#and poor dani always fell for it

[caitlynmeow]

Bela's been bullying her sisters from an early age

[cf8wrk4u-us]

Transformers Prime/ A Quiet Place Crossover: Rescue-Bots Edition

Location: Griffin Rock

On Day One of the creatures arrival, like many islands, Griffin Rock was luckily saved from any collision with asteroids carrying the predatory aliens.

Doc Greene was aware of the cluster of meteors that were heading towards earth. But with contact with NASA he was assured everything was fine and they were aware of the debris heading towards the planets. Doc Greene didn't feel good about the answer but figured since the authorities were already informed and he was sure that the asteroids would break-up in Earth's atmosphere all he had to report to the Mayor and Chief Burns was the town was in for an impressive daylight celestial event.

And it was the day the asteroids fell the citizens if Griffin Rock looked at the sky in delight and amazement, only seconds later to realize the terror the world was going through. Especially in New York where the creatures wrecked havoc on the poor residents of the city.

There was panic, people unsure what to do, people who wanted to travel back to the mainland to get to their families. Chief Burns was the one who reluctantly called for a locked down on any transportation to the mainland. Many people were unhappy but Chief Burns did his best to explain that it was for the safety of the island, they had no idea what those aliens were, what they could do, or if what's happening to the mainland would spread to their community. That's why they needed to wait for further instructions by the government.

So, for how long they were able to the people of Griffin Rock saw, listened, and viewed all the terror happening on the mainland. Chief Burns did his best to make sure Cody didn't see anything on T.V. the young boys curiosity would always get the better of him and he view post made about the "Death-Angeles" in excruciating details.

When it was discovered that the aliens couldn't swim in deep water, the coast guard finally called to Griffin Rocks Rescue Team to get any boat available and bring them to New York, needing all the help they can get to evacuate the many survivors from the ground zero of the disaster.

Chief Burns and the rest of his team eagerly agreed, going over the necessary and absolute conditions needed to evacuate people safely and silently. Calling on volunteers with boats to assist them. Getting Arthur Shaw the ferry man and Wild the fishermen to volunteer in the rescue.

Chief Burns left Graham on the island with Cody, promising to radio them every step of the way.

The mission was dangerous but hopeful and with cooperation and careful planning they should help get a good number of civilians to safety.

But that didn't happen.

It was radio silent from the Griffin Rock rescue group, something Graham expected but was still off-putted by. Cody would look over the horizon, trying to spot his family and the boats.

After a day, static hushed voices cane over the line. It was Chief Burns asking for medical assistance to stand by as they would be docking soon.

Graham was relieved and Cody was excited.

But by the time the boats pulled up they watched with gaped months at the horrible scratch marks that littered the haul of the rescue boat and Wilds ship, deep gouges over metal, shattered glass, and the most frightful of all was the blood on the halls.

Arthur Shaw and his boat were nowhere to be seen.

Chief Burns carried an injured Dani off the boat with Kade trailing behind them. A few survivors were with them. All injured in different degrees. But not as many as they had hoped for.

Chief Burns called then for a total lockdian of the island, that no boats were to ever go to the mainland. And for lack of a better words that they were on their own now.

A haunted look was forever set upon the chiefs eyes and that of his children who accompanied him. Forever scared by what he saw and the choices he made to guarantee that his team would survive.

Kade and Dani were not much better and refused to talk about what happened when they made it on shore.

Griffen Rock became a haven for people of the mainland, a safe place from the destruction of the world they once knew. Something Chief Burns did his best to maintain. Even when conflict arrived between the mainland survivors and the residents of Griffin Rock.

On the island they were safe.

Or for the most part.

And this is the world that Geatwave and the rest if his group awaken too.

[bidisasterevankinard]

oh my god!? How do I choose!?

(answer… I don’t 🤭)

🥵🥵🥵 🫄🫄🫄 🔥🔥🔥 🔁🔁🔁 🧁🧁🧁 🎨🎨🎨

I was so tempted to do more than three each ngl 🤣🫶 but they all just are soooo *chefs kiss*

hi!!! so many sentenses! thank you <333

🫄from our future series (part two. let's impregnante Buck again):

“I hope so. My cravings, my fatigue, I had sensitive nipples yesterday,” last thing makes Tommy smirk, “easy tiger this is exactly what got us in this situation,” Buck shakes the tests.

“We wanted to be in that situation.”

Buck smiles brightly, “y-yeah we wanted. So c'mon, go to the kitchen, finish unpacking and I’ll meet you there with tests. We will see results together.”

Tommy nods with a hopeful smile.

“Evan?”

Buck looks up at Tommy from opening the box, “even if it wouldn't be positive, know that I love you and you and Dany are enough ok?”

Buck’s vision gets blurry.

“For me too,” he nods, “our life is enough. You and Dany are enough.”

🥵 nsfw from triplets part two that is already posted on ao3:

But he can’t stop his hips from fucking the digit that Tommy still keeps thrusting ion and out inside him, even when he gradually get down the vibrations till they are completely off. That’s when Buck feels it. He is still hard. As if he didn’t just come all over his men.

Fuck, pregnancy will make me even more unsatiable, huh? Poor Tommy

“What do you want to know sir,” Tommy asks, taking his finger and toy out, but getting his three fingers in the second Buck sadly means feeling too empty. “Fuck, look at you. Your hole winking at me and begs to be filled. Can I do it now, sir? Please.”

🔥 Buck has fire powers fix it:

“Eva…Buck, let’s not make it harder than it already is.”

Tommy says with a shake of his head.

Buck wants to punch him for his intonation. 

“Don’t. Call. Me. That,” Buck growls through his teeth.  “And stop talking to me like I’m a child or a passenger in our relationships. You-you decided to leave, twice, and the second time, I found out it was because you have an expiration date on us since the beginning, but you forgot to mention it to me before …”

Buck bites his lip, with a shake of his head. He won’t say it to the man. Not like. Not ever. Tommy doesn’t need those words.

🔁 Tommy's time loop:

“Tommy, man, you know what to do,” Howie shrugs with a beer in his hand. “You need to learn the lesson or do something right. What do you think the universe wants from you?” 

The man looks at him with raised an eyebrow, and Tommy wants to run from his deep brown eyes.

“Finally kill me? Make me crazy? Start drinking like my old man?”

Tommy shrugs, taking another sip of his beer.

Howie looks at him not impressed.

🧁from Buck is baking as "thankfull citizen":

Tommy misses their thankful citizen. Even without knowing the person, he really fell for their baking, especially cinnamon rolls. No it feels too empty and sad without their constant sugar presents in the harbor. Tommy hopes they are ok. 

“Guy, guys, look,” Mitchell turns to the kitchen with the package Tommy recognizes in seconds with a smile. “I’m telling you this person has a crush on someone here.”

