#besides i'm a night owl so my brain works best at night anyway

[airenyah]

it's currently snowing for the first time this winter

[delirious-comfort]

I got off work a bit late, so I just had dinner. A turkey sandwich, because I couldn't be bothered with cooking or waiting on a delivery.

Shit outta luck, though staking out lesbians sounds more interesting. I was trying to sensor myself. :]

I wish. Alas, I have no one but myself to blame for the transition from fun to boring and miserable. The pay is better, but with each passing day, I am seeing it is not worth it.

Ah yes. I have acquired a nice collection of paper cuts, made all the more pesky each time I use hand sanitizer. I'm just not that kind of masochist. The temptation to throw all the stacks of paper has been alarmingly frequent, though.

That is tragic. Poor food indeed. At least you still have the other half?

I will probably use one of your ideas for sure. You're helpful; I appreciate that. No to tuna, though. I will only bring ketchup into the mix if the fries absolutely suck. If the fries are good, there's no need for it.

Ooh, English teacher. That was my one of my best subjects, back in the day. I'm sorry depression got a hold on you. I can't say I know exactly what toll it's taken on you or anyone else despite dealing with my own, but I know a little of the havoc it can wreak on your mind. Middle schoolers would drive anyone mad. You were brave to go for that age group. A book! And I don't own it! What is it? (I'm sorry I live under a rock and tend to miss a lot)

30 minutes? I feel like I'm monopolizing your time now. And wow, you're a bigger night owl than me.

Sucking on lettuce doesn't sound like a good time.

I like games, I just haven't really played any in ages. What are your favorites?

Turkey sandwich sounds yum. Hope it was good.  Ah. See. I never would have thought it means shit outta luck. The most obvious option and I didn’t think of it :( But yes, staking out lesbians is always fun. Not that I ever do it. But I should. Once in a while. For scientific reasons. I think. I say if it’s not worth it, should definitely throw the paper pile. Even if it’s right before the weekend. And you have to clean it up yourself. It’ll feel totally glorious for about ten seconds. If you’re lucky and it’s a lot of paperwork, you might feel that euphoria for a whole thirty seconds. And vindication! Maybe throw in a Xena yell. And then go home quickly so you don’t have to deal with it until you return after the weekend.  Oh, you don’t like seafood. I forgot. Oop. I shall try and remember! Probably for the best, chicken is the supreme protein anyway. I really love chicken. In case you still couldn’t tell.  Hm. The book is Shadow Haven, but in book form. It got published by Ylva couple of years ago. I don’t actually know from which fandom you’ve been fangirling :P if it’s SQ you’ll probably know Shadow Haven, if it’s not, then you won’t. Or you hate SH, which is also valid enough. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea and it shouldn’t be! And no, not monopolizing my time. It was cold and I was burrito’d in bed and that made it really awkward to type on my phone. Besides, I like this whole thing. It’s a fun part of my day.  Hm, games. Let’s see. If it’s like board/family games, I really like monopoly. Although, lately I’m liking it a little less because I play it with my niece a lot and she gets so offended when she doesn’t win. And she does this pouty thing when you have to trade with her and it makes me give her shit for free. I think she’s playing me, though. Little shit. I love her, though. She’s learned from the best :P PC games I really like story rich games. Or brain popcorn games. I played House Flipper for a while, because it required zero brain power and just required my w+e keys and my finger to click my house over and over again. It was nice. But now I’m sorta over it. So now I’m playing Destiny 2, because I like the pewpew sound it makes. I don’t really know what the story is, or what I’m supposed to be doing. But it’s fun and keeps me entertained.  Other than that, these are the games currently installed on my PC:  Raft - Spellbreak - Destiny 2 - House Flipper - Genshin Impact - Stardew Valley - My Time at Porta - Minecraft - The Elder Scrolls Online - Assassin’s Creed Odyssey - Fortnite - Overwatch - Grand Theft Auto V - Defiance 90% of them I don’t play or I play them very sporadically xD And the common thread in the games above is most have fishing, and for some dumb reason I really like to fish in games? It’s so chill to do.  I can’t think of a question to ask back. Uh. How’s your day going? Do you have weekend or does the life of a IT / paper goddess never end?  Meep meep.

