#and I was not about to show my grandfather a picture I drew of a man he could see was named Strangle MaCock

[speromint]

Woe! Convergence be upon ye!

Uncoloured version under the cut.

Drew these at work while killing time, hence the reason they're drawn in pen on the back of a cake order sheet.

[gothamite-rambler]

"You knew this entire time?"

Context (and links at the end): Dick Grayson learns that his brother, Jason Todd, knew about Damian's existence before Bruce did and helped take care of him, canon is based on numerous things. All right, let go!

Dick found Jason in the tea room watching a video on his phone.

Dick Grayson: Okay, Bruce is… Unconscious, but fine.

Jason Todd: That's good. This video Talia sent me is good too.

Jason chuckled, replaying Bruce fainting after learning he had a son.

Dick: It's not funny to laugh at him right now. The man found out he has a kid with a crazy woman.

Jason: Yeah, the irony that Batman slipped up like that is not lost on me. I'm living for this.

Dick (annoyed): Could you be serious for a second?

Jason: I want to, I do… but this is funny to me. He said his swimmers weren't working!

Dick (chuckling): Okay, that was funny, but to be fair, we all thought he couldn't have kids or enjoy life.

Jason: True, but how Damian was conceived apparently involved a gas station condom in his wallet.

Dick (surprised): So it wasn't planned?

Jason: Nope.

Dick (concerned): Bruce was fully aware when they… did it?

Jason: I'm leaning towards yes. He wasn't expecting to have a son, but apparently, he was depressed and then ta-da.

Jason laughed.

Dick (angry): You could have spoken up eventually. I wasn't even aware. You never thought to tell me when I dropped by with the Titans?

Jason: I was mad at you… What did you expect? I tried to kill you when we met back up; when would I have had time to bring up the child he had? Talia wanted me to keep him protected. If I told you, you'd run to Bruce, and she wasn't ready to have them meet.

Dick: Yeah, but—

Jason: I get it, but Talia herself admits it was wrong to hide it, and Ra is insane. He wanted to kill Bruce at every turn for six years alone. By year seven, he simmered down… a little. Damian needed someone stable around him during the days with Ra… No one else was around, and I was on good-ish terms with some of you, so I'd spend time with him, take care of him, teach him stuff.

Dick: Oh, so during the eight years of swearing revenge and spending time here, you took care of the little boy? Why? Were they threatening you?

Jason: Nah, it was part of my long-term revenge plan. Killing him was too easy, and then that plan fizzled out, so I kept it a secret about his love child. Plus, it was free room and board if I helped raise the kid. And they paid me.

Dick (sighing): Let me get this straight: they were paying you to take care of Damian, I think his name is, and in between that, Bruce started paying you to stop killing… How much were they paying you?

Jason: It was a big number. Smart, right?

Dick: You put all of this effort into revenge?

Jason (nodding pridefully): I'm impressed with my resilience to keep quiet as well.

Dick: Jason, that is numerous levels of wrong, but at the same time, I can't even hate how underhanded and perfectly planned this was.

Jason: Thanks. I did contemplate raising Damian to kill them, but that plan fizzled out three years into helping raise him. You have to give me that.

Dick let out a long sigh, then nodded.

Dick: Yeah, okay, I'm proud of you for that.

Jason (smiling): And let's not forget, because this is a factor, his grandfather is Ra's al Ghul. It was hell when I lived with him. He wanted to raise Damian as an assassin, but a few months ago, I convinced Talia not to do that and just tell Bruce. Now him showing up in the batsuit was perfectly timed.

Dick: You're ridiculous.

Jason: You and Talia may say that, but I say I'm the father that stepped up.

Dick: I'm not sure I believe you. I'm sorry, but you probably barely visited him—

Damian walked into the room and went over to Jason.

Damian: Hi, sorry to interrupt. Jason, I forgot to say it's a pleasure to see you again.

Damian held out his hand. Jason shook his hand and then held up his fist. Damian lightly fist bumped him.

Damian: I drew you this.

Damian handed Jason a folded-up picture. Jason opened it and chuckled.

Damian: It's a good picture of Grandpa, isn't it? I made sure he looks like a crazy chicken.

Jason: Very accurate. Thank you.

Damian: I'll leave you two alone. I'm going to see if the man in the batsuit that's my… father is awake yet.

Damian scurried off.

Dick (sheepishly): All right, sorry I doubted you.

Jason (shrugs): I'm used to it.

Damian reentered and looked at Dick, tapping his chin.

Damian: Why do you wear that suit?

Dick: It's part of my hero thing.

Damian: Hm… at least it's not a batsuit. My apologies for insulting your name; it's just odd you share the name of a phallic symbol.

Jason chuckled while Dick took a deep breath, trying to remain calm.

Dick: I blame society for that, but I go by it because my parents gave me that name.

Damian: They died?

Dick: Yes.

Damian: Huh, odd name, but I respect the name your parents gave you at birth. Nice meeting you, Dick Grayson. I'm going to get snacks for you guys.

With that, Damian scurried back out to get a snack. Dick covered his mouth smiling.

Dick: That was so precious.

Jason: Yeah, he's a good kid. Thankfully, he was insane for most of his childhood. He probably wants Bruce to take him with us… I have no idea why it's better here.

Dick: Jason, not the time for jokes.

Jason: I will continue because this situation is funny as hell. Let's go check on the baby daddy of Damian.

Jason stood and left the room, with Dick following closely behind, an exhausted look etched on his face. There was a lot to adjust to at the moment, but he felt a sense of relief in having a new family member. It was amusing to see Bruce momentarily shed his usual stoicism.

Previous chapters:

Bruce meets his son for the first time

Jason knew the entire time

Bruce meeting his son part 2

[solecize]

  ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ  𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄 | 𝐣𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘. every summer on your grandpa's farm was real-life magic to your younger self, who left a piece of her heart in amber valley when the years went on and the town became nothing but a faint childhood memory. soon enough, you become rocked by his death and realize the dead end in your bustling city world. this leads to you making an abrupt decision. despite knowing nothing but designer purses and the corporate ladder, you uproot your entire life to take over your grandfather's old farm in the town you were desperately trying to remember - alongside a familiar face from your youth that permanently finds his way into your heart. 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆: jungkook/reader 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒. inspired heavily by stardew valley, friends to lovers, childhood friends, cowboy jungkook, small town alternate universe, slice of life, grief, growing up, mutual pining, jungkook as a parental figure 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓. 9k 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒. i don't even know what to say. i normally don't talk a lot and i'm mostly very unserious, but this is the last chapter of the farmouse and honestly, i'm super emotional about it. i'm really grateful for those of you who took the time to read and support this fic, every kind word has meant everything to me. i wrote this fic during a tough time when i needed warmth and joy, so i hope that this fic was able to bring even just a little bit of that for you while reading. (the writing of this chapter was quite literally delayed because my three year relationship ended midway through lol) this was also my first piece of writing in years and it's safe to say that i was able to fall in love with writing again because of this fic, so it'll always hold a special place in my heart. thank you times a hundred again <3 

part ten: the midsummer festivalㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ   ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ   ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ  ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ   previous. epilogue. masterlist

  xxiv. the midsummer festival

squeezing through bodies in the stands, it took all of your focus to not drop the popcorn and drinks wedged in your arms. you should have asked someone to come with you, but you were in such a rush, not wanting to miss a thing. finally, you made it to your seat, plopping yourself in between jiwon and yoongi, and your eyes remained fixed on the lawn the entire time.

  amber valley had the most beautiful days you’d ever laid eyes on and today was no exception. you weren’t sure if it was because of the natural charm in the sleepy town or a biased sense of nostalgia towards the countryside that you carried. the midsummer festival was held at the peak of the season, where humidity was as thick as honey and not a single cloud escaped being casted away from the cerulean of the sky. you had no choice but to throw on a tank top and shorts because anything else would feel like suffocation.

  “i didn’t miss anything, did i?” you didn’t mean to scream, but there was no other way for your voice to beat the crowd amongst yourselves.

  jiwon shook her head, her hair splaying from underneath the baseball hat that she so obviously stole from her brother. “no!”

  the show-jumping competition was one of the newest additions to the fair and it proved to be one of the most popular. not only did the majority of the town come out to observe, but the fair also drew in an impressive number of visitors from elsewhere - some of which attended the fair specifically to watch the show-jumping. 

  “LETS GO KOOKIE!” screamed hoseok at the top of his lungs, holding up a customized poster board with a printed picture of jungkook and leo, depicting the words ‘go jungkook!’

  yoongi groaned, “can you sit down? they haven’t even finished setting up for the jump-off yet.”

  at this point in the competition, it was down to jungkook and another competitor, a man a few years younger named yesung. up until now, they both achieved the same score after the round performance and both cleared nearly perfect showings. the jump-off was a shortened course with tighter turns and higher jumps, intended to break the tie and determine the winner.

  the crowd began cheering when jungkook and yesung reappeared, standing and waiting for instructions. you found jungkook adorable in his outfit, a dark green show jacket and breeches that emphasized his leg muscles. you had to catch yourself from staring too hard at his thighs because it seemed like yoongi caught you, waving a hand in front of your face with a snicker. you only glared at him.

  it was mayor kim with the microphone, explaining the rules to the crowd. “and, to decide the order for performance, we have conducted a random draw. as a result, we will see. . .choi yesung go first!” he proclaimed, eliciting another round of cheers from the crowd.

  from where you stood, you noticed jungkook naturally relax his shoulders. for that, you also breathed out a sigh of relief. he stepped away to where leo was, making way for yesung to complete his round.

  when it was time to begin, everyone rose to their feet. from what you saw and heard of yesung, he was also a well-seasoned equestrian. he wasn’t as decorated as jungkook, but he had the advantage of winning the last show-jumping competition in the spring. you didn’t realize jungkook was out for vengeance, but he was indeed looking to reclaim his name.

  every fraction of a second mattered in the jump-off round and so, your eyes were glued. the pressure was on and you watched yesung charge ahead. he decided to take some risky turns, likely to shave off time. the first one was executed perfectly and you nearly jumped at the second, challenging turn. it was not calculated well, as it resulted in a rail down at the penultimate fence.

  “oh shit!” one of the boys yelped, watching the unfortunate accident. 

  yeung finished the course at a respectable, but flawed time. it was shame, since his speed and ability could have easily secured a victory. he knew it, too, judging by the disappointment in his eyes. you almost felt bad for him, if it wasn’t jungkook off to the side and gearing up for his turn.

  now, it was jiwon screaming as loud as she could. “YOU CAN DO IT!” she screeched, cheering for her brother and you joined in. 

  already mounted on leo, jungkook looked up, right at your section. he gave a small wave and you all went wild - even mrs. oh, who brought her own sign to cheer him on. you guys weren’t the only ones, though, as it seemed that jungkook was a favourite amongst fans.

  “jeon jungkook, jeon jungkook, jeon jungkook,” chanted the boys and you weren’t sure who started it, but you also began chanting, too.

  he readied himself and at the sound of the horn, blasted off. the tensions were thicker, with the stakes at hand and the pressure on a seasoned competitor looking to re-establish himself. you couldn’t imagine the weight of the crowd under the beating of the july sun, considering the heat made you already down your water bottle by the first hour of the competition and were in half the clothing jungkook was in. between you and jiwon was a shared usb handheld fan, as the two of you silently took turns holding it - eyes too glued to the show and shouting jungkook’s name.

  he was fast and sharp, yet every movement of his was so well thought out. at full force was a risky approach, but was so far bearing perfect results. you felt your heartbeat getting louder and louder, making your head pound with adrenaline. the last few seconds, the world became quiet and all you could focus on was jungkook. then, the eruption snapped you back into reality.

  “LET’S GOOO!”

  if someone was somehow not on their feet watching the final round of the show, they certainly were now, as jungkook zoomed to the end with no flaws and an incredible time. even you had to blink a few times, trying to see the time recorded clearly and realize your eyes were not deceiving you.

  “there’s no way that’s not a record!” you heard jimin exclaim and you didn’t doubt him.

  there was a hushed murmur over the crowd, as mayor kim stepped to the podium once more. tapping the microphone a few times, you and the rest of the crowd winced at the feedback that came with it. then, mayor kim spoke.

  “ladies and gentlemen. . .” he begun, loud and clear.

  jungkook was still catching his breath to the side, having yet to even take off his helmet. all eyes were peeled on mayor kim, as he took an extra pause for dramatics. if you weren’t also about to jump right out from your skin, you’d roll your eyes.