“If so maybe we should be careful with what they send us,” Lucy says, yet already looks for her favorite scones, finding it with a smile and moaning after the bite, “but you know what? If they want to kidnap me and bake this masterpiece for me,” next part she whispers, but Tommy hears something about kissing them even better. 

He doesn’t think much about it, grabbing six cinnamon rolls in two hands and biting them all like in a kindergarten. 

“C’mon, Tommy,” Mitchel cries, “you always eat basically all the cinnamon rolls. Leave others some.”

“Miwwed 'em fuck off,” Tommy says mid chewing

🎨from artist Tommy and model Buck fix it: (cw: thoughts about dun con)

Buck carefully shakes his head and takes a deep breath. Even if he’s right and Tommy looks at him with all thai tension, Tommy has no right to do so. Buck is not his. Evan is not his anymore. Evan is Alec’s, that guy whose prints Buck still has on his thigh. Or the girl’s who he let ride him for hours. Not Tommy’s. Not Tommy’s. Not Tommy’s. 

Buck already makes the plan for the night. He needs to forget Tommy. He will get Alec to the club and find someone, maybe call that monstrously huge man and ask him to use Buck round between all his friends. He will let them push his limits how they want. Not say no to anything.

[themotherofhorses]

I just had a really cute thought for last of her house no more.

The reason why Danys hair looks so good compared to other targs is because the Dothraki taught her to oil her hair. Now imagine the cute family bonding time the three of them could have of doing each others hair. The greens kids cry in daddy issues when they see drogo oiling his daughters hair in the gardens. Nothing will stop aemond from marrying into the family now, he wants that paternal figure so badly.

Also I headcannon that drogo would love helaena, I don’t know why.

YES my good gods i love this so much

no bc i ALWAYS headcanon drogo to be a girl!dad, like no one can tell me otherwise. fight me on that. ok sure whatever, he did want a son, but then dany put their tiny babygirl in his arms and the mf FELL IN LOVE.

then you got the green kids, the poor & fucked up kiddos of viserys “rhaenyra, my only child” targaryen, with the most legendary mommy & daddy issues known to westerosi history. they (no doubt) weep in envy when they see drogo oil and braid his daughter’s hair, ride around w her, and bring her back lil trinkets and weapons from his random travels <333

(also the drogo & helaena headcanon, i can see it! she would def remind him of his own daughter, a soul too precious for this damned world.)

[hopefulromances]

hi love! can i request 3 or 16 with jamie and a male (or gn!) reader please? maybe following him to or from man city or just being the one to take care of jamie? thank you!

Yeah absoltuely! I hope you enjoy!

(I think I understood what you meant, lmk if you had something different in mind and I can write another.)

3.“I would follow you to the ends of the earth. I would follow you off of them."

You paced outside Nelson Road, waiting for someone to appear. Man City had been an emotional game to say the least. Watching Jamie play with such vigor, such passion, and made your heart swell with pride. Pride that had been quickly replaced with fear when Jamie fell and didn't get up.

He'd been able to get back up and score a solo goal but after that, he was sat out for the rest of the game. Now, you had to wait to see if he would remerge with the rest of the group, or if he'd already gone home.

See he didn't exactly know you'd come to the game. You were only out to a few people and hadn't really talked about a label for the realtionship quite yet. You'd met the team, and some of the coaches, but beyond that, it was still new. Usually, you'd just wait for him to come home but right now, you couldn't wait.

That's when Isaac and Dani came out of the door, laughing and chatting as they headed to their cars.

"Isaac!" You called out. "Is Jamie coming out?"

"Hey," Isaac replied. "Nah, bruv, he's still in there. Getting his foot looked at."

You nodded heading in that direction. Nelson road was a maze to you. Jamie insisted that it was straight forward but somehow, you always manged to get lost.

Eventually, you looked into a window and saw the poor boy, sitting on a table with his foot in a bucket of ice. The creaked the door open and knocked to gain his attention. He looked up, and when he saw you, he broke into a surprised smile.

"It's you!" He greeted, putting his phone away.

"It's me," you returned, giving him a hestitant smile.

"Well, what are you doing all the way over there, for, c'mere," Jamie insisted, holding out a hand for you.

You didn't need convincing. You moved over to him faster than you meant to and accepted his hug greedily.

"You were brilliant, Jamie, really," you murmured, resting your chin on his head.

"Did you follow me all the way to Manchester?" Jamie blurted, looking up at you.

"I'd follow you to the ends of the earth, I think," you shrugged, letting out a breathy laugh. "And probably would follow you off them as well."

Jamie flushed at the sweetness in your words. Then he winced, feeling a particularlly harsh cramp go through his leg. Right! His foot! You'd nearly forgotten!

"Oh, Jamie, how do you manage to always get yourself in these situations?" You sighed, kneeling down to look at his foot.

"I do it so I can see you all flustered like you are right now," he goaded, kicking his foot up a bit. You glared at him. "See, look how cute you look."

"Well, you definetly won't be on it for a few days," you instructured, moving it around delicately. "Gotta keep it raised for a while."

He saluted at you, looking very serious. "Whatever you say, doctor."

Then the door opened from behind you and two people walked in. One of them you recognized as Roy Kent, former player turned coach for Richmond, the other was a women you vaguely recognized but couldn't name.

"Oh, shit!" She swored, looking between the two of you. "Are we interupting something?"

"Not at all!" Jamie grinned, pulling you back up into his side. "This is (Y/N), my boyfriend."

Boyfriend. The label fell so easily off his tongue. You glanced down at Jamie, somewhat in shock, but he just held you tighter.

The women squealed in excitement as she rushed towards you. "Hi! I'm Keeley Jones! It's a pleasure to meet you."

"You drink?" The man next to her asked. You nodded. "Good. I'm Roy."

He shoved a bottle of champagne in your hand and went to pull up a chair. You stood there, still reeling from the situation, but one tug from Jamie had you sitting down by his side. As his boyfriend. In a room with two of his close friends. Yeah, this definetly felt right.

[aviatorasharak]

~Ssssnippet Ssssunday~

I'm honored to have been tagged by @theycallmeratt

I'm presenting you all with three snippets! Because three is a magical number and I like it. Two of them are from WIP works, the third is from a fic I'm quite proud of featuring Ikaron and Okta.

Here we go~

CHEESE.ODT

(I call this the "cheese au", an idea that's been steadily growing in my mind, lurking in the shadows, sometimes rearing it's head, but mostly biding its time)

Rolan regarded the pungent piece of cheese with a scowl and an exasperated look in his yellow eyes. Not a minute before this, it almost seemed like his vast resource of ire had finally run out, but the truth was that it was practically inexhaustible. Still, he tried and with considerable effort found a smidgen of kindness deep inside of himself which he courteously offered the poor man holding the cheese wheel in his trembling hands, straining to keep his claws away from the white softness.

"I will change Bex back, like the others. Please, have a seat in the meantime, Cal will bring you some tea." Rolan nodded towards his brother who hurried up the stairs leading into one of the sparkly, colourful portals and disappeared with a strange, whirly sound.