[thecrystalquill]

Love/Hate

Pairing: Draco Malfoy x Slytherin!Reader

Warnings: none

Word Count: 1,500+

Summary: Draco and (Y/N) hate each other; it's easier for Draco to hate than to love. But when push comes to shove, a little love might be just what they need.

A/N: Hey! Finally it's Part 4! Might be a while until the next part (writer's block is catching up to me) but enjoy this one!

Masterlist    Series Masterlist

Chapter 4

•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•

‘What's the spell for disintegrating something?' (Y/N) thought; she had been studying for the last two hours and her brain had started to become too tired to function properly. The library was quite full with other students hoping to finish their homework before the Christmas holidays or fit in some last-minute studies, and a few were being a little distracting – those few were sitting right in front of (Y/N) and happened to be her friends.

“My parents said they might get me an owl – I’d want a tawny owl but I think they’d probably get me a barn owl.”

“Wouldn’t it be great if we were allowed dogs here? I’d definitely have one.”“Not at all! You know what dogs’re like, they’d be fighting and they’d need walking and attention – which no one would have time for – and they’re so much louder than cats or owls—”

“Guys…” (Y/N) groaned tiredly, resting her head on her hand, “if you’re gonna keep talking, could you at least do it quieter?” She picked up her quill again as her friends raised their hands in surrender. “Also, what’s the spell for disintegration?”

“Deletrius – the eradication spell,” Maven answered boredly as she reopened the potions book she’d forgotten about.

Gasping, (Y/N) mentally scolded herself for forgetting as she scribbled down the spell; charms was usually one of her best subjects, but lately she’d been forgetting things that she already knew and lost focus too easily.

“You doing anything over the holidays, (Y/N)?” Penny asked, a quieter Hufflepuff that (Y/N) didn’t know so well, but treated her like her other friends just the same. 

Looking up from her papers, (Y/N) stuttered for a response. “O-oh… um… n-no. no I’m not, er, doing anything. Nothing special.” She cleared her throat before folding away her papers and putting the lid on her ink. “Hey, Naida, where was that divination book you found last week?”

The red-haired girl looked her way and blew a curl out of her face, "Over there, fourth shelf." She yawned, pointing in the general direction. 

Nodding, (Y/N) got up on her hunt for the textbook for yet another class she'd been struggling in.

Draco was sat in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, staring out of the window as they neared the station. "Mother and Father already wrote to me," he told his companions boastfully, "they said we're having a Christmas party.  Mother's very excited, but I'm sure it'll be just as boring as anything. Your families have been invited, haven't they?"

Crabbe and Goyle nodded, then Blaise decided to speak up; not letting Draco dominate the conversation. "Yeah, my parents said it's gonna be fancy, have to dress up. I bet we're gonna have to… like… dance." He frowned, the others groaning in agreement; because, really, who wants to do that?

"Well then, you'll just have to avoid your parents at all costs, won't you?" Draco offered with a smirk, knowing all of their parents would be eyeing them all night.

Blaise was about to respond, when the train came to a stop, cutting him off. 

The boys collected their things and exited the train, starting their search for their parents. Draco looked around for a minute, before finally making his way to his parents, who had already collected his trunk from the train.

"Draco," his Mother smiled as he appeared in her view, she gave the boy a small hug then pulled back to see his face. "How are you? Your classes are going well, I assume?"

"Yes, Mother." He nodded with a half-smile, which disappeared when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

His Father looked down on him, patting his shoulder in so-called affection. "Draco," he nodded. 

Clearing his throat, the boy straightened his posture before replying. "Father," he nodded in return. 

"Has everything been going well at school?"

"Yes Father," he said simply. 