  “. . we have a winner AND a record setting time. jeon jungkook, young man, please join me on this stage.”

  no longer holding your breath, you roared along with your friends and the earth practically rumbled. jungkook’s smile was as bright as the day, as he whooped in response and raised his fist in the air. you were filled with nothing but joy. 

  before he stepped up onto the stage, jungkook displayed his integrity by walking towards yesung and enthusiastically shake the other man’s hand. yesung didn’t look too upset, more bewildered at the quality of performance that his opponent put on. they exchanged words, smiles reaching their eyes.

  “that’s my brother!” screamed jiwon, as if no one knew the obvious.

  jungkook then took mayor kim’s hand in one and attempted to balance his new, golden trophy with the other arm. in a split second, your friends, jiwon, and the oh family began filing out of the stands and you could hear hoseok yelling for you to follow. you widened your eyes, shuffling out of your seat as quickly as possible.

  of course, jiwon was the fastest and made it to the lawn first. she squealed, as jungkook embraced her in a hug and spun her around. the cheers didn’t falter and only grew when namjoon and taehyung momentarily put jungkook on their shoulders.

  you trailed behind everyone, nearly stumbling on your way down. you couldn’t see much, tiptoeing as far as you could. the chatter was still loud, but then the small crowd parted as you heard jungkook call out. it was your name. he was calling for you to come to the front.

  “oooooh,” someone said, but you ignored it.

  there was no doubt in your mind that your cheeks were a cherry red, but you refused to look anyone in the eye - even jungkook. you and your friends gathered around the podium with jungkook, as the event photographer asked you to move closer for a picture. everyone made way for you, as jungkook gestured for you to be the one on his right side, while jiwon and mrs. oh were on his left. 

  “congratulations,” you finally said, straining for your voice to be heard over the cheers. you still did not meet his eyes, finding yourself in a kind of shyness that was unknown to your normally headstrong personality.

  that was something that came natural to jungkook, having an innate ability to bring out parts of you that you didn’t even know existed. before moving back to amber valley, you walked around with your chin up, thinking that you knew everything you needed to know. 

  now, at 25 years old, you knew harvesting soybeans and playing cards at the local pub with your new friends. you knew the smell of the ocean in the sweltering summer and you knew riding horses in sunflower fields at sundown. looking at jungkook, you knew what it was like to be slowly, but surely, swept off your feet. the realization creeped up on you, a sneaky little thing.

  namjoon was the one holding onto leo, as your group huddled together for the picture. you instinctively hugged into jungkook’s touch, holding them in front of the camera.

  jungkook spoke, right into your ear. “i’m so glad i was able to have this moment with you.”

  that made you finally look up at his eyes and in that moment, a flash went off. this is when you also snapped out of your daze and despite his stare unwavering, you turned back to the photographer.

  “oh, maybe we should take another -” you started, knowing that neither you or jungkook were looking in the camera, but he waved you off.

  “no, no! this picture came out perfect,” the photographer winked at you and asked for everyone to disperse, before you could argue. something told you that you were going to see a picture of you and jungkook gazing into each other’s eyes on the front cover of the local newspaper.

  he proceeded to take a few more solo pictures of jungkook with leo, followed by some shots with the mayor. jungkook was supposed to be kept busy, but he continued sneaking glances your way.

  it was mrs. oh who gently tapped your shoulder. “now’s the time, honey. come to the store quick before he notices.”

  beside her, sangwoo rolled his eyes. “he’s going to notice, he hasn’t taken his eyes off of her.”

  regardless, you scrambled to follow behind mrs. oh. you weaved through the crowd, who all wanted to take a look at their champion in disbelief of the amazing time jungkook scored. the show began relatively early in the day, too, so the streets were only now becoming more and more full with the midsummer festival in full swing.

  the roads were blocked off for pedestrian access only, as the fair was one of the busiest times of the year for amber valley. today was a day that drew crowds from outside of town, as the festival was an adored regional celebration and served as a tourist destination. you wouldn’t be surprised if you were told that the midsummer festival attracted the highest visitors of any other day in the year for the town.

  carnival games, market booths and amusement rides were already set up since the morning and it was already getting tiresome to navigate through the festival goers. but, of course, you were trailing behind the force that was mrs. oh, who made way with ease with her commanding voice. 

  “time to get to work,” she sighed, pulling out a key from her pocket upon reaching the general store.

  you said, “it’s a shame you can’t enjoy the festivities, mrs. oh.”

  “oh, i don’t mind. i’ve lived in this town all my life, i’ve been here, there and everywhere when it comes to the fair,” she mused, unlocking the front door for the two of you. “business is business, the traffic the store will get is more important.”

  a cool blanket enveloped your skin once you stepped in and you were never more grateful for the invention of air conditioning in your life. she was right, though, as you noticed some people nearby the store and already eyeing it.

  “most businesses are closed today, but not us!” mrs. oh smiled, as she turned the sign by the window from ‘closed’ to ‘open.’

  this is how you knew how much jungkook truly meant to mrs. oh. “jungkook is real lucky for you to open late just to watch him,” you said, examining the front counter and spotting a pair of jungkook’s work gloves.

  “the store opens late every time he has a competition. sangwoo adores him and that young man and jiwon are family to us,” mrs. oh mused, seemingly lost in thought, before blinking back into the moment. “ah, don’t mind me. i almost forgot why you’re here, sweetie - the flowers are in the back room!”

  you thanked mrs. oh, following the direction that she pointed towards. jimin called you corny for getting jungkook flowers for your first official date, but you thought it was fitting, given the competition. it was even better with the results of the show and you could only hope that jungkook liked the ones you picked out. you figured that men deserve to get a nice bouquet of flowers at least once, too. 

  the bundle of fresh sunflowers were actually your favourites, but that wasn’t important. you grabbed them from the backroom fridge, wrapped in cellophane and yellow paper. this was when you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and your eyes widened, hoping it wasn’t jungkook just yet.

  unfortunately, your hopes disappeared, but the text still put a smile on your face - just because it was him at the end of the day.

  are you at the store? i saw you and mrs. oh lol i can be there in a few minutes. 

  you replied yes and came out to wait. the store already had its first customers within a few minutes of opening and mrs. oh was ringing them out. she met your eyes and winked, mouthing some encouraging words to you. 

  with the same smile on your lips, you mouthed a ‘thank you’ to her. 

  although you would have loved to loiter inside the store for the air conditioning, you were already bashful enough from everyone watching you and jungkook at the show and you would have rather met jungkook away from mrs. oh’s nosiness. she was lovely, but she appeared to be one of your and jungkook’s biggest fans and you didn’t want to act awkward, knowing that you were being watched.

  the bouquet was hidden behind your back, as you patiently waited outdoors. you didn’t know what to expect out of your day, but the longer you waited for jungkook, you grew more and more nervous. it was odd, knowing that the anxiety pooling at the bottom of your stomach was because of your childhood best friend. 

  the thoughts were promptly swept away when you caught sight of jungkook approaching you. he changed clothes from his riding gear, sans his favourite dirty boots that remained on his feet, and was now wearing a plain white t-shirt and denim jeans. you always had to take a moment to admire the definition of his muscles and his sharp gaze that left you breathless, but you were distracted this time by the bundle of golden flowers in his grasp.

  jungkook looked a little bit concerned at your expression, as you were stifling a laugh. you almost felt bad, but the sight was too funny for you to ignore.

  “hey - uh, what?” he furrowed his eyebrows at you.

  you revealed the identical bouquet from behind your laugh and he, too, looked dumbfounded. the wrapping and greenery differed from one another, but it was clear that the two of you picked your flowers from the same field by your houses. it was the same field the two of you rode on the past summer and played in as kids.

  “congratulations again for first place,” was all you could manage to say, offering your flowers towards him.

  jungkook finally broke out into a chuckle, shaking his head. “thank you. congratulations, for uh. . “

  “for what? being jeon jungkook’s date to the fair?” you chided, as you took his flowers in your hands.

  “shut up. am i not original or something?” jungkook asked. “like, come on, we got each other the same thing. i’m already failing at this date thing, aren’t i?” he joked.

  you rolled your eyes and flicked his arms. “it’s been, like, five seconds.”

  “ow!”

  “we’re not just on a date today, jungkook. we’re on a mission to win some prizes,” you declared. 

  jungkook tilted his head slightly with a smile growing. “oh, are we?” he paused. “then, am i allowed to hold your hand during this mission?”

  the idea startled you, but you didn’t shy away. nodding without a word, this was the signal for jungkook to pick up your free hand and interlock his fingers with yours. somehow, it wasn’t a moment that sent ringing sensations in your ears nor was it one in slow motion. it was familiar, almost, and felt. . . right. it felt natural, like it was coming home after a long day.

  you leaned in to whisper in his ear, “and thank you for the flowers. you remembered my favourite.” you weren’t even sure how he knew, but you knew that jungkook would only give you a gift with a well-thought out meaning behind them. 

  this time, it was jungkook’s cheeks who reddened slightly. he didn’t say anything else, only squeezing your hand and leading the way.

  ***

  jungkook was tired. you were tired of telling him to suck it up. you had gone two summers in a row without winning a single prize and you were determined to walk away from the fair with at least one thing. albeit, at this point, you ran out of tickets to play games and you knew jungkook had extra, since he received some from his parents, but your grandfather also gave him some. he was your last hope, as you begged him to use the last of his tickets to get you something.

  “hoseok hyung told me these games are rigged. can’t we just go do bumper cars, bunny?” jungkook groaned, as the two of you walked away empty handed from balloon darts.

  you pouted. “no. i just want one of those big charmander stuffies, i know you can win them!”

  “why don’t you play the games?”

  “because i’m bad at them, how do you think i lost all of my tickets so quickly?” you responded, crossing your arms over your chest.

  jungkook grumbled more complaints under his breath, while you forcibly dragged him towards the ring toss booth.

  “hey kids! giving the ‘ol ring toss a try?” beamed the booth attendant, who was the same every year.

  you weren’t entirely sure what his name was, but you and jungkook collectively agreed on calling him “carnival man” and he recognized the two of you each time the festival was in town. though you were about four feet of fury at the time, you had quiet rage against carnival man. you were convinced he cheated you out of getting the xl sized penguin prize last year and you wanted revenge. 

  “kookie will do it!” you exclaimed, smugly pushing your best friend forward.

  “yeah, whatever, kookie will do it,” jungkook rolled his eyes and handed over a single ticket to carnival man.

  carnival man happily took the ticket from jungkook. “it’s nice to see you kids again. you’re always together, huh?”

  “unfortunately,” the two of you said in unison, only for you two to shoot each other identical daggers.

  at this, carnival man guffawed in amusement and gave jungkook his sets of rings. 

  here, jungkook did not win. in fact, he didn’t win you a single thing that summer and you didn’t speak to him for the following day because of it. only a day, though, since carnival man was right - the two of you were always together. you eventually gave in after the first day of silent treatment and showed up to jungkook’s house with your horse, marshmallow, and convinced him to join you by the sunflower fields. he had scoffed, called you stupid, and then without missing a beat, came outside to accompany you.

  ***

  “kookie! and. . .bunny? is that you?”

  carnival man was a lot older than you remembered, but you weren’t sure if it was just the tricks of time playing a game on you. it seemed like everything was so much more youthful and bright in your childhood memories. however, the brightness in carnival man’s smile didn’t falter and it only widened upon laying eyes on you and jungkook. then, his eyes trailed over to your clasped hands together and it widened even more.

  “you remember me?” you gaped, as carnival man took your hand and shook it vigorously. 

  “of course i do! well, i remember the two of you, specifically,” he exclaimed. “i see jungkook here, but i’ll always remember how you two kids came around together every summer! you’re all grown up now!”

  although lines of age creased his smile and streaks of grey contrasted against his black hair, seeing carnival man again made you feel like you were ten years old all over again. the fair seemed so much more larger than life and this moment was one of those moments that reminded you of why you loved summer so much.

  jungkook smiled, “it’s nice to see you, mr. lee.” he appeared to be a bit shy, as the older man was fixated on the sight of you two holding hands.

  it occurred to you that carnival man was never his real name and meeting him as mr. lee felt like a call to the reality in which you were now a grown up. you realized that jungkook continued to see mr. lee at the fair over the years without you and didn’t feel the same rush of nostalgia.

  the only reason why jungkook couldn’t also shake mr. lee’s hand was the abundance of prizes nestled into his arms. the two of you left your sunflower bouquets at the general store - luckily, it was now busy with tourists wanting water bottles or sunscreen and the two of you avoided any gushing or questioning from mrs. oh - and thank god you did because you did not expect to be carrying around so many things. a mini teddy bear, a sheet of temporary tattoos, a t-shirt, some gift cards, and a larger kuromi plush toy that was double the size of your head.

  thankfully, jungkook held onto everything without complaint and remarked that you had no business carrying anything so long as he was there. the funny part was that you two had barely visited all of the games and the only reason why you’d won so many prizes was because you two were competing at each one.

