#and how that visit helped me reconcile with my brother

[lost-technology]

2/2

And then our nephew died. Mid-January, just a random heart-attack in his sleep. And well, I was a mess. I've been a mess all year. I quit my job because I thought it was better than getting an assault-charge from beating an abusive little fuck of a coworker upside the head with a greasy metal spatula. (He did not know of my situation, he was just a little fuck I could barely stand in general and in my state, I knew I was going to lose it on somebody, and so it was better to quit and go back into video group-therapy for a while). I had to be on the planning-board for a memorial service for the first time in my life. I thought of going back to the psych hospital, but I was terrified of being treated like a zoo animal / prison inmate again, so I struck it out and somehow didn't drink. I can't say that I didn't do some self-harm, but my fiance' watched out for me and I had to be strong for him. He was grieving, too, even if he's the type to say "I'm used to this, I've been through this before" and to be stoic. I threw a lot into art. I painted a picture of a frolicking Eevee because our nephew loved Eevees. I've been doing a lot of paintings with bright, neon colors - it's a rail against the dark. I took up a much needed cleaning out an area household chore while re-watching Bojack Horseman because my brain decided that parsing what I was going through required watching something really depressing and darkly comic. I didn't keep up with Tristamp with every release. I was so depressed I wasn't even doing things I was interested in - even with therapy-help. I eventually started dragging myself into watching more episodes, particularly as the dub came out and I got to hear the angel-sweet voice of my boy, Johnny Yong Bosch. As far as I'm concerned, that man IS Vash in the voice-department. That was when I was pointing at the screen and telling my partner, who hadn't read all of the manga - "Oh! They're doing this thing from the manga!" "Livio!" - and he watched me BRACE and curl up in my chair when I knew "Ooh, they're gonan find Tessla, aren't they?" - Aaaaand Stampede made it somehow WORSE. Stampede just got better and better. Although I voiced that I missed some of the more comedic tone of '98 and even Trigun Maximum, which was dark, but had it's moments. In any case, along with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" - Trigun pulling me back in became a distraction. It also... well, Trigun is a story of love and grief. Vash loves and he loses and he moves on, carrying the people he lives in his memory. He lives to atone for that which he blames himself for and to protect, aid and simply to experience humanity with those who remain. And THAT is inspiring. I'm sad that my nephew isn't here to watch it with me. I'm sad that we aren't having discussions over Facebook messenger and in-person with holiday visits of the media. I'm sad that I can't tell him "Oh, this happened in the Trigun manga! I can show you! They're doing a bit of a different spin on it, though!" just like he'd talk our ears off coming back from a Marvel movie - him having been an American comics geek. But I'm carrying on and carrying him in my heart. And engaging with Vash as a powerful force in my life once again is reminding me of the courage and determination I need. Vash really is my comfort character, for so many reasons. He is a fictional person, but I thank him for helping me through this goddamned year. So, thank you Vash. Thank you.

Tristamp and Year in Review

I saw someone else speaking of their discovery of Trigun: Stampede and how it helped them through the year and only glossed over it. However, this anime was important to me this year. Trigger warnings: Death, grief, mourning, suicidal ideation and the fact that this was a generally shitty year. Personal stuff. Heartwarming "warning": Healing, reconciliation and a touch of nostalgia.

Where I was when I started the year: Laughing at Congress' inability to elect a House speaker (I follow American politics), working a shitty fast food job and looking forward, with some trepidation, to the Trigun reboot that my partner's adult nephew (also best friend) told me about, being an old school Trigun fan who had Trigun as almost her whole life back in the 2000s. I have a bookshelf full of manga, some even in Japanese even though I'm an English-only reader. I have a manga-book signed by Nightow, this is my level of dedication, even though I had fallen out of the fandom for a long time (my hyperfixations turning toward certain videogames - Zelda most prominently and my getting hard into She-Ra and the Princesses of Power for some reason. Spop was an obsession because I was a fan of the original when I was a kid (yes, Virginia, old people are in fandom). I got into the new series, mostly because I really loved Entrapta (mad scientist trope!) and was into a certain side of the fandom I now largely regret being in. I wound up having a falling out with a lot of people because a misunderstanding that lead to an accusation of plagiarism that culminated in me displaying actual symptoms of the mental illness that my "friend group" lied and said they were compassionate towards,* me being fairly harassing toward certain people and picking fights, (certain paranoid false accusations had me PISSED), people treating me like an emotional predator who was somehow "out to get them" instead of suffering a spiral. Someone screenshotting and putting up some suicidal ideation I'd posted on my blog that I'd deleted specifically in order to tell people in the fandom who weren't even in the drama that I was "faking it" and to not talk to me / exile me from the fandom. And that drove me over the edge - that thing. When I got back from the hospital, I was determined to remain in the fandom - making a new blog, doing my art and fics whether the gatekeepers wanted me in their precious fandom or not. (*Something I have learned in my long life is that no one is truly compassionate to the bipolar - not even other bipolar people. When we're a mess, we're a mess. Trust me, not even paid psychs are always prepared). This happened like, 2 years ago, but I'm still bitter. So, that's where I was, plugging away, embittered in an old fandom that I wasn't quite quitting because I needed to show myself, if no one else, that I was still standing. Looking forward to Trigun reboot and worried it would suck. Looking very forward to the new Zelda game, wondering if I could afford it when it came out. Watched the first Trigun: Stampede with my fiance / partner. He declared "It ain't Trigun" because he didn't like the new art style and some of it really had a different feel than the '98 anime. I was all "I don't really like how the SEEDS stuff is just right out front there rather than an unfolding mystery, but this animation is SLICK and I want to see where this is going!" 1/2

[georgeharrisonsmiling]

Maybe you won’t know but you’re like the only person I see on here that consistently even acknowledges Olivia Harrison’s existence so I thought I’d ask:

Do you have any knowledge/idea as to why she (apparently) cut off George’s sister Louise after George’s death? To my understanding (which could be wrong it’s been a while and a lot of what I’ve seen has been on gossip sites so I’m prepared to be wrong), he was giving her some sort of “allowance” (which from what I read was admittedly rather small compared to his wealth but also was probably more money back then maybe even up to 2001) after she divorced an abusive husband that he continued until he died, and then Olivia apparently stopped the allowance. I’ve seen some people say it’s because Louise was somehow connected to a Beatles fan/tribute band (i don’t remember whether she was managing it or what), and maybe there was something about a Beatles restaurant?? But never seen Olivia comment on it herself so much of that seems to be hearsay

I ask because a) from what I’ve seen it seems George hired his brothers or at least had them interacting with Friar Park in some way, which Louise living in the US obviously couldn’t have done but it still shows to me that he had strong familial ties and b) every interview I’ve seen of Louise she seemed in pretty good spirits to the day she died, very little if any resentment towards being cut off.

Its just an all around fascinating situation to me! George and his family’s relationship to money has always fascinated me because of the weird space he occupied of being in one of the most successful bands in the world, a multi multi millionaire, reportedly generous with his money not just to family and friends but also projects he liked, while also consistently being fucked over by things like Northern Songs and Lennon-McCartney in general, and also maybe not having the best understanding of money considering his issues with tax fraud and taking out huge mortgages to fund projects he liked

I'm not that well informed in all the drama there is, maybe @oliviasflapjacks can help us with this?

Louise Harrison is a complicated topic. Obviously she and George used to be close but it seems like she enjoyed the attention from Beatles fans a bit too much for George's taste and they ended up distanced because of that (she called herself "the unofficial Mum to the family of Beatle People). I know she managed a tribute band but their most known disagreement was when she promoted the creation of a "Beatles Bed&Breakfast" in the place where George stayed during his first visit to America.

George and Louise reconciled before George's death but things remained tense with Olivia and Dhani. We know that they are very protective of George's legacy so things like the tribute band probably weren't well received by them. Louise published her own book in 2014 where she expressed her displeasure with the Harrison state and even made a weird comment about how there weren't biological Harrisons managing it.

George's relationship with his brothers was better as they worked in Friar Park and they appeared in George's documentary.

[builtbybrokenbells]

Spitfire | viii

Jake and y/n have made amends, leaving room for only love while he takes her around the world with him. As their story comes to a close, he’s got one last trick up his sleeve to impress her.

Read part seven here

Read the epilogue here

Pairing: jake kiszka x f!reader

Word count: 5.7k

Warnings: SMUT 18+, hot and heavy scene right below the cut but not sex, unprotected sex (wear protection pls), oral (f!receiving), quickie, hair pulling, hint of name calling/degradation, slight dom/sub, semi sort of public sex I suppose, a bit of slapping, JAKE SINGING, swearing, fluff, sorry if i miss any!

hi! last chapter!!! this fic is literally my baby and I’ve had so much fun writing this, and im so grateful for everyone who’s come along on the ride! thank you so much for every like, comment, reblog and comment. ive read all of them and they make my heart incredibly happy. I hope the ending concludes everything pretty well and you all like it. i am currently writing an epilogue because i HAVE to, it’ll just be some more tooth-rotting in the future fluffiness. anyway, without further ado, enjoy, always be kind, and don’t mind any grammar mistakes 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

“Jake, baby…” you breathed, head falling back on the pillows. His lips were dancing over your collarbones, making it impossible to think about anything else. His hand was on your hip, fingers dipping just under your panty-line, begging you to let him keep going. “Gonna be late.” You finally said, coming back to your senses a little more.

“We won’t,” he mumbled against your skin. “Just sound check, anyway.”

“Your brothers will kill me if you’re late on the first day I’m visiting.” You scolded.

“They’ll be fine.” He assured you, moving down your chest. He opted not remove your bra,, only kissing the skin around it. He advanced down your stomach, all the way to your bellybutton, leaving small marks of love around your navel and hips.

“Jake,” you warned again, causing his motion to stop, now. He looked up at you, an unreadable look on his face.

“Fine,” he hovered over you, not moving completely away yet. “Let’s go to the venue.” He said with a mischievous smile growing on his lips. A jolt of nervousness ran through you, unsure of what he was thinking. He stood, adjusting himself and looking over you. “Come on.” He held a hand out to you. You took it, standing up. He placed a kiss on the top of your head, lingering there for a minute. When he parted, he delivered a small smack to your ass as you walked towards your suitcase. You let out a noise of surprise, causing him to laugh.

“You’re a dick.” You smiled, pulling some clothes from your bag. You continued to dress yourself like you planned to do before he’d rudely interrupted.

“You love me.” He teased. You pulled your dress on, looking over to him with a grin.

“Yeah, I do.” He walked towards you, placing a kiss on your lips. You couldn’t help the disappointment you felt when he broke away. He disappeared into the bathroom, leaving you to finish getting ready. You pulled your makeup bag out of your suitcase and made fast work at applying it.

The night prior, you and Jake had reconciled your issues, leaving the relationship almost better than it had been before the incident. You felt much more secure and confident knowing that he hadn’t done what you assumed, and now he knew exactly how your were feeling. The openness and understanding was something you weren’t used to, and it was wonderful. He knew more about your struggle with being in love and seemed more than willing to work on it together. You were still angry with yourself for disappearing on him, but the more time you spent with him, the more that feeling fizzled away. You felt fantastic that you’d made up with him, and sleeping in bed beside him was more of a remedy to the pain than any words you could share with him.

You were getting ready to watch their concert. It was the first you’d ever been to, and you could barely contain your excitement. You’d watched Jake play guitar over the phone and from a couple videos online, but never in person, mostly because the circumstance never allowed it. He was incredibly nervous, even though he would never say it out loud. He’d given up hope that you were going to come to Atlanta, and now that you were there, he was nervous he hadn’t practiced well enough. He was insistent on impressing you, but he had no idea that he didn’t even have to try for him to do that. It was nearing the time the boys had to be at the venue for their final soundcheck before the show. They’d done a quick one the night before, but due to Jake’s broken strings and sudden disappearance, they thought it best to do another. You were almost thankful for it, excited to see the whole set-up before the real performance.

Josh had dropped your bags off outside of Jake’s room earlier that day, assuming things had gone well when he didn’t hear from you. Sam and Danny had no idea you decided to go to Atlanta after all, and you were eager to surprise them. When Jake returned to you, he had to stop and admire the sight. “Hello, beautiful.” He said, making his way towards you.

“Hi,” you breathed, looking him over, too. He was wearing jeans and a button down, just something simple, but he always seemed to take your breath away.

“Ready to head out?” He asked. You nodded. He placed his hand on your lower back after checking to make sure he had everything he needed. You did the same, then welcomed his touch by leaning into him. He led you to the the door, opening it for you so you could leave first. When you stepped out, you saw the three other boys circled together in the hallway, chattering about something. Sam was the first to look towards the sound of the opening door. When his eyes fell on you, he froze for a moment, completely bewildered to see you there.

