#but then proceeded to celebrate all these changes to her character

[shinneth]

I really shouldn't be so afraid to post this, but this one post has bothered me enough to the point where I just had to rant about it. I won't be surprised if this post results in a lot of followers dumping my ass. There's another controversial rant post I'm gonna make soon, so I guess this is a good enough warm-up.

It does take a lot of mental gymnastics to make "Rules for thee, not for me" sound justifiable.

Two wrongs don't make a right.

Also, I don't think that equity is working out very well right now with the race-bent Snow White.

Side-note: Snow White's fucking name comes from the in-story explanation: "skin as white as snow". But that's not something we should respect right!

Just imagine the number of hopeful girls who would've been honored to have been chosen for the role of Disney's first-ever princess and would have shown so much more respect for the role and the story than this. I'd hope the social brownie points were worth it, but most people are actually seeing this lady for what she truly is.

Hell, the bigger problem nowadays is how most Disney Princesses are being given the same feminist story beats, being strong independent women who don't need no man and are also total girl bosses. Sure, just gut out the story in the name of "progression". And slowly make the Disney Princesses a "progressive" hive mind.

Also, there's the whole Nani controversy that really shows how skewed the priorities are of everyone who advocates for blackwashing established white characters.

Nani being dark-skinned isn't crucial to the story, though. Her actress is still a native Hawaiian, which is objectively the more important representative aspect of casting in a movie set in Hawaii with Hawaiian culture being heavily featured.

Look, personally I'd advocate for casting people who actually look like the characters they're portraying if these live-action remakes must be a thing.

But clearly the Hollywood execs don't agree. So this casting doesn't bother me. If anything, I find it hilarious - especially after seeing everyone throw a hissy fit over this. It showcases their hypocrisy, as these are the same people who were all "CHANGING ARIEL'S SKIN COLOR DOESN'T MATTER YOU BIGOTS". On top of that, these people are actually wishing harm on this actress, solely over her skin color.

Let me guess, though. It isn't really racism if colored people oppress and threaten and harm white people, right? By this logic, it's just a matter of ~equity~ that fair-skinned folk are subjected to the same prejudice. For fuck's sake.

Nah, let's just normalize the concept that no one can relate to a character unless said character looks just like them. Let's encourage kids to embrace narcissism and refuse to find commonalities in characters that don't physically resemble them in any way.

Because apparently it doesn't matter that I can't see myself and my mother in Tiana, even though her driven, workaholic underdog story resonates with us. But because we're not black, we're not allowed to feel a kinship. It's inconceivable for a little girl to feel that she, for what she is on the inside, can relate to a Disney Princess that she shares no physical traits with.

Maybe I'm just crazy for believing we should focus more on who we are than what we are. Maybe I'm a monster for discouraging indulgence in narcissistic behavior. Am I a bigot for rolling my eyes every time I hear a cry for "MUH REPRESENTATION"?

I like to think I'm not. But society is so heavily fucked in so many ways these days. So much that I'm actually afraid to post this publicly.

But I shouldn't be afraid to speak my mind when I see bullshit being glorified. So I'm gonna give my piece, come what may.

[mr-ribbit]

something fascinating to me about egg discourse is how often tme people Also joke about or question their friends potential to be trans, and it's literally never talked about like this.

my cis and tme nb friends routinely joke about celebrities or characters that have big "nonbinary energy" or who otherwise exhibit behavior we would associate with ourselves. i have tme friends and acquaintances who have approached me or my wife and straightforwardly said "something seems trans about you, have I asked for your pronouns recently?"

similar friends have even talked about other still-cis friends in our circle this way, or joked about "when are you going to transition like the rest of us?" or "yeah cis people are a minority in this group, just give it time" or "no wonder you have queer friends with how comfortable with being gnc you are" or etc etc examples like that

even the actual examples of people in my life that I can think of as being the most "invasive" or presumptive about gender have been tme people:

it was my cishet friends who outed me and my wife as trans to everyone at their wedding, including their boomer parents and hundreds of strangers, and called it "the most queer wedding party ever"

it was my tme nb friend who kept saying they could "always tell" her transfem cousin was trans before she came out, and then proceeded to randomly give us extremely personal details about her bottom surgery

it was my transmasc friend who refused to call me and my wife anything other than "little enby beans" after we met and introduced us with our full genders+sexuality labels to every single person one by one at a party

it was my transmasc nb friend who kept insisting my wife could "still be nonbinary" when she was first considering identifying as a trans woman instead, and it was THAT idea that actually slowed her down from making changes to her life that she wanted

it was my cis friends who approached me arm and arm and cornered my outside of a bathroom at a party right after I took a piss to suddenly ask me what my pronouns were because they "heard something" at the party

like, transfems deserve robust support against this trash so a lot of our defensive discourse has ofc been about how it IS okay for transfems to talk about eggs and be jokey about it and non-invasively approach others about being trans

but i swear to god none of these weird people have even stopped to make their discourse ABOUT anyone BUT transfems. it's so clearly targeted!!

no one has EVER approached *me* as a tme nb person and suggested i was pressuring gnc people with my egg jokes. never. nothing even remotely similar. i joke about other people being trans all the time and no one has ever treated me the way you all are treating transfems over this issue.

important note: my examples are all things I recall as being invasive and awkward, and I'm sharing them to make a point about how often rude behavior comes from the same tme people pointing fingers over this. but I still don't think any of them are worth the crucifixion people are treating transfem egg discourse with.

even when my friends were weird to me in the above examples, my reaction was either to confront them about it as friends who I trust to be able to communicate with, or to cut those individuals off after they proved not worth a relationship in the long run. at no time did I desire to make a call-out post or spread rumors about them or publicly declare all of their gender as a screeching menace to society.

my point here is that even when I do think about moments where others crossed a line, acting like this is a "issue trans women have" is blatantly transmisogynistic garbage that only exists to serve the woman-hating machine at the heart of our society. fucking cut it out

[zikariogirl]

‘ 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐥 ’ — 𝐣𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐚𝐧-𝐬𝐞𝐨𝐤

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐍𝐄, 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐰𝐨, ⇨

❥ 𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐠: ‘𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐥’ 𝐛𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐢 𝐚𝐛𝐝𝐮𝐥

summary ┆ working at wusang was a dream come true for you. you had great friendships there and even began to develop feelings for a certain intern. but things started to change — big reveals left you shocked, and instead of running away you felt yourself become more captivated by him. . . and he seems to notice you as well. nothing in this world really matters to jang han-seok, but you? he will burn the whole world for you.

key: bold = english

warnings ┆ not really a warning but a bit ooc han-seok only cause he’ll be a simp for you… but i’m still writing his character as accurate as i can!

Your feet were killing you from all the running you’ve been doing today. It’s been a hectic day at the law firm and it seems like everyone has it out for you since you simply could not catch a break. From having to file paper work, make phone calls, even grabbing coffee for some people; it was a lot.

You were out of breath and leaning against a wall when someone ran up behind you to spook you.

“Boo!”

You screamed and slapped whoever it was that scared you, your eyes widening when you saw Joon-woo rubbing his cheek.

“Oh my god I’m so sorry!”

“That was very funny,” Cha-young laughed and wrapped her arm around your shoulder.

“Wow you hit hard,” Joon-woo pouted down at you.

“Don’t scare me like that,” you playfully slapped his arm, earning a groan from him in return.

“Yeah well he had it coming,” Cha-young rolled her eyes before giving you a hug. “By the way, we won!”

You hugged her back just as tightly, a smile forming on your lips. “Really? I’m so proud of you!”

You could say the two of you were rather close, almost like sisters. Other than Joon-woo — who she can barely tolerate — you were the only person in the law firm that she genuinely liked. You both grew incredibly close and are practically inseparable. She was your favorite person in the world until Joon-woo started to work at Wusang, and it’s been a battle for your attention ever since.

You and Cha-young both held hands and began to jump around in circles while you squealed before Joon-woo wrapped his arms around you two and jumped in.

“Hey hey,” Cha-young shoved him away. “This is our girl moment.”

“Aren’t I considered one of the girls?” He grinned while pressing his index finger against his cheek.

Cha-young looked at him with disgust. “No you moron.”

“You’re so mean to him,” you rolled your eyes and grabbed his hands. “You will always be one of the girls.”

He smiled at you but had to quickly excuse himself when he felt his phone ringing. “I will see you two later. Bye besties.”

He proceeded to twirl away like a ballerina, and while you looked at him with admiration, Cha-young was definitely unamused.

“You like that?”

“He’s so cute.”

The three of you decided to celebrate after work and although you insisted that drinks would be on you, Cha-young refused to let you pay at all. You sometimes get a little too carried away when it comes down to drinking, seeing as how you already drank about four bottles of soju and was feeling tipsy already.

“I love you twooo,” you slurred as you grabbed both of their hands.

“______ you’re drunk,” Joon-woo laughed and you quickly hushed him.

“Not yet. I’m just tipsy.”

“That’s what they all say,” Cha-young shook her head with a smile before looking down at her phone. “Anyways I have to go. This is for the soju.” She placed a couple of bills in your hand but quickly grabbed them and handed it over to Joon-woo. “I don’t trust her with it.”

“I got it boss,” Joon-woo gave her a thumbs up. “Bye!”

“Goodbye my love!” You waved at Cha-young and blew her a kiss.

“Why don’t you ever call me that?” Joon-woo pouted.

You weren’t sure if he was joking or being serious, but considering your friendship, he was probably kidding around with you. It sort of hurt, knowing he probably doesn’t feel the same way, but you still cherished every little comment and touch you shared with Joon-woo. You felt yourself lean against his shoulder as you softly caressed his arm.

“Okay my love, I’m sorry.”

Your heart began to beat erratically inside your chest and you felt him wrap his arms around you. Maybe the alcohol was making him act weird as well, but when he asked if you wanted to go for a drive, you almost slapped him again. Even though you weren’t one-hundred percent sober, you were very much aware that drunk driving was not only against the law but super careless. Joon-woo promised you that he wasn’t tipsy or under the influence, and he shook his two empty bottles of soju in front of your face to prove his point — he also drank a good amount of water too.

In the end, you agreed to go on a drive through the city with him, having the windows rolled down while the wind fanned your faces and you both sang your hearts out. You sang to Perfect Man, Careless Whisper, some BTS songs, hell you even did some throwbacks and sang to the Backstreet Boys.

The night was amazing. It felt like a dream.

You were currently blasting ‘Hopelessly Devoted To You’ while you stuck your head out the window and let the wind blow your hair back, your eyes closed as you held your right arm out.

“But now, there’s no where to hide! Since you pushed my love aside! I’m outta my head, hopelessly devoted to you!”

You were too busy singing to even notice Joon-woo smile in your direction. You looked ethereal to him. The way your beautiful hair is flowing in the wind, how your voice sounds angelic when you sing, the way your smile lights up the night sky. He was incredibly whipped — if you could put it that way. He has never met anyone be so…perfect. He doesn’t know what it is about you, but he feels drawn to you, like you were meant to keep him grounded. The one pure thing in this world that he genuinely deserves.

He wants you to be his. He wants that so bad.

But for now, he has to wait. There’s no rush in making you his yet. Joon-woo wants to make sure he does this correctly because usually, he makes sure he gets what he wants when he needs it. But you’re delicate, you’re pure, you’re someone that managed to crawl inside his cold heart and slowly thaw it out. He doesn’t want to risk losing you or scaring you away, so in the mean time, he will cherish whatever friendship it is that you two share.

—

“He said what?!”

You and Cha-young were in her office as you spoke about your amazing night with Joon-woo. After he dropped you off at your place, you could’ve sworn it was going to lead to a kiss. The way he looked at you, with so much intensity, it made you feel weak in your knees. You wanted that kiss so bad but all he did was open the door for you, guide you inside, give you a glass of water, and give you a goodbye hug.

“At first when you left he pouted and asked why I never call him ‘my love’. Then I lean into him, apologize while calling him that, and he wrapped his arm around me. Cha-young I almost fainted.”

“Okay, then what?”

“We went on a drive and I made sure he wasn’t tipsy or drunk, which he wasn’t. It literally felt like something straight out of a kdrama. I just,” you let out a dreamy sigh and dropped yourself onto the ground, “it was perfect.”

“I mean this isn’t the first time you’ve hung out with just him right?”

“No, but it was definitely… different.”

“Ah that Joon-woo,” Cha-young frowned while pursing her lips. “Such a moron to not realize what a catch he has in front of him.”

“Maybe he likes you,” you suggested with a pout but wasn’t being serious about it.

“Me? Ha! Never in a million years! I terrorize him enough and even if he did, he’s not my type. I can beat him up for you.”

“You already do with your words.”

“I can also do it physically.”

“But then you’ll ruin his perfect face–”

“Hello my besties!”

Your eyes widened at his sudden arrival, and he walked around the table only to stop when he noticed you on the floor.

“Oh? What are you doing down there?”

“Dying.”

“Ah,” he nodded his head.

Cha-young stomped towards Joon-woo and slapped him on his shoulder. “Do you knock you moron?”

He awkwardly laughed. “So sorry but the boss man called. Mr. Han said that Babel Pharmaceutical’s Drug Development Division called because one of their researchers that was in quarantine went missing.”

“What?!”

You slowly sat up. “This is top secret information. I must go.”

“No, you’re coming with us.”

“Huh?” Both you and Joon-woo said at the same time. Cha-young seemed pissed and didn’t even acknowledge you both as she grabbed her bag and marched out the office, like a lion ready to mangle its prey. You and Joon-woo looked at each other with confusion before you both hurried out of the office and tailed behind the angry lawyer.

The three of you reached your destination in no time and you stood behind Cha-young — who was sitting down and was eerily quiet. Joon-woo on the other hand? He was getting after the two pharmacists in front you.

“It’s been two days. Why didn’t you tell us sooner? Look at her,” he gestured at Cha-young. “She’s so upset!”

“I’m sorry,” one of the pharmacists apologized.

“My god… seriously,” Joon-woo hissed out.

Seeing him angry…was kinda hot.

Cha-young finally broke her silence as she glared at the two men. “I told you to keep a close eye on all the newly employed researchers. I didn’t want them to complain, so I got them to stay at the chairman’s villa!” She stood up and paused for a second before continuing. “If that researcher talks nonsense, we’ll lose this suit.”

“And that new drug, it’ll be the end of it as well!” Joon-woo stepped in.

“I’m truly sorry,” one of them apologized… again before the two bowed.

This was truly frustrating to watch.

“Do the higher ups know?” You involuntarily spoke without realizing it, making everyone look at you. You placed a fist over your mouth and slowly turned away.

“No ma’am. They don’t.”

“Then let’s keep it that way. Don’t you dare tell them,” Cha-young glared at them.

“Never!” Joon-woo pointed a finger.

After the two pharmacists agreed and you three took your leave, you walked out of the building to sort of decompress the conversation. Cha-young was still irritated — rightfully so. Joon-woo was saying things that irritated her more. And you? Well, you were there for support. Things took a turn when Cha-young spotted the Chairman of Babel, Jang Han-seo, and practically ran to him. The whole encounter was short since he seemed to be in a hurry and it almost felt like he brushed her off in the end, which made your jaw drop.

“I get that he’s a chairman, but how can he talk down on us on our first encounter?” You frowned and crossed your arms.

“And he’s young too,” Joon-woo hissed.

“Anyone who’s rich and powerful can do so even if they’re younger than me,” Cha-young spoke with displeasure.

You scoffed. “With that mindset, you might as well have a child actor tell you what to do.”

The three of you stood there for a while before Cha-young excused herself and said her goodbye’s, claiming she had somewhere to go. Both you and Joon-woo watched her leave before he tapped your shoulder with a smile.

“Want some steak? I got paid yesterday.”

“You don’t even have to ask me twice, let’s go!”

And boy was that steak so damn good. Maybe it’s the fact you were starving since you skipped out on breakfast, which was definitely a bad idea on your part. You didn’t even bother eating anything since you woke up with such a grimm taste on your mouth due to the alcohol. All you did was pop a mint into your mouth after you brushed your teeth, got ready, and went to work.

“Wow you’re going to finish before me,” Joon-woo’s jaw dropped. “Did you not eat breakfast?”

“I didn’t have time. After you dropped me off last night I went to bed and felt super woozy and just knocked out. Woke up feeling like crap, plus, I was running late too.”

“You can’t skip out on meals though,” he pouted with a small frown. “You’ll get sick.”

“Aw, you care about my well being?” You cooed.

“Of course I care,” he muttered to himself before taking a bite out of his steak.

You ignored the butterflies in your stomach at his words and you took a sip of your water, trying to fight the blush on your cheeks.

“______ do you like anybody?”

Cue you choking on your water as you lightly spit it out. Joon-woo immediately stood up to help you while you embarrassingly coughed so loud that everyone decided to look at you. You cleaned your face with a napkin while Joon-woo patted your back, and you were quick to hit his stomach, making him flinch.

“Why would you ask me that?”

“Because you and Cha-young were talking about it.”

Holy fuck did he hear us?

“I wasn’t eavesdropping or anything, but I did hear her saying she’ll beat someone up for you and you said no since it’ll ruin his perfect face,” he sighed. “Am I not one of the girls after all?”

