#arthur we love your rude ass come back

[ksuhi13]

[writting-stuff-sometimes]

Christmas time - Charles x fem reader

Summary: You return home for Christmas and fin yourself spending it with and old lover and his family.

Warnings: None, just fluff and some angst.

AN: From the topic, you might know since when I've been working on this but I finally decided to finish it, I was going to wait till Christmas to publish it but what the heck. As you can see I have a thing for exes, writing here it's cheaper than therapy. As always feedback it's appreciated, accepting requests, and let me know if you would like to be added to the tag list.

Christmas had always been a confusing time for you, you thought of it as too cheese but at the same time you could spend a whole weekend just watching and crying over Christmas movies, so now that you were coming back home for the holidays after being away for so long, it felt as if you were in one of them.

You had been living in the US for 5 years, and like in all those stupid chick flicks, you had moved to the other side of the world because you wanted to escape your life after a painful breakup and the US was far enough from everyone you knew, and a certain sport your ex was part of. You were supposed to be studying there for 2 years but then the pandemic hit and you got stuck, you found a job that started as a part time but eventually became full time.

"Mom, are you serious? isn't Christmas a holiday you're supposed to spend with family?" you said as you struggle to wrap a present.

"What are you talking about? The Leclerc's are family! Don't you remember how many vacations we've spend together? the summers at the lake and winters up in the cabin? You, Lorenzo and Charles in your onesies playing in the snow as baby Arthur followed all of you around?"

Now you were kind of getting why you felt how you felt about christmas, your mom was in love with the holiday and it was cute but exhausting at the same time.

"Have you talk to them? I heard they went to the US a couple of times this year" In her defense, she had no idea you and Charles had been dating for a few months, actually as far as you knew only your best friend and Lorenzo knew about it after they found you making out in his kitchen one night after a party.

"No, we lost track of each other after I moved" you lied and returned to your wrapping task, actually Charles did try reaching out to you when he found out you moved and again when he went to race there, but you had all rights to ignore his calls and messages, the day you broke up he had been an ass.

_____________

The fight started when you confronted him about some pictures of him at a nightclub in Austria, you had no problem with him having fun after a stressful weekend, the girl grinding her ass against his body, his hand on her waist and the fact that it wasn't the first time this had happened, was the problem.

"It was a fan, I didn't want to be rude", Clearly this superstar status had gone to his head. "They don't know I have a girlfriend! You want me to be rude?"

"And who decided we shouldn't tell anyone?"

"You know why I don't want them to..."

"Yeah, yeah protecting our privacy, I would buy that story if you weren't going around the fucking world letting girls grind against you every five fucking minutes!"

"Well, I don't know what to tell you, I won't change my mind about it" The defiant look on his face told you everything you needed to know and now it was your turn to make a decision.

"Don't worry, you don't have to lie to your fans anymore" You stormed out of his room, that was the last time you spoke to each other.

You cried for weeks, you actually loved him but seeing pictures of him with a different girl at parties and nightclubs after every race weekend was just too painful. It only took you a couple of weeks to realize that staying in Monaco was a bad idea, his face and name were all over the place. One day, like a miracle fallen from the sky, one of your teachers told you about a scholarship to study in the US, you didn't think it twice and applied, and two months later you were boarding a plane to New York.

A couple of days after you arrived to the US, Charles tried every posible way of getting in touch with you, but you sticked to your decision and ignored all his messages.

You couldn't actually say you had fallen out of love, the good moments had been amazing and those you would cherish forever. _______

"I don't have anything to wear tho" it was a lame excuse but you really wanted to escape the awkward christmas weekend your mom had planned.

"Oh, don't worry about it, I bought you a cute dress, it's in your closet!"

You finished loading the van with the tons of things your mom wanted to take for the weekend-long stay at the Lecrerc's cabin and finally went upstairs to deal with the stress of seeing your ex, you threw yourself on your childhood bed and closed your eyes.

"Hi sweety, can I come in?" Your dad knocked on your door.

"Dad! Of course" You rushed to hug him

"I missed you so much" he said as he kissed your head.

"Miss you too"

"You need to come more often" he brushed your hair like he used to when you were little.

"I know, I wish I could"

"Honey, don't forget to try on the dress" Your mom yelled from downstairs and you sight in exhaustion, you loved your mom but spending the holidays with your ex and his family wasn't on your list for a great christmas.

"I know, but Pascale has been really nice to your mom now that you've been away, you know how much she misses you"

"I was expecting to be just with you guys"

"C'mon sweety, this will be fun. Aren't you excited to see a certain Leclerc?" a mischievous smile on your dad's face made your heart fall to your feet.

"What are you talking about?" you almost choked on your own saliva.

"Darling, we all knew about your crush on Lorenzo, it was endearing" you unclenched your jaw when you heard Lorenzo's name. Your dad wasn't wrong tho when you were like 5 or 6 you had a crush on your friend's big brother; it was natural, you used to spend a lot of time at their house, and he was older and very attractive.

"That was a long time a go, dad" You smiled at the memory.

"I know, but it will be nice to spend some time all together, specially after they lost Hervé and our only daughter decided to move so far away" He looked at you with such loving eyes, you could just say yes with your head "Your mom's been quiet for too long, let me go see what that lady is up to" he hugged you again and left your room.

You walked to your closet and took the dress cover bag.

"Are you serious?" you couldn't help to say out loud as you took the red body con dress from the hanger. It was a beautiful, but it being ferrari red felt like life was mocking you. You took a couple of calming breaths as you tried to accept that you were fucked, the only "party" attire in your suitcase wasn't exactly family gathering material and it was too late to go shopping, that dress was your only option.

The next morning before the sun was up you were already in the back of your mom's van on your way to the country side, it was a two hour drive to the Leclerc's cabin, you tried to catch some sleep and fight the jet lag, but anxiety wouldn't let you and before you knew it you were parking next to a red alfa romeo.

"Oh my God!! Y/n!!! darling, what a wonderful surprise" a surprised Pascale rushed to hug you as soon as you got off the van.

"Hi, it's nice to see you too" You hugged her back, you did really like Pascale, she had always been like a second mother.

As she turned to greet your dad, you turned to your mother.

"They didn't knew I was coming?" You asked in a low voice.

"No, I wanted for it to be a cute surprise" Your mom said with a big smile and then turned to hug her best friend.

"Come on in, the boys are going to be so happy to see you" She took you by the shoulders and dragged you inside the house as you pulled your suitcase.

"I wouldn't bet on it" you thought to yourself.

"Boys! come help with the bags!" She yelled as she entered the house "Wait 'till they see you!, want something to drink?" She pulled you inside the kitchen.

"Mom, where are we putting tomorrow's dinner thi..." Charles cut himself off and stopped in the middle of the kitchen entrance when he saw you.

"Mate, move! you're in the way" Arthur pushed Charles to the side walking in with a couple of bags "Y/N!" the youngest Leclerc let the bags fall over the kitchen table and rushed to hug you.

"Hi, Art" You said almost out of breath from the tight hug. "Oh my, you look so grown up!"

"Don't be fooled, it's just the outside" Said Lorenzo as he entered the kitchen with more bags, setting them on the table and pushing Arthur away to hug you "It's so nice to see you"

"Same" You hugged him back.

"This is a Christmas miracle" Lorenzo said as he turned to look at Charles with a cheeky grin on his face, he knew exactly what was happening and he found it incredibly amusing "I'm so glad I didn't skip christmas this year" He whispered as he walked past Charles.

"Shut up" Charles whispered back.

"Hi, Y/n" Charles left the bags on the floor, walked towards you and got his arms around your body as you shily hugged him back, his scent and body heat felt so familiar like it had been just a couple of days since the last time you two had been cuddling in his bed. "It's nice to see you," he said against your ear, his soft warm breath brushing your neck giving you goosebumps.

"It's nice to see you too"

You could feel Lorenzo's sight on you as he was bitting his cheek trying not to burst out laughing at the awkwardness between you two, thank God it was only him who noticed.

All of you finished unloading the van and tried to organize the sleeping situation.

"I can totally sleep on the couch, Pascale, don't worry about it" You said as soon as she offered to give you Charles' room.

"Oh no darling, you're not sleeping on the couch, Charles can sleep with Lorenzo or with Arthur, don't worry about it"

"But..."

"Don't even try, you won't convince her, let me" Said Charles taking your bag from your hand and walked up the stairs.

You followed him to his room. As soon as you walked in a thousand memories rushed trough your mind, during your relationship you had gone up to that cabin a few times, it was the only place you two could be alone.

"Thanks" You said in a low voice when he left your bag on his bed.

"You're welcome" He turned to look at you, you held his gaze a couple of seconds before his beautiful green eyes got your heart rushing a thousand miles and you had to look somewhere else trying to catch your breath, you walked to his closet to hang the dress bag.

"I called you, several times"

"I know" You said as you awkwardly played with the plastic material.

"I wanted to..."

"Mate, mom is calling you" Arthur walked in startling both of you.

"I'll be right there"

"Now" Said Arthur and walked down the stairs.

"We should go" you nervously said and followed Art downstairs.

Your mom, Pascale, Enzo and yourself prepared lunch as your dad talked to Arthur and Charles about the last racing season.

The whole group sat to have lunch, Pascale asked you about your life in New York, your apartment, your job, your friends.

"...and is there a special someone?" your mom's friend asked with a mischievous grin on her face, you noticed how Charles tensed at the question and Lorenzo noticed too.

"Yeah, are you breaking many hearts?" Lorenzo added, softly kicking his brother under the table, Charles flipped him off discretely as he "scratched" his cheek.

"Not as many as you Enzo, are you still dating Adrianne?" You diverted the attention successfully.

After lunch everyone moved to sit outside around the deck fireplace, night came and it started snowing which meant it was time to go to sleep, there was a lot to do the next morning.

You laid in Charles's bed, his scent was as intoxicating as it was soothing, you couldn't lie, you missed that smell, once you even ended up dating a guy just because he used the same cologne.

After an hour of trying to fall asleep and failing miserably at it, you gave up and decided to go prepare yourself a hot cup of tea. You got your robe on and walked down to the kitchen.

You prepared your tea and went to sit outside by the fireplace, the snow had stopped, it was cold but a couple of logs were still burning to give just enough heat to make it enjoyable.

"You're going to catch a cold" Charles' voice scared you, making you spill some hot tea over your hand.

"Ahhh, ouch"

"Shit!" Charles rushed to your side taking some snow from one of the chairs, he kneeled in front of you and placed the snow over your hand. "I'm sorry, I didn't meant to scare you" he turned to look at you.

"It's ok" He kept his hand on yours, and you stood still for a while as the snow melted between your hands.

"I'm sorry" he said again.

"It's ok, it wasn't that hot anymore"

"I'm not talking about the tea" his voice in that low pitch that let you know this was a serious matter.

"Charles, you don't need to... I don't...I'm.." You had no idea what to say, you had rehearsed this conversation a thousand times in your head and had worked amazing responses to every possible apology or complaint, but having him right there, kneeling in front of you with his hand caressing yours was just too much for your brain to process, you couldn't even look at him.

"Listen, I was an asshole, I let stupid ideas get to my head, I did a lot of stupid things, and I've regretted them every single day since the moment you walked out my door."

"Y/n" he took your chin and made you look up at him "I'm sorry, I've missed you so fucking much" your chest moved faster, no coherent thought in your mind.

"It's getting cold, we should go inside" you removed your hand from his and walked directly to his room without looking back. You were overwhelmed, you still had feelings for him, but it had been too long, you had a life in New York. It broke your heart to think that maybe you had wasted your only chance to be with him.

It was around 3 or 4 am when you finally cried yourself to sleep.

A soft knock on the door woke you up.

"Come in" you sat on the bed and tried to fix your hair.

"Good morning" Lorenzo walked in the room, a tray in his hands with a cup of coffee and a couple pancakes.

"Hi, thanks" You took the tray from his hands and took a small sip of coffee, it was so good.

"You're welcome, I figured that after staying up late you could use some breakfast in bed" You looked at him confused.

"My window it's right above the deck"

"Oh, sorry about that"

"Don't worry about it. But, he really is sorry, you have no idea how many times he begged for me to call you, he knew you would answer my calls, but to be honest I didn't think he deserved you then"

"And now?"

"I've been to New York, it ain't that cool, and I would love to see you around Monaco and the tracks more often" He winked at you and walked out of the room.

You had your breakfast in bed as you tried to figure out what the fuck were you supposed to do with what you felt and what Lorenzo had told you. It was almost noon, you had a shower and finally walked downstairs to help with the Christmas preparations for that evening.

The smell coming from the kitchen was amazing, your mom and Pascale were the greatest cooks you've ever met, actually, their food was one of the things you missed the most after you moved.

"Oh, I almost forgot, I ordered some bread from the town and I think we might need a couple more wine bottles" Pascale said as she looked at a message on her phone.

"I can go pick it up" You offered, you were used to being questioned by your mom every time you called home, but now there were two of them bombarding you with a ton of questions, making you feel a bit overwhelmed, so a lonely trip to the village seemed like a great way to take a breather.

"Darling, I don't know, you haven't driven on this side of the road for a while, and the road might be snowed" If only your mother knew how many times you had taken Charles's car out for a spin and done pretty reckless stunts.

"I can drive you" Charles offered walking in the kitchen.

"Yes, let Charles drive you" Great, it had gone from bad to worse.

"But...ok" You knew trying to convince your mom to let you go on your own was a lost cause and saying no to the offer would seem weird and offensive, you took your jacket and walked outside.

You both were so nervous, the only sound in the car was the music coming from the speakers, you couldn't help to look at him out of the corner of your eye, he was tense as he kept a tight grip on the steering wheel and you found it incredibly attractive, one of the things you enjoyed the most when dating Charles was looking at him as he was driving, the way his hands worked the steering wheel and his sight focused on the road was something that turned you on.

You finally got to the village and walked inside a small store, you split the list of things and walked your own way to get them all.

"Y/n?" someone called your name behind you.

"Oh my, Ed, hi!" You hugged the guy standing behind you, he had been one of your uni classmates.

"It's so nice to see you, how's everything, how's New York?"

"It's good, how are you?"

"Same old, same old, how long are you going to be here? We should go get a coffee or something"

"Y/n" Charles spoke before you could answer "Two chardonnays should be good? we have 3 merlots at home" He said showing the two wine bottles he was holding in his left hand, as his right arm grabbed you nonchalantly by the waist.

"Oh, sorry mate, hi, Charles" Charles left the wine bottles in the shopping cart and extended his hand to shake Ed's but kept his arm around you.

"Hi, no worries, you are... Charles Leclerc"

"Yeah"

"Wow, uhm, big fan"

"Thanks" Charles smiled at your friend, from the outside this all seemed innocent and nice, but you knew he was marking his territory. "We need to hurry, we still need to stop by the bakery" He said looking at you in a way that made your heart skip a beat, it had been so long since he had looked at you in that way.

"I should go too, I still got some presents to buy, it was nice to see you y/n, and nice to meet you Charles, good luck on the next season"

"Thanks, mate, appreciated" Charles shook his hand, and as you took a step forward to kiss your friend goodbye, his arm never left your body. When Ed was out of sight you turned to look at Charles inquisitively as he took the spices from your hand and placed them in the tiny shopping cart.

"Let's go" He pushed the cart as if nothing had happened and walked to the register.

"Stop looking at me like that" he finally said as you were on the drive back to the cabin.

"That was low"

"I don't know what you're talking about" he faked innocence.

"Make him think we're together, that was low"

"You went with it, didn't you?" You instantly blushed at his comment.

"I did it just so you wouldn't look like a fool"

A soft breathy laugh left his mouth as he turned to stop in a hiking trail parking lot.

"What are you doing?" you asked confused as he turned off the car.

"Come" he got off the car, confused you did as he said, he leaned against the hood of the car and you walked towards him.

"Charles?" You asked as you stood a safe distance from him, your arms crossed over your chest.

"We need to talk"

"Charles, please, I..." You rubbed your eyes in slight despair, you were pretty much in the middle of nowhere there was no escaping from him this time.

"Please, just listen to me, if when I'm done you don't want to talk about it anymore, we'll get in the car and we never talk about this ever again, but right now, just listen to me, ok?" his beautiful green eyes made you weak and you couldn't say no.

"Ok"

"Y/n, I really am sorry, I swear nothing happened with any of those girls, I never cheated on you..."

"Charles..."

"Shut... up!" His voice was a soft growl as he took you by your arms and pulled you a little closer to him, you stared into his eyes, frozen "Please, listen to me, I know I've said I'm sorry like a million times in the last 24 hours, but I really feel like I owe you so many apologies. I was an asshole, I could try to explain myself but at the end of the day I was young and stupid, and I let this "famous driver" shit get to my head, I lost myself, and on the way, I ended up losing the most amazing and wonderful woman ever. I pushed you away and you had all right to kick me out of your life, but please, if there's just one small part of you that would like to try this again, please, I'm begging you, just give me one more chance, please"

You felt your heart rush, you had thought about this moment a million times, and 90% of them the answer was negative, not because you didn't love him, but because you could see how happy he was without you, winning races, taking pictures with fans, partying with the rest of the drivers, having the freedom he seemed to miss when he was with you.

"Y/N?"

"How do I know this isn't going to end up badly? You've been single for the last 5 years, are you sure you want to give up all you have?"

"I'm not the same idiot you left 5 years ago, I swear, I don't need anyone but you, I don't WANT anyone but you" He pulled you closer, his arms around your waist in a tight hug as you keep your arms crossed over your chest trying to put as much distance between you two. "I know I'm asking for a lot, you have a life somewhere else and I swear I wouldn't be asking for another chance if I didn't actually mean it, I swear on everything that's sacred for me, that I'm going to do my best to make this work and make you the happiest girl in the world, but please give me another chance"

"Are you sure this isn't just the holiday blues? what if I hadn't come this Christmas, would you feel the same?" Your rational side fighting hard against the side that just wanted to wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him.

"Do you really think I just came up with this?" A soft smile escaped his lips as he unhooked one of his arms from around your waist and took his cell phone from his jacket, he clicked around for a bit, then turned the screen towards you as he slowly scrolled through the screen, there were dozens of undelivered messages, you could only catch a few words but most of them were of how much he missed you and begging for you to forgive him and come back. "The last one is from last week, I've missed you every day for five years"

You turned to look at him, this movement from your head making the tears that flooded your eyes fall down your cheeks. He got his phone inside his jacket and cleaned your tears with his fingers.

"I love you, y/n, and you can say no, I don't want to force you to do anything, you don't even have to give me an answer right now, but just think about it, ok?"

You couldn't talk and you just nodded your head.

"Good, now let's go, it's getting dark" He leaned in and kissed your lips so softly that if your eyes had been closed you would have doubted it ever happen. He led you to the passenger seat, opened the door for you, and then went to get inside the car.

You drove in silence again, you knew your answer but were you making the right decision?

As he pulled next to your parent's van you fixed yourself as much as you could.

"Darling, what took you so long?" Pascale walked towards you to help with the bags.

"Sorry, I found an old friend and caught up talking" You excused yourself before Charle could say anything.

As the boys helped with setting the table and bringing in more wood for the fireplace, you couldn't help to notice how good was the relationship between your dad and the Leclerc boys, he had turned into their father figure and it filled your heart, you knew this kind of relationship between your dad and any other guy in your life was going to be impossible. Tears started forming in your eyes again.

"All done" you said setting the last couple of cookies on the cooling rack "I'm going to get dressed" You quickly removed the apron and rushed upstairs before anyone could notice your watery eyes.

As you walked inside the bedroom you saw a small red box on the bed, you took it and opened it slowly to find a beautiful gold tuberose necklace and a handwritten note inside.