“Witchy woman!” He announced, causing the other two boys to look towards you, too. You couldn’t help but smile at them as Danny’s expression lit up, too. Sam bounded over, picking you up in a hug and spinning you around. You let out a laugh, just as happy to see him. “I didn’t know you were coming!” He exclaimed as he put you down.

“Neither did I,” Jake said from behind you.

“Me either.” You admitted. “But I’m glad I did.” You quickly explained.

“So are we,” Jake said, attempting to sound cool about it. He was over the moon that you were there and you had both made up for the week of despair.

Danny took his turn hugging you. “How long are you staying with us?” He asked, looking down at you.

“Uh, until my invite runs out, I guess.” You laughed.

“As if that would ever happen.” He said. When Josh didn’t immediately run to your side, Sam eyed him with an inquisitive look.

“You knew!” He finally exploded, accusing his oldest brother. Josh raised his hands in defence.

“Yeah, but I figured I’d let her tell you herself. I’m sure she had more important things to do rather than entertain you.” Josh shot back. Sam feigned a look of hurt.

“How dare you imply that I’m not the most important person here.”

“Sorry, it must have slipped my mind.” Josh rolled his eyes. “Anyway, if we’re all done with the reunion, we should probably get going. We’re already running late.”

“Right,” Jake nodded, sending him an apologetic look. Josh waved it off, beginning to walk down the hall.

The ride to the venue was filled with laughter and jokes. The atmosphere almost tricked you into believing you’d never left at all, and that nothing bad had ever happened. It was very comforting to know they didn’t hold what happened against you. When you arrived, Jake guided you inside, not willing to stray too far away from you. Their manger was waiting for them by the stage when you walked into the building. When you all reached him, he immediately directed them to where they had to go and telling them what needed to be done, only lightly scolding them for being late. By his tone, you could infer that this was not a rare occurrence. While they filed onto the stage, you took your time to introduce yourself.

“You can sit wherever you’d like,” he told you “if you want, you can stay back here, or you can go down to the main floor. I’m assuming you’ll be back here, later, so you can go get the real concert experience, now.” He laughed.

“Yeah, actually, I might do that.” You said, thinking it was a fantastic idea. He directed you on where to go, immediately getting his attention pulled in another direction. You went through the door he’d pointed out, making your way to the barricade. The arena was huge, the seated area completely surrounding the general admission area.

As soon as you took your place in front of Jake, he caught your gaze and gave you a toothy grin. You waved, excited to have his attention even if you’d been talking to him only moments before. He had his guitar hanging from his neck as he messed with the tuning pegs, trying to get the pitch right on his new string. Sam was plucking notes on the bass without being connected to his amp. Danny was lightly hitting his sticks against the edge of his drums, making a faint metallic ring sound through the air. Josh was saying something to Sam, laughing as he did so. Jake looked to his brothers, letting them know he was good to go.

He flipped on the power to his amp and gave the guitar a small strum, checking the volume. He adjusted the knobs slightly, picking another small tune to see how it sounded. He gave a nod of approval before walking over closer to his twin. Sam did the same with his amps, satisfied with the sound almost immediately. Danny gave a quick burst of the drums, causing the boys to laugh. Josh was the last to go, messing with the mic and the stand before speaking into it. “Hello to the pretty lady in the front row.” He said, looking to you. You gave an enthusiastic wave. “Meet me backstage after the show.” He gave a dramatic wink. You couldn’t help but laugh as Jake shot him a crude hand gesture.

“Watch it,” he warned, but a smile was on his face as he did so.

“Any requests?” Josh asked you. You thought about it for a moment, pretending to ponder really hard.

“Whole Lotta Love!” You yelled back, the joke landing poorly with the boys. They all let out a series of groans. The hate they continually received over sounding like a Led Zeppelin cover band was a taboo subject, and you always found it funny to poke fun at them.

“Alright, security, escort her out of here.” Josh said into the mic, causing you to laugh. He waited a moment before speaking again. “Any real requests?”

“Surprise me!” You said, deciding not to antagonize them any further. Josh looked to his twin and gave a shrug. Jake thought for a moment before taking to his guitar and starting an opening riff. The boys caught on after a moment, beginning to play their own parts.

They ran through a couple songs, not taking their practice too seriously. When they were getting ready to wrap things up, you saw Jake make a move towards Josh. He whispered something in his ear, to which his brother gave a nod and a sly smile. He motioned for Sam to come over and then relayed the message to him. They all turned to the drummer, letting him in on the secret. You watched them quizzically, unsure of what they could be up to. Jake strummed a few off notes, getting a feel for the rhythm of their next song. He adjusted the knobs on his amp slightly before he looked up, sending a smile your way and giving you a wink. He moved closer to Josh, and his brother stepped aside slightly. Your eyes widened, realizing that whatever they were going to play, Jake was going to sing it. You’d never heard him sing before, aside from a few small moments in the car.

Jake started his intro, immediately joined by Sam and Danny. Jake looked a bit nervous, but Josh had a wide smile on his face, fully confident in his brother. You figured from the minute they started conspiring, they were up to no good.

“Raven hair, ruby lips, sparks fly from her fingertips,” Jake sang, attempting his best to keep his confidence. You were starstruck, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. You were amazed at his dedication to your nickname, but more amazed at the sound of his voice. He was really good. When the chorus rolled around, all of the boys joined him, but as soon as the second verse came around, they left him on his lonesome again. By that point, his anxiety had washed away slightly, and he was more comfortable in his singing. He didn’t look up to you until almost the very end, nervous that he would mess up if he saw your face. “She can rock you in the nighttime til’ your skin turns red,” his eyes locked on yours, and he felt a surge of emotion run through him at the sight of your expression. They sang the chorus one last time and played the outro, ending with an elongated chord. They all looked to you, waiting for your reaction.

You exploded into cheers, clapping your hands. They all laughed, Jake and Sam putting their instruments down. Josh fixed the mic stand back to his liking and Jake set his amp back to the way he had it before. You made your move to return to backstage, practically running to meet them. When you came face to face with Jake, he almost looked like he had a blush on his cheeks. “I had no idea you could sing like that!” You exclaimed. He laughed, pulling you into him by your hip.

“In a good, or a bad way?” He said, face inches from yours. You felt your heart flutter.

“Good, very good.” You whispered. He smiled, leaning down and placing a kiss on your lips.

“Not better than me, I hope!” Josh said, dramatically breaking up the moment.

“Never, Josh.” You assured him, subtly winking at Jake. He chuckled, placing another kiss to your forehead. Their manager joined the group, now, and everyone’s attention turned to him.

“They’re gonna open the doors in about thirty minutes,” he told them. The boys nodded. “Get something to eat, get dressed, get your faces on, and be back out here in about three hours.”

“Copy,” Sam gave him a salute. When their manager walked away, he turned to the rest of you. “What are we eating?”

“Whatever is good with me.” You shrugged. The other boys gave a nod of agreement. Sam rolled his eyes.

“You guys are a fantastic help.” He snipped.

“You asked, we answered.” Jake said, not taking any of his shit.

“Barely!”

“Pizza,” Josh gave him a pat on the shoulder, helping him out.

“Again?” Sam complained. His brothers looked between themselves, holding back a laugh.

“You get whatever you want, Sammy.” Josh said, turning and finding his room. Danny broke off, too, and Jake nudged you, telling you to follow him. You both left Sam alone to ponder the dinner choice. Jake brought you to his dressing room, closing the door behind you.

He gave you a soft smile, pulling you into a kiss. You hummed softly, adoring the feeling. He smiled against you, snaking his arm around you. His hand rested on the curve of your back for only for a moment before he moved it downwards. You let a gasp out as he grabbed your ass and pulled you into him. His reached lower, fingers dusting across the hem of your dress that was laying on your thigh. He slipped his fingers underneath, pulling it up so it was just below your hip “Jake,” you pulled your mouth from his, uttering a warning. Although you knew you shouldn’t, his hand felt incredibly good on you, and it had been a long time. It took everything in your power to stop him earlier, and you weren’t sure if you had the willpower to do it again.

“What’s wrong?” He teased, inching your dress further up as he spoke.

“Can’t do this here, you have stuff to do.”

“Yeah, you.” He said, hiking your dress over your ass. You couldn’t help but feel a rush of arousal run through you. He pushed you back into the wall, one hand working at your dress, his other bracing the wall beside your head.

“Someone will hear us.” You rushed out, trying not to notice his hand now attempting to spread your thighs apart.

“Be quiet, then.” He shot back. You involuntarily moved your legs, allowing him access to you. As much as you thought it was a bad idea, you couldn’t help but welcome his touch. “There’s no way I’ll be able to make it through the whole show with you standing there looking like this.” Your breath hitched in your throat, feeling his fingers gently rubbing you through your panties. You were certain they were already soaked, knowing you’d been waiting for this just as long as he was.

“D-don’t want you to be late getting on stage.” You mustered out. His hand pulled your underwear to the side, fingers getting a feel for you again. He sighed at the feeling, running your arousal up to your clit and rubbing slow circles. Your head fell back and rested against the wall, now only being able to focus on what he was doing to you.

“Only reason I didn’t fuck you earlier is because you didn’t want me to be late. I wasn’t, we’re here, and I have time.” He soothed your worry, knowing you were too far in to back out now. “Are you going to be good for me and let me fuck you, or are you going to be a brat?” He asked, applying a little more pressure to you, now.

“M’gonna be good,” You promised. “So good.” He pushed your hair away from your neck and leaned down, placing his lips to your skin.

“That’s my girl.” He mumbled against you. You closed your eyes in bliss, pleasure running through every nerve in your body. He located the sweet spot below your ear with ease, gently sucking a mark into it. Your hips bucked forward into his hand, causing a smirk to grow on his face. “Missed me, didn’t you?” His mouth was just next to your ear, sending a shiver down your spine. He barely spoke the words, but you heard him loud and clear.

“Yes, sir.” You could feel his erection pressing into your leg through his jeans.

“Gonna make this quick, okay?” You gave him a nod. “Promise I’ll fuck you like you deserve once we get back to the hotel.” You knew he meant it. There was no doubt in your mind he wouldn’t stop until his name was the only thing you could say. He pulled away from you, checking that the lock on the door was clicked. He jiggled the handle just to make sure. “Don’t want anyone interrupting this.” He confessed. His eyes raked over you, soaking up the sight. You were standing, dress pushed up to your stomach. Your lipstick was smudged against your lips, eyes fixated on him.

“Look at you,” he rasped, completely enamoured with the sight of you. “My pretty little whore.” He returned back to you, pulling you in for a quick kiss before anything else. “I love you.” He whispered as he pulled back, almost as if he felt bad for such harsh words.

“I love you.” You answered, giving him a soft smile. He watched your face for a moment, searching for even a hint of discomfort. “Green.” You promised. He gave a slight nod, shaking off the moment of uncertainty. It had been a long time since he had you like this, and his confidence diminished slightly as the weeks went on. He kissed you once more, pulling your bottom lip between his teeth. You moaned into his mouth, unable to hold yourself back. It was embarrassing at how quickly he could turn you into a mess.

He pulled back, immediately sinking down to his knees. He hooked his fingers through the sides of your underwear, pulling them down in a swift motion. He tapped your ankle and you lifted your foot slightly, allowing him to take them off completely. He threw them somewhere behind him, not caring where they ended up. He moved closer to you, guiding one of your legs over his shoulder. He made sure you were steady against the wall before he did anything else. His fingers dusted over your thigh, causing goosebumps to raise over your skin. He took his time to admire you before he continued, feeling like the luckiest man in the world to have you like this again.

You watched him, the anticipation almost killing you. Not once had you known Jake to take it slow in the bedroom. He’d seemed so antsy to get you naked, but now he wanted to savour every second. He liked to tease, but this seemed to be much more than that. He didn’t want to be an asshole, just wanted to appreciate every part of you. Slowly, he brushed his lips over the insides of your thighs. You brought your hand down, brushing it through his hair as he did so. As turned on as you were, you couldn’t help but enjoy the moment, too. It felt like an eternity since you had felt him on your skin so intimately. He brought his mouth to your heat, hovering for a moment. You didn’t push him, worried that the sweet side would come to an end and he’d leave you like that for the rest of the night. Eventually, he connected his mouth to you, running his tongue painstakingly slow through your folds.

You let a sigh of relief fall from your mouth, fingers twirling through his hair. You missed the feeling of him between your legs. After a few moments, he turned his attention to your clit, suctioning his mouth around it. You couldn’t help but let a throaty moan out at the feeling, the relief almost instantaneous. He worked at you with his tongue, soaking up every noise you were making and using it as encouragement. His fingers were gripping your thigh, holding you steady while you lost yourself to the pleasure. “Fuck, Jake,” you groaned, knotting your fingers in the hair at the base of his skull. He hummed against you, pulling back for a moment.

“Missed me?” He breathed.

