#and uncle mason makes an appearance once again

[callsign-bubbles]

congrats to the marchments 🤍 (and renowned third wheel jake oettinger)

[ren1327]

A Look Back at my Benji Fics 2: Ben's Family

So while a lot of work went into creating the Kon’s, the Pincus family was pretty easy.

I had created Ben’s parents on an afterthought at first. I expanded as I wrote more about Ben.

I'll more so be talking about thier appearances this time around and what they brought to said stories.

(Collapsed as not to make traffic)

Sandra Pincus

I had made Sandra at first as your typical “holding everything together” type. Like the mom from ParaNorman.

Then I thought, nah.

Sandra isn’t in a lot of stories, and I admit I preferred Kenji’s family drama. But what I saw with her was a very strong and no nonsense character with a soft enough touch to get her point across and also show support. While she mainly made kinda appearances here and there in fics, she still had a presence when it came to Ben.

I also wanted her to be kind of demi-romantic and asexual along with being an amazing partner to her husband(s).

But at the same time, she’s a loving parent and can come out of the shadows to fuck up the bad guys’ plans a la “Seeing Stars”

Bromley/David Pincus

This is where Ben’s family gets…complicated.

Ben’s Dad first go was David Pincus, a typical suburban type A Dad who cared about a son playing catch rather than reading or doing crafts. Not much to say about the original character in Sweet Survivor, just kinda there to wrap up the hospital scene.

Later, he would be renamed and expanded on.

Also, he would always be dead.

Bromley, or Brom, was Ben’s Dad who had passed away but was very complimentary to both Sandra and Simon (more on that later).

I had it to him, Sandra and Simon being close friends and kind of a throuple. Bromley and Simon were into each other, Sandra became one of their beards and now they’re all just together. In many stories, Brom passes, and Sandra marries Simon after.

Brom also has a kind of a mythical aspect to him in a lot of stories.

In “I’ll Run Away with Your Footsteps”, he was a commoner made knight and through nepotism, was able to marry a prince and have a child with him. He was killed and a lot of his story within the story was told like a romantic myth. And in “Seeing Stars” he has a secret romance with Simon and a peaceful and supportive divorce with Sanda.

And finally in the “Seeing Stars” AU, he is once again, dead. He was a facility manager who helped transport and feed the dinos. He had another forbidden romance with Simon, being in a lavender marriage with Sandra. In this story however, he had a twin brother who wasn’t really revealed to be Ben’s uncle until later. Brom’s twin, Jasper, was also married to a man, Grayson, outside his social class and were the parents of Mason and Brooklynn.

Supplemental; Jasper Monroe, Grayson Roth and their son Mason Roth are creepypasta characters I made almost 12 years ago. They (sans Mason, as he was changed into a different character) will appear in the Sentry reboot, Another Bloody Handprint.

Simon Masrani

This is where my brain gets rather…cracky.

I liked the idea of Simon having a kid...but it being out of left field.

At first Ben was not related to him at all, see Sandra and David. But later, in Pretty Boy, he being Simon’s sheltered son who he hid away and doted on?

I gotta admit, it was fun as heck.

In “I’ll Run Away with Your Footsteps”, he was a hermit slowly dying surrounded by dinosaurs before he’d find out his son was alive. He was also seen as mystical due to the forbidden and tragic romance he shared with Brom. I also wanted him to have a special ability in that story, so he having the ability to communicate with dinosaurs felt like something this man should be blessed with.

He doesn’t appear until “Seeing Stars”, leaving old recordings regarding his forbidden romance with a married man, Brom. In this, during the original Jurassic World and Camp Cretaceous, he was actually supposed to meet Ben for the first time but of course, died during the helicopter crash.

Dave and Barry

Dave was one of my favorite characters from the show and Barry was my favorite side character from the movies (I’m sorry, Barry, Claire is just so cool). So I paired the cool uncle with the goofy uncle.

In “Sweet Survivor” Barry was part of the rescue team with Roxy and Owen and there was a small hint of Dave’s crush on him.

In “Pretty Boy”, they had larger roles; Dave being a nanny for the Kons. Meanwhile Barry was the Joe to Ben’s Mia so to speak, transporting him and watching out for him on both Simon’s orders, and his own affection for his pseudo nephew. He and Dave hook up as a couple here too.

In “I’ll Run Away with Your Footsteps”, they are an established couple who literally buy a baby ben to save him and adopt him. When Ben is reunited with his remaining biological father, they are included in his life and all coparent despite Ben being an adult man.

In Sweater Weather, they are again Ben’s adoptive parents, Dave now Ben’s uncle from his mother’s side. Barry in particular, is very protective of Ben and ready to fistfight anyone who bullies him, even Kenji.

And that’s Ben’s family!

Thank you guys again for your patience.

I got a promotion and as awesome as that it, it is draining me. I'll put up a November personal goal list to keep me honest. Thank you again!

[hollowsart]

Cryptid Crawler Spiderverse info master post

Rogues Part 2 🔮⚡🤠

getting creative with a few since I didn’t have the info already written down for some of the rogues gallery, but that’s fine. that’s kinda what this is for.

Long post once again!

=============

==[[Mysterio]]==

Worked for years in the movie industry as a professional in the field of special and practical effects. a HUGE movie buff, has seen and collected many movies and posters over the years and knows all the ins and outs of various tricks and gadgets and all that has been used in movies from the first film pioneers to modern day movie makers. Working in movie production has been his job for years since graduating out of university in a different state (he got an idea later on from a guy he knew from university that was doing a study on fear).

Upon his sudden firing from his job as the times were changing and the higher ups deemed special/practical effects to be unnecessary with the rise of CGI being the new big thing. Safe to say.. he didn’t take it kindly. Luckily for him, though, he overheard the same people talk about a new superhero movie, but they didn’t have a villain yet.. Oh, so they need a villain? He’ll give them one.

Lives in a relatively small apartment, pays rent. It’s not the best living conditions, but it’s home to him. Like with everything, he makes do with what he has.

He may be stupid.

Great with robotics/engineering as well as chemistry and math. Created his own special gases and gadgets that he utilizes during his "performances" as Mysterio. He also used some when he was still doing movie work, but to a far lesser degree. He had a talent for it, but it sadly went underutilized during that work... at least now he's able to earn a decent enough pay for all the work he puts in and is able to do what he loves as well.

Outside of his Mysterio persona, Quentin Beck works a few spare jobs here and there for extra cash. One of which is a small restaurant favored by Acedia coincidentally. He never uses his real name while working these jobs as well his real identity has been kept unknown from the public. Still, it's best to be extra safe than sorry.

During one escape stunt away from authorities he encountered Phineas Mason, The Tinkerer, in hiding as well but for a different reason. Ever since this little encounter they’ve become an odd sort of duo, friends with similar technical skills they can bond over. Mason helps him with hiding out for limited periods of time by staying at his place while he relocates his theatrical lair. Mason helps out a lot with mass producing whatever little new gadgets he requires in exchange for his mathematical aid on his own projects.

Becomes a sort of fun uncle in a way to Mason’s granddaughter.

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

==[[Electra]]==

Maxine Dillon

Just a regular civilian trying to make a living. Never had a real chance to go to college. She works as an electrician and is very knowledgeable about the field, she is rather down to earth and mellow and looks up to a speedy red superhero in a distant city, definitely a role model.

She’s only had a few previous relationships, none ever lasted very long, she ended up being the one to break things off. I want to say around 3? 2 from her teen years and 1 during her college years.

She’s given up on putting herself out there since, focusing more on her job and being a little more at peace until the accident.

With how she is now, it’d be very difficult for her to have a relationship with someone. Doesn’t do much with her feelings of loneliness and isolation.

When unconscious her electricity is put in a “powered down“ state and her appearance reverts back to normal. When enraged her light glows even brighter and hotter and her electricity is far more erratic.  Likewise, when deeply saddened her light dims and you can see her appearance through the electricity much more clearly.

Maxine accepts her fate and becomes ok with it after awhile, but she has her moments and does eventually get a cure to stop the electricity and help her return to a normal life again after so so long of needing to get used to a life with her electrical disability.

After all, it’s not very fun at first and then it’s only so fun for so long until it just becomes tiring and frustrating to constantly be conducting electricity.

She can’t control her appearance, unfortunately, so whenever she’s conscious her electricity sparks back up. To be safer to others she appreciates the electrical suit she was given to confine the electricity. Utilizing the gloves and hood/mask when she isn’t feeling too great or just wants to try and be normal again.

..Or when she just really needs a hug.

It takes some time, but she does forgive Shocker for what he did and for what happened to make her what she is today. She’s become friends with him and sometimes visits and hangs out at his bar.

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

==[[Shocker]]==

Real name: Montana Shultz

He makes a decent amount of cash doing what he does, but most of it goes to keeping his billiards bar in as good condition as it is. He lives a modest life, however, living in a small quaint apartment.

He created the shock gauntlets himself, took him a year to figure out and make and another of practice to get so good. The gauntlets sit in specially made holsters that rest on his hips from his belt. He can easily and quickly dip his arms in to pull them up and shoot them off as though they were like guns in an old spaghetti western.

Takes on some odd jobs being paid to perform acts such as sabotage and theft and the like. He’s good at his job, but he does have his own struct moral code to which he lives and works by. If anything involves direct physical harm to anyone innocent he is not going to be happy and will deny taking the payment. This.. leads to an accident with Maxine. She was innocent and fell victim as a side effect to him being paid to sabotage the Connors Lab, destroying the electrical breaker and cutting all power.. Caused a circuit breaker inside to explode and well.. He has many deep regrets about that. He does what he can to atone and make it up to Electra. He considers himself blessed with a miracle that she understood and forgave him.

He, along with a fair number of others, want to seek revenge on the likes of Norman Osborn and has joined The Vulture’s “Sinister Six” alongside Mysterio, Rhino, Sandlady, and Electra. He keeps the morale and order.

While Montana may have eventually become friends with Electra he is also kinda like a father. Him, along with his enforcer friends, Ox and Fancy Dan, they’re all like fathers to her once the other two are introduced and learn about her. She has 3 dads now. 3 dads and 3 friends all in one triple package.

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

[chilly-me-softly]

Omg I have idea u don’t have to use it but little Alice with uncle dec that would really cute

How could I not write something with uncle declan x

One of the people who had been closest to him was undoubtedly Declan, the boy was over the moon when you told him you were expecting a baby, calling himself the favourite uncle even before Alice was the size of an orange. So it was only obvious he was there for both of you.

He'd been there when Mason didn't know what to do, lost to suddenly find himself with a newborn in charge and his life turned upside down. He was one of the few who had seen Mason hit rock bottom. When he had come to him after the call, the boy was just... broken. His body carried out the movements he was asked to make, but he wasn't there. His gaze was dull and lost and Declan was seriously afraid that he would never see him as his usual self again.

He stopped by at least once a day, at first to make sure he was out of bed or not drowning in his own thoughts. His presence was accompanied each time by a piece of advice - mum told me this mum told me that - and no matter how silly it might be, he tried to help out by trying to ease his best friend's burden for a while.

He'd been there when Mason started taking care of his little girl again, but talk still wasn't an option. In fact, the few times his voice was heard was because of Alice and this had raised Declan's hopes because well, with time everything else would come.

But then the anger had taken over, Declan realised that his friend was trying to provoke him in every way. Little comments here and there, after all they had been friends all their lives and knew each other's weak points. And he had tried so hard not to give in, to justify him, but he was no saint. He'd taken him to the gym and let him vent, they'd both come out sore but eventually Mason had started to let out everything he'd been holding in for those months. They'd talked and laughed for hours that night - they'd even shed a few tears but that was part of the package - and there had been a clear improvement over the next few days.

But he hadn't done it just for Mason. He was crazy about that little girl, she was like his own blood to him, and he never wanted that whole situation to weigh on her. He always has so much fun with children and he tried not to lose this trait with her because who needs it more than her.

He rings the doorbell at Mason's house and has to wait a while before the door opens; he's gotten used to it by now. And he can't help but chuckle when his friend appears in front of him, his hair ruffled and a definitely exhausted expression on his face.

"Help is here"

"Good luck. She's wilder than usual this morning" Mason rolls his eyes clearly in a bad mood letting him in and closing the door.

"Hey where's my favourite girl?"

"Uncle Deccy!!!" the shout and the sound of something banging makes him reach the kitchen where he sees the little girl sitting in her high chair with what may be crumbs from her breakfast in front of her.

"Good morning little girl. Have you had breakfast yet?"

"Yes"

"Oh I see... and what did you eat?" he asks leaving her a kiss on her head and sitting on a chair nearby.

"Milk and biscuits"

"Milk and biscuits? Gooood" Declan opens his eyes wide making the little girl smile proudly, before she starts tapping her feet against the high chair clearly wanting to get off.

"Alice stop banging on there, you're gonna break it" Mason sighs from his seat at the table with breakfast in front of him, his hand holding his head up and his eyes still full of sleep. 

"Daddy got Hammer and-"

"I just washed him with the sheets. That happens if you leave him anywhere" the child's last words are incomprehensible to Declan given Mason's louder, exhausted voice. Perhaps he is beginning to understand where that difficult morning is coming from according to his friend.

"What do you say you and I go to the park together?" so he tries to run for cover before one of them inevitably cries, undoing the strap and taking the little girl into his arms.

"Daddy too?"

"No, just you and me" he pats her nose a few times causing her to giggle and hide in his chest. "Daddy get some rest and then join us. How about it?" Alice finally nods but Declan is more focused on looking at Mason since the last sentence is directed at him.

After changing into something more comfortable for the park, hand in hand the two head towards the green area not far from the house. At first Declan leads her towards the slide and swing, where he makes little effort other than watching or pushing her. But then it's Alice herself who looks for more toys in the bag they have brought with them, a small ball is the one that catches her attention.

The child's laughter echoes through the open space, along with shouts for her uncle to be faster or to play again and again. The ball goes here and there, the little girl's quick legs too, while Declan is a sweaty mess almost immediately.

Mason decides it's time for the boy to call a truce, slowly approaching the two after standing back and watching them for a while. He has slept another couple of hours and after a shower worthy of the name he feels like a different, more serene person.

"Having fun?"

"Daddy!" Alice scampered quickly towards him, leaving everything she was doing behind, going to circle his legs with her small arms.

