#but flowers is his mom's maiden name :) he misses her a lot

[datura-tea]

psa: im retconning avery's real name. it used to be that he just changed his last name and kept his first name bc he's bad at aliases but thinking on it, he's smarter than that. so now his real name is jamie del rosario, and avery flowers is his third alias since he changes it every few years once he becomes too Known by that name

[massivedrickhead]

Bechloe Week 2021 - Day 5

July 30th: “You don’t know who I am, do you?”

Read on AO3

This is heavy heavy angst. It’s pretty sad (imo) and also kinda long. So, you know, read at your own risk.

-

With a throbbing in her hip, and a tight pain across her chest, Beca eased herself out of the cab she’d taken, and looked up at the entrance to Barden Nursing Home.

Although she visited several times a week, it seemed like they added more stairs each time she came.

“Can I give you a hand ma’am?”

“Well that depends, Raheem,” Beca said. Her voice wasn’t as strong as it had once been, but anyone who knew her could still detect the bite of sarcasm that filled almost every sentence. “Are you going to call me ma’am again, or are you going to call me Beca?”

Raheem smiled at her from his driver side window.

“Come on Mrs Mitchell, I can’t call you that. What would my grandmother say if she knew I was disrespecting my elders?”

Beca laughed and shook her head. “If you insist.” She held out an arm for him to take, and he left his cab immediately.

Truthfully, she didn’t think she’d make it up on her own anymore.

The doctor had given her a year, give or take, but she knew her own body.

This would be her last visit to Barden Nursing Home.

“Do you want me to wait with the cab?” Raheem asked when they reached the entryway.

“No, no,” Beca said. “The girls are meeting me here, they can drive me home.”

“I’ll see you next week then?”

Probably not. “I’ll give you a call.”

Raheem was Beca’s favourite driver and he happened to be the owner of the cab company, so he always made sure he was the one to drive Beca to her destination.

His mother had been a fan of hers, he’d told her during one of their first journeys, which made her feel older than she was. Or older than she thought she was. It still surprised her when she looked in the mirror and saw an old lady looking back at her.

She didn’t really recognise herself anymore.

Now that her hair was grey, her back slightly hunched, her joints sore and swollen.

They had taken her drivers licence a few years back due to her deteriorating eyesight, and her hearing wasn’t what it was.

And now her lungs were shot. Her liver. Her heart.

Her body was failing her, worsening by the day.

She was in almost constant pain, but she still had her mind. Her mind remained as sharp as it ever was.

For that, she was grateful.

Most of the time, anyway.

Leaning on a cane, with a bunch of flowers in her other hand, she made her way through the reception area.

“Morning Beca,” one of the nurses greeted her warmly. “She’s in her room today, didn’t feel like being social.”

“Thanks hun,” Beca replied. “How is she?”

“One of her better days.”

Good, Beca thought. That’s good.

If today was going to be her last visit, she wanted it to be a good one.

She knocked on door 216, and waited for a response.

“Come in,” came a voice that was both achingly familiar yet totally alien.

“Hi,” Beca said, smiling warmly as she entered the room.

Chloe was sitting in a chair by the window, a blanket over her knees.

Her once red hair was now silver, tied in a neat ponytail. She was still looking outside, but Beca knew her bright blue eyes were now milky and flat. Clouded.

Chloe turned to face her visitor.

“Can I help you?”

Beca felt something hard lodge itself in her chest.

She would never get used to this feeling. She never wanted to get used to this feeling.

She waited for a sign of recognition. A smile or a twinkle, but there was nothing.

Chloe simply looked at her with a patient curiosity.

Well, Beca thought. That’s that, then.

“I was just wondering if you would like some company? I’m new here and I don’t really know anyone.” She placed the flowers in an empty vase of water that she knew the nurses had left there for her, like they did every time she visited.

“Yes, okay. That would be fine,” Chloe said. “I’m Chloe Beale.” She held out her hand for Beca to shake.

Beca shook it, trying not to let the stab of pain show on her face at the sound of Chloe using her maiden name.

“Beca Mitchell,” Beca said, fighting the urge to cover Chloe’s hands with both of her own.

Even after all these years, Beca still wanted nothing more than to pull Chloe into her arms and kiss her.

She couldn’t remember the last time they’d really kissed. The last time they’d lain in bed together while Chloe ran her fingers through Beca’s hair. The last time Chloe had been Chloe.

Chloe’s diagnosis and the progression of her illness had been sudden and devastating and brutally quick.

It was so cruel, Beca thought almost every minute of every day, that she still had Chloe so close yet she couldn’t have been further from her.

“I’m afraid you can’t stay too long,” Chloe said. “My daughters are coming to visit later.”

She remembers the girls, Beca thought. That’s good.

Some days Chloe had no recollection of their daughters. Some days, Chloe had no recollection of any of them.

But once in a while, God, it was so rare now, Chloe would remember Beca and who they’d been together.

“Is that so?” Beca asked. “How old are your daughters?”

“Oh, I don’t know, middle-aged-ish. One’s older than the other,” Chloe said, waving a dismissive hand. “Of an age where they think they’re old but they don’t know they’re actually still very young.”

“Hmm, they must be the same age as my kids. What are their names?”

“Well there’s Blake and, um… shoot. I had it. Begins with a B…”

No it doesn’t.

“No it doesn’t,” Chloe said, shaking her head. “Hayley.”

Riley.

“Riley!”

Beca smiled. If only I could get you to remember me so easily.

“Do you have grandkids?” Beca asked.

“No,” Chloe said with a sigh.

Yes you do. You have four, and they’re beautiful.

“Do you?”

“Yes,” Beca said. “A little too much energy for me to handle these days.”

Chloe seemed to study Beca for a fraction longer.

“You know, you look a lot like my wife. Older, of course, but there’s something about the nose and the smile…”

Beca laughed because if she didn’t she would cry. “Is that right? Well to be honest I wasn’t going to say anything, but you look a lot like my wife.”

“How weird,” Chloe said.

“She was beautiful, just like you,” Beca said, fiddling with the wedding band she still wore.

“Is she still with us?”

Beca looked into Chloe’s eyes, searching for some semblance of the Chloe Beale she had fallen in love with. Searching for a glimmer of recognition. A spark. Anything.

“No,” Beca said. “We lost her a few years ago.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Chloe said, placing her hand on Beca’s as if that’s where it was meant to be. “How awful for you. You must miss her terribly.”

Beca let out a small laugh and tears filled her eyes.

It was unbearable to mourn someone who was sitting two feet in front of you.

“More than anything. We had,” Beca swallowed hard but her voice still broke when she spoke again, “the best life together. She was my best friend… my everything.”

Chloe squeezed her hand. “How lucky you are to have felt love like that. To have loved so strongly that even after all these years you’re still…” Chloe trailed off and looked out of the window again.

“Did… is your wife still with us?” Beca asked, wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

“My… sorry, what did you say?”

“Is your wife still alive?”

“Oh, I don’t have a wife dear,” Chloe said, smiling. “This ginger is single and ready to mingle as my grandkids would say.”

Again, that knife in her heart.

Her grandkids were back, replacing her wife, and with them a spark of the old Chloe.

“Maybe you’ll meet someone here,” Beca said, the sadness taking hold of her now. Settling into her bones in the same way that the damp made her hip throb. “It’s never too late.”

“God, you’re crying, are you okay?”

“Perfectly fine,” Beca said, smiling. “Just thinking about my Chloe has made me go all… well… foolish is probably the best word.”

“Your… Chloe?”

“My wife,” Beca said. “Her name was Chloe.” She swallowed as she looked at the uncomprehending face before her. “She was beautiful. So beautiful. Red hair and bright blue eyes and she was kind, and good, and safe. She was my best my soulmate. And she had a voice like an angel. I’d give…” Beca swallowed again, “I’d give anything to hear her sing again. To hear my Chloe sing again.”

“Beca…”

“Do you know what she said to me the first time we kissed? She promised I would never lose her. We were in a tiny apartment in Brooklyn and she promised I wouldn’t lose her. But that’s the kind of promise only a kid could make. They have no idea, how could they?”

“Beca.”

Chloe’s hand gripped Beca’s and squeezed it. Tight.

“My… Beca?”

And there she was. Back like she’d never gone away.

“Chloe? You… you remember me?”

“Of course I remember you,” Chloe said. Then her eyebrows furrowed, and she looked around her room. “This isn’t our house.”

“No.”

Chloe swallowed and nodded. “I’m… I’m not well, am I?”

Beca sniffed and shook her head.

“Alzheimer’s?”

“Ah ha,” Beca said, fighting to keep her voice steady.

“Like my mom… How long?”

“T-two years,” Beca said. “I tried to take care of you but then I fell and broke my hip and I just… I couldn’t manage on my own anymore. The girls insisted. You’ve been here for about a year. You… you seem happy.”

Beca knew this lucidity wouldn’t last.

Chloe would be gone again, and probably soon.

This was her last chance.

“I love you, Chloe Mitchell, do you hear me? My heart belongs completely to you. And one day… one day soon, I’m not gonna be able to come and visit you anymore. And there may be days where you remember me, but you won’t remember I’m gone, and you’re gonna feel hurt and betrayed. You’re going to think I abandoned you,” Beca squeezed Chloe’s hand again, “but I promise you, if it was up to me, I would never leave your side.”

“So stay,” Chloe said, her voice breaking. “Stay with me.”

Beca gave her a sad smile. “In a few hours, you won’t remember me, baby.”

“How could I ever forget you?”

“Mom?” A voice spoke up from the doorway, and Beca turned to see Blake and Riley standing there. “Is everything-”

“Girls!” Chloe said, brightly. “Come in and meet my new friend Beca.”

No.

Not yet.

Please, not yet.

“Your new friend Beca?”

Beca forced the smile back onto her face, and she stood up.

“Nice to meet you,” Beca said, looking into the faces of her daughters. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

She turned to face Chloe.

“You’re leaving?”

“I should let you have some time with your girls,” Beca said. She took Chloe’s hand in hers, and looked at her wife for what would be the last time. “It was truly a pleasure meeting you, Chloe.”

“I’ll see you again I hope?”

Beca smiled. “Of course. You’ll remember what I said?”

Chloe tilted her head, her eyebrows pulled together in confusion.

“It’s okay,” Beca said. “I know you heard it. It’ll come back to you when you need it.”

“Okay,” Chloe said, still confused. “Do you think… would it be okay if we hugged? You can ask the girls, I’m a hugger.”

She heard a small sniff and she saw Riley quickly leave the room.

“Allergies,” Blake said, quickly.

“Of course we can hug,” Beca said. “I’ve had a wonderful afternoon with you Chloe.”

Chloe stood, her blanket slipping off her lap, and she wrapped her arms around Beca, and Beca hugged back as tight as she dared.

She buried her face in Chloe’s neck and breathed in.

She still smelled like Chloe.

“You know Beca, I think we’re gonna be really fast friends.”

And everything inside of Beca broke.

“Hey, what is it?” Chloe said, softly as Beca clung to her and cried.

“Mom, it’s okay,” Blake said. She stuck her head out of the door and called to her younger sister.

Chloe shot Blake a look of confusion as this apparent stranger sobbed into her shoulder.

“You’re okay,” Chloe said, softly. “Come on, now, you’re okay. I’ve got you.”

“I love you,” Beca whispered into her ear, choking it out between sobs. “Don’t forget that, okay? I love you.”

“Okay, that’s, um, very nice,” Chloe said.

Beca’s chest started feeling tight as she struggled to get air into her lungs.

“Why don’t you sit down? We can call a nurse and-”

“No,” Beca said, quickly, struggling to suck air into her useless lungs. “I just need… in my bag.”

“Here,” Blake said, handing her her inhaler.

“Thank you,” Beca said, taking several deep puffs from it. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have… I’m sorry, Chloe.”

She looked at Chloe again, and knew with certainty it was for the last time.

She had gotten a couple of minutes with Chloe - the real Chloe - this afternoon and that was more than she could have hoped for.

“It really was lovely to meet you Chloe,” she said.

“Yes, you too,” Chloe replied, although she sounded less than convincing. “See you another time?”

“I look forward to it,” Beca said.

“Riley, why don’t you make sure… Beca, here, gets to where she needs to be,” Blake said, looking between her parents with pain in her eyes.

“Sure,” Riley said.

When they were away from the room, Riley pulled her Mom into a hug.

“That was a rough one, huh?” Riley asked.

“Unbearable,” Beca said. “She was… she was back. I had her back for like, five minutes. And then…”

Riley kissed her on the head. “Come on, I’ll get one of the nurses to get you some tea and when we’re done we can drive you home.”

Beca frowned. “It’s Thursday. Is Blake not doing dinner?”

“No, she is, but you don’t usually feel like company after a bad visit,” Riley said.

Beca waved a hand of dismissal. “I wanna spend some time getting climbed on by my grandkids. Will your new lady be joining us?”

Riley blushed like a teenager, despite being in her forties. “Not tonight, Mom. It’s a bit soon for a family dinner.”

“Oh come on, you’ve been dating for months! I want to meet her, I have so many embarrassing stories to tell!”

“I know you do,” Riley said. “Which is why we’re gonna wait a few more weeks before we scare her off. Don’t worry, there are endless amounts of family dinners ahead of us for you to embarrass me at.”

Beca smiled. “Okay,” she said.

She hadn’t told the girls she was sick. They had enough in their plates with Chloe, and she didn’t want to add to it.

When the time came, yes, she knew they’d be hurt. She knew that hurt didn’t even come close to covering it. They had all but said their goodbyes to Chloe, but they had no idea that Beca would be beating her to the afterlife.

She knew if she asked them, they’d rather she told them.

It was cruel to blindside them, but in a way wasn’t it crueler to have them watch her slowly waste away in a hospital? To leave them saddled with medical bills that their inheritance would only just cover?

Because she knew her girls, they wouldn’t just let her slip away. They’d want her to fight, and Beca was too tired for fighting.

No. She wouldn’t do that to them. She had already written letters for all of them - including Chloe - and she had left instructions with her solicitors that they would get handed out after her death.

In her will, she’d left most of her money to her daughters and Blake’s four kids, along with a lump-sum donation to Barden Nursing Home.

Her affairs were in order.

The girls didn’t need to know.

“Mom? Are you ready?”

Beca smiled as her daughters approached, and she gratefully took Riley’s hand when she offered it.

She was quiet on the drive back to Blake’s house.

“Sure you’re up for dinner, Mom?” Blake asked, glancing at her in the rear view mirror.

Beca smiled and nodded.

That night she basked in the attention of her grandkids.

The two twin boys - Jackson and Christopher, aged seven - kept trying to explain their favourite show to their grandmother.

They kept acting out scenes, speaking in odd voices, shooting each other with fake guns.

Beca tried to follow along but really she just wanted to watch them play.

The youngest - Davey, four - sat comfortably on her lap.

“Gram read it?” He said, holding up a book.

“Again?” Beca asked.

“Please?”

“Okay,” she said.

“Grandma!” Christopher said, pulling her attention back to him. “Grandma! Look! Then the bad guys do this!” He aimed a finger gun at his brother and deepened his voice. “Prepare to die!”

“Ah ha,” Beca said.

“Gram,” Davey tugged at her sleeve and then placed a hand on his book.

“Sorry,” Beca said, picking up where she left off from.

The noise and distraction was welcome.

It kept Beca’s mind from wandering. She needed a few hours where she wasn’t mourning Chloe.

It was working until ten year old Anne walked into the room, looking far too somber for any ten year old.

“Who’s upset you then?” Beca asked. “I might be old but I can still throw a punch.”

Anne smiled, but only just. “Is grandma better yet?”

Beca frowned. “No, honey. I’m sorry.”

Anne had been the apple of Chloe’s eye right up until the moment she started to forget her.

Blake and her husband David had made the decision early on that the kids shouldn’t visit Chloe. It would be too hard for them to see their grandma and have her not recognise them.

“Is she going to get better soon?”

Beca let out a small sigh. “I don’t know,” she said.

Anne’s face fell, and Beca’s heart broke.

She wished she didn’t have to leave these kids behind.

“Listen, your grandma loves you very much. And so do I. And we always will, no matter what.”

Davey started to fuss on Beca’s knee, and she turned her attention back to him.

“If I wrote grandma a letter, would you give it to her?” Anne asked. “I don’t want her to think I’ve forgotten her.”

Tears filled Beca’s eyes, and she smiled. “Of course. But you should give it to your Mom or aunt Riley. They’ll see her before I do.”

Anne nodded, and went off to her room.

The rest of the night continued the same way every Thursday night dinner did.

Blake complained that Beca ate too little and that her husband ate too much.

The twins would devour anything left too close to them, and Anne would pick out any bit of vegetable she found, no matter how small it had been cut up.

Then Beca would attempt to help with the dishes until she was told to cut it out, and Riley would drive her home.

Before she left that night, she hugged and kissed each of her grandkids, and told them all she loved them beyond comprehension.

She kissed Blake’s cheeks - standing on her tiptoes to do so - and briefly cupped her face in her hands. She told her she loved her too.

She patted David on the arm.

“You’re a good man,” she said. “You’ll take care of them.”

“Jeez, Mom, what’s got you so morbid?”

“Just the joys of ageing,” Beca said.

She didn’t know why she was feeling so sentimental that night, but she put it down to the emotion of the day.

In the car, Beca was quiet again.

“Something’s up with you,” Riley said.

“Today was tough,” Beca said, her head on the window. She turned to look at her daughter, and she seemed to transform in front of her eyes and back again. “Has anyone ever told you how much you look like your mom?”

“You, every day since I was born,” Riley said, laughing as she ran a hand through her short, ginger hair.

“This new girlfriend of yours,” Beca said, “is she nice?”

“What? Yes, Mom, of course.”

“She treats you well? She’s kind? She doesn’t blow up at wait staff or lose her temper in traffic?”

“She’s great,” Riley said. “Look, you can meet her soon, okay? She’s just a bit nervous around parents. She… she didn’t get on great with her own. They weren’t cool when she came out.”

Beca let out a sigh. “Poor girl. You’d think my generation would have grown out of that. Apparently not. As long as she makes you happy, and treats you well, then that’s all that matters.”

Riley laughed. “What, are you trying to make sure I’m married off before you kick it?”

Beca laughed too. “No. I just want you to be happy, my girl.”

“I am,” Riley said. “And not because I’m in a relationship, but because I just… am.”

Beca smiled. “Good. I’ve… I’ve had a very good life, Ri. And I don’t think I realised how good it was, how lucky I was, until your Mom got sick. I wish I could go back and just… enjoy it. Savour it. Those moments I spent with your mom where we would just… talk. And be with each other. I wish I could tell myself to appreciate each and every one.” Beca wiped her eyes. “Promise me you’ll do that?”

“Mom, you sound like you’re giving me some goodbye speech.”

Beca smiled and shook her head. “Promise me.”

“I promise,” Riley said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m sure,” Beca said.

They pulled up outside Beca’s home.

“You want me to walk you in?”

“I’m not that old yet. I love you. You know that, right?”

“Of course I do. I love you too, Mom.”

Beca smiled at her daughter, and leant across the car to kiss her cheek.

“See you tomorrow?”

“Yeah,” Beca said. “I need to pop into town and pick up a prescription.”

“I’ll take you.”

Beca smiled. “You’re a good girl. See you tomorrow.”

Riley waved and watched as her Mom walked into her house and shut the door behind her. She drove to her girlfriend’s, her heart heavy with sadness for her parents.

Maybe tonight she should tell Sarah that she loved her.

It was true, she had always just been too scared to say it.

She wasn’t sure what she was afraid of anymore.

Beca’s house was as quiet as it always was these days.

