#coving it now but like I'm so angry

[inkteresting-art]

My little recuse betta I decided to keep jumped the tank when I wasn't home. I have so much anger I'm numb...

[halcyone-of-the-sea]

Songs That Sound Like Sea-Foam (II)

AU MASTERLIST || PART III

PAIRING: Fisherman!John Price x F!Mermaid!Reader

WORDCOUNT: 5.7k

WARNINGS: Blood, abduction, violence, intense gore, death, swords & firearms, angst, hurt/comfort, nakedness, etc.

A/N: Guys, whatever you do, don't imagine Price in a white tunic holding Mermaid you in one arm and weilding a sword in the other. I'm frothing at the mouth.

*I do not give others permission to translate and/or re-publish my works on this or any other platform*

You sit on your black rocks once more, the darkening sky warning of an oncoming storm that you can feel seeping into your bones. In your loose grip, you fiddle with John’s necklace. 

He’d given it to you only recently as a gift, seeing as you enjoyed the shininess of it so much, and you’d taken great pleasure in keeping it around your neck. Out of all of your treasures and trinkets, somehow these measly metal discs had become your favorite. The necklace is smooth under your caress, and you look down at it adoringly, eyes soft and lips curved with delicate affection. 

The cove, as always, was quiet above the call of seagulls and the lapping of waves; the whispering ripples from your tail as it sways under the water. You had gotten content with this—the silence. Because you knew it would be filled by the low gravel of an accented voice soon enough; would be swept away by the chuckles you could wring from beard-hidden lips. 

John was something to look forward to, and you loved the way he looked at you. 

Water hits the top of your head. 

Blinking out of your honeyed thoughts you look up to the crying sky as small slaps of droplets slide across your cheeks. Lashes flinch at every motion, and you glance back to the empty cove before lowering the necklace to your scaled lap. 

Confusion slithers in like an eel to your heart as your eyes slide over the growing waves. The yawning mouth of the entrance sits abandoned of any small fishing ship. 

For three, beautiful, sand-covered, months, John had never missed a day to come and see you. Rain or Sun.

A prick of a sharp fish's spine enters your brain. The rain comes down now in sheets. Lightning and thunder fight, and if you look close enough, the remnants of ancient lightning birds battle overhead with a flurry of black wings and their insatiable need for blood. Yet, still, your eyes stay frozen on the cove entrance as the water rises and rises. 

With a thinning of your lips and the violent pushing from the torrent as it swallows your rocks, you clench your hands over John’s necklace and push off your perch with a shove of your palms. 

Water encompasses you, scales dull, and fins limp as the general calmness from the encompassing water holds you in a constant sway. Your brows furrow.

Why wasn’t he here? You ask yourself, sinking among the seaweed and the schools of quick fish. Concern mingles with hurt. Do…do you think he’s alright? 

Human ways were still confusing to you, even if John had been helping you understand them and giving little clam-shells of information. But they seemed…like violent folk. Angry and selfish, from what John had said about their wars and squabbles. The thought of your fisherman potentially being in danger on land was terrifying to you. 

There wouldn’t be anything you could do if that happened.

Your fingers tighten around the strap of his necklace as you stare at the surface, back lightly hitting the bottom of the cove with a puff of sand. Crabs scatter as your tail twitches, your lungs sighing in their own special way. 

John can take care of himself, you reason. He’s just a little late is all. 

John’s never late. Your face creases, but you stuff the thought down, twisting on your side and bridging the piece of jewelry to your lip—kissing it once as sand digs into your skin. Holding the fisherman's property to your pounding heart, you close your eyes and wait as any lonely and loyal Merwoman would; tail held in close and the reverberations of a rabid downpour above you.

—

You wake up to the darkness of night. Blinking, you sigh to yourself and move a slow hand to rub at your eyes. After a moment of fatigued confusion as to why you weren’t in your cave, you realized why you had been out here in the first place.

John. 

Arms pushing you up, your mind fights to wake itself, laced with algae and fatigue. How long have you been asleep? Has the storm stopped? Surely you hadn’t slept the entire day away. You pull the fisherman's necklace over your head as you stare at the sand below you. No fish were slipping past besides one that brushes your tail, which you found odd, but didn’t think much of it. 

Shaking your head, you feel sluggish and put the necklace back on with a huff. You worry what John will think of you perhaps missing his late visit and smile slightly in humor. 

The fish brushes your tail again. 

Scales shimmering, you turn with an annoyed pull to your lips, fins scraping something hard and rough even as it’s saturated by the water of your cove. When you spot it, not only the rope but the shadow of the large hunting ship above you, your body drains of any life that had once lived in your lungs. It wasn’t nighttime. 

Eyes widening at the loop that was parading around your tail, you don’t have time to move before it tightens with a force that leaves your mouth opening in a bubbled scream; ruthlessly jerking your body along the seafloor. 

Desperately, your hands rip along the rocks and weeds of the bottom of the cove, getting torn and shredded in their soft nature as easily as paper. Your body smacks into every little object with a rattling to your bones that makes you sob. Red saturates the water as you’re manhandled in long and steady intervals back and up. 

No amount of rampaging your tail does can break the rope, and with a last-ditch effort as the sandy floor gets farther and farther away, you twist around and tear at the woven cord with sharp nails. Adrenaline pumps, pupils tiny and panicked. 

No! No, not like this! You can imagine the pain of it now—the hooks and the ripping of scales from your supple flesh. Even now the tiny ones under the dig of the vice are peeling away in long strings of red to disappear behind you as you’re thrust upward. They’re delicate, don’t these monsters understand? They’re beautiful and treasured and they’re destroying them!

You scream in pain at the pulling of your spine; a large creaking in your muscles. 

But as you gain a small sense of feral hope when the rope begins to fray from your grip, the iron net squashes any belief of surviving. 

It slams into you as John would cast his own for his prey—but this one is larger and full of cruel, curved, spikes. Is this what your parents endured? What the harpies had meant? The iron sinks far quicker than rope, and it traps you in a dome of hell before you can mutilate yourself out of the maw.

Oh, Gods, it was going to peel your skin away.

True fear pounded in your breast, and with a cry of John’s name from under the water, you watched with horror as the net descended onto you and your bloody wounds.

They drag you above waves and the first thing you do is thrash and wail so loud the seagulls shriek in surprise. There’s crimson staining the waters sloshing at you with combative ease, the violent storm from before now a light slapping at add to your fear. In the wake of open air, the curved spikes dig into your flesh as easily as a unicorn’s horn can penetrate a wyvern’s armor. Skin everywhere is assaulted and peeled to a tautness of bodily torture. 

Oh, and your precious tail. 

It hurt so badly, like nothing you had ever experienced before. 

“John!” You scream as your body strikes the side of the large ship, voice cutting out and leaving a bawling yell behind. Your form was being pulled by steady hoists and barked orders. 

All around you can hear laughing—joking. Loud exclamations of approval. 

You’re sure they’ve dislocated your tail right at the joint, how could they not have? The ream of their strong arms and ruthless greed. Oh, your tail, your precious, beautiful tail.

Long streams of salty tears fly down your dripping face; arms pushing the spikes away from your neck and face with futile action. The net and rope were your earthly graves. 

They slam you to the deck like a fish. 

Jerking and slapping around, your arms hit the wood with a bird-paced heart. The iron rattles and keeps you down like a weight. 

Brokenly gasping through loud cries, the sudden jeering faces from all around leave your fear all-consuming. 

They were ugly—broken teeth and sun-destroyed skin. Eyes that bugged and scars that could be from either a sword or a Strix’s claws. More than likely it was from meager squabbles with crewmates. But you balk back nonetheless, terrified and bleeding profusely. 

They were going to rip you to pieces. 

Inside your chest, your lungs are rising and falling quickly, and the hands that glide along your form make you want to burn your skin off. They grip at you, yanking you around as your hair gets caught in the gaps between the iron. With nail and tooth your bite and claw, but how many were there? Ten? Twenty? 

There’s uproar and more jokes as you fight back; body lifted and spikes torn out of skin as you arch your back and howl in agony. Their hands are not John’s. They don’t caress your smooth skin with reverence or holiness—this is cruelty. This is a sadistic pleasure. 

“Isn’t it our lucky day, Lads?!” A high and grating voice bellows out, and finally free of the net, all you can do is cry and flip your tail uselessly along the polished wood as they throw you down. Your vision blacks and slowly comes back—hair matted and skin slick with more than water.

It hurts to breathe too much. Whimpering, your cheek presses itself into the deck as footsteps take someone closer.

“Holy God, would ya look at that down there, eh? A true maiden of the sea,” A thunderous belt of achievement from everyone leaves you flinching, eyes tight shut to try and focus on anything but the excruciating way your skin throbs and gushes blood. “Though we’d have gotten all of them by now!” 

Haggard laughs and rotted smiles. 

A hand snaps to wrench your face upward, and you yowl and grasp at your head as your delicate strands go tight.

“Now who’s the little beauty we have here?” Whoever this man was, he had no standing on John. On your Fisherman. 

Loose skin and an age-rotted tunic, a belt at his waist holding a scabbard with a gold sword and twin pistols. He had only one eye—brown as a pile of mud—with a black eyepatch over the other. 

Your fluttering lashes took in a cracked-lipped grin of approval; whether at your battered appearance or the nature of your species, you knew not. But you didn’t like the way he was glancing at your tail as if it was made of gold one bit.

“Lords above, did ya have to be so brash, Lads?” Spittle slaps your face and you fight again with the hands in your locks to get away. The man’s hold jerks your face back and forth until you stop with bile building in your throat. “Wrecked her silky skin, you did!”

Being thrown back, your skull slams the deck before you hurl your guts in a sputtering of air and crimson. Many laugh and kick at your already broken scales. You grit your teeth and refuse to cry out.

“Get ‘er tied up and in the Hold for storage. If the scales are good enough, we’ll peel ‘em tomorrow.”

“Peel?!” Your face whips into a twisted glare, and pain leads to fast anger; wrath, even. The men grow gradually silent at your outburst and the leader comes to a slow stop—his back to you. “How dare you?” You gasp out, hands pushing your body slightly backward until the agony makes you stop with a lip-bitten whine. “How dare you do this to me? What have I done to you and your men? You’re nothing but senseless cowards who shy at something that lives its life differently! Am I only a pile of coin for you?!”

Your blood runs over the deck and seeps into the grain. Staining it with your memory and presence like a ghost that’s not yet dead. Loose scales shimmer and drip red. They were damaged and dull—your flesh was mangled. 

The leader turns back and smirks with blackened teeth. “More than a pile, Little Dearie. Far more. And if those hooks had been kinder, the King would have loved a beauty like you in his collection.” A look is slid down your body with a knowing chuckle.

He stalks off and you peel back your lips to say more, but a stained rag is shoved into your mouth instead, shutting up your rageful screeches and any hope of a peep of potent song despite not knowing these devils’ names.

By the time they chuck you in the Hold, body bouncing along the wood, and shut the hatch with a reverberation of wood, you had managed to rip someone’s ear clean off and break another’s arm; but there was only so much you could do. They had bound your hands behind you with a blow to your spine.

Curled up and longing for the sea, for John, you hold the only thing you have left. 

Silver discs on a chain, the metal smooth and the only thing now shining. You feel it hit your breastbone and sob as the headache of blood loss begins to set in. Laughter echoes from above your dark prison.

—

John saw the blood in the water before he saw the scales being pushed back and forth on the beach. Caught in that gentle push and pull now that the storm had ceased beyond a light drizzle—bright and reflecting the misty sun; far more vibrant than a fish or a sea serpent. But the blood. 

Christ, there was blood in the water. 

Blue eyes stare blankly at the sea-foam at the shoreline, red and bubbling, John’s pupils small and the lashes held back even as a salty breeze hits them with a burn. At his sides, his hands slowly close into fists. 

Jumping off the side of his ship, the man lands in thigh-deep water, gritting his teeth before he shoves his way to the sand and black rocks of land. He doesn’t know what drives his actions, or why he’s doing this, but with quick hands, he snatches up what scales he can find and keeps them in his palm; mind on fire. 

Anyone could see the fury in John’s gaze—a growing hatred for what was just beyond sight. When he has all he’s able to carry, he wades back through the water and gets himself back atop his boat easily with one hand. 

Walking quickly and soaked, he pushes aside a small cloth atop a barrel; seeing a gold box hidden under it. He opens it deftly, and while he puts the damaged and torn scales inside, John glances at the expensive and elegant twin cuff bracelets that sit in blue velvet. 

When he had been away buying them for you, he should have already been here. Wasted time.

I left her here alone. Knowing what could happen if I did. A growl bounces under his beard, face going red with anger. The two of you had quickly become enraptured with each other—drunk off flesh and touch like non-sentient animals. 

And something had taken place while he was away. You were gone, the fisherman knew. The water wasn’t as clear, the fish were terrified, and the blood alone proved this—the scales. This wasn’t an accident.

And it had something to do with that ship he’d seen on the horizon with his narrowed eyes not minutes prior. The Captain was slowly re-taking over the man.

“Fuck!” John curses, teeth bared as he spins and readies his sails. With violent pulls at the ropes, letting the mainsail shift down in a flurry of white sheets, he turns the vessel around in no time at all. It was as if Poseidon himself was pushing the ship forward to that small dot on the ocean line, far, far away. 

Deadly purpose bled into his heart, and the early afternoon sun forced him onward with hellfire following at his heels. He re-wraps his gift in the meantime, only taking a single scale from inside and putting it in a small pouch on his belt before walking to another barrel and pausing. This one was older, more sun-bleached. 

John deserted the service years ago, but not long enough to forget how the world of men can be. With a grunt on his thinned lips, the brunette rips the top off and grasps inside. 

With an experienced hand out came a sheathed Cutlass, the leather of the handle worn and indented to his very grip. It found a place on his belt, and John wasted no time in making the Flintlock pistol follow. 

A fisherman he may be, but in his blood John would always be a killer. He knew how to fight dirty and fight well—carve skin and not flinch at the sparks of gunpowder. There was no hesitation as to what he would do to get you back. 

In his chest, there was a weight of rage and concern as he glared at the far-off Hunter’s ship.

“What the hell have you done to her?” He growls, beard back and eyes narrowed. His hands clenched and unclenched with loathing. 