"I've had this for years and I finally got the chance to give it to you, I remember that night you called our love a "Tuberose love" because it seemed it only bloomed hidden in the dark, but this is a gold tuberose, it can bloom day or night, as long as it's around your neck.

I love you, always,

Charles"

You cried and held the beautiful necklace in your hand.

You showered and got ready, you looked at yourself in the mirror, the red dress looked better than you ever imagined, maybe that Ferrari red wasn't a bad idea after all, maybe that color could grow on you again. You got the necklace around your neck, the gold piece shining perfectly over the fabric.

"Come on kids, it's time" Your dad yelled from downstairs, you took a last deep breath and walked down to meet everyone.

Charles' eyes lit up as soon as he saw you enter the dining room, his sight focused on the gold detail hanging from your neck and he couldn't help to smile, he pulled the chair by his side and gestured you to take a seat next to him.

You sat by his side as everyone else took their places, he looked around and you took his hand under the table, he turned to look at you and you noticed his eyes were red as if he was about to cry.

"All good?" you whispered worried

"Never been better" he smiled and gave your hand a little squeeze.

You had dinner, the best Christmas dinner to date.

It was close to 3 am when the parents decided it had been enough for them and left for bed, Lorenzo and Arthur went to get some more wood and Charles took the chance to sit next to you on the living room floor, putting a blanket over your bodies as he placed his arm around your shoulders.

"Thanks" you said taking the necklace and looking at it.

"You're welcome, I'm glad you liked it" He kissed your hair.

"I love it... not as much as I love you, tho" You finally said, his face turned fast to look at you as you turned to look at him.

"So... you...uhm" He stutter

"Did I just make Charles Leclerc stutter?" you smiled teasingly.

"Shut up" he said as he took your face and pulled you in for a kiss, that kiss you had waited for so long.

"What the hell?" Arthur yelled as he dropped the logs on the living room floor.

"Well, this time it can't be a secret, this one can't keep his mouth shut" Said Lorenzo leaving the logs next to the fireplace.

"This time? why am I always the last one to find this shit out!?, You have a lot of explaining to do" Said Arthur inquisitively as he sat across from you.

Tag List: @wtrmlnsgr94, @ricsaigaslec

[romsabombs]

malevolent 43 was insane so here are my notes. my live reactions while listening. enjoy :)

god i feel so sick already

EW AD☹️

okayyyy voices

is it kayne watching

oh god this again

hes way more dramatic this time i think

ermm??

yuck😨

omg queen!!! indeed queen💅💖

i have no idea whats going on

ohhh dang

IS HE GETTING CHAINED UP

im so nervous and scared and afraid

yorrick lore episode?? :3

ohhh yeahh he was the prince's skull

JOHNNNN🥳🥳🥳

omg yes talk to eachother!!! bond!

HAHA JOHN WHY ARE YOU TELLING HER ALL THIS

yesss KING AND QUEENNN

omg hastur he-who-is-not-to-be-named lord of carcosa thats the thing kayne said

OKAYYYYY 💅💅

WHO😐 HAHAAA💀💀

yesss you tell him girl!! they broke into YOUR house‼️

ohhh erm what😶

"i am the king in yellow" SHE DOESNT CARE JOHN

ermmmmmm erm erm uhh

i have no idea how to describe kingqueen relationship rn

"you are no god i have witnessed" "no. but i am a god" such good lines

she should read oscars note lol

LORE LORE LORE yess tell us about this world queen🎀

"and yet you moan on a table beneath my knife👹" okayyy shes vicious💅

YORRICK SNITCH

"my transition" okay🤨🏳️‍⚧️

yo i have no idea what's going on

she said i know what u are🤨

LILY MENTION LILY MENTION

👹LIES👹 girl we're having a moment

"you gained humanity as a prisoner" okayyy true hmmm..

gosh this is heavy

bestiary mentioned :))

her ass is NOT listening

i have no idea how to picture this scene in my head

ohh she was hurt by humans☹️ because her ass is a witch

two sides of the same coin

YOUR MOTHER? omg a name

arthur is straight up dead and we're doing the traumadumping hour

😀☹️😞 :( :( oh darling

mother darkness is my drag name

okay shes got a point tho🫡

YORRICK DONT HAHA shut up!!

oh!! :3

ermmm third wheeling over here

yorrick finally does something good (shuts the fuck up)

death for the undying⛓️💔

hell brings about the truth in people🔥🔥🔥 these lines go hard

im sure you did😒😒

can you believe this episode is 52 minutes long

imagine arthur laying on the floor family guy pose while all this emotional stuff is happening

BEDROCK RAAHHHH

"our" :3333

even the witch knows hes a child

"silent to all but those who can hear🗣️🗣️🗣️"

"i am not forgotten. not by him" :((

i remember you my king!! 🤓🥰

larson mansion arc throwback

"i saved him" erm you're the reason he went crazy in the first place

FUCK YOU👹 does she even know that word

john finally gets therapy not clickbait

ok shut up john my headphones are dying

ok we're back

"i tried to kill a man who i felt was in my way" 💀💀

HAHA SHES SO MEAN

okay now arthur is the child

dont go to the dark side pookie🙏

bro this shit is none of her business stay out of it

MY LOVE FOR ARTHURRREEE🥳🥳 WE WON!!!!!!!!!!!🔥‼️🗣️

ermm 😶 come on johnn🙏

arthur said i can fix him and then did!!

WOAHAHSHFHCBXNSN WHA😨😨

WOAHHHHH WHATATTTT QUEEN??

HAHAHA WHY DID YOU DO THAT

ERMMMMMMMM HES WHAT

😀😀HEAVY BREATHINGGG

OKAYYYYYYY JOHNN🥰🥰

RAHHHH👹👹👹 hes so sigma

yo what the hell is happening

😨😨😨😨HUH

this witch sure loves stabbing arthur

TRUEEE we r in her home!!

his ass is not really gone come on

do true loves kiss or whatever or like shed a tear and it'll land on him and he'll be alive again because magic

"🤢JOHN🤢" okayy rude🙄

mm yeah true why did you leave

😀john stay with us🙏🗣️ pretty pls

i miss arthurs voice its really nice

FRIEND MENTIONED like from s1 :3

HIS ASS ISNT GONE what would the show be without him bruh

jesus christ

NO NONONONOOO NO COME ON

🫣🫣 ermm 😶

man arthurs only purpose is to be a vessel huh :( :(

isn't john like bound to this body

what a mess :/ how will we fix this

girl u barely know him why do u care

"ignorant false morals" 😒girl

i wanna know what she thinks about the trolley problem

maybe don't listen to her she just murdered your boyfriend twice. thrice

GIRL YOU DONT EVEN KNOW HIM

shut up🙄 dont piss me off you killed my boy

ohh arthur i miss him already

erm john!!!! dont say allat😀

GOD DAMN IT we got so far man

hail to the king🗣️🗣️🗣️

NEW BODY??

ok now shes worshipping him😒

:( he says arthurs name so coldly. absolutely no emotion in his voice☹️

DONT TELL HER!!!!

ugh hes back to his kiy voice

im gonna kill myself actually

"think of the object you desire to find" imagine a rosetoy just appears

OH OH OH OH HAHA YEAHH HAHAA

this is awesome actually

faroes song goes hard

ohhh hes back :3

yorrick is so cutiepatootie

oh wait is he okay���

OH NO

OH :3 HAHA YORRICK💀💀

insane episode

aye we cant save arthur without another deal with the devil i think

where's kayne when you need him

john this speech is embarrassing you're not an alpha wolf

john non binary arc🙏

..meaning??🧐

"i choose you. to be a part of you" ☹️ pokemon reference for a sec

yorrick embodiment of sillyness

yeah doll him up before reviving him

"your love for your friend" yorrick is so third wheeling

oh he feels human :3 i feel so sigma

cant we just let arthur stay dead let bro rest in peace he's been through enough

ARTHUR :33 WOAHHH😨😨

yeah i guess that musta hurt huh

yo is his ass okay😀😀

arthur is in Pain Painnn

ima have dreams about this one

[bestofbucky]

Eavesdrop

Pairings: Bucky x Reader

Word Count: 5.1k

Warnings: none really, enemies to ?

A/N: This is my first time posting something I have written. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you so much @tuiccim for your help, couldn’t have done it without you.

Being an Avenger is tough. Of course, there are the obvious missions and kicking ass that are exhausting, especially because you don’t have any sort of enhancements or powers. You are just a regular human being, fighting with and against some not so regular human beings. Naturally when you have downtime, you spend it doing things with the least amount of effort. Watching Netflix, listening to music, taking baths, etc, meaning that your social life outside of the compound was, to put it simply, non-existent.

You had just returned from the worst date of your life, well, one of the top five worst dates of your life. Over the past couple of months Steve and Natasha had grown tired of you whining about being single but not making any effort to change it and began sending you on blind dates. Somehow, they managed five different times to find five completely awful people. This time they had set you up with Arthur, a recruit for SHIELD and a good one at that. You wouldn’t be surprised to see him on the elite squad soon, but when it came to your date, he was really blunt and inappropriate, and you had cringed your way through the entire thing.

Once you got back to the compound, you first went to your room to get changed into gym clothes for training with Nat, then headed to her room. On your way you passed one of the common rooms and heard two voices. One familiar but one you didn’t recognise, you decided to check it out and found Steve and another man.

Steve called your name inviting you over to them as they both stood up. ‘This is Bucky. He’s moving in today to begin training.’ Steve explains. You nod and smile at Bucky, remembering Steve told you about him and that he would be living here and eventually joining the team.

You have to stop yourself from gasping out loud at the sight of him. He is a 6 ft something hunk of muscle and beauty and you can’t stop yourself from trying to take him all in with your eyes.

Steve then introduces you to Bucky who looks in your eyes for all of two seconds to say, ‘hi’ before looking down at his feet. He is probably really nervous. Even from that two second glance, you could tell he had one hell of a past. They had you hooked already, you wanted to stare into those eyes and let them tell you the stories of the lifetime they had seen.

‘You were just in Wakanda right? How was it? I have only ever seen it in pictures but I really want to go.’ You let your excitement show, hoping to relax him a bit.

‘Yeah, it was nice. I was frozen for most of it though’ Shit, he curses himself. He didn’t mean to come across so rude but he was really nervous, you are really pretty and it is messing with his head a little. It doesn’t help that he has had to meet a lot of different people today and he is all socialised out. He sees your face fall slightly before you quickly compose yourself, any normal person would have missed it but he has his past of being a trained assassin.

‘Well, Nat is probably waiting for me, she told me she would show me some new moves today.’ You say realising that Bucky had probably been under a lot of stress lately and most likely just wanted to be alone, or with Steve rather than chatting to you, a stranger. At least you hoped this was the reason and it wasn’t that he already disliked you. Saying goodbye to the two of them you head off to Natasha’s room.

Not even bothering to knock, you walk into her room leaving the door open behind you, since you’ll be heading down to the gym soon anyway. Natasha is sitting on the end of the bed braiding her hair. ‘You almost ready?’ You ask.

‘Yeah, just got to finish my hair then put my shoes on.’ She tells you so you take a seat on her bed while you wait.

Meanwhile, Bucky told Steve that he wanted to go get his room sorted. Really it was just an excuse to be alone for a little while. On the way there he walked past a room with the door open and heard two voices talking, recognising them to be you and Natasha. He was just about to carry on walking to his room when he heard Natasha ask, ‘did you meet him yet?’

Bucky assumed she was talking about him and wanted to hear what you had to say. He hoped you would be understanding of his reticence after his taxing morning. 

‘Yeah, I met him today.’ You sigh and roll your eyes.

‘That bad?’ Nat asks, raising her eyebrows with a slight smirk on her face.

‘Yes, I tried to be as friendly as I could but he seemed like a jerk.’ You huff.

‘How so?’

‘He was so blunt he just came across really rude. I had high expectations, especially after hearing Steve say so many nice things about him.’

‘Maybe he was just having a bad day?’ She attempts a defence. 

‘Bad day or not, he should have the courtesy to smile and be polite even if it is fake.’

Bucky was so hurt to hear this. Yes, he wasn’t the nicest to you but your reaction seemed a bit dramatic. He didn’t want to hear you say any more so he rushed off to his room.

‘So, I guess you aren’t going to go on a second date with him then?’ Nat asks.

‘No, I really appreciate you and Steve trying to set me up but seeing as this is the 5th time and none of them were any good, I think I’ll go back to my old methods.’ You smile at her.

‘What, never putting yourself out there and waiting for the right person to just fall into your lap?’ Nat teases and you both laugh when you nod. She finishes tying her shoelaces and you head off to the gym.

The next day you were leading a meeting of recruits who have the potential to be moved up into the squad that worked with the Avengers. The elite squad. Unfortunately for you, Arthur was in the group of recruits and was probably the next one to be promoted.  You finally dismissed everyone and started getting your stuff together to leave as well when Arthur came up to you.

‘What’s the word on who is moving up next, dove?’ You look up in shock, surely, he didn’t just call you dove.

‘Excuse me?’ You look him dead in the eye.

‘I said what’s the word on who is moving up next? I think you might need to get your hearing checked.’ He laughs at his own joke so you fake laugh with him.

‘That’s confidential., we’ll let everyone know when we have made the decision.’ You say and go to walk past him but he grabs your arm.

‘Does someone need a little convincing. If it’s you, then I can think of some ways.’ He whispers seductively in your ear. You pull your arm out of his grasp and frown at him.

‘I’m only joking, dove, come on, you can’t even take a joke?’ He laughs again.

You put on your best fake smile and your customer service voice. ‘There will be no convincing necessary. You are a good agent but you also have good competition. We will inform you all of our decision when it is made.’ You say and quickly turn and walk out the door before he can say anything else. When you get into the lift you ask FRIDAY where Steve is.

‘Common room A, Agent Y/L/N’. You make your way there as quick as possible. Heading around the corner, you slam into a solid object. You hiss at the contact on your fresh bruises, a frown appearing on your face. As soon as you look up to see what or who you bumped into, the frown quickly fades into a smile when you see its Bucky. He is already looking at you.

‘Sorry I should have been watching where I was going.’ He mumbles quickly.

‘No, it’s just as much my fault as yours. I shouldn’t have been in such a hurry.’ You apologise to him. As much as you would love to stay and chat  with  Bucky, you need to get to Steve to explain what just happened with Arthur and hopefully you can get him kicked off the team.

Bucky had left his room to try and find someone to help him figure out a few things with FRIDAY but as soon as he bumped into you that completely left his mind. You were all that filled his mind ever since he met you. He stood in the hallway for a while before realising he should ask you to help. Maybe this would be a good excuse to make up for his poor first impression. He heads in the direction you went but stops short when he hears your voice.

‘I think he bruised me. The dick.’ You say and Steve frowns at you ‘Come on, Steve. I’m  allowed to be angry. He has been nothing but a jerk to me,’ you explain and shift to get more comfortable.

‘What did you say to him when he did this?’ Steve asks, holding your arm and examining the newly formed bruises in the shapes of fingers.

‘I put on my best fake smile and pretended like everything was ok,’  You joke and Steve laughs, ‘as much as I hate the guy, I don’t have the confidence to actually show it.’ You sigh and Steve pulls your sleeve back down and leans back into the sofa. ‘Is there any way we can kick him off the team?’ You exaggerate batting your eyelashes at him.

‘He isn’t even on the team yet and you already want to kick him off?’ Steve questions.

‘Yes! I really don’t like him. I know he is your friend but I trust him about as far as I can throw him’ You explain and Steve nods.

Bucky had heard enough. He can’t believe you could be so horrible. You had the sweetest exterior and, from first impressions, you didn’t look like you could hurt a fly. But as he heard you say, you clearly put on a fake act to come across as polite and kind when really you are rude deep down. He didn’t mean to eavesdrop on you. Twice now. But he is so glad he did, because now he knows not to waste his energy on you. He knows what you think of him and he has formed his opinion of you. He hurries back to his room.

‘He’s not my friend Y/N, I only said that to you to make you go on the date with an open mind. I’ve only ever had one conversation with the guy,’ Steve jokes and you playfully push his arm, ‘All jokes aside, his behaviour breaks a lot of conduct rules and is a good enough reason to have him knocked down a few squads.’ Steve replies and you sigh with relief. You hug Steve and thank him for his help, he’s taken slightly off guard but hugs you back before you go your separate ways.

 A few weeks later, you walk into the kitchen to find the whole team eating their breakfast. Sam is cooking and when he sees you, he makes a plate and hands it to you.

‘Thank you Sam.’ You hug him and take the plate, turning around at the sound of Bucky’s scoff. You haven’t had a conversation with Bucky since you bumped into each other in the hallway. You had tried to but he either completely ignored you or just rolled his eyes and left the room.

At first it hurt, you wondered if you had done something wrong. The team seemed just as confused by it as you. Bucky didn’t have a problem with anyone else. That wasn’t to say he was extremely friendly with them, he wasn’t there yet and nobody blamed him but he could hold conversation with the others. He even laughed at their jokes. You were starting to get fed up with it so after breakfast you headed to Bucky’s room to talk to him. You knocked on the door and it wasn’t long until he answered it. As soon as he saw you his face fell visibly.

‘Can we talk?’ You asked hoping he would let you into his room. He paused to consider it then stepped out of his room, closing the door behind him. He stood there with his arms crossed and waited for you to talk.

‘Is there something I did wrong?’ You ask him and he keeps a blank face.

‘Why do you care?’ He asks still arms crossed over his body.

‘I care because you are always scoffing or rolling your eyes at me whenever I try to talk to you.’

‘I’m not scoffing or rolling my eyes now.’ He points out.

‘No but you’re not exactly being very friendly.’

‘Would you prefer for me to fake it then? Just put on a smile and pretend to like you?’ He jabs. You take a moment to process what he just said. You didn’t realise he could be so mean.

‘No Bucky I would prefer for you to maybe make an effort to get to know me before making a judgement.’ You scowl at him.

‘I have a perfectly fine judgement of you. I am not going to fall for your fake smiles and fake friendships.’ Bucky snarls and walks back into his room closing his door in your face. You are left to stand there in shock.

On the other side of the door Bucky is leaning there conflicted. The shock on your face looked so genuine. No, he has to remember it is all an act with you.

From that day on you decided you weren’t going to make an effort with him. It wasn’t the most mature decision but you were tired. What used to be eye rolls and scoffs, now turned into snarky comments and you were no longer afraid to throw them right back at him.

Steve had tried a few times to talk to you about it but, when he couldn’t tell you why Bucky hated you, he realised there was nothing he could do to change how either of you felt about the other. What he could do was change up your schedules so the two of you were rarely ever in the same room together.

Unfortunately, instead of the arguments happening quite calmly but consistently over the course of the whole day. They were now much shorter, confined to just mealtimes, and much more heated and intense. None of the team knew which was worse.

You were sparring in the gym with Natasha trying to work off some steam from this morning’s argument with Bucky.

‘Your moves are sloppy, get whatever is making you emotional out of your head.’ She grunts at you but this only forces you further into your head.

You go hard at her, but she blocks every move so you go to defence. She smirks at you, ‘Has a certain super soldier got into your head?’

That causes a surge of anger to hit you and again you go hard at Natasha, but your anger only allows her to catch you off balance and you are pinned to the mat in a matter of seconds.

‘So it is Barnes.’ She  pulls you up and you brush yourself off before getting back into a fighting stance.

‘I don’t want to talk about it.’ You grunt at her and start your attack. Your moves are still predictable and anger clouds your mind. You feel yourself getting more and more worked up with every hit she blocks.

You retreat to take a breather, you hear the door open and you glance over, the man of the hour has just entered and you roll your eyes but continue to spar with Natasha.

Out the corner of your eye, you see him make his way over to you both, watching as you take a lot of hits from her and barely manage to land any of your own.

‘I have seen toddlers fight better than you Y/N.’ You hear him chuckle.

