#because there's a rift in their relationship now due to what happened in across

[demidevildonnie]

i can hear you screaming out, calling me

[krashlite]

I think that c!Jimmy liked being a Bad Boy and a Big Dog because for once in this series a role let him be reckless without being mocked/put down by his allies and without truly harming anyone through the risks he took. In this essay I will explore his character through this lens

Jimmy is an extremely optimistic character, almost always seen smiling and laughing about whatever’s going on. Not in the sense that he laughs when he’s nervous, but in the sense that he makes light of whatever scenario he’s in. On a deeper level, this also translates into overconfidence in a glass-half-full type of way. If there’s a chance a plan could go south, he only focuses on the potential benefit. If there’s a chance he loses a fight, he only focuses on winning

This isn’t to say he’s unaware of negative outcomes, he just chooses to ignore them. The result is him making poor decisions over, and over, and over again. Jimmy knows exactly why he did that but from an outside perspective he’s regarded as stupid

This is seen as early as 3rd life, with Scott practically putting him on a leash to stop him from fighting Ren and his army. Specifically when they manage to chase Dogwarts away from Joel’s base, Jimmy goes to give chase and Scott immediately stops him. They’ve won, and he doesn’t understand why Jimmy would push it further. Jimmy, on the other hand, is thinking about how they’ve been chased across the map like rabbits and knows DW will be back unless they establish themselves as a threat. Now’s the perfect time, since they have the upper hand

But again, Scott doesn’t see this. In his mind, the battle is won and they shouldn’t expend more time, energy, or resources on it. Ultimately he doesn’t want to see Jimmy hurt and believes that restricting what Jimmy does will protect him from harm

I think this shows a fundamental difference in how they interact with the world. Scott’s more practical- he only does what he feels is necessary and is humble enough to know when the risk isn’t worth the reward. Jimmy, on the other hand, wants to test the limits and see what he’s able to accomplish through, once again, taking unnecessary risks.

But this is where things get messy

Again, there is a fundamental difference in their thought processes. This causes them to clash, and since Scott is the one who held more “power” in the relationship (being the one to decide many aspects of their base and being the one to make most deals and plans for the both of them), resulted in Scott putting Jimmy down A Lot. This started with Jimmy returning from the desert without several of the armor pieces he left with and continued throughout the war.

Jimmy, in response to this treatment, started acting More reckless as a means to prove himself. He wanted to be seen as just as strong, smart, and capable as the people around him. Ultimately, he wanted to be respected in his own right, and that didn’t really happen this season!

Nor did it happen in LL,

LL was an entire mess for so many reasons and most of it was due to the game mechanic itself. Lives being treated as currency caused rifts in many alliances, especially the Southlands

This coupled with the fact that Jimmy is already back in 3L habits, trying to prove himself constantly, makes an incredibly messy situation. His efforts in monopolizing sugar cane are downplayed and mocked, he spends so much time getting spyglasses just for Mumbo to lose them. These are meant to be harmless jokes (and really, they are) but Jimmy’s coming off of an unbalanced power dynamic and a tiny bit of it eats away at him and he can’t figure out Why.

Jimmy doesn’t understand why he doesn’t feel valued in the team, so he starts looking at arbitrary reasons Why. The reason he settles on is the life count, with Grian’s death making it known that Yellow-Names are on the brink of being exiled.

This comes back to the game mechanic. Jimmy sees Martyn with four lives, with the ability to either a) bring Grian back to Yellow or b) offer a Yellow-Name in the alliance a life to keep them safe, and Martyn Doesn’t. This tells Jimmy that Martyn either doesn’t trust him or doesn’t value him enough to even attempt to protect him

I think this was even voiced a couple of times during LL, with Martyn closely guarding his lives and finding every reason he could to justify it (he was fully in the right for keeping them, even if doing so hurt others). Jimmy backed off, but there was just a small amount of bitterness that lingered

With Martyn, I think Jimmy picked up on the fact that Martyn was more concerned with protecting his Alliance than the people in it. He needed a group around him, but wasn’t terribly concerned with them otherwise

And that’s what fueled his decision to steal the life. If Martyn doesn’t respect him, if he doesn’t trust him, if he doesn’t care enough to protect him, why should Jimmy do the same. Why should he be a human shield for someone who barely looks his way. Impulse and Mumbo could stay if they wanted, but he wasn’t going to

Which makes it hurt so much more when Martyn asks to run away with him, when Martyn says he cares about Jimmy more than anyone else in the alliance. I want to remind you, Jimmy’s an optimist. He looks at the half-full cup. He doesn’t consider Martyn could be lying because he wanted so badly to just be Seen. So Jimmy gives it back

As it turns out, Martyn was lying. He calls him an idiot, and Jimmy is exiled immediately

All the resolve that Jimmy had in stealing the life crumbles then and there. He starts hanging around the Southlands alliance like a lost puppy, basically begging them to take him back. Martyn’s little ruse inadvertently showed Jimmy that, really, all he wanted is to be valued and supported. The life counts stops being an issue because he’s able to recognize the real issue- he feels undervalued and he feels stupid

That’s a factor even after the Southlands reunites, after he’s almost unanimously voted back in but Grian’s insistent on a recount. I think it’s the main reason why he’s so risky when he goes down to red- with him falling for a trap that he easily could have avoided

Again, it’s the same as 3L. He feels disrespected and undervalued so he takes unnecessary risks in order to prove to himself and to others that he’s just as strong, just as smart, and just as capable as they are.

This is later coupled with Mumbo’s extreme bloodlust when he turns Red. On Red, Mumbo was needlessly violent and is basically the only Red to swing at anything that moved. And I do mean Needlessly violent, he got himself and others into several dicey scenarios because he was impulsive and wanted to Stab. He gave the server a reason to be cautious of Mumbo and any other Red-Name. If Mumbo was a loose cannon, how would others be?

Except Mumbo was only aggressive towards Non-Reds (obviously) and was otherwise supportive of those on his side

I think this actually greatly influenced Skizz’s decision to leave BEST behind, with him seeing Mumbo as someone worth defending/standing by. Not only was he a visibly strong ally with a reputation, he genuinely cared for and supported those who were at his side. In Skizz’s case, he offered a source of stability where BEST couldn’t, and I think the same is true for Jimmy.

Jimmy sees this, and sees Mumbo as someone who can both show him how to be dangerous and respect his abilities in this game. Mumbo was respected as a threat and genuinely cared for those in his company. So he’s the perfect ally, right?

Actually, no, and this isn’t where the Skizz comparison ends either. Remember, Mumbo created the reputation that Reds are a worthy threat and that they’re violent without cause (“oh but what about Joel?” Joel was a joke at best and an annoyance at worst. He I think he definitely did influence Mumbo’s actions but that’s another essay entirely). Mumbo influenced Skizz’s aggression this season, with him becoming more bold in who he threatened or even attacked

So how does this compare to Jimmy? Both of them were coming off of alliances where they were unsupported, so they leaned more into Mumbo’s habits- good and bad. Except they didn’t really see it. Good traits were associated with Mumbo, their friend, and bad traits were associated with their shared condition, their Red-Life.

The plan to trap the bunker played on both, but was coupled with Jimmy’s bad habit of shooting for the best possible outcome. Mumbo had previously turned tail and ran whenever a plan went south, but that’s not how Jimmy is. Jimmy only focuses on the possible gain and ignores possible dangers. When the trap didn’t set off, he insisted on pushing Grian into it. And that actually goes back to him trying to chase Ren’s army- he didn’t know when to call it quits

And of course this causes both of their deaths. To Jimmy, his death caused Mumbo’s. He caused the death of the one ally who actually stood by him. I think this is when he fully internalizes criticism from 3L and LL as a whole. He feels weak, he feels stupid, he doesn’t feel nearly as capable as those around him.

And this carries into DL

Except DL was a much different season than the previous two. The soulmate mechanic in DL meant that you and your ally have to rely on each other, you have to support each other because failing to do so will surely spell your doom

Not only that, but Jimmy was finally paired with a supportive ally from the start. They made their base together because they trusted the other to build more than they trusted themself. When Jimmy came back with cows, Tango’s immediate response was to exclaim “you’re amazing!!!” Instead of criticizing him like previous alliances had- even back in 3L!! This is the first time Jimmy got a fully positive response to his efforts. Tango was overwhelmingly supportive towards Jimmy and Jimmy returned the favor. The base didn’t look perfect, but it was theirs. The server didn’t want them to have a horn so they devised a plan to get one.

Tango had also been following a similar arc up until now- with him being undervalued by his alliances. Except in those alliances, he was pushed to the side or physically harmed instead of being an object of ridicule. I think this is part of why it isn’t really out of place for them to meet through dying. Tango was expecting to be harmed and so was Jimmy, so neither of them blame the other

With Tango being pushed to the side, he also shied away from leadership positions, finding it more comfortable to follow. This paired well with how Jimmy typically takes charge of things, with Jimmy making most plans for the both of them (most, not all)

But again, this is where things get messy

Remember, Jimmy uses risks to prove his worth. He wants to see what he can do, but is also still recovering from previous seasons. He still thinks he’s the reason why him and Mumbo died, and doesn’t want to cause the death another ally, especially one who loves him. Instead of staying careful, he devises a plan to steal livestock, to steal Scar’s horse. It’s for the ranch, it’s for Tango

I think Jimmy realizes the problem when the Ranch is burned. He’s forced to confront this when he sees Tango fly into a rage and almost try to fight a group of people he’d surely lose to. Jimmy cannot be reckless here, he has to talk Tango down from the proverbial ledge.

With this, the roles end up reversing, with Tango being the reckless one and Jimmy trying to steer him to be more tactical. And Jimmy is So careful about this too, not wanting to act like Scott or the Southlands. Because of that he never actually tells Tango no on his dangerous plans- ESPECIALLY the plan to release Rancher’s Revenge, the warden- but instead suggests ways to make the plan better

The dilemma here is that Jimmy needs to choose between being risky and being safe. Both would benefit Tango, except Jimmy knows from experience how much it hurts to be bound in bubble-wrap all the time

Jimmy sees no way to avoid risks without hurting Tango. So instead of fighting against that part of himself, Jimmy leans into it. He accepts it as a key tenet of his identity, even as it puts the both of them in harms way. Yes they went down in the end, but they went down together, Always Together.

It didn’t matter if Jimmy was a “worthy” ally, he didn’t need to be Smart, he didn’t need to be Strong, he didn’t even need to be Capable. He learned that he deserved love not in spite of his flaws, but alongside his flaws.

And this is the lesson he carries into the next two Seasons, with both alliances being fully centered on being reckless

The Bad Boys acted dangerously, but they acted as a unit- ESPECIALLY him and Joel. Bad Boys dig straight down, Bad Boys water bucket clutch from the build limit, Bad Boys care about each other not in spite of endangering themselves, but because of it

And this is because Joel had a nearly identical arc. Joel in previous seasons had a habit of acting recklessly in the same way Jimmy did, and was cast aside because of it. In 3L he ended up a Lone Wolf, in LL he was forced into a position where he’s the villain, and in DL he and Etho leaned into the danger in the same way Jimmy and Tango did. Their stories run parallel so it only makes sense that they’re the ones who end up supporting each other in LimL

And Joel was Jimmy’s main source of support that season, with Grian representing the criticism of previous seasons. This gave Jimmy the ability to confront said criticisms through, again, leaning into them. He did something stupid? Yes, but him and Joel were having fun. A plan went south because of unnecessary risks? Yes, but Joel was being risky with him. Joel gave Jimmy the ability to basically cut through the aforementioned “bubble wrap” Grian was trying to put around them

And I think it’s also important to mention Grian did this out of both love and cowardice, not malice. Ultimately he didn’t want to lose either of them and was trying to keep them alive longer. But because Grian never learned the lesson they did- that it’s more important to act together than to survive alone- Grian chooses survival and ends up alone.

Anyways, recklessness being the foundation of Jimmy’s alliances carries into SL as well

Jimmy was on the brink of death for almost the entire season, man was not thriving whatsoever and that was known. Funnily enough, he ends up with Martyn, who again was previously more concerned with his own safety than the people around him

But Martyn is just coming off of a victory, of finally achieving the very thing he’d been working towards and the thing he centered his motivations on. Without that goal, he’s left with his methods- which was mostly having dangerous ideas and seeing them through

With Jimmy, Martyn introduced plans that involved them being risky and in everyone else’s faces. This, to Jimmy, echoed both Joel and Tango’s behavior. He was able to fully settle into the fact that, for him, good things come from being reckless, from shooting for the best possible outcome and refusing to back down

Jimmy maintains his optimism and his recklessness, traits that had previously been challenged but traits he stubbornly holds onto and values in his Life

[icycoldninja]

Can u write the DMC boys in a scenario where they were turned into little kittens because a particularly smart devil managed to cast a magic spell on them to escape?

When they woke up, they’re very confused as to why their clothes are suddenly much bigger than they are and so do their weapons. Only when they look at their reflection in the nearby puddle do they realize they become a little kitten

Now they’re cursing in distress, which, sound more like distressed meows from a sulking kitty

And that caught the reader’s attention as she was searching up and down for them, not knowing what happened to her bf before she stumbled across a cute little cat near the pile of fallen rocks

Reader: What are you doing here little fella? Where’s your mom? Did you happen to come across my boyfriend? Can I bring you home with me?

The boys: ‘HONEY!! IT’S ME’ *distressed meowing being inserted*

Now the reader takes care of the little kitten she brought home, not knowing it’s her bf meanwhile she’s just praying for their well-being and hope that they get home soon (erm…about that) She usually plays with them, buys things for them for enrichment, etc and not only that, she usually rants to the little kitten that even though she do love the boys, she can’t help but feel that there’s a rift between their relationship because of how much time they spend with their job, which makes her feel neglected in a way but she can’t blame them. Meanwhile, the kitten, that happens to be her bf, is actually paying close attention to her words, their heart aches because they unknowingly neglect her by overworking themselves, which leads to little to no time for their relationship

After a few days, they return back to normal. Reader is glad they’re back home but is confused about what happened to her favorite little kitty. That’s when the boys explain that the kitten is them…which leads to a very awkward conversation afterwards, ranging from ‘Are you okay?’s; ‘What happened/?’ to the boys explaining that they heard her confession and both the reader and them promising to work out their relationship

P/S: No joke V looks like an Oriental Short hair cat like…no explanation needed

and Nero looks similar to an Ocicat

For Vergil and Dante. It’s rather complicated but they’re either Russian Blues or Turkish Angoras

Here’s a little illustration of cat V I made…I’m rather proud of it

yeap that's accurate. Cool drawing, btw.

Sparda boys + V x Reader kitten situation headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Somehow, a particularly powerful demon managed to cast a spell on Dante and turned him into a cat.

-Dante was super angry about this and started screeching at thin air, convinced he was speaking English words.

-While returning home from work, you came across this very kitten, sitting and meowing in distress. Naturally, you decided to help him.

-Dante was happy to be with you, but he couldn't understand why you didn't understand what he was saying. It took some time, but he eventually concluded that he must have been speaking cat.

-You cared for the cat-Dante for a little while, growing super attached to him in the process. Oh how you loved this fuzzy little ball of fun. You also vented to it, shamelessly dilvuging all your fears and issues with your relationship due to how much time Dante spent away from you. All this information went into the cat's wars, and registered in Dante's brain.

-When the spell eventually wore off, you were very sad, but hey, at least you had your boyfriend back!

-After asking about his strange absence, Dante was reluctant to admit that he was the cat you'd taken care of all along and that he remembers every moment; every word.

-He then apologized and promised to make more time for you, much to your delight. Thankfully, Dante is lighthearted and doesn't judge much or you'd be in for one hell of a lecture.

■ Vergil ■

-Vergil couldn't believe something like this had happened to him. How could he have been foolish enough to get turned into a cat?!

-He was very angry, and naturally began grumbling to himself while trying to head home.

-This was where you found him, meowing sadly like the poor little kitty he was.

-Of course, you brought him home, and began treating him like your adopted child, unaware that this was actually your boyfriend.

-You poured out your soul to this harmless kitten, venting about everything that upset you, including how Vergil's continuous absence saddened you.

-When Vergil returned to normal (which took a few days), he decided not to say anything about it. He simply couldn't bear to tell you he, the MOTIVATED one, had been changed into a cat. Instead, he took more time off for you, surprising you with his sudden change of schedule.

□ Nero □

-Nero didn't really understand how this happened, but hey, it's not all bad!

-While laughing about it to himself, he saw you crossing the street, and decided to meow to get your attention.

-Your attention he got indeed; the next thing he knew, he was being given a bath at home, and then a lot of pets and scratches behind the ears.

-He also got to listen to you talk about your day, in far more detail than you ever told him. It made him kind of jealous. A cat was getting to know more about you than your own boyfriend did.

-When you started talking about how your boyfriend (him) was hardly ever around, it all clicked into place. You felt neglected! Aw shit, Nero really fucked up this time.

-Once he turned back to normal, he set out to change things, even promising out of the blue that he'd put more time into your relationship. When you asked him why, he ended up inadvertently revealing he had been that kitten you so adored all this time.

● V ●

-V was just a few seconds too slow to avoid this demon's beam of magic, and ended up getting turned into a cat.

-Oh, this was so distressing. Griffon and Shadow were no longer around, so V was all alone. When cats are frightened and alone, what do they do? Meow.

-You happened to hear this meowing as you were out and about looking for him, and being the kind soul you are, rushed to help the terrified kitty.

-V was then given a glimpse of how royalty lives. He was pampered, doted on, petted almost every 2 seconds, and waited on hand and foot.

-He also got to hear a lot of your secrets, including how you felt lonely without him around. You missed him much more than he realized, V realized, and made a mental promise to fix that once he was human again.

-You were dismayed to lose your kitten, when that eventually happened, but overjoyed to have your boyfriend back. It was then when you were informed that he never left. V was the cat all along, and from that moment onward, he would make more time for you.

[sankta-starkova]

THE OUTSIDERS

003 | chill in the air

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summary: the one where daisy returns to camp from college and is blinded by her love for him, even as the world ends

wordcount: 2.2k

The camp felt an unusual chill after the Winter Solstice and although it was partly due to the war between the Gods which the campers had not yet noticed, it was also because of the biggest rift in all of camp.

Chiron had seen demigods fight before at camp. He had watched relationships start and end. He had been to too many funerals to count. Never had he seen a fight like this.

He had never seen two campers be such pillars of Camp Half Blood before. They were the light on a rainy day and nobody knew when or how it happened, they had always been Daisy and Luke. Luke and Daisy.

Camp was cold. They hadn't talked to one another for three days at this point and nobody had ever seen them like this.

Some of the campers watched as Daisy walked into the lunch hall, looking around and completley ignoring the watchful gaze of Luke.

They muttered to themselves as she say down with her three best girl friends in camp.

The kids watched, hesitant. Everyone who had arrived in the last 6 years knew of Luke and Daisy, the inseperable duo.

Annabeth would whisper into every new campers ear about the duo. How even if they didn't see it, they were soulmates. Futures strung together by the fates themselves.

Daisy could feel the eyes in her as she sat with Selena, Lily and Nina.

The three were her best friends at camp. She trusted them more than anything - but she trusted Luke. She used to anyway, now she was starting to doubt it all.

Luke watched her as she sat down. He was with Chris as he toyed with his food, appetite still missing.

He just watched the empty spot on the table. She hadn't even looked at him in days and it made his heart sink.

"Are you two still fighting?" Annabeth said as she walked over, interrupting him and Chris as they sat at the table.

He looked at her, too ashamed to admit it, "No, why would you say that?"

Annabeth scoffed she knew that they were arguing. It was obvious.

But it was also obvious that he loved her. Annabeth saw it from the moment that they met when Daisy laughed at one of his jokes and Lukes face lit up with pride.

"She seems mad, and she doesn't want to talk to you," Annabeth said, arms folded across her chest.

He didnt want to talk about it or think about how mad he was about the whole situation, "We're fine, she's busy. You know how important she is, she has stuff to do,"

"Sure, whatever you say Luke," Annabeth said before walking off.

As soon as she left, he knocked his head onto the table with a groan, furious at himself.

