#but unlike her there’s no way for me to rectify that

[malachitezmeyka]

What hurts the most about bad days is that I literally don’t have anyone I could go crying to when they happen

[coriosbunni]

𐙚⊹ ࣪ - kiss me

pairing: peacekeeper!coriolanus snow x fem!reader

warnings: straight up fluff, hint of daddy issues :p, slight ooc!coriolanus ?

summary: a peaceful morning in a cabin where y/n wakes up thinking about her relationship with coriolanus.

you wake up to the sounds of the bird chirping outside of the windows. it was a hot night and with no air conditioning, it was hard to sleep with no type of air circulation. corio rectified the problem by opening all the windows to let the cool night breeze in.

you blink your eyes open, seeing coriolanus's buzzed hair in your view right away. you smile thinking back the events from last night. after making dinner together, he showed his love for you in a way that made you glad no one could hear you for miles and miles.

your life with corio in district 12 was different than your life in the capitol. after disobeying your father's advice to not fall in love with a snow, he let you follow your boyfriend in district 12 after he was sent there for helping his tribute win the hunger games. he thought a lesson is learned best when you experience it for yourself.

you obviously had a different opinion on your relationship with corio than your father did. to you, corio was the only one you could lean to. unlike your father, he actually cared about you and protected you. you were glad to have a man like him in your life.

you get up from the bed carefully and decide to go out to the porch to let your mind wander. you sit on the chair and tuck your legs close to you.

you miss your family back home, but what good is a family if they never supported you? they never bothered to even give you an ounce of attention. the snows were the only one you could really count as a family.

tigris was closer to you than your actual sister. you were thankful to have grown up with the snows. they gave you love and affection that your own family never did.

coriolanus was the best thing to happen to you. you couldn't believe you were finally living your lives alone, together. you continue to ponder about your new life with your boyfriend.

coriolanus stirs in bed, feeling y/n's absence beside him. he opens his eyes groggily, scanning the empty space beside him, and then suddenly noticing the open front door. concern and worry flood his mind as he quickly sits up in bed and glances around, searching for his lover.

he stands up quietly, stepping out of bed and padding silently over to the porch, his heart racing with worry and apprehension. but it all goes away once he lays his eyes on you sitting peacefully.

he approaches you with a slight worry in his eyes. he didn't know what to make of him waking up without you by his side. "is everything okay my love?" worry filling his voice.

"mmhm everythings okay corio" you smile up at him, getting up from your chair to wrap your arms around his waist. the sudden hug took coriolanus by surprise but he isn't mad about it.

his arms wrap around you like a protective shield, he can tell theres a lot in your mind, "what you thinking about bunny?" he murmurs softly, his voice filled with love and concern.

"just glad to have you in my life 's all" you mumble still in his arms. he smiles at your response, his heart warming up to your words. he presses soft kisses on your hair and temples, his touch gentle and comforting.

"i feel the same way about you. you've brought so much joy and love to my life, and the thought of losing you breaks my heart." he responds. he cups your face in his hand, his gaze meeting yours, full of sincerity. "you are my everything bunny."

your heart swells with how in love you are with him. your chest fills with this bittersweet feeling that you can't get rid of. "i love you so much corio" you confess.

coriolanus's heart swells with love as he hears this. he pulls her as close as he can get, his embrace tight and protective. coriolanus gives you a kiss, your lips meeting in a tender and passionate embrace. he pours his love and devotion into the kiss, his arms tightening around you as he deepens it. "i am yours, my love," he whispers against your lips, his voice full of emotion and desire.

"forever and always."

your heart swells with love and contentment as he says those words, and he leans in to rest his forehead against yours, "and i am forever yours," you whisper back.

the feel of his forehead against yours, the closeness, and the safety of his embrace makes you feel like nothing could hurt you as long as you stayed together. your love and bond is unbreakable, and you know that you'll always have each other to lean on, no matter what the future holds.

your history with him shows how your love perseveres through anything.

[elswing]

in defense of elrond

it is ironic that elrond keeps accusing galadriel of being too blinded by pride while he's fallen equally victim to being blinded by his own frustrations. neither of them are being particularly rational about the situation because they're both hurt and feeling betrayed, and i think elrond's remark about how galadriel only sacrificed herself to save the ring instead of the company perfectly encapsulates that—because, yeah, that is a fair interpretation of it, but she did just tell him five seconds ago that she was only there to protect them, a fact that exists simultaneously with her possessiveness over nenya.

it isn't One Or The Other, just like both of their opinions on the rings, because in actuality they are both right about them. elrond has a limited perspective on it, but from his pov he is completely justified in hating the three feanorian crafted shiny magic jewels that everyone around them covets (🤨). all he knows is that sauron had a hand in making them and no one can possibly know how much influence he has over them because the true art of his craft is subtle. as in, you don't know it's happening to you until you're suddenly slapped with the consequences of it. it is equally fair of him to be suspicious of galadriel herself, because it is impossible to rely on whether she now believes herself to be free of his corruption when she never knew it was there to begin with. also, again, for emphasis—she knew sauron walked among them, she knew he'd helped make the rings, and she let it happen anyway. that doesn't exactly inspire trust, especially when it's the exact antithesis of the point she's trying to prove to elrond and she hasn't done anything to try and rectify that breach of friendship except offer an apology that does sound quite empty given she is still championing the rings.

on the other hand, galadriel is the one who spent time with sauron all this time. galadriel is the one who befriended him, and while even we as the viewers can't be sure which parts of halbrand were an act and which were genuine moments of connection, the main point is still clear: whether she wants it or not, they understand each other. even without their friendship, you can't spend thousands of years dedicating your life to hunting someone down without them becoming familiar to you in some way, and i think there is a specific manner of vulnerability that loss and grief gave her and it just tore her wide open for all sorts of habits and traits to take root. she became so devoted to her vengeance against sauron that the lines between identity and purpose began to blur.

i am not of the opinion that galadriel loves sauron (or vice versa, but that's a whole other post), as fascinating as their dynamic is to me. i do think that she is a passionate individual who was made for love and boldness, and losing everything she did was never going to mellow her out or slow her down. in her, vulnerability takes the form of rage, and it is there, in that twisted, not-quite-galadriel version of herself, that sauron was able to find a reflection.

there is no way elrond can possibly understand any of that, even despite suffering similar losses, because that's just not who he is. galadriel has the better intuition on sauron's manipulations, and she has a far better understanding of the depth of them, so of course her opinion should count here.

the issue is that they're both too raw and hurt that neither of them are willing to say "okay, so we BOTH have good points here. let's hear each other out instead of waiting for one of us to see reason and blindly agree with everything the other is saying"

i think it should also be noted that galadriel does end up being right about the rings' capabilities as a force for good, especially since the One to control them hasn't been forged yet. as unlikely as it might seem to elrond, her intuition isn't leading her astray here. we just haven't reached that point in the story yet (nor have we reached the point where galadriel begins to humble herself to the elves and seeks to redeem herself like morfydd mentioned, but i have a feeling they're getting into that now. after all, she did give nenya up to the guy who hurtled face-first off a cliff hoping to destroy them, so that's gotta count for something. baby steps!)

