#and my breath turning into steam in the winter. and how I’ll probably never experience this exact moment in time again

[puppyeared]

*through gritted teeth* sometimes. The way people go about their lives will clash with mine. And it will be harmless. And you have to be ok with that sometimes. You’ll learn to live with it. And if u can’t do that rn imagine grabbing them in a chokehold until it passes

[caffeinatedbraincell]

So you asked about prompts? ;D What about Joe/Nicky + any team member cuddling for warmth? Or something about all of them sharing clothes? Huge bonus if Lykon is still part of the Guard ❤️❤️❤️

Thank you anon for the ask!! 💕 This took forever but here it is~

Read on AO3

“Whose idea was this, again?” Joe complained, readjusting the weight of the front half of the giant plastic evergreen. He was sweating and freezing at the same time, which was decidedly one of his least favorite feelings ever.

“Yeah, I wonder,” Quynh seconded from behind him, throwing Andy a dirty look.

Andy sauntered hands-free in front of them, talking animatedly with Nicky and Lykon as they walked. The three of them clearly loved the snow, though Joe doubted they would be having even half as much fun if they had to carry the tree.

Quynh spat out some plastic pine needles. “Andromache! It’s your turn to carry this, come here!”

“Pleeease babe, we’re almost home!”

“Yeah,” Nicky interjected. “Besides, we have to carry the presents!” He waved the small, sparkly gift bag at them before pointedly turning back around.

Joe muttered something in Arabic about lazy spouses with nice asses, and Quynh cackled.

“Alright, alright,” Lykon interjected, jumping in front to get everyone’s attention. “Booker just texted me that he’s managed to get Nile out of the house under the pretext of, and I quote, ‘the snowball duel of the century.’ They’re going to the mountain pass, so we have two hours to get set up.”

“Perfetto,” Nicky said. “It’ll take me about twenty minutes to get the cookies in the oven, and then I’ll help decorate the tree.”

“You better get out in less than twenty,” Quynh warned. “When am I supposed to work? Do you even know how long it takes to cook chicken?”

“He doesn’t,” Joe confirmed.

“Habibi, that’s not fair. What about that time I made-”

A long, ominous buzz innervated all of their phones simultaneously. It was an emergency weather alert.

“Blizzard warning until 2:15 AM. All inner city residents are encouraged to shelter in place until further notice. Sudden snowfall and landslides may prove deadly,” Nicky read.

“Lykon, text Booker,” Andy ordered.

“On it.”

“No use,” Nicky cut in. “They’re probably already at the mountain pass. They won’t make it back in time.”

Andy swore loudly. “Joe, get the car. We’re going after them.”

Quynh and Joe dropped the tree and ran towards the house. By the time Joe started the car, Quynh was climbing down the porch steps with an armful of towels. The five of them piled into the car and tore down the icy roads.

The storm picked up with terrifying haste. When they got to the bridge near the mountain pass, visibility was already nearing zero. Joe switched places with Andy, clambering into the passenger seat so she could take the wheel. If anything could help them now, it was Andy’s extensive experience with driving in extreme weather conditions.

As they traveled through the pass, everyone kept their eyes trained on the snowy slopes, looking for any signs of Nile and Booker.

Suddenly, Lykon cried out in horror. Only a few feet away from the road were two motionless bodies, almost fully buried in a snow drift.

“Cazzo!” Nicky yelled, leaping out of the car. “There must have been an avalanche!”

Andy shoved the gearshift into parking and followed, joining the others as they attempted to dig out their friends with their bare hands. About two minutes after the frostbite set in, they were able to pull Nile and Booker free of the drift.

“Why aren’t they waking up?” Lykon asked, a tinge of panic in his voice. Andy rubbed Nile’s wrist as she looked at her watch, attempting to measure a pulse. Nicky tried to do the same for Booker, unconsciously chanting a Hail Mary under his breath.

Quynh stepped forward. “We need to get them back to the car. The heater will warm them up and help dry them off. Come on.”

Joe picked up Nile in his arms, cradling her head. Quynh threw Booker over her shoulders in a fireman’s carry. This time, they noticed neither the weight nor the cold. Their entire focus was on getting their friends home to warmth and safety.

“Joe, your coat,” Andy said as they got to the car. “It’s fleece. Take Nile’s ski jacket off and give her yours.”

Joe obeyed without hesitation, bundling her in his own winter gear and buckling her into the back seat. Meanwhile, Quynh and Nicky used the towels to dry off Booker’s snow coat as best as they could. Lykon climbed into the passenger seat, and Andy began to drive.

Thankfully, the storm didn’t get worse on their way back (though Joe seriously doubted it could get worse). By the time Andy pulled into their driveway, Nile and Booker were beginning to stir.

“Hey, easy now,” Lykon soothed, helping a dazed Booker out of the car. “Let’s get you inside. There we go, you’re okay. Just a little farther.”

Behind them, Nile leaned heavily on Quynh as she half-carried her up the porch steps. Joe paused, watching them enter.

“All okay?” Andy asked, placing a hand on his shoulder as the wind whipped the snow around them.

“The tree…” Joe muttered, fazed. “I dropped it somewhere. We were going to surprise Nile, and I-”

Andy turned him gently to face her, pulling his woolen beanie down to cover his ears.

“It’s alright, love,” she said softly, switching to Arabic. “She needs a different kind of comfort from us now. She and Booker both. Let’s go take care of them, okay?”

Joe nodded, following her into the warmth of their home.

A fire blazed happily in the hearth. Someone had expanded their futon and pulled it closer to the fireplace. Nile and Booker were seated on it now, wearing large, clean sweatpants - Nicky’s sweatpants, Joe noticed - and fuzzy Christmas sweaters. Quynh and Lykon were snuggled up on either side of them, feeding them something from a thermos flask and adjusting the heated blankets.

“Room for two more?” Andy grinned, curling up next to Quynh and gesturing at Joe to sit. “What’s that?” Joe asked, sliding under Lykon’s side of the blanket and pointing at the steaming drink in the thermos.

“I made apple cider earlier and left it in the instant pot,” Lykon replied. “It was still hot.”

Lykon held the drink to Nile’s lips. She took a large sip, sighing happily. Joe made a mental note to pour himself some cider if he ever got out from under this heated blanket.

Just then, Nicky walked out of the kitchen, balancing a large tray in his hands. “Soup time! Everyone sit up, let’s eat.”

Joe blinked, wondering how his husband had had the presence of mind to immediately go into the kitchen and make soup, of all things. He himself was still recovering from the last hour’s ordeal.

Nicky tutted disapprovingly. “Boss, get changed. Joe, you too. Why would you think it’s a good idea to get under an electric blanket in wet clothes?”

Andy grimaced, throwing her jacket and t-shirt on the floor and snuggling up to Quynh in just her bra. Quynh tugged Andy closer.

Nicky turned to Joe, raising an eyebrow. “Habibi?”

Joe pulled a face. “Do you have any sweatpants left for me?”

“Always.” Nicky ruffled Joe’s curls. “My gray university ones are in the dryer. They’ll still be warm if you hurry.”

Joe got up, returning two minutes later in the gray sweatpants and a black tank top he stole off of Andy’s dresser. He hastily dove back under Lykon’s heated blanket.

In the middle of the couch, swaddled in blankets and eating soup, Nile and Booker were looking much more alive. The color returned to their cheeks, intensifying as Nicky began to scold them.

“Booker, what the fuck were you thinking?” he demanded.

“I don’t know! You said to distract Nile, and she wanted to have a snowball fight. So I said yes!”

“Why didn’t you just go to the park?”

“I thought driving out to the mountain pass would buy you guys more time. It was a bad idea. I’m sorry.”

“You could have died, Book! Just because we’re immortal doesn’t mean we can play with our lives like that. Not to mention, you put Nile in danger!”

Quynh sat up, reaching for Nicky’s hands. She swiped her thumbs over his knuckles in a soothing gesture. “Hey, lay off him, would you? They’ve had a tough night.”

“But what if-”

“No what-ifs, Nicky. It’s alright. They’re safe. Now put the rest of that soup down and come here.”

Nicky sighed in secret gratitude. This was not a night he wanted to be left to follow his thoughts. “Fine.”

He squeezed onto the futon between Quynh and Nile, accepting the blanket Andy threw over him. He wrapped his arms around Nile, who snuggled closer.

“Nicky?” she mumbled after a moment.

“Hmm?”

“If you’re not still angry, can I ask you a question?”

Nicky pulled back to look at her. “Sorellina, I’m so sorry. I was never angry at you. Nor at Booker, really. Just a bit worried.”

“Yeah,” Joe piped up from the other end of the couch. “He gets mean when he’s scared.”

“I am not mean,” Nicky insisted. “Nile, what was it you wanted to ask?”

“Why did Booker say you wanted him to distract me? Distract me from what?”

Lykon laughed. “Should we tell her, Nicky, or do we plan to try again tomorrow?”

“We lost the tree, so I think we should just tell her,” Joe voted sleepily.

“You just don’t want to carry another tree,” Booker accused.

“Easy for you to say!” Quynh jumped in. “Next time, I’ll distract her, and you can walk a mile in the snow with plastic pine needles in your face.”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Andy said, lips twitching. “No more attempts. Jesus wasn’t actually born on this day, anyway. I was there.”

Nicky blinked at her, and then rapidly shook his head to clear it. He looked at Nile. “We were trying to surprise you with a Christmas party. Remember last Thursday, when you were telling us how your family celebrated it back home?”

“Yeah.”

“We wanted to recreate all the same traditions. We got a tree, and some ornaments, and stockings with your initials on it, and, uh…”

“Presents! And that Christmas music you like,” Joe added.

“Yes, and Nicky was going to make cookies shaped like reindeer,” Quynh said.

“Also,” Lykon pointed to a folded-up tripod in the corner, “we were going to take family photos in our sweaters and put them on postcards. Copley said we can’t send them to anyone, but we could still make some.”

Booker sighed. “Sorry I ruined it, Nile. I thought- wait, are you crying?!”

Nile sniffled, turning away from Booker to tuck her face under the blanket. “No.”

“Oh, honey,” Quynh cooed. We can still do it all tomorrow, if you want…”

“It’s not that,” Nile croaked. “It’s just- You guys did all that just to surprise me?”

“It’s nothing,” Nicky assured. “Well, it’s really nothing now, but even if everything had gone according to plan, it still wouldn’t have been any trouble. It’s your first Christmas with us, and we wanted it to be memorable.”

“You’re the best,” Nile said, voice choked with emotions. “All of you. And this is the best Christmas Eve ever. Thank you.”

“Hush,” Andy smirked. “In this house, we show gratitude by not dying unnecessarily.”

“Oh, that was all Booker’s fault,” Nile countered smoothly. “I would have been content with a snowball fight in the park.”

“Really loving the underside of this bus,” Booker muttered as the others laughed.

Over the next hour, the lighthearted conversation drifted into sleepy silence. By the time Nicky thought to ask who would turn off the lights, Joe was only half-pretending to be fast asleep.

[stiltonbasket]

For the renouncement verse I’d love to see a continuation of the one with Xichen and Lan Qiren, with pregnant-with-a-girl wwx being gently coerced to be lazy for once in his life by, apparently, the entire lan clan

(author’s note: double prompt this time! and please please reblog if you can, since that’s how we get prompts for future chapters!)

Anon 2: helloooo for the renouncement verse, do you have anything during wei ying's pregnancy, like lwj fretting over wwx bc i feel that wwx would still do crazy experiments even whille he's pregnant?

__

Wei Wuxian is not particularly good at sitting still.

In fact, everyone who knew him at Lotus Pier when he was a child—and everyone he met at the Cloud Recesses, too—knows that he prefers scaling little cliffs and swimming and climbing trees to resting, even under a physician’s orders; and that never really changed until the last four years of his first life, which were riddled with barely-hidden illness after the loss of his golden core.

But his resurrection returned him to full health, and full strength, so that even the strange fits of nausea that began soon after his wedding (which Wei Wuxian naturally blamed on the bland cuisine of his married home) turned out to be a baby instead of some weird kind of mountain plague. Lan Zhan hasn’t been worrying any less since they found out about the little one, of course—if anything, he seems to be worrying more—but the point is that Wei Wuxian is well into his fourth month, which means that his sensitive stomach is back to normal again, along with his dislike for staying in bed.

And since Wei Wuxian is only with child instead of actually sick, why would he stay in bed when he could be up and causing trouble? He wouldn’t, and he won’t, which is why he cheerfully disregards all of Lan Xichen’s warnings about rest and spends the fifth day after the healers give them the news experimenting in the jishi.

With fire talismans.

And smokescreens.

And a great many other things that horrify Lan Zhan past the point of speech when he comes crashing into the workshop, and get Wei Wuxian bundled right back into bed with Xiao-Yu keeping watch to ensure that he remains there.

(He also set the jishi’s chimney on fire, which was probably why his husband broke the door down instead of lifting the locking talisman, now that he thinks about it.)

“You cannot take such risks,” Lan Zhan says hoarsely, cradling Wei Wuxian’s flushed face in his hands and pressing their brows together. “Wei Ying, xingan, anything could have happened if you had breathed in the smoke, or if you grew lightheaded while the door was locked, you—my darling, please, please leave such dangerous things for after the baby is born. It is not safe for either of you.”

“It was only a little fire,” Wei Wuxian protests, before Lan Zhan leans in and presses a fervent kiss to his lips. “And I had purification talismans in the room to keep the air clean, anyway. I’m fine.”

“Suppose they had failed?” his husband counters, tracing the curve of his cheek with a finger that shakes so much that Wei Wuxian nearly bursts into tears at the sight of it. “Suppose the fire spread from the hearth, and you could not put it out in time? What would I have done then, Wei Ying, with my heart’s beloved and my child in danger?”

“Well, I suppose...”

“No more experiments,” Lan Zhan tells him. “At least none that you cannot safely perform in the jingshi with Xiao-Yu and myself close by. Please, sweetheart.”

Wei Wuxian promises to stay out of his workroom, since he still hasn’t quite worked out how to say no to Lan Zhan yet; but he does refuse to keep off his feet, because that suggestion comes from Lan Xichen instead of Lan Zhan.

“Find something safe for me to do, then!” he complains. “I’m not an invalid, Xichen-ge! In fact, I feel stronger than ever. I’m going to go swimming tomorrow, just wait—”

“You will do no such thing!” Lan Xichen cries, horrified. “Suppose you catch cold? It is nearly winter, a fever of the lungs this late in the year could kill you!”

And then he tells Lan Zhan, the traitor, and gets Wei Wuxian banned from entering any body of water except for Zewu-jun’s hot spring until the baby arrives. He isn’t even supposed to bathe there without supervision, because the warm water might make him dizzy enough to drown without someone there to watch him even if it does wash the tension out of his back and shoulders.

Even Lan Qiren seems to be determined to keep both Wei Wuxian and the little one in the best of health, which he discovers when he stalks over to his uncle-in-law’s house in the sixth month to tell him that Lan Zhan and Lan Xichen are being tyrants.

“I’m not allowed to mess around in the jishi anymore,” Wei Wuxian grouses, counting on his fingers as Lan Qiren sighs and fills up his plate with braised pork and plenty of healthy greens, seasoned strongly enough that even Wei Wuxian wouldn’t mind eating a full serving of them. “I’m not allowed to go swimming—” and here Lan Qiren pours him a cup of sweet soymilk and pushes the dish of warm potatoes closer to Wei Wuxian’s side of the table— “and I can’t even teach anymore, since I lost my balance and sprained my wrist in the lanshi just one time!”

“You are heavier than you used to be,” the older man observes. “If you had not caught yourself in time, the fall could have seriously hurt you, let alone the baby.”

Wei Wuxian lays his head down on the table—as well as he can, that is, with the baby in the way—and groans. “I know,” he says, aggrieved. “It’s not that I want to put us in danger, but I’m so bored, and I have to be useful somehow.”

Lan Qiren freezes with a cup of tea halfway to his lips. “Useful?”

“I’m the Chief Cultivator’s husband, xiansheng. I can’t just sit around doing nothing,” Wei Wuxian huffs. “If I can’t work on my talismans, and I can’t teach, and Zewu-jun won’t let me do any of the sect work because he’s afraid I’ll get tired, what can I do?”

The teacup thumps back onto the table with a sharp clattering sound. “Wei Ying. Nephew, that is enough. I will hear no more of this.”

Wei Wuxian lifts his head in surprise. “Ah?”

“You are not here to be useful,” Lan Qiren says severely. “We are your family, and this is your home, and you may do whatever you please in it. Have you been so poorly treated here that you must sit here before me, scarcely three months from your confinement, and fret about doing nothing when you ought to be resting and preparing for the child’s arrival? Because I will have words with Wangji if so, make no mistake, and—”

“Lan-xiansheng, no!” Wei Wuxian cries. “That’s not what I mean, it’s just…”

He has the rest of the denial on the tip of his tongue, but a tear rolls down his nose and plops onto the steaming lotus roots before he can say anything. 

It hardly makes sense to him at first, because he truly does love tinkering with spells and talismans in his workshop, making cultivation as accessible to people without golden cores as he can, and he loves teaching the baby disciples and going on night-hunts with his own faithful little flock of juniors; but his body has made its exhaustion very clear in the past several weeks, and sometimes all he wants to do is curl up in Lan Zhan’s arms and sleep the day away with his childrens’ voices keeping him company from the next room. 

And Lan Zhan wants him to rest and let him dote on him more than anything, so why does Wei Wuxian keep fighting it?

“It’s not his fault,” he murmurs, dimly aware that the plate of hot-and-sour potatoes looks suspiciously damp. “It’s just… me, I guess.”

“Eat your food,” Lan Qiren tells him, sounding suspiciously gentle as he puts a sweet bean cake into Wei Wuxian’s bowl. “And make sure you finish your tea, I put strengthening herbs in it.”

__

His uncle-in-law comes back to the jingshi with him after lunch, along with Lan Xichen, and the three of them have a very long talk with Lan Zhan while Sizhui and Jingyi babysit Xiao-Yu; Lan Xichen and Lan Qiren offer him and Lan Zhan advice, and Lan Zhan pulls Wei Wuxian into his lap and comforts him without bothering about the impropriety of it, until he can finally nod off to sleep when the two of them are alone again. 

“I’m really not a bother to you, Lan Zhan?” he whispers, tucking his face against his husband’s chest and listening to his heartbeat. “You don’t—mind, that I can’t do very much with this baby?”

“No, never,” Lan Zhan chokes. “Wei Ying, why didn’t you just tell me you were feeling this way? You cannot imagine how much I want—how I need—”

“Need what?”

“Let me look after you, sweetheart,” his husband pleads. “Let me look after you both. Give me the privilege of satisfying my beloved’s every wish, and soothing your fears when your heart is heavy, and keeping you and our little one well. Please, xingan?”

(Upon further reflection, perhaps it is a good thing that he never learned to say no to Lan Zhan, after all.)

[baddestbitchcas]

Falling For You

Word count: 3.7k

Summary: Fluffy as hell and Dean and Cas go ice skating. It’s a beautiful afternoon. Enjoy :))

Also on ao3 here

—————————

Around 10:00 am, Dean finally stirred awake. Keeping his eyes closed, trying to hang onto the remnants of sleep, he rolled over and searched the sheets beside him. Instead of finding the warmth he was looking for, the bed next to him was cool and empty. He grumbled to himself; Cas must have gotten up already. Damn, he loved waking up next to the angel and spending his first few moments of the day cuddled up to him. Well, just because Cas wasn’t here didn’t mean he wasn’t close by. With a light-hearted sigh, Dean finally opened his eyes and swung his feet to the floor. He pulled on a pair of sweats and padded out of his room to find Cas. Instantly, he was hit with the smell of fresh coffee. Ah, Cas. He grinned as he turned the corner into the kitchen. Cas was leaning against the counter, sipping from a mug of steaming hot coffee. He smiled lovingly at Dean, and for a moment the hunter just stood there, drinking in the sight before him. Cas was so beautiful in the mornings. His hair was messy and sticking up in the back, and his eyes were soft and peaceful. He wore a soft, threadbare shirt that had belonged to Dean, and a pair of his pyjama pants hung loosely off his hips. Dean’s eyes fell to the bit of tan skin that jutted out at his hip, and his breath hitched slightly in his throat.

“Morning, sunshine,” he smiled at the angel and he crossed the room to kiss him. “You look beautiful. Mornings suit you,” he mused before pressing their lips together. Cas blushed and ran his free hand along Dean’s bare chest.

“They suit you as well, Dean,” the angel said, moving his hand up to tug on Dean’s bedhead.

