#anyway that happened to me. can we all take a moment of silence for katherine…

[livvyofthelake]

katherine kellgren is to me what like. andrew garfield or something is to many of you. just to put things into perspective she’s HUGE to me… i’ll listen to whatever books she narrates it literally does not matter what the book is about i know it’ll be good because katherine will be reading it to me…. like fly high angel 🩷

[aceofspades-sml]

Newsies 30/07 matinee - closing matinee

So yes the show closed almost a month ago but I just found this in my drafts and realized I never actually published my notes from this show so... Here you go ! (Also let me know if you want my actual notes from closing night because I just kept ranting about random moments but can totally do an organized post if required)

Cast : all the main actors were on, Les was played by Harry and Bobbie did Hannah but not Splint since she was still sick

Josh's presence on stage at the beggining is so good- like man just owns the stage for the first 30 seconds and oh boy does he enjoy it. Race of all times.

After Buttons steals apples at the beginning he gives one to Ike and then they both spot Tommy boy kind of sulking in a corner and Ike throws him an apple while they both look at him like "take care, kid"

When Tommy boy comes back on for Carrying the banner the apple is still in his hand and I think it's adorable

Matthew was definitely already losing it in the Prologue and like. Mood. I kid you not he was crying for the whole show

Carrying the banner being the mess it usually is

Jacob Albert was back and ready to throw hands with anyone coming close to him. Especially if that person happened to be Oscar Delancey.

"Whatever happened to rOmAnCe"

Henry getting on his knees and crawling toward Wiesel with a pout and Wiesel just sighing and giving him the papes

Harry was such a cute Les oh my god. Actually everytime he was onstage I just kept turning toward my friend mouthing "he is adorable" but like he is so precious and must be protected at all costs

"and guess what ? 🎶He got elected🎶"

"buy a pape from a poor orphan boy ?" "nO he's not an orph-" ft jack holding his boyfriend back

"why don't you come home with us fordinnerimean"

Bowery beauties <3 also Lillie Pearl giving Les a feather from her costume while Davey's entire attitude is just "les NO"

For the first time I noticed Specs and Albert on top of the stage directing the lights during that's rich I love them

Also during That's rich Ike, Buttons and another newsie (if anyone remembers who PLEASE tell me i can't believe I forgot) are watching the show and they are a mess

"hey baby I was just talking about you !" *points at Ike* ft Ike standing up super excited and Buttons going "sit DOWN" while violently gesturing to prove Medda was pointing at him

And then "Life is too short to waste it on youuuu" *points again* and Buttons just mimics following her finger like "see she is pointing at ME"

Anyway also Alex looking at Lindsay for the whole song

When Albert is getting back down after That's rich and Katherine arrives he just looks impressed and stands aside

"we got a father too !" Davey desperatly trying to get his brother to stop talking

Oscar pacing back and forth before world will know while Morris is just sitting there with his legs hanging from the structure

I don't know if it was just me or because I was really close to the stage for the first time or something but Wold will know was the most intense I have ever heard ?? As in I always get chills during this song but then more than usual. Even in the evening it wasn't like that idk this one was just super intense I loved it

Finch physically dragging Crutchie away from the gates of the World after jack, Davey and les are thrown out

"two cents for a glass of seltzer ? Just give me a watah" then Race (who is sitting at albert's table) snatching the glass of seltzer from Jacobi's plate and Jacobi just grabs it right back in a way that says 1- he was expecting it 2- this is totally a thing Racer does every time

Race then proceeds to look personally offended for the next five minutes of the show

"I would say we launched our strike in the most auspicious manner" *longest silence you ever heard* "I dunno about thaAT"

Another one to add to the list of "who wants Brooklyn ?" reactions : mark spending a good minute wrapping his neck ribbon thingy around his eyes

"why don't I tell you what I'm hoping for for tonIgHt" and "can't you see it ? In my eyyyyes ?" This is true comedy right here. Jack trying so hard to be a straight guy and failing miserably.

Bronté legend queen goddess nailing the best Watch what happens ever

When the scabs arrive and Albert just shoves Tommy boy so hard he falls on the floor and Buttons has to help him up oh my god

Anyway I will make no comments about Seize the day nor Santa fe because I was bawling my eyes out at this point. And so was everyone on stage. All I can say is during the name call when it was Les's turn everyone started cheering and it was the cutest moment ever

ANYWAY king of new york my baby love of my life

Everyone rolling their eyes to high heaven when Katherine shows up

"the world's your erster !" Josh Race ceo of saying the dumbest things you have ever heard with an unmatched level of confidence

Featuring Henry's entire "what the absolute hell" attitude I love him like "your WHAT ?????"

I could talk about this scene for hours but anyway sitting in the bronx was so scary when they started spinning on the lamps lmao

The spoon crown is still the cutest thing ever done in newsies to this date <3

And like I never talk about it but I absolutely love how they removed the awkward moment when Katherine starts tap dancing and they all look at her legs because urgh I always hated this moment. But here ? Nothing ! They are just having good fun !

Anyway Matthew already crying during Letter absolutely broke me so I won't talk about it

Did I ever mention Davey is gay

"Front page news above the fold ! Oh yes. Above *flips paper* the *flap* fold *flip* !"

WWH reprise had me absolutely dying because of how adorable Les was okay bye

"Can we table the palaver and *angrily stomps foot* go back to business ??"

Jack and Davey are gay. If you even care.

The scene in Pulitzer's office is always so heartbreaking because you have jack being so confident and all but then the second Katherine appears you can see how heartbroken and lost he is

Michael's facial expressions >>>

Also the way he just has a flight reflex the second Snyder appears like urgh

And Oscar and Morris grab him violently and one of them (I wanna say Morris ?) growls "let's don't" like Jack is trapped in every way possible

Brooklyn's here my baby my angel love of my life

As much as I missed Stray I absolutely loved Lucy's energy on "when you doooo" and her lil high five with Spot

Brooklyn girlsies have my heart now and forever like "Pips !" "Ritz !" "Mack !" "SPOT !!"

Queens

Anyway the rally was. something. I was finally able to catch some of the unscripted comments (what with being in the bronx and all) such as Tommy boy going "how is that realistic ??" and it just made the whole thing so much more heartbreaking

Also the way Davey has to build up so much confidence to speak in front of everyone and then Jack arrives and turn everything he just did to nothing

Finch booing Jack with his whole chest is honestly one of the best moments of the show he just puts his whole heart into this

Gosh I had missed Michael and Bronté's dynamic during Something to believe in they are. they were. them. the best.

"It's good to have you back" "...shut up"

Jack's reaction to bill and darcy will never not be funny because he fully says "I suppose you are the son of William Randolph hearst ?" as a joke and then Bill answers with the straightest face possible and Jack is left like "?????" (Picture that one Pikachu gif if it helps because that's exactly the face Michael makes at this moment)

Spot and Race were flirting idc

"he can't talk right now he'll call you bAcK" *hangs up* *picks up the phone again* *incoherent sobbing*

"no you can't come i-" see uksies is great because they actually made spot scary. Lillie Pearl just has to stomp in front of Bunsen and he backs up to the other end of the stage

I missed almost the whole scene in Pulitzer's office after Once and for all because I was busy looking at Ross Lindsay and Josh in the aisles behind me leave me alone. Also because I was sat right opposite ross's sister and they just spent the whole scene waving at each other

"I am told we once shared a carriage ride !" "I TOLD YOU"

Roosevelt pointing at Les and harry's reaction was just adorable

There is something so personal about Race just going "it's Snyder the spider !" in such a genuinely mean way and Tommy boy having to physically hold him back and dragging him away so he can chill

Anyway I was full on sobbing at the end but during the bows I could see Ryan and Harry making up their bow choregraphy in the back and they were adorable

...this got way longer than I expected I am so sorry I think I am slightly in denial

[floripire]

💬 + Katherine

a personal panegyric › @malka-lisitsa

"i don't really know where i got it from, to be honest. i think i got it from my dad, raoul. he was a psychologist, and a cook. though he always ushered me out of the kitchen whenever he was making chicken asado or putong puti. my mom, selena, was a real estate sales agent. which meant she also dealt with people of all kinds on the daily."

"and i've got another way of looking at people. to me, they contain multitudes. whether they put on a mask or not. there are all these different facets to them and all throughout their lives, they are shaped by the people they interact with and the things, good or bad, they go through and that, in turn, colors their interactions with the world at large. you see, i don't believe that it's just a one and done thing. someone is good, or evil, and boom - that's it. you can't paint them all with one brush stroke. people can change and grow for the better if they are given time, and space, and a network to support them as well as the proper tools. they can heal. everyone deserves that."

floribeth runs a hand through her hair; she's not agitated but not yet pleased, either. she's certain she's not explaining this properly. and this is a topic near and dear to her heart, and one that shouldn't be glossed over.

"take katherine for example. i think a lot of consecutive things happened to her before she got turned into a vampire and after she got turned into a vampire too. 'cause it's not like she woke up one day and decided to do everything she did. everything she did - that was done, i surmise, for a reason. what i mean by that is that she - it's like she's carrying a huge backpack with everything that's happened to her inside of it. or, um, imagine she's carrying a huge binocular everywhere she goes but the lenses are cracked a little bit because of what happened to her. yet with every interaction she has, she has to look through the binoculars anyway. and every binocular looks different. some lenses are smudged. some are crystal clear. some are small. some are large. but because katherine's binocular does not look like mine or elena's or caroline's or bonnie's doesn't mean she's rotten to the core. you can't just stamp that on her forehead and be done with it because her motivations are different or difficult to understand or because she made choices others wouldn't. she's a complex human being, who's been alive for a gajillion years. and if i understand it correctly, she constantly had to keep herself on her toes and re-invent herself. for self protection. so when was the last time katherine had a moment to catch her breath? it's like i told that other lady, few of us are turned gently. so i'm guessing said moment has long since passed, if it ever existed at all."

so the conclusion floribeth has arrived at looks like this: "i believe in consequences for actions and accountability but i also believe that no one should be... gosh, i'm sorry, i've been talking so much that my brain has turned to mush."

she clears her throat and tries again after a few minutes of silence. "i think people should not boil each other down to the mistakes that they made. especially if they're trying to better themselves and grow beyond that. and i also think that people need people and that they are still worthy of love and compassion, because we are all worthy of these things, no matter what people say. and we are all capable of extending that hand to others if need be. it's all in there. in everyone. even in people with cracked binoculars. sometimes you just gotta dig a little deeper, like the disney song!"

[storytellerofuntoldlegends]

an icarus and his sun: chapter 10

A/N: y’all ever think about that one empires episode of pearl’s where she helps sausage fight off a raid and that turns into a pvp battle between them, and she absolutely destroys him? yeah me too. also check out this awesome art by @amostfoolishgold​! anyway back to jimmy pov!

Warnings: injury, unconsciousness, fevers, talk of death, violence, corruption/infection, self-blame

AO3 Link - Tumblr Masterpost

-

The sun was nearing the horizon, casting the Overgrown in a golden glow. The castle was beginning to take shape, but they had unfortunately run low on materials, and Joel and Lizzie weren’t back from their gathering trip yet. So for the moment, they all just sat in the half-constructed shell of a castle, having light conversation as they waited for Joel and Lizzie to arrive. But soon enough, the conversation dwindled into an awkward silence. That is, until Gem stood up with a determined look in her eyes and a gentle smile.

“Why don’t we head to my empire for dinner? We’ve been working hard all day and could use a break!” she said brightly. Jimmy wasn’t sure how he felt about Gem quite yet, after everything that had happened- but she and Pearl had been a huge help. Meanwhile Shelby looked intrigued by the offer, and while Katherine first nervously glanced to the horizon, she looked back to Gem with a smile.

“That is very kind of you, Gem. I’d love to- we should probably just leave a note for Joel and Lizzie to let them know where we’ve gone,” Katherine said, standing up as well. Gem looked to Jimmy semi-nervously- and well, Jimmy was always a bit of a softie, wasn’t he? He smiled at Gem and stood up too.

“That does sound nice, thank you for inviting us,” Jimmy said. Gem beamed, and Pearl looked relieved as she stood up next to Gem.

“Well, you definitely won’t see me complaining about free food!” Shelby chimed in, hopping up to her feet. That caused the group to break into laughter, and the air between them felt comfortable again.

Once Katherine had written the note and put it where Lizzie and Joel could easily find it, the five of them (minus Pearl, who had wings) equipped their elytra and flew off to the Crystal Cliffs. When they first arrived there, everything seemed normal. The grand cliffs themselves, the buildings nestled in and around them, the towers- it was a beautiful and mystical place. But there was something blue, white, and gold that stood out in a heap on the ground near one of the buildings- a very familiar something blue, white and gold.

“Oh my god-” Gem started, landing on the ground beside the figure.

“Is that-” Pearl said, unable to finish the thought as she landed just behind Gem.

“Scott?” Jimmy finished, voice shaking as he came in for a bit of an unsteady landing a few feet away from where Scott laid on the ground, breathing shallow and upon a closer look, something red pulsing and spreading beneath his skin like some sort of vine. Jimmy barely registered Katherine and Shelby landing on either side of him, too focused on what was before him.

“This- this red stuff reminds me of the redstone spikes in Fwhip’s empire- or maybe something from the nether?” Gem pondered as she knelt beside Scott, a purple glow coming over her hand as she reached out towards the infection in his arm.

“I’ve seen that before,” Shelby said, voice sounding distant and laced with horror. Everyone turned to look at her, surprised to hear such a terrified tone of voice from the usually enthusiastic gnome.

“The infection?” Pearl asked.

“The corruption. I’ve seen it happen to my people back home, until it consumed them until there was nothing left- it’s why I came here, to try and find a cure or some way to stop it. But nothing worked,” Shelby explained shakily, sounding like she was on the verge of tears. Jimmy felt like he was going to cry too- and some awful part of himself thought that he should be glad that this happened to Scott, that it served him right after betraying Jimmy and breaking his heart- but he couldn’t. Despite everything Scott had done, despite never wanting to see Scott again- none of that meant that Jimmy didn’t want a world where the winged elf wasn’t in it. And what about what Pearl had said? Scott didn’t seem happy with Fwhip either, but now Jimmy would never know the truth. Not if it died with Scott.

Jimmy was so wrapped up in his conflicted mess of emotions that he didn’t even notice that someone else had flown in until Katherine let out a sharp gasp. He tore his gaze away from Scott to see what had caused that reaction from Katherine- and saw Fwhip. A mix of anger and terror boiled in his veins and swirled in his stomach at the sight of him. Fwhip looked baffled to see so many people in Gem’s empire, and plastered on a forced friendly smile. Jimmy’s hand found Katherine’s, and she squeezed it back tightly with no intention of letting go.

“Gem! Hi, so I wanted to smooth things over- I think we left things on a bad note-”

“What did you do to Scott,” Gem demanded, cutting off Fwhip as she stood up from beside Scott. Purple sparks danced in the air around her, and Jimmy swallowed nervously- he didn’t think he had ever seen Gem seem so intimidating before. Jimmy was relieved to see that Fwhip looked nervous too.

“Well, I haven’t seen Scott since our meeting, he seemed upset when he left- weird that he ended up here- y’know I was actually gonna go and talk to him after you-”

“If by talk, you mean do whatever you did to Scott to us?!” Pearl demanded, hand on the hilt of her sword as she took a step forward to stand beside Gem.

“I didn’t-”

“I’ve had enough of your lies, Fwhip. What. Did. You. Do,” Gem said evenly. Fwhip swallowed nervously, before sighing and finally giving in.

“Okay, so I may have set a few traps in his empire and got Sausage to help me with letting a raid infiltrate his village and the surrounding lands- but I figured Scott could handle a few traps and some mobs, it was only meant to be a warning, I never meant to kill him! He must have really gotten soft if he couldn’t deal with it,” Fwhip rambled. Gem and Pearl seemed semi-satisfied with his answer, but Pearl kept her hand on her sword and purple sparks still danced around Gem. But there was something that Fwhip said that bothered Jimmy, and along with what Pearl had said… guilt was beginning to settle in the pit of his stomach.

“What do you mean by that?” Jimmy asked tentatively. Fwhip let out a harsh laugh, turning to Jimmy incredulously.

“The idiot actually fell for you. He was just supposed to be a distraction, a contingency plan to make sure you wouldn’t be trouble. But he got in too deep, and look where that got him,” Fwhip scoffed, looking down at Scott’s deathly still form in disdain. Guilt was crashing on Jimmy in waves now. He had pushed Scott away. Scott had actually cared about him and he pushed him away. And then he had no one to go to for help when Fwhip decided to send a “warning” and got hurt as a result.

“You’re lucky I’m a pacifist,” Katherine spat, more angry than Jimmy had ever heard her. He wished he could have shared her anger, shouted at Fwhip too- but Jimmy just felt numb.

“Well unluckily for Fwhip, I don’t have that problem,” Pearl fumed, drawing her sword. Fwhip started to scramble back as Pearl leapt at him. His backwards stumble turned into a run, and Pearl kept pace with him just fine, using her wings if necessary and brandishing her sword to chase him away.

“Pearl can handle him- can you three help me get Scott to the apothecary? I’d do it by myself, but he’s tall and there’s the bulk of his wings to worry about too,” Gem asked, looking down at Scott worriedly.

