#consider this younger ava

[justanotherspeck]

an ava maddox for your consideration

[apute11as]

I hate it when she makes you laugh ~ Leah Williamson x CEO!reader

Summary: You get a new assistant and let’s just say Leah isn’t very good at hiding her jealousy.

Warnings:⚠️ None i’m pretty sure :)

word count: 2032

Author note: Based on THIS request (so sorry it took so long) Also, Leah never did her ACL, Covid never happened.

————

You had inherited an investment firm from your late grandfather 3 years ago when you were just 21. You had turned the the small town business into a multi billion dollar company, earning you a lot of attention from magazines, social media and other people in the investment industry.

Your mother had passed away when you were 15 and it was her father that owned the company so when he died, it transferred directly to you.

Being in the position you were, meant that you met with and attended many events with A-list celebrities, some of them being athletes. That was how you’d first met Leah, the two of you bonded over your shared distaste for the food menu, both agreeing you’d much prefer some toast over the variety of fish on offer. You’d laughed, drank and danced together throughout the night before she invited you back to her apartment, an invite that you gladly accepted.

You woke up the next morning with a fluttery feeling in your chest and a familiar ache between your legs, that told you enough about your night. The two of you had met up constantly after that, although you both had busy schedules. You’d ended up meeting her teammates and parents after a month of dating and safe to say they loved you.

——

Now, 2 years later you were 24 and she was 26 and you’d been officially dating for almost two years now. Life was blissful, Arsenal had just recently come second in the WSL (something you’d decided was a good result, much to your girlfriend’s disagreement) and all was well.

As for your company, the recent incline of growth, your advisors had insisted you get an assistant. You’d assured them that it wasn’t necessary and would just be a waste of time but after some convincing you reluctantly agreed. The interviewing process to find one was tough. You’d gone through several applicants before finding the right

one (you were particular in your choices of company). After a gruelling process that took more several hours, you finally decided on an assistant. Ava was 21, fresh out of Uni and had little experience. Despite this, you saw some of your younger self in her, admired her ambition and also she could hold a somewhat interesting conversation. Many of the applicants lacked personality and motivation, they were robotic and boring.

With that being said, you hired her. She fit in well into your life, as you were very precise in your task doing and a control freak at heart, something she seemed to understand all to well, considering she’d prepared your weekly schedule perfectly on her first day. You came home that day a little earlier than normal due to Ava’s organisational habits, surprising your girlfriend with the rarity of a home cooked meal on a weekday. The two of you discussed your new assistant over the warm lasagne you’d prepared for dinner. Although you saw Leah’s reaction as one of support and warmth towards your new employee, in reality she could feel the pangs of jealousy in her upper stomach as she listened to you ramble about how great Ava was and how much easier she’d made your week.

——

It was December, usually a quiet period of business as many people chose to save for Christmas and there weren’t many properties being sold. However, this year it was unusually busy, meaning you were staying out later and later in the office.

Leah didn’t mind this of course, she was more than understanding, knowing the pressure and stress your job brought. She waited up for you every night with a warm meal (takeaway or microwave as she was a horrendous cook). So when you came home at quarter to midnight after a long day, she was waiting for you.

The sight you saw upon entering your shared penthouse was one of Leah asleep on the sofa. Her blonde bangs stuck out in all directions as she was out cold, an episode of greys anatomy playing softly in the background.

“Oh my girl” you spoke softly, caressing her cheek.

Her eyes fluttered open as she took in her surroundings.

“Hi baby” she husked in a sleepy voice. “Have you eaten? There’s leftover pasta in the fridge I somehow managed not to burn it” she smiled to herself

“Thank you my love but me and Ava ordered food in a couple of hours ago” you replied returning her smile, hand drifting onto her shoulder.

“Oh right okay” she grumbled, shifting her body weight so your hand dropped down.

“I’m going to get changed into something comfy okay? Then we can cuddle” you left, oblivious to your girlfriend’s growing jealousy.

“Mmm” she hummed, eyes fixed on the television screen.

——

When you returned, you expected her to be asleep on the sofa but, as you’d went into the bathroom to freshen up, she’d crawled into your shared bed and was sat up on her phone.

You put down your toothbrush and shimmied your way into bed next to her, attempting to cuddle up to her but you were surprised when she shoved you away.

“You don’t smell like you” she complained. “Your perfume is vanilla, you smell like flowers it’s like a 16 year old” she scoffed

“Oh that’s odd, probably Ava’s perfume, she asked me to try and see what I thought. You don’t like it baby?” you questioned frowning at her body position, as she’d now turned away from you.

“No I don’t like it” she snapped, turning out the light and going to sleep

You were unsure what caused this sudden outburst but you knew Leah and knew not to push at it when she was in a mood so you let yourself drift slowly into sleep, making a mental note to bring it up tomorrow.

Her alarm went off bright and early at 7am as she had morning training. You decided to get up with her, despite not having to be in the office until 11am for a meeting. You went through the usual steps of your morning which involved showering (Leah opted against as it was easier to wait until after training), breakfast, dressing and prepping yourself for the day.

Leah was behaving seemingly normal this morning, whatever her issue was yesterday had appeared to have subsided. She hugged you from behind, adorned in her training gear, as you prepared breakfast tortillas for the two of you, wearing a black pantsuit yourself.

“Morning beautiful” she husked into you neck

“Morning my love, do you want ham or just cheese?” You questioned her preference as she was indecisive.

“what no peppers?”

“Do you like peppers Leah?”

“No” she mumbled into your back

“Then no peppers” you titled your head to crack a smile at the blonde

“Weird you’re not trying to sneak vegetables in me today” she laughed

Just as you were about to respond, you were interrupted by your phone blaring from its place on the counter.

“You get it babe, I’ll watch the food” she assured

You silently agreed, shifting to the counter to grab your phone, not bothering to look at the caller id before picking up and not bothering to realise you had speaker on.

“Morning Miss Y/L/N, I’m so sorry to bother you on your morning off” sounded Ava’s voice on the other side of the phone

“Sorry one second Ava I put you on speaker by mistake” you laughed shuffling into the bedroom and shutting the door, completely missing Leah’s expression shift to one of anger and her knuckles turn white from how hard she was gripping the frying pan.

Leah could hear the two of you conversing loudly in the other room. Although you’d turned Ava off speaker, she could still hear your responses. The conversation sounded awfully friendly for one between boss and employee, especially considering you’d been complaining to her this morning about how stressful today was supposed to be as you’d had a meeting with an important investor.

You snapped her out of her thoughts as you giggled like a school girl, laughter Leah interpreted as flirtatious. She was furious now, she trusted you whole heartedly but she didn’t for one second trust Ava. Also, although she’d never admit it, her insecurities in herself and your feelings toward her, played a big part in her jealousy.

——

You wandered out of the room a few minutes later, smiling at your phone as you’d realised that the meeting you’d been trying to get for weeks with a new client, had been arranged.

“You two were laughing an awful lot in there, what was so funny?” questioned Leah in a harsh tone.

“Oh haha nothing Ava just messed up something small with names and was calling to correct it” you laughed

“Hmm usually correcting something small doesn’t take a 10 minute phone call” Leah bit back.

“Noo but she did also tell me that the meeting with UOC inc. went through, we have some of their top board members coming in next week!” You beamed, proud of the accomplishments of your company.

“That’s amazing baby I’m so proud of you!” Leah smiled, pushing down her jealousy to be happy for you.

——

It was on Friday when her jealousy of your assistant finally came to your attention. You and Leah had somewhat of a Friday tradition between yourselves, where she’d meet you at your office at 7pm with food (usually a salad or sushi as she was on a strict diet plan). This happened every week without fail, no matter what the other had going on, even if that meant pushing it forwards or back a few hours, it still happened.

She’d stopped off at dominoes today as an extra treat to show how proud she was of you, after you texted her to say that UOC inc. were open to a deal that would see the company progress even further. She parked her car in your private parking, greeting Roman (a member of your security) on her way in. Excitement filled her body, she couldn’t wait to kiss you, to tell you how thrilled she was and how much she loved you. However the sight she was met when she opened your office door caught her off guard.

You were sat in your desk chair, Ava sat in the corner on your arm chair as the two of you laughed at a TikTok on her phone, a sure sign that you were definitely not just working late.

“Leah hey! Oh my god I didn’t even realise the time” you chuckled, checking the expensive watch she’d bough you last Christmas.

“Sure you didn’t, what’s she still doing here?” She snapped, gesturing harshly at Ava who had paled under the defender’s cold glare.

“She was just showing me something Leah, don’t be rude!” you cautioned, taking a tone of your own.

“Seems like she’s been showing you an awful lot lately doesn’t it and now she’s here, now, on a Friday?” She explained.

It finally hit you, her hands were balled into fists, eyebrows furrowed in displeasure, Leah was jealous of Ava. You could’ve laughed at the irony but that would only provoke her more.

“I’m so sorry, I’ve eaten into your time y/n! Especially considering you’d planned to share it with your girlfriend. My boyfriend will be here in just a minute, thank you for the chat, I’ll see you Monday!” She blurted, shuffling awkwardly past Leah and practically bolting down the corridor.