“Mmph,” Dean mumbled. He was still half asleep. As if reading his mind, Cas pulled a second mug of coffee seemingly out of nowhere and handed it to Dean. He took it appreciatively, and brought it to his lips. The coffee was perfect- Cas always knew how to make it just right. He grabbed Cas’ hand and led him into the next room and onto the couch. They sat next to each other, silently sipping their drinks, fingers still laced between them. It was a few minutes before either of them spoke- they were content to just enjoy each other’s company, and Cas was giving Dean the chance to fully wake up. When Dean finished his drink he sat the mug on the table beside him and pulled Cas into his arms. Cas, still slowly sipping his coffee, savouring it’s warmth, pulled his legs up and leaned into the hunter’s chest.

“Okay,” Dean chuckled, ‘I’m awake for real now,” he planted a kiss in Cas’ hair. “How was your night?”

“Pleasant. I spent it laying next to you,” Cas said, smiling up at Dean. “You were very peaceful in your sleep last night. Were you dreaming?”

“Nah. If I was, I don’t remember it,” Dean replied, “I don’t usually remember my dreams. Only the important ones.” He felt his cheeks redden, and he was glad the angel was momentarily distracted taking another sip.

“What are the ‘important ones’ about?” Cas asked, and Dean could feel his head tilt against his chest. He grinned. He wasn’t really embarrassed- it was Cas afterall.

“You,” he punctuated his statement with another kiss on the top of Cas’ head.

“You dream of me?” Cas’ voice was quiet.

“Of course, Angel,” Dean chuckled. “What else would I dream about?” Cas hummed, but left it at that. “What do you do all night anyway? Just watch me sleep?”

“I think, mostly. It’s comforting, being in your presence. Peaceful,” Cas said, nuzzling deeper into Dean’s chest.

“What do you think about?”

“You,” Cas answered just as simply as Dean had, causing the hunter to chuckle.

“Glad we’re on the same page then,” he grinned. “Hey, let’s do something today!” Cas shuffled so he was sitting up and looking at Dean. He smiled back.

“Okay! Like what?” his eyes were lit up at the prospect of spending the day with Dean. They weren’t working on any cases right now, and Sam and Eileen were spending the weekend visiting friends. They had the place to themselves with no obligations standing in the way- a chance they hardly ever got.

“Well, I had one idea…” Dean bit his bottom lip, he had no idea if Cas was going to go for this. “But if you breathe a word of this to Sammy, I’ll be pissed.”

“What is it?” Cas asked curiously, tilting his head again.

“Okay, well you know the pond behind the bunker?” he started, as Cas nodded. “I noticed the other day it looked frozen over.” Cas grinned as he realized where Dean was going with this.

“Dean, would you like to go ice skating?”

“I just think you would enjoy it, that’s all,” Dean mumbled, but he couldn’t fight off his own grin.

“I would enjoy that very much. Is this a date?” Cas wondered.

“Sure, I guess it kind of is,” Dean laughed.

“Do we need to get dressed up?”

“No, babe. It’s not a fancy date. Just ice skating, being outdoors together. We can hold hands and fall together,” Dean leaned over and kissed the angel’s cheek, “We should probably wear something warmer, though. Don’t want to freeze,” he said, pulling on Cas’ thin shirt.

“I told you, angels don’t feel cold, Dean,” Cas stated.

“Still, if I’m gonna be all bundled up, you are too.”

“That seems fair,” Cas agreed, getting up off the couch. Dean stood too, and they walked hand in hand back to their room.

Dean crossed the room and pulled open his dresser, rooting through the piles of clothes. When he looked up, Cas was pulling on his normal white dress shirt.

“Hey hey hey,” Dean straightened up quickly, “Not that one.”

“Not what one?”

“Not that shirt, I said I was gonna bundle you up,” Dean grinned.

“Is bundling me up code for playing dress-up, Dean?” Cas asked teasingly.

“W-what? I don’t play- I don’t play dress up,” Dean sputtered, face turning pink, “That’s not what this is at all,” he cleared his throat.

“Dean,” Cas smiled warmly, “I like it when you dress me up.”

“Really?” Dean asked, his eyes narrowing.

“Yes. I think it’s sweet,” Cas stated. Something about his matter-of-fact tone settled Dean.

“Okay fine, yes. Sometimes I like to see you in not your usual get up. What can I say? You’re hot.” It was Cas’ turn to blush, and Dean’s lips stretched into a grin. He walked over to the angel, and tugged his dress shirt back off, pausing to press his lips to the other’s collarbone. Cas sucked his breath in and a hum bubbled in the back of his throat. Dean grinned again and thrust something soft into Cas’ arms.

“Put these on,” he said as he took a step back, giving the angel space to change. He walked back to the dresser to pick out his own clothes. He grabbed a plain t shirt and pulled it over his head, followed by his warmest flannel made up of red plaid. He tugged on a pair of thick blue jeans, and when he finished buttoning them up, he glanced at Cas. He was wearing a similar flannel shirt to Dean’s, but his was made up of blues and greens. All the buttons were done up except the top two, so Dean could see the slight dip in his chest where his collarbones met. He also wore another pair of Dean’s jeans, the denim snug against his hips. He looked good. Dean let out a soft growl of appreciation as he took in Cas.

“Fuck,” he murmured, “You look so great wearing my clothes.” He stepped closer to the angel, hooking his fingers into the other’s belt loops. He tugged and Cas staggered forward until Dean caught him in his arms. He smashed their lips together, and for a moment just savoured Cas. He would never get tired of this. After a while, they separated, both panting slightly. As much as they both wanted to stay like this forever, they had a date to get to.

“Come on, Angel,” Dean said, grabbing Cas’ hand and pulling him from the room. “We need a couple more things.” They wandered down the hall, finally reaching a storage closet. Dean opened the door and pulled down the box he was looking for. He opened it and sifted through its contents. “Perfect!” he exclaimed, pulling out two wool hats, two scarves, and two sets of thick mittens.

“Dean, is this really necessary?” Cas questioned as he took his half of things.

“It’s all about the experience, babe,” he replied, kissing Cas swiftly on the cheek. They grabbed a couple jackets to finish bundling up and Dean pulled two sets of skates out of the same closet. He grinned at the angel, “C’mon, you’re gonna love this.”

They made their way outside and down the familiar path, through the trees to the pond. As the pond came into view, Dean’s heart sunk. Cas noticed the frown on his face and stopped suddenly.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” he asked frantically.

“I don’t think the ice is thick enough… I don’t think we’ll be able to skate,” Dean said, trying not to sound too upset.

“Oh,” Cas replied shortly. He paused, then let go of Dean’s hand to walk towards the pond. He crouched at the shore and rested his palm against the melting ice. Instantly the ice visibly hardened. Dean was confused until he saw the small glimmer radiating from Cas, almost invisible in the sunlight. He was using his grace to freeze the ice- and smooth it out from the looks of things. The pond was now glistening in the sun, smooth and polished like a mirror. The scene was breathtaking. Cas stood up slowly and turned to face Dean, a smile spreading wide across his face.

“Is this acceptable?” He asked cheekily.

“Cas, man. You’re amazing,” Dean grinned back. How lucky was he? They found a rock to sit on as they did up their skates, Dean helping Cas into his. As he stood to balance on his, he looked down and realized Cas had never done this before. Cas looked up at him nervously. “Okay, stand up, and make sure you balance on the center of your feet. You’ll be okay, I’ve got you.” He pulled the angel to his feet, and they both wobbled for a second. “If it makes you feel better, I haven’t done this in a million years. Bobby used to have a pond that froze in the winters, so sometimes when Dad would leave me and Sammy there we’d do this. But I was, like, 8. I don’t really know how,” he chuckled, and they wobbled again. Maybe this wasn’t a great idea. Cas sensed his wavering courage.

“It’s okay, Dean. I’ve got you,” he parroted Dean.

“At least if we fall, we’ll fall together,” Dean laughed. Even if this was a terrible idea, it was sure to be fun. They each drew in a breath and took a step out onto the ice, mittened hands holding tightly onto each other. So far so good. “Okay,” Dean let out a cautious breath, “Now you just sort of...glide your feet…”

“Like this?” asked Cas, as he imitated Dean perfectly.

“That’s it! You got it!” Dean praised. Of course Cas was good at this, he was an angel. But as soon as that thought had come into his head, he felt himself being yanked downwards. Cas had fallen and taken him with. They both exclaimed as they hit the cold surface. Cas grumbled and Dean laughed.

“Dean, I’m sorry,” Cas said hurriedly, “Did I hurt you?”

“Nah, I’m alright, don’t worry about me,” Dean placed a quick kiss on Cas’ pink cheeks to show he was fine, “Let’s try again,” he said, pulling the angel back to his feet.

“Dean, I don’t want to hurt you. Maybe we should not hold hands-”

“No!” Dean exclaimed, “this is a date, we’re holding hands.”

“But if I fall again, you’ll fall too,” Cas pointed out.

“Well, that’s a risk I’m willing to take, come on,” he pulled on the angel’s hand and they started again. Surely enough, a few moments later they were back on the frozen ground. This time Dean winced, and even as he tried to hide it Cas noticed. He grumbled, and Dean could tell he was upset. “Hey, it’s okay,” he whispered, bringing his hand up to cup Cas’ face. The motion was awkward because of the giant mitten covering his hand, but it was sweet nonetheless.

“I don’t want you to get hurt,” Cas whispered back, defeated. He sat there for a minute, staring at the ice. All of a sudden, his eyes snapped up to meet Dean’s gaze and a smile spread across his face. Determination flooded his eyes and he leapt to his feet, bringing Dean with him. Now it was Dean’s turn to stumble, the sudden movement catching him off guard.

“Fuck!” he blurted out, losing his balance. Cas was quick though, and caught him before he landed back on the ground.

“I will not let you fall again today,” he soothed, still holding onto Dean inches above the ground.

“Oh yeah?” Dean asked breathlessly, lost in Cas’ gaze. “How’re you gonna do that?”

“I have an idea,” Cas mewed, but he didn’t explain. Instead he simply pulled Dean to his feet. “Okay, let’s go again. I’m ready this time.” Dean didn’t move. He could see how determined the angel was, and he didn’t want his spirit broken when they inevitably fell again.

“Cas, we’re both still very new at this. We’re probably gonna fall again-”

“We won’t fall,” Cas interrupted.

“Well I love your enthusiasm, but Cas-”

“Dean,” Cas seemed to look directly into his soul and Dean’s breath hitched. “Trust me.” And that was all it took. Of course Dean trusted Cas. And hey, if the angel said they weren’t going to fall, maybe they wouldn’t. Dean squeezed Cas’ hand and off they went, gliding over the smooth surface. At first, Dean didn’t notice anything different besides the lack of falling. Suddenly skating seemed a lot easier, and they were gliding along the ice at a steady pace. Now Cas was the one supporting Dean, holding him up and pulling him along. At the change in dynamic Dean allowed himself to not just look straight ahead, but take in his surroundings. The glint of the sun hitting the ice, the peace of the still forest at the edges of the pond. The way the light shone in Cas’ stunning blue eyes and painted streaks in his hair, and how it cascaded down his wings- Wait, WINGS?

“Cas-” Dean spluttered, stopping suddenly and almost falling again. Like he promised, Cas caught him- although this time not with his arms, but with a giant wing.

“Yes, Dean?” Cas asked innocently, a smirk dancing on his lips. Dean didn’t know what to say, so he simply stood back up. He placed a kiss on Cas’ mouth and looked back at the incredible sight behind him. Stretched out impossibly wide behind him were two beautiful, midnight coloured wings. They were dark but somehow rainbows bounced off of them in the sunlight. Glistening oil slick hues twisted down the feathers in an intricate fashion. They seemed to absorb and radiate light at the same time, a subtle glow bouncing off of them, scattering prisms all around them. They were the most stunning thing Dean had ever seen. He was awestruck, dumbfounded, and overwhelmingly in love with the gorgeous creature in front of him.

“Cas,” he muttered again, “you’re beautiful.” There was so much more he wanted to say, but he couldn’t find the words. The sight of Cas’ wings, part of his true form… This was more intimate than anything he could dream of. This proved the bond between them and solidified Dean’s already concrete feelings. If it was even possible for him to fall more in love, it was happening right now. He felt years of thoughts and feelings bubbling in his chest, and tears sprung to his eyes. Jesus. This was supposed to be a light hearted date, and here he was crying. He let out a slow breath, and hoped Cas could somehow understand all the emotions radiating from him right now.

“I love you,” he whispered, looking into the angel’s deep blue eyes.

“I love you too,” Cas whispered back, leaving it at that. As Dean had wished, he could feel the longing coming from the hunter. They didn’t need to say anything else, they both knew.

With that, they kept going, skating circles around the frozen pond. As it got later in the afternoon the sun began to set, throwing blazing light over everything. The glassy pond glowed golden beneath their feet, and what the sun was doing to Cas’ wings… Dean needed a moment to soak it all in. He told Cas his feet were getting sore, which was the truth, and went to sit on the rock from earlier. He insisted Cas continue without him- he was enjoying himself too much and Dean wanted to watch him.

Cas guided him to the edge of the pond and placed a soft kiss on Dean’s lips before allowing him to sit. Once he was sure Dean was situated he took off rapidly towards the center of the pond. Dean watched in awe, Cas was graceful. He flew around the ice, sometimes quickly but often taking his time, enjoying the moment, always with his wings fluttering out behind him. As he built up confidence he allowed his wings to move a little more. Aware of Dean’s eyes on him he showed off a little, feathers dancing smoothly in the wind. They maintained his balance while swirling around in the air, casting rainbows as they moved. Between the golden shine of the ice and the light bouncing endless colours off his feathers, the scene didn’t look real. To Dean, it looked like a dream, or maybe Heaven- angel and all. Cas was getting into the movements, adding spins and twists to his laps. Dean watched the love of his life enjoy himself and thought about how free he looked. The thought brought tears back to his eyes- if anyone deserved this it was Cas. Suddenly he couldn’t bear to be so far away. He stood up shakily and began skating towards his boyfriend, a lot less gracefully than Cas. The angel noticed him and met him in the middle, pulling him into his arms and wrapping his wings around both of them. They stared at each other for a moment, drinking in the beauty of one another in the glory of the sunset.

“You’re beautiful,” Dean murmured, resting their foreheads together.

“I’m nothing next to you. God’s perfect creation,” Cas whispered back.

“Says the angel,” Dean chuckles, uneasy from the compliment.

“I mean it, Dean. In this moment,” Cas gestured and looked all around them, “in this moment, there is nothing more perfect than you.” He lifted his hand, which Dean noticed no longer had a mitten on it, and used his fingers to delicately trace the freckles on Dean’s face. They stood there for another moment, drinking in each other, Cas continuing to go over ever detail on Dean’s face.

Dean didn’t know what to say, so he crashed his lips against the angel’s. He had passion searing through his body, lighting up every nerve. Being here, in the beauty of his angel, love of his life, surrounded by peace and perfection, with not a damn worry in his mind… Hearing Cas say those beautiful words to him… For the first time in his life, he was really and truly and contentedly happy. He was wrapped in the wings and arms of his lover, and he was safe. Nothing could touch them now.

“I love you, Cas.”

“I love you too, Dean.”

They remained there for a while, enjoying each other, sometimes kissing and sometimes just listening to each other breathe. Cas pulled Dean along and they skated a few more laps around the frozen pond. Dean let Cas lead, enjoying his angel taking control. Only when Dean began to shiver did they stop. The sun was now hidden behind the trees and it was darker; Cas’ wings were no longer throwing prisms but instead appeared to be a deep onyx colour- inky black in the dim light. And suddenly, Dean blinked and they were gone, just like that.

“You’re cold,” Cas stated, bringing his hand up to rest against Dean’s bright red cheek.

“Well yeah, we’ve been out here all day,” Dean chuckled, “I don’t know how long I can keep this up, I’m already gonna be sore tomorrow as is.”

“Come on, let’s get you inside,” Cas said, leaning in to brush a soft kiss against Dean’s frozen lips. He shivered- partially from the cold, but mostly from the feeling of Cas’ lips on his. They began gliding towards the edge of the pond and back towards the rock but as they reached their destination they both toppled backward and landed on the ice. Without the help of Cas’ wings they had fallen again, but this time they both laughed.

“I think we got over confident,” Dean smiled, “come on, we’re almost there.” They- cautiously this time- made their way the few more steps to the rock and planted themselves firmly, taking a few minutes to pull off their skates. Before Dean could get his boots back on Cas was holding his feet in his hands, rubbing soothing circles on the bottoms. Suddenly they didn’t hurt as bad.

“Let’s go inside and have a nice hot bath,” Cas murmured, looking up at Dean through his thick lashes. “It’ll help with the cold and the soreness.”

“Whatever you want, Cas,” Dean grinned. A steaming bubble bath with his angel sounded like the perfect ending to this day. “Let’s go,” he pressed their lips together, savouring the lingering cold before lacing their hands together and making their way back to the bunker, leaving the perfect afternoon behind.

[vegalocity]

10/18 spicynoodles plis

Prompt meme || @deborahsworld

10.A Shy Kiss/18. Holding Hands

Hell yeah time for fluff

--

Okay... first date....Going pretty well so far. The Movie was okay—MK wasn't very big on horror movies even ones as old as this one was, but Red Son was really excited when he saw it was being played for a ‘foreign movies’ night at the movie theater and what, could have have argued against such enthusiasm?—if a bit slow going and atmospheric.

Though after the heroes found the monster frozen and seemingly dead in the abandoned Norwegian outpost, all twisted and malformed, he really hoped his appetite wouldn't be killed by the end of this with even worse when the monsters started actually moving.

And then the monsters actually started moving.

The dog turning into a monster and killing the other dogs hurt the animal lover inside him, and he felt a bit of his latent arachnophobia begin to rear its head when the hairy legs sprouted from its back, and then the actual form the monster, halfway through killing the remaining trapped dogs had sent a chill up his spine and then-

“See how they were able to make the monster look goopy? It's not really very goopy except during the close up shots, because it's an animatronic so it had to be dry most of the time, they got the shine effect by piling liquid latex ontop of the finished paintjob until it started drying while it trailed off of the frame. And that right there? When it took the hurt dog? That was actually filmed in reverse, having the tentacles start out around the dog puppet and then rapidly pull away so when they reversed it it looked like they actually moved and had torque behind the action.”

“Really?”

“Yeah it's really fascinating how they went about effects before computer graphics were refined, everything had to be practical so even if it doesn't look the best, it doesn't hit that uncanny valley that bad CGI makes because even if it doesn't look real it looks real enough.”

It didn't feel quite as disturbing with that rattling around in his head, focusing on how much work must have been done to make the monster move as realistically as possible, how many times they'd practiced and trained in a controlled sound stage and adapting it to the set...

They weren't the only ones in the theater, but it was a mostly empty showing, as was usually the case with foreign films as old as this one. So it wasn't like they were disturbing anyone with Red Son leaning over to whisper interesting details MK would have never even thought to look up to make the overall experience less scary. Red Son seemed aware that he wasn't the biggest horror fan, and was trying to soften the blows the more intense moments would bring by talking through them and bringing back  the reality that it was just a movie they were watching.

“I was alive in this era and I can state with general expertise that computers were certainly not that advanced yet. Computer AI wasn't past that of your average graphing calculator until at least the mid 1990's.”

“They got that sound effect by putting a microphone in a tin trash can and recording the sound of a racecar zooming by and put it in a reverb chamber until it sounded completely unrecognizable”

“Blair is already a Thing at this point, you remember when he was dissecting the Norwegian base's monster? He was using a pencil eraser to point out that era in its chest and then he'd touched the eraser to his lip! And since it started by probably just a small contingent of shed cells it probably took him longer to assimilate than the others.”

“This is actually really cool! The stunt double for Copper that they got for the scene actually was a double amputee! They made fake hands for him out of latex, filled them with fake blood, and styled the chest jaw like a bear trap for that disgusting pulling shot.”

Though... That one didn't work as well... When the long tendril shot from the Thing's stomach and sprouted slider legs and a second head, the extending neck hissing and glaring down at the heroes, he felt his gut turn, even as the heroes took the flamethrower to the monster.

The monster's first head ripped from its body and grew spider legs. And Oh GOD that was disgusting, without thinking he reached for the edge of the armrest to grip as the heroes had to play cat and mouse with a severed, spider head. He'd missed, and his hand clapped down atop of Red Son's and squeezed.

Red Son jolted beside him and MK saw him turn in his direction in his periphery.

“You know if this is freaking you out too much we can leave.”

“No! No, it's okay. You like this movie! You wouldn't know so much about it if you didn't like it!” Besides, he shouldn't be getting so spooked about some kinda gross kinda spidery horror movie from the 1980s, what kind of hero got freaked out at a little practical effects?