"What's up man?" Chris asked. He had watched him wallow for so long and was tired about it, "What did you do?"

"It's nothing," he sighed, realising it would be good to tell someone, "I told her she had changed since she's been at college,"

Chris scoffed, now understanding why she didn't want to talk to him, "Dude, you gotta calm down, she won't want to come back of you keep complaining about her,"

"I know, I know," Luke said, head in his hands.

Chris sighed, "We can all tell that you love her,"

"Course I love her, she's my best friend," luke responded, feeling his eyes linger on her again.

Chris caught him watching her. The gaze that everyone always wanted, the gaze of the most popular boy in camp always strayed to her.

He could remember a time when every girl tried to shoot their shot at Luke Castellan and gw would just smile and turn to Daisy, wrapping an arm around her shoulder before walking away. He wishes it could be like that again.

"No dumbass. You have feelings for her, you love her," Chris said.

Luke tried to interrupt him, to save himself from losing that reputation be had but Chris wouldn't let him. 

"Man, you moped for weeks after she left for school," he stated, "You love her and all the kids know, especially the Aphrodite ones,"

Luke cocked his head, "Why? You been talking to Selena and Lily about me?"

Selena and Lily were half sisters but acted like twins. The latter of which had always caught Chris Rodriguezs eye.

"She says she loves you too," he said.

Lukes gaze, like it always did, landed on the object of his affection, the daughter of Apollo.

Selena looked over her shoulder, "They're staring again,"

Daisy groaned, "I'm not in the mood Selena,"

Selena and Lily looked at one another. They knew that there was more to the story than their friend was letting in.

"Come on. You know he likes you, why don't you just make a m-" Lily started but was stopped by Daisy.

She slammed her hand down on the table, the loud noise echoing through the friend group. None dared to make a sound.

None of them had ever seen the girl so angry before and wondered what had happened during their conversation. 

"He doesn't like me like that. If he did then he wouldn't have let me go," she muttered, shrinking in on herself.

Silence filled the group. Nobody knew what to say after her sudden outburst.

Daisy could feel her heart pounding. She looked up and her eyes locked with Lukes. He went to say something, or wave but she averted her gaze, tears welling up.

She couldn't talk to him right now, she couldn't even think about it.

"Can we change the subject?" She asked, wiping her eyes.

The three girls looked at one another, unsure of the extent of this fight, "Of course,"

"Uh, you guys ready for capture the flag?" Nina said as she tried to change the subject and not cause an issue.

Daisy's gaze faltered and she looked over at Luke again. She wasn't listening to the conversation anymore.

By the end of the game of capture the flag which resulted in a win for Clarisse and her team (the team Daisy was on despite always being on Annabeth and Lukes team) they all sat at the campfire, singing songs.

Michael clapped and the group looked at him and some of the other Apollo kids. They always lead the songs and it was a camp favourite.

"I think we should have our old friend do a song," he said, holding the guitar in Daisy's direction.

Everyone applauded, cheering her on and encouraging her to sing and she accepted the guitar, a nervous feeling building up in her gut.

"I don't know," she said, looking at the guitar.

"Come on, you have the most beautiful voice," Nina said, leaning forward. She also knew that her voice was one of Lukes favourite things about her. She was the siren trying to pull him from the boat, drowning her.

Someone yelled out a song suggestion and she sang it. It was Lukes favourite one but she ignored that fact as she started strumming.

She sang the song, the slow and tragically romantic ballad and he just watched her in awe.

Linda Rondstadt had always been his favourite and when she locked eyes with him, she could see his eyes welled in tears.

The rest of the camp was silent as they listened to her. When she finished, they erupted in applause, some standing up.

The people who had stood up started to sit down, muttering to one another about how amazing her voice was.

The only one left standing was Luke. He was almost in shock, mouth slightly open as he stared at her.

When he noticed that everyone else had sat back down, he followed suit, face lighting up in a blush

"Another one," someone called out through the conversations.

"A more upbeat one this time," Michael Yew said and she nodded.

"I'm gonna take a second, I'll be back soon," she said, wrapping her jacket around herself before walking out towards the lake.

It was in eye distance of everyone else but she just needed some time by herself, she couldn't even bare to be near Luke anymore.

He watched her walk away and felt a sinking feeling in his gut. That's when he saw Selena and Lily walking over.

"You should talk to her," Lily said, fed up of two people who were clearly meant for each other ruining it all.

He folded his arms across his chest, "She doesn't want to talk to me,"

Selena scoffed, "You're right. But why should that stop you?" She questioned.

He took a second to think about it. She was right, he needed to just rip the bandaid off and make the first move.

Luke took a deep breath before he walked over and stood next to her.

She looked up at him before looking back down at the dirt floor. Just looking at him made the tears well up in her eyes.

"Can we talk?" He asked, voice shaky.

She nodded and he sat down next to her, both of them silent. They'd never had this big of a fight before and over what?

"Chiron will be mad if he sees us here alone," She muttered, gaze still laser focused on the floor.

He tilted his head in confusion, "Why? What does he think will happen?"

For the first time since he had arrived, she looked over at him, head cocked to the side, "You know what,"

It took him a second and then it clicked. He laughed at her comment and the sound made that little ball of fear in her stomach dissappear.

She laughed as well, for the first time since their argument. He watched in awe, it was always his favourite sound.

When the laughter died out, the awkward silence fell back over them, wiping away any confidence they had gained.

Luke leaned forward and that's when she noticed how close they were, shoulders brushing.

"I've missed you," he whispered, almost like he didn't want anyone else to hear it, only her, the recipient of his love.

"Yeah, me too," she stated.

She leaned even closer, staring into his dark eyes. She knew she had fallen for him and wouldn't be able to escape, not now, not when he was so close.

"You know, I didn't want to leave camp for college. I just needed something new," she admitted.

He smiled, "I'm not mad that you left, I've just missed you,"

She chuckled, "I've missed you so much. Nobody at NYU compares," she stated.

That's when that signature smirk came on his face, "Compares?" He questioned, curious about her remark.

"I have this friend, Holly, and she keeps trying to set me up with guys. She doesn't know why I say no after one date," she explained.

There was this feeling of jealous bubbling up in his chest but then he realised she had said no to them all.

"Why do you say no?" He questioned, that seed of pride growing in his heart.

He leaned closer as he said that, nose brushing against hers so that they could feel each others breaths on their faces.

She'd never been this close to Luke before. He had never looked at her like this.

"They're not you Luke," she admitted, finally, after so many years, "Nobody ever compared to you,"

He leaned just a little closer, nose nudging against hers. Her breath hitched in her chest as she realised what he was going to go.

That pride filled him up. She had chosen him over anyone else in the world and that was all he needed. She was his now.

"Des," he muttered.

She had only realised that her eyes had fluttered closed at that moment. She opened them again, looking into his eyes, "Yes?"

"I'm gonna kiss you," Luke said, voice seemingly lower than usual.

Daisy felt his hand come up and rest on her cheek and she nodded, "Okay,"

At her verbal confirmation, he leaned in those few inches and pressed his lips against hers.

It was soft and perfect and everything either of them had ever hoped it would be.

He pulled away after a second, "You're perfect," he muttered against her lips.

He could feel her grinning against him and that's when her hand came up, bunching up the collar of his camp shirt and pulling him in for another kiss.

His hand on her cheek moved to the back of her neck and the other to her waist, trying to pullher impossibly closer.

She was drowning in his kiss and couldn't understand why she hadn't done this a million times before.

Daisy didn't know how long they had been kissing for before they pulled apart for some much needed air.

"We should head back, they'll be worried," she said, feeling his lips press against her cheek, then her jaw.

He looked up at her and she thought she'd never forget that sight of his big wide eyes and kiss bitten lips, "I'm sure Selena will know exactly what we're up to,"

She laughed and he forgot all about their argument and just focused on the moment, of the joyful glee in her laugh

"Does this mean you'll go out with me?" He asked.

She shook her head, leaning in, "I've been waiting for you to ask Castellan," she stated. 

Daisy leaned in to kiss him again, missing the feeling of him against her already. God, she could get used to this.

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[belphies-cuhm-sluht]

Well, what about the reader starting to date Belphegor after they dated Satan? Like that one you wrote with Lucifer and Satan

Every Moon Sets (Belphegor x GN!Reader ft. Satan)

A/N : Been gone for 2 days because I’m a cry baby bitch who can’t handle my period cramps at all, and I think I’m coming down with something so ugh... anyway, here’s this! Also i posted this from my phone, so the format is janky and im gonna have to fix it when i get back on my computer.... Also, the title is another Brothertiger song... <.<

Word Count : 1.7k

Warnings : angst ; Satan being a genuine asshole ;

“Oh please, do you really think I care what you do? You humans are always saying you’re leaving, but you’re so good at crawling back. Do you want me to leave the door open for you so you won’t have to reach up for the knob while you’re on your knees?” That was the thing… that was the problem right there. He didn’t care, he never cared. Every single thing you did seemed to be a burden to him, even just talking to him seemed like it drove him nuts. That’s why you had told him that you were leaving in the first place, and his reaction only made you that much more sure that you were making the right decision.

“I hate you so much…” You mumbled, turning to walk out the door. You only heard him scoff from behind you. As much as he hated Lucifer, he was so much like him, it would make him sick, but, lo and behold, the only person that he made sick was you. You slammed the door behind you, walking down the stairs to go to the kitchen, spotting Beel rummaging through the fridge and Belphie sitting on the counter as he waited for his twin. You quickly wiped your tears, not wanting them to question what was going on, you knew how close the brothers were, especially Satan and Belphie due to their hatred of Lucifer, and you didn’t want to cause a rift.

The youngest smiled to you as you walked in and you faked a smile back to him, moving quickly to grab a cup from one of the cabinets and fill it with water. You weren’t planning on sticking around long, and you didn’t want to talk, you just wanted to go to your room. “Hey, Y/N. What’s up? You can’t say hi?” Belphie teased as he slid off the counter, walking over to you. “Are you coming to the meeting tonight? I know Satan has one planned, and… you know, I don’t even know why I’m asking. You’re always there.”

“No, I’m not going to be there.” You muttered, quickly filling your cup and gulping all of the water down as Belphie stared at you, waiting for you to explain, but you didn’t really want to. There was nothing to explain. Satan was just a… well.. He was a demon, and that shouldn’t shock any of the brothers, it wouldn’t come as a surprise, so there was no need to elaborate any further. “Have fun though.”

You placed the cup in the sink and turned to walk away, but Belphie quickly moved to stand in front of you, looking over your face to try to figure out as much as he could without you having to explain. “You two broke up, didn’t you?” It was a rhetorical question, and the way you grimaced and tried to turn away only proved that he was right. “What did he do?” He asked softly, his eyebrows furrowing as he tried to read your eyes.

You shook your head, taking a deep breath as you tried to move around him. You didn’t want to talk about it, and you really wished that he would understand that. You weren’t even sure when the two of you had gotten so close, maybe it was the fact that you were always at the meetings and he just felt that way. You didn’t mind it, but you didn’t want to come between the brothers. “It’s nothing, just… Have fun at your meeting, alright? I’ll see you later.”

He sighed loudly, stepping to the side to let you move past him, his eyes never leaving your back as you walked away. “Screw the damn meeting…” He mumbled, patting Beel on the back to let him know he was leaving as he made his way up to the attic, grabbing his pillows and his blankets and carrying them back down to your room. He didn’t bother to knock, walking in and dropping all of his things on the floor next to your bed before laying down on them, propping his head up on his hand and looking up at you. “You know, I’m not a total asshole. I can see when you’re upset, and… I’m not going to just let you walk away like that.”

No one had expected the two of you to be together, hell, the two of you didn’t even expect that you’d end up together, but you did. What had started as just a friend comforting you through your breakup had turned into so much more. He had gone from sitting in the middle of your bedroom floor or the both of you sitting on opposite ends of the attic bed to him climbing into your bed with you or laying his head across your lap as you absentmindedly played with his hair.

It started off small, casually flirting with each other or cuddling up to each other as you napped together. Small things, things that you never thought would turn to anything more serious. It had gone on like that for months, and maybe he had let it go so long because he assumed that you’d go back to Satan, or maybe because he assumed that he wasn’t good enough to have you for himself, but he was at least a good enough friend to keep you company while you were hurting.

You didn’t think he’d ever do anything, and you truly didn’t even believe that he had any feelings for you besides being your friend until one morning at breakfast, with all of his brothers sitting around the table waiting for him and you to join them. Satan had mumbled something shitty and snide under his breath, and while you hadn’t even been paying attention enough to even notice, Belphie had caught it. He shot Satan a glare before grabbing your hand and pulling you back towards him, and before you even realized what was going on, his lips were pressed against yours. He didn’t pull back immediately, it was like months of built up emotions were let out in that one kiss, and you grew weak in his arms, letting your body fall against his.

The sound of Satan’s fists being slammed against the table and his chair falling back as he pushed himself back with too much force caught both of your attentions, Belphie’s arm staying wrapped around your waist as he pulled you closer to him. “Are you kidding me right now?! You’re a traitor. You chose a stupid human over your own brother! I thought we were close!” Satan practically screeched as he leaned across the table, but you could feel Belphie’s chest vibrating with his laughter as he watched Satan’s tantrum.

“We were, until I realized that you’re more like Lucifer than I thought any one of us could ever be. You disgust me.” Anyone would have been able to hear Satan's growl from a mile away, his fingers gripping around his cup and his knuckles turning ghostly pale before he picked it up and launched it across the room, shattering it against the cabinets right above yours and Belphie’s heads.

He shielded you from the shards that ricocheted, bouncing off his back and clattering to the floor as Satan rounded the table. “I’m not one to use worn out phrases, but in regards to an already used up human, I guess it won’t matter much.” He sighed softly, walking over to where you and Belphie stood, slapping his back roughly while letting out a dry chuckle. “Enjoy my seconds. That’s what you’re good at, surely you’d never be anyone’s first choice.” His shoes crushed the glass even further as he walked away, definitely doing it on purpose, maybe it made him feel stronger, or maybe he just enjoyed the thought that someone might miss a shard and step on it.

“I want this cleaned up by the time I come back downstairs from handling Satan. And you, Belphie…” Lucifer groaned, rolling his eyes as he shook his head. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t use me in the form of an insult. At least not when I’m sitting right there.”

Things had gone on like that ever since it happened, but yours and Belphie’s relationship only blossomed. Satan made it his life’s mission to sabotage your relationship, finally giving Lucifer a much needed break from the constant pranks that he and Belphie used to pull on him. It’s not even that Satan wanted you back, he just didn’t want anyone else to have you. There was no satisfaction in not having you crawl back to him like you usually would, and now that Belphie had you wrapped around his finger, he’d surely never have that satisfaction.

“Just give up, Satan. We’ve been together for months… you’re only embarrassing yourself.” He groaned, rolling his eyes as he walked out of his room, his arm slung over your shoulder. Satan had been standing outside the door, clearly planning something else that would only annoy you and Belphie in the end.

Satan let out a loud laugh, purposely going overboard with the volume just to piss you and Belphie off. “I’m embarrassing myself ? Says the one who decided to take what belonged to me. How embarrassing that you can’t find someone for yourself so you have to take what’s rightfully mine.” Belphie growled quietly which only had Satan assume he was getting somewhere. Maybe Belphie would give up, he’d become tired of hearing Satan’s nonsensical ramblings. “Oh, what’s wrong Belph? Is the truth really that hard to handle?” He smirked, reaching out to pat Belphie’s shoulder, but he quickly shrugged Satan’s hand off.

“Leave us alone, Satan. They don’t want you anymore. You never deserved Y/N, and you definitely don’t deserve them now. Face it, you fucked up… deal with it.” Belphie took a deep breath as he pulled you away, leaving Satan alone in the middle of the hallway.

He’d never stop though. Maybe he did want you back, maybe it took losing you to realize that you were the greatest he could’ve ever had. That thought is what would keep him going, and he doesn’t care what Belphie says, does, or thinks. You were his first.

[scvrllet]

Eternity

“What crueler punishment is there than love?”

PAIRING: Regulus Black x Fem!Reader

SUMMARY: Falling in-love was always scary, but falling in-love knowing there is an inevitable end is terrifying

WORD COUNT: 2.1k

WARNING(S): Mentions of death + brief mentions of grief, Immortal!Reader

AUTHORS NOTE: This has been sitting in my drafts for months ( back when i was an active hp writer and was primarily in said fandom) and finally decided to post it

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Immortality may seem like a blessing to those who desire it but forget the burden those cursed with it must carry.

How long have you been alive to watch the world around you evolve? Watch as one Dark Wizard rose and fell only for another to take their place? Watch as those you loved died, leaving you to grieve for all of eternity but yet some dare say that it’s a gift? The answer; far too long.

If anything, it’s more of a curse than a gift. A cruel way of punishing others but not just them but their family as well.

Old magic was dangerous and masters of those forces were not to be messed with. Your family had learnt that the hard way many years ago. An old witch, who one of your past ancestors had wrongly messed with, put a curse on your family. Any and every daughter born into the (Y/L/N) family would be cursed with immortality, paying their ancestors debt for all of eternity. Perhaps this is where the term ‘old soul’ had come from. You thought to yourself once. It humored you at the time but barely anymore. All you wanted was for your soul to be at rest but due to that witch’s magic, that would never happen.

When your parents welcomed you into the world you would be cursed to live in forever, a part of them had hoped that the curse would have somehow skipped a generation but when they noticed your lack of physical aging as you grew up, the only thing they could do was spend as much time with you as possible, your father especially. His time was running out but not yours. It never would.

You’ve lived through many decades and met several people, most of whom were starting to leave your mind, being replaced by the new people you were always meeting. Friends in your opinion, were easily replaceable. Whether it be betrayal or death that causes a rift in the friendship, there was always another willing to fill that spot. This being said, it didn’t mean you never loved them because you did. You spilled all your secrets and thoughts into them and held them as death took them away from you. Oh how their souls were fortunate enough to be able to rest.

You remember listening to your aunts and grandmother talking about their past lovers as a little girl. When one had finally passed, they’d give themselves some time to grieve before hopping into a new relationship, allowing the cycle to repeat itself. They would’ve expected for you to follow in their footsteps given the curse and all but were quite surprised when decades, maybe even centuries had passed, and you were still in-love with that boy from 1976.

You smiled as you recalled the day. It was the day you realized you were falling in-love for the first and possibly the only time in your life. For a moment, that moment specifically, you forgot about your curse and what would result from it.

It was the third of December. Snow fell onto the white ground as a cool breeze turned your faces red. You were both supposed to be in Herbology class at the time, not by the Black Lake throwing snowballs at each other but

With a bit of help from your magic, you had sent at least ten snowballs in his direction. You laughed as it hit him in the face and the moment of you letting your guard down allowed for him to throw one right back at you.

Your face was cold and wet as you wiped the snow off your face. Narrowing your eyes at him, you noticed a sparkle in his grey eyes before another snowball hit you in the face.

“Reg I swear to God I will murder you.” You threatened as you wiped the snow off your face. Anybody else would’ve been scared and immediately apologized but he knew you like the back of his hand.

“Is that so love?” He teased knowing that nickname was always able to crack your façade. Glaring daggers at him, you hoped he wouldn’t notice how your face got warmer but he saw the corners of your lip twitch upwards a bit and that was all he needed to continue teasing you.

Waving your wand, a pile of snowballs appeared beside you and before Regulus could even say anything, they were all sent flying in his direction one by one. He sighed in relief when the last of the snowballs had been fired at him before using his wand to dry himself off.

When he was finally dry, he looked up at you and smirked before grabbing your hand and pulling you towards the Black Lake. It was frozen but you were absolutely terrified of the ice cracking and falling into the cold water. Just thinking about it sent shivers down your spine as he walked closer to the frozen lake.

“Do you trust me?” He turned around to ask you, standing at the edge of the frozen lake. Had this been someone else, you would’ve broken free of their grasp and run back to your dorm but he was different. You couldn’t explain why, but you felt safe around him. It was an odd feeling.

Simply nodding, he smiled before carefully stepping onto the ice. He laughed as he felt your grip on his arm tightened as the two of you walked further on the ice.