“That’s different girl talk though,” you quickly defended yourself.

“So you do like someone?”

“I never said that.”

“But you’re acting suspicious.”

“Okay so what if I do?”

“Do I know him?”

“Maybe.”

“Who is it?”

He was bombarding you with questions and you felt cornered. It didn’t help that he was practically leaning into you while one hand rested on your chair and the other on the table. If he leaned in just a little closer, you could easily move your head up and kiss him. Why is he curious about your love life? Does he like you?

“Why do you wanna know so bad, hm?” You pressed.

“Just looking after you. Cha-young may be fierce but I have the muscle.” He stepped back and punched the air while doing sound effects. “No one will dare hurt you.”

Oh, so he’s just being a good friend. You’re gonna let that disappointment sink in right about now.

“I’m still not telling you.”

“But why?” He whined.

“Do you like anybody?”

“I actually do.”

Your fork clattered onto your plate while you stared up at him. He was smiling and looking up at the ceiling, and he appeared to be daydreaming or something. He sat back down on his chair and you did your best to hold your composure.

“Oh. What’s she like?”

Joon-woo let out a dreamy sigh. “She’s amazing. Hard-working. Has a good sense of humor. She’s perfect to me.”

You wanted to throw up. Your appetite vanished and the delicious steak that sat in front of you didn’t seem appetizing anymore. Your hands felt numb and you could literally feel your heart breaking at his words.

“She sounds nice,” you mumbled while plastering your best fake smile.

“Mhm. I really want to ask her out but I just don’t know how do it. I think she likes someone else though, but that won’t make me give up.”

Maybe you should. Forget her.

“Joon-woo, she’s an idiot for not liking you.”

“You think so?” His eyes brightened. “How should I ask her out then?”

Why the fuck are you the one that has to listen to this conversation? Why couldn’t it of been Cha-young? You could either just walk away and lie about your stomach hurting and leave him here, or you could genuinely help him. You didn’t want to be a bad friend, and you most definitely didn’t want to bail on him just because you felt jealous and was undergoing a heartbreak. You weren’t that type of friend. He deserves everything, especially your support. If he doesn’t like you, then you can’t do anything about it. It is what it is and you have to suck it up.

“Start off by getting her small gifts. Flowers, food, anything she likes. Compliment her when she’s feeling down or when she thinks she doesn’t look great… she’ll eventually start to notice you. Buy her a bouquet of flowers, something really pretty, then pour out your feelings and let her know how much she means to you.”

You wanted to cry. Your eyes were brimming with tears and you were just a second away from a breakdown.

“Excuse me I have to pee.”

You shot out of your seat and ran to the bathroom, and the moment you stepped inside, you broke. You have never felt this type of heartbreak before, not even with your previous partners. Joon-woo isn’t even your boyfriend, and yet, he’s the one who broke you more. You were a crying mess while you pulled out your phone and called Cha-young. The moment she heard your sobs, she went crazy. You told her what happened but made her promise to not kill Joon-woo after this, and that took a lot of convincing.

“Can you just… p-please call him and make up an excuse. I-I don’t think I can be here right now.”

“Ah! This is so frustrating! I can’t just hit him at all?”

“No.”

She mumbled a few curse words before replying. “Fine. Send me the address and I’ll be on my way. I’ll think of something.”

“Thank you.”

You hung up and gave yourself a bit more time before stepping out. You washed your face and applied a bit of make up to hide the fact that you were just crying. When you stepped back outside and began to walk towards your table, you noticed Joon-woo was on the phone.

“But we’re having steak,” he replied and shot you a wave when he saw you. “Cha-young please,” he whined before letting out a huff. “Fine.”

“What happened?”

“Cha-young called saying she needed you for some errands. She said you weren’t answering her calls.”

“Really?” You acted clueless and pulled out your phone, staring at your empty lock screen. “Oh wow, I didn’t even notice.”

“Yeah,” he huffed. “She’s on her way to pick you up.”

“Did she say where we were going?”

“Nope.”

You nodded your head and turned your attention back towards your steak, gently stabbing it with your fork. Joon-woo squinted his eyes when he noticed your change in demeanor.

“Hey, you okay?”

Fuck.

But right on cue, your phone began to ring and you quickly answered it. Relief hit you when you heard Cha-young say she was outside and you shot Joon-woo a sad smile.

“Sorry, I have to go. Be safe heading back home and text me when you get there!” You scurried out of your seat and paused for a second. “Good luck with that girl.”

Then you left, leaving a completely dumbfounded and upset Joon-woo behind.

—

The next few weeks definitely felt different and you tried to put as much distance between you and Joon-woo as possible. He seemed to pick up on it and would try to follow you around, asking if something is going on. You would put your best poker face and tell him that everything was okay and you were just busy with work. He didn’t seem to buy your excuse but you didn’t care anymore. You wanted to get over whatever feelings you had for him.

Then, the tragic news hit of Cha-young’s father passing away, and she was a mess. You knew they never got along but you weren’t blind to the fact that deep down she cared for him. He was her father after all. Even though Joon-woo was there for her, you were the one who slept over at her place — well her dad’s house — to cheer her up and offer her a shoulder to cry on. You were devastated when she left Wusang though, but nonetheless, you’ll still be able to see her outside of work.

When you received a call from her that she was apparently detained, you grabbed Joon-woo and ran towards the police station to bail her out.

But instead, a rather handsome guy wearing a suit waltzed in, providing concrete proof and demanding for her to be released. He definitely held some power to him and you wondered if he was her new partner since she did take over her father’s law firm. The moment you all left, she immediately walked towards his direction as he spoke on the phone.

“He’s smart,” spoke Joon-woo.

You nodded in agreement. “He’s also hot, but wow do they look good together.”

“Hot?” Joon-woo’s voice sounded a bit rough, but he cleared his throat and fixed his collar. “I mean, maybe they’re dating.”

You squinted your eyes. “No… she would’ve told me about it. I think he’s that lawyer she’s been telling me about.”

“Vincenzo Cassano?”

“Mhm,” you nodded your head and shoved your hands in your pockets while walking over to them, Joon-woo following behind.

“Lawyer Vincenzo Cassano?” Joon-woo curiously asked.

The man turned around with an impressed look. “You’re the first Korean to pronounce my name correctly.”

Joon-woo smiled at the compliment. “I used to be her assistant back in Wusang. I’m Jang Joon-woo.”

“And I’m _____ _____, you’ll probably hear more about me.”

Vincenzo nodded his head but squinted his eyes at Joon-woo. “How do you know me?”

“Ah, because I did a background check on you for Cha-young.”

Cue him doubling over after Cha-young kicked his leg. You choked back a laugh and shook your head when everyone’s eyes landed on you.

“Sooo, are you two working close?” You asked with a smile.

Vincenzo just looked at you with a bored expression before walking off. “No.”

Your jaw dropped at his rudeness, and Cha-young apologized on his behalf before saying goodbye to you and chasing after the dickhead.

“What an asshole,” you muttered. “He’s not boyfriend material.”

“Well I think him and Cha-young are perfect for each other. They’re both cranky, lawyers, and–”

You didn’t even bother listening to what Joon-woo was saying as you walked away, waving him over to follow since you both had to head back to work.

“Wait.” Even though he was limping, he managed to catch up to you. You felt him grab your wrist and twirl you around to face him. “What’s going on with you?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve been… different lately. Ever since that day I took you out for steak. Did something happen?”

“No,” you feigned innocence.

His expression grew serious when he let out a deep sigh. “I know you were crying in the bathroom.”

“How? You spied on me?”

He shook his head. “No but the lady next to us was heading to the bathroom too… until she heard you crying. She thought you were my girlfriend and told me, and she mentioned you speaking to someone on the phone.”

Why the fuck are people so nosy?

“Did you call Cha-young to pick you up?” He was grabbing your shoulders at this point and you refused to make eye contact with him. “Talk to me.”

“There’s nothing to talk about Joon-woo,” your voice was barely above a whisper.

“______,” he bent down so he could be at eye level with you. “Why won’t you talk to me. Did I do something?”

He looked defeated and it made you feel guilty. Why are you making his life hell when he doesn’t deserve it? It’s not his fault he doesn’t feel the same for you. You preached about being a good friend to him, yet, you’ve been giving him the cold shoulder ever since your conversation about his crush.

You swallowed back the lump on your throat and smiled up at him. “No no, it’s not you. I’m sorry I’ve been a bitch lately–”

“You’re not a bitch.”

“Shh,” you placed your finger on his lips. “Let me finish. I was going through some stuff and my boy trouble didn’t help. Then when you started to talk about the girl you liked and how you probably made more progress with her, I just felt like poop because the guy I like and I have made zero progress. I was just sulking and the whole thing with Cha-young’s dad also happened. I took it out on you and I’m sorry Joon-woo.”

He didn’t say anything as he processed your apology, so instead you hugged him, not even caring if he returned it, but the moment you felt him wrap his arms around you, you felt happy. “Can my bestie forgive me? I’ll treat you to some ice cream.”

His chest rumbled as he laughed. “Let’s get some ice cream.”

And for the first time in a while, you felt happy.

—

You were once again running around the law firm, attending to errands and requests by the lawyers around you. You have never been bossed around so much in your life before and it was definitely frustrating. Some of these lawyers had ridiculous requests but you knew better than to question them. You were exhausted, probably since you didn’t get a good nights sleep. As you were rounding the corner your eyes fell on a dancing Joon-woo, and it took everything in you to not laugh at his dorkiness.

“Joon-woo?”

He turned around at the sound of your voice, a huge smile forming on his lips. “_______!” He practically ran towards you and gave you zero time to react as he picked you up and spun you around.

“Oh my god! What are you–”

“Guess what?” He looked up at you, completely forgetting how he was holding you.

“What?”

“You’re looking at Lawyer Jang Joon-woo.”

Your eyes widened in surprise and your mouth fell open before you wrapped your arms around his neck. “Oh my god! Really? Congratulations Joon-woo!”

“Thank you!” He smiled as he continued to spin you around. You were really hoping he wouldn’t be able to feel your heart beating like crazy against your chest. He was holding you so close and it almost felt like it was just you two existing in that mere moment.

Until it got ruined.

“What are you two doing?”

You both froze and turned towards the sound of the voice. Standing a couple of feet away was Lawyer Choi and she was looking at you two with confusion. You never interacted with her much, but according to Cha-young’s description of her, she is a pain in the ass. Neither you or Joon-woo dared to move, and he was still holding you up while Ms. Choi appeared to be growing impatient.

“Are you two deaf?”

“N-No,” you stuttered out while wiggling in Joon-woo’s arms. He quickly set you down as he fixed his suit, flashing her a small awkward smile. “We were just celebrating his promotion.”

“What kind of celebration was that? It looked like he just proposed to you and you said yes.”

You immediately turned red at her words, but Joon-woo was quick to step in. “We just got a little too excited.”

“Hm. Don’t do it again.”

That was the last thing she said before walking off. It felt like you could finally breathe and that’s exactly what you did as you let out the biggest exhale of your life. You leaned back against the wall and fanned your face, but Joon-woo stared at you as if you grew two heads.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’ve never been in trouble before,” you whispered. “She’s one of the top dogs.”

“Top dogs?”

“Yes, top dogs,” you repeated. “She’s scary.”

Joon-woo chuckled and ruffled your hair. “You’ll be fine. You want to grab some dinner with me?”

You wanted to say yes so bad, but your evening was swamped with work. “I can’t. I’m working late today.”

He shot you a pout. “That’s not fair.”

“I know,” you groaned and slammed your head against the wall. You already hated the idea of working so late today, but knowing that you’re going to miss out on having dinner with Joon-woo, it makes the situation worse for you. But it still makes you wonder why he’s asking you to eat with him? Didn’t he have a crush on someone? Wouldn’t he ask her instead? You shook those thoughts away, not wanting to stress yourself over it.

All you could was say goodbye to Joon-woo and smile as he shot you an army salute before walking off. Maybe he’ll ask his crush since you declined his offer. Curse your overthinking brain because now you’re definitely left in a bad mood.

—

You don’t know how it happened but somehow Joon-woo was able to have you as his personal assistant, so you began to follow him everywhere to provide some assistance whenever he needed it. You were glad to finally have a break from your previous position, but that also means you’re spending more time with Joon-woo now. You just don’t know if that’s a bad thing or a good thing. Being with him almost every day of the week made it hard for you to get rid of your feelings, especially when he’s been acting rather close to you.

Joon-woo has been sending mixed signals and you’re not even sure if this girl he spoke about is even in the picture anymore. You did lean towards the idea of him possibly liking you, but you didn’t want to get your hopes up.

Your relationship with Cha-young has also been hard to manage ever since she begged you to leave Wusang and work for her law firm. She went on a whole rant how Wusang is covering up for Babel’s illegal schemes and you shouldn’t support them or get caught up in their mess. She even said you could try to convince Joon-woo to join her law firm as well — even though she was half against it. He was quick to turn down her proposal, which left you in the middle. You told her you’ll think about it and get back to her as soon as possible.

But for now, your mind was focused on assisting and following Joon-woo — along with Mr. Han and Ms. Choi.

Your first time in court was… unexpecting. First Cha-young “fainted”, then the power went out, and lastly, giant hornets were flying around the courtroom and stung the judge. His face was left so swollen he couldn’t even talk, so the trial was postponed until the following week.

“This is better than a kdrama,” you whispered to Mr. Han who sat next to you.

He looked around, trying to make sure no one would hear him as he leaned in and nodded his head. “I agree.”

But his demeanor completely changed on the ride back to Wusang.

“Gosh. In my twenty-five years as a lawyer, I’ve never experienced such chaos in court before,” he chuckled before kicking Joon-woo’s seat. “It’s my first time! Okay?”

“That hurts, boss,” Joon-woo hissed while he winced from pain.

“Does it hurt?”

“Yes.”

“Well, suck it up! Suck it up!” Mr. Han yelled while repeatedly kicking and punching the seat again.

“Sir aren’t you being too rough?” You tapped his arm to grab his attention.

“Too rough? I don’t think so,” he waved you off.

“On top of that, my first trial as a lawyer was a flop,” Ms. Choi stated, unamused.

And yet experiencing my first trial was hilarious. You thought.

“God those dirty bastards. Of all things, how could they think of bringing in those hornets? What should we do?” Mr. Han sarcastically laughed.

“It was so funny,” you blurted out, causing everyone — but the driver — to face you. Your heart hammered in your chest while your eyes widened, and you slowly sunk in your seat as best as you could. “I didn’t mean to say that.”

“You didn’t mean to… oh god,” Mr. Han flicked your forehead which made you wince. “Should we just leave you stranded here?”

“No, sorry sir.”

“Ah! It’s not like you’re of any use anyways,” he shoved your shoulder, making you bump into Ms. Choi. “Gosh this is frustrating. You think it’s funny?!”

“Sir, that’s no way to treat a lady.”

The sudden change in tone on Joon-woo’s voice caught you by surprise. It was low and if you didn’t know any better, it sounded like he was warning Mr. Han. You could see his eyes staring into the backseat from the rear view mirror, and he was glaring at his boss.

“You shut up. Gosh you’re so annoying,” he kicked Joon-woo’s seat once again but this time, he showed no reaction. He was stiff and continued to glare at Mr. Han, and that was something you will never forget.

The car eventually arrived back at Wusang and you followed Joon-woo up to his office. He was eerily quiet. Not cracking any jokes or trying to converse with you about the trial. The moment you two stepped into his office and he closed the door, he turned to face you.

“Are you okay?”

You blinked at him. “Huh?”

He walked up to you to touch the same spot where Mr. Han flicked you. It felt a little warm to the touch and you noticed him clenching his fists. Was he… was he actually mad on your behalf? You quickly grabbed his hand and pushed it away from your skin.

“Oh that, don’t worry I’m okay. It doesn’t hurt.”

“What he said to you…” he shook his head and turned his body, causing you to flinch when he slammed his palms against the wall.

“Joon-woo… are you okay?” You walked up to him and placed your hand on his back. “He was kicking your seat as well. I know you said it hurt.”

“I don’t care what he does to me, I can tolerate it. But you? I don’t want him doing that shit to you. I don’t want him talking down on you as if you don’t mean anything.”

“Well in the eyes of Wusang, I really don’t.”

“But you mean something to me.”

His words left you speechless. Joon-woo turned to face you while his eyes held some form of emotion you couldn’t decipher. He was always care free and even during the times when he showed anger, he still seemed… normal. But the Joon-woo standing in front of you right now was cold and full of hostility — something you’ve never seen before. His hand hesitated to reach up and touch you, and he appeared to be having an internal battle with himself.

“I have to make a phone call. You want to grab something to eat after?”

“Y-Yeah, sure.” You were honestly too shocked to speak and your own stutter surprised you as well. Joon-woo shot you one of his sweet signature smiles before walking out of his office.

What the hell was that?

—

“And then, his demeanor completely changed. I’m talking like Billy showing himself as The Scream and saying his famous quote ‘we all go a little mad sometime’,” you ranted while mimicking the movie quote.