“Boyfriend?” Leah huffed out.

“Yes Lee, boyfriend. I can’t believe you were jealous of my straight employee, who’s basically a teenager” you laughed openly at her.

“Ugh you’re so annoying” she sulked

“You’re so cute when you’re jealous baby” you cooed, pinching her cheek

“Oi get off” she slapped your hand away, rolling her eyes

“Is that for me” you beamed, gesturing to the bag of food in her hands.

“Not anymore” she sassed

“Oh yeah right” you scoffed, making a beeline for the bag, wrestling her to the floor.

“Hey you idiot” she giggled, a smile replacing her previous frown as you sat on top of her, making grabby hands at the food.

———

thank you for reading! <3 My requests and Dms are both open (even though it could take a little time for me to get around to) :)

[hannibals-favourite-meal]

.⋆｡Just Like Daddy｡⋆.

Johnny ‘Soap’ MacTavish x plus size reader

A bored husband and kids in need of a haircut while you’re at work, good thing they’re all so freaking adorable 

Warnings: fluff, domestic humour

WC: 744

Minors DNI

Library- @hannibals-favourite-meal-library

“Honey! I’m home!” The front door quietly shut behind you as you kicked off your heels and dropped your work bag on the bench next to you. You expected a cacophony of noise upon your return given that there were 4 children in your home (including your husband) but the whole place was dead silent.

You glanced out the front window, confirming that Johnny’s car was in fact in the driveway so he wasn’t out running errands with the kids. Plus all of their little sneakers were lined up against the wall so they couldn’t have gone out to the park.

“Johnny?” After a quick look down the hallway to the empty kitchen, you began to climb the stairs to the second floor. Anxiety curled in your gut, logically you knew that everyone was fine and safe but Johnny’s job was dangerous and came with some very… interesting people.

But then, a baby’s giggle echoed from the master bathroom and your body relaxed. The sound was quickly cut off as another voice harshly whispered. “Shush.” That was definitely your husband.

“But it’s mama.” Your heart melted at your toddler’s words, he was such a mummy’s boy. 

“I know it’s yer mum, tha’s why we’re stayin’ quiet.” You forced down your smirk, preparing a disapproving look for your family and whatever shenanigans they had gotten up to in your absence. Last time, Johnny, at the whims of your eldest, dyed Riley pink while you had been dog-sitting her for Simon. You were scrubbing pink dye out of the carpet for weeks afterwards.

Silently, you crept down the hall and slipped into your bedroom which was suspiciously clean considering the almost violent romp of last night and this morning. The bathroom door was firmly shut but light leaked out from underneath, letting you know exactly where your little clan was.

You slipped out of your work jacket and shimmied down your tights, deciding to let your husband fester in anticipation and his bad decisions for a few more minutes. By the time you had donned your comfy house clothes, you could feel the panic your husband was experiencing.

As soon as your wrist twisted the doorknob, the excited babbles began. “Mama!” Your youngest screamed. The door creaked open and for a moment, everything was dead silent.

Johnny stood beside the bathtub, your 6 year old daughter beside him as the two younger kids, your three year old and one year old, sat in the bath, huge smiles on their faces. Hair covered the tiled floor and it didn’t take you very long to work out where it had come from.

Each and every one of them had matching mohawks, each of them looking like an exact carbon copy of their father.

“Now bonnie, I can explain. See, me hair was gettin’ long so I wanted ta take some clippers ta it but then Maisie said her hair was too long and wanted it like mine and ya know I canne resist those big eyes o hers. And then the babies were upset and-and, it got outta hand.” He nervously rubbed the nape of his neck, a dark blush blooming across his scruffy cheeks.

Callum stood up, sending another wave of loose hair onto the ground, a pout on his face. “Wan look li da.” He said simply as if he were trying to defend his father. His baby sister Ava slapped the side of the tub with a happy screech.

“Ma-“ Maisie started but immediately stopped as soon as your laughter filled the room. You doubled over, clutching your stomach tightly. Johnny chuckled along with you uncomfortably, still anticipating some sort of retribution.

Wiping the tears from your eyes, you straightened up once more. Maisie ran into your waiting arms, her perfectly done mohawk brushing against your chest. Your fingers brushed through her hair that was so much like Johnny’s, pulling out the cut strands still caught in her thick mane. 

“You gave me children some fudged up mullets.” You chuckled and his shoulders dropped, realising that he was finally off the hook.

“I’ll fix em up.” Leaning over your daughter’s head, you met his lips in a delicate kiss which was met by some very frustrated shouts from your children.

“Alright then! I guess we need to get everyone in a bath and maybe some pizzas in your bellies, daddy’s treat.” Four almost identical smiling faces looked back at you, all of them incredibly adorable. 

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Modern Warfare

@joyfulfxckery

[sirwow]

More AvA/AvM thoughts and a longer rambling under the cut to get my thoughts out

Admittedly this is all going to come out of the blue but that is my fault for saying nothing about a year old hyperfixation till now. Anywho!

The color gang coming from the online world where all the other sticks live has been in my head since we saw the outside world. Yes they’re way more vibrant then most there but purple and their parents are also a very vibrant trio. So I have my thoughts on the four. Obviously don’t have any parents around (wasn’t my fault for once shocker /lh) and are most definitely not related really. So it gives me the thought of the 4 always being friends since they were small and fighting/playing is just what they usually did with no parents figures other then a care taker.

But then how’d they get on the stick fight site? Well considering it was not until AvA 4 when we saw them they most definitely saw other famous stick fights that wanted to make them be part of it. Hell in AvYT we see at the end they all just wanted to watch epic stick fights. So yeah thought I’d they basically ganged together to make their own site to show off their epic fights together while also living in said site together. Worked well.

Then a certain someone broke down the wall one day and they were like damn this is kinda neat. Kept the site of course it is their literal home but after more and more or AvM they considered the PC, TSC and Alan more as their home and so started staying there more. The little Minecraft houses, finding interests outside of just fighting, and living out their fantasies with the power of minecraft.

They’re still all identical looking for a long time though. I think the accessories I draw them with were drawn by TSC as gifts but not until after AvM 30. They’ve learned so much more at that point about themselves I could imagine being identical as each other and just being “them sticks that fight” still gets a bit old. Course’ they can take off the accessories when they feel so but kept them in the back pocket. TSC hasn’t felt any feeling to change their looks so he hasn’t.

Well then anywho it’s very late and though I have more AvA thoughts I need to contain them for when it’s not 3 in the morning ! So instead some smaller stuff Iv noticed while obsessively observing episodes and shorts (mostly Blue because I heart blue)

Blue unlike the rest of the color gang is very… plain. And I don’t mean this in a negative sense. It’s more a lesser degree of creativity from him on most accounts. He’s not very creative in his solutions most the time and has very straightforward solutions to issues that in his mind are straightforward. Break an axe? Make a new one. Gotta go fast? Drugs Potions that make you faster. Yeah there’s cooking but he never really does anything creative with it outside of adding nether warts like the lil freak /pos he is. Follows a written recipe and taught lesson.

It’s a quiet aspect of him I only really noticed a few days ago. Not that this is a negative aspect again but something that makes him stand out more!

Now then uhh smaller random stuff I just always like. Lush Caves ep, Red realizing oh god he can’t win this fight Vs TSC and started running from them instead. Always makes me boowomp a little thinking about it since Red is kinda the younger usual happy go lucky prankster. TSC I know you’re also young and stressed but continuing to get his ass was NOT the way man,,

Last thought, King just trying to avenge his son only to come out of the situation with like 6 new adoptive kids is very funny to me. They say vengeance is a life well lived so I guess he got vengeance 6 times over. Ok gn (ecplodes)

[ghost-cricket]

cooking up something about how Dark isnt as pure evil as ppl thing so heres a couple points i have

considering chosen's treatment by alan, it would make more sense for him to start the blackfire attacks out of anger. dark, being the younger of the two and being used to just being told what to do, went along. ← weaker point but still worth saying

we never see chosen trying to stop dark in the balckfire attacks. its not until the virus that he stepped in

speaking of the virus, chosen didnt know that dark was planning in massacring sticks. he just assumed this [the worst case scenario] and judged dark accordingly.

based on his body language, dark seemed to expect chosen to like or at least appreciate the virabot. when chosen first told them to not send the virabot, they looked genuinely confused

in ever fight between chosen and dark (except in ava 3, when dark was simply following their programming), chosen throws the first punch. ← also a bit of a weaker point bc chosen's trying to stop dark from whatever they're doing

dark did not know of the cg's existence until the showdown. he sent the virabot to destroy alan's computer, not hurt other sticks.

the one time he DOES try to hurt them, it's when they jump at him like "fight me". and like. you run up to a most likely mentally unstable person with a deadly weapon, tell them to fight you, and you expect to win???? you expect them to not hurt you??????

imo their deaths there were kinda on them but whatever

going back to the whole virabot thing, my guy was just trying to get closure for him and chosen????? like. him disintegrating the globe means world destruction but that could also mean destruction of the web

all of dark's portals were to websites which abence would affect humans, not sticks. never once did dark actually launch an attack on the outernet. he and chosen hurt sticks, yes, but they were also website sticks

yeah uhhhhh thats it for now :P

[mary-games-and-arts]

AvA/M Cast Redesign

Phew, well.. I DID IT I REDESIGNED EVERYONE! Time to present them all again, but this time with some more info, right?