“So much,” you assured him, holding back a whine at the loss of contact. He returned back to you, faster than before. He was determined to get you off, making quick work so he could avoid any interruptions. It didn’t take long for a knot to begin to form in your belly, your breathing laboured and hands desperately holding onto him.

“Come on, baby. Cum for me.” He barely moved his mouth from you to give you the encouragement, his tongue finding your clit again almost instantly. You bit down on your lip, trying your best to muffle any moans that were threatening to escape. It only took a few more seconds and you were coming undone, head falling back to rest on the wall and legs shaking as you tried to hold yourself up. His grip on you tightened, ensuring you stayed steady. He rode you through the orgasm, slowly tapering off his speed until he felt your muscles relax. He pulled away, lust clouding his eyes and your orgasm glistening on his face. He gave you a sly smile when you finally looked down at him. “That was fast.” He commented, cockiness radiating from him.

“Fuck you,” you shot back, not really realizing your words. He gave you a look of warning.

“Careful.” He scolded.

“Sorry, sir.” You whispered. He stood, not even acknowledging the apology. He roughly spun you around, pushing your upper half into the wall and pulling your hips back. He delivered a sharp slap to your ass, causing you to gasp. You heard him unbuckling his belt, freeing himself from his jeans. He spit on his hand and stroked himself for a moment before lining up with your entrance and pushing himself inside of you.

He gave you no time to adjust, his pace brutal. You let a few moans slip out, but he grabbed your hair in his fist, turning your head to the side so you could see him through the corner of your eye. “Quiet,” he warned. You managed a nod, fighting against the tight hold he had your head in. He leaned forward and captured your lips in a kiss while he fucked you, making sure you were silenced as he picked up his pace. The hand that was holding your hair loosened its grip, allowing you to relax your neck again. He used that hand to reach around the front of you, finding your clit with ease. You groaned at the touch, still sensitive from your first orgasm. “What did I just say?” He snapped.

“S-sorry,” you said quickly, fighting back any other noises.

“I know it feels good, baby, but I don’t want anyone else to hear those pretty sounds.” He softened his tone, realizing he needn’t be too hard on you; he felt the same way after so long being without you. “Those are just for me, okay? I’ll let you be as loud as you want when we get back to the hotel.” He tried to keep his tone steady, but he was failing miserably. He was almost regretful for chastising you about finishing so easily, because he was struggling not to, now. He picked up the speed of his fingers, aiming to give you at least one more orgasm before he finished.

He didn’t have to try very hard; the feeling of him inside you was more than enough to push you over the edge. His tip was brushing your g-spot with every thrust, driving you closer to an orgasm each time. The added simulation on your clit was blissful, making it hard to focus on anything else. “Jake,” you warned. He knew exactly what it meant, ensuring he kept his pace steady.

“Come on, beautiful.” He ordered. He felt a shred of relief, knowing he didn’t have to hold himself back much longer. The encouragement was all you needed to come undone. You reached your peak for a second time, clenching around him and moaning his name. The hand that was on your hip came up and clamped around your mouth, silencing you as he continued to fuck you. The noises you couldn’t contain were muffled by his palm, allowing you to relax and enjoy your orgasm without worry someone would hear you. His cock twitched inside you, a warning that he was close, too. He dropped his hand from your mouth and moved both of his hands to your hips, pulling you back on him as he thrusted into you.

“Fuck, y/n.” He groaned, forcing your hips back onto him once more. He held you there, his orgasm hitting him hard. He let out a quiet slur of curse words as he spilled inside of you, only loosening his grip on you when he came down from the high. He rested inside you for a moment, leaning in and placing a few small kisses on your shoulders. He slowly withdrew, trying his best to control the mess. You sighed at the sudden emptiness, missing the feeling almost immediately.

You both came back to your senses a little bit, realizing the state you were in. Jake helped you to the bathroom so you could clean yourself up. When you finished, you checked yourself in the mirror. Your hair was a mess, your lipstick smudged and your mascara was running. You fixed your makeup as best you could and raked your fingers through your hair, straightening it out. When you returned to Jake, he was lounging on the sofa, dressed and completely unfazed by the earlier altercation. He looked up to you, giving you a smile. “Hi gorgeous.” He held his hand out, motioning for you to join him. You walked over, sitting beside him as he wrapped an arm around your shoulder. He placed a kiss to the top of your head, causing a smile to form on your lips. You looked up to him, having to stifle a giggle.

“Red really is your colour.” You told him, making a move to wipe the smudged lipstick from his lips. “You couldn’t have waited until we got back to the hotel?”

“Waited long enough, I think.” He said pulling your chin upwards with his index finger. He caught you in a kiss, much sweeter than the ones you’d shared previously. “Don’t think that means we’re not doing it later, too, though.” You let out a small laugh, but thought it best not to respond. You turned your head to look to the floor, suddenly remembering your discarded underwear. He laughed at your puzzled face when you couldn’t locate them. “Looking for these?” You whipped your head to look at him, noticing he’d pulled something halfway out of his pocket. You noticed the black lace, giving him a bewildered look.

“Yeah, actually. Can I have them, please?” You held your hand out. He pretended to debate it for a moment, but eventually shook his head.

“No, actually, I think I’ll hold onto them for you.” He said, slipping them back into his pocket. You gave him a gentle smack on the arm.

“Give them back!” You exclaimed, a ghost of a laugh in your tone. You tried to push his hand out of the way to grab them for yourself.

“Mmm, no.” He said, moving quickly and pinning you down to the couch. You both erupted into a fit of giggles, almost completely forgetting why you were arguing in the first place. His hair hung down, ticking your exposed shoulders. He had a grin plastered on his face, unable to hold it back at the sound of your laughter. He peppered a few kisses over your cheeks and nose before placing one on your lips. “It’ll be my good luck charm, tonight.” He hummed. “Just be careful if you bend over, wouldn’t want you to give the boys a show of their own.” He teased.

“You’re an asshole.” You said, but you couldn’t hold back your smile.

“You love me, though.” He replied, face hovering over yours.

“Yeah, I do.” You said, tone gentle and sincere.

“Did you really like the song, earlier?” He changed the topic.

“Of course I did,” you said, making a move to sit up. He moved backwards, freeing you from your position. You both sat upright again.

“Did… did I sound okay?” He said, sounding a bit sheepish. You let out a scoff, almost rolling your eyes at the question.

“I think,” you leaned in, nose practically touching his “if that was the only song I could ever listen to for the rest of my life, I’d be fine with it as long as you were singing it.” You caught his lips in a kiss, soft and full of emotion. “Best singer I’ve ever heard, for sure.” You breathed when you pulled away. “Don’t tell your brother, though.”

“I wouldn’t break his heart like that.” Jake chuckled. “I made them learn that song… wanted to play it for you for a while now, but I didn’t think I was ever gonna get the chance.”

“I’m really glad I got to hear it. You should sing more.” You told him, hand reaching out to brush the hair from his face.

“No, I think that’s okay.” He laughed, brushing the statement off. “More of a one time thing.” You couldn’t help the frown that formed on your face.

“You mean to tell me we’re gonna spend the rest of our lives together and I’m never going to hear you sing again?” You teased. “Even if it’s just for me?” His eyes looked over your face, his breath catching in his throat.

“If you’re promising me forever, I’ll sing to you every day for the rest of my life.” He said, more serious than he’d ever been.

“I’ll promise you forever, rockstar.” You whispered. “I know what life is like without you, and I don’t ever want to feel that way again.” He brushed his thumb over your cheek, then moved to brush the hair from your face. He took your head in his hand, pulling you in for another kiss. He held you there, scared to let you go, thinking that he might have been dreaming. When he finally broke away for air, he kept his face close to yours, revelling in the intimacy.

“I love you, witchy woman.” He said.

“I love you so much, Jake.” Another smile started to form on your lips. After a moment, a knock on his door broke the focus. He pulled back, looking towards it.

“What?” He called out, sounding a bit grumpy.

“Food is here, lovebirds. Come and eat, then we have to get ready.” Sam called from the other side. Jake sighed, but stood, anyway. He held a hand out to you, helping you up. He went to the door, unlocking it and cracking it open to see his brother waiting impatiently. You couldn’t help but laugh at the situation, watching Sam stalk off down the hallway. Jake looked back at you, motioning for you to follow.

“Yeah, I’ll be right there.” You promised. He stood, not wanting to leave without you, but eventually conceded when you shooed him away. He blew you a kiss before he left, only satisfied when you pretended to catch it.

You watched him turn and walk out of view, your heart happy and full of love. You had no idea how you got here; you never envisioned yourself falling for someone ever again, let alone promising them forever, and meaning it. You were even more baffled at the fact he was a rockstar, famous with girls constantly flocking to him, but he fell for a spitfire in Maryland who was still trying to make a name for herself. One who was just a small, insignificant dot on a huge map. Still, you couldn’t help but feel grateful, shoving the uncertainty to the side. You promised yourself that you wouldn’t let that get in the way of loving him, anymore. He’d never given you a real reason to doubt him, and you were fairly certain he never would. For the first time in your life, you felt wanted, like for once you truly belonged. After two decades of searching for a sense of self, trying to discover where you were meant to be, you had finally found it. Or, at least the person who would help you get to exactly where you were supposed to be. Until that day came and the entire journey finally made sense, you were completely and utterly content with him being your rockstar, because you knew you were always going to be his witchy woman.

A/N my heart is happy :))) also witchy woman came on from shuffle just as I was finishing editing this and about to post, which is kind of cool. hope you liked it 🫶🏻 hope to see you on the next journey (p.s. stay tuned for the epilogue ;) )

TAGLIST: @gvfpal @jakesgrapejuice @hellowgoodbye @ohgodthefeeling-gvf @welllauragvf

[pinkrose787]

Chapter 5 Amnesia Branch AU!

Finished editing a day ahead of schedule! I hope you enjoy! :D

Summary: Poppy has to deal with the aftermath of the disastrous reunion between Branch and his brothers.

Ao3 Link

Chapter:

The hospital hallway is quiet. No one stays here for long. Trolls are usually rushing off from one part of the hospital to another. Those who do want to visit someone, sit in the waiting room until they are able to. The doctors and nurses are always running from one patient to another.

There is only one troll standing in the hallway, Queen Poppy.

A thought crosses her mind, as she waits outside Branch’s room. Maybe leaving them alone was a mistake. If she had stayed, then she could mediate between the brothers. Tensions between them are so high. Maybe an outside perspective would do them good.

Then again Poppy isn’t much of an outside perspective. No matter what Branch says or does, she will always be on his side. Branch has confided in her so much about growing up with his brothers. She would use everything that she knows to justify any of Branch’s actions.

All of them are grown adults. They should be able to handle a simple conversation without devolving into a screaming match.

She exhales knowing that Branch’s brothers will be able to handle this. They have to. For Branch’s sake.

Muffled shouting starts coming from the room. Poppy instantly knows that it’s Branch shouting. It’s only been a few minutes. How is he already shouting at them? Things couldn’t have gone that wrong, right?

Every part of her screams that she should rush into the room, and help Branch calm down.

No. She has to trust that his brothers can handle this.

Maybe Poppy should have done something to help them prepare. Tell them more about how Branch is going to be. Model conversations with him. Make them flashcards. Anything that wouldn’t be throwing them straight to the wolf that is a gray Branch.

The shouting stops.

That’s good. Probably. Hopefully.

Maybe Branch got out all his angry energy, and now they’re moving on to reconciling. Perhaps, when that door opens again, all will be solved between Branch and his brothers.

The door opens.

John Dory, Clay, and Bruce walk out of the door. They have the same expressions as soldiers coming home from a bloody war. None of them are looking at each other nor are they looking at Poppy. Their eyes are all transfixed on the floor.

This is a terrible sign. People who have had a good reunion with their brother do not look like that.

The door is still open.

She hears Floyd’s voice. “I know you’re angry, but we’re not leaving you behind this time. I promise.”

Floyd walks out to the hallway, closing the door behind him. Thankfully, he doesn’t look like he just came out of a battle. There still is a weary expression on his face. Just not as weary as his brothers.

Poppy is about to ask them what happened in there. She doesn’t get the chance.

“What the hell was that?” John Dory shouts at Bruce. “I was too busy with my family. I love them too much to abandon them. Did you want to hurt Branch? Because that’s what you did!”

“You said what to Branch?” Poppy says. Her jaw is agape.

She hopes that this is a misunderstanding. She didn’t hear the whole conversation. Only Branch’s indistinct muffled shouting. There could be another explanation, because there is no way that Bruce would say that to Branch. He couldn’t possibly be that insensitive.

The four of them look at her shocked, as if they forgot that she was out here waiting for them. “Well…” Bruce fidgets with his hair. “That’s not exactly what I said.”

“It’s the gist of what you said though,” Clay says.

