#ask turned story

[socalwriterbee]

HC this!

Why is Ethan making this face?

This ask had me thinking of how in the world could I answer this!

Then I saw @creativepromptsforwriting blind date prompts and it clicked. I took liberty with prompt #10 and I came up with this little story.

Can anyone say Fake Dating Trope?!?!?!?! (At least to start)

Book: Open Heart

Pairing: Tessa Martinez (MC) x Ethan Ramsey

Rating/Warning: General

Word Count: 872

Summary: At the end of her rope, Tessa has something to ask Ethan. Can she get him to agree to this idea of hers?

A/N: Sorry in advance, this has not been proofread sorry for any spelling/grammar errors.

Some Characters/Settings/Storylines used or mentioned belong to Pixelberry

Hope you Enjoy!

🥰

“Ethan, I don’t know what else to do, I really can’t do another!” Tessa pleads, giving Ethan her best puppy dog eyes and pouting lips. “We don’t have to actually do it.”

Tessa shakes her head at how that must have sounded. “That’s—that’s not what, you know never mind about that. I can’t be set up again.”

Ethan contorts his face giving her the oddest side smirk as if he can’t think of anything that could be worse than agreeing to go on a date with his colleague but it was more than that, he was just waiting for Tessa to realize that. If word got out that they were going on a date, even a fake one whether or not they actually had to do it as she put would open a can of worms, a meeting with HR and so on.

That sounded like a headache.

“Give me more credit than that Tess. I know you meant going on the date with you.” Ethan’s mind wasn’t always wondering to those thoughts, the ones he’d keep buried deep inside until the day he died. “You must be really desperate if you’re asking me.”

Tessa hopes deflated at the tone of his voice and actually having to tell him that it was more than a date she was asking him for. She had to take baby steps before she gave him the whole plan she concocted the other night when her friends told her of the amazing guys that she should meet. 

It was like each one of them had someone waiting in the wings. Tessa knew her friends meant well, with setting her up on blind dates but every single one turned into a disaster. 

She was done with the dating scene, that was something she couldn’t tell her friends because she could already hear them, Sienna more then the rest of them, telling her that she just hasn’t found the right guy. 

Oh boy, Tessa had found the right guy but the guy couldn’t come to terms with someone actually caring for him. The man who showed her his feelings, the man she knew cared for others but was scared of being burned again by letting those feelings out.

So this whole dating not dating idea that came to her like a light bulb in the middle of the night was going be hard to explain but maybe not has hard with what she was trying to ease Ethan into agreeing. 

From where she stood it would be a hard no. The look on his face mere moments ago told her that much.

“Are you going to tell me what is running through that mind of yours.” There was this irritation that crept out of Ethan, it didn’t help that he was playing with his car keys as if he hurrying Tessa up with whatever she wanted to talk to him about. “I’m not a mind reader.” Ethan winced at the last sentence that left his lips.

An anger began to build within Tessa, frustrated with herself at thinking this was going to work and angry at Ethan for making her feel bad and not even being able to ask. “Forget it. It wasn’t going to work anyways.”

She turned her back to him muttering under her breath “I should’ve just asked Bryce.” As she took her first step back towards the hospital, Tessa felt a firm grip wrap around her arm, stopping her in her place.

“Don’t. Tell me.”

Three words.

That’s all Ethan said. He had an idea what Tessa wanted to ask him but he wanted to hear it straight from her.

“I’m done with the dating scene. I can’t possibly take another blind date, it’s exhausting and.. and— I was thinking that maybe you could help me. Like I said we don’t have to go on a date or anything, just make my friends think that we did and possibly have more dates down the line.” Tessa says releasing a deep breath.

There is a silence in the parking structure, Tessa waiting for Ethan to say something, to calm the rapid beating of her heart. To put her out of her misery and tell her that it’s a bad idea.

“What else?” Ethan asks, loosening his grip on Tessa and turning her around to face him. “Because if it’s just a date or two, your group of friends will go back setting you up and then we’ll become hot gossip of what went wrong and that is something that sounds a lot like a headache I don’t need.”

Tessa thinks for a minute, taking her bottom lip between her teeth. “You’re right it is a headache and will be one…” Ethan jaw clenched before Tessa could finish. “I was going to try and convince you to play along that we were in fact dating.” 

“And now you want to go ask Bryce to fake date you.”

Crossing her arms over her chest, Tessa blows away the strand of hair away from her face. “Well yeah. You clearly don’t want to and it was a stupid idea to begin with.”

With an eyebrow arched at Tessa, Ethan tells her “Where did you hear me say no?”

Thank you for the ask @txemrn I had fun writing this!

tags: @openheartfanfics @choicesficwriterscreations @cariantha @txemrn @issabees

[dunmeshistash]

Something I find amazing about Dungeon Meshi is how much "restraint" Ryoko Kui shows when telling this story. It's so clearly crafted to be the best story it can be.