“You’re comparing Joon-woo to Billy from that Scream movie?” Cha-young gave you an incredulous look.

“Okay it’s not my best analogy but the personality change was there! He got so mad. I have never seen him act like that.”

Ever since that specific encounter with Joon-woo, you had to tell Cha-young about it. Sure you could’ve called or texted but talking about it in person is ten times better, plus you always prefer to ‘gossip’ face to face. You made sure to include every detail that happened, including the ones of your interactions after his comment. Joon-woo was stuck to your hip since then and he even asked if he could call you ‘babydoll’. The pet name caught you off guard and you did not hesitate to ask why, his simple answer was that he thought it was cute and fitting.

You nearly exploded when he said that.

Cha-young rubbed her temples as she appeared to be soothing herself. “______ I didn’t think you were this clueless.”

“Huh?”

“He likes you.”

Rewind and pause. “No way.”

“Yes way,” Mr. Nam answered from behind his computer. “Sounds like he has the hots for you.”

“You were listening to our conversation the whole time?” You asked with a puzzled look.

“Against our own will,” Vincenzo groaned. “Can you talk about this some other time?”

“Why? You guys have important stuff to do?”

“We do. We’re trying to find out who the real chairman of Babel is,” Mr. Nam answered for Vincenzo but was immediately silenced the moment the Korean-Italian lawyer glared at him. “I-I mean… so Joon-woo is Scream?”

You frowned at his words and faced Cha-young. “Wait what? Is Chairman Jang not the real chairman after all?”

Before Cha-young could answer, you felt your chair being dragged away from the table, the sound of its feet scraping against the floor was hell for your ears. Vincenzo pulled you back to the entrance before walking towards Cha-young.

“Hey!” You stood up and marched over to him.

“We can’t trust her,” he spoke with seriousness. “She works for Wusang.”

“As an assistant,” you clarified and bent your head down so you could face him. “Not really an important job.”

“Then why don’t you quit and work here?”

“Uh, because I’m still debating on it.”

“She’s trying to marry her future husband,” Cha-young clarified with a roll of her eyes.

“Love like this only comes once in a lifetime,” you whined and slammed your forehead on the table. “I’m a mess.”

“I agree,” Vincenzo muttered to himself but you heard him loud and clear. You shot up and pushed your body towards him as you began to shove him into a corner, your eyes shooting daggers his way.

“What did you say?” You quirked up an eyebrow and felt victorious when he clearly seemed to be uncomfortable at your proximity. You let out a huff of victory and sat down next to Cha-young but your relaxation was short lived when you felt your phone ringing in your pocket, a smile plastering on your face when you saw Joon-woo’s name pop up.

“Hello?”

“Is it your boyfriend?” Vincenzo’s voice caught you off guard as he bent his head down towards your ear, speaking very close to the microphone. The panic settled in as you stood up and began to hit him, Mr. Nam running to stop you.

“Uh, hello?” Joon-woo sounded incredibly confused.

“Hi!”

“Who was that?”

“Oh just Vincenzo being his goofy self. You know how he always wanted to be a comedian,” you stuck your tongue out in his direction when he pointed a finger at you.

“Vincenzo? You’re with him?”

“Not by choice. I came over to gossip with Cha-young. You know, girl talk.”

“Ah,” he chuckled and cleared his throat. “Well I’m going to pick you up. We’re supposed to meet up with Chairman Jang.”

At the mention of him, you thought back to your earlier conversation with the Jipuragi group, since they believed he was not the real chairman. Thanks to Vincenzo they couldn’t go into too much detail about it — much to your disappointment since you’re naturally a very curious person.

“Alright I’ll be waiting,” you smiled and hung up the phone while letting out a sigh. You did a double take when you noticed three pairs of eyes looking at you, and your face became red in embarrassment. “Don’t say a word!”

—

“I’m so busy as it is. Why does he want me to brief him all of a sudden? Why does he need me?” Mr. Han was on another one of his rants during the drive, and he kept looking at you and Ms. Choi when he spoke. “All the Babel companies must know how things are going.”

He may be your boss but he can sure be annoying at times.

“Joon-woo you better do a proper job. Don’t you stutter.”

“Sorry? Right, okay okay.”

You wanted to laugh at his obliviousness. He’s so adorable. He looks so innocent whenever he puts on his smile and you absolutely love it. When Mr. Han started to get after him and Joon-woo seemed to find it funny, you quietly let out a small laugh before pulling out your phone.

You: stop aggravating him. i’m suffering back here

Joon-woo ♡: LOL. I feel sorry for you

“Who are you texting?” Mr. Han poked his head by your shoulder and you swiftly flipped your phone over as you turned it off.

“No one!”

“You’re texting your boyfriend aren’t you? Ah, this is going to drive me insane,” he scratched his head and pointed a finger at you. “No texting while we’re with the Chairman, got it?”

“Yes, sir.”

The drive was rather quick before you all made it to Babel’s office building. You all were escorted to one of their conference rooms and you took a seat next to Ms. Choi, but you couldn’t stop staring at Chairman Jang without thinking about Vincenzo’s and Cha-young’s speculation. He’s a phony… apparently. But he didn’t look like one to you, if anything, he fits the CEO look perfectly.

You turned your attention to the front and shot Joon-woo a thumbs up, sending him all your luck for his presentation in front of the Chairman.

“Begin. I said, start,” Mr. Han whispered.

“Alright then, I will begin the briefing,” Joon-woo spoke through the microphone before stepping aside, giving you all a good view of the TV. ‘The Secret of Babel’ ascended on the screen and you choked back a laugh when you realized Joon-woo went for a Star Wars theme as the intro.

“I will now reveal the secret of the Babel Group, WOW!”

You looked towards Ms. Choi and Mr. Han who seemed super confused with the direction the briefing was going, but Mr. Han was quick to let out a laugh before turning to face Chairman Jang.

“We came up with a fun briefing,” he awkwardly laughed but was brushed off by the Chairman.

“Chairman Jang Guk-hwan, the founder of Haemun Group, now known as Babel Group, had two sons.”

You felt your body freeze at his words, giving you confirmation that the theory Vincenzo and Cha-young have could be true. Is the other brother the actual Chairman? And if so, who is it? But right now, you were more confused on where Joon-woo’s presentation is actually heading to. You thought this was going to be a quick briefing about Babel, not the Jang family. Your superiors seemed to share the same confusion as you and even the Chairman looked a bit uncomfortable.

Yet, Joon-woo continued with a smile before skipping to the next slide. “He and his wife, Hwang Suk-jin, had their eldest son. As for his second son, he was birthed by Seo Min-hui, a young secretary,” he paused for a second while walking up to the screen. “Instead of focusing on the company, he cheated.”

Your hand shot up to your mouth at his words and you quickly turned to look at everyone else. Mr. Han let out another one of his discomfort laughs before standing up. “Hey, Joon-woo! What are you saying? Joon-woo! Come back here.”

But Chairman Jang tapped the table to grab his attention, ordering him to sit down which threw you off. He’s allowing this presentation? Mr. Han did as he was told but when you looked at Joon-woo from the corner of your eye, you noticed his expression. It was the same expression he wore that one time when you were insulted in the car after the trial.

“First,” he continued on like nothing, “who is his second son? It’s none other than Chairman Jang Han-seo! What a surprise!”

He aimed a laser at him and Chairman Jang opened his arms up with an awkward smile before resorting back to his emotionless face. You were not liking this. The air felt thick and your palms were beginning to sweat.

“Now, who is the eldest son?” Joon-woo began to click through pictures on the screen. “He was always smart and active. He was always the top student.” He began to walk around while appearing to be passionate about his wording. “He didn’t graduate from Stanford Law School as a top student, but he got good grades. On top of that, God has made him perfect and charismatic.”

The way he’s talking about the eldest son… you didn’t like it. It sounded like bragging. Like he was taunting all of you.

“So who is it? Who?”

Your hands began to shake as you held them up to your face. The moment the screen switched to a ‘Who is the true king of Babel?’ and a picture of Joon-woo sitting on a throne with a crown popped up, you nearly fell out of your chair. He walked to the edge of the table and leaned his hands down against it.

“It’s me. Jang Joon-woo.”

You heard Mr. Han stutter something out but you didn’t even care. Your mind is trying to process the information that was just given to you. You really, really hoped this was just a silly prank from Joon-woo, but doing this in front of his superiors? He wouldn’t risk his career for that.

“The real owner of the Babel Group is Jang Joon-woo!” He screamed out before looking at Chairman Jang. “Han-seo, are you ready?”

Then the brother’s proceeded to start singing and chanting with Mr. Han joining them soon after.

“I fooled you all! Babel Group is actually mine!” Joon-woo chanted as he ran towards your side of the table, started to do the worm, and grab your shoulders as he shook you from side to side. Let me go, is what you wanted to say but you didn’t seem to have a voice right now. Mr. Han was the first to apologize as he bowed down to Joon-woo.

“I’m sorry, sir. Please forgive me for my transgressions.” He looked petrified.

“It’s okay. I had fun,” Joon-woo waved him off with a smile.

So was your friendship with him just pretend as well? Something to add to his Joon-woo persona? You remember Cha-young and Mr. Nam telling you that it appeared Joon-woo likes you, but after this situation, you started to wonder if his feelings are even real. Was everything a fucking lie? He wasn’t even looking at you yet, which is giving you the opportunity to shoot a murderous glare towards his direction. How dare he play with your fucking heart like that.

“Sit down,” he gestured for all of you to take a seat, but you remained standing up, which caused everyone to look in your direction. “______?”

You clenched your jaw but refused to move. The sound of someone kicking the table made you flinch, and your eyes landed on an irritated Mr. Han. “Hey, you! Are you deaf? Gosh you never–”

The sound of a hand slamming against the table made everyone flinch, and it quickly shut Mr. Han up. “Mr. Han,” Joon-woo spoke through gritted teeth. “Is that any way to speak to a lady?”

“S-Speak to a lady? Uh, no no no you’re r-right, my apologies ______,” he stuttered out with fear.

“Sit,” Joon-woo smiled up at you.

“Yes, sir,” your voice was dripping with venom as you slowly sat down. You practically tuned out the whole conversation, not paying attention to what they were discussing. Nothing that they spoke about was of any importance to you, and frankly, you could care less about your career at Wusang now. Joon-woo was a two faced liar who played everyone, including you. He made you feel special and you thought everything he did for you was genuine.

The meeting was rather short and it ended quickly before everyone began to get out of their chairs. You didn’t wait for a response as you left the room, that suffocating feeling completely gone now since it felt like you could finally breathe. You wanted out, especially when the guy you like turns out to possibly be a murderous CEO. Come to think of it, Joon-woo is Billy from the Scream since he just revealed himself to all of you.

Yeah, things were definitely not going your way.

[hand-picked-star]

The 13th Anniversary Arshi Fiesta

Moodboard : Historical AU

Whispers of the Heart | Chapter 25 ( final)

DISCLAIMER: The story is set in the early 20th century. While I have made efforts to capture the essence of the era, there may be inaccuracies as this is a work of fantasy. I do not own the characters Arnav and Khushi, and this story is purely fictional with no relation to any real individuals, living or dead. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental.

WARNING: 18+, MATURE CONTENT.

Final Chapter

Three years later.

It was the eve of Diwali, the festival of lights. The Rajput haveli was a vision of grandeur and festivity this evening. The entire estate was adorned with intricate decorations. Strings of twinkling fairy lights draped over every window and doorway and vibrant rangoli patterns were meticulously crafted at the entrance. Rows of gleaming diyas, their soft flickering flames casting a warm, golden glow, lined the pathways and courtyards, creating a serene and enchanting ambience. The air was filled with the scent of freshly made sweets and the sounds of laughter and celebration, as the household came alive with the spirit of joy and togetherness.

Arnav and Khushi had been celebrating their Dewalis with the Rajput family instead of their own Haveli, which they had finally managed to build according to their own taste. It was especially Khushi's touch that could be seen in every corner of the new Raizada state. Though they had a beautiful house of their own, they very much enjoyed spending their Dewalis with the Rajputs. Because, all of their near and dear ones were here and with Mahindar and Manorama's advancing age, they wanted to celebrate the festivals surrounded by all of their children.

"Oh shit."

Arnav hurriedly entered the room and locked the door behind him. Khushi was in the midst of getting ready. was adjusting a delicate gold necklace around her neck. She had styled her dark hair elegantly in loose waves that had gone perfectly with the stunning deep red sari, she had worn. Her eyes sparkled with a hint of concern as she looked up from her reflection.

"What happened?"

"The string of my trousers just snapped. Did you bring a spare?" Arnav replied, noticing how gorgeous she looked.

"Let me see."

As Khushi proceeded to see Arnav's broken trouser string, a mischievous smile appeared on his lips.

"Aren't you a bit too eager to see my treasures, Mrs. Raizada?"

Rolling her eyes at his antics, she said, "Take it off."

"As you wish."

Arnav grabbed her waist, gently placing her on the desk in her room. The old desk was not that big, leaving her back pressed against the wall. He moved to stand between her legs, gently pushing them apart.

"What are you doing?" she whispered yelled as his hands slid up her thighs. He wrapped one of his hands around her waist, pulling her a little closer, while he put the other hand against the wall, above her head.

"Nothing, just testing how sturdy the desk is," he said leaning closer to her. A playful smirk curled on the corners of his lips.

"Arnav, everyone is waiting for us downstairs."

"A few more minutes won't hurt them," he said, capturing her lips in a teasing kiss while his hands gathered her saree around her waist. He touched her in between her legs, finding her already eager for him.

"Ap aise nahi kar sakte," she whispered, biting her lips.

"Kyun nahi kar sakta? Biwi ho tum meri, my legally wedded wife." A soft whimper escaped her lips, as he pushed his fingers in between her nether lips. "And look at you," he murmured, "....already so ready for me. The idea of us on this desk excites you, huh?"

Khushi swatted his shoulder lightly and smiled, her eyes full of mirth. "Shut up."

"Make me."

In the past few years, so much had changed. What hadn't was the undeniable pull between them. Despite the upheavals in many aspects of their lives, there they were, still wrapped up in their own little world.

He looked devastatingly handsome, as always-nothing special in that. But the navy blue kurta he wore today made his eyes stand out even more, and they were now focused on Khushi, brimming with mirth.

Khushi clutched his collars and pulled him close as she fused their lips together, successfully wiping off the teasing grin on his face. Meanwhile, Arnav got rid of his trousers and entered her in a swift motion. Both of them moaned softly, their pleasure barely contained. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders, fingers digging into the fabric of his shirt as she pulled him closer. Her back arched slightly while she adjusted to him. His lips travelled down her neck alternately sucking and kissing her soft supple skin. Her head fell back, eyes fluttered shut.

"Don't leave marks. It would be very awkward in front of the relatives." The desk beneath her creaked softly as he began to move.

"Shhh... I won't... at least not where everyone can see." He whispered, lightly sucking behind her ear.

Their rhythm grew frantic. They tried desperately to muffle their moans, as he pounded repeatedly into her. He then realized they were making lots of noises.

"Shit, your bangles.''

"Huh..?" When Arnav saw his wife completely blissed out and lost in the sensation. He just shrugged his shoulder and went back to his previous activities. Soon, their moans mingled in each other's necks as they finished together.

Both were breathing heavily. Khushi cradled her face against his shoulder, her fingers gently playing with his hair. While Arnav tried to catch his breath by resting his head on her neck. A sudden knock on the door startled them. Instead of pushing him away, Khushi clutched his neck even tighter, holding him close. Akash Bhai's voice came through the door.

"Khushi?"

Regaining her composure, Khushi answered in a shaky voice, "Haan, Bhai?" Her body froze in place.

"Where's Arnav? Hasn't he come yet? Bareilly wale Fufaji usko kabse dhoond rahe hain."

"Hume nahi pata, Bhai. Humne unko nahi dekha."

Khushi noticed her husband's shoulders shaking lightly. She cast a glare at his shoulders as if willing them to stop.

"Theek hain, main dekhta hoon. Tum jaldi tayaar hoke niche aao."

As Akash Bhai's footsteps faded, Arnav couldn't hold back his laughter any longer. He looked back at his wife, his amusement contagious. Khushi tried to give him a stern look but ended up laughing along with him, playfully swatting his chest. Arnav gazed at her affectionately before capturing her lips with his.

As much as he loved to kiss her whimpering lips, he loved kissing her smiling ones even more.

After freshening up, Arnav headed downstairs. As soon as he reached the bottom, two little bodies collided with him, and he effortlessly scooped them up into his arms. Three-year-old Akansha, a spitting image of Anjali as a child, brought back memories of his sister's younger days, while five-year-old Ajit, a perfect blend of Akash and Payal. They grinned up at him. Arnav settled into a nearby lounge chair, both children comfortably perched on his lap.

Little Akansha said in her baby voice, "Mamaji, thank you for the gift. Ma said me to thank you." She placed a tiny kiss on his cheek.

Not to be outdone, little Ajit mimicked her. "Ha, Mamaji, thank you."

Akansha quickly turned to him, frowning. "Arre, buddhu, wo sirf mere Mamaji hain. Tumhare nehi."