Color Gang

Green (He/him) - 17 y.o. | Let's say he's literally a perfectionist okay? Green is the one of a protective friend but can annoy his brother Red sometimes. His love of his life is Blue

Yellow (She/her) - 16 y.o. | A girl who knows everything about redstone, Minecraft commands and style. Has a twin sister Pinkie (Keep in mind that Pinkie is not a canon character. She's my AvM OC). Also Yellow has a partner Red

The Second Coming/TSC/Second/Orange (He/They) - 17 y.o. | A sleepyhead but somehow understands math and physics(unlike me ;v;). They're really overprotective over their friends and have their own powers but they're not aware of them(let's say AvA VI didn't happen yet). Chosen is Second's sister. Also Sec is in love with Purple

Blue (She/her) - 16 y.o. | Really knows her thing when it comes to brewing potions and gardening. Has bandages cuz AvM Ep. 20 events. Can get worried if anyone of the gang gets sick. Loves Green and his tunes

Red (He/him) - 15 y.o. | Apparently the youngest one of the group. He's a clumsy guy and also a prankster. Got possessed by Herobrine twice. Was in a timeout once cuz messed with Yellow's staff and the lucky block. Yellow is his girlfriend and Green is his brother. Oh and his pets are his friends

The Royal Duo + The Angelic Trio

Purple (She/They) - 16 y.o. | A little shy but very nice girl. Considers MT as her older sister. Still has trust issues but is trying to fix it. Cherishes her dead mother Orchid and doesn't give a damn about her dad RB. Second is her boyfriend

MT/Mango Tango/Queen Orange (She/her) - 20 y.o. | A young adult who was a queen once just to destroy Minecraft cuz it took away her little brother Gold. Tries to move on from Gold's death and now considers Purple as her younger sis. She's on neutral terms with Color Gang. Her husband is actually an Enderman named Jacob (Tulip said that we can have our own Jacob so)

Gold (He/him) - 12 y.o. | A smol kid who is MT's brother and had unfortunately died from Minecraft. Observes his sister and spends his time with Orchid and Victim. Sometimes wishes he could hug MT one last time

Orchid (She/her) - 38 y.o. | A caring woman who is also Purple's mother. Has no empathy for RB cuz he left her and Purple. Unfortunately died from an unknown disease and now observes her child from above

Victim (They/Them) - 25 y.o. | A guy who never experienced life for once. Tries to develop themselves and find their own personality and hobbies. Currently is friends with Orchid and Gold

RB, Alan and The AvA Duo

RB (He/him) - 40 y.o. | A ex-husband of Orchid and ex-dad for Purple. Left cuz he thought his daughter was "pathetic and would never protect herself from any danger"

Alan (He/him) - 35 y.o. | The creator himself of the whole AvA/M community. Considers Chosen and Second as his kids, but also has a real life family

The Dark Lord/TDL/Dark (She/her) - 18 y.o. | The terrorist of the whole Internet herself and Alan is her creator. She was created to defeat Chosen but she teamed up with them and confronted Alan. Somehow survived Second's attack and now is trying to change. Has a girlfriend Chosen

The Chosen One/TCO/Chosen (She/They) - 19 y.o. | The Chosen One herself who just wants to live peacefully with Dark after all the trauma she endured. Saved a kid once and now friends with her. Is currently being wanted by Rocket Corporation. Dark is her girlfriend

The Rocket Corporation

Hazard (He/They) - literally a robot- | A restored robot who can control electricity as his power. He's also a part of the mercenary team

Agent Smith (He/him) - 24 y.o. | The main mercenary of the corporation who can use any Adobe Animate tool. Has a small crush on Vic

Alive!Vic (They/them) - 25 y.o. | The first stick ever created by Alan that somehow came to life to get the revenge they so desperately want. They're a leader of a whole corporation and they hunt for Chosen cuz she knows where Alan is

Ballista (He/him) - 27 y.o. | The shortest mercenary of the team. He can turn his head into a tank and also adores his big pixel sword

Primal (She/her) - 28 y.o. | The tallest mercenary and the only woman in the team. Is good at archery and can get buff if needed

[theaawalker]

Fandoms I'll Write For

Marvel (not Iron Man, Starlord, Loki, Thor, Doctor Strange, or Hawkeye, Drax, Victor Creed, Antman, Adam Warlocke, AG's Spiderman, or Cyclops)

DCEU (not Peacemaker, Killer Croc, JL's Joker, RP's Batman, or anyone from Gotham except Jerome/Jeremiah Valeska)

Scream Queens (not Chad Radwell or Pete Martinez)

American Horror Story (only Murder House, 1984, Freakshow, and Cult)

Hunger Games (not Gale, Maymitch, President Snow, or Cato)

The Maze Runner (not Ava Paige, Jorge, or Janson)

My Little Pony

Once Upon A Time (not Hook, David, Rumple, Neal, Peter Pan, or Zelena)

Pacific Rim (not the sequel)

Twilight (not Seth, Edward, Carlyle, or Jasper)

Stranger Things (not Will Byers, Billy Hargrove, or Jim Hopper)

IT (2017, 2019, and tv series) (not Henry Bowers or Pennywise)

Jurassic Park/World (not Owen Grady or Ian Malcolm)

Jumanji (1997 & 2017)

Zathura (not the dad or robot)

Stand By Me (not Ace Merrill)

Girl, Interrupted (not Jared Leto's character)

The Black Phone (not the Grabber or Mr. Blake)

Teen Wolf (the film & series)

Equestria Girls

Teen Wolf (not Peter, Jackson, Theo, or Derek)

The Office (not Jim, Ryan, or Dwight)

Now You See Me (not Dylan Rhodes or Merritt McKinney)

Descendants (not Chad, Harry, Ben, Jay, or Carlos)

Sky High (not Zach or Speed)

Percy Jackson films (not Luke Castellan)

The Umbrella Academy (not Five)

TMNT (live action ver. only)

Dance Moms (not the final season)

Ender's Game

Wednesday (not Xavier, Tyler, or the Dean)

Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse (not Mentor Peter Parker)

Unbreakable (not Hedwig or Dennis)

Big Hero 6

The Black Mirror

Dynasty (not Culhane, Adam, or Blake)

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Spy Kids

Sharkboy & Lavagirl

Clue, Knives Out, & Glass Onion

Back to the Future (not Biff), Breakfast Club (not Bender), Sandlot, Stand By Me (not Ace Merrill), Mighty Ducks, The Outsiders (not Dally, Two-Bit, Randy, Bob, Steve, or Darry)

I’m willing to write imagines for underage characters so long as there's no romance (examples: hang out with the Losers Club at the barrens; go shopping with Eleven and Max; play baseball with Finney and Bruce). I’m allowed to deny any request and the longest I should take ever to write one is about 2 weeks. I’ll write smut, fluff, angst, poly relationships, LGBTQ+, etc. Generally most of my x readers are female unless stated otherwise.

What I won’t write-

I won’t write anything to do with rape, bestiality, necrophilia, incest, romance with anyone younger than 18, gun play, anything about poo(sexually), anything about urine(squirting is fine considering it’s not technically urine), age gaps. See guidelines for more details.

Thanks for reading❤️

A.A. Walker

[micahdoesmusic]

I wonder if when Jay Ferin was a little girl she wanted to be a navy soldier like her big sister. I wonder if her father wanted her to be one too, to continue their family’s legacy.

I wonder if that ever changed, if when she lost her sister she wanted to join the navy to take down those pirates that killed her, or alternatively she took the warning of Ava’s death as a call not to follow her footsteps. I wonder if her joining the navy was the last thing her father wanted anymore.

I wonder how long it took for Jay to notice the Navy’s faults. I wonder when she and Kira promised to change it from the inside.

I wonder if Kira looked up to Ava too, if she was almost their third sister when they were younger. I wonder if when Ava died, Kira could see Jay changing. I wonder if they talked as much as they would have as little girls leading up to Jay joining Chip.

I wonder if Kira training to be a Captain put distance between them, if Jay was afraid she’d lose her too. I wonder if they fought about the good of the navy, Kira believing they could change while Jay slowly lost faith in them.

I wonder if Jay has the heart to resent the Navy even now, even knowing they may be responsible for Ava’s death despite all she’s been told. Maybe she regrets not becoming a captain like Kira, instead having to justify her new life to her own family.

I wonder if Jay wishes she’d stayed with her mother to be there for her as her health declined. I wonder if she considered leaving Chip and Gillion once she found out, even now she’s tied to her crew.

I wonder if Jay had left with the Navy (like Condi considered leading her to do), if she would’ve joined them. If she would’ve fought beside Kira and her father and crossed paths with Gillion and Chip again. I wonder if she’d be unable to pick sides again, or if she’d be so stuck in place she couldn’t go back.