John’s thoughts go to the horror stories he’d heard about Merfolk and them getting caught in the open ocean, when he’d found you he had been surprised. He felt his heart beat faster when you were around, his blood would spike with love and affection. 

It was strange, unheard of, but he can’t stop it now that it’s happened. 

No one touched you with their cruel hands and lived. 

John didn’t like it, but he hung far enough away from the Hunter’s ship so that the cover of night hid him. Dark stars hung at his head, tunic blowing in the chilled breeze when the waves took him close enough—all was silent. Asleep. 

Lantern light slid along the waves, and with deft fingers, John anchored his ship with measured efficiency a small distance away. Looking over the side, the fisherman grunts under his breath and sets his shoulders. Without a single glance in hesitation, he slips silently off the deck into the water. 

Immediately, John kicks his legs and resurfaces with a puff from his nostrils, whipping his head to the side to dispel water. Making no sound, the man swims the distance between vessels, hearing the creak of the still and bulky form of the Hunter’s ship ten times his own sitting above him. 

“Fuckin’ bastards,” he grumbles to himself and thinks of your condition intensely. His heart hammers even in the clutches of the frigid waters. But beyond the insult, no other words needed to be spoken—the prior Captain was a man of action.

Violent Action.

John wades to the side of the wooden structure, the waves threatening to smash him tight into the hull and skin him against the barnacles, but he braces himself and grabs ahold of the knife at his belt, next to his cutlass. In his stupor to get to you quickly, he’d forgotten that his Flintlock would be completely useless now that it had been submerged in water. 

Grunting and trying to remain as quiet as possible, the man sets his blade into the side of the ship into the thin slits available. In his free hand, he takes up his cutlass and does the same. In a feat of impressive upper-body strength that leaves his muscles bunching and tensing—veins visible from the side of his neck—John huffs breaths as he climbs the ship one panel at a time. 

He groans and sends the blades back in at opposite intervals, the firm thunk-plunk, thunk-plunk, bouncing off the dark air as the moon shines bright. But no one awakens.

The Fisherman pulls himself up the side of the ship and swiftly ducts behind a pile of large crates on deck to gather himself, wiping his forehead with his arm.

“C’mon Sweetheart,” he mutters, “hold on just a little longer.” Duel wielding both weapons, narrowed eyes look across the open area—the stain of blood all along the wood. Glimmering in the low light catches John’s fiery gaze. 

Scales. Your scales. Littering the deck and scattered all over. 

If possible, the man becomes even more enraged, knuckles going white over his blades. The man stationed on deck was asleep across the way; leaning back and snoring. John locks eyes on him and hides back a vicious smirk. Quickly sneaking over and staying near the edge of the lantern’s lights, the ragged-looking man awakens to a blade at the base of his throat and a voice in his ear.

“The woman,” John speaks slowly and deeply, accent rolling out. The watchman tenses in his grip, but John grits his teeth and grits out, “Where the fuck is she?” 

“W-woman?” Usually, the brunette could paint himself a patient man, like a flag fluttering in a breeze waiting for the next bout of heavy winds without care or concern. But this was different. 

By God, if these pathetic fortune-seekers had hurt you even in the slightest bit…

John presses the blade harder to the man’s throat, thighs shifting in agitation, glaring at the far-off water beyond this stranger’s shoulder.

“The woman.” Blood falls down the blade edge, crimson. A tiny whimper. “The one that you stole away like an fucking animal.” 

“The fish?” The tone was incredulous but with a snarl the voice continues, whispering pitifully out in fear over the night’s silence. “She’s in the Hold! I swear it, Sir, on God’s green earth I do—”

John slits the man’s throat and takes his leave before the body drops, blood spraying into the air with a garbled cry.

—

You don’t sleep so much as you fall unconscious from the lack of blood. Inside your head, your brain is fuzzy and light—everything swirling like a jewel’s many faces reflected onto a wall. The rocking of the Hunter’s ship, while something you should be used and accustomed to, made you sick at times until only the watery bile that fell from your lips hit the wood. 

At some point, you’d given into the call of nothingness at the lack of seawater and the violent shivering of your shoulders. Your tail had gone completely numb. 

Everyone knew that Merfolk needed the sea to survive—you couldn’t live without feeling its loose arms around you for long periods, pulling you in and filling your airways. 

This was torture. 

But whoever was ripping up cloth at your limp side was muttering you back into the darkness of the Hold. 

“I’m right ‘ere, c’mon, Love. Open your bloody eyes.” Hands pressed to your face, tilting it and hissing before a thumb slid along the swollen skin of a cut. “I’ll rip them to pieces…mark my word. They’ll not live through this.” 

It sounded like…

Gripping at your binds and gag, both items slipped away right before the larger cuts on your body were suddenly packed with strips of rough material. Occasional whispers of words and curses wafted out. 

“...J-John?” Your voice is rough, shattered, but at the same time you manage to force open an eye. 

Tight blue eyes meet yours immediately, and his voice softens to a painful degree as he addresses you. “That’s it, atta girl. Just keep focusing on my voice, then, yeah? Come back to me, Sweetheart.” 

Tears well your ducts, lips quivering. 

John was curled over you and had ripped up the bottom of his tunic to make strips of bandages to try and stop the bleeding. He came for you, gruff voice and large frame, all.

“How are you—” Your voice breaks into body-shaking coughs, but that doesn't deter the man. He carefully puts a hand forward and tilts you into his arms; head resting on his chest. Your ears twitch to the sound of his heartbeat, loud and fast. You cling to it like a lifeline as those calluses graze your skin once more.

How was he here? 

“What have they fucking done?” John’s voice is dark and volatile, his hand stroking your matted hair. “What did they do?” 

He’s not so much asking you as he’s asking himself. You breathe in a wheeze, not noticing the crimson staining John’s clothes—none of it his or yours in the slightest. The other men on the ship weren’t the Fisherman’s priority, only you; always you. But whoever had been in his path had met the unfortunate end of being on the opposite side of his blade. 

When he’d found you like this….it was like his entire chest had fallen still. His eyes wide with horror and fear. 

John had never felt something that visceral before, except when you hadn’t been in your cove. 

“Oh, my Beauty.” Chapped lips press to your forehead, breathing you in as arms curl around you. “Let me bring you home.” 

You shake and cry silently into his neck, weak hands coming to grasp at his neck. 

“They’re going to take my tail.” 

“No,” John’s answer is immediate and firm, pulling you closer until you might slip into his skin. “No, they’re not doing a damn thing to you. I promise, Love, not a single person will ever touch you again, you hear?” 

You burrow into his neck, this fisherman’s flesh soft under your force. Hands keep you to him, and with another kiss on your cheek, they tighten and gently move you into the clutch of his arm. 

John looks down at you with great distress, eyes flickering over every sign of abuse and hurt. The men whose throats he’d slit in their sleep deserved to be awake and see the blade descending for their neck, he thought. 

“I’m going to lift you, Sweetheart, eh?” He grunts to push aside the hatred in his tone, not wanting to scare you. He gazes around the Hold and at the low ceiling—the insistent rocking from the waves just outside. 

You suck down greedy breaths and nod slightly, shaking in his arms. John’s eyes crease in sorrow but has no option but to continue; the both of you can’t be here when the remaining men wake or discover the bodies. 

Your Fisherman frowns but does what he’s able to both quickly and effectively lift you, your tail hanging limp and dripping blood from the fins. When you tense and whine, John shushes you quietly.

“Hush, now, it’s alright. It’ll all be over soon, I’ve got you. I’m taking you back home if it’s the last thing I damn-well do.” Your teeth grit with held-back pain, every movement was agony and to think made it worse. 

Home? Home wasn’t safe anymore. Like taking a knife to the heart, the thought makes the torment all the worse. 

John holds you in one arm, head under his ear and rubbing against his beard as his muscles strain to keep you right to him with his torn tunic and blood-freckled skin. In his free hand, he wields his Cutlass and exits the Hold slowly, eyes surveying the scene. 

The scores of bodies were only a fraction of the men of this ship—only one side of the crew’s quarters that ascended up to the deck. John knew the anatomy of a ship well, certainly one like this. 

His only question was why such an unsavory bunch was living on a King issued hunting vessel in perfect condition. Was the bastard hiring pirates for his extermination game?

“If I ever get my hands on him…” John shuts himself up as someone groans in their sleep from the far wall. 

He glares in the general direction and puts his body between yours and the straight direction that he walks—sword parallel to the ground and knife at his belt as a backup. Ready and wound for a fight. 

“You..you came for me?” You ask softly as John carries on, your blood leaving a crimson trail behind the two of you; your mind is loose to all except the way your Fisherman’s thumbs run circles in your rent scales, fingers gripping under your tail joint which aches and hurts. His bicep is curled at the small of your back. 

John carries you like you weigh nothing.

“‘Course,” the brunette's eyes slide to yours, true honesty and firmness behind his words. You flutter your lashes at the fatigue in your body and his feet speed up, speaking into your scalp and nuzzling his beard into you. “No one messes with my girl.” 

“I’m not a…girl, John,” you remind, softly.

The smirk on your head gives you strength, fear steadily draining like contaminated liquid.

“No,” he whispers, “no, not quite. You’re something far more lovely, aren’t you?”

Your heart swells, tears dripping down your cheeks once more before lips slide them away with brushes of a kiss. He carries you up the stairs quickly, sword at the ready. 

Lantern light makes you squint, hands tightening around John’s neck. 

He hums to you, a small melody that you can latch onto to help focus—it keeps your mind working as everything else falls away. John’s warm flesh and his lungs, the sound of his pulse. 

He came for you. No man would do that besides him—no specimen of any species. No one except John. 

Your Fisherman. 

You’re halfway to freedom, feeling the sea air on your flesh and longing for the depths of untouchable waves. You peek from John’s neck and blink delicately, what little scales still intact shimmering, and fins aching for water. 

“John,” he begins to pick up his pace, but still glances in attentive question. “I need to be in the water. I can’t go long without it.” You already felt a bit stronger by just being by the open sea. The man nods and you smile deeply, face twisted. You kiss his cheek deeply. “You have my thanks, Fisherman.” 

His tight expression gradually loosens with care and love. “Doubted me, then?”

“Perhaps only a little,” he kisses your lips, cheeky smiles peeling his beard. 

“Well, we’ll have to fix that, eh?” The man’s face is lit by lanterns, stars like a crown above his head that illuminate the small scars and the sheen of sweat like a portrait of a good man. 

Perhaps humans were truly more magical than you had been taught to believe, for no mortal man would do this for anybody. 

In the midst of him carrying you over to the edge of the ship, he’s only three feet from the drop when the familiar sound of a Flintlock hammer being clicked back hits his ears. You feel John lock up, and your eyebrows crease in confusion; not common to the model of metal and wood. 

Looking over his shoulder, you strangle down a raspy gasp.

“John—”

“I know, Love.” He whispers, turning slowly with his sword at his hip. The stranger with the eyepatch has his weapon leveled with the brunette’s chest. “Easy, let me handle it. Keep focusing on me.”

“A thief in the night!” The leader calls, and alarm from below deck start to rise in question at the noise. John grits his teeth and his stance widens. “Thought to make off with my prize, did ya? I’ve not seen you before on this ship.”

“Hell,” John grits out, loudly now that he’s caught. You burrow deeper into him and he shields you, voice hot with rage. “Save me the fuckin’ monologue. She isn’t yours—to own or bloody take.” 

As he speaks he points his cutlass in the leader’s general direction, holding it aloft with a strong and pale arm. The leader smirks, and soon the pound of rushing feet enter the deck—men holding weapons and clubs. You make a noise of tension and John tries to shift you farther into his grip even more. 

Your tail hangs and brushes the deck, gaining some feeling back to it gradually. 

The leader laughs. “What that creature is, Mate, is enough gold for a whole moon’s time in rum and pleasure.” His single eye falls on you as the crew gets closer, crowding in and yelling. 

John shuffles back and snarls like a boar, pointing his sword’s tip from one chest to another. 

“Keep your bastard eye off of ‘er, you prick. Find your score elsewhere. She’s coming with me.” So sure he sounds that you yourself believe it. Your chest swims with pride.  

The crew closes in, but jumping at this stage was dangerous. The ones with firearms could aim in the water before you both could get away and John didn’t know if you could swim still. Your fins were torn and tail flinching with damaged nerves.

Eyepatch barks a vile laugh, “...I think he loves the beast!” John’s body winds even farther and your eyes slip to the side of his red face. He grunts stiffly, hair damp. Everyone follows in their amusement, mocking the two of you. “I knew that necklace around her neck meant something.” Your body stills and you glance down at John’s gifted silver. Blue eyes flash to the same, but as if suddenly realizing the nakedness of your top surrounded by such brutes, your Fisherman pushes on the back of your spine to shove your chest into his own with a panicked look. You grunt in surprise, but let him. “No greedy Mermaid would bother with a trinket like that! A piece of rubbish metal. It means something to her—and I’ll bet that something is you, Thief.” 

Me, greedy? Your eyes narrowed into slits. If you knew his name, you’d sing his death song in an instant. Your Fisherman’s face goes stiff, knowing the predicament the two of you were in. There was no way he was giving you up. 

But himself…

Tiny lids narrow on the arrogant leader.

“Do you trust me?” John whispers to you, suddenly, as all sides were surrounded and the water just as dangerous as the deck. 

Face creasing, you say, confused and worried, “Of course.” 

“...Then forgive me.” 

He throws you from the side of the deck, and whirs to run his blade through the nearest man. 