She made a cup of chamomile tea, and popped open the Thursday PM slot on her pill caddy. She took the handful of pills and swallowed them with a mouthful of tea.

Then she settled herself in her favourite armchair, and turned on some music.

She was tired.

Really tired.

It had been such a long day.

She felt a tightness in her chest, but it wasn’t any worse than usual so she thought nothing of it.

The song changed and the opening notes of Titanium played out.

This was considered an oldie now.

Beca smiled, and closed her eyes as she remembered the first time she sang that song with her wife.

God, what a life they’d had.

She didn’t open her eyes again.

[latte-fairytaekwoon]

❥𝓟𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓮𝓾𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓐𝓷𝓭𝓻𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓭𝓪

𝑃𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔: 𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑢𝑠! 𝐶ℎ𝑜𝑖 𝐽𝑜𝑛𝑔ℎ𝑜× 𝐴𝑛𝑑𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑑𝑎! 𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟 (𝐹𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑒)

𝐺𝑒𝑛𝑟𝑒: 𝐴𝑛𝑔𝑠𝑡, 𝐹𝑙𝑢𝑓𝑓, 𝐹𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑠𝑦/𝐺𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑘 𝑀𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑦 𝐴𝑈

𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝐶𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡: 7.8𝐾

𝑊𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠: 𝑀𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ, 𝑤𝑟𝑎𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑜𝑑𝑠, 𝑖𝑛𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑒, 𝑠𝑒𝑎 𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑓𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑠𝑦/𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑠

“𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤��𝑙𝑘𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑚𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒, 𝑦𝑜𝑢'𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝐼 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡.

𝑌𝑜𝑢'𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝐼 𝑏𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒, 𝑦𝑜𝑢'𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑘𝑦…..

𝑌𝑜𝑢'𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒.”- 𝑈𝑛𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑛

༺═──────────────═༻

The young woman lifted her head up slowly, her eyes still not opening. Instead, they scrunched up as the sun's rays pierced through the slight opening of the silk turquoise drapes that covered the large glass window of her balcony. She felt a slight tingling sensation of pins in needles run down her back as she straightened up and stretched out her back, which was very sore from sleeping on her chair and desk, bent over the book she had gotten lost into the night before.

Humming softly, she scooted her chair back and got up, cramping up slightly. She picked up her treasured book and put it back on the shelf, laying it to rest along with its fellow literary companions that never failed to bring her joy as she poured over their contents time and time again, never getting bored of what her mother would often call 'silly and unrealistic romance fables'. Her mother was on the more practical side of things, when she wasn't on the other side of her mirror that is. It was no secret her mother was the most vain and self loving woman the kingdom, constantly boasting about her looks, her arrogance and pride could be heard from miles away.

The young princess hurried to dress herself, a task she had preferred doing with no help from her hand maidens since 2 years ago, knowing they'd only fashion her in the flashy and extravagant style her mother preferred, which was not at all to her liking. She was more comfortable in simple tunics with no ornaments at all, but today her mother specifically requested her to put on her best dress as it was to be a special day for her. So there she was, dressing herself in a luxurious forest green robe with golden flowers threaded onto the sleeves and hem of the dress. The scratchy material irritated her skin, but still she had to admit she looked very pretty. Fastening her hair with a gold colored brooch that was shaped like a leaf, she walked out into the long corridor, the passing servants greeting her as she made her way to the throne room where her father was probably already waiting.

"Morning father."

She came up and kissed his head, giving him a warm and fond smile.

"How are you my little star?" He greeted her with the nickname he's called her since she was a child.

"Ready to help you out in the inventories and with sorting through the official documents and drafts."

Over time, she'd grown to help take over some of the duties her father attended to since there was never a male heir.

Her father waved a hand dismissively.

"Not today I'm afraid. Today.....there's is something else that must be taken care of."

Before she could even ask what that was, the glorious queen herself bursted through the doors.

"Andromeda my darling daughter!"

Her mother smothered her in a crushing embrace that was more painful than endearing. The poor girl was being suffocated by her mother's strength and her overwhelming lavender scent she always sprayed on.

"Mmom- mom, remember we aren't supposed to call me by that name until I was married."

That was how it was in their kingdom: babies were given 2 names, 1 which they were called as they grew up by everyone around them and 1 which they'd be referred to after they got married. Which is why it shocked Y/N that her mother was calling her that now.

"Which will actually happen very soon my dear."

Y/N turned to look at her father, her face asking for an explanation. His smile was meant to be reassuring, but instead it felt forced and almost as if he was feeling pity for her.

"We......have picked out the best match for you."

Y/N knew this day would come sooner or later. As the princess of the kingdom, she'd be married off to the best suitor to come forward and ask for her hand. She was not scared of this prospect ahead of her, in fact, she had often daydreamed of meeting her future husband and falling in love with him like she often read about in her stories. She was often imagining a young and handsome lad coming to ask for her, with strong arms and athletic build. She wanted someone like the hero Heracles, who was known for his superior strength and good looks.

"And he's already here! So straighten up Andromeda, chin up, make yourself look more alive for goodness sakes."

Her mother began her usual fussing again, smoothing out imaginary wrinkles on her daughter's dress and pulling out strands of her hair to compliment her features even more. She went as far as pinching Y/N's cheeks.

"Ow! What was that for?" Y/N cupped her cheeks, not wanting them to be abused by her mother's bony fingers and long nails.

"To give them a little pink tint." Her mother looked at her as if she was stupid.

"My dear Cassiopeia, I think the child has had enough. She looks beautiful all right?"

The queen pouted her bottom lip.

"But I'm still the most beautiful one right?"

There it was, her mother couldn't even resist having someone tell her how pretty she was or compliment her appearance. Her husband rolled his eyes.

"You're the most beautiful in all of Joppa." He replied, simply just to get her off his case and go back to what was really important here.

The royal family got in their respective places, awaiting the arrival of Y/N's future husband. She tugged on the fabric of her dress, nervous yet excited at meeting who her parents had deemed suitable for her.

The doors opened and Y/N held her breath as a royal announcer came in, hand over his chest as he proclaimed:

"Announcing his royal Majesty, Phineas, King of Cyprus."

Y/N's heart sank when she heard who was just announced.

'No no no....please mighty gods in the heavens..."

She wanted the earth to swallow her as she looked at the man in front of her, not a stranger, but an all too familiar and not welcomed face to her. Out of all the people in the land......

Why did her parents have to choose him? A king who was 20 years her senior, had already been married once and was not only particularly displeasing in figure, but more so in personality?

"My dear friend! So nice to see you again!"

The regal queen greeted the neighboring monarch warmly, delighted at the thought of having him there with them.

"My dear queen Cassiopeia. You haven't changed at all. Still the most beautiful creature that has ever walked on this earth." He complimented her as he kissed her hand.

Her husband just sat there, so used to the flattery bestowed upon his wife by the old fool. Y/N on the other hand wanted to run away from there, crawl into her bed and cry her eyes out. Her mother was having none of that though.

"Andromeda. Come here and say hello to your future husband."

She looked at her father, eyes begging him to intervene, but his eyes just looked at her sadly and at that moment she knew she had no choice. Her future had been decided and there was no going back. Taking a deep breath, she took slow and heavy steps until she stood in front of Phineas. Bowing her head, she greeted him with a very hushed voice, which the king mistakenly misinterpreted as timidness.

"My lovely bride do not be so shy. We shall soon be happily married and I promise to make you the happiest woman alive. And I know you shall make me a very happy man and bear me lots of heirs."

Y/N nearly gagged at the thought.

"Heirs?" Her vision was beginning to get blurry.

When the man in front of her took her hand in his own, she nearly yanked it back.

"Yes. Many children with the God's blessings." He chuckled, but she did not find any of it amusing.

She felt so repulsed and sick she didn't realize what was happening until she heard people calling out her name and her body hit the floor underneath her, vision going completely black as she fainted due to the shock.

༺═──────────────═༻

She awoke hours later, one of her handmaidens, Sophiya, was stirring a cup in her hand.

"Miss, you're awake."

Y/N sat up, her head still spinning somewhat.

"What on earth happened?" She rubbed her temples, trying to recollect her memories.

Sophiya held out the cup and saucer out to her.

"It seems you fainted."

Right. She remembered now. She was betrothed to an old geezer and couldn't handle it so she passed out in front of everybody. She sighed as she stirred the chamomile tea inside her cup, the smell of it already helping clear her head.

"Why him? Why out of all the people in the world, I have to be married to him?" She wondered out loud before sipping some of her tea carefully.

She wasn't afraid of speaking her mind with Sophiya around. Not only was she a loyal and discreet maid, she was the closest friend she had in the palace, the one often listening to her and offering advice at times.

"Well from a political perspective, it's a very desirable match. Your father's northern territories share a border with Phineas' kingdom. Uniting two states by marriage would be beneficial both politically and commercially." Sophiya stated.

Y/N set her cup on her dresser rather harshly.

"It's not fair though. I don't want someone old enough to be my father as a husband, let alone someone who treats women like they're just objects instead of people."

"No? Then what do you want Y/N?"

Sophiya had a mischievous grin on her face, knowing fully well what her friend's answer would be. Grabbing a pillow, Y/N chucked it at her, causing her to double over in laughter.

"Shut up! Don't start."

Y/N got up and went to her vanity and began arranging her hair which was now poking out from several places. She cringed a little and was about to reach for her comb but Sophiya beat her to it.

"It's been a while since I've done this." Sophiya hummed a little tune like she always did whenever she combed through Y/N's hair.

"I can do it myself you know." Y/N reminded her.

Sophiya snorted. "Yeah and that's why your hair always looks messy and unkempt."

Y/N widened her eyes.

"Does it?"

But her friend's inability to contain her laugh made her realize she was only messing around with her again. At least it took her mind off the current situation that displeased her.......

Until her mother came barging into her room.

"Ahhh Y/N. You're awake at last."

She gestured for Sophiya to move aside so she could take over. Y/N already dreaded having her mother comb her hair, she was always so rough and pulled her hair so tightly she'd end up with a pounding headache before the day was over. Her mother held a strand of her daughter's hair and grimaced slightly.

"Your hair is becoming rather dry." She pointed out.

"Really? I didn't notice." Y/N responded.

Her mother let out an exasperated sigh.

"Y/N don't you know you must take care of every part of your body in order to remain looking beautiful and young?"

Her mother took a glance at the mirror in front of them.

"Just look at me darling. How many women my age do you know to have such luscious, thick, long and healthy hair?"

She then turned her attention to the girl standing next to them.

"Don't you think so Sophiya?"

Knowing fully well how to put honey in the queen's ear, Sophiya admired her.

"Not a single strand of grey hair your Highness."

Her response made the queen extremely happy. Y/N and Sophiya both looked at each other and tried not to laugh right then and there.

"See honey? This is why I'm always advising you on proper beauty care."

She made Y/N turn and stare at her reflection once more.

"I'm so proud to have had such a beautiful daughter like you. And you'll become even more beautiful I just know it."

Y/N at this point just decided to tune out her mothers words, not wanting to listen once more to another vain speech.

"You're the prettiest girl in all of Joppa. No one compares to you."

'As if I've never heard that one before.' Y/N thought.

"If even dare say you're the most beautiful princess in the entire world."

Now Y/N began to feel uneasy, feeling her mother was escalating things too far.

With a proud and arrogant smirk, her mother then finally boasted:

"You're more beautiful than all the daughters of Poseidon. The Nereids can't even come close to owning half of your beauty."

Both Y/N and Sophiya began to panic at her words. If there was one thing the gods hated more than anything it would a mortal's pride. And the panic soon turned into terror when the earth shook, all of the glass dials on Y/N's dresser fell to the floor, all their contents spilling. Some of the painting either tilted or crashed onto ground. The all tried to run out the door, but they all toppled over, Y/N and Sophiya holding onto each other, praying for the earth to stop shaking while the queen was screaming hysterically while trying to crawl to the door.

Suddenly everything stopped and an eerie hush fell upon them. Sophiya inspected Y/N, inquiring about her well being.

"I'm fine....but what was that?" She wondered.

"Is it finally over?" Her mother asked, hands covered protectively over her head.

Loud rumbling outside made them shudder, the sunlight that was shining moments ago now was darkened as clouds covered the sky. Thunder got louder and rain started to heavily pour down, even though the rainy season had ceased 3 months ago. That could only mean one thing.

"Somebody has angered the gods."

༺═──────────────═༻

Y/N tried to keep the smile on her face as her future husband kept going on about his kingdom, its financial contribution in the trade market and, her absolute favorite, all the duties and responsibilities that the queen would have to take up. From knowing how to run dozens of servants, to organizing banquets and festivities, to being a role model for all the women in the empire.

"She must exhibit perfect conduct at all times, must display modesty, integrity, loyalty to her husband and kingdom..."

Y/N could only pretend to listen to his words. Every word uttered felt like someone was pushing a threading needle in her skin.

"Y/N? Are you listening to me?"

Phineas question brought her back to reality.

"Huh? Oh yes! Of course I was."

She hoped he wouldn't notice that she was nervous, but he ended up attributing to her being overwhelmed by the responsibilities she'd have.

"I can understand that for a young girl such as yourself, who has been frivolous for most of her life, being thrusted into such a position which requires great responsibility must be daunting and bewildering. But fear not my lovely bride, I promise you I shall never reproach you for any mistakes you make."

It took every fiber in her being to keep from rolling her eyes at that statement. If anything, she was everything but frivolous, she already knew so much from observing and studying under her father's guidance. For goodness sakes, she already mastered the art of war strategies and this man actually thought her incapable of ruling a country? She wanted to laugh at that.

"And you must not despair. I have a housekeeper already prepared back home who will instruct you in all the arrangements and etiquette of the palace. Wonderful lady who has served me for a great many years. Completely dedicated and exemplary in her work."

Y/N could already picture a strict and dogmatic old woman, whom she no doubt would end up hating if King Phineas admired her so. But that was the least of her worries at the moment. She spotted out of the corner of her eye two servants whispering something to her father, who looked agitated and full of concern. Y/N could guess that they were reporting another dreadful catastrophe that besieged their kingdom. Ever since that day with the earthquake and thunderstorm, more phenomenons started to happen throughout the land. A second earthquake buried and destroyed dozens of homes, the west province was affected by a flash flood that wiped out most of the crops, and a tremendous tidal wave swept away some of the coastal villages in the south province. Thousands of innocent people were affected greatly and it pained Y/N to see it happen, and she had an idea she knew why this was all happening. Not caring if she was rude, she excused herself and left King Phineas' side to approach her father.

"What news did they bring?" She made sure to keep her voice low so as to not alarm anyone.

Her father inhaled deeply.

"Lighting storm struck the east coast now. Hundreds of homes were burned."

Y/N of course expected bad news. Nothing good ever came from the messengers.

"I just don't understand Y/N. Why us? What have we done to offend the gods? We sacrifice to all of them, we are faithful and pious people, so why are they punishing us?"

She truly didn't have the answer. All she could do was rest her head on her father's shoulder and embrace him.

"I don't know. We can only hope things don't get worse."

At that moment, one of the young men who went out daily to the docks to haul in fish for the palace came rushing in, drenched in water, barefoot and face filled with horror.

"A sea monster! A sea monster has been sent to us!"

All of the people in the room fixed their eyes on him, some gasping or covering their mouths, while others thought he was crazy. Y/N and her father approached the lad.

"What do you mean?" Her father demanded.

The boy trembled in fear as he began recounting his experience:

"My lord! We were out at sea, reeling in our catch for the day when we heard a strange bellowing noise from underneath the boat. It was then silent for a while when suddenly, a large sea creature emerged and split our boat in half. It was frightening! It had razor sharp teeth, a serpent's tongue, bloodshot eyes and it was simply enormous! I watched as it devoured some of my fellow comrades-"

The lad fell to his knees, sobbing uncontrollably as images of the traumatic scene flashed once more across his mind. The king bent down and placed a gentle hand on the boy's back, his head in deep thought as if trying to recollect any wrong doings anyone might have done. He then signaled for someone to take the boy away and give him fresh clothes and food to eat.

Y/N closed her eyes and sighed. It was getting worse and worse every day, and it seemed it wouldn't be stopped. She flinched when she saw her father draw out his sword and knocked down one of the vases that adorned the hall.

"Speak oh mighty gods! What have we done to anger you? Why are you punishing us!?"

No one spoke up, fear was in all of their eyes and no one could blame them.

"I......I'm the guilty one."

All heads turned to the source of the voice and stared in shock as the queen herself stepped up, her visage looking thinner than normal and with dark circles under her eyes, signaling lack of sleep.

"I have offended Poseidon by boasting that Andromeda was more beautiful than his sea nymphs...."

Everyone let out gasps and screeches of horror at her confession. Her father looked absolutely furious and was trying hard to contain himself from losing his temper. Accepting all responsibility, the queen continued:

"If I must pay the price with my own life then so be it."

Her father shook his head.

"The price is for Poseidon to decide. Send in the Oracle. We must find out how to appease the god of the sea."

༺═──────────────═༻

"Why must he be so angry at us over one person's mistake?"

Y/N and her father stared blankly at the horizon. It seemed both of them had been spending more and more time in the royal orchard ever since more and more disastrous news reached their ears. Y/N sat on a stone bench while her father leaned back on one of the several olive trees that surrounded the place. So far he had kept quiet and just listened to her pour her heart out.

"I always asked myself that when I was a little boy and I listened to the stories my father told me. Why the gods always punished mortals who claimed to be better than them."

Y/N observed her father who stood there with a pensive gaze.

"I think......I understand...... the gods want us to respect the natural order every creature has in this universe."

Pulling out a leave from one of the branches, he continued:

"Insects have their place in this world. Animals have theirs. We mortals have our place above these creatures and that's why we dominate them....

And the gods have their place, above us mortals. We are so far below them that none of us should aspire to be greater than the place that was designated for us. Or it could mean our downfall."

Releasing the leave, he let it slowly fall down, sinking into the water of the small pond in front of them. Y/N stared at the leaf, understanding the point her father was trying to get across, but still it bothered her.

"But still. In all of the stories, the guilty one was punished, not innocent people. So why are they paying the price now?"

Her father stiffened at her question, unsure of how to answer.

"The ways of the gods are difficult for us to understand."

Y/N got up from her seat and staged at the fields in front of her. She frowned, unable to accept that answer.

"It's not their fault...."

Her father sighed as he rubbed his temples.

"Y/N please.......I can't comprehend this as much as you can. We'll just have to wait and see what the Oracle says. Hopefully there's still a way to make things right."

They both went back inside the palace, the Oracle had to be done communicating with the other world and must have an answer by then. The ministers were already gathered at the conference hall, awaiting instructions. Y/N and her father took their place in the middle of the crowd, waiting for the elder man to come in. Everyone hushed as soon as he came in. He walked even slower than usual, holding his walking staff with 2 hands, his eyebrows were furrowed as if he was in deep thought and troubled by what he had to reveal. No one dared ask him what was going to happen, afraid of what he'd say.

"Tell us. What does mighty Poseidon ask from us?" Her father inquired.

The old man lifted his head to the sky and closed his eyes before saying:

"This is what the god of the sea has spoken: 'You have summoned my wrath by offending me and my sea nymphs with your pride and vanity. I have a mind to exterminate the entire land to pay for your sins.......

But as an act of mercy, I will stop all the disasters if you offer me a sacrifice. In 2 days time, you must chain the selected person to a rock at the sea's edge for my sea monster, Cetus, to devour and atone for your foolishness. If you don't follow my instructions, I will continue to lay rampage throughout your kingdom until you have all perished."

The nobles all began to murmur amongst themselves, some already agreeing to the demands for the sake of the people.

"We are all ready to do as our lord, Poseidon, asks of us. Tell us Mylos, who are we to offer to him?"