I wonder if Ava ever snuck off to meet Lizzie in Featherbrook, if Jay might’ve noticed a slight giddiness as she disappeared to a quieter side of the island.

I wonder if Jay hates Lizzie or not now, if she’s upset with her for not telling her about her relationship with her sister, but also Ava for not telling her about Lizzie. I wonder if she hates her for loving her sister and keeping her away from home longer.

Jay is such a cool underrated character I need to THINK ABOUT HER MORE!!!

[halleyswidow]

The Great War

CHAPTER ONE — Development Day

Development week was Blake's favorite part of the school year, besides the holiday parties of course. Nonetheless, it was Blake's first development week back and she couldn't be more excited. She actually, with Ava's permission, got everything set up the week prior so she could spend her time getting back into the groove of things. Ava and Blake were an unlikely pairing but they balance each other out and have become such good friends both in and out of school. Over the four years, Ava was one of the few people Blake kept in contact with but even with constant contact it came as a shock when the younger woman reached out and said wanted to teach at Abbott Elementary again. Which leads us to today, the first day of development week at Abbott Elementary. The brunette pulls into a parking spot, stepping out of her car. "What the fuck?" She observes a young teacher pull into the middle of Ava's barbecue party. Blake shakes her head, grabbing her purse and the little stuff she had to bring into her classroom that she forgot last week. Once the young woman drove away to assumingely go park on the street, she headed inside as Ava caught up with her. "Game day barbecue on the first day of development week, huh?" The brunette snorts, shaking her head at the other woman. As the small woman from earlier came through the doors with stacked boxes Ava attempted to hurry off. Blake rolls her eyes, turning to the younger woman. The brunette slings her purse around her shoulder, "Need some help with those?" "Yes, please. Thank you!" She says, slightly out of breath as Blake takes the stack of boxes she had. "I'm Janine, and you are?" Blake follows Janine to her classroom, "Blake Mencacci, where can I put these down?" Janine instructs her to place them on the desk and the brunette does as so. "It was nice to meet you, but I gotta dart." The older woman makes her way to her classroom and places her stuff down on her desks. One of the biggest things Blake prided herself in was her classroom. It had a multitude of different warm lighting fixtures and greenery, with a combination of little tokens she had received from her students from her previous years of teaching. Her goal was to create the classroom environment she always wanted growing up, and she definitely succeeded. After unpacking and putting away the few items she had brought with her, Blake made her way over to the full length mirror she had placed in the far corner of her classroom. The brunette was sporting some black yoga pants, a mock neck burgundy bodysuit, and her black heel boots. She had her typically gold jewelry to accessorize and her long brown hair was curled, thrown back into a loose but cute ponytail. Blake really did want to make a good impression considering she hadn't seen most of the people in years. When she left she was barely 23, and it's been four years since she last stepped foot in a classroom. To say she's scared is an understatement.

Eventually, it was time for Ava's presentation. Blake stood behind the wings of the small stage as Ava showed some photos of her on vacation, it was typical Ava Coleman behaviour and Blake expected nothing less. Sooner rather than later the taller woman eventually got on with the presentation, "I'd like to welcome back one of Abbott's finest teachers both inside and out of school, Ms. Blake Mencacci." On her cue the younger woman walked onto the stage, her heels clicking against the floor as familiar faces dropped. "Oooh! Baby she's back!" Mr. Johnson hollered from the back of the gymnasium, causing the crowd of staff to erupt in laughter. Melissa leaned over to Barbara mumbling, "That is one thing I did not anticipate today." Barbara stood up from her seat, opening her arms as Blake made her way down the stage and over to the teachers. The older woman engulfed the brunette in a hug, "How are you my dear? It has been just too long!" Blake laughed softly, pulling away from the hug. "It's great to see you again, Mrs. Howard." As the younger woman goes to converse with everybody else her phone starts buzzing in her pocket. She excuses herself and steps out into the hallway to pick up the phone. Janine, Gregory, and Jacob approach the senior teachers. "Wait so who is that?" Jacob inquires, confused by the buzz surrounding Blake. Melissa looks up from her phone with a soft smile, "Blake Mencacci, she left two years before you kids got here. Amazing teacher, and sweet girl." The redhead always had a soft spot for Blake ever since she started teaching here. She truly cared about and had passion for teaching, Melissa admired that about her. But also she was just pleasant to be around and brought comfort to everybody. The older woman wouldn't believe that a single soul could hate the brunette.

One of the camera guys pans over to Blake hurrying down the hall, shouting frantic and incoherent words over the phone. The first day of development week gets cut short for Blake on account of her shitty ex husband. As the staff of Abbot Elementary assists with Janine's crisis and all the troubles that come along with it, the young woman goes home to have a crisis of her own.

AUTHOR'S NOTES

chapter one done, how we feeling? if you guys have any requests or recommendations please feel free to let me know! i will try to get chapter two out as soon as possible, but until then enjoy!

love, halleyswidow :)

[eternitas]

Unseen Varia - Profiles

Sergey Shouta

Basic Info:

Full Name: Sergey Shouta (last name is an alias)

Nickname: Ser, Sir Gay, Orca guy,

Age: 21 / 31 (TYL)

Birthday: 12th March

Gender/Pronouns: cis male, he/him

Sexuality: asexual demiromantic

Ethnicity: half serbian half italian

Height: 189cm

Flametype: Rain

Weapon of Choice: Rapier

Affiliation: Varia, Rain Division

Position: Second in Command, Squalos left hand

Languages: serbian, italian (+ Sign Language), spanish, japanese, german (+ Sign Language), french, english (+ Sign Language), russian, croatian, manadrin chinese

Strengths: lighthearted, has a pretty strong psyche, keeps calm during stressfull situations, observant and has a good eye for detail, speed

Weaknesses: can not be truly honest, secretive, easily to rile up when it comes to family or disrespecting women, physical strength, can't ask for help

Character Summary:

Sergey is someone who is usually seen to be carefree and outgoing, a lot of people call him a social butterfly and easy to approach. He is funny, and lighthearted and likes to take things not as serious, or overdramatisize them for effect. But as with Ava, waters are deeper than expected and this is especially true for Sergey. He can be very cynical and cruel, heartless even and fatalistic at times, the switch between his lighter persona and his more scary self being jarring to many. He harbors the belief that the world is tainted and has no point for salvation but that it is possible to make the small worlds that one person inhabits be bright and meaningful. He is very pc and makes sure to be as naturally inclusive as possible, as he learned this all from his extensive family. He has a special soft spot for women, especially younger than him, considering allmost all of his halfsiblings are women, especially younger than him. It seems to trigger some form of big brother instinct that he iron clawed follows.

Background:

[This section contains spoilers]

Sergey was born as the fourth child of a very specific man. A man that went all around the world impregnating women for a very insidious specific reason. It was a few years later that his mother, a serbian woman decided to reach out to the other women and offered them to all become a collective to help each other raise their children. almost all of them agreed and as if to form an initiative for the victims of this man they kept reaching out to whomever they could identify as their kin. This way Sergey grew up in a big household with multiple women and at first 3 older sisters before further younger sisters joined the family. This has led to Sergey growing up almost exclusively around women if it wasn't for his childhood friends, twins he met that lived in the same street, by the names Leonard and Luis. They became best friends quickly and Sergey was there for the both of them as Luis got sicker and sicker with each day.

[The information here has been redacted]

---which led him and Leo to the Varia.

Fighting Style

Sergey is known as the fastest Swordsman, which isn't a funny innuendo epiphet but the closest describtion one can give to this mans insane Speed. It seems that no matter what he moves at the speed of light, always able to zip around the whole place and escape opponents, while he makes his own attacks in return. This special technique is thanks to a specific trick that he figured out over a few years of practice.

He is a formidable swordsman, specializing in fencing and wielding a rapier which only makes his speed all the more annoying to combat for opponents, his strikes are precise and always aimed at vital spots in the human body. His technique is near flawless and despite relying mostly on his rapier he is also able to wield heftier swords.

A very vital point of Sergeys combat is his psychological play with his opponent, using his wits and speech to provoke his opponet into making mistakes.

In the most dire of situation Sergey uses one of his two additional boxes. "Oberon" is the name of his swecond sword, a more traditional european longsword that gives his swings more heft and changes his fighting style into being more confrontational. His second box is an animal box weapon, an orca, that uses a LOT of flame energy to be called forth which is why it is usually only used in emergencies.

Trivia

Sergey has collectively 10 half siblings of which 2 turned out to be trans. Before that it was a running joke that he was the guy with the 10 sisters for all ocassions. ("Ser you have the chance to be the funniest person in this family")

Sergey keeps close and good contact with all his sisters, especially his older ones.

Once for an undercover mission he pretended to get married to Leo, however it turned out to be a legally binding marriage and they just went with it. They don’t see any real issues with it.

Of his family 4 of his sisters have also relations with the mafia. The oldest Maria married a mafioso (and Ser is 2 steps away from committing murder bc the guy keeps neglecting his sister and their child), second oldest Chloe is actually a bodyguard of a smaller families heires, one of his younger sisters used to date a mafia heir, but they split up and she kept being friends with the guys friendcircle and one is actually in the inteligence branch of the Vongola

Despite Sergey always having his hair tied together he gets often mistaken for Captain Squalo for some reason

All of Sergeys hairties and scrunchies are presents from his siblings and he takes good care of them.