“Regulus what are we doing?” You questioned as he continued to lead you away from the shore.

“Ice-skating, I think. I’ve overheard my brother talk about doing it with his friends and figured I’d give it a try.” He replied with a shrug.

You abruptly stopped in your steps and arched a brow at him as you asked: “You’re telling me that we’re currently ice-skating?”

Regulus cocked his head to the side slightly. “Are we doing it wrong?”

“Ice-skating Reg, it’s in the name. We need skates.” You replied and a look of realization dawned on him. He knew that it felt odd for muggles to do this sport with normal footwear but he just hadn’t realized what he was missing.

“I was wondering why we weren’t going as graceful.” He said under his breath, causing you to chuckle. “Well, right or wrong, I think we’ve had enough ice-skating for today. Come on you must be freezing.”

He grabbed your arm again and started walking back towards the shore. A mistake in this action though was that he didn’t give you enough time to react before he was pulling your arm. This resulted in you losing your balance and slipping on the ice but thankfully, his fast reflexes had you balanced on both feet as Regulus held you by the waist.

“Are you alright?” The playful teasing expression had now been replaced by a wide eyed look of concern as he moved his hands to rest on your shoulders as if to further steady you. He searched your eyes for any sign telling him that you weren’t okay. Thankfully, there were none and he sighed in relief and pulled you into his chest.

Far too intoxicated in his scent, you hadn’t realized that you were shivering until he pointed it out and began to cautiously head back inside. Lightly tugging on your jacket, the two of you got off the ice and back onto the solid ground. As you walked back you couldn’t help but question that feeling you felt whenever you were with him.

It was the feeling you felt when you were having a snowball fight with him. The feeling you felt when he laughed and his eyes would light up. It was the feeling you felt when you were around him and what you felt when he caught you on the ice and looked at you. The moment that happened just a few seconds ago replayed in your mind and you doubt that it’d ever stop. It made you feel warm and safe, mortal even.

You didn’t even realize you were back inside until you heard a voice call out from down the hallway in front of you.

“Mr Black and Ms (Y/L/N) aren’t you supposed to be in Herbology?” It was McGonagall. Shit.

Turning the opposite way, the two of you ran down the hall and turned the corner towards the Dungeons. Teacher or not, you both doubted she would enter the Slytherin’s Common Room.

“Blimey Black, if I wanted to warm up I would’ve rather set myself on fire.” You huffed as you tried to catch your breath. “And how are you not out of breath? I feel like I’m dying.” You had just run nearly halfway across the castle and Regulus wasn’t gasping for air like you who was hunched over the couch, quite dramatically as well you might add.

The boy in front of you rolled his eyes at your exaggeration before sitting down on one of the couches and patting the seat beside him, gesturing for you to sit down beside him. With a flick of his wand, a fire was lit in the fireplace allowing both light and warmth to fill the dark Common Room the Slytherin’s had. You always wondered why Salazar decided to place the Common Room in the Dungeons out of all places. A tower would’ve been much nicer, warmer even, but it seems as his blueprint for Common Rooms was different compared to the other founders.

As you sat down beside him, he pulled you closer towards him so that you were resting on his chest as his arms were wrapped protectively around you. “Better?” He asked and smiled and you hummed in response.

His fingers were tangled in your hair as he hummed a song. That combined with the sound of the fire crackling in front of you were enough to pull you to sleep. When you woke up the next morning you were still in the Slytherin Common Room but the fire was now out and there was a blanket on top of you. You were also laying on something that was most definitely not the couch since you could feel arms loosely wrapped around your stomach.

Sitting up you noticed that the sun was just starting to rise but that wasn’t what shocked you. It was the fact that you had fallen asleep on top of Regulus and that he stayed there until he too fell asleep. He could’ve just left you on the couch to go to sleep or ask one of your friends to take you to your dorm so why did he stay?

“(Y/N)?” You heard him mumble groggily. Whipping your head around you saw Regulus still very much asleep, or at least he looked like he was. His eyes were still closed and his black curly locks were a mess, something he wouldn’t have accepted if he was awake. He was always thought to look presentable at all times.

Shrugging off your previous thoughts you smiled down at him and intertwined your fingers with his. “I’m here Reg.”

He stirred a bit and his grip on your hand became firmer before light snores were heard from him.

“What are you doing to me?” You mumbled as you pushed a few strands of hair off his face. It was that same feeling. That warm feeling that just made you yearn to be with him, it was back. This time much stronger but back nonetheless.

It took you awhile but you did realize what he was doing to you: he was making you fall for him. You didn’t know if it was intentionally or not but what you did know was that it was working.

You were falling in love and it was absolutely terrifying.

Despite your curse and the known outcome, Regulus treasured every single second he was able to share with you. The relationship lasted two years, ending a few months after you both graduated from Hogwarts due to his discovery upon Voldemort. Aside from Kreacher, you were the only person who knew the truth about Regulus Black and what happened to him. Not even his brother or parents knew what had happened to him but that’s how it would stay. The world wouldn’t know about the boy who died trying to right his wrongs.

After his passing though, you couldn’t bring yourself to move on. It didn’t feel right and with all the pain that came with it you doubted you’d ever allow yourself to fall in-love again.

So as years went by and the world continued to move on, you were stuck on that boy from 1976.

[retvenkos]

Grishaverse Deep Dive: The Darkling is a Character that lives in a Society.

((spoilers for ALL of the grishaverse))

Ah, yes, Shadow and Bone season 2 is gearing up, the birds are singing, I have a cup of earl grey tea before me -  it is finally time to sit down to talk about the Darkling, and explain his tenuous relationship with the Grishaverse.

The Darkling is a character greatly contested. When simply looking at his motivations, we see a rift in the fandom. Add in his backstory and it fractures even more. When you pepper in the third ingredient of his relationship with Alina, you get an entire war. The Darkling is a divisive character. He gets under our skin and lingers for days afterwards.

I am going to take you on a deep dive of the Darklings character, and try to tease apart the problems that lie within the creation of his character. Why were so many fans betrayed by his ending? How did he muddle the messages of Shadow and Bone, and why is his ending so complicated that it satisfies very few? Today, we’re going to look at The Problem of the Darking: An Essay in Six Parts.

A little history lesson;

So first, allow me to take you back in time, to 2012, when Shadow and Bone was first released.

Two years prior, The Hunger Games Trilogy had finished coming out and, in a rather stunning turn of events, shifted the popular Y.A. category from the genre of the paranormal romance (thank you, Stephanie Meyer) to the dystopian society. 

Now, this is not to say that there weren’t dystopian stories prior to The Hunger Games, or that there weren’t paranormal romances in the Y.A. genre afterward. Both have survived, but the boom of dystopian stories and the whimper of paranormal romance was definitely felt.

So 2012 hits. In comes Shadow and Bone, in a time where we have some interesting precedents that our Y.A. forefathers created: 

Firstly, let’s talk about themes.

Carried over from both genres, is this idea of duality. There is light and there is dark, and whether or not there is a middle ground is up to the author. As the Y.A. target audience is quite large, there’s a lot to be said for how nuanced this idea can be. In many stories, it’s a nail on the head. In others, the lines are a little more blurred. In most stories, you get some semblance of Good = Light, Bad = Shadow. In the end, the ultimate goal is to embrace one or the other. At the end of the series, we’re either in the midday sun or the midnight darkness. The peak of the story leaves very little middle ground.

Then, brought over from the dystopian genre, we have the idea that The Current Regime is Bad for insidious reasons, and it needs to be torn down and built anew. This is often the main focus of dystopian stories, and our main characters are revolutionaries that see the world in a new, free light.

Finally, a trap of the Y.A. category is it’s simplistic idea of good and bad. Again, we hark back to the vast target age range, and you can see why this would be so prevalent. There is very little by way of morally grey, in the Y.A. category, and if there is moral greyness, it almost always falls into two categories: (1) it is held by the main character alone, and that is why we root for them, or (2) it is martyred and killed. Moral greyness is either the Ushering of a New Era, or The Ideal that Could Not Be. If greyness is to survive, it must exist in the main character who, readers hope, will usher in a new dawn of peace (and light moral greyness) either through their small acts of love (the angel loving the demon) or in large displays of change (the morally grey character rising to be ruler).

These are all themes we expect to be present in Shadow and Bone. And for the most part, they are!

But now let’s talk about character tropes.

Carried over from the paranormal romance, we have the introduction of the “Othered” love interest. This character has a condition that sets him apart from others, and (whether it be vampire, demon, werewolf, etc.) is so prevalent that he cannot fit in. And because of his differences, he has been shunned by Society. This character, notably, is not the “light” or “pure” paranormal figure - he is not the angel - but rather, the demon. The angel would be able to slip into society (presumably because his goodness grants him some kind of godly camouflage). The demon cannot. He doesn’t fit in, and he never can. This creates tension in him, and so he shuns others just as hard as they shun him - he has done so for a very long time until he meets our main character, who gets close to him and breaks down his walls. This character is often the eventual love interest, for reasons that will become apparent later. 

Sometimes carried over from the paranormal romance is the idea that the main character is secretly an “other in hiding” (an angel without her wings, etc.). This creates a bond between the “Othered” love interest and the main character - a bond that can’t be deteriorated once it’s been made, because the main character can’t be un-Othered. They can’t take back the forbidden knowledge they’ve obtained. If this character pops up, the “Othered” love interest is almost always chosen, if he exists.

The dystopian genre has a branching version of this trope, as there is almost always a healthy amount of othering. The main character usually comes from a group of people that is Othered from Society, but our main character is even more unique/different from their “Othered group.” This “specially Othered” character is superpowered in that they can navigate both “Othered” Society and “normal” Society. They can be the go-between.

Sometimes found in the paranormal romance is the “normal” or stereotypical character. This is the average human - the character that doesn’t understand the “Othered” love interest, and wants the main character to go back to the way things were before. This character can sometimes make up the other leg of the love triangle and become a love interest. Other times, it’s a family member or a friend or even an abstract ideal. The point of this character, however, is to show the main character that they can’t go back to the way things were. Too much has happened. Too much has been discovered.

All of this is to say that when Shadow and Bone came out, audiences had expectations with long standing. It is safe and fair to say that the Darkling was set up as a character to be viewed in a certain light, and then the rug was pulled out beneath fans, who had already invested so much in his character.

Shadow and Bone: The characters that Don’t Fit;

So now let’s look at Shadow and Bone in the scope of history and audience expectation. Let’s look at the characters as well as the Grishaverse, in broad terms.

The Darkling is, in the first half of Shadow and Bone, the stereotypical “Othered” love interest. He can summon shadows, which is remarkably different from the other powers of Grisha, and his “forefathers” have done terrible things with this power, making him not only an other in talent but an other in animosity and fear.

In comes Alina, and she is a perfect fit for the main character being an “other in hiding” as well as a “specially Othered” character. She was otkazat’sya before she realized she was Grisha, and she is seen as the go-between for these two different worlds - she can bring them together. Furthermore, she is stronger than your average Grisha - distinct from all others, excepting the Darkling.

Alina is understood by the Darkling. She is discovering parts of herself that she didn’t know she had. This is all decidedly Good, and the romance that is forming is living up to reader expectation.

We also have an interesting occurence of duality. Alina, with her light, is the equal and opposite to the Darkling and his shadow. Together, they have limitless power, a common goal, and perhaps a purifying dynamic as Alina can “save” the Darkling. Her light can banish his shadows. 

History is leading us to believe they are the endgame ship.

This is only inculcated when you have Mal, who is the “normal” character. Through the framing of the story (not seeing Mal, holding on to him only causing Alina to not reach her full potential), we see that the love story with Mal is the Romance That Cannot Be. They are fated to be apart due to the tropes that readers know and understand.

But then the second half of the book kicks in, The Darkling is proven to have been manipulating Alina, things go South, and readers are left unaware of what’s coming next. In this moment, the theme of The Current Regime is Bad slaps readers across the face.

So let’s take a second to look at The Current Regime is Bad, because how the Darkling and his motives exist in that tempest is thought provoking, to say the least.

The Darkling is, decidedly, a part of The Current Regime. He is a general and close to the King, after all. He is a part of this life... and yet he is not. Remember that The Darkling is our “Othered” character. He cannot be a part of The Current Regime because he is shunned by it. And yet, he is tied to it like a prisoner. 

The reader thinks: is the Darkling bad? He is shown to be a part of Society. He wants the war to continue - he doesn’t want to tear down the Fold.

As the reader is grappling with this revelation, we are told (in the same book!) that the Darkling is actually not a part of The Current Regime (which is Bad), but rather, had been working against it. 

Okay.

So now the reader thinks that since Society is Bad, and the Darkling is against it, he and Alina do have a common goal, and his status as a love interest can be saved. He can be redeemed as a character because Alina can purify his methods, then together they can get rid of the current regime, and they can be Others together.

It’s a solid thought process. After all, the “Othered” characters have been consistently good at heart, and Alina can redeem him. We still have a bad guy to take down - and it’s not the Darkling.

But...

Leigh Bardugo decides that is not the story she wants to tell, and she has to pull out some literary gymnastics to give us an explanation. The idea is, no, the Darkling is Bad and his “Othered” status is not relevant because it doesn’t justify his actions. He is a part of a radical portion of The Current Regime and is just as Bad. 

Enter Nikolai Lantsov, who can take over The Current Regime, because as the reader is constantly reminded, Alina no longer wants novelty - she wants normalcy (which is represented by none other than Malyen Oretsev).

So, what does all of this mean? The Darkling decidedly Doesn’t Fit into any of the currently accepted (and expected) tropes of the Y.A. genre. This, on its own, is not inherently Bad or Wrong, but you can see how readers were thrown and consistently, ideas were stretched to fit the simplistic ideas of good and bad that run rampant through the Y.A. category.

The Darkling: What We Left Behind;

We have all heard the critique that the most frustrating thing about the Shadow and Bone Trilogy is how the treatment of Grisha is never fixed. It’s mentioned, but it’s never addressed.

To play the Devil’s Advocate, I am going to tell you all that this problem was never fixed because it was never part of Alina’s Narrative. As I will now attempt to point out, The Darkling is an ill suited antagonist for Alina’s story.

As I like to joke with my friends, the Darkling is an Adult Fantasy character inside of a Y.A. Fantasy story. He cannot be properly served because the story does not fit him, and it doesn’t really try.

Y.A. stories are incredibly focused. There is usually a lot going on in the wider story, but the reader is confined to one point of view and one narrative. This is why the main character is always leading rebellions and fighting in the thick of things. In order to address the problems of the wider narrative, the main character needs to be pretty front and center with the problems.

Alina is at the center of an inner conflict of power vs. normalcy. She is not at the center of the Grisha’s problems. 

Time and again, we see that Alina largely doesn’t care about how terribly Grisha are treated, as a whole. She has moments of clarity where she is angry (notably the scene in Ruin and Rising where the nations’ treatment of Grisha is described in detail), but her remorse doesn’t really extend past sympathy. In the end, she still does nothing to save Grisha.

Alina is a terrible hero when matched to the problems the Darkling is trying to solve. She doesn’t understand their full breadth, having not grown up with them, and she doesn’t want to fix them.

The Problem of The Darkling is that he is a character with problems and motivations that get shrinked and discarded because they do not fit into the Alina Narrative.

Alina’s story is about three things: (1) learning that a lust for power is bad and only corrupts; (2) tearing down the Fold, which is the representation of lusty power; and (3) returning to normalcy. (If you’re wondering why Mal is a rough™ character, it’s because he’s supposed to be the ideal of normalcy, that Alina both wants but can’t have as long as she seeks the amplifiers.) The Grisha don’t factor into that equation.

Alina doesn’t have a solution for giving the Grisha a safe existence where they won’t be sold into slavery, won’t be persecuted by the world, and won’t be forever Othered. She stumbles upon the vague promise of fixing the last of those problems when she runs into Nikolai (purely by chance, or, if you want to stretch it, The Darklings machinations). Furthermore, she doesn’t want to do any of that - she wants normalcy, remember? Her story isn’t going to be saving the Grisha - that’s not what it’s about.

The Darklings entire character motivations focus on all of the plot points that Alina doesn’t hit. He wan’t to make a safe existence for Grisha, he wants Grisha to no longer be persecuted and Othered. How is he going to do it? By ugly means, yes, but he’s going to achieve it nonetheless.

The Darkling has motivations that are not addressed in the Shadow and Bone Trilogy. They aren’t what the story is about, or what the story chooses to focus on. His story is a braided narrative that is too complicated for the simplistic, black and white story that the Shadow and Bone Trilogy is. 

So here’s the problem: the story insists the Darkling is the bad guy, but he can’t possibly be the bad guy if his intentions are Good, and there is no other way. Until Alina finds another way, he is a martyr - he is the Starless Saint. The Saint who was misguided, sure, but the only Saint who tried to solve things.

The Darkling is not fit for Shadow and Bone. His story and what he advocated for isn’t resolved by the end of the trilogy. So when he dies, it feels unearned. It’s tragic - and perhaps there is some beauty in that tragedy, or some lesson to be learned about how you cannot justify evil means for a good end - but it feels undeserved. His problems aren’t addressed. He is defeated, but his cause and his essence aren’t put to sleep.

King of Scars: A Cause Without Its Martyr;

Which leads us to the Nikolai duology.

Like I said - The Darklings’ problems are forgotten in Alina’s narrative. So what happens when we break out of that point of view? After a brief (and iconic) interim with the Crows, we are back in Ravka and the Grisha are still struggling with the problems that Shadow and Bone failed to address. Ravka is still dying, but now that we have gotten rid of a reluctant cast of characters and have made distance from the trope-heavy Shadow and Bone, we are better equipped to save her.

But here’s a question - can we ignore the man who pioneered these problems in favor of a more palatable cast? Can we not address the Darkling while picking up the sword he used?

Leigh Bardugo needs to reclaim the Grisha Problem by stealing it from the Darkling’s grasp. That proves to be difficult, given that we’ve killed him and have given him a tragically beautiful death. Absence has made the heart grow fonder, and in his final moments, the Darkling was not the evil Shadow Summoner but rather Alexander Morozova - the boy within. Readers (even those who didn’t like the Darkling) might be more endeared to him now that everything is said and done.

We need to separate the Darkling from his cause.

Enter the Cult of the Starless Saint and the Condemnation of the Starless.

To remind readers that the Darkling is bad, Leigh Bardugo does a few things. Firstly, she has her characters repeatedly condemn the Darkling. On one hand, it makes sense and feels genuine. On the other hand, it can be a little excessive. Sometimes, the vehemence reads like what it is - Leigh Bardugo is giving us reasons to hate the Darkling again. Add on the fact that Nikolai’s monster is Bad and one of few remnants of the Darkling still surviving, and you get a lot of hate.

Except, ah! The more we talk about the Darkling, the more we are reminded of what he stood for!

So we have to strip him of that - we have to take his legacy and drag it through the mud. Thus, we create The Cult of the Starless Saint. They represent the Darklings legacy and status in history - were his intentions Good Enough to grant him mercy? To give him Sainthood? 

Spoiler alert: They are not. Not as portrayed by the Cult of the Starless Saint.

The Cult is a laughing stock. They don’t have a stance of the Grisha, they’re worship of the Darkling is meant to be seen as mocking Alina’s sacrifice, and the main priest readers interact with is the receiving end of a slew of jokes. They don’t care about anything the Darkling cared for, and they don’t really want to help Grisha. This is done to muddy the waters - if the people who emulate the Darkling are selfish and without cause, well... the Darkling clearly wasn’t Good. They just think his shadow powers were cool and want him to be a Saint. They exist to slander the Darkling.

So now we have separated the Darkling from his cause, and the story continues. The Darkling is Bad. He doesn’t have a legacy. His cause is passed on to others.

But (because we’re Delta airlines and life is a f*cking nightmare) it doesn’t end there. We bring the Darkling back from the dead.

*long sigh*

Resurrection? The Curse of a Second Life;

I have wracked my brain for many an evening, trying to give reason as to why we brought the Darkling back. The obvious answer is for his role at the end of Rule of Wolves - we need him to hold the rift of the Making at the Heart of the World together. However, when Leigh Bardugo introduces real Saints, he’s not needed. Suddenly, we have a slew of characters who could do the same. Furthermore, part of why this rift exists is because the Darkling was brought back. If he is both the cause and the solution, the conflict didn’t need to be there in the first place - especially considering how inconsequential it was to the narrative.