TAGS:

@luuvbuzz, @emerald-valkyrie, @anna-banana27, @blueoorchid, @cryingnotcrying, @writeforfandoms, @homicidal-slvt, @jade-jax, @frazie99, @elmoees, @littlemisstrouble, @alpineswinter, @phoenixhalliwell, @idocarealot, @lavalleon, @facelessmemories, @h-leigh, @20forty9, @glitter-anon-asks, @emily-who-killed-a-man, @neelehksttr, @aeneanc, @escapefromrealitysm, @i-d-1-0-t, @pparcxysm, @hawkscanendme, @caramlizedtomatos, @konigsleftkidney, @sanfransolomitatm, @maelstrom007, @jemandderkeinenusernamenfindet, @pheobees, @glitterypirateduck, @uselsshuman, @fan-of-encouragement, @halfmoth-halfman, @ghostlythunderbird, @I-inkage, @pukbadger, @kopatych11, @0nceinabluem00n, @cocrorapop, @knightofsexyness, @abnormalgeil, @smallseastone, @jacegons, @330bpm-whiplash, @simon-rileys-housewife, @4-atsu, @tiredmetalenthusiast

[bellarkeselection]

for cole walter, could you do one where reader replaces jackie (so her fam died and she moved in with the walter’s) and cole doesn’t really like her. one day she gets a cold, and cole takes care of her (begrudgingly) and realizes she isn’t so bad 🫶🏼🥹

Cole Walter Does Care

Tag list- send me an ask to be added @cognacdelights @connieisthesun

I rolled over in my bed and felt a headache coming on the second I woke up which really sucked. Slowly sitting up I thought I would feel better that only seemed to make it worse. My nose was beginning to get stuffy and my throat felt dry. Footsteps came from the hallway and I heard whoever it was pause outside my door. “Hey Y/n, my mom is making breakfast. Woah you don’t look too good.”

“Thanks Alex - uh I didn’t know that.” I started coughing and then reached over needing to blow my nose into some tissues.

He entered my room with a sad expression. “I can get my mom to check you out if you want.”

“Please do.” I whimpered, sounding so helpless tugging the covers back over my chest.

He nodded, rushing out of the room and going downstairs to go get her. “On it, Y/n.” Once he was gone I yanked the coves over my head screaming and coughing into my blankets.

“Sounds like there’s a dying angry animal in here. Oh no sorry it’s just you Y/n.” I noticed the voice of Cole who when I peaked my head above the blanket saw that he was leaning in my doorway.

Grumbling under my breath I really wasn’t in the mood for his teasing. “Go away Cole. I’m not feeling good and you’ll just make it worse.”

“Ah now I’m offended since most people find my company to be quite enjoyable.” He walked into my bedroom sitting down on the side of my bed moving the cover down from my eyes so he could see some of my face.

“Well I d-don’t-“ I attempted to say but another coughing fit had to hit me right before his mother and Alex came back into my bedroom.

Catherine sat down and pushed Cole off the bed, putting a hand to my forehead. “Oh you're burning up. You'll just have to stay in bed today and miss the fair.”

“Okay Skylar and Tara won't be happy.” I responded in a tired breath.

She shakes her head eyeing her older son. “I'm sure they'll understand honey. Cole, I need you to stay and take care of her.”

“What the hell!” He raised his voice, accidentally cursing at his mother.

I sat upright on the pillows but had a coughing fit as a result. “No! He doesn't need to be here…”

“This is not up for discussion. Y/n you are really sick and Cole you will be staying home to take care of her. Because you're grounded after we found out you were sneaking girls out of the house. Come on, Alex.” She got to her feet and she left with Alex following her downstairs leaving us alone in my bedroom together.

Laying my head back down on the pillows I yanked the covers over my head screaming into it until Cole made a comment. “Don't think I'm happy about this either.”

“Oh sure. I'm sorry my illness prevented you from hooking up with Erin or Olivia or Paige!” I snapped at him.

His green eyes glared at me. “You don't have the right to judge my life.”

“Neither do you about me then!” I growled turning my back towards him.

Cole watched me for a little while hearing me doze off for a few hours of sleep. He sure found you annoying at times but there was something about you that he liked. It was the fact that you fought with him over the most ridiculous stuff. Most girls just fell at his beck and call except you. He walked around the room noticing a notebook laying on the desk. “Y/n's diary…hmm. I can't deny that I may have feelings for Cole even though he drives me nuts.” He debated reading it but when he flipped to one of the middle he heard you groan waking up.

“Cole, I'm gonna puke.” I moaned, struggling to get out from under the blankets.

He dropped the book rushing over to me, he put one arm underneath my shoulder and the other under the back of my knees carrying me through the door and across to the bathroom on this floor. “I've got ya…I've got ya.” He reassured me when I collapsed onto my knees puking in the toilet.

I felt one of his hands holding my hair back and the other was rubbing my back till I was finished. “Thanks Cole…”

“You’re welcome. See I'm not a total asshole.” He responded sitting across from me on the floor. His honey blonde hair was tossed and in his eyes like always.

Hugging my knees to my chest, my hair was a wreck and my nose was red. I looked like a complete mess and I didn't care for it one bit. His green eyes remained on me before I asked him not to handle the silence well. “If you wanna say something to me just go on and get it out, Walter.”

“I read part of your diary after you fell asleep. I know how you feel about me and honestly I'm shocked given how I've treated you.” He shrugged his shoulders like it was just a casual thing to say to someone.

I raised my voice in frustration grabbing a tissue when I had to sneeze two or three times. “You read my diary! Cole, you have no right to that. How much did you read - god I want to crawl in a hole now I'm so embarrassed.” Covering my face that was red as a tomato avoiding his gaze.

“Aren't you going to ask me how I felt about it?” Cole questioned with a curious look on his face.

Knitting my brows at the former star football player. “You’re telling me you have a crush on me. Yeah right. I'll believe it in another universe.”

“Do you believe me when I do this?” He shifted onto his knees coming closer to me.

Lifting my head up he cut my question off. “What are you doing-” His lips landed right on mine. Cole scooted closer and placed his hands on either side of my face. I wanted to push him away because I was sick and two because he shouldn't even couldn’t really be kissing me now.

Trailing my hands up his chest my arms wrapped around his neck and he moaned into the kiss after we had gotten closer. Cole tugged me up to sit down on his lap wrapping his arms around my waist holding me close to his chest as possible. “Cole, stop - Cole stop. We can’t be doing this.” Pushing my hands on his chest he drew back confused.

“Because you're sick. I don't care about that. I just needed you to know that I actually care about you, Y/n.” He declared still cupping my face on his hands green eyes so focused on me.

Moving one hand through his honey hair, my other drops to his shoulder blade. “I can't believe it, Cole Walter has a crush on me. Here I was thinking you hated me.” I chuckled with a half grin.

“Why did you think I only picked on you when you first got here. I figured you had a thing for bad guys in you somewhere. Just had to bring it out of ya, darling.” Cole tucked hair behind my ear before he could hear a lot of footsteps heading up the wooden stairs outside the shut bathroom door.

“What do we - uh do!” I sneezed where Cole gave me a tissue and I wiped my nose watching him get to his feet.

He scooped me up bridal style once more where I wrapped my arms around his neck enjoying the feeling of being in his arms like this. “Don't worry, we'll go to my room. They all know better than to go in there…now where we're we?” He carried me quickly out and into his room, closing and locking the door.

“Cole, I'm nowhere near ready for that kind of thing. Sorry if that disappoints you.” I apologize for crawling under the covers on his bed, blushing a deep shade of red.

He kicked off his shoes and got in beside me, gently pushing my head down in the crock of his neck so I would fall asleep. “I don't care about sleeping with you yet. I just wanted to see you blush.”

“Cole!” I punched his chest hearing him laugh and it was music to me considering he rarely ever laughs.

He kissed the crown of my head and watched my eyes begin to close shut. “I'm just playing with ya, Y/n. Now get some rest.” I closed my eyes and looped my hand with his freehand that wasn't playing with hair to make me dose off in his arms.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

[sugar-omi]

How do you think everyone would react if cove and mc got pregnant at 18? Like the reason for them being engaged so young is because they are expecting

tags : Angst, headcanons, fem/afab reader, pregnancy

[part 2: cove finding out you're pregnant]

CLIFF

cliff would be.. he'd have the same feelings he had when kyra got pregnant with cove

he'd be scared, but happy because it is an exciting thing that a lot of people wish to hear one day!

but as cove's dad, he'd first be disappointed just because he never would've wished such a struggle on anyone at such a young age, especially his own son.

doesn't bother getting angry, because what would that do? it won't make you un-pregnant and it'd just make cove (and you) mad at him or upset, since of course you already know it's not an ideal situation.

when he realizes that you got engaged because of the pregnancy though, he tries to have a talk with cove.

he knows how much you two love each other, but he also knows from experience that this just doesn't work.

i think that'd end up in an argument, because even though cove and cliff have a better relationship than before, 5-10 years doesn't erase all the hurt from back then

cliff might end up saying something like "you don't want to end up like me and your mom" or even worse, "you shouldn't mess up your future."

all that would upset cove so much... because does he think that cove was a mistake? is that what he's saying? is he saying that you and cove would fail miserably? either way. they aren't thinking clearly, and cove already has a lotta feelings about how he was born, let alone conceived.

cove would probably end up saying something (a bit) hurtful like "i would never end up like you and mom." , "i would never marry MC if i didn't know it'd work. unlike some people, i'm not gonna make my kid listen to us argue and then try to play happy family." , or "trust me, my kid won't end up with a childhood like mine." / "trust me, my marriage won't end up like yours."

is it very ooc? probably. but everyone has the ability to say something hurtful, and when you experience something traumatic like your parents fighting, or knowing the circumstances of your birth, you have a lot of thoughts and feelings...

he does end up apologizing, but cliff probably ends up apologizing too since, again, they both probably said things they didn't mean

after that, things get a bit better. there's probably a lot of emotional conversations after that, just to get everything off their chests. hell we might even need family therapy, just to smooth things over before your baby gets here...

KYRA

now kyra... mmm i think this is where her awkwardness comes in. remember how she says she felt more like a cool aunt than his mom?

i think this is where kyra gets close to you, tries to offer you support and helps you through all the changes of pregnancy

she's mostly afraid for both of you. doesn't want you to try and slap a bandaid on this with marriage, kinda like how her and cliff did...

although i do think she was first angry when the news dropped. she really thought that you and cove, cove especially, would be more careful considering everything...

but the distance between her and you guys makes her sit on it for awhile, she does calm down and realize that you're just in the same position she was in, and are likely scared but doing your best...

calls both of you separately, just some a little one-on-one time and a heart-to-heart.

asks if you're really sure if you wanna get married, of course she expects you two to be sure about it, you two haven't gotten tired of each other yet and you're about to be intertwined in every way possible

reminds you that marriage is all about communication. and when you're raising a kid especially, and patience! also knows how much you love each other, and tells you to make time for yourselves and your relationship.

PAM & NOELANI

i instantly knew they'd be mad.

remember how pam worries in step 2 that cove is bad news? i think in her anger, ends up saying something like, "i knew something like this would happen." "i told you he was a bad influence."

yknow i've always wondered how cove would feel if he knew pam thought that about him, and i think in this situation, it'd hurt him a lot, and it'd open up a new can of insecurities and doubts.

starts worrying that he's holding you back, bringing you down... but we can get to that later

noelani tries to keep pam calm, does chastise her for saying that in front of you, especially if cove is there.

noelani is so disappointed, and you can see it so heavily... she'd sigh, mumble something- probably about how she "cant believe it...", covers her face with her hands..

she definitely asks, "how could you let this happen?" she really trusted you to make smart decisions, and even if this was a really big accident (like the rubber broke), she still didn't expect it n can't stop being disappointed

it takes them a few days for them to relax. this news had them totally spun and their emotions jumble up whenever its brought up or they think about it

they know being upset is gonna make it better, and if you're still living at home, they can see how sad you are, which helps them cave in. even if you don't whenever you call, they can hear how sad you are, or maybe you're texting less, whenever you visit your energy is lower than usual...

to start with, just to get out the way, they reassure you that you don't have to get married, that you shouldn't do something you guys don't want to, that you can be parents just fine without marriage

feels better when you insist you're not doing it just for the baby, i mean, not much. but you're insistent, and if you found out you're pregnant after getting engaged, they just have to trust you.

they also have to trust cove when he says he's gonna take care of you and the baby.

they knew cove is always very sincere and determined, even if he hesitates at times, but when he's set on something, he does it, so even though they're not happy about the situation, you're flying the nest now, and hitting milestones at a young age so all they can do is support you

and if noel does have a bit too much fun helping you set up the nursery, don't say a THING!!!

all the parents do make you sit down and explain your plan, who's going to work, who's watching the babe, if you're still going to school... all that. it's not that they aren't going to help you, but are you ready to take on the responsibility for your baby?