He turned back to his tomes and scrolls, arranged as if a tornado went through his shop. One piece of paper he wanted to examine closer was stuck under one of the cheeses, which he promptly took and put on another one, stacking them on top of each other. Suddenly, there seemed to be a lot more room on the counter, how wonderful!

His feeling of contentment and satisfaction was short lived however, when he heard a panicky yelp from Danis. As he glanced his way, he saw the man looking back at him horrified.

"What now?"

"Y-you put someone on Bex!"

"What?" Another splitting headache was fast approaching, and the word 'Detono' sounded sweeter and sweeter in his mind with every passing moment.

"That's not Bex, that's actually Lakrissa." Alfira chimed in, bells ringing as she stood up from her chair.

"I think those are Kaldani and Ikaron." Elegis suggested weakly, Guex standing next to her being the only one who actually heard her.

DEVIL PAINTED ON THE WALL

(Probably not the final title. This is another one in a series of "I read something on the internet that upset me and now I'm writing it out of myself" fics. It's probably therapeutic.)

Guex ran as fast as his little legs carried him, eyes closed despite his Nana's previous admonishments. There was still a bump on his forehead from the last time. Still he went on until he tripped and fell onto the cobblestones. His lungs were burning and he felt his lunch trying to escape his stomach.

He heard a shout from behind him and with his last ounce of strength, scampered into an alleyway. A pair of orange eyes stared back at him from the grey gloom, blinking. The man had reddish skin, not unlike Guex's own, and his face was framed by messy, ash-blonde locks. A pair of tall, twirly horns and a slowly swinging tail dissipated any lingering doubts about his heritage.

Kin, Guex thought, though he remembered another one his grandmother's warnings: "Kin isn't always kin." The shared burden didn't mean a tiefling would never attempt to hurt another tiefling.

The boy got up, despite every part of his body screaming for respite. He stared at the man who, at a second glance, looked much younger, though he was still surely a few years older than Guex. From the corner of his eye he finally noticed the image, painted on the alley's wall: a bright red figure, head violently separated from the rest of its body, held up by a handsome, knightly figure. A forked tongue lolled out from the bloody, red face. Below the visor of the helmet, a white-toothed grin practically glimmered.

BEETLE

It was the biggest beetle the boy saw in his whole seven years of life. It also had a pair of impressive horns, and black chitin so shiny, it almost seemed like onyx. It looked heavy and the boy wondered if the bug could fly at all. Maybe it didn't even have wings.

He wanted to find out. He took a deep breath, filling his little chest with all the air it could take, then opened his mouth, sharp, white canines peeking out...

"RAWR!" he bellowed with all his might.

The beetle didn't stir. The boy scrunched up his face then tried again. The beetle remained unfazed probably wondering when the mother was gonna take her unruly cub away to give it some peace finally.

The boy huffed, and in an act of irritated audacity, poked the insect. Although it budged, going as far as sliding back half an inch or so, it refused to yield the comfortable little mossy rock it had been occupying. The boy poked it again, this time more forcefully, but it only resulted in the insect relocating two whole inches to the side.

The boy appeared to be deep in thought. Slowly, he raised one hand, holding out his forefinger and thumb like pincers, and took aim at the beetle's left horn. He was a hair's breath away from snatching the stubborn little thing up when his name resounded in the forest, bouncing off the trees and cutting through the tall undergrowth.

"Ikaron!"

The boy took one last glance at the beetle, brows furrowed then dashed away. If it could, the beetle would've sighed in relief. Then, when the boy came back just to stick out his tongue at it, it would've surely grumbled about the disrespectful youth of today.

[nirikeehan]

word search game!!

YAY IT'S MY FAVORITE MEME. Thank you @theluckywizard for the tag! The words she gave me to search my fics for are CRACK, GRAZE, and HARSH.

Crack: From one of my Kirkwall Kops (Cullen & Samson working together as Templars) fics, The Greater Good — Cullen has been subdued by a runaway mage, and is powerless to stop whatever the apostate, Danyel, and Samson do next.

Above him, Samson and Danyel circled each other. Samson had his sword sheathed, his hands in the air. “Listen, Dany. Listen. It’s not too late. I know a guy, all right? I can get you in touch with him. He can get you out of the city. I just need you to calm down. Just calm down, and you and I can walk out of here, forget this ever happened.” They’re leaving you. Leaving you to die. The voice slithered through Cullen’s mind, and it sounded so much like Uldred’s that he began to shake. That’s what everyone does to you in the end.  Samson had his arm around Danyel. “Hey, look. Where’s your staff?”  The boy turned, searching for the fallen weapon. Cullen coughed, gasping for air. Samson looked up, his deadpan grey eyes meeting Cullen’s own. Samson inhaled once; without breaking Cullen’s gaze, he raised his mailed fist and slammed it against the back of the boy’s head. With a sickening crack, Danyel crumpled to the floor, unconscious.  I love this bit because it really casts Samson in moral shadow — was he planning to help Danyel escape and had a change of heart, or was he deceiving the boy from the start and always meant to help Cullen? Plus what he does to incapacitate poor Danyel really is quite brutal. I wince every time I read it.

Graze: ahahahahah the closest I could find is "grazed" and uh. Well I've gone to an unpublished Thalia x Samson chapter for Through a Glass, Darkly that I pull out and work on when I'm feeling especially feral.

Thalia set to work unraveling the multiple braids she had plaited into her hair this morning. At last she shook it all out, so that her auburn hair hung in heavy waves about her shoulders and down her back.  A stray strand fell across her face. Samson leaned forward, brushing it aside. His fingers grazed her cheek, rough and calloused and raw. Nails bit down to the quick, with dirt and who knew what else caked beneath them. Thalia shuddered.  “I’m not a complete monster, you know,” he murmured. “I’d prefer you enjoy yourself, too.”   Something in Thalia’s chest twisted painfully. “I don’t see how that will be possible.” Ahahahahah if you have to assure a woman you're not a complete monster, I think you're doing it wrong. There's a gentleness to him in this scene that sets my teeth on edge. I want to believe he's capable of genuine tenderness, but there's always this threat of violence simmering under the surface.

Harsh: A long ago DADWC fill envisioning a post-Trespasser reunion between Thom Rainier and Sera. This was the first time I conceived of Thom starting an ex-con merc company, I think.