If I had to pin a reason as to why we brought the Darkling back, it was simply to further push the Darkling from his original motivation. He comes back and... doesn’t do much. He doesn’t seem to have the same care for Grisha, he has watered down character traits, and he largely does nothing. The Darkling in the Nikolai Duology is Not The Darkling because he’s a shell of the character he used to be.

Bringing him back from the dead was unsatisfying, and it weakens his original ending. As I have mentioned in other posts, the Darkling coming back cheapens whatever meaning readers gleaned from his ending. The Darkling is resurrected and he doesn’t truly seem to care about anything - which is the direct opposite of what the Darkling has been shown to be.

The Darkling has been bastardized in any appearance he’s made after The Demon in the Wood, and ultimately, it leads to a rather anticlimactic end for such a distinctive, hallmark character.

But let’s really quick establish why the sacrifice the Darkling makes at the end of this book is unfulfilling.

Because, in the final moments of Rule of Wolves, the Darkling gets his moment of penance and sacrifice - he chooses to hold the rift. It’s said he will have to hold it for eternity. You would thing that this would leave an impact! 

However, as is, this ending leaves much to be desired for a few reasons:

The Darkling has been so far removed from his character, that when he states, “Everything I did, I did for Ravka,” it feels... incorrect? It sounds like the hollow, misguided claims of a tyrant king, because for an entire Duology, the Darkling has been bastardized and has been the cause of a blight that is killing Ravka. His presence is actively killing the country he claims to serve, and as for actions, he has done very little for Ravka, and nothing for the Grisha. The last time he did anything of substance was before Six of Crows!

None of the characters present for his sacrifice have any sympathy for the Darkling. The Darkling chooses to sacrifice himself, and we get no emotional closure. Alina isn’t there to whisper his name and mourn him, and while Zoya gets the glimmer of weak pity, we have much reason to believe that Zoya mostly feels disenchanted because he will be praised as a martyr and not hated as the evil man she knew him to be (more on that here). There isn’t sympathy so much as there is bitterness and the semblance of the remnants of tattered respect shining in the dim light.

The final chapter of Rule of Wolves tells us that it’s all going to be made inconsequential in the coming books, when they are going to replace the Darkling with something else. The Darkling won’t even get his full sacrifice, because he is undeserving of a redemptive act of selflessness.

So now, where do we leave the Darkling? For two books, we have separated him from his initial cause, watered down his character and motivations, and given him ends that are largely unsatisfying. 

We’ve actually started to fix the Grisha problem, and there’s something interesting to be said in that it’s fixed by Zoya Nazyalensky, who goes up through the chain of command in a very similar fashion as to how the Darkling planned. She was a General, and then she became Queen of Ravka - the acting monarch, no less - with a beloved public figure on her arm (which, in the Darkling’s case,  would have been Alina).

So I am left to wonder - was the lesson, then, indeed, that you cannot justify evil means for a good end? Was the moral of the Darkling all along about how you must be good throughout - with good acts and good intentions - in order to make change and be revered for it? If so, why did Leigh Bardugo slander the Darkling retroactively, the way she did?

If the problem was his actions and not his intentions, why insist that his intentions were devoid of meaning, as well?

Aleksander Morozova: What We Buried;

Now, you all knew I was going to get here eventually, and if you’ve made it, congrats. We are now talking about the emotion behind the deed, the man behind the monster, the boy swallowed by the shadows.

I believe it is pivotal to understand that Leigh Bardugo has always wanted us to struggle with our feelings over the Darkling. She wanted a character that you could sympathize with, she wanted a character with humanity, and she wanted a reason for his villainy. I think that Shadow and Bone, for all of its failings, gave us that. There’s a reason why there is such a big divide over the Darkling in the original trilogy. He was a compelling character! Somewhere along the way, Leigh Bardugo lost that nuance of her own character. At some point, she resorted to stripping him of his meaning and slandering his image. 

Perhaps I am playing the Devil’s Advocate again, but I believe this was intentionally done.

Because one has to ask - why slander the Darkling? A large portion of the fanbase already hates him, so cheapening his character is doing nothing for them other than giving them sweet vindication, which is unnecessary and only disenchants the other half of your audience. There has to be some deeper reasoning. Leigh Bardugo wanted this character to be sympathetic, so why, now, does she want him to be two-dimensional?

Once more, I am asking you to think back to the original trilogy. What was the main moral? That power, no matter how good-intentioned the pursuit of it is, corrupts. What is the Darklings purpose of coming back again if not to simply have power? He certainly shows no other motive than lusty greed, after being resurrected.

And even if we ignore his lust for power, as he so willingly gives it up to Zoya Nazyalensky in the end of Rule of Wolves, we have two other corrupting forces that could account for the degradation of his character - time, and  death.

We know the Darkling to have lived for eons, and he would have continued to live on for an eternity more. There is nothing like time to truly corrupt a character’s vision, and there is nothing like death and resurrection to husk a character.

In fact, if Mal’s character did anything of importance when it comes to effecting the Darkling, it lies in the epilogue of Ruin and Rising, where it is stated that “the boy and the girl had both known loss.” Mal’s loss is equated to Alina being stripped of her power - that is the power of having died, and being forcefully brought back to life. That is a vague basis for which we readers can compare what it must have been like for the Darkling to come back - even if he is so desensitized to feeling, that he doesn’t remark on it himself.

But let’s keep chugging on.

When we first met the Darkling in 2012 Shadow and Bone, he was unfeeling. He was cold and harsh. There was something beneath the surface, yes, but there were thick sheets of ice in the way. You had to mine for it. Time had already warped the actions of his intentions. It’s expected that time would continue to do its damage, and when he is revived in King of Scars, his intentions are warped as well. He is nothing of the person he used to be other than memories and power. That is why, at the end of Rule of Wolves, when he states that he did everything for Ravka, it feels hollow - that was once true, but the Darkling has even lost that. He has the vague impression of it, but nothing you can sink your teeth into.

I think, had this idea been looked at in deeper depth, it would have been a far more compelling story. Had Rule of Wolves really dedicated itself to showing the Darkling’s conflict of his current apathy, and the knowledge that there was once a time he possessed meaning, we could have found the marrow of his arc. If the book had made an allusion to this concept, his character would have been more satisfying. But as it stands, the Darkling is just degraded in the later books, and unless you really search for meaning, there isn’t any.

And perhaps, if the Darkling had been a different character - a character who, at his core, was more unfeeling - the way we left him would feel okay.

But while The Darkling was harsh and cruel, Aleksander Morozova wasn’t, and that’s what has us all hung up on his character.

If you haven’t read The Demon in the Wood for whatever reason, do yourself a favor and read that instead of revisiting the show’s version of his villain origin story. The show made the Darkling far less compelling by showing him as the grief stricken Black Heretic, rather than the boy within. When we meet Aleksander, he is a boy who is afraid of the world, who has never belonged in it or with others, and who is, ultimately, afraid of himself. With his mother, Baghra, he has taken on a thousand names and traveled a thousand places, and all the while, he is afraid of getting too close to others because he is an amplifier and he knows that if any Grisha were to find out, they would kill him for his power.

Thus, there is so much nuance to his relationship with the Grisha. He is one of them, but he is not. To hark back to our history lesson, he is the exact opposite of the “specially Othered” character that is so often given to protagonists. Instead of acting as a go-between, he is the one person that everyone - Grisha and otkazat’sya - can come together to kill.

And as a little boy, he knows that. He knows he has to stay in the shadows, and yet, he is deathly afraid of the dark - afraid of that which sets him apart, and that which he cannot escape.

This is poignant because at the root of every great character is a singular, vulnerable emotion, and for the Darkling, it is fear. And most importantly, fear of the shadows.

When he meets Alina, we truly see the strength of their duality. We truly see why he was so drawn to Alina - why he could so easily fall in love with her, despite the years and despite the tide, and despite his fear of letting others in. She is his equal and opposite - with her, there are no shadows. There is no fear. The fact that he lets Alina use him as an amplifier is so telling of his deep feelings for Alina.

Where each reader draws the line between their dynamic - either him truly loving Alina, or him simply loving and obsessing over the idea of her - is for the individual to decide. The wonderful thing about the Darkling in his current state in the original Shadow and Bone Trilogy is that he still has good intentions within him, no matter how corrupted by his evil actions. Whether or not they truly could have been is up to each person because the question over whether or not Alina could “purify” the Darkling was never deeply explored. We will never know if she could save him, or if it would have destroyed her in the end. Whether or not you want her to try is personal preference.

Again, Alina didn’t want to fully commit to that act, and so we readers will never truly know. Luckily, fanfiction exists.

But, I didn’t name this section “what we buried” for nothing, and I think it’s important to note that even in the beginning of The Demon in the Wood, the Darkling was already on his way toward a darker, harsher existence.

Baghra, from presumably the moment he was born, groomed the Darkling to be a certain way - the same way as her, a survivor with little hope, living for the sake of living and fighting for the sake of a meal. She had no plans to save the world - it was only after the Darkling had a run in with the possibility of death that he unearthed a deep desire within him - the desire to save the Grisha. Before that, it was buried.

Before that, the Darklings' desires were buried beneath his mother’s words and buried beneath the dirt that settled over his heart like a shallow grave, because his connection to others was buried as well. Baghra did that, and whether or not she was misguided or if she was the smarter of the two is an essay better tackled by looking at her, specifically, which we won’t do here.

As we’re reaching the end, I feel like I have earned the right to be cliche and quote the Darkling’s thoughts from when he was still a boy, but already a shadow. In The Demon in the Wood, he thinks:

“My father is dust. You all are.”

At such a young age, the Darkling has already lost his grip. Already, he knew he would outlive and outlast anyone, and this heavy knowledge was already piling up, and he was slowly being buried alive in his own infinence.

It was only ever inevitable that his story would end like this - with a detached man who was once a hopeful boy, but could no longer recall what such confidence tasted like - so perhaps the tragic beauty in the end of Ruin and Rising was not that he died, it was that he wasn’t given an end.

— Special kudos to @onceupon-a-decembr​ who let me scream about this with her, and another kudos to @musicallisto​ who introduced me to a book series that I will never stop screaming about. Ever.

— tagging: @maybanksslut, @musicallisto, @catsbooksandmusic, @thefifthweasley, @thegirlwhocriedwerewolf, @amirahiddleston, @lachichapequena, @mrs-brekker15, @amortensie // add yourself to the taglist here!

[a-wild-rosette]

C!Fundy, Friendships, and Healing

Entry for Fundy Week 2021 - Day 1: Friendship @fundyfiles

/dsmp /rp 

Tl,dr: Eret, Ranboo, Hbomb94 relationships with Fundy through season 1,2, and 3 of the Dream SMP respectively. 

Names refer to the characters, unless specified as “cc!” 

1) Season 1: Eret 

Fundy was the first, and up until Finale of Season 2, the only one who forgave and bonded with Eret after their betrayal. (While I don’t think Tubbo held a lot of bad feelings toward Eret, their bond was never the same after that.) Up to now, none of the people who had hurt Fundy has given him closure or an apology, except for Eret. Their relationship was made stronger during the peace era, but the prank war that eventually brought them closer started when they were still enemies. Eret with Fundy, therefore, represents the possibility of forgiveness and the healing by trying to be better and supporting each other.

To further show this arc of healing and forgiveness, Eret was the one whom Fundy came to for help when he started his spy arc, because of, not in spite out, Eret’s past role as a spy/traitor. Fundy acknowledged Eret past mistake, and instead of holding him to it, he forgave Eret and even saw it as something that could help him. Fundy saw Eret’s past and saw it as something that made Eret even more of a confidant. 

This healing, however, was cut off when things became more tense and Fundy went deeper into his role as a spy. Both Eret and Niki felt betrayed when Fundy burned down the flag, and that caused a (temporary) rift between them all. 

This was where the role was relatively reversed for Eret and Fundy. This time, it was Fundy who did something that hurt Eret, and this time, it was also Eret who forgave Fundy and fought by his side. They were there for Fundy when he needed a father. From when Fundy and Eret bonded after the Final Control Room, Eret had always been a supporting figure in Fundy’s life, despite the hiccups along the way, and that lasted through season 2 and 3, albeit in a lesser extend because they were more inactive and less involved in Fundy’s lore. 

2) Season 2: Ranboo

Ranboo has a special role in Fundy’s life in Season 2 because he was the start of Fundy’s healing after the spy arc. Ranboo with Fundy was the change from Fundy seeking validation from a figure of authority to him seeking companionship in a friend. (Similar things could be said from his friendships with Niki and Eret, but their friendships were also broken apart during the Schlatt presidency, when Fundy’s trauma related to authority figures also manifested in a more obvious and serious extend.) 

Therefore, Ranboo with Fundy was also a new beginning. Unlike Niki and Eret, whose relationships with Fundy were stil somewhat tainted by the trauma from both Schlatt and Wilbur, Ranboo was someone completely new and unrelated to season 1. Ranboo was a chance for Fundy to restart and try to find a new companionship that did not involve seeking authoritative validation. Fundy needed that opportunity to find a way to heal. And for a while, he did. C!Ranboo was genuinely good to Fundy. He cared about Fundy as equals and spent the majority of Fundy’s online time with Fundy. Because both cc!Eret and cc!Niki, people whose characters made up a large proportion of c!Fundy’s support system, were also inactive, c!Ranboo became an important part of c!Fundy’s healing.  

This healing, once again, was cut off, this time due to Doomsday and Ranboo’s moral dilemma. And this breaking in Ranboo and Fundy’s friendship broke Fundy even more seriously. As the other parts of his support system were also angry at him (Niki) or did not run into Fundy during that moment (Eret), losing Ranboo meant losing the last of Fundy’s support system, rendering Fundy’s healing through season 2 also meaningless in Fundy’s view. At that point, Fundy had already fallen into a nihilistic mindset, and Ranboo’s rejection was the final nail in the coffin. 

What was even more tragic was that even after a long time now, there still had not been the same forgiveness and support from Ranboo as Eret had shown Fundy. Fundy tried to rekindle his and Ranboo’s friendship, in a way that resembled what he and Eret did, and what he and Ranboo started their friendship on: through pranks and jokes. It did not work, obviously. But that was the most available tool for Fundy to start and/or mend his relationship with someone. Fundy wasn’t going the right way to handle their relationship, yes, but his effort was largely one-sided, which just served to remind us that he did not have anyone solid to rely on. 

3) Season 3: Hbomb94

Hbomb was... a very special case because he was very much not active in the lore, but was constantly there in the background. At this rate, I cannot say H will play a big part in Fundy’s lore or in being his canon support system (unless he wants to prove me wrong wink wink nudge nudge). But the smaller things he did with Fundy and their interactions in general (which was confirmed to be canon by Hbomb himself) was comforting enough. 

Hbomb had been a constant in the background from all three season, but we started to see his relationship with Fundy a lot more clearly in season 3 because he seemed to be the only *positive* interactions Fundy got during Fundy’s streams. (The other positive interactions included Niki having a room for Fundy in her underground city and Eret offering Fundy a place in their castle, but they only happened once and in a much shorter time than all the time he spent with H). 

The catmaid bit started during season 1, continued into season 2 (with Ranboo being 50% of the reason of Fundy’s suffering), and moved into season 3. In season 1 and 2, Fundy pretty much was mostly scammed into having the catmaid, even though he did stick around with H. (One of Fundy’s love language is Quality Time, see my other essay for detail, coupling with the mere exposure effect, it could be argued that even in season 1 and 2, Fundy was secretly fond of catmaid H, or at least Hbomb as a person.) In season 3, however, Fundy was the one who *willingly* sought him out for help with the TNT prank, despite knowing that catmaid H was the most useless helper ever. Indeed, he ended up doing most of the work himself, but the fact that Fundy sought him out, asked for help, and spent time with catmaid H, said a lot about their bond. 

Not to mention, Hbomb also seemed to care about Fundy and constantly thought about him. He even had a room for Fundy in his “evil” mansion, and invited Fundy to his diamond game on the DSMP. H was also one of the people who was constantly nice to Fundy beside one brief moment where he was upset with Fundy during Doomsday (where most people were not thinking rationally) for taking all of the ancient debris H left as a gift for the server. He didn’t even get upset violently to Fundy, just to himself and Niki for a bit. (The bar is low for Fundy, bear with me.) H was a mellow person, and one of the very few people who was consistently good and mature on the server, and that showed through his treatment not only to Fundy, but also to Niki and other people who came across him. 

Overall, Fundy’s interactions with Hbomb were a good reprieve from Fundy being constantly narratively punished for his small mistakes or for his emotional vulnerability. 

Conclusion: Please hug the Fundy. He needs it. 

[catohphm]

A True Friend for a Werewolf

Hi everyone, here’s the third in a series of drabbles that shed some light on my MC, Cato’s relationships with the canon characters of HPHM. I’ve written pieces for Talbott and Badeea. It’s Chiara’s turn now. For a while, we didn’t know what house she was in. She was revealed to be Hufflepuff in the sixth year. Chiara’s life and personality are defined by her biggest secret: she’s a werewolf. Very mysterious, she is. But unlike Talbott, she also faces social rejection and shame if her status is disclosed, not just government interference. In time, Cato grows to build a very close friendship with Chiara based on trust and a vow to look out for each other and keep their secrets safe. Just beware, this post is longer than the others as I provided some background and more details to help build the foundation of their bond. Enjoy!

Chiara Lobasca was born to an affluent family. Her father was an arithmancer and her mother was extremely skilled with memory charms. Due to her knowledge of the spells, she was employed by the Ministry as an Obliviator, responsible for solving violations of the secrecy laws by wiping the memories of muggles who were aware of the incident, as well as knowledge of magic in general. 

As a young child, Chiara ran afoul of the infamous werewolf, Fenrir Greyback. She was bitten by him and became a werewolf too. He attempted to recruit her for his army, which sought to take over the wizarding world as revenge for oppression against their kind. Fortunately, her parents were able to stop him and send him packing before their daughter could be influenced by him. Chiara, aware that she got lycanthropy from her encounter with the cruel Greyback, was extremely scared that he had gotten very close toward taking her away from home and doing who knows what to her. Sheltering their daughter, they chose to keep it private that she was a werewolf, knowing of the large negative stigma and laws that would make it hard to live with her condition. 

The Lobascas managed to live stable lives for some time afterwards, but the expenses of procuring Wolfsbane potion to help Chiara get through her transformations put strain on the family’s finances. She eventually befriended a neighbor named Selina, who wasn’t intimidated by hearing she was a werewolf. They were good friends until the former saw Chiara after she transformed. Selina was horrified and never talked to her again out of fear. Her memories were wiped by Chiara’s mum so she wouldn’t have to live haunted by the memories. It was from this incident that Chiara became a more guarded person, being very cautious over who she let into her circle.

She was sorted into Hufflepuff upon arriving at Hogwarts. Her secret meant her life and she understood that if it went out, she’d be in great danger. Chiara’s greatest fear was the fact she was a werewolf becoming known at school. Inside though, she remained the sweet, goodhearted individual she was before she was infected with lycanthropy. Between classes, she would help out Madam Pomfrey with work in the Hospital Wing, her dream of becoming a healer. It was there she first met Cato.

While Chiara found the Ravenclaw boy to be a kind soul who valued people, they remained only acquaintances for a while because of her previous experience with her former friend. They said “Hi!” or even waved to each other when they passed in the halls, but Chiara tried to avoid conversation as much as possible. Cato wondered why she was like this, but he had a feeling that she had something she didn’t want to share, so he respected her choice. It was early into their third year that they got closer.

Cato, Penny and Chiara were all in Herbology when a boggart emerged from its hiding spot. It took the form of a werewolf. Hearing Penny’s shouts, Chiara ducked under a table and fled from the greenhouse when the boggart was repelled. Her memories of Selina finding out she was a werewolf were triggered by the incident. As a result, she became less like her usual self and isolated herself more from her peers. Both they and her professors caught on this and grew worried. Penny was concerned too, and she sought her best friend Cato to try to speak to her roommate and find out what’s going on. 