LIZ

liz is super worried for you, and cove too actually. you're her little sister/sibling, she still sees you and cove as kids in some way, and she still preens when you come to her for help...

the news just makes her head spin, but her first question is if you're okay, n if she's at home, she gives you a hug, lets you cry if you need it.

and this is also where her (protective) big sister energy comes in.. she hates seeing you sad when your moms are still heavily upset about the news

she tries to be there for you as much as possible, and especially if the first trimester is really rough on you, if cove isn't by your side then she is.

doesn't bother lecturing either of you. whats the point? all of your parents have already chewed your ears off, and it's not like you need any more stress or worry, or need to know that there's someone else disappointed in you/cove

i was going to say she'd give cove a stern talking too about being their for you, but she realizes she doesn't really need to do that.

tells him "i'm sure you'll be a good dad" maybe even, "well, i guess this was gonna happen one day anyway.." and that you're lucky to have him.

although after all those comforting n reassuring words, she does slap him on the back and remind him not to hurt or fail both of you, least he wants to feel her wrath. :) (she's a protective auntie already <33)

tries to keep the energy up by being excited for the baby, or by distracting you with some bonding time w your amazing older sister<3 makes jokes about being the cool aunt, when the times right ofc. she's really just trying to distract you, which works sometimes more than others

LEE

the phone is SILENT. which is really scary coming from lee...

she does speak eventually, asks if you're gonna keep it, what're you going to do, and depending on how you word the news, if cove is there to tell her, or if she's already heard some of the news from the rest of the family, she'll ask if cove knows

she tries not to ask too many questions, because she doesn't wanna upset you or seem insensitive

i think she's really lost on what to do. your and cove's parents have already done all the lecturing, and worrying over each detail...

so she just offers you comfort. or a distraction.

really, her reaction is based off yours, because if you're excited, then so is she! but if you're really sad and/or stressed, then she's subdued, tries to figure out how to help you even though she's not close by...

in fact, her and liz would plan a "girls trip" for you. just to distract you, help you feel better. it's nothing big, just 2 days in the city and you spend most your time going from shop to shop and different restaurants and cafes.

their energy keeps your spirits up, but if you're not up for all that, or even if you're tired of all the running around after the first day, they set up a nice "sleepover" in the hotel room and you only get one noise complaint!

both of them definitely reassure you that if you ever need a break, you can trust them, amazing and cool aunties lee and liz, with the babe (spoiler: you can, but just know you're interrupting many 'a tea parties when you come to pick up the babe)

DEREK, MIRANDA , TERRY, & BAXTER

their eyes fell out their head.

in fact, terry spat out his drink, like projectile spray... and derek is having an outta body experience probably, definitely dropped whatever he was holding.

baxter too, he's taking a sip of his coffee and when you tell him, he chokes a bit, squeezes the cup n now he has coffee on his pants... he's shocked as hell

i hope you didn't tell them in a public place btw, because terry definitely yelled out "you're pregnant?!" and now everyone in sunset bird/wherever you are who didn't know.. knows.

terry isn't sure whether to tell you congrats or not, is very very confused, says congrats but then starts rambling out loud about what if you're not excited, what if it's a bad thing... all that

and miranda too, offers a careful congrats and then says "um.. that is a good thing, right? i mean, it's okay if not!" and yeah you've broken them..

if you reassure them it is a good thing. well, as good as it can be really. then they relax

derek rambles off all his concerns, asks if you're really gonna do it (raise the baby)

and then starts rambling about how hard it was taking care of his brothers... is quick to remind you that it was fun! and he loves his brothers! and that you'll be great parents! and maybe your baby won't be as rambunctious as niko was as a toddler!

just offers you good wishes, and if you ever need help, call him! he's a expert at handling his brothers, so he might know a thing or two. unless it's genuine parenting advice then.. call his mom or dad, or yours, haha

now baxter... well assuming you told him you were engaged before he left, or even if you imagine all this happening while he's here, he doesn't have much to say

he's just a stranger after all, even if you befriend him quickly, he doesn't have much to say to you

he tries to contain his surprise, and he first asks if you're excited, then he offers his congratulations and says you two will be great parents and that the kid will be very loved by everyone.

after seeing you two around the neighborhood, and your getting to know your family and friends a bit, he doesn't worry about you guys too much.

even though he knows teen pregnancy isn't ideal, he does know your kid has a happy life ahead of them, and that you have a lot of support n love around you, and that you and cove will work hard to be good parents, so he doesn't worry for you too much

i'm tempted to say you or cove would find a unnamed flower or gift basket on your parents doorsteps, or maybe he even brings a very early wedding/baby gift since he knows he won't be around, but i'm not sure... although i think that's kinda a baxter thing to do

but now if he found out later in step 4, he'd be surprised by the news (and seeing that you have a kid already) but he'd just tell you he's happy it's all working out for you, and that your kid is very adorable and you have a lovely family

[differenteagletragedy]

I am afraid worms have invaded my brain and they are eating away at everything that is not OUR LIFE SWAP AU

This is an AU in which Baxter is your best friend that moved in town when you were 8, Cove is the boy from the city you met when you were 13, and Derek is the boy who comes into town for the summer when you're 18. This one is a reworking of the original "Mountains" scene.

OG Swap here -- another part here -- another here -- one more here

In the ten years you'd been friends, you and Baxter had rarely gotten into any arguments. You both just got along so well, and he was agreeable to a fault, always so against being confrontational or divisive. And so for all this time, with maybe just a small handful of hiccups, you'd just gone on easily, having a grand time together.

But that night, as he sat on your bed watching you pack your things to go on a camping trip with Derek, he seemed perfectly willing to fight.

Derek had rented the empty condo across the street from you for the summer. He was a year older than you, a college athlete, and he was doing some private training with a coach in the city. That weekend, he had a few days off and he'd wanted to go camping in the mountains. He'd asked you to join him, and you said yes. He was sweet, and it was easy being around him.

Baxter, meanwhile, was being anything but sweet.

"You're the mountain boy," you told him, trying to pull him out of whatever funk he was in. "What do you think, will I need a jacket?"

"And proper shoes," he said quietly, arms and legs crossed tightly. "You'll want to bring something for the weather too, the forecast is calling for rain."

"What would you suggest? Raincoat? Umbrella? Poncho?"

He opened his mouth to respond, then closed it again. You waited, but he wouldn't speak.

"What is it?" you asked.

He looked up at you -- a glare, almost -- and said, "I would suggest you not go at all, but it seems you've made up your mind."

"What's the issue with me going?" you asked, getting even more confused than you had been. "I'm not going to be gone for long, just a couple of days."

"It's not that."

"Then what is it?"

He paused, then, keeping his eyes down this time, said, "You don't know him."

"Derek?" you asked. "Sure I do. We've hung out plenty of times. You've hung out with him too, he's the most harmless guy on the planet."

"But you're going to be going off alone with him, hours away, together in a tent in the middle of the woods," he argued.

"And?"

You studied him, trying to understand why he was reacting so strongly to this. You couldn't see a clear answer on his face, but you did see he was digging his fingernails into his arms.

"Seriously, what's the problem?" you said, sitting down beside him and grabbing his hands so he'd stop. "What's going on?"

Baxter still didn't seem eager to talk about it, but something in him softened when took his hands. He held them gently, running his thumb over your knuckles, and said, "He likes you."

"No, he doesn't," you said quickly, sure that wasn't the case. "We're friends."

"You can't possibly be this oblivious," he muttered, and you yanked your hands away from his.

"If you're going to be rude, then you can leave," you told him, getting angry.

"I'm not trying to be rude, I'm trying to get you to understand that perhaps going off for a jaunt in the woods with the Incredible Hulk that you've known for approximately two minutes isn't the smartest plan."

You'd been getting angry before -- you were fully there now.

"I'm not stupid," you said, standing up again, "and you're being a jerk. What do you think he's going to do, abduct me or something?"

Baxter stood as well, and took a step closer to you. He was so slow to anger, except when he pointed it inward, but it felt like he was staring daggers at you now.

"I just want you to be safe," he said sharply. "I care about you very much, and I --"

"If you care about me, then trust that I can make my own decisions, I'm not some dumb, helpless --"

"I know that!" he said, near yelling, moving closer still. "That's not what I'm saying, you're not listening to me."'

"I am listening to you, you're --"

"You're not," he said firmly, closing the distance between you entirely. "I don't want you to go off with some handsome, well-mannered boy who obviously has feelings for you. That's what I'm saying."

"Why?"

"Because I do know him, and I know exactly how charming he is. I know he wouldn't hurt you, but I ..." he trailed off, running a hand through his hair. His anger was turning into anxiety.

"You what?" you asked, softening. "Please just talk to me, Baxter."

Instead of talking, he took you in his arms. Surprised, you hugged him back. Then you felt his breath, hot against your ear, and he said something so low you barely heard him.

"Please tell me you won't sleep with him," he said.

Appalled, you pushed him off of you. Your anger had returned tenfold.

"What are you talking about?" you asked, the frustration clear in your tone. "I'm not even dating Derek, but it's not any of your business what we do anyway. Why you even care this much?"

He didn't say anything, and he wouldn't meet your eyes again. You knew this phase of the Baxter emotional cycle -- he was shutting down.

"Go home," you said finally.

Without looking at you, he swiftly moved to leave your room. You heard his footsteps go down the hall, and after a moment you heard the front door shut.

Then you heard your phone go off in your pocket.

It was a text from Derek that read, "Hey! Excited for tomorrow?"

"Yep!" you replied. And you were. Baxter wasn't going to ruin that for you.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The next morning, you met Derek at his condo, and you left bright and early. He was all smiles and laughs and brightness, and the drive to the campsite was fun. It was always fun with Derek.

He took the lead when it was time to set up your things, not wanting you to lift a finger as he put up the tent. You did anyway, of course, and it was obvious how much he appreciated it.

It was getting into the evening after it was all said and done, and Baxter had been right -- the rain did come. Derek didn't mind, he just pulled you into the tent and zipped it up until it passed. And with his warm presence so close, you didn't mind either.

You set about situating your sleeping bags and the other things that you'd brought into the tent with you. When you were done, you still heard the rain falling.

"Guess this is it for tonight," Derek said, not sounding too bothered. "Don't worry, it's supposed to be clear tomorrow. It might be muddy, but I think we'll still have fun."

You smiled at him, happy to be spending the time with him. You hadn't known him too long, Baxter was right about that, and you didn't think he liked you, at least not in a romantic way. But he was a good guy. And it felt nice to be here with him.

"So, how do you want to pass the time?" he asked, pulling you out of your thoughts.

"This is your trip," you told him, playfully nudging his shoulder. "You go first."

"Ok," he said, then approached you. Before you knew it, his arms were locked around your waist, pulling you in tight against him. He smiled, looking proud of himself.

"I made my move," he said. "Your turn."

You pushed everything out of your head -- your fight with Baxter, your years-long crush on him that hadn't gone anywhere for so long you thought it never would. Your reservations, your fears, your nervousness, you shoved it all away and put yourself firmly in the moment.

Then you kissed him.

[romanoffsbish]

Mom, Dad, I’m…

Wanda Maximoff x R

Blackhill ; Bishova ; Stony ; BuckySam

Happy Pride Angels, 🌈❤️

Warnings: Attempts at Humor. Heteros.

"Detka, can you go get some tomatoes from the garden? Steve already ate all of the freaking salsa," Wanda grumbled dramatically, falling into your arms as you were mid conversation with Natasha and Maria about their work.

"He probably intended to bottom tonight," Natasha remarks with a shit stirring grin, you cackled in solidarity, but the both of you stopped when your wives stood shoulder to shoulder with a menacing tilt to their heads.

——

"Welp, those tomatoes aren't gonna pick themselves," you noted before running off, you avoided looking back, afraid to see Natasha's stony glare as you abandoned her with them.

Every man for themselves a mantra you live by, well, only when it comes to angry spouses. As an Avenger you were as selfless as the rest, but now you got to be more selfish in retirement.

Natasha, unfortunately, was your victim.

When you entered the massive greenhouse you took a second to admire your wives handiwork. The brunette had a knack for gardening, a green thumb if you will. The greenhouse was her go to place to find her zen after a day of dealing with you, Billy, Tommy, and Ella.

The witch loved you all, her beautiful family, but some days the lot of you made her feel a tad bit homicidal. On those days she gardened.

It wasn't hard to find the tomatoes, they were ripe and ready on a set of entangled vines. But before you could bring it to her, you were too enamored by the conversation your kids were having in their little cove behind the garden.

"I can't do it," Tommy groaned. "Yeah they just won't understand," Morgan Stark agreed with him, and you leaned in to hopefully garner more context for their troubled minds.

"At least Uncle Tony is bi," Raina Belova countered, "He'll be more understanding."

"Have you met our dad?" Anthony, the only Jr present, said in an incredulous manner. "He even claims Fido is gay, he's totally unhinged."

You had to put a hand over your mouth, the amusement you were experiencing was unreal.

"Couldn't be us," Elena teased, "I'm gay as hell, and Bryce here is both queer and nonbinary."

Oh goodness... Never in your days did you expect your kids to keep secrets from you, but for it to be such a silly one it honestly made you want to interrupt the conversation at hand.

To remind them that no matter what, you'd all continue to love them, but it was too funny.

"Mama is going to be mad," Celeste Belova added, "She always said being gay is the way."

"I thought she was ace?" Billy inquired. "She is, but that doesn't make her any less gay."

After the conversation moved on to who they were crushing on you snuck back to the party. The overall consensus being that every last one of your collective brood, besides your youngest, Ella, who was only five, and Natasha and Maria's powerful duo, said they're straight.

"Where have you been?" You ignored your wife, handing her the basket of ingredients while calling all of your friends to the dining room. Tony whined, "What is so important?"

"You guys will not believe what I just heard..."

Wanda rolled her eyes as you spun your tale, she chopped up the tomatoes, jalapeños and onions as you enamored the group of friends.

"Thank God we're safe," Maria teased, turning to her wife with a genuinely relieved smile. "Right? Can you imagine having to attend two straight weddings? And pretend to like it?"

"Oh jeez," you gasped, "I didn't think of that."

Wanda tossed the ingredients into a bowl as the lot of you bantered back and forth, her patience already running thin with you all.

"Y/N, this joke isn't funny." Yelena shook her head in defiance when you reminded her that this wasn't a joke. "You don't know what you are talking about. Must be hearing loss..."

Kate put a hand on her wife's shoulder, "It's true Lena, they've both told me already."

"You traitor!" Yelena ripped her arm away as if the raven haired woman had burned her skin.

You now worried that you'd inspired divorces.

"No," Tony gasped, shaking his head in fear as the unexpected reality set in. "You're lying, you have to be. No son of mine is straight!"

"Honey," Steve called out for him, "It'll be okay, we always knew it would be a possibility."

"It most certainly is not okay," he grimaced, then in a flash he was outside, calling for your children to gather around the hibachi station.

"Where's the fire pops?" Morgan jests, but quickly zips her lips as she sees her dad looking as if he was on the verge of a breakdown.

"Tell me Y/N's lying," he pleads, "That you're not straight, my fragile ticker can't take this."

"Tony!" Steve shrieked, "Don't use an old ailment to guilt the kids into being gay..."

"Stay out of this babe!" He growled, "As far as I am concerned they're gay. Y/N's a liar."

"Am not!" You gasped, "They're all heteros."

"Not us!" Bryce interjected. "We're queer."

"That's our precious babies," Natasha coo'd, arms opened wide for her kids to run into, and the both of their teens instantly ran at her.

Bucky and Sam had entered your backyard just as the revelation took place. You all watched as they took three steps back, baby carrier in hand as they looked to your kids as if they were all diseased. "We're just being cautious."

You snorted softly, "We understand fellas."

Wanda glared at you, but you remained unfazed for now. Too busy finding the dramatics entertaining to see the horror. Wanda saw it though, she looked out to see all of the kids wearing terrified expressions. She was about to console them, but then a fight broke out beside you, and you had to laugh.

"This is all your fault Kate Belova!" Yelena shrieked, "It was all of that organic mac and cheese you fed them when I was on missions!"