By that I mean how she had SO MUCH world building for this story but still kept it as contained as it needed to be, it's a story about a few characters inside one dungeon, even if the world is expansive the story isn't. And even with the amount of characters she clearly loves so much she never got side tracked as I see so many other mangas get. The world is alive, other people exist fully with their own lives, but it stays true to the story that's being told in this universe.

I think it really shines through with how the world building relevant to the story is slowly shown to us in a non expository way, that's also something I see a lot, especially in movies, just stopping everything on it's tracks so they can info dump about the world to you, but in dungeon meshi its all so organic... magic is explained because some characters are ignorant, cultural differences are shown through cultural clashes, world history is implied through relevant conversation (monster facts are info-dumped to us but even that is in character) it's all really good and I don't think I could have gotten this into it if everything was just laid out in front of me right away.

This is all to say I'm glad we have the adventurer's bible and all this extra content that didn't fit into the story but I'm glad they weren't forced into it in detriment to the storytelling.

[theoldkyokodied]

It's always funny in sillydelphia or whatever. Sorry i can't concentrate on making a joke, there are women right in front of me (pointing at my own genderbend iasip drawings, sweating profusely)

[starry-bi-sky]

danyal al ghul memes because i don't think i've done those yet for this au.

(the jason one is in reference to the fanon headcanon/au that Jason and Damian potentially knew each other and interacted while jason was in the league. I've thought about it before in context of this au, but haven't thought about it enough to feel inspired or motivated to make a post exploring the idea)

(diablito means, as you can guess, 'little devil'. while i'm neutral to latino jason, i think the nickname is cute as fuck and was danny's main nickname from Jason. i don't wanna touch that timeline so im not gonna decide how old they were when Jason was there.)

Skulker: i am the ghost zone's greatest hunter! i capture and hunt creatures both rare and dangerous. Danyal: a poacher?? you're a poacher?? you poach animals??Skulker:...i sense i've made a mistake of some kind.

anyways that was the day that Skulker cemented himself as Danny's no.1 opp, and still remains there to this day even if he and Vlad are both viciously fighting for second. Out of everyone in the the AP rogues gallery, Skulker will be the first to be thrown under the bus in terms of 'o shit here comes phantom fucking RUN'.

[lilybug-02]

Poor bug!Dewi just being so scared and confused. Hollownest is probably a lot scarier up close. Even as a human he already got a bad scare from thk and the radiance and now he is much more vulnerable. At least his friends are there to help him out until he can go back to being a human. On the bright side, there's also a lot of cool things about being able to see hollownest up close and it's a lot easier to interact with the other bugs. Plus he can even try flying because he got wings.

Based from last main post. He’s a shy little guy when it involves anyone taller than him. Kids aren’t very common in Hallownest, but the bug crew makes do with their limited experience.

Also - no I’m not making this a comic 👁️👁️ seriously. Don’t push me ❤️

[cubbihue]

If someone does realize the truth about Timmy Turner the changling and Timmy himself is 'brought home', would he still be in pixie form in the human world all of a sudden? Or are there other repercussions?

If a Changeling were to fail its job and be discovered, there will be grave consequences for all involved.

They will be sent back home at the exact age as when they were taken. Time does not rewind, the child does not forget, and the parents will know that they've raised something wrong.

It's a terrible fate for all involved. Timmy Turner has made sure that he will be the first and only child to be taken by Fairies. No one should have to bear the consequences but him and his parents.

Bitties Series: [Start] > [Previous] > [Next]

[kaiserouo]

"Huh."

[deerspherestudios]

will we ever get to find out where mychael came from? i have this idea but if it turns out my idea isnt close to canon i kinda wanna....use it for my own story LOL

Of course! Based off the amount of asks I get asking what Mychael is it's definitely one of the bigger questions people wanna know. Feel free to drop your theory if you'd like! (I'll neither confirm or deny <3)

[silverwhittlingknife]

So you're a go to source for all things Dick&Tim bros and you tend to write primarily from Dick's POV. So, odd question, but if you were to summarize their relationship from his POV in FIVE panels which panels would you pick? Keeping in mind that one specific aspect of their relationship that you love needs to be clearly represented by each panel (loyalty, trust etc). I hope this is a fun challenge and not an annoying question so if you don't want to answer that's cool! Have a wonderful day!

No more talk. The same thoughts run through two minds... (SotB 29) / You're my equal. My closest ally. (RR 1) / I can't stop thinking how much I rely on him. (GoG 3)

25 Feelings Dick Has About Tim

This was such a kind ask & a cool challenge which I totally failed; here are TWENTY-five panels of Dick's POV on Tim sdfdsfds Look, I got carried away! Marcia and Cindy! The boys!!