He was advised by Penny not to mention her to Chiara, as she is worried that her encounter with the boggart may create a rift between them. Cato was worried too, as he hadn’t seen Chiara in the hospital wing much after the ruckus in the greenhouse. He first questioned Madam Pomfrey on her whereabouts. She suggested he look in a cupboard down the hallway she uses to store medical potions and other supplies separate from Snape’s classroom so that students wouldn’t touch them during classes.

Cato went to the cupboard, quietly muttering "I hope you're in there, Chiara." A door opens and her, recognizing him by his voice, ushers him in and quickly shuts the door. Chiara explains that she has to tell him something, needing someone outside of her house that she can be able to trust with the information. He learns of a rumor that she overheard about a first year who was attacked by a mysterious white creature in the Forbidden Forest which was believed to be a werewolf. The victim is believed to be a Gryffindor named Pippa MacMillian as she was reported absent from Astronomy the night the attack took place. Hearing this made Chiara desperate. Afraid of what could happen if people started thinking she was the creature, Chiara wanted to tell somebody she knew who could be able to help her solve the mystery.

Together, she and Cato sought out Pippa, who couldn’t recall anything the moment she was attacked in the woods. With the help of a memory potion, she was able to explain that wasn’t sure if her assailant was actually a werewolf. Claw marks on the arm prompted the assumption it was a lycanthrope. Chiara was very relieved to hear this. The three of them dispelled the rumors with Penny’s help, who was also happy to learn the good news. Cato and Chiara became friends after the case was solved. They talked more, especially when they were assigned together in classes such as Herbology. She was still careful with how deep the conversations got, but entrusted Cato with her secret, knowing she could depend on him.

Eventually, their bond would be put to the test. Chiara introduced Cato to an acquaintance of hers, another werewolf named Remus Lupin. She revealed how she shared some of the wolfsbane potion she received from the school to aid in his plight. Lupin was poor and had to keep moving and changing jobs every once in a while to prevent people from finding out he was a werewolf. He stopped accepting wolfsbane from Chiara as it was now time for him to keep moving on. Before leaving, he reminded her that the full moon would be out that night.

That night, Cato and Chiara were playing gobstones, where they opened up a bit more about each other’s lives. She quickly left after remembering Lupin’s warning about the Full Moon. Urgently looking for a safe place to transform, a greatly worried Cato followed her to the Training Grounds. She was about to tell him to run. But it was seconds before she shifted into her werewolf form. Instead, she told him to not let her hurt anyone. As she transformed right in front of Cato, he covered his eyes with his hands, tripping and falling on the ground. When he looked back up, Chiara was now a large werewolf with white fur. She was menacing, but there appeared to be some hesitance in her motion. Cato pulled out his wand, got up and with it behind his back, he called out at her “This is not who you’re really like Chiara! Remember, you’re my friend! You can count on me!” Chiara pauses for a moment, halted by what he just said, but then becomes aggressive. He calls out “I’m sorry! I have to make sure you don’t hurt yourself or anyone, for you! Cato casts Flipendo but the jinx misses and the transformed Chiara strikes him, knocking him back to the ground. His arm is now hurting from the hard blow, but he remembers the Banishing Charm he had learned from Charms a few days ago. Teeth-clenched from the pain of his arm, Cato aims his wand at the werewolf as she closes in to him, his eyes now brimming with tears. He mutters out “Depulso” in a stressed, worried tone. A mass of bluish-white energy explodes from the tip of his wand, blasting the werewolf Chiara several feet away from Cato.

She gets back up on her feet and stares at Cato. A twinkle gleams across her eyes and she makes out a weak smile, before turning away and running back toward the Forbidden Forest to wait out the rest of the night. The morning after the fight, Cato joins Chiara in the artifact room to catch up on the night before. She, although surprised, thanks him for standing by her and not running away when she turned into a werewolf. She then explains why she was keeping her distance all this time, recalling the incident when her neighbor found out what she looked like as werewolf and asked her mum to Obliviate Selena so that she wouldn’t have to live in fear. Chiara was then reluctant to make friends as she didn’t want to harm others through her lycanthropy. Now confident enough to face her fears, she fully opens up to Cato. 

He presents her a photo he recovered from the Training Ground after the fight. It was a beautiful color photo of the sun setting over the Black Lake, with Hogwarts Castle in the foreground. Chiara lets Cato keep it as gratitude for his help, and tells him that Lupin gave it to her. The photo was taken by Lupin’s friend James Potter, both of whom were part of the Marauders during their years in school. Cato learns from Chiara that the message of the photo is “The morning will always come.” They immediately give each other a big hug, Cato still holding the photo in one hand. She remarks “This is for not giving up on me. Thank you, Cato!" He answers “Anything I can do for my friends. They’re like family to me.” Chiara then said “I’ll always be able to make it through even the darkest night, so long as I have the support of my friends.”

They were best friends after those events, and continued to be so well into adulthood. Eventually Cato would retire from the high-adventure lifestyle of curse-breaking, looking for a more stable job he enjoyed that could also support his wife Penny and their two sons. He was hired as a healer at St. Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Working with Penny and Chiara, Cato and they would often reminisce about their past adventures in school and as young adults. He continues to keep the photo Chiara gave him back in Hogwarts as a token of their friendship.

[aquillis-main]

OWO What’s this? An human adult in Sonic Fandom? One that doesn’t have actual powers?

I alluded to him through The First Meeting, and he appears in both Aleena’s and Slipstream’s bios, and I’m now showcasing him off to you guys!

Harold is... a highly complicated individual, and one of the main things I think people know about him is that he and Ovi have a rather tense relationship. However, I wanted to make Harold a sympathetic (but still troubled) character that has trouble admitting that he’s wrong at points. I hope that it comes across as this in the bio portion.

Anyways, bio time! (It’s been so fucking long OMG)

Harold Jacobs Kintobor

Age: 41

Occupation: Hero (formerly), CEO of Kintobor Enterprises

Personality: Gruff doesn’t even begin to describe Harold’s personality. Often answering with a simple grunt, Harold is the walking definition of ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’. When he does properly answer/reply to something, it’s in a matter-of-fact tone that is either ‘perpetual boredom’ or ‘barely restrained rage’. A successful businessman like Harold requires the cold, yet calculative demeanour that allowed Harold to climb up to CEO to begin with. Harold does not like injustices of any kind, and will deal with them in the same seriousness as how he handles his eco-friendly business. He is as cold in dealing with those who commit injustices as he is with most business partners.

With friends and family, however, Harold shows a surprising amount of emotions that he doesn’t show in a board meeting. He’s congratulatory towards his children, loving to his wife, and gives his staff bonuses for the hard work they do, whether they need it or not. However, this does not mean that Harold can’t be misinterpreted by his family due to his stand-offish nature. In fact, one such misinterpretation has caused the rift between Julian and Harold, causing the former to leave the Kintobor Mansion.

Strengths: Harold is stalwart in his beliefs. His strong morality and sense of justice are stronger than even the most honorable hero. He’ll reject easier or more reliable methods if they violate any of his beliefs. His business is one of the top leaders in the most environmentally friendly decisions/materials for this reason -- as Harold allows his beliefs to guide how he wants his company to work. Harold’s way with words is impeccable, able to take the truth and make it impossible to fight against. He’ll make sure that the evidence of one’s misdeeds are front and centre, no matter what.

As for physical, Harold is built like a bodybuilder. While he does not have the same strength as a typical Chaos user, Harold is strong enough to give many non-powered beings some pause. On top of this, Harold’s mind is sharper than most others. While not as intelligent as Dr. Eggman, Harold can manipulate the situation to his advantage before anyone can even figure out his plan in time. Harold has learnt business, martial arts, and a load of general memorization techniques during his travels.

Weaknesses: Harold’s stubbornness has cost him a load of friends and relationships, to the point of his son running away from home. Harold’s own morals often guide him into situations that he can’t get out of. When that happens, he tries to bulldoze his way out of a situation – with little success usually. Worse, Harold cannot ask for help, even when he needs it. He ends up stuck in a hole, shovelling himself deeper because of his refusal to accept help from others. On top of this, Harold’s morals are often the cause of tension between allies and friends alike, causing issues with anyone around him. This has earned the ire of many people, including his son Julian.

Harold cannot take anyone stronger than a non-powered being. As a human, Harold is too fragile to take on anything bigger than a lion without assistance. Harold has walked home too many a time with a severe injury because of it – a good chunk of his bones have been broken in places where it was thought impossible. Luckily, Harold’s spine isn’t as damaged as the rest of him, but he still needs a cane some days due to the beatings he’s taken over the years.

Hobbies: Harold is surprisingly into Realtime Strategy Games. Often playing them during his downtime, Harold gets really into these games – which sometimes causes people to think he’s too into video games to run his company. Harold often thinks to apply the strategies into real life. Other hobbies include:

·        Chess: Harold is into studying all kinds of strategy from all games, but he enjoys watching chess the most. Insisting that it’s due to chess not ‘changing over time’, he actually enjoys learning what strategies are being played by others, and tries to analyze the players behind the games.

·        Speeches: Harold is the master of speech making, often preparing and conducting debates with people he wants to talk with. He loves to hear other people’s opinions in a heated debate, and often wants to excite and prep people up with a good motivational speech.

·        Detective Work: Harold likes to solve crimes to keep his mind sharp, but also does it out of a sense of justice. He wants to help as many people as he can, and often tries to do it in a way without damaging reputations/clearing the truth. He often takes on cold cases, hoping to try and solve the unsolvable. Oftentimes, it doesn’t always happen. Yet Harold enjoys learning about the process nonetheless.

Likes: Progress, justice, happiness, learning how to be open to others, working to make the future better

Dislikes: Himself, destruction, chaos (in order, not the energy), having a split in his family, the damage he’s done.

Backstory: Born to Lady Andrea and Geoffrey Kintobor, Harold Kintobor was raised in an environment of overblown material goods and money. A highly curious individual, Harold collected true crime stories and mystery books from all over the world since he was young. However, Harold’s inheritance came at a cost for relationships – most people around him wanted to be friends with him for his money, not for Harold alone. Over time, he became closed off, unable to feel close when every kid around him wanted his parent’s money instead of him as a person.

One day, after rejecting some people to be off on his own for a while, he stumbles into a teal hedgehog – who proceeds to give him back his wallet, not one penny removed. Looking to the hedgehog, Harold decided to follow the hedgehog, keeping a good distance as he watched him. About every day, Harold got to learn about the positives and the negatives of this hedgehog, eventually deciding that he’d make friends with said hedgehog.

Once he had decided that, Harold ended up helping the hedgehog out of a situation he had gotten into. Since the hedgehog was jumped by a group of people, both the hedgehog and the human ended up beaten on their butts. Afterwards, Harold came to know Slipstream – from his name to his interests (living on his own, which surprised Harold completely, that Slipstream wanted to be a traveller, etc.), and the two became fast friends. The two had their own adventures together – from stopping a robbery to destroying unethical practices of other companies, Harold and Slipstream have done it.

Often upping the ante on their adventures, the two ended up taking Princess Aleena from her home, causing the Crystal Kingdom to chase the trio out. With that, the trio ended up going together, until Harold had enough of Aleena’s and Slipstream’s bickering and left them to their own devices. This proved to be a mistake, as Harold ended up having to look for the two when they fell into a ravine.

Desperately looking for the two hedgehogs, he ran into a person who’d eventually impact his life: Marian. The two worked together to destroy the robot that threw Slipstream and Aleena over the cliff. By the time Aleena and Slipstream came back to fight the last bit of the robot, Marian had disappeared entirely.

After Harold’s adventures with Slipstream and Aleena, Harold went off to look for Marian the same way that he did Slipstream in the past. Over time, the two got to know each other – Marian having fished out Harold quickly, and not up to having Harold stalk her. The two ended up having their own adventures together – destroying scheming companies, learning about Eggman’s plans to conquer the world, and learning about the Changelings from the tombs they visited. In those tombs, the two learnt of the eventual plans of one specific court – the Seelie Court, one that wanted to bring about the rise of the Perfect named Emptiness. The two got close on their last adventure – destroying one of Eggman’s bases after finding a Changeling depository underneath it. As soon as the two finished their last adventure, Marian and Harold ended up getting married.

Life stayed quiet for the two, up until Julian Kintobor was born into their lives. Harold and Marian dotted on little Julian, giving him all the love they could give to their son. When Marian became pregnant again, Harold was beyond ecstatic. He became so enamoured with the newest addition that Marian’s distress —her betraying her Changeling clan -- wasn’t even noticed until Hope’s birth. After Hope’s birth, Marian disappeared, and Harold became devastated.

Harold became despondent, unable to communicate to even his own son about the feelings bottling up inside him. This became a death sentence, as he started to neglect his own children, causing Julian to run away from home. Realizing the folly of his actions had caused both his wife and his son to disappear, Harold decided to take charge in the situation that he put himself into – constantly searching for Marian, Julian, and taking care of Hope while working on his Eco-friendly business.

[omgrachwrites]

Tell a Tale of You and Me - Chapter Thirteen

Pairing: Sirius Black x Reader

Summary: You knew that making a bet with Sirius Black was like making a deal with the devil but you just couldn’t help yourself. You had never been a heavenly woman.

Warnings: angst, fluff, pining

Words: 2527

Disclaimer: These gifs don’t belong to me!

A/N: How are we on chapter thirteen already?! I think I said this in my last post but I’m going to be writing a Remus fic that will connect to this one, I want to make these fics into a little series. My Remus fic will still be a reader insert but she’ll just have a proper name otherwise it will be so confusing with loads of Y/N’s running around so I hope that’s okay! I hope you guys enjoy this part and please let me know what you think and if you would like to be tagged! I love you all! xxx

Chapter Thirteen

Everyone – absolutely everyone – knew that Sirius and Y/N were at odds with one another, even if Sirius and Y/N didn’t know them personally; random people somehow knew that something was going on. Even the first years who had never spoken a word to either of them knew that something bad was happening because they’d watch Sirius joke and grin with his friends in the castle corridors, only for his grin to drop a moment later.

Whereas, McGonagall knew that something was wrong because Sirius had been unusually quiet in her class and he no longer exchanged wistful looks with Y/N from across the classroom. McGonagall missed his bold personality and even his incessant annoying pranks. She hoped that he’d be back to his usual self soon.

Sirius chewed his lip as he fiddled with the fanged Frisbee he was holding, scowling down at it when he felt it bite him and he slammed it right back onto the shelf in a huff. He didn’t think that he wanted it after all, “what did that poor Frisbee ever do to you Pads?” Peter smirked and Sirius narrowed his stormy eyes at his friend before turning to speak to James.

“On a scale of 1 to 10, how much does Lily hate my guts right now?” Sirius didn’t want to cause a rift in his best mate’s relationship. He didn’t want to screw anything else up; he just wanted a quiet year from now on.

James sighed as he turned away from the display of nose biting teacups, “she doesn’t hate you mate, I think that she’s just disappointed,” Sirius winced, on second thought he would rather it if Lily hated our guts, “you have to understand Pads, Lily and Y/N have been best friends since our very first day at Hogwarts. Remember how inseparable they were by Halloween? She’d pick Y/N over anybody. I honestly wouldn’t worry about it too much; the boys and I are all on your side. You don’t have to work things out before you’re ready.”

Sirius looked up at the rest of his friends to see if they were of a same mind as James, Remus chewed his lip and immediately walked up to the counter to buy his items. Though, Remus needn’t bother trying to hide it, Sirius knew that Remus disapproved of the way he’d handled things.

However, Peter piped up which surprised Sirius, “yeah, we are on your side, Y/N could have at least told you about the fact she wanted to date your brother.”

It still caused Sirius a painful pang when he thought about Y/N – his Y/N – with Regulus. He looked outside, out of the rain streaked window, biting his lip when Lily and Y/N walked out of Honeydukes, munching on their sweets. Sirius wondered how sweet Y/N’s lips were with the sugar that was undeniably coating them.

“Be honest,” he started, turning back to his friends, “do you think that Reg and Y/N are properly going out?” he almost didn’t want to know the answer. But, he supposed that he couldn’t feel any worse than he already did.

James and Peter exchanged nervous looks, “well, I think if they were properly and seriously going out then they’d be walking down the corridor holding hands and they’d be snogging in The Great Hall like Lily and I do,” James chuckled before he got serious and he rested his hand on Sirius’ shoulder, “I know that I said that you didn’t have to work things out before you were ready but maybe you just need to shelve your pride and tell her how you really feel before she does get with Regulus for real. The problem is that you two are way too stubborn.”

Sirius rolled his eyes as he groaned internally, he didn’t want to lose his pride but he also knew that James was right. In these sorts of situations he was always right. The boys paid for their Zonkos’ products before they left the warm shop to join Y/N and Lily in the rainy country lane. Sirius made sure to keep a couple of paces behind.

A couple of days later, Sirius walked across the wet muddy lawn after dinner to meet James, he looked up with a groan at the dark sky that was threatening to pour down again and the air stank of wet grass. With the last two Quidditch matches looming James had become more frantic with his Quidditch practises; he wanted to win the Quidditch cup one last time. James had started scheduling them in the evening now as well as keeping his usual morning practises.

Sirius nodded in greeting as he noticed that James was walking up the hill, he was spattered with mud and Y/N was at his side, they both looked miserable. When Y/N looked up and saw Sirius, her eyes turned hard and cold and she brushed past James without saying goodbye to him. Sirius opened his mouth to say something to the pretty girl but she was already long gone. He turned back to James and saw that his usual warm and kind eyes were angry, “what’s the matter?”

James huffed angrily before prodding Sirius in the chest hard, “you need to make things right with Y/N, and soon. Because I need my amazing seeker back,” he grimaced at Sirius before storming ahead, leaving Sirius in the mud, he was utterly speechless.

Thankfully, by the time that Sirius had got himself up to the warm and mercifully dry common room, James seemed to have calmed down, he wondered whether it had something to do with Lily running her fingers through James’ hair. James gave Sirius an apologetic look as Sirius sank into the plush couch next to him, “sorry mate, practise has been so bad lately and I’m just so frustrated, I didn’t mean to take it out on you.”

“It’s fine, honestly. I think you were right to have a go,” Sirius smiled, he wasn’t going to hold a grudge against his best friend because of one stupid comment said in a moment of anger.

Later on that evening, the marauders were finally getting to work on that dreaded Potions essay that was due in the morning; however, Remus had already completed it somehow. Peter was going on about asking Evelyn out properly, she had gone to The Yule Ball with him in the end, “like what if she rejects me? James, did you ever feel this way before asking Lily out?”

Before James could reply, Sirius interjected loudly, “I wouldn’t if I were you Wormtail, when you show your feelings to someone, you only get stabbed in the back,” he didn’t know what made him say it, maybe his feelings had been bottled up inside him for too long.

A hushing silence fell over the common room as Gryffindor students looked between Y/N and Sirius as they waited for Y/N’s answer. It seemed like the whole room was holding its breath. Y/N glanced up from where she was sitting with Alice and she blinked with a confused expression etched upon her face. In a matter of seconds her face warped from an expression of polite confusion to an expression of rage as she angrily threw her quill down on her parchment, splotching ink everywhere. Sirius half expected to see steam billowing from her ears.

“Oh, would you just stop it? So what, your feelings got hurt, mine have too! But why do you have to make everything so much worse? Would you like to know why I took Regulus to The Yule Ball and why I’ve been spending so much time with him?”

“Enlighten me, Y/L/N,” Sirius smirked as he raised an eyebrow as he leaned back on the couch, crossing his arms behind his head. He couldn’t wait to hear her explanation.

“Y/N, don’t do this, think about who’s watching,” Lily warned but Y/N didn’t abide by her words.

“No Lily! He wants to know so I’ll tell him,” she narrowed her eyes as she walked over to stand before him and Sirius waited with bated breath, “your hag of a mother and my mum – the traitor – have taken it upon themselves to set me and Regulus up. For marriage, and you know what your mum is like when things don’t go her way, she’ll make my family’s life a living hell. The wedding is scheduled for Midsummer which is why I’ve been spending so much time with your brother. I don’t want to hate my future husband Sirius. What else do you expect me to do? I’m doing the best that I can,” her voice broke and those beautiful blue eyes sparkled with unshed tears.