"Well," Narcissa began, clasping her hands together, "let's head home now, shall we? I'm sure you've had a long day, Draco."

As they were about to leave, Draco looked back, catching sight of a pretty (y/h/c) girl carrying a single case, leaving the station alone.

It was the 24th of December, just before the Malfoy Christmas eve party was due to start, and Draco was in his room fixing his bow tie and combing his hair. There was no doubt in his mind that tonight would be boring, he’d much rather spend the evening in his room, reading a book before bed. Unfortunately, he’d be drinking fancy flutes of bitter champagne and being forced into boring conversations with even more boring adults, or being made to dance with snotty pureblood girls that he probably already knew (and didn’t like at all).

"Draco, hurry up will you? Our guests will be here soon." His Mother called from downstairs. 

Taking one last look in the mirror, he took a breath and made his way out. He found his parents by the door, looking elegant as always in their expensive outfits and shining jewels. They always dressed in their finest clothes for these occasions, and never wore the same things twice; this party wasn't a celebration, Draco knew, it was simply an excuse for people to present their wealth and class, and try to show how much better they were than everyone else there. So, Draco was wearing his best black dress-robes, with his expensive polished black shoes, and his new diamond cuff-links.

As the guests started to show and music had started to play, a few forced dances later Draco stood with Blaise off to the side, occasionally sipping champagne as their parents talked. "So… this is… nice--"

"It's bloody boring, Blaise, don't even try."

"Well I'm just saying, it could be worse, right?" He half-defended, setting down the flute and putting his hands in his pockets. "You know, it'd be really bad if--"

"Dracey!" A shrieking voice interrupted them, their eyes widening in horror.

"Damnit, Blaise! You summoned her!" Draco scolded as he prepared himself for his worst nightmare. Turning around, he was blinded by a sparkly hot-pink dress (and there was really nothing hot about it). "Parkinson," he greeted through clenched teeth, with a tight-lipped smile.

The girl beamed at him as she stepped closer - because personal space isn't a thing. "You look so handsome tonight, Dracey," she complemented as she put a hand on his arm. 

"Thanks," he replied, subtly shrugging her arm off and sending a panicked glare to Blaise as he slowly shuffled away. 

Pansy started to twirl a pink nail in her hair and gave an almost-flirty smile. "What do you think of my dress? Don't you think it looks lovely?" She asked as she grabbed the puffy, knee-length, sequin covered skirt.

 "Yeah… er sorry but I have to go… look for… my… er… Mother's earrings. She lost one earlier so… I should grab her a new pair. Bye." He ran off into the crowd, putting as much distance between them as possible.

 "Wait! Dracey-Poo! Come back--"

He made his way to the garden patio, reminding himself to get back at Blaise when he finds him. It was dark by now, and cold. His breath fogged in the air and snow had settled over the grass, the steps had been enchanted to keep dry and so he sat down to the side, in the shadows where (hopefully) no one would see him. 

The sounds of the party could still be heard, but it was thankfully much quieter. As Draco sat there, his mind started to wander. 'How could this party possibly get any worse?' He thought, 'Maybe if (Y/L/N) came along it'd be worse? Well, probably not. She'd be far more entertaining.' He huffed at the thought; he shouldn't even think about wanting her here.Glancing through the glass doors to the party, the blond caught sight of the horrific pink dress running by. '(Y/L/N) would say something funny about that; she'd probably say she looked like a bedazzled flamingo pulled from a carnival or something.' He laughed at the thought, appreciating her sense of humour - then tried to shake off any more thoughts of her. Which wasn't working very well.