OKAY SO BEFORE I GET TO THE PANELS A FEW NOTES:

WARNING THAT THERE ARE SOME NEGATIVE EMOTIONS IN HERE because I love conflict but but but you gotta remember those are not the final word!! They are complicated people and sometimes they get mad at each other BUT ultimately their relationship is so hugely important in both their lives & they love each other and rely on each other so much -!!! <3

Also I have CONCLUDING THOUGHTS at the end about what Dick's POV leaves out (mostly: a lot of Dick defending & protecting & supporting Tim, which Dick does instinctively but isn't very self-aware about most of the time)

I have loosely organized my list into 5^5 format (5 categories with 5 examples each!), so if you want to skip to a relevant one, here are the categories!!

Below the cut:

I hate him and find him infuriating (#1-5)

On second thought, he's endearing & fun (#6-10)

Grief is complicated & he's all tangled up in mine (#11-15)

I love him & think highly of him (#16-20)

I rely on him & though it's hard for me, I trust him (#21-25)

I hate him and find him infuriating (#1 - 5)

1) He thinks he’s so smart and can psychoanalyze me and Bruce, but he doesn’t know me at all, he should get lost (New Titans 61)

2) He thinks he’s so smart and can psychoanalyze Bruce but he doesn’t know Bruce at all, he should get lost (Gotham Knights 26)

3) He is so nosy about stuff that is MY business (Robin 0)

4) He sounds like an insincere suck-up half the time... but okay, fine, if you push him he's got a sense of humor about it (New Titans 65)

5) I'm sure he's a better vigilante than me. It's my fault for being a failure, but I resent him anyway. (Nightwing 9 - Dick's having a nightmare)

On second thought, he's kinda endearing (#6-10)

6) He worries too much and gets anxious so easily, but it makes him fun to tease (Robin 67)

7) I'm not that competitive - okay, so maybe I'm a little competitive, I gotta make sure he doesn't get a swelled head (Prodigal)

8) I'm supposed to be his favorite! It is not cool for him to be fanboying over my not-girlfriend's not-boyfriend!! (Birds of Prey 19)

9) We have fun together. I can kick back and relax when it's just the two of us. Plus I get to boss him around a bit. (Prodigal)

10) He’s always trying to reassure me, and I guess it's a little comforting, but also he doesn’t really get it. Or me. He makes excuses that he shouldn't, because he doesn't understand that I suck. (Nightwing 64)

Grief is complicated and he's all tangled up in mine (#11 - 15)

11) He reminds me of everything I try not to think about. Sometimes the memories are so strong it hurts to look at him. (Batman 441)

12) WHY IS HE BEING IMPOSSIBLE ALL OF A SUDDEN??? THIS IS SO FRUSTRATING (Nightwing 139)

13) We're the same. He says all the things I don't let myself think about. It's like arguing with myself. (Nightwing 139)

14) He thinks he gets to tell me what to do but he doesn’t, fuck him (Battle for the Cowl)

15) Life sucks, so what. I sucked it up so he should too (RR 1)

I love him and think highly of him (#16 - 20)

16) He’s the closest thing to a brother I’ll ever have.  If someone hurts him I will hurt them harder. (Nightwing 6)

17) I can't handle the idea of losing him. (Nightwing 97)

17) He’s so good and I’m not. I'm afraid I’m bad for him. (Nightwing 110)

18) He’s better than me, and it’s kind of a relief because I know no matter what he’ll be okay. (Gates of Gotham 3)

19) In my head he’s the responsible one.  (Gotham Knights 10)

I rely on him, and though it's hard for me, I trust him (#20-25)

20) I know I have to trust him but I'm afraid he'll make the wrong choices and get hurt (Nightwing 139)

21) I'm sure I know what he should do because I see myself in him - not that I can take my own advice, but he should (Blackest Night 3)

22) I trust him.  When I’m losing my grip on things, he pulls me back. (Gotham Knights 10)

23) I want him to trust me (Red Robin 12)

24) He can tell when I'm lying. Sometimes he sees my weaknesses better than I wish he did. (Detective Comics 874)

25) He’s always there when I need him. (Teen Titans / Outsiders Secret Files)

Final rambling thoughts:

TIM: Uhh, okay, so I'm just skimming this list - do you really trust me? you're not just saying that? - but anyway, I'm confused because you left some stuff out? Like some stuff that's kinda important? DICK: No? I think I got everything? TIM (starts counting on his fingers): The time I was having a bad day but then I called you. The time I got captured by Two-Face but then you saved me. The time I fell off a train but then you saved me. The time I fell off a building but then you saved me. The time I fell off a different building - DICK: I feel like you're trying to make some kind of point but I'm not sure what it could be.

SO THE THING IS, I put 25 panels in here and not a single one has Dick catching Tim when he’s falling!!! But I think that's a central motif of their relationship from Tim’s POV, not Dick’s. I love Dick, but in some ways I think he is spectacularly un-self-aware.