  “and you know i refuse to lose,” jungkook said at the first game, which was a basketball shootout. 

  with the same competitive spirit, the two of you both did very well at each game and walked away with a prize from almost every one. it also probably helped that you were now adults with disposable income and could pay to participate in as many games as you wanted. jungkook had announced that he was ready to make up for his past failrures, never forgetting the summer that resulted in your silent treatment because of his inability to win you a prize. you didn't think that meant struggling to carry around your prizes within the first hour.

  now, mr. lee began setting up the ring toss for the two of you. “so, you moved back to amber valley, young lady?”

  “yes, sir. i’m running the family farm now,” you replied.

  “congratulations, bunny. that’s some hard, honest work, my best wishes to you!” mr. lee said. “you know, i always thought you two had quite a special bond, even at a young age.”

  jungkook avoided eye contact. “mr. lee, you’re kind,” he chuckled, nervously. 

  “i mean it! it fills my heart with joy to see you two here after all these years.” there was twinkle in mr. lee’s eyes as he spoke. “for some people, their universes are stitched together with unseen threads that will always lead them back to where they belong.”

  it was your turn to squeeze jungkook’s hand and neither of you said anything more, only exchanging a look.

  ***

  jungkook wouldn’t stop pouting and you weren’t sure what to do about it. it really wasn’t your fault, you couldn’t help the fact that, like most young girls, you got your growth spurt earlier than your male friend. you were a few inches taller than jungkook at this point and he was deflated to learn that you were tall enough for the rollercoaster, while he had yet to measure up.

  “sorry kid. maybe next year,” the ride attendant gave jungkook a small smile.

  you were disappointed, as well, as you and jungkook had waited nearly thirty minutes in line. all for jungkook to not be able to ride the coaster. you turned to him, who sighed.

  he said, “it’s okay, bunny. you can go on without me.”

  a part of you did want to get on the ride, especially after waiting for quite some time, but you didn’t hesitate to shake your head. 

  “no. i won’t go on without you,” you stressed, to which jungkook looked at you in shock. 

  he shook his head. “no, it’s okay. just go, we waited for so long.”

  “i said i’m not going,” you said, standing your ground.

  instead, you walked off from the front of the line, ignoring jungkook calling your name until he ran up to catch up to you. 

  “hey! what are you doing?”

  “i said i’d go with you. if you’re not there, there’s no point,” you shrugged, as if it was no big deal. “we’ll go next time. hey, wanna go see carnival man and do ring toss?”

  you didn’t wait for an answer, as you made a beeline for the ring toss booth. jungkook jogged up to you and you noticed that he was trying to hide the smile on his face.

  ***

  “jungkook. . .this is the kid’s roller coaster.”

  everyone else in the line was about half jungkook’s size, unless they were one of the parents giving the two of you a dirty look for getting on the kid’s coaster. there was no explicit rule that adults couldn’t ride the rollercoaster, but it was a very popular ride and jungkook had the privilege of cutting the line, as the two of you were given a free “fast lane” pass by mayor kim for being local small business owners.  the fast lane pass was costly and the majority of fairgoers opted to wait in the long lines.

  jungkook didn’t seem to care too much, though. “yeah, so what? you picked the giant swing and said the next ride was my choice.”

  “you’re pissing off the kids,” you whispered in a lower voice, as the attendant let out the last party from the rollercoaster. you guys were up next. “i thought you would want to do the drop tower or something.”

  “you promised me that we could go on the ride the last time we were here. remember, when i was too short?” he casually whistled. 

  “jungkook, that was, like, seventeen years ago.”

  he continued, “and i wrote it for our summer bucket list! you may have never seen it, but i was dying to go on this ride.”

  and that was how you found yourself crammed into a kid-sized rollercoaster at the very front with jungkook. with impeccable timing, it looked as though some of the boys were passing by. seokjin caught your eye first and tapped taehyung’s shoulder beside him, who then got namjoon’s attention.

  “oh my god,” you groaned, watching the three of them wave wildly at you and jungkook. 

  on the other hand, jungkook found this hilarious. he waved back and you covered your blushing face with your hands. you were already embarrassed from the cut eye given to you by the parents in line, now this.

  “have fun, lovebirds!” called namjoon, as seokjin and taehyung proceeded to take several pictures of you and jungkook from afar.

  ***

  “my tooth hurts!” you whined, shoving your cotton candy into jungkook’s hands.

  at seven years old, it was on the later side for you to lose your first tooth. you’d been wiggling it for weeks, but cried when jimin offered to rip it out of your mouth for you. this happened just a few moments ago, before jungkook yelled at him to go back to his mommy. 

  jungkook didn’t seem bothered and was actually pleased to double fist two sticks of cotton candy. “thanks bunny!” he ignored your complaints and happily continued snacking away.

  this was the first year that you and jungkook were permitted to roam around without adult supervision - kind of. as long as you were in vicinity of ten year old hoseok, who was sitting on a bench and playing on his gameboy advance, the two of you were free to play together.

  “this isn’t fair, i’m not allowed to eat anything,” you huffed. your grandfather warned you that any sort of sweet will just hurt and you were better off enjoying other parts of the festival.

  “don’t tell my parents, they said i could only have one cotton candy,” jungkook said, as he observed your sad appearance. “why do you look like that?”

  “like what?”

  “you look sad. it’s ugly on you,” jungkook mindlessly commented and you flicked his arm. “ow!”

  you glared at him. “don’t call me ugly!”

  “i said looking sad is ugly on you. so, don’t be sad,” jungkook replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

  when your expression didn’t change, jungkook sighed and looked over to where hoseok was sitting. the older boy’s eyes were glued to his screen and was now joined by jimin, who was cheering him on in whatever game he was playing. then, jungkook turned back to you.

  “what?” you asked.

  “wanna go watch the magician show?” he asked, grinning. “so you can stop being sad.”

  your eyes widened, as you took your turn to look over your shoulder at hoseok. “your mom said to stay nearby! what if we get in trouble?”

  “i dare you to come with me to the magician show,” jungkook countered, knowing that was the secret word that made you do just about anything. you hated the idea of losing dares to jungkook and had yet to do so.

  you knew you were going to get an earful if you left hoseok’s sight, who was supposed to be watching over you. then, you remembered that, earlier that day, hoseok refused to let you play a level of mega man on his gameboy and decided you didn’t care if you got him in trouble.

  “okay! let’s go!” your features suddenly brightened and you let jungkook take you by the wrist - not the hand because, ew, it was jungkook - towards the other end of the fairgrounds. 

  the cotton candy had already been consumed and jungkook tossed the paper sticks into the nearest trash can, as the two of you quietly giggled about your mischievous sneak-away. 

  ***

  unlike jungkook, jiwon had no trouble tracking down her sibling at any given moment, even with the large crowds gathered for the festival. she also didn’t seem to care that her brother was in the middle of a date, as you were the one to first notice that she was dragging sangwoo by the wrist in your direction. 

  “is something wrong, jiwon?” jungkook asked and there was a tinge of annoyance in his voice at the appearance of the younger girl. the two of you were engaged in somewhat of a flirtatious conversation and jiwon’s premise immediately killed jungook’s mood.

  “hi y/n!” she greeted and then she turned to jungkook wearing a sickly sweet smile. “oppa, may i have ten bucks?”

  “i gave you twenty bucks this morning,” he raised an eyebrow at her. 

  meanwhile, sangwoo was in awe of the amount of prizes in jungkook’s arms. “woah! you guys won all of those?” at this point, there was an addition of a frisbee and a stuffed octopus. 

  “i won most of them,” both you and jungkook said at the same time, resulting in a shared glare. 

  jiwon cleared her throat. “so. can i have ten bucks, please? we wanna get cotton candy!”

  “what did you do with the first twenty bucks?”

  “we went on the teacup ride! oh, and we got rice cakes and funnel cake and actual cake,” jiwon explained and went a little too fast, so you didn’t doubt that the kids did, in fact, consume all that sugar.

  it seemed like jungkook also didn’t doubt it and while you knew he wanted to scold her, you were taken aback to find him letting go of your hand to reach for his wallet in his back pocket. he sighed and, as he was still carrying all of your prizes, merely held it out for jiwon to fish a twenty out of. 

  “only because today is the festival,” he warned and muttered a second part under his breath, “and only so you can leave us alone.”

  you also had the same feeling that jiwon and sangwoo were not going anywhere without their ultimate goal, especially since the former seemed to have the same persistence that her brother had.

  “thank you, i love you!” jiwon declared, handing the wallet back to her brother and planting an exaggerated kiss on his cheek. “thank you, thank you! we’ll leave you alone now!”

  the pair scurried off together, as sangwoo also yelled out his thanks. they ran through the crowd together, giggling amongst themselves. when jungkook took your hand again, you were still lost in thought, watching the two purchase cotton candy from far away. sangwoo handed the first stick to jiwon and the two talked with one another, cheerily enjoying their treat.

  “don’t get me wrong, making sure jiwon is eating healthy is important to me, but today’s the fair. it’s special for her and sangwoo like it was for us, might as well let her off the hook for today.” he noticed you watching them and followed your stare. “they’re cute, aren’t they?”

  “they are. how long have they been that close?”

  “since they were born, basically. they’re always with each other,” jungkook shook his head.

  “do you think jiwon has a little crush?” you wondered aloud, as jiwon shoved sangwoo playfully for whatever joke he might have had made. 

  jungkook asked, “did you?”

  he was referring to the two of you as kids, as it was clear that your shared wistful stares at jiwon and sangwoo were a product of looking back at your own childhoods. two best friends that stood by each other’s sides at all times and grew up together. you had to admit, you saw your and jungkook’s reflections when you looked at jiwon and sangwoo. 

  upon hearing the question, you rolled your eyes. “you wish, jeon jungkook.”

  but, you weren’t entirely sure. adults joked that you and jungkook would grow up to marry each other, just from watching you two play chess or ride horses together. there was a magnetic force that naturally stuck the two of you together, from day one. you cared deeply for jungkook before you could have a comprehensive understanding of what it was like to have love for someone beyond your family.

  “pretty sure i had a crush on you. that’s probably why i was devastated when you stopped coming to the valley,” he casually mentioned, but you turned to him in surprise.

  “were you really?”

  “yeah. you were my closest friend.”

  “i’m sorry,” you said. “you were mine, too. i just thought you would forget about me, i guess. then, i don’t know - “

  jungkook cut in, “- we grew up. that’s what happened, it’s okay.”

  that was the reality of life. it was sad to look back on, but it was overshadowed by the incredible forces that brought you and jungkook back together. never, in a million years, would you have ever imagined standing in the middle of the amber valley midsummer festival with jeon jungkook ever again. 

  “ever since i came back, you became my closest friend again. even with all the weird stuff going on between us,” you admitted the last part with the roll of your eyes.

  although you were just teasing, jungkook’s expression turned serious. “hey, i am sorry about that. but, honestly. . . “ he sighed. “like you said, we became close friends again. and so fast, too.”

  “it got confusing, didn’t it?” you asked, looking at your feet. “when things seemed like it could be more, i kept trying to convince myself that, you know, this is just how we are. we’re friends, this is how we act and nothing more.”

  “you read my mind. you really did,” jungkook said, looking at you with a surprised expression. “i think i always knew, though. from the moment i saw you again.”

  you thought back to the first time you met jungkook again. you remembered how soft his hands were and how he managed to make you smile on one of the worst days of your life. that was just jungkook, though, and his way of bringing sunlight into your life, even when it was raining. 

  “i. . .i think i knew, too. but, i thought you just saw me as the little girl who used to play with you in your backyard.”

  he shook his head. “i thought you had so much on your plate. and, well, i’ll admit, i’ve had trouble even considering a love life since becoming jiwon’s guardian. she’s always come first in my life before anything else.”

  “i don’t blame you, i can’t imagine what the past few years have been like for you,” you said. “but, you were a tad bit stupid. let’s be real.”

  jungkook snorted. “yeah, i know i was stupid. believe me, the last thing i wanted to do was fully push you away. my childhood best friend came back into my life and i had to confront that she was now a strong, beautiful and incredibly intelligent woman that i had feelings for.”

  this was the first time that things were finally being said aloud and it was as if a thousand pounds was being lifted off of your shoulders. you were light, you were flying. 

  “but,” he continued. “i also had to confront that you were still my closest friend, the person who i can turn to when things go wrong. you were my friend who i laughed with and shared things with and i couldn’t lose that. i have the guys, but no one compares to how in sync we are.”