“Well, well,” he said, “look what the cat dragged in, eh?” “Oi, Beardy!” Sera leapt clear over the desk and crushed him in a hug. “You know how long it took me to get here? Fucking tit.”  Thom returned the embrace. She was easily a foot shorter and about a third of his width, but he was vaguely concerned she’d crack a rib if she squeezed any tighter. “It’s good to see you, too.”  Sera released him and perched on the edge of his desk, kicking her feet in the air as she looked around. “Hell of a place you’ve got here, innit? Fixed yourself up real good.”  “It’s had its ups and downs.” The success, though easily measurable by any metric, had left him with a sort of hollowness, though it was difficult to articulate why. Most jobs were clean and easy; the ones too messy or morally questionable he refused by default. He was doing good work out there, he knew it. He did not like to dwell on why it never felt like enough. Thom leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms.“Sera, why exactly have you come?”  She let out an indignant huff. “What, can’t a girl go see her oaf-y old friend? I mean it — like, old. You’ve got grey in your beard now! Huh.”  “Time is a harsh mistress.” Thom resisted the urge to run his fingers through the offending facial hair. “But that’s not really why you’re here, is it?”  This is a world where Thom is thriving, but things never quite feel right. Thalia has married Cullen, and the tension between her and Thom never got resolved. I was low key envisioning a longer story where they reunite over the growing threat from Solas and the love triangle rears its head again, but I have a strict rule never to predict future canon, so I ended up leaving things pretty vague.

Thank you, this is always fun to do!

I am going to tag @oxygenforthewicked | @monocytogenes | @delicatefade | @ammoniteflesh | @bluewren if you would like to play! Your words to search are PLAYER, SIP, and FAVOR.

[creative-girl]

This will contain A Clash of Kings spoilers!!

I find Shae interesting but I don't like her as much. I hate their relationship. I also surprisingly hated Tyrion when he slapped Shae. It pains me to watch them knowing how their relationship will end. Varys's past is interesting living just to spite lol that's the spirit. I like Tyrion and Varys's friendship or whatever they have going on.

Catelyn's chapter always brings my mood down in a good way. She has so much regret in her heart because she feels she condemned her family by sending Ned South. Her thoughts about Jon are always interesting, she has the same questions as us but we know the answers and we would have treated the child with kindness.

It was nice Summer's perspective and his thought of Ghost. I hate Theon right now and I hated that he killed Mikken and he crossed the line when he made th beat Hodor up. I feel bad for Rickon he is just a little child. Poor Bran thinking that Osha betrayed him. It's sad how everything fell apart from House Stark within a year. Overall I really liked this chapter.

I like this chapter it seems that Arya's life in Harrenhal has gotten a little better since Weese died, like how freely she talks with Hot Pie, and suggests to spit in the pies and how she tells Gendry that in his next helm he should put Mule's horns instead of a bull's.I liked Arya and Jaqen's conversation in the Godswood and I liked how she tricked them into freeing the northmen. I wish she had told Robett Glover her identity, I think he can be trusted and we all Roose Bolton cannot be trusted.

Did Dany see the Red Wedding in the House of the Undying Ones? Dany saw her father. Was he talking to Jaime Lannister when he said to let him (probably Rhaegar) be king of ashes. We saw Elia and Rhaegar and little Aegon. Did Dany mistake the Stag banner of Baratheon for a stallion? Did she also see a glimpse of the Tourney at Harrenhal? Did the Undying showed her the future as well?

Everytime I read about the troubles of the smallfolk my heart breaks a little. More wildfyre under the dragonpit. I wonder if Aerys put it there.

Theon is delusional lol. He wants the people of Winterfell to see him as their protector after he invaded their home and killed their men.

I love that Jon is joking with the NW brothers this book. I liked when they climbed up the mountain it was intense and I liked a description of it. Yay! We finally met Ygritte. I liked the story of Bael the Bard. I also liked that we saw Jon's stubbornness how he was unwilling to believe the Bael the Bard story when it could have been a story from the perspective of the Wildlings, I liked when Jon interrupted her like a little kid.

[julesdavis]

GAME OF FEAR

CHAPTER ONE

It was a bright and crisp morning, Caroline's favorite time of day when she usually drank her favorite coffee and took a walk in the park nearest to the beach. For a small town like St. Andrews it sure had it's beautiful views.

She thought today would be like any other, but when she neared one of the local cafes she heard the sound of the news intermission boom through the speakers immediately catching her attention.

"I'm sorry to interrupt this program, but I'm here to share the devastating news of a young woman's death. Early this morning the body of Dani List was found at the entrance of Cope beach. Law enforcement has ruled her death as a homicide and declined to answer further questions, but they ask if anyone has any information for Dani's whereabouts last night to call the tip line shown on the screen."

Caroline's cup fell on the floor which startled her enough to take away her eyes from the TV screen. She apologized to the employee as they came to clean the mess she made, Caroline crouched beside them to help, her eyes scanning the busy tables watching people whisper as their eyes remained glued to the TV.

She needs to go. She needs to leave and check on Dani's older brother. He'd be devastated, God their poor mother. How will she survive this? She was barely holding on as is with the loss of her husband not even a year ago.

He was sat on the steps leading to their porch, his head hanging low as his shoulders shook.

- Oh, Mason - Caroline's voice barely above a whisper as she sat next to him to wrap him in a hug. She wanted to say how sorry she was, but knew better. Mason never liked people's pity nor hugs, but he learned to take those from Care as she did it regardless, thought she made sure they were a rare occurrence.

- She's gone, Care. She went out last night... and she never came back.

- I can't believe this! How? Why? Dani is an angel - the reality of referring to Dani in past tense hasn't settled in her head. She can't put her mind around it. Mason's bloodshot eyes faced Caroline's green orbs - Thank you for coming here - Care replied with a sad smile and a nod, she'll always be there for him.

- Do you know who she went out with? - it wasn't right to question him, but better now when everything was still fresh in his mind, but Mason just shook his head, he didn't bother to ask.

-How's your mom holding up?

- She doesn't want to talk. She's just staring at the TV, I turned it off.

- God, I can't even imagine what both of you are going through. How about I go get some food, huh? Just get something in both of you, okay? - she rubbed his back waiting for a respone that came as a nod.

She pushed on the front door with her foot, a loud bang erupting from it as she rummaged through her purse looking for her phone. Pick up, pick up, pick up. But nobody did. She tried again and it went straight to voicemail. Caroline cursed under her breath. She grabbed her car keys and phone and got in her car, the tires screeching as she sped off.

With her car parked, Care stared at the other rummaging through their trunk. Pissed off Caroline got out of the car

- What the fuck is wrong with you? - she questioned in a hushed, but stern tone.

- What do you mean the entrance? - it was Care's turn to give Kate the same look.

- Come on Care bear, what kind of question is that?

- You weren't supposed to kill Dani! She was mine! And you dumped her body at the ENTRANCE of the beach? I swear to God, you're not even good for this! - Kate's eyes went wide and the bag in her hand fell back in the trunk.

- Are you telling me someone else put the body there?

- Shit - were the only words that came from Kate as she closed the trunk and both got in the jeep speeding off.

[meaningtotellyou]

Dani I feel you. My cat BIT my nipple the other day and it was horrifying. Why do these things always happen to our poor unsuspecting nipples???

like the way i nearly fell on my bedroom floor 💀 also your cat is wrong for that

[gcddamnvampirea]

@kizhavvorsa gets a lil drabble for the babies

"What the fuck did you do?"