He couldn't see Red Son's face very well with only the light of the movie itself to see by, but he made a strange sort of humming noise and slipped his hand out of MK's, moving his arm to put the arm rest up and then slide his hand back into his own.

“Here, that should be more comfortable then.”

And it was. Red Son's factoids and chatter alongside the movie were doing well at cutting the edge off of it again, and it was aided by not just their connected hands, but now by his physical closeness as well.

“I've heard the director had this stylistic rule about after the Things start invading, the idea is that if a character has light reflecting off their eyes they're human, if not they're a Thing.”

“Most people think Palmers was the shadow the dog assimilated back earlier but I think it was Norris, Palmers didn't get turned into a thing until after they go and talk to Blair again I don't think.”

“Actually...I don't think I like that translation very much. Like yeah it's more polite and Gary's a gentleman, but 'I'd rather not spend the rest of this winter tied to this fucking couch' emphasizes the stress of the situation better.”

And then came the time of the final confrontation, MK braced himself, squeezed Red Son's hand in his own. It was indeed gross, and frightful, and the puppetry alone was REALLY good. All those moving parts and there's no way that THAT was an animatronic so it HAD to be a puppet. And wow that was a REALLY good explosion.

...huh...Apparently he could do it too.

The movie ended with what MK felt like was a tentatively optimistic note. The remaining two heroes sharing a drink as the research facility and the monsters it housed burned around them. And you maybe get the feeling the two of them won't survive the cold, but they stopped the monsters and that’s what matters.

Though MK was right to worry over the movie killing his apatite because by the time the lights went up and the credits rolled he found he wasn't very hungry. Which felt ridiculous since he was always in need of quick carbs for Monkie Kid things. But Red Son had lost his own apatite as well apparently and the two of them could do nothing but laugh a bit awkwardly at their date being derailed by a movie being a bit too gross.

So MK pulled him into a nearby park and they went for a walk instead of the restaurant they'd planned for.

“Most people think that Childs is a Thing and I'm tempted to agree, He doesn't have the eye shine but neither does MacReady and we know he's not a Thing, but MacReady's breath is steaming and Childs' doesn't until the very end there, and MacReady wasn't drinking, those were Molotov Cocktails, that was gasoline and Childs just downed it without a thought to taste or smell.”

“So you think the Thing won at the end?”

“I don't know, but they do have one flamethrower left and Childs whether he's a Thing or not just drank gasoline. So MacReady as a person is probably as good as dead.”

“I Dunno, I like the idea that he wasn't a Thing in the end, gives it something not dissimilar to a happy ending, but like, it's not like they hadn't been wrong about who was a Thing before. The dog handler wasn't a Thing but he got shot anyway.”

“That's very true.”

It was about there that MK realized he'd yet to let go of Red Son's hand.

Well... he hadn't pulled away... MK squeezed Red Son's hand in his own, and Red Son—on a tangent about how in the time before CGI they'd made the stylistic title card with use of a fishtank, garbage bag, flash paper and a lot of smoke—squeezed him back.

A few hours and a plate or two of street vendor food when either of their appetites returned later and Red Son had insisted on walking him home. He was staying in a penthouse that his family technically owned but he was the only one who actually knew about it, and he wanted to be a gentleman before he headed back there.

“Well,  I hope you enjoyed yourself a bit. I feel as though I should apologize for choosing such a niche film, mother always said I was the only one who cared about foreign horror movies and just because I find movie effects fascinating especially in a time before technology was as advanced as it is now doesn't mean I should subject others to my incessant yammering.”

he didn't really think Red Son could pull off shy, but he'd folded his arms tightly and was very pointedly NOT looking at him now. And Sure, this felt like a big step, but that playfully self deprecating tone wasn’t gonna fly here. He moved slowly, giving Red Son time to pull away if desired. Placing one hand on Red Son's shoulder, the other on the side of his face to turn his head. He had to get on his tiptoes to make it to his level, but he leaned in-

It was nice. Soft, and Red Son of course ran hotter than an average person so it was warm too. He pulled away just as he felt Red Son start to press back against him. When MK opened his eyes, he noticed Red Son's were still closed for a moment longer before fluttering open.

“I like your incessant yammering.” He had such a cute blush. “it means you're passionate about something.” 

“You... wanna come in? Monkey King gave me this new tea blend I've been meaning to try out.”

--

Prompt meme (I’ll stop when y’all stop sending stuff)

[bondsmagii]

hey Miceál! if you are in the mood, i'd like to ask you for a great favor. could you share some irish recipes with me? even just one would mean a lot to me. i am half irish, but i am an orphan and i grew up in another part of europe, so i have very little connection to that side of me, and i believe it is very intimate to share something that my ancestors also shared, in order to commune and get to know them through my body in whatever way i can. thank you in advance fellow fenian!

hello, fellow Irish orphan! there are lots of wonderful Irish recipes out there, but I’ll share a couple that have special meaning to me and that I have fond memories of. it’s a classic: Irish stew and soda bread! this is a classic for a reason. there’s nothing more comforting on a cold and rainy day than a steaming bowl of Irish stew, and soda bread is probably the easiest kind of bread to make. it requires no waiting around for the dough to rise; you just make that dough and get that bread.

soda bread

first, the soda bread. it’s a great accompaniment, but it can also be made on its own and eaten whenever you need a good wholesome snack. slather a bit of butter on that badboy and indulge.

soda bread ingredients:

250g plain white flour (not self-raising, just plain)

250g plain wholemeal flour

100g porridge oats (I have made it without these before but if you want that authentic experience you’ll probably want the oats)

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

25g butter, cut into small cubes

500ml buttermilk (if you have no buttermilk, I find adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to a cup of milk and stirring for a few minutes works fine)

soda bread creation time:

preheat oven to [takes a deep breath] regular oven 200C, fan oven 180C, or if you work with Fahrenheit (holy shit I spelled that right first time??) that’s around 390F and 355F respectively.

mix together all the dry ingredients, so your two flours, your oats, your bicarbonate of soda, and your salt.

rub in the butter so it’s all good and mixed in. remember to go easy on the dough, it has to be treated very gently. 

add the buttermilk and stir the mixture carefully but quickly with a kitchen knife. you don’t want to be doing anything remotely near kneading, so you get to stir with a knife because apparently that’s somehow more gentle.

once everything is mixed, shape the dough into a round, flat-ish lump. just like the round loaves you see.

use the knife to score a nice good cross over the top of the dough. according to tradition, this is to allow the fairies to escape, but it’s also really good for allowing the bread to cook through properly.

put on a baking sheet and bake until it sounds hollow when you knock on it. this takes between 30-45 minutes in my experience, but after the 30-minute mark check regularly because it can be any time.

if for whatever reason it’s not ready yet, just flip ‘er upside-down for a few minutes.

leave to cool on a wire rack (to prevent the bottom from getting soggy) and covered with a tea towel (to keep the crust crusty).

from my experience this bread can sometimes be very dense, but experimenting with cooking times and flour ratios will shift it. I’ve found wholemeal to be slightly denser than plain flour, so once you get the hang of it tweak the recipe until it’s to your liking!

Irish stew

now times have changed you can make this in a slow cooker if you like, but I’ve never done that (yet -- I shall this winter and report back). this is how I used to eat it: sitting at the old wooden table in my friend’s kitchen, while her mam ladled it out of the massive saucepan that could drain a small lough.

(I have since become vegetarian, but this recipe would be just as nice as a hearty vegetable stew. if you’re vegetarian or there are any vegetarians out there who’d like to try it, hit me up for a recipe as I’d change this one pretty significantly in terms of technique if there was no meat.)

there’s a little controversy, as there always is with classic recipes: traditionally Irish stew is made with mutton, but mostly everyone just uses lamb. there’s also a debate raging about whether or not it should just have potatoes and onions in it, but honestly go ham. so long as there’s some nice tasty root veggies in there it’s grand, but of course potatoes are a must.

Irish stew ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil 

lamb chunks (I just get them already cut from the supermarket)

potatoes 

roughly chopped onion

finely sliced leeks

roughly chopped carrots

2 tablespoons plain flour

1 1/2 pints beef stock (I just use a stock cube or two)

note how the vegetables have no measurements. this is just because I tend to make whatever looks right for the amount of people I’m cooking for.

Irish stew creation time:

heat the oven to 180C (or 355F)

take half of your vegetable oil and heat it up until it’s warm but not going crazy, and then add half your lamb and brown it.

take the lamb out and put it into a big casserole dish (or any large dish that has a lid and can go in the oven).

cover the lamb with half the potatoes, carrots, onions, and leeks.

add the rest of the oil to your frying pan and brown the rest of the lamb, and then add that into your casserole dish (or equivalent) over the veggies.

cover with the rest of the veggies so you have a weird veggie-meat lasagne.

add the flour to the frying pan and stir it around to soak up all the juices, then heat for a couple of minutes. add the stock a little at a time until everything turns to a nice, thick sauce with no lumps. it’ll kind of look like thick soup or brown gravy.

pour this sauce into your dish with all the meat and veggies.

if you have any stock left over, throw that in too. put the lid on and cook it in the oven for about an hour.

after an hour check to make sure there’s still plenty of sauce. if there isn’t, add some boiling water. the meat and veggies must always be covered with liquid, or they’ll dry out. once this is done (or if everything is fine!) bake for another hour, checking a little more regularly to make sure it’s nice and saucy.

if there’s too much sauce at the end, bake for a little longer with the lid off.

once the hour is up, it’s done! add salt and pepper if you like. best served piping hot with a hunk of thick crusty bread, while the wind and rain howls outside.

I hope these work out well for you and I hope they succeed in making you feel a little closer to your family. as part of your wider Irish family and the slightly narrower Irish orphan family, I hope these recipes bring you warmth and comfort as the days get colder.

[theangriestpea]

Crowned : Deleted Scene

Summary: A drunk Prince Sweet Pea comes to apologize after making a complete ass of himself....again. Deleted shower scene from Part 5 of Crowned. If you haven’t read Crowned then this will be incredibly difficult to follow. <ao3>

Pairing: Sweet Pea x OC 

Rating: Mature // Explicit

Word Count: 2.1k+

Warnings: Smut, Shower sex, Dirty talk, Hair pulling, Oral, Minor aftercare, Makeup sex

A/N: Welcome to my first installment of @riverdalebingo​‘s Kink Bingo for Winter 2020! This is for my Shower Sex square. I’m so happy to be able to finish this so quickly. It’s been a really rough week for me but I made it. 

Sweet Pea’s eyes widened at the princess’ massive shower. It could probably fit three people comfortably with how wide it was. There were three nozzles, one on each end and a rain simulator on the top. The shower attached to his room was nothing like this. It was a little more than basic. “You’ve been holding out on me?” He asked incredulously, turning to look at her.

Shanna shrugged, acting like she didn’t know what she was talking about as she took off her robe, having been already naked underneath. His eyes raked her nude form, stopping on her stomach that showed no sign of the baby he knew to be growing inside of her.

She gave him a sly look as she stepped closer towards him, “like what you see, Prince Pea?” Her voice was teasing as she grabbed his hand and placed it on her breast. He squeezed eagerly, if not drunkenly. He was swaying in place and hoped he could stay upright and wouldn’t fall once inside the shower. Then he might hurt all three of them.

He regained his composure and rolled his eyes at her, “turn the water on and you’ll find out.” His words were still slurring slightly, making her giggle. It was a light and flirty sound that caused his heart rate to increase with joy. It was hard to believe he had been in tears only a few minutes before.

The Southside Prince hastily took off his clothes as she cut the water on. She turned various knobs to cut all three shower heads on. Soon after steam was starting to rise from the streaming water.

Shanna stepped in first, enjoying the feeling of the water stinging her skin. She slid the clear glass door open enough for him to hear her. “Do you need help, your royal drunkenness? Or do you think you’ll manage?” She was smirking at the sour look on his face now.

“Watch yourself, princess.” He growled as he stepped in, although he almost slipped. He caught himself in time and Shanna pretended to not notice. He continued his threat, “Keep being a brat and see what I do about it.”

She let out another giggle, obviously not believing that he could do much at the moment. Not while he was this inebriated. He couldn’t even speak without his words wobbling off his lips. “Hmm,” She hummed at him as she grabbed her loofah. “Not sure what a man full of whiskey can do to me.”

While her back was turned, Sweet Pea took the opportunity to smack her hard on the ass. “Here I was, trying to apologize, and you want to be bad.” He hissed into her ear, making her shudder. “I was going to eat you out until you screamed. Maybe I should shove my dick into your mouth instead, to shut you up.”

Shanna looked over her shoulder at him, a look of innocence glazing her blue-green eyes. “Can you even get it up, Pea? Sometimes alcohol can...inhibit performance.”

He grabbed her hips and pulled her back roughly against him so she could feel his erection against the top of her ass. His voice lowered into a growl, “Sounds like you speak from experience. Mantle couldn’t get it up for you after drinking too much wine?”

Shanna gasped lightly as his hand traveled up her stomach, between her breasts, and lightly grasped the base of her throat. “I can assure you, everything is working properly.”

“Is that so?” She murmured, still being defiant despite his threats. The water felt so good on her skin. It also had a major sobering effect on Sweet Pea. He didn’t feel nearly as unsteady anymore.

His grip on her throat tightened for a moment before he let her go, unsure whether or not it might harm the baby. “How rough can I be?” He asked, his voice softening slightly as he subtly asked for consent.

The princess was smiling, though he couldn’t see it. “As rough as you want. You won’t hurt the baby, I promise.” She assured him, having asked her doctor before about what to avoid during sex.

Sweet Pea seemed unsure at first but was ultimately pleased that he didn’t have to be gentle just because she was pregnant. He moved his hips slowly, rubbing his dick between her cheeks. He reached up and grabbed a handful of her blonde hair and yanked it back harshly. “You want to run that mouth some more then, princess?”

“Maybe I wouldn’t run it so much if you weren’t such an asshole.” Shanna countered, only partially joking. Sweet Pea let her hair go in a moment of guilt. He turned her around and pulled her close against him, just holding her for a moment.

She stood, paralyzed with confusion as he never was quite like this before. Mostly he didn’t seem to care if he hurt her. Her feelings were just collateral damage. Perhaps that wasn’t as true as she had believed it to be.

The prince got down on his knees in front of her, looking up with warm brown eyes that made her breath hitch in her throat. She realized that when he said he loved her earlier that he truly meant it. Joy and unease filled her as he kissed down her stomach.

His tongue teased her belly button for a second before he went further. Her back was against the wall of the shower as he lifted her legs so that her thighs were resting on his strong shoulders. His tongue licked a solid stripe from her core to her clit.

Shanna mewled with delight. He had never gone down on her before and gossip had it that he never went down on anyone . There was a sly rumor that he was allergic to going down on women. Clearly that was not the case.

Pea fucked her slowly with his tongue, taking his time to trace her opening before letting it dive inside. The teasing had her whimpering. Her hand was on top of his head, grasping his dark hair tightly as he used his fingers to prod at her clit with the slightest of touches.

She realized that he was torturing her on purpose. Going slow in order to make her ache for him. Despite the brief moment of tenderness he had displayed, it simply had not lasted. Not that she expected it to.

He continued to go slow. “Sweet Pea,” Shanna finally begged, “I need more.”

His dark eyes glanced up to meet hers. He pulled away a millimeter to speak, “say it.”

Shanna frowned, knowing what he wanted her to do. He had an affinity for making her say things that princesses simply shouldn’t say. It could be infuriating at times.

An aggravated huff left her lips as he grazed her clit with his tongue. He licked the area around it but not the bud itself. “Pea,” She whined more, “please eat me out. I need to feel your tongue inside me, please .”

At her request, he finally attacked her with vigor. His fingers moved swiftly against her clit as his tongue flicked in and out of her quickly. The volume of her moans escalated exponentially as she shuddered. He moved fast and with such talent that she wondered if those rumors had been true at all. Certainly he must have had some practice.

The princess hit her peak not too long after he gave in to her demands. Her nails scratched along his scalp, thighs clenching his head as she struggled to not fall. Sweet pea held her firmly in place, securing her safely against the wall with his arms.

When she was done squirming in his grasp, he set her down gently. Shanna caught her breath and smiled happily. “That’s a first.”

He rolled his eyes at her, trying not to laugh. “I can cum in you all I want now. No need to hold back.”

“You were holding back before?” She asked, a look of shock on her face. “Me not being pregnant certainly didn’t not stop you from not wrapping it up.”

A chuckle then came out of him, “I only wear condoms with one night stands.”

Shanna bit her lip, “so you never planned on me being a one time thing?”

He rolled his eyes at her getting sentimental. “Don’t flatter yourself. I didn’t have a condom on me that day and you were begging like such a good girl, I just had to fuck you then and there.”

Her cheeks flushed red at his words. “Ass.” She mumbled to him, crossing her arms over her chest.

Sweet Pea hummed back an affirmative. Of course he was an ass. That was his default setting. “Hush, you’re not a one time thing anymore, Princess. Even if we have to slip away in the dead of night. My brother could never fuck you like I can.”

She wrinkled her nose in disgust, “I am not having sex with Jughead. That’s gross.”

He laughed again, louder this time. “Turn around.” She obliged and he kissed her shoulder, nipping at the skin. “He couldn’t please you anyway.” He whispered into her ear in a deep voice that had her arousal spiking again. “Probably couldn’t make you cum.”

“You enjoy putting him down, don’t you?” She said, trying not to giggle, “maybe I’ll have to consummate our marriage and find out.”

He grabbed her roughly then, rubbing his tip along her slit, “you’re mine.” He growled at her before pushing in without warning. Lav cried out in pleasure, her back arching as he grabbed her hair again and pulled it back harshly.

Sweet Pea thrust into her at a rough pace. Shanna had to put her hands on the wall to keep herself steady, although his hand in her hair and on her hip kept her from falling.

Their moans mingled together with the sound of the water hitting their skin. He didn’t let up, only increasing his pace and the force of his hips periodically. The princess was struggling not to lock her knees to keep herself standing, the pleasure making her legs turn to unreliable jelly.

He seemed to sense this and put both hands on her hips with a grip that was bound to leave bruises. It didn’t take long before he made her reach her second orgasm. Pea only moved faster, not letting up until she had a third.

He released inside of her, his cock twitching in a way that made her moan due to how sensitive she was from multiple orgasms. He held her steady, not wanting her to fall and harm herself. After a moment he finally pulled out, his spilled seed running down the inside of her legs.

The dark prince’s arm circled her waist and he held her close as they both caught their breaths. There was a small ledge against the back wall and he guided her to sit there. Shanna happily sat down and relaxed against the smooth white tile. “I’m yours.” She said simply, making him smirk with triumph.

He took her loofah and lathered it with soap before cleaning up her legs, gently sponging the rest of her body with special care to her stomach. She was smiling at him sleepily, wanting nothing more than to get out and go cuddle with him in bed for the rest of the night.

Sweet Pea quickly washed up, though annoyed that he would smell like vanilla the following day. He’d have to take a shower in his own room just to get the scent of her feminine shampoo out. If he walked around the castle smelling like her then it might raise unnecessary suspicions.

“How do I turn the thing off?” He asked, staring at the multitude of silver knobs. Shanna laughed lightly as she stood and turned the water off. Pea put an arm around her, though it was unnecessary. She was finally steady on her own again.

They got out and toweled off. Neither chose to put clothes back on before crawling into her canopy bed. The prince let out a sigh as he laid on his back with her head on his chest. Shanna’s arm was draped lazily over his waist.

“I’ll always love you.” She mumbled back, half-awake now. She needed him to know that despite the fact that she had to marry his brother, she would forever care about him first and foremost.

The prince hummed back, not wanting to say the words out loud himself. His fingers traced down her spine slowly. He didn’t have to vocalize what he meant. She knew perfectly well. He’d always love her too.

[hellacluttered]

Orange and Bergamot

For @highschoolhasbeenwaitingtohappen​ - thank you for waiting!!

“I’m home.”

Your voice sounded even wearier than it felt, and the small house stayed still, quiet. Was he home? Or perhaps he hadn’t heard you. You opened your mouth to call again, hesitated, and then closed it. You didn’t feel like either yelling or searching, so instead you reached down to unlace your boots, kicked them off by the door, and walked to the small kitchen to pour yourself a drink. You could hardly feel your toes, and your fingers were slow as you opened the cupboards. The only liquor you found was half a bottle of whiskey, and you poured yourself a generous dram, leaning against the kitchen counter to take a sip. The room was cold, and you pulled your coat tighter around you. You dearly missed the warm winters of the southwest, and neither of you had been prepared for the snow or wind here, or how the chill seemed to settle so deep inside you that it would barely budge until you tucked yourself under all the blankets in the house and entwined your body with Vasquez’s.