"Mac and cheese being healthy doesn't make a child straight," Kate shrieked back, hands running down her face as she realized her plans for a peaceful barbecue ended with this.

"If it had been orange they might have been more connected to the rainbow Kate!" Yelena went on, "It's like our gay power source."

"Well, with Wanda's garden the kids eat the entire rainbow and look at them, straight."

Yelena found your assistance unwelcome, "Keep out of this Y/N Maximoff. Your kids aren't all old enough to say yet, you still have a chance! Mine are all done... Stupid preteens"

"Well, that's not exactly true," you reasoned, "None of you have been to college yet, that's when you'll really know if you're gay or not."

Natasha, Yelena and Tony all nodded, they found your reasoning the most logical. It was a lot easier than accepting they're all straight.

"Okay, that's enough!" Wanda interjected, her tone terrifying, "Look at what you're doing to them. They can't help it if they're straight."

"I wanna be gay like mama," Ella murmured, clearly she just wanted to fit in with the crowd, and therefore you praised her, "Smart girl."

Wanda entered your mind with a warning, she smirked as you lifted Ella onto your hip, then you fell into unexpected silence by her side.

"Haha, you're like so whipped, "Yelena cackled.

Wanda glared at her. "You don't scare me wiggly woo, my kids being straight is enough."

"Yelena," Kate sighed, "Knock it off, and try telling the girls that you love them."

"Of course I love them," she rushed out angrily, "That's not even a question, they're moy deti."

(My babies)

Celeste and Raina ran into the blondes side, their tears of relief soaked into her shirt, and made her see they were genuinely scared this would lose them her love. "Shh, mama loves you always, even if you make dumb choices."

Tony and Steve were in a standoff of sorts, the billionaire sipped on his margarita slowly as they appeared to be having a conversation with only their eyes. Tony rolled his, but after a moment of incoherent grumbling he nodded. Morgan and Tony Jr. approached their dads after being called forward, Steve embraced them first, and wholly. Tony gave them both side hugs, and whispered that he just needed time to cope, but he loved them regardless.

Then you heard him brush by with his son, begging him to take it back, only to find out his son was in a long term relationship with a girl. That study buddy of his was so much more...

Like father, like son you suppose.

You looked out to see your boys stood side by side, Billy gripped Tommy's hand for dear life. Wanda was about to call them over, but you beat her to it as guilt overwhelmed your heart. The boys scurried over, and Wanda sent you an adoring smile as you kissed the both of their heads, and hugged them tight. "I love you," falling from all of your lips in succession.

After everyone had time to process the news, the vibe returned to one of relaxation. Wanda set up the grill for Sam, and the master chef himself began to put on a show for everyone.

Once the plates were served you all moved to the fire pit, where you talked about all you'd missed in each other's life while the younger kids sat in front of the projector playing Up.

Then, as the sun officially fell, everyone began to clear out. Saying their goodbyes at the front door, where you hugged each kid, an apology of sorts on your lip for the drama you stirred. Each one forgave you, some even thanked you for finally getting the conversation over with.

When everyone was officially gone you moved back outside to clean up. Tommy helped you, while Billy helped clean the kitchen so that Wanda could focus on Ella's bath, and bedtime.

It was an entire hours worth of work, you were beyond exhausted as you fell into the mattress. You nearly passed out without your wife, but soon enough Wanda slipped into the bed. She wore a thoughtful expression, weighing out whether to disturb you or not, but she soon reasoned you'd appreciate her words, "Detka..."

"Yes baby?" You rolled onto your side, using your elbow to prop yourself up so you could look down at her. She looked to you with a warm smile, then she was yawning, "Don't worry." She paused to pull you into her arms before whispering in your ear: "Billy was not being honest. We do indeed have a gay son."

You laughed so hard tears streamed down your face and pooled in the crook of your equally as amused wife's neck. That was the last thing you expected to hear from her, if anything you had anticipated a continuation of her scolding.

"I'll scold you more tomorrow," she teased, "But for now, we should get some sleep."

——

1,844 Words

[onelastskip]

Just out of curiosity, how many MCs did you make for Keyframes? Can you tell us a bit about them? I'm interested to know :D

OMGGG HAIII!!!

Technicallyyy 4? I played through the game on all seasons but my other MCs aren't as fleshed out (and I haven't drawn them...) — but I'll talk about what I have anyway!

So obviously Chi was my first baby girl, autumn, romancing Percy straight away, I yap about her a lot already but here's a fun fact I haven't mentioned yet, her full name is Chi Huệ Aubade, very cool!

My next mc was Mika (she's sort recycled from olba, sorta not because I hate the idea of being unfaithful to cove, idk if that makes sense just the way my brain works) she's a summer and... well I was supposed to romance Elio... but then the Percy summer meeting hit me like a truck and I went for him again... now she probably won't get fleshed out but I'm thinking of doing a male mc elio summer run (for real this time, no percy shenanigans)

And then I have my spring mc, Nari, and- I will admit I was very close to reromancing Percy but no! they are a Jamie romance (slowwburn tho) cause I found the cupcake confrontation was so good with a spring personality. So they're uh, well to describe them, in a word, they're self-assured (technically two but semantics). They're extremely competent and they know it, they have a big ego and tend to be overconfident, brash and competitive. Andd they also have a crippling fear of emotional connection and an avoidant attachment style. love my little guys who are so smart yet so very stupid. Anyway their dynamic with Jamie is sort of teasing? They were expecting to be annoyed by him bcos of his reputation but they ended up liking him more than they thought. They have a sort of "people disappoint me" expectation, a lot of the friends and relationships they've had in the past were shallow (not for lack of trying? but nari really didn't put any effort in) they only really mesh with deja and cam and don't even try to form deeper relationships with others, the boys are the first friends they've made in a while, and their first time besides with cam and deja actually trying to connect with people. They're an ISTJ and fun fact about them theyyy are very good at chess.

And lastly my winter mc, Yumi (name pending.) they're my no romance route (or slowburn? it depends how it plays out I guess). They're... to describe them in one word. Chill (lol). They're an artist turned law student and they are very go with the flow. They are also doing a minor of sociology! They stopped painting in their last year of highschool because they were told they needed to start taking things seriously (they had pretty bad-average grades before). While they're generally patient and relaxed, when they do get angry, they are no holds barred, cussing out authority figures, not a single thought in that brain, they get very passionate when they're being confrontational. They're an INTP and fun fact about them they know how to skateboard.

WAIIIIT- I'M GONNA USE THIS ASK TO YAP ABOUT THE ENNEAGRAM (sorry anon my attention span is kinda fucked, ADHD ramble incoming)

Okay I've mentioned before Chi's a 2w3, little lore drop, she's got family issues (eldest daughter in an asian family /hj) but yeah there's a lot of pressure from that direction, that's part why she's doing a law degree (polisci? I forget how it is in america), she was rushed into picking a degree and just went with what she was best at. Anyway I should probably explain the enneagram oops, OKAY, so she has a type 2 fixation, which basically means, she's got a gaping hole where her self esteem is and she tries to patch that up by creating relationships (people pleaser...), that's why she tries to be as helpful as possible all the time, she's got a deep seated fear of abandonment and feels like she can only be loved if she's providing some sort of support (usually as an emotional dumping ground) to the other person.

Buttt, thankfully when she got to college she met Deja and Cam, who did NOT fuck with that kinda behaviour so she's slowly getting better, I imagine over the course of her time at college she gets better at loving herself and sets boundaries with her parents, fixes the relationship (the other drama is she has younger siblings who are still with them and yeah) idk I just like writing character arcs like this it helps me understand my ocs better I think

onto my other mcsss:

uhh Mika's a 7w8, but I'm gonna skip her since she'll probably get reworked into something else anywayyy

so Nari has a type 5 fixation, their whole deal is they need to feel competent, need to feel like they understand the world around them because it's a scary place and if something doesn't fit in with the way they understand things that means they understand nothing. Anyway, their little character arc would actually be centred on the relationship, it's a story about them accepting emotional vulnerability, letting down their walls, losing their rigid world view, and choosing to trust in another person and fall in love :3

Yumi (name pending) has a type 9 fixation, their problem is... well basically, on the surface, they're confident, calm, collected, composed (heh alliteration), they really seem like they've got it all together but internally they've resigned themself to being another cog in the machine. They've lost their passion in life and they're stuck in the pit of "it is what it is". Their character arc would probably involve them dropping out of college and pursuing something they actually care about, that being art.

[tripleglitchwriting]

Hello! Hope youre doing well :D Hopefully I'm not late for the open requests! (if so do ignore/delete this)

Is it okay to ask for something platonic/fluffy with idw Drift or Tarantulas?

Whoever you feel more comfortable writing! I'm not picky.

Anyways, have an amazing day <3

Thank you for requesting! This is my first time taking a request, so I apologize if it’s not up to par with any expectations. I haven’t actually read much fluff either but I tried my best :-)

I decided to pick Tarantulas for this one because I know him better than Drift (also, spiders are cool.) I based his personality off of Earthspark Tarantulas, but this story doesn’t necessarily take place in that universe.

Spider’s Cove

CW: A little fear and stress at the beginning, but it’s fluffy other than that.

As a rule, Tarantulas didn’t interact with humans. That is, any human other than you. It’s not that he hated them or held something against them it’s just… well actually he did hate them and held something against them. Before you showed up he’d been hiding away from the whole planet, ready to scare off anyone who got too close to his cave. Yet… the night you arrived changed his outlook forever.

Rain pelted the forest like bullets in a war zone, thunder clapped behind dark, angry clouds. You were running, looking for anywhere dry enough to make a fire or to even just take a second to breathe. It felt like a miracle when a sizable hole in the side of the mountain entered your vision. Looking back on it now, it was a miracle of sorts.

You stepped inside shivering, cold damp air still pierced your drenched jacket. Despite how it may have looked the cave was leagues better than you could have hoped, perfectly dry enough to begin setting up some sort of camp. However, as you took out your supplies, a horrible realization dawned on you. Your fire starters, kindling, and matches were all too wet to be useful. At that moment, the stress of the day began to set in. Your breathing came out quick and ragged, tears began to add to the water already covering your face.

Because of this, you didn’t notice the skittering noises coming from deeper in the cave. You didn’t notice a shadow begin to creep up on you, and you didn’t notice when something very, very big towered over your crumpled form.

“Human.”

You shrieked.

“Why have you come here?” It asked, voice shaking you to your core. Turning around to look at what it was, you realized why nobody ever came out here. There was a spider. A giant spider. A giant spider that looked to be partially made of metal. A giant spider made of metal that was not happy with you.

“I- I was trying to get out of the… the rain it was… I was… please don’t hurt me…!” You saw the spiders body slump just a little bit. As you pleaded, your words came out bumbling, you expected to be crushed or eaten or something. To your surprise, no pain came.

“I… I was going to ask you to leave. However, I see why you are here.”

“Wh- what?”

“As much as I dislike your race, you… I can sympathize with your plight. If you cause no trouble, I will allow you to shelter here until the storm ends.” The spider boomed.

“…really? But… but what…”

“I wouldn’t argue if I were you.”

And so you didn’t.

And neither did he.

You spent the night in his cave, discovering what he was, who he was, and why he was here. Turns out the spider was called “Tarantulas”, and he was a scientist of sorts. He was trying to get away from others of his kind, and ended up hiding in the cave you found him in. He could also transform into a robot rather than just being a spider, which scared you very bad the first time he did it.

Tarantulas kept his promise to shelter you, even going as far to provide a “bed” made of some sort of synthesized spider silk. You chatted with him the whole night, no matter how much he insisted you sleep. Eventually, a question you asked seemed to catch him off guard.

“Why do you hate humans?”

“Well, they’re, or, you all are pests that keep messing with my plans. I can’t risk having one of you lead an enemy here. Simple.” He fidgeted with various pieces of technology strewn about his makeshift home.

“Then… why did you save me?”

“I- well, I… I couldn’t just leave you there.”

“Yes you could’ve.”

“Well, I didn’t. Maybe I just didn’t want to deal with a dying human in my home.”

“Well, thank you for helping me anyway.” He simply nodded at you. “Hey, you know, Tarantulas?”

“Yes?”

“You said some of your kind is hunting you down, they think you’re evil, right?“

“…Yes.”

“You haven’t told me too much, but I don’t think you’re evil.”

“What makes you say that?”

“For a guy who claims to hate humanity, you have a knack for making very comfy beds.” You smiled at him, and he nodded back, quietly accepting your inference.

For the next couple hours, he softened little by little. The storm went on for longer than either of you had guessed, so you did what you could to pass the time: talk even more.

You told him about your life, your opinions on humanity, and how you ended up in the cave to begin with. He found the idea of “camping” ridiculous, which made you laugh more than it should’ve.

Tarantulas was sweet, even when he needed to work on whatever sciencey project he was occupying himself with. He kept you on his shoulder while he worked in robot mode, and you get to see all of the impossible equations and indecipherable text he was reading. You didn’t understand one bit of it, but he appreciated your confused attempts to help anyway.

When the rain finally stopped and the sun came out from hiding, Tarantulas took you outside to see you off. However, the storm did more damage than previously thought. Branches lay soaked in the mud, entire trees snapped in half like twigs, and a good portion of the land around the cave entrance was flooded. You and Tarantulas looked at each other, and without a word he stepped back inside the cave.

After what was a dozen long strides for him, you were back in the lab. He set you down carefully, kneeling to make the trip easier. This giant, the same that had scared you out if your skin a day before, then let you know you could stay however long you liked.

You giggled, smiling from ear to ear, wrapping your arms around his oversized leg the best you could. He seemed… shaken up by your hug, but after a moment he took one giant finger and placed it on your back.

“Thank you, Tarantulas. I knew you were a good guy.”

“You don’t know how long I’ve waited to hear that.”

[chronicbeans]

Hihi I really like your really detailed headcanons about Skin-Taker and how he views people with skin conditions and I also like the guests from a foreign country, I was wondering what would he feel about certain traditions / holidays around the world about death like All Souls day , day of the dead , etc . Think of this as a prompt type of thing.

Oh, I definitely have ideas for this! While my version of Candle Cove changes the names of holidays and, sometimes, changes some aspects about it, some people remember episodes that included episodes about The Day of the Dead and All Souls Day happening in the second half of the show due to it personalizing itself to them.