‘I don’t need your opinion.’ You grunt, still trying to keep your focus on Natasha.

‘Fight like that on the field and you’ll be dead in two seconds.’

‘Keep talking and you’ll wish you were dead.’

He laughs ‘Is that a threat?’ You ignore him and continue sparring. ‘Your punches are so weak, how did you become an Avenger again?’ He is still smiling knowing exactly which buttons to push.

You stop and make your way over to him. ‘I became an Avenger because of my talent and my strength, that I worked hard to earn.’ You are right up in his face, almost chest to chest. You are breathing hard, partly from the exercise but mostly because of how riled up you are. You notice he is breathing hard as well, his breath fanning across your face.

Your mind can’t help but drift, is this what he would look like in bed, his chest rising and falling faster than normal. Small beads of sweat gathered at his hairline from his recent run. You suddenly realise how close the two of you are and force the inappropriate thoughts from your mind. You hate how seeing him so riled up is actually a huge turn on. How could you let yourself be attracted to such an asshole?

‘You wouldn’t stand a chance against me.’ His voice drops so low that in a different circumstance you would have happily dropped your panties.

‘You’re right. I wouldn’t stand a chance against you and your metal arm that you were given. Or you and the super soldier serum that you were given.’ You know they are cheap shots but you just couldn’t help how absolutely fuming he makes you. He had managed to get under your skin and the thought of him being successful only made you angrier.

He leans down even more, your noses almost touching ‘I don’t know how everyone else can’t see through your little nice act. You pretend to be so kind on the outside but deep down you’re a bitch.’ Ouch. You deserved that one for what you said to him but it didn’t make it hurt any less. Especially because if you were hooked up to a lie detector and asked to say those things again, it would flash up as a blatant lie. However, looking into his eyes there was not an ounce of regret for what he said.

Bucky knew he shouldn’t have said what he did, but you had hit a nerve and it was the only thing he could think to say back. He saw the hurt flash across your eyes but it was too late to take it back now. The only thing he could do was exit the situation before it got any worse. He turned on his heels and left the room, leaving you standing there in complete shock at your exchange. 

Natasha calls your name but you quickly leave for your room before anyone can see you like this.

The team was split all across the base. This wasn’t how you would usually handle missions but as soon as you arrived the mission started to go sideways.

‘Target headed towards the west elevator. Anyone nearby copy?’ You hear Steve’s voice through comms.

‘I'm on it.’ You say back, your comms crackling more than usual.

‘Copy that.’ Bucky said, his comms crackling from the two of you talking at the same time.

The rest of the team had heard both of your voices but neither of you had heard the other. So it was a big shock when you were waiting for the elevator and you heard his voice behind you.

‘You have got to be kidding me.’ He sighs and slowly walks up to you to wait for the elevator as well. ‘Did you not hear me say I got it?’ He snaps at you.

‘No because I was the one that said I’m on it.’ You snap back and thankfully the elevator dings it’s arrival. Normally in creepy Hydra bases you would avoid elevators but seeing as there was no stairwell nearby, this was the only option.

‘Age before beauty.’ You say to him, gesturing to the elevator.

‘Very funny’ he says sarcastically before stepping inside. You follow after him and press the only floor button available.

Silence permeates the small space as you prepare for what’s to happen once the doors open. Instead, the elevator jerks to a stop.

‘No.’ You panic and start pressing the floor button over and over. ‘No no no no no.’ Nothing is working.

‘Let me try.’ Bucky says pushing you out of the way, you so badly want to say something but the only thing you can focus on is the fact you might be trapped. Bucky taps the button and looks around for anything else to press but there is nothing. You can feel yourself start to get light headed as claustrophobia takes hold and the thought of falling to your death in this metal box takes over your thoughts. You shrink down onto the floor and hold your head in your hands.

‘Do you always have to be so dramatic?’ Bucky huffs. You don’t answer him, the only thing you can think about is the pain starting in your chest and your breathing getting heavier. 

‘Stop breathing so fast. You are going to make yourself pass out.’ Bucky grunts but when you don’t reply or make any effort to slow your breathing he gets worried. He kneels down in front of you ‘Hey? Doll? Can you hear me?’ You can’t answer him, you just feel the impending doom and the immense pressure on your chest. ‘I’m going to move your hands.’ He announces then you feel him take your hands and pull them away from your face. You look at him, tears in your eyes, a look of pure fear across your face. ‘Breathe with me, doll. Can you do that?’ He asks and you manage to nod. He speeds his breathing up to your pace then gradually slows it, you follow him as best as you can and eventually you get your breathing back to normal, with the occasional hiccup or sharp intake.

Once he sees you are ok, he lets go of your hands and sits on the floor as far away as he can. You both continue to sit in silence.

‘Thank you.’ You eventually manage to whisper, he nods without meeting your eye.

You can’t help but feel disappointed, you just got to see a caring side of Bucky and it felt amazing to be on the receiving end of it, but now you are back to him not giving a shit about you. You go back and forth wondering whether it is the right time to bring up the issues between you two. If not now, when?

‘Why do you hate me so much?’ He looks across at you and sighs before he answers.

‘I don’t hate you.’

‘Yes you do. It seems like you go out of your way to make me miserable.’ You push, making him lean his head back on the wall behind him.

‘I don’t hate you. I just don’t like how you formed opinions about me so early on. You wanted me off the team before I even got cleared to be on the team.’ Bucky explains. You stare at him in confusion.

‘How do you know what opinions I formed of you? I may have wanted you off the team but it was only because you were mean and that was after you were cleared.’ You could feel yourself starting to get angry.

‘Then how come I overheard you talking about the first time we met to Nat, you said I was blunt and rude. Then after I accidentally bumped into you, you told Steve you wanted me off the team.’ Bucky says agitatedly.

‘I never-‘ you think back to any conversations you had with Nat and Steve about Bucky. The only ones that came to mind were asking them if they knew why Bucky didn’t like you. Then it hits you, he had overheard you talking to Steve and Nat about Arthur. You sighed.

‘Let me guess, you overheard me and Nat talking not long after we first met. We were in Nat’s room getting ready to go train?’ You ask and he nods.

‘Then the conversation you overheard with Steve was straight after we bumped into each other. We were in the common room?’ Bucky looks confused but nods again.

‘You are such a prick. You eavesdrop but don’t even listen long enough to hear who we were talking about.’ You can’t help but chuckle at the situation, even though it’s not particularly funny.

‘What?’ Bucky looks more confused than ever.

‘Well, if you had listened properly to the whole conversation you would know I was talking about that asshat agent, Arthur.’ That came out more blunt than you intended.

‘The recruit that got bumped down a few squads even though he is really good?’

‘Yep. That’s the one’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘Before you came Steve and Nat had been setting me up on blind dates with people. Arthur was the fifth one, I really didn’t want to go so Steve convinced me by saying they were friends and all this nice stuff about him.’ You pause to take a deep breath. ‘The day we met, I had just come from the date with him and it was awful. That's what me and Nat were talking about. Then when we bumped into each other in the hallway, I had just come from a meeting with the recruits. Arthur had been inappropriate and he hurt my arm, I was rushing to Steve to tell him and ask if he can be kicked off the team.’ You finally manage to say and Bucky just looks at you. You can see the cogs turning in his head as he is finally getting context to the snippets of conversation he overheard.

‘Shit. I am so sorry. I am such an idiot.’ He scolds himself and you can’t help but feel bad for him.

‘I am not going to disagree with you, but we have both said and done some pretty nasty stuff. I am sorry for any hurt I caused you.’  You say sincerely and he looks over to you and smiles.

‘So you didn’t think I was rude when we first met?’ He still holds your eye contact and you take a moment to look at him. You have never seen him look so vulnerable before, he almost looked scared.

‘No, Bucky, I thought you were probably nervous or tired from meeting loads of new people.’ You explain and his shoulders fall.

‘I feel like such a jerk.’ He sighs and you scoot yourself closer to him so he has to look at you.

‘I’m not all that innocent in this either. It was a misunderstanding. I am just glad we have cleared it up now.’ You say meaning it and he smiles earnestly back at you. It is something you have never experienced first-hand. You have seen him give those gorgeous, slightly lopsided, smiles to other people but seeing one directed at you causes a rush of heat to your cheeks and you find yourself blushing.

Bucky must have been thinking along the same lines ‘You’re cute when you blush. I have never seen this side of you before.’ He brushes some hair out of your face and behind your ear. ‘You know, part of the reason I was so nervous when I first met you was because I was taken off guard by how beautiful you are.’ His cheeks flush slightly at his confession.

Before you can say anything the elevator jerks again and starts moving, you and Bucky are quick on your feet, preparing yourself for the doors to open.

When they finally do you are met with a group of Hydra agents ready to attack. You and Bucky work in tandem, playing off each other’s strengths. When the Hydra agents realize this, they work to separate you. The majority of them are on Bucky but you are fighting four at once. You are onto the last one when he raises his gun to shoot but you force his arm down. Not quick enough, it fires and clips your calf causing you to cry out from the pain 

It is not as bad as actually being shot in the leg but it still hurts like hell and you can’t put pressure on it. The room is pretty silent apart from footsteps you recognise to be Bucky approaching. You move quickly and uppercut the guy in the nose. The crack echoes throughout the room as the guy falls to the floor at your feet.

You turn to Bucky, his mouth agape and eyebrows raised in shock. ‘That was hot.’ He announces finally, making you laugh, you go to take a step towards him but realise too late that your injured leg won’t hold your weight. You would have fallen to the floor if Bucky hadn’t rushed to catch you.

‘Thanks.’ You chuckle, your faces are extremely close. Your eyes completely entranced in his. Your whole body warms at the safe feeling of being in his arms. You start to wonder what it would be like to fall asleep in these arms, to wake up the next morning still wrapped up in them. Protected.

You force yourself back to reality by clearing your throat. ‘We should probably get back to the team.’ You say and he nods. He puts his arm around your waist and you put yours over his shoulders to use him as a crutch.

The ride back up in the elevator goes smoothly this time and before you know it you are hobbling up to the quinjet where the rest of the team awaits. Natasha and Steve are both looking back and forth from you to Bucky in confusion.

‘What the hell happened?’ Steve asks not trying to hide how baffled he is that you and Bucky are holding onto each other and not arguing. Natasha simply smirks. Bucky helps you into a seat then sits opposite you with a wink as you smile at him.

‘No, this is too weird. Please argue, bicker, roll your eyes. Anything.’ Sam begs Bucky who doesn’t break his eye contact with you. Bucky simply laughs knowing his behaviour is unsettling Sam and enjoying the newfound comradery with you.

[peakyblinders1919]

The Shelby's First Thanksgiving

“This is preposterous.”

“Now that’s just plain rude Thomas Shelby. I don’t go parading around saying Boxing Day is preposterous. No one actually boxes.”

“You think Boxing Day… is a day… everyone in England puts on some tape and gloves… and just… knocks the crap out of each other?” He inquires over his cigarette smoke.

“Yes,” she says simply.

“So… on this… Thanksgiving… do you just… thank people?”

“Precisely. And eat. A lot.”

“I really think you should reconsider…”

“I love your family Thomas. You make them sound so… un-sophisticated. Besides, it’s not like I haven’t had dinner with them before. I’m

“Not all of them.”

“Trust me Thomas, what could go wrong?”

The table in the dining room mirrors their wedding night; a table of up to 20 stretching the length of the room. Crystal goblets and wine glasses, sterling silver silverware set up at every table setting. Gold china saucers sit atop bigger plates, crimson red velvet placemats underneath. Place cards in calligraphy mapping out everyone’s dutifully hand-picked seat at the table. She argues with Mary about the centerpiece of days, but of course, Mrs. Shelby is always the one to come out on top; a hand-made cornucopia over flowering with vegetables and fruits spilling out onto the table tastefully.

“Don’t you think this is a bit overboard?” Tommy stands in the entryway, solidifying his cufflink in place. He regrets it immediately. If it’s what she wants, then it’s what she’ll have. “It looks lovely. I hope you're not emotionally invested in any of this…”

“You make it seem like an all-out war is going to happen across the table. Relax. Just enjoy the food and leave everything else to me.” She kisses his sweet lips, puts the finishing touches on the table, and confirms the traditional menu all before the bell rings.

“I’m telling ya, Jimmie Barnes was seen taking a whore down the alleyway last night.”

“What he does on his own time is ‘is own damn business. All the men of Birmingham would be locked up and dirt ass broke if it was a big deal.”

“Happy Thanksgiving!” She welcomes her guests, taking John and Arthur’s coat, their wives and children following behind. The men share a look of disdain. Her heart warms, her worries settle as they thank her and wish her the same, though grumbled. It’s good in and of itself that she didn’t notice Tommy standing behind her, coaxing his brothers on.

“What an odd holiday, huh? Thanking others? For what?”

“For not being dead as a start,” she quipped back, kissing Esme on the cheek, the men already one their way to the destination set in mind; the whiskey cabinet.

“You know, if you really want to discuss the political and morality of sex workers, you could start by asking that secretary of yours.”

“And hello to you too Ada,” Mrs. Shelby greets her sister-in-law with wide eyes.

“Oh hello, hun. You’ve really outdone yourself, haven’t you?”

“It’s my favorite holiday.” She shrugs, as if the preparation, the flawless table spread, didn’t take hours upon hours of time and dedication.

“I’ll be asking you again after dinner, hm?”

Closing the door to keep the chill out of the house, she joins the family gathered in the lounge with glasses full of alcohol, earthy cigar smoke scenting the room.

“Who’re we waiting for?”

“Johnny and his tribe will arrive late; you can count on it,” Tommy informs.

“I was sure Polly would have been the first one here-” John points out.

“Yeah well, you can all bloody blame Michael for that.” Polly’s brassy voice fills and silences the room. Obviously, she’s not in a celebratory mood. “Him and that brother of yours,” she jobs at Tommy, “decided to have a night out on the town. They’re disgustingly hungover and they’ll get here when they get here. Make sure to give them hell.”

The room remains silent for a few minutes, she retreats from the silence to check on the food. Tommy takes the opportunity to lit up.

“Alright, everyone bloody listen up, hm? Now, I don’t want to hear any of you complain, or call this holiday a waste of fucking time-”

“But that’s what it is?”

“How is this different from any other Sunday night dinner?”

“Shut the fuck up and listen.” He takes back command of the room. “No fighting. No fighting. No cocaine. No talk of politics, no talk of business, you fucking understand?”

“What are we allowed to talk about Thomas?” Esme snorts.

“Drink the fucking wine, eat the fucking bird, sing your merry songs or whatever Y/N wants of you and then you can all be on your fucking way.”

“Thanksgiving dinner’s served.” She announces with a smile.

“So… uh… tell me…. How did Thanksgiving become a holiday?”

“Guilt trip.” Michael mumbles, having shown up alongside Finn and Isaiah right in between dinner and dessert.

“Shut up. You lived in America for about a year, you're not a bloody American.”

“Suit yourself.” He grumbles, Polly, hitting him, sending him to sit up straighter.

“It’ll do you fucking good to remember that Michael.” Polly scolded.

She cleared her throat. “Actually, it was a sign of gratitude. To thank the Native Americans for showing the English how to grow food and survive off the land.”

“The land we stole from them.” Ada interjects. “Their land that we burned.”

“Well, it’s more like they lived in harmony.”

“Until the English colonized and totally pushed them out.”

Tommy cleared his throat. “Let’s talk about something else, aye?”

“The phone’s for you sir,” Mary whispered in Thomas’s ear as the rest of the family reminisced about the last race at Cheltenham and whether it was fixed or not.

“Not now Mary-“

“It’s urgent sir.” He agrees with a sigh, kissing his wife’s temple with a promise to be back soon.

Not soon enough.

When he returns, the Shelby chaos is in full swing. Half the table is very obviously upset, brought to tears. Tommy catches a clip of the conversation:

Ada- “You’re too young.”

Polly- “You don’t know this girl.”

Finn- “I know her enough to marry her. I want to marry her. I’m going to propose.”

Ada and Polly- “No your not!”

Another argument is happening in the middle of the table, Esme and Linda yelling about God, Esme is so bent out of shape she’s speaking in tongue.

John and Arthur have moved around the table so they are across from each other, hands locked in arm wrestle stance. There’s a big victory and even bigger loss as Arthur slams Johnny’s fist against the table, knocking over glasses and plates breaking with a smash. Michael and Isaiah sander back into the room from the bathroom, obviously drunk and high as they take platefuls off thirds and fourths.

“Oh Thomas…” she cried by his side, innocent bystanders to this.

“Still like Thanksgiving ?” He asked a malicious hint of I-told-you-so etched on his lips.

“I’m thankful for you.”

[imagines-to-quench-thirst]

Visiting your hometown

What happens when you take your man to your home town? As your memories, people and places come together how will he react?

A small/long drabble to get me back into writing. Enjoy!

Victor Creed

This mutant never thought that he would walk in your hometown. He didn't expect to see cultures that morph together into one special town, your town. A place where you grew up. So keeping all that in mind he was cautious. Various not to offend someone or to say a rude word in your mother tongue. For the first time in his life, he is frazzled and nervous. he will keep in his front pocket a small leaflet some words he heard you say a few times that may be of some assistance. trying to woo you.

-that old hag showed me the middle finger. let's go.

Unfortunately, anything that he says wrong, will be your responsibility to amend it. so good luck.

Loki

you just know that Loki will have your mother tongue in his little finger (that sounds weird but let's carry on) but do not be fooled, he can not survive the morning wave of people in the farmers market. something that is pretty much normal for you. Loki doesn't know how to feel when he sees the local butcher wrapping the meat in todays' newspaper giving it to buyers or how people shove him to the side as his black suit with the green scarf is more than brought down in value. he will hear the near shouts of Famers that are trying to sell their livelihood to him as his head goes from one side to another in a split second. he will easily get reeled in by the old farmer who just smells the innocence on the Midgardian addressed god. you know the moment you grabs his hand he looks at you.

-how did you ever survive in this chaos?

-I thought you said that chaos is your middle name.

-it is however my kind of chaos is more dignified.

-survive just a little bit more, I need to go to that man in the corner.

-oh, no...

Thor

we all in the fandom know that thor is a ball of joy. but when he lands in your city, your territory he is stoic. he is here on a mission and no one should stand in his way. he will glue himself to your side and he will hold the dictionary book in his mighty right hand and your hand in his left. he will not stand for wasting a day on mundane stuff that you do with him back in the HQ so say goodbye to lazying around. when you go to the oceanic part of your country you are now almost ready to drown him in the ocean. or just leave him on the road, it is getting that heavy.

-thor, think it is time to stop.

-what do you mean?

-to be honest, I don't know anymore I am so tired.

-you are right... let us stop. for 2 minutes and then you can drive again.

-I will leave you here.

Bucky Barnes

bucky loves to travel. he loves to see you in the role of a guide you tell him about the park where you cut your leg open and when you got to the hospital as a nun stood above you praying for your recovery. bucky loves to feel the fresh air going into his nose thinking to himself how this was the same air that you breathe in. he loves to see all the different parts of the city where you went to. even so much that he went to your former hairstylist.

-bucky, you don't have to do this.

-nonsense, doll. I want to experience it. just like you did.

-that was eons ago. and I wore super short hair, like a hedgehog.

-hedgehog?

-yeah, it was so short that I only put on gel and made small spikes.

- I will give everything I have and say that you looked beautiful.

-alright, your call.

Steve Rogers

steve cannot wait for enough for him to arrive in the city where you walked, ran, and laughed. he cannot wait to enter your old apartment and see all of the hidden pieces that he wants to know. he loves to help you clean the apartment and see a big box of your old photos. he will look with your through on the hard wooden floor with one arm around your shoulders as you talk about each photo. even showing him the photo of your sister.

-when will I meet her?

-I don't know.