"He isn't your Mamaji either," Khushi chided little Akansha lovingly. "Remember what I told you? When you go to our house, you'll call him Mamaji. But when we come here, you have to call him Fufaji."

Arnav scrunched his nose in response, "Don't confuse the children, Khushi." Then, turning back to them, he added, "Why don't both of you just call me Uncle, okay?"

Both of them nodded and sprinted off to play in the courtyard.

Meanwhile, two pairs of brown eyes eagerly awaited their turn on his lap. As soon as it was vacant, they climbed onto each of his thighs. A sweet, confused voice asked, "Daddy, do we need to call you that too?"

"Oh, no, I've worked too hard for you to ever call me that."

"Well, your daddy was very close to being called 'Uncle' by my children once upon a time," Khushi said, lightly touching the little girl's nose.

Arnav cast her a mock glare and mouthed soundlessly, "How dare you?" In response, Khushi just laughed.

While little Ayushi snuggled against her father's neck, little Kush played with his toy, absorbed in his own world. Roma Chachi had remarked aptly that Khushi had indeed given birth to their own reflections, as the three-year-old twins were perfect mirrors of their parents.

While little Ayushi was a bit clingy and voiced her need for attention, little Kush was more reserved. Arnav saw himself in Kush more and more as the days went by. Though Kush didn't seek attention outwardly, inside he was just as eager for snuggles and cuddles as his sister. Even if he pretended otherwise, he desired the same affection. So, Arnav made sure to give both children equal attention. And in some cases, he made an extra effort to give affection to Kush while he was still open to it. Because, As Kush grew up, Arnav knew his little boy might not appreciate his father hugging him as much as his daughter might. It's just a man-code.

Arnav pulled little Ayushi closer, planting a kiss on her head, while he affectionately rubbed his son's back. Khushi watched them with a soft smile, her heart swelling with warmth and tenderness. It had been three years since their birth, and Khushi had been pestering Arnav for another child, but he kept refusing. Their birth had traumatized him enough. Arnav till date clearly remembered and almost felt the panic that he had gone through that night.

He had arranged for the best midwife in the area and had called a trained nurse from the missionary hospital for the delivery. The doctor had come as well and assured him that everything was alright and that the birth would proceed naturally. And there he was, pacing in front of the room where Khushi had been for two hours-two hours of listening to her whimpering and screaming in pain. Arnav was just minutes away from asking Hariprakash to fetch the doctor again when a deafening cry of a newborn pierced the air.

A joyous shout of Roma Chachi came from inside, "It's a boy!"

A few moments later, Roma Chachi emerged from the room with a little crying bundle and approached Arnav. But at the same time, another scream from Khushi nearly stopped his heartbeat. Roma Chachi tried to pass the baby to Arnav, but he grabbed her upper arms and asked urgently, "What's happening inside? How's Khushi?"

A hushed whisper circulated among the women in the room who had come to assist with the birth, noting Mr. Raizada's reluctance to take the baby in his arms. Roma Chachi looked around, guessing how the situation must appear, and spoke to Arnav in a hushed voice.

"Take your son, Arnav. Khushi will be alright."

Chastised by his mother-in-law, Arnav looked at the baby, who had stopped crying and was now gazing at him with wide eyes. He took the baby in his arms and sat on a sofa in the corridor. The baby's little body squirmed in the palm of his hand. Father and son stared at each other for quite some time. An overwhelming sense of protectiveness washed over him, though he couldn't exactly name the other emotions coursing through him. He just kissed the baby boy's forehead lightly and spoke softly as if the baby would clearly understand his words, "I'm not mad at you. I'm just scared."

A little while later, Anjali took the baby from Arnav while Khushi's screams continued to echo from the room, driving him to the brink of madness. He asked Hariprakash to fetch the doctor and also asked Anjali to go inside and see what was happening. Suddenly, the screaming stopped, and Arnav's heart pounded at the sudden silence. Roma Chachi emerged with another bundle, her face radiant with a brilliant smile. "There was another baby-a girl. It's a little Khushi."

Arnav placed his hand on the baby's head and asked, "How's she?"

"She will be okay, Arnav," Roma Chachi reassured him and transferred the baby to Arnav. He felt her snuggle into him as he placed a soft kiss on her crown. Since then, Little Ayushi never missed a chance to snuggle into her father's arm.

When everybody went home and the babies were settled with Anjali and Payal in the next room. Roma Chachi decided to sleep in the room, attached to where Khushi was. She was sleeping soundly after giving birth. The doctor said she had lost a lot of blood. Although the bleeding had stopped, she had become very weak. She looked pale, alarmingly pale actually and her breathing was shallow. Fear gripped Arnav's heart despite everybody's reassurance.

He spent the night holding her hand and sitting on the floor near her head, counting her breaths. He didn't know when he fell asleep, his head resting near their joined hands. But he woke up to Khushi's gentle fingers lightly gliding through his hair. When he opened his eyes, she urged him to lie down beside her on the bed. He obliged, and she didn't waste any time snuggling into his chest, her arm draped across his belly.

"Will you be angry with me for the rest of your life if I leave this world before you?"

Arnav's heart dropped at her question. "Don't ask me questions like that."

"Answer me, please."

He pressed his lips to her forehead. "I can never be angry at you."

"Good, I don't want you to be angry at me at all."

"Then don't even think of leaving."

Khushi tilted her head to look at him and smiled tiredly. Arnav placed a soft kiss on her dry lips. "I felt like I would never see you again, or our babies..... I was so scared."

Arnav gulped down the lump in his throat and didn't say anything in response, only pulled her closer to his body.

She had been quiet for a while, and Arnav thought she had fallen asleep when she spoke again."We have two babies now," she said almost disbelievingly.

"Yes, we do. We didn't even know how to raise one."

"Shhh, we'll manage," she said dreamily. "One baby is for you, one baby is for me. Did you hold them?"

"Yes, I did."

"I haven't yet. I guess I had fainted at the end," she said sadly.

"Why don't you get some sleep and gather some energy, Mommy?" he said lovingly. "If they're to be like you, we'll have a lot on our hands."

"What are you saying? I was a very quiet kid."

"Sure, you were," he whispered against her forehead.

"You were no better, mister. I know all the stories from your childhood, so you can't deny it. At least I didn't get stuck in a patila."

Laughing, Arnav gathered her in his arms even tighter, and both of them fell asleep like that.

"Bhaiya, Bhabi, come quickly! Roma Aunty is calling you," Amelia's voice called out across the courtyard to the little bubble of the family of four, who were just chatting.

Over the years, Amelia blossomed into the remarkable young lady she was destined to be. As the cloud of melancholy gradually lifted, it revealed her true essence—a kind, compassionate, and fun-loving individual, fiercely protective of those she loved.

"Let's go Mrs.Raizada."

He extended his hand toward his wife.

Khushi looked up at his extended hand, recalling a time when he had reached out in much the same way to guide a little girl out of the darkness.

Khushi scooped up Kush in her arms as Arnav held Ayushi. Hand in hand with their children nestled in their arms, they joined the rest of the family. The warmth of the burning diyas cast a golden glow over them.

In the end, as they embraced the spirit of the festival, they realized they found their perfect piece of forever in each other's arms, in each other's eyes, knowing that this was where they were always meant to be.

----------THE END----------

<previous>

@featheredclover @arshifiesta @phuljari @msbhagirathi @jalebi-weds-bluetooth @chutkiandchotte

[be-my-ally]

The Divorce Decision

bit of a departure from my regularly scheduled programming (i.e smut) with angsty fluff!

summary: A priscilla-esque reader au, divorce introspective fix it. Lots of mentions of letters.

I’m wondering if it’s too self-indulgent to hand write the accompanying letters 🙃

pairing: reader x elvis

warnings: no smut, mentions of infidelity + obviously, divorce. 

wc: 3k

The divorce is difficult, it feels never ending, and despite your best efforts he’s absolutely no help at all. You probably need a proper separation, rather than staying over at Graceland as much as you do. But it’s difficult, sharing custody is hard while trying to make it seem like nothing has changed to your young daughter. She’s tiny still but it doesn’t make her any less important. He loves her, adores her, as much as any person could love anyone and you could never bear to deprive him of her; she loves him just as much back  - chattering away to him, affecting his mannerisms, his speech. God, even his petnames for the two of you; she lisps ‘yittle’, ‘baby’ and ‘Satnin’ back at him. You couldn’t take that from him, nor from her, but especially him when he’s so delicate at the moment. It’s hard to describe such a character, a man that despite his current soft edges maintains a hardness about him, as delicate but he is. He’s more than that, he’s vulnerable. You’re all too aware of how much. Ultimately your lack of desire to hurt him comes from a desire to protect him as much as possible - you can’t deny that he loves her, she loves him and you love him. Love him too much. It makes you question these things - if you can’t pull them apart, from the love they share, from the love you share, is it even something you want to go through with anymore? But then, how do you get yourself out of this situation? 

When he pulls you up, from the front few tables, forcing you to stand in front of everyone - the world as his audience, announcing your divorce. You want to die. It’s not just the embarrassment of knowing you weren’t enough, couldn’t live up to the King’s expectations or desires, that everyone knows about the infidelity on both sides but blames you the most, but also the public nature of it. The public announcement that disallows you the chance to renegade on your decision and still hold your head up. You can’t say it was once a consideration but you worked through it, he’s stood there announcing it as a done deal. The papers weren’t signed. The deal was made, but the papers weren’t signed. He stands there and claims he still loves you, even after giving you millions in settlements, that you share this love - for your daughter and for him, evident in your gift of a new Rolls-Royce for him. A celebration of his success. But you sit down and tears run down your face, its not enough - he’d have given you more if you asked, had tried to, it was what slowed down the proceedings so much. And that had made you cry too, because you knew that he’d have given you the world if you’d asked before it was too late. 

And you worry, you worry that he’s different. That despite the fact you hassled him for months and then for some reason have put off signing the papers yourself he doesn’t say a word about it. His anger is never normally cold or silent. None of his emotions ever are and it worries you. His reservedness at such a huge betrayal. It worries you that you want him to rage at you. He had at first. Raged and forced himself upon you, thrown you out. But now it’s like he’s resigned, making it too easy for you, so easy that it becomes difficult. You’d had to beg him to agree at first, he was difficult in other ways after he had - offering you too much and then refusing to discuss it, you had to schedule all the meetings. He made it out like it was all on your terms rather than his although it was very much his that was being discussed. Or he simply nodded, silent and submissive, so unlike him it made you want to scream. But you know that he’d respond, if you questioned him, by asking how he is allowed to be then. Before he was too volatile for you to stay? But now he’s too steady for you to go? Make your goddamn mind up woman. 

Still you worry, worry that when he kisses your forehead and your daughter’s and heads to his room, that once was yours too, he’s not being sensible. You worry that when he emerges too late in the morning his eyes are still glazed and bleary. You worry that he seems to have a tremble that doesn’t go in the evenings. That his outburst on stage, the public declaration of your failed marriage, an oath that despite his infidelity he had taken extremely seriously, was a sign of something seriously wrong. But it’s not your place to worry anymore. 

Still, when you lie awake at night, straining to hear something from his room, despite knowing personally just how soundproofed the whole area was, you can’t help but pray for him. You thank the lord for what you’ve had, tossing and turning, asking for guidance on what to do next. You close your eyes and you can see his face, the way he used to look at you, Like you were heaven sent, in your mind he always looks so young. Although, you think, it was little over ten years prior it feels like a different lifetime. He’d praised his mama the first time you’d made love. Thanking the lord and Gladys for sending you to him. It had made you cringe a little - at the time you’d been there for a good time, not for the outpouring of emotion flipping your world upside down. It hadn’t taken long for you to feel the same but you’d always felt guilty about that first night. Guilty that you couldn’t equal his force of feeling. But then you couldn’t ever equal him in any way. Maybe that was your strength - your force of feeling; the acceptance that you would always be second to him, first only in his eyes, and that you were fine with that. 

Night after night an envelope is thrust under your door. You wished he’d just knock on the door, tell you what he wanted to say. You hadn’t opened any of them, not yet, couldn’t work out if it would swing your decision. If you even wanted it to make you change your mind one way or the other. You worried it might spell out how he really felt, his fury, his disgust. Spelling out that he never truly cared for you, that he was blinded by the need to be in love. That he didn’t believe you when you said you hadn’t been truly disloyal, that it was emotional rather than physical. But more terrifying was the concept that in those letters contained the very opposite. Apologies, expressions of his love, his desire for you. Wishes for your daughter, for your future. You stack them all up, piling them under the bed - they’re not in the box with your other letters. Part of you wants to, tuck them away, bookending your relationship - your courtship to your end. But the other part of you wants to keep it far away. Separate from your special memories. You don’t want a letter from now to brush against one from before, don’t want his apologies sandwiched against his sweet prose, his fervent declarations of love from your first nights together. Certainly don’t want him telling you it wasn’t real, that you’d tricked him, against letters that called you an angel, his angel, a gift from above. 

You wrote back, writing to words of your own imagination. Forming an epistolary compilation from your own mind. It made you feel insane, attempting to respond to every possible word but you still couldn’t bring yourself to open them. You wonder if his spirituality was rubbing off on you, had rubbed off on you, making you believe that as long as you spoke the words, wrote the words, put them out there, he might hear you. That by keeping those envelopes closed you could continue to delay the inevitable. That by willing it enough you might make it all alright again. 

He smiles at you in the morning, quiet, reserved, it’s not a word you ever thought you would use to describe him. And it’s sad, but knowing - you wonder if he can hear what you’re silently attempting to shout to him. He sits there, eating breakfast at the bar with your baby, coloured sunglasses balanced on the top of his head, his hair still flat from sleep. You look over at the pair of them, wondering if this was what you were taking from him. His quiet conversation with his daughter, her giggles as she swings her feet laughing at whatever nonsense he comes out with. This could be your life again, you could have more. But it wasn’t your life, and there’s no way to guarantee this is the future for you all - it’s quietly domestic and you can see he’s content right now but when he’s away, he forgets. Forgets how much he’s missing, forgets he has someone waiting for him, thinks only of himself in the moment - his need for affection, for attention. You can’t say he doesn’t think of his daughter, he does, gifts sent from every destination, phone calls made - and answered regardless of the time of night or day. You can’t pretend he’s not a wonderful father, absent perhaps, but not neglectful. Husband though? His sheer brazen infidelity was made all the worse for his denial of its importance. In some ways you wished he could have had just one other, if it was an affair, you might accept it more. If it meant something to him, as much as it did to you. Rather than the way it was, the girls simply warming his bed, keeping him company, he doesn’t even remember their names halfthe time. He can’t understand how you could possibly suggest that made it worse, thought he was doing you a favour, it wasn’t a failing on your part as a wife; he was just so “lonesome” on the road. Unlike your betrayal, which told him you believed he was failing, failing as a partner, as a husband, as a friend.

But now you’re both lonesome. It’s like he knows, like he can tell what’s on your mind, when that night the letter that’s shoved under your door isn’t even folded, open to his scrawly flourished handwriting. You try to grab it without seeing the words, trying to pretend that it too could go under your bed, as if the temptation wouldn’t force you to go back under and fish it out half hour later anyway. But you can’t stop your eyes from scanning it, and time stands still for a moment as you assess the words, assess the spot of blurring ink from a drop of liquid, a tear? or simply a spill? He tells you that he knows you don’t know what to do, that he doesn’t want you to bear the burden alone, that if you need it he’ll make it easier for you. He says that he knows what he did wrong now, that he won’t stop trying to make you see that he means it when he says he’ll do better, that he can’t bear that you want to give it all up - that he’ll never stop believing you were a gift from his mama. That this too was a gift from her - the wake up call he needed. 

You can’t help yourself, sneaking out of your room, the room that had become yours long before the divorce - since you’d angrily stormed out months earlier, and tiptoeing over to his. The door is, surprisingly, open a crack and you peer in. He’s lying in bed, in one of his customary silk sets, your daughter pillowed on his chest, singing softly as you can see tear tracks dry on her face. You pause, before pushing open the door, He glances up at you, and his song falters, your daughter makes a small, angry, noise and he smiles before continuing to shush her asleep. You stay quiet, leaning against the doorway until you’re sure she’s back asleep. 

“What’s…what happened?” 

“Nothing, honey, just a little nightmare, just needed a cuddle with her daddy s’all, think she would have liked both of us though.” You hum, coming to sit on the edge of that outrageously large bed, leaning over to smooth her hair. You stare down at her, silent for a moment, 

“I, I uh, read your letter.” You can feel his eyes on you, but you continue to avoid his gaze, watching your daughter sleep instead. He doesn’t respond, you take a deep breath, 

“It’s ok baby, I understand. You don’t need ta say it, I’ll stop botherin you.” You wince, looking up to meet his eyes. He looks like he’s about to cry, or has already been, eyes slightly red rimmed, and he looks at you with such reverence that it makes you want to cry too. 