[diazmaximoff]

Daniel's power isn't less interesting than Max's

I think telekinesis is a really fitting story element for Life is Strange 2 because, unlike Max, who’s a young adult with a somewhat clear sense of self and purpose with her own powers, Daniel is still a child figuring out what he wants to do and what he’s capable of. His power is so simple yet unpredictable in nature, so the uncertainty of his future stands out even more to the player, prompting them to guide Daniel and help him find his place in the world with his newfound abilities. Let me elaborate.

Just like a child can master a range of skills—from learning new languages to playing musical instruments, or excelling in any possible sport—Daniel’s power is ridiculously versatile and it allows him to handle various tasks and challenges in countless ways: he can attack, defend, build, destroy, bend, steer, fly things around, exert control over someone's body, manipulate his environment and even perform intricate tasks like crafting or repairing. It's a power that can adapt to many situations, much like how children can grow into any role or talent they pursue. Children are born to be jacks of all trades.

In the first game, Max’s powers symbolized her struggles with insecurity and the desire to rectify past mistakes. She wanted to correct her every error, ultimately realizing that she can't and she just has to accept them like a responsible adult. In the second game, the power is a representation of a child's untapped potential and reflects the boundless possibilities of a child’s development, showing that with the right guidance, Daniel’s potential is as vast and adaptable as his power, allowing him to become anything he sets his mind to.

I really loved the part in episode 5 where Daniel used his power to build statues with Joan in Away. It's such a bittersweet moment that showcased his creativity and potential before the chaos that was about to unfold. It got me thinking that Daniel might even dream of becoming a constructor in the future. But ultimately, his path is his to forge and he has the freedom to shape his destiny however he chooses.

[fizzbot]

ok im not sure if anyones pointed this out yet, but this is a helluva boss sticker pack that just recently released. its very possible that it means absolutely nothing........but is it possible that these are hints to upcoming shorts???? (personal rambles and theories under the read more)

these all seem really random. which wouldnt be out of the norm for helluva merch, usually its just an assortment of random characters doing random things. but with the fact that we now know that we'll be getting shorts, and the fact that these all seem like very specific scenarios, i think its plausible that these are hints for things that might be upcoming.

the cherubs being here is especially interesting, because we havent seen anything about them AT ALL since early season 1. we know theyll be making a return (presumibly in mastermind) but then why is the merch featuring these cherubs, and not collin, keenie, and cletus? i think its possible that well be getting a short set in heaven, specifically about these characters/perhaps in preparation to the release of mastermind.

as we know from hells belles, verosika will be going on a tour in pride, which presumably sets up apology tour. but in this art shes not in pride, shes in sloth. this is where we know the rehab center is. is it possible shell end up back in rehab/well get a flashback short about her time in there? potentially even some backstory with her and barbie??

the next one features bee, tex, and loona. i THINK it was confirmed somewhere (although i dont have a source) that well be seeing bee again this year, although i just assumed that would be in the finale. its possible that she, tex, and loona will be hanging out again in a short, which would be nice! ive also seen some theories/speculation that this specefic piece of merch might allude to the ship ""honeybunch"" (or bee x tex x loona) potentially becoming canon.

stolas and octavia sort of has me stumped. based on her lines in the trailer, it seems like octavia is still harboring some resentment, and this picture seems like a really sweet glimpse into their domestic life. honestly this feels so out of character for me that it almost made me throw my whole idea about these being potential shorts out the window. im sure they still do have nice moments like this, but i struggle to picture them happening since the only interactions weve seen them have have been negative. maybe therell be a short trying to rectify this? or this could be a pre-blitz flashback.

im partially hoping these are shorts JUST for this next one. i want striker to have a short so so bad. i have literally NO idea what it would be, though. i just wanna see more of him and bombproof :( zooming in on the picture, i did notice that 1) theyre back in wrath. 2) striker is polishing a (not-blessed) knife. and 3), he doesnt seem to be too injured from the escape in oops. although, interestingly, we only get to see the left side of his face. im pointing this out, because in oops, when the explosion occurs, the shot of the fire zooming towards strikers face is a direct parallel to the shot of the fire zooming towards BLITZ face. i think it would be REALLY sick if they ended up with matching burn scars.

finally, moxxie and his mom. this is the piece that gave me this idea in the first place, just because it seems so incredibly random. i cannot even imagine a place where she would come back, if not a flashback short that delves deeper into his childhood. where else would she fit in this whole season? its possible that he has another flashback in the show, but the trailer seems REALLY focused on stolas and (especially) blitzs past, so it feels slightly unlikely. it makes sense that theyd get a whole short dedicated just for them.

idk, maybe im WAYYYY off. i just think it would be nice to get some time away from the main cast in their current states for a while and these seem like some of the best ways to do it

[lunar-years]

I think it’s *ahem* interesting that the same portion of the fandom that understands how Ted’s poor mental health and under-addressed trauma negatively impact his life and worsen his decision making also tend to treat Dottie Lasso like she’s the devil incarnate who’s single-handedly destroyed her son and his wellbeing. There’s this group of fans who both acknowledge Ted’s mental health journey as an imperative part of his arc and journey (which it is!) and excuse a lot of his behavior, particularly when it comes to the ways in which his mental health at its worst inarguably lessens his ability to be a present and effective parent to his son. They actively encourage him NOT to return home to son because “he finally has the chance to prioritize himself and needs to take it” or whatever, then turn around and say Dottie’s an irredeemably horrible evil witch who spends her time manipulating Ted and toying with his feelings. Ignoring completely that she’s also a women with a heck of a lot of under addressed trauma who’s gone without the resources to help herself and presumably also carries the baggage of growing up under a “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” mentality. Which is not to say I don’t think a lot of Dottie does is net bad/harmful! It totally is! And Ted is 100% in the right for confronting her and calling her out for the ways in which her inability to discuss what happened to their family has longterm fucked with his head. I just also think Dottie is also in the right for calling out Ted and the net negative effect his absence is having on Henry.

The thing about that scene is that they are both simultaneously wrong and right! But what makes it an effective conversation is that hell, at least now they’re talking about it! And airing out their baggage (hopefully) jumpstarts a positive change for both of them to do better for one another and their wider family. Because yes, I do think the conversation with Dottie contributed to Ted’s decision to return home…but unlike others, I think that is a good thing! The end of Ted’s story on the show is that he’s gotten the help Dottie never did (either because she didn’t know those resources were available to her, or the stigma around mental health dissuaded her, or whatever) and he’s all the better for it! By showing up in London, I do think there’s evidence that Dottie is also trying. Like sure, yes, she’s often misguided and faulty in her efforts. But she and Ted are much more similar than they are different. Both do a ton of masking to hid their own problems. Both are two imperfect people who made decisions they *thought* were right for their children only to later realize they’d fallen short as parents. And I think by the end of Mom City it’s safe to say that both are people who want to recognize their failings as parents and rectify what they can.