Sergey has been in an unofficial poll been voted place 1 on the most approachable ranking and place 3 on the "most aggravating" list

He has good relations with pretty much all his Second in Comand collegues.

Despite the good pay, Sergey always seems a bit short on cash, because he always keeps up with his siblings and friends birthdays, plus of course holidays like valentines day and the winter holidays

While Ser is regarded a social butterfly because he easily makes aquaintances and is a friendly soul, not many know much more about him than the surface that he allows people to see.

[alphascorpiixx]

KH OC Week: Introduction

I'm going to participate in @khoc-week this year and show off my beloved keykid Lyra!

[ID: Player character from KHUX. She is fem-presenting with light skin and short blue hair. She is wearing the fem version of Riku's DDD outfit: a sleeveless vest, shorts, and leggings and also has a pink backpack with a lacrosse stick and a black baseball cap. End ID]

Day 1 of @khoc-week is Introduction. Because I didn't have time to do anything for this day and I already made an intro post for her a while ago, I'm just going to copy the whole thing and share it again!

[ID: First, player character from KHUX. She is fem-presenting with light skin and short brown hair. She is wearing a blue plaid skirt and tie and a white long-sleeve shirt along with a pink backpack with a lacrosse stick and a black baseball cap. Second, the same player character now masc-presenting. He is wearing Roxas's outfit with a red checkered bag over one shoulder and black wings on his back. End ID]

Alt looks for Lyra. She's bigender and genderfluid, uses he/she. I generally have her fem-presenting because the hairstyle and hair color I like the best is Aqua's blue hair which is only available for the girl outfits 😭

(also Lyra's eyes are dark brown but for the khux character styles the face I like best has green eyes and I haven't gotten around to editing the images)

Here are some picrews!

[ID: First, full body picrew a chibi style androgynous person with light skin, short blue hair, and earrings. She is sitting down facing left with stars glittering around her face. She is wearing shorts, tights, and a long-sleeved jacket with an aro pin and a bigender pin. The background is light green with a neutral tone circle. Second, Picrew of an androgynous person with light skin, short blue hair, and earrings. She is wearing a jacket over a t-shirt and has faint scars on her face and neck. The background is the aromantic flag with faint stars. End ID]

She's arospec bisexual and in a soft romo/queerplatonic poly relationship with Skuld and Ephemer

(First picrew link. Second picrew link)

[ID: two picrews of an androgynous person with light skin, short blue hair, brown eyes, and earrings. She is wearing armor and has a neutral expression. The background is a swirl of stars. In the second image, she is now wearing a casual jacket over a t-shirt and the same neutral expression. The background is a neutral tone. End ID]

Keyblade war and casual outfit

(Picrew link)

[ID: Picrew of an androgynous person with light skin, short blue hair. She is wearing a varsity jacket over a t-shirt and smiling widely. There are dandelion seeds flying around her head. The background is neutral tone with a blue rectangle. End ID]

Dandelion Lyra. She has very mixed feelings about being a Dandelion bc she declined Ava's orginal offer to flee the war. She considers herself to be Ephemer's Dandelion, not Ava's.

(Picrew link)

[ID: Picrew of an older and younger version of an androgynous person with short blue hair, brown eyes, and earrings. The older is looking down at her younger self with a soft smile while holding an umbrella. The younger child is facing away while smiling brightly and holding a key. There are stars around her head. End ID]

Older and younger Lyra. She became a Keyblade wielder at about 13 years old and fought in the Keyblade war at 15/16ish. After the Keyblade war, time is weird in the datascape and by the end of khux she doesn't actually know how old she is.

(Picrew link)

Her Union is Vulpes (which I have story reasons for not bc of Vulpes popularity). Skuld and Ephemer are Anguis

Lyra's usual Keyblades are Starlight (all-purpose), Counterpoint (magic), Sleeping Lion (speed), and Fenrir (power). After ux/ml era she uses either Starlight or Aubade. I also have a new Keyblade idea for her called Mourning Star, which is a color variant of Aubade that formchanges into dual wield swords and then a double-bladed sword.

(I chose Aubade because 1. its my fav Keyblade, and 2. the name is a song about lovers parting at dawn [very applicable for skulmerayer]. Aubade also symbolizes both the pain of separation and light phenomena, which why I chose the name Mourning Star)

[sammy8d257]

Bed - AvA Sticktober Day 9

Part of the AvAM Watered Down Hot Chocolate Series:

A Melted Marshmallow side story

Written by Sammy8D257

Word Count: 890

CW: None, although King is going through it rn

Summary: How King's bed ends up outside his room.

(This takes place a few months after Gold gets disintegrated into Minecraft.)

[AVA STICKTOBER 2023 LIST]

[Ao3 Version]

= O =

It's not until he sees it out in the main room, that King realizes what he's done.

If he thinks hard enough, he can see the thought process leading up to this decision.

It starts like this.

King had just sold his couch. It was an old thing, well worn through years of use, but it was still soft and incredibly comfortable. He got a pretty penny off of it too.

So he sold it. He needed the money. Books and supplies and gathered pieces of metal weren't going to buy themselves. And he wasn't going to dip into the fund he saved for his kid's future. 

(Not yet. Doing so felt like betrayal. Or acceptance. Either way, it was not something he was willing to deal with. He wasn't that desperate. Not yet.)

So he sold the couch. It felt like the most logical next step. 

He didn't really need it. He spent most of his time on his feet, hunched over his desk or walking around the increasingly cluttered room. The only time he'd even use it was when one too many nights of sleep were skipped and he'd end up face first into its cushions. He never means to land there, his room being his goal but sleep is sleep, so who is he to complain when he finally gets it.

(Doesn't matter that he wakes up feeling worse than before. Doesn't matter that his shoulders ache and his head pounds. Doesn't matter that a voice in the back of his mind is screaming at him to stop, to actually get some rest, to eat, to grieve. Doesn't matter, because he has work to do.)

So he sells it. And the stick who comes to pick it up thankfully does not comment on the state of the rest of his house. They're young, younger than him but older than they would have been. They look like they have their whole life ahead of them.

They smile at him, thank him for the couch, and with the help of two friends, carry it out the door. King almost feels bad for overcharging them. But he needs the money and really, it's their own fault for buying it without considering the price tag. Oh well, he hopes they enjoy it.

So the couch is sold. What was once there, now stands a plain wall.

He won't admit it bothers him. Like an itch that persists at the back of his mind. It's one more thing gone from his life but that doesn't make sense. It was just a couch.

Life continues on as normal until another bout of sleepless nights hits and instead of soft cushions, his face meets hard wooden floors.

He sleeps there anyways, too tired to complain. Until morning comes and he wakes up stiff as the floor beneath him and he vows to never do that again.

He does it two more times in the coming weeks.

On the third time, he manages to catch himself on the wall. Through the haze of exhaustion his mind comes up with a solution for his problem.

He wouldn't need to sleep on the floor if he had his bed out here.

And with a sudden burst of manic energy, he stumbles into the hallway. Blindly reaching towards his door and ignoring the one situated right next to his.

King had always been strong, blessed by his original game creator with the power to rule a kingdom, so it's no issue as he lifts and pulls and drags his bed from the middle of his room out into the hall.

Why he didn't just go to sleep in the bed itself is a question that crosses his mind in the future, but that is of no concern to him at the moment. 

He loses pillows and blankets along the way, and he's pretty sure his door has scraps etched into its frame, but he finally gets it into the main room.

With one final shove, his bed is against the wall.

And King grins, nods his head as if satisfied with his work, and then promptly passes out next to the bed. 

He wakes up the next day with a killer headache and an empty stomach, so it takes him until lunch to realize his bed is now outside his bedroom and is situated where his couch used to be.

It takes him a minute to process the change. He glances into the hallway to see the carnage of bedding left in his sleep deprived mania. He cringes and reluctantly picks up the pieces and deposits them back on his bed. 

In all honesty, he doesn't know why he did this but it would be too much of a hassle to put it back and he is much too busy to find the time to do it. So the bed stays in its new spot up against the wall.

It isn't until another round of sleepless nights hits and King wakes up on his mattress feeling marginally better than he did before, that he decides this was one of the best decisions he made in a while. One problem solved.

And then he doesn't think about it anymore. 

Not until a certain purple stick figure comes barreling into his life with a large pink tote bag in hand.

= O =

[just-antithings]

I'm not saying adults insisting they only need to read YA books and watch children's cartoons is leading to this culture wide phobia of sex which in turn is becoming a useful vector for the increasing spread of fascism except that is exactly what I'm saying.

Im not that anon but want to expand on their thought, if they're saying what I think they are.

I thought of this more when seeing an old post of someone saying their English teacher should have let them write a report on Divergent instead making them read 1984. Someone commented supporting the OP, saying that they never read Divergent, but 1984 is problematic. Iirc, the commenter referred to Winston (I think that's the protag in 1984; sorry I haven't reread it in years) as a creep. I can't remember is this specific commenter called Winston a misogynist, but that's a common complaint I hear when people say they don't like 1984.