“Erm- right, of course,” Jimmy said, letting go of Katherine’s hand to join Gem at Scott’s side.

“Hold on- go to the other side and help me turn him over,” Gem said. Jimmy did as she asked, and being mindful of his wings, the two of them gently rolled Scott over so he was on his back. Scott was feverish to the touch, and even unconscious his expression was contorted with pain.

“He’s hot,” Jimmy said, distant horror in his tone.

“Now isn’t the time for that, Jimmy,” Gem teased, trying to lessen the tension in the air. Jimmy’s face scrunched up in irritation as he half-heartedly glared at her.

“He has a fever, Gem,” Jimmy huffed. Gem laughed nervously.

“I know, I know, just trying to make this less terrible than it is,” Gem sighed. Jimmy gave her a weak smile, and together the two of them gently lifted Scott up. Jimmy ended up mostly holding Scott, while Gem supported his wings. Scott’s head lolled against his shoulder, labored breaths fanning his neck. Jimmy should have felt embarrassed or flustered, cradling Scott like this- but he was too concerned with how limp and unresponsive Scott felt in his arms.

“I’ll get the doors for you!” Shelby offered, quickly making her way over to the apothecary door. Katherine hovered around Jimmy and Gem semi-anxiously, making sure that they had a good hold on Scott as they made their way over to the apothecary. But all went well, and they were able to safely transport Scott into one of the apothecary beds. He had begun to shiver and tremble every so often now, and Jimmy could have sworn the corruption had spread, reaching his fingertips.

“There’s gotta be a way to stop that, or at least slow it down,” Gem murmured in thought, pulling up a chair to sit at Scott’s side. She reached out to the cut where the corruption on Scott’s arm stemmed from, hand glowing purple again. She closed her hand over it, and her eyes began to glow the same purple as her hand. But then the glow flickered, turning red for a moment before it dissipated entirely and Gem drew her hand back with a yelp, stumbling backwards out of her seat beside Scott’s bed. Jimmy scrambled over to help her up, eyes darting nervously between her and Scott.

“Is everything alright? I chased Fwhip off, but I swear if he’s done something in here…” Pearl trailed off as she walked into the apothecary, eyes zeroing on Gem as she rubbed at her temples.

“I’m fine. The corruption- it fought back. It’s… alive, somehow,” Gem said with morbid curiosity in her tone.

“It’s a type of fungus. That’s as much as my people could figure out before I came here to try and find a cure. The red stuff is everywhere in my old home- even if you tried to get rid of it, it would just come back. And in the cases where it latched onto a person… there was no getting it out,” Shelby explained, sounding like she was going to cry. Gem hummed thoughtfully.

“Did you try any sort of magic with it?” she asked.

“No, my people were not magic-users- in fact I’d hardly seen magic before I came here, where the air seems charged with the stuff,” Shelby replied, gesturing around her. A determined expression came over Gem’s face.

“Then I’m not gonna stop trying. I don’t know if I can fully fight off the corruption, but I definitely think I can slow its spread. In the meantime, we’re gonna need to get Scott’s fever down- at this rate, that’ll kill him before the corruption will,” Gem said, resting the back of her hand on Scott’s forehead and frowning.

“He’s probably a little beat-up too- Fwhip did say he trapped his empire,” Katherine added. Gem nodded in agreement.

“We’ll need cool water and cloth to make a compress for his forehead- and I should have some healing potions around here- it couldn’t hurt to brew some more though too, just in case,” Gem rambled, starting to stand up before Pearl put up a hand.

“You two stay here with Scott, I know where you keep things around here. Katherine, Shelby and I can worry about getting things for you,” she soothed. Jimmy tilted his head in confusion.

“Wait, I can help get things too…” Jimmy trailed off uncertainly.

“You can help if you want. I just figured you’d wanna stick by Scott,” Pearl shrugged with a gentle smile. Jimmy flushed slightly as he looked down at the floor, away from Pearl’s knowing stare.

“I… yeah. I’ll stick by Scott,” he said softly, gaze shifting to look at the winged elf who always managed to make his emotions into a muddled mess. Scott was an enemy, a friend, a- a something, then an enemy again- but whatever Scott was to Jimmy now, he knew one thing: he wasn’t letting Scott out of his sight again. Doing so the last time caused this to happen. He had to be there if- no, when Scott woke up. He had to apologize for pushing him away, and hope that maybe Scott still cared about him after everything that had happened to accept it.

-

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[fandom-strumpet]

Game Night Confession- Part 1

 Summary: It’s Game Night at the Salvatore boarding house and after a few drinks and games they start the game 7 Minutes in Heaven. It’s not what you think, the bottle lands on Elena and Y/N.

Pairing: Kai Parker x reader

Word Count: 1,769

It’s Game Night at the Salvatore boarding house, the crew is there, including Rebekah. She had been on her best behavior lately so was ‘allowed’ to come but she in reality she crashed the party and no one had the energy to make her leave. Damon went down to the cellar and brought out one of his bourbon’s and started pouring it into glasses with ice. The night started off with Twister but the more you all drank, the more difficult it became and you all agreed to move onto the next game. Caroline pulled out Cards Against Humanity and finally the game ended when Stefan won with 6 black cards.

 “I know what game to play next!” Rebekah squealed, “7 Minutes in Heaven!”

 Damon groaned and tossed his head back to take a shot but it was obvious he was interested as well. 

Elena spins first, with a hopeful look that it might land on Stefan. Unfortunately, the bottle landed on you. 

“Ooh” Rebekah squirms in excitement. 

You give a small huff. Elena shares the ‘Oh well.’ look with you as you both head to the closet. 

Hollering back you say, “Remember the rules! No vamp hearing to listen in!” 

A chorus of yes’ and agreement sound back. Shutting the heavy oak door with a thud, Elena turns and clicks the little light bulb on. You and Elena both stood awkwardly in silence for a moment. 

Whispering, you ask Elena, “How about we play a different version of the game?” 

“What would that be?” Elena tilted her head and squinted curiously.

 “We both tell each other a deep and dark secret. We’ll be sworn to secrecy-”

 “What happens in the closet, stays in the closet.” Elena finishes with a coy smile. “Alright, I’ll go first,” she takes a deep breath in, “I kissed Katherine.”

 Your jaw drops open and you fail to come up with an immediate response resulting in an awkward silence. 

Elena speaks fast and continues, “Well, I mean, actually I didn’t kiss her. She kissed me just so she could bite my lip and get some blood.” 

“Bu- whu- uh-” You stuttter out.

 “I couldn’t bring myself to tell Stefan, it would be too weird... OKAY! Your turn!” 

“Um well, okaaay.” You shake your head in disbelief of what you had just heard. Letting out a shaky breath you feel butterflies in your stomach and a warm feeling that wasn’t there a moment ago. Its time someone knows anyway. “My deepest, darkest secret is that-” you pause to bite your lip,”I am hopelessly, irrevocably in love with Malachai Parker...” Your heart froze, looking into Elena’s eyes for a response.

 “You are absolutely crazy!” 

“Elena, remember you promised not to tell anyone.” 

“Y/N, I promise I won’t tell anyone. But- really? Kai?!”

 “I know, I know. It’s eating me up inside though. I don’t know what to do.” 

“Tell him.” she stated. 

“What and let everyone know I’m in love with Senor Psychopath?!” you started to raise your voice.

 “Shhhh.” Elena hushed.

 You sighed and then felt a cold wash over you. “Besides, he would never like me back.”

 “Y/N.” Elena grabbed your shoulders and forced your eyes to meet hers. “Just tell him.” 

“ONE MINUTE LADIES!” You could hear Damon snickering. 

You shrug off Elena’s grip, “Guess we better make some noise.” You smiled half-heartedly.

 “Yep.” Elena grinned, her eyes lighting up with mischief. “Ow! My hair!” she yelled and you stifled a laugh. 

You hit your fist against the closet wall in response. “Oooooohhh.” you moan. Elena hits the wall but a little too hard and it sends the coat clothing rod falling. Laughter erupts from the both of you as you fall to the floor in a tangled mess. Stefan opens the closet door and you roll out giggling with messy hair.

“Enjoy your 7 Minutes in Heaven ladies?” Stefan cocked an eyebrow and smiled. 

In the Living Room

The great oak door shut but the girls remained quiet. Getting bored, Damon poured himself another drink. Kai strutted into the living room, shaking himself like a wet dog after walking out in the rain. 

“Really Kai? This is leather.” Caroline rolled her eyes. 

“It’s seen worse Caroline, relax.” Damon scoffed.

“Mmmmm so what do you got to eat?” Kai makes his way to the kitchen rubbing his hands together. He pulls out a bag of pork rinds from under the sink. “Hope you weren’t going to eat these or anything.”

“Nooooo. Go ahead and eat whatever Kai.” Stefan glared. 

“Alright then.” Kai plops himself down onto the couch by Rebekah. “So what game are you guys playing?” 

“7 Minutes in Heaven.” Rebekah winked. 

“Y/N and Elena are in there right now.” Bonnie stated with a chuckle.

 “Now I gotta hear this.”

 “Kai! No!” Caroline yelled. “There’s no vamp hearing in this game.”

“Well I’m not playing am I?” Kai grinned. 

Caroline glared daggers at Kai and then looked to Stefan for help. “He’s got a point Care, he’s not playing so he can technically listen in.” 

“You are unbelievable.” she rolled her eyes and fell backwards into the couch. Bonnie grinned, it was always amusing to see Caroline get worked up over the smaller things.

 “What are they doing?” Damon asked lazily, “It’s too quiet.”

 “They’re doing confessions.” Kai pursed his lips.

 “Kai, you can’t tell us what they’re saying.” 

“Bonnie is right.” Caroline nodded with raised eyebrows. 

“I for one would love to know though Kai.” Damon patted Kai on the back. Kai delivered a devilish smile.

“Elena just confessed something juicy but it isn’t a surprise to me. Now for Y/N...” Kai froze. The color drained from his face upon hearing you say, “I am hopelessly, irrevocably in love with Malachai Parker.” He stood up fast and almost bolted out of the house. The front door slammed shut at his exit. 

“Well he disappeared fast.” Rebekah raised her eyebrows and Damon shrugged, looking back down into his glass. 

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

The next day after classes, you met up with Elena at The Grill. The thud of a backpack makes you look up from your notebook. 

“Hey!” 

“Hey, how’s it going?” Elena smiled and sat down across from you. 

“Oh, you know. It’s going. I’m so glad we could meet up for food and studying though. It was a great idea, thanks Elena.” 

Elena clears her throat and sneaks a glance to the door. “No problem, Y/N. Anything to help a friend.”

“First though- *you giggled* we need to order drinks and food.” 

Elena waved down the new blonde waitress so she could take your order. It didn’t take long for the both of you to decide on what to get. The Grill had the best strawberry lemonades and mozzarella sticks. The door gave it’s usual ding, and it drew your attention out of an age old habit. It was him. Malachai Parker, the most handsome and hot being on the face of the Earth. Your heart skipped a beat involuntarily and Elena didn’t miss it. She looked down into her drink quickly to hide the smirk that appeared on her face. She whirls the straw around in her strawberry lemonade, a drink both of you always got together. It was an all time favorite and the Grill served it the best.

 “I- uh- yeah sorry. What were you saying? I lost focus for a second..” 

She leaned forward to take a sip before starting. “You know, I’ll never understand how you could love Kai. BUT I will admit that he is a better person when he’s around you. He’s not as ‘psycho Kai’.”

 “Elena,” you hissed, “You promised not to say anything to anyone.” 

“And I’m not- I’m only talking about it to you. Don’t worry, I haven’t told anyone about what happened in the closet.” 

You sit back and cross your arms in the motion of fine. You nod your head and motion for her to continue.

 “I can see it in you too, Y/N. How much you love him, how your heart races and your eyes light up. I can’t believe I didn’t see it before but- you and Kai would actually be really cute as a couple.” 

Your heart leapt into your throat when Kai turned slightly to look around and caught your eye. He gave a little smile and wave. Damon turned to see who he was waving to and winked at Elena. 

“Hey Damon! Kai! Want to join us?” Elena yelled and you groaned inwardly as the guys stood up to join you in the booth.

 “How’s it going ladies?” Damon smiled cheesily. 

“Good, me and Y/N were just talking about-”

 “Homework.” you interrupted quickly, unsure if she was going to say something to reveal your secret. Elena gave you a smirk and took another sip of her drink. You looked down to see your half-gone lemonade while they talked about something random. It was so hard to focus when the amazing man you wanted to caress and love and hold tight was sitting merely six inches from you and it felt like he was getting closer? No- that’s not possible, just your imagination. Why do I feel so hot all of a sudden? You grabbed your left wrist under the table out of habit to make yourself stop squirming and try to focus. Kai cast his eyes to you every now and then , looking for your reaction to the funny jokes. He was acting like a normal friend. You could act like a normal friend- right? 

“You know what, Damon and I actually have a thing to go do downtown-” 

“We do?” Elena nudged him hard, “We were supposed to go see some new artwork and stuff. Come on, let’s go!” 

As they slid out of the booth, Elena gave you a wink and a small wave to Kai.

“Sooooo um, hi.” 

“Hey.” His smile was so enchanting it was hard to keep yourself focused on something other than his lips. He turned away from you and started digging into the mozzarella sticks and sauce. You always thought it was so cute and weird how Kai ate. He was something else entirely. You grinned to yourself and started to join him. There was a comfortable silence as you ate, when the sticks were gone he licked his fingers with a pop and you felt your stomach tighten at the sight. Looking down at his drink he muttered, “Irrevocably. That’s a big word.” Then continued to seduce the straw with his tongue until it entered his mouth. @1-800-khaleesii @rome5683 @tawaii

[smaidjor]

i know they're losing (chapter 2)

Hello everyone! Since the last chapter received such a positive response (well, if screaming could be called a positive response), I've decided to not make you all wait long for the second chapter of this fic. Also, I have no self-control. Anyways!

Once again obligatory disclaimer this is characters not people, don't ship real people, etc.

Chapter Title: over snow and winter's morn

Chapter Wordcount: 3203

Content warnings: more discussion of death, also quite a bit of Scott being a bit of a dick. He's going through it, besties.

AO3 Link

Chapter 1

Actual fic under the cut:

Jimmy doesn’t get a chance to return the ring any time in the next few weeks. Scott must have told Katherine that he visited, since she doesn’t come to bother him about it, and every time Jimmy tries to go to Rivendell, something gets in the way. Demon attacks, urgent business in his empire, once even Scott’s own guards turning him away. Apparently Scott is a ‘busy elf’. Jimmy doesn’t doubt he is, but he also doesn’t doubt that Scott’s actively trying to avoid him. Scott is a petty man, ultimately, and Jimmy knows this, used to love it like he loved all his husband’s flaws, all his imperfections that were perfect to Jimmy. Now, though, it just hurts that Scott’s turning that pettiness on him.

Finally, something changes. Jimmy gets an invitation (in person!) from one of his closest allies; Lizzie wants to hold a ball, and she wants as many people as possible to come. It will be fancy and formal, with dancing and politics and all the things Jimmy’s just a bit awkward with, but he is an extrovert at heart, and well...Scott will be there, as Lizzie warns him.

“I know you and him don’t really get on, so I get if you don’t want to come. I really hope you will, though, it’s going to be a fun night!”

Jimmy nods. “I’ll be there! I need to talk to Scott anyways, actually, got to return this ring to him. It’s important, I think.”

“Gotcha! See you there,” Lizzie says with a broad smile. Jimmy appreciates that she doesn’t ask any questions about the ring, especially given that it’s the one thing holding together his emotional state right now.

And that’s how he finds himself frantically searching for something fancy enough to wear to a formal ball, wishing he’d had the forethought to plan for this a bit better. Scott would have planned, he thinks, would have had an outfit laid out for each of them and the time it would take them to get there exactly calculated.

He shakes that thought off, settling for a green tunic with copper accents. It’s not the most elegant thing in the world, especially when you take into account the slime that’s dripped onto it, but it’ll have to do. It’s representative of his empire for sure, and the copper is a nod to his ally. It’s good enough, and that’s what matters, Jimmy thinks.

Lizzie greets him when he enters the ballroom, smiling widely with her new fiance by her side. “Jimmy! Glad you could make it!”

“Yeah, yeah, I did make it! Here I am!” The smile he gives her is genuine; he likes Lizzie. She's fierce and kind all at once, the best kind of ally.

Joel offers him a brief wave, which Jimmy happily returns before Lizzie drags him off to chat.

“So, heard from a little birdy you’ve actually been visiting Scott,” Lizzie says, a grin like the cat that got the bird on her face.

“As a favor to Katherine,” Jimmy quickly clarifies.

She nods. “She did say that, yes. She also said she heard about the visit from Scott himself.”

Jimmy hates himself a little for being pathetic enough to ask “What did- did she say what he said? Was he talking about me?”

“She didn’t say exactly, but he seemed ‘shaken up’, apparently...and a little wistful.”

“Oh, no. Lizzie, no.”

“Say, why did you have his ring?” She’s still grinning, a little more evil this time.