“Help me understand this.” Poppy pinches the bridge of her nose. “You told Branch, your brother, that you never came back for him, because you were too busy with your new family. Not only that…”

She starts to raise her voice. “But you love your new family too much to abandon them. Implying that you don’t really love Branch. And you did this when he is at his most vulnerable, in the hospital with amnesia!”

“Yes.” Bruce’s voice is quiet.

Poppy starts to pace around the hallway. “I cannot believe this. You all were in there for only a few minutes. How did it all fall apart so fast?”

Never in her worst imagination did she think that they would fall apart in a few minutes like this. Sure, Branch was going to be angry, but she thought that the others would have been able to keep it together for at least ten minutes.

“Branch started it. He came out swinging out of nowhere. We didn’t do anything.” Clay says. 

It is taking every fiber of her being to keep it together, and not shout at them. She knows that they were trying their best. Maybe they weren’t. She hopes that their best would be better than this. “I warned you that he was going to be like that! And you said that you could handle it! What could he have even said that was so bad?”

“Well…” John Dory puts his hands together. He looks away, not looking Poppy in the eyes. “The first thing he said was that we were twenty years too late.”

Poppy takes in a very deep breath. “And you were surprised by that? He said that the last time you reunited!”

“Yeah, but last time he didn’t calculate the percentage of his life that we’ve been present,” John Dory says.  

Oh, my God.

That’s the exact brutally honest statement Poppy expected Branch to say. He would do a calculation to figure out how long they have all been together. Proving his point with numbers is a hobby of his. Still, hearing that he did it is quite shocking.

Clay sucks air between his teeth. “Yeah, the number was not good.”

Bruce breaks away his gaze from the floor. He looks at Poppy. There’s a lot of hurt in his eyes. “Was he always like that?”

“Well…” Is there really a reason to mince her words here? Branch was depressed and angry for the vast majority of the time she’s known him. “Yes. He was. At least, he was like that when we first met.”

“When did you two meet?” Floyd asks. There’s a slight shake to his voice, as though he fears Poppy’s answer.

Poppy immediately knows the answer to this question. She could never forget the day that she first met Branch. With his gray colors and grumpy demeanor, he stood out among all the other trolls. The moment she met him, she knew that she wanted to be his friend. “Next month, It will have been 17 years since we first met.”

“17 years…” John Dory repeats. Poppy can tell that he’s doing the math in his head. “So, he was like that for 15 years?”

Poppy shakes her head. She wishes that it was only that long, even though it is most of Branch’s life, it is still shorter than how long it really was. “Longer. That was just when we met. He was still gray and angry long before that.”

Admittedly, she knows that Branch lost his colors when his grandma died.

What she doesn’t know is when he became so angry and turned against the world. Poppy had lost her colors, though only briefly, so she knows that it isn’t instant. It had to have been so many lonely nights to turn him against everyone.

Bruce sinks against the wall. He looks up at Poppy with watery eyes. “How did you deal with him for so long?”

That’s the question, isn’t it.

“It wasn’t easy.” Memories of Branch’s many rejections of her invitations replay in her mind. “He refused every single invitation I gave him. And I didn’t have anyone on my side helping me. Everyone I knew tried to tell me that he was a lost cause, but I knew different.”

Poppy fidgets with her hands. She remembers her and Branch’s first meeting so clearly. That day changed her life forever. “When I met Branch, I was being chased by a growl beast in the woods. I thought for sure that I was a goner. Then Branch came out of nowhere and started fighting it off. He grabbed my hand and dragged me away from the monster.”

A smile forms on her face. The whole event was terrifying at the time. Looking back on it now though, it’s one of her fondest memories.

“We hid in a cave. And Branch started to give me a lecture about being safe in the woods. Then he noticed just how scared I was. He sat next to me. He didn’t say anything. I don’t think he knew what to say.”

“After a few minutes, he reached into his bag and pulled out a plush glowbug. He handed it to me. This makes me feel better when I’m scared. He told me. I hugged it close to my chest. It did make me feel better. But what really made me feel better was having him beside me.”

“That day, I saw a side to him that no other troll had seen. Beneath his sad and grumpy exterior was a regular kid who was scared. And every time I had my doubts about whether or not Branch could be helped, I held onto that glowbug plush and remembered that night in the cave.”

She looks up at the brothers. John Dory has tears in his eyes. “He really fought a growl beast when he was a kid?” he asks.

Poppy nods. “He did. And if he didn’t I don’t think I would be here.”

Thinking of it now, it’s kind of funny that the first thing Branch did when he met Poppy. Really set the precedent of how their relationship would go. “In fact, there’s a lot of times where I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for him. He’s saved me so many times, it’s only right that I’m here to help him now when he needs it.”

“I want to be there for Branch too. I wasn’t there when he needed me most, and I am going to make up for it.” Floyd looks at his brothers. “We all need to be there for Branch. All of us.”

“Floyd’s right! We can’t let anything stop us from being there for Branch,” John Dory says.

It warms Poppy’s heart to hear them say that. She knows how important Branch’s brothers are to him. If he’s going to get better he is going to need all of their love and support. 

Bruce sighs. “I’m not sure if we should be here.”

“What?” Poppy says.

No. There’s no way he said that. He did not just say that. He did not. Poppy must have just misheard him. He could have meant something completely different.

“I wasn’t going to say anything, but I’m with Bruce. I don’t think we should be around Branch right now,” Clay says. He doesn’t look at anyone.

“You’re giving up on him? What about the story I just told you?” Poppy’s voice is beginning to shake.

Bruce sighs. “We’re not giving up on him. We’re just giving him space. Besides it’s different for us. You didn’t hurt Branch the way we did.”

No. No! Poppy is not going to let this happen. “You can’t leave! This will crush him!”

“Will it? Because what I saw in there was that us being in there hurt him. He ended up in tears after only talking to us for a few minutes.” Bruce gets up off the floor. He turns to leave. “So, you know what? I’m out, for Branch’s sake.”

John Dory grabs his arm. “What happened to what we promised yesterday?” His voice is gruff. “That nothing is going to stop us from being there for him. That we’re sticking by him no matter what.”

“Well, that was before we knew how painful seeing us would be for him! Being around us clearly hurt him. So, why should we stick around?” Bruce says.

Poppy’s heart feels like it’s pounding out of her chest. “Because he’s your brother! He needs you! He needs all of you!” She is screaming at this point. She has to get them to stay. For Branch’s sake. Them leaving again will crush him. And Poppy doesn’t know if she could help heal him if they do.

“No, he doesn’t. Us being around him has only hurt him. This is for the best,” Bruce says in a low voice. He refuses to meet anyone’s gaze. “C’mon, Clay. We need to go.”

Clay starts to follow Bruce towards the exit. He looks back. “I’m sorry, but this is for the best.”

Poppy is paralyzed. This is all some horrendous nightmare, right? It has to be.

But it’s not.

“Wait!” Poppy shouts. They’re getting away. She needs to stop them. Perhaps, if she explains that being there for Branch isn’t hurting him, then they’ll change their minds. They’ll turn around and come back.

“Poppy, let them go.” Floyd puts his hand on her shoulder. “Chasing after them won’t work. It never does.”

Tears well up in Poppy’s eyes. “I can’t believe that they’re leaving Branch again!”

Floyd pulls Poppy into a hug. She collapses into it. Tears start flowing down her face. “I know. I can’t believe it either.”

“Look, we’re still here! And we’re not going to leave!” John Dory gives Poppy a thumbs up and a big smile.

Poppy wipes her tears. She pulls away from the hug. At least, there’s still two of Branch’s brothers sticking by his side. “Thanks guys. I really appreciate it. And I know that Branch is going to really appreciate it even if he doesn’t say it.”

“That’s right,” Floyd says softly, “We’re not leaving Branch, and we’re not leaving you.”

The whole situation feels less catastrophic. Maybe Branch having two of his brothers stay by his side will lessen the pain of Bruce and Clay leaving. At least, they’re helping her. She doesn’t know if she’d be able to handle this without them.

Thinking of Branch, he’s probably devastated about the fight. She doesn’t want him to be alone. “I’m going to check on Branch,” Poppy says.

“Okay, we’ll be right out here if you need us,” Floyd says.

Poppy smiles at them. She knocks gently on the door. Mostly as a courtesy. She slowly opens the door. While she wants to see her boyfriend, she knows that he probably doesn’t want to see her right now. But she won’t let him isolate himself again.

“Hey, Branch. How are you doing?” She closes the door behind her.

Branch looks worse than when Poppy last saw him twenty minutes ago. He’s sitting curled up in a ball on his hospital bed. His eyes are puffed up from crying. Somehow, he looks greyer. “Go away.” His voice is hoarse.

That’s the reaction she was expecting. “I’m not going away.” She walks over to his bedside. “You know that right? I am staying by your side no matter what.”

“Why?” Branch looks away from her.

Poppy takes his hand. “Because I love you, silly!”

Branch sighs. “You shouldn’t. I’ve only ever caused you pain.”

It aches Poppy’s heart to hear Branch say something like that. It aches even more to know that Branch truly believes that at the core of his being. “I know you think that, but that’s a lie. You’ve brought me so much joy. My life is better with you in it!”

“Is it?” Branch turns to look at her. “Because I have never seen you look so miserable. And why are you miserable? Because of me.”

“I’m not miserable. I’m just worried about you.”

“Were you worried about me when you were shouting in the hallway?”

Oh, God. He heard that. She hopes that he only heard that she was shouting rather than what she was shouting. “Yes, I was.”

“What would even upset you so much that you started shouting?” He sighs. “Let me guess, my brothers left again.”

“Well, not all of them. John Dory and Floyd are still out in the hallway.” She tries to smile at him. As though, only being abandoned by two of his brothers rather than all four is a comfort.

“That’s not surprising. They always run when things get rough.” He brings his knees closer to him. “What’s surprising is how out of character you’ve been acting. And I’m the reason for it.”

Poppy wants to refute every single point Branch is making. She’s struggling to find the words to make Branch see the truth. That he’s made her happier than anyone else has. That she loves him with every single fiber of her being.

“I’m not good for you, Poppy. It doesn’t matter how you try to spin it. I’ll always be poison to you. We shouldn’t be together. You are better off without me,” Branch continues.

“What are you saying?” There’s a tremble in her voice. She doesn’t want the answer. She knows exactly what he’s saying.

“I’m breaking up with you.”

Hearing those words feels like a gunshot. “You can’t. Please. Don’t.”

He doesn’t look at her. “You deserve someone better. Someone who actually makes you happy. Someone who doesn’t make you cry like I do.”

Her vision becomes blurry as the tears well up in her eyes. She tries to fight them back. Crying would only prove his point. “No, I deserve you! You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me! I love you!” she screams.

“I love you too. Which is why I’m letting you go.” Branch takes in a deep shaky breath. “Please, go. I can’t be around you anymore.”

“Branch…”

“Go!” he shouts.

There isn’t anything she can say to get through to him. The self-hatred is his mind is able to scream louder than Poppy ever could. “Alright. But I’ll still be here for you. I promise.”

Branch doesn’t say anything.

Poppy walks out the hospital room. The second that she closes the door, she lets the tears start falling. She’s never felt such heartbreak before. It’s suffocating.

“What happened in there?” Floyd asks.

“Branch broke up with me,” Poppy manages to speak through her sobs.

“What? Why?” John Dory asks. “He loves you, so much!”

Poppy finds that she doesn’t have the ability to speak anymore. Words weigh too much. Her heart weighs too much. The entire world is pressing down on her. She collapses to the ground.

“Poppy!” John Dory shouts.

“I’m alright,” Poppy manages to say.

John Dory and Floyd sit down next to her. They both give her a hug.

As comforting as the hug is, she wishes that Branch was the one comforting her. She wishes that Branch would wrap his arms around her, tell her that everything is going to be okay. That he’s here for her.

But he isn’t. He might never be there for her again. And that kills her inside.

[graysonshmayson]

AITA for “stealing” my dad’s son?

Ok, stealing is hyperbole, but that's just what my brother says. I also find your theories as to what the “family business” is hilarious (my favorite guess is mafia), but I really can’t tell y'all for privacy reasons! No, a child technically doesn’t have to fulfill the role in the company, it just makes sense for the role and also is sort of a habit now? It’d actually be kind of weird if it wasn’t a kid. But that’s all I’m saying on that. 