  “i know what you mean. we complement each other in this crazy way. . .” you trailed off. 

  mr. lee spoke about destinies stitched together and things meant to be. holding jungkook’s hand felt meant to be in a way that it was just natural. so did laughing with him and making him dinner and letting him do things for you, simply because he didn’t want you to do it by yourself.

  jungkook said, “do you see why i was afraid of this?” he gestured to the two of you holding hands. “if i fuck this up with you, i’ll lose both my girlfriend and my best friend. if i fuck this up with you, i’ll have let you down during a time where you just moved to a whole new town for a job with all these expectations that everyone has for you.”

  “you don’t have to be afraid of those things,” you murmured, gently placing your free hand on his arm.

  “i’m not. not anymore, when the what ifs and the idea of missing out on something good with you is even scarier.”

  suddenly, you took a look around your surroundings. it obviously wasn’t planned, but the two of you were having quite the intimate conversation just across from the face painting booth and the craft stalls. you tugged jungkook into a random corner, where there was a lone chair in between walls.

  “can you put the prizes down for a second?” you asked.

  jungkook was confused. “huh?”

  “can you put the prizes down so i can kiss you?” you commanded, giving him a pointed look. 

  then, he chuckled and without hesitation, placed your various trinkets down on the chair. you rolled your eyes with a smile and jungkook hooked a thumb on one of the belt loops of your jean shorts, using it to pull you closer. he leaned in, placing his other hand at the small of your back.

  jungkook, too, smiled into the kiss and like everything else, it felt natural. it felt like home. you melted into his arms as you always do, softly kissing back. 

  although you could have stood there forever with him, lost in his touch, you had to pull away. “you scared of that?” you raised an eyebrow.

  “shut up man,” jungkook said, but stole a quick peck from you before he let you go from his embrace.

  you thought you would never stand in the middle of the amber valley midsummer festival with jeon jungkook ever again. the world worked in mysterious ways and you were proven wrong. more so, you weren’t just standing with jungkook. you were a woman standing in the middle of the town that built your hopes and dreams. you were standing in middle of the fair that never shook off its magic, even years later. you were standing with the man who made you realize that home wasn’t just a place.

  ***

  it was safe to say that you freaked out when jungkook showed you what he stole from his dad’s tool box. you were so scared that jungkook had to beg you to not snitch on him and even threatened that he would tell your grandfather that you’d been making him help you complete your chores in the chicken coop. 

  “it’s just a pocket knife, bunny.”

  “it’s sharp! you could hurt yourself!” you hissed, stepping a few feet away from him like he had mad cow disease.

  jungkook sighed and ignored you, walking over to where your sitting spot was. this year, the midsummer festival fell on what was easily the hottest day of the summer. the heat wave was unlike any other you’d experienced so far and you were surprised that the fair was still going on. the two of you had completed just under ten minutes at the bouncy castle before you insisted you needed a break.

  the two of you had found a random tree to sit under, as you split an ice cream float to beat the heat. this is when jungkook said he had “something cool” to show you.

  you had no choice but to leave your grumbles under your breath, finding your place beside jungkook since the ice cream float was in his hand. “you’re hogging it all,” you complained and he handed it over to you.

  “are you done freaking out?” he asked.

  “what are you even gonna do with that?”

  it was as if jungkook was waiting for you to ask the question. “this.” he clicked it open and turned behind him, to the lower part of the tree of which you were leaning on. 

  your eyes were wide, as jungkook began scratching away at the wood. the first letter you could make out was “J” and you nervously looked around your surroundings. it didn’t seem like anyone was paying attention to the two of you, occupied with the festivities or trying to not pass out from the sun. 

  jungkook completed a “K” and moved on to slowly carving out your initials. “so we remember today!”

  “it’s gonna be there forever,” you sputtered. “my grandpa says that trees last forever if no one cuts them down. . .so, since our names are there, we’ll be best friends forever!”

  a toothy grin stretched across jungkook’s face. “yeah! we are. we’re going to be best friends forever.”

  ***

  considering jungkook’s victory earlier in the day, several people stopped to congratulate him throughout the afternoon. he was hard to miss and he was also just a generally well-known person around town.

  that was precisely why you were scared shitless that someone was going to recognize either of you committing vandalism. 

  “you’re covering me, right?”

  “i am, but can you hurry up?” you demanded through gritted teeth, trying to look over your shoulder to see if anyone was looking your way without looking suspicious.

  from the unassuming eye, it looked like you and jungkook were merely engaged in conversation. . .but facing the tree. you were sat cross-legged, turned to the tree as if it was another person talking amongst yourselves. instead, you were trying to cover jungkook carving into the wood.

  you shook your head. “i can’t believe our names are still on this.”

  “we did say it would be forever,” jungkook reminded you and if he wasn’t holding a pocket knife in his hands, you would’ve shoved him over.

  you always remembered that your and jungkook’s names lived on the bark of a random tree in town. there was no way you could forget the scolding the two of you received for defacing town property. 

  “what if they notice? we’re adults now, we could get charged for this,” you said.

  “then we say it was always like this,” jungkook concluded and caught your eye. “what? what are they gonna do, tell my mom and your grandpa?” 

  at that, you did let out a laugh. “i can’t imagine what they’re thinking, watching us from up there.”

  then, jungkook clicked his pocket knife close and scooted over on the grass, as he’d been blocking his work from your view the entire time. he made the initials deeper into the wood, ensuring that it wasn’t going anywhere, and added a heart around the letters. once depicting you and jungkook as friends “4ever,” it was now framed by the heart and shifted its meaning altogether. 

  “they likely made a bet about us getting together and the winner is probably rejoicing,” you suspected and jungkook nodded in agreement, snickering under his breath. 

  your hands grazed over the carved design and you thought back to the moment where the two of you first sat under the same tree. 

  jungkook said, “pretty good first date, huh? scammed some booths out of their prizes, pissed off the entirety of amber valley elementary and we vandalized town property.” he looked pleased with himself leaning against the tree and wrapped an arm around your shoulders.

  with your legs stretched out and the crime completed, you were able to relax underneath the protection of the leafy branches. “mhm, definitely a first date that i’ll never forget,” you laughed, placing your head on jungkook’s chest. 

  the two of you bought an ice cream float for old times sake and jungkook brought it closer to you, so that you wouldn’t have to move. it seemed to be a constant - jungkook doing things for you just because. just because he didn’t want you to do it yourself. just because he wanted to do something for you.

  “i have arms, you know,” you joked, but took a sip regardless. 

  he responded, unfazed, “i know.” 

  the smile the two of you shared confirmed your thoughts. whether you were kids and jungkook walked you home every time just because or you were adults and jungkook wanted to spend his whole day fixing your windows just because. that was just how he was always going to be for you.

  “well, do you know that a first date implies that there’s going to be a second date?” you decided to be bold for once, as all your anxieties evaporated when you accepted that jungkook was both your best friend and a person you held feelings for - a coexistence that you realized was possible and even exciting.

  jungkook scoffed. “second date? did you not see the tree, you’re stuck with me forever.” his joke resulted in you playfully hitting his chest. 

  “did you just curse me with some witchcraft on this tree or something?”

  “rock hard, huh?” he asked, ignoring your accusation and was referring to you hitting his chest. “trust me, i know.” jungkook flexed his arm muscles and although he was kidding around, it was quite impressive and distracting.

  “i’m totally objectifying you right now, by the way. i can admit that now, right?” you smirked. “‘cause i’ve been checking you out for months.”

  at that, jungkook genuinely appeared to be a bit sheepish, his ears first turning pink like they always do. “drink your float, man,” he insisted, using it as a tool to shut you up. you nearly choked from holding in your laugh as you took another sip, which made him laugh, too.

  you sat up slightly, but still mostly laying your body weight on your jungkook, only to crane your neck to see the letters carved onto the tree. the carving waited for you two for years to return. a part of you couldn’t believe that it was jungkook you were stealing kisses and blushing from. 

  “but, for real,” jungkook spoke, now also looking at his handy work. “a second date is nothing when the tree says you’re stuck with me. that means you’re my girl.”

  he held your chin with his free hand so that you could look into his eyes as he declared the last part. jungkook’s gaze was warm and you now understood what it was like to feel butterflies in your stomach. it was always one of those things that you read about in books and couldn’t comprehend. you understood the moon and stars and you understood economics and science. this moment with jungkook was a pair of fresh eyes that opened your heart to a feeling of completeness that felt like it had always been there. 

  “wow, you’re not even going to ask me? this is the worst confession ever,” you managed to tease, your smile failing to fight the happiness spreading throughout your body. 

  jungkook retorted, “i saw it in your eyes, you were about to ask me first. i had to beat you to the punch, you know i hate letting you win things.”

  “i think i won either way here,” you beamed, placing your head back onto jungkook’s chest. you could feel his heart beating loudly, but he didn’t seem to mind and planted a kiss on your forehead. jungkook wanted you to know how much this moment meant to him, too. 

  your first summer back in amber valley was nothing you expected. your grandfather’s last wishes for you were for you to discover nature and what it meant to make real connections with people. it was a head first journey that you embarked on, all by yourself. yet, months later, you found yourself surrounded by a family you found yourself and the beauty of a town that you thought was forever going to only live in your memories and dreams. you found belonging. 

  jungkook taught you that home wasn’t a place. home was the sunday market with friends. home was doing things you would have never imagined yourself doing, like salsa dancing and paddle boarding. home lived in watching your hard work bloom into something greater than yourself, with each harvest and each morning you spent feeding your animals. home was even a person - a horse-riding man who was unselfish at his core and loved breakfast for dinner. 

  you dreaded the end of the night, as it seemed like the midsummer festival was a blissful magic that you never wanted to end. you could have lived in this moment forever. 

  “goodnight, bunny. i’ll see you tomorrow,” jungkook said, as the two of you stood at the doorstep of the farmhouse. he leaned down and met you in a soft kiss, where he murmured a thank you against your lips for the perfect day you shared.

  there, you realized that the magic didn’t have to end. there was always a tomorrow to look forward to when everyday was a new day to fall more and more in love with your best friend. the magic in the air didn’t even have to end when the last of the summer heat turned into the first chill of autumn, amidst the shifting hues of the leaves. the magic kept you warm throughout the winter and blossomed in the springtime. 

  for the first time in your life, you no longer had to walk away from jungkook come the rain of september. when you were younger, it seemed like the magic of amber valley only existed in the warmer months. summer was a special place in your heart and the memories of your youth, but home was something that stood by you through the changing seasons.

𝐓𝐀𝐆 𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓. @shellyyy177 @myseokjinji @teddybeartaetae @jalexad @sstrongstyle @wobblewobble822 @seokout @taiwan0618 @firelcrds @xwniazx

[chlobliviate]

Wolfstar Microfic - World

Words: 977

@wolfstarmicrofic

🌙✨🌙✨🌙

Sirius loved his job. He loved working with tiny humans. He loved being one of the people who introduced them to the world outside their home. To show them nature, read stories, and chat with them while they drew scribbly pictures.

The plan had been for him to go into politics, like his father, and grandfather. And great grandfathers, back further than he cared to think about. But even Orion Black couldn’t get on board with his gay son inheriting his seat in the House of Lords. So they swiftly moved onto the spare, until they pushed him to rebellion too. According to the last email, Regulus was running a vineyard in France and was stunningly happy, which made Sirius happy in turn.

Each year he got kids from all walks of life. Kids with two moms, disabled kids, kids in care, kids with more energy than they knew what to do with, kids whose passions were adorably wild for four-year-olds, like cooking or cricket. His godson had just started in his class and was proving to be a handful, as he knew he would be. Any child that was half James Potter and half Lily Evans, with a healthy dose of Sirius’ influence could be nothing less.

But when he got word that he had a student starting the school year a month late, he mentally assigned Harry as his buddy. Within minutes of having Teddy Lupin in his class, he knew it was a good decision.

He’d been in a meeting when Teddy arrived. He’d meant to have a chat with Teddy’s parent. Dad, he seemed to remember the paperwork saying, with a name almost as ridiculous as his own. Roman? Something like that. He’d have to catch him at the end of the day. His teaching assistant, Dorcas told him that the dad seemed as nervous as Teddy, but that he was cute and sarcastic. If she said that with a pointed look at him, he pretended not to notice.

Teddy let Harry show him around the classroom, the reading nook, the ‘pretend area’ that was set up as a cafe this week, the toy cupboard and finally their table. Teddy asked lots of questions and Sirius took this as a good sign. Better he ask than feel like he couldn’t.