-didn't you say that she lived here, still?

-yeah...

-I want to meet her. I think am ready for it.

-okay...

Bruce Wayne

you just know that when you told him to pack his bags to go with you he did his research. he knows when, how the city was built. he will try to memorize the tongue twisters and say them horribly wrong just to make you laugh. when he looks at your old apartment he tries to envision the day you left it all behind to go to Gotham and it breaks his heart to imagine you in tears.

-bruce.

you take his calloused hand feeling his fingers tighten the grip.

-sorry, I immediately imagined you when you moved out. I got sad.

-why?

-because, you surely cried.

-I did, a little, but this city didn't have that something.

-and what is that?

-you dumbass. now stop sulking we need to clean.

Clark Kent

as Clark arrived at the farm where your aunt lived he couldn't help feel but prepared. he saw the cows eating grabs and was ready in a split second to milk it just to show off his soft and delicate side. Clark heard the stories of your aunt, well one of them, and from what he concluded, for now, this aunt was the beginner level, nice one, the one who won't tear him a new one if he doesn't treat you right. as the door opened you greeted your aunt in your mother tongue and introduced your man. Clark shakingly trying to reply in the mother tongue feeling the few letters that stood together could fall more apart than from his mouth. your aunt laughed hugging him and roughly patted him on his back. almost like a punch if you will. you look at your aunt and Clark cannot help but stand behind you as he whispered.

-what did she say?

-she said that you seem stiffer than a goat's turd.

-you said that this aunt was nice.

-she is. but that is the way we express ourselves.

-with curse words???!!

-what better way.

Arthur curry

Arthur was relaxed when he arrived, he was laid back when he slept in your apartment but that all suicide jumped off a cliff as he shook hands with your mother. Your mom wasn't that intimating but he heard the stories of her standing to your abusive father and running away with just some change in her pocket and a used car. he knows that the woman in front of him is strong can make or break your relationship. so he held the coffee cup in his hands as if was the key to everything he needed to know how to make your mother happy. he saw how your eyes sparkled when you talked to her how your smile ever left for a second you take what seemed to him in complete gibberish but cute gibberish. your mother turns to him asking in English.

-so Arthur, can I call you by your first name?

-yes, madam. of course, you can.

-thank you. well, then Arthur what do you do for a living?

with a small nod from you, he tells the honest truth.

-I am a superhero. but minus the stupid cape. I am here to keep you and your daughter, of course, safe from all danger. and I hope you will like me!!!!

you turn to your mother with a small chuckle as you tell her in your mother tongue.

-he is helpless.

-he seems like it, good luck, Y/n.

Orm Marius

nothing can save his pulse from rising as he walked with the crowd of people in the town square only your hand which he held more than tightly enough. you stopped pointing at a big statue of a colonel on a horse placed in the middle of the square.

-he is a big deal.

-yes, I can imagine the poor people that had to lift it up to place it here.

-yes, but thanks to those people, people now in the present can always remember what they went through at that time.

he didn't find any specialness in the statute for him it lacked in far more than that he can count but when he saw your face looking at the statue he knew that whatever that stirred in you he wanted to see it every day. he only squeezed your hand placing a kiss on your knuckles.

-does this mean you want in your likeness?

-sure, but only if you will make it.

-oh, darling, that is a recipe for chaos.

The Joker

j never put effort into himself. he did in destruction, in chaos, in mayhem, and even in covering his white skin with some basic foundation as he meets your off the edge aunt. when you told him that every second sentence from her is a curse he was more than ready to meet her. because sometimes crazy people click with the people who like to curse. everyone knows that. so when he sat in the house of your crazy aunt he firstly observed, he watched you talked together and exchanged laughs, even more, when you ever brought to tears as you laughed off the curses she threw at you so playfully making even j smile. so when she turned to him it was game time. and you were the translator.

-my aunt asked what is that you do for a job?

-tell her I am the man of your dreams.

-I told her that.

-damn, then tell her-WHAT?!

you giggle at his shock as you heard the playful quote she told you when you were little and j wanted to know what she said.

-what did she say?

-she said "if a girl gives a man a hand, she will give him her ass"

-your aunt is a wise woman.

- I knew you would like her.

Duncan Vizla

Duncan likes to take walks and taking a walk with you next to him as you showed him around your old neighborhood and told him stores of the always pissed on metal slide and the always filled cafes that were always the pinpoints for some scammers he found in question why you like it so much. as you showed his around you stopped at your old elementary school. you showed him the main entrance was where everyone hurled in the morning hours and where you sat with your friends and talked about the horribly proffers that still to this day haunt you. something he heard you mumble in your sleep.

-she was that awful?

-yes, and people like here never get old it's like the evilness she has in her keeps her eligible for work.

-am i not the same?

he couldn't ask a stupider question. and for that, you punched him in the shoulder.

-don't compare yourself to her. you aren't evil.

-you are forgetting my job, darling.

-you kill for money, she kills for fun and to keep herself alive. a difference now let's go home I need to remind you just how good and attentive you can be.

-lead the way, dove.

hope you liked it. Tell me what you think❤️

Support me with a kofi

[windlion]

Malevolent podcast scream-along part 2, let's go!

Roll out of hospital bed, defeat a demon, stagger out into the morning streets with a complete lack of medical discharge-- yep this fits the genre

Ep title: "The Hill." Could it, perhaps, be a Silent Hill?

Let's just assume John-the-Passenger is providing some convenient CON boosts

And either John gave him control of the hand back or this impromptu jam session is a lot more impressive than it first seems

This hits me every time but you guys did not look into the currency value for the supposed time period and I'm just all ". . . well it's already an AU anyways"

(Otherwise SOMEONE lost a hat with like several years' wages in it and I hope those were smaller bills or Arthur is going to be one even-more-conspicuous MFer)

Speaking of: did you really just waltz into a store and ask for a big ass gun, ammo, flashlights, and a crowbar. Did you. Really.

WITH NO ID AND NO STORY

Could you *at least* have presented that in a less suspicious way!

Jon from TMA and Arthur solidarity in being absolute shit at telling lies

Actually they probably had f' all ID requirements in the time period

And then *everyone* is shady/eldritch as fuck! Woo!

You might mention the murder as a reason to be buying a gun?!

Writer nitpick: this is just personal opinion but I like my bullshit to feel grounded, so there's a solid baseline of reality vs Everything Else. . . but it could also be an entirely valid approach to have the narrator being increasingly unreliable and detached from reality because: Cthulhu.

OH delightful it's Creepy Old Lady, round two

*sounds of distant death* Arthur, "Time to be a good Samaritan and die horribly!"

This clearly is going to end well!

"Everyone is *wrong*" YOU DON'T SAY, JOHN

I am waiting for the partner to Come Back Wrong and for that to be why he's not being charged with murder yet because there was not actually a corpse - aside from the possibly-possessed janitor

Arthur: "This is not fast-forwarding fast enough for me!"

John: "You can only trust me, Arthur."

Time to go find your boat with a head in it!

Okay, fine, any boat can have a severed head in it, just give it time. I believe in you, boys

Just two bros. In a boat. Singing love tunes. Chilling 0 ft apart, because one's possessing the other.

John. Eldritch Buddy. You want to sound a little less like a sociopath there, dude

"This is fucked up, clearly we're in the right place."

*squints* ancient graveyard . . . in the US. . . there for centuries . . . why is it European. . .

did you just get suckered into being the new lighthouse keeper

Rude to go tearing up someone's floorboards!

*facepalm* you are not final girl material, Arthur

just got the job and quit again that quickly, for shame

I hope you're prepared for a long swim

Eldritch entity you swing wildly between anger management issues and "Deep breaths, try not to panic"

"Ohhhh Arthur" that's alarmingly sensual

"No part of you is lost to me" *side-eyes*

One thing that's noteworthy to me is that they're not comfortable with silence, that everything has to happen back-to-back, no pauses. Be more confident, linger uncomfortably in your

"I wonder if the voice he heard is this" OR JOHN YOU DIPSHIT

Time for the next cult hideout!

So the mansion was the Black Goat's, who's in residence here?

Oh that's who, howdy, ma'am

and then they find the homemade porn!

Is no one else concerned with the quantity of A names

. . . are you about to become a triple occupancy?

Tentacles! For everyone!

Good times when your eldritch beastie bestie has a mental time out

"Or we could kill her"

You actually took a surprisingly long time to get to the murder plan, you okay?

Uh, eldritch bestie, you should have raised your alarm earlier if you had concerns

Trading off murder sociopath duties, good times

My dude you are definitely not coming across as the most hinged of individuals

. . . this would be an interesting time to just panic and let Satan take the wheel now that Satan doesn't want to drive

exactly 0 people surprised who was responsible for the first death

"Oh this is going to end well" Glad we're on the same page again, bestie

"You must be this much bitch to get admittance" "WELL I GUESS WE'RE BOTH GOING AREN'T WE"

I will be more surprised if any of these people live than the obvious alternative

*looks up from filing nails* Oh, they're dead? Smeared across every surface in the room? You don't say

"Maybe someone's still alive" Do we need to go through this again? Not genre savvy, are we?

Eldritch bestie you are extremely inconsistent, which I suppose ties in well to insanity and gaslighting

"This is our life now" look at that, commitment!

Meat puppet does not enjoy the meaty aspect v much

. . . Why was it so heavy if it was only half?

Ewwwwwww. That will be all.

"did you see it" "DID YOU FORGET I AM BLIND"

Oh, we're doing this again are we

Eldritch bestie you better be paying your rent

Hand in unlovable hand~~~

No really, Lovecraft, what was with all the tentacles

Oh, someone else paid their rent!

I am somewhat amused that everything swears by Christianity aside from the favored F bombs

Right, so this is definitely someone else's playground, eldritch #. . .4?

"We lose guns more than anything else" XD

"It sounded like you" *waving lighter*

And that's Eldritch #5 on the horizon

Time for a screaming head or leviathan maggots?

Eeeeeeey old friend!

Why you lying, why you always be lying

. . . Okay I was worried that was going to be even worse than it was

Aw bestie with domestic daydreams

What's some B&E after a spot of murder?

John did you just make Arthur piss himself over an opossum

A mole-faced possum, you act like you haven't seen one before!

Why you gotta be running from snuffles, what did snuffles ever do to you but SCREEEEEEE

Oh it's you again! Great unhinged minds think alike

And then we're done with ep 10 and time to stop again~

[mysticalmusicwhispers]

College AU revised r/ships between the Asians pt. 1

It was too long so part 2 is (hopefully) coming with the SEAsians, India, South Korea, and Mongolia

Part 2! part 3 coming soon

spoiler, all of them are not related

China still loves taking people under his wing because he’s got a Big Bro complex (consistent in every AU)

Tried taking Hong Kong (THEY ARE UNRELATED) under his wing first in freshman year (1st year) because he apparently looked like he could use a responsible brother figure

Yao is neither responsible nor a brother figure 

Leon lowkey/highkey hates him but once in a while Yao drops actually good advice and it convinces him not to cut him off

Yao lowkey knows Leon dislikes him but he shrugs it off as teenage angst or something

Also Leon called him “Teach” once as an insult when Yao was lecturing him too much (trying to rub it in that he’s a fucking Old Man in his beliefs if not in looks) but Yao took it as a compliment so now they’re stuck with each other

They used to be closer but now Leon just does whatever he wants and Yao texts him about once a month to lecture him on some stupid stunt or other

Also Yao brings him food to his dorm at least once a week and Leon is keeping him around solely because of that tbh

Leon is friends with Taiwan and Macau because they got put in the same Russian Math class in middle school or something. HK fortunately got put in the back and noticed Taiwan looked as bored as him so he sent her a paper plane (expertly folded) and they became friends

Macau (Vincent in this AU) lived in the same neighborhood as Leon and one day Leon noticed he was also in Russian Math (it took a while though; he’s not really super perceptive) so they started vibing

Leon and Mei then started cheating off of Vincent’s homework

They’re still friends to this day (this day = college/university)

Because of Leon’s regular interactions with Yao he gets to know Mei and Vincent too

Mei thinks Yao’s an ass, probably because he said something rude to her once and because he gives off “I’m really successful and friendly but I’ve pretty much thrown my morals out the window at this point and would and could blackmail you and all your friends” vibes

Don’t leave them alone together because any conversation devolves into passive aggressive insults within two and a half minutes

Vincent thinks Yao’s decent but Yao also likes him the most despite interacting with him the least

Absence makes the heart grow fonder?

Anyways, it’s mostly because Vincent is really good at tuning out Yao’s rambling and somehow can tune right back in when Yao drops good advice or when he states the Main Point of his lecture

They don’t talk much though

We now come to Japan my man 

Kiku was pretty disconnected from the whole lot of them for a while

He probably meets Yao through Arthur or Alfred, but he’s really bad at first impressions and comes off very standoffish so Yao’s immediately put off and becomes hostile himself. Kiku tries to leave as quickly as possible because Yao is radiating animosity

However, Yao thinks about their meeting later, and comes to the conclusion that it might’ve been a fluke and that he should try talking to that guy again

The second time they meet is better but they’re still not super close; Yao’s really friendly but Kiku is confused because he thought Yao disliked him

Yao introduces him to Mei, Leon, and Vincent (he doesn’t really introduce them, more like Kiku bumps into the other three at Yao’s dorm when he goes to bring Yao some food for dinner)

Leon doesn’t like Kiku on sight, but he does better with Mei and Vincent (the first likes him, and the latter is neutral on him)

He and Mei become really fast friends (they might also date but idk)

Leon becomes more neutral about Kiku but still prefers to have nothing to do with him

Vincent vibes with Kiku and they become casual friends (Kiku was sorta disparaging towards him at first, probably because he thinks Vincent likes Yao too much)

Speaking of Yao, they’re both still very ambivalent about each other

Yao attributes it to their personalities just not meshing together

Kiku thinks it’s Yao that’s the problem, not him

They’ve grown much more distant but still recognize that the other is a good acquaintance to have around, so they’re still cordial to each other

They’re not super close though

reiteration: none of them are related, not even Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, and China

[troublesometrollhunters]

Masked Meetings

(Another Douxie X Reader because favorite boi and also I want to go to a fancy Masquerade Ballroom dance while someone tenderly cups my cheek)

Hisirdoux is sweeping Merlins study while the wizards out when his thoughts wonder to you. As he clutches the broom brushing the dust into a nearby dustpan he smiles softly.

Every time he saw you his heart soared. Your voice was like a sweet melody and if he could play as sweetly as you spoke his music would be known throughout the kingdom. Sighing trying to get back to work he pauses. The sunlight leaked through Merlins glass paned windows making the stone floor a kaleidoscope of colors. Your smile was similar to these colors he mused, they lit up a room. Blushing and shaking his head he closes his eyes but it didn't help. Hisirdoux could see you so clearly dancing through the castles hallways fabric swishing around you as you twirled over the carpet.

Eyes snapping open in shame blinking repeatedly to wish the image away he puts the broom against the wall deciding he's done for the day.

Running his hand over one of Merlins desks he tries to think of anything else other than you. Picking up books off the ground putting them back in their places on the shelves or stacking them on tables so they'd be out of the way, Hisirdoux pauses when he sees a scroll. Humming intrigued he ran a finger over it before the ink glowed. Merlin was working on something new and he hoped some magic homework would make him get his mind off you. After all it was absolutely ridiculous to fantasize about you. It could never happen.

You were a noble who lived in the castle after a tragic accident. It was rumored you had magic in your blood line but nothing had been confirmed. He wouldn't doubt it though. He fell under a spell every time he saw you.

You were Arthur and Morganas neice and had been moved here after your castle was lost to war. Depsite the tradegy you seemed perfectly content with your new life here. He'd often seen you laughing over a joke with Morgana or talking idly with King Arthur. Realizing his attention had wondered from the scroll he cursed trying to get back to work. Noticing his hands were covered in ink he paused seeing he'd doodled all over Merlins notes. Panicking he picks up the scroll and marches across the room before throwing it into the fire place.

Watching as the orange flames burn the paper and seeing the ink dribble down the page as the fire hissed he sighed in relief. He couldn't be in love with you. He couldn't.

~~~

The next day Merlin hadn't noticed the missing parchment or at least he didn't comment on it. Archie had thankfully been out and hadn't seen what he'd done but the cat had been giving him strange looks all day.

Was it really that weird for him to complete all his chores? He didn't think so.

"The room looks nice Hisirdoux." Merlin states and he beamed taking in the attention and compliment from his master. However it's short lived. Merlin turns towards the young mage with a thoughtful glance. "King Arthurs hosting a ball." He says.

"O-oh?" Hisirdoux stutters. If there was a ball no doubt you'd be there as well. After all Arthur was your uncle, as a noble it'd be your duty to attend. Merlin gave Hisirdoux a knowing glance before shaking his head turning towards his scrolls.

"You should invite someone." He hums. "Arthur permitted us to go. If you have a friend you should attend with them." Leaving the room after that Merlin slips Douxie a piece of parchment. It was an invitation but only one.

Looking at his master confused he noticed in Merlins hand were the notes that he had burned. Face red he began to stutter wanting to explain himself but Merlin was already gone. All that was left was the single invitation in his hand.

Archie hummed hopping onto the desk next to Hisirdoux as he stared at the fancy paper.

"I beleive that's Merlins subtle way of saying you should ask them. After all they already have a ticket." Archie hums. Hisirdoux nods absent mindley tightening his grip on the invitation. A masquerade ball, masks meant no one would know who they were. That meant he could ask you out and then spend all night with you without anyones judgment.

How hard could this be?

~~~

He chickened out. He chickened out. By Merlins beard he made a complete ass of himself and left before you could get mad at him.

He had gotten flowers! He had made a poem! He even brought his lute to sernade you! How did it all go so wrong?

He was so nervous his magic made the flowers rot when he tried to hand them to you. You didn't seem angry but you were very confused holding the stalks. And he made it so much worse! When you went to ask what happened as any sane person would do he began to blubber nonsense like a fool. He practically spoke in tongues! Then he had spent hours on that poem for you only to look like an idiot and scramble all the words up. It was just such a mess. Not to mention when he brought out his lute to try and fix his previous attempts his hands were shaking so much it was off tune.

He decided to stop dragging the torture on and ran off not wanting to see your reaction.

Archie followed after him and as Hisirdoux stopped to take deep breaths his familiar nuzzled him. He purred softly against his masters neck as Hisirdoux held his lute. As his thumb brushed over the wood engraved into the instrument he sighed. His hand went in his pocket and reading the poem he'd written you he closes his eyes to keep from crying.

Radiant as the sun, mysterious as the moon, and strong as the stars is what he'd called it. You were just so many things he couldn't pick one so he gave you the sky hoping maybe just maybe that'd be enough to win your love.

"Hisirdoux they would have loved it. It's not your fault." Archie tries to make him feel better but Hisirdoux only did this to himself. He should have known courting you would only end in failure. After all Arthur loved you. And he hated magic. Hisirdoux was only alive because Merlin saved him. He was a street rat. A lowly orphan. He had nothing to offer you.

Crumpling the poem into a ball he signed throwing it down the hallway.