Y/N's mother was already stepping up, all of them expecting her of course to be the one to die, but the old Oracle shook his head as he revealed a shocking fact.

"Poseidon has asked for your daughter, Y/N."

At the mention of her name, Y/N paled and nearly fell over had her father not being next to her to prevent her from falling. Many were shocked and horrified at the choice, some of the ladies already wailing at the thought of losing their beloved princess. Y/N felt Sophiya run up to her and hold her tightly, tears already spilling out her eyes. But the one who was most distressed by it was none other than her mother.

"No! He can't take Y/N! He can't take my only daughter! I won't let him! Please! Let me die in her place instead!"

The queen got on her knees, begging for her daughter's life to be saved as all the people in the room were now divided by how to proceed with this.

"Cepheus you cannot allow this! She's your child!" She was now clutching her husband's robe, desperately trying to persuade him not to allow this insanity to happen.

"Poseidon has spoken! His words must be fulfilled! If he wants the princess, we must give her to him!" One of the nobles protested.

Her father became enraged.

"Has he no pity?! She's my only child! I can't let him have her!"

"You are a king before a father and a king's duty is to his people. Please! We don't want anymore bloodshed to happen!" Someone else counteracted.

Soon it was an intense debate between all of the gentlemen in the hall. All of them screamed one after the other, not bothering to listen. All throughout it, her father refused to budge.

"Phineas, she's betrothed to you. What have you to say?"

All eyes fell on the other monarch, who had kept quiet until now. Meeting his eyes, Y/N for once looked at him with tenderness, silently pleading him to vouch for her. Instead, and unsurprisingly, he looked down.

"If that's what the God of the sea has declared, it must be done."

Her father shook his head, resisting the urge to draw his sword and kill him right then and there.

"And this from the very man who said he'd die for her hand in marriage? Pitiful."

"No matter that! Poseidon must be obeyed!"

Y/N drowned out the chaos that was happening. She truly was frightened by the situation, appalled that the God would choose her to be the sacrifice. But she had no tears to cry, she simply stood there, blank faced as she pondered over all the events that had happened in the past week, all the houses destroyed, all the innocent lives taken, it wasn't fair.........

And she couldn't allow it to continue.

"I will do it."

But no one heard her because they were too busy fighting. So she stepped in the center and firmly declared:

"I will do it! I will sacrifice myself if that's what Poseidon wants!"

༺═──────────────═༻

The people all looked in awe and admiration as the princess walked up the stone pavement through the streets. Dressed in pure white robes, hair curled into ringlets, she looked like an actual angel sent to save them all. But behind that gaze that showed dignity and bravery, there was fear in each of her bones, her hands shaking every now and then at the thought of what was to come. Her father and mother both stayed behind, not allowed to accompany her any further out of fear that they'd try and stop the priests from chaining her to her destiny. Y/N stared at some of the wildflowers that were shattered along the path, somehow they seemed to calm her down. She kept repeating the same words over and over again in her head:

"I'm a princess. I must die with dignity and grace."

But her courage soon failed her when she reached the steps leading down to the edge of the sea. Her body froze, unwilling to take another step. She was about to ran back the way she came, but the priests grabbed her wrists and began trying to get her down the steps, but Y/N began to struggle. She looked back at her parents, their faces blurry from the tears brimming at her eyes.

"Father! Mother! Save me!"

Her mother hid her face in her hands, unable to watch anymore, while her father was being held back by some of his guards, strictly ordered to keep him from interfering. At this point, Y/N heard a familiar voice scream from among the crowds. Turning she saw none other than Sophiya try to run to her, but she was stopped by a couple of guards.

"You can't do this to her! She's innocent! Y/N you don't have to do this! Let me go!"

It took both of the guards to subdue her and lift her up to take her away and keep her from freeing Y/N, but Sophiya kept fighting and shouting protests to be released and to help her friend. When she saw Phineas, she did not hide her disgust and shame.

"Aren't you supposed to protect her?! Be her champion! Slay the monster for her! Do you not care enough for her?!"

But her words fell upon deaf ears, no one would dare step up for Y/N. The priests dragged her down the narrow staircase. Once they reached the bottom, they held her hands behind her back and pressed her firmly against the cold stone pillar. They tied the rope around several times, making sure it was fastened tightly before saying a small and quick prayer for her and to ask forgiveness to the god. Y/N watched them climb back up the stairs and slowly disappear, along with the rest of the people who went to see her off. No one wanted to watch as Poseidon carried out his punishment and have his sea monster eat a poor, helpless young girl.

Hours passed, the sun was now covered by clouds, adding an even more eerie atmosphere to the place. The tide was rising, the water that before was only at Y/N's feet. Now was well above her knees, the cold water freezing her muscles. Y/N wondered if perhaps the gods would have mercy on her and let her drown instead of having Cetus tear into her flesh and eat her while she was still alive. The more she thought about it, the more she began panicking.

"I don't want to die! Please! Can anybody help me?! Somebody, anybody! Help!!"

Her throat was now sore from screaming on top of her lungs, her face red from all the tears pouring out, her arms aching from being bound behind her, her palms no doubt bleeding and scratched from scraping against the stone behind them. Y/N lowered her head, resigning to her fate and only praying that it would be quick and painless.

Far above her head, soaring through the clouds, at that moment, a shining white horse with wings flew across the sky. Sitting on top of the majestic creature, a handsome and strong young man calmly guided his companion through the vast ocean. The horse suddenly stopped in midair, sensing something.

"Whoah whoah whoah, steady there Pegasus. What's wrong?"

He ran his hand across the horse's mane, scratching the back of his ear in an effort to calm him. He looked towards where the horse was staring at and was confused when he saw a girl chained to a stone. Feeling curious, he whispered in Pegasus ear.

"Do you feel like going on another adventure?"

The winged horse let out a high pitched neigh before changing direction and swooping down to land on top of the stairs of the ledge. Dismounting and signaling for him to stay put, the mysterious man walked down the steps, being careful not to slip due to the water that had splashed onto the pavement. He tilted his head, trying to get a better view of the girl in front of him, trying to see if she was alive or not since she had her head down and didn't seem to be moving. She certainly hadn't drowned yet, even though the water was already below her chest, and it seemed it wouldn't stop yet.

He waved a hand in front of her.

"Hello?"

He heard a low moan come from her lips before she slowly lifted her head up, affirming she was still alive. He was taken aback by how pretty she was, even with her hair semi drenched in the salty seawater. It seemed to add a more captivating look to her. Y/N on the other hand, couldn't understand if she was seeing things or was already dead.

"Is this where I get on the boat that'll take me to the Underworld?"

Her question made the man raise an eyebrow.

"No....... you're not dead and this is Joppa I believe?"

"Oh great. Then that means I'm not dead.....yet." Y/N let out an exasperated sigh.

"Why can't you just get it over with? Stop making me wait, send your sea monster to gobble me up already."

She kept babbling on and on, she completely forgot about the stranger in front of her who was listening intently.

"What on earth are you taking about? Who chained you here anyway?"

Y/N looked in the direction of the stairs.

"The priests. I'm supposed to be sacrificed to Poseidon's sea monster."

The man shook his head.

"Why?"

"Because my mother boasted that I was more beautiful than the Nereids and therefore I have to appease the God of the sea with my death." She explained, not caring how ridiculous she sounded right now.

The man bent down, tugging at the ropes binding her to her fate.

"You still shouldn't be here......then again..."

He looked up at her and smiled softly.

"Perhaps we were fated to meet."

For the first time since all of it happened, Y/N genuinely smiled.

"I'm Jongho by a way." He finally introduced himself.

"I'm Y/N." She replied.

Her smile soon faded when she felt the water rise up even more, startling her and making her attempt to break free once again. Sensing how little time they had before her head was submerged completely underwater, Jongho drew out his sword and stepped down further into the water. He stood in front of Y/N.

"Don't worry. I'll get you out of here before-"

A loud bellowing cry interrupted him. The earth once again began to shake and as they both turned their heads to the right, they watched as a monstrous reptile swam straight toward them, its head coming out from the water.

"Stay here! Don't move!" He ordered her as he ran back up the stairs to divert the monster's attention from Y/N and instead to himself, completely ignoring the fact even if she wanted to, Y/N couldn't move at all.

Jongho stood at the top of the cliff. Raising his sword above his head, he waved it around to get the serpent to look at him, which it did. The beast made it's way towards him, bearing its sharp teeth at him. It lunged at him, but Jongho quickly ducked and shifted to the other side. He tried to pierce his sword into the monster's head but his sword only clashed against an armor of scales surrounding it.

"Oh great." Jongho breathed out when it lunged for him again, this time Jongho barely escaped its clutches.

He whistled for Pegasus to come over, which it promptly did. The horse trotted over to his master, who quickly hopped up and got on top of him before directing him to fly above the monster's neck. If Y/N wasn't so concerned about the water's level rising, she would have been more astonished at seeing an actual winged horse in front of her. Jongho scanned the munsters body, if there's anything he knew in his lifetime of slaying beasts it was that they all had a weak spot, that if found, it would be easy to defeat them.

The monster shifted its body around, causing the waters to splashed violently against Y/N's face. She coughed out the water that had gotten in her mouth and wheezed as she tried to regain her breath. Realizing he was running out of time, Jongho knew he had no other alternative and had to make use of his special weapon. Reaching into the copper colored bag on Pegasus' saddle, he looked over at Y/N and called out:

"Close your eyes! Don't open them under no circumstance!"

Y/N immediately shut her eyes, afraid of seeing what was going to happen. Jongho then took out a frightening and horrifying severed head that had now deceased snakes on its scalp. Making sure the monster was looking right at him, he held the head up so it could see the still glowing green eyes. In that moment, the sea serpent began shrieking out in pain as its body began to crystallize and turn into hard stone. Starting at its tail and going up to his neck, Jongho watched as the monster then fully transformed into a monument of stone, no longer moving and completely void of any life now. He tucked the head back in the pouch before looking back down at Y/N.

"Oh almighty Zeus."

He rushed down there with Pegasus when he saw that her head was now submerged underwater. He didn't even bother waiting for Pegasus to land, he jumped right in the water and swam over to her. Taking out a dagger from his pocket, he cut through several of the rope ties and quickly tugged them off of her. Once he felt them loosen up enough, he took her unconsciously body in his arms and swam back up. He gasped once he reached the surface, grabbing onto Pegasus' bridle. Pegasus then used his strength to pull them back up enough for Jongho to lift Y/N into his arms and climb back up the stairs to high land, safe away from the tide.

"Come on Y/N, don't give up on me."

He tilted her chin up before placing his hands against her chest. He pushed down hard, trying to get the water she swallowed out of her lungs.

"Please gods on Olympus. Help"

He pressed down even harder, but still nothing. Having left no choice, he bent down and parted her lips before blowing air into her mouth. He pulled back and inhaled before repeating the same process. Stepping back, he held onto Y/N's back when she began coughing violently, helping her sit up slighty so she could regain her composure.

"Are you all right?" He scanned to make sure she was ok.

Y/N took deep breaths before answering in a raspy voice.

"I think so..."

She looked up and blushed when she noticed their close proximity. Now having him mere inches from her face, Y/N could clearly see how handsome Jongho was, with dazzling brown eyes that seemed to hypnotize her.

"Thank you....for saving my life..." She whispered.

Jongho carefully swept his hand over her face, brushing off some of her wet hair out of it before leaning in closer to her.

"Oh don't thank me. Like I said, maybe we were fated to meet."

Y/N closed her eyes when she felt his face come closer to hers, his lips hovering above hers, she waited for him to kiss her, but unfortunately they were interrupted by a sharp voice:

"Y/N! You're alive!"

Jongho helped Y/N get up on her feet as her parents, Sophiya, Phineas and several others ran over to see what was happening. Sophiya wrapped her arms around Y/N, her voice hoarse from all the screaming she had done before.

"Thank the gods you're alive!"

Her parents also surrounds her, thankful she wasn't dead. Jongho just stood by the sides, smiling fondly at the touching scene. Not forgetting about him, Y/N went over to him and took his hand before looking over at her parents.

"Mom, dad. This is Jongho. He's the one who saved me."

Jongho smiled sheepishly as he waved his hand dismissively.

"Please, I had a little help."

The crowd looked over at the beast's head poking out from the cliff, immobile and never to move again.

"How on earth could a mere mortal turn a fearsome creature into stone?" Her father asked.

"Oh very easy. You see..."

Jongho whistled for Pegasus, who trotted up next to him. Several people began murmuring amongst themselves, wondering who really was this man who flew in such a majestic creature and could perform such miracles. Jongho pointed to the bag on the saddle.

"I'm afraid I can't show you all directly since even after I slayed the Gorgon, her face can still turn to stone anyone who looks at it."

A collective gasp was emitted from all those present, even Y/N was shocked when she realized who it really was that was standing in front of her.

"You're....you're..." She pointed a trembling finger to Jongho who merely chuckled.

"I see you heard the story about how I killed Medusa, although you probably heard the name given to me by the gods....

I am indeed Perseus."

Y/N covered her mouth as did most of the people present.

"The champion son of Zeus, standing right before our eyes."

At her father's words, everyone bowed down in respect to Jongho. Y/N's father dropped to his knees in front of him and held his hand.

"You have done me a great service by saving my beloved and only daughter. I shall forever be in your debt. Please, if there is anything I can offer you, say it and it shall be yours."

Jongho shot a glance back at Y/N, who kept looking at him in admiration. He winked at her before requesting:

"My dear king, if it pleases you..... I ask only for your daughter hand in marriage."

Y/N swore her heart jumped out of her body when he said those words. She looked to her father, who was ready to say yes until Phineas stepped forward to declare:

"Wait! Andromeda is already betrothed to me! You can't have her!"

But that didn't deter Jongho. He simply turned to look at the man in front of him. Crossing his arms, he sneered.

"If she betrothed to you, where were you when she was in danger? Why didn't you step up to die with her or for her instead of hiding away like a coward?"

Phineus stood there quiet, unable to answer that question, which didn't surprise Jongho.

"Exactly. So if it's all right with you, I ask for her father's blessing to allow me to marry her."

Slinging an arm protectively around her waist, Jongho pulled Y/N against him, refusing to budge even for 1 moment. Phineus reached over and drew his sword.

"Over my dead body."

Jongho raised an eyebrow.

"I'm a son of Zeus, I've slayed Medusa and killed Poseidon's beast, not to mention I'm more than half your age and have much vigor in me. Do you really dare to challenge me? Cause if that's the case."

Jongho covered Y/N's eyes and judging from all the panicked shuffling going on, she guessed he was reaching for Medusa's severed head to use against his rival.

Having to admit defeat, Phineas dropped his sword.

"Keep her. Keep Y/N."

Y/N bounced giddily at the thought of getting to marry Jongho, someone who embodied everything she always wanted in a husband: young, beautiful, strong and brave. And more than that, he was highly favored by the gods themselves.

"You could have been a queen Y/N. You'll regret your decision." Phineus declared before storming out of there.

Taking one look at Jongho, Y/N absolutely knew she wouldn't regret it.

༺═──────────────═༻p>

The couple stood in front of each other, lost in each other's eyes as their hands were joined together. Her parents watched in earnest as the priest spoke out the next words:

"Do you, Jongho, son of almighty Zeus and of Danaë, daughter of Acrisius, king of Argos, take Y/N, Princess of Joppa, daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopeia, king and queen of Aethiopia, as your lawfully wedded wife until death do you part?"

Without any hesitation, Jongho swore:

"I do."

The priest now turned to Y/N and repeated the same question to her, to which she responded:

"I do."

Her mother and Sophiya were already crying for joy at seeing Y/N so happy, while her father tried hard to contain his emotions. The priest proceeded to utter a small prayer before announcing:

"From this day forward, you shall both be known as Perseus and Andromeda. You have both sworn that from this day forward, you will spend the rest of your lives together, in front of all of those in attendance and before the very gods. May the Olympians bless this holy marriage."

Before the priest could even gesture for the torchbearers to light the sacrifice, a lighting bolt suddenly fired from the sky and set it ablaze, causing everyone to erupt in cheers and applause.

"Seems even Zeus approves of the marriage." Y/N's father whispered to his wife.

"And why should he not? They're perfect for each other. I can't be happier for our daughter. Although I'm going to miss her terribly." Her mother wiped her eyes with the handkerchief Sophiya handed to her.

The happy couple walked down the aisle, waving goodbye to their guests as they made their way out of the castle and down to one of the southern bays, where Pegasus was already waiting for them by the dock.

"I thought we were going back to your hometown Tiryns." Y/N pointed out.

"We are." Jongho calmly said.

"Well where's the boat?"

Jongho bursted out laughing at that.

"Sweetheart, Sophiya is the only one taking a boat to meet us there later. We.......are flying on dear Pegasus here."

Before she could protest, Jongho swept her off her feet and helped her mount the horse before saddling up behind her.

"Come on love, don't be scared. I promise nothing will happen to you."

Still sensing her apprehension, Jongho tilted her head to look at him.

"Hey look at me. I saved you from Poseidon's beast. Can't you trust me to safely take you to my home to meet my mother?"

Y/N smiled softly before nodding.

"I trust you entirely......"

She blushed before confessing:

"I love you."

Jongho leaned in and captured her lips in a gentle and loving kiss.

"I love you too my precious star."

Jongho then patted Pegasus ' side.

"Come on buddy. Take us home."

༺═──────────────═༻

[kitsunes-multiverse]

Never Alone Again

Chapter 10: Resting Place of an Old Friend

The next day, at around close to sunset, Kitsune and Chris made their way to the cemetery. They decided it'd be best to leave then since there would for sure be nobody there. Though granted, not a lot of people visit the cemetery often, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Kitsune followed Chris, seeing as he knew where he was going.

In the young woman's arms as a great assortment of white flowers. Lilies, hyacinths, and orchids being the most prevalent with a few roses along with it. The flowers were a stark contrast to the black short-sleeved dress she was wearing. "So Chris," She spoke up, "have you ever been to the cemetery? Do you know?" She asked.

"Hmm.. No, I don't believe I have. Never had a reason to, I suppose." Chris responded after a moment. "I know just about everyone in the town as is- except for Adres. Murder is typically something you don't have to worry about. And because of that, I still have no clue who could've done what they did." He stated.

Kitsune hummed, thinking for a minute. "Well, whatever the case, I'm sure we'll figure things out. Someone probably knows somethin'. Maybe Shirley or Albert knows something." She remarked, just as they reached the open gates of the cemetery.

"Well, here we are. Where do you think they'd be?" Kitsune asked, glancing around the place. There weren't a lot of graves, but there was definitely a handful. "Maybe the farther ones." Chris suggested.

Kitsune nodded, walking to six gravestones that were consecutively lined up next to each other. 'Weird... I thought there'd only be five. Maybe it's just a coincidence.' She thought to herself. She looked over the names, noticing something.

"Hey, your mom and sister share the same middle name." She pointed out. "Hm? Oh, that. My mother's maiden name was Charlotte prior to getting married to my father. She, in a way, passed it to Belladonna as a middle name." Chris explained.

"Hm, I see." Kitsune responded, looking back at the graves once again. Another oddity she noticed was the lack of any messages. Other than the names of the family members and date of death, the gravestones were completely blank. No 'in loving memory', no sweet message about how they'll be missed, nothing. It was like their only purpose was to tell you who was below the ground, and that was it.

Deciding it'd be best to just shrug it off for the time being, Kitsune set the flowers down on the graves. When she did so for the second to last grave, which was Chris's, she glanced over at the sixth and final gravestone. As far as her knowledge went, there were only five members in the Pierre family- Cedric, Aubriella, Christian, Belladonna, and of course, Chris. So who was this?