The screenshot of that post also had other screenshots, including the twt posts of YA authors saying that the classics were problematic. It's a sentiment I keep seeing around book twt before I deactivated my account but still on booktube as well, and it's always booktubers who also read and rant about Colleen Hoover, because they know her name gets clicks. Or booktubers that do those videos titled "I read [old/popular/controversial] series so you don't have to".

Sorry, sliding off topic a bit. Going back to what anon said, YA books tend to be more sanitized. They're supposed to be written for a 15-19 audience, so sex and gore aren't supposed to be explicit. There are YA books with sex scenes. 2 I read recently have sex scenes, but they aren't explicit. One uses mostly poetic language and infers to what's happening, and the other essentially fades to black after they get into bed, as they're touching and then picks up the next morning. (One of these YA books had a big controversy on booktube a few years ago for being problematic, though. Gee, wonder why /s)

But for the most part, often for people who enjoy urban fantasy or romances but not steamy scenes, they may go for YA, since it's usually more "PG". Unfortunately, some people get it in their head that this makes YA inherently "better", that adult books that are being more explicit are only doing it to get more sales, when YA tbh has a tighter hold on it marketing-wise.

Okay, I'm not published (yet), but I've been studying it when I need to take a break from writing to see what course is best for me and what I want to write. YA is becoming oversaturated in the market, so it's not as big a "money making genre" for debut authors as it might have been once (and I'd argue that even in the past when YA was smaller, you still had to be lucky, known, or connected to get that 6-figure check for a debut YA novel). YA is more likely to get scrutinized, considering its supposed to he for a younger audience, so a YA author wanting to push boundaries is going to receive more push-back than an adult lit author.

Now pushback happens in adult lit, too, like Ava Reid saying her editor or publisher (I forget who) told her that Juniper&Thorn might be too dark. (I've read it. Yes, it's dark, but bad reviews I saw for the book blew it way out of proportion. If you (gen) like lyrical/poetic narration and gothic horror, I highly suggest it).

But it feels like there's more of a push to keep YA books "clean". You can find some outliers, but like the YA I mentioned above, those outliers in YA that push boundaries can get wrapped in controversy and called problematic.

And for whatever reason, some people on booktube say this is a good thing and say "think of the children!"

They will say censorship is bad but then advocate for sanitized YA to be read instead of classics, because the classics are "bad" and "teach bad things" and "should be left in the past". They advocate for censorship without realizing they are advocating for censorship. It's exhausting, and as someone who wants to be published and does enjoy a lot of YA, it makes me feel discouraged. I don't think I'm "pushing boundaries" at all in my writing or saying anything new, but I'm very sure it's not sanitized enough for most publishers, especially if I wanted to try for one of the beg houses in the US.

Tl;dr One of the major problems in this anti-intellectualism is capitalism.

.

[deepspacedukat]

Occupational Indulgence

Alright, I've been waiting to write this fic (and its sequel) for a while now, because it never felt like the right time. But it's here now. I fudged the dates of Mr. Eddington's assignment to DS9, but it's for my Pointy Man, so I don't care. This is part of Jorik's timeline with Jadzia.

Cross-posted to AO3 here.

~*~

Jorik (Vulcan OC)

[A/N: This is just a place-setting for the fic that will directly follow this in Jorik and Jadzia's timeline, so no warnings. Just fluff and Jorik being adorable.]

Warnings: Side characters involved in a romance, mild angst but not the romantic kind, angst about life in general, Jorik trying to justify his actions and potential future actions with logic.

~*~

**2371 - Stardate 48003.1 (January 2, Early Morning) - Aboard The USS Min'ow**

"I can't believe they're sending us to a Cardassian scrapheap way out in the middle of nowhere," one ensign grumbled over his breakfast. Despite the mess hall being practically full at this time of the morning, Lieutenant Commander Jorik was perfectly able to hear the ensign's complaints. For someone fresh out of Starfleet Academy, the younger officer didn't seem very enthused about his assignment. "Man, what I wouldn't have done to be posted on Enterprise. That must seem like a damn luxury liner compared to that Cardassian eyesore, am I right?"

One of the officers at his table was giggling at his remarks, batting her eyelashes at him as if her simpering might make him notice her existence. The other two were staring studiously down at their plates. A wise choice on their parts. The man being obnoxious was, unfortunately, under Jorik's command.

"Perhaps, Ensign Maxwell, you would prefer to remain here on the Min'ow and assist the engineering teams by scrubbing out the plasma manifolds on a daily basis?" Jorik called from his seat after delicately dabbing his lips with a napkin. "I'm certain they could use an extra hand, and I could ensure that you receive such an assignment if performing your security duties on Deep Space Nine is unappealing to you."

The man scoffed as he usually did.

"That won't be necessary. Sir." When he and the girl vying for his attention left the mess hall, Jorik noticed that the other two officers who'd been seated at that table looked vastly relieved. They were two of the hardest working people in his team.

"I trust the two of you have no such complaints?" Jorik was on the verge of smiling as he spoke to them. Ensigns Ava Hardy and Terry Giles had warmed to him quickly when they were assigned to his security team, and Jorik was quite content to consider them friends.

"Oh, not at all, sir," Ava said glancing at the other woman. "We're excited, actually. Bajor sounds like such a gorgeous planet."

"Yeah, I can't wait to take this one on shore leave there," Terry said dropping a kiss on her girlfriend's cheek. "And hey, who knows? Maybe this is the fresh start that we all need. What're you still doing over there, huh? The ugly bastard's gone. Come join us."

Jorik nodded his head and carried his plate over to their table. They would arrive at Deep Space Nine in less than an hour. He couldn't bring himself to tell them that this would be a rather short assignment for him, though. He did not wish to sour the remaining time that the three of them had together.

He'd tell them prior to his departure, of course, but right then all he wanted to do was savor the anticipation of a new assignment with them.

Anticipation. That was something else he would be giving up in a few weeks' time. Vulcans may not express their emotions as boisterously as other species, but they still experienced them just as keenly. He did not want to give that up, but...if his undergoing the kolinahr would placate his parents, then he would try it for them.

Luckily, Ava and Terry were so excited to be talking with him about Bajor and all the worlds beyond the wormhole that they didn't notice how quiet he'd become. They likely assumed he was just being courteous listening to them.

Good, Jorik thought, let them assume something positive. I do not wish for them to worry.

--

Just over an hour later, Jorik ascended the steps to the office that used to belong to the Prefect of Bajor. The doors slid open automatically, and he proceeded inside.

"Lieutenant Commander Jorik reporting for duty," he said standing at attention as soon as the door hissed closed behind him.

"Ah, yes. Captain Gifford mentioned that he was bringing us some extra security personnel. At ease, Mister Jorik. I'm Commander Benjamin Sisko. Welcome to Deep Space Nine." Commander Sisko stood and respectfully offered him the ta'al, which Jorik returned. "I trust your journey wasn't too rough?"

"Not at all, sir. My team and I are prepared to assist you however you require," he said walking over to his C.O.'s desk and handing him the PADD that contained his orders.

"Good, good. Then I'll introduce you to the Ops staff and take you to the security office so that Odo, the Bajoran chief of security, and Mr. Eddington of Starfleet security can brief you." One by one, Commander Sisko introduced him to Major Kira, Chief O'Brien, and the rest of of the senior officers. As they walked to the turbolift to head down to security, Commander Sisko conversed with Jorik about life on the station. "Oh, by the way, there is one senior officer whom you have yet to meet. My science officer, Jadzia Dax, is away on shore leave. She should be back in a few weeks."

Jorik's thoughts gnawed at him.

"Computer, halt turbolift," he called, and at the Commander's curious look, the Vulcan drew himself up to his full height. "Commander, I thank you for your hospitality. You have been very welcoming to me even though you have only met me today. I wish to be candid with you, sir. I will not be here on the station for more than a number of weeks."

Sisko lifted an eyebrow as he turned to face him.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand."

Jorik took a deep breath and clasped his hands behind his back.

"Commander, my family...my parents have been rather...insistent that I return to Vulcan to fulfill an obligation. It is one that will take many years to complete, and they are becoming impatient," he explained. "It is likely that I will request an extended leave of absence from Starfleet in a few weeks' time in order to complete that task. I did not wish for you to be 'blindsided,' as your species might say, by the loss of an officer so soon after his acquisition."

The Commander nodded his head quietly as he processed what he's been told.

"Thank you for letting me know, and...well, I hope this isn't too presumptuous, but you sound a bit reluctant about returning home," Sisko observed, and Jorik dropped his gaze. "Lieutenant Comm– Jorik...I don't claim to know much about Vulcan customs, but make sure that your obligation, whatever it might be, is something that you want, not just something your parents want. It's your life, not theirs."

He looked up at his new C.O. only to find concern in his eyes.

"Thank you, Commander. I will take your words into consideration. No matter what my decision, though, I assure you that my team will do their best," Jorik murmured, then he had a thought. "I...have not informed them of my situation, however, thus I would be...grateful if this conversation could remain private."

