad, was it?’ and callum smiles at him and shakes his head and ben smiles back and whispers 'good’ and leans over and kisses him on the cheek - it doesn’t linger quite as long as the last one, but this one feels different. warmer. like a promise of more to come. and he can’t help but grab hold of ben’s hand as he unlocks the front door and squeeze it as they say goodbye :-)

and they’re both so fucking enamoured w each other in that moment that both of them forget to ask for a second date lmao

so yeah it’s a pretty good date in the end lmao

as for hair stroking!!

he never really gets into hair stroking at first on account of the fact that callum is just So Fucking Tall and he always has his hair covered in gel so he can’t just do it absentmindedly the way callum does…… 

the few times he’s tried it’s awkward and not at all suave and natural the way callum does it, and then callum will complain about ben fucking up his hair and ben will end up with a sticky hand and like… there are more fun ways to end up in that situation….

besides it’s not like ben isn’t physically affectionate in other ways !!! it’s just that hair stroking is more callum’s thing

that is until one day callum practically passes out with his head on ben’s chest and all ben can see is the crown of his head…. his hair lookin soft as hell… smelling good bc he just had a shower…. and like what is ben gonna do? not stroke it?

and he’s glad callum is asleep tbh bc he has to like… figure out what works best…….. bc it’s not like lexi’s hair and it’s not like paul’s hair and it’s not like he has much experience with stroking anyone else’s hair…. so he’s like. Experimenting

and then he starts scratching at the shorter hair behind callum’s ear and cal makes this little sighing noise and presses closer to him and ben is just like oh ???????????????

so he keeps trying different things and callum just keeps on making these happy sounds and pressing his face more into ben’s chest and it’s just like…. game over….. he can’t believe This is what he’s been missing out on

or at least it’s game over while callum is asleep bc ben is Shy and doesn’t want to make a bigger fool out of himself in front of callum than he does already……. but like once callum’s unconscious? it’s game over

and callum has suspicions bc he keeps waking up to ben’s fingers tangled in his hair but it’s weird bc like…. why does he only do it when he’s asleep?

so, because he has learned from his other half Sneaky Bastard Ben, one day he fakes falling asleep just to see :-) and sure enough ben hands are in his hair within minutes - he starts off just gently rolling a bit of callum’s hair in between his fingers, but before long he’s full on stroking his fingers through the long part of callum’s hair

and callum pretends to be asleep for as long as he can but after a certain point he just can’t keep the smile off his face

and ben gets all huffy bc he’s embarrassed :-(

but callum just laughs and kisses ben’s chest and moves closer to him so he has easier access to his hair and ben resumes his stroking Immediately bc it’s like instinct now :-)

after that anytime they’re cuddling they basically cannot keep their hands out of each others hair

ben even takes to scratching at the hair on callum’s nape in public (when they’re sat down ofc bc callum is still So Fucking Tall) bc he can’t get to his favourite bit bc of the gel :-( so needless to say ben very quickly starts to hate the gel and tries to convince callum to abandon it but he won’t bc he thinks the slicked back hair makes him look Professional

ben pouts about it but he also kinda likes being the only one who gets to see his soft floppy hair now

anyway long story short, yes ben likes running his fingers through callum’s hair just as much as callum does, it just takes him a little while longer to catch on lmao

💖💖💖