Curiosity getting the better of her, she crouched down in front of the headstone. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the name engraved in it.

'In loving memory, Lilith Actia.'

Kitsune froze upon reading the message. Lilith Actia. Was this... the Lilith Chris told her about?

Chris seemed to notice her distracted expression. "Hm? Are you alright, Kitsune? What are you looking at?" He asked.

Slowly, Kitsune looked back up at him. She was rather hesitant to tell him about her discover, but at the same time, she knew he couldn't keep it from him. It just wouldn't be right. So, with a deep breath, she spoke up.

"Chris, I... I don't know how else to say it, but..." She scooted over, patting the spot next to her. "I think it's best if you see this yourself... I'm... I'm really sorry.." She said.

Feeling a bit concerned, Chris crouched down beside her. As soon as he realized whose name was on the headstone, his world instantly shattered. Lilith was dead. There was no denying it, as much as he wanted to, he just couldn't.

"She... She's... dead...?" He finally said, sitting on his knees in front of the grave.

"I'm afraid so, Chris.. I'm sorry..." Kitsune confirmed, sitting beside him as she rubbed his back.

She felt her heart crack when she felt Chris start shaking. It was no surprise, but it still hurt. For the first time since she's known him, he was crying. What did surprise her, however, were his tears. They weren't the normal clear color they were supposed to be. They were bright blue- like the cyanide pill he had taken that caused his death.

She frowned a bit, scooting closer and hugging him tightly. Immediately as she did so, the ghost clung to her- sobbing into her shoulder. Had he not been a ghost, Kitsune would've had to remind him to breathe. He gripped onto the back of her dress, sinking his nails into it.

The young woman held him close all the while, running her hand through his hair. "I've gotcha... It's ok..." She whispered, trying to comfort him the best she could.

It took a minute, but Chris had eventually settled down. "Feel better..?" Kitsune asked.

"Kind of..." Chris responded. "Can we go home...? I'm exhausted- emotionally and mentally.." He asked.

"Yeah, of course. Come on, let's go..." Kitsune nodded, standing up with him and walking out of the graveyard. It was good timing too, as the moon was starting to rise.

They were about halfway home when Chris spoke up. He had been silent the entire time up until that point. "...Kitsune...?"

"Yeah, Chris..?" The redhead gently responded.

"Do you... Do you think her death was my fault somehow..?" The ghost asked.

"I'm not fully sure how it would be... Why do you ask?" Kitsune responded.

"I- I don't know.. It just... feels like I did something. And I don't know what it is, and it's just driving me crazy... For these past few days, I've just been so unsure of myself... I've been thinking that, maybe, my family's death was my fault somehow. And it's just been eating away at me..." Chris stated, curling up in midair.

Kitsune hummed, looking at him in sympathy. "Right, come here..." She said, before scooping him up. Because he was dead, he was actually quite light. It was like picking up a large pillow.

"We'll worry about that later, alright..? You've made a very... upsetting, discovery to say the least, and I think it's best if we focus on what really happened to your family later..." She said, moving his hair out of his eyes. "I'm here for you, alright? No matter what."

"Mmm... Ok... Thank you." The ghost responded, nuzzling into her hair. Kitsune smiled a little, snuggling him a bit.

She was determined to get to the bottom of this- but for now, that could wait. Chris was her immediate priority.

[hiccanna-tidbits]

Do you maybe have some headcanons or Au or something for Moana x Merida? I really like that ship! 🤗and I like your moodboards with moanida! ^^

Anon I need you to know I am literally crying TEARS OF JOY because I have FINALLY received an Ask on this humble little blog and I am OVERJOYED

Yes, I would love to talk about Moanida!!!

I’ve got a few AUs I kinda play around with for them--might make moodboards of them one of these days! A couple I really like are a Mermaid AU and a Selkie AU, probably with Moana as the mermaid/selkie because of her ocean connection??? But I really like the idea of Selkie!Merida too, since it would go so nicely with selkies in Scottish folklore and all that. Either way it solves the geographical issue because they can just swim to each other!!! Also yes, these gay girls crossing literal oceans for each other is absolutely the hill I’m going to die on. I’m also a fan of a sort of Mythology/Goddess AU where like Moana is an ocean goddess and Merida is a volcano goddess of sorts akin to Te Ka with cool lava hair and scary volcanic rock skin and only Moana’s soothing ocean waters can calm her eruptive (heh, get it?) rage. And this also means FORBIDDEN SAPPHIC LOVE FORBIDDEN SAPPHIC LOVE FORBIDDEN SAPPHIC LOVE

Also MOANIDA HEADCANONS YESSSS

I thought up some just for you <3 Some are more general and some are more specific AU-focused so I tried to sort them by AU but there’s probably gonna be some overlap.

General ~Merida is THE most overprotective girlfriend. Like she knows Moana’s independent and can take care of herself, but she absolutely will not tolerate slander of or threats to her girlfriend of any kind. If Merida were to meet Maui at any period in the timeline where he and Moana weren’t really cool yet and he was still being kind of a dick to Moana, Merida would try to fight a literal demigod. She doesn’t give a single fuck. ~Once Merida hears about the Tamatoa Incident, she wants to fight every crab she sees. She also develops a taste for crabcakes and crab rangoons because she starts eating lots of crabmeat solely out of spite. Moana finds this endlessly amusing. ~Moana definitely has the braincell between them. She’s constantly having to hold Mer back and talk her down from starting shit. Merida would unleash the Rage of a Thousand Suns upon her enemies if given half the chance. ~Merida is very physically active and loves working out--she would work out twice a day if given the chance. She’s just really about those exercise endorphins. Moana makes her fresh tropical fruit bowls and tropical fruit smoothies for after her workouts. Merida adores these and eventually she absolutely refuses to drink any smoothies not made by her girlfriend. ~They’re both lowkey caffeine addicts. Merida usually loathes getting up early (unless it’s to work out or go riding with Angus) and will snap at anyone and everyone until she’s had coffee. Moana knows how to get her hands on these really amazing-tasting, obscure types of Polynesian coffee, so she hooks them up with The Good Stuff. After tasting the coffee Moana gets, Merida honestly never wants any other B-tier type of coffee again. ~They love to go sailing in Moana’s boat. In a modern AU where the boat has a motor, Merida likes to make them go really fast for the adrenaline rush and the feeling of wind in her hair. It kinda freaks Moana out to go that fast, but it’s honestly worth it for the look of absolute elation on Merida’s face, and the way she laughs and cheers the whole time. ~Sometimes they like to go out on more calm, tranquil night sails. Once they’re a ways out, they just lie on the deck and stargaze. Moana points out all the constellations to Merida and rambles about how to navigate with them. Merida just turns and watches her with this super-smitten look the entire time. ~Moana teaches Merida some Maori. She teachers her how to say “I love you,” and, at Merida’s request, how to swear. ~Sometimes Moana calls Merida Maori words Mer doesn’t understand. Merida gets mad because she thinks Moana’s insulting her. It turns out she’s just calling Merida a bunch of super sappy Maori pet names. ~Sometimes Merida and Moana just like to talk shit about people who are pissing them off IN Maori, so they don’t understand. ~Whenever Merida absolutely goes OFF on someone for saying something homophobic or sexist or whatever, Moana just stands back and crosses her arms and smirks, and says “Thaaaat’s my girl!” It absolutely never fails to make Merida blush like a madwoman and start blubbering like an idiot and lose her original point completely. ~When they fight, they are SO stubborn, petty, and dramatic about it that they can stay mad at each other for DAYS. For really bad fights, they usually end up needing a mediator (in a RotBTD+ AU, I imagine this would be Rapunzel, Anna, or Hiccup). ~Angus and Pua are best friends. No, I will not be accepting criticism at this time. They get into lots of hijinks and shenanigans, and sometimes they sneak out together and Pua likes to ride around on Angus’s back. When Pua and Angus go missing, Mer and Mo just kind of sigh like “Oh, they’re out adventuring again, aren’t they?” ~Angus also always protects Pua so he never has to be scared of adventuring again!!! Pua still remembers his and Moana’s disastrous first sailing attempt, and Angus makes sure little Pua never gets into danger like that again. ~Hamish, Harris, and Hubert ship it SO hard! Moana turns out to be really good with kids, and has even been known to assist with the boys’ mischief from time to time. They definitely think Moana’s a good person to keep their sister’s chaos in check while not being TOO much of a boring wet blanket stifling her fun. ~Sina absolutely ADORES Merida and basically adopts her and treats her like a second daughter. After hearing Merida doesn’t have the best relationship with her own mom and feels like her mom doesn’t try to understand her or respect that she’s different from her, Sina gets like...SUPER angry and and starts doting on Merida to an almost annoying extent. She never wants Merida to have to feel forced into being someone she’s not, since she saw that with Moana and how much it absolutely KILLED her to be kept away from the ocean. ~Tui is leery of Merida at first, mainly because she seems like she’s going to be a bad influence on his daughter. However, he eventually comes around to her once he sees how much she loves his daughter, and they bond over both being ridiculously overprotective of Moana. ~Fergus also adores Moana, and basically knew Merida was gay from the jump--them dating is 0% a surprise to him. He’s honestly just glad that his daughter has someone more rational and down-to-earth to prevent her from doing anything TOO stupid. ~Elinor meanwhile, traditionalist that she is, is NOT about this whole lesbian thing and would probably be pretty homophobic...at least at first (steaming hot take, I know, she’s just got tradition so far up her ass I don’t know if she’d EVER be okay with her daughter choosing not only to forego marriage to man COMPLETELY--not just delay it--but marry a woman instead, who she couldn’t produce an heir with. Also sorry but I do not like her and probably will not portray her particularly favorably in my HCs sorry not sorry lmao) Maybe she comes around, maybe she doesn’t. I’ll leave that up to your imagination. Although I am not an Elinor fan so I think you already know my take XD ~Moana is grey-asexual grey-aromantic, so she CAN be sexually and romantically interested in people, it’s just...very rare. Merida is basically the only person she’s ever wanted to legit date. Maybe she likes boys too, but she wouldn’t know--she hasn’t found any she’s into thus far. Merida, meanwhile, has always been a raging lesbian, and has had lots of crushes on girls over the years (in an AU where she has the opportunity to, anyhow--ARE there even any girls her age in Dunbroch??? XD). When her parents would read storybooks to her as a kid, she’d always finding herself getting doe-eyed over the “fair maidens” rather than the fearless, ripped warriors who saved them from danger.  No crush ever hit her quite as hard as Moana did, though. But Merida knows for a damn fact she isn’t into men--90% of the time she can’t stand them and their antics, and the only men she’s ever really felt any kind of affection for are ones in her family or ones who remind her of one or more of her family members. ~Moana makes Merida flower crowns. Merida grumbles endlessly about how “girly” they are, so Moana hunts down some black flowers to make one with so it’ll look a bit more badass and intimidating. Merida absolutely LOVES it and wears it everywhere. ~Merida teaches Moana how to horseback ride and how to shoot a bow and arrow. She’s pretty not great at either at first, but Merida is incredibly patient with her. This shocks everyone around them, because since when is Merida patient with anyone? ~Merida also teaches Moana swordplay, and they LOVE to spar with each other. Agressive flirting during sparring sessions is very commonplace. If anyone attacks either Dunbroch or Motunui, Merida and Moana are a force to be reckoned with. ~Likewise, Moana teaches Merida how to sail and some kinda basic naval combat skills (i.e. how to shoot that harpoon gun or whatever it was she used to fight the kikimora off). ~They don’t have sex that often because neither of them has that high of a sex drive, but when they do, Merida tops if a strap-on is used. ~Moana is the kind of person who just kinda sings songs to herself as she goes about her daily routine and her chores. Merida loves to listen in because she thinks Moana has the prettiest singing voice on earth. That doesn’t stop her from teasing Moana about “singing all the got dam time,” though. ~Literally ALWAYS cuddling and kissing when they’re watching something together or just doing any kinda idle activity at home together. These girls cannot keep their hands off of each other. They hold hands in public pretty much everywhere they go, and Merida yells at anyone who makes a fuss about it.

Modern AU ~They meet while Merida is studying abroad in Tahiti. Maybe because Maui (who’s Moana’s cousin or older brother or something) has a tattoo parlor, and of COURSE Merida goes in to get some edgy bow and arrow tattoo to piss her mom off. Or maybe Merida is just snorkeling in one of the coves on one of her days off, and she runs into Moana and they just Vibe. ~I also like the idea of them meeting at a bar/nightclub type place in Papeete--like maybe Maui owns the nightclub because he just likes to party like that, and he lets his little sis Moana poke around in there because he’s lowkey a terrible influence XD And maybe one night Moana’s bartending to make a little extra cash and Merida comes in and gets really drunk on like a huge Sex on the Beach or something and starts really clumsily hitting on Moana and Moana gets SUCH a kick out of it. Merida can’t remember much of the flirting the next day, but she and Moana still become fast friends. ~Merida is constantly ditching class to sneak off and go see Moana. Her grades are plummeting. ~When the semester abroad is over, they promise to keep in touch over the internet--although Moana also wants to write letters because she loves the idea of having a pen pal. Merida teases her mercilessly for being so “old-fashioned” but also doesn’t have the heart to say no. ~They end up confessing they like each other over internet chat. Merida damn well knows she’s gay and has for a while now, but she’s terrified of telling Moana she’s into her because she’s really scared Moana’s straight. So when Moana is the one who ends up confessing to Merida, Merida has literally never been happier in her entire life. ~Once Merida graduates, they decide to just say “fuck it” and move to some big seaside city together (for some reason I really like the idea of them living in Los Angeles???). Merida needs to get away from her overbearing mom and Moana just really wants to see more of the world besides the South Pacific, so away they go! ~BROADWAY MUSICAL NERDS BROADWAY MUSICAL NERDS BROADWAY MUSICAL NERDS! They both fucking LOVE musicals, especially those with sapphic undertones (Wicked, anyone?), and will loudly and obnoxiously sing along to the soundtracks, much to the chagrin of all their neighbors. They’re also pretty big theater fans in general--especially Merida, always rather the dramatic type. ~At some point they save up and go to see Wicked on Broadway together. The trip ends up being one of their all-time favorites, and their fridge is covered in goofy, dumb selfies of them in New York. ~Moana goes to every SINGLE one of Merida’s archery tournaments, and every single game of any other sport she plays. Literally no one cheers more boisterously or enthusiastically than Moana does. Whenever Merida hits a bullseye or scores a goal, Moana grins and nudges the people next to her (even if they’re complete fucking strangers) and goes “That’s my girlfriend!!!” ~Merida is a goddamn punk, and is always walking around in spiked jackets, combat boots, and basically any other clothing that says “don’t fuck with me.” She tried to start a punk rock band once, but it ended up falling through because no one would sponsor Merida’s angry screamo songs about smashing the patriarchy. Moana still went to all of their tiny-ass, tacky concerts though, for the few months they were “touring” the city. ~Merida taught herself how to play electric guitar because she thinks it’s Edgy and Cool. Moana really likes to dance, and knows a fair number of traditional Polynesian dances and has even taught a class or two. Merida learns how to play some traditional Polynesian music on the electric guitar so she can play while Moana dances. The combination of hard rock-esque shredding and a very mellow island dance looks extremely bizarre to anyone watching, but the girls absolutely do not care.

@takaraphoenix I said I’d tag you in Moanida content I made and I am a woman of my word!!! Enjoy!!!

Please y’all, send me more asks about my ships!!! I love to talk about them!!!

[yellowmagicalgirl]

A Ring, A Blade, An Ornament, A Wreath

Ilia would like to one day propose to Blake using Faunus customs, but she doesn't know which ones.

Years later, Blake makes an assumption about the type of proposal Ilia would like.

This was originally written for the 2021 Rare Pairs Exchange over on AO3. It takes place both pre-canon and post-Volume 8 due to a time skip in the middle.

CW: References to past character death as well as canon-typical anti-Faunus racism.

AO3

FFN

In Mantle and Atlas, they used rings to propose. It was a human tradition, yes, but it was one perpetuated by Faunus as well. Ilia still remembered her parents wedding rings, woven out of discarded wires. They weren’t much in terms of expensive materials as proof of being able to provide for each other, but they had been handmade proof of her parents’ love for each other. She hadn’t gotten them back with the rest of her parents things when they had died. In a best-case scenario, her parents’ rings had been thought to be debris from the cave-in. It was more likely that humans had taken them, though whether out of mockery of Ilia’s grief, wanting to claim some sort of repayment with precious objects, or mockery of the materials used Ilia would never be sure.

Ilia and her parents had been cowards, and she didn’t want to emulate them or the human-supremacist society she had grown up in. She especially didn’t want to emulate them when she proposed to Blake. She promised herself that she wouldn’t give Blake a ring… after Ilia figured out how to confess her feelings to Blake, of course.

Faunus had many different proposal traditions, but theirs had been stamped out as they tried to assimilate with humans. The scholars of Menagerie were trying to piece together older cultural traditions, and Menagerie had many different proposal traditions as a result. Ilia wondered what type of proposal Blake would prefer. Out of all the traditions Ilia had heard about, she found she preferred the ones where she would have to make something for Blake. It was what her parents had done, and it felt purer than all those stuffy girls at Ilia’s prep school daydreaming about getting an expensive gem-encrusted ring of fine metals.

One of the traditions Ilia liked was one that had originally come from one of the deserts of Anima that she liked most. It had started with some of the Faunus tribes that had inhabited the area and then having spread to humans because it was a useful tradition, only to become frowned upon as one of the pre-Mistrali kingdoms tried to colonize the area with religious fervor. And yet, the tradition had survived to make it to Menagerie, with happy couples giving each other small, intricate blades no bigger than a hand.

Ilia had made Lightning Lash herself, so maybe she would be good at making a blade for Blake. Granted, Blake had made Gambol Shroud all on her own, so it wasn’t like she needed a blade from Ilia. Then again, the blades didn’t look like they were useful. Well, maybe they were useful for things like cutting small, thin vegetables or spreading butter, but Blake deserved a blade she could defend herself with. Not that she needed Ilia’s help with that, since Blake had always been an amazing fighter with a strong, defensive semblance.

Perhaps Blake would prefer the traditions originally held by the Dacia, a nomadic Faunus community that originated in southwestern Sanus. They used hair ornaments, worn at the end of braids. Granted, Blake didn’t braid her hair, and she didn’t wear any hair ornaments aside from the bow she used to hide her ears whenever she would go into a human settlement for supplies. Ilia didn’t like that part about Blake, how she hid and tried to blend in with humans. Still, Blake was doing a lot better than Ilia had in that regard. Even when they went to get supplies, Blake wouldn’t stand back when they saw a non-passing Faunus being harassed.

Ilia sighed. Blake was so cool and beautiful, and she was wasted on Adam. Maybe Ilia would finally tell Blake that when Blake came back from the train mission she and Adam were going on tomorrow morning. Maybe. Ilia wasn’t sure how she would be able to do so.

New Mantle had become rather prosperous compared to the refugee camp it had been eight years ago. Granted, it helped that the Grimm were finally defeated less than a year after the fall of Atlas. Ilia had felt strangely sad, hearing the news that the cities she had grown up in were both gone. She had hated both of them, symbols of her own cowardice as a bystander, and yet they had both held good memories, no matter how tainted they were. Her parents’ graves and the house she grew up in had flooded; her prep school would have been smashed with the impact. And all that strange anguish she had felt at losing places she hadn’t planned on ever returning to had only gone up exponentially when she learned that Blake was dead. Or, more specifically, she had fallen. She was technically missing, as no one expected to ever find a body.

Blake hadn’t been Ilia’s first love, but she had been Ilia’s greatest love.