So yeah Dottie Lasso they could never make me hate you. Or whatever.

[carmillascrusade]

Lost and found | Alex Blake X F!Reader

Summary: You and Alex are in love with each other but Alex is convinced you love Emily. After a little mishap, you take Alex home where fluff ensues.

Word count: 1,210

A/N: I've been in such a writing slump lately so please excuse me if my writing is a tad off. Apologies for how short it is too.

Dark eyes watched you over the rim of a glass. The liquid sloshing dangerously close to the edge as Alex swirled the burnt umber liquid around her glass. You were across the bar, celebrating Emily’s short return with the rest of the team. Unlike the rest of the team, though, you were bent over the pool table with Emily behind you, guiding your hands as you played against the others. 

Alex couldn’t stand looking at you for any moment longer. Not when you were looking at Emily the way she looked at you. With a defeated sigh, she rose from where she sat, as steady as the sun rose in the morning and set in the afternoon. Risking one last glance at you, the unconscious pull towards you ever present, her heart sank to the depths of her stomach as she realised you were no longer there. 

Nor was Emily.  

The urge to flee the bar and protect herself from further heartbreak, no longer able to endure watching you with Emily, became too persistent to ignore. She went to grab her coat off the stool beside her, huffing out an irritated sigh as it jumped away from her and onto the floor. 

You approached her crouched form. Emily had finally approached the woman she had been eyeing all night, and you had found that you missed Alex’s presence far too much; despite her only being away from you for half an hour. 

“Need a hand?”

She jumped, hitting her head on the stool, as your voice pierced through her quiet struggle. She let out a pained whimper, so muffled that it wouldn’t have been audible unless you were focussed entirely on her. And you were. 

“Oh my god, Alex! I’m so sorry. I never meant to startle you.” You apologised, reaching over to place your hands over her own that cradled the back of her head. 

You removed her hands, checking over her for any visible injuries before rubbing soothing circles into the area she bumped. She looked up at you then, umber eyes wide and doe-like, like a vulnerable animal caught in a trap.

“Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, uh, fine.” 

You could feel a bump forming on her head from where it hit the stool. She watched your eyes fill with concern over her wellbeing and she couldn’t stop her eyes from glossing over. Her head was killing her and you, the cause of her misfortune in the first place, were here with her. You had left Emily and sought her out.

Her heart warmed at your nurturing gestures. A fine blush spread from her cheeks to her ears; a mix of embarrassment and awe for you swirling into a furious red. Too busy with checking her over and pulling her out of the bar, you hadn't noticed Alex’s meek disposition or the subtle blush she was so desperately trying to hide away. 

You felt awfully guilty. The woman you were besotted with had come to harm due to you. Logically, you knew that it was a mistake, easily done, but you wanted to rectify it as soon as possible. So Alex was getting dragged along to your house whilst you thought of a suitable way to take care of her. Alex followed your lead happily. Who was she to deny you and your wishes? She just wanted to be with you. In whatever way you would allow her to be. 

Alex was curled up on the couch, sprawled out like a tired feline at the end of the day. You had given her a bag of peas covered in a tea towel to soothe the bump on her head. Her hot chocolate was visibly steaming, the marshmallows melted into a pillowy layer on top of the saccharine drink. Yet, despite everything, Alex seemed to be in her own little world. Unresponsive to everything around her. Including you. 

Her favourite film was droning on quietly in the background as you quickly washed the dishes. You had an awful habit of letting them pile up and found that washing them right away decreased the chances of that happening. With a soft sigh, you finished up the dishes and dried your hands. 

Alex hadn’t noticed you approach until you gently coaxed her mug out of her hand before sitting down next to her. You nestled yourself under the blankets, huddling yourself close to Alex and basking in her warmth. Leaning against her, you looked up at her through your lashes before asking her what was plaguing her mind. 

“You and Emily seemed to be having fun today.” 

“Yeah? She was helping me beat Morgan and Reid. Although we still lost…” you grumbled off slightly at the end. 

Alex looked at you then. Watching you carefully. Calculating your every move while mulling over what you had said. A slight frown marred her features, unnoticeable to most, but you knew Alex and you knew her tells. 

“What made you come find me?” The question had been itching her since you found her at the bar. Why had you left Emily to find her? After all, you both looked rather… cosy in the position you were in. 

“I wanted to see you.”

You sounded so sincere, so genuine, that she wished she believed you.

“Why? Was Emily not good enough company?”

“What are you trying to say? For a linguist you aren’t very good at communicating, Alex.” You pulled away from her, clutching the blanket closer to your chest as you studied her face. 

“When did you and Emily start dating?” She asked, picking her nails absentmindedly, waiting for your response. 

“You- you think I’m dating Emily?” 

“Well, aren’t you?” 

“Alex, if you think I’m dating Emily then we haven't been doing what I thought we were doing.” You huffed in annoyance. How could a profiler be so intelligent yet so stupid at the same time. 

“Look at me.” You commanded. She needed to see you, really see you, in order for this to play out right. “The only woman I am interested in is sitting on my couch right now.” 

She blinked at you. Once. Twice. Before her eyes widened in relaxation. Her mouth opened slightly and the delicate blush she tried to hide earlier was back. How could she be so foolish? Insinuating that you were in love with someone else when all of your free time was spent with her. 

“Oh.” Her shame alongside the revelation of your feelings knocked the linguist speechless. 

“For such an educated woman, you sure are foolish.”

“Hey!” She whined, smacking you on the arm as soon as she recovered from the initial shock. 

You reached over and grasped her face between your palms. Your fingers smoothed over her cheekbones as you stared adoringly at her. Alex was kicking herself for not noticing your infatuation earlier for you looked at her as if she hung the moon and the stars. 

“You mean everything to me. Without you I wouldn’t be whole. You complete me. You’re the sun to my moon, my other half. And I wouldn't have anybody else other than you.” You professed with such earnestness that Alex couldn’t help but tear up. 

“Are you going to kiss me now?”

And kiss her you did. 

A/NII: I hope this is alright. All of my free time has been spent watch Rizzoli and Isles, doing college work and knitting 😅 so writing has been at the very back of my mind.