“It’s a long story!” Jimmy blurts, and flees. How’s he supposed to say ‘oh we were married on a server where we thought we were going to permanently die and then we respawned here and now Scott’s refusing to talk to me because the grief over my last death is slowly killing him’ tactfully? There’s just no way to do it! Nice one, Jimmy, now she thinks you’re in love with him or something, he thinks ruefully. Not that he isn’t- wasn’t. Wasn’t. Scott’s made it very clear that he and Jimmy are through.

Still, even with his depressing thoughts, the ball is pretty okay. No one’s gotten assassinated, there haven’t been any demonic appearances, Lizzie’s already showing off her engagement ring, and he’s pretty sure Joey’s going off about how hot demons are. It’s a decent party, by empires standards.

Scott makes an appearance some twenty minutes or so later, stepping into the ballroom with typical elven grace. He’s not a very elven elf, as he once told Jimmy, short and sarcastic with a love for mortals, but he still looks twice as elegant as everyone else in the ballroom. The shakiness in his step from a few weeks ago seems entirely gone, and for a minute, Jimmy’s heart leaps in hope. Maybe he’s getting better?

Well, only one way to find out. Jimmy swallows the complicated knot of emotion in his chest as he crosses the ballroom, coming to an ungraceful stop in front of Scott. Up close, the elf looks worryingly pale, and there are dark circles under his eyes. He looks like a strong breeze might sweep him away.

“Lord Codfather,” Scott greets.

“Elvenking,” Jimmy returns, dipping his head a little. Look, Scott, he can be formal too, alright? “Care for a dance?”

Scott stares for a long moment before giving a single nod. “I suppose I wouldn’t mind.” He takes Jimmy’s outstretched hand in his own gloved one, letting Jimmy put a hand on his waist as they start into a simple waltz.

Now, Jimmy is a terrible dancer, and he’s not too proud to admit it. He steps on Scott’s feet, gets off-rhythm once or twice, and nearly crashes them straight into Lizzie and Joel. But despite their current status as enemies(ex-spouses?), Scott says nothing about it. He’s silent, in fact, seemingly caught up in the music. There’s something wistful about his expression, something soft and gentle hidden under his icy facade. If Jimmy tries hard enough, he can almost pretend that the two of them are back in 3rd life, dancing under the stars, and Scott is looking at him like he’s the most precious thing in the world.

The illusion is shattered, however, by how heavily Scott is leaning on him by the end of the dance. He’s unsteady on his feet, grip like iron on Jimmy’s hand and shoulder. Though Jimmy can’t feel his hands though the gloves, when he brushes against Scott’s arm, it’s still a little too cold to be entirely right.

The music slows and then pauses before the next song, and they head for the edge of the dance floor.

“Thank you for the dance, Codfather,” Scott says. He steps away, face falling back into the emotionless facade so quickly it’s hard to be sure the tender expression of a moment before wasn’t a dream.

That’s the final straw for Jimmy’s fragile self-control. “Can we please stop acting like we don’t know each other?”

“What else do you want from me?” Scott snaps back.

“I- something! Anything! Just acknowledge that I exist, won’t you?”

“Acknowledging you exist doesn’t mean I’m still in love with you, you know.”

“I know,” Jimmy says, a little softer, a little bitter. “I know, trust me. I just want you to stop- to stop hurting yourself to try and avoid pain!”

“That’s not what I’m do-”

“Then what are you doing? Enlighten me, o wise elf!” They’ve kept their voices low enough, but people nearby are still starting to stare at them. Jimmy can’t bring himself to care. “You told me it would destroy you to lose me, but you’re losing me now by pushing me away!”

Scott’s expression is pained for a moment before he covers it with a glare. “I’m trying to do what’s best for the both of us, Jimmy.”

“No you’re-”

“I am an elf, and I cannot love a mortal. Humans are quick flames, burning and changing quickly. You’ll fall in love again, and you’ll forget me. There will be a mortal who loves you- I’m sure there are many already.”

“But I don’t want a mortal,” Jimmy protests. “I want you.”

“You can’t have me.”

“But why? Why, Scott?” His voice breaks, embarrassingly enough. “You said you loved me, you promised me all the time we’d be able to- to carve out, to steal from the universe.”

“I can’t give you that!” Scott snaps. “You’ll live sixty more years, maybe, a fraction of my life, a blink of an eye to an elf, and I can’t even give you that long! Not when I have to be the elvenking before anything else. Nothing I can do will ever be enough for you.”

“Enough for me? For ME? All I want is for you not to die to your own dumb plan and acknowledge my existance once in a while!”

“And all I want is for you to realize I can’t love you again!”

“Why can’t you care about me?”

“Why can’t you move on?” Scott counters.

“You’re not moving on, you’re just trying to forget!” Jimmy shouts.

In the silence that follows, he realizes that most of the ballroom must have heard the end of their little lovers’ quarrel. In fact, Lizzie’s somehow appeared next to him, laying a hand on his arm.

“Is everything alright, boys?” Her tight smile says that they will most certainly get kicked out of the ball if they continue this, and Jimmy can’t blame her.

“My apologies, Ocean Queen,” Scott says, switching to a formal tone with ease that Jimmy envies. He dips his head in respect, and only Jimmy sees how his hands tremble. “Everything is alright, but I am afraid I will have to leave early.”

She smiles again, dangerous this time. “No need to worry, Lord Smajor. Do try to avoid picking fights with my allies, next time, though.”

“It won’t happen again,” he promises, and sweeps away.

“Coward!” Jimmy shouts after him, anger making him bold. “You’re a coward, Scott!”

“Stop it,” Lizzie scolds. “You’ve already made quite the scene, and I did essentially kick him out. I’m not sure how much further you really want to carry it.”

“He is though, Lizzie, he’s a coward! Doesn’t want to face me because that means facing- well, facing everything that’s happened!”

“What do you mean, everything that’s happened?” Lizzie turns to the gathered audience of people who have been watching the spat, shooing them off as best as possible. They slowly disperse, thank goodness. “You and he are enemies, right?”

Jimmy almost winces. “It’s a bit- it’s a bit more complicated than that.”

“I can see that. Jimmy, that looked like a messy breakup!”

“It, um, well, it was. Sort of.”

“Oh, Jimmy.” Lizzie’s giving him a sympathetic look, which she follows up with a tight hug. “Next time, how about we don’t invite him?”

He nods against her shoulder, rage leaving him as quickly as it came. Instead, he just feels...tired. “Thanks, Lizzie.”

“Of course. We look after each other, yeah?’

“Yeah.”

Jimmy leaves the ball exhausted, still reeling from everything that happened. The few lingering bits of anger are what gets him home, a bitter taste in his mouth from the bitter words he spat. Coward! You’re a coward, Scott! He refuses to regret them.

Scott’s ring nearly ends up in the swamp again, but Jimmy’s cooled down enough by the time he gets back that he can’t bear to throw it away. Instead, it goes in a box which he tucks into his old storage chest, somewhere he’ll never have to see it again. Scott can go to hell if he wants the ring back after all that.

-

For a while, Jimmy’s plan to tuck the ring and never think about Scott again seems to be working. Lizzie visits a few times to check on him, but she never asks specifically about Scott, and Jimmy doesn’t say anything about him. He receives radio silence from Rivendell, and he tells himself that it’s good, that he doesn’t want to hear from Scott.

So yes, his plan is working, up until he gets a knock on his door and opens it to find Scott there.

The elf looks terrible, frankly, almost worse than he did at the ball. His hair, which is usually so nicely done, is a mess, cyan strands falling all across his face. His clothes are wrinkled and have swamp mud on them, his eyes have dark circles as violent as bruises, and he’s swaying a tiny bit. In short, he looks like he didn’t sleep for a week, chugged coffee, and fought god in a denny’s parking lot.

Jimmy thinks he’s kinda hot.

No, he doesn’t. Fake news, brain.

“Hi,” Scott says.

“Scott? What- why are you here?” Jimmy’s voice rises, in shock or outrage even he doesn’t know.

“I came to apologize.” Though he looks like he’s going to pass out at any second, Scott’s voice is steady. “I was scared- I am scared. I’m terrified to lose you again. But I shouldn’t have pushed you away and hurt you.”

“No, you shouldn’t have!” Jimmy snaps, but there’s little real rage behind it.

“I know. I- uh- fuck.” Scott’s hands are shaking as he pulls out a little box from some hidden pocket. “I brought a gift as an apology.”

Jimmy takes it, curious despite himself, and finds that what’s inside is a silver bracelet with little crystals embedded in it. Flowers are the predominant design; he recognizes roses, hyacinths, irises, anemone, and poppies. On the underside, there’s elven lettering, though Jimmy has no clue what it says. The whole thing is a little clumsy, not quite as professionally made as the ring Scott once gave him, and Jimmy looks up at Scott. “Did you make this yourself?”

“Mhm. I did my best, but it’s not as nice as I’d like.”

“It’s pretty,” Jimmy says.

Scott’s shoulders slump with relief. “It’s spelled, too. Protection, good fortune, that sort of thing.”

“Do the flowers mean something?”

“They do.”

Jimmy doesn’t press for details.

“I-” Scott starts again, a tremble in his voice that wasn’t there before. “I’m sorry, Jimmy, I really am. I won’t ask you to forgive me, but I needed to apologize before my time ran out.”

“Is it that- that dire?”

The barest nod. “This is what I chose to do with it. Making that, coming here. You deserved an apology.”

There’s a moment of awkward silence, Jimmy staring down at the bracelet.

Scott breaks it. “It wouldn’t be fair of me to ask you to love me. I can’t promise you eternity. I can’t promise you happiness. I can’t promise you that I won’t have to be the elvenking first and a husband second. But I am yours still, if you’ll have me.”

A part of Jimmy is very tempted to throw both Scott’s gift and his love back in his face. He can’t bring himself to stay mad, though, not when Scott’s looking at him like that, with so much raw vulnerability. So much devotion, like Jimmy’s the most precious thing he’s ever seen. It would be so, so easy to break that last strand of fragile hope in his expression; he’s offering up his heart on a silver platter, ready to shatter. Jimmy could- should- yell at him, reject his gift, tell him that he’s ruined any chance he has at Jimmy’s love.

Jimmy kisses him instead. It’s messy and it’s sudden and he very nearly drops Scott’s gift in the swamp in his haste to tangle his hands in Scott’s hair and press their lips together, but it’s real.

The little startled noise Scott makes gets cut off by Jimmy’s mouth on his. Scott’s lips are chapped and taste a little of glowberries, but Jimmy doesn’t care. He’s going to kiss his damn husband, something he thought he was never going to get to do again.

When they finally have to separate, Scott’s breathing hard, cheeks flushed. It’s a good look on him, Jimmy thinks, much more alive than his pale, rigid expression from before.

“So, I’ll take that as you want to stay married?” Scott’s voice is wry, collected, but his blush ruins the smooth effect.

“Of course I do! You absolute idiot!”

“Just checking.”

Jimmy kisses him again, just to shut him up. Scott goes with it easily, leaning into Jimmy’s embrace without complaint.

They pull apart quicker this time, and Jimmy holds the bracelet out. “Can you help me put this on?”

Scott nods. His hands are cold against the skin of Jimmy’s wrist when he fastens the clasp, but Jimmy grabs them and holds them in his own warm ones until they don’t feel quite so much like ice. It’s something. It’s a beginning.

“Come in and catch up with me?” Jimmy offers.

Scott nods again, and he doesn’t let go of Jimmy’s hand when Jimmy turns to go inside.

They talk about a lot of things. Empires, 3rd life, nightmares. Pufferfish, cake, flowers. They talk about the trials and tribulations of ruling; really, Jimmy complains that people keep attacking him and Scott nods in sympathy.

Eventually, though, the sun is starting to set.

“I need to get home,” Scott says. “You need sleep, not to stay up all night talking.” He goes to get up, and Jimmy immediately lunges, catching his sleeve.

“Don’t go! Please,” he adds, feeling his face flush at how desperate he sounds.

“Jimmy, darling, we both need to sleep.”

“We can sleep! I just….nevermind.”

“No, no.” Scott kneels back down, peering at him like Jimmy’s a puzzle that needs solving. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Jimmy.”

“I don’t want to be alone!” Jimmy blurts, and immediately flushes again. “It’s just, I’ve been alone for a long time, and there’s this demon thing that keeps showing up, and I’ve only just got you back, I’m not ready to let you go, and-”

“Hold on. What was that about a demon?”

“There’s this demon creature that I keep seeing, and it’s really messing with me,” he manages. “It sounds like you, sometimes, but all distorted, and I can’t handle it! You know me, I’m not brave or smart or anything, I’m just Jimmy!”

Scott’s frowning, worry wrinkling his brow. “Alright. How about you come to Rivendell for the night, then? I can protect us both easier there.”

Jimmy nods, feeling especially pitiful as Scott helps him to his feet. “Thank you.”

“Always. Do you still have the ring I gave you?”

“I do, I just….give me a moment to remember where I put it.”

“Good. It’s important.” Scott doesn’t elaborate, and Jimmy is too distracted looking for the ring to ask what he means.

Scott’s offer of protection feels flimsier when he has to lean on Jimmy as they travel back to Rivendell, but even then, it’s impossible to feel quite so afraid now that Jimmy isn’t alone anymore. And it’s even harder to fear anything that could happen when he’s safe in a warm bed, his head tucked against his husband’s chest. They’ll be okay, Jimmy thinks. They’ve been given another chance, and this time they’re going to get it right.

[themidnight-ghost]

I should tell you

“Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, are you dating Joanne Davidson?”

“Boss, I honestly don’t see an issue...” Kate trailed off as Ted massaged his temples.

“You don’t see an issue? She swears at her superiors, has affairs with her staff, shot an officer twice in the chest, set up a plot to kill you and replied with ‘no comment’ to almost every bloody question.”

The euphoria Kate Fleming felt around Joanne Davidson was extravagant. Even now, when they lie in bed together trying to come down from their high, Kate still felt energised. The DI rolled over to face her girlfriend, with the bedsheets pulled up to her neck and subtly smiled.

Kate ran her left hand through Jo’s hair and cupped her cheek with the other, “Morning, boss.”

Jo opened her eyes and grinned when she met Kate’s, “You don’t have to keep calling me that.”

“I want to,” Kate replied honestly.

“You look beautiful, by the way.” Jo simply said as she moved forward to kiss her girlfriend tenderly. No one would have expected that Kate Fleming and Jo Davidson would become a thing. Especially after Jo’s arrest. Heck, they didn’t even know if Jo would survive prison! Jo paused their kiss, and Kate looked unexpectedly at the DI, “You should probably tell Steve and Ted.”

The moment was ruined.

Kate tensed as she sat up, pulling the duvet with her and laughing when she pulled too hard, so Jo was left bare, “What?”

“I said-'' Davidson smirked as she deliberately rolled onto Kate’s chest, making her blush, “You should tell Steve and Ted. You may not be related, but they’re your friends.”

“What if I don’t want to tell Steve?” Kate challenged with a whisper, not looking away from Jo's eyes.

“You can look at my tits, Kate. I don't mind.”

“JO!” Kate profusely blushed and shoved her ex-boss to the side,

Jo snickered and leant back into the DI for a cuddle, “It isn’t like you haven’t seen them before.”

“But seriously,” Kate hummed when she went back to being serious, “Steve will support it; I know he will. But Ted? I don’t want to tell. He might not like it.”

“But he threw confetti at that proposing gay couple?”

“That’s different. Not only am I his colleague, but I’m also dating a woman who committed multiple offences to the law and it’ll be awkward, especially in a work setting.”

“Yeah, I still feel a little guilty for that,” Jo confessed.

“You shouldn’t. It was shitty, but you did it because Pilkinton had a gun to your head and somehow made things right, but,” Kate hesitated and wrapped an arm around Jo’s torso, “that still doesn’t change what happened.”

“Steve’s your best friend, and from what I can tell, you’ve known Ted for a good while.” Jo gently kissed Kate’s jaw before shuffling away, allowing the DI to go downstairs.

“I might.” Kate smiled as she grabbed her underwear and a towel from the floor, “I love you.”

“I love you too, Kate.”

Both women had been dating for a significant amount of time. Their story started when Jo broke up with Farida, and the two started getting close. After that, there had been a series of unofficial dates, secret glances, handholding, confessions and a memorable car getaway. Kate was embarrassed that it took her so long to come to terms with her feelings.

The night when Kate shot Pilkinton was definitely memorable but for all the wrong reasons. Kate couldn’t care less that she’d shot an officer; the only thing she cared about was saving Jo and getting them far away from town. She was looking forward to a life of peace without bent coppers lurking around corners and getting married to the woman she loved. That being said, Kate didn’t confess her love until Jo was in prison.

Finally arriving at work, Kate scanned her ID and headed straight for Ted’s office.

“Morning, Kate.” Hastings didn’t look up from his computer.

Tapping her on the shoulder, Steve approached with two cups of coffee from behind, “The Gaffer thinks he’s found something worth looking at.”

Kate raised an eyebrow, “Oh yeah? What’s it relating to?”

“Our friend, Jo Davidson.”

Kate’s heart dropped to the floor. Was it bad? Who was she kidding? Of course, it was going to be bad.

“I don’t want to make any sudden moves,” Ted admired his coffee, “Let’s just wait it out.”