And then she came back. She had changed; she was the first Faunus with magical powers who was not a maiden or a bearer of silver eyes.

And finally, finally, she was looking at Ilia the way that Ilia had always hoped Blake would.

Things had changed in the years since. Ilia and Blake were dating, and Salem had been defeated. The world was not at peace, but it was far closer to it than it had been during Ilia’s childhood. The two of them had settled down together in the outskirts of Vale, but right now they were visiting friends. Tonight, they would be meeting up with Neon, Coal, and their daughter Irida for dinner, but that was hours from now. Right now, they were walking through one of the street markets. They had grabbed a light lunch from one of the Atlesian-Vacuan stalls and were now looking for a trash can to dispose of the paper wrappers.

“Oh hey, look!” Blake said, pointing. Ilia turned her head, expecting to see a trash can but instead she saw a stall.

A ring maker’s stall. The rings were done in the style of Atlesian engagement rings. It was a temporary stall, which made sense. The spring equinox was coming up, and it was an old Mantle tradition to propose at the start of spring and marry at the start of summer. Ilia still remembered being so shocked when her prep school classmate talked about having attended a winter wedding; the tradition hadn’t carried to the city in the sky that promised freedom from Grimm, hunger, and the bitter cold.

Blake looked at Ilia, smiled, blushed, looked away again, and took a breath. “What’s your ring size?”

Ilia blinked and then dropped Blake’s hand so that Ilia could put both hands in front of her mouth. “I, are you –“

“No, no, not yet. I’d do something at least a little fancier than just picking out rings together and calling it a day. But, we’ve been dating for years, and I think that it’ll be time, soon. And, since you grew up in Mantle, I thought you’d like to follow the ring tradition.”

“I mean, if you had asked me a decade ago, I would’ve been insulted by it. Now, I’m not too sure. How did your parents get engaged?”

“My mom’s family is from Mistral, so my dad proposed to her with Mistrali traditions. And, since it’s a woven wreath of flowers, and our family name is from a flower…”

“Oh, no, he didn’t.”

“Yeah, he proposed with a wreath of poisonous flowers. Obviously, my mom accepted his proposal anyways, but I wouldn’t want to recreate my parents’ proposal.”

A woven wreath of flowers, though not of conventional materials. Made by Ghira’s own hands to show his love for Kali.

“How would you feel about a non-poisonous wreath?”

Blake smiled at her. “You still haven’t told me your ring size.”

[shih-coulda-had-it]

this is not a girlfriend (1/?)

Summary: Yagi Toshinori gets the wrong idea about his mentors. It is, as Nana earnestly frames it, of paramount importance that her young charge have a positive reference for relationships.

They should’ve known fake relationships never go according to plan.

*Shimura is Nana’s maiden name; no canonical husband, no Kotarou.

1 - 2 - ?

.

.

The thing was, Shimura Nana had never thought of dating Sorahiko.

They had met on the job maybe five years ago, and been work-partners since. Thrown into the same case, and then paired for patrols around the prefecture… the two of them had spent hours upon hours in each other’s space. Nana comfortably labeled him her best friend, surpassing even Megane Akira in best friend level (mostly due to presence, a little due to her level of synergy with Sorahiko).

He had helped her with One for All. Sacrificed a lot of down-time and goodwill with Recovery Girl to ensure that Nana had control over it. Didn’t ask for anything but a platter of taiyaki every training session.

Now, jokes and winks and nudges had certainly been made about their nonexistent relationship. Nana could retire if she had a yen every time someone assumed Sorahiko was her boyfriend, or if her parents hinted about ‘fertility’ and ‘handsome young man.’

Sorahiko never mentioned an interest, and so Nana gratefully moved through life only slightly infatuated with her partner. They’d seen each other’s ugly and ungraceful sides too many times to think idealistically, and had only ever shared a bed once. Because they were both cheap and were loathe to pay for an extra bed in the hotel.

(They built a pillow wall, and they pretended like everything was normal so well, Nana fell asleep between one word and the next. She woke up at the crack of dawn knowing that he’d broken the pillow wall; he’d entangled their limbs together; he was the one snoring weakly into her hair. Thank goodness Sorahiko wasn’t fully coherent and awake until ten in the morning.)

“Toshi-kun,” she says calmly, to hide the hysterical laughter. “Can you repeat that?”

Big blue eyes blink up. Calf-eyed. Guileless. Yagi Toshinori, even at thirteen years of age, is a charmer. “Are you getting Gran Torino-sensei anything for Valentine’s Day? I tried asking him, but he just said,” and here he puffs out his skinny chest and speaks like he’s gargling gravel, “‘We don’t need cheap gifts.’”

Nana gives up the ghost. “Bahaha! He would say that!” And completely neglect to cut the underlying problem, geez. Her young charge believes that they’re a couple. Should she correct him? “What does your mom usually do?”

He shrugs. “I dunno. She and otou-san… I dunno.”

Oh. Nana had done her research on Yagi Toshinori, even though a Quirkless thirteen year old boy shouldn’t raise any flags whatsoever, but even a routine background check won’t look into the marital health of the kid’s parents. She wonders if she and Sorahiko represent a legitimately healthy relationship.

“I could give him a box of taiyaki,” she muses, just to keep their conversation going. Toshinori’s invested in this, she can tell.

“How unromantic!” he cries out, looking for the first time like a doting son. Oof. That sends pangs rattling through her systems. She’s never wanted to raise kids; she thinks she’d be pretty bad at the whole domestic thing. Now, if Sorahiko could be the stay-at-home parent—wait, bad thought. “Oh, but most couples usually exchange chocolates, I think. That’s what I see girls do at school.”

“And do you have a girl? Or boy?”

Toshinori’s expression is pure hang-dog. “No, oshishou.” He brightens again. “What about… flowers? Can guys get flowers?”

She ruffles his sunny yellow hair. “Yeah, buddy. Guys can get flowers.”

//

Transcript: Shimura Nana to Torino Sorahiko. February 10th.

SN: Sorahiko!

TS: Shimura.

SN: Did you know Toshi-kun thinks we’re an item? It’s so sweet! [Choking noises, presumably from TS.] Turns out, he asked you about us a week or two ago, and you just went all, ‘hrghh we don’t need cheap gifts hrrgh.’

TS: I—I don’t sound like that.

SN: Ch! Sure.

TS: Did you correct him? Do you need me to correct him? The little brat—

SN: Aw, it’s fine!

TS: It’s fine?

SN: What’s a little bit of bromance? All matters aside, I think we’re role models for the poor boy. Role models in having a healthy relationship, I mean. [More choking noises.] I think it’d go a long way to prevent some resentment towards parental figures if we, y’know—hey, are you okay?

TS: Son of a—no, I’m not okay. Are you telling me we should start a fake relationship for some brat’s feelings?

SN: Yeah! How hard can it be? We only meet each other at the park to train and spar! And for meals out… but that’s because you two are awful at nutrition.

TS: Vitamins don’t exist.

SN: Keep telling yourself that. Anyway, it’s not like he’s ever going to find out we don’t live together!

TS: Ghhk. Okay. Fine. You win. We’ll have a fake relationship for the kid, and once you deem the kid emotionally stable enough to see how people break up and maintain friendship, we go back to a world where we aren’t a couple. 

SN: … Stop me if this is, um, invading your privacy, but…

TS: What, Shimura.

SN: You’ve had relationships before, right? Oh, shit, I didn’t even think about the possibility that you don’t like women. [Significant pause of five seconds.] Listen, listen, it’s fine! I’m, uh, into both, if we’re laying out sexualities, and I’ve been with both—

TS: Okay! I get it! Geez, Shimura. [Clearing throat.] No. I’ve never really—tried a relationship with anybody.

SN: General disinterest or…?

TS: Sure.

SN: Great answer! Very helpful! I won’t knock bed-sharing off the table, but I’ll make note of bed-warming, if you know what I mean.

TS: Has anyone ever told you off for innuendos?

SN: There’s a, snrrk, first time for everything.

//

She has an understated bouquet of yellow and red roses in one hand. In the other, she is holding a small, ribbon-adorned box containing two of her very-own taiyaki (which Sorahiko had been chasing for years, ever since she baked them after a case gone wrong). Currently, Nana was fielding questions from Toshinori, whose interest had reignited with a passion.

“So do you wear your ring on a necklace?” he asks, still in the early phase of his warm-ups. Otherwise, he’d be more focused on breathing and persevering.

Her heart skips a beat. Ring. Necklace. Wedding ring. “I keep it at home,” she answers. Smooth, Shimura. Your charge thinks you’re married. She’ll have to warn Sorahiko about the new development. “You never want to risk scuffing gold, eh?”

“Oshishou always thinks ahead!”

“If your oshishou always thinks ahead, she better have my goddamned breakfast,” Sorahiko calls out. Stomping across the field, duffel bag full of gear in hand, her very best friend in the world. Her fake husband. Who upon seeing Nana, comes to a sudden, bewildered stop. “Um.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Nana sees Toshinori pause his sets of push-ups. She bounds up from her seat with a grin, and flings herself towards Sorahiko. He catches her—she links her ankles at the small of his back—Nana kisses him for the briefest of moments. A childish ‘mwah!’ that gets her nothing but a low, strangled noise.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” she cheers.

“What the fuck,” he says against her cheek, dazed enough for his voice to be soft. Good. She hopes Toshinori didn’t hear that.

“Play along.” Sorahiko, despite his shock, sets her down gently. He stares at the box and the bouquet, and almost flinches back when she shoves them toward him. “Happy Valentine’s Day,” she repeats, a little slower, hintingly.

“Ah. Right.” He cradles the bouquet in one arm, and pops open the box. He’s silent. Long enough for Nana to worry about overstepping boundaries, and perhaps she shouldn’t have pushed Sorahiko to enter his first relationship knowing it had an expiration date—he abruptly ducks down and kisses her. Misses the mouth almost entirely. “Thanks.”

.

.

[razorblade180]

Lasting Embers pt4: Explosion

[The House]

Yang:*hugging Jaune tightly*

“Well look who’s back?”

Yang:*Turns around* Hehe you seem surprised?

Raven:I am, I’m surprised just how much you aged. Is that a wrinkle I see or just bags under your eyes?

Yang:You’re one to talk; if anything I look like exactly like you did when you were running the tribe. *gasp* Looks like the years might finally be catching up. Do my eyes deceive me, or do I spot a few grays?

Raven:Ugh don’t say that; even if you do then consider it a look at your future. All in all you’ll be lucky you look like this at my age.

Yang:*Rolls eyes playfully*

Raven:I saw that! *hugs her* Good to know the trip didn’t crush your spirit. I missed you.

Yang:I missed you too mom. *embraces her tightly*

Raven:I wish I could’ve gone with you.

Ruby:Nuh uh, no way we were putting any maidens directly in those Salem cult freaks line of fire.

Yang:Besides your mission was more important. Who else was gonna make sure this family was safe if things went south besides you and dad?

Ruby:Yep! We needed all our bases covered!

Raven:Looks like you needed yours covered. *points to the scar on the bridge of her nose*

Ruby:What this? Hazard of having silver eyes. The idiot had a shot but he missed.

Yang:I made sure he didn’t get another one.

Raven:Hmph, that’s good to hear.

Jaune:Hey, you look a different Raven. Since when do you put your hair down?

Raven:What? *feels her hair* Ugh, that little spitfire stormed off before giving my bandanna back!

Jaune:*chuckles* Sparring was interesting then?

Raven:Somewhat, your daughter is a handful as usual.

Yang:Yujin.....*anxious* by any chance do you know where she went?

Raven:Things got a bit heated near the end of our session. She went to the memorial. It’s her thinking spot.

Yang:Well, guess it’s about to time to see her. *starts to walk but stumbles a bit*

Ruby:*catches her* Yeah right; you need to rest up a bit. You are still worn out.

Yang:*groaning* Ruby!!!!!

Ruby:As leader you will rest! I’m about to visit mom anyways so I’ll just bring her back.

Yang:You just want to see her first....

Ruby:Duh, once she sees you then everyone else becomes second rate. *sits her down* no rest! *vanishes*

Yang:*sigh* I hate when she pulls the leader card.

Jaune:Hey Raven? You said things got heated between you? You didn’t actually get into a fight did you?

Raven:No...actually, it had more to do with you Yang.

Yang:......

[Memorial]

Yujin:*setting flowers on Qrows stone*

“You know, you might as well give those to Summer.”

Yujin:*turns head* Hey gramps.

Tai:*holding a beer* Qrow wasn’t much for flowers. Which is why I brought this. *stands by her*

Yujin:From the stories you tell me I figured as much. If I could buy drinks I would’ve done the same.

Tai:It’s the thought that counts. *rubs her head* Happy Birthday kiddo. How’s it going; must be rough if you’re visiting the dead.

Yujin:Thanks....honestly, I just want the day to end already, but it’s only noon.

Tai:Raven kick your but in sparring.

Yujin:No I actually did pretty well. It’s just....nothing. I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed.

Tai:*pouring the beer out* You don’t say? Happens to the best of us.

Yujin:*watching* Did he really like beer that much? *moving the flowers to Summer*

Tai:Ooooohhhh yeah. A lover of alcohol to the very end. I can’t remember him somber.

Yujin:Even against Salem and her henchman?

Tai:*almost drops bottle* You know about that!?

Yujin:Somewhat, nothing specific.

Tai:*rubbing his head* I didn’t think Jaune would tell his kid something so....world changin

Yujin:Mmmm actually he didn’t, intentionally anyways. I remember the bed time stories he used to tell me and that combined with Raven openly using magic around me. Certain things just sort of clicked.

Tai:Honestly those two need to supervised. What else has that big brain of yours figured out?

Yujin:Just that I should keep it a secret. People who know things or go searching tend to get hurt. That lesson was apparent on my eighth birthday remember? That night still gives me chills if I think about it.

Tai:You’re telling me; I don’t think I’ve ever seen your dad ready to kill someone before. Good thing he had backup; I don’t think he could’ve juggled fighting those grim and that stupid cult member alone. Luckily he was just small fry; just some idealist.

Yujin:My mom is going after the head hanchos right?

Tai:.....well....

Yujin:Don’t do that, be straight forward with me.

Tai:Yujin I don’t think it’s my place to- *sees her shaking*

Yujin:Gramps....Tai......please. It’s been ten years and everyone refuses to tell me anything. What is so wrong about wanting to know?

Tai:Yujin, you just have to faith your mom comes back safe and-

Yujin:*grits teeth* I don’t care if she comes back!

Tai:......

Yujin:*gaining composure* I just....I need to know what could possibly be so complex that one year turned to ten. No letters, visits, secret messages.... Just any seat at the dinner table and the sound of dad praying every night.

Tai:Yujin....do you hate Yang for leaving?

Yujin:...*looks at the sky* How could I hate her? I barely even know her.

Tai:It’s okay to have resentment. Around your age Yang’s thought of Raven was pretty-

Yujin:It’s not the same and we’re different people; I’m fine *lightly tapping the ground* let’s just drop this okay?

Tai:.....You know it’s okay if this bothers you. It’s only nat-

Yujin:*Whips head around* Drop it.....

*for barely a second, her eyes....just didn’t look like hers*

Tai:Alright....one more question though.

Yujin:*sighs*

Tai:If you ever see her again, what will you tell her; what will you do?

Yujin:I....never thought about it. *stands up* I’m not sure. We should head back.

Tai:Yeah...*pays respects* Hmmm?

*a sizable dent where Yujin was tapping*

Tai:.....*walks away*

[Dirt path]

Yujin:You think dinner is ready? Dad usually has it down when the sun starts to set.

Tai:I hope; I’m really in the mood for-

Yujin:Ruby?

Tai:I didn’t know there was a meal named after- *sees her in front of her* .......Ruby?

Ruby:Hey dad; it’s been- ahh!*snatched into a hug.*

Tai:*tearing up* You’re back. My baby girl is back.

Ruby:*hugs him tightly* Was there any doubt? You know me, I defy the odds.

Yujin:Aunt Ruby...?

Ruby:Yujin? Oh my goodness. *gets closer* You’ve gotten so big! You look just like your mom except for the eyes.

Yujin:....Mom? If you’re here then....

Ruby:*smiling* She’s back at the house! Isn’t that great!?

Yujin:.........

Ruby:Yujin? Hey are you-

*sees her dashes passed her*

Ruby:Wow, guess I’m second rate already.

Tai:.....Ruby, let’s get to the house.

Ruby:You don’t want to give them a moment?

Tai:I think a moment is about to happen regardless.

Ruby:???

•

Raven:That’s basically the jest of it; from what I gathered anyway.

Yang:.....I need to see her.

Raven:Yang I’m gonna be honest, she might not want-

*Yujin reaching the yard*

Yujin:*huff* I....*huff* made it. *head hanging*

Yang:Yujin?

Yujin:*lifts her head*.........mom?

Yang:*standing up* H...hey there. It’s...been awhile......

Yujin:(What I would do if I saw you?)........

Jaune and Raven:......

Yang:There’s probably a lot on your mind. I just want you to know that-

Yujin:*swinging her sword down at her*

Yang:*catches it*

*shockwave of air flies past*

Jaune:*about to move forward*

Raven:*grabs his arm* I think....this is beyond us.

Jaune:....*takes a step back*

Yujin:You can spare me the sympathetic talk. *pressing sword down* all I want right now..... all I need from you......

Yang:*somber look*.......

Yujin:*eyes a deep lilac* Is to fight me with everything you got! Consider it your gift to me.

Yang:....alright then. *eyes turn scarlet* show me what you got.

[merlinthoughts]

Season 1 Episode 4 - The Poisoned Chalice

- god fucking dammit here we go again, i'm bloody done with my life and do not, at all, want to see merlin die bc i don't remember anything except that, yeah, he dies and someone has to get off their ass and save the motherfucking day and kiss him

- i realise how much i swear in these posts bc 1. when do i not? 2. i'm emotionally invested 3. i have no other excuse i just like swearing

- AAAND NIMUEHS IN CAMELOT SHE THINKS SHE'S SO SLY WITH HER HEAD THING

- id recognise her in a split second tbfh, she aint subtle

- *heterosexual tension*

- merlins skin be looking so smooth this episode, this boy be wearing lots of Dove

- he looked so excited to be in the banquet, then arthur just fucking slashes him with “not quite” and his hopes and dreams are destroyed

- “wanna see what you’ll be wearing tonight?” arthur says as he's behind the fucking changing curtains, about to get undressed and show merlin his birthday suit

- i honest to god thought that was where he was going, but no, he was just getting something from behind it

- “tonight you’ll be wearing the official ceremonial robes of the servants of camelot” IT'S A FUCKING DRESS ISN'T IT

- aw damn id have preferred a dress

- that smile shared between them was the most adorable scene

- god

- i

- fucking

- love

- their

- smiles 

- sm

- best thing ive ever seen

- i mean… hunty look at that piece of glistening butter beauty

- wow ok back to the episode:

- bros being bros and giving each other a handshake to destroy the mortal enemy pack and put together a family, we stan.

- as if a servant who has only had eye sex with another servant ONCE would trust them enough to say that one of the chalices were poisoned. like??? “ur the only one i could tell” LMAO NO?

- she's a sly fucking dog tfbh

- “if he kills arthur, uthers soul will be broken and camelot will fall” at this rate uther prob wouldn't care if his son dies or not, look at him, he's already mentally broken. he has anxiety and paranoia over magic. child services where u at in the medieval ages?

- i wouldn't believe a word she said, or well, id have believed it was poisoned but id say yeah no damn way you aren't in on it if you know which one it is. bayard wouldn't tell a fucking servant.