Once the class was settled, working on drawing their house and family, Sirius crouched next to Teddy’s desk.

“How’re you getting on, Teddy?” He said quietly.

“Good, I think.” He stuck his tongue between his teeth as he concentrated on drawing. “I only have to draw me and my dad.”

“That’s not fair!” Ron moaned from the other side of the table. “I think I need more Paper!”

Sirius chuckled, “But think how much your mum and dad will love this drawing, with all of you on it!” He’d taught Ron’s twin brothers a couple of years ago, and he knew for a fact that they had not produced any pictures like this for their family, so it would be a nice change of pace for them. He turned back to Teddy, “If you need help or anything at all, just let me know. There are no stupid questions, ok?” Teddy nodded, not looking away from his drawing.

🌙✨🌙✨🌙

Teddy was the last to collect his belongings at the end of the day, and Sirius helped him put his water bottle into his tiny backpack before they headed for the door. “Oh, wait! Your lovely drawing!” Sirius grabbed it off his desk. “I bet your dad is going to love this!”

“He does drawing. For a job!” Teddy shared, gleefully. “I want to do that.”

“Well based on today’s artwork, I think you’d be a fantastic artist!” He smiled down at Teddy, who beamed up at him. “Come on, let’s go find your dad.”

Teddy’s Dad, who Dorcas was, annoyingly, definitely not wrong about, was waiting on the playground alone, looking nervously at the door. He visibly sighed in relief when he saw them and walked towards them.

“Dad!” Teddy ran towards him and was swept up into a hug. “Dad! I did art!”

“You did?” Teddy’s dad asked earnestly. “Can I see it?” Sirius held out the drawing, which he took and examined. He crouched next to his son. “You drew the new house. Wow! That’s so much detail, Teds. This is amazing. We’re going to put this on the wall in the kitchen!”

Teddy grinned at his dad, and then back at Sirius. “Thank you for Today.”

Sirius’ heart melted a little bit, “Thank you, Teddy! Can’t wait to see you tomorrow.”

“Why don’t you go and play on the swings for a minute, while I have a quick chat with Mr…”

“Black.” Sirius supplied, “Sirius.”

Remus nodded as Teddy ran to the tiny swings on the playing field. “Was he alright? No trouble?”

“No trouble at all, he’s a good kid.” Sirius smiled, “His art skills are so advanced for his age. I honestly wouldn’t blink if you told me a ten-year-old drew this. Must be genetic.”

“Ah, he’s been bragging about me?” His cheeks flushed slightly and it was possibly the cutest thing that Sirius had ever seen.

“Yeah, seems he wants to follow in your footsteps.” Sirius paused, “I’m so sorry, I didn’t ask your name.”

“Remus. Lupin.” Remus. That was it. Remus’ cheeks grew pinker. “Well, thank you. I was so nervous about him starting late. He’s my world, but we had to move back. My mum.” Sirius understood. “But it seems he’s... in good hands.” A slight smirk teased the corners of Remus’ mouth.

Sirius had plenty of single mums flirt with him over the years, but this was new. “I’ll tell you what, Remus. Why don’t I give you my number, just in case.” He dragged his eyes up Remus’ torso.

“Sounds good,” Remus said, breathlessly.

[selfaware-bungou-stray-dogs]

Hey, how are you ? I wanted to request a scenario that reader has the starry eyes of Ai hoshino, and the cast of bungou stray dogs see pictures and videos of reader as a child. Can you please?

Have a great week and take care ok?

Hello! I am doing good. I hope, you enjoy the scenario. I will take care of myself, thanks for your concern ☺️

Starry eyes

Self-Aware! BSD Characters x GN! Reader

Description: BSD cast can't wait to finally see your face. One day, they saw pictures of you. And your eyes.

Warning: OOC. English is my second language.

🐾 For BSD Cast, you are Little Light, a shapeless light blob. Embodiment of your emotions, that floating above them, sometimes snuggle to them and purr.

🐾 For BSD Cast, you are a figure of light. Always changing presence, that came to them, when their emotions were at the lowest.

🐾 For BSD Cast, you are Guiding Light. Human from other world. Reader, who were with them during important moments of their lives. Reader, whose emotions made them feel alive. Reader, whose words made them whole again. Reader, who show them light in this dark, chaotic situation.

🐾 For BSD Cast, you are one of the reasons to get into Real World.

🐾 You are many things to them. And BSD Cast wish, that they knew how you look like.

🐾 Every day, Elise draws a picture of you. And every day you have a different appearance.

🐾 And one day, while still been in their world, they saw you.

_____________

"Okay, I have finished scanning my old photos and almost finished with saving my old videos on my computer. Time to store them in cloud drive."

BSD Cast feel exited. Finally, they will see you.

The moment the first photo was stored in cloud drive, Fyodor, Katai and Ango start working on getting it.

Thirty minutes later, BSD Cast gathered in a Meeting Room. Main Screen was lit up. Ango clicked on first file.

The photo appeared on the screen.

Your baby photo.

Melville chuckled.

"They were a cute baby."

Then everyone heard Kenji's gasp. Miyazawa looked at your picture in awe.

"Their eyes are so pretty!"

Everyone finally paid attention to your eyes.

Kenji beamed.

"They have starts in their eyes!"

The next few hours were full of photos and videos. Of a child, of a teenager. Of Their Guiding Light with Starry Eyes.

________________

🐾 Everyone are mesmerized by your eyes. They are so unique. They already knew that you are unique, and your eyes just a future-proof of you been unique.

🍰 💉 Elise immediately drew a 'correct' picture of you. Despite all his pleads, she didn't drew a second picture for Mori and keep the first one for herself.

🚬🐋 Each member of BSD cast had a few copies of your cutest child photos. Melville and Hirotsu already bragging about how cute you were as a child. Like proud grandfathers.

⭐⭕ Kyuusaku feel that you two a somewhat similar, with one of their eyes also a starry. Feel spiritual connection to you. Feel proud of themselves.

🐾 BSD Cast want to see you face to face even more now.

🐾 They want to make sure that stars in your eyes will always shine brightly.

[star-girl69]

Oh my Goshh!!! I just really LOVE your writings!! And I'd like to send a request too!!

So, Neytiri and Jake fell in love with a fem!human reader. And they wanted to court her. But, one day...the reader tell them she's going back to Earth again, and she's just recently got engaged and about to get married. The R said she's probably not gonna go back to Pandora. And I'd like to know how would they process it all, and how they would deal with it.

Oh please, please, please... I need a bit of angst 🥹🥹

Three White Butterflies

Jake Sully x Neytiri x Fem!Reader

a/n: tysm for the request anon!! i wrote this in like a day so idk how good it is but i hope you all enjoy!!

title from “grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he’s deep sea fishing” by lana del rey!!

warnings: angst. tell me if i missed anything!!

—-

Whenever Jake and Neytiri thought of you, they thought of butterflies.

Neytiri had been obsessed with them ever since you had showed her a picture in a book of yours, a small blue one resting daintily on a bright green leaf. It was from years and years ago, from before the humans killed their world, their mother.

Now, beautiful things like that only live on in memories and pictures.

Neytiri thought they were so similar to atokirina, tiny little things that float on the wind. Jake remembered seeing one of the last ones as a child, a dying remnant of a soon-forgotten world. A colorful little cage full of flowers and leaves to rest on, he thought, while tiny children stuck their faces up against the glass.

You were like an atokirina, a butterfly, the two of them thought. You went where the wind takes you and you drew everyone’s attention as you flew past. Sometimes, Neytiri felt like you couldn’t be compared to anything. You were a category of your own, something they’ve never seen before.

They liked that newness. They liked everything about you. The sound of your footsteps, your touch, your voice, your eyes.

So, when Neytiri looks up from the small dinner fire and her ears twitch, Jake’s soon following, they hear your footsteps. You’ve adapted so well to the forest, to their lessons, you can silently creep through anywhere. But, they know you.

“Jake! Neytiri!” you call out, and Neytiri straightens her top and Jake tries to hide the stupid smile on his face.

“Y/N,” Neytiri sighs, like something had been lifted off of her shoulders. Now, only atokirina and butterflies rest on her shoulders, they carry no weight, only soft love.

—-

Jake nods up at you with a low smile, and you nervously wave, shifting around a basket full of fruit resting on the ground. Neytiri rises to grab your hand, smiling so brightly it’s like she’s the sun or something, leading you to sit next to her.

“What are you doing here today?” Jake asks, picking with the roasted sturmbeest in his hands. “Thought you were coming tomorrow.”

You smile, fiddling with the ring on your finger. It’s only thin metal and a small glass bead, but it’s enough for you, and it’s a piece of Pandora.

Jake and Neytiri have been your dearest friends ever since you came here, ever since Norm introduced you and you were hopeless with all things involving the forest.

Maybe if things were different, you could have been something more, maybe if you hadn’t met the person who put this ring on your finger. You steal a glance downwards, the glass briefly catching the setting sun.

“I won’t be here tomorrow,” you say awkwardly into the waiting silence. You don’t owe them anything, not really, but you still don’t want to disappoint them.

“Oh,” Neytiri muses, reaching forward for a fruit she knows you like. “You are visiting the sea, then? The plains?”

“No, I-” you take a deep breath and release your ring from your grip, just so it can shine in the light. Neytiri is too busy peeling the fruit to notice, but Jake, who’s across from you, who knows human customs, sees it.

You can see the recognition flash across his face, the sadness, the anger, bue fore he pushes it all down and looks up at you expectantly. Like he’s waiting for you to do something you can’t, like he’s waiting for you to deny his suspicions.

“I’m getting married,” you say. Your smile comes out oddly, almost forced, but relief blows through you like a tsunami. “There’s a ship that leaves for Earth tomorrow, and I know that it seems fast, but there’s just a million things I want to do- that I can’t do here.”

Neytiri stills next to you, and Jake’s shoulders deflate, and you hope it’s not what you think it is, because you cannot handle knowing you’re breaking their hearts.

“I- I’m very happy,” you say. Staring into Jake’s eyes, you cannot help but feel like there’s blood on your hands, like you’ve destroyed a life that you didn’t even know was there.

But, there is a life right in front of you, where there’s no atokirina or butterflies. There is only facts, a steady future. You’ll go back to Earth and you’ll live while it dies around you, and then you’ll die too.

This is how it will be, how it was always going to be. You’re a human, and humans are meant to live as fast as they destroy.

Still, you feel like there is blood on your hands and the remnants of a life not lived all around you.

Neytiri is the first to speak, to break the silence. It feels like she’s trying to punch through the ice, but she doesn’t really care about what’s on the other side.

“Oh,” is all she says for a moment, and you have to stare at the stones surrounding the fire. “I see.”

She places the half peeled fruit back with the others, like it was never even meant for you, but the three of you know it was.

“I came to say goodbye,” you whisper. Still, no one speaks, and when you look up, neither Jake or Neytiri can meet your eyes. “I just- I just wanted to say goodbye.”

Neytiri stands up suddenly, heading towards the direction of their tent. You can picture it now, the small indoor fire for when it’s cold, the hammock for the two, everything else that makes it theirs.

Besides, their home isn’t even fit for a human, if there was even some sort of path laid out there. But there’s not, and you’re going back to Earth, so there never will be.

She shoots a quick look over her shoulder.

“You’ve said your goodbyes. Goodbye, Y/N.”

You flinch at the small twig that snaps under her feet as she walks into the tent, the sound of the fabric whipping shut behind her.

You stare at the stones surrounding the fire. It feels like Pandora is the fire, the exciting life, and the stones are what you’re headed to.

“She’s just angry,” Jake says after a moment. You can’t look up at him, because you’re sure that he still has that same look on his face. Like you’re taking a part of his life away from him, an option, and you can’t handle that right now.

Because if you look at him and you see that look, you might change your mind, and you can’t. There is a life waiting for you, that will be happy and stable. And even if you’re not happy at first, you’ll learn to be happy.

“She does hope your happy, Y/N. I do too, she just- she just can’t say it right now.”

When you look up, you look at the bright green forest behind him, at the atokirina that floats past in the distance- almost too far to see. But you see it.

You nod and swallow, something wet falling down your cheek that you manage to hide. Or maybe he does he it, and he just doesn’t care anymore.

“I know. I- uh, I know. Goodbye, Jake,” you say.

And you seal off a part of your life forever.

—-

When Jake and Neytiri think of you, they thought about a life that they could live, about butterflies and atokirina and happiness.

Now, there is only broken hearts and three white butterflies, one going off in different directions.

A part of their life is sealed off forever.