And I think he especially has a lot of blind spots about Tim. He kinda intermittently gets that Tim admires him, and he enjoys it in a playful I-get-to-boss-you-around way. But Dick tends to consistently underestimate all of his own good qualities & skills, and he meets Tim at a point in his life when he's especially down on himself & his abilities. And so he's unable to see his own influence on Tim, & therefore unable to fully understand a lot of Tim's priorities and loyalties and motivations, because you can't actually understand Tim without understanding Dick's impact on him. There's a fascinating moment in Bruce Wayne: Murderer when Dick's completely blindsided & upset to discover that Tim doesn't entirely trust Bruce, even though this has been a definitive fact of Tim's whole thing ever since he showed up with his Batman needs Robin theory, and Barbara has to actively remind Dick of the obvious-to-everyone-except-Dick fact that a lot of Tim's loyalty is to Dick, and Tim loves Bruce but feels free to be more wary of him. (And to give Bruce credit: this is not something he ever begrudges.) But anyway Babs points this out, and Dick manages to sorta process it for about five seconds, but he cannot actually accept it into his worldview so instead he discards it at the speed of light and goes off and has an argument with Tim instead sdfsfdsf

All of Dick's virtues - Dick's kindness at the circus and Dick's determination to fight through grief and Dick's rigid sense of morals and Dick's vigilante skills and every time Dick has ever backed Tim up or listened to him or protected him or saved him from something or just been casually kind to a stranger in Tim's presence etc etc etc - all these things loom really large in Tim's mental story of Who Dick Is, and What Dick And Tim's Relationship Is. Tim meets Dick before he meets Bruce, trusts Dick more than Bruce, aspires to be Robin instead of Batman. And so in Tim's default version of the story, Dick is the super-special and admirable hero and Tim is... nobody in particular, a tagalong outsider who's barely managing to be a hero, not part of Dick and Bruce's family and not part of their story, who, if he's VERY LUCKY and tries REALLY HARD, might be able to fight his way to proving himself and offering something to Dick that Dick will value, if Dick doesn't get fed up with him first.

But that's not Dick's version of the story!!!

Dick's version of the story is almost the exact opposite, a story where Dick's an outcast failure black sheep who's screwing up everything he tries, and meanwhile Tim is The Sudden New Perfect Robin Who's Better Than Me And Probably Bruce Loves Him More And Probably They Gossip About What A Loser I Am, mixed with a complicated edge of Tim Thinks He's So Smart But He Doesn't Know Me/Us At All. Dick gets much more attached to Tim over time, and Tim gets unnervingly better at the know-it-all psychoanalysis so then Dick gets to have complicated feelings about him being right instead of just annoyance at him for being wrong, plus Dick's relationship with Bruce improves a lot, so Tim stops feeling so threatening. But Dick never fundamentally changes his basic theory of their relationship in which Tim is highly impressive and capable, and Dick is not so much.

And so asking Dick about Tim is kinda like if you asked George Bailey to tell you about Harry Bailey in It's A Wonderful Life; like, you'll be there for five hours while he tells you how great Harry is, and how accomplished Harry is, and how he doesn't really get how or why Harry does the things he does, and maybe George does feel a little resentful or jealous sometimes, but that pales in comparison to all his admiration and trust for Harry who he loves so much, who's better than him in so many ways, and he's not gonna openly gripe but secretly he can't help but feel sometimes like he's such a failure in comparison to Harry, a perfect person who emerged fully formed from Zeus's head with all the virtues and also all the accomplishments, etc. etc. etc. --

-- and he will not actually remember the part where he changed and saved Harry's whole entire life unless you literally send him to an alternate timeline in order to force him to remember it. <3

[ethan-acfan]

Just your friendly reminder that during ac3, they had started leaving Desmond in the animus for up to 3 days at a time, possibly longer. They also didn't tell him he was going to be spending extended time in the animus until AFTER the time had already passed, and not only that, they told him in an email. Not even to his face, through a goddamn email.

[socalwriterbee]

Something New

This story came from a lovely ask and conversation with a dear friend. Thank you so much @txemrn for the idea to this Holiday treat with our favorite twins!

Book: The Nanny Affair

Characters: Marie Castro (MC), Mason Dalton and Mickey Dalton. Appearances by Carter and Sam Dalton

Rating: Fluff

Word Count: ~3700

Summary: Marie wants to bring a bit of home and the memory of her mother to Sam and the boys with a traditional Christmas dinner she grew up with. Marie gets to chance to show Mason and Mickey how to make tamales. What could go wrong?

A/N: This story came from an ask for a holiday treat. You can find the ask here.