“No, no, You’ve got me twisted, my love, I, if you, if you swear, Elvis. I mean it. I need you to know I can’t do it again, I can’t go through it all again, I’ve done it enough… I can’t do it again.” The shock is evident in his face, and it’s clear he wants to move, looks down at his daughter on his chest, and back at you. “I, I love you so much I can’t bear it; I don’t know who I am without you, and that terrifies me because until now I didn’t realise how much of me is you. I need to know I can be my own person, and you can too, without you… without anyone else.” You’re practically whispering, you’d never forgive yourself if your daughter woke up and heard this conversation. You’re sure she wouldn’t understand it but it’s nothing that she should be worrying over, her nightmares had become more frequent since you’d split. He nods, frantically, and you hate for a moment that you’re in this position, to make him so desperate, so needy. “I need to know that, that it won’t, that we can’t go back to how it was before, but that we’ll do better in the future.” He can’t stop the words flowing out of his mouth, half garbled nonsense as he can’t catch his breath for a second to sort out what he wants to say, as he interrupts you; 

“Honey - my love - baby, Satnin, I swear to you, I’ll swear it on whatever I have to, on the bible, on, on,” He looks down at your daughter, and you jump in, savagely cutting him off, 

“Don’t you dare, not on her.” He swallows and looks back up at you with innocently wild wide eyes, 

“On my mama’s grave then. On my mama’s grave, and the bible, and God himself, I swear. I’ll be different, it’ll be different. I just, I know now what it’s like to, to live without you baby, and I can’t, its hell. Goddamnit, it’s fucking hell. I need you back here. In my arms, with our baby, in our bed.” You nod, you believe him. You’ve not heard that tone from him in years, not felt the strength of his conviction, of your sheer belief in him since the day your daughter was born. He swore then too, on his mama’s grave, before God, on his voice, on his life, to do right by her. He looks at you like he used to, like you’ve hung the moon and the stars for him. It’s that earnest expression, he’s so open like this, 

“God, I wish I could kiss you right now,” You look down at your sleeping daughter, “E - I’ve missed you so much. So very much.” He smiles at you,

“I’ll always love you, always, you know that right? You know that even if you decide otherwise, I’ll always love you.” He doesn’t say it like a question, it’s a statement, an unquestionable fact. You place your hand on his arm, inching closer. He shifts gently, making space and you understand what he’s trying to tell you. You ease the covers up climbing in next to him, settling down against pillows that you haven’t slept on in months but the smell and feel of which immediately make you relax. 

You lean over him, placing the gentlest of kisses on his lips, whispering at him, “I love you, I can’t stop loving you.” and his breath tickles you as you pull away. You feel reborn, renewed. You tuck yourself down, allowing his arm to come around your shoulders, pull you into his chest, your forehead close to your daughter’s. You snuggle in, and a second later you’re jostled by his chest swaying in silent giggles, 

“What?” You look up at him, 

“Nothin’! Nothin’, I just - uh, I just I’m hopin’ you didn’t sign those papers yet is all.” You sigh, you hadn’t wanted to think about the logistics of everything right now. 

“No, I haven’t, I -“ He cuts you off, 

“You think then I’ll have to return that Rolls? You want it back babe?” You huff at him, thinking that it’s a little soon to joke about the division of your assets. 

“You can keep it, keep it as a reminder.” He laughs again, 

“What I need remindin’ for? I got you, and this little one for that.” He nudges your daughter, and she snuffles awake, you glare at him and he looks innocently back at you, cooing as she rubs at her eyes, 

“Daddy?” She’s bleary and barely awake, clearly confused at what dragged her out from her slumber, “Da-Mommy! Mama!” Her eyes lit up at seeing you, and she flings her arms out to throw herself at you, settling between the pair of you. It feels right again, as Elvis shifts over now that he can, drawing you both to be closer to the middle than the edge of the bed, that you three should be together. You feel at last like you’ve made the right decision. 

[denimbex1986]

'Andrew Scott’s performance in the second season of Fleabag is still being celebrated by fans five years later – but if certain execs had their way, he’d apparently have been dropped from the show altogether.

In a new interview with Radio Times magazine, the BBC’s Director of Comedy Shane Allen recalled how Amazon came on board during Fleabag’s second season to help with funding.

According to Shane, this led to “a whole raft of US male execs turned up to the read-through”.

“Bear in mind this was a piece exploring self-destructive feminism,” he continued. “[They proceeded to tear the show apart and demand Andrew Scott was recast with only four days until the shoot started.”

While he didn’t specify exactly what the US executives’ issue with Andrew was, he did say that Fleabag creator and star Phoebe Waller-Bridge stood her ground, which is how the Spectre star ended up remaining with the show.

“Anyone less effervescently charming and smart than Phoebe would have buckled,” Allen claimed.

Phoebe seemingly always had Andrew in mind for Fleabag season two, with his character coming to be known as “Hot Priest” by fans after it aired.

He told HuffPost UK in 2019: “Phoebe and I were pals already, we did a play together about 10 years ago at the Soho Theatre in London,” Andrew explains. “And so she gave me a call out of the blue last summer. I knew it was about Fleabag, and we went and had a big catch-up and a three-and-a-half-hour walk around Soho.

“She talked about the character and we talked about where we were in our lives, and what we thought about religion and love and all that kind of stuff, and the character that was forming in her mind. It was a very special, memorable day.”

Andrew continued: “And at the end, I was like, ‘yep, I’m going to get myself involved in that, I’d be delighted to’. I hadn’t seen the script but I love Phoebe so much and I obviously loved the first series enormously, along with everybody else. So I was delighted to sort of jump in.”

His performance earned him a Golden Globe nomination, as well as recognition in the TV Baftas’ “Moment Of The Year” category and a win at the 2020 Critics’ Choice Awards...'

[rose-riot-johnson]

Hi my Tumblr Peeps😁👍This fanfic I will be writing is gonna be atleast a little different than all the other fanfics😃While I usually get sceptical about writing fanfics about actual people, as you can see I have only written about characters, this fanfic will be 1 of the occasions I will be writing about actual people, which will rare. Considering that my husby (goes by (mainly) Redlink through Facebook and goes by Ninjaluxray through other social media platforms) and I like to celebrate anniversaries on the day we started dating, just as well as getting married, my husby did request an idea of writing a fanfic with both him and I, which my husby and I have mentioned about the request and I did ask him a few questions before writing the fanfic😅😃👍So, needless to say until I change my mind, fanfics pertaining my husby and I (which will be rare) are pretty much the only actual people involved in a fanfic, but only my husby and I together, needless to say before I do start...

*While my husby and I are actually people, this fanfic itself is fictional

❤️💜My Husby And I💜❤️

Genres: Romantic Light Hearted Fluff

One sunny day, in the city of (fictional world/town/city from any show/anime/video game/cartoon up to the reader's imagination), while I was saving the world, my husby decided to use me saving the world, as an opportunity to surprise me by cooking what he's going to surprise me with. He was really excited to cook something that I will be surprised about, considering that most of the time when he does cook for me, I would know before he starts cooking the food. "My love's is going to be very happy about the food I'm going to surprise her with...", my husby said to himself, as he appeared to set the table up in a way that he considers "fancy".

By the time I got home from saving the world, my husby has already finished cooking the food he cooked for me, to surprise me with. "Hi, love... How did saving the world went, my panda bear?", my husby cooed, before kissing my forehead. I replied, "Well, love... It is a little exhausting, however it was easier than usual this time... I'm going to take a nap...". My husby then replied back, "Before you do take your nap, I have a surprise for you... While you were saving the world, I decided to use this as opportunity to work very, hard to cook it up for you... So, after supper and we help eachother do the dishes, we can cuddle and watch anime together, then you can take a nap in my arms...". "Okay love...", I replied back.

Then I just noticed how the table was set up the way he decided to set it up, especially with some material I found cute. I went to sit down to also notice that there was a bowl of my husby's homemade chili, as my husby said, "Surprise, my panda bear... It's my homemade chili that you love, so much... I made it for me to share with you love...". He walked up to me, leaned down to look into my eyes, as he continued, "Happy Anniversary that we dated, love... I love you...", before he kissed my lips. "Aaaaawwwww... Thank you, love...Happy Anniversary that we dated too and I love you too, my honey bear...", I replied, as I proceeded to kiss his lips back.

Once my husby and I finished eating the chili he made for us to share (and to surprise me with), the both of us went in the bedroom, as both my husby and I started watching plenty of anime together. While my husby and I were watching anime together he would joke with about any particular anime character he enjoys joking with me about in a loving way. As a few hours of watching anime passed by, my husby tried asking about a particular anime character before he has noticed I feel asleep in his arms, as he finds it very cute when I'm sleeping (he finds me cute in general, however still). He then continued to hold me, while he's having himself and me in a position, where the both of us are laying down, without waking me up, as he then held me close to him, as possible before he was falling asleep in a very peaceful slumber.

💜❤️The End❤️💜

Okay my Tumblr Peeps... I get there are people who won't count it, as a fanfic, because of the fanfic being strictly just about my husby and I, however 1st of all; my husby requested it would be both him and I which I will fulfill that request for him, 2nd;I figured I'd let the reader use their imagination on a fictional setting to make it fun (including my husby), 3rd; I did have the events in the fanfic, as fictional despite of my husby and I being in this fanfic... So, I'm really dedicating this entire post to my husby who is the best thing that has ever happened to me❤️💜🌹🧸🍓🍡😁👍

Fun Facts: I love how my husby makes chili🌶️🥣

[digitalcirce]

A Christmas Game of Swine Originally posted on DeviantArt on December 17 2022 (woman to pig transformation)

It was just supposed to be an amusing Christmas game; like those played in every other feasting hall when celebrating the Lord’s birthday.  A challenge, followed by an exchange of winnings.  But the charismatic stranger had made an interesting wager, and caught up in the merriment Queen Mehetabel had taken him up on it before the entire court.  If she could recite a sonnet he spoke perfectly, in his own language, then she would receive the very best animal of his own herd, fit for a royal banquet.  If she failed, then she would come to his banquet hall in a year and a day and provide one herself.  The Queen had always had a good memory; she was sure she could catch the gist of any poem after a single hearing.

But the stranger began to squeal like a pig.  And not just a brief series of grunts!  It was a long rhyming sonnet; oinked in pig.  The meter was there, the stresses and pauses, the bob and wheel – it clearly was an intentional sonnet, and not mere noise – but it was certainly not a language she had ever dabbled in!  Gamely, the Queen had tried to repeat it, to friendly laughter from all in attendance.  But of course, she had failed.

And after she had lost, the stranger bowed with a flourish, declaring that he was himself the greatest animal of his herd, as she was of hers.  Then, reminding her of her promise before God, his son Jesu Christ, her husband, and her entire court; he turned into a massive pig, and ran from the banquet hall.  None could find him, despite many guards and watchmen searching.  In fact, none of them could recall precisely how or when he’d entered the castle.

The Queen was unnerved.  He had said she was the best ‘animal’ of her ‘herd’ – did he mean to eat her next Christmastide?  But she had made a vow.  If she didn’t journey north in a year, she would live the rest of her life without honor, shaming her husband and kingdom.  But as the year progressed, life proceeded as it always does, full of small moral conundrums.  Whether to offer a pleasant lie, or a hard but valuable truth.  Whether to do embroidery she had promised, or put it off.  Whether to get drunk or stay sober.  And seemingly every time she took the easier route of less integrity, her body changed.  A coiled tail slowly developed over her lovely arse.  Large ears grew through her soft brunette tresses.  Her nose turned up, and eventually resembled a diminutive snout.  Small tusks developed in her mouth.  Spots formed down her belly, which resembled nipples.  And she was afraid.  Queen Mehetabel was certain that these were tests of her character; part of the game.  Every test of valor she had failed, resulted in her developing more pig features; plain evidence that she was, in fact, an animal – the best of her herd.  She didn’t want to turn into a pig, or put herself in the hands of the charismatic stranger who might eat or breed her.

But her covenant remained.  She had to find the pig man in a year, and offer herself as he had.  So as the leaves began to fall, against the advice of courtiers and the King, she set off.  And as she fruitlessly wanders across the northern wastes searching for the bard-turned-boar, Queen Mehetabel has a bad feeling that her quest will lead only and inevitably to a pigsty, and she will spend the remainder of her life as an ordinary fat sow suckling not-quite-princes and princesses on her bloated pig teats before finally being put on a spit herself.

A high cost, for a little Christmas merriment.  But there is some possibility that by fulfilling her vow, she might find mercy.  As she assured her husband, there is no point to a character test if success results the same as failure.  Perhaps, at the end, she will return as a Queen with honor.  

But if not, Queen Mehetabel and her forthcoming children are likely to make mouthwateringly delicious Christmas hams in all subsequent feasts.

Stock image used available from Depositphotos at https://depositphotos.com/164579024/stock-photo-medieval-queen-portrait.html

Interested in reading a full story about this Queen’s transformation into a fat sow? Check out a new story, “Queen Mehetabel and the Sow of Glastonbury”, here:  https://www.deviantart.com/digitalcirce/art/Queen-Mehetabel-and-the-Sow-of-Glastonbury-941437605

[jasmariswonderland]

“Wow, you really remembered my birthday! Thank you, truly! I’m honestly surprised I still remember it myself, hehe. I’m really looking forward to celebrating here with my school friends. Won’t you be so kind as to grace me with your presence as well?” 

✨🧚‍♀️Happy Birthday to my coquettish fae princess!🧚‍♀️✨

Today is a special day so let’s set the mood with one of my favorite tracks from her character playlist! Incidentally, this singer is also Vidaria’s voice claim!