Steve knew that Kate had some sort of soft spot for Jo. He didn’t know the details of their relationship but was aware they were close,

“Has she mentioned anything to you since she was released?”

Kate shook her head.

“Strange.” Hastings began, “I was quite hoping we’d seen the last of her. The poor girl’s been through enough as it is.”

Kate picked her fingernails, and her stomach churned over, “Can I confess something?”

“Of course…” Hastings folded his arms and leaned across the desk, gesturing for Kate to take a seat.

“Do you want me out?” DI Arnott hesitated.

“It’s alright, Steve. I need to tell both of you anyway.”

“I’ve been seeing someone,” A beat, “romantically.”

The confession slipped out, and jumping the first hurdle was surprisingly easy, but unfortunately, it wasn’t as straightforward as that.

The Gaffer corrected his posture, and Steve cocked his head, “Oh? For how long?”

“About 4 months.”

Steve looked slightly hurt, “And you never told me?”

“I didn’t think it was necessary,” Kate replied sheepishly.

Steve and Ted weren’t blood-related, but Kate still viewed them as her family. One of Kate’s strongest memories was when Steve slept on her sofa bed every night after her husband left.

“What’s his name?”

Another hurdle appeared that Kate had to somehow jump over - the gay hurdle. Until she met Jo, Kate never imagined herself to be bisexual. The haircut had always been misleading until now.

“He’s a she.” Kate wouldn’t say she was scared of her boss, but she certainly valued his approval and Catholic beliefs.

Ted paused to think this over before leaning back in his chair, closing his eyes, and smiling. The smile grew, and a flower of hope blossomed in the DI’s chest. Steve was grinning at both reactions and patted Kate reassuringly on the shoulder.

“I’m happy you felt comfortable enough to tell us,” Steve spoke for them.

“Does this mean you’re okay with this?” Kate didn’t know why she needed an answer, but she would feel even better with confirmation.

“It’s your life, of course, we are! Now, who is she?”

“Okay, okay”, Kate could burst with excitement! Even though they didn’t know it was Jo, Kate could still describe her lover in perfect detail. “She has short, dark brown hair, which has a subtle wave at the end. She is pretty pale, so in the sun, her freckles come out, but you won’t see them unless you’re super close! Her cheeks are always red because she is somehow always blushing!” Kate continued to gush, “Her eyes are brown, and her favourite colour is blue! She was also a police officer-”

“You told them yet?” Jo Davidson leaned in the doorway with a giant grin plastered on her face, “or are you just going to keep describing my facial features?”

Silence.

Jo stopped as she realised what she’d said.

Kate looked between Jo, Steve and Ted. She loved her ex-boss, but she really needs to learn to read a situation.

Steve and Ted simultaneously looked between Kate and Jo. Their brains slowly put the puzzle together in an organised fashion. The hair, the skin, the blush, the eyes and finally, the favourite colour.

The history hurdle.

The grinding of Ted’s chair against the floor wasn’t enough to pierce the tension between the group. Kate ushered her girlfriend into the office, closing the door, taking her hand and cautiously walking over to Steve and Ted.

“Jo, this is Steve. Steve, this is Jo.” Kate introduced them, and Jo waved shily. “Jo, this is Ted, Ted this is-”

“I know who Jo Davidson is.” Ted’s voice was a deadly monotone. “How did you even get in?”

“I walked through the door.” The awkwardness had obviously got to the former SIO, who proceeded to bite her lip as she glanced around the room, eyeing the wall with great curiosity.

“Davidson.” Jo’s head snapped back to the situation as Hastings addressed her. “Are you dating one of my officers?”

“Well-” Jo didn’t know what to say, and thankfully, Ted didn’t want to hear it.

“Katherine Laura Fleming.” Kate flinched at the use of her full name.

“Your middle name is Laura?” Jo tentatively asked before Ted shut her off. “Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey, are you dating Joanne Davidson?”

“Boss, I honestly don’t see an issue...” Kate trailed off as the Gaffer rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“You don’t see an issue?” Ted tried hard to keep his composure, “She swears at her superiors, has affairs with her staff, shot an officer twice in the chest, set up a plot to kill you and replied with ‘no comment’ to almost every bloody question.”

“She also commanded multiple armed officers, is super observant, tactically agile, Scottish and be honest: we all know I was the one who shot Ryan Pilkinton.”

Steve sniggered. “I just can’t believe you both.”

“After everything, she's done? I don’t know if I should be impressed or appalled.” Ted corrected.

“You’re not mad?” Kate pushed,

“I'm not mad, but I’m seriously debating whether I should fire you for stupidity. You said it’s been going on for 2 or 3 months, but when did it even start?”

“Jo and I have been shagging on the sly for months.” Jo snickered at Kate’s comment, “But for me, it started in the getaway car and when Jo went to prison. I always felt different about her, but it only hit me when I thought I’d lose her for good.”

Kate’s sentence pulled on Jo’s heartstrings as she remembered the recent events. Throughout her short time in prison and working on Operation Lighthouse, Kate had been her friend and colleague. She cared for Jo more than anyone else in her life and Kate was the only person to make an effort and ask about her day. Overwhelmed, the smaller woman buried her head in Kate’s shoulder, forgetting all about the angry Ted Hastings. Kate kissed Jo’s forehead and smiled fondly down at her.

Both Steve and Ted thought they knew exactly how Jo Davidson worked, especially after interviewing Farida they pictured her as a manipulative, self-centred psychopath. The recent interview didn’t exactly change their opinions either. But this was different. It wasn’t normal for anyone to see Jo vulnerable, but it looked easy when she was with Kate. Jo relaxed, her shoulders dropped, breathing steady, eyes shut with a gentle smile. And in the years Steve had known Kate, he had never seen her blush as much as she did now or look at someone with so much compassion and… love?

“Just so you know, we don’t care that you’re gay, mate. And we shouldn’t care who you date either. I think it was just a shock for Hastings here.” Steve patted his boss on the back.

“It was a shock to me too.” Jo finally addressed the room, “I thought I was done. Mentally, physically and romantically.”

“I should apologise for my words,” Ted replied sheepishly, “I have nothing against anyone, but as you can tell, I’m still a little prickly.”

Jo awkwardly picked down the skin on her fingers, “I don’t blame you, sir.” It was still a little awkward between the trio, and Ted was determined to settle things, “I didn’t get a chance to mention it, but I’m impressed with your knowledge of the law, especially in that interview.”

Kate proudly squeezed Jo’s arm, “Thank you.”

“Unfortunately,” Ted continued, “I can’t let you back on the force-”

“Oh, don’t worry about that: I’m done with police work altogether.” Jo looked fondly at Kate, “I just want to focus on my life and what I have left.”

“Wise words.” Steve nodded, “Can I get anyone another coffee?”

“Tea, please.”

“Same here.”

Steve headed towards the door, gesturing Kate to follow.

“Is it wise to leave them there alone?” Kate jogged after her colleague.

Steve grinned, “Let them talk about rules for a while; I’d rather know all about this new development!” he playfully nudged Kate’s arm and jumped for joy when they were at the coffee machine and out of sight.

“You gonna calm down now?” Kate chucked before looking serious, “By the way, what did you find out about Jo? Should I be worried?”

“Go no! There was a small break in around your apartment. We checked the security cameras and noticed Jo Davidson walking past and holding hands with…” Steve dragged out the answer before pointing to DI Fleming, “you.” Kate turned pale as Steve continued, “I had my suspicions, and we intended to mention it today, see if we could get a reaction. Guess I didn’t even have to try, mate.”

☁️ First ever Flemson fic, fist time watching Line of Duty - that ending was NOT IT (expect a 4000 word alternate ending fic soon) if you read this, thank you x ☁️

[politics-notmything]

We fell in love in November

YEah, we back at it with another one shot... I don’t normally write these but after my recent post and the Parrlyn discord, now could I not 👀 Anyway, this took wayyyyyy longer than i thought it would - Part 15 of She Used to be mine is out tomorrow :)  

Tw- implied nudity (nothing over PG-13), bad language, coming out. 

The euphoria Cathy Parr felt around Anne Boleyn was extravagant. Even now when they lie in bed together trying to come down from their high, Cathy still felt energised. The writer rolled over to face her girlfriend, with the bedsheets pulled up to her neck and subtly smiled. Cathy ran her left hand through the Boleyn girl’s hair and cupped her cheek with the other.

“You look so beautiful,” Anne opened her eyes and grinned when she met with Cathy’s.

“As are you.” she simply replied as she moved forward to tenderly kiss her girlfriend. No one could’ve expected that Catherine Parr and Anne Boleyn would become a thing in their second life. Heck, they didn’t even know they had the possibility of a second life! Anne paused their kiss and Cathy looked unexpectedly at her gremlin, “You should tell Aragon.” 

The moment was ruined. 

Cathy tensed as she sat up, pulling the duvet with her and laughing when she pulled too hard, so Anne was left bare, “What?” 

“I said-” Anne smirked as she deliberately rolled onto Cathy’s chest, making her blush, “You should tell Aragon.”

“What if I don’t want to tell Aragon…” Cathy whispered, not looking away from Anne’s eyes.

“You can look at my tits, Cath, I don't mind.” 

“ANNE!” Cathy profusely blushed and shoved the Boleyn girl to the side, 

Anne snickered and pulled the writer into a cuddle, “It isn’t like you haven’t seen them before.” 

“But seriously,” Cathy hummed when she went back to being serious, “I don’t want to tell my godmother, she might not like it.” 

“But she came to pride last year and threw confetti at that proposing gay couple?” 

“That’s different. Not only am I her goddaughter, but I’m also dating the woman who stole her crown.” 

“Yeah, I feel a little guilty for that,” Anne confessed.

“You shouldn’t. ‘Lina isn’t mad about it now because we know you were forced to do it,” Cathy snuffled closer, “but it still doesn’t change history.” 

“She’s family Cath. I told Kat, now you should tell Aragon.” Anne gently kissed Cathy’s curls before removing her grip around the writer’s waist, allowing her to go downstairs. 

“I might.” Cathay smiled as she grabbed her underwear and a towel from Anne’s floor, “I love you.” 

“I love you too, Cath.” 

Both queens had been dating for a significant amount of time, and their story started when they ‘accidentally’ made out in Cathy’s dressing room after Anne trapped them for an hour. After that, there had been a series of confessions, secret glances and planning from both parties, so they didn’t come across as suspicious. Then, once they felt ready, Anne told Katherine who has been a useful distraction when the lovers want some alone time. 

One of the first things Catherine proposed was developing small ‘habits’ that the others would believe. For example, Anne was known to sleep in, so they both took advantage of that when Cathy would sneak out of her room and cuddle Anne in the early morning before heading downstairs for breakfast. Another trick was when Cathy ran out of coffee and needed to take a last-minute trip to Tescos. Anne would always hide the coffee and midnight then plan a Tescos trip the next day when Cathy would happen to tag along. 

And it worked surprisingly well. 

“Morning Mija.” Catalin de Aragon was at the head of the kitchen table, reading a novel and drinking tea, alone. 

Cathy walked over to her coffee machine, “Morning ma, where is everyone?” 

“They decided to go on a walk. Katherine said something about trees helping you live longer,” 

Cathy suppressed a laugh, Anne...

“Yeah, I read that too.” 

“Of course, in our second lives, no one wants to take any chances!” Aragon continued, oblivious, “Knowing Kat, she probably just wanted to look at the dogs.” 

Catherine picked her fingernails, and her stomach churned over, “Can I confess something?”

“Of course…” Her godmother removed her reading glasses and gestured for Cathy to take a seat. 

“I’ve been seeing someone,” A beat, “romantically.” 

The confession slipped out and jumping the first hurdle was surprisingly easy, but unfortunately, it wasn’t as straightforward as that. 

The godmother corrected her posture and licked her lips, “Oh? For how long?” 

“About 4 months.” 

“And you never told me?” 

“I didn’t think it was necessary,” Cathy replied, sheepishly. 

While Catherine may not be her mother, it didn’t change how she acted like one. One of Cathy’s strongest memories was when Aragon comforted her every night after she was reincarnated.

“What’s his name?” 

Another hurdle appeared that Cathy had to somehow jump over - the gay hurdle. 

“He’s a she.” Catherine wouldn’t say she was scared of her godmother, but she certainly valued her approval and beliefs. 

The Spaniard paused to think this over before leaning back in her chair, closing her eyes, and smiling. The smile grew, and a flower of hope blossomed in the Survivor’s chest. Aragon then opened her arms for Cathy to hug her, and the writer reacted all too quickly. 

“I’m happy you felt comfortable enough to tell me.” 

“Does this mean you’re okay with this?” Cathy mumbled into her shoulder, 

“Of course Mija! Now, who is she?” 

“Okay, okay” Cathy could burst with excitement! Even though her godmother didn’t know it was Anne, Cathy could still describe her lover in perfect detail. “She has dark brown hair, which has a subtle wave at the end. She is pretty pale, so her freckles stand out but her cheeks are always red because she is somehow always blushing!” Cathy continued to gush, “Her eyes are grey, but they change with the light, and her favourite colour is green-”

“You told Aragon yet?” Anne Boleyn leaned in the doorway with a giant smirk on her face, “or are you just going to keep describing my facial features?” 

Silence. 

Anne stopped as she realised what she’d said. 

Cathy looked between Anne and her godmother. She loved the gremlin, but she really needs to learn to read a situation.

Aragon stood and looked between Anne and Cathy. Her brain slowly puts the puzzle together in an organised fashion. The hair, the skin, the freckles, the blush, the eyes and finally, the favourite colour. 

The history hurdle. 

The grinding of Cathy’s chair against the kitchen floor wasn’t enough to pierce the tension between the 1st and 2nd queen. The writer took Anne’s hand, and cautiously walked her over to her godmother. 

“Anne, this is my Godmother. Ma, this is-” 

“I know who Anne is.” Catherine’s voice was a deadly monotone. 

The awkwardness had obviously got to the Boleyn girl who proceeded to bite her lip as she glanced around the room, eyeing the wall tiles with great curiosity. 

“Boleyn.” Anne’s head snapped back to the situation as the Spanish queen addressed her. “Are you dating my goddaughter?” 

“Well-” Anne didn’t know what to say, and thankfully, Catherine didn’t want to hear it. 

“Catherine Mary Parr.” Cathy flinched at the use of her full name. 

“Your middle name is mary?” Anne tentatively asked before Aragon shut her off. 

“Are you dating the woman who stole my husband?” 

“Well, when you put it like that…” Cathy trailed off as her godmother rubbed her temple. 

“After all these years?” Aragon tried so hard to keep her composure, she really did. But some situations are just too much. “No puedo creerlos a los dos!” 

“I can’t fucking believe you both.” Cathy translated. 

“Después de todo lo que hago por ti,” The Spaniard flung her arms around, “así es como me pagas?!”

“After everything, I’ve done for you, this is how you repay me?” 

“Mierda, mierda, mierda, odio a los malditos franceses!” She turned to Cathy “Te estas follando ella?” 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, I hate the fucking french, and I verbally can’t repeat the final phrase.” 

“Are you?” ‘Lina demanded to know the answer.

“sí señorita.” Cathy’s reply was quick and timid.

Catherine turned to Anne, “First, you stole my husband, then you stole my crown, and now you steal my goddaughter?!” 

“Oh, I stole more than that from her,” Anne winked at Cathy who couldn’t hold her laugh as she remembered the recent events. She buried her head in the Boleyn girl’s shoulder to try and stifle it. Forgetting all about the angry Spaniard, Anne kissed the top of Cathy’s curls and smiled fondly down at her. 

That wasn’t normal. Catherine of Aragon knew how Anne Boleyn worked when it came to a relationship. She would look at her target with a seductive smirk and a classic wink, she would follow them around before leading them out the room in the dark and alone. Anne Boleyn would destroy families and ruin a country. Manipulate the king and destroy the church, but she would never look at someone with such value. 

In all the years Catherine had been alive she has never seen Anne Boleyn blush as much as she did now or look at someone with so much compassion and… love? 

“No me importa que seas gay” Aragon finally sighed. 

Cathy swiftly removed her head from Anne’s shoulder to translate, “I don’t care that you are gay.” 

“And I shouldn't care who you date either.” Catalina looked at the interlocked fingers. “Forgive me for being so crude, it was a shock.” 

“It was a shock to me too!” Anne quipped but received a slap from Cathy. 

“I apologise for my use of language too, it was-”

“Descriptive?” Cathy finished. 

“Extremely.” It was still a little awkward between the trio, but ‘Lina was determined to settle things, “I just want you to know that I accept you both as family and as lovers.” 

“Thank you, ma.” 

“I really appreciate it.” 

“Now, I know the others will be getting back soon so we should really get started on breakfast.” 

“Let me reheat your coffee, babe.” Anne carefully took the mug from Cathy, who whispered a ‘thank you.’ 

“I have to admit,” Aragon cleared her space on the table and handed her goddaughter the placemats, “You make a pretty good couple.” 

“Right?!” Anne beamed with delight,

“Does anyone else know?” Catherine continued, 

“Only Katherine and you. We both wanted to keep it on the down-low, but Anne said I should tell you because you’re family.” Cathy explained.

“Well, I’m glad you told me, even if it took some convincing. And know that I’m here for the both of you if anyone tries anything!” 