Ok so I’ve already made a few viral posts about my relationship with my dad about my brother in this post and then about him not taking care of himself in this post. I really recommend you read them for full context because there’s only so many times I can repeat the same backstory. Short version: my (M28) dad (M48), took me in after my parents were murdered and I then created and fulfilled a role in the family business until I moved out and started my own at 18 due to our tense relationship. A lot of stuff has happened since the last post: first of all, y’all remember T (M17) from the last post? He is now legally my brother! My dad adopted him a few months ago after his parents died which honestly was a crazy ordeal that could be its own post. Secondly, J (M19) is alive??? He legally died for a time, but it turns out he did not die like we thought and came back a few years ago. Anyway, he comes home, and is furious with my dad because the guy that killed him was still a free man and he thought our dad didn’t do enough to catch him. Honestly, he wanted our dad to kill him. Which my dad did not want to do because, like, murder is generally wrong. He was also super mad about my dad “replacing” him in the job like a) he didn’t replace me and b) T forcefully volunteered for the job. Like made my dad accept him. Anyway, J got super vengeful and started getting involved with crime, and literally drug trafficking and all sorts of shady things. The third and most pertinent update is that my dad had a surprise son! A couple years ago, an old fling came around with a kid and said that he needed to take care of him for the foreseeable future while she took care of things following her father’s death. The kid, D (M14), was super angry and violent, clearly raised in a tough situation and mourning his grandfather. 

Here's where my frustration with my dad begins: by the time D showed up, me and dad were like fully okay again. We talked, I visited and helped out, etc. but he didn’t want D at first. He didn’t trust him, and didn’t even want to give him a chance because he was raised by his mother and her father, which is a whole terrible mess of a situation that I can’t even get into. Don’t get me wrong, D was and is extremely difficult. When we first met, he tried to start a fight and told me to “remember who is the blood son”. But he’s just a kid . Yeah, his behavior was troubling at best, but it was because of his awful home situation and reconciling his idolization of his grandpa who was actually a terrible person. He’s as mouthy as he is precocious, but if you really spend time with him, you can see that he’s a good kid under it all. So D shows up, and pretty quickly wants to get involved with the family business. I could tell pretty quickly that even though he tried to act all nonchalant, he really wanted to prove himself to our dad. My dad flat out rejected him at first. He barely wanted D staying with him, let alone being involved in the work. I had to fight this man to give his own son a chance, just like he did for the rest of us. Do you know how hard it is to convince your adoptive father to not shun his own son? It’s kind of scary. 

To give him the benefit of the doubt I can understand his concern. He nurtured me to the best of his ability and I scorned him, and then J died and came back hating his guts and a criminal and T is becoming so much like him it scares him. I think he was scared that he would fuck up another kid (not that I think he really fucked us up. He did his best). I helped D pretty much every day, whether he liked it or not and he eventually formed a mutual trust and respect with our dad. I don’t doubt that my dad loved D, but it frustrated me that it took all of my weedling to get him there. I think that D deserves the unconditional love that he wasn’t given growing up, and having to earn it like that from your own dad? Cant have felt good. He eventually took my old role from T, and has been doing it ever since.

Flash forward to a point around a year ago, my dad goes missing. He frequently drops off the map for work or something, but never this long. He was literally presumed dead. As the oldest, I took control of the family business which I honestly did not want to do. After years of trying to be independent from him, I really can't stress how reluctant I was to take the job, even though both T and J were vying for it too. But I was the best suited for it, so I did it. Because of this, I was working very closely with D. If he had it his way, D would be in charge of the company and he was not happy with taking orders from anyone but his father, so it was really tough to just gain basic respect from him at first. Eventually, though, we made a really good team and even though I was in a position I didn’t want, I felt very fulfilled by our work. I was so proud of D and the progress he had made. I think that while he and dad had a good relationship, dad didn’t really help a lot when it came to expressing emotions or anything like that. And boy, I have been to enough therapy to help with that. So then, a while ago, dad shows up again from where he had been, let's say indisposed , and all the sudden I’m out of the business again, because obviously I gave him his old role back. 

But I don’t know, if I’m honest it feels wrong sometimes without D. Sometimes he’ll come to the city where I live and help me out instead and it makes me really happy. I’m so glad he feels like he can come to me to talk to, or get away, or whatever. He has like one friend besides me and dad so I worry about him a lot. And when we’re all together again, I feel sort of proud when he looks to me instead of dad. Like in my head I think my dad is on thin ice. I worry that if D fucks up bad enough, he will never forgive him. I’m not shy about sharing my opinions on situations involving D with my dad which I can tell he resents it and has led to several arguments. I really can’t tell if I’m overstepping here. On one hand: he’s not my kid and I should probably respect the boundaries set by his father. On the other, sometimes it feels like I’m the only one in this kid’s corner. And I always will be. I don’t know if I can say the same for my dad. So should I keep trying to assert myself as a mentor in D’s life? Or stay out of it? 

[sadakorosee]

When S/O dropped Donnie's mutagen canister Part 2

Donatello x fem!reader

Recap: s/o dropped Donnie's mutagen canister and he got mad at her for it, which he didn't mean to. now he has to find a way to reconcile with her.

Read Part 1 here

Genre: comedy, fluff ending

Lord, forgive the poor 6'8 foot turtle for being this clueless despite being the brains out of his brothers.

He's a mutant. Just guide him fr. Tell him what to do, the poor thing.

The turtles had no experience interacting with humans - humans are hard to understand in terms of personality, emotions, actions and interests. There's a lot but that was all the author can list down.

When Donnie became the first turtle brother to become intimately involved with a mate, a human, he was so thrilled he went up to Raph's face which pissed off the red masked turtle more. He had to tackle down his braniac brother but it didn't work when Donnie just chuckled like he was 10 years old.

You and Donnie were happily together for 8 months, so there weren't a lot to uncover between their relationship since you were working all week and only visited the lair at night or weekends. You won't likely see them at night since they're either patrolling or fighting off criminals far from their lair.

You both had disagreements but it never escalated to arguments or fights. The mutagen spill was not even close to an argument; it was only Donnie lashing out on you and you were too emotionally exhausted to respond.

'The highway looks good right now' You'd think once a while. (A/N: im sorry i had to. my intrusive thoughts won this round)

Donnie was pacing back and forth in the living room with Mikey sipping on his soda drink watching his smart brother contemplating a plan before going to you. He's just mumbling the possibilities and the outcome in case you reject his forgiveness.

While he racks his brain, Mikey has had enough, throws his paper cup and does the unexpected; smacking Donnie's face and he stopped. Completely.

"Did you just-"

"You can kill me later, D, but while you waste time mumbling gibberish or whatever language you use in that lab, y/n could be dead as we speak."

Raph, who heard the whole conversation, tried to intervene. "Oi, numbnuts. Stop with that crap or you'll make it worse for the idiot."

Donnie's narrowed eyes switched to Raph. "You know, you need to tone down with the nicknames you're giving us. At least come up with a better one." Raph cracked his knuckles but Mikey stepped in between them before it gets worse.

"D, listen, we know how much you love y/n. We love her too. Instead of thinking about what's about to come, why not you start by saying you're sorry to her? All she ever wanted when she came by was you comforting her but Leo did that in your stead. She had a bad day but you made it worse."

It was the first time Mikey ever talks in a serious manner and actually talks with sincerity. No puns, no giggling and not even involving pizza in the conversation.

Leo just finished his self training and found his 2nd and 3rd brothers 'examining' his 4th youngest brother on the medical table. He stood frozen for a while until Mikey yelled out for help which he reacted and jogged to them.

Instead of being serious, Leo watched in amusement. "This better be good."

"Mikey was advising Donnie about what to do for y/n-" Raph started, "-and he didn't even mention pizza. What do we do, Leo? Should we interrogate him?"

Leo faked thinking, tapping his chin. "This sounds serious. We should cut him open. Donnie?"

"All ready." Donnie took out all equipments including a saw and Mikey screamed bloody murder.

"Master Splinter!!" Mikey cried, legs waving about.

Instead of running to their direction, Splinter worked on his Japanese plants and casually smells them. "Play nice, boys." he said without concern for the chaos that's happening.

"Noooo." Mikey basically whimpered by their jokes have gone too far. They all just laughed around the youngest and when they're satisfied, they released him. "Not cool, guys. I was only trying to help. When you held me down like that, I called for reinforcements."

"Oh, who? Ice-cream kitty?" Raph laughed, earnings high-3s from the others. (A/N: just using some characters from 2012 universe)

"Mikey, are you alright?!" Your voice boomed the lair, your untied hair flying around as you ran inside the lair.

You stopped to catch your breath and Donnie's attention turned to you, his beautiful mate. You were dressed casually in joggers, black tank top and an oversized plaid shirt. Your clavicular area was covered in sweat, which says you were running to the lair from Mikey's distressed call.

"y/n," Donnie swallowed. You had long forgotten about what happened and turned to him.

"Hey," you breathed out. "Is your brother okay? Is he hurt?"

"He's fine," Raph answered instead. "We were just messing around."

"You strapped me to the table! That's animal abuse!"

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me!"

Donnie trailed towards you, his eyes looking up at yours since you were on the higher steps of the stairs. "I-I missed you, honey."

You coo'd at the nickname he always calls you and hold his face in your hands. Your noses touched. "I missed you more, munchkin."

He pulled your form into his and dug his face in your neck. "I'm sorry for pushing away when you needed me the most. I was selfish, uptight, and stupid. You're the love of my life and I will never push you away like that again," he sneak a small peck near your collarbone. "Please forgive me." His voice cracks.

"I hate you," that made Donnie's heart stopped for a moment. He was about to pull away to look at you but you pushed his head back and his ears landed where your heart beat was. "I hate that you don't come to me when you had a rough day and kept it bottled up inside. I hate you for trying to solve everything and when it didn't go your way, you beat yourself up for it. I want to hate you but I imagined life without you.. God. I cried everyday thinking you hate me for dropping that mutagen canister."

He felt your hug tigtens and when you sniffed, he forcefully pulled away and saw you crying.

"I hate myself for doing this to you," he wiped away the tears gently from your eyes. "If there's anything I can do, tell me. I'll gladly perform seppuku for you."

All brothers interjected at the same time. You turned to them confused.

"What's a--"

"Donnie!" Leo barked and covered your ears. "Are you insane?! If you do that, who's going to hold her?"

Donnie facepalmed. "Right."

Leo uncovered your ears and it just confuse you even more. "Seriously, what's a--"

"Doesn't matter, honey." Donnie kissed your lips, which you responded immediately, his hands went under your shirt touching your skin. He pulled away and flashed his smile which you missed most.

"I love you. Forever and always."

[palmtreepalmtree]

I honestly don't know if I can do Rosh Hashanah this year. There is so much baggage I'm carrying with my family right now. There's a part of me that just wants to drive away. But I don't think I can do that to my mom, and also that's just avoiding the issues.

The biggest thing is that I haven't really seen my brother-in-law since my niece's bat mitzvah in January. It wasn't intentional, but it wasn't unintentional either. I definitely let it happen. He's been having issues with my sister and while they've reconciled or are working on things, I have not forgiven him or let shit go. I have always had issues with him. But me being me, I always just kept my silence and tried to avoid confrontation.

Then he was unkind to my mom last year in a big family blow up where he complained about how he was treated in our house. As it was, I always felt that I had to work so hard to cater to his ego in our house, and that blow up just made me feel like what was the fucking point. Now more than ever I feel this heightened need to be careful around him. I pretty much just ignored him at the bat mitzvah, but he'll be staying in the house so of course I can't do that now. And apparently ignoring him was part of the problem. I can't believe how much emotional work I am doing to accommodate this person.

And to make matters more complicated, his brother will be visiting from out of town. Our house is pretty full already - I already give up my bedroom to accommodate my sister and brother-in-law. Now this guy is going to be sleeping on the den floor. He's perfectly nice, I guess, (though we're both lawyers and that can be sort of a thing iykyk), but what adult man decides to sleep on a futon in the middle of the house instead of just getting a hotel room? He's a big law lawyer, he can afford it. I would never. I barely want to stay with friends when they have a guest room (am I weird about this btw?).

And then there's my cousin and her in-laws. Firstly, my cousin is sicker all the time with cancer. I think she might be close to the end of her fight. Which is a heartbreaking thing to say about someone I adore, someone I grew up with, who is 45 years old, and has three children in their teens. She is fighting so hard, but she's in treatment three days a week, and she will never stop for the rest of her life. I'm happy she'll be coming, but I worry about her being around the 19 other people.

And then her in-laws are coming, and they are bringing their 100-year-old matriarch, who is a wonderful woman, but she is 100 years old, no one ever talks to her except me and my mom, and I don't know who is risking bringing someone like that around a place with 19 other people right now.

AND my cousin is not on the best terms with her mother-in-law. That's too complicated to get into here, but it's not the most pleasant thing in the world. As it is, they are not my favorite people. We've known them and included them for almost 20 years at this point, and over the years it has become clearer and clearer how different my values are from theirs when it comes to money and society. They're not Trump people, but they're definitely Rick Caruso people.

All of that is the backdrop to this dinner that I will be helping my mom to host for 20 people. She will be very stressed so I expect to get yelled at a lot tomorrow. And we're the type of people who smile and get along and pretend, while seething inwardly.