"Hey, are you having fun with uncle Declan?"

"Yes, daddy come. Let's play" the little one takes him by the hand hurrying him towards where she was with Declan, the boy who meanwhile sat on the ground gets a pat on the back as a greeting.

"Did she tire you out?!"

"Nah" but his panting and sweat say otherwise, "but don't ask me to get up from here"

Little Mounty

[fruitcoops]

Hi!! I was wondering if you could do another fic involving jules and coops together? Just like sweet moments between the three? I loved the baby sitting series you did and could not stop thinking about it❤️❤️ Thank you!!

Yeah, of course! I love writing my boy at any opportunity. SW credit goes to @lumosinlove, but the relatives are my ocs!

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Sirius asked under his breath as Remus finally—finally—appeared from the mass of people.

“It’s fine,” Remus said around a forced smile to a middle-aged man across the yard.

Sirius hid his mouth by pretending to look down at the nearest casserole dish. He didn’t even know what was in it; nobody had bothered with labels, and everyone’s dishes were the same basic florals in different colors. “I love you, Re, and I totally get the whole ‘meet the parents’ thing, but this is a bit much if I’m being honest.”

“Honey.” Remus’ shoulder pressed against his own. “I’m sorry you’re not having a good time, but my Aunt Jen would skin me alive if I didn’t bring the man I’m marrying to the family reunion. We can leave tomorrow if you really hate—oh, no.”

“Remus!” a shrill, excited voice called. Sirius felt his fiancé straighten up as a tall, redheaded woman in star-painted jeans hurried across the grass with three other women in tow. She reached up and gave Remus’ cheeks a squish, then leaned in a planted a lipstick-stamped kiss to his forehead. “How are you, my duckling? Was your flight alright? Make sure you stay away from the salt or else your feet will swell.”

“Hi, Aunt Jen,” Remus said, grimacing a little at her rib-crushing hug. “I’m doing well, and our flight was fine. How are you?”

“Peachy keen,” she assured him. Dark brown eyes lasered in on Sirius half a second later and he felt his fight or flight kick in. “And who are you?”

“Aunt Jen, this is—”

“It was rhetorical, honey,” Jen interrupted with a pat to Remus’ arm as she stepped closer to Sirius and immediately hauled him in for a hug. She was as tall as Remus, but broader in the shoulders and hips; he had never felt so engulfed by someone. It was a strangely enjoyable feeling.

“Aren’t you a handsome one?” the shortest of the group cooed, as if she was talking to a particularly small dog in a purse. “Our Remus always knew how to pick them.”

Remus furrowed his brows. “Aunt Lisa, this is the first boyfriend I’ve—”

“But he’s not just a boyfriend!” Jen trilled, giving Sirius’ cheek a pat. “He’s a fiancé, something I learned from your mother. Not from your father—oh, I gave him a talking-to about that—and not from you, duck.”

Sirius bit back a laugh at the nickname and spared a glance to his left, where Remus had gone pink all the way to his ears. “Sorry.”

“Introduce us!” the shortest insisted, taking the other two by the hands as pulling them forward with an eager smile.

“Everyone, this is Sirius Black, my fiancé.” Remus gestured between them, and the four women beamed at him. “Sirius, this is Aunt Jen, Aunt Lisa, Aunt Allison, and Aunt Mary, my dad’s sisters.”

“It’s lovely to meet you,” Sirius said, holding a hand out.

“No need to be so formal,” the brunette grumbled with a teasing grin. “We have heard so much about you from Lyall. After those damned pictures—”

“Allison,” Jen hissed.

“—after the damned pictures,” Allison repeated with a pointed look. “I was about ready to drive up to Gryffindor myself and give that lousy son of a bitch a piece of my mind—”

“Allison!”

“—but Lyall talked me down and I have been waiting to meet you ever since.” She finished with a soft huff and gave his arm a quick squeeze. “Remus is a lucky boy to have you. It’s very exciting to see you in person at last.”

Sirius’ heart gave a happy little ka-thump and he smiled. “I’m glad to be here. Thank you for having me.”

“He is so polite,” Lisa said to Remus out of the corner of her mouth with a wink and a thumbs-up. “Good choice.”

“You know what I just realized? We haven’t said hello to Jules yet. We’ll see you in a few, yeah?” Without waiting for an official answer, Remus wrapped an arm around Sirius’ waist and practically carried him away from the table. Once they were out of earshot—and the aunts had busied themselves with one of the younger Lupins—Remus relaxed with a slow exhale. “I am…so sorry.”

“For what?”

“I had no idea they were going to corner you like that. I mean, I did, but I was hoping it wouldn’t be for another few hours. They tend to move in a pack at reunions, like sharks. Or wolves.”

“They’re really sweet.”

“They are,” Remus said grudgingly, though Sirius could read the affection dripping off him like his favorite book. “My dad’s the youngest of five, and I was the first nephew. You can imagine how that went.”

“Baby of the baby?”

“Exactly.”

“Can I ask one thing?” Remus nodded, visibly confused, and Sirius found he couldn’t keep his grin down any longer. “Duckling?”

“I hoped you didn’t hear that,” he groaned as they headed toward the kids’ play area beneath a large oak. “Long story short, it involved five-year-old me, a pond, and a sinus infection that made me sound like a duck when I sneezed.”

“Oh my god,” Sirius laughed, earning himself a light elbow to the ribs. “And the name stuck?”

“Considering she was the one that had to stay with me while my folks were working, she could call me whatever the hell she wanted. Please don’t ask her about it unless you want a thirty-minute TED talk about the ins and outs of my sinuses.”

“She’s a doctor?”

“No, she just overshares.”

“Sirius!”

Sirius looked up and saw a herd of small children racing toward them, led by his favorite person under the age of eighteen; Jules crashed into his legs and squeezed him tight around the waist. “Hey, I missed you!”

Jules propped his chin below Sirius’ sternum and stared up at him with the classic hazel-gold eyes that were far more common than Sirius believed before they arrived in the Lupins’ backyard. “I missed you, too! How’s the team? How’s Harry? Is he still super small or did he do that weird thing that babies do where their legs grow and the rest of them still looks normal? How was your flight? Did you have turbulence?”

Sirius thought for a moment. “Good, also good, growing normally, and yes.”

“Sweet! Come play cornhole with us!” Jules grabbed his hand and dragged him along the grass at the closest thing he could manage to a sprint with Sirius’ added weight—the pre-teen years had lent him gangly legs, though he didn’t seem quite sure how to use them yet. He looked more like a foal than a sixth-grader.

“What the hell is cornhole?” Sirius muttered as the flock of kids ran ahead to grab armfuls of beanbags.

Remus grinned. “Something I’m about to kick your ass at.”

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

By the time the sun set, Sirius was exhausted. He had been introduced to dozens of people who looked just enough like Remus to be eerie, as well as plenty who seemed to have been acquired by one Lupin or another over the course of their life. Jules fluctuated between laminating himself to Sirius’ side and disappearing for an hour at a time, only to return more grass-stained and rumpled than ever as he begged Remus to swing him around by the ankles again. His ass had been thoroughly kicked at cornhole and freeze tag; it was a true miracle he hadn’t already passed out into a food coma. For all of his earlier griping, Sirius couldn’t think of a time in recent months when he had been more content.

“You’re a brave soul,” Remus remarked as they sat in the grass together and watched the fireflies wake. Though it was a warm night, it seemed the citronella candles littering the tables were doing their job of chasing off mosquitoes.

Sirius leaned his head on Remus’ shoulder. He smelled like grass and summertime and sunbaked warmth. “Am I?”

“Mhmm. I’m sure most people would have run screaming by now.”

“I like your family.”

A beat of silence passed; Remus rested his temple against the top of Sirius’ head. “I’m really glad to hear that. They’re weird and loud, but I love them.”

“And I love you.”

“Are you saying I’m weird and loud?”

“On occasion.”

“Asshole,” Remus laughed, giving him a nudge that hardly qualified as more than a gentle sway.

“Language, there are eight million kids around.”

“They’re busy.”

Sirius watched as small group run by in a wave of giggles, all clutching mason jars of fireflies with their names written on masking tape. “Thank you again for asking me to come with you.”

“Like I said, Aunt Jen would—”

“Remus.” He fell quiet. Sirius didn’t remember the last time he said Remus’ full name aloud. “Your family loves you so much. They’re everything I ever wanted growing up, and it means the world that you wanted to share them with me. All they want is to see you happy. It was amazing to finally meet them.”

“They really, really love you,” Remus said softly, his voice a little thick. “I had about twenty people tell me how wonderful you are. They all thanked me for bringing you, and not a single one mentioned the celebrity thing. Even my Uncle Jay didn’t say a word about hockey.”

“He was the one in the jersey?”

“I’ve known him for my entire life and I’ve never seen him without one.”

“Huh.” Sirius tucked his face closer to Remus’ neck and let the sound of the bullfrogs in a distant marsh lull him. “What time is it?”

“Almost eleven. The adults will be up for a while, but the kids will start crashing soon.”

Footsteps on the cool grass rustled to their right and Sirius looked up. “Who wants pie?” Aunt Allison singsonged, breaking their quiet bubble with paper plates and utensils. “This one is blackberry, but we have peach, pumpkin, and a few others on the table if you’re still hungry.”

“Just a small piece, please,” Sirius said.

Allison paused and cocked her head, then burst out laughing. “Oh, you’re funny!”

“I am?”

“Don’t fight it,” Remus whispered.

“You are a growing boy,” Allison said as she cut a thick slice and plonked it onto his plate. “And there’s no such thing as too much pie.”

I’m 26, Sirius wanted to say, though he held it in. “Just a small one for me, as well,” Remus said.

“Ha!” Allison snorted. “You’re already too skinny. Eat your pie or you’ll end up a string bean like your father. The NHL might have given you muscle, but it’s useless if you don’t enjoy some of your favorite aunt’s—”

“—woah, hey now—”

“—pie once in a while.” Allison kissed the tops of their heads once both plates were secure and bowing in the middle. “I’m going to make sure the kids aren’t poking around in the river again. Sleep well, you two.”

Sirius stared down at his plate as she wandered away. “I’m honestly going to die if I eat this.”

“Yeah, please don’t make yourself sick on pie. You really don’t have to eat all of that. The aunts and uncles are convinced that none of us are eating properly once we turn eighteen.”

“Really?”

“I wish I was kidding. You’re going to sleep so well tonight, though.”

As if on cue, Sirius stifled a yawn with the back of his hand and cuddled under Remus’ arm again. A familiar shadow bounded over not two seconds later and he barely held down a groan. “Hey, can I join you?”

Remus shrugged. “ ‘course.”

“Sweet.” Jules settled himself across their laps, staring at the sky with his head pillowed on Sirius’ thigh. “Did you have fun? I’m really glad you could come.”

“I had a great time,” Sirius answered honestly. Now please move on so I can take a nap.

“Mom and dad and me got here yesterday, and Aunt Jen kept checking the door for you guys even though she knew you weren’t coming until today. She was worried you wouldn’t like us, I think.”

“That was never an option, Jules.”

“Yeah, I know.” A devilish grin flickered over his face. “Remus is the weirdest of all of us, and if you want to marry him—”

“Get off,” Remus grumbled, shoving Jules’ legs onto the picnic blanket. “You know, you were a lot nicer before you turned eleven. Can I return you and get a new one? I have the receipt somewhere.”

“Nope.”

“That’s all a birth certificate is, right?” Sirius raised his eyebrows. “If you bring it back in good condition, I hear they give you a ten percent discount.”

Jules scowled. “That’s so not true.”

“How do you think I got Regulus?”

“Isn’t it past your bedtime?” Remus asked with a pointed look. “Run along, problem child.”

“Of the two of us, I’m the least problematic.” Despite his words, Jules clambered to his feet and dusted his hands off over Remus’ head. “I’m not the one that got a secret boyfriend and got engaged in a year. I’m so easy. Mom and dad want two of me.”

“Keep telling yourself that,” Remus sighed as he stretched out on the blanket. “They had a second kid because they wanted two of me.”

“You’re adopted.”

Remus cracked one eye open in disbelief. “No, I’m not.”

“How do you know?”

“Because—y’know what, go to bed. Or go find the stampede, I think they’re by the river.”

Sirius whistled lowly as Jules scampered off again. “That was impressive. Isn’t your aunt over there?”

“Yep.”

Realization clicked into place. “She’s going to make him go to bed.”

“Yep.”

“You’re brilliant.”

Remus smiled without opening his eyes, and tugged Sirius down by the sleeve to lay next to him. “You’re just figuring that out now?”

The stars were brighter than anywhere Sirius had ever seen; for a moment, he was struck speechless by the endless rivers of sparkling white overhead. He stared until his eyes burned from dryness, then put his head on Remus’ chest and kept on looking. There was no way he could tear his gaze from it. A few shooting stars streaked across the clear sky and he felt his heart skip a beat in pure amazement when he realized there was nothing else he would wish for in that moment. He could listen to Remus’ heartbeat and the sound of his new family talking against a backdrop of the night, relishing in a full belly and cool wind, and simply stay there for as long as he liked.

[clinical-manners]

The Professionals Chapter three

This one wasn't easy to write, tbh. Mostly dialogue, which I've never been great at putting down. Oh well, hope y'all enjoy.

"Butch has changed a little since you left, Nurse." Looking up from the animal, Nurse saw someone who looked surprisingly like themself: A mass of static behind a porcelain mask, dressed in simple clothing denoting their position. This one, however, wore a long trench coat, a blue T-shirt with a cartoonish game controller on it, khaki pants with the shirt tucked into it, a pair of thick glasses over the mask and black sneakers. This was someone The Nurse had never met. 

Woody realized this, and walked over to the strangely dressed entity to put an arm around their shoulders. "Nurse, this is your youngest sibling, the Programmer. They're who came after Mason decided to leave." The Stonemason, Woody's brother. A shame what happened to him. But to be replaced with this…

The Programmer stepped forward, both to leave Woody's grasp and to approach the Nurse. "I have heard about you, from Mother and Father. They both wanted you to come for this." They told them, voice crackling like a radio slightly out of tune. The Nurse was confused for a moment, before realizing. "You're choosing your form soon. I see." They didn't know what else to say. There wasn't anything to say.