—-

taglist:

@monsterwasstolen @fanboyluvr @artologia-blog1 @tulipatheticee @elvyshiarieko @fluffisalliwant @fluffi19 @jeizllz @myheartfollower @fy-fy-world @minkyungseokie @ivy-plays @blueberryfailureclinic @cryingwhilereading @thatratprincessforever @dumb-fawkin-bitch @sillyblues @buttercup-beeee @smollangrycat @n7cje @eternallyvenus @iwanttogohomeandtakeanap @w3ird11 @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @babyminghao

[reallyromealone]

Surprise pokemon

Roark x son reader

Male reader, fluff, child reader

Roark watched as his toddler tried to feed the gym leaders pokemon in the back yard, struggling with onyx as he was using the cup Roark used for Geodude and cranidos "you gotta use the big cup bud!" He said to the boy who slowly moved and looked surprised at the big bowl.

The thing is, the bowl was half the size of his little body.

(Name) eventually fed all three pokemon and followed his dad back inside "guess whose visiting tonight?" Roark asked as he prepared his son breakfast, the boy in his chair boosted by Roarks rock books, thick textbooks.

"Who?" (Name) asked as the elder placed food infront of him and his own spot at the table "grandpa!"

(Name) bounced happily and did his "grandpa dance" while eating, always excited to see his grandfather, Roark happy they're close.

"There's my little grandson!" Byron said when he came by a few hours later, lifting the boy up and into his arms "are you excited for today!"

(Name) had no clue what the two had planned for him, the boy just excited for grandpa.

Today he was getting his first pokemon.

Little (name) was confused as they went to sandgem town, the two gym leaders happened to friends with The professor who was more than happy to facilitate the tiny boy with a pokemon.

"But I got a pokemon already" (name) said simply and the three adults looked at him confused "no you don't?" Roark asked his son confused and (name) puffed out his cheeks "ya I do! I met him in our back yard!"

"What does this pokemon look like?" Rowan asked crouching before the tiny boy with a pen and paper and the boy drew a very crude picture of... "Are you sure you saw this pokemon?" The professor asked wide eyed and the boy nodded "they are my pokemon!"

"Come out!" (Name) said with a small basket of berries, all of which sweet as the adults stood back and watched as a garchomp came out of the bushes "see! I got a pokemon!" The boy was very proud as the garchomp let him pet him and feed him "by arcieus..." The adults were stunned to say the least as the little boy fed one of the single most dangerous pokemon in the region "have you caught this pokemon?"

(Name) shook his head and tentatively the professor walked to the boy and gave him a pokeball and went back as the pokemon got protective of the tiny boy "you wanna stay with me?" (Name) asked the giant of a pokemon who looked down at the boy blankly before a short nod, after some help from his dad the boy caught the pokemon.

"(Name), would it be possible for you to allow me to study your garchomp?"

(Name) shrugged and held his pokeball "gotta ask him" (name) said simply before releasing his pokemon, the boy and pokemon both quite happy "is there any secret pokemon you have?" Roark asked his son who smiled "I got Lotta friends!"

(Name) by the end of the day showed his family/the professor his "friends"

A garchomp

A ralts

And a strange looking ditto

"A shiny ditto?" Roark really needed to keep a closer eye on his son.

"He's shy about it" (name) said feeding the blob an oran berry "I have so many questions.." Rowan said taking notes and pictures.

[harveybwabbit92]

{Akari showing photos of herself along with Mile and Nayaka and few other UFG members, one picture stands out to Leo who decides to poke fun at her.]

Leo, points at a teenage boy: Who's that? your boyfriend?

Akari, looks grossed: Ew, no! that's your grandson, dude! I used to change his diapers!

Leo, blinks:............My w-what?

{Akari gets an oh crap look on her face, when she realizes Leo didn't know about Mile's son.]

Akari: Okay, I just remembered I have this thing... to do... at this place, bye! *runs away*

Leo:

{Later]

Mile, singing under her breath: I don't want to set the world on fire....I just (Sees Leo sitting in her living room) Eek! *Ahem* Hey dad, everything okay?

Leo: Why didn't you tell me I had a grandson?

Mile: How did- *Leo holds up the photo of Akari and Mile's son* Oh.

Leo: I supposed your married then, what's he like does he treat you well?

Mile: I'm not married, dad. And the boy's not actually related to you I adopted him. of course calling him a boy a bit of a stretch since Kouki's a grown adult now with a child of his own.

Leo: I'm great-grandfather?!

{Mile pretty sums it up for him, when she was still part of the UFG's rescue unit she found a large house that was caved in she could already tell there were dead bodies in there, the smell gave it away... But what she wasn't expecting was the sound of baby crying.

Mile was in a panic as she dug into the rubble before finding a small niche where the body of a woman lay her bottom half was crushed under the rubble, but a few inches away; just out of her outstretched arms reach was baby boy covered in dust and scrapes, Mile carefully picked up the baby up and got him to the medics but a few days later she couldn't get the kid out of her head she checked in on him and found his entire family was wiped out.]

Leo: The whole family?

Mile: Yeah, it was some kind of family event and that's why they all there in one place, and then I took Kouki home.

Mile: Nayaka was soo against it. She said "Milene, we hardly know how to look after ourselves, what makes you think that you can take care of a baby?!" we didn't talk to each other for a while after that, we both used Akari to spy on each other, until she got sick of it and told us to to grow a pair and sort our own crap out..And we did.

*Points at a photo of Kouki's elementary school graduation with Nayaka and Commander Sato in attendance with Mile.*

Mile: Then a few years down the line he met a girl and got her pregnant before he finished high school... That's where your great-granddaughter Kairi came from. Kouki's raising her by himself, I won't talk about her mother, that woman is undeserving of the title. But Kairi is the sweetest little girl, She's only 3 and like to draw dinosaurs as astronauts. She says she wants to join the UFG when she's older though I'm not holding my breath, a kid's mind can change after all.

Leo: Why haven't I met them yet?

Mile: They're on vacation right now, but are due back tomorrow.

{The next morning Mile and an anxious Gen waited at the airport for Kouki and Kairi to arrive, Mile nudge her dad when she spotted her son and granddaughter among the crowd disembarking passengers. Kairi was the first to spot her grandma and ran into her arms as Kouki told her to slow down. Mile greeted them both, then Kairi noticed Gen standing off to the side.]

Kairi, points at Gen: Who dis?

Mile: This is Gen Otori, my dad. your grandfather.

{Gen nervously greeted his grandson and granddaughter and needless to say. they both took a shine to him very quickly, Kairi in particular became very a attached to grandpa lee whenever Leo visited Earth she always had something to show or give him pictures she drew which he proudly hangs in his room back home.]

_meanwhile_

Zoffy: You don't have any secret children I should know about, do you?

Nayaka: I'm too busy for kids...But, wait and see maybe someday.

Zoffy: Right. someday.

{Someday came in the form of a steamy "I'm so happy you're alive!" moment between Nayaka and Zero and a few months after that Alto was born.]

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

{Mile is short for Milene}

[laquinart]

'Beti zuzen'

(Using a modified version of @anubiarts.bsky.social's HoneyGB palette: https://lospec.com/palette-list/honeygb)

Apparently, my great-grandfather had a broken finger which he couldn't straighten, and he'd humorously tell his kids to walk upright while showing his curved finger as shown in the drawing.

While I never got to know him, my grandpa adopted the tradition and spent his whole life telling us to walk upright while curving his finger.

He sadly passed away a year ago, so I drew this in his memory.

About the drawing itself, considering how hard of a task drawing hands can be (especially in unconventional poses like this), it looks OK. The pinky finger has a somewhat weird shape, the proportions are not really good (but they're better than in the first sketch lol).

I like how I used a single color for the middle finger on the back, making it more monotonous, which is great to avoid the viewer getting distracted by unimportant parts.

The ornamentation on the frame looks really good! I'm so happy with that.

Finally, about the palette: I'm not used to using such few colors, but I'm trying to learn to get the most out of a reduced palette. I initially started drawing using a six-color palette from Lospec, but it was darn hard.

After failing for a while, I decided to try something different: make the drawing in grayscale, THEN add colors when I was done with the shapes.

I ended up needing five tones in the grayscale version, which I ended up reducing to just four in the colored version.

I then tried a few palettes from Lospec, I wanted the feeling to be appropriate for the context. The reason I didn't make my own colors is mostly for practice, since I knew I could go crazy adding new colors to the palette had I had the opportunity.

The HoneyGB palette looked about right, but its brightest color made way too much contrast with the rest of the picture. While this might be desirable in some cases, it's not what I was looking for, so I muted the highlight a bit, making it closer to the neighboring tone.

[rosetyler42]

Ericka Pregnancy Dump Part 2!

1. Cute/funny idea I recently came up with of sleepy pregnant Ericka trying to get some work done (I'm sure both in WIR-Verse and in her regular one, she'd try to keep working as long as she can. Even if she gets taken off in-game duties. She's very much the cheerful enthusiastic passionate about her job workaholic like Joy is. And we all know about Joy's Stonetide faceplant.) Mavis of course is helpful, having been there once in a way. And Van Helsing...well, let's just say it's a little bit of payback for the times Ericka's been annoyed by his tendency to take impromptu naps. Not the best idea to be making those jokes next to the daughter of his former rival who's the one of the 3 who's actually BEEN there, but still. He would. XD

2/3. XD I drew Hungry pregnant Ericka. Along with a fun bit of fluff that spun out of it. Yes, I broke my craving rule but him calming her down/distracting her with a kiss is adorable. And it does have the spirit of the idea anyway.

4. Was in the mood for some new mom Ericka stuff. (Again, it's regular Ericka to make it workable for both universes.) When I drew the first one with Drac, I kinda figured Ericka would be wiped out from the end of a twin pregnancy and either birth or a c-cection. So she waited a bit to hold the twins so she could rest up. Thinking about that and the irony of Ericka worrying about being cold since she was raised by her strict, by-the-book Great-Grandfather with how I think she'd actually be (I do love Mama Ericka, whether it's with Mavis or the twins.), It inspired this.

Don't worry, she'll get to the "Look at these! I made these!" Showing the twins off to everybody point eventually. But everyone else had a chance while she was wiped, she wants her moment to bond and she's not letting go of her baby bats that easily.

5. Wanted to draw Ericka curled up asleep in the cape. Ended up being pregnant Ericka. Bonus sleepy Transylvanian and Ericka hugging her bump as she sleeps!

(And she was worried she might be a harsh cold mom, having beem raised by a strict, not-too-affectionate guardian herself.)

6. This one came to me while I was working on a previous idea. I liked the idea of Drac, despite actually being the one killable by sunlight, shielding/sheltering Ericka under his cape. Even better with her being pregnant since pregnancy DOES make your skin more sensitive AND can cause you to overheat since you feel warmer anyway with all the extra bloodflow. Hense this wholesome moment. (This may possibly be in Game Central Station. I've played with the idea that, like Bot Fighter, HT's time zones are flipped since most of the game happens at night.

Bonus:

" Nice hat...Isn't that your monster festival hat?"

"**blushing, looking away** Y-yez. I know it lookz zilly on me, but it'z ztill the mozt protective thing I have. Vell, I mean, bezidez the babushkaz, and-"

"Hmm, well you're hot to me, handsome vamp. **chuckle** ...Seriously, though. I like it. Sure, it's no ax. But...You look charming in ANYTHING."

7. This started out as a gag where Frank (being something of the calmer laid-back one of the group normally and almost the 2nd in command of the pack before Ericka came along. Especially in the first one. He's also kinda Ericka's "big brother" figure I think.) was trying to keep the guys from crowding Ericka trying to touch her bump and ended up being just general "family with a new/expectant mom" chaos of everybody around Ericka and her kind of giggling to herself about being surrounded by all this. I kinda like that, it shows how far my girl has come. Going from being largely on her own, doing for others more than herself, and actually at one point ignored or intimidated when she was upset to being fussed over and surrounded by family. It's sweet.

8. Drew this one a while back based on some fat Serleena screenshots XD (Since Ericka's pregnant with Twins and MIB 2 is also a Columbia Pictures film, I think the comparison is...kinda funny. Plus Ericka WOULD joke about eating people to those who point out how big she's gotten.)

9. I had to do the packs' reaction to finding out about Ericka having twins some point. while all of them ribbing him would be funny, I ended up going a little more with personality: Frank being the happy supportive guy, Murray's the excited one, Wayne's the experienced one trying to offer help, and of course Griffin is the smart-alec jokester. Drac's reaction to this is...well, what you'd expect. XD

Kinda fun to include Wayne in this considering he didn't really get a chance to react to Drac's crush on Ericka with the others (Aside from his comment in the Novelization which it's a shame it didn't happen in the film XD)

10. And the first drawing of the new year: Wanted to draw Dracula with his newborn twin babies. Ended up adding bonus post-labor Ericka. (Been whembling about if she actually does labor or a C-section.)