"Come on Arch we better get ready." He mumbled disappointed. He may have failed to ask you but Merlin still expected him to attend and he couldn't fail Merlin too.

~~~

Hisirdoux looks into his wine glass frowning. The suit Merlin picked for him felt strange. It was so different from his usual garb and his reflection he couldn't recognize himself. The black suit with fur and blue undershirt underneath was strange. He wasn't used to this many layers. And the shoes. They were so uncomfortable.

Shifting he adjusts his mask, the blue feathers almost coming loose from his jostling.

Mask finally in a position he liked, he places the chalice down and glances around the room. You still hadn't made an entrance and he prayed Arthur hadn't set you up with somebody else. Feeling discouraged at the fact he couldn't ask you and you might come with some prick noble person Archie hums at him.

"Well at least they won't recognize you in a mask." The familiar states trying to lighten his masters mood.

"No funny Arch." Hisirdoux scolds as he keeps looking for you. "Besides I think the whole talking cat gives away who I am." Archie chuffs before adjusting his glasses. Hisirdoux was right of course but Archie was only teasing, no need for rudeness.

"Hisirdoux try to have fun tonight." The familiar suggests before jumping off the table and slinking off into the room. Sighing Hisirdoux watches him leave before looking to the floor again. You still hadn't arrived yet. He hoped as a masked stranger he could ask for one dance. One dance and he'd feel better about everything. But he had a feeling fate would be unkind tonight and he may not get his chance.

Hearing the music stop he pauses before turning his head. Gasps rang out from the crowd and meeting your eyes Hisirdoux joined them.

Oh. You looked like a deity.

As you descended the stairs with Morgana and Arthur he couldn't help but stare. You were brighter than the moon, the stars, and the sun. He would give you the entire world and even then he knew it'd never be enough. You deserved everything.

Lost in his thoughts about you inching closer to the ballroom floor his breath hitches as someone grabs his hand. About to protest and he's dragged into the endless sea of dancers and as masks, dresses, glitter, and gold twirl around him he looses sight of you.

Trying to get out of the dancers so he can make his way to the wall to try and find you again to try and explain he pauses when your suddenly in his arms.

Your mask gave away it was you and he grew nervous as your eyes looked into his.

"(Y-Y/N)?" He can't beleive it. How... How had this happened?

"Hello Hisirdoux." You greet and his entire face goes red as he spins with you. The orchestra music swells and he's in awe watching you dance.

"I ummmm I wanted..." Smiling at him you wink mischievously as he dips you.

"I know." You hum and he smiles. Of course you did.

"Lets go somewhere more private." You suggest as he blushes. Pulling you back up from the dip he nods and you two continue to dance but your slowly making your way to the edge.

~~~

When no ones looking you both slip away sneaking onto the balcony. The stars shine and the moons full lighting up the night.

Smiling you slip off your mask before tilting your head to stare up at the various stars, eyes wide in wonder.

"I never was one for dances and the like you know." You state feeling the serene light of the moon wash over you. "It's only fun when you chose to do something not when someone forces you to." You add.

Your hand grips the balconies terrace as you lean forward to feel the cold air. Hisirdoux stands next to you and slowly he takes off his mask as well showing off his handsome face. As you were passed from partner to partner you looked up and saw his hazel eyes.

It was a miracle since he was the only person you wanted to see anyways.

He nods understanding in a way. Fiddling in your pocket you pull out a crumpled piece of paper.

"You know I was hoping you'd ask me. When I suggested to Arthur Merlin and you should come it didn't take long for him to give in." You hum slowly uncrumpling the paper.

It was a poem. One addressed to you. The one he'd crumpled up and thrown away.

"I... I tried to ask you but..." Scratching the back of his neck and chuckling nervously you begin laughing.

"I had a feeling." You hum watching his face go bright red.

"He Hisirdoux?" You ask and he looks at you face burning.

"Hmmmmm?" He questions and you smile the privacy giving you bravery. Cupping his face you lean in heart fluttering as your lips press together.

Pulling away face pink as you stare at Hisirdoux he blinks several times before smiling. Leaning in he places his forehead against yours. One of his hands tenderly cradles your cheek as he smiles at you.

As you hum closing your eyes smiling, his heart flutters.

Your smile makes the night brighter than any stars ever could.

[reddeadreference]

Blog Progress Update (Travel Blog Style 😎#7)

Alrighty then

The rat is back in camp… I'm sorry everyone. But this means I finally got photos of Baylock which means I have all of the damn horse photos which means I can post that post about the horses.

But damn that man is a kiss ass. Not back 5 minutes and he's trying to kiss up to Dutch about Evelyn Miller. However Dutch is clear enough in the head to understand he's acting that way because he wants something. Chapter 2 Dutch was more aware of this man's lil game than he is later on.

As soon as I get a photo of some other outfit from this ratman I'll be able to FINALLY post the post about chapter two outfits… maybe. (I should probably finish the chapter to make sure I don't miss anything. I'm close anyway)

Went fishing with Jack and omfg this child is the cutest I always forget how adorable he is. Making a flower chain for his mother, #1 son right there... Being bored by fishing, precious. (Also I feel like his voice is higher pitched in camp greeting lines than in this mission… I dunno maybe just me)

We already had a book so as soon as we could Jack got a new book and Arthur got some chocolate.

Went to Micah's lil camp near Strawberry…

Hey, Micah, buddy, pal, friend, amigo, why you got a bounty poster of Dutch? Huh? Something you wanna tell us? Buddy chum pal friend buddy pal chum bud friend fella bruther amigo pal buddy friend chummy chum chum pal i don't mean to be rude my friend pal home slice bread slice dawg but i gotta warn ya if u take one more diddly darn step right there im going to have to diddly darn snap ur neck and wowza wouldn't that be a crummy juncture, huh? do yuo want that? do wish upon yourself to come into physical experience with a crummy juncture? because friend buddy chum friend chum pally pal chum friend if you keep this up well gosh diddly darn i just might have to get not so friendly with u my friendly friend friend pal friend buddy chum pally friend chum buddy…

(That's a copypasta I didn't come up with all that..)

Robbed a train with John, Charles, and Sean (watching these cutscenes after so long and seeing the lil smiles and faces Arthur gives certain members of the gang… he really does think of Sean as an annoying lil bro. He acts a big game but he loves his family 😭)

Trying to find a panther south of Braithwaite's place and Arthur found Raiders with a lawman tied up. Saved him.

Little while later, still trying to find a panther, Raiders had some other guy. Saved him.

Saw two men trying to dynamite open a safe… waited for the boom… "I'll spend this in your honor" Arthur please..

Got enough stuff for the valuables satchel (which I gotta say is probably my favorite).

I just need a Panther pelt and an Elk pelt then whatever the Legend one needs.

Cue the hunting montage.

. . .

Needed a wolf pelt and couldn't for the life of me find a spawn. Went to the Timber Appleseed apple cider it's going down I'm yelling timber company (I… it's 6am, idk) and they needed me to get rid of wolves for them. Bam! Wolf pelt.

Bam!

Legend of the East satchel Bay-Bee!~

Biggest pockets in the East!

Also the only story mission I have is that stupid "LS" … and oddly enough… the game isn't forcing me to do it. Every other playthrough I've had Strauss come up to me and ask about it then the game forces me to go there… just hasn't happened.

I can finally complete the outfit post cause I've FINALLY gotten a photo of Sean's sleep outfit and both versions of Micah's. (But I will be doing that tomorrow... Later as it is 6:30am)

[chronicallylatetotheparty]

Watching (the Adventures of) Merlin season one on Netflix

Episode One: The Dragon's Call

. . . I feel like going to the capital of the kingdom indiscriminately slaughtering magic users wasn't the best idea.

Why? Well, that guy did just get executed.

And now his mom is mad. You tell that sorry excuse for a king, witch lady.

I don't like Uther, in case it was unclear.

Wait... if you could teleport why not just grab your son and ditch before he loses his head? Literally.

Oh, wow. Arthur is a dick.

Morgana. We have no choice but to stan tbh.

Dragon, you're really rubbing me the wrong way.

That's right Merlin! We need more than Because Destiny Says So!

Where did the spiderwebs come from? That sleeping spell gives me Sleeping Beauty vibes.

Ah, yes. The old drop-the- chandelier-on-the-villain trick. :(

If she went after Uther instead of Arthur I would have no complaints.

Manservant? You call that a reward for saving your son?

Episode Two: Valiant

Snake!Shield

Oh, he's gonna- Yup, dead. That's what happens when you deal with knights who cheat.

Where did that guy even get a magic shield in the first place?

Is there a thriving magic black market or something?

I love Guin.

. . . I feel like Sir Valiant didn't think this through. If bite marks are visible.

Ugh, you're the worst Uther.

It's only the second episode! Did you forget who saved your son already?

Stop being a jerk Arthur.

Lol. Merlin bringing a dog statue to life in order to practice for the Snake!Shield.

Bye Valiant!

Episode Three: The Mark of Nimueh

Whatcha up to with that egg, new witch lady?

You gonna poison the water of all of Camelot? Seems like a jerk move.

Dang that's a lot of dead bodies...

No, I like Guin's dad!

Yes! Cure him Merlin!

No! Stop arresting Guin, Uther!

You tell him, Morgana!

That plague monster that hatched from witch lady's egg is creepy.

Dead monster!

Arthur is kinda oblivious to Merlin's magic ngl.

Yay! Guin's free!

What do you know about witch lady Nimueh, Uther? Hmm? Why she want you dead? Besides the obvious reasons.

Episode Four: The Poisoned Chalice

Wow, Nimueh really doesn't like Merlin saving the day.

Wow, Nimueh really orchestrated an entire diplomatic incident in order to kill Merlin while also ensuring Camelot is destroyed by its neighbor. Impressive.

I really like Merlin and Guin's friendship.

Dang. Merlin really drank poison in order to save Arthur.

Merlin saved Arthur's life, Uther! Let him return the favor!

Oh, wow. Arthur really disobeyed his father in order to save Merlin's life.

I didn't know Merlin could cast spells while deathly delirious. And several miles away from him too.

Uther you b****! The antidote is right there! Let Arthur save his friend!

Putting your own son in a cell is such a jerk move.

At least Arthur and Guin manage to sneak the antidote to Merlin.

Quick aside: Internet spoilers say Uther needs to die for Arthur to complete his himbofication- I mean character development. So, if you could get on with that? Thanks!

Episode Five: Lancelot

Wow, that's a very CGI griffin.

Lancelot is so precious- Uh, I mean effective! Saving Merlin and all.

I know, Guin. I know.

Always thought it was a stupid rule to only let nobles be knights.

You're really going to commit magical forgery for someone you just met, Merlin?

I mean, Lancelot is earnest, hardworking, modest, kind despite his tragic backstory and it's his childhood dream to be a knight...

Yeah, I'd commit magical forgery too.

Lol, knocked you on your ass didn't he Arthur? (The second time at least)

I don't remember griffins being man-eaters!

Uther stop arresting people! Ugh, you're such a classist.

Let Lancelot help fight the griffin, Arthur! You need all the help you can get!

Well okay letting him go was nice of you.

Lancelot-Merlin tag team!

Wow. Lancelot really strode in with Camelot's singular braincell by figuring out Merlin has magic.

(The bar is low, okay.)

No, don't take away the braincell! Stay! The griffin was a team effort!

Okay, Lancelot's lawful good tendencies are a little annoying but, hey, nobody's perfect.

Episode Six: A Remedy to Cure All Ills

Edwin, no. Leave Morgana alone.

Oh, beetles! Curse beetles! That's not creepy at all.

Gaius how do you know Edwin?

What diabolical plot are you hatching Edwin? Oh, you're replacing Gaius in the royal court. That's kinda rude.

Merlin's so happy meeting another magic user that isn't trying to kill him (yet).

Le gasp! Uther's purge killed Edwin's parents? WhO cOuLd HaVe fOreSeEn tHis!?

But seriously. No wonder Edwin wants Uther dead.

I know Edwin blackmailed Gaius with exposing Merlin but he also wants to kill Uther!

That gives him a pass in my book.

Gaius no. Let Uther die.

Edwin stop trying to kill Gaius! You're going to-

Yup, here comes Merlin and-

Edwin's dead :(

Well he was trying to overthrow the kingdom. That's... bad... I guess.

Episode Seven: The Gates of Avalon

That title is misleading. It's more of a natural portal/magic lake type thing.

Arthur saves a father and daughter from bandits (Which they hired but shhh)

And they immediately try to put a love spell on Arthur

For human sacrifice purposes of course

Idk why the Sidhe want a human prince's soul -look at him, you don't know where he's been- but that's the price for readmission

I wonder how the dad killed one of his own kind? Was it an accident or...?

Exiling the daughter too makes me suspicious of Avalon's justice system

Evil laugh is a bit out of place for someone who is trying to restore his daughter's immortality

(They are so whiny about being mortal. Hey, we put up with it all the time!)

The fairy-like Sidhe moving in accelerated time so they just look like tiny orbs of light was an interesting touch. The blue faces and razor sharp teeth is not a good look for them, lol

They make Arthur ask to be married ('cause it takes a while for the love spell to go into full blown mind control or something)

Prompting Uther to threaten to kill both of them

(I feel like they didn't think this through)

Morgana admonishes Uther for being the worst

He replies that first love rarely lasts and that Arthur is inexperienced in such things. Plus that Arthur only met the girl yesterday

... I can't believe Uther is the voice of reason this episode

He doesn't get any points though. Due to the whole "threatening to execution his son's 'crush' " thing

The daughter is having second thoughts about using Arthur as a human sacrifice

Dear old dad puts those to rest and they try drowning Arthur in the lake that is/is the portal to, Avalon

Merlin's really leaning into the whole "Cool motive. Still murder.", thing huh?

Like, he did NOT hesitate to blow up both of them

Episode Eight: The Beginning of the End

Why do magic users keep going to Camelot!? The king is trying to KILL YOU!

Wow, this grown ass man is threatened by a literal child... I hate Uther so much

Morgana is the MVP of this episode. I love her

Protect that druid kid!

I feel like you're being paranoid Uther

You tell him Morgana!

Dragon, no. Stop prophesying death and destruction.

Wow, this grown ass dragon is threatened by a literal child...

Aaaand Morgana got caught sneaking the kid out of the city :(

Uther she is your adopted daughter! Stop putting people in cells!

Arthur is gonna sneak him out now?

While Morgana distracts the king?

Yes, excellent. What could possibly-

Merlin stop listening to that destiny dragon! Hearing his voice in your head is no basis for trust!

Cutting it close... Yay! They made it!

Mordred!? MORDRED!?

THAT little boy is Mordred!?

... Okay, I'm more inclined to believe the destiny dragon now

Still think letting him die would be a dick move

Episode Nine: Excalibur

What're you up to with that tomb Nimueh?

Oh! It's some kind of undead knight. Yes.

Throwing down the gauntlet. Pfft! Always thought that was a stupid idea.

Also: that Black Knight literally crashed your party!

Ugh, knights.

Nimueh if you can just teleport into the heart of Camelot while Uther is alone why don't you just stab him? Grab one of those pointy things he likes so much and stab him in the back. Easy peasy!

Stealing this joke but Don't do evil magic kids. It fries your brain cells.

Wait, the Black Knight is Uther's brother-in-law!?

Arthur's mother died in childbirth!?

Uther asked Nimueh to use her magic so he could have Arthur!?

Equivalent Exchange!?

Uther went on a genocidal rampage because he didn't bother with the instruction manual of ancient and powerful magic!?

Actually, that last one is not surprising at all.

I can't believe they're using the Wife in the Fridge trope. That appliance hasn't even been invented yet!

Ooh, Merlin's going to use his magic to destroy the Black Knight so Arthur doesn't have to fight him

As he's killed two knights already

Aaaaand, yup, he's still there. His cloak didn't even catch fire...

Arthur stop being a bastard. It doesn't suit you

Dragon forged sword! DRAGON FORGED SWORD!

Only Arthur can wield it. Yup, got it. How could this possibly go wrong?

Uther drugged Arthur and took his place in the fight... I have mixed feelings about this.

Wait, the dragon was very specific about only Arthur using that super special sword! Oh, snap.

Well at least the Black Knight is dead. Again.

Oh, dragon is not happy.

I know the dragon said "where no mortal soul could find it" but are you sure you wanna throw it into Avalon, Merlin?

Those people were gonna suck Arthur's soul out of his body

Episode Ten: The Moment of Truth

The way this episode title just lies to your face like that...

Oh, you're Merlin's mother! Thought we had an anime protagonists type thing going on

I... would like to say Uther is being unreasonable when he decides not to cross borders to get rid of some bandits. But I can totally see everyone hating him so that's a no go.

Lady, you were in a whole different kingdom. Why for the love of Merlin did you send him to Camelot!?

We're off to save the village! Morgana and Guin are coming too!

A wild Arthur appears!

Morgana better at swordplay than Arthur confirmed!

Merlin! I didn't know you had friends!

Granted he's a bit rough around the edges but

Okay. If it were literally anyone else besides Arthur. I'd say he was right about lords and knights being useless snobs.

Actually. He's right about lords and knights being useless snobs. Ah, that felt great.

Wow, the homosexual subtext is strong with this one.

The girls can tell Arthur came for Merlin.

But get your foot out of his face! I don't care how royal it is!

Look at Guin over here calling out Arthur for being a dick

And talking him into letting the women fight. She's on a roll

Aw, Merlin's friend died. :(

And he took credit for Merlin's tornado (so Arthur wouldn't find out about Merlin's magic)

Episode Eleven: The Labyrinth of Gedref

Lol, that unicorn could use a haircut.

No, Arthur. I said a haircut not an arrow to the chest!

Bad things? What kind of bad things Gaius?

Uther what's the point of having an expert in magical lore if you're not going to listen to him!

And all the crops are dead. Fantastic.

I know it's a magic thing but stating outright that the blight only targets edible plants is still really unsettling.

And the water's turned to sand. Great.

Who're you and how come Merlin is the only magic user that can't teleport?

What kind of tests mister Keeper of the Unicorns, sir?

Arthur I know you don't want to believe it's your fault... But it's totally your fault.

Uther no. People are starving.

You tell him Arthur.

Oh, the "theif" was a test!

Aaaaand he failed the second one. :(

Merlin's got a lot of faith in Arthur.

It's interesting how the Keeper can only direct the curse caused by the unicorn's death. Or rather the trials surrounding the curse, but can't break it himself.

Unicorns have some powerful magic.

The Labyrinth was barely on screen for five minutes! Surely something with Unicorn in the title would be more appropriate?

Arthur drinking a poisoned cup so Merlin could live?

That's some strong parallels right there.

The Keeper of the Unicorns is such a troll! Sleeping potion, hah!

The day is saved, Arthur lies to Uther's face about killing the Keeper and the unicorn resurrects itself.

Still needs a haircut though.

Episode Twelve: To Kill the King

Whatcha up to Guin's dad?

Oh that guy isn't suspicious at all.

You didn't think it was shady when he asked to meet in the middle of the night!?

Philosopher's Stone!?

Wow, the guards found him quickly.

What- No! Don't arrest Guin's dad!

Uther, he's a blacksmith! Stop being paranoid!

Will you stop executing people!? That inn keeper didn't know that guy was a dangerous sorcerer!

No, nononononono! He surrendered! Why did you do that!? Guin's father was important to Morgana!

That's why she gave him the key!

Dragon has his priorities straight.

Shut up, Merlin. You literally blew up a father and daughter for trying to kill one(1) person. (No really, you could see their hands flying off.)

Morgana deserves a little murder. As a treat.

Yes! Get him! Kill the bastard!

No! Why would you make GUIN say that!? Who are you and what have you done with Guin!?🔪🔪

UGH, he literally committed genocide!

The "that would make me as bad as he is" DOES NOT APPLY!

What- Oh, he still has the fairy's staff.

No. Stop it! Let Uther die!

Oh, God, Uther is such an abusive piece of GARBAGE!

Stop! Don't fall for it Morgana!

*sees dagger being pushed closer to Uther's "heart"* Yes! Yes! YES!

*Morgana saves him* NO!

NO!

NOOOOOO!

*inarticulate ranting in the background*

Episode Thirteen:

Okay, the cgi might be getting a little better 'cause the Questing Beast is freaky

Old religion? What is that? And how come it's conveniently absent from the previous episodes?

Dang, they really here just casually gaslighting Morgana like that 😡

Merlin you know Morgana has visions! You couldn't have been a little more careful? She warned you. Now look at Arthur, he's got the heroic death disease

Granted that thing does seem like a handful

Why do you only act like a father when it's a matter of life and death? Why can't you be a father literally any other time!?