*Characters belong to Pixelberry*

🫔🎄🫔🎄🫔

“Thank you for all your help” I tell Carter as I place the heavy bag of ingredients onto the counter of the kitchen island. “Who would have thought it’d be a bit further to find everything that is needed.”

“I sure didn’t Miss Castro.” Carter replies as he follows behind me with the rest of the bags. “Are you certain you don’t need any help with this?”

Looking up from removing the items from the bags, I see Carter placing the remaining bags with the others. “Yes, yes. I’m fine. Doing this takes me back home. I can’t believe it has taken me this long to think to share it with Sam and the boys.”

“To be fair Miss Castro, the boys and Mr. Dalton are traditional in a sense. Even when Mr. Castro comes, the Daltons have everything planned and ready. Our traditions get swept to the side, of course unintentional.” He chuckles. “And I don’t mind at all, I do have a few hours to spare.”

“Well, I hope to change that. Even if it needs to be done before or after the holiday they’ve known all their lives. We’d compromise on it, switch it up every year, fair enough right?” Smiling warmly at him but I shake my head at his offer. “Use those hours to unwind and relax before we have to pick up Mason and Mickey and Carter—.”

“Yes?” He gives me a questioning look.

“Please call me Marie, I would like to think after a couple years knowing each other we’d be friends.”

“Of course Miss— Marie.” Carter tips his black hat. “I’ll see you in a few hours.” He says before turning on his heel and walking out of the kitchen.

After taking out all the ingredients out, they lay in front of me. The dry corn husks, waiting to be rehydrated. The dark green of the jalapeños, tomatillos, garlic and onion for the green salsa sitting next to my mothers secret to her delicious red salsa, she would make only for this.

The words I said to Carter coming back to me, I really couldn’t believe that it has taken me this long to show Sam and the boys a part of who I am and what both of my parents instilled in me of our family tradition during the holiday. And about the only one that stuck with my mother from being raised in her type Mexican household. 

The images of my mother around the kitchen getting our Christmas dinner ready come to mind as I unwrap the butchers paper that contains the meat for the filling. 

How she and my father would be talking of how many family members were expected that year and if we had gotten enough to feed everyone. Yes, there had always more than enough and how they would remind each other that the following year they’d get the original amount they always said they would.

That never happened.

I could hear my mother’s voice in the kitchen of our family home, ‘Mija, remember we cook the meat first because it takes the longest. Once we get that on the stove, we need hot water to soak the corn husks to make them soft so they can be folded.’

As I have the first two steps going, the bubbling pot of pork, onion and garlic on the stove and steam coming off the soaking corn husks. I turn my attention to the two salsas that need to be made. Plucking out the stems from the jalapeños, I throw them into another awaiting pot. Biting my bottom lip I debate if I should keep it at two or test my luck and go with three hoping that it won’t come out spicy. I go with my gut and toss in that extra jalapeño. After peeling the papery husk from the green tomatillos they go in with the jalapeños and a piece of onion. Covered with enough water, onto the stove they go.

‘Now Marie Isabel. The red salsa is my little secret. Nothing fancy, no three or four dried chiles rehydrated going into a blender with seasonings and such. When it’s made like that the masa tends to absorb the moisture from it and they became dry. And nothing is worse than a dry tamale, ask your father he almost choked on Tia Lupe’s tamales one year.’

My preteen self laughing at the image my mother had set up for me as she moves about the kitchen getting ready to show me her secret. With a can opener in hand, I open the can of tomato sauce, a can of the Mexican spicy tomato sauce. Emptied into the blender with the rehydrated red chile.  

‘But mom I thought you said no dry chiles?’

‘This Marie is mostly for color. It’s gonna give flavor of course but it’s that nice red color it’ll give us in the end too.’

I had just nodded as everything my mother was showing me, sinking in so that one day I could make them and share a piece of my family with a family of my own.

As the minutes turn to an hour going into two, the tamale station I’ve set up is waiting and ready to go. When Carter walks into the kitchen. “It smells amazing in here M..Marie.”

“Thank you but they are not even cooked, heck they aren’t even spread, filled and folded yet! But I do have two forks at the ready for you to try both fillings.” I grin at him, holding up the two forks in my hand. “And be honest tell me what you think.”

Handing them over to Carter, I begin to remove my apron. I checked the time on my watch and it was time for us to collect the boys from their grandparents. As I’m placing the apron over one of the chairs, I hear a small oh my slip from Carter.

“This is incredible. Your mother would be proud, she has taught you well. In this,” He points to the red and green filling. “And in life.”

My eyes glisten at Carters spoken words. “Thank you, that is very sweet of you. Your are going to make me cry. But I assume you have come to get me so we can pick up the twins?”

“Yes and no. I’ve come to let you know I was off to pick up Mason and Mickey and we’d be home shortly after.”

“Are you sure? I could come along to get them, everything here is ready for the next step.”