Sirius felt his stomach lurch unpleasantly as his eyes stung, he felt completely awful; he’d made such a huge mistake. He should have known that something else was going on, he should have just been an adult and asked her. The last thing he wanted was for Y/N to become his sister in law. Not when he was completely crazy about her. He knew that he owed her a massive apology, he’d said some really awful things, they both had.

“Y/N, I,” he sighed, at a loss for words. What could he possible say other than he was sorry? Y/N sniffled and looked away from him.

“Good talk Sirius,” she mumbled before crossing the room and she climbed out of the portrait hole. Sirius couldn’t let her go like this; he quickly stood up, not caring that the majority of Gryffindor were watching this scene unfold. He had to go after her to let her know how sorry he was. He had to let her know that he didn’t mean all those horrible things that he’d said.

However, Lily’s words stopped him before he could reach the portrait hole, “Sirius don’t, I’m sorry but I think that it’s too late.”

————————————–

You grinned happily as Alice positively gushed about her boyfriend Frank, they could compete against James and Lily for Hogwarts’ cutest couple. It was very clear that Alice was very much in love and you knew that they would go the distance. At first, Alice wouldn’t talk about her happy love life because she didn’t want to upset you but you had quickly explained to her that it was absolutely fine. You didn’t want her to censor the conversation purely for your benefit.

Despite everything that had occurred over the last few days you were feeling pretty happy and positive. It was a beautiful day sunny day and you had managed to ignore Sirius – and how beautiful he looked with slightly shorter hair. He knew the truth now and you thought that he knew how you felt; the ball was in his court now so you hadn’t worried about it too much.

You checked the time on your watch and saw that there was about twenty more minutes of lunchtime left, if you were going to help Remus then it needed to be now, “I’ll see you guys later, okay?” you grinned, feeling pretty excited.

“Bye Y/N,” Lily pulled you into a warm hug and Alice blew you a kiss.

“See you later honey.”

You smiled at your friends and wandered over to the Slytherin table, “hey, Reg?” you smiled sweetly as he greeted you with a kiss on your cheek; he was so adorable, “have you seen Morgana?”

He frowned at your question and you ignored how much he looked like Sirus when he did that, “I think she said she was going to the library. Why do you want to know Y/N?” he narrowed his eyes suspiciously and you laughed.

“Don’t look at me like that, I only want to talk to her,” you offered him a small wave and an apologetic smile as you hurried off in the direction of the library.

You navigated the extremely busy library with some difficulty and you smiled, with the amount of people in this one room it was surely pissing Madam Pince off. That thought made you happy. Eventually, you found Morgana at the back of the library with her head stuck in a book, you nervously approached her table. You didn’t know how she was going to react when she saw you, “Morgana?”

At the sound of her name she looked up and quirked a beautifully arched eyebrow, “Y/N. What do you want?” she drawled and rolled her eyes as she closed her book and she gestured for you to sit down in the free seat.

“We need to talk about Remus,” you said as you sat down, at the mention of Remus’ name, her whole demeanour changed. Her cheeks flushed a pretty pink colour as she looked at the table before looking up at you almost shyly. It was a good look for her.

“What about him?”

“I need to know how you feel about him,” you started, your protective instincts kicking in, “he’s my best friend, he’s been there for me and I’ve been there for him. He likes you and I really don’t want to see him get hurt.”

Morgana sighed and chewed her lip as she fiddled with her fingers, “Y/N, I know that you don’t like me and you have every reason to be suspicious of me. I have a hard time truly opening up to people but with Remus, it’s just so easy, he makes it so easy. He’s been so amazing, so patient when I did nothing but push him away. It’s so different being with him, different in a good way. It feels more than sex; I want it to be more than sex. He makes me want to be a better person Y/N, I would never hurt him, please believe me. But there’s something you don’t know, and I’m not sure that I deserve him,” she seemed so sincere and you were glad to see this side of her.

She was incredibly human and you couldn’t help but believe her, Remus usually had a good judgement of people, “if you’re not going to hurt him then I’ll say that you more than deserve him. I believe you Morgana, why don’t you ask him out?” you liked playing cupid, it was fun.

Morgana looked away from you and wrapped her arms around herself, “oh, I couldn’t,” she hesitated before looking at you warily, “you’re going out with Regulus right? Would you be interested in a double date?”

You didn’t bother to properly correct her about Regulus, “yes, if that would make you more comfortable,” you sighed wondering whether you were playing with fire.

“Thanks Y/N,” she smiled.

After your talk with Morgana you made your way to Potions and grinned at Remus but before you could tell him the good news you noticed that Sirius was gazing at you. His stormy grey eyes were wary and vulnerable, and when he spoke to you it was in a civilised tone that you hadn’t heard in so long.

“Y/N, I think that we need to talk.”

You nodded at him, this was either going to be a very good thing or a very bad thing, “yes I suppose that we do.”

————————————– 

@approved-by-dentists​ @thefuturelawyer​ @a-miserable-hufflepunk​ @firelordmillie​ @seriouslysiriuss​ @sleep-i-ness​ @play-morezeppelin​ @pregnant-piggy​ @sleepingalaska​ @smiithys​ @blisfvll​ @rexorangecouny​ @findzelda​ @wangmangagavroche​ @the-moon-and-the-book​ @hxrgreeves​ @ghostofstudentspast​ @they-write-once-in-a-blue-moon​ @my-unique-mind​ @im-an-angel-of-the-lord-you-ass​ @acciovisio​ @obsessedwithrandomthings​ @kashishwrites​

[sparkedupsilver]

Fixing Vikings 6B (or atleast trying to)

Okay so me and @dottiechan have watched the Vikings season finale and were - like many people - less than overjoyed at how it went. I'm not going to delve into everything that didn't sit right, because I'm sure plenty of people have made some very valid posts already explaining that. Here, however, I am going to reveal my take on what might have been a better (??) ending for the show, drawing on conversations me and the wonderful @dottiechan have been having. A lot. Obviously, spoilers for all of s6 I think. Just a warning, it's a long one.

Not sure how much I'd change for the early episodes beyond some obvious character building stuff. More on Ingrid. More on her and Gunnhild bonding. That storyline changes so that there is no rift - Erik is not strong enough to tear them apart, not when Ingrid knows who he is and tells Gunnhild. He is either killed for his crimes or banished. Harald re emerges, stakes his claim to Kattegat. The wedding scene happens, but it's turned into him being sacrificed/killed instead. The women present as a united front, and the rest of their arc in the series is them falling the rest of the way in love, dealing with issues in Kattegat, and the birth of the child. (It looks, thankfully, nothing like Harald. If it's a son, they call him Bjorn.)

Hvitserk and Ivar actually talk more in Russia. Hvitserk about what happened during 6a with his addiction and fears, and about Thora. Ivar expresses regret, explains the power trip and madness he had spiralled into during his time as king. It's not quite forgiveness, but it's a start. His final conversation with Katya ends with him finally being able to see her for who she is - that is, not Freydis. The camera cuts away to show that Katya is played by a different actress who looks similar (her "true self", not as Ivar has idealised her). His relationship with Igor is the same. They decide to go back to Kattegat in hopes of finding where Ubbe went, and to make some kind of peace with the dead Bjorn. Gunnhild and Ingrid regard them with suspicion and distaste, but agree that they can stay for a short time to honour their status as sons of Ragnar. Hvitserk has his chat with Bjorn's burial mound (which we've never seen inside of since episode one and never will again! That bitch is properly laid to rest all comfortable this time!), and has an encounter with a god that doesn't end in sex but does reaffirm his faith and direction. Ivar has a simultaneous conversation with Bjorn on the beach of Kattegat, mirroring the one from the end of 6a. They put forward their plan to raid England to Gunnhild, who sees it both as an important piece of the Lothbrok legacy and a way of getting Hvitserk and Ivar off her back. She has control of Harald's men, after all, and sends them off with the agreement that they never come back.

Meanwhile, Ubbe makes it to Greenland. Asa does not die, but does start to get sick when they are there, shaking everyone's faith in the endeavour. Kjettil still loses it and the others flee, only this time they pause to take essentials for the boat. They still forget to take the sunstone/it gets lost early on. They have a similar experience of being lost, of losing people despite lasting longer due to having some food and water. We have lots of little scenes of Ubbe cuddling an ill Asa, with an arm around Torvi and baby Ragnar. They find land, at very long last, but it's impossible to tell where it is. It looks almost familiar though, and it isn't Othere's golden land. It's actually Ireland, and they get chased out by the Irish who are already sick to death of Northmen invasions. They decide to go back East to England for safety. That's right, we're getting an Alfred and Ubbe reunion.

It's a surprisingly happy affair - Alfred is glad to see them alive still, and Ubbe is weirdly proud of how his kingdom thrives. The East Anglia settlement still stands, and Alfred agrees to let them stay until they have all recovered and can make their way back to Kattegat, where Ubbe has decided to pay his respects to Bjorn. We also get proper introductions, with Alfred showing Ubbe his son Edward (who has... strangely bright blue eyes...), and Ubbe showing him baby Ragnar, and a slowly recovering Asa, who Alfred remembers from last time. Things get a little stilted after a while, though - Ubbe and Torvi are no longer Christian, and Alfred is more devout than ever, after having to harden against ceaseless Dane and Northman attacks. The Greenland refugees move out to East Anglia to avoid any building tension.

Unfortunately, it's right where Ivar, Hvitserk, and the army land, hoping to drum up more viking warriors. There is a very tense reunion between all three of them, with Ivar and Hvitserk trying to coax Ubbe to join them. Ubbe tries to convince them that England is not worth it, that they have something close to peace already and that they should attack the Irish instead. Either way, lots of grievances get aired.

Sigurd's death is finally brought into the light by all three brothers. Ubbe gets a chance to go off about the fact that he feels like he had to raise them all, about how everything revolved around Ivar when they were younger and they couldn't properly grieve Sigurd because of Ivar's feelings. Ivar gets to voice his own pains around growing up without the use of his legs, how he hated being pitied, how Aslaug smothered and babied him or left him alone entirely. Hvitserk talks about how torn he has always been, about how he's always followed someone around and how without one of them to guide him he doesn't feel whole. He talks about going under the ice, and Frankia, and how he has spent his whole life afraid of the next thing, so he pours it all into being a fearless warrior and relying on his brothers. It's both exhausting and bonding.

Here's a possible ending:

Ubbe caves and joins them. He's viking, it's in his blood. It would be both honouring Ragnar and surpassing him to finally take England, so they try it. The battle at Eddington happens almost the same way, with Ivar's tricks working at first. However, Alfred has the numbers and knowledge of the terrain, and eventually overwhelms them. Alfred and Ubbe meet on the battlefield. There are references and maybe even flashbacks to their time together. Ubbe hesitates. Alfred doesn't. His death does, however, fuel Hvitserk into fighting harder, despite how obvious it now is that they're losing. Ivar rushes to Hvitserk's defense, finally coming face to face with Alfred as he tries to save his brother. Alfred is injured and fended off for now, but Hvitserk is close to death, and begs Ivar to run. The last son of Ragnar retreats, regroups, and heads to Ireland, vowing revenge but knowing he'll never take it. He will, however, make a damn fine king of the Irish (if I remember correctly).

Not everyone escapes with him. Torvi, injured and desperate, tells Othere to take her children and go with Ivar, because the East Anglia settlement will no longer be safe. We don't see if he succeeds.

Flash forward so many years. Wessex, the villa. Edward is a young man now, Alfred an older, distinguished king known for his great deeds. There is another boy, about the same age. Piercing blue eyes, blond hair. Undeniably Ragnar's descendant. He wears a cross over his fine Saxon clothes, and when Alfred calls him to take a look at the old Roman papers, he calls him Athelstan.

Across the sea, we see an equally aged Ivar the Boneless, staring out from a cliffside. He has lived a surprisingly long life, and looks well for it. Beside him sits a young woman. Bright blue eyes. White blonde hair. She knows her family's name, her history. She is Asa Bjornsdottir, and she has been raised by her uncle. Now, she's getting ready to take revenge. The show ends with them sat together, overseeing her new fleet, Ivar spinning one last story.

Obviously this has it's own plot holes, and there are things that would have to still be addressed, like Othere and how Floki would make his reappearance (let's be honest, it can't end without him). It could end with another Brother's War, with Ubbe siding with Alfred, or any number of variations, but there's my attempt in broad strokes to maybe fix some of the bigger problems I had with the ending.

[finnoky]

DKAU - Part  2 ( Movie and Season 1)

These are drabbles and ideas but a vague idea of how the Kingdoms work in this AU (There will be more parts for my own sanity)

So... Enjoy

PART ONE

In this Eugene was raised as a prince in the Dark Kingdom, alongside Varian as a little brother figure. ((The anticipated part 2 because I have a lot on my mind.... Part 3 will need a lot of work))

Eugene and Varian get to see all the sights as they travel to find the Sundrop - luckily navigating the Great Tree without much trouble (And to the delight of Varian who takes some of the scrolls for good measure to study later) Adira assists them at some points like the Forest of No Return and generally acts as the wise but eccentric guide. Varian and Eugene are both capable warriors and have some luck against rogues. In Vardaros they reconnect with an Ex-DK resident, Lance, who had previously been forced to leave the DK a few years prior due to being ‘At risk of tainting the Prince’s loyalty’ as well as the Orphanage he’d been residing in evacuating. Eugene is delighted to find his old friend again and the trio spend a fair amount of time in Vardaros! Cue some antics into a small life of crime which they unwittingly help out on before leaving the city. Lance is arrested soon after they leave.

Around 6 months into their journey the dynamic duo get seperated. Seeking shelter, Eugene goes up the tower and finds Rapunzel. Conflict remains by Eugene being mistaken for the notorious Flynn Rider… a guise he initially keeps because admitting he's the DK prince would probably be bad, after all Edmund has told him how much the Kingdom is hated, especially in Corona. Until he finds out Flynn Rider is wanted etc Movie drama with more fluff about discovering the world… they bond more over their experiences. Eugene recognizes Rapunzel can solve all their problems and once they see the lanterns they can run back to the DK. He wants to impress this girl so he keeps his suave persona and pretends to be someone else until he dies. During the campfire scene he runs into Adira again, who is happy by the news but vaguely reminds him they don't know what'll happen when the stones reunite leading to Eugene worrying a lot more. 

Meanwhile Varian is mulling around and protecting Eugene from the shadows. He loses him frequently, much to his annoyance. On the eve of the lantern festival he comes across his Mum's old home in Old Corona, now abandoned. Quirin is also there, having tracked his son down. He tells Varian not to come back, they decide together to hide in Old Corona since Varian doesn't really WANT to be a knight, Quirin wants some semblance of freedom, and their home is dead… Quirin states Varians mother would have wanted a better life for him and he's finally ready to provide that chance for his son. Seeing him sworn into knighthood for life just didn't sit right with him.  Thus, Apple dad still exists, Chaotic good Alchemist does too. 

The movie ends like normal - Eugene saved from taking the fall for the crimes of Flynn Rider. Then Eugene almost died thanks to Gothel. He realises the Sundrop is gone now by his own hand and that he's kinda… doomed his kingdom, but doesn't want to lose what he's only just found. For a while he's selfish and indulges in the life he's found here.  Which, to be fair, is what Varian and Quirin seem to be doing too. Adira leaves again, since the Sundrop is gone, though irritated she's once again the only one looking for a solution. 

Eugene isn't recognized by Fred as the prince - Rapunzel's return leads to him reluctantly apologising to Quirin and allowing him a tiny amount of power in the form of being the vassal of Old Corona, though he still believes the DK had some part in his daughter's disappearance.

All three get carried away enjoying their new lives. Especially Varian and Eugene who forget their quest, sure the sundrop has disappeared. Eugene finds Varian again in 'What the Hair' and finds he's been thriving being a normal kid. Eugene is still hiding the fact he's a prince of the infamous Dark Kingdom since it's still feared and now it’s a secret he doesn't know how to break, thus his relationship with Varian must stay a secret too since he and Quirin are notably from the DK. Varian says that they'll find out sooner or later. Quirin advises Eugene that the journey back will be dangerous and no one can really be sure what will happen when the stones reunite. Plus the reaction the rocks had to Rapunzel already don't bode well. Eugene decides to think some more since it'd be a whole mess. 

It's all dandy until the rocks reappear. Now Destroying Varians new home he gets very upset and determined to solve the problem once and for all with Alchemy. Quirin discourages this as he thinks Varian should know better and it leads to a rift in their relationship. Quirin is tired of Varians constant experiments, Varian is tired of the new shady attitude Quirin had adopted to bow down to Fred with. Quirin still acts canon with Fred as the worries regarding the rocks are the same. 

Eugene tells Varian to keep experimenting while he feigns some ignorance to how dangerous these rocks are. He's happy in Corona, it's comfortable, returning to the DK is daunting. At this point be feels he can't dig himself out of the hole he's in and thus tries to wait for the perfect time to tell Rapunzel he knows more than he's letting on… after all, reuniting her with the stone could be deadly… and he's not ready to return to his fathers wrath yet. He attempts to keep things light with his normal shenanigans until Varian can conclude how these rocks will react to Rapunzel, though Fred is growing suspicious.

With tension rising, Eugene and Varian start to have little spats about what to do. Varian is starting to feel cast aside for Rapunzel and is keeping secrets for too many people at once. The wear and tear is starting to get to him, as well as the failures of his experiments and attitude from Quirin. Eugene tries to reassure him that it’ll work out. Old Corona will be ok, it has to be! They’re team Awesome and they never fail. Varian agrees to keep going and asks for 5 weeks solitude to translate the scrolls and find some stable experiments. 

Eugene isn't aware of what happens to Varian during QFAD so he doesn’t go to check on him and continues his regular life. When Quest for Varian happens he is suddenly shocked into realising how bad everything has gotten. His brother is missing and chased by secret police, his uncle presumed dead,  it's a mess. and tries to keep Rapunzel away from them, afraid that she might shatter if she holds them. Rapunzel notices how devastated Eugene is by the state of Quirin and Varians disappearance, which he explains by giving some insight into the fact that he's seen this happen before… well, partly.

Varians actions in 'The Alchemist returns' leads to Eugene and Varian getting into another argument. Varian accuses Eugene of not caring about their home anymore, Eugene says Varian didn't either and he shouldn't blame him for what happened to Quirin. Eugene accidentally tells Varian that the kid 'ruined everything' by messing up with the rocks and now he's worried about Rapunzels demise. He calls Varian a villain who needs to be stopped. Varian feels… betrayed. He realises Eugene doesn't care about him or Quirin anymore and that these rocks are his problem alone. Eugene wants to wait but Varian knows they can't, he knows this 'waiting' won't go anywhere. After being isolated and chased for months, now being rejected by his brother, he sets out to enact his plans. 

However their argument does ignite a light in Eugene. He realises that yes, they need to do more about their problems. He tells Rapunzel about everything which leads to initial anger. He says he wants to go back to the DK with her to see what they can do, but omits the part of it potentially being deadly due to the fact that he's not really ready to face that himself. Rapunzel needs some space. She’s annoyed he was lying for so long and asks what, if anything, was genuine. He insists he has been genuine with her. Their relationship continues but they need some time to talk and work it out… which they do. After an entire night of conversation they agree to be more open with each other.

Then! Secret of the Sundrop time. Eugene is more apprehensive to help in an attack against Varian but knows he's gone too far. Attacking Rapunzel and setting a monster onto Corona were feats he never thought Varian would take and fails to recognize his little brother in this new Varian. He also acknowledges he should have checked on Varian earlier but that’s not an excuse for all this. The battle of Old Corona happens as usual. Varian is even more bitter at how he’s lost his entire family and grabs Eugene instead of Cassandra. Eugene tries to talk to Varian before the quest to the DK but it's hard. He sees how his brother has fallen and how broken and alone he seems.