[ladystoneboobs]

[Bran, to Theon:]“But you’re Father’s ward.” [Theon, to Bran:]“And now you and your brother are my wards. [...] You’ll tell them how you’ve yielded Winterfell to me, and command them to serve and obey their new lord as they did the old.” -Bran VI, aCoK “He[Ramsay] is a great hunter,” said Wyman Manderly, “and women are his favorite prey. He strips them naked and sets them loose in the woods. They have a half day’s start before he sets out after them with hounds and horns. From time to time some wench escapes and lives to tell the tale. Most are less fortunate. When Ramsay catches them he rapes them, flays them, feeds their corpses to his dogs, and brings their skins back to the Dreadfort as trophies. If they have given him good sport, he slits their throats before he skins them. Elsewise, t’other way around.” -Davos IV, aDwD [Roose, to Theon, about Ramsay's mother:]"[...]I was hunting a fox along the Weeping Water when I chanced upon a mill and saw a young woman washing clothes in the stream. The old miller had gotten himself a new young wife, a girl not half his age. She was a tall, willowy creature, very healthy-looking. Long legs and small firm breasts, like two ripe plums. Pretty, in a common sort of way. The moment that I set eyes on her I wanted her. Such was my due. [...] This miller’s marriage had been performed without my leave or knowledge. The man had cheated me. So I had him hanged, and claimed my rights beneath the tree where he was swaying. If truth be told, the wench was hardly worth the rope. The fox escaped as well, and on our way back to the Dreadfort my favorite courser came up lame, so all in all it was a dismal day." -Reek(/Theon) III, aDwD

something something the way theon tries to rectify his childhood trauma by taking his captor's place as lord of wf and taking ned's younger sons as his "wards"/hostages, while ramsay repeatedly reenacts different versions of his own conception by hunting and raping peasant women. except theon fails in his role reversal when (unlike him in his own captivity at wf) bran and rickon escape custody. and ramsay enhances roose's "dismal day" by killing all the women he catches to prevent any more bolton bastards and further punishing those of them who fail to give him "good sport" (which his mother apparently did not give roose) while those who do satisfy him are "honored" with a quick death (and a canine namesake). and then the consequences of theon's failure to replace his captor/cold noerthern father figure include losing wf to house bolton and becoming the new "reek"/another of ramsay's dogs. (meaning he made himself ramsay's prey but gave him "good sport" in the experience)

ramsay starts out as deceptive dark trickster figure/evil adviser/devil on theon's shoulder in clash but he's also a dark mirror of theon, and a more successful one at that, not just better suited to villainy but more able to get away with his crimes. neither will ever be truly accepted by their fathers but ramsay is made heir once he's the only son while theon is rejected as such despite his better birth. ramsay profits from the alleged kinslaying of his actual brother by blood, while theon is more openly condemned (and seen as still not punished enough) for (falsely) killing stark boys who were never his actual kin. it's almost as if ramsay is an evil force who came into being to find theon and was drawn to him upon his return to the north. we first learn of the bastard of bolton's existence after theon returns to pyke and learns of his father's invasion plans, then his last hunt with the original reek just shortly precedes the ironborn attacks, all so that he's captured and waiting in wf right in time for theon's real plan to go into action, and we don't actually meet (disguised) ramsay in-person through dialogue with rodrik cassell or any other northerner but only when theon arrives as the new lord to free him from the dungeon. as the first reek may have corrupted ramsay, ramsay-as-reek corrupts theon. reek belongs to ramsay and ramsay belongs to reek.

[faegoddessog]

31: Samhain

Well loves, we made it, Every damn day (except that first one, which I'll rectify when I consolidate) Thanks to @slowsweetlove for providing the Austin based jungle-gym for me to play on. And thanks to all ya'll for hanging out with me , and Austin and sometimes Callum for October.. Hawtober? Hmmm...

Those of you that like to read my mind smut, I'll be taking a digital break for a while. Y'know: touch some grass, do some knitting, bake some bread, paint, declutter, put up some preserves or something cool like that.

Enjoy the end of my own creative challenge for #DDofAB- October 2024

Here is my ongoing masterlist of this project. Keep and eye out for the story in full (or at least less parts) to be posted

My other works are here if you are interested!

Warnings: missing the man, finding the man

You haven’t seen hide nor hair of Austin since those two weeks in New York.  He had pretty much moved out of his hotel and into your apartment for the duration of his stay.  He took you to plays, made you dinners and made sure a day didn’t go by without showing you that you mattered to him. That and he made sure your pussy stayed wet. You’d not had so much sex in your entire life. It was amazing. 

Then he was gone.  

Before he left, you two had agreed that, for now at least, you would keep it a ‘no strings attached’ kinda relationship. You had a whole bunch of work in the coming months and he was filming. He had explained that when he is working, he sometimes can’t really do anything else and usually his phone is taken from him.  He had texted you, off and on for a while, but it had been radio silence for some time. You knew he was filming in Hungary then here stateside somewhere. It was surreal and sometimes you felt like those two weeks were from someone else’s life. The lingering fear that it would be another ten years before you saw him again was kept only at bay by Callum. 

Cal had been far more communicative. He even popped into New York a couple times. Honestly he was far better at maintaining a friendship than Austin. 

“Yeah, it’s not like he doesn't care, he just gets caught up in creating character and the artist aspect of it all. Time kinda doesn't mean anything when he gets like that.  If you can handle that, you’ll be ok,” Cal had told you once at dinner. 

Funnily enough, neither of you were as driven to fuck without Austin there. You joked how he was the sexy lynchpin. 

Did you fuck anyway? Yeah, of course you did. But it was way more of a ‘friends with benefits’ feel than it had been with Austin.

Today though you are in the most unlikely of places. You are in Ohio for your cousin’s wedding. It was also Halloween, or Samhain, as she called it.

“It’s pronounced sow-een,” she kept telling anyone near with ears. She had this love affair with Halloween, excuse me, Samhain, so her wedding was gothy and occult themed. It was the only time she felt she could get away with it. Still there were grumbles from the relatives.  Skulls, ravens and ouija boards outfitted each table, complete with Tarot decks and black candles as wedding favors. 

She had arranged a palm reader and fortune teller  the way other people had DJ’s and photo booths.  The venu was out in a barn on her friends’ farm. You had come out that afternoon to help set it all up. The wedding wasn’t until after dark, of course. 

Her little sister, who was in her mid teens, had brought over a Ouija board and plonked down on the table where you were sitting and tasting the special "black widow" cocktail complete with black glitter and a red spherical ice cube. You thought it was a drink that tempted fate, and hoped it wasn't predictive of your cousins marriage to be.

"Play with me," she had asked, "it's not fun alone."

You agreed, what harm could it have really.

She asked things like:

Are there spirits in the barn? 'no'

Has anyone died in here? 'yes'

Am I crazy? 'no'

Have I met the person I'll marry?

The planchet wandered to ‘no’ for her and practically zipped to ‘yes’ for you. 

“Oooo, who is it! You have to spill, I’m dying to know!” she said wagging her eyebrows. She idolized you, living in the big city and making your own way in the world. You had promised her a trip to New York for a graduation present. She was definitely one of those black sheep of your midwestern family. Destined for something far bigger than marrying a local boy and popping out kids. 