“Which is an intensive and laboring step. If I go, it will give you time to get something done before they boys arrive.”

Carter was right about that. It would allow me to get some of the tamales ready before Mason and Mickey came home. And knowing the boys well enough, they would like to know and then learn how to make them or see what kind of prank they could pull off with this. It would be a mix of both for sure. “Ok. I’ll stay and get a step ahead.”

“See you shortly Miss Castro.” He calls out.

“Carter!”

“On the clock Miss. On the clock.” He chuckles.

I drop my and shake my head and laugh. You win some you lose some. Grabbing from the drawer my weapon of choice, the spoon, to take down the five pounds of masa that was purchased and begin to slowly make a small dent.

With a small part of the counter space covered with corn husk and masa spread on them, I hear the chime of the elevator announce it’s arrival. Followed closely by two pairs of feet hitting the floor as they run through the penthouse.

“Marie! Marie! You’ll never guess what Grandpa let us do.” Mickey says as his running comes into a halt and eyes everything on the counter, his eyes growing big with awe.

“Yeah, Marie you’ll never—.” Mason follows, bumping into his brother.

“Hey!” Mickey calls out to Mason.

“Sorry.” Mason turns his attention from his brother to me and what’s before us. His eyes widen under his glasses just like his brother.

“What is this?” Mickey steps closer and pokes the end of the husk with his finger.

“And this.” Mason points to the bowl holding the masa.

“This.” I hold up to them. “Is a corn husk and that is masa.”

Both boys turn their head to the side. “What is it for?” They ask in unison.

“I’m using it to make tamales. A traditional food my family made during the holidays. One I’d love to share with you.”

“Oh. We learned about different culture traditions in school before break. Is it something like that?” Mason asks.

“Yes. The two of you came running to tell me something you two did with Grandpa Mason, what was it?” I ask them as I go back to spreading the smooth masa on to the husk. Two sets of eyes watching with amazement as I finish in a few strokes and place it with the others.

“Can we try?” Mickey asks, his voice a whisper.

“You want to learn how to make them?”

They both nod.

“I’d be happy to show you. When I was a bit older than you two are now my mom taught me how to make them.” I smile at them. “Wash your hands and while you do that you two tell me what you did at grandma and grandpa’s house.”

Mason and Mickey both rush to the sink when Mickey turns towards me. “I’ll tell you later. Right now we want to play—make that.”

“Nice save Mick.” I laugh. 

After the boys wash and dry their hands, they take a seat. “Do we get a spoon to?” Mason asks. “And why a spoon?”

Opening the drawer the holds the utensil, I pull out two spoons and hand each of them a spoon. “A spoon for each of you and I don’t know, it’s what my mom used and it’s the way she showed me.”

“What is ma-sa?” Mickey asks as he tries to pronounce the word.

“Hmm…” I ponder. “Best way to explain it would be a dough made from corn. This—.” I tap the bowl that contains the dough for the boys to know what I am explaining to them. “was already prepared. So I could have used it as is or as my mom taught me she’d add a little more ingredients to it to make it the way she liked.”

Mickey goes for an overly filled spoonful of the mix. “What do we do with it? We just plop it on the husk?”

I smile as I watch Mason copy his brother and fill his spoon as well. “No, no plopping. And less dough. We need a good balance of masa to filling. Before we get our spoons full, we need to have a corn husk to put it on.”

The three of us go to reach for one, and each on grabbing one of different a size. Mickey has gotten a large husk, smooth, prefect really. Mason has a smaller one that is a bit more crinkled, going to smooth it out when he pulls it rips.

Mason eyes widening as if he did something wrong, reminding of myself when I tried to the same thing when I was first learning. “That was an accident Marie. I didn’t know it was going to rip. I’ve ruined it.”

“Oh no Mason, sweetie. You didn’t ruin it, not at all. Here take mine.” I hand mine over to him and grab his two pieces now. “We still could use it, to cover the tamales when they are steaming.”

Grabbing another husk for myself, I grab a spoonful of the masa, showing the boys the amount I got and place it in the middle of the husk. “Ok, so now you both get about the same amount I did and place it on your husk.”

Watching as they reach and grab their spoons and copy me. Mason and Mickey both look up when they have done the first step. I smile at them before moving on. “So now with the back of our spoon we are going to thin it out the masa over the husk.” Slowly gliding the spoon and mix from one end to the other and down to the straight edge, giving the boys a clear view of my movements. “ We need to leave the end that sticks up clear, we don’t want any masa there because when we fill it that end will be folded over.”

“Now you try.” Watching as they begin to spread the masa on the husk.

“That’s good you two.” I encourage them to keep going.

“Marie! I got it on my hand.” Mason shows his brother and me. “It feels so cool. You should try it Mickey.”

“Look at mine. Did I do a good job?” Mickey asks.