Woody, again, intervened before the silence became too awkward. "Yeah, Graham here is a real strong one. Stronger than Baron, even at his prime, I think." The Woodsman disparaged the middle child every chance he got, for good reason. The Programmer simply laughed. "I won't deny it. Mother hates when we bring it up, of course, but she doesn't scare me. After the ceremony, I might even challenge her position as head of the family." 

The Nurse took a deep breath, not that either of their family members understood the action. They needed to center their wildly running thoughts, and went through a quick series of questions and answers. Why were they back at The Household? Because Graham, their newest Sibling, was finally ready to choose their physical form. Why was that such a big deal? Because finally picking a concrete appearance was something they did once in their lifetime, which meant it was one of the few special occasions the Family celebrated. 

The average time frame for this was fifty years, which The nurse could now see coming for The Programmer. But why invite The Nurse back? This wasn't something they did for their other siblings. They knew they had more, there was no way it could only be the two of them. Even if they had become uncles or aunts.

The Nurse realized they had been staring for an extended period of time, which neither Graham or Woody noticed. The youngest was still boasting about his power, and the Patriarch was eating it up. "Of course, I wouldn't dream of kicking you from your position, Father. You're the only one keeping this place from falling into complete disarray." The Programmer told the other man, who chuckled and pat him on the back. "Its a good thing I won't be here for it, then." The Nurse said in a deadpan voice, making both Woody and Graham look at them with surprised expressions. 

"You... aren't staying?" Asked The Woodsman, trying to come up with more to say. He wasn't able to find anything, so Graham spoke up instead. "Why not? You're a part of the family, even if your... proclivities... aren't what most of us agree with." And there was the reason. They would never agree with their decisions, no matter how progressive the youngest was once they chose their form and replaced Mother as head of the family.

"No, I won't be staying, not because of what happens here, but because of what happens out there." They told the two, leaving the room to avoid further conversation. Not that they could really avoid them. Any of them could go in any direction and end up where they wanted to be, as was the nature of the Household. For the next few moments, however, the Nurse simply wanted to be somewhere that no one would ask them questions, which was exactly where they ended up.

[btsqualityy]

—continue—

Two weeks later, Mason and Kinsley are still in the baby making process. They are taking a much needed rest when the door bell rings. “Is someone coming over?” Kinsley reaches for phone and looks. “Not that I know of…I’ll check” Mason slumps back down on her pillow as Kinsley leans over the side of the bed. He smacks her ass and she looks back at him and smiles. “I’ll be back…get ready for another round. Get it up for me..” Mason groans she kinsley leans over and kisses him. “I want you to fuck me until I can’t walk straight like you did on our honeymoon.” Mason grabs her head and looks in her eyes. “I’ll tear you open baby..”kinsley kisses him again and Mason watches Kins put on her robe. “Hurry and bring that ass back here” She flicks him off playfully as he maxes crude hand gestures. kinsley goes downstairs to see her dad standing outside looking impatient. She opens the door. “Daddy! What are you doing here?” Yoongi looks at his daughter’s appearance and knows exactly what’s been going on. Yoongi scoffs. “We had a studio session Kinsley” her eyes widen. “Shit! Sorry daddy! It slipped my mind!” Yoongi goes inside. “I can tell” Kinsley rolls her eyes. “Princess! Come back to bed!” Mason’s whiney voice is heard from upstairs before he is seen. Kinsley prays that he has clothes on for once bit of course Mason doesn’t. “Baby! I must of not been hitting your fucking cervix well enough for you to still be walking aro-“ he stops on the landing of the stairs with nothing on when he sees his father in law staring at him. He quickly backtracks then peeks his head out from behind the wall. “Fuck…sorry! hi uncle Yoongi..” Kins looks between her terrified husband and fuming father. “Daddy I’ll be there tomorrow okay?” Yoongi opens his mouth to say something but decides against it. “10am Kinsley” she nods and closes the door. “Ugh!” Kinsley frowns. “So…is this a bad time to finish what we started…?” kinsley looks at Mason. “Fuck Mason!” Mason just looks innocent. “What?”

Omg this is actually hilarious 😭😂Yoongi would’ve been PISSED 🤣🤣

[rodeoxqueen]

SMELLS LIKE QUARAN-NEROKIRI SPIRIT 

Nero/Kyrie

“In quarantine, Nero and Kyrie spend time together.” 

Rodeo’s Two Pieces: 

First time writing for Nero/Kyrie. Tread lightly with my take of their dynamic. 

(I)- Dalgona Coffee and Cookies. 

Despite how everything was shut down and the grocery was found vacant of basic necessities, Nero was grateful to at least be with someone he loved the most. 

“Look, we probably need some time off from kickin’ demon ass anyways,” Nico explained, smoking a cigarette during the video chat. 

“Yeah, not like demons care about being six feet away. People don’t even do that.” Nero looked at himself in the little square in the corner of his phone. Clad in a grey hoodie, he hadn’t even bothered putting on anything over his boxers. No one had come to visit since the mandate to stay inside, what was the point? 

Nico was in her garage again, from what he could see in the camera view. Cigarettes and old cups of coffee littered her desk, warbled country music playing off-view. 

“Who knows, maybe I’ll make something to fix that. I was thinking a mask-gun, rapid-fire reloading.” 

“Artisan of Arms, huh?” Nero laughed, getting up from his bed. 

“You fuckin’ bet. Now I gotta go. Got some things to weld.” 

“See ya, Nico. Stay safe, alright?” 

“Yeah, yeah.” He gave a peace sign before pressing “end video call.” 

The video chat ended and Nero tucked his phone into his pocket. Even banter just wasn’t the same virtually. 

“Who was that? Nico?” Nero made it down the hallway to see Kyrie, bustling about getting things from the cupboards. 

“Yeah, still building stuff as usual.” 

Kyrie had been in their apartment’s kitchen, deciding to try her hand at some recipes she saw online. A bag of flour, too many bowls, and more chocolate than Nero remembered buying, all laid out on the table. 

Just when he wanted something to eat, he’d have to wait or his girlfriend would practically make enough to feed an army and be surprised when he didn’t want anymore. 

He opted for a cup of water instead. 

Nero admired her hair, how it looked when it wasn’t in a ponytail, how it sat perfectly on her shoulders. Seeing how she started to measure some ingredients, he took the hair tie on his wrist, careful fingers bringing it into a low ponytail. 

“Oh, thank you.” She commented, opening her booklet of recipes she had handwritten. Neat, slanted cursive in a smattering of blue, red, and black read out recipes for cookies, cakes, and bread. 

“You look busy, planning to make all of those?” Nero rested his chin on her shoulder, shrouding her with warmth. 

“Well, I don’t know how long we’re going to be stuck at home, might as well try some recipes out. Maybe we can deliver some to the orphanage.” 

“That is if I don’t eat all your prototypes first.” She laughed, birdsong to Nero’s ears. 

“As long as you help me I don’t mind if you do.” Kyrie handed him a measuring cup. Nero sighed, taking it. He always lost count of how many cups of flour he was supposed to put in the bowl. 

A jar of porous dough caught his eye as he sifted some baking soda in his white mixture. He took it from Kyrie’s side of the island. 

“Whoa, what is this? A science experiment?” Kyrie chuckled, watching Nero scrutinize the date on the white tape to the top of the mason jar. 

“No, it’s a sourdough starter! It’s basically wild yeast. We can make bread with it since people bought out all the dry yeast in the grocery store.” 

Nero shook it with curiosity and then opened the silver lid, making an “eh” face at the smell. 

“It’s yeast alright.” 

Kyrie continued whipping up the sugar and butter mixture, Nero helping himself to a handful of chocolate chips. 

“Have you talked to your uncle and father? They must be staying at the shop in Redgrave.” 

Nero shrugged. 

“Most likely, I haven’t talked to them yet. Dante probably didn’t pay the phone bill and Vergil doesn’t know how to use the phone anyways.” 

“Let’s just hope they’re getting along during this time.” 

Nero thought back to all the “family outings” he had since his uncle and father returned from hell, mostly just jobs becoming contests of strength that turned to friendly family fights. Endless banter and elbowing. 

Honestly, compared to that, standing next to his girlfriend while they shaped cookies for the oven was heaven. 

Once the chocolate chip cookie dough was done baking, Kyrie insisted they make some whipped coffee while they cooled.  

“I thought you didn’t like coffee, Kyrie.” She stooped down to find something in the lower cabinets. A robotic hand that was colored dark blue and black, his old Devil Bringer, appeared with a tiny whisk duct-taped to it. 

“Yeah, but that TikTok made it look so good.” Nero handed her the glass container of instant coffee. 

Turning on the Devil Bringer, the tiny whisk spun to life, rapidly mixing sugar, coffee, and water together. With her back turned, Nero popped a thing of cookie dough in his mouth. 

“Honestly, Nico should have patented these Devil Bringers, make a bunch of money, and maybe she’d stop trying to rip me off all those times.” 

“Support local businesses, Nero.” 

He looked over her shoulder, surprised at how an abysmal brown mixture had become fluffy and thrice its previous volume. 

Two cups of milk poured, the practically instantly whipped coffee laid on top like a decadent Mount Everest next to a still-warm plate of cookies. 

“Cheers!” Kyrie clinked glasses with him, stirring her mug vigorously with a spoon. He copied her, taking a sip of surprisingly light and sweet coffee. 

When he lowered his cup, Nero both revealed to the world a mustache of whipped coffee. 

Kyrie snorted into her cup, covering her mouth as she bit back a laugh. Embarrassed, Nero went to wipe it off when Kyrie pecked him on the lips. She drew back to reveal an imprint of the ‘stache on her own upper lip. 

“We match now.” Kyrie giggled, helping herself to another gooey cookie. 

Half a plate of cookies and two mugs properly drained of its contents, Kyrie and Nero loaded up the dishwasher to do the work. 

“This is coffee, why am I tired?” Kyrie yawned. 

The couch was this god-awful IKEA purchase that took hours for Nero to just figure out what the instructions meant. But right now, it perfectly supported both of them while they slept away their food coma. 

(II)- Curl Up And Dye. 

After the second time the mandate got lengthened, Nero could sense that Kyrie was starting to wane in her ever-positive attitude. The news had nothing good to say, and the number of shows they had binged left them indifferent to watching anything more. 

They did a lot of singing during quarantine, Kyrie always being the musical one. Evanescence was one of their favorites to sing together, Nero’s guitar skills and Kyrie’s ability to hit those high notes left many memorable nights of laughter. 

After a while, Kyrie began to just sit on the couch a lot and have Nero pay her company. 

“What’s wrong?” Kyrie sighed heavily, curling into Nero’s hoodie as he opted to stay shirtless. 

“I don’t know Nero, it just feels like everything is the same. We go through the same things every day and I just feel...trapped.” 

Nero kissed the nape of her neck, humming in agreement. 

“Look, I’m usually the one going to you for stuff like this but...it will get better. It’s been a really hard time for all of us, and we’re just watching everything go downhill. It’s not a good situation but, you got me. Always. And there’s still a lot of things we can change up if that helps.” He stroked her hair and rubbed her back, feeling her take a deep breath. 

“You’re right Nero. That really did help. Thank you for listening.” 

“Of course.” 

While he scrolled on his own phone, he didn’t heed all the things Kyrie was watching. She touched her own long hair, seeing the way other people recorded their own home-salon trims. 

“Things to change, huh?” She mumbled. 

So here they were now. 

“It looks so bad!” Kyrie exclaimed, her face in her hands, hair on the bathroom sink. Nero shook his head. 

“No it’s not, Kyrie! You look fine, just let me fix it!” In the mirror, Nero cringed at the way her hair was ridiculously over-layered. 

“Um, what did you try to do-” 

“Curtain bangs! Oh Nero, I shouldn’t have tried to change up my hair!” Kyrie was thoroughly upset, seeing how her bout of bravery lead to her bangs being mauled by her own hands. 

Nero hugged her, noting that she had been wearing his shirt while she trimmed her hair. 

Okay that shirt’s gonna itch for a while until all the hair comes out. 

“It’s okay, let me see if I can fix it.” Kyrie blushed in the mirror, groaning at how bad her hair was cut. 

“There’s no way you could make it worse than what I did.” 

Nero gingerly took the scissors Kyrie put in the sink, a little bit too small for his hands but good enough. Although he was no stylist, he could tell where Kyrie had either cut too much off or unevenly. 

Eventually, they did manage to cut it in a way that hid the previous mistakes. Kyrie took another deep breath. 

“I shouldn’t have been so impulsive.” She murmured, arms crossed. 

Nero chuckled at her rare emotional outburst. He was glad to have been able to be there for her. She always hid how she felt, helping others her way of expressing herself. Now with no one around but him, he totally understood that she felt helpless. 

No one liked being helpless. 

He kissed her cheek and a lightbulb went off in his head. 

“You wanna dye my hair?” Kyrie turned around in surprise. 

“What?” 

“I mean, who knows how long this shutdown is gonna be, it’ll be fun,” Kyrie noted how Nero had forgone shaving, his peach fuzz becoming something more. 

Honest blue eyes peered at her, wondering what she would think. Her surprise softened to a sort of relief in their solidarity. 

“What color, Nero?” 

“Neon green-” 

“Nico’s going to make fun of you.” Kyrie giggled. Nero shrugged nonchalantly. 

“I don’t mind it.” 

(III)- Can’t Get Out Of It, Get Into It. 

“Nero, you look so fucking ridiculous.” 

“Shut up, Dante.” 

His uncle finally managed to figure out how to work the virtual chat on his fossil of a computer, and Nero was already prepared to end the call. 

His father sat slightly off-camera, not in the mood to entertain Dante’s antics to ridicule his son. Although, he did look oddly radioactive with his washed-out green hair and strong quarter-past five o’clock shadow.  

“Quarantine did not do you a favor, good lord,” Dante commented, kicking his feet up on his desk. Nero flipped him off. 

“Good to know you’re still living in shambles, not surprised neither of you cleaned up after yourselves.” The number of bottles on the floor was a travesty and the couch littered with poetry books Vergil had slowly begun to hoard. 

Nico entered the zoom call, smoking another cigarette Nero was lucky to not have to smell. 

“Nice broccoli head.” 