"The old religion is the magic of the Earth itself."

Well that sounds fascinating, dragon. Are you going to elaborate? No? Later then?

Soooooo, is the old religion actually a religion or is it a magic? It's really unclear...

"You will be a better king than your father could ever hope to be." Guin, you're back!

I expected a place called the Isle of the Blessed to be less... creepy

Nimueh! Whatcha up to girl? Plotting the demise of a kingdom? Not today it seems

Oh there some Equivalent Exchange type nonsense going on is there?

Arthur you were supposed to be in a coma not listening to Guin!

Oh. Oh, no.

Merlin saying goodbye as he prepares to trade his life for his mother's is 😢😭

Wow, that dragon really knew Nimueh would give Merlin's mother the curse and didn't say anything. The little b*****!

No wonder Merlin's mad at him. Stop breathing fire at him! It's your own fault!

Gaius, no! Not the dead mentor trope!

"You stood by and watched as our friends died." Damn, Nimueh isn't pulling her punches.

Merlin vs Nimueh! Ready? Fight!

Anime protagonist power up! Dang, Nimueh's dead... I feel like that wasn't supposed to happen.

At least no one else is dying. Since Nimueh's death appeased the Equivalent Exchange laws of the old religion.

[fanfics4all]

New Family Experience

Request: Yes / No  Hey! Can I get a Fred Weasley x Malfoy!sister reader where she’s a Gryffindor and she goes to the Burrow on holidays cause she doesn’t wanna be around her parents.. if your okay with that? Thanks 💜 @will-noble-owns-my-ass​

Please only send Harry Potter requests at the moment! <3 Have a nice day/night

Fred Weasley x Fem!Malfoy!Gryffindor!Reader

Word count: 1735

Warnings: Strict parents and that should be it 

Y/N: Your Name 

PLEASE DO NOT STEAL MY WORK, I WORK HARD ON MY FICS AND IT’S NOT COOL TO STEAL SOMEONE ELSE’S WORK! 

If you want to be on the tag list for anything (My series fics, specific character fics, or just all of them) All you have to do is send me an ask and I will add you! 

Masterlist 

(Not my photo, credit to whoever made it!)

Being a Malfoy means that my family had a status to uphold. We were one of the wealthy Pureblood families and my parents intended on keeping it that way. My younger brother was always the favorite, I tend to challenge my parents more than him. It only got worse when I was sorted into Gryffindor and my brother continued the line with getting into Slytherin. 

At first the people in Gryffindor were a little wary of me at first. I was pretty lonely the first few weeks, but the Weasley twins were the first to befriend me. My family hated them, they were blood traitors, but to me they were my friends. I didn’t care what my family said, they were wrong. I had become fond of Fred Weasley and his brother picked up on that. So as a joke he slipped me some love potion in a candy and left me alone with Fred. I was so mad at him at first, but then Fred admitted that he was quite fond of me as well. I remember it like it was yesterday. 

“I’m going to kill George!” I growled. 

“You have to admit it was pretty funny.” Fred said and I turned to him with a glare.

“Sorry, but something good came out of it.” He said with a smile. I looked at him confused. Fred got up and towered over me, I looked up and his smile turned into a smirk. 

“The girl I fancy, fancys me back.” He said and I blushed. 

“W-What?” I stuttered. 

“Are you nervous, Malfoy?” He asked, his smirk growing. 

“I don’t get nervous.” I said, my natural confidence returning. 

“Sure you don’t.” He chuckled. 

“So what’d say Malfoy? Care to go on a date?” He asked with a smile. 

“It’s a date Weasley.” I said with a smile. 

That was the start of it. My brother had found out when he saw us kissing at Hogsmeade. I tried to get him not to tell our parents, but in the end he told them. They were furious to say the least. I thought they were going to disown me, but it seems they weren’t going to. I didn’t want to go home to find out. 

When Christmas came around Fred had offered me to join him and his family. I was a little worried about meeting his family, I knew they weren’t the biggest fans of my family. 

“Are you sure they’ll be alright with me joining?” I asked, biting my lip. 

“I promise, everything will be fine. I know you don’t want to go home.” He said, pulling me close to him. 

“I really don't want to be a bother.” I said with a sigh. 

“You won’t be.” He said and kissed my head. I looked up at him and his smile was infectious. 

“There's that smile I love so much.” He said. 

“If you’re sure, then I would love to meet your family.” I said and his smile grew. He lifted me up and spun me around. 

“They’re gonna love you!” He said, causing me to giggle. 

We were getting on the train to go home and I saw Draco boarding as well. He pulled me close and looked at me with a raised brow. 

“I thought you told Mother and Father that you weren’t coming home?” He asked and I sighed. 

“I’m not.” I answered. 

“Then where the bloody hell are you going?” He asked confused. 

“The Weasley’s, they’ve offered me to join them for the holidays.” I answered and his eyes narrowed. 

“They're not your family.” He growled. 

“Draco, please don’t do this. That’s Mother and Father’s job.” I said with a sigh. 

“They’re right, you’re dating a blood traitor!” He growled and I narrowed my eyes. 

“Don’t you dare talk bad about Fred. This is the exact reason I don’t want to go home.” I said and his eyes widened slightly. 

“Now if you excuse me, I need to go meet up with Fred.” I said and turned on my heel. I found Fred sitting with George and I smiled at the two joking around. I walked into the compartment and the boys smiled at me. Fred took my bag and placed it up top next to theirs. 

“I thought you got lost.” He laughed as he pulled me to sit next to him. 

“No, sorry, I ran into my brother.” I said with a sigh. 

“Everything alright?” He asked and I nodded. 

“Yes, he was just being his usual self.” I answered. 

“You should try out our new product, Canary Creams.” George said with a smirk. 

“Sure, why not.” I shrugged. I took the biscuit and popped it in my mouth. It tasted delicious, but knowing the twins something was bound to happen. Suddenly I transfigured into a large canary. I was shocked when I heard the chirps come from my mouth. A minute later all the feathers I had fell off and I was back to normal. 

“Wicked.” They both said and I giggled. 

“That was quite an interesting experience.” I said and they smiled. 

“Told you it would work!” George said. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Fred laughed and placed his arm around me. 

The train ride went quickly thanks to the twins. I also wasn’t thinking of my family as much as I thought I would. Fred and George were really a great dIstraction. However, when the train stopped I felt my nerves hit me all at once. I couldn’t help but worry that his family might not like me as much as Fred would like. 

“You alright?” Fred asked when he noticed I didn’t move. 

“Oh, yes, sorry.” I said and grabbed my bag. 

“Hey, don’t worry so much.” He said, wrapping his arm around me. 

“I know, I just can’t help it. They don’t like my family after all.” I said and he kissed the side of my head. 

“Hush, everything will be fine.” He said and we met up with the rest of his family, Harry, and Hermione. We arrived at the Weasley residents and his parents greeted everyone with hugs and kisses. 

“Mum, Dad, this is Y/N.” Fred introduced me. I offered my hand to them. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you both, Fred has told me so much about you.” I said. Mrs. Weasley ignored my hand and pulled me into a hug, which shocked me. 

“It’s lovely to meet you dear.” She said and pulled away with a smile. 

“Fred has told us all about you too.” Mr. Weasley said, also giving me a hug. I smiled at Fred and he returned it. 

“Your home is lovely Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.” I complimented. 

“Oh please, call me Molly.” Mrs. Weasley said. 

“And you can call me Arthur.” Mr. Weasley said. I was taught that it was rude to call your elders by their first names. 

“My apologies. I was taught that it was rude.” I said and they looked at me confused. 

“Don’t be silly.” Mrs. Weasley said with a warm smile. 

“Mum! Ron is trying to eat the pies!” Ginny called. 

“Ronald Weasley!” Mrs. Weasley shouted and walked off to the kitchen with her husband following. 

“Well that was a little awkward.” I giggled. 

“No it wasn’t, that went well!” Fred said and I looked at him shocked. 

“That was well?” I asked. 

“Of course, what’s well to you?” He asked confused. 

“Well I think I was a bit rude.” I said and he laughed. 

“You were very diplomatic.” He said and I blushed. 

“Sorry, my parents drilled that into us as children.” I said. 

“Well here you can let go of all that.” He said, pulling me to the stairs. 

“You’re gonna room with Ginny and Hermione.” He said and I nodded with a smile. 

“We’ll show you the way.” Fred and George said with a bow. I laughed at them and shook my head. The took me to Ginny’s room and showed me which bed I would be sleeping in. This house was very different to mine, it actually felt like a home. I was unpacking my bag when I heard Mrs. Weasley shouting at the twins. Even at home they’re getting into trouble. They ran into the room and were laughing their heads off. 

“What did you two do?” I asked, crossing my arms. 

“We got Ron to eat one of the Nosebleed Nougat and the blood went everywhere!” They laughed. I shook my head, but smiled. 

“Your Mother is going to kill you two.” I said and they smirked. 

“She’d never.” They said. 

“If you say so.” I giggled. 

A few hours went by and I got to experience something completely different to my home life. The apmasphere was a lot lighter than what I was used to, their family was a lot closer than mine was, and it just felt nice to be somewhere that didn’t have so much negative energy. Now we were sitting down for dinner and everyone was sitting close together. If I was home Mother and Father would be on opposite ends of a large table and my brother would be sitting across from me. The house elf would be serving us dinner and we would be eating in silance. But here, everyone was talking to each other and genuinely interested in what was going on in their lives. 

“So Y/N what do you Malfoys usually do for the holidays?” Ron asked. 

“Ronald!” Mrs. Weasley scolded and Fred smacked him in the head with a glare. 

“Ow!” Ron said, rubbing his head. 

“It’s alright. My family is quite the opposite to all this honestly. We’re usually quiet while eating together, maybe an occasional question about school or comments about parties we attended or upcoming parties, but other than that it’s just silence.” I said and they all looked confused. 

“That’s it?” Ron asked, again Fred jabbed him. 

“Ow!” He hissed. 

“Yes, but I think I much prefer a setting like this.” I said with a smile. Fred smiled and placed his hand over mind. 

“Well, you’re always welcome here.” Mrs. Weasley said with a kind smile. 

“Thank you, Mrs. Weasley.” I said. 

“Molly.” She corrected. 

“Thank you, Molly.” I said, felling a bit uncomfortable going against what I was taught. But I had a feeling that was just the start, especially if Fred was going to be in my life for a long time. 

Tag list: @les-bio-lie​ @tashy-bear​ @ashwarren32​ @hollie-blogs​ @schisbro87​ @lover-of-books-and-teas​ @nerdygaloresposts​ @teenwolfbitches2​ @genius2050​ @drw0301bieber​ @softgamerking​ @lady-of-lies​ @ravenmoore14​ @ravenempress101​ @cillianchamp​ @rowanthomasknapp​ 

[arthurflecc]

Focus on me

Summary: All you want is a little of Arthur’s attention, but you catch him in a bad mood.

Genre: smut (pwp)

Word count: 1,746

Warning: This is a little rough. I wanted to explore that side of Arthur and the vibe that scene gives off.

A/N: This takes place during the scene Arthur watches Thomas Wayne being interviewed on the morning news, except his mom isn’t there and he’s wearing a cross necklace (because why not). Reader doesn’t know he’s responsible for the subway killings.

Thank you @life-or-something-like-lt​ for your feedback and @arthur-flecks-lovely-smile for coming up with a great title for me! And thank you both for always being such supportive friends, it means a lot to me ❤︎

When the morning news started, Arthur rushed to the couch after hearing the host announcing the interviewee would be Thomas Wayne, who was running for mayor that year. Shirtless, Arthur wore loose worn out blue pants and white boxers; a gold costume necklace with a cross pendant adorning his collarbone. He had come out of the shower 10 minutes before and humid darkened-by-the-water curls embellished his face. A strong smell of the cheap blue glycerin soap he had recently started to use emanated from his body.

Arthur sat opposite the tv, and you sat across Arthur, resting your feet on his lap. You wore nothing but an oversized shirt and underwear, comfortable enough around Arthur to do so. Lazily, you took a nail file you had forgotten on the coffee table several days ago and examined your own nails, trying to remember the last time you did them. Uninterested in Wayne, you lowered your hands and decided to examine Arthur instead.

He lit up a cigarette and as he took it into his mouth, you couldn't help but remember the night before when his mouth was somewhere else. He rested his elbows on his knees, contracting his biceps - a sight for sore eyes. You teased him by rubbing your toes on his chest, and decided to say something to break the tension that was installed in the room ever since Wayne showed up on tv.

"Hey, do you remember wh-"

"Shhhhh."

Arthur gestured at you to keep you quiet, something small but that for some reason hurt your feelings. His expression was serious, almost grumpy, hardened by the tough days he had been through lately. Something had changed in him since he had gotten fired, every little thing was enough to make him nervous or stressed then.

Wayne talked about the three men who had been murdered on the subway a couple of days before, mentioning something about clowns - you had no idea what the relation was because you weren't paying attention - and Arthur looked at the screen with a silent but fiery anger in his eyes. His legs were anxiously shaking on their own and you wondered since when Arthur cared that much about politics.

Decided to lighten up the mood, you called Arthur's attention again. "Hey, wanna take a look at my nails? They're so long, I really need to file them. I could file yours too, if you want." You offered as nicely as possible.

“What I want is for you to let me watch TV in silence.” He answered dryly, impatiently. Even though you had seen him in a bad mood before, he wasn’t usually rude or harsh like that. You couldn’t bear it any longer.

"Why do you care so much about Wayne and his clowns or whatever the hell he's going on about?" You didn't mean to sound so loud, but by the end of the sentence your tone of voice had escalated so high you were afraid a neighbor had heard you.

Faster than your eyes could have seen and catching you off guard, Arthur finally turned to you, tossing his cigarette aside and grabbing your neck.

"What part of "I'm watching TV" can't you understand?"

"Arthur, I'm sorry. I -"  

"Sorry for what? You wanted my attention, didn't you? Now you have it." His grip on your throat started to get a little tight and he climbed up on the couch, placing himself between your legs and forcing your head down on the arm of the couch.

"I didn't mean it like this." The words stumbled out of your mouth, sounding like one long word instead of a sentence.

"Oh really?" He said in a sarcastic tone, squinting his eyes. "Because I'm sure that's exactly how you meant it." Pressing his bulge on your crotch, his eyes got closer to yours and his breath was warm on your face. "I saw it yesterday, you can't get enough of me. You keep begging for me like a whore, desperate for my attention." His choice of words surprised you, you didn’t know Arthur had that in him. He was choking you, and his bony elbows applied pressure on your breast while he rubbed his hardening dick on your pussy.

He kissed you, and the kiss was wet and sloppy, his tongue frantic and furious on yours. He let go of your neck and placed his wet kisses there instead, leading his left hand to your underwear only to find a pool of wetness at your entrance. "I see you didn't mean it like that." He accused you, and you were speechless, no smart comebacks to give him. He ran his fingers along your slit spreading your cum around all the area, rubbing your clit faster than he normally did, making the nerves inside you highly sensitive. He took the tip of two of his fingers to your entrance, going in and out of it just to tease you, and you pathetically moved your hips towards them, wishing they were fully inside you stretching you up. Instead, he took them out of your pussy and put them right in front of your eyes, forcing you to see how they were glistening, drenched with your juices. He put them in your mouth, making you suck on them and he grinned in a way you had never seen him doing before.

He pulled his fingers out of your mouth and kissed you again while he lowered his pants and boxers, revealing his erect cock. In a hurry, he pulled the lining of your underwear to the side and guided his dick inside you with his right hand, bending over you and using your shoulders for support.

"Fuck, you're so tight" he didn't give you much time to adjust to his size, but you were wet enough for him to slide in with no problems. He slid in and out of you at a slow agonizing pace for a whole minute as you watched his cross pendant hang over your head, and then you were the one starting to lose your patience.

"Faster, please." You whined.

"Only if you tell me who this pussy belongs to."

"You" you said simply, almost shy.

"I didn't hear you." He started to move a little faster, but smoothly.

"You." You tried to sound firm, but it was hard when he looked at you like that.

"That's not good enough."

Unhappy with your weak voice, he lied down on you and grabbed your throat again, putting his face almost glued to yours and touching your lips with his but not kissing you. His piercing gaze on you made your walls clench around him and he started to pound you so fast, to the left and to the right, no part of your insides untouched. Your hand reached his wrist, trying to stop him from squeezing your throat too tightly, but Arthur was stronger than he looked. You gave up, letting go of his wrists because his strokes made you lose your balance.

"You! My pussy belongs to you and only you." You screamed between moans and he groaned in your ear, making you clench around him one more time. Arthur's waist fitted perfectly right between your tights and his hip bones went up and down the inner part of them, slightly bruising them and leaving marks only him would be allowed to see.

You grabbed his ass, forcing him to go deeper inside you and he bit your earlobe in response, making you squirm under him.  You could feel his cock throbbing in you, and you scratched his back making him lose his mind and come inside you, filing you up with his warm creamy cum. He kept thrusting into you and in his hectic movements he reached your g-spot, and you grabbed his necklace to bring his face closer to yours.

"Is this what you wanted?" He asked rudely, pounding into you faster than you could process. "Is this what you fucking wanted?" Almost screaming, he grabbed your chin, forcing the whole length of his cock in you, balls deep inside you.  

"Yes!" You finally admitted to him and to yourself.

He moved again, repeatedly hitting your g-spot while his face was buried in the crook of your neck, the smell of glycerin, smoke, and sweat intoxicating you. Your body exploded, releasing all the tension your nerves had been holding back, making your legs tremble. Arthur used his own cum as lube to keep fucking you through your orgasm while you held his cross pendant on your left hand praying for it to last as long as possible because you didn't want to get off of that high. The sound of your soaking wet pussy squelching paired with your nonstop moans, Arthur’s favorite harmony, resonated in the room. You could feel his cum oozing out of pussy to your ass with every thrust and the air around you felt so hot you wouldn’t sure how much longer you could take it. Arthur gave you one last wet kiss as his thrusts got slower, but deeper. Using the arm of the couch to support himself, Arthur hit your g-spot one for the last time. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Just like that, the weight that was on his shoulders while he was watching tv was gone. Your walls throbbed uncontrollably around him as you enjoyed the reminiscent feeling of your orgasm, still feeling pleasure all over your body, an effect only him seemed to have on you.

As Arthur pulled his cock out of you and you sat straight, you noticed he had a different look in his eyes compared to the other times you had sex before. There was a glimpse of confidence and arrogance there now. Slowly, his sweet smile returned to his face.

“Are we good?” You asked after your breath got steady again.

“Yeah.” He replied softly. You looked at each other for a moment, then adjusted your clothes.

“Can we please watch something else now?” You giggled a little, smiling at him.

“Sure.” He smiled back, slightly lifting one of his eyebrows as an innocent expression painted his face.

Changing channels, you got up to clean yourself up as Arthur watched you leave and lit a new cigarette. For a moment, you wondered once again why Thomas Wayne’s words bothered him that much. You could feel something was up, but for some reason he kept it to himself. You thought it would be better to keep your questions for another day.

[bktynes-writes]

As per the fantastic advice of the wonderful and amazing Mallory, @valleydean, I made some graphics for my fic, The Blood Of The Covenant. It’s a long, slow burn, Mafia AU, and I have no idea where it’s gonna end up, but I hope you’ll all reblog and join me for the ride. Here is the summary, and the first chapter is under the cut. Read on Ao3.

The Blood Of The Covenant The Winchester Dynasty will never fall.

At least, that’s what John and Mary, heads of the most powerful crime family in the city believe. They have built their empire from nothing, and are willing to do whatever it takes to maintain their control.