Eyeing the beginnings of his tamale, I bite the bottom of my lip to fight back a smile but unable to hold it in at seeing what and amazing job he has done. “Such a good job Mickey.”

“You’re right Mason, it is sticky. Do you think we could get it to stick on the ceiling? Or we can get it to explode mixing it with cola and baking soda.” Mickey plays with the masa between his thumb and finger.

“We should totally try it.” Mason answers.

“We will not be doing that. We could come up with another experiment for you to try and no more honey in the shampoo either.”

They both laugh at the latest and most often used prank.

“Now lets get to work. We have all that to spread.” I tell them, pointing back to the mixing bowl.

After spending a good portion of the rest of our afternoon laughing and me going back to give their tamales a bit more evenness, laughing and talking about my life in California. 

Seeing the boys being covered up with more masa on their shirt and not the corn husk and not knowing how they got it in their hair. The excitement of making something new beginning to wear off.

“Guess I got a bit more than needed.” The three of us stare at the counter covered with a mix of red and green tamales. 

“We have a lot.” Mickey says. “What are we going to do with all of them.”

“Well it’s special when these are made, typically around the Christmas season. My mom and dad would tell me that we make them to share with loved ones. Everyone gathering around, like we did, it brings the entire family together talking, laughing just catching up on everything everyone has been up to. We would even make more to share with our neighbors and share the dishes from where our family came from.”

“I have an idea.” Mason speaks up, the spark coming back to his gray eyes. “We could go around and take some to Uncle Robin, Grandma and Grandpa, our friends from school and even Aunt Sofia. We know she could use some cheering up from being grumpy all the time.”

“Yeah. We would be sharing something we made with the people that we love.”

“I think that is a great idea. I’ll make a deal with you two. I will finish up, get these cooking and clean up the kitchen. While you two get cleaned up and changed, pick up your room. And in no time we would have tamales to eat and deliver.”

“How long would that take?” Mason asks.

“They should be ready in an hour and a half. I’ll set a timer for you and it will let us know when to come check on them. Do we have a deal?” I stick out my hand towards them. Watching as the look at each other, their twin connection coming into play before Mickey takes my hand and shakes it, followed by Mickey.

“Deal.” They both say. Hurrying off their chairs and running upstairs.

*****

The beeping of the timer rings through the penthouse. Mason and Mickey running out of their room and into mine and Sam’s ready to check out the tamales we had made.

“They’re ready. Let’s go!” They run out and down the stairs full of excitement.

Following behind them, when the three of us reach the kitchen Mason goes to turn off the timer. Both boys taking a seat waiting for me to present them with what we’ve made. Removing and placing one green and a red tamale on a plate. 

“It’s going to be soft.” I explain to them. “So we have to let it cool a bit so it can firm up. And boys they look incredible. You did an amazing job.”

“Let us see, let us see!” Mickey jumps in his seat.

“Here they are. What do you think?” I smile at them. 

My mother’s recipe, a fond and one of the best memories of my past and a tradition I love, sit in front of two boys who had captivated my heart the moment I saw them with awe and excitement in their eyes, waiting to try what they had a hand in making.

“It smells so good.” Mason says. “Can we try them now?”

“Just a few minutes and then we can. I’m going to take more out of the steamer. Your dad should be getting here soon and we all can have dinner and then go off on our deliveries.”

Turning back to the pots and removing enough for the boys, Sam, Carter and I to have for dinner. Going us the time needed to try the ones I plated earlier.

“Ready?” I grin at Mason and Mickey.

They both nod.

“Grab your plate, unfold the end piece, the one that is folded in and from there open one side and then the other, just like a present. And voilà we have a tamale to eat.”

The boys follow my directions, cutting off a piece with a fork. Blowing on it to cool it off before popping it into their mouth.

“thisissoooogooooodd!” Mason mumbles.

“yeeeaahsoogooood!” Mickey agrees.

“Let me try.” I reach over and take a piece on my fork. Blowing the piece before the savory taste of the cooked masa hits my lips followed by the tanginess and touch of spice from the green salsa takes over. The whole thing melting in my mouth.

“Try this one Mas—.” Mickey tells his brother before reaching over to Mason’s plate. “I don’t know which one I like the most they are both so good.” He says after trying both.

“Marie, can we call Carter and give him some. He is family and we share with family right?” Mason suggests.

“Of course we do. But I was going to invite Carter to eat with us.” I tell him.

“We can present him with what we helped make and he’d love that, wouldn’t he. Like a present, just like you said.” Mason says.

“You two go get Carter so we can show him and give him what you made.” It fills my heart with much more love for those boys hearing how caring they are of everyone they know. As they leave the kitchen the chime of the elevator rings.  

“Hi Dad.” Mason and Mickey call out. 