Nero flipped her off as well. Kyrie came into view, smiling at her boyfriend’s family and their shared friends. Nero decided to get a drink, clicking a few buttons before letting Kyrie have the seat. 

As they discussed how the business would continue with Devil May Cry, Kyrie sat next to Nero. 

It was mainly business, until it got to a certain line that Dante said. 

“I don’t know, it just feels like things are just going to keep staying like this. Hate to break it to you Nero, but it’s going to be tough for a while.” 

Kyrie finally heard enough, scooching Nero aside so she could talk. 

“Kyrie, wait-” 

“We’re going to get past this. As long as humanity still keeps coming together for the sake of benefiting each other, and we keep working to make sure to keep safe, we will get past this. We just have to keep hoping, and sure, hoping isn’t always going to make you feel better. I would know. But in a time where we do feel helpless, we should connect with other people in a different way. That’s why we succeed, we keep moving, we keep adapting! And hope, hope keeps that going.” 

Kyrie took a long breath. Looking at the dumbfounded group, she waited for a response. 

“Um, Kyrie. You were muted.” Nero finally said. Kyrie realized her blunder and how Nero’s hand was attempting to unmute them. 

“Oh.” Kyrie flushed, looking embarrassed. 

“I have no idea what you just said, but that’s okay.” 

“I’m sorry, that was so awkward.” 

“Don’t worry yourself, Kyrie. I bet it was real sweet whatever you had to say,” Nico assured. 

The zoom call was full of laughter since, a business call turned to a time to discuss how each person was doing. 

Dante and Vergil had spent days and nights sparring, Vergil learning more about humanity from Dante, and “making their own pizzas.” 

Nico had continued welding and making weapons for her own curiosity rather than based off of commission-based instructions. The van finally had the vinyl player fixed and she apparently gave herself a stick-and-poke. 

“So what did you two love birds do?” Nico asked, lighting another cancer stick. 

Nero and Kyrie looked at each other, smiling at their shared memories of this strange period in human history. 

“Where do we even start?”  Kyrie said, thinking of all the days and nights that seemed to breeze by and also slowly progress. 

Nero ruffled his longer messy green hair, Kyrie tucking her curtain bangs behind her ear. As they were two peas in the pod, Nero had decided to get another set of gray sweats for Kyrie, matching finally. 

Kyrie bit into a cookie, offering Nero some. 

“Smells like quarantine spirit, huh?” Dante finger-gunned.

Nero chuckled. 

“Hell yeah.” 

[nataliedanovelist]