"They won't hear it from me." When the turbolift's progress resumed, Jorik felt both a sense of relief - logical, given that he'd been honest with the Commander - and newly conflicted. His misgivings were illogical. He had no choice in the matter. Jorik would return to Vulcan and, for once in his life, ensure that his parents did not see him as a disappointment.

He would have to content himself with the knowledge that for once, he would be exactly what he was expected to be: A good, proper Vulcan.

"Jorik?" A voice snapped him out of his thoughts almost as soon as the lift doors opened onto the Promenade. He knew that voice, though it was different than before. A pair of wide green eyes met Jorik's, and all at once he recognized her.

The girl with the panda hat had grown up, and she was in a blue Starfleet uniform. Her curly brown hair had been tamed into a long braid down the back of her head.

"Cassandra?"

"You and Ensign Connor know each other?" The Commander asked from Jorik's side, but he hardly noticed. Cassandra held up a perfect ta'al just like he'd shown her sixteen years ago. Jorik returned the gesture, of course, and easily caught the young woman when she threw herself into his arms.

No self-respecting Vulcan would have stood for such a familiar, tactile gesture...which, Jorik guessed, was why he had no problem returning her embrace. He'd never been as stoic as the rest of his people, and he'd spent a significant amount of years amongst Humans. He'd secretly relished hugs from his former classmates when he received them at the Academy. Why shouldn't he? They were simply demonstrating through their own cultural practices that they bore him some sort of platonic affection, and did his own people expect him to cast aside their own saying, 'infinite diversity in infinite combinations'?

As for the young woman in his arms, he had always wondered what had happened to her. She'd seemed intelligent when he met her all those years ago, but even so, he hadn't expected her to remember something that for her must've been extremely trivial.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, Commander," Cassandra said to Sisko as she pulled back, "but I didn't think I'd ever see Jorik again. Hell, I didn't think that you'd remember me, even if I did. I'll leave you in peace, but if you're free later, maybe we could catch up sometime. If you want to, that is."

Her last remark was directed at the Vulcan officer who nodded his head.

"I would be pleased to...'catch up' with you when your duty shift permits, Ensign," he answered, and with a bright, warm smile, she excused herself. Perhaps these weeks prior to his departure would be more enjoyable than he'd anticipated. Forming a friendship with someone long lost in his past would make it even more difficult for him to leave, but he would still savor every moment.

~*~*~

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[veronicaleighauthor]

Barbara Howard

I’m a huge fan of Abbott Elementary. For those who may not be familiar with it, here’s a brief description:

A workplace comedy centered around a group of dedicated teachers – and an oblivious principal – in a Philadelphia public school where, despite the odds stacked against them, they are determined to help their students succeed in life.

I started watching it not long after the show started, but recently I did a binge watch of it before Season 3 started and fell in love with it. One of the things I really appreciate about the show it’s character, Barbara Howard (portrayed by the brilliant Sheryl Lee Ralph). A veteran kindergarten teacher of over thirty years, you immediately fall in love with her. When we’re introduced to her, she declares she’s a “woman of God.” She’s a Christian and not ashamed of being so. Unlike other portrayals of Christians on comedy shows, even when Barbara says something comical or faith related, we’re never really laughing at her. As opposed to Glenn Sturgis on Superstore, who we laugh at all the time. Now I love Superstore and Glenn Sturgis and I enjoy laughing at him. And it’s perfectly fine for a Christian character to be ditzy, or hypocritical, or the villain; I’ve done it enough in my own stories. But Barbara Howard is one of the few positive portrayals of Christians out there.

The other characters on Abbott Elementary, Janine especially, highly respect Barbara and look to her for guidance since she’s one of the veteran teachers. She’s not perfect, but she’s never hypocritical, or cruel, or vicious. She is very open about her faith, yet she is never abrasive or judgmental. She never attempts to evangelize her coworkers. Others don’t share her beliefs, but they listen and understand her Christian beliefs are part of who she is. Ava, who is her polar opposite in personality and behavior, has referenced church and discussed beliefs and has even given Barbara some much needed advice, which Barbara took. Her closest friend is Melissa Schemmenti, who has some shady connections. Over the years she’s mentored the younger teachers, Janine, Gregory, and Jacob. Her students adore her and more than one has returned to tell her how much of an impact she’s made on their lives.

:: Spoilers from a Recent Episode ::

The recent episode of Abbott Elementary is fantastic. The school’s auditorium is lent out for Barbara’s choir group to sing in. Since Barbara is a talented singer, Ava encourages her to try out for the program. And Barbara does; it’s her wish to sing “Shackles” from MaryMary since in the past it inspired her. We see though that the church ladies don’t really like Barbara. We eventually find out they consider Barbara too “modern” for their tastes. They think she wears too much makeup; that she has too many piercings; that when she goes on cruises, she becomes Sea Barbara who is different from Land Barbara; they also object to her friendships with the more “colorful” teachers of the school.

Barbara isn’t accepted amongst those who are her brothers and sisters in Christ because in their eyes, she is “different.” She may never find acceptance in her church family. However, Abbott Elementary rallies around her and reminds her she will always have a place in their family.

:: Spoilers over ::

Anyway, the whole episode really inspired me because I’ve been struggling with some stuff. And in all honesty, I’ve drifted from God. He’s drawn me back, as He has in the past. But I was able to relate to Barbara and what she was going through – no matter how devout you are in your faith, there will always be another who thinks you aren’t truly living for Him. In the end, we’re only accountable to God and it’s His opinion that matters – not that person in your life giving you the side-eye for you not living up their expectations.

So, if you haven’t already, try Abbott Elementary. You’ll enjoy it, I swear! I can’t wait for tonight’s special episode.

[dinoplantsghost]

pairing: Tom Riddle x fem! original character

warning(s): tom is a warning in itself, 1940s: time-accurate prejudice, one or two racist comment(s) and mention of WW2, teenage behavior: drama and language, mention of Paganism and Christianity, there's probably more but idk

word count: ~2.3k

Disclaimer: I have a huge google doc that holds all of my drafts and I'm quite literally just copypasting everything, so if there are any typos/errors, no there isn't!! :)

-- omfg I blinked and all of a sudden, it's December and I haven't updated on Tumblr or Wattpad, this is so devastating bruh 💀 this is what college does to a mf. Since this chapter is short, I should be dropping another one tomorrow...hopefully.

Chapter List

Happy Birthday [8]

December 8th

Saoirse did not feel any older than the day before, and she definitely did not feel any younger. The girl spent countless nights studying for winter finals in the library, unable to find any reason to join study halls in the Ravenclaw Tower despite Tracy begging on his knees countless times. The boy could not stop leaving her alone. The separation between Ava-Lynn and Griffin hit him hard, it seemed. 

She opted to stay with Patrick when it came to studying, but one day, when the boy had gotten a cold and insisted on being locked up in his dorm, Saoirse had no other choice than to study with Mayfield. Truly, it was the worst decision in her life. He couldn’t study whatsoever and gave her a migraine by lunchtime. 

Ever since her induction, Saoirse had gotten closer to the other Slytherin boys, namely Malfoy, Black, and Lestrange. They were the only others besides Patrick who appeared to have a brain while Avery always tried to pry his way into her life with annoying “one-liners.” In hindsight, Saoirse probably should not have expected higher standards for the Knights of Walpurgis; her induction only consisted of a small, simple silver ring that would burn whenever a meeting was set for the week. She was never one for jewelry, so she kept the ring hung around her neck by a beaded metal chain. 

Saoirse had always thought of friend groups to be more adventurous, filled with animated moments that would surely make their way as important core memories late in life. However, the more she started to converse and let herself be, it was clear to her that there were more precious moments of quiet than of rambunctious laughter. Sure, they were boys; yelling and arguing was expected, but the girl could only guess that their aristocratic upbringings led them to enjoy leisure time, sitting around in the damp grasses covered in browns, reds, and oranges to stare at the sky. 

She started to notice the little things, details she would have never considered had she listened to Mayfield and stayed away from those in green. Malfoy had certain compulsions and wanted everything done in a certain manner, in a certain order; Lestrange was always writing to his mother, something Saoirse could never relate to. Avery, though known for his infidelity with young women around the castle, always stuck up for his friends during Quidditch matches and advocated for a healthy relationship with one’s being and body; Black, though the most intimidating, was the nicest out of the 9 snakes—save for Patrick and Rosier. 

The two with the longest hair, one with strands made of ambered honey and the other with strands of spilled oil, were stuck to the hip. Saoirse was never one to probe around and eavesdrop, but with Lestrange’s enabling tendencies, she couldn’t help but let her eyes follow Rosier and Mulciber in their personal adventures. Mulciber always tried to pull Rosier’s chair out for him, and always offered to clean the boy’s glasses and braid his hair. Rosier, being a worrywart, naturally scolds the other boy whenever he would be too rough during practice. In the end, though, he would always end up dressing Mulciber’s wounds with a gentle touch, one that was reserved for a frail butterfly too weak to fly on its own.