Still, you were so grateful that he had agreed to move to New York City with you. You knew you might not have gone if he hadn’t, and that you probably would have regretted that decision for a long, long time - perhaps for the rest of your life. But he had encouraged you, bolstered you, been willing to sacrifice his need for the wild to indulge your need to learn, and together you worked out a compromise: you would go to school to become a teacher, and then the pair of you would go back out west to find a small town where you could work and he could farm.

But the study was tiring and the workload seemingly endless, and after a very long day of focusing, your brain felt as if it had been replaced with cotton and your guts with sludge. Your feet had been heavy as you walked home, and the stink of the city seemed to linger now in your nostrils, even in the muted form it took in the winter. You took another sip of the whiskey, and its peaty bitterness seemed to clear the smell from your system a little.

You looked up at the sound of footsteps coming down the staircase and then into the kitchen. It was Vasquez, a warm smile on his face and a flush on his cheeks, his dark hair a little curlier and more rumpled than usual. “I thought I might have heard you come in,” he said.

“I said I was here,” you said.

“I’m sorry, I must have missed it. Long day?”

You nodded, taking another slow draw from your glass. You knew it wasn’t a particularly smart idea to drink because you were stressed, but you never let yourself do so, and if you were going to any time, now seemed fair. With three major tests coming up, your workload had never felt heavier. “Very. You?”

“Not so much,” he said. He was working at a stable on the edge of town. You knew he liked the work, and you often envied him, until you thought about the fact that you would likely grow bored quickly in his role. “Did you eat yet?” he asked.

“Yeah, on the way home,” you answered.

“Good. Can you come upstairs?” “I’m really not in the mood, Vas-“

“No, not for that, pervert,” he teased, but you couldn’t find the energy to smile. “Just come with me.”

“Okay.” You refilled your glass and followed him. Your steps up the stairs were slow, and you paused halfway, perplexed, when the gentle scent of lavender reached your nostrils. “What’s that?”

“Just come here,” Vasquez said, holding out a hand to you. You took it, and he led you into the bedroom as the smell intensified, the air growing humid as you neared the door. Inside, a copper tub was filled nearly to the brim with bubbles, hot steam curling into the air, and a selection of soaps sat on a fruit crate standing on its end next to the tub with a pair of candles next to them. A fire crackled in the fireplace, a kettle hanging over it, and your old teapot sat on a tray on the hearth with several scones, a set of mugs next to them. Your mouth hung open for a moment, incredulous, and then tears came to your eyes. He was looking at you, and his smile turned suddenly to concern and pity. “No, no, don’t cry!” He wrapped you in an embrace, his long fingers rubbing the base of your skull, and it felt so wonderful you let your neck go limp, resting your head against his chest as he worked on the tired muscles. “This is perfect,” you murmured. Somehow it felt your worries had melted away, and the stressors of your day retreated, locked outside the gate of this sanctuary Vasquez had made. You felt his fingers unfastening your clothing, and stood there as he did so. The restricting garments fell away piece by piece until you stood naked and unashamed before him. He clasped your upper arms and looked deep into your eyes, and even though he had done so so many times, you still felt your breath catch a little at the intensity of the love in his dark eyes. “You’re beautiful,” he said, and pressed a kiss to your forehead. “Now get in before it gets cold.”

You nodded and disentangled your feet from the pile of clothes, and crossed the few steps to the tub. You dipped your toes in, and they burned for a moment, the heat chasing out the numbness shockingly quickly. Then you stepped in, beginning to lower yourself into the water, and it felt that the more of your body the water surrounded, the more weariness and stress disappeared. You settled your back against the curve of the end of the tub, the water up to your chin, the lavender scent calming, and your muscles relaxing in the heat.

“I wasn’t sure which soap you’d like best so I got a bunch of them,” Vasquez said, and you couldn’t find the words to answer. You did small things for each other all the time, and the strength of your love was shown in the sacrifices you both had made. But for him to do something this special, at one of your most challenging times - it meant more than you knew how to say.

“Thank you,” you said, hoping you could convey your sincerity in the simple words.

“You’re welcome, mi amor.” He poured you a cup of tea and you watched as he prepared it just the way you liked - Lord, did he know you well - and you took a slow sip when he handed it to you. It warmed where the whiskey had scorched, soothed where it had enflamed, and you closed your eyes, letting your other senses take over. You heard chair legs shift behind you and then gasped as Vasquez’s fingers dug into your shoulders, his hands strong and nimble, digging into the aches that had accumulated through the hours of leaning over a desk.

“You’re incredible,” you muttered, and heard him chuckle.

He continued massaging the muscles of your arms and shoulders until it felt that they had all turned to mush, and he kept adding more hot water to the tub, from time to time emptying some out so that it didn’t overflow. You experimented with the soaps he had picked, each scent unique and alluring - orange, cardamom, mint, and bergamot - and let him lead your body as he washed your hair with something that smelled of coconut.

As you drank your second cup of tea, he began to read to you from a book of poetry, and you focused on the images he made, his voice rising and falling with the flow of the words. Still he kept the water warm, and the sun outside was long gone, the glow of the candles friendly and intimate. You gradually lost all sense of time, settling into near-sleep with your head resting on the back of the tub. “I’d better get you to bed before you fall asleep in there,” he said at last, and the spell broke. You blinked, and suddenly guilt crept into your chest.

“Don’t you want to get in?” you asked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t ask.”

“No, this was for you,” he said. “Don’t think about it. Besides, do you realize how badly I would get teased if I showed up to work smelling like flowers and fruits?”

You laughed, and reluctantly stood, taking the towel Vasquez handed you to dry your hair. “You could probably use it.”

“Are you saying I smell?” he asked, an expression of mock-offense on his face.

“No!” you exclaimed. “You smell wonderful, most of the time.” You got to work drying off your body, and your skin felt soft and sensitive, your whole body flushed from the heat.

He laughed. “I can live with that.” He handed you your robe, and you slipped into it and tied off the waist.

“I want to thank you for this,” you said. “It means so much to me. It- it was perfect. I don’t know how to express my gratitude.”

“I do,” he said. “Go to bed, get some sleep. I’ll join you in just a few minutes.”

“Are you sure?” you asked, but at his words you remembered how tired you were, and you were so warm, the lingering heat from the bath wrapping around you more tightly than your robe.

“I’m sure,” he said. “Go get comfortable.”

You obeyed, and as soon as you laid your head on the pillow, you let the tiredness you had been weakly attempting to stave off all night take you over. You began to drift off to the quiet sounds of Vasquez emptying the bath and cleaning up the room, and just before you fell asleep, you felt him climb into bed next to you. He gently turned your body, pulling you closer to him, and you rested your head on his shoulder, eyes closed, breathing in his familiar scent. “I love you,” you murmured sleepily, and he kissed your forehead.

“I love you too.

[karasuno-writings]

66 prompt with oikawa plzzzz and female reader btw ^-^

Sure thing nonie! Thank you so much for the request!! This is a more wintery one!! I hope this is good and that you enjoy it!! Thank you for the request! I just noticed you asked for a female reader OH NO sorry let me fix this real quick.

“you’re sick and I feel bad because I’m pretty sure i gave it to you, so I bring you some of my great grandmother’s soup and watch movies with you”

_______________________________________

It was a beautiful winter day; the air was chilly and snow threatened to fall, granting the atmosphere a surreal grey aura that made everyone feel like it was the perfect day for taking a stroll fully covered in warm clothes, in which whenever you took a deep breath you could feel the holidays and general festivities come in closer with the joy that people brought in on the air. Too bad Y/N could not breath. 

Y/N blowed her nose once more, highlighting the ache that had begun to pester her after several box of tissues had been used and disposed off. She was covered in a bundle of blankets as she almost coughed a lung out. The day was perfect and now she was just miserable, specially since she was supposed to go out and meet her boyfriend, who indeed had a good share on the guilt on her current situation.Y/N grabbed her phone, she had to tell him that there had been a change of plans due to the sickness which now tormented her.

Y/N: We won’t be able to see each other today Toru 

Oikawa: Why love? Am I too much for you too handle?

Y/N: No silly, I actually can’t, I’m dead sick

Y/N: Also, you are pretty much at fault on this 

Oikawa: How dare you assume it’s my fault? 

Oikawa: Maybe I was just too irresistible with that cold 

Y/N: Oh yeah your runny red nose was far from gross

Oikawa: Are you feeling really bad?

Y/N: Yes, it sucks

Oikawa: Don’t worry, take a nap and I’ll be home soon Y/N-chan 

Oikawa: Take care while I come to the rescue my love

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Oikawa pouted as a shiver ran down his spine. He had once more forgotten to take care of himself, and had stayed perfecting his technique up until late at night. This would usually not prove to be a problem, however winter had come harsh, and the cold air of the night proved to be enough to get him sick.

Y/N wrapped a blanket around him as she placed a kiss on the top of his head. She had already scold him enough for the reckless actions that had gotten him into this, now Y/N took on the task to take care of him while he was on this miserable state.   

He sneezed, and all seriousness came back to him as he leaned on her arm. He knew this was all his doing, and Y/N being there for him was more than he could ever asked for. Y/N rubbed his back tenderly with her hand hand as she handed him chamomile tea with the other, steam puffs rising from the hot liquid. Oikawa raised both hands to cup the mug, gently blowing to cool it down. He coughed once more and then turned to look at her as Y/N smiled gently and he smiled back, he stared at her beautiful eyes full of love and then at her lips crooked barely upwards, he could only think about how much he wanted to kiss her.

“Don’t even think about it Tooru” she said lovingly, reading through his intentions. Oikawa pouted once more and glared at her. Y/N shook her head as she planted a kiss on his temple and handed him more tissues so he could blow his runny nose. 

“Thanks my love…not even a little one?” His smile was bright and sincere, still he looked sick, and his red nose was reason enough for Y/N to scrunch her face up and scoot farther away. Oikawa however had other plans as he knew what her reaction was going to be. His hands cupped her cheeks and he planted soft kisses all over her face, on her cheeks, on her forehead and nose, being cautious to not kiss Y/N on the lips; as as much as he needed to shower her in love he did not want to get them sick after all she had done for him. 

As Y/N hugged him to get him to stay still he stopped, burying his head on her neck and wrapping his arms around her waist. He coughed lightly and grunted as he felt his head throb, being sick absolutely sucked, but having Y/N by his side made everything better. He turned around as he heard her turn the television on, ready to watch their favorite movies.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Oikawa knew this was indeed his fault, he would not hold back on his affection while sick, so now Y/N suffered the consequences. He stared at the now black screen of his phone, lost deep in thought, he wanted them to to feel better and take care of Y/N. Be there for her just like she had been for him. What would he do?

“Quit making that face Trashykawa, it makes you look silly” Iwaizumi scolded the setter as they sat outside the volleyball court. Oikawa turned to look at him, clearly surprised by the harsh comment, still he furrowed his brows once more but now staring at his friend. It got him thinking of how whenever Iwaizumi got sick when they were little, Oikawa’s mom always gave him a container full of his grandma’s soup to give his friend, it was a special recipe made only for the sick, guaranteed to make them feel better. 

“Oi! That’s even worse!” Iwaizumi complained as Oikawa kept staring at him without uttering a word. Oikawa didn’t reply and instead smirked and stood up from the steps, his mind was set on getting the recipe, and while his mother was out of town he was going to try to replicate it for Y/N. He left without saying a word, leaving Iwaizumi wildly confused, however with Oikawa one never knew exactly what to expect so he just shrugged it off and set on his way home.

He had called his mom to get the recipe, she was delighted to hear that his little boy was taking up on family traditions, and even more so when he told her it was to take care of the delightful Y/N. As soon as she handed him the information he needed it was time to work. Tooru had few to no experience with cooking, but if he followed the recipe step by step he was sure to get there. He abysmally failed the first time, a new fire of determination growing within him, he was not going to give up on the task he had put on himself, he was set to deliver to Y/N.

Hours passed on quickly and now Oikawa stood in the middle of the kitchen, he ran a hand over his forehead to wipe off the sweat that had begun building up due to the heat that plagued the room thanks to the cozy fire on the stovetop. He let out a pleased sigh at his creation, the smell was practically irresistible and while he had struggled a lot to get to this result he was sure Y/N would love the soup he made for her. After four different attempts, this was it.

Y/N sulked on her bedroom which was dark aside from the faint glow that the television granted. Tooru had probably got stuck on practice because he was not happy with his technique, polishing what to her was already perfect. She was supportive of her boyfriend, but it would have been nice to have him around keeping her company. Their lock-screen flashed as her phone announced the hour, a picture of the two of them reflected on Y/N’s eyes and with one sad glance she flipped it face-down.

Oikawa however stood outside Y/N’s house, holding his bag tightly to his coat so it wouldn’t get cold. He sure had not noticed how late it had gotten while he was cooking, but he hoped she were still awake, the night proved to be colder than expected and she was surely in need of warmth. He unlocked the door with the copy of the key Y/N had given him and walked over to her room, following the faint glow and the sound of whatever show she had decided to watch.

“Your rescue is here Y/N, and I have with me the best soup for my sick love!” He announced as he walked into her room. Y/N looked away from the TV sniffing due to the sickness that seemed to give her no break. As he turned the light on her eyes started glowing once more, she was not expecting him and his sudden appearance immediately seemed to make everything better. 

“I thought you forgot” Y/N said, sadness apparent on her tone of voice. Oikawa left the container on the nightstand and hugged her, planting a soft kiss on her head. “I would never…was actually making something for you…It did take longer than expected.” He moved the nightstand closer to them and sat cross-legged next to her.

“This is my nana’s recipe, guaranteed to make you feel better in no time, best part? I did it all by myself” He stated proudly as he grabbed a spoon from his backpack and handed it to her, just after he grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Y/N’s shoulders. 

Y/N got teary eyed, she knew that Oikawa was no cook and now everything made so much sense; he had spent all this time working hard to make something just for her. She cuddled closer to her boyfriend, a small smile spreading on her lips, this proved to be the start of a lovely relaxing night as her boyfriend took care of them in a way he only knew how. She took a spoonful of the soup and was delighted by the taste, proving to warm their inside as much as Oikawa had warmed her heart. 

“Tooru…I love you, thanks”

“I love you more Y/N, I’d do anything for my love”

“It’s a good thing you now know how to cook”

[unbreakablejemmasimmons]

#3 of the winter prompts.

03. i watch kids teach you how to skate because you’re a terrible skater

For such a small town, the parking lot of the Roswell Square Mall in December still managed to be a shitshow. Alex huffed out a frustrated breath as another car beat him to a parking space for the third time. Normally, he’d do all his shopping online, but he’d been too distracted, and the holiday had snuck up on him. There wasn’t time to wait for shipping.

Normally, he didn’t have many people to buy gifts for at all, he thought as he pulled into a spot in the very back corner of the parking lot. There was certainly no annual Manes family gift exchange to consider. But in early December, Liz had put her foot down. They were all too tense, working themselves too hard trying to find a way to bring Max back, and dammit, she was going to make sure they all got to experience at least a little holiday cheer in the form of a Secret Santa.

Alex had breathed a quiet sigh of relief when he’d pulled Isobel’s name out of the empty water pitcher at the Crashdown. Sure, he’d have to spend more than he’d like to satisfy her elegant tastes, but he’d dreaded choosing Michael’s name. What do you get for the alien who doesn’t want anything you have to offer? They’d managed to cobble together a friendship, but Alex wasn’t sure what he could come up with to give to Michael that didn’t feel at once too intimate and not intimate enough.

No, even difficult-to-please Isobel was definitely the safer choice.

Inside the mall, he weaved his way through crowds of frazzled moms and unaccompanied teens clutching their Orange Julius’ and Auntie Anne’s, ending up browsing housewares at Nordstrom. He finally settled on an abstract vase, figuring he could bring over flowers every now and then to fill it. Isobel’s house could use a touch of life these days.

He was on his way toward the mall entrance, Nordstrom bag in hand, when he spotted it. Spotted him, rather. 

Michael, right in the middle of the temporary ice rink set up next to the food court. Michael, with ice skates strapped to his feet. Michael, gesticulating wildly with both hands for balance before falling hilariously, beautifully, on his ass.

Alex couldn’t stop being drawn to him if he tried.

He approached the edge of the rink, setting down his bag and leaning both elbows on the plastic barrier that separated the ice from the mall’s tile floor, and he watched.

“Told you I’m no good at this,” Michael groused, slipping backward and forward a bit as he heaved himself to his feet. At first, Alex wasn’t sure who he was talking to, until a kid who couldn’t be older than 13 skated around Michael in a perfect arc.

“That’s ‘cause your balance sucks,” the kid said, earning a glare from Michael.

“Yeah, no shit.” He grimaced. “I mean, no duh.”

The kid rolled his eyes. “You can say shit; I’m not five.” He gestured at Michael. “Try again.” 

To Alex’s surprise, Michael did as he was told, shakily turning and skating a few feet in the other direction. The kid nodded encouragingly as Michael approached the ledge on the opposite side of the rink from where Alex stood. By the time Michael got there, grasping the plastic barrier for dear life, Alex could no longer hear the conversation between the two. Still, he couldn’t tear his eyes away. 

“Weird, right?” came a voice to his left. He looked over in time to see Liz skating smoothly in his direction, coming to a stop with a little flourish as she reached him. 

Alex quirked an eyebrow. “You mean, the fact that you and Michael are here ice skating together, or the fact that he’s getting skating lessons from some random sarcastic teenager?”

Liz let out a laugh, and it was a balm to Alex’s heart. It had been a rare sound lately, and while her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, it was still a welcome sight. 

“He wouldn’t listen to me at all, but this snarky kid started teasing him and I think it hurt his pride. He had to let him show him a few moves.”

“And you two are… what, practicing your ice dancing routine for the next winter Olympics?” He frowned, unable to resist scanning the rink to see who else might be there with them. “Is, uh–”

Liz leaned on the barrier across from him, catching his eye. “Maria and Michael broke up,” she said softly, as if she was the one who was psychic. “It was for the best, for all parties involved. But now he can’t exactly head over to the WIld Pony after we finish up in the lab every night, and I’d rather him not drink himself sick alone in his trailer. Not when he’s been doing so much better lately. So I’ve been brainstorming some non-whiskey-or-acetone-related ways to help him blow off steam.” 

“Like ice skating,” Alex said, proud of how normal his voice sounded even as he processed so much new information. 

Liz nodded. “Last night Rosa got him to make Christmas ornaments with her. Little green alien heads wearing Santa hats and UFOs pulled by reindeer. Tonight, I thought we’d try ice skating.”

They both looked over in time to see Michael sprawled spectacularly across the ice, a scowl on his face. The kid giggled, but still held out a hand to help him up. 

“As you can see, it’s going about as well as could be expected,” Liz said. 

Across the ice, Michael had pulled himself to his feet with the kid’s help, and rubbed one hand idly over his hip as if it had broken his fall. Then he looked over and met Alex’s gaze. Alex could see him exhale sharply, then mutter something to the kid. The kid gave Alex an appraising glance, then shrugged, grasping Michael’s elbow with both hands and helping guide him across the rink. 

“Who’s your chauffeur, Mikey?” Liz asked with a laugh as they approached. Alex felt thrown off balance by the dichotomy of Michael’s jerky, inexpert skating and the way he still managed to look like every one of Alex’s dreams come to life, but he tried to muster a chuckle anyway. 

“This is…” Michael began, just a few feet away.

“Curtis,” the kid spoke up. Then, to Liz: “You should get your friend some skating lessons for Christmas.” 

She laughed again. “What do you charge?” 

Curtis cocked his head to the side. “You couldn’t afford me. See ya!” He darted off across the ice, leaving the three of them in a close huddle at the edge of the rink. 

“Alex,” Michael said, sounding a little out of breath. Alex presumed it was from the effort exerted trying to stay upright on skates. 

“Hey.” 

“I was just filling in Alex on you and Rosa’s arts and crafts nights,” Liz said. “Did she say popcorn garland or cut-out snowflakes was next?” 

“I think she said we’re going to make a candy Nativity scene,” he answered without looking away from Alex. “Gummi Bears as the wise men and a little jellybean Jesus.”

“Couldn’t you use your powers to balance?” Alex asked, keeping his voice low.

“Liz has got me on a tight leash these days.”

She rolled her eyes, then explained, “We’re experimenting with the strength of his powers, and as a control, I asked him to refrain from using them outside of the lab for a few days.” 

“And I’m gonna have the bruises on my ass to prove it.” 

The last thing Alex needed was to think about Michael’s ass, and he looked over his shoulder at the crowded mall before turning back to the two of them. “Well, I should probably–”

“Hot chocolate,” Michael blurted out. Alex raised his eyebrows, and Liz just looked back and forth between them. “It’s just– Liz also has me on this no drinking thing–”

“Hey, you said–”

He waved her away, still looking hopefully at Alex. “But they have a little cafe with hot chocolate over there, and I could really use one after falling all over the ice. It’s pretty cold out there.” 