Varian is bitter and resentful, telling Eugene it’s all his fault and he hopes his happy life was worth it. They have a very tense conversation, Eugene promises he'll come back for Varian when it's over, but Varian did step out of line. Varian pretty much refuses to speak and only addresses Eugene by saying ‘Yes, Your highness’ in a harsh tone. Eugene blames this all on the moonstone… He needs to prevent its destructive nature in anyway possible.

[loove-persevering]

Never Alone (Steve Rogers x Reader) SERIES Part One!

Description: To the world you’re Tony Starks little sister, and you wore that label proudly. He taught you everything you knew and helped you get there along the way. But two years after the events of the Sokovia Accords your brother and you hadn’t been in contact and that was slightly due to your inability to make a choice of which side you were on your brother Tony, or the man you loved Steve Rogers. (Story takes place during Endgame!) 

Steve Rogers x FemReader! , Tony Stark x Sister!Reader

Here I am with another series! I have a problem of starting these! Tell me what you all think about this one! Thanks for reading! 

  ‘’Dammit,’‘ you mutter throwing down the wrench from the helmet you were working on. You put your head in your hands frustrated by the inability of connecting the cross wires helmet. 

A knock on the door breaks you away from your thoughts, ‘’Everything okay?’’ Pepper asks you standing with the door half open her body only leaning in. 

You sigh swirling around in the chair, ‘’I cant get the wires to work and I don’t get why it won’t I’m doing everything exactly like it should, I’m doing it just like he-’’ You stop yourself short realizing what you were saying. 

 Pepper smiles at you sympathetically, ‘’It’s okay,’’ She says finally entering the room making her way over to you. You cross your leg over the other and Pepper comes over her land laying against your shoulder, ‘’You’ll figure it out,’’ She tells you. 

You glance up at her, ‘’I miss him,’’ You admit to her tearfully. 

‘‘I do too,’‘ She tells you. 

‘‘I need his brain,’‘ You tell her making you both let out a small laugh. ‘’I need him,’’ You say suddenly feeling the overwhelming amount of emotions hit you, you scrunch your face up trying not to cry. ‘’I’m sorry,’’ You say bringing your hands to your eyes trying to prevent the outflow of tears. 

‘‘He’s your brother, it’s okay.’‘ She tells you. You sit there in silence for a few moments unsure of what to respond, ‘’I feel like I haven’t seen him in years,’’ She admits shaking her head in disbelief. You glance at her sympathetically, ‘’The worst part is not knowing, is he gone?’’ She asks. A question you had asked yourself thousands of times over the past 25 days, was your brother dead? Reduced to ash? Where was he? ‘’I was just about to lay down, don’t stay up too late alright?’’ She tells you. You nod your head resting your hand against hers as it still laid on your shoulder, she gives it another squeeze before taking her hand away and walking to the door giving you a sympathetic smile before closing it behind her. 

You sit there in silence for a few minutes, your mind running a blank on what to do next. Where do you go from here? How do you simply move on in a world where everyone had lost? How were you to move on in a world where you lost? 

Several minutes later you walk in to the bathroom and see Steve at the sink his beard gone. ‘’I think I’m gonna miss that,’’ You say, he turns to you giving you a half smile looking back in the mirror.  ‘’You okay?’’ You ask him walking over near him, you lean up against the back of the sink crossing your arms over your chest. ‘’Dumb question,’’ You point out lowering your head. 

‘‘It’s alright,’‘ He tells you. ‘‘You’re doing your best, we all are.’‘ He answers.

Steve and you had a long past, you met when Tony brought them all back to the tower during the first Avengers mission and from then on it seemed as if your paths kept crossing. At the time you were a lot younger and a little more in a daze surrounded by how the world was not as it always appeared to be, aliens from another world, Gods. Tony had always watched after you as you were only one when your parents died, with Tony’s care you became a second him in a way. You went to MIT and studying engineering and by twenty you were working under your brother at Stark Industries. As the years went by you learned from him building your own suits taking the family business to another level with Tony’s help. 

 When you started dating Steve your brother was the least bit happy. He practically forbid it and when he found out and after some convincing and multiple talks with him he finally came around to the idea. That was until the Sokovia Accords issue happened, causing a rift in your loyalty it seemed to both parties. You could see the two sides of both parties, how restrictions could help protect civilians and prevent casualties that didn’t need to happen. But Steve was also right what happens if there is a mission the team was needed on and wasn’t called? Or a mission that didn’t require our assistance that we were forced to go on. 

You were torn and couldn’t decide, you didn’t particularly go on missions anyway and were more of a behind the scenes kinda gal anyway. After the fight life was hard, your relationship with Tony was strained as well as the one with Steve. You didn’t have contact with either of them until Thanos came about and solely focused on your studies. It was Tony that contacted you first he told you he was on a ship in space and you needed to find Steve because he would already have a plan in place and he did. 

 And there you were in Wakanda along side everyone else fighting for the first time, although you weren’t much help you were there and you saw first hand the destruction Thanos had caused. When you arrived back at the compound and saw Pepper you felt relief, but when you both realized Tony hadn’t been found you assumed the worst he was gone as well. 

‘‘Have you heard anything?’‘ You ask him. 

‘‘Nothing new,’‘ He mentions to you noticing the fallen looks of disappointment spread across your face. ‘‘I’m sorry Y/N, I wish I had more to tell you.’‘ He says gripping the sink looking back into the mirror. 

You sit in silence for a few seconds before you felt the sink shaking against the back of your legs, you push yourself up slightly looking over to Steve to notice he was trying to hold the mirror steady. He glances to you and you stare at him in shock, in a moment of spoken silence you race off out the bathroom running through the compound as fast as your feet could carry you. It felt as if your heart was going to beat out of your chest, what was this?

You race outside barefoot feeling the wet grass beneath your feet, you felt like you were being propelled forward your hair was blowing all around you as you try to glance at what the commotion was about. You heard Steve call out from behind you, ‘’Y/N!’’ He yelled but you kept going forward your adrenaline not allowing you to stop. You see what looked like an orange flame or glow below a ship above whatever it was. You stopped and watched as whatever it was rounded the corner lowering closer and closer to the ground, after finally landing the ship you notice the flame was actually a woman but you were too invested on what the ship, or whom the ship was carrying to introduce yourself. 

The stairs fold down and you practically leap forward until you feel a hand on your arm pulling you back slightly, when you turn around you noticed it was Steve, ‘’We don’t know what’s on that ship,’’ He warns you. 

‘‘Exactly the point, we don’t know who could be on that ship.’‘ You say pulling you arm from his grasp. You heard him mutter something under his breath and when you glance back he was following closely behind along with Bruce, Rhodey and Natasha. The doors to the ship open and you see someone your unsure who it was but she glances at you then back into the ship holding her hand out to help whoever it was. 

 You let a deep breath go when you realize who it was, Tony. You immediately run forward his eyes meeting yours as he takes the step down one by one, his eyes filled with relief. You feel Steve put his hand on your back walking around knowing he was the stronger one to support Tony’s weight when he finally didn’t have the railing to lean on. You stay silent looking at him and how skinny he was, he was stranded in space of course he was skinny but he looked worse than you had ever seen him. 

‘‘I couldn’t stop him,’‘ He tells Steve. 

‘‘Neither could I,’‘ Steve tell him back. 

Breathless Tony looks to Steve then to you and back to Steve again, ‘’I lost the kid,’’ He says and you furrow your eyebrows in anger. You knew of Peter Parker, not much but you knew he was only a kid and one that deserved more of a life than this. 

‘‘Tony, we lost.’‘ He pauses. Tony glances back at you and you nod your head at him the tears still on the brim of your eyes. 

‘‘Is uh-’‘ He begins to ask but you glance over seeing Pepper taking a step toward him unsure of when she arrived. She looks him over up and down noticing how visually weak he looked before pulling him into a hug, You could visually see a weight lifted from both of their chest, she glances up at you as she hugs him almost looking as speechless as you suddenly felt. Two years of not seeing Tony and now seeing him in a weak fragile state was one you never expected. Tony was always the one who took care of you, who was the strong older brother but now could barely stand by himself. 

‘‘Tony-’‘ You finally speak taking a step forward the tears now falling freely, ‘‘I’m so sorry-’‘ You tell him chocking back a sob, Steve glances over at you sympathetically.

‘‘You two can talk later lets get him inside for now,’‘ Pepper says glancing at you knowing this needed to be a much longer conversation. ‘‘He needs to rest,’‘ She says as his arm goes under her shoulder for support. Rhodey makes his way over assisting her as they take him inside, you stand in the field watching as they walk away. 

 ____________________

A few short hours later you sat outside unable to sleep, you sat in the field only a few hours ago that you first saw your brother again. ‘’Penny for your thoughts?’’ You hear a familiar voice call out. You stay still already knowing it was Steve, ‘’It’s cold out, Y/N.’’ He tells you as he finally stands at your side peering down at you. 

You don’t say anything and you hear a grunt before you glance to the side noticing Steve had taken a spot next to you on the ground his hands resting on his stomach. ‘’He’s alive,’’ You finally speak out to him. 

‘‘He is,’‘ He says. 

��’I thought the last time I would see him was before-’‘ You begin to say but don’t finish.’‘ You tell him. ‘‘I thought he was gone,’‘ You tell him. ‘‘I was going to be alone,’‘ You elaborate. 

‘‘You were never gonna be alone Y/N, I would never let that happen.’‘ He tells you. 

‘‘But you did,’‘ You call out to him. ‘‘For two years you did,’‘ You tell him turning your head to the side to finally look at him. ‘‘Not even a call.’‘

He turns his head to the side to look at you now, ‘’Just because I didn’t call doesn’t mean I wasn’t around.’’ He points out. ‘’You were never alone, and I think I can guarantee that on both mine and Tony’s account.’’ 

‘’I missed him,’’ You say. ‘’You too,’’ You could feel the hesitation in your voice as you admitted it. You turn your head back up toward the sky watching the stars. ‘’Do you think there is a reason some are gone rather than others?’’ You ask him randomly.

‘‘I’m not too sure,’‘ He says.

‘‘If there’s a reason I’m still here and someone else is not I want to know,’‘ You tell him. ‘‘Although I hope I can prove that,’‘ You sigh. ‘’I’m sorry about Bucky,’’ You tell him.

‘‘I’m sorry too,’‘ He says, ‘‘About everything.’‘ He says. 

You push yourself up on your elbows to prop yourself up to look at Steve, ‘’I should go to bed,’’ You say suddenly feeling as if this conversation was going somewhere else. ‘’Lot to cover in the morning?’’ You assume.

‘‘Mornings only a few hours away,’‘ He points out pushing himself up. He offers you his hand helping you up from the ground. ‘‘So we should get to bed I guess,’‘ He says and you both begin to walk back to the compound.

‘‘Are you inviting me to bed?’‘ You ask knowing it would take him back. ‘‘Bold move, Captain.’‘ You say making him laugh slightly. When you finally reach the doors inside you stand there staring at him for a moment his eyes meeting yours. ‘‘Goodnight Steve,’‘ You say. 

‘‘Goodnight,’‘ He says simply. 

____________________________

A/N 

Part 2? I want to make this into a series! Let me know what you think! Make sure to leave a comment if you want more or to be added to the tag list! I am remaking my permanent tag list so if you want to be added to that as well let me know! Thanks again for reading!

[jewel116]

Nights

Tristan made yet another sharp turn racing his motorcycle through the city of Domino. To him, there was nothing like the wind violently whipping his face while the skylights passed him like a blur. It was the only thing that relaxed him after an awfully hard day at the factory. Shaking the thought of creaky machines and heavy boxes out of his head, he turns the psychedelic music up in his Bluetooth helmet. After a few minutes, he feels his body relax and starts making random turns. When riding, he wanted to go where the wind took him. So as soon as he reached an area of the city he liked, he would click on an app that gave him a random number between one and four. Click the randomizer three times and that’s how he would choose his destination for the night.

“4, 1, 4”

“Ok, good enough for me!” He thinks to himself, making four left turns almost hitting someone. “Sorry!” he yells, even though he was in the way. One turn to the right and then four more turns to the left. “Domino Bridge. Been awhile since I’ve been around here.” It’s usually a ghost town over there after tourist season and would come when he was in a particularly bad mood or just wanted to get away from any and everything. His father pressuring him to take over the factory and all the stress that comes with that responsibility. As he expected, there was no one there except a few stragglers on the bridge. Slowing down, he takes his helmet off to take in the smell of the ocean when he sees Yugi sitting on top of the railing overlooking the beach. Tristan was never really comfortable with Yugi because of his relationship with Joey. There would always be a level of betrayal there and it seems no matter how hard he tried; he would never really fit in with that group. He would see them together twenty-four seven and when he did try to speak with them, they would speak back. But it would feel more distant, as if they were trying to hide something or hold something back. Proud and stubborn until the end, Tristan didn’t have to be told that he wasn’t welcome twice. So, he just stopped trying and was back to where he started.

Distant and alone

Shrugging it off as a loss, he looks down at his phone and uses his randomizer again. The faint sound of crying stops him in his tracks as he is about to pull off in the night. Glancing back up, tears are coming down Yugi’s face. The tiniest of smirks comes across his face when he thinks of the times, he was alone thanks in part to him. It quickly goes away when he thinks about the time, he stood up for him with that bully when he had no reason to. Pursing his lips, he mounts his bike and slowly drives up to him. Just before he reaches him, the puzzle around his neck begins to glow. Tristan knows he’s not crazy and this isn’t the first time he has seen that happen. He’s weirder every time it glows and the rumors around him get more and more crazy. He had to laugh when he heard that Yugi was the one that stopped three seniors from taking their spot in the cultural festival. But nonetheless, it was grounds for him to stop and think about turning the other way. ‘He doesn’t see me, and he can’t prove that I saw him’ Tristan thinks to himself, carefully analyzing the situation.

Purple eyes are staring back at him when he finally comes to his decision to leave him there. Taken aback, Tristan figures there is nothing to lose now and rides his bike to where he is. Looking around for something to speak about, Tristan decides that silence is the best option in this moment. Tristan just leans on the railing and watches the waves go by as Yugi starts to cry again. “You like waffles?” Tristan asks, finally breaking the silence. Confused, Yugi wipes his face and stares at him, “what?” He questions puzzled by the random question. “I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but food usually helps any sad situation. Especially the ones that I am thinking about.” Shrugging, Tristan stretches for a second before going back to his bike. “Come on.” He called out, ushering him to the bike. “It’s better than sitting here in the freezing cold crying by yourself? Right?” Handing him is spare helmet, “if that doesn’t work then I know something that will for sure.”

Yugi can’t explain why he, without explanation took the helmet and did exactly what he asked him to do. He had never been on a motorcycle before, especially with Tristan. Tristan was ok in his book. He didn’t dislike him, but they were not close to each other, more just friends of friends. After Joey straightened him out about bothering him, he became more and more distant until it seems that he and Joey never talked at all. Yugi tried not to get involved in that because he felt a little guilty for breaking them up. No matter how many times Joey tried to convince him of otherwise, he knew that he was the rift between the two of them. Maybe that was better or worse, but Yugi knew it wasn’t his place to say anything. “Hang on, sometimes I ride a little fast”. Tightening his grip around Tristan’s waist, Yugi is thrusted backwards when Tristan revs the bike.

Weaving through the narrow space between cars at the speed they were going was enough to make Yugi laugh through his helmet. “Faster!” He screams, losing his grip on Tristan, “Not too much faster! You don’t want motion sickness” Tristan chuckled, looking back at Yugi who is waving his hands in the air. He has no choice but to smile because he remembers when brother took him for a ride on his bike for the first time. It’s a feeling that you never forget, no matter how long you have been riding. “Hang on tight!” He orders, before lifting the bike on one wheel going the same speed. “Woo!!!” Yugi screams from behind him. “Having fun?!” Tristan screamed through the sound of engine, slowing down before motion sickness kicks in. “Woo!!” Yugi says again looking around at all the buildings and lights. “Totally! We have about another two hours, so get comfortable” “Two hours?” “You don’t have anywhere to go do you?” “No, I don’t but…” Yugi pauses before answering. “Don’t you have a curfew or something?” “Hell no. As long as I pay my dues at the factory, never show up late and do my work. My father doesn’t care what I do.” Yugi just nods and leans forward, resting his head on Tristan’s shoulder. “You’re adrenaline’s wearing off, isn’t it?” Feeling his eyes get heavy, Yugi’s grip on Tristan lessens again. Grabbing Yugi’s hands, he secures them around his waist, so he doesn’t have to drop his speed.

“Get a nap, I’ll wake you up when we are there.”

“Wake up, we’re here” Tristan announces, lightly shaking his shoulder. “Onoki’s. One of the oldest hole in the wall diners in Japan. Not to mention, the best waffles!” Tristan explains, catching Yugi before he trips over the bike rack next to them. “You sure it’s ok to leave your bike out here? It’s pretty deserted out here.” “Yea, Onoki knows me and the bike so it’s fine. Take this before you go in.” Poking the tiny white pill from its silver package, “it’s so you don’t feel sicker later on.” Holding his hand out, Yugi takes the pill and the bottle of water Tristan offered. “Thanks.” “You’re welcome.”

The grease sizzling on the frying pans and plates slamming on the linoleum tables is about the only sound you can here in the place. Founded in 1975, the owner Onoki took a trip to America and after he had a taste of their secret waffle recipe; he never looked back. After begging and wrestling with the owner over the recipe. Even going so far as to attempt to break into the man’s house for it, Onoki came back to Japan; opened his place and has been in business ever since. Sliding into one of the silver and red booth, slightly warm from the last patron; Tristan waves over one of the waitress. “Miss, when you are ready, we are too.” Sucking her teeth, the tiny waitress sighs and grabs one of the plastic menus and makes her way to them. Checking his bank account, he grabs his leather wallet and pulls out a fifty. Tristan would always have to deal with waitresses like this when he was working as a waiter. But usually when they had an attitude, the customers would feel it and he would have to pick up the slack when the customers wouldn’t leave tips or never come back.

“What do you want?” She spits, rolling her eyes with her hands on her hips. They messed up her vibe with the cook and she was not too happy. “We want waffles, hash browns extra crispy, lots of butter packs, bacon, eggs, the toast that comes with it and a huge pot of coffee. Oh, and please don’t forget the creams and sugars as well”. He asks as politely as he possibly can, waving the fifty between his fingers so she can see it. “All for my new favorite waitress, if you can get it to us in less than ten minutes.” The grin returns to her face as if the cook didn’t exist. “Coming right up!” The curvy girl shrieks, knowing that’s going to be her best tip of the night. “How do you do that?” Yugi whispers, clutching his head in his hands. “Do what?” Tristan questions, glancing around at the many photos on the wall. Some dated, some newer with musicians, guitarist mainly and some other well-known celebrities. “Get people to do what you want like that?” Scoffing, he leans back in his seat. “I’ve been a waiter on the side for a while and on nights like this, all people want to do is groove and be anywhere but work. I get where she was coming from. It’s no big deal.”

“Order up!” the waitress chimes, straightening her bright-green skit. Tristan clicks the power button on his phone. “Nine minutes. Perfect.” Sliding the fifty towards her, she snatches it before he has the chance to change his mind. “Holler if you need anything.” Her chocolate brown eyes are tracing Tristan’s body up and down, loving what she sees. “Will do.” Tristan nods, winking at her before she leaves. “She just wants another tip Yugi, you see how she was just looking at me.” Tristan leans forward and whispers. “Oh! This looks amazing!” The huge waffle with Onoki’s logo written across the middle was enough to make Tristan’s mouth water. When he first came across this place, he didn’t believe the hype that everyone was making about these waffles. The patrons laughed and made sure to record the moment on their cellphones. “Ring the bell! Ring the bell!!” They chant to him. The bell meant that someone had just been made a believer of the waffle. Peeling the packet of butter, Tristan starts to go to work when he notices that Yugi still has his head on the table.