Those were the first words that broke the silence after they all watched Dany pack up her things and leave. Ezra had sat there in surprise, wondering where she could have possibly be going but knowing he had no right to ask. He was still staring at the closed elevator door, feeling guilty over what he had done, though he was still trying to convince himself that he had done the right thing. He reminded himself again and again of the words his family had spoken to him only a week ago. Even his mother, though she'd never really been a part of his life, had found it laughable that he was dating someone. Like everyone at his reunion had thought, they all assumed he must have been paying her for her time — because why else would she be with him?

It took a second to look away from where she'd just left, gaze drifting across the disapproving faces of his coworkers as he searched for who had spoken. Their expressions ranged from confusion to disapproving — though Missandei looked as though she was ready to throw a chair at his face. He finally looked over at Chris, who had reemerged from his office, a frown on his face.

"What are you talking about?" Ezra asked, feigning ignorance. They still hadn't told the office about their relationship and it wasn't any of their business anyway. Though he supposed that the actions that had just occurred would have eluded to something happening between them.

It was Missandei who spoke again, storming over to him and smacking him in the back of the head. "You moron," she snapped. "Do you realize what you've just done? You've just destroyed that poor girl and for what? To keep your options open?"

There was a soft gasp that came from somewhere but Ezra ignored it, rubbing the spot where she'd hit him. "It's not like that," he muttered, frowning.

"Then what is it like?" Chris asked, crossing his arms. "Because it's been clear as day that the two of you have been in love with each other for weeks. So I repeat my question, what did you do?"

"I — " He looked around like he was expecting one of his other coworkers like he was expecting one of them to save him, but they all looked as disapproving as Chris and Missandei did. He had no idea what to say, but surely he didn't need to explain his actions to them. It was none of their business. Besides, this was what was best for her. "Look, I'm doing her a favor. She'll realize that I'm not good enough for her eventually and get over me."

Missandei hit him again.

"Goddammit. What was that for?"

"I always thought you were smart but you've just proven that you're a fucking idiot," she hissed. "I have no idea what kind of insecurities you have or what's been going through that thick head of yours, but you don't get to decide what's good enough for someone. She does, and she chose you. She fell in love with you. And now not only did you throw it all away, but you broke her heart. I'm afraid she'll never recover."

He let her words sink in, not sure what to say. Had he really made a huge mistake? Had he let his family twist the truth and make him think that he was worthless? A realization dawned on him them. Why did he ever listen to them anyway? They were barely a part of his life. They never got to know him, they didn't know the type of person he was. But Dany did. She knew him better than anyone else and Missandei was right. Why hadn't he believed it when she confessed her feelings for him?

Now what the hell was he going to do?

Before he could say anything, Chris spoke again. "Dude, I have no idea how you're going to fix this but you'd better fucking try. I've seen the look in your eyes, I know you love her too."

There was a beat of silence before Ezra got to his feet. "I need to go." He saw his boss emerge from his office and watched as he nodded his head, silently giving him the permission he needed. Ezra had no idea what he was going to do, how he could possibly gain her forgiveness, but Chris was right. He had to try. Fuck, why did he always do shit like this? What was wrong with him?

"She's going to London," he heard Missandei say as he began to gather his things. Turning his head, he watched her scribble something onto a piece of paper and hand it to him. An address. "You'd better grovel. Hands and knees, the whole nine yards. And I still don't even know it that will be enough."

Ezra nodded in thanks, taking the paper and tucking it in his pocket. Chris gave him a pat on the shoulder as he passed and headed to the elevator, trying to figure out how in the world he was going to get the love of his life back.

[cursivebloodlines]

📸 - logan

Send a 📸 to see 3-5 pictures that my muse has/has taken of your muse(s) | @overnightheartbeats | Accepting!

Dani dragged Logan to another museummmmm which he probably groans at to start with - another one? Really? but we all know he loves it really. Loves going with her specifically, even if it's just to take the piss and poke fun at everything there. This photo? Definitely the result of him poking fun while he was trying to take a photo of her. "How did they even use to wear this shit? No wonder they all look so serious in their paintings. It's a bit overkill, isn't it? How can they even breathe in that thing, especially with it coming right up to your neck? Do you think I bet I could pull it off? I bet I could. You think so, don't you? C'mon, don't lie." And we know what he's like, he just goes on and on and on. Resulting in a laughing fit on Danielle's end; he clearly captured the perfect timing because it's in the middle of her laughter which he finds absolutely adorable :')

She was having computer problems which she absolutely tried to fix herself sooo much before succumbing to asking Logan for his help. He totally was like 'why didn't you just call me in the first place????' and got the problem fixed in like 15 mins, tops! He had to take a photo to prove that he didn't always get on her nerves because look at that smileeeeee! We love them for it. :')

3. Probably was taken after a party and they're trying to find their way to their hotel room lmfaoooo. They're drunk and just laughing at nothing to the point where maybe Dani fell over lowkey lmfaoooo. Logan tried to take a photo of her on the floor because it's fucking hilarious but by that point, she's just sat up. Probably refusing to get up because now, the floor is comfortable. Thankfully not hurt, though that wouldn't have stopped him from laughing at her because he's terrible like that :') that smile on her face though! She's just adorable :') (He does help her up in the end, when they can finally get themselves together lmao!)

4. Can't imagine what time of the year this was taken at??? LOL! I feel like even if they go and stay with their fams over Christmas, they always have their own little Christmas too no matter what their other plans are. As part of their own little Christmas, they make it a competition to see who can find the most obscene Christmas sweaters. And of course, they take photos of each other wearing them, being complete and utter dorks. She totally won that year. But he thought it was too adorable, and definitely accused her of buying a reindeer soft toy and chopped it up to sew to her jumper. "How could you do this to poor Rudolph?" "How can it be Rudolph? There's no red nose!" "You probably cut that off too!"