GF - National Treasure

An AU in which Ford and Stan didn’t have a stupid fight, and the Pines family had been entrusted with a secret generations ago...

~~~~~~~~~~

The pair of eight-year-old twins carefully opened the screechy door to the attic. Inside the room was filled to the brim with boxes and old random stuff, but Mabel and Dipper knew better. They grinned and started to explore.

They were at Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford’s house for Thanksgiving. Normally the weather is bright and sunshiny and it’s perfect for making leaf piles and running around, but not today. Today it was raining with the occasional ring of thunder and a flash of lightning. So rather than go outside while the adults sat around the burning stove and talked about boring adult stuff, the kids decided to go on a little adventure.

Mabel flipped a switch and a sad hanging lightbulb turned on. Seeing what they wanted, Dipper grinned and started to climb cardboard boxes like steps for a book up on the highest stack. Mabel held the boxes still for her brother, and together they retrieved the old maroon book encrusted with a gold emblem. Mabel made sure Dipper climbed down safely, and then they looked down at the book together with their backs to the door, a poor decision.

“Whatcha got there?”

The kids gasped loudly and turned around. Standing side by side was their great-uncles, the only other pair of twins in the family. Grunkle Ford stood in his slacks and red sweater-vest with a brown dress shirt and trenchcoat, a soft smile on his face and his six-fingered hands in his pockets. Grunkle Stan had his arms crossed over his beefy chest, smiling slyly at the kids, as if telling them silent that he was proud of them for being so sneaky. He wore worn blue jeans and a faded white tank-top, and had an old maroon robe on.

“Uh…” Dipper stuttered, still a little startled by the sudden appearance and for getting caught. “Um… we…”

“You both know you’re not supposed to be up here.” Grunkle Ford reminded them gently, not sounding at all angry, rather amused.

Dipper nodded, but Mabel was bold enough to admit, “We just wanted to know the truth.”

“Ah,” Grunkle Stan pulled a cardboard box to himself and sat comfortably. “I guess I’m up for a little storytelling.”

Grunkle Ford sat on a separate box and asked his brother, “Are you sure about this, Stanley?”

“They’re old enough.” Grunkle Stan said confidently, ruffling their little heads. Giggling, Mabel crawled up onto Grunkle Stan’s lap and Dipper sat on Grunkle Ford’s lap, the book still in his tight grasp.

“Tell us a story, tell us a story!” Mabel pleaded, bouncing on Grunkle Stan’s lap.

“Okay, okay.” The old man chuckled and began to tell his story. “It was 1852…”

“No it was not.” Grunkle Ford interrupted. “It was 1832.”

“Shaddup, I’m telling the story!”

“I’d let you tell it id you would tell it correctly.”

The kids giggled at the playful bickering and Grunkle Stan joined in. “Alright, fine, it was 1832. It was storming, kinda like it is right now, and late into the night. Charles Carroll was the last guy who had signed the Declaration of Independence and was still alive.”

“You do know what that is, right?” Grunkle Ford asked the children, who both nodded.

“We learned about it in school.” Dipper informed.

“Oh, good.”

“Anyways,” Grunkle Stan injected, excited to tell his story. “Charles Carroll was part of a secret society called The Masons.”

“Like me!” Dipper gasped.

Grunkle Ford chuckled and ruffled his hair. “That’s right, my boy. That’s right.”

“You see, this Charles guy was dying.” Grunkle Stan went on. “And so he had his stable boy drive him in the dark storm to the White House so he could talk to Andrew Jackson.”

“Why?” Mabel asked.

“Cuz Charles had an important secret to tell the president before he died.”

“Did he talk to him?” Dipper asked.

Ford shook his head. “No. He never got the chance. You see, the stable boy went to alter the president, but he wasn’t home that evening.”

“Probably too busy kicking Indians outta their homes.” Grunkle Stan muttered bitterly.

“Stanley,” Grunkle Ford hissed warningly.

“So, with no one else to tell his secret to, Charles locked himself inside the carriage with the stable boy, our grandfather’s grandfather, James Pines, and told him his secret.” Grunkle Stan said.

“What was his secret?” Dipper asked.

The old men exchanged smiles, then whispered at the same time, “A treasure.”

A crack of thunder and lightning made the children hold onto their great-uncle tightly. “A treasure beyond all imagining.” Grunkle Ford muttered.

“A treasure that had been fought over for centuries by tyrants, pharaohs, emperors, warlords.” Grunkle Stan added.

“And every time it changed hands, it grew bigger and bigger.”

“And then suddenly,” Grunkle Ford snapped his fingers. “It vanished. And it didn’t reappear until over a thousand years later, when knights from the first crusades discovered secret vaults beneath the Temple of King Solomon.”

“You kids do know who King David and Solomon are, right?” Grunkle Stan double-checked. When Dipper and Mabel nodded, he went on with the story. “The knights who found it agreed it was too good for anybody, so they brought the treasure to Europe and formed a group called The Knight Templar.”

“Over the next century, they smuggled it out of Europe.” Grunkle Ford narrated. “They formed a new brotherhood called The Free Masons, after the builders of the great temple. But then the Revolutionary War happened, but by then the treasure had been hidden again.”

“And The Free Masons now included folks like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Paul Revere.” Grunkle Stan said. “They knew they had to make sure the British never got their dirty hands on it, so they devised a series of clues and maps to each location. Over time, the clues were lost or forgotten. That is, except for one last clue, and that’s what Charles wanted to give to the president, but he gave it to James Pines.”

Grunkle Ford and Dipper opened the book, and the old researcher pulled out an old piece of paper, then read it out-loud to the children. “The secret lies with Charlotte.”

“Charlotte?” Mabel repeated. “Who’s she?”

“No one knows.” Grunkle Ford answered. “Not even poor Charles Carroll knew.”

“But, the Masons and the Founding Fathers were clever, like us.” Grunkle Stan reached into his pocket and pulled out a dollar bill, showing the kids the symbols. “The unfinished pyramid, the all-seeing eye. Those are symbols of the Guardians of the Temple. They’re speaking to us, just in a language we don’t speak yet.”

They all heard warm chuckling and looked at the doorway to see Dipper and Mabel’s father standing in a red flannel and smiling at the warm scene. “Or they thought it looked cool and decided to put it on their money so other countries would take them seriously.”

Grunkle Stan shook his head and pocketed his cash. “Your old man doesn’t believe in the Free Masons anymore.”

“I just think our Founding Fathers were a little too busy fighting for their lives and freedom to have time to hide the world’s largest treasure and leave clues on how to find it.” Alex said with a shrug. “Anyway, we really should get going. Thanks again for having us over, you guys.”

“Of course, we’re always happy to see you all.” Grunkle Ford reassured as the old men put the kids down and stood up.

Alex went downstairs, and Grunkle Ford and Stan moved to follow, but a small voice stopped them. “Grunkle Stan, Grunkle Ford, are…” Dipper stopped, shy and hesitant, and rubbed his arm bashfully. 

But Mabel understood him and finished the question for him. “Are we knights?”

Grunkle Stan laughed and Grunkle Ford chuckled warmly at their children. “You both wanna be?” Grunkle Stan asked.

The kids nodded excitedly.

“Okay. Kneel.” Grunkle Stan instructed.

Dipper and Mabel obeyed. Grunkle Stan shed his robe and grape it over Dipper’s shoulders, meanwhile Grunkle Ford took off his trenchcoat and decorated Mabel with it in the same manner. Then Grunkle Stan took out his pocket knife, popped it open, and held it upward, like a sword.

“Mason and Mabel Pines, as great-great-great-great-grandkids of James Pines, do you take the duties…” Grunkle Stan snorted. “Heh. Duties.”

Grunkle Ford groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose while the kids giggled. “Do you swear to take the responsibilities of the Templars, the Masons, and the family Pines?”

“We so swear.” Dipper and Mabel harmonized, and then Grunkle Stan lightly tapped each of their shoulders with his tiny sword.

At once the kids got up and hugged their uncles, Mabel to Grunkle Ford and Dipper to Grunkle Stan, but the old pair of brothers brought them all together for a big warm hug.

[maggyme13]

Why Licking?(15/?)

AN:Hello again :) I was so thrilled by your comments that ai was able to write another chapter. Thrilled to know what the dwarfs were planing?

Wordcount: around 2400

Warnings: the usual

Why Licking-Masterlist

Masterlist

Part 14

Boom. Boom. Boom.

The door vibrated under the heavy knocks.

This took longer than I thought it would. Almost three hours.

“A moment please.”, you called out to take a last look around your little home. Heaving a last sigh you finally opened the door to face – one single dwarf. Again.

He was tall for a dwarf, and burly. His head bald with tattoos and beard short but impressive. On his back, two heavy looking battle-axes rested on is back and metal plates covered his knuckles.

“Dwalin, at yer service. King Thorin sends me. He is waiting for you in Erebor.”, Dwalin´s words held authority and no room for arguments.

“I thought that much. But I have to inform you, that my eyesight is not as good as it once were. Especially with the changing lights now that it is late.”, you nodded, taking your coat and pulling it around your neck.

“There is a carriage waiting.”, he stated, flexing his shoulders. Though it looked like a habit of his and not a tactic of intimidation.

“I will follow you then. Please lead the way Master Dwarf.”

“Good.”

You did as you had promised, and when you turned a corner in the road a goat drawn carriage was waiting for your companion and yourself.

Half an hour later, you believed you saw the gates of the great mountain appear in the dark.

Arriving at the gate, warriors saluted the two of you.

“The king is waiting in the throne room.”, a white haired dwarf stated.

“Thank you brother.”

“Miss, my name is Balin. I am the kings advisor and will be escorting you to him. Please follow me and my brother. And if you need anything, please let me know.”

“Will do.”, you frowned.

Why are they this polite? They know who I am. What is going on?

The two dwarfs lead you through the huge halls that had been carved into the mountain by skilled masons.

Entering the throne-room, you at once noticed the young dwarf you had met that fateful day. The prince and your reason for being here.

“Is that her?”, a deep timber voice asked and the blond dwarf nodded.

“Yes, Uncle. That is her.”, the prince answered, “Tabrok?”

“Yes, King Thorin. That is the one they call Mabrotnosh.”, now you saw the ex-slave standing next to the King.

“Dwalin?”, he asked an unspoken question.

“She did not resist, and followed every order.”, he sounded almost surprised.

Every single pair of eyes was concentrated on you.

“Why am I here?”, you finally asked, “If you wanted me dead you would not have treated my as good as you did.”

“Why do you think we want to see you dead?”, this time it was the blond prince asking and you answered.

“Of all these dwarfs present, you and Tabrok(?), should know best why I think that.”

“And that is exactly the reason why you are here.”, it was the king. “You saved my nephew and were nearly killed in the process. I want you to thank you for this. But you are right, this is not he only reason why you are here. It was the reason how found you though. Bring him in!”.

The last part was a direct order and not long after the sound of many armored boots echoed through the hall.

Turning around towards the sounds, you noticed thirty dwarfs that surrounded a much larger figure walking towards you.

An Orc.

Dressed in leather armor and wearing a warg- skin on its head.

“Drago.”, you breathed in confusion and wonder, “What-”

“He surrendered earlier this morning close to the boarder of our territory. He was bearing a message.”

“A message?”

“Yes, a message regarding your person.”

“I don´t understand.”

“You see, we were awaiting the arrival of a large caravan of our people migrating to our new home. They were intercepted in a small canyon by a band of orcs. Five hundred lives. Woman, children and men are in the hands of those orcs. The orc you see over there was bearing a message. If we want so see our folk again we have to return their own. Their Queen for the lives of our people. A queen no one knew about. A queen no one had even heard about. You must understand the dilemma we faced. They want us to return something we did not even know we have.“, the advisor continued for the king.

In the meantime Drago and his guards had stopped close enough for you to see his red eyes. Your guard growled, his throat and chest visibly vibrating, in anger or threat you did not know.

“Mabrotnosh. I am sorry that I could not protect you from harm as I had sworn.”, he bowed his head, “But I will make it up to you. I came to bring you home.”

“They said you have taken hostages. Is that true?”, you asked.

“Yes. My orcs are in charge under Ska´al´s command. They are ordered to not harm anyone until your save return.”

“Who gave the order?”, you breathed, needing to know if Azog was still alive, or who now was ruling over your fate, “Was it Azog, or maybe Bolg?”

“You are our Queen.”, was the only answer he gave.

“What if I do not want to go back? Not after what happened to me?”, you demanded to know, the question meant for both dwarf and orc.

The prince was the first to answer. “Then we will have to fight to free our people. Many will die. Many will suffer. My brother and I might lose our mother.”

“Nothing will happen to you, ze Mabrotnosh. We can arrange for you to stay in different quarters. You chose who gets close to you”

You were able to hear the hidden plea in his voice and thought about thinking to return to the mountain.

If you don´t, then hundreds of lives were in danger. Their blood would be on your hands.

Without saying a word, or thinking, you turned around and walked the same way back from once you had come. Well, you tried as well as it worked with your blinded eye. Footsteps followed you, multiple dozens, and you heard someone shout after you.

But you ignored it, only coming to a stop a hundred meters away from the main gate and whistled. One loud high-pitched whistle.

It did not take long for a shadow to close in on you. A shadow on four legs. A shadow with ice blue eyes and sharp teeth.

“Unless you want me to walk all the way to the exchange, I do not recommend shooting or hurting him in any way or form.”, you declared, staring the closest dwarf down that had drawn his weapon.

“Hello Akul. I knew you had stayed close.”, you hummed into the black fur of your warg, “And you have become so big in just five months.”

“Is that your decision?”, King Thorin asked one last time.

“What is one life in exchange for hundreds? Mine was over the day my village was  raided.” It was more than a statement than an answer.

“So be it. Dwalin, you know what to do. Bring back our people.”, he ordered and within twenty minutes one hundred dwarfs were mounted on war- goats and ready to ride alongside Drago and you.

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

Close after midday of the second day, the camp that held the hostages came in sight at the horizon.

“We will return to our people, than yours can return to you.”, Drago declared and with no way of arguing or demanding another way, the dwarfs accepted.

That was how you rode alongside your guard into the camp, where every single eye was on you.

“Drago, give the order to let them go unharmed. And then let us leave.”, you ordered and he nodded.

“Get ready to depart! Leave the Dwarfs unharmed. We ride to Moria.”

The two of you stopped in the center of the area, when a dwarrowdam caught your attention. She was clutching her side and looked scared.

“What happened to her?”, you asked no one in particular.

“An orc happened, what do you think?”, another dwarrowdam laughed dryly. She looked an awful lot like the king.

“Which orc did it?”

“Blue skin and white markings.”, she answered with a bit of wonder in her eyes.

“Find him and bring him here.” you ordered and five orcs scurried into every direction. It did not take long for them to find three Orcs fitting the description the dwarrow had given you.

“Who of you hurt the female?”, you demanded to know, “Answer me. It was ordered to not hurt them and yet someone did. That order was given in my absence but in my name. So who of you did go against it?”

The orc in the center and the one on the right looked buffed, it was obvious to you that it wasn´t them. The third one behaved like a little child or dog, he looked everywhere but at you.

“You two,”, you motioned at the two innocent ones, “can return to whatever you were doing. You”, pointing at the third orc,” will answer my question now. Tell me the truth and no harm will come by you from any orc or dwarf. And if I don´t like the answer, you will be banished from the orcs of Moria.”

Dammit, when they want me to be their queen, I can behave like one and use my powers to save others, and maybe change the way the orcs behave.

“Now tell me: did you attack the female, and why did you do it?”

“I wanted to have her, but she refused.”, he sneered and the fierce looking dwarrow clutched her fists.

“Understood. As you can belief, I do not like that answer. Because you behaved unprovoked. If she had tried to kill you and you were merely protecting yourself. I would have understood. But like this. Leave this camp at once. Do not look back. If any Orc sees you from now on, he will be allowed to kill you and will not be punished for it.”

The orc snarled at you, showing his sharp teeth and almost white eyes. He tried to intimidate you into rethinking you judgment, but an even deeper growl from both Drago and Akul had him whimper in submission.

“Mabrotnosh.”, he nodded before standing up and turning towards the trees.

“You let him leave without any harsh punishment? How dare you to speak like this for us dwarfs?”, the king´s twin fumed, “letting him go with the promise that no harm will come at him. He will continue his dark thoughts. He will be looking for his next target.”

“You did not listen. I exclaimed that no DWARF or ORC will be causing him harm. I said nothing about the wargs. Sometimes, predators should know how pray feels like. Don´t you think? Drago, I believe your Wargs have not been hunting for weeks now, am I right? Give him another half an hour, then send them out with one of your riders . Make sure to bring me back his head.”

“My Mabrotnosh.”, he smirked, giving the order to one orc you knew to be Nasck.

“There is a little army send by your King waiting a few leagues down that way. You are free to go and join them. Once the Wargs have returned we will be leaving for Moria. It is your choice when to leave to your blood.”

“Who are you?”, the dark haired dwarrow finally asked the question that was plaguing her mind since the first second she had seen you.

“I am (y/n). I was taken from my village by the pale Orc Azog. Everyone else was killed. He took me with him and made me his Mate, his wife it seems. And apparently that also made me the Queen of the orcs of Moria. Most of these orcs you see here, at least the bigger ones of them, have become my personal guard. Apparently they made it their task, to get me back from the life I was given after the battle of the five armies, and took you as hostages to force King Thorin to release me. This is a hostage exchange.”