“We’re back!” The younger cousin’s voice echoed off the walls, and she bounced into the kitchen to see Cathy kissing Anne’s cheek as she was handed her mug and ‘Lina placing the apple juice on the table. 

“Did the air work?” Cathy asked Kitty as she took her seat next to Anne around the table,

“I feel younger already!” 

“I’m definitely going to be immortal by the end of the century.” Anna threw her hoodie over the back of her chair and poured herself some apple juice as Jane finally walked in. 

Once everyone was sat, Anne nodded at Kat from across the table and tried to suppress and smile as Cathy subtly linked their arms together. A small gesture of affection which had humungous meaning.

[julietnterein]

•| Violacea I. chp. 9 |•

I was sitting at the large sofa in the living room, enjoying the silence when all the others were somewhere else, doing their own business. I felt for the first time like I actually belonged there. A book was sitting in my lap, which Pietro bought me as he tought I mind need some catching up.

„Yo, yo, yo!” Yelled the Devil himself as he run through the long hallways for one second and the other was already sitting next to me on the sofa. „I've had an idea!”

I sight quietly, saying goodbye to the comfort of the silence and closed the book.

Pietro gaved me a proud smile, when I started giving him the attention he wanted. And then he pulled a lightbulb out of somewhere.

„Uhm… What is that?” I look at him, more than confused.

„You are gonna train with this.” He says, with a smile on his face.

„I don't think that's a good idea.” I shake my head a little.

„I trust you.” He hands me the light bulb.

„That's really nice, but it's not really me who you need to trust.” I tried to pull out from his plan. „My powers could blow the whole Tower up if they wanted to. And I already cost this place too much damage.” I tried to gave him the lightbulb back.

„Yea.” He nods. „And you will probably cost it even more, if you won't start to control them.” He chuckles as he hands me the lightbulb once again.

„I'm not even sure how my powers actually work, Pietro.”

„And that's why we are doing this. C'mon… Just this once, we can always stop.” He tries to put on some kind of puppy eyes that is more scary than cute.

„Fine, jesus.” i shake my hand and takes the lightbulb between my fingers.

„You should try to light it up.” He thinks out loud.

„Really? I thought I should smash it over your head. Thank you, Sherlock.” I look at him.

„Sorry, for trying to be a good mentor.” He snorts.

I look at the lightbulb and actually tries to focus on it, but all I can focus on is Pietro's face slowly tilting closer to my face. „What about some space?” I look at him, but before I say something else, he is already sitting at the other end of the sofa.

With a sight I look at the lightbulb, trying to light up or something, to make him at least a little happy. But all I can think of is that my powers always showed to the party when I was at some kind of emotional peak, but right I felt like I was the calmest person alive. Anyway these emotions were always really strong and how am I even bring up my powers without them?

I take in a deep breath and I close my eyes. I can hear the quiet humming of the lights above my head. Okay, I can try and take some power of these and run it through the lightbulb in my hand. I frown my eyebrow as I focus even more on the humming, when suddenly I hear the loud buzzing of the elevator, and then there is the noise and murmur of Tony's radio in his lab, two stories down. And the loud buzz powering the hairdryer in someone's room.

I take in a quick breath and open my eyes, alarmed what I just experienced.

„What?” Asks Pietro quickly.

„I just…”

„What is it?”

„I heard Tony's radio and-... and the hairdryer.” I point my finger behind the kitchen, where is the hallway that leads towards all the rooms.

Pietro stands up and quickly runs to the rooms and a second later he's back again. „Wanda is blowing out her hair.” He says surprised. „What else did you heard?”

„The elevator.”

„What? There is no sound of the elevator.” He shakes his head, disagreeing.

„I heard the electricity, powering it.” I found myself saying, clearing my own thoughts.

„Oh...my… god! That's really cool!” He yells out. „Much cooler than you lighting it up the lightbulb.” He says with excitment. „So you can use the electricity as a weapon, which you basically suck out, out of everything around you and now you can listen through it?! That's much cooler than me! How come I have the lamest power?„ He realizes and really looks offended.

„That's probably because I'm the oldest.” I stick out my tongue at him and stands up to head to my room, I have to hold myself steady at first, as I'm still not used to my new legs.

„The last month it was me who was the oldest.” He mumbles under his breath. „But you haven't lighten up the lightbulb yet.” A blue flash appears in front of my eyes as I found myself sitting at the sofa again.

I'm not even trying to fight him anymore as I take the lightbulb back between my fingers. I focus really hard, but not even after five minutes when is still nothing happening I want to give up.

„Maybe try to… get angry?”

I look at him, really annoyed, like I'm that good to get angry just because he wants me to. Well, what else could get me angry? There was plenty of it, but it all felt far away and blurred. The only think I can think of is Katherine. I look at all the moments we had together a lot, and I just pity myself and think how stupid I was not to see through her lies. And I really wish I blowed her up the night when I discovered her powers, I should have blown her through the window for her lying to me my whole life.

The lightbulb starts to flicker in my hand before it starts shining. I felt this weird warm feeling dancing on the tips of my fingertips.

„You could have light yourself a lightbulb back then as well, instead of blowing me up  through the glass-wall.” Says voice behind my back. And with that voice the lightbulb snaps into pieces under the supply of sudden energy that shaked my whole body and into the lightbulb in my fingers.

„Crap.” I swear out loud as the shatters fall into my lap.

I look around at Natasha, this is her first time being out of the hospital wing and our first encounter face to face since the accident. She can feel me starring so she just looks at me with one eyebrow up and then without another word and with a cast on her broken arm she leaves us to whatever we are going to be up to now.

„She still seemed pretty mad, what do you think?” I ask Pietro.

„Honestly no idea, sometimes I'm really scared to look her in the eyes.” He says quietly. „But I mean you broke her arm, I wouldn't be surprised if she was.” He shrugs and continues to act like my mentor again.

The very same afternoon, Tony almost festively, tells me that he decided to give me my own room at the same level like the rest of the Avengers and also access to almost the whole areas around the Tower, so I don't always need someone around to ask Friday for me to open the lab door or something.

So now I have pretty spacious room, with really good view and the bed here is enormous. I lay down on the bed and with my palms slides over the soft duvets. But before I even have time to get anymore comfortable in my room, there is knock on my door.

„Miss Maximoff is behind the door, does she have access to open the door?” Asks me Friday.

Whoa, I can tell who can go in my room and who cannot, that's definitely good way how to avoid Pietro sneaking into my room and pranking me out or something. I wouldn't be surprised if this thing was installed after someone pranking Tony out.

„Yea, of course. Access allowed, please let her in.”

Wanda stands behind the door with a cute pile of clothes folded in her hands. She hasn't talked to me since she was told we shared the same womb.

„Hey.” She says out finally. „I feel like we set it out on the wrong foot so-....”

„Yeah, you tried to slice my throat open with a scalpel.” I interrupts her.

„And I'm sorry.” She chokes out nervously. „I really am. That's why I wanted to do something nice so I brought you some close… I thought you might wanna get into something better than the old stuff Tony lent you. Those are mine, but I don't wear them that much and I thought you might like them better.” She smiles as she sets the pile slowly at my bed next to me.

„Oh...I...Thank you.” I give her same nervous smile.

„I'm really sorry. This has to be really weird and hard for you and I definitely did not make it easier for you with my behaviour,... I guess… I didn't thought I would get a new sibling right now.” She chuckles nervously.

„Yeah, you tell me.”

„I'm really sorry… About the scalpel and stuff… Well, I will give you some space to set yourself in your new room.” She steps back to the frame of the door.

„Wanda?”

„Hm?” She turns around.

„Thanks for the clothes.” I smile at her and she gives me one more smile as well.

„No problem.”

Chp. 10

TAG LIST:

@littlegasps @multi-images

[racebox-of-higgars]

Take Me Captive, Set Me Free - Chapter Eight

New chapter of sprace pirate au is here! 

TW for discussions of child abuse in this chapter. The form for my next fic is still open until Wednesday, so please go and vote if you haven’t already - https://forms.gle/PWX4SarGJ9SswHAP6

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30592184/chapters/77798888

@angelslibrary - please let me know if you want to be added to the tag list! 

Race couldn’t sleep. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t relax enough. Maybe it was something about the ground being solid, rather than the gentle rock of the ship, maybe it was the deafening quiet. Maybe it was worry for his crewmates. Regardless, he had been staring at the ceiling for hours with no chance of sleep, just as he had the past two nights. He still hadn’t heard anything about the crew, and he began to think he never would. He would go through the entire rest of his life not knowing what had happened to his family, and it made him sick. 

He wouldn’t know if Spot was okay. 

Spot could be hurt or dead and Race wouldn’t know. That thought terrified him. The man who had made Race feel alive for the first time could be dead. 

Spot made him see what the world could be. Spot gave him hope. Regardless of what had happened to Spot, Race was determined to make things right. He would fight tooth and nail until Spot and his crew could be free. If he couldn't return to Spot, he would use this situation to help them. He would free his country, no matter what. Just beyond his window, people were suffering. Children stole and fought just for their next meal, no shoes on their feet as they ran through cobbled streets to escape guards. Spot and his crew had opened his eyes to the way his people were hurting, and Race wouldn’t let himself become blind to it again. He had to make a change, for Spot. 

Images from the night before the battle flashed through his mind. What wouldn’t he give to be back in Spot’s arms right now? He was filled with such a sense of warmth when he was with Spot, he couldn’t give that up. Race may not have known Spot for very long, but he had taken up full-time residence in Race’s mind. Everything reminded him of Spot, which only made the uncertainty about his fate hurt more. He would give any luxury in this castle for one more moment with Spot. He would trade gold and silk and china for a breath of sea air, to hear Spot’s voice once more, to drink one more shot of whiskey on the deck. 

He would trade everything he had for that ship, for Spot. 

Silence hung over the room, so heavy it was impossible to break. It was too quiet. Aboard Brooklyn, there wasn’t a quiet moment - there was always the gentle lull of the waves against the hull of the ship, the light breathing of someone else asleep in his dorm, Finch snoring, Elmer’s nonsensical ramblings in his sleep. Race didn’t think he would miss that, but he did, more than he cared to admit. He missed it all. 

The sound of scraping at the window shook Race out of his thoughts. He glanced over, and his eyes widened. He ran out of bed to the window, pushing it open. 

“Spot, what are you doing here?” He hissed. 

“Seeing you, what does it look like I’m doing?” Race backed up, sitting down on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands. 

“Great, now I’m fucking hallucinating to.” He laughed bitterly. There was no humour to it. He had to, to mask the hopelessness he truly felt. 

“What do you mean?” Spot asked, staying close to the window. Every bone in his body ached to wrap himself around Race and comfort him, but something stopped him. Race just gestured vaguely in his direction. 

“You! Being here, I mean. I don’t get it. Is it- is it my fucking brain trying to trick me into thinking you’re okay? I’m going crazy here, not knowing what happened to you, now I’m hallucinating.” Then, Spot did go and wrap his arms around Race tightly. 

“I am here, for real.” He said into Race’s hair. Race pulled back slightly, looking up at Spot with tears in his eyes. 

“Why?” 

“I needed to know you were okay.” He paused for a moment. “And I want to bring you back.” He looked around the room, at silk sheets and solid gold trim lining the walls. “If you want to come back, that is?” 

“God, yes,” Race answered immediately. 

“You sure?” 

“Yes.” Spot began to make his way back to the window, but Race stopped him. “Wait.” Spot turned to face him. “Is everyone else okay?” 

“There were some pretty bad injuries, but everyone’s alive.” 

“Who was hurt?” 

“Elmer and JoJo were the worst, but they’re both alive, just on bed rest.” Race frowned.

“What happened to them?” 

“They had some pretty nasty run-ins with swords. Elmer got it in the stomach, JoJo in the leg.” Race thought for a moment, before rooting through the very bottom drawer in his dresser. “What are you-” Race held up a hand to silence Spot. He pulled out a small bag of various herbs and medicines. 

“Katherine keeps it here, just in case. It should help them.” He tucked it into his pocket, along with various silver and gold hairpins and jewellery. 

“What’s that for?” 

“We can sell it.” He fastened a simple silver chain around his neck. “It was my mother’s,” he said, at Spot’s confused look. “I want to keep it.” Spot nodded. 

“Ready to go?” Race looked at Katherine, asleep beside his bed, blissfully unaware. He couldn’t go without saying goodbye to her. He gently shook her awake. 

“Tony, what’s going on?” She asked, still half asleep. 

“I’m, uh, I’m going. Again.” Her face fell. “I wanted to say goodbye this time.” His eyes lit up as he had an idea. “Spot, why don’t we bring them with us? Katherine and David?” He glanced at Katherine, who looked past him at Spot. He paused for a moment. 

“I don’t see why not. We have spare beds and enough food to go around.” Race turned to Katherine. 

“Do you want to come?” He asked. She thought about it for a moment. 

“Yes, as long as you don’t mind.” Spot shrugged. 

“We always have space for new people.” 

“We should go find David too, we can’t go without him.” 

Their footsteps echoed in the dark, empty halls. Race couldn’t help but be reminded of the days he would run through these same halls in the middle of the night, just to spend a few hours exploring the grounds. Sometimes he would go alone, some nights he would go with the stable boy, or Katherine and David. He would run through the halls and into the gardens, climbing trees and playing in the mud, making the most of the little freedom they had. He always got in trouble afterwards but it was worth it. 

They turned into the servants wing, suddenly much quieter. David’s bed was at the very end of the room. 

“Wait here,” Race whispered. “I’ll get him.” The other two nodded, and Race made his way through the room, weaving through beds as quietly as possible, light footed and hardly breathing. If anyone woke up, they were all done for. Finally, he reached David’s bed. He shook David awake, holding a finger to his lips as David opened his mouth to say something. 

“Don’t ask questions, just grab anything you want to keep and come with me.” David’s brow furrowed but he sat up, pulling on shoes and fastening a simple leather braided bracelet around his wrist. Race couldn’t help but notice its resemblance to a bracelet he had seen Eclipse wearing. 

“What’s going on?” David hissed when they were out of the servants wing. 

“We’re leaving,” Race said simply. 

“What?” 

“I don’t have time to explain now but Spot showed up so we’re leaving with him.” 

“We can’t just leave!” 

“Keep your voice down!” Race turned down a different hallway, waving to Spot and Katherine who stood at the end. They turned to him as they reached them. 

“Are we ready to go?” Spot asked. 

“I never said I was going anywhere,” David said. 

“David, listen to me,” Race started. “If you stay here, you die. They’ll find out I’m gone, and they will kill you. Who do you have to stay for here anyway?” David opened his mouth to say something, but fell silent. “So, are you in or are you out?” David paused, eyes flickering between Race, Katherine, and Spot, who all looked at him expectantly. 

“I’m in,” David said finally, to the quiet cheers of everyone else. 

“I got some guys waiting outside to help us get outta here. Hope you two don’t mind running,” Spot said, mainly to Katherine and David. 

“Who’s gonna be there?” Race asked. 

“It was gonna be Albert and Finch but I couldn’t drag them away from Elmer and JoJo, so we’ve got Blink, Specs, and Sniper.” 

“Who names their kid Sniper?” 

“It’s a nickname, we all have them,” Race answered. 

“What’s yours?” 

“Racetrack.” David raised a brow. “Don’t question it.” 

Race’s legs and lungs burned from running. They sprinted across the castle grounds, making for the wall as fast as they possibly could. Race had plenty of practice running around and navigating the grounds, so he led the group. In the dark, it was difficult to navigate, but Race had experience and knew the grounds like the back of his hand. He weaved through tree roots and plants, jumping over the walls separating the gravel path and the gardens. For the first time in his life, Race resented the sheer size of the gardens. The sprawling acres that had once been his safe haven had become the one thing in between him and freedom, and he wasn’t going to let it hold him back. Nothing was going to stop him now. 

Shouts echoed behind them, which only spurred them on faster. It wouldn’t be long before guards would be hot on their trail, so they had to use the small lead they had while they could. The wall was only a few metres away now. Race simply poured on the speed, knowing the guards would be right behind them. As he reached the wall, he jumped, grasping the top of it and pulling himself up. Spot swung himself over, about to take off into the woods towards the ship, but Race turned to glance behind them. 

Katherine and David were still a few metres from the wall, guards right on their heels. Panic flashed through their eyes. Race shifted his position on the wall, reaching his hand out towards them. Katherine reached him first, and he grasped her hand tightly, pulling her over the wall. He did the same for David, turning to the guards and flipping them the bird, before jumping down the other side of the wall and taking off into the woods with the others. 

They only slowed when they reached Brooklyn, climbing onto the deck and immediately casting off the ropes keeping her docked. The sails were set and the moment the lines were cast off, they were in motion. Race watched from the edge of the ship as the land grew smaller and smaller. He took that moment to catch his breath, running a shaking hand through his hair. He hadn’t realised how much his legs were aching, how much his lungs burned from running until he stopped. He leaned against the railing, watching as the castle faded from view, as the waves crashed against the hull of the ship. He smiled. He was home. 

“Hey, Racer.” Spot materialised seemingly out of nowhere beside Race. “You okay?” Race paused for a moment before nodded. 