5. They went out for dinnerrrrrr and Dani looks ready to chomp. How could he not want to take a photo? :')

6. Everything about this aaaa. Probably went out for a little picnic or something and look at the beautiful backdrop of flowers! Of course he would take a photo hehe. She's not even fully looking at the camera properly but that's okay because he thinks she looks beautiful anyway. So precious. <3

[sarnith]

yes yes trans danny i agree but consider also: trans vlad

he's been stealth since he was a teenager. maddie and jack don't even know, let alone any other politicians. and they won't - god help him if the news gets ahold of that shit, his approval rating's already low enough as it is.

if he's honest, vlad's resentment for jack isn't entirely because of maddie, or even his particularly narrow view of spectral (after)life. after all, he was friends with jack first. and it wasn't like he fell for maddie the moment he laid eyes on her, either. it was partially, just - jack is so cis. so stereotypically, socially-acceptably masculine. he was always kind and accepting, didn't think twice about vlad's long hair or peculiar fashion sense, and even if he sometimes teased vlad about his five-step skincare routine, it was friendly, not mean (and he stopped doing that, too, after - well, after. he was at least a touch more sensitive than vlad gave him credit for), but it still made vlad irritable, even though it wasn't jack's fault. his friend had never seen anything in the mirror other than exactly who and what was supposed to be there, and he acted like it.

he didn't know about danny. he should've. the pieces were there. old emails and even letters from jack, congratulating him on this birthday or that election win, with brief mentions of "maddie and the girls" doing well. he'd just thought he'd lost the news of their son's birth somewhere in the clutter of his inbox, or his memory.

vlad really did think dani was a mistake. he feels terrible about it now, knows he hurt and confused the poor girl to death, and constantly reassures her that she is perfect, flawless, but as much as it fills him with disgust and self-loathing to remember, he didn't always see her that way. before she was his danielle, his beloved daughter, his baby, she wasn't - wasn't even a person, in vlad's eyes, she was a stepping stone. a tool. a somewhat stable failure. an absolute frustration, honestly, because no matter what tests he ran, it was clear both dani and danny's ectoplasmic signatures and their genetic structures were the same. and after longer than vlad would really prefer to admit, it hit him. their genetic structures were the same.

yes i do believe that vlad loves dani, come for me. he never thought he'd have children of his own, for obvious reasons, and never really cared about it that much - he didn't favor infants or young children, anyway, and always figured if he were to adopt it would be an older child. but danielle is his own. she's his creation, one of his mind if not his flesh and blood. he'll wax poetic about his little athena, his warrior bursting fully formed and armored from his head. she'll roll her eyes and take off her beanie and make a joke about helmet hair. he doesn't deserve her forgiveness, but he's honored to have it. he's her father.

he felt guilty for knowing about danny. despite knowing intuitively that the kid had obviously gone through the whole to-do of coming out and transitioning in a small town where everybody knows everybody else's business, it felt - well, intrusive. like an invasion of privacy. he remembered, before he was stealth, how nice it was to just have someone not know. he felt bad taking that away from him. he felt bad danny couldn't tell him himself.

his solution to this was appropriately convoluted and dumb: he found out about danny on his own, danny could find out about vlad on his own. with several meticulously placed hints and cues.

it so did not work.

okay, well, it did, kind of. eventually. it was a photograph he'd put out of himself with his parents, from when he was young. vlad had forgotten he'd set it out, honestly. he quite liked it, but he was thankful he hadn't had dinner guests recently. he wasn't usually so careless with incriminating memories.

anyway, danny'd knocked it over while grilling him about some nonsense or other going on in the zone, and said - rather ironically - "i didn't know you had a sister."

"i don't." "come on, man. she looks just like you." "that is me, daniel."

danny, not getting it and sensing an opportunity to get on vlad's nerves: "damn. you looked like a girl as a kid."

vlad, absolutely exhausted of how horribly all this is going: "i was."

"you - wait, you're?" - vlad turns human and lowers himself to the floor. "i've been trying to tell you."

"but how did you know about me?" danny asks after doing the same, and vlad sighs, the guilt still weighing on him.

"danielle." "... oh."

danny had looked rather uncomfortable, so vlad just sighed and told him what he knew about the zone situation. danny nodded and left through the front door. it was weird.

he came back a few days later and asked vlad if he'd been lying. vlad wasn't offended; the assumption was fair.

he came back again the next week, this time to pick up danielle, but she knew her cousin as well as she knew her father, and asked danny if they could hang out at home.

the next time danny came to see vlad, it was at his office, a couple hours after school got out. he annoyed his receptionist enough to get her to call him, and vlad immediately had her cancel his next meeting.

"some dumb transphobe at school," he'd muttered, like it was nothing, like it was stupid that he was upset. vlad's jaw clicked before he realized he was clenching his teeth.

it was a child danny had gone to middle school with; she'd called him by his birth name. he corrected her, politely, and at first she'd apologized, but then took danny's "no worries!" as an invitation for debate, apparently.

" - my voice, and - and my body, i guess she has gym with me, but for fuck's sake, cis guys can be scrawny, too. tucker's even worse than me - " " - and my name, like she kept saying that danny can be a girl's name, there must be a reason i picked a name a girl could have. and it's daniel, anyway, that's not a name girls have? i guess they can if they want, but -"

vlad wasn't catching every word over his fucking blood pressure ringing in his ears.

he just wanted to comfort him, but he had to be responsible first. jack wouldn't mind, in fact he'd probably be glad danny had come to vlad for something, but maddie would be worried. he waited for danny to take a breath. "do your parents know?"

"yeah, they were nice about it, but they didn't really get it. like, they don't - it's not their fault, but they never get it." his voice had been wavering a little the entire time he'd been there, but that's when he started crying. he laughed bitterly as he wiped at his eyes and mumbled that "she would've called this girly, too," talking about the bully again.

vlad took a deep breath so he'd sound calm - he didn't mean to, but he knew he sometimes scared the receptionist shitless - took the phone off the hook and dialed the front desk, asked her to reschedule the rest of his meetings that day, and hung up. and then he took danny in his arms without a word.

they've been close ever since, and neither of them are under the illusion that it's anything but super weird. no one really is, except for jack, who predictably thinks it's fantastic. sam and tucker especially are still wary of vlad.

not to mention plasmius is still, like, evil. that's the weirdest part for danny, having his supportive uncle proudly telling him how much he's improving as they battle. occasionally with his little cousin, participating on the side of whoever she was with when she got there.

also, can i just say vladimir is such a trans guy name. like that just screams "i have lived in wisconsin my whole life but i am of slavic descent and also very dramatic"

[bruhhhh-huhhhhh]

sup, hows going? Everything dandyfinelicius? Well, my dearfull quest for u my friend is a Headcannon of the 4 lords + Mother Miranda + Dimetrescu Daughters of an S/O who can teleport (like that movie, Jumper) and use that ability of it to help or prank them

~ Gracefully, Strange Annon

OH MY GOD I FINALLY HAVE MY OWN ANON HOLY SHIT I THINK- (other anons I still love you I promise <3)

Alcina Dimitrescu

She finds your ability fascinating

Sometimes, her daughters have you teleport around the castle, and they’re task is to find you

She appreciates it when you help out around the castle, even if you don’t need too

When you prank her with her daughters, however, she hates your power

Bela Dimitrescu

She always asks you to get her things when she’s tired

When she learns that you pranked her sisters, she snickers a little bit

But since it was brought up during dinner, she felt that she had to act mature, so she scolded you and gave you a fake totally real stern look

But when you prank her, she isn’t impressed

Cassandra Dimitrescu

She fan girls when you show her

She instantly asks you to show her and get her something

You have pranked her, many times, and she has pranked you back with Dani

You have also helped her prank her sisters

Daniella Dimitrescu

Since she’s the youngest, she expects you to get her everything she asks for

Her reasoning is that you don’t even have to walk, you can just teleport

You have pranked her sisters with her a lot

When you prank her, she pouts and gives you the silent treatment for exactly 1 hour and 30 minutes

Donna Beneviento

Angie definitely makes you teleport with her in your arms

Donna definitely has bad you teleport her somewhere once, and it made her sick. She’s gonna have to get used to that

The first time you pranked her, it was Angie’s idea.