- HE'S GONNA SNAP ISN'T HE

- MERLIN FUCKING SNAPPED

- yknow what we say here folks? U DO U MERLIN

- okay i was fine if uther made bayard drink it but like the moment uther said “mmmh… no.” and slowly turned to merlin i think my arteries just crunched together and died so

- “if it is poisoned, he’ll die” HE'S FUCKING SCARED MERLIN WILL PASS AWAY ISN'T HE?

- “it's fine” he says, then starts to fucking choke

- ah fuck he's down

- my boy is down

- FUCK ME SIDEWAYS WITH A CHAINSAW

- ARTHUR CROUCHES NEXT TO HIM LIKE “BB NO”

- lmfao bayard looks so shocked, his face is in disbelief and confusion, he's like who tf done me bad

- arthurs carrying merlin fireman style this is what i live for folks

- did like nobody notice the flower stuck on the inside of the cup? like honestly if you take a sip you’d kinda spot it or perhaps even the person pouring the drinks would have been “is this chamomile tea? no? then what the fuckery-doo is this leaf in here for?” yknow. it's like that scene in Matilda when the angry buff lady completely missed a fucking salamander in her cup when it was the size of her bloody hand. it brings out the same mood honestly

- does gaius have an index for these books or does he just have every page memorised and know exactly what page to go bc I FUCKING NEED THAT it would make bio so much easier if i knew what page it was on instead of looking back and forth from the homework sheet to my textbook, then closing it by accident and having to find the index again for that specific page i need

- arthur wants to fucking go on a life-or-death journey to save merlin i've never been so happy

- this is honestly my favourite episode, like it may be really fucking angsty but i love it so much

- arthur betrays his dad and leaves his room even after being told not to just so he can save a servants life is literally my new moto

- NO IT WON'T LOAD MY NETFLIX IS STUCK ON 99%

- okay so while i'm waiting for my shit to load, i just discovered the new fucking tumblr rule starting dec 17 and i'm like 0.2 inches away from just spamming NSFW pics on here just for laughs

- like hunty, that won't stop people from posting elsewhere or for thinking about sex bc like??? whatchu gonna do tumblr?? get the fbi to erase it from our minds

- i think nOT thot

- watch me get flagged for just using the fucking term “NSFW”

- i'm gonna end up asterisking everything (is asterisking a word? wow it has red under it so like probably not but i just added it to my dictionary so uhh it is now)

- by asterisking i dont mean furry kin shit ew no

- i mean like N*FW, s*x, t*mblr, m*rthur

- god it took me like 20 minutes to calibrate my fucking wifi and fix the connection problem

- wow the stage for the poison increased by 75% in 30 mins, damn

- merlins like like having a conniption on his bed lmao, chanting arthurs name and sweating lot

- do we ever find out how uther gets that scar bc i'm like 100% positive arthur was a little child and swayed his fucking sword too hard just as uther rounded the corner. the sword then collided into his fucking brain and destroyed a good part of his intelligence, targeting especially his morals on how to accept people and how to be a good father

- that’s my theory

- merlin starts talking enchantments in his sleep while gwens watching, and gaius is just there like wtf merlin ur blowing ur cover “oh! gwen!! uhhh sorry. he’s just... in a latin study group in his pastime and has an oral presentation in minutes”

- omg, nimueh, stfu

- i didn't know dinosaurs existed back then, this reptile be whack

- y’know what's funny? ppl thinking dinosaurs didn’t exist. i find creationism very very very intriguing bc how fucking stupid could you be

- that sword throw was faker than my moms tits

- arthur could have done better

- k but like what if merlin’s hand wasn’t under the covers? like he was just throwing that blue ball around right in front of gwen

- can arthur like not hear her? nimuehs literally enchanting the rocks right behind his ear lobes and arthur acts nothing of it until those said rocks collapse and he gasps and suddenly he realises shes evil

- also his fucking hair in this scene looks glorious. perhaps bc it's pushed back rather than his bowl cut, but its doing things to my abdomen

- i thought for a second she was pulling off her mask to say “nimueh” and arthur was gasping bc he only recognised her after her hair was shown, just like in that scene with joker and harvey in the hospital

- OH RIGHT THE SPIDERS I LIKE COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT THOSE SONS OF A GUNS

- i’d be dead if those spiders came crawling up to eat me lmfao

- k so nimueh went from :) to >:D in half a second

- i'm smelling up those symbolisms, boys

- watch out pals cause here are some of them:

- merlin is the LIGHT of arthur’s life

- he LIGHTS up the party

- he gives arthur a BRIGHTER future

- he's the GUIDE for his path

- hahhahahaha

- i'm serious when i say i have a huge fear of insects (spiders count in that too, no discrimination) so i'm just putting that there, saying to yall id be fucking terrified

- gaius would be so confused, like we don't see his face here but merlins close-up sweaty concentrated frown, but he’s literally just screaming “ARTHUR!!” “FASTERRR!!” “YESS!!” “CLIMB!!!” gaius would be looking like he walked into something he wasn't supposed to. prob thinking he should just let the kid die so he doesn’t have to deal with this shit anymore

- UTHER LOCKED HIS SON AWAY I'M FUCKING QUESTIONING HIS PARENTING SKILLS

- that's grounding???? throwing ur child in prison???

- yes 999 can i have child services on his ass

- gwens so smart honestly i love her

- pretending to be a maiden for the food, god what a queen

- arthur buying it and saying “yuck you say this is food?! disgustang!”

- the fact that i misspelled disgusting but it autocorrected to disgustang (which is originally what i wanted but autocorrect shouldn’t have known) makes me consider if i should really check my dictionary…. who knows what words are on there

- they’re so smart

- and then this fucker ruins it all while eating his food, checking her out and saying yeah arthurs a prick, hyuck hyuck, realising only that wait fuck u aint the maiden

- how’d they know GWEN was the one not supposed to have delivered the food, what if it was that chick right there???

- welll….. maybe it's because gwen took her sweet time up those steps, staring as if she couldn’t blink at the guards below

- i forget what happens at the end of this episode besides the kiss, and there's like 9 minutes left my fingers may rot at this point

- wake him up! wake him up!

- OH WAIT HE DOESN'T FUCKING WAKE UP DOES HE AND EVERYONE PANICS

- YEAH OKAY I'M SEEING THAT NOW

- MERLIN STOPPED BREATHING

- LMAO GWEN IS IN TEARS

- “HE'S DEAD” SHE SAYS

- ARTHUR BB COME IN HERE TO KISS UR HUBBY ALIVE

- OH WAIT UR IN FUCKING PRISON

- WAIT UP, HE'S ALIVE AND SHE KISSES HIM AFTERWARDS????

- FUCK ME I THOUGHT FOR THE WHOLE EPISODE THE KISS HAPPENED BC HE COULDN'T WAKE UP THAT'S FUCKING WITH ME I DIDN'T KNOW

- i keep forgetting to switch up the cap locks, sorry if it seems im screaming im legit using my inside voice for most of the time just emphasizing my words a little more

- goddamn, everytime they say mercia i just think of “murica”, like those americans on the 7th of july or whatever date the “we love our country” day is, chanting it as they throw around beers and fireworks as people gather round in jerseys or crop tops

- it's not that hard to spot the european on here

- the most celebrated holiday here which contains a lot of beers and big pub gatherings (besides every fucking night honestly) is either new years, lowkey stereotypically correct saint patricks, and ig easter monday but that's more for the kiddos

- i mean ofc christmas and all that shit but im not the most devoted christian, i just like presents and small gatherings among good friends

- wow okay it wasn't the 7th of july

- i mean at first i looked up “USA day” (i couldn’t remember the name) and it popped up today’s date, and i was like no thats not it at all. dec?? its in like july i think. and i was close! it was july 4th.

- uther damn knows it's nimueh!!!

- i mean, he just overheard morgana and arthur talk about it, and initiated himself into a convo about it once morgana left, as his sneaky ass just slithered up like “hey man, u know that woman? yeah uhh, what she say? anything about me? no? k i know who it is tho”

- i thought he was going to apologize or like explain to arthur what's the sitch, but he just waits for five whole seconds before saying. “those who practice magic know only evil. they despise and seek to destroy goodness wherever they find it.”

- arthur, confused: sounds as if you know her

- uther, walking away: i do

- arthur:

- wow k lots of fucking quotes here cause it's the merthur reunion

- get ready babs

- arthur: still alive then?

- merlin: oh yes, just about… i understand i have you to thank for that

- arthur, leaning on the chair merlin is sitting in, stifling a smile: ah it's nothing, a half-decent servant is hard to come by. i was only dropping by to make sure you’re alright… i.... expect you to be back to work tomorrow

- merlin, watching arthur as he slightly walks away having embarrassed himself: arthur... thank you

- arthur, slowly: you too

- they stare for like 5 whole seconds

- arthur, uncomfortable: well… get some rest

- there we go folks: my eulogy.

- hope someone reads it at my funeral

[whispering-sumire755]

Tigerlily

Her mother hired her a driver and a bodyguard, though Laura didn't want it, said she'd be fine on her own, Talia didn't care, their family was in a precarious situation right now, and she'd be doing the same for Derek and the twins; Peter was only exempt because he was an adult who could take care of himself (and by that, Laura privately thought, what she meant to say was that Peter would totally emasculate and shred any ego and/or confidence the paparazzi/protesters had with his vicious words, if they were in public, and, if not, well. No one would miss them, he'd say, they must be vile people in their private lives to do such vile things in their public ones), and Philip because he was in Ireland with their father. Grouchy, Laura admitted defeat and accepted the burden of whomever her mother had hired, despite being two whole states away from the center of the chaos.

When she leaves her apartment, the first day she's being picked up by this person, she's taken utterly by surprise to see a buxom woman with honey-blonde hair in loose pig-tails tied up with big, sleek ribbons, a steampunk captain's hat atop her head, eyes like crushed nutmeg sprinkled with cigarette-ash flecks, wearing a white shirt and oil-slick black leather pants, her clothes clinging, like she chose them with the specific intention of showing off, standing in front of a pastel, antique Volkswagen beetle, looking for all the world expectant, bored, and vaguely amused in that same way Uncle Peter sometimes gets, like the whole world is a joke that only they're in on.

"You must be Laura," the woman- or, more accurately, girl, at least comparatively- says.

Laura laughs a little, nervous and slightly incredulous, "And you're my ride?"

Blondie flashes a grin, full-up of too many teeth, plumb-red tinted lips parting dangerously around too-sharp bone, an expression as seductive as it is terrifying. "That's right," she opens the backseat door and bows with a flourish, waving Laura inside the vehicle, "my name's Erica; our chariot tigerlily and I will be providing you all of your escorting and personal protection needs, as per your mother's- and therefore my paycheck's- request."

"Uh-mm," Laura laughs again, walking down the concrete steps and away from her apartment complex's entryway, stopping short when she gets to sidewalk proper, biting her lip and wringing her hands a little. Erica remains bowed, though she does turn her head to narrow her smokey eyes, the silken waterfall of her sunlight hair tangling with her neck, the black bow holding the pig-tail in place falling just under the girl's ear, contrasting the brilliant neon-chain piercings that decorate- nearly overwhelm- it. "Are you... old enough to be doing this?"

An explosive sigh as she rights herself, leans an elbow on top of the door and rests her cheek on her hand, its' opposite going to her hip with a half-resigned, half-sass sort of attitude. "Do you want to see my credentials? I've got about a dozen boxing medals, three belts, a nikyu rank in judo, and-" she does an asymmetrical kind of jazz-hands, underwhelming and seeming almost bored, like she's explained this thousands of times, before returning to her original position- "surprise surprise, a driver's license. I'm qualified, does my age really matter?"

"I... suppose not?"

"You don't sound too sure about that, princess."

Laura shakes her head with a little hiccup-squeak- a sound she will never admit to having made, and will quietly freak out about later, thank you- "Nope, I'm sure. I'm sure," and with that she skedaddles on into the car- as elegantly as she can manage, after everything- ignoring her driver's growing smirk with an awkward, embarrassed kind of desperation. She hears Erica huff out something of a laugh before the car door's shut gently behind her, the girl moving to the driver's seat and clambering in.

"So: where to?"

"Belle Grove Kindergarten," Laura answers promptly, mildly relieved to be done with the social niceties of it all.

"Oh, that's right, your mom did say something about you being a teacher." Laura hums affirmatively. "I hate kids, personally, but, you know-" she turns the key, starting the car and pulling away from the curb- "kudos to you for bringing knowledge to the next generation of assholes, or something like that."

Laura chokes on her own spit, and it takes a lot longer than she'd like for her to become composed enough to dignify that with a response, and all she ends up managing is a very high, very unsure, haphazardly chagrined and slightly sarcastic, "Thanks?"

She glimpses, from the rearview mirror, Erica's eyes crinkling with the mirth and width of her smile.

It's odd to learn about someone so extensively over such a short period of time, but, at the same time, it seems almost natural. There's awkwardness and blundering, but Erica and Laura just kind of click.

The wind-swept wild maiden, and the tamer, tranquil, motherly type of woman, both of them very, very different, but uniquely complementary to each other.

Erica, Laura finds, became a bodyguard straight out of highschool, her epilepsy- which she avoids talking about like the plague, so long as she can get away with it- made it difficult to become a driver in any capacity, but, her episodes winding down as she got older, along with finding meds to manage it that managed it well, or, at least, better than the others before, did seem help in that vein. Still, if she has even one seizure, it could revoke her license, which, while Erica understands, the safety of others and all that, she's also vaguely bitter about.

The girl's overtly sexual, voraciously flirtatious, with a mask of lethal confidence born from deep-rooted insecurities. She's very explorative of her identity at this point in her life because her identity always used to be her illness, and now that she has the chance to discover herself outside of that, she's diving in headfirst, reckless and urgent. She's a very in your face with both my middle-fingers in the air type of person, but there's a depth, a complexity to it, and a frugal kindness saturated in cynicism riding just underneath.

Her style, too, is fascinating, from her clothes to her car to the way she utilizes her language, and, despite mostly being a pacifist herself, if Laura's being honest the way Erica fights is... mouth-watering. Would be a vulgar thing to think. Which is why Laura isn't thinking it.

At all.

Erica taps the metal curl of her sunglasses against her teeth, glaring at the door that leads into Laura's apartment complex, impatient. She knows that the school-year is over, but she also knows that Laura isn't the type to have with staying inside or being idle. The woman likes fresh air and sunlight the same way flowers do, in that she needs it like breathing, could only wilt without it.

Which is why Erica ended up outside her place, figuring she'd still need a ride... somewhere.

Sighing explosively, she gets up off of her car, rubs the sun-scorched metal feeling out of her skin with a small grimace, and decidedly presses Laura's buzzer. No response. She clicks the button over and over again, irritating-persistent, pestering, until she hears a crash and an undeniably familiar voice shouting, "Cora, I swear to god—"

The aggrieved words halt, stutter, caught like fluttering-fragile butterfly wings in her long, pale throat, heterochromatic eyes startled-wide when they light on Erica—who'd backtracked down the small set of stairs, back to the sidewalk, to look up at the sight of her boss' daughter, her client, her friend, standing sleep-soft messy on her balcony. ink-silk curls in a loose-tumble bun, a slightly revealing preppy-pink satin slip under an unzipped hoodie, baggy sleeves sliding adorably over her bony hands, dream-like cotton-candy designs on it.

"Sorry to disappoint, princess," Erica smirks, watching as Laura's barefoot toes flex against charcoal grey floorboards.

Laura blushes furiously, rosy hue dusting her from her prominent collarbone all the way to her crown, getting ripe-strawberry dark just at the tip of her ears, and erica's helpless to the way her smirk widens into a genuine grin. "Not disappointed," Laura says, breezily, turning her eyes away and smoothing her hands down her skirt with all the air of recomposed royalty—the act betrayed entirely by her coloring and the high-pitch, embarrassed crackle of her tone. Erica bites back a laugh, scuffs the heel of her boot on the crack-crumble cement.

"You gonna grant me entry into your tower? Or am I gonna have to beg you to let down your hair?"

Laura's eyes flutter closed, tonguing the back of her teeth even as an indulgently mirthful smile overwhelms her. "You know... I shouldn't," she points out with a look, exasperatedly shaking her head even as she retreats back inside to buzz Erica in, fatalistic, calling over her shoulder: "You’re likely a dragon, come to kidnap me and burn me alive."

Erica rolls her eyes, jogs back up the little street-stairway, opens the door when it unlocks for her at Laura's bidding, before running up the three flights it takes to get to Laura's apartment, only the barest hints of breathless when she gets to the woman's door and sweeps inside. "No way am I a dragon. I'm more like... Excalibur," she leans into the woman's space, sultry-purr, "silver and sharp."

Laura backs away with a sound split between a groan and a sigh, "And just as dangerous."

"Not exactly," Erica hums, shutting Laura's door carelessly and meandering to the dining table, snatching an apple from the wicker-weave basket in the middle of its’ wax-shine mahogany expanse and biting into it. "The dragon kills you, princess, because it's hungry, driven by instinct, whatever. I, on the other hand, am wielded in your defence-" she shrugs- "or not. Maybe your evil step-mother picks me up and beheads you with me. My point is, as a weapon, I have no intent, good or bad." 

She looks up from her fingers, picking restlessly at blood-rich apple-skin to find Laura staring at her, expression indecipherable.

Silence reigns- vaguely uncomfortable- for a second too long. Erica blinks, knits her brows.

"... What?"

Laura shakes her head, "I— Nothing. Nothing, nevermind." She clears her throat, shuffles things around that don't really need to be shuffled, restless. "Um, so. What're you doing here?"

"My job, unless I was fired while I wasn't paying attention."

Laura huffs a little, glittering starlight returning to her eyes, "No; I'll have need of you for a while yet. But..." She shrugs, "I don't really have anywhere to go."

"Bullshit," Erica scoffs, narrows her eyes when laura's only response is a deadpanned glare. "Seriously? No... friends? social gatherings? nothing?"

*"Nothing,"* Laura sighs, nearly a pout, flopping lethargically onto her white-cotton plush couch. "Just the kids—work."

Erica blanks for a moment, fidgets, eats her goddamn apple.

"Okay," she shatters the vaguely somber air after a moment, annoyed, tossing her apple-core into the trash-can on her way to the couch before lifting Laura bodily off of it, hauling her into a bridal-carry easy as anything, and ignoring her yelp of utterly indignant shock. "Fuck this. We're going out."

Laura sputters for a moment, hands flapping a little wildly as Erica straight-up carries her past the threshold and- since the stairs don't seem like a good or practical idea- to the elevator, before she resignedly, almost begrudgingly, gives in, wrapping her willowy arms around Erica's neck and melting into her with a huff. "I suppose it wouldn't do to leave tigerlily all by their lonesome, anyway, would it?"

“No,” Erica agrees victoriously. “No, it would not.”

They spend the day driving around, avoiding paparazzi, getting frozen yogurt, a whole trunkload- literally- of books, two records, a record player, and a moment saturated in the floaty-fluff memory of dancing with Erica in the middle of the street, both of them a study in awkward clumsiness and both of them devolving into hysterical fits of laughter.

The image of Erica with her head thrown back, their bodies spinning, dizzying, her laughter throaty and reckless and breathless-wild, is replaying in Laura’s head on a loop when Erica walks her back up to her apartment, the sight of the girl's teeth, tongue, the roof of her mouth, unexplored places that Laura suddenly, yearningly, viscerally, wants to map out, discover, taste, know. Which is probably why, when Erica grins a, "G'night, Lulu," with every intention of leaving, Laura ropes her in- knuckles fisted in the collar of her shirt- and kisses her soundly.