Now, I love all of my ocs equally and for different reasons, but Vidaria has become a recent favorite of mine since the announcement of Book 7 prompted me to really begin developing her. Expect a good deal of new Vidaria content today including new lore, a conclusion to her and Iman’s shared vignette, and her birthday interview. And as always, asks/interaction with the birthday girl are open! 

~~~

✨🧚‍♀️Vidaria’s Birthday Lines🧚‍♀️✨

When Summoned: “Grand celebrations like this aren’t so bad every now and then, especially when I’m the guest of honor!”

Summon: “I’ve never celebrated my birthday with a party like this. I had to come to school to have this experience. I’m really enjoying it and hope you do too!” 

Groovy: “I usually get very homesick on my birthday. But it’s easy to forget my sadness when I’m celebrating with you all. Thank you for making today so special!”

Set Home: “Such a flashy outfit, I love it!” 

Home Idle 1: “I asked Silver and Sebek to guess how old I was turning today. Neither of them were even close! 

Home Idle 2: “General L was very affectionate with me when I visited the stables this morning. I think he knows todays my birthday too.”

Home Idle 3: “For my birthday many years ago, Malleus offered to light the candles on my birthday cake. He then proceeded to set it on fire. Even if it was an accident, I was not amused.” 

Home Login: “With each birthday comes another year of experiences, surprises and wisdom. I wonder what changes will come about in me this time?”

Home Idle Groovy: “Malleus’ grandmother send me a very kind letter for my birthday along with some new riding equipment. I’m sure she’s very busy with her queenly duties but its nice to know she is thinking about me.”

Home Tap 1: “The rapier Lilia-san gifted me is so exquisite! I wish there were more people who enjoyed fencing at NRC. Maybe I should look into making a club?”

Home Tap 2: “Balloons are interesting decorations. I love how colorful they are but I hate when they pop. Is it possible to make popless balloons, I wonder.

Home Tap 3: “I’m happy that Danica decided to be here at my party, I’m sure Sidonie tried to convince her otherwise. And the gloves she gave me are very elegant indeed!” 

Home Tap 4:  "This necklace? Iman gave it to me! The earrings too, she said ears like mine deserve to be decorated more often. I really like them, she knows my tastes well!”

Home Tap 5: “Hmm? You’re wondering where Malleus is? I don’t know. Of course I invited him, don’t think that I didn’t!” 

Home Tap Groovy: “My birthday wish? I think I’ve grown out of those, but I’ll humor you. My wish...is for Sebek to learn to speak more softly! Hehe, does that seem like a possibility?”

DUO MAGIC: Riddle: “Many congratulations on your birthday, Vidaria!” Vidaria: “You are too kind, Riddle! Thank you!” 

[xalygatorx]

Powerless (2017) | Chapter 20, "Between the Stars" (End)

Years after Sarah’s wit and bravery saved her brother and brought the Labyrinth to its knees, her daughter Andie is transported to what remains of that same fantastical place, somewhere she thought only existed in her favorite childhood stories. To find her way back home, she must traverse what’s left of the crumbling kingdom, find a way to set both moments and magic in motion again, and even save the Goblin King, himself. But who will save her from him?

Powerless is a SFW slow-burn romance between Jareth and an original female character. The story overall contains descriptions of fantasy violence, mild suggestive content, and grief regarding family illness. Chapter-by-chapter warnings will be provided as well.

Summary: Sarah experiences a miraculous recovery from her illness following Jareth’s hospital visit. Jareth visits Andie and the two discuss their time apart and future plans at last.

Pairing: Jareth x Fem!OC

Warnings: Mild angst and fluff

Word Count: 3.3k

January 14th was a day for the unexpected. Just when hospital visits and clustered work schedules had become the mundane routine of their busy lives, this day of days fell into a day off for all involved and the day that Sarah was discharged from the hospital, her minor injuries now the largest point of concern on her health record.

The doctors couldn't explain it and neither could her nurse who had administered the new tests after Sarah seemed to have shown very random, but considerable, signs of improvement. Her tremors gone, her mental state bettering even further, and her balance returning, they had seen fit to check on the progression of her illness, but had instead discovered that her dopamine levels were stabilizing at a surprising rate. It was as if she'd never been sick at all and it was nothing short of a miracle.

Not only that, but she had been able to attend Andie's graduation after all. In a wheelchair for safety purposes—she was both fresh out of the hospital as of the night before and it was her first day off the medication she'd been taking—but in attendance and ecstatically so. She had demanded that David allow it to remain a surprise and regretted it only a little when they cheered after Andie took her degree and began her walk back to her seat, saw them, saw her, and then proceeded to tearfully laugh in utter shock, which earned her a few baffled glances from her peers.

The rest of the day was spent grabbing lunch and with a small party at David and Sarah's house, which had originally been intended only as a graduation gathering for Andie, but now celebrated Sarah's homecoming and seemingly miraculous recovery as well. No one could believe it and it appeared to Andie once she had time to think about it that the only person not completely floored by her sudden recuperation was Sarah, herself.

Andie found her way over to Sarah after those in attendance had taken to mingling and then gone outside to play a game, leaving only a few stragglers in the house. "Hey, Xena," Andie teased happily, sitting down next to her mother on the couch.

Sarah smirked, still a little tired. "Warrior princess? I don't know about that."

"You're joking, right?" Andie wondered. "You develop a disease with no known cure and, suddenly, you wake up one day and just don't have it anymore… That's pretty warrior-like."

Her smirk became a small smile and she shrugged. "I hardly think it was my doing. Regardless, I'm terribly glad things turned out this way. I'm almost afraid to think it's gone for good."

"We'll just hope it is," Andie said reassuringly. "And whatever happens, we'll deal. Okay?"

Sarah nodded a little. "Okay. Just be open to whatever happens now. Okay?"

Andie sensed an underlying meaning in her mother's words and frowned. "…Are we still talking about your health or have we moved on to something else?"

Sarah smiled again. "We didn't change topics. But apply that advice in a general sense, my love."

"Oh… Okay," Andie murmured, bewildered, and thinking maybe her mom really needed to get some rest.

The remainder of the day was passed with lawn games, small talk, and Pinterest-derived finger foods Colette had turned out by the tray-load—the entirety of which was devoured during the party, or so Andie thought until Colette produced one more tray for her to take back to her apartment. Sarah retired to her room approximately halfway through the party to rest and, when Andie poked her head in to say goodbye, she found her mother sound asleep and didn't have the heart or will to wake her. She was very sure she would be seeing her the next day, so there was no need. Andie was only relieved beyond compare that she was on the mend, no matter how impossible a mend it seemed.

She'd been mulling it all over since the ceremony, when the apparent miracle had presented itself in the best graduation present she could have received. And as she hauled the tray of Colette's creations and her bag of unopened graduation cards from her passenger seat upon her return to her building, the neurology-infused gears of her mind were whirring as if slick with oil and turned up to a dangerously high setting. She knew the recovery was next to impossible, particularly in the span of time it had to have taken place. However, it had happened, and she could only wonder how. While one third of her thoughts backed far away from reading into it—it was a gift from the gods or serendipity or the universe or whatever spun this world in these mind-bending ways—the other two thirds of her mind played on separate curiosities, those of a scientist and a witness to what even doctors proclaimed was out of their ability to explain.

Andie precariously shuffled the bag to slide down her arm and switched the tray over to her left hand before digging for her key—Idiot, should have done that before you got this stuff out of the car!—and locating it in her coat pocket, unlocking the door and shouldering it open. She bypassed the switch for the lights for the time being, maneuvering blindly after the door shut behind her and locating some empty counter space on which to set her spoils. She had just released the snack tray when the silence broke and she experienced what was likely her second heart attack of her short life.

"Congratulations."

"Jesus H. Christ," she exclaimed, nearly flipping the tray off her hand in her jolt of fright and only finding an instant of relief when she recognized the voice. "Don't do that."

"Sorry," Jareth murmured, though he wasn't all that apologetic about it. She saw him after she knew where to look. He was near the window, engulfed in the shadows that rested beside the moonlight penetrating the window pane.

"You know," Andie began after she'd managed to deep-breathe her body down from survival mode, "you could always go for the not-quite-as-dramatic entrance that doesn't nearly kill me."

He stepped into the moonlight and somehow, in that lithe movement, obliterated the darkness that separated them and crossed over into her space. He looked different, she noticed immediately as the pure light washed over him, and then her eyes adjusted to the dark—he was in what she considered to be normal clothes, his long hair was tied back, and the artful cosmetic display that normally decorated his eyes was absent. He looked almost ordinary. And yet, still, despite his obvious attempts, he didn't look very ordinary at all.

A smirk tilted his mouth as he moved away from the far wall and came to lean against the edge of the counter opposite her, his arms crossing over his chest. "I daresay it would startle you more if I did. What do you all consider an average entrance?" He spat the word "average" a bit, which was the least surprising part of this encounter to Andie.

She shrugged. "I don't really have a doorbell, I guess. Maybe just knocking. Or hanging out, you know, outside my apartment until I come by?"

"Why would I do that?"

"…Because it's my apartment?"

Jareth scoffed a little. "That doesn't answer my question."

Andie rolled her eyes a little. "How long have you been here?"

He shrugged, seeming a little uncomfortable despite the ease he displayed. "Just a couple of days."

She squinted at him. "I meant here. Like my place."

"Oh," Jareth mumbled. "Perhaps an hour? Time is different in this place and as such, I find it difficult to gauge."

"Wait, you've been here for a couple of days?" Andie asked and then tried to reel in her surprise, reminding herself that she didn't really have a right to wonder why he'd taken so long to show up. "I mean… What brings you up from the Underground? There might be an uprising with the King missing…"

He smirked faintly, but it seemed plastic. "Well, in all honesty, I have stepped into what you lot call retirement… I still hold power over the realm, but I am no longer the reigning king."

Andie's eyes widened. "You found an heir? That fast?"

Jareth's expression turned sardonic. "It perhaps felt fast for you, darling. In the Underground, millennia have passed again." He grimaced toward the moonlit window. "Funny how this seems to be a recurring theme."

"How long?" she asked quietly, ignoring the way her nervous stomach fluttered at the endearment. It was a slip. It had to be.

He looked at her calmly. "Just shy of six-thousand years."

Andie cursed softly. "And it took you this damn long to come here?"

Jareth was surprised by her response, but also very unsurprised as well. It was a curious feeling. "I was not the one who ran away."

The words cut her, but they were the truth. "Fair enough," she murmured, looking toward the floor.

Jareth's lips twisted at the defeated expression; this was not the woman he knew. And he didn't like that he'd caused the change, despite the accuracy of his statement. "Though I will say it was a fruitless string of years as far as the search for an heir went… The majority of its benefits were to the continued construction of the Labyrinth and what more could I possibly add?"

"I hope you didn't put in another snake pit," she teased quietly, glancing at him.

"I've learned my lesson, I assure you," he chuckled, his eyes never straying from her as they spoke.

"I take it that you found your heir though," she observed. "Considering you're in 'retirement'."

"Indeed. And not where I expected to."

"Meaning?"

"Leona showed surprising measures of regality and leadership qualities in our travels… Who better to see through the guises of foes than one who guarded the gates since the Labyrinth was born?" Jareth toyed with the end of his ponytail lazily. "And I thought it befitted the Underground to have a queen again. It had been quite some time."

Andie had to admit, she couldn't come up with a better choice now that she gave it some thought. "She will definitely keep the goblins in line."

"I thought the same," Jareth concurred.

"But you didn't answer my question."

"Which one?" he wondered.

"Pick one," she challenged him vaguely.

"No," he declined firmly.

"Why not?"

"Because I intentionally leave a great number of questions—yours specifically—unanswered for a reason. I shall not dredge up anything I mustn't be demanded to answer."

Andie made a mental note to start a list of all the questions he evaded. Though she doubted she'd have a very long list, as she couldn't imagine him staying here long enough for it to be an issue. She was honestly shocked he hadn't just happened by to tear her a new one. "Why mine specifically?"

"Because you ask the right questions," he grumbled.

She smiled, pleased with that. He watched her expression lighten for the first time this visit and he reveled in its change. "This time, I'm wondering what brought you to the…er, Aboveground."

"Next question," he murmured.

"No way!"

"I am not declaring that question to remain unanswered, but it is not time for it yet. Next."

She muttered about the relativity of time under her breath before switching gears, "Fine, then how about an unspoken question?"

His eyes glittered faintly with interest. "Go on."

"A couple of days?" she wondered again. "Why show up now?"

"I had matters to attend to beforehand," he said ambiguously, which just served to frustrate Andie a bit because she didn't want to pry by actually prying. He let her stew for a moment before adding, "One of those matters was visiting your mother while she was in the hospital."

Andie nodded a little, once again not entirely surprised. "It was scary this time. She hit her head and knocked herself out. And yet, somehow—" She stopped then, pieces clicking into place in her head, and Jareth watched as calculation flooded her eyes and then was entirely displaced by the beginnings of realization. Andie looked at him intently and her eyes stung faintly as she fought back whatever reaction was brewing. "…Did you?"

His features remained passive. "Did I, what?"

"You know damn well what," she snapped softly.

Jareth's brows rose. "Perhaps. Though I thought you would be pleased." She swallowed hard and moisture slipped from her eyes to roll down her cheeks, deepening the Goblin King's frown as bewilderment seeped through him. "Was I mistaken?" he asked doubtfully, just endeavoring to understand her response.

She swiped the tears from her jaw, where they had rolled to and clung, "No," she murmured hoarsely, clearing her throat. "I'm sorry. Thank you."

He nodded incrementally. "Of course."

"It is far more than I could have ever hoped to wish for," she murmured, her throat still tight.

"I did not choose your wish for you. This was an isolated good," Jareth assured her, arching a brow when she seemed confused. "Your end of the bargain we struck still stands. I merely assure you that it is still at your disposal. Should you want it."

"How could I possibly ask for anything else?" she wondered incredulously.

He smiled at her complete lack of composure and how she seemed positively perplexed at how to handle her overflow of emotions. "You didn't ask for me to help her. I do have a few kind bones in my body, you know."

"I didn't mean for it to sound like that, I just… You have no idea how—"

"I do. Please. You'll embarrass me."

Andie smirked a little. "Can I know what brought you here? Or was that what we just discussed?"

"I am still vouching for the next question. Though I will say Sarah was part of that. I just didn't expect to find her how I did."

Andie nodded with a sad look in her eyes, even as she reminded herself that those stressful days were now certainly behind them all. "Just be open to whatever happens now. Okay?" Subtle, Mom…, she thought with a bit of reluctant amusement, feeling as if she'd missed out on some big secret. "Well… What about the question you wouldn't answer before? About why you were so on edge before we got to the throne room."

"You know, good humans forget about things," Jareth informed her grumpily. When she only waited for an appropriate response, he sighed and replied, "I suppose because it was an ending."

"I'm not sure I follow," Andie commented.

"You, Andie," he murmured, his jaw tightening some with frustration. "It was a close to the journey, an answer to the question, the clang of midnight for our story's Cinderella, apparently."

"You know our fairytales," she observed, a little impressed.

"Sweetheart, I am one."

"Fair," she remarked, grimacing at the implications of his last metaphor. "And… I had to go. But I'm also sorry that I did. I should have said goodbye. I just remember talking to the Wiseman and then I was halfway through the garden. Something he said just…set me off, something like—"

"Sometimes to need is to let go," he recited the line softly.

Andie went a bit pale with shock. "Did he tell you that, too?"

"Not exactly," he sighed and, before her eyes within a faint shimmer of light, transformed into the Wiseman, himself.

"You… You were him?" she demanded, her jaw a bit slack.

"Only in those few moments," he reasoned as he transformed back.

"But I… I said—" Her face went red, much to his inward amusement. "You told me to go!"

"In a way," Jareth admitted. "I made you come to terms with going, I believe."

"Did you want me to leave? Or did you just know I had to?"

"Honestly, woman, what do you think?" he groused.

"Did you send the stars down, too?" Andie asked, remembering the ethereal sight that had served to guide her down the right paths to leave the Labyrinth.

"I move the stars for no one," he said like a line from a script before adding more rawly, "except perhaps for you."

"Why did you come here, Goblin King?" she asked softly.

His beautiful eyes darkened a bit. "You."

"I'm going to need a little more than that," she laughed softly, her eyes reddening gradually again at the corners, glistening in the pale light. At his rueful look, she shook her head. "I'm not budging on this. We've both been through a lot and I'm not sure what you need, but I need clarity. I'm a scientist. I want the facts."

"The facts happen to be that you are the most dazzling frustration to have ever fallen before me, Cassandra, and it was never in the delicate form of starlight or a ray from the sun—you were a meteor that crash-landed in my thousandth darkest hour and blinded me with what I had never believed existed in my world of impossibilities," he murmured intensely. Andie could barely breathe. "I look at you and can still barely see for the brilliance you are. You ask me why I was cross with you in the Hall of Mirrors and yet it is so horrendously clear—you came to me when I was entrenched in my absolution of having nothing and suddenly I had everything while knowing everything would walk away from me the moment the journey was over. I had my time and magic in spades after you were gone and it was all I had wanted until I didn't want it.

"No, I did not want you to leave, you silly girl. You had to leave. You would have never forgiven yourself had you not left and I would have never forgiven myself if I had convinced you to stay. You could not part from your family and I could not part from my kingdom, at least not until I knew it would be in good care. It is now. That is why I am here. Now, I have a question for you. I want to know what happens now."

She felt on the verge of tears, but held herself back. "That isn't exactly a question."

"It is close enough," Jareth declared surely. "What do you want?"

Andie felt her throat ache as it constricted around uncertain words never born into the electrically charged air between them. Everything felt so very still and the woman who had become known to the Labyrinthians as both the Girl who Reordered Time and, on a few occasions, the Once and Future Goblin Queen—though the latter was a whispered title—wondered if perhaps time had stopped all over again. Finally, one slid past her lips and pierced the quiet. "You."

"Again?" he inquired, playing the part of the conceited monarch, but hanging on her whispered utterances like lifelines.

She shook her head a little at his antics. "I want you."

Jareth smirked faintly, still toying with her. "Say your right words."

Andie bit down a smile even as a single tear escaped her right eye. "I wish—"

"Not those, silly girl," he chuckled, though he continued to watch her closely.

She bit her lip and hesitated for a solid minute before allowing herself to mumble those three fate-sealing words: "I love you."

Her heart sank into her stomach as he continued to stare at her, not saying a word and letting the silence stretch over some slowly forming new wounds. Why had she said that? He'd clearly meant something else, he couldn't have been digging for that tragic phrase! If she'd just taken long enough to consider all her—

"How you turn my world, you precious thing."