When a new family, the Novaks, threaten the delicate balance of power they have maintained for years, the eldest son, Dean, is tasked with infiltrating the ranks of the Novak’s organization to destroy them from the inside.

Dean has always been a soldier in his parent’s wars, never questioning where his loyalties lie, but when he comes face to face with Castiel Novak, one of the sons of the family threatening to destroy his own, he wonders if maybe there could be more to life than he believed. Maybe this blue-eyed stranger can offer him the ticket out he never knew he wanted.

They say that the blood of the covenant runs thicker than the water of the womb, but how do you turn your back on family? Will Dean choose love over loyalty? Will he leave behind all he’s ever known? Or are he and Castiel destined to just be pawns in the war for power that rules the city’s underworld?

Chapter 1: Dinner

The city at night always had a certain charm about it that Dean couldn’t put his finger on. Maybe it was the way everything lit up a bit more or the fact that the darkness hid the grime that clung to every surface like a second skin, but the alleyways and culverts of the buildings seemed more inviting when they were filled with shadow.

He loved this city. Every dirty stairwell, every seedy bar, every doorway that led to nowhere, Dean knew them all. He had grown up on these streets, and he wouldn’t change it for the world.

The sound of a car horn brought him back to reality, pulling him out of his nostalgic reverie and into the moment. He looked down at his dress shoes, sparkling in the neon lights against the damp pavement, and smiled. If there was one thing Dean Winchester knew how to do, it was dress to impress. His father had instilled in him that first impressions were important at a very young age, and how a man looks could change the direction of any transaction.

Tonight was the first Sunday of the month, which meant dinner with the Family at Cain’s. Dean never looked forward to these dinners - he found them to be mundane - but as the eldest son of the most powerful crime family in the city, he knew his mother and father expected him to attend.

Thus, he found himself in his best suit, pulling open the restaurant’s glass door and striding past the host stand like he owned the place. The young woman there gave him a nervous look, and he shot her his most charming smile, causing her to duck her head as a deep red blush crept up her cheeks. He passed by the other tables and made his way to the back of the restaurant, pointedly ignoring the stares and whispers that followed him from the other patrons. He was used to this behaviour. Anyone who was anyone in the city recognized the Winchesters, and their reputation preceded them.

He made his way past the kitchen, stopping briefly to say hello to Cain, clapping him on the shoulder.

“Dean!” Cain exclaimed, turning around and pulling him into a rib-crushing hug. “I didn’t think you were gonna show! Everyone else is already here.”

Dean laughed. In another life, he would have called him a friend.

But Winchesters didn’t have friends.

“Yeah, I figured they would be.” He said. “What can I say? Fashionably late is kinda my style.” He shrugged and smiled.

“That’s my boy, always gotta make an entrance.” Cain beamed at him. “They’re in the back room. I’ll get your usual added to the order. Hurry up before your dad tears a strip off you!”

“Thanks, Cain,” Dean said. He ducked past him and headed to the very back of the dining room.

Dean could now see the usual suspects gathered around their regular table. He spotted Bobby gruffly speaking to Ellen Harvelle and her daughter Jo. The Harvelles were powerful associates who owned many of the bars and rest stops along the freeway into the city, and Dean’s father liked to keep them close because he had been friends with Ellen’s late husband, Bill.

Ellen was a good source of information for the family. People let information slip that they shouldn’t after a few rounds of shots at one of Ellen’s roadhouses, and she and Jo had ears like bats. Dean was pretty sure the main reason she was included in these clandestine meetings of the family, though, is that his parents, despite their vehement claims otherwise, were a little bit afraid of her. He couldn’t blame them. He had grown up with Jo and, despite being six years older, had had his ass handed to him more times than he could count by the feisty blonde.

Dean chuckled to himself at the memory as he slid quietly into the seat next to his younger brother, Sam.

“You’re late,” stated the younger of the Winchester brothers, his arm draped lazily across his girlfriend Jessica’s shoulders.

“Yeah, I was over at the mill. Gordon owes us and is being…difficult.” He reached for the bottle of wine that sat on the table and filled his glass. He wasn’t usually a fan of wine, but Cain always brought out the good bottles for these meetings, and when he didn’t have to pay, it would be rude to refuse.

“Dad is gonna be pissed.” Said Sam, finishing his own glass and holding it out for Dean to refill.

“No, he won’t,” Dean replied, pouring too much wine into his brother’s glass. “He knows how Gordon is. He’ll just be glad I didn’t break too many of his fingers to get him to agree to pay his dues.”

“Whatever you say, Dean,” Sam replied, rolling his eyes. He ran his fingers through his absurdly long hair, and Dean found himself itching to strap his brother into a barber’s chair and order a buzz cut.

A clink of cutlery against glass brought the assembly to silence and drew everyone’s attention to the man standing at the head of the table. John Winchester was an imposing figure at the best of times, and his broad shoulders, clad in the threads of his fine Italian suit, added to his commanding demeanour. His neatly trimmed beard was flecked with grey, as was the perfectly slicked hair on his head. He stood with pride and demanded the respect of those around him with ease.

“Now that my son has finally decided to grace us with his presence, we can call this meeting to order,” John spoke with an air of distaste directed solely at Dean.

“Ah, you know me pops, better late than never,” Dean said nonchalantly. Sam was right; John was pissed.

“Indeed,” said his father coolly.

Dean tuned out most of the ensuing conversations. It was the typical discussion of territory, who was responsible for handling the gang activity on the west side, who was collecting from which businesses for protection owed and whether or not they had paid (Dean received a small nod of approval from John when he informed the table that Gordon would no longer be causing issues).

When the food came, Dean was treated to the most delicious looking plate of carbonara he had ever seen. Cain truly did know the way to his heart. Before he had the chance to dig in, a noise from the opposite end of the table drew everyone’s attention.

A beautiful woman with wavy brown hair rose from the table, and Dean rolled his eyes, huffing dramatically into his chair. Bela Talbot was always trying to draw attention to herself at these meetings, and tonight would be no exception. She wasn’t, strictly speaking, part of the Family, but she was part of a necessary evil alliance that the Winchesters had forged years ago to have hands in the art trade, and Dean had found her to be nothing but a nuisance ever since.

Her words dripped with a caramel sweetness, and despite his intense dislike of the woman, Dean couldn’t help but stare at her as she spoke.

“John. Mary. Dear Winchester Family. It has come to my attention that there appears to be a new family on the North shore. They arrived from New Jersey about six weeks ago and have been a thorn in my side ever since.” She scowled.

“Why hasn’t it been dealt with, Bela?” Asked Sam. “The North shore is your territory, isn’t it?” Sam was flexing his powers a little bit, addressing Bela that way. Usually, it would be up to John to chastise her for not taking care of a threat to their operations, but Dean could see the look of pride in his father’s eyes at Sam stepping in so willingly.

Bela’s face tinged pink slightly at the admonishing tone in Sam’s voice, and she puffed her cheeks out before speaking out again. “Under regular circumstances, Samuel, I would, but it seems that these Novaks are a bit better at playing cat and mouse than I would have anticipated.”

“Novak?” Dean snorted. “What is that, Polish?”

Bela glared at him. “I believe it’s Serbian, actually.”

Dean shrugged and twisted his fork idly in his pasta, hoping she would get to the point before it got cold. Sam continued to address her. “What’s the problem, Bela?”

“They’ve taken out three of my warehouses since their arrival, and the attendance at both the craps game and the pool hall is down by thirty-two percent.” She sighed, and Dean perked up. He almost wanted to shake the hand of anyone who could cause Bela this much distress, but this was clearly an attack on the family’s assets. “Half the shops on Arthur Street aren’t paying their fees because the Novaks have started charging them, and when I sent Ruby over to persuade them, she came back bloody and threatening to skip town.”

Dean’s smile faded as quickly as it had appeared. Ruby was savage in the art of ‘persuasion,’ and he could hardly imagine anyone getting the better of her. He leaned forward, his brow furrowed. A new family trying to start a war with the Winchesters? The last time that had happened, Dean was a teenager, and, much to his dismay, his parents had insisted he not be involved. He had watched helplessly from inside the Catholic boy’s school his father had shipped him to, as his people were shot in the street.

But Dean was in his thirties now, and the prospect of war looming on the horizon made him giddy with anticipation.

Mary Winchester, who had been quietly observing her husband and sons until this point, suddenly cleared her throat, which made all the men at the table sit up a little straighter. She was a fierce-looking woman with high cheekbones, a square jaw, and deep eyes, all framed by locks of cascading blonde curls. It was easy to see where her sons had gotten their charming good looks from.

She sat forward and touched her husband’s forearm gently. “Bela. While I’m sure the loss of your warehouses is devastating, no one would be foolish enough to start a war with our family.” She smiled. “And if Ruby and the girls from Rowena’s can’t handle what is being asked of them, then perhaps it is time to remind them who it is they work for. I’m sure Sam and Dean would be happy to deal with the Novaks, right boys?”

Sam nodded at his mother, and Dean could feel his excitement bubbling. He looked to his brother and saw a dark glint in his eye. The two of them together were unstoppable.

“Anything for you, mother,” Dean said, and he basked in her pride.

“Wonderful,” John said, clapping his hands together, dispelling the tension surrounding the table, and causing Bela to sink back into her seat as her concerns were dismissed. “Now, let’s eat before the food goes cold.”

The rest of the evening dissolved into easy conversation amongst the members of the meeting. Sam laughed wildly at Bobby’s account of a man who he had once held over a woodchipper for his disrespect, even though he had told the story a hundred times. Mary and John spoke quietly with Jessica about her parents and how thrilled they were that her contacts on Broadway would benefit the Winchester dynasty. Dean occupied himself by kicking Jo under the table and watching her face go from mildly irritated to genuinely annoyed as she tried to maintain a discussion with her mother about liquor importing.

When the food and wine had been consumed, John stood again and waited patiently for the conversations to cease. “Thank you all for joining us this evening.” He spoke warmly to everyone. “I trust to see you all again next month.” A chorus of murmured agreement rippled through those assembled. John raised his glass, and everyone else followed suit. “To the family.” He toasted and drained the remaining wine from his glass.

The sound of chairs scraping back from the table filled the small dining room as the Winchesters and their associates made to leave. They passed the other patrons, enjoying their meals and trying obviously not to stare as the finely dressed men and women filed out the front door, thanking Cain with handshakes and smiles as they left.

Dean stepped into the street and stretched, breathing the exhaust soaked air deeply into his lungs and once again being reminded of just how much he loved this city. A large hand dropped heavily onto his shoulder, and he turned to find his gargantuan little brother towering next to him.

“You wanna come over for a beer?” Sam asked casually.

“Nah, man, I was thinking about heading over to Lee’s,” Dean said. His head was foggy from the wine, and he needed some real liquor to bring his senses back.

Sam scowled. “You know, Dad doesn’t like you going out without protection.”

“Always keep a condom in my wallet, Sammy.” Dean winked, and Sam rolled his eyes dramatically.

“That’s not what I mean.” He said. “If Bela is right and the Novaks are looking to start a war, none of us should be going anywhere alone.”

“Oh, is Sam freaking Winchester scared of a few Jersey boys?” Dean snarked at his brother, punching him in the arm playfully. “I’ll be fine. Besides, it’s Lee’s bar. I’m basically royalty there.”

Jessica appeared at Sam’s side and snaked her arm around his waist. She really was beautiful, far too good for his brother. Dean sometimes wished he had met her first, but he shook the thoughts from his mind. Sam was happy with Jess, and that’s what he deserved.

“Your parents invited us over to look over the blueprints of the new hotel, honey.” She said. “Dean, will you be joining us?”

“Not tonight, sweetheart, but hey, tell 'em to put one of those fancy water features in like they’ve got in Vegas,” Dean replied sarcastically.

Jess smiled at him. “You ready, Sam?”

“Uh, yeah, one second. Why don’t you go ahead with Mom and Dad? I’ll meet you at the car.” Sam said. He rubbed his hand across her shoulders and leaned down to kiss her sweetly. Jess cast one more smile at Dean before turning back down the sidewalk to where Mary and John stood waiting.

“What’s up, Sammy?” Dean asked. He knew there was a reason his brother was holding him back.

Sam stepped closer to Dean and quickly looked over his shoulder before shoving his hand into his pocket and producing a small black velvet box. “I was going to wait until tomorrow, but I can’t help myself.” He said, opening the box. Inside was a beautiful diamond engagement ring. The center stone was massive and cut into the shape of a teardrop. On each side were two smaller diamonds, surrounded by a cluster of sparkling rubies. “I’m gonna ask Jess to marry me.”

Dean laughed out loud. “Holy shit, Sam!” He blurted out loudly and pulled his brother into a hug.

“Shhh!” Sam warned. “Keep your voice down! I don’t even know if she’ll say yes.”

Dean scoffed. “Of course she’ll say yes! You two have been together, what, forever?” He grinned. “Although, if she does say no, you can tell her I’m available.”

Sam smacked him around the head, and Dean laughed. “Alright, have fun at Lee’s. Call Benny if there’s any trouble.”

Dean waved over Sam’s shoulder at John, Mary, and Jess, and gave his brother a nod before turning and heading down the dark sidewalk in the direction of Lee Webb’s bar.

Swayze’s was more than a few blocks from Cain’s place, but Dean didn’t mind the walk. He’d left his car at home after visiting Gordon this afternoon, and he enjoyed the refreshing night air against his face. The downtown lights glared into the sky through the ever-present smog rising from the city, and Dean hummed a little to himself as he walked. This was his city. The Winchesters owned these streets. He knew one day, the empire his mother and father had built would fall to him and Sam to manage, but that time was a long way off. John would never relinquish control of the family assets to his sons while he still drew breath, and without any heirs of their own to ensure the continuation of the dynasty, that was even less likely.

Dean smiled to himself, thinking of the ring currently sitting in Sam’s pocket. Jess would be an excellent addition to the family. Her parents were both high profile talent agents on Broadway with a lot of influence there and in Hollywood. There had never been a reason for the Winchesters to get into theatre, but he knew they wouldn’t turn down the opportunity if Jess said yes to Sam tonight. His smile faltered slightly. It had been a long time since Dean had been as happy as Sam was now. His last relationship had been with Lisa Braeden, and that had only lasted a few months. She had a young son, Ben, who Dean still saw on occasion, but he had left when things had started to get really serious. He wasn’t going to drag someone else’s kid into this mafioso life. It wasn’t his place.

The truth was, Dean didn’t even know if he wanted kids. He’d thought about it, sure, and his mother had been pressuring him since his mid-twenties to find a nice girl to make babies with, but Dean liked his hang-up free lifestyle. He was happy to carry out orders for his father, help the family, and maybe hustle a few out of town suckers at pool when the mood struck him. Sam was business-minded, and Dean was more than happy to allow his not-so-little little brother to take over for their father when the time came.

Dean had been so deep in his own head that he barely registered when he had arrived at Lee’s. He sat down on a barstool and scanned around the room. Dean sighed contentedly. As he had expected, the bar was devoid of anyone immediately recognizable save for Lee himself.

Dean rapped his knuckles on the bar top to get Lee’s attention. “Who do I gotta gank to get a drink around here, hey buddy?” He said as Lee tossed the towel he had been using to clean a pint glass over his shoulder and turned to Dean. His expression changed from annoyed to ecstatic when he registered who was speaking.

“Dean freaking Winchester.” Lee drawled. “It’s been a while. You too good to come see me anymore?”

Dean grinned. “Never too good for you, Lee.”

“What’ll it be? On the house.” Lee spread his arms, gesturing at the impressive selection of alcohol arranged along the wall behind him.

“Whiskey. Neat.” Dean replied. Lee nodded approvingly, selecting a bottle from the top shelf and pouring a heavy-handed three ounces into a glass. He slid it across the bar to Dean, and he took a sip, letting the liquid burn deliciously in his throat and warm him from the inside out.

“That’s good stuff.” Dean smiled as a low rasp crept into his voice.

“Only the best for you.” Lee matched his tone. “So, what brings you out tonight?”

“Dinner with the family,” Dean replied noncommittally.

“Yeah, you always did hate those.” Lee whipped the towel off his shoulder and picked up another glass, wiping the water from around the rim. “Anything exciting?”

“No, just business as usual. Bela is being a bitch, Bobby’s still telling the same stories he has for the past 20 years…” He paused before taking another sip of his drink. “Oh, and uh, Sammy’s gonna ask Jess to marry him.”

“No shit!” Lee said, his eyebrows rising in mild surprise. “I’d say that’s pretty exciting.”

“Yeah, it’s been a long time coming.” Dean chuckled into his glass. “Never seen anybody as happy as those two. Kind of a miracle she hasn’t killed him yet with what a pain in the ass he can be.”

“Ah, you’re only saying that cuz he’s your brother.” Lee laughed.

“Yeah, well, brother or not, he’s still a giant pain.” Dean downed the rest of his drink and tapped the rim for a refill. Lee shook his head but complied.

“You feeling a little jealous there, buddy?” Lee smiled devilishly at him as he set the bottle down on the bar top.

Dean chuckled darkly. “Nothing to be jealous of. I’ve got my life, my health, my family,” he grinned at Lee over the rim of his glass. “And a buddy with a bar. What more could a guy need?”

Lee shook his head but said nothing. Dean appreciated the silence that fell immensely.

The sudden clatter of a barstool hitting the floor drew Dean’s attention to the opposite end of the bar. Two men stood chest to chest, shoving each other back and forth.

“What the fuck is your problem, man?!” One of them exclaimed.

“What’s my problem? What the hell is your problem?!” The other responded, punctuating his words with a shove to the man’s shoulders.

“Hey!” Lee shouted. “Take it outside, boys.”

“Yeah, some of us just wanna drink in peace,” Dean said.

“What the fuck did you just say?” One of the men said to Dean. Having found a common enemy in him, the two men turned towards Dean’s seat and advanced. He drew in a breath, immediately regretting his decision to speak up. They were both much larger than him by a wide margin, and Dean couldn’t help but think to himself ruefully that maybe Sam was right about needing protection.

As he balled his fists, ready to start swinging, he felt someone step into the space at his side.

“I believe both of these fine gentlemen just politely told you inbred walnuts to get lost.” The voice that spoke was low and gravelly, and Dean felt his stomach flip a little at the sound of it. He turned his head to identify the stranger and was met by a tan trenchcoat.

His eyes travelled upwards to the man’s face, and Dean felt his stomach do another small flip. A strong jawline covered in light stubble, slightly chapped pink lips, and tousled black hair were Dean’s first indications that the man suddenly standing next to him was unfamiliar. When the man cocked his head slightly, Dean caught his eye and felt his breath hitch in his chest. Framed by thick, dark eyelashes were a pair of icy blue eyes that Dean very quickly found himself staring at. He looked away as soon as he realized because, as much as he would have loved to stare, the two aggressively drunk men in front of him posed a much more immediate problem.

Returning his attention to them, Dean rose from his seat and drained the remaining liquid from his glass, vaguely registering that Lee had also rounded the bar and was standing behind him.

“Well, fellas. Looks like it’s two against three.” Dean said, gesturing at Lee and the stranger. “Not that I don’t like those odds being in my favour and all, but I’ll give you a chance to walk away before this gets too outta hand.” He heard Lee crack his knuckles and grinned. There was no one in this world Dean would rather have in his corner for a fight than Lee Webb, except maybe Sam.

The two men in front of him hesitated slightly before one of them let out a yell and charged towards Dean.

He reacted in an instant, ducking below the man’s outstretched arms and coming up under his knees to flip him over his back towards Lee. He heard the man hit the ground with a thud as Lee reached down and heaved him back up into the edge of the bar. Dean turned just in time to see the other man following his partner towards him, arms reaching out like some great ape. He didn’t have the forewarning or space to execute the same move, and so he simply ducked out of reach. As the man’s arms closed above his head, he heard the unmistakable sound of a fist colliding with a nose as the cartilage and bone crunched under the force. Glancing to his right, he saw the trenchcoated stranger land a blow directly into the second assailant’s face and smiled to himself. Not bad, he thought.