“I don’t know, could be anyone,” you laughed, “I live in a city with eight million people.”  

“Ok, ok! Let’s try this. Ouija Board, where is this man?” she asks. 

O-U-T-S-I-D-E came the answer. 

“That’s unhelpful,” she made a sour face, “unless he’s like a forest ranger or something. Know any forest rangers?” 

“No,” You just laugh it off. Ouija Boards were supposed to be for talking to the dead. You are pretty sure that you aren't going to marry someone dead.

It was then that you heard the tell tale sounds of an old motorcycle in the driveway.

“Oh yeah, they said there was a movie being filmed about motorcycles and that they might be using the front drive to turn around in,” your little cousin says, walking towards the barn door. “Isn't that so neat, a movie, here!! I wonder if it has anyone famous in it. OMG that’d be lit! 

“I dunno, I’ll ask” you hear a deep voice outside. 

You turn just to see the silhouette of a tall man in the bright square of the barn door. 

“Excuse me, is there a restroom I could use here?” the timbre of the voice is unmistakable if layered with a Chicago accent. 

“Austin?” his name drops out of your mouth like a spell.

It’s bewitching, the way he strides into the barn, his heels thunking on the old wooden floor. The lights finally uncover his features, and Austin only has eyes for you.

“Is it you? Is it really you,” he says disbelievingly. 

“Me? It’s fucking you!” you retort, or try to. He is on you in seconds, gathering you in his arms. 

 He smells like cold air, motor oil and cigarettes. He kisses you, tasting faintly like whiskey.  The world falls away and it’s only you two. 

“I’ve been missing you,” he says, placing his forehead on yours.

“Me too, so much,” you breathe back, hardly believing this is real.

You stay there for the span of two breaths, until your little cousin squeals, “Oh my god it was right, he WAS OUTSIDE!” 

The End

credit to @strangergraphics for the graphic

Always tag me: @purejasmine, @slowsweetlove, @richardslady121, @austinbutlerslovers, @tadpoleteef, @allittakesisoneflight

"I've been tagged by you before Lumiere!": @thisworldisntrealhoney,  @1nho,  @megangovier, @briaandthephantoms, @andro-inherdreamworld @callumsgirl @blombardo  @fefeisastar @hacunamy @nestito702 @denised916 @jayydep @r0m4nitcl0v3r @heyidc03, @secondchild-2, @flander42 @natural-born-rebel-spirit @lecosymood @kathrynzaragoza @bsunshinexo @jayydep @ifyouloveweedletsgosmoke

[chaifootsteps]

comments roundup on Arteice's vid

Frankly, it’s pretty upsetting that Stolas acts like a victim just because he was raised with royal blood and is a hypocrite when he dismisses Blitzo like he’s one of his servants

^This person makes an excellent point, actually. Blitzo specifically calls Stolas out for treating him like a butler - an inferior - and instead of wanting to apologize or offer discuss it with him at a later date when his emotions are running less high, Stolas just evicts Blitzo from his house using magic, essentially dismissing him. It's giving royal "remove him from my sight" sort of vibes - insead of rectifying the behavior Stolas just proved Blitzo's point (again). I guess at this point we should be glad the writers had the comment sense not to have Stolas squeeze Blitzo like a stress ball until his eyes popped

How much of a bad writer do you have to be when you make a character so unsympathetic and unlikable that fans convince themselves that it was intentional to make him come across as this much of a narcissistic abuser. Yes I’m sure Viv wants you to see Stolas, the guy who cries constantly and even has a music video about how sad and in love he is, who constantly has excuses thrown his way for his behavior like neglecting Via and having power over Blitzo, who was literally retconned in season 2’s premiere episode to be some naive lovesick idiot with a wife so comically abusive the best photos they could take of her was her choking puppies. That Stolas.

Well,I have to agree. Stolas really needs to take the L,get his shit together and stop always always victimizing himself seriously.

Stolas is victimizing Blitz, Blitz couldn't consent. All that sex they were having made Stolas a monster, then Stolas cries BECAUSE Blitz didn't fetishize or romanticise the abuse the way Stolas did

Thank you for standing up for blitz, stolas is unbearable at this Point

Since watching the Sarcastic Chorus breakdown of the episode, I can say that I am holding onto a sliver of hope that the hypocracy is intentional and will be developed upon soon. However, I can't lie that while watching the confrontation in Full Moon, I was become more and more irate at the idea that Stolas sings about the break-up in the next episode. They better call him on his bullshit SIGNIFICANTLY. Although that may be just me relating to Blitz more than Stolas rn.

What made this inevitable for me is the fact that Stolas is kind of placing all his eggs in one basket by relying on Blitz for his happiness. He seems to believe that if they get together, it’ll magically solve all his problems such as his faltering relationship with Octavia, and the threat of the Goetia bearing their full weight down on him. To me it felt also like he was testing Blitz by seeing what kind of reaction he would have by being freed from their contract. He’s placing a lot of expectation on someone who is never going to be able to live up to what’s being asked of him

Stolas got that "21 year old closeted gay college Student trying to discover his sexuality" vibes, you know what i'm sayin'? The thing is… he's a grown ass man in his mid to late 30s with a daughter. He needs to grow up

Posting this sanity now so we can all fortify ourselves for what's coming tomorrow morning.

[theamityelf]

(Kamukuras AU Masterlist)

"So, Kamukoto," Junko says, twirling a strand of her voluminous hair around one manicured finger and smacking her gum in a way that is meant to downplay the inside knowledge she's just demonstrated by half-using the name 'Kamukura'. "What do you think of my nails today?"

He is sitting beside her on a bench close to the main school building. He's wearing the hoodie the class gave him. His thick, brown hair he has taken to trimming at just past shoulder length and tying back in a ponytail, with a bunny hair tie that Junko also gave him. The bunny has a tracker inside, which he knows and allows. (It's not as if Byakuya's nearest home address was classified in the first place.)

His eyes are still bright red, because he eventually decided against using colored contacts for his classmates' benefit.

Perhaps his first demonstration of personal identity, though the choice itself was a passive one.

"I think I...don't like them," he answers honestly.

"Color me deeply offended," she replies, with barely a veneer of offense. "Why not?"

"Well, that seems to be the same polish that was used to ruin the personalized comic Hifumi made for me, which heavily implicates you as the one who did it. Also the saturation doesn't quite match the color of your lipstick. An extra coat would have rectified that."

"Oh, good, you picked up on that first one. I was worried I hadn't done enough to take credit for my gift. When did you know it was me?"

"Within a second of Hifumi tearfully showing me his ruined comic. Was I supposed to mention it out loud?"

"No, but a glance or wink would be very validating for me."

"By validating, you mean reinforcing the behavior?"