@gothicthundra @ebevkisk @neo-storm @that-obsessed-gay-girl @sine-qua-noon @chica-chuu @animatedpixie @erickadracula @ericka-van-helsing @erickaanddraculasblog @ericka4ever @elenadracula @drericka @drericka-prompts @drericka-is-lyfe-blog @drerickastan @thenerdynightprincess13 @thesecreatoroftrans @f-mhoteltransylvaniacomicseries @kittyball23 @lovelylivelyv

[blowflyfag]

WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION MAGAZINE :  JANUARY 1996

THE WRITER, THE OWNER, THE COWBOY, AND THE HITMAN

Athlete, Actor, Entrepreneur & Columnist, Hart Has It All Goin’ On

By Keith Elliot Greenberg

The beard itched and made Bret Hart uncomfortable in front of his fans. “I don’t know about this,” he said about the stubble on his face as a doctor checked his blood pressure in the dressing room prior to a match with Isaac Yankem D.D.S. at New York Madison Square Garden. “You sure you want to run a picture of me with the beard? I mean, people might get the wrong idea.” Bret’s main concern was that his followers would think he was trying to change his image. In reality, he was simply slated to play a bearded character in the television western Lonesome Dove. “I want to make someone clear,” he stressed. “I’m not going for a new look–I’m the same guy. Plus, my 7-year-old daughter won't kiss me as long as I have this beard. So as soon as I’m finished with Lonesome Dove, it’s coming off. I just want to be me again.”

[Bret the Writer : Bret, the artist and writer, has a weekly column that is published in his hometown paper the Calgary Sun]

That’s a difficult challenge for Hart. As one of the Federation’s most sought-after personalities, he must divide–and then subdivide–his time. THe morning of our Madison Square Garden conversation, he attended a benefit for disabled youngsters. The night before, he wrestled in Boston. His schedule for the next few days was dizzying: A morning autograph session in Washington, D.C., followed by an afternoon match in Providence, Rhode Island, On Saturday–the same day his weekly column was published in his hometown paper, the Calgary Sun, accompanied by a Hart-illustrated cartoon. Then there was Lonesome Dove on Tuesday. On Monday, Thanksgiving in his native Canada, Bret combined business with pleasure. He and his family were going to watch the Calgary Hitmen, the junior hockey team he co owns.

[Bret the Owner : Bret has been playing hockey since he could barely walk. Today he skates with pride as part owner of the Calgary Hitmen.]

Two days after our conversation in New York, Bret and I hooked up again in Calgary at the Hitman’s office. Trying to make the most of his time in his hometown, Bret brought along his sons Dallas, 11, and Blade, 5. I talked to Bret about watching wrestling as a kid with my father and grandfather and noted how a night at the matches drew the family together. The Hit Man thought about my statement and seemed a little sad. While other families were growing close, cheering him on night after night, he was often far away from his own children. 

As we chatted, a family walked into the office to purchase tickets for the day’s hockey game. As they evaluated the location of their seats, they spotted the two-time Federation Champion standing in the lobby with his sons. Each member of the family jumped back in disbelief. Bret responded with a smile and handshakes for everyone. 

Two other sports celebrities, hockey players Theoren Fleury of the Calgary Flames and Joe Salic of the Colorado Avalanche, are shareholders in the team, but the Hitman takes its name—and much of its inspiration—from the World Wrestling Federation superstar. 

“When Bret shows up at a press conference, we get double the media,” said Assistant General Manager Rusty James. “He adds an emotional element to the games. When he went on TV before we played the Red Deer Rebels and promised to run them out of town, it fired up the whole city of Calgary.” Incidentally, the Hitmen won that game 7-1.

The Hitmen are in their inaugural season in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Most of the players on this level are between 16 and 20 years old, and all have put everything else on hold for a chance to be recruited into the National Hockey League (NHL). The pressure is enormous, and the pace is hard; but in last year’s NHL draft, 55 WHL players were chosen. 

Like most Canadians, Bret has been playing hockey since he could walk. His father, legendary Calgary promoter and wrestler Stu Hart, owned a resort in Clearwater Beach, Alberta, and when the lake would freeze up, all 12 Hart children—boys and girls—would choose up sides and go at it on the ice. “If someone had told me at the time that one day I’d own a hockey team named after me, it would have seemed quite unbelievable,” the Hit Man says. 

Two years ago, Hart was chosen to drop the puck before a game between two Saskatchewan teams, the Regina Pats and the Saskatoon Blades, with the proceeds going to lupus research. “There was something about that experience I can’t explain,” Bret says. “I guess something from my childhood came out. You know, I grew up watching the WHL because we didn’t have an NHL team in Calgary, I wanted to get involved.” 

At the Corral—an arena on the Calgary Stampede fairgrounds where he once broke a record for selling wrestling programs (1,000 in one night)—Bret met up with his wife, Julie, daughters Jade, 12, and Alexandra—better known as “Beans”—7, and a niece, Annie, 10. Players were jogging around the circular building, while hockey stickers were being prepared and blades sharpened.

On the way into the Corral, Bret was stopped by a radio reporter from Regina, birthplace of Julie Hart and home of the Hitmen’s opponents, the Pats. Bret answered every question, even though his mind was on other matters. Afterward, he asked the reporter if the interview was up to par and whether they should do it again.

“Don’t worry about it,” the journalist answered, surprised by Bret’s perfectionism. “You were great.” 

Now it was time to have some fun. Hart suited up in the locker room and clowned around with such Calgary players as Mike Piersol, the 20-year-old left defenseman from Arlington Heights, Illinois–the only American on the team; Ukrainian right wing Boris Protsenko, 17; and Rod Branch, the 20-year-old goalie from Fort St. John, British Columbia. When he passed the locker of “Sugar Ray'' Schultz, 20, the Edmonton-bred right defenseman who’d later get into a scuffle on the ice, Bret joked, “He could probably teach me how to throw cheap shots.”

Some 3,800 fans turned out for the game–an incredible crowd for the WHL on a holiday afternoon–but the Pats would come out on top. Nonetheless, the Hitmen waged the same type of noble battle Bret was known for during his early days in the ring. 

Schultz actually drew a parallel between the team and the man called the “Excellence of Execution”: “We’re not a big, bruising team. We’re a finesse skating team. We care more about skill than acting like meatheads.”

[Bret the Cowboy : Luther Root, alias Bret Hart, seems to be making Curtis Wells another home as he rides high in the saddle on “Lonesome Dove.”]

This is the same ethic Bret brings to his acting career. “All athletes talk about going into movies and television,” he said later as we sat in his trailer in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, waiting for the director to call him for his scene in Lonesome Dove. “But how many are really good at it? I just didn’t want to do this for the money. I wanted to give my heart to it.” 

Last year, Lonesome Dove watchers met Bret’s character Luther Root, a mountain man in the town of Curtis Wells in Montana Territory 115 years ago. This year, Luther returns for several episodes. The discovery of copper has changed the town forever. Workers and desperadoes have flooded into Curtis Wells. The roughshod Luther Root no longer lives in the wilderness. Now he has a job riding shotgun on the stagecoach and regularly interacts with onetime bounty hunter Newt Call (played by Scott Bairstow), former Confederate Colonel Clay Mosby (Eric McCormack) and the passionate Amanda Carpenter (Tracy Scoggins). According to Lonesome Dove’s promotional material, Luther is “as quick with a joke as he is with a gun–a good man to have on your side.”

“I find my character easier to play each time,” Bret said. “Last year, he was a snarly, unfriendly trapper, but now he’s learning to have fun.” 

The show has particular significance for Bret, since part of his father’s family lived the life of the characters as pioneers in Dakota Territory. In the cowboy city of Calgary–where the yearly Stampede draws spectators from all over the world to rodeo events–young Bret read western fiction and history fantasized about meeting such legendary figures as Davey Crockett and Jesse James. 

While the Hit Man relaxed in the “circus,” a collection of trailers and motorhomes serving as the cast and crew’s headquarters, I took a tour of Curtis Wells with photographer Chris Large and assistant Matt Paler. This is one of the most extensive western towns in Tv history, with about 70 houses and buildings  stocked with a million dollars’ worth of antiques from the Old West: 25 cast iron stoves, 100 oil lamps, enough tables and chairs to seat 150 people in the saloon, 20 beds, a functioning blacksmith shop and a newspaper with a working press.  None of the buildings are heated. As it gets cold in this part of Canada in the fall, some actors have had to suck on ice cubes before scenes so their breath wasn’t visible on camera. 

Bret fit right in. He has an iron-clad memory and rarely forgets a line. Plus, his years with the Federation have made him comfortable in front of the lens. “For someone without acting experience, he’s done a great job,” Palmer said. “He’s not just an athlete getting a role because of his name. He definitely has some natural talent there.” 

Bret found out about Lonesome Dove through his friend Mitch Ackerman, a vice president at Disney. When Ackerman discovered the show was being filmed near Calgary, he put him in touch with producer Steven North. “I went for one interview,” Bret remembered. “I thought they’d say, ‘See you later,’ but three days later they called to say, ‘We wrote in a part for you.’”

On the day I visited the set, Luther Rott was engaged in a tense exchange with Sheriff Austin Peale (Paul Johansson). Although Luther is a man of few words, every sentence from Bret’s mouth had its desired effect. It was easy to understand how–after just two appearances on the show last year–Bret’s name was submitted for a Gemini Award–or Canadian Emmy–for Best Actor in a Guest Role in a Dramatic Series. 

[Bret the Hitman : Writer, owner, actor, wrestler–Bret may be the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be.]

“It’s great to get this kind of recognition,” he said. “It’s also tough being busy with so many different things at once, but I believe in doing the most you can while you have the opportunity. When this all ends, I want to be remembered as a guy who made as many inroads as possible.”

[realmadridfamily]

“My father told me: Ana, Davide is from another world, we are people next door.”

When young Ana Galocha (Seville, 1985) drew for hours at her home in Mairena del Alcor, she had no idea how her life would change in 2014. While working at the Shoko nightclub in Madrid, where she had settled six years earlier to become an actress, a friend wanted to introduce her to Davide, the son of Carlo Ancelotti, but she did not show much interest. "I didn't know anything about football. I pictured him as a typical goofball. We started talking and two months later he went to Seville to surprise me. I told him I couldn't stay because I rarely go to Seville because I can't afford it, and when I do, it's with my family. If he wanted to see me, he had to come to my parents' house for dinner. And he came!” Ana explains. Their worlds were polar opposites. Ana's father, an electrician, worked at the Morón de la Frontera air base, and her mother "in factories, picking fruit, olives ...". Davide (Parma, 1989) was a footballer and was already a physical trainer working with his father at Real Madrid. “My father told me: Ana, Davide is from another world, we are people next door. He was afraid I was just a whim of him". But they continued their relationship. "Now my parents defend him more than I do when we fight!" she smiles. Galocha lives discreetly and gets nervous at the beginning of the interview. At the age of 21, she came to Madrid to study Interpretation. “I had a hard time making ends meet. I shared an apartment, worked as a flight attendant, waitress, reporter ... One day my mother came to me, opened the refrigerator and saw that it was empty. She didn't say anything to me, but she started crying again because I had nothing to eat. I was about to give up, but I kept going, and that's how life got me to where I am now." - she says. Today, she still lives in the capital with Davide and her twins, Leo and Lucas, and can do what she has loved most since she was a child: painting. “My photos inspire me. I try to have fun, I try colors, shapes, techniques... I'm self-taught. I graduated from art high school, but I didn't want to go to art because they made me paint with deadlines and what they wanted, which made me lose my love for what I liked the most.” Even though she hasn't exhibited her work yet and has sold a few paintings ("I'm a very bad seller"), she has a waiting list. "It's special when I paint my children, but the most significant drawing was a portrait of my grandfather, which I made in pencil, gave it to him, and he kept it at home until he died." During these eight years he accompanied Davide to Naples, Liverpool, Parma and Munich. “When he was without a team, we lived in my city and he has adapted phenomenally, he is very humble and more urban than me!” she laughs. “He is calm and I am very impulsive. He likes to be at home and I like to go out. He is very shy and I am not at all. But our secret is to trust and respect our spaces.” It's hard for her to remember the exact day of the proposal, which was in 2017. “It was the last day of our holiday in Formentera. We were going to dinner, Carlo (Ancelotti) called us and kept asking about dinner. He was his son's accomplice! We got to the restaurant and there was a flamenco group that I love and that Davide had hired. We had a bottle of wine and he asked me if we could order another. I was surprised because there were two of us. We ask for it and we invite musicians. And there he put a ring on me. I was empty and it took me a while to say yes." - she's joking. Twice they had to cancel the wedding due to the pandemic, and a week before the wedding, Ana showed off her impulsiveness. “I had a wedding dress ready for two years, but I got bored of it. I went to Barcelona alone. I tried one on a mannequin and three days before the wedding they shipped it to my house. Our wedding reception was a great surprise along with the celebration our friends organized for us.” Of course, their families were with them, who experienced this day intensively. "Carlo is a very calm and friendly man. We get along really well. At first it's hard for him to open up, but then ... he loves jokes. He speaks Spanish and Italian, and I don't understand most of them, but I burst out laughing. Besides, he likes flamenco and as a grandfather he is wonderful, although he works a lot and we don't see each other as often as we would like. We go to his house in the summer and he loves to cook pasta for the whole family. He is a great cook.” - says Ana about the coach of Real Madrid. Ana Galocha's future is not yet written. She has many dreams to fulfill. "I'm back in acting and doing a DJ course. I want to enjoy my paintings and I have no great ambitions in this respect.” As for the new movement, he has everything clear. “Davide is not going to China! He really wants to work in teams in Europe, but if he went to China, I would go with him."