She looked baffled. “But in the end, you are nothing more than a hostage yourself. One with a lot of power, but still a prisoner or hostage. If you ever need advice or just an ear that listens, send a raven. My name is Dis, daughter of Thrain, son of Thor, and sister to the foolish king under the Mountain and mother to two sometimes idiotic princes. Should you ever feel the need to relocate your home. You will always be welcomed by me. You gave up your freedom to return ours. Farewell Queen (y/n). May you live long and prosper.”

“Farewell Lady Dis. May I ask you a favor before you go though? Tell your sons to not walk into an enemy fortress alone. Next time, there might me no one to save them like it happened during the battle.”

“THEY DID WHAT? I will tan their hides so long they can´t sit for months. They told me they were taken from the edge of the battlefield. And my doofus of brother …. Thank you for this information.”, now grumbling and muttering, Lady Dis walked over to the injured woman.

“WE WILL BE LEAVING NOW! PACK YOUR THINGS!”, she ordered and within fifteen minutes no Dwarf was in sight anymore.

“I changed my mind. Send out your wargs. And then we will return to Moria.”, you spoke, knowing Drago was standing behind you.

“Nasck will leave at once.”

Growling and snarling went through the camp when the Wargs gathered to hunt, Nasck mounted his warg and the hunt began.

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

“Nasck has returned.”

“Send the head to the dwarf as a sign that I kept my word.”

“I will Mabrotnosh. What then?”,Ska´al asked.

“Then we will return to Moria.”

“Yes Mabrotnosh. Let´s return home.”

Home. My new home. What ever there will be waiting for me.

Part 16

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Feedback is always appreciated ;P

~Maggy

[fluorescentpipedream]

Updated a few of my characters’ pictures last night when I was having an ADHD moment while playing WoW. 

So...

Daryl “Mason” Knox - This version of Daryl is part of our Zombie storyline (the premise of which I barely remember) and currently in the mountains above Colorado. He is a survivalist already, tanner, taxidermist and wicked good shot and when the virus began circulating, he packed up his pickup truck and headed as far into the mountains as he could. He had been in Tennessee for a little while but left there when the area started to fall as well, moving around a lot for a while before settling high in the mountains where it’s coldest, realizing the undead have a hard time moving through the snow and it seems to make their bodies more brittle. He stumbles upon Ryki and Kristy’s group (shortly after they get Mikael back from the roaming motorcycle gang (see Widower/Simon). Daryl was under the assumption that most of his family had died when the virus first took hold and started using his middle name, Mason, instead of his last name. 

Daryl Knox - Daryl is the survivalist of the Knox men, the youngest but the one who has his fingers the most in the various family businesses and also the one who discovers that a good portion of the Knox family land that backs the Blue Ridge Mountain range actually belonged to the Cherokee tribe and gives it back to them, only asking if they can continue to use the land as the hunting area he currently has it set up as. Daryl and his brothers also took a portion of the money made from the Knox Lodge (a small series of cabins built closest to the Chattahoochee National Park people can rent and go fishing and hunting for deer, quail and even armadillos) and give it back to the slave families that their great great grandfather had working for them. Daryl is quieter than the rest of his brothers, sticking to living away from nearly everyone and only coming down from the mountains when he is dropping off supplies at the Knox Family General Store in Jasper, Georgia where the family is primarily from. The general store is very rustic looking, with the old fashioned candy jars behind the counter and a small restaurant in the back where the family sells their homemade pies. (They also sell locally made and sourced jellies and jams, as well as jerky and unique gifts. Think trading post for the interior) A skilled taxidermist, Daryl has a special he runs through the Lodge that if you shoot it, he’ll stuff it (for a fee of course). 

Schyler Lewis - A former Scorpion and currently a Slayer in Los Angeles, Schyler is quiet but loving and loyal. He’s also one hell of a shot with pretty much anything, though he prefers knives over everything. He has a deep respect for RJ Jamison, as well as the former leader, BP and keeps a protective/big brother kind of watch on Queenie. He and Simon are pretty good friends, he often tries to keep an eye on the older man to keep him from going crazy.

Trevor Phillips (nothing changed, just both versions of him are going to use the same picture)

Simon Knox - Simon is the middle Knox brother, only a few years older than Daryl though he’s not particularly close to most of his family anymore. He and Jericho had once been vying for the same girl’s attention, but when he was sent to prison for a bar fight/blackout he missed the chance to be with her, even though he does very much still love her. When Simon was released from prison, Jericho gave him the chance to come home and get back on his feet again (the courts and mental health professionals released him on account of him having absolutely no memory of the bar fight other than some kid pushing him too hard and spitting on him. His anger flared up and he didn’t remember anything that had happened after that point. It wasn’t until an officer hit him on the back of the head did he come around again) and while he’s there, he and Maggie ended up in bed together after he told her what had happened. He had a ring and had been going out with a few friends the night before coming to see her. He is actually Ryder’s father, and Jericho does know. Following Ryder’s first outburst and slamming his head into the wall, tearing a stuffed animal and general unprovoked rage, Jericho had come to bed with a few scratches on his arms and gently kissed Maggie’s forehead, not coming right out and saying anything about the possibility but just telling her that whatever thing that’s weighing on her heart right now, it’s okay and he forgives her.  (Ryder has similar violent outbursts like his father, though recognizing it as was what going on with Simon, Jericho instead got his son therapy to deal with the outbursts as well as getting him involved in boxing.)

Following Ryder’s birth (and Simon getting to hold his son), Simon leaves and joins the Outlaw motorcycle gang though moves around a lot after that, winding up “settling” with Haven for a while before finally establishing a place with the Scorpions. He made quick friends with Schyler, despite a several year age gap, and when the Scorpions were assimilated into the Slayers in LA, he stayed on with them. He is prone to blackouts and violent outbursts and unfortunately does not possess much in the way of empathy toward nearly anyone. He does very much like children, and wouldn’t mind finally getting to have a family of his own. He is pansexual and it doesn’t seem to matter to him who he’s with, as long as they’re over a certain age. He’s not overly thrilled with the relationship RJ has with Jamie but she’s safe and not in any danger so he doesn’t say much about it either way. He and Floki of the Vikings have rolled around a few times, but generally speaking he is still very much in love with Maggie. Part of the reason he stays away from his family is because of how Jericho has been treating his “dying” wife. (Jericho is having an affair with a younger nurse/friend of his daughter Lorelei, while his wife is presumed to be dying from stage 4 cancer. She does make a rather miraculous recovery though, leaving him and going out to the man who has always loved her) 

Simon has some seriously reckless traits and has actually had to be sedated by members of his own gang because his anger will flare up and he goes berserk. He has NO control over his actions whenever he blacks out either. Following BP and his wife’s untimely death, Simon is taken by the Slayers along with several others and thrown into the Pit, basically an abandoned warehouse near the docks that has been hollowed out and made into a fight arena. Because of his anger issues there’s a few that believe he could have been pushed to a breaking point and lashed out, though BP never pushed his buttons and he has no desire to take the gang over. When Rollo and a handful of the Vikings reveal themselves as the masterminds (and hired by Marcone to do the deed), Simon is the one who takes an axe off of Floki’s hip, throwing it into the back of Rollo’s head before kneeling down in front of Queenie and telling her he’s always been loyal to BP and subsequently, to her.

Widower (Simon Knox) - This version of Simon is for our zombie alt world and currently in Tennessee with the Savior gang run by a Negan type. In this world, Simon was able to remarry Maggie and the two of them were living quiet happily, considering starting their family when her cancer makes a return and is incredible aggressive. As the virus starts to spread through Atlanta and they begin seeing how it eats away at the host’s body only to reanimate them, Maggie begs Simon to shoot her so she doesn’t have to suffer through her cancer and the possibility of getting the virus. At first he refuses to do it but after the hospitals shut down due to too many people contracting the virus, he takes her up to one his brother’s hunting cabins and shoots her, burying her in the backyard. He had attempted to shoot himself as well but the gun jammed and he ended up throwing it into the river instead. After Atlanta falls and the zombie virus appears to be spreading through the small towns, taking the Knox family out as far as he can tell. He and Daryl were traveling together for a little while but were separated and Simon lost track of his little brother. Assuming that his family is dead (since there’s no trace of any of them and the communications network was the first thing to go down) he gets on the back of his motorcycle and leaves. He first meets Morgan (Negan) and his group, Haven, when they stumble upon one another trying to refuel and get supplies. Simon is unhinged and no longer even trying to hide his homicidal side, since no one is there to hold him back any longer he’s completely off his rocker. He initially told Morgan and the rest to call him Widower, as he didn’t even want to link himself to the man he used to be. If the virus is ever contained, he isn’t sure there’s going to be much of a world left for him. 

Widower, Morgan and I think there’s an NPC version of Schyler with them as well find 5 yr old Mikael after the little boy panicked and ran from his aunt and uncle’s convoy during one of the zombie attacks. Morgan grabbed the boy as he was crying by the back of his jacket and puts him onto his motorcycle leading Kristy and Ryki and their group to give chase to get him back. Morgan had a son once and may have done this in order to protect him, not initially seeing the small group of survivors on the road. Widower takes over kind of protecting the little boy when their group stops at an old warehouse they use as a base. 

Morgan Caldwell - I haven’t actually decided if I’m going to make Morgan but he is Sam Caldwell’s older brother and Martin & Lynn’s uncle. He is the leader of the Haven motorcycle gang which moves around a lot and Simon was part of for a while. He is incredibly disappointed in how his little brother acts and very much wants to meet his estranged niece and nephew. 

Morgan “Negan” Caldwell - The zombie-verse version of Morgan, I know little about the man other than Widower is his right hand man and fiercely loyal to him. He genuinely seems to be concerned for Mikael and after meeting Kristy and finding out she’s pregnant while going through the virus, he may offer their services to them, as protection (or he may try to keep Kristy with him and his group masking using the air of wanting to protect her until she gives birth) There’s a lot of ways this guy can go. He isn’t particularly trustworthy, and has said one thing only to do the direct opposite of that less than a few minutes later. 

Kevin Reynolds - the oldest Reynolds brother and also the only one that’s biological to the Reynolds family. Kevin was 10 when Matt was adopted and 12 when Vartan came to live with them as well. The family typically fosters children, and seeks to give them a better life than the one they had. Kevin is currently in his later 40s, and lives in Chicago where he owns an old-fashioned record store (with actual records on the upstairs level) called Empire Records, or just The Empire by his teen/20-something staff. Kevin is gay and actually just lost his husband Jimmy to AIDS. Jimmy was the drummer for his brothers’ band Silex, and actually younger than Kevin was as well. He is currently having issues with depression following the loss of the only love in his life (up til now, obviously), though he actually has clinical depression as well. He and Matt absolutely cannot stand one another, mostly due to Matt’s homophobia, though Kevin has always been out so he’s not sure exactly where that stems from. He and Vartan are close, despite the 12 year age gap. Empire Records is a somewhat failing business, though is eventually brought under the wing of Revolver Records for its vintage, throwback to the late 80s/90s music scene and often becomes the site of the Revolver bands’ signings, which boosts their sales quite a bit too. 

Ryder Knox is getting a new picture, I just need to figure out who he actually looks like, taking his dad into a bit more consideration right now. The Knox men also all have a very distinct smile, so gotta find someone that fits. I’m stuck between these two: 

Ryder is 22 years old and lives in an apartment on his own which he pays for by an OnlyFans account. With close to 1000 subscribers, he makes money selling pictures of anything from his feet to being shirtless (sometimes in his underwear) on parts of the Knox farmland. Very gay but not very out about it. 

@musesnotebook​

[stitchandani]

thoughts//Halloween in Stitch and Ani

Happy Halloween, here’s some thoughts on the subject in regards to our characters/setting!

Nani still waits for Trick-or-Treaters every year, with David by her side. Sometimes they dress up (but not usually), and they’ve taken to secretly hoarding all the good candy in a bowl on the couch. The Trick-or-Treaters get the boring candy in a bowl by the door, and the Kawenas munch the good stuff while watching horror flicks in between doorbell rings.

Lilo goes with the kids to Trick-or-Treat until they reach Kiki’s Coffee Hut. Then she lets them go alone and heads to the hula school to set up the annual Halloween party. (Everyone will meet there later on.) She employs a lot of Stitch’s cousins to help her decorate, especially the ones that live at the school (Subwoof, Yaarp, etc.). Household Experiments too! Lilo always dresses up on Halloween, and yes, it usually has to do with being undead. You can make anything into a zombie with the right prop! Lilo has a lot of mixed feelings about Halloween - it is the anniversary of the day she and Stitch split. But it’s also her favorite holiday, and she has a lot of good memories to associate it with too. She likes to get to the school early to decorate, before the party starts, to be alone and gather her thoughts and feelings. Halloween means a lot of things for Lilo at this point.

Ani, Kai, and Mason go out with Stitch to Trick-or-Treat, obviously, and Ani has to do damage control when it comes to Kai and Stitch, because they’re always fighting. Of course, she and Mason don’t get along too well either. But they’re all practically family and by order of Nani, Kai has to stay with his cousin for the evening to make sure she’s safe/not lost/not kidnapped/not poisoned. (Halloween can be dangerous for kids even on Kauai, and Nani’s House Rules must not be ignored.)

obviously Kai and Mason break those rules halfway through the night and split up from Stitch and Ani

Kai likes/hates Halloween. It’s his birthday, after all, and everyone does celebrate his birthday. Just usually before or after Halloween. But he’s acutely aware of the fact that a holiday usually takes priority over his actual date of birth every year, so sometimes he’s grumpier than usual on that day, feeling more left out by this. And sometimes he’s not, because getting in costume with Mason and eating candy all night is fun, birthday or no birthday. Mason has a blast no matter what - he tries to scare Ani, he steals Stitch’s candy with Kai, he plays pranks on townspeople. Little stinker.

Eventually the kids and Stitch reunite because they all have to stop by Spooky’s haunted house, bypassing the line of Trick-or-Treaters and teens daring each other to go in. The kids/Stitch sneak in the back entrance and join Spooky and some of the Experiments for a Halloween bash. They have to make an appearance, it’s polite.

Stitch will leave the kids once they’re all together again and go to join Lilo at the halau. (It’s a little awkward sometimes, because they both know what day it is for them, but they never say anything about it and try to just focus on the good Halloweens they always had together.)

around this time the three kids head over to Lilo’s hula school party to meet up with the rest of the family

Jumba and Pleakley basically spend the early hours of the evening (and all day) trying to agree on costumes. Pleakley goes nuts trying to give every sudden idea he has a chance to be worn that day, while Jumba has at least three complaints for every costume. Ani once suggested that her great-uncles go out without a costume, without even a disguise, because they’re aliens and everyone would think they’re already wearing costumes. Pleakley is appalled by this idea, whereas Jumba thinks it’s genius (of course) and wants to try it right away. Pleakley nixes this, using the excuse that it’s “too risky” even though we all know he just wants to keep dressing up -

then Jumba and Pleakley go and help Lilo set up for the party

The party is, at first, for the hula school students and their families, but when all those boring people have gone home, Lilo and Stitch and their Ohana have their own Family-Only Halloween Spectacular. There’s tons of food, tons of Experiments, dancing, laughing, Mason pouring punch down the back of Ani’s 50’s dress, Kai eating all the pumpkin pie and making it seem like it was Stitch, Pleakley dragging Jumba off for costume changes every 30 minutes, Nani and David dancing/chilling at a table watching the fun. Lilo always hosts a lot of mini games for everyone, with the help of Stitch’s cousins. Everyone eats and dances and fights and plays keep-away with their mini game prizes until they’re all too exhausted and end up sugar-crashing on the floor together, moaning about how they don’t want to clean up.

Secretly, this is exactly how Kai wants to spend his birthdays. Every year. But of course he’d never tell them that…

[imagineofallkindsxxx]

Eternal Flame- Kol Mikaelson 7/?

A Hundred Dead Witches!?!

Summary: 'You never know whats in a persons heart until you truly know them' - Belle French, Once Upon a Time

Singing. Thats all what Alexandra Gilbert has cared about since she was young and all she would care about until she met him.

With Alexandra fighting vampires, werewolves and all between she may do a thing she vowed never to do, fall in love.

And to think it all started with a walk in the woods...

Tonight was the night of Illuminations, a town tradition that has been going on for centuries so a group of us had volunteered to help or in my case forced to. While hanging lanterns from the trees Carol Lockwood decided to make a speech to the volunteers deciding to thank the people actually doing the work instead of sitting around making speeches along with introducing Tobias Fell. 

"Remind me why we're here again?" I whispered to Mark but before he could answer Sam butted in. 