“Yeah. I’m glad to be back here, and that we were able to bring Kath and David too.” He turned around, watching David among the group. David looked out of place, but he was laughing at something Jack had said, while Katherine was talking to Eclipse, Sniper, and Smalls below deck. Spot followed his gaze. 

“They seem to be fitting right in.” 

“David and Jack seem to be getting along,” Race said with a wink. 

“Oh, God, Jack isn’t gonna shut up about him, is he?” 

“Nope!” Silence fell over them, but it wasn’t awkward. They didn’t need conversation all the time, and often silence suited them fine. Race stared down at the waves, mesmerised by the movement of them against the hull of the ship as they sliced through the sea. Spot simply watched Race, studying his features, all sharp angles and dark shadows in the low candlelight. He frowned as he noticed Racee’s black eye. 

“Who hurt you?” He asked quietly. Race tore his eyes away from the sea to look at Spot. 

“What do you mean?” 

“You have a black eye.” Spot gestured to his face. Race frowned, debating lying to Spot. He could say that it had happened in the fight, it would be so much easier than going into everything. So what was stopping him? Right, he wanted Spot to be open with him too, and Spot wasn’t going to do that if Race wasn’t honest. 

“I - uh - I told my father that I didn’t want to get married and he didn’t take it too well.” He laughed dryly in an attempt to add humour to the conversation. It didn’t work. 

“Shit, do you want some ice for it?” Race shook his head. 

“No, thank you. It’s not painful anymore. I’m fine.” He smiled, as if to prove his point. Spot paused, studying his face for a moment, before nodding. 

“Alright. If you do need anything, just let me know.” 

“I will.” Race paused for a moment, allowing a brief silence to stretch between them, before speaking up again. 

“Why did you have to leave home?” Spot froze. 

“What?” 

“The other night, you said you had to leave home when you were 8. I was wondering why.” Spot hesitated. “You don’t have to answer of course-” Race rushed out, “-I was just curious.” Spot shifted slightly where he was standing, drumming his fingers on the railing of the ship. 

“My parents died, they were killed. I only just made it out.” Race’s face dropped. He briefly wondered who had killed Spot’s parents, and had tried to kill Spot too. Spot was only a child when it happened, what sick bastard tries to kill a child? Well, Race could think of someone, but he pushed the thought from his mind. Now wasn’t the right time to ask. 

Hesitantly, he wrapped Spot in his arms, holding him tightly. 

“I’m sorry,” Race whispered, running a hand through Spot’s hair. 

“It wasn’t your fault.” 

“I know, but I still am.” Spot’s grip on Race’s shirt tightened slightly as Race slowly ran his fingers through Spot’s hair. “It’s okay, if you want to talk about it, I’m here for you, if you don’t then that’s fine too. If you just want to cry, I’m gonna be here to help you through that too.” Spot nodded, burying his face in Race’s shoulder. Race smelled like home - the wood of the ship, the salt of the sea, and honey, rich and warm. Honey had always been a luxury Spot could rarely afford, they only had it for special occasions, but Race was better than it could ever be. Spot pulled back from him slightly, eyes glancing over Race’s face, illuminated by the candlelight, casting flickering shadows upon Race’s face. Spot’s eyes were drawn to Race’s lips, and he couldn’t help but wonder if they would have that same sweet taste. Spot’s eyes met Race’s, a silent question, answered by Race’s eyes glancing at Spot’s lips. Slowly, Spot leaned in, eyes flickering shut. Race’s breath hitched at the closeness. Slowly, achingly slowly, Spot’s lips brushed Race’s, just a barely-there touch. Just as they were about to go in for more, the door crashed open. 

“Race!” Albert said, clearly not realising that he had interrupted them. Spot leapt back from Race as if he was burned, flushing deep red. Spot carefully avoided looking at Race, instead, focusing on Albert. Race took a moment to regain his composure before answering. 

“Yeah?” 

“I just wanted to thank you for the medicines, they really helped Elmer and JoJo, they’re both doing a lot better.” Race smiled, glancing at Spot before turning back to Albert. 

“That’s good. I’m glad I could help.” Albert nodded. Spot gripped the railing of the ship behind him tightly, staring at the floor. Albert shot him a questioning look, but he shook his head. Albert hesitated, before leaving, shutting the door behind him. 

“Spot-” Race began, but Spot shook his head. 

“Your bed is being used by Elmer at the moment, and keeping David and Katherine is taking up more, so we have to share.” 

“Shouldn’t we talk about this?” Race asked, taking a step towards Spot, but Spot backed away. 

“I made a mistake. We can just act like it never happened.” Race opened his mouth to say something, but stopped himself. That stung. Was it a mistake? It didn’t feel like a mistake, at least to Race. Maybe Spot didn’t feel the same way he did. Maybe, for Spot, it had just been a heat of the moment thing. Emotions were running high, and they were still running on the leftover adrenaline from the chase, Spot had just made a mistake. It hadn’t meant anything to Spot, and that was okay. 

“Okay,” Race said, trying to mask the hurt he really felt. 

“You go ahead, I’ll come along in a bit.” Race nodded, making his way to Spot’s cabin. 

He was fine. Spot didn’t want him the same way he wanted Spot, and that was okay. He could act like it didn’t hurt. 

He had spent his whole life masking the things that hurt the most, what was one more?

[oratonom]

Persona 4 Swapped Six AU - Howard’s Shadow

Notes: Only the Swapped characters are here but I used last names for them anyways. Boleyn isn’t part of the group yet. Teddie is a walking mascot costume—.

Shadows are a person’s true selves, the side they don’t want to see and accept. A person rejecting their shadow makes it go berserk and kill the human counterpart.

TWs: past sexual abuse

—————

“There she is!”

The group skidded to a stop. The four human members of the investigation team and Teddie all skidded to a stop.

It was a clear, pink room with a stage in the middle. Instruments were lined up on the stage. The familiar emblem of a broken heart and a ring was etched on the instruments and the stage itself.

“About time you all showed up.”

Howard stood there, waiting in front of the stage. Her shadow stood with her. The shadow looked like a child version of Howard, golden eyes gleaming. Howard didn’t look hurt, only tired.

“You could’ve been sooner…” Howard hissed, stepping towards them quickly.

“You don’t have to be so bitchy about it.” Seymour snapped back.

“Let’s just… get the hell out of this place. I could’ve got out of here by myself.” Howard huffed, taking a step towards the group.

A hand grabbed onto her own, stopping. Her shadow staring back at her, a pout on the child form’s face and gold eyes flashing. “You’re leaving already?”

Howard yanked her hand away with a growl. “Of course I am!”

The shadow tilted its head, a look of confusion crossing its face. “But it’s safe here!”

Aragon was usually firm with shadows, telling them what was right and wrong firmly with a touch of softness upon seeing the problems her now friends dealt with. But Howard’s shadow being a child noticeably softened her words. “Not for humans. She could die here.”

The golden eyes switched into Aragon for a second, reminding her exactly what she was talking to. But just as quickly, the shadow’s eyes moved back to Howard.

“Come on! Stay with me where it’s safe!” The shadow pouted.

“No way in hell.” Howard said simply, pulling her hand from its grasp and turning to pace towards the others.

“You’re going to go back to the ones who hurt you?”

Howard froze in her tracks, turning back to stare at the girl. “What…?”

The smile widened as the shadow knew she had caught Howard’s attention. “Here you don’t have to be scared anymore! We won’t be weak anymore!”

Howard barked out a laugh, turning to fully face her shadow now. “Weak?”

“Yeah! You aren’t strong, you know?” A malicious grin twisted on the shadow’s face now. “Just a bitch trying to hide her weakness.”

Howard sneered at her. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, brat.”

“Yes I do! Those men hurt you… and you don’t want to be that weak again…” the Shadow pushed for a long moment, and Aragon swore the shadow looked… haunted. “I can protect you here! As your other self I can make sure we don’t have to be strong and cruel ever again!”

“I don’t… I don’t need saving!” Howard snapped, stumbling back slightly. “Nobody hurt me, this is just who I am! And I don’t need to listen to your—“

“Why are you lying to yourself?”

Everyone went silent.

“Kat… what is she talking about?” Cleves asked quietly.

Howard didn’t reply. Instead her shadow did. But she wasn’t speaking to Cleves.

“Don’t you remember? The way they caressed you? The way it hurt when they said it wouldn’t?” Shadow Howard sniffed, rubbing at her teary eyes with balled fists. “It hurt… it always hurt…”

Howard gave a quick glance back to the investigation team. “None… none of that happened. You’re a little lying brat!”

Dread hit every member of the investigation team. None of what had just been described sounded good.

“But I’m you, silly! I know its true!” The shadow teased, golden eyes flashing in the lights. “Just like how I know the scandal ruined us!”

Just like that, Howard was sweeping forward, picking her shadow up by the collar of her shirt.

“What are you doing?!” Cleves called, eyes wide.

“Holy shit!” Seymour yelled at the sight, grip on her scythe tightening.

“I don’t know who the fuck you are, brat!” Howard was screaming. “But you don’t know shit about that scandal. You’re a lying little brat!”

Shadow Howard didn’t have that childish light anymore. Her face was scarily cold now. “You didn’t want it.”

Howard flinched as if she had been struck.

“Your manager wanted you.” Shadow Howard continued. “He wanted you so badly. And you couldn't say no to him. Not with his power. Not with being so abandoned all your life. And now look where it got you. In a shitty little town like this where you don’t matter.”

“I… you don’t… that’s not…” Howard shook her head, reorienting herself. “You think I would let someone use me like that?! I’m stronger then they’ll ever be!”

“If you’re so strong, then why did he get rid of us?”

Howard jolted, eyes wide with terror as she took the blank stare on her child self’s face. She dropped the shadow, who landed back on her feet as Howard staggered back several steps and fell to sit on the floor.

“Wh… what?”

“Oh no…” Parr whispered. “She was reincarnated too.”

“We were supposed to be the true queen! The one who won when the others failed! That life was ruined too, by the same men!”

Howard didn’t offer a response.

Shadow Howard broke into a sobbing wail. “He… he left us because we couldn’t stop them from hurting us! He hurt us too!”

“Who the hell are you on about?!” Howard snapped, bristling. But there was a veil of panic in her eyes.

The shadow continued as if she hadn’t heard her. “Why did they hurt us! I thought they loved me! But they—! But they—!”

“Stop babbling like that!” Howard snapped, back on her feet now and glaring furiously at her shadow. “You think I would let something like that happen to me?! That never happened!”

“You don’t remember them?” Shadow Howard tilted her head, all tears and sobbing gone. Aragon felt a chill upon realizing just how quickly the shadow was switching back and forth.

And well… shadows reflected the true self.

“Mannox was your music teacher.” Shadow Howard took a step forward as Howard took a rapid step backwards. “He taught us much more than music.”

“STOP IT!”

“Dereham is your manager! He can’t take no, can he? He’s the reason you’re trapped in this scandal and was sent to this shitty little town. Because you couldn’t keep your hands to yourself! It wasn’t you! He did it! He… he hurt us!” Shadow Howard broke off into more crying, covering her face with her hands.

“Stop… stop it…” Howard was now a far cry from the cruel girl they had met. She had tears on her cheeks now and she was staring at her shadow with a blank stare that honestly scared all of the already horrified investigation team.

“But it’s all going to be okay!” An excited glint was in the shadow’s eyes now as she beamed at Howard. “They can’t hurt us if we’re cruel! After all… who wants the bitch?”

“I…” Howard couldn’t speak and that was the moment the others realized why Howard had been so cruel to them when they first met her.

“A defense mechanism.” Cleves murmured, considering

Shadow Howard was cupping her human self’s cheeks now, looking her in the eyes. “It’s okay. We’ll be safe now.” She cooed. “We’ll be better than anyone! We’ll get back everything we’ve lost! And they’ll pay, pinkie swear! That bastard who divorced us will be the first…”

Howard snarled, pushing herself away from the shadow, glaring down at the shadow’s child form. Desperation was in her eyes. “I’m safe right now! I’m already better than anyone! None of what you talked about happened! I’m not… I’m not weak!”

“She’s going to say it!” Teddie yelped and the group took a step forward.

“Katherine stop!” Aragon tried to yell.

But it was too late.

“YOU’RE NOT ME!” Howard roared at her shadow.

There was a beat of silence and everyone froze. Then, there was a giggle. A giggle that quickly became a full blown laugh.

“That’s right! I’m not you! I’m better than you’ll ever be!” Energy began to swirl around the shadow, golden eyes glinting maliciously. “Play time’s over now! I WILL BE STRONG! SAY GOODBYE TO BEING WEAK!”

And then, things were flung into chaos.

[2nerd4this]

I was going through my Google Docs looking for something to submit to my school’s writing contest (and came up with nothing because the only somewhat good works are about reincarnated Tudor Queens that need lots of context to make sense but that’s not the point) and stumbled upon an unfinished draft of a work for my ‘Married Age AU’.

By the way things are going, there’s a good chance that it’ll never turn into a fully fledged fic, but I thought I’d share what I’d had written just for fun below the cut. It ends rather abruptly, so I apologize for that, and its completely unedited, but its just for fun!

---

“Okay...” said the interviewer, glancing from Queen to Queen, “Let me get this straight. You’re Anne Boleyn?” He pointed to the tallest woman in front of him, who nodded, smiling widely as she leaned casually back into the couch. 

“Right.” The man nodded, still looking a bit confused. “Well, I would just like to say that I am so honored that you chose my history channel for your first public appearance. Ever since you contacted us, I’ve been so excited to meet you.”

“That’s wonderful!” The blond woman leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. “Honestly, Chris, we were hesitant to do an interview, but you seemed very interested in representing us genuinely.”

“We do! I believe Henry’s wives, well- you, have been represented so poorly by history. I would like to try to do you justice. Though-” he paused awkwardly, glancing towards the couch on his left, “I certainly expect you to be so- young.”

“Yeah,” Anne chuckled, looking at the teenagers on her left, “Neither did we.”

“Alright, now that the shock has worn off, can we do introductions again? For my sake?”

“Of course. From left to right then- your left, not our left, obviously, that wouldn’t be very-”

“Whoa Jane,” Anne interrupted, “I think he gets it.”

“Right. Sorry.” Jane nodded, sinking back into the couch. Anne watched her, expression morphing from annoyance to concern, then looked back at Chris.

“On the end is Catherine of Aragon, aka Catalina.” Catalina waved sharply, then quickly crossed her arms firmly across her chest.

“I must say, that was the biggest surprise.” Chris looked the Queen up and down, still marveling at her small stature. “Exactly how old are you?” 

“....” 

“Catalina,” Anne warned, and the teenager rolled her eyes.

“I’m fifteen.”

“And are you... mentally fifteen? Or...?”

“Oh, no. That would be too easy.” Lina scoffed, shaking her head. “No, I have all my memories of my old life. Physically, though, I’m fifteen.” “That sounds like it could be quite annoying,” Chris mused sympathetically. Catalina nodded emphatically. 

“You don’t know the half of it!”

“Anyway...” Anne cut in before Catalina could continue on her usual rant, “We figure that we were reincarnated at the age we were when we first married. For most of us, that’s when we married Henry, but Lina and Cathy had husbands before him”

Chris nodded, following along attentively as Anne continued down the line.

“So Cathy, Catherine Parr, she’s seventeen-” Cathy nodded minutely, biting her lip nervously, “-Katherine Howard, Kitty, she’s sixteen-” Kitty attempted a genuine smile, then glanced away quickly, “-and then Jane and I, we’re twenty-eight, but I’m older, and Anna of Cleves, she’s-”

“I can introduce myself,” Anna interjected. “I’m twenty-five.”

“Right. Yeah.” Anne nodded awkwardly. “So... that’s us.”

“It’s really a pleasure to meet you, Queens. This is just a preliminary meeting, but I would like to get to know you better. I have to leave at 3, but I have some questions I’d like you to answer before I return, if that works with you.”

“That sounds amazing, thank you so much.” Anne smiled widely, reaching her hand out for Chris to shake. 

“My pleasure.” Chris closed his notebook firmly, shoving it into his bag. “Here.” He handed them each a paper. “Answer these questions in a paragraph or so, please.”

“We will,” Anne nodded, taking the paper and glancing it over. “Thank you so much, Chris. We’ll see you next week.” She stood up, leading him to the door.

A few minutes later, after he was gone, she turned back to the other Queens, sinking back into the couch.

“So. I think that went well.”

Nothing but silence in response.

“What?” She turned to the others, smirking slightly. They all looked at her in disbelief. “Seriously!”

“I mean...” Jane started, shrugging, “I guess.”

“So... what’s the problem?” Anne glanced around, frowning at the obvious anxiety on their faces, especially the younger Queens.

“Nothing, really,” Cathy started, fiddling incessantly with her shirt’s collar. “Like... it was fine, I guess.”

“I don’t believe you in the slightest,” Anne deadpanned, raising her eyebrows. Cathy sighed, then looked over to Catalina for her support.

“I think- I think we’re just worried, Anne. Revealing ourselves to the world could be really dangerous.”

Anne considered this for a moment and then sighed, running a hand over her face. 

“You’re right. You’re always right, of course, but... I don’t know, I guess I was just hoping that this would help us.”

“It might,” Anna pointed out. “We don’t know anything yet. It literally just happened.”