"Maybe."

"What kind of acknowledgement would you find least validating?"

She hoots with laughter, pinching his cheek hard enough to break the skin. "Ice cold, you lab rat!"

"Kyoko said I'm allowed to be unaccommodating with people when I feel like it. I wasn't sure what kind of feeling she was talking about at the time, but I think this is it. Was that good, for you?"

"Aww, you even negotiate your kink after the fact! You're so precious, I'd cut you open if someone hadn't beat me to it. Still might," she adds in singsong.

He gently removes her hand from his face. "Speaking of, I've also been asked not to let people hurt me."

"Uh-oh! Am I in trouble?"

"My friends have said they won't harm my classmates unless..." He trails off. "You'll be fine. I might have to make this minor injury look like it was caused by something other than fingernails. Next time I'll remember to stop you."

"What else were you asked not to let people do to you?" Junko purrs.

He blinks, considering her and deciding what to make of the subtext of her question.

"Makoto!" Nagito greets, walking up to them (having presumably stealthed over until he announced himself at ten feet away) without even the pretense of having to look around.

He's dressed in bright-colored, loose-legged pants and a crop top, with jewelry in a seemingly-random subset of the many piercings he's given himself since escaping the labs. His hair is about as thick as Makoto's, but not as curly, and he's allowed it to grow just past the small of his back with only a few streaks of dye throughout (in a rare show of restraint, which is unlikely to last). In one hand, he is absentmindedly twirling a closed umbrella.

"The Ultimate Yakuza mistook me for this body's former occupant on my way here," he continues. "I kissed him on the mouth, of course. His reaction suggested that was incorrect. Ready to come home? Because I'm allowed to use force, if you're reluctant."

"Oh." After a few seconds of sustained eye contact, Makoto says, "I'm...reluctant?"

"Thank you!" Nagito says, picking him up and throwing him over his shoulder.

Junko opts to interject, now. "Hi there, Kamukomaeda. Remember me?"

"The noisy, impudent one who forgets she's beneath us!" Nagito says delightedly, his bright red eyes actually landing on Junko for the first time. "Good afternoon. I see you've slightly injured my favorite compeer. I wouldn't want to be you when our predecessor sees it."

"Why? Do you think Izuru-sama will finally grace me with his presence? Because don't get me wrong, botched experiments are totes my type, but I am just itching to get my hands on the original; my sources say he actually came out as intended."

"You put a lot of stock in the intentions of our inferiors," Nagito muses (still carrying Makoto on one shoulder). "Understandable, as one yourself. But you're mistaken if you believe provoking our predecessor's wrath will earn you his attention for very long. If he feels moved to confront you, it's unlikely you'll have time to talk."

"And here I thought you were the fun one."

"Also understandable. I present as such because I frequently entertain myself." Nagito casually puts up his umbrella just in time, as someone empties a bottle of formaldehyde out of a window above them. The angle of the umbrella causes the fluids to trickle down the back of Junko's shirt. "Good afternoon, Ultimate Fashionista."

"Bye, Junko," Makoto adds, as Nagito turns to leave. "You should soak those clothes in a bucket of hot water with a cup and a half of baking soda for at least eight hours, then rinse them with cold water and leave them to air dry."

[theoddowldoodle]

I am randomly again thinking about D20:Neverafter how great the characters and their curses are in relation to their arc and story.

Pinocchio is a warlock being controlled by his patron he is physically and spiritually a puppet of The Stepmother. How he overcame this by being the boy of destiny and taking hold of his own strings and learning he doesnt need to be of flesh to be an actual boy.

Ylfa's relationship with Death aka The Big Bad Wolf how they're in a cycle of consuming each other, her journey of growing out of girlhood but still that little girl being there even as the she becomes Death leaves her. (I can't articulate my feelings for her but her story makes me scream inside my head)

Gerard's curse of turning back into a frog and him thinking that his wife's love is starting to fade and him realizing unlike the other Princesses where they're the main character of their stories Elody is not. Elody supported him through being a frog and loved him with all her heart but he was a bad husband and somewhat a coward during the war. Him sacrifing his own story so she could write her own is so good.

Rosmund's motivation of only finding the Prince and her one true love and her realizing that she doesnt need a prince ( not in a im a bad ass princess that dont need a man kind of way) but in a romantic love is just another type of love and I can be happy with the people I choose. And her basically saying to the othe Princesses that they dont need to destroy the Neverafter can have better stories.

Mother Goose's kindness to all children and him being their for Ylfa and even Pinocchio. Him giving Jack so many chances and trying to rectify Jack's mistakes by making the deal with he Gander. Him and the Golden Goose basically being the same being and ultimately him being the steward for good in the Neverafter.

PIB being a trickster and him being true to his character of being a cat and a theif. Him stealing back their Items from the Baba Yaga and just being in so loyal to his friends doing everything he can to make them have their happy ending.

I probably missing some arcs that make them so great but the story is just so good that i wanted to rant about them.

[piratekane]

i got an ask in my email that never showed up in my inbox that was basically looking for book recs and since only one person asked for my opinion and because this was the year i fell back in love with reading, i'm going to do a myspace Top 8 books i loved this year, in no particular order:

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein this is basically a love story. it's a love story and you won't change my mind. i don't mean romantic love except that i mean best friends loving each other to and through the end of the world can be romantic and we should say that more often. because this a book about war and its terrors but it's also the love story between two best friends and what they'll do to get back to each other. it has probably one of my favorite protagonists ever - actually, two of my favorites. Wein tells a devastatingly perfect story and i promise your heart will swell and sink and tie itself into tiny knots. kiss me, hardy! kiss me quick! 5 stars, i cried at the end

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo i was late to the SoC books and boy am i glad i finally showed up to the party. this book was perfection. i immediately fell in love with each crow and spent the whole book screaming that if nina and matthias didn't kiss ASAP that i was going to throw something. i also was yelling about kaz and inez, do not think i was not doing that. kex brekker you deserve love you street rat. @dealanexmachina had to deal with the screaming through this. and i think it's going to be a repeat read in 2024 just so i can experience the care and craftsmanship that went into each character, their nuances, and how it wove perfectly together into kaz's brilliant plan. 5 stars, i immediately read the sequel like a hungry jaugar hunting down a person wearing that calvin klein scent

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson brando sando is... prolific. and it was overwhelming to jump in, but i started with tress and not any of his other books (a problem i have rectified) and what a bang it was. this book is, in a word, hilarious. the narrator is a fantastical being with an aversion to linear thought and a predilection for hilarity. the humor in this book is unlike any of sandos other work and really shows that he has the ability to stretch. the premise is very clever and very cool and just very fun. tress is brave and smart and that's celebrated, not punished. plus who doesn't love a talking rat? i'm looking forward to his other secret projects 4.5 stars, the narrator is my favorite sando character