And it's not just like everyone goes home at the end of the night. I'll still have my brother-in-law and his brother at the house, probably all weekend. And I'm obligated to sit through like four hours of services on Saturday in the middle of this. All while not having my own private space to retreat to at the end of it until the family leaves.

Seriously, the more I type this, the more I think I should just leave. But I would never do that to my mom.

[skullhaver]

I am also going to ask you to roast Athren, please.

my rotten soldier, my sweet cheese, my good-time boy.

told his parents his brother was dead instead of asking his brother like, two follow-up questions.

flamboyant slutty bisexual who fulfills the important niche in the party ecosystem of being the only who hits on hot npcs.

did not even manage to bag jarlaxle, despite multiple audiences with him and some flirty banter exchanged.

in a party with three good-aligned PCs, he was the chaotic neutral asshole who constantly asked, "what's in it for me?" which was embarrassing for everyone but mostly for me who was roleplaying him.

weirdly secretive to a fault. it's 80% a deliberate move for privacy and 20% socially awkward "it's been too long since I met someone to ever tell them [X thing] about me, so now I suppose I simply never shall." to the point where it can cause genuine confusion for his friends.

a major interpersonal arc for him throughout the entire campaign was teaching a teenage girl how to do petty crime and avoid getting caught.

his boyfriend got sent to jail for a crime he didn't commit and it took athren like a week to to visit him and check in.

seemingly could have supported himself with a legitimate career but his ambition and adrenaline-junkie ways pushed him toward an unapologetic life of crime, anyway.

almost got killed by a gnome named skeemo weirdbottle. what a fucking loser.

only decided to reconcile with his estranged brother after post-nut clarity, a secret he intends to take with him to the grave.

only achieved said post-nut clarity after unlocking the ability to get gently dommed, which happened after recovering a massive stolen treasure horde and becoming a hero to the city of waterdeep, thus helping him ease-up on like, 40% of his overwhelming anxiety and general sense of inadequacy.

[irenethewoman]

Mrs.Shelby-Chapter 9- Gift

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April 1920, Birmingham

John called us to the Garrison pub, claiming there was a matter to announce. He said he was going to marry Lizzie Stark. I don't want to comment on this. Everyone's a whore; we just sell different parts of ourselves. Those were Tommy's words.

Lizzie Stark is a good person; at least she knows gratitude. She took care of Martha before she died, and even after, she often visited Martha and John's children.

But John is a Shelby. How can Thomas Shelby's younger brother marry a whore? What does that mean for the future of the Peaky Blinders? What has happened to the Shelbys? Love runs deep, and for the sake of love, people throw everything away.

"Tommy, can you understand?" John pleaded with his brother. "You have Diana, and I deserve love too."

...Why should I care? I am Lady Vanessa from Chelsea, and would it be embarrassing for Tommy and me to be together?

At this moment, Finn rushed in, saying we had been robbed. The Lee family made it clear that they are also a bunch of bastards.

As I flipped through the ledgers, reconciling the lost property, Tommy found a pair of pliers on the table in the meeting room.

"Don't move! There's a hand grenade here," he warned.

Listening to their stories about the "jokes" on the battlefield, I was stunned. Still, I quickly responded, "No, there isn't. Otherwise, we would have been blown up when we came in."

"The bullets they sent only have my name on them. They want to kill me."

...Alright, what bullets? Tommy kept this from me again.

I watched him run out of the betting shop, seemingly knowing the location of the bomb.

I looked down at the ledgers. Money can be earned again, but things more precious than money are irreplaceable. If we want to replace Billy Kimber, we cannot afford a setback and let the Lee family take advantage. We must negotiate and become a tight unit.

Tommy returned, having found the bomb in his car.

He listened to my thoughts and nodded. I asked if he wanted me to accompany him.

He remained silent for a moment and shook his head. "The Lee family knows I have a beauty with me, but they don't know you."

"So what?" I frowned at him. I didn't understand. I just wanted to help him bear more, and besides, we were going for negotiation, not war. What's so scary about them knowing who I am?

Tommy shook his head and gave me a teasing kiss. "Can you... uh, smoke less..."

Tommy went to the outskirts market, and I accompanied Polly to find Ada.

Poor Ada, pregnant and living like a rat in the dark basement. Love? If this is love, I'd rather not.

Ada gave us the address of one of Sean's associates, a life for a life.

Since Ada left home, this was the first time I had seen her. She had changed from the lively girl of those years into a thin woman with a bulging belly. Her face was pale, and her eyes rolled around like a frightened quail.

"Don't torture yourself just because you hate Thomas," I squatted down, trying to persuade her gently. "And Thomas has done a lot for you and Sean, even though he sometimes seems annoying, he loves you. Go home."

I tried to persuade Ada to go home for rest, but she firmly refused.

It was raining heavily. I tightened my coat and stood in Tommy's garage.

Finally, Campbell arrived.

I handed him a note with Chapman's address. "This is Stanley Chapman's residence, and he has £200 from the Russians."

Campbell reached out to take the note but I dodged. "Use it to exchange for Sean."

He nodded. "You have my guarantee, Miss Turner."

Guarantee? Who would believe your guarantee? I raised an eyebrow.

His eyes betrayed him; he seemed to see me as a little animal that could be played with. He probably thought I was a gentlewoman protected by Thomas, harmless and innocent.

I didn't bother to correct his mistake. Let him see the consequences of his prejudice.

He asked me to pass a message to Thomas, asking him to hand over the weapons as soon as possible, and made a series of threats.

"Your spy, Grace from Garrison Pub," I spoke as he walked away. "Quite useless."

I watched Campbell stop in his tracks, turn around, and look at me.

We silently confronted each other.

"Miss Vanessa," he called me by my title.

That's right.

Despite scoffing at the news of "grandfather looking for me," I still managed to contact the informant who came from London. My grandfather, David Barton, was in poor health, his only son had already passed away, and he wanted me to return to be his heir, inheriting his factory and vast wealth. He even offered to help me inherit the title of Baroness—even though my younger brother George was still the current heir.

My grandfather went as far as seeking Churchill's help to communicate with me. Although I was indifferent to inheriting the wealth, I felt a bit emotional seeing the news of my grandfather.

In the face of the upcoming war, the support of such a wealthy old man would be a great help to the Shelby family. So, I decided to return to London temporarily.

I briefly talked to my grandfather on the phone, but the most important thing for me was to find information about the Russians.

The Shelleys sent a car to pick me up.

I drove my car and waited at the entrance of the Garrison. I planned to tell Thomas about my temporary departure to London and also to ask him about the Russians.

But Thomas seemed to be in a bad mood.

"Tommy," I called his name, but he only gave me a cold look.

"I'm leaving for London. Grandfather asked me to inherit the family business," I said softly.

This time, he finally looked at me seriously. "When?"

"As soon as possible. I'll be back after handling the family affairs. It's just a temporary return."

He didn't say anything. I could feel the chill in his eyes.

"I need to know more about the Russians. Do you have any information?" I continued.

He finally spoke, his voice indifferent. "We're dealing with them."

That was all he said.

I left Birmingham without saying goodbye to the others. As I boarded the car, I took one last glance at the Garrison, hoping that when I returned, everything would be fine.

However, fate had a different plan for me. I didn't know that my temporary departure marked the beginning of a series of unpredictable events.

As I stepped into the car, I could feel a storm brewing on the horizon. Little did I know, the storm would change everything.

[skylarstark4826]

Some time ago in Shuri’s lab, Wakanda.

“Status of Trial 117: Data analysis phase initiated. Estimated time to completion: two hours, twenty-three minutes,” Griot announces.

Finally at a lull in her experiments for the day, Shuri leans on one of her workstations, her gaze falling idly onto the seashell mounted on a display table across the room. Though still functional as a communication device, the conch now serves as a ceremonial symbol of Talokan's support should Wakanda ever call for aid, and Wakanda’s alliance with Talokan.

However, it only reminds Shuri of the embers of resentment and anger still quietly burning in her for the death of her mother, the deaths of both her people and the Talokanil; all the pain and conflict that ensued from that first meeting with Namor.

It’s the same one he carried when he first arrived on Wakanda’s riverbanks.

When she feels those embers rekindling, she struggles to reconcile being in love with someone who wounded her heart so deeply. It takes retreading each reason why they chose peace instead of vengeance to remember how he became the one to help her heart heal. Part of it was time spent together connecting through a love for their people, and part of it the knowledge of a brokenness only the two of them would ever understand.

“Good afternoon, itzia. I hope I’m not interrupting your work.”

Shuri’s brow unfurrows abruptly at the sound of Namor’s voice, drawing her attention to its source. He’s dressed in a more formal cloak and adornments for his routine diplomatic visit to the Golden City. Bast, she’d nearly forgotten about it in her rush to the lab this morning. He’d visited her last night as well, in her bedroom, and neither of them gave much regard to clothes, sleep, or needs of their schedules for official duties the following day.

“No, not at all.” She offers a polite smile in greeting, still a little lost in the storm of her earlier thoughts. A brighter memory peeks through the dark clouds as she walks over to the display in an attempt to shake them loose. Shuri lifts the opening of the large conch to one side of her head, covering an ear. “When I was a child, my mother told me that if I put a shell like this to my ear, I would hear the ocean. The sound would be like I was at the beach, listening to the roar of the waves breaking on shore.” A small smile spread across her face. “I learned later that the roaring was ambient noise from the environment around me, vibrating against the surface and amplified by the shape of the shell’s interior. Some mistakenly believe the roaring is blood flowing through your body.” Shuri looks up at Namor, then, with a childlike curiosity. “You shared with me before that one of your abilities is enhanced hearing.” She lowers the shell away and holds it out for Namor to take. “So, tell me. What do you hear?”

A couple of weeks later, following a late afternoon council meeting. 

The throne room empties quickly after M’Baku dismisses the council, everyone eager to have dinner. All of Shuri’s favorites are on the menu tonight, but her appetite just isn’t there. Really, she hasn’t had much of an appetite in some time, but she can blame that on her newfound strength: so much has changed about her body now, so why worry about small things like that? Instead of following the group to the dining hall, she lingers briefly in the empty room before detouring to a private chamber her father had occasionally used as an office.

Photos of her and her family at various private and public events decorate the wall to one side of the desk, trickling down to litter the top of a small cabinet butting against it. Her eyes rove across the still memories, resting periodically on the faces of her late father, mother, and brother and herself, all smiling. There are no solo portraits in this collection.

I was never alone, she reassures herself. And I am not alone, even now.

Her heart warms at the thought of little T’Challa’s photos one day joining the gallery. The day she met her nephew, she had no idea how much more brightly love would burn for both her brother and the little, cheerful, sweet-smiled part of him he brought into the world. It extinguished all the rage and loneliness and fear that those fires would never go out. For a brief moment, she even wonders what that love would feel like, should she ever have a child of her own.

Griot’s voice pings into her reverie. “Princess, I have the results of the blood test you ordered.”

Blood test? Shuri frowns, then remembers: she had not had her cycle since the month after she had ingested the synthetic heart-shaped herb, and she had done a sample this morning, concerned with what the side effects might mean in the long term. She must have forgotten about it. That is not like her. Shuri shakes her head. “Yes, sorry, Griot. What are the results?”

“There are no vitamin deficiencies, and your white blood cell count is normal. I can detect slightly elevated levels of cortisol, and additionally, a very healthy level of human chorionic gonadotropin.” 

Shuri blinks. She blinks again. Then, she breathes.

Some time later, on an empty shore of Haiti. 

The sun breaks the horizon, painting the sky and clouds in warm hues. Soft pinks blanket the blue sky in lavender, giving way to bright oranges and yellows the further the sun creeps up in its morning path. Shuri stands on the shore dressed in a cropped orange halter swim top, low-waisted black calf-length leggings, and a short off-white sarong tied around her waist. She looks out to the ocean, patiently waiting for the familiar shape of her companion to break the surface.

He doesn’t keep her waiting long. When he arrives, seashell in hand, the shoreline is bathed in gold.

Namor tosses the conch into the sand. He wades up the beach before greeting her with a full, firm kiss, hands wandering over her exposed midriff when he grasps her waist to pull her close.

When they finally break the kiss, Shuri takes a moment to regain her breath. Her gaze is soft as she looks at the sunlight breaking through the dark of Namor’s irises, exposing the warmth beneath.

She smiles as she slides her hand from behind his neck to cup his jawline, gently tracing his lips with the pad of her thumb. Shuri gestures to a fallen coconut tree next to them. Namor sits on the trunk as she remains standing close to his side, gently guiding his ear toward her abdomen and cradling the back of his head with one hand. His cold, wet hair tickles her exposed stomach, but his skin is so warm.

“I want you to listen to something, and tell me what you hear.”

Namor holds her close, one hand bracing the back of her thigh, his other hand resting above her hip. He slides off the trunk to kneel in the sand between her feet as if the new position would help him hear any better.