He saw a man walking passed, he was short and plump and had a ridiculous twirly moustache, in one hand was a polished cane and in the other was an almost empty glass of wine. ‘(Y/N) would say he looked like an evil Mr. Monopoly.’ He recalled her bringing the game one year and, though he made fun of it, thought it seemed like a fun way to spend free time. The more he thought of the insults that she would throw if she were here, the more ridiculous the whole even seemed to Draco. He couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have her there; wearing a beautiful long dress in her favourite colour, her hair pulled into a beautiful style, and smiling her beautiful smile. Again, the boy ignored his drifting mind; (Y/N) would never go to an event like this, a meaningless boring party to show off wealth and arrogance and pride. She'd much rather spend quality time with friends - as Draco would rather be doing now. He sighed at the notion; 'Besides,' he thought, 'she's probably having more fun than I am right now anyway.' 

 Unfortunately, though, she wasn't. 

Tags:

@salmonoctopus

@kaibie

[skalidra]

So in your earth - 3 verse the owl family seems more tight knit than the batfam - if I'm right. They even make sure Jason is more so in the group than the batfam. They also make it more of an effort to do that - even to the point of 'too much.' How else is the owl family different from the batfam. Besides the fact that they're bad guys. Like each character and how they differ between the alternat version of themselves. Also if the two were to meet what would they think of the other/respond?

I know you already wrote where Nightwing and Nightingale switch universes for a little bit but if they (had) to work together or something, even if that would be filled with conflict. Also do you think that some of them might be jealous in some way of their alternat self. Like Jason seems to have it somewhat worse in the batfam verses the owlfam. Tim perhaps as well. And how do you think after having to 'work together' they would end up veiwing the other?

It's not that I see them liking each other - no. But actually perhaps growing to resent each other on a more personal level. What do you think

Well, probably the simplest, biggest difference between the Bat vs Owl characters is just because of the variations on how they were raised.

Below follows a lot of discussion of my Earth-3 universe, Nightingale, etc.

Starting with the differences...

- Dick was actually pretty similar up until Bruce, though his childhood had more of a focus on show business, but Bruce encouraged him to get revenge for his parents and set him on a much darker path than canon Dick. The Owl version plays hard for an audience. He doesn’t let himself rely on basically anyone, and he views almost everyone as at least a little bit inferior to him. He saw his parents die, trusting each other and the rope, and he’s not going to ever let himself make that same mistake. He trusts his family, is viciously protective of them, and would burn the world and himself to make sure they survive. He’s still the workaholic, he’s still the one to make the sacrifice play if he thinks he has to, but he hides that loyalty because it’s also a sort of weakness.

Nightingale, on the outside, plays to everything that makes people underestimate him. He’s pretty and he’s lithe and if you make the mistake of thinking his attractiveness makes him less dangerous, you’ll end up on the sharp end of a knife real quick. A blade is easier to hide when it’s smiling, instead of glaring at you. (And a flirt distracts and unnerves people; makes them sloppy.) Nightingale exploits every weakness in other people, especially the ones that he causes himself.

A Nightingale that met Nightwing would think that he was full of weaknesses, and Nightwing would be horrified at the potential that he could turn out like this, if things went just the right way. There would be a mutual respect of talent and skill, but Nightwing would want to jail/contain/neutralize Nightingale, and honestly Nightingale would probably want Nightwing dead. After all, Nightwing is a living, walking example of all the things that Nightingale doesn’t want anyone to know about him (that he loves his family, that he has a hell of a temper, that he works himself to the bone more often than not, etc.). No one would walk away happy from that, if they walked away at all.

- Jason is somewhat more stable in the Owls, but he’s also a lot more screwed up in different ways. Dick’s got him all twisted up around his fingers, and trying to go a different path from the rest of your family is a lot harder when the rest of your family are a bunch of murdering psychopaths instead of, you know, heroes. One version gets you stuck in jail, the other gets you stabbed and repeatedly dragged back to them. On the other hand, it’s harder to ignore someone killing when you don’t want them to, as opposed to the Owl version where every once in awhile Jason just does something heroic and/or not totally in line with family wishes, which mostly just provokes irritation.