You called for her in your guys’ personal bathroom that’s connected to your bedroom, and when she started walking you teleported behind her. 

When she turned around in confusion as to why you weren’t there, she screamed so loud and fell on her butt

You made it up to her by making her dinner and hot coco with marshmallows

Salvatore Moreau

Don’t prank this poor boy he’s so sensitive 

You pranked him once and he made you promise to never do it again because it scared him to tears

He does enjoy your ability because on the days when moving is literal hell for him, he feels less bad about asking you to do things for him because you can just teleport around

Karl Heisenberg

He finds your ability so fucking cool. 

He definitely acts like a kid in a candy store when you show him your ability for the first time

When you prank him, he always makes sure to get you back for them

Mother Miranda

She has asked you if she could do some experiments on you to see why you had your ability

You let her, and she took it a bit too far

You had to spend weeks in bed, and she wouldn’t stop apologizing. She always made sure to get you your favorite drinks and foods

You get her back by pranking her and scaring her shitless

[jazz-miester]

Hello. I really loved your optimus/elita/reader fic and I was wondering if you could do a continuation of that, please? If you can't, i understand

If I'm to have you, what then? Part 2

Pairing: Optimus x Elita x Reader

Reader Type: Gender Neutral Bot

Song: Saturn- Sleeping at last.

Warnings: none.

An: My dude this was one of my favorite pairings to write and I waited so long to post that one lol. But ya. It's perfectly chill that you want a second part! I'm glad you liked it enough to want more lol. I hope you enjoy! Sorry it's a bit short tho lol.

There it is. The singing of your spark. It rises and falls in its own rhythmic tune. Dances as they come near. It calls out to them. Frustrated you are waiting so long to bond with who is quite clearing your spark mates thank you very much.

You have something even better than that though, you think. With Elita laying on your chest. Her helm pressed into the crevice of your neck. Her venting leaving hot air on sensitive cabling.

Your servo curve around her helm. Didigits following every line of armor plating, the curve of the soft pink metal. Around her audio receptors to the line of her jaw and back up again.

The poor femme had overworked herself yet again. It was for the betterment of the Autobot army for sure but. It pained you to see her like this. As much as you enjoyed having her in your arms. The pinched look on her faceplates never quite seemed to fade away despite your best efforts. You would never quit trying though. Always willing to bring her some type of peace in all the chaos.

The twin doors to your shared habsuite swish open. Optimus steps through energon cubes held in servo. A soft smile curves his lips as his battle mask retracts.

"And how is she." Your servo stops. Brushing along her shoulders now.

"Could be better Prime. Although she finally fell into recharge a few clicks ago." You felt more than saw Optimus brush his knuckles along your cheek plating.

"Is there room for one more?" You chuckled. Low and soft.

"Maybe. If you get another blanket." And off he went gathering the fine mesh material from the closet. Just as quickly he was at the side of the berth once more. He gathered both you and Elita into his arms once he was settled. You were big for your frame. At least larger than the femme in your arms. But Optimus was the largest of your group.

You enjoyed it though. Being the smaller one for once. Able to receive comfort rather than giving it. You were very much touched starved. And Optimus and Elita sought to rectify it at once.

Optimus made you refuel first. Bring the cube to your lips before your own servos could reach for it. It made some part of you sing. Knowing that the mech made sure both you and Elita were taken care of first. Some part of you singing in the protectiveness of the mech. But at the same time, you fought it. Used to being the one taking care of others.

It was a battle of wills between you and the Prime. Who could love on the other the most without being taken care of.

The refueling done, you rested your helm on his chest. Listing to the singing of his spark. Deep and rhythmic. Echoed with something ancient. Optimus's field coiled around you and Elita. Such love and warmth flooding you. Almost too much after so little for such a long time. You felt his lips press into your helm. A heavy hum sounding from his chest. His arm tightens more around you and the sleeping femme.

Strength. It held. Protection. It was offered to you and his long-time mate. Protection in a state so vulnerable.

And slowly you did. Recharge sequences firing off one after the other.

Your spark pulled out. Trying to reach for the other two closest to it. You willed it back at first. Old fears catching up to you. The scars of rejection still fresh form your last relationships.

"A bleeding spark" Your Dani once told you. "You have a bleeding spark."

You loved them. Did you not? The Prime and his Elita.

And they loved you? Right.

Shown in soft touches. Talking late into the night cycles. Its was in Elita's nurturing nature. To make you care for yourself when you wanted to the least. To remembering that you loved your energon sickly sweet, but you wouldn't touch actual energon sweets with a ten-foot pole. It was through her you once again felt a soft loved you have craved for so long.

It was given to you by Optimus. In his willingness to help you through your own sorrows. Your aches and pains in your frame from taking one too many shots. It was in his protectiveness that you felt safe for once.

You let your spark go. Still half into recharge. Unlocking the cage, you had firmly never let go of. Release the key.

Elita stirred in your arms.

Optimus buried his helm into your shoulder.

Soft blue optics looked up at you. Elita now clearly awake.

Optimus let out a laugh. Happy. Overjoyed.

Elita's face flooded with a grin.

"Well. That's one way to wake up." She rolled over the top of you. Lips pressing to yours as they moved you to sit between Optimus's legs.

"Really? Truly?" Optimus asked.

You reached out for them once again. Spark pulling at the edges of their own.

It would take the opening of their chest plates to truly make such a bond. The crashing of energies. Of souls. To unite them. You smiled. Fulling pulling out of your recharge.

"Positive." You answered. "There is something about this. Us. To exist in this moment. I want it to last forever. Or at least as long as possible. With you. With Elita."

[ratcatcher0325]

Nobody’s Fool (Chapter #17)

Oh man! Chapter #17! ALL the fluffy fluff in this one! Eveline gets a new look at Penn from a different perspective. This may be my favorite chapter now, as opposed to Chapter #11. 

Comment below on your favorite chapter so far!!

Previous: Chapter #16

Next: Chapter #18

CW: Adult language, dehumanization, references to abuse

Reblogs > Likes. Thank you!

________________________________________

NOBODY’S FOOL

Chapter #17: Larger than Life

Word Count: 1,467 Read Time: Approx. 11 mins

[Penn's POV]

I opened my eyes to find myself standing on the floor of the bare stage, about a foot or so from the edge. The ground beneath my feet was so shiny and black, that I could actually see myself reflected in a perfect reversal. Slowly, I lifted my head and the air was sucked from my lungs. The room was HUGE! Mind bendingly huge.