She snapped out of her panicked thoughts to find him standing just before her, his hands a breath away from cradling her face between them as he leaned down and stole her foolish doubts with a kiss they had both ached for for much too long.

That's the end of Powerless! Thank you for reading! x

[thehomebodydiaries]

i’m exhausted. i feel like i haven’t really had any alone time for like a month, but i’ve also been having increasingly disturbing thoughts when i am left to ponder alone. and people wonder why i need to be stoned all the time.

retail therapy is scary, though. i’ve recently recalled how much i love to read (escapism is a hell of a mistress), so i’ve spent way more money than i should’ve this past week. quite a stress point, tbh, but i’m justifying it because i was out celebrating my third year anniversary with my boyfriend. we happened to celebrate on free comic book day, so we went to acme comics and i was expecting, like, two free comics. but when we walked through the door, there was a girl to the right with a table holding stacks of plastic bags all filled with like sixteen comics, and she just held out a bag and said, “free comic books?” to which i responded, “yes please!” and then i proceeded to spend $80 on more comics, one of which is old man logan. for those of you who don’t know, it’s a comic that was actually intended to be a standalone, but there have since been additions, and this is the comic that inspired the movie logan. it depicts wolverine as an old man with his healing capabilities slowing down tremendously; the world’s supervillains have banded together like the heroes do, but because there are more villains than heroes, they’ve killed the vast majority of heroes: captain america, iron man, thor, daredevil… it’s a really depressing comic book, honestly, but it’s amazing all the same.

this is random and irrelevant but my favorite fnaf character has changed from fun time foxy to puppet - i adore her and want a life sized version of her to put on my couch. she reminds me of a d&d character that i created in my homebrew world; his name is face and he’s a sentient wooden puppet that’s like five feet tall and has no facial features so he wears a mask and speaks telepathically to people, but is entirely silent until he trusts someone enough to know his secret.

i also got a cute new cup and an all black sanrio cinnabon stuffie that looks perfect on my bed, plus several books that i should not have bought because they’re expensive. i’ve been writing a lot this week too! my ability to get everything i write at work is hindered though because i can’t access certain things from home or my phone because my phone is way too old and won’t updated to the necessary versions to download certain apps. so i’m trying to brainstorm while i’m at work and actually write while i’m at home… but with two or three hours in between breaks, i have a lot of ideas, and remembering all of them is difficult. i might have to convince my boss to send them to me somehow… although i have to admit i’d be a little shy about him potentially reading it. i don’t think he’s much of a reader, and i think he’s kind enough to not read it if i asked him not to. idk, we’ll see.

holy shit palworld is way harder than any pokemon game i have ever played, but it is so addicting. speaking of video games, i’ve been really wanting to make a save file for the sims 4, so that might be something i do during a stream. i think i might try to stream on the weekends, but i’ve gotta redo quite a few things and make sure everything is good to go. i know exactly who i’d want as moderators for when they are necessary, but i would be lying if i said i wasn’t really nervous about streaming. i know i don’t want to use my camera just yet, and i don’t exactly have money for a v-tube artist right now, but i have been meaning to look at artists i would like to hire when i do have more disposable income. this imposter syndrome is just… a huge obstacle. if i can learn to cope with it or overcome it, i’ll be unstoppable. but it’s so much deeper than my meds can reach, and it’s so difficult to find the energy to fight something so rooted in my being.

alright, i didn’t mean for it to get that dark, but… i did say i’ve been having increasingly darker thoughts lately. and rants like that are exactly why i started this blog to begin with. i am learning how to love myself and give myself the life i deserve.

[toa-arania]

Val made drugs and it went predictably

Welcome back to more Valposting, where stupid insane bullshit happens and it is entirely our own fault. Last session we beat one of our biggest problems and today we decided to celebrate by going to an abandoned church and getting drunk. Val, in her infinite wisdom, decided to mix together some of her plants to make Some Kind Of Drug, with the intention of producing a mild psychedelic. "Mild" was not what we got.

This started off similar to the last time we all got drunk together, with an attempt at a game of Truth or Dare. It did not last very long, because upon realising she didn't know what the drug would actually do, Val tried some. It didn't take effect immediately so she capitalised on the others not knowing much about drugs to get them to take some too. Then things started to occur.

It was obvious that something had taken effect when Val started changing the colours of things with her mind, first turning Aluber into neon colours and then turning Levi's hair blue. Other effects that people experienced include: Levi sprouts dog ears and a tail; Aluber becomes tiny; Mei starts fucking glowing; Darcy gets magic depression. We spent a little while fucking around and just getting a bit drunker, during which Aluber learnt what a buttplug is, and it was at this time that the GM told me that Val's deductive reasoning had been switched off, and she is incapable of drawing conclusions from the information she is taking in. So while I had above table worked out what this was, Val had no fucking clue why Levi was now barking at squirrels out of the window and Mei was turning into materials like water and string.

As things often do, it got Worse. All things considered, Val actually handled the situation better than the others did in terms of the things that happened to her, second to perhaps Aluber. Darcy and Mei got Bad first. I haven't talked about these two as much, but they're an interesting pair of cases. Darcy, in short, is a body without a soul who acts mostly on impulse. Mei is a ghost, a soul without a body. This drug made them each yearn for what they were missing, and they fucking fused together into a single person. We called her Marcy. Marcy proceeded to grab Aluber and go on a quest to run around and frolick because the soul piloting her (Mei, now as drunk as two people) missed having a physical form so much. In their frolicking, they went down into a certain basement.

I don't think I've had cause to bring this basement up yet, because this is not the Murder Basement. One of the characters that used to be part of the friend group, Seraph (who has since been kidnapped by his uncle and taken to boot camp) was a Nephilim, a half-angel. This basement is where his dad is locked up. He likes to read. Marcy went to go and visit him and show off being a whole complete person, and to her dismay he ripped them back into Mei and Darcy before sending them on their way. Also Darcy gave him a copy of Fifty Shades of Grey and I genuinely have no way to work that neatly into the flow of the post. Suffer.

Back in Old Church, Levi caught a scent in the wind. The scent of a deer in his territory. Levi is a werewolf with Khorne hanging out in his brain (complicated) and therefore did what werewolves are wont to do. He went on a hunt, bringing back the whole corpse of a deer and getting very possessive over it. This was the point where we really should have started to be worried, but our characters were all drunk off their asses and didn't think it was a problem. Val, who at this point was fucking around with magic that wasn't obeying her properly and writing absolutely incomprehensible things in chalk, accidentally turned an entire wall into blood when trying to remove blood that she had put there.

Things got worse from there. Levi now had the scent of blood. Levi, who has a telepathic connection with the rest of his wolf pack.

Mei and Darcy got back and were understandably rather depressed. Val had the galaxy-brain idea to use magic to make Darcy less sad and it just completely did not work. Instead, Darcy's filter was completely removed.

Aluber for reasons I genuinely don't remember was covered in blood at this point and, seeing that Levi had got its scent, washed it off with vodka.

Val tried to un-blood the wall, succeeded, and then realised it had pissed off Levi. She did not succeed at turning it back into blood.

Levi and the rest of the wolf pack were starting to frenzy.

The girls were a drunk pile on the floor, chatting about bullshit.

Aluber and Levi went outside, and there was a really fucking intense fight that unfortunately I was not especially tuned into because at this point the girls were absolutely in their drunk pile (we, the players, all got into a pile on one of the sofas for realism) and ended up talking about how we were embodying gender stereotypes by just chatting while the boys had an intense brawl outside, and were remarkably casual about it under the circumstances.

Once again, the slippy boy came out on top and did manage to beat Levi, but not without Levi allowing some of Khorne's influence to get a further hold on him, which for those of you who aren't already aware of Khorne is Very Fucking Bad. The drug wore off on both of them, and they realised Oh God Oh Fuck This Is Very Bad before each going home to sleep off the alcohol and rest. The girls were still drunk off their asses. Then Mei fully vanished.

Darcy and Val understandably panicked for about two minutes before Mei came back, the drug now having worn off on her too. With Val and Darcy still out of it, she took them back to her house so they could sleep, and needed things to tell their families. Mei already knew Darcy's mum and sent her a message to say Darcy was ok. Mei does not know Val's family, however. None of the gang do. She opened Val's phone to a message from her cousin entirely in emoji. If I'm remembering right this is actually the second time one of the gang has had to attempt to decipher the Westers' emoji code and for some fucking reason, Mei decided that the best thing to say was that Val was staying over with Levi. This might seem innocuous, but because the gang had recently finished faking a falling out, Val decided that the best excuse for why she was suddenly friends with Levi again was make-up sex. This resulted in a rumour going around the school that Val pegged Levi, which Mei decided to capitalise on here, impersonating Val to tell her cousin (using emoji code) that she was spending the night with Levi for sex reasons. As much as Val is an agent of chaos, I really have to hand this one to Mei and her player because god damn.

[themildestofwriters]

I have nearly, oh so nearly finished the first part of the first book of my The Sith, Zero rebuild, which goes under the dubious title of "The Saga of Zero: Fall Into Darkness."

Not sure "Fall Into Darkness," works as a subtitle, but I wanted something that references the fact that this is a book about someone being pulled into a place of, well... darkness. Louise quite literally lands herself in slavery, and it is not a happy book.

Regardless, first part is mostly done. It's like... mostly drafted, and the most I need to do is write the religious hymns, prayers, liturgy, and blessings for the religious service proceeding the Summoning ritual. Then, I gotta rewrite the prologue (probably), which'll now start following Omiras (or whatever I name him) as he receives the alert about the anomalous event, rather than starting from the perspective of the anomalous event. I feel it'll give me a good way of getting his character properly established. It'll be easier to set up the slavery angle, too, rather than just dropping that fact in at the end, while also giving me the option to do some exposition about how slavery works in the Empire (among other stuff, especially the core changes I'm making to the Star Wars universe). Then it's just a massive editing spree over the entire document to get everything up to snuff.

Part two is trickier, because I've got half of it done, it's just that I am struggling big time for the full reveal about the slave element. Louise hasn't got any idea what's going on because of the language barrier. Outside of that, she has a week to learn the language before she gets put to work, and the chapter where she gets put to work is the moment she realises what's going on. The problem is that I don't know how to write that, and it's just a pain, lol. But once I get through that, it should be relatively smooth sailing from there, through the chapter or two compilation of important moments of Louise's time as a slave, ranging from her interpersonal relationships with the other slaves, her rebellious streak, and the punishments she receives for these rebellions. Part two then ends with the arrival of the Sith, Louise's supernatural acquisition of language, and a dinner where she *finally* gets the full picture of what's going on.

I haven't written much for part three, but I do have a very good idea of how things go. It starts with a New Year's chapter where she and the other slaves get to have some time off and celebrate together, before getting right into things next chapter. Pirates come for Louise, people die, the Force Awakens, and Louise is set to start training at the Sith Academy. Final chapter, like the prologue, will be from someone else's perspective, Kirche, a classmate (and bully) watching her perform the Summoning ritual, watching how it goes wrong, and watching vanish, the chapter ending with the after Summoning dinner, a rendition of House of the Rising Sun in Old French, and some introspection.

Doable, but difficult. Writing religious liturgy is hard, especially for a Norse Pagan inspired religion influenced by Catholicism. The transition in part two, when she learns that she's a slave, is just difficult. I'm not sure if she should figure it out herself, of if it's believable that she'd refuse to acknowledge the possibility. She is just fourteen and from a privileged background, after all. As someone who writes linearly, I can't write much else until I finish that part.

Once the book is done... book two is going to be interesting. First off is the question of how, exactly, I'm supposed to write three years in one book, and I'm just not sure how I'm supposed to write this in a way that isn't just a massive mess.

Three years, six trials, two trials per year, plus the Imperial holidays, festivals, national events, national news, as well as Academy training, events, and student-run parties. Oh, and Louise's own religious practices. Somehow I've got to fit all that in, on top of interpersonal interactions, in a single book.

Of course, I could split it. Two books. Three books. I even have a good climax for the first part (her third or fourth trial) which takes her to the Tomb of Ludo Kressh, where things take a turn for the psychological horror. The issue is, I'm not sure how I'd wind up balancing things. A lot of things Louise would wind up doing would happen in her first year, so part one would be bloated with all these events, and part two would be left floundering with little except training, trials, and a party. It is doable, though. If I just balance things right, it could work.

Maybe Louise enters a sort of depression state in part one once she realises the reality of being a slave-caste acolyte? She doesn't engage with the wider Imperial culture, because she doesn't have the energy, because she is angry and resentful toward the Empire, because too much time is spent training and catching up. Maybe she even lapses in her religious practices. Then, after her time in Kressh's tomb, part two starts, and she comes out more willing to engage with the Empire and rekindle her religious practices. She attends events, goes to parties, tries to live in spite of the world around her. Hmm... whatever the case, I'll be a lot more loosey-goosey with the OG's plot structure.

If I do end up splitting it in two, I'll need to figure out epilogues and prologues for both. The first prologue would be Kory, an acolyte in her coterie. Basically builds up her as a character, the perspective of an Imperial-born slave, while also giving the reader a perspective on Louise from the beginning of her training as a Sith. All prologues are just my way of giving the reader a look at Louise from an outside perspective, while also expanding upon a character and the world in a way that couldn't be explored in any other way. Omiras's slave operation, Kory's life as a slave, details Louise would miss.

Epilogues on the other hand, are looks into the world Louise was taken from and deal with the aftermath of her vanishing. First epilogue is an outsiders perspective on Louise's summoning, her vanishing, and the immediate aftermath. Second epilogue would be another character, unrelated to (but also related to) Louise, and looking at the world from another perspective, looking at the aftermath of Louise's summoning from a distance, and delving into a sort of meta plot that's developing back home. This'll follow Tiffania, a jacked not-Scotswoman living in the wild forests of flying not-Britain running an orphanage with her famed theif of a sister, except it turns out Tiffania is actually the long lost half-elven niece of the not-UK Royal Family during actually-Cromwell's anti-monarchist reign, and also she's one fourth a messiah.

Second prologue (for part two) would probably be... Quorian Dorjis, who is a Jedi imprisoned on Korriban, who Louise befriends. I'll have to move his quest line up to book two (somehow), but it'd be a really interesting perspective to look at, being able to see how a Jedi (drugged as he may be) looking at Louise. It'll also be a great way of introducing the Jedi perspective, which I've made wholly foreign to how I present the Sith perspective. They're not mirrors of each other, but alien in how they view the Force.

Second epilogue... I think it'd have to be Louise's mum arriving on a manticore to throttle the Headmaster for losing her daughter. Or I might make it the first epilogue of part one of book two. Either or, Louise's mum's perspective is a must have because not only does Louise have a complicated relationship with her parents, but her mum is a complicated woman, too. It'll definitely be the hardest of the alt. POVs.

Book three (of four, if I split the second book) will be the shortest, and also introduce the idea of doing much of the following books as shorter works that are done in five to ten or so chapters, rather than the fifteen to twenty of the previous ones. It's a simple thing, adapting one of the Flashpoints from SWTOR, the Black Talon. It'll open with Khem Val's perspective as a POV, and end with... hmm... I'm not sure. It's far enough away that it won't matter if I don't figure it out, but it is still important *to* figure out. I could either look back at a previous POV, but I also feel it's too soon to do so.

As it stands, new characters I could look at are... Tabitha, a classmate of Louise who Louise had a crush on, but is also a black ops agent working for a foreign kingdom (which is ruled by her evil uncle); Henrietta, Princess of Louise's home nation and Louise's first and oldest friend; Pope McDongcopter (fandom nickname), who is the Pope and also a dick (and also one fourth a messiah) who plans on invading actual modern day Earth with muskets and magic; Louise's sisters, who are Louise's sisters, one who acts like a bitch to hide the fact that she cares deeply, another who is just... you know, terminally ill; King Joseph, who is Tabitha's uncle, evil, and also one fourth a messiah, and is the power behind actual-Cromwell on not-Britain; and... yeah. That's about it so far. Those are the important players on Louise's homeworld.

Regardless of who caps it off, I think book three (four) is where I start posting the fic online. Weekly or bi-weekly, with a week break between books. It's not the last book, but it is where I'll probably be like "Okay, I have enough content to justify finally publishing this reboot!"

Book four is going to be the Dromund Kaas plot from SWTOR, but with heavy focus on Louise finally being able to just live life as a proper civilian in the Empire. I want to just explore Imperial life, and how it works, and Louise'll be a great method to do so. I mean, sure, Sith politics remains a pressing issue, but I feel like it's the first time she can just *breath*.

Prologue is probably Darth Skotia or Zyira (Louise's room-mate from the Academy). Both have great perspectives to look into, though only one is plot relevant. Epilogue... refer to previous epilogue discussion (i.e. I don't fucking know).

Then, after that, it'll pretty much be an episodic series of books. I mean, that's the general plot structure of SWTOR, each planet having its own plot, so why not make each planet its own book? Short five to ten chapters worth. Can't be bothered mentioning who is prologue and epilogue, but yeah. That's basically the plan for the Saga of Zero.

[sleep-deprivedracoon]

It seems like there is no escaping the JD vs AH trial anywhere. All my socials are flooded with the trial. My fellow university students are talking about it. My internship colleagues are talking about it. Everyone has their own opinion on this case. Fair. We're entitled to. It's a sensational case about 2 celebrities who want to sue each other for defamation with the central theme of the case being domestic violence. It is being televised for the whole world to watch and lawtubers and lawyer influencers are milking the shit out of this case. Even meme pages get heavy engagement on the memes related to the case.

I watched the case proceedings multiple times to get an unbiased view on it. I must say that AHs lawyers seem under prepared for this case. Who's side am I on? Johnny Depp's. I do believe that the op-ed was written with malicious intent.

I might lose followers for this opinion but I wanted to voice it out. This case has shed light on male domestic violence. Whether the abuse was mutual or the relationship between AH and jD was toxic doesn't change the fact that he was also abused. Men can be abused too. At workplaces, among acquaintances, by their families, by their spouses. It is time that we helped them instead of mocking them for not being man enough.