So I wouldn’t say that he’s necessarily got it better than canon Jason. It’s somewhat easier early on, but he doesn’t agree or like all the family tactics and those kind of dislikes build up over time. Sooner or later, Jason’s going to need time to not be around that kind of easy violence. That might not go well.

Canon and Earth-3 Jason meeting would go, I think, fairly smoothly. They’re both fucked up, but they’re both somewhere in the morally grey area and they share a love of the rest of their family. There would be some commiserating about being the respective black sheep of their families, but really Jason - in either world - I think is too grounded to want to try and change or interfere with another universe’s version of him. Once they got the situation figured out, things would go peacefully.

- Tim is... He was neglected, terribly, in Earth-3, but this tiny Tim didn’t have a Robin to look up to, he had a Talon. He puts together this information that Bruce Wayne is the Gotham urban myth/supervillain/terror of the night Owlman, and he watches Talon, and he sees an answer to all his problems. A role model. When Jason dies is really the tipping point. Bruce becomes unstable, he gets violent in rage instead of from calculation, and Tim steps in to offer himself as an apprentice to restore the order he’s seen come to life under Owlman’s rule. He doesn’t do things in halves either, so he goes to Bruce and he offers himself, and he asks for Bruce to kill his parents (who he barely really knows anyway) and take him in.

Tim in Earth-3 is a maladjusted, nearly sociopathic killer that sees people as either people that can be used, or are useless, with the rare exceptions of those that he truly comes to know and respect/be loyal to. (Bruce, Dick, and later down the line, Kon, Jason, and Damian as well.) Those are also the ones that actually treat him as someone close to them/loved, and he’s honestly so starved for that attention that even scraps of it are enough to keep him completely loyal to someone.

He hates being out of control, he doesn’t like other people having an advantage on him, and he’s learned that in a world full of people stronger than him, the best defense is to have strangleholds already in place for anyone that might be a threat. The rest of his family is, physically, more dangerous than he is, but Tim studies people and he pinpoints exactly how to beat them, and that makes him a terrible enemy to have.

Tim meeting himself would be... perilous. Canon Tim, like Dick, hates seeing how very twisted and evil he can get, given the proper motivation. Earth-3 Tim, on the other hand, probably just thinks that canon Tim isn’t worth his time. (Except maybe to pick his brain for any ideas that may not have occurred to him.) If canon Tim gets in his way, he’ll kill him; otherwise, may as well leave the threat alone and avoid it, if possible. Why take the risk?

- Damian really is more or less the same. In both worlds he’s raised in a family that’s trying to teach him one way of live, and then he comes to Bruce and he learns a different one. One that he thinks is difficult at first, or doesn’t fully understand, but quickly becomes accustomed to and enjoys, inevitably picking it over Ra’s’ side of things. Damian of Earth-3 might actually be a little bit less of a rage-ball. In the Owls, he’s accepted for any and everything he might be, with the only condition being that he remains loyal to his family. If that means he loves animals? The other Owls will gladly support that habit (even if there will be a bit of teasing). He wants to go out and take out all his bad feelings on someone? They’re there for that too.

The main difference? The Owls do not take shit from Damian. There’s no ‘he’s a kid, go easy on him’. There’s no Damian ousting Tim from his position. Pecking order (forgive the pun) is very well established in the Owl family, and Damian being Bruce’s son doesn’t mean that he gets to jump to the top. Dick earns Damian’s respect/slight fear right off, with his initial ‘let me test you’ sparring session, and when Damian tries to press his ‘blood son’ advantage over Tim? He gets his ass handed to him. Tim takes him down hard, and Damian is never stupid enough to try it again. Tim gives up his position willingly, and Damian becomes Talon, the latest apprentice.

I think if the Damians met, there would mostly just be unease. These are versions of themselves that, from their point of view, fell to what they rejected. If possible, I think they’d be best suited by parting ways as soon as possible, though neither would be willing to let the other run around in their universe. The only peaceful way that happens is if they can split and go back to their own worlds, otherwise it’s a ‘I must stop you’ situation.