Shuri can’t see his expression, but she feels his quiet wonder, the departure of the old world with every exhale, the dawning of a new one in every rising of his chest and shoulders as he breathes in.

He tightens his embrace ever so slightly. Shuri is uncertain of what he’ll say, but hopeful.

“In itzia. I think…”

The fluttering heartbeat beneath Namor’s ear echoes his joy.

“…This is the most beautiful sound I have ever heard.”

/end

[bunmuffin]

Hello, feel free to ignore this if you don't wanna answer but I finally got to watch your rpg video (which was very cute and fun to watch) and you seem to know your way around tsams. Do you think you could maybe give a quick explanation of what the fuck is happening?! I want to get into this show but there's like 1000 layers of lore, drama, and complications (and don't get me started about their side channels) that make it hard to understand what's happening. I don't really wanna watch 6 months of daily content, I've already tried and failed, and nobody has any sort of explanation of what's going on 😱😱

Again you don't have to go through if you don't want to (or don't know) I'm just lost man...

Hello! I'm glad you enjoyed my video and appreciate your kind words <3 As far as the lore of SAMS goes dw, I was in your shoes too. I only started watching them last December and I had like 7 months of lore to catch up on. I did find out (if you want to experience the lore yourself) you can just watch their VRchat videos. Most of the lore is in there (besides a few minecraft lore videos). They have a Playlist of it on their channel, and that should help you understand the majority of it. But here is my crappy bullet point explanation if you want a super summary. Keep in mind though I wasn't there for most of it so some of these events I don't fully understand myself. Before they started their channel: - Sun and Moon shared a body. Moon hated it and was constantly causing Sun pain. Moon already has a virus (though they refer to it as a Kill Code) - They eventually reconcile and agree to work together. Moon makes his own body and transfers his AI too it while trying to leave his Kill Code behind (hoping it would just deactivate) - I believe they follow the in game events of the pizzaplex burning down and now their homeless The start of their channel: - Two bros, chilling in a bunker, 5 feet apart cause their playing video games for their channel. They also continue to run a mini daycare - Moon starts to show signs that his Kill Code is returning and Sun also starts to act a bit-- kill codey (because Moon left it behind in Sun) - JULY 16th! Sun kills for the first time. This kill code Sun eventually becomes the character Eclipse. Eclipse and Lunar Era: - Eclipse makes another AI named Lunar (think of it if Moon was actually a nice non-gremlin killing DCA) and he stealth ninja star usbs Lunar into Moon's body. - Sun and Moon are unaware of them for awhile, until they eventually make themselves known and take over Sun and Moon's body (The Sun and Moon show temporarily becomes the Eclipse and Lunar show where the two alternates play video games instead. Very amusing to watch). - Eclipse tortures Sun and Moon a lot while he tries to get the Newton Star (a device that Moon created that can wipe out all AI's memories in a certain vacinity) - Eclipse is an asshole to Lunar and eventually Lunar decides to help Sun and Moon out instead, officially becoming a 'brother' to them. - This part I don't know much about but somewhere along the line-- Moon learns magic and Sun, Moon, and Lunar were able to defeat Eclipse and leave him to rot in a forest. Bloodmoon Era: - Things are pretty chill. Sun, Moon, and Lunar become closer. Monty is a thing. He's a good freind. Lunar and Sun take care of the daycare (they now have a full daycare they work and live in) and Moon is busy looking for and destroying Eclipse's backups. - Bloodmoon becomes a thing. Idk how. Idk why. But he's here and he's out for your blood (I think Eclipse had created him at some point) - Bloodmoon is two AIs in one body and all they crave is blood and violence - Sun, Moon and Lunar visit different AUs, one of them being if Eclipse had won (also known as the SAMSwarAU which is an AU that slowly getting popular if you ever see it-- thats what that is) - Eclipse has a backup in Bloodmoon and the two(three?) start working together to get back at Sun, Moon, and Lunar Kill Code Era (current Era): - Sun breaks Moon's computer and Moon's Kill Code gets reactivated (all orchestrated by Eclipse) - Monty enter's Moon's head to save Lunar and Moon's Kill Code becomes an official character named Kill Code (or KC) - Bloodmoon and Eclipse try and get KC on their side (though Bloodmoon and KC just end up making a deal instead), Monty saves Lunar, and Sun is just trying his best - KC and Moon make a deal. KC will leave Sun, Lunar, and Monty alone, help Moon take control over Bloodmoon and Eclipse, if they can work together to kill their creator. Moon accepts the deal so he can get his body back. (oh ya-- their creator is appearntly an asshole but idk much about him) And now you're all caught up. Thank you for coming to my spark notes edition of the SAMS lore. There is a lot of small details I left out and I'm sure there are some things I've gotten wrong or just didn't know even happened but this is my own understanding of it, coming into the community late. Hope this helps!

[sparkedblaze]

[physically vibrating with trying to restrain the urge to apologise] okay so CONSIDER

davey is anxious about the delanceys - he’s heard lots of stories about them from jack, sees what an awful effect they’ve had on the man he loves - but he has a lot of trouble reconciling the image he built of them with the morris that he finally meets when the brothers start visiting medda again. morris, who is almost completely silent and very jumpy and clingy and always wants to just sit and draw or play the moment he gets to medda’s. who is smaller than he should be and bony like he spent a lot of years starved and absolutely covered in scars beneath his childish, comfy clothes. he’s usually covered in bruises too, injuries from his career fighting.

so davey’s gentle with him. he acts like those people who aren’t good with kids and are scared of hurting them or saying the wrong thing but also want to interact back when kids talk to them. he never starts conversations with morris - knows better than to do so in front of oscar or jack, for very different reasons - but offers small, tentative smiles when morris peeks over at him, and on one notable occasion morris held up one of his drawings to show davey, so davey told him it was fantastic. morris ducked his head shyly but beamed to himself, happy-stimming.

the day after jack and oscar get into that fight over the blanket being stolen, the brothers are still at medda’s and davey’s visiting, basically being jack’s stand-in to talk to medda and try and sort anything out. his nose is bruised badly and hurts something awful where oscar head butted him, and morris keeps looking at where it’s taped. finally, he stands up from where he’s been sat covering himself in stickers with intense concentration, and very slowly - sort of like a scared cat - tentatively approaches davey where he’d been sat on his phone at the kitchen table.

morris has got a sticker on his finger, a cartoon rainbow with a smiling face, and holds it outstretched.

“uh—what?” davey asks, as gently as he can, sincerely confused. “is that for me?”

morris nods, but moves closer, too close for davey to take the sticker in his own hand, instead hovering it near his forehead, like where morris has got several other stickers stuck to his own face.

“oh!”

davey bows his head slightly, nodding, and morris very gently presses the sticker over the bandage on the bridge of davey’s nose. he moves back and looks anxiously at davey.

“betta?”

davey can’t help but smile at him, despite everything. all too aware of oscar nearby, distracted as he might be with the low, intense conversation he’s having with medda.

“yeah. it feels… much better now. thank you, morris.”

I ALMOST DIDN'T SHARE THIS. I ALMOST KEPT THIS ALL TO MYSELF BECAUSE I AM LITERALLY SAT ON MY BED CRYING.

GODS

AND YOU KNOW OSCAR'S GONNA BE L I V I D WHEN HE SEES THE STICKER. HE CAN'T FATHOM WHY MORRIS WOULD GIVE HIM A STICKER. HE'S ON JACK'S SIDE. EVERYONE IS ON JACK'S SIDE. IT'S THE TWO OF THEM AGAINST THE WORLD, RIGHT?! HOW COULD MORRIS DO THAT?

But then he stops to think about how much Mo has been through, even in the last few hours. He (reluctantly) says nothing about it, tries to tamp down the jealousy in his chest. Because Mo is making friends and he shouldn't be the one to come between them. He can't be the one to ruin Mo's happiness.

So he says nothing.

[intheorangebedroom]

Maybe it's the season but I've been in my feels lately and nothing can scratch it like re-reading your beautiful "Pleased to Meet You" fic work of art.

Which got me thinking - as I know you touched on it in a previous drabble - but I'd love to know how Benny & Frankie's friendship reconciled after it all went down? Is Frankie allowed to mention Gabrielle, did Benny move on? How did he feel once he learnt the truth of the orange bedroom? Was he bitter, or did he understand?

Sorry I know that's a lot to ask but no pressure, I don't expect an answer to any of it! I guess it's my way of saying how much I admire your writing and how you weaved such a rich soulmate-esque fic that it still leaves me wanting more of this universe. Thanks for writing, it's been a highlight of my 2023 to discover it.

Happy New Year for you too! 🎉

Dearest Nonnie 🧡

A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU, LOVE 🧡 May you bask and thrive in the safe and soft hues of an orange bedroom of your own 🧡

Your ask is the last I received in 2023, it brought tears of joy to my eyes. I am so thankful to you, so grateful you took the time to reach out and send me those kind words and so fucking happy I gave you something that you enjoy and that brings you comfort. That's all I wish to do, that's the best feeling. And I'm sorry it's taken me so long to answer you.

It's not a lot to ask 🧡 I sincerely hope you’re happy with this (lengthy, ugh in 2024 I’m still incapable of brevity, will I ever be? Spoiler alert: probably not) answer 🧡

Prior to Benny's impromptu visit to the Morales-Tourneur household in January, Will had been doing his best to explain the situation to his brother. That Frankie and Gabrielle had met a long a time ago, and had already been in love for a long time when he entered the picture. He did it more in an attempt to mend his brother's broken heart than to excuse Frankie. Benny was never bitter, but he was hurt. Badly so. So all of Will's explaining didn't help much.

What did help was their conversation outside his house on that cold January morning. Even if Frankie provided him with what's probably the world's worst apology ever, Benny still needed to hear him say he was sorry for the way things went down. Benny's a pretty literal guy. He needed Frankie's words: "you were my best friend. You still are."

After that, Frankie took it slow and kept a low profile, following Benny's lead, letting him set the pace to his reinstatement into the group. He began by showing up to support him on fight nights, first in the audience, and he waited patiently (several months) until Benny told him he could join him and Will in the locker room. The next step was their Friday nights.

And in September that year, when Frankie texted Ben for his birthday and received his immediate reply of 🔥🍻🙌🏻  he felt this terrible weight lifted off his (broad) shoulders, replaced by the elated certitude that he'd kept his promise. He'd fixed it. Fixed everything.

Now he does not mention Gabrielle. Ever. Out of respect and decency. Benny's moved on. With several other ladies, first, until he met one he fell hard for and who fell right back for him. But Frankie knows Gabrielle was Ben’s first love. And he recognises the sheepish look in his eyes, the lingering, stolen glances in her direction whenever their shared social circle brings the three of them together in the same place, for parties, birthdays, BBQs… And despite Frankie's restored fondness for his friend, there will always be an abiding ember of jealousy, no matter how sternly he tries to reason with himself that, if it wasn’t for Ben, he would have never found her again.

Gabrielle’s the blind spot in their friendship. But one that, with time, patience, and open minds, they’ve been able to overcome. Our guys went through hell together. They’re smart, good men. Their friendship eventually prevailed 🧡

[welcometomypov]

I’d like to ask a question as a follow-up to a previous ask about Trump, if I may

You say that you, to paraphrase, if I’m understanding you correctly, have an obligation to make the world a better place, as outlined by Christ’s teachings, and that you feel that voting Republican, and for Trump by extension, is the best way to do that.

My question is, How do you reconcile your own Christian values with the things republicans do that are particularly UN-Christlike?

For example, I grew up Christian and Republican, but I always had a hard time with the Republican desire to lock down the border, neuter social programs, and enact stricter laws with harsher consequences, when these things seemed in direct conflict with what Jesus tells us to do: “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me... Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."

Big thoughts time! Mkay. (Linking ASK here for context.)

"How do you reconcile your own Christian values with the things republicans do that are particularly UN-Christlike?"

Hmhmhmhm, well, I just don't support the things that I don't like and make it very clear if I stand on an issue that's more liberal.

I used to think I was an Independent. Then I leaned more liberal for a hot minute, but I got on the internet and learned that having two or three Republican values was unacceptable for a liberal.

I wasn't seeing a lot of love. It was... Scary, for an anxiety child who was still finding herself to be in that peer-pressured environment.

So I turned Republican, learned more things that I like about their perspective, and have yet to change my mind.

Many of them have their flaws, but they've never *hated me for my opinions or bragged about their white male hate to my face. (Mostly a me issue as I am... Very protective of my brothers.)

If I don't like what the Republicans are doing, I don't support it. I tell my parents that I disagree and we argue about it. Then we move on and argue about it later because we're strong-willed. My parents don't hate me for disagreeing, but they want what's best for me and just believe that I'm doing something that's wrong and ergo bad for me.