Erica freezes for just the barest hints of a frantically eternal, terrifying moment, before she's all motion, folding Laura into her body with all the ease of a sculptor molding clay, fingertips, sharp nails, pressing into her shoulder blades as she dives into her in turn, greedy, with a gasping moan, wavering somewhere deep, all animalistic, ferine need.

When they part enough to allow air back into their lungs, lips bruised and spit-slick, Erica rasps, teased lovely, so fucking lovely at the edges, "That was-" a swallow, dry, clicking- "unexpected."

"No, it wasn't. It was a kiss. That's what you're supposed to do at the end of a date, isn't it? Kiss?"

Erica snorts, dissolves into giggles, lets her head fall to rest on Laura's shoulder, button-nose pressed into Laura’s pulse-point. "Yeah," she agrees, every muscle easing down to supple, pliant, and Laura hadn't even realized how tightly Erica was holding herself until now. "Yeah, I suppose it is."

"Come inside?" She asks, maybe begs, and Erica lifts her head, raising an eyebrow, which has Laura rolling her eyes. "To cuddle. Watch Netflix? Eat p—" she halts herself- because she knows, she knows how much Erica hates popcorn- squints her eyes at the ceiling for a second as she thinks, both arms wrapped around Erica's back, one hand absently playing with her puppy-soft hair. "Poptarts," she decides, finally, looking back down into Erica's eyes, only to be knocked entirely breathless by how much of the girl's naked heart is beating in them, joyous, honeycomb sweet, and glittering with something new, transcendent, something that, maybe, hopes to be love.

Erica catches whatever expression of besotted surprise Laura must be wearing with a kiss, like fireflies in a mason jar, says, "Sure. Poptarts sound good."

And Laura realizes, mostly accidentally, that she's now dating her best friend, and her whole world glows.

(When the political turbulence gets tied up, and the reason for Erica being hired concisely ends, she moves on to a new job, another client, but her relationship with Laura remains, grows, develops. The two women explore each other, their identities together, and, when Laura decides to bring the girl home to introduce her to her family- them road-tripping to BH in tigerlily- Erica brings a fruit-basket, which she bequeaths Talia, for essentially introducing them.)

[sueboohscorner]

#TheOriginals Ep. 501 "Where You Left Your Heart" #TheOriginals

I'm kind of a sucker for happy endings when they're well done. That's why I almost wished The Originals had just ended with the Season 4 finale, with all our friends in a decent life. I mean, Klaus was kind of an open question, but he had a chance at happiness if he just didn't give in to his worst tendencies...and it seemed like his moment of seeing Elijah happy might have been a hint toward optimism.

But the problem with happy endings is that they're always a lie. We leave any characters in their "happy ending" moment, and deep down, we know there's a bunch of real life that will follow. Wait long enough, and every happy ending turns to crap. (Maybe not When Harry Met Sally; those two suffered enough during the story we saw that they earned some true marital bliss, and that's part of the genius of that movie.)

But I digress. We're here for The Originals. And there's a lot of unhappiness brewing seven years past the "happy ending" we saw last year. Klaus is on a bloodthirsty rampage in France, taking back the moniker "Klaus the Mad," and wearing it with pride. Between ripping out hearts and eating them in front of screaming civilians, he stops by Elijah's piano bar for frequent chats. (When Elijah sees Klaus and starts playing "Mack the Knife," that's fricking genius.)

When Klaus stays too long at the bar, it causes bad omens all over the world, and his siblings reach out to beg him to stop screwing with the potential apocalypse he tempts every time he gives in to his loneliness. Flowers wilt like they're in a nuclear winter, and blood pours out of faucets everywhere a Mikaelson is. 

Where are they all? Well, Kol's in Belize, still adorably honeymooning with Davina; Freya's still in New Orleans, helping Vincent run the Quarter and having a serious long-distance relationship with Keelin via magical facetime; Rebekah is still in NYC with Marcel, who’s ready to put a ring on their immortal romance at long last. He pulls off this incredibly romantic proposal, and she hesitates. In her heart, she can’t commit to a life without her family, and that’s what this feels like.

And then, of course, there’s Hope. A Mikaelson is living under her mother’s maiden name, but showing signs, she’s inherited her father’s lack of judgment. She’s selling blood to some kid at the Salvatore school, and it’s mysterious at first. Is she selling vamp blood to humans? Where’s she even getting it, and most of all, why?

But no, it’s quickly revealed that the dumbass kid we just saw plunge to his death and resurrection was a werewolf, and Hope sold him her blood to make him a Hybrid. I will allow that this is less insane than it feels at first. We know that Hybrids are a terrible idea, but Hope probably doesn’t. She knows two: Hayley and Klaus. Hayley’s a smart, resourceful badass, a great mother, and role model. Klaus is unhinged, but she’s heard all the stories about her father; by all accounts, he was that way long before he got his hands on the Moonstone. She can’t truly know what she’s doing and how seriously stupid it is. Boy is she about to learn.

Speaking of dumb stuff that is 100% in character, Kol reassures his niece that she hasn’t ended the world, and everything will be okay. Kol casually mentions that she shouldn’t worry about never seeing her whole family again, because some crisis or another always seems to happen in New Orleans and bring them back from wherever they are.

My theory is that all the bad shit that then goes down springs at this precise moment. Hope is an incredibly powerful witch, but more importantly, she’s a dumbass kid who misses her father. I believe that Kol’s reassuring words inspire her, and her subconscious acts out to cause massive mayhem that will bring her family home.

Speaking of Hayley, she spends most of this season premiere being a badass Alpha and a smart, strong, loving mom. She’s also dating a guy named Declan, and I’m tempted to say don’t worry about this obvious placeholder pending Elijah’s return, except that the tradition of this show dictates he’s destined to die horribly or be secretly evil.

Ultimately, Marcel gets fed up with Rebekah’s always choosing her family over him, and he gives her an ultimatum, which dude, you should know better than that. Obviously, she bails on him. Surprisingly, she heads straight for France to see if Elijah’s piano man skills will make her feel better…putting three Mikaelsons nearby, apocalypse be damned.

But I’ve left the best for last. As everyone freaks out about Klaus’ whereabouts, Rebekah asks Caroline to check up on him! It’s the #Klaroline reunion we’ve been waiting for, and as always, Caroline sees right through Klajuse, and he can’t resist her.

She points out that everyone else seems to think his rampage is random, but she can tell there’s a pattern, a purpose; he seems to be killing his way through specific bloodlines. He says that he’s taking out every enemy the Mikaelsons have ever had, plus any heirs, just in case they know about their family’s grudges. He says it’s for Elijah’s safety since Elijah wouldn’t recognize anyone from his forgotten past if they came after him. As far as excuses to let yourself go on a killing spree, it’s not bad.

Finally, my favorite hot-as-hell witch, Vincent, is still running the Quarter like a boss. He’s a genius, a badass, and a good friend to Freya, giving her permission to abdicate because he needs her, but she needs to go. (Not that she’s likely to after all that immediately happens, but still, points to Vincent.) He gets the honor of delivering the closing monologue.

“How will we know if we’re at the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end?” he ponders just as the blood rain begins to fall. Asked and answered.

[real-life-pine-tree]

Cinderella: a FruitShipping Fairytale

Based on the Fairytale AU by @justanotherotakuandartist.

Once upon a time, there lived a young maiden named Zuzu Boyle. She lived in the kingdom of Paradiscia with her father, Skip Boyle, who ran a magic school for wizards-in-training, allowing them to summon magical creatures in combat. And for Zuzu, all seemed well.

But one day, Zuzu was approached by a bald man who introduced himself as Professor Leo Akaba. “Your father was reported to have gone missing,” he had explained. “He told me to watch over you until his return.”

Ever since then, Zuzu had remained inside her home near the magic school. She was instructed to do all the housework, but she didn’t mind. She and her father did that stuff all the time (which was why she always dressed so plain compared to other girls her age). The only problem she had was that she was also told to never leave the house. Leo had explained it was because of her magical power of flowers always blooming near her presence, which she had already knew. Regardless of this, Leo had shown nothing but absolute kindness to Zuzu.

Two months after Skip’s disappearance, Zuzu found a scroll among the various pieces of discarded mail Leo had left near the front door. She opened the scroll, realizing that King Yusho Sakaki was going to host a grand celebration for his only son, Prince Yuya, in a few days, and that everyone in the kingdom was invited to attend. Zuzu immediately asked Leo about this.

“King Yusho is hosting a celebration?” Leo asked.

“The invitation says that it’s for the prince,” Zuzu answered. “I was thinking that maybe you can let me-”

“Absolutely not,” Leo interrupted. “You are too important. If those people see that you have such an unusual ability, you might get accused for being a witch. I can’t risk losing you.”

Zuzu looked up at Leo, a sad look in her eyes. “I understand,” she said. After all, she had only interacted with young wizards-in-training at her father’s school. What if upperclassmen frowned upon people with strange abilities?

“Good,” Leo said, pulling Zuzu in for a hug. “I love you so much to lose you.”

Ultimately the night of the celebration came. After Leo left the house for the evening (due to something about wizard’s work at his job), Zuzu looked outside the kitchen window, looking at the grand palace in the distance. “I wish I could go…” she muttered to herself.

“That can be arranged, Zuzu Boyle.”

Zuzu gasped and turned around. “Wh-Who said that?!” she asked, quickly grabbing her giant paper fan (which she kept around the house for defense purposes). “And how do you know my name?!”

In a flash of pale blue light, a blonde woman wearing a light teal robe appeared next to Zuzu, causing her to drop her giant paper fan in shock. “Relax, young one,” she said. “I’m your Fairy Godmother, and I only want to make your wish come true.”

“But…” Zuzu said, sadly looking at her hand. “Professor Akaba said I could-”

“Get accused for being a witch?” the Fairy Godmother asked. “I’m certain that you won’t. I can help you make sure you will attend that celebration. Now then, can you show me your dresses?”

Some time later, Zuzu had shown the Fairy Godmother every single dress she owned, all plain and boring. “Oh dear…” the Fairy Godmother said, glancing at a faded pink dress with short, poofy sleeves. “Are these all the dresses you have?”

“I don’t really attend a lot of fancy events,” Zuzu explained. “And they’re comfortable to wear when I do housework.”

“Then I’ll have to fix that,” the Fairy Godmother said. She tapped on Zuzu’s shoulder, transforming her plain, long-sleeved dress into a sparkling, sleeveless periwinkle gown as her brown shoes transformed into silver flats. Her bright pink hair, which was commonly done in pigtails, came loose and rested on her shoulders, while clip-on diamond earrings materialized on her ears.

Zuzu looked at her reflection in the mirror, in awe over what she had become. “This can’t be me…” she said, knowing that she has never looked this pretty in her whole life.

“Don’t say that,” the Fairy Godmother said. “You have always been beautiful. I only gave you a small push. Now come with me. I need to find a perfect tomato.”

Some time later, the Fairy Godmother was able to set up the transportation needed to get to the castle. She transformed a tomato into a ruby and emerald carriage and transformed a lot of stray mice into four horses, a coachman, and a footman. “Thank you,” Zuzu said, happy to finally leave the house after being metaphorically trapped for two months.

“But I must warn you,” the Fairy Godmother informed. “The magic wares off at midnight.”

“Isn’t there a way to extend the magic?” Zuzu asked.

“I tried,” the Fairy Godmother explained. “It was not a pretty sight. Now you better hurry, for you have a grand celebration to attend.”

And so, Zuzu got in the carriage. And it drove off, taking her to the castle. Ultimately she arrived at the castle. Getting out of the carriage, she entered the castle, unaware that flowers had begun blooming on the castle steps.

When Zuzu arrived in the ballroom, she was amazed by the sight. Magical illusions of smiley faces and stars were hovering all over the room. There were also cute dancing hippos and other cutesy creatures. And on either side of the ballroom were two magicians.

“I hope you’re already having a fun time, because the grand finale is about to begin!”

Zuzu looked up, seeing a teenage boy swinging on a purple snake that had clung to the ballroom ceiling. He was dressed in red, gold, and black, although she couldn’t get a good view of him due to him being so high up. Maybe he was the one who created all of this. If so, he was delivering such an amazing performance.

The pink-haired maiden was so happy to see all of this that flowers bloomed all over the ballroom. However, this distracted the performer, causing him to lose his grip. Suddenly, the two magicians in the ballroom glowed brightly and in a flash of light, a red dragon had appeared and grabbed the performer. “Good boy, Odd-Eyes,” he said. “Now set me down over there.”

Growling in response, the dragon landed next to Zuzu and placed the performer next to her. That was when Zuzu got a good look at him. He had somewhat feminine features, especially with his green and red hair and his crimson eyes. He wore a silver and light blue pendant, and his clothing made him look regal. Was this…?

“You’re Prince Yuya Sakaki,” Zuzu realized.

“Correct,” Yuya replied. “And I must say, I wasn’t expecting flowers to appear in the room. That was your doing, wasn’t it?”

Zuzu looked a bit embarrassed. “I’ve had this ability ever since I was born,” she explained. “Flowers always seem to bloom in my presence. I know it’s a bit unnatural, but-”

“Are you kidding?” Yuya happily asked. “That was amazing! I’ve seen other wizards cast all different kinds of magic, but your ability stands out.”

“In a good way?” Zuzu asked.

“Sure thing!” Yuya happily answered. He held out his hand. “In fact, would you do me the honor of taking part in my grand finale?”

Zuzu let out a small gasp. The prince of Paradiscia was asking her to perform alongside him. Smiling softly, she held his hand. “Yes,” she answered.

Smirking, Yuya snapped his fingers with his free hand, allowing his dragon to let him climb on his back. “Sorry for the delay,” the teen Prince told the other partygoers, summoning his purple snake to his hand. “Now to show you the grand finale. Time to swing into action!”

And so, Zuzu ended up helping Yuya with his grand finale. As he wowed the crowd with his cutesy creatures and magical illusions, she controlled flower pedals and moved them in perfect sync with the creatures and illusions. It was that moment that made her realize Leo was wrong. None of the upperclassmen accused her of being a witch. In fact, it was the exact opposite. Everyone loved her flower show.

When Yuya and Zuzu were finished with the grand finale (which made the other partygoers cheer in pure delight), he brought her outside to the castle garden. “I must say, you have the potential to be a great wiztainer,” the young prince said.

“Wiz…tainer?” Zuzu asked.

“A wizard who uses his or her magic to entertain others,” Yuya explained. “My dad started the trend when he was younger, and I want to entertain the kingdom with my magic, just like what my dad used to do with my mom.” He quickly wiped away forming tears from his eyes.

“Your mom must have been an amazing woman,” Zuzu said, immediately understanding why Yuya seemed a bit upset regarding his mother.

“She was,” Yuya said. “She used her magic to assist my dad with his performances, and that’s what I want you to do.” He held Zuzu’s hands and looked at her straight in the eyes. “I can teach you how to expand your magic, even help you summon creatures. Together, you and I can keep the kingdom entertained. So what do you say? Will you be my wiztainer partner?”

Zuzu was about to respond when she quickly noticed the clock in the background it was 11:45pm. “I appreciate the offer, but I really have to go,” she said.

“What?” Yuya asked. “But we just met.”

“But I already have a life,” Zuzu said, letting go of Yuya’s hands. “At least it was nice meeting the prince.”

Yuya was about to say something when Zuzu ran off. He tried to follow her, but by the time he arrived at the ballroom, she had already left. But then he noticed a small flash of light on the ground. He looked down, noticing a clip-on diamond earring near his foot. He picked it up, recalling that it looked just like the earrings Zuzu wore. He realized it must have fell off during his grand finale.

King Yusho approached the young prince. “I see you made a new friend,” he said.

“Yeah…” Yuya said. “And this was her earring.”

“Yuya, I don’t think we can find her just by having her earring,” Yusho informed.

“I recognize her face,” Yuya said. “I just need to find a fair maiden with bright pink hair.”

“Bright pink hair?” Yusho asked. “That sounds like Skip Boyle’s child.”

“Skip Boyle?” Yuya repeated. “The man who’s in charge of the You Show Wizards School?”

“Precisely,” Yusho answered. “Skip Boyle is a wonderful man. Despite his status as a commoner, he’s one of my closest friends. It was a shame that he mysteriously vanished two months ago. Not even my best guards know what has happened to him.”

Yuya looked at the earring. “I have to go into town tomorrow,” he stated. “I fear this maiden might be in trouble.”

The next morning, Yuya went into town with a small group of guards. He went from door to door asking about the disappearance of Skip Boyle. With every person he visited, he came closer to what could have happened. And ultimately, he stopped by the Boyle residence, when he was greeted by Leo Akaba.

“What are you doing here?” Leo asked, speaking very angrily.

“I’ll have you know that I’m the prince of Paradiscia,” Yuya informed, not appreciating how this man was speaking to him. “And you’re under arrest for the murder of Skip Boyle.”

“How dare you accuse me of such an act, you insolent boy!” Leo exclaimed. “I have been looking over this house ever since Skip Boyle disappeared! I would never have killed him! Now remove your tarnished presence from my household and never show your face here again!”

But Yuya, who could no longer tolerate being treated with such disrespect, snapped his fingers, prompting his guards to apprehend Leo. “You must be a newcomer to this kingdom,” the tomato-haired boy said. “Even though I’m young, I still have power over you. So for murdering an innocent civilian and trapping a girl inside her own home, you will spend three years in the castle dungeon.”

So as Leo was escorted out of the house against his will, Yuya entered the residence, finding Zuzu in the kitchen, who he was able to recognize despite her plain appearance. “I heard everything,” she said. “Did Professor Akaba really…?”

“I’m so sorry you had to hear that,” Yuya said. “But when my father told me who you are, who your father was, I knew I had to step in and help, Miss…”

“Zuzu,” the pink-haired maiden said. “My name is Zuzu Boyle.”

“Zuzu…” Yuya said. He smiled softly and took out the clip-on diamond earring. “I believe this is yours.” He proceeded to clip the earring to her left ear, caressing her hair as he did so.

“Good,” Zuzu said. She reached into a pocket in her dress and took out her second clip-on diamond earring and clipped it to her right ear. “I thought I lost it.”

And so, Yuya brought Zuzu back to the castle, where she began her private wizard lessons with the young prince. Yusho had also decided to make sure the You Show Wizards School was back in session for younger wizards-in-training, since they needed a new mentor. And despite Leo mysteriously disappearing after being locked in the castle dungeon, everyone lived happily ever after.

[mer-birdman]

Mweheheheh angsty otp prompt meme. “Seven fucking years, and that’s all you have to say!” For 7kpp ;)

Oh god. You do like the suffering, don’t you? You do realize this is going to involve Irina, right? One because she’s angst bucket child, and two because she has a potty mouth and would definitely say that.

Well, without further ado.

She’d remained in her quarters for most of the trip, so none of the delegates on her ship had known just who their captain was as they made their way to the Summit. She’d have never heard the end of it otherwise — even now, a full cycle after her own fateful Summit, Irina still turned heads in the streets of every port she docked at, every manor and holding she visited. It didn’t help that she was far too recognizable — most of her ilk were intriguing to the eye but not overly memorable, since it benefitted a pirate to be able to hide in a crowd.

But the description of ‘pale skin, dark hair, red eyes, and burn scars like vines and foliage’ had spread like wildfire following her return from her Summit seven years ago, and now anybody who paid attention to international politics in the seven kingdoms knew her name, her face, and what she’d done.

A lot had happened since the end of that Summit. She and the friends she’d made there had all gone their separate ways, back to homes and back to the lives that trapped them there. Much like she’d fostered peace on the Isle, now Irina had fostered friendship from her ship on the seas, sailing from nation to nation and carrying communication, gifts, messages, and sometimes passengers from one to the next. It was her ship now, the Amor Almar, and after seven years many outside of Hise had forgotten that it had once belonged to the famed pirate Blackthorn.