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak okay, this is billed as horror, but i wouldn't really say horror and would lean more into the mystery billing than anything. maybe thriller. and it's outside my usual genre and is definitely more suited to my wife's tastes but she finished this book in three days (and usually takes 3 weeks-to-months to finish books) and when she said i had to read it, i said yes dear and picked it up. i'm glad i did. it's an illustrated mystery and as the author writes in the notes, those who pay attention will be rewarded. the ending was a twist i didn't see coming, like, at all. and it was clever. but once the ending started to unfold it was a mad dash to the finish. 5 stars, my wife recommends this

The Nevernight Chronicles by Jay Kristoff now, i know. this is actually 3 books, not 1. but hear me out - they must all be read. it's nonnegotiable. these books were recommended by tumblr user @fiddleabout and am i so very glad they were. mia is unhinged. there's no other way to put that. the girl is fucking off. her. rocker. and no one in her life is any better. they're all just as freaking crazy. but they're my crazy comfort killers. i went on for hours about mia and ash, to the point that my wife shut the bathroom door in my face because i tried to follow her in there talking about them. this series is bloody and more than once i was like, he can't possibly make this any bloodier but he CAN and i think this book is better for it. found family, check. unhinged teenage protagonist, double check. endless fun, check in triplicate. 4.5 stars, i am never not thinking of ash and her vision of a house on a lake and softness

A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon obviously i read priory first and obviously i loved it but ADoFN was... mind-blowing. maybe because priory enriched the world of ADoFN and i was already familiar with all the intricacies of it (though there was certainly more to learn) but reading this just... the bridging Shannon did, the connections she made between priory and ADoFN and how we ultimately saw the way ADoFN threaded some of the loops we saw closing in priory, it blew my mind. the utter romance of it all, my god. i read this monster book in a single day, i couldn't put it down. i emerged from my ADoFN cocoon like andy samberg in that one SNL skit where he plays a teenager who just woke up. i was changed(TM) 5 stars, i was a changed man

Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo i immediately jumped into the rest of the Leigh's work (i went through SaB first but she's so strong at the end of this Grishaverse) and while i love all my SoC babes, nina was a favorite and honestly i'd recommend both King of Scars and this book. tumblr user fiddleabout was blessed to follow along with my completely unhinged livestream of this book and when (spoiler) zoya and nikolai finally got over themselves and K I S S E D, i put the book down and took a lap. then i picked it up and screamed again as nina's arc unfolded. 5 stars, i have a lot of thoughts about the kind of man nikolai is (peg)

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty i'm a bit of a sucker for a pirate book. even more of a sucker about a woman pirate, and amina is a woman pirate of the highest caliber. this book is either intentionally funny or unintentionally hilarious. amina's biggest flaw is that she's constantly ogling her demon ex-husband's cute butt - honest to god. otherwise, she's perfection. badass, scrappy, jacked. amina is all of those things and then some. so she has a bit of a past that winds up coming back to bite her in the ass and then she's thrust back onto a ship where she has to chase down an old crewmate's daughter - can you blame a girl for being the most kickass pirate in all of the seas? no! should you? absolutely not! just let amina live out her life ogling ass and sailing leisurely, please. 4.5 stars, i want to sail on amina's ship even though i'm afraid of boats. and the ocean. and things living in the ocean. and generally the water.

( ͡❛ ᴗ ͡❛)👍 and now you know, cause it's mike's pirate's super short show! ( ͡❛ ᴗ ͡❛)👍

[thestobingirlie]

Do you have any random thoughts or hcs about Steve and his parents? I know that’s vague but if you have just like anything to say about them I’d love to hear it because the little snippets you say about them and the way they’re portrayed in your Saint Stephen fic has entranced me

i think about steve and his parents a lot so sure!!! here’s my (current and subject to change) harrington family backstory (some of these might be repetitions of previous hc posts, but i can’t be arsed to go back searching for them):

i think steve’s dad, richard harrington (hereafter referred to as dick) has a big thing about proving himself. he started working for his dad right out of high school (a real estate company), and he always wanted to prove that he was deserving of it, and live up to the standards his father set for him. he dedicates so much time to the business that it grows from being hawkins based, to indiana based, and so on.

he was a hawkins boy, born and raised, unlike diane, the future mrs harrington. he liked that she was from out of town, made him feel bigger than the small town he grew up in.

they had steve when dick was in his 30s, and diane in her late twenties. diane suffered through the birth, and decided she never wanted another child. she found it hard to connect with steve as a baby, and felt uneasy about her position as a stay at home mother. all of this culminating in the steve falling down the stairs incident, at which point dick gave in and hired a nanny.

steve and diane do still bond though, and when steve’s a toddler he’s become a total mommy’s boy.

dick got rich, had women throwing themselves at him, and cheated on his wife. repeatedly.

now, steve and dick were originally pretty close. dick wasn’t ever really that close to his dad, who suffered a lot with ptsd, and he didn’t want to make that same mistake. but then steve (at around 6 years old) caught him with his affair partner, and told diane.

dick was trying to apologise and make it work, when his parents started getting old and ill. and diane came up with the ultimatum that either they move back to dick’s hometown where she can keep a better eye on him, or they’re done.

he starts to resent pretty much his entire family. steve for catching him and telling diane, his parents for getting sick, and diane for making him move home.

so they move, but that doesn’t end dick’s affairs, and instead causes an even bigger divide in the family. he still has to travel frequently for the company, and diane doesn’t actually want to leave dick or their family, so instead of dealing with it, she lashes out at dick, and emotionally relies, very heavily, on steve. who she calls her best friend and the only person in the world she has left in her corner. it becomes a pretty unhealthy relationship, though neither would recognise that. steve likes helping his mum! he wants to support her and be in her corner, and with his growing resentment towards his father, he feels it’s his duty to stand up for her.

dick never really liked how close steve and diane were, in the typical 80s father fashion of not wanting a sissy for a son, but he especially didn’t like the way diane was turning steve against him. but any attempt to rectify this just sent steve further away. and by the time we see steve in canon, he interprets pretty much anything his dad does in a negative light. deservingly or not.

as a family they have a lot of issues, but they do all love each other, though sometimes they might not feel loved by one another.

and as it stands in the saint stephen universe, the loss of steve really did cause the entire family to just fall apart. they can’t function without him. they hadn’t realised how much their marriage had grown to rely on steve until he was gone. and, for better or worse, it’s caused a lot of realisations about their dynamics (primarily for dick, who’s suddenly aware of just how distant he and steve were, and that, much like his relationship with his dad, he no longer has the opportunity to fix it)

anyway, if you want anything more specific just ask!!! and thank you! i’ve loved using saint stephen to explore diane and dick’s characters, and i’m glad you’ve enjoyed them!