Anne turned around to look at Anna, then her expression morphed into a small grin. 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right too. There’s nothing we can do now except wait.”

The six fell into a comfortable silence, all looking down at their paper. Finally, Anne sighed again.

“Alright, I guess that’s it, ladies. Have those questions answered by next Wednesday.”

The other five quickly agreed, and soon enough, they had all scattered, returning to their daily routine as normal.

---

Honestly, it had come as quite a shock to everyone when they had first woken up to find three of the Queens reincarnated as teenagers. 

After a bit of research, they had concluded that they had been brought back at the ages they had been before they were first married. For some of them, like Jane and Kitty, it wasn’t that much of an age difference.

For others, like Catalina and Anna, it was a huge change. Catalina especially was not a fan of this new age, especially because she was supposed to be the oldest, and the longer they were alive, the more child-like she became. 

It had taken them a few weeks to adjust, especially because Anne and Catalina had an incredibly difficult time settling their differences, made incredibly harder by the fact that the second Queen was almost twice as old as the first. They had avoided each other for the longest time until Anna had decided enough was enough and made them talk.

Since then, it had been a little awkward occasionally, but they almost always got along. 

Anne and Jane, on the other hand- that was a whole different story. They were still in the ‘let’s just ignore the clear tension between us and instead just randomly snap at each other over the littlest things’.

...........

[kiarcheo]

Cake Mates - Parrward

“That’s how you know. When two people eat a cake off the floor, that’s it for life.”

1111 words (I just think it’s neat) inspired by this. Read on Ao3 here

Cathy sees it happening almost in slow-motion. One of the partygoers turning around the kitchen counter in a hurry, bumping into the cake stand without even realising it and going on their merry way. The pedestal wobbling before falling off the counter, the cake splattering on the floor. It's behind the counter and she can't actually see it, but Cathy can't imagine how anything different could happen.

She glances around, eyes looking for the host, but she doesn't see her. Nobody else seems to have noticed what happened. It's a split-second decision. Before she knows what she is doing, Cathy moves towards the kitchen, plate and cutlery still in her hands from her last go at the buffet style food served at the party.

As she turns around the counter...

‘This is not what it looks like?’ A girl is sitting on the floor, looking exactly like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Or in this case, with a spoon loaded with cake halfway to her mouth.

‘Too bad?’ Cathy replies with the same upward inflection that makes her statement sound like question, holding up her own fork.

The girl lets out a laugh. ‘Then it's exactly what it looks like.’

‘How is it?’ It is clearly a rhetorical question as Cathy lowers herself to the floor without waiting to hear the response.  

‘Never had anything Jane made that was not delicious.’ The girl finally brings the spoon to her mouth.  'Please help yourself.' She motions with the now empty spoon to the cake splattered on the floor. 'Probably better if I don't eat it all by myself.'

Cathy doesn’t need to be asked twice. She digs in.

‘How do you know Jane?’ Cathy asks. ‘Oh God, it’s amazing!’

‘She is my cousin.’ The girl chuckles at the appreciative sounds coming from her new friend. ‘I’m Katherine, by the way, since you...was going to say since you’re seeing me at my lowest, but this is not even close to it. Let’s say since we are sharing this lovely moment.’

Cathy blushes slightly as Katherine winks at her. ‘I’m Catherine too. Cathy.’

‘Then you can call me Kat. With a K.’ She eats another spoonful. ‘How do you know Jane?’

‘I used to date her brother.’

‘Sorry.’ Kat gives it a second thought. ‘Wait, which one?’

‘Thomas.’

‘Then I’m really sorry.’

‘Uh?’ Cathy looks at her confused.

‘Sorry that you dated him. He’s an asshole.’ Kat doesn’t hide the grimace as she thinks about him. ‘Must be the name. Never met a good Thomas. Or Henry. Or Francis.’ She scowls at the mere memories of them. ‘Actually. Let’s just say men. I’ll stick with women from now on.’

‘I might take your advice.’ Cathy glances at her furtively. ‘Never had any luck with boys anyway.’

They are just happily chatting as they keep eating the cake when they hear a shutter sound, a chuckle and a ‘What is this?’

‘This is not what it looks like.’ That’s apparently Kat’s go-to opening line.

‘So you’re not eating cake on the floor?’ Jane’s tone is basically daring her cousin to deny the obvious.

‘Yeah, put it on a plate and sit at a table like civil persons.’

‘That's your problem, Anna??’ Jane turns to the other girl, incredulous. ‘That they are sitting on the floor? Not that the cake is on the floor?’

‘To be fair, your floor is probably cleaner than most plates at the refectory.’

Jane stares at her cousin, processing her words. ‘That's not as comforting as you might think.’

‘Oh! Cake!’

Cathy’s heart does not plummet to her stomach as another girl skips in and plops into Kat’s lap unceremoniously. ‘Feed me!’

‘Anne!’ Jane scolds her as Kat wordlessly acquiesces to the demand, already holding a full spoon in front of her face.

‘What?’ Anne mumbles around the spoon. ‘Delicious as always, Janey!’

‘First of all, don’t talk with your mouth full.’ Jane sounds exasperated. ‘Second, don’t call me Janey, you know I hate it.’ From the grin on Anne’s face she does. ‘And third. Why are you acting as if it’s totally normal that Kat is eating food from the floor?!?’

‘We are poor starving students. With no cooking skills. We’re not going to let good food go to waste just because it’s on the floor.’ Kat is nodding from behind her. ‘And your floor is probably cleaner than-’

‘Oh God, you two!’ Jane interrupts her.

‘Two peas in a pod.’ Anna comments, as always amused by their antics.

‘Hell yes!’ Anne raises her hand, palm facing backward, towards Kat, who high-fives her, before eating another spoonful. ‘My turn next!’

‘What part of “I’m going to the kitchen to get a glass of water” meant “I’m going to sit in someone’s lap and eat something from the floor”?’

Kat pops her head out from behind Anne. ‘Hi Lina!’

The new arrival rolls her eyes. ‘Why am I even surprised?’ She mumbles to herself.

‘You know her?’ Cathy, who has been observing in silence until then, asks Kat.

‘Cathy?’ Catalina seems to only then realise there is a third person of the floor. ‘What-’ She shakes her head. ‘You know, I expect it from Anne, we know she has questionable tastes-’

‘Bold words from the girl I’m dating.’

Cathy can’t stop the grin growing on her lips as she looks at Kat trying to suppress her snickers by burying her face into Anne’s back (and maybe – but only maybe – because she is not dating the girl sitting in her lap).

‘Katherine, are you laughing at me?’

From the way Anne can feel her cousin shaking behind her, she’d say yes.

‘No?’ Both Kat and Cathy answer at the same time. They lock eyes and burst out laughing.

Catalina looks at the three girls on the floor. ‘Why do I feel like my life is about to get harder?’ ----

Years down the line everyone would claim the credit for the two of them getting together, or at least for being the one who saw it coming first. Anne insists that she deserves it because had she not convinced Kat to go to Jane’s party, she would not have met Cathy. Catalina claims the same, but for Cathy. So Anne always adds that making Cathy jealous (and does Cathy regret ever sharing that detail with her!) helped Cathy realise that she liked her cousin. Anna reminds them that she was the first who saw them, even took a picture of them on the floor because she knew it was the start of something great.  And Jane...well, it was her party and her cake...does she need to say more?

[janeyseymour]

Dangerous Desires- pt 5

chapter 1. chapter 2. chapter 3. chapter 4.

The night that Katherine had come home to live with Jane was like no other. Really, it was nothing out of the ordinary for the young lass. The family she had been placed with had enough and had turned to abuse. The father had grown annoyed with Katherine’s failure to be the perfect child they had wished for. She didn’t do what normal teenagers did. She was skittish and waited for the family to tell her what to do. She tried her hardest to be the perfect child, and it still wasn’t enough. One night, it had gone too far and the kind neighbor next door to them heard the commotion. When she saw Katherine attempting to run out of the house bruised, bloodied, and limping, she couldn’t let the girl disappear into the shadows with good conscience.

“Katherine?” The neighbor, an elderly woman named Margaret, called out into the darkness. Katherine would silently place a finger to her mouth and continue on with her journey. Or she would attempt to anyway. The slicing of the plate on her leg was excruciating.

“Katherine darling,” Margaret let out a breath of relief when she caught up with the teen. “Oh my god,” she mumbled as she looked the girl over. She was in worse shape than she had originally thought.

“Please just let me go,” Katherine pleaded. It wouldn’t work. The older woman would coerce the girl into her car and take her to the hospital, vowing to herself that she would never let another foster child step into that blasted household again.

Of course, the woman would not be allowed back with the girl as there was no familial relation, but she left her number with Katherine and made her promise to inform her that she was placed in a different household as well as to keep in contact about the healing of her injuries. (Katherine would call the woman once to tell her that her injuries healed and that she was supposedly going to be placed with a woman named Jane. She would thank her for her kindness, and never speak to the woman again.)

Katherine Howard had been in the hospital so many times that she was on a first name basis with most of the nurses. She was kind and courteous to each and every person who would enter her room. They were no strangers to the domestic abuse that the young teen had faced in the short time she had been alive, and most couldn’t believe that sweet and innocent Katherine could find herself in so many horrendous situations.

Kat’s social worker Abigail had briefly spoken to the girl about being placed in a different home before relaying the information that an emergency placement was on their way- a woman named Jane Seymour.

It would be approximately fifteen minutes before she heard muffled conversation outside her door.

“Before you go in and see her,” the teen could hear her social worker say. “I just wanted to talk to you about this girl and her situation.”

“Oh,” the newly arrived woman sighed. “Of course, yes.” She sounded quite put together, like most of the other foster parents who had arrived to take her into their care from the hospital.

“Katherine... She's come from a very hard life. It’s a shame really. But, this girl has been through a lot of homes. She doesn’t last places very long for differing reasons each time. Now Jane, I know we’ve worked together on cases before but-”

Her social worker, the woman who was supposed to be on her side, was warning this woman about her. She knew this woman would run for the hills just like every other first placement call to the hospital did. She was certain of it, or she was... until the woman who was supposedly going to take her to a different foster home spoke up.

“Abigail, you know that it doesn’t matter to me.” That was different. She had heard time and time again her social worker preparing the foster placement for her case, and almost every time she had heard that “she was just going to be too much for them” or “I don’t think we can handle that”. (Of course she was. Of course they couldn’t. How these people could become foster parents only to turn away a child in need was beyond Katherine. And how her social worker was mildly working against her when she should have been doing everything she could for the girl was even further beyond Katherine.)

“Jane,” the social worker continued on cautiously. “I know you-”

“Yes Abigail. You do know me. So you know that I am here to take this child into my

home. Whether it be for a night or the indefinite future, I will do my best to take care of her.”

“You’re positive you can handle this? She’s in pretty bad shape right now.”

The defiance in this woman’s voice was like no other as she stated determinedly, “Absolutely I can handle this. And I would advise you to stop opening her case like that. It’s not doing her any good. Let people make their own judgments of her. Perhaps she wouldn’t have gone through so many homes if you were a bit gentler with her case.” This woman couldn’t have been more different than the others.

Katherine heard a gentle knock, a knock different from her social worker’s. Abigail’s was slightly rough- tense. This one knock on the door had already conveyed a gentleness and kindness the teen didn’t know.

“Jane, are you sure?” Abigail’s voice rang out again.

“Stop trying to convince me otherwise Abigail. It’s never worked in the past, and each child that has come through my door that has left is not because I’ve decided I’ve had enough or they didn’t want to live with me anymore, or whatever these other foster parents do, but because they are placed back with their families. If I do remember correctly, isn’t that the entire point of fostering in the first place? To get the children reunited with their families?” Katherine could practically feel the condescending look this woman was clearly giving her social worker given her tone was rather pointed, and she hadn’t even met her yet.

“Of course, of course. Go on, knock again.”

Three gentle knocks rapped on the door again, and this time Kat responded with a meek, “Come in.”

A kind looking blonde woman walked into the room exuding elegance. Her eyes landed on the girl in bed, softening immediately.

“Hi Katherine,” she spoke softly. “I’m Jane. It’s lovely to meet you.” That was odd. Most people would have looked at her in this bed, bruised and bloodied (although the hospital had done what they could to get rid of most of the blood) would have turned to Abigail and told her they couldn’t do it. It “broke their hearts” too much.

“Hi,” the teen squeaked out. “Uhm, you too. Thank you for coming.”

“I’ll let you two get acquainted.” Abigail shot Jane a kind look before slipping out of the room.

Jane, who still stood at the door, asked, “Would you mind if I came closer?” Now that was really different. No one had ever given her an option before. They would simply come over and invade her space as if she wasn’t a trauma survivor.

Kat nodded, and with permission Jane moved into the chair next to her bed.

“So,” she began, just as gently. “The doctors are saying that they have to monitor you for just another hour to make sure you don’t have any reactions to the medicine before they can release you. And then, if you would like, you’re able to come home with me.”

Kat sat in silence for a few moments mulling over a few thoughts in her head. No other person to walk through those hospital doors or the social office doors had given her a choice before. In fact, she realized no other foster parent had even given Katherine this much time to think about it. She stayed silent for a few more minutes thinking about how no one else had ever treated her in such a kind manner or even looked at her with this much kindness in their eyes.

“Yes please,” Kat smiled shyly. “And thank you, of course.”

“Of course love. I’m more than happy to have you for as long as you’d like.”

“Why didn’t you give up on me right then? No one else wanted me. People have taken one look at me and turned away saying they couldn’t handle it, or me. Even my case-worker has worked against me and warned people about me. I heard her warning you,” the present-day Katherine sighed sadly before smiling slightly as she curled into her foster mother’s warmth. “But you... you were different.”

Jane sighed. She knew others had turned her sweet girl away, but it still broke her heart every time it was brought up. “Kat love, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I would never give up on any child, especially when that child is you.”

“I mean, I know that, but like... so many others have?”

“Let me tell you my side of the story,” Jane laughed quietly before diving in.

The night that Katherine had come home with Jane was like no other. The woman was used to being woken up in the middle of the night to run to a child’s rescue. Jane Seymour was at the top of the fostering list- mostly due to the fact that she had such successful stays that any child was considered lucky to be put into Jane’s custody. Most children who had been in Jane’s care at one point or another were still in contact with her, happy to tell her about their times back at home and to thank her for such kindness that not many other foster homes offered. But most of these children were brought back to the office for the blonde to gather. A one Miss Katherine Howard was still at the hospital and wouldn’t be released for at least another hour.

“It’s understandable if you can’t make it here until tomorrow morning but-”

Jane, who had already finished changing out of her pajamas and was slipping on her shoes, interrupted the social worker. “-I’m already heading out the door. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

The drive to the hospital was nerve wracking to say the least. What could have happened to this poor girl that she was still in the hospital? What kind of monster would cause such damage that this child was still in the hospital?

The woman parked her car and all but burst into the hospital, bombarding the front desk woman.

“Hi, my name is Jane Seymour. I’m here to meet with a social worker Abigail about taking Miss Katherine Howard into my custody once she’s been released?”

“Ah yes, Katherine,” the woman at the front desk softened her tone. “Sweet girl- poor thing has gone through so much in her young life. Follow me.”

“Jane, always nice to see you,” the social worker said cordially as she stuck out her hand for the blonde to shake.

“Abigail.” Jane took the hand. The two women would walk down the hospital halls quietly.

“Before you go in and see her,” the social worker looked at Jane warily.“I just wanted to talk to you about this girl and her situation.”

“Oh,” the newly arrived woman sighed. “Of course, yes.” What could there possibly be to talk about that couldn’t wait until she had met this girl.

“Katherine... She's come from a very hard life. It’s a shame really. But, this girl has been through a lot of homes. She doesn’t last places very long for differing reasons each time. Now Jane, I know we’ve worked together on cases before but-”

Jane cut her off rather hastily“Abigail, you know that it doesn’t matter to me.” From the way the woman at the front desk spoke of the teen behind the closed door, she couldn't fathom why the girl would bounce around from foster home to foster home.

“Jane,” the social worker continued on cautiously. “I know you-”

“Yes Abigail. You do know me. So you know that I am here to take this child into my

home. Whether it be for a night or the indefinite future, I will do my best to take care of her.”

“You’re positive you can handle this? She’s in pretty bad shape right now.”

“Absolutely I can handle this. And I would advise you to stop opening her case like that. It’s not doing her any good. Let people make their own judgments of her. Perhaps she wouldn’t have gone through so many homes if you were a bit gentler with her case.” How any case worker could speak of a child with this sort of connotation was beyond the woman. She noted silently to reach out to the offices later about Abigail's rather interesting take on this case.

Jane hesitated for a few moments before raising her hand to the door and knocking on it gently. Best to not scare the lass before she could even enter the room.

“Jane, are you sure?” Abigail’s voice rang out again.

“Stop trying to convince me otherwise Abigail,” Jane’s tone was rather annoyed at this point. “It’s never worked in the past, and each child that has come through my door that has left is not because I’ve decided I’ve had enough or they didn’t want to live with me anymore, or whatever these other foster parents do, but because they are placed back with their families. If I do remember correctly, isn’t that the entire point of fostering in the first place? To get the children reunited with their families?” She gave a pointed look to the social worker from behind her glasses.