As the ape staggered back, clutching his now broken nose, blood streaming down between his fingers, Dean stood up and grabbed the man by his shirt. Together, he and Lee shoved the two towards the bar’s door and unceremoniously tossed them into the street.

“Don’t let me catch you goons in here again,” Lee shouted as they took off quickly down the alley.

Dean watched them go and shook his head ruefully. Even at Lee’s, trouble managed to find him. He looked to his friend and put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing lightly. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Lee said, brushing him off. “Guys like that aren’t a problem. You and I both know I’ve fought worse.”

Dean laughed. “Ain’t that the truth.” They turned to go back inside, and Dean spied the mysterious stranger as he picked up a stool that had fallen over in the scuffle, cradling his right hand against his chest.

“Hey,” Dean called out to him. The man looked up at Dean, and he was pierced by the full intensity of his stare. Those blue eyes, which before had been icy and cold with adrenaline, were now pools of deep ocean blue, and Dean once again felt himself beginning to drown in them. He cleared his throat, trying to get rid of the lump that was quickly forming there. “Um, thanks. For that. You, uh, you didn’t have to get involved. Lee and I could have handled it.”

Way to sound ungrateful, Winchester, he kicked himself internally.

The stranger cocked his head to the side as he stared at Dean, his eyebrows knitted together in the most perplexing stare Dean had ever seen. Lee walked up next to him. “Lemme get you some ice for your hand. If that dude’s skull is as thick as it looked, you’re probably hurting pretty bad.” He walked behind the bar and began filling a small bag with ice. “Oh, and your next drink is on me. Dean may not know how to actually say thank you but, we aren’t all as uncivilized.”

Dean felt the heat rising in his cheeks as he sat back in his seat, and Lee refilled his glass, adding a second one for their new friend. “Thank you.” The man said, taking the bag of ice and placing it over his knuckles. He took a small sip of his drink and set it back on the bar top.

Dean shook himself and realized the man was still staring at him, and being under his scrutinizing eyes made Dean fidget uncomfortably. He cleared his throat again. “So, uh, you got a name?” He asked. Then, because Dean was not one to relinquish the upper hand, he plastered on his charming Winchester smile and said, “Or am I just supposed to call you handsome?”

A small smile lifted the corners of the man’s lips as he extended his uninjured hand for Dean to shake.

“Novak.” He said, and Dean felt the colour immediately drain from his face.

“My name is Castiel Novak.”

[the-dead-skwad]

Miss Lestrange Part 3 X Reader X George Weasley

Sorry it’s been a spell ;) I’ve been super busy with my new job and metal health kicking my ass. Also don’t get hung up over the spelling mistakes, my nails are so long and I always miss something out. 

Summary: It’s going to be lonely tis Christmas or so you thought. 

?!? Warning: Slight mention of self harm, Parental abuse. 

Tag : @hopeladybug​ @supernaturalidjitjess​ @til-the-end-of-the-line​

This year had gotten even crazier and it wasn’t even Christmas yet. Umbridge was terrified of you; Not long after your screaming match in her first lesson she called you to her office. She told you you were there to write lines but of course there would be a catch. As you started to write the words formed as scratches on the back of your hand. You looked up at her with her sadistic grin. You glanced back to your hand “Does the ministry approve?”

“Excuse me?” She cleared her throat.

You smiled “That’s what I thought.” You stared straight at her with a smile on your face.

“What are you?” Her grin was gone.

You put the torture quill to the parchment and started to scratch, scribbling a giant bunch of mess, never breaking eye contact.

“Stop it!” She screamed. “Get out!”

You collected your things still smiling. When you finally got to the hallway you stopped. “Owww.. merlin that hurt.” You held on to it with your other hand.

After all that she hadn’t even acknowledge you were even there. Every lesson, if she saw you in the hallways, you were invisible. It suited you fine.

I was approaching Christmas now and you just weren’t feeling it. Everyone would head back to their parents, their family’s have a really nice time and you would roam the empty halls all alone. Some kids would stay but it was no one you knew.

You went to leave the dungeons when Draco stopped you. “How you doing?”

“What do you want Draco?”

“I hear your joining the quidditch team.”

“And what if I am?”

He walked over to the table where there were two large boxes “Mother sent you these.”

“What the hell is that? I don’t need your charity.”

“It’s not charity. She was proud of you making the team, you got brand new kit and the best broom.”

“Oh…” Narcissa was the only person who had looked after you ever “Tell her thank you and that I’m sorry I can’t come home.”

“She understands.” He walked off and you took your stuff to your room.

“What’s that?” Pansy was in your dorm.

“Er Quidditch stuff.”

She pulled a face at you “How did you afford that? Aren’t you like an orphan?”

“Just because my aunt buys me things and can’t stand you doesn’t mean you have to be bitter.” You flashed her a sarcastic smile. “And besides.. my parents are very much alive.” Winking at her made her exit the room, fast.

When you left the dungeon Fred popped up out of no where. “It’s Christmas!” He shouted in your face.

“Fuck Fred! I know.. I’d like to make it to Christmas without having a heart attack.”

He laughed “Sorry, George wants to see you in the astronomy tower.”

“Okay, you know why?”

“It’s a surprise.”

“Right..” You looked at him funny “A good one?”

He frowned at you “Is there bad surprises?”

“Well that heart attack you just gave me wasn’t pleasant.”

“Just go!” He pushed you forward.

--

He stood at the rail looking over the grounds. “Hey.” Your soft voice from behind him melted his heart. He turned to look at you “Hey beautiful.”

“Fred said you wanted to see me?”

He leaned in and just millimetres away from your lips he whispered “Always.” Causing your knees to almost buckle. He pulled away making you sad at the lack of contact. “I know you’re not looking forward to Christmas and I thought you could spend Christmas with us.”

You sighed “You know that’s the only thing I want to do but it’s not safe. I’m not putting your family in danger.”

“Shut up for a second.” His abruptness shocked you. “I have something for you.” He handed you a small box.

Inside was a necklace made of a chain and a beautiful crystal. “Oh George, this is stunning. What stone is this?”

“Well that’s the cool thing you see. This stone is enchanted and when wearing it anyone who uses dark magic can’t find you. It’s a protection stone.”

Your mouth dropped open. “So… so I can be with you?”

“And it gets better, I have spoken to my mum. We are staying at the Burrows to collect some things just for the first night and then we’re going to a safer location where the order meets. So you’re even safer.”

“George I don’t think you know what this means to me..” You threw your arms around his neck. “Thank you so much.”

You leaned back and looked at each other “I love you Y/N.”

“I love you George.”

--

Travelling to the burrows made you nervous at first. Every noise you heard your heart jumped. But George was there to squeeze your hand or wrap his arm around you. When you finally arrived looking up at the house your whole body relaxed. It felt like home.

“It’s no Malfoy Manor but it’s home.” Ron smiled at you though the mouth full of food he had some how found.

You smiled at them all “It’s beautiful.”

A small yelp made you jump “You’re home!” You turned to see the happiest woman covered in multi-coloured wool. She ran to the boys and hugged them. “How was the trip?” She turned to Ginny. “You all in one piece?”

“If it wasn’t for Fred’s driving.” Ginny snapped at him. He just shrugged in response.

She looked at you “Oh sweetheart!” She opened up her arms and squeezed you tight “You must be Y/N. How are you feeling deary?”

“Much better now I’m here. Your house is amazing Mrs Weasley.”

“Oh pff please call me Molly. George has told me so much about you.”

“Oh that’s not terrifying.” You could see the look in her eye. All the things she wanted to say to you but didn’t know how. You smiled and gave her a reassuring nod.

She squeezed both your hands “You must be starving.”

The food was incredible. Everyone sat there shovelling it in while all the siblings bickered. You heard Ginny from across the table “Ron I swear if you don’t put your elbows down I’ll tell Hermione you still have a blanky.”

His face turned bright red “No I don’t! And why would I care what she thinks anyway?”

You and George shared a look. Ron pointed a chicken leg at him “I saw that!”

After you had all finished you sat by the fire for a while. They all told stories from when they were children. Like George turning Ron’s chocolate into spiders or when Fred tried to hide the firework he made and blew up the toilet.

Your eyes started to get heavy. “Shall we head up?” George whispered in your ear. You nodded.

As you both walked up the stairs Fred whistled after you receiving the middle finger from you both.

You stood by his bed in just your t-shirt and shorts. He raised his eyebrows at you.

“What?” you said as you tied up your crazy hair into a loose bun.

“I’ve just never seen you like this.” His head propped up by his arm.

“What? Scruffy?”

“No!” He laughed “You know, we’ve just never been allowed in the same room alone like this.” He swung his legs off the bed and sat on the side.

You sat on his knee facing him, your knee’s either side of his legs. “You nervous Georgie?”

He placed his hand on your lower back to keep you steady. He smiled into a kiss “Far from it.”

After a few minutes of kissing you leaned back. He groaned from the lack of contact. “Sorry I gotta pee.”

“Down the stairs next to mum and dads room.”

You did an army salute as you left. The idea of him lying there in just his boxers, waiting for you. You practically leapt down the entire flight of stairs.

Leaving the toilet you could hear raised voices coming from Molly and Arthurs room. You weren’t rude enough to listen to a couples argument but then you heard your name.

“You are not listening to me Molly.”

“I am but you’re talking nonsense.”

“No I’m not.. Did you see her at the table? She can already do things without her wand!”

Hearing them talk about you in a bad way hurt you deep.

“We knew she was going to be powerful. There was no question in that. Arthur she is only a child.”

“How can you trust her? Not only is she powerful she is literally the spit of Belatrix. How can you just let her into our home?”

“You are just paranoid. George trusts her!”

“He is blinded by love! Or by a spell she put on him. I think she should leave.”

Tears started to roll down your cheeks. Maybe he was right. Maybe you should leave, you were selfish to think that you could live a normal life with someone you loved. What you thought you would get married and have children? Live a normal life? You were just kidding yourself. Prolonging the time till your mother got a hold of you again.

As you ran down the stairs you tripped over something making a right noise. You looked up the stairs as Molly Arthur and George ran to the stairs.

Tears blurred your vision as you ripped through the front door. You looked out into the vast fields around you. Without your broom there was no where to really go. Felling started to become overwhelming. You dropped to your knees and screamed. A circle of fire burst around you.

George stood in front of you the flames roaring between you. He looked down at you and noticed your hand wrapped around your necklace. “Y/N stop.. please listen to me.”

You couldn’t hear him over all the voices in your head, all the people telling you you were worthless, a bad guy, the devils daughter, nothing but a traitor, only good for wiping their feet on. You were completely unaware you were pulling on the necklace.

George knew you couldn’t take it off otherwise they would come for you. “Y/N please! Listen to my voice. Just mine.”

Slowly his voice pushed through the noise. Your breathing started to slow.

He got his arm and went to reach forward. “George!” Molly shouted “What are you doing?”

“She won’t hurt me.” He stuck his hand straight through the fire. To him it was almost cold. He stepped through and knelt down in front of you.

Him placing his hand over yours cause your eyes to burst open. “George?”

“Its me. You’re okay.”

As you fell passing out in his arms the fire disappeared. He held onto you tight. Scooping you up into his arms he walked back into the house. He placed you down on the sofa and lit the fire to keep you warm. The rest of the family stood looking at you both.

“Do you have an idea what she has been through?” He voice was sharp but not loud enough to wake you.

“All I said was that I’m not sure after everything that has happened we should trust her.” Arthur stood his ground.

“She doesn’t just burst into a circle of fire because someone doesn’t trust her. I am all she has.. Her own family want her dead and everyone else is too scared of her to even look at her. Do you know how she must feel? Her own mother almost tortured her to death.”

Arthur swallowed hard. “Maybe I was a bit harsh.”

“Maybe?” Ginny looked at him in disbelief.

Molly approached your sleeping body, she moved your hair out your face and stroked it gently. “Maybe she needs the love of a real family.”

George sat on the sofa and pulled you into his body. “That’s all she’s ever wanted.”

Molly smiled at him sweetly “And that’s what you’re going to give her?”

“That and the entire world if she wishes.”

She nodded “Then that’s what we’ll give her. This family.”

[deafmatteo]

hi hi so first i really love your writing, it’s so comforting and lovely, and i look forward to every little bit of it!

and idk if you’ve already answered something like this but i was wondering about your thoughts on skam france season 5?

hello, thank u! 🖤🖤🖤

and i have talked a bit about skam france s5 when i was watching it live but im more than happy to talk about it again & put all of my thoughts into one post JFJSJD.

let me just put a disclaimer here for abuse, both personal & what was shown in the season. also adding a read more because this got LONG, i am so sorry. i talk a lot </3 (ignore the spelling errors, i literally woke up and saw this anon and jumped out of bed to answer dflkgjkdlg)

also! i talk about deafness as a disability in this but that’s my own personal experience & what was written into the season. we know arthur sees it as a disability because he was raised in a hearing society as a hearing person. not all D/deaf people believe this!! this isn’t universal.

first things first, i just wanted to let people know these feelings come from a very personal place. i lost my hearing similarly to arthur — i was beaten as a young child and as the years have gone on and i’ve grown, my hearing has gotten worse. i was hard of hearing with mild to moderate hearing loss in both ears and now i call myself deaf because i have severe hearing loss in my left ear & i am completely deaf in my right ear. (don’t worry about being apologetic or anything! i’m very open about how i lost my hearing because although it’s sad & traumatic, it’s talking about how trauma and disabilities are often more intertwined than people realize. you don’t ever see a disabled person thriving in their natural environment. you see traumatized disabled people learning how to survive.)

i don’t have problems with how arthur lost his hearing. i think it’s a very important story to tell & it’s one that does occur — even if people don’t recognize it. it added to the fear and isolation he felt during his season because he was suddenly extremely disconnected from his peers and the people he called his best friends.

i also absolutely ADORE noee and camille. having a Deaf* woman who was as sassy and blunt and straight-forward as she was is a good thing. people often talk about how D/deaf individuals can come across as rude or unattentive or too blunt and it can be true but when people often talk about it, they do it in a rude/offensive manner! noee did it in a manner that wasn’t stereotypical and felt real. she also had the distain towards hearing people because they continually traumatized & belittled her and they showed that in a way that you knew was justified. she had been hurt by these people and she knew what arthur was experiencing, hence why she was so warm around him. having a Deaf love interest who wasn’t a hearing-people pleaser or someone who needed approval from hearing people was so good because it helped add layers of her own identity that the audience may not even realize exists.

camille as well. having a hard of hearing gay (queer? i can’t remember what he labelled himself as) person on screen without fetishism or trauma porn was refreshing. that doesn’t happen and seeing it was?? amazing. he was able to have fun, be himself, etc. also him acting as a connector between noee and arthur is a reality as well. he exists inbetween both of their worlds and while it’s clear that he is comfortable and okay with it, it’s a reality that often stems into feelings of anger and hurt. (as shown in arthur!) it’s good to see a hard of hearing person who doesn’t feel ostracized from the Deaf community & or the hearing community. he’s just vibing!

the isolation that arthur felt. the lonelines, the pain, the fear—all of it is a reality of the situation he was in. even with his friends attempting to support him in the ways they knew how, he still felt alone. having noee and camille there was such a good!! good thing!!! to have. the way noee criticized his friends, the way ARTHUR eventually yelled at them (especially lucas, like wtf was up his ass), the growth of arthur from clinging onto his fantasy world and accepting himself. i geniunely enjoyed these aspects.

NOW ONTO MY CRITICISMS.

my biggest one is the abuse clip. it was absolutely unnecessary for them to include the audio (and the shadowing) of arthur’s violent abuse. i understand they needed to potray his dad’s behaviours but there were many other ways to go about it that doesn’t re-traumatize people. i rarely rarely get triggered by things due to desensitization & repression and this made me extremely nauseous and it caused me to spiral into memories of my own abuse. yes, i understand the story of arthur’s dad being the villain and contributing to the trauma. no, it did not need to be done in this way.

also the way it was brushed aside & arthur forgave him after the car accident. i know it’s contributing to the cycle of abuse and it will continue after the seasons have passed but i think it should have had more fear, confusion or anger. we could see that arthur hated his father, just by how he constantly attempted to fight back and argue. i understand that it was him acting from a place of survival and trying to mediate to make things calmer but this is his perspective—we could have felt the underlying emotions or seen a brief moment where arthur let his anger take over when he was alone. the abuse was written solely for hearing people. it was trauma porn. it was used as a way to make people feel sorry for arthur and to weaken him. it wasn’t written as integrated into the plot as it should have been and was brought up only to deter the plot away from his cheating. it was one of the things that made it clear the plot was more written for hearing people than for deaf people.

(again, it’s not the actual story i’m criticizing. it’s how they integrated it.)

the second was noee using her voice to essentially beg arthur to love her. using her voice was a moment of vulnerability and fear that they could have either: a. used in a different manner or b. not included at ALL. i am an oral deaf person—i was raised in a hearing environment & i went to speech thrapy for many, many years. i use my voice a lot. however, whenever i am without my hearing aid and i am tired, i don’t often use my voice because i am insecure about my deaf accent.

noee doesn’t use her voice at all. she has talked about how using only sign language gives her power and stregethnes her identity in a way that the hearing world would never be able to. it was a pivotal moment of her own identity and growth and they threw it out the window to tell arthur she loved him. he rejected her so she used her voice, something that reminds her of her trauma and pain, to beg him to love her back.

another is how alexia said that she wasn’t wired to love disabled people. i love alexia as well, except for this alone was enough to hurt my opinion of her. it’s a reality of abled people—they often act like loving a disabled person is more work and view disabled people as less than to avoid seeing them as potential lovers/friends/etc. my main problem is the fact it wasn’t ever properly addressed and they used it as a plot device after she had been nothing but loving and supportive to arthur during the beginning of his journey. she was so, so loving and caring and they could have used to as a way to talk about how relationships and perspective changes rather having her just be straight up ableist.

when arthur first got his hearing aids, he got smaller ones that were less visible to avoid having other people see. this is a big example of internalized ableism and is a very important point but they never touched on it again. i think it would have been more personal and monumental of his growth to have him go back & change the hearing aids he uses to better aid him in his day-to-day rather than aid his desire to be hearing-passing. i just wanted to see continuation of this.

the love triangle. ABSOLUTELY USELESS. i love both alexia and noee as love interests. they are well-developed women who both had vulnerable moments in the season where they talked about their insecurities and were vulnerable and still had arthur reject/use them both. this is more of a fandom criticism but the love triangle was used solely to demonize noee while they continued to put arthur on a pedestal. the season could have gone either/or with them as love interests or not at all. the season was meant to focus on his journey as a now disabled person and the love triangle took up a large portion of that.

(don’t think i’ve forgotten about people calling others fatphobic/biphobic for preferring noee as a love interest)

this isn’t entirely a criticism but a good point to note. i don’t think skam france had a plan in regards to season five when they casted arthur but he should have been played by a hard of hearing person and there should have been foreshadowing in the earlier seasons for this. i think arthur’s actor did a fantastic job with the content he was given but it would have been a bit more personal if played by a truly deaf/hoh person. noee’s actress talked about this! she said how good of an opportunity it was for season five to occur because it’s extremely rare for deaf people to get opportunities and casting designed for them. having a main actress talk about this and still having the main actor being abled is a bit? bad taste. i just think it’s a product of lack of planning, is all.

ALSO THE CAR CRASH????? this isn’t a big criticism, i’m just like HUH? me & arthur really out hear being deaf and getting hit by cars ig. arthur kinnie

*definitions that add as to why i use deaf & Deaf in this piece.*