Alex’s gaze flicked over to the cafe Michael mentioned, just a few little faux wrought-iron tables in a cluster on the other side of the rink. 

“You thirsty?” Michael asked, and Alex swallowed. “I just thought– maybe we could, you know, talk.” 

“Um.” Alex clutched the Nordstrom bag tighter in his grip and licked his lips. Talking had never been their strong suit, but Alex had meant it when he said he wasn’t walking away again. Not when Michael was finally ready for a conversation. He inhaled, then nodded, a muscle in his jaw twitching. “Actually, I’m parched.” 

“Good. Great. I’ll just, ah, return these skates–”

“Take them off here and give them to me,” Liz said, gesturing to his feet. “I mean it; you’re a hazard to everyone on the ice. You two go, enjoy your hot chocolate.” Her expression brooked no arguments. 

As they sat down across from each other minutes later, a hot chocolate topped with whipped cream in front of each of them, their knees brushed beneath the table, and neither one of them moved away. Alex took a steamy sip, and thought maybe the mall at Christmastime wasn’t so bad, after all.

[uldren-sov]

AAAA so my lovely rp partner @s0tc commissioned the LOVELY @cytharat with our agents in some not so wintery wonderland conditions and s0tc surprised me with these today and they’re so incredible!!! AAA look at them ;;;

Thank you so much, both of you! Below is my part of our gift exchange.

Out of any assignment they’ve had so far; the jungle, the desert, the interrogation, the poison - this may yet stand to be the worst. It’s been a week and there still hasn’t been any safe weather to go check out their post yet. A blizzard had torn through, nearly crashing their transport shuttle from the space station to the main base here on Hoth upon arrival. And since then, it had not let up for a full week.

Some planets should just be better left unsettled.

Evacios and Evelyn had made due, kept focus on their objective here, and trained … for the first five days. Past that and it was beyond the pail of what they needed to do and what Imperial Intelligence wanted them to do. Besides, it wasn’t like there was any communication out of the base during the blizzard, no one to report on what they could, or couldn’t do.

And what didn’t they do.

But even that became boring, became inconvenient and more hassle than it was worth. But on the seventh day, the comms crackled to life with the broken up voice of a petty officer on the other end. Communication at last which meant …

Evacios was one of the first to see just how the landscape has changed as a result of all the snow, and after being the one to hit the massive cargo bay doors he -- couldn’t say he wasn’t surprised. The snow had piled up, perhaps 20 feet, along the edge of the door. Some of it started to crumble, to fall into the hangar that led out, but sunlight flooded the room, sparkling off the mostly fluffy snow.

“Well, shit,” he heard Evelyn suddenly grouse beside him. They were both ready in their winter gear to set out, to finally get started so they could leave the planet; Evelyn in appropriate white-and-light-blue accented gear, to camouflage in the snow. Evacios? Evacios already had a stealth generator, so he wore his signature black.

“If they ask us to shovel we’re-” he started, cut off from the base commander emerging along with most of the retinue here.

“All right! We’ve confirmed the storm has passed and has continued South-Southwest which means we need to clear a landing area immediately! New oil for the droids and a shovel for every able hand,” she said and there it was, the pointed look towards them, “and may I remind you that while you two might be Intelligence; here? You’re still under my command.” A quick standoff, as Evacios settled a hand on Evelyn’s shoulder, if looks could kill she’d have probably run the commander through in a heartbeat -- much like how he wanted to. Yet he had to play his part, the responsible one, the leader, so while he might have glared he still snapped to attention.

“Yes, sir,” he managed. It satisfied the commander and he felt, rather than heard, Evelyn deflate beside him.

“So you just get to sign us up for volunteer service?” she said, turning her perturbed gaze his way, crossing her arms and scowling. She wasn’t pleased, that much was certain, but he nonetheless settled his grip on her upper arms, massaging them slightly.

“The sooner we help, means the sooner we’ve finished, means the sooner we can get to work,” he explained but smiled just enough for her to narrow her eyes.

“I don’t believe that for a second and remember I know when you’re lying, now,” she warned - interrogation training; both of them were given separate and unique “win” conditions, and while she at least knew he had been feeding her false information she couldn’t get him to give the answers she needed. A win and a loss, perhaps, but he nonetheless let her think she knew his tells.

“True,” a sigh and then a twitch of a grin in truth. “It’s just, you said you’ve never seen snow before and-” oh, but she looked outraged in an instant.

“This is your fault,” she started, as people began to move about them, around them, the soldiers starting to go through procedure to start clearing the wall of snow.

“It is,” he agreed and leaned in just close enough to only not be kissing her, the steam of their breath floated up between them, “and I promise I’ll make it up to you later.” It mollified her immediately, still upset yet nowhere near the anger he saw.

“You better.” And he sealed the promise with a quick kiss.

Most of the snow was cleared by the droids, while it wasn’t impossible to get up so high for the soldiers, and two would-be Ciphers, to start assisting, it was high enough to warrant caution, especially as more of the snow crumbled in large chunks and scattered across the floor. A small avalanche would ruin equipment, so best let the droids do it up to a certain point.

And that certain point apparently was midway and midday, the droids having pushed the snow aside, meant there were now dizzyingly high walls of snow on either side of the hangar entrance. And while they didn’t need to clear much space, there had to be enough for a fighter and a shuttle to land. The snow wall was some ten feet up, high enough to still warrant a ladder and before long, white-clad soldiers skittered up them like ants up an ant hole to begin work digging out the entrance the old-fashioned way.

“I still can’t believe we’re doing this,” Evelyn said from below him on the ladder. He stopped at the top to offer her his hand - which she took.

“It’s your first time seeing snow. How could I possibly pass up the opportunity for you to experience it hands-on?” He smiled and she shook her head. And while he spun his shovel, the loathsome task he signed himself up for as well was one more thing he had to tolerate with this training, he did at least catch Evelyn look out with wonder.

Indeed, spread out before them was a verifiable sea of white, a desert where instead of sand, was ice. It rolled and crested with where the wind found and built dunes upon. The mountainous peaks dotting the horizon were frosted along the peppery black stone and silvery ice as the wind dipped down to woosh gently through the man-made tunnel they were all now creating. The kicked up snow caught the errant flakes, pinwheeling them through the icy-cold air, sparkling in the sunlight of a clear day.

It was hard for Evacios to not share, at least a bit, in the wonder he saw in Evelyn’s expression. Still, he stalked over and pulled the yellow-tinted goggles down over her eyes - snapping her out of her reverie.

“Let’s get to work.”

And what work it was. For hours they toiled, heave-hoing snow off to the side for the droids to push away. The whole platoon, even the commander, took up a shovel to start clearing the area and then create a ramp up to the rest of the world on the far side of the landing. It didn’t have to be completely clear, the whole base was no doubt situated on centuries old ice and snow, and should they dig, they’ll no doubt just find the ice shelf. No, they just had to clear it to an even level of the base. It took the full day, the sun now starting to fall into the horizon - perhaps giving them an hour, maybe two, before it would sink past the mountain ranges and once again make the temperatures unbearable and inhabitable. Evacios tossed his, then Evelyn’s shovel to a passing droid and sighed heavily. His arms, shoulders, and back burned from use - yet even that was not enough to say he was truly warm. Hoth may not have been the worst place for an Imperial to be stationed, that award belonged to Korriban beyond a shadow of a doubt, but damned if this place wasn’t at least top three.

“This might be my first time seeing snow,” huffed Evelyn, as tired soldiers trudged past them, back inside, “but you know what? If I never see any snow ever again, I’m good.” She worked her shoulders out, and then her neck.

“No love for it anymore?” he crossed his arms as she emphatically shook her head.

“I’ve dug trenches in the jungle during the rainy season,” she started and shook her head, “and honestly, I think I like that better.” She huffed. “I can’t wait to get off this planet.”

It wasn’t that much of an issue … yet Evacios knew that so long as she held this animosity, it was only likely to grow. He couldn’t have her frustrated or angry when they haven’t even started their mission. They had bunks here, they had heating here, they had food, and blankets, and warm ‘freshers, and all the amenities of an altogether comfortable - despite the environment - outpost. Evacios himself, as spec ops, have seen and lived through far worse and knowing that their mission took them far outside any kind of military outpost? This was as good as they were going to get, and he couldn’t have her start out like this when morale would probably be the only thing that got them through this test.

He wandered away from her innocently enough.

“Surely you can’t miss the rain, the humidity, the bugs,” he started, just trying to get her going - keep her talking and if not distracted, then at least focused on something else.

“The rain you can keep out, the outposts had dehumidifiers, and there’s bug spray for a reason,” she checked them all off. “I even prefer the vine cats, at least that gave us something to keep an eye out for.”

“You want there to be some kind of deadly creature out here? Lurking just behind any errant snow drift to kill us?” he asked jokingly as he turned his back to her and squatted down.

“Just something to break up all the monoto-” ironically that was when the snowball had hit her chest. She was stunned as she looked down to see the smear of snow clinging to her suit and slowly looked to him, the snow clearly on his hands, twisted on one knee to get the bead on her and throw it.

“I’m sorry, what was that again?” He grinned, giving her his best mischievous look before she snapped back to it and started sprinting at him. He scooped up another handful before running, himself, away from the base, off to the side - where the massive wall of snow would hide them from curious onlookers.

He snapped to a turn and threw the snowball back towards her, it was sudden but she was quick enough to duck and curl, the snowball glanced off her shoulder but she gave a surprised yell at the impact. A new sensation, one she was unaccustomed to, of course her body would react that way but the smile was unmistakable in a second. It even grew, unbidden, from him as she quickly reached down to arm herself as well. He took off and lept over a haphazard pile of snow he thought he could use as cover.

Instead, his feet met with unpacked snow and he sank a solid two feet behind the pile with a surprised gasp. His legs caught very nearly painfully, yet all that happened was give Evelyn time enough to make her very first snowball and launch it at his head. He brought his arm up in time to brace his face but he felt it skid across his hair. He scurried to get out of the hole but by that time she made another and caught him in the back with it.

“This is called payback!” she shouted without any hint of malice as another one caught him in the side before he could finally pull himself out. And when that one hit he even heard a peel of laughter coming from her.

All right then. He may have gotten out of his hole but he kept low and pushed the loose snow up into a small hill - some cover as he kept prone and worked some snow loose around him so he could get even lower.

“You know, I think you’re a better shot with these than you are with a blaster!” he called, and when he looked to gauge her reaction he had to duck at once to avoid a streak of snow - a poorly compacted snowball.

“Real funny, at least i'm not using tactics to win a snowball f-” and from his cover he launched one, two, three more snowballs which caught her in her hip, her side, and her chest. Her eyes widened, her expression a mix of outrage and perhaps exhilaration as she quickly ran behind some cover herself and they began the assault in truth. It wasn’t long before every throw, every connection, was met with shrieks of laughter and tapered chuckles. It was a complicated game of cat-and-mouse with snowballs as the former soldiers and Ciphers in training ducked and moved between covers, between volleys, and admittedly stumbling and tripping over the soft powdery snow where it wasn’t packed down correctly.

It all came to a head when Evacios peeked out over a small hill and saw that Evelyn was not but a few feet in front of him, sprinting as hard as she could and seemed to have no intention of stopping. He could step out of the way, he could slip out of the grasp - perhaps - but he let it happen. She crashed into him, nearly folding him in half as they both collapsed into the soft snow in a plume of flakes.

“I win,” she said between crests of breathless laughter. Poised above him she kept him down with hands firmly on his chest, not that he was making any effort to change that.

“This time,” he conceded, surprised, at least, to find himself smiling. He would have been content at that, but then he remembered - had to always remember and keep up his ploy. He covered her hands with his, his black gloves covering her white ones in their entirety. He met her energized grin with a sly smile of his own, one he knew spoke of promises only he could keep. “Take what you want as a prize.”  An obvious invitation but one she nonetheless took.

She kissed him immediately, hotly, full of an aggression and possession she no doubt used with plenty of men before him - men that easily and eagerly wilted from. He, on the other hand, slowly wound his arms around her body, covering over the white of her jacket, and his gloved hands disappearing into her black tresses. He gripped her behind her head and held her back just enough to reply, slower, deeper, languid enough to where she sighed gently through her nose and was compliant in a matter of seconds. He angled her head as he drew her in closer, brushing his fingers down to the base of her skull, keeping her to him, as he kissed her methodically, slanting his lips against hers until he pulled her back and she gasped softly for breath.

“Come on, it’s going to get dark soon and I’m not entirely convinced the commander won’t lock us out on principal,” he whispered with a smirk. She huffed in response, another shake of her head.

“The faster we’re away from her the better, definitely,” she agreed as she unwound herself from his embrace and offered him a hand. He didn’t take it and stood on his own, to which she just shrugged, “by the way. I’m not done with you yet.” She made her own promise in her own way and he had to smirk, raising his split eyebrow in amusement.

“No, I didn’t think you were,” he commented airily, as he started brushing himself off. “But, hm, humor me for a second.” He fished through his pocket as she crossed her arms and watched him curiously. He found his holo, hit a button, and tossed it gently. It landed just a couple of feet from them and began hovering.

“Really? A picture?” she questioned dryly.

“To commemorate your first foray into the elements,” he said glibly as he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “As I said, humor me.” He smiled and gave a quick kiss to her cheek. She rolled her eyes but she was having a hard time fighting off the smile on her face.

“Fine. One picture,” she relented but snatched the holo from its position to hold it up higher.

1 … 2 … 3 … He smiled and held her close and as soon as it was taken she quickly reviewed it. He watched her from behind, the earnesty of her excitement was touching but the sun was now low, the day was ending, and work would begin again soon. He pressed his cheek against the crown of her head and she leaned back into his embrace, yes - Intelligence work would begin again soon, his work, though, was never done.

[imaginetonyandbucky]

The Hitman Bodyguard: Chapter 7

Read on Ao3

With a long, exhausted sigh, Bucky dug out his keys from a forgotten pocket of his duffel bag and opened the door to his LA apartment, dropping all of his luggage right inside the door.  Kicking the door closed behind him, he turned on the lights and reminded himself of what his own apartment looked like; it seemed cramped, now, and shabby, but that was only because it can’t compare to what a billionaire could buy.  Bucky had nice things, because the bodyguard business paid well, but he didn’t see much point spending a lot of the money on a place he rarely stayed.

Which reminded him – he checked to see if Ms. Potts had replied to his email, which had taken him hours on the train to compose: Ms. Potts, Mr. Stark and I have come to a mutual agreement to terminate the bodyguard contract. Then came a lot of politely worded “thank you for your business” and “please contact me if you need anything else” and all that other boilerplate speak that came with being a professional.   He’d sent it days ago, on the train as they passed through Montana, but she hadn’t answered yet. He had, however, gotten his paycheck, prorated to the day that he’d walked out of Tony’s tower, so he wasn’t going to have to worry about looking for a new gig soon.  Or anytime, really; the job with Tony had paid out in six figures every two weeks, but he knew from experience that having nothing to do was the fastest way for him to start spiraling, so.

He’d give himself a week. No, two. Two weeks to feel sorry for himself, two weeks to see if what had happened in New York would leak and force him to leave “James Buchanan” behind, then he’d start looking around for a new job.  Probably not another bodyguard contract; he didn’t think he was up for spending that much time around someone that wasn’t Tony, but he’d done well as a security consultant in the past and a desk job sounded…restful.  Undemanding.

With a desultory examination of his freezer, Bucky called in for Chinese food and collapsed on the couch, scrolling through his watch list on Netflix.  Usually in his downtime he liked watching historical documentaries, catching up on what he missed over the decades, but after a moment of hesitation, he grabbed a blanket and turned on Sharknado 6.

(More after the break!)

Days later, he, like the rest of America, woke up in the morning to see news of the devastation in Sokovia.  He wanted to call or text or write Tony, but every time he picked up his phone, the thought of it felt horribly presumptuous. Desperate.  How could he say how are you without also saying I miss you, or say I’m sorry without adding I hope I hear from you soon,  so in the end he didn’t say anything.

Unfortunately, even after the Ultron disaster slowly faded from national consciousness – it was all the way on the other side of the planet, after all, world-wide repercussions notwithstanding – Tony still didn’t come find him.  Two weeks turned into a month when Bucky had realized, foolish though it may had been, that he’d been hoping Tony would come for him after Ultron.

When he woke up on the couch for the third day in a row, eyes gritty and mouth like cotton, he realized that he had to get up and start getting over it.  So he dragged himself off the couch and showered, then while he brushed his teeth he cleaned his bathroom.  Getting dressed turned into cleaning up his bedroom, including pulling the sheets off his bed and throwing them in the washer.  He got all the dishes into the dishwasher and the trash out to the dumpster before he ran out of steam and ended up back on the couch.

Maybe I should take a trip, Bucky thought as he stared at the ceiling. Something overseas, so he wouldn’t feel like he was waiting for a visit or a call that might never come.  He figured a walk would be a good start, since he hadn’t been outside for a few days, so he tugged his shoes on and walked down to the grocery store a few blocks away.  He wandered around the store aimlessly, picking up and putting down food until he finally grabbed a sandwich and ate it on the way back.

As he walked up his steps slowed at the expensive car parked in front of his building; when Tony got out of the car, he came to a complete stop.  Tony was dressed simply, an AC/DC shirt over jeans, but he looked tired around the eyes, mouth tense.

“Hey,” Tony said, smiling faintly at Bucky’s astonishment. “Can I, um, come in?” he asked, nodding his head towards Bucky’s apartment.

“Sure,” Bucky said, leading him up the stairs.  As he opened the door he winced, wishing he had spent more time cleaning, but it would have to be good enough.  At least it didn’t look like a multi-week depression bender anymore.  Someone with opinions on these things would probably charitably call it “lived in.”  “Do you, um, want anything?  I’ll make coffee,” he decided before Tony could answer.  He needed something for his hands to do.

“Thanks,” Tony said, taking a seat at the bar. “I wanted to come sooner, but well, Ultron.  Then there were a lot of…complications, afterwards.” Tony drummed his fingers on the bar thoughtfully.  “And I thought that, since you left the tower, you might need some space.  So I hope it’s ok that I’m here.”

Bucky took a deep breath, trying to get his heart to stop pounding as he measured out the coffee.  “Of course it’s ok, Tony.  I’ve been,” Bucky exhaled and said, “I’ve been hoping you’d come.”

Tension drained from Tony’s shoulders and he smiled. “Yeah? Good.  How have you been?”

Bucky made a face as he poured water into the coffee maker. “Not great,” he admitted. “The way we left things in New York…It feels like I’ve been waiting for the other shoe to fall.”

“Yeah, Steve wanted to come, too, but I convinced him to let me talk to you first.”

Bucky leaned against the counter and crossed his arms as the coffee maker started to burble behind him. “What did you want to talk about?”

“Well, after the whole thing in DC, you know a bunch of HYDRA’s old files were made public.”  Bucky’s jaw tightened; he’d been worried every day that someone would find him in those files, would make the connection, but after weeks turned into months he’d eventually relaxed.  Apparently he’d relaxed too soon.  “Since you don’t like to talk about it, I’m going to tell you what I know, and you let me know if I get anything wrong,” Tony said, gaze steady. When Bucky nodded, jaw still tight, Tony said, “James Barnes was born March 10, 1917. After serving in the Army with distinction, he went missing, presumed dead, during in January 1945 during a mission in the Alps. That’s the part that everyone knows.” Tony looked down at his hands, picking at a callous there, as he continued.  “The part we are just learning about is that he was discovered at the bottom of a mountain ravine by Soviet soldiers.  He was severely injured, missing an arm and a lot of blood, so the Soviets put him into a recently invented cryogenic sleep tank until he was handed over to HYDRA and Arnim Zola.” At that, Tony’s mouth twisted with disgust.  “That’s when James Barnes disappears and the Winter Soldier takes his place.  Official reports say he assassinated over two dozen people within a fifty year span.   Including,” Tony said, still looking down at his hands as he picked his words carefully, “Howard and Maria Stark.”

“What?” When Tony looked up at him, eyes sad, Bucky said, “No. No, I didn’t…” Then a memory came out of nowhere, a white-haired man on his knees, face bloody and eyes dismayed as he said “Sargeant Barnes?”  Suddenly bile backed up in Bucky’s throat and he barely made it to the bathroom before he was throwing up.