At the negotiations seven years ago, Irina had fought her way tooth and nail (metaphorically speaking) to bartering a diplomatic release of her mother, and when she’d arrived in Hise she’d immediately reassembled the crew of the Amor Almar to sail for Corval and bring Catherine home. She’d been weak, and shaky, and her hair had been shorn off at the nape of her neck, but to Irina the sight of her mother alive and awake had been a drink of cool water after months without rain.

Catherine had taken one look at her daughter and crew, waiting on the dock for her like an honor parade, and burst into tears. She’d broken away from the Corvali guards who’d escorted her out and run down the walkway, bare feet smacking against the wooden planks, to throw her arms around her daughter like Irina had been the one presumed dead for five years. The guards had looked on in astonishment, watching the woman who had refused to submit for five years break down at the sight of a tiny girl with scars across half her face, but Zarad (who’d visited to facilitate the exchange, like the good diplomatic friend he was) had worn a kind expression.

Irina had captained the ship home, standing with a strength to her spine and resolve in her eyes that hadn’t been there before, and when they’d finally docked in Hise once again her mother had stood at the helm beside her and smiled.

“I think my time here has come to a true end, now. This ship loves you, my little peacemaker, so please take good care of her.”

They’d shared a small, secret smile then, before disembarking to meet Piotr on the pier. He wept harder than both of them had, falling to his knees as he reached his wife and wrapping his arms tight around her waist, all propriety thrown to the wind at the sight of his girls safe and sound and home at last.

Her family whole once again, Irina had done her best to forget the other empty place inside her heart, where something else had been left behind.

And yet here she was, again, docking at the Isle’s pier and wrapping a scarf tight around her hair and face to shield her from prying eyes as she leapt off of her ship with ease to tie it tight to the wooden poles of the walkway and indicate her crew to lower the bridge from the deck. This year’s Hisean delegates were a rowdy, joyous bunch, two young men and three women and two absolutely lovely individuals of an entirely undefined gender, and all together they were rather a force of nature as they disembarked and made their way down the pier in a storm of chatter and laughter and brightly-colored cloth.

It eased her heart, to see them. They, hopefully, wouldn’t have to face the trials and tension she had endured in her time as a delegate. Instead, it would be best if their seven weeks here were nothing but joy and laughter and young love blossoming like the Maiden’s Vigil flower Emmett had shown her so long ago. (He’d gifted her with seeds the first time she’d visited him after the Summit, but she’d never really gotten around to planting them. After all, she’d already been freed from her tower, so there was no point letting her tears fall for an escape now).

Irina turned, raising her hand to signal Callum to start unloading all of the goods and supplies they’d transported as well, and failed to stop herself from gasping out loud when an all-too-familiar voice sounded above her ear.

“The Isle staff can assist you with the supplies, Captain.”Did he recognize her? He had to, she had waved with her scarred hand after all and he’d seen that hand many times over, but it had been seven years and not a word. Irina found herself at a loss for words, spine frozen and lungs suddenly empty as she tried to force herself to turn around and face him, look into those eyes she’d seen in her dreams for seven years and ask where have you been. Instead, she nodded curtly and flashed a quick series of sailor’s signs to her first mate, who saluted and set about passing on the instructions to the rest of the crew. She caught hold of a rope and swung herself back onto the deck, where Callum raised his scarred eyebrow at her curiously.

“Would that happen to be the fellow you’ve been dreaming about, little miss?”Irina frowned. “I don’t want to talk about it, Callum. Now get your ass in gear, we promised Lairde Eirian and Captain Franjelica we’d transport their things personally.”

Her first mate sighed dramatically. “Ah, would that we were still pirates, and could just steal their things away! Joking, joking, little miss,” He raised his hands in defense at her pointed stare, laughing easily, “You know we’re all happy with whatever you want us to be, right?”

“…” Against her will, a small smile curled at the corners of her lips. “Of course, Cal. Now, you and Peggy should take Frankie’s things up to her room, and I’ll grab some of the staff here to help me with Eirian’s. Be back here by suppertime, we’ll eat while docked and sail in the morning.”

Callum laughed and saluted her sharply, sunlight glinting off the gray hairs starting to appear at his temples and the edges of his bushy eyebrows. “Aye-aye, Captain.”

“Oh, stuff it.” She ducked inside to retrieve Eirian’s belongings — Cordelia would never forgive her if she let her sibling’s things be ruined, which is likely why Eirian had cheekily requested that she herself deliver them — and hauled them onto the deck, waving over a young woman with red hair and a few young men to help her carry the load.

She was already well inside the castle itself when she realized that the long red braid in front of her was almost eerily familiar. Skies above, this was just one walk down memory lane after another, wasn’t it? It probably wasn’t a good idea to speak up, but Irina couldn’t help it — the girl had been one of her first and dearest friends on the Isle. “Great crested waves, Ria, that isn’t you, is it?”

“Wha—” True to form, Ria yelped in surprise, but her grip on the smaller case she was carrying didn’t even falter, and she only turned briefly to glance at Irina with wide grey eyes. Her face was more mature but still round and open, freckles sprinkled liberally across her nose and cheekbones like flecks of sunlight. “—goodness, Lady Irina! I had no idea! It’s been ever so long, how are you?”

Supposing that she may as well bare her face, Irina tugged off the scarf around her head with one hand and draped it over her shoulder, smiling back at her once-time maid in what almost felt like genuine delight. “I’ve been well. Sailing, mostly — would you know, a good group of us from the last Summit have all but become pen-pals, and I’ve ended up as the courier for all of them. And since Mom gave me her ship, well —” She laughed, a little sheepish, “—I just haven’t really left it. But how are you, Ria? And everyone else — Imogen, Sayra, even that fusspot head butler!”

Ria giggled, nudging open the door to Eirian’s assigned room with one rounded hip and directing their small procession inside. “Oh, things have been wonderful here! Sayra and I are on different assignments this year, but she’s been quite happy. Started helping in the gardens a lot, which I think she likes a good deal more than being a lady’s maid. And Immie’s just lovely — would you know, she’s found herself a suitor?”

“No! Really?” Irina couldn’t help but gasp appropriately in response. “That’s wonderful news!”

Smile dimpling her cheeks, Ria nodded and set about bustling around the room, taking dresses and suits from the largest chest and brushing them out carefully before hanging them in the armoire with a grace she hadn’t possessed seven years earlier. “It is, isn’t it? And they’ll all want to see you, of course — I don’t suppose you could stay for dinner, Lady Irina?”

“Oh, just Irina now, none of those titles and whatnot.” She’d left that behind the moment she returned from the Summit. Politics were important, but she had found her own calling now, and it didn’t require that old title any longer. Besides, her mother had taken surprisingly adeptly to being ‘the Lady of Ravenskeep’, and was more than skilled enough at talking for both of them (it was amazing how well piracy and captainship could lend themselves to politics). “If you must, call me Captain, but really my name is more than enough.”

A gentle laugh escaped her friend, who was attempting to puzzle out the correct way to hang one of Eirian’s more elaborate outfits. “Irina, then. Would you have time to join us for dinner?”

“I suppose.” The crew would survive a night without her — hell, they’d probably celebrate it. “Just let me tell my first mate, yeah? And you’ll have to give me directions — it’s been seven years since I was here, and I’m pretty sure your dinner won’t be where mine often was.”

Ria smiled. “I’ll send someone to find you. Oh, I’ve missed you, La— Irina.”“And I you, Ria.”They shared a small, warm moment, before the maid pursed her lips together and held out the garment in her hands towards Irina with a petulant look. “Now, how in the world am I supposed to hang this? You know the Lairde, you must know how their clothes are meant to look, right?”

Irina laughed. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Ria, Irina decided, had gotten all together too sly and quick-witted in the years since she’d seen her last.

After all, there had to be a deeper reason for why it was Jasper, of all people, that the apple-haired maid sent to tap her shoulder and drag her out of her reveries as she sat beside the post her ship was tethered to. He was just as tall as she remembered, with the same sort of ethereal beauty as he’d possessed seven years earlier (and probably, she suspected, for a good while before that). His hair had grown longer, and now instead of just brushing his shoulders it fell past them, pulled back and fastened with a tidy violet band so dark it was almost black (he still wore his bangs in a braid, which amused her for no particular reason).

And just like in her memories, his eyes continued to captivate her. They were the first thing about him she’d really noticed, the first part of him that made her start to think he might not be a danger to her and the first thing about him she’d found beautiful. Now, painted with the multihued glow of the sunset behind them, she remembered those feelings all over again.

She was going to strangle Ria with her own braid when they got the castle, for making her heart go through this obscene gymnastics routine yet again.

“Ria told me you’ll be joining us for dinner.”

It took a great deal of willpower for her to not flinch, nor gasp, nor lunge forward to wrap herself around him so they’d never part again— “That’s correct. She said Sayra and Imogen would like to see me before I set sail again, and one dinner without me won’t kill my crew.”

The corner of his lip twitched. “So this was your ship. I had wondered.”“Had you?”One eyebrow tilted delicately upwards as he offered her a hand up and they made their way to the castle. “I’d heard that Blackthorn’s daughter had taken up her mantle, and a fair number of military fleets seemed quite happy for it.” His eyes, usually a crystalline lilac, were amaranthine in the light of the setting sun and gentle. “I’m glad to see it’s true.”

That just wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair of him to fall back into that, those kind words and kind thoughts for her sake even though she still didn’t really deserve them, after so many years of absence. How come he could just assume to know what the past seven years had been like for her?

But she didn’t say that. Instead, she responded with a polite, “Yes, they’re certainly relieved that my pirate days seem to be over, though I do believe I’ve put a shipping vessel or two out of business.”

“I find myself entirely unsurprised.”

“Yes, well,” What was she going to say here? It’s been a while since she’d been like this, mentally tongue-tied by an individual person’s presence, “It earns my crew a living, and I do have quite a few friends to visit.”

Jasper nodded, expression thoughtful beneath the neutrality (she’d learned to read past his composure many years ago, and the time she’d spent remembering every face she’d seen him make had only helped). “Indeed.”

They fell silent after that, continuing together into the castle and through the hallways to a part of the staff quarters she’d never entered before, not even when she’d been investigating that storm-forsaken murder. She can hear the laughter and talk from the main hall upstairs, where the delegates are milling about and meeting each other (many for the first time) and possibly even falling in love. But down here, as Jasper leads her towards a different echo of voices, it feels warm in an entirely different way.

The welcome feast, in her slightly faded memories, had felt warm like everyone within was a small sun and doing their best to shine brightly. The room he lead her into, full of bodies and happy chatter and delicious (if simpler) smells, was warm in the way a cozy evening by a hearth-fire was warm. Rather than the glow of stars, it had the glow of family.

Ria spotted them as they entered and waved brightly, beckoning them over to a couple of empty seats she had clearly saved for them, and Irina found she didn’t have any energy to be irritated with the redhead for sending Jasper to guide her after all. She was seated at one of the many tables, with Sayra, Imogen, and a young man Irina didn’t recognize but assumed to be Imogen’s new paramour, and they all quickly scooted around to make room for Irina and Jasper to sit down.

“Lad— oh, I mean, Miss Irina!” Imogen was, as ever, unfailing polite and soft-spoken, though her hair was now tied up in a fluffy bun with a few strands falling free to frame her face. She leaned over to give Irina a quick hug before pulling back with cheeks flushed pink and twining her fingers with those of the man beside her. “Ria said she’d told you, and— well, this is Oliver.”

Irina eyed him sternly. She was only perhaps a year older than Imogen, but after having defending the other girl’s life in an official trial, there were definitely some protective feelings stirring up in her chest. “Well, Oliver, I hope you know that if you break Imogen’s heart, I’ll be making another visit back here to break a few other things of yours. Understood?”Commendably, Oliver didn’t flinch or raise a confused eyebrow despite being outright threatened with bodily harm by a tiny woman who still looked young enough to be his little sister (Irina had always looked young for her age, but adulthood seemed to have reached its peak in her twentieth or twenty-first year, and she hadn’t grown a lick since then). As Ria stifled laughter and Sayra patted a beet-red Imogen on the back, he responded, “I wouldn’t dream of it, ma’am.”“Good.”

Looking up from Imogen, Sayra smiled across the table at her. “It is good to see you again, Irina.” The dark-haired maid wore the same hairstyle as she had so many years before, but her bangs were clipped back across the top of her head now and her clothes were of a practical cut in rich greens and browns. Irina had always been fond of, if a little intimidated by, her tall maid, and seeing Sayra now in a less formal manner just reminded her of why she had grown to like the older woman anyways.

“Likewise. Ria said you’re working in the gardens now?”

Sayra’s usually composed face lit up, and she launched into a calm but clearly enthusiastic description of the work she was now doing, caring for the hedges and flowers and plotting out different garden arrangements that would both keep the soil healthy and make the area look nice and interesting. Irina leaned forward to listen as she ate, and almost managed to entirely distract herself from Jasper’s quiet presence beside her for the remainder of the meal.

Unlike meals with the delegates and with nobility in general, the staff dinner was short and practical, as they dined in shifts and had work to return to afterwards. Thankfully, Irina was by now in the practice of eating quickly (she did have a ship to captain, after all), and didn’t have any trouble finishing her portion by the time everything was done. They all cleaned up together, washing their own dishes and setting them in tidy stacks to dry, and she endured cheerful conversation and greetings and questions from what seemed to be every servant who had been working there when she was a delegate (and a few who definitely hadn’t).

Clearly, ripples had been made.

Ria hurried off to help her new assigned delegate prepare for bed (not Eirian, sadly, but a sweet girl from Arland whom she’d described over dinner as ‘a precious thing, much too kind for a world like hers’), and Imogen and Oliver excused themselves to go do a bit more work in the linens room before retiring for bed together.

For a moment, Sayra looked as though she was going to offer to walk Irina back to her ship, but then her eyes flickered around the room for a bit and lit up with a sly sort of light. “I don’t suppose you’d like to stay the night, would you?”

“The night?” Oh, Irina knew where this was going, and a small part of her sorely wished she had an excuse to accept. “It’s nice of you to offer, but my crew’ll be waiting for me, and I’m rather fond of my quarters on the ship. I’ve painted constellations on the ceiling, you see,” She explained enthusiastically, covering up her moment of apprehension at the realization that Sayra had probably been planning to leave her in Jasper’s room overnight, and why had all her friends turned out to be sly buggers? “So I look up each night and I can count the stars even when the sky’s bound to rumble up a storm.”

The once-maid only looks slightly chagrined. “I see. That does sound like a lovely sight, don’t you think, Jasper?”

“Irina’s paintings often are, yes.”

Oh, blast him to the furthest sea and into a coral reef. It was absolutely unfair of him to sound so matter-of-fact like that. 

Sayra raised a slim eyebrow thoughtfully, before yawning wide and stretching. “Well, I’ve an early morning tomorrow. Since you’re not staying the night, perhaps Jasper could escort you back to your ship? It wouldn’t do for you to get lost in here, after all.”

Damn it. Irina definitely couldn’t refuse that one.

They made it out of the castle and onto the winding stone pathway that lead to the dock in silence, surrounding by the whisper of the breeze and the quiet chirping of a few birds who hadn’t yet gone to sleep. Night had fallen around them, and the stars were starting to peek out and glitter in the sky above. The moon was just a thin sliver, but even the faint light it cast managed to turn Jasper’s hair into spun silver, and Irina found herself looking at it before she could consciously remind herself not to.

“I’ve missed this.”

He broke the silence first, and continued on his way for a few steps before realizing that she’d stopped walking and turning back to look at her with an ever-so-slightly curious expression. She stared up at him, brows furrowed tight and eyes dark in the dim light. It felt like there was a simmering volcano buried under her ribcage, rumbling and hammering and threatening to explode out of her, and eventually it did.

She clenched her fingers tight in the fabric of the half-skirt she wore over her work trousers. “You’ve missed this. That’s— that’s all you can say?” Her voice shook in a way it hadn’t for many years, and damn this all for reminding her of just who she had been then. Just how broken she’d been, and how he’d helped her put herself back together and then vanished from her life like sunlight on the sea. “That’s all— just— you’ve missed this.”

“Irina.”

Jasper’s tone was mild and soothing, and if she’d still been eighteen years old and trying to find a new way to kill herself it would have calmed her, pulled her back down the edge she was leaning over with every intent of leaping. But she wasn’t that girl now — she was a whole person, she’d had time to grow and learn and bloom within herself, and the knot of emotions in her chest couldn’t be eased just by the tender way he still said her name.

Instead, it tugged tight and poured over with the snap and crackle of flames. “Seven fucking years, Jasper, and that’s all you have to say? I fell apart when I left, and it’s only thanks to my mother and my friends that I’m here right now. I— I tried to write to you, but nobody could deliver the letters.” Her voice cracked with emotion, and he took a step towards her but paused as though restraining himself, expression distinctly tight. “Seven years without even so much as a word, nothing to reassure me that any of it had even been real, and all you can say now that we’re standing in front of each other is that you’ve missed it?”

Something in her chest crumbled, a wall she didn’t realize she’d built up to protect all of these still-vulnerable feelings, and a traitorous tear rolled down her cheek. Immediately, there were arms around her shoulders, fingers burning their shape into the muscle of her back and carding through her hair, and she buried her face in the fabric of his jacket. He even smelled the same, and she wasn’t sure whether she was relieved or a little disturbed that she still remembered that sort of detail.

“Jasper, I started to think it had just been a lovely dream that I made up for myself. Something to make me feel less lonely, less dirtied.” Her voice broke again, and she pressed her cheek against his chest so the steady beat of his heart was just under her ear. “I was scared that one day I might forget the sound of your voice.”

He hummed gently, the sound low and mellow and sending vibrations through his chest. “I had wished to write. There were… there are a number of letters, on my desk, that I was never able to send. I wish it were another way, but… you know how it is here, Irina.”

“… Yeah.” She knew.

Irina pulled back, drying her eyes briskly with one hand, and Jasper’s fingers stopped running through her hair in favor of cupping her cheek. His eyes, now glowing a pale violet in the moonlight, were concerned. “There are still many here who oppose this— us. They’ve eased over time, but in the years after your Summit… it would have been too dangerous, for both of us.”

She leaned into his touch, silently reveling in the feeling of warmth against her cheekbone and the side of her brow. “And now, Jasper? Is it still too much to risk?”

“Now…” A conflicted look crossed his face. “Letters may be safe now, though only… only occasionally. Anything further than that… here on this Isle, we are often slow to change our ways.” His voice was soft as he spoke, and Irina had to fight not to be completely enthralled. “Our memory is long, and most of my people still remember what happened the last time one of us fell in love with a woman from one of the kingdoms.”

Now, that just didn’t seem fair to Irina. She covered his fingers with her own and sighed heavily. “But I’m not Katyia, and you’re not your ancestor.”

“And yet you cannot argue the parallels.”

“I know.” Somehow, she managed to pull her lips into a smile, and saw him resignedly do the same. It was amazing how that simple change to his expression caused his entire face to soften and grow warm, carefully controlled emotion glowing from behind his proper butler mask, and to Irina in that moment there was nothing more beautiful. She leaned up, pushing onto her toes and whispering against his lips in the bare seconds before they connected. His arms wrapped around her once more, one hand at her waist and the other carefully bracing the back of her head, and she draped her arms around his neck and tangled her fingers in his hair.

“As long as I know you’re still here, I can wait.”

So I may have gotten a little too invested in this… while I should have been doing homework… oh well >_

I imagine this taking place in the same semi-alternate universe as my day 2 sacrifice piece, but four years later.

Thanks for asking, quilleth!

Crossposted to AO3!