The one person that was too caught up in his own woes to notice his luck was Riddle. He was always gone, wanting to study on his own or finding odd excuses to not partake in a group outing to their tree by the Black Lake. If Saoirse were asked a few months ago, she would have aligned with Tom’s actions and deem him reasonable for wanting to be alone. But now, she liked having people around, even if it meant being together in silence. It was fun, and it actually made her happy. 

Whenever Saoirse would ask about the boy, the rest would look so dejected to say he did not want to hang out. It was obvious to her that they saw Riddle as a genuine friend, especially with the large promises he tells them over and over again, but he was like a broken record player.

From time to time, whenever she found herself laughing a little too hard at Malfoy’s face that turned red whenever he got too much dirt and grime on his person, Saoirse’s thoughts always returned to Himiko. When days were particularly happy, she wondered if she could have been good friends with the girl, genuine friends. Saoirse saw her face in her dreams more often, and even saw her figure in the corridors when she was out and about exploring the castle with Patrick after Astronomy. She used to never see Himiko when she died in October, but she could not figure out the reason for the deceased’s now frequent occurrences.  

Saoirse wanted to tell someone about Himiko, perhaps Patrick, but she would rather be preoccupied than focusing on her past. It was her birthday, yes, but there was barely anything special about it to disregard her papers and readings. She had never celebrated her birthday before and she definitely was not going to start now, not when life was starting to look more colorful.

But, of course, the Knights never missed the opportunity for a good party. By sundown, Saoirse made her way to the Slytherin dungeons as she usually did on Tuesday. The girl had become a recurring face to see in the Slytherin common room, a speck of phthalo blue in a sea of faded tea green. When she walked into room number 13 on the boy’s side, Saoirse was met with a loud pop in the ears, followed by the tickling sensation of confetti running down her cheeks. 

Eloise was hysterical, a grin slapped on top of his face. “Happy birthday!”

“I’m so sorry about him,” Lestrange said. “We said not to pop the confetti until later, but he wanted to open one now.” The boy gave her a friendly side-hug, something she was surely getting used to, and let her into the dorm. 

One by one, the other boys hugged her, patting Saoirse’s back in celebration of her sixteenth birthday. The last two people to hug her, one in blue and the other in red, were a surprise. 

“Nott told us it was your birthday,” Tracy smiled. “And usually I don’t like being in enemy territory, but I’m letting it slide for now. You only get to be sixteen once, after all!” 

“Happy birthday, Saoirse,” Ava-Lynn said. “Tracy told me what you said about Eugene a couple weeks ago. I’m grateful that you decided to keep being friends with me. Eugene has the tendency to get people on his side, so I was worried.”

Saoirse let a huff leave her nose. “He’s really weird,” she laughed. “I still can’t believe he was crying that hard. Again, I don’t know what happened between you two, but I don’t think it was anything crazy enough to have snot in his hair, especially since it was his fault, it seems like.”

“It definitely was his fault,” Tracy muttered. “Ava told me and—yeesh…” 

“Sorry to interrupt,” Miles pushed. “But we got to sing to the birthday girl!” He took Saoirse by the arms to guide her to the round table that was moved to the middle of the room, a large cake sitting patiently in the middle. “My Mum sent me the recette via owl. It was my aunt’s, but it got passed down to us when she passed away a couple years back. Hopefully, you’ll like it.” 

“It’s awfully big…”

“Yeah, well, I have a big sweet tooth and so does Cass’.”

As Saoirse sat down, Patrick lit the candles with his wand, each wick engulfed in fire illuminating her eyes in all of their jade-like beauty. The more the girl looked around, the more she realized that Riddle, as always, was nowhere to be found. 

Her friends began to sing, though all in different keys and intonation, and Saoirse’s chest tightened. Maybe it was the dust in the room, or the way the candle flames irritated her eyes, but soon her nose was dusted with red as tears rolled down her cheeks. Her stomach was numb and nauseous, yet so warm and fulfilled. Her heart was on double-time, pumping blood through her veins as more tears crusted over her skin. 

By the time her friends finished singing, her eyes were covered completely, hands over her face in an attempt to stop the crying. They could only laugh at her moment of weakness, a rare sight for Saoirse to hold her emotions on her sleeve—quite literally, too, as she rubbed her nose and snot all over her Hogwarts robe. 

After some shouts of encouragement, the candles were blown, and the cake was cut. It was very sweet, a burst of flavor Saoirse was not used to, but with a hint of her salty tears the flavor seemed to subside. 

“People cry all the time, Saoirse, don’t be embarrassed,” Ava-Lynn smiled. “I thought it was very sweet.” 

Tracy nodded; his face slathered in frosting. “Mhmm!” He stopped himself to swallow his piece. “It was also cool of the guys to set this up and invite us. They’re actually kind of nice.”

“Of course we’re nice,” Eloise scoffed. “Why would we ever be rude to Saoirse? She’s a doll, really—changed the way I look at the Japanese!” 

Saoirse chimed in, “I heard that Japan defended some territory in the east a few days ago—New Guinea, I believe.”

“Well, I don’t really care about Muggle Japan; you know that.” 

“Yeah, I don’t care about them either,” Tracy said. “Now let’s open presents! Open mine first!” 

───────────

Wrapping paper was thrown askew, trashing the room with bows littered here and there. Each gift was unique and special, reminiscent of Saoirse’s time in Scotland from October to now. Eloise gifted the girl hair products and hair clips, Miles gave her old French cookbooks that specialized in the use of fruits, and Ava-Lynn gave Saoirse a book on Spanish architecture and a dress for the warmer months. Tracy gave her a simple bottle of perfume, Orion gave her a more durable set of quills, and Cassius gave her a pair of binoculars for every Quidditch match she was “guaranteed” to see. Rosier gave Saoirse a plant, having bonded over herbology and gardening in the past week or so, and Patrick gave Saoirse a ring that had the constellation of Sagittarius engraved in its underside. Tracy and Ava-Lynn excused themselves shortly after giving their gifts, not wanting to stay in the snake pit longer than needed. 

When it was Abraxas’ turn to present his gift, Saoirse couldn’t help but crease her brows. “What is this, Malfoy?”

“A suitcase,” he smiled. “My family hosts an annual Yule Ball to celebrate the winter season. I thought you’d need one since you’re obviously invited.” 

“What’s Yule?”

“It’s what we celebrate instead of Christmas, though we still do the gift-giving and all of that. The meaning of Yule has changed over the years, but it was originally a holiday from the Pagan religion.” 

Patrick frowned. “My family’s manor was caught in an air raid a few weeks ago. A few grenades were thrown nearby, and I guess that was enough to ruin the infrastructure.” 

Eloise grabbed another piece of cake, using his fingers to grip at the moist sponge straight from the source. “Which manor is the ball going to be at?”

“Our French one,” Abraxas replied. “Luckily most of our manors are safe from the Muggle War.” 

“Merlin, I can’t imagine having one of my family’s manors being destroyed,” Lestrange sighed. “Didn’t you grow up in that manor before moving here?”

“Yeah…” 

Saoirse reached with a hand to comfort Patrick, her thumb grazing his knuckles. The boy immediately squeezed her palm in response. She turned to Abraxas, a small smile on her lips as she spoke softly, “I’d be happy to attend; thank you for inviting me.” 

The group cleaned up the dorm, bunching up the wrapping paper and ribbons before Abraxas gathered it all to make it disappear with the tap of his wand. 

“Thank you so much for setting this up for me,” Saoirse sniffled. “I’ve never celebrated my birthday before.” 

Patrick smiled softly, taking the girl’s hands in his. “We’ll celebrate it every year, then.”

In a fit of bravery, Patrick leaned in close to press his lips onto Saoirse’s cheek. His movements were quick, causing his action to land on the corner of her lip instead. Before Saoirse could get a word out, she was already out of the dorm, the loud guffaws of Avery, Lestrange, and Mulciber echoing down the hallway as the door slammed in front of her face. 

She could only stare, gathering her thoughts together as her hands squeezed the box the leftover cake sat in. The boys insisted that she keep the sweet since it was for her. Her chest heaved, her heartbeat slowing. When she turned around to leave the Slytherin common room, her face smashed into another person, their hands quickly hovering over hers to save the cake. 

“You should try keeping your eyes open for once,” they sighed, a boy’s voice reaching Saoirse’s ears. 

It was Tom, his lips in their usual pout on his face. His hands were warm, yet rougher than the girl could have ever imagined they would be. 

“My eyes were open,” she scoffed. “They always are.” 

“Answer the damn question.” 

“Are you seriously going to finish this cake on your own?”

“Don’t change the subject.”

“...Well, no. It’s too sweet, but Lestrange made it.” 

The cake box was pulled from her grasp, her hands cold now that Tom’s hands disappeared from her own. He didn’t say a word, opening the box to inspect the treat. Surprisingly, his lips curled up in the corners. His face looked oddly pleasant to look at, for once. Any sort of emotion went as quickly as it came, and soon the boy was walking away from her to return to his own dorm room. 

As Saoirse walked in the same direction to leave, her ears caught a small wind of his voice. 

Credit(s): Dividing banner (^^^) by Chen Lu (1436 - 1449) - "Plum Blossoms in Moonlight" scroll painting; sourced through Pinterest

“Happy birthday, Saoirse.”