"It's my uncle Tobys night, my mom's forcing me to volunteer and I'm sure as hell not doing it on my own." Making me roll my eyes at the bassist. 

  "Yo, what'd I miss" James said coming behind us making me jump out of my skin giving him a push. 

  "Nothing the speech is about to begin." Sam informed him. 

  "The first illumination..." He started, going on about history of the town and the founders. 

"I'm gonna dip. Finish my lantern" I whispered to James making him look at me incredulously. I just looked at him and blew a kiss at the drummer before a quietly and as slyly as possible trying to escape the wrath of Sam Fell who although may look skinny and weak can destroy you. 

When it looked like I was in the clear for now I walked up to Caroline and Bonnie who were tying lanterns to a branch.

"-comment on that." 

"Comment on what?" 

"There. You Commented" 

"I'm confused, what are you commenting?" Asking the duo confused at what is going on and what is being commented. 

"What do you want me to say Caroline?" She asked clearly distressed before finally addressing me "I went against the balance of nature when I brought Jeremy back to life and now, I'm paying the consequences. Whenever he wants to see Anna and she wants to see him, she's still here". Jesus this is fucked up. 

"Bon..." I started looking at her sympathetically before Caroline butts in 

"I want you to tell me you're not okay with it." 

"I'm a thousand times not okay with it. I just don't know what to do about it" she said looking deflated at the entire situation making me throw my arm around her shoulders in comfort. 

"You, Bonnie Bennett are the most powerful, smartest and amazing witch. You'll figure out, trust me. You're Bonnie Bennett for Christ sake!" She smiled at me giving a small laugh before a blue Camaro comes out of nowhere pulling up with a raven haired vampire driving. 

"Greetings, blondie, witchy, brainy. I think you got your voodoo wires all crossed when you got rid of Vicki Donovan." She tells us with an annoyed expression on his face. 

"Vicki Donovan?" I questioned confused to how a dead vampire was being brought into this conversation, 

"What do you mean, why?" Bonnie questioned the annoyed/annoying vampire in front of her. 

"Because I'm pretty sure I just got spit-roasted by Mason Lockwood's ghost." He explained. What the hell did Damon do to that poor and attractive werewolf? 

"What?" Bonnie asked very confused. 

"And why exactly do you think that?" I asked wondering how Mason Lockwood was the first person he thought of.

"Maybe because he chained me to a chair and shoved a hot poker into my chest. let's say I'm having deja vu." With this being told me and Caroline both look at Bonnie who looks very confused and conflicted. 

"I thought you said ghosts couldn't interact with people." Caroline said talking straight to Bonnie thinking how it can't be possible that Bonnie may have been wrong. 

"They can't" 

"Yeah well, I don't have time for a vengeful Lockwood. When I kill someone, they're supposed to stay dead. Whatever you screwed up fix it." He ranted towards the witch after that he drove away extremely quickly and most likely above the speed limit. 

Across the road was Matt watching the interaction of the four of us. I was the first to cross the street to talk to the quarterback with Caroline and Bonnie following closely behind. I asked him quickly if he had seen Vicki.

"I haven't seen Vicki, I swear" He told us all before looking down upset about having to go through the loss of his sister a second time "I sent her back like you told me to do."

"Are you sure?" Bonnie asked making sure that Matt actually did get rid of Vicki "Because she has just as much reason to haunt Damon as Mason Lockwood does."

"90% of the people who have been killed in the past two years has as much reason to haunt Damon as much as Mason Lockwood." I added making Caroline nod in agreement.

"She's gone Bonnie. If she was here, I'd know it" I gave him a small sympathetic smile it clear that he was severely upset about this whole ordeal.

"Why do you think its Vicki and not Mason?" Caroline asked the witch.

"Because if any ghost other than Vicki Donovan has a physical foothold on our side, that means Damon's right." Words I never thought I'd hear "and something has gone really, really wrong." Bonnie states looking extremely worried about this situation and what would happen if all the ghosts from our past come to literally haunt us.

"I've had enough of this ghost stuff to last forever. So can you guys can leave me out of this one" Matt tells the three of us, I nodded understanding that if that happened to me, I wouldn't be able to get out of bed forget going to work. He walks away from us, and you can hear Caroline talking.

"I feel so sad for him. It took a lot for him to send his sister away."

"Yeah" Bonnie replied shortly.

"I highly doubt I could do that, if I got to saw my mom or dad again... I don't know if I would be able to let them go." I stated feeling so much sympathy for the blue-eyed boy. "It took a lot of guts anyway." This made the other girls nod.

"So much strength in a man." Caroline continued looking at both of us.

"Caroline it's never going to happen, get over it." Rolling my eyes at her Insinuating that Matt would be a perfectly good boyfriend as she's done for the part two months.

"I've got a ghost problem to deal with, Caroline. Save the Jeremy lecture for later" She snapped while grabbing her bag all of her stuff falling out when the strap broke. I bent down and helped her pick up her things and just as she was going to put her grimoire up it opens itself to a page in the center of the book.

"Did that just..." I asked the witch and vampire not believing my eyes.

"I think so." Bonnie said cocking her head to the side while picking up the book reading the page that the book opened itself to.

"Okay please tell me that's a recipe for witch cookies" Caroline half joked half serious about the page Bonnie was currently reading.

"It's a manifestation spell. It's used to reveal veiled matter." Bonnie told us the meaning of the grimoires spell.

"What's veiled matter?" Caroline asked and before Bonnie answered I said in shock.

"Ghosts." looking at them all.

"What do we do? Do we do the spell? What is the spell exactly?" I questioned Bonnie repeatedly wanting the ghosts to be a thing in the past and look into the future.

"I think we need to go somewhere more private."

***

Caroline pulled her car up to an abandoned creepy looking house. the three of us enter the front room me and Caroline a little bit more apprehensively than Bonnie.

"So, this is where you brought Jeremy back to life?" I asked Bonnie looking around the room severely creeped out, the interior being as bad as the exterior.

"Yeah. Sorry, I know it's creepy, but we needed a private place to do the spell." Bonnie apologized getting ready to do the spell.

"Hmmm. There's no chance it's haunted by the hundred dead witches who were horrifically burned to death in this very spot, is there?" Caroline question clearly scared, and that question alone made me just as scared.

"A hundred dead witches?!"

"They're not here anymore. And they made it clear they were never coming back." she reassured us both trying to calm our nerves or well attempted to.

"Right. You pinkie swear?" Caroline asks trying to make a joke in the tense environment. Making me give her a look. I got the candles out and gave Caroline a lighter so she can help light the candles with me for Bonnie to start the spell.

"Ready do you need us to do..." I started turning around to see Bonnie already starting to start the spell "Right. Okay" I looked at Caroline while Bonnie was continuing to do the spell getting louder every chant a breeze beginning to surround us getting stronger and stronger by the second making everything in the room moves. Seeing all of this makes my eyes widen and start to worry about Bonnie and how safe this is for her.

"Bonnie, I don't like this. Bonnie..." Caroline voices my thoughts while also looking around that was until we saw something shocking.

"Oh my God, is that your...?" I started but couldn't finish due to the pure shock of what I as seeing. All three of us shocked Bonnie can't say anything, it even leaves Caroline speechless. The silence was broke with Bonnie saying quietly.

"Grams."

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

A/N:

Small chapter but next is quite long an different than others as a special character will be appearing. Hope you enjoyed, Part two will include more of the boys (a slight twist).

Please correct any grammar, spelling or British slang.

Any positive or negative feedback is appreciated.

Thanks for reading lovelies xxx 

[hello-robin-goodfellow]

TOP 20 DAVID WARNER ROLES (PART II)

10º Ivan Petrovich ‘Vanya’ Voynitsky (Performance: Uncle Vanya, 1991)

Warner leads in this 1991 televised production of one of the most famous Anton Chekhov plays. Ivan Petrovich (Uncle Vanya for his niece Sonya) is a more then sad and angry man, who sacrificed dreams of love and intelectual success to administrate a cottage of wich provide money to his brother in law, an old professor called Serebryakov (Ian Bannen) that does nothing but look down upon him, all the while being favoured by Vanya’s own mother. Making matters worst, Vanya is one of the two man who is in love with the professors wife, Yelena (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio). Two days of a family reunion mostly consisting of verbal fightings eventually makes all the tension that acumulates in Vanya’s mind eventually explode.

09º Konstantin Treplev (The Seagull, 1968)

The younger spiritual predecessour of Ivan Petrovich. Konstantin Treplev is an aspiring writer, who wishes to find a new style to talk about dreams, receiving praises from his mother (veteran actress Arkadina, played by Simone Signoret) and the love of the beautifull aspiring actress (Vanessa Redgrave). But the popularity of the best-selling writer Boris Trigorin (James Mason) and Konstantin’s problems to directly comunicate his feelings eventually make him fall down a tragic spiral of loneliness.

08º Bob Cratchit (A Christmas Carol, 1984)

Interestingly, when this 1984 adaptation of A Christmas Carol, Warner was first invited to play Jacob Marley. But he asked to play Bob Cratchit instead. And we all must be glad that he did, because he gives a very wholesome performance, that makes anyone wish to have him as a father figure.

07º Keith Jennings (The Omen, 1976)

In this aclaimed 1976 horror film, Warner’s character is a photographer, whose only job was to registrate the birthday party of the rich child of the american embassador (Gregory Peck) until a series of strange accidents start to kill people who knew that child or his relatives. Intrigued, Keith Jennings starts to investigate, and decides to form a duo with the american embassador, filling the role of the more proactive lancer to the mostly passive protagonist. One of David Warner’s most iconic good guy roles ever putt on the big screen.

06º Merlin (The Wizard, 2013 and The Once and Future King, 2014)

The two years in a row when David Warner played one of the most iconic wizrd mentor figures in mithology and pop culture. In 2013′s comedic short film The Wizard, Warner plays a Merlin that wakes up in modern times and is starting to adapt in a office work, while his colleagues try to adapt to his magic quirks. And in the BBC Radio 4 six episode drama The Once and Future King (adapted by Brian Sibley, the same guy who adapted the 1981 Lord of the Rings radio drama, from the novel series by T. H. White), where Merlin’s spirit sits alongside Arthur in the final battle for a conversation, we see how his Merlin could have acted in the past alongside King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, providing wise counsels with a bit of a snarky sense of humour and melancholy. Those works are two “must check out” for David Warner fans and for fantasy and arthurian mithology fans.

05º The Evil One (Time Bandits, 1981) and Ed Dilinger/Comander Sark/Master Control Program (Tron, 1982)

Yes, number five is a tye. Those two movies camed in a row, and in both David Warner played technology themed villains. In the first, Time Bandits, he is implied to be the Devil himself, and as such is portrayed as very powerfull and in control during most of the movie. In the second, Tron, Warner gives a triple performance: as the human Ed Dilinger and the program Comander Sark, he believes he is in control, but in reality is not. The real power is hold by Warner’s third character, the Master Control Program of the videogame. This transiction from a more simple one-and-all-powerfull antagonist to a more complex dinamic of a trio of antagonists was, for a lot of people, the introduction to Warner’s acting range, and for this reason it appears as a tye in this ranking.

04º The Doctor (Sympathy for The Devil, 2003 and Masters of War, 2008)

In the late 1970s, the BBC camed to search David Warner with an offer for him to play the Doctor in the main Doctor Who BBC Television series. He was interested, but unfortunally his filming schedule conflicted in working more them one season into a long-running TV Show, so he had to put the offer down. It was only in the 2000s, after the founding of the audio-drama company, that we would get a grasp of his portrayal of the Doctor, in the what-if scenarios provided by two episodes of Doctor Who Unbound: Sympathy for The Devil and Masters of War. In those audiodramas, he plays a alternate encarnation of the Third Doctor that is sent to Earth in 1997 instead of 1969, and thus could not help U.N.I.T with the Alien Invasions that happen in the 1970s. Thus, he finds a retired and pub-owning version of Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart, and has to relearn to gain his thrust, until the two become companions of adventures that investigate new alie threads indepedently of U.N.I.T 

Warner’s Doctor is a bit less quirky encarnation of the character, having instead a more pratical temperment. He sees the danger, and he goes straight to investigate how to stop it, all the while trying to keep the people around him calm. And later he will make a comment about neading more conforting and fitting shoes. 

This is a Doctor that you would surely trust to keep your life safe. 

03º Lisander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 1968)

A production that made a lot of millenials become Shakespeare fanboys, and they own this in part to David Warner’s performance as Lisander, one of the most romantic (if a bit bumbling) Shakespeare protagonists. Seeing the moments when he conforts and encourages his beloved Hérmia (Helen Mirren) and makes a mess of himself when he is enchanted to fall for Helena (Diana Rigg) is one of the most fun rides that an audience will ever get. Seriously, his Lisander was adorkable before the word ‘adorkable’ even existed.

02º Henry VI (The Wars of The Roses, 1965)

From a fun and very popular Shakespeare protagonist, to a heart-breaking and very underrated protagonist. For years i was one of several people who did not care for the Henry VI plays as it cared for its famous sequel, Richard III.

This all changed when i watched this 1965 televised production of the Wars of the Roses, that condenses the four plays in a way that makes it more accessible for audiences. Once again, this was helped in a big part by the performances of the cast.

David Warner was only 24 years old during this production, and had to cary the role of the vulnerable Henry VI from his youth to his old age and eventual murder by Richard III. 

And in my opinion, he carried it brilliantly. This was the sign that a very versatile actor would have a very long career.

And my number one David Warner role is...

01º Morgan Delt (Morgan: A Suitable Case for Treatment, 1966)

Henry VI stablished David Warner as a lead in theater and television. Now it was time to stablish him as the lead in film. And they did exactly that when casting him in the role of Morgan Delt, a painter who grew up mixing a familiar comunist education with an obsession with animals (particularly gorilaz) and is frustratred with his divorce of his socialite wife Leonie (Vanessa Redgrave), who is about to marry Jack Napier (Robert Stephens), art merchant and Morgan’s previous best friend. While trying every crazy squeam to take his wife back, Morgan must take on a journey to mature, so he can his wife go and be happy and he can recouver his career. But until this happens, transitioning from the sweet and romantic to the angry and scary, for Morgan, taking bombs home and wearing ridiculous gorila suits it is. 

For showing the range between scary villain and simpathetic hero that would be his trademark on years to come, and providing loud laughs mixed with an interesting commentary on masculine insecurity and entitlement, is that Morgan Delt is my favorite David Warner role. 

@amalthea9​ @superkingofpriderock​

[thewarriorandtheking]

Mistletoe

Imagine what would you do if you saw the King walking under mistletoe...

 A bit of Warrior and The King holiday fluff I wrote last year...revised to flow better (because I will never stop editing). 

Enjoy!

The Warrior and The King Masterlist

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

Balin stowed the last parcels in the wagon and climbed onto the seat, moving to the middle to make room for Thorin who stepped up behind him. Fili picked up the reins and whistled to the ponies, guiding them toward the city gates. The wagon creaked as the wheels rolled through the ice on the puddles in the road, clouds of steam from the pony’s breath swirled around their heads, forming ice crystals in their furry ears.  

It was a crisp midwinter day; they had started out from Erebor in a flurry of snowflakes but over the day the skies had cleared. Now the sun was just setting, bathing the Lonely Mountain in a soft lavender glow, the land sleeping under its white blanket. Balin looked over at Thorin, his beard buried in his fur coat, his face grim. The King had been in a murderously dark mood for months now, Balin had convinced him to come to Dale today hoping a change of scenery might lift his spirits. Thorin had brightened up negotiating with the traders, but now it looked like his black mood was reasserting itself. Balin worried at the grip this dark humor seemed to have on his King. He had always felt Thorin’s recovery from dragon sickness had been too quick, his worst fear was it would one day reassert itself.  

They made their way slowly through the streets of Dale. It was the day before the midwinter holiday of Men and the streets were crowded. As they passed through a neighborhood with many inns and public houses, they were stopped by a herd of cattle being driven up a cross street. Balin was talking to Fili about trade deals when he felt a breath of wind and looked over to see Thorin was no longer sitting next to him. Surprised, he looked around and saw him hastening down the side street toward a large public house at the end.

“We seem to have lost the King,” he said. Where is he going? “Your young eyes are better than mine, what is the name of that pub?”

“I do not think it is the pub that caught his eye,” Fili said, smiling crookedly. “There is a tall black horse tied up at the rail.”

Balin could just make out a black horse in the fading light. “Are you sure?”

Fili shrugged. “Looks like her saddle, and there are not any horses like that north of Rohan.”

Balin shook his head. “This is not good, there are many things that need the King’s attention in Erebor!”

Fili laughed, punching the older Dwarf in the arm. “Cheer up! At least my uncle will be in a good mood!”