They love me. And I love them. So we disagree.

Very few average Republicans will kick you out if you're a Pro-choice Republican or a Pro-trans Republican or you have two or three Liberal values mixed into your Republican beliefs.

So if I don't like what the Republicans are doing, I just don't support them and do my best to fight against them. It's my responsibility.

A paraphrased understanding that I have is...

A Republican leans towards the majority of Republican values and not the entirety of Republican values. If that makes sense?

So when someone says, "I'm a Republican but I don't like some of the things that they stand for/do", I go, "Chill, man, me neither."

I do approve of locking down the border.

Depends on which specific program, I think.

And I'm for this for *certain* cases.

Jesus was plenty strict. He did not pull his punches when it comes to how you should deal with giving into evil temptation.

"And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."

Punishment is necessary for growth. But so is kindness and love.

They don't go hand in hand, but they're both necessary.

That's a lovely quote. It's one of the reasons my parents (at this very moment) have a homeless bag full of supplies in their van. Because we are always ready to help someone that is in need. We're always ready to make food for anyone who needs it. We're willing to forgive and forget those who hurt us, to love when we're hated, and to provide relief when someone is struggling, no matter who or why.

But we also know that housing someone who is not unable, but simply refuses, to work is not a way to help them. We know that giving money to someone who looks high is not reasonable.

We've spoken to legal immigrants who are furious that they escaped from rapists and murders and now Americans are freely letting them come into the country- ruining the safety and prosperity that they struggled so hard to find and secure for their families.

Everyone deserves a helping hand, but not everyone is ready to accept it. Or let us pull them to their feet.

Sometimes, they'll pull a knife when we reach out.

It's always smart to want to help. It's smarter to know when not to.

I really hope this makes sense! I reread it about three times because I wanted to make sure it wasn't offensive or attackish or anything. Let me know if anything sounds crude so I won't repeat a sentiment in the future! Thanks for the ask!

*To me, hating someone is the equivalent of wanting them dead

[pashterlengkap]

In touching speech, Oprah Winfrey discusses brother who died of AIDS

Media legend Oprah Winfrey recently spoke about her younger brother Jeffrey who died of AIDS. She spoke of him while accepting a Vanguard Award from the queer media watchdog group GLAAD. GLAAD presents the award to allies who have made a significant difference in promoting acceptance of LGBTQ+ people and issues. “Many people don’t know this, but 35 years ago, my brother Jeffrey Lee passed away when he was just 29 years old, from AIDS,” Winfrey said near the start of her speech. “Growing up at the time we did, in the community that we did, we didn’t have the language to understand or to speak about sexuality and gender in the way that we do now. And at the time, I really didn’t know how deeply my brother internalized the shame that he felt about being gay. I wish he could have lived to visit these liberated times and to be here with me tonight.” Related: Oprah Winfrey advocates for LGBTQ+ rights in Tennessee State commencement speech She said these words in a state that has passed a ban on public drag performance and has outlawed gender-affirming care for minors. “I wish my brother Jeffrey could have experienced a world that could see him for who he was and appreciate him for what he brought to this world,” she added. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Daily * Weekly * Good News * During her speech, she mentioned that The Oprah Winfrey Show — her televised talk show which ran from 1986 to 2011 — worked during the AIDS crisis to correct “rampant misinformation and misguided fear” about gay men. In 1987, she brought her talk show to Williamson, West Virginia — a town that had shut down a local pool after an HIV-positive man was found to have swam there — to hold a town hall where medical experts explained how the virus is transmitted. “We brought the facts and tried to erase some of the biases,” Winfrey said in her speech. “And then we went back, 23 years later, to revisit it and help people to confront their beliefs around homosexuality, and saw both the personal growth and the lack of personal growth that had taken place.” Her show also commemorated National Coming Out Day in 1988, the same year that the observance was first created, to have people publicly come out to their parents on the air — though she admitted that she required all participants to come out to their parents before the show aired because, “Really, I don’t want your mom to come after me.” “I wanted to create a safe space to bring the lives and the background stories of the LGBTQ community front and center to our audience,” she said. “And what I’ve learned over the years of interviewing over 35,000 people one-on-one… is that every single person wants the same thing, and that is the desire to feel seen and to know that what we say matters and to know that we matter.” She noted that, since launching the Oprah Winfrey Network in 2011, she had helped air documentaries on transgender people, including Becoming Chaz, about Cher’s son Chaz Bono, and I Am Jazz, about young trans youth advocate Jass Jennings. Related: Oprah & Gayle King try to define LGBTQ slang terms & they don’t care if they’re wrong “I’ve never heard this from any gay person,” Oprah said of a particularly difficult expression. Even today, Winfrey continues to use her platform to foster understanding towards the LGBTQ+ community. In 2021, she spoke with actor Elliot Page about the “joy” transitioning brought him; in 2016, she spoke with Connie Johnson, wife of retired NBA superstar Magic Johnson, about how she reconciled her Christian faith with her son’s homosexuality; and in 2015, she spoke with gay former-child actor Danny Pintaro about his meth addiction. Oprah also played the role of a therapist in the history-making 1997 episode of Ellen DeGeneres’ sitcom Ellen, in which DeGeneres came out. Oprah and Ellen have… http://dlvr.it/T4Ypq9

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

Since you’ve talked about the twins’ futures, what happens to Jacob Fawley?

He doesn't have a future, he was dead all along.

Okay but in all seriousness, that's a question that can only invoke an "oof" response from me.

Because I always believed Jacob's journey ended when MC's began, and it ended with his death, and MC would have to discover that over time and accept it. That was my theory in the old days and it's what Luca's story is written around. So let's put a pin in that and come back to Luca.

First, let's go with Gail.

Gail and Jacob have never been friendly to one another, even in timelines where they were raised together. Though that wouldn't be a likely outcome as I've always envisioned Gail growing up with Rakepick and Ben. No, the way I see it, Gail first meets Jacob in The Portrait Vault and when she does, her perspective of him is already tainted by R's account of events. But the fact is, nothing R told Gail was a lie. They told her about how reckless and selfish Jacob could be, on his absurd and obsessive goal to learn the secrets of The Vaults (now that I think about it, my Jacob has more in common with Sebastian than any other character...) and how he wanted nothing more than to destroy The Cabal and stop their plans from coming to fruition.

By this point, Gail had come to believe in R and in their cause. Jacob represented everything she stood against, and the personal relationship between these two wouldn't have been in a good place. R may have told Gail that Jacob killed Luca. Or that he hated Gail and blamed her for his distance from their parents. Or that he was responsible for her being sent away. Not sure which story they would go with, only that whatever it is would technically be true - but R sure as hell doesn't tell Gail the whole story.

When she confronts him in the Portrait Vault, she likely wants to arrest him on the spot. But he drops some kind of reveal that stun-locks her and leaves her frozen, unable to carry out the mission. Unsure of what it will be. Maybe R never actually told Gail that Jacob was her brother, that's a possibility. If he drops that bomb on her then, that could be interesting. But they encounter each other a few times throughout Year 6 before the Forbidden Forest, and are antagonistic toward each other, Gail initiating duels and so on. Once Gail turns on R, they would begin to mend their relationship.

Here's a positive twist on events.

I never thought I'd see the day that Jacob and Gail would get along, but in this timeline where Y6CH18 happens, and Gail never takes command of R...I don't see why they wouldn't eventually reconcile. Together, they would fight R, with a little help from Dumbledore and The Ministry. After the conflict is over, Gail becomes an Auror, I had already decided on that. No reason Jacob couldn't as well. I feel like that wouldn't be his style at all, that he would be a free spirit, but Gail would certainly try to persuade him. Whether she was successful or not, the two would keep in touch. They'd become closer. Gail would still find her brother annoying as can be, but she would ultimately love him and look out for him, same as he would for her. It helps that she's already had to adapt to one sibling becoming a chaotic mess in the form of Ben, and I can see these three becoming a powerhouse team.

Jacob probably wouldn't be an Auror, the more I think about it. He'd be an Auror's Consultant, though, for sure. I see Jacob working with creatures, something Gail cannot understand at all. Specifically, he just screams Dragonology. Let's say he works with Chinese Fireballs over in, well, China. Because Jacob doesn't really get people and never has, not since Duncan's death. Gail would definitely visit him, just not at work. I like to imagine Jacob's broken heart is eventually healed though, and he meets a nice muggle bloke he's able to impress with his magic and winged friends. Depending on hoe equipped the new guy is when it comes to dealing with Jacob's unpredictable lifestyle, fiery nature, and dangerous career path...it may or may not work out.

But what about Luca?

Okay. You know the drill. For Luca's story, Jacob is meant to be dead. But what if he's not? What if he's alive during the entirely of Year 6, Year 7, and beyond? Keep in mind, this version of Luca is reeling from the death of their best friend in the whole world, not to mention the total betrayal of someone they had always protected and loved. In Year 7, Luca is miserable. More depressed than they've ever been, and for the first time in their life, it's hit them that they don't feel like they can talk to Jacob about it. They try, they do try, and he even has experiences that are comparable that he can use to relate to Luca. But somehow, Luca has reached a point where Jacob is unable to reach them.

Because Jacob has always been a flawed and lovable figure in Luca's life. They knew it ever sine they were a child, but they always saw him through rose colored glasses and made excuses for his problematic behavior. Just like they did for Merula. He was always their hero, after all. And here's the thing. Merula has always mirrored Jacob in terms of what kind of person she is, and how Luca sees her as a part of their life. But no matter how much Luca defended her, none of that will change the fact that Rowan is dead, and Merula is serving the people who are responsible. Meanwhile, Luca spent five years idealizing Jacob in his absence and breaking their back to set him free. Now, he's free. But the quest to find him set Luca down this path of opening the Vaults. His involvement with R is the reason Luca got mixed up with them as well. (They think that, until they learn the Leader's identity.) Jacob's freedom was not without cost.

Does Luca resent him, and blame him even just a little for Rowan's fate? I think they do. Which is not fair to him, and they know it isn't, but it's how they feel. Similarly, Merula may have had nothing to do with Rowan's death, she may not have known it was going to happen. But when Luca shuts their eyes, they can still see Rowan laying there, spectacles broken, mouth agape. And they will never be able to mentally separate that moment from Merula's deception.

Can you see why Rowan's death just doesn't work for Luca's story?

It puts them at odds with all of the people who are meant to be the most important loved ones in their life. They lose everything, and I don't know how to pick up the pieces or resume their story in that timeline. All I can do is try. Jacob's death may have seemed like the world was ending to Luca, but the truth is, their world was the found family they had created around them-self, so they pulled through. But Rowan's death causes that found family to fracture, especially when combined with the identity of The Hogwarts Mole.

But I'm getting way off topic. This is about Jacob, and his future in timelines where Luca is the protagonist. Well, what's truly ironic is that I think he and Gail ultimately wind up being closer than he and Jacob would be. I think there would be some unspoken tension between them for a while, which Jacob would recognize but Luca would uncharacteristically refuse to acknowledge. They would act like everything was fine until Jacob called them out and demanded they be honest about their feelings, leading Luca to a breakdown where, at Jacob's encouragement, they lash out at him and release the anger they've been holding. It makes them feel much better.

The siblings reconcile to face a common enemy in the form of Farah: Their mother, and my version of Peregrine. I have no concept of how this hero-villain dynamic is going to work. In the Jacob's Death Timeline (also known as the Rowan Lives AU) what really made Farah into someone Luca would despise, is her murder of Jacob. That single act guaranteed that an otherwise kind and forgiving person would not even try to work things out, and that there would be no mercy for Farah. Luca wouldn't kill her, but they also wouldn't save her, even if they might have otherwise. But in this timeline...damn it. I'm thinking about this, let me brainstorm a minute.

Okay, here's a new concept.

Rakepick is the one who killed Rowan. Meaning that, by the same logic I just applied to Farah, she is the one who should be the final villain, instead of Farah. Right? I'm suddenly envisioning Rakepick as the rogue element that R describes. That whatever R might be, Farah was telling the truth about her having her own ambitions. Farah and Rakepick being foils, similar to Carol and Emma from Timeless...perhaps leading to Rakepick killing Farah and seizing control of R herself? I don't know, it doesn't really make sense. I don't have an answer at the moment for how the battle with R ends in this timeline.

What I do know is that after everything's settled, Jacob would likewise accept a job working with dragons in China, but this time he might offer to take Luca with him and get them a similar job. Creatures have always been Luca's primarily passion, and it would be a chance for the two of them to rebuild their relationship...and if this were prior to Hogwarts, I could see Luca not even waiting for Jacob to finish his sentence before they start packing. But this Luca is wiser and also more jaded. They love their brother, but it's a huge commitment to make, and at this point they'd prefer to make their own way. They'd still see him, but they're going to keep living in Britain. Jacob's future plays out relatively the same way, I should think.