“Bucky!” He tried to wave Tony away but he wouldn’t leave, kneeling beside him with a hand on his back.  When he was done, a wet washcloth appeared and he gratefully put the cool cloth against his face.  “I’m sorry,” Tony said, sliding down the wall to sit next to Bucky on the tile floor.  “I shouldn’t have…I didn’t realize you didn’t remember. I know about the brainwashing, I know it wasn’t you that-”

“Of course I didn’t remember,” Bucky rasped, throat raw. “How could you think that I would – I would get anywhere near you if I had remembered killing your parents? Sit next to you on the couch, get to know you, sleep under your roof, the whole time knowing I murdered your family?”

The silence that followed was a little sheepish, so Bucky pulled the washcloth away from his eyes to look at Tony. “I, um, thought it was maybe atonement?  Like, you realized you were forced to kill my parents and decided to save my life to make up for it?” Tony ran his hands through his hair, looking embarrassed. “When I say it out loud it sounds dumb.  I guess I have been watching too many cheesy movies.”

“No, it’s not dumb.” Bucky realized he was staring at Tony with what was probably lovesick awe so he dragged his gaze down to where his hands where tight around the washcloth.  “It’s…” Sweet. Kind. And 100% something Tony would do.  “Thank you. For not thinking the worst of me.”

“Bucky.”  Tony’s eyes softened. “I know who you are as a person, ok? You may have hid your past, but you couldn’t hide who you are.”

“A wreck?” Bucky said ruefully.

Tony elbowed him in the side.  “A hell of a survivor, for one thing. I was held by the Ten Rings for six months and I’m still really fucked up about it.  You were held by Hydra for almost fifty years, but you…”

“But I…?” Bucky prodded, but Tony shook his head and kept his mouth shut, and Bucky could see that the tips of his ears were red, which, despite everything, sparked a ball of warmth under Bucky’s ribs.

“Let’s get out of the bathroom,” Tony said instead, putting a hand on Bucky’s shoulder to lever himself to his feet. “I still want that coffee.”

Tony made himself at home, digging out coffee cups while Bucky brushed his teeth again, then this time when he sat down Tony took a spot on the couch. “So I saw that you canceled the bodyguard contract,” Tony said as Bucky sat down beside him. “That’s good.”

Bucky’s eyebrow furrowed, a little stung. “Yeah?  Why?”

“Because as long as you were being paid to stick around, I couldn’t ask you out on a date. Workplace harassment, you know.”  Tony smiled at him over the top of his coffee cup.  “But now…Oh my God!” Tony suddenly sat up straight, eyes widening. “Does this mean you will finally let me look at your arm?”

[matrixaffiliate]

Salient

New Story! FFN and AO3

There's something magical about his waitress, and Al is determined to get to the bottom of it. NOT CURSED CHILD COMPLIANT!

This story stems from my story Portent, and like that one this is NOT Cursed Child compliant. You have been warned. You do not need to read Portent first, this story comes before that story and we'll see how far I take it. I'll probably take it at least to where Portent is.

Next chapter goes up on July 20.

Chapter 1

He was going to quit.

He was going to admit defeat and drop his classes and see if Aunt Hermione could find him someplace interesting to work for the rest of his life. Albus Potter was finished trying to make Muggle technology work around magic. It had been a pipe dream and he should have seen it as one. He'd spent a full year and a half in university trying to figure out what he was missing and nothing was working. He was wasting money and his life trying to solve something that was unsolvable and he was an idiot for thinking he was different and could figure it out.

Al shoved the ruined laptop into the duffle bag his dad converted for him, hearing it clatter as it fell to the bottom. They were only two weeks into the semester but he already had a decent amount of work to be done on top of his stupid experimenting. Al stared at the textbooks for a long moment before shaking his head. He holstered his wand beneath his shirt, grabbed his phone, and went for a walk.

It was cold, but Al was grateful for it. The freezing air around him seemed to numb his brain a bit too, giving him a momentary respite from his thoughts. He didn't pay attention to where he was walking, Al just walked. He must have looked like a crazy person as he would randomly decide to turn back and take a turn he had initially decided against. Aunt Hermione called it part of his innovative character, but Al wondered if she was mixing up the words innovative and insane.

He'd been walking for nearly forty-five minutes when his body finally started rebelling with pain. Al ducked into the first available door hoping to warm up just enough before pushing out into the cold to freeze his brain again. But as the door shut, Al felt himself freeze for a completely different reason than the weather.

His eyes had fallen on a woman who took the breath from his lungs faster than the winter air had. She had dark mahogany colored hair pulled back and pinned into a bun. Her eyes were dark, almost black, and she was talking with an accent Al thought he had heard before but nothing like this; and he never wanted to stop hearing it.

"If it's just you, pull up a seat at the counter," the woman smiled at him. "I'll be right with you."

Al finally took a moment to look around. He had apparently walked into a small caff. A voice in his head told him that he would have called it a dive if this lovely woman hadn't been standing in it. There were five small booths and a long counter that ran nearly the length of the narrow building. Al slid onto one of the stools at the counter just as the beautiful waitress had instructed.

She came around the counter from the table that she'd just delivered their order and pulled out a pad and pen.

"What can I get you?"

Al blinked, realizing that he hadn't really thought about the fact that he was in a restaurant and therefore would need to order something to eat or drink.

"Er," he hedged trying to find a menu.

"Look up, green eyes," she chuckled, pointing her pen upward.

Al looked up to find a blackboard with the menu scrawled across it in white chalk. Al picked the first two things that looked good and in his price range.

"Peppermint tea and a spinach omelet, please."

The beauty smiled at him, "Good choices, I'll be back."

Al watched her go, and he felt something a lot like magic.

Well, that kind of magic too but specifically real magic. As the gorgeous woman walked away, Al would have sworn on Merlin's grave that he felt magic in the air. He'd spent the last few years trying to make magic and Muggle technology co-exist, and he'd become somewhat adept at sensing when magic was around him. Al felt magic when his waitress turned and walked back to the kitchen, and felt it fade as she disappeared behind the door.

Al's bad morning of experimenting was now far from his brain. He was completely focused on a new goal, getting this woman's name, and maybe her number if he was lucky.

She appeared through the door with a mug of steaming water and plate with tea bags and milk and sugar. The magic wasn't there, well the real magic wasn't but Al still had stars in his eyes for this stunning creature. So much so that he utilized advice about chatting up a girl he got from Jamie while they were both still at Hogwarts.

"Thanks," he smiled at her as she set down his drink, "I'm sure you get asked all the time," he paused, hoping she would fill in the blank with the obvious question of where she was from before throwing what Jamie called a side pass, "but where do you get your aprons?"

The woman looked at him confused for a moment before a smile took over her face and she laughed, a clear and joyous sound that made Al want to listen to it on his phone on repeat all day.

"I'm from St. John's, Newfoundland. It's a Canadian island."

Al grinned, she didn't give him her name but she told him where she was from. He decided that was progress.

"That's brilliant. I'm Al, by the way."

"Ellie," she offered him her hand before pulling back and huffing. "Sorry, my boss gets mad when I shake hands with customers, says it's a waste of time for me to keep washing my hands."

Al chuckled, "Maybe I could take you up on the handshake after your shift?"

Ellie's face turned a pretty shade of red and she made a motion like she might like to behind her hair if it wasn't pulled back.

"I'll think about it." She smiled at him before turning and heading over to one of the tables.

And the magic was back. Al was almost too distracted by the magic he felt around him to fully appreciate the figurative magic he felt with Ellie. But Al was too much of a geek to not want to solve this puzzle.

He stirred his milk and sugar into his tea while he thought through what he knew. First, Ellie was gorgeous and he definitely wanted to get to know her. Second, every time Ellie had walked away from him, he sensed that there was real magic around her. Third, it was only when her back was turned to him that he sensed it.

Ellie slipped back into the kitchen and Al determined he was just as interested in her walking away from him as he was in her walking toward him. The next time she walked away, he'd pay attention. Maybe she had some magical item?

Maybe, maybe she was a witch?

Al didn't let his brain go down that latter road. He didn't want to set expectations for her. He didn't have a problem dating Muggles. He'd dated a couple of Muggle girls in the year or so he'd been living in the Muggle world full time, granted he never felt close enough to try and figure out how to approach the bombshell of him being a wizard, but lots of people had things they didn't immediately share in a new relationship, and sometimes a relationship never developed to a point for those things to come up. He just had a bit of a huge secret along with the little things like a Star Wars obsession.

The prospect of dating a witch was sort of exciting seeing as he hadn't dated a witch since Hogwarts, let alone a witch who was living in the Muggle world as he was. That was too much to hope for.

He was pulled from his thoughts when the door to the kitchen opened and Ellie walked out with a tray of food. She delivered Al's plate last along with a shy smile.

"I work Tuesdays and Thursdays from open to close," she said quietly while wiping down a section of the counter. Al noticed that it didn't need to be cleaned, which gave him a bit of a smug feeling in his chest.

"The whole day?"

Ellie's cheeks flushed but she smiled, "This place is open from six till two, and wait staff shows up at half five and stays till usually three to clean up."

Al leaned closer to her over the counter. "Well, that's very good news because I don't have class on either of those days until after lunch."

Ellie busied herself behind the counter with filing napkin holders. "Are you at uni here too?"

Al nodded as he cut into his omelet. "What are you studying?"

"Art," Ellie sighed happily. "What about you?"

"Information Technology, Computer Science, and a minor in Computer Engineering." Al shoved a bite of omelet into his mouth and was pleasantly surprised at how good it was. He was also surprised that Ellie didn't immediately freak out at his degree choices. Even the professors called him crazy.

"There's something about you," she set the napkin holder down, "and I can't place my finger on it, but there's something about you that's not like most blokes who come in here."

Al held her gaze, forcing his eyes not to drop to her lips because, Merlin, this woman was going to be the death of him and he'd known her for less than thirty minutes.

"There's something magical about you too."

She blushed and Al wondered if he'd dropped enough of a hint. How does one go about asking if another is a witch?

The order bell rang and Ellie started before winking at Al and walking back toward the kitchen.

Al focused on the magic that radiated from her retreating form, trying to sense what it was. The magic was focused around her head, he realized, but there was nothing out of the ordinary about her head. Her dark hair was twisted up into a bun and...

He just caught sight of it as she walked behind the door, a long white hair pin stick. Whatever that was, it wasn't Muggle-made.

And a part of Al's brain wanted it to be a wand.

Everything about how it felt made Al believe it was a wand. It was shorter than his, probably nine inches, but while his wand looked like a stick, the pin in Ellie's hair looked to be a piece of artwork. It wasn't quite white, more of an ivory color, and Al thought he saw what looked like designs carved into it.

It was beautiful.

Al finished his omelet, watching the kitchen door for Ellie to reappear, though he had no idea what he was going to say.

Before that little technicality could come to mind, Ellie appeared with his bill.

"So, if you're ever in the market for an omelet, you should come back." She didn't look at him as she busied herself with straightening the salt and pepper shakers.

"I'm a big fan of omelets," Al handed her his card. As his brain was about to kick him for such a pathetic comment, Ellie turned around to the cash register and Al got a full view of what he thought of now as her magical hairpin.

It was definitely magical, and he'd been right that there were designs carved into it. They looked a little bit like runes, but nothing like what he'd studied at Hogwarts. It was striking in her dark hair and Al briefly was tempted to ask if he could hold it. But Ellie turned around with his card and receipt.

"Then I guess I'll see you the next time you want another omelet." As she handed back his card, her fingers brushed against his and Al resisted the urge to grab her hand.

"Brilliant," was all Al managed to say before Ellie pulled away and Al was left wishing that it wasn't quite so cold out. He was no longer interested in numbing his brain. He was interested in keeping it functioning so he could figure out how to ask Ellie out on a date and maybe find out if she was a witch.

[bdo-pilarrp]

The Arrival, Pt.1

Snow had come with the chill of winter, the land once a lush green forest now blanketed with a pristine blanket of pure, glimmering white. Crystalline snowflakes drifted lazily down from the heavens shrouded in thick clouds which dimmed the warm glow of the sun, the land still and peaceful, almost picturesque in its dream-like state. The only disturbance was the soft crunch of snow under light feet as a figure clad in a charcoal grey cloak trudged forward down the path that lay hidden beneath the snow, the hood pulled up to keep the falling flakes from their visage. 

Wispy puffs of steam drifted upon the cold air from the figure's breaths, the dark fur lining the hood frosted from snowfall concealing the figure's features from view, the only other detail a large sword of elegant elvish design strapped to their back. The lone figure seemed to be on a mission, their destination a mystery to any onlooker but the strides made were surly with purpose as they made their way through the still surroundings, seeming frozen in time with the fall of the season's first heavy flurry.

Another figure, a lone elven male stood in the same path rummaging through one of his smaller bags taking out a few pieces of meat.  The tall figure kneeled down draped in his white wolf- fur cloak. "Come here you two.", he called to his two wolves who eagerly rushed over for their snack.  He gave each a playful rub before looking up at his surroundings. His ice blue eyes noticing his partner approaching on the path in the distance. "Are you ready to get out of this place?", he questioned as the figure got closer. "We have a lead in Calpheon."

Hands clad in silver gauntlets that gleamed in the radiance of the pristine white that surrounded them rose to draw back the hood, seafoam green eyes meeting frosty blue, cascading layers of hair, dark at the roots fading to silvery white at the tips, free to settle about her shoulders. She cocked a small grin at her companion, watching the wolves as they eagerly set to their treats. "More than ready. My legs need a good stretch and it's gotten rather boring around here as of late."

"Good to hear. Let's get moving then. Hopefully, we'll be able to escape some of this cold while we're at it.", the elf said with confidence; pushing some of his blonde locks aside as they blew in his face from the frosty winds.  He stood up readjusting his large bow strapped across his body.  Before grabbing his nearby bag and turning to continue down the path with his new companion. "We'll be traveling to the land of humans some Im sure you'll get more than your share of fun. They can't keep peace for two seconds.", he commented as they moved on.

Pilar chuckled, a gleam in her green eyes hinting that she was perhaps more than hoping for such a prospect. She adjusted her pack beneath her cloak, more than ready to set off on their way, a determined grin on her lips. "Oh, I'm certain of it. Humans are petty things, always squabbling and complaining. They do make a tasty Shepard's Pie, though." she mused. A gust of brisk air whipped past them and Pilar drew her hood up once again, the fur lining kissed with small flakes of freshly fallen snow. "It will be nice to be out on the open road again. I've missed this. My sword has been idle for too long." She joined Alboin and offered the pair of wolves a fond scritch behind the ears.

Alboin laughs a bit, "Why is it that I can sense you ready to make trouble? Well, I'm sure we'll encounter some bandits along the way.", he asked as he takes a look at his map and compass.  "A lovely elven female out on the open roads is like nineshark bait to them.", he stated in amusement.  "Alright, we head north from here. ", he mentioned putting the items away, his two wolves quickly following along as they see him move on.

Pilar easily keeps pace alongside her companion, her grin innocent. Ish. "I have no idea what you mean." she lied playfully. "But any chance I get to put some filth into their rightful place sounds like a good time to me." She huffed lightly, a puff of steam from her breath on the cold air escaping as she did so, "Humans. Always picking on those who they are incapable of understanding." The gentle rain of snowflakes soon ceased, the snowfall easing away for the time being as they trudged onwards, their light-footedness keeping them from sinking into the packed snow that coated the land. All was quiet, not even bird song greeted their ears, not a soul of a creature stirred the underbrush. It was almost like walking through a dream state but the two elves knew better. The land was simply at rest, soaking in the calm of the moment.

"That lack of understanding anything is what keeps their race from achieving more and being a pain in the butt for the rest of us." "Though in this case, I don't think it's a lack of understanding as much as it's a bunch of humans looking to defile our kind.  Having laid with one of us is like an accomplishment or experience of some kind.  Can't say I feel that way about the roles being reversed.",Alboin sighed.  "No matter.  Once all this business with the Kamasylvia tree and our traveling princess is solved we can all go back to our seperate domains.", the male elf dreamed.   "The border to Trent shouldn't be too far from here.  Then we'll figure out how to further proceed to Calpheon."

Pilar hummed in amusement, nodding as she crinkled her faintly freckled nose. "I honestly do not see the appeal of bedding a human. They smell, they are filthy, they are ignorant, and they have no stamina what so ever." she cringed slightly, "The thought of one sweating all over me while being rut upon is rather foul indeed." She offered a small shrug, " I do not see what the Princess finds so fetching about them. You would think someone of her impeccable breeding would prefer more intellectual and pleasant company."

"It's not them; just him.... She was most likely tricked by that beast of a man.  Or some other underhanded methods no doubt; possibly tainted human booze!", he contemplated aloud to her as they walked.  "300 years and not one of the more noble elves could have her virginity, and this human comes along and steals her most sacred treasure.  I'll have none of this insult from a human any further.",Alboin breathed in an icy cold breathe calming himself.  "We will find her and once she sees me she'll happily return home with us; her sister as well.

Pilar kept her bemused laugh well to herself, letting slip a hum of agreement instead. She knew how easily her companion could get so riled up at such a topic and although it was almost always entertaining, she felt it was best if he saved it for later. "The Princess will come along one way or another, Alboin, do not concern yourself about that. Her home beckons and she has responsibilities to see to as is her given right by birth. She has been away from home for too long."

"Yes and hopefully by then will have come to her senses and she will be over this getting along with the other races nonsense." Alboin huffed. "We have our own issues to deal with." , he commented as the pair crunched their way through the snow covered lands.  The wolves eagerly keeping pace beside him; their snow white coats blinding them into the surroundings.  "What do you plan to do once we head back home?  It doesn't seem you'd be too pleased to be stuck there again.", the elven male asked Pilar.

Green eyes cast skyward in thought. She honestly hadn't thought that far ahead. "You know... I haven't even considered that yet," she replied honestly. "We both know my mother is insistent on me marrying- which isn't going to happen. I'm in my prime! Why should I get bogged down with marriage? And children would be a certain death sentence to my freedom." she frowned, brows knitting together in a pointed scowl. "All because I'm her only daughter and she wants grandchildren. Disgusting little noisemakers. If she wants more little ones running around why not pay a Piku or something to do it. Well... I mean I tried it already but for some reason, she was less than amused at the idea of me paying the creature to follow her around and annoy her. A child would do the same thing!" She threw her hands up in the air, frustrated. "I will never understand that woman's demands for the life of me. As a Royal Guard herself, you would think she would be happy I followed in her footsteps! Just because I wasn't born a son she changed her mind. Her problem, not mine by the way." she huffed, glowering at the snow that coated the path they walked.

"This isn't meant as an insult, but I can't quite picture you being a housewife. ", he commented to her.  "Some people are just made for certain things.  Some belong on a battlefield, some in books and scrolls, some in gardens and others at home.", Alboin further remarked.  "Perhaps she wants to make up for you being the only child by having another child through you.", the elf commented with a shrug.  "Meh, it's hard to tell what some people think sometimes.".  Alboin's ice blue eyes scanned the distance.  "I can see the border gates up head from here."

Pilar huffed once again, sending another puff of steam drifting through parted lips. A wind had picked up and the snow was beginning to grow harder on the land, packed from layers of snowfall freezing over and the path now churned up with slush and mud from the passing of horse drawn wagons as the gates came into view. "Being a housewife would be the death of me." she grumped. As they moved closer along the path, avoiding the muck and icy patches, Pilar's seafoam gaze roved their surroundings, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious or potentially threatening. The closer they drew, the more they could hear the folk of Trent going about their business, even in the frigid weather, the sound of saws and hammers at work as loggers brought in their loads from the surrounding woodland.

"We should probably get some horses .  It's quite the distance from Trent to Calpheon when considering the snow.",Alboin suggested. "Not to mention that human is possibly partaking of our princess as we speak.  We can't waste too much time getting there.", he added as they walked through the gates of the small labor town.

Pilar nodded as they passed through the gates, making a bee-line for the stables, her gauntlet clad hand resting casually upon the hilt of the sword she had at her hip, her stride confident and imposing as she marched up to the Stable Master first. She halted just in front of the Demi Beast, teal eyes piercing as she bluntly addressed him, "We require two of the finest horses you have for sale." She placed a hand upon her hip, adding, "I have coin."

Alboin soon followed, "My friend here may have been a bit forward with you, but she is correct.", Alboin gave a charming smile and whispered to Pilar. "Sometimes you have to use finesse with these locals or they'll make things harder for you.", he then turned back to the Stable Master with his smile.  " We need them as soon as possible.  We have important business in Calpheon and can't afford to waste a moment. You will be paid well for them and us elves will remember your aid in our task.". he then showed the demi beast a nice pouch of silver.

Pilar humphed, crossing her armored arms as she stared levelly at the Stable Master, long elven ears perked up expectantly, the left one flicking out of annoyance. She could never understand her charge's need for charm and diplomacy in regards to those of unimportance but she humored him all the same, even if she did feel it was a waste of time. She was always more action than words. Her seafoam gaze shifted to the row of stalls, regarding the mounts available and took a keen interest in a jet black stallion that pawed angrily at the ground, snorting. He was a magnificent creature, spirited and full of fire. A kindred spirit.