 Thorin had been idly wondering if he could make up an excuse to stay in Dale. The weight of his kingdom had been sitting very heavily on him lately, sometimes he felt as if it was crushing him. The demands on his time were endless and Shurri seemed to be going out of her way to make his life difficult. Even forging offered him little relief. He had enjoyed getting out of his city, now he felt like staying for a few days. When the wagon stopped, Thorin was idly looking around when to he spotted what looked like Kaylea Wolf’s horse. He was off the wagon before he even thought about what he was doing. When he drew closer he could see it was definitely her horse, there was no mistaking her saddle. He strode up to the inn and pushed the door open.

The place was pleasantly warm after walking in the chill air. The crowd inside seemed to be mostly tradesmen; armorers, masons, leatherworkers, a few who looked like woodsmen. As Thorin’s eyes swept the room he spotted Kaylea Wolf at a table in the corner near the hearth, the hood of her coat covering her golden hair. She was studying a piece of parchment in her hand. As Thorin started to walk across the crowded inn he became aware the place had fallen silent. It was not every day that the King Under the Mountain showed up at the local pub. Thorin knew he should probably be more cautious, but right now he only had eyes for the woman he loved. As the hush fell over the room Kaylea looked up, her face surprised at first, then melted into a wide smile. She held her hand up and Thorin paused. He heard some whispering from the Men at the nearby tables, pointing at something over his head. He looked up to see a sprig of some plant with small green leaves tied to the beam above him with a bright red ribbon. Then Kaylea was in his arms, her hood thrown back, silver beads in her hair glittering in the lamplight. Thorin drew her mouth down to his, feeling all the worries and frustrations of the last months fading away, he knew only the taste of her mouth, the feel of her body against his, the desert smell of her skin. It was a very long moment before he drew back, closing his eyes and pressing his forehead to hers.

“My love…I cannot believe you are here,” he whispered. “It is all I have wished for these many months.”  

“Congratulations, your majesty,” said a tall man in weathered clothing sitting at a nearby table. He raised his mug in a toast and drank.

Thorin eyed the greenery over his head. “I do not know this tradition of Men,” he said. “Perhaps you can enlighten me.”

“If you kiss a lady under the mistletoe it is said she will be your wife,” the man replied. “And your love will long endure.”

Thorin glanced up, then smiled widely at Kaylea. “If that is the case, I will kiss you again! Just to be sure.” He pulled her close, aware of the whispers around them, but not really caring. Suddenly the bell rang at the bar and the pub came to life, Men jumping up from their tables to shout drink orders to the barkeep, the Dwarf King and his warrior woman quite forgotten. Thorin looked over to see Balin sliding a stack of coins to the innkeeper. The old Dwarf crossed the room, setting three mugs of ale on Kaylea’s table.  

“Master Balin, it is good to see you again,” Kaylea told him. Thorin slid onto the bench next to her, running an arm around her shoulders, she snuggled against him, her hand caressing the inside of his thigh.  

Balin smiled at her. “It is always good to see you, lass.” He liked Kaylea Wolf almost from the moment he met her, and he never tired of looking at her. Many years had passed since their first meeting on the road to Rivendell yet she was completely unchanged, her face smooth, her hair untouched by grey. It seemed his notion that she was of Elven blood was true after all. This was not the best time for her to make an appearance, but if anyone could draw Thorin out of his black mood it was her. Sometimes Balin chided himself for not encouraging her to marry Thorin all those years ago. It would not have been the right choice politically, but it would have been the right choice for the King.

Fili had parked the wagon and joined them, glad to see a smile on his uncle’s face again. They spent a merry evening catching up, Kaylea wanted to know all that had happened in Erebor and the Dwarves were curious to hear her news from the South. Finally, as the evening crowd began to thin, Balin stood up buttoning his coat.  

“We should get back,” he told the King.  

Thorin dismissed him with a wave. “You go ahead, I will catch up in a day or two,” he said. “I think I will stay here for the winter holiday.”

Balin gave him a reproachful look. “You have a formal feast for the princes of the Blue Mountains tomorrow. And your cousins from the Iron Hills should have arrived today.”

Thorin scowled at the old Dwarf. “So, make up an excuse! Shurri will be more than happy to preside over any formal occasion.”  

Balin looked to Kaylea for help, but she only smiled at him and shrugged. “Perhaps you could delay the feast for a few days,” she said, looking at Thorin. “If it is what the King wishes.”

Balin sighed. “Well, I suppose I do have the ride back to Erebor to think of something.” He gave the King a reproachful look. “You owe me one, laddie. Or I should say, another one.”  

Thorin chuckled. “Put it on my tab.” He watched Balin and Fili leave, then turned to Kaylea. “My love, do you happen to know if there is a room nearby where we could have some…supper?” His fingers traced the skin of her stomach under her tunic.  

“Upstairs,” Kaylea answered. “This place has excellent rooms, one has a view of Erebor.”

 Hours later, Kaylea rolled over to watch Thorin as he walked across the room to stoke the fire. As she had promised the room was large and well-appointed, the bed soft as a cloud; it was one of only two rooms at the top of the inn. From the windows the gates of Erebor could be clearly seen, the braziers along the top brightly lit. Kaylea noticed Thorin had gained some weight since he had been king, no longer the thin warrior she had met on the road to Rivendell. She decided to tease him about it, but not tonight. Her eyes traveled down his body, lingering on his mane of dark hair, his wide shoulders, strong arms scarred from battles and years of working hot metal, the curve of his back, the thick muscles in his legs.

Feeling her eyes on him, Thorin looked over at her. “Are you watching me?”

“Just enjoying the view.”

Thorin chuckled. He went to the window, studying the gates of his city in the moonlit vale. For the first time in months he felt a little distance between himself and all his responsibilities. After a moment he turned back toward the bed, looking down at his feet. “I am afraid I do not cut quite as dashing a figure as I once did.”

Kaylea smiled at him. “You need to start training again. I decided to tease you about that tomorrow.”

Thorin slipped back into bed beside her, pulling her close. “Is that so? Then tomorrow I will tease you about your clothes.” The fact that Kaylea always wore her black fighting clothes had always been a sore spot for him. She had a few dresses in her wardrobe in Erebor, he wished she would bring some new ones. “Do you not have tailors in your land that can make you something different?”

“Is it decreed in Erebor that the King should have three helpings at every meal?”

“Actually, it is four. But I will resolve to only have two if you let me order you some new dresses.” Smiling, he brushed her hair away from her face. “Tell me about this winter holiday of Men.”

“This is the holiday that marks the new year for Men,” Kaylea said. “The shortest day of the year has passed and the days are starting to grow longer. It is a time to gather with your family, exchange presents. People decorate their homes and enjoy a feast. There are many little traditions this time of year, it is the only time you will find mistletoe indoors.”

The King laughed. “You stopped me when I was standing under it,” he said. “Does that mean you do want to marry me?”

“I told you before it is not my destiny to be married, but I hope our love will always remain strong.”

“And I told you I will not take no for an answer. One day you will be my wife,” Thorin replied. He stroked her back with his fingers. “You said it is a time for gift-giving, did you bring me a present?”

Kaylea smiled mischievously, taking his hand and guiding it between her legs. “You already opened it.”

“Mmmm…exactly what I wanted! How did you ever guess?” 

[btsqualityy]

BTS Toddler Series #15: Map of The Soul: Persona

Kim Seokjin

You got out of the car, shutting the door behind you and making sure to lock the doors before you made your way up to the front door of your house. Once you were standing in front of the door and grabbed your house key to unlock the door, you paused because you heard music coming from the other side of the door. 

“Why is he playing music when Kade is supposed to be sleeping?” You muttered as you unlocked the door before opening it and stepping inside. You set your keys, purse, and bags down on the table that was next to the door before walking towards the living room. Once you turned the corner and looked inside, you couldn’t help but to laugh at what you saw.

Jin and Kaiden were standing on top of the couch, the both of them jumping up and down as Dinoysus blasted throughout the room from Jin’s Bluetooth speaker that sat on the coffee table.

“Mommy!” Kaiden shouted as he noticed you standing in the entryway of the living room. He slid down off the couch and bounded over to you, hugging your legs tightly. “Missed you.”

“I missed you too Kade,” you smiled, setting your head on top of his head and moving his hair out of his eyes. “I see you’ve been having fun with daddy, huh?” You asked as you looked up at Jin with an arched brow.

“Lots of fun Mommy,” Kaiden nodded and Jin chuckled awkwardly as he got down off of the couch and turned the music down.

“I know that I was supposed to get him down for a nap but he asked to listen to the album and the time slipped away from me,” Jin explained.

“It’s fine,” you sighed. “Somebody still has to have a nap though,” you added as you looked down at Kaiden, who started to whine.

“No nap mommy,” he pleaded.

“Hey, no arguing,” you said firmly. “Now come on, up the stairs.” Kaiden reluctantly let go of your leg and Jin watched as the both of you trudged up to Kaiden’s room.

Min Yoongi

You typed in the code to Yoongi’s studio and waited to hear the beeping to pull the door handle, stepping inside and slipping off your shoes.

“Hey you,” Yoongi smiled as you walked over to him.

“Hey,” you replied as you leaned down and left a soft kiss on his lips. You then looked over to the small couch and saw Kinsley coloring in one of her coloring books. “Hi Kins,” you said and she looked up at you, a wide grin appearing on her face at seeing you.

“Hi mommy,” she chirped and you walked over to the couch and sat down, Kinsley promptly crawling into your lap afterwards to give you a hug.

“How was work Y/N-ah?” Yoongi asked as he typed a few things on the computer.

“Eh, work,” you chuckled. “How about you? How much were you able to get done with Kins here?”

“You know she’s no bother,” Yoongi snorted as he turned around in his chair to face you. “And I got a lot done, actually finished a song.”

“For the new album?” You wondered and Yoongi nodded in confirmation. “Can I hear it?” 

“Sure,” he nodded before turning back to his computer. He pressed a few buttons before a beat started to fill the room. “It’s called Make It Right,” he revealed and you nodded as you listened closely to the song. Once it ended, you looked up to see Yoongi already looking at you as he chewed his lip.

“What do you think?” He questioned and you smiled.

“I think it’s amazing,” you confirmed and Yoongi let out a sigh of relief. “What do you think Kins?” You asked her.

“Daddy and uncles good,” she squealed, making you and Yoongi laugh.

Kim Namjoon

You and Namjoon were in the kitchen, the both of you working on getting dinner ready while Mason sat at the kitchen counter looking at one of his picture books. 

“Joon, how many times have I told you that that’s not the way to cut a tomato?” You giggled as you took the knife out of his hands and bumped his hip with yours to get him to move over. “You’re gonna cut your fingers off one of these days, you know?” You said as you cut the tomato correctly.

“A man tries to help his wife with dinner and this is how you repay me?” He pouts falsely, making you laugh. “How about I play the DJ then?” He suggested, pulling out his phone and going to his playlist.

“Good idea,” you nodded. “Play to your strengths baby.” Namjoon smacked your ass playfully, making you gasp and glare at him. You then turned back to cutting the tomato in front of you when you heard the familiar intro music to Persona.

“Daddy’s song!” Mason shrieked and you giggled at his reaction.

“Yeah, this is Daddy’s song Mase,” Namjoon nodded as he set his phone down, moving to the fridge to grab more ingredients. You silently bobbed your head to the beat as the Namjoon on the song rapped the first verse and when the chorus came, you started to sing along but you were shocked when Mason did the same.

“The hell am I?” Mason rapped along and you froze, looking at Mason with a stern look.

“Mason, that’s a bad word and you can’t say that,” you explained to him.

“But Daddy said I could,” Mason whispered and you turned to look at Namjoon, who was smiling awkwardly.

“He’s only 2 and it’s just freedom of expression,” Namjoon shrugged.

“Exactly, he’s only 2 and when he yells that out at daycare which we both know is a very strong possibility, are you gonna pause your schedule to go get him?” You wondered and Namjoon sighed heavily.

“Ok Mase, Daddy was wrong. You can’t say that word until you’re big,” Namjoon acquiesced. 

“Okay,” Mason pouted.

Jung Hoseok

“Daddy, daddy, daddy!” Lennox yelled from the backseat of the car as Hobi drove down the highway. You then turned around in your seat and raised your eyebrow at him.

“No need to yell Len, daddy is right here,” you said and Lennox nodded.

“What is it buddy?” Hobi wondered.

“Listen to slow song please?” Lennox asked and Hobi’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“Which one?” 

“With daddy, Uncle Jin, and Uncle Kookie,” Berkeley interjected and Lennox nodded.

“Oh, that slow song,” Hobi chuckled. He reached down and grabbed his phone before handing it to you. “Can you turn it on for them?” You nodded and unlocked his phone, going to his music playlists and quickly finding Jamais Vu before pressing play.

“Of all of the songs on the album, I never thought that this would be their favorite,” Hobi mentioned.

“It’s probably because they know that you made it,” you pointed out. “You know that they love any and everything that you do.”

“These are facts,” Hobi smirked and you reached over to hit his shoulder before sitting back in your seat and listening to the song. Once it was over, you picked up Hobi’s phone to try and find another song. “Any requests kiddos?” You asked and when you didn’t receive a response, you turned around to see both Lennox and Berkeley knocked out in their car seats.

“If I knew that’s all it would take to get them to sleep, I would’ve written that a long time ago,” Hobi scoffed, making you giggle.

Park Jimin

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” You asked again as you, Jimin, and Noah walked into the members’ rehearsal room. Since the album had been released, the members had rehearsals to get ready for tour.

“Of course, why wouldn’t it be?” Jimin wondered as he set Noah down on the ground next to him while you set Jimin’s bag up against the wall.

“You all don’t get much done when one of the kids are here,” you pointed out and Jimin scoffed.

“Jagi, we are professionals. Sure, we love when the kids come to visit rehearsals but that doesn’t stop us from getting things done,” Jimin explained and you nodded in response as the door opened, and you looked over to see the rest of the members walking inside.

“Hey, you didn’t tell us that you were bringing Noey today,” Taehyung smiled as he picked Noah up.

“It was a spur of the moment thing Tae,” you explained and Tae nodded.

“Wanna dance with your daddy and uncles?” Hobi asked Noah and Noah nodded excitedly. You sat down and watched as Jin pressed play on the stereo system in the room, the beginning of Boy With Luv filling the room. Taehyung set Noah back down on the ground and moved him so that he was standing next to him.

You watched in silent amusement as the members attempted to run through the choreography but they kept messing up because they were too busy watching and laughing at Noah, who was trying his hardest to do the choreography like his daddy and uncles. Once the song ended and the members were laying on the floor laughing hysterically, Jimin led Noah back over to where you were sitting.

“What was that about you all being professionals Jimin-ssi?” You giggled and Jimin glared at you.

“Hush,” he said as he mushed your face with his hand, making you swat at him.

Kim Taehyung

“Tilt your head back for me Spence,” you mumbled as she let you guide her head to where you needed it to be. You had just finished giving Spencer her bath and now you were doing her hair.

“Hey, I’m home!” You heard Taehyung shout as the front door closed behind him.

“Here daddy!” Spencer shouted back and you heard Tae’s footsteps walk up the stairs until he appeared in your bedroom.

“There’s my favorite girls,” he smiled as he walked over to the bed. He pressed a kiss to Spencer’s forehead before pressing one to your lips. 

“How was your day?” You asked him as he got up and walked into the bathroom to change clothes, leaving the door slightly cracked open.

“Long,” he huffed and you smiled to yourself as you continued to comb through Spencer’s hair. After about a minute, he walked out of the bathroom fully dressed in his pajamas and then climbed back into the bed. This time, he settled on his stomach in front of Spencer, setting his hands on her little legs.

“Daddy?” Spencer called and he looked up at her, giving her his full attention.

“Yeah Munchkin?”

“Sing Kosmos?” she asked, asking for him to sing Mikrokosmos and Taehyung smiled before nodding at her and starting to sing. Spencer was so caught up in Tae singing to her, you managed to finish the rest of her hair in the time that it took him to sing the song. 

“Hey Spence,” you whispered, noticing how droopy her head was getting. “Why don’t you let daddy put you to bed?”

“Kay,” she mumbled and you gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head before Tae picked her up and carried her out of the room.

Jeon Jungkook

“Here, which one do you want to wear Angel?” Jungkook asked Ava as he held up two hangers, one with a yellow dress on it and the other with a purple dress on it.

“That,” Ava said as she pointed to the yellow dress. Jungkook sighed and hung purple dress back up in Ava’s closet. 

“Of course you’d pick the dress that can get dirty the easiest,” Jungkook muttered as he sunk down onto his knees in front of Ava, who was standing up. “Step into it,” he instructed her as he held the dress open for her. Ava set her hands on Jungkook’s shoulders and she slowly stepped inside of the dress. Jungkook then pulled it up onto her body and buttoned it up, making sure that it was on her correctly.

“Alright, hair time,” he announced with a clap of his hands and Ava whined loudly.

“No hair,” she pouted and Jungkook sighed as he stood up to grab her comb and brush.

“Hey, I’ll sing to you while I do it. Is that ok?” He asked her and she immediately nodded. He sat down on the floor again and she crawled onto his lap, looking up at him.

“House song,” she said and Jungkook laughed at her.

“You mean Home Angel?” He said and she nodded. He started to sing while simultaneously combing through her hair.

“With you, Ima feel richer,” he sung effortlessly as he quickly brushed through her hair before splitting it in half and making two ponytails in her hair. 

“Your love, your love, your love, I want that. Your touch, your touch, your touch, I need that. La lala lalala lalala, I love it,” Jungkook said as he finsihed her hair. “All done Angel.” Ava stood up and turned around, giving Jungkook a kiss to his cheek.

“Thanks daddy,” she beamed before running out of her room. 

“God, where is the time going?” Jungkook muttered to himself.