I could hear them tell Sam that they are off to get Carter. Sam’s footsteps echo and get louder the closer he gets to the kitchen. “Smells amazing in here. What have you been doing?” His deep voice calls from the entry way of the kitchen. 

Closing the space between us, he takes me in his arms and leans in placing a light kiss on my lips. “Hi.” I whisper against his lips.

Sam’s gray eyes holding my mine with a passion that still burns strong between us. “Hi.” He leans in more and gives me a deeper kiss.

Breaking the kiss, I pull back. “I wanted to make something from home. Mason and Mickey helped.” I tell Sam.

Sam eyes the serving plates. “What did you make?” 

“Tamales. One of the many things mom taught me. I thought it would be nice to share and incorporate my traditions here with you and the boys.”

Before Sam could answer Mason and Mickey come running back, pushing Sam and I to get to the serving plate. “Hey!” Sam calls out.

“Sorry Dad but these are for Carter.” Mason says holding a plate while Mickey loads it up. “And after we have to go and deliver to family and friends. Marie already said we could.”

“Do I get any of these?” Sam asks the boys.

“Nope!” Mickey tells him. “We figured it out. Carter gets these. We are taking some to Uncle Robin, Grandma and Grandpa, our friends and Aunt Sofia. After Mason and I eat our share they will be all gone.”

I press my lips together fighting a laugh. Seeing the mock hurt in Sam’s face. I wink at him.

“Sofia gets some and I don’t?”

“Maybe one or Marie can share hers with you. She showed us what she did growing up for the holidays with her mom and dad and how they would share with others even their neighbors and how happy they would be.” Mason tells his dad.

“We liked making them and really happy eating them and Aunt Sofia needs all the holiday cheer she can get.” Mickey adds.

Leaning up and placing my lips close to Sam’s ears. “Don’t worry, I’ll share.”

After all was said and done, in the end Sam, Mickey, Mason, Carter and I passed around the plates piled with steaming tamales from a recipe my mother passed down to me. 

The night had turned out to be the one of the best as happiness coursed through me at being able to share a bit of my mothers memory and bring a taste of home to the family I call my own. 

[bloobydabloob]

I have no mouth and I must scream if AM was Hal (for some reason) and all 5 people were Dirk. I did this as kind of a joke but it got out of hand

[inkskinned]

it is all chaos and entropy. the thing is that the chaos and entropy make it beautiful and lovely.

yes, it's true that nature and the universe are uncaring and unspecific, and that is terrifying. i have lived through some of the unfairness - i got born like this, with my body caving into itself, with this ironic love of dance when i sometimes can't stand up for longer than 15 minutes. i am a poet with hands that are slowly shutting down - i can't hold a pen some days. recently i found a dead bird on our front porch. she had no visible injuries. she had just died, the way things die sometimes.

it is also true that nature and the universe are uncaring and unspecific, and that is wonderful. the sheer happenstance that makes rain turn into a rainbow. the impossible coincidence of finding your best friend. i have made so many mistakes and i have let myself down and i have harmed other people by accident. nature moves anyway. on the worst day of my life she delivers me an orange juice sunset, as if she is saying try again tomorrow.

how vast and unknowing the universe! how small we are! isn't that lovely. the universe has given us flowers and harp strings and the shape of clouds. how massive our lives are in comparison to a grasshopper. the world so bright, still undiscovered. even after 30 years of being on this earth, i learned about a new type of animal today: the dhole.

chance echoing in my life like a harmony between two people talking. do you think you and i, living in different worlds but connected through the internet - do you think we've ever seen the same butterfly? they migrate thousands of miles. it's possible, right?

how beautiful the ways we fill the vastness of space. i love that when large amounts of people are applauding in a room, they all start clapping at the same time. i love that the ocean reminds us of our mother's heartbeat. i love that out of all the colors, chlorophyll chose green. i love the coincidences. i love the places where science says i don't know, but it just happens.

"the universe doesn't care about you!" oh, i know. that's okay. i care about the universe. i will put my big stupid heart out into it and watch the universe feast on it. it is not painful. it is strange - the more love you pour into the unfeeling world, the more it feels the world loves you in return. i know it's confirmation bias. i think i'm okay if my proof of kindness is just my own body and my own spirit.

i buried the bird from our porch deep in the woods. that same day, an old friend reaches out to me and says i miss you. wherever you go, no matter how bad it gets - you try to do good.

[living-arcade]

Heres a shitpost of something that happened in my dream last night

[eightyuh]

Tiny Harry AU twist: Glen is still 0'6, and Harry is ~0.2cm tall

(I changed Harry to 2cm so that it would be a similar ratio to Glen)

went a little crazy with this one ... the gears were turning. thanks for the idea!

[chiliger]

Caught in places a clone shouldn’t be.

(Aurebesh translation: Upper left - “Inhibitor undetected.” Lower right - “ARC : CT-0317 . . . Knows too much. Terminate.”)