"Hmmm...", Alboin noticed his companions gaze.  "You know what my friend here will take that black one there.  There's no need to look further in her case.", the elven male called out to the stable master while pointing at the aggressive black horse. " I on the other require something  with a bit of flair; something that demands the attention of a nobleman such as myself.", his eyes scanned the horses in the stalls and those grazing in the pin.  That's where he saw her; the most elegant horse he's laid eyes upon with it's long flowing white mane and long silky tail.  "Yes, that one. A creature that spectacular deserves to be with someone as equally magnificent as myself.", Alboin smiled as he pictured himself riding upon the horse in the most heroic pose one could imagine.

Pilar rolled her eyes at the rather sissy choice in steed her companion picked but realized it was to be expected. Keeping all that sparkling white, mane and tail clean was going to be a chore for sure. She tossed Alboin a playful smirk, lofting a brow, "Quite the pretty pony, my Lord. Good luck keeping her spotless in the muck." she snickered. She moved to the stall that held captive her new steed, the large stallion tossing his head as she neared, flaring his nostrils. His coat was like polished onyx, mane cropped short like a mohawk to keep it out of the way, tail equally docked, his form muscular and his legs strong. He was a war horse, she knew it instantly. He would serve her well. "Keelios." she nodded as the name came to her and found it suited him fine. She spoke to him in elvish under her breath and found her voice soothed the beast for the moment. "I'll take him." she agreed at length.

"My tall elegant beast will be just fine. Besides, that's what the stable keeps are for.", he smirked in thought. "The horse's job and mine are to look good riding into battle and put down the enemy in style while we do it.", he stated with a hint for arrogance when it came to his skills. "Just worry more about keeping your monster under control.  I think it might kidnap you given the chance.", Alboin mentions as he looks at the horse with suspicion.

Pilar merely grinned, daring to open the stall door to take Keelios by the bridle and guide him out. He resisted at first but his eagerness to be out of the cramped confines of the stall, far too small for a horse of his size, soon overcame his initial distrust and he stepped out onto the road with Pilar leading him, heavy hooves leaving deep impressions in the frosted over mud of the street. "He's magnificent." she breathed in awe, studying him in the sunlight. Keelios seemed overly anxious to stretch his legs, shifting from side to side impatiently as a Shai approached, lugging a saddle far bigger than he for her new mount. At the sight of it, the horse tossed his head, pawing the mud once again to caution the little creature from coming closer, which worked as he halted, unsure. Pilar held firm her grip on the stallion's bridal, not letting him have an inch. She was equally stubborn with just as much fire in her spirit. They were well matched. "Leave the saddle, small one. I'll handle it."

Opposite of Pilar was Alboin all too eager to get his new steed saddled, "Yes get that saddle on my horse! ", he commented as they allowed it out of the pin area.  It was well behaved trotting its way out and not going much further as it stopped; next to the stable handlers clearly used to this routine.  Alboin watched the horses stride. "Hmm, she seems to possibly be of one of the speedier breeds.", he commented, half in thought.  "The stable master nodded to Alboin in that his assumption was correct.  "You have a good eye." the demi beast responded to Alboin.  A chilly winter breeze then came through blowing the horses long mane.  Alboin looked on in awe, "Yes I shall name her Sylvia after our awe inspiring tree and goddess.", he declared and nodded in self-approval.

Meanwhile, the armored she-elf wrangled her enthusiastic, if not bull-headed, mount into submission and saddled him before swinging herself up into the leather seat with protests from the other stable hands and the caution that the stallion disliked riders. The moment her weight fell onto his back, Keelios instantly tried to throw her but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of dismounting her. With a grin, she let him work it all out of his system, his large hooves stirring up mud as he bucked and spun in a sudden, wild frenzy, trying to dislodge her. But this wasn't her first rodeo sort to speak and she knew just what to do to show him she was boss, not the other way around. She held fast, reins tight as she forced him forward into open space and away from possible casualties, seizing control as he tried to bolt, unsuccessfully, and when that failed, he attempted to roll on her. Experience was in her favor as she moved with him, gripping tight with her legs and flattening her body against his, coming up uninjured if a little dirty back in the saddle at a full sit once he was up, seemingly spent, at last, his new rider victorious, leaving onlookers slack jawed in awe and respect. She hmphed triumphantly and stroked Keelios' neck, muscles quivering with a low whinny. "Well fought, Keel. Never let the fire die in you."

Alboin was finally upon his mount. His two massive white wolves following close by their elven pack leader.  Someone shorter than him could possibly use one as a mount.  Their bushy snow covered tails wagged eagerly as they looked up at the elf on his new horse.  Alboin took off his bow a moment to readjust its position to ensure that the edges wouldn't poke his horse by accident.  He watched on as Pilar fought with her horse until it finally came to its conclusion.  She was still the same wild girl that he always remembered.   The elf tossed his wolves a snack making sure they had fuel for the run they would make soon once Pilar finally seemed to be settled with the stallion.  "At least he didn't kidnap you!", the man called over to Pilar with a grin.

A chortle was her response, offering the black stallion another fond pat to the neck which was rewarded with a harsh snort and a hoof stomp. She turned her attention to the dumbstruck stablemaster and tossed him a coin purse for his troubles. "Lead the way." she beckoned for Alboin to lead on, the pair of them now fully set for the road ahead of them. Pilar slipped her pack onto Keelios' back like a saddle bag and let her cloak cover it, replacing her fur trimmed hood back up to shield her skin from the biting cold, her breath still visible on the air. The further into Calpheon territory they go the warmer it would get.

"We appreciate your timely assistance," Alboin spoke to the Stable Master handing him his own pouch of silver as well. Before setting his horse into motion toward the town gate that would lead them to Calpheon.  The wolves followed close by one at each side of Alboin as the horse picked up pace. The snow was still a bit heavy outside the town gate since it wasn't cleared from the path as it was in the town.  Regardless it was still faster than either of them would be moving on foot. "Finally, we can make some decent progress.  Once we hit warmer territory we should be able to run at full speed."

Pilar nodded, nudging Keelios forward which wasn't without his stubborn hesitation. "Lets be off then, I'm tired of the cold." Together, they set off down the road leading from Trent, hooves churning up mud and slush from snow in their wake as they settled into a gallop along the road that took them through the woodlands of towering pines and firs. The smell of evergreens were on the air, as invigorating as the nip of the chilled air against their faces as they made for Calpheon. "So what's the plan, Alboin?" she called to her companion, curious as to what his chosen plan of action would be, if he even had one.

"I think a wise choice would be to find a place to stay once we get there. " Alboin shouted back to Pilar.  "I do not plan on sleeping in the cold wilds tonight.  We may know the town she's in but we have no idea where exactly, or if the person mistook her for another elf.  I doubt she'd be wearing her royal clothing if she's staying undercover.", said the elf as he explained his reasoning around the choice.  His cloak, hair and the horse's mane all flowing majestically in the wind as they rode.  The two wolves easily keeping pacing thanks to wolves being great endurance runners capable of running miles before needing a rest.

A firm nod signaled her affirmation of his plan, "Agreed! We will need to approach the Princess cautiously less we spook her away. It would be wise indeed to gather more intel whilst we recoup and a bed would be a welcome reprieve after our long journey." Keelios easily kept pace with Sylvia, his powerful strides keeping him alongside the more lithe of the two steeds. Ivory and ebony streaked down the road leading north to Calpheon with a rhythmic thunder of hooves.

"Exactly, it's as you say.  This is the closest info we've had on her location in a while.", Alboin said over the sound of hooves meeting forest ground. "If she flees we have to start all over again.", as they traveled he noticed the snow getting thinner; noting them passing into warmer territory.  "And it seems we've finally gotten closer to some better weather as well!", Alboin remarked pleased at the prospect of not freezing endless day and night.

Pilar grinned, raising a hand to draw her hood back from her face, long wavy lengths of her ombre grey hair now bellowing out behind her along with her cloak, finally free from the confines of her hood. The crisp bitter cold had faded and the sun seemed brighter, warmer as the clouds became thinner. Although still chill from winter's embrace, it was not as cold in the region of Calpheon, the snow mostly melted save for the denser patches that could be seen scattered about the forest floor, the path now damp from the melt but no where near as muddy as the roads of Trent were. "We're making good time!"

"Yes, we should make it there before the sun goes down." , the elf stated as they raced down the path ever closer to there destination.  But just as everything seemed to be going smoothly Alboin noticed some figures in the distance beginning to block the path.  "Looks like you get your wish Pilar.", Alboin called out to her when he realized the figures blocking the road was a group bandits and thieves.  He slowed his horse down preparing to stop it a safe distance out of harms way.

A devilish grin lights up her face as she sees the group foolishly attempting to bar their path. She allowed Keelios to continue several paces past Sylvia to stop just short of the bandits, the intimidating stallion rearing up and lashing out with hooves with a whinny before coming down hard, large hooves leaving imprints in the dirt of the road. Pilar regarded the group cooly, "Step aside."

"Uuuh sure miss...just as soon as ya hand over all your silver, dos nice horses...", one of the bandits gestured. "...and possibly yourself as well.", one of the other ones suggested in a creepy manner; his comrades cheering in agreeing and amusement .  "Now how about you hop off that horse like  two good little elves so we don't have to get too rough with ya?"

Pilar flashed her most innocent of smiles, casually inching Keelios closer to the ring leader, inch bye inconspicuous inch. "Oh, but rough is so much more fun." Before the man could bat an eye, Pilar moved like lightning, rearing back and striking out with a powerful kick, her boot heel connecting ruthlessly with the man's jaw, an audible crunch of teeth and bone heard before vaulting off the saddle backwards and falling into a battlestance, ready for the next attacker with a wild grin on her face.

Alboin dismounted his horse but saw no need to get directly in the fight knowing Pilar could handle herself and wanted to have some fun.  Instead, he drew his great bow and  covered her from a distance watching her back. "Storm, Frost go play!", his two wolves went from passive to lethal in an instant; covering ground faster than the men could react before being pounced upon and attacked viciously by the large animals.

Keelios had reared up and struck out with a foreleg, catching another bandit in the chest and sending him reeling as the wolves leapt into the fray, Pilar streaking in like lightning aiming a strike to another bandit's throat, dropping him and whirling around to trip up the second with a leg sweep. She didn't draw her weapon just yet, after all, they were only humans standing in the way and there would be no sport in simply cutting them down for their stupidity. Unless one drew on her first, her sword would remain sheathed. A palm strike to another bandit's nose sent him staggering and Pilar leapfrogged over him to catch another by the wrist, spinning to throw him over a shoulder with a splintering snap of his wrist bone, sending him to the dirt with a heavy thud as he landed unpleasantly on his back squealing in pain.

"Satisfied now?", Alboin asked Pilar in amusement.  He whistled for Frost and Storm to return, and the two wolves came jogging back over to him;  bushy tails happily wagging as they came over to give Alboin licks.  He gave them both treats and scratched their fluffy white necks as he watched Pilar making sure no one snuck up on her.

Pilar huffed, standing with her hands akimbo, surveying her handiwork with a disappointed scowl, "Too easy. They always make it too easy!" she complained, stepping over a prone figure groaning miserably in the mud. She collected Keelios' reins and returned to Alboin's side, looking bored all over again. "Well, at the very least I got a little bit of exercise in, I guess." She shrugged but he couldn't miss the pout on her face. She was hoping for a challenge and as usual, she was disappointed. "Waste of time. We should have just plowed through them." She swung back up in her saddle and turned Keelios about, "That was...what- two? Three?- minutes of daylight we won't get back."

"I almost doubt any battle would satisfy your thirst.",  Alboin laughed as he was about to saddle up onto Sylvia again.  He stopped a moment in thought and instead walked over to the bandits.  He stepped over the leader and took the pouch of silver he had stolen from others that rode along this path earlier that day.  Alboin then tossed the pouch to Pilar.  "That is payment for wasting the ladies time.", he commented before heading back to his horse to actually saddle up this time.  "Also let that be a reminder of how it feels to be beaten and have your money taken from you the next time you try a stunt like this, filth." , Alboin added as his horse and wolves walked by the group of laid out thieves."Someone move this trash out of the road!", Alboin called out to no one in particular. "How are decent folk expected to ride and travel in such conditions."

Pilar grinned at her companion, pocketing the coin pouch after deftly snatching it out of the air as it was tossed her way. "Hey, a girl can hope!" she chirruped jokingly. She brought Keelios up alongside Sylvia and nodded to the Archer with a dip of her chin, "Let's get going, no point wasting any more time on these morons." With a click of her tongue and a flick of the reins, she urged the massive stallion forward into another trot, soon accelerating into a gallop as they resumed their journey towards Calpheon city.

"Yes, thankfully they didn't waste too much of our time.  After being out in this cold weather nothing would be more welcome than a nice warm bath.", he replied to Pilar as the rode off; leaving the injured criminals behind scattered on the road in varying degrees of pain.  "At least they were kind enough to give us some money back for the horses we bought", Alboin smirked in delight.  The elf noticed them quickly approaching a river up head and bridge that would allow them safe crossing.  "We must be getting closer now.  This area is very familiar.", he stated, eager to end his journey for the time being.

As they rode on towards their destination, Keelios and Sylvia kept up their pace with ease, hardly breathing hard, proof of the quality of their breeding in their endurance. The sound of their hooves hitting dirt with a muted thunk soon shifted into a rhythmic clack as the metal shoes struck stone of the bridge, drawing them closer towards their destination, evident by the increase in the presence of civilians of the city appearing on or along the road, some farming, some driving wagons, some simply strolling. "We should hit the gates any moment now!"

After a few more minutes they saw it, the southern entrance to Calpheon near the noble district and large cathedral.  As they arrived in front of the stable Alboin got off his horse.  "Take good care of her and make sure she's nice and clean.", the elven man addressed the stable workers.  "She's worth the silver spent on her and I'd like to keep it that way."  Alboin looked over awaiting Pilar who sat upon her massive black horse.

The Dark Knight blew a sigh of relief as they came up to the stables in a casual trot, able to feel the subtle shift in climate temperature with her acute elvish senses. It was a much-needed reprieve from the cold they just came from, the chill here in Calpheon far more bearable by far. She dismounted, landing lightly on her feet as another stable hand came out to collect her steed. Keelios reared up, whinnying in protest at strangers handling his reins, his sheer bulk and aggressive power forcing the stable hands to retreat, surprised and afraid. Pilar reined him in, calming him with some softly spoken words in elvish, her hands smoothing down his muzzle and once he appeared soothed, she beckoned the timid stable workers over, "Do not be afraid, horses can sense fear." She scolded, handing the reins over to a man that dared to come closer than the others, his expression wary, "Take good care of him. If you do not, I will know." She leveled a pointed look at all of them, one that showed she was deadly serious to which the stable hand nodded feverishly, "Y-yes'm!"

"Alright, lets go find our selves a good place to stay.  It seems we are in the better part of town so this is a good place to start.", Alboin mentioned to his friend.   "If we don't find a nice Inn we may as well just rent a place and make it worthy of us.", he then suggested upon further thought as the headed through the gates and into town.

Pilar nodded and followed Alboin, trusting him to lead the way. They passed numerous folk that crowded the streets of Calpheon, various races of all shapes, sizes, and genders going about their lives pedaling their wares or running errands. The diversity was surprising  as they wove their way through the crowds, avoiding merchants attempting to get their attention and shady folk who would more than likely attempt to pick their pockets. "Have a place in mind?" she implored, looking to Alboin as they walked side by side, garnering many stares both curious and appreciative in their direction as they went.

"Unfortunately, no.  But we are in the better part of town so the inn on this side is our only option unless we get a place of our own. " the elven man explained his reasoning to Pilar.  "We will take a look at it and see if it meets your standards.  If you can tolerate staying in it for a night we'll use it and find a better place for us early tomorrow.", he spoke as they walked.  Alboin's eyes scanning the buildings looking for the sign above one of them that shows that it's an Inn.

Pilar shrugged absently as they walked, spotting the Inn looming ahead as they rounded a corner, "If it is suitable for you than it is for me." she reassured. As they neared, the sound of the tavern life began to increase, obnoxious laughter, drunken shouts, and off key singing mixed with the clank of mugs and other dishes and from what she could see through the fogged up windows, it was pretty crowded. Dutifully, Pilar moved ahead of Alboin protectively, opening the door first once close enough, her free hand on the hilt of her dagger, leading the way inside. The place reeked of booze, sweat, cheap perfume, cigarettes, and food. A cook prepared meals at a small kitchenette behind the bar where the barkeep hustled out drinks along the counter, the barmaids working double time with their trays overfilled and overflowing with orders they hurried out to crowded tables. Some folk were playing darts, some cards, others partaking in some form of merriment and even one or two were out cold in their seats. The upper floor, Pilar could spot a player or two, tempting the unsuspecting from their coin in exchange for carnal pleasures, a signaler helping a companion cheat at cards at a table below, and a few just observing the crowd from a higher and less crowded vantage point. At the moment, there seemed no immediate danger but even so, Pilar stuck close to Alboin's side like a protective watchdog as he sought out the innkeeper.

Alboin sighed, "I have a feeling this is already going to be a big fat NO.  But I'll humor it anyway, maybe Ill get the rarest of surprises." His blue eyes moved to Pilar who was protectively walking ahead of him.  She had always been that way and even if it was her duty he never fully understood it, but given some thought, he'd do the same for her.  This is his oldest and possibly only real friend after all.  "Pilar I think that may be him over there.", the elf pointed toward the man spoke some words to the bartender that they couldn't hear over the crowd but he then exited from behind the bar to continue on to whatever his next ask was.  Not just anyone is allowed behind a bar of an establishment, so Alboin had a good hunch about this.

"I honestly would not be surprised if this was the best they had to offer," she commented dryly. It was certainly a far shot from the beautiful inns of Grana with their refined chefs, polished floors, glimmering walls, and soothing harp music. It was almost laughable how drastically different the two cultures were.  Sad, but laughable. She just hoped the beds were at least clean otherwise they would be better off sleeping outside. As Alboin pointed out the man that exited from behind the bar, Pilar nodded, catching sight of the man. She waited for Alboin to take lead, once more knowing her weakness in diplomacy, following her companion through the crowded room. She noted they got more than a few curious stares, some lewder than others, but she was hardly bothered by them. She could take on every single person in the bar and hardly break a sweat with their poor state. Still, she hovered close, a hand on her dagger just in case as Alboin caught up with the Innkeeper.

"Excuse me.", Alboin put on his best face as he approached the man.  "Is this your inn and tavern?", he then asked.  The man turned to  see who was asking."Yeah, this is my place...what can I do for you?  If its a drink the barkeep over there can help you.", the innkeeper gestured.  "No, no me and my friend here were looking to get a room for the night.  The names Alboin by the way sorry for the late introduction.", Alboin explained after properly greeting the man.  "The names Darren. And yeah...I think we can get a room for you, follow me.", the innkeeper waved an arm for them to follow as he leads them out of the bar area and through the door into the inn portion of the building. The man walked them upstairs and grabbed the ring of keys from his hip as they reached an empty room; unlocking it for the pair.  As the door squeaked open it revealed a rather average room.  Not the cleanest but not utterly filthy either.  Alboin tried to contain his disgust and tried another approach.  

"Hmmm, surely you have another room?", Alboin pulled the man aside a little. "I don't want to disappoint my date tonight Darren.  Look at her.  Is that the kind of elven beauty you'd want to disappoint on a special night?" , gave the man a charming smirk.  Darren looked past Alboin's shoulder at Pilar; checking her from head to toe.  He gave a nod of approval and suck of his teeth in thought as if trying to remove a piece of food from between them. "Look I'll tell you what.  If you've got the silver I've got a room I usually only reserve for special VIP diplomats that show up here in town.", he stated as he looked back to Alboin who gave him a nod. "Come on.", the innkeeper leads them to the top floor. "On this floor, there are only 2 rooms. Mine and the special one I told you of."  The man then went to one of the two special keys on his rings and opened the door once they walked over to it.  Upon opening the door one could tell exactly what he meant.  The room was decked out in fancy furniture, a hot tub, the finest of flooring, sheets, drapes.  "Yes, this one will definitely do.", Alboin spoke up deeming the room fit enough for Pilar and himself.  The elven male paid the man well for his trouble and was given the key.  "Alright, you two uhhh...enjoy your special night.", the innkeeper said with a smile and a wink before heading back downstairs.

[cyborgmagpie]

I dream of vivid Crystals

". . . everyone has their own dreamscape, each dreamscape with its own terrain, I'm sure you all know the terrain of your own dreamscape. Mine for example is a field of wheat and barley. Now, ones dreamscape always has a link, or a doorway, that leads through into terrain that is not our own. This, as I'm sure you all know, is the dreamscape of your soulmate. . ."