The Skintaker, especially, had interesting reactions to the guests that showed up with these traditions. This was most likely because of the fact that, while Candle Cove is filled with despair and references to death and mourning, there isn't necessarily a holiday celebrated there about it.

TW: Skintaker Misunderstanding Traditions, Mentions of Skinning (it's the Skintaker we're talking about)

☠️ The Skintaker, at first, was genuinely angry at the guest who was celebrating The Day of the Dead. Due to the "Candle Cove Halloween Stand In" being all about celebrating and appeasing the Skintaker by dressing and trick or treating as a skeleton, and The Day of the Dead falling near that holiday, he assumed the face paint he wore was to make fun of him. You don't just go around wearing it all the time! You don't cover the skull in designs! So, when Horace told him about this guest, The Skintaker had him kidnap this guest so they could talk. In an ironic twist, the guest was able to leave a path of flower petals as Horace took him to the Skintaker, leaving a path for Percy and Janice to follow, much like how some leave paths of petals for the spirits of their loved ones to follow while visiting earth.

☠️ Nobody knows exactly what happened between the time of him getting kidnapped and Percy and Janice showing up, but by the time they arrived The Skintaker was getting calavera makeup done by the guest. It seems like he was able to tell him what it was actually about, and teach some traditions to him while he was waiting for Percy and Janice to show up, so he was safe most of the time he was waiting.

☠️ The Skintaker seems to love the holiday, now, even if he's not the most enthusiastic while celebrating it. He claims to not have any dead family or friends to mourn, because he doesn't have either, but he does not mind the idea of those celebrating it. This comment caused Horace to cry out "What about ME?! I'm your friend, yeah?!" Only for The Skintaker to reply that he's a sidekick, not a friend, and that he shouldn't confuse the two.

☠️ As for All Souls Day, much like the episode with the Polish woman going to a festival, the episode completely cuts out two of the main cast. However, instead of cutting out the Skintaker and Horace, it cut out Percy and Janice by having it occur after Janice and Percy drop the guest off on land. People describe the guest as being a woman with a slight Hungarian accent, which seemed to imply it was basing it off or the creator's research into Hungarian traditions, specifically.

☠️ The Skintaker shows up after she leaves some food and flowers around one of the tombstones. He recognizes the flowers being there for mourning, but he doesn't understand why the food is there, causing him to pick it up to try to return it to the lady ("Like the gentleman I am", according to him), thinking she just forgot it there. However, this results in a classic "cartoon misunderstanding", where the lady confuses him with the spirit of her husband visiting earth on All Souls Day because he has the food she made for her husband. Despite the Skintaker trying to explain that he isn't her husband's spirit, and he simply thought she forgot the food there and now intends to return it to the grave due to knowing why it's there, she doesn't buy it. Instead, she believes he must be self-conscious due to appearing as a skeleton on earth, and doesn't want her to know he's her husband because of it. The Skintaker, at this point, decides to play along and return the food to the grave later.

☠️ He gets dragged around to all "their" favorite sightseeing spots in Candle Cove, before she brings them to "his brother's" house to show him all the pictures she still has of her husband. He quickly panics, realizing that the man is somebody he had skinned, and that his grave and his brother's home is probably located in Candle Cove instead of Hungary because he lived there instead of Hungary. Having a "I must get out of here" moment, he tells her that he has to go back to the spirit world, before scurrying off back to the grave in order to return the food.

☠️ It then goes to a scene of him in his lair, talking to Horace about the lady and all the things he went through that day. He expresses an uneasy feeling, now that he knows the life that man lived before he got to him. Then, in a shocking moment, he takes the patch of the man's skin off of his cloak, before going to his grave to "give it back" by leaving it there. He states that "If you can give food and flowers on this day by leaving things there, Horace, you should be able to give back their skin through the same means."

[luverofralts]

Arkhelios Adventures

"Something on your mind, Lord Siew?"

Adrian Siew jumped, caught off guard by his cousin, Maura. He turned to acknowledge her presence, but quickly turned back when he saw how she was dressed.

"Your Majesty," he replied with a distinct edge to his voice. "I wasn't expecting you to be here. I was anticipating catching up with my cousin, Maura. Do be sure to remind her of that the next time you see her. I'm afraid I have nothing to say to Her Majesty the Queen."

"Mature as always, Adrian."

"The family rules for the cottage prohibit crowns on these grounds," Adrian stated coldly. "It seems that you're the one who's acting immature and inappropriate. Or are you here in your official capacity? Did I miss a session of your court?"

"I have a meeting later on and didn't want to sit to have the crown pinned in place again. Forgive your poor cousin for being practical with her schedule. I promise that I'm merely Maura at the moment. You try wearing this thing while trying to look perfect and regal at all times. It's exhausting."

Maura paused to rub her stomach soothingly, wishing that her future prince or princess would settle down and stop kicking so much. If Adrian wanted to be catty about family rules, he was welcome to swap places with her and be heavily pregnant while juggling the needs of the country and her already large family.

Adrian sighed heavily, rubbing his temple before he spoke.

"What are we doing here, Maura?" he asked quietly. "What has our family become? You and Ulyssa can hardly share a room together and Trent says that you've ignored his invitations to come for supper for months now. Am I supposed to ignore the rumours that you're seducing anyone who looks your way, including your staff? Grandmother would be horrified at what you've become. Your mother would too."

"You can preach at me when you end whatever you and Roman are doing with each other," the queen snapped. "Are you and Evren swingers now, or can he not see the way your eyes linger on Roman when you think no one's watching?"

"Roman and I are co-parenting our children, something you would know nothing about. Do you even know the name of the son you've brought with you? Do you have any idea who the parent of this pregnancy is? I highly doubt that it's Ulyssa's."

Maura’s eyes narrowed into angry slits at these words, but she held her tongue. Adrian was clearly baiting her for whatever reason and Maura refused to play his games.

"Of course I know who the father is," she said firmly. "He's in that picture over there with Duke Goldman. I'm sure you've met."

Adrian looked at the pictures on the wall, but refused to acknowledge the one with Duke Goldman and his ex-boyfriend that still hung on the wall beside the picture of Adrian and Maura when they were children. Ezra Hope was a walking scandal who seemed to curse the extended Siew family. First, he had dated Duke Goldman, then he had moved onto Liam, prince of Crystal Cove, only to end up in Maura’s arms. The man had even tried to make a move on Adrian, right in front of Evren. Ezra was a curse, but Maura seemed to think that she was the one in control simply because she was queen.

How could Adrian reach Maura to show her the danger she was in? Their relationship had been rocky as of late because of their differing opinions on Ezra. The fact that she was also withholding Roman's daughter from him didn't help either.

Looking at the photo in front of him, Adrian had another idea.

"You know, I think I still have a shirt just like that one at home," he said, gesturing to the photo of the two of them as children. "I could teleport home and grab it and we could recreate that picture of us. It might be fun. Do you still enjoy taking pictures like you used to? The walls of Siew Cottage haven't had a new photo added in ages."

To his surprise, Maura didn't immediately snap at him in anger. If anything, she looked amused.

"I probably have a yellow dress upstairs in my room that I could wear. Let's give it a try. For old times sake."

The two cousins regrouped twenty minutes later, dressed in whatever was closest to matching the picture. Maura set the timer on her phone and rushed beside her cousin, feeling more nostalgic than she expected. This was what she used to do, back when she had free time and a mother and grandmother who had once done her job. She didn't have the luxury of photography anymore. Even if she was pissed off at Adrian for his comments on her lifestyle, he had managed to make her smile for a moment, at least.

"It's flawless," Adrian decided. "Your best work."

Maura smiled despite herself. She had always liked Adrian for his positivity and upbeat attitude, no matter how bad the circumstances were. He was probably the only person Maura knew who could spend years locked away in some other dimension and still see the world as inherently good. And yet, he did have tricks of his own to play. Someone gullible like Roman might have missed it, but this new picture had subtly moved the picture of Duke Goldman and Ezra Hope off the wall. Adrian played the part of an idiot, but his mind was still sharp.

"I'm not taking this tiara off, no matter how much you whine," Maura stated, pulling her cousin into a hug. "It really would be difficult to place back on, but I can promise you that I'm definitely not the queen right now. I have a very busy schedule and I'm only here to relax. Plus Prince Adrion could use some one on one time with me as my heir. My own mother often brought me here to bond and discuss the many responsibilities I'd inherit and I'd like to do the same with my heir. Don't you have private moments with Luciana about her inheriting your own title?"

"Private moments? What are those?" Adrian laughed. "Five kids running around the house as well as Saturnia and Abe Jr? Plus Theo when he's in the middle of yet another scandal? I barely get enough private moments to use the washroom by myself, let alone sit down with Luciana. My parents spent countless hours drilling my duty into my head, only to send me off to military school where it was shouted at me all day. I couldn't do that to her. Besides, I was an only child. I have more than enough potential heirs for Luciana to step down if she wished."

"Ah, yes. That's something I wanted to discuss with you. Well, that I've meaning to getting around to discussing with you. Some members of court are suggesting that I send Adrion and at least two of my other children to the military school you attended."

"The heir? That would be breaking with tradition. Military school is for the spares and lowly dukes."

Maura sighed.

"Well, there is some concern," she replied. "We still haven't had justice for my mother's death, so an heir with a military background could be an asset."

"And because people assume that Pleasantview is behind the attack and every other bad thing that's happened to us since then."

"Precisely. While I know that Claudia is innocent, others don't share my convictions. This whole thing is going to end in bloodshed, I just know it. I never wanted to be a queen in wartime, but if this continues, who knows what will happen?"

"Send the kids to Pleasantview then," Adrian said with confidence. "Nothing would show your belief in Claudia's innocence than sending your heir to her schools. That is, if you even send them anywhere. You can always put them in the public schools here. Evren and I are sending Fiolett to public school this year, along with her brothers when they're old enough."

Maura stared at her cousin strangely.

"Your oldest girls are in boarding school, aren't they? Do you not have the money to send the others? I can help with the costs if you need."

Adrian smiled, but shook his head.

"No, we could afford it, especially if Theo graduates by the time the boys are older. I appreciate your offer, but Evren is opposed to the idea of sending the children to any type of boarding school. He had a similar experience to mine in a boarding school and he hates the idea of not having the kids at home every day. The twins were enrolled at Roman's request a long time ago and it would be difficult for them to adjust to a public school in another country, away from all their friends."

"Understandable." Maura paused, unsure if she truly wanted to ask her next question. Roman was a difficult subject to bring up. "Why did you and Roman decide to enroll them in his old school, if you don't mind me asking? He always seemed dead set against boarding schools. Obviously, Theo is a different matter entirely."

"Obviously," Adrian agreed. "Boarding school will keep him safe for whatever his future holds, there's no doubt of that. Roman had already enrolled the twins in a kindergarten class abroad when I returned to life and it didn't make sense to take them out of it. Luciana needs the skills to one day take my place and Rien...Rien, we hope will find a community that shares her gifts in the larger world. If she makes even a single friend, who isn't a spirit, it would all be worth it."

Outside, Etienne and Adrion played on the playground, shrieking loudly with delight. Twenty years ago, that used to be Adrian and Maura on that playground, running away from their parents, escaping boring lectures on duty.

"Did you ever think that we'd be here, watching our kids play and reminiscing?" Maura asked. "I always thought that I'd have a few more years before having kids or that I'd be one of those crown princesses who spent most of their lives waiting for the crown. When we eventually do find my mother's murderer, I'm going to ensure that their life becomes just as unrecognizable as my own."

"You have a good life," Adrian assured his cousin. "Millions of people would trade for your life in an instant. You have a wife who loves you despite being flawed herself and several beautiful children who love you too. You rule over a peaceful island and have been guaranteed safety from Claudia coming to claim it as her own. You are incredibly fortunate."

"I have my mother's life. Even before she became queen, she'd been living just like this, just preparing for the throne instead of ruling from it like me. She had to educate her spare heirs and keep up a good public persona and spend every moment of her life thinking of the crown. I wanted to travel more before I became queen. I wanted to take pictures of everything and read a book beside Ulyssa on foreign beaches where the press wouldn't care about us. I wanted just a few years to myself before I had to give everything to the crown."

"You look a lot like your father," Maura pointed out, staring at a photo of her mother sitting with his father. "You're like a clone of him. None of my children look like just like me or just like their mother. They're all blends of Ulyssa and I."

"I don't have a little clone of me either," Adrian reassured his cousin. "Trust me, I got sick of constantly hearing how I looked like my father. It doesn't give you the space to be yourself. You are only ever the spitting image of a man you barely see because of his duties. Everard looks very close to Evren, and Theo very close to Roman, but my father and I were the same right down to the freckles on our noses. Evren and Roman would never try to impose their own interests on their children like my father did."

"Good luck telling Theo to do anything," Maura laughed. "That boy is wild."

"You still keep in contact with Theo?" Adrian was surprised to hear his cousin mention his stepson after all that Theo's father had done to her.

"Of course! Well, in a way. Though most of my information comes from security reports, I watch over him for Ulyssa's sake. She really does miss him in her life, but he won't speak to her. If something goes wrong and he's in danger again, I know that she would want to know. Besides, my security team assumes that he's being groomed to work for Claudia. I can't ignore him even if I wanted to. Is he still with that Darktide boy?"

"They're still planning their wedding when they're nineteen as far as I've heard," Adrian laughed, purposely omitting the events of the past few months. "It's been a little bumpy, but they're still obsessed with each other. You know teenagers. If only we could be that young again."

"Speak for yourself, I had tons of relationships by the age of fourteen. I was wild back then."

"If I remember correctly, you were deeply in love and obsession with Ben Siew, were you not?" Adrian teased. "You were going to get married despite your mother's objections and live happily together until you became queen and took over the castle."

Maura blushed at the reminder of her past. She had been obsessed with one particular boy, despite also having casual flings. It was because of this obsession that she'd almost missed Ulyssa as a potential queen consort. She'd almost missed a relationship that had become so deeply a part of her. Ben could never be the consort Ulyssa was, despite her betrayal with Roman.

"Being an adult sucks," Maura sighed. "I can't believe I'm wishing to go back to school, but so much was easier back then. Ulyssa and I didn't have half the problems we do now and could do whatever we wanted."