Also, just because I am on his side, doesn't mean that I am okay with everything that is happening

1. Can we stop shipping him with his lawyer? They're real people. Not fictional characters. This affects their dynamics as business partners. He is her client. They might be good friends. But shipping them? Really? Isn't she spoken for? Would you like to read about your partner being shipped with someone they're working with?

2. Can we not involve either parties children into the picture? Johnny made it clear that he doesn't want his children involved with this. Why are people calling out his daughter for not openly supporting him? She could do so in private. Do I believe AH is getting death threats? Absolutely. Do I think someone threatened her baby? Yes. These children of both parties need to be separated from the issue. They're children and the issue is with their parents, not them. Keep the children out of this.

3. Hating on witnesses is not okay. They maybe terrible witnesses with terrible personality but it doesn't make it okay to direct an online mob at them. Did some of them commit perjury? Maybe. But that is for the court to decide. Taking the law into our own hands and subjecting someone to abuse over social media is unjust.

4. The same goes for lawyers, judge or jury. If the case doesn't favor your party's interest. Do not direct any hate to the parties involved. They did their job. Whether the decision was justified or not will be decided by AH or JD and they will file an appeal. We are supporting these figures and not fighting their battles for them.

You guys can argue all you want in the comments of this post but I truly believe that we've been acting like a lynch mob. For a case who's central theme circles around abuse, we sure as hell have no problem subjecting others to different types of abuse over social media.

[hanafubukki]

A Miracle

Summary: You were sure someone was making fun of you because what else can explain William and Louis turning into children? 

Characters: William, Louis, and Reader. 

Notes: I blame @garmadorkowo for this. She just flames my random spurts of ideas and I can’t help but then write them. 🤣🤣🤣 (she knows I love her lolol 💚🌸) Anyways, it’s never too late for a holiday fic. 😂😂😂 even in January/February. Also, Happy Lunar New Year to those who celebrates 🐯🐯🐯🐯

·      You were sure that you were being laughed at.

·      Because the sight before you had no other explanation.

·      Right in front of you were two blond children, about the age of ten years old with ruby red eyes.

·       So, why did you think you were getting made fun of?

·      Because the two children in front of you were Williams James Moriarty and Louis James Moriarty.

·      I am never eating anything Sebastian recommends again. I must be hallucinating.

·      William and Louis were looking at each other, astonished at seeing their younger selves again.

·      Even William did not have an explanation for this phenomenon.

·      You just stared at them.

·      They are very cute though. I kind of want to hug them and pinch their cheeks.

·      So, why not do it?

·      You crouched down in front of the boys, their attention turning to you, curious.

·      You reached out and pinched their cheeks.

·      “Ow!” Twin voices resonated.

·      Your eyes widened.

·      “Oh!” You were surprised.

·      They really turned into children!

·      You knew you should have freaked out, but you couldn’t help it.

·      You pulled the two boys into a hug.

·      “Oh! You two are so cute!”

·      “YN!” Louis and William squirmed in your arms.

·      You let them go.

·      You had to show Albert!

·      “Albert!” You called out.

·      “Brother Albert is out today. He won’t be back until tonight.” Louis informed you.

·      Well, he’ll get a surprise when he comes home.

·      At least, whatever caused this, allowed the boys’ clothes to change with them.

·      You didn’t know what you would have done had you needed to go out and buy children’s clothes.

·      The social circle would spread rumors in an instant, and that’s the last thing anyone needed.    

·      Now what to do with them?

·      You looked at the brothers contemplatively.

·      You hated to think it.

·      But these boys…

·      Clearly did not know how to have fun.

·      Which, considering their childhood, you were not surprised about.

·      But at the same time, couldn’t they have taken this opportunity and do something fun?

·      William was reading a book and Louis, as always, was by his side.

·      Which is all fun and great.

·      Any other day.

·      But not today.

·      “Okay! That’s it!”

·      The brothers looked at you in surprise as you got up.

·      “We are going to have fun!”

·      You proceeded to take William’s book and put it back on the bookshelf before dragging the boys outside to have fun.

·      Luckily for you and the boys, it was the snowy season.

·      With the winter holidays approaching and the change in season, snow was constantly seen.

·      You had then forced the boys into making a snowman with you.

·      Dressing it up in Sebastian’s clothes.

·      You and the boys had giggled thinking about his reaction.

·      You promised yourself that you would make it up to him later.

·      Afterwards, you had bit the bullet and had the boys make everyone into snowmen.

·      Louis was in charge of going inside and retrieving a pair of everyone’s clothes.

·      Internally, you also worried about his health.

·      So, you made sure he went inside to warm up constantly.

·      At the end, the front yard was filled with snowmen of everyone, including you.

·      The next game on your agenda was snowball fights.

·      Which, of course, you lost at.

·      The boys teaming up against you.

·      You never stood a chance.

·      But it was worth it, since the smile on their faces never left.

·      You had wanted to make snow angels with them, but you forced them into the house.

·      Wanting to make sure these boys warmed up properly and didn’t catch colds.

·      There’s always tomorrow after all.

·      Who knew how long they would stay like this.

·      You forbade Louis from using the stove.

·      He had tried to fight you on it and how he had so many years of experience, but you simply shook your head.

·      William and Louis were allowed to mix the cookie dough and decorate the cookies.

·      You oversaw putting them in the oven and making hot chocolate.

·      After the baking was finished, you all enjoyed the treats in the living room where a nice warm fire greeted you all.

·      You couldn’t help but admire the detailed cookies Louis had made.

·      It’s so professional looking; I can’t help but be jealous.

·      Your cookies were a mix-match of colors and lines, but at least they were still edible.

·      You smiled gently as you put a small blanket on the two blond brothers and kissed them on their foreheads.

·      They had knocked out right after treats were consumed and you had read them a story about Santa Claus.

·      William pointed out every flaw in the story.

·      Louis questioned the sanity of letting some random old man into the house.

·      You knew they were messing with you, but you allowed it.

·      As long as they were having fun, even if it was at your expense.

·      Come to think of it…

·      You had wished for this, hadn’t you?

·      You remember hearing about their childhood one day from Albert.

·      How they had moved from orphanage to orphanage until finally meeting Albert.

·      Later that day, you had wished in front of the giant decorated tree in town for the boys’ happiness. You wanted to bring a smile to their face.

·      And in a way, you got your wish.

·      Maybe.

·      Just maybe.

·      There was some truth to fairytales.

·      This could only be...

·      A miracle.

Hope you enjoyed 🌸💕☺️

[hikari-kaitou]

Capcom's Official AA Fanclub Surveys - DGS Edition

Many Western fans may be familiar with the Turnabout 4koma comics that get posted on the official AA fanclub site that Capcom runs, thanks to some lovely fans on tumblr and elsewhere who have shared their translations. What fewer people seem to know about is the character surveys.

Back in the old days, they used to hold a survey on Capcom's official AA fansite every few months where they'd write about the seasonal activities of a handful of characters and ask fans to vote for the funniest/most pleasant/strangest/etc answer.

They stopped doing them in like... 2016? 2017? The original text is lost for good as far as I can tell. Even the wayback machine couldn't help because the content was password locked and you can't get past the password wall while remaining in the archived version.

Fortunately, I saved some of my translations of them so I thought I’d share them.

Cut for length...

"February has begun, and the DGS cast is nearing the end of their journey aboard the RFS Alacrei. Which of them acted the most strangely?"

Ryuunosuke ~ Exhausted from his intensive study session, he decided to try some katana swinging practice as a change of pace and to combat his recent lack of exercise. But because he wasn't used to handling the katana, he swung it too hard and it went flying out of his hands and got stuck in the wall right next to Sherlock, who had just entered the room. Sherlock asked him, "aren't you supposed to be studying right now, Mr. Naruhodo?" and handcuffed him to his desk.

Susato- worked on developing a curriculum for Ryuunosuke. 'If we keep going at this pace, he won't be able to learn it all in time... It'll be hard on Naruhodo-sama, but we'll have to work hard through a couple of nights together.' With that thought, she created a harsh study schedule, and almost seemed to be looking forward to it for some reason.

Sherlock- Driven by excitement over the thought of returning to England after a long absence, he went up on deck to stare at the ocean. Being February, it was very cold out there and he ended up being chilled all the way to the tips of his fingers. He returned to the ship cabins and amused himself by putting his frozen hands on Ryuunosuke, who was stuck in his room studying.

Van Zieks- Upon hearing from Vortex that there was a Japanese exchange student coming to England to study law, he smashed a Lord's Bottle. He apparently also didn't care for the fact that that Japanese student wouldn't be alone, because he proceeded to shatter his chalice, too.

Hosonaga- in order to provide a respite from studying, he provided some hot chocolate. They enjoyed a pleasant tea time, marveling over how sweet and delicious the drink was until Sherlock piped up with some unnecessary trivia: 'Actually folks, chocolate has long been used in Europe as an aphrodisiac!' Everyone promptly spat it out."

"The long winter is nearly over and spring is on it's way, putting the DGS cast members in a celebratory mood. Who found the best way of enjoying spring?"

Ryuunosuke: the Yuumei University faculty members were holding a flower viewing event, and he joined the assistance committee. He exhausted himself keeping the blankets clean so the intense shower of flower petals wouldn't pile up too high on them, delivering sake and snacks, and mediating whatever pointless fights arose. To top it all off, for some reason his compensation was only a single piece of leftover candy. Talk about a sad result!

Susato- her father and the others living in his dormitory were  holding the flower viewing event, so she got up early to prepare the bentos. But her father carelessly forgot to tell her that they wanted tea cakes, so she had to go around the house and neighborhood collecting sweets. For some reason, she ended up being able to gather caramels, biscuits, candy sticks, basically everything but tea cakes, for the tea ceremony.

Sherlock- he disguised himself as a beat officer and infiltrated Scotland Yard to have some fun. There was a real beat officer napping on his feet in the spring sunshine, and while observing him, Sherlock ended up falling asleep too. Detective Gregson gave them a good scolding when he found them, but then Sherlock revealed his true identity with a "hey, it's me, folks!" "What the blazes do you think you're doing?!" Gregson shouted, his rage growing even more, and Sherlock ended up making a run for it.

Van Zieks- went to the vineyard to oversee the production of the contents of his Lord's Bottle. As he viewed the still unopened grape blossom buds, he thought about how they would someday grow up to fill his Lord's Bottle, and ended up going around to look at each one. But the farm hands couldn't stop wondering whether the bottle itself or its owner's heel might come flying at them and were quite uneasy.

Asougi: exhausted himself running around since early morning helping with the professors' flower viewing event. When it was over, he took a break, sharing his reward candy stick [the name of the candy literally translates to 1,000 year candy] with Ryuunosuke, who had also been helping out. 

"I wonder if the candy's effect is halved if you share it with someone."

"That still gives us 500 years."

They laughed and enjoyed looking at the flowers until dark. Then they parted ways with a handshake and a "see you later, best friend."

(This one was something about celebrating New Years. For some reason I didn't save the original question)

"Ryuunosuke ~ To celebrate New Years, he planned to pound mochi with everyone at the office. He somehow managed to get his hands on some mochi rice and he and Sherlock started pounding. Iris was having such fun watching them that she steamed a whole bunch more mochi rice so they could have some to share, and he and Sherlock spent the whole evening pounding mochi like crazy.

Asougi~ Because it's New Years, he went around to a bunch of shrines. When he drew his new year's fortune, he got a "horrible luck" result. "I'm not worried about it," he claimed, and headed up to the mountains early on New Years morning and work hard on a full training course of purification by water, meditation under a waterfall and wooden sword practice. It seems that he was working really hard to clear his mind of all earthly thoughts

Sherlock- Agreed to help Ryuunosuke pound mochi. As Ryuunosuke was flipping the mochi over, he carelessly dropped his badge into the bowl and Sherlock mixed it in without noticing, so they had to crack open both the hard and soft mochi to look for it. Fortunately they found it in the 4th one they checked, but apparently Sherlock got his hands and face covered in sticky white mochi in the process.

Susato- Wore a furisode and went with her father to do the first shrine visit of the year. The shrine was incredibly crowded and they had to wait in line for a long time, but she brought the Encyclopaedia of British Law and a copy of the Strand Magazine in her sleeves to secretly read as they waited so she actually ended up enjoying the wait.

Van Zieks- Ryuunosuke cheerfully gave him some mochi as a New Year’s (which at that time was celebrated at the same time as the Chinese New Year) gift, which he accepted confusedly, wondering “...Can the Japanese not even keep track of when the New Year is?” Because Ryuunosuke referred to it as a rice cake, he tried to eat it like a regular cake without softening it with heat first. It was so hard that he couldn’t imagine how it could possibly be food, and ended up misunderstanding the Japanese even more!

"Autumn has arrived, and the weather is starting to cool off, which means that everyone is becoming more active. Which character chose the most pleasant autumn activity to keep busy with?"

Iris was making bread but her hands are small and it’s difficult for her to knead the dough, so she asked for Ryuunosuke’s help. She wanted to make enough to hand out to Gina and all the other homeless children in the East End, so she made a massive amount and Ryuunosuke was stuck kneading this massive mountain of bread dough all day. Apparently he became such a expert at kneading that he could be a baker now.

Asougi was practicing with his sword, slicing autumn-colored ginko leaves as they fell from the tree. He cut so many leaves, though, that he ended up making a big mess on the ground, the number of fallen leaves now having increased, and it took him a long time to clean it all up.    

Sherlock: Ryuunosuke told him that he was making anpan (bread filled with sweet red bean paste, the bane of my Asian-dwelling existance) and asked Sherlock to help by being in charge of getting the poppy seeds they’d need to sprinkle on top, so Sherlock went out and gathered a ton of poppy seeds. In fact, he got so many of them that no one knew what to do with them all cuz they had a huge amount of leftovers. Sherlock said, “Well, they’re only the size of poppy seeds! Surely you two can deal with them somehow! Ahahaha!” and Iris scolded him.   

(I couldn’t capture it in English, but Sherlock’s line contained a pun, and a pretty stupid one at that, so that’s part of why he got scolded)

It’s grape harvesting season, so Van Zieks commutes to the winery regularly to direct the production of the contents for his “Lord’s Bottle.” He demands perfection in everything from the selection of the grapes to the way they’re squeezed, and the winery staff is terrified by the “grim reaper’s” gaze and heel swinging (i.e. the leg thing he does in court) so they grumble as they work. 

"Hearing that there’s a holiday in the West called Halloween, the people involved with the court in Japan decided to try it out themselves. Naturally Halloween is a big deal in England as well. So, which member of the DGS cast had the best celebration?"

Team Ryuunosuke and Asougi- Asougi got Naruhodo up on his shoulders and they draped a white sheet over themselves to make a ghost costume. They went out like that, but Naruhodo had such exaggerated reactions to the fear of the people who saw them and to bumping his head on tree branches that they ended up losing their balance and falling on top of each other?!   

Sherlock Holmes- went wearing a horse’s head mask. Iris used her skills to make it a fancy horse covered in stars, but the eye holes weren’t well made and he had to wander around blindly. Because of that he tripped hard over a pile of coal! He ended up getting so dirty that the stars on his costume were covered up!

Van Zieks- took inspiration from his nickname and dressed up as the grim reaper. He covered himself up with a skeleton mask and hood figuring no one would know it was him. Unfortunately he got angry when he saw Megundal (McGilded) pass by and started throwing bottles and glasses and ended up giving himself away.

"November has arrived, and autumn is nearing its end. However, the DGS cast is still keeping busy, even on their days off. Which character chose the most interesting way to spend their late autumn day?"

Ryuunosuke- Thinking that he’d better learn more about British culture if he was going to be a defense attorney in Britain, he went down to the East End with Gina for a little observation. However, because an Asian like him stood out so much, he got mobbed by the other children. On top of it all, his arm band got stolen from him and he had to send a replacement request to Yumei University on the other side of the ocean.

Asougi- He went for a meal at La Quantas. The customer at a nearby table got a persimmon for dessert and scarfed it down, saying “Mm! This is it! This sweetness makes it worthy of being called a treasure among foods!” Asougi tried to comment on this by saying, “The customer at that table sure is enjoying his pershim--gak!” but he may or may not have accidentally bitten his tongue in the process and been unable to finish his sentence.

Iris- She accepted Ryuunosuke’s request to learn more about British culture and prepared a bagpipe and kilt costume for him. “This outfit sure is breezy,” Ryuunosuke said shyly upon trying it on. With Ryuunosuke now dressed, he, Iris, and the others from their office headed over to Gregson’s place to get him to treat them to some fish and chips.   

Sherlock- He accepted Ryuunosuke’s request to learn more about British culture and cooked up some European style curry for dinner. Thanks to the fact that his secret ingredient was a large amount of Chinese herbal medicine style spice, it caused some strange side effects and Ryuunosuke, who’d eaten it, ended up passing out and falling over.

“Another taxing trial for Ryuunosuke has finished and now it’s December. As the year draws to a close, which character acts the strangest?”

Ryuunosuke- he was recruited to help with snow removal around Yumei University and the courthouse and he enthusiastically began his task with the help of a large shovel. He got a little carried away, though, and ended up accidentally burying his umbrella, which he’d left propped up against the side of the building, in the snow he’d just finished shoveling.  He had no choice but to share Asougi’s umbrella on the way home.

Asougi- On the way home, he nods silently to Ryuunosuke’s question of whether he’d finished his travel preparations and changes the subject: “...Come to think of it, it seems that tomorrow is celebrated in the West as God’s birthday.” “I’ve heard that they eat chicken as part of the traditional celebration. Wanna try it?” Ryuunosuke asks invitingly. Asougi is strongly opposed to that particular menu item, however, and they end up going out for their usual beef stew that night instead.           

Susato- in addition to her year-end travel preparations, she also was busy with straightening up the book room in her home. She managed to get the law books in order when she suddenly stumbled upon some old issues of Strand Magazine! She hurried through the rest of her cleaning, then began flipping through the magazines she’d found, trying to decide which to take with her on her trip. She accidentally lost herself in her reading and didn’t realize it until it was already the middle of the night.

Sherlock- he was in the middle of a long ship voyage when Christmas night came. His mind on his partner in a far-off country, he made a toast alone on deck, when suddenly the crew began shooting off fireworks with a cry of “Merry Christmas!” Sherlock had to dart back and forth across the deck to prevent the fireworks from hitting him and setting off the explosive chemicals he carries with him.

Main series edition