Anti yawned as the professor that the school had brought in droned on about dreamscapes and dreamscape curtsey such as not wondering into a soulmates scape without permission, or not looking into the hidden parts of others dreamscapes. Then the professor went on about how not all dreamscapes were vast open spaces.

It was all common knowledge, ask anyone and they'd be able to tell you it, but for some reason, the school had felt the need for this lecture anyway.

He zoned back in just around the end where the lecturer was summarizing some stuff.

". . . and so it is possible to visit a dreamscape that isn't yours but it often takes both emotional and physical closeness. Now, how about a quiz, turn over the sheets on your desk."

Half of the class, including Anti, internally and collectively groaned. Ant flipped over the sheet and started filling out answers.

'When you sleep will you always end up in your dreamscape?'

'No.'

'If not in their dreamscape whilst sleeping, where can people be?'

'Nightmares, other peoples dreamscapes.'

'Are soulmates able to enter eachothers dreamscapes if far away?'

'Yes.'

He sighed. Filling out the finishing few before the lecturer started asking for answers.

"If not in their dreamscapes, where can people be?"

A girl who Anti had never taken time to acknowledge stuck her hand up, "In an actual dream, or away visiting other peoples dreamscapes."

Anti zoned out until the bell rang, then he packed up and headed for the cafeteria.

---

"Honestly, its stupid, the automatic assumption that soul mate means lover, it can be for friend too, I mean, how must the aromatic people feel."

Anti nodded along to Chase, at least someone had some passion about the lecture.

"Its stupid, me and Marvin are soul mates but I'm fed up with being asked if we'll hook up or anything. Just because Stacy broke up with me."

Anti squeezed Marvin's hand under the table, giving him a sympathetic look, before looking back at Chase, "Dude, there's no need to flip your cap, she was toxic and you know it, okay?"

"Yeah, you've said, but my point was that Marv and I aren't destined for some beautiful wedding or whatever."

Anti squeezed Marvin's hand again, looking around, "Hey, uh, Chase, Bings waving you over."

"Is he? Probably for the skate park later, see you guys." And with that, he got up and went over to the other, Anti waited a moment before leading Marvin to some less crowded space of the school, before hugging the boy just as he broke down.

"I can't take this much longer." Anti ran his hair through Marvin's hair in response, admittedly Marvin's hair had gotten a little curly, but the long curls suited him.

"I get what Chase is saying, but it hurts." His voice sounded so raw and broken, and Anti just rocked them both from side to side.

"Its okay Marv, he doesn't know, and he would never want to hurt you."

"That's what hurts. He's so fixed and I don't have a chance in hell and it tears me up inside."

"Because you love him."

Marvin nods and continues to cling to Anti like a lifeline, no longer sobbing but his throat still felt tight and his eyes were still streaming. "When your ready to go, tell me, I have tissues in my rucksack."

"Thanks. . . Anti." Marvin took a moment before stepping back, giving Anti space to take his rucksack off and offer him the tissues. Anti waited as Marvin sorted himself out.

"Hey, after school do you wanna come over and play video games or something?"

"Your foster carers won't mind?"

"No, Doc's just glad I have friends."

"And the uhh-"

"Don't worry, Isaac isn't as scary as you think, he's fine."

"He's blind yet he knows when we're there."

"Because he can hear us talking and breathing Marv, neither of my carers are scary, okay?"

Marvin nodded, "yeah, I'll see you later."

---

The rest of the day had passed, well, more dragged on, Anti had sent Doc a message so that he knew Marvin was coming over. He didn't expect a reply since he was probably in clinic. At the end of the day he hung around the gates and waited for Marvin. Upon spotting the taller lad he waived. Marvin's face lit up when he spotted Anti and he made his way over.

"Your mum knows you're going home with me over doesn't she?"

Marvin nodded as they started to walk side by side towards where Anti lived, "Home, huh? You've really settled in with these carers haven't you?"

Anti rolled his eyes, not answering the question directly, but Marvin could tell he'd hit the nail on the head. He smiled a little.

"Its nothing to be ashamed of, you don't need to keep your tough demeanour up with me buddy, come on, we've worn skirts together."

"Because Chase wanted to buy one for Stacy."

"We looked better in skirts than she would." Marvin grinned, anti smiled, glad Marvin had overlooked the subject of Stacy in favour of having fun. He opened the gate for Marv, although they could just step over it, it was waist high, but this was less odd. They walled up to the front door and Anti walked in.

"Don't you lock the front door?"

"Doc said we can if we want, but he doesn't tend to unless its night or the house is empty."

"Odd."

"Yeah." They dropped their rucksacks in the hallway, Anti peaked into the dining room, smiling at the sight of a stripped shirt and books. "Hey Robster."

"Hi Ati."

"Doing homework buddy?" Anti walked over and peaked over his shoulder whilst Marvin stood in the doorframe. "Maths, ouch. Fassbinder isn't feelin nice huh?"

Robbie gave a humm and nodded in agreement, "Pops help once I'm stumped."

Anti sighed, "Robbie, what has Doc said about developing your speech?"

Robbie grumbled, "To use full sentences cos then people'll-" Robbie stuck his tongue out when Anti nudged him, "people will take me seriously."

"There you go. And hey, we still know you're adorable. Good luck with devils subject." Anti lead Marvin to a lounge with an L shaped sofa, a rocking chair and a small TV, he sat down in front of the TV, turning it on and passing Marvin a games console remote.

"Have a look and pick out a game." He motioned towards a box with a variation of video games in it.

The two ended up playing smash bros until one of Anti's carers suggested Marvin should get home before it got dark out. Marvin had left feeling pretty happy that he had beat Anti fair and square, not knowing Anti had just picked a weak character and then played as them so Marv had better chances.

"How come you invited Marvin over?" Anti looked up from his food, fishfingers, potato wedges and peas since Doc insisted they be healthy, Isaac had asked.

"Chase went on one of his 'just friends' rants."

Isaac shook his head, eating another bite of fish. At first Anti had found it weird, how easily he got around, almost creepy, but Doc had explained that it was a combination of leaving things in the same places, and the fact that Isaac could still see shadows of things. It didn't explain how easily he ate, but Anti had decided not to ask.

Anti liked Isaac, he told stories and good jokes. Sure, the tinted glasses and cane could be a little intimidating at first, but he had gotten over it.

Isaac finished chewing, "Chase's lose tongue is going to crush that poor boys heart."

"I'm doin' my best."

"We know." Doc responded. "Have you got any homework to do?"

"Done it."

"Really?" Doc raised an eyebrow.

"Chase was going to the skate park later so he did his at break. Me and Marv figured we should just do the same."

"Smart move kid. And you Robbie?"

Robbie hurriedly chewed his food, swallowing, "Done it all."

---

Anti woke up, or fell asleep into- he had never really worked it out, and for the sake of simplicity woke up was close enough. Anti woke up in his dreamscape. A humid cave full of warm pools of water that created a layer of steam across the floor and walls full of glowing crystals, they were an aurora of green and blue still. It felt as if they were stuck like that, Anti knew they were beautiful, but he tired of green and blue.

Anti got up and headed to do what he did every night, first he went to a low down exit of the cave system. There were only two but this one was lower than the other and so, being simple minded as he was, he called it such. He also referred to it as the candy exit.

Upon reaching he looked out to pink fields, lollipop trees, chocolate rivers. The whole place was some form of willy wonka realm. Anti spotted that yet again, someone had put a chocolate bar at the cave entrance. He smiled, whoever lived in the candy land, they were a giver. Anti picked it up, pocketing it and walking down a different tunnel to the one he had come from, arriving at a dead end with a mine cart in it. Anti looked through the cart, pulling out several rocks and crystals before settling on one. The crystals in the cart always mirrored the ones in the cave. Anti was sure the candy person would be sick of green crystals. He placed one in the exit of the cave regardless, before walking up another tunnel, up and up until the cave grew cold and the winter exit came into view.

Anti wasn't sure of this exit. The evergreen forest cleared several hundred meters from the cave entrance and the whole land, as far as Anti could see, was covered in snow. Once Anti had went out into the snow, he had found a sled and gone down a hill. The whole experience had felt wrong, as if he was trespassing in another persons dreamscape. Anti wasn't sure, it was unlikely he had two soulmates.

Anti put the chocolate bar down in the snow, along with a crystal. There were never any footsteps in the snow but something always came and took them.

He smiled. He had done his routine, now he could lay in a dreamt up hot spring until morn.

[hillywooddestiel]

Stranger Things Have Happened: Chapter Three

Chapter Three: Lost To The Party

Characters: Y/N Winchester, Nancy, Barb, Jonathan, Steve, Tommy H., Carol, Sam, Dean

Warnings: angst, mentions of John’s crappy parenting, overprotective Dean, underage drinking

Word count: 2.3k

Series description: Hawkins, Indiana, November 1983. The Winchesters got out of hunting and decided to settle down in a small town. The youngest of the three, Y/N, just wants to get on with her somewhat normal life and go to a good college. But that’s a little tricky when disappearances start occurring, including her friend Barbara Holland, and there’s reports of a mysterious new girl in town. Can she balance boyfriends, teen drama and monster hunting?

A/N: Here you go! Another chapter of this Stranger Things x Supernatural crossover. I’m really enjoying writing this and I hope you’re enjoying reading it. As always feedback is much appreciated and if you want to be tagged all you need to do is ask xx Masterlist Series Masterlist

Part 2

Story:

8th November 1983, Hawkins, Indiana…

My mind races as I walk to school (some asshole scraped my car really badly sometime last night so Dean’s working on it). There are already loads of people bustling about the streets on their way to work walking in some half asleep state. My breath comes out as wisps in the crisp winter air this chilly morning as I try to focus on the thudding of my boots on concrete, anything to give my mind a break from thinking about recent events. That is until I see a familiar figure up ahead sticking a piece of paper to a lamp post.

“Jonathan! Hey Jonathan!” I shout, picking up the pace to catch up.

“Oh… Hey Y/N…” He avoids eye contact, instead opting to look at his scuffed sneakers.

“I’m-I’m sorry about your brother.”

“Thanks. You’re probably the only person ‘round here that means it.”

“… You will find him though… My brothers are going with the search party tonight. They’re good at this kind of stuff.” I try to comfort Jonathan but I forget to watch my words. He looks up at me, brows scrunched together.

“They’re good at finding people? Were they cops or somethin’ in Kansas?”

“Um… No, they just… Went on a lot of hunting trips… In the woods. That’s what I meant.”

“Right. Sure… Well I should probably err…” Jonathan shuffles awkwardly to go around the corner.

“Yeah, I should get to school anyway.” I start walking off down the sidewalk slowly before pausing, “Hey, can I get one of those?”

“Oh! Sure… Here.” He hands me one of the flyers. I give him a weak smile before picking up the pace to get to school on time.

“So it’s at my place. Be there for eight. You okay for beers?” Steve flashes his winning smile at Tommy, Carol gazing dreamily up at him like he’s not a complete dick. To be completely honest, I would rather stab my eyes out with a blunt pencil and have my ears sewn shut than hang out with the pair of them all the time but, Nancy is with Steve now so we have to spend time with Steve’s friends. I begged with Barb for us to go have lunch without them but Nancy insisted we stick with her- she said something about owing us both a huge favour. Understatement of the century.

“Oh God, look.” We all follow Carol’s disgusted stare to the noticeboard.

“Oh God that’s depressing.” Steve remarks while Nancy only looks worried,

“Should we say something?”

“I don’t think he speaks.” Carol shuts down that idea swiftly, her mean streak shining through as always, Tommy laughing behind her,

“How much d'you wanna bet he killed him?” His twisted comment just gets him a joking shove from Steve. You know, they might be terrible human beings but, I’m starting to think Tommy and Carol were made for eachother.

Despite the jokes from the group, Nancy nervously approaches Jonathan.

“What is she doing talking to that freak?” Tommy looks to all of us to see if we’re laughing but it’s only Carol with a slight smirk; the rest of us have the same guilt ridden expression.

“I hope they’re all okay.” Barb says softly, thinking out loud.

“I’m sure they’re fine. And I’m sure in a week they’ll find that kid buried in the back yard.”

“Oh look is that the time!” I exclaim, not even looking at my watch, “Gotta get to class. See ya.” And I speed walk away as fast as I can before my fist finds itself connecting with Tommy’s smug little face. The day I knock his lights out will be a happy day for us all.

“What’s this?”

“A missing poster.” I respond casually as I continue making my notes. Dean picks up the creased piece of paper from the table, scan reads it, then drops it and groans.

“I thought we told you to drop this. It’s not our kind of gig.”

“You did. But I don’t care. Will is still missing and I want us to help find him!” I look up to meet Dean’s hard glare. Luckily, the sudden ringing of the phone saves me from what I’m sure would have been another tedious lecture on staying safe.

“Y/N/N it’s for you! From Barbara Holland.” Sam calls from the hallway having answered it.

“Coming!” I shout over my shoulder, refusing to break eye contact with Dean until I’ve left the room. “Thanks Sam!” I beam as I take the phone from him.

“No problem. Please don’t get into another fight with Dean.”

“I wasn’t going to- Hey barb what’s up?” My attention gets taken by the phonecall so Sam decides to not badger me any further.

“Hey Y/N. Are you going to this party tonight?” She speaks in a hushed tone; her parents must be close by.

“I wasn’t planning on it. Why, are you?”

“I don’t really want to but, Nancy wants me to. I figured if you came too then it wouldn’t be so awkward for me. Plus I don’t really have much party experience and you do so…”

“But Barb-”

“Please! I’ll make you cookies and bring them to school next week.” She bargains. Damn it-she really does make good cookies.

“Fine I’ll come! But I want triple chocolate chip.” I joke, my kind, good-hearted nature is just too strong sometimes.

“Deal! Thank you so much Y/N/N.”

“Guess I’ll see you at eight then.”

“Yeah see you then.”

As I put the phone down, I can sense a very tall presence stood behind me. Make that two. Both my brothers stand arms folded, towering above me with stern frowns. I stupidly try to just slip past but Dean blocks my path to the kitchen with his arm slammed against the door frame. I let out a small gasp and flinch away.

“Where were you planning on going out, huh?”

“The gathering. At school. For Will.” I state simply, mainly to avoid getting caught lying. Again.

“You didn’t mention this earlier.” Dean continues like this is some sort of interrogation.

“I wasn’t going to go. But Barb and Nancy are and they asked me to go.” I try to slip past again but Dean doesn’t move his arm.

“Dean! Let her go.” Sam urges, giving me a look of pity. Dean looks to his brother, steam almost coming out of his ears from having both siblings against him. Loosening his grip on the door, he lets out a sigh.

“Fine! But I want you back here as soon as it’s over. No having around with your friends, no sleepovers. You come straight home. Understand?”

“Yes.”

I can hear the muffled arguing from my room as I refresh my makeup in the dim lighting. It’s about me. When is it not about me? Y/N missed curfew. Y/N was with a boy at the movies. Y/N didn’t do exactly what I ordered her to do. I get it. Dean worries. A lot. He worries about Sam too but he can’t exactly boss around a fully grown man (He tried but he ended up with burned pancakes whenever it was Sam’s turn to cook). I could just be sat reading in the living room and he’ll watch me to make sure nothing bad happens.

Satisfied with my final look, I slip my lipstick into my back pocket before heading towards the stairs.

“I’m serious Dean! What the hell were you thinking? Don’t you think she got enough of that crap from Dad? She doesn’t need you controlling every little bit of her life!”

“Don’t you fucking dare compare me to Dad! I’m nothing like him! And he was never the same with her as he was with us.”

“Not when you were around! When you left on a hunt or to go shopping or even just left the room, she was treated just like me.”

“Then why leave her alone with him and go to college?”

“Because I was a scared kid too Dean! And I thought maybe you could be the brother she needed.”

“So you left a seven year old kid with a man like that because you were fucking scared? How do you think she felt?”

“Terrified! I know that Dean because she told me when you came to find me. And I know she was scared of you just then because she had that same look on her face from when she was a kid around Dad.”

Their shouting is much clearer from the top of the stairs. I’ve just got to get out of here. Treading lightly and avoiding the stairs I know to be creaky, I manage to slip out of the door unnoticed. Breathing is much easier now that I can’t hear them. Maybe a party is just what I need.

Nancy finishes her beer impressively fast, ending with a small curtsey. Tommy and Carol whoop and holler, Steve places a clumsy kiss to her lips- hell, three beers in even I find myself applauding her- but Barb stays completely silent.

“You try!” Nancy offers a can to Barb. She shakes her head,

“No Nance. I don’t want any.” Noticing her reluctance, I grab the beer, fishing for my knife in my back pocket.

“Someone’s not messing around! You okay with that?” Steve asks before taking a swig of his own drink, not taking his eyes off me.

“Watch and learn boys.” I warn them before bringing the bottom of the can to my lips and chugging the contents in seven seconds flat. Finished, I crush the can in my hand and let it drop to the floor.

“Woah! Watch out Steve, I think she’s coming for your crown.” Tommy jokes, one arm wrapped tightly around Carol.

“Whatever! I was going slow earlier.” Steve pouts.

“Yeah, sure.” I laugh, taking a seat in one of the sun loungers.

“Come on Barb, you try!” Nancy grabs another beer from the cooler and hands it to Barb despite her protests. “It’s fun, just try.”

Rolling her eyes, Barb stand up, fidgeting with the knife. She slips several times, probably from the pressure of all of us watching. Suddenly, she misses sending the blade into her thumb.

“Gnarly!” Tommy leans over to see the blood trickling from her hand.

“Oh my God! Are you okay?” Nancy rushes over.

“Yeah, I’m fine!” Barb tries to brush her off.

“Barb, you’re bleeding.”

“I said I’m fine! Where’s your bathroom?”

“Oh! It’s err round past the kitchen. To the left.” Steve gets up to point the way, following her to the door.

There’s a moment of awkward silence after Barb heads inside- no one’s really to blame but someone getting stabbed tends to dampen the mood. Carol clearly just doesn’t care, instead choosing to take a puff off her cigarette by the pool. That is until Tommy picks this moment to push call in the pool.

“Oh my God! What the hell Tommy!” She whines, flinching as he leaps in to join her. Steve takes this as his chance to shove Nancy in as well before canon balling it. Mascara leaving smudges around her eyes, Nancy wades her way to the edge, where I’m sat, holding out her arms.

“Y/N/N can you help me up?” Not thinking about it, I extend both arms out to her, ready to pull her out. That’s when she pulls back, sending me diving head first into the blue water. I only just manage to hold my breath in time before I’m plunged into the deep end. Once resurfaced, I can hear their laughing and cheering.

“Woo! Nice dive new girl!” Tommy laughs (I’m not sure but, I think he just doesn’t know my name and that’s why he uses the nickname), before turning to Carol to lock lips with her. Again.

“I’d give it a ten out of ten.” Nancy smiles, treading the water. I give her tight smile, my arm reaching behind me widely before shoving a wave of water towards her face. Only she narrowly dodges it, causing Steve to take the blow. His reaction is priceless; a mixture of surprise and annoyance with an added scream. He wastes no time, chasing after Nancy only to grab he and lift her into the air. She lands back in the water with an almighty splash, disturbing Tommy and Carol and bringing them into the fight.

“Well, you know what? You are cleaning the sheets.” Steve mutters to the loved up couple as they disappear upstairs. “You okay?”

“Yeah!” Nancy manages to say through her chattering teeth.

“I’m just gonna go to my car. I should have spare clothes with me.”

“Okay. You keeping the towel?” Steve jests, nodding to the orange striped rectangle of fabric I’m currently wearing as a cloak.

“No. I’ll change and bring it back. You okay getting home Nance?”

“I’ll be fine. You go and get warm.” She urges, hugging her towel tighter around her slender shoulders.

My hands shake a bit with the cold but I manage to change quickly; being prepared has its perks. Now in warm, dry jeans and a red flannel, I neatly fold up the towel and slip back into the house to give it back. Other than the footsteps and suspicious creaking of springs above my head, the house is quiet- a stark contrast to the crashing about in the pool only ten minutes ago. There’s no one downstairs so I just leave the towel in the lounge.

As I’m about to leave, someone outside catches my attention. It’s Barb. She’s sat on the diving board with her toes dangling in the heated water. From her fixed gaze at the rippling water I can tell she’s deep in thought. I wonder what about. A glance to the clock tells me I have no time to dawdle so I leave her be and head for home where hopefully Dean will already be in bed fast asleep. I wish.

Everything tags:

@falloutofmymemez

STHH tags:

@marslovesme @bluedefundead @elenavaldez09 @mysanityisgone27