"As much as your grandmother approved of," Adrian pointed out. "It wasn't really much better than things are now, and you had to listen to the queen. Now you're the queen and you can do whatever you want."

"True."

"Maybe there's something you could do to change your life. Like, go to marriage counseling? Not having revenge babies? That's a pretty good start, I think."

Maura sighed again, far more deeply this time. Adrian refused to let their conversation remain pleasant. Clearly, he had a lot of uncomfortable things to say to her.

"Adrian, look. I know you're just trying to help, but my life isn't any of your business," she said calmly. "It's over between me and Ezra anyway. He was getting too clingy and weird about our relationship. The duties and boundaries of a queen were beyond his understanding. I'm not going to divorce Ulyssa. That was never an option. Ulyssa is going to be the mother of this child. His role can easily be filled by someone else."

"Like Ulyssa?"

"For god's sake, Adrian! I'm not getting divorced, how much more do you want from me?"

Adrian looked at his cousin sadly.

"I just want you to be happy," he said quietly. "You don't look like you're very happy, and I want the best for you, Maura. Why can't you divorce? You have heirs now. Roman and I were going to divorce once the twins were born, there's no shame in admitting that a match wasn't as perfect as you thought. You and Ulyssa were young when you started dating. The same things I tell Theo also apply to you. Be happy, Maura. Life is short and darkness can appear out of nowhere and take your life from you. If I had remained dead all those years ago, what would the summary of my life have been? A marriage that was crashing down around me, the disapproval of my parents and a college degree that didn't give me any clarity about my future? I was a mess. It took both Evren and I crying on each other's shoulder just to feel alive again. It took a while to navigate my relationship with Roman and Abe. Change doesn't happen all at once, Maura. If you need to divorce Ulyssa, I'll support whatever you decide in court. I know you would have Duke Goldman's support as well, along with many others. You could die tomorrow and what would you be leaving behind? A string of lovers, an illegitimate child, and an unhappy wife."

Maura had no reply. She had no defense for her actions or why she was so miserable. Adrian was right about most of his little rant. She could make choices to change her life. She was the queen; supposedly, she could do whatever she wanted.

"I'm not getting a divorce," she declared. "My father died and my mother remarried, as you know, and it was painful for me. A child deserves to have just one set of parents. To not have to divide their loyalty between households. I won't do that to my children. They may never see their mother again if Ulyssa can't be approved by security to have visitation with them. What if she goes running back to Roman as soon as we're divorced? He has so many kids that would be devastated if he and Abe broke up."

"Ah, now you're getting somewhere. You can't divorce because your mother moved on and you felt excluded from her family and you can't let go of Ulyssa because you're afraid that she's going to abandon you if you give her a choice."

Maura’s face flushed a deep red at this, and she turned away from her cousin's compassionate expression. She didn't need his pity or his armchair psychological analysis. She was the queen, and she answered to no one. Besides, she didn't have time to waste talking about the feelings Adrian guessed she had. It had been a mistake to come here. Adrion could just as easily spend time with her at home, away from nosy cousins and their ideas about her marriage.

"I have to go," she announced, silencing Adrian's protests with a raised hand. "It was nice catching up with you, Adrian. I hope we run into each other soon."

In the blink of an eye, Maura disappeared into the yard to collect her son, leaving Adrian standing baffled.

[highfantasy-soul]

NATLA Episode 7 - The North (1/4)

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

An explanation of what I'm doing here and my history with ATLA.

Of course, full spoilers ahead.

<previous/next>

Opening with Lt. Jee, now loyal to Zuko, warning him about Zhao's fake plan was incredible. Before last episode, Jee would have let it happen and never warned Zuko about the (fake) soldiers coming to arrest him. But it's Zuko's own honor that leads his men to now be dedicated to him and allows Zhao's ploy to work. It's also interesting that at least Lt. Jee also knows that Zuko is the Blue Spirit - I don’t think this breaks the world at all because if Zuko isn't the one to turn in the Avatar, the crew doesn't get to go home either. They're both in the same boat (lolz) if Zhao gets the Avatar instead, so it's in Lee's best interest to aid Zuko even in his subterfuge. After all, it was Zuko doing things against Fire Nation protocol that saved their lives. 

Zhao's claim that Zuko was looking out for himself above all and was a traitor is technically true. To the Fire Nation, it doesn’t matter WHO gets the Avatar, it only matters that he's captured. But the Fire Nation's own beliefs are what leads to the Avatar getting away yet again: just like with the orcs in the Lord of the Rings, what evil people prize is usually what brings them down independent of the actions of the 'heroes'. Evil will always destroy itself. The Fire Nation prizes individual strength and being of a higher ranking above everything else, so of course Zhao and Zuko are going to vie for that, BOTH of them ending up working against the Fire Nation's best interest because they're chasing that status: cooperation isn't rewarded, individual acts of valor are. Individual acts that encourage them to work against each other and ends up hurting them both while letting the Avatar go free.

I can see the argument that Aang's arc has gone back and forth a lot - him wanting to save the world with his friends, everyone else telling him he has to do it alone, then him going back to wanting to save the world with his friends, then others telling him to do it alone. I think though, that every episode has built upon each other to show that connection isn't weakness, but each subsequent challenge has become more and more dangerous. Sokka and Katara were almost lost in the previous two episode arc - they got sucked into the Avatar's world (due to a spirit angry over something it seems the Avatar should have prevented) and if Aang hadn't saved them, they'd be lost forever.

The stakes keep going up and Aang keeps seeing the cost of an Avatar's failure, leading him to have a totally normal reaction of going from welcoming his friends into the fight to being afraid to lose them and wanting them to sit it out. After all, when he channeled Kysohi, his friends were safe - she took care of it all. When he thinks Kuruk can do the same thing, that he has the 'trump' card of the Avatar state being controlled by someone who knows what they're doing, he's ok with his friends fighting - but when it's solely up to him to protect them and he doesn’t think he can, he balks. Until, of course, his friends set him straight.

In love with Agna Qel'a's design and the fact that they actually gave it a name!! Apparently that happened in one of the books, but for the animated series, it was always just 'The North Pole' or 'The Northern Water Tribe'. I like that it gets a name now - and it's beautiful! It's so good to see Katara and Sokka get to connect with their sister culture in the north and how it must feel to them to see a community of the Water Tribe thriving so much compared to their own coves that are barely hanging on.

And again, something that comes up with Aang a lot - people wanting him to immediately jump in and be the perfect weapon for them to use against their enemies. The show does a great job of always reminding us the massive responsibilities everyone places on Aang, seeing him first as a weapon, and only second as a person. Katara and Sokka's dynamic has gotten so good by this point in the season. Their little back and forth with Katara telling him ppl will think something is wrong with him if he keeps staring at Yue is too cute!

What they've done with the Royal Family of the Fire Nation is really great. It is sooooo interesting that Ozai doesn't even speak to his daughter directly about her training, he has someone else do it - very much like the Blood of the Seanchan from the Wheel of Time who always use a Voice to speak for them because those not of 'The Blood' do not deserve to be spoken to by someone so high. But to have Ozai be staring right at Azula as his 'voice' critiques her 'trial', it speaks volumes. I love, too, that Mai calls it out for what it is - that Ozai is playing games with her because he knows she's the best, he just wants something more from her that he refuses to say.

I've seen people say that the last shot of Azula lasts a few seconds too long, but I think they're missing what's being shown - not just what's being told through her last line of 'that I'm the one'. Azula is desperate to be her father's favorite, she's so certain she should be next in line for the throne, and in the animated show, she pretty much is from the jump. I'll need to rewatch season 2 and 3, but I can't remember Ozai every criticizing a thing Azula does - she's just the golden child who's perfect and his shoe-in for heir. Here, he's making her work for it - fight and prove that she's better than Zuko. He thinks that pitting his children against each other will make them both stronger, then the strongest will win out and they'll be that much better for it. We don’t see cracks in Azula's mask until the end of season 3 of the animated show, so I like that here, that lingering shot on her face shows that her expression goes from angry and determined, to almost a frightened desperation. She tries to put on a good face, but she is concerned that her father won't see the truth she does, that she'll be 'treated like Zuko' and punished for not being good enough.

[monstersandmaw]

Here's this month's offering - a female monster this time, and a gender neutral reader, and we're back in Starfall Springs again, and after two months of extraordinarily long (12k each!!) stories, I'm back to the more normal and manageable 2-3k word stories with this one. 

Content: casual hookup that could be interpreted to go further in the future, no specific body parts mentioned during the sex scene, gender and body neutral reader Wordcount: 2702

Starfall Springs wasn’t a glitzy resort like Oyster Cove or Silversand Island. It wasn’t somewhere the extremely wealthy went, unless they had a reason to visit one of the Silkfoot family, of course.

So when you pulled up to the door of Shell Cottage, a tiny, cozy, stone fisherman’s house with limewashed walls and tiny, deep-set windows, and a slate roof that bore moss in between the tiles like extra caulking, you expected the resident to be someone… ordinary.

Of course, ‘ordinary’ for Starfall Springs was a bit more of a variable term than it was for the larger cities, where non-humans tended to be outnumbered 10-1 by humans, so since moving to the quaint, seaside town, you’d come to expect the unexpected with every delivery.

Leaning your bicycle against the rough wall of the house, you unslung your insulated backpack and carefully extracted the bag of hot food, enchanted to keep its contents warm and fresh all the way to its destination, and approached the front door.

Before you could knock, however, a voice drifted out to you from inside, and its owner did not sound happy at all.

“… I don’t care how they got left out of the article, I really don’t, but you need to include images of her paintings in the bloody article about her paintings! She’s an artist, for crying out loud! Gods-dammit do I have to run the entire fucking magazine myself? Fix. It.”

Shit. Sounded like someone wasn’t enjoying their holiday at all. Still, you had a living to earn, and you weren’t going to do it eavesdropping on angry city folk who ran magazines about artists, or whatever this person did.

With a decisive knock on the cutesy, cottage door, you stepped back and waited.

The door nearly flew off its hinges when the occupant opened up, and you looked up at them in surprise. And then up. And up.

At nearly seven feet tall, the tiefling inside was… huge. And… gorgeous.

Her tail lashed back and forth behind her like an angry cat’s, and she was wearing… oh by all the gods… You’d had the door answered to you in all sorts of getups, from cartoon-pyjamas to athletic attire, tuxedos to even just underwear, and one horrifying occasion where they’d worn nothing at all, but this was the first time you’d ever been… affected by it.

Read the whole thing over on Patreon right now, and get access to the huge pre-2020 catalogue, as well as access to polls, WIP snippets and previews, and lifetime membership to our chill Discord server.

[sugar-omi]

Hi Naeomi 👋

Thank you for replying to my inquiry so diligently (omg, me trying to sound like Baxter XD dead)!

For my Baxter request, I want to understand his character more, so I wanna pick ur brain for some ideas 😄

He is a very considerate person as his approach to the MC's comfort level changes between nervous, relaxed, and direct (i think 🤔😅). I just want to know how he reacts with an MC (on crush/love) who is only anxious around him but relaxed with everyone else. MC would be trying to fluster the crap out of Cove and talking excitedly about nerdy stuff (anime/manga, video games, books, random facts on their interests, a tv series, etc.), but when Baxter comes around they simmer down and smile all giddy his way and talk about stuff they he may like or be interested in.

Honestly, my MC would feel a bit unsure how to act around Baxter at first, but eventually, they become more comfortable over time as he is revealed to be easygoing and welcoming to MC's quirky side. Makes my heart flutter just thinking about it, so cute~ 🥰☺️

hii !!! omg your mc sounds so cute n honestly like me when I was younger lol, so sweet<33 excuse to the format I'm on mobile rn and I'll fix text color n format n stuff once I'm on my computer😎👍👍👍👍honestly i had fun writing this, two darlings taking their time to open up n love each other, embracing each others quirks... its so sweet, pls i feel like i could write another lil drabble abt how happy n cute baxter would be w a playful reader like this, mmm many thoughts

tags : fluff, nervous crush/love status w baxter, multiple choice text, headcanons/drabbles

*edited for format

this man is too cocky for his own good, baxter can easily tell how someone feels about him.

but I think that excludes people he has a crush on, as you couldn't possibly like/love him back.

he has some shame! although it's only enough to not assume everyone is in love with him or likes him in any capacity...

anyway, we'll get to that later~

at first he thinks it's because you want to impress him or maybe you don't want to bore him with what you think is brain rot to someone so mature and elegant as him.