“Not to get in your business or anything but aren’t you diabetic? Motion sickness and that are not a good combo. Just saying.” Yugi shoots a look towards him in pure shock. There should be only a handful of people that know that. “How do you know…” “For someone so small, you speak loudly. I overheard you teaching Joey how to give you the needle if he needed to. There was something about a pump too, but I walked away after that.” Shoving a forkful of waffles in his mouth but trying not to laugh at Yugi’s face, pours a cup of hot coffee and slides it towards him. “Drink something at least.” Staring at the cup, Yugi sits up a little and glances down at his side. Tristan can’t see for sure but assumes it’s his insulin pump he’s staring at. Shrugging it off, Tristan reaches into his backpack to pull out his manga. He didn’t know what Yugi’s problem was or what was possessing him to stay here with Yugi on his night ride. But he was not going to do was sit there and talk to himself.

“Is that Oishi?” Yugi beamed, filling the cup with hazelnut creamer and one sugar. “Yea, what’s it to you?” Shifting uncomfortably in the booth, Tristan usually keeps his personal tastes of manga to himself. “I love that manga! The food always looks amazing, and Hiro always has the craziest recipes!” “I finally managed to make the lemon breakfast cake with the homemade frosting for it! It took me two tries because it was too tangy for me, but I finally got it the way I wanted it.” He’s been cooking ever since he could remember. His mother figured that if he wanted to be a good husband, then he needed to know how to properly take care of a woman other than physical needs. “Did you try and make it in the kitchen lab?” Now it was Tristan’s turn to be surprised. “Yea...” “I thought that was you. I was doing some late-night studying and usually I get one of the cookies that are left in there for me. Then I saw you staring at one of the iPads for the recipe.” Tristan has been using that lab for the last year now. When he needs to avoid the stares and rumors from his classmates, Tristan goes to the lab. At first, he was sneaking in there during lunch hours. But he was caught by their teacher who was experimenting with a recipe he was going to use later in the year.

Mr. Sato explained that he was once young and similar to Tristan. So, he made him a deal. If Tristan could successfully prepare whatever dish that was placed in front of him; he would not only be able to use the lab. But could get an extra copy of the key so he could use it whenever he wanted. As far as Mr. Sato was concerned, it would be better for him to be in school versus out in the streets like he previously was. Tristan wasn’t given the fair shake that his classmate was given, and he was sympathetic to that.

“The mint chocolate chunk cookies on the red rimmed plate?” Sinking in his chair, Yugi shakes his head with a small grin working its way to his face. “Yes, that’s that very plate. You’ve been making those for me? Making the notes with it to?” Hiding his blush, Tristan turns his attention to the window and the partygoers stumbling to get to the nearest afterparty. “I didn’t make them for you. I made them for whoever wanted it. Didn’t know it was you” He snarls at Yugi. “I understand Tristan” raising his eyebrow up at him. He would never say it but those encouraging notes really helped him when he first completed the puzzle. There were moments when Yugi would lose significant blocks of memory and time. Suddenly, people would look at him as if he were a danger to them or as if he wronged them somehow.

Gaming and studying were the only two things that got his mind off of that. His new friends were a huge help for him but sometimes, all he needed was equations and games to ease his troubles. One night, when he was walking down the narrow halls of the school, the moonlight illuminating the hallway; he was starving. The small of fresh chocolate chips stopped him in his trackers, leading him to the source. Twisting the gold doorknob slowly, he pokes his head through the door. ‘So far so good’ he thinks to himself, pushing the door further in. Flipping the white switch, warm lights bring the room to life. The kitchen lab was one of the oldest rooms in the school that was next on the list to be remodeled. Three white, well-loved ovens were lined up against the wall side by side with cabinets, sinks and drawers around each one. Sewing machines along with many sheets of fabric around each one is on the other side of room just below a twenty-inch tv. Sitting next to Yugi was a plate of cookies with a crumpled piece of notebook paper under it.

“Don’t study too hard or next time there will not be any cookies.” Yugi folds the note and puts it in his right pocket. “Wonder who left these?” Shrugging, he reaches for one of the cookies and takes a small but tentative bite. When that chocolate and his taste buds collide, he has no choice but to go for seconds and eventually thirds. “These are amazing! Tastes professional!” Yugi grabs the plate and closes the door behind him, shutting the light off. Little did he know, leaving Tristan in the dark in the orange supply closet where the teachers kept the knifes and older pans and tins. “Look, you look like you are done and doing better now. I know a place where you can get the latest Oishi if you want? It’s not too far from here and we can spend the night. Blankets, cots and even a change of clothes if you want. You down?” Tristan asserts, rising from his seat after finishing his plate.

“Yes.” There he goes again, saying yes to this kid without even thinking about it. He doesn’t know Tristan and knows that he doesn’t like him. Tristan could be trying to set him up for something bad. Yugi’s heart tells him otherwise, however. His heart is telling him that Tristan might be…rough around the edges but he’s not a horrible person. He wouldn’t have defended him in the past if he felt that he was anything other than that. “I’ll show you a series just like that and maybe some others too while we are over here. You’ll love it” Tristan says with more energy than before, feeling excited to show something he loves to someone else.

Flashing, multicolored lights are shining in Yugi’s face as he reads the sign above them. “Bonsai” “Yep! They have a new net room which is so much bigger than the booths that they usually have. I mean don’t get me wrong, it does the job. But I want to get really comfortable, especially since my eyes start to get sore after about the fifteenth manga.” Following the taller teen, he notices a sign for a strip theater next door. “I’ve been to that, and I’ve actually seen better. The skyrise parties are the best of the best. Even have a few celebrities there once in a while. I’ll have to take you sometime if you interested.” Tristan explains, ushering him to follow him up the green carpeted stairs to the lobby. A pale, young woman wearing a navy-blue dress with the Bonsai name tag looked up when she heard the door swing open. “Hey Akemi!” Tristan smiles and greets when he sees her. Akemi knew that Tristan was a regular and tipped well when he was there. It wasn’t until he protected her from three guys that tried to attack her during one of her shifts, that she decided to look out for him. Pulling out his membership card, Akemi waves her hand at him. “Don’t worry about it! Enjoy your night!” She does a double take when she sees Yugi by his side and giggles. “Akemi! Get your mind out of the gutter.” “I did not say anything!” She teases, sitting back down on her stool. “I felt it. It was all in your mind!” He replies, waving at her for a final time. “Don’t mind her Yugi, she always does me like this.” Tristan explains, “Always accusing me of something!” Making sure she heard that last part, Tristan adds a tip to her account on his phone app.

Yugi nods his head at the woman, who blushes when Tristan isn’t looking at her. Leading him through the corridors of the room, Yugi can’t help but think this is a hotel versus a manga café. “Feels like we are at a hotel and not a café.” Yugi commented when he saw the shower signs and blanket compartments outside of each room. “That’s because in a way it is. It’s pretty new and is really for travelers who want to save some money. The booths were ok for just a few hours but now that I’m here more often because of their new shipment of books, it’s worth staying a night or two to enjoy them.” Yugi couldn’t help but agree. The chairs were soft enough but for the amount of time he spent reading, he needed something softer for his back. “The one I went to had an open bar and hookah in the very back for older guests.” “Really? I need to go to that one…. Have you ever had a drink?” Yugi shakes his head blushing, looking down at the signs on the grey hardwood floors. “It’s cool. Let me know if you ever want to go out like that. I can get you a good fake id and they will none the wiser. Cost about two hundred but I can get it to you for half.” Smiling, Yugi can’t help but think about the kind of trouble this kid must get into all the time. He just casually speaks about fake id’s and running off to who knows whereas if he is talking about a bright, sunny day. “Tell me, why are you trying to help me? I know you don’t really like me that much.”

Surprised that Yugi of all people is getting straight to the point, he stops where he is. “The truth is that I really don’t know. You’re right, I don’t really like you because you took my only friend from me. But when I saw you crying, something in my spirit told me to try and help you. I took you here because it seems like we are into some of the same things. Remember, though, you chose to follow me. You could have gotten a bus and gotten home but yet you are still following me. Why is that?” Yugi remains silent and walks shoulder to shoulder with him.

“Because my spirit said the same thing.”

[ibijau]

Worst engagement AU // on AO3

Having narrowly avoided facing consequences for his actions, Nie Huaisang decides the wisest thing he can do is creating trouble

After being caught making out with someone by Lan Xichen, Nie Huaisang spends a few days in abject terror. At any moment he expects Lan Qiren or worse, Nie Mingjue, to suddenly appear behind him and give him the scolding of a lifetime for fooling around in a way that endangers their precious alliance. Being rude is one thing, he can name plenty of couples who hate each other's guts after being forced to marry, but this could be counted as cheating and he's not so stupid he doesn't know that's serious. 

And yet, a day passes without consequences. Two days. Three days. By the fourth day Nie Huaisang is a nervous wreck, especially as he is supposed to meet Lan Xichen, like every week. He seriously considers not going at all, before deciding that this would probably just make everything worse.

Nie Huaisang isn't brave by any means, but he's not going to let Lan Xichen know how terrified he is. His fiancé would be too happy to fall back into their old dynamic. 

It takes immense effort to act casual as Lan Xichen invites him inside the house, and directs him to the table. There's tea waiting for them, the same insipid biscuits as ever, and Lan Xichen doesn't say a word while he lights the incense stick. He then comes to sit across from Nie Huaisang, as elegant as always, and starts pouring tea. 

"I thought it'd be in everyone's best interest to keep this incident between us," Lan Xichen announces with that empty, annoying smile of his. "There's no need to make a scandal over this. I'm counting on you to behave better in the future." 

"I'll make sure to do it somewhere less exposed next time," Nie Huaisang retorts, relieved that there won't be consequences, but also pissed off by that fake gentleness when he had prepared himself for anger and disdain. 

Lan Xichen nearly drops the teapot and throws him a shocked look. He appears actually hurt, although Nie Huaisang doesn't buy it for one second. The only wound is to Lan Xichen's pride, and he refuses to care about that. 

"It's not like I can really stop you," Lan Xichen whispers weakly, before forcing his smile back on, any trace of pain disappearing from his face. "I would really prefer if you did not do this again, Nie gongzi. I know you do not like me, but please understand that any person with whom you… play in this way might use it to threaten you in the future, and I do not wish for harm to come to you." 

That's a fair point, and of course it's something Nie Huaisang has considered. There's a reason he's only kissed Lan disciples; they wouldn't dare say anything that might taint the honour of their future sect leader, and the punishment for blackmail is far worse than that for youthful indiscretions. 

"I know what I'm doing," Nie Huaisang retorts. "I won't create problems for Lan gongzi." 

Lan Xichen pinches his lips but doesn't insist. He silently pushes a cup of tea toward Nie Huaisang, who as always ignores it. Lan Xichen sighs. 

"Do you really hate the tea that much? I thought it was against me, but you didn't drink it with Wangji either." 

Nie Huaisang hesitates. On one hand, he's tired of insipid tea. On the other, refusing to drink makes for an easy way to mark his contempt. But since Lan Xichen showed some unexpected kindness in offering to keep the secret, Nie Huaisang figures he needs to make a gesture as well, just this time. 

"You make it too light," he complains. 

"That's it?" Lan Xichen asks, eyes wide with surprise. "Why didn't you just say so? I can brew it longer if you prefer. Wait a moment, I'll make another pot." 

Nie Huaisang shrugs, and opens his fan so he can hide behind it and observe his fiancé with ever growing suspicion. He doesn't know what game Lan Xichen is playing, being so nice after such an attack on his honour, but it's starting to make him uncomfortable. If Lan Xichen is hoping that he'll be all meek and trembling again just because he has blackmail material on him, he can think again. 

And so, as always, he refuses to play Go, or to chat about anything. Time passes as slowly as ever, but Nie Huaisang is getting used to that.

It is a little less unpleasant with better tea, though. 

-

With the fear of being punished for his misbehaviour taken care of, the absence of Wei Wuxian starts to make itself felt. 

Without Wei Wuxian to distract him, Jiang Cheng reveals himself as a clever, serious and hard working person whose idea of fun is to train extra hours. That's not the worst thing ever, because he's usually happy to teach Nie Huaisang some hand-to-hand techniques, and for all of his grumbling, he's a surprisingly patient teacher. It would be great really, if only, on occasions, Jiang Cheng could be convinced to also have actual fun. But apparently he can only do that if Wei Wuxian is there to force him. 

After a week of this, Nie Huaisang decides that he needs to make other friends as well. He's not going to abandon Jiang Cheng who is still nice to spend time with, but he needs someone who isn't so damn serious all the time. 

And yet, after carefully observing everyone in their class, Nie Huaisang decides that the next friend he makes will be Jin Zixuan, easily the least fun person in the entire universe. 

The reasoning for this is two-fold. 

First of all, Jin Zixuan is very obviously repressed to the highest degree, but gives signs that there's a bit of personality going on under his aloofness and the great airs he gives himself. Whenever he picked an argument with Wei Wuxian, his insults were pretty smart after all. He also dresses very well and always looks good, even though Lanling Jin's gold is an atrocious shade that shouldn't work for anyone. And then there's his grades, good enough that he doesn't get in trouble, but still low enough to make it clear that he doesn't really care about the lectures. All of this, put together, intrigues Nie Huaisang. 

The second reason he choses Jin Zixuan as his future new friend is plain pity. 

Even though it expresses differently, Jin Zixuan reminds Nie Huaisang of the way he was last year, always alone and kept at a distance by everyone. He hasn't made friends among the other high born boys, and he doesn't seem all that close to the Jin disciples who accompany his. In Nie Huaisant's case, the loneliness was due to being boring and sad and a little stupid. In Jin Zixuan's case, it's for also being boring, but mostly for being so awkward that he can't seem to hold a conversation without insulting someone. To make it worse, everyone is side-eyeing him since that business with Wei Wuxian, all of them knowing well enough that Jin Zixuan started it and missing the bit of mischief that Wei Wuxian always brought to the lessons.

Maybe Nie Huaisang should dislike Jin Zixuan, knowing that the arguments against Jiang Yanli are the same ones people use to comment on his own engagement to Lan Xichen. He knows it's what everyone expects. But he understands how frustrating it is to be tied by force to someone who is always too nice and too polite, and he knows a thing or two about lashing out because of anger.

So, Jin Zixuan will become his friend. 

-

The first step is to check with Jiang Cheng that it won't cause a rift between them. It would be fun to make a new friend, but not if it will cost the old ones. Nie Huaisang really does like Jiang Cheng a lot. In fact, he might like him better now that Wei Wuxian isn't always there to steal the spotlight. So he asks about that one afternoon, when they're resting after sparring for a bit.

"Out of everyone you could pick, you want to be friends with Jin Zixuan?” Jiang Cheng grunts, looking extremely disappointed by his life choices. “Why would you even… he's not even fun. There's a reason he doesn't have friends!" 

"The way I see it, it's a win-win," Nie Huaisang explains, lazily fanning himself. Sparring isn't the worst, but sweat is. "Maybe I become his friends, and then I have a new friend, which is good, and inter-sect relationships are improved which is also good. Or else he refuses to let me be his friends, and he gets mightily annoyed by my efforts, and I like annoying people." 

Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes. 

"You're just as bad as Wei Wuxian," he grumbles. "And I guess I'm too boring for you, uh?" 

"Jiang xiong, you're one of the least boring people I know! And if anything, Jin Zixuan is probably a very boring person. Listen, if it really is a problem, I'll drop my idea. I thought it'd be fun to see what would happen if I pestered him, but I don't want to upset you."

"Do what you want, I don't care. But if you ever side with him about my sister…." 

"I'll punch him if he says anything against her," Nie Huaisang fiercely promises, "and they can't send me home as easily as Wei xiong, so you know I'll do it!" 

Jiang Cheng snorts, but gives that offer a moment of serious consideration.

“You know how we taught you to control your strength when you’re fighting?”

Nie Huaisang nods, fanning himself a little harder to hide his embarrassment at the memory of those two Lan bullies he corrected with a little too much zeal, and how the Jiang boys started helping him train after that. Nobody had ever told him before not to use his full strength on others, mostly because nobody probably expected him to ever have much strength.

“If you punch Jin Zixuan, forget about all that,” Jiang Cheng orders. “Break his jaw if you can, so he never says another word against my sister.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I will,” Nie Huaisang assures him. “It’d be my pleasure.”

-

The second, and more complicated, part of Nie Huaisang’s little project is to actually become friends with Jin Zixuan.

Boldness, he figures, is probably his best strategy.

So on the day after that chat with Jiang Cheng, Nie Huaisang very boldly goes to sit next to Jin Zixuan in the classroom, and immediately leans toward the other boy's desk as if they’re already familiar.

“Can you believe we’re going to spend another day on those stupid flame talismans?” he asks, rolling his eyes. “I swear, this is ridiculous. Even I have known how to use them for years, and I barely count as a cultivator. Don’t you think three days on those is too much? I know they’re useful, but this is so boring, isn’t it?”

“What are you doing here?” Jin Zixuan retorts, glancing at the empty seat near Jiang Cheng which is normally his. “Master Lan will be here in a moment, get to your place.”

“This is my seat today,” Nie Huaisang announces with a large smile. “What are you doing after the lecture? I was thinking of going by the river and reading, but I can change my plans.”

It takes a lot of effort not to laugh at the distraught expression on Jin Zixuan’s face. He looks like a lost puppy hoping his mother will soon come rescue him from this uncomfortable situation. It’d be adorable if it weren’t a little sad that at his age to panic like that just because someone talks to him unexpectedly. He really is too much like Nie Huaisang was not long ago.

“I don’t have plans,” Jin Zixuan manages to say. “I’m going to study until dinner.”

“Boring. Do you like poetry?”

Jin Zixuan hesitantly nods, his eyes darting around, checking on the other Jins (all very entertained by what’s happening) and the door (no sign yet of Lan Qiren), before pinching his lips as he slowly starts to realise that nobody will save him from this.

“Really? What do you prefer? I’ve borrowed a few books from the Lan library. They’re all pretty boring actually, but there’s a few gems in them. Did you know that Lan Yi wrote poetry, though? I didn’t expect it, but it’s excellent. I’ll show you later. Do you want to come to our cabin, or should I go to yours? I think it’s more convenient if you come to ours. Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve still got some candies from that Night Hunt in Caiyi and since I don’t like them, I need someone to eat them for me. Do you like candies?”

“Yes, but I don’t want to…”

“Then it’s settled,” Nie Huaisang decides, before turning toward Jiang Cheng who is glaring their way. He seems disappointed that no punching has happened yet. “Jiang-xiong, I’m sorry but I can’t hang out with you this afternoon!  We’re still training together tomorrow though, ok?”

Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes and turns away, but Nie Huaisang is starting to know him well enough to see that he’s not actually angry. On the other hand Jin Zixuan is so stunned by what’s happening that his mouth hangs open as if he were one of the carps his home is named after. Seeing this, Nie Huaisang does laugh at last, which snaps Jin Zixuan out of his shock.

“I never agreed to spend time with you!” he grumbles.

“But it’d be fun?” Nie Huaisang pouts with affected sadness. “Jin-xiong, why don’t you want to have fun with me?”

It’s probably a little overkill. It’s a good thing Jiang Cheng decided to look away, because he’d certainly start laughing if he could see the fake, pathetic expression on Nie Huaisang’s face. But that’s because Jiang Cheng is used to dealing with Wei Wuxian, and Nie Huaisang learned to pout this way by observing Wei Wuxian’s interactions with Lan Wangji. 

Jin Zixuan doesn’t have such an advantage and judging by how panicky he’s getting again, it’s all too clear that nobody has ever so aggressively tried to force their friendship upon him. He’s defenceless, which Nie Huaisang knows because he’s been in that position not so long ago. For him, it had ended in abject humiliation and a blade to his face when Jin Zixun briefly pretended to be nice. For Jin Zixuan it will hopefully go a little better, unless he decides to be very stupid and really does insult Jiang Yanli again. Nie Huaisang doesn’t care if he befriends him or makes an enemy of him, so long as he gets to have a little fun.

“Jin-xiong, just give me a chance,” Nie Huaisang insists, though he spots Lan Qiren approaching the classroom and knows he’ll have to give up for now. “Think about it, okay? And if in the end you find I’m boring… well, at least you’ll have eaten some candies!”

Jin Zixuan blinks a few times, dumbstruck by that silly argument, but there’s a twitch at the corner of his lips, like he’s fighting not to smile.

Having no such qualms, Nie Huaisang grins.

This promises to be fun.