The social worker cowered a bit at the look that Jane was giving her. It was quite mindblowing to see a woman of such elegance and poise give her such a dirty look. “Of course, of course. Go on, knock again.”

The blonde knocked again gently three times before she heard a rather mousy “Come in.”

Jane walked into the room as slowly as she could, making herself appear smaller in order to not frighten or startle the girl in the bed. Her eyes landed on the girl in bed, softening immediately.

“Hi Katherine,” she spoke softly. “I’m Jane. It’s lovely to meet you.”

“Hi,” the teen squeaked out. “Uhm, you too. Thank you for coming.” She was shy and skittish- that was for sure, but her manners were already worlds above a few of the teenagers she had housed before (Of course they would all have impeccable manners by the time they left the Seymour household- even one night would fix the issue of no manners).

“I’ll let you two get acquainted.” Abigail shot Jane a kind look before slipping out of the room.

Jane, who still stood at the door, asked, “Would you mind if I came closer?” Rather than invading the girl’s personal space, she figured she should give the girl a choice. More often than not, this tactic had proven to be useful for the foster mother in making the children more comfortable and open to her.

Kat nodded, and with permission Jane moved into the chair next to her bed.

“So,” she began, just as gently as she possibly could. “The doctors are saying that they have to monitor you for just another hour to make sure you don’t have any reactions to the medicine before they can release you. And then, if you would like, you’re able to come home with me.” Jane silently prayed that Katherine would agree to come home with her, but she understood if the girl had her hesitations, especially considering the past she must’ve had if she had been through so many foster homes.

Kat sat in silence for a few moments seemingly mulling over a few thoughts in her head.

Jane’s gaze would never leave Katherine. She too would spend this time thinking. How could anyone look at this girl who was clearly so completely terrified and hurt- thinking that they simply couldn’t do the job of looking after her? Even though the girl had only spoken a few words to her, the blonde could already sense that this girl was different from what they had said about her.

“Yes please,” Kat smiled shyly. “And thank you, of course.”

‘What a sweet girl,’ Jane thought. “Of course love. I’m more than happy to have you for as long as you’d like.” And the woman meant what she said- she was more than happy to provide a safe and loving home to a girl who was so desperately in need of it.

The present-day Jane pressed a kiss to the girl’s hairline. “After so much heartache you must have gone through love, I knew that I had a chance to make a difference in your life and provide you with a safe place, even if just for a night.”

“You have made a difference. A good difference. The best difference,” Kat affirmed, finishing her tea.

The blonde had finished her tea a few minutes prior, and now that the teen was finished, she plucked the mugs up from the table. “Should I make us some more, or was that everything love?”

“I wouldn’t mind another cup, although do you think we could sit on the couch?”

“That sounds fine to me dear. Why don’t you head on in and make yourself comfortable? I’ll only be but a few moments,” the older of the two suggested as she made her way to the kettle once more.

“I’d rather just be with you tonight if that’s okay with you,” Kat admitted rather shyly as she followed her soon-to-be mother to the kettle and tucked herself into Jane’s side.

“That’s perfectly fine with me, my love.” The woman wrapped an arm around the teen tightly, a smile clear on her face as she looked at the girl before her with love in her eyes.

[have-each-others-six]

time will tell, she’ll see us through (part six)

***

part one

part two

part three

part four

part five

***

She doesn’t know what to do.

There’s no clear next step here. She can’t call Katherine, she doesn’t want to ask Jane or Aragon to fix a mistake that they didn’t make, and she can’t exactly pace every street in town like a madwoman until she finds her.

As her mind is whirling, trying to formulate a plan that probably won’t even work, a street musician a few yards away gets out his violin and begins to play an old waltz, something old enough that Cathy recognizes it from her first life.

Her racing thoughts quiet for a moment, and after a few bars she hums softly along to it, her feet unconsciously moving along to the antiquated steps as she sits a little taller on the edge of the fountain, remembering nights with dripping candles and heavy dresses and blurry glamour where she did this waltz perfectly.

She hums a little louder than is probably necessary, and she quiets her voice when the memory fades and she becomes aware of where she is again.

However, when she gets softer, she hears another voice humming along just as she was, and for a moment she thinks she’s just hearing an echo but then the voice begins to harmonize with the violin, and when Cathy peeks around the fountain, she stands up so quickly she almost bangs her knee against the stone.

It’s Katherine, sitting on the other side, singing softly and looking up at the sky, evidently lost in memories of her own. 

The first thought that Cathy has is that Katherine was smart enough to bring a coat.

“Kit?” Cathy murmurs, unable to stop herself from speaking.

Her voice sends Katherine crashing back to earth, and the girl leaps to her feet, preparing to run again, her eyes wide and filled with fear.

“No, wait!” Cathy exclaims, but still softly, under the violinist’s music, which has now shifted to something more current that neither of them recognize and has attracted a bit of a crowd. “Wait, Katherine, please. I want to- I need to tell you something. Can we talk?”

Slowly, Katherine shifts out of her defensive position as she realizes Cathy isn’t going to start yelling again, and she tries to look a little braver before she replies. 

“Not here,” she answers softly after a few moments, a little warily, looking around at all the couples and people who are starting their night shift. “I… I can find a place. Follow me.”

She walks down a side path that Cathy doesn’t think she’s ever seen before, but somehow feels familiar- it ends at a small statue, something nondescript and old, and by the light of a nearby streetlamp Cathy can see angels and saints carved in the stone with some sort of an inscription that’s now illegible.

They both stand in front of it, side to side. Cathy opens her mouth to speak, to apologize, but Katherine talks first.

“This is where we went after our first rehearsal,” Katherine says quietly. “That was the first time I had to face everything- really face it- and even though I didn’t tell anyone that I felt like I was caving in, after rehearsal was done, you took me here.” She looks over at Cathy, watching her side profile. “Do you remember that?”

“Yes,” Cathy says softly, because she does remember that now, remembers not quite knowing where to take Katherine because everywhere in the city was crawling with people and the conversation that they needed to have was something that warranted at least the illusion of privacy.

In an attempt to act like she knew what she was doing, she led them into the park, found this obscure side path, and pretended she knew where it went. They’d ended up sitting at the base of the statue for at least an hour, talking.

“Do you remember what you told me?”

“That I had some tissues in my bag if you wanted them?”

“No, after that. A while after you gave me the tissues.” Cathy swallows.

She hadn’t known what to do.

She had been surprised that Katherine had accepted her offer at all- Cathy had seen the haunted look in her eyes when she had finished her song, and before she really knew what was happening she had walked over and asked the girl if she would like to go on a walk after they wrapped.

They had found their way to the park, and the girl broke down crying when the two of them sat with their backs to the statue, something in her finally giving way. Cathy had had no idea of what she was supposed to do.

After all, she was the one who had replaced Katherine, and not only that, but she was the one who survived- should she have even brought the girl here? Was she really the best person to be offering comfort right now?

Katherine had holding the tissue that Cathy had awkwardly offered her tightly in her fist, and the older woman could feel it brushing against her leg as Katherine shook with sobs or maybe fear.

She hadn’t known what to do, but then there was a moment when she looked over and Cathy could see her little Mary in Katherine’s gaze- their eyes were similar, they had both seemed to see much more than Cathy’s ever could.

She had taken a breath. Waited for just one beat, feeling the tissue against her leg and the crying girl’s shaking and the wind through the trees overhead.

And then, somehow, the words had come to her.

“I told you I was going to be there for you,” Cathy says now as the memory fades from her mind, and she looks over at the girl who has grown so much since that first real conversation. The lingering anger of her destroyed manuscript mixes with the care she feels for Katherine and the leftover shock from her revelation about her writing only a few minutes ago to create an emotion she can’t quite place. “I said that I understood how strange this all was, and how terrifying it must be, and then… then I told you that if you ever needed to talk to somebody, I would be there for you.”

“You said you were going to be there for me,” Katherine murmurs, repeating Cathy’s words back to her softly. “Always.”

“Have I not been?” Cathy asks. “Is that why you did it?”

“No,” Katherine replies quietly, understanding the meaning of ‘it’. “No, that’s not why.” She moves from standing next to Cathy to sitting down against the statue, like she did the last time they were here, but this time she isn’t crying. Her eyes look dull and flat. “You were going to leave,” she says.

“What?” Cathy’s brow furrows, and she’s genuinely confused. “Who told you that?”

“Nobody had to tell me,” Katherine mutters, pulling apart a clumpy weed she yanked from the ground so she doesn’t have to look Cathy in the eyes. “You got your book deal with the publishing company, and they were probably going to give you your series that you were talking about, and then they would have taken you away from us.” “I mean, maybe they would have,” Cathy tells her incredulously. “Is that why you destroyed my manuscript? Because you couldn’t stand the idea of me leaving? You thought that I’d never visit, or call? That I’d just abandon all of you, first chance I got?” “I-”

“If you think that’s true, then you are sorely mistaken,” Cathy says firmly. “You’re my family, you know that! How could you think that I would just leave all of you behind?!”

Katherine balls her fists in her lap, and even in the dim light of the streetlamp, Cathy can tell that Katherine looks completely broken.

“When people leave, they don’t come back,” she mumbles. “Ever. And when they leave, they usually break your heart without a care in the world.” She looks up, like she’s trying to glean the courage to continue from the stars that are starting to emerge in the sky. “No one who has ever loved me has loved me after they left- maybe they didn’t even love me before they did.” She looks down again. “I didn’t want you to be like that.”

“Katherine, you have been through hell,” Cathy says in a quiet voice, because she has. “I realize that it’s hard to trust me... it’s hard to trust anyone. We’re all here for you. That won’t change no matter where any of us go. But when you feel like we aren’t here for you, the answer isn’t to destroy the most important thing to one of us in an attempt to get us to stay.”

The younger girl chews on her lip and keeps her eyes trained on the horizon instead of Cathy’s face, picking at her fingernails. “I haven’t had that before,” she says quietly. “People who stay.”

“I know you haven’t,” Cathy replies, moving to sit down next to Katherine, swallowing down the tears threatening to rise. She doesn’t know what else to say because I’m sorry feels too trite, so the statement hangs in the silence for a few minutes while she tries to find her words- she always has too many words, but now it feels like she has none at all. “I told you when I found you that I needed to tell you something- can I do that now?”

Katherine looks confused and more than a little fearful, like she’s expecting to engage in a yelling match again, but Cathy just sighs and pulls one of her knees to her chest, leaning back against the statue. “I was thinking about the manuscript while I was looking for you after you ran away,” Cathy says quietly. “Thinking about what I had said to you, how I felt about what you had done… I realized something.”

She wishes Aragon was here- her godmother always knows what Cathy’s trying to say, even if Cathy doesn’t quite know herself, but Aragon isn’t here and Cathy has to muddle through it on her own.

“The manuscript shouldn’t be the only thing in my life,” Cathy says. “I never want you to feel like all of your pasts are more important to me than all of you- your death shouldn’t be more important than your life.” She can hear Katherine’s shaky exhale at that statement, and she doesn’t know if that’s a good or bad sign but she continues anyway. “Your life is happening right here in front of me, and I’ve been missing it obsessing over your death,” Cathy tells her quietly. “Not only that, I’ve been missing my own life. I’ve been constantly looking over my shoulder at what happened to all of us, and that means that I can’t look ahead at our future.” 

She runs a hand over her face, because she doesn’t know what to say. This all sounded a lot better in her head. “I want to tell you that I’m sorry for prioritizing a story about all of your lives over your actual lives, and for ever making you think that I would choose a book over you all. I’m angry at you for destroying my manuscript, and I think there were better ways to tell me what was happening in your brain, but I… I think I understand more fully about why you did it.”

The silence after she finishes talking is deafening. Cathy’s never really understood that before, the saying about deafening silence, but now she gets it. She doesn’t think she’s ever talked that much to one person before- her voice is scratchy from it- and Katherine’s lack of response feels like it’s crushing her eardrums.

Katherine slips her hands into the pockets of her jacket, and finally speaks. “I didn’t destroy it,” she says, very, very quietly.

At those words, Cathy’s heart drops out from her chest- she feels hollow, like the wind could blow right through her, and she’s not entirely aware of making the decision to speak but then a word falls from her mouth.

“What?”

***

taglist: @thenicestnonbinary, @soultastic

[violetwolfraven]

Tell Me

((Remember that smallsper angst I wrote about Sniper scabbing? This is the blush version! @justsomequeergirl tagging you cause you said you’d like to see something like this.😊))

...

Mush had been busy trying to help Davey, Race, and Buttons treat everyone’s injuries since they all got back to the Lodging House, and he hadn’t gotten a moment to think about what had happened before they all got hurt, which was probably a good thing because he hadn’t gotten to have a crisis about it.

Well, ripping up the newspapers, getting to have the upper hand against the Delanceys, and getting their picture taken by their new friend Katherine had been fun. But before that...

Blink had been making a point not to make eye contact with him from where he was getting his papes, but seeing him here, now, standing silently a few feet down the hallway felt oddly similar, even though their eye contact now was so intense that Mush felt the need to cut the tension and he was actually sorry he didn’t have a knife.

When they had seen Blink, Sniper, and Tommy Boy scabbing on them, Mush had known exactly how the others would react.

Smalls was angry immediately, as Sniper’s best friend, (and Mush was pretty sure she was sweet on her) Jack was hurt, as the one who felt responsible for everyone, Finch was disbelieving, as he was close friends with Tommy and Sniper, and everyone else was somewhere in between angry, hurt, and disbelieving.

Mush had felt nothing. It was like all capacity for emotion was gone with the sense of the world at the sight of Blink betraying everyone’s trust.

He was feeling a little of that, now, but he still managed to nod towards the door to the kitchen. They’d have some privacy in there to talk alone.

Blink nodded, understanding right away and following.

Mush shut the door behind them, and for a second, they were both silent.

Blink clearly wasn’t going to talk first, so Mush sighed.

“Why’d ya do it?”

“I dunno.”

“That ain’t good enough.”

Blink sighed, “Look, I... I didn’t want to... I never meant to hurt ya, Mush.”

“Well, you did,” Mush admitted, “Can I at least know why?”

“I guess I do owe ya that.”

“So tell me.”

It came out more pleading than Mush intended it as he took a step closer to his best friend. His lover. That was why this hurt so much; because Blink was both.

Mush had thought he finally had Blink pinned down. Most people didn’t, because they didn’t have the patience to take the time to understand him. To see the considerate, loving boy under the walls of defensive anger life had forced him to put up.

It had taken Mush months after they met to earn his trust, years to earn his love, and he really thought he’d learned every part of Blink in that time.

Now, he wasn’t so sure, because he couldn’t have seen this coming.

“Tell me you had a good reason,” he whispered, grabbing one of Blink’s hands to intertwine their fingers, “Please.”

“I didn’t,” Blink whispered back, “I wish I did, but... Tommy started talkin’ about how he didn’t think we could win and Sniper was agreein’ with him and I thought about it and... Mush, we’re just a bunch of angry, broke kids. How can we win this?”

“Together,” Mush insisted, “We’s a family, Blink, so we do it together.”

“And what if we lose?”

“We won’t.”

“What if we do?” Blink hissed, “And none of us have anythin’ to fall back on ‘sides the emergency money—which is runnin’ out already? What then, Mush? We all starve when winter hits?”

So that was why he did it. Because Blink was afraid. He’d never admit it, but he was terrified to lose the only real family he’d ever known.

He had a point, Mush had to admit, and it scared him, too.

“Maybe,” he admitted, “But a lot of us’ll starve, anyway, with the new price. We can’t last like this, Blink. If we try, we’ll just go down slower, but without even fightin’ to stay up.”

Mush could see the conflict in Blink’s good eye as he weighed the options.

Blink sighed, “You’re right. Strike or no strike, we still lose.”

“Unless we win.”

Blink’s scoff said very clearly what he thought about that.

Mush shrugged, even knowing that the odds were mostly stacked against them, “Well, I guess I can be optimistic enough for the both of us.”

“Optimistic is one word for it.”

Mush slapped his lover in the chest, but not hard, and Blink chuckled.

They probably should talk about this more later. There were a lot of things very complicated in what had happened today, and not everyone would be willing to forgive Blink so quickly.

Mush was just glad to have him here, now.

“I’m sorry,” Blink murmured after a couple seconds of silence, “I’m sorry I hurt you and I’m sorry I left the strike.”

“It’s alright,” Mush said nonchalantly, “Just don’t do it again.”

“I won’t,” Blink promised, “I’m stickin’ by ya to whatever end this comes to.”

Mush smiled, “Good. I love you, Blink.”

He was honestly surprised that Blink let him wrap his arms around him, just to hold him for a minute. He wasn’t usually the sentimental type, but Mush even thought he might have felt him leaning into the embrace.

Even with Crutchie arrested, Jack missing, and all his friends hurt, Blink letting him love him made Mush feel just a little bit happy.

“We can’t stand here forever,” he pointed out after a couple seconds, shattering the moment.

“Hmm. Don’t ruin this, you asshole.”

“Would it make it better if I told ya I loved you, too?”

“It would.”

“I love you, too. So much.”

Everything was still wrong. Blink would probably have to work for a long time to earn back the others’ trust.

But for now, for just a few more seconds, they could just stand there in the kitchen with nothing to focus on but each other.