(+ a "small" but darker part of him thinks you might hate him, that you don't want to show a piece of yourself to this weird stranger on your block. he squishes the thought)

so he finds out your interest through terri/terry and by spying on snippets of your conversations with your family or with cove.

and even though he will only admit it if you threaten him with something terrifying, like angry dragons, early mornings, or worse- color. then and only then will he admit he wants you to tease him the same way you do with cove.

you're so close with him, snuggling up to cove's side, and you smirk so tantalizingly as you lean i. close to whisper it in his ear, and you say something dirty or perhaps its something cove finds especially scandalous but now cove is blushing and he's pushing you away with a chastising "y/n!"

and baxter wishes it was him...

he wants you to curl up behind him and blow on his ear the way you do cove. he wants you to pinch his butt as he walks by and he wants you to flirt with him.

and he wants you to show up on his temporary doorstep to show him your favorite volume of a manga that you finally got your hands on.

and when baxter is a hopeless romantic because he's so vulnerable under the blanket of night, he imagines you laying next to him in this big bed and he imagines the music is blending in with your voice as you babble on about something before it drifts off into your soft breath when you fall asleep due to the late hour.

but time goes on and his vacation nears the quarter mark and whenever you two talk he notices that you are getting into some of the things he likes, like rock music, and when you see him walking lazily back to his condo you come rushing off the steps of your porch, abandoning your snickering moms, and showing baxter the new song you found that he had not listened to before.

you light up at the praise in a way that makes him wish he could capture it forever...

finally baxter comes to the conclusion that he should speak to you about the things you like, and the first time he mentions something about your hobby you clam up a bit.

you don't want to bore him or scare him off with your excitement but in the end you're showing him your craft/collection and telling him every shiny detail and he's so happy to watch the light in your eyes as you speak.

eventually though you two get to the point where you try to fluster him.

it's not often, baxter makes you far too nervous and he can see anything coming from a mile away. he's so cool and you love him for it but God is his smirking face irritating when you just want him to blush, giggle and kick his feet like a love sicken school girl.

but you finally get him to flush. it takes more than half his vacation for it to happen but you're standing behind him as he works away at plating the dinner you two cooked up together.

it's simple, both of you combined have the cooking skills of a sea turtle but it's good enough for one night and it's edible.

it's good enough, you know your way around a stove well enough not to burn the house down and with baxter as your assistant you're more focused on how fun it was than anything.

it's perfect, you know how to whip up something delicious and baxter did more chopping and passing of the seasonings than anything.

he doesn't process it at first but then it hits him like a ton of bricks.

you just... said something flirty?

he's short circuting and his ears are red, and baxter pretends that his blush isn't spread down to his neck.

it's such a reward for you, you can't help but gape for a moment because baxter alexander ward is walking away from you with a blush from his ears to below the collar of his shirt and he definitely squealed a bit when he beckoned you to the living room.

it takes a whole summer of talking to you about things you like that he has little or no knowledge in, doing an activity that caters to/is apart of your interest, and soothing you when you cut yourself off when talking (it's okay, he does want to hear whatever you're looking to ramble about, be it something exciting, something that happened when practicing your hobby, or venting about something you thought was terrible or sad in a show/comic you saw earlier that week.)

and he finally gets to a point where you're teasing him a bit more often, even if you don't get the flustered reaction you want, and you're taking a page out of cove's book and the two of you spent a secret night in baxter's condo, talking about everything and nothing all at the same time.

but then he leaves, and he let's you down gently but his rejection stabs like a knife anyway.

so when you meet again, half a decade later, baxter feels his heart fall out his stomach so bad he sucks it in to try and make up for the way his heart clocks out and air leaves his lungs...

you look sad. this wasn't what you either of you were expecting to be faced with and having no time to prepare yourself to face the man who ended your relationship that summer has your eyes glassed over and your fingers dig into your skin to ground yourself.

you look indifferent. somehow that hurts more than if you were sad or angry at him, not that he'd prefer it but the smaller part of him thinks that your empty gaze shows he's lost any part in your life and you stare through him like you can see the rawness of his heart...

your face is schooled into a stony expression and you've folded your arms to match the rest of tour cold posture. he can't tell what you're thinking even though he's searching your eyes and this time baxter can't tell if you want to cry, scream at him, or if you're looking past him to the scenic view. but he sees your fingers twitch, like you want to either grab him by his tie or run.

you look angry. you try to mask it, not wanting to display the unadulterated rage you feel but your lip quirks up and your eyes are sharp and the words that escape your lips lick at baxter's ears like fire. if your thunderous glare could kill a man he'd be a goner..

he knows he's fucked up either way.

and the whole time you're working together, you're distant. although sometimes you snap back, you confront him and you joke with him sometimes.

you're both too nostalgic, you're both too in love.

somehow, you let him start over.

perhaps its the nostalgia and sentiment that came from making the groom cake together, or how beautiful scott and jude's wedding went, or perhaps its the way the other person laughs and smiles that has you drunk.

but now you two are sitting on baxter's couch and you're letting him start over.

he messed up, it's something hard to move past. something you did, for better or for worse but now it's for the better and you're moving on together.

and you're almost as nervous as you were when you first met but this time it's more that you're reserved than anything else.

sometimes he thinks he's fucked up too much, that when you cut yourself short while rambling and when you take more interest in his hobbies than your own, baxter puts a stop to it quickly.

it takes while. you both try too much to insert yourself into the other person's likes, as if that will make the comfortable relationship you had once come back quicker.

but finally, you and baxter are sharing a bed in the middle of your new apartment, and you're laughing about something funny Miranda sent you earlier that day and in the morning you two are spinning around your new kitchen in a guideless dance with your hands intertwined and you're laughing...

and baxter loves both versions of you.

the version of you that's so in love with him you quiet down, letting him take up all the space in the world and the other version of you that rants about something stupid in an anime and pinches his pale thigh when he's searching through his messy pile of clothes for that one specific shirt.

and he's so happy you opened up to him and you still open up to him everyday, loving him the same no matter how shy you are that day <333

[dragonmasterhiccup]

She chuckled, though it was fake and sarcastic. “I need to catch up faster, because this isn’t working; I am still so behind on everything I need to be able to do, excluding archery.” She scoffed. “This year has been nothing compared to before. Before, either me or somebody else was on the brink of dying every week, so I’d take getting almost killed once every three months over that any day.”

She sighed, pulling away from him. “See, you say that every time, but I know you’re lying. I’m obviously not that strong, so I’d rather have you just say that than lie just to make me feel better and give me false hope.”

“Hiccup, it happened two days ago, of course they still care— y’know, I wish you could start being honest with me, say stuff as it is and not just try to make me feel better, because it’s starting to get on my nerves,” she said, hugging her knees to her chest.

“He can do a little more than ridicule you, you know… He could try to overthrow you again or something..”

She immediately took note of his flat tone of voice, and a small wave of guilt came over her. She knew Hiccup didn’t have his mom growing up, and now here she was, probably making him upset because she was getting affection that he never got. Maybe she should stop calling Valka ‘mom’…

“Sorry.” Was all she said, her tone a little upset.

“But it’s already been a year, and I don’t know how long I can keep being patient for. And I also don’t feel like I’m getting anywhere.”

He was usually better at this, what was he saying wrong? Why couldn't she see it?

"Danny? Think about this for a second. A year ago, you were camping in the cove, insisting on leaving Berk. You refused to trust anyone and anything. You wouldn't go anywhere near Toothless or any other dragon. And now? You not only have a dragon of your own, but you're part of the Haddock family now. You smile and laugh with us and Camicazi, and correct me if I'm wrong, but you're much happier than you used to be, right?"

He paused. "You need to stop comparing yourself to others, or you'll get nowhere. Since we've met, you've come so far, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't proud of you. I say you're stronger than you realize because it's true. For some reason, you just refuse to believe it..."

Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair. "Did the people have a lot of questions that day? Yes, they did. But they were more curious than angry. Spitelout just knew what to say to rile them up, but once they saw the truth, a lot of them seemed to not mind that you were Drago's daughter. Especially since you've already been here a year, and as far as they know, there haven't been any incidents since."

The most important thing was keeping the big one a secret, if Spitelout found out that a hunter had snuck in and almost succeeded in killing Hiccup, nothing would be able to stop him from taking over.

"He could try, but after what happened, I think the people will think twice before following him."

At her sorry, he blinked, a little confused, before it clicked. "What? Oh, no. No, don't be sorry, it's fine, really. Mom and I, we're fine." And he meant it.

It was hard to see your own progress sometimes. "You've made big strides already. This may be a little setback, but you'll get through it, you're too determined not to." He smiled at her encouragingly.

[faerietothe-otherside]

Choose Your Own Adventure

Option A Location: Rage Cage

Now, see, Rangi was never a particularly angry person, but sometimes even the most chill of people just needed to let off a bit of stress, you know? And so there she was, standing in the lobby at the Rage Cage, a place she'd never been to in her entire five year stay here in Lunar Cove. She'd never had a reason to. Her stress relief before had been to simply go home, snuggle up on her couch with her two cats, and watch some silly guilty pleasure movie like, Practical Magic or The Proposal and okay, any movie with Sandra Bullock in it, really. Who didn't like Sandra Bullock? Her parents, apparently. And that was where the problem lie. Rangi's safe space had been turned into a make shift home for wayward parents.

Hence, Rage Cage. It was just to destress, really! Work was a lot lately, what with the hunter attacks. She was still going through reports and bodies and one of the residency kids had told her to try this place out. The thing was, Rangi really had no idea what she was doing. She'd never broken something on purpose, except like sticks or something. A glass jar once because it wouldn't open. And so, as she looked around, she spotted someone and shuffled over to them. "Hey! So, like--" she leaned in close, her voice growing quiet-- "not to make things weird but do you wanna, maybe, do this with me? I'm not really, uh, used to this kinda stuff."

Option B Shadow Lake Hospital

The problem, now, with the hospital break room, was that her parents knew she went there on her breaks to eat. And if Rangi thought she couldn't get a break from people before, well-- let's just say, she was liking the quiet she had with the souls in her morgue even if most times when she touched them, she saw flashes of their deaths. At least they stopped talking when she asked them to. (Though, to be clear, the dead don't talk to Rangi, even if sometimes she talked to them.)

So, now, she hiding in the public cafeteria downstairs where they had all the overpriced food that tasted like yesterday. She stood up to go refill her cup of ice cream, because at least as an employee, she got free food from the cafeteria. When she got up there, she noticed someone else in the line, reaching for one of the old tortilla wraps. "I'd stay away from those if I were you," she told them, "pretty sure those were there last week, too."

Option 3 Sweet Tooth

Rangi grabbed as many of the little plastic baggies as her hands could hold an starter her rounds through the candy shop. She hadn't loaded up on this many sweets since she was dumped abruptly 2 years ago by a vampire who said her job was too creepy for him. A vampire. She couldn't believe it. She was better off without him, anyway. She hadn't been in a relationship since, though, and now it was going to be even harder to try dating when her parents lived at her house now. She'd suggested they go live at the headquarters, they had much nicer accommodations-- but, of course, they refused politely. Back-handedly, more like. It was a good thing the head hadn't heard what they said.

She was reaching for the scoops for the gummy bears when her hand bumped someone else's. "Oh, sorry, please--" she gestured to the scoop, shuffling the four or five other full bags in her arms so they wouldn't fall-- "go ahead." She looked down at her full arms. "It's...not what it looks like." Even though it probably was.

[reneesbooks]

meja in 3

@chayscribbles thank u for the tag &lt;3

rules: pick an OC and post a song that you relate to them, an image that represents them in some way (aesthetic, picrew, art, etc), and a quote of dialogue or narration from them. feel free to expand or explain!

meja my love. let's talk. salt and brine

song

this was tough bc i make playlists religiously. decided to pick a random from my meja playlist and oh boy did spotify deliver (cw for discussion of domestic violence and miscarriage in the analysis)

so some context. meja is married and was married young, in hass tradition you marry young and have many kids to continue the hass tradition. meja married stian, a spearfisherman who was passing through her village, and moved to his village on the coast. she had one daughter right away, reijka, which disappointed stian because he'd wanted a son. they tried again, and meja lost the pregnancy. stian became more controlling and angry, and meja failed to get or stay pregnant multiple times. stian's abuse grew worse over time, but it was never directed towards reijka so meja let him explain it away. she gets away from him by the end of the story (this is a romance and it has a happy ending) and has some. complex feelings. about him and their marriage in general. some lines in particular:

And I doubt you ever think about the damage that you did But I hold onto every detail like my life depends on it My undying love, now, I hold it like a grudge And I hear your voice every time that I think I'm not enough

And I try to understand why you would do this all to me You must be insecure, you must be so unhappy And I know, in my heart, hurt people hurt people And we both drew blood, but, man, those cuts were never equal

I try to be tough, I try to be mean But even after all this, you're still everything to me And I know you don't care, I guess that that's fine But you know I can't let it go, I've tried, I've tried, I've tried for so long It takes strength to forgive, but I'm not quite sure I'm there yet

i could annotate this entire song if i rlly wanted to bc it makes my brain vibrate at the speed of light about meja

2. picture

meja's refuge is the cove, where she finds kamon on the beach. she continues to meet him there and her excuse for going there all the time is that she sets traps along the shore. no fish swim into those traps, but she picks up plenty of shells and digs up mollusks to bring home, and it's time away from stian if she wants it. she grew up in the foothills, so she loves standing at the edge of the ocean and watching the waves come ashore. fun fact! the north sea is incredibly deep and hass tradition holds that the reason their land doesn't slide into the depths (their equivalent of hell) is due to the waves holding the land up. this is totally an irrelevant detail that has no bearing on the story :)

3. quote

meja's most iconic moment. the night she escapes reijmor, with reijka and her newborn daughter. (another cw for mention of domestic violence)

Meja stands there with Reijka's hand in hers, Eima asleep against her chest, and looks at her friend standing in her way. She feels no remorse. “Move, Tisha.” Tisha shakes her head, her expression hidden by the shadows. “You can't do this, Meja.” “I can and I will.” Her voice is stronger than she expected. “Get out of my way.” The deksa is warm against her collarbone. I know you would defend your home with only your bare hands if you thought you had to. Meja is covered in blood and sweat and tears and she understands the man clutching his deksa, the desperate bravery that comes from having no other choice. “I don't understand,” Tisha says. “I don't expect you to understand.” “How could you betray—” “How could I not?” Meja's hand tightens around Reijka's. “I...” She swallows, steeling herself. “I won't explain myself to you.” “Don't you think I deserve an explanation?” Tisha's voice doesn't raise, as if she's being careful not to give them away. It doesn't reassure Meja at all. “No,” she says. “You don't.” She inhales shakily, shoving down the sobs. “You knew. You always knew what he is. You never helped me, not really.” “I always helped you.” “You let him hurt me for years!” Meja fights to keep her voice low, tears springing to life in her eyes. “You didn't help me, you just turned the other way when the truth was inconvenient to you. I was suffering and you did nothing. So no, you don't deserve an explanation, but I will give you this. The choices I made, I made because the other option was quietly accepting my fate and letting Stian beat me to death without complaint.” Reijka presses against her side, trembling. “I don't care if you don't understand, I don't care if you think I betrayed Bjerkja by laying with an outsider, I don't care if you think Stian had the right to do what he did. It won't change what I did and it won't change what I'm going to do now.” Tisha shifts where she's standing, sighing. “You're a traitor,” she says sadly. “I am a mother.” Meja glares at her. “Get out of my way. I don't want to have to do something that I'll regret doing in front of my daughter.” “I won't stop you,” Tisha says, standing aside. “But I won't help you.” “That's fine.” Meja throws her bag into the boat, helping Reijka climb inside. “I'm used to doing it on my own.”

where is kamon in all of this? :)

tagging @oh-no-another-idea @avrablake @akindofmagictoo and anybody else who would like to do this for an oc!