I’ve since heard humans express a similar sentiment when visiting impossibly massive monuments like the Grand Canyon: the landscape yawning before you is so much bigger than your brain is able to comprehend that you feel as though you’re staring at a flat background instead of a truly three dimensional space.

I was so overtaken by this sea of seats, the twinkle of the house lights, the vast silence of this empty temple to music, that my legs gave way and I fell back, crashing to the floor. Everyone was amused by this reaction.

******************

Poor, tiny man! I wondered how he’d handle every single one of those seats being filled by a human, screaming his name and cheering for him. Riley was filming the whole reaction on the new camera. We all glanced up at each other, adoring our cutest band member. I knelt down, “Come here, little cowboy…” before wrapping two fingers around his rib cage and lifting him off the ground. I held him before my face. I knew this probably wasn’t the most comfortable position in the world for him to be held in, but I loved it. It was nice to see all of him at once, and, frankly, he just looked so tiny and helpless dangling there from nothing but a little bit of pressure from my two fingers, that I couldn’t help feeling overtaken by his cuteness. I kissed his cheek, chin, neck and chest. He chuckled, squirming happily, his face flushed with color.

As my lips made contact with his soft skin, I couldn’t help thinking about that kiss in the dressing room. Maybe it was just in my head, but that one felt different somehow… there was this spark that ignited between us. Come to think of it, had he ever kissed me back? I gave him little pecks all the time, no different than Dani, but I couldn’t think of a time he had pressed his lips to my skin until now. I couldn’t be sure. Maybe I was finding meaning where there was only a grateful little pet lost in the tidal wave of his own great big emotions.

I placed him back on his two little feet on the surface of his playing space, now upgraded to a four foot long table with a black pleated skirt around it. Crew members were hastily working to set up the slider, camera and projections while we focused on sound. Travis was the all-star, getting everyone what they needed, communicating to venue staff and sound guys what each musician wanted, helping the crew sync Penn’s unique instrument to their system… he did everything. When I placed the little guy down on the surface of the table, he was delighted to find his instrument sitting in a miniaturized stand which looked just like the other gigantic ones behind him. He also now had a proportional microphone and stand, the head of which was styled to look like an old fashioned radio mic, its chrome gleaming in the light. Riley mentioned that he ‘knew a guy’, which translated in Riley-speak to he got high and built them himself. “You gotta have the proper gear to be a proper leading man!” He’d winked. I could tell Riley had a huge soft spot for Penn. He didn’t keep many people close, but those that he did, he always treated like gold.

As Penn was marveling at his new mic, adjusting the stand to where he was comfortable, Travis approached the table, tapping the little man’s shoulder. “One last thing…. Here. I hope they fit….” Balancing on the very tip of Travis’ finger was a little black case. Penn took it from him and opened it up to find noise reducing ear pieces. Looking like no more than a tiny fleck of something flesh colored to our eyes, Penn picked them up between his fingers and tried them on. They fit perfectly into his ears. “I can’t believe I didn’t think about it till later but… I realized you’ll probably instantly go deaf out here without those.” Penn swallowed, still trying to process the scale of this whole operation, I imagined. “Be careful not to lose em, they’re one of a kind!” Penn hugged Travis’ fingers and thanked him profusely.

“Look at you, you’re a big shot now!” I mused, waiting for him to turn his back on me and flipping the back of his hat up with a finger tip so it slid down in front of his eyes.

“Hey!” He cried out, laughing. “Whatever, let’s just hope I don’t choke on stage tonight….”

I scoffed, “Like that’d even be possible! You can play this shit in your sleep!” Travis called everyone’s attention over the mic, and the sound check began. I hung back, letting them do their thing. Wishing I could be right alongside them.

Then, they began their set. I couldn’t help noticing a quarter of the way through the first song, hearing Penn’s voice ricochet through the building, more and more venue staff and crew stopped what they were doing to peer through the wings and watch, slack jawed, at the tiny man practically eating up the stage. When it got to one of his solos, that prim woman who had condescended to him before, stood with eyebrows raised. I figured that was the biggest outward reaction we were going to get from her. Soon, even the other two bands, a duo and a five piece band, made their way from their dressing rooms to see what all the fuss was about.

The crew finally got the camera synced up to live stream and were rehearsing how to frame the shots and following the little man as he bounced around, dancing and swaying. Even I gasped, when his image first came into focus. There he was, projected on two screens, 100x his normal size. For the first time since I had known him, he looked… human. No longer adorable in his tiny gestures, but an admirable, hardworking artist who was passionate about what he was doing.

I could suddenly see all these little details I’d never been able to observe otherwise: the shape and coloring of his finger nails, the hairs on his arms, the beads of sweat pouring from under his hat and down his cheek, his eyelashes, long, dark and curled. The stubble on his chin… he had stubble! Here I was, standing in the first row of seats, dead center, craning my neck to look at him, high, high above me. Who was the human and who was the pet now? My heart rate spiked.

Watching him like this, I had a sudden realization. He may be tiny, and need people’s help for a lot of things… but, he was undoubtedly a person. I felt my cheeks flush hot when I thought about how much I had babied and cooed at him all this time. He just looked so little and helpless to me! He hardly weighed anything at all, perched inside my hand! But, now, what I saw before me, magnified to help me understand, was a fully grown man, with a sweet smile and lovely eyes, who was unbelievably gifted. I swallowed hard. I couldn’t imagine what it must like to be him, pushed around and talked down to by everyone he’d ever known. Or any pet for that matter. I felt ashamed for not fully understanding that sooner. I wished I could look at him through this lens forever. Seeing him so up close and personal like this, the audience were going to fall in love with him instantly.

They moved on to rehearsing the first song he’d written, and I held my breath watching him. I got to relish in full detail his expert coaxing of the strings, his own pattern, his own melody. He bobbed to the music, sort of leaning over the instrument as his feet tapped along. He pursed his lips and closed his eyes. Then, right before the lyrics began, he seemed to notice that the camera was working. He cast his eyes up to each side of the stage, a huge smile on his face. Then suddenly, as if he knew how it’d make me feel, he whipped directly to the camera, singing straight down the lens.

My heart caught in my throat. It’s like he was staring directly at me. Singing his song only for me. Admiring every little detail as his sparkling, brown eyes held his smile, I couldn’t help feeling heat rise in my body. God. He was handsome…. Like, so fucking handsome. I felt like a teen at her favorite band’s concert, dreaming of the leading man singing only for her. Well here he was, doing exactly that! I bit my lip. Unable to tear my eyes away from his. I was falling into him. I was…. I was attracted to him?? No! No. Maybe?

I looked away, realizing I was gripping the edge of the stage like my life depended on it. I breathed in through my nose and out through my mouth trying to regulate my heartbeat. I was being absolutely silly. I loved him, dearly, but as a guardian, a protector, a friend. Not. Not like that. Right?