[lwh-writing]

Writing idea that has surely been done before, but I haven't seen for some unholy reason: the Baudelaires (a la Series of Unfortunate Events) are taken in by the Addams Family.

Mr. Poe drops the Baudelaires off at the Addams mansion and the poor kiddos almost have flashbacks because it reminds them of Count Olaf's mansion

They're fine though because they realize that the Addams mansion is actually stylish, as the Addams, unlike Olaf, have taste

Lurch shows them in and Morticia and Gomez are extremely welcoming, immediately treating the Baudelaires like their long-lost children despite the fact that they have A.) never met, and B.) are in fact their fifth cousins, three times removed

The Baudelaires get settled for the night and wake up the next morning to find out that the Addams are surprisingly good????

Like, the booby traps and odd turns of phrase are a bit concerning, but the moment they mentioned any unease, Morticia and Gomez began offering solutions to rectify that, and now Violet, Klaus, and Sunny have scheduled lessons on how to wield their weapons of choice, so.... it's going well?

Granny Frump is absolutely delighted to have a helper in the kitchen. Little Sunny is still learning her way around the more potent poisons, but her suggestions on the pufferfish were simply inspired.

Klaus has open access to the Addams' library and the various notes left in the margins of Frankenstein critiquing the "doctor's" necromancy techniques are both educational and hilarious

Violet meets Pugsley working on some bomb or other and the ensuing debate about how to best blow something up is the longest and most passionate conversation Violet has engaged in since before the Terrible Fire(TM).

Eventually Wednesday comes back from Nevermore Academy and the Baudelaires are like "Shit, this is where it all goes bad." But Wednesday just takes it in stride and now Klaus has found himself the test audience and editor of Wednesday's now-finished novel

The Baudelaires end up enjoying themselves immensely, which makes them kind of melancholy because they think about everyone they're missing, namely the Quagmires.

Gomez sees this and asks what's wrong and when they mention the Quagmires, he's just like "Ah, that's easily fixed! Let me call my brother!"

Uncle Fester shows up four days later with Duncan, Isadora, and Quigley in tow. Duncan and Isadora have not stopped hugging their long-lost triplet, but Quigley is perfectly alright with that, thankyouverymuch.

The Quagmires get settled and eventually one of the kid's finally ask "When are you going to try and steal our family fortune?" because none of the poor babies are used to genuine care and affection without some motive behind it

"Now why would we do that?" Morticia asks, "We have enough problems lavishly donating the billions we already have. Why would we possibly want more of the damned green paper?"

The Baudelaires and the Quagmires have a nice cry over this, and then get settled again, extremely happy and content with life

Count Olaf & co. try to come and pull their shit again, but they don't even get past the front door before the Addams scare them off.

School time rolls around again and Wednesday returns to Nevermore with all of her siblings. When asked what type of Outcast they are, they all just say "We're Addams's". The new, poor principal is just like "Yep, that tracks" and signs off on their admission papers with no further questions

[more-better-words]

oh THIS ->

💙 drunken kiss / tipsy

would be fun for trip and t'pol!

@pajamasecrets, your wish, my command, etc

Trip stopped by her quarters that evening with a small box, which T'Pol eyed curiously. "More fruit?" she asked.

He grinned. "The opposite of fruit." He opened the lid, revealing a pile of glossy, dark brown squares, irregular in their dimensions and studded with chunks of red and white. "It's peppermint bark. It's a kind of candy. Dark chocolate with pieces of peppermint in it.”

She carefully selected the topmost square and took a bite. The chocolate had a rich, almost heavy flavor, with a faint bitterness that reminded her of the scent of coffee. But it was not unpleasant – in fact, the longer she chewed, the more pleasing it became. And the little pockets of peppermint candy burst between her teeth, crackling sweet and cool, an enjoyable counterpoint to the chocolate. She looked up at Trip, whose eyebrows were lifted expectantly. “I believe I like it,” she said. He beamed.

“Good! I love this stuff, so… glad you do too,” The candy was arranged in paper-lined layers in the box; he pulled out a layer and set it on her desk. “Here. So you can have some for later.”

“Thank you.”

He smiled again, and took his leave. She sat at the desk, opened her book, and absently nibbled at her square of peppermint bark. One became two, and then a third, then a fourth, and she wasn’t sure precisely when she stopped reading. Her head was swimming, and a part of her wondered distantly if she should go to Sickbay, but it wasn’t a disagreeable sensation. In fact, it felt rather good. She was loose and light in an unfamiliar but very enjoyable manner. She looked at the peppermint bark in her hand. It was very kind of Trip to share with her, but then, he was very kind in general, wasn’t he? And now that she thought about it, he was very much like this candy – unexpectedly complex, with bursts of sweetness.

He was…what was the word again? Something about the way his eyes brightened when he smiled. About the way his brow furrowed when he was confused or annoyed. About the way his every thought passed over his face. How he could look at her the way he did and make her feel like she was something rare and precious.

What was that word?

Cute! He was cute.

She needed to tell him.

Tell him what?

She wasn’t entirely sure, but it was extremely important.

She stood, and the room spun.

Well, that was an interesting development. She took a very deep breath, and that seemed to slow the centrifuge.

Now. Trip. He was in his quarters,  she was sure of it. So she took another purifying breath and cautiously made her way to his door.

He opened it, and she pitched headlong into his arms.

“T'Pol! Are you okay?” he asked, eyes wide.

“I have something to tell you,” she said.

“What is it? What's wrong?”

“You,” she said deliberately, “are cute.”

He blinked at her. “What?”

“Surely I am not the first person to tell you this.”

“Well, no, but…”

“But I have not, so I am rectifying my error.”

His confusion was writ plainly on his adorable face, which was mere millimeters from her own. At that distance, it was really more trouble not to kiss him, so she rectified that as well.

It always felt good to kiss him, but at the moment, feeling the way she did, it was spectacular. She melted against him, her arms winding around his waist, her lips loose and eager, her tongue savoring the aftertaste of chocolate. For a moment, he returned the kiss with fervor, until, to her disappointment, he suddenly pulled away. Realization had replaced the confusion.

“T’Pol…you’re drunk.”

“That seems unlikely. All I have consumed in the last hour has been the chocolate you gave me.”

Trip looked at her carefully. “Um…have you ever had chocolate before?”

“No. But it’s quite good.” She leaned into him meaningfully. “I feel wonderful.”

She let her lips brush along his cheek, aiming for his mouth, but he turned his head and took a step back. “Nope,” he said, guiding her to his desk chair. She sat heavily. “You’re drunk; that'd be takin' advantage.” He crouched beside her, looking at her with consternation. He was still cute anyway. “God, T'Pol, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Neither did I,” she said. “But it's alright. It’s not unpleasant at all.”

“You say that now. Do Vulcans get hangovers?”

“What’s a hangover?”

He sighed softly, patting her shoulder. “Well, this is gonna be a learning experience for everybody.”