[mx-jester]

Happy Birthday to me :D

So I was feeling nostalgic (in a good way rather than my normal depressed way) and wanted to make a small art thing in reference to my experience with birthdays.

Mentions of suicide, depression, and abuse under the cut (I promise it makes sense)

Ive had a rough relationship with my birthday for years

From being sad no one remembers, to realizing I never though I would make it till that age, birthdays are complicated for me.

So in remembrance to how far I've made it, I drew my current self with my younger self. The self who didn't think I would last till my next birthday, the self who need a good birthday but didn't have one. I think this is the first time I've had a good birthday since I was like... nine? (9). Along with that, every year I can see people knowing me less and less as I get older. The only gifts I get that feel like they are even for me are just money, but then that can feel soulless to. I'm grateful that I get anything at all, but it hurts knowing they wasted the effort on something that they should know I wouldn't like. (This is specifically about my mom, she gets me stuff she would like me to like rather than actually liking)

Its also ironic, because my father left my family and I several years ago on the weekend of my birthday. His dad (aka my grandfather on that side) even sent me and my brother cards this year, after almost four (4) years of no contact this is what I get. I'd almost like to talk with him, my father that is. That man has done irreversible damage to our whole family, and unfortunately I got it the worst. (Thanks dad for literally abusing the reason for your whole marriage, thanks dad)

Im proud to have made it this far, my birthday doesn't make me sick to my stomach anymore.

Also I showed my mom the drawing because I was proud of it, and she just said "I don't like that picture of you"... great confidence booster that was...

[millenialmfa]

I love this post. I LOVE this post. When I was in Kindergarten, my teacher wanted to show my family a drawing we were supposed to do if our parents or family members (something like that). At that time, I was living in the house with my mother, my aunt, my grandparents, and my dad would visit sometimes on the weekend. As a baby, my mom was involved with a gay man who even after he came out stayed close with the family (there’s tons of pictures of him holding me as a baby). Anyway, they showed the picture I drew, where I told my teacher I had FIVE PARENTS.

I was an only child, but I was never lonely. My aunt was like the cool big sister, my grandpa pushed me on the swing and taught me about yardwork and exposed me to classic musicals, my grandma is the reason I can cook and bake.

It doesn’t matter how they get there: more people in your child’s life is a good thing.

Fast forward to when I am 15. My grandparents adopt me. My aunt legally becomes my sister, her children legally become my niece and nephew, my grandfather, almost near retirement, gets to joke around with his office that he has a teenager at home and she’s accomplishing xyz insert whatever activity they were keeping me busy with. My grandparents wouldn’t have it any other way.

You know who “gave me away” at my wedding? Six different people all in unison agreeing to help me and my husband on our journey.

I had TWO father/daughter dances that night. No one batted an eye.

More people doesn’t make your kid’s life complicated. It makes it better, I promise. It takes a village. Whether that village comes about organically, legally, through marriage, or polyamory.

I do think it's pretty funny that fanfic premises based on illegitimate kids as an excuse for crossovers over the years have gone from "Mom character CHEATED on Dad character 😡" to "once upon a time, mommy and daddy had a threesome and now we have YOU!" lmaoooo. People don't want marital discord they just want a third parent

[sonicenvy]

list of incredible patrons at my library in no particular order:

The mom (EP) with two super sweet little kids who has incredibly long hair (ft. jedi padawan braid) and is the leader of the local Tolkien fan club and book club. She also sews her own clothes and wears costumes on random days, and takes her kids to renfaire every year in hand made costumes. Last year we helped her find a bunch of owl related stuff and on superbowl sunday she threw a superb owl party for her kids. They made owl cookies and bird nest cookies, which she later showed us. 1000000/10 wish i was as cool as her.

The kid who asked me to help her find books on ventriloquism

The old lady TW who ive spent several sessions teaching her how to do basic computer stuff. peak sweet granny energy out of that lady actually. she sent me an email so sweet once it made me cry at my desk.

the group of sweet very polite 15 year olds who use our tables to (quietly) play settlers of catan and D&D on weekends.

The super cyclist mom who is into BLU and bikes with her adorable kids everywhere. also wish i was even 50% as cool as her and her hyper reflective high vis jacket collection.

The little old grandfather who comes every week to have me help him find new picture books to check out from the library because he reads them to his little 4 year old granddaughter who lives across the country over zoom. Literally so adorable it gets me teary thinking about that.

This little kid who I found a picture book she'd been read before that neither her nor the mom remembered what it was called which made her so happy that every time she comes to the library she remembers me now.

OW who is one of my favorite weird little girls (who i am at least 90% sure is autistic), who once, when she was a toddler drew a picture of T-Rexes in tutus which she showed me. we have good conversations where no one looks at anyone. something something recognition of self in the other.

This little boy who always comes in with his very sweet elderly nanny whose middle name is danger. I shit you not, that's the actual middle name printed on his library card. Love that for him actually. He's ever so sweet and polite.

The wonder triplets, three 12 year old triplets who come in to play computer games on our computers. They are literally sophomores in high school while being 12. They are all very smart, but tragically lack any real tech literacy problem solving skills. we're ... working on that.

[carolingarts]

OVERWORKED my little fan project averages about 300 views per little snippet (with a couple of them about 500) and while that might depress some people and I'd like big numbers, I do freelance entertainment journalism so I know that even the most minor view counts that go above like, 50 views can still result in a profit. I see some people like it regularly but at this point I just want to build up my little dudes. So this post is all about ocs and character takes/headcanon!

WHO ARE THE MAIN PLAYERS IN OVERWORKED?

Sammy Lawrence (pre-ink ish), Pete Bixby, a sound engineer and Foley artist as well as a longtime member of the studio music department, and Alan Sterling - the director of an unnamed (and lost to time and canon cough cough) bendy short.

PETE AND ALAN?

Let's talk about Alan first.

Alan is originally from Kansas (specifically Lawrence Kansas) who grew up poor with his father a coal miner who attempted to unionize the mine he worked in and succeeded (sort of). This unusually liberal idea left Hank Sterling and his family persona non grata so they were ousted from town and moved to California where Alan was drafted but ended up drawing cartoons for Stars and Stripes because of his bad eyesight.

Alan learned teamwork from the army, and came back working for several studios where he followed in his dad's footsteps working for workers rights in animation studios. He married his wife Katherine (kitty) and they have twins, a boy and a girl named William and Elizabeth.

Alan is tenacious, brave, noble,takes no shit, and will die to defend his people but he tends to inspire with grand speeches but make stupid decisions. He's also blind as a bat which is bad news bears when your whole gig is drawing tiny pictures. He lives in fear of people finding out. To hide this he may or may not have a massive savior complex.

PETE BIXBY -

Pete started at JDS because his whole family has a background in theater. His father is an aspiring playwright who makes a living on Broadway as a stagehand, his mother is a costume designer of some renown in off Broadway shows and the family legend is that he has a grandfather who was a famous vaudeville magician.

He's genuinely funny and he'd be a great 'gag man' but he's pretty happy making stupid noises and doing cutting edge work taking Sammy's scores and Jack's songs and working with a couple of other guys in the music department to synch them and print them on film.

He's well liked by the guys at the studio and had a vague knowledge of Henry and how it used to be easier while he was here.

Mr. Drew's ink machine has thrown a wrench into his carefully orchestrated (ha get it) life by making his own job difficult thanks to pipes and leaking ink through electrical sockets. He learned the hard way not to touch it when Sherman (another engineer) got shocked pretty bad. Ever since then he and the other sound guys wear gloves and masks when using the equipment. It's pretty bad back there and that shit *stinks*.

They also have to keep the place clean ironically when the actors come into record and cover up the worst leaks with any posters they can scavenge.

Despite the extra work he's grown closer with the music department then he ever expected to since the ink keeps flooding the stairwell and they end up working late under Sammy's directions. Because they're stuck down there they're cut off from the rest of the studio unless animation interrupts their work which is *the most important*. Anybody can make shit move but they make them talk. Can animation do that? No. Fuck um.

It's not like anyone cares with them stuck down there anyway. They can keep themselves entertained just fine and hell their output is better than most anyway...

Except people say he's acting weird and they're acting weird but worst of all Sammy's acting weird. What the fuck.

SAMMY/MUSIC DEPARTMENT HCs

Just not this.

ANYWAY! Headcanons for my au!

SAMMY'S GOT A HISTORY OF TRAUMA - I feel like this is pretty common in Sammy Aus but he's got an obsessive need to please that he keeps to himself purely to because he's afraid to open himself to others. He defines his personality through his hyperfixation (music) and pleasing powerful figures.

This manifests in treating others like garbage because he defines his worth by his own output and the simple fact is he can't do it alone. **THAT SAID** He prefers to do so by inspiring individuals. In TIOL Joey describes Sammy's musicians as worshipping him.

Joey's a canonical liar and his musicians are grown ass adults but if I'm charting the ink's corruption I'm pretty sure the music department got hit first. It plays up people's emotions and insecurities. Before it attacked people individually (if their personalities were loud enough to warrant it) it manifested that sense of emotional support that came from being a unit.

(I just keep thinking about 'we couldn't get out of our department three times last month because the ink flooded the stairwell. Like how long were they stuck down there? Just breathing in the fumes? Slipping and falling in it?)

HE PLAYS MULTIPLE INSTRUMENTS - this stems from my modern au but he's able to play multiple ones. He plays banjo, violin, and piano

HE FINDS BENDY ANNOYING BUT HE DIDN'T ALWAYS -

Sammy's got a lot of headcanons about him being bored with Bendy or being frustrated with it. I think it's a combination of both - that he started out thinking it would be engaging and easy and he could just top the charts and move on. The arrogance and ego that led him down the dark path was aggrevated by the circumstances around him. He always was, he thought it'd be easy. He drowned metaphorically. Then physically.

SAMMY+THE INK+HIS DEPARTMENT

I'm pretty sure that while Sammy happily took out chunks of the studio he relied on his department and either sacrificed them first to the demon or tried to 'convert' them to his religion. 'The believers must honor their savior.' While it spread, he had his people locked in his department first accidentally than willingly.

In this au (and my personal headcanon) Sammy's transformation occurred privately but when he disappeared he'd either fed his department (or big chunks of it) to the demon or converted his 'sheep' into a true flock either by force or by persuasion.

THE INK-

Purely based on DCTL and TLO we know the ink is addictive, that it causes emotions to be amplified, and that it mutates people and generates objects. We also know it's everywhere.

In Overworked, the music department's proximity coupled with Joey's behavior left that group of people surrounded by it. Bring surrounded and abandoned was different than a bunch of teenagers surrounded by it, or a bunch of adults scared as hell of the stuff. They'd been scared into submission by their boss who, already driven into madness, praised their fortitude and work and so they became a tight knit group and began to distrust others in the studio. This made the group seem standoffish and people grew suspicious of them.

Beyond that, the more broken the mind the more it's amplified and the ink snaps the mind further. It reduces filters and social boundaries. People are essentially becoming inhuman after all! And. That's. A problem!

I could go into little details and I might (I love sadcat animator dad and wet sad cat composer and his herd of cats).

IF PEOPLE HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS please hit me here, and check out part one here!

You can definitely find 'Overworked' on tiktok. Check out the up-to-date story here!